Sonny's Forum Replies

Black Claw - Alone in a Dying World (2021)

Black Claw play, in their own words, dark and dirty death country and that pretty much sums them up perfectly. I loved their previous album, Thieving Bones and even managed to track down and buy a CD copy from Russian label Der Schwarze Tod. There is a real sinister atmosphere to their bluegrass-derived country tales of horror and Reverend Black Claw has a genuinely disturbing growl. This seems like the sort of album that Leatherface and his family from The Texas Chainsaw Massacre might have made whilst ripped to shit on moonshine. I don't know if blackened bluegrass is a thing but it damn well should be!

4/5

Here's the opening track f you're intrigued as to what they sound like:

Pan-Amerikan Native Front - Tecumseh's War (2016)

I've been meaning to get round to this for ages, so banged it on whilst going through my ever-expanding wishlist on Bandcamp (which is currently over 2400 strong and rising!). P-ANF are a solo project of Alan "Kurator of War" Avitia and he plays quite raw atmospheric black metal with a Native American lyrical theme. I really dug his 2021 album Little Turtle's War and it ended up in my personal top ten black metal albums of that year (even above WiTTR). This is very much in the same mould as Little Turtle's War and is almost as good, although I prefer the later album because it is more in-your-face and the songwriting has improved somewhat in the intervening years. This still stands as an impressive enough calling card however and paved the way for the later highs of Little Turtle's War.

3.5/5

Of course, you are right, but the Hall gives everyone within the respective clan the ability to vote, so my one clueless vote has as much weight as your own, which is based on actual knowledge and an ability to differentiate between genres that I could never hope to match. I mean look at last month's Lord Vigo feature release. It seems I upset Morpheus massively by suggesting I didn't think this was doom metal, a view I stand by. Now that may empirically be an incorrect statement, but it's what I think, so should I have the right to vote in the Hall with such wrong-headed views? Personally I think not and, to be honest, there are many Hall votes I genuinely haven't got a clue about, it is one reason I am reticent to participate in it. I understand it is important to the site's integrity, but it also has it's weaknesses. It is also a good reason why I think you and Ben are right to stick to your guns on the number of votes required as it mitigates fools like myself fucking it up.

I honestly think Robert Lowe might top Messiah for me. His work for Solitude Aeturnus is second to none. I really should check out his Candlemass work!

Both Messiah and Rob Lowe are exceptional vocalists with little to choose between them, but I think it is actually Messiah who defined the Candlemass sound vocally, with the help of their best material admittedly, so would place him above Rob within the context of this thread.

Incidentally, have you heard any of Messiah's albums outside of Candlemass? Both Mercy and Memento Mori have some great albums that should appeal to any Candlemass fan.

I don't think I've even heard the Candlemass albums with Thomas Vikström and Björn Flodkvist, so can't play along. I will say that I think all three vocalists making up your top 3 are outstanding, and I'd have to listen to all their albums back to back to make a decision. For one band to have all three of those doom legends involved is amazing!

Although inferior to the others, both Vikström and Flodkvist are still very good vocalists, Ben. Chapter VI is one of the weakest of the Candlemass dicography, although my recent relistens have left me far more open to it than I was previously. It is less doomy and more heavy metal leaning as it's overall pace is quicker and Vikström's vocals do suit it quite well. The two Flodkvist albums aren't bad, in fact From the 13th Sun is very good and is possibly more doomy. In addition there is the Abstrakt Algebra project that Edling wanted to replace Candlemass with, but which ultimately only ran from '94-'97 due to label (and fan) indifference. That band had Mats Levén on vocal duties, but in all honesty I'm not a fan, at least not until he teamed up again with Edling in Krux in the 2000s.

I don't know how many Academy members are big Candlemass fans, but I've been giving their discography a bit of a hammering over the last couple of weeks and although Candlemass have a distinctive style, I think each of the band's five different vocals have bought something unique to the table. So my question is how do you rate their vocalists in respect of how they define and refine the Candlemass sound?

Just to refresh memories the five vocalists and their albums are:

Johan Längquist - Epicus Doomicus Metallicus; The Door to Doom

Messiah Marcolin - Nightfall; Ancient Dreams; Tales of Creation; Candlemass

Thomas Vikström - Chapter VI

Björn Flodkvist – Dactylis Glomerata; From the 13th Sun

Rob Lowe – King of the Grey Islands; Death Magic Doom; Psalms for the Dead

For myself, I would go from best down:

Messiah >> Rob Lowe >> Johan Längquist >> Björn Flodkvist >> Thomas Vikström

So what's anyone else's take on the Candlemass singers?

