In Dante’s Inferno, the second circle begins the proper punishment of Hell, a place where “no thing gleams.” It is reserved for those overcome with Lust, where carnal appetites hold sway over reason. In Nine Circles, it’s where we do shorter reviews of new(ish) albums that share a common theme.

In today’s edition, we will dive head first into two new albums from bands that hail from the leftfield fringes of metal and push the proverbial envelope through a shredder. Did I mention that the aforementioned envelope you just held in your hands was drenched in a cocktail of psychedelic drugs? Better fasten your seatbelts as we are about to venture into some wild territories, with Four Stroke Baron and Haunted Plasma as our intrepid guides.

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