With a hard-hitting heaviness filled debut release, today we have Goatess and their self-titled offering. Delivering waves of fuzzy guitars painting traditional Doom Metal landscapes, this band grooviness is enough to make them immediately standout from the rest. Svart Records surprises us again with a very energetic and refreshing release that will rattle your speakers for weeks to come.

In a similar vein to bands like Sleep and other Sludgy Doom Metal outfits, Goatess opens this release with the warm and fuzzy “Know Your Animal”. Focusing on incisive riffing and strange psychedelic elements, tracks like “Alpha Omega” sound weirdly familiar but catchy enough to enjoy more than a few times, hundreds of times to be precise. With Chritus Linderson (Saint Vitus, Count Raven) on vocals, this band has all the right ingredients to satisfy the legions of demanding fans of the genre.

Being highly shocked by the sudden disbandment of The Devil’s Blood, we received the news of Selim Lemouchi continuing doing music under a new moniker with high hopes and expectations. Under his new ‘band name’ Selim Lemouchi & His Enemies, Selim delivers this short but sweet EP featuring three songs of trippy and engaging Occult/Psychedelic Rock music. While not as explosive and catchy as The Devil’s Blood pre-breakup material, all the tracks presented here have that sense of melody and weirdness that we loved so much from TDB.

Opening with “Echaton”, we immediately feel the dark atmosphere descend upon us. The Doomy and Occult vibe in this track is quite thick and enjoyable since it reminds us a bit of Jex Thoth and her enigmatic music. This track is quite relaxing and mysterious, with very soothing guitars and hypnotic drums. “Thistle” is a track that has a familiar TDB vibe, but with a more direct and less polished approach. The vocals are quite fitting for the music and greatly enhance the experience.

Beautifully adorned by Fursy Teyssier’s dramatic cover art, today we have Sombres Forêts and their third full-length ”La Mort du Soleil”. Being a one-man band, Annatar handles all instruments in this enigmatic Black Metal release. Heavily focusing on creating lush dissonant atmospheres, for over 50 minutes this release will transport you to dark and cavernous places.

“Des Épaves” opens this release with a bleak atmosphere nicely complemented by acoustic guitars and a little taste of the madness to come as the first track bleeds into “Étrangleurs de Soleils”. This second track slowly builds up with hellish vocals and powerful guitars. All the elements in this track (and release) are very direct and emotive; the band focuses more on the raw power behind them rather overproducing them to polish them to perfection.

As one of the most surprising releases of 2013, today we have Canada’s two-man project Gris and their sophomore release “À l'Âme Enflammée, l'Äme Constellée...”. This double CD album is filled with lush Neoclassical elements perfectly incorporated into moody Black Metal. Charged with emotive sections and a very dark atmosphere, this release will sneak up on you and catch you completely off-guard.

The opening track “L’Aube”, greatly reminded us of Elend and their very dramatic instrumentation and chilling screams of desperation. “Les Forges” provides the first taste of the band’s excellent combination of classical string instruments with harsh Black Metal elements. In this 15-minute track the band goes back and forth between aggressive sections and lush instrumentation that makes the song very magical and totally unexpected.

Morten Veland and company have returned with a very powerful and engaging Sirenia release under the name of “Perils of the Deep Blue”. In this release we see the band going a bit back in time and bringing back some of the elements that made “Nine Destinies and a Downfall” one of their best releases six years ago. Featuring 11 tracks of majestic Symphonic/Gothic Metal, the band is seriously gunning for Epica’s crown in this genre.

After the lush and dramatic mood-setting opener “Ducere Me In Lucem”, the band really comes alive with the super catchy “Seven Windows Weep”. In this track we get lush choir arrangements to accompany Ailyn’s hypnotic vocals. With over the top orchestrations, this track and “My Destiny Coming To Pass” really set a very dynamic and overpowering atmosphere. The band also focuses on staying heavy, featuring powerful riffs and aggressive growls.

Featuring the return of the band’s debut release vocalist, Lawrence Mackrory, today we have Darkane’s latest opus “The Sinister Supremacy”. Keeping the Swedish Death/Thrash Metal flame alive, this release is packed with a 14 massive tracks (on the digipack version), that will have you headbanging since the opening riff. With a scene filled with band shifting to the annoying (at times) core-like screams, it is quite refreshing to have manly vocals in this release.

After the dramatic orchestral opening, the album kicks off with the pummeling album title track. Darkane immediately shows off their power with powerful melodic guitars and very fitting vocals. The band took 5 years between releases but they still deliver very effective and engaging songs. We particularly like the catchy chorus sections and mixtures of clean and harsh vocals. Other tracks that have more elaborate opening sections like “The Decline” nicely keep the album fresh and change the flow of the release very effectively.

Delivering waves of powerful riffs, today we have Venomous Maximus and their debut-full length “Beg Upon The Light”. Originally released in 2012, Napalm Records has taken into their hands to properly release this album and get this band the amount of exposure they deserve. Featuring 10 tracks of a very unique mixture of Occult Rock and Stoner Metal, this band has a very different musical approach when compared to other Occult Rock bands that focus on adding psychedelic elements and a groovier vibe.

After a cheesy intro powered by organs, “Path of Doom” leads the way with very heavy and Sludgy riffs. The vocals are quite powerful and contrasting, reminiscent of Heavy Metal acts from the 80’s. The Doom-esque “Give Up The Witch” nicely continues the onslaught of riffs that this band has crafted for such an interesting release, with a high emphasis on catchiness, they immediately command the listeners attention.

Arriving in 12” LP format to Infernal Masquerade’s office, a rare thing these days, today we have USBM’s finest offering: Teratism, and their latest diabolical opus “La Bas”. In this four song EP we have Teratism at its finest delivering uncompromising diabolical Black Metal filled with sheer power and determination. Unlike many poser USBM releases, Teratism stays true to their calling and has managed to produce one fine piece of collectible vinyl with this one.

Opening side A with a very dramatic and chaotically hellish intro to the track “Gospel of the Heliophobe” the band goes full blast in under a minute. Always characterized by the hellish riffing of Murder, and now ex-member Domitian, the band’s massive wall of devilish sound is instantly crafted. While never abusing of their raw power, they deliver solid and creepy atmospheric passages that will make you get goose bumps. Another stand-out element of this track is the piercing bass guitar line, courtesy of Giles de Rais, the band’s lyricist.

Featuring two very interesting and intense one-man Atmospheric Black Metal bands, today we have the split release between Spectral Lore (Greece) and Mare Cognitum (USA) titled “Sol”. Out on I, Voidhanger Records, this powerful release features one very long track from each band, and a rather peculiar dual-composition song that mixes both of their atmospheric strengths in a very hypnotic song.

Mare Cognitum does the honor of opening with a 29-minute epic titled “Sol Ouroboros”. This track nicely flows from the atmospheric intro into some very fast-paced and intense Black Metal sections. With all instruments, vocals, etc., handled by Jacob Buczarski, this band delivers quite an intricate dosage of moody BM that weaves back and forth between blistering speeds and atmospheric magic. There are some odd drone/noise-like sections here and there, only adding to the overall listening experience of this fine piece.