THE TOP 20 ALBUMS OF THE MONTH should be self-explanatory, an ordered ranking of twenty albums that’d resonated most throughout this month. If you’re new to the site, the tendency is heavy and/or surreal music. Choices are selected based on temporal immersion, personal connection, impressive style, point of view, aesthetics and with consideration for the lasting value of each selection. All choices are ultimately personal and come without consideration for populism, nepotism, cronyism, or any outside factors including perceived “relevance”. Writing about music is a passion I afford as much time as is manageable and I am grateful to have so much to choose from. Thank you.
I. This month on MystificationZine.com included 24 longform album reviews, 36 video reviews/features, 18 short album reviews, 2 entries into the An Exhaustive Study: Melodic Black Metal (~25 releases covered) feature, and I sent out 8 short written interviews with 2 bands ultimately responding.
II. Mystification fanzine issue #3 “Uttering Nothingness” is available now digitally for $5.00 USD here. Keep in mind subscribing to the Patreon does not entitle you to free back issues only the current monthly issue. Consider the zine still in a soft launch as we hit the reset button this year, future issues will me more or less ambitious depending on the month.
III. In 2024 written reviews will now have a video component which will post at the bottom of each review or feature at the end of each week (Thursday or Friday) If you enjoy these please consider following on YouTube. We’ve recently hit 850 (!) subscribers and I’m hoping to hit the thousand mark in 2024.
IV. As always I’d like to express my gratitude for the bands, labels and PR firms who choose to work with me. Thank you.
| #1 | Album of the Month |
|---|---|
| ARTIST: | LVME |
| TITLE: | Of Sinful Nature |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Norma Evangelium Diaboli |
An elite result which considers every detail of its fluidic motion, threatening to fill every space it encounters with suffocatingly deep waters and diabolical rhythms which prove themselves relentless throughout. Beyond the tinge of orthodox black metal and dissonance of the main guitarist’s approach there is a “heavy metal” strike to some of these pieces which extends the vocabulary of said guitarists while retaining my ear to no end. This isn’t the only point of intrigue here, though, as the nuance of lyrics and artwork further compound themselves beyond the review process for a well above-average black metal experience and one of the major high points from the sub-genre early in the year. The choice for #1 here this month came down to time spent and repeat listens earned as I’d found myself completely absorbed into ‘Of Sinful Nature’ well beyond the review process and remain impressed by the natural sense of dread built within its many rich layers.
“Without exactingly stated location or revealed faces to go along with their frenetically whirring immerse the internationally dispersed horde of Lvme present a sophomore full-length album in study of the perilous spiritus of human nature, examined with reverence for and glorification of the tendency to sin. Treated as both subject and all-encompassing muse for these six longform black metal pieces ‘Of Sinful Nature‘ tightens the floating empyrean loft of the project’s previous effort and in doing so strengthens what bolts of wrath they are capable of whirling when devastation is inevitably called-for. The flow and fluidity of these glowing and coldly sluiced compositions suffuse -some- of their mountainous scope yet in doing so they create a fuming, book-splaying madness where reasoning and revelry may as well read as incantation or impassioned, inescapable sermon.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #2 | |
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| ARTIST: | STYGIAN CROWN |
| TITLE: | Funeral For a King |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Cruz Del Sur Music |
Los Angeles, California-based epic heavy/doom metal band STYGIAN CROWN return for a sophomore album which takes into account everything they’ve learned beyond their impressive debut LP. Taking their time to perfect every single song on this album and avoid letting loose anything not up to snuff makes for a record which hits one song after another for its duration. The fact that they’ve even included a type of ballad here and it is one of the strongest and unique pieces on the record speaks to the level of insight and variation in songcraft which helps ‘Funeral For a King’ stand out in mind. As I’d suggested in my review this is the first essential doom metal album of 2024 and one which brings a bit more traditional heavy metal strike to its dual guitar work, brings plenty of spirited riffs, and retains the death metal heaviness of their initial sound without ever fully leaning into death/doom metal territory. It is a remarkably complete and perfectly rounded audit which recalls the level of care put into the classics of old.
