The general Metal discussion thread

[Jigsaw9 6783]

I was in the mood for some dark & grim stuff, so I did some digging around and catching up in terms of 'black metal 2015'... Some of my findings so far that sounded pretty cool:

 

Odious - Skin Age / Egyptian band playing symphonic black metal with lots of melodic oriental flair... at times a bit too over-the-top with all the extra orchestration, but that's what gives it its special atmosphere I guess. In any case, very much fun to listen to, even for those who are usually not that much into "full-on br00tal" extreme metal.

 

Batushka - Litourgiya / Mysterious Polish group mixing elements of black, doom and post-black metal with the sound of orthodox Slavic (?) liturgies and hymns and stuff. That should already tell you that even if it weren't much musically, the atmosphere would be top-notch, but thankfully everything's in order here. Creepy, ritualistic, majestic - killer record.

 

Au-Dessus - Au-Dessus / This is only an EP (the band's debut release), but a really fine one. The 'experts' say this is post-black metal, well I dunno, but it sure is great. Very nice feel with some melancholic and powerful melodies, and is surprisingly varied (but not wandering out of the usual BM spectrum much). Oh, btw the drum work is excellent! A nice surprise.

 

Non Opus Dei - Diabeł / Solid avantgarde-experimental black metal, actually quite digestable despite being kinda chaotic and dissonant most of the time. They got dat mystical menacing feel on point.

[Bear 1817]

Seems like a lot of the rumors about Abbath being hard to work with is starting to make some sense. Kevin Foley (Creature) and Per Valla are both out of the bands, and Abbath and King ov Hell are the only two left, and both are known to be way to hard on the drugs. It's starting to look as if Horgh and Demonaz shoul get a reward for holding out with the guy as long as they did.

[Bear 1817]

And here's a small list of black metal releases that I've enjoyed from 2015. Most are fairly known within the world of black metal, but you might be able to pick up a few good albums from this list:

 

Mgła - Exercises in Futility

You should all know Mgla by now, and I will not spend any more time talkign about them. A must-have!

Archgoat - The Apocalyptic Triumphator

Dark, heavy and brutal black/death metal in the vein of Blasphemy, Beherit and Teitanblood. Another great album from a great band.

Cultes des Ghoules - The Rise of Lucifer

A rather unique black metal band that can be seen as a mix of Negative Plane, Mortury Drape, Katharsis, Necromantia and Mayhem. Fantastic band!

Macabre Omen - Gods of War - At War

Epic black metal with huge nods to bands such as Rotting Christ, Bathory and Hades.

Nocternity - Harps of the Ancient Temples

Cold, minimalistic and mid-tempo black metal that's just 100% greek. Great release!

Misþyrming - Söngvar elds og óreiðu

One of the many new Icelandic black metal of top quality. Semi-experimental black metal in the vein of mid-era Deathspell Omega and fellow countrymen Svartidauði, with strong The Ruins of Beverast vibes to it.

Dødheimsgard - A Umbra Omega

Dødheimsgard the way Dødheimsgard should sound. Avant-garde, experimental and mental. Crazy good shit!

Drudkh - Борозна обірвалася (A Furrow Cut Short)

A huge step backwards for Drudkh as this is the album after their first four that sounds the closest to their first four albums. Might be their best release after the firstfour too. I don't know. Good, epic album made for a walk in the forest.

Downfall of Nur - Umbras de Barbagia

While not very original, this is a very cool album that sends nods to bands such as Agalloch, Ulver and Wolves in the Throne Room. Folky, depressive and nice.

Peste Noire - La Chaise-Dyable

This is the album that shoul've followed 2011's L'Ordure à l'état Pur. Experimental, avant-garde and fucking white trash black metal. I think this album is superb!

Autarcie - Retour en crasse

Autracie is a band that walk the path of Peste Noire, or, the path that Peste Noire started with their demos and first full-lenght. I think "medieval black metal" is a very fitting term. Another fantastic album by a fantastic band!

Sale Freux - Crèvecœur

Another band that has found the majority of their inspiration from the old sound of Peste Noire. More rural than Peste Noire and Autracie, but it shuld please fans of old Peste Noire or Autracie. Maybe a bit more ritualistic.

Glaciation - Sur les falaises de marbre

A french "super group" with Neige, Winterhalter and Indria Saray of Alcest/Peste Noire, RMS Hreidmarr of Anorexia Nervosa/The CNK and a few others. I was really impressed by their debut 1994, and this isn't much weaker. For some reason I think both this and the debut got a really pure DIY spirit to it. Not sure why. A bit punky edge to it.

