SH*T THAT COMES OUT TODAY – THE JANUARY 31, 2012 EDITION

Records by Alcest, Bleeding Through, Liberteer and Riotgod top this week’s slate of new releases. Oh, and we suppose Metallica have a “new” record out too. Those and more after the break.

Alcest – Les Voyages de L’Ame (Prophecy)
Alcest are described as “black metal” by some journalists. Those journalists are wrong. Alcest are more akin to late-period Earth or Agalloch’s most laid-back musical parts. Blending melodic guitar lines, dissonant riffage at a controlled volume and serene vocals, this is more like indie music written by a black metal fan. Les Voyages de L’Ame is Alcest’s third album since the project’s formation in 2000.

Black Pyramid – II (MeteorCity)
If you haven’t listened to Black Pyramid yet, do yourself a favor. These guys are riff monsters. Their first self-titled album has been in my regular rotation since I discovered it last year, and this new album kills even more. On top of that, the record was mixed by Justin Pizzoferrato (who has worked with Witch) and mastered by Justin Washburn (who has worked with Mastodon). Now go listen online. Run.

Bleeding Through – The Great Fire (Rise)
Bleeding Through are a metalcore band with an obvious influence from Swedish melodic death metal. This has come through on all of the band’s previous records, but for a while, the band became kinda boring. Listening to tracks from The Great Fire, I think the band is definitely on the mend. Their blend of guitars and keyboards, while letting the rest of the band fill things out, is done very well. This is the band’s seventh album.

Dragonlord – Under The Grey Banner (AFM)
Dragonlord’s fifth studio album is the third part of a trilogy of narratives, and it features artwork from Damian Bajowski (artist from PC game The Witcher). They play over-the-top power metal, complete with a backing symphony to really bring it to the next level. The disc features five guest vocal appearances, including cameos by all three singers of the band Amaranthe.

I Exist – II: The Broken Passage (Prosthetic)
Mixing sludgy riffage with hardcore vocal delivery, the immediate example of a similar band to I Exist is Doomriders, although the bands are both unique in their own right. The Australian crew’s last album, I: A Turn For The Worse, was far less sludgy that this effort, and I like the change.

Liberteer – Better To Die On Your Feet Than Live On Your Knees (Relapse)
A new one-man outlet from Matthew Widener (Cretin, Citizen), Liberteer is a fast, rocking spin on grindcore. We premiered the track “I Am Spartacus
back on January 6th, which you can check out here.

Metallica – Beyond Magnetic (Warner Bros.)
Well, it’s a collection of B-sides to a lackluster late-period Metallica album. I don’t expect much, and neither should you. This was released digitally in December, and today the actual CD comes out.

Oz – Burning Leather (AFM)
An amped-up heavy metal record with a pronounced rock and roll edge to it. This album is heavy on the in-your-face rock and roll guitar style, with a tight rhythm section and rocking falsetto vocals. Oz, with members from Finland and Sweden, was originally formed in the ‘80s and reformed in 2010, and this is their first record since 1991. It was produced by Nicke Andersson (ex-Entombed, Hellacopters), which is also awesome. Check out this video for the first track, “Dominator”.

RAM – Death (Metal Blade)
Metal Blade knows how to treat their journalists right; they gave me a download link to this a month ago and I’ve been playing it ever since. RAM are simply an awesome band with heavy metal riffage, killer leads and falsetto vocals that don’t sound too over the top. This is the band’s third record but my first time listening to them, and I have Metal Blade to thank. This is their first for the label, by the way.

Riotgod – Invisible Empire (Metalville)
Drummer Bob Pantella and bassist Jim Baglino formed Riotgod in 2007, both as an outlet for their non-Monster Magnet-related creative juices and because they still wanted to tour when Dave Wyndorf took Magnet off the road. Two albums in, the band is becoming more focused in their groove. The band’s blend of stoner metal brings a unique vocal approach to the table, and the songs are pretty awesome. I like it.

-VV