Nachtmystium - Black Meddles I and II

 

I've been on a real, genuine, phenomenologically-valid, where-the-fuck-did-this-come-from-but-I-kinda-dig-it Nachtmystium kick lately.

I saw them live in June of 2010, touring with Eyehategod. I went to see EHG specifically (though I owned Addicts at that point), and though their closer of "Assassins" was fucking awesome and a rare combination of showmanship and black metal, I failed to fully heed the Nachtmystium call. Said clarion declaration was beyond these ears.

However, and this only of late, that cry pulls my ear-- beckons my eye--  tugs my centre-- and did make boldly necessary this oblation to their manifest corporeal connection to divinity... yielding this sacred equation, which I humbly submit unto thee:

Pure black metal,

plus (arguably)...

music reflective/ exalting  of experiences born from hallucinogenic states (à la Pink Floyd and/or Rimbaud's "Systematic derangement of the senses")

equals...

black metal born of said drug-induced states

which specifically yields:

Nachtmystium's Assassins: Black Meddle Part I and Addicts: Black Meddle Part II.

THIS

is my thesis, at any rate.

Regarding Assassins: Black Meddle, PT. I:

IT IS the screams of the inarticulate, the groundlings, in emulating, this however with pathos, the peace they found in one or more Pink Floyd albums, much like the Ministry's "Breathe," in cruder, less articulate terms, though more passionate, and no less realized for that...

...the last three tracks seems to imply some sort of concept album, or at least a theme album, but if so, what story do they connote? It seems tragic, it seems angry, it seems unsettling, it seems vague... it's most definitely moody, also there are alto sax parts, which amazingly do not sound like a late 80s-AOR rock band...

...although if it sounded like Cameo that would be more than fine....

Opener "One of These Nights," what with its wind sounds, sounds like an ice planet somewhere, like Hoth, like the swirling storms of Jupiter, or the MDMA-esque, ravish underside of Saturn-- does that make sense? No? Learn your astronomy bitches.

"Ghosts of Grace" is the most "normal" sounding tune here-- an extremely "underground," poorly-but-interestingly-lively-recorded Sex Pistols-y attempt to sound like Pink Floyd... this crudeness suggests someone like Murphy from devilishly-boldly-underrated teen comedy Charlie Bartlett, in that he's confessing something intimate to you, like he's not really that much of a pistol of the sexes, more of a floyd who's also pink... but after he talks these lines, is going to be embarrassed that he even told you-- there's such a ungainly, gangly intimacy to it...

...it's almost touching.

"Omnivore" is a black-metalled, diabolus in musica of psychedelic and mystic chords resonant of menace-- then tribal drums, guttural utterances... an overall degradation and evolution at the once....

And what, prithee, what does this say about society, when our normal diet is drugs, is television highs from consumerism, from rationalism, mass manipulation, material expression*--

and not physical sustenance?

THIS IS the information age, indeed, when even our corporeality is digital, is bar-coded....

 

And about Addicts:

Part II is possibly evidence, actual physical contact!, with the evidence Gods, whatever their names, of how the internet sometimes contributes to greatness in music:

Addicts is an amalgam of the strangest two genres to partner-- early-80s new wave pop (like Modern English, Depeche Mode, Flock of Seagulls), a tiny bit of Killing Joke and Ministry (pre-The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste) and of course (by way of Chicago)-- black metal.

From what else but through the internet's instant-access-to-any-genre capabilities could such a union be birthed?

It doesn't always work, but it's refreshing and singularly inspiring, that there are so many (and these, incredibly disparate) genres on this one album. "High on Hate" comes off like a Burzum track with integrity: all low bass, high treble riffs, and downbeats over 200 beats per minute....

"No Funeral" (not the truly great Revocation song from Chaos of Forms), but a Truly Great, early ministry/ killing joke tune... is a, uh... pop song with black metal vocals...? At 4:30 it couldn't sound more like a Dawnbringer song... "Then Fires" comes off as maudlin and somewhat necessary if you're stoned or coming off a long drunk-- it comes off like a New Wave sludge tune, Killing Joke via Electric Wizard, or Zoroaster covering Depeche Mode.... and speaking of Dawnbringer, the chorus of the next tune,"Addicts" --  "All we need is more" definitely sounds like Chris Black-- makes me wonder if he composed it....

The entirety of Addicts, when considered as an album and not a collection of songs--

and this in light of its following Assassins--

is almost an extended coda to Assassins, is an extended credits-scene, one heralding, celebrating and yet also mourning, the perceiver's departure from those agreeable protagonists, from that familiar sound... an extended sonic sounding of farewell....

Well done, Blake Judd. I look forward to Silencing Machine.

*Thank you, Oswald Spengler.

--Horn

Haemoth – In Nomine Odium

“This is the soundtrack to your worst nightmare: Life”.  So says the press release accompanying this album from French black metallers Haemoth.  If your life is unrelentingly bleak, filled with plague and pestilence, nasty and noxious, then this probably is your soundtrack.  This is music made by musicians unapologetically in league with Satan.  And it is so damn good.

I have written before about my love of French black metal.  I have never been to France, so I don’t know what it is about that fair country that provides us with such quality black metal, but this is definitely the grade A good stuff.  This is what black metal should sound like.  This is how black metal should make you feel.  Hopeless.   Haunted.  Forlorn.  The music is menacing, virulent, and vehement.  There is no doubt about how these guys feel about life on planet Earth when you listen to this music.  Any effort that can make you feel things to this degree is worth taking note of, whether you actually like the particular genre of music or not.  Music should take you somewhere and make you feel.  Maybe that’s what makes this stuff so good.

The song titles give you an idea of where this is headed before you even give it a listen.  “Odium”.   “Slaying The Blind”.  “Demonik Omniscience”.  “Spiritual Pestilence”.  “Disgrace”.  “Son Of The Black Light”.  “….And Then Came The Decease”.  This ain’t no party, or disco, or foolin’ around.  This is flat out war on humanity, Christianity, goodness, light, happiness, and all related topics and ideas.  There are ambient passages on this album that will absolutely creep you the fuck out, that will make you check to be sure the lights are on in the house and go check out any noises you hear.  Because there are times when you just aren’t sure if Satan and his minions might be coming up through your kitchen floor.

So personal confession time; I don’t know what it is about music like this, but it actually relaxes me.  It soothes me.  Maybe deep down inside I’m just a sociopathic hater of mankind, maybe I can’t wait until the Dark Lord rises up to take dominion over this world.  To see the dawn of a new day when, to quote Black Sabbath, “Satan laughing spreads his wings”.  Maybe I’m not the happy go lucky guy most people see me as.  Maybe I’m someone you should just stay away from.

But I think it’s more likely that I just love music that makes me feel.  I love music that exposes thoughts and ideas, even if they are a little controversial or outside of the mainstream.  Or maybe that’s just what I want you to think, so your guard is down when I bury an axe deep into your skull.

 - ODIN

Enslaved - Isa

I had a dream. Not quite what the good Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. had in mind, I’m sure . . . but a dream nonetheless. This one, in particular, had me sitting in a wooden box positioned in the middle of a frozen lake. With nothing but a case of beer and my thoughts as my companions, I was alone in the middle of a frozen wasteland . . . alone. Then there was a knock at the door of my hut of solitude. Unnerving, to say the least, for who knew I was here . . . and how did anyone get out here? The door slowly opened and five long haired and imposing figures, draped in practically nothing, stood in the ice encrusted doorway and with one simple statement claimed, ‘It’s time.’

I awoke from my deep sleep and, rather than incur the wrath of these wraiths sent by Morpheus, I pushed play on my iPod (no sense incurring the wrath of the wife either . . . it was two o’clock in the morning) and, as if by the hands of fate, Enslaved’s Isa began its musical transcendence.

