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Unleashing a crafty mixture of Melodic/Pagan/Folk Metal with atmospheric tendencies, today we have Germany’s Granitader and their latest EP “Schlachtenklang”. Showcasing 15-minutes of music in three tracks, this release shows a nice balance between power and melody, reminding us of outfits like Enid, Ensiferum, and User Ne. | ||
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Just when you think that Déhà’s music can’t get any darker and gloomier, he drops a release like “Nethermost & Absolute Comfort”. Creating a very intense and enveloping atmosphere, this release is sorrowful and demoralizing to almost a whole new level. For over 72 minutes, we get a master class in excruciatingly slow and painful Atmospheric/Funeral Doom, that elevates the genre to whole new levels. Opening with the 44-minute behemoth “Nethermost”, a track that makes all of Mournful Congregation’s 10+ or 20+ minute tracks seem like radio jingles, Déhà levels the human psyche with a mournful composition. This track delivers thunderous riffs, crafty tempo changes, alongside powerful atmospherics and haunting vocals, creating one of the most crushing songs we have heard in quite a while. | ||
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It’s been almost 10 years since Christian Mistress’s last release and we were pleasantly surprised to get this new album in our inbox a few weeks ago. For the uninitiated, Christian Mistress is a North American outfit that plays a mean old-school Heavy Metal, filled with attitude and an explosive nature. There are no fillers or fancy atmospherics, with “Children of the Earth” the band continues the demolishing path filled with crafty and catchy instrumentations and the gifted vocals of Christine Davis. Getting straight to the point, “City of Gold” delivers waves of old-school Heavy Metal catchiness with eclectic guitars and a powerful pace. Christine’s vocals perfectly fit this stripped down Heavy Metal music thanks to their flexibility and excellent range, as one can hear in the ripping “Voiceless” with its epic guitar leads or the superbly catchy “Demon’s Night” that brings back that vibe of 80’s Heavy Metal that has been slowly lost to time. | ||
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Always pushing the boundaries of Metal, bands on I, Voidhanger Records constantly challenge the status quo with intense releases. Today we have Sarmat and their insane Jazzy/Proggy Metal release titled “Upgrade”. Featuring two tracks and over 22 minutes of crazy music, this release has a very free-flowing vibe that is both aurally pleasing and yet very chaotic and contrived. If you like the more Jazzy side of Ihsahn with a splash of Maudlin of the Well and Dysrhythmia, do not miss out on the madness. Opening with the playful album title track, we get a blistering start with a crafty bass guitar line and intricate drumming. This quickly transforms into engaging riffs and funky tempo changes as the song transitions into more experimental territories with trumpets and some sparse vocals. The band’s sound is definitely quite unique and engaging as it keeps changing and leaving the listener always guessing what is around the corner for this 14-minute piece. Closing with a wall of dissonance, this track definitely gets the point of the band across. | ||
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Quickly taking the Pagan Metal Scene by storm, Finland’s Havukruunu have graciously evolved their sound in the last couple of years and with “Tavastland” they almost achieve perfection. With a very regal and explosive nature, the band’s fourth full-length release features eight tracks and over 53 minutes of lush and dynamic music that will have you marching towards battle while also headbanging until your neck hurts. Starting with the ravaging “Kuolematon laulunhenki”, the band creates a very effusive atmosphere with crafty guitar work, captivating vocal arrangements and an overall very explosive and engaging vibe. The band continues to showcase their masterful songwriting skills as “Yönsynty”, “Havukruunu ja talvenvarjo”, and “Tavastland” roll around with excellent melodic passages, an hypnotic tempo, and a plethora of epic atmospheric elements, just think of Ensiferum-meets-Thyrfing with some Bathory sprinkles. | ||
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Unleashing waves of old-school Black Metal, today we have Malacath and their latest offering “Eternal Roar of the Thunder and Rain”. Featuring a timeless and quite raw sound, this band delivers incisive BM for over 53 minutes with a few surprises. For fans of early Ulver and similar outfits, this release packs a mean punch while satiating primal urges. Opening with the album title track, the band unleashes its fury after an atmospheric build up. We instantly got 90’s BM vibes from this outfit thanks to the razor sharp guitar tones and the simplistic and yet effective structure. However, not all is as it seems as after a while this track suddenly transforms into Ulver’s “Bergtatt” with lush acoustic guitars thrown into the mix. The tempo is again picked up on “Call of the Specter”, a ravaging piece full of ferocity and enigmatic melody. | ||