Thanks Daniel. I kinda get it instinctively, but, much to my eternal embarassment, I am so absolutely fucking clueless that I don't even know what a scale is really and certainly not the difference between a blues scale and a minor scale. Also, and I know this may sound blasphemous to you, but if it's so hard for a layman to differentiate between them, does it really matter that much? I mean I can tell the difference between AC/DC and Slayer, but take a band like Motorhead (who Lemmy always denied were metal), some of their material sounds exceptionally borderline to me and could fall either side of the fence.

Hi Ben, my suggestions for October:

Horna - "Haudanusva" from "Perimä vihassa ja verikostossa" (1999) [5:33]
Cradle of Filth - "The Twisted Nails of Faith" from "Cruelty and the Beast" (1998) [6:51]
Beastcraft - "Satanist" from "Dawn of the Serpent" (2005) [1:33]
Sainte Marie des Loups  - "Meurtrières" from "Funérailles de feu" (2020) [4:59]

Runtime: 18:56

I guess it comes down to what you understand rock & metal music to be, doesn't it? I was taught the different techniques for playing the two genres when I was in my early teenage years & those theoretical rules have stuck with me ever since so I see a well defined line between the two. As I've already explained in another recent thread, the point of contention shouldn't really be about how heavy or light-weight a release feels. You either have metal guitar & drum techniques being used or you don't as far as I'm concerned. Now, if we're going to be throwing the likes of Guns 'n' Roses, Def Leppard, Scorpions, AC/DC, Deep Purple, Led Zeppelin, etc. under the metal banner then I have to ask a pretty obvious question i.e. just what is hard rock music then because those are some clear examples of it as far as I'm concerned. To be open & transparent, my personal cut-off ratio for a release to qualify as metal is 40% i.e. if 40% or more of it's run time is legitimate metal then I'm happy enough to include it. Here's ten examples of some very big "metal" releases that I don't think should qualify as metal if we use that philosophy:

I think what you must bear in mind Daniel, is that for those of us with little to no technical musical ability or theoretical knowledge, this is not such a straightforward task. Without the ability to hear and understand as clearly as yourself then we are left to good old-fashioned "gut feeling". I don't for a second dispute anything you say and would absolutely take guidance from someone with undoubted theoretical knowledge, but for me it is a lot like listening to Neil DeGrasse Tyson explaining quantum mechanics in TV - I get some of what he says but a lot if it goes way over my head. He too would probably shake his head and wonder why I couldn't see what is so blatantly obvious to him.

What I'm trying to say, not very succinctly admittedly, is, although it must be frustrating, please don't judge us non-theorists too harshly, we are just trying to figure things out as best we can.

I think a more contemporary take on this is how much metal can you take out of metal music before it ceases to be such?  I am thinking of some of the more -gazey sort of releases of recent years such as a coup!e of Alcest albums and the Lustre release I proposed for the Hall a while back.

Xephyr also makes an excellent point, I have also heard several obviously non-metal albums that sound like metal, such as The Visit's Through Darkness Into Light which is a cello-based album that manages to encaapsulate the essence of metal (at least to me it does), Dolven's 2015 album, Navigating the Labyrinth is classed as neofolk but sounds like Elizabethan doom metal and recently I've been listening to Darkher, an ethereal wave act whose material would definitely appeal to a number of metal fans I suspect. I wonder, is there any mechanism for getting releases like these added as non-metal releases that could appeal to metalheads?

Fuckin hell guys, I can't believe neither of you picked up the Darkthrone boxset. It's only six 12" vinyl LPs, a 7" single, four  cassettes and a DVD fer chrissakes. Where's your dedication?!

Gospel of the Horns - Eve of the Conqueror (2000)

Australia's Gospel of the Horns are no longer an active band since 2018 having been around in blackened thrash circles since 1994. They are basically of the same sound as fellow countrymen Destroyer 666 or for a more further geographical reference, Desaster are also a good citation. Unlike either of the two aforementioned bands though, this is not as vicious in its delivery, almost like the low production values actually rob it of some power and presence. Now, don't get me wrong, this tries to be as grim and rough as the best of them. Howitzer's vocals are superb with their rasping (ravishing) grimness and Marauder's riffs are equally as cold and.....marauding. My only real criticism (aside from him calling himself Hellcunt) is the drummer sounds a bit lost in the background, and overall there is just a sense of there being a lack of sharpness to their bite.

