spotify – Ba'al

January 13, 2025

Albums of the Year 2024

Timely as ever, a few of us have selected our album highlights from last year. Read on to see our picks (plus a few cheeky vinyl photos), and listen to one track from (almost) every release in the Spotify playlist below.

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Nick – Guitar

Every Christmas time in the vat of lukewarm custard that is my brain is marked by a fond recounting of all the new music I’ve listened to over the past 12 months, and every year it’s just as difficult to narrow them down to a select few favourites. So in no particular order, here are 10 of the albums that I enjoyed the most.

Charli xcx – brat

It’s charli baby. We changed the name of an entire season because of this album. No further notes.

Verwoed – The Mother

I have an uncanny knack of discovering amazing bands and they then almost immediately after announce that they’re disbanding, which also usually means I’ll not get to see them live either. Verwoed are one such band but at least they’ve left us on a filthy high. Arguably my favourite black metal album of the year, full of dark and brooding atmospheres, ritualistic pacing and a liberal dose of horrific crust, this is a superb closing statement from a band who’s catalogue I’m excited to delve into.

Spectral Voice – Sparagmos

One of my top 3 candidates for absolute filth of the year (Verwoed, this, and then the final one coming up shortly). This is one of those albums that really pushes the boundaries of how extreme metal can be. Squalling noise, vile dissonance and vicious brutality that pulls equally from the worlds of death and doom metal. Metal Archives lists their themes as ‘horror, death, other worlds’ and I would accept this album as the soundtrack if and when I experience any of those 3 things.

Hamferð – Men Guðs hond er sterk

Easily my favourite doom band from the Faroe Islands (yes I do know several others thank you very much). Absolutely love the gothic feel of this band, the production and musicality scratch my itch for melodic doom but the real highlight must be the vocals. Absurdly good harsh vocals and mightily impressive operatic cleans must be heard to be believed, and not only that but I got to see them earlier this year and I can’t think of many live bands I’ve seen that so perfectly replicate their recorded output.

Kanonenfieber – Die Urkatrastrophe

My personal discovery of the year. I went through a period of listening to their previous stuff on such a frequent loop that I ended up having to take a break (which didn’t last long in hindsight, and they shortly after slotted into my regular rotation). For Kanonenfieber to arrive and explode in such a short amount of time is astounding and I suspect a lot of work has gone into making this project the finished article long before it became public. The result is such a marvellously consistent string of blackened death metal releases with a distinctive and unique aesthetic that you’d think they’d been around for ages. At about 4 years they’re still such a new band and I’m well excited for whatever comes next. Get on the hype train.

Thou – Umbilical

2nd rancid filth candidate of the year. As soon as I heard the name “I Feel Nothing When You Cry” I figured the track would take no prisoners, and I was right! A blistering track that makes way for an equally intense album. As a casual fan given their prolific output, I wasn’t prepared for just how much I would love this monster, and I’m subsequently now revisiting their discography with a new found adoration for their work. Top drawer sludge.

Aurora – What Happened to the Heart?

Another outstanding offering from the Norway via various fairy tales artist. Her last two albums in particular have shown a move towards more experimental musicality which lend themselves magnificently to her otherworldly presence and vocal style. Aurora also continues to be a positive figure with a refreshingly candid approach to political and personal subjects which a lot of artists often shy away from, which strikes me as an ever more important quality given the rapidly spiralling absurdity of modern life.

Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere

Was a bit late to the game on this one, despite me absolutely adoring all their previous work. Verdict seemed to be a unanimous “THIS IS INCREDIBLE” which often leads to disappointment when something inevitably doesn’t reach the extremely high expectations people have set. This 100% fulfilled the hype though.

Oranssi Pazuzu – Muuntautuja

To paraphrase Richard when he appropriately stated, “Oranssi are a band that you might not listen to that often, but when you do listen to them or see them live, you remember they’re the best band in the world”. I can’t really fault that, and having seen them live for the first time this year, I can now comfortably say they’re one of the top live performers I’ve ever witnessed. Another stellar album from Finland’s weirdest.

VOLA – Friend of a Phantom

Likely takes the title of “Most Rotated Album” of the year for me and one of the few albums I’ve ever pre-ordered on vinyl. VOLA are one of my top 5 bands of recent years and not only did they drop a magnificent prog metal album full of sublime musicianship and delicious earworms, but I also got to see them for the first time this year, and they were absolutely top banana.

Chris – Guitar

As an introductory caveat, I didn’t listen to a great deal of new music this year – after last year’s effort where I compiled everything into a spreadsheet and consciously sought out new albums, I didn’t keep track of anything this year because I needed a break. Given how intensely difficult the second half of my year has been on a personal level, I (somewhat understandably) retreated to the safe haven of comfort music. But I did find a few new things to laud, so here in no particular order are the best 5 albums of my 2024.

Nile – The Underworld Awaits Us All

I’ve been a Nile fan since I first got into heavy music and discovered Black Seeds of Vengeance, and they reliably put out at least one or two certified bangers per album (with some of the earlier releases being wall-to-wall excellence). I’m pleased to report that this new album continues that trend, with short sharp shocks like the ape poo song (you know the one) slotted in with longer cuts like Under The Curse of the One God magnificently. The liner notes also remain an absolute treat as Karl Sanders unfurls the full scope of his ancient Egyptian nerdery.

Gaerea – Coma

I think it’s probably fair to call this the best atmospheric black metal album I listened to this year, with the caveat that I didn’t listen to an awful lot of atmoblack outside of our own tunes..! Everything about this album just sounds huge, the production is gorgeous and the riffs are sky-high. There’s plenty of variety too, from the long build-up of opening track The Poet’s Ballet and running through the rest of the album. If you like big reverb-soaked tremolo picking and anguished screaming (and let’s be honest, who doesn’t) get this on and enjoy yourself.

Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere

When I say that this album reminds me a bit of the Mithras album Behind the Shadows Lie Madness crossed with 2112 by Rush, I mean that as the highest of compliments. That Mithras album is my bar for reverb-drenched cosmic death metal with interesting song structures and an inescapable “vibe”, and this album absolutely climbs the same peak. Everything from the song titles to the artwork to the riffs themselves puts you into a late 80s sci-fi novel, fighting for the survival of an ancient alien civilisation, and I love every second of it.

Terminal Nation – Echoes of the Devil’s Den

Sometimes you just want to listen to an uncomplicated, no-nonsense album full of chunky riffs and beatdowns. Echoes of the Devil’s Den is perfect for that, but throws in some social commentary as well just to add a little cherry on top of the cake – as you might expect from an avowedly anti-fascist and anti-capitalist death metal/hardcore band. The whole album is solid throughout, with a particular standout mention to the anti-police brutality anthem ‘No Reform (New Age Slave Patrol)’. My one minor criticism is that the artwork doesn’t really fit with the lyrical content of the songs… but it is extremely fucking cool!

Laura Cannell – The Rituals of Hildegard Reimagined

The aural equivalent of a drug trip through Tudor England, with traditional instruments and monophonic melodies reinterpreted through a modern lens. A very lush, meditative album with no drum tracks, beats or riffs to be found – just an aching sense of melancholy like fog rolling over a green and peaceful landscape. Something about this really stuck with me this year, and it’s the perfect soundtrack for a solitary nature walk. Perfect for fans of The Green Knight movie or those medieval lo-fi hip-hop channels on YouTube.

Honourable mention: Florence + The Machine – Symphony of Lungs

I’m not including this in the proper list because none of these songs were first released in 2024, but this album is a fantastic re-imagining of a classic nonetheless, with the full weight of the BBC Proms orchestra and choir and the lovely ambience of the Royal Albert Hall underpinning it.

Richard – Bass

Of the 112 new albums I listened to this year, I’ve made myself a top 40 of my favourites, and even that was painful… The ones that came closest to making it this year for me were Knoll, Thief, A Swarm of the Sun, Pallbearer and Linkin Park… I could go on, but here are my top 10, in reverse preference order for added t e n s i o n.

