There’s something nice about having a little alone time, where you can just be by yourself, collect your thoughts, not worry about people around you bothering you with their annoying problems. But what if that alone time was permanent, and you never had to worry about another living thing ever again? Not so psyched, are you? Oh, maybe you are.

Anyway, that whole idea of being the last living being in an entire cosmos is one of the main plot points behind “Exodromos,” the new album from Spanish sci-fi death metal squadron Wormed, who haven’t released a new full-length since 2003’s mind-melting “Planisphaerium,” originally pushed into the world by Japanese label Macabre Momentos and eventually released domestically by Willowtip (Hammerheart in Europe), the purveyor of technical savagery. This new album is a prequel to that 2003 record and tells the story of Krighsu, the last human remaining in the cosmos and his chaotic visions and scientific ambitions. All of this is occurring after the known universe is sucked into a wormhole in a multi-vectorial reionization (their words, not mine) and Krighsu is left to travel through the xenoverses to repopulate the place with human seed. Problem is, Krighsu is not exactly the type of human you think he is.

OK, that’s a lot to absorb and accept, and while the story is fairly complicated and multi-layered, you don’t have to follow every plot point to get into this record. In fact, it’s damn near impossible to even follow along lyrically to this story because the vocals are wonderfully indecipherable and barely human. But we’ve come to expect that from Phlegeton, one of the weirdest, most alien-like vocalists in all of death metal. What comes out of his mouth sounds like it was created on a black world light years away, and even if you’re not into that style of vocals (and, honestly, I usually am not), you can’t help but hang onto every one of his creaked, warbled words and squealed transmissions. He is not of this world.

The rest of the band is technically astonishing as always. They’ve long been revered for their incredible musical prowess, and though they lay on their technique and wizardry fairly thick, you don’t lose the heart of the music. Perhaps it helps that the band’s songs are fairly short–these 10 songs combined clock in at just 33 minutes–so they don’t go overboard and always remember to keep you in the loop of the track. But they still find ways to dazzle and baffle you. The rest of this bizarre army, by the way, consists of guitarists Migueloud and J. Oliver, bassist Guillemouth, and drummer Riky, and their work on this second full-length surely will take the steam out of any impatience you had that it took a decade to get a new Wormed album. It was worth the wait.

Album opener “Nucleon” gives you a huge reintroduction to the band if you need one, or it turns you upside down and swishes your guts around if you don’t know what to expect. Extraterrestrial vocals, mathy trickery, and blistering death meets you head on, and before you know how to react, it’s on to “The Nonlocality Trilemma,” a mouthful of a song title and a belchy fit of madness that gets warm colors from the guitars. “Tautochrone” is a pit of fire, with the drums absolutely demolished, especially the poor snares that get beaten beyond recognition. “Solar Neutrinos” has an opening that makes you feel like you’re floating in a cosmic sea, and then weird noises erupt, melodies slip in and envelop you, and you feel like you’re being slowly into a black hole. “Multivectorial Reionization” takes things from there and reignites the violence, with mucky thrashing and more lizard squeals.

“Spacetime Ekleipsis Vorticity” is fast, dangerously so, and completely mind altering, but you have no time to recover because “Darkflow Quadrivium” is waiting, though it’s there to warp what preceded it. The pace is a bit more mid-tempo, but that’s because it’s needs to be so that the prog-style melodies and strange warbling can have a logical place to set up and further freak you out. “Stellar Depopulation” has machine gun drumming, dizzying riffs, and unforgiving punishment, capped off by Phlegeton’s vocal strangeness. “Techkinox Wormhole” has delirious lead guitar lines and a cartoon-like appeal, like it could be playing while your body hilarious suffocates and is destroyed in space. Closer “Xenoverse Discharger” is mostly instrumental, though vocals do rip through eventually, and the track is the perfect to cap off a sci-fi plot with as odd and claustrophobic a storyline as you’re going to find.

Wormed are ideal for fans who love technical prowess but still like their music to have a soul, as well as those who dig alien storylines and futuristic destruction and subsequent possibilities floating in their mindspace. This is an astonishingly well played album, but also an expertly paced one. Wormed don’t overstay their welcome and give you just enough to satisfy that decade-long wait for a new record. Hopefully the wait is not so long before we get another chapter in their intergalactic adventures.

For more on the band, go here: http://www.wormed.net/

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

For more on the label, go here: http://www.willowtip.com/home.aspx

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

Collaborations can be a weird thing because sometimes you get exactly what you expect, and sometimes the results are totally unpredictable. There is good and bad in both types of results, and really what matters is how the music sounds and how it affects you.

I had some grandiose ideas of what Ensemble Pearl might sound like before encountering their self-titled debut album, being that important members of Sunn 0))), Boris, and Ghost (the Japanese version … not the Swedes in the robes) comprise the lineup, and they all have very similar and very different approaches to doom, drone, and other realms of dark noise. Would this be a battle of wills, where all the things these artists do so well battle against each other for supremacy? Would one style rule out, with the rest following? Would they do something entirely unexpected and come up with a sound no one could have expected from this band? The answer to all of these is no.

