Category: Grindcore

The Administrator's FAVORITE EPs of the Year 2022

12/24/2022

Written by: The Administrator

Each year, I inevitably spend a whole lot o' time with EPs. Is this due to my bafflingly short attention span? Yes. Is it also because EPs often feel like the perfect vehicle for a band to flaunt their strengths in a concise and well-trimmed manner? Also yes. Listening to a well-constructed EP is perhaps my favorite way to spend time with music, and so here I am, an eclectic collection of favorites gripped in outstretched grubby fingers.

But first, some housekeeping! There are, assuming I counted correctly, 30 entries. I was planning on 20, but have no real interest in trimming a list of untrimmable favorites. In that spirit, hopefully you find something here that worms its way into your favorites as well.

This list is not sorted by genre despite featuring a lot of different genres. I apologize for the whiplash, but sorting feels antithetical to the overall notion that listening habits should not be confined for the sake of convenient lists. And lastly, this is utterly unranked--if something appears here, please know that it comes highly, highly recommended!

Anyways. Let's get into it.

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FRESH MEAT FRIDAY: June 17th, 2022 Feat. Void Witch, Trocar, Valley of the Sun, and Inexorum

6/17/2022

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Every Friday, a wagon arrives at the Sleeping Village’s crumbling gates, stuffed to the brim with our sustenance. 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!

This Friday, Bandcamp is holding their third annual Juneteenth fundraiser, where they donate 100% of their cut of sales to the NAACP Legal Defense Fund. Win/win!

On the docket for today, June 17th, 2022:
Void Witch, Trocar, Valley of the Sun, and Inexorum

Void Witch - Void Witch
(Everlasting Spew Records)

Either you love Void Witch's 2021 demo, or you were, until now, unaware of Void Witch's 2021 demo. After much anticipation, said demo is reborn, having been bolstered with a new song and granted official "debut EP" status. The three tracks contained within are diagnostically bad to the bone, as engrossing as they are gruesome. "Boudoir Bloodfeast," the newest addition to the Void Witch repertoire, is a notably excellent track, with a keen sense of dynamic play between the component death-y and doom-y parts. Nothing sits or feels stagnant, and in my mind, it is that restless sense of movement that has quickly made Void Witch stand out despite their newcomer status. In good time, this EP is gonna be considered a classic, so you should obviously check it out now and establish your legacy as a true fan of their early stuff.

Find it here!

Trocar - Four Forfeit Digits
(Independent, released 6/14)

There's no question that "gross" and "goregrind" generally go hand-in-hand by sheer nature of the beast. That said, this debut EP from Trocar elevates the art of grossness to sincerely admirable levels. The first three tracks are blistering affairs, raging forth with a burbling putridity and a mechanized drive like unto a piece of flesh-mangling machinery that unexpectedly kicks into high gear when you climb inside to clean out the gunk. While I particularly love "Orphaned Organs" for it's sheer absurdity, the standout track is closer "(Every Day Is) Halloween," which rolls forth with a distinctly electronic bounce, lending a new meaning to the "mechanized" descriptor. In a few short minutes Four Forfeit Digits features a dizzying array of sights and sounds, and ultimately serves to seriously whet my appetite for more. Good shit, 'nuff said.

Find it here!

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FRESH MEAT FRIDAY - January 28th, 2022, Feat. Rotborn, SARTORI, Mt. Echo, and Depleted Uranium

1/28/2022

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On (regrettably infrequent) Fridays, a wagon arrives at the Sleeping Village’s crumbling gates, stuffed to the brim with our sustenance. 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’ll be listening to today at the Village HQ. We hope you join us in doing so!

On the docket for today, January 28th, 2022:
Rotborn, SARTORI, Mt. Echo, and Depleted Uranium

Rotborn - Genocidal Resolution
(Redefining Darkness)

This is unrelenting death metal with a distinct penchant for utterly bulldozing the listener, and two tracks is all ye need. Rotborn play fast and hard, confidently delivering the kind of frantic-yet-crushing riffage that can only bring bloodshed and destruction to mind. I'm a particular fan of the second track herein, the enormously belligerent "RULES OF MANIPULATION." Here, the guitar and drums work in tandem to present a furious forward march, presenting no reasonable option for retreat. It's onward unto the breach with this one, and, despite the fact that this is their first release as a collective unit, Rotborn are playing with an admirable cohesion. Good death metal is always worth a listen, and this is most certainly good death metal--another feather in Redefining Darkness Record's increasingly feathered cap.

Find it on bandcamp here!

SARTORI - Dragon's Fire
(Rockshot Records)

Here's a sad reality: we don't review nearly enough traditional heavy metal 'round these parts. That's frankly a damn shame, because when one overlooks the lighter fare in favor of brutality, one inevitably overlooks gems such as this. Dealing in fairly neo-classical fare, Sartori and Co. deliver a debut record that will certainly appeal to fans of the decidedly epic approach. Despite feeling a tad untamed at times, the soaring vocals and flashy axemanship are the stars of the show, and while in lesser hands the glimmering aesthetic would have the potential to wear thin, the group proficiently illustrates how truly enjoyable a good ol' heavy metal album can be.

Dragon's Fire is straightforward and fun as hell. You've encountered the formula before. The nostalgia is strong with this one. 'Nuff said.

Find it on youtube here!

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The Administrator's FAVORITE EPs of the Year 2022

FRESH MEAT FRIDAY: June 17th, 2022 Feat. Void Witch, Trocar, Valley of the Sun, and Inexorum

FRESH MEAT FRIDAY - January 28th, 2022, Feat. Rotborn, SARTORI, Mt. Echo, and Depleted Uranium

WELCOME!

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