Released in 2004, Isa was the much anticipated follow up to one of my all-time favorite records, Below the Lights . . . an album that I once referred to as the musical equivalent of ice fishing, something not meant for everybody, but for those into such things, a short moment in time of sheer bliss. Blistering extreme metal that originated from a black metal core and wound up becoming one of the more intriguing progressive metallic sounds around, and Isa took that Below the Lights blueprint and propelled it through the stratosphere. To say that Isa was a grand leap in direction and sound for Enslaved would be a massive understatement. But, then again, there’s that unique back step that the band takes with their sound . . . incorporating a little of that 70’s prog-rock into their sound, as well. Isa is a fascinating amalgam of, then, current extreme metal mixed with the sounds of yesterday to create a sound all unto its own.

 This album starts off in sheer creepy fashion with the absolutely chilling “Intro: Green Reflection”. Put this song on while walking through a forest and you’ll be shitting ice cubes. If that doesn’t work, wait a few seconds because when “Lunar Force” drops in, the pulse rate will increase. Horrifying demonic vocal screeching complemented by a wall of guitars and wrecking ball of rhythms fill every crevice of space of sound, but this is where I first recognized that this wasn’t the black metal that I thought it was going to be. The guitars don’t have that piercing or grating quality that traditional black metal has. These guitars are cold and icy, but enveloping like an early morning frozen fog. The ambience that the music creates has a sinister organic vibe to it . . . almost like turning over a rock and seeing the creepy crawlies writhing over one another. Then the band takes a massive left turn and gets mighty progressive on us . . . instead of a wall of sound, Enslaved serve up a staccato guitar riff over an off time and complex rhythm. Listen close and absorb the brilliance of the musicianship as all of the players are meshed around each other with their performances, shifting from standard 4/4 to some wild double and triple time rhythms . . . and then feel it as the song begins to build with more and more tension . . . creeping along the forest floor, rummaging for sustenance, and then getting supremely psychedelic before exploding into the main theme again. This song gets better and better with every listen!

Follow that up with “Isa” and the musical journey through the heart of darkness continues. Heavy ass guitars and rhythms again pummel the listener, and the vocals of longtime vocal/bass stalwart, Grutle, assail us with so much venom and piss and bile that you can’t help but feel your skin crawl. But here’s the new wrinkle . . . Enslaved incorporate clean-ish vocal harmonies that further add a discordant chill to the music as they work in contrast to the hellish belch of Grutle. Hehe . . . the Hellish Belt of Grutle . . . my new band name. Keep trudging over the decaying leaves of the haunted forest and hear how the band drops in a little keyboard flourish to add another sinister element to the overall sound. Great use of instrumentation and composition to create a world of fantastic dimension!

For you fans of intricate patterns within music, “Ascension”, especially the first two minutes or so, will call for your love. And again, Enslaved inject clean vocals that add heft and weight to the already burdensome sounds of the band . . . not the type of weight that we dread trudging along with, but the kind of weight that actually feels welcome, gives us substance and the air of accomplishment. Sprawling and magnificent, this song is that song that takes us from wandering around the forest floor and puts us on the back of a soaring eagle, diving though the clouds, hugging the mountainous terrain as we ride the air currents that Mother Nature blows our way.

Something else to consider on Isa is that this is the first time that I really recognize the use of keyboards in the band’s sound. There were some on Below the Lights, but it seems that Enslaved made better use of them on Isa . . . or this album was better produced to better capture the keyboard sounds. I can only think that this is one of the reasons I find this album as compelling as I do. The added depth with the keyboard sounds mixed with the already established traditional metal sound creates a world of intrigue that always makes the music interesting, even if I’ve heard it a million times before.

The entire work of Isa is a fantastic voyage. “Bounded By Allegiance”, “Return To Yggdrasill”, and the near 12-minute epic, “Neogenesis” are further examples of the musical growth that Enslaved has shown over the course of their lengthy career. Where Below the Lights was a dark album with a constant flitting and flickering ray of light to guide us, Isa is a harsh and cold landscape that is showing a little color of Spring breaking through the winter frost. The musicianship throughout this album is top notch and always surprises. Extreme metal, indeed, but I love how the band starts to work in simple little elements of vocal harmony and haunting melody to greater effect. Still a band that won’t appeal to the masses or be everybody’s cup of tea, thankfully . . . sometimes, I don’t like to share . . . a little 70’s rock influence, a heavy dose of nuvo-prog, and a mean streak of extreme metal . . . Enslaved, a band that pays homage to their influences, but refuses to get pigeon-holed into one genre and continuously pushes the envelope on creative expression.

I’m going back to sleep now . . . hopefully I won’t have any more spectral visitors and can get some much needed rest!

Pope

www.enslaved.no

Farsot – Insects

 

Farsot is a black metal band from Germany.  “Insects” is their second release.  But this is not your father’s black metal.    I’m sure someone more clever than me could tell you that this is “post blah blah blah”, and I’m not really all that attached to all the sub genres in metal.  What I can tell you is that this is good stuff.

There are some very traditional elements and some very experimental elements at work here.  The mix of these elements combines to make this a very interesting album.  Opener “Like Flakes Of Rust” begins with what sounds like a swarm of insects and sets the tone.   There is some narration throughout the album that was either written for this or they sure found some sweet samples that are just right.  There are robotic, metallic sounding vocals that are just what you imagine our insect overlords would sound like.  There are some nice acoustic moments throughout as well.  And these are all combined in ways that make this a very interesting album.

I’m not sure if this is intended as a concept album but there are definite themes that unify this release.  The songs flow together nicely, there are no jarring transitions, and what I can understand of the lyrics all makes me think that this is of a piece and not just eight independent tracks.  The press release accompanying this album points out that the band spent four years putting this together, which is a long time, but then again, when the final results are this good then obviously time well spent.

It seems to me that more extreme metal is making some inroads and that more people are taking note of this music.  This is the kind of release that will help that process.  There is nothing here that is simply shock value to get attention, or extreme just for the sake of being extreme, or any of the other tired tricks that metal bands will roll out from time to time.  Just a good solid, well written, well performed group of songs released into the world.

I like music that challenges me and takes me in directions that I was not expecting.  Metal has its share of cookie cutter, copycat bands, bands that just play by the numbers, and bands that are unimaginative.  It is very refreshing to hear a band like Farsot that does not seem to follow any conventions, but rather seems to have something to say and knows how to say it.

--Odin

Impetuous Ritual - Relentless Execution of Ceremonial Excrescence

 

Y'ever watch True Blood or read the Sookie Stackhouse novels?

You say you're a heterosexual male... so no?

Let me re-phrase.

Have a girlfriend/wife?

Y'ever passively listen while True Blood plays in the same room as the couch you're sitting on, while waiting for Anna Paquin to get naked again?

That's what I thought, you coy motherfucker.

In said world, "V" (vampire blood) is used as the ultimate psychedelic/ opiate/ steroid/ stimulant drug.

Impetuous Ritual and their full length, Relentless Execution of Ceremonial Excrescence, is like V--

but only if it came from Cthulu!

That's right-- Impetuous Ritual creates the suggestion of mainlining the very life fluid of the most ancient of the Old Ones.

More evidence of said controversial thesis:

One, it's like they're seriously trying (facetiously?) to out-complex-name Carcass and the 1000 death metal bands and their obsession with medical textbook terminology that followed in their wake (e.g., just dig that album title);

Two, if Portal weren't fucking weird enough for you;

Three, if you love Sunn O))) and their obsession with sound and its effects on the human body for their own sake (rather than as music);

Four, if you love that photo above (no shoes or shirt, big-ass 7-string string guitar, grizzly fuck-off beard, bloody face, wrist spikes);

Then THIS is the death/black metal/noise band for you.

Impetuous Ritual, Australian, formed from two members of Portal, released Relentless Execution of Ceremonial Excrescence (on Profound Lore)  in late 2009; since then apparently it has been worming its way to me, presumably via the Pacific then Atlantic Oceans.

