Kylesa’s journey has been an interesting one. The Savannah, Ga., band started off much heavier and scuzzier, playing crusty, punishing metal that hinted at sludge, and they seemed to be a band that wanted to seize you and beat you into submission with their fury and dual vocal approach that sounded like two very upset people yelling in each of your ears.

But, as bands that accumulate experience are wont to do, they changed their sound slowly and calculatingly. They never left their punk or metal roots behind, but they did add more Southern rock sweat, psychedelic wailing, and melody to their sound, and over the last few albums, they morphed into an entirely new beast. Their teeth are sharper, they know how to swipe at prey even better, and lo and behold, their profile swelled as they became a pretty well-known band in extreme metal circles. But these alterations and changes came about organically and never sounded like something they forced on themselves, plus they managed to strengthen their songwriting chops to create some of the most adventurous material of their career on 2010’s impressive “Spiral Shadow.”

Three years later, after many miles have been traveled, hundreds of shows have been played, and from the sounds of it, much hurt has been encountered, Kylesa return again with “Ultraviolet,” their sixth record and second since aligning with French metal giants Season of Mist. Sure enough, their growth continues as they expand their sound even further, and there are times on this record where one can question whether the band is truly metal through and through, which would be dumb argument to have because who cares? The music continues to get dreamier and trippier, the heavier parts burst with melody, and the band itself exudes confidence even when expressing pain and dealing with situations that left them scarred.

The heart of Kylesa remains dual guitarists and vocalists Laura Pleasants and Phillip Cope, who long have been the mouthpieces and guiding forces behind this band. Along with them are bassist Chase Rudeseal, and drummers Carl McGinley and Eric Hernandez. As usual, the band sounds tight, though as you’ll notice going through this record that they’re aiming less for heaviness and more for melody and dreamy simmering. It’s a pretty natural progression from “Spiral Shadow” to “Ultraviolet,” so depending on how you felt about the direction on that record, this will either be really good or really bad news. I like the direction they’re going, and they sound at home. I wouldn’t call “Ultraviolet” a home run by any means, but it’s a damn steady stand-up double. You can’t discount those.

The album actually begins a little unsteady with “Exhale,” a song that sounds like a traditional Kylesa song, with Pleasant and Cope taking turn shouting back the lines, allowing room for a lot of give and take between the two. Problem is the song sounds a little forced, like they had to make a typical Kylesa song, and that causes the album to open with a minor thud. But then “Unspoken” hits, and things look up in a hurry, with strong, buzzing guitar grooves, a nice hazy atmosphere, and Pleasants turning in some of her best singing to date. That momentum continues into “Grounded,” that opens with a damn tasty Southern rock-style swagger, spacious weirdness, and enough trippiness to keep you chilled as they go for it. “We’re Taking This” finds Kylesa turning in a heavy metallic jam that really resonates, as Pleasants’ anger when screaming the words, “What goes around comes back around!” makes it seem like venom is spewing from her mouth, through your speakers, into your face. Wouldn’t want to be the person who inspired this song. “Long Gone” has a desert, sunburnt feel to it, and while it has its punch and its crunch, its melody also lets you trance out and ride on the waves of its simmering soloing.

“What Does It Take” has a neat shimmer to it, and while it’s faster and more aggressive, it’s equally poppy and approachable, with Cope delivering smoother vocals and wondering, “Is this really happening?” “Steady Breakdown” delves into ’90s college rock, though it also has some elements of doom, and Pleasants shows even more range in her singing, going on like she’s a lost Deal sister. “Low Tide” hints back to “What Does It Take,” a more approachable rock song, and I sometimes have trouble distinguishing the difference between the two. “Low” isn’t a bad song, but it isn’t the best one on here. “Vultures Landing” brings some of the sludge and heaviness back, and it has some of the best guitar work on the whole record, filled with psychedelic wonder and atmosphere. “Quicksand” is a quick burst that seems like it’s going to be an interlude at first but actually gets filled out with fun vocals and a pushy tempo. “Drifting” is your closer, and like the opener, it falls a little flat. It has an airy mid-tempo pace for the most part, though it charges up a bit as it goes on, with some tough shouting from Pleasants, but it kind of peters out sans drama. It’s not a bad song, but it isn’t really doesn’t leave the best lasting memory.

“Ultraviolet” is a pretty decent sixth record from the band, albeit not their best chapter yet. I appreciate the band’s development, and they seem capable of making a really great record with this approach. This isn’t that record, but if the next one is the blowaway effort, we’ll look at “Ultraviolet” as the steppingstone to get there.

For more on the band, go here: http://www.kylesa.com/

To buy the album, go here: http://e-shop.season-of-mist.com/en

For more on the label, go here: http://www.season-of-mist.com/

I’m a major proponent of listening to an album many times before deciding on what I think of it. That might seem like a basic, obvious thing to say, but considering so many gut reactions flood the internet when a record is released, I wonder how many people remember to sit back with a piece of work, immerse themselves in it, and see if they don’t come around.

If I didn’t practice patience and absorption in listening, I might have written off “The Eldritch Dark,” the third record from Toronto-based occult rockers Blood Ceremony. I listen to their first two records–their 2008 self-titled debut and 2011’s “Living With the Ancients”–constantly and know those albums inside and out, so when this new record dropped and had an approach and personality completely different from those first couple of releases, I had to deal with a sense of shock. This is not the type of music I expect from this band, free-spirited, classic rock-style compositions that bubble with life and are practically joyous in their outward demeanor. I was used to longer, more brooding, more adventure-style songs, so it took some time to get used to this.

