This year’s Maryland Doom Fest has already begun. It started last night and will continue through Sunday, packing as much volume as possible between the first switched on amplifier and the final, inevitable broom swept across the floor afterward at Cafe 611 in Frederick, MD, where the fest is held. These shows are jammed. They start early. They go late. There’s nothing else quite like Maryland Doom Fest out there, and when you go, you’re made welcome whether you’re a regular or not. It’s too intimate a space and too cool a crowd for bullshit attitudes to survive. Relax and enjoy the tunes.
I’m sad to say I’m not there this year — let’s call it “family stuff” and leave it there — but the lineup is incredible and I wanted to do at least some tiny measure of tribute to that, so here we are. Some of these bands are MDDF veterans — Apostle of Solitude, Zed, Foghound, Faith in Jane, Caustic Casanova, etc. — but some are new to the event as well — Coven, Great Electric Quest, Formula 400, and others — so it’s a good mix, and you know I’m a sucker for ending epic, so The Age of Truth seemed perfect for that. They’re gonna kill it this weekend playing songs from Resolute and everyone there will know it long before they go on and they’ll still kill it. That’s just how it goes down there. You’re gonna have a good time.
Thanks if you listen, thanks if you’re reading. Thanks in general. And if you’re at the fest this weekend, enjoy it.
The Obelisk Show airs 5PM Eastern today on the Gimme app or at: http://gimmemetal.com.
Full playlist:
The Obelisk Show – 06.24.22 (VT = voice track)
Coven
Wicked Woman
Witchcraft Destroys Minds & Reaps Souls
Zed
Chingus
Volume
Apostle of Solitude
Apathy in Isolation
Until the Darkness Goes
VT
Problem With Dragons
Live by the Sword
Accelerationist
Horseburner
A Joyless King
The Thief
Thunderbird Divine
Qualified
Magnasonic
Heavy Temple
A Desert Through the Trees
Lupi Amoris
Great Electric Quest
Seeker of the Flame
Chapter II – Of Earth
Formula 400
Ridin’ Easy
Heathens
Horehound
Hiraeth
Collapse
VT
Shadow Witch
Witches of Aendor
Under the Shadow of a Witch
Faces of Bayon
Ethereality
Heart of the Fire
Ol’ Time Moonshine
Raven vs. Hawk
The Apocalypse Trilogies
Caustic Casanova
Truth Syrup
God How I Envy the Deaf
Foghound
Known Wolves
Awaken to Destroy
Orodruin
Into the Light of the Sun
Ruins of Eternity
Faith in Jane
Gone Are the Days
Mother to Earth
Alms
The Offering
Act One
Guhts
The Mirror
Blood Feather
VT
The Age of Truth
Return to the Ships
Resolute
The Obelisk Show on Gimme Metal airs every Friday 5PM Eastern, with replays Sunday at 7PM Eastern. Next new episode is July 8 (subject to change). Thanks for listening if you do.
Posted in Whathaveyou on May 24th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Collapse is the third full-length from Pittsburgh’s Horehound, and from the dug-in deathliness of “Sword on Fire” right into the lurching, chug-happy sweetness with which the repeated lines about how we’re all going to die are delivered in the subsequent “The Agent,” it is a moment of mastery for the band in terms of bringing together their impulses between heavy rock groove and more extreme atmospheric sludge intensities. The four-piece offer six songs in a concise-feeling-but-still-lush-sounding 33 minutes, beginning with their longest track (immediate points) “Hiraeth,” which sets forth a journey that seems to find resolution in the depth of bass in “The Rebirth” and the subtly metallic guitar sweep of “Dying Gaia.” I think the final growl on the album might be the word “reap,” and if so, fair enough for the story being told here about various human-created ecological brutalizations. To put it shortly and bluntly, Collapse is some grim shit. One thinks of bees dying in hives.
“The seas rise to the edge/There’s really nothing left/Everything’s been said/Everything’s been done/Everything is gone.” — “Hiraeth.” And that last “gone” is screamed with a throaty force that much of Collapse echoes, in sentiment as well as methodology.
While we’re talking about it, it’s also hard not to appreciate the band’s no-bullshit manner in dropping the record. Tell you it’s coming earlier in the week, then deliver. They aren’t even waiting for Bandcamp Friday. They’ve got a video up now for “Godful” that gets a little manic with the shaky-cam, but is still a fitting representation of the song, which itself sums up a fair amount of Collapse‘s breadth and impact.
