It’s becoming apparent that our filtering systems work quite well! The crew has done a fine job pulling filth from the workings and releasing the pressure to the system. A second too late and the toilets would have backed up.
Panopticon
Vemod – The Deepening Review
“The sophomore album can be a make-or-break moment. Does a band double-down on what made their first release remarkable, or dilute its impact and fade into obscurity? The Deepening by Vemod is such a record, although comes so long after the debut that the band might as well be new again. 12 years is a long gap and a long time in which a band may reinvent itself. The Deepening finds these Norwegians deepening their own lore through a new take on their original black metal – but has the gap afforded their new sound quality too?” Deep or sunken?
One List to Debase Them All: AngryMetal Guy.com’s Aggregated Top 20 of 2023
Listurnalia 23 comes to its close as a particularly perplexed and disconcerted El Señor Cuervo counts everything up and makes a list of the albums which garnered the Angry Metal Groupthink™ seal of approval. Needless to say, this year has portended some disturbing developments.
Doom_et_Al’s and Dear Hollow’s Top Ten(ish) of 2023
Doom_et_Al and Dear Hollow join Listurnalia with big important lists. You may even agree with parts of them.
Thus Spoke and Maddog’s Top Ten(ish) of 2023
Listurnalia23 rolls on with Thus Spoke and Maddog‘s Top 10(ish) Records o’ the Year.
Panopticon – The Rime of Memory Review
When Panopticon drop a nearly 80-minute magnum opus on us, we impress 2 staffers to share the weight. That means you get a double review of The Rime of Memory.
S A R R A M – Pàthei Màthos Review
“Pathei Mathos means “learn a lesson,” but more literally it refers to “learning through suffering.” Valerio Marras, through his project S A R R A M, takes this phraseology explicitly from Aeschylus’ tragedy Agamemnon, where, in an exposition full of powerful dramatic irony and foreshadowing, the chorus describes this essential component of wisdom to which humans are subjected. The concept of knowledge resulting from and culminating in suffering is arguably a core concept of Greek tragedy. And it’s also a part of life, which Marras aims to convey by channeling his experiences and emotions through Pathei Mathos’ ambient soundscapes.” Life is pain, pain is growth.
Sacred Son – The Foul Deth of Engelond Review
“Sacred Son historically play black metal, plain and simple. Nothing fancy or especially complex factors into their compositions. However, The Foul Deth of Engelond sees the band exploring black metal through the lens of doom, trimming the edges with a light occult fringe somewhat recalling the folk-tinted Dewfall.” Nothing sacred.
Feral Light – Psychic Contortions Review
“There are, of course, other styles of metal practiced here, but few Minnesota bands outside of black metal have enjoyed the critical acclaim that acts like False or Obsequiae or Minnesota-by-way-of-Kentucky transplant Panopticon have. Those who have been watching the local scene closely will tell you that Feral Light have turned some heads over the last few years around Minneapolis, not to mention abroad. Enough so, apparently, that their fourth full-length has secured the attentions of heavyweight Italian avant-black label I, Voidhanger.” Minnesota wild.
Izthmi – Leaving This World, Leaving it All Behind Review
“Izthmi sure have a sense of timing. Their debut album, The Arrows of Our Ways, was released in mid-February 2020, right around the time a certain virus you may have heard of began entering the news… Despite impressing a cantankerous Grymm with its progressive and melodic take on atmospheric black metal (as well as a frankly gorgeous cover), it kinda got lost in the craziness that followed.” Storms and storming out.