That's a creepy thought-- thought it somehow also makes me feel loved. Or at least attended to.

It's low-fi, noisy, blast-beat-ridden, shriek-filled, violent, menacing, incoherent fury that very nearly, if not altogether, transcends the normal functions of music as we know it.

Tracks:

"Convoluting Into Despondent Anachronism" blasts out of the gate and later drops into a sweet noise/doom riff at about 3:00; "Coalescence of Entropy" features some stupid-hard drums, both blast-beats and wildly high-metre 4/4 (I'm guessing around 350 bpm-- and the music-training programs I usually use to practice only go to 340); "Ceremonial Disembowelment," at about 0:50, lurches down into a great tremolo-picked doom riff before it takes off again periodically into blast beats; "Destitution" (instrumental, and my fave so far) is nearly all doom, with a a stupidly-detuned riff in what sounds like fourths (not the fifth of the power chord we all know and usually love); "Ritual of the Crypt" has a fucking cool vibrato'ed doom riff at about 0:50 (new favorite!), and the album closes out with the slow, dirgy "Dirge."

If you're in a mood that's open this type of sound (only scarcely a type of music-- though this isn't an insult)-- this is some cool shit.

Though in all honesty, if you consistently have this on, and love it-- you might seriously consider antipsychotics and/or antidepressants. No functioning human being should be in this mood all the time.

--Horn

Blackened Hardcore vs. Hardcored Black Metal: Is there a difference? What YOU need to know! - Featuring Dead in the Dirt's "Fear," Early Graves' "Goner" and Craft's "Void."

Did the headline work?

Did you read it and immediately think, without logically evaluating anything, "Holy Christ! Why the goddamn hell do I not know the crucial differences in these sub- sub- sub- sub-genres of metal?!?!" [Not sure why I'm making you sound like Hunter Thompson.]

Suh-weet. I'm awesome, brosef.  [I assumed you said "yes," or "Of course, Master."]

Just the fact that hardcore and black metal can both be present in a band means 2011 isn't all bad. Not like 1987, when the mere idea of punk and metal together meant a fight. Now with some bands you may as well not bother trying to give a genre.

That's very cool to me. That's "peace in the galaxy"/ tolerant-of-all enough to be on a Star Trek episode.

Anyhoo-- two hardcore punk acts with obvious black and sludge metal influences, today we have Dead in the Dirt and Early Graves, specifically their respective releases Fear and Goner, as well as Craft's Void, which to me is more black metal with hardcore features.

First, Fear. Chuggy, breakdown-ish sludgy, blastybeaty hardcore (with a very agile drummer-- he usually plays the blast beat or the d-beat, but can turn on a dime when the music needs that, more like a tech-death style drummer).

Ridiculously intense, it never relents, not for one goddamn second. It's like the most angry/ferocious features of hardcore, black metal and grindcore joined forces to become, Voltron-style, a super-aggro being possessing all of the strengths of its constituents but none of their weaknesses!

Guess that's really more like Blade, but... still.

Fear, song-wise, is definitely of the LOLA (like one, like all) category-- the entire work is essentially one long, detuned raging blackened hardcore-fest.  "Disease" encapsulated their sound best, I think, and even for these songs is brief (1:51).

Next, Goner-- the most obviously metal of the three here, still very very hardcore (d-beat, three-chord tunes), and very nearly as psychotically angry as Dead in the Dirt's work. "Rot" is my favorite, followed closely by "Wraiths," which opens with a lovely sludged-off riff. Unfortunately, Early Graves love to fill space with feedback, which gets old.

But enough about these acts for a minute-- let's talk about you. You look different. Have you done something with your hair? Lost weight? Been working out? Had some sort of major elective surgery? Joined a cult? Pregnant? You are glowing. Whoo, I tellya, if I were 20 years younger (older?) I'd be all over that.

Aaaaaaand we're back. Regarding Craft's Void, track three, "Come Resonance of Doom" is a lurching, sludgy blackened hardcore breakdown of a song, like Harley Flannigan was in Darkthone or, more accurately, like Mortuus singing for Discharge.

Tell me that doesn't sound wicked cool, yeah?

Track 4, "The Ground Surrenders" is straight out of the Disfear playbook-- until about halfway through, where there's black metal aplenty-- vocals, blast beats, and a choral section. It's a very cool blend of the two styles.

Void is growing on me the more I listen to it. It's probably the most enduring of the three, becuase it never manages to be predictable or boring. The former two aren't boring either, I don't mean that-- it's just that you'll always know what to expect with them.

--Horn

A non-Sunday Conversation with Ogen

When I was a kid, growing up in a house with Cat Stevens, Neil Diamond, and Simon and Garfunkel, the first time I ever heard Kiss's "Detroit Rock City," it was a moment of musical epiphany. It was just so vicious, aggressive and mean. It changed the way I listened to music. I've had a few minor epiphany's since then, when you come across a band that just brings something new and revolutionary to your ears.

What have been your musical epiphany moments?

Surely when I was given as a birthday present the eponimous album from Iron Maiden. Since then I devoted myself to the discovey of this rather unknown dominion that back then was for me the heavy metal world. Then I would probably say, seeing Tiamat supporting Black Sabbath in my own city, which got me into fantastic bands far from being mainstream that populated the scene in Europe from the early Nineties.

Talk to us about the song-writing process for you. What comes first, the idea? A riff? The lyrics? How does it all fall into place?

First comes the riff, but the riffing itself is loosely bound to a lyrical, or conceptual idea that strengthens and in some way leads the writing process. Sometimes it takes some just few hours to have the final song, more often it's, maybe, a matter of weeks, it all depends on how excited I get with the newborn riffs and... on my laziness!

Who has influenced you the most?

Bands from the Eighties – melodic stuff as Iron Maiden and other NWOBHM bands – and various bands from the northern side of Europe, like Emperor, Ulver, In the woods, and other Norwegian acts, Swedish bands like Bathory (mainly the epic stuff) and more elaborate stuff like Opeth and maybe old Katatonia, but even some mid Nineties' doom-death bands like My dying bride. But I think that a real musical influence was mainly played by the above mentioned black metal bands.

Where do you look for continuing inspiration? New ideas, new motivation?

I really love mountains, and – even though it may sound a bit cliché – I still think they are a perfect subject for writing lyrics and music that's both intriguing and epic. I love mountains not only from a poetic, literary perspective since I always 'lived' this kind of environment, being the Alps really close to where I live and having climbed, skied and walked a lot on their backs through all my life...

Genre's are so misleading and such a way to pigeonhole bands. Without resorting to labels, how would you describe your music?

An adventurous, sincere, epic output of basic musical needs.


What is you musical intention? What are you trying to express or get your audience to feel?

I'd be more than happy if I could bring the audience to feel for a while isolated from the noise and repetitiveness of daily life; I'd like to offer a brief yet intense way to rediscover the basic need to feel in touch with nature and awe-inspiring elements – like mountains – that are the same age of the Earth.


Come on, share with us a couple of your great, Spinal Tap, rock and roll moments?

The best Spinal Tap moment of my musical 'career' actually deals with another band I played in for the last 15 years. It happened while gigging abroad and basically it was me thanking the great audience we were lucky to play before through a microphone connected to an harmonizer / octaver set tu 'on', so that each time I addressed the audience my voice was actually super high-pitched...


What makes a great song?

The feel to be hearing something that's obviously great and simple but none ever managed to write before.


Tell us about the first song you ever wrote?

I really can' remember which one it was! I remember that with every new slice of music I was able to write, felt that something was happening with my compositional skills and it kind of forced me to go ahead without topping!


What piece of your music are particularly proud of?

Maybe 'Crest of the forgotten', fast, short but rich nonetheless.


Who today, writes great songs? Who just kicks your ass? Why?

