Monday, December 31, 2018

2018



Don't ask me what the best albums of 2018 were. I wouldn't know. I tried to find the time to listen to everything that came out this year, but there just wasn't any.

Sunday, December 30, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - From the Ashes of Fallen Empire



Fallen Empire Records, DoC's favourite label of the last few years, has announced their intention to cease operations - but not before releasing a bevy of sterling (and extremely black) releases. I covered a few of these in my most recent "Stocking Stuffer" Picks, but the label dropped one last batch of albums after I posted that. Here is a quick rundown of those, in addition to previous standouts that I missed out on. [All releases are listed as "name your price" downloads at the time of this writing.]

Mixtape 76 - Grey Skies Over Rapture



Here is the 76th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Andrew Collett and Ben Claxton of Wellington, New Zealand-based progressive death metal band Grey Skies Over Rapture.

Saturday, December 29, 2018

Mixtape 75 - Scorn of Creation



Here is the 75th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Seth Jackson and Kris Gillan of Wellington, New Zealand-based death metal band Scorn of Creation.

Mixtape 74 - Disemboweling The Limbless



Here is the 74th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Beau Barnes of Wanganui, New Zealand-based death metal band Disemboweling The Limbless.

Friday, December 28, 2018

Mixtape 73 - Organectomy



Here is the 73rd installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Christchurch, New Zealand-based death metal band Organectomy.

Thursday, December 27, 2018

Wednesday, December 26, 2018

Mixtape 71 - Men An Tol



Here is the 71st installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Christchurch, New Zealand black metal band Men An Tol.

Tuesday, December 25, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - 2018 Stocking Stuffer Edition


The link between one-man bands and "name your price" albums is probably obvious (no rehearsal spaces or studio time to pay for, therefore fewer costs to recoup), and perhaps of interest to me alone. But I still feel the need to point out how antisocial misanthropes working in their bedrooms are responsible for spreading so much joy.

Thursday, December 20, 2018

Mixtape 70 - Noise.Drone.Repeat



Here is the 70th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Bryan Tabuteau, founder and curator of the Noise.Drone.Repeat experimental music series in Wellington, New Zealand.

Wednesday, December 19, 2018

an interview with Daggra

Purists may balk, but grindcore needs more bands like the Texas-based Daggra. Their Setsuna album brought me back to the late Nineties, when the genre was reshaped with outside influences and an emphasis on hooks, giving it a much needed shot in the arm. Guitarist James Walker was kind enough to answer my questions about the band's origins and intentions.

Monday, December 17, 2018

Mixtape 69 - Sol Mortvvs



Here is the 69th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Brad Gallen of New Zealand experimental drone project Sol Mortvvs.

Wednesday, December 5, 2018

an interview with Oxygen Destroyer

Like a monster rising from the briny deep, Seattle's Oxygen Destroyer came to me out of nowhere. Their debut full-length Bestial Manifestations of Malevolence and Death marries a love of classic Japanese monster movies to no-nonsense death-thrash, and the results are as heavy as a 350 foot tall reptile. As someone whose interests include B-movies and underground metal, I was eager to find out more. Guitarist/vocalist Jordan Farrow was kind enough to answer my queries about band and beast.

Sunday, November 18, 2018

Thursday, November 15, 2018

Mixtape 67 - Punčke



Here is the 67th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Lucija Ivšić, Anja Tkalec, and Goran Nježić of Croatian punk trio Punčke.

Sunday, October 28, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Behemoth, Outre, Entropia, Lucifericon


The mighty Behemoth have returned, to once again set the internet ablaze with fiery debates. At times, I Loved You At Your Darkest hearkens back to the band's folky early years, when acoustic guitars overlapped shards of freezing guitar. Gone is the blatant appropriation Morbid Angel's schtick of recent Behemoth albums, replacing blessed sickness with a progressive black metal sound that inches towards what countrymen Thaw and Blaze of Perdition have been doing - thus hinting that what's simmering underground hasn't escaped Nergal's attention as his star continues to rise. Elsewhere, a chorus of chanting children on "God=Dog" are employed for Christ-denying blasphemy - a sort of Satanic Mickey Mouse Club. Whatever your opinion of Behemoth was beforehand, this album probably won't change it. [Personally, I remain convinced that Apostasy is the band's most accomplished and underappreciated work.] At this stage of their career, Behemoth has joined Emperor and Opeth as bands too big to be constrained to a single genre or subculture - for better or worse. [$10 AUD]



