If you’ve been following along, I talk about time a lot and mostly how fast it escapes us. On that theme, as of this month Nine Circles turns three years old. And it’s been an amazing ride thus far. To all writers and contributors, past and present, thank you sincerely. To our readers, thank you from the bottom of our blackened hearts for spending your time with us and being the best audience ever. And to the PR firms, labels, bands and venues we appreciate you. Now, we have metal to get to and truth be told that’s why you came so without further ado: Nameless Hideous Manifestations is a scorcher of a death metal debut from Chile’s Soulrot but also one that will have you rockin your headbanging skills like it’s 1990 again. Life of Agony have finally returned after 12 years with A Place Where There’s No More Pain and truthfully they haven’t missed a step since then and this album is a firm declaration of where they are now — a good place I might add. Buildings return with their third full length You Are Not One of Us (A+ for that title) and it’s a massively dynamic noise/punk/rock album that finds the band at their best yet. And rounding out the opening slots is Duel with Witchbanger, this band just gets better and better at their brand of doom by way of classic heavy rock — proto metal if you will, highly recommended. As usual we have much, much more to get to so jump in and stay awhile. Once more, thank you for spending time with us and we hope to be sending this message out again next year.
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Soulrot – Nameless Hideous Manifestations (Memento Mori) – death metal [full review]
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Life of Agony – A Place Where There’s No More Pain (Napalm Records) – hard rock, alternative metal [full review]
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Buildings – You Are Not One of Us (Gilead Media) – noise rock
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Duel – Witchbanger (Heavy Psych Sounds) – doom, hard rock
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Also on tap:
A-Sun Amissa – The Gatherer (Consouling Sounds) – experimental
Aborted Fetus – The Art of Violent Torture (Comatose Music) – brutal death metal
American Standards – Anti-Melody (Independent) – hardcore
Archivist – Construct (Halo of Flies) – post metal
Barathrum – Fanatiko (Saturnal) – black metal
Condor – Unstoppable Power (High Roller Records) – blackened thrash metal
Corpus Christii – Delusion (Folter Records) – black metal
Critical Solution – Barbara the Witch (Crime Records) – thrash metal
Cry Excess – Vision (Bleeding Nose Records) – metalcore
Crypt Rot – Embryonic Devils (Southern Lord) – blackened death metal
Cult of Eibon – Lycan Twilight Sorcery (Iron Bonehead) – black metal
Cursus – S/T (Artificial Head Records) – psychedelic sludge
Dead – We Won’t Let You Sleep (We Empty Rooms) – noise rock
December’s Fire – Vae Victus, Reissue (Arachnophobia Records) – metal
Dependentium – Itsetuhon alkeet (Via Nocturna) – black metal
Dødsritual – Under Sort Sol (Black Market Metal Label) – black metal
Elephant Bell – Gates of Dawn (Argonauta) – stoner rock
Fabio La Manna – Ebe (Via Nocturna) – progressive metal
Fin – Arrows of a Dying Age (Folter Records) – black metal
Fumigation/The Path to R’yleh – Invasion, Split (CDN Records) – death metal
Gridfailure & Megalophobe – Dendritic (Independent ) – ambient
Helsott – The Healer, EP (M-Theory Audio) – melodic death metal, pagan
Hideous Divinity – Adveniens (Unique Leader) – death metal
Ides of Gemini – Women (Rise Above) – doom, ambient
Jukebox Monkey – Grey Skies Red Planet (Independent) – stoner rock
Kenoma – The Tides Will Prevail (Translation Loss) – instrumental doom metal [full review]
Lucidreams – Ballox (Transcending Obscurity) – heavy metal
Mammoth Mammoth – Mount the Mountain (Napalm Records) – rock n roll
Martyrdoom – Grievous Psychosis (Memento Mori) – death doom
Mind Mold – S/T, EP (Sentient Ruin) – blackened doom metal
Mongol – Warrior Spirit (Independent) – folk metal
Morbid Flesh – Rites of the Mangled (Unholy Prophecies) – death metal
Morte Incandescente / Illum Adora – Remnants of a Flaming Past, Split (War Arts) – black metal
Mythra – Still Burning (High Roller Records) – speed metal
Nekroptikon – When the Plague Breaks Out (Via Nocturna) – black metal
Noumena – Myrrys (Inverse Records) – melodic death metal
Prayers of Sanity – Face of the Unknown (Rastilho Records) – thrash metal
Return to Void – S/T (Inverse Records) – prog rock, metal
Ruin – Drown in Blood (Memento Mori) – death metal
Sarcasm – Within the Sphere of Ethereal Minds (Dark Descent) – death metal
Statiqbloom – Blue Moon Blood (Translation Loss) – industrial metal
Stellarvore – L’orgueil des drapeaux et des flammes (Via Nocturna) – black metal
Terror – The Walls Will Fall, EP (Pure Noise) – hardcore
Thy Worshiper – Popiół, Reissue (Arachnophobia Records) – black metal
Ungraved Apparition – Pulse O (Grimm Distribution) – dark metal
War Brides – Regrets (Triple Eye Industries) – heavy noise
Warcrab – Scars of Aeons (Transcending Obscurity) – death, sludge
Wolfbrigade – Run With the Hunted (Southern Lord) – metal, punk
Wolfkhan – Cyber Necro Spirituals (Arachnophobia Records) – experimental, industrial
– Josh
