Doom – Page 124 – Wonderbox Metal

A Thousand Sufferings – Burden (Review)

This is the début album from Belgian Doom Metal band A Thousand Sufferings.

This is semi-blackened Doom with dark screaming shouts. The band succeed in creating sombre, down-beat moods that snare the listener in their barbed grasp.

The band have a similar feel and mood to that of Triptykon; like an updated Celtic Frost with added Doom and Black Metal atmospheres.

The riffs pile on top of each other, almost reaching wall-of-guitars proportions but offering more nuance than that style usually does. There’s some quite inventive and emotive ones on here too, adding to the overall dark feelings that they espouse.

A Thousand Sufferings understand the nature of this kind of music all too well, with negativity seeping out of the speakers in an occult way, seeming to feast on the souls of those drawn into this grim web of mystical invocations.

A very enjoyable slab of Doom Metal for fans of the darker side of life.

Sea – Demo (Review)

This is the début demo from US Doom band Sea.

Sea play their Doom with a good amount of Sludge and roiling Neurosis-styled claustrophobic heaviness.

These three tracks drag themselves along, lazily pounding out heavy riffs alternated with more restrained sections, with even the odd guitar solo drifting out from the sludgy miasma that they create. They shift up a gear on rare occasion, introducing some blast beats into their style. These are infrequent and short lived, but it all adds to the music in the right way.

The vocals mainly consist of rough semi-cleans and higher, softer, clean vocals that emphasise the more emotive parts of the songs. These lighter parts showcase a Post-Metal side of the band, allowing them to demonstrate the breadth of ability that they clearly have.

There are some really strong guitar parts across these tracks and the band stand out quite quickly as being above-average in the songwriting department. It’s all very memorable, surprisingly diverse and even catchy for the style.

Sea have made a good impression with this demo and the songs are very enjoyable. I like this kind of gritty, heavy and emotive style of Doom and it would surely be a hit for fans of bands like Neurosis, Sorxe and Sea of Bones, in my opinion.

A highly promising first release.

Beehoover – Primitive Powers (Review)

Beehoover are from Germany and play Stoner Doom. This is their latest album.

About their previous album The Devil and His Footmen I said “This is an uncommon band who provide an uncommon listening experience” and I stand by that statement for this newest one.

The band remain a two-piece drum/bass combo that provide the listener with a quirky and characterful interpretation of Stoner/Sludge/Doom that mixes elements of artists like Mike Patton, Tool, Primus and Melvins into its enjoyable and personable style of music.

Considering the makeup of the band there is a lot of content to enjoy on Primitive Powers and the songs are quite infectious. The band are adept at adding real atmosphere into their sound, with the bass seemingly capable of expanding to fill all of the areas that the guitars normally inhabit with other bands, and then some.

The drumming is complex, yet easy to get on board with; along with the music’s warm and intimate production it makes for a very satisfying sound.

Maybe I’m misremembering, but the songs on this album seem stronger and more concise than that of The Devil and His Footmen, and also seem to have a greater abundance of atmosphere and progressive tendencies too.

Either way, Beehoover’s latest release is a left-field success and I heartily recommend it for something a little different. Your ears will thank me.

Hemelbestormer – Aether (Review)

Hemelbestormer are a Post-Metal band from Belgium. This is their debut album.

Hemelbestormer are an instrumental band and they have created a sweeping epic of an album with four long, sprawling tracks lasting a total of 60 minutes.

Here we have an interesting and involved merging of different styles that are similar enough to get along well, resulting in the quite monolithic Aether.

Post-Metal, Doom and Sludge Metal are the main ingredients. The swirling Doom/Sludge claustrophobia of some of Neurosis’ more abrasive work is met by the expansive Post-Metal that the likes of Isis did so well. This is alongside elements of the heavier work of Pelican, with even some Post-Rock sensibilities of a band like Russian Circles getting a look in too.

The tracks take the listener on a journey through exploratory soundscapes and the Post-Metal build/release mechanic is artfully used throughout.

Aether is as heavily atmospheric as you can probably imagine, but in contrast to some bands that play this style, (especially, it seems, instrumental ones), Hemelbestormer are not afraid to let the distortion properly kick in and get really huge and heavy with the guitars. This pleases me greatly.