As an EP, this works on a quick "smash 'n grab" level of entertainment. Just as GOTH get their hobnail boots and fist-band and chains to the bar, they sup up and are off to lay waste to some other drinking establishment. The synthy, atmospheric outro with its weird alien/subliminal devil speak is unnecessary as they do not strike me as a band who rely on pomp or circumstance to get their point across. At the same time the band certainly do not reinvent any wheels and as a result (having heard more than my fair share of this sub-genre by now) large parts of this EP just pass me by. It falls all too easily into the "Hells Headbangers" atypical trve/kvlt blackened thrash brigade - which in itself is a great place to be, but one that is well-trodden already for me.

3/5

Mr. Hellcunt (Marcus to his friends) is also the drummer in my favourite Aussie band, Bestial Warlust, so he's obviously got a decent track record in extreme black metal. Anyway, I listened to this because your review made it sound like it would be up my street  - and it most definitely is. It is pretty badass, it sounds filthy as fuck and it doesn't outstay it's welcome at only twenty minutes. I wish more black metal acts would learn the lesson of "drag 'em in, kick 'em in the balls and get the fuck out of there" before they all start boring us (well me anyway) to shit with their latest sixty-minute-plus "opus". I'd give this one a 4.

Wall of Sleep - When Mountains Roar (2010)

When Mountains Roar was Hungarian band Wall of Sleep's fourth album released in 2010 on PsycheDOOMelic Records. I have a passing familiarity with the band, mainly via previous album, 2007's ...And Hell Followed With Him which I enjoyed a fair bit without it exactly setting my world alight. Wall of Sleep play a stonerised version of traditional doom metal that has a very prominent hard rock component to it, in fact I would even suggest that the song Bitter Smile contains a riff that was ripped straight off of Zeppelin's The Ocean from Houses of the Holy, so how much you enjoy this will be very dependent on how comfortable you are with rock grooves on metal albums. For me this isn't much of a problem as I grew up in the classic hard rock heyday when bands like Zeppelin and Deep Purple ruled the roost.

Wall of Sleep are still fundamentally a metal band, be assured, and when they go full-on stoner/trad doom, such as on Receive the Pain, then they prove that they are more than capable of cranking out some terrific doom metal. But these guys are definitely worshippers at the feet of Page, Blackmore and Iommi and in all honesty my favourite aspect of When Mountains Roar is the solos of guitarists Balázs Kemencei and Sándor Füleki who were obviously raised on a diet of Seventies guitar gods and turn in some brilliant six-string showcases. Vocalist Csaba Cselényi had joined the band a year before the release of the album and he has a fine line in gruff, blues-inflected vocals and his voice is perfectly suited to this style of material. The songs themselves are exceedingly melodic with anthemic, sing-along choruses in many cases that had me having to check myself from bursting into song myself as I was out walking the dog! In fact, I would have to say there is more than a little bit of Down about them at times with an inherent bluesiness to a large percentage of their material.

All-in-all I would personally hail this a success as it could successfully fill a niche for when I need to hear some metal that still harks back to earlier, less complicated days when I too was obsessed with the Zeps and Purples of this world. Sadly, I think this would probably get short shrift from the majority of Metal Academy members as it is probably too rock-orientated for most members, which is a big shame because it is very well done indeed.

4/5

Horna -Perimä vihassa ja verikostossa EP {1999)

This is exactly what I was hoping for from this new game. Although I fully expected to have to deal with some dross, I was hoping that occasionally a previously undiscovered gem would rear it's head from out of Metal Academy's primordial ooze of releases and let it's presence be felt. Well Horna's 1999 EP Perimä vihassa ja verikostossa (which translates as Inherited Anger and Blood Revenge I am reliably informed by google translate) is just such a release which is pretty good going for a first try with The North.

This is basically good old-fashioned second wave black metal and Horna seem, at least on this release, to have been quite heavily influenced by early Emperor (minus the synths), to such an extent that third track, Pimeys yllä pyhän maan, contains a phrase during the middle section that seems to have been lifted straight from I Am the Black Wizards. For me, this kind of shit is why I love black metal, the riffs are molten with just enough melody to keep them relatable and the vocals are the suitably ragged shrieks of a tormented soul. Sure the modern trend is for BM to be saturated with dissonance and avant-garde stylings, but give me some straight-up, bad-ass, evil-sounding, old-school blasting any day of the week and I'm happy as a pig in shit. Then, to put the icing on the cake, Horna even manage to pander to my doom metal cravings by including a slab of creeping blackened doom metal in penultimate track Ghash inras. The EP closes out with the eight minute title track which is a bit of a minor black metal epic and provides a suitably impressive end to a thoroughly enjoyable half-an-hour of old-school black metal blasting. Look, this isn't anything like an original take on the genre so if you want to be challenged by your black metal then this isn't the place to look, but if you just want a decent half-hour blast then roll on up.

