![Kroh – Altars [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]](https://www.angrymetalguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/11/Kroh-Altars-album-cover-ghostcultmag-800x800-768x768.jpg)
“With acts like King Goat, Darkher and Khemmis snatching Album of the Month, I’d say this has been a good year for doom metal. Good thing, then, that this is also the year I found out how great this genre is, having mostly ignored it under the false assumption that all of it was paced like a 9-hour funeral.” Newbie re-education is an everyday struggle at AMG.
![Départe – Failure, Subside [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]](https://www.angrymetalguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/12/cover-768x768.jpg)
“I’ve had my eye on Australian black metal unit Départe ever since they landed an opening slot on the most Kronos-approved tour Europe has seen in the last few years. Jet-setting around the continent with Wormed and Ulcerate is no laughing matte, and all of that exposure before release so much as a demo raised red flags all over the place.” The yearly miss lists are upon us. Take note.
“Winter nights mean crackling fireplaces, warm sweaters, and mulled cider. They mean snuggling under a comfy blanket in the warmth of your house while you watch snow gently fall outside your window. They mean piping hot stew, thick wool socks, and fluffy cats curled up in your lap. What else provides warmth and comfort like that in the dead of winter? Instrumental progressive metal, of course.” Can you cuddle up to a noodle?
When you’re still feeling young and invincible, it’s easy to lose track of the fact that the lifestyle choices you make today can have very real repercussions for your future health and well being. Now while I’m fully aware that this sounds like something your mother might say in an attempt to keep you on the straight and narrow, there is nevertheless a salient point here, and it’s something that Mike Williams is currently all too aware of. “As I write this, the Eyehategod frontman is laid up in a serious condition in hospital, awaiting a liver transplant, with decades of excess finally beginning to take their toll on his fragile body. In spite of his chaotic lifestyle, the speed and ferocity of Williams’ deterioration has still come as a considerable shock to many, so the release of Chaotic Fiend — the latest showing from Japanese Eyehategod worshipers Sithter — comes at a poignant time for both the sludge scene and the metal community as a whole.” Tributes and well wishing.
“After first looking at the album art, I bet myself $5 that the most obvious comparison for Guerra Eterna would be Under the Sign of the Black Mark. I am now $5 richer (or poorer?).” Bask in the Bathory, if you dare.
“When it comes to metal with a message, there’s not many bands as violently ferocious as Invertia. The Boston duo has been attempting to tear down the system for a good while now; our very own Madam X even lauded their sophomore offering for its intense brutality. Now Invertia has returned with The Biddings of Tyrants. This third entry to the band’s discography is no less critical of societies various dilemmas, but does it live up to its predecessor?” Speak truth to power with metal.
“Ah, another week, another black metal hybrid album. I’ve been snatching these up like candy lately, and for good reason: the only albums I’ve awarded a 3.0 or higher thus far have paired the genre’s trademark icy dissonance with a variety of other styles to great effect.” Blackened candy is best served cold.
“When faced with a work of art that purports to be avant-garde, invariably a question must be asked: is the all-but-total abandonment of classical song structure and melody a hallmark of innovation and a refutation of the musical establishment or is it merely the flotsam-and-jetsam of musicians lacking the skills to write a decent song in the first place?” Challenging.
“Whenever I see bands like Slayer and Motörhead emblazoned across shirts for sale in fashionable high street clothing stores, I always have a little internal conflict with myself. On the one hand, I feel I ought to be enthusiastic about anything that introduces people to the world of heavy music. On the other, a childish part of me kind of likes metal being a bit of a secret society.” Join the club but prepare for hazing.
“Pennsylvania’s Zao needs no further introduction. One of metalcore’s pioneering bands influenced a huge swath of groups, mainstream and underground, with their chaotic riffing, pummeling rhythms, honest, heart-wrenching lyrics and venomous screaming of Dan Weyandt. And while the band endured quite the past, Zao continue to walk to the beat of their own drum while inviting the fans to come along.” December sucks for new releases, until it doesn’t.
