Fifth Angel - When Angels Kill (official music video)

In case that you have not seen it, here is the latest video from the Washington State, U.S. melodic heavy metal band Fifth Angel (1984-1989, 2010, 2017-present). The song is called "When Angels Kill" from the upcoming album also titled When Angels Kill. If you like the new song, you might also enjoy the live recording found below the new video. In addition, if you do like both videos, maybe you will also have fun going back to the elegant, beautiful sound of the melodic heavy metal of the band in the 1980s. While we wait for the new album, there is a quite a bit of history to catch up on, right?!

Fifth Angel

When Angels Kill

Nuclear Blast

June 16th, 2023

1. Descent into Darkness

2. When Angels Kill

3. Resist the Tyrant

4. On Wings of Steel

5. We Are Immortal

6. Empire of Hate

7. Run to the Black

8. Seven Angels

9. Blinded and Bleeding

10. Kill the Pain

11. Five Days to Madness

12. Ashes to Ashes

13. The End of Everything

14. Light the Skies

FIFTH ANGEL - When Angels Kill (OFFICIAL MUSIC VIDEO)

Fifth Angel live | Rockpalast | 2019

Fifth Angel - Time Will Tell

https://www.facebook.com/fifthangelofficial/

Trip The Wire - "Hurricane" (official music video)

Trip The Wire

Trip The Wire

16 June 2023

Here are a couple of videos from Trip The Wire from the state of Washington, U.S. Their self-titled album is "retro" heavy rock. The music is back-to-basics of guitars, drums, bass and singing, and avoids distractions like background or samples or special effects. They sound like a band interested in playing these songs live similarly to the recording. Listeners should be able to hear the instrumentation relatively clearly because the band wants audiences to hear the songwriting and focus on the songs and the melodies. The band refers to their music as "hard rock," but it's heavy rock/heavy metal, not blues rock, because the guitars have a certain crunch to them, which comes out in selected places. One gets the impression that at least some members of the band like metal music, but they are not trying to be all-out headbanging metal. They prefer the variety and diverse songwriting of 1970s heavy rock. While a song like "In the Crossfire" might sound like traditional heavy metal, the other songs make it obvious that they want a bit more variety.

In the Crossfire 4:21

Anti Love 3:50

Hurricane 4:37

Zombie Child 3:33

Shine On 4:38

The Fire 4:52

Maybe Next Time 3:56

Outta My Hands 4:46

Never Enough 4:42

Step Nine 6:13

Trip The Wire - In the Crossfire (Live)

Trip The Wire - "Hurricane" (Official Music Video)

Hurricane by Trip The Wire

Decaying Crypt - Seattle death doom

Decaying Crypt

Demo MMXXI

September 23rd, 2021

So far it seems that there is only this 26-minute, five-track recording released by this Washington State, U.S. cavernous death doom band; they call themselves "old school death metal." Their interpretation of heavy consists of blasting, undeniable, full-speed-ahead moments that will bang those heads that do not bang, while the slow-motion crawling sections are an important part of their sound. Recommended for fans of Incantation and the bands that are the children and grandchildren of Incantation: the furious death metal and the slow parts. As long as the slow passages are acceptable to the listener, better yet, very enjoyable, Decaying Crypt's demo should be building up a small following (or maybe not so small, we'll see) of die-hard supporters of primal cave brutality.

DEMO MMXXI by Decaying Crypt

Vesuvian - melodic death metal from Seattle

Vesuvian

Emergence

April 9th, 2023

This month of April 2023, after two previous EPs, the Seattle melodic death metal band Vesuvian (2014-2015 [as Ocean of Obsession], 2015-present) has issued its debut full-length album called Emergence. At this particular juncture the band has arrived at a rather polished sound based on melodic extreme metal with a neosymphonic background, in addition to other elements, like some melodic singing and slower passages. I am not that familiar with the new album so far because I have only heard it one time as of right now, although I am now working on hearing it a second time. Having seen the band live, it’s nice to hear recorded some of the newer material that they have been telling audiences about. It is also nice to see the band get to the point where they sound like they are capable of making come to life the music that they hear in their minds as Vesuvian music. Back in the early days before they even changed their name to Vesuvian, they sounded like a young band working within metalcore-based sounds when they were just getting their feet wet. Nowadays they have grown in experience and they have come a long way towards a more professional melodic death metal sound.

