Rolling 2020 Metal Thread

He does sound like Strongbad!

"Dentist! Jugga jigga wugga! Deli-style! Jugga jigga wugga!"

if anyone -- understandably -- gave up before that final, Cartmanesque growl of "aaampuuuutaaaatooorrr," you're really missing out

ehm pyehh teh tehhhh

These folks from Uppsala, who call themselves The End Commune, are into some (literally) edgy shit if their blog is to be believed, but I'd rather judge them on the basis of their debut LP as Slutet, which is among the most distinctive BM releases I've heard all year. Between the (female) vocals, which rival Onielar's, the band's audible preference for improvisational fluidity over simple repetition, the Mesopotamian theme, and the judicious use of lengthy dark ambient segments, there is much to admire here. I would have admittedly shaved off 10-15 minutes of playing time, primarily from the title track, but the end result remains impressive nonetheless:

https://theendcommune.bandcamp.com/album/love-beauty-lp-2020-2

Anyone else see the Behemoth live stream this past weekend? It was unreal, terrific production value, wicked setlist, great performance, all in an abandoned church in Poland. They spared no expense, and if they ever release it on bluray I'll buy it in a heartbeat. It really raised the bar as far as streamed metal "events" go. Total bang for the buck.

wish I'd been paying attention :(

I have purchased my first "ticket" to a streaming event - Baroness are doing one later this week, and since I a) have never seen Baroness live and b) really like both the newest album and their current lineup, I threw down the $15.

wish they'd do Zoom concerts where they could see us moshing to their music, that'd almost feel like being at a show

I could even pay a neighbor to run into my house and crash into me and spill their beer all over me

if this helps them stay afloat, I'm all for this. any calendars for these types of events?

BandsinTown isn't really meant for that and misses a lot

if this helps them stay afloat, I'm all for this. any calendars for these types of events?

I happened to see a mention of it on Facebook. So I guess follow a bunch of bands there and check in periodically?

cool! i'll just keep doing that. I was taking a FB vacation last week so I missed any mentions there (woulda liked to see the Behemoth)

There's a dedicated covid livestream thread at ye olde Metallum though I don't know if it catches everything:

https://forum.metal-archives.com/viewtopic.php?f=1&t=127861

GWAR having a drive-in show in Richmond on 10/10.

Pricey, but the tickets, like Metallica, are per car, not each. and unlike Metallica, they will physically be there, in person.

I have to do this....early 40th b'day present. one of my best friends lives in Fredericksburg, wanna get her and her b/f to join me.

refill your windshield wiper fluid first

haha!

love the headline here
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mq_Wrx-Pk9A

Socialstyrelsen replaced their vocalist last year(?) and it's Hanna (Maleo, Ondsint) taking care of business now. another level, since. this woman has the most amazing piercing tone; and the fkn skills to play with it. fave metallic d-beat rec i've heard all year. name yr price

https://socialstyrelsen.bandcamp.com/album/med-r-dsla-f-r-livet

wow that fuckin rips, thanks!

Whoa, that is killer.

new Skeletal Remains dropped! spinning now.

killer synthy eerie intro gives way to mundane riff.

which gives way to much better riff.

also picked up the Socialstyrelsen , but i doubt i'll be awake long enough to get to it until tomorrow.

I feel like much of the criticism levelled upthread against the new Necrot, which I really liked, could be more fruitfully redeployed against the new Skeletal Remains.

Necrot are more memorable for sure. I like both but Necrot is coolah

I thought the Necrot was a step back from the last one, tbh.

Some people like these lists so I figured I'd share. These are forthcoming albums that I received promos on that I liked enough to listen some more and might purchase:

2020-09-18 Finntroll
2020-09-18 Melted Bodies
2020-09-18 Napalm Death
2020-09-25 Crystal Spiders
2020-09-25 Early Moods
2020-10-01 Protokult
2020-10-09 Crippled Black Phoenix
2020-10-09 Venom Prison
2020-10-09 Yatra
2020-10-23 Strangelight
2020-11-06 Sólstafir

And these are release dates on things I didn't get promos of and will check out on release date (not all are metal but I am not editing).

