A band showing a different side of itself is something that can be incredibly refreshing for artist and listener and even provide a new pathway forward. Earlier this year, Blackwater Holylight released an EP that’s pretty different from their normal sound, and it really worked. And it makes you wonder what’s ahead with future creations.

Philly black metal heathens Unholy Altar have conjured some of the rawest, bloodiest black metal we’ve heard the past few years, but on their new EP “A Sullen Dark Sky,” we get something altogether new from them. To be clear, there still is plenty of black metal bludgeoning here, but also infused is extra atmosphere and more delicate parts that provide a streak of beauty through the blood. Make no mistake, the band—vocalist Desecrator, vocalist/guitarist Miserer, guitarist Evoked Damnator, bassist Cadaver, drummer Lucifer’s Rage—hasn’t left their chaotic ways behind at all, but they do put more textures into the mix that could be a one-off idea or a first step toward adding different colors to their incantations.

“Intro” gives an early indication that the mood has changed a bit as eerie tones stretch, bells chimes, and wordless calls sit back in the shadows, clean singing feeling like parts of a dream. Sounds hang in the air, feeling disorienting before leaning into “Judas Iscariot” that begins reflectively before howls begin to maim. Shrieks corrode as a melodic gush floods, the ambiance feeling strangely infectious. Growls then bruise as the power reaches into your guts, mesmerizing before bleeding into “Heathen” that is mauling and mashing from the start. Vicious screams hammer as feral speed takes hold, leading to a sickening fury that strangles with malice. “Descent” has melodic riffs and a punchiness that blackens eyes, hypnotic guitars layering psychosis as if from some illicit syrup. The playing cools off a bit as guitars glimmer, howls lurch, and the final moments leave charred ends, heading into “Outro” that feels instantly fantastical. Haunting whispers cloud your mind, bristling chants welcome “the mother of harlots and abominations,” and then everything suddenly zaps into nonexistence.

Unholy Altar already have proved what they can do with raw, bloody black metal, and this EP “A Sullen Dark Sky” shows a different side of their creativity and madness. A combination of their ferocity and more dreamlike tendencies might make for one hell of a second LP, bleeding both worlds together. If this is just a quick spark of experimentation, it stands as proof they’re ambidextrous musically and always can pull out these skills when we least expect them.  

For more on the band, go here: https://unholyaltar666.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://unholyaltar666.bandcamp.com/album/a-sullen-dark-sky-2

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

And here: https://liminaldreadproductions.bandcamp.com/

Metal used to be fun. Well, it still is. But it also used to be. There didn’t used to be a huge online swath of fans that get upset if people smile while listening to a metal record or decide to indulge in something that makes them feel something other than existential dread. Is that too much to ask? 

Medieval black metal crushers Fell Omen, a project helmed by Spider of Pnyx, takes its art seriously, but you also can tell there’s a shit ton of joy infused into the punk and chaos on his records. “Caelid Dog Summer,” a reference to Elden Ring, follows in a similar path to “Invaded By a Dark Spirit,” which was released in February. It feels like you should pick up an ax, chainmail, a horse, and whatever else you need to protect the castle from an oncoming invasion. That escapism is so much fun in which to indulge, and these songs can help you forget, for a little while, the chaos outside your door.

“Starscourge Phase One & Phase Two” starts with keys glowing and some great riffs, guitars blazing and chugging as melodies catch fire. Howls finally tear in later, the leads turning molten and crushing, weirdness melting into time. “Northern Lights Bomb” opens with commentators calling wrestling action (fitting for our title) and the power bursts in, raw howls mangling, storms lurking in the distance. Clean playing wipes your face clean before sootiness and vibrant punk energy take over, the leads heating dangerously, then a warm flow peaking before the end comes swiftly. “The Horrors Persist But so Does Steel” begins amid a thunderstorm, bells clanging before the track launches in full, tearing open the senses. Speedy guitars and washed-out wails unite, gang-style shouts rouse, and guitars unload, fully engulfing everything in flames, ending this spirited, short blast.

