 Written by: The Administrator
When approaching a new track from (the alluringly monikered) The Biscuit Merchant, you can be certain about one thing: the delineations between subgenres are gonna get murky. Where, you may wonder, does death begin and thrash end? How many progressive tendencies can you cram into a track before it becomes clearly identifiable as prog metal? How many vocal stylings can one vocalist muster? Much to consider. The Biscuit Merchant's discography at large--encompassed within a multi-album megaproject that will eventually involve an album for every letter of the alphabet--makes for an intriguing listen. While I must admit that I'm not familiar with the entirely oeuvre, I have been a big fan of what I've heard. The Biscuit Merchant has a knack for balancing engaging groove with the kind of naturally flexible songwriting that allows unexpected inclusions to feel firmly grounded rather than mere gimmicks. I particularly enjoy the vocals, which are quite diverse, ranging from squelchy growls to snarling cleans and back again with an underhyped grace. We're excited to premiere here today a forthcoming single from The Biscuit Merchant's forthcoming new album. The track is called "Victorious." The album is called Tempora, and will be released in May of this year. Give "Victorious" a listen below, and, as always, we'll meet ye on the other side!
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The Sleeping Village has been around for a few years now, and during that time, a lot of reviews have unceremoniously disappeared into the dark confines of our archives, destined to never see the light of the front page again. Music appreciation, however, is a timeless affair, and in that spirit, here is a review retrieved from the deep dark depths.
Written by: The Administrator (originally published June 15th, 2019)
Given the convoluted intros that have become a bit of a calling card ‘round these parts, we wizened scribes find ourselves in a bit of a situation here. Here's the rub: Entrenched is an outfit about which I know astonishingly little. No niceties regarding city of origin, or band members, or associated acts. In this sense, unless you’ve seen the gloriously indicative album artwork for their sophomore effort Endless Occupation, the music really must speak for itself. And to be honest, it doesn't speak so much as roar vivaciously. Entrenched play, for all intents and purposes, a speed and thrash-oriented brand of death a la Demolition Hammer or Morbid Saint. They wear the visceral war-torn trappings of Sodom--take the track titles, which range from the obvious ("Meatshield") to the goofy ("Goreamedic") to the exclamatory ("Terrorize the Insurgency")--and conduct themselves with the juggernaut bombast of Malevolent Rapture-era Legion of the Damned. Imagine if Merciless lost their more overtly frantic edges, and gained instead a Vader-esque sense of (moderate) composure. But yet, these comparisons are imperfect, and despite existing in a fairly well-occupied space, Entrenched are seemingly their own bloody beast, taking the bits that work, but never feeling derivative to a consequential degree. Needless to say, if you want thrashy riffs and endless bullet-belted aggression, Endless Occupation will scratch that itch with...well, take your pick of rusty implement. Rake. Machete. Lawnmower. 
Written by: The Administrator
We slumbering scribes are nothing if not considerate. In that spirit, here's a relevant public service announcement: if you choose to fire up Terror Labyrinthian, the debut album from Baltimore's Nuclear Tomb, please know that you are willingly subjecting yourself to an undiluted sonic onslaught. Real face-melting stuff. Prodding and squirmy and barbed and apocalyptic and absolutely ripping. Representing a particularly weird and wild variant of death-oriented thrash, Nuclear Tomb have perfected a brand of chaos that appears, at first blush, quite unhinged. In reality, their approach is as calculated as it is contorted. In a case of promo material feeling exceptionally accurate, Nuclear Tomb do indeed skillfully integrate an old-school blistering aggression à la Sadus alongside a more punky off-kilter Voivodian approach to dynamics. That's a win/win combination in my book.
Every Friday, 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 new 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’ll be--and have been--listening to today here at the Village HQ. We hope you join us in doing so!
On the docket for today, June 10th, 2022: Yatra, Dust Prophet, Adamantis, and Pillärs
Written by: Blackie Skulless
What an incredible time for some Ukrainian death/thrash centered on horrors of war. Taking formation only a couple of years ago, Mortal Vision managed to get their debut full-length out late last year, hitting my radar at the beginning of this year. Though there’s no shortage of this style, it’s always nice when it can be pulled off so wonderfully. Mind Manipulation does just that. Immediately, the Sepultura-meets-Morbid Angel vibes are going to set in, and they never really go away for the full run. Under a slightly clearer umbrella, Mind Manipulation boasts riffs far more on the thrash side, caking on some grooves to break up an approach that’s pretty one-sided. Naturally, the speeds never really slow down other than to swing in these more memorable bridges and to give way to the solos. Things like the bouncy rhythms on “Condemned To Death” or the ascending sweeps meeting harder drum clashes with “Apophenia” add plenty of life. 
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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