Don’t tell them, but I’m gonna buy a CD just to have one.
From the PR wire and social media both:
HOREHOUND – COLLAPSE
We promised a release to you this Friday but we have a sneak peek track for you! You can hear this on our Bandcamp site where the album is now up for prerelease: https://horehound.bandcamp.com/album/collapse
But also here is a content video for the track GODFUL we hope you enjoy!
Tracklisting 1. Hiraeth 2. Godful 3. Sword on Fire 4. The Agent 5. The Rebirth 6. Dying Gaia
In a world where you can choose heavy, tension-releasing music fueled by anger and filled with hope, why choose anything else to put on your playlist, throw in your CD player, or on your turntable as part of your audio meditation and ritual? Horehound agrees and have created an album that sates the need to exhale. On May 27th, 2022 the East Coast (USA) based doom/sludge outfit Horehound unleash their third LP and fourth release, Collapse.
Horehound began writing this album in 2020, bringing it to Sid Riggs (Iommi, Saliva, Seether, Alice Cooper) to record and produce and having Tony Reed (Gojira, Electric Wizard, Cough) master it in late 2021. Collapse is heavy, inspired by the times, and the most articulate material the band has presented. Collapse will be available on all popular streaming services, released digitally, on CD, and on vinyl (preorder), so save the date: 5/27/22
Horehound is: Brendan Parrish (Guitar) Russ Johnson (Bass) Dan Moore (Drums) Shy Kennedy (Vocals/Synth)
Posted in Whathaveyou on February 17th, 2022 by JJ Koczan
Nearly two years ago, Descendants of Crom IV did a full unveiling of its lineup for a fest set to take place that October. You know the story from there. That’s the bad news. Good news is that many of the acts announced for that lineup are carrying over to this one. And as that includes the likes of Rebreather, Heavy Temple, Horseburner, Horehound (yeah that’s right; I know it’s her festival; I actually think her band is good), Orodruin and Evoken, the news is even better. The roster of acts was announced the other day, but the schedule is new info — I happen to be somebody who appreciates a good timetable — and tickets are on sale as of right… now.
Hey, you know what? You go right ahead and you have yourself a great day. Maybe that means buying tickets for a thing? Don’t you kind of want to get it all in as quickly as possible before the next variant hits and we’re huddled down again, desperately hoping Costco has the Scott back in stock while trying not to breathe or to inhale from the side of our mouth that that person is standing way too close on? I do. Spend that fucking money.
The fourth annual Descendants of Crom, A Gathering of the Heavy Underground, will be held again this year in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania on both floors of Cattivo Nightclub. The events begin early Friday evening and are followed by an all-dayer Saturday.
The underground scene of heavy music is healthy and Pittsburgh is the perfect location to host such an event. We’re feeding great regional bands to a hungry crowd and utilizing legendary, international fan-favorites to entice music fans in the door with the support of our amazing local artists. Descendants of Crom began in 2017 and has been a strong contender among other established underground music festivals. We aspire to become the premier music event of the Northeast and I invite you to become part of the 2022 event! After all, we are all Descendants of Crom.
This event is 21+, ID Required Your commitment now helps us prepare better so, mark your calendars and get your tickets today!
LOCATION Cattivo 146 44th St, Pittsburgh, PA 15201
DATE & TIME June 3, 2022, 6:30 PM – June 4, 2022 – 11:30 PM
Posted in Whathaveyou on December 31st, 2021 by JJ Koczan
As suspected, the lineup announcement for the 2022 Maryland Doom Fest is relatively short on fluff. No flowery descriptions of the acts involved, no hype about how important it is to get together in these times of plague and support the community, the underground, whatever it is. That’s all true enough, but as ever, Maryland Doom Fest is putting the name out there for you to see, and if you know, you know. If you’re a part of that family down there in Frederick, you’ve already got your calendar marked. This is who’ll be at the reunion.
And to that, with bands like Horehound, Thunderbird Divine, Caustic Casanova, fest-organizer JB Matson‘s own Bloodshot, Faith in Jane, ZED, Helgamite, Shadow Witch, The Age of Truth, Apostle of Solitude, Horseburner, Dead East Garden, Strange Highways and Foghound on the bill, this one will no doubt feel like a reunion in no small part. These acts and some of the others as well have shared MDDF bills in the past, and indeed, some were included in the announcement for January’s Doom Hawg Day as well, as was speculated. Still cool to see some of those returning coming across the country to do it, though, be it ZED or Formula 400.
