VIDEO INTERVIEW: Vincent Cavanagh of Anathema; September 21st, 2013

Ever since hearing their 1999 album Judgement, I have been a devoted evangelist of English metal/rock/whateverthehellyouwannacallit band Anathema.  At Milwaukee Metalfest 2001, I was lucky enough to see them play what was only their second show in the U.S., where they graced us with most of Judgement, Alternative 4, "A Dying Wish" from The Silent Enigma (*drool*), a cover of Pink Floyd's "Comfortably Numb," and the title track from the then-upcoming album A Fine Day to Exit.  This one concert experience with them would eventually become permanently idealized in my memory, as it would be Anathema's last U.S. show for the following TWELVE YEARS (albeit due to constant travel-related issues).  Then on September 21, 2013, Anathema comes to Reggie's Rock Club in Chicago as part of a U.S. tour with Alcest and Mamiffer, and gives me one of the most surreal concert experiences of my entire show-going life, right up there with Devin Townsend, The Flaming Lips, and Prince (you heard me).

Regardless of where I looked, it was impossible to not witness the magnitude of the Anathema fan's devotion.  There were fans from Chicago as well as from various neighboring states, some of whom drove hundreds of miles to a chance to see Anathema play.  There were those like me who have waited years to see Anathema again, and those who've not yet had the tremendous pleasure.  At least five different foreign languages were being spoken, and this was just amongst the people waiting in line for admission.  Even fans wearing Pentecost III and other "more metal" shirts were ignoring the fact that Anathema's new material can delve into "adult contemporary" territory, raving about the genius of their favorite band's latest album Weather Systems (rel. April 2012 via Kscope).  But as interesting as all this was, the bulk of the surreality I was feeling was because, for my first video interview ever, I was sitting down with Anathema vocalist/guitarist (and occassional keyboardist) Vinny Cavanaugh.  Watch me make a jackass of myself as a friendly and VERY patient Vinny lets his dinner get cold just to offer my cameraperson and I a shot of nerve-calming whiskey and graciously answer my demanding list of questions.



And here's some footage of Anathema performing "Fragile Dreams"!



*Special thanks to my camera operator, Amber Roberts.

-Death Metal Joe

Merkstave - "Merkstave" (2013) [Pesanta Urfolk]

I initially thought Merkstave was just destined to be "one of those bands." You know, the one which shares members with a few of your favorite bands, and yet you can't seem to find any goddamn information on them. Metal-Archives says they released two excessively limited demo tapes in 2011, though recordings apparently date back to 2005, but, aside from an extremely low-quality upload on Youtube, their online presence is all but nonexistent. It seemed that this collective was doomed to rot in obscurity, even with rumors swirling of a finished full-length album swirling around the back corners of the nerdiest of metal forums for the past near-three years.

Featuring members of Leech, Hell, Elu of the Nine, Mania, Velnias, and what seems like the rest of the "Colorado/Oregon doom and black metal" microcosm, Merkstave is by far the heaviest doom band you've never heard of. Featuring professionally recorded versions of their demos Laments for Lost Gods and Spawn of a Lower Star, Merkstave's first, and seemingly only projected full-length effort consists of three long-form offerings of the most despondent, excruciatingly slow funeral doom this side of Finland's Tyranny. This is one of those albums which isn't to be taken lightly, especially for those of the faint of heart. As someone who struggles with depression (don't we all), I find it difficult to listen though this album because it is so brutally, devastatingly honest in its successful attempts at portraying just how alone we are in the universe. If there were ever gods, they certainly aren't here anymore. We simply exist in this vacuum, and Merkstave is here to remind us that there is nothing else in this telluric funerary void. Rarely moving above the pace of a funeral procession through chilled molasses, Merkstave's minimal approach to doom hits the listener right where it hurts with soul-crushing heaviness, bleak, somber melodies, and a pleasant balance between "pretty" and downright nasty.

Yeah, that's right. Nasty.

I have a big problem with doom bands who constantly romanticize depression like it's some beautiful motivator, because, let's face it, depression sucks. Sure, it brings about some great music, and yeah, you can totally romanticize it with big, beautiful melodies, which Merkstave embraces, but there's so much more going on underneath. Big, murky drones, minimalism to an excess, and gross shrieks are pit against the melodic majesty, creating a wonderfully unique dichotomy therein, echoing the complexities of true human emotion. It's a rough listen for sure, but it's definitely rewarding, especially for those of us who have waited far too long to hear Merkstave come to posthumous fruition.

Our friend Harold over at Hammer Smashed Sound's declaration of Merkstave as "the epitome of doom" is right on the money. This is explosive, angry, miserable, and goddamn heavy. The stars have aligned against us. Remember that. Fans of the usual funeral doom crew take note, but approach with caution and antidepressants. In the usual Pesanta Urfolk fashion, there's the "regular ol' LP" version out now, but members of the "elite subscription service" better keep their eye out for the ridiculous special edition which is the epitome of labelhead Adam Toruella's reckless excess and artistic vision. It'll be worth the money I don't have. Get sad.

-Jon

Trees- "Sickness In" (2013) [Crucial Blast]

The new Trees album has a goat on the cover, which in my book, is an instant win.  A vibrating goat, to boot.  And I must say, Sickness In is one of those pieces of music that needs to be played at a floor rattling volume to be properly experienced.  No, it doesn't make the music "better," but when the buildup finally breaks it's comparable to the release of a good orgasm.

Trees first hit my radar earlier this year with the discovery of their two previous albums, Light's Bane and Freed of This Flesh.  While their debut brings the heavy doom you crave, Freed of This Flesh showcases the band's development of more eerie buildups and use of textural feedback, which continues onto Sickness In more grandly than before.

Introduced with finger picked guitar and crescendo feedback, Cover Your Mouth doesn't mess around with bringing the drone, but when the intro finally succumbs to the awaited ear splitting madness it's much heavier than anticipated.  This is slower than previous Trees offerings and demands a fitter physique to withstand the continuous aural and filthy feedback.

Perish takes a different tact opens with throat singing, punchy bass, and beloved feedback.  This is one track that will grab your ribcage and pulverize your liver in a total aural domination, and while it is still clearly Trees, the glimpses where their path may be heading.

Sickness In has decimated a lot of the heavier albums released this year, but I almost wish Perish had been first in the track listing.  As it is, this song is an almost-hidden gem in the Manhattan sewer experience Trees create on their latest release.

-A.

Flattening Middle America: Fister's "Violence" and "Gemini"

How is it that the word "doom" is only four letters long? Surely something so agonizing, slow, and inevitable would be represented by something equally as devastating, and yet there it sits in its monosyllabic glory.

Doom.

A few close colleagues and I used to joke that "doom" was actually a forty-letter word, sometimes going as far as replacing its two o's with a lemniscate (Get it? D∞m? We were so clever.), because, let's face it, four letters isn't enough. Luckily, metal's representation of untimely doom more than makes up for the word's shortcomings. Extended ideas, slack-tuned guitars, subsonic bass, eardrum-shattering volume - all landmarks of the modern manifestation of doom metal, and, in my endless search for the finest representations of doom metal's hallmarks, I found myself just a few hundred miles South of my native NW suburban Chicago.

Hailing from St. Louis, Missouri, sludge/doom metal hydra Fister gives absolutely zero fucks. None. With a reckless streak which includes two full-length recordings, blood-infused screen-printing, and a cassette tape emblazoned with the image of a Baphomet Charles Bronson, it's not so much that Fister has any sort of artistic intent... they just want to make sure you feel pain. Lots of pain.

