/r/RABM/

Wednesday, December 31, 2014

2015

It's the final hours of 2014, an year that was pretty rich in various happenings. After summing it up, I'm sorry to say that I've lost my faith in many sections of what constitutes the modern "left". Be it "anarchists" which voluntarily joined the openly neo-nazi battalion (now a regiment) "Azov", or the trotskyists which "critically support" ISIS against the Kurds in Syria (if you're interested, there are two lengthy threads about it on Revleft: 1, 2), it doesn't look like something I want to be a part of. There actually are much more examples like that, but these two are just the most illustrative.

I simply don't feel like writing about it any more, because I don't want to start any political discussions right now. All I wanted to say is while I still support the core left-wing values and realise that there were (and still are) some great people on this side of things, now I started to seriously doubt if I really doing something worthwhile by continuing this blog... or not? That's the main reason for my depressive mood during the last few months, as well as for my desire to find people that will continue to run this blog if I decide to abandon it. Now I have some free time until 10th of January, and about a dozen of albums to review, bit I'm not sure if I'll continue posting here after I'm finished with that.

On a bottom note, 2014 might be bad politically, but when it comes to music, it actually wasn't that bad, and I hope 2015 won't be either. Stay tuned!

Monday, December 22, 2014

Deafest/Uaithne - "Of Moss and Stone" (2014)


DEAFEST/UAITHNE - "Of Moss and Stone"

Year: 2014
Genre: Instrumental Black Metal/Folk
Country: USA

Track List
  1. Shattered Visions
  2. A Bed of Needles and Cones
  3. Frozen Dreams, Pierced by Time
  4. Scree Fields
  5. Blood Soaked Stone
DOWNLOAD

Hey everyone, it's Preston again. Haven't had time to update as much myself because of school but I'm excited to post a fantastic release that just came out the other day. Many of you are probably already aware of the instrumental black metal band Deafest and the co-contributing band Uaithne (Formerly known as "In the Sea of Trees") who are also instrumental but non-electric in nature. This release plays each artist's songs back to back, offering both project's equal representation of the natural world. It is fantastic in application, powerful, and really nothing short of what you would expect from these musicians.

Hoping to post some more albums in the meantime while I'm on break. If you got anything, send it my way. "p - system @ hotmail 'dot' com"

Deafest bandcamp/Uaithne bandcamp

Monday, December 1, 2014

The Hunt - "Funerals" (2014)

THE HUNT "Funerals"

Year: 2014
Genre: Blackened Crust/Hardcore
Country: Australia

Track List:
  1. The Rats will inherit the Earth
  2. Yama
  3. The Curse of Mankind
DOWNLOAD

If you wonder what I'm doing now for this blog: unfortunately not much. I've re-uploaded some albums, but the diskspace on mediafire is much more limited than before, which makes me more cautious with re-uploading. I still haven't found any better alternative yet.

In the meanwhile, here's the last EP from The Hunt, a blackened hardcore band from Australia, which appeared on my blog before with their s/t release. This one is a "posthumous" release, as the band unfortunately broke up in 2012.

bandcamp

Thursday, November 20, 2014

misfortune - "Feathered Duke and Tar Fowler" (2011)

MISFORTUNE - "Feathered Duke and Tar Fowler"

Year: 2011
Genre: Black Metal, Grindcore
Country: Canada

Track List:
  1. Hatred
  2. Bloodlaws
  3. Scalps on a Mantle 
DOWNLOAD

Hello readers, I would like to begin this post by introducing myself, Preston Ell, as one of the new contributors to the RABM blog. I'm extremely excited to be a part of this because it is bar none my favourite blog out there and the political edge only sweetens it for me. I know that some of the writers here have been very busy and unable to make frequent posts so I only hope that I can take some weight off of their shoulders.

A little bit of info about me: I come from Canada (London, Ontario to be exact..) and I am also an active artist involved with lots of projects, basement shows, and my own little DIY label called Why Gang Records. My solo music was posted here a bit ago for those who may have seen it and I am currently in the production of another album under the same name that's proving to be some of my best work yet.

If you have any music you want to show me, feel free to shoot me an email: [p - system @ hotmail 'dot' com]

Anyways, without going into too much about myself, I would like to begin my first post by introducing one of my favourite local bands that is now sadly defunct. Misfortune was a really solid black metal band with fantastic musicians and their live performances were extremely intense/loud. They've since gone in various different directions and I know that their vocalist Anthony is currently living in Vancouver. You can check out his new project OAF here.

