doomgaze

Album Review: E-L-R — “Vexier”

Ian1 Comment

Vexier, from the Latin “vexare,” meaning to plague or to irritate, or from the German “Vexierbild,” meaning a flipped image, or even a puzzle game in some dialects.  What does all this have to do with the newest release from Switzerland’s doomgaze golden children E-L-R?  A lot, actually.  While I wouldn’t say this album is going to plague you, the idea behind it is that it should vex you a little bit.  It should get under your skin and make you want to unwrap more layers, make a couple more moves to solving the puzzle, try to piece out the original from the image.

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Album Review: Low Flying Hawks — “Fuyu”

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Masters of shoegaze, Low Flying Hawks, have returned with their third full-length release and final part of their musical trilogy centering on the ancient Greek myth of Sisyphos, King of Corinth.  The story is of the trickster king who cheated death twice and was then punished by the gods to spend eternity pushing a massive rock up a hill.  Every time he neared the top, the rock slipped and rolled back down for him to start the grueling process over again.  This conclusion album titled Fuyu means “winter” in Japanese and centers on the ups and downs and struggle of life.  It is an emotive and beautiful album that stands perfectly on its own while also acting as the last piece of the puzzle in the band’s five-year long project.

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Album Review: King Woman — “Celestial Blues”

Hera4 Comments

July has a theme for me – it is called “Hera needs to grapple with religion in mind, body, and spirit.”

After writing about fascinations with cults of personality (mind) and about finding salvation when realizing your regret (body), King Woman comes in and proceeds to absolutely wreck me spiritually with the blistering rage and experimental doomgaze of Celestial Blues, an album that follows from where their debut, Created in the Image of Suffering, ended. I have not stopped talking about this band since I found them in 2016, and CITIOS cemented my love for them, as I have never felt so seen by the vitriol Kris and co. spat towards religion and its inherent hypocrisy. To this day, religion follows me, especially due to how I choose to live and approach the decisions I have made in my life. As a lapsed Catholic and having grown up in a somewhat conservative Christian cult-like  environment, I have come to understand that the things I choose to align with are seen as wrong by those who both choose to ignore what’s going around them and embody a false sense of morality that they want to pass along to their flock. Let’s discuss.

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Album Review: Isaurian — “Chains of Blue”

IanLeave a comment

Brazil’s Isaurian may have started as a way for a few members of Optical Faze to bide their time while their main project was on hiatus, but it has very rapidly grown to be so much more than that.  They’ve only been around since 2017, but they’ve already gotten to work with legends like Rhys Fulber and Justin Broadrick before they even have a debut album.  Until now, that is.  Chains of Blue is the band’s opening statement, and it sees them reach for new heights while attempting to nail down definitively what they want their sound to be. Continue reading →

Album Review: Chrome Ghost — “The Diving Bell”

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Wherever you are, whatever your situation is, I hope you’re well and safe.  It’s not ideal times, but I’m looking on the bright side by taking advantage of good tunes and a lot of extra time to listen to them.  One album that I’ve been really excited to dive into is Chrome Ghost’s sophomore full-length The Diving Bell.  Although digitally released last November, the album is getting a physical release via Seeing Red Records.  Whether you’re already a fan or you’re just hearing about it now, do yourself a favor and get the vinyl of this one.  You’re worth it. Continue reading →