I didn't realise until just now that the main man in Horna is Shatraug, guitarist/vocalist/bassist of Sargeist. Also, it is uncanny how similar that cover is to Storm of the Light's Bane.
4/5

Speaking as someone who likes Jurassic Jade, I think you're selling them a bit short. I can't tell you what to do, but judging by what you're describing, you basically listened to their first two albums, then this one, all in quick succession, which speaking from experience absolutely harms one's listening experience. Granted, I'm not going to pretend like Jurassic Jade are some musical geniuses, but I don't quite think one listen is enough even for them.

For me it is a minimum of three listens before a review.  Granted not always the case as sometimes I can do many more listens before writing a review (Borknagar's Olden Domain springs to mind as one that hit double figures), but yeah, for me the minimum of three is what is needed for my brain to get enough experience of a release.  Will vary i am sure from person to person, release to release.

Yeah, three is the minimum for me too. I have found from experience that opinions formed after a single listen almost invariably have to be reassessed at a later date.

It's unsurprising really that Dream Death have a strong doom element to their sound as not long after the release of this debut bassist Ted Williams left and the rest of the band changed their name to Penance, playing full-on Trad Doom. I love this album but only just realised I haven't reviewed it yet, so I'll look to rectify that over the course of the month.

I will have a couple of suggestions Vinny. When's the latest you'll need them by?

I've not heard the new Hulder yet Vinny, is it any good?

I guess we are posting our thoughts here in the original thread, so here goes:

Legion of the Damned - Slaves of the Shadow Realm (2019)

For those who weren't previously acquainted with them (which seems to be nearly everyone, including me), Legion of the Damned are a Dutch deaththrash outfit who formed in 1992 as Occult, releasing five full-lengths under that monicker until changing their name to Legion of the Damned in 2005, possibly because they had switched from a female vocalist, Rachel Heyzer, to a male singer, Maurice Swinkels and they wanted to differentiate their sound at that point. Slaves of the Shadow Realm is their seventh album as Legion of the Damned, being originally released in 2019 on Napalm Records.

Right, so now we all know who they are, what do they sound like? Well they don't hang around leaving us waiting to find out as they are straight out of the gate at full velocity with The Widows Breed providing a nitrous-powered opening salvo of blisteringly-paced deaththrash. The tracks all fall into one of two camps, the first of which is the high-powered assaults that follow the template of the opener, or more medium-paced fayre. This is pretty much the only variation that you will find here.

The positives I take away from Slaves of the Shadow Realm is the riffs which aren't bad at all with a nice dirty crunch to them that did manage to get me nodding awayand secondly Maurice Swinkels' vocals, his blackened rasp possessing the requisite evilness that the material requires. The major downside for me is the solos - there ain't nothing like enough of them and when guitarist Twan van Geel does let them go they don't sound especially impressive and are shoved down in the mix, feel muted as a result. The solos play a big part in thrash metal, so for me this is a serious negative. Many a time I was begging for a Jeff Hannemann screaming solo to burst onto the scene and grab this or that track by the throat, only to be disappointed by there being either none at all or (possibly worse) a completely lacklustre effort. The bass and drums are functional and don't do much special. The drums seem quite in-your-face whilst the bass much less so.
I think it is not particularly unfair to say that on the evidence of this Legion of the Damned are what could be termed a "journeyman" metal outfit. This isn't a problem for me as much as for some metalheads - I don't constantly need to be challenged by new sounds and ideas, I can be quite happy with an album that makes me nod my head and tap my feet and treads well-worn roads. I think this band could feature under Ben's old thread "Bands with loads of releases no one cares about", which is a shame as when they do click they are pretty decent and I can assure you I have definitely heard a lot worse!
3/5

I must admit that I am exceedingly reluctant to share my thoughts on AiC's seminal Dirt album as it seems to be one of those untouchable records that everyone adores, yet for some reason I just don't feel it. I had never listened to Alice in Chains much, at least until we had The Devil Put Dinosaurs Here as a monthly feature for July last year. Now, I really enjoyed that album and started to think that maybe I'd missed out on something with AiC, but now that I've checked out Dirt properly I don't think so at all. 

The problem isn't an aversion to grunge, I was quite heavily into it back in the day and I still love me some Soundgarden, Nirvana, early Pearl Jam and even Hole and Silverchair, to this day, but Dirt just doesn't cut it for me compared to Superunknown, Nevermind or Ten. My biggest confession is that the reason for this is mainly that I don't like Layne Staley's singing. I much prefer Will Duvall's vocals as he tries less to dominate things and just sounds more natural to me. Staley's style seems overwrought and just too theatrical, as he plays up to the troubled genius persona, for my taste.

