Rolling Metal 2017

I got that Wreche a while ago, it's very good. FFO Botanist for sure. I'll be writing about it somewhere soon.

I get the Botanist comparison, usually for want of any other reference point, but the vibe is a lot different I think, a lot less 'gazey.

I wrote a thing: Reviews of the new albums from The Wizards, Beastmaker and Farsot.
http://agitreader.com/wp2/the-moods-of-metal

Spoiler: I like all of them.

black metal jazz! https://whiteward.bandcamp.com/album/futility-report

I felt kinda let down by that White Ward. It's fine but it's basically kind of a blackened hardcore album that occasionally stops to make room for a noir-jazz interlude featuring saxophone. It's fine but would've been way cooler if the sax dude was a more interesting player or engaged in some Nik Turner style effects fuckery.

Yeah, I wanted to like it, but...nope.

I think a fair few of you may dig this
http://www.angrymetalguy.com/igorrr-savage-sinusoid-review/

speaking of jazz-ish metal-ish, here's the new heavy band that features Colin Stetson on sax and Greg Fox on drums:

https://exeyeband.bandcamp.com/

album out 6/23 on Relapse.

it's not really very jazz-ish OR metal-ish, but w/e

so I checked out the setlist for Gorguts' current tour. It's pretty cool!

Three songs (plus an intro) from ERosion of Sanity/Considered Dead, one each from the remaining albums, and then ALL of Pleaide's Dust in its entirety (I think - I hope it's all 33 mins at least).

Woooowwwwwwww. Do they do Condemned to Obscurity?

I have to the conclusion that Erosion of Sanity is one of the pillars of NY style DM, along with all the classics of Incantation and Immolation. It's like the best of everything, with great writing too.

unrelated, Aura Noir is coming to NYC in October playing their entire catalog over two shows (including a yet to be released new record). So I'm gonna grab a spot in line tonight.

http://www.setlist.fm/setlist/gorguts/2017/fubar-st-louis-mo-5be74750.html

Oh wow, thanks for mentioning Ex Eye. I love Colin Stetson but hadn't realized this was happening. Listening to the advanced "single" now (https://open.spotify.com/track/4oOGmfj73tltKyfRgNo9X9). This is kind of my idea of what all jazz should sound like.

There are no less than five albums I enjoy coming out on 6/23. Debating on which one(s) to review.
What do you guys think about:

42 Decibel - Unbekanntes Album (Argentinian AC/DC worship with a Bon Scott clone on vocals on Steamhammer/SPV)
Dying Fetus - Wrong one To Fuck With (Death metal gods on Relapse)
Ex eye - Ex Eye (Jazz done experimental black metal on Repalse; discussed above)
Final Coil - Persistence of Memory (British Tool/Chevelle prog metal on Worm Hole Death)
Les Chants du Hasard - Les Chants du Hasard (Classical done Black Metal on I, Voidhanger; discussed above)
Selcouth - Heart Is The Star Of Chaos (Gothic Jazz done experimental dark metal on I, Voidhanger)

I think I can combine some of them into one bigger piece I guess.
How often do three jazz & classical metal albums come out on the same day anyway?

(Pretty sure Neanderthal will be like, DYING FETUS!!!!!!!! Haha!)

omg i was just about to post that haha

I tried that Dying Fetus album and it did nothing for me. I wish Misery Index would put out another album. I like them a lot better.

hey this new schammasch is really really good. really really really good.

like seriously this band has been on a pretty incredible growth arc - triangle was this massive sprawling statement, super good but so much to take in, it's hard for me to imagine anybody having the space in their day to actually hunker down with all of that one -- I liked it, but it was a lot to parse. this one's a very focused and disciplined step forward - echoes of kaleidoscope-era siouxsie & the banshees if they'd indulged their metal side but much bigger & darker & harder. kinda reminiscent of great annihilator era swans, too, that big theatrical gathering-storm feel in the tracks, starting big and getting bigger, that building tension that keeps pressing against what feels like it has to be the limit that'll force everybody to cut loose...and then never cutting loose, just riding that edge. it doesn't sound like neurosis but that feels like a point of reference, too -- exploring a repetitive droney space, heavy floor-kit drums. but the guitars reach a lot further - lots of shading and texture, several different looks.

I guess some places are calling it an EP? it's 32 minutes. whole thing's great. really good stuff.

Luc Lemay is sellin merch. He looks like David Cross.

I can't think of anything interesting to say to him

Last week I got the new Avatarium and Solstafir albums and fine albums they are. Anyone else like either band?

― Odysseus, Tuesday, June 6, 2017 2:03 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I'd never heard Solstafir before, but yeah, that album's really good.

― grawlix (unperson), Tuesday, June 6, 2017 2:10 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

The previous 2 are brilliant as well. They've come a long way since their early black metal albums

― Odysseus, Tuesday, June 6, 2017 2:16 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

I haven't figured out what I think of the Avatarium album yet, but I've really enjoyed following Solstafir's evolution all along, including this bit!

― glenn mcdonald, Tuesday, June 6, 2017 2:47 PM Bookmark Flag Post Permalink

Spotify link: http://open.spotify.com/album/4y0ReoVsLvfwFLRX5CcBsi

New Atriarch album announced, new song from same

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T9fQvZ2tI4E

Cool! Been kinda into them lately.