Set for June 23-26 at Cafe 611 and Olde Mother Brewing in Frederick, MD, and of course subject to some changes between now and June, the lineup for Maryland Doom Fest 2022 is as follows:
Maryland Doom Fest 2022 Lineup
Black Road Dust Prophet Ol’ Time Moonshine High Priestess Wrath of Typhon Alms Black Lung Thunderbird Divine Atomic Motel Byrgan Faces of Bayon Grief Collector Crystal Spiders Helgamite Shadow Witch The Age of Truth Heavy Temple Problem with Dragons Strange Highways Fellowcraft Formula 400 Tines Indus Valley Kings The Stone Eye Crow Hunter Caustic Casanova Coma Hole Wizzerd Mythosphere Horehound Bloodshot NobleSoul Coven ZED Faith in Jane Future Projektor Apostle of Solitude Orodruin Dead East Garden Ritual Earth Grave Next Door Black Sabbitch Lost Breed Horseburner Foghound Hot Ram Flummox
Posted in Questionnaire on April 13th, 2021 by JJ Koczan
The Obelisk Questionnaire is a series of open questions intended to give the answerer an opportunity to explore these ideas and stories from their life as deeply as they choose. Answers can be short or long, and that reveals something in itself, but the most important factor is honesty.
Based on the Proust Questionnaire, the goal over time is to show a diverse range of perspectives as those who take part bring their own points of view to answering the same questions. To see all The Obelisk Questionnaire posts, click here.
Thank you for reading and thanks to all who participate.
The Obelisk Questionnaire: Brendan Parrish of Horehound
—
How do you define what you do and how did you come to do it?
I simply consider myself a guitarist, irrespective of genre or style. Before I knew what guitar really was, I was always drawn to the sound of the electric guitar in songs. I was fortunate to meet a good friend in high school who taught guitar, and he became my guitar teacher after I received my first acoustic for Christmas when I was 18. I took lessons with him consistently for about 5 years. He’s one of my closest friends still and I contact him when I need to learn something in particular, but it’s been a while since I’ve taken lessons regularly.
Describe your first musical memory.
It’s hard to describe the absolute first. I remember getting the self-titled Third Eye Blind album as my first ever CD when I was 10, and subsequently Collective Soul, and Garbage’s Version 2.0. My strongest early musical memory was sitting in the car on the way to my Grandpa’s funeral and listening to the guitar solo from “Hotel California” over and over again. Didn’t even really realize that it was electric guitar, just loved how it sounded.
Describe your best musical memory to date.
This is a tough one, but the memory I keep going back to was playing our song “L’appel Du Vide” live at Gooski’s for the very first time. We had struggled with nailing it consistently in practice, but really liked the song and wanted to see how it went over live. We ended up nailing it live for the first time, in front of a really solid crowd (can’t wait to get back to Gooski’s!), and it just felt great.
When was a time when a firmly held belief was tested?
I think this one has evolved over time, regarding my opinion of talent and what being a good guitar player means. Historically, I tend to walk into a gig we’re playing, or go to see a local show, and just assume that I’m the least talented guitarist in the room. Now I definitely don’t feel like I’m a hot shot, but I’ve grown more comfortable identifying as a guitarist and feeling competent enough to hold my own.
Where do you feel artistic progression leads?
Artistic progression really leads wherever the artist decides it should. We’ve had discussions about this as a band, regarding what genre we feel we fit into, and how we write. I think we’ve ultimately decided that we have figured out how we want to sound, and it’s more a reflection of our natural writing style, rather than trying to force the ideas into a genre or style. I guess artistic progression leads to being more comfortable and confident as an artist, and not feeling held back by expectations or limits that others might have put on you.
How do you define success?
I think success is more of a spectrum than it is one finite goal. Before starting Horehound, I think my goal of success would probably have been touring and opening for acts that I really respect. And that still is success to me. But now, the goalpost has moved. I’d like to reach a bigger audience, develop as a songwriter and guitarist, and eventually make music my full-time job. I don’t think I’d ever feel happier and more successful than if I could turn this passion into a career.
What is something you have seen that you wish you hadn’t?
