Sleeping Village Reviews
  • REVIEWS & PREMIERES
  • ARCHIVES
    • OLDE REVIEWS
    • OLDE INTERVIEWS
    • OLDE FEATURES
    • OLDE PREMIERES
  • SUBMIT FOR REVIEW!

MEGAFAUNA - I Owe This Land a Body (Review)

1/4/2025

0 Comments

 
Picture
Written by: The Administrator 

If MEGAFAUNA doesn't represent the perfect antithesis of easy listening, I shudder to think what else could have possibly earned that designation. Indeed, in my review of MEGAFAUNA's unsettling and engrossing Venator, released back in April of 2024, I wrote that the project is "not a light nor carefree listen." I also called it "unabashedly weird and intense" and referenced both an "uncomfortable urgency" and a tendency to nail a sense of "terrible disassociation that paradoxically makes you hyperaware of your physicality." In short, I liked Venator very much, and found MEGAFAUNA's articulation of anxiety, fear, paranoia, and depression to be quite poignant.

I Owe This Land a Body similarly presents an intense soundscape, leaning into a lonely and foreboding eeriness. This is, after all, an album explicitly exploring the notion that "how dying is the last decent thing we can do." A sense of profound despair implicitly and intentionally seeps forth from the Megafauna corpus, and this latest isn't exactly a cheery listen. With that said, I Owe This Land a Body is less immediately jarring than Venator, and even manages to undercut its own sense of unease with some unexpected bright spots.


Read More
0 Comments

MEGAFAUNA - Venator (Album Premiere)

4/17/2024

0 Comments

 
Picture
Written by: The Administrator

Those of you with an uncanny memory may recall that, towards the end of my recent review of Megafauna's eerie and excellent Venator, I made mention of a premiere. Here we are, folks. Venator will officially be released this Friday, April 19th, via Syrup Moose Records, but if you're unwilling to wait, we invite you to listen to it in full below.

Of course, some preparation is called for If you're invested in full experience, I highly recommend hiking into the deepest darkest forest you can reasonably find. Walk until you find a dilapidated shack, or perhaps a large pile of bones that look suspiciously familiar. Set up camp. Wait for dark, and then wait for your flashlight battery to die. Make peace with the fact that there is almost certainly something in the woods, and i̵̲̾͑̏t̷̜̝̳̏ ̸̼͝i̴͉̥̲̗͋̊s̵̨̬̹͙͓͕̿̈̉̔̌͠ ̵̡̭̜̩͌̈́̽͛̌̚ͅͅw̶̧̹̮̯̌̈ą̴̹̼̮̼̖́̆̑͆̓͝t̵̨̨͇̺̂̇̇̅͆̋͜͠c̶̢̧̻̞̈́̓͝ḥ̶̢͐̉̄̓̓̋i̷̦͈̠̎̇̊͂̔͠n̵̼͛g̴̨̮͉̲̠͆.

Check out Venator below, and, as always, we'll meet you on the other side. Much to the chagrin of pretty much everyone, I'm not done waxing poetic just yet.


Read More
0 Comments

MEGAFAUNA - Venator (Review)

3/28/2024

0 Comments

 
Picture
Written by: The Administrator

I grew up in a very rural area. Heavily forested and lushly dark, depressive, lonely. As such, I can assert that any creepy tale you've heard about stuff that happens in the woods at night is almost certainly true. There is something in the woods. There is always something in the woods. Indeed, to reiterate:

ţ̸̧̨͈̤̞̦̻͛̋̀̀̎̐̃͜h̴̡̬̖̻̽̋̇͊̄͠ẻ̶̲̻̟̣̙̓͆̏͋̇͒͆̚r̴̪͛͆̓͂̀e̷͔͉̹̼̪͖̬̘̳̋̐͊ ̷̘͓̅̓̈̎̓̌̽̓ỉ̶̜̰̻̮͈͐͌̈̅͘̕ś̷̩̘̤̝̭͎̜͕̪̐̂ͅ ̷̟͔̞̊̀̓͜͝͝s̸̺̭̪͊̓͒̈̏̀͒̎ō̴̟̰̳̫̥͊̾̓̀̾͘͜m̷͕͖̜̥͙̮̟̮̥̩̱̐̒͂͠ĕ̵̹̍̎͊̀̍̕͠͝ẗ̶̢͕̠͎̥͕͈̲̝̓͒͜͜h̶͓̦̟̰͈̘̐̄̔͗̆̇̂̈͑͗͝ͅi̴̦͇͎͒̈́̋̿́̆͠ͅn̴̢͇͇̥̫͚̮͗͋͂̉͘̕͝g̷͍͑͗̈̓ ̶̬͚̪̗̺̽͊͂͠i̷̛͚̘͚͑͐̏̈́̑̕͠ņ̸̧̢̹̻̭̘̗̼̳̖̍̆̀̂̃́̿́̎̿̀ ̷̮̐͐̃̅̓̃̕̕͠ṱ̵͓̣͚͈͍̯̮̻̟̠̓̋́̍̀͌̓h̷͔̰̱̤̓̌ẻ̵̛̪͍̅͌̍͑ ̴̼̱̳̞͈̫̟͓̫̗͗͛͑w̶̯͌̈́̽̾͑̔̿̀̊̈̕ǒ̴͎͙̦̮̬̩̝̦͌́͛͋̈̇͊͜o̷͕̳̖͈̙̙̓̏d̶̢͙̹̝͍̜̜̃͒̔̾́s̴̫̘̻͈̹̤̼͕͖̋́͝


