I don’t know of many downfalls that could be described as majestic, nor had I previously crossed paths with these Mexican mercenaries, the brainchild of Jacobo Córdova from Zombiefication and various other underground bands. Perusing their background I discovered Majestic Downfall have been kicking round the traps for the best part of a decade, with …When Dead marking their fourth Long Player. Doom and death go together like ebony and ivory.
“It wasn’t very long into Year of the Goat’s sophomore effort, The Unspeakable that I was asking myself, “self, is this the second coming of Ghost?” The answer is no, since that happens next month and it’ll be their third coming (or two and a half since I didn’t care much for Infestissumam), but this here platter certainly has a lot of similarities to the goods provided by those mysterious masked ghouls.” Boo!
“Last year, I got to review Revelations in Alchemy, the debut album from Portland, Oregon’s Shroud of the Heretic. Even though it had a few hiccups (such as speeding up things unnecessarily), I was quite taken by how grotesque, viscous, and utterly grimy the album felt, as if the evil wasn’t delivered via possession or fear, but rather through slower, phlegmatic methods.” Phlegm is so metal.
“Since picking up Endsville, a split EP of Godhunter and Destroyer of Light material, it has come to my attention that Tucson-based Godhunter is getting quite the buzz these days.” Doom from the Great Southwest is hot these days.
“There’s an amusing irony at the start of Yellowtooth’s sophomore platter of extra heavy stoner rock. It begins with a sound clip from Open Range – arguably the most glacially paced western gunfight movie ever made. It’s so slow, the protagonists actually engage in a protracted round of shopping for candy and chinaware on their way to the climactic shoot out. By comparison, Yellowtooth is quick to pulls out the Heavy Stick and bash away until you resemble a victim of its brother, the Ugly Stick.” Open up and say RAAAARRRR!
“Whenever I say the words “endurance test,” what does that do to you, dear reader? Do you think of 26.2 mile marathons across metropolises like Boston, or even out in the barren sticks of Arizona? Do they bring back memories of reading books like War & Peace in the time span of a few days, in hopes that the book report will somehow miraculously score higher than the “C” you earned due to poor planning?” I think of sitting through any late period Metallica album.
“The greatest strength of Glasgow’s doom-meets-drone-meets-noise duo Ommadon is also their greatest weakness. Namely, their artistic devotion to relentlessly forceful, suffocating music, which can be quite a tough cookie to chew on for the uninitiated.” Stick this where the Sun O)))) don’t shine.
“2015 may not end up a magical year for metal, but it has certainly dropped some earth-shaking doom on the unsuspecting masses. In the wake of mammoth shit kickers from Crypt Sermon and Goatsnake, we must now reckon with the ponderous girth of unheralded Colorado doomers, Khemmis and their righteous debut, Absolution.” your doom is at hand once again.
“If you’re like me (and you should be, because come on) instrumental metal has never gripped you deeply. While Pelican or Scale the Summit are fine now and then, typically the music just induces a pleasantly reflective mood, with occasional thoughts of “hey, that’s pretty” or “well, that’s a neat riff.”” Metallic mood music has a place, doesn’t it?
“As far as we know, futurist music is no more. One of the last attempts to resuscitate the arthritic soul of the clanging artistic mechanism in the rock and metal community was probably Mike Patton’s Pranzo Oltranzista, but the year was 1997 and I was almost two decades younger. In the meantime, neither the likes of John Zorn or Elliott Sharp have ever contributed to the reiteration of that crime against common sense that was immortalised on Marinetti’s Manifest of Futurism in 1909. Too abstract and complex, their art; too prudent and astute their approach, contemporary artists have been neglecting pure noise for over 50 years.” Confused? That must mean Alex is back to confound and bewilder.