My first experience with Fister came in the form of a ridiculously packaged cassette, which I bought on a whim mostly due to bassist/vocalist Kenny Snarzyk's pedigree with the now-defunct post-metal band Ashes & Iron. Violence? You know nothing of violence. Recorded "[...]in a live setting, in a really big room[...]," Fister's Violence EP is a thick slab of weighted-down, sludgey doom metal, paying homage to the minimally-bent masters of the past, but without skimping on the memorable riffs. The audio equivalent of being beaten with a sack of hammers, Violence is absolutely steeped in its namesake, even going as far as to jokingly tend to my extensive bruising with the occasional clean section, only to return to their original, malevolent form. Even at a scant twenty-five minutes in length, I can't imagine this album going on any further without getting a little destructive, myself. A force to be reckoned with, Violence is only here to make your life worse. Or better, depending entirely on your devotion to the altar of doom.

In their infinite wisdom, Ohio-based giant Gogmagogical Records did the world a service by re-issuing this long sold-out EP on vinyl, but they didn't stop there. No, this EP needed to be done right or not be released at all, so Gogmagogical released this 10" on five different colors of vinyl, each color paired with its own, hand-screenprinted artwork. For the collector in all of us, Gogmagogical has all five available in one package for the low price of $50, and it even comes with its own tote bag! Excellent. Keep an eye on this label, they do good things.

After two demo compilations and yet another ridiculously-packaged EP (The Infernal Paramount), Fister returns just over a year after Violence with their second full-length recording, the massive Gemini. Where Violence was, well, violent, Gemini exists in a similar sort of emotive field to that of sludge gods Grief; a sphere of hate-filled self-loathing.  A much more "blackened" affair as far as harmonic and atmospheric approach, Gemini shows Fister embracing a much more expansive sort of sound, drawing on Snarzyk and Newstead's previous post-metal and black metal projects as a means of making Fister, well, bigger. While still riffy as ever, Gemini has a sort of melodic clarity which was only hinted at on previous releases, with the trio engaging in massive climaxes which as as miserable and, dare I say, beautiful as they are bottomed out and apocalyptically heavy. Most doom bands find it very difficult to find a sort of balance between the hatefully heavy and epic/majestic, and yet Fister finds the "happy" medium between Grief and Bethlehem after which so many bands lust.

Gemini manifests itself as a primal roar into the void - knuckles pounding into concrete at full force with no regard for one's well-being, and yet there is much more that goes on beneath the surface. Scattered among the low-and-slow heaviness resides a sort of "artfulness," with the band fearlessly incorporating a wider variety of instruments into the fold as a means of textural variety and sudden dynamic shifts. Among other instruments, we see the inclusion of the piano, and, as odd as it sounds, the deep brass valves of the tuba making an appearance, lending its low hum to rattle alongside the equally as deep guitar and bass. The album's titular track is a prime example of this instrumental expansion, trudging along like a metallic Kindertotenlieder (no, not the Sunn O)))-related project). This is heady, abject misery at its finest. Fister have broken the ceiling and are graciously letting every piece of grit and concrete crush everything beneath them.

That feeling when you know you are of absolutely no worth to society and that your existence, alive or dead, is of no consequence has a sound, and that is Fister's Gemini. There aren't many hills out by me, but I wonder now if it was Fister's doing, flattening the very Earth beneath them. Even I, gasping for breath beneath the sheer mass of this album, find myself emulating Giles Corey and demanding "more weight."

No one will mourn me
No one gives a shit
No one will miss me.

-Jon

Bitter Peace/Esoterica/Krieg/The Many - "New World Black Metal" (2013) [Plastik Musik]

I don't think I've ever reviewed a 4-way split before. Though a great way for multiple bands to get noticed, writing about four projects under one banner is definitely going to be an undertaking. Excuse any awkwardness!

Opening with a short clip about the NWO, Connecticut-based duo Bitter Peace rip through a rather odd, yet conservative black/death metal. The riffs and beats are all semi-standard fare, based in dark tones and fleet-fingered blast beats, but it's Nathan Kite's vocal performance which really makes "Ageless Conquering Wolves" a unique experience. Layered, half-spoken clean voices give the impression of a man possessed. Pleading, slurred, grating... I'm not sure if I enjoy it or not, but such an odd vocal performance can't go unnoticed. I'm definitely intrigued as to where Bitter Peace will take their sound, but for now it seems to be "in the making."

I've been following musician Alex Poole for some time now, dating back to the earlier days of his previous oddball black metal project Chaos Moon. Though Chaos Moon is now gone, Poole's latest project Esoterica rose from the ashes, releasing two digital-only EPs on their Bandcamp. Steeped in the mangled hand-mashings of Blut aus Nord's pre-"777" works, Idololatriae and Knell were a pleasant surprise and departure from the oft-melodic leanings of Chaos Moon, but "O For A Thousand Tongues To Sing" is a much more traditional track given Esoterica's experimentally-bent scope. A smattering of blistering riffs, Esoterica's trademark atonality takes a backseat to a greater focus on aggression, bringing about comparisons to, say, Black Witchery's awkward, well-read son, or early Darkthrone high on salvia divinorum. An odd, probably quick transformation to Esoterica's sound, but definitely appreciated.

Krieg is a household name. I mean, let's face it, you can't discuss the impetus of the United States black metal movement without at least mentioning N. Imperial's groundbreaking work with his pet project. Following the trend of "wow, what a strange performance" found on this split, "This Time I'll Leave You To Drown" is one of Krieg's rare, more melodic moments, akin to some of the band's more recent work on The Isolationist. Trudging at a consistent, mid-paced plod, thick guitars follow a rarely changing rhythm figure, concentrating more on various melodic and harmonic themes found within the repeating "main theme." Our friends in Iron Hops cite The Cure as a possible source of influence, and, given Imperial's reputation for covering songs in that vein, I definitely can see it (especially with the distant lead which whispers its way in as the track moves on). Of course, Imperial's voice is as gravelly and gross as ever, but this time something seeps through the anger; dare I say something mournful? As always, Krieg never fails to impress.

Labelhead Nathan Kite returns as a means of closing this short split with his own solo project The Many. For such a short track, "Infinite Wisdom" is some eerie material. Based in an ambient-ish sort of "doom rock," Kite's voice covers the gamut of disgusting, animalistic rasps, deep bellows, and an odd, almost whining clean voice (the latter caught me off guard). A unique, haunting song, I definitely will look further into The Many's discography.

Though "New World Black Metal" once referred to "black metal of the new world," I can't help but feel this 7" re-connoted that phrase. We are in a new age, a new world, and who is to say black metal can't change with that? Bands like Krieg, who have been around from the beginning, are more than enough proof that things can evolve while maintaining a sense of identity. This is a black metal split, just...different. My only complaint? Gosh, this sure is short. Can there be a New World Black Metal, Part II?

-Jon

Black Boned Angel - "The End" (2013) [Handmade Birds Records]

Black Boned Angel is dead. Having dragged a small army of dedicated listeners through audio hell since the Supereclipse EP some ten years ago, unleashing an arsenal of albums and collaborations along the way, another one of noise mastermind Campbell Kneale's (Birchville Cat Motel, Our Love Will Destroy The World) projects has met its demise. An immovable force of harsh, oppressive drone/doom metal, Black Boned Angel's pounding, pulsating masses of bleak, bass-heavy square-wave worship has proven to be a feat of discipline and deference to the drone.

On the subject of discipline, it is discipline which rules a great portion of The End, the aptly named closing of the cycle for Black Boned Angel. Comprised of three lengthy, lengthy forays into the blackest of pitch and furthest distance of sustained feedback, it is the duo of Campbell Kneale and James Kirk's tasteful balance of calculated, pummeling drone/doom and free, bottom heavy noise churn which makes Black Boned Angel's final chapter a most gripping, terrifying, and intriguing expiration to an already inspiring and exciting existence. Hearkening back to their first collaboration with fellow drone aficionados in Nadja, the achingly beautiful Christ Send Light, The End features some of Kneale and Kirk's most radiant sound construction, relying on complex chord structure, subtle use of melody, and massive, skyward harmony to function as a sort of "light at the end of the tunnel." It's not all beauty, though, as the resplendence turns to decay; the heavy percussion disappears and is replaced by a horrifying, scraping layer of noise, while the once-beautiful guitars descend into a droning monotone. It is at this point that one realizes that The End might not just be Black Boned Angel's final declaration, but their own representation of death itself. Though death is romanticized in literature and music, it is very obviously a horrifying, harrowing experience, fading in and out of consciousness, the reliving of past experiences, the questioning of the metaphysical. It's all here, hidden within the crashing waves of guitar, painful shrieks, tendon-snapping percussion, and disconcerting noise.