“Born to Siege” rambles in, feeling catchy and stomping, screaming melting metal swords. A fiery energy launches as soloing erupts, and beastly screams go for the jugular, thick melodies dragging everything to hell. “Poise on Rune” starts with chants before blistering, the punk bravado sending blood racing through your veins, the guitars going off viciously. Folk-infused fires are stoked while the pace keeps bubbling, wild sax notes charge the air, and everything comes to a smoking end. The title track is a quick one with wordless chants, buzzing hurdy gurdy, and the sense you can smell smoke rising over village walls. Closer “The Fire Is Still Warm” has guitars burning, howls scarring, and sax barreling through gates, the screams punishing as the playing squeezes tighter. Things turn a strange combo of breezy and molten while the pace slows and claws, bruising as it expires.

“Caelid Dog Summer” is plenty heavy and solidly dangerous, but it’s also so goddamn much fun that you might realize you’re smiling through your execution. Spider of Pnyx has a stranglehold on his style, and that is so apparent on this album that’s full of chicanery, fire, and confidence. It might feel like you should be defending the castle as these gems assault your ears, which should help you bask in majesty and might equally.

For more on the band, go here: https://fellomen.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://fellomen.bandcamp.com/album/caelid-dog-summer

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

Dreams, to me, always feel like a collection of tales from across generations, dimensions, and time zones, all of the scenes informed by people here and gone or characters and events invented in our minds. It’s a weird way to communicate with ourselves, but it can spark inspiration or allow you to branch our beyond yourself.

Marissa Nadler’s music always will be covered on this site. Not because of her work with Xasthur. But because she has a sense of doom and darkness as thick as any of the players who create those sounds. Oh, and because we fucking love her. “New Radiations” is her new record, her 10^th and another immersive trip into her mind. While a little more folkish than her last couple albums, these 11 tracks will prove she’s right where she usually is, telling tales as old as time that seem to come from somewhere time doesn’t even exist. It’s a warm, haunting, rousing adventure, and every ounce of this goes down easily.  

“It Hits Harder” opens with stark acoustics, Nadler’s unmistakable voice calling, “Everything dies, it’s just the way.” The longing is evident as soft, sorrowful melodies gather, and an electric gaze numbs before fading. “Bad Dreams Summertime” feels like it should be thought of in black and white, sun not able to break the barrier, Nadler singing, “Right place, but wrong time to scream.” The chorus numbs as the song blends into the surreal and strange, disappearing into unease. “You Called Her Camelia” has acoustics with electric tones lulling, Nadler calling, “You know she loved you, but it all changed.” The tone remains soft and black, pedal steel glistening, organs moving through the shade to the other side. “Smoke Screen Selene” has the guitars pacing, feeling doomy, then strings glaze and the distortion trudges. Acoustics encircle, Nadler’s voice flooding your mind, slowly bleeding away power. The title track has warm acoustics, the singing pushing ahead, Nadler recalling, “I was tracing the light of a memory,” as galactic winds send breezes. The playing grows calmer as buzzing guitars quiver, ending in electric glaze. “If It’s An Illusion” has a folk country feel, delicately moving, the chorus entrancing, Nadler calling, “I’m still choosing the ground below.” The playing haunts as weepy guitars give a sun-splashed vibe.

“Hatchet Man” is the brightest but also murkiest gem of the collection, dark folk strains permeating, Nadler calling, “I was in over my head, I couldn’t make him love me only, would have been better just to live with loneliness than all of this.” The playing has a ’70s feel, heartache and sadness making up the shape of this phantom, guitars coating the end. “Light Years” has the acoustics making strange patterns, strings layering, Nadler recalling, “You used to be right there beside her.” The melodies slowly melt as hints of light from the track blurs into night. “Weightless Above the Water” lets guitars and strings glimmer, the singing float, the darkness fully mesmerize you. The emptiness and ghostliness become a heavy presence while organs swell, and keys fully evaporate. “To Be the Moon King” is another storyteller, this one feeling like an old-time tale but also a timeless one. Nadler sings of her subject, “Building rockets behind his house, crows over his head,” as dreams from beyond increase. There’s a fantastical feel to it all, like watching a sepia-coated film, everything  fading away. Closer “Sad Satellite” keeps us in space, acoustics dripping as memories from winter days shake you. “It was sucking me dry, you can see it in my eyes,” Nadler levels, spacey keys quivering as she follows, “I mistook you for the sky,” as wistful tones linger.

