Sh*t That Comes Out Today: November 22, 2019
It’s Friday, which means it’s new metal day! Look forward to my usual idiosyncratic recommendations as well as things people actually want to hear about.
Aggressive Perfector
Havoc at the Midnight Hour (Dying Victims)
For a band named after a Slayer song, Aggressive Perfector don’t haunt the chapel as much as you might think. Instead, they deliver a sick homage to Venom, Mercyful Fate, and the dirtier side of the NWOBHM. Yeah, there’s zero originality here, but this is the shit we got into heavy metal for. Killer riffs, fright flick lyrics, unrestrained shrieks — you can feel the passion. There’s a dude eating intestines on the cover. Headbanging goodness awaits within.
Avatarium
The Fire I Long For (Nuclear Blast)
Leif (short for “Leaf”) Edling has been Candlemass’s chief songwriter for 35 years now, so dude knows how to pen a tune. Avatarium lets him expand beyond the low-and-slow stylings of his main project, and surprise — it’s also great. Even though health issues prevent him from playing with the group, his fingerprints are all over their fourth album. Avatarium explore his trademark melancholy in a bluesier, more rock-oriented fashion. Even though Candlemass are back, this still feels like his A-game.
Blood Incantation
Hidden History of the Human Race (Dark Descent)
Read the MetalSucks review
Blood Incantation take a big step up from the lauded Starspawn on Hidden History of the Human Race. The songs take more surprising turns, the production sounds better, the performances feel tighter. Maybe they really are receiving transmissions from the stars.
Obsequiae
The Palms Of Sorrowed Kings (20 Buck Spin)
I know “dungeon synth” refers to a very specific thing, but honestly, when I hear the term, I think of Obsequiae. Their self-proclaimed “castle metal” evokes rotting medieval fortresses and fae-haunted glades. Not only is the music coated with atmosphere like a lichen-covered gravestone, Tanner Anderson knows how to pen some seriously triumphant riffs to shake off the moss. It’s rooted in black metal, but moves too effervescently to really fit into that category. Obsequiae finds true beauty in decay.
Taraban
How the East was Lost (Ripple)
Poland is more known for its black metal than its stoner rock, but Taraban aim to change that. The trio sends out psychedelic vibes with the best of them. Their name refers to an Eastern European war drum, although they channel “War Pigs” more than “War Ensemble.” Despite their heavy rock exterior (Graveyard and Kadavar make for good comparisons), touches of Pink Floyd melancholy help give How The East Was Lost more nuanced coloring.
Vesperith
Vesperith (Svart)
The first ten minutes of Vesperith’s self-titled debut consists of building drone, but it’s all part of the greater tapestry. This one-woman atmospheric black metal act knows how to properly harness cosmic terror into audiovisual form. Each composition feeds into the whole, the disembodied shrieks and jangling synths and occasional actual metal parts contributing towards an all-encompassing sense of dread. File under “Uneasy Listening.”
OTHER SHIT THAT COMES OUT TODAY
Blood Eagle – To Ride In Blood & Bathe In Greed III EP (Nuclear Blast) Listen
Charm City Devils – 1904 EP (Broken World) Listen
Child Bite – Blow Off The Omens (Housecore) Listen
Crystal Viper – Tales Of Fire And Ice (AFM) Listen
Hazemaze -Hymns of the Dead (Ripple) Listen
Lord Mantis – Universal Death Church (Profound Lore) Listen
Magic Kingdom – MetAlmighty (AFM) Listen
Skyblood – Skyblood (Napalm) Listen
Sleep Token – Sundowning (Spinefarm) Listen
Street Sects – Gentrification IV: Suspended from Gallery Rails (The Flenser) Listen
Strigoi – Abandon All Faith (Nuclear Blast) Listen
Tygers of Pan Tang – Ritual (Mighty) Listen
SHIT THAT COMES OUT AGAIN TODAY
Matterhorn – Crass Cleansing (Dying Victims/Redefining Darkness) Listen
Necrophagia – Here Lies Necrophagia: 35 Years Of Death Metal (Season Of Mist) Listen