I think that great bands are to be seen in Enslaved and Opeth, just to make the first names which I happen to like a lot. They are always evolving though retaining solid roots to what makes them recognizable. And they play music for music's sake.


Vinyl, CD, or digital? What's your format of choice?

CD, but I wish I could turn my CD collection into vinyls.


Whiskey or beer? And defend your choice

Beer: you can drink a lot and still be able to play some music.


We, at the Ripple Effect, are constantly looking for new music. What's your home town, and when we get there, what's the best record store to lose ourselves in?

My home town is a middle Italian city not far from Milan, whose name is Brescia. You definitely must go to Magic Bus Dischi, the temple of Rock-Metal music in town and a real sanctuary for anyone willing to form a band and get some advices by a great person and a real rocker, the owner Gigi.


Any final comments or thoughts you'd like to share with our readers, the waveriders?

I'd like to thank anyone who invested time in reading and conducting this interview. Give Ogen's debut EP a chance: we didn't reinvent the wheel but you might find some little gems here and there...

Falloch - Where Distant Spirits Remain

 

With it coming down to the last days of August, the temperature here in Arkansas is still reaching a hundred and five degrees on some days. After going through the miserable heat wave that took several peoples lives when it got as hot as a hundred sixteen degrees at times, I was more than welcoming winter to completely destroy us and bury me in snow. While the majority of humans will say they love winter during the horrible summers and adore summer when they have to drive to work in the freezing cold, I’ve always been the type of person that could live in the winter-esk conditions, forever. So, what goes good with snow, freezing temperatures and icy roads? If I had to choose a new soundtrack to this coming winter, something that literally embraces winter for everything it is, Falloch’s debut record “When Distant Spirits Remain” is that record that will have you freezing to death.

Creeping very slowly out of the harsh winters of Glasgow, Scotland, this two piece atmospheric/post-rock/folk duo, does a spectacular job of setting a mood and sticking to it. “Where Distant Spirits Remain” paints a picture, a picture that may not make you literally freeze, it will place you in a position of whether or not you should cover up with a couple blankets while this record is spinning. From front to back, this record makes me think of snow mountaintops, lakes that are frozen over and old churches that have been abandon for years. Not to mention, even though this record does have speed and chaos, it’s presented in very small doses and those doses are lethal yet very enjoyable.

The one thing that always came back to my mind while this record was playing is that it’s a soundtrack, it could easily be used in a silent film and even in the background to some films. Even though it can get pretty intense with heaviness and pure

“Where Distant Spirits Remain” is magical, it’s passionate and without a doubt in my mind, this record is the most gorgeous yet honest records I’ve heard in the last several years. Even though I am very confident in knowing Falloch recorded this record inside of a very warm, comfortable studio, I can’t help but want to think that these two guys might of recorded it inside of an empty shack in the middle of nowhere. Now, while several tracks on the record such as “Beyond Embers and The Earth” and “To Walk Amongst The Dead”, may be driven with pure power and heaviness that may lead you to believe these two men could produce a very promising black metal record but  it’s the sections of melody that tug at your heartstrings. In all honesty, for a debut record, I haven’t heard anything as flawless and down right gritty as this record is, that’s just the facts to.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again, any record that can place images of beautiful landscapes and monstrous mountain covered in pure white snow, that record deserves props on many levels. Hell, even a record that could sooth everything out in my life and tell me everything is going to be okay, that’s a record that will stick with me for a very long time. So the final verdict is this - seven tracks, that’s all this duo needs to give you before you fall madly in love with what they’ve done on this record. Some might argue that Falloch seems to be confused as to what genre they want to be but at the end of the day, you can call them what you want, folk, post-rock, black metal with folk influence, all I know is that Falloch has created a masterpiece, hands down. “Where Distant Spirits Remain” – The one record that can kidnap you and place you into a better situation than you might be in right now.

Official Site - http://falloch.com/

Atriarch - Forever The End

 

Stepping foot inside of a brand new world, to most, can be a very scary obstacle to overcome, let alone facing it head on. As the newest member of The Ripple Effect, I knew that I had to review something so gigantic, so large in scale that it would take nonstop drilling of my brain to understand everything that was being fed to me. I wanted a record that would tie my hands behind my back and force feed me garbage that tastes like paradise. I wanted something so raw that my neighbors would have to call the Sebastian County Police Department and complain that the echoing disturbance coming from my house sounded like someone was being thrown around by some mysterious force. With that said, Atriarch's Forever The End was the most suitable record that I could see fit for the occasion.

As I gear up and try to prepare myself for what's about to happen while I listen to this record, I couldn't prepare myself for what actually happened. Forever The End, the debut onslaught of mayhem from this four-piece, delivers some of the most monstrous and hellbent chords in the world of Blackened Death/Doom and a very small pinch of Crust. While this record might be a shaker and a roller in the world of metal, I can't help but think that this four track behemoth  of a record is anything but spiritual. Maybe not spiritual in the sense that it's praising a higher power of some kind because is definitely not the case here, but more in the sense that it completely takes the listener to another world. A world filled with outstanding gloom, dark shades of grey that litter the ground and even though the world you just stepped into seems calm, chaos reigned behind and above you as clouds started to evaporate into rain drops of acid.

Forever The End, overall, is a nasty, filthy, disgusting piece of art. Some might say those words are negative but to me, those words are the best ones to use when describing how this record feels, not sounds. Don't get me wrong, the record itself does sound disgusting, in a good way of vibes, but it also feels very filthy and muggy. The third track, "Fracture", should be the example you look at when you try to find the outrageous scum that dwells inside Forever The End. "Fracture", along with the whole record really, provides very sluggish sections that will make you feel as if you are being drowned in misery. In the past I've been very vocal and opinionated that with the majority of Blackened Death/Doom releases, the guitarist(s) need to step their game up in major ways. I may be the only one that feels this way but the bass and drums are what really make a doom record sound like it does and Forever The End is no different. The way that the drums literally vibrated the cup of water on my desk while this record was playing, blew me away. On the flip side, the drums, or what I call them, the soundtrack to Satan entering a room filled with worthless humans, also deliver on a scale that nobody can touch nor disagree with that they sound exactly what hell looks like, in a good way.

This record provides things, as mentioned above, that I really haven't felt since I listened to Meth Drinker's self-titled debut record earlier this year. The vibe you get that everything around you is collapsing into a burning pit of flames while the smell of burning flesh is heavy fogging the air in front of you. Forever The End and Atriarch both have laid waste to everything I wanted in this record. It has the atmosphere, the horrible disease ridden riffs that will make the pictures that hang on your hallway wall fall, only to shatter into tiny pieces and this overwhelming burden to just keep blasting this record until it melts, literally.

So, as I sit confused as to what I just heard from this record, yet I completely understand and latched onto everything that was thrown at me, I ponder the question to myself along with asking you, why can't every single record I come across sound like Forever The End? Simple question, right? The only answer I can give you is that most bands, to me, want to make it huge without much effort. That most definitely isn't the case with Atriarch because if I'm judging this band from this debut full-length alone, I can't see why they won't be featured in the most popular metal magazines or be put on tours with the bands they've looked up to for years. Atriarch - The one band that grabbed me by my throat the second this record started to spin.

Buy the record here: http://atriarch.bandcamp.com/

-Nicoali

Tyrannosorceress – Demo 2011

Tyrannosorceress is a 5 piece Blackend Doom Death band out of the Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas area, aka for me they are some hometown dudes. I found out about this band while clicking around through facebook pages. Honestly, there awesome name is what made me stop and take a listen to them. Tyrannosorceress, that's just an awesome fucking name! Boy, am I glad I stopped to take a listen.


There new 2011 Demo simply titled Demo 2011 is pretty bad ass. This three track demo begins with my favorite song on this demo, “Age of Vice”. Simply put, it is amazing, it's dark and it's slow methodical metal. Musically this track sounds like classic black metal mixed with a little doom. It contains double bass filled drums and simply awesome dulling guitars. The addition of blackend doom vocals gives this track a little something special. Vocally the lyrics are easily understood adding a real “I want to stand in front of this band while they play and bang my head and sing along” feel.

