So, It’s been a while. I haven’t been very active on this blog for the last several months, for a multitude of reasons. I won’t go into every little detail about any of it, because who cares, really? But, it’s been a pretty rough few months for me, personally, as I’ve been dealing with bouts of depression and other personal issues, on top of dealing with the effects of this bullshit pandemic and watching the world fall apart at the seams. Because of all this, I just could find the focus or drive that I needed to get shit done, or keep things consistent on a regular basis, blog-wise. I’ve also fallen behind on listening to a lot of new releases that have come out over the last month or so. So, if there are any new outings that you don’t see on this list, that you think should be on it, I’m sorry. I’m trying my best to play catch-up as quickly as I can and hear as many good and interesting new releases as possible, once my schedule allows it. So, be patient.
Speaking of playing catch-up, that’s exactly what this post is! This is my annual mid-year catch-up, where I round up every new release that I’ve heard over the last 6 months, that I haven’t yet gotten around to covering on the blog (until now, of course). It’s my third year doing this now, so y’all should know the deal. This time around, we have a lot of album of the year contenders, that could have gotten full reviews, if not for my stupid serotonin crapping the bed on me, and making me unproductive as a result. We also have some disappointment in the mix, buy bands that I otherwise love and respect greatly,where, had they been any other band, I wouldn’t have even given the time of day.so, Without making this intro a full-on manifesto, let’s just get right into it, because there is quite a bit of stuff to unpack here. Time to play catch-up and round up the first half of what’s been an absolute shitshow of a year.
My mid-year catch-up pics:
…And Oceans: Cosmic World Mother (Season of Mist / 2020)
Symphonic Black Metal is being made great again! With the likes of Vargrav and Gardsghastr bringing it back to the cold, desolate grandeur that In the Nightside Eclipse (I know I sound like a broken record, bringing that album up, but come on. Who did it better?) both initiated and perfected, it was only a matter of time before other acts followed suit. Well, it didn’t take long for the biggest and perhaps the most important contributor to this wave to make their big return and knock it out of the fucking cosmic park! …And Oceans were a relatively obscure act in the mid-90s, although they had their following, who crafted two incredible albums of Symphonic BM mastery, that I dare say, nearly rivaled that of Emperor. Afterward, thy decided to ditch the sound and venture off into the Industrial/Electronica realm, and stuck their flag into that mountain for the remainder of the 90s and 2000s. Fast forward to 2020, in the midst of a pandemic, civil unrest and the threat of a third world war, this band decided to rise from the abyss of obscurity, drop the lame Industrial/Electronica mask like a bad habit and drop a cosmic diamond on this pile of shit of a year, in the form of this masterful work of modern Black Metal art. The band has both resurrected it’s true self and refined it, all in one shot, and it shines through like a beacon from the stars, in the form of beautifully intense riffs, hyper-speed drumming, and echoed shrieks, all coming at you with razor-sharp precision and callus delivery, with haunting keyboards howling off in the distance. This is atmosphere and ferocity meeting and flowing together like a stream on a lake and it is crafted to damn near perfection! This band has not only returned to form, but really found their stylistic footing and have settled into their identity. This clearly wasn’t a rushed album, and it shows, that a lot of time was taken to gel back together and recapture that magic that the the first two …And Oceans albums were made of. Symphonic Black Metal done right and a further solidification that I was wrong to dismiss the genre when I did. Between this and the Made Cognitum/Spectral Lore split, I think it’s safe to say that 2020 is on it’s way to becoming the year of Cosmic Black Metal. If this is a sign of what’s to come, then I’m 100% fine with it.
Umbra Vitae: Shadow of Life (Deathwish Inc. / 2020)
One of the more polarizing releases on this list, that I’ve seen a mixed reaction to, but personally come to enjoy the hell out of. Ever wonder what Converge would sound like with Death Metal riffs? Well, here’s your answer! Umbra Vitae is a supergroup (I hate that term, but whatever), fronted by Jacob Bannon’s manic screeches, and featuring members of Twitching Tongues, The Red Chord and Job for a Cowboy. Hearing those names raised an eyebrow at first (though Job for a Cowboy did transcend their Deathcore roots and put out a banger with Sun Eater), but these dudes managed to come together and craft and intense, technical and hard-hitting slab of angular Death Metal, that resembles being trampled by a herd of possessed, rouge cars, Maximum Overdrive style, set to some catchy riffs and manic screeches. This album is basically an early Converge album, stripped of all the progressive grandeur that the band has built their sound into over the years, and just goes full force at you and pummels you with violent force, the way albums like Jane Doe and When Forever Comes Crashing did, only with the added bonus of old school DM riffs to boot. Definitely an acquired taste, but very enjoyable if it fits your needs. One of the better acts with the term ‘supergroup’ in it’s description.