Devouring Star - Through Lung and Heart

Another one of those dissonant black metal bands in the vein of mid-era Deathspell Omega and Svartidaudi. A bit easier to get into than the two bands mentioned, but still hard enough for most.

Lugubrum - Herval

These guys call their music "farmer black metal", and that's quite fitting for newer Lugubrum. In "recent" years they've gone down a path of weird, experimental and jazzy black metal unlike anything you've ever heard. To take one small example - you'll find traditional US power metal riffing, reggae and surf rock in this album. Well, on one single track. That is weird.

Ithaqua  - Initiation to Obscure Mysteries

This ain't nothing but a big, fat homage to Rotting Christ anno 91-93. Both the sound and quality of the music here reeks of Rotting Christ from this era. Brilliant release, and easily among my top 10 this year. It's so good, man!

Megiddo - The Holocaust Messiah

Great black metal in the veind of old Bathory, Celtic Frost, Hellhammer and Beherit, with more than one nod to bands such as Amebix, Motorhead and Black Sabbath. Top notch again from Megiddo!

 

 

That's it for now. Will check out the bands on Jiggy's list too.

 

Also, looking forward to hearing the new Cosmic Church EP. 2013's Ylistys was a really good and impressive album. Amazing to be quite honest. Should be good as fuck!

[Jigsaw9 6783]

Thanks for the thorough list, @Bear! I now have Downfall of Nur and Devouring Star in my playlist. Might try Dødheimsgard too.

[The Reverend 3566]

Thanks for the reco's gentlemen, I don't really keep up with black metal very well but winter puts me in the mood... so will definitely be checking some of these 2015 releases out over the next couple months.

[indigo 389]

Nice list! Haven't heard all of those yet but I really enjoyed Misþyrming, Mgla, Peste Noire, Glaciation.

 

That pseudo-chinese but actually from Colorado or some backwoods band and Panopticon released pretty good albums too imo.

[Bear 1817]

Yes, Ghost Bath's Moonlover was very good. A nice mix of Deafheaven, Austere, Woods of Desolation and Alcest. Very good album!

 

I will also add Cradle of Filth to the list as they released their best album since 1998's Cruelty and the Beast. Hammer of the Witches is just really, really good.  It also happens to be their most black metal-oriented album since that one too.

 

And a qick look and I see that I have forgotten these albums too:

 

Sigh - Graveward

Took quite some time to get into this one, but it's Sigh and it's excellent. Weird, original and awesome.

Melechesh - Enki

Melechesh the Melechesian way. Black/death with a middle-eastern folk-vibe. Great album.

Negură Bunget - Tău

Atmospheric and progressive black metal with folky touches. Good album and another fine Negura Bunget album.

Solefald - World Metal. Kosmopolis Sud

Solefald continue their path of weird. Avant-garde black metal with lots of different styles. Their best since the excellent In Harmonia Universali.

Forefather - Curse of the Cwelled

Black/viking metal that offers nothing new and is basically the same they've done for the past 10-15 years, but it's really good and really catchy. These guys know their choruses!

 

[Bear 1817]

More black metal to the people. Damn, I seem to forget 50% of the albums I've heard and enjoyed this year.

 

Kampfar - Profan

This album is easily the best thing Kampfar has done since 1999's Fra underverdenen. It's less black 'n' roll-oriented than the previous 3 albums, and much more focused than Kvass, which I enjoy. More pagan black metal. A big surprise if you ask me.

Hades Almighty - Pyre Era, Black!

Their first release in 14 years, and Hades/Hades Almighty's first release without original vocalist/bassist/keyboardist Janto. While they continue the progressive black metal of The Pulse of Decay, I feel like this has more influences from old Hades. The melody lines sounds so much like Hades at times. Which is good of course.

Marduk - Frontschwein

If you ask me, I'd saythat this is just another Marduk release musically. While the band has yet to reach the level of the fabolous Rom 5:12, it's still a good listen. A soundtrack to a total fucking warfare!

Death Karma - The History of Death & Burial Rituals Part I

This and consists of 2/3 of Cult of Fire, and that's something you'll hear if you're familiar with Cult of Fire. Epic and melodic black/death with a heavy Master's Hammer-vibe, just like Cult of Fire. But this is by no means just a Cult of Fire-clone or anything. A bit different, and most excellent! Do check out!

