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This guest review comes courtesy of Brihadeesh, who writes and publishes over at Peregrinator Reviews. Check out their excellent and ever-expanding back-catalog of reviews, and give them a follow over on Bluesky!
Written by: Brihadeesh
An oil painting of two knights clad in dark steel armour, one with a mallet and dagger and the other with a broadsword, effortlessly fighting off a horde of cross bearing crusaders is a hell of a powerful image when it comes to a black metal album cover. And this album really reprises this image through the music. Antifascist as fuck, and releasing via explicitly the left-leaning Realm & Ritual, no less, this is easily one of the best albums I've played this year. I recently came across a new band I thought I would enjoy but then a quick glance at their Wikipedia page showed me some pretty nasty things about their frontman—Jon Nödtveidt—and it was about how he was involved in a misanthropic cult of sorts and was arrested in and convicted of the murder of a homosexual man. The band was one of the "pioneers" of the Swedish melodic black metal scene. Like I discussed in my last piece on the new Wild Beyond EP, black metal in recent years has gone through several changes and the most notable of them being that it has been reclaimed and reinvented as Red and Anarchist Black Metal (RABM). People like Jon here are not revered and instead, a left-leaning or otherwise anarchist philosophy is embraced in the music that is made. Lyrics are often anthemic and call for rebellion against capitalist oppressors, often embellished with samples of powerful speeches and news reports of violence against the marginalised. What's even more powerful is that queer and otherwise oppressed people are in the forefront of these bands, and nothing makes me happier as a neuroqueer person than to see fellow queer people ripping out blastbeats and shredding some of the sickest riffs in town.
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Written by: Blackie Skulless
Perhaps one of my more anticipated albums of the year, Graveripper’s sophomore record took the very approach they hinted at the first time around the block and ran with it. Not only has the blackened aspect taken a deeper root in the construction, but the cleaner surface that presented the first record’s straightforward approach has been roughened up. From Welkin To Tundra even depicts this in its album art, always curating a sound that matches how it looks. Thus, I can confidently say their bare-bones foundation has evolved into something with more identity. For starters, Graveripper have always crafted a “warmer” sound, one I’ve in the past compared to Toxic Holocaust, but the emphasis on black metal tropes have cooled this entirely. Perhaps Cory’s vocals aren’t any harsher than they were, but there’s a filthier snarl to them to coincide with the less-than comforting surface, all playing into the cold atmosphere. Thrash riffs have now become an accessory, not a template, as the record is dominated by explosive drum pummels and rhythmic gradients that care less about melody and more about density. The hookier moments do add a little flare, but nasty motion holds everything together perfectly. 
Written by: Blackie Skulless
Indianapolis’s Cloud Of Souls is a fun project due to how much it changed forms during its short run. Mostly, it acted as a side solo gig for Chris Latta, frontman of other Indianapolis acts including the now disbanded Spirit Division and Lavaborne, among others. Running in the background of several different projects likely contributed to the strange evolution, with the first two records falling under the name Christopher Steve prior to the arriving at Cloud Of Souls in 2022. Only two albums surfaced in this era, A Fate Decided in 2023 and A Constant State Of Flux just last year. This style was always a bit tough for me to get behind, however the former release really piqued my interest, so this is what we’re going to cover. Looking at the project's dark acoustic roots will show why it seems bizarre to see where the project went. Maintaining that grey and somber attitude that the acoustic era saw, the murky feeling simply morphed into something far heavier, even touching blackened territory. At its roots, this is doom metal with a quality degraded to add an almost static effect, feeling like a demo due to the noisy haze. Yet, I would struggle to call this stonery or droney despite the mastermind’s background. Latta’s signature baritone howls cover the cleaner vocal sections, but again, there’s an almost haunting aura that gives things a far more dead feeling than the lively nature of his other projects. 