Somewhere in "II" our protagonist's final agony ends, and the rest of this movement of The End is a magnificent eulogy, both for our fallen friend and Black Boned Angel itself. If the introduction was the beginning of their twilight hours, manifesting itself as the sunset we see on the album cover, then this halfway point is a clear night sky with a painted moon. There are no stars. It is beautiful. Quiet, twinkling piano cuts through the monolithic, melodic guitar, just loud enough to barely obscure the unassuming, sung voices, fading ever so slowly into a dull drone. This is the end.

But what comes next? Nothingness. Horrifying nothingness. Trudging along at a relative mid-pace, "III"'s more traditional "doom" gait is an oppressive one, hitting like a sack of hammers. Although harmonious, there is an unsettling character to this final statement, oscillating through its sixteen-and-a-half minute span. It is a grand declaration. "We are through." A magnificent end to one of doom metal's most obscure and acquired tastes. Will Campbell venture into the doom metal world again in the future? I certainly hope so.

The End is also one of the most deluxe-packaged CDs I have in my collection. As if being housed in a lotus-style wallet wasn't enough, both that and an oversized insert are placed inside a printed 6.5x6.5" envelope, which is then inserted into a 7x7" translucent envelope with a larger insert. Eight pieces in all. Hand-numbered out of five-hundred. A necessity.

RIP Black Boned Angel.

-Jon

Jon's Favorite Things of 2012

I'm writing this on December 1st, or at least I'm starting to. Wouldn't it be odd if for some strange reason all the morons who believe that the world was supposed to end five days before this is scheduled to post were...right? Silly I know, but this feature is not going to feature very much complaining. Yes, it seems to be that time of year where I gush about my favorite albums of the year past. There certainly have been quite a few quality releases this year, and while some killjoys revel in posing the "Was anything of quality really released this year?" question on their Facebook/Twitter/Blog, I'm here to remind you that they are wrong. At least, they're wrong in my book, anyway. And hell, going back to the silly, impossible conspiracy theory, 2012 wouldn't be a terrible year for music to end.

So here goes with my year end list. I'm starting with #20 and working my way to #1, you know, for the rising suspense. If an artist released two albums of a similar style and gait and I really liked both, I condensed them into one slot.

10. Krallice - "Years Past Matter" [Self-Released/Gilead Media]
Krallice is the ultimate black metal experience for eggheads like myself. While still maintaining a muscular, hyperblack physique, it's what goes on underneath which has made this "supergroup" of sorts one of my absolute favorite US bands. Constantly changing pulses, Hindemith-obsessed tonality, and a great communal ear for powerful arrangements, this transformation of the modern classical style, which is largely unknown and unresearched in black metal, to a familiar texture is really something to behold. They definitely made a gutsy move when Marston, Barr, McMaster, and Weinstein collectively decided to self-release the CD edition, and maybe it's a sign that you don't always need a label, though the excellent 2LP, handled by the ever great Gilead Media, sure helps the other side of that argument

9. Anatomy of Habit - "Anatomy of Habit EP" [Self-Released]
This collective of Chicago misfits has done it once again. The band's second release, this (currently) vinyl-only, self-titled EP offers up two more slabs of Anatomy of Habit's signature heavy, introspective post-punk/superdoom hybrid. I have to admit, I wasn't totally sure about this one at first, seeing as this particular EP utilizes a lot more "studio magic" (read as: overdubbed vocals, extra instruments) than their previous full-length, which sounded much more like their extremely oppressive live shows, but I finally came to my senses. "After the Water" and "The Decade Plan" are definitely live favorites, so it's nice to hear them fleshed out to their full potential. Sadly, various circumstances resulted in the band parting ways with drummer Dylan Posa and Greg Ratajczak, so who knows what the future spells for Anatomy of Habit? I'm definitely interested in hearing how next month's studio session (with session musicians, no less) turns out, and will be picking up the soon-to-be-released CD edition of both the LP and EP.

8. Wreathes - "Wreathes" [Brave Mysteries/Pesanta Urfolk]
An excellent, excellent neofolk album. An offshoot of Kinit Her, musicians Troy Schafer and Nathaniel Ritter formed Wreathes as a sort of "songwriting-based" counterpart to their main project, and this concerted effort towards songwriting resulted in some of the strongest neofolk this side of the Atlantic. Schafer's seemingly infinite layers of guitars, violins, and bass intermingle so perfectly with Ritter's loops, synthesized sounds, and advanced keyboard work. I've recently joined Wreathes as a live member, so I guess there's a sort of "conflict of interests" going on here...but I guess that's a sort of testament to how much I enjoyed the music, right? Right? Exactly. Get this one on CD from Brave Mysteries or gatefold LP from Pesanta Urfolk.

7. Zelienople - "The World Is A House On Fire" [Type Records]
If ghosts played music, it would probably sound like this. Ethereal, almost jazzy "slowcore" (read as: excessively minimal, quiet "rock" music), Zelienople never ceases to amaze with their unique, almost sleep-inducing approach. As unique an experience as it is, The World Is A House On Fire feels as if you've put on your favorite Miles Davis album at half speed and crawled into the speaker with a warm blanket and a good book. If you're into music which moves like a filmreel of an empty, lamplit street in slow motion, you definitely need to experience Zelienople (especially live).

6. Pinkish Black - "Pinkish Black (Everything Went Dark)" [Handmade Birds]
Texas duo Pinkish Black was definitely the "dark horse" for most 2012 lists. Coming out of left field at a million miles a second, Pinkish Black is an expertly crafted "deathrock" album, complete with forays into Om-inspired stoner doom, crazed black metal, and oddball krautrock. Completely foregoing the use of guitars, or any string instruments for that matter, Pinkish Black only uses voice, synthesizer, and heavy-hitting percussion, which is extremely impressive. Though I'm a little sore they signed to Century Media, which I find a little weird, I hope they find the unanimous recognition they deserve with their new home.

5. Hell - "III" [Eternal Warfare/Pesanta Urfolk]
I never really knew what to make of Hell's first two full-lengths. A weird combination of Sabbath-inspired doom, funereal drone, and soaring post-rock, it almost seemed sort of scattered and lacked focus...but the potential was there. With III, the end of the initial Hell trilogy, solo musician M.S.W. found that focus and laid waste to everything in his path. Utterly despondent, romantic, and with a heaviness which goes unmatched, III is Hell's triumph, featuring some of doom metal's most powerful, moving songwriting since Asunder called it quits. This is one of those albums to which you can listen over and over again without it ever getting stale. Brilliantly executed and welcomed with open arms. The tape edition, handled by Eternal Warfare, is sold out through the usual channels, but an LP edition will be made available via Pesanta Urfolk sometime next year. Get into this.

4. Hexvessel - "No Holier Temple" [Svart Records]
Wow. Just wow. Dawnbearer was a solid effort, but this? This is just excellent. No Holier Temple is by far one of the best "psychedelic folk" releases I've heard in a long time, and this Finnish troupe's tribute to the often-attempted-but-never-fully-realized 70s folk scene is as close to perfection as one can get. A brilliant amalgam of proto-doom, gorgeous vocal arrangements, tasteful progressive rock, and, of course, Hexvessel's own "deranged hippie" folk, No Holier Temple is as overwhelmingly catchy as it is deep and brooding. Another mark on singer/songwriter Mat "Kvohst" McNerny's excellent track record, which also includes black metal weirdos and DHG. Proof that great things come from colliding worlds.