“Thunderous Drums Emanate in the Distance
Their Echoes are Carried Into a Vortex of Fog
Cold Void Drapes Itself Upon the Earth
To Reap Souls of the Impure
Beings of Spectral Light Beam from the Cosmos
Chanting the Death Knell; Hymn of the Great Demise
In the Era of Malice, Discord Awakens the Age of Vice
Once Buried by Time it’s Unearthed to Feast Again
Reaching Toward Skies of the Stillborn World
To Behold its Infinite Fallacy
Devourer of Light; Spews Darkness Unto Me
Reveling in its Blackness I Writhe, Writhe Eternally
Fires Consume the Forests Oceans Absorb the Shores
Fault Lines Erupt and Quake the Earth
To Sanctify the Impure
Beings of Light Surround Us
Chanting the Hymns of Death
Ascending Beyond the Gates
Cycles of Death Reborn In Another Plane of Existence
Where Knowledge of Life and Death Exist No More “


The Dallas area is not too well known for producing any black metal style bands....”this is Dimebag country” said in my most hick Pantera loving voice. Did I mention I'm not really a big Pantera/Dimebag worshiper.... Anyway, Tyrannosorceress is a band to be on the lookout for in the coming years. I see a big future in this band, not just in the Texas metal scene but nationwide.

Tyrannosorceress goes good with: Abigail Williams, Vader, Aborted, Baring Teeth, Goatwhore, Kill The Client

-Cicatriz

Stream here: http://listn.to/Tyrannosorceress/player#t=0&pos=0&p=

Get the Free Demo here: http://tyrannosorceress.com/

The Black Metal Butterfly Effect 2 - featuring Of Wrath And Ruin

Sam, Bradley and I winked back into existence in the middle of my basement.  After the transit disorientation faded I took inventory of myself and happily discovered that I was one hundred percent intact.  It was exactly one week since we had travelled in time back to the year 2010 on our mission to alter musical history.  Personally, after discovering Ghostfog, I viewed our first foray into the past as a smashing success!  I firmly believed that when we returned to our own time the landscape of popular music would be wholly changed. 

“Phillip where are you?”
“I’m over here on the couch Penfold.”
“Ah, yes.  I see that now.”
“How was your trip?”
“Oh Phillip, it was great!  We accomplished so much, or at least I think we did.  Tell me the name of the biggest black metal band in the world.  I need to know!”
“Ummmm, there really isn’t one.”
“What?!?”
“Yeah, people don’t really listen to black metal in 2150.  Penfold, you know good and well that the four of us are the only real black metal fans left in the world.  Why rub it in?  As far as I can tell, you guys did not accomplish much of anything back in the past.”

In my haste I had forgotten that Phillip, having not gone back in time with the rest of us, would change along with the rest of the world based on our manipulations of the past.  Of course he would not observe any differences in the world around him.  Only Bradley, Sam and I would be able to spot changes but I was too impatient at the moment to explain anything.  I needed information!

“Phillip.  Quickly, tell me when black metal began to decline in popularity.”
“Is this some kind of test Penfold?”
“Not really Phillip, but you have a knack for remembering such things and I’m feeling awfully forgetful at the moment.”
“Ha!  You’re right about that.  I do have a good memory.  Well, in the early part of 2011 there was this big electro/black metal dance craze that swept the dancehalls of Germany and spread quickly to the rest of the world.  Unfortunately the craze died off after a year or so, and the wave of popularity black metal was enjoying dissipated.”
“Say no more Phillip.  Bradley!  Sam!  We’ve got more work to do!”

I walked over to the time machine, set the destination dial to June 14, 2011, and told Phillip to hit the ‘go’ button.  A few moments later Sam, Bradley, and I once again blinked out of existence.  My goal for this second trip was twofold.  One, I wanted to extend this dancehall craze that Phillip told us about.  And two, I wanted to find a band or artist who would excite people outside of those dancehall fans.  Thankfully, no sooner had we arrived than we stumbled upon exactly the right band for the job.

Of Wrath And Ruin  Conquering Oblivion

Oftentimes I wonder.  Would black metal vocals fit well on top of whatever music that I’m currently enjoying?  Sometimes my answer is yes, and sometimes my answer is no.  With these thoughts running through my mind, it was a happy coincidence that I came across Of Wrath And Ruin.  This is a band that clearly asked themselves the same question, and had the wherewithal to follow through musically to discover the answer.  What we waveriders end up with is one enticing metal concoction.

First of all, let’s discuss what kind of music functions as the baseline for this experiment.  Of Wrath And Ruin play a nice mixture of traditional heavy, power, and progressive metal.  Listening to their songs I’m often reminded of Iron Maiden and Dream Theater.  You have frenetic dueling guitars coupled with propulsive drumming.  Add to that the highly emotive, powerful, clean female vocals of Laura Tyburski and you have an enjoyable offering.  But wait.  This band decided to make one important addition that would make them distinct.  That’s right waverders…black metal vocals.  This music takes on an entirely different character with the impassioned growling from lead vocalist Pat Brose.  It’s different, and it’s good!

“Forever Unseen” sets the stage for what’s to come getting the blood pumping with intricate guitar lines, structured yet frantic drum fills, and keyboard flourishes to help set the proggy mood.  The black metal vocals may take a minute to get used to in this context, but trust me, they fit right in.  The other songs on the album are all solid but my personal favorites are the chug-tastic “Shame Is The End”, and the seemingly bipolar “Waters Of The Corrupt”.  Also if you need a break from the speedy metal, try on one of the two beautiful instrumentals, “Sapphire Sea” or “To Walk Alone”.

Very nice.  Very nice, indeed.  All of you waveriders seeking something a bit different from the progressive/black metal norm need look no further.  Of Wrath And Ruin has arrived.

--Penfold

The Black Metal Butterfly Effect featuring Ghostfog - Hear Them Whisper

 


The year is 2150 AD.  Yes, the human race still exists after 2012.  Historians finally realized the Mayan calendar ended simply because they ran out of building materials, room to continue, and willpower at the exact same moment in time.  In fact, the human race has never been better, a statement which sadly cannot be extended towards one particular musical genre; black metal.  Black metal has been steadily declining in popularity since the mid 2090s.  Sadly few true supporters remain to keep the dark flame alive.  Okay look…that last statement might be misleading.  At last count there were five black metal fans left in the world.  There’s me and four of my friends, who also happen to be my bandmates.  Wait…scratch that.  I just got a video message from Larry.  He’s quit the band to pursue pop stardom on this season’s Earth Idol.  Right!  So then there were four.

A lesser fan might be discouraged, but not me.  I have been working out the kinks on a brilliant plan to revive my beloved black metal music, bringing it to more appreciative ears than ever thought possible.  The plan is this.  Use the time machine that I’ve built in my basement to transport myself and two of my bandmates back to the year 2010.  Once there, we will split up, seek out like minded musicians willing to experiment with the standard black metal template, and help promote them to no end.  Thus we will expose music which breaks free from the well established black metal mold by drawing on other influences and genres, and thereby bolster the black metal fan ranks.  Unfortunately, there was one major flaw in my brilliant plan.  I had three remaining friends/bandmates/fanatics, and only two back-in-time positions to fill.  One of them would have to stay behind to monitor the others’ progress and return us to our new and improved present day.