Similarly, the death/black scene from whence Nergal emerged has grown past the simplistic Satanic and neo-pagan obsessions of its early days - a fact exemplified by Krakow's Outre. Anchored by a drum performance that's meticulous in its blanketing assault, Hollow Earth employs eerie melodies and unsettling dischordance without losing the pure venomous speed that gave black metal's second wave its cachet. [€7 EUR]



From their earliest recordings, Entropia declared themselves explorers on the vanguard of extremity - but they've outdone themselves with their latest release. Vacuum stretches its blackened wings into post-punk and kraut rock domains, breaking up its bleak atmosphere with jangly guitars, new wave keyboards and funky drums. Rivaling Dodheimsgard for genre-blending audacity, this is the most adventurous black metal album of 2018. [€7 EUR]



With members of Dutch veterans Pentacle in its ranks, it goes without saying Lucifericon know a thing or two about death and evil. Restrained in terms of pure speed, Al-Khem-Me nonetheless is uniformly sinister in its melange of mid-paced death/black/thrash. Proof that blasphemy works without blastbeats. [€6.66 EUR]

Friday, October 26, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - The Order of Apollyon, Treasonist, Archaeobeast, Pink Mass



  France has one of the more interesting black metal scenes in the world, and The Order Of Apollyon may be one of its more overlooked representatives. On their third album Moriah, the band follows a path hewn by fellow Gallic black metal acts like Temple of Baal and Aosoth (with whom TOOA share members), blending death and black metal in the pursuit of a more heavier and more grandiose sound. It's not quite as adventurous as some other recent French black metal albums, but in its own idiosyncratic way makes a memorable dish out of very common ingredients. [$2.90]



Death and grind go together like cheese and wine for Oregonians Treasonist. Their self-titled debut combines jackhammer speed and brutal grooves, occasionally flexing their technical chops with some tasty Origin-style sweeps. A band we'll be hearing more from soon, hopefully. [$5.55]



With cover art in the style of a cassette demo, there's no doubting Archaeobeast's commitment to living in the past. Not content to just revisit the old school, Manifesting The Antichrist sneaks back into class to fastidiously etch the logos of Immolation, Massacre, and Autopsy unto a chair desk. A fawning tribute to death metal's early years. [$4.44]



Masked New Jersey degenerates Pink Mass have outdone themselves with their latest slice of sleaze. Despite its tongue in (ahem) cheek presentation, there's nothing particularly fun or humorous about Necrosexual, which provides a pan-grind/thrash/hardcore punk soundtrack to its tales of sexual debauchery. Stock up on hand sanitizer. [$6.66]

Sunday, October 21, 2018

Mixtape 66 - Scrotal Vice




Here is the 66th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Extreme Post Op Power Grind band, Scrotal Vice.

Sunday, October 14, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Author and Punisher, Bliss Signal, Moe/Mauhaug, A Storm of Light




One man project Author & Punisher has returned with dark and clanking album number eight. Beastland is darkwave as only machinist-by-trade Tristan Shone could make it, building each song on mechanical percussions that replicates the demoralizing, dehumanizing rhythms of a factory assembly line. This is the most literal interpretation of industrial music I've heard this year. [$10]



Altar of Plagues mainman James Kelly continues to push the boundaries of metal with his new project Bliss Signal. On this eponymous debut, AoP's atmospheric black metal is deconstructed and given a digital makeover, layering droning guitars over electronic beats in a way that recalls the cold fury of Red Harvest. It may not be completely black, but it is bleak through and through. [$7.99 CAD]



DoC friends MoE have a new release out, collaborating with Norwegian noise artist Marhaug. Over the course of its four droning noise tracks, Capsaicin ratchets up the tensions with nary a recognizable riff or drum beat to anchor it.  By distilling "noise rock" to its component parts and discarding the "rock", MoE and Marhaug have achieved something infinitely more unsettling. [€8]


There's no mistaking what fuels A Storm of Light these days. Anthroscene is a screed against the current state of American politics, taking aim at the Trump administration's various SNAFUs with an apocalyptic sound that owes at least as much to Ministry and Killing Joke as it does mainman Josh Graham's previous band Neurosis. A confluence of 90's alt-industrial and turn-of-the-millenium post-metal. [$9.99]

Mixtape 65 - Generacion Suicida



Here is the 65th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with LA punk rockers Generacion Suicida.