Nadler never veers far from what she’s always done so well, but she never fails to haunt and hypnotize, singing of tales that feel pulled from past dreams. “New Radiations” deliver 11 more dusty pages from Nadler’s brain that seem to defy time and generation in both words and music. Every trip with her is worth anyone’s time, and each record she releases takes you somewhere you’ve never been before though you swear you know it by heart.

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

To buy the album, go here: https://www.sacredbonesrecords.com/products/sbr-371-marissa-nadler-new-radiations

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

Death metal always has exposed the ugliest and most horrific ideas known to humankind. But a great deal of that involves horror movie-style blood and guts and other terrifying subject matter that, while great fodder for movies and stories, isn’t reality. There are far more disgusting real-life events going on around us that cause actual human pain and suffering, which is more chilling.

Death metal crushers Castrator make gory, traditionally bloody death metal on a sonic level, but digging deeper, there are revelations about unspeakable ugliness going on in our history and modern society that are scarier than a skeleton pulling out his guts in a graveyard. On their molten second album “Coronation of the Grotesque,” they remain as guttural as ever while also shining a light on injustices, human suffering, state-sponsored brutality, and sexual predators. We also, in this country, live under a regime that has tried to protect people who commit such atrocities and waive them away as if they’re the victims. The band—vocalist Clarissa Badini, guitarist Sara Loerlein, bassist Robin Mazen, drummer Carolina Perez—brings their experience from other acts such as Derketa, Vicious Blade, Gruesome, Hypoxia, and others to channel their rage and metallic will to set fire to these evils in our world with a sharpened blade meant to maim oppressors and true evil.

“Fragments of Defiance” tears open, growls menacing, the pace slowing to a deadly lurch but remaining heavy as hell. Guitars go off as the pace combusts, mashing through vile howls and an ending haze that intoxicates. “I Am Eunuch” gushes with soaring leads, a dizzying attack, and then a charged-up bruising that teams with Badini’s vocals that utterly slay. Things get humid before guitars light up, the thrashing guts, and everything ends viciously. “Covenant of Deceit” is eerie when it dawns, and then ugliness ensues as the growls dig deep into guts, and the battering turns into a slow burn that increases the pressure. Badini’s wails get raspier before she delves back into guttural growls, and then the guitars jolt, setting off a grisly string of events. “Mortem Opeterie” is fast and nasty, growls snarling as the guitars squeeze throats, the fury spreading dangerously. The leads turn warmer before all hell breaks loose again, driving into horrors unforeseen, blasting out into hell. “Remnants of Chaos” chugs hard, the pace then racing before pulling back a bit, the vocals tearing into your psyche. Demonic shrieks peel paint off the walls while the bludgeoning turns more volatile, speeding before wrecking shop.

“Deviant Miscreant” brings frying guitars, a pace that chews muscle, and growls that smear soot in your mouth. The guitars catch fire and turn mesmerizing, letting your mind wander before chaos returns, turning toward a breathless, blinding outburst. “Psalm of Beguiled” rampages, the growls and shrieks combining to do further psychological damage, the bass clobbering with ferocity. Guitars tear open and electrify as the intensity floods, speeding its way to a demolishing finish. “Blood Bind’s Curse” erupts as guitars wage war, the growls scrape prone wounds, and the tempo gets dangerously heated, making conditions feel more dangerous than usual. The soloing absolutely blazes, a glorious stretch that melts flesh, and the band keeps the gas pedal glued to the floor from there, smoldering as the growls gnaw on your bones. “Discordant Rumination” opens with shrieks raining down, a death charge aiming for your ribs, and raw hell unleashing new forms of pain. The leads smoke as the pace turns manic, slow mucking power makes your path stickier, and everything is ground into paste. The closer is a savage cover of the Exodus classic “Metal Command” from their 1985 classic “Bonded By Blood,” one of the great thrash records ever. The band gives it a deadly, rotting makeover, keeping the power and metallic glory intact while also giving it a modern face of eternal decay.

