What Are You Listening To?

[AlSymerz]

The Hard Ons - Ripper 23

Here ya go Dead1 it's on Bandcamp

https://cheersquadrecordstapes.bandcamp.com/album/ripper-23

[Nasty_Cabbage]

44 minutes ago, GoatmasterGeneral said:

Can my eyes be deceiving me? Is this just a dream? Do we actually have someone here besides me who would seriously post Alastor?? I don't know what to be more excited about, the fact that Alastor has just dropped their 8th full length album or that we have someone else here who digs it enough to post it.

I would point out that they're Portuguese, not South American, and their first album was Y2K not the 90's, but these are just trivial details. And the dude just said that this kind of stuff makes him think of that South American death/thrash scene, which is quite resonable.

Trying to get dinner ready here, I'll play this Gates of Darkness a little later when we go upstairs. How's the Children of the Grave cover? I always enjoy a good cover of a classic tune.

I feel very foolish. For the record, I would like to be clear that I am fully aware that Portugal is not in South America. I should have been clear that the South American scene seems to be the primary influence, and it being one of my absolute favorite niche scenes in all of metal was making me wax faux nostalgic since I was never part of it when it was happening.

 

And to be fair to you it's actually a fairly common mistake that stateside Americans make with Portugal so I definitely understand why it needed to be pointed out. Truth is it's not even the dumbest mistake we often make. Some one asked me once where I would like to travel to if I were independently wealthy and I said "I'd love to see Vienna or just Austria in general", to which he replied "I'm too scared of crocodiles to go there." I almost couldn't reply I was so dumbstruck.

Children of the Grave cover threw me. Obviously I wasn't expecting a full on doomy cover, but the way they start out just blistering right into it and then leading into the open sustained chords almost made it hard to identify as a cover right away. Gotta give 'em props for actually altering the nature of the song instead of just playing a straight cover.

NP: 

 

41 minutes ago, SurgicalBrute said:

Abolish - ...From The Depths

https://fda-records.bandcamp.com/album/from-the-depths

Oh this looks tasty. I was picking up some doomy Hooded Menace kinda vibes from the artwork and logo, but the bottom end of this death metal has some serious thump to it. I like it.

[AlSymerz]

Skyclad - Irrational Anthems

[Nasty_Cabbage]

np: Sacral Rage - Beyond Celestial Echoes

▶︎ Beyond Celestial Echoes | Sacral Rage (bandcamp.com)

 

A lot of fun to be had here. The falsettos are at least on key, and used with relative restraint compared to a lot of other practitioners of their chosen style. I find with this strain of Trad. the songs live and die by the strength of the bridge since there's rarely any variance from the verse chorus verse chorus bridge chorus structure. That in itself isn't a bad thing per se, but it really makes it so you can't just throw a solo over the main chord change. These guys know what it's about, and how to write good bridges.

[Nasty_Cabbage]

Worn Mantle - Worn Mantle

Worn Mantle - Worn Mantle [RAUM-022] | Geistraum Records (bandcamp.com)

 Oddly enough though listening to these Minnesotans the band I'm reminded most of is  Russia's Pseudogod. Much like the riffs on Deathwomb Catechesis the rythmic paths the riffs take here are deceptively simple and often very straightforward in terms of time signatures, but allowing these rythms to layer and build and erode with the passage of each song reveals a strong sense of confidence and musical development. Also like Pseudogod, even though the riffs say 'death metal' on their surface the cold bloodless hand of black metal cannot be overstated. I really like these guys just on the basis of reminding of Pseudogod alone since I've been waiting for album number two from them for over a decade now. But there's something very distinct here; something that could only have sprung from musical isolation.

[Arioch]

Death - Individual Thought Patterns (1993)

 

[Arioch]

Cannibal Corpse - Live Cannibalism (2000)

 

[Thatguy]

3 hours ago, Nasty_Cabbage said:

Worn Mantle - Worn Mantle

This was Thatguy approved when it came out, but no one else here much cared for it. Well, we are right and they are wrong.

[GoatmasterGeneral]

1 hour ago, Thatguy said:

This was Thatguy approved when it came out, but no one else here much cared for it. Well, we are right and they are wrong.

It's not terrible, but I feel like I've been listening to it for well over an hour, and when I checked I was only 35 minutes in, that's only halfway. My patience with this dissonance in the name of musicianship is wearing thin and there's definitely an evil component missing here for me too. But it's not terrible.

 

Worn Mantle, Minnesota 2022, not hearing the Pseudogod thing. I would not call this black metal.

 

[RelentlessOblivion]

Cathedral - The Ethereal Mirror

[Arioch]

Deicide - Overtures of Blasphemy (2018)

 

[GoatmasterGeneral]

Naastrand/Darkenhöld - Wrath of the Serpent/Of Citadels... French Medieval Black Metal 2009

 

Nehëmah - Requiem Tenebrae, 2004 Vive la France!