“Wait a second Penfold!  Why aren’t you including yourself when you talk about who has to stay in the present?  That’s not fair!”
“Yeah!  Why is that Penfold?”
“That’s right!  How come Penfold?”
“Sam, Bradley, Phillip…calm down.  Look, I didn’t want to play these cards but if you’re going to act this way let me remind you of a couple of things.  One; I came up with the plan in the first place.  Two; I built the time machine.  Three; I’m the most fanatic black metal fan out of all of us.  And four; think about it.  You know based on my past indiscretions that I cannot be counted on to abide by the proper schedule required to safely monitor the progress of those sent to the past.  You all know this.  So yes, it’s not fair.  Guess what?  Life isn’t fair.  I’m going back to the past and that’s final.”
“Okay.”
“Fine then.”
“I guess that makes sense Penfold.  But who has to stay behind?”
“Well Phillip I’ve been thinking about that quite a bit.  I hate to break it to you my friend, but you have to be the one to stay behind.  You’re the best drummer I’ve ever played with, hands down.  You keep time like an atomic clock and you willingly practice everyday, far more than the rest of us, constantly honing your craft.  We need you to apply that devotion towards this new task.  Can you do this?”
“Oh for the love of Pete Penfold!  You know I can’t stand arguing with you.  You’re always right, and even if you’re not, I still lose the argument!  If I have to be the one to stay behind, I guess I have to be the one to stay behind.  I don’t like it, but you can count on me to do what’s necessary.”
“Thanks Phillip.  Sam?  Bradley?  Ready to go?”
“Uh huh.”
“I was born ready.”
“Alright.  Best of luck to each of us.  Phillip, push the button.”

Phillip obeyed my command, and the three of us seemingly winked out of existence.  Little did I know that what awaited us in the past would exceed my wildest imaginations.

Ghostfog  Hear Them Whisper

Have you ever wondered what a new wave electronic band from the late 1980s would sound like if they began playing black metal?  Well wonder no more waveriders because Ghostfog is here to demonstrate exactly that.  This one man musical dynamo hails from Germany, which I find somewhat fitting based on the discovery of other interesting artists who call that country home (Beehoover comes to mind).  Hear Them Whisper is Ghostfog’s latest release, and its thirty minute assault on your senses is not something you will soon forget.

Take the opening title track.  It begins very pleasantly with a slightly discordant guitar line which, coupled with clean vocals, would not be out of place in a lovely ballad.  But one minute into the song underlying tension is introduced behind the guitar, and twenty seconds later the sound of amplified guitars and booming electronic drums explode out of the speakers.  The sonic tension is ratcheted down for a moment before the demented vocals strike, slithering into the listeners’ ears and ensuring that no one mistakes this for a pop song any longer.  Oh no, this is definitely black metal!  Black metal with an inventive sonic blueprint, that is.

Rest assured dear waveriders.  The rest of this EP/album does not disappoint.  In fact, I’m transfixed every time that I listen to this music.  “The Night After” could find a happy home in dance halls with its propulsive backbeat as long as the mood of the hall was somewhat gloomy.  “Hear Them Whisper II” transitions back and forth from pretty keyboard movements to grungy, atmospheric portions driven by the same drum pattern as Nine Inch Nails’ “Closer”.  “December Nightingale” utilizes the most organic, non-electronic sounds on the album to great effect, and “Hear Them Whisper III” is…well…you’ll just have to listen for yourself to find out.

Head over to http://ghostfog.bandcamp.com, take advantage of the free download, and prepare to get your electro/black metal groove on!

--Penfold

Svarti Loghin - Drifting Through The Void

In one of my numerous daily conversations with my writing/business partner and the musical savant Racer X, I made mention that I was kinda’ digging this weird little niche of music that thankfully bears no title. As a description, I stated that it’s like a bunch of ambient black metallers were going through their parents record collections and deciding that they wanted to play 70’s style progressive and psychedelic rock . . . or maybe it’s vice versa. 70’s music lovers playing modern atmospheric black metal just seems like such a stretch, but hey . . . what the hell do I know? I just report what I hear! The last year or so, I’ve had some great experiences re-discovering, or self-discovering music that was originally released in the 70’s and early 80’s, and I’m finding that a lot of modern musicians are also going back to this era of music for inspiration. Year of the Goat, Hypnos 69, Been Obscene, Stone Axe, Opeth, Colour Haze . . . all are but a few of the bands that come to mind that look to the past for guidance towards the future.

So, I was going through my iPod and purging all of the stuff that I never listened to or I felt had no reason to be cluttering up my precious bits and bytes, and stumbled on a band called Svarti Loghin. I must have received this album as a digital download and it got lost in the pile of other digital submissions (always a major problem with digital submissions . . . out of sight, out of mind). I simply don’t remember ever seeing it come through, but I must have listened to enough of it to decide that I would download it for the future. Well, folks . . . the future is becoming the present and I’m getting to this outstanding album from Svarti Loghin entitled Drifting Through The Void. Part black metal, part shoegazer, a touch of 90’s Seattle rock, and heavily influenced by some of the 70’s sounds, especially in the way of textures, tones, and general coolness. The interesting aspect about this album is that the band is captured embracing the organic and natural ethos of today’s atmospheric black metal in the way of composition, production, and darkened menace. And yet, there’s still something that these guys are doing that I can’t put my finger on . . . and that makes me want to listen to Drifting Through The Void even more . . . just so I can try to figure out what the hell is going on here!

“Red Sun Sets” opens the album with a nice, eerie atmospheric instrumental piece, filled with pianos and softly strummed strings over the soft and subtle sounds of either a mellow wind blowing across a plain or of water washing across a shore of rock. No matter, it’s an intro that will make you feel like you’re in nature, preparing to get pummeled by the screeching vocals of some face painted dude in a robe. Not quite. While the vocals do eventually assail us with a raw bellow, it’s not exactly that demonic and grating sound that I’ve become accustomed to with the black metal genre that I so expected this album to fall under. Surprisingly, “Kosmik Tomhet” has more of a post-grunge, alternative rock vibe than anything black metal . . . so things are looking up in several ways. The first minute plus of the song is some heavily textured guitar rock, big and dense sustained chords with clear arpeggios being plucked over the rhythm, and then the wall of distortion disappears, almost like the morning fog lifting and the rays of the sun creeping through the air. Then the heavy guitars and bass return, performing a rather uplifting melody . . . and then we’re greeted by the vocals that couldn’t be further from black metal. These vocals have a nice mellow timbre to them and they croon out this haunting melody before doing a complete one-eighty and we’re assailed by the demonic and tortured howls that are more reminiscent of the black metal genre. The music is still creeping along at this shoegazer pace, but the bass drums are thundering away at double time and the vocals are raging in apocalyptic torment. This little epic piece of music runs just under eight minutes long, and it’s so easy to get lost in the texture and atmospherics of the tune. Man . . . what an amazing contrast of styles!

The same ideas run through the next track, “Odelagd Framtid”, ranging from shoegazer/ alt-rock in musical texture and sheering the face off with the deathly howls of black metal, and it’s completely mesmerizing! It’s the title track that seemed to strike me as the most intoxicating, however. Vocally, and maybe a little musically, the melody reminds me of Temple of the Dog. It’s an immediately memorable tune in that I can see myself tooling around the office and humming this one. Shadows of Eddie Vedder linger around the vocal performance, that is, until the middle portion when the tune takes a decidedly dark turn through the woods. The vocals return to the haunted howls of a soul striving to be free of its torment and the music is laced with tendrils of creepiness that one might find in the darkest moments of Katatonia’s greatest hits. And then, it all breaks down to the purest organic elements of an acoustic guitar, bending notes in a very Southern swampy blues style akin to Stephen Stills plowing his way through the riffs of “Black Queen”. Throw in a little harmonica and this portion of the song fits well on any dilapidated porch in Louisiana. I love the vision behind this song . . . it could have gone straight down some dark highway, but Svarti Loghin decided to take a side road and found some incredible moments along the journey.

