ENDTYMER is the inevitable weekly “music news blog” series I’ve been working to avoid for some time. It hits at the end of every week with the intent of covering notable new releases, sharing news of new releases, and musing over various personal listening habits. It is largely informal, has opinions, etc. so chill out a bit. I do my best to cover as much of everything I receive in some form regardless of genre or representation, don’t hesitate to send anything and everything my way: grizzlybutts@hotmail.com

---

ALBUM OF (LAST) WEEK

Two weeks worth of news, ~300 e-mails later… At this point we can begin to hone in on the very best releases of the next six months as June hits its mid-point and what is on the horizon for the next 3-4 months will receive the most attention before October/November becomes the main point of focus for record labels. Once again the album I was most interested in this week wasn’t provided so I’ve been enjoying abstract black metal project Oculus‘ latest release ‘Of Temples and Vultures‘ this evening alongside disturbed Japanese doom metal masters Church of Misery with ‘Born Under a Mad Sign‘. Otherwise the choices are three: First, Helleruin‘s second LP ‘Devils, Death and Dark Arts‘ is myriad but arresting in its scope of expression, Sammath‘s ‘Grebbeberg‘ continues to melt my mind with their historic minded war metallic yet epically stated barrage and of course the long delayed ‘Burning Memories‘ from Altar of Oblivion is yet another example of their epic heavy/doom metal magic being the most memorable and passionate showing in the hall:

ALBUM OF (THIS) WEEK

This week is surprisingly light on new releases of note with Tsjuder‘s latest album being the bigger deal release, though it is quite good based on previews today I did not receive the album for review. Between Black Eucharist, Adversvm, and a surprisingly effective second LP from Soul Grinder I’d had some great work to choose from but I’ll ultimately to yield to an album which technically released this week (June 18th) and sees more widespread release next week (June 30th) in Passéisme‘s ‘Alternance‘, easily one of the most addictive and inspired melodic black metal records I’ve encountered in a while.

---

INTER-FUSION

C://ADMIXTURE/summertime_apathy.cfg

---

“NEWS”

Chaos Records have announced August 11th as the release date for Seattle, Washington death metal band CYSTIC‘s debut full-length album. ‘Palace of Shadows‘ will release digitally and on CD format. These guys haven’t made huge waves compared to many of their contemporaries considering how long they’ve been at it but folks started taking them more serious once their too quietly released ‘Sworn Enemy of Life‘ EP started to circulate. The suggestion here is that their punkish core is still there but this is the step up that called for a full-length. Great album art, check out the first track “Core of the Maelstrom”:

Maggot Stomp Records have announced ‘Dawn Of Eternal Suffering‘ the debut full-length album from Phoenix, Arizona-based brutal death metal quartet NUCLEAR REMAINS. They’ve cited Skinless, Dying Fetus and Mortal Decay as some of their biggest influences so expect plenty fo chugs in hand. The album releases on 12″ vinyl, CD, CS, and digitally this coming July 14th. Doesn’t fuck around so far:

Sentient Ruin have announced US black/death/grindcore crew DISIMPERIUM‘s debut album ‘Grand Insurgence Upon Despotic Altars‘ will be released this July 21st 12″ vinyl, CD, cassette and digitally. The pitch for the album is “Where bands like Diocletian, Impetuous Ritual, Tetragrammacide, Knelt Rote and Damaar had already tested and established the limits of human resistance against abstract ideas of omnipotent negativity and horizonless sonic bedlam, Disimperium explore these outer limits even further, venturing out...” and I can admire that ambition however it pans out.

Washington state heavy metal duo VISION MASTER have announced their forthcoming debut album ‘Sceptre‘ will release through Gates of Hell Records on August 25th this year. You’ll recall I’d written about the bands EP a while back, think of weirdo heavy metal, metalpunk, and even some first wave black metal in there too. Guitarist/vocalist Chris Munro suggests the album “explores the depths of strange, unfamiliar realms and unrealities.” Where they suggest the album’s narrative “brings listeners to a mystical, sandstone throne with the power to probe the origins of mankind, ultimately asking the question: If you had the power to undo the petulant plague that is man, would you?” Check out album opener “Wolves in the Shadows”:

French epic, old-school metal band MEURTRIERES have announced their debut full-length ‘Ronde de Nuit‘ will release in collaboration with Gates of Hell Records. Expect epic and ancient old-school heavy metal when the album releases on August 25th this year. The band suggest they’ve “added new layers of complexity and depth.” to their sound per their impressive 2020 release EP. Check out the first preview song “Rubicon”:

