SUMAC (Baptists, Russian Circles & ex-ISIS) has unveiled more information on their forthcoming album The Deal, out February 3, 2015 via Profound Lore. The record was recorded in Seattle, WA by Mell Dettmer with Kurt Ballou (Converge) mixing it. Check it out here.
01: “Spectral Gold“
02: “Thorn In The Lions Paw“
03: “Hollow King“
04: “Blight End’s Angel“
05: “The Deal“
06: “The Radiance Of Being“
Black Breath is currently working on their next full length via Southern Lord with Kurt Ballou (Converge) at GodCity Studio, and will be taking a break to do a string of January US live dates, which are posted below.
Dec 14: Saint Vitus Bar – Brooklyn, NY
Jan 16: The Astoria – Vancouver, BC
Jan 17: The Swillery – Bellingham, WA
Jan 18: Blackwater – Portland, OR
Jan 19: Chop Suey – Seattle, WA
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Immortal Bird may come from Chicago, but to listen to them you might think they looked out their back window and lay witness to a misty, frozen fjord. Playing a strain of modern black and death metal with other style elements mixed in, combined with striking production values heard too little from this scene they are making an impact. Having played mainly around Chicago, their did a brief US tour this winter to support their debut EP Akrasia (Closed Casket Recordings). We caught up with front woman and group mastermind Rae Amitay after their tour stop in Worcester, MA for an interview.
How is the tour going?
“The tour is going great! I’m really happy with how everything’s been playing out. We’re really getting into the swing of things now, and I’ve gotten to see a lot of friends.”
How do you feel about the response the EP has gotten so far? “
It’s been pretty amazing, and I feel really good about it. You never know how people are going to react, especially to a brand new band with no point of reference, so receiving such overwhelmingly positive feedback is a relief of sorts. I’m sure we’ll get a scathing review at some point, but ideally there will be some sort of constructive criticism hidden amidst the evisceration! I’m glad people are finding something to connect with in our music.”
What is concept behind Akrasia?
“It’s not a concept album exactly, but most of the lyrics deal with the emotional repercussions of acting against one’s better judgment. That’s what ‘akrasia’ is – weakness of will – so a lot of the music explores that side of human behavior.”
Did you develop the concept and the lyrics, or the music first?
“The music came first. Then as I was writing lyrics I started noticing some common themes, and ‘akrasia’ seemed to be the perfect word to describe the overarching message.”
Did you always envision being the front woman for this project and did you have any reservations about doing it?
“I always knew I’d record the vocals for Immortal Bird, but I wasn’t sure about it ever becoming a live project until later on in the writing process. I had a few reservations, because I didn’t want us to get pigeonholed by the whole ‘female-fronted’ thing. I hate even mentioning it, honestly, because it’s so irrelevant to everything this band is about. It can be frustrating, and at times I thought I didn’t want to go through the hassle of explaining that ‘female-fronted’ is not a genre tag. Aside from a few lazy write-ups that felt compelled to repeatedly mention my gender/appearance while writing about our music, I have very few complaints.”
You had a dream team of metal production gods working with you on this album. How did you get connected with Jeff Ziolo, Kurt Ballou and Brad Boatright?
“Jeff came recommended to us by our live drummer, Garry Naples (Novembers Doom/Without Waves). He was a pleasure to work with and he put in a ton of hours to make sure we had a product we felt strongly about. I’d always wanted to work with Kurt and Brad, and they’re a dynamic duo of mixing/mastering, so I just went ahead and asked! I’m grateful that they took us on. I don’t think it’s the last time we’ll be working with them. Their body of work is incredible, and I still have moments where I’m incredulous that Immortal Bird’s debut EP was placed in such gifted hands. Having personnel of that caliber involved really sets the bar high for our next record!”
Other than the Chicago connection, how did Garry come into the project?
“Garry is a good friend of mine, and he plays drums for damn near everyone in Chicago. I’d seen him play with a bunch of different bands, and it was clear to me that he could breathe new life into our material playing it live. It’s also quite beneficial to our dynamic that he and John Picillo (bass) are in another band together called Without Waves. They’ve been a rhythm section for almost a decade, and it shows. They’re completely locked in with one another, and it’s an incredibly important variable that brings our performances to a higher level.”
This is a return of sorts for you, coming back to the Boston area fronting your own band, as opposed to playing with others. Does this bring up any emotions for you?
“Only good ones! In the past, I’ve been a hired gun. It’s an entirely different set of emotions to be on the road with a band that I created. Seeing so many friends tonight means more than I can say. Even though I live in Chicago now, this feels like ‘home’ to me.”
Aside from Immortal Bird most people associate you with Thrawsunblat. What is going on in that camp?
“Thrawsunblat is alive and well! We’re currently writing and plotting for our third full-length. That’s all I can say for now, but yeah, there is a bunch going on!”
One thing that really stands out about you the most is your talent. The novelty of women leading black and death metal bands is well over, but that doesn’t mean there aren’t idiots out there. Have you had to deal with any knuckle heads so far in your career?
“Oh, of course! People haven’t been nasty so much as they’ve been rude, haha. Guys have come up to me and said, “I thought your band was gonna suck because you’re a girl, but you were actually really good.” I think that’s meant as a weird backhanded sexist compliment, but moments like that make me hope that the person in question is not planning on reproducing. There was also a guy who suggested “less screaming and less clothing.” That was more blatantly knuckle-headed, and I suggested “less speaking and less breathing”. He wasn’t amused.”
Outside of music what are some of your hobbies you wish you had more time for?”
Frolicking with puppies. Seriously. I would love to have a dog, but with my lofty touring goals, it’s not going to be possible for a few years at least. I also wish I had more time for non-music writing. I get so preoccupied working on new songs that I don’t really have a ton of time to jot down words.
