Sludge Metal

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    The Body – Master, We Perish (2013)

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    One of the weirdest and most sonically abusive bands to hail from the USA, The Body, returns with a three-song EP titled “Master, We Perish” that promises to be as weird as any of their previous releases. With their crushing Sludge Metal, this two-piece band delivers 18 minutes of pure aural filth that will have all fans of the genre going ape-shit about this album.

    Quickly opening with some WWII sirens, “The Ebb And Flow Of Tides In A Sea of Ash” immediately makes the raw sound of The Body felt present. The harsh and very brutal guitar work is perfectly crushing and the droning drums are just there to make things even more confusing. Sounding like something that Merzbow would have produced… while on crack, this track is quite brutal and relentless.

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    Mother Susurrus – Maahaavaa (2013)

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    Fully recorded using analog gear, today we have Finland’s Mother Susurrus and their debut full-length release “Maahaavaa”. Combining elements from bands like Neurosis, High of Fire, and more traditional Hard and Acid Rock influences, they masterfully crafted a sound that is quite hard to pin down, but is very interesting and unique sounding. This 48 minute release contains five solid tracks that command maximum aural attention.

    True audiophiles greatly appreciate when things are recorded via analog gear, and this is very evident when you get those nice grainy effects and elements in the music that really make things pop and sound natural. The first example of said things is the crushing opener “Superposition”. Clocking in at around 10 minutes, this mammoth track shows the band’s Sludge/Doom power with some more direct Hard rock influences.

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    Sannhet – Known Flood (2013)

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    Delivering 43 minutes of relentless instrumental Post-Metal with Black Metal, Sludge and even some post-punk influences, today we have Sannhet and their debit release “Known Flood”. With a current rise in the popularity of Post-Metal bands that try to be copycats of Neurosis and Isis, it is quite refreshing to hear a band like Sannhet that can deliver the goods and still craft a unique and crushing style of their own.

    The brutal “Abescon Isle” delivers a similar pummeling feeling to bands like Wolves In The Throne Room but with a sludgier edge. The band’s Black Metal influences are very evident and they make them very present in their intense riffing demonstration. Things get more interesting with the strange opening of “Invisible Wounds”, setting a very disturbing and quite engaging atmospheric tone before going back into powerful melodic and heavy riffs.

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    Regarde Les Hommes Tomber - Regarde Les Hommes Tomber (2013)

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    Rounding up our promo package from LADLO productions, today we have another exciting new outfit from France under the moniker Regarde Les Hommes Tomber. With their self-titled debut release, this band manages to blend elements of Neurosis and Amenra and create a very tight and devastating Sludgy Post-Black Metal. If you like heavy and powerful guitars that create a huge wall of sound, Regarde Les Hommes Tomber is the band for you.

    With the hypnotic droning of the bands opening track, “Prelude”, we immediately feel their wrath with punishing riffs and skillful drumming. The Post-Rock/Metal elements thrown into the mix really shake things up and keep their sound very fresh. In full Neurosis/Amenra worship mode, “Wanderer of Eternity” delivers a full blast of power in the shape of harsh vocals and solid guitar work, never letting go of their heaviness and brutality.

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    King Bong – Space Shanties (2012)

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    With a name like King Bong, one can immediately tell what kind of music this band plays. This Italian trio delivers a hefty dosage of Instrumental Stoner/Sludge Metal that was recorded live and without the usage of any studio magic, adding to the overall brilliance of the songs presented here. Featuring over 60 minutes of jazzy and funky music, this is one album that all fans of the genre should pay attention to.

    Starting with the interestingly named track “Even 50 Feet Hamsters Have Feelings”, we all know what the band was on when they came up with such a name. With a very slow and hypnotic pace, this track features a hefty amount of psychedelicness that will make you start thinking you are hallucinating. The bass, guitar, and drums approach to the music gives it a very minimalist take, while being far from being dull and repetitive.

