Daniel's Forum Replies

See, my personal limit is 40% for primary genre tags unless there's no clear alternative genre & all potential candidates are low. If you're a power metal fan who hates progressive metal then you're not gonna have much fun with a record that's only 20% power metal & 80% progressive metal. I'd suggest that a minimum of 40% is enough to make it interesting for someone like that. I wouldn't want an album topping the charts when only 30% of its run time is spent within the dedicated genre for that chart either.

I'm certainly no power metal aficionado Andi so I may well be barking up the wrong tree but the only tracks I consider to be power metal (i.e. not far further over onto the progressive side) are "Spread Your Fire", "Angels & Demons" & "The Temple of Hate" ("Angels & Demons" being more of a 50/50 of prog/power metal). Which others do you regard as fitting the bill for power metal?

OK, so I really tried with this one. I genuinely wanted to like it (particularly as the guitar solos are so spectacular) but I just couldn't quite get it over the line in the end & it wasn't because it's a power metal record as the reality is that it's actually not. I challenge anyone to identify more than two or three of the thirteen tracks that are genuine power metal here. The two obvious ones ("Spread Your Wings" & "The Temple of Hate") fall into that Helloween/Rhapsody space & are pretty intolerable to me though so I guess the genre has still had an impact on my overall enjoyment factor. If you examine the tracklisting closely though you'll find that most of the album is actually made up of a fairly ambitious brand of Dream Theater-inspired progressive metal which sounds good on paper but in practice ends up being too laden with cheese for my taste. It was a bit frustrating to find that I enjoy just over half of the individual tracks but that the inclusions that I can't get into are so wide of the mark that it taints the whole experience for me.

As I said, those solos try their very best to salvage things for me as they're as good as you'll hear (Better than Dream Theater though Andi? That hurts! Petrucci is my guitar idol!). Front man Edu Falaschi tries really hard to sound like James LaBrie for the majority of the album & pulls it off pretty well for the most part while the orchestration is really well done but it's the usual concept album tropes that drag things down with numerous filler tracks being included purely for the sake of a storyline that I have next to no interest in. The symphonic element is predominantly used as an accompaniment rather than a focal point which was a relief but Angra simply lose me too often to warrant me returning to "Temple of Shadows". Instead I find the record to be a good source of playlist tracks with songs like "Winds of Destination" & "Morning Star" being high quality examples of the progressive metal genre.

3/5

I'm glad Ben choose this release as this month's feature because it's been on my radar to revisit for a while now & I'd probably have checked it out this month at some point anyway. I remember not being as positive about it as I'd hoped at the time of release which is probably why it's taken me all these years to get back to it &, to be honest, not a lot's changed. Ben's been a massive fan of "Screams & Whispers" for a zillion years now but I just can't see what the big deal is. It's a serviceable progressive metal record with some thrash metal influence. I don't think it's accurate to call it a progressive thrash release as the progressive side of Anacrusis' sound dominates this tracklisting with a fair amount of US power metal in their sound. The thrashier parts remind me a lot of Testament's "Practice What You Preach" & "Souls Of Black" albums & vocalist Kenn Nardi seems to try to sound like Chuck Billy during his more aggressive moments too but I'd compare "Screams & Whispers" more to bands like Watchtower, Mekong Delta & particularly Nevermore more than I would to Coroner or Vektor.

Unlike Sonny though, I'm gonna have to admit that I find the vocals to be one of the weaker components of "Screams & Whispers". I wouldn't say they're much more than serviceable & think that a record like this one is sorely lacking a top line front man. I also find the production to sound noticeably dated with the rhythm guitar tone suffering from a hollow frequency scoop that was very much of its time & the keyboards being pretty random & more than a bit cheesy. I don't really find the album to get going until it makes a late surge through the one-two punch of the Voivod-inspired "My Soul's Affliction" into "Driven" but sadly the tracklisting dies in the ass shortly afterwards with the lengthy closer "Brotherhood?" which is the clear low point of the album.

I dunno. There are some really good things going on here (particularly the proggier lead guitar work which generally elevates things) but I'm afraid I don't see this record as the minor underground classic it's widely regarded as being. Enjoyable? Certainly but, despite the clear talent on display, I find it a bit hard to look past the flaws here.

3.5/5

This nomination has been posted in the Hall of Judgement.

