Cavernlight by Scott Burns

Bandcamp has stepped up in the last few months ever since COVID-19 to waive their fees the first Friday of each month, which has resulted in millions more money going to the bands and artists. That’s led to a lot of surprise releases and special things that might not otherwise be in our hands as early as they are, and it’s been a cool way to offer support and fill up on new music.

Last Friday, was no different, and there were a ton of great things that surfaced that filled up the app on my phone and I’m sure on many others’ as well. Last week, some of the artists also turned their own proceeds toward causes bigger than themselves and help people struggling right now, be that socially, health-wise, or just financially. Here are three things I grabbed last week that I’d highly recommend to anyone reading this, and all are fairly brief so won’t demand a gigantic chunk of your time.

I think I’ve made it clear in the past how much I love Jason Molina’s music, and I only have my entire right forearm tattooed with artwork inspired by his lyrics. Cavernlight share that love for Molina, who passed March 16, 2013, and they poured themselves into covering “The Black Crow,” the opening track on Songs: Ohia’s classic 2000 album “The Lioness.” The track is complete with artwork from William Schaff, who also provided art for Molina (most notably the “Magnolia Electric Co.” album, recorded in the same room as this cover), and the band offered the song as a free download as to not detract from fundraisers elsewhere, especially since multiple artists on Gilead Media (Couch Slut, Inexorum, Wailin Storms among others) were donating their proceeds elsewhere.

Before we even get into the song itself, it’s important and cool as fuck to note Dan Macadam, who played with Songs: Ohia, performs on this track. The band goes on a sorrowful dirge as the singing is solemn and understated, not trying to mimic Molina’s higher-register croon. It works perfectly as things melt together, and by the time we get to, “I’m getting weaker, I’m getting thin,” the tension begins to rise musically, and the playing begins to pull you under. “And I look down and see the whole world,” stays in that register before howls pound out, “And it’s fading,” as that line is repeated over and over again while the low-end buzzes and the guitars catch fire. Doom smear blackens the song’s eyes, while the track slowly dissolves into ash, proving an arresting tribute to the song’s fallen writer.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/cavernlightnoise/

To buy the music, go here: https://cavernlight.bandcamp.com/album/the-black-crow

Old Man Gloom just released two beastly albums last month in the form of “Seminar VIII” and “Seminar IX,” yet they had a few other gems left over that they put out on a two-track collection that raises money for Minnesota Freedom Fund, National Bail Out, Navaho Nation COVID-19 Fund, Communities United Against Police Brutality, and several others. If you’re into the noise-emblazoned records they just put out, get ready to experience that mind melt all over again on this devastating little burst.

“Willing Vessel” carries on the suffocating noise elements as it pulsates over the first few minutes before the bass sizzles with life. Brodsky sings and Newton counters with vicious howls, as both voices are vital toward carrying the track. The song rumbles and bustles before it fades back into a haze of deranged noises. “Storms in Our Eyes” runs 7:28, and noise hovers over and stings the senses, which isn’t a surprise. The track then opens up and gets its legs under it as turmoil erupts, and the calls of, “Upwards! Onwards!” gets the blood moving. The track trucks as Newton howls, “Death awakening, storms in our eyes,” as the playing wallows in the muck before noise returns and pulsates over the last few minutes.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/OLDMANGLOOM/

To buy the music, go here: https://sigerecords.bandcamp.com/album/willing-vessel-b-w-storms-in-our-eyes

The very wonderfully strange Mr. Bungle seemed like a band that had given us their final shot. Their last full-length “California” landed back in 1999, and vocalist Mike Patton seemed to have moved onto to his multiple other ventures (including Faith No More’s reunion and their great comeback record). Revamped with Scott Ian and Dave Lombardo in the fold, joining Patton, Trey Spruance, and Trevor Dunn, the band played a series of shows together, announced plans to record together again, and finally spit out their first music, a cover of Scottish punks The Exploited’s 1982 burner “USA” from their “Troops of Tomorrow” record. The proceeds from this and an accompanying T-shirt go to benefit MusiCare’s COVID-19 Relief Fund to help those within the recording industry impacted by the disease.