“Meditating upon what creates beast-like men and saviors when power arrives Los Angeles, California-based epic heavy/doom metal quintet Stygian Crown took a long, protracted process of growth and refinement in creation of their sophomore full-length album. Besotten with the most ancient panache of classic heavy rock and the traditional epic doom metal of the 80’s their crew continues to craft a fusion of instinctive extremism into tradition as ‘Funeral For a King‘ unfolds into an early year highlight for classicist doom metal musing. Balanced in its theatric presentation yet exactingly over the top, this heavier-than-thou yet charismatic record amounts to an impressive leap taken beyond the their already impressive debut.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #3 | |
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| ARTIST: | UNAUSSPRECHLICHEN KULTEN |
| TITLE: | Häxan Sabaoth |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Iron Bonehead Productions |
At one point I’d thought of Chilean death metal maestros UNAUSSPRECHLICHEN KULTEN as a relentlessly punishing death metal band, a fine example of dissonance applied to classic death metal horrors that’d taken on a life of its own beyond ~2014 or so but here on their latest album they break away from the chain of mechanical, dissonant aggression and touch upon uninterrupted flowstates and some of their most immersive spells to date. Not necessarily a melodic death metal album but one which moves with an ancient grinding sluice a la ‘With Fear I Kiss the Burning Darkness’ most tortured compositions. The more time I spent in the knotted Eldritch woods from where they’d emanated the more I appreciated how different this record was from most of their prior material in one fundamental way without entirely rewriting their evolution thus far. The standards had been set very high for this band in the past and I’d felt this was shockingly lucid in its vision of the path forward.
“…a hypnotized and dissonant-minded army that’d seep from the cracks in caves and subterranean caverns for aeons in order to reach the growling skull and down-turned cross at the pulpit of Santiago, Chile-based occult death metal quartet Unaussprechlichen Kulten. Eyes whited with possession and arms loosed in frantic displays of swaying and cutting motions the delivery of ‘Häxan Sabaoth‘ is daimonian in its timbre yet still able to siren signal to the order with the sweeping change it brings, a years-hewn sophistication of forms and their render which once again finds the cult’s cause surging with their own future-sight and ancient motive. An experience of repeatable complexity yet an ever-flowing mass of dread and harrowing venture, this sixth full-length album from the band thankfully still wields the hardened, jagged edge and fire of pure underground death metal as they continue to press forward down their own remarkable two decade-plus path.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #4 | |
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| ARTIST: | SPECTRAL VOICE |
| TITLE: | Sparagmos |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Dark Descent Records |
Yet another band returning to form now that the pandemic years are further behind us, funeral death/doom metal band SPECTRAL VOICE have brought their darkest work to date on ‘Sparagmos’ a very well received sophomore full-length which goes for primal ambiance and lingering soundscapes for its doubly eerie interest. Fusing atmosphere into their sound rather than creating separate interstitial ambient pieces in between songs gives them more of a signature sound though the pleasure of listening to this album is moreso its sound design and terrifyingly chasmic death metal bursts rather than its meandering pulse. While I am a huge fan of this type of death metal I didn’t find there was a great deal of interest from the riffs here so much as the vocalist and the greater rhythmic play of the album which’d retained my attention long enough to fully steep within its rotten primal swamp. This one won me over thanks to repeated listening, partially by attrition and in appreciation of the strides made beyond their debut. Essential for the month but, of course it caters to a very specific mood.
“On their sophomore full-length album Denver, Colorado-based atmospheric death metal quartet Spectral Voice view life as assumed morbidity, an illness which can be harnessed into value or left alone to naturally funnel ones inert flesh from the feeder unto whimpering pine boxed finale. ‘Sparagmos‘ meditates upon each condition through a combination of irrational and instinctive traits explored, a slow-built and irregularly peaking set of four pieces which haunt and derange only the most willing ear for their dark ambient and funeral doom slaked death metal fusion of prior forms.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #5 | |
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| ARTIST: | CHAPEL OF DISEASE |
| TITLE: | Echoes of Light |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Van Records |
The evolution of German progressive death metal cum heavy rock group CHAPEL OF DISEASE hasn’t been entirely unheard-of in terms of a young thrashing death metal band eventually changing gears after exploring the softer extremes of progressive death metal. In most respects these were the expected results beyond their previous LP as many where calling that fine album a death n’ roll deal whereas this hits like a band that could open for ELDER one night and THE RUINS OF BEVERAST the next. What is surprising here on ‘Echoes of Light’ is that the original line-up’s swan song (before one main fellowe now takes over) makes such a complete dash for bluesy, soulful heavy rock guitar driven muse right out the gate. Not all of it works in the moment when approaching from a hard rock enjoyer angle but in the history of extremophile transformations this record really stands out as a bold swing which should still appeal to fans of bands like MORBUS CHRON and CADAVERIC FUMES. A good mix of moody extreme metal interest and swinging pleasure listening.
