Profound Lore Records

Bell Witch – Four Phantoms Review

Bell Witch – Four Phantoms Review

“I have to be honest. Aside from my love for doom metal, the main reason I picked up this promo was that it is released by Profound Lore Records, which has become a by-word for quality in recent times. The list goes on and on. The prospect of a new funeral death doom release on this label had me all kinds of excited….” Great expectations are a dangerous thing.

Things You Might Have Missed: Dawnbringer – Night of the Hammer

Things You Might Have Missed: Dawnbringer – Night of the Hammer

“One of the biggest disappointments this year was Profound Lore’s inexplicable failure to get us a copy of the new Dawnbringer promo, Night of the Hammer. Due to said failure, it was we who might have missed one of the best albums of the year. I’ve been a major supporter of Chris Black’s (High Spirits, Pharaoh, ex-Nachtmystium) weird proto-metal project ever since their outre Nucleus platter, and I was equally bowled over by 2012’s Into the Lair of the Sun God. Maintaining the band’s upward trajectory once again, Night of the Hammer takes the Dawnbringer sound even further backward into metal’s past.” Like a hammer to a nail, so are the days of our metal lives….

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Artificial Brain – Labyrinth Constellation

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Artificial Brain – Labyrinth Constellation

“Being quite the Revocation fan, I was pleasantly surprised earlier this year to see that Dave Davidson’s partner in crime, Dan Gargiulo, was involved in a death metal side project. That band, Artificial Brain, released their first full-length, Labyrinth Constellation this February, and we unfortunately didn’t get the chance to review it. As some of our more kvlt readers pointed out, this was a mistake.” We missed it, you bitched about it, now we make recompense.

Pallbearer – Foundations of Burden Review

Pallbearer – Foundations of Burden Review

“Ah, the dreaded Second Album. It’s the infamous make-or-break moment that either legitimizes a young act as The Real Deal, or the one record that calls a band on its bullshit. Case in point: 2012’s Sorrow and Extinction put Little Rock, Arkansas’s Pallbearer into the ears and hearts of many doom aficionados, rightfully earning its place on many end-of-year playlists. A minor line-up shuffle and a few high-profile tours later, they’ve returned with the much-anticipated Foundations of Burden.” With several AMG staff members anxiously hoping for a big win from these doomsters, can they deliver?

Wolvhammer – Clawing into Black Sun Review

Wolvhammer – Clawing into Black Sun Review

“You have to love it when you work so damn hard on something for a while, and all of a sudden, without any reason or explanation, things start to gel together in a satisfying fashion. Not in that sort of “right place at the right time” bullshit, but rather the amalgamation of street-level honesty, soul-bearing sincerity, and watching ideas becoming fully realized right before your eyes and hands.” Is it coming together for Wolvhammmer or falling apart?

The Atlas Moth – The Old Believer Review

The Atlas Moth – The Old Believer Review

The Atlas Moth is not your average “genre” band. More than being another entry in the long list of throwaway stoner doom acts, the Chicagoan five-piece’s sophomore LP An Ache for the Distance was a gorgeously rendered amalgam of sinewy sludge, painterly post-metal and heavy-handed psychedelia; a lushly psychedelic heavy metal record impossible to pigeonhole and just as easy to love. It’s the kind of record that screams “classic” in its first couple of seconds and could possibly reaffirm one’s faith in modern metal.” Can this release entrench The Atlas Moth as the savior of modern metal?

Abyssal – Novit enim Dominus qui sunt eius  Review

Abyssal – Novit enim Dominus qui sunt eius Review

“The latin phrase “Novit enim Dominus qui sunt eius” comes from an incident in the early 13th century known as the Massacre at Béziers. The ironically named Pope Innocent II had declared a crusade against those he identified as heretics in Northern France, and the first town his assembled force attacked was the well-fortified town of Béziers. As the siege developed, it became a massacre, with more disciplined soldiers losing control of the mercenaries in the force who massacred the people, pillaged the town and ultimately burned it to the ground. The Massacre at Béziers has become emblematic of religion gone mad, persecution in its most extreme and dangerous incarnation, not just for the degree of the bloodshed, but for its indiscriminate-ness.” This is late, but also good. Nat knows her black metal!

Things You Might Have Missed 2013: Vhöl – Vhöl

Things You Might Have Missed 2013: Vhöl – Vhöl

“Being the jaded old fuck that I am, there are very few musicians that I go into straight-up fanboy mode for these days. One of those individuals is guitarist John Cobbett. Who, you ask? Cobbett is a member of prog sextet Hammers of Misfortune, and has done time in both Slough Feg and Ludicra, which puts him at the center of San Francisco’s present-day metal scene. When Ludicra abruptly folded after touring for 2010’s brilliant prog-black-metal opus The Tenant, I was genuinely bummed out. Lucky for me, Cobbett quickly assembled a new outlet for his heavier material, dubbed Vhöl.” Are you worried you might have missed some precious metal this year? We worry too, so we’ll start bombarding you with our selections of quality albums we didn’t get to review, but would hate to see you miss. Here, Mr. Fisting brings you the new project from the ever interesting John Cobbett. You’re welcome!