“Despite what the band and album name may conjure up, Salt and Rot by God Root is not the latest word in primal vegan cuisine. What we have instead is the second release from the Pennsylvanian quintet, a sludgy, post-metal mediation that sings of soil and sky and man’s connection to both.” Have we finally reached post-Neurosis?
“What do you notice when you take in a Paul Gauguin? Do you admire the stark brush strokes and bold secondary colours? Maybe the uninhibited naturalism of the Tahitian subjects draws your eye? Or can you not get past the stunted proportions, flattened perspectives and homely faces? A similar divide exists in music. Some are pulled in by lyrical themes and instrument tone whereas others require a reproachless performance and complex song writing. Emotional stimulus versus technical ecstasy. Sator Malus, with their debut album, Dark Matters, are less concerned with peerless virtuosity than delivering a sombre mood suitable for an afternoon spent indoors carving runes.” Everything’s runed.
“I’m always skeptical when the term “avant-garde” is flung in the direction of a work of art. Declaring with any degree of certainty that an artistic creation surpasses the confines of the status quo is a fool’s errand. Time is the great leveler, and only on its scales can we weigh an artwork’s impact against the feather of the chattering masses. So, when I received the promo for Selcouth’s debut album Heart is the Star of Chaos and saw it described by the label as “avant-garde,” my hackles raised immediately in response to such hubris.” Dare to be different.
“Like Liam Neeson’s grizzled ex-CIA agent from Taken, Sweden’s Antichrist are possessed of a very particular set of skills, except their skills are focused on creating an authentic facsimile of the speed/thrash zeitgeist of the early eighties.” More 80s than Radio Shack!
“There’s something to be said about truth in advertising, a mythical beast that promises the end-product bears some resemblance to the picture on the box. From Death to Obituary to Autopsy, few genres carry the torch with such ardent fervour than death metal, a genus devoted to announcing with a bullhorn its intentions to all and sundry. With a name like Plague Throat — other body part-related titles workshopped but rejected were “Funny Bone” and “Tennis Elbow” — this Indian trio is signaling loud and clear the type of music one can expect to find on their debut, The Human Paradox.” Perturbed Toenail could have worked too.
“How much stock do you place in authenticity? Do you opt for subtitles over the dub? Will you only reach for your wallet if a suit was hand stitched by a broom closet-dwelling tailor in Milan? And even if you can’t believe it’s not butter, do you push it aside for the original, anyway? When it comes to music, when one hears the word “Norway” invariably the next words that follow are “black metal” so it may be comforting to know that Dødsengel — with their own brand of svart metall — hails from the land of frost and cod.” For cod and country.
“The Unity know a thing or two about history, two of its members having kicked tires in Gamma Ray for a spell, but the trip down memory that is their self-titled debut goes further than their own stomping grounds and offers an experience akin to a boisterous evening catching up with those legendary veterans. But this isn’t Just Another German Power Metal Band (JÄGPMB), as beneath the glossy Teutonic shell twitches layers of classic acts such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and – perhaps unsurprisingly – Helloween.” Who wants Jäger bombs?
“Perversiones De Muerte Putrefacta doesn’t stop to smell the roses. Whether this leaves us slavering for more or wiping our brow, thankful of the short affair, remains to be seen.” Grind, like Hobbs-core, is nasty, brutish and short.
“Hey, you! Yeah, that’s right, I know you and your ilk, only scurrying out of your hatch for a new record if the music is heavier than a dying panda reading Sartre and the album is only available in limited release as sheet music stapled to the bathroom door in an abandoned hospital. Well, you better slink back to your cobweb-ridden hovel as Life-Related Symptoms by Anewrage is none of those things.” Time to appreciate the gentler things in life.
“Post-metal – like it’s nearest neighbor sludge metal – builds upon the foundations laid down by doom, keeping intact the throbbing riffs and ponderous pace while shedding much of the fantasy and occult trappings in favor of a more intellectual, existential outlook. If doom was about the “what” then one could argue post-metal is more about the “why?”” Ask why to the Mountain God.