“Coronation of the Grotesque” is the gnarliest, most vision thing Castrator has released so far, and while they delve deep into blood and guts, they also remain steadfast in their mission to expose abuse, injustice, and suffering. So, yeah, it’s noticeably uglier than their previous work, but we also continue to grow darker and more bloodthirsty as a society. This is a massive step up from a band that already was operating at a high level, and this record should be recognized for the death metal mastery it is. It completely destroys. 

For more on the band, go here: https://castrator.bandcamp.com/music

To buy the album, go here: https://www.darkdescentrecords.com/shop/?s=castrator&post_type=product

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

We all see unspeakable horrors every day of the week, and that’s just what people and leaders do to one another for power. It’s perverse to think of it this way, but maybe what we all need is a good, strong dose of cosmic horrors to take our mind off the other terrors we have to see all the time. Fantasy monsters can be soothing after all.

Chicago-based sludge/doom instrumental trio Plague of Carcosa long have found inspiration in Cthulhu and other Lovecraftian lore, and to do that with mostly no vocals is a tall order for a lesser band. Yet, they capture the essence in drubbing fashion, and on their second full-length “In the Dreamless Deep,” the band—guitarists A. Scott Grant, guitarist/bassist Eric Zann, drummer Alexander Adams—drops a planet’s worth of weight into these six songs that maul over 44 minutes. It lures you into the center of madness, stretches you to your limit, and leaves bruising over your psyche. It’s a fucking beast.

“Intangible Monument” hammers open, feedback swelling, the stomping rhythm meeting up with punishing riffs that chug and blister. Sooty, nasty sludge oozes out of crevices, guitars burn, and the bass plots destruction, sounds squeezing before disappearing. “Over Innsmouth” is melodic and mournful when it dawns, then it turns quickly to skull bashing, the leads glimmering amid a pit of destruction. An emotional swell makes nerve endings quiver as the playing absolutely cooks, bringing with it psychedelic heat and sounds frying your brain wiring. A lumbering force makes the earth quake as melodies swell, and cosmic zaps disappear into the clouds. “Sepulchre of the Dead Gods” flows gently before the power lurches, turning into a full doom fury, the filth caking your veins. The low end gets grittier and more muscular, the drums leave bruising, and everything burns in acid.

“Twilight, Respite” is a quick instrumental with bubbling energy, gently flowing  as guitars simmer, and static eats away at the edges. “Awakened Sentinel” is the longest track, running 15:01 and working instantly into psyche guitars and a lathering dose of sludge that you can chew. Guitars build as everything takes on a feel like you’re underwater, ears full of liquid, the pace picking up as you battle disorientation. Calmer waves lap as the bones churns, the playing glimmering like sun splash over the sea. Then the pace bends minds, a deep hypnosis takes hold, and a long stretch of mesmerizing power pulls you under. Closer  “The Elder Things” has guitars zapping and sounds blending, mammoth mauling completely crushing your equilibrium. Caveman-style hulking sends even more raw energy down your spine as the pace bludgeons, an incredible riff arrives and spikes your senses, and the final moments are utter demolition, burying power in a watery grave.

“In the Dreamless Deep” is more gut-wrenching, imaginative doom from Plague of Carcosa, a band that’s committed itself to the Cthulhu legend and making those tales feel larger and even more horrific. This is a hefty serving of menace and might, a record in which it’s easy to get lost, especially if you’re caught in your own beast-infested imagination. This is a massive offering, one that’ll fill you to the top with horrors, magic, and murk.

