“Danish death metallers Wayward Dawn entered my life right when I needed a swift and relentless jackhammering to the nuts. Their sophomore album Haven of Lies was my first exposure to the band, landing right when lockdowns were setting in around the world as Covid began its malevolent quest to disrupt the world as we knew it.” Death at dawn.
“I have been in a weird space with death metal in 2022. While quality releases have trickled in at a reasonable rate, not much has really blown me away and shaken me to the core. In fact, I’ve spent ample periods revisiting the past, leaning on old favorites, while the latest dominating platter from reliable legends Immolation has remained in solid rotation. Yet as the last chunk of 2022 dawns upon us, optimism is high due to the often-fruitful later-year riches. Belgium’s Bones intend on bludgeoning their way into focus on their debut full-length, Sombre Opulence.” Lovely bones?
“I became acquainted with Dead Void through their quiet yet mammoth 2018 demo The Looming Spectre. I was neck deep in the melodic style of death/doom, my only experience with more ominous mutterings consisting of Thergothon or Swallowing, so these Danes’ breed of absolutely devastating death/doom hit me like a ton of slimy bricks. As dead and dripping as the walls of R’lyeh, with a megaton weight that more closely recalled funeral doom, it cranked my excitement meter to a solid 11. When Volatile Forms appeared in the promo dump, I hungrily gobbled it up.” Void if forms removed.
“Let’s talk about blood, baby. Hemoglobin and me. Let’s talk about all the blood things and the bad things that may bleed. Death metal and that hideous ichor that courses through us all are as synonymous as editors and intimidation… Swedish supergroup extraordinaire Bloodbath have made a career out of celebrating the genre’s twisted tenets and once pulsed at the very center of the classic scene.” Your bath is ready.
“Revocation are cool again. To be fair, Revocation were almost always cool. From 2008’s Empire of the Obscene to 2014’s Deathless, the band were unstoppable, almost single-handedly revitalizing death thrash. With the speed and grace of a whipsnake, they gleamed through twisting, treacherous songs, dazzling with every move. Their music was not malicious; it was downright joyous, and bandleader Dave Davidson’s boisterous solo work hearkened back to the crazed fret flights of records like Rust in Peace while taking thrash in new directions.” Be not deaf in Heaven.
“I have a complicated history with doom metal. While there are groups like Electric Wizard or High on Fire that I tend to turn to for my fuzzy, morose fix, I have more trouble with the deathened doom variety. Sure, you can’t shake a stick at the likes of Asphyx (and why would you? They’re old men and so very brittle), but executed poorly, you mix doom’s plodding passages with DMs unrelenting barrage, resulting in a bloated, brickwalled concoction that leaves your eardrums ringing and your watch over-checked. Be that as it may, I’ve been proven wrong before (except for our split review of Temple of Void’s latest) and there’s always something new to discover.” Good grief?
“I was first introduced to Italian noisemongers Hierophant with their 2013 sophomore effort, the provocatively titled Holy Mother: Holy Monster. An absolutely punishing release, it included all the hallmarks of acts like Oathbreaker, Celeste, and Hexis in its blackened hardcore/sludge combo. However, with a cutthroat crusty edge, it forsook all subtlety for punishing vitriol, excruciatingly dense and brutal.” Death sieges us all. Hold fast!
“The odds of getting bitten by a shark are 1 in 3,748,067, significantly lower than the chances of being killed by fireworks (1 in 340,733) or normal, non-selfie related drowning (1 in 1,134). Indeed, if you want a good reason to stay out of the water, it’s lightning, which is 47 times more likely to kill you than a shark. What then are the chances of St. Catharines, Canada natives Eaten by Sharks catching lighting in a bottle on their self-released debut album, Eradication?” Sharkratio: Eaten by Stats.
“Ah, Aeternam. Ever since a rush order on their third album, Ruins of Empires, was foisted upon me early in my career as an Angry Metal Serf, the Canadians have become a reliable mainstay in the world of MENA-infused death metal. Ever armed with grit, heft and rock-solid songwriting, any release from this band has been cause for celebration. With Heir of the Rising Sun, we’ve reached album number 5 since the band’s inception in 2007.” Putting on heirs.
“Loudness is a weapon. Many great sludge bands know that. Amplified judiciously, altered maliciously, sludge has the potential to be gargantuan, overwhelming—the thick ooze of a proper harmonized rumble can leave your innards sufficiently massaged with low-end pleasure. Morbid Evils knows this well, with previous encounters showering us with growling guitars moving at a funeral pace against a drowned-out, stoner backdrop. While changes across their previous outings arrived at a tectonic pace, Supernaturals erupts this mighty Finnish trio into a form that is far more visceral.” Are you loud and morbid?