Fluids: Ignorance Exalted (Maggot Stomp / 2020)
Just last year, these lovely sleazeballs were part of my 2019 summer wrap-up, with their last full-length, Exploitative Practices. In the last year, they’ve kept themselves busy, putting out some solid demos and EPs, which would culminate in this slab of unruly, gory madness. Fluids really made an impression with the Mortician-esque Goregrind-slathered Death Metal assault of the last outing, but Ignorance Exalted manages to find some of the finest steroids around and inject it right into it’s veins and mutate their sound into something even more deadly and unfathomably pummeling, and further push the limits of how far sonic threshold can be pushed, until your speakers explode like an M80 firecracker on the 4th of July. The only thing you can expect from this album, that sets it apart from the last one, is to be aurally tortured ten times worse then you were previously, without remorse or a second to breathe. The chunkiest and most caveman-clubbing of riffs, the most dismal, distorted and overbearing of growls, and mostly programmed, but equally head-stomping drums is what makes up this repulsive shitfest of an album, and it’s glorious from start to finish, especially those vocals, which would make Will Rahmer quiver in his boots. Pure ignorance and debauchery from start to finish, just as the title suggests. Expect nothing more from these magnificent filthmongers! Great stuff.
Revenge: Strike.Smother.Dehumanize (Season of Mist / 2020)
What can I say about Revenge? No introduction is needed when it comes to Revenge, and once you learn that a new outing under their name is coming, you already know what the fuck to expect, because absolutely nothing changes with this one, but it’s still Revenge holding true to their scum-bashing, anti-humanitarian brand of grinding Blackened Death Metal, molded by hatred and primitive barbarity, the way only the original purveyors of such in the Ross Bay Cult can do right, and it honestly never gets old. Strike.Smother.Dehumanize Is only the latest weapon in the arsenal of the mighty Revenge, in their continuing war against the feeble and unworthy, who continue to drain the Earth for all it’s worth, and it takes no prisoners, as it sonically caves your skull in with sheer brute force, no matter which side of the fence you stand on. There are even moments that actually resemble a merciless bludgeoning, where J. Read mercilessly clubs his drum kit like an unhinged neanderthal, destroying an enemy on sight. It’s a Revenge album through and through, and I’ve said recently, that there are a lot of War Metal bands right now, that are adding their own unique spin to the style, and doing some really cool stuff with it, but Revenge are still the real deal and no one can match the primal, neanderthalic rage that they’ve molded into their own, over the span of almost to decades. Same sound, but as barbaric and ruthless as ever.
Imperceptum: Entity of Undead Stars (Independent / 2020)
Imperceptum is a one-man act that I once saw described as the ‘Black Metal version of Disembowelment’, which initially piqued my interest in him. While that may be true for his earlier output, he’s really come into his own as an entity in one-man Black Metal, who most recently, has gone down the deep, desolate road of Blackened Doom, which resulted in his last couple of albums, which exhibit I’m something of a Blackened Funeral Doom sound, that’s stark, suffocating, and almost unearthly in sound, and explores themes of cosmic mysticism and what lurks in the silent unknown beyond us, and the possible danger it can pose to us if it ever finds us. The overall sound certainly reflects it’s themes, as it goes the unnerving Darkspace route, exploiting our deepest and most distorted vision of what lies beyond our plane of existence and what we may never know in our lifetime. It’s expressed through cold, menacing riffs, ominously slow tempos, with the occasional outbursts of blasts, unnaturally ugly vocals, laced in reverb and muddy, but crushing drums, drenched in an oppressive, suffocating atmosphere, that resembles being choked by the gravity-less void of space. It’s a lengthy, but mentally stimulating listen and well worth the patience required to digest this. Great release overall and one of the more interesting Blackened Doom releases in recent memory. Pure cosmic desolation from start to finish.