For more on the band, go here: https://plagueofcarcosa.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://plagueofcarcosa.bandcamp.com/album/in-the-dreamless-deep

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

Humanity is at a pretty low level, at least in my lifetime, and there are myriad problems plaguing us right now that should be laid right at our collective feet. The planet is in trauma, authoritarianism is on the rise, and social media has become a pox on humanity instead of an incredible tool for advancement. We are not great stewards.

Death metal superpower Grand Cadaver are paying close attention to this and giving their fiery reaction on their new EP “The Rot Beneath.” Chaos, death, destruction, and injustice are flooding the planet, and as time goes on, political leaders are doing their worst to try to seize power and never relinquish it. The band—vocalist Mikael Stanne, guitarists Stefan Lagergren and Alex Stjernfeldt, bassist Christian Jansson, drummer Daniel Liljekvist—contains members of heavyweights such as Dark Tranquillity, the Halo Effect, and Katatonia (well, a former member), and though they have an EP and two full-lengths on their resume, this is their most intense, agitated release so far, and the lyrical content surely puts the extra bits of venom into the mix.

“Blood-Red Banner” starts fairly viciously, a fury builds through mangling howls and wrenching playing, keeping their level of vitriol noticeably higher than they achieve with their other bands (which is not a slight, by the way). Guitars spiral as the pace slows, bass chugs through smoke, and everything comes to a sooty end. The title track is the highlight, guitars charging up, the vocals ripping at flesh, punishment wrapping around a massive, melodic chorus. “What are we if not the cause of the problem?” Stanne wails righteously, seeing the decay in our ways of life, melody piling up as he laments, “We’ve got to fight ourselves.” “Endless Dead” is fuzzy and frenzied, a raucous, yet simple chorus landing blows, the power leaving blisters. Stanne’s howls get throatier as the playing turns molten, the rhythm section guts, and the final blazes burn off. Closer “Darkened Apathy” is shadowy at first and then speeds up, flattening as guitars spill over, the emotion getting to a boiling point. “We’re a perfect storm of moral decay,” Stanne blasts as guitars sting, screams smother, and the devastation turns to numbing waves.

Grand Cadaver aim right at the heart of the problems on “The Rot Beneath,” a quick, deadly EP that makes a sobering realization that humankind is the source of our problems, and an internal battle might be the only thing that saves us. The frustration and disillusion bleed through perfectly on these songs, and it hopefully can act as a wake-up call for some before it’s too late. That’s not likely to happen, but you can’t say that Grand Cadaver didn’t warn us in the most forceful manner possible. 

For more on the band, go here: https://grandcadaver.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://grandcadaver.bandcamp.com/album/the-rot-beneath

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

There’s a strange phenomenon in parts of our society that eschews taking care of one’s mental health and talking to an expert who can help with healing. There are people living with trauma and other mental wounds that make everyday life difficult or downright torturous to endure. The struggle can be crippling.

“Hollow Fangs,” the first full-length release from black metal force Oskoreien in nine years, is a very personal one steeped in survival in the wake of trauma and the moves one must make in order to take better control. Long a project helmed by Jay Valena (vocals, guitars, drum programming, bass, synthesizer), this five-track, nearly 40-minute opus instantly captures you in its fiery, immersive spirit, a record that addresses serious depths of human darkness but also tries to find a light at the end of the tunnel that can come from observing and understanding the pain. On this record, Valena is joined by guitarist Rashid Nadjib (formerly of Wovoka) and bassist Matthew Durkee to round out a record that should feel like a storming experience for any listener but especially for those also dealing with trauma and its monstrous aftermath. 