 

[Arioch]

Defecation - Purity Dilution (1989)

 

[markm]

Misþyrming-Með hamri-this album from last year has held up well for me. I'm noticing more of  the synth quasi symphonic influence than initially caught my ears. Surprised in a way they didn't get much pushback on that aspect of their sound. 

Tristania/Beyond the Veil-gong full symphonic synth for a throwback

[GoatmasterGeneral]

5 minutes ago, markm said:

Misþyrming-Með hamri-this album from last year has held up well for me. I'm noticing more of  the synth quasi symphonic influence than initially caught my ears. Surprised in a way they didn't get much pushback on that aspect of their sound. 

The synths weren't overdone at all they were very understated and complementary. The synths and symphonics are only a problem when they dominate the sound. I wouldn't even really consider this album to be symphonic, the synths are there yes, but they never rise to the level of intrusive or annoying, they just provide some atmosphere. I would even say this is a good example of how you're supposed to use keyboards in black metal. And the music itself is very good, that always helps. The better the music, the more shit most of us will be willling to overlook. But I'm not overlooking anything here, this album is very good just as it is. Thanks for reminding me about this record Marky Mark, it had been awhile since I played it. Wish I knew how to pronounce their name. I think that funny P-like letter is actually pronounced like a T.

Misþyrming - Með hamri, Iceland 2022, I love albums with buildings on the cover. Any kind of structure from large stone edifices (edifi?) like this one to small dilapidated wooden shacks in the forest, doesn't matter.

 

Óreiða - The Eternal, since we're doing the Iceland thing now I'll take this opportunity to give this new one from a month ago another spin. Solid end of year list contender this one, although could be a tad too fuzzy for some of you crystal clear production snobs.

 

[markm]

I agree, they provide just the right amount of atmosphere without being overdone. 

[Nasty_Cabbage]

3 hours ago, GoatmasterGeneral said:

4 hours ago, Thatguy said:

This was Thatguy approved when it came out, but no one else here much cared for it. Well, we are right and they are wrong.

It's not terrible, but I feel like I've been listening to it for well over an hour, and when I checked I was only 35 minutes in, that's only halfway. My patience with this dissonance in the name of musicianship is wearing thin and there's definitely an evil component missing here for me too. But it's not terrible.

 

Worn Mantle, Minnesota 2022, not hearing the Pseudogod thing. I would not call this black metal.

I certainly wouldn't call it straight up black metal either, or at least not without a ton of qualifiers attached, and honestly I wouldn't direct somebody who'd asked for black metal in its quintessential sense toward it. The approach to developing and slowly layering the stuff is mainly what makes me think these guys are probably familiar with some of Deathspell Omega's longer tracks. The simple rythms are where I'm getting the Pseudogod thing. It's not nearly as messy as Teitanblood or Impetuous Ritual, but it's got that otherworldly feel for me, which is an itch I sometimes find difficult to scratch.

NP: 

 I hate to pick on these guys, but this is kind of bad. The longer I let this one play the more I'm completely  unsurprised by almost every musical choice. There's no sense of experimentation or adventure here. The production values are high, but outside of that these guys don't sound the slightest bit interested in their own music, and if they're not interested why should I be?

[GoatmasterGeneral]

Izrod - Sarajevski Odisej, Balkan black from Bosnia & Herzegovina, good shit.

 

Grafskymf - Dräpt Af Myrens Rå, Sweden

 

Silvanthrone - Forbidden Pathways to Ancient Wisdom, rbm Philly

 

[SurgicalBrute]

Satyricon - Dark Medieval Times

Emperor - In the Nightside Eclipse

Immortal - Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism

 

[Nasty_Cabbage]

▶︎ For Mircalla | Briton Rites | sunandmoonrecords (bandcamp.com)

Hmmm. This one's apparently regarded as a young classic if the archives are to be believed. I don't really fetishize horror films. I feel it's a genre where the sheer amount of awful to barely tolerable entries nearly makes the search for the masterpieces that are out there not worth it Still in metal, and doom in particular, I can get behind it as a fitting theme. The fans of this album seem positively lovestruck and smitten with it. Can't begrudge them that. Musically I think it's a little above average. I don't mind the vocalist at all even if he does sound like he lacks a bit of diaphragm control in trying to land the sweet notes. It probably helps that it reminds me a little of Pagan Altar in that the vocals underscore and strengthen the material by virtue of being capable enough not to be an annoyance, and staying out of the way when they're not required. Good guitar work all around.

[Innominate]

W.A.S.P. - s/t

 

[Thatguy]

5 hours ago, GoatmasterGeneral said:

Wish I knew how to pronounce their name. I think that funny P-like letter is actually pronounced like a T.

þ is pronounced as th as in thorn

ð is pronounced as th in the

Dental fricatives.

Any Icelandic speakers here please correct me if I'm wrong.

