The Chernobyl disaster rocked the then-Soviet Union in 1986. Ronald Reagan was the president. Gas was just over a dollar a gallon (Editor’s note, gas was $2.14 per gallon nationwide in 1984). Times were much different so many decades ago, which makes it all the more remarkable that epic doom metal pioneers Candlemass – who formed in 1984 – continue to wield the torch of the scene, guiding the masses and collecting newcomers along the way.
A new doom metal “supergroup” releasing a COVID-19 lockdown album in late 2022. That sentence, which describes MMXX‘ Sacred Cargo (Candlelight) in plain terms, will no doubt inspire a variety of different thoughts and feelings in people with an interest in such things. Some might dismiss the concept (album) out of hand. After all, the band’s name translates as “2020” and, well, not only is it not 2020 anymore, but the mere mention of that year is liable to inspire at least a wearied eye-roll if not a flashback to genuine out-and-out despair.
The cutting room floor after a Worm brainstorming session must be quite the sight to see!
Through Sheer Will and Black Magic (20 Buck Spin) is the debut full-length release from Philadephia’s Daeva, a perhaps overdue followup to 2017’s Pulsing Dark Absorptions EP. The new record is a “fiery maelstrom of early demonic black metal and jagged edge thrash convulsions”, according to the press release, and the cover art is undeniably of the Hellish persuasion, depicting as it does in quasi-cartoon form a plethora of dragons, devil-beings and other assorted ghoulish creatures against a dramatic backdrop of moody skies and outlandish cliffs. It’s the type of album cover that could have been plucked straight out of the eighties and that could either be viewed as life-affirmingly nostalgic or snigger-inducingly ludicrous.
I believe in reading as a creative experience. The Reader comes to the work with their intellect, imagination, expectations, wants and needs, and sets out, consciously or not, to forge their very own “version” of the original text, however sacred. And that “version” will no doubt be different from yours, mine or anyone else’s. As with The Reader, or The Audience Of The Film, Play Or Live Performance, I believe The Listener Of The Album (Or EP) does the same. I also believe in the mighty Fucked Up.
Skin & Sorrow (Aqualamb) is the second full-length release from Cleveland, Ohio’s “heavy, low and witchy” duo Frayle. The band consists of multi-instrumentalist Sean Bilovecky and singer Gwyn Strang, who between them cite the influence both doom metal (Black Sabbath, Kyuss, Sleep) and avant-garde pop (Björk, Portishead). Frayle’s stated aim is to create “music for the night sky”.
We recently caught up with Gwyn Strang and Sean Bilovecky of Frayle to discuss their new album “Skin & Sorrow” – due out soon from Aqualamb Records! We chatted about the new album, the evolution of the group both live and on record, Salem Massachusetts and the infamous witch trials, their attention to detail for visuals, their recent music video, and much more!
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It is always impressive to me when people from already awesome projects can create another interesting and vital branch on their musical tree. That is what Mike Snow (Seas Of Winter, Apricitas) and Aki McCullough (mighty Dreamwell) have accomplished with the awe-inspiring Necroplanet release Negative Space (self-released). Only Author & Punisher‘s latest comes to mind as something close to capturing the gigantic scope of dirgy and semi-industrialized emotion on display here. Cosmic funeral doom that isn’t for the faint of heart and which will soon become a minor addiction you will want to spin alone in the dark after a long day. It makes total sense that it is a concept record about isolation and emptiness.
There is something mystifying about records that are able to mix beautiful melodies and soundscapes with the aggressive signature of a metal band. Dreadnought has been doing this for a decade now and has released its fifth collection entitled The Endless (Profound Lore). The mix of progressive song structures, jazz, and classical elements, and elegantly placed influences of black and doom metal really tie the band’s sound together. The album is deceptively forty-plus minutes long as listeners will surely lose themselves in the midst of this one.Continue reading
For years, Conan has shaped themselves into one of the heaviest bands on the planet. With their fifth release, Evidence of Immortality (Napalm Records), they maintain sole possession of that throne with their enemies’ heads at their feet. While the “caveman battle doom” pioneers have their own sound, they continue to push their own boundaries of their older releases ever so slightly to keep everyone coming back for more. Continue reading