Emergence by Vesuvian

https://www.facebook.com/Vesuvianmetal/

Infecting the Swarm - ultra brutal woof woof from Germany

Infecting the Swarm

Pulsing Coalescence

Lacerated Enemy Records

14 April 2023

When you are the band Infecting the Swarm, you always try to do the worst you can. Make your cacophony as fugly as possible, and sound you grabbed a bunch of Pantera records and you violently shoved them into a meat grinder, and the sound of the meat grinder chewing up and spitting out the shattered pieces is the sound of Infecting the Swarm. Goodness, this is as atrocious as it is marvelous: super-duper lowest-growled, eat-the-microphone vocals; animalistic barbarian drum blasting (programming?) and unmelodic, thick rhythms. Don’t show this music to your teachers! They will say, “Angie, oh, honey, I’m worried about you. I don’t think this music is appropriate.” They might call social services, animal control and the local Boys and Girls counselor to ask you if you are doing ok. Angie, you tell those fools that you are doing ok. Tell them, “Hey, you liked stupid fake so-called music like that Mr. big-butt rapper guy when you were young! You can’t judge me when you were dancing to Vanilla Ice and MC Hammer in your day! Now get out of my room and let me listen to Infecting the Swarm, alright?!” Friend, come this way only if you want to hear the most repugnant metal.

INFECTING THE SWARM – Pulsing Coalescence by Lacerated Enemy records

https://www.facebook.com/InfectingTheSwarm

Brutal Desire - melodic death metal/metalcore from Rio de Janeiro

Brutal Desire is a Brazilian metalcore/death metal band that began in 2016. Their 2019 EP, which shows some death metal with additional and various influences, is called Nec Spe Nec Metu, and it is shared here from YouTube. That music was with their previous vocalist Enrico Salvatore. Then, in 2019 their vocalist joined and her name is Isabelle Alexandre Nascimento. From what I can tell, they do not yet have a new album or EP, but they have recorded two singles in 2021, according to the information on Metal Archives. Their most recent direction is a bit more melodic, with a shock rock factor thrown in, coming across as melodic extreme metal of metalcore, death metal and other components. At any rate, below is the video for the 2021 single "Bloodshed." As of right now, there does not seem to be any more recent music. Let's wait and see if an EP or album is released at some point. On Metal Archives it shows that the band is rounded out by Oman Oado, who has been drumming with the band since 2016; and guitarist Daniel Sales who joined in 2019.

BRUTAL DESIRE -「BLOODSHED」Official Music Video

Brutal Desire - Nec Spe Nec Metu

https://www.facebook.com/brutaldesireofficialpage/

Narnia - "Wake up Call" video

The long-running power metal band Narnia (Sweden) released a new album in March called Ghost Town. Known for soaring vocals and an abundance of melodies, their trademarks remain in 2023. Sometimes their sound seems more prog power or neoclassical or traditional heavy metal, and in a way, it's all those things, and of course, plenty of direct power metal. If you are new to the band, Narnia takes inspiration from "The Chronicles of Narnia" by C.S. Lewis. Sometimes their lyrics seem like stories, and the band prides itself on bringing a different, more positive perspective on life, based on Christian beliefs. Anyway, the bottom line is quality power metal, that's always been their goal and continues to be to this day. Check out the video from the album. This song is a pretty good representation of what the bands sounds like and of their lyrics.

1. Rebel 04:06

2. Thief 05:06

3. Hold On 04:05

4. Glory Daze 04:27

5. Descension 07:11

6. Ghost Town 03:43

7. Alive 04:02

8. Modern Day Pharisees 04:11

9. Out of the Silence 04:18

10. Wake Up Call 05:52

total time 47:01

NARNIA - WAKE UP CALL (OFFICIAL VIDEO WITH LYRICS)

https://www.facebook.com/narniatheband

Treedeon - sludge from Germany

This past March saw the release of the third album by Germany-based sludge purveyors Treedeon. Expect a super heavy psychedelic stoner guitar sound and screamed vocals that may seem furious, crazy or desperate, or all three. They love a massive sound of slow guitar and a wall-shaking rhythm section. Doom fanatics should have plenty here to entertain them. This is a twisted version of late 1960s pschedelic rock loaded up with weight of a couple of tons of anger. This ain't the summer love.

New World Hoarder by Treedeon

https://www.facebook.com/Treedeon/

Sölicitör - the Seattle speedsters are in Europe right now

Seattle speed metal leather rockers Sölicitör are in Europe now. If you have never their brand of speed metal, then check out the recording below. Of course, they have a lot more where that came from.

