Rolling Metal 2019

The new Organectomy album, Existential Disconnect, is out today on Unique Leader.

https://f4.bcbits.com/img/a2958267555_10.jpg

So are Meads of Asphodel sketchy? I hope not. I always thought they were genius weirdos and the new one out today doesn't change my mind.

They're pretty sketchy, yeah.

meads of asphodel, whose song titles include the lovely "jew killer" and "children of the sunwheel banner"

— machine girl kelly (@mulchlord) June 12, 2019

Are Meads of Asphodel one of those problematic acts? I honestly need to start keeping a spreadsheet.

— Jeff Treppel (@JeffTreppel) May 20, 2019

That Treppel tweet begins a thread to which I contributed.

I know you're gonna "BUT DA RIFFFFFS" anyway, but hey, at least you asked. That's something.

That thread doesn't really say much. The band was asked about Sonderkommando:

What is the story of Sonderkommando? From what I’ve read, it’s taken from the point of view of the individual who takes the bodies from the gas chambers and searches their bodies for valuables before finally putting them in the incinerators.

The story is of hatred and how racism can create such horror. The album deals with Hitler and the German war machine that cloaked the racial elimination of the Jews. It tells of most European countries being complicit to the crime of murder where women and children were slaughtered because of a twisted ideology. Anti-Semitism, no matter what your view is on this subject; can be no excuse for killing children and treating a race of human beings like vermin. Hatred is the key lesson the human race needs to learn as it is hatred that drives us to obscene cruelty and illogical acts of brutality. The Sonderkommando were the unfortunate Jews who dragged the naked corpse covered in piss and vomit from the gas chambers. They pulled out the gold teeth of the dead and cremated the remains. It was mass murder unlike anything else in history. Maybe not as vast as Stalin’s crimes, but the deliberate European scale of an industrial death machine that involved vast logistics and efficiency is beyond comparison.

The Grim Tower

Also, kindly keep your self-righteous snark to yourself.

I snark because we've done this dance before, and we'll do it again. You always come down to "separate the art from the artist" (even when the art is called "Jew Killer") and "but the music's good" (as though there's not multiple lifetimes' worth of good music in the world without the taint of Nazism on it) and "I know I'm not a Nazi, so it's OK". So whatever. Be happy with what makes you happy. So far as I know, Miles Davis beat every woman in his life at one point or another - I'm not throwing away any of his records.

You haven't been paying attention but that's okay. I don't have the ego you do so I don't take it personally.

Invisible Oranges contributors put together Top Ten lists for the best albums at the midway point of the year.

Here is mine.

http://pbs.twimg.com/media/D9mmaJIW4AI8-YX?format=png

i know i'm a few years late but the last Raspberry Bulbs album, Privacy... phew. Like Bone Awl but with catchy melodies and arena rock riffs. A little like Okkultokrati but from a different angle.

Blackened funeral doom from Aalborg, Denmark:

https://hethe.bandcamp.com

Angry Metal Guy hates it so you know it must be good.

Add 'drone', 'trip-hop' and 'Stuart Dempster-ish' to the list of labels. It's quite the trip.

Nature Ganganbaigal from Tengger Cavalry has died.

http://www.brooklynvegan.com/tengger-cavalry-frontman-nature-ganganbaigal-has-died

I wrote about his band that I saw twice. We hung out a lot when I ventured to Brooklyn a while back for a panel when Brian Slagel's book came out and he was there; we went over to Saint Vitus and talked all night about music. He was engaging and friendly.

He had a somewhat public suicide attempt some time ago but the prevailing thought was that he was doing much better. Perhaps not. Mental illness is a bitch.

Revolver Fans' Top Five Albums of 2019 (so far)
http://www.revolvermag.com/music/fan-poll-5-best-albums-2019-so-far

1. Rammstein
2. Motionless in White
3. Whitechapel
4. Baroness
5. Death Angel

man that news about tengger cavalry is so sad.

