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"J'avais rêvé du nord" - Peste Noire

Saor - Guardians The true sound of the Scottish spirit.

When Mortuus joined Marduk after Legion left the band 15 years ago, I was skeptical. I really loved Legion's vocals, and when some dude called Mortuus joined the fold, I wasn't very impressed with what I saw as his run-of-the-mill vocals and standard look. There was also a guy called Mortiis in the scene. Who was this new imposter? Yes, he was a great showman live, and that's to his credit. He owned the stage. But I just didn't find 'Plague Angel' through to 'Serpent Sermon' all that compelling. In fact, I found them pretty boring, despite interesting moments. I liked those albums, and I bought them, but I didn't love them. I just thought something was missing. His voice was cool, but I didn't feel anything listening to it. The songs were generic satanic stock material, and it just didn't move me. He growled and screamed. Fine. Whatever. Then Frontschwein came out in 2015. At first I was intrigued by the WWII vibe. It reminded my of Panzer Division Marduk. But it took me ages to buy the album because I was so jaded. But once I heard the album, I knew that two things were plainly obvious. 1. Morgan has written riffs that he has never come close to before. The slow songs are so fucking weighty and gut-crunching. There are almost melodic death metal epic moments. Every single riff moves me. 2. Mortuus unleashed the true essence of the beast in man through his voice. Or should I say, voices. Mortuus' performance on Frontschwein is not just one of black metal's best, it's one of metal's best. He keeps his mid-range growl-scream, but he has added a range that simply wasn't heard before. In '503' he shouts the names of towns through which the Panzers are rolling. In 'Nebelwerfer' he vomits his soul in warfare adoration. In 'Thousand-Fold Death' he spits out lyrics like a machine gun. In several songs he drops the last word of the verse into a spoken neck-break utterance. I've been listening to black metal for 25 years and I've never heard this before. He'll growl a line, then at the end just drop the last word down with a choke. It's extraordinary. I'm dedicating this post to Mortuus and his work in Frontscwein, and the essence of creativity in vocals. Here's a genre where it has all been done before, but Mortuus has shown that he can go further. Mortuus: The greatest vocalist in modern black metal.

Anacrusis - Suffering Hour

"Cantus in Memoriam Benjamin Britten" - Arvo Pärt

Chris Poland - Return to Metalopolis Blotted Science - The Machinations of Dementia Gordian Knot - s/t It's an instrumental kind of week for me.

8/10 Pretty cool. Also, lol at that Metal Archives classification.

Adramelech - Psychostasia

Well this has caught me at an exceptionally good time. It just so happens I'm in the mood for such music 8/10 I've noted my previous entry here was overlooked and so I'll just post the exact same song again.

I know, it makes me sad too...thinking about how good they used to be. Sent from my HTCD160LVW using Tapatalk

There is also something compelling about 'owning' the album. It's not just something that you've tapped into online when your computer's on, heard at a party or on the radio: it's yours. You own it. It's in your house and you can put it on, wave the case around, and tell your friends not to hold the booklet quite so tight - you're creasing it! And that has a profound effect on how you perceive and experience the music.

You, sir, need Godflesh in your life.

Bolt Thrower - War Master

When I first bought this I thought it was really good, now I too find it really boring. Varg fixes on a fairly mediocre riff and then repeats it for the next 8 minutes. I really struggle to listen to it for more than five or six minutes these days, which is five or six minutes longer than I can listen to his last couple of albums... Great cover art though, but overall the Burzum musical legacy has been really damaged by his post-prison albums, which at first I championed but now I sneeringly deride in my mind.

Yeah they are plying main stage download this year! Can't wait

Depending on what day it is, I'll grab that as my favorite of theirs. Like most Norwegian death metal, it's incredible. Sent from my HTCD160LVW using Tapatalk

The most significant reason for me prefering CD's instead of downloading music is that most of the times I simply do not feel like being online when listening to music. The reasons for this is numerous, but even a lit screen from a smartphone can be damn distracting. Also I am terrible at multi tasking online: I do not know why but I just cannot write/read and listen to music at the same time. But it is not because that I am techno shy. I love using YouTube to discover/rediscover music and bands or to use it as a substitue when my CD player or a CD has worn down and needs to be replaced. Vinyls however, I do not really miss them. Fragile things that would scratch just by looking at them. I did like the covers however, I have been known to buy a record based on the cover alone...that is how I discovered W.A.S.P back in the day

In the last few months I found some really great cds at a local record store. To come across something really cool, especially when it is unexpected is very exciting. That's one of the problems with the internet - you can look up and listen to anything on demand. It can take the risk/excitement out of a purchase of something that is new to you.