Gothic Metal

Hanging Garden – Into That Good Night Review

Hanging Garden – Into That Good Night Review

“Evermore difficult to believe has been my luck in the ongoing war against the promo bin. Despite multiple attempts to lower my less than angry rating average, including seeking out non-atmoblack/Muppetcore albums or else surrendering my fate to Steel like a damn N00b, I somehow just keep wading out from the promo sump smelling like roses. This brings us nicely to my main point, being that I can’t believe that Dr. Fisting turned down the opportunity to drop everything and craft an unpaid review for Into That Good Night, the sixth album by Finland’s Hanging Garden.” Shaking fists at gardens in the sky.

Lacuna Coil – Black Anima Review

Lacuna Coil – Black Anima Review

“In his 1848 tract Human, All Too Human (Menschliches, Allzumenschliches: Ein Buch für freie Geister), Fredrich Nietzsche wrote that “hope, in reality, is the worst of all evils for it prolongs the torment of man.” So many of the bands I enjoyed as a young metal fan have demonstrated time and again just how right Nietzsche was.” Oh yeah, a double review and a Nietzsche quote? This is gonna be good.

Lacrimas Profundere – Bleeding the Stars Review

Lacrimas Profundere – Bleeding the Stars Review

Lacrimas Profundere has been one of my go-to sources of sadboi goth rock for a very long time. From their doom death Peaceville Three inspired days in the early aughts, to their recent string of moody goth rockers, they had a real knack for delivering the exact dose of gloomy medicine I crave, while keeping things intense enough to still be metal. It wasn’t until 2016s Hope is Here outing that the wheels came off their gravy train with an album littered with uninspiring ballads and listless soft rock. I truly wanted to like it, but was unable to connect with the material.” Blood well spent.

Schattenmann – Epidemie Review

Schattenmann – Epidemie Review

“We didn’t review the newest Rammstein album here at Angry Metal Guy, but that doesn’t mean we didn’t listen to it, or talk about it between bench press sets. The overall impression was favorable, believe it or not, and this loyal reviewer would have happily given it a 3.0. There was enough variety and catchiness that it was a fun spin. However, some folks out there in the wide world feel that Rammstein and the whole NDH genre are outdated. Who would say such a thing? Well, the boys in Schattenmann, that’s who.” Ramming speed.

Idle Hands – Mana Review

Idle Hands – Mana Review

“Remember Spellcaster? I don’t, but Doc Grier loved their final album: Night Hides the World made his 2016 Top Ten(ish) List. After burning the fuse at both ends, however, the band folded. Now three-fifths of Spellcaster have regrouped as Idle Hands, led by bassist Gabe Franco (who switches to guitars and vocals here). Franco brings with him guitarist Sebastian Silva and drummer Colin Vranizan, and the lineup is rounded out with Brandon Hill on bass. Be warned, though: this is not Spellcaster 2.0. Gone are the almost-thrash, pure metal sounds of that band, as well as the Iron Maiden and Iced Earth influences. Idle Hands aim for something much different, plucking influences from the opposite end of the spectrum and assembling them into a fairly unique sound.” Devil’s Workshop now hiring!

Dying Embers – Where Shadeless Dwell Frozen Review

Dying Embers – Where Shadeless Dwell Frozen Review

“In the mid-00’s, I was just starting to dip my toes into the realms of metal. Maybe it was just the entry point I had with Children of Bodom, but there were a slew of bands that were called melodic death metal, but like a Scooby Doo villain, turned out to be power metal with some harsh vocals, some of them adding some cues from Gothic metal to seem a little darker. Bands like Eternal Tears of Sorrow or Before the Dawn went over well with pubescent me, with their straightforward, Maidenesque guitar harmonies and gloomy veneer. Dying Embers fall in this category as well, being tagged melodic death metal, and instead molding bits of Gothic and growls onto a mid-paced power metal album with the unwieldy title Where Shadeless Dwell Frozen. Time to feel like a teenager again.” Drama Club metal.

Evergrey – The Atlantic Review

Evergrey – The Atlantic Review

Evergrey carved quite the little niche for themselves over the last 20-plus years. Their brand of stripped down depressive progressive metal is never the most flashy or trendy thing in the room, but they’ve always had a certain somber magic that pulls you in and draws you back. They’ve been on a nice roll of late too, with 2014s Hymns for the Broken and 2016s The Storm Within both delivering the sadboy goods with enough meat and weight taters to hit the metal bone just so. The Atlantic is the final chapter in the loose conceptual trilogy started with Hymns, dealing with the confusing ebbs and tides of life as we try to chart a course and keep our head above water.” Come sail away.

A Pale Horse Named Death – When the World Becomes Undone Review

A Pale Horse Named Death – When the World Becomes Undone Review

“A belated Happy New Year to all. But the genre at the core of today’s review may not be conferring that same wish on its listener; namely, atmospheric, Gothic metal. And there is surely but one obvious band when we consider Gothic metal from Brooklyn, NY; namely, Type O Negative (‘TON’). Given the clear limitations of a specific sub-genre of metal in one borough of a city, it’s no surprise to learn that Sal Abruscato, the Brooklyn goth behind A Pale Horse Named Death (‘Pale Horse’), has long-standing ties to that late but great band as a founding member of both.” Type So Negative.