ENDTYMER is the semi-weekly recap, occasional blogspace, and new release round-up column. It hits at the end of (most) every week with the intent of covering notable new releases, sharing news, and musing over various personal listening habits. It is largely informal, might contain 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

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FIVE BEST OF 1/01-1/10

[#1] BARSHASKETH (‘Antinomian Asceticism‘, W.T.C.)
[#2] BLOOD RED FOG (‘Marrasv​ä​et‘, Self-Released)
[#3] MUTAGENIC HOST (‘The Diseased Machine‘, Gurgling Gore/Dry Cough)
[#4] BERGTHRON (‘Neu Asen Land‘, Trollzorn)
[#5] THEOPHONOS (‘Banishment‘, Self-Released)

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UPCOMING RELEASES

Catch up with the latest new release announcements for albums I am likely to cover.

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Copenhagen, Denmark-based death metal band PHRENELITH have announced their third full-length album ‘Ashen Womb‘ will release via Dark Descent Records and Me Saco Un Ojo Records this coming February 7th. The earliest notes I could give on this record center around a more atmospheric, subtlety rich set of songs which incorporate a feeling of vastness while still providing a brutal trip. The track “Stagnated Blood” is now streaming on Bandcamp:

On March 7th World Eater Records will release ‘Monde Vide‘ the debut from France’s MORTUAIRE. Formed in 2021 this death metal band hail from Bordeaux and feature musicians from Year of No Light, Bombardement, The Great Old Ones etc. and I love what they’ve done with this album from what I’ve heard thus far. Check out “Tranchant” for now:

On March 28th Dying Victims Productions will release HEXECUTOR’s third full-length album. ‘…Where Spirit Withers in Its Flesh Constraint‘ will release on CD and vinyl LP formats. This black-thrashing heavy metal band impressed me with their ‘Beyond Any Human Conception of Knowledge…‘ back in 2020 and I like this new song “Paol Goz” so this is looking like a serious follow-up for my own taste. Check out the song:

Cruz Del Sur Music have announced they’ll release the first studio album from Olympia, Washington-based heavy metal quartet CHRISTIAN MISTRESS in 10 years with ‘Children of the Earth‘. The album will release on March 7th on all relevant formats. Returning as a quartet and recording to a 4-track reel-to-reel gives this album a feeling all its own to start, I’m still in early previews so far and there should be a single out next week. The band comment: “This album, Children of the Earth, is a declaration and a reminder of who we are and what we could be. We could be so much more than we give ourselves credit for.” on the subject of creating wonderment rather than rote preoccupation for future generations.

https://www.facebook.com/ChristianMistress/

Canadian thrash metal legends SACRIFICE will return for their first new album ~sixteen years with ‘Volume Six‘ and, you guessed it the band’s sixth album overall. The album was produced by vocalist/guitarist Rob Urbinati and features the band’s original lineup, with lead guitarist Joe Rico, bassist Scott Watts, and drummer Gus Pynn as well as Urbinati who states: “I write all the time. It was around 2017 when I wrote a couple songs that I thought were really good. I played them for the band, and they were totally happy with them and the direction. I wrote a couple more and Gus and I were making some real progress in getting the songs tight and even talking about recording, then the pandemic hit. My creativity completely dried up for whatever reason, even though I was sitting at home with nothing to do. There was nowhere to rehearse in the city because things would shut down, then open up, then close down again, so it was hard to get a consistent rehearsal schedule going and I just wasn’t feeling it. When things started coming back, our original plan was to do an EP, but we had enough songs that we were completely comfortable and happy with to do a whole album.” The album will release on February 21st, through all digital platforms and on CD, MC, and LP: North American orders via Cursed Blessings Records and via High Roller Records in Europe, Asia, and Australia. Check out “Antidote of Poison”:

Caligari Records have announced they will release the third full-length album from Nashville, Tennessee-based trio ACT OF IMPALEMENT this coming February 28th. ‘Profane Altar‘ will release on CD and cassette tape formats and feature a sound that takes a bit more from the bestial death metal side of things (Belial, Archgoat, Possession, etc.) and features the same lineup from the bands second album. Everything they’ve released has been stylized in a unique but still ‘old school’ minded way so I’m looking forward to this whole record.