See this tour photo for the remaining dates. It looks like Germany and Holland are next.

All Debts On Death by Solicitor

https://www.facebook.com/solicitor.speedmetal/

Masses in Atrophy - Michigan deathcore/death metal

I never heard this Michigan deathcore/death metal band's 2019 recording A Blackened Gate Beyond The Stars when it was released. As it turns out, on April 10th on Facebook they posted that the band is over. This is the only recording shown on Metal Archives or Bandcamp. It is three songs in 11 minutes. To my ears, hearing this music for the first time, it seems like a deathcore band incorporating some prog/tech death elements into their music, and moving a lot closer to death metal, while some of the groove/djent sounds seem to be present to some extent. Hey, you never know, maybe they are finished or maybe not. This recording is not too shabby and it would not be surprising if they feel like they left some business unfinished.

A Blackened Gate Beyond The Stars by Masses In Atrophy

https://www.facebook.com/massesinatrophy/

Necronomicon - thrashing from Germany since 1984

Necronomicon

Constant to Death

El Puerto Records

April 28th, 2023

1. Constant to Death 02:57

2. They Lie 02:44

3. Redemption 02:52

4. Stored in Blood 03:28

5. The Guilty Shepherd 05:33

6. A Voice for the Voiceless 03:26

7. Black Rain 05:37

8. Children Cry Alone 02:07

9. Bloodrush 03:09

10. Down from Above 05:02

11. The Blood Runs Red 05:13

total time 42:08

The thrashing began in 1984 and soon in 1985 the Germans had two demos that were the basis for the 1986 self-titled debut album. While thrash in 1986 was already more polished and commercially viable, Necronomicon, having started later, tended to show some rawer traits, including on the 1987 sophomore album. By 1988, the sound had become tighter and more experienced. While their first two albums are fun second-tier albums, on their third one they seemed to step up their game. Unfortunately, some time was lost and their next album was released in 1994. Worse yet, it was not until 2004 that they released another album. Ever since then, however, they have been releasing albums in 2008, 2012, 2015, 2018 and now 2023. The main thing to know is that they are reliable thrash. It’s all here, the screamed vocals, the prototypical riffs, the guitar solos and the pounding rhythm section. There are no ballads, no love songs, no groove, just galloping thrash riffs of headbanging metal. The strength of this album is their ability to make their songs fun. The tight thrash has a bit of hooks, licks and melodies along with the speed, things to please the die-hard, collector-minded thrash fanatic. Nowadays only the singer guitarist Freddy remains from 1984. Metal Archives shows that Freddy is joined by Marco Lohrenz on bass since 2013, Rik Charron on drums since 2019 and Glen Shannon on guitars since 2019. As someone that still likes the first two albums and their other albums, too, I like the mentality and consistency that the band has shown throughout their career.

NECRONOMICON - They Lie (2023) // official Clip // El-Puerto-Records

https://www.facebook.com/necronomiconofficial

Tanith - classic rock heavy metal lives

Tanith

Voyage

Metal Blade Records

21 April 2023

The most prominent member of this British-American band is guitarist and vocalist Russ Tippins, active since 1979 with New Wave of British Heavy Metal band Satan (later named Blind Fury, then Pariah and then Satan again). They have Cindy Maynard on vocals and bass, and Keith Robinson on drums. Tanith is classic rock in the style of the 1970s, something in between the metal of late 70s Judas Priest and Scorpions, and the prog rock of Rush, Budgie, Deep Purple or Uriah Heep and other bands like that. They are certainly not headbanging metal, but they do a good job of rocking, and avoiding going off the deep end with the prog, avoiding long, meandering self-indulgence.

Tanith does not sound perfect. You know how 1970s bands do not sound perfect but real when you hear a Led Zeppelin, Mountain, Sir Lord Baltimore, Heart or Black Sabbath song? This is like that, not perfectly and clinically robotized. It sounds human and it is on purpose. Truth be told, if you listen to mostly computer heavy metal music, it takes a few listens for your ears, so distorted by the Milli Vanilli-style fraudulence of metal rock, to adjust to Tanith. In short, you can tell that this band intends to play this music live. On their debut album back in 2019 they sounded like they were on to a good thing. Indeed, they are in 2023.

Voyage by Tanith

https://www.facebook.com/TanithNYC/

Nightmare Endless - black metal from the U.S.

