Shadowdoom9 (Andi)'s Forum Replies

August 2022

01. Between the Buried and Me - "Specular Reflection" (from The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues)

02. Dream Theater - "Hell's Kitchen" (from Falling into Infinity)

03. Leprous - "Restless" (from Bilateral)

04. Seventh Wonder - "Victorious" (from Tiara)

05. Veil of Maya - "Doublespeak" (from False Idol)

06. Threshold - "Silenced" (from Silenced)

07. Cynic - "Infinite Shapes" (from Kindly Bent to Free Us)

08. Periphery - "The Walk" (from Periphery)

09. Voyager - "Submarine" (from Submarine)

10. I Am Abomination - "Heir to the Throne" (from Passion of the Heist II)

11. Soulsplitter - "Gratitude" (from Connection)

12. Anubis Gate - "Chromazone" (from Covered in Colours)

13. Mastodon - "More Than I Could Chew" (from Hushed and Grim)

14. Novembre - "Jules" (from Materia)

15. The Ocean - "Triassic" (from Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic)

16. Mother of Millions - "Rome" (from Sigma)

17. Indukti - "Ninth Wave" (from Idmen)

18. Protest the Hero - "The Canary" (from Palimpsest)

19. Burden of Life - "Geistesblitz" (from The Makeshift Conqueror)

20. Ashenspire - "Apathy as Arsenic Lethargy as Lead" (from Hostile Architecture)

August 2022

01. Reliqa - "The Bearer of Bad News" (from The Bearer of Bad News)

02. Dorje - "Catalyst" (from Catalyst)

03. Floodgate - "Running With Sodden Legs" (from Penalty)

04. 36 Crazyfists - "Where Revenge Ends" (from Lanterns)

05. Pyogenesis - "Undead" (from Twinaleblood)

06. Evanescence - "Sweet Sacrifice" (from The Open Door)

07. Helmet - "Crashing Foreign Cars" (from Size Matters)

08. DIR EN GREY - "Beautiful Dirt" (from Withering to Death)

09. Clawfinger - "Don't Wake Me Up" (from Clawfinger)

10. Five Finger Death Punch - "Got Your Six" (from Got Your Six)

11. Giraffe Tongue Orchestra - "Crucifixion" (from Broken Lines)

12. Katatonia - "Buildings" (from Dead End Kings)

13. Spiritbox - "Rotoscope" (from Rotoscope) (song already in last month's playlist, but I'll let it slide this time)

14. Memphis May Fire - "Misery" (from Remade in Misery)

15. Yakui the Maid - "Guilt" (from Flock)

16. Motionless in White - "Scoring the End of the World" (from Scoring the End of the World)

17. The Butterfly Effect - "One Second of Insanity" (from Begins Here)

18. Lacuna Coil - "Kill the Light" (from Dark Adrenaline)

19. Nekrogoblikon - "Bones" (from The Fundamental Slimes and Humours)

20. While She Sleeps - "CALL OF THE VOID" (from SLEEPS SOCIETY)

21. Finger Eleven - "Awake and Dreaming" (from Tip)

Here are my thoughts on some tracks:

Persuader – “Twisted Eyes” (from “When Eden Burns”, 2006)

5/5. Honestly, I don't get how pop stars with computer-made music such as Lady Gaga are nearly a million times more popular than this killer band. But I guess that's how the world is... I enjoy the instrumentation and vocals, though the latter is criticized is for sounding too similar to Hansi Kürsch from Blind Guardian.

Blind Guardian – “Violent Shadows” (from “Violent Shadows”, 2022)

4.5/5. ...And speaking of that band! To paraphrase a line from this song, you need a rebel heart, you need a pure soul. My rebel heart is in a different rebellion, though this is quite an amazing song as part of the Bards' metal comeback.

Freedom Call – “Metal Is For Everyone” (from “Master of Light", 2016)

5/5. My brother stumbled upon this song when I was still listening to this band a lot more, and he was pleased with the ability to cross over into a few other metal genres while staying in their usual power metal. This is a metal song for everyone!