Danzig - "Danzig" (1988)

Interestingly I'd never given Glenn Danzig's widely celebrated self-titled debut an active listen until now. I was certainly across the couple of tracks that got flogged on underground metal radio back in the late 80's/early 90's ("Twist of  Cain" & "Mother" specifically) but the rest of the record was previously unknown to me. I didn't mind Danzig's 1990 sophomore album "Danzig II: Lucifuge" though so I thought I might also enjoy the debut & I do to a similar extent. Neither album are particularly to my taste but both offer a crunchy brand of bluesy AC/DC style hard rock with a darker Black Sabbath edge & a vocal delivery that pays homage to Elvis Presley. Is it a metal release? Not even close in my opinion. There are a couple of legitimate heavy metal tunes amongst the ten on offer (see "Am I Demon" & "The Hunter") but I can't say that I ever really find myself considering a metal-based tag for this one. The consistency of the tracklisting is certainly pretty good though as there's not a weak track in sight but, in saying that, I don't think there's a truly classic song here either. In fact, the two most popular tracks are probably the ones that I enjoy the least amongst this lot. I do dig the bluesy feel & the warm & uncluttered back-to-basics production but I don't think "Danzig" will be one that I return to all that often. I'd probably take the follow-up over this one by a slim margin.

3.5/5

Vinny, "Torn Apart" was included in this month's playlist. Feel free to pick an alternative track.

Great submission Vinny. "Revelations of the Red Sword" is a classy & sophisticated modern black metal record that very much sounds like it could have come from the French scene as it would sit pretty comfortably alongside the likes of Deathspell Omega & Blut aus Nord. The vocals aren't necessarily your dime-a-dozen black metal shriek & kinda remind me of early Gorguts at times while the instrumentation takes a dissonant route that's high on atmospherics & complexity. The tracklisting is extremely consistent with each of the six tracks being of a very high standard. Svartidauði wait until  the epic eleven minute closer "Aureum Lux" to really seal the deal though & it's a pretty spectacular way to finish off a very rewarding extreme metal release.

4/5

The Dvvell, Northlane & Critical Defiance releases all got my vote as winners of their respective clans so I'm very comfortable with those. Although I've yet to explore it, the Blind Guardian record seems to be fairly unanimous on social media too so it was a bit of a no-brainer for a clan that we found had surprisingly few ratings in our datatbase in 2022. The An Abstract Illusion record was an interesting one. Ben & I had to decide on a cut-off point for The Horde as far as minimum ratings go & had two different potential winners depending on which one we chose. In the end we decided that there simply wasn't enough releases with 4+ ratings to make it a valid option so we went with 3 which saw Inanna missing out. I would have gone with Inanna personally but are comfortable with the result nonetheless because I know Ben will absolutely love "Woe" & even if he only awarded it a four star rating it would still be ahead of Inanna. Besides, two of our regulars awarded "Woe" an impressive 4.5/5 rating which should count for something. My personal pick for The Infinite would have been the self-titled Ode & Elegy album but I'm happy with Cult of Luna as it's a stunning release in its own right. The Author & Punisher album is also a worthy winner. I personally enjoyed the Northlane record a touch more but it's already won another clan award & there isn't a lot between the two for mine. I haven't gotten around to the Static Dress album as yet but will likely get to it at some point in the future while I've opted not to rate the Blut aus Nord one to date as I think it deserves a little more active listening time than I've afforded it thus far.

Overall, I agree with Vinny that The Pit & my beloved The Horde had a pretty quiet year from what I've seen & heard. The Infinite was the clan that I think came out on top in 2022 with a slew of outstanding records. This is what my top ten looks like at present with the top seven being the releases that really smashed me:

01. Scarcity - "Aveilut"

02. Ode & Elegy - "Ode & Elegy"

03. Hate Forest - "Innermost"

04. Cult of Luna - "The Long Road Home"

05. Dreadnought - "The Endless"

06. Dvvell - "Quiescent"

07. Disillusion - "Ayam"

08. Inanna - "Void of Unending Depths"

09. Neptunian Maximalism - "Set Chaos To The Heart Of The Moon"

10. Immolation - "Acts of God"

For the record, the Northlane album gets my vote from the couple of eligible releases I explored last year.

Apparently I didn't check out a single The Revolution release from 2022.

With the award winners about to be announced, I thought I'd throw in my two cents by nominating the Critical Defiance album as my pick.

I think the Fellowship record was the only The Guardians release I checked out for the entire year which is a pretty clear indication that it's the clan that offers me the least appeal these days. I didn't enjoy the experience either.

With the award winners about to be announced, I thought I'd throw in my two cents & say that the Dvvell record gets my vote for The Fallen release of the year. Well done to Sonny for nominating it for feature release status, otherwise it probably would have slipped past me as I haven't seen it getting much publicity.

Scarcity's Aveilut was just horrible.

Interestingly that record has ended up being my number one metal release of the year & I think it's Ben's too. It certainly requires some investment as it's just so unusual on first listen but ultimately won't be for everyone (as we've seen with the drastic variation in scores across our regular contributors).

