sludge metal

Album Review: Herod — “Iconoclast”

HeraLeave a comment

The meaning of iconoclasm has evolved from the social belief in the destruction of (specifically coded) religious icons and monuments to the more secular application of someone who challenges institutions due to finding it erroneous. Because of this evolution, the term now has an additional political connotation, bordering on damnatio memoriae, where someone or something becomes excluded or eliminated from the historical record. While this is what ultimately happens at the conclusion of Iconoclast, Herod’s third full-length, it’s the journey of how we get there that I find most appealing. Let’s discuss.

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Album Review: LO! — “The Gleaners”

D MorrisLeave a comment

David Lynch’s 1986 film Blue Velvet famously opens with an image of sublime beauty juxtaposed with hellish ugliness. A shot of a white picket fence with red roses segues into a kingdom of hideous, writhing insects.  Black and gold shapes burrow and writhe through moist dirt. Lynch films the insects as abstract shapes struggling for dominance. Lynch wants his audience to know that under this surface beauty lies unknown horrors. The two live in symbiosis and neither can thrive without its opposite. Because it’s David Lynch though, this uncomfortable scene also holds beauty in it. A frightening beauty the viewer cannot ignore. The Gleaners, the latest album from Australian sludge mongers LO!, thrives in similar imagery.

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Album Review: Netherlands — “Severance”

D MorrisLeave a comment

In college, a friend of mine had a radio show called “Indie, Electronics, and The Issues.” He would play indie rock and electronica, then talk about “the issues.” Side note; the show eventually turned into my friend just playing whale songs and self help books. Anyways, Severance, the latest from Netherlands, could alternately be titled “Metal, Industrial, and The Issues.” It’s a mix of sludgy and industrial sounds with lyrical content dealing with a variety of current issues; animal rights, toxic masculinity, etc. Yet despite Netherlands leader Timo Ellis’ best efforts, Severance never reaches the lofty goals it sets out to achieve.

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Album Review: Allfather — “A Violent Truth”

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Allfather - A Violent Truth

Newsflash for anyone still doing the ostrich thing (and who can blame you?): the world is a dumpster fire not-so-slowly creeping towards epic proportions. No need to recount the many ways this is happening and has happened; we’re living and breathing it every single moment. With that said, the title for Medway, UK based Allfather’s third full length, A Violent Truth, couldn’t be more on the nose if it tried. Allfather are no stranger to rage fueled metal – it’s been their calling card since debuting back in 2015. Eight years later the band finds new levels of anger and vitriol to fuel the sonic fire of a world gone mad, congealing all the insanity into one hell of a satisfying record. It’s no secret the band has been a favorite of the 9C crew since, well…forever, so when both Josh and Chris got their fingers in the promo pile at the same time, we’re doing a two hands on deck type of deal. Enjoy.

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Album Review: Fange — “Privation”

IanLeave a comment

Fange are a band that I have been championing for a while.  Not since their inception, but at least since the first time I took a chance on them when I saw their name in our promo planner.  Their signature and self-styled blend of “industrial death/harsh sludge” has always intrigued me due to their highly addicting blend of harsh noise and bone crushingly heavy riffs.  Privation, the band’s fourth full length (and my third review of theirs for the site) zeroes in on what I really appreciate about them, though, and what I think sets them well apart from their contemporaries: despite the fact that they have a genre they fit in, they refuse to make the same album twice.

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