This is the fifth album from US sludge metal band Generation of Vipers.
I last heard Generation of Vipers on 2011’s Howl and Filth, which was a long time ago, (their last album actually came out in 2014 though, which I missed). Guilt Shrine contains 35 minutes of sludgy menace. Continue reading “Generation of Vipers – Guilt Shrine (Review)”
Orme are a doom/drone band from the UK and this is their latest EP.
After last year’s gargantuan self-titled debut record, I’m pleased to see Orme back in action already with No Serpents, No Saviours. Consisting of a single 24-minute track, this new release finds Orme operating in slightly different waters. On No Serpents, No Saviours Orme focus less on the drone of their debut, and more on colossal death/doom metal. Continue reading “Orme – No Serpents, No Saviours (Review)”
This is the second album from Kurokuma, a doom/sludge band from the UK.
Kurokuma have come a long way since they started, from 2016’s sludge/doom EP Advorsus which pegged them as ones to watch, to 2022’s more adventurous debut album Born of Obsidian. The band are now back with the 38-minute Of Amber and Sand, which finds Kurokuma pushing their experimental side even further, while retaining their core of heaviness. Continue reading “Kurokuma – Of Amber and Sand (Review)”
Mourners Lament are a doom/death metal band from Chile and this is their second album.
It’s been a long time since 2016’s We All Be Given, but finally its successor is here, (although the band did release an EP in 2022, apparently). Mourners Lament have a new lineup and an expanded, more ambitious vision for their sound. A Grey Farewell builds on We All Be Given, with Mourners Lament returning with a record that has been worth the lengthy weight. Continue reading “Mourners Lament – A Grey Farewell (Review)”
Old Horn Tooth are a doom metal band from the UK and this is their second album.
Mourning Light is massive, in more ways than one. There are four tracks, but each one is a doom monster, and the record’s total duration is 68 minutes. Old Horn Tooth aren’t messing around here, so strap in and prepare yourself for an avalanche of crushing doom. Continue reading “Old Horn Tooth – Mourning Light (Review)”
This is the second album from Pijn, a post-rock/metal band from the UK.
From Low Beams of Hope is a four-track, 45-minute affair that merges elements of post-rock, post-metal, ambient, drone, and doom into an expressive whole. It’s an instrumental release, and should find great appeal with fans of acts such as Mogwai, Briqueville, Explosions in the Sky, Years of Rice & Salt, A Burial at Sea, Russian Circles, Red Sparowes, Pelican, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, etc. Continue reading “Pijn – From Low Beams of Hope (Review)”
This is the fifth album from Canadian post-metal/sludge band Sumac, (who boast current and ex-members of bands such as Baptists, Genghis Tron, Isis, Old Man Gloom, Russian Circles, and These Arms Are Snakes in their ranks).
It’s been a while since I caught up with Sumac – 2018’s collaboration with Keijo Haino in fact, as well as their full length from the same year, Love in Shadow. I even had the privilege of catching them live in 2019. Apparently they also had an album out in 2020 called May You Be Held, which I somehow completely missed, which is a shame. All of which brings us to the immense 76 minutes of material on The Healer. Continue reading “Sumac – The Healer (Review)”
This is the third album from US doom metal band Crypt Sermon.
If you haven’t encountered Crypt Sermon before, the promo blurb recommends them for fans of Candlemass, Khemmis, Visigoth, Eternal Champion, King Diamond, and Solitude Aeternus, which should give you a decent idea of what to expect on Stygian Rose. Across 45 minutes Crypt Sermon deliver the goods in epic style. Continue reading “Crypt Sermon – The Stygian Rose (Review)”
Mumuksu/Iravu are both solo acts from Malaysia. The latter plays black metal, and the former doom.
I thoroughly enjoyed Iravu’s debut album from last year – A Fate Worse Than Home – so knew I wanted to check out this split. It contains three tracks and has a total duration of 55 minutes. The first two songs are by the individual artists, and the final is a collaboration between them both. Continue reading “Mumuksu/Iravu – Sudra – Split (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Insect Ark, an experimental doom band from Germany.
An album consisting of members of Swans and Khanate? Yep, colour me interested. Taking in doom, avant-garde, psychedelic, noise, drone, and Gothic influences, Raw Blood Singing is an expansive work of darkness and beauty. Continue reading “Insect Ark – Raw Blood Singing (Review)”
Wonderbox Metal 