Weirdly, Mr. Bungle’s cover of “USA” might be the most conventional sounding songs in the band’s catalog, but they fittingly add a thrashy edge to their version of the song. Patton’s crazed wails are on display as usual while the rest of the band buzz saws behind him. The rousing, yell-back chorus of, “Fuck the USA!” even has Patton putting a bit of a Scottish edge to it with his delivery, and the group shout backs are righteous and chaotic. The final verse, Patton uses a weird alien effect on his voice to add an element of strangeness before the track comes to a pulverizing end.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/ou818/

To buy the music, go here: https://mrbungle.bandcamp.com/releases

It’s early June, and it’s currently 92 degrees as I write this, with more intense heat on the way. Not typical in the northeast United States this time of the year, and the dog is pissed as hell she can’t have two walks because she never has done well in the heat. I’m not saying I’m dreaming of an avalanche or anything, but some cooler weather would be nice.

Or we could drop right into “Chante, Ô Flamme de la Liberté,” the debut from Serment, and be locked right into the claws of winter. This is a solo project for Moribond (also of Forteresse and Ephemer) where he conjures a tale about a pact made with the devil in the freezing Quebecois forests and the journey that takes place from there. Over these stampeding six tracks, Moribond creates a symphonic mindscape, one that reaches back to black metal’s ’90s flourishes when melody and majesty no longer were filthy terms and gets inside your imagination. Not saying it’ll alleviate you of oppressive heat if you happen to be pinned down with that weather right now, but it could help you escape into the ice and snow for a little bit while you tackle this record.

“Ouverture” is a brief opener complete with whipping winds and birds hooting as synth rises, and sounds bleed in leading to “Sonne, le Glas Funèbre” that tears right open. Wild, maniacal howls spread as the playing gets huge and majestic. The vocals then get blurred in the mix as the track feels like it’s swimming through icy waters as black metal melodies rupture. The pace then pummels as it’s swallowed up by synth winds and horses galloping. “Par-Delà Collines et Rivières” has a massive start with a rush of sounds and vicious growls raining down. There’s an absolute deluge as wails spill in and mix with the playing, and the outpouring gains speed and heads into a steady stream. A huge melodic fury destroys and eventually fades into campfires crackling and the spirit fading into the night.

“Flamme Hivernale” opens in a synth fog as the playing unloads and pounds way. Atmospheric pressure picks up and pushes into a wintry hellscape as wild cries and blistering chaos meet. Speed picks up as the song mashes away, stampeding to a dramatic finish that’s taken away by the wind. “Avant que ne Meure la Gloire” erupts and drives heavily as the playing smothers and it feels like heavy snows are falling and coating the earth. The track keeps adding intensity to the mix, blasting away and smoking hard, and then the vicious vocals works into a synth sheet. Graceful violence disrupts, burying everything in soot, while the track works toward a cinematic ending that robs you of your breath. “Hymne à la Patrie” closes the album and is a lengthy instrumental track build with icy keys and freezing ambiance. The playing is both regal and chilling, ending the record by retreating deep into the forest, failing to find a place for warmth.

Moribond certainly achieves the atmosphere he set out to create with “Chante, Ô Flamme de la Liberté,” as this album definitely feels like you’re locked in the Great White North, encapsulated in an unforgiving freezing world. Serment is a much different vessel for Moribond, though one that’s not totally foreign from his other projects. This music is rawer and more aggressive, which is fitting when you’re pacting with the devil and you need pure violence to survive.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/Serment-2218821681488288/

To buy the album, go here: https://www.sepulchralproductions.com/collections/preorders

For more on the label, go here: https://www.sepulchralproductions.com/

It’s been a heartbreaking, infuriating, gut-wrenching, yet in some ways galvanizing last couple weeks here in the United States and now across the globe. The most important election in this nation’s history is on its way, and there aren’t a lot of great choices, but there sure as shit is one nightmarish option. People are trying to take a modicum of power to protect those who continually suffer at authority’s hands, a battle that has made its way all over the world.

