“To Which I Bore Witness implies an event, a singular cataclysm. Whether it is one as violent as an earthquake, or as quiet as the beating of a butterfly’s wing, it is nonetheless devastating. We bear witness to the aftermath of this event, the unfolding and the trauma – the hushed whispers of the failing light. They Grieve offers us post-apocalypse in all its majesty and melancholy.” Tunes for the Great Doom.
“I hail from the Pacific Northwest and have never set foot in the Big Apple, so I know nothing about Long Island. So when the promo reads “Deathcore from Long Island!!” I don’t know what the hell that means. Is that good or bad? Is Long Island the prodigal son of New York? Is Long Island something you’d rather fugeddabaat? I don’t know, but Dr. Acula calls it home. If you had told me that ten years ago, I would have cringed and made a mental note to never visit Long Island. But now? I’m not so sure.” No man is an island.
“The Bearer reflects the turmoil in its hometown of Austin, Texas, lyrics protesting the affluent takeover of their city. The trio losing its practice spaces to Tesla showrooms and offices fuels its humanistic message, a reminder to value the people before they are trampled in the onslaught of capitalistic progress. Dabbling in mathcore, beatdown, and technical elements, Chained to a Tree is aflame with hardcore punk counterculture pulsing through its veins.” Bear markets.
“This Is Oblivion is a duo consisting of New York-based vocalist/violinist Lulu Black and her partner The Number Twelve Looks Like You / So Hideous drummer Michael Kadnar, taking influence from acts like Chelsea Wolfe, Swans, and Body Void in a Gothic blend of industrial noise and neofolk, accomplished through minimalist instrumentation. Relying on repetitive melody, doom percussion, and Black’s accomplished and varied vocal performance, This Is Oblivion is greater than the sum of its parts in its emphasis on evocation, ritualism, and summoning.” Enjoy of deep Oblivion.
![Black Sheep Wall – Songs for the Enamel Queen [Things You Might Have Missed 2021]](https://www.angrymetalguy.com/wp-content/uploads/2021/12/Black_Sheep_Wall-Songs_for_the_Enamel_Queen-768x768.jpeg)
“I remember when Black Sheep Wall “qualified” for an Encyclopedia Metallum profile with sophomore effort No Matter Where It Ends. Kind of pedantic and nitpicky, but then again, their blend of sludge metal, post-metal, doom, and post-hardcore is bound to be divisive. The California quintet offers their fourth full-length Songs for the Enamel Queen, an expertly written and superbly executed mass of concrete-thick sludge metal injected with tumorous melodies and shifty rhythms.” Of Sheep and sludge.
“You can imagine why New York City’s So Hideous changed its name. Its former moniker, So Hideous, My Love, reflects the sort of melodrama pervades its first offering To Clasp a Fallen Wish with Broken Fingers. It ended up being post-rock/screamo Envy worship – if Envy were more emo. Thereafter, the masterminds behind the project, the Cruz brothers, dropped the second half of the name and amped up the ugly.” Ugly, pretty, hideous.
“Together, Schutte and Stickney perform a agonizingly dense mixture of irregular instrumental metal. Nothing is stable. The record quite literally darts in and out of being. It’s a completely engrossing record that affronts a listener from all musical angles. Is it too overwhelming?” Prepare for pounding.
