Sh*t That Comes Out Today (And Last Tuesday): December 4-11 2012
Hey there MetalSucks folks. Get ready to chuck your Best of 2012’s out the winderr: This group of late-year highlights of releases (highlights you’ll want to be high for) will have you movin’ and groovin’ through the holidays. And if it happens to be your birthday today, here’s a very special present! Anyway, Shit That’s Come Out Over The Last Two Weeks (STCOOTLTW) and NoFucksGIven after the jump!
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Circle of Contempt
Entwine The Threads (Sumerian)
On a playlist with: Contortionist, Veil of Maya, The HAARP Machine
Listen Entwine The Threads teaser (here)
To my most esteemed of musical peers, I’d call Circle of Contempt a guilty pleasure. I mean, how else could you enjoy 2009 debut Artifacts in Motion‘s stupidly over-the-top, gated, and robo-quantized production … except every time I go back and listen I enjoy it wayyyy too much to feel guilty. Actually Circle of Contempt was more than a little ahead of the curve at the time of AIM‘s release, and their mind-boggling technicality and addictive Finnish melo-death earcandy made for zesty listen while running next to a cute girl at the gym who probably listens to Mumford and Sons or whatever. It’s a bummer that all they have to offer after four years is five new tracks, but the EP’s trailer sounds promising so check it out!
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Malnátt
Principia Discordia (Bakerteam)
On a playlist with: Satyricon, In Vain, Finsterforst
Listen Principia Discordia samples (here)
Ever notice how just about any time a black metal band has good production, they counteract it with eight-minute songs with folky clean vocals, keyboards, and draggy acoustic sections? Well, Bologna’s Malnátt bucks that trend by releasing a very professional sounding fifth (?) full length that stays heavy, concise, and atmospheric throughout. Sure, some of the aforementioned foofiness pops up, especially toward Principia Discordia‘s second half, but mostly this is dark, pummeling black metal … in Italian.
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Arbogast
Arbogast (Nefarious Industries)
On a playlist with: Refused, KEN Mode, Family
Listen “Forming the Flock” “Blasfamous” (here)
A band with a black metal-y name that sounds like early Refused with a shot of sludge — That describes this Chicago trio on their debut LP. Not much else to say about it other than to emphasize Arbohast vocals’ really close resemblance to Dennis Lyxzen’s, like really.
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Kowloon Walled City
Container Ships (Brutal Panda)
On a playlist with: Mouth of the Architect, My Iron Lung, Defeater
Listen Container Ships full stream (here)
It’s kind of weird that post-metal and hardcore fit so seamlessly together — the styles don’t have much in common, but now a number of bands are awesome at spanning the two heavy music poles. And Kowloon Walled City is yet another in this distinguished pool. How do you know they’re legit? ‘Cause Pitchfork‘s streaming one of their tracks right now on their crappy must-buffer-every-three-seconds player. Instead of pulling your hair out, check Lambgoat’s album stream to jam KWC’s gloomy hxc jams.
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Grai
O Zemle Rodnoy (Vic)
On a playlist with: Echo of Dalriada, Todesbonden, Eastern European babes spilling mead all over the floor whilst wailing over folksy tuneage
Listen “In The Arms of Mara” (here)
If the new album by Russia’s Grai wins an accolade from me in 2012 it is in the following category: Album Art That Best Resembles A Ukrainian Box Of Cereal. Still, their take on female-fronted folk metal is a crapload better than most of their uninspired peers. Sure, all the hallmarks of the genre are there: the sticks-out-like-a-sore-thumb folk instrumentation, the vocal theatrics, and goofy band pics, but in spite of all that O Zemle Rodnoy manages to be a captivating listen thanks to its darker vibe and strong balance of heaviness to Eastern-tinged melody. “In The Arms of Mara” (above) actually reminds of a Dredg interlude I love (here), so maybe that is coloring my favorable impression as well.
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Mogwai
A Wrenched Virile Lore remixes (Sup Pop)
On a playlist with: My Bloody Valentine, 65daysofstatic, Team Sleep
Listen A Wrenched Virile Lore full stream (here)
I’ve noticed that hipsters rate Mogwai higher than most post rock/metal bands out there and after hearing their new remix album, A Wrenched Virile Lore, I see why. If you haven’t heard their last record, Hardcore Will Never Die But You Will, you missed out on all the irony that title had to offer and will probably not appreciate the subtle differences and electronic nuances played up in these chill remixes, but either way that shouldn’t keep you from enjoying these relaxing shoegazy jams. Break out the drugs, bro.
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OTHER SHIT THAT COMES OUT TODAY (AND LAST TUESDAY)
Dec 4 2012
Alice Cooper Old School box (Ume) listen
Ashes You Leave The Cure For Happiness (Rock N’ Growl) listen
Gamma Ray Live: Skeletons & Majesties (Eagle Rock) watch watch
Humanity Delete Never Ending Nightmares (Dead Beat Media) listen
Humbucker R.O.C.K.S. (Perris) listen listen listen listen listen
KISS The Casablanca Singles box (UMe) listen
Drcarlsonalbion La Strega And The Cunning Man In The Smoke (Latitudes) listenMichael Schenker Temple Of Rock: Live In Europe CD/DVD (Inakustik) listen
My Heart To Fear Lost Between Brilliance And Insanity (Solid State) listen
¤Opium Warlords We Meditate Under The Pussy In The Sky (Svart) listen
»The Relapse Symphony Time’s Running Out EP (Standby) listen
Rhyme The Seed And The Sewage (Bakerteam) listen
Smashing Pumpkins Mellon Collie & The Infinite Sadness box (Virgin)
VYGR / At Our Heels / Griever split (Creator Destructor) listen
Theodore Ziras Monster 5 (Sleazy Rider) listen
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Dec 11 2002
Carve Stillborn Revelations/Revel In Human Filth reissue (Vic) listen
Erupted In The Grip Of Chaos (Abyss) listen
»Gold Interbellum (Ván) listen
»Hellectricity Salem Blood (MVD) listen listen
Lavett Find Your Purpose (RoastingHouse) listen
Metallica Quebec Magnetic DVD (Metallica) watch
Mucky Pup Five Guys In A Really Hot Garage/Straight Outta Jersey reissue (Mucky) listen
Mucky Pup Live At Mexicali 2009 reissue (Mucky) listen
Tank War Machine Live DVD (MVD) watch
Vanderbuyst The Flying Dutchmen (Ván) listen
»Uhrijuhla Uhrijuhla (Svart) listen
Weapons To Hunt Blessed In Sin (Vic) listen
Year Of The Goat Angels’ Necropolis (Ván) listen
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