Doom – Page 142 – Wonderbox Metal

Sól – Black Mountain (Review)

Coming from the US, Sól play Post-Metal and this is their début.

The first thing to grab my attention is the bold and striking album art. I like a good cover.

As for the music, this is dynamic Post-Metal and the band appear to have fully mastered the build/release nature of the genre very early on in their career.

Lighter, relaxed, softer sections wind their way upwards; inevitably building to something darker and heavier than what they might seem to suggest at first.

Initial reference points are the standard triumvirate for this genre – Neurosis/Isis/Cult of Luna – but those are a given really, almost not worth mentioning. More interesting is an additional feeling of atmospheric Metal in places, such as the like that Agalloch produce. Indeed, helped along by the album artwork and title there is a strong feeling of nature and the natural environment throughout these songs that is not commonly felt in the Post-Metal genre as a whole.

The heavier sections can really let loose when they need to as well. The band don’t feel restricted to limiting their style to the perceived limitations of the genre, (as wide as they may be anyway), and when they’re not creating apocalyptic atmospheres reminiscent of horrendous natural disasters, they simply rage.

The feelings created by this release are immense and powerful. Whether soft or heavy, light or dark, this is an exemplary release that shows a multidimensional grasp of what makes exploratory and inventive music such as this as compelling and involving as it is.

Bands like Maeth, Monachus and Sól are truly exciting forces in heavy music these days; pushing the envelope and developing songs that are as addictive and satisfying as the best stories.

Amazingly, this is the first and only thing that Sól have done so far. I already want more.

Interview with Servants of the Mist

Servants of the Mist are about to release their latest EP Gross Knowledge of Genital Mutilation, and in its wake a creeping misery and despair does follow. It left such a deep impression that I felt compelled to probe deeper…

Give us a bit of history to Servants of the Mist

Servants of the Mist have existed in some form since 2010. We are from west central Florida. We are keen observers and travelers to dark dimensions. We are in touch with demons who work through and love us. We have opened for Danzig, Jucifer, Obituary and Eyehategod. We create sounds of suffering.

Where did your name come from?

The name came from a lyric in one of our earliest demos. The lyric was based on the 1992 Dracula movie directed by Francis Ford Coppola and starring Gary Oldman.

What are your influences?

GG Allin, Melvins, Cough, Electric Wizard and Burning Witch. The greatest influence has been life itself. All the questions that can’t be answered. The hunger of the beast. The things we are forced to live with.

What are you listening to at the moment that you would like to recommend?

…I am always listening to the sound of my own voice telling my head things. I don’t hate anyone enough to recommend they know my brain or have my secrets.

What did you want to achieve with your new release

I want to promote thought and conversation. I want people who listen to realize their own hell. I want them to indulge their physical pleasures because the master won’t allow you love. People like us are ruled by their demons. I predict that right and wrong will be much harder to interpret. I believe we have a choice.

Most bands of this particular style of Sludge have a distinct Southern tinge to the riffs, yet this is largely absent from your sound. Was this a conscious decision to differentiate yourselves or was it a more natural occurrence?

The songs come from the soul. I am in an emotional prison. Where I exist there is very little color or life. This is what influences the sound. I don’t make a conscious choice to live here in exile. I don’t make a conscious effort to exclude a southern tinge.

How do your songs take shape?

I write most all the songs. I then take them to the band. We bring all the pieces together.

In your songs is it important to you to push a heavily negative vibe or is this a feeling that just happens regardless?

I have had hope and believed in love. I have been crushed by the need to be human. It is in the need for happiness that hope will blatantly betray you. The music speaks of the consequences of betrayal. It speaks of the evolution. The transformation from human to monster.

Would you change anything if you had to do the recording over again?

I am very critical of my own work. I would say that there is always something I think I could have done better. I also like that we don’t take much time or over produce our music in the studio. We plug in, play and what comes out is as real as it gets.

How do you see your songs/direction developing in the future?

That depends completely where I’m at emotionally. I hope to write ballads that celebrate romance and love. I fear though that I will always exist in the world of shadows. I have found a home in the chaos.

What does the future hold for Servants of the Mist?

The future is futile. We will continue to celebrate madness. We will dream of you. We will hate you. We will continue on until death takes us to oblivion.

Ed Tobar…guitars, founder and father of Servants.

Servantsofthemist.bandcamp

Servants of the Mist – Gross Knowledge of Genital Mutilation (Review)

This is the latest EP from US Sludge/Doom Metal band Servants of the Mist.

The EP is 25 minutesin length and after the perfunctory intro we’re into the feedback-drenched first song Undeserving, which at just under 12 minutes serves as the centrepiece of the release.

