A decade ago, I was changing my career entirely, starting at a new job that I still have to this day. Well, not the same role. Same company. You get it. It’s a long time and a short time. It feels like those days went flashing by at times, and at others, it feels like a lifetime ago. A pandemic, personal losses, and a world upheaval also happened in that span, which changed everything we know about the world.

Ten years ago also was the last time we got a full-length from traditional metal power Christian Mistress, that being 2015’s “To Your Death.” Then everything went silent with the band for a long, long time. Then, a few years ago, some shows got announced. Something was brewing, and that arrives with their fourth album “Children of the Earth.” While the band itself may have been active the last decade, this album conscience has been taking it all in like a sponge, with the words sounding as informed and vital as ever. The band—vocalist Christine Davis, guitarist/bassist Jonny Wulf, guitarist Tim Diedrich, drummer Reuben Storey—sounds like they never missed a day, delivering eight tracks over 33 minutes that pump with passion and fury that can swallow you into their world. There’s also a message about the enormity of the universe in which we live, and how we’re a minuscule part of the story, having such a tiny time to make a mark.

“City of Gold” opens shrouded in guitar smoke, Davis’ leathery singing voice reminding us just why we fell in love with this band in the first place. There’s great energy here, a fiery chorus, Davis calling, ” One shot rang out, the hand of fate denied, two feet, run away and hide,” as a big finish gets blood rushing. “Voiceless” has strong leads and a defiance, showing a drive to stand up for those who cannot. “Use your voice, it’s what you got,” David pushes to those who have the ability, the guitars churning. Leads then blaze even harder, the spirit taking up arms, Davis asking, “What would the voiceless say?” as the final moments scorch. “Demon’s Night” has snarling riffs, the singing sparking emotion, the pace shifting as the melodies get catchier. The soloing has a nice vintage edge to it, letting nostalgia boil, and over that Davis calls, “I was left for dead, I was out in the cold, oh if this is the end let it begin.” “Love of the World” weighs the evils of society for one’s passion for the planet, riffs swaggering and driving, Davis admitting this feeling is “the only thing that keeps me engaged.” The chorus bubbles with strength, even in its simplicity, and as it repeats, the fervor grows in your heart, the ills of existence melting away just a bit.

“Mythmaker” is a killer, a righteous metal battle gem that reminds of Dio’s classics, and it starts with guitars chewing and Davis weaving through, commanding, “They say come see if it’s right for you, dance to death on the other side,” before declaring, “You are the mythmaker!” The idea of you being your own visionary is loud and clear, especially when she prods, “Create your story,” before a jarring end. “Death Blade” has a Van Halen-like start, which instantly gets the juices flowing, holding swords aloft and refusing surrender. “Give them hell when they come for you,” she belts, the guitars taking flight again, the drums driving through your chest cavity. “Lake of Memory” gives off some Thin Lizzy vibes with the twin guitars attacking, and this track is where we get our album title with Davis calling, “We are children of the earth! We are children of the stars and sky!” which is the command to find said lake in the realm of Hades in the afterlife. Guitars then slink as the drumming activates, putting a blistering end on this tale. Closer “Shadow” is an end-of-record standout, Davis a cappella singing, “Tonight, we could be gods in the Pantheon, we could be anything,” which should light a heavy metal fire in your heart. The track is rousing and glorious, a song that reignites passions and brings new converts to the fold as the band makes your journey limitless, your mind an open ground for creation, the possibility of victory apparent.

It’s so great to have Christian Mistress back in our orbit, and while 10 years gone seems like a long time (especially considering what that decade contained), they fit right back in the pocket on “Children of the Earth.” It’s easy to place the vintage tag on them, as has been the case since they first arrived, but they have so much more than that. They have a heart and humanity that we need right now, as well as a prevailing spirit that reminds us not to give in to our oppressors. Plus they boil heavy metal down to its original form in a genuine and powerful way that only this band can harness.

For more on the band, go here: https://christianmistress.bandcamp.com/album/children-of-the-earth

To buy the album, go here: https://www.cruzdelsurmusic.com/store/index.php?route=product/search&search=CHRISTIAN%20MISTRESS&description=true

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

How are you feeling right about now? Good? Nah. Unless you’re slopping all of the latest events like a hungry pig starving for fascism, you got to be pretty sick about now. It’s hard to hold any hope. That’s kind of the point. They don’t want you to have hope. But why do they get to win? We don’t roll over for that shit, even when they demand we show our bellies.