Warsaw, Poland based doom metal trio ROSARY are back beyond their 2022 debut and this time they have a full-length album, ‘The Broken Sacrament‘ ready for a January 24th release date via Nine Records. Recorded between 2023 and 2024 the album contains nine songs of dramatic, prime-era traditional doom metal delivered with some appreciable passion. I’d been such a huge fan of their EP a few years back, stoked on this one.

Nine Records also announced they will release the second full-length album from Swedish doom metal fellowes ACOLYTES OF MOROS an atmospheric, melancholia-stricken traditional doom metal band. ‘Sphere of Adversity‘ will release on January 24th and continue to make good on a sound which takes inspiration from doom metal old and new while also taking notes from ancient black metal for atmosphere and feeling. Expect conceptual work spread amongst four grand longform pieces. For now check out “Salient Candour”:

Brazilian black-speed metal maestro WHIPSTRIKER has revealed the new song “Cry of Extinction” the first to be revealed from the band’s long-awaited fifth album of the same name. ‘Cry of Extinction‘ is planned for release during the first half of this year by way of the always brutal Hells Headbangers Records on CD, vinyl LP, and cassette tape. Check out the song, you know this dude is great and always has a shotgun full of riffs, and get into “Cry of Extinction”:

Hypnotic Dirge Records have announced they will release the fourth album from the Canadian death/doom metal band NORILSK on February 6t this year. ‘Antipole‘ will be available on all manner of formats and bundles. The quartet are said to be building on their overall dynamic, applying what they’ve learned and this makes for some tempo shifts and different types of songs alongside more polished presentation. Check out a song now:

High Roller Records have announced a February 21st release of the new EP from Berlin-based metalpunks INDIAN NIGHTMARE. ‘Banished Into Endless Chaos‘ comes five years after the band’s second album meant to serve as a “harbinger” for the band’s third studio album coming this year. New vocalist is pretty over the top and I liked this comment in particular: “We want to put more focus on shorter and more brutal punk songs in the style of our first album, while keeping some longer experimental and more metal songs.” I’ll expect nothing short of dynamite based off of “Looking Into the Fire”:

Shadow Kingdom Records have announced March 28th as the release date for SAVAGE MASTER‘s fifth full-length album. ‘Dark & Dangerous‘ will release on CD, vinyl LP, and cassette tape. The bands vocalist comments: “Savage Master exists in a fantasy. Some say reality is stranger than our world of darkness. The lyrics for Dark & Dangerous dance between the two dimensions. We took our personal struggles into that realm. For the listener to escape this universe and apply our message into their life, that’s the intent. Whether it be praising Our Dark Lord or hearing the warrior’s call, we want the listener to feel the never-ending fire inside themselves – to be strong, like a chain that never breaks.” They’ll have a single and pre-orders up in the first week of February. Last two albums have been great, looking forward to this one.

https://www.facebook.com/savagemasterofficial

Swedish melodic black metal band ISTAPP have announced their latest album ‘Sól Tér Sortna‘ will release via Trollzorn Records. The album will release this coming March 6th on CD, LP and in digitally. This album marks twenty years as a band and they’re promising strong material with this one. Check out the album’s opening track + lyric video “Under Jökelisen”:

Swedish singer/songwriter JONATHAN HULTÉN’s latest song “Falling Mirages” acts as the second single to be released from his upcoming album ‘Eyes Of The Living Night‘ which releases this January 31st on Kscope. Hultén comments: “Falling Mirages” addresses the dangers of miscommunication in relationships and the potential consequences of silence. By not speaking up and expressing what weighs on one’s heart, unresolved tension builds up and eventually could make a bond so fragile that it could break by the weight of a feather. Yet if it were to fall apart, much like a house, the relation could be rebuilt if its foundation is solid,and might even be constructed to be sturdier than before. But, as with a house built on porous, unstable or sinking ground, a relationship lacking foundational stability will eventually and continually crumble, with each attempt to save it only prolonging the inevitable – a painful yet familiar realization many of us come to experience in life.” and of course everything the artist does is gold, this is perhaps up there with his best work in extreme metal but of course entirely different. I’d be surprised if this isn’t on many Best of the Year lists based on my time with the album this month.