In fairness, Andi's Top Ten Releases of All Time list would likely be mostly punk-infused too as those are the roads he mostly regularly drives on.

This nomination has been posted in the Hall of Judgement Andi.

I don't mind a bit of Fuck The Facts but haven't ventured further back in their career than 2003's "Backstabber Etiquette" which I recall being a bit flat. They've certainly improved since then but I would never have picked them for something that you'd enjoy as grindcore is certainly the primary ingredient in their sound.

Out of interest, why is black noise excluded from qualification?

Here's my review from this morning:

Sweden’s Gorement are one of those unique cases of an extreme metal band that has built up a following very gradually over many years before finally being placed on somewhat of a pedestal by underground enthusiasts who all swear blind that they were into them back in the day. The reality is that unless you were an obsessive tape trader then you probably didn’t encounter the band until long after the year of release. There was a bit of a buzz around the tape trading scene about Gorement’s solitary full-length in the mid-1990’s & I was lucky enough to pick the album up through an Aussie trader I was involved with who was utterly infatuated with Swedish death metal, particularly of the doomier variety as we find here.

I have to say that “The Ending Quest” didn’t blow me away at the time though & it’s been fascinating to see their cool-factor gaining momentum over the years. I’ve been meaning to revisit the album for a good four or five years since I noticed it had been remastered & released by Century Media, mainly because I wanted to see if I’d been missing something back in the day. I also had a strong suspicion that “The Ending Quest” might be something that would interest our beloved Sonny given that one of my strongest memories of it was that it sat somewhere in the grey area between death metal & doom/death.

Upon review, I’d have to say that that’s a fairly accurate recollection because, despite most websites claiming Gorement to be doomy death metal in a similar way to that of bands like Autopsy & Asphyx, I’d suggest that “The Ending Quest” is actually a more genuine hybrid & worthy of a dual tagging (& clanning too if you want to get technical). Gorement combine the classic mid-paced death metal of Bolt Thrower & early Amorphis with the melodic doom/death of early Paradise Lost & Katatonia but they do it with the sort of grimy underground authenticity that appeals to an audience that was raised on crudely dubbed demo tapes. The execution is fairly sloppy & unsophisticated with the musicianship not being high on the list of priorities however those aren’t criticisms as such as those elements tend to work in with Gorement’s whole image & mystique to tell you the truth. I think it’s the contrast of the dark brutality of death metal with the catchy melodies of doom/death that gives them a unique atmosphere & appeal that’s quite rare these days & the filthy production job only further enhances that.

Front man Jimmy Karlson does a splendid job at the death growls & he may well be the highlight of “The Ending Quest” although there’s also an argument for the atmospheric guitar melodies during the doomier moments too. Unfortunately for me though, I’ve always favoured the more sophisticated American brand of death metal over the comparatively more primitive Scandinavian style & that position sees me craving a little more professionalism here. Despite quite enjoying almost the entire tracklisting, I can’t say that I find any of these tracks to really hit my sweet spot. It’s only really the noticeably weaker “Darkness Of The Dead” that I regard as being subpar with the other nine songs possessing an impressive consistency, even if the level they’re maintaining isn’t close to the top tiers. I tend to find the doomier moments to be more attractive than the up-tempo death metal riffs & I think that comes down to the band’s lack of precision as much as anything.

After giving “The Ending Quest” a few active listens in recent days I’ve reached the conclusion that not a lot has changed in regard to its appeal for me personally. It’s certainly an enjoyable listen but I can’t say that I feel like I’ll be returning to it any time soon. Is it worthy of the praise it seems to receive these days? Well… no, I don’t think it is. There was much better material being released at the time & I kinda get the feeling that it’s the albums primitive aesthetics that are as responsible for its lofty status as much as anything else. I mean, just take a look at that album cover, particularly the logo which seems to have been hand-drawn & pasted on with glue! If that’s not authentically underground & primitive then I dunno what is.

3.5/5

Ben, please add Ghost's "Meliora" album to the database.

Ghost - "Meliora" (2015)

Yep, I know what you're thinking. Isn't this album a hard rock/heavy metal record? Well sites like RYM would certainly have you believe so but that's more of a reflection on the RYM audience than it is the reality because I can assure you that this is a progressive metal/progressive rock hybrid. There isn't a genuine hard rock song on the tracklisting & there's really only one heavy metal tune too. I'd actually never heard a Ghost album before now but this one isn't too bad at all. Sure, it's a very lightweight & accessible version of metal but the riffs are definitely there & there are some pretty decent hooks in there too. I think I can dig this shit actually. It's conceptually quite an ambitious record & is really well executed. The unintimidating vocal delivery strangely possesses a noticeably American twang & I'd probably prefer something a little dirtier but I can see why Ghost appeal to so many people, even if they're probably a little too user-friendly for this particular metalhead.