The sum of all these parts actually kind of blend together on this album. No one comes out as an undisputed leader, and while you can hear parts of every artist’s work coming alive here, these traits act as teammates, helping make the entire picture into something coherent and exhilarating. Despite no curveballs being tossed and no crazy weird bends and jerks present, the album is enjoyable for its flow, its sound, and its personality. It just sounds like a perfect mix of all of these artists, and devotees of any of these bands whose members are involved should find plenty to like.

Now, about those players. You have the mighty Stephen O’Malley of Sunn 0))), whose fog and doom leadership is here to lend a hand through the murk. You also have Atsuo, drummer, leader, and sometimes singer for Boris, and Michio Kurihara, who plays with Boris but is better known for his work with Ghost. Finally there is Bill Herzog, who plays with acts such as Jesse Sykes and the Sweet Hereafter, who fits in nobly and frighteningly, adding more black chaos to the storm. Together they enter the fog a formidable unit, and they come out the other side mightier yet charred.

“Ghost Parade” is your murky, shadowy opener, a track that unfurls slowly and with a certain purpose, and in the midst of this slithering chaos are powerful gong strikes, abrasive guitar work, and noise squalls that cut through any sense of calm. “Painting on a Corpse” you may have heard online already, and it opens with simmering keys that lead into deliberately paced drumming, a deathrock feel behind the wall of sound, and trippy, psychedelic pockets that sound like Kurihara exercising his demonic will. “Wray” is dreary and dreamy, with more quiet than you might expect and a tone that will make you want to stare at the sky and slip away.

Then the epics slip into the hallway and begin to envelop you. “Island Epiphany” is 12:45 long of smoking, sweltering drone and doom heaviness, sometimes boiling over and threatening your well-being, other times giving way to spiritual weirdness and dusty melodies similar to those we get from modern-day Earth. “Giant” is 10:16, and its main trait is a noise rush that sounds like an airplane engine ramping into gear and winding down, giving you the sense that you’re soaring one minute, getting ready to fall face first into the crust of the Earth from 20,000 feet in the air the next. There is plenty of psychedelic drone and mystical transmissions throughout the song, and it really gets into your head and makes you explore your surroundings, both mentally and physically. Closer “Sexy Angle” is 19:50 and really doesn’t feel half that long. Drums begin a ricochet and stay in pace through the whole song, forming a spine the other sounds are allowed to wrap around. Bent notes, surfy guitars, noise whines, and feedback interference makes up the rest of the picture and color in the spaces. It’s a rock-solid, steadily paced piece that’s a perfect ending to a thoroughly satisfying record.

I’m not sure if this band will stick around for the long haul or if this ends up being a short collaboration, but whatever the case, this self-titled debut is worth the time and money. It’s mesmerizing, chilling, dark, and monstrous, and it’s possible it’ll relax you and soothe you at the same time. This sounded like a promising project from the time it was announced, and the record delivers on every bit of that excitement. Here’s hoping there is more to come.

For more on the band, go here: http://www.dragcity.com/artists/ensemble-pearl

To buy the album, go here: http://www.dragcity.com/products/ensemble-pearl

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

We’re all on a sort of journey here on Earth, be that literally or figuratively, and we all face many trials and tribulations to get to the places we’re headed, be that a pinpointed destination or some sort of goal we’ve set out to achieve. Nothing’s always easy on that path, but those who are determined manage to find a way.

That concept is embodied in the new album from Thrawsunblat, the Canadian-based band that clearly approached “II: Wanderer on the Continent of Saplings” with great ambition and heart. You don’t even need to dig into the conceptual material to know that because you can hear it in the band’s performance, but when you dig into what they’ve written about it gives you an altogether new level of awareness of what this group is thinking about. It’s also a record that, for me, I liked initially, but upon repeated visits, the layers started to explode, and the beauty and epic majesty of this record revealed itself to me, and now I can’t get these songs out of my head. That, of course, is a great thing.

“II: Wanderer on the Continent of Saplings” is a concept piece, based on Joseph Campbell’s “The Hero With a Thousand Faces” and “The Hero’s Journey,” both works deal with the concept of monomyth. Basically, it’s about a person’s journey into the world and that person finding in front of him or her a chance to experience a supernatural wonder. There are many obstacles along the way that must be overcome, but once the person survives, they are given a great gift. The person then must decide whether to remain in the supernatural world or return to a normal plane of existence, where the boon must be used to make the world a better place. Those concepts are applied to the band examining their own heritage, their existence in North America, and how some of the themes from the monomyth also are faced in everyday life, albeit not on the same type of spiritual level away from this plane. In other words, it’s a very deep, very personal album that’ll sink deep within you if you let it.

The band is made up of Joel Violette, former guitarist for Woods of Ypres, who handles the same duties here, as well as primary songwriter and vocalist. Joining him are bassist Brendan Hayter and drummer Rae Amitay (who played with Mares of Thrace and also currently is drumming for Castle on their tours), who were supposed to make up the Woods live lineup following the release of last year’s excellent “Woods 5: Grey Skies and Electric Light” before David Gold’s passing. Ah, and there you go. Right there marks a journey these musicians have been through together, the realms of darkness they encountered, and their ability to return with what the experienced to make them better musicians and Thrawsunblat a more powerful unit. They’re making the metal realm a better place.