I wasn’t interested in this Rammstein record at all but I saw them live last week. They absolutely killed it and the new songs sounded great so I probably should listen to the new album.

scathing doom-sludge w/an ex-Moss member

https://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/nightfucker

Is this a band that people know? Sounds kinda like shoegaze-y black metal.
https://yelloweyes.bandcamp.com/album/rare-field-ceiling

hell yeah

i played their last album a lot

er, next-to-last, i guess! i knew there was one in 2017 but i wasn't really feeling it like 'sick with bloom' so i just gave it a pass

yellow eyes are great. New Slough Feg album just arrived

at least based on the first couple tracks, this Ashbringer album is really great. post-black-metal stuff with hints of 70s prog. also a weirdly appealing collision of ambitious songs vs. not-too-polished production

https://ashbringermusic.bandcamp.com/album/absolution

Wtf Delta

http://www.metalsucks.net/2019/06/29/delta-airlines-employees-robbed-high-on-fire-sleep-frontman-matt-pike/

that's f'ed up hope he gets his pedals back

hey there's a new Valborg for anyone who likes weird industrial metal with a guy screaming in German

https://valborg.bandcamp.com/album/zentrum

This one's less caustic than Endstrand (which was like the guy screaming in German was also punching you), a little more gothy vocal presence here and there.

This is delightfully nasty

http://sentientruin.bandcamp.com/album/black-nuclear-magick-attack

Black/death/war metal vibe but some nice moments of creepy ambience that remind me of Temple Nightside or early Disembowelment.

The new Organectomy is great, if you like broooootal death metal. I reviewed it.

Riffs for days, and a paragon of 'this fucking rips':

https://listen.20buckspin.com/album/the-anatomy-of-unholy-transformation

At the other end of the spectrum, Floyd-esque psych-doom couched in pretty melodies:

https://fleshofthestars.bandcamp.com/album/mercy

The Chinese secret service doesn't like Japanese grindcore:

However, the surveillance app also searches for information on a range of other material – from fasting during Ramadan to literature by the Dalai Lama, and music by a Japanese metal band called Unholy Grave.

Come to think of it, I doubt I've ever heard any Chinese metal.

https://pestproductions.bandcamp.com/album/past-evil

is good

Thanks, I'll check it out.

God dammit. I actually liked the first two Tau Cross albums a lot.

Relapse has dropped Tau Cross for thanking a Holocaust denier in the liner notes to their upcoming album.

Over the weekend the German magazine Ox brought it to our attention that a person named Gerard Menuhin was prominently thanked in the new Tau Cross album, and specifically credited in the liner notes for inspiring Rob Miller. All Relapse records go through a vigorous proofing process–checking for spelling and punctuation mistakes, mostly. We all read this name, but didn’t recognize it or think that it was anything other than a personal friend of the band’s, that we did not know. Ox however recognized the name as a far right conspiracy theorist, focused specifically on Holocaust denial. Suddenly the lyrics and themes of the new record were cast in a new light, for me. I spoke with Rob Miller, who is the individual in the band who Ox was interviewing, and while he denied being a Holocaust denier, I cannot comfortably work on or sell a record that dabbles in ideologies such as these. There are certain issues that rise above mere political differences and this is one of them. I spoke with the rest of the band on Monday, and NONE of them had any idea who Gerard Menuhin was, and were as shocked by these references in the record, as we at the label were. I firmly believe that these references and mentions in the record do not represent the band as a whole. but rather just Rob Miller’s. In light of all this, Relapse swiftly decided we cannot move forward with this album–we gave the masters back to the band, together with the rest of their catalog.

Apparently his father is Yehudi Menuhin

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gerard_Menuhin

Self-hatred runs deep.

Rob Miller was clearly always on the politically extremist side and vocal about it, but fuck me really did this dude go from

the sky was tinted with yellow and black/and the air smelt like Dachau today

Speaking of which, I really enjoyed Flamen's Furor lunae – medieval black metal with bewildering flashes of 80s Italo-pop. But what are the chances that Alexander Ivanov, the vocalist, who also plays in a band called Aryan Art, is non-fash?

thematically and in terms of the labels they worked with that band were unambiguously NSBM from what I recall so unless he's actively made a point of renouncing that, pretty much zero

Thought as much.

At the other end of the political spectrum, has anyone checked out Bull of Apis Bull of Bronze? On their Bandcamp page, they describe themselves as 'aggressively antifascist, antihierarchy, and anticapitalist'.

This reminds me of when Morbid Angel controversially thanked "a certain leader from the past whose name I shall not mention but whose spirit I embrace" on Blessed Are The Sick and promptly got signed by Irving Azoff.

Chinese metal: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/56w4CTZ5B1kCuJfw0IEmrk

Statement from the other four dudes in Tau Cross, one of whom is apparently in control of the band's Facebook page:

This is a statement from Michel, Andy, Jon and Tom regarding the recent events with Tau Cross and Relapse Records.

On Monday, July 1st, the four of us received a very concerning e-mail from Relapse stating that they will not be releasing our upcoming album and severing all ties to any previous work. To say that we were blindsided by this news is an understatement.

