“Wearing down, chafing, scraping, being eaten away and flaying; none of these situations sound particularly pleasant truth be told. But when you apply these same conditions across eight blasphemous anthems of pure black rage, you could very well say that suddenly the tables are turned. What wore you down before now pulls you like a magnet and taunts you to dig deeper into a bands discography.” Do you like the feel of chafing? Do you enjoy abrasive things? if so, Nidsang might be just your rub.
“Pugnacious. That’s what Overkill are and what they’ve always been. From the early days bumming around places like L’Amour in Brooklyn, boozing with the fans and hoping to finagle a slot on stage, on through a slew of influential, punky, neo-thrash albums that became minor classics, this crew of New Jersey ne’er-do-wells always had a big chip on their collective shoulder. Maybe that’s why they’re still hanging around the thrash scene like neighborhood thugs on the street corner, looking for more trouble after a lifetime full of it. They’ve stuck around long enough to release White Devil Armory, their seventeenth goddamn album, and they’re showing no signs of giving up their turf without a bloody fight.” Ready for a back alley mugging? Come to Overkill.
Earlier this year I wrote a “YER METAL IS OLDE!” article about the ongoing influence of Ulver’s epic Bergtatt, a classic by any measure. But in some ways, it only introduced a ‘trope’ of sorts that has become one of my favorite parts of the underground metal scene: the harmonized acoustic folk record. And while Ulver only did it once, on Kveldssanger, October Falls—whom you certainly have heard of if you’re a long-time reader of Angry Metal Guy [or other blogs I guest/write for]—produced a number of excellent acoustic records in this vein. These included a full length by the name of Marras, two EPs entitled Sarastus and Tuoni, and a number of singles. These are all available as lossless files via October Falls’ BandCamp website and worth purchasing, if you don’t mind spending money on a digital, lossless format.
“Kyuss were Gods (capital G intentional). You can argue with me, and you would be dead wrong and quickly shunned for all eternity. In the band’s short timespan, they cemented themselves as a force to be reckoned with in the desert rock/stoner metal arena. One thing that can be argued is the band were greater than the sum of its splintered parts.” The voice of Kyuss is back from the desert.
“Of all the bands skulking around the doom/death catacombs, none manage to trigger more raw emotion in me than Novembers Doom. They aren’t necessarily the best band in the genre, but when they lock everything in, the melancholy pours like rain off a tin roof in Seattle. They’re the authors of one of the most depressing songs of all time (“What Could have Been”) and there’s something unique about their fusion of Paradise Lost and Type O Negative with vaguely Opeth-esque style death metal that really drills deep down into the heart of darkness within.” If you’re staring into the heart of darkness, it must be November!
“Most of the time, technical death and progressive death pretty much go hand in hand. Anyone with the chops to play at breakneck speeds and shred with the best of them will want to show off not just their technical skill, but their ability to bring something new to the table, and this mentality has only gained adherents as the style has flourished. But occasionally there arises a group of musicians who want nothing more than to play in the style of Cannibal Corpse but do it at twice the speed. That’s where Omnihility fits into the picture.” Kronos continues his campaign to review every tech-death act on the Unique Leader roster. FIGHT!
“What I’m about to say comes after a long and devoted love affair withJudas Priest: they should have broken up after Painkiller. Don’t agree? Well, let’s review. The Ripper era was reheated rhino shit and as our reward for steadfast loyalty we got the lukewarm Angel of Retribution only to be punished with the double length dumpster fire that was Nostradamus. Still not convinced? Maybe Redeemer of Souls will be the straw that breaks the law.” Hear that? It’s the sad wings of destiny flapping overhead.
“The hype train chugs along, never stopping, continuously boarding and ejecting passengers. Such is the way of the metal press; we collectively run to cling on to the sides of the cars as they pass by, only to jump from their doors days later, hit the ground rolling, and dust ourselves off as we search for a new ride. Recently, as you’ve probably noticed, coal has been heaped into the firebox as metal zines blow the horn for the juggernaut’s latest destination, Fallujah’s The Flesh Prevails.” The Hype Train is a fickle mistress.
“”Beautiful” is a word that I don’t normally use to describe an album here at AMG, and especially in Casa de los Grymm. “Fun” is even less of a descriptor. What was it again that Euronymous wanted none of via his record label again? But I took a shot at an unknown (to me, at least) group of Japanese noise brigands (with a former Boredom, Toyohito Yoshikawa, in its ever-growing ranks) known as Vampillia. With quite a few releases under their belt (seventeen, according to their website), their newest, the very wordy Some Nightmares Take You Aurora Rainbow Darkness, is their first full-length, and it’s a good snapshot into their crazy world.” All your bases are belong to us! And don’t call me Aurora Rainbow!
“Back in 1984 when my friends and I were spinning Grave Digger’s debut Heavy Metal Breakdown, if you had told me these guys would still be rocking in 2014 I’d have spit Meister Bräu in your face. Even their “classic era” albums were cheesy and goofy, and though I liked them, they never impressed me as a seminal or enduring metal act capable of lasting 30 years. Fast forward to 2014 and I’m a jaded, old metal critic working on my third Digger review since joining AMG.” The cockroaches of Germanic metal are back to outlive you and your children’s children.
