Cult of Luna – Page 6 – Wonderbox Metal

Icare – Charogne (Review)

Icare are a post-black metal band from Switzerland and this is their second album.

So, here’s one that intrigued me form the start with its unusual album artwork. But wait, there’s more to why this grabbed my attention; this is an album that the promo blurb describes as a mix of black-metal, post-metal, and grindcore. It also recommends Charogne for fans of Wake, Calligram, Cult of Luna, and Ulcerate. More and more intriguing, thought I. And then, upon discovery that the album consists of one single 43-minute track, I was sold, and knew I had to check out what Icare have to offer. Continue reading “Icare – Charogne (Review)”

Pyreship – Light Is a Barrier (Review)

Pyreship are a post-metal band from the US and this is their second album.

This is my first encounter with Pyreship after hearing and enjoying their contribution to their split with Forming the Void. The band appear to have picked up Continue reading “Pyreship – Light Is a Barrier (Review)”

Soldat Hans – Anthaupt (Review)

Soldat Hans are a doom band from Switzerland and this is their third album.

Es Taut came out of nowhere in 2018 and blew me away. Its multifaceted sound was as impressive and emotive as it was accomplished and well-delivered. No wonder it appeared high on my end of year list. Due to this, Anthaupt had a great deal of expectation placed upon it before I even heard a single second of its 66-minute duration. Continue reading “Soldat Hans – Anthaupt (Review)”

Dreariness – Before We Vanish (Review)

Dreariness are an Italian post-black metal band and this is their third album.

I enjoyed 2016’s Fragments, so was keen to check this new album out. I’m pleased I did, as it presents the band in the best light, with a good, natural progression in sound. Continue reading “Dreariness – Before We Vanish (Review)”

Monthly Overview – the Best of February 2022

Similar to January, February was a surprisingly strong month for metal albums. There were many highlights, and limiting my recommendations to just the below five as not easy. Have a look at the albums below… Continue reading “Monthly Overview – the Best of February 2022”

Cult of Luna – The Long Road North (Review)

Cult of Luna are a Swedish post-metal band and this is their ninth album, (counting the flawless Mariner).

This is the highly anticipated follow up to 2019’s immense A Dawn to Fear, and gives us 69 minutes of new material from this always-impressive band.

Cult of Luna once again drown us with an ocean of emotion. The Long Road North is a broad soundscape of Continue reading “Cult of Luna – The Long Road North (Review)”

Hemelbestormer – Collide & Merge (Review)

This is the third album from Belgian post-metallers Hemelbestormer.

I’m not the biggest fan of instrumental music, but sometimes a band comes along and makes it work notably well. With 2016’s Aether and 2018’s A Ring of Blue Light, Hemelbestormer were just one such band. Now they’ve returned with Collide & Merge, which boasts a whopping 73 minutes of new material. Can Hemelbestormer continue their upward trend? We shall see. Continue reading “Hemelbestormer – Collide & Merge (Review)”

Label Roundup: Avantgarde Music – Mesarthim, Ikarie, & Olio Tähtien Takana (Reviews)

Wonderbox Metal gets sent a lot of new music, (which is great), but there’s no way that everything can get covered unfortunately, (which is not so great). This new column hopes to redress this balance, if only slightly, by taking a look at a handful of releases that a record label has recently sent out that might have otherwise slipped through the cracks.

A new release from Avantgarde Music is almost always worth exploring. Whenever I see a new record from the label on the horizon, I know to pay attention. With a strong track record for producing engaging and interesting black metal and doom albums, there’s always something good to discover… Continue reading “Label Roundup: Avantgarde Music – Mesarthim, Ikarie, & Olio Tähtien Takana (Reviews)”

Adliga – Vobrazy (Review)

Adliga are a post-metal/doom band from Belarus and this is their debut album.

Adliga play a doom-laden brand of post-metal, and on Vobrazy they deliver 41 minutes of captivating material. Their music reminds me of a mix of Obscure Sphinx, Katatonia, Madder Mortem, The Ocean, and Cult of Luna, although these are only rough reference points. Continue reading “Adliga – Vobrazy (Review)”

Glassing – Twin Dream (Review)

This is the third album from US blackened post-hardcore band Glassing.

Following on from 2019’s Spotted Horse, Twin Dream delivers 48 minutes of new material, and essentially continues off from where Spotted Horse left off, only improves it in pretty much all respects. Continue reading “Glassing – Twin Dream (Review)”