Haxanu: Snare of All Salvation (Amor Fati Productions / 2020)
I’ve raved ad nauseam about Alex Poole and his numerous projects, that he has either been a part of, or at the helm of, such as Chaos Moon, Esoterica, Entheogen, Guðveiki, Skáphe and Gardsghastr, whose debut album landed itself as my number one release of 2019, and so many others. There’s definitely an artist spotlight post in the books for the future, for this mastermind and all of these projects I just mentioned, but here, we have yet another name to add to that list. Haxanu is the latest Poole-helmed project, that, like the rest of the aforementioned projects, rests on it’s own sonic plane and has it’s own style, essence and aesthetic. This is the most straightforward Poole project I’ve heard yet, that abandons the oppressive atmospheres, grandiose riffs and complex, unpredictable song-structures of the other names, and embraces Black Metal’s roots of old. This assessment may make it sound generic, but it’s anything but such; it still has its own enticing flavor and enough of a distinct sound, that works with what it has and subtly evolves from within and presents a fresh but well rooted sound, channeling the second wave essence of Black Metal into a more modern style. There are plenty of excellent riffs, a good mix of emotion, vigor and darkness to be found here, just as any Alex Poole project has presented so far, only more stripped down and bare in sound. Just an excellent Black Metal album overall, that has flown quite under the radar so far, which is quite wild, considering the acclaim that the other Poole projects have been met with over the last few years. The guy clearly has the Black Metal midas touch and it shines through on this one and it shouldn’t go unheard. So, sleeping on this one will be a regrettable decision, so don’t do that.
Vide: Collection (Independent / 2020)
This is more of a compilation then an album, but it’s more deserving of a spot here. If you work on this project’s Bandcamp, it’s basically a entity with two faces; one is a Post-Punk project called Empty, which I’m sure will be making it’s way onto this blog very soon, then there’s this. Vide can be described as somewhere between Depressive Black Metal, Raw Black Metal, or just straight up Black Metal, that adheres to the second wave formula that we all know and love. I, personally would favor the third description and call it old school, early Xasthur style Black Metal, with a touch of Post-Punk to it, that oozes melancholia and despondency through it’s eerily melodic riff style, hazy atmosphere, chilling ambiance that looms in the background and tortured, pain-writhing shrieks. It all flows together like liquid, at a slow pace to make sure you feel every bit of pain and sorrow that bleeds from it like a wound on blood-thinners. I can definitely see where each of those three genre-descriptions come from, because the overall sound is built on elements of each of them; it’s raw, but not to the point of being incomprehensible static, it’s depressive, without all the over-the-top melodrama and bedroom production, and it’s just about as straightforward as it can get at it’s core. This is pure Black Metal, that should please purists and comfort the tormented, and it’s some of the most well-done stuff of this nature that I’ve heard in a while. This comp comprises both demos he’s put out under this name so far, so you get everything Vide has to offer, which I highly recommend. Oh, and he also has a Death Metal project called Some Dead Bodies, who you’ll also be hearing about on this blog very soon!
ACxDC: Satan is King (Prosthetic Records / 2020)
ACxDC (short for Antichrist Demoncore); I name you either love or hate, based on where you stand, when it comes to Crust and Powerviolence. Wow one of the more notable names in the genre, they’re also one of the most hated to the more die-hard fans of Powerviolence, for various reasons, whether it be overhype, to clean production, or just being plain mediocre in the eyes of some. Whatever the case may be, I don’t give a shit and I personally have no problem with these dudes, despite what morons on the old I Heart Powerviolence Facebook page think. Whatever the fuck you classify this as, Satan is King is a fucking ripper, comprised of some of the filthiest and most unapologetic traits of Punk, Grind, Crust, Hardcore, and whatever other genre description you want to throw at it. It’s a quick, simple, but effective ass beating of grinding ferocity, razor-sharp guitars and insanely fast, blasting drums that just pummel you, snarling, spiteful shrieks, ripping bass, the whole nine yards. The production is fairly clean, but still allows everything to sound as nasty and intense as possible and get it’s point across, which, with a track called Copsucker involved, I’m sure you’d know right away what that point is. Very fucking intense stuff, that may seem mediocre to some, depending on how in-tune you are with the more underground sect of PV or Grind, but whatever the hell you want to classify it is, it’s a ripper in my book! Audio violence with a message, that delivers.