The Sword – "Arrows in the Dark” (from “Warp Riders”, 2010)

4.5/5. I'm not really into the stoner-ish heavy metal, but this is a great track to rock hard and high. Kick-A!

Avantasia – “The Moonflower Society" (from “The Moonflower Society", 2022)

4/5. Another great song, this one with a beautiful video clip. I'm slightly disappointed by how poppy it sounds at times, but it's still d*mn inspiring and promising for what the new album might bring, especially after the worst of the pandemic. It's quite a Toto-infused power metal dream...

Running Wild – “Black Hand Inn” (from “Black Hand Inn", 1994)

4.5/5. This was one of my favorite Running Wild songs, with some quintessential guitar. Right from the start, you get very good speedy pirate power metal, though I've proven that a pirate power metal life is not for me.

Kamelot – “The Spell” (from “Karma”, 2001)

5/5. I was actually gonna submit a song from that album for next month's playlist, but never mind, I'm glad to see one of the songs here. Enjoyable with spooky keyboards.

Here's my submission for the October Guardians playlist:

Saviour Machine - "A World Alone" (from "Saviour Machine", 1993)

I did my review, here's its summary:

While on the search for a suitable replacement for previous vocalist Dimitri Minakakis, The Dillinger Escape Plan came across Mike Patton who was touring with Mr. Bungle. He must've been such a big fan of TDEP's Calculating Infinity that he was interested in joining in some sort of record of theirs. Having been some time since their last album and this is THE Mike Patton, the band agreed and put their vocalist search on hold. It's pretty interesting that one of the craziest bands team up one of the craziest vocalists to create a super crazily awesome EP. You get to hear the usual chaos in the instrumentation during the first 3 tracks, here with Patton displaying his massive vocal range from whispering to singing to screaming, all over the place. Then the final 4th track is an Aphex Twin cover. Dillinger truly has a chaotic insane sound of noise-mathcore. With this release, they seem to shine the spotlight further away from themselves onto Patton, the main star, though their musical creativity is still in this EP, hinting at what was to come next in Miss Machine. While not having the same level of insanity as Calculating Infinity, this EP takes and refines every aspect of that album. Dillinger had learnt some great tricks from this EP, and that's why Miss Machine would be worth the wait!

5/5

Recommended tracks: "Pig Latin", "When Good Dogs Do Bad Things"

For fans of: Faith No More, Converge, Daughters

September 2022

1. Mushroomhead - "Simple Survival" from Savior Sorrow (2006) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

2. Samael - "Samael" from Hegemony (2017) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

3. Fear Factory - "Cars" from Obsolete (1998)

4. Spineshank - "Stillborn" from Self-Destructive Pattern (2003)

5. Emigrate - "1234" from A Million Degrees (2018)

6. Deflore - "Egodrive" from Egodrive (2008)

7. Underlined - "The Suffering" from Deadtime Stories (2012)

8. Nerve Factor - "Last Call" from Criminal Within (2000)

9. Trust Obey - "Hands of Fire" from Hands of Ash (1996)

10. Godflesh - "Unworthy" from Merciless EP (1994) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

11. meganeko - "The Cyber Grind" from The Cyber Grind single (2020) [submitted by Daniel]

12. Sybreed - "Love Like Blood" from The Pulse of Awakening (2009)

13. Luminous Vault - "Ancient North" from Animate the Emptiness (2021)

14. Gothminister - "Pandemonium" from Pandemonium (2022)

15. Rammstein - "Du Hast" from Sehnsucht (1997)

16. Tyrant of Death - "Detonate" from Superior Firepower (2019)

17. Eisheilig - "Elysium" from Elysium (2006)

18. Klank - "Numb" from Numb (2000)

19. Deadheaven - "Тени" from Антиреальность (2014)

20. The Interbeing - "Pinnacle of the Strain" from Among the Amorphous (2017)

21. Unzucht - "Ein Wort fliegt wie ein Stein" from Neuntöter (2016)

22. Weissglut - "Tanz der sinne" from Zeichen (2000)

23. Strapping Young Lad - "Info Dump" from Alien (2005)

24. Deathstars - "Termination Bliss" from Termination Bliss (2006) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

September 2022

1. Asking Alexandria - "Don't Pray for Me" from From Death to Destiny (2013) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

