2017

Mouthgate – Fungal [US, Black / Experimental] (2017)

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Self Released | 2-28-17

Enter the vaults of the odd with a band and album title that is way beyond any metal aesthetic you are used to. Coming from New York City comes a band that is experimental but is too weird to have any sort of pretension about their work. Caught somewhere between a hangover migraine and a lost Lovecraft story comes Mouthgate and they are here to ruin your fucking day.

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Blood of Sokar – Blood of Sokar [US, Black/Doom] (2017)

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Self Released | 4-2-17

I get pretty enthusiastic about black/doom as it is a style which sounds transcendental when done right but whose chemistry is tough to master. Add to this the fact that there really isn’t a defined recipe for black doom as black/death or even black/thrash rather when combined it could sound as melodic or as harrowing as intended. Enter Blood of Sokar whose debut (?) is nothing short that a getting lost in a cursed forest with creatures of the night occasionally stealing parts of flesh from the listener.

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Jera – Jera [US, Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 3-26-17

I think at one point, I will do an article or feature of local Baltimore / DC metal bands that I inadvertently have contacts through or at least see at multiple shows. Jera was something that I have see really early in their career with even a live show without a singer. This first demo (?) represents the start for a band who is trying super hard not to wipe their shoes before entering the house.

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Sores – Demo I [Greece, Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 3-21-17

Since we are not keeping track, this recommendation was totally stolen from a friend who also scours the internet for cool black and death demos. I would have found this eventually but it is good to have more eyes lest we all miss something. I say this all now since the debut demo from Greek black metal act Sores is not only blistering buts its precision execution combined with what sounds like the band turning to ash and cinder is something remarkable.

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Ashen Chalice – Ritual Under The Blackened Moon [Croatia, Dark Ambient / Noise / Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 3-10-17

Ashen Chalice is more like a journey than a destination. Finding a Croatian black noise project that isn’t even listed on the Metal Archives is sometimes as exciting as listening to whatever was put to proverbial tape. The aesthetic of Ritual Under The Blackened Moon toes the line between dead serious and tongue in cheek humor. The tape design is there as well as the black metal tropes. If it was not for the effectiveness of the three songs, I would have moved on by now.

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Muka – Sveta Stoka [Croatia, Black / Death] (2017)

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Self Released | 03-07-17

Thanks to Muka for breaking a pretty nice streak of black and white album covers. It is okay, since the cover for Muka’s newest EP comes drenched in pale yellows and cold greys as it really frames a record that is both uninviting and entrancing. I do not know if my translation is correct but the internet tells me the name of the EP comes out to something like “Livestock Council.” This either makes all of the sense or none of it.

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Cold Fell – Irwell [UK, Atmospheric Black] (2017)

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Self Released | 03-02-17

This is the second “atmospheric black metal” record I have reviewed this week and it is only Tuesday. I would like to say I am not opposed to the style whatsoever rather I find that atmospheric black metal is very easy to imitate but very difficult to make interesting. Uk based band Cold Fell doesn’t really sound like your typical atmospheric black metal act with most of their drama coming from raw emotion. Still there are blurred crescendos, long songs, and a general lean towards the narrative. With that said, Irwell, the band’s debut is far beyond any tree laden album covers and comes with a heavy claw to the face.

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Time Lurker – Time Lurker [France, Atmospheric Black] (2017)

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Les acteurs de l’ombre production | 06-02-17

This review takes some projection as this whole album will not be out until June but all of its material is already available as of late 2016. I have some sympathy for bands who put out material late in the year when the years are turning. I am pretty neutral on rereleases on wider distribution. I also have less sympathy for atmospheric black metal bands. Time Lurker pulls at many emotions for me and if it wasn’t for this French band being so enthralling, I probably would have moved on by now. The fact I am still here must mean something.

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Nornír – Urd [Germany, Black] (2017)

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Northern Silence Productions | 3-3-17

Hopefully you are ready to run becasue whatever is chasing you is getting closer. From the not so ice bitten lands of Germany comes a band that is less innovative as they are aged in experience. With a decent sized EP to follow their 2015 demo, Nornír steps onto the stage to offer entertaining black metal with the jaws of hades.

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Cioran – Bestiale battito divino [Italy, Black / Punk] (2017)

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Caligari Records | 1-13-17

Oh fuck, this is goddamn gross. Already from the support from Caligari Records, I knew that Italian act Cioran would be horrid sounding. Named after the turn of the century Romanian philosopher who espoused pessimism and misery, Cioran has constructed an anthem of decay. With the tags of hardcore punk sitting next to black metal, imaginations run wild as Bestiale battito divino shapes up to be one of the more blistering releases of the year.

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