Apr19

Altar of Oblivion – The Seven Spirits Review

Altar of Oblivion – The Seven Spirits Review

“At the turn of the year between 2016 and 2017, I was going through a rather rough patch. Even music, one of the steady forces in my life, was largely ringing hollow and failing to elevate my mood. But those releases which broke through my personal quagmire have endured for me all the more and one of those was Altar of Oblivion’s EP called Barren Grounds. Though it only ran for 4 tracks through 19 minutes, its singular, dusty, atmospheric approach to doom metal captured my imagination and has stayed with me. I was therefore excited to note a 2019 full-length, their first in seven years, appropriately entitled The Seven Spirits. Excitement all too often ultimately reaches disappointment but I had faith in these Danish doom-mongers.” Strong spirits,

Paragon – Controlled Demolition Review

Paragon – Controlled Demolition Review

“A while ago, I was walking about and found myself in want of a quick, cheap, easy snack. I knew I was close to a McDonald’s, and that a greasy, delicious McDouble was under two bucks; perfect. Yet when I reached the restaurant, something was weird: it was called “McCafe” and designed to look trendy, modern, and friendly to Starbucks-sipping screenplay scribblers. I used to be rather good at guessing an album’s genre based on the cover, but trips to the record store have proven confusing nowadays for the more extreme variants of metal.” Destroying for fun.

L’Acéphale – L’Acéphale Review

L’Acéphale – L’Acéphale Review

“Twenty-nineteen has, so far, been an interesting year for metal. Not including the fact that the infamous Lords of Chaos has finally hit the big screen. And it seems to be the catalyst for some interesting current events. Events brought on by weirdos that wish they were 1) Norwegian and 2) friends with Count Grishnakh. Churches of all denominations have been going up in flames around the world and one can only wonder how far this will go. Hell, as of this writing, the Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris has gone up in smoke. And one can only wonder, with the nonstop success of the French scene, who is responsible.” Burning times.

Deiphago – I, the Devil Review

Deiphago – I, the Devil Review

“Pretense is a bitch. I’ve found myself being more and more cynical through the years about people who claim to be the best at what they do. From athletes and artists to people I interact with on a daily basis, I prefer action and art to speak for itself. Therefore, I found myself suspicious with Filipino blackened death metal three-piece Deiphago, who proclaim to be ‘arguably the most violent band on the planet, as well as one of the most envelope-pushing.'” Heavy is as heavy does.

Sunn O))) – Life Metal Review

Sunn O))) – Life Metal Review

Sunn O))) is not well received around these parts. When AMG’s distinguished editors and contributors were given the opportunity to review these droning doomsters, it was met with such reactions as GardensTale‘s verbal bitch-slap “I’d rather stick my hand in a blender” or Mark Z.‘s sick burn “Can I just review my washing machine running for two hours instead?” Love ’em or hate ’em, we can all agree on one universal idea about drone: it can be boring as fuck.” O)))) Boy.

Deus Mortem – Kosmocide Review

Deus Mortem – Kosmocide Review

“A ferocious frenzy. An icy calm. Both are phrases describing points in Deus Mortem’s new album Kosmocide. Due to the seemingly contradictory nature of these two descriptions, one might be skeptical that such dissonant moods could commingle on the same record without creating an inconsistent sound. On their new opus, Deus Mortem do in fact commingle them and still manage to produce a record fans of classic era black metal acts from the 80s and 90s will salivate over.” Ceremony of opposites.

Isgalder – The Red Wanderer Review

Isgalder – The Red Wanderer Review

“The quality of an album’s production is a pretty common theme for reviews and comment sections here at Angry Metal Guy. We’ve all heard them — great albums that have been brickwalled, suffocated, or buried behind a head-scratching production choice that probably made perfect sense to the producer at the time. So when I received The Red Wanderer, the debut album from Isgalder, who play pagan black metal, and saw that the band produced the album themselves, I was apprehensive.” Extreme noise terror.

Hedonihil – I Review

Hedonihil – I Review

“Expectations are precarious things. The older we get, the more we assume they will go unmet. This almost religiously applies to super groups. When I came across Finland’s Hedonihil, a death metal project comprised of members of Swallow the Sun, I expected great things. But when I delved into the press materials (always foolish) and saw them described as anti-poetry, I expected substantially less great things.” Angry pretense.

Smoulder – Times of Obscene Evil and Wild Daring Review

Smoulder – Times of Obscene Evil and Wild Daring Review

“I’ve made it no secret that I don’t love doom metal so much as respect it from a sizable distance, but certain acts have been known to prompt genuine affection. My criteria for good doom is admittedly opaque, with my two favorite albums of this decade residing in opposite ends of the genre’s sonic spectrum, but I think it boils down to a general feeling of genuineness. If you’re going to fuck around with pretentious atmospherics against a backdrop of flaccid, groove-less riffs, you’ll get no respect from me. It’s really all about the heart, with ingenuity being secondary to pure fun and overflowing emotion. And that’s where Toronto, Ontario’s Smoulder, and the excellently titled Times of Obscene Evil and Wild Daring, come in.” Smoke signals.

Sinnrs – Profound Review

Sinnrs – Profound Review

“I still remember the first time that I heard King by Fleshgod Apocalypse. The mixture of over-the-top symphonic arrangements with death metal hit me hard, and it remains one of my favorite albums of the last five years (or more). I had heard the style before, but King was the first album that showed me what can truly be accomplished when a band nails the perfect ratio of these ingredients. I eagerly await the follow-up to that great album with hype and trembling, but I thought I’d distract myself by picking up Profound, the debut from Danish duo Sinnrs, in the meantime.” Fleshgod for filthy sinnrs.