“To the moon, to the light, and with eyes that glitter with intoxicated bemusement Cologne, Germany-borne progressive death metal inspired heavy rock trio Chapel of Disease looked everywhere they could, catching all available eyefuls of sentimental lustre before their corpus collapsed for the first time. ‘Echoes of Light‘ is the shroud of death falling and taking what may as the final form of the “Mark I” version of this band asks directly “Is this all there is?” followed by, no, “I don’t believe it.” as they proceed to search first the stars and then their souls before everything turns black.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #6 | |
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| ARTIST: | MORBID SAINT |
| TITLE: | Swallowed By Hell |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | High Roller Records |
The long-awaited return of MORBID SAINT, a classic death/thrash metal band from Sheboygan, Wisconsin best known for their debut LP (which was actually a demo tape) ‘Spectrum of Death’ back in 1990, comes with a long history of bad luck and legendary riffs as their ancient history. Nowadays they are a bit better remembered and even revered in smaller death metal and thrash metal circles. The way that I see it, ‘Swallowed by Hell’ is the first actual LP from the band since their first two LP releases were essentially doctored up demo tapes from 1988 (released circa 1990) and 1992 (released circa 2015), and the first time we’ve heard these folks really push for a one hundred percent final recording, mix and master. No question about it they’ve still got the muscle memory of a ruthless late 80’s riff factory, their attack still kills alongside the best of ’em, and ultimately serves a ripper of a death/thrash metal album. What stands out for me, or, what lines up with classic thrash metal DNA herein is conviction, a firebrand soul bursting out with unrest and some real ‘old school’ finesse to the instrumentation and arrangements which leaves me wanting more while they are still on a roll. Essential for any death/thrash metal fan or at least classic thrash heads collecting from the “actually great” comeback thrasher album pile.
“Forty years beyond forming initial bonds, thirty years after their first decade-built legacy came to a close, and fourteen years since officially reforming Sheboygan, Wisconsin-based death/thrash metal quintet Morbid Saint took about three years to develop this dreamed-of but not necessarily expected third full-length album. That should not suggest that these Midwest death-thrash idealists have taken lightly to their craft, that they’ve lost touch with the high standards of the past, or that they were having trouble pulling the trigger but rather it seems the line-up needed to get it right… to check the authenticity of their result for this one to finally rip out the chamber. ‘Swallowed By Hell‘ is the sort of record you could only get from lived intensity, no need to force out a depiction of a world gone mad here as the readily apparent internal collapse of the western world inspired them to crack away harder at the singular riff-centric muse they’d not conjured for decades. For better or worse these folks are living up to the name, holding fast to that core brutal thrash character associated with it without desperately trying to sound like it is 1991 all over again.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #7 | |
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| ARTIST: | VIRCOLAC |
| TITLE: | Veneration |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Dark Descent Records, Sepulchral Voice Records |
Irish death metal trio VIRCOLAC return for a second full-length album and ‘Veneration’ takes a few emboldened, unexpected steps into what I’d observed as 80’s black/death metal attributes, thrashing and sinister stuff which is likewise indebted to heavy rock inspired death metal of the last ten years. Some of the early technical death metal attributes of their debut LP still informs some of their quick change ideas here but the end result is far more natural, much more easygoing in its movement than it might sound on paper. This’d ended up being a huge highlight to the month despite it being very different from their debut LP (‘Masque’, 2019) and in a way its avant-garde tendencies have more to do with VOIVOD or CELTIC FROST than they do any specific death metal reference, making for a memorable and “weird yet classic” record which thankfully veers off course as often as it can and holds up to repeated listens for the sake of this.