3. Vaura - "Selenelion" [Wierd Records]
You know you're in for a treat when cold/synthwave label Wierd Records bites the bullet and signs a metal band. The union of shoegaze's height, post-punks moodiness, progressive rock's braininess, and the scorn of black metal, Vaura's Selenelion opens up a new plane of experimenting for metalheads and goths alike, but what else would you expect from members of Religious to Damn, Dysrhythmia, maudlin of the Well/Kayo Dot, and the Secret Chiefs? Do I need to say more?

2. Horseback - "Half Blood" [Relapse Records]
One of the best feelings in the world is when your most anticipated album of the year just so happens to end up on your year end list. Horseback mastermind Jenks Miller's blend of Morricone-meets-Young (Neil, not La Monte, though if you think about it...) Americana and groovy doom metal is one of those rare successes in the world of "weird" genre fusion, which is usually rife with bands which try way too hard to be unique but end up unlistenable. A continuation of the style he revolutionized with 2009's The Invisible Mountain, Miller's unexpected addition of power electronics and noise to the fold might have come as a shock to many, but those elements were always sort of there, buried in the background. A shining force to be reckoned with.

1. Kinit Her - "Storm Of Radiance" [Brave Mysteries/Pesanta Urfolk]
Well, there you have it. Living up to my "Captain Neofolk" status on Last.fm, my favorite release of 2012 just so happened to be one of the neofolk variety. Hailing from Madison, Wisconsin, Nathaniel Ritter and Troy Schafer's Kinit Her is all about boundary breaking. Much like Krallice's fusion of the unfamiliar and the familiar, Kinit Her's Storm of Radiance is a melding of avant-garde abstraction with traditional neofolk leanings, resulting in an inward journey through neomedieval landscapes and modern opera houses. Read my full review, which was featured as part of the Sounds of Autumn review series I ran from August to early November, for both a song premiere and me waxing poetic for a few pages. More than impressive. Can't wait to receive my copy of the special edition double LP, which should arrive at my doorstep soon (hopefully).

Runners Up (a.k.a. things which are also awesome and I needed to make sure I said nice things about them)


11. Wreck & Reference - "No Youth" [Flenser]
One of the few bands who completely eschews the use of direct-recorded guitar for metal. No bass either. The fact that Felix and Ignat were able to craft extraordinarily heavy music utilizing samples, voice, and drums is both amazing and terrifying. Dark, jarring, disturbing, and ethereal, No Youth is a flexing of one gigantic creative muscle. Imagine if they collaborated with Iron Forest?



12. Neurosis - "Honor Found In Decay" [Neurot/Relapse]
Neurosis is back. In most cases, that's all I really have to say, but I feel I'll go a little further. With all the solo work Scott Kelly and Steve von Till have been churning out since Given to the Rising, we really see a melding of the miserable, Townes van Zandt-inspired bummercountry Kelly and von Till emulate and the unique "tribal drone post-hardcore" Neurosis have honed. It's awesome, maybe not their best work, but that still places them much higher than most of the music world. Big, emotional, and beardy.



13. Syven - "Corpus Christi" [Audiokratik]
Syven's sophomore effort was an exercise in simultaneous music modernization and preservation, in this case the music of the Knights Templar. I'd go deeper, but I wrote a huge feature on this and feel I said everything I needed to say here. It is excellent. Listen to it. Love it.



14. Ævangelist - "De Masticatione Mortuorum in Tumulis" [I, Voidhanger/Blood Harvest]
Absolutely putrid, vile death metal. It seems "war metal" is the big thing now, with basement Blasphemy-worship bands releasing demos in droves, and it's almost completely watered down. Ævangelist's full-length debut seems to be making up for lost time, spewing forth some of the most frightening, baffling blackened death metal I've heard in some time. Extra kudos to vocalist Ascaris, who manages to sound even more disgusting than Craig Pillard's early work with Incantation.



15. Jodis - "Black Curtain" [Hydra Head/SIGE]
I wasn't really certain how I felt about Jodis's previous album, Secret House, but the fearless genre fusion found on Black Curtain absolutely blew me away. Aaron Turner's powerful croon dances about over excruciatingly slow dronepop dirges, carefully crafted by doom duo James Plotkin and Tim Wyskida. It's a rare feat to find music which is heavy both aurally and emotionally, and Jodis definitely embodies that rarity.



16. Guzzlemug - "Nervously Counting Rosary Beads" [Self-Released]/"To Leave The Earth" [Speaks Volumes/Bad Human]
I'm not really one for "progressive" music, but, man, Guzzlemug really hits the spot. Recently relocated from Minnesota, this progressive rock/metal act tastefully utilizes elements of free/avant-jazz, 70s psychedelia, modern choral music, and anything else they really feel like using. The expansive and lengthy Nervously Counting Rosary Beads's excellent voice work and massive, through-composed arrangement pairs perfectly with the "shorter," much more succinct tunes found on To Leave The Earth. This is a demonstration of true musicianship without crossing that oft-passed border of "wankiness." Progressive music with passion, which is something I can get behind.



17. GOG - "Ironworks" [Utech Records]
Though I've recently found myself avoiding drone, I couldn't help but check out the newest album from Mike Bjella's GOG. In our Architecture This Resounds, which was released earlier this year on King of the Monsters, showed GOG taking on more musical qualities, which was a welcome change, but I never would have guessed Bjella would have taken the plunge with Ironworks. At times an almost-black metal shadowplay, at others a slow piano dirge with terrifying screeches (a first for GOG), Ironworks is a beautiful eulogy for the American dream.



18. Dreamless - "All This Sorrow, All These Knives" [Handmade Birds]
Pleasant surprises are always welcome here, and Dreamless's magnificently heavy shoegaze was much more than pleasant. Though this was supposedly released excessively late last year, I felt an inclusion in this year's year end list was necessary. Fans of Hum, Justin Broadrick's various projects, and The Angelic Process will be more than happy to experience this one. I actually took a Megabus to Minneapolis to see these guys perform, if that's any indication.



19. Servile Sect - "SVRRENDER" [Handmade Birds/King of the Monsters]
The companion piece to last year's magnificent TRVTH was bound to end up on a few lists. SVRRENDER begins as a demonstration of raw black metal might, but slowly transforms into some of Servile Sect's most intriguing work to date. Krnkr and Clmnt's first time utilizing a full band, this is definitely the ledge off of which one would want to jump if you've been meaning to delve into weird, blackened psychedelia.

20. Circle of Ouroborus - "Abrahadabra" [Kuunpalvelus]/"The Lost Entrance of the Just"[Handmade Birds]

My favorite Finnish weirdos are back, this time with the second and third parts of the what can only be described as legendary session which gave us last year's Eleven Fingers. Similar in scope, we are again presented with two warm and fuzzy slabs of bummed-out, 80s goth-inspired "black metal." I'm not really certain if these albums, or the band, for that matter, can really be ascribed with this describing term, but, nonetheless, there is still definitely something "blackened" lurking around in the muck.


Cool people who deserve infinite thanks but weren't mentioned above: my writing staff, Dave and Liz Brenner/Earsplit PR, Kim Kelly/Catharsis PR, Scott Alisoglu and Ryan Ogle/Clawhammer PR, R. Loren/Handmade Birds, Chris Elmore and Harold Niver/HSS, Josh/That's How Kids Die, Ben/Black Metal and Brews, Ian/Don't Count On It Reviews, Nick and the rest of the Blackened Slugs crew, Keith Utech, Mike Genz/King of the Monsters, Hector/Triangulum Ignis, Garry, Dorian, and Chris/Cara Neir, Jordan, Rae, and the rest of the Last Rites/Metal Review crew, Mike/Fallen Empire, Karl Rogers/Fall of Nature, Alex Poole, Clay Ruby, Joe Beres/Small Doses, Stuart Dahlquist, Adam Wright/Crucial Blast, Timoth "timeMOTHeye" Renner/Stone Breath et. al., The Elitist/YTIMS, my Backlit buddies, all our loyal readers, and anyone else who helped out along the way by being awesome and/or making/releasing cool tunes. See you in 2013!