The four artists who make up Guiltless certainly are aware of everything and have been living in this strange, dangerous time, and their debut full length “Teeth to Sky” addresses some of this. Though maybe not in a way you might expect. See, there are ways to control our own narratives, to find solace, so find peace, to turn off the noise. Here, the band—vocalist/guitarist Josh Graham, guitarist Dan Hawkins, bassist Sacha Dunable, drummer Billy Graves—refuses to give in to the negativity and use their combination of doom, post-metal, and black metal to carve out a different path. These guys have backgrounds in other groups such as Neurosis, Intronaut, A Storm of Light, and plenty others, and they bring that energy and knowledge to create a pummeling, yet nicely portioned record that still lashes back at the power structures but also tries to urge the listeners to rise above that and fight for the lives we choose to live.  

“Into Dust Becoming” opens in guitar squall, leading to bruising howls and the ground being crushed, Graham calling, “Are we really alive? Were we ever alive?” That pace keeps pushing with force, grime hanging overhead, the pace staying punching and bruising. “One Is Two” opens with throaty cries and sinewy guitars, everything feeling muscular and smoky. The heat increases as the tempo drubs minds, a steely and humid gasp reverberating into oblivion. “In Starless Reign” brings barometric pressure as the bass quivers, and yowled vocals bend your will, the guitars digging deeper into wounds. The wails get throatier as steady blows land, mixing into darker, filthier terrain as Graham calls, “Where we’re from and where we’ll go!” “Our Serpent in Circle” has sounds surrounding as the piece develops, slowly landing blows that still have massive impact. Vocals drive as the ambiance turns harder toward doom fires, the intensity increasing and spitting, Graham repeatedly wailing, “When we fall,” as everything ends in tingling detachment.

The title track has the bass coiling and jarring, howls pummeling, the feel going a little psychedelic before getting meatier. Cleaner singing and spoken bits swim through your head as blood surges, the guitars carve new tributaries, and everything bows to corrosion. “Lone Blue Vale” enters amid a strange sheen, guitars churning as the vocals dig in their fingers, the pace trudging and fucking with your balance. The power increases as the pressure feels like it’s squeezing your skull, a synth cloud emerging and whipping everything into darkness. “Landscape of Thorns” has layered screams and a forceful gust, driving as the howls smear, and sootiness collects underfoot. The riffs get fuzzier before turning bloodier, combusting to a smoldering end. Closer “Illumine” is the longest track, running 7:06 and entering amid bass flexing and a deliberate attack designed to mete out optimal heat. Guitars murmur as everything turns more menacing, screams belting flesh, a vicious force multiplying before suddenly fading.

“Teeth to Sky” holds a message that might be hard for a lot of us to embrace right now as political and societal upheaval peel back our mental wounds, but that’s a good thing. We’re still alive and we still have possibilities in front of us, and giving up on those is a form of surrender that we do not have to offer. Guiltless have be here to pummel with their sounds, but they also remind us to fight for what we have and appreciate every breath because that’s a form of power that the corrupt worldly leaders will have to pry away from us.

For more on the band, go here: https://guiltless.bandcamp.com/album/teeth-to-sky

To buy the album, go here: https://music.neurotrecordings.com/guiltless-album.oem

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

An escape would be good about now, something to take us somewhere where the tidal waves of horrors can’t get to us, and we can actually breathe for a second. Despite how chaotic and angering things may be right now, having a means to not get caught up in the onslaught of news might be the only means to stay sane.

Not sure The Grey had that idea in mind when creating “Kodok,” their third record, but I’ll be damned if that isn’t what they conjured. The UK-based doom-influenced, earth-quaking trio finds ways to make cinematic bends that lap with volcanic eruptions, and it has a means of creating imagery in your head, transporting you someone else, if only for about 42 minutes. Another interesting thing about this band—guitarist Charlie Gration, bassist Andy Price, drummer Steve Moore—is their expanse sonically. Yes, they still hold on to the tenets that brought them here, but with even more imagination and fire than before, with a few special guests sprinkled in to give this even more life (even if it’s marred in, uh, grey).  

“Painted Lady” opens in burly power, a thick fog covering everything but letting small holes open for light to beam through them. The playing buzzes and burns before doomier trudging takes hold, thickening the moodiness as the guitars stream toward reddened skies. The leads soar gently before digging back in, the final moments expiring in exhaust. “La Bruja (Cygnus)” has the drums rousing, guitars chugging, and a chunkier, beefier attack mounted, the pressure peaking and then fading. The pace picks back up and turns steely, voices warble as if from a dream, and a shadowy, liquidy center melts, brushing with space before re-engaging with brutality. “Sharpen The Knife” features vocals from Grady Avenell (Will Haven), and his voice adds mucky grit to a steamy gaze of energy. Avenel goes from shrieks to guttural growls, hammering away as a strange aura is achieved, only to disintegrate in thin air. 