Nightmare Endless

Concretum Infernum

November 20th, 2021

First things first, turn the volume up, way up, friend, because it is the only way that this necro black metal recording can be heard correctly in order to be understood. Shrieking, wild vocals, an abrasive guitar sound, and a drum sound to match the sandpaper-on-skin cacophony. Once the listener gets past the bitter curtain of lo-fi cave sound, the actual music can be heard. At times the speed remains constant, like this duo is in their zone, and the extended segments of speed allow the listener to get more comfortable, during which the speed has not slowed down, but it feels like it for the listener because the extended segments of speed last a while and invite the listener to merge onto the highway of runaway speed. Speed up to merge! Listening to this recording you will notice that the drums are noisy, rambunctious and wild, and not robotic, mechanized and stiff. Can sampled drums sound this way? Can programmed drums sound this way, this “imperfect” and bonkers? Nowhere does this duo say who they are and what instruments they play, but this drum sound seems to have a certain personality and style, suggesting that perhaps this is not a computer but a black metal maniac behind the drum kit.

Thus, we can break down the 26 minutes of this recording as follows:

1. Autophobia (06:58) – blasting, raging black metal

2. Rotting Forest (05:29) – blasting, raging bm w/ midtempo middle part

3. Nex Maximus (07:41) – midtempo/fast bm w/ a bit more melody

4. Nox Somnium (05:15) – midtempo, most melodic raw black metal instrumental song

5. Outro 00:59 – slow guitar finish without drums, just guitar

Recommended for people looking for black metal that does not sound like a sham.

Concretum Infernum by Nightmare Endless

Greenwater - Tacoma stoner doom

Greenwater is stoner doom from Tacoma, Washington State, U.S. Five songs in 25 minutes, it does not take long to understand that the 1970s simple, heavy riffs are Greenwater's main way of doing things. They are from Tacoma but if someone said that they are from New Orleans it would seem pretty natural because there is a connection with the sound of bands like Down and Crowbar. There is lots of British and U.S. classic rock that echoes in the grooves of Greenwater. Fans of all things 1970s heavy rock may like what this band is doing on their first EP.

Greenwater EP by Greenwater

Kheshig - Tacoma, seriously, what are you doing?

Oh, blimey, mate, the Tacoma townsfolk are certainly bonkers, aren't they? Is there better evidence than Kheshig? Kheshig is either rubbish or brilliant. Next time you are taking the tube, get some Kheshig doom sludge going, and Bob's your uncle, you'll be quids in. It's one track, 25 minutes of faffing around the same basic riff as slowly as possible. Is this wally or genius? There may not be more than a couple riffs throughout the entire recording. Brilliant, innit? There are four previous EPs, but start with this one, and see if it's your cuppa or perhaps you want to run away. I blame all of this shenanigans on Electric Wizard. I blame Electric Wizard for many things, but I definitely blame Electric Wizard for this, too.

Mourning of The Witch by KHESHIG

Devangelic - blasting death metal from Italy

Devangelic

Xul

April 7th, 2023

Willowtip Records

The fourth album by the Italian band is instantly pleasing to audiences of blasting death. Equipped with very low, indecipherable growling, a plethora of blasting rhythm segments and warp-speed guitar blazing, Devangelic gets to the point quickly and stays on point. The first element to notice is the cool guitar work. Sharp and catchy, heavy both as a contemporary and a prototypical death guitar sound, it’s a fun listen of twisting, contorting, zigzagging unmelodic riffs. The second attraction is the songwriting. Compact and efficient, the 39 minutes go by rather quickly listening to the frenzied speed. How they manage to sound fun while going bananas on their instruments is a credit to the band. It’s not all blasting, either, as they have some slow, plodding com-ponents for some variety.

Unfortunately, the band has had some things that keep the death metal crowds from putting Devangelic at the top of their lists. They began with cartoonish, gimmicky artwork for their first album and the follow-up EP. They have moved towards more mythological ancient Middle Eastern topics; sadly, it is the hoax of Lovecraft/Crowley that some metal bands like. Surely, an Italian band should have no shortage of historical/mythological topics if they look towards their own history and mythology from the ancient Italian lands to today’s events, without treading the fraudulent path of the previously mentioned white supremacist, Nazi sympathizing self-appointed “prophets” of the 20th century.

