November is here and it has brought cold weather with it and earlier darkness. I am not amused, at all. As a kid I loved it but now, nope. But, my seasonal pains is not something you care about so let’s get into what the first full week of metal for this month has to offer…
First up is SC’s answer to vicious and cold black metal, Valle Crucis with their full length debut Iron & Blood – I don’t get enough chances to rep my locals but this duo is stunning, don’t sleep on this one. Next is Hypnagogia from funeral doom by way of death metal legends Evoken, their level of genuine artistry is somewhere high atop the stars and continues that trajectory here. Moving along is the second full length, Holy Grove II, from Portland’s Holy Grove and much like their last one, this album further blurs the lines of heavy metal, doom and space rock but make no mistake it hits as hard as a freight train and scratches that bluesy itch perfectly. Last up, at the top at least, is Thoren with their extremely dissonant take on instrumental, progressive death metal with Gwarth I – if looking for a challenging listen is one of your priorities, this is the one for you.
That’s the first four but there’s so much more. Get in there…
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Valle Crucis – Iron & Blood (Pagan Pride / Narcoleptica Productions) – black metal [interview]
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Evoken – Hypnagogia (Profound Lore) – doom metal
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Holy Grove – Holy Grove II (Ripple Music) – heavy metal
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Thoren – Gwarth I (Drylands Records) – progressive death metal
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Also on tap:
Adder’s Fork – The Individualist (Independent) – post-rock
Anomalie – Integra, EP (AOP) – atmospheric metal [feature review]
Architects – Holy Hell (Epitaph Records) – hardcore [full review]
Atrocity Exhibit – Extinction Solution (WOOAAARGH) – grind / crust
Begravningsentreprenörerna – Jämna Plågor (Ektro) – proto metal
Black Earth – A Cryptic Howl of Morbid Truth, Vinyl Issue (Sentient Ruin / Bestiarie) – black / ambient
Bow Gamelan Ensemble – Great Noises That Fill the Air (Cold Spring) – avantgarde
Brand of Sacrifice – The Interstice (Unique Leader) – brutal death / hardcore
Burning Witches – Hexenhammer (Nuclear Blast) – heavy metal
Convent Guilt – Diamond Cut Diamond (Gates of Hell) – heavy metal
Cortez – No More Conqueror (WOOAAARGH) – hardcore
Crawling for Carrion – Rake and Roads (Giganto Records) – sludge [profile]
Cripple Bastards – La Fine Cresce Da Dentro (Relapse) – grind
Cult Leader – A Patient Man (Deathwish) – chaotic crust [feature review]
Dire Peril – The Extraterrestrial Compendium (Divebomb Records) – power metal [feature]
Flat Earth – None For One (Drakkar Entertainment) – psych metal
Four Stroke Baron – Planet Silver Screen (Prosthetic Records) – rock
Fractal Cypher – Prelude To An Impending Outcome, EP (Independent) – progressive metal
Goddess – Raped Into Being (Medusa Crush Recordings) – black metal
Godskill – The Gatherer of Fear and Blood (MDD) – death metal
HEX A.D. – Netherworld Triumphant (Fresh Tea) – doom
Holygram – Modern Cults (Cleopatra Records) – goth
Jakethehawk – To Build A Fire (Blackseed Records) – desert rock
Jose Rubio – Forbidden Dreams (Fighter Records) – instrumental
Josef Van Wissem – We Adore You, You Have No Name (Consouling Sounds) – drone
Kælan Mikla – Nótt eftir nótt (Artoffact Records) – post-punk
Kuar Nhial – S/T (Consouling Sounds) – black metal
Lethean – The Waters of Death (Cruz Del Sur) – doom / heavy metal
Nekromant – The Nekromant Lives (Ripple Music) – heavy metal
Neos Gheron – Potius Nihil, Potius Deseltus (Masked Dead Records) – black metal
Ohhms – Exist (Holy Roar) – doom / post-metal
Psycroptic – As the Kingdom Drowns (Prosthetic Records) – death metal
Rainburn – Insignify (Independent) – prog-rock
Randall Dunn – Beloved (figureeight) – drone
Realm of Wolves – Oblivion, CD (Casus Belli Musica) – atmospheric black metal [full review]
Sadist – Spellbound (Scarlet Records) – death metal
Sectorial – VYR (Noizr Productions) – black / death
Septagon – Apocalyptic Rhymes (Cruz Del Sur) – thrash / power metal
Som – The Fall (Independent) – post metal
Sumptus Ignis – Ambition (Independent) – metal
Swallowing the Weak – Devourer of Souls (Sliptrick) – death metal
The Castor Troys – Legends Never Die, EP (Independent) – hard rock
The Mon – Doppelleben (Supernatural Cat) – experimental
Third Storm – The Grand Manifestation (Dark Descent) – black / death
Ulthar – Cosmovore (20 Buck Spin) – death metal [feature review]
Various Artists – The Wall, Redux (Magnetic Eye Records) – metal covers Floyd
Voices From the Fuselage – Odyssey: The Founder of Dreams (Incendia) – progressive rock
Vulturic Eye – Crucifixion of Hope (Howling Invocations) – stoner doom
Vuohi – Witchcraft Warfare (Saturnal) – black / death
Vouna – S/T (Artemisia Records) – synth / doom
Wald Krypta – Nature Enigma (Eternal Death Records) – black metal
Zealot Cult – Spiritual Sickness (Blood Harvest) – death metal
– Josh
Nine Circles 