“On their sophomore full-length album Dublin, Ireland-borne death metal trio Vircolac posit if the presently enduring mundanity of human life will ultimately produce any venerable cultural mark beyond perpetuating their own self-assured destruction. Shirking the archetype as a point of purpose yet remaining ancient down to its bones ‘Veneration‘ should ultimately read as a death metal album but an alienage, never ordinary or quickly identifiable within canon as they reinforce their increasingly heady craft with profound measures of traditional sensibilities and forward-reaching ambitions.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #8 | |
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| ARTIST: | HASTURIAN VIGIL |
| TITLE: | Unveiling the Brac’thal |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Invictus Productions |
This Cork, Ireland-based black/heavy metal band do well to introduce themselves with this first release having checked all of the necessary boxes for a pro result: Fine album art, killer logo, tons of riffs, canonical heavy metal interest, first wave black metal fire behind it and they use all of this to present longer dramatic pieces with a kinda heavy/prog-rock ease at times. HASTURIAN VIGIL‘ve also done well to present a cosmic horror theme with its own world building/lore to reinforce their intentions as they continue down this road. Of course the interview goes into a bit more depth as to where they’re coming from and how ‘Unveiling the Brac’thal’ differs from work they’ve done in past projects so make sure you check that out for additional context into this record and their plans for what might come in the future. A well-above average record with great potential for more.
“What is unknown beyond the limited fortitudes and primitive perception of human beings at present is limitless in its stoke of the imagination as Cork, Ireland-based and Eldritch riff obsessed ‘old school’ black metal summoners Hasturian Vigil arrive upon their debut full-length album and its custom built occult-infused cosmic horror lore in hand. Without preamble and sporting a head full of the Unspeakable One’s aura these devotees to the tried and (still) true traditions of heavy metal introduce their Dimension of Chains within the four longform thrashing-mad pieces of ‘Unveiling the Brac’thal‘, hymnal strides which yank the listener away from their own ego-centric main characterization and impress upon them a profound insignificance, existential nihil in realization of their status as fodder for forces beyond comprehension.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #9 | |
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| ARTIST: | FARSOT |
| TITLE: | Life Promised Death |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Lupus Lounge |
Although you’ll find some folks have adopted the “easy” shorthand of describing this impressive moderne black metal album as something like SECRETS OF THE MOON and AGALLOCH infused I’d find that description redundant in its own right and not necessarily befitting of the years this German post-black metal band’ve spent honing their sound beyond dark metal beginnings. ‘Life Promised Death’ is dramatic, progressive in some distant sense and avant-garde in loose description but most importantly it offers a frothing, almost psychedelic rock (they point to grunge for inspiration, even) tinged experience which is inherently emotive in response to nihil, dread observed on an existential level living amidst the changing face of human societies in constant churn. There is a deeper-felt identity scourged up here on this album which feels like a band emboldened by their more recent work, seeing a logical avenue to press forward with and the result is an infectious sort of surrealistic energy which I’d found myself coming back to pretty often this month. Maybe not the usual black metal fare but certainly not boring, rote, or too “soft” by any means.
“Expressing various stages of tortured, blissful and wrath-driven muse Gotha, Germany-borne avant-garde black metal quintet Farsot aim for density of experience on this fourth full-length album, approaching their long developed sound with palpably harshened intent but not fully frayed results as their dementia ridden verve waxes and wanes. Taking stock of their last twenty-five years as an entity without being contained by it, ‘Life Promised Death‘ appears to delight in the nihilistic distention of the self per an inspired hand for askew and surreal diversions along the way.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #10 | |
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| ARTIST: | HOUSE OF ATREUS |
| TITLE: | Orations [mLP] |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Iron Bonehead Productions |
When I’d reviewed this album early in the month I’d been subjected to about two days of e-mail/comment spam from folks who felt like I’d sinned or done something morally wrong in covering ‘Orations’. I am not sure what the big deal was, or why anyone involved thought they were making a stand or a difference in harassing me for reviewing a heavy metal album. Although HOUSE OF ATREUS have long endeavored to embody the confrontational attack of both extreme metal and traditional heavy metal in musing upon the riff-obsessed legacies of melodic death metal bands like ARGHOSLENT alongside the best of heavy/power metal in the late 80’s… I see no real or perceived controversy here. Riffs are riffs, these are good ones across the board and they’ve never sounded better. Their work here is energetic, steeled, and anthemic in most cases as they follow-up one of the more daunting sophomore LPs in recent memory with a decidedly less “blackened” result. What ‘Orations’ lacks in harried, frantic energy it makes up for in terms of structure and consistently memorable aspect.