Luckily I kept at it, and now I might prefer “The Eldritch Dark” over the rest of their catalog. It’s immediate, it’s catchy, it sounds inspired by the past but made by modern-day musicians who take their muse in a different direction. I can’t stop listening to the thing, and as weird and diverse as this record is on the surface, it’s still Blood Ceremony through and through. It’s still alluringly dark, it feels like it was pieced together from the pages of tragic and violent folklore. It just might be the record that gets this band over with a larger audience in the States, because this album rocks with a style and swagger never heard before from this band that they handle and pull off expertly. This very well could be their breakthrough effort, and damn it if they don’t deserve it.

Alia O’Brien remains the centerpoint of this incredible band, both because of her powerful pipes that drive their dark storytelling and her flute playing, which rivals Ian Anderson’s work with Jethro Tull. But let’s not discount the rest of this unit, including excellent guitarist Sean Kennedy, who does some of his finest work to date on this album, and rock-solid rhythm section Lucas Gadke on bass and Michael Carrillo on drums. The band created a record that should satisfy those who have been on board for the last few albums, and it should expand their audience even further to grab those who get into classic rock and more traditional forms of metal. These songs are killers, and if they got radio airplay, there’s no way anyone could think the tracks were out of place.

The record kicks off with the raucous “Witchwood,” a song that could make new Rock and Roll Hall of Famers Heart overcome with pride, from the guitar work that cuts down the middle, to O’Brien’s expressive storytelling, at one point warning, “We rise and meet you at your door.” Just a splendid opener, one that is emblazoned on my brain. “Goodbye Gemini” keeps the adrenaline going, proving to be one of the catchiest, most memorable songs this band ever created, and O’Brien’s flute playing and singing keeps you not only engaged but actively participating in the jaunt. Folk ballad “Lord Summerisle” is a true change of pace, not only for the record but for the band itself. Gadke takes over lead vocals, quite capably might I add, O’Brien provides lush, lovely backing, and the track has a classic Moody Blues essence. “Ballad of the Weird Sisters” reminds me of Heart again but also of The Decemberists, not just for the pushy folk rock vibe and active strings but for weaving murderous events into a disarmingly sticky song. Great work.

The title track kicks off sounding like vintage Black Sabbath with its bluesy guitar swagger, doom groove, and more forceful, grittier vocals from O’Brien that you don’t often hear from her. “Drawing Down the Moon” has a poppier disposition at times, though, of course, it’s doused with dread in the form of spooky organs and the guitar work, though the vocals give the song something of a shimmer. “Faunus” is a bouncy, flute-led instrumental that finds the band showing off some of their progressive tendencies, and that leads to our eight-minute epic closer “The Magician,” a song about magician Oliver Haddo from a book of the same name by W. Somerset Maugham. Haddo is a caricature of Aleister Crowley, and the band retells the devious tale of love, betrayal, and the occult, with a pulverizing, exciting doom rock tempo that ends the record on a surging note.

Blood Ceremony have achieved a different level of greatness with “The Eldritch Dark,” and this is an exciting new direction for the band. This record should result in them taking on a great deal of new suitors, and I’m excited to hear how these songs come across live. They made all the right adjustments in their sound, paving the way for what has to be a bright future, even if it’s mired in darkness.

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

To buy the album, go here: http://www.indiemerchstore.com/item/19486/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.riseaboverecords.com/

And here: http://www.metalblade.com/

Usually you can tell right away when you’re hearing a record that’s particularly special, one you’ll be discussing toward the end of the year when compiling best-of lists. It’s a piece of work that reaches out and grabs you and refuses to release its grip.

But that isn’t always the case. Take for example “The Formulas of Death,” the second record from Swedish death metal unit Tribulation. First time through this record it sounded really good, but it didn’t really sink in as something that deserved extra special attention. But the more I played the thing, the more it made its impact and started to infect me. It wasn’t just some run-of-the-mill new death metal band trying to make its mark in a scene that’s already flooded with music. Instead, it was the sign of a group that wanted to expand its thinking, take things further than they had on their debut, and make something that would stand out among the pack. They managed to do just that with this 11-track, 75-minute effort that refuses to leave my ears.

The band formed nearly a decade ago, and they put out an EP and a demo before offering up their 2009 debut “The Horror,” an album that held promise for the band but certainly didn’t seem like an indication that greatness was ahead. Over the time since their first album landed, they’ve simply become a much better band. They have added more black metal influences to their sound, which has added levels of atmosphere and melody to their music, and they just sound like a more seasoned collection of musicians who are better are pulling off their big ideas. The songwriting and creativity is stronger, and that’s made a major difference.

The lineup is pretty much the same as who’s been in the band from the start, including bassist/vocalist Johannes Andersson (also of Sars, Stench), and guitarists Adam Zaars (Sars, Repugnant, that also features an evil pope-like guy) and Jonathan Hulten (Stench). Joining them is new drummer Jakob Ljungberg, who also plays in Sars, and combined they make for a formidable unit that’s capable of creating great things like this stunning second record that you’re bound to hear a lot about as this year progresses.