New York -based progressive death metal band CONTRARIAN have compiled a host of 90’s recorded demo songs as ‘Demos & Oddities: 1995-1999‘ which they will self release via Bandcamp/CD Baby this coming July 28th. Guitarist Jim Tasikas explains the origins of these songs: “As with many other progressive death metal bands in the 90’s such as Death, Pestilence, Atheist, and Cynic; Contrarian also experienced disruptions in continuity from lack of support in the fledgling scene and lack of capable musicians within an innovating genre. Being able to record music during that time was more difficult. Bands commonly recorded demos under different names. Mantas (Death), R.A.V.A.G.E. (Atheist), Portal (Cynic). The same went for Contrarian during these times (Manic). Upon many requests from fans, we have gathered some of these demos in a collection. The 1990s were an amazing time for metal in Rochester, NY as well. It was this time period that spawned bands such as Disgorged(Withered Earth), Buried Beneath(Night Conquers Day), Lethargy(Sulaco/Mastodon) and so many more. Most of these bands recording in the infamous Watchmen Studios in Lockport, NY with Doug White. It was an amazing time, and we hope you enjoy these vintage raw demos with a ‘live feel’ from around 1995-1999.” incredible to get these relics of their past and see where their sound evolved from:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W0ZXEFxKAvU

German death metal band TEMPLE OF DREAD have released “World Below” the latest single/lyric video from their upcoming Testimony Records-back LP ‘Beyond Acheron‘ which releases August 11th this year on 12″ vinyl, CD and digitally. Guitarist Markus Bünnemeyer comments on the song: “‘World Below’ tells the tragic story of drowning Icarus. It’s a story of fatal boldness and haughtiness. Musically, the song shows a new side of Temple Of Dread, especially in the middle part: More melodies, less speed, infinitely desperate vocals and even symphonic arrangements underline the hopeless and threatening mood of the lyrics. Some parts are rhythmically unusual for us, but at the latest in the final part there is Temple Of Dread in its purest form again! Enjoy the video (which was once again very atmospherically visually implemented by Christian Kdrumworm).” Check out the song:

Well, the press release said as much but I could smell the ‘Repetition‘-era Unwound on this record from a mile away. Huge hype for Oakland post-hardcore band FACET‘s debut LP ‘Facet‘ which will be releasing through the fine folks over at Hex Records on August 11th. The fairly new trio immediately caught my eye with their aesthetic and my ear with their guitar playing, looking forward to chipping away at this one. Check out the first track from the record, “Automatic”:

Utech Records have announced they will release multi-national experimental post-droners DEAD NEANDERTHALS latest album ‘Specters‘ on vinyl LP and digitally this coming August 4th. This is a guitar driven album in some respects thanks to their collaboration with Skeletonwitch founder Scott Hedrick. Both the (U.S.-based) label and the (E.U.-based) band will have the record available for worldwide shipping. Listened to it once thus far, immersive to say the least.

Signal Rex have announced July 14th as the release date for IZROD‘s debut album, ‘Sarajevski Odisej‘, on CD and 12″ vinyl. The album was previously self-released digitally by the Bosnian band which is comprised of members of Cave Ritual and Void Prayer. I’d enjoyed this album and might end up writing about it when it comes out. Stream the whole album now:

Pale Wizard Records‘ 50 Years Later covers album series now touches upon one of my favorite 70’s heavy rock bands BUDGIE with ‘Budgie: Never Turn Your Back On A Friend‘ due out on June 30th 2023. The 1973 release album contains some of their biggest or, most enduring hits although we could debate for hours which of their records had the biggest influenced upon NWOBHM and heavy metal in general. Check out this exceptional cover of “Breadfan” from Alunah and head over to their Bandcamp to check out the rest of the bands included:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vKDToyiGFKM

Swedish melodic death metal band SODOMISERY have released a lyric video for “Psychogenic” the first single taken from their forthcoming sophomore album ‘Mazzaroth‘, which will be released on September 8th this year. SThe band comment: “Although ‘Psychogenic’ was the last track to be written for ‘Mazzaroth’, it turned out to be one of the most energetic songs on the album”, singer and guitarist Harris Sopovic explains. “The lyrics of ‘Psychogenic’ fuel the fire of an ongoing story that creeps through ‘Mazzaroth’ and generally revolves around mental illness in society, religion, and the struggle of the individual.” Seems alright, looking forward to hearing it in context with the full album:

Swedish psychedelic doom metal band DOMKRAFT have released “Slowburner” the first single from their fourth full-length album ‘Sonic Moons‘, which will be released on Magnetic Eye Records this coming September 8th. The band comment on the album: “The theme of ‘Sonic Moons’ is not as much space as the title might suggest, it is essentially all about escapism. To find that spot in your head and body where you can feel liberated and, if only briefly, escape the constant flood of burden that is life in the real world. Think of ‘Sonic Moons’ as a pill blister pack, where each song has its own active ingredient. Or an imaginary solar system where each track is its own planet. A galaxy of tunes, with different gravity, different temperatures. A riff- and rhythm-fueled exploration of inner and outer space. It’s about longing, hope, frustration, relief, and some plain old mindfucking. All by means of heavy rock.” These guys have always had a different angle and I’m looking forward to this one. Check out “Slowburner”:

New single from SPIRIT ADRIFT. “Barn Burner” is probably the best piece from the album revealed thus far *fire emoji* at the solo esp. ‘Ghost At The Gallows‘ is out on Century Media this coming August 18th, 2023.