Musically I must admit that the band sound great, but their heavy leaning towards a blues sound does make me scratch my head at why these guys are never challenged as to their metal credentials when others are often scrutinised for playing rock-adjacent metal. Now don' t get me wrong, there are some good songs here, but they are the more well-known ones which are such for good reason, but many just feel like metallised verions of old Cream or Led Zeppelin numbers.

I'm sure you will all be queueing up to tell me how clueless I am but, quite frankly, you're probably best saving your breath (or at least your typing fingers) because it is what it is.

3.5/5

I reviewed Aveilut only two or three days ago and in all honesty I really struggled with it for reasons I explain in the review. I acknowledge this issue is a personal one but it makes it very difficult to be objective about the album. Anyway, for what it's worth, I'll repost my review here:

After requesting recommendations from what so far feels like an underachieving year in black metal, Ben kindly offered up his top ten list, #1 on which was this debut from Brooklyn avant-garde black metallers Scarcity. So, I must admit upfront that this was a massive struggle for me, especially during the first five minutes or so when I almost had to turn it off. But first I'd better explain some background. I am one of those people who is occasionally subject to sensory overload when subjected to overly busy sounds or visuals. When this happens it manifests as an almost physical discomfort and I tend to have to get away or block out the offending sensory input. This is why I struggle so badly with especially dissonant or avant-garde music and probably explains my love of more atmospheric and monolithic metal like funeral doom, drone or atmo-black. Anyway the opening minutes of Aveilut really triggered those feelings and I truly struggled to get through them. But persist I did and although there was a few passages that I did enjoy, on the whole I didn't really get a lot out of this I'm afraid. The whole thing is just too dissonant and unconventional sounding for me and whilst I understand that there are loads of people to whom this more challenging music provides huge satisfaction, I am sorry, but I just can't relate. This is a release I can't see myself returning to and yes, I realise that the fault is mine, but sometimes we just have to admit that something is not for us and move on. Sorry, it's not much of a review, but it is what it is.

September 2022

1. Temple of Void - "Deathtouch" from "Summoning the Slayer" (2022)
2. Candlemass - "Tears" from "Tales of Creation" (1989)
3. Celtic Frost - "Obscured" from "Monotheist" (2006)
4. Bog Body - "Ice Stained Kurgan" from "Cryonic Crevasse Cult" (2022)
5. Hangman's Chair - "Who Wants to Die Old" from "A Loner" (2022)
6. Mastodon - "Crusher Destroyer" from "Remission" (2002)
7. BlackLab - "Abyss Woods" from "In A Bizarre Dream" (2022)
8. The Gates of Slumber - "Bastards Born" from "The Wretch" (2011)
9. Esoteric - "Sinistrous" from "The Pernicious Enigma" (1997)
10. Come to Grief - "When the World Dies" from "When the World Dies" (2022)
11. Skeleton Gong - "Nephilim" from "For the World Is Hollow and I Have Touched the Sky" (2015)
12. Slomatics - "Futurian" from "Estron" (2014)
13. Witchfinder General - "Death Penalty" from "Death Penalty" (1982)
14. Wolf Counsel - "Aeons" from "Initivm" (2022)
15. Churchburn - "Scarred" from "Genocidal Rite" (2021)
16. Type O Negative - "Creepy Green Light" from "World Coming Down" (1999)
17. Until Death Overtakes Me - "Missing" from "Prelude to Monolith" (2003)

Horna are a band I have seen mention of nearly everywhere but have never listened to, so I will take "Perimä vihassa ja verikostossa".

Over to you Vinny.

I am unfamiliar with any of these, so I will go for the band with the coolest-sounding name and Legion of the Damned's "Slaves of the Shadow Realm" is my pick.

On to you Vinny.

OK Ben, I was tempted by "Death's Crown Is Victory" as it is a release I own on CD, but instead I will take Wall of Sleep's "When Mountains Roar".

As there is an overwhelming percentage of unrated releases on the site, after refreshing the page, starting with the first release, why not take the first four unrated (or unreviewed) releases that come up? This way we would all probably be hearing something new to us (which could become a previously undiscovered favourite) and it would also have the added benefit of expanding the number of releases that have been reviewed and rated. Just a thought...

I'm not sure that's actually necessary, as the percentage of unrated vs rated on the site is huge. We'll end up with a full suite of unrated releases quite often I reckon. Plus there are so many rated releases that I haven't got around to rating / reviewing myself, so I'm actually keen to use my draft pick to do just that.

If the likes of Reign in Blood / Master of Puppets come up, we can always make a group decision at the time to ignore them.