“An epitaphion revealed and rallied as banner over-tomb intending to exhort the potential excellence of the polis upon surviving legion Minneapolis, Minnesota-based death metal quartet House of Atreus turns to shield bashing furor in their latest monument, an appeal to the petty-minded and woefully socially engineered greater good. Under duress of mutant-kind and endlessly mutating plague ‘Orations‘ is a steeling ride, torsion set to test the dormant endurance of those sustained on drip-fed mediocrity in the interim by way of a half-hour of finest angled melodious death-darkened heavy metal craftsmanship. Within an irrational, arrogantly stated fusion of axe-swinging tuneful acts and brutally achieved extremes these fellowes successfully defend their station as a last bastion of riff and relentless attitude within the union.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #11 | |
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| ARTIST: | CONTAMINATED |
| TITLE: | Celebratory Beheading |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Blood Harvest Records |
In the case of Melbourne, Australia based spree killers CONTAMINATED it isn’t so much about the number of kills they rack up but how impactful they are each time the raise arms and in thise sense it has been something like ten years since these folks cranked out an LP. ‘Celebratory Beheading’ still has some of that grindcore and deathgrind fueled touch, it has the sludgy death/doom metal charged burnout, and above all else it has death metal riffs out the wazoo. This approach almost feels like a blast from the past at this point, at least in the sense that modern ‘old school’ minded death metal has devolved into bad hip-hop beats and boring hardcore riffs, so, when a band like this comes back into view they hit pretty damned hard and leave a real-ass dent in mind. I only wish I’d liked the album art a bit more because I think that’d have sent this one further upstream for my own taste overall. A minor point but not at all negligible from my point of view. One one hand I’d like to suggest that this is better produced deal, more of a well-rounded result than their debut LP but I feel like that’d suggest it isn’t unhinged and wilding in the spirit of extreme death metal. There is some real energy here which is beyond any “balanced” norm. A band in the right tradition from my point of view.
“Though they’ve been intermittently active by way of a couple songs here and there Melbourne, Australia-based death metal quintet Contaminated step back into full view here with their second full-length album nearly seven years beyond their first… all the while giving the impression not a moment’d passed. Sure the production values have improved and they lean into a moshable riff here and there but apart from the shocking choice of cover art ‘Celebratory Beheading‘ is a direct and proper follow-up to their debut, holding fast to their knack for blurring the lines between various shades of death, grind and doomed drift. Dense but not entirely thick-in-the-brain these folks’ve maintained their champion-level grip on the primitive and gnarly without ever having to get fully dumb with it.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #12 | |
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| ARTIST: | IRON CURTAIN |
| TITLE: | Savage Dawn |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Dying Victims Productions |
Spanish heavy metal crew IRON CURTAIN have been at it for some time now as they dig deeper into their classic NWOBHM-era soul and kinda strike upon some of their original sound here on album number five. Their original digs weren’t that different, something like TANK, EXCITER and of course a heavy dose of their reputed MOTÖRHEAD inspired speed metal but this time around they’re touching upon some RUNNING WILD types songs, the 80’s stuff with an epic/anthemic quality. Beyond that point most all of ‘Savage Dawn’ is memorable, catchy and quick to the point traditional heavy metal songs with a fiery swinging edge to their delivery.
If you are a fan of the more rugged, raw edge of traditional heavy metal as the early 80’s bled its way into the speed/thrash metal era IRON CURTAIN have always been a fine option in this regard but if you are looking for a real focus on songcraft which is above average this is the album to get from their discography.
“Two steps forward and all past trips held steady in mind Murcia, Spain-based heavy metal quartet Iron Curtain deliver their fifth and most tuneful record to date with a newly perfected personae in mind. ‘Savage Dawn‘ is a new beginning of sorts and not only in terms of tweaking the bands long-running modus in a more energetic direction. By cutting right to the meat of their own high-anthemic songcraft in feature of an increasingly crisp set of production values deployed since. Thanks to these circumstances we see more sides to the band than previously known and cannot help becoming even more ingratiated within a relatively short period of time.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #13 | |
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| ARTIST: | HULDER |
| TITLE: | Verses in Oath |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | 20 Buck Spin |
Comprised of various traits borrowed from the Bergen and Oslo black metal scenes of the mid-to-late 90’s Washington state based black metal project HULDER has been fashioned from parts, an aggressive style of semi-melodic music which has a certain lustre to its production values but doesn’t lead with a big and loud personae just yet. With some consideration for all of the 90’s obsessed black metal abounding today this band reads as above average in its craft and certainly its marketing budget but doesn’t ring of a deep underground statement as a result. The proper references to make here are probably AETERNUS and perhaps the first ANCIENT record while otherwise resembling the late 90’s to early 2000’s pagan black metal spectrum. I’m not sure the actual fanbase hears these nuances based on conversations had at related live events but I admire that theyir machine has been able to make this name and brand known in just a sort few years. During the process of review I’d had a great time listening to this record as it bears semblance to some of my favorite black metal groups of a certain more idealistic era though I’ve not found HULDER‘s work transformative beyond nostalgia, nor has any of it been particularly tuneful compared to said idols. That said, this is the best introduction to the virtues of the band and a good “in” as to what to expect from the rest.
