Ghost Cult Albums of the Year Part 2 (40 – 21)


You can read Part 1 of our 2021 Album of the Year countdown here…

Check out our podcast for a sneak preview of 20-11 on the list!

The tension mounts… On with the body count!

 

40. Beartooth – Below (Red Bull) Making it four bangers in a row, Beartooth continue to deliver anthems while peppering their rampant punked-up Metalcore with more Hard Rock flourishes to devastating effect. Caleb Shomo and his compadres are on fire on Below.

 

 

39. Leprous – Aphelion (InsideOut Music) “Ten tracks that vary a lot from the traditional heavy passages that the band has always showcased but keeps expanding onto other genres like glimpses of Trip Hop and more popular genres. The overall talent of the band is undeniable”. GC Review

 

 

38. Spelljammer – Abyssal Trip (Riding Easy Records) “An equally catchy, beautiful, heavy, and dark album that brings a scenario that can be only compared as being a collection of Black Sabbath’s darkest, twisted tracks but heavier and more melodic.” GC Review

 

 

37. Quicksand – Distant Populations (Epitaph Records) Veteran, ney, legendary post-hardcore heroes maintain form with their second comeback album, an album which delivers a lot in a short run time and confirms the adage that class is permanent.

 

36. Dream Theater – A View From The Top Of The World (InsideOut Music) “The fifteenth studio album from prog legends Dream Theater finds the Bostonian act with nothing left to prove but still in the form of their lives. At a mighty seventy minutes in length yet featuring a mere seven tracks, A View From the Top of The World explores and probes new ideas while reinventing the past.” GC Review

 

 

35. Lorna Shore – …And I Return To Nothingness (Century Media Records) “on … Nothingness they are doubling down on their spooky sound. What you definitely want to check out is the title track as guitarists Andrew O’Connor and Adam De Micco put in a hell of a shift.” GC Review

 

34. 1914 – Where Fear Meets Weapon (Napalm Records) “It’s almost arbitrary to weigh 1914’s albums when they’ve maintained such a powerful track record, but Where Fear And Weapons Meet may be their strongest iteration so far. A broader platform works greatly in the band’s favor” GC Review

 

 

33. Harikari For The Sky – Maere (AOP) Emotive, reflective and building from a whisper to howling, pummelling driving riffs, there’s something for most on HFTS’ fifth album, with the duo maintaining more heft than most post-Black outfits.

 

32. Employed To Serve – Conquering (Spinefarm Records) “No longer too hardcore for the metal kids, or too metal for the hardcore kids, The Conquering hits that sweet spot that Brainwashed, There Is A Hell… and Ire once found…, and that helped catapult their protagonists to the forefront and across the bridge to the promised land, though perhaps with a bit more vitriol in its spit.” GC Review

 

31. Portal – Avow (Profound Lore Records) “Barely even describable as songs, the illogically structured, screeching dissonant terrors of Avow almost defy description. ‘Catafalque’ is a repeated crescendo of molten chromatic bludgeoning while ‘Eye’, and ‘Offune’ are churning quagmires of jellified, tentacled malevolence.” GC Review

 

 

 

30. Full of Hell – Garden of Burning Apparitions (Relapse Records) I think we all know what we’re getting from US grind experts by now: disgustingly aggressive short bursts of dirty discordant rage-fuelled aural violence of the highest order. Again. And long may it continue

 

29. Boss Keloid – Family The Shining Thrush (Ripple Music) “With their fifth album, Family The Smiling Thrush, the Wigan (UK) prog / stoner / psych rock troupe hit the sweet spot of evolution from a predecessor without abandoning the elements that made it such a sterling release.” GC Review

 

28. Converge & Chelsea Wolfe – Bloodmoon: I (Epitaph Records) “Turbulent but serene, abrasive but polished, Bloodmoon: I never ceases to enthral and amaze. An harmonious cacophony of beautiful melody and jagged rhythms, ideas crash into each other one moment and complement each other unhurriedly the next.” GC Review

 

27. Gatecreeper – An Unexpected Reality (Closed Casket Activities) “A response to short-term playlist culture, and released with no build-up, just “here you fucking go”… An Unexpected Reality is a success. Seven tracks of grinding power-violence, averaging around a minute each in length, and one epic expansive doomier beast of an eleven-minute closer… an unexpected delight.” GC Review

 

26. Monolord –Your Time To Shine (Relapse Records) “Five albums into a career as one of the top bands in the modern Stoner Doom scene, Monolord offers their most mellow, tripped-out effort to date with Your Time To Shine. While there’s still plenty of dank fuzziness to go around, it feels almost like a backdrop at times as the cleaner guitar textures are given near equal priority and the vocals are at their most prominent.” GC Review

 

25. The Killers – Pressure Machine (Island Records) “There is an initial sense of shock as you expect some rousing, anthemic pop, but give it time and the record’s charms wash over you. This is not a record with immediacy, it is one you slowly soak in and discover its intricacies. It is a mature and moving piece of work, telling 11 tales of a small American town in an honest and genuine way.” Thomas Thrower, Ghost Cult writer via LMF

 

24. Emma Ruth Rundle – Engine of Hell (Sargent House)Engine Of Hell feels like a very personal expression, but the emotional honesty and fragile presentation seems to tap into something universal. This is a record that can bring a tear to the eye and a smile to the face at the same time; that can make you feel emotions that are strange, cathartic and instantly understandable. It’s a very human album.” GC Review

23. Exodus – Persona Non Grata (Nuclear Blast Records) “Exodus’s eleventh studio album has been more than worth the wait. A raw and unapologetically belligerent lunatic parade of dive-bombing solos, crunching riffs and razor sharp hooks, inhuman drumming and deranged vocals, Persona Non Grata delivers on its promise in every way imaginable.” GC Review

