Vintersorg // Jordpuls Rating: 4.5/5.0 — The Perfect Record for Spring Label: Napalm Records Website: myspace.com/vintersorganic Release Dates: EU: 2011.25-28.03 | US: 04.05.2011 After a wintry silence of 4 years about a new solo record, Vintersorg is finally releasing the long awaited follow-up to Solens Rötter. If you consider the early solo career of Mr. […]
Avante Garde
Grayceon – All We Destroy Review
Grayceon is a three-piece progressive metal band from San Francisco that was formed in 2005 and that is releasing their third full-length All We Destroy via Profound Lore (which is being distroed by Sound Pollution in Sweden, by the way). Since their 2007 debut, the band has been hailed as something totally unique on the metal landscape, and in 2011 this is still very true. In fact, I would go so far as to argue that they are a singular voice in the area in such a way that there is very little functional comparison to a reader understand what it is that they do, and more specifically why it’s so damn successful. However, as a music reviewer that’s my job (or in this case, ridiculously time consuming habit), so I shall wade fearlessly into the fray and hope that you, angry reader, are left with a sense of why you should head over to Profound Lore’s website and purchase the record.
Ben Levin Group – Pulse of a Nation Review
I’m not accustomed to being short for words when I write a review. It’s something that happens pretty rarely because I tend to form such strong opinions about things. And given how much shit I’ve been listening to lately for this website, it’s really cool to be able to get my hands on something that has this kind of exciting personality, but let me tell you now, I’m not sure if I’m up to the job of actually doing this record justice with my descriptions. So if for some reason you don’t feel particularly inspired after this to go out and check out this record then ignore that impulse, and check it out anyway.
Agalloch – Marrow of the Spirit
Agalloch is one of the rare bands whose music can provoke complex emotional reactions and truly move me every time I listen. From the bleak coldness of Pale Folklore to the creepily morose musings on The Mantle and the tense, uneasy nihilism of Ashes Against the Grain, their music overflows with emotion and feeling. Their odd and groundbreaking neo-folk, black metal, post-rock fusion has been a winning concoction time and again. From their small but fierecely dedicated fan base, there has been an almost palpable anticipation for new material from these Oregonian wood gnomes, and finally, they deliver Marrow of the Spirit. It goes without saying that expectations are ridiculously high based on the masterworks that preceded, but can they continue to operate at such a high level? I want to say yes unconditionally, but the truth is more like a yes, with minor qualifications
Vulture Industries – The Malefactor’s Bloody Register Review
Another one of those bands that has floated in and out of my ‘sphere of knowledge’, I’d never really given Vulture Industries a fair chance. Part of this was probably just laziness on my part, but also the undeniable fact that the band had been pigeonholed as an Arcturus rip-off certainly didn’t make me want to check them out very much. As I’ve been pretty consistent about, I think that rip-off bands are usually boring, unimaginative and frustrating. And with a band like Arcturus that is easily one of the most unique bands to ever show up from the black metal scene, I couldn’t see how it could possibly be even remotely good. Certainly a band cannot re-imagine the most imaginative band from the first wave of Norwegian black metal.
Solefald – Norrøn Livskunst Review
Solefald is just a cool band and they have been for a long time. I first got into their stuff with the epic Red for Fire: An Icelandic Odyssey which came out in 2005 and that record has maintained a standard place in my discography because of its amazing blending of black metal, progressive metal and rock and unique Norse sounds. While I was not equally as impressed with Black for Death and I’ve been a bit hit or miss on some of the band’s older material, I’ve always appreciated the band’s unique approach to the music they produce and their intensely creative outputs. Nothing they have put out has really disappointed me, it’s just a matter of being more or less into it.
Nightfall – Astron Black and the Thirty Tyrants Review
Now here’s a bird of a different color and what an odd duck it is! Astron Black and the Thirty Tyrants (a grand title) is the eighth platter from long running Greek black/death/doom/gothic/kitchensink act Nightfall. Along with their better known contemporaries Rotting Christ and Septic Flesh, these Spartans have evolved, devolved and transmogrified into different animals over their long existence and their current incarnation is very interesting indeed. Although they defy easy categorization, the focus lies somewhere between black and gothic metal but with traces of everything else tossed in with reckless abandon. The end product is at times confusing, pretty damn cool and not really like anything else out there right now.
Winterhorde – Underwatermoon Review
It isn’t often these days that I review something that I found on my own. In fact, given that the amount of time that we here at Angry Metal Guy for reviews has gone down immensely compared to the huge numbers of promos we receive, it’s probably irresponsible for me to do so. But this Angry Metal Guy is always worried that we’re still not getting every CD of golden worth and highest quality. Once again this fear has been vindicated, but fortunately for you guys, I still love metal enough that I actually go looking for shit that we haven’t received here. And because of that, I stumbled upon Winterhorde a melodic or orchestral black metal band from… Israel? Yeah, turns out, even Israel which lacks for snowy winters has black metal guys who think that snow is the ultimate eviiiil. But don’t let the silly name fool you, because Winterhorde is not just your average melodic black metal band and Underwatermoon, while excitingly ESL in name, is anything but lackluster.
Nachtmystium – Black Meddle II: Addicts Review
This post has been removed because it promoted Nazi or Nazi-adjacent metal bands or musicians. We apologize.
Pain of Salvation – Road Salt pt. 1 – Ivory – Review
One would assume that an Angry Metal Guy wouldn’t be handing out high scores willy nilly, something I seriously try to avoid doing. But apparently 2010 is a year filled with really fantastic albums by bands doing the things that, as a reviewer, and more specifically, as a music-lover, I have trouble not totally falling for. Pain of Salvation has never been a band that I personally fell for. Scarsick, the band’s 2007 release, was a record that I had issues with and I’ve had some personal gripes about Daniel Gildenlöw’s vocals on the older material (specifically his wannabe Mike Patton rappy/talky vocals). But, that said, Pain of Salvation has long been the darling of the progressive rock and metal scene, with legions of fans who love their technical prowess and pop sensibility.