British Columbia's Megafauna understands this all too well, whether the woods are literal or figurative or combination of both. Megafauna's bandcamp page self-describes the project as "the soundtrack to your depressive episode." To get a little more specific, Venator was created "in various stages of exhaustion, mental illness, bursts of creativity, fear, anger, sadness, joy, nihilism and limited free time." It may not surprise you to learn, then, that Venator is not a light nor carefree listen. It is immersing and at times quite clever in its use of sound to convey emotion and command atmosphere. It captures some very particular feelings that are often very difficult--practically, emotionally--to illustrate.


Read More
0 Comments

ONFANG - Sugar Jar (Review)

1/2/2023

0 Comments

 
Picture
Written by: The Administrator

There is nothing, methinks, like a journey into unfamiliar genre tags to kick off the new year. Onfang's bandcamp page lists "comfy synth, faery synth, fantasy synth, and forest synth," and while I have dabbled in synth-y waters, these particular microgenres represent a whole new world. The appropriately entitled Sugar Jar--digitally released in August of 2022, and pending a January 20th release on cassette via Fiadh Productions--serves as the perfect introduction.

Sugar Jar is, simply put, an absolute delight. It contains a brief five tracks; the listening experience is more akin to enjoying a well-portioned confectionary rather than conducting a Bruce Bogtrotter-esque exercise in gluttony. Although certainly sitting in an arena that overlaps comfortably with more traditional dungeon synth,  Onfang demonstrates a uniquely intrinsic sweetness that feels homey and familiar rather than overtly saccharine or sappy. The atmosphere might very well suit rose-cheeked cherubs, but when closing my eyes, I can imagine a Hansel and Gretel styled gingerbread house, albeit inhabited by a kindly and supportive faery godmother rather than, y'know, a murderous witch.


Read More
0 Comments

10 Vampyric Black Metal Bands You Need To Hear

7/15/2022

4 Comments

 
Guest Post by: Ria Wigley

Picture
1. Old Nick
If there’s one thing that defines the microgenre of Vampyric Black Metal other than lyrics and imagery about vampires, it is flamboyant, dare I say CAMP riffs, a big focus on atmospheric synths, and absurd song titles. No band exemplifies this better than Old Nick. In fact, the 16-bit inspired keyboard sounds were almost too silly for me to really enjoy this band upon first listen, but after giving it more time I quickly grew to love it. There is an inherent silliness to the obsessive adherence to a particular aesthetic that most vampire media portray, even when it still manages to be coldly sinister and atmospheric at the same time, and Old Nick is the perfect musical representation of that. If you were hoping for second wave worship with some more gothic elements...well this isn’t that, it’s much better. Plus, who doesn’t love song titles like "Blood, Blood, Blood, Blood, Blood" or "Spooky Wicker Basket 1994 (Yes, a witch!)"

Recommended album: A New Generation of Vampiric Conspiracies

Read More
4 Comments

DESOLATION PLAINS - Traverse the Golden Road (Track Premiere)

4/9/2022

0 Comments

 
Picture
Almost a year ago, Desolation Plains' fantastic Sword of Hailstorm was drafted into service as the focal point for our inaugural INTO THE DUNGEON column. Due exclusively to, well, my own laziness, this proved to be the only entry in said series. In retrospect, that's a damn shame, considering how many stellar exemplars of the genre I checked out exclusively on the basis of really fuckin' enjoying Sword of Hailstorm. I listen to it frequently to this day.
​
Needless to say, I'm pleased and honored to present here today a new track from Desolation Plains' forthcoming Kingdomfall. Check it out below! As always, we'll meet ye on the other side.


Read More
0 Comments

    WELCOME!

    We provide thoughtful reviews of the music that wakes us from slumber. 
    ​
    Written by a highfalutin peasantry.