Wednesday, October 3, 2018

Bandcamp Picks: Solar Temple, Slavehouse, Sainte Marie des Loups, Terranaut/Chaosophy



There's not much info to be found about the clandestine Dutch duo Solar Temple, but their latest release is bound to change that. With two songs lasting over a half hour, Fertile Descent uses droning repetition to hypnotic effect, adding noise and industrial elements that bring the avant inclinations of Swans and Godlesh to atmospheric black metal. I've been listening to this twice a day since it came out and it hasn't gotten old yet. Truly sublime. [€7]



Sadly, purveyor of fine blackened filth Fallen Empire is ending its operations soon, but not before leaving us a few new releases and the taste of ashes in our mouth. After making waves with their demo, masked provocateurs Slavehouse are ready to prove the hype is real with their first album. Taste in Pain wraps bondage gear around some truly vicious black/death 'n' roll, and the results sound like a night out with Craft and the Mentors: Abrasive, unruly, and a hell of a lot of fun. The album is available as a "name your price" download.



French solo project Sainte Marie des Loups keeps it cold and kvlt. The eponymous debut is unabashedly raw and uncompromising, with swarms of angry bees for guitars, drums that sound like they were recorded a town away, and keyboards that are little more than MIDI beeps. Expect nothing more than unpolished, unrepentant, unholy black metal - so pure, so cold. The album is available as a "name your price" download.


It's doubtful anyone will ever fill the void that Fallen Empire leaves behind, but a new split release from Horror Pain Gore Death will keep playlists darker than black. Kicking off the proceedings are Chicago's Terranaut, who elevate themselves above generic second wave proclivities with an assembly of memorable riffs and catchy as hell songs. Wisconsin's Chaosophy opt for a more sinister sound, with a style that borders on death metal and a contempt for religion that spells danger for nearby churches. The war against the light rages on. [$6.66]

Sunday, September 30, 2018

Saturday, September 29, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Convulsing, Imperial Triumphant, Mutilation Rites, Churchburn



Australian solo act Convulsing is one of the most interesting acts in death metal right now. Atonal, atmospheric, and dynamic, sophomore album Grievous never gets stuck in one style or one tempo, taking the listener on a claustrophobic voyage through everything the genre was and could be. Ending the album with a moody re-imagining of Porcupine Tree's "The Sleep of No Dreaming" is perhaps the most indicative window to the man behind the project. This is a death metal meisterwork that deserves to be counted among the best of the year - and since it's available as a "name your price" download, there's no reason not to get it right now.


New York's Imperial Triumphant have been chipping away at the boundaries of death metal from day one, but their latest album takes their ambition to a whole new level. Vile Luxury combines the dissonant, skronking style of past releases and expands it to include a horn section and choir, combining death metal and hard bop in a way that recalls both John Coltrane and Immolation. An Ascension of death metal. [$9.99]


Fellow New Yorkers Mutilation Rites keep their death metal relatively straight-forward and brutal. But Chasm has just enough progressive and and punk rock digressions to its blasting fervor that these six songs never get tedious. And the production (recorded, among other places, at Brooklyn's infamous Saint Vitus Bar) brings the most out of the band's onslaught. Death done right. [$6]

Revolving around Vital Remains co-founder Dave Suzuki of and one-time Grief sticksman Ray McCaffrey, Churchburn sounds pretty much like what you'd expect. On their debut full-length None Shall Live... The Hymns of Misery, the quasi-black metal riffs of early VR are dragged to the depths and slowed to a crawl, resulting in one of the most evil death doom albums of recent years. As grim as a New England Winter. [$8]

Sunday, September 23, 2018

Thursday, September 20, 2018

Mixtape 61 - Darsombra (Part 2)



Here is the 61st installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring part two of an interview with Brian Daniloski and Ann Everton of Darsombra.