Opening with the weird, whirry intro “Vagina Dentata,” they then blast into “Wanderer in the Outer Darkness,” a seven-minute-plus track that is full of creative fury and even progressive metal dashes, and later on in the track, it gets trippy and psychedelic. “Spectres” is vicious and forceful, remaining in a rage and in your face during its running time and giving you no opportunity to back away or gain your own ground. An untitled interlude follows, filled with drizzling piano and watery guitar, and then it’s into “Suspiria,” an eerie, chilling track with large section of instrumental exploration, unexpected guitar textures, but also venom and madness, with Andersson howling like his throat is full of hornets.

“Through the Velvet Black” simmers as it starts, with drums building into a frenzy, an explosion on the cusp of fully enveloping you. The tricky guitars move and stab, the vocals are threatening and purposeful, and the soloing inspired and easy to get lost in. It’s a thrashier song, with some pockets that get particularly fiery, but for the most part it’s channeled very scientifically. “Randa” follows, and its swirling guitars and unique melodies make it one of the standout tracks on the record. It feels sickening and aggressive, and it never lets up in intensity.” When the Sky Is Black With Devils” starts like it’s going to pull things back, but then the song erupts, and it’s a savage journey into the mouth of hell. “Spell” starts with a fast guitar line, drums meeting up with it to help with the demolition, and vocals that are intent to maim and wreck. “Ultra Silvam” takes things back into space again, with weird, starry melodies and intent to set a mood for the blistering finale, the 13:17-long “Apparitions,” where the band leaves some of their best material for last. You get a nice collection of sounds you heard on the first 10 songs, from death-like hammering, black metal-style majesty and glory, meaty thrash sections that’ll get your blood and fists pumping, and vocals delivered with a raspy violence that keeps you alert and aware over the entire song’s running time. It’s a wonderfully chaotic finish to a great, eye-opening record.

Hopefully Tribulation continue this remarkable improvement and work to become even better songwriters. It’s not enough to just add influences from metal’s wide spectrum and hope that’ll be enough to make a compelling record, but I think these guys know that as they prove that over and over on this album. “The Formulas of Death” is one of the year’s most explosive albums and a real pleasant surprise. What’s even more exciting is Tribulation are only at the beginning of their story, and they have plenty more chapters to fill in from here.

For more on the band, go here: http://www.tribulation.se/

To buy the album, go here: http://www.theajnaoffensive.com/collections/ajna

Or here: http://www.invictusproductions.net/shop/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.theajnaoffensive.com/

And here: http://invictusproductions.net/

Surachai Sutthisasanakul

If metal had more artists half as adventurous as Surachai Sutthisasanakul, the terrain would be a lot more exciting to traverse. Over the course of three full-length albums and a handful of EPs, the Chicago-based artist has made some of the more perplexing and stimulating sounds the genre could boast, and he made these weird, metallic creations on his own, with no backing band.

But he changed his mind about the collaboration deal going into the third Surachai album “Embraced,” a platter being released on Trash_Audio and Bandcamp, and that he made, for the first time ever, with a full band. It’s not like his audience was clamoring for him to try something different, because this project was moving along nicely, having last checked in with 2011’s tremendous “To No Avail,” a two-track, 21-minute wonder that remains in my listening arsenal to this day. But what the audience wants and what the artist wants don’t have to be the same, and considering Sutthisasanakul is the one in charge of making this art, he needs to follow his whims, and we need to trust him. Luckily doing that pays huge dividends with “Embraced,” one of the fieriest Surachai albums to date.

This three-track, nearly 34-minute album is the beefiest Surachai album to date, and perhaps having extra personnel to help Sutthisasanakul achieve his vision also helped him expand his creativity. The songs are boisterous, aggressive, but also very intelligent, and the closest comparison I can think of to compare this to is Krallice’s work. But that’s only a comparison, as Surachai’s music is completely distinguishable from that band, but if you need to associate it with another group’s sound, there you go. Surachai always changes things up with weird noises, heady programming, and other sonic additions that complement the music and keep you wondering where this is going next. It’s an incredible experience all around, and it’s the best Surachai album to date.

I mentioned the extra cast surrounding Sutthisasanakul, and they are guitarists Shane Prendeville (Guzzlemug, Murmur) and Andrew Markuszewski (who you’ll know from his black metal project Avichi, as well as from Nachtmystium and the mighty Lord Mantis), acoustic bassist Tom Kelly (also of Guzzlemug), drummer Charlie Werber (also of Guzzlemug, Murmur), sound designer Richard Devine (Warp, Schematic), and buchla easel player Alessandro Cortini (How to Destroy Angels). That’s a formidable collection of musicians in general, but the fact they’ll all Chicago-based is a little intimidating.

The band launches into “Ancestral,” with dizzying melodies, guitars that are trying to hypnotically warp the mind, and harsh vocals that sound savage and determined. This is where the Krallice comparison first feels right, but just as they lean into that weird, spacey black metal headspace, it comes to a halt, and programming slips in, treating everything with a chilly woosh. Then it blows back up again into a full storm, only to slip back into an alien calm that takes us into “Sentinel.”