The music is crushing, monolithic Doom with a corrupted, rotten Sludge veneer and a core of pure hatred.

We get bowel-loosening deep vocals and piercing high-pitched ones, both sound great and complement the music perfectly.

A deep aura of misery pervades these tracks and the band do all they can to punish and obliterate the listener with their steady, slow assault.

This is a really enjoyable form of dank Doom that just won’t give up; the strongly oppressive feeling of the tracks makes for a compelling release that sticks in the mind long after the last foetid chord has faded.

The band have enough talent that whether they are playing agonisingly slow Doom or slightly-more-upbeat Sludge they do it with obvious passion and with riffs to die for.

Negatively emotive and bleakly enticing; Servants of the Mist really know how to write a good Doom tune.

I mean, honestly; if you’re at all into this kind of music what’s not to like here?

Blut Aus Nord/P.H.O.B.O.S. – Triunity Split (Review)

Blut Aus Nord are France’s premier Black Metal/Avant Garde/Industrial/Dark Metal kings, and this is their split with fellow French band P.H.O.B.O.S. who play Industrial Doom.

Each band contributes three songs, with Blut Aus Nord up first. Their songs are as impressive as you would imagine and follow their standard Dark Metal template of Blackened riffs, proficient drumming, atmospheric auras and semi-industrial feelings; like watching urban decay sped up and slowed down at the same time.

Warped and haunting melodies layer these three tracks and engage the listener fully. The first track De Librio Arbitrio is so involving that it’s almost startling to hear vocals in the latter part of the song.

These three songs are bleakly emotive Black Metal and it’s once more apparent why Blut Aus Nord are in a league of their own with very few bands even coming close to a similar style of any real quality. And even though the band are better known for their atmospheres than their riffs, they still know how to kick them out when they need to; listen to that grinding mid-paced riffing in Hùbris. Quality.

And on to the second half of the split; all three tracks by P.H.O.B.O.S. are 7:00 in length, which immediately made me take notice.

This is Dark Industrial Doom that may be different from Blut Aus Nord’s Black Metal but shares the same stylistic headspace. The tracks slither and wind their way around to a backdrop of pounding drums that sound like heavy items being dropped from great height.

If Blut Aus Nord were remixed and regurgitated by Godflesh then the result might not be too far from this. The three tracks pulse nicely with automated, mechanistic darkness and I’m quite happy that I’ve now encountered P.H.O.B.O.S.

This is a premium split that showcases the exceptional talents of both bands and at 40 minutes in length it’s a darn sight longer than most splits.

Check it out.

Idre – Idre (Review)

Idre are from the US and play Doom.

This is made up of two tracks; the first is 26 minutes long and the second 13 minutes long. As you can probably guess this is a band who likes to take their time.

Factorie is the first track and it starts off with a good, solid Doom riff to set the scene, before exploring subtler climes for a while. When the vocals kick in it’s surprising as instead of the gruff shouting I was expecting we get almost County-esque cleans with a dirty intonation. Think of Neurosis, but the vocals even remind of a band like Soul Savers on occasion and add a different aspect to the band that immediately differentiates them from the masses.

The entire song is a meandering exploration of bucolic pastures punctuated with heavier interludes and atmosphere building. It’s an impressive slow burner and worth the time invested.

The second song is Witch Trial which follows in a similar slow-burning vein with the relaxed vocals coasting on top of the emotive music as the song crests to crescendo. It’s another superbly executed track that is heavily invested with feeling and works its magic subtly.

The recording is unpolished but not in a bad way. It has a very naturalistic sounding production that is slightly too rounded to be called raw and not quite ugly enough to be called filthy. A good word would be earthy, I suppose. It’s a good choice that works well with the music, especially for the charismatic vocals that seem to draw you in with their rustic charms.

This is a very enjoyable and engaging release that feels rather more individual and intimate than other bands who have a sound that makes them feel more sanitised than they might otherwise sound had they a slightly different recording. Idre allows the listener in and lets them get up close and personal with the band. This allows for a special relationship with the music rather than it being simply another musical commodity to be consumed.

And to think, this is merely the début of this talented band. Big things, I tell you, big things.

Fange – Poisse (Review)

Fange are from France and play Sludge Metal. This is their first release.

Ooooohhhh this is has got one Hell of a sexy, filthy, fuzzbastard sound! This is the kind of dirty Sludge I like!

Big beats and harsh, swampy riffs combined with feedback and desolate Doom atmospheres means the songs are like trawling though a mire, (Fange = mire in French). You are struggling for air as the boggy grime seeps into your pores and gets under your skin and into every orifice. Doesn’t sound very nice? It isn’t, but then Sludge should never be nice.

