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.
It’s time for a heroic dose of heavy psychedelia administered by two of my old favorites that have found new imaginative pathways on their latest albums: Polymoon’s Chrysalisand Entropia’sTotal.
Yeah…sometimes life just comes up and not only bites you in the ass, but grabs a hold and throws you down in the ditch, pisses on your head and laughs as it walks away. So this week’s edition – the 272nd – of the Nine Circles Playlist is coming a little later than it should, and that’s all on me. So I’m gonna make the preamble short and just get right into the meat of the matter, starting with a doozy from the new Venomous Concept album. I love the more punk and post-punk elements on it and hope you will, too. Looking through my recent vinyl acquisitions we’re also gonna drop a pair of 90s classics from Eucharist and Amorphis so you can all feel that weird snare and the cold ice blue of Finnish metal.
The rest of the staff will keep things on par with the usual varied insanity. So get your ears ready for music from the likes of Usnea, Klone, Polymoon, Grave Pleasures, Birdflesh, Lotus Eater Machine, Gravpel, Ulthar, Leander Kills, Dååth, Botanist, Big|Brave, Anatomy of Habit, and the newest from VoidCeremony. But that’s not all: you get some old emo from Marietta, some more In Flames love, older tracks from Opeth, Spectral Lore and Madder Mortem and a few more surprises, not to mention the ALWAYS appropriate Joy Division to close things out.
I’m still recovering from the drunken mayhem that was our first ever Album Ramble – I hope you dug it, we plan to punish our livers monthly for your entertainment. Anyway, as if a new GREAT Katatonia was enough to drop this week, we have the second single from the mighty Metallica’s72 Seasons, so we’re kicking off with that – and the newest video from Katatonia backing it up.
After that it’s a gaggle of new and classic heavy hitters, including cuts from The Ocean, Bodyfarm, Polymoon, Turbid North, Ulthar, Nite, Asunojokei, Coheed & Cambria, Full of Hell, Cäina, Black Country New Road, Fvnerals, and Miserable.