What a week. It started out with snow and ice but now — shorts weather again. You’ll never, ever hear me complain about shorts weather. Well, except for having to hang up the hoodies again. Anyway, we’re halfway through January already and the new releases here on Initial Descent are stacking up. And, for a neat surprise, quality is still taking front and center so my early bets are on 2017 being another stellar year for metal. Yea, yea I know it’s way early for that talk but I’m optimistic. This week we’ve got Black Anvil‘s fourth full length As Was and honestly I’m of the belief this is their best and most forward thinking black metal yet — so good. Moving on, it only took ten years but The Drip offer up their debut full length The Haunting Fear of Inevitability; a multi-pronged approach of grindcore, death metal and groove that is as fun as it is well produced. Finally, Shaarimoth return with their long awaited second full length of extremely well executed blackened death metal Temple of the Adversarial Fire and it is absolutely worth your time to check out. Three quality albums and we’ve barely scratched the surface of this week’s offerings. So see what else awaits, after the jump.
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Black Anvil – As Was (Relapse Records) – black metal [full review]
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The Drip – The Haunting Fear of Inevitability (Relapse Records) – grindcore [full review]
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Shaarimoth – Temple of the Adversarial Fire (World Terror Committee) – death metal, black metal
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Also on tap:
Burials/Exhausted Prayer – Split (Apes Who Looked Up/Rose Quarter Records) – deathcore
Code Orange – Forever (Roadrunner Records) – hardcore
Dawn of Tyrants – Breeding Ruin, EP (Independent) – blackened death metal
Draugsól – Valaoa Land (Signal Rex) – black metal
Four Star Revival – The Underdog (Headstone Records) – hard rock, heavy metal
Gothic – Demons (Loud Rage Music) – melodic death metal
Grave Digger – Healed By Metal (Napalm Records) – heavy metal
Ill Neglect/Lambs – Split, 7″ (WOOAAARGH) – grind, sludge metal
Jupiter Hollow – Odyssey, EP (Independent) – progressive metal
Lo-Pan – In Tensions, EP (Aqualamb Records) – heavy rock
Maze of Sothoth – Soul Demise (Everlasting Spew Records) – death metal
Memories In Broken Glass – Enigma Infinite (Hammer Forged Records) – progressive metal
Reality Slap – Limitless, EP (WAR Records) – hardcore
Suppressive Fire – Nature of War (Lost Apparitions Records) – death metal, thrash
Thyrane – Black Harmony, Reissue (Woodcut Records) – black metal, satan
White Light Cemetery – Careful What You Wish For (Ripple Music) – southern metal
– Josh
Nine Circles 