[Dead1]

23 hours ago, AlSymerz said:

The Hard Ons - Ripper 23

Here ya go Dead1 it's on Bandcamp

https://cheersquadrecordstapes.bandcamp.com/album/ripper-23

Thanks, I'll give it a listen today.

 

Alestorm - Black Sails At Midnight - one of my guilty pleasures! 

Carcass - Torn Arteries

Darkthrone - Astral Fortress

Megadeth - Killing Is My Business And Business Is Good

[GoatmasterGeneral]

4 hours ago, Nasty_Cabbage said:

▶︎ For Mircalla | Briton Rites | sunandmoonrecords (bandcamp.com)

Hmmm. This one's apparently regarded as a young classic if the archives are to be believed. I don't really fetishize horror films. I feel it's a genre where the sheer amount of awful to barely tolerable entries nearly makes the search for the masterpieces that are out there not worth it Still in metal, and doom in particular, I can get behind it as a fitting theme. The fans of this album seem positively lovestruck and smitten with it. Can't begrudge them that. Musically I think it's a little above average. I don't mind the vocalist at all even if he does sound like he lacks a bit of diaphragm control in trying to land the sweet notes. It probably helps that it reminds me a little of Pagan Altar in that the vocals underscore and strengthen the material by virtue of being capable enough not to be an annoyance, and staying out of the way when they're not required. Good guitar work all around.

 

Seems they've changed the cover art, but I remember really loving this record and playing the shit out of it when it first came out back in 2010. Dude's warbly cean vocals fell ihto the so bad they're good category. Don't know nothin' about no horror movie tie-in, wasn't paying any attention to the lyrics. Don't know if it's a "classic" but I still think fairly highly of it even though I haven't taken it out for a spin in years. Maybe tonight will be the lucky night.

[JamesT]

On 6/2/2023 at 7:36 AM, GoatmasterGeneral said:

Nice for you that they played a Thursday Northampton gig so you didn't have to fight your way down into London and see them in Brixton tomorrow night. I remember the days of going to see bands and gambling which side of the stage the guitar player would be on and how disappointed we'd be if we guessed wrong. I'll assume you'd never seen them before but now you'll never make that same mistake with Carcass again. (from your pic it looks like he was stage right not stage left) Still, you didn't appear to be much more than 5 or 6 meters away from the dude on that nice low stage in a small club so it's always cool to finally see your metal heros in an intimate setting like that. Were they bleedin' loud as fuck in that litte place or did they have mercy on your ears?

Read your post the first time as "the Cult molested Maiden" and now I see you actually said the Cure not the Cult, so I'm having to decontruct that mental pic I'd concocted of Astbury and Duffy up onstage with Murray and Harris. As hard as that woud be to imagine I'm really having trouble wrapping my head around the idea of the Cure/Maiden mashup. Almost tempted to dial up Unto Others and see what you mean, but the other half of me thinks I should just put the whole idea right out of my head and move on with my day.

Woke up 90 minutes ago and peeked at the clock with one bleary eye, saw it was just about 6 then jumped up and ran down the stairs to put the garbage out before the truck comes to take it away (usually 6:15 or 6:30) Can't put it out the night before or the bears will get into it and leave it strewn all about (like they did last week when I forgot to put it out for the garbagemen Friday morning and then thought I could leave the can outside by the kitchen door) and the garbage blokes won't fuck with it then. But anyway now I can't get back to sleep and my alarm will be going off in another 15 mintes at 7:45 so once again the bears have robbed me of an hour and 45 minutes of valuable much needed sleep and I'll probably have a shitty day. Wish I was preparing to have a shitty day because I'd gone to see a cool metal show last night and not just because I had to get up and carry the stupid rubbish out to the street.

 

Dialed up the new Gloryhammer record on YouTube (I've seen their name around but I had never actually heard them before) skipped the intro and clicked on a spot midway through the first song...and I made it a whole 4 seconds! And even after only 4 seconds I feel violated now. Like I need a shot of whiskey and a hot shower while blasting gnarly osdm to get the memory of those 4 seconds out of my head. You know you're my boy Jimmy T and I've always enjoyed our forum interactions, but I don't know how you can listen to that stuff.

I've enjoyed our interactions as well, my friend!  I completely understand how bands like Gloryhammer aren't everyone's cup of tea.  Admittedly, I'm not nearly as big into power metal as I was back in high school.  But I still really enjoy a few bands:  DragonForce, Cellador, Edguy, Sonata Arctica, Gloryhammer, Power Quest, to name a few.  

 

Leather - "We Are the Chosen"

Leather - "II"

Leather - "Shock Waves"

Chastain - "We Bleed Metal"

Chastain - "Surrender to No One"

Chastain - "In An Outrage"

Chastain - "Sick Society"

Can't get enough of these two bands, both fronted by Leather Leone.  Such a powerhouse vocalist with a perfect voice for hard rock/heavy metal.  Highly recommended!