2. Phinehas - "I am the Lion" from Thegodmachine (2011)

3. Coalesce - "Simulcast" from Coalesce (1995) [BONUS submission by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

4. Parkway Drive - "Wild Eyes" from Atlas (2012)

5. Silent Planet - "Afterdusk" from When the End Began (2018) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

6. Upon a Burning Body - "Fake Plastic Smile" from Straight from the Barrio (2016)

7. From Autumn to Ashes - "Milligram Smile" from The Fiction We Live (2003) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

8. Deadguy - "Turk 182" from Screamin' with the Deadguy Quintet (1996)

9. CMD81 - "Subsequent" from VOL_1 (2021)

10. Earth Crisis - "The Wrath of Sanity" from Destroy the Machines (1995) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

11. Bury Tomorrow - "Man on Fire" from Runes (2014)

12. The Number Twelve Looks Like You - "Raised and Erased" from Wild Gods (2019)

13. Car Bomb - "Solid Grey" from Centralia (2007)

14. Nineironspitfire - "Charcoal Drawings / Weapon of Choice" from Seventh Soul Sacrificed (1996)

15. Veil of Maya - "It's Not Safe to Swim Today" from The Common Man's Collapse (2008) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

16. Bring Me the Horizon - "Liquor & Love Lost" from Count Your Blessings (2006)

17. Day of Suffering - "Shades of Red" from The Eternal Jihad (1997)

18. Demon Hunter - "We Don't Care" from True Defiance (2012) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

19. I, the Breather - "The Beginning" from Truth and Purpose (2012)

20. The Devil Wears Prada - "Watchtower" from Watchtower (2022)

21. Glass Houses - "Wellspring" from Wellspring (2016)

22. Bad Omens - "The Fountain" from Bad Omens (2016)

23. The Artificials - "Tunnel Vision" from Heart (2017)

24. Elitist - "Equinox" from Reshape Reason (2012)

25. Damaged - "Swine Eyed Sheep" from Token Remedies Research (1997)

26. Within the Ruins - "Roads" from Invade (2010) [submitted by Shadowdoom9 (Andi)]

27. Miss May I - "Masses of a Dying Breed" from Monument (2010)

28. Everyone Dies in Utah - "Regenerate" from Infra (2021)

29. Convictions - "Last Cell" from I Won't Survive (2021)

30. Architects - "Memento Mori" from All Our Gods Have Abandoned Us (2016)

This seems like a fun idea. However, of my 4 main clans, only The Infinite would work with the 4-member approach (me, Xephyr, Saxy, and Rexorcist). My other 3 clans, The Gateway, The Revolution, and The Sphere are the least popular ones with only me in them along with Saxy in The Gateway. But I think we can work something out...

Fair enough. 

The issues are valid.  Then I have a different suggestion.  Metalforum allows users to change their username three times a month.  What if we're allowed to change our fourth clan once a month?  Just until we get more popular here.  And this only applies to those who have a fourth clan, such as you or Ben.

Good suggestion, Rexorcist! There were a couple times when I lost interest in one of my clans and had to ask Daniel via PMs for a change into a clan that we know I like more. Changing only one of your clans after a certain amount of time seems like a nice easy way to signify a different direction for your metal interest. However, there are two things I would like to suggest to avoid needlessly changing your 4th clan whenever you can: 1. Maybe let Ben or Daniel know beforehand in the PMs anyway to see if they're OK with it. 2. Once a month seems a little short, not a lot of people can change their taste in a metal genre that fast. Once every 6 months, perhaps?

