Daniel's Forum Replies

Richie Hawtin - "DE9 | Closer to the Edit" (2001)

This classic DJ mix single-handedly took the minimal techno sound from underground German clubs & presented it to a wider global audience.

English atmospheric black metal for fans of Winterfylleth, Saor & mid-90's Drudkh.

I first encountered six-piece English black metal outfit Wodensthrone's debut album "Loss" shortly after returning to metal back in 2009 & remember finding it to be generally pretty enjoyable on first listen but struggling a little with a few elements. The strong use of keyboards & the implementation of some pretty positive sounding melodies were a little bit at odds with my usual taste in black metal while the drumming isn't very good & those that know me would be well aware of how important good drumming is to my listening experience. Repeat listens would see me warming  to the album's qualities significantly though & by the end of my third or fourth listen the grandiose atmospheres were drawing me in nicely. This revisit has thankfully seen me picking up where I left off twelve years ago with nothing much having changed in regard to my overall feelings on the album's merits.

The Pagan black metal tag is perhaps a bit ambitious for this release. Yes, the atmosphere certainly hints at an organic, natural feel but there's not really enough of a folk component to warrant a primary tag in my opinion. The atmospheric black metal tag is sufficient for the purpose as far as I can see with the symphonic element pushing for a minor mention a lot of the time too. "Loss" isn't the most imposing or dark of black metal releases which is part of the reason for my initial hesitations. Light & melody play a major part in Wodensthrone's appeal however that shouldn't necessarily be viewed as such a bad thing. There are a few moments that hint at the sort of positivity usually reserved for blackgaze though & several of the tracks also seem to make a conscious attempt to emulate the epic atmosphere of Viking metal, particularly the strong closer "That Which Is Now Forgotten - 597".

"Loss" is a very consistent release & I wouldn't say that there are any weak tracks included however there also aren't any obvious classics amongst the eight tracks either with most suffering from a minor flaw or two along the way. Overall, I'd suggest that it's a pretty good place to start with Wodensthrone though as I'd be surprised if it disappointed too many fans of the more atmospheric & organic side of black metal. It's been a while since I listened to it but I think I still slightly favour Wodensthrone's 2012 sophomore album "Curse" over this one. There's not a lot in it though as both are high quality black metal records.

For fans of Winterfylleth, Saor & mid-90's Drudkh.

4/5

For this weekend's top ten list I thought I'd have a crack at my Top Ten Melodic Death Metal Releases of All Time. See what you think:

01. At The Gates – “Slaughter Of The Soul” (1995)

02. Carcass – “Heartwork” (1993)

03. Dark Tranquillity – “The Gallery” (1995)

04. Amorphis – “Tales From The Thousand Lakes” (1994)

05. Merciless – “Unbound” (1994)

06. Sentenced – “North From Here” (1993)

07. In Mourning – “The Weight Of Oceans” (2012)

08. The Breathing Process - “Odyssey (un)Dead” (2010)

09. Edge Of Sanity – “Crimson” (1996)

10. Be’lakor – “Of Breath & Bone” (2012)

https://metal.academy/lists/single/147

Wonderful French industrial rock/metal with a strong post-metal influence. For fans of Godflesh, Killing Joke & Jesu.

OH WOW! Jesus fucking Christ this is an amazing record! I was blown away by the opening track from this album when I discovered it while searching for tracks to include in the monthly The Sphere Spotify playlist some time ago & immediately put "Tellurique" into the memory bank as a record of interest. It's probably been a year or more since that experience but boy am I glad that I remembered to investigate this record because it's right up my alley. I'd probably describe it's basis as sitting somewhere between industrial rock & industrial metal with obvious Godflesh & Killing Joke influences however Kill The Thrill also utilize the sweeping atmospheres, slowly building tension-&-release & crushingly noisy crescendos of post-rock artists like Sigur Ros & Swans in a way that adds significant light & substance to the end result. The vocals of front man Nicolas Dick are full of attitude & charisma too which gives proceedings an air of professionalism that's uncommon in artists that are this underground. In fact, I have to ask why I haven't heard more of Kill The Thrill because they're a class act & this is a top five release for the industrial metal genre for me personally.

For fans of Godflesh, Killing Joke & Jesu.