“Echoed in both faintly lit shapes and broad-outlined traditions the sensorial experience of late second wave black metal atmospherics and the folken knot which came with advancing musicianship in the late 90’s we find the work of Washington-state based black metal band HULDER recreating from memory an impressionistic yet brilliantly rendered sophomore full-length album for their love of the old ways. Nowhere near as exacting (or, literal) as the current underground fever-pitched treatments of old glories ‘Verses in Oath‘ aims for personalized taste-driven choices in delivering its burl-devoid form of easily read yet satisfyingly deep-enough sometimes folken, other times hymnal black metal forms. At this stage a viable personality, or, characteristic enough sound begins to develop within their well-realized craft yet the distance from any centrally fixated voice still demands the music, rather than the performance of it, speak for itself. This creates a brilliantly tensile, often beautiful cinematic experience and an admirably hewn result but not yet a vitally ambitious attack upon the populace.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #14 | |
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| ARTIST: | PETRIFICATION |
| TITLE: | Sever Sacred Light |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Svart Records |
Returning for a sophomore full-length album after their Finnish and North American inspired ‘old school’ death metal debut thrilled folks back in 2018 we are many years beyond the first thrust of hype from Portland, Oregon-based crew PETRIFICATION and unfortunately this six year gap hasn’t allowed a ton of hype to trickle down into the present. That said, we’re still getting punkish, almost death n’ roll spirited work from their ex-punk point of view on this sophomore full-length. Since I’ve a decent memory for this group and enjoyed their debut I was stoked to read some references to bands like DEMIGOD and such after their debut had been kind of a CONVULSE meets INCANTATION-esque sort of deal but none of this entirely manifested in my time with the record and much of ‘Severed Sacred Light’ was a bit dry, forgettable to start. Of course it is on this list for a reason, it being an above-average death metal release but I wouldn’t go in expecting fireworks so much as strong aesthetic sense and a well curated full listen. Given a bit of patience to cook and in appreciation for the art direction there is a lot to like about what PETRIFICATION are doing here on their debut for Svart but I can’t help but feel like they’ve got a more compelling album in ’em.
“…this sophomore full-length album from Portland, Oregon-based death metal quintet Petrification amplifies their refocused nowadays ‘old school’ inspired presence into a tragedian-yet-clubbed at slow dissolving feat. Protesting fate as often as it decries mortal witness ‘Sever Sacred Light‘ witness the downfall from behind a thick veneer of lysergic glass, a kaleidoscopic vision with uniformly cut parts. Although their classics inspired sound continues to win quick favor per an enthused rhythm n’ growl experience herein and an above-average set of traits overall, they’ve yet escaped true distinction from the crowd, making for an album which is strong in its delivery but still just on the cusp of standing out among the legions abounding.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #15 | |
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| ARTIST: | MORTEM AGMEN |
| TITLE: | The Path to the Abyss of Evil |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Nachzehrer Records |
No doubt there are plenty of acceptably rough edges featured on this debut full-length from this fairly new German black metal band, the balance of the mix is a bit off and the drums are at times overbearing depending on your setup but this’d never detracted from the sublimely listenable pairing of rhythm guitar built melodicism and harder-hit drumming found on ‘The Path to the Abyss of Evil’.
MORTEM AGMEN formed in the wake of a few other bands and features folks with some serious experience already so when it comes to arrangements, expression, and cohesive violence they already sound professional enough to pull this record off. That said I do have to be an apologist to make my case here as the album art is kind of “off” in terms of the digital filters used and such. Aesthetics aside this’d been a solid guitar-focused black metal album for my own taste and while I would accept that it won’t be thrilling for those looking for something entirely new a strong voice develops within this album (especially the back half) which I’d happily returned to throughout the month.