The 12-track, hour-long record begins quite interestingly, with piano work that sounds like it could emanate from a Wild West saloon before it blows up into a rousing folk metal jaunt that’s melodic, heavy, and pretty damn fun. That takes us to “Once Fireveined,” probably my favorite track on the record, as strong melodic death melodies similar to Amon Amarth erupt, scintillating lead lines carry the song on its back, and one hell of a rousing chorus gets your blood pumping and fists waving. It’s a killer track. “We, the Torchbearers” is another great one with some of most spirited singing on the record and lyrics that sound like they pay homage to the past and remind those who are to come that one day responsibilities with be theirs. “We all must carry the torch,” Violette reminds, sometimes whispering, sometimes bellowing. “Goose River (Mourner’s March)” turns the tides, as the song feels like a pirate folk anthem mixed with Jethro Tull and would be an awesome one to hear when throwing back a few pints. “Bones in the Undertow” has moments where it’s calling back to classic Iron Maiden, with infectious power metal, fluid soloing, and more great, anthemic singing.

“Wanderer of Saplings” has an epic intro that should grasp the air from your chest, and then it’s on to more glory and more homage to the band’s surroundings and the lands where they were raised. “Maritime Shores” is similar in vein to “Goose River,” though you can toss the Decemberists in as a comparison (don’t roll your eyes … they have some bloody fucking songs), and it’s enriched by strings and woodsy atmosphere. “View of a Million Trees” is the heaviest cut on the record, as it bursts into a black metal fury, with savage shrieks, sweltering guitars, and skull-blasting drums. “Borea “Pyre of a Thousand Pines)” follows that track up with more black metal savagery and punishing drums, though eventually the vocals even out and give you some chances to sing along. “Elegy Across Silence” is a pipe organ-led instrumental that feels spiritual and pulled from the winds of ages ago. “Song of the Nihilist” is edgy and thorny, but it also has its moments of melody and drama. Closer “I  Am the Viator” is a tremendous final chapter, pulling together a lot of the elements from other parts of the record such as more folk-infused wonder, power metal fire, and heartfelt vocals that maintain their intensity until the song–and record–fades out.

Thrawsunblat have made a record that should make people pay attention, both listeners and critics. They have an understanding for writing emotional, catchy songs, using hooks, and finding ways to make each song interesting and memorable, from the first cut to the last. This is a rock solid effort that really should be out on a major indie metal label, and maybe that’ll happen yet if the band wants that. Either way, Thrawsunblat are ready to do some amazing things, and they prove that over and over again on this powerful album.

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

Or here: https://www.facebook.com/thrawsunblat

To buy the album, go here: http://thrawsunblat.bandcamp.com/

A band’s right to change should not be questioned, even if the results of the alterations are not quality. That’s happened so many times, it is impossible to document all of it here, and in the past we have tried. But the point remains that a band unsatisfied with their own status quo has the right to change that if they see fit.

That cryptic opening is my way of preparing you for what you’ll hear when tackling “Sky Burial,” the second full-length from Inter Arma, and their first release for Relapse. If you’ve heavily immersed yourself in their first record “Sundown,” their EP “Destroyer,” or any of their split releases, you might not be totally prepared for what greets you on the sophomore album. The band has changed, and their sound has been stretched and shaded with different colors, so the all-out aggression and punishment you might have anticipated isn’t what you’re going to get. Now, is that a good thing? Depends on where you’re sitting, and if you don’t like it, it’s not like you’re wrong. If you do enjoy what you hear on “Sky Burial,” then you’re likely to take many return trips with this mind eraser and visit all its dark corners.

There is an increased attention to atmospherics and psychedelic wash outs on these eight songs, and while they still drop the hammer many, many times, meaning their penchant for auditory violence remains, you’re bound to end up staring and gazing more often than not, getting caught up in the glorious smog and fog emanating from this record. Personally, I love what they do here, and the changes have made Inter Arma an even more interesting band to me. I’m a big fan of their earlier catalog as well, don’t get me wrong, but this metamorphosis into the band’s current headspace is something that connects with me and makes me wonder just how far these guys can go exploring the outer reaches of space. I’m pretty damn curious to find out.

The Richmond, Va., quintet was the latest Forcefield Records band to sign on with Relapse until the label smartly picked up Windhand (of which drummer T.J. Childers is a live member), and the bulk of the group is comprised of members of black metal horde Bastard Sapling, including vocalist Mike Paparo and guitarists Trey Daulton and Steven Russell. Bass player Joe Kerkes rounds out a lineup (Miley Allred contributes standup bass and Theremin) that sounds like it is getting a better sense of what they want to be, what they want to sound like, and how to accomplish it. “Sky Burial” isn’t a perfect record by any means (the sequencing is really weird) and certainly there is more room for exploration, but it’s also a stunning document that is one of the most adventurous and surprising releases of a year not even a quarter over. The album has been on constant rotation in my house, in my car, and on my iPod, so there certainly is plenty to examine and digest before achieving full understanding. I’m not even there yet.

