The Thurible Reviews: Ghost - "Popestar"

Ghost aren't so much a band anymore as an unstoppable, unquestionable cultural force—a sort of bizarro Roman Catholic Church in musical form. I think they'd like that comparison. Ghost have been flirting with blasphemy from the very beginning; heck, they even tried to host a concert the same day Pope Francis visited Boston, only shutting it down after they found that the masses of devoted Catholics longing for a glimpse of Frank would so thoroughly clog the city's public transport that Papa's faithful wouldn't make it to his planned anti-Mass. These Nameless Ghouls are showmen (and trolls) through and through. So when Ghost puts out new material, even a short collection of covers, the whole metal world pauses to take a glance.

Ghost may be a larger-than-life musical carnival, but they're still human as well—human enough for a few missteps on the way to their present superstardom. Their last covers EP, If You Have Ghost, was a mixed bag, to say the least. Produced by Dave Grohl (of Dave Grohl fame), it lacked cohesion and often didn't play to the band's strengths, although opener "If You Have Ghosts" was an exceptionally good cover song in every respect and remains a fan favorite. Popestar is a much stronger work overall, but not without a few of the same mistakes and missteps from Ghost's last mostly-covers effort.

"Squared Hammer," Popestar's only original cut, is sugary even by Ghost's standards. With a tight standard song structure and a sing-along chorus, it's a definite step away from the progressive tendencies Ghost displayed on Meliora. It's a not a bad song, but it's solidly B-side or bonus track material. If "Squared Hammer" is, as many suspect, a leftover track from Meliora that didn't make the cut, Papa and the Ghouls make the right call in saving it for what is, let's be honest, a throwaway EP to tide fans over until Ghost's next full-length.

The next three tracks are much stronger. Ghost thrives on the ominous melodies and triple meter of Echo & The Bunnymen's "Nocturnal Me," transforming the original's gothy waltz into a doomy showcase of Papa's sinister charisma. "I Believe" delivers a stripped-down re-imagining of the 2007 minor house music hit, changing the thumping club song into a haunting hymn that's undeniably Ghost. Once again, Papa's vocals take center stage. "Missionary Man" cleaves closest to the style and feel of the original Eurythmics track, down to the country twang and harmonica solo. It's certainly an odd song for Ghost to put a spin on (and put a spin on it they do), but I guess self-proclaimed sex symbol Papa Emeritus III couldn't pass up on the chance to channel actual sex symbol Annie Lennox.

Closer "Bible" is the weakest number of the bunch. Although Ghost's decision to cover the work of fellow Swedes Imperiet isn't at all surprising, their choice to cover the American version of Imperiet's "Bible" is perplexing to say the least. The original Swedish version of the song is lush alternative anthem—a bit heavy on 80s Europeanisms, but a fine song nonetheless. The American version is an utterly forgettable glam rock power ballad, indistinguishable from hundreds of tracks just like it that vied for radio play in the late 80s and early 90s. Even worse, Ghost's interpretation brings nothing to the track aside from modern studio tricks and a fuller sound. Heck, it's barely recognizable as a Ghost song, apart from Papa's slight accent on the verses. It's a disappointing close to an EP that will probably please both casual listeners and fanatical Ghost fans like me, even with its flaws.

Recommended.

Back To Bandcamp: August 6, 2016

Here's your weekly breakdown of the free Bandcamp releases that caught my attention:


Demon's Bell - Demon's Bell EP
(https://demonsbell.bandcamp.com/album/demons-bell-ep-2016)

Heavy metal is a tradition, and for every band that's pushing at the edges of what's accepted, there's another celebrating and reliving metal golden days of the 1980s. Demon's Bell is such a band. Armed with classic riffs, old-fashioned speed, and a vocalist with a King Diamond-esque croon (and wail), Demon's Bell hearken back to the days when songs called "Hell's Eternal Wheels" still made parents recoil in terror, devil horns weren't a sick joke at a Creed concert, and heavy metal was still deeply rooted in rock n roll. Their riffs are crisp and quick, recapturing the head-bobbing quality that nearly every variety of metal has lost since NWOBHM faded away. The songwriting techniques perfectly emulate the glory years of bands like Mercyful Fate and Iron Maiden, delivering that delightful mix of nostalgia and high-quality metal music you can't help enjoying, even if you (like me) were born too late to have lived them.

Recommended.


Grimirg - Night Be My Grave
(https://grimirg.bandcamp.com/album/night-be-my-grave)

Night Be My Grave is slow, elegant, and sorrowful. Making careful use of baleful guitars, atmospheric synths, sparse drums, and the contrast between Aki Klemm's low, throaty growl and M. Vänskä's operatic soprano, Grimirg craft an exceptional work of haunting funeral doom metal. The tight, minimal compositions demonstrate Grimirg's musical mastery and ability to create a forlorn atmosphere without relying on theatricality or gimmickry. These are lengthy, sedate songs, but they hold your attention, like the slow steps of pallbearers carrying an ornate coffin to its final resting place. They're also heavy as a stone crypt and desolate as the dry bones it contains.

Highly Recommended.


Leviathan Cross - Demo
(https://leviathancross.bandcamp.com/album/demo)

"This town will be ours!" bellows Leviathan Cross's James Herrholz on "Delusions." It's an apt summation of the brashness and boldness of this Florida band's debut demo, a record that takes the sludgy hard rock aggression of bands like Mastodon or Baroness and injects it with occult spookiness. Not that esoteric doom or stoner metal is some sort of novelty; Leviathan Cross simply take what bands have been writing about since the dawn of doom and add a healthy helping of stoner rock's crossover appeal and sense of fun. These tracks are anthemic, energetic, and full of groovy chugs and rolls. They're an invitation to headbang. Honestly, for a band with a professed interest in the macabre, they might be too fun.

Recommended.

Back To Bandcamp: July 30, 2016

Moonglade - Gray Evening
(https://moonglade.bandcamp.com/releases)

Remember when, in a moment of unparalleled condescension and paternalism, I promised to criticize Mire of Despondency's Nokturus until she realized her potential as a musician? Well, I'll eat at least a few of my words. Moonglade, the Pennsylvania musician's new solo project, plays to all of Mire of Despondecy's strengths while dispensing with its weaknesses. Well, most of them. As usual, Nokturnus's shrieks sometimes crowd out the rest of the mix, and the instrumentation is still almost entirely digital. But Nokturnus's melancholy melodies and excellent use of synths and keys brings out the best in her songwriting and highlight just how much she's developed as an artist since her debut. Moonglade's embrace of bittersweet depressive melodies and haunting ambiance on Gray Evening bears all the hallmarks of the best kind of new beginning.

Recommended.


Vermin Lord - VERMINLORD DEMO
(https://verminlord.bandcamp.com/album/verminlord-demo)

Imagine a rat in corpse paint squealing his heart out into a microphone that's as big as he is.

That's about what the vocals on Vermin Lord's first demo sounds like, and I have to admit, I kinda love it. Add some spooky, pseudo-medieval black metal melodies, gothic chanting, and a few chunky death metal riffs and you've got a recipe for one of the most exemplary and original black metal demos I've heard in a long, long time—trve and kvlt as piping hot Per Ohlin stew from start to finish. Did I mention this is just one guy? Yeah, it's just one guy. What have you done with your life recently?

Highly Recommended.


Necrourgica - Further From The Grey
(https://necrourgica.bandcamp.com/album/further-from-the-grey)

These two Pennsylvania black metallers are barely twenty, but Further From The Grey has all the grim sophistication of a veteran release, with solid roots in the best of black metal's second wave. There's a few atmospheric touches and post-black influenced melodies on some tracks, but the riffing and blastbeats have all the thrash and rattle of the classics. That's not to say Necrourgica are deaf to fresh ideas. Ecoas's menacing snarl evokes Attila Csihar throughout the record, but he also employs a gothic croon on "Corrode" and "Appalachian Lake" that sounds more like H.I.M's Ville Valo—weirdly, it works. Most importantly. Further From The Grey is full of catchy, dynamic, meaty, and creative black metal songwriting; the kind that's becoming increasingly rare in a scene dominated by atmospheric releases.

Highly Recommended.

The Thurible Presents: Halfway There, 2016 Edition

I've been gone for a while.