That song also begins with a breezy frame of mind, but before long a doom-infested landslide takes place, and out of that rises shoegazey guitars and more crazed howls. There’s a nice long section in the middle where everyone plays off each other musically, and it ends in full robotic mode, feeling like someone’s trying to process your emotion in some kind of antiseptic lab. Closer “Surrender” rises from the ashes, still ensconced in the lab but also ready to ramp up its fury to new, frightening levels. A black haze and off-kilter strangeness spill in and change the complexion of the song, going even further into adventurous sonic examinations, sometimes letting chaos back into the picture. But as the song boils seemingly out of control, serenity glides in, the band lets their lungs fill with air, and you’re allowed to exhale with them as the album comes to its conclusion.

Surachai’s journey continues to go into unexpected corners, and it’s one of the reasons this project remains so rewarding to follow. On top of that, Sutthisasanakul’s creativity know no bounds, and whether he’s by himself or with an incredibly accomplished group of players, he always comes up with compositions that keep you engaged and enthralled. This is his best work to date, though I don’t question he’ll top himself next time around. It’s just what he does.

For more on the band, go here: http://surachai.org/

To buy the album, go here: http://trashaudio.com/store

Or here: http://surachai.bandcamp.com/album/embraced

For more on the label, go here: http://trashaudio.com/

I’ve mentioned before that I try to go out of my way to not read biographical material on new bands because I don’t want anything in a press release or history to sway my manner of thinking about the music I’m about to experience. Fair or not, those details can influence a way a person thinks about or prematurely judges music, and that can be unfair.

But avoiding bios or press releases isn’t always something that can be done, and in fact, try as I might not to read too far ahead the first time I hear a band, I’m typically not successful in that venture. In fact, when the debut from Ruin Lust landed in my inbox, all I had to see was a member of Fell Voices was in that band, and it immediately made me anticipate a certain sound and a particular way of doing things. Fell Voices have their times where they can be volcanic and confrontational, but their epics tend to be atmospheric and thought provoking, giving you a few punches in the gut when you need it. But we’re only talking one FV member in this band — that being drummer Mike (who also contributes vocals) — that having that preconceived notion wasn’t giving proper due to the other two members. Of course, one visit with their five-song debut changed all of that.

Ruin Lust seem hell bent on destroying you mentally and physically form the word “go,” and the molten fury that sprawls forth on their self-titled album sounds like the product of pure anger and aggression. These guys mar the shit out of you, and in a live setting, I could see things perhaps getting a little out of hand. Guitarist/vocalist Joe and bassist/vocalist Seth join Mike to create thrashing, mashing, doom-friendly black metal that goes right for the throat. They’re not concerned with playing with atmospherics and trying to set a heady mood. They’re here for the pure demolition of it all, and you’ll know that to be true mere moments after you put the music on and let yourself be abducted, beaten, and left in a field with the air stinging your oozing wounds.

Opener “Obedience” gives you a good idea of what’s in store for you on this record, with deep, vicious growls, crushing savagery, and thrashy meanness that has nothing but ill intent in store for you. Eventually it slows down and slips into doomy terrain, lurching like a monster. “Primal Vision” is fast, fiery, and violent, mashing you into submission, and driving and penetrating into your face with its drilling melodies. Toward the end, Joe’s soloing catches fire and shows a more dynamic side to the band. “Tethered and Lashed” is blistering and totally dominating, with drums that seek to bruise your face and thrashy lead lines that are as fun as they are violent. Toward the end, the guys hit a nice groove and light shit on fire, with scorching chaos spilling all over the place.

The final two cuts make up the two-part “Skin Hunger” that takes up about the final 12 minutes of the collection. Part 1 is drubbing and doom-infested, trudging along in its gruesome tracks and letting things reach a new level of ugliness. Harsh, skin-shredding vocals blast into the scene, and it sets the pace for Part 2, which ignites from the start. A thundering drum assault blasts open, and the guitars reach a spooky black metal-style haunting that might ice your skin cells. The song is a clobbering serving of metallic carnage that never relents for even a second and ends the record of a smoldering note.

Ruin Lust’s debut is a fantastic listen, and I imagine these songs will sound even better and more explosive in a live setting. These three guys do a fine job suiting and dealing out punishment, and while they still have a ways to go before they match the underground profile of Fell Voices, there’s no reason they can’t get there in time, if that’s something that even matters to them. In the meantime, I hope they keep refining their skills to become an even deadlier killing machine.

For more on the band, go here: http://ruinlust.blogspot.com/

To buy the album, go here: http://psychicviolence.bigcartel.com/

For more on the label, go here: http://psychicviolencerecords.blogspot.com/

I love to be totally off-my-ass surprised by a metal record and its situation, and that’s turned into something that doesn’t happen nearly as often as I would like it to these days. That’s likely a product of oversaturation, some bands not really being all that ready to make records, and labels just signing whatever the fuck will get them some money.

When I got an e-mail from Gilead Media about the release of the debut record from Lychgate, I was excited because I trust the label and know they put out good music. It also made me seek out a little bit more about the Cambridge-based band that I didn’t know a lot about beyond their band name and minor details about their sound. Gilead Media certainly has a nice range of sounds that go from rugged black metal to more atmospheric bands in that same sub-genre, and also some sludge and some hardcore-influenced sounds. From what I understood about Lychgate, this seemed to be a venture in an entirely new direction, and now that I’ve heard and fully absorbed the band’s self-titled debut, that line of thinking is confirmed, and it’s an exciting new venture for the label (Mordgrimm will handle the release in the UK).