“The Survival Fires” gives you a taste of what’s ahead, and while the song is aggressive and pulverizing, there also are cosmic flourishes and weirdness, especially with the trippy manner of the vocals. Alongside the tyranny come watery, smeary tones that give the song an aura of weirdness. Next comes the 14-minute, two-part “The Long Road Home” (expanded from the “Destroyer” EP) that takes things in an entirely different direction. The first portion is largely acoustic based and syrupy, with some Western-style slide guitar, and that melody builds on the second part, bit by bit, level by level until the thing overflows with psychedelic wonder that might make some think of classic Pink Floyd mixed with Allman Bros. It’s an emotional caterwaul, with excellent instrumental interplay, and just when you think you can slip into dreamland, the thing ignites into black metal terror in the final three minutes, ripping things to shreds.

“Destroyer” also is a carryover from their 2012 EP of the same name, though it’s expanded and intellectually fucked up, with slow pounding, echoey vocals, monstrous drubbing, and doom scorching in a smoking pit. It’s a totally new way of approaching the track. “’sblood” is the most direct cut on here and one of the shortest that’s not an instrumental. Echo-laded, affected drums kick the song into high gear, and really, Childers’ work is the standpoint element of this song. He hits hard, also finds a groove, and acts as the blood and bones of this track. “Westward” is treated with a long introduction before the song hits a punchy sludge pocket, dissolves into noise-drenched screams, and a sense of evil blues as the track reaches its conclusion. It’s also the one example of where some trimming could have been done to make this song a little meaner. “Love Absolute” is another instrumental that’s delicate yet spooky, and it sets the way for the monstrous 13-minute title track closer that revisits many of the same musical themes from earlier in the album and sets it all ablaze.

It’ll be interesting to hear the reaction to “Sky Burial” and if the band is embraced by metal scribes like I think they will. This album feels like the dawning of one of the future’s more important metal bands, and the more Inter Arma shape and shift, the more intriguing I think their music will become. This feels like an album that might take some time to settle in for some people, but once it does, the fervor should grow by the minute.

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

To buy the album, go here: http://www.relapse.com/store.html

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

It’s weird what music makes you think about sometimes. Actually, often times music makes me feel nothing anymore, which is sad, but when I find a band or an album that really clicks with me, the mental images that get created often surprise me.

For example, Germany’s Imperium Dekadenz often make me think of winter time, of huge snow storms blanketing the land, of no escape from the ice and chill coming any time soon, and of me just wanting to sit in the house, under a blanket, with a dark porter in my hand. Seeing as that I love winter and that sounds like the perfect day, the band’s music always gave me comfort and filled me with a sense of wonder over nature. They also have become a go-to band for me every time winter strikes and I need something to get me through the day.

So it came as a surprise when the band’s new record “Meadows of Nostalgia” reached me, and the first things that came to my mind were not frosty winds and squalls. Instead, it felt like a thawing was taking place, that long frozen streams were trickling with life again, that forest floors were thick and spongy having absorbed a season’s worth of snow, and that signs of warmth were indicating gentler breezes were around the bend. Their cascading black metal remains as intact as ever before, mind you, and there’s as thunderous a feel as ever to the band’s work, but what it conjures in the mind and spirit was altogether different for me. And considering we’re on spring’s door, this record could not have come at a better time.

Imperium Dekadenz is, and always has been, a two-man operation with Horaz handling vocals, guitars, and keyboards, and Vespasian taking on drums, guitars, bass, and keys. Live, they are joined by other musicians to bring their rich, deep sound to life, but since their formation in 2004 and over the course of four records now (the last was 2010’s magnificent “Procella Vadens”), this pair has been responsible for everything. If you’re not familiar with the band and are into the woodsier, more atmospheric ends of the black metal world, do track down Imperium Dekadenz and their new record, because it’s another fine addition to their canon and one that hasn’t even peaked with me yet as far as me overindulging in these sounds. The band is emotional, expertly expressive, and wonderfully pulverizing when the need arises, and they remain one of the world’s most inexplicably under-the-radar, underrated bands. Let’s change that.

It’s an Imperium Dekadenz record, so we’re starting off with a mood-setting instrumental, the lush and serene “Durch das Tor,” and then it’s right into the head-rushing “Brigobannis,” a song with epic guitar work, adventurous passages, emotional yet tuneful screaming, and a flood of sound that is the trademark of any ID song. “Aue der Nostalgie” follows with harsher vocals and a more aggressive approach overall, and as the piece builds, it’s easy to imagine soaring to mountainous heights and preparing for a land battle to determine the fate of humankind. “Ave Danuvi” begins with an eerie, sinister feel, but that turns into woodsy spiritualism and clean, chant-like vocals that give the song some hazy shades and colors. Then “Memoria” slips in as an acoustic-based interlude.

“Aura Silvae” just explodes out of the gates, with grisly, menacing growls, and violent black metal mixed with atmospheric wonder, giving listeners the best of the harsh and textural. “Der Unweg”  is, musically, the most interesting song on here, with a neat melody line snaking underneath the base of the track, some imaginative, dreamscape guitar work over top, and a sense of majesty and solemnity, two things that don’t sound like they should go together but do. “Striga” is doomy and mournful, thorny at times, and filled with dark guitar work and an ambiance that could put a chill up your spine. Closer “Tranen des Bacchus” ups the ante even more from the violence felt earlier in the album, as the vocals are screechier and more direct, the guitar is dark and threatening, and the emotion poured into the music is thick, smoky, and perfect for leading you out into the night, away from these tales.