Esoctrilihum: Eternity of Shaog (I, Voidhanger Records / 2020)
Esoctrilihum is currently one of the most talked about bands in Blackened Death Metal, for good reason; the last release of his that I covered was Inhuma, which I praised highly, for it’s extremely nuanced and progressive take on the genre, that brought a uniqueness to it never quite heard before. The spiraling vortex of melody, atmosphere, weird but gripping riffs, shifting tempos, and suffocating soundscapes, while not exactly the newest or most alien thing ever brought to Extreme Metal, had a certain distinctiveness to it, that’s separated Esoctrilihum from the pack. And made it stand out like a sore thumb, similar to the way Convulsing did, especially with his latest album. This album takes on the same essence and aesthetic, but still implements as much melody and rarely heard tropes in Blackened DM, like keyboards, violins and even some acoustic passages. Surrounding all that, is sweltering, hellish atmosphere, cavernous howls, and chunky guitars, belting out some of the catchiest riffs I’ve heard in Blackened DM. It’s a downright evil, but beautifully crafted and well-executed piece of Progressive Extreme Metal, that I put right up there with the new Ulcerate, as the most emotion-driven and naturally vibrant albums to come into existence in 2020.
Omnikinetic: Kinesis (Independent / 2020)
From the ashes of one-man Blackened Death outfit, Witchbones, forms an even more warped and atmospheric Blackened Death Metal project, helmed by Vardlokker himself, also known for his involvement in other projects like Nexwomb and Sangre de la Luna. If you’re into the suffocating, claustrophobic, ultra-atmospheric sounds of Impetuous Ritual, Portal, and Grave Upheaval, this will scratch that itch until your flesh tears open and then scratch your bones to dust. This EP is a pummeling from start to finish, that drowns you in foggy dissonance, as it mercilessly bludgeons you in the most horrific way possible, in the form of continuous blas-beats, thick, smashing riffs that come at you non-stop at full speed, topped off by dissonant, reverb-laced bellowing growls, that are as inhuman as it gets. It’s a simple formula that has taken many forms over the last number of years, but I feel like this is it’s true form and the one that works the best, even if it’s been done before and done better, by some of the more known names who adhere to the style. Omnikinetic isn’t just the reincarnation of Witchbones. It’s the superior incarnation, that instantly floored me on my first listen. I slept on it for a little bit, but I’m glad I finally woke up to it, because on top of being a cool dude, Vardlokker is one hell of a musician, who clearly has a knack for the deeper and more blood curdling side of Extreme Metal, that few modern bands can pull off. Blackened DM the way it should be!
VoidCeremony: Entropic Reflections Continuum: Dimensional Unravel (20 Buck Spin / 2020)
As you can probably already tell, I usually gravitate towards anything with ‘Progressive’ in it’s genre description, if ‘Death Metal’ or ‘Blackened Death Metal’ follows it in said description. I’ve always had a soft spot for Prog DM, thanks to bands like Lykathea Aflame, Akercocke, (early) Cynic and mid-era Death. So, I naturally opted to give VoidCeremony a listen as soon as this album came out. The best way I can describe this, is if Human-era Death and Onward to Golgotha-era Incantation collided with one-another and fused together on impact. It’s a dynamic outing, that combines the cave-dwelling, ominous brutality of early Incantation, and the otherworldly melodic technicality of mid-era Death, that can go from a blasting barrage of razor-sharp, 90s-style riffs at one point, than suddenly break off into melodic technical grandeur. It’s an up-and-down ride of a listen, that takes you through those peaks and valleys of ferocious intensity, and spellbinding compositions of complex, flowing passages of futuristic (for lack of a better term) melodies and fretboard-climbing arpeggios. Hearing this one for the first time rely brought back memories of hearing Human and Individual Thought Patterns for the first time, only now, with some extra, old school, extreme flavor to them. My explanation of this album doesn’t quite do it justice, the type of album you have to dive into for yourself, and it may take a few listens to really grasp, but once you catch every detail, depending on where you stand as far as Progressive Extreme Metal goes, it’ll either be not your thing, or one of the better death metal albums that’s come out this year. Very decent album in my eyes, that deserves at least a good couple of shots for anyone who’s into Incantation, Death, those other bands I mentioned above. Again, not the most Innovative of sounds, but would still make a good addition to your collection, if you’re into Death Metal with some pizzazz.