After revisiting a couple albums from my symphonic-ish power metal past, it was time to return to the more brutal end of the symphonic-ish metal spectrum, with a newfound favorite for me and my usually alt-rock/metal-loving brother. Solid epic symphonic black/technical deathcore, mandatory for fans of deathcore including bands such as Shadow of Intent, Brand of Sacrifice, and Chelsea Grin:

Here are some for my clans' genres/subgenres:

Nu metal - Linkin Park's first two albums (Korn is the founding band of nu metal and has been active even during that genre's downfall, but I chose Linkin Park's nu metal era that pretty much everyone in the world knows)

Melodic progressive metal - Dream Theater

Extreme progressive metal/djent - Meshuggah

Standard metalcore - Converge

Melodic metalcore - Trivium (move over, Killswitch Engage, Trivium is the real deal in melodic metalcore's popularity)

Industrial metal - Godflesh (for the experimental side, anyway, showing more of the cold bleakness that the genre is about than the mainstream of Ministry)

Rexorcist and Xephyr, I would be interested in hearing you guys' thoughts on one of Kamelot's grand masterpieces, Karma. Morpheus, if you haven't gotten around to listening to this superb offering, I would highly recommend it.

Some of the best power metal I still enjoy to this day. Highly recommended for fans of Sonata Arctica, Rhapsody (of Fire), and Pagan's Mind:

I've started revisiting a couple albums from one of my personal power metal Big 4 bands, Kamelot, and this energetic title track from the mighty Fourth Legacy has left a strong mark in the band's legacy:

I actually meant Japanese stenchcore band Asmodeus, but the Czech Asmodeus is a good request too.

After the recent confirmation that stenchcore is a valid primary genre for Metal Academy, I've realized that there's one other Pit-related issue: whether speed metal should remain a Pit genre or a heavy metal subgenre! RYM now has Speed Metal as a subgenre to Heavy Metal, which is a Guardians genre, and I can kinda understand why. Alongside the RYM description, "Originating from the NWOBHM and influenced by the work of early heavy metal bands, being faster and somewhat more aggressive than heavy metal", when I still had The Guardians in my clan lineup and heavy/power metal on my radar, most of the speed metal releases I've listened to (and it was very few) were also one of The Guardians genres. Those releases I used to listen to included the first two releases each of Helloween, Running Wild, Blind Guardian, and X Japan (the former two in the mid-80s and the latter two in the late 80s), all having both speed metal and either heavy metal or power metal. Honestly I believe that while the releases have a few aggressive thrashy aspects in the sound, it's mostly just the fast speedy tempo, with the rest of the style being one of those two genres, in some ways similar to DragonForce which is just speedy power metal. However, the one speed metal release I still have a rating for, Voivod's War and Pain, is straight into thrashy territory. So...

The Guardians - 4

The Pit - 1

With that, I definitely find speed metal to be more of a heavy metal subgenre, but what about the rest of you? If anyone here is up for exploring speed metal or has some knowledge of the genre, please feel free to check out some of its releases and discuss what you think. Daniel, this would be a good challenge for you after resting from your stenchcore deep dive. Feel the need for speed!

Here's the Speed Metal clan challenge to get started: https://metal.academy/lists/single/64

They were modernizing a little when they released their final album, making a shift into groove metal territory.  Maybe they're trying to find the right "relevant" sound?

With the thrash revival happening recently, my prediction for the album to have the progressive tech-thrash of Mental Vortex is possible, though with a bit of the Grin groove.

I actually find out last year about the band's plans to work on an album from an Agoraphobic News interview video I've shared here: https://metal.academy/forum/13/thread/783

Coroner is back together and working on new studio material.  Is anyone else as hyped s I am?

*raising hand to the roof*

I hope for their new album to have more of the progressive tech-thrash from Mental Vortex, and also for a few other long-gone awesome 80s/90s thrash/tech-thrash bands to work on their upcoming albums like they said they would, such as Dark Angel, Demolition Hammer, and Sadus.