 

Also checked out the new Cosmic Church EP, and it was great as expected. Very good!

 

 

Really looking forward to Helheim - raunijaR too. Should be good!

[Bear 1817]

Bought tickets for Ghost and Tribulation in february today. Saw them in Trondheim in the same place around two years ago today, and it wasn't even sold out. They put the tickets out for sale at 9am today, and 10 I read that they were nearly sold out. So I got a hold of a pair, and before 11 I checked again and they were sold out. And after the debut album, so many moaned about how this band would fade into nothingness sooner rather than later, and that they were only popular because of their image. But they just keep getting bigger and bigger. Very impressive business from the side of the band. Really well done.

 

 

People should know Ghosts just doesn't disappear. They will stay!

[Jigsaw9 6783]

Thanks for the further recommendations, Bear. I tried listening to Dødheimsgard but nope, not my thing. Maybe it's just too complex and all-over-the-place for me to find any enjoyment in it. The vocals got on my nerves real quick too, somehow. Listened to the Devouring Star record too (once so far), can't remember much, other than it being okay.

 

I agree about the Melechesh album tho, nice one! And of course Mgła was kickass as usual.

 

Death Karma seems like they're my cup of tea, so def gonna check them out.

[Bear 1817]

Funny you'd say that, but the vocals of the new Dødheimsgard are easily my favourite part of the album. I think it's brilliant.

 

And as far as Devouring Star goes, it's a band that takes time. While not quite as hard-listening as for example Deathspell Omega, it's still the kind of music that needs time.

 

 

One of my favourite albums from this year:

 

 

Occult and psychedelic rock with a black metal-vibe.Cheesy as fuck, but I really like this band. It features the excellent EP's Symbols of Great Power and Panzerwitch, as well as three new songs.

[Bear 1817]

 

The fuck? Is this a dream, or what the hell is going on? Garm, Lazare, Vortex and VIntersorg sharing vocal duties within the same song? Shieeeeeeeeet! Best Borknagar song in 15 years, if you ask me. They haven't been this good since Quintessence.

[The Reverend 3566]

Kowloon Walled City released a new album recently?? I've gotta get on that shit... Container Ships was pretty good.

 

[Bear 1817]

 

https://soundcloud.com/edgedcircleproductions/reptilian-swamp

 

Cover and first song from Reptilian's debut album, a young, Norwegian death metal band with only a cool split with Inculter behind them. Sounds a lot like Obliteration , but this is cool as fuck. I really enjoy this track!  Looking forward to this album.

[トカゲ 49]

Satan's Satyrs are amazing. Their debut album, Wild Beyond Belief!, is a real masterpiece. 100% occult bikersploitation doom metal punk. Would be the perfect soundtrack to a film like Psychomania. While Die Screaming was good, it didn't have the same effect on me. Not even close. A bit too polished and standard, and it lacked real character which they had on their debut, EP and demo. The two songs I've heard off Don't Deliver Us has been very good. Total Blue Cheer worship!

And if you enjoy Satan's Satyrs Wild Beyond Belief!, you should check out Alucarda's Raw Howls for sure. It's got the same occult, bikersploitation vibe, and the album is at least as good as Wild Beyond Belief!, if not even better. Truth be told I think Wild Beyond Belief! sounds better in terms of production, while Raw Howls have better songs. But they're equal to me. Great albums!

Actually I like all three albums and prefer the more 'polished' sound since it's just a better recording quality thou I really have to admit the extremly raw demo sound of Wild has its own charme.

If you get the chance see them live, nice droning bass and 70's rock is all around. <3

 

I'm taking a listen to Alucarda right now, good stuff!

[Bear 1817]

There is no easy way to say this…our mighty, noble friend Lemmy passed away today after a short battle with an extremely aggressive cancer. He had learnt of the disease on December 26th, and was at home, sitting in front of his favorite video game from The Rainbow which had recently made it’s way down the street, with his family.
We cannot begin to express our shock and sadness, there aren’t words.
We will say more in the coming days, but for now, please…play Motörhead loud, play Hawkwind loud, play Lemmy’s music LOUD.

Have a drink or few.

Share stories.
Celebrate the LIFE this lovely, wonderful man celebrated so vibrantly himself.

HE WOULD WANT EXACTLY THAT.

Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister

1945 -2015

Born to lose, lived to win.

