For the most part, the fourth album from Jess And The Ancient Ones continues down the low-key approach to Occult Rock that was established on 2017’s The Horse And Other Weird Tales. Just about every song on Vertigo (Svart Records) is driven by a short length, an upbeat structure, and extensive layers of psychedelic instrumentation. Aside from the eleven minutes of the closing ‘Strange Earth Illusion,’ the first two albums’ more drawn-out runtimes seem to be a thing of the past.
As much as I enjoy Reverend Bizarre and plenty of Sami Hynninen’s other various projects, I’ve honestly not been as enthused about Opium Warlords. Their experimental brand of Drone Doom tends to be rather hit and miss, producing ideas that can be intriguing but more frequently stretched beyond their limits or constructed haphazardly. Their fifth full-length album, Nembutal (Svart Records), doesn’t promise anything different yet I find its execution to be somehow more palatable than anything else they’ve released.
Hevessel has shared their first new single for their upcoming album Kindred. Kindred will be released on the 20th of March 2020 worldwide via Svart Records, digital, CD and LP. Jam it out now! Continue reading
Psychedelic Prog-Folk band Hexvessel will release a new album this spring via Svart Records. Kindred is due out on 17th of April 2020, with cover artwork by renowned artists Thomas Hooper and Richey Beckett, which you can see below. A new single will be released on the 24th of January and full album details and pre-orders are coming soon. The bands back-catalog will also be reissued as well. The album promises a darker sound and owing to that, they returned to their original studio in Tampere, Finland, where they recorded their cult classic No Holier Temple, which fused Hexvessel’s folk roots with an occult undercurrent, with the new album mastered by John Davis (Gorillaz/ Led Zeppelin/ Lana Del Rey) in the UK. Hexvessel was formed by English/Irish singer/songwriter Mat McNerney (Beastmilk -now known as Grave Pleasures, The Deathtrip, Carpenter Brut, Me & That Man, Code, Dødheimsgard).Continue reading
Ghost Cult caught up Rob Wrong and Kayla Dixon with Witch Mountain last year at Saint Vitus Bar in Brooklyn to discuss their most recent, self-titled album, out now on Svart Records. Their first full-length album with singer Kayla, the album is another milestone In the storied career of one of the most consistent, long-running Doom Metal bands in the USA, We spoke to the pair in the basement of Saint Vitus (hence the noise in the background, so bump those speakers) about the new music, performing live, self-care on the road, the other endeavors and musical projects from the band and much more. Purchase, stream and follow their activities via their Bandcamp page. Continue reading
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Ambient music is tricky. Get it right and you can create some of the most mind-blowing, expansive, forward-thinking art imaginable. Get it wrong and you’re left looking like a pretentious mess. It’s very difficult to ride the line of pretension and come out on the right side when making anything that forsakes a conventional song structure, but by album six, you’d think K-X-P would be pretty adept, right?Continue reading
Roadburn has a history of creating ‘once in a lifetime’ moments every year the festival comes around, and in 2018 we were exposed to the pairing of two of Finland’s most eclectic and psychedelic outfits performing a one-off commissioned piece of music never to be replicated. Oranssi Pazuzu and Dark Buddha Rising created something truly magical on stage that day, fans and critics alike cried out for more, be it a live recording of the set or just one more show. Thankfully, our prayers were not only answered but exceeded, as the dynamic duo of weird and wonderful artists got together again to create Syntheosis (Svart); an entirely new piece of mind-bending brilliance.Continue reading
The latest act to trot off the impressive Svart Records conveyor belt, Danish quintet Demon Head like to maintain the traditions of Doom. Third full-length Hellfire Ocean Void sees their devotion to Proto and Psych Metal expanded with a little modernity but sticking true to the format, a feat undoubtedly assisted by having legendary producer Flemming Rasmussen at the knob-twiddling helm.Continue reading
New York City metallers Kings Destroy have shared their new single, ‘Barbarossa’ today. The track comes off of their upcoming new album Fantasma Nera, due out this March 8th, via Svart Records. Crank it up and jam it out now!Continue reading
Four and a half years ago Svart Records released a saucy devil of an EP named Ritual Rites, the first offering from US/Europe hybrid The Sabbathian. Heavy anticipation followed: in fact, everything was expected apart from the resounding silence that followed.Continue reading