Switzerland-based doom/sludge group TAR POND have released a music video for “Blind”, the first single taken from their forthcoming album ‘Petrol‘ which is scheduled for release on September 15th per Prophecy Productions. Vocalist Thomas Ott comments: “As an artist and part time filmmaker, I felt, once more, in the right place to take over the job of doing the video for ‘BLIND’, which proved to be a wise decision. Especially as there was almost zero production budget and not much time left to put something together. The result is a vibrant collage of moving or pulsing pictures. It is shot through the eye of a half blind, crazy man, running through a world you may call ‘HELL’ or simply ‘LIFE’.” I’d enjoyed this piece enough that I will definitely take a closer look in September:

Malmö, Sweden-based heavy psychedelic rock band MOON COVEN have announced August 25th as the release date for their fourth studio album ‘Sun King‘ which comes to vinyl and CD by way of Ripple Music. The band commend on the album: “In some ways, Sun King was a fresh start for us. After one member had to leave the band and after three stoner/doom albums, we wanted to try other styles as well. To keep producing interesting music, we had to expand our horizons a bit. In our opinion, Sun King is our most diverse album. It’s fun and playful sometimes and dark and powerful other times. The only aims we had was to keep the songwriting fun and creative while not feeling too limited. Also we recorded everything ourselves, which meant the recording process became more creative. We had unlimited time to explore without thinking about loss of money.“.

Edged Circle Productions have announced August 18th as the release date for Czech black/folk metal band CALES‘ seventh album, ‘Chants of Steel‘, on vinyl LP format. Cales is the long-running dark metal project of Petr “Blackosh” Hošek from legendary black/heavy metal band Root. I gotten the band’s discography on Bandcamp a while back and I am glad to see this project continuing strong. Check out the first preview track “Hordes of Thunder”:

---

THIS WEEK’S VIDEOS / REVIEWS

Catch up with the latest YouTube video review/features and written reviews here. New videos post each week for the most part. You can click on the link provided to read the review/article, each review has the related video embedded in the original post as well. Videos are fairly casual and meant to accompany the written review with some extra context and generalized notes. The written review and the video review are complimentary -not- interchangeable. Subscribe, share, leave a comment, etc. if you feel like it.

AODON – Portraits (2023) | REVIEW

ADVERSVM – Vama Marga (2023) | REVIEW

HELLERUIN – Devils, Death and Dark Arts (2023) | REVIEW

BLACK EUCHARIST – Inn of the Vaticide (2023) | REVIEW

COFFIN MULCH – Spectral Intercession (2023) | REVIEW

HATE MANIFESTO – Α​​​π​​​ο​​​σ​​​τ​​​α​​​τ​​​η​​​ς (2023) | REVIEW

Short Reviews | June 21st, 2023

Short Reviews | June 16th, 2023

SATURNUS – The Storm Within (2023) | REVIEW

SARMAT – Determined to Strike (2023) | REVIEW

SAMMATH – Grebbeberg (2023) | REVIEW

PASSÉISME – Alternance (2023) | REVIEW

INCINEROUS – Contorted Epiphany (2023) | REVIEW

ALTAR OF OBLIVION – Burning Memories (2023) | REVIEW

---

COMING UP NEXT WEEK:

Here is a tentative list of what is coming up next week in terms of reviews. The following records have been listened to extensively, a preliminary review has been drafted (or completed), and I’ve locked them in for coverage. In terms of the “Short Written Reviews + Video” column, these are more tentative, some of them may be cut if I do not have enough time to get around to everything. These choices are subject to change as the final drafts evolve and other releases might potentially take priority:

LONGFORM REVIEWS + VIDEO:

SERPENT CORPSE – Blood Sabbath [July 5th, Temple of Mystery]
ORNAMENTIOS DEL MIEDO – El Cosmos me Observa en Silencio [July 6th, Darkwoods]
PUTRIDITY – Greedy Gory Gluttony [July 7th, Willowtip Records]
FEN – Monuments to Absence [July 7th, Prophecy Productions/Lupus Lounge]
PURTENANCE – The Rot Within Us [July 11th, Xtreem Music]
ETERNITY – Mundicide [July 7th, Soulseller]
BLESSED BLACK – Seasons: Vol. 1 [July 7th, Self-Released]

SHORT REVIEWS + VIDEO:

SUPAYNIYUX – Genocidio Infernal [July 3rd, From Deepest Records]
BIG GARDEN – To the Rind [June 30th, Gilead Media]
TORTURED – Genetically Engineered Monstrosity [July 7th, Comatose Music]
WIZARD MASTER – Ablanathanalba [July 7th, Electric Valley Records]
WINTERAGE – Nekyia [July 7th, Scarlet Records]
BASTARD SALT – Secret Moon [July 7th, Self-Released]
THOMAS VON WACHENFELDT – Mythos of the Forefathers Vol. 1 & 2 [July 7th, Nordvis]
WILL HAVEN – VII [July 7th, Minus Head Records]
VOIDMILKER – Labyrinthical [July 7th, Tragedy Productions]

---