3.5/5

Here's my revised list:

1970: Black Sabbath – “Paranoid”

1971: Black Sabbath – “Master Of Reality”

1972: Black Sabbath – “Vol 4”

1973: Black Sabbath – “Sabbath Bloody Sabbath”

1974: Budgie – “In For The Kill”

1975: Black Sabbath – “Sabotage”

1976: Judas Priest - "Sad Wings Of Destiny"

1977: Quartz – “Quartz”

1978: Judas Priest – “Killing Machine”

1979: Judas Priest – “Unleashed In The East”

1980: Diamond Head – “Lightning To The Nations”

1981: Motorhead – “No Sleep Till Hammersmith”

1982: Ozzy Osbourne – “Speak Of The Devil”

1983: Slayer – “Show No Mercy”

1984: Metallica – “Ride The Lightning”

1985: Exodus – “Bonded By Blood”

1986: Slayer – “Reign In Blood”

1987: Bathory – “Under The Sign Of The Black Mark”

1988: Metallica – “…And Justice For All”

1989: Morbid Angel – “Altars Of Madness”

1990: Slayer - "Seasons In The Abyss"

1991: Death – “Human”

1992: Alice In Chains – “Dirt”

1993: diSEMBOWELMENT – “Transcendence Into The Peripheral”

1994: Darkthrone – “Transilvanian Hunger”

1995: Suffocation – “Pierced From Within”

1996: Burzum – “Filosofem”

1997: The Gathering - "Nighttime Birds"

1998: ISIS – “The Mosquito Control” E.P.

1999: Botch - "We Are The Romans"

2000: Immolation – “Close To A World Below”

2001: Tool - "Lateralus"

2002: ISIS – “Oceanic”

2003: Boris – “Boris At Last -Feedbacker-“

2004: ISIS – “Panopticon”

2005: Deathspell Omega – “Kenose” E.P.

2006: Celtic Frost – “Monotheist”

2007: Ufomammut/Lento - "Supernaturals - Record One"

2008: Pig Destroyer - "Natasha" E.P.

2009: Dragged Into Sunlight - "Hatred For Mankind"

2010: Hate - "Erebos"

2011: Inside The Beehive - "Drink Bleach; Live Forever" E.P.

2012: 7 Horns 7 Eyes - "Throes Of Absolution"

2013: The Amenta - "Flesh Is Heir"

2014: Dead Congregation - "Promulgation Of The Fall"

2015: Akhlys - "The Dreaming I"

2016: Mick Gordon - "Doom (Original Game Soundtrack)"

2017: Cavurn - "Rehearsal" demo

2018: Infernal Coil - "Within A World Forgotten"

2019: Esoteric - "A Pyrrhic Existence"

2020: Oranssi Pazuzu - "Mestarin kynsi"

2021: Fange - "Pantocrator"

2022: Scarcity - "Aveilut"

My updated list after revisiting (& finally rating) Esoteric's "A Pyrrhic Existence" over the last couple of days with Ea's self-titled 2012 album being the unlucky release to drop out of my top ten:

01. Esoteric - "The Maniacal Vale" (2008)

02. Esoteric – “Paragon of Dissonance” (2011)

03. Esoteric – “Metamorphogenesis” (1999)

04. Esoteric - "A Pyrrhic Existence" (2019)

05. Ahab - "The Call of The Wretched Sea" (2006)

06. Esoteric - "The Pernicious Enigma" (1997)

07. Evoken – “Atra Mors” (2012)

08. The Howling Void – “Shadows Over The Cosmos” (2010)

09. Thergothon – “Stream From The Heavens” (1994)

10. Monolithe – “Monolithe II” (2005)

10. Ea – “Ea” (2012)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/132

This release was always going to float my boat as I'm about as big an Esoteric fan as you'll find. I loved what I heard when I gave it a couple of spins at the time of release but, as any fan of the band will tell you, you really need to spend a few days with one of these monolithic double albums of theirs so I was hesitant to rate it until I'd done so. Well, I have now & I've gotta say that "A Pyrrhic Existence" is well underrated. I think people's views are probably being skewed a bit by how mind-blowing some of Esoteric's previous releases were because this material is still well ahead of their funeral doom metal competition. But then, Esoteric have always been so much more than a funeral doom band & you won't find a better example of that than you do with this record as each of the lengthy tracks takes a very different side-road at some point in the journey & doesn't tend to return until it's been fully explored. Admittedly, I don't think that any of these tracks are perfect. Each of them includes a section that prevents me from dishing out full marks but there's also nothing here that's not of an extremely high quality. There are a three or four Esoteric releases that I rate higher than "A Pyrrhic Existence" but I fucking love this shit & it's not all that far behind. This record should be essential listening for all fans of extreme doom metal.

