When we last heard of our New York heroes in All Out War they were still practicing a charged-up, violent brand of Metallic Hardcore on 2019’s Crawl Among the Filth. Yet it’s now 2023 and a global pandemic later and those gentlemen are again picking up that metallic mantle like it never went out of fashion on Celestial Rot (Translation Loss Records).
Having taken the death metal world by storm, it is an understatement to say that Sanguisugabogg’s sophomore release, Homicidal Ecstasy (Century Media), is highly anticipated. Everyone and their cool horror movie-obsessed grandmother is looking forward to this record and they will not be let down! Sure, there is some maturation here, and maybe music videos depicting penis monsters duking it out, but this is The Bogg that we all know and love.
The blending of metal and horror is perhaps one of the greatest combinations in the universe. There is just something so satisfying about heavily distorted guitars and lyrics referencing seventies and eighties horror films that hits the perfect spot. It’s the perfect soundtrack to your favorite monster movie.
What was the first bit of heavy music you ever heard in your life? Did you level up, gaining mana from the ear-peeling riffs and shouts? Lovers of extreme metal surely have had experiences like this in their lives, where their entire world is tossed upside-down a new band, or a clutch of new demos from an emerging scene. This is how my ears felt hearing Grief Symposium, with a new take on the Death / Doom sub-genre with their debut, …In The Absence of Light (Church Road Records). Although mysterious and secretive, they did not set out to reinvent extreme music, but rather invent themselves, and a sound that should echo for a long time.
From crediting ventriloquist dummies with vocal performances to a former singer whose stage wear involved blue paint and a dress, it’s safe to say that Finnish act …And Oceans has a rather unique history. Starting life as a symphonic black metal act, guitarist and founder member Timo Kontio moved the band towards a more industrial sound before eventually choosing to alter their name accordingly. After releasing one full-length album as Havoc Unit, Kontio returned to the band’s original name and style in 2017, reuniting with former axe partner Teemu Saari along the way.Continue reading
What is in Ohio’s water? The Buckeye state has been home recently to some amazing killer metal bands in recent years. Among them is Faithxtractor who have returned to the scene with their first album release since 2005. Their latest effort, Contempt for a Failed Dimension (Redefining Darkness), may be their most savage and brutal album to date full of hammering riffs, demonic vocals, and thunderous drums. This is some comfort food-level death metal. Nothing groundbreaking, just some heavy-ass sick music to satisfy even the darkest appetite.
January is always a strange month for new music as albums will drop, are loved, and then usually become an afterthought by July. Having said that, the sophomore release from Minnesota’s own Nothingness, entitled Supraliminal (Everlasting Spew), is the grimey death metal that will revisit my earholes for months to come. The overall sense of dread on some of the tracks is an added bonus as I do enjoy heavier music with some feelings outside of anger and brutality.
It is an often overlooked but undeniable fact that up to the present day, Katatonia is on a phenomenal creative run; arguably one of the best in Metal music, in general. Since 2006’s The Great Cold Distance (and arguably even before this), Katatonia have been consistently put out near classics up to 2016’s excellent The Fall Of Hearts, with even 2020’s hiatus ending City Burials (all Peaceville) standing shoulder to shoulder with such works. Firmly returned from a brief absence, 2023 sees the band’s second album since this return, on a new label home for the first time in their career.
Here’s to genuinely hoping that 2023 would be a decent year for stoner rock releases – with the existence of records like The Lord Knows (Ripple Music) by the Swedish newcomers Tidal Wave. The Swedish stoner scene has always been all-around fascinating to me, with big names I admire such as Besvärjelsen and Skraeckoedlan, or even the all-time legendary Truckfighters. It’s always refreshing to see up-and-coming names coming right in, too.