Monday, September 17, 2018

Mixtape 60 - Darsombra (Part 1)



Here is the 60th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring part one of an interview with Brian Daniloski and Ann Everton of Darsombra.

Sunday, September 16, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Brant Bjork, Yawning Man, Domadora, Great Electric Quest



Throw on some platform shoes and pull out the shag rug for the Seventies-riffic third solo album by stoner rock godfather Brant Bjork. Mankind Woman widens the scope of the desert rock style that Bjork pioneered with Fu Manchu and Kyuss, encompassing Seventies funk, Sixties psychedelia, and Motown. "Groovy" in every sense of the word. [€8.99]



Yawning Man also have roots in the desert rock scene, with members who served time in Kyuss and Fatso Jetson, as well as contributed to Josh Homme's Desert Sessions. So it's quite a surprise that The Revolt Against Tired Noises bears little resemblance to the fuzzed out sound they helped establish, opting for a spacey and crystalline style that has more in common Mogwai. A shimmering update of "Catamaran" (a Yawning Man song which Kyuss covered on their last album) only underscores the wide berth between their past and present. A relief for tired ears. [$8]



On the other hand, French instrumental quartett Domadora remain fiercely devoted to the heft and fuzz that the Palm Springs desert birthed. Born out of improvised jams, the four songs that comprise LACUNA veer from earthshakingly heavy to sublimely delicate, taking the listener on a wordless journey. Some stories need no narration. [€8]



If there's one band that's destined to be airbrushed on the side of a van, it's San Diego's Great Electric Quest. Chapter II - OF EARTH is a retro freight train making stops at early Priest and Sabbath's Dio period, terminating at Seventies metal Valhalla. Faith, meet your defenders. [$5.99]

Saturday, August 25, 2018

Mixtape 59 - Youth Avoiders



Here is the 59th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Parisian punk rockers Youth Avoiders.

Sunday, August 19, 2018

Mixtape 58 - Mymanmike



Here is the 58th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Seoul-based power violence band Mymanmike.

Saturday, August 11, 2018

Mixtape 57 - Marijannah



Here is the 57th instalment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Rasyid Juraimi of Singaporean stoner rockers Marijannah.


Saturday, August 4, 2018

Mixtape 56 - Potion



Here is the 56th instalment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Sydney psychedelic metal band Potion.

Sunday, July 29, 2018

Mixtape 55 - Shatter Brain



Here is the 55th instalment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Ryan Quarrington, Matthew DeSisto, and Pat Callaghan of Adelaide metal band Shatter Brain.


Sunday, July 22, 2018

an interview with New Old Skull

I'm late to most things, but I was several decades late in discovering seminal noise rock band Live Skull. The band helped define the No Wave style that emerged from NY's Lower East Side, providing an arty, cerebral alternative to the NYHC sound that was taking shape at the same time. Recently, the band's members reunited in the form of New Old SkullI reached out to the band to find out more about this segment of music history that passed me by; guitarist/vocalist Mark C. was extremely generous with his time in answering my questions.

Monday, July 16, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Daggra, Scathed, Closet Witch, Psychoneurosis/Agathocles



Unlike the adjacent death and black metal scenes, grindcore never went through a regressive "old school" phase, and the genre's most retro adherents sit comfortably side by side with its most adventurous. Texans Daggra find a middle ground between both, and the results are phenomenal. Their second album Setsuna brings to mind the hook-heavy, musically omnivorous approach of Nineties Napalm Death and Brutal Truth, but never strays too far from the template laid down by grind's founding fathers. One of the best grindcore albums I've heard in 2018. [$6.66]



Dark crust and grindcore go together like chocolate and peanut butter for Milwaukee's Scathed. On Already Dead, the bleak sound of Tragedy is combined with short bursts of caveman speed. The result is an album that has as many blastbeats as d-beats, and shows that the way forward for this flavour of hardcore is not necessarily slower or more melodic. [ $7]



The shadow of a particular Jane Doe lies over Iowa's Closet Witch. The chaotic style, twangy riffs and sudden tempo changes on their eponymous debut bear the unmistakable influence of Kurt Ballou, though Mollie Piatetsky's shrieks are in a bruxism-inducing class of their own. There are no shortage of bands emulating Converge, but if the Boston crew do ever slow down, they can rest easy knowing they have a suitable understudy right here. [$7]