I just emerged from several intensive weeks of my master's program, and I've got a week or so of respite before I plunge back in. That makes this the perfect time for a rundown of the best music of this half of 2016; both the free releases I've reviewed and the mainstream stuff I haven't.

8 Best Metal Albums of 2016 (Halfway There Edition)


1. Vektor - Terminal Redux

These aren't in order, by the way, but if they were this progressive sci-fi thrashterpiece would be right at the top, as I imagine it will be still at the end of the year list. Terminal Redux does everything right: the riffs are heavy and complex, the production is crisp and clear, the drumming is fast and relentless, the solos are insane, and David DiSanto's Dani Filth-esque snarl perfectly compliments the band's high-speed aggression. Though not a single song dips under a five-minute runtime (and most go much longer), Vektor pack so much into every track that you're never left waiting for them to end. If you want to hear the best single piece of guitar music of this year, here it is. Hold on to your spacesuits.


2. ColdWorld - Autumn

ColdWorld's Autumn captures the transcendence of sorrow—the way death brings us closer not only to mortality but also to eternity. The superficial simplicity of ColdWorld's songwriting conceals a mastery of atmosphere and melody and an emotional weight that most depressive black metal albums can only aspire to. The artful and subtle use of clean vocals, acoustic instruments, and ambient synths only underscores Georg Börner's incredible skill as a musician, but the soaring, bittersweet melodies at the heart of every track on Autumn are what really make the album so exceptional.


3. Cobalt - Slow Forever

"Nothing sounds like this" is high praise from me. It's even higher praise when I'm talking about a black metal album. Drawing melodic inspiration from Southern rock, Cobalt crafted a black metal record that drips like molasses and rolls like the Mississippi. It's also as angry as drunk ex-marine and hits like a shotgun. Basically, it's the most American black metal album since Roads to the North and I love it.


4. Blood Ceremony - Lord of Misrule

Call it retro metal, occult rock, or scooby-doom: Blood Ceremony are some of the best in metal's newest niche. Lord of Misrule tones down the heaviness a notch or two, but all the other elements that make a great Blood Ceremony album are still around, including the organ and flute work, folk influences, chunky riffs, earworm hooks, and occult-inspired lyrics. Alia O'Brien vocals are, as usual, the standout attraction in this spooky sideshow.


5. Spellcaster - Night Hides The World

Big hooks, big riffs—Night Hides The World isn't short on the things that made classic metal fun and fantastical. Not that Spellcaster are some sort of nostalgia act—there's plenty of modern polish on Night Hides The World and Tyler Loney's clean, full vocals owe more to modern hard rock than to the raspy metal grandmasters of old. Rather, Spellcaster put a fresh spin on classic metal elements, bringing pop sensibilities and 21st century production to the catchy riffs and soaring hooks of speed metal. Good luck getting these songs out of your head.


6. Lycus - Chasms

Lycus are masters of cavernous, menacing funeral doom. Chasms, like 2013's Tempest, is the Oakland band doing what they do best. The songs are long, atmospheric, and strike the perfect balance between beautiful and terrible (as in Ivan the Terrible, not "The Room is a terrible film"). It's an album that demands patience, but full immersion in this slow doom metal procession will take you to mysterious and unexpected places.


7. Castle - Welcome to the Graveyard

Castle aren't the most original band on this list. They borrow the best bits from classic bands like Black Sabbath and Mercyful Fate, but Castle have a knack for making songs that are simultaneously incredibly familiar and completely new. Welcome to the Graveyard probably won't make the top of any end-year lists, but I bet it will get a fair few more spins than plenty of highly-acclaimed albums will.


8. Eight Bells - Landless

Probably the ultimate band to watch from this year. Near-impossible to categorize—Landless incorporates elements of doom, black metal, prog, and the same layered, ethereal vocals used to great effect by Myrkur—Eight Bells push a lot of boundaries. But like Dead to a Dying World, the eclecticism of Eight Bells' style belies the band's unity of  tone and atmosphere. The bleak seascape on Landless cover isn't just stylistic—it perfectly conveys the isolated melancholy that inhabits every song on this fascinating album.

8 Best "Back To Bandcamp" Releases of 2016 (Halfway There Edition)

These are in order, and you'll notice (who am I kidding, no you won't) that some albums I gave a "highly recommended" to aren't on this list, whereas some that were just "recommended" are. Hindsight is a funny thing. Some albums stick with you more than others.


1. Heretic Rites - In Satan's Claws
(https://hereticrites.bandcamp.com/album/in-satans-claws)

These guys are going to be huge if there is any justice in the world. With such a unique sound already nailed down by their second demo, Heretic Rites have everything going for them. The hour of occult garage rock is nearly at hand. Let the unbelievers tremble.


2. Ghost Witch - Demo
(https://ghostwitchdoom.bandcamp.com/album/demo)

The Thurible ran one of the first (if not the first) reviews of Ghost Witch's debut demo. In that review, I compared them to Windhand—a fair and common enough comparison, but one that doesn't really get to the heart of what makes Ghost Witch so exceptional. Sure, their brand of doom is slow and melodic, but there's also an ethereal, mysterious quality... no, I can't place it. Whatever it is, Ghost Witch have something special, and they're sure to have one hell of a proper debut.


3. Black Mantra - From The Grave of Madness
(https://black-mantra.bandcamp.com/album/from-the-graves-of-madness-ep)

This Brazillian band's blend of doomy heaviness, stoner psychedelia, and gothic theatrics still gets me. It's a really distinct sound done pretty damn well, which is really all I ask of a band. That Black Mantra chose to blend several different elements I already fancied just sweetens the deal. This is one of the rare albums that I went back to discover that, yes, it was just as good as I remembered. Maybe even a little better.


4. Blackend Horizon - Monotonous Solitude Within Cold Forests
(https://blackendhorizon.bandcamp.com/album/monotonous-solitude-within-cold-forests)

Monotonous Solitude Within Cold Forests makes 8-bit black metal seem incredibly obvious. "How," it demands, "has no one thought of this before?" I don't know. We came up with harmonica black metal first, so we're clearly doing something wrong.


5. Necrolytic Goat Converter - Demo MMXVI
(https://necrogoatconverter.bandcamp.com/releases)

Behind Necrolytic Goat Converter, the Childish Gambino of black metal band names, is Chris Voss, a man that somehow took up recording black metal as personal therapy and ended up writing some of the best black metal tunes of 2016. Combining his love of classic black metal riffs with his more than decent songwriting chops, Voss whipped up some of the best, most straightforward bedroom black metal I've ever heard. And if we're lucky, Chris Voss may find that he's an even better songwriter when he's not conjuring up frosty riffs for therapy.


6. Louisiana Sadness - Swale

Also known as Swamp People: The Doom Metal Album, Swale feels murky, mucky and hazy—exactly the way a band called Louisiana Sadness ought to feel. Part Southern gothic, part bayou sludge, this instrumental record may not be perfect, but when it hits that atmosphere just right on tracks like "Southern Hatred," all is forgiven.


7. Pyre of Ash - Scattered Toward The Glens

This single impressed me with its incredible polish, emotional intensity, and Panopticon-esque atmospheric black metal sound. Pyre of Ash has since released a full EP, which I missed (fancy that). If it's anything like this stellar single, it just might make the overall end-year list.


8. Behold Darkness - Unholy Filth
(https://psalm88.bandcamp.com/album/unholy-filth)

There's nothing particularly original about Unholy Filth as a black metal record, except the production. The mix's emphasis on lower tones gives the album an extremely unique feel, transforming what would be a pretty good, slavishly traditional project into a fascinating lofi listen. It helps that I'm a sucker for anything that this devoted to the Norwegian black metal masters. 

Back to Bandcamp: May 1, 2016

Louisiana Sadness - Swale
(https://louisianasadness.bandcamp.com/album/swale)

Louisiana Sadness (guess where they're from) play some of the fuzziest, murkiest doom around. It's droning, repetitive, and dark; the kind of music that requires full headphone immersion to even hear properly. Basically, it's Electric Wizard sinking slowing into the Louisiana bayou. "Southern Hatred" plods along like the soundtrack to an airboat zombie hunt, drowning the listener in waves of muddy riffs. Opener "Answer," on the other hand, feels stiff and mechanical, and the lack of vocals throughout the record emphasizes the music's repetitive quality—sometimes to the individual songs' detriment. But the interesting production and unique Louisiana feel make up for Swale's repetitive song structures (most of the time), and the riffs are thicker and heavier than swamp muck.