There could be no better time for “II,” the second record from Uprising, to land, as it feels like it was written specifically for this time. The solo project of Winterherz (though he goes by just W for this project) who you already know from the mighty Waldgeflüster, he lashes out again fascism, capitalism,  lop-sided power structures, and religion in as direct and unflinching a manner possible. The words, some of which we quote below, are going to resonate with those who have taken to the streets, who are driving efforts to get more people to the polls, who are battling back against poisonous misinformation campaigns that prey on people with lesser income and lower educations because they know they can. This is black metal to fight that war, one that can’t end until the words “liberty and justice for all” are actually true for everyone on this planet. This record isn’t going to be able to solve those problems, but it’s a ferocious partner in the fight to help keeping our blood boiling.

“Introduction” churns with fuzzy voices calling for uprising before that sizzles out and works into “There’s No Such Thing as Hope” that blasts and surges with melody. Dark tidings arrive quickly while the melodies flood and blaze down, which they do all over this record. W’s vocals are righteous and furious as the playing is fluid and violent, with him ending the track with, “What is left to believe in?
Let ashes rain from the heavens like death reigns all being, there’s no such thing as hope.” “Uprise Part II” has riffs gushing and gruff clean singing charging as the pace feels like glorious burning. Vicious howls and a pace that mashes away combine and rupture the earth as W calls, “Uprise above the skies,
strike off your puppet strings with a rebellious song to sing, uprise above all kings.” Utter vitriol is served as the song reaches into rousing madness and then fades to black. “A Lesson in Basic Human Empathy” has the bass recoiling and complete savagery arriving, while W goes on the attack again vocally. “Stand up against injustice, indifference is unacceptable, defend those who cannot,” which are amazing words to live by, as the song clobbers away and unites with fuck-you sentiment to those who cannot show a single strain of compassion for others.

“Monuments” begins with acoustic strains before the bottom is ripped out, and the playing crushes cowards. Scathing howls rip away as the playing trudges without mercy, and even the atmospheric sections feel like they’re holding thunder. The song maintains a devastating pace as the vocals scrape at skin, rousing cleanly sung parts get your heart pumping, and the track then returns to its acoustic origins. “The Iron Eagles Still Fly” focuses on the Lion Air Flight 610 crash that killed 189 people in 2018 and the Ethiopian Airlines Flight 302 crash that claimed 157 lives in 2019 that both were determined to have the same mechanical cause. The song is smothering but also angering and heartbreaking as W wails, “You set the world afire for 346 innocent, all for money and power, thought this would be your end.” The playing has frantic corners and releases raucous energy as W rails against those who failed to adhere to basic rules, bringing the song to a stunning finish. “Radical Decency” ends the record and begins with a disruptive thrashiness that cuts to the core. W hammers on societal inequality and purposeful division of classes as his vocals shred, and the leads burn with glory. Shrieks rain down as the thunderous playing works to solidify forces seeking social justice. “Burn down every fortress of the forever yesterdays, they denied you justice time and time and time again,” W wails as the playing drives with force and the promise to never stop the fight until true equality is achieved.

W could not have known just how vital “II” would be on a worldwide scale when he wrote the music, but this is a cosmically ideal time for Uprising’s return to our world. People are fighting for justice all over right now, and despite a cause that should be so obvious, there still are those who refuse to get rid of their hatred and still want to lick the boots. Uprising have no time for that, and if you’re going to continue to add to a problem that have hurt so many people, you’ll be trampled under entirely different sets of boots as your views continue to lose relevance.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/uprisingblackmetal/

To buy the album, go here: https://tridroid.bandcamp.com/album/ii

Or here: https://wolfsgrimmrecords.bigcartel.com/

For more on the label, go here: https://www.facebook.com/TridroidRecords/

And here: https://www.facebook.com/WolfsgrimmRecords/

Photo by Melissa Petisa

It’s a strange time to be alive, and an even more bizarre period to be writing about heavy metal considering everything that’s going on in the world right now. But we still have very crucial metallic documents to shine a light on, and if one is wrapped in horror and psychologically damaging passages, then maybe it’s for the better. At least it isn’t actually reality.