The band outdo themselves with the nine minute majesty of “Bury My Heart In These Starlit Waters”. Hypnotic as the gentle ebbs and flows of the ocean under a full moon, the music rolls across the horizon of the mind, reflecting hopes, dreams, sadness, and fear. Even when the demonic vocals from the oceanic deep bubble to the surface, I don’t feel the terror that I thought I would or should, it all feels so natural and perfectly fitting. In my mind, this song could easily have been the soundscape behind the Kon-Tiki voyage of 1947 . . . sitting on a raft in the middle of the Pacific ocean, letting the current take the craft wherever the current wanted to go . . . some may want to pop some Dramamine prior to listening to this one.

Drifting Through The Void was a something that I unfortunately missed from 2010 or even 2009. I say unfortunately simply because I would have loved to include this in my year end Top 10 list. But alas, I’ll simply have to spout off about how brilliant it is here and now. It’s an album full of some fantastic cosmic adventures in sound, heavily textured and immensely haunting. It may not appeal to all rock fans because of the heavily intense vocal work, but then again, it may open some to those darker elements of black metal that they were afraid to investigate prior. I love this one. The exclamation point came with Svarti Loghin’s interpretation of Sabbath’s “Planet Caravan”. I heard the opening notes and felt like I was being propelled through space in some cryogenic sleep  . . . half conscious, watching the stars float past my glass enshrouded capsule. Amazing album . . . check out the darkness, folks!

--Pope

Buy here: Drifting Through the Void
Buy here mp3: Drifting Through the Void

http://www.myspace.com/svartiloghin

Death Wolf - S/T

Big, black, heavy, furry, and ugly. Loud, massive, beastly, foreboding. Devastating, gruesome, grizzly, and ominous. Words. All descriptors of a band called Death Wolf. All words that sum up in no small part the sonic brutality that makes up the band’s self titled album. Is it a debut? I don’t know. I don’t care. The album is easily one of the most intense metal listens I’ve had in awhile. That doesn’t mean that it’s the most musically interesting or compositionally exceptional records out there . . . simply fucking intense. Pure, unabashed and uncompromising heavy metal . . . arguably encompassing all of the characteristics a heavy metal record should have. Music that’s so heavy and discordant, so filled with testosterone, tension, and gusto that one must respect it in fear that it will overwhelm their souls.

Death Wolf were apparently once know as Devils Whorehouse (I know . . . cool name, huh?) and are manned by one of the dudes from Swedish Black Metallers Marduk . . . ultimately, none of that means much to me. Well . . . except the Devils Whorehouse thing. I’ve never listened to Marduk and only know them by reputation, but this much can be said for one not in the know . . . Death Wolf sounds nothing like Marduk. They incorporate these great elements of doom, and stoner, and sludge, and thrash, and speed , and balls-out, fuck-you metal. Combine the demonic crooning of Danzig and mix it with sheer heart attack of Motorhead and then the tonal weight of Neurosis and you get something sorta’ like Death Wolf. At times, Death Wolf remind me of fellow Swedish uncategorizable metallic rockers, Transport League. More rock than metal, but more metal than anything else. Y’know? Yeah. Me either.

Opening volley, “Circle of Abomination” is heaven wrapped up in a three minute metallic chestnut. Firing off with a high speed, up tempo tirade accompanied by a wall of distorted instrumental chaos and a vocal performance that has me thinking of Glenn Danzig hopped up on something darker and heavier than even the darkest moments of Samhain. Listen close enough to the rolling pattern of the drums and you’ll practically visualize a runaway locomotive barreling down the tracks. The utterly brilliant moment of this song is at the 1:40 mark when the bottom drops out this beast and the song chugs along at a dastardly and drastically reduced tempo. The little wah effect on the guitars, the chiming of the bell, the ominous vocal and instrumental tone . . . all weaved around each other to create that perfect amount of tension before fading into the crimson fog from whence this whole creature came from in the first place.

“The Other Hell”, heavy as hell and just as sinister, has me clutching my bedspread close to my throat with eyes wide open in terror. This track wavers back and forth between huge walls of dissonance to moments of sparseness, and once we get to these quieter passages, the vocal performance, like the icy fingers of death brushing softly across the skin, sends chills up the spine. Then is dissolves into waves of feedback and the howl of wolves, becoming the haunting and ominous “Morning Czar Shineth”. What a captivating nugget of sound! Again, sparse when it needs to be and creepy as all fuck when it is, then filled with more notes so heavy and oppressive . . . it’s a classic track that will, like the chorus suggests, will have you beg and beg for more. The bass tone is unreal. The vocal performance is otherworldly. The overall power of this song is the creaking of the gates of hell as the passage slowly opens and the smell of brimstone assails the nostrils. A sudden blast of heat and fire, and we’re reduced to a pile of ash.

“Sword and Flame” picks up the tempo once again. We’re not talking about blackened blastbeats in terms of speed, but a nice and steady, upbeat tempo with instruments chugging away to keep pace. I like that Death Wolf mix up the tempos throughout the album . . . I never get too stuck in one groove. One minute, droning at a slow groove, the next exploding within a fast paced fury. We get to go back to that slower groove on “Wolf’s Pallid Sister”, and we get to experience the closest thing to one of those massive thrash riffs that seem to move a mosh pit from one wall to the opposite. Heavy and throbbing, the groove on this track is dense, but executed with some deftness. Listen to some of the intricate licks these guys slip into the midst of this riff . . . that, my friends, is some tasty stuff! I also love the vocal performance, specifically at the chorus. Great dynamic shift at the midpoint, as well. Again . . . well executed to capture the most tension and intensity possible.

Death Wolf’s self-titled disc is one of those albums that on first listen I thought, ‘This rocks,’ but I wasn’t sure just how much. That first listen was definitely compelling, hell . . . compelling enough for me to want to listen again. And then, by listen number six hundred and sixty-six, it was all I could do to peel the headphones from my head (I’m sure some skin was removed along with the ‘phones)and stop listening to this thing. I mean . . . for as much as I’ve listened to this album and think it rocks, I know deep down in the darkest darkness of my now darkened soul that this thing rocks infinitely more than I think it does. I started this review off with a boatload of adjectives and descriptors of this album, and while they all suffice, you might want to quantify just how big, black, heavy, furry, and ugly . . . Loud, massive, beastly, foreboding . . . Devastating, gruesome, grizzly, and ominous this thing really is. I’d go as far as to say that if you apply a number to any of these words, you’ll need to multiply it . . . by a hundred . . . and then that still may not be enough. One cannot truly describe Death Wolf, one must experience that album, and then no amount of words will accurately depict what that experience was.

--Pope

Buy here: Death Wolf

http://www.deathwolf.net/

Anaal Nathrakh - Passion

The music of foul things best left undisturbed.

Passion is the soundtrack of the interior of Regan MacNeil's skull.

Passion is an audio snuff film.

Passion is Tarantino's Horror Movie: an obvious mash-up of other genres (black, industrial, electronic, dance, thrash, noise, ambient) and musical effects, that manages to still be unique and exciting... "Talent borrows, genius steals."

Passion is black metal survival horror.

Passion is industrial black metal (though the less-accurate blackened industrial sounds much cooler).

A philosopher once said the music of an age in turmoil is not soothing.

Passion is that music. Yet, disturbingly, is actually soothing... what does that say about us, as a people, or me in general?

First track, "Violenti Non Fit Iniuria": seems to open with background sounds that emerge as screams, whether real or not, run through a distortion pedal or board or just a bent bullhorn... the effect is lyrically psychotic and psychopathic, a singing monster well beyond its own mind... like Nero meets Denis Rader... DeSade's quite hummable love sonnets....

"Drug-Fucking Abomination": three minutes of (actually rather catchy) industrial grind, then with a chorus (as AN are wont to do) that's symphonic (a "chorus" of singers in high tones and in unison, not unlike Wagner or Grieg), but in a "Night on Bald Mountain" sense: there's that strange electric scream under the vocals, giving the whole piece a Satanic grandeur.

Ends with semi-orgasmic gasping over chewing sounds; suddenly cuts off. Make of that what you will.

