“Serving the grind cause since forming thirty years ago, Finland’s Rotten Sound is a well-respected if somewhat underrated grindcore wrecking crew boasting an impressive track record. Coming off a banner year for grindcore, getting acquainted or reacquainted with the veteran act seems as good a time as any.” Something’s Rotten in Finland.
“So, there I was. Curled up in an armchair, dark outside, shark pups snoring, decaf breakfast tea almost finished, review for the week just turned in, when what should I spy? Lamp of Murmuur sitting, alone in the gloaming of the promo sump, unloved, unattended and already released.” Rub it and see.
“Just look at that cover! I didn’t quite care what it ended up being when I saw that brazenly bright, composite-faced figure with its many mouths open in… anguish? Excitement? Both? Of course, I knew it had to foreshadow noise to some degree—something so frighteningly stitched could only be the result of frequencies scraping the boundary between pique and pleasure.” Horse show.
“93696 is, apparently, the numerological representation of heaven. It is also the numerological representation of Liturgy with the dial turned to 11. If you aren’t familiar, explaining Liturgy is a challenge. It’s black metal meets avant-garde sparkliness meets weird trills meets progressive djentiness meets dissonant noisiness, all of which thunders uneasily around your brain.” Math and insanity.
“Ne Obliviscaris hardly require introduction in these parts. The last decade established a pattern of bi- or tri-annual releases, opening with 2012’s inventive Portal of I and closing with 2017’s well-regarded Urn. One pandemic and an uncharacteristic wait later has revealed 2023’s Exul. Boasting a core fusion of progressive music, extreme metal and classical influences, these Aussies have always reveled in not just musical, but also thematic, excess. Accordingly, Exul appears to lever a loose Crusades theme.” Big Obliviscaris.
“Finland—is there something in the water? Is the air cleaner, the skies bluer, the nighttime cooler? Really, I don’t know what it is, but when you put the words “Finnish” and “black metal” together, the result is, on average, just better. And no, I don’t have stats to back this up, and I don’t plan on finding any either. All I’m going to do here is explain that between that cover over there and that country over there, I have unreasonable expectations for Ounas I, the fourth full-length release from Finnish melodic black metal act Suotana.” Fin living.
“I opened my review for Excalion’s 2019 opus, Emotions with the words “Once upon a time,” and here we are almost four years later with their sixth album, Once Upon a Time! Clearly, Steel has real clout in the power metal universe! I’ve been a fan of this Finnish power metal outfit since I stumbled upon their 2007 sophomore outing, Waterlines, which remains one of my favorite albums in the genre. Since then Excalion have proved to be reliable purveyors of punchy, catchy power with enough muscle and grit to satisfy those among us who do not own frilly pirate shirts.” Tell us a power story!
“’Twas two weeks and change before Christmas, 2018, when I went to see Madder Mortem. The venue turned out to be one of those backrooms behind a cafe, the kind regularly rented for family gatherings and bat mitzvahs and stuff, complete with random sad disco ball. There were 5 bands in total, and the whole thing lasted for 5 goddamn hours because of half-hour breaks. It was a weird and exhausting afternoon into night, and the only good thing until the main act hit the stage was a largely unknown troupe called ¡Pendejo!, who blew me away with a unique brand of brass-infused, Spanish-sung stoner metal.” Latin heat in the street.
“Apparently, I’m the only one ’round these parts who gets excited to see the band Dirge in the same sentence as “post-metal.” I’m like, “they’re back, baby!” and I lose my goddamn mind. The French masterminds of such classics as Elysian Magnetic Fields and Wings of Lead Over Dormant Seas were a force to be reckoned with, but then I realize: this is the other Dirge, the one from India.” International doom.
“Foretoken take a particularly aggressive approach to melodic death metal, much like The Black Dahlia Murder do. Yet, this duo also share considerable affinity with more opulent acts such as Brymir, Mongol, Ephemerald, Stormlord and Aephanemer. Symphonics play a support role exclusively, however, as vicious riffing and ripping leads take charge and guide the record through battlefields of speedy tech-death percussion.” Wictory or death!
