Wake

Keres – Homo Homini Lupus Review

By Thus Spoke on February 23, 2024 in Reviews, Black Metal, Death Metal, 43 comments

“Homo Homini Lupus (est) — “Man is wolf to man.” The greatest danger to every one of us is from each other. People are selfish and cruel. This proverb, dating back thousands of years, was chosen by Keres to epitomise their view, that, in the words of vocalist Ares, “humanity is the biggest plague on earth.” Misanthropy is nothing new in the world of metal, and as it happens, neither are the members of Keres, despite this being their debut LP. The band formed after the break-up of black metal group The Crying of Angels, honing a death-influenced, brutal black metal sound” Man unkind.

Unfurl – Ascension Review

By Cherd on June 9, 2023 in Reviews, Post-Hardcore, 25 comments

“Unfurl adhere to the school of posts—post-grind, post-death, post-hardcore—that also gives us such bands as Full of Hell and Wake, and Ascension is their third full-length LP. Grindcore is the base of their sound, but these knotted compositions can suddenly swerve into sludgy doom trudges or ethereal clean flourishes on a dime. A handful of genres can be heard at any given time, but Ascension is really a tale of two albums.” Fly the flag of grind.

Huck N’ Roll’s and Cherd’s Top Ten(ish) of 2022

By Dr. A.N. Grier on December 28, 2022 in Blog Posts, Lists, 85 comments

Huck N’ Roll and Cherd have important opinions on what was the cream of the crop in 2022. Now you’re going to hear about it.

Wake – Thought Form Descent Review

By Cherd on July 22, 2022 in Reviews, Death Metal, 57 comments

“I’ll let you in on a little secret. Sometimes, before I write a review, I read the ones already out there for the album in question. This is after I’ve heard the album a few times, and I do it for a few reasons, curiosity being one. Now, there are writers who solemnly proclaim, pearls fully clutched, that they would never taint their process with such unprofessionalism. I get that. But I also get that you inconstant, two-timing jilts will also read those other reviews, and I don’t like being redundant with mine. So, having read a couple reviews for Wake’s fifth full-length Thought Form Descent, I’ve decided NOT to write an intro paragraph along the lines of “Boy howdy, these Wake bois sure do keep evolving, man alive.”” Thought form pieces.

Holdeneye and Cherd of Doom’s Top Ten(ish) of 2020

By Cherd on December 28, 2020 in Blog Posts, Lists, 210 comments

Holdeneye and Cherd of Doom made these long-winded lists and now they’re your problem. No trade backsies!

Traveler – Termination Shock Review

By Huck N Roll on April 24, 2020 in Reviews, Heavy Metal, NWOBHM, Speed Metal, 44 comments

“We here in Calgary have the reputation of being a bunch of gas-guzzling, oil-loving, separatist-bent, racist rednecks (95% incorrect 92% of the time), but we also have some excellent bands. Woodhawk, Wake, Chron Goblin, and Gone Cosmic, to name a few. Local upstarts Traveler look to join this exalted pantheon of local heavy music gods, and their debut, last year’s Traveler, was a fine first step.” Olde trails.

Wake – Devouring Ruin Review

By Cherd on April 4, 2020 in Canadian Metal, Death Metal, Doom Metal, Grind, Reviews, Translation Loss, Death Metal, Grind, 56 comments

“Finding catharsis in the midst of chaos is the name of the game these days. It’s why every tenth article in your COVID co-opted news avalanche feed is about a bunny who adopted stray kittens. It’s why last Saturday I watched a live stream of a drag queen disinfecting every surface in her kitchen while performing Queen’s “I Want to Break Free.” As the world around us is brought to its knees by the weight of uncertainty, we instinctively seek out and appreciate these small pressure release valves. Bands who ply their trade in chaotic styles should pay attention. Chaos plus time equals background noise, but there are two options to keep an audience engaged. The first is brevity. This is why hardcore punk albums are traditionally 25-30 mins long. The second is the thoughtful placement of sonic perches to rest upon.” Choose wisely.

Leonov – Wake Review

By Twelve on November 9, 2018 in 2018, Doom Metal, Fysisk Format, Norwegian Metal, Reviews, Doom Metal, 25 comments

“Leonov’s promotional material describes their music as “celestial doom,” which intrigues me greatly. What is celestial doom? What does it mean? Are we contemplating the small, brief existence of mankind in the vastness of space? Are we exploring the ideas of loss and nothingness? I have no idea. My attention has been captured nicely here, but can Leonov follow through?” This here Nameless_n00b sure does ask a lot of questions. Does he have answers? Only a click on this link can tell!

Wake – Misery Rites Review

By Kronos on February 25, 2018 in 2018, Canadian Metal, Death Metal, Grind, Reviews, Translation Loss, Death Metal, 0 comments

“Pop quiz: off the top of your head, name five Canadian bands. If you’re a geezer of some sort, Rush will take top billing, whereas the more brutal among us will have rattled off a litany of Quebecios tech death acts. Few metalheads will think to include a grind act in their list, let alone one from the flyover provinces. And yet, here Wake are, poised to release their fourth LP of brutal grindcore from their hideout in Calgary.” Wake off, you hoser!

Concert Review: Southwest Terror Fest, Tucson, Arizona – October 20th-23rd 2016

By Dr. A.N. Grier on November 5, 2016 in 2016, Blog Posts, Live Reviews, Reviews, 16 comments

“It seems like all the greatest adventures begin with a phone call. This particular call came about a month ago. The gentleman on the line was one of my brothers. Brother Grier had called to inform me he had purchased tickets to Southwest Terror Fest in Tucson, Arizona. His plane ticket was purchased, the hotel reservation was set, and I had no choice but to join him (he had apparently bought me tickets too).”Tales of brotherhood, beers and grind.