obsequiae – Nine Circles

CANTO: Obsequiae, Overkill, Machine Head, and More

March 14, 2023March 14, 2023CoreyLeave a comment

Life is chaos, so these may not come around as frequently as they used to.

I was psyched to see this emerge today. Check out this multi-camera video of the Obsequiae Fire In The Mountains set. If you look closely enough, you may see some of 9C’s own in the audience and/or photo pit. I personally haven’t looked close enough to confirm or deny.
New Jersey progressive outfit East of the Wall are releasing their sixth full-length, A Natural Second, on June 30 through Translation Loss Records. Give “Detonator Gauntlet” a listen over at Decibel.
Machine Head announced some upcoming U.S. dates. Public tickets sales for their Electric Happy Hour (Live) tour go on sale this coming Friday. Those links, along with the schedule and any other details you may need, can be found here.
Thrash legends Overkill are releasing Scorched on April 14 through Nuclear Blast, and today they unveiled a visualizer for the second single from that collection. Give “Wicked Place” a listen, and watch, right here.
Helloween are returning to North America for a handful of dates in May and June, and they’ll be joined by special guest HammerFall. Tickets are on sale now at this location.
It’s time for me to move on with my evening, so we’ll wrap up with the latest from Sortilège. Check out the new music video for “Vampire” below. Their recently released new album, Apocalypso, is available through Season of Mist.

“Ein Bier… bitte.”
– cmb

CANTO: Seven Spires, Majesties, Anti-Flag, and More

January 6, 2023January 6, 2023CoreyLeave a comment

It’s a Friday, and it’s snowing. It’s going to be a good weekend…

But first! A new project I am VERY excited about. Majesties, a melodic death metal trio featuring the minds behind Obsequiae and Inexorum, are releasing Vast Reaches Unclaimed on March 3rd through 20 Buck Spin. The hype is real. Give “The World Unseen” a listen here.
Next, we have some new Anti-Flag to share. The video for “Sold Everything” is available here. Their 13th album, Lies They Tell Our Children, is out today through Spinefarm.
Danish hardcore group Eyes have revealed “Generation L”, the second single from Congratulations. That album is out on February 3rd through Indisciplinarian.
Symphonic metallers Seven Spires are releasing a new live album on March 17th, titled Live at Progpower USA XXI. Check out the footage of “Ghosts Of Yesterday” below. They’re also on tour in both Europe and North America in the coming months, so get on that as well.

“Ein Bier… bitte.”
– cmb

The Nine Circles Playlist Vol. 261 (12.10.2022)

December 10, 2022December 10, 2022ChrisLeave a comment

End of year is almost here. I’ve been spending the day clearing out all the albums from 2022 I know I’m not going to listen to again. It’s hard: some of those albums were pretty damn good, but I know my mind by now, and it’s the rare record that sticks around long enough to make a permanent addition to my collection. And while I was doing that I was finding some weird and fun music I’d collected over the years I hadn’t heard in a long, long while, so let’s make some room on this the 261st edition of the Nine Circles Playlist for some weird and loud noises thanks to bands like Ex Eye, Grip Inc., and New Keepers of the Water Towers.

You won’t need to bear my indulgence for long. The 9C crew brought the heavy down for you, including Jesus Piece, Conjureth, Hour of Penance, and Moonlight Sorcery. There’s some slightly older fare with the likes of Obsequiae, King Woman, and some crushing Godspeed You! Black Emperor. We go off the beaten path with Emma Ruth Rundle, Chapterhouse and New Order, but come back with some new Zeal & Ardor and much more.

Get listening. Stay safe. See you next week.

—

– Chris

Best of 2019: Vincent’s List

January 9, 2020January 7, 2020VincentLeave a comment

Best of 2019

I always have a tough time with these introduction things when it comes to End of Year lists. The temptation is to sum up the year with some anecdotes about what it meant to me and how the music I loved played into it. Yet what could I say about a year that was such a mixed bag for me? On a personal note, my mental health took an all-out nosedive last year that I’m still trying to claw my way out of, yet my partner and I got engaged and are looking forward to spending the rest of our lives together (not that we weren’t already, but you get the point). The weight of the worst depression and anxiety I’ve ever faced affected my ability to connect to a lot of the music I heard last year, yet I started a column on here that lead me back to a genre of music I had not seriously kept up with for some time, and in doing so I found a little piece of myself again. Years are years are years, and life is cyclical and spiralic in nature. I won’t pretend there weren’t good things to come out of last year, just as I won’t pretend there won’t be hard times in the year ahead. But I will always have a carefully curated soundtrack to help me along the way, and below represents what helped me get through 2019. Continue reading →