Eldritch Elitist

Zaum – Eidolon Review

Zaum – Eidolon Review

“Anyone who’s made this blog a regular haunt knows there are several “don’ts” many of us consider when we review albums: don’t bloat your album length, don’t brickwall the damn thing in production, and so on. Far be it from me as a probational scribe to suggest a new entry for our Tome ov Rules, but after listening to sophomore effort, Eidolon, from Canadian doomers’ Zaum, I’ve settled on a new guideline for my personal rulebook: when writing a full-length album, don’t put all of your stock in only two massive songs.” A good rule is a good rule, regardless of its source.

Polyptych – Defying the Metastasis Review

Polyptych – Defying the Metastasis Review

“The forefathers of death metal were truly spoiled when it came time to come up with a kick-ass band name. The genre’s progenitors ran wild with synonyms for various acts of violence and bits of viscera (not to mention those nerds who pulled inspiration from Warhammer 40k), but when the thesaurus has fallen to tatters, where does a budding young death metal band pull its inspiration from?” How about Proust?

Vorgrum – Last Domain Review

Vorgrum – Last Domain Review

“Somewhere along my personal timeline of listening to extreme music I formed an imaginary line dividing two equally valid camps of folk metal. On one side, you have your bands of brooding boys who like to pose next to frozen streams for their promo shots in between discussions of just how great Windir was; on the other, you have your gangs of drunken revelers, crowding into the nearest tavern to relate raucous tales of wenches and trolls to any half-willing passersby.” Is that a troll on the cover or are you just happy to see me?

Cryfemal – D6s6nt6rro Review

Cryfemal – D6s6nt6rro Review

“I became absolutely giddy when I managed to snag Cryfemal’s ludicrously titled D6s6nt6rro as it hurtled into the depths of the AMG Rookie Pit. A one-man Spanish black metal project from a guy who calls himself Ebola, (yeah, really) Cryfemal has existed since 1996 and has an impressive number of releases under its belt.” From the rookie pit to the throwback ditch.

Banisher – Oniric Delusions Review

Banisher – Oniric Delusions Review

“Listening to Oniric Delusions this past week got me thinking about vanilla ice cream. It’s a dessert that’s not so much widely loved as universally accepted as a reliable standby to other, more complex dishes. Proper application of toppings however can transform this most mundane of treats into something special and unique. When I learned that Banisher hails from Poland and markets themselves as extreme death metal, I couldn’t help but raise my expectations at least a little.” Poland is for death lovers.