Recommended.


BRÆKKE - Indulgence
(https://braekke.bandcamp.com/album/indulgence)

If experimental or progressive metal has a fault, it's that it rarely feels like a sledgehammer to the face the way good death metal or thrash does. It's more likely to make you look bemused than bang your head, and that's fine, but it's always a pleasure to listen to a band that makes you do both.

Minnesota's BRÆKKE certainly induce both bemusement and whiplash: their hardcore roots come through as chugs and screams on aggressive tracks like "Iscariot" and "Indulgence," but never without progressive melodies and unexpected song structures. The album's extensive line-up of vocalists and guest musicians shines throughout: "The Dead Don't Speak" lumbers along forlornly like one of Giant Squid's doomier numbers, complete with female vocals and appropriately harrowing lyrics, while "Skin On Skin" ventures boldly into indie rock territory before morphing into a symphonic post-rock anthem. If Indulgence has a weakness, it's a lack of focus, but the band explores so many interesting sounds and ideas it's hard to fault them for it.

Highly Recommended.


Sunspell - Memento Mori
(https://sunspell.bandcamp.com/album/memento-mori)

Despite the Sunspell's anything-but-average origins (the project is one of Greenland's four active metal bands, according to the Metal Archives), its brand of atmospheric, post-Leviathan black metal doesn't score high on originality. Memento Mori hits all the usual notes for bedroom black metal: fuzzy guitar riffs, throaty and distorted screams, minimalist production, etc. It does work well occasionally. "Pale Angels" adds an ethereal pad and occasional breaks from the wall of guitar fuzz, and "Upon The Altar of Sacrifice" includes clean vocals and chanting—a welcome change from the otherwise forgettable screams. But in all other regards this project is painfully average.

Not Recommended.

The Thurible's How To Metal, Part 3: The Weird Side

So, experimental metal.

As with most other schools of avant-garde music, the only thing that unites the experimental strand of heavy metal music is a delight in playing by another set of rules. That means unexpected instruments, weird time signatures, unorthodox subject matter, and non-intuitive genre cross-pollination. However, perhaps because most avant-garde metal musicians listen to and enjoy non-metal artists and styles, a good portion of experimental metal is pretty accessible stuff to new metal listeners.

Well, as accessible as experimental music ever is.


Giant Squid are the perfect experimental metal band to start with: full of surprises and easy on the ears. Besides working with plenty of non-standard metal instrumentation (cellos, vibraphones, synthesizers), Giant Squid unite proggy, vocal-centric songwriting with a touch of the pagan or kemetic (that means Egyptian, kids) and an unshakable sense of melancholy. Their fascination with all things aquatic takes a new form with every album, from the oceanoarcheology of Minoans to The Ichthyologist's strange tale of isolation and adaptation. Giant Squid certainly aren't the weirdest band on this list, but you'll be hard-pressed to find a band with quite the same sound or feel, or concept albums with such nontraditional subject matter.


Another stalwart of the San Francisco metal scene, Botanist's gimmick is simple enough: experimental, shoegaze/post-rock influenced black metal... played on a hammered dulcimer. Unlike most black metal (even of the experimental variety), Botanist's music is uplifting and dreamlike, driven by ethereal melodies and soaring atmospheres. There's an environmentalism/botany theme or narrative to the whole thing that nobody really gets as well, if you're into bands with esoteric meta-narratives. If not, you're free to close your eyes and enjoy some of the most unique post-black metal for what it is: great music and dynamic, unpredictable songwriting.


Want an experimental band that delivers exactly what it says on the tin? Try Diablo Swing Orchestra; it's absolutely as fun and silly as it sounds. Groovy metal riffs, jazz horns, and folksy melodies make up just a part of this Swedish band's eclectic sound, and the Orchestra put a new spin on themselves with every new track. Annlouice Loegdlund's weird and playful vocal performance evokes everyone from Tarja Turunen to Die Antwoord's Yolandi Visser—sometimes on the same song. If you're looking for experimental metal that's somehow both unpredictable and downright danceable, you can't go wrong with Diablo Swing Orchestra.


I've heard Menace Ruine described as the only band that lives up to the "ritual" descriptor that gets through around in the drone/black/doom metal scene. Considering the band sounds like a hippie cult returning to civilization after decades in exile, it's a fair claim. Maybe Menace Ruine is post-apocalyptic folk played on organs, synths, and drum machines. Maybe they're doom/drone metal with all the heavy riffs stripped out. Either way, they're a one-of-a-kind band and the perfect gateway drug to the netherworld of drone-influenced experimental metal.


If you've heard of any band on this list, it's Faith No More: they found mainstream success in the late 80s and 90s with songs like "Easy" and "Epic" and influenced everyone from Nirvana to Slipknot. They're also the sort of band that gets plenty of radio play without ushering listeners beyond the mainstream rock hits to the real essentials of their discography. The reason is simple enough: Faith No More didn't (and still don't) play by the strict rules of later rap-metal acts like Rage Against the Machine or Limp Bizkit. This means you probably won't find a Faith No More album you like all the way through. But a quick listen to a few of band's lesser known hits just might usher you into the weird world of metal's avant-garde frontlines, where bands like Primus, Fantomas, and Mr. Bungle blur the line between the listenable and the fascinatingly odd. Be careful, though. Stare into this void of musical weirdness long enough and you'll find it staring back at you. In clown makeup.


If you're ready (for some reason) to encounter avant-garde metal's eclectic pantheon, here's some albums to get you started: Primus' Sailing the Seas of Cheese, Faith No More's The Real Thing, Sunn O)))'s Black One, Mr. Bungle's self-titled album, Blut Aus Nord's 777 Trilogy, Neurosis' Times of Grace, maudlin of the Well's Bath, Earth's Earth 2, Arcturus' The Sham Mirrors, and Ephel Duath's The Painter's Palette.


If you want to see what's new in metal's experimental side (you poor, brave soul), here's a list to get to you started: Sunn O)))'s Kannon, Liturgy's The Ark Work, Sigh's Graveward, Blut Aus Nord's Memoria Vetusta III: Saturnian Poetry, Thy Catafalque's Sgùrr, Kayo Dot's Hubardo, Elagabalus's Damnatio Memoriae, Intronaut's The Direction of Last Things, and Aluk Todolo's Voix.

Neither of these lists are even remotely comprehensive, of course. I've tried to include a representative sampling of a variety of experimental metal styles, but feel free to suggest further listening material for metal newcomers as a comment if you're a more experienced metal fan.

Back to Bandcamp: April 9, 2016

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The Great Lucian - The Flood
(http://thegreatlucian.com/album/the-flood-ep)

The Great Lucian are one part folk, one part psychedelic, one part prog, and no parts metal. So why is the Thurible of Darkness reviewing this Texan foursome? Because if this band distorted their riffs, they'd be playing some of the most creative occult rock you've ever heard. The riffs are catchy, the vocals are haunting, and the general vibe is somehow funky and spooky at the same time. Amrit Khalsa's gorgeous vocals are the project's main attraction, but they're backed up by experimental sensibilities and progressive melodies and song structures that even the kvltest among us could give an appreciative nod. Give this band a listen. Their unique and sometimes eclectic style is hard to capture in words.

Highly Recommended.


Blood Chalice - Demo 2016
(https://bloodchalice.bandcamp.com/album/demo-2016)

Reach far back enough into the history of black metal, and you'll find a period (pre-Mayhem, of course) when black and death metal were barely differentiated. This was the heyday of bands like Possessed and Helhammer, writing songs about vampires, the occult, and the devil without fully transitioning away from their thrash metal roots. Although plenty of black metal fans dismiss this formational period of black metal out of hand, daring to dabble in Bathory or Celtic Frost at most, they're frankly missing out, and I'm always ready to check out a band that hearkens back to the earliest days of my favorite genre.

