“They say it’s better to have loved and lost than to never have loved at all. AMG Industries and Unihorn Distribution Inc., have wholeheartedly adopted this adage, especially when it comes to the Record(s) o’ the Month. In other words; you may get them late, but at least you get them, so pipe down about it! Now that we have the proper mindset established, we can proceed productively.” Yadda-yadda-yadda, here it is!
“Sometimes I think I was born in the wrong decade. Every time I think back to the pop culture of the 90s, all I remember is boring daytime television and lazy post-grunge blaring on the radio. In contrast, the 80s seemed much more exciting — the jeans were tight, the horror movies were actually good, and extreme metal was first clawing its way into existence via stacks of battered demo tapes and tattered home-printed zines. Greek trio Principality of Hell apparently felt the same way.” It was the best of times, it was the blurst of times??
“God is dead, but what can be done once the corpse is buried? Just to the left of nihilism, HP Lovecraft staked out a territory where divinity was absent and mankind insignificant, battered by forces beyond time and comprehension. Anti-christian, nihilistic, and cosmicist themes have all long been staples of metal, both lyrically and musically – but after decades the fear is gone; the well dry and the water stagnant. To reach ever greater extremes, these tropes must be transcended. Ulcerate did so.” Look busy, the abyss is watching.
“Tensions remain, not just between Greece and the overlords of the EU but within the country: between those who support the economic freedom conferred by greater government spending and those who advocate fiscal responsibility. It’s in this turmoil that Mayhem in Blue was written.” Frugality breeds insanity.
“Darkrypt was helpfully labelled as an Indian “dark death metal” band when I got the promo, which is great to know because I really thought a band named after a portmanteau of darkness and a dark underground tomb was going to be bright, poppy stuff in the vein of Carly Rae Jepsen.” I heard they’re doing a split.
“Not once have I ever blasted the roach or taken a toke. I have never smoked the bowl, nor have I mowed the grass. I puffed a magic dragon once, but I’m pretty sure that was in kindergarten and isn’t relevant to the discussion at hand. Yet, for some reason, I’ve always been drawn to stoner rock and metal. Is being stoned a prerequisite to proper enjoyment of the genre?” No grass, no pass.
“In a dimly lit basement sits an easel covered by a dust-kissed veil. Beneath it reveals a portrait illustrating denim-clad, leonine-tousled men. Their faces are sunken and scored, their skin sallow and mottled. Whilst the painting’s subjects may be cruelled by time, the actual bands portrayed here are instead brimming with life, churning out quality music that belies their age.” The olde can still be bold(e).
“Debackliner is the second French group in a week for me. The first was the excellent Ars Moriendi—a one-man, black metal act focused on the Frenchy weirdness of bands like Spektr and Blut aus Nord. But, Debackliner is something else. It’s not a one-man band, it’s not black metal, and it’s not anything you were expecting.” Is there a French connection?
“There’s no doubt about it, in this burgeoning world of myriad metal sub-genres, an unlucky few have been branded as default pejoratives. We’re all guilty of it to some degree: nu metal, metalcore, deathcore… basically anything with a core, all sneered at and vilified down the length of our long, elitist noses. It saddens my iron bones to find that power metal seems to be suffering the same fate. Sure, it’s not for everyone, but there can be no denying the scene’s quality output.” Up with power!
“There are some albums that scream out for a review… Opeth’s Sorceress was certainly in no danger of being overlooked. We toyed with you a little, made you wait, but it was on the cards you’d get a review – eventually. The Black Scorpio Underground’s Necrochasm will never be one of those “sought-after” albums. In fact, it’s tough to even mention these two bands in the same review, purely because they’re complete opposites.” Scary has a sound.