4.5/5

Oops! Go for "Ekpyrotic" instead.

Here's my submission for the March playlist Andi:

Author & Punisher - "Maiden Star" (from "Kruller", 2022)

No submissions from me this month Andi.

Here are my submissions for the March playlist Vinny. Once again I haven't spent much time in The Pit this month so there's a couple of tracks that you may want to review first:

Autoneosis - "Moon of Foul Magics" (from "Moon of Foul Magics", 2022)

G.I.S.M. - "(Tere Their) Syphilitic Vaginas To Pieces" (from "Detestation", 1983)       [I'm tagging this one as stenchcore but feel free to omit it if you don't feel it should qualify]

Death SS - "Inquisitor - 1983" (from "The Story Of Death SS : 1977-1984", 1987)      [I'm tagging this one as speed metal but feel free to omit it if you don't feel it should qualify]

Here's my submissions for the March playlist Ben:

Leviathan - "A Veil Is Lifted" (from "Scar Sighted", 2015)

Asunojokei - "Footprints" (from Island", 2022)

White Ward - "Leviathan" (from "False Light", 2022)

Here are my submissions for the March playlist:

Monstrosity - "Perpetual War" (from "In Dark Purity", 1999)

Artificial Brain - "A Lofty Grave" (from "Artificial Brain", 2022)

An Abstract Illusion - "Tear Down This Holy Mountain" (from "Woe", 2022)

Immolation - "Let The Darkness In" (from "Acts of God", 2022)

Here's my submission for the March playlist Xephyr:

Bitch - "Riding In Thunder" (from "Be My Slave", 1983)

Here's my submission for the March playlist Saxy

Moon Tooth - "Alpha Howl" (from "Phototroph", 2022)

Here's my submissions for the March playlist Sonny:

Chat Pile - "Slaughterhouse" (from "God's Country", 2022)

The Otolith - "Hubris" (from "Folium Limina", 2022)

Death SS - "Chains of Death - 1982" (from "The Story of Death SS : 1977-1984", 1987)

I think we may have figured it out guys. Ben found that he couldn't use the previous link if he tried to collaborate using his browser but it worked fine when using the Spotify application on either his phone or his laptop so it would seem it's an issue with using a browser to view Spotify.

Here's the lucky nominators for the March feature releases:

THE FALLEN: Ben, Daniel, Sonny

THE GATEWAY: Saxy, Andi

THE GUARDIANS: Xephyr, Daniel

THE HORDE: Vinny, Ben, Daniel

THE INFINITE: Xephyr, Saxy, Andi

THE NORTH: Sonny, Xephyr, Daniel, Ben, Vinny

THE PIT: Sonny, Vinny, Daniel, Ben

THE REVOLUTION: Andi, Daniel

THE SPHERE: Daniel, Andi

Also, I've decided that I can't continue to rate & review all nine of the monthly feature releases as it's simply becoming a bit of a chore when I'm also conducting regular subgenre deep dives which often take me well outside of my musical comfort zone. I need to give myself a little more creative freedom so moving forwards I'll only be endeavoring to check out the feature releases from my four clans as a rule. I'll probably get to one of two of the others too but please don't take offense if I don't get to your nomination.

