Tool

Soen – Imperial CD Review

By Huck N Roll on February 1, 2021 in Reviews, Progressive Metal, 74 comments

“AMG Himself and I come at Soen from slightly different directions. Our overlord fell in love with this band in spite of the overt Tool worship present on their initial releases, and felt that Ekelöf was their secret weapon, a vocalist of sublime talent. For AMG Himself, the band started off near the top of their game and have only gotten better over their first four albums. This writer, however, got on board with Soen because of their Tool worship (and the fantastic rhino artwork on Tellurian), and I felt what was holding the band back on their first three release was, in fact, the vocals.” Soen the seeds ov love.

Soen – Imperial Vinyl Review

By Angry Metal Guy on January 29, 2021 in Reviews, Progressive Metal, Progressive Rock, 155 comments

Soen‘s Imperial is a record that pursues some of the changes foreshadowed on Lotus. And that little ecosystem of choices can work well with these adjustments, or it can start to cascade.

Stellar Death – Fragments of Light Review

By Carcharodon on January 11, 2021 in Reviews, Ambient Metal, Instrumental Metal, Post-Metal, 23 comments

“Well. Here we are, 2021 at last and I decided to ease myself into this new year of ~~misery~~ musical exploration with a pick that seemed to be safely in my wheelhouse, based on the genre tag at least: a nice slab of safe, comforting post-metal. Fragments of Light is the debut LP from Washington, D.C.-based Stellar Death. The two-piece comprises Scott Loose (also of While Heaven Wept) and Matt Kozar (Witnesses).” Soft landing.

Shattered Hope – Vespers Review

By Doom_et_Al on November 5, 2020 in Reviews, Death Metal, Doom Metal, 19 comments

“Like raw black metal, funeral doom operates at the extremely thin edge of an extremely niche wedge. Long, patient, languid tracks put many to sleep with their glacial pace. But glaciers carry enormous momentum as a result of their sheer mass. For those who appreciate it, funeral doom provides an unparalleled — and often profound — journey through grief and sorrow. Greece’s Shattered Hope offer their third attempt at this tricky genre with Vespers.” Sad scooters.

Calyces – Impulse to Soar Review

By Huck N Roll on October 14, 2020 in Reviews, Progressive Metal, 20 comments

“Calyces’ mastermind is singer/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/producer Manthos Stergiou, late of Tardive Dyskinesia. This time around, Stergiou and his bandmates are going for a sound that is heavily influenced by Mastodon, Baroness, and Tool. This has been done to death, so the key to making it work is writing great songs and establishing your own original take on those bands’ sounds.” Impulse to ape.

The Ocean – Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier on September 16, 2020 in Reviews, Post-Hardcore, Progressive Metal, 50 comments

“Above the couch, in my teeny one-bedroom apartment, hangs a painting of the ocean. I bought it when I moved in and at one of the lowest points of my life. There’re hints of a sun beaming behind those dark clouds, but it won’t come out. The waves are an angry black, with blueish white tips; crashing against the shore like frustrated fists to a tabletop. What shore it is, I have no idea. It’s an imagined piece. There’s no way in Hell a human being would be safe from that viewpoint. She/he would be smashed against those black, volcanic rocks. The result could be a splash of red to round out the blacks, greys, dark blues, and shocking whites. Sometimes I get lost in its chaoticness as it hangs quietly in my living room. To me, it’s a cheap painting that holds emotions and memories—though they’re bad ones. To others, it’s a color palette that matches my space. Regardless, I’ve always thought that if I could put music to it, it’d be The Ocean.” Save the whales!

Psychonaut – Unfold the God Man Review

By TheKenWord on March 4, 2020 in 2020, Belgian Metal, Pelagic Records, Post-metal, Psychedelic Rock, Reviews, Post-Metal, 35 comments

“I love the color purple. Such a rich palette of hues lie within this particular segment of the spectrum, all of which pair well with an extensive array of complements. Purple can convey royalty, seduction, obliteration, depression, and damn near everything else provided a competent application thereof. Of course, that holds true for most colors, but just seeing purple is more exciting to me than seeing any other color. This brings us to Belgian post-metal trio Psychonaut, whose debut album Unfold the God Man features a gorgeous cover warmly ensconced in my current color of choice.” Do not tear, fold or mutilate.

Bricks & Diamonds: The Best and Worst Sounding Albums of 2019

By L. Saunders on January 28, 2020 in Angry Metal-Fi, Blog Posts, Bricks & Diamonds, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Hard Rock, Power Metal, Progressive Metal, Thrash Metal, 52 comments

“In the tradition of the past Angry Metal-Fi end of year articles, some of the AMG team came together with a list of what we consider the best and worst sounding albums of 2019. Encouragingly, there were far more best-sounding albums on the shortlist than worst-sounding. Is this perhaps indicative of a subtle shift from extreme brickwalling in the broader metal market? We can only hope…” Bricks are for throwing.

Abigail Williams – Walk Beyond the Dark [Things You Might Have Missed 2019]

By Dr. A.N. Grier on January 17, 2020 in 2019, American Metal, Black Metal, Blood Music, Reviews, Things You Might Have Missed 2019, Black Metal, 66 comments

“Manned by the dark mind of Ken Sorceron, Abigail Williams has come a long way in the last decade. Surviving lineup changes, relocations, and changes in musical directions—as well as fandom—Sorceron pushes on, refusing to settle on a path created for him by others’ expectations. Up ahead is another bend in this path. So, take my hand and let’s Walk Beyond the Dark together.” Abby normal