I love music that you can truly get lost and absorbed in and this is definitely one such album. Some instrumental bands can easily lose focus due to the lack of a singer, I find, but Hemelbestormer really don’t suffer from that problem. The music is detailed and nuanced enough to keep you coming back to it, but as mentioned previously, they know when to take things up a notch with the heavy guitars at just the right moments.

Very impressive. Take the time to listen to this.

Seven Sisters of Sleep – Ezekiel’s Hags (Review)

This is the third album from the USA’s Seven Sisters of Sleep. They play Sludge Metal.

On this album Seven Sisters of Sleep combine a lot of influences from a wide array of nasty, extreme sub-genres into their potent brew of Sludge Metal. Doom, Hardcore, Death Metal, Black Metal, Grindcore…it pretty much all gets a look in at some point in these 50 minutes.

This is nasty music that seems to revel in the filth and dirt, with no stone of depravity left unturned or unsoiled.

This is a wild and dangerous ride through all things heavy, taking pit stops in the aforementioned styles and mashing them together with all of the subtlety of a maniac with a very big hammer. Having said that though, there’s a fierce guiding intelligence at play behind the scenes here, and the band obviously know what they’re doing with the material they have bloodily birthed.

There are a lot of giant riffs on this release and whether the band are playing fast, slow or anywhere in between, they steer this ship of gloom with unerring accuracy through the fog of Sludge. Or something. I think my metaphors got a bit out of control there. Regardless, think of Ezekiel’s Hags as the nastiest form of Doom, shot through with streaks of blast beats and a predilection for terror.

The vocals are every bit as nasty as the music, even more so as they have a real splenetic fury to them.

This is an exceptional release full of horrorful energy and a testament to what you can do with the variety and interest that can be had with Sludge Metal.

I can easily imagine fans of Ilsa, Serpent Eater, Secret Cutter, Colombian Necktie, Cult of Occult, Behold! The Monolith, Nightslug and Eyehategod taking a real shine to this. I know I have.

Witchcraft – Nucleus (Review)

This is the fifth album from Swedish Doom/Psychedelic Rock band Witchcraft.

Playing the easy-listening proto-Metal Doom Rock so beloved in the 1970s, while also incorporating wider sounds from 60s psychedelia, Witchcraft have the retro vibe fully sewn up. It would be sickening if it wasn’t so damn good.

That’s the real central point about a band like this; they really are just that good. There’s a lot of music on Nucleus, but all of it is stamped with pure quality and it soars high over the heads of most bands that try their hand at this kind of thing.

Another interesting aspect of Nucleus is that even though it positively wallows in the past, and the production embraces this, it still sounds solid, professional and tight, despite an unashamedly old-school sound in many ways. Put simply, they manage to sound huge and polished without actually being overtly so. Impressive.

I like that there’s an exploratory sound to their music, influenced by the more progressive aspects of the 70s in some ways; it feels like the band are taking you along on their own personal journey and you’re not quite sure what you’re going to see. Which is another reason why they’re so good – this isn’t just your normal Trad-Doom-by-numbers release, as there’s a lot more going on here, hidden in plain sight.

There’s a wide range of song lengths on this release, from the short to the very long. Lighter, rockier moments share space with Doomier ones and the overall impression is of a well-thought-out album that has all of its bases covered for what it wants to achieve.

The singer’s voice is charismatic and easily-likeable. His performance is first-rate and speaks of a confidence of delivery honed through experience.

Very nice. Very enjoyable.

True Cross – Pure Divorce (Review)

True Cross are from the US and this is their début album. They play Shoegaze/Post-Rock.

This is an interesting album. The band incorporate elements of Doom here and there and even a hint of Punk in some of the more upbeat parts. For the main though, this is firmly in Shoegaze territory, with Post-Rock filling in the gaps.

Apparently the theme of this release is all about endings, and I can believe that as there’s a definite air of finality about these songs. They’re darkly emotive and heavy on the feeling, creating a despondent attitude without going overboard.

The vocals consist of ethereal cleans that seem to just about have the energy to pull themselves out of the musical melange, adding further layers of emotion to songs that are already thick with mood.