February 2023

01. Atrocity – “Defiance” (from “Longing For Death”, 1992) [Submitted by Vinny]

02. Blood Stain Child – “Unlimited Alchemist” (from “Epsilon”, 2011) [Submitted by Daniel]

03. Pavor – “Total Warrior” (from “A Pale Debilitating Autumn”, 1994)

04. Blood Duster – “Metalasfuck” (from “Str8 Outta Northcote”, 1998)

05. Cenotaph – “Soul Profundis” (from “Riding Our Black Oceans”, 1994)

06. Fleshgod Apocalypse – “The Forsaking” (from “Agony”, 2011) [Submitted by Daniel]

07. Thotcrime – “There Will Come Soft Rains…” (from “D1G1T4L_DR1FT”, 2022)

08. Paradise Lost – “Drown In Darkness” (from “Drown In Darkness – The Early Demos”, 2009) [Submitted by Daniel]

09. Abnegation – “Hopes of Harmony” (from “Verses of the Bleeding”, 1998)

10. Equilibrium – “Final Tear” (from “Renegades”, 2019) [Submitted by Daniel]

11. Ulcerate – “Extinguished Light” (from “Shrines of Paralysis”, 2016) [Submitted by Daniel]

12. Monstrosity – “Manic” (from “Millenium”, 1996) [Submitted by Vinny]

13. Autophagia – “Postmortem Human Offal” (from “Postmortem Human Offal” E.P., 2003)

14. The Red Chord – “Dreaming In Dog Years” (from “Fused Together In Revolving Doors”, 2002)

15. Mortuous – “Defiled By Fire” (from “Upon Desolation”, 2022) [Submitted by Vinny]

16. Entombed – “Severe Burns” (from “Clandestine”, 1991) [Submitted by Vinny]

17. Plasma – “Observed Observer” (from “Creeping! Crushing! Crawling!”, 2007)

18. Obituary – “Torn Apart” (from “Dying Of Everything”, 2023)

19. Abyssal – “Antechamber of the Wakeless Mind” (from “Tchornobog/Abyssal” split, 2022)

20. Archagathus – “Intoxicating Aroma” (from “Canadian Horse”, 2011)

21. Cattle Decapitation – “Chunk Blower” (from “To Serve Man”, 2002)

22. Sintury – “Disgorging The Dead” (from “Disgorging The Dead”, 1998)

23. Ὁπλίτης [Hoplites] – “Ὁ τῶν δακρύων ἄγγελος” (from “Ψευδομένη”, 2023)

24. Exocrine – “End Of Time” (from “The Hybrid Suns”, 2022) [Submitted by Vinny]

25. Abnormity – “Shattered To The Bone” (from “Irreversible Disintegration”, 2011)

26. Scalp – “Endless Relapse” (from “Black Tar”, 2023)

I've given the Immolation album a good crack this week & it's another high quality example of their signature sound. It's professionally written, produced & executed & possesses everything any Immolation fan would expect from the band. I'm not sure I can say that it's anything particularly classic though as it's really just another Immolation record as far as I can see. Admittedly, it's a particularly consistent & weighty one that rarely disappoints but I don't think there are enough genuine highlight tracks for my higher scores. In saying that though, I'd probably take it over more widely celebrated records like "Unholy Cult" or "Here In After" so I guess that's saying something but it's not in the same ballpark as an album like "Close To A World Below". Still... it's an excellent example of the classic old-school death metal sound even if it rarely varies from it.

4/5

Strange! The collaboration functionality must only be temporary. I'll figure it out before next month but in the meantime I've private messaged each of you a new link.

Bitch - "Be My Slave" (1983)

This is a pretty decent & very consistent debut album from a lesser known Los Angeles four-piece that features a leather & bondage-obsessed female vocalist as the main focal point. Bitch's sound sits somewhere between hard rock & heavy metal with a bit of punk thrown in for good measure. The song-writing is ok without being anything special but it's the performances & execution that are the real highlight here as Bitch are tight as hell, know how to write crunchy hard rock riffs, feature some great guitar solos & possess a very energetic & engaging lead singer. Think Girlschool, Plasmatics & Rock Goddess.

3.5/5

An Abstract Illusion - "Woe" (2022)

I really enjoyed the high quality sophomore album from this Swedish progressive death metal outfit. It's immaculately conceived & executed with fantastic performances & plenty of spacey progressive ambition. The influences are obvious at times with the whole gamut of progressive metal masters being touched on, from the expansive & quite technical instrumental excursions of Dream Theater to the vocoded vocal delivery of Cynic to some pretty brutal blast-beats. I don't agree with the melodic death metal tag the album seems to be receiving as most of the melodic component is coming from the progressive metal side of the equation rather than any Gothenburg-style guitar harmonies so I feel a tech death tag is more suitable to cover the death metal elements on this occasion. The end result competes pretty well with the Opeth's, Ne Obliviscaris' & Persefone's of the world actually & "Woe" will no doubt leave the vast majority of our The Infinite members salivating for more, not to mention Ben who should definitely get onto this one.

4/5

That's quite an achievement Rex. Congratulations on completing such an ambitious undertaking. Is the book being published? You may be interested to know that we have another published author in our community in Andi who I believe has several children's books to his name thus far.

Disillusion - "Ayam" (2022)

I recall being very pleasantly surprised by the 2004 debut album from German progressive metallers Disillusion when I finally got around to checking it out many years ago. I hadn’t heard all that much about it & just kinda stumbled over it a good five years after its release which left me wondering what rock it’d been hiding under for all those years. Ben didn’t hesitate in advising me that it was me that’d been hiding under a rock which is probably true but given the impression that “Back To Times Of Splendor” left on me at the time it’s a little surprising that I haven’t checked out any of the band’s subsequent releases until now, even more so after being thoroughly captivated & enthralled by this spectacular example of progressive metal music.