Imperium Dekadenz really should be more well-known than they are, as they have a streak now of putting out great records that can affect you deep inside. You don’t have to speak their native tongue to comprehend their art, and if you give yourself over to their music, the journey will be one that takes you through the forests and into the stars, watching the seasons go from deep freeze to new life.

For more on the band, go here: http://www.imperium-dekadenz.de/

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/

Nails

When this week started, I was pretty much ready to end these seven days before they began. Just one of those stretches where tons of little shit goes wrong, and no matter what you do, the whole thing just keeps getting compounded. So the only answer is to go back to sleep for the rest of the week.

But things don’t work that way, and there are plenty of things to accomplish at my job and here on the site, so we must carry on. Seeing that is the case, some volcanic music to perfectly compliment my frustration and anger is the perfect solution, and the two bands we’ll visit with today managed to be just what I needed. There’s something to living vicariously through the music you hear and bands you follow, and in the case of both Nails and Seven Sisters of Sleep, I was able to channel their aggression and musical tumult and soothe my own frayed nerves and impatience. After all, as frustrated as you might be, there’s always someone out there who feels even worse. So remember that poor jerk.

Grouping these two bands together makes sense not only for their metallic hardcore sounds, but because both were label mates at one point in time. Nails was picked up by Southern Lord after their “Unsilent Death,” originally released by Six Feet Under, was pulled into the fold, and their chaotic emanations have been a strong point for the label ever since. As for Seven Sisters of Sleep, Southern Lord released their self-titled album in an enhanced version for their underground sounds series, and it was a real eye-opener hearing this band and record, that contained some of the freshest, most urgent hardcore-laced sounds in some time. But the band remains with A389 for their latest album “Opium Morals,” that finds them as savage and as necessary as ever.

We’ll start with Nails, the California-based band whose new record “Abandon All Life” is practically two times longer than “Unsilent Death.” Then again, that just means the record is 17 minutes long as opposed to 11, but that certainly doesn’t mean this thing is bloated. I mean, how could it be? It’s 17 minutes long. But it’s a ferocious, pulverizing display that’ll prove to you from the moment the thing blasts into your eardrums that they’re a band that’s here for blood and won’t stop until they’re satisfied.

It’s hard to get too into detail about a record this short because it’s pretty much over before you know it. The band’s penchant for speedy, power-violence-friendly hardcore makes them one of the most blistering bands in the world. In the world! From devastating opener “In Exodus” to fiery, ridiculously furious “Absolute Control” to the frenzied thrash of “God’s Cold Hands” to ultra-punishing “No  Surrender,” there is so much here to keep you bruised and nauseously bloody. But there are some change-ups here as well, such as doomy, mega-heavy, and slurry “Wide Open Wound,” that shows the band has a knack for doom; and the black metal-influenced closer “Suun Cuique” that’s epic, dark, and at 5:22, one of their longest songs to date.

“Abandon All Life” certainly improves on “Unsilent Death,” a record that didn’t really require any improvement, but that didn’t stop Nail from taking things to a different level. Their live shows are bound to be insane, and these songs should make those performances all that more volcanic.

For more on Nails, go here: http://www.streetcleanerrecords.com/unsilentdeath/

To buy the album, go here: http://www.southernlord.com/store.php?dept=MCH

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

Seven Sisters of Sleep

Seven Sisters of Sleep are the spookier of the two bands, and the visual representation on their site and through social media indicates hardcore fury through ritual and weirdness. It’s pretty fascinating stuff, and their choice of artwork for their records is always ideal for catching your eye and translating to merch. But when you get beyond all of that, they’re just a damn efficient unit, a group that plugs in and pummels you in their punishing haze. Their motto is “tune low, get high,” and that sentiment is ever present in their music, as it feels hellishly evil but also druggedly woozy.

SSoS’s new record runs 10 tracks and 33 minutes, and it’s even better than their self-titled record that turned me onto the band. “Ghost Plains” sets the tone with its mucky melodies, monstrous growls, and utter fury that carries into other fireballs such as “Moths,” a surge of storming that bursts from under a black cloud; “Grindstone,” which is straight-ahead grind fury; “Sunday Mass Grave,” a song that has drums that near blast territory and eventually dissolve into sludge and mud; “Reaper Christ,” a devastating, doom-drenched song that reminds me a bit of High on Fire, as least as far as guitar work is concerned; “Recitation Fire,” that has an interesting punk melody and is as accessible as they get; and closer “Part 2,” which erupts out of feedback and noise and ends with anguished wails and chaos.

Seven Sisters of Sleep are one of the more impressive underground bands combining hardcore, metal, and doom, and of these two records, it’s the one I like the most. Their style works whether you want to get smoked or if you feel like smoking up, and this record could be one that breaks them out to a bigger, hungrier audience.

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

To buy the album, go here: http://www.a389records.com/store/

For more on the label, go here: http://www.a389records.com/site/

Doing something like Meat Mead Metal, and handling some of my side writing work for newspapers and magazines, you can get bogged down in your thinking. Every new record you receive goes from being an enjoyable experience where you let loose and experience the power of music and turns into critical analysis at every turn. It’s just how we scribes think.

