voivod – Nine Circles

CANTO: Kataklysm, Thulcandra, Elder Devil, and More

May 19, 2023May 19, 2023CoreyLeave a comment

At last, we’ve finally made it. I think.

Kataklysm announced a new album today, titled Goliath. Their 15th studio album will be out on August 11 through Nuclear Blast Records. Check out the first material from that, “Bringer of Vengeance”, right here.
Thulcandra is a thing that I like, and since their new album is out today we’ll jump to the clip for “On The Wings Of Cosmic Fire” next. Hail The Abyss is out through Napalm Records.
California grindcore group Elder Devil shared a video for their latest single, “Burning Forest”. That’s taken from their upcoming sophomore album, Everything Worth Loving, which is out through Prosthetic Records on June 16.
Voivod are releasing a special 40th anniversary studio album on July 21, titled Morgöth Tales, which will be out through Century Media. Today they launched the first single and video from that, a 2023 version of “Nuage Fractal”.
Within Temptation dropped a new single and visualizer today, so I’ll close on that note before heading out for a pint. Check out “Wireless” below. That track starts the countdown to a new album that should emerge later this year.

“Ein Bier… bitte.”
– cmb

CANTO: Whitechapel, Voivod, Stoned Jesus, and More

February 7, 2023February 7, 2023CoreyLeave a comment

Looks like we’ve got some tour announcements to talk about today!

And we’ll start with Whitechapel. They’re headlining a U.S. tour with support from Archspire, Signs Of The Swarm, and Entheos this coming April and May, where they’ll be performing The Valley in its entirety. Local presales are available starting tomorrow, with general ticket sales starting Friday.
Next, we’ll discuss Voivod announcing the first part of the “40 Years of Morgöth Tales” U.S. tour. Those dates are in May, and they’ll be supported by Imperial Triumphant which is pretty damn awesome.
That last tour I’ll throw in the pile tonight features Weedeater. Truthfully, they’ll be on the road quite a bit in 2023, starting with U.S. dates stretching from late February through early April. The full itinerary with ticket links can be found here.
Alright… what else is happening out there? Stoned Jesus unveiled a new track titled “Get What You Deserve”, which can be heard here. That’s taken from Father Light, which is out on March 3 through Season of Mist.
Boris is popular around these parts, so we’ll wrap up our Tuesday with the video for “満ち草 -michikusa-“. That track is taken from fade, the third album they released last year in celebration of their 30 years as a band.

“Ein Bier… bitte.”
– cmb

Best of 2022: Chris’s List

December 30, 2022December 30, 2022Chris1 Comment

We’re going to keep the intro brief on this one. Year after year I struggle to find the words to open this post, where I ostensibly count down my favorite 25 metal albums of the year. Typically the first thing I do is check out the previous year’s entry…read and see if the themes are still relevant, if there’s anything I want to refine or emphasize for the current year. And for the first time, I didn’t find anything worth changing. Yes…I may have finally nailed it with my 2021 Best Of introduction.

By now you’ve (hopefully) read my post talking about nine albums that didn’t make my but could have, and my 15 Honorable Mentions and how the very concept of an honorable mention seems to contradict itself when the music is so good. I would usually say that was all prelude to this, but that’s a lie. You know, and now I do as well. In the end, all we can do is recount the things we love, and hope it inspires something in you.

So if you will, a request: go back and read that intro to 2021. And then check out the albums listed below for this year. Don’t worry about rankings, don’t worry about omissions. Just check out the music, and let it hopefully inspire something in you.

All of these albums did that for me.

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Denis “Snake” Bélanger of Voivod on their new EP “Ultraman” and much more!

November 2, 2022October 31, 2022opethbodomLeave a comment

Some 40 years and change has seen a lot in the Voivod camp. A handful of genres crossed, a deep discography, and tons of rabid fans that soak up anything and everything they can get their hands on. The Voivod of today makes some of the best sci-fi metal you’re likely to ever hear and on their newest EP, Ultraman, they offer a stunning tribute to the TV series theme of the same name. As if that’s not enough, the EP also offers some bonus live tracks. Buke recently sat down with vocalist Denis “Snake” Bélanger to discuss the new EP, the band’s deep history, and so much more. We now bring you this conversation in its entirety so grab your beverage of choice, a seat, and enjoy.

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Nine (or so Heavily Qualified) Circles ov…2022: A Mid-Year Report

July 12, 2022July 12, 2022Chris3 Comments

Okay, so I may have only formally reviewed 11 albums by the mid point this year, but that’s one more than I was at last year, so victory! However, that doesn’t count the 30 other albums covered in earlier editions of Nine Circles ov (like the Stoner Metal one, or the promo pile one, or the non-promo pile one) or Second Circle. Not to mention my folders telling me I’ve listened to 151 metal albums so far this year. It’s scratching the surface, I know…but at least there are quantifiable metrics for you to assess whether or not I’ve met my acceptance criteria to mark this feature as Done.

And now that my work life has completely blended into this post, let’s talk about how massive 2022 has been so far. We’re once again turning this edition of Nine Circles ov… into a dozen and I’m even going to throw some bonus mentions into the mix. Are these my absolute favorites of the year? Kind of: I wanted to highlight some albums I haven’t seen a lot of coverage on as well as some definite big guns I really dig so far. So what I’m saying is, here’s a big list of stuff I love. Maybe you’ll love it, too.

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