Goatwhore - FBS (new song)

I don't know if you guys noticed, but Goatwhore have pulled out a killer track from their next album Constricting Rage of the Merciless, due out in July. Check it out!

Ride for Revenge – "Enter the Gauntlet"

Some weeks ago, Finland has blessed us with one filthy pearl of beastly black metal. Imagine if Archgoat or Beherit took their foot off the gas for a while and started to listen to Sunn O))). They would probably sound like their countrymen Ride for Revenge, whose latest full-length Enter the Gauntlet was released in the beginning of May. They offer us therein a cacophony of distorted lo-fi guitars, prominent bass lines and hypnotizing tunes, peppered with sickly raspy vocals. It’s the perfect amalgamation of raw black metal and drony, ritualistic soundscapes. Check out their Bandcamp and buy the album. It’s 6 euros for 73 minutes of mindfuckíng and mesmerizing music, for Satan’s sake.  

Wolves In The Throne Room - Celestite Mirror (new song)

Wolves In The Throne Room have released a track from their upcoming album. It's an ambient piece, mostly electronic stuff, no blast beats or vocals of any kind. I like it, though it wouldn't make me check out the album later if it wasn't this particular band.

Check it out:

Impaled Nazarene – Vigorous and Liberating Death

I’m not particularly crazy about Impaled Nazarene. They had their apex with Ugra-Karma, which is a brutally brilliant album if you ask me, but all of their subsequent releases, though fairly good, don’t fail to reflect a certain degree of staleness. Yes, they’re extremely competent musicians and performers but, nonetheless, their albums seem to amount to nothing more than different renditions of a same composition. Some praise this as a mark of “trueness”, as if being coherent, per se, were virtuous. I disagree with this position. I prefer an “incoherent” band which succeeds in blowing my mind off with every new release than a very “coherent” act which seems to successively bring forth different versions of a same album.

Besides, I just can’t put up with their homophobic, nationalistic, anti-communist bullshit. Sure, we have our share of bigotry, ignorance or downright idiocy in the black metal scene, but few are so damn explicit about it. Just check the lyrics of tracks such as “Zero Tolerance” or “Healers of the Red Plague” to see what I mean. Let’s just say they could easily be uttered by any minister of the Westboro Baptist Church.

Due to all this, I can’t say I was holding my breath for Impaled Nazarene’s new full-length, Vigorous and Liberating Death, which is just more of the same recipe. A decent sample of brutal, fast-paced, punk-infused black metal. It’s a good release, don’t get me wrong, and at some points it even sounds less “mechanical” than previous albums, which is always a good thing. In one word, this album will maybe make you bang your head, but don’t expect it to rock you off your socks.

Oxbow - King of the Jews | Hydra Head Bargain Sale

Hey guys just a quick heads-up that Hydra Head Industries are pulling an awesome sale: 30 albums for $40. Now us non-american types get the shit-end of the stick (thanks, Obama) because we actually pay the shipping fees, that are free for US residents. Still, I dished a sum total of ~66€ for the whole thing, that's around 2,2€ per album which is pretty fucking sweet if you ask me.

There are some goodies to be grabbed here. Khanate, Xasthur and Oxbow are personal favourites here, but there's no frowning at a decent Cave In or Harvey Milk release. All in all, there's no downside to this, other than the obvious drought that I'm predicting due to having spent my monthly beer money on the damn thing.

Enjoy some Oxbow while you're at it, for no particular reason.

Satanic Warmaster - New album in the making

Satanic Warmaster has announced the preparations of a new release, due this year. One preview of the album, a cover of Vornat's track "Korppi", is available on Youtube (streamed below).  It counts with the participation of Thaukhnifur, from the above-mentioned Vornat. Meanwhile, the band also has a number of gigs scheduled for this year in Mexico, Japan and Italy. Check the dates on Satanic Warmaster's official Facebook page. 

Mayhem - VI.Sec.

One more song premiere from Mayhem's forthcoming release Esoteric Warfare. As you'll notice, it seemingly doesn't stray much from the path carved in recent albums, such as Ordo ad Chao. Many technical intricacies, but not even remotely near to the good ol' 1990's Mayhem as an emotional catalyzer. Oh well, maybe it's just the reactionary bastard in me talking. 

40 Watt Sun - Lioness

I'm not sure whether this is a 40 Watt Sun concert - it seems to be, since the band is there - or one of those "Patrick Walker shines light on the lucky few who managed to attend his obscure (read: I can't go) shows", but god damn it covering a Jason Molina song is the kind of stuff that makes me glad to be alive. Jason Molina being one of my favourite musicians, of course, may he rest in peace, and 40 Watt Sun one of my favourite bands.

You can check out more live stuff at http://40wattsun.com/.

Lioness from 40 Watt Sun on Vimeo.

Teitanblood - Sleeping Throats of the Antichrist

2014 has already been a plentiful year regarding extreme metal releases. Today, I'm enjoying Teitanblood's recent effort, Death, released about two months ago. Jesus fuck me, this is brilliant stuff! Uncompromising brutal old school black metal, no bullshit attached. This album will fling the gates of the fiery Underworld wide open for you. Dare to take that step further, but do it at your own risk, for dreadful pits of hellfire and brimstone await your frail bones. 

Möbelstück Beckmann - Leonina

Thevolumesettingsfolder - ie, Möbelstück Beckmann - is an author whose work I've been following for a while now through the convenience of tumblr. His is the line of one-man-electronics-band that seem to populate the soundcloud sea, though his particular take on it is really interesting and chill. Take a moment of your time to chick his work out:

Malicious - Mental Illness

Last weekend I had the privilege of attending the third edition of the Åbo Massaker fest in Turku, Finland. The set was headed by renowned names in the Finnish extreme metal scene, such as Black Dawn or Archgoat. It's not my objective to summarize the proceedings of the event (though I have to say that Archgoat fucking ruled!), but to call your attention to a new Finnish band, which is doubtlessly worthy of a look: I'm referring to Malicious. They opened the second day of the fest and were the only band I wasn't acquainted with. I have to say I was really impressed! They spew forth a solid mix of old school black/death/thrash, heavily reminiscent of 1980's or early 90's extreme metal. Despite their young age, inexperience and recurrent technical problems, they excelled the older and well-established Kill, from Sweden, who, even though I'm particularly fond of their records, presented a rather disappointing performance. Malicious, on the other hand, seem to be much more captivating live than in studio. Anyhow, check out their only demo in their Bandcamp and toss them a couple of coins.

Lantlôs - Melting Sun II: Cherry Quartz

Since a few days back, NPR has been streaming "Cherry Quartz", the second track from Lantlôs' upcoming album Melting Sun. Let's be honest, it's no Agape - my personal favorite from the band - but it kinda got me stoked for the official release. Its doom-scented, post-rocky, shoegazy tunes are definitely something to look forward to. 

A grave injustice has been committed by many (perhaps myself included) towards bands like Lantlôs or Alcest, who decided to leave behind their black metal roots and evolve towards new paths. Attention has oftentimes been centered on how they ditched black metal instead of on the virtues of the music itself. Let's face it, sometimes certain bands consciously abandon their initial musical paradigm to embark upon a new sonority. Some of these bands do a good job, while others screw it all up. The fact that I'm a committed old school Satanic black metal fanatic is in no way compromised by my propensity to listen to Alcest in a sunny, blissful day. In many ways, we dwell in a dualistic cosmos: there's no darkness without light. As the subtitle of our blog hints, there's no misanthropy without butterflies. While striving to give vent to our hatred and destroy our enemies, one has to stop once in awhile to smell the flowers. The main point is that, like all living organisms, bands can develop, improve, mature - while remaining honest. 

To sum it up, I don't give the slightest fuck about how trve a band is, insofar as it is true. I think that Alcest and Lantlôs are good examples of such cases.