Written by: The Administrator
The first track on Abyssus' stellar Death Revival is entitled "Metal of Death," and if that alone doesn't tell you what to expect in the following 33 minutes, we should probably just pack it up and head home. No gimmick necessary: this is fun death metal that thrives in an environment where the genre's intrinsic over-the-top absurdity and bombastic flair is celebrated. It's an admirable dedication, and after digging myself out of a recent glut of gross death metal that reveled in putridity, some crisply high-octane fare serves as an excellent palate cleanser. Nothing here is drenched in gore or ensconced in the increasingly prevalent "cavernous" aesthetic. Rather, everything here is aggressive, and boisterous, and coated in a slick sheen of late 80's nostalgia. If you like that furious romping energy of Consuming Impulse-era Pestilence, or Beyond The Gates-era Possessed, or Cause of Death-era Obituary, or Spiritual Healing-era Death, you're most certainly in capable hands. Long live the ugly mutation of thrash into death. The golden age lives on.
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Written by: The Administrator
Hardcore. I don't listen to a whole lot of it these days, but when I do, it inevitably comes from Upstate Records. They routinely drop absolute bangers, and when I'm in the mood to go apeshit whilst having my skull sledgehammered, Upstate's excellent roster always does the deed. Gloves Off is a prime example of a band that swiftly quenches such moods swiftly and with great violence. Their forthcoming Life...And Everything After is a prime example of how intensely immersive a solid metallic hardcore release can be. Their sound is kinetic as hell, with attention divided fairly equally between pummeling instrumentation and emotive catharsis. They just dropped the second single, and good lord, it's a killer track. 
Written by: The Administrator
Alright. Maybe this is far too narrow a reference, but if even a single reader knows what the hell I'm talking about, its a reference worth making. Bear with me here, folks. When I was a small child, I was obsessed with (and mortified by) anything remotely spooky. Luckily, the era of my childhood produced a glut of scary-but-for-kids material, and so, in my dogged quest to be able to gaze upon the terrifying visage of Scary Stories To Tell In The Dark without a subsequent week of feverish nightmares, I sought out and made my parents read/perform such classics as In A Dark, Dark Room and Other Scary Stories. The titular tale features an entirely plotless exploration of a dark, dark house, starting with the exterior and moving ever inwards--through the dark, dark hall, up the dark, dark stairs, into the dark, dark closet, and so on. There is, notably, no story. There is only movement through the environment. Despite its inherent silliness, this is one of the first pieces of art that truly stuck with me, and I strongly suspect that has to do with the sense of implicit suspense and unknowing. The author knows what is at the end of this dark, dark narrative, but I didn't, and I had it within my power to close the book and never come back. But of course that was never an option. Any artist who dabbles in the crossroads of fear and curiosity knows this well. Anyways, enough of that. Let's get to the dark, dark music, shall we? 
Written by: Blackie Skulless
Mourn The Light is the first of the inevitable “incredible album from last year that I didn’t discover until January.” Hailing from Connecticut here in the states, they do a very up-tempo brand of doom metal with traditional heavy metal influences. Rather than being dark and gloomy at all turns, they head the warmer direction and construct music that’s full of emotion and strong tempo. Having been around for a couple years now, last summer they released their debut full-length titled Suffer, Then We’re Gone. Coming at it with this approach immediately makes it more digestible as an album on the longer side. Naturally, grand constructions bordering the epic end (without the obnoxious toppings) take the majority of the cake. There are pretty extreme shifts in mood that somehow work, easily seen in the hook-friendly opener “When The Fear Subsides.” It rides on that gothic sadness that Idle Hands utilizes, before swinging into an acoustic, clean and upbeat outro. The title track also opens up side B with a very similar, bassy approach before switching entirely to the heaviest moment on the album.
This year, in an attempt to cover more music that would all-too-oft slip through the very large cracks, we're trying something new and novel around these parts. Namely, we're gonna actually publish the little one-off reviews that were previously (and arbitrarily) deemed too short for publication. In that spirit, here's a mini-review of a debut EP that deserves a little attention. Without further ado:
Written by: The Administrator
Industrial metal seldom breaches our shoddy defenses here at the Sleeping Village. That's not, I must note, because we doesn't enjoy the genre, but rather because we very rarely see review requests from bands flying the industrial banner. A real damn shame. Melbourne's own Knife, however, proudly exude the grinding, percussive, mechanical, and pulsating 90's-era aggression of acts such as Nailbomb and the seemingly immortal GodFlesh. Notably, they infuse the five tracks contained within Wound's confines with a distinctly crusty vibe and highly emotive discernible-but-visceral harsh vocals. There's a tangible fury and sense of forward momentum across the breadth, and the instrumentation itself avoids stagnation by indulging in a bone-crunching breakdown from time to time. Look to "Sinners" as a prime example of both extremes. As such, Knife successfully avoid feeling dated...while simultaneously recalling a distinct aesthetic era of industrial music. If you're looking to sample, mighty closer "Warmonger" is my favorite individual track, but realistically, the whole thing is A. quite short and B. definitely worth yer while. Wound is a brief but intense intro to this duo's sound, and while it is unfortunately over swiftly, it serves as an excellent appetizer. 