The band needs better vocals. The vocalist seems all too pleased to turn in a just good, standard performance (who knows how much is real and how much is computer effects and auto tune and things like that). There is zero variety in the low growling. It is not energetic nor wild nor unpredictable; it’s just the same monotone, pretty-good “brutal” vocals. More creativity and more craziness is necessary. I would like to see the band to be less afraid to incorporate more guitar solos, more guitar in general, more intelligent and less nonsense lyrics, and much wilder, more unhinged and utterly savage vocals. Of course, I would appreciate it if they use real, live drums, too. Despite these criticisms, I have enjoyed this album. In the ten years since their humble beginning, they are one of the more entertaining bands in the field of blasting brutal death metal that I have heard this year.

Xul by Devangelic

[The first song streaming "Udug-Hul Incantation," a slow track, is not representative of the band's style. This track is a more basic, simpler song reminiscent of Nile's "Sarcophagus" (from 2002's In Their Darkened Shrines album), which also was not representative of that album.]

https://www.facebook.com/devangelic.official

Convergence - death metal from Spokane, Washington, U.S.

Check out this new death metal from the state of Washington, U.S. The name of the band is Convergence and it looks like this is their debut album called Extinction Level Event released on the 15th of March, 2023. Metal Archives shows that the band is:

Matt Browning (bass);

Cassidy Kleinman (drums) [Rutah, ex-Umbilical Cord, Corpse]

Mark Pettit (guitars)

[ex-Rancor, ex-Umbilical Cord, Corpse, ex-Rutah, ex-Nganga]

Jason Pilalas (guitars, vocals)

[ex-Umbilical Cord, Evolutions Per Minute]

I have not had a chance to hear the entire album, just some songs on YouTube. It looks like they some experience because of their involvement in other bands in the Spokane area. Let's hear more from this band, what do you say?! YouTube seems to have the entire album.

Effigy For The Dying

guitarist Pier Gonella (Italy) releases video for "Margarita" from new album

Italian guitarist Pier Gonella (Athlantis, Necrodeath, Odyssea, Perseo Miranda, Vanexa, Verde Lauro, ex-Amazing Maze, ex-Wild Steel, Pier Gonella, ex-Bellathrix, ex-Labÿrinth, ex-Maciej Podsiadło, ex-Synthphonia Suprema) has a video for the song "Margarita" from his new album 667. A multifacted guitarist skilled at a variety of genres, from extreme styles to melodic sounds, Gonella's work can go in many directions. As you can hear from the video, this album for the most part points in the direction of ear-friendly, instrumental guitar.

track list:

01 Margarita

02 667

03 Holy Water

04 Rock The Galaxy

05 Unforgettable

06 Make it Rock

07 Floor 666

08 Bonzo goes to Pitburg

09 Planet for Sale

Pier Gonella | Margarita

667 by PIER GONELLA

http://www.musicart.eu/buy667worldwide.html?fbclid=IwAR2D0qHOpbIKjC0jCmVZoJwqgUc9cm61ck24q_Dh2q3OlG_M9NsG_kPSsG4

U.S. traditional heavy metal Sanhedrin goes to Europe in April

U.S. traditional heavy metal rockers Sanhedrin are headed to Europe, with Germany and Holland on the schedule. It all begins on the 20th of April. To get more familiar with the sound of these New Yorkers, check out their most recent album Lights On (2022) below. Be sure to check their Facebook page for the latest information regarding this tour.

Lights On by Sanhedrin

https://www.facebook.com/sanhedrinband

Seattle will see dragon fire from the Lords of the Trident

"The most metal band on Earth" will be riding into Seattle on the 14th of April, 2023. Their name is Lords of the Trident and their music is so metal that even Manowar has asked them to "dial down the metal a bit" because it's "just too much sometimes" for 99.99% of metal warriors. A long, long time ago in 2008 the Lords of the Trident built their kingdom in the far away lands of the realm of Madison, Wisconsin, where the dragons rule over volcanoes of flowing magma, cheese and beer.

The Offering by Lords of the Trident

https://www.facebook.com/lordsofthetrident

https://www.facebook.com/events/754523816024596/?ref=newsfeed

The Temple - must doom always be such a boring, low-skill genre?

The Temple

Of Solitude Triumphant

November 26th, 2022

I Hate Records

It is understandable that audiences may have reached doom fatigue, given the high number of doom-based entities that spring up in such a non-stop fashion. Stoner, sludge, psychedelic, epic doom, drone, death doom, retro, black doom, atmospheric doom, bass-and-drum doom, funeral, and many others are categories of the slow-poke sounds. Some people have observed that doom is accessible. It's simple and minimalistic and that's not difficult on the ears for fans; and the unskilled musicians can play doom, too. Other people, like some thrash maniacs, often dislike the entire premise of doom music. To them, doom, just like its depressed ancestor the blues, is a puritan zealot spying on people based on the suspicion that somewhere, anywhere, someone may be having fun with music.