That's fair enough Ben. To be honest I tried it with the Fallen and the first four releases that came up had a grand total of one rating between them,  so I guess you are right, there will probably be loads of unrated stuff coming up anyway.

You are right Andi, it is a very serious topic and is one that deserves serious discussion. The thing is that musicians are only human like the rest of us and posses all the qualities and failings that the rest of us possess, so inevitably there will be those whose actions are reprehensible, just as in the wider population. Metal musicians seem to be a particular target for criticism, but there have been many examples of musicians from other, often more accepted, musical spheres who have been bastards too - Phil Spector and Gary Glitter for example. There have also been numerous examples of well-regarded writers, artists and philosophers who were utter twats. In fact, I am such a natural cynic that I would probably be more surprised to find out that egotistical musicians were decent people rather than complete c**ts!

I think it is a mistake to put musicians on a pedestal in the first place. It is unlikely that the reality will ever live up to the expectation, as I say, they are human beings, not saints. The dilemma is for the listener. Does a musician's (or writer's or artist's) actions negate the power or relevance of the work they have produced? Could there be an argument that their flaws are what contributed to their genius in the first place.  I have no desire to defend Kelly or his actions, what he has done sounds awful, but I don't see how that changes a single note from the music he has produced and if it meant something to you yesterday, why wouldn't it still mean something today? If you no longer wished to support such an artist financially by not paying for music or merch then that is fine, but personally I have never been dazzled by "celebrity" and can separate the person from the music fairly easily. 

Here's hoping his family can move on from the toxic influence of such an unpleasant individual.

As there is an overwhelming percentage of unrated releases on the site, after refreshing the page, starting with the first release, why not take the first four unrated (or unreviewed) releases that come up? This way we would all probably be hearing something new to us (which could become a previously undiscovered favourite) and it would also have the added benefit of expanding the number of releases that have been reviewed and rated. Just a thought...

OK Ben, if you are willing to put up with even more of my nonsensical ramblings you can count me in for the North, Fallen and the Pit. As it is randomised will you be publishing a list of the available releases because I presume it would be different for everyone (or am I missing something).

"Easy wins" seems like a poor choice of words, though.

But we can still but heads to find some fair way to do this without sacrificing the integrity of the clan system.  Maybe I see it a little differently since I'll listen to any metal genre, but if Daniel and Ben wanted to draw attention to the Hall, then it's still an important part despite being so small.

I don't think it's a poor choice of words at all. To compromise the site's whole purpose to push through a few Hall judgements seems exactly like the definition of seeking easy wins. I think it is also obvious that despite their hope to see Hall submissions resolved, neither Ben nor Daniel are keen to relax the long-established rules around it that they themselves set.

I can't say I agree with this approach. A member's clan assignments are intended to play a strong role in their identity at Metal Academy so I would discourage repeated swapping of clans. It's important to remember why we have clans in the first place which is to ensure that anyone that's voting on a release's clan or subgenre is well qualified & to do so & that there's an easy avenue to differentiate between a devoted & a casual listeners feelings on a release. The Hall of Judgement is such a small part of the site in the grand scheme of things so I don't think we should be diluting the fundamental intent of the site in order to better facilitate fast outcomes there (& in doing so risk the integrity of the voting just quietly too). Remember, not being a part of a clan doesn't restrict you from enjoying the releases & sharing your thoughts on the releases it contains in any way so I can't see why anyone would want to swap to a clan simply because they feel like listening to some releases from that clan. I'd suggest that I have one of the broadest taste profiles at the Academy but there's no doubt that everyone has comfort zones where they're more knowledgeable than others & I'm well aware of what mine are. That doesn't mean that I don't love a whole bunch of releases from each of the other five clans & I don't feel in any way restricted. I know perfectly well that there are people that are more qualified than I am to select the feature releases & nominate the playlist inclusions for the other clans & I treat it as an opportunity to discover new things while I can do the same for others within the context of my own clans.

I agree with all that Daniel has said here.  Not that I give two shits about the Hall of Tagging or whatever it is used for but it strikes me that the clan membership should not be driven by votes being needed in the Hall.  My understanding is that the clans (and the luxury of being afforded a fourth clan) was to develop real expertise or be given the opportunity to grow your musical experience I think this suggestion to spuriously change your clans once a month is ludicrous and seriously detracts away from the ethos of the site.  For me, to switch up clans you have to put the work in and complete the challenges required, just like you would have done in the initial qualification for the fourth clan.  I think some of us need to take a step back and be a little less excitable (although I do not for one minute doubt that this excitement comes from a genuine and passionate standpoint on metal music) and focus on the principals of why the site is here.