4.5/5

(just thought I would mix up the format a bit, OK? Anyway...)

Quoted shadowdoom9 (Andi)

Using graphics is a great idea Andi. I'd encourage you to continue with that as long as you're not in breach of any sort of copyright (that goes for the use of an artist's music too as I noticed that you used snippets on your YouTube ad). In saying that though, I'm not comfortable with clan members attaching their names to the playlists they're programming though. They're intended as a representation of the clan, not the individual.

Overkill - "E.vil N.ever D.ies" (from "The Years Of Decay", 1989)

Morbid Saint - "Depth Of Sanity" (from "Destruction System", 1992)  [Note: You can find this on the Extended Edition of "Spectrum Of Death"]

Testament - "Fall Of Sipledome" (from "The Gathering", 1999)

Nevermore - "The Psalm Of Lydia" (from "This Godless Endeavour", 2005)

Metreya - "Machines Of War" (from "Machines Of War" E.P., 2014)

Slayer - "Repentless" (from "Repentless", 2015)

Pestilence - "Out Of The Body" (from "Consuming Impulse", 1989)

Cannibal Corpse - "Hammer Smashed Face" (from "Tomb Of The Mutilated", 1991)

Devourment - "Choking On Bile" (from "Molesting The Decapitated", 1999)

Nile - "Von Unaussprechlichen Kulten" (from "Annihilation Of The Wicked", 2005)

Dead Congregation - "Subjugation" (from "Graves Of The Archangels", 2008)

The Amenta - "VO1D" (from "VO1D", 2010)

Andrew Hulshult - "DUSK" (from "DUSK (Original Game Soundtrack", 2018)

Trouble - "The Skull" (from "The Skull", 1985)

Katatonia - "Without God" (from "Dance Of December Souls", 1993)

Isis - "Celestial (The Tower)" (from "Celestial", 2000)

Messa - "Da tariki tariqat" (from "Feast For Water", 2018)

Knocked Loose - "Where Light Divides The Holler" (from "A Tear In The Fabric Of Life" E.P., 2021)

Sun Of The Blind - "Fire & Thirst" (from "Skullreader", 2009)

Blasphemy - "Hording Of Evil Vengeance" (from "Fallen Angel Of Doom...", 1990)

Darkthrone - "Quintessence" (from "Panzerfaust", 1995)

Spiritbox - "Sun Killer" (from "Eternal Blue", 2021)

Here's the January feature release nominators:

THE FALLEN: Daniel, Sonny, Ben

THE GATEWAY: Saxy S, Andi

THE GUARDIANS: Andi, Vinny, Xephyr

THE HORDE: Ben, Daniel, Vinny

THE INFINITE: Saxy S, Andi, Xephyr

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

THE PIT: Ben, Daniel, Sonny, Vinny

THE REVOLUTION: Andi, Daniel

THE SPHERE: Daniel

Playlist compilers, I've now updated the tracklistings in each of the clans playlists so please feel free to create the monthly playlist threads & to add the tracklistings to the Past Tracklisting threads in each clan forum at your leisure.

December 2021

01. Samael – “Let My People Be” (from “Lux Mundi”, 2011)

02. Keygen Church – “H A R E K L A V I T” (from “░█░█░░█░█░█░”, 2021)

03. Oomph! – “Breathtaker” (from “Sperm”, 1994)

04. Rob Zombie – “Boom-Boom-Boom” (from “The Lunar Injection Kool Aid Eclipse Conspiracy”, 2021)

05. Autarkh – “Impasse” (from “Form In Motion”, 2021)

06. Pitchshifter – “Condescension” (from “Deviant”, 2000)

07. 1000 Homo DJs – “Apathy” (from “Supernaut” E.P., 1990)

