Record(s) o’ the Month – October 2014

Here at Angry Metal Guy Dictatorship Services Ltd., we strive for self-parody. That’s why we continue to push the Record(s) o’ the Month further and further back every month. In fact, my new rule of thumb is that it’s not even worth posting Record(s) o’ the Month until regular readers begin whining in the comments of reviews they don’t care about that there isn’t a Record o’ the Month post for a particular month. Then I let it wait two more weeks. This waiting period is usually followed by the post going up and then said persons complaining that their favorite record isn’t included, making it all the sweeter! But the method is irrelevant: the point of this little exercise is that we strive to fulfill such functions for you all while fighting to lose all the credibility and dependability we’ve continued to build in spite of our great efforts to the contrary!

On a more serious note: this October edition is a special one. Normally—unless I just straight up disagree with someone—I take the highest score of the month and make that Record o’ the Month. This month, however, I really want to spotlight this special album.

Dreamgrave - Presentiment

Dreamgrave’s Presentiment is this Hungarian band’s debut full-length, and it’s a self-released opus to boot. With no label support and basically just “cold emailing,” I clicked a link to this band’s soundcloud and heard the opening track to the album. If I had to sum up my impression in a sentence? Think: Demiurg’s masterful Slakthus Gamleby with less Stockholm and more Gothenburg. I was excited. After emailing the band to get a proper review copy, I’ve given this album a lot of time. Partially because I love it, and partially because it’s complex and simply just needs the time. And what I came to? Presentiment is a special record from a special band which writes “evocative, powerful, and technically impressive music—wandering through complex time signatures and lacing them together into epic songs.” And through it all “there is also a sense of balance on Presentiment; things are in their place, and epic turns never feel forced—it all fits perfectly.” Check it out.

Runner(s) Up:

RIOT_Unleash the FireRiot V // Unleash the Fire — Few bands live up to expectations, and even fewer come back from the loss of a founding member to knock out a record worthy of their legacy. Riot V has done so to Steel Druhm‘s thankful surprise: “I admit doubting them, but Riot V kept their classic sound and made a proper sequel to Immortal Soul. In a time when so few albums live up to expectations, this feels like a particularly generous gift from a band I’ve grown up with and worshipped.” Unleash the Fire is chock full of “speedy, aggressive, fist pumping and epic” tracks “with vocals that compel a sing along regardless of venue or social mores,” and listeners should be prepared for a tour de force of excellent metal.

Revocation Deathless 01Revocation // Deathless Revocation is one of metal’s most exciting bands. So it was with some excitement that we here at AMG sent off Deathless to Kronos. When he emerged from the listening/starvation chamber, he had great news to report: “Deathless is unlike any Revocation album before it, retaining an unmistakable core identity while pushing the envelope further and in different dimensions than the band has ever gone before. Its greatest triumph is in how completely unpredictable it is – not in song structures, riffs, or even tonality, necessarily – but in unprecedented writing that continuously confounds.” Stripped down and simultaneously progressive, Deathless is triumphant.

Anaal_Nathrakh_Desideratum 01Anaal Nathrakh // Desideratum Grymm got his fair share of apocalyptic duos during October, Anaal Nathrakh’s latest effort impressed the hell out of others on the AMG staff as well. There’s something like barely contained chaos and insanity in Anaal Nathrakh’s sound that makes them near impossible to deny, and Desideratum is no exception. Mr. Grymm was impressed by the band’s millennialist fervor, but not surprised: “Desideratum is a statement of malicious intent, a call-to-arms to rally the masses and bring forth armageddon. Anaal Nathrakh continue their brand of grinding merriment, sanity be damned, and they are taking your sorry ass with them. Submit, and revel in the insanity yet again.”

Alunah Awakening The ForestAlunah // Awakening the Forest — Expectations for Alunah’s newest release were sky high, but instead of crumbling under them they stepped up and produced a retro doom record worthy of their pedigree. El Cuervo got Alunah-duty and reported it like this: “Another record like this one, and Alunah will assuredly be ensconced in the pantheon of doom greats. They’ve moved from strength to strength and Awakening the Forest boasts their honed dynamics and majestic songwriting.” Any time one’s name is being bandied about with Pallbearer for “best doom metal record of the year” you know you’re on good footing.

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