 

22. Møl – Diorama (Nuclear Blast Records) “One thing became crystal clear very quickly after listening to MØL’s most recent effort, Diorama: this band can do it all. They’ve devised eight elegant tracks to prove just that, frankly leaving fans wanting more; these Danes dabble in Progressive Rock, Black Metal, Melodic Death Metal and even a snippet of Pop Punk.” GC Review

 

21. Deafheaven – Infinite Granite (Sargent House) “Deafheaven has scored another winning outing in their so far undefeated discography. Worth noting here is that Deafheaven is very much still in the business of producing some lean music that never loses its drive. ‘Shellstar’ gets off the line and sets the tone for what’s to come with a deft combination of shoegaze and alternative sounds that recall the 1990s but never comes across as dated.” GC Review

Read Part 3 (20-1)

Ghost Cult Albums of the Year Part 3 (20 – 1)

and Read Part 1

Ghost Cult’s Albums of the Year 2021 Part 1 (75 – 41)

STEVE TOVEY


ALBUM REVIEW: Spelljammer – Abyssal Trip



Funny, before writing this review I had just finished a very interesting conversation about Swedish bands with someone as passionate as I am for Swedish music and we concluded that there must be something about being born in Scandinavia that automatically increases your chances of being good at making music. Spelljammer proves this point with their latest effort Abyssal Trip (RidingEasy Records). An equally catchy, beautiful, heavy, and dark album that brings a scenario that can be only compared as being a collection of Black Sabbath’s darkest, twisted tracks but heavier and more melodic. And it’s impossible not talking about Black Sabbath when talking about a Stoner/Doom Metal band, but this Swedish trio can easily be in the same conversation.

Continue reading


RidingEasy Records Shares Holiday Mixtape and Sale


 

Amazing Stoner Rock record label RidingEasy has shared an awesome holiday gift to fans for their support! They have shared a free download compilation “mixtape” of tracks released in 2020 along with some unreleased singles slated for 2021. The mixtape features brand new, never heard tracks from Warish, Alastor, Deathchant, Brown Acid: The Twelfth Trip, the forthcoming compilation series Scrap Metal, and Coventry (Mondo Drag’s John Gamino’s modular synth project.) Plus, it includes Here Lies Man, Spelljammer, Warish, Brown Acid: The Eleventh Trip, The Goners, The Death Wheelers, R.I.P., Hell Fire, Randy Holden, Ice, and Monolord guitarist/vocalist Thomas Jäger’s solo debut. The RidingEasy Records 2020 Holiday Mixtape is available at Bandcamp. The label is also offering a sitewide 20% off on LPs, CDs, merch, and downloads via the label’s official website below.

Continue reading


Free Download: KR3W Presents Winter 2016 Mixtape


kr3w presents winter 2016 mixtape

Southern California record label RidingEasy Records is offering their RidingEasy Winter 2016 Mixtape, presented by KR3W. The mixtape can be streamed or downloaded below.

TRACKLIST:
01: Electric Citizen – “Evil” from the forthcoming album Higher Time out April 2016
02: Mondo Drag – “Out of Sight” from the forthcoming album The Occultation of Light out Feb 2016
03: Slow Season – “Day Glo Sunrise” from the album Slow Season
04: Salem’s Pot – “The Vampire Strikes Back” (Full Version)
05: Zekes – “Box” from Brown Acid – The First Trip compilation
06: Old Man’s Will – “Got It” from the album Hard Times Troubled Man
07: Sons of Huns – “Philosopher’s Stone” from the album While Sleeping Stay Awake
08: Spiral Shades – “Frozen Fear” (Originally performed and written by Bedemon)
09: Holy Serpent – “Shroom Doom” From the album Holy Serpent
10: Spelljammer – “The Pathfinder” From the album Ancient of Days
11: Monolord – “Cursing The One” From the Album Vænir
12: Blackout – “Tannered” from the album Blackout
13: The Well – “Crawling Mist” (McPullish Dub Mix)
14: The Picturebooks – “Learn It The Hard Way” from the album Imaginary Horse


Audio: Free Music From US/Them Group


Print

Check out some new music courtesy of our friends at US/THEM Group below.

TRACKLIST:
01: Indian Handcrafts – It’s Late Queeny (Sargent House)
02: Bill Mountain – Let’s Get It Started (Bill Mountain Music)
03: Mylets – Trembling Hands (Sargent House)
04: Limb – Ghost Dance (New Heavy Sounds)
05: Slow Season – Heavy (RidingEasy)
06: Salem’s Pot – The Vampire Strikes Back (RidingEasy)
07: Ghost Against Ghost – still love [preview edit] (Our Silent Canvas)
08: Jad Fair & Jason Willett – The Greatest Power (Dymaxion Groove)
09: Boss Battle – Ride
10: And So I Watch You From Afar – Wasps (Sargent House)
11: Pink Frost – Striking Violet (Smart Like Virus)
12: Shooting Guns – Barnburner (RidingEasy)
13: Sons of Huns – An Evil Unseen (RidingEasy)
14: Birch – Halfway
15: Mothertapes – Aftermath (SELF Group)
16: Lowercase Noises – Death In A Garden
17: Monolord – Cursing The One (RidingEasy)
18: Spelljammer – The Pathfinder (RidingEasy)
19: Electric Citizen – Beggar’s Need (RidingEasy)
20: Elephant Rifle – Bone Voyage (Humaniterrorist)
21: Birch – Fighting Words
22: Mondo Drag – Shifting Sands (RidingEasy)
23: A Troop of Echoes – Small Fires