“In the words of Rob Halford during Judas Priest’s two-hour headline slot: “Britain’s premier heavy metal festival is back.” Yes, cranky Covid’s delta wave dangerously hovered over the pit like clouded sweat but after a few strong ciders and a crunching riff – experienced live for the first time in over 18 months – the external world became a distant memory.” Metal never dies.
“I don’t know about you guys, but I’m a genre stickler at heart. I find a lot of comfort knowing where to fit every release that comes across my doorstep, so when acts swoop in to challenge that, I’m simultaneously uneasy and intrigued. There are plenty of folks that fall into this category but perhaps the most intriguing has been the UK act Conjurer. I’ve seen these lads described as everything from Swallow the Sun-esque death/doom, Cult of Luna-worshiping post-metal/sludge, to the blackened doom of Thou. 2018’s Mire is a landmark in its own right, and as we anxiously await its followup, we find newcomers Moon Reaper, definitely fans of Conjurer.” Genre reaping.
“On Thursday the 9th of August, myself and 19,000 others descended upon the grounds of an old manor house in the heart of the British countryside for a weekend of heavy metal, drinking, and debauchery.” AMG was there. Were you?
“It apparently takes a lot to incite Madam X‘s fervor these days. Her list of the top 10 albums of 2016 was not a “best of” but a “least disliked” while the 2017 edition reduced this list to a paltry 5. And yet a little English band called Conjurer and their debut full-length called Mire grabbed her attention and converted it to an active recommendation within our internal channels. I’ll be the first to acknowledge that there are other writers with whom I share more musical preferences, but the promise of a chunky, riff-lead, progressive album was too enticing to ignore.” Listen to the Madam.