There are some great, bouncy riffs here in addition to the slower onslaughts. Cloches Fendues is a great example as it alternates between a dirty Stoner-esque riff and apocalyptic Doom. Top stuff.

The vocals are low in the mix like something just under the surface. Shrieking, snarling, chanting, beseeching, shouting, spitting, vomiting; who knows what they’re actually doing but suffice to say that the singer’s clearly into it.

Hidden behind the miasma of unclean riffing the band actually have a firm grasp of atmosphere. Ammoniac displays a masterful use of subtle tension to greatly enhance the feeling of danger that the song already gives off.

A good amount of variety, violent playfulness and content sees this release firmly in the winner’s category; 29 minutes of Sludge Metal that takes the standard Eyehategod template, covers it in a tonne of sewage and plays with the remains.

For fans of ugly music done right.

Favourite Track: Suaire. Sludge-tastic.

Mournful Congregation – Concrescence Of The Sophia (Review)

This is the latest EP from Australia’s Doom kings Mournful Congregation.

This is Funeral Doom played slow and insistent. The band have honed their skills over many a long year and this latest release sees them shaping and unleashing two new tracks on the world.

The first song Concrescence Of The Sophia is a 21:41 minute trawl through all things Funeral; the band having refined their sense of dirge to the point of exquisite melancholy and dampened moods. Here we are taken through a slowly unwinding journey where flowing riffs, acoustic passages and deep, end-of-the-world vocals are your travel companions.

The song plays like a slowed down hymn to all things rotten and weary, and just when things pick up slightly and some semblance of speed emerges, all of a sudden hope is lost and we’re back to the misery of existence once more. Suffice to say, in the context of Doom Metal this is a very good thing.

The second song, Silence Of The Passed, seems rather short at 8:56 minutes after this, although the content more than makes up for it. The riffs are warmer and more melodic than the previous composition, although it’s all relative of course as this still crawls along compared to most songs. Nevertheless, the atmosphere and aura is all encompassing and perfectly matched to the longer, more drawn out first track.

Each song works well as a companion piece to the other; similar enough to be recognisable as part of a whole, but differentiated enough not to repeat itself.

This release is worth the acquisition. Let Mournful Congregation into your life and let the despair run through you.

http://www.mournfulcongregation.com/

Tombs – Savage Gold (Review)

Tombs are a Metal band from the US and this is their third album.

They play a style of underground Metal that mixes Classic Metal riffs with influences from Death Metal, Hardcore and Sludge. The result is Tombs.

Another way of looking at it is to imagine a band like Doomriders only have them violated by Death Metal and covered by Sludge Metal; a rocking sensibility that’s as heavy and nasty as can be. Again, the result is Tombs.

Not many bands are playing this mix of styles; apart from Tombs there are only a handful of others, including the great Serpent Eater.

The band open with Thanatos; it has a curious sound mixing Doom-laden Post-Metal riffage with prime blast beats and throat-straining vocals. The rest of the album is equally impressive and takes aspects of these differing genre styles in lesser or greater extents to create a varied, interesting and very satisfying release.

The sound is immense and as heavy as Hell. All of the instruments are clear and identifiable and the entire recording is as sharp as a knife.

A real sense of horror and evil pervades the roots of this album; this manifests itself in the actual songs sometimes as blatant misanthropy and hatred, and others as a more nuanced disgust.

There’s a lot of longevity in this album. Start your descent into the Tombs now.

Ruins/Usnea – Split (Review)

This split is between German band Ruins and Usnea who are from the US.

Ruins are first with their track Discrimen. It starts with an eerie riff and then builds in the bass and drums with a lumbering gait like some twisted swamp creature stalking its prey. This develops into a very satisfying riff that still manages to sound a little uneasy even while it’s rocking out.

The vocals are dirty and deep, sounding like some balaclava-wearing bruiser who’s only out to hurt you. These change about halfway through to a slightly more emotive sounding semi-clean and the song becomes energised.

Ruins are a curious blending of Crust/Hardcore and Sludge with even a slight hint of Post-Metal in the mix. Either way it makes for an enticing listen and I think I’ll be looking into what else this band has done.

After Ruins we get Usnea with Only the End of the World. Usnea are great band who have released an excellent self-titled début album of Blackened Doom, which I heartily advise everyone to immediately go and get. I was especially interested to hear their half of this split as at just under 6 minutes in length it’s a lot shorter than any of the songs on their album.