“Yearning for confirmation of death upon awakening into a surreal, hellish place one can only expect to find abysm and a final point of unrest in the fires of the end as the first animalistic noises are uttered from the maw of Bavaria, Germany-based black metal quartet Mortem Agmen as they arrive upon this surprisingly compelling debut full-length album. Writ to ensure equal grasp of throats beckoning for auld classicist harangue and melodious fixation, ‘The Path to the Abyss of Evil‘ casts its sulphuric spray not as tribute to auld ways so much as it provides a refined example of how they might balance in escalating stages of spiraling grandeur. The result is tuneful in an ancient language, wrathful but beset with uncanny and melodious energy which makes for a brilliantly repeatable debut.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #16 | |
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| ARTIST: | DRUADAN FOREST |
| TITLE: | Dismal Spells… Pt. II: The Night Circus |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Werewolf Records |
Dungeon synth and soundtrack music has long functioned in my own headspace as background music for everything from video games to nightly novel-gazing, weekend chill-out sessions, etc. and in this sense I might clock hundreds of hours with a single jolly-ass keyboard plinking record for the sake of the atmosphere it creates. This has been the case with the latest album from Finnish project DRUADAN FOREST which comes by way of V-KhaoZ of VARGRAV. Their discography has some considerable amount of variety behind it, having been around for many years, ranging from ambient black metal to space-faring synth but my favorite work of theirs has been in this general style of fantasy/medieval work. The big change here beyond their last ‘Dismal Spells’ record is the brevity of songs, this time reading a bit like a fantasy RPG soundtrack from back in the late 90’s rather than the extended ambient pieces of their 2019 entry. The loop of the full listen is successful enough but the main success here for my own taste comes by way of the instrumentation used in the recording, emulated or not the timbre of this record creates a truly enchanting and in my case, infinitely repeatable experience.
“Hyvinkää, Finland-based ambient black/dungeon synth project Druadan Forest returns to the realm of earthly magicks and high fantasy inspired scenery on this decidedly different approach beyond his ‘Dismal Spells From the Dragon Realm‘ (2019) per this sequel. ‘Dismal Spells… Part II: The Night Circus‘ does not repeat the immersive vision of the first part, avoiding the 15-20 minute pieces of its predecessor for quickly set scenes averaging about four minutes in length and presenting in sort of soundtrack format wherein each piece forms its core melody or sense of scenery before finding a point to end, or loop upon.“
>> SHORT REVIEW <<
| #17 | |
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| ARTIST: | THEY CAME FROM VISIONS |
| TITLE: | The Twilight Robes |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Eisenwald |
This Kyiv, Ukraine-based atmospheric black metal group do well to conjure olden dread and oaken melodicism on this folkish, ‘epic’ post-black infused record on this impressive follow up to their well-received debut LP ‘Cloak of Darkness, Dagger of Night’ (2020). That said they’ve not rocked the boat too much here beyond improving the general production values, rendering the vocalist more clearly and emphasizing the lead guitars as a strong melodic driver. Shades of dissonance, pronounced key changes, and such don’t necessarily veer beyond expectations but this doesn’t hurt a record which brings such brimming atmosphere to its “folk horror” aesthetic/themes.
“They Came From Visions is an earthen dark folk influenced atmospheric/post-black metal trio from Kyiv, Ukraine and you might recall their ‘Cloak of Darkness, Dagger of Night‘ debut LP generated some hype back in 2020. This second full-length sounds overall more accomplished in terms of its render and refined vision, an album which leans into its chiming clean guitar tones for fast and cutting moderne, melodic yet medieval black metal pieces which are captivating in most every case. “
>> SHORT REVIEW <<
| #18 | |
|---|---|
| ARTIST: | HAIL CONJURER |
| TITLE: | Satanic Phenomenology |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Bestial Burst, Tour de Garde |
Finnish black metal project HAIL CONJURER continues to lean into the primal self, sourcing elemental functions of doom, harsh noise, and caustic black metal for an entirely innate result. Just as all past releases from the band ‘Satanic Phenomenology’ uses seemingly improvised and quickly written notions to compose its innards, songs written and recorded in a single setting or potentially the whole of the release created in a session without deep preparation or preamble. This should continue to click for listeners who feel the blur of sub-genre music variation and how these primal conjurations convey with scribbled outlines. Though this is one of the more composed and directly shot albums from the fellow, who is also a key member of RIDE FOR REVENGE and HOODED MENACE, it will still provide enough of a challenge for longtime fans. Expect some wild Hellenic black metal moments and a slight return to their harsh side.