Oh, there are lots of things. I’ve seen bands be really disrespectful to the venue, sound guy, other bands on the bill, etc. Often by playing longer than they were allotted, or breaking down everything on stage, or just flat out being rude. I hate seeing those things, and when we can all get back out there and play again, I’m hopeful that the shared sense of purpose will minimize a lot of those things going forward.
Describe something you haven’t created yet that you’d like to create.
I’d like to create something that balances heavy and pretty as well as “Marrow” or “Beauty in Falling Leaves” by Yob. Mike Scheidt’s guitar playing, songwriting, and vocal ability is just so incredibly impressive to me. If I could write something and someone said “That sounds like a Yob tune,” it would be such amazing praise. But I think I’ve got some work to do still.
What do you believe is the most essential function of art?
I think that’s different for everyone. For me, it’s an escape and a catharsis primarily. I struggle with anxiety pretty heavily, so I’m extremely grateful that of all the things I put off learning, guitar wasn’t one of them. Playing guitar and listening to music just really helps with the anxiety when everything else doesn’t.
Something non-musical that you’re looking forward to?
I’m looking forward to just being able to sit at a bar with friends again. I know the last year has been difficult for everyone, and I’m no exception to that. It’s difficult to overstate how much of our social lives have been put on hold, so I’m just really looking forward to having a drink with some friends at a bar and feeling a small sense of normalcy again.
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 12th, 2020 by JJ Koczan
Thus a good bill gets better. Having Earthride headline will do that for a doom fest — just ask the one in the band’s native Frederick, Maryland — but bringing aboard Solace and Horehound as well as the Salt of the Earth Records-affiliated Thunderbird Divine and Via Vengeance, plus Connecticut‘s own Arduini/Balich (well, Connecticut and Pittsburgh, anyhow; Butch can travel east with Horehound) and Knoxxville, which features JB Matson, who organizes the prior-alluded-to Maryland Doom Fest, on drums, certainly doesn’t hurt either. New England Stoner & Doom Fest 3 has done precisely this and unveiled its daily lineups as well, and it’s a doozy. I don’t know if the fest is done or if more bands will be added, but seriously guys, this is plenty. Let’s call it a fest and run with it. It doesn’t exactly feel like anything’s missing, if you know what I mean.
I mean it’s frickin’ packed.
Will I tourist my ass to Jewett City (never been there, much to my chagrin) to the festival? I hope so. I had every intention of being there last year and had to pull the plug not literally at the last minute, but literally about an hour before I’d have headed out, so with the residual sting of that, I can only stare at the lineup, pre-fest included, and think it looks like an awfully fun time. A lot of an awfully fun time.
Dig:
NEW ENGLAND STONER & DOOM FEST 3 ANNOUNCEMENT!!!!
Earthride confirmed as Friday night Headliner, Arduini/Balich, Solace, Horehound, Via Vengeance, Thunderbird Divine, and Knoxville added.
Nomad Cabinets will be providing an excellent backline of Cabs and ListenToNewEngland.com added as sponsor as well.
Friday Lineup: Earthride Worshipper Solace Yatra Bone Church High Reeper Red Stone Chapel Arduini/Balich Heavy Temple Buzzard Canyon Problem with Dragons O’k and the Nightcrew
all ages doors 6pm
Saturday Lineup: Tyrant (Rob Lowe Ex-Candlemass, Solitude Aeturnus on vocals) Playing new album “Hereafter” in entirety plus a classic Tyrant set Churchburn Wolftooth Orodruin Summoner Shadow Witch (Blacklight Encore show) Entierro Horehound Lotek Cruiser Mourn the Light Gorge Black Horse Rebellion Black North Coma Hole
all ages doors 5pm
Sunday Lineup: Warrior Soul (Last Decade Dead Century 30th Anniversary) Curse the Son Kingsnake Barishi Red Mesa Grey Skies Fallen Clamfight Thunderbird Divine When the Deadbolt Breaks Via Vengeance Knoxville Afghan Haze Sentinel Hill
Posted in Whathaveyou on March 1st, 2020 by JJ Koczan
The annual Descendants of Crom in Pittsburgh has become a reliable assemblage of heavy, with a lineup diverse in sound woven together by a consistent quality of taste that unites across styles. For evidence of the ongoing nature of this phenomenon, look no further than the first two names on the poster of Descendants of Crom IV — Bongzilla and Ruby the Hatchet. The former, a recongealed stoner-sludge exercise in Midwestern working-class bomber crust, and the latter, a more urbane newschool-via-oldschool heavy rock outfit laced with keys and nigh-on-glam melodicism.