If someone had played me the Lychgate record before I knew anything about them and asked me to pick what label it’s on, I might go with Debemur Morti or Profound Lore, because this band seems right up their alleys. But Gilead Media jumped on these guys, and much to their credit, they’re going to be the ones recognized for bringing this creepy, creaky, spirited doom metal band to the States and exposing one of the more interesting outfits from this sub-genre I’ve heard in a while. They also have a bit of black metal eeriness in their sound, which adds yet another level of darkness. This Lychgate record taught me two things: Even a sub-genre that seems flooded with content can pull out something exhilarating and rewarding when the artists behind it have a true passion and course of action that makes you realize they mean business. Second, never try to guess what a strong label is up to, because they’ll always find a way to pull out the stops and surprise you.

Lychgate actually started as Archaicus, led solely by Vortigern, who handles guitars, chants, and the huge organs you hear haunting this record. Joining him now are Greg Chandler on guitars and vocals, who you might know better from his role with mighty doom merchants Esoteric, bassist Aran (Lunar Aurora), and drummer Tom Vallely (Omega Centauri). They’re a mighty team, and their sound practically reeks of early ’90s British doom, which is a huge plus for a listener like me, and those aforementioned organs add an insane level of dark soulfulness, making you feel like you need to genuflect before them to avoid whatever curse they plan to put on your head. Don’t expect their mercy.

“The Inception” is your dusty introduction track, that lets its horrible spirit into the room and gives it time to find a nice corner of your room to scare your senseless. “Resentment” unfurls slowly, with dark riffs, allowing cold, dusty drapery to crash over the windows and inspires a creaky, weary ache in your soul. Chandler’s growls are harsh and deep, and once the organs spill all over, things are damn near liturgical. “Against the Paradoxical Guild” is more fierce and screamy, showing some of their black metal tendencies and savagery, with mournful guitar lines and blistering drums. “In Self Ruin” brings back the giant chest heaves of organ, that sound downright ritualistic, and again we’re leveled with a heavier approach and more aggressive tempo. “Sceptre to Control the World” has an old-school death metal bend, and yet there are dreary, doomy sentiments included, along with a melody that evokes sorrow.

“Intermezzo,” as I’m sure you guessed, is an interlude track, whirry and airy, also ghostlike. “Triumphalism” is one of the shortest tracks on the record and is punchy and to the point, getting in, creating a body count, and moving on to the next unfortunate household. “Dust of a Gun Barrel” has  Deathspell Omega-style experimentation, with its slurry, hypnotic melodies and creaked growls. The whole song is off-kilter and unsettling, and if it doesn’t chill you to the bone, you might already be deceased. Closer “When Scorn Can Scourge No More” has that aforementioned ’90s feel big time, bringing back thoughts of old Paradise Lost and Cathedral, and its doom-encrusted sensibility, shoegazey dreaming, and intoxicating grimness is a great way to bring this record crashing to its conclusion.

Lychgate is another tremendous find for Gilead Media, and this band should be one of the more exciting doom projects going forward. They have a personality few others in the tidal wave of doom can boast, and I’m sure experience and hunger are primary reasons for that. This is a really strong debut that hopefully is the first of many terrifying chapters to come.

For more on the band, go here: http://lychgate.eu/

To buy the album, go here: http://www.gileadmedia.net/store/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.gileadmedia.net/

Music has the ability to heal, even when it’s vitriolic and furious, because it knows where to find your inner chaos, greet it, stamp it out, and give you a breath of fresh air. There’s something good about being able to get lost in chaos and overcome by swarming noise.

I constantly turn to the noisiest, most sprawling music possible when I feel like I need a mental and spiritual lift, and even if I’m angry or agitated, this route seems to work better than when I try to turn to, say, violent death metal. I want to let the tension release slowly so I can feel the pressure subside and regain my wits about me. It’s a reason why a band such as Fell Voices has meant a lot more to me. They’re than just a band that makes incredible music; their work also acts as catharsis and psychological therapy for me, and everything they’ve put out so far has spoken to me from this angle.

Now comes the band’s ambitious, challenging new album “Regnum Saturni,” a tumultuous, atmospherically driven new effort comprised of three epics that spill over a double LP. It runs a little over 66 minutes, and every second of this collection is gripping and artistically rewarding. The whole thing was recorded live, so you’re hearing exactly how the band envisions the songs to be born, live, and fade away and weren’t put together piecemeal like most records are. That adds extra spark and dynamic energy to “Regnum Saturni” and makes for one of Fell Voices’ most exciting releases to date. In fact, they just seem to be getting better and better, building peaks upon peaks, and now three full-length albums into their run, it’s time for them to be recognized as one of America’s most exciting and adventurous black metal bands by a greater group of people. If you still haven’t heard Fell Voices, what is holding you back? Now is the time.

The band is a trio and remain fairly mysterious as far as full names go (I don’t get why more people don’t opt for that since people on the Internet are fucking nuts), with Joseph on bass and vocals, Tucker on guitars, and drummer Mike (also of Ruin Lust, who we’ll be talking about soon) on drums and vocals. Their musical connection has grown more steady and cosmic as time has gone on, and as great as their untitled 2010 release was, this one is superior by far and is truly indicative of a band at its creative apex.

