“Pupil Slicer really shook things up in 2021. While undeniably a slab of Converge-meets-Dillinger core with a nice dose of Botch, the trio’s debut Mirrors was a tour-de-force of grindy intensity, a neat balance between heart and callousness, and a marvel of songwriting. Songs like “Husk,” “Collective Unconscious,” and “Wounds Upon My Skin” still get regular plays in the Hollow household, with mad mastermind Kate Davies’ frantic vocals, insane axework, and boundary-pushing ideas taking center stage.” Eye on the prize.
Radiohead
Dawnwalker – House of Sand Review
“Dawnwalker have been around since 2011, but my first exposure to them didn’t happen until a mere couple of years ago, courtesy of this very blog. I was able to review Ages, the band’s fourth full-length release and compliment it on its well-done blend of progressive, death, and folk-like metal into one monolithic beast of an album. If words like those excite you, though, you should know that Dawnwalker do not stay in the same place for long—House of Sand is nothing like that, but don’t let that get you down. For their fifth full-length, the English band explore some new sounds, revisit old ones, and build out their album in a frankly beautiful way.” Downtuned Abbey.
Dawn Fades – Ode Review
Hailing from Los Angeles, California, Dawn Fades is a band that, despite having a sound I find to be on the experimental fringes of metal, maintains a modest demeanor which comes through in their music. Dawn Fades’ specialty is not an ostentatious display of guitar riffs but rather the ethereal and sublime aura surrounding their songs.” Morning gaze.
Comet Control – Inside the Sun Review
“Time flies. One day you wake up, grab the next album in the review queue, and think to yourself, “These guys seem familiar.” Then you do some digging and realize you really loved their last album – five years ago. Center of the Maze, Canadian psych-rock outfit Comet Control’s second album, was a glistening example of psychedelia, stoner, and alt rock all mashed together. Featuring members of Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Biblical (another band worth checking out), and the now-defunct Quest for Fire, Comet Control proved back in 2016 that they have the musical and songwriting chops to craft a memorable album. Will their third release, Inside the Sun, strike the same chord?” Stoned space oddities.
Yer Metal Is Olde: Katatonia – Last Fair Deal Gone Down
“The year of our Angry Metal Overlord 2001 was a “very good year,” to quote the everyone who has ever spoken about wine in a movie. Indeed, the year that produced Opeth’s epic and scene-changing Blackwater Park and Propagandhi’s Today’s Empires, Tomorrow’s Ashes, also gave us Mutter by Rammstein, Awakening the World by Lost Horizon and Laundry Service by Shakira. But is Last Fair Deal Gone Down the best album released in 2001?”
SinHeresY – Out of Connection Review
“We all have our weird idiosyncratic dislikes. For me, one of those is people who cut spaghetti with a knife. Despicable barbarism. Another is the random and unnecessary capitalization of letters within a word. So you can imagine my reaction when the new album from SinHeresY landed in my lap.” Don’t hang up.
Thief – Map of Lost Keys Review
“Thief is the pet project of Dylan Neal, a dulcimer player (dulcimist?) for the unconventional experimental black metal band Botanist. Thief’s music takes on a different theme entirely, however, from Botanist’s quirky style of environmentally themed “green-metal.” Map of Lost Keys, Thief’s sophomore album, swaps the hammered dulcimer for a myriad of electronics to produce late night music designed for haunted ballrooms and electric churches. While no traditional black metal demon shrieks or vicious tremolo picking can be heard on Map of Lost Keys, Thief remain obstinate in their attempt to appeal to fans of heavier genres.” Mischief managing.
Biblical – The City That Always Sleeps Review
“I spent the summer searching and searching for the next great retro album. I never found it. In fact, all year I’ve only found a half-dozen albums I’ve really liked (as in a 3.5 or higher), and none of those since June. That’s piss-poor and depressing. It’s like owning a black and white television. Well, I’m hoping to upgrade to a color TV eventually this year, so what better time to start looking than right now?” Baby bible steps.
Boris – Dear Review
“Calling a particularly good album “the band’s best in years” doesn’t mean much when the band in question follows the standard release schedule of one LP every two or three years. When applied to Japan’s genre-hopping experimental rockers Boris, however, that phrase really means something.” Dear in the headlights.
The DRX – Throughout Within Review
“If my hypothesis is correct, then this should be AMG’s last full review of the year, and the honor has gone to a lowly newbie thanks to some seasonal schadenfreude courtesy of Steel Druhm. See, with our infamously dreadful December promo pool to pull from, I let the fates decide my final assignment of 2016. So while everyone else cozied up by the fire with their choice Things You Might Have Missed, he assigned me to tackle the third record of prog project The DRX, Throughout Within.” Prog the halls, then leave same.