Written by: The Administrator
I know you're here for the kickass music, dear reader, but allow me this brief preamble. As a so-called "big feeler," I tend to experience emotions in a fairly extreme sense. There exists insufficient equilibrium 'round these parts: happiness trends towards ecstasy, sadness is crushingly morose. Emotions are a lot to contend with, and, as such, I spend a lot of time with art that grapples with emotional extremity. I seek out music that explicitly explores and captures the essence of a particular feeling. I am also drawn, consistently and magnetically, to the musical output of one Alicia Cordisco, riff-queen extraordinaire. I've been a huge fan of her work since bearing witness to Judicator's classic run, and have followed her musical output with a certain zeal ever since, be it the bombast and adventure of Project: Roenwolfe and Justicar, the righteous death/thrash fury of Transgressive, or the epic funereal strains of Wraithstorm. No metal genre has yet seemed beyond her reach, as evidenced by this new excursion into the dark-lit mire of black metal. The Burden of I melds an old-school blackened bite with somber atmosphere and a whole lot of melodic inclination. It is an album that displays its emotional current openly: in the description, Alicia writes that The Burden of I contends with her "struggles with isolation, identity, trauma driven despair, and ultimately a reason and purpose to keep going." In other words, when it comes to my particular interests in music, The Burden of I promised to represent the perfect storm. The project's potential alone was enough; I was hooked before hitting play, and wasn't worried in the slightest about the execution. After all, if I know one thing about metal music, it is this: Alicia Cordisco executes. 
Written by: The Administrator
As documented here and anywhere else I spill my unsolicited opinions about music: I love a split. I love the complexity of interaction, I love shared environments, I love the spirit of collaboration, I love how they represent mutual beneficiality in such clear and concise form. I love the interplay and inherent differences between styles and personalities that become apparent when viewed not in isolation, but rather in community. Splits are special and all-too-oft underappreciated, and no one shall convince me otherwise. And while nothing in the world of underground black metal feels particularly inevitable, a split project between Kentucky's Wolven Daughter and Scotland's Order of the Wolf feels like a natural meeting of minds. Both lupine monikered solo acts can be identified by a shared outspoken leftism and antifascism, but sonically, this split is an exercise in aesthetic contrast. As a result, both shine brightly in their own lanes--neither steps on what the other is accomplishing, and the three tracks from each band give good insight into their respective sounds. The overall listening experience feels textured and full. 
Written by: Blackie Skulless
The Norwegian extreme metal act Nithe took formation a few years ago, but never saw themselves with label representation until their third outing appearing on Caligari Records, my favorite tape slingers. Their catalog already consists of a demo and an EP, making Funeral Death their third outing. The truth is, I think all three of them could have been labeled either or. The band is rather tough to label other than somewhere within the black and death realm, perhaps with a thrashy attitude. Much of this is due to the fact that the coarse and mean production with such attitude in presentation somewhat dances all over the place, but those very things help keep it together. Consisting of four songs, we start on a blistering note with “Chains Of The Abyss,” loaded with blast beats and harsh shrieks before breaking into a punkier stomp. “Primordial Ooze (Mother Of Woe)” follows up with a thrash driven approach, not only sneaking some clear leads into the main riffage, but even allowing some gang chants in the chorus. It’s rather unorthodox amidst the ugly and unforgiving atmosphere, especially with the tremolos worked in, but I can’t complain (especially with that slow bass bridge connecting everything). 
Written by: Blackie Skulless
Oh man! Talk about a record that catches your attention from the logo alone, if not the album artwork as a whole. Considering that it’s the side-project of the ax-master in Worm, and that it claims influences ranging from Greek black metal to traditional heavy metal, it could have been anybody’s guess as to how this is going to sound. Zeicrydeus is a Canadian project that only has one full-length record with no demo history, just dropping last month. Titled La Grande Heresie, it somehow manages to literally sound like all of those things at the same time. So it shouldn’t be a surprise that Zeicrydeus utilizes the tactic of running with many moving parts in motion at once. If you peel back all of the layers, you find that the gist is a foundation of dirty but ultimately very melodic traditional metal riffing that mixes in blackened ingredients, namely blast beats and the occasional tremolo, topped with harsh black/death growls that also somehow swing the tiniest dash of melody. If that’s not enough, all of the instruments seem to take turns in the forefront, with bass solos being a regular occurrence, and explosive drum-fills engulf the entire gradient from time to time. Occasionally, synths might combine with one thing or the other to emphasize the atmospheric element, complete with dramatic shifts in tone under longer song runtimes.