Written by: The Administrator
Maybe I'm alone in this opinion, but I find high quality death metal albums particularly difficult to review. The standard adjectives feel dead on arrival--"brutal" or "ripping" or "pulverizing" only get you so far with an audience who has heard it all before. Upping the ante in terms of gross-out description is similarly limited: there's only so many ways you can say "cranium-crushing" "intestine-splitting" or "cadaver-licking" before the hyperbole starts feeling stale and copy/pastable. You can only drop so many laundry lists of high-profile acts such as Morbid Angel, Revulsion, Incantation, Dying Fetus, Deicide, Suffocation, Hate Eternal, and motherfuckin' Cannibal Corpse before it starts to sound like comparison for the sake of comparison. Anyways. enough shop talk. Let's move on to today's high-quality death metal album in question. 
Written by: The Administrator
Despite not having the largest back catalog or most widespread popularity, Wo Fat are one of those rare monolithic bands who deliver with such marked consistency that, as time goes on, their albums seem less like moments in a discography, and more like myths that comprise a greater lore. Their latest LP comprised of new material, 2016's Midnight Cometh, is no outlier. On this no-nonsense affirmation of their core aesthetic, swirling, psychedelic, and pseudo-hypnotic riffage paves the way through a chest-deep swampy ambiance. When I think "stoner," this album rises as a prototypical paragon of the sound and the style. Maybe I'm jaded for thinking it is such a prime exemplar, but so be it. This album simply reeks of smoke. It perpetually sits behind a hazy veil. This is stoner music of the highest order, plain and simple.
This year, in an attempt to cover more music that would all-too-oft slip through the very large cracks, we're trying something new and novel around these parts. Namely, we're gonna actually publish the little one-off reviews that were previously (and arbitrarily) deemed too short for publication. In that spirit, here's a mini-review of a single from a forthcoming album that I, for one, am quite excited for. Without further ado:
Written by: The Administrator
Those of you who find yourself in the possession of a remarkably keen memory may recall a track premiere we ran a few months back. The track in question was "Serenity Within Chaos;" the artist was Oakland-based debut indie/prog/surf rock solo outfit Fire Whale. At the time, I was taken with James Utterback's ability to take from assorted genre tropes and imbue them with a unique sense of identity, and that admiration extends as Fire Whale's eclectic repertoire of sounds grows to include a wild pysch rockin' streak. While maintaining a modern edge, "So It Goes" dives headfirst into head-bopping riffs and tastefully exploratory delay-laden leads. The chorus and solo, in particularly, feel fresh while simultaneously pulling up a lil' nostalgic flair, and that's a combo I will seldom turn up my nose at. Needless to say, this track shows yet another side of Fire Whale's colorful aesthetic, which I'm psyched to see take final form on the forthcoming full-length. Keep your eyes out for that inevitable behemoth, but in the meantime, check out "So It Goes" and the other available singles. Fire Whale - "So It Goes" was released Jan. 7th  It's a new year 'round these parts, which means we're ready for some new renditions of old traditions. That's right, dear readers: it's time once more to pull back the curtains of the Sleeping Village's dusty amphitheater and present another experience of the audiovisual persuasion.
If you're tuning in hoping for something bone-crushing or nausea-inducing, check back some other time. Hungary's Kajgūn, today's band in question, leans a little further into the lighter fare, offering a potent fusion of instrumental psych, jazz, and doom with a profoundly experimental character. If that doesn't sound unique enough, here's the real kicker: Kajgūn operate through complete and total improvisation. Their methodology results in some truly unexpected sights and sounds. It is spaced out, and trance-like, and as engrossing as you might hope it to be. Today, we're happy and honored to present the music video for "Maorey Suh Raawb," the first track on Kajgūn's forthcoming album. Entitled Daogoad, this four-track project will be released on February 11th in both audio and visual form. Without further ado, check it out below! We'll catch ye, as always, on the other side.  Look, the absurdity of writing yet another intro to an Album(s) of the Year list isn't exactly lost on me. If you're a purveyor of music review sites, you've undoubtedly already skipped over a fair share in the interest of checking out the actual content. We all had a very tough year, but as a consolation prize, 2021 presented a veritable bevy of good (and indeed great) music. Etcetera, etcetera. Let's leave it at that. In terms of format, this list is purely unranked. While previous years counted down to #1, that generally arbitrary structure simply doesn't demonstrate the way I enjoy music. It's also not an effective or accurate way to make recommendations. I'm also significantly less concerned about genre as in the past--I listen to a lot of different stuff, and if I'm writing a list, it should probably reflect that reality instead of projecting a false image of metal exclusivity. So be prepared for a little eclecticism. I hope there's something herein that catches your ear. If so, please support the artists in any way you are able. And lastly, thank you for your readership! You're the best. Yes, you. |
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