40 Watt Sun – Little Weight

At this point I’ll be very surprised if Patrick Walker ever releases an album that doesn’t make my top 10. This one is a little more approachable than the last tear-jerker, but still an emotionally-driven set of powerful alt-rock and slowcore songs to sit alone with your thoughts to.

Heriot – Devoured by the Mouth of Hell

I enjoyed the debut EP from the UK’s hottest young band, but to me this full-length really honed everything into a concise ball of battering, brutal riffs, with an interesting edge of industrial and electronic nastiness. Peaking out amongst the brutality, guitarist Debbie Gough’s clean vocals sometimes make the band sounds like Beth Gibbons fronting Loathe, which isn’t something I had on my bingo card.

Geotic – The Anchorite

Geotic was new to me this year, but is the acoustic/ambient project of Will Wiesenfeld, whose main, electronic project Baths was a big deal for me when I was in my late teens/early 20s. This is simply a gorgeous, lo-fi, deeply moving mood piece, with sumptuous acoustic guitar lines layered under a blanket of warm static.

Darkspace – Dark Space -II

Released right back at the start of 2024, this album sparked a long overdue Darkspace renaissance in my life and, though it may not touch their bona-fide classics, it’s still Darkspace doing their thing incredibly well, with a little more emphasis on the electronic beats behind the swathes of icy black metal riffs from the cold vacuum of space. With the Paysage d’Hiver album also at number 21 in my list, Mr Möckl is firing on all cylinders.

Sugar Horse – The Grand Scheme of Things

I don’t know why it took me so long to listen to Sugar Horse. I also don’t know why this album starts with 3 tracks of pure, The-Cure-gone-shoegaze lushness before the sludge riffs and screaming come in. Regardless, this is stellar stuff, mixing the dreamy with the brutal, plus some outstanding vocal performances and a closing 15 minutes of euphoric drone.

Hamferð – Men Guðs Hond Er Sterk

Nick and I have banged on about this band and album a lot this year, because what a discovery they have been. Colossal doom and post metal with a gothic bent and some of the best vocals I’ve heard in metal in some time, with one guy pulling off insane operatic notes one moment and deep, deathly growls the next. My vinyl copy is signed, and because the band had to open the plastic wrapping to sign it, I spent an entire three-band gig trying to hold the shredded plastic together to protect the record from the crowd, and then from the snow on my walk back to the car, which wasn’t the most fun I’ve ever had.

Patricia Taxxon – Bicycle (not on Spotify…)

Another great new discovery for me this year, but this time from the extremely different realm of… Furry IDM? I don’t think this is on Spotify so you’ll have to hunt it down on BandCamp rather than from our playlist, but it is a concise album of extremely varied, punchy bangers that are great fun but also richly detailed and idiosyncratic.

Oranssi Pazuzu – Muuntatuja

As Nick has already said that I said, there’s simply no one around doing metal like Oranssi Pazuzu do metal, and when they have you in their darkly psychedelic, cosmic grasp, nothing compares. This time the electronic side of their sound has been dialled up even more, and as a result it’s a little more accessible than the 2020 album I won’t try to remember the name of, but make no mistake: this is a Bad Trip with a capital B and T, and I adore it.

Charli xcx – brat and it’s the same but there are three more songs so it’s not

A slight differentiation from Nick here as I spent most of 2024 listening to this extended version of brat, and I do think the added songs make this cultural milestone even better, despite losing the iconic green cover as a result. No more words need to be penned about brat for some time, but it was undoubtedly my most played album this year and slaps front to back.

Chelsea Wolfe – She Reaches Out to She Reaches Out to She

As I think I mentioned in a previous blog, as much as I have always enjoyed Chelsea Wolfe, her last couple of albums underwhelmed me and so I never thought I’d have her at number one in an AOTY list. For me (similar to what I’ve said with a lot of albums on this list) the return of her more electronic influences alongside the doomy guitars is what makes this; it’s basically a dark, atmospheric and only sometimes heavy trip-hop/darkwave album and it feels like her crowning achievement.
December 11, 2024

Monthly Playlist: December 2024

One more monthly playlist for the year from us (before our dalliance with the beast that is AOTY lists). Read on to find out what the Ba’al stringsmen have been listening to this month.

Nick – Guitar

Hamferð – Marrusorg

Mighty melodic sludgy doom from the Faroe Islands. Myself and Richard got to see 90% of their set when they opened for Solstafir after we battled through arctic conditions over snake pass and rapidly inhaled sandwiches outside the venue in order to maximise Hamferð time. They were everything we hoped for, especially the vocals which were absolutely o n p o i n t.

The Intersphere – Who Likes To Deal With Death?

Been listening to these German proggers for quite a while and was dead pleased to see their set supporting VOLA the other week. Their blend of soaring choruses, tight grooves and the occasional chonky riff lended themselves well to a night of bands that would get progressively heavier. A phenomenally tight band on the night.

One Leg One Eye – Bold and Undaunted Youth

A dark folk/drone/noise project featuring Ian Lynch of Lankum (the coolest band in the world). In the space of 12 hours I found out OLOE were playing the Samuel Worth Chapel in Sheffield (a 50 cap venue in the middle of the vastly overgrown old general cemetery), and that show had sold out. Thankfully a few days ago someone must have cancelled and a ticket became available which I snapped up quicker than you can say Ken Dodd’s dad’s dog’s dead.

Saor – Forgotten Paths

The king(s) of melody in the worlds of folk and black metal. Not many bands capture the essence of Celtic mythology with such beauty, aggression and faith. The new album due next year is already one of my most anticipated.

Oranssi Pazuzu – Kuulen ääniä maan alta

Probably the highlight of my recent gig surge. Good as every band I’ve seen over the past few weeks were, it’s near enough an impossibility to match their overwhelming energy and all-out bizarreness. Imagine going to watch a truly brilliant Oscar winning movie, then outside the cinema you witness a kangaroo parallel parking a Fiat Seicento. You’re only talking about one of those things when you get home aren’t you.

Chris – Guitar

Morpholith – Psychosphere

“Big funeral space doom” is so definitely one of my genres par excellence that I might as well get it tattooed on my forehead. This ticks all the boxes, with big slabs of riff floating on a bed of atmosphere. It’s a kind of cosmic gumbo, y’know?

Harvestman – The Falconer

I didn’t realise this was Steve von Till’s (of Neurosis) side project until Richard pointed out, because it sounds nothing like Neurosis and more like a trippy psychedelic wander through a 70s British folk horror movie. Plus I have to applaud the ambition of doing three entire albums, each between 38 and 44 minutes long, and calling the whole thing Triptych. At this point he’s just showing off.

Gaerea – Coma

I know Richard and Nick probably rinsed this album when it came out earlier in the year (when they weren’t just listening to brat) but I am great at waiting until a moment has passed before jumping on the train myself – which is a long-winded way of saying this new Gaerea album’s a bit good, innit? If you’re going to do atmospheric black metal this is the epitome of what it should sound like!

Anaal Nathrakh – Thus, Always, to Tyrants

Mad to think that it’s been 4 years since this album came out and yet it remains both incredibly timely and utterly savage. In an honestly stacked discography, I think Endarkenment still stands out as one of the Brum grind legends’ best efforts – the melody is dialed up, the aggression is even more aggressive, and the vocals are in fine, vitriolic form. Sic semper tyrannis, indeed.

Lola Kirke – All My Exes Live in L.A

I’ve enjoyed Lola Kirke’s previous releases (not to mention her role in the show Mozart in the Jungle, which gave me an absolutely hopeless crush on her), and I would probably categorise them as lush and dreamy pop. This new EP leans fully into country territory with a knack for very catchy choruses, and there’s no better example of that than this single.

