Things You Might Have Missed 2014

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Body Count – Manslaughter

By Diabolus in Muzaka on January 6, 2015 in American Metal, Rap Metal, Sumerian Records, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Rap Metal, 35 comments

“June 10th, 2014: I looked out of my window and saw pigs flying, and shortly thereafter received a text from Satan asking why Hell just froze over. Suddenly I remembered that Ice-T’s rap metal outfit Body Count had just released Manslaughter, so I grabbed hold of one of the aforementioned pigs and flew to my local record store to pick up a copy. Upon hearing Manslaughter in its entirety, I texted Satan the answer to his question: “because a great rap metal album was released in 2014.”” There goes the neighborhood, again!

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Igorrr & Ruby My Dear – Maigre EP

By Madam X on January 5, 2015 in 2014, Ad Noiseam Records, Avante Garde, French Metal, Non-Metal Metal Things, Not Metal, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Non-metal Metal Things, 15 comments

“So you haven’t yet crossed paths with Igorrr’s prior works (Halleluja or Nostril)? Well then, where to begin!” Seems Madam X isn’t quite ready to let go of 2014 and the weirdness that came along with it.

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Black Anvil – Hail Death

By Mark Z. on December 24, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Black Metal, Death Metal, Relapse, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Thrash Metal, Black Metal, Death Metal, Thrash Metal, 4 comments

“Three years ago at a Krallice show in New York, a band named Black Anvil took stage, struck an immense wall-shaking chord, and immediately captivated my unsuspecting ears with their hefty, head-crushing riffs. Unlike the post-progressive-neo-sludge-blueberry muffin-whatever I expected to accompany Krallice, Black Anvil was firmly grounded in the primal forms of extreme metal, somehow combining black, death, thrash, and doom without sounding like they’d spent the last decade huffing rubber cement and playing Celtic Frost records backwards.” Holidays go better with rubber cement huffing.

Things You Might Have Missed: Death Penalty – Death Penalty

By Steel Druhm on December 23, 2014 in Doom Metal, English Metal, Heavy Metal, Rise Above Records, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Doom Metal, Heavy Metal, 11 comments

“When Cathedral went belly up last year, riff-meister extraordinaire Gaz Jennings was left with some time on his nimble hands. Like any good doom maven he used this time to recruit a new band and launch Death Penalty, which he lovingly named after the debut by classic doomsters Witchfinder General.” If Gaz be playing, you best be paying.

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Alestorm – Sunset on the Golden Age

By Diabolus in Muzaka on December 22, 2014 in 2014, Folk Metal, Heavy Metal, Napalm Records, Power Metal, Reviews, Scottish Metal, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Folk Metal, Power Metal, 19 comments

“Previously on AMG, heavy metal pirates Alestorm received the glowing accolade of “unceremoniously piss[ing] in the pool” of pirate metal in a Running Wild review. Today on AMG, these Scottish privateers set sail into calmer critical seas, and I’m going to spend 500 or so words telling you, our dear readers, why Alestorm’s latest record, Sunset on the Golden Age, is worth your time and attention.” Mutiny is afoot at AMG, and the one thing we don’t tolerate is insubordination. Oh, and Alestorm worship.

Things You Might Have Missed: Slugdge – Gastronomicon

By Saunders on December 21, 2014 in 2014, Black Metal, Death Metal, English Metal, Reviews, Sludge, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Black Metal, Death Metal, Experimental Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Sludge, 9 comments

“I admire bands with the guts to take creative risks and incorporate different styles and influences into their sound. However, meshing different genres is often fraught with danger. Bold experimentation and genre splicing often results in bands going off the deep end, with the finished output dissolving into a stewy mess of incoherence and forced songwriting.” Ready for some slug themed extremity? Look at that escargot!

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Wildernessking – The Devil Within

By Angry Metal Guy on December 19, 2014 in 2014, Black Metal, Reviews, South African Metal, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Black Metal, 9 comments

“Wildernessking is a great band. Their sounds is well-developed, nuanced, interesting and even back to when they were Heathens, they had a choke-hold on the craft of song writing. That they continue to develop and have not garnered the attention of the big(ger) labels who should be clamoring to support them surprises me. Is it because they’re from South Africa and can’t be expected to tour? Is it because the world is riddled with luck and unequal chances and they haven’t gotten in front of the right eyes? Or is it because Angry Metal Guy didn’t get his ass in gear and review the band’s EP The Devil Within, the second follow-up to the band’s remarkable debut The Writing of Gods in the Sand? As a man who obviously has an inflated enough sense of self to believe that starting a blog to air his opinion out on the Internet was something that everyone would be dying to read, we’ll go with the latter. I’m here to make amends.” And amends are hereby made.

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Mike LePond’s Silent Assassins

By Al Kikuras on December 19, 2014 in 2014, American Metal, Power Metal, Progressive Metal, Reviews, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Power Metal, Progressive Metal, 5 comments

“Symphony X nerds rejoice! Then again, maybe you won’t. Symphony X bassist Mike LePond’s first solo effort was released in September of this year and those expecting LePond to stick to his primary band’s keyboard-laden progressive metal path may be sorely disappointed. If you are, get that geeky head out of your pale behind (if you can get up off it long enough between games of Skyrim)…” New Jersey knows metal, and Al Kikuras knows New Jersey.

Things You Might Have Missed 2014: Hannes Grossmann – The Radial Covenant

By Angry Metal Guy on December 18, 2014 in 2014, Death Metal, German Metal, Reviews, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, 18 comments

For those who don’t know Hannes Grossmann, you probably do know the bands he’s been involved in. He’s got Obscura, Necrophagist, and Blotted Science on his “list of things that make me cooler than you,” and one can only guess that The Radical Covenant is the Obscura record we would have gotten if Grossmann hadn’t decided to quit. And while I’m a fan of Obscura, I felt the band nailed it with Cosmogenesis and I’m not a huge fan of 2011’s Omnivium (anymore). Ironically, Grossmann said in his parting message from the band that the musical difference between he and founder Steffen Kummerer was the reason that he left the band. Apparently Kummerer was more invested in a Cosmogenesis sound, which could leave one expecting, then, I shouldn’t like this record as much…

Things You Might Have Missed: Emptiness – Nothing But the Whole

By Jean-Luc Ricard on December 18, 2014 in 2014, Belgian Metal, Black Metal, Dark Descent Records, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Things You Might Have Missed 2014, Doom Metal, 11 comments

“Belgium’s Emptiness are a band that I’ve not paid enough attention to. Sharing their bassist and guitarist with black metal stalwarts Enthroned (who also released an album this year that you might have missed…), and their drummer with Pro-Pain, Emptiness certainly have plenty of experience in their ranks, but given that I’ve never been particularly enamored with either of those bands, I didn’t feel a great urge to seek out Emptiness’ releases. But this year, after reading nothing but the praise for Nothing but the Whole and falling in love with the distinctive, creepy album cover, I decided to give the band a chance. This was an entirely excellent decision.” We make good decisions, so you can have good consumer knowledge.