I must throw my weight behind Daniel and Vinny here. The clan system is what differentiates Metal Academy from other music sites and to dumb that down is to do the fantastic work that Daniel and Ben have done a great disservice. The Hall is but a small part of the site and to sacrifice the integrity of the site's main focus to get a few easy wins there seems disingenuous.

Scarcity - Aveilut (2022)

After requesting recommendations from what so far feels like an underachieving year in black metal, Ben kindly offered up his top ten list, #1 on which was this debut from Brooklyn avant-garde black metallers Scarcity. So, I must admit upfront that this was a massive struggle for me, especially during the first five minutes or so when I almost had to turn it off. But first I'd better explain some background. I am one of those people who is occasionally subject to sensory overload when subjected to overly busy sounds or visuals. When this happens it manifests as an almost physical discomfort and I tend to have to get away or block out the offending sensory input. This is why I struggle so badly with especially dissonant or avant-garde music and probably explains my love of more atmospheric and monolithic metal like funeral doom, drone or atmo-black. Anyway the opening minutes of Aveilut really triggered those feelings and I truly struggled to get through them. But persist I did and although there was a few passages that I did enjoy, on the whole I didn't really get a lot out of this I'm afraid. The whole thing is just too dissonant and unconventional sounding for me I think and whilst I understand that there are loads of people to whom this more challenging music provides huge satisfaction, I am sorry, but I just can't relate. This is a release I can't see myself returning to and yes, I realise that the fault is mine, but sometimes we just have to admit that something is not for us and move on. Sorry Ben.

1.5/5

Thanks Ben. I have heard and enjoyed the DsO and BaN albums, but I wasn't impressed by Celeste. I'll check out some of the others pretty soon though. Have you listened to the Blackbraid album? Vinny recced it to me and it is very good.

As the regulars will know, I recently did a deep dive into the early years of death metal and listened to some excellent demos from the likes of Possessed, Death and Autopsy. I find demos to be extremely interesting records of band's early development and how they put their sound together, especially interesting with bands like the above and the early black metal bands such as Mayhem who were developing new sounds and ended up being massively influential. The very early Metallica demos with Dave Mustaine still on board are very interesting too. 

Unfortunately demos aren't catalogued on Metal Academy so there is no facility to rate them and if you want to review them you have to do it through a forum thread. If you are interested Rex, here's the link to the death metal thread I made with several demo reviews within it: https://metal.academy/forum/10/thread/1230

Similarly to Vinny, I have never really been able to commit fully to a fourth clan. I have dabbled with the idea of The Guardians, The Horde and to a lesser extent The Infinite, but I don't like power metal which dominates The Guardians, I'm not keen on brutal or slam death and don't have much tolerance for avant-garde or post-metal so feel my membership of  any of those clans would be detrimental to the clans in question as there are vast swathes of releases in all of them that I don't care for. That said, I am still chipping away at the clan challenges for no other reason than I enjoy doing them even if I don't aim to take up clan membership as a result of completing any of them.

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)

I don't think you can say that Linkin Park dominated Nu Metal to the extent Maiden did the NWOBHM Andi. I remember Korn and Slipknot both being massive and Slipknot still are to some extent. If you generate charts in RYM by popularity Linkin Park are #2 & #3 behind Deftones' Around the Fur album with Slipknot and Korn close behind, whereas a NWOBHM chart with the same criteria returns all the Maiden albums that qualify as NWOBHM (the debut through to Piece of Mind) in the top four places with the fourth best (Killers) still having twice the ratings of the next best, Venom's Black Metal. I don't know enough about the others you mention to comment I'm afraid.

Similarly for Viking metal their chart seems to share between Bathory and Moonsorrow, but tellingly Hammerheart has more than twice the ratings of any other album, so I think it's fair to say that Viking Metal is dominated by one album.

The Neue Deutsche Harte chart is even more skewed - Rammstein occupy the first EIGHT places and number eleven is Til Lindemann's Lindemann project F&M album. I think we may have a winner here!

Interesting thread Sonny. Here's a few off the top of my head:

Viking metal - Bathory

Gorenoise - Phyllomedusa

Rap metal - Rage Against The Machine

Neue Deutsche Härte - Rammstein

Djent - Meshuggah

Yes, Rammstein was the one other I could think of off the top of my head but Bathory and RATM are both good calls too. I know zilch about gorenoise and care even less about djent so have no evidence about either to judge.

True but considering the staff is very limited, there may be other potentially more important features to include and program first.  Even RYM has a million things to do and they have a staff of around 200 moderators, but only two developers.