“Flesh From Bone” opens with a long drone section that sounds like what an alarm system might if you were under the influence of some thick syrup. Then the shimmery noise bursts open with a thunderous assault, shrieks that are buried underneath the tidal waves of noise, and a furious sequence of punishment takes over. Once the panic subsides a bit, synth murk emerges, and a gothy, eerie spirit arises and floats over. Doom-laced melodies take over from there, and that continues until drone rises again like a sleepy curse.

The drone continues into “Emergence,” where a swarm takes flight that’s packed Armageddon sirens, and the noise pulsates and quivers until the metallic explosions kick up again about three minutes into the track, eventually letting a groove set in that the band rides to fiery glory. Doom drama bubbles again to the surface, wild howls and shrieks rip into any serenity you might feel, and primal melodies drub and bash you against cement walls. The guitar lines repeat and nearly achieve a hypnotic state, and the buzzing again returns and whips the song into a lather as is rinses away and sets the stage for the closer.

“Dawn” continues (and ends) the story with the same drone line that holds the entire piece together, and the early minutes are warm like young sunbeams on your cheeks. But something seems amiss in the midst of this song, like that early morning calm is about to be ripped asunder by tragedy, and when the hammer does fall, a world-crushing melody swells up and boils over onto the song, with distant shrieks swirling into cascading guitars. Sorrow and pain seem to bleed from the seams of this piece, almost as if the composition isn’t big enough to handle all the emotional tumult, yet it perseveres and carries the band into the hellish vortex that drives the song to its final isolated screams and concluding noise glaze.

Fell Voices know how to channel their inner turmoil and energy, and clearly every time I need their records for some much-needed catharsis, they over-deliver. “Regnum Saturni” is another in a line of incredible documents that stretch the boundaries of black metal and what you know extreme music and thinking to be. They excel at cosmic atmosphere, violent underpinnings, and murky chasms, and they’ve never made music as gigantic and compelling as this. And chances are they’ll top themselves next time around.

For more on the band, go here: http://fellvoices.blogspot.com/

To buy the album, go here: http://www.gileadmedia.net/store/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.gileadmedia.com/

So, on your list of ways you hope you die, how far up is “devoured by giant wolf”? Pretty high up there? Maybe not so much, for some of you less adventurous types? Whatever way, it’s going to happen to us all, so why not go out in the most violent, uncomfortable manner possible, am I right? OK, let’s move on. I’m uncomfortable now.

All of this is in reference to “Fenris Kindir” (Fenris’ kin) the eighth record from Swedish metal heathens Arckanum, a record that’s a tribute to the Norse legend Fenris, a giant wolf that is predicted to break free at the climax of Ragnarok and devour the sun and moon. Mankind will be busy being burned to death and drowning in oceans, but for anyone who survives all of that hell, there’s this giant wolf with which to contend who, for all intents and purposes, is going to turn out the lights. For good. It is to him these songs are dedicated, and the album is inspired by the leader of the wolves and devourer of large celestial bodies, one of which is completely engulfed in flames.

I reference Arckanum as a we above, and that’s not really accurate. I tend to do that with band names, but really, all of this is the work and imaginative drive of Shamaatae, who has driven this ship from its emergence more than two decades ago. In that time, he has put out a collection of stirring, often forestal-sounding platters of raw, atmospheric black metal that’s slowly gotten the attention of the rest of the metal world. His work now is firmly ensconced on the mighty Season of Mist label, but it took him a while to get there, putting out debut “Fran Marder” on Necropolis and continuing on with imprints such as Debemur Morti and Regain before landing where he is now. The output has been stirring and ambitious, always worthy of your undivided attention, and the work he does on “Fenris Kindir” certainly is a worthy addition to the already bustling catalog.

The origin of Arckanum’s story is based on chaos-gnosis and anti-cosmic Satanism, a subject you can go ahead and research yourself because we try to stay away from spiritual issues here. I care about metal and don’t really care about stuff like this even if it directly affects or inspires the music. I just want to know what the records sound like. But recently Shamaatae has gone to exploring more Norse topics, such as what you’ll find on this record and what he did on “Helvitismyrkr” that explore old mythology and reveal the more violent, chaotic, and thornier side of these legends. Also, the music is the polar opposite of what someone like Amon Amarth has done with the subject matter. Arckanum are far more dangerous and deadly, and you’ll know that from the moment the record begins that you aren’t in for glorious, movie-style adventures. You’re going to bleed and pay the price instead.

“Fenris Kindir” works like a single piece of music, as each track flows into the one that follows, and we get a brief introduction with “Fenris Kindir Grua” to set the stage and the mood. “Tungls Tjugari” opens the brutality in earnest with charged-up riffs, chugging melodies, and heathen-like screams and growls that sound like they were transported from the origins of mankind. It’s then into “Dolgrinn” that has a mean, classic black metal sound and really interesting growled phrasing. Really cool delivery. I don’t know what he’s on about because I don’t speak the old Norse tongue, but I’m paying attention nonetheless. “Hatarnir” rips open with a thick bassline, thrashy, pulverizing riffs, and punk-fueled intensity. There is garbling at the end that very well could be backward messaging, but again, not speaking the language, I could be wrong. Creepy either way. “Hamrami” is an interlude that has a Dark Ages aura, and it leads you into the second half of the record.