Paysage d’Hiver: Im Wald (Kunsthall Produktionen / 2020)
Paysage d’Hiver is usually on a lot of people’s most anticipated list whenever a release is announced, and said releases usually end up on a lot of year-end lists when December rolls around. Call that hype or whatever you want, but I have always found this mysterious entity to be one of the more interesting Atmospheric Black Metal acts going today. Having already released a smorgasbord of demos over the last several years, it finally all culminates in his debut full-length, which is a two hour composition, of some of the most cold and desolate Black Metal you’ll hear in the modern day, that channels its roots in the second wave and laces them with ambiance, keyboards, and the most despondent of emotion. The production is very low fi and the ambiance and other elements are sort of hidden beneath the screeching guitars and foggy, blasting drums, so it took me a bit to pick up on it, but once I did, it made the experience that much richer and sent chills down my spine. There were a couple of naysayers who deem this boring, but as a sucker for this kind of stuff, as exhausting at sitting through a two-hour-long album is (and trust me, it is), I enjoyed it and it was well worth the wait. There’s nothing too fancy or grandiose to be found here, but the small details that are hidden in the chaos upfront, is all it really means to grab you and make you feel something, negative or positive and it works. Im Wald is a great debut and is clearly the album that Paysage d’Hiver was always working towards, and it may have very well waste him at the top of my list star favorite Atmospheric Black Metal acts, next to Mare Cognitum. Excellent stuff if you’re looking for something stark, desolate and attention-grabbing, is that channels organic emotion and raw skill into into every detail and doesn’t waste a second in delivery top-notch Black Metal that makes a good soundtrack to this shitty, depressing dumpster fire of a year.
The Ruins of Beverast & Almyrkvi: Split (Independent / 2020)
The latest split that’s caught my attention. I wasn’t too big on the last split involving The Ruins of Beverast (the one with Mourning Beloveth), because I thought his track on that one was pretty weak, but he makes up for it huge on this one, and brings that dark, sinister, progressive Blackened Doom sound that Exuvia reeked of and builds off of it, into another composition of cosmic, hallucinatory madness, that exudes both darkness and grandeur on astronomical levels. Definitely a step up from the last split and more of a fitting follow-up to Exuvia. On the other side, we have Icelandic entity, known as Almyrkvi, who brings it’s own style of cosmic Blackened Doom, laced in nuance and crushing despondency; full of vibrant, melodic riffs, rumbling drums, foggy howls, and even a touch of Industrial looming in the mix. It’s some of the most unique and innocvative Black Metal of the last decade plus, much like most of the Icelandic scene. It’s a converging of two worlds, on a similar, but distinct in their own sound and essence. There are some bands who fit well together and should do a split if the opportunity arises, and this one is a perfect example of such. This is an epic one, and both acts fit perfectly together and delivered. One of the better splits that’s come out this year, bar none.
Paradise Lost: Obsidian (Nuclear Blast Records / 2020)
I’ve always been open about the fact that I was never the biggest Paradise Lost fan, mainly when it comes to their late 90s to early 2010s era. It even took me a while to warm up to their early stuff, like Gothic and Draconian Times (though I finally did). For the last several years, however, they’ve managed to channel their Gothic/Doom Metal roots into their current sound and finally strike the perfect middle ground between the two. As a result, Paradise Lost have been putting out their best work since the 90s, and their last three albums have been their most enjoyable ones in their entire discography! Obsidian is a continuation of the melodic Gothic Metal mastery, that doesn’t let it’s clean production get in the way of purveying genuine melancholy and romance, through sweltering melody, and crushing harshness, in the vein of some of the genre’s top names, like My Dying Bride and Katatonia. I liken this album and the last two, to the mid-era works of My Dying Bride, where melody and heaviness met in the most romantic and soul-crushing way only MDB could pull off at the time. It also brings some later Moonspell to mind, which is also a good thing. This current incarnation of Paradise Lost has yet to disappoint me, and given the genius of Nick Holmes, that he’s brought to both Paradise Lost and Bloodbath, it may be awhile before it does. Modern Gothic Metal at it’s finest, that isn’t part of the overly sterilized, bubblegum slop that the mainstream brought us all throughout the 2000s. Another masterpiece for the Paradise Lost catalog that’s been in my rotation for well over a month now.