That’s why it’s nice and pretty necessary to designate bands whose music you look forward to hearing. It feels less like work and lets you be able to be a fan again for the sake of enjoying the majesty of heavy metal. It’s not that if a band you happen to enjoy puts out bad music you won’t know and identify it. But there are bands that I tend to loosen up around and absorb for the pure enjoyment of their music first and foremost, critical thinking coming later. I have a lot of legacy acts like that including Iron Maiden, Neurosis, and Primordial, but I also have found that same thing with Ash Borer, the California-based black metal band that’s been fairly prolific in their relatively short time as a band (having formed in 2008).

Each step in the Ash Borer experience has provided something new and eye opening, from their early demos and their 2011 self-titled debut full-length, to their excellent 2012 sophomore release “Cold of Ages” (our No. 14 album of 2012, released by Profound Lore) to their new 12-inch release “Bloodlands,” that we’re here to discuss today. Gilead Media is responsible for unleashing this beast into the world (though you’ll also be able to get it through Psychic Violence), and this two-track, 35-minute record satisfies every primal hope I have for new music from this band. After repeated listens to this monster, it’s becoming one of my favorite entries in their catalog. They’ve continued to examine atmosphere and ambiance even more so than in their early days, and slowly, surely, they are morphing into a unique, mind-blowing band like none other in the U.S. black metal scene. They’re also one of the most creative.

This mysterious five-headed monster surely is on the crest of a creative tidal wave, having followed “Cold of Ages” so quickly and with something so rewarding. You certainly can hear some of the sounds and ideas they established on their sophomore album, but clearly the thinking and philosophy have expanded, and now their ideas are even more cohesive and organic. Not that they didn’t sound that way in the first place, but it’s just that the machine has had time for more oiling, and the band is coming up with some magical compositions that should both stimulate and bury you.

“Oblivion’s Spring” begins with clean tones and some cosmic flourishes before it gets torn apart and blows the peace into bits. There are searing guitar lines that slice you up like a blade, and a doom-laced path that acts as the song’s spine. The tempo and approach switch back and forth from furious to dreamy, all the while making sure you remember harm is around every bend. The song goes out on a cloud of ambiance, which sets the stage nicely for what follows.

“Dirge/Purgation” simmers in that fog for several minutes, as the band sets a mood and allows the darkness in to fill up the room. Hazy terror toys with you and a sense of dread builds, and even though you’re sitting on the edge of your seat waiting for the violence, it still rips the breath from your lungs when it strikes. Shrieks are buried behind a million tons of noise and metallic damage, the song continues to storm comfortably, with the foreboding clouds hanging above and refusing to move, and its smeary, dreary blankets of sound work to suffocate you slowly. The ambiance is always ever present in this song, keeping a gloomy glaze over everything you hear on this track, and as the song begins winding down, feedback hiss and piercing noise make sure you’re pummeled to the very end.

The more music Ash Borer release, the better and more imposing they become. They’re clearly feeling their way through their run and always finding the right doors to enter and the darkest rooms to perform their dark arts. This 12-inch is an excellent step forward for a band that wasn’t in need of improvement by any means, and it’s a clear indication that the music ahead of them cannot be predicted. That makes Ash Borer an even more exciting band, one I’m sure is a major favorite to more people than just me.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/pages/Ash-Borer/156748071045193?ref=ts&fref=ts

To buy the album (preorders up soon), go here: http://www.gileadmedia.net/store/

Or here (preorders up soon): http://psychicviolence.bigcartel.com/

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

With winter choking on its last breath and spring around the corner, it’s a great time to explore some more atmospheric music that will sound perfect when rain is pouring down and fresh smells are in the air. That sounds so metal, doesn’t it?

What’s funny is I had to come in and amend this piece because now there are many inches of snow on the ground, with winter having one last laugh before fading away. Way to read over my shoulder, jerk. But the fact remains that when white stuff is being ushered out, my musical tastes tend to go from grim and frost-bitten to things that make my mind expand and wonder about possibilities. There are two new albums coming out this month that make me feel this way, though we’ll look at just one today, and while the music makes me think of trickling streams, mushy grounds still smarting from the snow it absorbed the last few months, and clean air, there still is music that can make you grasp backward, reminding us the ice can return at any time.

Today we talk about “The Plague of a Coming Age,” the new record from Finland’s  October Falls, the brainchild of M. Lehto, who has been its primary force since the band began in 2001. They also are not to be confused with other groups that take on that autumnal month as a descriptor, such as October File and October Tide. It can get confusing, and I sometimes have a hard time keeping it all sorted when I scan my iPod. Lehto’s band blends sounds of groups such as Opeth and Katatonia from their earlier years, but the music also has many traits of other like-minded warriors such as Winterfylleth and Agalloch. There is plenty of room to breathe when taking on these songs, and the way everything cascades downward makes me think of sheets of rain soaking the terrain below.