Polish veterans Psychoneurosis got in touch with me about being reviewed, and my morning commute wouldn't have been as manic if they hadn't. On their Grind Resurrection split with Agathocles, they contribute 6 furious, socially conscious death grind tracks with a touch of that Vaderiffic Polish sound and no shortage of cowbell. Blistering, head spinning fun. [$3]

Sunday, July 15, 2018

Mixtape 54 - Ratos de Porão



Here is the 54th installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Boka and Jão of Brazilian hardcore legends Ratos de Porão.

Sunday, July 1, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Abscess, Maggot Casket, Gruesome, Oxygen Destroyer



I never checked out Abscess while they were active - which, as a new reissue from Horror Pain Gore Death makes clear, was a severe oversight. On Horrorhammer, the visceral simplicity of Autopsy was given a gutterpunk shot in the arm, somehow upping the filth quota of Reifert's previous band. It's nothing short of phenomenal, and I like to think Reifert answered his many Swedish emulators with a garage-raucous death'n'roll of his own. [$6.66; HPGD has made a limited edition vinyl version available for $25.]



It would be easy to dismiss Kentucky's Maggot Casket as another old school revival bandwagon-hopper, but there's more than meets the eye. Their eponymous debut contains enough unexpected tempo changes and melodic twists in its tweaking of classic death metal that it approaches the avant/prog approach of early Finnish death metal. It's too early to tell, but this could be the next Demilich or Convulse in the making. [$6.66]



Any question as to how committed Gruesome are to their gimmick should be answered by their third full-length. From the cover art to Matt Harvey's astonishingly accurate Schuldiner impression, Twisted Prayers is a loving tribute to Death's own third album Spiritual Healing, wherein Evil Chuck reshaped the monster he created into a more thoughtful musical creature - thereby setting the table for the progressive and technical death metal we know today. Schuldiner's disciples have grown exponentially since his passing, but Gruesome are the most committed to bring Death to life. [$10]



Metalfest meets Bi-Mon-Sci-Fi-Con with Seattle's kaijuphiliac death-thrashers Oxygen Destroyer. Bestial Manifestations of Malevolence and Death draws inspiration from classic Godzilla films as well as the equally monstrous sound of early Sepultura and Vader, resulting in an album that smokes all other old school pretenders in its atomic fury. A split with fellow B-movie fiends VHS has recently been announced, so grab the popcorn and prepare for Toho destruction. [$6]


Sunday, June 24, 2018

Mixtape 53 - Protomartyr



Here is the 53rd installment of the Dreams of Consciousness podcast, featuring an interview with Joe Casey of Detroit-based post-punk band Protomartyr.

Monday, June 18, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Burial In The Sky, Dischordia, Hatred Reigns, Pestilent Reign



Pennsylvania's Burial In The Sky join Cynic and Inanimate Existence in my "yoga metal" circle. Like kombucha brewed with psilocybin, Creato et Hominus infuses the band's cerebral and technical approach with psychedelia in the form of moog keyboards, saxophone, and mandolin parts. Not since Dan Swanö in his prime has death metal drawn so deeply or boldy from the well of Seventies' prog. [$7.99]



As the ranks of bands emulating Immolation and Deathspell Omega proliferated, Oklahoma's Dischordia spent almost a decade refining their own style of progressive death metal. Their two song Binge/Purge EP takes the listener on a 20 minute voyage through convoluted riffs and spastic mathcore, resulting in a car crash of technical mastery and punishing dissonance. Symphonies of motion sickness. [$5]



There's a bright light on the death metal horizon in the form of Hatred Reigns. Like fellow up-and-comers Abnormality and Hate Storm Annihilation, their three song Realm: I - AFFLICTION draws from the blast-centric work of Morbid Angel, Suffocation and Cryptopsy without being overly beholden to it. Give them the production their brutality deserves and they'll be unstoppable. [€7]



I doubt anyone loves Misery Index as much as Stuttgart's Pestilent Reign - not even this nerd. While Pyres never quite rises to furious speed of their heroes, it does add an agreeable blackened sheen to the band's fretburning deathgrind (as well as a less agreeable Alex Jones clip). Heirs to nose-bleedery. [€7]