Blood Chalice play early black/death metal splendidly, with thrashy riffs, monstrous howls, and a perfect recapturing of the feel of this music they're imitating. The production is a little rough for my taste, but "demo" means "demo," and I've forgiven much worse in this department (see my favorite early black metal album, Tormentor's Anno Domini). If you're hungering for a little 80s extreme metal nostalgia, check out this Finnish band that have pre-Mayhem black/death down.

Recommended.


Akvan - شاه شاهان
(https://akvan.bandcamp.com/album/--2)

Remember Akvan, the "Aryan" (as in Iranian) black metal act combining the folk music and culture of Persia with the lofi savagery of Scandinavia? Well, Akvan is back with another short release: a patriotic hymn littered with references to the history and legends of one of the world's oldest civilizations. The folk-influences are more effectively integrated than before, strengthening the band's esoteric atmosphere and great songwriting. As with Akvan's last release, this single leaves me hungering for a longer one, where Akvan expands his artistry to a scale befitting his influence and subject matter. Until then, I'll have to settle for a song or two at a time from this "True Aryan Black Metal" project.

Recommended.

The Thurible Presents: An Apology

Sorry there was no Back to Bandcamp this week. I had a lot of real life things to do this weekend and found that I couldn't really work in hours of dredging through Bandcamp trying to find quality releases. I still plan to get back to doing full length reviews and I'll definitely be back with Back to Bandcamp next Saturday.

I'm also working on the next installment of How To Metal. It looks like I'll be putting off symphonic and power metal until a later date and tackling experimental metal instead. Should be fun.

Oh, make sure you check out the new Cobalt and Blood Ceremony albums. They're both excellent.

Back To Bandcamp: March 26, 2016

Pyre of Ash - Scattered Toward The Glens
(https://pyreofash.bandcamp.com/album/scattered-toward-the-glens)

It's too soon to fully understand what the legacy of maximalist post-black metal à la Panopticon will be for the genre, but the dynamism of projects like Pyre of Ash gives me a lot of hope. Pyre of Ash layers unrelenting riffs and drums, melancholy synths and strings, and visceral, emotional screams on "Scattered Toward The Glens," creating a sound that's both atmospheric and deeply personal. The subject matter, the death of a father, is perfectly complimented by the song's bleak melodies and sense of isolation. It's really a shame this release is just one song, because Pyre of Ash can clearly craft excellent and evocative post-black soundscapes and I'd love to hear more from him.

Highly Recommended.

Moonspawn - Parasite Dimension
(https://moonspawn.bandcamp.com/album/parasite-dimension)

Poland has been at the top of the black metal world for the past year or so, with great releases from bands like Batushka, Blaze of Perdition, Outre, and Mgła, and when a scene thrives at the top, that creativity and energy tends to trickle down into the underground ranks. Moonspawn was formed in the middle of the Polish black metal Renaissance, but the band doesn't seem interested in aping the dynamic, crisp style of the movement's big names. Instead, Moonspawn crafts walls of dissonant darkness with a slightly industrial flavor. There's a clear Burzum influence here, with synth lines occasionally piercing through the cacophony to form a melody. The riffs are simple, noisy, and repetitive. but work with the band's loud and raw style. "V," the longest track on the album, is one of the strongest, highlighting the best elements of the band.

Recommended.

I'll hopefully have a new full-length review coming out in the next couple days. Also, I'll be embedding tracks with reviews from now on so you can judge the music for yourself.

Back To Bandcamp: March 19, 2016

Sanguine Relic - III - The Vampyre Weeps In Secrecy Of The Night
(https://defiledlight.bandcamp.com/album/iii-the-vampyre-weeps-in-secrecy-of-the-night)

Despite a few definite misses (see my review of Atel/Bastard of Majesty Sin's split), Defiled Light have a solid record of mysterious, atmospheric lofi black metal releases with indistinguishable cover art. Sanguine Relic, an anonymous black metal project from some unknown location with a vampire obsession (all good signs), are behind the label's latest release, III - The Vampyre Weeps In Secrecy Of The Night, a collection of simple, lofi, chaotic black metal tunes. The material point: if you like the rest of Defiled Light's catalog, you'll probably like Sanguine Relic's latest release as well. The noted standout of III's otherwise numeral tracklisting is a cover of "The Anchor Song," the closer of Bjork's Debut. The barely-recognizable re-imagining transforms the warm saxophone melodies of the original into chilling black metal tremolo riffs. It's a highly unintuitive cover that nonetheless incorporates Sanguine Relic's strongest elements: jagged howls, traditional black metal minimalism, and a touch of the experimental.

Recommended.

Heretic Rites - In Satan's Claws
(https://hereticrites.bandcamp.com/album/in-satans-claws)

Considering "Ratkovo" is about the most metal-sounding name for a city I've ever heard, it's no surprise these Serbian doom-rockers know what they're about. Heretic Rites, perhaps best described as Uncle Acid's pentagram-obsessed brother-in-law, have great riffs, creepy vocal melodies, and a raw production aesthetic—the perfect formula for occult metal. There's also plenty of variety in the band's songwriting: "Boot Knife Sacrifice" and "Return to the Castle" break up their plodding doom with passages of old-school heavy metal speed, while "Holy Place" combines the band's creepy aesthetic with up-tempo hard rock. In a market increasingly overcrowded with indifferent Ghost and Uncle Acid knockoffs, don't miss this trio of Serbians that do occult rock right.

Highly Recommended.

Black Mantra - From The Grave of Madness
(https://black-mantra.bandcamp.com/album/from-the-graves-of-madness-ep)

Typical stoner-doom bands build their songs around enormous, filthy riffs and leave the other instruments to unobtrusively fill up the remaining space. It's pure guitar music through and through—the unabashed worship of the distorted riffs to which all other instrumentation, including the vocals, must submit. Brazil's Black Mantra, by contrast, presents a fascinating inversion of stoner/doom minimalism, with the band's guitars merely undergirding a cacophony of organs and electric keyboards. Not that Black Mantra can't do a big, tasty riff—"Stillborn" and "The Left-Handed" certainly prove that they can—but the spooky doom act focuses instead on gothic atmospheres, a kitschy B-movie aesthetic, and the slow, creepy melodies that some metal fans call "processional." Imagine if the hippie cultists of Menace Ruine exhumed and reanimated Peter Steele as their new frontman and you'll get an idea of what Black Mantra are doing here—deep, vampiric vocals and all.

Highly Recommended.

Back to Bandcamp: March 12, 2016

The North Gate - Center of Homes
(https://thenorthgate.bandcamp.com/album/center-of-homes)

The North Gate are a difficult band to define. They tie together elements of black, death, doom, and hardcore punk, without letting any individual element become their defining aspect. At times, the band feels like a heavier metalcore band—at others, a blackened sludge project. "Filthy Garments," for instance, opens with a black or death metal riff before transitioning into a sludgey bridge and ultimately ending with a dark acoustic passage. The only uniting features of the record, besides the general heaviness, are the prominent doomy basslines and raw, aggressive, punk-inspired vocals—both strong suites of the band. An interesting, if very short (and a little messy) debut from this New York band.

Recommended.

Necrolytic Goat Converter - Demo MMXVI
(https://necrogoatconverter.bandcamp.com/album/demo-mmxvi)

New York has no right to this many great metal artists. This one-man black metal debut has in spades what most releases by scene veterans lack entirely—tight songwriting, catchy riffs, and robust production. Tracks like "Absolution" and "Second Skin" highlight Necrolytic Goat Converter's straighforward and melodic take on black metal, reminiscent of Tribulation's most recent album in the best possible way. This is a true bedroom black metal album—recorded on a single guitar and produced in Garageband—but the drum arrangements are varied and tasteful and C. Voss avoids all the typical self-producing pitfalls, neither smothering the vocals in distortion nor drowning the guitars in reverb. A great debut from a great musician.

Highly Recommended.

The Thurible Presents: The Griminine Mystique

"Why aren't there any women making metal?"

It's funny how often that question gets asked, considering the (always growing) number of amazing female artists making everything from drone to doom to black to death metal. If you really want to see more women making (and listening to) metal, then support these great artists (signed and unsigned) that are already doing it:

Acid King: https://acidking.bandcamp.com/releases

A classic doom/stoner metal act featuring Lori S. on vox and lead guitars. Busse Woods is my favorite of their records.