-Jon

My Dying Bride - "A Map Of All Our Failures" (2012) [Peaceville]

When someone listens to music even just a little more than casually, they no doubt have a particular band that stands out as an undeniable favorite. Even if you cant name just one, there surely must be at least a handful of bands that have never gone away from you. From the moment you discovered them and that first note made its way into your soul, an obvious and indelible mark was left. When new material is released, there is a feeling of excitement but also of great curiosity and even doubt. It isn't that you expect something worse than before, it is more the fact that you find it nearly impossible to exceed or even meet past offerings. Most times this is made even more difficult because the love of older material may exceed just mere musical worth and carry with it a sense of nostalgia or some other feeling that will always give it an advantage that no new material can have from the start. For me, My Dying Bride is one of said groups.

For one reason or another, it has always been that depressing music has on the contrary, made me happy. I can only guess it is the feeling that you are not alone in your suffering that gives joy to the listener and it is hard to think of anyone more miserable sounding than Aaron Stainthorpe and his band of mournful musicians. To be fair and completely honest, nothing will ever come remotely close to the feeling that I got when I first heard As the Flower Withers or Turn Loose the Swans". This is due to not only the music itself but as I said earlier, the experience and time at which I began to listen. Over the years, the band has been a constant in my life and I have certainly had a kind of love/hate relationship with them. As is the case with just about anything you can be passionate about, you tend to be overtly critical. In terms of music, it gets to the point where you may have enjoyed certain material had someone else put it out, yet in the context of a favorite band, it just didn't work. Some changes were for the better while others were extremely questionable and a big hit was the loss of violin on certain albums. I realize this was not the fault or a decision of the band itself, rather than the violinist choosing to leave but there are feelings that can be conveyed through a violin that an electric guitar simply can not touch and it had become an important staple of My Dying Bride's sound. Through all this, the band has always retained the core elements that made them unique and even through what I consider low points, you could never mistake them for anyone else. It may be blind devotion at this point but even though I haven't heard the band release what I would consider a great album (by their own standards) since the 2004 masterpiece Songs of Darkness, Words of Light, I still listen to and soak in every single thing they put out as soon as I am able to. Though there are certainly moments where I feel like they really pull off something special again, these days I find most of their output a bit underwhelming. Do I expect too much? Considering I know what they are capable of and can even hear glimpses of this greatness that seem to go away almost as quickly as they come, I really don't think so.

Recently, I sat down with newest album A Map of all our Failures with the same excitement and doubt and as soon as I hear the opening track, "Kneel til Doomsday", I am naturally taken by it. It possesses the same great atmosphere and dynamics that made me a fan in the first place and for the first time in almost a decade, I get the feeling I am once again on the verge of a great musical journey that only My Dying Bride can bring about. Sadly, as the record continues, I soon realize that it was just another one of these fleeting moments of greatness and the album simply fails to keep up this momentum. While there are certainly other fantastic moments on the record, the first is the only track where the entire song truly met my expectations. I will say that this album is certainly better than the last two offerings and these great moments I keep referring to are becoming less and less few and far between. Previous release, The Barghest o' Whitby EP was a supposed return to form and much heavier than this new full length, but while good, it just felt forced. There are enough trace elements and awesome passages on A Map of all our Failures that if the band were to focus on enhancing what is here for the next album, they actually may have something to justify my excitement for the first time in a long time. Unfortunately, this time around, I am once again left underwhelmed but far less so than lately. This is a definite step in the right direction and considering I am judging this album based on the the bands other output, a My Dying Bride record that is simply good, could very well be considered great under other circumstances.

-Dallas

Of Sun and Snow: Two New Releases from Sol y Nieve Records

Sol y Nieve is a bit of an anomaly in the Chicago music scene, which in itself is becoming its own anomaly. However eclectic I've found Chicago music to be, there is still a great deal of separation between styles, with the black metallers only dealing in black metal, indie folkers only dealing in indie folk, noise guys keeping to their small circle...you know, "clique-y." A select few Chicago-based labels (Bloodlust! comes to mind) have been breaking the mold, with Noah Coleman's Sol y Nieve quickly gaining clout in the underground, embracing noise, metal, folk, and experimental music without hesitation. In a polarized world, Sol y Nieve is a beacon of hope. It's nice. Today I will be concentrating on two of Sol y Nieve's more metal-oriented releases, featuring Oyarsa's astral/kosmiche doom and an excellent pairing between Connecticut avant-black metal icons Yellow Eyes and the claustrophobic sounds of Monument.

Oyarsa - "Oyarsa"

This tape has been a long time coming. I've heard about shows, seen shirts around town...the whole shebang, and yet I hadn't actually heard any recorded Oyarsa until just a few weeks ago. The wait? Worth it. Following in the footsteps of Jucifer and The Body, Oyarsa is a "power duo" who completely foregoes the use of bass, instead utilizing powerful guitar tone and thick, bassy percussion. Of course, don't let the previous namedrops be any sort of indication towards Oyarsa's sound, which manifests itself as some of the most terrifying blackened doom metal I've heard this side of Dead Reptile Shrine's slower material. Exemplifying the fear of the unknown, the horrifying awe of deep space's vastness, Oyarsa's engulfing, noisy, but always clear and ever so creepy take on doom metal is refreshing and exciting. Extra points to Coleman for making both the mono and stereo mixes available on this release.

Yellow Eyes/Monument split

After an excellent physical version of the Silence Threads the Evening's Cloth demo, Yellow Eyes returns to Sol y Nieve, paired with Coleman's enigmatic Monument (though Coleman reportedly prefers it to be spelled Monvment for aesthetic purposes). Before getting into the music, I need to talk about the amazing packaging and effort put into this release. Noah Coleman hand-measured and cut high-quality black construction paper O-cards, then printed a smaller O-card (the lemniscate-based work you see to the right) on vellum and, you guessed it, hand cut and measured that as well. The cassette itself, which is pro-dubbed and on-shell printed, is housed in a soft polycase (fancy) with an insert, featuring both bands' logos and band photos. Our friend at YITMS was kind enough to take a photo so you can see the packaging in all its glory. It really is something.

I'm surprised I haven't written about Yellow Eyes yet. I mean, these guys are the perfect middle ground between the early 90s school of miserable, loathsome black metal and the new, Krallice-championed "Brooklyn" school about which we've all read so much (and in big publications, no less). Unlike the almost-happy sounds found on their demo, Yellow Eyes have really brought the mood down with these two new tracks, concentrating on even darker tones than before, and with excellent results. A raging wall of melodic emotion, wandering into the modern, "open" compositional style of Paul Hindemith and non-Rites of Spring Stravinsky, Yellow Eyes is not so much a black metal band as it is a statement on how to effectively push extreme music forward without the air of pretentiousness most others in this style seem to carry.

Monument's side is a different kind of monster. I mentioned that Yellow Eyes's contributions were dark, but their misery is nothing compared to the self-destructive atmosphere's found within these two tracks, which happen to be the first new Monument tracks in almost two years. While previous efforts garnered comparisons to Leviathan and Lurker of Chalice, Coleman's lo-fi, claustrophobic sounds are filled with an indescribable, melancholic rage. Is it self-loathing? Madness? It is hard to tell, but Coleman's gurgling croak seems to point to the latter. If, like me, you prefer your black metal to be big, murky, and grating, Monument is definitely worth your time. An excellent return with lots of promise for future releases, but not the future itself.