You see, “Ayam” is everything a prog metal fan could reasonably want from an album. The production is expansive & glistening, the musicianship is to die for & the song-writing is layered & ambitious. The melodic death metal component of Disillusion’s sound has almost completely disappeared since the debut but has been replaced by a stronger focus on melody, dynamics & atmosphere. This could be viewed as a negative by some fans but for me personally this has ended up being a positive. The instrumentation still reminds me of the less intense material from some of the premier extreme progressive metal bands like Opeth, Persefone & Ne Obliviscaris however Disillusion are a little more restrained & introspective these days. In fact, I’ve found myself making comparisons with Anathema’s more progressive works at times such is the refined sense of emotion in Disillusion’s modern sound. I simply adore the vocals of front man Andy Schmidt who sounds uncannily like Beck at times & possesses a tone that competes with Katatonia’s Jonas Renkse in terms of smoothness. Another highlight comes in the form of some wonderfully progressive guitar solos which refuse to be held back by traditional rock conventions & soar above the rest of the music with some truly angelic melodies that harness the exponent’s obviously impressive technique rather than being purely a showcase for it. Don't forget drummer Martin Schulz either cause the dude can play!

The tracklisting is without blemish with each of the eight tracks being very strong in its own right. Unlike “Back To Times Of Splendor” though, I’ve found that "Ayam" possesses a few truly transcendent tracks that enable the album to reach a higher level of adoration for me personally. Eleven minute opener “Am Abgrund” sets to tone beautifully & is probably the heaviest song included. “Longhope” is pure class too but it’s the most introspective piece of the eight that captured me to the highest degree in closing number “The Brook” which has probably ended up being the track that’s seen me tempted to push “Ayam” up into the running for my higher scores. Throw in some heavenly cover art that I can’t seem to see myself looking away from & you’ve got one of the best metal albums of 2022 & an essential release for members of The Infinite.

4.5/5

^^^^ I'd suggest that that track is the only genuine avant-garde metal inclusion on the album.

Sigh - "Shiki" (2022)

I quite liked Sigh when they first hit the scene back in the 1990’s but when I returned to them following my decade-long absence from the metal scene I found that they’d gone way too far with the weirdness & albums like “Scenes From Hell” & “In Somniphobia” left me nothing short of repulsed. As a result, my expectations for their twelve full-length weren’t exactly high if I’m being completely honest but I’ve been left pleasantly surprised because last year’s “Shiki” has seen them dropping their avant-garde side for the most part, instead concentrating on a beautifully produced & well-composed progressive metal sound that's full of chunky riffs, blackened vocals & well integrated references to space rock & traditional Japanese music. The recruitment of session musicians guitarist/bassist Frédéric Leclercq (Dragonforce/Kreator/Loudblast) & drummer Mike Heller (Malignancy/Fear Factory/Raven) have proven to be very positive moves but unfortunately the Japanese-language black metal vocals are somewhat of a limiting factor here as I don’t think they’re powerful or professional enough to allow “Shiki” to reach the heights it was so clearly intended for. As usual I find myself being drawn to the album’s least popular tracks more than its obvious drawcards too with the three shorter intro/interlude/change-up tracks being the parts of the tracklisting that appeal to me the most (particularly the stunning space rock piece “Kuroi kagami”) but there aren’t any weak numbers included & I found “Shiki” to be an intriguing & generally rewarding experience that's probably the best material I've heard from Sigh.

3.5/5

Effluence - "Liquefied" E.P. (2022)

I really struggled with unusual American solo-act Effluence's 2021 debut album "Psychocephalic Spawning" as it just seemed to hold nothing of musical value so I've been very hesitant to return for another helping, despite the continuous stream of praise being heaped on them from my beloved underground death metal scene. However, the fact that Effluence's "Liquefied" E.P. is one of the top rated BDM releases of 2022 has seen me feeling that I simply had to give it a crack but unfortunately I'm now regretting that decision because this little release is right up there with the worst metal records I've ever encountered. It's essentially an attempt to make as much of a cacophony of silly noises as it's humanly possible to achieve & I've never been one that appreciated humor in my extreme metal.

The death metal component brings to mind bands like Defeated Sanity, 7.H Target & Dripping with the over the top blast-beats & super-deep, unintelligible vocals but every track might as well be the same because there aren't any themes or differences in atmosphere to grab onto. As absurd as it sounds for a death metal record, there seem to be several references to the kitchen here with the inclusion of blender sounds & the cover art & track titles being angled towards food preparation themes. I find it all so hard to tolerate to be honest & I also struggle to think of who the target demographic for a release like "Liquefied" might be. Perhaps they're not even metalheads but teenage stoners looking for a laugh? Certainly not any of our Metal Academy regulars & I'd encourage everyone to give Effluence a wide birth.