While Lehto remains the driving force behind the music and handles guitars and vocals, he has two capable creative partners to help him flesh out his sound in bassist Sami Hinkka (Ensiferum) and drummer Marko Tarvonen (Moonsorrow, Barren Earth). “The Plague of a Coming Age” isn’t exactly about the sprouting of new life or brighter days ahead, but for some reason when I hear the music on their fourth full-length effort, I can’t help but think about walks through muddy wooded areas, warmer weather, and a new round of life. Instead, the album examines the trials and tribulations of ancestry, pays homage to bloodshed and lives lost for things to be as they are today, and the path made possible for these creators to travel. It’s deep in scope both lyrically and musically.

“At the Edge of an Empty Horizon” is a gripping, spacious opener that’s basically an instrumental introduction and leads right into “Bloodlines,” an emotional, thorny song that is full of melody and Lehto’s passionate screams. Weird thing about his vocals is that there’s hushed sense to his wails and growls and never sound monstrous, but they fit the music perfectly. “The Verge of Oblivion” begins with calm, cleaner tones, and fires crackling, but it’s not long until that cloud bursts and the storm soaks the soil. “Snakes of the Old World” is my favorite track on the album, as it’s catchy, loyal to days and pioneers of old, and it has something in it that reminds me of later-era Bathory.

The title track is another stunner, with textured melodies, soulful clean vocals, crunch where it needs to be, and an approach that reminds a lot of current-day Amorphis. “Mouth of a Nation’s Harlots” has a slower start and takes some time to develop, but once it does, winds sweep up, and intensity overrides all other emotion. “Boiling Heart of the North” begins with dripping piano and strings, then Lehto’s singing comes in, sounding sullen and mournful, and this gorgeous ballad will sound great on nights when warmer air dominates and it’s time to reflect. “The Weight of the Fallen” erupts with fast drums, soaring guitar melodies over top of the piece, and guttural, low-register growling that give the song violent overtones. “Below the Soils,” the longest track on the album at 7:28 and the closing number, is largely mid-tempo and obviously emotional, with Lehto unleashing his final growls and the guitars simmering and blistering before the record comes to its end.

October Falls have come up with another great chapter to their musical story, one that makes the wait from 2010’s “A Collapse of Faith” totally worth it. The music that is perfect for the dawning of spring will let you dream and wonder, not only about where you’re headed but perhaps from where you originate. Music that helps you feel that way is special and cannot be deliberately manufactured. October Falls are one of the more genuine, thought-provoking bands out there and always seem primed to take you on a mental trip somewhere new.

For more on the band, go here: http://koti.welho.com/mlehto4/of/of.html

To buy the album, go here: http://www.eitrin.com/search.php?mode=1&match=1&search=OCTOBER%20FALLS

For more on the label, go here: http://www.debemur-morti.com/

It’s reassuring to know that, as our path through heavy metal and all of its changes and metamorphoses progresses, there always will be those bands on which we can rely to keep order and remind the younger wave of bands how it is done.

I defy anyone to challenge the credibility, influence, and altogether brutality of death metal legends Suffocation. The Long Island-based band has been at it more than two decades now, releasing flattening records that continue to up the ante when it comes to audio violence and leaving exhausted audiences in their wake then they play live. Any indication that this band would mellow or slow down with age simply is not there, because these guys do not stop and never relent in their assault. And to their credit, they’re not just mashing you for the sake of being able to do so. Their music remains imaginative and challenging to this day, and their latest record “Pinnacle of Bedlam” is an excellent example of that point.

Suffocation have gone through some changes lately, with drummer Mike Smith once again exiting the band, only to be replaced by Dave Culross. Again. In addition, Frank Mullen, one of metal’s most engaging and interesting frontmen, has decided that touring full-time is something he no longer can commit to continuing, with family and work commitments needing his attention. Maybe something would halt a different band or have the other members pushing for a change at vocals, but these guys aren’t dumb. Mullen’s presence in Suffocation is one of the things that make the band as special as it is, and these guys understanding that home responsibilities sometimes trump all shows the strength and bond this band has and that they’re not irrational dudes.

All of this, and the band’s incredible past and wealth of experience they’ve amassed over the years spills over on their seventh record “Pinnacle of Bedlam.” Much of the content on this album is inspired by the Tibetan Book of the Dead and life and death cycles, a pretty heady and intriguing topic, and the music not only encompasses their brand of brutal, incredibly well-played death metal, but you also get some tastes of power and thrash as well. Also interesting to find on the album is a re-recording of “Beginning of Sorrow” from their 1993 “Breeding the Spawn” album, a curious choice to act as the album’s final chapter.

If you thought Suffocation would ease you into this record, you’re dead wrong. Opener “Cycles of Suffering” just ignites right off the bat, with grinding fury. Mullen’s deep, monstrous growls, and awesomely exploratory lead lines and soloing from Guy Marchais and Terrance Hobbs highlight this ferocious piece. From there it’s on to “Purgatorial Punishment,” a song with a similar tempo, style, and feel as the opener, with some wicked crunch and soaring fury to boot. “Eminent Wrath” feels thrashy and violent, and the drums are positively mashed during this one. “As Grace Descends” is fast and maddening, with more adventurous guitar playing and strong compositions that prove Suffocation are more than just pure brutality. “Sullen Days” is the curveball, opening and ending with clean, atmospheric guitar passages like it’s going to be a ballad, though inside it contains damage and auditory violence, yet with more reflective, personal-sounding lyrics.

