Dödheimsgard

Mord’A’Stigmata – Hope Review

By Akerblogger on February 10, 2017 in 2017, Black Metal, Pagan Records, Polish Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 9 comments

“We’ve experienced the highs of weirdness with European stalwarts Dødheimsgard and Thy Catafalque but we’ve also experienced the very real lows with bands like Aborym twisting the weird nozzle just a bit too far. Mord’A’Stigmata, unwilling to release a plain-Jane of an album, have released Hope, a hopeless mixture of sullen atmospheres and ritualistic ominousness with the occasional bluesy lead. It sounds fantastically enticing on paper, but does the conceptual fantasy match up the aural reality?” Black metal hates paper!

Ashenspire – Speak Not of the Laudanum Quandary Review

By Madam X on January 30, 2017 in 2017, Avante Garde, Black Metal, Code666 Records, Doom Metal, Reviews, Scottish Metal, Black Metal, Doom Metal, 31 comments

“Ashenspire hail from Glasgow (Scotland) and like their British / Norwegian counterparts (A Forest of Stars / Vulture Industries), Ashenspire deliver a brand of avant-garde black metal that has you sit up and take notice. Clad in a single-breasted frock coat, Speak Not of the Laudanum Quandary tells of the harrowing odyssey of British imperialist tragedy using 7 lengthy tracks.” Big topic, big music.

Violet Cold – Magic Night Review

By Treble Yell on December 4, 2016 in 2016, Azerbaijan Metal, Black Metal, Post-metal, Reviews, Tridroid Records, Post-Metal, 40 comments

“If you had said to me that an experimental, one-man shoegaze black metal album would end up as one of the best releases of the year, I would’ve replied with ‘Who are you and what are you doing in my home?’ Incredulity would twist the contours of my face as I struggled to reconcile that such a combination could come together so beautifully, stripping away my defenses and pouring itself into every exposed cavity.” Dental metal?

Pogavranjen – Jedva čekam da nikad ne umrem Review

By Roquentin on March 6, 2016 in 2016, Arachnophobia Records, Avante Garde, Black Metal, Croatian Metal, Reviews, Black Metal, 19 comments

“I don’t often get a chance to write about Croatian metal bands or, to be exact, I don’t often feel like writing about Croatian metal bands. There’s barely anything to call a “metal scene” in my homeland, with most acts birthed alone and lonely into a generic and photocopied existence, only to disappear in a flash of insignificance. Suffice to say that during the last 25 odd years since the country’s declaration of independence, there were only a few bands worth mentioning in the same breath with their international stylistic brethren (Ashes You Leave, Umor, Death of Folk, Infernal Tenebra). Imagine my elation, then, when something as good as Pogavranjen’s third LP, Jedva čekam da nikad ne umrem,[1. Looking Forward to Never Dying] came along. Curiously composed and competently played avant-garde black metal that is not merely the fruit of derivative rehashing? Yes, please!” We’ll take a double of that, with fries.

Område – Edari Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier on April 14, 2015 in 2015, Avante Garde, French Metal, My Kingdom Music, Reviews, Avante Garde, 25 comments

“There’s just something about Seldon Hunt’s artwork that draws me deep into the full concept and mood of an album. Hunt is somehow able to match auditory art with an observable one. And Område’s Edari is no different. Hunt’s work conveys a sense of beauty, confusion, and uneasiness that perfectly encapsulates a band that compares themselves to influential acts such as Manes and Ulver.” What’s with all the avant-garde metal this year? Must be due to global climate change.

The Deathtrip – Deep Drone Master Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier on November 12, 2014 in 2014, Black Metal, English Metal, Norwegian Metal, Reviews, Svart Records, Black Metal, 12 comments

“Ever since I picked up my first copy of Darkthrone’s Transylvanian Hunger, I’ve been in love with old-school black metal (even though it wasn’t “old school” back then). I’m not sure if it’s the satanic themes, the atmospheric tapestry of nonstop trebly guitars, the vicious/desperate vox, or my craving for the frozen, isolated terrain that personifies the genre so well (“cold” isn’t a word used in the southwestern United States).” It’s old, but is it still bold?