Those differences are stark, but I’ll be damned if both don’t fit well at the top of the bill here, which includes plenty of shouldn’t-be-missed names in the likes of Orodruin, Valley of the Sun, Heavy Temple, Rebreather, Pale Divine, Horehound, Cavern, on and on. I guess I could probably just run down the whole list at that point. It’s a good fest, and more even than last year, you begin to see the sense of curation and the personality of the festival emerge in its blend of styles. It’s not just about more, more, more, in an overwhelming onslaught of bands, but about what each specifically brings to the lineup as a whole. Kudos, as ever, to Shy Kennedy and her crew on a job on its way to being well done.
Here’s the announcement:
DESCENDANTS OF CROM IV – A GATHERING OF THE HEAVY UNDERGROUND
FRIDAY, OCTOBER 2nd & SATURDAY, OCTOBER 3rd
CATTIVO NIGHTCLUB – PITTSBURGH, PA, USA
The fourth annual Descendants of Crom will be held this year again in Pittsburgh on both floors of Cattivo Nightclub. The events begin early Friday evening and are followed by a Saturday all-dayer.
The underground scene of heavy rock and metal here is healthy and thriving and we’re feeding great regional bands to a hungry crowd and utilizing legendary, international fan-favorites to entice music fans in the door with the support of our amazing local artists. Descendants of Crom was planted in 2017 as a little black seed and has been growing and strong contender among other established annual music festivals. We aspire to become the premier music event of the Northeast and invite you to become part of the 2020 event. After all, we are all Descendants of Crom!
This year’s DESCENDANTS are:
Bongzilla, Ruby the Hatchet, Black Tusk, Valley of the Sun, Evoken, Orodruin, Rebreather, Horseburner, Heavy Temple, Horehound, Cavern, Pale Divine, Howling Giant, Ironflame, Cruces, God Root, Zom, The Long Hunt, Makeshift Urn, and We, the Creature.
Schedule and tickets will be on sale Friday, March 6th for single-day as well as two-day passes.
We’re looking for sponsors, vendors, and any entity that supports the heavy underground and all things psych, stoner, doom, sludge, and occult to reach out and be a part of our event and community.
Additionally, in anticipation for this year’s Descendants of Crom, there will be a DOC showcase held at Cattivo on Saturday, March 21st featuring bands that have all been part of the Descendants of Crom history. Urns, The Long Hunt, Horehound, Horesburner (WV), and Ironflame. This showcase is a taster of what sort of musicianship and energy that DOC brings to the stages.
Posted in Reviews on October 4th, 2019 by JJ Koczan
Oh hi, I didn’t see you there. Earlier this week — Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, and yes, even Wednesday — the alarm went off at 4AM as usual and I got up, got coffee going and a protein bar and sat down to write, starting basically around quarter-after with a quick email check and whatnot. In terms of basic timing, this last morning of the Fall 2019 Quarterly Review is no different. I even have the baby monitor streaming on my phone as I would most mornings, so I can keep an eye on when The Pecan gets up. What’s changed is I’m sitting in a hotel lobby in Oslo, Norway, having just arrived on an overnight flight from Newark. Managed to sleep some on the plane and I’m hopeful adrenaline will pick up the rest of the slack as regards getting through the day. That and caffeine, anyhow.
Although, speaking of, my debit card doesn’t work and I’ll need to sort that out.
First thing’s first, and that’s reviews. Last batch of 10 for the week. We made it. Thanks as always for reading and being a part of this thing. Let’s wrap it up in style, and because I like working on a theme, three Irish bands in a row close out. Hey, I went to Ireland this year.
Quarterly Review #41-50:
Ufomammut, XX
Five years ago, Roman cosmic doom masters Ufomammut took a reflective look back at their career for its 15th anniversary with the documentary/live-performance DVD XV (review here). And since one might define the arc of their tenure as constantly trying to top themselves, for their 20th anniversary, they’ve issued a 12LP boxed set, titled simply XX, that compiles their nine albums to-date and tops them off with the mostly-subdued-style XX itself, which reimagines past cacophonies like “Mars” and “Plouton” in a quieter context. That part of the mega-offering issued through their own Supernatural Cat imprint comprises six songs recorded live and makes highlights out of the hypnotic strum and incantations of “Satan” as well as the rumbling drone of “Lacrimosa,” which takes on new emotional resonance for the shoegazy treatment it receives. I’ve said on multiple occasions throughout the years that Ufomammut are a band to be treasured, and I stand by that 100 percent. The XX box should be perceived by fans as an opportunity to do likewise.