Their contribution is slower and more monolithic than that of Ruins; with the song seemingly dragging itself along against the burden of time immemorial.

The chasm-like vocals seem to open wide and swallow the light. They appear like fissures under the foundations of the song and it seems like it would be so easy to fall into the blackness there. Later as the higher vocals come in the massive holes in the world are replaced with piercing shrieks that cause their own no-less fatal puncture wounds.

Usnea don’t disappoint. It may be shorter than their other work but that doesn’t stop them from making the most of the playing time and ramming it chock full with Doom delights.

A highly recommended EP. Two great songs from two great bands. Seek it out.

Interview with Nux Vomica

Nux Vomica’s latest, self-titled, album is one giant mass of quality. No need to say more than that. You should go and get it. So without further ado let’s find out a bit more…

For those who are unfamiliar with your band – introduce yourself!

I’m Just Dave, vocalist and percussionist. Not familiar with my band? Check us out here:

https://www.facebook.com/nuxvomicaband

Give us a bit of history to Nux Vomica.

We’re a punk band who learned how to play better, so now people call us “extreme metal”, which is appropriate considering how much Mountain Dew some of us drink. We started in Baltimore in about 2003, moved to Portland in 2006, had some lineup changes ending in 2008, and here we are. Our 3rd LP is out now and we have a slew of other releases. For the last year we’ve taken time off to work on other projects, and our guitarist Chris had a baby. This year we hope to get back to jamming and playing shows!

What are your influences?

This is a classic interview question, and in our case it’s so hard to answer. Here’s a very incomplete list of band members’ favourite bands: CRASS, VIOLENT FEMMES, PUBLIC ENEMY, MORNE, BLACK SABBATH, METALLICA, MISFITS, BLIND GUARDIAN, CEE-LO GREEN, DEVO, THE B-52S, PUBLIC ENEMY, DEAD MOON, THE RESIDENTS, LOW, DYSTOPIA, JUCIFER, QUEEN, MACHO MAN RANDY SAVAGE, JAY REATARD, HIS HERO IS GONE, AMEBIX, THE CURE…. I’m just stopping there.

Nux Vomica What are you listening to at the moment that you would like to recommend?

THIN LIZZY – Live and Dangerous. Damn good house cleaning music!

What did you want to achieve with your new album?

We wanted to agree on anything. Since that was obviously not gonna happen, we figured we’d cram our songs full of so many ideas that they became almost 12 to 20 minutes long. Then we had to figure out how to put it all on an album that sounded cohesive. 5 years later, it’s out!
Are you happy with how it turned out?

Yes we definitely are. I think all the hard work and time we put into it is very apparent. No part of any song went unscrutinized by us. We got very meticulous about how we wanted everything to sound, and some of us went back in the studio multiple times to re-record parts. In particular the extra percussion was an issue. Trying to do what we do live sounded like a clusterfuck, so we scaled down the extra drumming. I think it turned out great.

What can you tell us about the lyrics?

“Sanity is for the Passive” is about the idea that being labelled “insane” to me means you are reacting correctly to your surroundings in this world. Being labelled “sane” means you have been successfully assimilated into the insanity. “Reeling” is about a guy I knew who almost drank himself to death. People had to break into his house and take him to detox. Empty vodka bottles were littered everywhere. I’m pretty sure he is drinking again these days. “Choked at the Roots” is basically my theory on how people started down the path to being power mad ruiners of everything. Overall this is very dark album lyrically. Read all the lyrics here:

http://punkrockmuppet.blogspot.com/

Give us a bit of information on the songwriting process.

Usually one person has an idea of the entire song structure and brings the riffs to practice and we all pick it apart and build on it. We rarely have a plan of the length of a song, we just let it grow and if it starts getting boring we start scrapping parts and re-working others. We spend a good deal of time on transitions between parts. We like to the longer songs to flow well and remain interesting. We try to avoid the typical “this part ends, the guitars bring in the next riff, everyone else joins in” way of writing punk and crust songs. The lyrics for these newer songs were largely written at practice while the band was jamming. That was because the songs started getting too long and complicated to just bring a bunch of lyrics I wrote and fit them in like I used to.

How do you see your songs/direction developing in the future?

We have about four new songs, and we were working on more last year before we decided to take a break. The newer batch of songs are more thrashy and shorter than this LP, and people were really into them when we played em live. We also started playing a WAKE UP ON FIRE song that was never recorded. I think once we get back to jamming we’ll see where we’re going beyond that.

What’s next for Nux Vomica?

Practice! We haven’t played in a year. We need to re-learn our songs, shake off the cobwebs and get back to it. I think we’re ready.

Cheers,

Thanks!