Turia: https://montturia.bandcamp.com/releases

A newer atmospheric black metal band from Denmark featuring the mysterious "T" on vocals. Their debut is free on bandcamp.

False: https://gileadmedia.bandcamp.com/album/untitled-2015

False, a scary black metal banded front by one "Rachel." Her voice is terrifying, and False's Untitled was one of the best black metal albums of last year.

Wolvserpent: https://wolvserpent.bandcamp.com/

Brittany McConnell is one half of this experimental doom/drone duo. They just released a new EP you should definitely check out.

Dark Castle: https://darkcastlemetal.bandcamp.com/music

Stevie Floyd (pictured center) plays guitars and shrieks in this excellent doom duo. Spirited Migration remains one of my favorite metal albums ever.

Menace Ruine: https://menaceruine.bandcamp.com/

This band actually sounds like a weird hippy cult. Geneviève's spooky singing and sinister songwriting are mostly to blame.

Myrkur: https://myrkur.bandcamp.com/

What's left to say? Amalie Bruun makes beautiful black metal, and anyone too kvlt for Myrkur can go lick Varg Vikernes' goatee. Seriously, go do it. I'll wait.

Blood Ceremony: http://www.metalblade.com/us/artists/blood-ceremony/

Alia O'Brien plays the flute in Blood Ceremony when she isn't singing. You shouldn't need any more information about this doom rock band to know they're something special.

Vile Creature: https://vilecreature.bandcamp.com/releases

Vic is one-half of this filthy Canadian duo that put the "Sludge" in "SJW."

I'm very proud of that joke.

Coldnight: https://dir666.bandcamp.com/album/waterfall-of-suicides

When people go on r/blackmetal asking about "depressive black metal with female vocals," they're looking for this solo project by plaintive shrieker (and, incidentally, pretty decent logo artist) Hypothermia.

Windhand: https://windhandva.bandcamp.com/

Dorthia Cottrell (pictured left) is probably the best doom singer in the world right now. I can't recommend Windhand highly enough.

Mire of Despondency: https://omenovtorment.bandcamp.com/album/december-winds-and-luciferian-mists

Young Pennsylvania artist Nokturnus is behind this atmospheric black metal project. I like it a lot more than my two reviews make it seem.

Oceans of Slumber: http://oceansofslumber.com/

This progressive band is fronted by Cammie Gilbert (pictured right), one of the only black singers in the metal scene. Her excellent vocal performances make this band.

Cairiss: https://cairiss.bandcamp.com/track/disgraced-demo

They're still only one song in, but Southhampton's Cairiss have already made significant waves in the post-black metal world, mainly because of singer Freya's amazing vocal performance.

Electric Wizard: http://www.electricfuckinwizard.com/

Electric Wizard is THE stoner metal band. Liz Buckingham joined her husband, Jus Osborn, in the band and helped save it from near-extinction in 2003. They've been going strong ever since.

Nachtlieder: https://nachtlieder.bandcamp.com/

True Scandinavian black metal without gimmicks or frills, composed and performed by Dagny Susanne. Her latest album, The Female of the Species, has been criminally overlooked by black metal critics and fans alike.

Happy International Women's Day from The Great Thurible of Darkness!

(Yeah, I didn't include Nightwish, Within Temptation, or Arch Enemy. There's no shortage of people buying their records already. Also: I hope to be back with another installment of Back to Bandcamp on the 9th or 10th. See you then.)

Back to Bandcamp: February 28, 2016

Appalachian Mudd - Demo
(https://appalachianmudd.bandcamp.com/album/demo)

I wish more American black metal sounded American. Not in a "them dern fereners" sort of way; I just wish more bands made black metal their own in the way that Panopticon or Batushka or Deep Mountains have, adopting and adapting black metal to local themes and influences. You can imagine, therefore, how pleased I was to see a black metal duo from North Carolina calling themselves "Appalachian Mudd"—a name so American it sounds like an awful craft beer.

Appalachian Mudd sound as earthy as their name. Playing a stripped, minimalist version of Cascadian-style atmospheric black metal with depressive-style vocals, Appalachian Mudd evoke the loneliness of the Blue Ridge Mountains' foggy peaks and dense pine woods throughout the 15 minutes of "Cradle Of Forestry///Forks Of Ivy." This is a truly rough demo, with a few noticeable production problems (including a fair bit of clipping and poor mixing), but the riffs and songwriting are solid and the gloomy mood holds well throughout the recording. A promising demo brimming with American wilderness spirit.

Recommended.

Schema - Miasto Nierzeczywiste
(https://schemamuzykakresu.bandcamp.com/album/miasto-nierzeczywiste)

Poland has more than pulled its weight in the black metal scene for the past few years, but you don't come across Polish doom metal all that often. Though this Warsaw band is certainly doom, Schema's take on the genre is far from typical, borrowing from everything from depressive black metal to thrash on "Industria," while crafting a slow, chilling metal ballad on "Bezsenność." Vocalist Filip has a deep, menacing, and raspy bellow that reminded me forcefully of Rammstein's Till Lindemann—perhaps because like Lindemann, Filip snarls in his native tongue instead of English (something I'd love to see more of in metal as a whole, but especially in doom). Schema are a new band, and clearly still nailing down their sound, but Miasto Nierzeczywiste is full of interesting songwriting and a few great ideas.

Recommended.

Just two mini-reviews for this week. I'll be continuing the "How To Metal" series in the next week or so with symphonic and power metal.

The Thurible's How To Metal, Part 2: Northern Darkness

I'm not convinced it's possible to ease a newcomer into black metal. Heck, a lot of lifelong metalheads don't mess with this stuff, what with the shrieking, challenging production, and extreme lyrical themes (surpassed only by brutal death metal and grindcore). But I'm going to try.

First, a little history. The first band to play black metal as we know it now (often called "second wave black metal" or simply "Norwegian black metal") was Mayhem, a group of Oslo teenagers that hammered our deliberately terrifying music influenced by thrash and death metal with low fidelity production and an extremist ideology. An entire school of Norwegian bands would follow them, including Darkthrone, Emperor, Gorgoroth, Immortal, Satyricon, and (most infamously) Burzum. A few murders and church arsons later, black metal was internationally notorious and angry teenagers everywhere were donning corpse paint starting their own black metal bands. Today, black metal is probably the largest and most diverse metal scene in the world, with prominent regional scenes in Norway, France, Greece, Poland, Quebec, the New York area, the Pacific Northwest, and elsewhere.

I'm not going to sugarcoat it: black metal has a hateful streak. Many black metal musicians despise organized religion (especially Christianity and Islam), and a few (like Burzum's Varg Vikernes and Peste Noire's Famine) are definitely racists. But neither are a majority. Lyrical themes in modern black metal range from depression to Norse mythology to queer issues to environmentalism, and the most extreme bands (like Russia's National Socialist scene) never move beyond the fringes. In fact, a genre that once prided itself on intolerance has become surprisingly diverse over the past decade or so, as you'll see from many of the acts below.


So, if all that hasn't scared you off and you're ready to brave the worst black metal has to offer, start with Myrkur. Both accessible and hip (and consequentially highly controversial in the hyper authenticity-conscious black metal community), Myrkur combines simple, traditional black metal with the folk music of Denmark. If you need evidence that black metal can be beautiful, look no further than Myrkur's marriage of choral arrangements to black metal riffs throughout her debut EP and M. There's a bit of screaming (get used to it), but it's essentially gorgeous, uplifting music. Myrkur is somewhat unique in the black metal world, so I won't go any further than recommending checking out the early works of Ulver, Myrkur's biggest influence, if you like her stuff.


Washington's Wolves in the Throne Room are the iconic environmentalist black metal band—they've spawned a whole scene of imitators and released some of the best metal music recorded in the past 10 years. Their most recent project, Celestite, is an instrumental ambient project—don't bother with it. Start from the beginning with Diadem of 12 Stars work your way forward. Much like Myrkur, Wolves in the Throne Room's brand of black metal is devastatingly beautiful; a journey of longing and wonder through the forests and mountains of the Pacific Northwest you won't regret taking, if you can just pardon all the shrieking. If you're as into songs about trees as these Cascadians, check out Enisum, Panopticon, Dead to a Dying World, Botanist, Agalloch, and Winterfylleth.