08. Wayne Static – “Slave” (from “Pighammer”, 2011)

09. Static-X – “Cold” (from “Machine”, 2001)

10. Ghostemane – “Crime Time” (from “Fear Network II” E.P., 2021)

11. Eisbrecher – “Böse Mädchen” (from “Eiszeit”, 2010)

12. Godflesh – “Wounds” (bonus track from “Godflesh” E.P., 1988) [Submitted by Daniel]

13. Old – “Citient Null” (from “Lo Flux Tube”, 1991)

14. Ministry – “Sabotage Is Sex” (from “Moral Hygiene”, 2021)

15. Mechina – “The Worst In Us” (from “Siege”, 2021)

16. Author & Punisher – “The Speaker Is Systematically Blown” (from “Beastland”, 2018) [Submitted by Vinny]

17. Youth Code & King Yosef – “The World Stage” (from “A Skeleton Key In The Doors Of Depression”, 2021)

18. Nine Inch Nails – “Last” (from “Broken” E.P., 1992)

19. Morbid Angel – “Profundis - Mea Culpa” (from “Illud Divinum Insanus”, 2011)

20. Fear Factory – “End Of Line” (from “Aggression Continuum”, 2021)

21. Fange – “Tombé pour la France” (from “Pantocrator”, 2021)

22. Thorns – “Shifting Channels” (from “Thorns”, 2001)

23. Red Harvest – “Absolut Dunkel:heit” (from “Cold Dark Matter”, 2000)

December 2021

01. Dragged Into Sunlight – “Lashed To The Grinder & Stoned To Death” (from “Hatred For Mankind”, 2009) [Submitted by Daniel]

02. Be’lakor – “Hidden Window” (from “Coherence”, 2021) [Submitted by Ben]

03. Necrophagist – “Only Ash Remains” (from “Epitaph”, 2004) [Submitted by Daniel]

04. Bologna Violenta – “Valium Tavor Serenase” (from “Utopie e piccole soddisfazioni”, 2012)

05. Illdisposed – “Now We’re History” (from “1-800 Vindication”, 2004) [Submitted by Ben]

06. Six Feet Under – “Snap Your Fingers, Snap Your Neck” (from “Graveyard Classics III”, 2010)

07. Edge Of Sanity – “The Masque” (from “The Spectral Sorrows”, 1993)

08. Soilent Green – “Slapfuck” (from “Pussysoul”, 1994)

09. Apparition – “Nonlocality” (from “Feel”, 2021) [Submitted by Vinny]

10. Asphyx – “Asphyx (Forgotten War)” (from “Last One On Earth”, 1992) [Submitted by Daniel]

11. Coffinrot – “Reduced To Visceral Sludge” (from “Reduced To Visceral Sludge” single, 2021) [Submitted by Vinny]

12. 200 Stab Wounds – “Drilling Your Head” (from “Slave To The Scalpel”, 2021) [Submitted by Vinny]

13. Cryptopsy – “Cold Hate, Warm Blood” (from “Whisper Supremacy”, 1998) [Submitted by Ben]

14. Suffering Hour – “Obscuration” (from “The Cyclic Reckoning”, 2021)

15. Wombbath – “A World Of Destruction” (from “Agma”, 2021) [Submitted by Vinny]

16. No One Knows What The Dead Think – “Autumn Flower” (from “No One Knows What The Dead Think”, 2019) [Submitted by Ben]

17. Morbid Angel – “Brainstorm” (from “Blessed Are The Sick”, 1991) [Submitted by Ben]

18. Aeon – “Queen Of Lies” (from “God Ends Here”, 2021) [Submitted by Vinny]

19. Spawn Of Possession – “Scorched” (from “Noctambulant”, 2006) [Submitted by Ben]

20. Cannibal Corpse – “Meathook Sodomy” (from “Butchered At Birth”, 1991) [Submitted by Daniel]

21. Exhumed – “Worming” (from “Worming” E.P., 2021) [Submitted by Vinny]

22. Regurgitate – “Deranged Menarche Injection” (from “Hatefilled Vengeance” E.P., 2002)

23. Archspire – “Drone Corpse Aviator” (from “Bleed The Future”, 2021) [Submitted by Ben]

24. Phyllomedusa – “Nook Modification (A Startiling Modification)” (from “Suburban Pest”, 2015)

25. Mortician – “World Domination” (from “House By The Cemetery”, 1994)

26. Vomit The Soul – “The Lost Aurea” (from “Cold”, 2021) [Submitted by Vinny]

27. Devourment – “A Virulent Strain Of Retaliation” (from “Obscene Majesty”, 2019) [Submitted by Daniel]

Highly energetic Bay Area thrash for fans of Metallica, Exodus & Death Angel.