“Although divisive, Portal’s influence in the death metal world is undeniable. Featuring riffs that seem to crawl with murk and dissonance aplenty with an eldritch monstrosity roaring from the pulpit, there are few who can accurately channel this particular breed of otherworldly alienation. Many have tried and failed, but getting that squirming aesthetic just right is nearly impossible. Basque duo Pestilength is the latest to try their hand at the next Vexovoid.” Cake? No cake!
“Slow Burning Rage is a one-man crew consisting of multi-instrumentalist Ryan Parrish, who you may know as the former drummer of melodeath heavyweights Darkest Hour, as well as other varying acts like Iron Reagan, Mammoth Grinder, City of Caterpillar, and Bleach Everything (to name a few). What can you expect from Slow Burning Rage, then? Well, for as varied and crazy as his resume is, it’s nothing like any of his acts. Slow Burning Rage’s self-titled debut is deemed “jazz sludge” by the promo gods.” Rage for change.
“If you’ve never heard of Celeste, the name and the aesthetic can be misleading. Gorgeous and contemplative black and white photographs of artistic poses and strange characters greet the eyes with a moniker that points to the heavens. If you were to guess the style, you might say post-black or prog, maybe an indie acoustic troubadour, or a bedroom jazz project. However, you’d be hard-pressed to find another act as suffocating and pissed off as Celeste. A visceral fusion of black metal, hardcore, and the filthiest outskirts of extreme subgenres, these Frenchmen are the epitome of scathing consistency, releasing album after album of hypnotic tunes.” Assassin’s breed.
“Rien ne suffit: nothing is enough. For Plebeian Grandstand, it might as well be a motto. The Toulouse have made their career defying categorization, and pushing each release to be something new, something more. How Hate is Hard to Define set a bar for blackened mathcore that no other record has come close to clearing, only for the band to sink into sludgy, dissonant black metal with Lowgazers. That muddy reek was fired with death metal oppression to make the gleaming False Highs, True Lows, and now, with Rien ne Suffit, it is shattered.” Enough is never MOAR.
“This album is probably my most anticipated release of this year. To me, Diablo Swing Orchestra don’t simply play avant-garde metal—they are avant-garde metal, owing to the fact that they were my gateway into the genre with the incredible Pandora’s Piñata. And yet, Pacifisticuffs never really drew me in. I blamed the production at the time; something about the sound of the album kept me at arm’s length. But that doesn’t change the fact that the Diablo Swing Orchestra octet is a machine of creativity, talent, and ambition. However I may have felt about their previous release, a new album by them is a special occasion.” Rabbit revenge.
“Few musicians have as long and varied a career as Tamás Kátai of Thy Catafalque. The one-man outfit may have attracted an entourage of impactful guests over the years, but the end product was always, is always him. The throughlines of his writing and personal touch continue to persist even now, a decade since he struck out on his own. However, his most recent outings, Geometria and Naiv, lacked that certain je ne sais qoui essential to his kaleidoscopic sound. Vadak marks Thy Catafalque’s fifth entry in seven years, a common cause of too much lack and not enough luster. Of course, just as I was ready to pass on Vadak with the same half-shrug as 2020’s Naiv, Kátai starts dropping bombs.” Thy bomber.
“There are a number of cool things about Hagbulbia, but on my first listen, I figured the coolest was that Portal won’t ever have to make it again. By my fifth, I was convinced that they should. After two decades muddling death metal and noise, the release of thirty-eight minutes heavily skewed towards the latter is not just obvious; it’s almost required. As such, Hagbulbia is a burning distillation of Portal’s less musical humors, but the band have chosen a canny strategy for its release. As an unannounced companion to the more traditional Avow, it can be at worst a novelty rather than nuisance for fans, who may be far more receptive to the cocktail than a shot.” There may be cake.
“The phrase “avant-garde” spliced with “metal” is so confusing. Much like similar descriptors “extreme” and “modern,”[1. *shudder*] it’s an extremely broad term that implies much and is much abused. Describing the Children of Bodom-esque Messora to the weird-as-shit Maudlin of the Well, overuse quickly becomes Inigo Montoya’s second most-famous quote: “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” So, what does “avant-garde” actually mean? Beats me! Nevertheless, the newest crew to throw their avant-garde hat into the ring is Germany’s The Circle.” Larva-core.
“It’s not uncommon for fans of metal to lovingly describe an album as a “tough listen.” There are releases and sometimes entire discographies that can only be appreciated once a specific taste has been acquired. Given enough time and the right mindset though, what once may have been a shock to the system can become as comfortable as slipping into a warm bath or taking off a virus-splattered mask at the end of a long day. Don’t take my word for it; you don’t have to look far to spot avant-garde, genre-fluid bands like Imperial Triumphant gaining attention and garnering praise. This line of thought kept recurring again and again as I listened to Non Serviam’s latest release Le Coeur Bat.” Spiteful sounds.
![The EP, Split, and Single Post [Things You Might Have Missed 2020] Part II](https://www.angrymetalguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2020/12/cuervoportrait.jpg)
“The neglected, forgotten children; that’s what this post is about. Full-lengths albums are the proud first-born, strutting about with muscular arms and a beautiful face. But EPs?” More short grist for the short grist mill.