"Post Traumatic Stress Euphoria," I love their titles. ("The Unbearable Filth of the Soul," from their last record, In the Constellation of the Black Widow? Fuggedabowdit.)

"Le Diabolique est L'Ami du Simple," double-bass drums programmed at around 300 bpm with genuine soaring (clean) operatic vocals overhead....

"Who Thinks of the Executioner," its gibbering madness, an even more aggro Ministry... as if Spiders had evolved fingers to play black metal....

If Behemoth is genuine rage recorded, Anaal Nathrakh is genuine madness, is genuine insanity, is what mental health professionals call a diagnosable mental disorder, almost certainly a psychotic disorder with comorbid diagnoses out the ass....

"Ashes Screaming Silence": (if wearing headphones) something walks through you (a genuinely disturbing trick with fading, from front left to rear right);  then at 2:51, whispers, from back to front, crescendo up to the bloody-throated screaming "...And that means something, doesn't it...? Doesn't it?!?!"

This song the best example of rage-cum-insanity-- a vivid depiction of the split, the schism, the break, emerged as articulate, into psychosis, the divorce from reality....

"Portrait of the Artist": explosions in background, warped radio broadcasts of symphonies in impossible keys-- some WWI flashback, a dying mud-crusted soldier tripping on mustard gas....

Passion doesn't really call for a review... more an informed consent.

the howling dementia of a patient screaming along with a symphony in the background the patient does not actually hear:

shantih

shantih

shantih

--Horn

buy here: Passion

Dornenreich – Flammentriebe

If you’re just tuning in, we have two outs, bottom of the ninth inning . . . bases are loaded and the home team is down by three runs . . . shuffling up to the plate with his head down in his typical shy fashion . . . number 666 . . . Dornenreich steps into the batter’s box for Team Prophecy Productions. I tell ya’ Racer, in all my years of watching the game, breathing in its subtle intricacies, I’ve never seen a team come through in the clutch like this Prophecy team, and we have the makings for yet another instant classic . . . a game that will live on forever in the history books of the greatest games ever played! And would you look at that!!! As if on cue, Dornenreich chases a curveball out of the strike zone . . . lined over the left fielders head . . . and all he can do is watch as the ball easily clears the outfield wall and is now a souvenir for the rabid fans who have waited a lifetime for this moment! Do you believe in miracles? I can’t believe my eyes! Racer . . . any comments? You are the color guy after all.

Sorry about that, folks . . . with spring training starting and baseball right around the corner, I couldn’t fight the urge to draw some bizarrely apt correlation between the sport and the amazing work that Prophecy Production consistently releases, and the talents of these guys from Dornenreich have displayed on their latest release entitled Flammentriebe.

Flammentriebe is black metal with an avant tinge, somewhat shoe-gazer, brutal and brackish, beautiful and morose. I first stumbled on Dornenreich on the Prophecy compilation Whom the Moon a Nightsong Sings and found the track to be one of the most compelling, so once the promo for Flammentriebe made its way to me, suffice it to say that I was more than intrigued, maybe even a wee bit on the excited side. By now, you all should know that I love it when musicians push the boundaries of a musical genre, eclipsing any pre-conceived ideas as to what we all had for said genre, permanently stamping their fingerprint to a musical style for all to witness and absorb through the ages. Dornenreich take that full on aggressive black metal style of music and add fantastic elements that make my ears tickle with excitement . . . beautiful and lush acoustic guitar passages, ambient and atmospheric interludes, violins that add more than a delicate texture, acting as one of the key instruments throughout . . . and then there’s a compositional complexity that is like junk shot into my veins to ease my proggy addiction. To draw comparisons with the outside world, let’s take the ambitious musical nature of Opeth, mix it with the pure, unadulterated natural blackened death styling’s of Khold, mix that all with the show-gazing subtleties of label mates Alcest and Les Discrets, and then add a style that can only be Dornenreich’s alone, y’know . . . those intricate little sounds, moods, and tones that can’t be pinned on any other band. I absolutely love this album!

Dornenreich hail from Austria and Flammentriebe is completely written and performed in the bands native tongue, but that shouldn’t be a turn off to anybody. The emotions transcend any language barrier, and in the case of Flammentriebe, actually makes the songs sound that much more important and immediate. The opening track, “Flammenmensch,” is a five minute gem of utter brilliance! After a tentative plucking of an acoustic guitar introduces us to the album, the electric version of the instrument creates that sonic wall that seems to permeate in the black metal world, then we get the blood curdling screams, and a little double bass drum/blastbeat  cacophony, and it’s all performed the way I love it . . . with immediacy and honesty, and to keep the wary ear entangled in the web of intrigue, Dornenreich change things up with stunning breaks that allow the song to breath and grow more ominous. Here’s where things get really interesting . . . listen closely to the double, triple, tendon-tearing pick attack of the guitars and you’ll hear the violins in tight accompaniment, adding another texture that I’ve never heard before . . . but listen closely coz’ it can get lost in the mix a bit. Totally bitchin’ effect and for me adds a completely different dimension to the music and what could be.

“Der Wunde Trieb” immediately picks up with the violins leading the way, and then stepping back to let the rest of the band beat us senseless. Then, the violins reappear, adding this great mournful and haunting effect to the blistering black metal tirades. Glorious in its darkness and oppressiveness, “Der Wunde Trieb” is epic metal filled with awesome moments of nuance, hefty technical skill, and emotional depth that will take more than a handful of listening sessions to fully comprehend. By the time you get to “Tief im Land” you should be well primed for one of the most beautifully complex and emotionally savage songs on the album. Again, opening with an acoustic guitar and suddenly bursting with electricity, this song is a full on Odyssian journey of experimentation and musical expression. To listen to the way these guys pull back one instrument to allow another to propel the song and then vice versa, it’s like watching a perfectly choreographed chorus line or, better yet, the inner working of a machine at work . . . all the pieces working together to create motion but all those piece doing their own individual job. “Tief im Land” is a clinic on composition and performance that should be taught at every musical institution. So declareth the Pope. . . so let it be done!

“Wolfpuls” and “Wandel Geschehe” follow suit with more of the aforementioned tendencies, violins working in conjunction with the bombast of the traditional black metal soundings, adding an element of class that one doesn’t find with many black metal acts. “Wolfpuls” is more of a grinding, throbbing, pulsating metallic gem while “Wandel Gerschehe” acts more as a wooden hulled ship cresting wave after roiling wave on the open seas, dipping deep into the valleys of despair, then being propelled to the peak of the wave before crashing down again. Both songs will have you lost within yourself, contemplating the greater meaning of it all and wondering why you hadn’t created such masterful work in your own life. “In Allem Weben” is another sterling example of the musical proficiency that Dornenreich seems to wield within their souls, effortlessly piecing passages together that performed by any other band may never come out sounding half this good. Seamlessly flowing from one expressive passage to another, pummeling the senses with malevolent sounds while incorporating more serene and subtle elements to keep the song from being one dimensional, these guys do a masterful job of challenging the listener, but never over-challenging them.

Flammentriebe is easily at the top of this year’s “Must Have” list. Yeah, it’s early in the year and there’s a great chance it will supplanted by another amazing album, but for the time being, I’m going to spin this gem as much as I possibly can. The layers of sound that make up this album keep me interested and help push my imagination to places I haven’t seen in a long, long time. The album rocks, yet it does so in a very intelligent manner . . . kinda’ like a premeditated murder that stumps the world’s greatest detectives. And yes, to conclude the earlier analogy of this piece, it’s a bases clearing game winning grand slam that leaves Dornenreich being carried off on the shoulders of his team mates to the cheers of thousands. Game ball should go to Prophecy for recognizing the raw talents of this band and getting them prepped for the big leagues!

Pope

http://dornenreich.com/

http://www.prophecyproductions.de/front_content.php?idcat=258&idart=397&releaseid=204