Richard – Bass

Bohren & der Club of Gore – Prowler

Last month I went to see the German dark jazz masters in Birmingham, and it was just as atmospheric and sultry an occasion as you would expect, in the concert hall of the Royal Conservatoire. What I didn’t expect was the incredibly dry humour in between tracks, and just how many people would knock over their plastic glasses really loudly in the darkness throughout the show.

Kelly Lee Owens – Love You Got

Honestly the new KLO album has yet to fully grab me, but this lead single is an undeniable tune. Big beats, big hook, good time.

Linkin Park – Two Faced

Like many my age, Linkin Park were instrumental in my getting into heavy music as a teenager. As such, the tracks on their comeback album From Zero that successfully capture the Hybrid Theory/Meteora-era sound but with an updated production and the new, stellar pipes of Emily Armstrong up front really strike a chord with me. Musically, this track is basically ‘One Step Closer pt. 2’, and I mean that as a good thing. Of course we all miss Chester, but tracks like this make me happy that the rest of the band felt able to return.

Pijn – Our Endless Hours

Obviously we’re predisposed to enjoy the works of our producer bae Joe Clayton, but the new Pijn album has been a real grower for me since they headlined Tall Order Fest that we played back in September. Post rock of top drawer calibre, with a really specific, open feel to the heavy riffs that feels somehow very distinctive whilst being very straightforward, amongst the numerous other textures both organic and electronic.

A Swarm of the Sun – Heathen

Keeping with expansive, post-leaning things, on their new album A Swarm of the Sun have evolved from a solid, crushing post metal band into something more all-encompassing, depressive, patient and vast. Every track is a slow, absorbing, drone-laden lament and when the big releases of heaviness do come they are devastating.
November 18, 2024

Monthly Playlist: November 2024

After a month off for gigging, the Ba’al stringsmen are back with another monthly playlist of things we’ve been listening to, and some words explaining our picks.

Nick – Guitar

MUNA – Stayaway

Really hoping to hear some new music from MUNA in the next year or so! Their championing of infectious melodies, heartfelt songwriting and saccharine production make them a must listen for any lover of danceable pop music. This track is one of my personal favourites of theirs.

I Monster – Heaven

Despite having grown up with my dad having a career making music and fairly regularly hearing his music on TV being the established norm for me, it’s still quite bizarre to witness his band’s recent surge in popularity with such close proximity. Not sure if Ba’al are likely to go viral on TikTok anytime soon but here’s hoping! Bias aside, this song has always been a favourite of mine, since long before I realised it’s about a blow up sex doll.

Kurokuma – I Am Forever

Death, Taxes, and Kurokuma absolutely locking in on every song they release. I can’t think of another sludge band with such an all-encompassing command of groove.

Thrakian – The Path to Demise

A fantastic band we played with in Swansea a few weeks ago. All the hallmarks of classic Post-Metal were on show. Huge tone, huge riffs, gnarly vocals, and one of their strongest assets, dynamism. Don’t sleep on Thrakian, I can’t wait to hear a long form release from these.

GDRN – Vikivaki

I recently watched a series called KATLA, a mind-bending but harrowing sci-fi set in a near abandoned town in Iceland. Obviously I spent the immediate aftermath reading up on the series on Wikipedia and discovered lead actress Guðrún Jóhannesdóttir’s music (known mononymously as GDRN). Her music I would characterise as ‘pop for rainy days’, predominantly making use of pianos and other subtle instrumentation that present a jazzy, melancholic foundation for her outstanding vocals. A real hidden gem for me!

Chris – Guitar

Woe – Far Beyond The Fracture of the Sky

We had a nice time last month supporting these chaps on the London date of their tour, and it was great to catch them live – blastbeat city, so much mammoth tremolo picking and a ferocious paeon to the death of humanity and the victory of sorrow.

The Ocean – Abyssopelagic II: Signals of Anxiety

I went to the opening night of Damnation this year purely to see the Ocean perform Pelagial in full for the last time (my first time experiencing it) and it was a wonderful experience – when they got to this song I allowed myself a little cry right in front of the stage because it’s just perfection.

Master Boot Record – MOBO

Gutted to have missed this guy live, because the new record is another furious blast of electronic feedback and chiptune madness which I’ve been enjoying greatly. Sounds like your ears are being pummeled by two Gameboys, and you’re loving every second of it.

Kokeshi – Warabeuta

A good ol’ Spotify discovery, this – “brutal blackgaze” from Japan which mixes in some sick beatdowns with atmospheric sections, tortured screaming and some more melodic stuff as well. One of those bands that I listened to and thought “man, I’d love to tour with these and get to watch this every night for a week”..!

Florence + The Machine – Dog Days are Over (BBC Proms at the Royal Albert Hall – Symphony of Lungs)

I’ve been unashamed and open about my love of Florence, and the Proms performance she did earlier in the year was an absolute jewel in the star-studded crown of her career – taking songs from the album Lungs and reworking them with a full symphony orchestra to make them sound even bigger and more bombastic. Fair warning though, this one will get stuck in your head.

Richard – Bass

Zetra – Sacrifice

I overlooked these guys for ages, but seeing them at ATG prompted me to check out this new album and I am now hooked. They’ve got that same ineffable autumnal feel that Type O Negative had, but with way more synths and massive hooks to match. Simple but effective.

Chelsea Wolfe – House of Self-Undoing

Just as my interest in Chelsea Wolfe was waning, she about-turned and dropped this AOTY contender (and played possibly my gig of the year, on Halloween no less). Moving away from doom and firmly into electronic, trip-hoppy territories plus some of her most commanding vocal performances, this one just keeps pulling me back.

Baths – Aminals

This is a blast from the past for me, which I revisited recently. From the same early 2010s era of arguably pretentious, art-school, tumblr-core indie/electronic as the likes of Alt-J and Purity Ring, the first Baths album was pivotal in my journey into electronic music, and this track manages to be both sweet and absolutely banging.

Magdalena Bay – That’s My Floor

Imaginal Disk has been a slow burn for me this year, its blend of synth pop, rock and psych taking a while to really get its hooks in. However, you can’t argue with some of these tunes. and this one has an almost grungey swagger that makes it a real earworm.

Def Leppard – Photograph

Since there’s ended up being nothing particularly heavy on my list this month, why not really test our black metal audience by proclaiming this track as an absolute slammer. I replayed Jack-Black-fronted, metal-worshipping video game Brutal Legend recently and had a very brief resurgence of listening to classic rock and metal, Pyromania included. As well as being Sheffield heroes, at their best Def Leppard simply had so much more power than the hordes of sleazy hair metal perves that followed them thanks entirely to their vast, layered, emotive choruses. You can genuinely hear the link to the production style of avowed Leppard fan Devin Townsend.
September 23, 2024

Monthly Playlist: September 2024

Another monthly playlist coming in hot from the Ba’al stringsmen, with some words explaining our picks from what we’ve been listening to this month. Dive in.

Richard – Bass

Tove Lo, SG Lewis – Heat

Brat summer may be drawing to a close, but that doesn’t mean the end of pounding dance pop bangers. This collaborative EP is front to back heaters and impossible not to have a good time to.

Selbst – La Encarnación de Todos los Miedos

The passionate intensity of Gaerea with some of the weird melodies of Voices, coming together to make one of those extreme metal albums that expertly treads the line between avant-garde and accessible. Naughty.

Chappell Roan – Pink Pony Club

It’s taken me long enough, but I’ve finally fallen under the spell of the world’s newest queer icon – and even as a cis, straight white guy in a black metal band, I can confirm that this is pop euphoria.

Julie Christmas – End of the World

Another year’s excellent ArcTanGent is still ringing in my ears, and Julie Christmas was predictably excellent. If you ever wish there was a Mariner part II, then this track is as close as you’ll get, featuring good ol’ Johannes from Cult of Luna (and Christmas’ own band) on vocals alongside the manic pixie herself, and it’s got a real earworm of a post metal chorus…

Iress – Falling

…and speaking of earworm choruses from ATG, here’s another. Iress were new to me, and the low-key, dreamy yet despondent shoegazey tunes of their new album are perfect for a sleepy afternoon with your feelings.