True Cross have created an album full of raw emotion, unfettered by constraint and loaded with negativity. Artful and intense, Pure Divorce is cinematic in scope and shares some of its qualities with that of a soundtrack.

A lot of Shoegaze passes me by as not having enough substance to it, but True Cross have really got their formula sorted out on this album. I’ll definitely be listening to this late at night, in the dark, as I’m sure is intended.

Here’s one to live with and absorb for a while.

Conan – Revengeance (Review)

Conan are a UK Doom Metal band. This is their third album.

If you haven’t heard Conan before – think heavy, think Doom, think crushing. They also have the album art to back this up.

Conan play heavy Doom Metal that reeks of axes and old blood. Not content with playing at only one speed, they also throw a bit of groove into the music here and there to keep things spicy, usually before descending into the slow pit of DOOOOOM for a while.

The singer’s vocals have always been slightly unusual; he somehow manages to pitch his voice as a strange cross between singing and shouting. It’s not an unpleasant style, (in fact it can sound quite powerful in places), but it’s one that always took a little getting used to, at least for me. Now that I’m acclimatized to it though, I’m glad it’s a bit different, and even jarring on occasion, as it gives the band a way to differentiate themselves from the masses.

This is a very strong album, as it could only ever be if you call your band Conan, I suppose. The songs are all very enjoyable and feature gargantuan riffs heavy enough to stomp entire cities. It’s the kind of music that you can easily get lost in, which can actually be quite dangerous as the riffs and vocals can batter and bruise if you’re not paying attention.

Another 49 minutes of crushing Doom from a band who are, at this point, experts in what they do.

Highly recommended.

Lucifer’s Fall – Fuck You We’re Lucifer’s Fall (Review)

This is the latest EP from Australia’s Lucifer’s Fall. They play Traditional Doom Metal.

I really liked Lucifer’s Fall’s début album; it was a definite grower. I was looking forward to listening to this new EP, but also slightly apprehensive as the low-rent cover is in stark contrast to the much better artwork adorning their album.

Of course, this is the classic “don’t judge a book by its cover” syndrome. I was fearful of some under-produced Punk/Doom abomination, (for some reason), but in reality of course the band are still crushing it with their classic take on Doom Metal.

So, apart from the cover, all of the ingredients that made their début album so enjoyable are present and correct – Traditional Doom with hints of the darker modern style, a good sound with an audible bass, loose and mournful vocals, Reverend Bizarre influences…it’s all here and I am very glad that it is.

The songs are effortlessly familiar, enjoyable and seem to roll into your ears with ease.

On this EP the band offer up three tracks spanning 25 minutes and it’s a worthy way to spend your time.

Natanas – Eram Numquam Amicum Vestrum (Review)

A one-man Black Metal act from the US; this is the latest release from Natanas, although at the prolific rate he releases material, it might not be by the time I’ve written this…

I’ve enjoyed watching Natanas progress in the relatively short time since its inception, (here, here, here and here), and it’s always a pleasure to listen to the latest horrorful dirge that the man unleashes on the world.

Eram Numquam Amicum Vestrum is a little different than previous releases. It still shares a lot of the same hallmarks, but this time it’s a bit angrier and more Black Metal. That might sound like an odd thing to say, considering all of his releases have been Black Metal, but I suppose I mean it’s a bit more traditionally Black Metal – although a lot of Black Metal fans would probably still blanch at this as his work remains on the raw, underground, under-produced side of things.

The music is Doom-laden, filth-ridden Black Metal that carries an artistry to it despite the primitive veneer that it wields like a sharp stick. The rhythm guitars somehow find a way to be mournful and rabid at the same time, while the leads add a lot of rich content to the songs and provide a pointed outlet for all of these emotions. The screamed vocals are some of his best to date; understated and low in the mix, but still totally despondently savage.

The tracks are less songs and more essays on how to channel anger and sorrow in musical form in an atavistic and cathartic way.

I think this is probably my favourite Natanas release, actually. Although I really enjoy the more experimentally dark nature of his other work, this album has more coherence and focus about it, resulting in an album that has a lot going for it. Traces of his previous work remain, of course, and these add extra flavour to the album, ensuring that it doesn’t become stale or one-dimensional.

If you’re the kind of person who gets off on raw, underground Black Metal then this is a must.