Written by: Blackie Skulless
I actually discovered the Chilean heavy metallers Lucifer’s Hammer a few years ago when Time Is Death was the latest release, and when first looking back, I remembered not caring for it and forgetting about it. What a fool I was! This year when The Trip dropped, not only did I find it to be wonderful, but something seemed oddly familiar. I quickly remembered, dug up the old albums, and found that not only was I extremely wrong prior, but they’d still evolved since then. Of the three full-lengths, this is the album where I believe Lucifer’s Hammer truly realized their potential. Throwing back to the heavy/power types of the early ‘80s, this is a very refreshing dish of old news brought to its best new heights. The secret probably lies a bit in the brevity of seven tracks barely crossing the half-hour mark, which means that they’re all rid of any extra topping and unnecessary embellishment. No, this is built primarily on memorable and clean riffs that don’t feel any need for aggression, with the sharpest moments lying within the higher falsettos. Oddly enough, outside of those, the vocals are actually pretty tame, coming in cleanly but swiftly at an octave that compares well with the warmer guitar tones.
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 Written by: Lord Hsrah
We've all been hearing of people going to space these past few days, with Jeff Bezos being the latest to do so. And while some of us may start to wonder whether or not space is the final frontier here, Epoch of Chirality prepares for launch with their debut album Nucleosynthesis, where space is just the beginning and what lies ahead is a mystery best known to the unknown. 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, lift off! Epoch of Chirality is a one man sci-fi metal project started by England-based musician Richard How, and Nucleosynthesis is their first full-length album that follows their 2020 EP Dawn of Chirality. The album, dubbed as "sci-fi metal," has 9 instrumental songs in total, all of which, quite obviously, draw heavily from sci-fi soundscapes. Nucleosynthesis starts off pretty slow, and in general, the build up to the actual beefy material of every song takes quite a while too. There's plenty usage of synth and other electronic instruments to help create those soundscapes like they were straight out of the 80's. A lot of it is shared by modern synthwave acts, and what they do. Quite frankly speaking, at times it does feel like a nice space-synth album, albeit heavier in all tones and textures.  Written by: Blackie Skulless
Imagine trying to follow up perfection; you really can’t. But you can bring forth something nearly as incredible, especially when it still blows minds thirty years after its release. Overkill had hit their peak complexity in songwriting in 1989 (regardless of how you feel about the songs themselves), and really had to come up with something mind-blowing on Horrorscope. While that may be tough in the eyes of some, they could at least offer something different, and with that I open by saying that the guitar tones alone here are what likely led to what we ended up with on The Killing Kind. Except the thrash metal angle was still in full control, and the attitude was amped up a step from before. Though the guitars may feel a bit warmer than before, that allows them to cut with a smoother sweep due to how sharp they are. The fact that there’s such a clear space between the notes while still holding the speeds that were present on Feel The Fire is impressive beyond belief. The way they tie it all together with little licks, such as the backing ring in opener “Coma” kicks some serious ass, and this song is also a fantastic example of how they cram so much density into such warm speed-riffing. On (regrettably infrequent!) Fridays, a wagon arrives at the Sleeping Village’s crumbling gates, stuffed to the brim with our sustenance for the following week. Today is the day we must offload all this week's new and noteworthy music, and so, in the process, we thought it would be worthwhile to share some of our choice picks from this veritable mass of fresh meat. This is what we have been listening to this week at the Village HQ. We hope you join us in doing so! On the docket for today, July 9th, 2021: Lunar Cult, Green Hog Band, Dialith, & White Crone
Written by: The Administrator
There's nothing quite like an unexpected surprise plucked from the depths of our promo pit. Retrieving a random press kit from the heap and subsequently finding something weird and wonderful will never grow old, and indeed remains one of my personal primary motivations for writing here at ye olde Sleeping Village. Philadelphia's own Lástima recently dropped their forthcoming two-track EP in the ol' inbox, and, needless to say, it made for an exciting encounter. Lástima play blackgaze through an overtly emo lens--a sub-subgenre that reflects the nature of the band's moniker with a delightful accuracy. Referring to a sense of pity or hurt, or "to be said in order to show compassion for someone in pain," lástima seemingly describes a range and intensity of emotion that feels both potent and familiar. The music itself reflects this multifaceted term quite stirringly, and that, in and of itself, is a victory in the realm of overtly emotionally driven music. Without further ado: let's dive in! 