Chris – Guitar

Opeth – §1

Look, I grew up an Opeth fanboy. Still Life, Blackwater Park, the works. My face is literally front and centre on the Live at the Royal Albert Hall DVD. But their last few releases, since Mikael decided he just wanted to ape 70s prog, have left me completely cold. So when I heard they were bringing back the harsh vocals I was cautiously optimistic. The rest of the album might not live up to the promise of this song, but it has an absolutely perfect “UGH” which takes me back to my youth. That’ll do, pig.

Stateless – Miles To Go

I first heard this electronica/trip-hop-esque song on the soundtrack of the (excellent) open-world kung-fu Triad game Sleeping Dogs, and I loved that game, so it quickly wormed into my memory banks. Really sets the scene for car chases through Hong Kong after you’ve inflicted some horrendously OTT environmental violence on a bunch of other gangsters, y’know?

Benjamin Wallfisch – That’s Our Sun

I don’t necessarily love Alien movies for the soundtrack – I couldn’t hum you any memorable tunes from the first movie, and that’s probably my second-favourite film of all time. But I really, REALLY enjoyed Alien: Romulus, and I particularly enjoyed the ominous yet hopeful vibes of this piece which plays fairly early on (before things have gotten, as you might expect, absolutely fucking horrible).

Ghost – Bible

I have long been an enjoyer of Ghost, seemingly one of the more Marmite bands in the metal scene due to their propensity for big sing-along choruses and poppy hooks. This slow-build ballad is off one of their covers EPs, and was originally by a Swedish rock band from the 80s called Imperiet. I’ve never listenee to the original, and tbh, I don’t feel like I need to when this version is so huge.

Aaron Grubb – Lake Hylia (from Twilight Princess)

I’ve spent a lot of time this month working from home on the sofa trying to keep my new dog calm and relaxed, which means lots and lots of soothing piano videogame covers to act as background noise and chill him out. This one, from one of the darker and more minor key games in the Legend of Zelda series, has been a particular favourite as the winter and colder/rainier days start to draw in.

Nick – Guitar

Peace of Mind – Impaler

Got a record of this on the impulse of wanting more hardcore vinyl whilst I was last in Glasgow, from a record shop directly across the road from Ivory Blacks, where we played but a few months ago. How we missed it that time is beyond me, it’s pretty massive. Anyway, this is a cool hardcore album, satisfied my impulse nicely.

Marvin Gaye – What’s Happening Brother

No it wasn’t the countless polls listing this as the greatest album of all time, nor was it the exceedingly high ratings across every rating site you can think of. No, what finally brought me round to listening to this album was a stupid Spotify playlist called “marvin gaye’s clueless ass” and it’s just all his songs whose titles make him sound mega confused. Good meme, great album.

Ghost – Majesty

Ah I see two of us have picked Ghost songs this week, what an embarrassing lack of planning on our part. No matter. I’ve been a fan of Ghost since around the time this album came out. It’s probably still my favourite but every other album is a tied close second. I really think Ghost are the modern day KISS, only with better musicianship and songwriting, and a more interesting aesthetic, and less nobheads, etc.

Bansith – The Cure

Particularly fond of the opening guitar riff on this track, I’m usually fond of rhythmic delayed guitars like this and I will stand my ground on The Edge being an underrated guitarist. I digress, this is a great tune from a wicked young band from our town.

Nails – Every Bridge Burning

Ah yes, the sound of death but all on fire and spiky and somehow worse (better).
August 23, 2024

Monthly Playlist: August 2024

The Ba’al stringsmen return with another monthly playlist of tracks we’ve been enjoying of late, and some words explaining our picks.

Chris – Guitar

Childish Gambino – Talk My Shit

New Gambino is, indeed, my shit.

Gojira – Backbone

Olympics opening ceremony, ’nuff said.

Lamb of God – Laid to Rest (HEALTH remix)

Goes harder than it has any right to.

Belore – Storm of an Ancient Age

Going for a wander in the ancient woods.

Hail Spirit Noir – The Blue Dot

Emerged from my comfort music cave to listen to new HSN, did not regret it.

Richard – Bass

Colossal Squid – Faded Acid

My picks this month are all new things I discovered and got excited about in the run up to another superb ArcTanGent festival (alongside the vast list of bands I already knew who smashed it), starting with this track from solo drummer/electronic wizard Adam Betts, a.k.a. Colossal Squid. As well as drumming for Squarepusher, Three Trapped Tigers and more, the Squid manages to find time to churn out this intricate, IDM whirlwind with wild live drum patterns and big synth hooks aplenty.

Doodseskader – Innocence (An Offering)

A bastard hybrid of nu metal and horrible sludge, featuring the current bass player of Amenra – what’s not to love? One minute you’ve got silly groove and rap, the next minute a wall of grinding riff. In all honesty, the sound in a big tent didn’t do them many favours and so they slightly suffered at ATG compared to the insane quality that surrounded them, but as a home listener this has been on repeat for me of late.

Fange – Césarienne Au Noir

Take the heaviest parts of Godflesh, translate into French and add some Fear Factory melodies and you have a good approximation of Fange’s industrial metal racket. Similar to Doodseskader, it effectively mixes fun with serious nastiness, and it’s a raucous good time.

Glassing – Nominal Will

From the Other Side of the Mirror currently has a good shot at being very high up my 2024 AOTY list, and live their combination of the sludgy and the soaring ends of the post metal spectrum was absolutely electric. They levelled the place seemingly effortlessly and it was wonderful.

Hook N Sling ft. Karin Park – Tokyo by Night

Karin Park’s silent disco set at ATG was my long overdue prompt to delve into some of her albums properly, and this month I got really absorbed in her emotional, soft, synthpop world. What I wasn’t expecting (but possibly should have been, given the time of night she played) was just how banging her actual set would be, switching out her sad tones for something much more dancey yet still emotive, including a version of this pumping number. One of many highlights at ATG which fall into the category of Big Beats; my feet think I’ve been to a 4-day rave more than a prog festival.

Nick – Guitar

Doves – Rise

Their later single ‘Black and White Town’ instils a powerful nostalgia in me, I heard it first on an old FIFA game (I want to say 2004?) and the accompanying music video is visually reminiscent of that period of my life. Fast forward 20 years and I inherit a copy of their first album from my dad on which the track ‘Rise’ is contained. Safe to say I missed out on a special album for the last two decades.

Kanonenfieber – Menschenmühle

Was introduced to these via a very pleasant Canadian couple who had travelled all the way to attend Fortress Festival (and also saw us play with Sunken a few days prior). Upon listening to them I entirely understand the enthusiasm with which they were described. WW1 themed blackened death metal with incredible aesthetic, these are mountains of fun with a very serious and poignant anti-war message that utilises real letters written by soldiers during the war.

Respire – The Sun Sets Without Us

An album I was hyped about ever since it was announced, this album picks up right where Black Line left off, and if anything carries a greater emotional rawness. Not an easy listen but a worthwhile one all the same.

Charli xcx – Guess featuring Billie Eilish

Brat summer is still going strong. It was only a matter of time before the transatlantic post-pop queens collaborated and it’s just as good as was promised.

DANGERDOOM – Benzi Box

Idiosyncratic production from DangerMouse, colourful lyricism from DOOM, and a smooth af feature from CeeLo Green. It’s a track that’s even greater than the considerable sum of its parts. A classic earworm.
July 15, 2024

Monthly Playlist: July 2024

Another monthly playlist from the Ba’al stringsmen, with some words on what we’ve been listening to of late and a handy Spotify playlist to listen to. Dive in.

Nick – Guitar

SUMAC – World of Light

Takes some real cojones to start an album with a 25 minute track that’s mostly drone, noise and feedback. Not that SUMAC are particularly radio friendly. But still, once you settle in it’s a predictably great album full of frenetic dischord and occasional beauty.

