Hoo boy did I ever miss the mark last week not putting Sepultura’s Quadra up top. That album is straight fire from top to bottom. Missed opportunity for sure but hey, it got opening sentence this week so, score?! Anywhoo, new metals this week include an outstanding death metal debut from Plague who take the tried and true death template and do amazing things with it – actual wizardry in death metal? Absolutely. Noise rock friends of Nine Circles Disastroid are back with an outstanding follow up to 2017s Screen, ethereal doom knows no bounds in the hands of Frayle on their latest, and Ihsahn is up with an EP that really grabbed me from the lead off singles but who knows, the rest might be a techno trance jam. I kid, I kid – I jumped on the preorder so there’s that. Much more awaits those who care to plunder the depths below. Enjoy. Oh, happy V day and all that.
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Plague – Portraits of Mind (Redefining Darkness / Nuclear Winter) – death metal
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Disastroid – Mortal Fools (Heavy Psych Sounds) – noise rock
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Frayle – 1692 (Aqualamb / Laybare Recordings) – doom
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Ihsahn – Telemark, EP (Candlelight) – black metal..ish
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Also on tap:
Angellore – Rien Ne Devait Mourir (Finisterian Dead End) – gothic doom
Anvil – Legal At Last (AFM) – metalish
Apokryphon – Subterra (Avantgarde Music) – black metal
Arcaine – As Life Decays (Black Sunset / MDD) – melodic death
Assumption – The Three Appearances, Vinyl Re-Release (Sentient Ruin / Everlasting Spew) – death / doom
Black Royal – Firebride (Suicide Records) – sludge
Blaze of Perdition – The Harrowing of Hearts (Metal Blade) – black metal
Blissful Stream – When the Wolves Start to Circle (Independent) – metal
Catafalque – Corpses (Trepanation Recordings) – harsh noise / doom
Colosso – Apocalypse (Transcending Obscurity) – death metal
Dead Sea Apes – Night Lands (Feeding Tube / Cardinal Fuzz) – psych
Diabulus in Musica – Euphonic Entropy (Napalm Records) – metal
Ensnared – Inimicus Generis Humani (Invictus Productions / Dark Descent) – death metal
Faustian Pact – Outojen Tornien Varjoissa (Werewolf) – black metal
From Under Concrete Kings – Modus Exodus, EP (Independent) – deathcore
Godthrymm – Reflections (Profound Lore) – doom and riffs
Grafvitnir – NâHásh, Reissue (Clavis Secretorvm) – black metal
Hällas – Conundrum (Napalm) – protoish metal
Holycide – Fist to Face (Xtreem Music) – thrash
Izthmi – The Arrow of Our Ways (Within the Mind) – atmospheric metal
JJ Anselmi – Doomed to Fail: The Incredibly Loud History of Doom, Sludge, and Post-Metal (Rare Bird Books) – book
Kvelertak – Splid (Rise) – metal
Malleus – Storm of Witchcraft, Remastered (Armageddon Label) – black metal
Ossaert – Bedehuis (Argento) – black metal
Pornohelmüt – Bang Lord (Atypeek Music) – experimental
Sarcator – Visions of Purgatory (Redefining Darkness) – melodic death
Skumstrike – Execution Void (Caligari) – crust punk
Somaesthesia – Recidivist, EP (Independent) – prog death
Suum – Cryptomass (Seeing Red) – doom
Turia – Degen van Licht (Eisenwald) – black metal
Twins – Soon (No Funeral) – post-hardcore
Unfold – Aeon Aony (Division) – post-metal
– Josh
Nine Circles 