In a continuing attempt to cover more music that would all-too-oft slip through the very large cracks, we slumbering scribes are making an effort to publish short reviews at a greater frequency, thereby shining our very small spotlight on more cool shit. Without further ado, here's some black metal:
Written by: The Administrator
As demonstrated on more occasions than I care to admit, time moves a little differently here in the friendly confines of Ye Olde Sleeping Village. Which is to say: we are often very tardy. In the case of today's mini-review, I'm hitting publish a whole 7 days late, but better than late than never, amiright? In any case, here we are, primed and ready to discuss "Monarch," the latest single from Chicago black metal duo Nirensimt. "Monarch" kicks off in an atmospheric direction, but soon swings into significantly more visceral territory. Even in the more contemplative bits, there's a sense of movement and urgency waiting to flare up. Less "smoldering," more "combustible." I'm a particular fan of the vocals, which are sharply harsh and, during the forthright chorus, surprisingly distinguishable. While black metal often leaves the lyrical content a bit of a mystery, a level beneath the surface that requires further study, "Monarch" presents notable clarity, with the aforementioned chorus having a chanted quality that grounds the more atmospheric moments. I've previously stated that this song "rips," and after keeping it in heavy rotation for some time, I stand by that opinion. "It rips" feels like a cliche descriptor, and often is, but hear me out. "Monarch" clearly contains the elements that qualify a track for ripper status. It is energetic, and pointedly aggressive, and kinetic in a way that maintains attention without shoving it down the listener's throat. It feels expansive without feeling detached. Perhaps most importantly, I have an urge to listen to it again and again. It...rips. This is a stellar track, full stop. While I'm not sure if it serves as a harbinger of a forthcoming full project from Nirensimt, I'm a big fan of where this sound is headed--there's a sharpness and a refinement displayed on "Monarch" that bodes extremely well. Nirensimt - Monarch was released Jan. 16th, 2025. Find it here! 
Written by: The Administrator
A premiere for Spectrum, the debut album from Am I In Trouble? Hosted at Sleeping Village Reviews?! No need, dear reader, to feign shock; this was always inevitable. Less a question of "if," and rather a question of "when?" I'm pleased to announce that the wait is over. The time is now. If the name Am I in Trouble? doesn't ring a bell, I recommend checking out our fairly extensive catalog of coverage. During the extensive buildup to the Jan. 3rd drop, we've covered three tracks available pre-release: check out writeups for Red, White, and Black. A common theme of said reviews is the clarity of Am I in Trouble's varied and vibrant songwriting in the pursuit of an aesthetic homage to 90's Scandinavian avant-garde black metal oddity. While the aforementioned songs are quite distinct from a sonic perspective, they share a common tendency to resist stagnation. The Am I in Trouble? playbook emphasizes constant motion and evolution, which allows for the dynamic juxtaposition of some remarkable extremes. Going from gentle to aggressive and back again is hardly a new trick in the world of metal, but multi-instrumentalist mastermind Steve Wiener wields a uniquely honed sense of unpredictability. This results in some incredibly flexible songcraft. With that said, a distinct and uncanny cohesion pervades. We get more in-depth below, but lest we lose sight of the plot, we slumbering scribes are excited to premiere (in full!) the excellent Spectrum a few days prior to release. Give it a well-deserved listen! We'll meet you, as always, on the other side. 
Written by: The Administrator
If this all looks very familiar, it's because it is. About a month ago, we slumbering scribes premiered the title track and lead single to Hellscape, the forthcoming third and (presumably?) final Through Mists album of 2024. Today, we're back with the whole damn thing. In said premiere, I said the track "wouldn't go amiss as a soundtrack looping through the busted speakers of a funhouse deep in the bowels of Tartarus," and closed by stating that "I can only imagine that demons frolic to music like this." As it turns out, this description also applies to the album at large. This is an abrasive yet exciting ride, chock full o' weird noises and oddities. Hellscape is hellishly fun, but is also a supremely weird and disconcerting listen. Which, in a sense, makes it even more fun. If you are aware of the Through Mists playbook, you have an inkling of what to expect. If this is your first exposure, prepare thyself accordingly. In that spirit: Hellscape will be released on Dec. 6th, but you can listen to in full a day early. Get a head start on that release day listening marathon below! As always, we'll catch you on the other side. |
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