“In Sindarin, Tolkien’s fictional language of the Elves, the volcano has two nicknames. One of them is Amon Amarth, “mountain of fate.” That band, of course, didn’t write about dragons or dwarves or rings, but vikings and Norse mythology. The subject of today’s investigation bears the other nickname for Mount Doom: Orodruin, “fiery mountain.” And the subject of their Candlemassian doom metal? Death and the human condition.” Doom as a destination.
“When you see an album cover like this (painted by the drummer, no less), and a slogan that goes “In a doomed world, they must remain Thrice as Strong,” well, who wouldn’t grab this from the promo sump? Everyone but me, it seems. I’d never heard of Ogre before, despite these Portland, Maine doomsters having been around for twenty years now. It’s a great name for a band, though, and I love their use of the word “Thrice.”” Thrice pudding.
“Ancient armies will clash. Muscle, sweat, bone and blood will meet gleaming steel. Once tranquil fields will be littered with tattered banners and fallen heroes. This is Ravensire’s world and we just fight in it. Hailing from Portugal, they’re an epic heavy metal band through and through, taking inspiration from all the best swords (Doomsword, Ironsword), the Viking ethos of Bathory’s Hammerheart era, and of course, the loin beclothed he-men of Manowar.” Stone beats Steel.
“In which we prepare you for The Lord Weird Slough Feg’s new album while the last ashes of our metal cred flutter away on the breeze.” Read as: Wimps and posers in the Hall.
“Trying to cobble multiple metal genres together into a unified and effective sound is no easy feat. Especially when one sets their sights on epic traditional metal interwoven with black metal and melodeath influences. Too much of any one ingredient and it all starts to go off the rails. Thus finding that elusive sweet spot is an alchemic challenge few bands are the equal to. Lunar Shadow almost pulled it off on their 2017 debut Far From Light, but a few issues conspired to undermine some of their otherwise good works. Still, it was an interesting album with some compelling moments and it oozed with potential and what ifs. Now they’re back with a new frontman and a more evolved, mature approach to genre crocheting on The Smokeless Fires.” Smoke on Mt. Doom.
“When a band drops a successful debut, the weight off their shoulders must be akin to cracking the top level of a pro sport. A million and one obstacles overcome, plus proving to the world that your shit doesn’t totally stink? Must feel nice. Not that I have firsthand experience—producing these bad boys is more a nice can sesh than a cold, rainy night in Stoke. But like writing, music needs to have consistency. Reviewing their 2016 debut, Jean-Luc Ricard suggested that Septagon might have a modern classic in them, but Deadhead Syndicate wasn’t it. Compared to Apocalyptic Rhymes, Deadhead Syndicate is Rust in Peace.” Thrash pile.
“While Death Alley sticks with the upbeat rock ‘n’ roll of Motörhead, Captain Beyond, and Blue Öyster Cult, Finland’s Mausoleum Gate goes for dark, jamming, progressive song structures, with a fuck-ton of organs. Like, Deep Purple levels of organ. And this is where, I suspect, readers will be split. If you aren’t the type to buy an original print of Machine Head (even if it’s fifty cents), Into a Dark Divinity ain’t for you. But, old-timers looking for an interesting combination of BÖC and Purple, with hints of Angel Witch, should read on.” Enjoy of Deep Purple.
“Splits are great ways to expand your musical repertoire when familiar with one of the bands collaborating. A level of mutual respect is presumed between the two: surely a favored artist will have good tastes themselves? And surely the twinned groups will offer something similar but sufficiently distanced for a neatly conjoined listening experience? Such conclusions seem logical.” Slashed by Occam’s razor.
“In the pantheon of epic and trve metal acts, the Argus wing isn’t far from the front foyer where legends like Cirith Ungol and Manilla Road reside. As one of the best of the current acts keeping the old ways alive, Argus has graced us with three top-notch slabs of backward looking metal that always managed to avoid sounding stale. The secret ingredient keeping their sound fresh was always the rich undercurrent of heavy doom they injected into the batter. This anchored their tales of myth and Manoantics to the Earth and kept things reliably weighty and mega-ballsy.” Machos supreme.
“‘Super groups’ aren’t all of Pulsar Class wattage. In truth they fall all over the spectrum from truly famous assemblages to largely unknown folks from somewhat established bands. Walpyrgus hovers closer to the latter pole, being composed of members of Twisted Tower Dire, While Heaven Wept and Daylight Dies. This may not be the most recognizable collection of musician, but what they do, they do surprisingly well, namely rocking early 80s NWoBHM in all its ear-wormy, guitar-driven glory.” I am the Walpyrgus.