“Fenris Gangr” is punishing and aggressive, with dogs howling and a dark atmosphere unfurling and blanketing the land with darkness. “Vargold” is a strange piece that’s … I guess an instrumental? It’s made up of war chants, troops stomping, animals snarling, and human howls, but no actual music. “Angrboda” picks up the intensity from there, with a primitive black metal assault, menacing growls, eerie chanting, and noises that sound like they were field recorded in an ancient dungeon. “Uskepna” rips back into muddy punk and monstrous intensity, with the vicious growls leading the way. “Spell” is smashing and raspy, with Shamaatae at his very beastly best vocally, ripping apart everything in front of him with a bloodthirst. Then the record ends on a bizarre note with the string-filled, totally strange “Solbols Sigr,” a track that’s an outro that ends very abruptly. But for some reason, it works for an Arckanum album.

Each Arckanum album brings its own twists and surprises, and this record follows that path nicely. It’s one of Shamaatae’s most cohesive, catchy albums, but it never sacrifices its raw intensity. “Fenris Kindr” is another strong entry in the Arckanum story, and even if I don’t relish the end game of utter chaos, I certainly can behind the spirit that makes this project so explosive.

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

To buy the album, go here: http://e-shop.season-of-mist.com/en

For more on the label, go here: http://www.season-of-mist.com/

Metal’s always been somewhat self-referential, to Darkthrone writing songs about the genre and decrying its fall from the past, to bands having songs that are practical anthems since they’re named after themselves, such as Iron Maiden, Motorhead, and Black Sabbath. But a band writing an album about themselves? That’s another level of ridiculous.

OK, that last bit actually isn’t the case with “Pelagial,” the latest record from German metal collective The Ocean. Yes, their new record is about a trip from the surface to the deepest depths of the ocean and what’s encountered along the way both physically and mentally, but it isn’t actually about the dudes in the band. Clear enough? But it’s still kind of amusing, at least on the surface, that the Ocean finally got around the making a record about the ocean, something you’d think they’d have tackled long ago. Instead, their ambitious, epic-length records have covered so much other ground, from the formation of the Earth itself to a sprawling critique of Christianity, that they haven’t gotten around to a full-blown adventure centered on their namesake.

If you’ve been along for the entire ride with the Ocean, as I have, you know that this band doesn’t do anything small when it comes to their full-length records. They have multi-part albums that tie together, and even in the midst of one piece of something that acts as part of a larger whole, you’re still waylaid with material that, while exciting and astonishing musically, can be overwhelming. You definitely need to set time aside to absorb these albums as a whole. But “Pelagial” is a little different. Instead of the challenging lengths of most of their records, this one is a compact, digestible 53 minutes long. I listened to the whole thing the other day while cutting grass and actually needed to restart the album because it ended before my work. Very un-Ocean of them, but a welcome change. Now, this is the Ocean after all, so even when they serve up a smaller portion there’s a catch, and that comes in the form of “Pelagial” existing in two versions: one instrumental, the other with vocals. Other than the singing, they slightly differ sonically, but the band basically gives you two ways to absorb their sixth record. It’s up to you which one you like best.

Loic Rossetti is the frontman for the Ocean, and health problems were originally the reasons why there were no vocals for this album. Luckily he recovered, and the band decided on two versions of the album. He’s been a part of the band since 2009 and joined in time for the last jointed project, 2010’s “Heliocentric” and “Anthropocentric.” Rounding out this lineup are guitarists Robin Staps and Jonathan Nido, bassist Louis Jucker, and drummer Luc Hess. As we’ve come to expect, the band is tight and atmospheric, the music truly does resemble a trip to the depths of majestic bodies of water, and compositions resemble even more progressive steps in their playing and presentation. It’s a really well-made, fully realized idea that rewards the listener again and again.

We’re just going to talk about the version of the album with the vocals since the instrumental version is basically the same. You know, just without vocals. “Epipelagic” opens the record with bubbling, piano dripping, and the feeling like you’re being immersed in a giant body of water and on your long way down. “Mesopelagic: The Uncanny,” named for the Twilight zone of the ocean just off the Continental Shelf, begins gently and serenely before the song ignites, and Rossetti observes, “The light is fading,” which lets you imagine what you would be experiencing if you were on this ride. That spills into the three-part “Bathyalpelagic” section, taking its name from the Midnight zone off the Continental Slope. “Impasses” is the first section, and it has a progressive bend to its post-metal landscape, reminding a bit of a nastier Thrice; “The Wish in Dreams” is the middle portion, with thick, tricky compositions that keep you tied into the journey, while Rossetti wonders, “How much control do we have over what we wish for?” The final part of this triptych, “Disequillibrated” has a thornier opening that sounds like it’s black metal-inspired, and the aggression continues throughout its running time, eventually fading out in a claustrophobic, underwater signals that sound like being stuck in a submarine.

