Tag: Sludge metal

Ilsa – Intoxicantations (Review)

ilsaWell, isn’t this the proverbial hidden gem. Filthy, dirty sludge Metal with elements of thrash and death ‘n’ roll mixed in. Quite simply this is brilliant.

The overall feelings and structures of the songs are composed in such a way that this is a very complete album. Each song easily identifiable from the rest and together forming one of the most enjoyable albums I’ve listened to in a while. I haven’t been able to stop listening to this the last few days.

Very insipid; the riffs crawl their way into your subconscious and refuse to dislodge. The production miraculously manages to sound both dirty and clear at the same time. The guitar tone in particular is strong and powerful. Crushing in fact.

Each track has its own character and personality, comprising of top-shelf riffs and attitude. There is no filler here; each song is its own entity and more than capable of standing on its own merits.

Snarling, vicious vocals accompany the metallic mayhem and perfectly suit the musical vision of the rest of the band. As a reference point they are sometimes reminiscent of the Darkest Hour vocalist and have the same level of passion and legibility. The singer of Ilsa gives an excellent performance in all ways.

This album is first-rate. If you are a fan of metallic sludge and like plenty of depth and longevity in your music then this will certainly be a must for you. So far, alongside the first album by Morality Crisis, this is a very strong contender for album of the year as far as I’m concerned.

Ghold – Judas Ghoat (Review)

gholdGhold play some super sludgy Doom with emphasis on the sluuudge. It’s heavy on the bass and nicely percussive.

I enjoy albums like this as generally speaking they are easy to become absorbed into. The bass simply expanding to consume everything else until it is the only thing left. Almost anyway, as Ghold are more than just the bass.

This is quite a distinctive brand of sludge and the vocals in particular mark it as out of the ordinary, almost like a one-man gang vocal. These heavy, deep vocals prowl the deep sludgy seas adding menacing and ritualistic tones to the music. Meanwhile the drums hammer out relentless rhythms and beats that supply the backbone to whatever the bass is doing.

A very primal feeling to this release, like something struggling to be born. A worthy addition to the genre.

Interpreter – Introspection (Review)

InterpreterSo what do we have here then? Some sort of Black Metal/Post-Metal/Sludge album? Actually it’s kind of hard to say. Elements of all said genres, and more, make up this impressive album.

Too fast to be merely Doom; too metal to be merely sludge; too aggressive to be merely Post-Metal; too encompassing of other genres to be merely Black Metal…I could go on. Suffice to say that for all its variety it still retains a cohesive identity that marks it out as a Metal album, so as far as genre goes maybe that’s enough.

Almost every track brings new surprises – a different style of vocals here; a change of pace and style there – but it all flows together into a seamless whole that delivers a very complete, very diverse and weighty collection of songs. The vocal styles range from throaty shouts and growls to Black Metal shrieking; it’s all here. Interpreter were previously unknown to me and as such I did not expect this release to be of such outstanding quality. But it is. Oh yes.

Fusing the best of the Sludge, Post-Metal, Doom, Black Metal, (etc.) genres into a seamless whole, Interpreter are like the proverbial breath of fresh air. A top quality recording job rounds this release off nicely and i can only add to this review by heartily recommending you get this as soon as you can.

Not for the average.