‘Karloff is a “metal punk” band, a phrase that doesn’t mean much to me. Military Shadow is “metal punk” too, but they sound nothing like Karloff. What does The Appearing sound like, then? To me, this is firmly in the Swedish realm of metal, specifically what post-Wolverine Blues Entombed was doing, including and especially Entombed A.D..” Coffin punk.
Amebix
Insane – Victims Review
“My door is always open for 80s-inspired speed metal. You see, all you younger folks merely adopted the speed. I was there when it first broke through the ground and started hunting for scalps. I was raised by it, molded by it. I owe it a debt. And so I grabbed the promo for Insane’s sophomore outing based on a sample I heard that sounded like the ugly stepbrother to classic Canadian speedsters Razor. I expected knuckle-dragging, saliva spraying acts of rapid-fire depravity on Victims. In this I was not disappointed, though the method of delivery had some surprises in store for me.” Wictims ov changes.
Turtle Skull – Monoliths Review
“While other monoliths stagnate in dark and gloomy dimensions, Australian quintet Turtle Skull prefers to rely on bright and sunny desert safaris with their unique brand of metal, dubbed “flower doom.”” Smell the doom.
Grymm’s and Kronos’ Top Ten(ish) of 2019
Grymm and Kronos serve up a rich helping of metal opinions with their Top Ten(ish) of 2019.
Siege of Power – Warning Blast Review
“Warning Blast was set to be one unstoppable slab of doomy death metal. That is, until it wasn’t. Siege of Power are far more interested in playing some punk infused death-doom, or what it would sound like if death-doom musicians tried to start an old hardcore-adjacent band. Conveniently, this is almost exactly what Warning Blast represents.” Feel the crust.
Axegrinder – Satori Review
“We’ve seen this scenario before. Bands split up, go on indefinite hiatus or just drop off the face of the Earth, only to re-emerge years and years later with new material and a fresh load of crow’s feet. Axegrinder manage to take this to the next level, however. Their first album, The Rise of the Serpent Men, dropped in 1989, the year the Berlin Wall came down. Satori, released in the summer of the Year of Our Jørn 2018, is the follow-up, if you can still call it that. Twenty-nine years between releases makes the next Tool album feel rushed and might inspire G.R.R. Martin to take it a little easier on releasing the next A Song of Ice and Fire novel.” New olde beginnings.
Atriarch – Dead As Truth Review
“I’m fed up with wizards, dragons, and leather-cladded warriors in metal. I’m fed up with corpse paint, studs, and leather-cladded necromancers in metal. I’m fed up with groove, headbanging, and flannel-cladded bong wizards in metal. I’m fed up with melody and happiness in metal, that’s why Atriarch – with their fourth full-length Dead As Truth – have arrived at the perfect time.” Celebrate the sludge.
Tau Cross – Pillar of Fire Review
In 2015, the multi-national post-punk supergroup Tau Cross captured our ears and hearts with their self-titled debut, blending the crustiness of classic British punk rock with the soul of Killing Joke and the nigh-shamanistic vocals of former Amebix frontman/bassist, Rob “The Baron” Miller. So effective was this mix that their debut found its way to my #2 slot of my Top Ten(ish) list of 2015. Two years later, and with a slight line-up change, the band returns with their eagerly-awaited follow-up, Pillar of Fire. The fire still burns.
Victims – Sirens Review
“They say old soldiers never die, they just fade away. But what about old crust punk bands? If Victims are any indication, they don’t die either – instead, they just charge right through their mid-life crisis in a fog of Skitsystem riffs and shattered beer bottles.” This smells like shitty beer and anarchy.
Grymm’s Top Ten(ish) of 2015
“2015 has not been the best of years for yours truly, with car accidents, challenges, setbacks, and death upon death upon even more death dropped into my unwilling lap. I was ready to rain supernova-warm hellfire upon this calendar year, but thankfully, a much-needed vacation with friends just this past week helped to deaden the pain of all this negativity the year had brought upon me. Musically, it’s been quite positive and productive. October alone was a monster of a month for metal, as you can see by my list. So despite all the negative garbage, at least the soundtrack was incredible.”