If you've heard of black metal before, it's probably because of Cradle of Filth. Although the biggest British metal band since Iron Maiden hasn't played true black metal for over a decade (2000's Midian marking a definitive shift towards "gothic extreme metal"), the band is still strongly influenced by black metal music and fashion, from blast beats to corpse paint. Filth have made a career out of being a crossover act, delivering the stylings of black and death metal in a friendly symphonic/gothic metal package, making them ideal for the new black metal listener. Start with their biggest hit, "Nymphetamine Fix," then try "Her Ghost in the Fog," "The Death of Love," and their cover of Heaven 17's "Temptation." In case I haven't made it clear: Cradle of Filth aren't black metal, but their music is full of black metal progressions, time signatures, and aesthetics. If Cradle of Filth's romantic and kitschy brand of evil charms your gothic heart, check out Dimmu Borgir, Chthonic, Graveworm, and Abigail William's early work.


Hunter Hunt-Hendrix of Liturgy is the Kanye West of the black metal world: widely reviled for his narcissism and pretentiousness, but also an undeniably fascinating musician. Whether Liturgy's most recent album is even black metal at all is highly debatable, but it's a serviceable door to the world of experimental black metal nonetheless. 100% scream-free and containing elements of everything from trap to noise rock, The Ark Work was easily the most controversial and strangely addicting black metal-ish album of 2015. Don't be afraid to dive straight into the record—it's really weird, but it doesn't bite. If Liturgy's brand of experimental black metal is your kind of transgressive, check out Krallice, Deathspell Omega, Hail Spirit Noir, Kayo Dot, and Oranssi Pazuzu. Oh, and don't tell anyone who's really into black metal that you like Liturgy. Ever.


What with Pitchfork basically pummeling the universe over the head with this band, you may have heard of Deafheaven. Infamous as "that black metal band with a pink album," Deafheaven play emotional and evocative post-black metal inspired by the melodies and soundscapes of shoegaze. Start with Sunbather, the band's breakout album, and then try its follow-up New Bermuda. The openers of both albums are fantastic, exuberant songs. If you enjoy Deafheaven's fusion of black metal, shoegaze, and post-rock, check out So Hideous, Ghost Bath, Bosse-de-Nage, Harakiri for the Sky, and Alcest.


If by some miracle you've been completely sold on black metal and want to dive horns-first into the classics, here's a list to get you started: Burzum's Filosofem, Darkthrone's Transilvanian Hunger and Panzerfaust, Mayhem's Deathcrush and De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas, Gorgoroth's Pentagram, Bathory's self-titled debut and Hammerheart, Emperor's In The Nightside Eclipse, Immortal's At The Heart of Winter, Ulver's Bergtatt, and Venom's Black Metal.


If you'd rather check out what's hip (and controversial) in black metal right now, here's a list of great releases from the past year or so: Leviathan's Scar Sighted, Obsequiae's Arial of Vernal Tombs, Yellow Eyes' Sick With Bloom, Krallice's Ygg Huur, False's Untitled, Mgła's Exercises in Futility*, Tribulation's Children of the Night, Panopticon's Autumn Eternal, Ghost Bath's Moonlover, Batushka's Litourgiya*, and Aluk Todolo's Voix.

*Mgła and Batushka's albums aren't on Spotify, but you can stream them on Bandcamp

Back to Bandcamp: February 20, 2016

Atel / Bastard of Majesty Sin - Atel / Bastard of Majesty Sin
(https://atelblackmetal.bandcamp.com/album/atel-bastard-of-majesty-sin)

Well, at least the minimalist cover art doesn't hurt to look at.

Atel's half of this "primitive/lo-fi black metal" split is almost high school talent-show material, clumsy and repetitive to a fault. It's hard to tell whether the drumming is the work of an extreme amateur or the result of abusing the "humanize" function in a MIDI arranger; it's painfully bad either way, and only distracts from the band's already extremely forgettable riffs. I couldn't even get through Bastard of Majesty Sin's first song, a formless mass of reverberation and distortion. The possibility that this whole split is a stealth parody of the worst excesses of bedroom black metal—from unlistenable "lo-fi" production used to cover up shoddy musicianship to the plainly absurd song titles ("Desekrating The Servants To Jezuz Krist In The Ninth Circle Ov Hell And The Infinite Destruktion Ov The Trinity")—crossed my mind more than once. But in the absence of a knowing wink, I'll have to assume otherwise.

Not Recommended/Possible Poe's Law Violation

Megatherium - Megatherium
(https://hywelpayne.bandcamp.com/album/megatherium)

As an absolute sucker for anything Pleistocene, Megatherium's name and premise drew me in immediately. This short stoner/doom project has a bit of everything, from sludgy aggression on "Haft & Heft" to primordial post-rock soundscapes on "Megatherium" to vocoders and heavy, gloomy blues on "Black Mountain" and "(in search of the) Elephant Bird." The opening and closing tracks are the strongest, but it's a good listen all the way through. It also has a giant ground sloth looking majestic on the cover, so bonus points for that.

Recommended.

Urðarmáni - Njorun
(https://urdarmani.bandcamp.com/album/njorun)

Imagine if Burzum occasionally threw in a brief passage of bittersweet post-black and you've got a pretty good idea of what Urðarmáni (a name that can probably be pronounced by humans) sounds like. Although nominally a depressive black metal band, this Swedish band's spin on Scandinavia's grimmest export is actually much closer to latter-day Varg Vikernes, complete with strong folk influences, medieval melodies, and riffs that sound like they're lifted straight from Fallen. I don't mean that comparison disparagingly, mind you—believably channeling a black metal great through solid musicianship doesn't need an apology, and "originality is definitely overrated" would make a good slogan for the entire black metal scene. Njorun's three tracks are conservative, but they're good black metal all the same. Just know that if you can't stand Burzum's melody-heavy take on the classic Norwegian sound, I promise you won't like Njorun.

Recommended.

An Important Proclamation

The Great Thurible of Darkness now has a Twitter. Feel free to use it to hurl abuse at me.

https://twitter.com/ThuribleMetal

The Thurible's How To Metal, Part 1: Gloom and Doom

Because I get a lot of people asking me where they ought to start with metal, I'm beginnng a new series, The Thurible of Darkness's How To Metal. This series isn't intended for experienced metalheads (as I like to think my reviews are). It's a collection of "gateway drug" acts to ease new listeners into metal's various styles and genres.

We've all got to start somewhere, and some good old-fashioned doom metal offers several advantages to the unfamiliar metal listener. First, many doom metal singers (death/doom hybrids excepted) don't grunt, scream or shriek, and I can't tell you how many times I've heard people tell me they actually like metal, "except for the screaming." Heck, some doom singers have unquestionably pretty voices, and you can't say that for many metal subgenres. Second, doom is all about big, bluesy riffs—it's more rooted in traditional rock virtues and values than other metal genres, and consequentially isn't as big a leap for the unfamiliar listener as death or black or thrash metal would be. Finally, doom is pretty hip these days, meaning there's plenty of modern, fresh, and exciting young doom metal bands making albums with lots of crossover appeal. I'll introduce just a few of them here.


The easiest way to get started with the doomier stuff is with spooky Swedish goofballs Ghost. Most metalheads will probably roll their eyes at the suggestion that this anonymous band is doom, and they're right, to an extent. Ghost aren't doom metal, but they play with plenty of doom metal tropes: the classic riffs, the occult themes, the sinister crooning. This Swedish band keep their identities secret with masks and make-up—all part of a silly (but endearing) act intended to pay homage to (and poke fun at) the pseudo-Satanic stylings of early heavy metal. Meliora, Ghost's most recent album, is their best so far, packed with radio-friendly singles like "Cirice," "From the Pinnacle To The Pit," and "Absolution." It's a great way for new listeners to ease themselves into what they'll be hearing in the heavier stuff. If Ghost's ultra-spooky radio-friendly occult rock is your jam, check out Year of the Goat, In Solitude, and Bloody Hammers, as well as Mercyful Fate (not doom in the least, but still very accessible), the legendary 80s metal band that inspired Ghost's sound.


