Tarlung are an Austrian sludge band and this is their third album.
2017’s Beyond the Black Pyramid was an enjoyable slab of colossal doom sludge, with stoner influences keeping the darkness in check. On Architect, Tarlung spend 40 minutes tearing through heavy music that shares much in Continue reading “Tarlung – Architect (Review)”
This is the debut album from US doom metallers Grief Collector.
Featuring Robert Lowe, (an ex-member of Candlemass), on vocals, En Delirium contains 48 minutes of largely traditional doom metal mixed with a touch of modern sludge, to produce a compelling piece of work. Continue reading “Grief Collector – En Delirium (Review)”
Eremit are a doom/sludge band from Germany and this is their second album.
I loved 2019’s Carrier of Weight, and ever since I’ve been really excited every time I see that that band have unleashed more of their crushing doom on the world. Up until now, this has only consisted of 2020’s excellent, (though far too brief), EP Desert of Ghouls. Now, however, we get Bearer of Many Names, which is every bit as massive as the band’s debut album, although it’s resolutely not the same beast. Continue reading “Eremit – Bearer of Many Names (Review)”
Moanaa are a Polish post-metal band and this is their third album.
I’ve enjoyed following Moanaa’s development over the years, from 2014’s Descent, to 2016’s atmospheric Passage, and then 2019’s EP Torches. Of the latter, the first track on Torches reappears on Embers. Continue reading “Moanaa – Embers (Review)”
Boss Keloid are a progressive sludge metal band from the UK and this is their fifth album.
Family the Smiling Thrush contains 47 minutes of new material from the ever-welcome Boss Keloid. A shining light in the UK’s heavy music scene, I’ve enjoyed watching their development from 2016’s Herb Your Enthusiasm to 2018’s Melted on the Inch. Now they’ve Continue reading “Boss Keloid – Family the Smiling Thrush (Review)”
Alastor are a Swedish doom metal band and this is their second album.
Onwards and Downwards contains 46 minutes of old-school music that sits somewhere between doom metal and psychedelic hard rock. Continue reading “Alastor – Onwards and Downwards (Review)”
This is the latest EP from French sludge doom band Cult of Occult.
Ruin contains a single 22-minute eponymous track; a nightmarish monster of prodigious proportions. Not only that, but there’s also a bonus track in the form of a remix of the title track, which itself lasts 19 minutes. Overall, this release boasts 41 minutes of anguished blackened sludge doom. It’s nasty, but it’s also damn good. Continue reading “Cult of Occult – Ruin (Review)”
This is a split between post-metal bands Psychonaut from Belgium and Sâver, (who also feature members of Hymn), from Norway.
Psychonaut start the split with the 16-minute The Great Realisation. Continue reading “Psychonaut/Sâver – Emerald – Split (Review)”
Oryx are a sludge metal band from the US and this is their third album.
Oryx combine waves of crushing doom with pulverising sludge groove. As a simple description of what you’ll encounter on this album, it serves, but it doesn’t tell the whole story. The band’s apocalyptic heaviness also contains moments of dark Continue reading “Oryx – Lamenting a Dead World (Review)”
This is the second album from US sludge metallers Conclave.
Now here’s an unexpected treat for yours truly.
I’ve had no prior experience with Conclave, and was initially drawn to Dawn of Days purely because of its artwork. Imagine my surprise when, on closer inspection, it was Continue reading “Conclave – Dawn of Days (Review)”
