Tonight, Manchester gets a severe case of The Doom. Stygian Bough Volume II is an excellent record that should have had pride of place on last year’s end of year list, (but frustratingly, there always seems to be one that slips through the cracks), so the opportunity to see it played live tonight was too good to miss. Added bonus – 40 Watt Sun. An unlooked for treat that’s Continue reading “Stygian Bough (Bell Witch & Aerial Ruin)/40 Watt Sun – Rebellion, Manchester – 09/02/26 (Live Review)”
This is the fourth album from UK doom/post-rock band 40 Watt Sun.
Following on from 2022’s highly emotive Perfect Light comes the 45-minute Little Weight, and let me tell you it’s quite the record. It’s a journey into richly crafted emotion, one that aches with affecting depth. Continue reading “40 Watt Sun – Little Weight (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)”
Flesh of the Stars are from the US and play doom metal. This is their fifth album.
Flesh of the Stars are a band that I always enjoy catching up with. 2015’s Hide, 2017’s Anhilla, and 2019’s Mercy are all albums worthy of your time, and the same is true of their new record, The Glass Garden, doubly so in fact. Continue reading “Flesh of the Stars – The Glass Garden (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Indian one-man post-black metal band Lesath.
There Is a Profound Sense in Which We Are Isolated offers 43 minutes of post-black metal. It’s essentially a mix of atmospheric black metal, post-rock, and shoegaze. At least, as a rough description of the material here that suffices. Continue reading “Lesath – There Is a Profound Sense in Which We Are Isolated (Review)”
This is the second album from Everest Queen, a sludge metal band from the UK.
I’ve enjoyed following Everest Queen, from their initial self-titled EP in 2016 to their debut album Dead Eden in 2019, so to have a new album appear in the wild is a fine thing. Murmurations boasts 44 minutes of new music, so let’s get stuck in. Continue reading “Everest Queen – Murmurations (Review)”
Wow, what an unexpectedly rich source of great music January was. I honestly can’t remember a January that had so many metal releases that were this good. I’ve chosen five of the best below, and none of them are to be missed… Continue reading “Monthly Overview – the Best of January 2022”
This is the third album from UK one-man post-rock/doom band 40 Watt Sun.
Brought to us by the guitarist/vocalist of Warning, (along with an array of guests, including a member of Worm Ouroboros), Perfect Light contains 68 minutes of skilfully-crafted music that is simply stunning. Continue reading “40 Watt Sun – Perfect Light (Review)”
This is the latest EP from Akelei, a doom metal band from The Netherlands.
Although billed as an EP, and despite the fact that there’s only three tracks here, this is actually a 37-minute release – longer than some albums. This is the the band’s first release in 11 years, and I really hope they don’t leave it as long as that until the next one comes out, as this is exceptional. Continue reading “Akelei – Een Van Ons (Review)”
Le Menhir is a one man post-metal band from the UK and this is his debut release.
Consisting of a single track, Orage is a tentative, experimental first step into the world by this new project. Despite this, Orage is well-formed and shows a lot of promise. Continue reading “Le Menhir – Orage (Review)”
Wonderbox Metal 