Sunday, June 17, 2018

an interview with Advent of Bedlam


I'm a sucker for death metal from overlooked scenes. So when Horror Pain Gore Death Productions announced the signing of Costa Rica's Advent of Bedlam, I couldn't wait to hear them. Their latest release Human Portal Phenomenon is an antidote to the run of the mill albums that have been clogging up my inbox lately, combining dissonance with speed and sombre melodies in a way that I haven't quite heard before. Eager to delve deeper into the band and their scene, I reached out to find out more. Guitarist Max Gutierrez was kind enough to answer my questions. 

Sunday, June 10, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - Beach House, Peach Kelli Pop, Dark Times, Candace



Baltimore duo Beach House are much beloved by Pitchfork types; and to the extent that they introduced me to this whole "dreampop" thing, it's a sentiment I share. Their latest album 7 layers lush synth parts and shimmying guitars over austere electronic beats, with Victoria Legrand's vocals painting a melancholic picture throughout. This is one of the most moving albums I've heard all year. [$10]



After years of lo-fi recordings, Peach Kelli Pop are on the verge of invading the mainstream with their most polished, shamelessly commercial album yet. Gentle Leader fires off 10 short power pop earworms, using the band's irresistible harmonies to Trojan horse lyrics that often hint at darker topics. Bubble gum with a punk aftertaste. [$10 CAD]



Oslo's Dark Times keep it lo-fi but aren't without their pop sympathies. Tell Me What I Need takes the listener on a trip through old Subpop, post-punk, and riot grrrl albums to arrive at a destination that's both retro and timeless at the same time. Dark Times they may be, but I see a bright future ahead. [49 NOK]



Self-described as "witchgaze", Portland OR's Candace will fill that Mazzy Star shaped hole in your heart. New Ruins is a flawless take on shoegazing indie pop that makes the best of its three vocalists and downbeat tempos, resulting in an album that's soothing and unassuming. A triumph of quiet over bombast. [$9]

Sunday, June 3, 2018

an interview with Violent Opposition



Bay Area quartet Violent Opposition have tweaked the grindcore formula with a dizzying, quirky approach that is influenced as much by Frank Zappa as it is by Napalm Death or Terrorizer. The band has a prolific release history online, but little information about their origins or the philosophy behind their approach - so I took it upon myself to probe deeper. Guitarist Damian was kind enough to answer my questions.

Sunday, May 27, 2018

Bandcamp Picks - The Body, Body Void, Ommadon, Hundred Year Old Man



Portland-based duo The Body have long insisted that they are really a noise act, rather than a sludge or metal band. To that end, their latest album I Have Fought Against It, But I Can’t Any Longer ditches the riffs for synths and electronic beats, skewing closer to Portishead than Eyehategod (if Portishead was fed a steady diet of Eyehategod, that is). The results are as dark and emotive as anything The Body has put out - and Chip King's screams have never sounded more anguished. [$9]


Since changing their name from Devoid, Bay Area trio Body Void have been making waves that befit their ultra low-end rumble. At times reaching Khanate levels of listener antagonism, I Live Inside A Burning House displays a solid understanding of dynamics, using sections of ambient noise and brief flashes of caveman hardcore to keep their minimalist sludge from getting tedious. However, with five tracks running for well over an hour, it remains a punishing affair to the end. [$5]


By calling their music "fundamentalist drone", Glasgow's Ommadon guaranteed a friend for life in me. Over the course of two 20 minute compositions, End Times drowns the listener with riffs as thick and dark as molasses, peppered with blackgazing tremolo riffs and ridiculously guttural vocals. Anyone mourning the absence of Black Boned Angel should join me in celebrating the existence of Ommadon. The album is available as a "name your price" download.

After a slew of well-regarded EPs and the "Black Fire" single serving as an appetizer earlier in the year, Hundred Year Old Man patiently laid the groundwork for their first full-length. Breaching often sounds like two different records being played simultaneously, as ambient guitars cascade over the band's heaving grooves. Their partnership with the similarly forward-thinking and experimental Gizeh Records makes sense, and the latter's embrace of heavier music is most welcome. [£5]