Both of these releases, as well as the rest of the Sol y Nieve discography, is available for free via their Bandcamp. Additionally, it pains me to say that both of these releases are still available in physical format. How is that even possible? Shame on you. Shame shame shame. Support great art.

-Jon

The Assembly of Light Choir - "Assembly of Light" (2012) [At A Loss Records]

When I first found out the Assembly of Light Choir opened a Kickstarter for their first album, I was excited and immediately jumped aboard.  If it hadn't been for sludge giants The Body, I, like many, probably would never heard of this lovely group of ladies, and their East coast tour with the doom band served to cement the choir's name in my mind.

Kickstarter itself is an interesting phenomena for the opportunities it can help under-appreciated bands achieve. Some fans don't realize how much time and money it can take to make an album, and asking for a few thousand dollars through the funding platform can seem both outrageous and minuscule.  After supporting a few projects, and indeed launching one of my own, I've found my expectations for the greatness of the finished album steadily increasing with the dollar amount requested. With the AOLC's project aspiring to a $4500 goal, I found myself looking forward to a choral album that would be in moderate rotation of my music library.

It's also worth mentioning that I jumped on reviewing this album because of that Kickstarter, and one of the pitfalls of dealing with a mass outpouring of support; I never got my copy of the album, even after trying to communicate that there was a problem.  Oh well, there's a copy here now, and it's worth listening to.

Starting off with the track "Insides", the choir showcases uplifted voices backed by piano, and the track itself is reminiscent of the start of winter, just before the first snow.  Perhaps this is because my hands are freezing as I type this, but that doesn't subtract from the eerie introduction.  Insides seamlessly transitions into the next track, which happens to be named "Transition". "Transition", and the third track, "Treelight", are the strongest offerings on the album by far.  Introduced by stringed instruments, The Body's Chip King makes a guest appearance on "Transition," with his crushing riffs supporting the Choir's voices.  The contrast between the doom and uplifting voices is well balanced, demanding some headbanging before fading out to piano and voice, much like the initial track Insides.  The third track, "Treelight"'s heaviness is immediate, with the Choir in the forefront, again backed by The Body's Chip King, and builds on the previous track while introducing a male vocalist hearkening the dying worlds. "Treelight" leaves me with the impression of a church service gone wrong (or terribly right), expounding upon the failures of man and of this world while crushing our brains with enlightening doom.

The remaining three tracks, Into The Woods I, II, and III respectively, return to the solo voices of the choir featured briefly on the first half of the album.  These tracks are audibly similar, and would benefit greatly from some well written lyrics.  Even sparse words would help distinguish the songs.

Overall, the Assembly of Light Choir's solo album is worth picking up, especially for the tracks Transition and "Treelight," where the choir's collaborations bring a new experience to a well loved band.

-A.

Ehnahre - "Old Earth" (2012) [Crucial Blast]

So one of the best modern art-metal bands in existence gives us a 37-minute, four-movement setting of Samuel Beckett. Goddamned glorious, right? Well, yes.

Old Earth covers a lot of ground, even by Ehnahre standards; a long, soft concrète buildup into sparse hints of modernized black metal into waves of atonal black-doomness hating and collapsing and hating again. And it's a perfect hate; it's not unlike seeing yourself as a limp body, slamming and breaking into bodies of soot-stained concrete on an endless fall. Yes. Really. And that's just the first track.

The second part shows off Ryan McGuire writing and performing in a solo contrabass format (yes, precious arco) before the perfectly-balanced appearanced of John Carchia's soft, atonally-regretful guitar. I couldn't ask for a much better conjunction of the two; and they both come across as voices, not as rote communication. Then Greg Kelley comes in. If you've never heard Greg Kelley play trumpet, it's because I'm a terrible person and haven't forced you to listen. Greg Kelley is my favorite trumpet player, speaking as someone who abandoned the instrument years ago in despair.

Then, of course, Graham and Donoso join the fray and create some of the most beautifully grey-black-shining group improvisation I've yet heard.

Then, III. Five compressed minutes of horrifically aimed, hive-minded chaos. This is where to start in the indoctrination of the neophyte; this is the ten-horned thing and the essence of the end.

Then ends the bone-breaking rhythmic and harmonic interplay, momentarily; IV is a hymn, the hymn of the broken-minded, the dispairing, the ended hearts.

I'll take another cup of that black illness.

-V.

Botanist - "III: Doom In Bloom/Allies" (2012) [TotalRust Records]

Of all the words in the English language, perhaps the most fitting in the case of avant-garde black metal entity Botanist is...challenging. If you recall the extremely polarized backlash to lone musician The Botanist's dulcimer 'n drums approach to what is held sacred in the hearts of the internet's angriest, last year's double album I: The Suicide Tree/II: A Rose From The Dead was one of the many "love it or hate it" albums which seems to plague recent black metal. While a good number of people, myself included, enjoyed Botanist's detached, almost inhuman approach, production, and overall performance, many commented on the awkwardness which comes with strange, croaked vocals, popcorn percussion, and, of course, the ever-present dulcimer as a replacement of the guitar. It's odd, really, to see such polarization over a simple change in instrumentation, especially when the approach and aesthetic were pretty much what you would expect from your average "oddball" black metal band, but, then again, what else would you expect from the legion of the blog?

For those of you who liked the idea of dulcimer metal but weren't as happy as I was with Botanist's previous effort, I have some good news for you: The Botanist has slowed things down...a lot. Yes, it seems that what was once odd and blasting has toned down, making way for something much more thoughtful and, dare I say it, pretty. Doom In Bloom, Botanist's third album and second physical release overall, demonstrates a new, doom metal-inspired side of Botanist, which, in my opinion, reflects the nature-oriented side of the project, rather than the rage-filled eco-terrorism displayed on the last two albums. Utilizing both hammered and bowed dulcimers, reed organs, impressively clear drumming, and a few new vocal approaches, Doom in Bloom offers a much calmer, albeit still very disjointed and odd, atmosphere, relying on large, harmonically pleasing chord progressions to make his view on nature's power and beauty as clear and crisp as his dulcimer's tone. The Botanist's choice of a doom metal setting for his dulcimer-led project makes all too much sense, especially with the instrument's natural, buzzing sustain (especially when bowed). One would think more doom metal bands would have taken the plunge and started using supersustaining instruments like The Botanist has. You know you can theoretically make a reed organ sustain forever? I can sense the most obnoxious funeral doom band in the planning stages already.

The magnificence achieved with III: Doom In Bloom marks a sort of halfway point between slow, droning folk music and harmonically dense doom metal. The complete about face Botanist has taken with this new direction is both as pleasing as it is unique and, as I said earlier, challenging. Doom In Bloom is accompanied by a second disc of "remixes" titled Allies, in which other projects record their own interpretations of Botanist material over the original Botanist drum tracks. An interesting endeavor, but I feel it is merely an afterthought in the wake of the first disc. III: Doom In Bloom/Allies is available from Israeli label TotalRust Music and many other fine distributors of music.

-Jon

Nadja - "Dagdrom" (2012) [Broken Spine Productions]

Hard to believe it's been over two years since the last proper Nadja full-length, especially given their insanely prolific output.  While there's been no shortage of material from the duo (the interim has seen a wealth of splits, reissues, and collaborative releases, including the woefully undersung "The Primitive World" collaboration with Vampillia, as beautiful as anything Aidan and Leah have done), there's been nothing authorial from them since 2010's "Autopergamene"; you could be forgiven for wondering if the constant barrage of recordings had given way to a fallout with creative subsistence.  Are Nadja out of ideas?  Have they taken their formula as far as it can possibly go without becoming redundant?  Do they need the musical prodding of another involved artist to reach new plateaus of sound exploration?