1/5

Qrixkuor - "Zoetrope" E.P. (2022)

Single track E.P.'s are often found to be guilty of over-indulgence but this 25 minute piece from English death metal duo Qrixkuor has cast aside any potential for musical wankery by creating a unique & (at times) quite frightening soundscape that takes the listener through uncharted territory. The basis for Qrixkuor's sound sits in the darkest & swampiest depths of the death metal spectrum however they've managed to differentiate themselves from the crowd through the incorporation of symphonic elements in such a way that it reminds me of a horror movie soundtrack rather than any cheesy attempt at atmosphere. You see, Qrixkuor's dense wall of darkness is far more complex & possesses a lot more integrity than the vast majority of bands that are linked to the term "symphonic". The guitar & bass work is highly complex & layered, the drums are used in an almost military fashion at times & the growled vocals are as deep & cavernous as you could want. As the song structure runs its course, you'll encounter several acts that make up the overall piece but it's unquestionably the crescendo that takes place during the last 5 or 6 minutes that's the kicker here & it represents the culmination of all of the band's hard work during the build-up of the first 20 minutes or so. You'll rarely hear something more unnerving or genuinely scary.

"Zoetrope" isn't the perfect piece of art however. The drumming isn't as accomplished as it could be which is a shame because there's definitely some unfulfilled potential left here. I do feel that the piece could have been a little snappier & a little culling could have gone a long way here but it's hard to be too critical when as artist has created an horrific world that sounds like nothing you've experienced before. The purely death metal component will likely draw comparisons to the likes of Teitanblood, Portal & Antediluvian but it's presented in a way that pulls Qrixkuor away from their peers by giving them their own identity. I have to admit that I can't pick up any of the black metal influence that's seen Qrixkuor being tagged as blackened death metal on many competitor's sites. "Zoetrope" is as death metal as they come as far as I'm concerned & it comes highly recommended for devotees of the darker end of the genre (Vinny, I'm looking at you).

4/5

I'll tell the bassist Bjorn you like it. He's currently finishing the mastering of the Neuropath CD & is also the vocalist/guitarist/bassist from Grave Upheaval. He's just joined a Gold Coast band called Grotesque Bliss which includes one of the guys from Paramæcium too.

Bekëth Nexëhmü - "De dunklas sorgeakt (Ett nordiskt afvsked...)" (2022)

I don't mind the latest release from prolific Swedish one-man atmospheric black metal artist Bekëth Nexëhmü. It was his second album for the year, following just two months after "De evigas gravrit" which is self-indulgent enough in itself if not for the fact that this new record is 104 minutes long which is just taking the piss, isn't it? You can expect a very raw, lo-fi production, the consistent use of tremolo-picked riffs & blast-beats & those distant, tortured Varg Vikernes style screams, kinda like a more brutal example of the cold & atmospheric sound that other solo acts like Paysage d'Hiver, Trhä & Burzum champion. There are quite a few interludes included which comprise of some post-black metal inspired pieces as well as a couple of lengthy folk guitar instrumentals. The black metal material is hit & miss for me as some of the tracks can sound a bit too consciously epic & triumphant, occasionally turning to glistening melodic riffs that remind me of blackgaze artists like Deafheaven. The brutality factor is a definite plus for me though & the quality of some of the interludes is excellent with a few of those pieces being my favourite moments on the album. Overall, this release will probably satisfy a lot of our The North members (Xephyr in particular) but doesn't compete with the top tier in my opinion.

3.5/5

Death SS - "Evil Metal" single (1983)

The first official release from this underground occult metal band from Italy. The three tracks are all very different from each other with the lengthy opening track (& clear highlight of the release) "Chains of Death" starting off as an excellent example of the early traditional doom metal subgenre & morphing into a more conventional heavy metal sound during the back end. The B side kicks off with a fast speed metal number by the name of "Inquisitor" before the tracklisting is closed out by a genuinely avant-garde metal song in "Schizophrenic". The doom metal tag that this record generally draws (in conjunction with heavy metal) is a little ambitious as there's really only a few minutes of proper doom on offer here. I think heavy metal is as good a tag as you're gonna find in this case as there's an element of it on all three tracks even though it may not be the primary genre for any of them. Sadly, the quality is really confined to the A side even though Death SS are undeniably an interesting act with a sound that combines the classic heavy metal of Black Sabbath/Mercyful Fate with the speed metal of Bulldozer & the traditional doom metal of Black Hole.

3/5