It is not until a person hears a quality doom band like The Temple that one is reminded of how good this type of music can be. Yes, it is slow pretty much throughout all the songs. Not super slow, that's a different thing, that's funeral-related subgenres. This is slow in the way that Candlemass or Solitude Aeturnus are slow: slow, generally somber music but the band is not trying to be the slowest one ever. Again, that's a different thing, that's the funeral subgenre. Now, granted, this Greek band The Temple is somber and it is not fun or party metal, that's for sure.

However, The Temple is an example of how good doom can be. First, there is a ton of melody all over the songs. Thus, it is not just super slow echoing chugging in a minimalistic manner. The effort to create melody is fundamental here. If a person gives the album a chance, it is the melody that will stand out at first and it may be the only reason necessary. Second, the singing is melodic. While it is true that the singing is not rah-rah fun rocking heavy metal like you find in the classic bands like Judas Priest, Van Halen, 1980s Iron Maiden or Scorpions, the singing here sounds very good to ears, but there is a caveat: the voice does, in fact, sound depressed and depressing. It is crooning, melodic singing and it will not make the listener want to party, but it will make the listener contemplate this particular doom mood and dare I say it, if the listener sticks around and does not run away in fear of experiencing sorrowful music, this will end up being enjoyable, even fun, if I can use that word, if the listener allows the music to do what is made to do.

If the reader has gotten this far, then let's end saying that this album by The Temple is an exceptional doom work. While I would never recommend any sludge or funeral doom to an unsuspecting soul without giving a warning, The Temple is a somberly happy middle ground: It is not super slow, and it is so melodic that patient audiences might just find themselves feeling a great deal of melancholic joy, if that makes sense.

Of Solitude Triumphant by The Temple

https://www.facebook.com/the.temple.doom.metal

Ardent Nova - Arizona desert man dreams of the cold, frozen mountains of Scandinavia

Ardent Nova

Ardent Nova

Wise Blood Records

17 March 2023

This is the self-titled debut album from Mike Pardi (Empty Throne, Innerfury, ex-Psionic, ex-Possessed, ex-Ritual, ex-Xasthur, ex-Casket of Dreams) on guitars, bass, vocals, keyboards, songwriting, and lyrics. Ardent Nova is traditional heavy metal from a guitarist more used to playing extreme metal. It is to be assumed that he does not have the capability to sing melodically as necessary for the genre, which is why he growls instead. Expect growling heavy metal with Viking-themed lyrics and all the usual glorification of pagan times (you know, the times of human sacrifice, lawless murder, theft and slavery). It’s Arizona-man metal with tons of Maiden influences and lots of Viking themes. Fans that like traditional heavy metal but that do not enjoy opera singing and imagine Iron Maiden with growled vocals now have a project from Arizona to add to that section of their collection where they have their Amon Amarth albums.

Ardent Nova by Ardent Nova

https://www.facebook.com/people/Ardent-Nova/100087978697755

Downfall of Gaia - post-metal from Germany

Downfall of Gaia

Silhouettes of Disgust

Metal Blade Records

17 March 2023

Downfall of Gaia (Germany; 2008-present; EP in 2009, albums in 2010, 2012, 2014, 2016, 2019) has a cohesive sensibility once you hear a few of their songs, but at first the listener may feel confused by the threads that make the fabric of this sound. The vocals sound like black metal, the rhythm section launches into blasting speeds some of the time but can almost disappear for the mellow segments. The guitar sometimes sounds like black metal, but just often goes soft and almost-silent. One way to think of this is a post-metal band keeping the post part limited, so it is not full-blown post-metal. It is more like 40% post, 60% extreme metal in general. The melodies are opaque and they sound to a certain sad because that's what post-metal is, a fundamentally sad-mood music. Just like the cover of the album, this is meant to be gray music. The contrast takes place in the form of blasting rhythms and black metal-style vocals. FYI: The band likes to reference their crust/punk influences, like in their style of drumming, but the band plays smooth, polished metal, and they do not sound like raw, crust punk metal.