11-Sep Ihsahn
11-Sep Mastodon
11-Sep Uniform
18-Sep Heathen
18-Sep Sumac
18-Sep AIC Cover Album
25-Sep Idles
25-Sep Kataklysm
25-Sep Lydia Loveless
25-Sep Thurston Moore
25-Sep Bob Mould
25-Sep The Ocean
25-Sep Rachel Lark
2-Oct Amaranthe
2-Oct Enslaved
6-Oct Lewis Black
9-Oct Devildriver
9-Oct Metz
9-Oct Yatra
16-Oct Benediction
16-Oct The Damned
16-Oct Spirit Adrift
23-Oct Mountain Goats
23-Oct Pallbearer
30-Oct Botanist
30-Oct Carcass
30-Oct Convulse
30-Oct Draconian
30-Oct Emma Ruth Rundle/Thou
30-Oct Mr. Bungle
30-Oct Black Sabbath Vol 4 Cover Album
6-Nov Fate's Warning
13-Nov Macabre

Not 100% sure how accurate the second list is since things change but if I get to the date I have and it's not on Spotify or Bandcamp, I figure out real fast something happened.

Of those, I look forward to the Sumac, Enslaved, Pallbearer and Emma Ruth Rundle with Thou the most.

But tbh I'm more hyped for Void Rot's debut LP, which came out today:

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/descending-pillars

I hope Pallbearer will click for me one day

Do you generally enjoy trad doom?

I do! idk why their stuff is always in one ear, out the other for me

https://tedium.co/2020/09/11/life-after-death-metal/

^ carcass deep dive

has any good cartoonish/horror brutal death metal (other than Skeletal Remains) come out recently?

keep scouring Bandcamp for some....

Seconding the enthusiasm for the new Void Rot. It totally kills, scratching that death/doom itch way better than the new Incantation does. Just pre-ordered a shirt to pay respects.

Feel like Incantation decided to lean closer to death much further than usual on their latest.

But I'll check this one out

The new Napalm Death gets better every time I play it. Full review later this week on Burning Ambulance.

Glad to hear. Stoked

exciting! about on par with AP/EM I hope?

Yeah, I mean, they've basically been on a nonstop hot streak since The Code is Red..., with my personal favorites being Time Waits for No Slave, Smear Campaign and Utilitarian (mostly for Zorn), but this one is right up there. "Amoral" is the catchiest song they've written in years, and there's another one that's got a Big-Ass Riff so unsubtle it's almost hilarious.

Seconding the enthusiasm for the new Void Rot. It totally kills

― Judi Dench's Human Hand (methanietanner)

yes!!

there's a cvltnation live session from days ago streaming on youtube, where they play this record, and confirm the insane depth they are able to dive you in

Their split with Atavisma earlier this year also pwns, as does the latter's 2018 debut. SPELEOLOGY 4 EVAH.

On the artier, more blackened side of metal, these Czech dudes nimbly incorporate post-hardcore and post-rock tropes, especially noticeable in the bass, and end their 30-minute LP on a 13:30 epic that reminded me of Jackie-O Motherfucker, partly due to the untethered sax 'n' noise freakout that serves as a coda to the whole thing:

https://voluptas.bandcamp.com

yeah, i pick that split after you've listed some of yr faves of the year, above. it was a vg amuse-bouche

picked*

As threatened promised, my thoughts on Napalm Death's new one.

nice. thanks for sharing. your Arctopus write up was great btw. I keep going back to that album.

I used to like the *idea" of Arctopus more than I ever felt like listening to them, in that they pissed off all the right sorts of people, but the new one is genuinely really great, yeah.

got my ticket to the Virginia drive-in GWAR show. scary print on the ticket that says you have to have a mask and the only place you're allowed to roam outside of the immediate space outside your vehicle is the bathroom and if you go anywhere else you get kicked the fuck out and you don't get a refund and they get to keep your car.

stoked nonetheless. it's live music, and I've gotten more into GWAR beyond just the cheesy theatrics.

they actually remixed/remastered Scumdogs, which is all kinds of hilarious to me. the crazy phaser/reverb they had drowning the guitars is gone, guitar a wee bit crunchier.

The new Uniform record that came out Friday fucking kills if you are into overly aggro industrialized punk in your metal, and I am.

Fun fact: I currently live in Delaware County, the inspiration for lead track "Delco."