“Prismatic Reason” gushes open, melody grasping you in its claws, raw growls leaving you scuffed and bleeding. “The grand and the mundane, the sacred, the profane delusions, emphatic confusions prismatic,” Valena howls as vicious guitars lather, and some pretty great riffs activate your bloodstream. Things turn vibrant and adventurous, the leads soar, and everything comes to a jarring end. “Bernalillo Sunrise” ramps up and ravages from the start, raspy wails leaving welts, the pace splattering as the beast storms. The pressure pulls back a bit as more atmospherics gush, and gazey fusion turns into a drubbing pace that leaves you breathless. “Psychotischism” starts warmly before churning, the howls scarring as drums crash and the tempo growing more convulsive. Growls dig deeper, even hissing at points, as Valena wails, “Heartless invective can’t you hear yourself? Or is the chaos of your cognition too great a burden to bear?” The playing growls as delirious guitars melt, the haze making the air thicker.

“Fragments” has guitars scuffling and tingling, washing over as bones are mashed by the force, mesmerizing floods of sounds soothing your psyche. Just then, the guitars get more active, the smothering growing to an alarming peak, Valena howling, “Harboring the knowledge deep within your psyche of the hollow fucking void at the center of your soul,” which is as troubling a statement as any. Clouds then roll in and block out the light, feedback torching prone nerve endings. Closer “To Kiss the Viper’s Fang” speeds into sight, destroying as guitars snake and toy, rupturing with an emotional flood. “Behold: betrayal, mockery, succubus, treachery. Beware: deception, cowardice, desolation, vampirism, desolation, misery,” Valena warns, staticy melody working into dusty corners, the energy then bursting back to life. Guitars ignite and melt rock, leads swim through silver waters, guts are spilled, and cataclysmic emotion leaves a pile of smoldering ash.

Being put to the test physically and mentally never is a pleasurable challenge, and coming out the other side stronger and more able to cope isn’t a guarantee. Oskoreien capture that and its myriad trials and tribulations volcanically and humanly on “Hollow Fangs,” a record that has huge impact even if you don’t indulge in the messages contained within. For those who can relate to this path, it’s acknowledgment, catharsis, and iron sharpening iron in a record not bound to lose its grip on your any time soon.

For more on the band, go here: https://oskoreien.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://oskoreien.bandcamp.com/album/hollow-fangs

Things are so bleak and seemingly hopeless that you kind of have to laugh at it sometimes. What a shit pile. What goddamn parasites we have as our leaders. What a sickening society those bottom feeders have developed. If you can’t make a joke about it or be morbidly sarcastic, then it’s just horrors through and through. That can’t be good for you.

Irish death metal power Malthusian stared into the same dark abyss as we have, and they’ve used that disgust to conjure “The Summoning Bell,” a goddamn great record in a time of endless tumult. Draped over this record is death metal that feels warped and stretched into psychosis, and while the content here is pitch black, there also is dark humor wrapped into this, something you might miss if you don’t have the words. The band—guitarist/vocalist MB, guitarist TMK, bassist FB, drummer JK—builds on their already molten foundation they set on their 2018 debut “Across Deaths” and ensures that everything they create is encased in concrete and is ready to handle any oncoming attack.

“Isolation” is an instrumental opener awash in eeriness and strange auras, giving off a bit of a fantasy feel, but in an apocalyptic sense. Then we’re toward “Red, Waiting” that delivers instant fury, beastly playing driving your face into the earth, growls corroding alongside gutting power. Guitars stir as the pits of lava bubble, crumbling as roars send punches under your ribs, doomy fires spreading. The last moments are torn apart, folding on each other before disappearing into the earth. “Between Dens and Ruins” unloads, guitars storming as the roars mash, a relentless attack laying waste to your body and mind. Vile howls tear into sanity as the universe feels like it’s being torn apart, everything zapping into endlessness. The title track pours more doom thunder, the growls aching as the density multiplies, soot building up in your lungs. The leads destroy as hellish pressure causes dizzying conditions, monstrous howls buckle your knees, and a spiraling fury ends in a pool of horrors.