From there it’s onto the two-part “Abyssopelagic” portion, that is named for the section called The Abyss (obviously) that is off the Continental Rise and Ocean Basin. It begins with the “Boundless Vasts” part of the song, has cool melody lines and eventually some muscular sludging, and that turns into “Signals of Anxiety, a song that might remind you of ISIS or Intronaut with its muddy melodies and growly singing, but eventually it goes into mid-tempo territory and sounds ballad-like. “Hadopelagic” (the Trenches) also gets a two-part portion, starting with a liquidy intro cut that smashes into the 9:18 second section “Let Them Believe,” that is chunky, gruff, and really fucking good. “Demersal,” named for the second-to-lowest section of the ocean, is a 9:05 serving of pounding post-metal crushing that is fitting as our journey gets ready to reach its conclusion, and the drama is at its apex. Closer “Benthic: The Origin of Our Wishes,” takes us back to where everything originated. It’s thunderous, sludgy, and explodes with life, making it the proper sendoff for a journey back to where life started and the very thing from which this band takes its name and, for this record, its inspiration.

The Ocean never fail to keep us captivated, and they’ve found a way to be even more effective while remaining forward-thinking and ambitious at the same time. This is the record this band obviously had to make eventually (thematically, of course), and they did a pretty damn good job making it compelling, heavy, and dream-inducing. No idea what these guys will try next (the history of food-borne pathogens?), but chances are they’ll find a crazy way to make it awesome and top themselves again.

For more on the band, go here: http://www.theoceancollective.com/

To buy the album, go here: http://www.metalblade.com/theocean/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.metalblade.com/us/

With the weekend nearly in our grasp and another work week taking its physical and mental toll on our bodies (I see that as a good thing, by the way), now is the time to give into some savagery, heathenry, and things that are no good for you but that you like anyway. Everyone go get a beer. I’ll wait.

On that note, it seems a good a time as any to discuss “Dark Path,” the first full-length from Virginia’s Earthling and yet another rock-solid entry from Forcefield Records, who have kept us plenty busy this year. This four-headed pack of thrashy, death-minded, black metal-swallowing crushers have a good thing going here, and you know shit’s about to hit the fan almost instantly when, just as opener “Dark Path” erupts, guitarist/vocalist Alan Fary howls, “We’re on a dark fucking path.” That’s your introduction to the group, basically, and it all goes to the wolves from there, with riffy madness, savage crushing, and ill intentions designed to get you maimed. We’ve had a lot of heady material on this site lately, so it’s nice to have a record where you can put it on, open your favorite bottle of brew, and forget about all the shit around for you for 32 minutes.

As I’m sure you can ascertain from what we’ve said so far, there is a refreshing lack of elegance from this band. They’re not here to make pretty noises, develop mind-melting soundscapes, or become the next great thinkers in metal. That’s not to insinuate they’re not capable of those things, but they seem like they’d rather shred faces than wax philosophical. They remind me a bit of the earliest crop of thrash bands who wanted to be loud and heavy, play devastating riffs, and punch you in the head. That’s the type of heavier metal I fell in love with growing up, and I get a sense of that same thing with Earthling. It’s one of the initial reasons their music appealed to me.

As far as the band goes, we’ve already mentioned Fary, whose low-level growls and shrieks carry the way vocally. At time he gets a little bit lost in the fray, and he’s not the most dynamic singer in metal, but he also comes off as someone who would sound better in a live setting. Or it could just be the rawness of their sound. Nonetheless, he gets the job done. Joining him are guitarist Praveen Chhetri, bassist Jordan Brunk, and drummer Brently Hilliard, all men with gentlemanly, proper names who throw all that out the window once they plug in and get their buzzsaw moving toward you. They’re a rather formidable unit that, as noted, employ a lot of thrash, death, and black metal but also toss in some blues licks and Southern rock fury into their madness. It’s a good time.

We’ve already mentioned the title cut, but there’s more to it than Fary’s monstrous declaration at the start. The song heads down a raw, chugging black metal path, the vocals are growl-filled, and later in the track some cold atmospherics rise up. “Resent” blasts off immediately, with strong leads guitar lines, gruff vocals, and some thrashy goodness. “Losing Sight” is where the record begins to change a bit musically, and it reveals a band that could go the route of, say, Inter Arma, and add some ingenuity to its chaos. “Losing Sight” starts viciously and aggressively, but eventually it melts into a Rush-like progressive jam section, some Southern rock thunder opens up, and even the cowbell gets tapped as the cut draws to a close.

“Solider of the Fortunate” has its doom-filled moments and strong guitar work, and as it moves on its way, it revisits thrash and speed. “Wilderness Throne” is another ambitious entry, as it starts with its head nodded directly toward classic black metal, but then we’re suddenly going down Southern rock roads. Then everything changes again, and the band pulls out its early ’80s-style power metal chops and makes the track one that could inspire you to pick up a sword and dream about dark castles. “Pass Into the Beyond,” your closer, is practically at-the-altar Iron Maiden worship, with its dual guitar interplay, some riveting basslines that roll over like Steve Harris was channeled, and even some death and thrash folded into this exhilarating crusher. It’s really awesome how this record builds in intensity and emotion as the songs get knocked off one by one, and by the time it’s over, the band practically has grown before your eyes. And ears.

Earthling show a ton of promise, and there’s no telling which way they’ll go in the future because they show so many influences here. Any path—thrash, death, black metal, another angle?—would suffice, and it’s cool how they mix in some different styles of rock and roll into the music to keep things interesting. This is a band worth paying attention to right now, because they’re already a damaging crew and it can only get better from here. “Dark Path” is a strong debut from a band you’re bound to hear a hell of a lot more about in the future.

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

To buy the album, go here: http://www.forcefieldrecords.org/store/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.forcefieldrecords.org/site/