The title cut is a total mindfuck, with tricky guitar work that’ll leave you dizzy, spacious leads, and pushy, powerful vocals that have Mullen in total command. “My Demise” is one of those cuts where they just let loose and force you face first into a steel industrial fan, with blood and guts splattering everywhere. “Inversion” pulls back a bit on the tempo, though certainly not the heaviness, and there’s a good bit of thick, muddy mangling here to keep you full for hours. “Rapture of Revocation” has all the parts you want from a Suffocation song, with even a hint of East Coast hardcore muscle throw in for good measure and a close that feels inspired by Bay Area thrash. Their re-do of “Beginning of Sorrow” rounds out the package, capping off one of Suffocation’s strongest, most cohesive records in years. And they’ve had some damn good records the past decade, but this one rises above all of that.

Who knows how much more carnage is left in Suffocation’s tank? They’ve been one of the best, most consistent death metal bands of the past 25 years, and they have nothing left to prove to anyone. But if “Pinnacle of Bedlam” is any indication as to how much fire is within them, then chances are those raging embers won’t subside any time soon, and we’ll have Suffocation leading the way well into the future.

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

To buy the album, go here: http://jsrdirect.com/webstores/nuclearblast/

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

Embracing something and paying homage to it is a respectable, worthwhile venture. But taking steps to stretch beyond the boundaries of the thing you love to make it more expansive, dramatic, and personal is the sign of understanding one’s surroundings and knowing how to make it a better place.

People have been playing doom for years. Sure, Black Sabbath always will be marked as the band that started it all, but if you delve into the blues and that bloody, murderous, heart-wrenching terrain, you’ll find more doom than you’ll know what to do with. Over the years so many other styles and ideas have moved into doom, from death to deathrock to psychedelics to black metal violence, that there are so many different ways to stretch this style of music that the possibilities truly are limitless.

Norway’s Altaar recognized just how much possibility was available on the doom landscape, so they  decided to jump on that and create something that was their own, yet still very much in debt to doom and the many pioneers who came before them. The result is their two-movement, self-titled debut album released by Indie Recordings, and what you’ll hear will sound like what many other doom bands also have done, but presented in a way and played with a passion not every group pulls off this well. The entire package is moving and genuine, and while I’m not sure they’ve invented a new doom sub-sub-genre with this release, they have forcefully put themselves into the conversation as to who are some of the most promising new doom outfits. Altaar is one of them without question.

The cover of Altaar’s debut is a curious choice, and I mean that in a good way. Two hooded figures seemingly assembling a worm-infested heart will stick with you, even if that means it’ll gnaw away at your gut. It’s equally fascinating and disgusting, and it’ll look damn good on a T-shirt. Not sure that was the reasoning behind using this Sverre Malling piece, but it was an excellent pick. The band itself is comprised of guitarist/vocalist Andreas Tylden; guitarist/synth player/vocalist Espen T. Hangard; bassist Didrik Telle; drummer Kenneth Lamond; and guitarist/piano player/electronics handler Sten Ove Tofft, and the group members have a wide array of backgrounds in numerous extreme metal camps, and that, too, likely is why Altaar have such a varied and interesting take on doom metal.

Opener “Tidi Kjem Aldri Att” begins with a gentle psychedelic glaze and eventually turns into something that the modern version of Earth might conjure. The song goes mid-tempo and fluid, but eventually the doom curtains drop and things get downtuned and very ugly. Chilling melodies flow into the piece, and progressive doom spots arise that remind me a bit of Cult of Luna. The tempo and volume then begin to build back up again, hinting that it’s going to boiler over the top, and chugging guitars, noises that sound like air raid sirens, and swelling atmospherics begin shaking. Once the song hits its emotional climax, the band returns to a slower crunch, the piece begins to wind down, and a spacey drone pulls the whole thing into the dark.

The other side of the album, “Dei Absolutte Krav Og Den Absolutte Nade,” is a much different song. The cosmic fog that ends the first cut bleeds into this track as well, and the first three or four minutes of the song is simply noise building and simmering. Then guitars charge up, drums blast through the gates, and the intensity hits a new level is viciousness. Vocals finally erupt as vicious shrieks plaster your senses, drums come crashing down like boulders off a mountain, and the rest of the band whips things into a frenzy. Things continue to swell, and the catastrophe keeps picking up speed. What at one time was a psychedelic journey through doom’s most adventurous hills and valleys turns into a natural disaster that rips apart countries and makes seas rise and flood lands. It’s like being caught with no defenses in the middle of an unforgiving thunderstorm. Eventually the bloodletting begins to ease up, the fury subsides, and the song fades out in slurry guitar and smoke.

Altaar’s debut certainly is an intriguing one, and their approach to doom is something I imagine may change and shift over time. These two songs are enthralling and intense, and I’ve had no problem listening to them over and over again. They’re not totally retooling doom metal, but they are proving that with heart, soul, and imagination, you can make something worthwhile that’ll stick with you long after the record comes to an end.

For more on the band, go here: https://www.facebook.com/altaarnorway?ref=ts&fref=ts

To buy the album go here: https://itunes.apple.com/no/album/altaar/id605501224?l=nb

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