The new album "Dagdrom" provides no real answer, if only because of its inherent confusion.  While this is Nadja as known, they've opted to replace their usual "stumble and plod" drum programming with the measured and hammering approach of Mac McNeilly (of the Jesus Lizard), and the end result is something that isn't exactly what I consider to be exemplary of their sound; nor is it deviant in any ground-breaking or revealing sort of manner.  The last Nadja record to feature a live drummer was 2008's "Desire In Uneasiness," but where that record gave in fully to punishing kraut-rock style pulverisation and numbing lobe obliteration, "Dagdrom" simply uses McNeilly's drums as a re-imagining of Nadja's traditional percussion approach.  While it's nice to hear McNeilly bang away on "Falling Out of Your Head," it's not terribly arresting or flattening.  He simply gets lost and buried under Baker's ocean of guitar effects, fighting for space amidst a growing roar of delays, echoes, and distortions.  He's an irrelevancy in a whorling storm of chaotic sonic overload.

The other misstep here is in the nature of the songs themselves.  These four tracks are as simple as Nadja have ever been, revisionist versions of standard pop formulae that sound more like they belong on one of Baker's delicate solo albums than they do as dream-sludge lava freeflows (previous 2009 album "Belles Betes" predicated its entire existence on that very conceit and pulled it off) .  The majesty is lacking; in some instances ("Falling Out of Your Head" and "One Sense Alone") the riffs are just boring throwaways, monotonous and insultingly chromatic sub-Tool approximations that equate dynamics with the obvious difference between clean and distorted guitars.  The only song that really seems to hint at the grandeur this band is capable of is the title track: also the shortest of the four, it trades on a bludgeoningly melodic chord progression that manages to make the most of McNeilly's style married to Baker's penchant for lazy and narcoleptic stream of consciousness propulsion.  Some of Baker's guitar voicings here have a dreamier feel than before, as though these may actually have been sketches for a solo album fed through the Nadja template; "Dagdrom" is the one track here that makes that self-cannibalization seem worthwhile.  Closing track "Space Time & Absence" utterly fails to deliver on the arrogant promise of its title; while the feel is appropriately primal, Nadja have been here before and done it much better (listen to "Deterritorialization" off of "Desire In Uneasiness" and you'll understand.)  Instead it becomes a black hole of limp ideas and blatant melodic stretches done for their own sake.

I still love Nadja.  With as much material as they have, there's bound to be failed experiments and some lackluster tracks.  They are a band that more often than not rewards the devotion they inspire (despite everything said here, I will still buy "Dagdrom.")  The brilliance of some of the material of the last two years speaks to their continued relevance, and the work they do in conjunction with other artists often sees both parties going outside of their niche zones to a great and vitalized effect.  "Dagdrom" is just another notch in the release belt; while the Nadja devout will no doubt obtain it and try to extract what they can from it, it is not a worthwhile entry point or an intriguing curio object for the flirtatious.  The wall of banality Nadja have erected here will not close them off from longtime followers, but it will cause a flutter in our collective hearts as we hope for something stronger, more immersive, more all-encompassing.  At their best Nadja can move the earth.  With "Dagdrom" they're just dragging their feet.
"Dagdrom" is currently streaming in full at Nadja's Bandcamp site.

-Cory

Blood of the Black Owl - "Light the Fires!" (2012) [Bindrune Recordings]

It has been a long, hot Summer, so miserably dry that even the slightest misting from above is celebrated. The grass is scorched, the trees are dying, the crops won't grow...frankly, it sucks. With the change in seasons just around the corner (just a little over a month away, now), one can only hope that the falling leaves of Autumn bring whatever life it can back to the ground before it's covered with snow for however long Chicago thinks it is necessary. Though the Midwestern heatwave hasn't affected Northwestern woodland denizen Chet W. Scott, the return of his normally doom metal-oriented project Blood of the Black Owl seems to be the perfect catalyst to bring about Autumn's onset with his latest effort, Light the Fires!

Having digested the surprise Blood of the Black Owl split with Scott's bandmate in The Elemental Chrysalis's, one James Woodhead, project At the Head of the Woods, I wasn't really sure about the future releases of Blood of the Black Owl. With the "demise" of his main project, Ruhr Hunter, during Blood of the Black Owl's supposed extended hiatus, it seems that Scott merely merged the two projects together, resulting in the twenty-five minutes of deep, ritual-based ambient which was Scott's half of the Handmade Birds split. Beginning with a lengthy invocation around the Laguz rune in the opening track "Caller of Spirits", it became fully apparent that Light the Fires! is Scott fully revealing a new face to his Blood of the Black Owl project.

To those of you who were used to Blood of the Black Owl's existence as a metal project, like I was, the first listen of the almost entirely non-metal Light the Fires! will prove to be a difficult one. Aside from the odd-man out doom metal track "Sundrojan" and the gradual build to metal in "Soil Magicians," Scott foregoes the project's usual soulcrushing, distorted doom and moosecall vocals for calming, 70s progressive rock-influenced folk. Yes, this stylistic break is odd, seeing as Blood of the Black Owl has been a meditation in massive, tree-smashing doom since the days of Svart Ugle almost seven years ago, yet Scott's trademark, Shamanic forest worship is still the centerpiece of the project, which, in the end, was the sole reason why he founded this project in the first place. Utilizing intriguing guitar counterpoint, a variety of flute-range woodwinds, autoharp, drums, and perhaps the most intricate basswork seen in any of Chet Scott's projects, Light the Fires! is the perfect soundtrack to forest montages: meditative, solemn, and with a sense of isolationism which can only come from living among the trees without any human contact.

Though most of the album has a wonderful flow, with tracks leading into one another and a thematic scope which ties it together, I can't help but feel that "Sundrojan" was put in haphazardly. That's not to say that it isn't a good track, as it would have fit on the first two albums nicely, but putting a full-on doom metal track in the middle of a modern almost-neofolk album like this just seems reckless. I'm not saying that this track doesn't fit in the scope of the album overall, as highlighted by the massive doom metal climax of "Soil Magicians," it's just that there's no buildup or herald to the stylistic change within the album in "Sundrojan" like there was within the tasteful buildup and cohesive fusion in "Soil Magicians" and "Disgust and the Horrible Realization of Apathy." "Sundrojan" might be the lame duck of Light the Fires!, but, since it still is of the same caliber of previous releases, I still find myself enjoying the track all the same.

The near-80-minute length might be intimidating on paper, but Light the Fires!'s hypnotic gait proves it to be enjoyable, however long it is. However different it might be, I'd like to think this newer direction, which still respectfully hints at the past, is a successful one. Though a pre-order has not been announced just yet, Marty of Bindrune Recordings has graciously made it available to stream for free from the Bindrune Bandcamp. Another successful chapter in Chet W. Scott's musical career. Now, how about a new Elemental Chrysalis album?

-Jon

LIVE REVIEW: Agalloch and Taurus at Reggie's Rock Club; July 20th, 2012

To be completely honest, when I first heard that Portland-based atmospheric metal band Agalloch was to make its third live appearance in Chicago since 2009, I found myself...not as excited as I would have been, say, two years ago. Having seen them twice already, I found myself excited to see them before and during each show, but left underwhelmed by their live performances. I still enjoyed the band, but simply resigned to the fact that they were better as a studio act. However, having 1) heard the new Faustian Echoes EP, for which this tour is celebrating and 2) reading that if a show was sans-local opening act, Agalloch would play for at least two hours, I found myself...coming around a bit. Heck, I wouldn't mind seeing some older material, so why not?

Continue reading for full live review and videos.

Make - "Trephine" (2012) [Devouter Records]

[1] Do you like post-metal?

A.)Yes

B.) No

If you answered A, go to [2]. If you answered B, go to [3].

[2] Do you really, really like post-metal?

A OH GOD YES I FUCK AMPS AND SHIT REVERB

B It's not bad. I enjoy those bands like...what's the name, Isis? Yeah.

C I just don't give a fuck.

