This is the second album from Belgian post-metal/sludge band Pothamus.
Following on from 2020’s enjoyable Raya, Pothamus have returned with 47 minutes of new material in the shape of Abur. The band have taken their past work and made it even more atmospheric and nuanced, treating us to an evocative blend of post-metal, post-rock, and drone. Continue reading “Pothamus – Abur (Review)”
This is the second album from Indian avant-garde metal band Serpents of Pakhangba.
Air and Fire is an ambitious album, in more ways than one. Across 54 minutes you’ll find a wealth of creativity and ideas, all delivered with skilled performances and detailed songwriting. Serpents of Pakhangba are resolutely not your average band. Continue reading “Serpents of Pakhangba – Air and Fire (Review)”
This is the fifth album from Polish experimental metal band Thaw.
It’s been more than a while since 2017’s Grains, so I was intrigued to see what Thaw have to offer in 2024. An experimental act, who have operated in black metal, sludge, doom, drone, ambient, and noise waters across their career, what does Fading Backwards and its 36 minutes of new material bring us? Continue reading “Thaw – Fading Backwards (Review)”
This is the debut album from Australian post-rock/drone band Black Aleph.
Here we have a compelling work of post-rock and drone, one that’s enriched with doom elements and has a dark atmospheric weight that’s enthralling. Now, with that sort of description you might be expecting a monstrous record of sprawling song lengths from Black Aleph, but you’d be mistaken, as Apsides is a mere 29 minutes long. Continue reading “Black Aleph – Apsides (Review)”
This is the second album from UK doomgaze band Sugar Horse.
The Grand Scheme of Things contains an hour of idiosyncratic and expressive music. The style overall can be thought of as doomgaze, although it has a variety of ingredients, including indie, shoegaze, sludge, doom, drone, and post-rock/metal. Continue reading “Sugar Horse – The Grand Scheme of Things (Review)”
This is the fourth album from Swedish post-metal band A Swarm of the Sun.
An Empire offers up a daunting 71 minutes of music to explore. It’s a lot to absorb, but is worth the time investment, as the dark soundscapes that A Swarm of the Sun create are utterly captivating. Continue reading “A Swarm of the Sun – An Empire (Review)”
This is a split between two US black metal bands, Lust Hag and Reaping Fields.
NEW LUST HAG! ALERT! ALERT! ALERT! I dunno what it is with Lust Hag, but I just can’t get enough. Actually, I know exactly what it is – it’s just absolutely killer black metal. This is a split though, and Reaping Fields, as we’ll see, are a revelation. Continue reading “Lust Hag/Reaping Fields – Prayers Unanswered – Split (Review)”
Scarcity are a black metal band from the US and this is their second album.
The successor of 2022’s well-received Aveilut, The Promise of Rain contains 40 minutes of new material from Scarcity. Brought to us from a band that features members of Anicon, Glorious Depravity, Krallice, Pyrrhon, Seputus, Weeping Sores, and Woe, Scarcity have a wealth of experience in the realms of extreme metal that they bring to bear here to good effect. Continue reading “Scarcity – The Promise of Rain (Review)”
This is the fifth album from Canadian post-metal/sludge band Sumac, (who boast current and ex-members of bands such as Baptists, Genghis Tron, Isis, Old Man Gloom, Russian Circles, and These Arms Are Snakes in their ranks).
It’s been a while since I caught up with Sumac – 2018’s collaboration with Keijo Haino in fact, as well as their full length from the same year, Love in Shadow. I even had the privilege of catching them live in 2019. Apparently they also had an album out in 2020 called May You Be Held, which I somehow completely missed, which is a shame. All of which brings us to the immense 76 minutes of material on The Healer. Continue reading “Sumac – The Healer (Review)”
Solar Temple and Dead Neanderthals are both from the Netherlands. The former plays black metal, (and contains members of Fluisteraars and Dool), and the latter is an experimental act.
Embers Beget the Divine documents the live show that the Continue reading “Solar Temple & Dead Neanderthals – Embers Beget the Divine (Review)”
Wonderbox Metal 