Review by Ben for Asunojokei - Island (2022)

I should have known this wasn't going to be for me. The anime cover alone should have been a warning sign, but the Blackgaze / Post-Hardcore primaries combined with Screamo / J-Rock secondaries really should have rammed it home. The fact is that I'm not particularly experienced with any of these genres, so checking this album out in the hope of finding something to my tastes was more than a little naïve. No-one can say that I didn't give it a try though! To me this sounds like the sort of metal that a certain teenage crowd would really get into (note that I don't mean any offense to older fans, it's just my perception of it). Not only is it accessible, it also has a party atmosphere to some of the tracks thanks to the chosen beats. There are even leads on this thing that sound like they could accompany the theme song from an 80s/90s sitcom, which is a far stretch from the atmosphere I'm attracted to. Still, this is an album that fell into my clan, so I guess it's fair game. 2.5 stars it is. I would have gone even lower if it wasn't for a couple of mildly enjoyable tracks towards the end, particularly The Forgotten Ones.

2022 RANKING (65 releases so far)

60. Kostnatění - Oheň hoří tam, kde padl 2.5 stars

61. Asunojokei - Island - 2.5 stars

62. Mizmor - Wit's End - 2.5 stars

2022 BLACK RANKING (30 releases so far)

27. Kostnatění - Oheň hoří tam, kde padl 2.5 stars

28. Asunojokei - Island - 2.5 stars

29. Mnima - Disciples of Excremental Liturgies - 2 stars