Silhouettes of Disgust by Downfall of Gaia

https://www.facebook.com/DownfallofGaia

Contrarian - confronting the fraud in metal music

Contrarian

Sage of Shekhinah

Willowtip Records

17 March 2023

Think of Contrarian (2014-present; New York, U.S.; EP in 2014; album in 2015, 2017, 2019, 2020) as a band playing their music but also making a statement with it about the genre in which they operate. In broader terms, they are not happy with the fraud that is computer software metal music, and more specifically, the sound of this album makes it clear in no uncertain terms that prog extreme and tech-death are a fraud (an issue that is not exclusive to that genre; no doubt you have seen the reports and testimonies of witnesses who have seen famous bands doing lip synching and playbacks and all sorts of deceptions, lies and cheats). For instance, all that a listener has to do is hear a tech-death album (or any rock/metal album, for that matter) to sense the plastic-toy sound of it all. Is a human even playing any of that stuff? Is it just computer software music, a type of ugly techno music, except that in electronica (and pop, hip hop, dance, etc.) audiences know that it is computer software products? In metal, you see comments online, such as “great drumming” or “a great drummer” or “a great vocalist.” C’mon, now, friends, there isn’t an actual human drummer or singer doing those things! It’s computer programs, apps, software and the like! You are being bamboozled.

Why should you listen to the music of Contrarian? First, by yourself by listening to the music you will notice an effort to give to you music that sounds more real, more like the musicians can realize these performances on the stage. It is progressive, technical extreme metal, but it is made in such a way that you can hear that Contrarian does care about deception and lies and they would like not to sound like fraudsters. Second, it is quality progressive death that emphasizes songwriting, not just capable musicianship. Third, the vocals are meant to match the quality of the music, and there is a certain standard in the growling.

There are a couple of unknowns. I am not able to tell you if these are fake drums of the sampled kind, which is the standard practice in metal and rock, unfortunately. I do not know if what we hear is the actual work that a human drummer did in a room. Second, I do not have the lyrics. Thus, I unable to tell you if the lyrics are intelligent, clichéd or pedestrian. Third, how much of these vocals were done by real people?

The band hopes that their general sound is less of a fraud. For example, they like to let you hear the bass lines throughout the songs. It is a balance between prog musicianship and headbanging extreme metal, resulting in a work that is brutal and beautiful at the same time, assuming that the audiences like growling vocals.

Sage of Shekhinah by Contrarian

https://www.facebook.com/contrarianmetal

Jesse Berlin - guitar virtuoso in Washington State, USA

Jesse Berlin is the maestro of guitars in the traditional heavy metal defenders Greyhawk (Seattle) and neoclassical melodic power metal instrumental project Archmage (Seattle/New York). In addition, Jesse cultivates the craft of guitar under his name. Below is the instrumetal neoclassical shred recording called Kingdom in the Sky. These guitar melodies do all the singing that is necessary. As a student of Johann Sebastian Bach and Baroque music, Jesse can't help but bring to his guitar playing a sense of melody that translated to modern guitar works well in heavy metal.

Jesse Berlin - Kingdom in the Sky (EP)

https://www.facebook.com/jesse.berlin

Blackstaff - doom, gloom, misery in Washington State

I have never heard of this monolithic sloth sludge doom entity from Washington State, U.S., but Metal Archives shows two EPs in 2022 as the only recordings so far. Imagine gremlin vocals, minimalistic echoing simplistic heaviness going round and round, and then circling back again on the same riff before making another turn, to get back on the circle of the same note, and just riding it out until you have stopped wondering if there is a new riff coming. Believe it, there is not. It's only heaviness circling like tired, exhausted dying vulture around while an angry gremlin chants about the warlocks running free, they're running free, yeah, between Tacoma and Bellingham on 1-5. Actually, I am not sure about the last part about the freeway, but the rest is pretty accurate. Oh, you know what, don't listen to me, I don't know anything. Warning: If you do not know sludge or doom in general, this is not a gateway band. I am pretty sure that even fans in this part of the country have not heard this name before. In fact, I checked with my neighbors in La Push and La Conner and none of them have heard of this band, and they know that I know that they know about doom and if they do not know, then you best not bring your horse to drink from these waters because that horse is going to die from the bitterness of these rivers of misery that we have out here.

