Seemingly coming out of the blue — like the sudden emergence of a horrible memory buried for years — drone doom supergroup Khanate returns with To Be Cruel (released digitally on May 19th and on physical formats on June 30th via Sacred Bones Records) the group’s first album since 2009’s Clean Hands Go Foul. Shrouded in secrecy prior to its release, To Be Cruel delivers three tracks and 62 mins of harsh, cold, sparse, experimental sounds fit to ruin any good day.
Underground music legend Stephen O’Malley is perhaps best known for his work with Drone Metal gods Sunn O))), but has had a hand shaping heavy music in one form or another as an artist, producer, and label owner for three decades. Sunn O)))’s 2019 release Life Metal drew universal acclaim. Stephen has been kind enough to share eleven albums he loved in 2019 with our readers. Some of these albums are not from this year, or even recent decades, but are all albums he vibed with and worth checking out. Continue reading
Secrecy surrounds the release of Sunn O)))‘s latest opus Life Metal (Southern Lord Records), aimed for a limited release on Record Store Day. Who can blame them? With albums by megastars falling victim to hacks and illegal leaks, it’s frustrating but somewhat understandable to be reviewing a product after it’s initial release. Whatever the strategy an epic journey is guaranteed and, with four tracks spanning seventy minutes, the album doesn’t disappoint in that regard. Continue reading