VOLA – Break My Lying Tongue

I’ve only ever pre-ordered maybe 5 albums in my whole life and Friend of a Phantom is now one of them, such is my anticipation of it. Vola have thus far dropped two songs from the album and both of which were actually growers for me but they’re both on regular rotation these days. For me there’s not many other prog-metal bands around that can write such catchy tracks that don’t compromise on grit or experimentation.

Voice of Baceprot – God, Allow Me (Please) to Play Music

I remember this band making headlines a while back for a number of covers they uploaded on social media (and also for being an Indonesian all-female Hijab-wearing Muslim band in their early teens, not the likeliest description for a metal band it’s been frequently said). I recently re-discovered them after seeing they played Glastonbury this year and listened to their debut album of original tracks. I don’t think it needs saying but the old “don’t judge a book by its cover” adage feels very pertinent here. Their success and acclaim would be entirely warranted regardless of their background, old school riffs galore!

Spirit Possession – Inhale the Hovering Keys

Absolutely PYSCHED/STOKED/JAZZED that these have been announced for next year’s Fortress Festival. They’ve seemingly appeared out of nowhere to rapid success but in fairness, Of the Sign… from last year was one of 2023’s best. Deranged black metal with hints of old school speed/thrash metal cranked up waaaay past 11. They will certainly blow away any Scarborough-based cobwebs I’m sure.

Rush – Fly by Night

There’s something unnerving about the Owl’s expression, its piercing eyes really caused me mild distress when I first saw them at a young age. Whenever I see the “the owls are not what they seem” graffiti it always reminds me of this album cover. But I digress, a great track from an often underrated Rush album I feel.

Richard – Bass

Patricia Taxxon – Frat Claws (this one’s not on Spotify so check it out here)

A new name to me, whose album Bicycle has shot right up amongst my favourites of the year so far – and she has about 27,000,000 other albums to dive into, which is nice. Interesting, varied IDM that’s just all vibes.

Cold Body Radiation – Make Believe

Even back in 2011 when the blackgaze explosion was barely starting, CBR had their niche nicely cornered by committing fully to unashamed, fuzzy and melodic shoegaze alongside their black metal element, rather than trying to smash them together. Great stuff.

Bring Me the Horizon – YOUtopia

I am one of those rare 30-somethings who never had a pop punk phase to speak of at all, and yet such is my love of modern BMTH’s huge, over-the-top and hyperactive production style that even most of the tracks on their new album that verge far into that terrain are bangers to me. Is Post Human: NeX Gen a schizophrenic clusterfuck of an album? Yes, certainly. Does it contain some absolute verified slammers that I rate amongst the best that Bring Me have ever penned? Yes, without doubt.

Infant Island – Veil

I have Nick to thank for alerting me to these guys and their fantastic new album. Blending post metal, black metal, shoegaze and emo screamo with incredible finesse, Obsidian Wreath is one of those albums that goes for your emotions and your neck muscles with equal vigour.

Charli XCX – Von Dutch

Okay, yeah, sure. Blastbeats, screaming, riffs, breakdowns, sad chord progressions – they’re all well and good. Unfortunately for any of the Trve Kvlt brigade reading, that doesn’t mean it isn’t still Brat Summer, and even if only me and Nick celebrate it on this site, that just means that we’re your number one and it’s okay for everyone else to admit that they’re jealous of us (POUNDING KICK DRUMS INTENSIFY).

Chris – Guitar

Janelle Monáe – Make Me Feel

I got to see Janelle (who I have been a fan of for a while now) live this month and it was honestly incredible – a huge, life-affirming celebration of queerness and creativity and just having a very nice time, from an artist who is indisputably one of the best popstars in the world today. This was a highlight of the setlist, and so good that I even let her off for only playing the lead guitar part for about 30 seconds before the stagehands took it off her.

Inherits the Void – The Orchard of Grief

Don’t let the 90s fantasy novel cover art fool you, this is… exactly what you’d expect to hear from an album with that artwork, tbh. Like Stormkeep’s Tales of Othertime before it, this album continues the trend of “blue fantasy artwork with an ambiguous wizard in the bottom left corner = absolute banger of a melodic/atmospheric black metal album”.

Modern Technology – Dead Air

I always love to see bands who fuck with the established setup of what a heavy band “should” be, so this was a welcome discovery – two blokes, one with a drumkit, the other with a bass and some nasty vocal chords, shouting very loudly at you about how society (and the planet) is very, very fucked.

Thaehan – Peaceful Village

At completely the other end of the spectrum from my previous pick is this, a little lo-fi hip-hop track with a medieval/fantasy feel that does exactly what it says on the tin. It’s been a very stressful month, and in times like these, sometimes I just want to listen to soothing beats and synths and picture myself in a Ghibli movie.

Twilight Force – At The Heart of Wintervale

Look, sometimes you just need to eat an incredibly cheesy pizza. You know the kind – three (maybe four) cheeses on top, double all of them, cheese stuffed crust, perhaps a sprinkling of finest parmigiano atop the whole monstrous creation. A lactose intolerant’s worst nightmare. Twilight Force are the musical equivalent of that pizza, and I would like another slice, please.
June 19, 2024

Monthly Playlist: June 2024

What with all this new EP business, we’ve not done a monthly playlist yet this year. No doubt you’ve been on tenterhooks, so here we are with some tunes that some of us have been listening to and some words explaining our picks.

Nick – Guitar

Thou – I Feel Nothing When You Cry

I’ve liked Thou for a long time now but never counted them amongst my favourite bands, but Umbilical is looking like the album to change that. It’s currently my highest rated album of the year and there’s very few upcoming albums that I think will challenge that. Just absolutely fierce from start to finish.

Rivers of Nihil – Criminals

Going through a sustained period of heavy listening to Rivers of Nihil at the moment. I just think they’re pretty untouchable in the progressive death metal world, not many bands are as consistently good and that seem to get better with every release. The new tracks have given me plenty of optimism that whatever full length comes next is going to be another outstanding release.

Wrthless – 2000 Cans

Came across this track after the band posted the intro along with a sample taken from Limmy’s Show (the “give us your laptop” scene with Paul McCole’s sad monologue) and the two fit perfectly as a midwest emo track. Sadly the Limmy sample isn’t on the actual released track but it’s a fantastic little emo/pop-punk song nonetheless and it’s got me in the mood for that kinda thing now the sun is coming out.

Sunken – Ensomhed

Probably not the last band that we saw at Fortress Festival to appear on this list. You may have heard us wax lyrical about Sunken before and it was our pleasure to play alongside them a few weeks ago. Was interesting to watch them twice in succession in a small rock bar and then on the grand stage at Scarborough Spa. They were overwhelmingly good on both occasions.

Charli XCX – B2b

No, not business to business, back to back. I mentioned earlier that few albums will challenge Umbilical to be my AOTY and this is one of those. Though at the time of writing I am yet to hear it, every track I’ve heard so far has been up there with my favourite Charli tracks and it seems like the general consensus is that brat is among her best work. So to say I am ‘much excite’ to hear it is an understatement.

Richard – Bass

Triptykon – Altar of Deceit

…you’re right Nick, it’s just the beginning of the Fortress chat. The lineup for the whole festival was frankly ludicrous, and one benefit to me personally was an impetus to finally take an overdue listen to the second Triptykon album ahead of their mighty headline set – and I think it’s probably better than the first. Chonk, blast, heft, OUGH.

Falls of Rauros – Arrow & Kiln

It was a joy to behold Falls of Rauros’ first show outside of the US, and handily for me they played a set of exclusively songs from the two albums I know properly. Of those, I’ve been getting especially into Vigilance Perennial either side of Fortress and this track is a powerhouse example of their folk-driven, emotive atmospheric black metal.

Obsidian Kingdom – Endless Wall

Obsidian Kingdom were undoubtedly the biggest curveball on the Fortress lineup; though they use elements of black metal, they are mainly a prog metal band with loads of post metal, doom, gothic keyboards, clean vocals and electronica mixed in. Though they got the smallest crowd of the weekend, I loved their full album playthrough of 2012’s Mantiis, and they were thoroughly lovely when I met them to buy some merch afterwards.