If you answered A, go to [4]. If you're an average dude and picked B, go to [5]. If you really like that Tupac song and chose C, go to [6].

[3] That's not very nice. Go to [6].

[4] If you really, really like post-metal, nothing here (or anywhere, really) will persuade or dissuade you from adoring Make's debut LP. Purchase this album when it's released and remember to get incense sticks at the store for your handmade Aaron Turner shrine.

[5] From the chapels and hills of...Chapel Hill comes a band ready to unleash the sound and the fury of post-metal upon the legions and legions of wild, crazy and possibly drunk fans all across the globe. Hyperbole aside, North Carolina band Make has already made waves with Trephine, their debut LP.

Band guitarist and songwriter Scott Endres (who played on Horseback's acclaimed album The Invisible Mountain) crafts a concept album about a hospital patient slowly losing their grip on reality and regressing (or progressing) into the realms of the fantastical. There have been concept albums regarding descents into madness and the likebefore, of course; but not many quite capture the despair of it as effectively as Trephine does. Reverb, tremelo and a slow-tempo can capture a dark mood or emotion when deployed as well as any array of techniques, and to his credit Endres makes (no pun at ALL) it happen with gusto.

However, the problem with Make here is not technical skill, songwriting or production levels. The real culprit here is that Trephine is too post-metal, in the sense that it is too firmly entrenched in the mire of its genre to really be worthy of particular note. Truth be told, it's not totally Make's fault: their debut Trephine is just that – a debut LP. Here there's plenty of distorted prose, driving tremelo, crushing riffage, and entrancing, enchanting drums and bass to enrapture the listener in a vicarious experience of its concept. That's great, if you can dig the feeling of being suffocates over layers of feedback and swallowed by tidal waves of melancholy. However, there's nothing here that hasn't been done before by other, ultimately better bands (Isis, Neurosis, Pelican and the usual list of suspects). As a result, anyone familiar with these bands and hasn't fallen in love with them will ultimately yawn at the slow, sludgy riffs of “Ancient Tongues,” the ham-fisted drums of “Returning To The Ruins of My Birthplace” and the mourning, sorrowful closer “Into The Falling Grey,” which flows well with the theme (presumably death) but also drags on for far too long.

In fairness, there are some nice moments on the album; “After The Dust Settles” both captures a feeling of loneliness and doesn't overstay its welcome, “Valhalla” combines doomy riffs with a psychedelic bent to create something worthy of repeat play and the uplifting sense of streams of light piercing the dark in “Rotting Palace” all indicate that Make has some excellent potential. However, for now, we'll have to make do with what Trephine is – a standard-press post-metal album.

[6] You need to go here, as tradition dictates.

(Trephine will be available July 30 through Devouter Records. Click here to stream the album.)

-Shane D

Horseback - "Half Blood" (2012) [Relapse Records]

Though musician Jenks Miller lives out towards the East coast, he sure knows a thing or two about "out West." Covering more stylistic ground than most are afraid to even touch with his solo project Horseback, Miller's stylistic nods to composer Ennio Morricone and Americana enthusiast Neil Young are as tasteful and refreshing as they are unique and solely his. Even with the drone effort Impale Golden Horn and his noisy black metal affairs Forbidden Planet, his split 7" with fellow progressives Pyramids, and the Mlih Ihvh EP, though the ideas are much more buried, the distinct "spaghetti Western" influence remains the same. The idea of celebrating Americana as a music style in metallic form in a time of political unrest and a general distaste for the country in "modern" (read as: post-2000 experimental stuff) seemed more like a dream than reality to those of us who truly appreciate Ennio Morricone's portrayal of the American West in the Sergio Leone trilogy, yet Miller's laid back approach to extreme metal's various forms, save a few, has made Horseback one of metal's most promising "new" acts.

With Half Blood, Horseback's newest full-length since 2010's limited Forbidden Planet, we see Miller furthering his love of neo-Americana, bringing in further influence from his project's other sonic incarnations, as well as a heavier dose of spaced-out krautrock. Yes, as the title implies, Half Blood manifests itself as a kaleidoscopic view of Horseback as a whole. While Miller's iconic, sleepy classic rock groove serves as the album's centerpiece, with slow-burners "Mithras," "Ahriman," and "Arjuna" basing themselves around headbobbing, singular grooves, Miller slowly begins to incorporate a wider spectrum of sounds as the album progresses. Near Half Blood's middle lies "Inheritance (The Changeling)," which acts as a sort of game-changer and sets the tone for the second half of the album. Based in a quiet, growing organ drone drone, this "changeling" puts Miller's signature blackish, distorted vocals in new light, often left unseen by fans of this sort of music: power electronics, albeit without the hateful lyrical content. Although noisy and a bit of a departure for a Horseback "doom" album, as opposed to a noise, drone, or black metal release (newcomers will slowly learn of Horseback's many, Brahmanic faces), layers of chiming piano work their way in, turning "Inheritance" into the mutant child of Ravi Shankar's backing band and Dom Fernow's quieter moments in Prurient. "Arjuna" follows suit with some cleaner guitar and bass work, though maybe just in comparison with the previous track, as well as the first inclusion of clean vocals on a more metal Horseback album (if you recall, Miller's clean voice was heard on Impale Golden Horn's "Blood Fountain"). Closing the album is the twenty-two minute Hallucigenia triptych, whose droning, krauty atmosphere is similar in scope to The Inivisible Mountain's "Hatecloud Dissolving Into Nothing," or even the first track from New Dominions, his collaboration with drone masters Locrian, though with much more concrete sections which one can follow. Emerging as a quiet, noisy drone with meandering guitars and Miller's quiet rasp, Hallucigenia slowly morphs into an Amon Duul II-like krautrock masterpiece, rife with gorgeous layers of organ and guitar drones.

Thematically, Half Blood deals with various ancient mythological and religious figures. Album openers "Mithras" and "Ahriman" are named for the dichotomous gods worshiped in Zoroastrianism, Mithras, who is depicted in Denis Forkas Kostromitin's outstanding artwork, acting as the god of light and positivity and Ahriman his darker counterpart. "Arjuna" is named for an ancient Hindu warrior-archer whose name is synonymous with "silver," "bright," "shining," or "white." Most of you might know Arjuna by his more popular name, Vishnu. The Hallucigenia triptych is dedicated to the works of Hermes Trismegistus, whose Emerald Tablet, which is referenced in Hallucigenia III, supposedly revealed the secrets of alchemy. Perhaps not intentional, but with Mithraism's initial competition with Christianity, Half Blood's sound-incorporating progression takes on a bit of an allegorical stance. As one may recall, Christianity has been known to incorporate different elements of other religions as a means of converting conquered locals. The concept of a positive deity ("God") and a negative being ("Satan/Lucifer/Beelzebub") is based on Zoroastrianism's Mithras and Ahriman. Karma, Hinduism's law of good deeds garnishing positive consequences and vice versa, manifests itself in Christianity as a positive, pious lifestyle guaranteeing oneself a spot in heaven and, again, vice versa for negativity and a denial of Christianity's god. Again, perhaps this is unintentional of Mr. Miller and could very well be a product of overspecialization, but I feel that Half Blood acts almost as an allegorical mirror to Christianity's "inheritance" (see what I did there?) of Eastern religious philosophy over the ages.

With previous releases seemingly polarized within their own genres of black metal, noise, drone, and krautrock-y doom metal, Half Blood shows itself as Horseback's most ambitious release, combining just about every previously recorded angle Horseback has taken. Jenks Miller's incredible fusion of all these styles into an accessible, easy-to-digest release like Half Blood is the sign of both a fantastic and well-studied musician. Half Blood's focused-yet-expansive scope will undoubtedly find its way onto many a "Best of 2012" list. Available for pre-order now from Relapse Records. Don't miss out on one of the best albums 2012 has to offer.

-Jon