“CHVRCH” is quiet and reflective when it opens, guitars swelling and dashing, creating a sort of Pelican-style vibe. The pace picks up and immediately feels more dangerous, digging into muscle before pulling back again, letting blurry visions cloud your sight, shrieks gutting through glimmering keys. The vocals continue to bruise extremities as the playing pounds and mesmerizes, slipping into a dream state. “Don’t Say Goodbye” is a total change of pace, a lighter, more emotional piece built with clean guitars and raw reflection. Ricky Warwick’s (Black Star Riders) singing should soothe, but there’s hurt lying in the words as he first sings, “Don’t say goodbye unless you’re leaving,” repeatedly, with the final refrain ending with, “Unless you mean it.” Closer “AFG” features guitarist Ace from Skunk Anansie and Chris Hargreaves (fattybassman), and it’s a jerky, gazey piece that feels oddly calming in spots, moving toward the drums coming to life, stick taps making blood boil. An encircling atmosphere arrives, hulking pounding makes the earth shiver, and steam rises and threatens before dissipating into the air.

The Grey expand their sound into even newer areas with “Kodok,” a record that took me a few tries before it finally set in, and when it did, it was a pretty satisfying jolt. Sure, there might be very little left that’s new under the sun, and this band does delve into well-traveled post-metal and doom pathways, but they inject a sense of adventure and personality into the music that lets it create its own narrative. This experimentation paid off for the band, and hopefully they continue to explore underneath more surfaces the next time around. 

For more on the band, go here: https://thegrey2.bandcamp.com/album/kodok

To buy the album, go here: https://www.majesticmountainrecords.com/products/the_grey_kodok-preorder

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

I always see splits in two different ways. First, it’s a vehicle for two bands to put together music that may or may not fit together that lets the listener take smaller adventures with each. The other way is a tidy introduction to newcomers for bands that might not yet have hit their radar that doesn’t require them to digest an entire album’s worth of material.

Today we have a crushing 4-track split from two single-creator black metal outfits that are coming off well-received, impactful full-length albums (both made our top 40 last year) and are looking to build on that momentum. Or I’m complicating things and it’s a way for two like-minded artists to share a record and continue to warp black metal to their wills. Genital Shame hails from Pittsburgh and is helmed by Erin Dawson, and 2024’s “Chronic Illness Wish” is one that remains in my rotation on my office turntable. Joining her on this effort is Lust Hag, commanded by Eleanor, who released a self-titled LP last year that was a fiery statement that opened a lot of eyes and ears, mine included. Both artists are trans women in a space where there isn’t always acceptance and in a society that’s attacking these people for no good reason other than fucking fear. Long may both artists/bands run.

Genital Shame’s portion opens with “Notes Are My Friends” which is spacious and airy when it opens, a bit of a departure from the “Chronic Illness Wish” but an interesting one. Clean notes drip as Dawson’s howls reverberate through an acoustic wash and warm leads. Things then feel like heavy hypnosis as keys shimmer, a cosmic push envelops, and the final hellish vocals mix with a delicate haze. “War on Cars” starts with vile howls, pounding that leaves bruising, and heat that rises as vile darkness sinks in its teeth. The guitars darken as the madness opens fully, the leads scaling as the growls retch, the pace numbing, and everything washing away into freezing cold waters.

Lust Hag’s part starts with “Everything Ends” that dawns in an ominous atmosphere, a spacey coldness digesting, the feeling of isolation spreading, and then the drums exploding. Fiery chaos ignites, shrieks attack, and the leads slay, pushing you to the limits mentally as echo smears over a vicious finish. “Another Loss” brings unfurling riffs, fast and blinding motion, howls buried underneath the carnage that still have full impact. The playing drills harder, full demolition blazing, feral cries wounding with the thrashy pace. The pace turns channeled and even heavier, the guitars light up, and the final spiral leaves the room spinning out of control.

This is a really fitting combination of bands on this split as Genital Shame and Lust Hag create black metal that exists in new realms and realities that maintain the subgenre’s spirit but bend it to their liking. Both bands also seem bound to continue to push their sounds into dark regions, and this release could be a hint at where each project is headed next. This also could serve as a nice appetizer for anyone new to these hellish forces who’d like a little taste before fully diving into the sea of blades. 

For more on Genital Shame the band, go here: http://genitalshame.bandcamp.com/

For more on Lust Hag, go here: https://eleanorharper.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://fiadh.bandcamp.com/music

For more on the label, go here: https://fiadh.bandcamp.com/