Words: KEITH CHACHKES
Live photos: HILLARIE JASON PHOTOGRAPHY
Born out of frustration and tragedy, Vallenfyre’s A Fragile King debut saw Gregor Macintosh stepping up to the mic to vent his anger and sorrow he experienced following his father’s death from cancer two years prior. The result was an album of full on brutal death metal with touches of crust and the air of desperation which made day job Paradise Lost’s early work so vital. Following several triumphant appearances it would appear that perhaps the members commitments to their other acts would mean shelving this gnarled beast but clearly Vallenfyre has taken on a life all its own!
Simply put Splinters (Century Media) is a banger. The grime and raw aggression of the debut is all present and correct but greater inspection of their influences reveals the band are as adept at deathly doom as they are at vicious crusty proto-metal. Complete with a production job from Converge axeman and über-producer Kurt Ballou whose subtle contributions help capture a suitably sombre mood allowing the Yorkshire mob to exercise their considerable muscle.
Quite why Macintosh has chosen to conceal his corrosive roar until their 2011 debut is unclear but his savage vocal emissions are matched perfectly by the dense riffs and soaring melodic sections championed by My Dying Bride guitarist Hamish Glencross who brings with him, his considerable talent for twisted minor harmonies.
Pulverising slabs of bitterness such as ‘Thirst For Extinction’ and lead number ‘Scabs’ are equally matched in the misery stakes by ‘Bereft’ and ‘Aghast’ which should appeal greatly to fans of their creators other projects. The two-minute assault of ‘Instinct Slaughter’ is pure hatred distilled into music giving fans of acts like Doom and Extreme Noise Terror a soundtrack to crack skulls to. The deliciously filthy guitar tones and aberrant nastiness never lets up throughout the eleven tracks which hold ‘Splinters’ together. Forget over indulgent tech-death posturing, this is music played from the gut, pure and desensitized filthy and with utter contempt for anything other than being genuine and authentic.
Sadistic and aggressive with endless moments of bleak reflection Splinters is a leviathan unleashed upon unsuspecting listeners and a release surely destined to grace many year end lists.
9/10
Ross Baker
Let’s get this out the way; Climax (Svart) by Beastmilk is pure hero worship of a whole clutch of 80’s influences. I heard all the originals many times in between figure-of-eighting to ‘Temple of Love’ and ‘Moonchild’ at The Dungeon goth club in South-fucking-hampton and had long since moved on. Yet, hearing them now put together by a new, yet highly referential outfit, the interest is well and truly piqued, and got me in the mood to go back to the originals. Can’t ask for more than that…
Beastmilk are one of those strange (milky) beasts that don’t play metal but have been embraced by the metal community. Whether that’s because vocalist Kvohst has history in blacker climes (Dødheimsgard and Code) or because it takes those us approaching middle age back to our youth and experiments in painting fingernails black (once! I did it once! Same as the white silky frilly shirt! I’ll admit the leather trousers were worn until they fell apart though), or because you can’t argue with really good songs, whatever the style.
Launching with the energetic punky trio of Cure meets The Smiths ‘Death Reflects Us’, standout track ‘The Wind Blows Through The Skulls’ and the catchy ‘Genocidal Crush’, memorable song after memorable song continues, with the exceptions of the maudlin (and frankly dreary) ‘Ghosts Out of Focus’ and perhaps ending downer ‘Strange Attractors’. From ‘Nuclear Winter’ to ‘Surf The Apocalypse’ to ‘Lost In A Cold World’ Climax is a series of strong death-rock anthems, all of them driven on by an energetic and strong production from Kurt Ballou and an 8th-note peddling goth-punk bassline (Arino)overlaid with the jangly and dreamy guitars of Goatspeed (WTF? – ST), while Kvohst switches from Morrissey to Glenn Danzig to Ian Curtis, nailing the ideal style for the mood and section of the song.
As an added side-game you can play ‘spot-the-80’s’ reference as Bauhaus, Killing Joke and most prominently Joy Division (amongst others) raise their post-punk gothic-rock heads, but when the songs are this impressive, it matters not the amount of homage being paid, what matters is how good an album this is. And Climax is a very good album indeed.
8/10
Steve Tovey
Nate Newton is a busy man. Besides playing bass in Converge and being a guitarist in Old Man Gloom he also fronts his own band, called Doomriders. Ghost Cult caught up with him to discuss Grand Blood (Deathwish), the new Doomriders album. He was also keen to tell more about the personal nature of some of the songs, working with producer Kurt Ballou and the upcoming tour schedule.Continue reading
Blackened Thrash Metal act Skeletonwitch are back with a brand new album. Recorded with the prominent producer Kurt Ballou (Converge), Serpents Unleashed (Prosthetic Records) comes out in a special moment in Skeletonwitch’s career. The band is also celebrating the tenth anniversary. More than enough reasons to chat with the guitarist and founding member, Scott Hedrick.Continue reading
Skeletonwitch is the kind of band that makes you feel good, no matter what. Many people can say the band does not bring anything new to the table and to be completely honest… It’s kind of true. From day one they had the good sense of doing their music always focussing on getting good songs, one thing that most extreme bands have lost. That ladies and gentleman, sets this band apart.Continue reading
Norse trailblazers Kvelertak split open the metal scene with their incendiary self titled debut not to mention a fierce reputation on the live front. A mash up of furious punk rock, searing black metal and rock n’ roll swagger the first record was indeed something very special. Having returned to Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou and God City studios for this sophomore effort Meir contains all the characteristic of what made Kvelertak such a shot in the arm.Continue reading