Less than a year after issuing their second long-player in the form of Holocene (review here) through Blackseed and Doom Stew Records, Pittsburgh atmosludgers Horehound align with DHU Records for the two-song 8″ EP Weight, which brings “Unbind” and “The Heavy,” two new cuts that, while I’m not sure they weren’t recorded at the same time as the last album — that is, they may have been — they nonetheless showcase the emergent melodic breadth and instrumental ambience that is developing in their sound. Even as “Unbind” rolls toward its low-end tempo kick, it does so with marked patience and a willingness to stay slow until just the right moment, which is not something every band cane effectively do. “The Heavy,” meanwhile, builds itself around a Crowbar-style dirge riff before Shy Kennedy‘s verse arrives as a standalone element, all the instruments around her dropping out from behind. That moment alone, frankly, is worth the price of admission, as whether it’s through that extra inch in diameter of the platter itself or through the audio of the tracks in question, Horehound continue to distinguish themselves.
I’m not sure I’m qualified to write about Lingua Ignota‘s CALIGULA (on Profound Lore), but I’m not sure anyone else is either. Like a self-harmonizing mega-Jarboe turning existential horror into epic proclamations of “I don’t eat/I don’t sleep” on “DO YOU DOUBT ME TRAITOR?” amid bass throb and terrifying melodic layering before making bedroom black metal sound like the lightweight self-indulgence it’s always been on the subsequent check-out-the-real-shit “BUTCHER OF THE WORLD,” Kristin Hayter‘s work is little short of experimentalist brilliance. She is minimal and yet over-the-top, open in creative terms but unwaveringly dark and rife with melody but severe to the point now and again of true aural abrasion. She weaves a context of her own into “FUCKING DEATHDEALER” as she recalls the lyrics to the aforementioned “BUTCHER OF THE WORLD,” while the outright brutality of “SPITE ALONE HOLDS ME ALOFT” is married to a piano-led meditation that, even without the noise wash from whence it comes, is enough to recast visions of what heavy is and can be in musical terms. I won’t pretend to get all the references like “kyrie eleison” (“lord have mercy”) worked into “IF THE POISON WON’T TAKE YOU MY DOGS WILL” and the violent strains surrounding, but it’s impossible not to realize the power of what you’re hearing when you listen.
With an intensity born out of a history of industrial music and focus on tight rhythms making an impact in even-tighter songwriting, Valborg are neither beholden to death metal nor entirely separate from it, but their style has taken on a life of its own over the course of the last 10 years, and their latest offering, Zentrum (on Prophecy Productions), is the German trio’s most individualized take yet, whether that’s shown in the unbridled melodicism of “Anomalie,” the sludgy riff that drives the barking “Ultragrab” or the seemingly unrelenting snare pops of “Kreuzer” that, even when they finally release that tension, still make it only a temporary reprieve. Valborg‘s sense of control through the epic “Nonnenstern” should not be understated, and though the track is under four minutes long, yes, “epic” very much applies. Suitably enough, they close with “Vakuum” and throw everything at the listener at once before resolving in relatively peaceful atmospherics that could just as easily serve as an introduction to the next round of malice to come, whenever it shows up.
Spanish trio Sageness — also written SageNESS — conjure smooth Electric Moon-style soundscapes on their second album, Akmé, and yes, that is a compliment. The record brings forth six tracks of easy-rolling instrumentalist jam-based heavy psychedelia that offer much and take little in return, the richness of the guitar tone from Dawyz and Michi‘s bass given jazzy fluidity by Fran‘s drumming. “Ephemeral” touches most directly on a Colour Haze, as it would almost have to, but even there, the feeling of spaciousness that Sageness present in the recording is a factor that helps them come across as more individual. Earlier, “The Thought” is a little more directly space rock, but opener “Andromeda” seems to be charting the course with its liquefied effects and somehow-even-more-liquefied groove, and if you can’t get down with that, I’ve got nothing for you and neither does the rest of the universe.