Ashenspire – The Law of Asbestos

A few weeks prior to Fortress I went to see Ashenspire at Corporation in Sheffield and was once again bowled over by their fiery, cacophonous performance of anti-fash progressive black metal fury. It took me a while to get on the Hostile Architecture hype train when the album came out, but now I am fully onboard, and that show was as life affirming as a wall of torturous noise can be.

Hamferð – Ábær

Moving away from past gigs and on to future ones: these guys opening the Solstafir/Oranssi Pazuzu tour later this year has very nearly pushed me to buy a ticket even though I’ve seen both headline bands twice apiece. I have Nick to thank for alerting me to the new album by these Faroese heavyweights, and their mix of melodic doom, post metal and death metal combines into what might be my album of the year so far.

Chris – Guitar

Childish Gambino – Big Foot Little Foot

New music from Donald “Childish Gambino” Glover is always welcome, even when it’s a rework of a previous release. This song sounds like two tracks in one but you will get the chorus stuck in your head, and the black-and-white music video is as precise, striking and affecting as you’d expect.

Warrington Runcorn New Town Development Plan – A Shared Sense of Purpose

This act was one of my best finds of 2023 (the year where I tried to listen to too much new music and burned out my ability to care), so I’m digging this new album from them – more bleak, sparse electronica beats with a depressed mid-century British vibe, lovely stuff.

Agalloch – Kneel to the Cross

I get to see Agalloch at Fortress Festival I get to see Agalloch at Fortress Festival I get to see Agalloch at Fortress Festival I get to see Agalloch at Fortress Festival I get to see Agalloch at Fortress Festival!!! As you might have guessed, pretty hyped about that fact, no further comment necessary.

Graywave – Dancing in the Dust

Like a hybrid of synth/vapourwave with crunchier metal bits, but an overall chill vibe – discovered this one from a Church Road promo email and it ticks a few of my boxes pretty emphatically.

Nile – Chapter for Not Being Hung Upside Down on a Stake in the Underworld and Made To Eat Feces by the Four Apes

Please never change, Karl Sanders, you absolute Egyptology-loving, spiky guitar-wielding, brutal riff-writing madman.
January 26, 2024

Albums of the Year 2023

Timely as ever, a few of us have selected our album highlights from last year. Read on to see our picks, and listen to one track from each release in the Spotify playlist below.

Chris – Guitar

I listened to a lot of albums this year, in an (ultimately futile) attempt to dislodge Nick from his “most music consumed” throne within Ba’al. The final tally was 207 albums released in 2023, and 254 that were new to me overall – and quite frankly, that’s far too much music to keep track of, so I won’t be doing it again! It starts to reduce listening down to a tick-box exercise, about gathering data for the sake of it rather than actually trying to achieve anything, so this coming year I’m just going to listen to whatever I feel like and make notes about any particularly good albums I come across. All that said, here are the 5 best albums I heard from 2023:

5. The Ocean – Holocene

If I ever do an AOTY list in a year when the Ocean have released a new album, and they’re not on that list, please check whether I’m being held hostage by ne’er-do-wells. As is well established, probably my favourite band, and one of the most consistent groups out there – their quality level never dips below “great”, and Holocene continues that trend. It’s not as riff-heavy or guitar-focused as previous albums (which was an intentional choice) but it retains their lyricism, their experimentalist tendencies and their penchant for big atmospheres.

4. Wounds of Recollection – Warm Glow of the End of Everything

Starting off with some tinkly, almost Christmas-like chimes, this album very quickly unfurls into an absolutely gorgeous slice of blackgaze, with lush, shimmering chords and tremolo sections over anguished vocals. It calls back to the more shoegaze-y bits of Deafheaven for me, which is very much a compliment – I have a limited tolerance for atonal black metal where everything sounds the same, so the variety and melody on show here is very welcome. The whole album feels suffused with warmth and light in a way that really lifts my spirit.

3. Warrington Runcorn New Town Development Plan – The Nation’s Most Central Location

“Melancholic brutalism” is probably my best description of this – an album of electronica with an incredibly specific sense of time and location. It evokes the brutalist attitude to town building in 1970s UK in a way that I can’t really articulate – the album name and cover do a lot of the lifting on that, but you can feel it in the music. My listening notes say: “Experimental electronica about the collapse of the ‘New Town’ in England – wistful with an undercurrent of anger at our current concrete dystopia” which I still think sums it up pretty perfectly.

2. Hellish Form – Deathless

This album kind of reminds me in places of Sojourner, who I absolutely love. Big, epic, atmospheric doom-death, with towering walls of crashing distortion that envelop you in sound. It has that feeling of a soundtrack from a far off (horrible) land, which is definitely helped by the Blasphemous-esque cover artwork. Put it on, turn it up, lose yourself in a world of big chords, mournful leads and screaming. Bliss.

1. Gunship – Unicorn

This ran away with my number one slot pretty much from the second listen. It’s just an incredibly polished record, in a way that really works for the style of music on display – beefy, bouncy synthwave rock with soaring choruses and a staggeringly deep list of guest vocalists. I dare you to listen to ‘Empress of the Damned’ and not get the hook stuck in your brain – real “put it on in the car and sing along as loud as you can” stuff. Highly, highly recommended.

Richard – Bass

This year I listened to 134 albums, which is a strikingly high number for me and meant I couldn’t whittle my list lower than a top 40… The closest runners up for my top ten were Panopticon, Nightmarer, FVNERALS, Torpor, Steven Wilson, Periphery, Föllakzoid, Mitski, Rorcal and ТДК. As for the agonised-over top ten itself…

10. Ostraca – Disaster

Emo/screamo-inflected post metal that also builds in the building-levelling, grim grooves of Amenra. Smash your face on the floor and have a good cry about it.

9. Enslaved – Heimdal

There’s no such thing as a bad Enslaved record, but for me this is the best since the mighty RIITIIR. It’s refreshing for a band now known for being so expansive, proggy and psychedelic to retain such a clear fondness for the straight-up, aggressive and fun black metal riffing of their youth alongside everything else.

8. Austere – Corrosion of Hearts

After a 14-year hiatus, the Australian atmospheric/post-black metal icons have managed to top their previous work with this slab of hypnotic, emotive power. Apparently another new album is already coming next year, too, so that’s nice, isn’t it.

7. Daughter – Stereo Mind Game

Not to be pluralised and confused with the noise rock band ruined by that abusive wanker, Daughter trade in much prettier, dreamier textures, plus just plain superb songwriting. It’s the real attention to detail in the production and their ear for an absolutely magnetic, emotional yet understated hook that makes this one a winner.

6. Harboured – Harboured

You know when a band just do a genre pretty straightforwardly but absolutely fucking nail it? Harboured have done just that with post metal on their pleasingly succinct debut. Cult of Luna grooves, Mastodon energy, The Ocean melodies, and just an unstoppable force of riff and texture.

5. Hasard – Malivore

You know when a band just do a genre in a way that sounds totally fucking alien and unlike anything else? Hasard have done just that with black metal on their first album since shortening their name from Les Chants du Hasard. It’s the modern classical keyboards and strings that take these already avant-garde compositions into a completely other realm, and it’s a whole world of melodrama all its own.

4. Telos – Delude

The midpoint between Amenra and Fronteirer that I never knew I needed. I have to thank Nick for alerting me to this absolute monster of aggression, because itreally hits the spot when it comes to pummelling groove with a chaotic edge and an unrelenting nastiness.

3. Sci-Clone – Radio Therapy – Pt. 1

Jazzy drum’n’bass powered by organic instrumentation, good vibes and shiny production. It’s like if someone took Louis Cole’s energy and melodic sensibility but smoothed it all out into a polished, serene but still endlessly uplifting, groovy package that is impossible not to nod along to.

