“The Amenta is a bit of a strange beast. Formed in the late 90’s in Sydney as Crucible of Agony, they released 4 albums after transferring to their new moniker before finally going underground in 2013 after the release of Flesh is Heir. Now the Aussies have reunited under a new label, hoping to stoke the fire anew. But is Revelator a revelation?” Tell me, who’s that writing?
“What? Another album by Empress? But it’s only been like 6 weeks since Premonition dropped! Ah, but you see, sometimes names can have two bands. Rather than the frigid wastes of Vancouver, this Empress is from the slightly less frigid wastes of Gold Coast, Australia. Both dabble in various forms of post-metal, too. And if that doesn’t make for enough confusion, my cleverly modified search for “empress australia” revealed Empress Australia already exists as well, except this one is… a shoe brand. No wonder the band’s Bandcamp and Facebook addresses have to repeat their name twice. So the band is a little difficult to DuckDuckGo, but is it worth the effort?” Crowded doom.
“Icelandic post-metal titans Sólstafir need little introduction but we at AMG Towers are fans of formulaic, masturbatory prose, so I’ll provide one anyway. Sólstafir is Icelandic for ‘radiating sun beams,’ something I have always thought to be wildly inaccurate as a name for this entity, which at no point embodies sunshine. In their early days, Sólstafir played raw, aggressive black metal, interspersed with hints of Viking metal and occasional atmospheric passages (see the debut, Í blóði og anda). Since then, with each release, Sólstafir have evolved, peaking, many would argue, on their fifth full-length, 2014’s Ótta.” Twilight of the Ice Lords?
“B R I Q U E V I L L E. Yes, the promo blurb immediately reassures me, the “spaces between the letters are indeed part of their moniker.” And I roll my eyes and dispense with the spaces. Quelle is the third record from this Flanders, Belgium collective and the first to have a title, following 2014’s self-titled debut and 2017’s II. The title is a linguistic play on Quelle‘s differing meanings in German and French, ‘source’ and ‘which,’ respectively, with the “theme of a ‘source’ and the ‘which’ linking it reflexively to our previous album artwork,” quoth the raven Nazgûl-robed, golden-masked BRIQUEVILLE member.” Another BRIQUE in the wall.
“Here at the elucidation-station that is Angry Metal Guy, EPs usually slip beneath the review radar in favor of a meatier morsel. But it’s cutting season, dammit, and no tyrannical filthy ape tells me what to review. Virginia’s Affasia are preparing to release their debut EP, Adrift in Remorse, an offering full of doom-death and a beckoning melodic charm — and when the sad-boy signals, you best believe I answer the call.” Late winter feelz.
“Sweden’s Lustre has proven divisive across the two prior releases reviewed. The first was heralded as a great atmospheric record and bestowed with a 4.0, while the second was quite the opposite and summarily handed a 1.5. I presume you’ve already skipped to the bottom for the score so I’ll address this now: my review of Still Innocence falls far closer to the second. For some reason the metal tab on Bandcamp is rammed with atmospheric black metal of this ilk so I suppose there’s an audience somewhere.” The silent majority is silent.
“Like or hate her heavily indebted style of enchanting folk and atmospheric, Scandinavian blackened metal, talented Danish singer, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist Amalie Bruun has taken the metal world by storm since her inception operating under the Myrkur moniker. Moving from strength to strength in a relatively short period, her potential began to crystallize on 2015’s debut full-length, M. Despite her share of detractors and some ignorant bashing of her supposed black metal credentials, M revealed a musician in a rapid mode of artistic development, where prominent influences were largely trumped by Myrkur’s confident, charismatic vocals and improving song-writing skills.” Myrkuring in the shadows.
“I’ve reached a conclusion in recent times that the enjoyment gleaned from music at any particular time very much depends on my mood. I pick myself up by joining The Night Flight Orchestra; relax by basking in Mitch Murder‘s warm glow; wallow in self-loathing by screaming with Deadspace. While such a sentiment may seem obvious I also mean in a wider sense. My life was ebbing low at the turn of the year and I was finding new releases sincerely disappointing.” Mood is the medium, Coldfells is the message.
“A couple of years back I reviewed the sophomore album from Finland’s Oceanwake. I commended their compelling fusion of sheer power with delicate atmospherics and it made my year-end list. They’ve now returned with Earthen and the scope is huger than ever. Comprising just two tracks of over 20 minutes apiece, I feared drone and repetition had taken hold. The succeeding album to the one with which I discover a good band is always a dicey affair as I have expectations as to quality and style. And so it was with trepidation that I clicked play…” Doom with a view.
“I know that ectoplasm is an actual thing. Wikipedia tells me it’s ‘the more viscous, clear outer layer of the cytoplasm in amoeboid cells.’ But it also has its paranormal applications: that which is left behind by ghouls and ghosts and has been utilized by classic comedy (‘He slimed me’). Unfortunately for Poland’s Suffer Yourself, it’s this latter use to which I default.” Gunk in the trunk.
