Unsigned and Unholy: Mountaineer, Rig Time!, Absinthius

From the twisted mind of guitarist Clayton Bartholomew, ex-Secrets of the Sky and ex-Lycus, comes new band Mountaineer, formed late in 2015 after the latter band’s demise with vocalist Miguel Meza. The two demoed out a full album and recruited guitarist Mike McClatchey (Lament Cityscape), drummer Sean McCullough (Lament Cityscape), and bassist David Small to round out the live lineup. The band’s debut album will come out later this year via Battleground Records, but they’ll be releasing a limited 7″ to coincide with their West Coast tour this August, and the track below, entitled “Coma Fever,” will appear on that. If you liked Secrets of the Sky you’ll probably enjoy Mountaineer, although they’re a bit more chilled out, post-y and doomy than the former.

The name Rig Time! as a band moniker connotes one of two things: either a prog band whose drummer has like 12 toms and 17 cymbals, or a sludgy, nasty punk band, as in “It’s time to rig you up to the post to be lynched, you motherfucker.” Thankfully this Wisconsin outfit falls into the latter category — I loves me some prog, but I’m not sure I need any more of it at the moment — blending punk, powerviolence, sludge and even a dose of nu-metal (tastefully) into one supremely aggressive, powerful package. Stream new EP Sick of It below via Bandcamp.

Blackened death prog? Sure, why not. The Melbourne by way of New Zealand one-man wrecking crew Absinthius does a fine job of melding frosty, grim guitar voicings with the brutality of death metal and a proggy sense of composition, and the result should appeal to fans of Behemoth who find themselves wishing that band played just a few more notes, but the closest touchstone here in probably Norway’s Keep of Kalessin.