    Archives

    April 2025
    March 2025
    February 2025
    January 2025
    December 2024
    November 2024
    October 2024
    September 2024
    August 2024
    July 2024
    June 2024
    May 2024
    April 2024
    March 2024
    February 2024
    January 2024
    December 2023
    November 2023
    September 2023
    August 2023
    July 2023
    June 2023
    May 2023
    April 2023
    March 2023
    February 2023
    January 2023
    December 2022
    November 2022
    August 2022
    July 2022
    June 2022
    May 2022
    April 2022
    March 2022
    February 2022
    January 2022
    December 2021
    November 2021
    October 2021

    Categories

    All
    666
    Acid Rock
    Adventure
    Afrobeats
    A High Quality Death Metal Album
    Album Announcement
    Album Premiere
    Album Stream
    Alternative Rock
    Alt Metal
    Alt-metal
    Ambient
    Ampwall
    Antifascist
    AOTY
    Atmospheric
    Atmospheric Black Metal
    Atmospheric Doom
    Avant Garde
    Beat Tape
    Blackened
    Blackened Death Metal
    Blackened Doom
    Blackened Thrash
    Black Metal
    Black 'n' Roll
    Boom-Bap
    Brooklyn Artemis
    Brutal Death Metal
    Cinematic
    Classic Albums
    Classic Rock
    Compilation Album
    Concept Album
    Cosmic Death Metal
    Cover Song
    Crossover
    Crust
    Crust Punk
    Cybergrind
    Cyber Metal
    Dark Ambient
    Dark Metal
    Darksynth
    Deathcore
    Death Doom
    Deathened Black Metal
    Deathgrind
    Death Metal
    Death Thrash
    Demo
    Demo Tape
    Desert Rock
    Dissonant Death Metal
    Djent
    Doom
    Doomgaze
    Doom Metal
    Doomviolence
    Dream Metal
    Dream Pop
    Drone
    Dungeon Synth
    EDM
    Electronic
    Electronica
    Electronicore
    Emo
    EP
    Epic Metal
    Ethereal
    Europower
    Experimental
    Extreme Metal
    Faery-synth
    Family Friendly
    Fantasy
    Folk Metal
    Fresh Meat Friday
    From The Archives
    Funeral Doom
    Fuzz
    Goregrind
    Gothic
    Goth Rock
    Grind
    Grindcore
    Groove Metal
    Gross Death Metal
    Grunge
    Guest Post
    Gym
    Hardcore
    Hard Rock
    Harsh Noise
    Haunting
    Heavy Metal
    Heavy Psych
    Heavy Rock
    Hip Hop
    Hip-Hop
    Horror
    Horrorcore
    Indie Rock
    Industrial
    Industrial Metal
    Instrumental
    Instrumental Hip Hop
    Interview
    Jazz
    Jazz Rap
    Lists 2022
    Mars Metal
    Mathcore
    Melodic Black Metal
    Melodic Death Metal
    Melodic Metal
    Meme Reviews
    Metalcore
    Metallic Hardcore
    Metallic Sludge
    Metal Reviews
    Micro Reviews
    Mini Reviews
    Modern Metal
    Music Video
    Neoclassical Metal
    Noise
    Nu Metal
    Nu-metal
    NWOBHM
    NWOTHM
    Occult
    Olde-reviews
    Old-school-death-metal
    On-the-horizon
    Orchestral
    OSDM
    Playlist
    Playlist Curation
    Pop
    Pop Rock
    Post Hardcore
    Post-hardcore
    Post Metal
    Post-metal
    Post Rock
    Post-rock
    Post-sludge
    Powerdeath
    Power Electronics
    Power Metal
    Powerviolence
    Prog
    Progressive Death Metal
    Progressive Metal
    Progressive Rock
    Progressive Thrash
    Prog Rock
    Proto-metal
    Psych
    Punk
    Rap
    Rap Reviews
    Raw Black Metal
    Release Day Roundup
    Retro Rock
    Retrospective Reviews
    Reviews
    RnB
    Rock
    Rock & Roll
    Sci Fi
    Sci-fi
    Shoegaze
    Singer-songwriter
    Ska
    Skate Punk
    Skramz
    Slam
    Sludge
    Soundcloud
    Soundtrack
    Speed Metal
    Split Releases
    Stoner
    Stoner Doom
    Stoner Metal
    Stoner Rock
    Stoner Thrash
    Swedeath
    Swedish Death Metal
    Symphonic Black Metal
    Symphonic Metal
    Synth
    Synthwave
    Techdeath
    Technical Death Metal
    Thrash Metal
    Top 10
    Track Premiere
    Track Reviews
    Traditional Doom
    Traditional Metal
    Trap
    Trippy
    Two Of A Perfect Pair
    UKHC
    Underground Rap
    USPM
    Year End Lists

    RSS Feed

Proudly powered by Weebly
  • REVIEWS & PREMIERES
  • ARCHIVES
    • OLDE REVIEWS
    • OLDE INTERVIEWS
    • OLDE FEATURES
    • OLDE PREMIERES
  • SUBMIT FOR REVIEW!