Hi, Ben. Here are some releases/bands to add to help expand this site's stenchcore collection. Note that there are some Daniel objected to them being stenchcore during his deep dive into the genre, but those issues can be settled via judgement submissions. It's also quite a lot of requests, so take your time. Anyway, please add:

Amebix - Arise! and Make Some Fucking Noise!

Axegrinder

Deviated Instinct (including split album with Grave and Devolution)

Legion of Parasites

Genital Deformities

Misery (crust/stenchcore band from Minneapolis)

Extinction of Mankind (including split album with Misery)

Χαοτικό Τέλος

Asbestos

Depressor

Filth of Mankind

Armenia

Audio Kollaps

Hellshock

Zoe

Revölt

Effigy / Abigail

Limb From Limb

Sanctum

Instinct of Survival

Contagium

Asmodeus (stenchcore band from Tokyo, Japan)

Makiladoras

Cancer Spreading

Krang

Fatum

Alehammer

Repression Attack

Swordwielder

Disturd

Winds of Genocide

Subterror

Carnage (stenchcore band from Lisbon, Portugal)

Hexx

Global Despair

Ligæder

Agnosy

Demolition Axe

Sacrilege - Ambulance Station Squat, London, 1985 + the First & Second Demos

Corrupted Human Behavior

Metachrist

I can help expand the stenchcore collection in MA by suggesting releases to add in The Pit requests thread. Stay tuned for my requests...

I get your point, Daniel. I guess I was so caught up in the ambient parts. I also agree that there's very little stenchcore in the release. As I said in my review, Inde$troy is essentially an 8-part ambient industrial sludge epic with barely any of their crust/grind roots. So I'd like to submit an additional judgement submission for Sore Throat's "Inde$troy" to be removed from stenchcore and The Pit while staying in the other clan(s).

The terrifying beautiful bonus track in the original edition of Hands of Ash happens to be the best. Such a shame it's not on Spotify... For anyone looking for a heavy mix of Nine Inch Nails, Godflesh, and SLAB!:

Bonus epilogue part of this journey before really putting it to rest:

There's still one more heavy industrial metal trick up my sleeve... I like some of the 7 long progressive-length tracks in this Trust Obey album, though the album is overall in the same quality as SLAB's albums. For the few highlights here, "Hands of Fire" is a killer tune. "Hands of Glory" is also worth part of the CD's runtime. However, what's really the best, probably better than some of Godflesh songs, is the terrifying beautiful bonus track in the original edition, "Larvatus". It is the final destination for this industrial descent into Hell, where horns, trumpets, and synths flow over the moans of founder John Bergin. It's so cathartic and almost epic! A grand ending to a heavy experience. Such a shame it's not on Spotify... I guess you can say that Trust Obey is like a mix of Nine Inch Nails, Godflesh, and SLAB!, and it seems to have the same quality as the latter, a few winners here in an otherwise poor album. If you want the best of heavy industrial rock/metal, check out the highlights....

3/5

Also a new contender: Cemetary - Godless Beauty. Beautiful gothic metal mixed with heavy melodeath-doom. Think of this like the early 90s eras of Paradise Lost and Tiamat combined with a more melodic spice.

Yep. Power metal is often more melodic than heavy for the most part.

A couple more highlight tracks from the early industrial metal era of the late 80s:

The most metal offering from the masters of industrial music, released in 1992. Here are my thoughts:

Trent Reznor has been active for nearly 4 decades now, with his popularity growing with every release. He can be considered the industrial music king! His project Nine Inch Nails is the reason for his success and has changed their sound quite a lot. The 80s debut Pretty Hate Machine was known for its cheesy synths and beats, and torture-themed lyrics where vocal distortion dominates. Now what was the 90s like? Drastic new changes come aboard including higher prominence of guitar, screams, and some beautiful synth variety in contrast to the hideously great heaviness. Those can be found in the dark Downward Spiral and the melodic Fragile. The bridge of pleasure and pain continues to extend beyond, though some gaps between albums, such as between Pretty Hate Machine and The Downward Spiral, lasted around 5 to 6 years. Fortunately, to prevent any stagnation, the band cooked up an EP, Broken, an over half-hour industrial metal EP essential for Nine Inch Nails fans! This cauldron of catchy riff crunch marked the beginning of a dark decade. Here you can find two nice interludes, four original songs that display this heavier side of Nine Inch Nails, and two covers, one awesome and the other horrible. Most of the tracks would serve as the basis for one of the sickest, most disturbing short films you would ever find. The content is why that film never had a commercial release, that and they don't want it to overshadow the music. If the film is too much for you, just stick with the music. And definitely ditch that Pigface cover....

4/5

I plan to review one more album, Trust Obey's Hands of Ash, as you soon as this album gets added to the site, but for now, we've reached the end of my industrial metal early years voyage. That's all in this thread, folks!

Hardcore-speed industrial metal from the founder of Ministry and the ex-vocalist of Dead Kennedys:

Collaborative EP between Ministry's Al Jourgensen and the legendary Dead Kennedys vocalist Jello Biafra! Here are my thoughts:

When Lard's debut EP came out in 1989, it was indeed unexpected but not surprising for anyone who was already following Al Jourgensen's side projects like Pailhead with Minor Threat's Ian MacKaye. With Lard, Jourgensen and Biafra have teamed up for a project of ambitious progression. The Power of Lard is a 3-song EP that continues the industrial punk of Pailhead, in addition to Jourgensen's newfound metal influences and Biafra's punk stylings. While the sound is rooted in industrial metal, the title track has hardcore speed, "Hellfudge" is a country rock ramble, and "Time to Melt" is 32-minute long slow experimental industrial sludge epic. All in all, The Power of Lard is a pretty good EP, though it could do without "Hellfudge" and with "Time to Melt" being trimmed down a bit, but fans of Jello and Ministry will surely like it....

3.5/5

Coming up next: An EP that's not in the late 80s but still an essential part of one of the most popular industrial bands...

Here are the 10 heaviest albums I can think of that I enjoy and used to enjoy (including when I used to listen to a lot of melodic death metal):

1. Chelsea Grin - Eternal Nightmare (2018)

2. Godflesh - Streetcleaner (1989)

3. Converge - Jane Doe (2001)

4. Strapping Young Lad - Heavy as a Really Heavy Thing (1995)

5. Revocation - Chaos of Forms (2011)

6. Amon Amarth - Twilight of the Thunder God (2008)

7. Parasite Inc. - Time Tears Down (2013)

8. Arch Enemy - Burning Bridges (1999)

9. Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake (2004)

10. Parkway Drive - Deep Blue (2010)

Good list, Rexorcist! I actually made my own list of clan challenges a long while back for the metal subgenres that don't have them, which I can send to you soon via PMs.

I don't know very many people who put Dragonforce in their big four, but I do admit that Inhuman Rampage is an underrated album.  Most power metal fanatics tend to see it as a change of pace from the more melodic sound just so they can say they're the fastest metal band on Earth.  Personally, I think there's still plenty of melody in that album.

Absolutely agreed! Inhuman Rampage is my favorite DragonForce album and the one that has the song that got me into metal, "Through the Fire and Flames".

An excellent loopy instrumental trip of early industrial metal:

The first metal album from one of the pioneers of industrial metal is a good part of my early years review tour! Here are my thoughts:

It is good to diversify every few years, whether it's your music taste or your band's style. After a couple synthpop and EBM albums, Al Jourgensen refreshed his Ministry project with a metalized sound. A hellbent atmosphere of vocal distortion, booming drums, and heavy keyboard-guitar hybrids fill the air, along with solid bass presence. These songs range from heavy to trippy, and many of them have a good amount of samples, a common industrial aspect, but what I prefer in industrial metal is savage percussive heaviness. Anyone with a slightly more open mind than mine should give The Land of Rape and Honey a try and love its mood. That mood is what Ministry needed to nail the metal path they would take. And you can hear the catchy riff power coming not just from the guitars. Then after you finish this, you can progress to the more metallic Mind....

