Things You Might Have Missed 2016

Vale of Pnath – II [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Vale of Pnath – II [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“I never thought of myself as a tech death fan. Coming from a thrash background, I never needed insane drum machine combos or faster-than-light scales to get my dander up. But after penning one tech death TYMHM this winter, I was struck by the notable divide between Dormant Ordeal and current beau Vale of Pnath.” Kronos laughs at your newbiehood.

Mistur – In Memoriam [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Mistur – In Memoriam [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“If you look back through the top ten archives of the site, you’ll find it’s not uncommon to see a band on a list that was never reviewed by us. If a promo doesn’t come through our hand-hewn bone doors, it doesn’t get reviewed. But, even with that rule in place, there’re just too many promos arriving on a weekly basis to catch them all. What is uncommon is an album that not only landed on a couple lists but also took the top spot.” The embargo must be broken!

Uprising – Uprising [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Uprising – Uprising [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“Why we would be receiving a promo (with a 2017 release date) for a record that has been out since March of 2016 is beyond me. Well, it’s not beyond me because this sort of thing happens all the time. Sometimes it occurs because of a band’s recent signing and re-release of that album or, other times, it’s because a new distribution deal sends the record overseas. Regardless the reason for the delay, I couldn’t pass up a last-minute TYMHM for Uprising’s self-titled debut.” Another minor gem from us to you. Now buy us a beer.

Rebel Wizard – Triumph of Gloom [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Rebel Wizard – Triumph of Gloom [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“One-man projects are increasingly common in the modern metal market, as dedicated individuals take the purely DIY route and leave band politics and shenanigans to other folks. Personally, 2016 has yielded two impressive discoveries of Australian one-man projects, from the slick melo-death theatrics of Valtari to this impressively vitriolic slice of mayhem from Rebel Wizard.” You rebel scum.

Dunsmuir – Dunsmuir [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Dunsmuir – Dunsmuir [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“Considering their impressive all star line-up, the debut self-titled LP from Dunsmuir seemed to fly under the radar rather curiously. The freshly minted rock project featuring Dave Bone (The Company Band), Brad Davis (Fu Manchu), Vinnie Appice (Black Sabbath, Dio) and none other than legendary Clutch frontman Neil Fallon released a consistently solid debut album worthy of your attention.” How the hell did we miss this?

DGM – The Passage [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

DGM – The Passage [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“Italy’s litany of exports are unmistakably intertwined with the country’s culture; one look at a Fiat or an Armani suit and my intuition immediately tips me off that it’s a product of pizza-pasta land, even if I can’t quite place what makes the item in question distinctly Italian. The same applies to DGM.” It’s all in the seasoning.

Mizmor – Yodh [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Mizmor – Yodh [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“Even before hearing a single note from Portland, Oregon’s one-man blackened doom psalmist Mizmor (מזמור), the striking cover art of Yodh—a reproduction of an artwork by Polish artist Zdzisław Beksiński—tells us everything we need to know. The two faces in a desolate dystopian landscape, robbed of their distinguishing features and reduced to mute, expressionless monoliths, speak to our subconscious selves.” Woe to the world, the doom has come.

Zeal and Ardor – Devil is Fine [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Zeal and Ardor – Devil is Fine [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“It’s about time we got to this. Since its release in April, Devil is Fine has exploded in popularity and earned accolades and interviews across the web, based on, as far as I can tell, little to no promotion from the artist. It has sold over 1000 copies on Bandcamp. But the album’s worth as a success story is just the beginning and even its contents don’t quite tell the whole tale.” This is a weird one.

Dormant Ordeal – We Had It Coming [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

Dormant Ordeal – We Had It Coming [Things You Might Have Missed 2016]

“Since first cozying up to Dormant Ordeal one sleepy summer Saturday, the thundering masterclass has hardly left my rotation. Perhaps not the finest death metal to ever emigrate from Poland, We Had It Coming nonetheless evokes a primal emotion that renders it impossible to extract rational thought from the perpetual desire to blast this savage motherfucker from the rooftops.” But that might scare away Santa!