thou – Nine Circles

The Nine Circles Playlist Vol. 335 (5.10.2024)

May 11, 2024May 10, 2024ChrisLeave a comment

Let’s face it: Steve Albini was one of the real ones. Beyond the incredible music of Big Black, or Shellac, or so many of his other projects were the incredible records he recorded, produced, or engineered. Never mind all the hype of Nevermind…for me the real Nirvana, the uncaged animal that was that band can be found in the raw power that was Albini’s masterclass that is In Utero. Rest in Peace to one of the mammoths of heavy music; the 335th edition of the Nine Circles Playlist is dedicated to you.

After that there’s new and old delights from the rest of the 9C staff, including Ceremony of Silence, new Sonja, Health, Thot, new Thou, even some hip-hop courtesy the latest Drake/Kendrick beef and some JPEGMAFIA, and because I can’t get enough of his production some Pixies to close us out. Plus more surprises.

Get listening. Stay safe. See you next week.

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– Chris

CANTO: Portrait, Scarcity, Thou, and More

May 8, 2024May 8, 2024CoreyLeave a comment

Alright. The sun is out again. And I need to go for a run. Let’s make this quick.

We’ll start with Abrams and their new single and music video titled “Blue City”. That, of course, is the title track from their forthcoming album, out on May 24 through Blues Funeral Recordings.
Next up, Swedish heavy metallers Portrait. They’re releasing a full-length through Metal Blade on June 21 titled The Host, and a video for “The Blood Covenant” can be seen here.
And then we have experimental black metal entity Scarcity and their new track “Venom & Cadmium”. That song appears on The Promise of Rain, which arrives on July 12 through The Flenser.
Thou is always worth talking about. They revealed “Unbidden Guest” today, pulled from their upcoming new album. Umbilical gets here on May 31 through Sacred Bones.
Since we’ve shared (I think) each and every Unleash The Archers video for this album cycle, we may as well keep that momentum up. Check out the clip for “Blood Empress” below. As you should know, Phantoma is out this Friday through Napalm Records.

“Ein Bier… bitte.”
– cmb

The Nine Circles Playlist Vol. 331 (4.13.2024)

April 13, 2024April 12, 2024ChrisLeave a comment

We’re back, post-total eclipse of the ~~heart~~ sun and I’ve been riding a cloud of hellfire since Darkthrone finally released their first single off new album It Beckons Us All coming in just a few short weeks. If nothing else I’m super impressed by Mark Osegueda’s roar on the new Kerry King track (which, yeah…sounds like a LOT like latter day Slayer, but what did you expect?) and this new single track Lascaille’s Shroud album is kicking my ass in the best possible way, and now the 331st edition of the Nine Circles Playlist will kick your ass, too.

The rest of the 9C staff have carefully selected a handful of sharpened metal shards sure to pierce your eardrums in the best way, including tracks from the forthcoming Thou (finally!), Devenial Verdict, Infestus, Ulcerate and Blaze of Perdition; classic cuts from Yob and Devin Townsend; new Within Temptation and Ou (featuring Devi on vocals and production), and even some Willie Nelson (with Orville Peck).

Get listening. Stay safe. See you next week.

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– Chris

The Nine Circles Playlist Vol. 305 (10.14.2023)

October 14, 2023October 14, 2023ChrisLeave a comment

It’s getting harder and harder to remember what came out earlier in the year because boy oh boy are we getting positively flooded with killer releases. I was lamenting the lack of (for me) great black metal releases so far this year and up comes Krieg (reviewed here) and Laster (also reviewed) with stunners that are sure to make my end of year list.

But wait! The mighty Judas Priest are back! And their new single is a burner! March 2024 can’t get here fast enough.

What else can you expect in the 305th edition of the Nine Circles Playlist? We’ve got new tracks from Body Void, W.E.B., Xoth, and Pyrolatrous, another cut from Tomb Mold’s latest, plus cuts from the out of nowhere collaboration between Full of Hell and Nothing. We’ve also got classic cuts from Gorguts, Cannibal Corpse, and a lot more this week.

Get listening. Stay safe. See you next week.

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– Chris

Missed Connections: Looking Back on 2022

January 30, 2023January 30, 2023IanLeave a comment

Writing this list in particular is always one of my favorite points in the year. It’s the time where I get to look at everyone else’s list and go “hey, I should have included that too!”, and it gives me a chance to go back and look at all the stuff that I have missed out on listening to in favor of obligations, lack of time, lack of brainpower, or simply not being able to turn off Origins like I know I need to. It’s always good to take one last look back on everything before we properly usher in the new year and new releases with it, so let’s jump into some of the things that I am currently kicking myself for not giving more attention to.

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