4/5

Sanity Allergy is slightly weaker than Slab's debut with the only highlights for me being a couple upbeat tracks like this one:

The nearly unknown second and final album in the initial run of Slab!, Sanity Allergy is still not as exciting as I would hope for the first ever metalized industrial band. Sure there are heavier grooves and menacing slabs of beats, guitars, and vocals, but not a lot of it is good. I prefer the upbeat tracks in this one like the instrumental "Son of Sloth" with the sheer action to remind some of later electronic acts like The Crystal Method. The other upbeat highlight is the catchy "Cancer Beach" especially in the bridge, yet not a lot of other people have heard of it, let alone like it. Any industrial rock/metal fan can go ahead and try this album and look out for any chance of a new album coming out in the future. If you want just upbeat fun though, then just grab those two highlights and skip the rest.....

2.5/5

Industrial metal's perfect "Big Bang" moment:

The Sphere was created and turned on with the first ever album to fuse to industrial rock with metal. Slab's Descension is not really super good, but it's highly underrated compared to more popular bands like Ministry. Slab! seemed to have built their sound from industrial-ish rock bands Swans and Big Black. The Big Black influences are especially apparent in the opening track "Tunnel of Love", my favorite of the album and the perfect start to the industrial metal genre. However, the rest of the album isn't really as promising as the opener. Though "Dolores" and "The Animals" have great potential. One of the two bonus tracks "People Pie" is another great highlight despite a more poppy sound. All in all, a kinda poor album while a decently respectable beginning, for anyone up for a similar vibe to Godflesh and Trust Obey's Hands of Ash (might check out that album later)....

3/5

That's quite a lot to submit here, Rexorcist. How about we start with 10,000 Days and work our way down those releases one by one? Also, progressive metal is in The Infinite, not The Guardians, which is why I didn't say Fear Inoculum that's already in that clan.

That's interesting, Rexorcist. I used to listen to Solstafir before my move out of black metal (which they only had in their EP and debut), and Kold was my favorite album from them. This album's sound, while staying firmly in post-metal, I saw it as a mix of atmospheric and straightforward moods, though not as mellow as much of their subsequent material. Actually, now that I think about it, a few of these tracks are too straightforward to be worthy of the post-metal tag. I decided to revisit this album after nearly a year of abandoning it to see if it works well as just post-metal. So before I declare Judgement Submission Day on this album, here's how I would tag the genres in the 8 tracks:

1. 78 Days in the Desert - ambient instrumental post-metal with some heavy/black metal instrumentation

2. Köld - post-ish progressive metal

3. Pale Rider - straightforward post-metal similarly styled to the intro track

4. She Destroys Again - post-punk with instrumentation rising to heavy/black metal

5. Necrologue - stoner rock/post-metal

6. World Void of Souls - ambient instrumental post-rock later rising to metal (with some spoken narration)

7. Love is the Devil (and I am in Love) - straightforward post-ish hard rock

8. Goddess of the Ages - ambient/progressive/post-punk/metal/hard rock, basically summarizing all they had in the album

So this album is still post-metal in its majority, often mixing straightforward with ambient, and having influences from heavy metal, black metal, progressive metal, hard rock, and post-punk. Lots of rock and metal genres, though still firmly rooted in post-metal, so no need for any changes. Of course, everyone has a right to an opinion as long as it's accurate to the sound. Good to have you back in my life, Kold!

I decided to give this album a listen and a review for a couple reasons: 1. To tag along in the stenchcore ride despite this release sounding otherwise. 2. I'm a fan of Neurosis (both a bit of their crust punk era and a lot of their post-sludge material) and Godflesh, the latter's debut coming slightly after this offering from Saw Throat.