 

 

 

 

 

Shieeeeeeeet! An absolute legend, and one of the coolest guys ever. The guy's been a legend for a leat 35 years now, and that says it all. Human beings just doesn't get any cooler than this guy. And on the  bright side, he got another christmas and birthday to his name before he passed.

 

[Bear 1817]

Nobody commented on Leviathan's Scar Sighted? One of the finest records of 2015 IMO.

 

 

And I'm totally digging Haunted Shores, great stuff.

 

Been listening to this a lot lately, and this might be Wrest's best work till now, and his vocals are so fucking good. Easily his best performance ever.

 

And I really like the Krieg homage 4.30 into Within Thrall. The Sick Winds Stir the Cold Dawn!

[Jigsaw9 6783]

Goddammit... Rest in peace, Lemmy & continue to raise hell wherever you end up in the cosmos.

 

[トカゲ 49]

News hit me when I was checking my private mails at work. Fuck it, that guy will be missed, one hell of a guy with balls made of Krupp steel.

 

I still can't really get it, that Lemmy is gone. .__.

[Jigsaw9 6783]

This might be a good time to ask: any favorite Motörhead albums that are somehow close to your hearts? For me it's a tie between Hammered and Kiss of Death.

 

The first one because it was the first 'Head album that I listened all the way through. A friend of mine bought it back in junior high/middle school and lent it to me, and I probably listened to it more than any other rock CD at the time. I still remember hearing that glorious beat and melody of "Walk a Crooked Mile" for the first time. ^^ The album itself isn't that special I guess, but still full of solid songs - other favorites would have to be "Brave New World" and the über-br00tal and deliciously crunchy "Red Raw" (one of their heaviest songs ever imo). And that last outro track is so cheesy but so creepy and epic at the same time!

 

The second album I really like because it's the only Motörhead CD I actually own. I don't remember how I come to choose it at the store, probably just because that was the only one they had in stock there at the time, lol. But a good choice! I love love love the overall sound/production, very clean but not lifeless, it's bursting with power. "Trigger" is among my top 5 'Head songs for sure! The album also has a very nice variety, from the usual fast bangers and rock'n'rollin' stuff to some heavier moments (either in sound or in theme). Shows just how good these guys (and especially Lemmy) managed to remain after all those years.

[トカゲ 49]

No specific album, I only have few albums I prefer (I listen to too many bands). Motörhead was one of these bands you know you can't get wrong with 'cause their sound itself is just perfectly fitting. It took me some time to finally got into Motörhead but as usual with bands I need time to get into, it became a deep love, also always respected Lemmy as person for his personality and mind.

 

But the song Whorehouse Blues is more or less special to me, it will always remind me of this fucking hot sommer evening after work, talking to the girl that later became my girlfriend and getting drunk on whiskey (also Aftershock got kind of a good musical pill after the break-up).

 

Anyway, time for Jack Daniel's and Cola to remember Lemmy.

[Bear 1817]

Despite being awfully consistent with not a single weak album in their 40 years and 23 album long career. No matter which one you ut on you're in for a good ride, but the quality is a bit up and down of courser.. But there's five Motörhead albums I consider a must in everysingle metal fans collection:

 

Overkill

Ace of Spades

Iron Fist

Orgasmatron

1916

 

No Sleep 'til Hammersmith is a must too, to be honest. Might be the very best album ever.

 

These albums are everything a rock 'n' roll and heavy metal fan should want from a rock/heavy metal album. Brilliant albums, all of them. Motörhead was also one of the very first rock/metal bands I got into. The majority of us skateboarders used to listen to stuff like Motörhead, Suicidal Tendencies, Bad Religion, The Offspring, Pennywise and so on, so they got played a lot during the 10 years I skated a lot.

[Bear 1817]

Deströyer 666 - Wildfire

 

Fuck yeah! I can't wait for this!

[Bear 1817]

 

Fuck me, how good is that? Superb as usual from these aussie maniacs! Killer track!

[Bear 1817]

 

The entire album is up on youtube, but I'll wait for the album to leak in good quality. Sounds good, albeit a lot weaker than their fantastic 2012 demo Amechth'ntaas'm'rriachth. The demo just had a much cooler and morefitting production. But it sounds nice. Death metal in the vein of Demilich, and to some degree Tiemghoul.

 

 

"As the city turns to ashes, tall pikes adorning the severed heads of the vanquished are seen from afar, as a warning to neighbouring realms. For all men shall kneel before the might of the Om’kaar and the ghost-fortress of Ve’coiitn’aphnat’smaala."