Windhand is another good option for a doom metal beginner. This Virginia band formed in 2008 and play a fresh spin on the traditional doom and stoner genre. Dorthia Cottrell, the band's singer, has a beautiful voice, and the band's slow, funereal (get used to that adjective) sound highlights all of the best aspects of modern doom: soaring melodies, rumbling guitar riffs, and rich, full production. Grief's Eternal Flower, the band's most recent work, brims with eerie doom metal dirges like "Two Urns" and "Crypt Key," but also features two acoustic ballads that showcase Cottrell's melancholy croon. If you like Windhand's sad and sonorous modern gloom, check out Mount Salem, Monolord, Alunah, and Pallbearer. Oh, and check out Dorthia Cottrell's solo album as well—it's dark folk, not doom, but it's performed with the same sinister spirit.


If "sad and sonorous" doesn't sound at all your goblet of blood, meet Mastodon. If you want an introduction to sludge metal—the bastard child of doom and hardcore punk—with a healthy dash of prog, these four jokers are your boys. Start with their most recent album, Once More 'Round The Sun, and work backwards, making sure you don't miss essential listens like "Oblivion," "Curl of the Burl," "Colony of Birchmen," and "Blood and Thunder." The band have a natural knack for writing good rock songs that transcends genre boundaries, and they're respected veterans throughout the metal scene to boot. If you like Mastodon's high-energy progressive sludge rock, check out Baroness, Kylesa, and Black Tusk.


If nothing so far has quite hit the spot for you, try a tab of Uncle Acid. I like to describe Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats as band from an alternate 1960s where John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Ringo Starr got together to form a band called Black Sabbath. The takeaway: they're heavy, retro, and psychedelic, but these nostalgia-obsessed Brits also write incredibly catchy hooks. True Uncle Acid fans will say their older stuff is their best, but their most recent record, The Night Creeper, is still a great album and not at all a bad place to start. If Uncle Acid is your drug of choice, check out other stoner and psychedelic-influenced retro-doom acts like Witch, Demon Head, and Doctor Smoke.


And, of course, there's always Black Sabbath themselves. Most people already know a few songs by these legends ("Iron Man," "Paranoid," "War Pigs"), but those songs are just the highlights of this band's long and excellent musical catalog. Paranoid is the best place to start for beginners, but Master of Reality and the band's self-titled debut also have incredibly catchy riffs and choruses and classic, solid heavy metal songwriting. I don't recommend starting with 13, the band's more recent work; it's a good album, but I doubt any Sabbath fan would pronounce it their favorite.


If you've made it to the end of this post and you're still hungry for more doom metal (but would rather start with the classics), here's a good list to get you started: Candlemass's Epicus Doomicus Metallicus and Nightfall, Electric Wizard's Dopethrone, Cathedral's Forest of Equilibrium, Sleep's Dopesmoker, Saint Vitus's self-titled debut, Pentagram's Day of Reckoning, Witchfinder General's Death Penalty, Reverend Bizarre's In The Rectory of the Bizarre Reverend, and My Dying Bride's Turn Loose the Swans.


If you'd rather hear more of what's hip in doom metal right now, here's another list of great releases from the past year or so: Khemmis's Absolution, Elder's Lore, Witch Mountain's Mobile of Angels, Sabbath Assembly's self-titled third album, He Whose Ox Is Gored's The Camel, The Lion, The Child, Bell Witch's Four Phantoms, YOB's Clearing the Path to Ascend, Lycus's Chasms, Crypt Sermon's Out of the Garden, and Thou's Heathen.

Back to Bandcamp: February 6, 2016

Behold Darkness - Unholy Filth
(https://psalm88.bandcamp.com/album/unholy-filth)

All too often, the "raw" in "raw black metal" means shrill, disembodied and tinny. And Behold Darkness are having none of it. This little release packs meaty black metal fuzz and riffs frostier than icicles hanging from Gaahl's beard. With piercing shrieks, lo-fi production done perfectly, first-rate musicianship and haunting riffs even Varg Vikernes would give an approving nod before going back to rambling about Odalism, it's hard to believe Unholy Filth isn't the work of a Scandinavian hermit (it's a Californian band, oddly enough). Easily the best traditional black metal release of this year (so far).

Highly Recommended.

Constellation - Constellation
(https://constellation-project.bandcamp.com/album/constellation)

No instruments were harmed in the making of this record, which is surprising considering how much visceral power and manic wildness Constellation packs into barely 10 minutes. Imagine death metal hammered out on an MPC AraabMuzik-style and you'll get a sense of how this experimental project unites the artificial and the energetic using only synths and samples. Short and sweet is usually a good road to take on a debut, but Constellation's six brief tracks of futuristic grind could have definitely been longer without anyone complaining.

Recommended.

Witchcryer - The Preying Kind - Demo MMXVI
(https://witchcryer.bandcamp.com/album/the-preying-kind-demo-mmxvi)

Slow and spooky, Witchcryer deliver more of a doom formula we're familiar with from bands like Mount Salem and Blood Ceremony. So what sets this Austin occult rock/doom trio apart? Not much, at this point. Not that they necessarily need it. Witchcryer craft a gloomy hook and vocalist Suzy Bravo's croon fits the band's retro aesthetic perfectly. Likewise, guitarist and doom metal veteran Jason Muxlow's riffs convey the sense of maturity and mastery necessary in a genre niche built on nostalgia. Certainly a worthwhile listen, especially if you're already into doom bands with "Witch" in their names.

Recommended.

The Thurible Reviews: Mire of Despondency/Omen Ov Torment - "December Winds and Luciferian Mists"

I really, really hated giving Mire of Despondency an unfavorable review last time. I mean, Nokturnus is in high school. Unless your name is Pyha, chances are you're still developing and growing as an artist at that age—I'm certainly glad no one reviewed anything I released in high school. And yet here we are again, reviewing another release from this gloomy Pennsylvania teenager. Why?

Because Mire of Despondency has the makings of a great black metal artist, and I'm going to keep criticizing her until she realizes that potential.

Fortunately, December Winds and Luciferian Mists, a split with San Diego's Omen Ov Tormet, surpasses Loch of the Degenerate Realm by every standard. The musicianship has improved significantly. Mire plays to her strengths much more effectively than on her last split, giving the melancholy melodies and plaintive vocals center stage on tracks like "Todesgalxia" and "Crystalline Castles." The drumming, a major weakness on Loch of the Degenerate Realm, functions much better and feels much more dynamic.

"Demise of Lugubriosity" steals the show, combining beautiful, evocative melodies with Mire's woeful shrieks in an outstanding union of all musical elements. This is a genuinely excellent piece of atmospheric black metal—no caveats or qualifications. It sold me the album.

The production still leaves a little to be desired. The shrieks still occasionally drown out the rest of the mix, and certain instruments (usually keyboards) tend to protrude over the others. Mire of Despondency continues to favor a lofi style on this split, and while it works well for her repetitive, atmospheric style, lofi black metal is an art in itself and Mire has yet to fully master it.

One of the benefits of the shrieking style employed by black metal artists is that you don't have to hear their (usually silly) lyrics. Omen Ov Torment (not to be confused with Oven Ov Torment, a great name for a black metal cooking show) apparently missed the memo on that one, because his very silly lyrics are plainly discernible throughout "Visions of Future Truth." It's not a particularly engaging track overall, and the earnest yet prosaic blasphemies ("Satan has won!") only distract from an otherwise forgettable (and much too long) piece of Leviathan pastiche.

"Luciferian Mists" dials down on the campy speak-screaming and focuses on the frosty riffs for a much stronger result. It's a more traditional, less USBM-influenced track, but still a good one. I'll never pass up a grim and gloomy atmosphere done well.

December Winds and Luciferian Mists certainly has its moments. It's amateurish, to be sure, but we kinda like that in the grim world of Internet black metal. And at $3 for around 40 minutes of black metal, it's not a bad buy. Check it out.

Recommended.

Back to Bandcamp: January 22, 2016

Blackend Horizon - Monotonous Solitude Within Cold Forests

(http://blackendhorizon.bandcamp.com/album/monotonous-solitude-within-cold-forests)

I like a novelty EP. They bring out the fun, creative side of a band in the way few other projects do. On this little absurdity, Germany's Blackend Horizon renders a few of his own black metal creations in a different kind of lo-fi: what he calls "8-bit blasphemie." This soundtrack to a grim and kvlt 1980s video game that never was is surprisingly listenable and the reinterpretations hold up even without knowing the originals. Monotonous Solitude Within Cold Forests is the best kind of musical joke: the kind worth listening to on its own merits.