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    When Icarus Falls – Aegean (2012)

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    In a truly epic and devastating manner, today we have Swiss Post-Hardcore moshers When Icarus Falls and their sophomore full-length release “Aegean”. In this seven-track release the band delivers punishing anthems that remind us of a mixture of The Ocean with Neurosis and Amenra with a few hints of the Post-Metal elements of Cult of Luna. With the recording in charge of Julien Felhman, the band taps into their inner demons and unleashes one hell of a release.

    The riffing onslaught beings with the soul crushing “A Step Further”, a track that delivers crystal clear guitars and super harsh vocals. With a similar production sound to Neurosis and The Ocean, the band’s powerful guitar/vocal attacks are perfectly delivered. As the tracks bleeds into the album title track, subtle drums are very well used to bridge the two songs. “Aegean” delivers 9-minutes of intensity that constantly keeps growing over time. The vocals again take center stage as they are very powerful and greatly contrast the Post-Metal / Sludgy music laid out.

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    Dacast – Dédale (2012)

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    Delivering a punishing aural assault of 35 minutes, today we have Dacast and their sophomore release “Dédale”. This French experimental band combines almost everything you can imagine in a ‘heavy as fuck’ package that is truly genius and totally deranged at the same time. With parts of Deathcore to brilliant Math Metal and Progressive sections, this monolithic release has something for everybody.

    With a very bizarre retro cover that pretty much describes how the music sounds, this release is totally unique and quite disturbing. The band’s in your face style is quite brutal, but what makes us even more uneasy is how amazing the band is a going from a proggy section to a balls-to-the-wall Deathcore passage and back into some Jazzy stuff. This release is split into two sides, each one as crazy and chaotic as the other, but with an underlying technical brilliance that is unrivaled.

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    Opium Warlords – We Meditate Under The Pussy In The Sky (2012)

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    Delivering one of those releases that makes you wonder why did you actually wasted time listening to it, today we have Opium Warlords and unbelievably their second release “We Meditate Under The Pussy In The Sky”. In this total shit-factory, we have Sami Albert Hynninen of Reverend Bizzare fame, taking a totally dump on music and concocting one of the worst releases ever since Botanist’s “I: The Suicide Tree / II: A Rose From The Dead”.

    After the super dull ‘minimalist’ intro “Sxi-Meru” we have the totally aimless “Slippy”. We know this ‘style’ of music is supposed to be this way, but it is just a random collection of thoughts and a few very nasty riffs put together. Sounding like a low quality rehearsal of something having a seizure while holding a pick to a guitar, “Lament For The Builders Of Khara Khoto” keeps the nonsense going.

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    Amenra – Mass V (2012)

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    Four years have passed since the band’s last opus title “Mass III”, this enigmatic band from Belgium is finally back after a series of split releases and an EP with “Mass V”. In this crushing release the band brings their in-your-face Doom/Sludge to Neurot Recordings and delivers a release that will put them in direct comparisons to early Neurosis and Year of No Light.

    The first blow is the delivered by the monolithic “Boden” and it’s very natural and unnerving progression. When the powerful riffs finally make their appearance, the listener is well into an hypnotic trance thanks to the tracks slow progression. The screams are pretty typical of a Sludge release, but it’s the drifting guitar work that really hooks the listener into this song.

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    Neurosis – Honor Found In Decay (2012)

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    As one of the most versatile and influential bands in Metal, Neurosis returns with yet another amazing release that tests the sonic limits of Metal (and all the other influences they merge) for over 60 minutes of brilliantly crafted music. With their creativity intact, “Honor Found In Decay” marks another outstanding release by Neurosis that even after a five-year absence (since their last record that is) they sound as fresh and as current as ever.

    Opening with the excellent “We All Rage in Gold”, the band delivers their characteristic Sludge-infused guitar riffs but with an interesting Post-Metal/Rock-ish guitar layers. The bass guitar is very present and nicely guiding alongside the perfectly crafted drumming. After setting the mood brilliantly, Neurosis continues with the mysterious “At The Well”. In this track we have a slower start to things that is greatly carried by the combination of vocals from Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till. The riffing erupts and when combined with tribal-esque drumming we get the traditional Neurosis sonic brutality in full swing. Constantly changing tempos really make this song quite a delightful experience.

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