During initial production of the album, we were asked individually to provide our thanks list, which for us consisted of family and friends.

Now, the four of us were informed that Rob Miller has submitted a thank you to a notorious right-wing author who none of us are familiar with. We promptly researched this author's history and we are adamantly against anything relating to this kind of ugliness. We've been vigilant in our attempts to get answers as to why this has happened and, frankly, how it could possibly happen considering our background and beliefs.

We are all crushed. We've worked so hard on this album—to have something of this nature destroy it is absolutely devastating. For the many of you who know us, you're aware that we are sincere and honest with ourselves and with the world. Tau Cross was an outlet for us to experience the love and passion we all have, while staying true to our beliefs and ideals. It is truly beyond comprehension to see it take this very unexpected turn.

With that, we want to extent our love and appreciation to Relapse Records and all our friends and family who have supported us.

With love and light,

Michel, Andy, Jon and Tom

Really the only hope is if he actually meant to thank Gerard Way and Yehudi Menuhin

But rly people on Twitter are saying the dude was into some conspiracy theory/"deep state" paranoia bullshit... sigh. What a fucking waste.

The best song on the last record was "Deep State." I wondered abut the lyrics - just as I have seen some people say that this revelation is causing them to look at some of the latter-period Amebix lyrics in a different light.

Just listened to the forthcoming albums from FALSE and Falls of Rauros back-to-back. They come out within a week of each other later this month. Gilead Media is killing it for these two albums alone.

The Tau Cross Facebook page no longer exists, but before it disappeared, Rob Miller posted this statement:

I would like to second the sentiments of the other members of Tau Cross, i do owe them an apology for not explaining my lines of enquiry or the people who have influenced my view so dramatically over the past few years,they are not in any way to blame for anything i have written or read,and i understand the need to distance themselves from that subject.
i wish them all the very best in their futures and treasure the times we have shared together. The book ‘tell the truth and shame the devil’ by Gerard Menuhin is available on Amazon and Kindle,and also in good reads, where it gets a consistent 4.5 stars out of 5,so not exactly obscure or unavailable, unless you live in Germany where it is forbidden to engage in any conversation on some of the matters contained within those pages.

There are a number of people languishing in Prisons over there for expressing even a slight academic interest in the matter, so effectively all discussion is shut down and we live in a state of what can only be described as Religious obedience. it is a Religion,and anyone approaching the matter is in danger of being charged with heresy and publicly executed, so you can feel free to examine yourself and see if you believe this is a good thing or not.

As a singer in a band i have always been serious about the Truth, trying to refine the material and ideas to some kind of overarching theory, i cannot simply skim the material,i have to go into it and prepare to be changed by that journey. that has happened on a number of occasions, through reading Menuhins book,through John Lash and his work,through 9/11 research,through the Europa-the last battle video series that is constantly popping up and being pushed back down on youtube.

If I stop asking questions I stop being true to myself,so i have no choice. For 99 percent of people they have already made up their mind about me based on the words of another man written in a book they have never read, and that is enough to make a judgement,so on you go,join in the feeding frenzy of virtue signalling and outrage if you like but i stand by my endorsement of this book as it was such an important part of this journey, this is not to say that i like the Author as a person or even know that much more about him,the book is primarily a collection of quotes and original source materials, a book to study and not for salacious gossip. Others will see what is real in this situation and what is not.

Messengers of deception is probably our best album to date, it continues the enquiry and refines it through the lens of the Gnostic heresy and what that really was,why it had to be completely eradicated and what that means for our World today, the irony of having released a single about the inquisition and the suppression of speech should not be lost on anyone. Love and Light to all who want it, Rob Miller–Tau Cross…over and out.

The presence of the magic phrase "virtue signaling" should be more than enough warning to anyone that Miller has vanished down the rabbit hole, but the citation of the Europa - The Last Battle videos (which you can find on Vimeo if you like) really settles it for good. The dude is dangerously deluded.

"As a singer in a band i have always been serious about the Truth."

I'm not sure what definition of "truth" involves Holocaust denialism, but it's not the definition I'm familiar with.

You have already heard the official history millions of times. This new epic documentary gives an overview of how Europe has been shaped in modern history. In it, you will find the secret history, where you will find the real causes of the events....It presents the true historical events that lead to this world catastrophe known as the second world war, as well as the aftermath. Do be forewarned though, your worldview will never be the same. THE TRUTH FEARS NO INVESTIGATION.

Gee, I wonder where this is going.