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Hailing from Cardiff, Wales, today we have Ofnus and their majestic blend of Melodic and Atmospheric Black Metal. With “Valediction”, their sophomore full-length release, the band takes their sound to a whole new level, blending elements from bands like Saor, Winterfylleth, to more craft influences of Enslaved, Agalloch, to create a very dreamy and yet pummeling style that is hard to come by these days. Treating the listener to almost one hour of music, this release packs a mean punch. Opening with the ravaging “The Shattering”, we get a taste of the band’s perfect balance of punishing aggression with fierce riffs, vocals, and drumming, alongside elegant atmospheric and some crafty proggy tempo changes. Taking a more dramatic turn, “Reflections of Delusion” starts with an enigmatic opening that slowly escalates into aggressive onslaughts and elegant atmospheric passages. The band does a great job in creating tracks that quickly change directions while always maintaining a high degree of atmosphere, as the stunning “Throes of Agony” delivers. | ||
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Unleashing their first full-length release since the band’s return, today we have Bleeding Through and their crushing album “Nine”. Featuring their signature Metalcore sound that was always above the norm, this release delivers over 40 minutes of punishing and yet catchy music, filled with atmospheric keyboards and crafty breakdowns. Keeping a relevant and fresh sound, this band is ready to show the scene who is king. Opening with the pummeling “Gallows”, we get a very Symphonic Black/Death Metal vibe that slowly transitions into their Metalcore roots. The band’s sound has always been very ‘in your face’ and this is not the exception as tracks like “Our Brand Is Chaos”, “Dead, But so Alive”, steamroll through the listener with their dynamic tempo changes, multi-pronged vocal onslaughts and massive atmospherics. The band’s sound back in the day was ahead of its time, and heavily copied, but still manages to be relevant and masterful. | ||
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Providing a journey back in time to the days of 90’s Death Metal, today we have Russia’s Pyre and their crushing “Where Obscurity Awaits”. Blending elements from bands like Grave, (old) Hypocrisy, Suffocation, Incantation, etc., this release unleashes over 35 minutes of superbly crafted DM filled with chugging riffs, intense guitar leads and crafty vocals. If you are a fan of the original roots of this genre, this release brings back those memories. Making a statement with the pummeling album title track, we got a chill down our spines as memories of Centinex and Grave’s earlier stuff quickly came to mind. The band’s sound is timeless and yet clean, with a certain modern edge. As the band levels through tracks like “From the Stygian Depths”, “Domains of the Nameless Rites”, and “Murderous Transcendence”, the band showcases both songwriting skills and technical chops as the guitar work is catchy and engaging while masterfully incorporating crafty drumming and tempo changes. | ||
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What is colder than a glacier you might ask? Well it certainly has to be Zéro Absolu. Moving away from the drama of their original band name being stolen, Valnoir, François Duguest, Hugo Moerman return alongside Indria Saray (Alcest live) and R.R. (Regarde les Hommes Tomber) with a crushing release “La Saignée”. Featuring a lush and yet demoralizing sound, this outfit continues the antics of their previous band’s first two releases and delivers over 30 minutes of captivating Black Metal. Only featuring two tracks, the release opens with the title track, unleashing 20 minutes of an emotional rollercoaster. Featuring some elements of early Alcest, the atmosphere is quite dense and yet lush and expansive. Alongside crafty riffs and fierce raw onslaughts of harsh Black Metal scream, this song perfectly balances melody and aggression while creating a captivating backdrop to some spoken word sections, dramatic tempo changes and even some shoegazey passages alongside dreamy clean vocals. All of this with a very cathartic and expansive style. | ||
Zeal & Ardor - Baroness - Deafheaven
March 8th, 2019 - Houston, Texas
Ensiferum - Septicflesh - Arsis
January 28th, 2019 - Atlanta, Georgia
November 2nd & 3rd, 2018 - Brooklyn, NY
Eye of Solitude - Marche Funebre - Catapult the Dead
March 13th, 2018 - Oakland, California
Enslaved - Wolves in the Throne Room - Myrkur - Khemis
March 9th, 2018 - San Francisco, California
November 6th, 2017 - Atlanta, Georgia
October 29th, 2017 - Rotterdam, Netherlands
October 28th, 2017 - Rotterdam, Netherlands
Brujeria + Powerflo + Pinnata Protest
October 23rd, 2017 - San Francisco, CA
Orphaned Land + Pain + Voodoo KungFu
September 20th, 2017 - Oakland, California
August 16-19th, 2017 - Dinkelsbühl, Germany
August 10th, 2017 - Jaroměř, Czech Republic
August 11th, 2017 - Jaroměř, Czech Republic
August 12th, 2017 - Jaroměř, Czech Republic
July 28-29th, 2017 - Germany
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Feb 2-6, 2017 - USA
Children of Bodom + Abbath + Exmortus + Oni
12/05/2016 - The Regency, CA
Sonata Arctica + Leaves' Eyes + Omnium Gatherum
12/02/2016 - Slim's - San Francisco, CA
Epica + Arkona + Fleshgod Apocalypse + The Agonist
11/18/2016 - Social Hall - San Francisco, CA
Fallujah + Between The Buried And Me + Devin Townsend Project
10/05/2016 - Regency Ballroom - San Francisco, CA