It’s not exactly true, about their being no light ever on Boston post-metallers Glacier‘s latest full-length, No Light Ever. Sure, it’s plenty dark and heavy and brooding and all that fun stuff, and the riffs get loud and the drums break stuff and all that, but it’s certainly colorful in its way as well, and more than just shades of black on black. Comprised of four tracks cumbersomely titled in keeping with the traditions of the likes of Red Sparowes and the band’s own past work, cuts like “O World! I Remain No Longer Here.” and “The Bugles Blow, Fanned by Hysteria.” stretch themselves out along a scope as massive as the tonality the band emits, and as the wash of “We Glut Our Souls on the Accursed,” — the comma is part of the title there — gives way to feedback and the onset of “And We Are Damned Amid Noble Sound.” the sense of immersion is complete and clear as the priority under which they’re working. It’s about the whole album, or at least the two sides, as a unified work, and about crafting a world through the atmosphere evoked in the material. It works. If they say there’s no light in that world, so be it. It’s whatever they want it to be.
Not-entirely-bereft-of-vowels South Carolina heavy trio MNRVA make their debut with the three-song EP Black Sky, a beast of a short release led by the riffs of guitarist Byron Hark on a stretch of ’90s-style crunch and sludge, with bassist/vocalist Kevin Jennings and drummer Gina Ercolini adding to the weight and shove of the proceedings, respectively. “Not the One” has the hook, “No Solution” has the impact and the title-track has both, and though I’m by no means saying the issue of their sound is settled 100 percent and they won’t grow or find their way from this — again, their debut — EP, they do prove to be well in charge of where their songs head in terms of mood and the atmosphere that comes through elements like the blown-out vocals and the rumbling bass beneath the lead guitar in the second half of “Black Sky” itself. Indeed, it’s those harsher aspects that help MNRVA immediately establish their individuality, and the vibe across these 18-plus minutes is that the punishment is only getting started.
Just because Irish four-piece Coroza — guitarist/vocalists Ciaran Coghlan and Jack O’Neill, bassist/vocalist Jonny Canning and drummer Ollie Cunningham — might write a song that’s 18 minutes long, that doesn’t mean they forgot to actually make it a song as well. Thus it is that extended cuts like “The Plutonian Drug” (18:24) and closer “Iron from the Sky” (19:30) have plenty of room to flesh out their more progressive aspects amid the other three also-kind-of-extended pieces on Chaliceburner, the group’s ambitious hour-plus/five-track debut full-length. Each song essentially becomes a front-to-back movement on its own, with shifts between singers arranged thoughtfully from one part to the next and hooks along the way to serve as landmarks for those traversing, as in the opening “Chaliceburner” or the gruff winding moments of “Mountain Jaw,” which follows the nine-minute sax-inclusive centerpiece “Scaltheen,” because of course there’s a saxophone in there somewhere. All of this is a recipe for a band biting off more than they can chew stylistically, but Coroza manage pretty well the various twists and turns of their own making, particularly considering it’s their first album.
Encased front and back by witchy samples and creepy vibes, Sept. 2019’s She of the Woods is the second demo in two months to come from Cork, Ireland’s Noosed. And you know it when they get around to the closing seven-minute title-track because it’s just about the only thing other than “Intro” that isn’t raging with grind intensity, but that stuff can be fun too. I don’t know how much witch-grind-doom is out there, but Noosed‘s first, self-titled demo (released in August) had a sludgy edge that seems to have separated out to some degree here into a multifaceted personality. Can one possibly be certain of the direction the band will ultimately take? Shit no. It’s two demos with basically no time differential between them. But if they can effectively bridge the gap between “Fuck Up,” “Wretch” and “She of the Woods,” or even play directly with the contrast, they could be onto something with all this noise and fuckall.
The narrative — blessings and peace upon it — has it such that Irish four-piece zhOra wanted to do something less complicated than was their 2017 album, Ethos, Pathos, Logos (discussed here), so they went ahead and wrote a song that’s five minutes long and purposefully hops between subgenres, going from sludge to doom to a deathcore breakdown, with a snare-pop count-in, to blackened death metal and then back to a lumbering chug to finish out. Okay, zhOra, “Ruthless Bastards” is a an awful lot of metal and an awfully good time, but you missed the mark on “simple” by a considerable margin. If indeed the band had been plotting toward something, say, easier to play or to compose, “Ruthless Bastards” ain’t it. They’ll have to settle for being brutal as fuck instead. Something tells me they’ll survive having made that trade, as much as anything will.