Naglfar: Cerecloth (Century Media Records / 2020)
Naglfar is an name you should recognize in terms of Melodic Black Metal. Their discography has it’s ups and downs, but they’ve always been decent at what they do. This album could have gone either way, as is the case in many slippery slope discographies like Naglfar’s, but all and all, it went the right way and delivered, if you ask me. It’s as straightforward as a modern Black Metal album can get, but it doesn’t fall short in bringing the aggression and riffs, both catchy and razor-sharp, delivered with precision and malice. I admittedly haven’t paid much attention to Naglfar’s more recent releases, but this one is a step up from Harvest, which was the last one I heard, which wasn’t exactly their best work. I’m definitely going to delve into the albums that came between this one and Harvest, but this one is very enjoyable and inspired me to do so. Very fun listen from start to finish, that should stick out among the rest of the slop that melodic Black Metal usually entails, save for bands like Mgla and Watain. Definitely worth a try, even if melodic BM isn’t your thing, which I totally understand, because this one actually has substance and very little fluff. Good stuff!
Available now through Century Media Records.
My Dying Bride: The Ghost of Orion (Nuclear Blast Records / 2020)
Last, but not least… maybe. There’s a reason I didn’t cover this album after hearing it initially. I had such high expectations for this album, because one: it’s My Dying Bride, and two: the Gothic Doom excellence that was Your Broken Shore. That song enamored me when it came out, with that slow, wailing main riff that sweltered throughout the entire track, as well as the overall delivery of everything else. It was an amazing track, that hyped me the fuck up for this album, especially considering MDB’s last few albums fell short to say the least.but, lo and behold, this album… also falls short. It pains me to say this, because I still love the shit out of this band and they’ll always be one of my favorite Doom Metal bands of all time, but aside from Your Broken Shore, the rest of this album is just weak, dull, and reeks of the band just phoning it in at this point. I tried my damnedest to get into it, hoping it was a grower, like many other albums that I initially thought were duds, but nothing on this album really grabbed me. It’s just a water down, generic and uninteresting Gothic Metal album, that has more in common with some of the more boring bands of the genre, then that of Paradise Lost and Katatonia. I will admit that there are a few other really good riffs on this album, that piqued my interest again and gave me hope, but ultimately that hope went unanswered. Overall, It’s just another reminder that My Dying Bride have become a shell of their former self and may very well be just riding out the rest of their existence on life support. If you enjoyed this one, more power to you, but for me, this ain’t it, chief. When it comes to the Holy Trinity of Gothic Doom in 2020, Katatonia and Paradise Lost clearly still have something offer, and I believe My Dying Bride still could, but right now, they’ve proven otherwise. Again, this pains me to say, but this album gets a pass from me, despite my undying love for their previous works.
Available now through Nuclear Blast Records.
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That does it for the first half of 2020. I hate to end it on such a low note, but the entire first half of this year has been one giant low note, both for me personally, and for the entire world at large. Again, I know there’s a lot of shit left out here, dating all the way back to January, that I should have heard by now, but like I said, it’s been a really rough year so far, and I’m trying to catch up as much as possible, and whatever has been left out here, will be included in my next post, which is my annual Summer wrap-up, where I cover stuff that helps get me through the season of the giant red orb in the sky beating down on us and making life more miserable than it needs to be.So, stay tuned for that at the end of August or beginning of September. For now I hope everyone is staying safe out there, and avoiding looters, rioters, and Antifa assholes looking to destroy shit for a cheap thrill, under the guise of Justice, As well as the spike in Covid-19 cases that they’re causing from doing so. I don’t really like to get political on this blog, but it’s unavoidable at this point and pretty much needs to be addressed. Just stay safe and stay at home as much as possible. I don’t know how long it’ll be before my next post, depending on whether or not I have time, or if I hear a new release good enough for a full review. Time will tell, but for now, enjoy these quality jams during your quarantine (if we’re even still doing that at this point) and enjoy yourselves as much as possible, before civilization collapses on itself and this entire goddamn planet burns to death.
Stay safe, stay healthy, and wear a fucking mask! ‘Till next time.
Thy Kingdom Scvm 