Bay Area blackened death metal dealers Ulthar have returned with “Providence,” a second helping of their particular formula of this style, and it’s a huge step forward from their killer debut “Cosmovore.” Over eight tracks and nearly 37 minutes, the band covers a nightmarish terrain where existence seems completely detached from normal and where the constant barrage of pain is something one must just accept. The band—guitarist/vocalist/sampler Shelby Lermo, bassist/vocalist/synth player Steve Peacock, drummer/electronics master Justin Ennis—piles layers of vicious, pointed destruction that digs inside your nerves and chews them up so you can feel the same horrors that punish every corner of the world in which this record inhabits.

“Churn” is a quick blast to open the record as the riffs encircle and burly growls pound at your muscles. Maniacal shouts trade in as the guitars hit a tornadic pace before driving into gruff, mucky hell. “Undying Spear” starts with eerie strangeness that makes it feel like you’re about to be abducted before a crazed fury opens up, and growls pierce your side. Tricky playing gets your brain working overtime and moving into the mouth of mauling death before the pace takes off and buries you. The track charges hard, growls and shrieks team up, and everything goes out in flames. The title cut starts with wild yells before the walls break down, and the flood takes over the shores. Menacing growls and killer shrieks stab their way along as the playing gets channeled and devastating. Things go into exploratory mode, veering toward prog, while a new eruption melts all of that. The vocals boil in a cauldron of acid as the track comes to a blurry finish. “Through Downward Dynasties” begins with spacey wooshes that are overtaken by a crashing assault. As things progress, the playing speeds up, leaving you a dizzying mess. Leads burn heavily as the pace slowly crushes, but then the final minutes unleash utter insanity.

“Cudgel” has warped voices circling, drawing you in, and then everything blows up in your face as things get colossally more aggressive. Harsh growls and a muddy build work to get things moving before guitars confound, and a blast of speed strikes. Throaty growls and a manic flash induce panic while the assault wraps around to the back end before coming to a mashing finish. “Furnace Hibernation” hurls fire right from the start, which is fitting, as shrieks corrode, and molten guitar work swaggers. The track is torn to shreds, speeding dangerously, chewing through bone, and ending in a pile of smoking rubble. “Narcissus Drowning” contorts as rough growls enter the mix, and the playing spits splinters. Growls and shrieks team up to add more bruising as your brain cables get tangled, hellish vocals smash senses, and the track ends up in a horrific void.  “Humanoid Knot” ends the record by tearing right into the flesh and bringing vicious shrieks. While parts of the song rely on quickness, there also are pockets of meaty thrashing that throw punches, adding piss to the mud puddles. Animalistic growls return while the band gets noticeably more agitated as the playing unloads before ending abruptly.

Ulthar already were an impressive unit coming off their debut, but “Providence” hits the next level in every way. This is impossibly heavy, strangely haunting, and intelligently pulverizing over all eight of its tracks. This band already should have been on your short list of this era’s most important newer forces, and this record should only push them up higher on that tally.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/Ulthar-386850314846106/

To buy the album, go here: https://www.20buckspin.com/collections/ulthar

For more on the label, go here: https://www.20buckspin.com/

So far this short week, we’ve done a lot of going back in time to the 1990s, when death and black metal both were getting their collective legs under them and were starting to see the first strains of experimentation. Naturally, a lot of modern bands travel backward to revisit those rich terrains, and when done right, it can be a jolt to the system.

Cincinnati’s Valdrin are one of those bands, and their new record “Effigy of Nightmares” slathers you with synth-rich black metal with a side of death that keeps hammering hard the entire time. But it isn’t just a bludgeoning hammer to your skull; it also is full of imaginative playing and storytelling that help fill in the deep valleys they carve. This, their third record, continues their story of Ausadjur Mythos  storyline, where they examine antagonist Nex Animus, who this time is working in a nightmarish hospital torturing and lobotomizing gods who dwell in his domain. The band—guitarist/vocalist/keyboardist Carter Hicks, guitarist Colton Deem, bassist James Lewis, and drummer Ryan Maurmeier—works their magic making this record both heavy and compelling, and they do it in economical fashion with six tracks spread over a half an hour. It gets in and gets out and leaves you devastated.

