I took a brief look at the promo material for TOAD’s Endless Night, downloaded it, put it on my iPod, and forgot everything I knew about it. A couple days later, I came to it with fresh eyes and ears, looked at the cover art, and thought, “OK, I’m ready for some old-school doom metal.” Despite the cover art, that is not what I encountered.
You may recall a few years ago when Kvelertak blew everything wide open, and a few people (myself included) did what we could to find someone, anyone else who sounded like them, but nobody really did. Phoenix, Arizona’s TOAD (Take Over and Destroy) may be one of the first bands to list Kvelertak as a primary influence.
Lately I've found that death metal can be particularly satisfying in small doses, often. So I keep an eye out for short, intense death metal outbursts like some of these.
Bone Sickness: Alone in the Grave (2013)
4 out of 5 stars
Bone Sickness plays some of the filthiest and fastest death metal on the planet, with some of the most unclean solos you'll hear in 2013. In contrast to Acephalix, these guys put crust into a wholly American style of death. Think Autopsy running so fast that pieces of their instruments start flying off in every direction. They do slow things down a little on the title track, but not for long. This is a hell of a ride, and even though it's only an 18 minute full-length, it's genuinely every bit as satisfying as any half-hour.
(Couldn't find an embed for this release, but this demo track should give you a rough idea. The album releases April 30.)
I've mentioned it before, but I've never partaken of any illicit drugs, marijuana included. Sometimes, that means there's music I can't enjoy, or at least not the way the artist intended. Stoner doom is, nonetheless, one of my favorite genres, and there's never a shortage of new material in that strain.
S:t Erik: From Under the Tarn (2012)
(4 out of 5 stars)
S:t Erik is a Swedish band who sound like Sleep mixed with Hawkwind. Most importantly, their drummer has an impeccable sense of groove, but the rest of the band members aren't slouches either. The music is dynamic, with a wide range of tempos and volume levels. The hoarse, clean vocals give their own excellent hooks (check opener "Goddess") with, again, an excellent sense of timing and rhythm (of the utmost importance for this style of music). Finally, a synthesizer adds outer-space sounds. The writing isn't revolutionary; they use tried-and-true tactics like riff/ringing chord with vocals/riff/repeat, but they handle it well. When it's good, it is so damn good. "Your Highness" makes me think of a spaceship hurtling inexorably toward the sun. The second half of the album isn't quite as strong, but nonetheless the whole thing is entertaining.
Forbidden Records recently provided me access to a couple of promo records via their Bandcamp page. One of those I passed up because of my own personal reasons, but I dug into The Outsider by A Transylvanian Funeral. As it turns out, it's the one-man black metal band of label owner Sleepwalker.
The project is based out of Tucson, Arizona, proving once and for all that Arizona is more than just a haven for deathcore. The desert has quite a bit in common with the frozen North, both forbidding wastelands that harbor dangerous wildlife in deceptive abundance.
Almost a year ago, I got Lo-Ruhamah's The Glory of God, and it quickly became one of my all-time favorite albums. So, I recently decided to check out more artists on BombWorks Records, a small Christian metal label.
Darkness Before Dawn: King's to You (2009)
The Encyclopedia Metallum entry for Darkness Before Dawn lists them as melodic death metal. But they are Arizona-based, and if you take that plus their band picture--well, the math adds up to deathcore. And deathcore they are, sometimes taking the breakdowns way too far ("Shattered" or "The Slain Reunion"). At times everything comes together, like the title track, "Symbiosis", and "Prophetic Heresy". At other times they don't seem to play very tight, as if they were rushed to get out of the studio before they were happy with it (or they were too lazy to work to get it right). The keyboards could use some work; most of the time they are appropriately atmospheric, but other times (like the opener) they are way too distracting. The sound is pretty good, though, with some quality (if uninventive) vocals and a mostly-heavy approach to things. I give it 2 out of 5 stars.
My Silent Wake: A Garland of Tears (2008)
My Silent Wake is part of a growing trend of bands of ambiguous Christianity (along with more well known acts As I Lay Dying and Shai Hulud). I'm not sure why this is happening, but there it is. In any case, between their name and the fact that they're from the UK, you might guess they sound a lot like My Dying Bride. And your guess would be right: This is definitely formed in the gothic death/doom mold cast by those other Brits. There are differences, though. The death growls are better here, but the clean singing isn't as strong. My Silent Wake throws in some female vocals here and there ("By My Own Hand" or "Cruel Grey Skies"), but when they really shine is when they bring some progressive tendencies to the table ("Wilderness of Thorns" or "Fall of the Flightless"). They even throw in some psychedelic sounds on opener "Tunnels". The album suffers a bit from lack of focus, with a folk interlude seemingly recorded onto the wrong album, and inconsistent songwriting. If they would run with the progressive/psychedelic gothic death/doom (let's call it psychprogothic death/doom) they could make something really great. I give it 3.5 out of 5 stars.
Holy Blood: The Patriot (2008)
Finally, we have Holy Blood, a Ukrainian folk metal band. They have obvious influences from black metal and death metal, and a sound which bears resemblance to both Amorphis and Orphaned Land. The most obvious folk elements are flute (a bit restrictive compared to strings) and synthesizers (a bit artificial). It works pretty well, though, when they have a more upbeat or epic medieval feel, with highlights like "War of the Human Soul" and "Ipytannaya Faith" the best examples. But when they stray out of their comfort zone and try to get too raw or dark, it doesn't seem to fit together--"Blood of Christ" and "Wind Death" are perfect examples. Since they only do one thing very well, it doesn't have much engaging variety, but it's not bad. I give it 3 out of 5 stars.
Bone Sickness: Alone in the Grave (2013)
, and it quickly became one of my all-time favorite albums. So, I recently decided to check out more artists on BombWorks Records, a small Christian metal label.
The Encyclopedia Metallum entry for Darkness Before Dawn lists them as melodic death metal. But they are Arizona-based, and if you take that plus their band picture--well, the math adds up to deathcore. And deathcore they are, sometimes taking the breakdowns way too far ("Shattered" or "The Slain Reunion"). At times everything comes together, like the title track, "Symbiosis", and "Prophetic Heresy". At other times they don't seem to play very tight, as if they were rushed to get out of the studio before they were happy with it (or they were too lazy to work to get it right). The keyboards could use some work; most of the time they are appropriately atmospheric, but other times (like the opener) they are way too distracting. The sound is pretty good, though, with some quality (if uninventive) vocals and a mostly-heavy approach to things. I give it 2 out of 5 stars.
My Silent Wake is part of a growing trend of bands of ambiguous Christianity (along with more well known acts As I Lay Dying
and Shai Hulud
Finally, we have Holy Blood, a Ukrainian folk metal band. They have obvious influences from black metal and death metal, and a sound which bears resemblance to both Amorphis