Written by: The Administrator
We slumbering scribes are honored to premiere here today a sonically eclectic charity compilation benefiting a Gazan family. In the words of Basil Elzeenaty: "amidst the chaos, we yearn for a helping hand to provide sustenance, essential medical aid, and the means to secure shelter." Purchasing Love Songs is a direct way to provide assistance. This 11 track compilation was compiled and curated by Ben Serna-Grey of Mother Anxiety, and is currently available for pre-order on bandcamp for an exceptionally fair $1. It will be released in full tomorrow, July 26th, but if the meantime you can listen to it in full below! We'll talk more about the music itself shortly, but first, let's talk about the cause itself. Whereas many charity projects I've encountered are vague when it comes to where exactly the money goes, 100% of the funds raised go towards supporting Dr. Basil's campaign through Operation Olive Branch to help safely evacuate his family (parents, 4 sisters, and 2 brothers) from Gaza. More info about the campaign can be found via Gofundme--I encourage you to read Basil's story in full. At the time of writing, €36,603 has been raised of €55,000 goal, and if this compilation can narrow that gap by any amount, it has been a worthwhile endeavor. In the midst of genocide it is far too easy to lose sense of the victims on an individual basis, and understanding the impact of the charity on a personal level reinforces the importance of fundraising. Supporting directly and/or purchasing the compilation is a very concrete and tangible way to assist Gazans in dire need of security and basic human amenities. Additionally, Ben will generously send a free Mother Anxiety patch and some stickers (while supplies last) to anyone who donates at least $5 to any Operation Olive Branch campaign and shows proof. Without further ado: listen to Love Songs below! As always, we'll meet ye on the other side.
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Written by: Big Adz
Back in Autumn of 2017, I had a bad day: I was working in a crappy, soul-crushingly dull role that I desperately wanted to get out of for the sake of my own mental well-being, and had just finished up yet another day of this drudgery. Sullen and verging on despondent, I walked out of the building that housed me during said soul crushing, onto the street and hit play on the commute home playlist I had put together during my lunch time reprieve. The first track was a recommendation from a friend, a song called "Kiss of Death" by a band called Mutoid Man. Within a minute of that fateful finger twitch upon my phone, the weight of the capitalistic fuckery I had just endured lifted from my shoulders like an ascendant non-denominational messiah and my face lit up in the way that one’s does when they’ve just heard the first bit of music from their soon-to-be new favourite band.
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 the little one-off reviews that were previously (and arbitrarily) deemed too short for publication. Here's a mini-review of an aggressive and crushing and seething EP.
Written by: The Administrator
There are several trigger phrases existing in the world of music promo that activate a deep and primal need to drop everything and listen immediately. One such heretofore unknown phrase is the dangerous "FFO Napalm Death/Godflesh," which Noosed unsuspectingly dropped in a brief message in regards to their new EP. Consider this particular agent activated on an immediate basis. I don't even have time to allow the headphones to connect; you already know I'm playing this shit through the phone speaker. Let's fuckin' go. Noosed play an abrasive and intrinsically violent conglomerate of noise, grind, crust, and sludge. There's a massive presence to the low end that feels oppressive on the basis of mere proximity. The riffage grinds with the sheer heft of damp cement. The percussion stomps forward with a grim intensity, like unto cast-iron industrial revolution machinery gone rogue. The vocals are raw and belligerent, yet tinged with a nihilistic sense of despair that lends an overall nuance to the project. The use of vocal samples is also a huge strong suit when it comes to driving home the thematic overtones. Although brief and fairly blistering, OMEN bludgeons with a sense of somber nuance. It's not industrial and it's not sludge, but it does a damn good job at sitting uncomfortably somewhere betwixt the two. Of course, OMEN is far from polished. That's arguably the crux of the project's inherent charm. There's a tangible rawness and strain seeping from these four-tracks-plus-an-intro, and that undiluted emotive weight certainly strikes a chord. Not an easy listen per se, but one worth immersing yourself in. Noosed - OMEN was released may 5th, 2023. Find it here! 
Written by: The Administrator
Let's get the obvious out of the way. If you're reading a review for a band called, erm, Chestcrush, and haven't yet mentally and physically prepared to have your sternum mercilessly shattered and ground down into the finest of bonemeal, you might want to swiftly backpedal into calmer waters. Two parts of this three-track monstrosity are perhaps the most belligerent and violent manifestations of the Chestcrush approach to date, which is saying something if you are familiar with their prior work. Indeed, Apechtheia is as crushingly malevolent as 2021’s stellar Vdelygmia. The aggression displayed is frankly pretty stunning. However, on this latest, the stakes feel grander and the violence at play feels more calculated, more sinister. The tracks are certainly longer, trading the comfort of familiar song structure for more expansive odysseys through grinding blackened death and, perhaps more uncomfortable, a viciously introspective brand of nihilism. Apechtheia is progressive in the sense that it truly feels like a deliberate progression beyond that which came before. It feels like a genuine maturation. 
Written by: The Administrator
Blackened industrial doom metal isn't a sonic environ this particular scribe frequents with regularity. Sometimes, however, one feels the urge to conquer the unknown and descend directly into the bowels of the underworld. And so here we are, amongst the brimstone and the inferno, with Son of Seth assuming the role of psychopomp as we meander ever downwards. While genre labels are easy to throw around, what Son of Seth actually sounds like is a remarkably ever-evolving affair across the 26 minutes constituting De Dor A Odio. Intro track "Tortured Sight" begins with some noise-ridden atmospherics, an ominous and cinematic soundscape that is pulled apart by the thunderous arrival of what I can only imagine as a behemothian kaiju. And then it’s off to the races as the tortured vox emerge from the fray. While carrying themselves with a certain blackened bite, the vocal delivery reminds me more of something dredged from the world of harsh noise--add some overt pitch modulation, and you've got a mechanical vibe akin to something from Marijuana Deathsquads. But make no mistake: this is a calculatedly spooky affair, heavy on the atmosphere and bituminous ambience. The industrial influences shine through, resulting in an organically mechanized soundscape that practically begs for accompanying HR Giger illustration. |
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