Recommended.

Serpethslayer - I
(http://sslayer666.bandcamp.com/album/i)

The epithet "earth-shaking" gets plastered on plenty of doom metal acts that don't deserve it. Russia's Serpethslayer are not one of those acts. This band's brand of doom is deep and throaty. It rumbles like the approaching footsteps of a titanic monstrosity on "Intro/Satan." It hums like a circle of black hooded figures conjuring up some unknown horror on "Coven." And its raw and fleshy growls sound like the band lowered a microphone into their singer's gaping maw.

I've probably gotten your hopes up too high. Serpethslayer are just ominous as bottomless pit and bring just the right touch of Lovecraftian psychedelic kitsch. Try not to bob your head and frown appreciatively to this record. Go on, try it.

Recommended.

WitchHunt - Void Hymns
(http://witchhuntom.bandcamp.com/album/void-hymns)

Hold on to your faces.

These Canadian blackened crust punkers deliver a tight and aggressive 10 minutes of musical savagery on Void Hymns. With excellent, crisp production and some solid songwriting, WitchHunt's second EP cleans up the weaknesses of the band's self-titled debut and improves on its strengths. From the vicious guitar chugs on "Vile" and "Decay" to the bleak, heavy riffs of "Misery," WitchHunt find ways to keep things interesting and blisteringly brutal. Winters in Toronto must be cold indeed.

Recommended.

The Thurible Reviews: Show Me Wolves - "The World They Took Over"

If black metal has a weakness, it's a general lack of dynamism. Apart from more experimental acts like Deathspell Omega, most black metal songs revolve around a few menacing riffs repeated over a standard driving drum beat. It's a great formula for creating the haunting atmospheres that black metal fans love, but it doesn't make the listener involuntarily bob their head in the way death, or doom, or nearly every other kind metal does.

Iceland's Show Me Wolves aren't quite black metal. I don't mean that in a disparaging way; they're not "not quite black metal" in the same way that Cradle of Filth are not quite black metal. Rather, Show Me Wolves straddles the line between progressive black metal and metalcore so effectively that to describe the band as either/or would feel dishonest. This Icelandic solo project of Hörður Lúðvíksson delivers the frosty riffs and blast beats fans of black metal expect, but mixes them with the punk energy and big melodies of modern metalcore for a listen that's more accessible than most black metal and grimmer than most metalcore.

The World They Took Over is packed full of thick, fuzzy riffs. Even more conservative tracks like "Exit The Realm Of The Living" deliver meaty guitar and bass work, but it's the head-bobbing chugs on tracks like "Transparent Figures" and "Mother" that set Show Me Wolves apart—this band knows how to write a powerful riff. Lúðvíksson also incorporates metalcore and death metal drum fills into traditional black metal drumming throughout the album, restoring some of the genre's lost punk aggression. Occasionally, as on "Downfall" he even throws in a double bass-infused breakdown.

Some will probably dismiss The World They Took Over as Baby's First Black Metal Album. They've completely missed the point. The end goal of all heavy music is not to make more Darkthrone fans. Show Me Wolves is not a gateway drug to heavier, kvlter black metal—it's a solid crossover act in the vein of Nachtmystium (or, more recently, Panopticon), cobbling together the best bits from progressive black metal, death metal, and metalcore for a record that appeals to fans of all three. If you're craving black metal you can jog to or metalcore that reminds you of bleak northern mountains instead of sweaty mosh pits, Show Me Wolves is well worth the listen.

Recommended.

Back to Bandcamp: January 15, 2016

Ghost Witch - demo
(http://ghostwitchdoom.bandcamp.com/album/demo)

Beginning your first demo with an ominous rumble is pretty ballsy, but for Ghost Witch it works brilliantly. By the time the heavy riffs kick in on "Lunar Hymn," the anticipation is at the breaking point, and the soaring, distant vocals make it clear exactly what Ghost Witch are up to. This is beautiful doom, the kind made famous in recent years by Windhand or Pallbearer. The wonderful tension between the ethereal vocals and the stomping, booming guitar riffs makes this style of doom work, and Ghost Witch maintain that tension masterfully throughout this frustratingly short demo. Somebody sign this California doom foursome. We need more of this stuff.

Highly Recommended.

Witte Wieven - Silhouettes of an Imprisoned Mind
(http://wittewieven.bandcamp.com/album/silhouettes-of-an-imprisoned-mind)

Female-fronted North Sea black metal is apparently a thing now. Blame Myrkur. Actually, thank her. The more bands that jump on the Myrkur-pastiche bandwagon (as Witte Wieven clearly have), the better. Ethereal female choral vocals and atmospheric black metal was a union long overdue, and the more bands that flesh out that idea the better.

Witte Wieven take a grimmer and darker approach to Myrkur's musical writing prompt. There's more traditional black metal riffing and less beautiful melodies on tracks like "Faces of Unreality" and "Silhouettes of an Imprisoned Mind." Those who felt Myrkur's debut wasn't grim enough will probably like Witte Wieven better, but those of us who felt that M worked best when the folk and black metal elements were equal partners will probably find Silhouettes of an Imprisoned Mind a little uninspiring at times. Average black metal combined with a good gimmick can make a great black metal record, but Witte Wieven don't use their gimmick to its full potential. However, it's a interesting enough debut, and scratches at a musical itch it's usually hard to remedy.

Recommended.

Elagabalus - _
(http://elagabalus.bandcamp.com/album/-)

To call Elagabalus even experimental black metal doesn't do this Baltimore duo justice. On this unpronounceable EP, Elagabalus play a confused jumble of black metal, progressive metal, hardcore, sludge, and experimental metal, complete with the requisite tempo shuffles, style shifts, and dissonant riffs. Oh, and no guitars. "They Know Nothing Else" alternates doomy plodding and manic blast beats, while "Recede in Light" and "Pure Light Society" throw synth solos into an already cacophonous mix of riffs and shouts. _ is punkier than I like my metal, but the band's aggressive tone fits their frantic, transgressive style, and its rare that an EP feels this raw and lively.

Recommended.

The Thurible Reviews: Rothko Chapel - "...mere belief"

There's a fascinating tension to Rothko Chapel's music.

On the one hand, the band's music is raw, brutal, lo-fi, and decidedly old school black metal. Some of these riffs are as frosty as early Darkthrone, and the EP's production is as artfully janky as any classic 1990s black metal release. On the other hand, there's an experimental, electronic quality to the band's style. It's difficult to precisely pin down: the ultra-high-speed riffs that sound almost like video game music are certainly a major factor, as is the precise, yet somehow also frantic drumming.

The band's tendency to throw in unexpected synths and sound effects probably helps too.

In fact, there's a surprise on nearly ever track of ...mere belief. "Chapter V. Rituals Surmounting the Reign" begins with driving, high-speed black metal before skidding to a halt and launching into a synth and brass interlude a few seconds in. Monks chants spring out of nowhere about a minute into "Chapter IV. A Final Night Befalls the Scores as the Ageless Legion Ascends Sanctuaries Once Defiled," appearing just long enough for the listener to register their cameo appearance before vanishing back into the mix. Yet Rothko Chapel never feel like they're just screwing around–the weirdness works, partially because of the solid musicianship behind it.

Uniting Rothko Chapel's bizarre bag of tricks is a dedication to blindingly fast old-school black metal and over-the-top song titles. Tracks like "Chapter III. Archaic Warrior Blood - Visions of Unhallowed Times" alternate between soaring, synth-backed choruses and high-speed, menacing, masterfully-composed riffs. Unbelievably fast blast beats throughout the EP give it an agitated energy many imitators of old-school black metal lack, and make the band's already breakneck riffs feel even faster.

Black metal fans looking for Blut Aus Nord or Deathspell Omega-level weirdness probably won't be too shocked by any of Rothko Chapel's experimental touches. But for those looking for an original spin on black metal essentials with great riffs, blistering tempos, and top-tier word salad song titles, ...mere belief is a free bandcamp release you'll probably feel like leaving a tip for.

And please do. This Wisconsin black metal trio deserves it.

Recommended.