“As Angry Metal Guy’s resident post-metal aficionado, I’ve been bombarded with more of the cresting-and-climaxing heavy stuff than a crab-walking man-cat can possibly handle. Epic-length songs featuring more build-ups than a pro-wrestling pay-per-view? Check. Thundering drums? Check. Cascading riffs and bass work that doesn’t teem with melody so much as it just levels you into (and sometimes through) the ground? Check and mate.” Post-Crotal glow.
“If the conversations I’ve seen on the interwebs are any indication, 2018 hasn’t been the greatest year for metal. In that regard, Allfather’s new album should come with an apology. Sorry for breaking your fucking necks, the sticker would read. But we had to remind you what good metal is all about.” Father knows beast.
“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’s always cool to see another website put down the pen the keyboard and help a band out. In this case, the good folks over at The Sludgelord have done just that by creating their own self-titled record label! For their debut, they’ve released Dismal Planet, the debut full-length by South Carolina’s sludge duo Coffin Torture.” Coffin up a lung.
“Everybody from Mayhem to High on Fire have been influenced by Celtic Frost, but few have been as blatant about it as Totengott. Let’s tally it up: their band name is a track title from Monotheist. Their cover art looks like a mountain goat version of the last Triptykon album. Even the name of the record, Doppelgänger, implies they’re just a shameless copy of someone else.” More(bid) tales.
“It’s occurred to me that when I go stoner, more times than not, I tend to lean against bands just west of me. Bands like Kyuss, Sleep, High on Fire—all residing in sunny California. Funny enough, my favorite stoner outfit is all the way out in England. Hell, if you were to look at my stoner collection, you’d think Orange Goblin was an outlier and that stoner metal was an American thing. And my review of Temptation’s Wings newest record wouldn’t challenge that assumption. And now, the stoner bug has bit old Grier once again. I desire something to make my eyes puffy, my ears happy, and chill me the fuck out.” Lead or gold?
“Every year, something special takes place in my hometown of Tilburg, The Netherlands: the festival of Roadburn. Roadburn isn’t like your average festival. There’s no marquees, no fields of green devolving into mud, and no crowds the size of small towns worshiping the biggest bands. Instead, thousands of people dressed in black gather from every corner of the continent, and some from other continents, to see over 100 doom, stoner and other kinds of acts whose success lies almost entirely in the underground.” Welcome to the dope show.
“Anyone who’s made this blog a regular haunt knows there are several “don’ts” many of us consider when we review albums: don’t bloat your album length, don’t brickwall the damn thing in production, and so on. Far be it from me as a probational scribe to suggest a new entry for our Tome ov Rules, but after listening to sophomore effort, Eidolon, from Canadian doomers’ Zaum, I’ve settled on a new guideline for my personal rulebook: when writing a full-length album, don’t put all of your stock in only two massive songs.” A good rule is a good rule, regardless of its source.
“Everyone and their second cousin (twice removed) knows by now that there’s a glut of one-man black metal bands. You have a guitar, a barely functional computer, a mic, and some time to kill? That’s a perfect recipe to stave off boredom for at least a few months (or days, if you’re Vardan). One-man doom metal, though? That requires some serious time, dedication, and at least a decent knowledge of every instrument possible.” Bring forth the sad loner!
“When you think of Massachusetts, many images pop into your head immediately. Legendary sports dynasties, people with goofy accents, cities with tough-to-pronounce names, the Big Dig, the entire Kennedy clan… oh, and metalcore. Lots and lots of metalcore… and Converge. You don’t look at the Bay State and think to yourself, “Gee, I’m sure there’s quality doom metal afoot here.” Hell, I sure didn’t!” Let’s listen to doom metal as we potty!