“Gates of Hospice” is a quick intro cut that has pianos dripping, rain falling, and eerie whispers that hint at the horrors ahead. That leads to “Exsanguination Tunnels” where keys enter and then the fray is unleashed. Shrieks rain down as an orchestral array explodes behind everything, and guttural shrieks shake the foundation. Melodies smother and churn before the synth returns to the mix, and the playing hammers away before a huge storm closes things. “Red Burning Candles of Hatred” lights up and explodes, while the synth arrives like sheets of precipitation, leaving your face soaked and you blind. Guitars charge and deliver the fury, spilling blood and opening up a stampeding charge. Maniacal vocals twist away at your brain while the leads punch through walls, while the final moments are huge and drive you into a dangerous corner.

“Serpentine Bloodhalls” has guitars plinking and a synth gaze spreading while the guitars flow into a pocket of whispers. Acoustics move in as the track gets into proggy territory, and a cloud of cold gasses takes hold and knocks you out. “Basilisk of Light” swells and bursts at the seams as the drums crush and the growls suffocate. The leads hit gigantic highs as the vocals match the intensity, and nasty shrieks pummel. The track hits a maniacal pace before hypnosis takes over, and that eats its way into your psyche. The growls land blows again as the soloing ignites with everything ending in an exploratory melt. “Down the Oubliette of Maelstrom” is the closer and has a mystifying start before things turn gruff and mean. Keys explode as guitars rampage over top, and the leads send things charging while that force takes things into more prog territory. The track keeps flying at reckless tempo before the playing fades into warped oblivion.

Valdrin is onto something with “Effigy of Nightmares,” the absolute high point of their run so far. They’ve spent a decade perfecting their approach toward ’90s-styled black metal and have done so with an eye toward freshness and technical mastery. This is a really strong piece of work from this Cincy band, and this should grab people’s attention by force.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/valdrinausadjur

To buy the album, go here: http://shop.bloodharvest.se/?s=valdrin&post_type=product

For more on the label, go here: http://www.bloodharvest.se/

Photo by Gilles Demolder

As ugly and gruesome as death metal is as an art form, it sure develops people with outpouring emotion for the genre. It’s funny that something that can be outright disgusting both musically and topically, can conjure such joy and love, but it’s also what makes this style so much fun.

The folks who make up new death metal unit Living Gate know that very well. They’re all in notable other bands themselves such as YOB, Oathbreaker, Wiegedood, and Amenra but they’ve used their debut EP “Deathlust” to express their devotion to death metal, and this is five tracks of the good, gross stuff that landed so hard in the early 1990s that still resonates today. The band—Aaron Rieseberg, Lennart Bossu, Wim Coppers, Levy Seynaeve—hammers through this thing with mucky violence and aggression, paying homage to the sounds that are part of their creative upbringing and formation and delivering their own take on things. It’s short but sweet, but they get in and get the job done, leaving you no doubt that they mean it and their intentions are pure. And nasty.

“The Delusion of Consciousness” starts things in the pit of mucky death as the growls gurgle, and the place ignites. Maniacal howls and guitar sizzle combine as the playing feels scathing and mean, and things halt for a second before the death is piled up again on the other side right to its finish. “Roped” blasts open as the playing mystifies before the track rips out its own guts. The track turns sickening and the growls feel engorged as things speed back up, and the paint is peeled from the walls. The title track has corrosive growls and intricate thrashing as the leads swim through the muck. Mashing misery slices through and the leads take off, while the back end leaves thick ash behind. “Heaven Ablaze” blasts right into intricate hell blazing while the pace twists and turns, and guttural growls add to the punishment. There’s a thick old school death metal vibe creeping while the playing smashes through boundaries and gives off shrapnel. “Living Gate” ends the collection, which I’m not sure is a band anthem in the vein of “Iron Maiden” or “Motorhead,” but it’s atmospherically aggressive as it begins landing blows, and the soloing heats up and boils over. Drums explode and wreak havoc while the playing is swallowed into a strange echo chamber before clean guitars drip away.

“Deathlust” is a tremendous dose of classic death metal that should make anyone whose roots go back that far perversely happy. Living Gate have crafted a vile, disgusting love letter to the bands and music that have helped create who they are creatively and have given back to that swamp. This is a fun, fiery mini release that hopefully will keep building toward a full-length effort.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/LivingGate666/

To buy the album, go here: https://store.relapse.com/b/living-gate

For more on the label, go here: https://www.facebook.com/RelapseRecords