2. Ne Obliviscaris – Exul

There was a lot of discussion in the Ba’al chat over the course of 2023 about the bizarre bass tone on this album, which is unreasonably twangy and sticks out like a sore thumb. However, such is the strength of the songwriting (and my existing love of some NeO of old) that even that couldn’t stop me having Exul on repeat. As well as being the best bunch of songs they’ve written since their debut, it’s the real step up in string arrangements that made this one stick for me, with Tim Charles really expanding into multiple layers of violin that were a very timely inspiration for our own new material.

1. Model/Actriz – Dogsbody

Noisy, flamboyant, groovy, energetic, very gay and very horny – all descriptions that fit this otherwise hard to describe record that kept pulling me back again and again in 2023. Noise rock, post-punk, dance music, flashes of metal… It’ll be a travesty if this band is not booked for ATG this year.

Nick – Guitar

At the start of the year I challenged myself to listen to one new album a day (or seven across a week for example) with the ultimate goal of enriching and expanding my taste in music. Gleefully I ultimately landed on 366, helpfully aided by the most relentlessly prolific artist I’ve ever come across releasing hundreds of 20 minute ambient albums. I digress. What I’m most pleased about is discovering so much great stuff and many new back catalogues to burn through. Lankum is my number 1, and the other nine are just collectively the rest of the top ten, they’re just in the order that I thought about them.

10. Sleep Token – Take Me Back to Eden

Love them or loathe them, you can’t deny just how wild Sleep Token’s ascent has been. I put myself squarely in the love camp, and TMBTE is every bit as sugary, bittersweet and excessive as I’d hoped it would be. A fine way to end a trilogy of albums about one breakup. Who hurt you Vessel?

9. Nightmarer – Deformity Adrift

I was beginning to think my top 10 is notably lacking in extended range guitars but this album more than makes up for that. An album of abject filth from start to finish, blast beats and massive twangy djonk riffs galore.

8. Downfall of Gaia – Silhouettes of Disgust

Consistently one of the best atmospheric black metal bands have once again dropped an absolute blinder. In many ways this isn’t really anything new, it’s just a fantastic example of a compelling style of music that’s often imitated but rarely perfected.

7. Telos – Delude

Checked out this band for the nerdy reason that they share a name with a semi-obscure planet in the Star Wars extended universe. Anyway, no idea if that’s actually connected to their name so it may not be the slightest bit relevant. This album sits at perhaps the exact intersection where post-metal and mathcore meet. Imagine if Dillinger were sadbois and you’ll get the idea.

6. Dødheimsgard – Black Medium Current

My favourite avant-garde pick of the year (if they aren’t all at least slightly avant-garde). Being able to stand out as a black metal band seems like one of the most difficult things to achieve in music yet Dødheimsgard have succeeded in sounding like no other.

5. Rorcal – Silence

As Richard so brilliantly put it, Rorcal have almost ruined blackened sludge by being so good at it that it’s not worth listening to any other bands in the genre. I found it hard enough to disagree after Muladona, and near impossible after Silence.

4. Panopticon – Rime of Memory

A band I’d never really given much thought to previously, but I certainly shall be now. Hoping to sort out a ticket to Fortress Festival come payday so I’ve got some catching up to do before I see them live. If their back catalogue is a patch on this then I’m excited to start digging.

3. Herod – Iconoclast

An extremely underrated band of recent years; I’m oft surprised at the fact there aren’t more people gushing over Herod. Ever since Sombre Dessein in 2018 I’ve been desperate to hear more of their angular hypnotic sludge and thankfully Iconoclast takes their winning formula and ramps up the aggression. Sadly it seems this will be the last we will hear from Herod as they unexpectedly announced their disbandment just before Christmas.

2. Tesseract – War of Being

A now iconic band and arguably the reigning kings of djent are back with the best album they’ve written since Altered State, or maybe ever (). Of course I love everything they’ve ever done but War of Being strikes me as the perfect intersection of all their strongest moments over the years.

1. Lankum – False Lankum

Undoubtedly my album of the year, Lankum are a band I’ve been following for several years now and they are consistently one of the most compelling and unique groups in modern music. Their tense and uneasy approach to traditional Irish folk is sonically akin to the harsh textural work of Swans or Godflesh, yet simultaneously delicately beautiful. I’ve seen FL deservedly top many a critic’s end of year poll and I am not in the least bit surprised.
November 17, 2023

Monthly Playlist: November 2023

After a little tour break last month, we’re back with some words and tunes for you, showcasing our blackbelt music taste

Richard – Bass

Bleaklow – Grains in the Water

I’ve had the pleasure of catching Bleaklow – the latest project of Rich and Claire Knox of A-Sun Amissa/Shield Patterns/Gizeh Records – live twice in the past few months and both times I have been absolutely absorbed by their vast, lush soundscapes. The music of their debut EP is the exact midpoint between the droney, dark ambient guitars of A-SA and the heady, melodic dream pop wash of Shield Patterns. Yum.

Follakzoid – V-III

These guys are new to me, and apparently over the course of five albums have moved steadily from psych rock to minimal techno. This new one, V, is firmly in the latter camp, with the repetitive grooves and pounding kicks overlaid with evolving sounds and textures. I’m excited to dive into the back catalogue.

Entropia – Paradox

As I’ve no doubt opined here before, Entropia are a fascinating act and one of my all-time black metal favourites. I’m loving their new record, but I recently went back to their second album, Ufonaut, and remembered what an absolute powerhouse it is; it’s like Enslaved on bad acid with a bunch of beatdowns thrown in.

Telos – Bastion

The midpoint between Amenra and Frontierer that I didn’t know existed and that I didn’t know I needed. Building-levelling grooves with a chaotic energy. Get in my ears.

Ofnus – Echoes

Of course, one of us needed to mention our new Welsh besties and October touring partners. It was an absolute joy and honour to join Ofnus for 6 shows up and down the UK, and this track is the one that keeps coming back into my head, with one particular chord change in the deep, hypnotic sequence in its back half hitting me in the heart every time.

Chris – Guitar

Defod – Embers Linger At Eventide

These Welsh lads joined us and our other Welsh touring pals Ofnus for a show in Liverpool this month, and I was hugely impressed by their sound – a potent mix of bands like Fen, Saor, Primordial and early Dissection while remaining unique. Highly recommended!

Borknagar – Up North

I’ve loved Borknagar since I was about 17 and first heard them at college, and this song is a true all-timer in the catalogue – it’s basically power black metal, with soaring Vortex vocals and occasional blasts. Plus the lyrics are literally about how much he loves being in nature in the North, perfect!

Taylor Swift – Blank Space (Taylor’s Version)

1989 was the first Taylor Swift album I heard, so I’ve been keenly awaiting the re-recorded “Taylor’s Version” of it – and it’s as good as it was first time round, just with a fresher and slightly more modern production. I could have picked any number of tracks but this is a particular highlight.

Myrkur – Valkyriernes Sang

The new Myrkur album is very different from her previous full-length, Folkesange – but at the same time it retains elements of the atmospheric, delicate neofolk on that record, while blending in more overt Danish pop and black metal sounds and influences. Truly like nothing else I’ve listened to this year.

John Carpenter – Night

Hey, did you know that John Carpenter (legendary director of Halloween, Assault on Precinct 13 and The Fog) also did the soundtracks for all those movies? And that he’s released a bunch of solo albums which take that even further? This record is one of the first vinyls I bought when I started collecting and it’s phenomenal – pulsating, dark synths and layered atmospheres. Listening to it is like being in your own John Carpenter movie, and who doesn’t want that?

Joe – Vocals

Afterbirth – Devils With Dead Eyes

This is a ridiculous track from a ridiculous album of bonkers technical death metal awash with weirdness that works. It conjours an image of a frog gargling on diarrhoea stumbling through a junk yard before dropping acid and listening to prog. Fair to say there probably isn’t something for everyone here…

Wormhole – The Grand Oscillation

Many people know I love Artificial Brain as I mention them frequently. Wormhole have a similar style, theme and aesthetic but are still very much their own thing. A fine mixture of technicality and heaviness that is never impenetrable or over stays its welcome.