Sore Throat was known as a classic band in the crust/grindcore scene, delivering avalanche after avalanche of short fast tunes. Their over 40-minute single-track concept album Inde$troy is essentially an 8-part ambient industrial sludge epic with barely any of their crust/grind roots. And it's not the best album of that style either, but it's enjoyable in a few parts that I would specifically point out being the long ambient intro and outro, and the standard hardcore heaviness of the "Air" section. Basically those highlights take up half of the album with absolute power. The ambient sections work out as an easy-listening soundtrack to the apocalypse of a dystopian society. Yet the in-between-sounding parts don't do well for me. Anyway, if you're looking for an earlier, more ambient/industrial attempt at a grindcore band's sludge epic than Pig Destroyer's Natasha, here you go...

3/5

I always think of my own spirit animals to be the rabbit (representing my mild side) and the bear (representing my wild side). A few years before I joined the Metal Academy, I was a soft melodic bunny who enjoyed power metal and melodic progressive metal (the two genres you adore, Rexorcist), but thanks to a YouTube pen-pal of mine, I decided to transform into a metalcore/extreme progressive metal-loving bear. Since joining the Metal Academy, a few of the other members encouraged to bring back that melodic power metal bunny side of me, but after a couple years, that ultimately did not work out. I decided to convert my bunny side into alternative metal, which I've actually tested out a few bands of that genre before beginning my true metal interest with power metal.

Anyway, so my spirit animal for The Gateway is the rabbit for hopping into wider influences. My spirit animal for the Revolution is the bear because of how wild and rebellious they can be. And my spirit animal for The Sphere would a cyborg rabbit-bear hybrid. I agree with the spirit animal ideas for your clans, Rexorcist, those animals fit them quite well! Now what would the remaining 3 clans' spirit animals be? Probably sloth for The Fallen, lion for The Horde, and raven for The North. I don't know, we'll let members of those 3 remaining class decide what their spirit animals would be...

Good luck, Daniel!

1. Gateway playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: ALL 21)

2. Guardians playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 6)

3. Infinite playlist - 4.5/5 (number of songs commented: 11)

4. Revolution playlist - 4/5 (number of songs commented: ALL 30)

4. Sphere playlist - 4/5 (number of songs commented: ALL 27)

So far, I've only commented on 5 tracks in the Guardians playlist and 11 tracks in the Infinite playlist, but for the other 3 of my own clans I've listened to the entire playlists! I'm grateful to Saxy, Xephyr, and Daniel for their playlist works. I really dig the Gateway playlist made by Saxy and the Revolution and Sphere playlists made by me. I recommend them to any fan of those respective genres and anyone who isn't into those genres but wants to get into a great start in enjoying them. Thanks, Daniel, for accepting these playlists, and good work all!

THE GATEWAY: Northlane - "Obsidian" (2022) 5/5

THE INFINITE: Devin Townsend - "Deconstruction" (2011) 5/5

THE PIT: Machine Head - "The Blackening" (2007) 3.5/5

THE REVOLUTION: Atka - "Untitled Album" (2018) 2.5/5

THE SPHERE: Deathstars - "Termination Bliss (2006) 5/5

All 3 of my feature release submissions; Northlane's Obsidian, Devin Townsend's Deconstruction, and Deathstars' Termination Bliss, all each receive a perfect 5 stars, and I would recommend them to fans of their respective genres. I also reviewed Machine Head's The Blackening two years ago, and I stand by my 3.5-star rating. Daniel's Revolution feature release submission was too intense for me to go beyond 2.5 stars, but it's good to see him having a blast with that release. Glad to see some positive reaction for all those releases! It's been a great month. Keep up the good work on the feature releases, all! I look forward to more...

I listen to more of tech-thrash than conventional thrash while enjoying a small bit of the latter, so this would be my personal Big 4: Annihilator, Sadus, Coroner, Dark Angel

Btw, I have to ask, is there a third party in which the genre tags are taken from, and if so, is it Rateyourmusic?

Yep, that's exactly correct, Rexorcist.

Welcome, Rexorcist! Awesome avatar!