black sheep wall

Interview: Black Sheep Wall on their upcoming album “Songs for the Enamel Queen” and breaking a long silence, Covid effects, long songs, record labels, upcoming plans for 2021, and so much more!

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It’s been a hot damn minute since LA’s Black Sheep Wall released new stuff, but thank the sludge gods Songs for the Enamel Queen will be released this week. Seven tracks of devastating sludge, emotionally heavy post-metal, and earwrecking hardcore is just what the doctor ordered for an hour break to hang all your anger, suffering, insecurities, and just bullshit of the world in general on. And it is a BEAST. I can’t turn away from it, the heaviness, nastiness, delicate intricacies, and deeper dive into what their last album “I’m Going To Kill Myself” eluded to in the experimentation department. I had the chance to ask the band about the new album and the looooong silence between albums, how Covid affected them, their love of longer songs, record labels, upcoming plans for the rest of 2021, and so much more. The band was so amazing with their answers and you can tell they really love what they’re doing and absolutely take it as serious as possible, I’ve got nothing but love for them. Seriously folks, please do yourself a favor and grab a copy of this album from the links contained within. This thing is so damn therapeutic and so damn heavy. GET SOME. NOW. At the same time, read on to see how this all went down.

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Initial Descent: February 21 – 27, 2021

JoshLeave a comment
Black Sheep Wall
Black Sheep Wall

Last week was a good week. Finally. Lots of reasons and none of which matter to anyone but me. I mention it because it was an anomaly as of late and demanded mentioning. And, I’m all out of witty one liners—even though last week was full of crappy but funny movie quotes—so you got that for an opening statement. Yay you. Anyway, new week means new releases and we got a ton of them to get to and from all corners of the vast metal and metalish landscape. Looking for some incredible sludge that bites back? Black Sheep Wall has your back. How about some shamanic doom? Sunnata saves the day. Or maybe some filthy doom/sludge is calling? 16 and Grime do it and do it well on a split so you’re covered there. Or maybe some exceptionally low end driven, crazy, avant-metal fits the bill? You guessed it, Timo Ellis is looking out for you—just sayin’, I’ll die on the hill of Timo Ellis and Netherlands so there’s that to entice you. All that and a very long list to follow so GET AFTER IT, folks.

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The Horns Up Podcast: Episode 38 (February 6, 2015)

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It’s time for Episode 38 of The Horns Up Podcast, your weekly catch-up on all things metal!

This week, it’s Blind Guardian week, and the guys get super amped over the German power metal legends’ new album, Beyond the Red Mirror! Plus, Corey’s struggles marathon training through snow, Dan’s review of Savages’ show in Brooklyn, and a joint tribute to late Metal Maniacs founder Katherine Ludwig.

All that and much more in this week’s episode, so check it out!

Also available on:

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Live. Love. Plow. Horns Up.

Album Review: Black Sheep Wall – “I’m Going to Kill Myself”

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Black-Sheep-Wall-I_m-Going-To-Kill-Myself-40625-1_1

With their third full-length album, I’m Going to Kill Myself, California’s Black Sheep Wall actually highlight something very important—though, perhaps, not what they’d initially set out to. More than anything, the album underscores just how important a solid vocalist can be to a band. On Black Sheep Wall’s last album, No Matter Where it Ends, that vocalist was Trae Malone, whose gruff roar fit in perfectly with the band’s solid, if not spectacular, blend of sludgy death-doom. But with Malone now out of the picture, bassist Brandon Gillichbauer takes up the mic this time out, and we’re all the worse for it. His performance is one of the most jarring, miserable experiences in recent memory. It’s borderline unlistenable. Continue reading →

Just the Tip: February 3’s New Releases in Brief

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It’s new release Tuesday—time for another edition of Just the Tip! Here’s the new release (and couple of older releases) we’ll be discussing on the podcast this week!

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February 3, 2015

Blind Guardian – Beyond the Red Mirror (Nuclear Blast)

BG

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Volahn – Aq’Ab’Al (Crepúsculo Negro)

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Black Sheep Wall – I’m Going to Kill Myself (Season of Mist)

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We’ll also have written reviews of these and other new releases here on the site throughout the week, but for now, take a listen and check back later this week for our spoken thoughts in Episode 38!

Other New Releases of Note:

  • U.D.O. – Decadent (AFM)
  • Atomicide – Chaos Abomination (Iron Bonehead)
  • Dødsfall – Kaosmakt (Osmose)
  • Ululate – Back to Cannibal World (Xtreem)
  • Orden Ogan – Ravenhead (AFM)

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Live. Love. Plow. Horns Up.