Kvaen – Sulphur Fire

Quite possibly one of the most catchy, hook-laden and, dare I say, “danceable” black metal tracks ever written. There’s a strong Taake and Tsjuder vibe here and it gives the Dark Fortress track ‘Edge of Night’ a run for its money in bopability.

Germ – An Overdose On Cosmic Galaxy

It’s rare that atmospheric black metal manages to be this euphoric. I did hear somewhere that this track was inspired by stargazing while indulging in mushrooms but can’t confirm if this is true. The clean sung vocals seem like they shouldn’t work, but they do.

Hanging Garden – Ennen

A band that heavily brings to mind My Dying Bride, Draconian and later Katatonia, this is a patient track that slowly swells to a heartfelt crescendo. It feels delicate and pure in its atmosphere, a real gem.

Nick – Guitar

Ellende – Ruhelos

Top tier German thing, of all the German things, Ellende is one of the best things, from Germany. Absolutely a favourite project for me.

Unreqvited – Disquiet

Top tier Canadian thing, of all the Canadian things, Unreqvited is one of the best things, from Canada. Absolutely a favourite solo project for me.

Agalloch – In The Shadow of Our Pale Companion

Top tier American thing, of all the American things, Agalloch is one of the best things, from America. Absolutely a favourite group project for me.

40 Watt Sun – Reveal

Top tier English thing, of all the English things, 40 Watt Sun is one of the best things, from England. Absolutely a favourite group/solo project for me.

Sylvaine – Severance

Top tier Norwegian thing, of all the Norwegian things, Sylvaine is one of the best things, from Norway. Absolutely a favourite Norwegian project for me.
September 14, 2023

Monthly Playlist: September 2023

After a little break during our recent recording session, we’re back with our monthly selection of tracks we’ve been blasting. Enjoy the misery.

Joe – Vocals

Waldgeflüster – Unter Brozenen Kronen

This song from Waldgeflüsters upcoming EP is just absolute folky black metal beauty. A fine combination harsh archaic battery and mournful introspection, this song has been my jam for the last month or so.

Batushka – Polunosznica

Has it been long enough now that we can actually say that the Hospodi album is actually pretty damn good without provoking the ire of hordes of neckbearded black metal weeaboos for liking the “fake” Batushka? I don’t really care, this track is awesome.

Alghazanth – Under the Arrow Star

Mikko Kotamaki is one of my vocal inspirations because of his range and ability to fit neatly into whatever role he chooses. He excels here in a more straight forward black metal role that has a big sing along chorus.

Sidious – Thy Palace Yond the Threshold

Slight bit of nepotism here considering Hecate Enthroned drummer Matt plays in Sidious, but this track is black metal at its best with such nuance throughout. It was absolutely brilliant to see live too.

Cephalic Carnage – Megacosm of the Aquaphobics

This band has often felt under appreciated and seem to have fallen off the map a bit in recent years. Some songs are genius, some are held together with selotape, but they’re always super entertaining.

Richard – Bass

Conjurer – All You Will Remember

It’s going to be an ArcTanGent-focused list from me this month, and some songs from some obvious big-hitters that really stuck with me. It’s no secret that some of Ba’al adore Conjurer, and this was probably the 6th or 7th time I’ve seen them. It really cemented the Páthos material for me, and the clean vocals and lyrics about dementia on this one really hit me hard.

Deafheaven – Sunbather

Does it get more “I’m in a post-black metal band” than this choice? Probably not. Deafheaven’s full Sunbather playthrough set was plagued by terrible sound issues that you could really tell were upsetting the band, but when it all came together it was still stunning, and I’ve really got back into the album after a long break as a result.

Wiegedood – Nuages

You always know that the Wiggly Doods are going to be solid and tight as heck live, but I didn’t expect to be as blown away as I was by them this time. They sounded absolutely colossal, and the weirder, chunkier cuts off their last album like this one nicely broke up the absolute barrage of unrelenting blasts.

Rolo Tomassi – Prescience

Yet another band I saw at ATG for the umpteenth time but who put on the best set I’ve ever seen from them. Equal parts majestic and biting from start to finish, this track off Where Myth Becomes Memory has ascended to a favourite RT track for me, thanks in large part to its unusual melodic choices.

Cave In – Sing My Loves

I only started my very long overdue dive into Cave In’s discography in the run up to ATG and realised what I’d been missing. This song has been a bit of an obsession for me over the past month, with its magnetic hook calling out from a swirling mass of overlapping guitar loops.

Nick – Guitar

Grin – Apex

Always astounded by 2-pieces having such an oppressive and overwhelming sound. This Berlin-based duo are but bass, drums, vocals and a few bits of arcane sound thrown in, and the result is simply massive. This killer track comes from their 2022 album, Phantom Knocks.

Dead Can Dance – Black Sun

Picked this up from one of my favoured Sheffield record stores, Bear Tree Records (the other of course being Record Collector). I love putting this on whilst I go shopping for grain in my favourite tunic and codpiece.

Bismarck – Oneiromancer

Had the pleasure of watching and photographing this Norwegian sludge outfit at Doomlines several weeks ago. I hadn’t come across these prior and it was a case of rushing to their merch stand immediately after their set to grab a vinyl, which had been on heavy rotation ever since.

Molchat Doma – Клетка

Was introduced to this by someone close and, as a lover of brutalist architecture and what I’m going to crudely coin ‘Sovietcore’, this scratched many an itch. So dark and cold and mechanical, this makes me want to go round Eastern Europe taking pictures of car parks.

Mikko Tarmia – Dark Water

Amnesia: The Dark Descent was a real game changer for survival horrors, and the scariest horror game I’ve ever played. Most of that comes down to the exceptionally chilling atmospheres, dark but dynamic locations, unsettling sound design, and importantly, skin crawling music. If you haven’t played this game and fancy something creepy I cannot recommend enough.

Chris – Guitar

Hanabie. – Hyperdimension Galaxy (超次元ギャラクシー)

This is basically “music for Nick” – a bubblegum metalcore band from Japan, comprised of four Japanese Harajuku-aesthetic girls who were inspired by legendary hardcore punk band Maximum the Hormone. This track has everything you could want from that description – Japanese instruments layered in, harsh metalcore vocals and big riffs. Very UWU indeed. Now I just need them to tour the UK with Babymetal…

Magic Sword/Metavari – OMNI

I greatly enjoyed the dungeon synth/chipwave sounds of the last Magic Sword release, and this is more of the same, with the added weight and heft of electronica legends Metavari added to the mix. Take yourself on an 8-bit trip through a pulsing cyberpunk world for 4 minutes and 26 seconds, and thank me later.

Crypta – Lord of Ruins

All-female blackened death metal from Brazil – I had no clue who this band were until I sat down to write this, but it turns out two of the members were formerly in Nervosa. The vocal range keeps things interesting and this track demonstrates more creative songwriting than the standard “stop, drop and blast” style of some death metal bands. The full album is a smidgeon too long but this is definitely a standout track.

X-Japan – Angel

Yoshiki is back with new music! X-Japan might be one of the most iconic and well-known J-rock bands around (they even showed up as a karaoke track in a sumo wrestling drama I was watching recently) but this track is arguably not rock at all – think a Guns n’ Roses piano ballad but with even more piano and even less guitar. When the guitar does finally kick in though, the pay-off is worth it.

Washed Out – Feel it All Around

If you’ve seen the TV show Portlandia you’ll recognise this track from the intro sequence – a slab of drowsy, distorted chillwave, it manages to pull off the difficult task of being a good full song, and not just having a ten-second bit that’s great and then two and a half minutes of filler (looking at you, “Superman” by Lazlo Bane, a.k.a the theme song for Scrubs…).