“…training in all manner of occult skills the time spent seeking superior attunement with their own left hand path serve Helsinki, Finland-based black metal emergence Hail Conjurer stature enough to begin defining the long-observed essence of lived satanic experience in deliberate meditative reflection. In the process of exercising this Sartre-ian sense of free will upon spiritual embodiments in retrospection our protagonist rejects the rationalist bias that has dominated Christian centric thought for millennia in favor of a method of reflective attentiveness that discloses the hallucinatory wonderment of the dark embraced, a study in the bewildering unknown accumulated as ‘Satanic Phenomenology‘. In the process of pecking through this latest tome we take nine steps within as many observed truths, achieving a the intended state of daimonian disillusionment which awaits us in the form of self-liberation and riveting abandon away from the norm.“
>> FULL REVIEW <<
| #19 | |
|---|---|
| ARTIST: | HAYSTACK |
| TITLE: | Doomsday Goes Away |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Threeman, Dogma Repertory Institute |
Swedish noise rock trio HAYSTACK return for their second album since reforming in 2018, taking some of the swing out of their heavy/garage rock infused take and sticking to a minimal, live in studio feeling for ‘Doomsday Goes Away’. Initially inspired by UNSANE but rarely going that aggro with it we still get the deft hand of Ulf Cederlund (ENTOMBED) on this record but certainly more affected than the inconsistent ‘The Sacrifice’ (2018). By keeping it simple, stripping everything back to its bones and then letting the songcraft speak for itself we get a more personal record which still has the signature swing of the band in mind. Their sense of humor is there along with the dread and personal narration to the point that it all adds up to a good time for my own taste. If you’ve no interest in classic noise rock/post-hardcore this won’t change that.
“Formed back in 1994 and more recently revived Haystack is a Swedish noise rock trio who’d always had their own heavy rock informed bent upon the late 80’s/early 90’s noise rock deconstruction. For this record they’ve stripped it back to an authentic as possible display, presenting it in stark black and white imagery and running the gamut between their garage rock freakouts, harder-assed Unsane-esque declarative pieces, and less predictable aggro songs that recall something like ‘Come in and Burn‘ minus the Moog, and a bit of ‘Same Difference‘ in its cadence… if you speak late 90’s heavy rock you’ll get what I mean. The swing of Midwest noise rock and post-hardcore are there and as such this album sounds classic but not fully drowning in grunge-era quirk and that fits the bill as far as basically everything I’d want from a Haystack album in 2024.“
>> SHORT REVIEW <<
| #20 | |
|---|---|
| ARTIST: | NECROWRETCH |
| TITLE: | Swords of Dajjal |
| RECORD LABEL(S): | Season of Mist |
Though I’d never thought of French blackened death metal band NECROWRETCH as particularly original or spectacularly inventive despite their major label debut era featuring songcraft per a clear obsession with early days Swedish style black/death metal it does seem like they’ve gone somewhere with it six albums later. While I am not so sure that they’ve been searching for a sound that wasn’t so clearly a take on prime era NECROPHOBIC for years, their last two releases (including this one) seem to have found a differently balanced path through thrashing black and death metal fusion unto an album which should appeal to fans of VAMPIRE (Swe) and perhaps even MELECHESH or WATAIN depending on the song. ‘Swords of Dajjal’ won me over with riffs, none of them all that intricate but all of them thrilling in action. They’ve done better, though.
“Of course ‘Swords of Dajjal‘ does its best to do most everything bigger and better than the previous album and for a few pieces this black-thrashing death mystique hangs heavy and thunderous in its big venue worthy soldiering yet at this scale they can’t help but repeat a lot of what bands like Watain have been honing for an additional decade or two. With that said this is still an engaging riff-focused record which meets the high standard of drumming the previous album had touched upon and generally writes a more cinematically struck experience into a taut and toothsome ~38 minute spin. Though I’d still hold onto ‘Satanic Slavery‘ (2017) as their overall best work for my own taste this fifth record did end up holding up throughout the month as one of the more thrillingly riffed-at records out so far this year.“
>> SHORT REVIEW <<
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