Written by: The Administrator
At risk of showing all my cards before the review even begins: Dream Tröll are one of my very favorite bands, and have been for a couple o' years now. Time, methinks, to gush accordingly. I first heard Realm of the Tormentor a few weeks ago, and for the entire stretch of time between then and now, every single track contained within has been firmly lodged in my skull. This level of sheer likeability and competence inevitably raises the question: is Dream Tröll capable of putting out a less-than stellar release? Thusfar, I pleased to offer a resounding "no." Despite a rotating cast of vocalists that nearly recalls the drummer woes of umlauted brethren Spın̈al Tap, the consistency in quality they have demonstrated since 2018's The Witch's Curse is simply incredible--and 2017's The Knight of Rebellion, while less refined, is no snoozer either. Literally every single track they have released is a certified banger, a non-skipper, a prime exemplar of traditional metal prowess in the modern era. These guys claim to keep the spirit of old-school metal alive by "making the OLD sound NEW again"...and y'know what? Not a single lie hath been detected. 
Written by: MetalFederation (Alex)
For an album review writer moving up in the world from Instagram captions, what could be better than the debut LP from a newly formed band? I, Alex (@metalfederation on Instagram), and death metal crew Crypta are here for a mutual debut! The four-piece international group from Brazil and the Netherlands delivered Echoes of the Soul on June 11th via Napalm Records. Boasting a supergroup lineup of big names, Crypta aim to make a strong first impression with a tracklist of pummeling death metal that clocks in at just 42 minutes. Will they silence any irrelevant debates about what the perfect run time for an album is? I’m as excited as you are to find out. (But if you’re wondering, 42 minutes is pretty close to perfect and I apologize to the consequently offended prog nerds.) 
Written by: Shane Thirteen
I started this review like so many others: Scorched Green in a glass piece. As per usual I have spent a few days listening to the work I am to dive into. The very first time I gave this album a spin I knew I was going to dig it. II by 10,000 Years is spacey, sludgy, and fuzzy. Just how I like it. You see, I don't do the technical approach to reviewing. Some do, and that is great. Breaking down the album song by song and giving opinion on the technical nature of the band. I give two shits about that. I approach all reviews as if I were a fresh faced young music fan who was just handed an album by a buddy to check out. I want to explore new music with the same gusto I had when I got into records back when I was about 14. The absolute emotion of the things is what turned me on. Albeit, my tastes have changed. But I still approach music as if I have only just begun. 
Written by: Tom
Swimming in the depths of the underworld, there lives a band named Gore Dimension. These Turkish lads only come up for air in order to dispense their brutal death metal upon the legions of fans, fans that will only accept the heaviest, goriest, and nastiest musical offerings set in front of them. With this April's release of Ethereal Realm, those fans got just what they were asking for. Gore Dimension has a great name, bringing to mind a dimension where the grotesque is normal, as its inhabitants live in a Purge-like state of homicide, where blood and gore are the only rules and everybody loses. Besides the unholy brutality on Ethereal Realm, we will also find samples from one of the most recognizable films, the cult classic, Heavy Metal! This was one of my favorite films, and having those Loc-Nar samples in here really added to my enjoyment of this album. But let's dig in a bit, shall we?
To assess Cerebral Rot's latest offering, two Village-dwellers took up the pen, making for a (somewhat) rare double review 'round these parts. Enjoy! - Ed.
Written by: Blackie Skulless
After occupying many rotations on my turntable with their debut album, Cerebral Rot have come back with another vile and fucking putrid cut of rotted metal meat. Their brand of doom/death has always had an extreme focus on all things body fluid, gore, decay, and stench. Adding tighter hooks and spreading it across a sizable platter made it stand out a little bit. Excretion Of Mortality has come by for a second serving of just that, pairing very well with the banger of a debut. Working off of something that I loved so much, that usually guarantees that it will be solid at minimum. I was a bit worried it’d be a carbon copy of Odious Descent Into Decay, and while it’s pretty similar, there is enough here to sift from the sewage. For starters, I think they align a little more with the cavernous bands of this style than before (but not entirely stepping into it). Picking up some booming bass rumbles that the likes of Spectral Voice or Carcinoid crank out was easy enough. Some of the song construction adds that little taste of “the space between the notes” as well, if you will. “Spewing Purulence” serves that with a side of pinch harmonics to let it stand out more. Its tremolo-ridden bridge back into the main riff is a nice touch too. |
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We provide thoughtful reviews of music that is heavy, gloomy...and loud enough to wake us from slumber. Written by a highfalutin peasantry!
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