Here's a new Gigan track for the sci fi-prog-death massive. Fucking looooove these guys.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZMz_8BFpgSw

Gigan is great. forgot about them!

New Decrepit Birth next month. I just got the promo last night; so far it's not as arty/Atheistical as some of their prior material, but still solid stuff.

New Decapitated is also really good.

Downloading the new Blind Guardian live album now. Looks to be at least a double CD, maybe a triple (total running time 158:57).

That'll be five quite short CDs, in the style of Schammasch ;)

It is actually a triple. Here's the track listing, for those who care:

Blind Guardian
Live Beyond The Spheres
Release Date: 07.07.2017
Tracklist:
Disc 1
01. The Ninth Wave 10:23
02. Banish From Sanctuary 6:09
03. Nightfall 6:33
04. Prophecies 5:40
05. Tanelorn 6:28
06. The Last Candle 8:11
07. And Then There Was Silence 15:48

Disc 2
01. The Lord Of The Rings 5:12
02. Fly 5:58
03. Bright Eyes 5:42
04. Lost In The Twilight Hall 6:55
05. Imaginations From The Other Side 7:43
06. Into The Storm 4:33
07. Twilight Of The Gods 5:57
08. A Past And Future Secret 4:26
09. And The Story Ends 7:11

Disc 3
01. Sacred Worlds 7:59
02. The Bard's Song 4:36
03. Valhalla 8:35
04. Wheel Of Time 9:33
05. Majesty 8:39
06. Mirror Mirror 6:46

yeah I'll be buying that

they were incredible last year on the Imaginations tour .......one of the best shows of the year easy

The four-panel cover art for the new Cormorant record is amazing...

https://pbs.twimg.com/media/DC9XMfnXoAAkFcK.jpg:large

Click on it to enlarge it and check it out in detail.

doubt there are many Broken Hope fans here but they seem to have begun releasing their best material since their reunion. early stuff is competent and fun if not special, but the last two actually have good production and songwriting, and the new one has some creative melodic parts throughout. nothing original but buttloads of fun.

Their first album on Rate Your Music with a score over 3.5! I might have to check that out.

New Cemetery Urn is good. Australians.

BH's Grotesque Blessings is an unfortunately overlooked album. It came out right around the time of CC's Bloodthirst so I always sort of pair them -- though the Broken Hope is more musically interesting, if not as solid and consistent. Probably a lot of the noteworthiness of that album was the juxtaposition of the two guitarists/songwriters; the more distinctive of the two, Brian Griffin, penned the better songs, but then didn't return for the reunion. Anyway there's some weird riffing and rhythmic stuff going on with Grotesque Blessings. It's the only thing by that band I ever want to listen to.

I will say however that the single track I've heard of the new one sounded better than expected.

I got their early stuff cos they were opening for Obituary back in 2012 so I wanted to get familiar, and being into gore-death I liked Loathing and the rest was kinda ehh.... but none of it really stood out or anything. but their last two post-reunion albums actually sound like some real effort went into them. they're fun live too - Wagner really enjoys himself and seems to have let go of his ego a little (think the infamous Metal Maniacs letter he wrote). they'll never be top tier but they upped their game a bit.

they even wrote and recorded some of their own "fake horror movie" interludes rather than sample real movies on the previous album. they were pretty funny.

Earl Maneein, the violinist from the group Revolution15 (they were sort of metalcore/thrash but with his electric violin as the lead instrument), has formed a string quartet, Seven)Suns, that does versions of the Dillinger Escape Plan's "43% Burnt," Mr. Bungle's "Quote Unquote," and Arvo Pärt's "Fratres," as well as his original music. Their debut album is out now on the DEP's Party Smasher label.

https://7sunsmusic.bandcamp.com/

New Circle album on Southern Lord, "Terminal" is pretty good shit. Not all metallic but still heavy and the vocals are as deranged as always, that Finnish mushroom shaman vibe.

the new Unleash the Archers record rules imo

listening to the new Impetuous Ritual (thank you fork), and as I like Portal, I am liking this.

ahh yeah I remember loving their previous album, such weird necro production with amazing guitar leads

I liked the last one despite mostly hating Portal; will check this one out at some point.

lmao this impetuous ritual record

I like it even though at times it's kinda like listening to a malfunctioning vacuum cleaner

I think the new Nokturnal Mortum is ridiculously good.

Did everyone pretty much decide whether they could like this before it even came out?
The conversation above seems to indicate that.

i remember the handwavey timeywimey stuff they did about them not being nazi's now so its ok

Glad to have your approval.

Æther Realm
Tarot
Primitive Ways
Release Date: 06/07/2017

http://www.nocleansinging.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/Aether-Realm-Tarot.jpg

http://open.spotify.com/album/5D7pDFHMfyzgdVga2j2gV8
http://aether-realm.bandcamp.com/album/tarot-2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcA6PloeFCE

Genre police will have a tough time with this one because it repurposes death metal by infusing it with the intricacies of thrash, the epic quality of pagan metal and black metal's emotive qualities. Great playing, really catchy, very unique and just great all around.

the Ex Eye album (Greg Fox/Colin Stetson) is siiiiiick

New Monarch album in September.