Ben and Daniel have always been very encouraging in getting the members to come forward with ideas to improve the site and Vinny sees that as an improvement (and, for the record, I agree with him) so was perfectly justified in raising the subject with Ben.

Russian Circles - Gnosis (2022)

I was first switched onto Russian Circles' new album by Vinny and at first glance it isn't really the kind of stuff I would be falling over myself to check out. Firstly it is classed as post-metal, a genre that doesn't always chime with me personally and, secondly, it is entirely instrumental. I don't have a problem with instrumental tracks, but rarely enjoy a whole album that is completely vocal-free. Fortunately these preconceptions were kicked into the long grass in short order as this is a fantasic record from beginning to end and won me over within a very short timescale. The difference between this and many other post-metal albums I have heard is that this gets on with it and doesn't spend a seeming age building up to a questionably worthwhile payoff.

The guitars weave a tapestry of thick and vibrant sound that sometimes bouys the listener along and other times envelops and soothes them. The lack of vocals actually works well in the album's favour, allowing those gorgeous guitar lines to stay in focus and sparing the listener the distraction that vocals always provide as they are usually pushed to front and centre even at the expense of everything else. There is a certain parrallel to be heard here to some of the more lush-sounding atmospheric black metal acts like Saor or Mare Cognitum with some of their inate epicness seeping through - check out the title track or opener Tupilak to hear what I mean.

I don't know, maybe there isn't enough here to satisfy the usual post-metal fan, but I found it to be a thoroughly satisfying and uplifting experience and it has quickly cemented itself a place near the top of my personal top post-metal albums list.

4.5/5

I don't want to put words into his mouth, but I think Vinny's point is that even if there is a thread you may be interested in they are in danger of quickly being pushed off the previous forum posts list by endless "yes it is", "no it isn't" posts relating to the minutiae of genre classification which not everyone may be interested in. Surely it is reasonable therefore to enquire if there is any possibility of filtering out threads a member may not be interested in and so allowing everyone to interact with the site in a way which may suit them.

Hi Ben, when you've finished with Andi's shopping list could you please add Chilean blackened thrashers Mayhemic.

Hi Ben, any chance you could add the new Wolf Counsel album, Initivm please?

Personally, I have always viewed speed metal as the evolutionary step between heavy metal and thrash metal, so I'm kind of on the fence with this one and feel that both The Guardians and The Pit have a valid claim on it's inclusion. Maybe as it was birthed within The Guardians remit though, then they have the stronger claim, but I could be persuaded either way.

Only one contender for me today. The new Autopsy track Skin By Skin is completely badass.

New Autopsy album is due out 30th September. Released on Peaceville it is called Morbidity Triumphant.

A lyric video promo for the song Skin By Skin is available on YouTube:

Aren't wolverines essential small bears?

No, they are a particularly vicious relative of the polecats or weasels.

From wikipaedia:

"The wolverine has a reputation for ferocity and strength out of proportion to its size, with the documented ability to kill prey many times larger than itself."

 If that's not a "metal" animal, then I don't know what is!

I never said it wasn't METAL.  I just don't know if it's PUNK.  When I think of punk, I think of hyperactivity and obnoxiousness, as well as rebellion and... revolution.  Wolverines are one of my favorite animals because of their raw fucking power, and I'd love a wolverine to represent something here, but I don't know if The Revolution is the right place.  Of course, I'm not a member of the Revolution and I've never taken part in their discussions the way I have Guardians.  And I know it's technically a relative of weasels; the point I was making was that it's still pretty similar to a bear in shape, structure and strength.

I guess we will have to agree to disagree on the essential bearishness of wolverines for now - at least until I can get the funding for my planned new Rate Your Wildlife website. (If any wolverines are reading this who do identify as bears that's cool too. I have no wish to judge any creature based on their lifestyle choices).

How about a bluebottle then? They break into your house with shit all over their feet, vomit on your food then incessantly buzz round your head on a Sunday afternoon when you're trying to watch the match. They also abandon their kids to grow up inside a dead body. How much more punk can you get!?

Aren't wolverines essential small bears?

No, they are a particularly vicious relative of the polecats or weasels.

From wikipaedia:

"The wolverine has a reputation for ferocity and strength out of proportion to its size, with the documented ability to kill prey many times larger than itself."

 If that's not a "metal" animal, then I don't know what is!

Could you add Providence sludge / death doomers Churchburn please Ben.

Revolution - Wolverine, the most "punk" animal going.

Candlemass have a new album due out on 18th of November. Released on Napalm Records it is called Sweet Evil Sun.

Featuring original vocalist Johan Langquist, the only advance track released to date is called Scandinavian Gods: