Death Fortress – Among the Ranks of the Unconquerable

November 15, 2014 • Fallen Empire Records

With that title and band name, this album just screams "generic". And maybe it is, a little bit. Maybe everything feels somewhat generic when you get to as much random black metal on Bandcamp as I do. Regardless, I wanted to put this one in particular out there because I've been having a good time with it.

True, Death Fortress unashamedly apes old-school Darkthrone-slash-Hate-Forest-if-they-were-good-style metal but I'll be damned if they don't do a good job at it. It's black metal at some of its most aggressive without being impenetrable—the drums and guitar all sound hateful and destructive but still retain a nice musical edge to them that keeps the album nicely grounded. The drumming is actually surprisingly interesting; sure there's a lot of typical double-kick grooving and blasting but the fills are plentiful and the way everything is played just really does it for me for some reason.

I'm not going to pretend that Death Fortress does anything new or that there isn't anything in this album you haven't heard before if you're already into black metal whatsoever. But what it does bring to the table is a top-notch way of throwing out some aggression and energy in an incredibly satisfying way—and sometimes that's just what I need, and sometimes all an album needs to give me.

Mare Cognitum – Phobos Monolith

November 3, 2014 • I, Voidhanger Records

Taking atmospheric black metal to another level—the cosmos. Okay, so black metal bands have been doing the whole super-atmospheric space thing for decades already so there's really nothing new going on here. But I have to say that Phobos Monolith is quite a pleasant surprise.

Its one flaw out of the way first: Albums like this, with a few overlong tracks, sometimes tend to have a bit of filler. The beginning of this album in particular does have a bit too much ramp-up—one huge overlong intro where we're noodling around with slow rhythms and melodic clean-ish guitar lines that don't really go anywhere. I'm just sitting here waiting for the actual music to kick in instead. I guess I should have expected it, but it still always disappoints me just a little bit when this happens.

However, when the music does get going it's quite good, and surprisingly the middle two tracks don't hold back at all. It's not just plug-and-play generic blasting, either—there is plenty of that, but there's enough actual musical proficiency and embellishments in the songwriting that keep things interesting. Just the occasional chugging riff, progressive drum line, a little ambient background sound to fill things out. Or perhaps some toned-down shoegazey type stuff in "Noumenon". Or the sheer no-holds-barred intensity at some places, like how "Entropic Hallucinations" starts off with just the most intense riff ever. There's a lot going on, though it may take some time to unearth it all.

But this being one of my favorite kinds of music lately, I'll call myself a fan right off the bat. The genre may have been in a slump lately, but for fans this might be one to actually pay attention to.

Blood of Kingu – Sun in the House of the Scorpion

May 24, 2010 • Candlelight Records

I know I'm nowhere near to scraping the bottom of the barrel on Bandcamp's black metal page, but sometimes I wonder if the selection is getting a little thin. There's always good stuff to be had, but truly innovative and creative bands seem to be getting harder to come by.

Take Blood of Kingu; they don't do a whole lot that's particularly new—they simply turn the blast-o-meter up to 11 and don't stop for forty-five minutes. Not that that's a bad thing, of course, because often that's exactly what I'm after. And they do a good job, I guess; the guitar riffs are a bit stock for black metal but they certainly get it done effectively. However, there's something to be said for a bit of dynamics—on most of my listens to this album, I got about halfway through but only thought I was maybe three songs in because so much of this music is indistinguishable.

What is a bit interesting about their sound is this weird, subtle, underlying industrial element that is mostly expressed through the totally bizarre bass sound. "Gnarled" is the best word I can think of to describe it. It gives parts of the album a very hollow and cold mechanical feeling which is kind of neat (though the novelty does wear off).

This is by no means a bad album, but I'd say it's probably not one that's really worth looking into unless you're the kind of person who is desperate for something new in the genre and don't really care much what it sounds like. It'll scratch the black metal itch, but there are so many albums out there that sound just like it that I can't really give it much of a recommendation. Again, it's not bad; it's maybe just too generic.

Deterior – Human Dust

August 26, 2014 • GarageMonkey Productions

Deterior is one of few bands that definitively gets better with each album, as long as you can get used to the somewhat drastic stylistic change that happened over the last seven years. This is more of the same black-sludge combo as in Torchbearer but not quite as drawn-out.

And it's free to stream and download, so yeah, check it out.

Nyarlathtotep – The Shadow over Innsmouth

June 21, 2014 • self-released

Another day, another USBM band, right? Well, not all black metal is created equal, and once again it's time to separate the wheat from the chaff.

Nyarlathtotep has all the standard black metal aesthetics—classical-inspired intros, distorted and ugly vocals, guitar with more fuzz than a month-old piece of rotting fruit. But compared to the average, the music itself goes way beyond that. Often rhythms will have a slow marching industrial feel; guitar sometimes plods along in agonizing sludgy riffs. But when it does launch into full-on blasting force, it's pretty good stuff. Nothing totally amazing, but not bad by a long shot either. I particularly like how the riffs occasionally throw in a bit of melody and intricate chords, like in "The Gilman House"; it's well-hidden but when it crops up, it really adds well to the album's feel. There's also a bit of punk-ish stuff here and there (e.g. "Old Zadok Allen" and "The Gilman House"). I do enjoy how the album isn't just a straight-through stereotypical atmo-black; there's a surprising amount of diversity songwriting-wise. I love the noisy electronic interludes as well; they do a great job breaking up the long songs.

If I had any significant complaint, it's that the drums feel a bit tacky. I don't have any problem with synthetic/programmed drumming—I'd be a hypocrite to say otherwise—but there are plenty of ways to make programmed drums sound organic and human. Although I must say they are very well-programmed—I suppose they could have been played on an electronic kit, it's hard to say.

Anyway, this is a very worthy album. I'm excited to see where this band goes in the future. Worth checking out if you've got the patience, especially at that price.

We Came Out like Tigers – Ever-Crushed at Peckett's Well

April 14, 2014 • Dog Knights Productions

I was recommended this album with the promise that it's a mix of black metal and emo—which are not only my two favorite genres at the moment but also a combination so highly unlikely that it had to be either completely amazing or the worst album I've ever heard.

Well, it's definitely a pretty unique album, I'll give them that. The black metal influence is very modern-sounding with a heavy punk / post-hardcore / crust sort of edge to it (I guess that's the screamo part coming out). Texture and aesthetics are usually shoved out of the way in favor of brutal, furious, and often very chaotic pounding, only occasionally giving way to slow soft post-rock-ish buildups now and again. The inclusion of violin in most tracks (including during the frantic and heavy sections) is an interesting choice, and one I think actually turns out working pretty well. (Similarly, the clarinet in "Entr'acte" is awesome. Why don't more metal bands have a clarinet ensemble?)

The songwriting is definitely something that takes its time to grow on the listener, though. The music feels very disorganized and even after three or four full listens it's tough for me to keep in pace with what the band is doing. I think it's best to try to experience this album passively, since (at least for me) really trying to follow along is pretty tough. It seems like the band wrote a lot of really good sections of music but weren't sure how to stick them all together into songs. Well, whatever works.

So I guess it's neither completely amazing or the worst album I've ever heard. But it's certainly not bad, and worth a listen for anyone into modern black metal and screamo. It will probably be a few more years until someone can perfect the fusion, but until then this album will do fine enough.

Castevet – Obsian

October 15, 2013 • Profound Lore Records

Today's review courtesy of New York black metal band Castevet (not to be confused with the other Castevet). I haven't followed them much, having just heard their early EP Stones/Salts, and while I won't say they're one of my favorite modern black metal bands, this album does stand up pretty well.

Based on what little of their other stuff I've heard (and compared to their contemporaries), Castevet's sound is slowly becoming more and more of a progressive sort of black metal—in a Gojira sort of way, not an Emperor sort of way, with some clean melodic sections clashing with heavy blasting and angular, polyrhythmic riffs. There's always a lot going on, and the song structures become somewhat fragmented and hard to follow as the band lurches from one section to the next. It's not really my favorite style of playing, but surprisingly (for me) they pull it off well a lot of the time, in no small thanks to some very strong riffs and rhythms.

but there's no denying that they still have a good aesthetic and they sound great here. Special mention goes to some really great plucky bass playing, which carries a lot of the songs when the guitar goes off on some weird tangent or has a cool alternate melody like the end of "The Curve". I also especially like the folky guitar interwoven into some sections, like the end of "Cavernous", which adds a neat, unexpected new dimension to the music.

Obsian is definitely not an album for everyone, but it takes black metal in a new direction and it will be interesting to see how it pans out. Hopefully their next release will be an improvement on what they've done here.

Deadwood – Picturing a Sense of Loss

February 14, 2014 • self-released

Trying to find decent black metal these days is an interesting game, especially on Bandcamp where half the bands listed as such don't have anything to do with the genre. But I've found a few good nuggets from this year so far, one of which is German band Deadwood's Picturing a Sense of Loss, one which finally satisfied my search for a little while.

Deadwood's style of black metal is definitely rooted in the modern post-blackgaze era, with big walls of blastbeats and layered, atmospheric guitar combined with a hefty sense of melodicism and fusion with softer, dramatic sections. The harder metal parts are a little evocative of the kind of stuff we were getting out of Europe in the late '90s: not particularly fancy, but definitely refined and well past its early raw state.

Deadwood does have a tendency to get a bit melodramatic, though, which can be construed as a good or bad thing depending on your taste. Their aforementioned highly-melodic guitar lines got to be a bit too much for me at times. And while their use of clean, post-rock sections was generally done well and in good taste, their use can result in the music getting a bit sappy at times, like halfway through the very first track and a few other song intros.

That being said, Deadwood does still manage to write some pretty great songs and pull together a fine album. I doubt it'll be particularly well-recognized among its peers this year, as there isn't quite enough about it that truly stands out, but I would still definitely recommend it.

Woods of Desolation – As the Stars

February 14, 2014 • Northern Silence Productions

I love Woods of Desolation's 2011 album Torn Beyond Reason; it's without question a black metal favorite of mine. As followups to fantastic albums usually go, I'm always prepared for disappointment, but fortunately that wasn't the case with As the Stars. While it's not quite up to their standards, it's still a worthy entry to their discography and a fine black metal record in its own right.

Arrangement-wise, the album draws on the many of the same stock formulas on their last album (and those of their contemporaries in the atmospheric black metal scene): dense walls of guitar, clean (and even twinkly) melodic passages, a taste for slower chugging sections. There isn't quite as much blasting here (I think) but the heavy guitar and tortured vocals keep things nice and dark. Interestingly, the songs are on the short side (mostly between four and six minutes), leaving the usual sprawling structures of the genre (and, to an extent, their last album) behind in favor of more fast-paced song progression (although still with a bit of excessive repetition). The riffing is that melancholic, depressive-yet-hopeful style that reminds me of early Alcest and the like, which they've done before and still works fine here. (Let's just hope they don't fall into the same sort of style dilution.)

The album's most noticeable flaw is a major one, though: the mixing. It leaves a lot to be desired as most of the album is absolutely drowning in that dense wall of guitar I mentioned, which has been distorted into a thick, piercing haze that leaves little room for the drums or vocals to pop out. I can see how they might have been going for a more wall-of-sound-like approach with this, as it would mesh with the dense approach to the songwriting, but it's bad enough to the point where it actually detracts from the experience more than just a little bit.

And that's unfortunate, because aside from that there really isn't much to complain about with this album. Yes, it's a bit formulaic and they're definitely not pushing the genre anywhere new, and As the Stars isn't on the same level as Torn Beyond Reason, an album I still listen to and enjoy now and again. But it's still good for a few spins.

Panopticon – Kentucky

June 2012 • Handmade Birds

I don't make it a secret that I really despise American country music—and not for lack of trying, either. Of course I'm going to be a bit skeptical about any attempt to shoehorn it into some other style. Even still, I was immediately interested in Kentucky just because it sounded so bizarre; atmospheric black metal and bluegrass? And it's not a parody album? And it's... well, it's not bad, I'll say that.

I already considered myself a mild Panopticon fan after hearing quality self-titled debut: thick, intense, grinding atmospheric metal. For the most part, Kentucky doesn't stray far from the style, so in a lot of ways it's like many of its ABM contemporaries. And in that vein, it's good stuff; nothing fantastically mind-blowing, but good enough to listen to several times.

And then comes the country. Banjos, folky vocals, the lot. The bluegrass elements aren't really fused with the black metal that seamlessly; it's more like a regular black metal album with bluegrass intros and outros, with the exception of droning fiddles during some of the songs, so I find myself not really enjoying a lot of these bits; I guess they're decent for what they are. I do, however, enjoy the audio clips that help add to the concept and thematics of the album.

Overall, I'm not totally sure if this style really works, but at the very least it's one of the most interesting listens in extreme metal that I can think of from the last several years. It's still worth listening to just for the black metal, and if you liked earlier Panopticon you'll like this. And maybe it's an opportunity to get a little bluegrass into your music diet, if that doesn't sound too unappealing.

Vallendusk – Black Clouds Gathering

April 20, 2013 • Pest Productions

I love hearing metal from outside of Europe and North America. There's usually some sort of regional influence seeping into the music that gives it a really cool cultural flair that's unique to that band. Unfortunately, I know nothing about traditional Indonesian music or even their culture in general, and Vallendusk isn't helping; while Black Clouds Gathering is a pretty good modern black metal album, there isn't much to it that really stands out.

The album is fairly typical post-2010 atmospheric black metal / blackgaze composition and aesthetics, with jangly distorted guitars, relentless double-kick and blastbeat drumming, generic but well-performed vocals, and lots of major-key riffs. It's the kind of thing that's been popular lately in the new black metal underground but Vallendusk does it relatively well. The music has a great feel to it, constantly driving forward, and the melodies are pleasant enough with the right amount of edge to fit the style.

Unfortunately, like many ambitious metal albums before it, Black Clouds Gathering tends to drag a bit. And it's an incredibly long album, too: at around 67 minutes, it's a bit more than my attention span can handle, especially when the band doesn't really do a lot to shake things up. It feels a bit like listening to the same exact song seven times in a row, which I have mixed feelings on—yes, it's a good song, but I'm going to get bored with it if you keep it up that long.

That being said, I would still recommend this to anyone else who's been following the trajectory of black metal over the last couple of years, as this is a good example of how good modern stuff can get. Yes, it's a bit disappointing that there wasn't any of that folk in it that I was promised, but I guess I can live with that. Maybe next time.

6

Darkthrone – Sardonic Wrath

September 6, 2004 • Moonfog Productions

Darkthrone seems to get a lot of crap for anything released after 1995's Panzerfaust but I have to say I never agreed with those sentiments; sometimes, they can be just as good as they were in the early '90s. Case in point: Sardonic Wrath one of my favorite later-era albums of theirs. You wouldn't think a band like Darkthrone could pull out anything interesting or relevant in 2004, and you certainly could argue for that, but I have to admit I have a soft spot for this album.

Sardonic Wrath's biggest strength for me is probably rooted in its production, which is somewhere between where most modern black metal bands were and old-school-death metal style. It's mot too raw, and has a really ferocious edge to it (especially those fantastic buzzsaw guitars). The playing has a real sense of purpose and drive to it; unlike some of their other late albums where they sound like they're sloppily going through the motions, this album feels a lot tighter.

The songwriting is surprisingly good here, too—most bands would be totally burned out after eleven or so albums but, after having heard most of them by this point, this one still sticks out to me as being relatively fresh. They went for a good mix of different styles overall, combining straight black metal with some simplistic punk rhythms and a bit of the death and thrash they started their career with. Often it come off as quite catchy, even (see "Sacrificing to the God of Doubt" for a good example). It's definitely nowhere near the far more atmospheric and bleak sound of Transilvanian Hunger et. al., but I like that about it. It doesn't sound like a different band, just one that's moved on a bit.

Darkthrone did a lot of favors to the black metal genre from '92 to '95, but even though most people have moved on I'm glad they stuck have around and not gone totally to crap like one might have expected. I won't say Sardonic Wrath is an absolute-must-hear by any means, more like a personal favorite, albeit one still worth listening to.

7

Altar of Plagues – Teethed Glory & Injury

April 30, 2013 • Profound Lore Records

Ladies and gentlemen, it's here: the next innovation in black metal. Irish band Altar of Plauges put out two albums (and a bit more) of relatively standard-fare 2010s-style atmospheric black metal before dropping this monstrosity on the world and then vanishing. As far as final albums go, few are so intent in their finality as Teethed Glory & Injury is: hugely experimental, broadly scoped, and pretty good too.

Anyone familiar with the band's older work will definitely be surprised by how this album is composed, as I was. The diversity of sounds on this single album is incredible, and it shoves the listener right into the thick of it with no warning. There's industrial-electronic soundscapes reminiscent of Ben Frost, the dissonant grinding avant-garde metal of Sigh, droning doom passages, a little bit of their expected original sound too, all shrouded in this very dark, alienating, cold atmosphere that's surprisingly easy to fall into.

While the band has always been good at what they do, they still manage to fall into the easy trap of trying to do too much. With so much going on it's inevitable that the album doesn't sound as cohesive as it should; even though the tracks are mostly good individually, the flow feels all wrong and everything falls apart when taken in as a whole. It's kind of like they knew what they were going for in terms of overall sound and mood, but couldn't incorporate it with their existing songwriting chops very well.

That being said, I find Teethed Glory & Injury to still be a relatively enjoyable album and it deserves the credit and praise it's received so far. I don't think I'd ever pick it over their first two for black metal, or over contemporary drone / ambient / noise artists for what is presented here. And I'm not really sure it is the next innovation in black metal after all (you can't tell these things ahead of time anyway). But I can definitely appreciate the album for what it is—an adventure, an experiment, a unique experience. And for what it's worth it's got at least a couple good spins in it.

7

Vattnet Viskar – Sky Swallower

September 3, 2013 • Century Media Records

I saw these guys play a show back in March, really enjoyed it, and have been looking forward to some new stuff from them since. Well, it's finally here (okay, yes, I'm a month late) and I'm happy to say that Sky Swallower is a great album worth listening to.

For anyone unfamiliar, Vattnet Viskar play relatively standard modern black metal (what some might call "post-black", I guess), hyping the old Darkthrone style—lots of blasting, somewhat muffled guitars, with low guttural vocals, but with also lots of atmospheric sludge metal thrown around as well—the aggressive-yet-plodding kind. The styles go together well, as they usually do. Vattnet Viskar's version isn't the greatest example of it, though. Rather than blending styles together, the band jumps straight from post-rock to sludge metal to black metal very abruptly (see "Fog of Apathy" for a good example of this). While that does work to keep things from getting too stale, it also makes the album feel a bit off.

That being said: They still know how to write a good riff. The calmer sections are quite soothing and great at building in the tension when they have to, and the loud aggressive sections are like a slap in the face when they finally kick in. They don't have quite the same intensity that I would expect, but I think that's partly the fault of the so-so production values.

All in all, a fine album (and good on Vattnet Viskar for getting with Century Media!). Nothing amazing, but it was about exactly as I expected based on their first EP and their live show. Recommended for modern black metal fans for sure.

7

Inter Arma, Woe, Locusta

September 18, 2013 • Ace of Cups, Columbus, Ohio

Locusta

I don't say this often, but Locusta fucking rocked. And that's not a term I'd throw around lightly. Although I don't listen to a ton of death metal, these guys hit the spot for me in just the right way. Perhaps it was the slight groove and speed metal influences, or the fantastic playing and stage presence. It was seriously some of the absolute greatest drumming I've ever seen from any metal band (some of the fastest blasting, too), and the guitarwork was equally mesmerizing to watch. Absolutely worth seeing again. I gotta find more death metal shows.
8 • Purplest Cassettes Award

Woe

An awesome show as well (I was there mainly to see them, so I was pretty sure it was going to be good anyway). It was an interesting contrast to the Locusta show—more wall-of-sound, cathartic torrents of noise. Typical black metal, I suppose, but that's what I love about it. There isn't much else to say about their set overall (especially if you're familiar with their sound already), although I must say those "catchier" moments (e.g. "Song of My Undoing"'s intro) worked really well live.
8 • Best Windmilling Award

Inter Arma

Despite that they apparently haven't changed members (aside from the bassist) since the first time I saw them play in 2010, Inter Arma has become a very different band in those three years. There was definitely more of a serious-introspective-metal mood going on compared to the incredibly fun first show I saw, and the band seemed a bit aloof and lazy. Still the same avant-sludge-meets-black metal sound, but it was all new material and I don't think I care for it quite as much as their older stuff. Partly because blastbeats and slow, laboring riffs don't go together that well... I dunno.
5 • Cutest Matching Shirts Award

Wormlust – The Feral Wisdom

June 6, 2013 • Demonhood Productions / Daemon Worship

I don't know what it is with Iceland, but it always seems like the craziest music comes out of that place. They're not particularly well-known for their black metal, but if Wormlust is a decent example of their scene, maybe it's something worth looking into after all. The Feral Wisdom isn't an amazing, groundbreaking album, but it is definitely one worth listening to.

Unlike the raw and abrasive style Nordic black metal is usually known for, Wormlust has a more distinctly American sound to it with its emphasis on ambience and dense atmosphere. It feels incredibly thick and hazy, with vocals drenched in reverb and guitars muddied almost beyond recognition. However, in a rare case, I think this aesthetic works particularly well; this is an album that's definitely about mood instead of riffs, with a sound that is very easy to simply get lost in. There is a subtle "horror" aspect of it that works really well (especially during those ambient parts). It's similar to, say, Lurker of Chalice or Leviathan.

Unfortunately, also like Lurker of Chalice and Leviathan, I get a little bored of this ethereal-black-metal style relatively quickly. It's probably just me, but there's something about straddling that line between good black metal vs. good ambience and sometimes it sort of fails to reconcile the two well. It tends to dwell on the ambient sections a bit too much—as good as they are—so the album's flow feels a bit weird.

That's not to say this is a badly-done album; rather I think it accomplishes exactly what it set out to do, and my tastes are just my tastes. I did say, after all, that The Feral Wisdom is worth listening to. In fact, I believe this album is significantly better than the other two bands mentioned; it feels maybe a bit more mature, a bit more contemplative and well-written. It'd be interesting to see this particular brand of black metal mature a bit more and take off.

6

Deafheaven – Sunbather

June 11, 2013 • Deathwish Inc.

Finally time to weigh in my two cents on Sunbather; I figure the hype has died off enough by now. I remember hearing their first album Roads to Judah when it came out back in 2011 and enjoying it, though I haven't listened to them since until very recently with this new album. And it's an okay album, sure; it's quite good but I think fawned over a little too much.

While the "blackgaze" thing has been really popular lately, I have to hand it to Deafheaven for putting together a pretty good version of the sound. It's some pretty intense music, with walls of loud tremolo guitar and blastbeats and harsh screams all over. But it's also got plenty of dynamics—there are lots of softer interludes with pseudo-post-rock flourishes and slower, sludgier sections as well. (For the former, I really love "Vertigo"'s intro, especially that bass.)

Also unlike most black metal, the album is largely played in a major key to get a more grandiose feel to the songs. I think this actually works really well most of the time; we've seen it before with bands like ColdWorld but Deafheaven do it well too. The title track in particular is a great example of that kind of tone working well; it has a great contrast of major and minor riffing that makes it really interesting. Most of the riffs themselves aren't particularly catchy or memorable, but it's the textures and moods that really make the album. Think more Godspeed rather than Immortal, especially in those interludes.

On the other side of the coin, while Sunbather is definitely good, it's not quite as special as everyone has made it out to be. I guess it's the extreme amount of hype and press and its broader appeal that lead it to garner a lot of praise—mostly deserving, I'll admit—but it's not like this is the first album like it ever to be made. Anyone reading my recent black metal reviews know that I go through lots of albums like this. Yes, this is one of the better ones, but it's not the only one.

That being said, I still think this is absolutely a worthwhile album for fans of this sound. And if it just so happens to turn on a lot of people who didn't know about it before, all the better. For me, it's not something I'm going to spin every day, but it's not an album I'll forget too easily, either. I do know that it will definitely be interesting to see how this new trajectory affects Deafheaven and where they go next.

7

Vuyvr – Eiskalt

February 2013 • Blastbeat Mailmurder / Throatruiner Records

Time to get excited about a new black metal album! It's always a bit surprising when I hear something like this that is really traditional and old-school in sound, but still manages to sound fresh and interesting. That's what we're getting from Vuyvr, a new band from Switzerland whose debut is one of the more compelling black metal albums I've heard recently.

The main thing I like about Eiskalt is its depth. On the surface, you have the standard blasting-plus-raw-tremolo guitars, old-Darkthrone style (more or less). But dig a little deeper, listen a little closer, and there's a huge variety of rhythms and styles hidden in here that keep things going that you don't even notice unless you're looking for them. The occasional punk-ish drum pattern; thrashy, crunching riffs; slower sections that build up to a nice solid song ending.

Even though I can totally get into more artsy, "pretentious" stuff on its own merits, there are times when albums like this are exactly what I want. There's no frills, no gimmicks, but the songwriting is incredibly compelling and there are tons of moments where it's easy to just get lost in the atmosphere and groove along. Sure, Eiskalt is technically nothing new, but I'll happily take a finely-crafted version of an old genre if it sounds good. And this one sure does.

7

Paysage d'Hiver – Das Tor

February 22, 2013 • Kunsthall Produktionen

I've never really been into Paysage d'Hiver and I don't think I've heard anything out of his considerable catalog (aside from sister band Darkspace) but this album has been making some waves lately, so I figured I'd give it a shot. Perhaps I wasn't prepared for the brutality to come, but it's a pretty intense album, the kind that engulfs the listener in freezing misery and noise. And that's a good thing.

This album takes the concept of "atmospheric black metal" and turns up the dials on both "atmospheric" and "black metal". It's one hell of a raw album. The music itself is absolutely furious, with unrelenting blastbeats, razor-sharp tremolo guitars, and some of the most anguished and wretched vocals I've heard in a long time. The production wraps everything into a thick, almost impenetrable wall of sound as the distortion on the guitar takes up most of the sonic headroom, with a little left over for the occasional synth strings in the background. It's a bit lo-fi, but not quite in the same way many early black metal recordings are lo-fi as the production isn't bad, just a bit hazy. And it's a hell of a loud album, too; some of the more intense parts actually made my ears hurt a bit (though that might be due to compression artifacts; hard to say).

The metal parts are bookended by long stretches of field recordings of howling winds—fitting to the aesthetic, I suppose, but can you say "cliché"? And the concept gets old really fast, especially when it's several minutes of what might as well be the same sample between every track.

As nice as the aesthetics are, though, I am having a hard time really getting into Das Tor. The songwriting isn't terribly interesting—not helped by the fact that the riffs are often really difficult to make out over all the fuzz—and there isn't a lot of variation to what's going on. Sure, it's supposed to be atmospheric, I get that it's one of those albums that is meant to be put on and kind of sit in the background. The mood is what's important. So it definitely has that going for it; I don't mind putting it on and focusing on something else. But focusing on the four huge fifteen-minutes-plus tracks is a tough job.

That said, I suppose the album succeeds at what it set out to do, and it's been growing on me as I've listened. A solid black metal album, but one that probably won't be for anyone. Bring a heavy coat; it's gonna be cold.

6

Vattnet Viskar, Black Table, VYGR, Meadowhoof

March 21, 2013 • Kobo Live, Columbus, Ohio

I actually bought a ticket to this show basically on a whim when I saw it come up in my email, thinking that even though it's two bands that I'd never heard of at least it would be interesting to go to. Only an hour or so before I left did I even notice VYGR was going to be on the bill, a band I've been a mild fan of for years and whose debut EP is a long-standing favorite. Anyway, Kobo was a new venue for me—it's essentially a tiny bar, one that definitely wasn't built with having a stage in mind, it seems; though I suppose that since the crowd was so small (no more than forty people in the building at once, it felt like) it worked out okay. And it was definitely one of the better shows I've been to.

Meadowhoof

These guys are a newish, very obscure local band playing intricate, sludgy doom metal. One guitarist, one drummer, one vocalist, and they weren't bad. The guitar used an octavizer and consequently had a huge and heavy sound, which was neat, and the riffs and drums got nicely groovy. A good sound, but the vocalist left a bit to be desired (most of the time he just stood there, and I didn't care much for his screams).
5 • Most Out-of-Place Blastbeat Section Award

VYGR

It was no surprise to me that VYGR played the best show of the night; helping immensely was that they closed off their set with my favorite song of theirs, "Surfacing", from their debut EP. I wasn't a huge fan of their full-length album but maybe they're just a lot better live than in the studio (or the tracks off their new split are just that good). Heavy as heck, great atmosphere, etc.; it was too bad that they seemed a bit under-appreciated by the audience (who was presumably mostly there for the headliner).
8 • Best Mutton Chops Award

Black Table

These guys were also better than I had hoped. I sampled their EP over the last couple of weeks and had liked it—a very technical and complex sort of proggy-black metal—though they're even better live. Watching them play was a real treat; the main guitarist, bassist, and drummer are all incredibly talented and it's always interesting to see people play challenging material like that. I can't say as much for the vocalist/guitarist; her vocals weren't great on the EP and weren't much better live. Points for effort, though. Still, a highly entertaining and satisfying set.
8 • Best Bass Fingertapping Award, Like Seriously, That Was Awesome

Vattnet Viskar

Come to think of it, the majority of punk and metal shows I go to turn out that I really enjoy one or two of the supporting acts and the headliner is just okay. Vattnet Viskar was good, don't get me wrong, just not quite as good as the two that came before them. Stripped-down, raw black metal, a wall of constant noisy tremolo riffs and blasting, broken occasionally by some doomier sections. Honestly it's pretty typical material, but they did perform quite well and I warmed up to them, especially the somewhat cathartic end of the set.
7 • Most Honest Use of Vocal Reverb Award*

*"to mask my shittiness" (not a direct quote)