Napalm Records

Suldusk – Anthesis Review

Suldusk – Anthesis Review

“Way back in early 2020, Suldusk played the last show I attended before fun was canceled. I was introduced by the non-suspiciously departed Emya‘s excellent TYMHM piece on one-woman debut Lunar Falls. This sort of black metal-inflected atmospheric folk is incredibly My Thing, as you can tell from where Helga landed on my list last year. So Suldusk were a pretty important fixture for me, particularly in the tough early pandemic months. The whole thing has that slight air of unreality you get with memories from around then. Now they’re back—finally—with a full band and signed to Napalm, so the stakes are high for Anthesis.” Dusk throne.

Infected Rain – TIME Review

Infected Rain – TIME Review

““Progressive” is one of the most flippantly applied adjectives we have for genres today. “Modern” is equally abused, so one can imagine the clanging of alarm bells when the promo sheet for Moldova’s Infected Rain described the band as “modern progressive metal.” But I’m not one to judge a book by its cover, even if said book devolves into the Buttgate of late January. Plus vocalist Elena Cataraga goes by the stage name Lena Scissorhands, which means I get to write the word scissorhands a lot in this review, a tiny joy I never thought I’d experience.” Touchy slicey.

Shylmagoghnar – Convergence Review

Shylmagoghnar – Convergence Review

“Holy shit, Shylmagoghnar doesn’t do itself any favors. Everything about the project seems engineered to scare all but the most committed away. Unpronounceable name that’s a spelling mistake waiting to happen? Check. One-man, home-made black metal? Check. Excessive length and an inability to self-edit on previous albums (both of which clocked in at the 70 minute mark)? Check. And yet, there was something undeniable about the band’s previous output.” Fat Wednesday.

Knife – Heaven Into Dust Review

Knife – Heaven Into Dust Review

“On Heaven into Dust, Knife have done what many bands refuse to do: grow. Don’t get me wrong, there’s still heaps of Motörhead and Venom worship; plenty of gang chants and blackened vocals; oodles of speed metal chugging, heavy metal galloping, and thrash riffing; almost everything endearing about their debut still applies here and the changes are relatively minor, but they’re impactful.” Stab or prod?

Hinayana – Shatter and Fall Review

Hinayana – Shatter and Fall Review

“We’ve been waiting for this for years. With only 2020 EP Death of the Cosmic to tide us over from Hinayana’s excellent 2018 debut Order Divine, which received the TYMHM treatment from the great and mighty Dr. Wvrm, it has been a dry spell. The Austin, Texas quintet’s sound lends itself to the melodic death/doom, notably Finnish, melancholy of Insomnium or Swallow the Sun, but with tight songwriting and a patient unfolding through relentless plodding of Amon Amarth, Order Divine became a bit of a sleeper hit for 2018. Featuring a tight and concise bite that will soothe your soul before forcing you to spit out broken teeth, will you invite follow-up Shatter and Fall’s slow-motion beatdown?” Soundtrack to Fall or stumble and fall?

Serenity – Nemesis A.D. Review

Serenity – Nemesis A.D. Review

“Austria’s Serenity had a pretty good run over these last 10 years. Starting life as a progressive-minded power metal act, by the time 2013s War of Ages hit the streets they’d shifted to a more streamlined and grandiose style, sounding like Kamelot cross-bred with Sonata Arctica and Avantasia. The formula worked very well due to consistently solid, memorable songwriting and albums like Codex Atlanticus and Lionheart had a lot to offer fans of larger-than-life symphonic power metal. 2020s The Last Knight was a step backward, dumbing down their sound while trying to make it more poppy and accessible, with bright synths and borderline club beats underlying the usual pomp and circumstance. The end product was still Serenity but things sounded plastic, frail, and light on substance. Three years on we get their eighth album, Nemesis A.D.Serenity NOW!

Shining – Shining Review

Shining – Shining Review

Shining have a carefully calibrated reputation as one of the saddest bands in history. A single spin of the renowned V: Halmstad is enough to know that it’s a reputation well earned. Oppressive, dark and full of despair— it’s rightfully considered a seminal depressive suicidal black metal record. The band’s record since then has been spotty, however. Incorporating more acoustics and clean vocals brought variety but did not increase the gut punch the band was known for. Attempts at re-aligning the band’s direction were made and unmade, naming traditions were dropped and picked up again, and the misanthropic flame started to sputter.” The definitive Shining?

Skálmöld – Ýdalir Review

Skálmöld – Ýdalir Review

“Though Skálmöld does possess a weirdness with their hundred-guitar lineup and varying vocal styles, they combine the storytelling of Týr with the savagery of Fintroll. The result is some rather adventurous music with flailing riff changes, mead-swigging layers, and unexpected transitions from barks, rasps, and cleans. As one would expect, sometimes all this sorcery falls flat or straight-up doesn’t work. And after engaging with 2019’s Sorgir, I fear the band might be stuck in a well with great performances but incohesive songwriting and flow. Once I find the link to this fucking stream, I’ll let you know how Ýdalir fares.” Black möld? Comeback möld?

Crypta – Shades of Sorrow Review

Crypta – Shades of Sorrow Review

“In 2021, Brazil’s Crypta unexpectedly tripped my radar with rancid debut platter Echoes of the Soul, a ripping slab of thrashy death metal. It ripped so hard, in fact, that shortly after I covered the beast for June 2021’s Filter, AMG The Man, The Myth, The Legend saw fit to award it a Runner Up spot for the Record(s) o’ the Month and later his #9 spot on his Top 10(ish). Two years and two months later, Crypta return with their follow-up, Shades of Sorrow, a record which several of the staff, myself included, highly anticipated.” Rocket from the Crypta!