Årabrot are a Norwegian rock band and this is their eleventh album.
Recorded at the same time as its 2023 predecessor Of Darkness and Light, (the titular track of which is on this new record, and note the stylistically similar cover), Rite of Dionysus contains 43 minutes of new material. Continue reading “Årabrot – Rite of Dionysus (Review)”
This is the debut album from Belgian heavy rock band Killjoy.
Killjoy have an engaging sound that embraces a few different influences and fuses them into a very engaging form of modern rock. Across 34 minutes, elements of electronica, screamo, progressive rock, punk, and post-metal are all swallowed up and spat out in the form of seven charismatic tracks that hit the spot. Continue reading “Killjoy – Dream and Violence (Review)”
Årabrot are a Norwegian rock band and this is their tenth album.
2021’s Norwegian Gothic was a very special record, one that ended up on my end of year list just inside the top ten, due to how damn good it was. So, a little over two years later, how does Of Darkness and Light find Årabrot? Continue reading “Årabrot – Of Darkness and Light (Review)”
This is the tenth album from German progressive metal band The Ocean.
After the colossally good Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic and Phanerozoic II: Mesozoic | Cenozoic from 2018 and 2020 respectively, can The Ocean continue their run of stellar records with new outing Holocene? Continue reading “The Ocean – Holocene (Review)”
This is the debut album from Black Cross Hotel, an industrial band from the US.
Hex initially caught my eye due to Black Cross Hotel containing a member of Stabbing Westward. On closer inspection it seems there are also members of The Atlas Moth, Corrections House, Minsk, and Broken Hope in the band, all of which attracted me further. All very intriguing. However, Continue reading “Black Cross Hotel – Hex (Review)”
This is the second album from German doom band Might.
Might play an atypical form of doom metal with elements of post-rock, sludge, punk, grunge, and noise rock. Abyss is an unusually varied album, and operates in a lot of genres and styles, sometimes all at once. Continue reading “Might – Abyss (Review)”
This is the sixth album by US alternative rock band Helms Alee.
It turns out that a member of Helms Alee was in Harkonen. I loved 2002’s Shake Harder Boy, so it’s great to hear his work once more, albeit in an indirect altered fashion. Continue reading “Helms Alee – Keep This Be the Way (Review)”
Yes, it’s that time of year again! 2021 gave us some very, very good metal, and I feel honoured to have been able to have listened to as much of it as I have done. There are some notable absences, (for me at least), from the below list, but there’s just not enough time or space for everything, dammit!
2020 was a very blackened year for me; I listened to a lot of black metal, and the list for that year reflected that. At the start of 2021 I decided I’d consciously try to ensure I cast my net a bit wider again, reconnecting more deeply with some of many other styles of metal that I enjoy. 2021’s list reflects this. However, I’ve still ended up with much more of a black metal presence in the list than I was initially expecting. What can I say? I’m a sucker for all of the myriad blackened flavours of the style. However, there’s also a lot of other stuff here that I hope you’ll dig into and enjoy too. I felt that there was a notable absence of grindcore in 2021, as well as some of the more extreme styles of doom. What do you think?
I hope you enjoy perusing some of my favourite records from this year, and I hope you find something new to tickle your fancy. What’s your number one this year? Continue reading “Wonderbox Metal End of Year List – Best Metal of 2021”
This is the third album from French industrial band Crown.
I’m unfamiliar with Crown’s past work, but apparently The End of All Things is a complete departure from their older sound. Fair enough. If you’re new to the band like me, (or even if you’re not), Crown’s new album contains 46 Continue reading “Crown – The End of All Things (Review)”
Årabrot are a Norwegian rock band and this is their ninth album.
Norwegian Gothic is a complex, multifaceted listen. Årabrot specialise in a dark, avant-garde form of music that may take a diverse array of influences into itself, (noise rock, experimental, pop, punk, soul, metal, folk, industrial, etc.), but ultimately Continue reading “Årabrot – Norwegian Gothic (Review)”
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