The Dark Stick EP by Blackstaff

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100088873124330

Vale of Amonition - Immortalizing the Lugubrious, or Those of Evolving Despair

Vale of Amonition

Immortalizing the Lugubrious, or Those of Evolving Despair

January 10th, 2023

The development of Vale of Amonition (Uganda/Kenya) showed their early recordings from around 2010-2013 as the sound of a band finding its way to a type of atmospheric doom that by 2017 was a lot more solid. This new album is the culmination of all those earlier experiences and they are now giving the audience results of the potential shown before. The band nowadays is at that point where they can arrive pretty close to the sounds that they hear in their head. This album is contemporary doom with both somber, melodic vocals and with growling, and there is more of a death doom sound, but they have not gone into the all-out death doom. Death doom tends to be super heavy and sometimes more on the monolithic side, whereas this album keeps more a sense of melody and the somber, melodic singing keeps the music substantially away from the all-growl, no-singing work ethic that particular subgenre. Another area of improvement is the production. If fans had previously heard the band's earlier works and did not like the rawer approach, maybe this new and more polished sound is more to their tastes. Things are getting more interesting in the Vale camp.

Immortalizing the Lugubrious, or Those Of Evolving Despair by Vale Of Amonition

https://www.facebook.com/valeofamonitionwebcult/

Dreams of Gray - Life In Gray (lyric video)

Chigago-based melodic death metal project Dreams of Gray published a new lyric video for the song "Life in Gray" from the self-titled debut EP (2023). If you like this song, below is the full EP from Bandcamp or check it out at your favorite streaming service.

BIO: DREAMS OF GRAY is Luis Rivera (Vocals/Guitars). The band was formed almost by accident, as Rivera was piecing together ideas while unable to actively perform and record music. When Rivera was ready to record in 2022, he enlisted the help of friends and guest musicians to play drums and bass and help bring his vision to life.

Rivera is also the vocalist/guitarist for Chicago area band Abolisher. Abolisher has been inactive over the last decade but is planning a new album soon. The band was active in the Chicago area, recording and gigging from 1995-2007 and received many positive reviews including in Metal Maniacs and Brave Words and Bloody Knuckles. Abolisher is where Rivera initially honed his skills as a vocalist and guitarist. Years later in DREAMS OF GRAY, he continues to grow as a musician and songwriter.

DREAMS OF GRAY seeks to express Rivera’s musical ideas at this particular point in time. The music draws from many influences. Each song has a unique flavor but also a signature sound. They are equal parts heavy and memorable, with countless complex ideas woven in between. The lyrical content is deeply personal, dealing with contemporary issues as well as grief, loss, and acceptance. The World After EP is just the beginning with many more songs ready to be recorded.

Dreams of Gray - Life In Gray

The World After by Dreams of Gray

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100090219272895

Skinflint - Sasabonsam (official music video)

The heavy metal machine Skinflint (Botswana) keeps rolling forward. Their 2023 album Hate Spell is their nine release (7 albums and 2 EPs, according to Metal Archives). Fresh off their U.S. tour with Soulfly, the band is proving to be willing to go wherever they can to play their heavy metal. If you listen closely to their music, you will notice that the band strives to make music that they can play live. The vocals are a bit on the rougher side, giving their sound a tougher edge than expected. Active since 2006, they have been a hardworking band dedicated to their craft, and the new album is evidence of a veteran band creating for itself a proud discography and history. If you are new to the band, the video below is a good representation of their current sound in 2023. Overall, their goal is to making headbanging heavy metal and this video gives a good idea of what the vocals and music, and the songwriting in general, is all about.

Skinflint - Sasabonsam (Official Music Video)

https://www.facebook.com/SKINFLINTMETAL

Telomyras - heavy metal gave Telomyras to you

On February 18th, 2023 the traditional heavy metal band Telomyras (Seattle, Washington State, U.S.) released the debut EP after two demos done in 2021. This band has kind of snuck up on me because, given that I live under a rock in the middle of the forest, I had not noticed their 2021 demos. In fact, I am not sure when I first heard the name and next thing you know, they are releasing music and travelling up and down on the horrible I-5 highway playing shows in the Seattle and Tacoma areas and even making their way down to Portland, from what I have seen online. Actually, on YouTube there is video of the band in action in Everett. Anyway, better late than never. Their EP is on Bandcamp and it is also on Amazon Music and I imagine on Tik Tok and MySpace and all the other services that young whippersnappers like y'all like to use for the interwebs.

Telomyras = heavy metal.

Telomyras (Full EP) by Telomyras

Telomyras at Tony V's Garage (03/18/22)

https://www.facebook.com/Telomyras