Spanish thrashers RETADOR will release their second album ‘Earëndel‘ on January 21 via the die-hards at Xtreem Music. The album will be available on CD, 12″ vinyl, and digital formats. This label never picks up a dud in terms of classic thrash metal minded work and this record is a big step up from their previous work. Check out their single “Lux Ferre”:

Archivist Records has set February 21st as the release date for Ukrainian progressive thrash metal band XENOTRONE‘s debut full-length album, ‘Into the Void‘. Aiming for an atmosphere of cosmic horror and promising one of the more unique thrash releases of the year this one definitely piqued my interest. The first single, “Evolution of Soul,” is available now:

Chilean stoner doom metal band OCULTUM have signed to renowned Italian label Heavy Psych Sounds for the February 28th release of their new album ‘Buena Muerte‘. The band comments on the new album: “We are releasing this third album with force and conviction. ‘Buena Muerte’ is a concatenated anthem that explores death as a central theme, highlighting its benevolence towards a human being who cries out in all ways for its inevitable extinction. It is an experiment in resurgent creativity where a vibe of the 70s, metal and chaos converge, on the dilapidating base of the heavy and crushing doom stoner we sacredly cultivate.” and the fact that the first single is titled “Last Weed on Earth” makes this one all the more interesting.

Swedish heavy rock/metal band TEMPLE OF DISCORD have signed to Ripple Music for the release of their debut album ‘In The Ashes‘ which’ll be out this coming February 21st. So far they’ve released a video for “The Reaper” in preview. This band started as a solo project from Wytch guitarist Mattias Marklund and ‘In The Ashes‘ is described as “a dark exploration of the human psyche, mortality, and existential dread. The album delves into themes of death, self-destruction, and the chaos of inner demons, and explores the inevitability of mortality…” and all of that sounds great to me, looking forward to sitting down with it.

Greek psychedelic rock troupe NAXATRAS have announced the release of their fifth studio album “V” on February 28th. To mark the occasion they’ve shared the hypnotic new single “Spacekeeper”. This new album intends to be a bold leap forward, deeper exaggerations and broader influence including 70’s progressive rock, world music and electronic elements. Sounds like it’ll be a wild jam, definitely the sort of band you stumble upon on YouTube or Spotify per recommendations and fall into deep.

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THIS WEEK’S VIDEOS

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. Please subscribe, share, and leave a comment, etc. if you feel like it.

No videos this week. Still need to film/edit 6 more videos for 2024 content then I’ll try and catch up on January releases quickly.

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NEXT WEEK:

Here are the six longform reviews I have been working on for next week, these are subject to change or rescheduling to a later date.

ONIROPHAGUS – Revelations From the Void [January 17th, Personal Records]
BLOOD RED FOG – Marrasv​ä​et [January 1st, Self-Released]
HAZZERD – The 3rd Dimension [January 17th, M-Theory Audio]
HÄXKAPELL – Om jordens blod och urgravens grepp [January 17th, Nordvis Produktion]
CONCRETE ICON – Voracious Streams [January 20th, Memento Mori]
MEMBARIS – Black Plasma Armour [January 21st, W.T.C. Productions]

This year I will be sporadically covering independent releases, those that’ve been released by bands themselves independently, as they accumulate. I’ll be drawing a somewhat loose line between those who run their own imprints and those who simply print their own stuff and sell it. No guarantees that I’ll cover all of these, a minimum of six at best. The week after I’ll return to the Short Reviews format, aiming for two of those per month max.

CAPRAHED – Empire [January 20th, Self-Released]
CAPTAIN KILL – Off to the Circus [January 17th, Self-Released]
ACID MAGUS – Scatterling Empire [February 21st, Self-Released]
DANEFAE – Trøst [January 31st, Self-Released]
BELEGHOST – Where the Mountain Lies [January 8th, Self-Released]
BLOODCRUSHER – Voidseeker [January 9th, Self-Released]
MIASMA – Demo MMXXIV [January 10th, Self-Released]
DISCORDANT MEDITATION – Tragic Creature [January 24th, Self-Released]

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