“The Onset of the Death of Man” is a quick instrumental, a chance to regain your footing as guitars trace in the dark, and the fog builds to troubling levels. “Eroded Into Superstition” attacks right away, the growls smothering, clubbing with viciousness and guitars that lather before going mystical. The pace reignites as the growls strangle, wild yells fold into psychosis, and the finish swallows you into hell. “Amongst the Swarms of Vermin” is a mammoth at 15:31, and it’s dark, trudging, and heated coming out of the gates, thrashing as guitars choke, and the shrieks rain fire. Meaty chaos arrives as guitars jar and melt, the pace then grinding a little slower but just as oppressively. Growls corrode as the guitars continue to fray, bruising as the tempo feels a little off kilter, increasing your body temperature. Guitars dart as growls mangle and choke, delivering a final gasp of infernal chaos that blackens eyes. Closer “In Chaos, Exult” is a strange one, a mostly instrumental piece (you can hear detached cries in the mix) that forms like an alien being, surrounding your mind with blackness. The back end feels like a fever dream, disturbing visions clouding your mind, keys layering and making your comfort levels plummet, slowly melting into time.

Malthusian’s death metal feels like it takes over every cell in your body, weighing down on you, making breathing a chore. “The Summoning Bell” is quite the force to behold as it’s a record that pours generous amounts of darkness and embodies the harshest elements of death metal when inspired by ashes. This is as heavy as it comes, and if you let it consume you fully, it’ll take forever to dig yourself out of your own grave.

For more on the band, go here: https://malthusian.bandcamp.com/

To buy the album, go here: https://www.relapse.com/pages/malthusian-the-summoning-bell

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

Couple of weekends ago, I was having a beer that wasn’t quite doing it for me. My fridge isn’t normally decked out with beers as I only chill a few each weekend  because portion size even counts when you’re drinking. So, I went back to see if I had anything else cold, and all I had was an 8-ounce Belgian. Fuck, if it wasn’t exactly right.

Same could be said for Crypt Sermon’s new EP “Saturnian Appendices,” a four-track affair that still clocks in at nearly a half hour. The band—vocalist Brooks Wilson, guitarists Steve Jansson and Frank Chin, bassist/backing vocalist Matthew Knox, synth player Tanner Anderson, drummer Enrique Sagarnaga—had some material left over from the sessions that produced their excellent third album “The Stygian Rose,” and that is presented here as three new songs and a very intriguing cover of a black metal classic. Anyone subscriber to the Decibel flexi series has heard two of these cuts already, and for everyone else, this is fresh new material that hits just right. The serving size doesn’t matter; the quality does.

“Only Ash and Dust” fittingly has a fantasy vibe, the track trickling in before bursting in full. The playing is driving and dark, the chorus soars, guitars charge up as the pace blisters, “oh-oh” calls power, and a galvanizing spirit brings everything to a raucous end. “A Fool to Believe” is powerful, classic-style riffs taking off, the playing chugging and bruising bones. Guitars burn as the pace fires up harder, the chorus making blood jet through veins, Wilson’s tortured wails taking you down as he calls, “We’re here alone.” “Lachrymose” has keys dripping and the riffs blazing, gothy moments bubbling to the surface on the chorus, and even some deeper singing reaching into the guts. The tempo storms as soloing cuts laser-like into metal, and as Wilson howls, “There’s no tomorrow, so I spit on hallowed ground,” you can feel the energy and power in your bones. We end with a very different take on the Mayhem classic “De Mysteriis Doom Sathanas,” one that takes the drama into a slower, more shadowy realm. Wilson’s bellows work into the cracks, the playing sometimes feels liturgical, pacing the ritual, and the performance both pays homage to the creators and ends with something more sinister.

Even an appetizer from Crypt Sermon is worth stopping what you’re doing and indulging in full, as “Saturnian Appendices” fully delivers. While it may be a stop gap between records, the material here thrives and continues to add to the band’s legend, feeling fuller than many other full-lengths from other artists. This is a strong display that is well worth your time, even if it doesn’t demand as much of it as usual.

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

To buy the album, go here: https://www.darkdescentrecords.com/shop/

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