This release isn't too long but it's a great representation of what the band was. There are more tracks in the hopper ready to be released but they are lacking vocals at the moment. I'm hoping that they can get those out someday and maybe even play a reunion show of some sorts. Fans of grindy black metal will really enjoy this so give it a listen when you can.

bandcamp/facebook

Wednesday, November 12, 2014

Modern Dark Age - "The End Of Eternity" (2014)

MODERN DARK AGE "The End Of Eternity"

Year: 2014
Genre: Black/Death Metal, Blackened Crust
Country: USA

Track List:
  1. Darkened Dreams
  2. Vivisection Of An Empire
  3. The Dark Age Has Arrived
  4. The End Of Eternity
DOWNLOAD

I'm back but not for long. A couple of my readers offered me their help with reviews, so I hope we'll have more active co-editors pretty soon. In the meanwhile, I just have listened to the newest release from Modern Dark Age, one of the first blackened crust projects I got to know about.

MDA started as an one-man project by Dave Jay in 2008, and got some publicity in the myspace group "Black Metal Anarchists" (the only RABM resource on the net back then) shortly thereafter. However, the first full-length release came out only in 2013, followed by this EP in 2014:

"From 2011 to mid 2013, very little activity occurred in Modern Dark Age. Dave Jay suffered a major injury which subsequently resulted in permanent nerve damage in his right arm. This has drastically affected any ability to play instruments and compose or record new material.

After multiple medical procedures and a nerve transposition surgery from 2011 through 2013, there still has been no actual healing or relief from said nerve damage. This is the reason for such lengthy period of inactivity.

Despite this painful and limiting effect on the ability to produce material in the previous capacity or timeliness, Modern Dark Age has been pushing through all of this. Little by little, Dave Jay has been slowly building new material. The majority of this work is completing 2 unfinished full length albums"


Dave Jay describes the ideology behind the project as follows:

"With the background and influences of Crust Punk plus a heavy interest in Black Metal, the need for my expression in this world exists as Modern Dark Age. We are technologically advanced, yet always falling into an abyss of archaic thinking and societal decay. We have the ability to excel, yet many choose this declension. Now is the Modern Dark Age..."

I don't know if he's aware of the existence of my blog, but hopefully he won't be against this EP being posted on here. It's a really good mix of BM and metallic crust, recorded during 2013-2014 and released on 9th Meridian Records 23 September 2014.

bandcamp / facebook

Friday, November 7, 2014

Larva Ov Cum - "Resistenza" (2014)

LARVA OV CUM "Resistenza"

Year: 2014
Genre: Industrial Black Metal
Country: Italy

Track List:
  1. Introducendo Inni Partigiani
  2. Nessuna Politica Italiana
  3. Attuando la Guerra Capitalista
  4. Invocando Granai, Non Atomi
  5. Contando Inegualmente Innocenti Cadaveri
  6. Volontà dei Popoli
DOWNLOAD

This Italian political metal project is back with a new EP, which continues the line LoC took on the earlier releases - intense, "mechanical" BM sound, and relatively clean vocals. It sounds a bit monotonous at times, but "Resistenza" isn't a long release, so it's not a big problem. Ideologically, it probably will appear more to those who are on the "red" side of RABM (that's possibly why it was released on 7th of November). Like all the previous releases from LoC, "Resistenza" is released by an independent label SUN Prods., and it's officially available for free download/distribution.

bandcamp

P.S. Well, I think I've posted more than enough for today. I still have more than 20 albums waiting for a review, but a lot of them either have little to do with RABM, or it isn't really "my" thing in terms of music. Hopefully my co-editors will take care of it, while I take a break from blogging. I don't know when I'll return, but it'll happen sooner or later. Stay tuned.

Vranac & Svartmörke - "Заговор" (2014)

VRANAC / SVARTMORKE "Заговор"

Year: 2014
Genre: Post-Black Metal, Blackened Crust
Country: Russia

Track List:

Vranac
  1. Скверна
  2. Смута
  3. Стаями горящих птиц
Svartmörke
  1. Тварь вселенной
  2. С головой впадая в хаос
  3. По дням бессилья и позора
DOWNLOAD

The latest release from Vranac up to date - a split w/ Svartmörke from Karelia, who are playing raw blackened crust of Scandinavian variety. I especially liked Vranac's side, it's definitely better than their first EP. If you prefer Svartmörke's side, I'd also recommend Norrbrand - they're from SPb too, and their music is Scandinavian style metallic crust. A Norrbrand/Svartmörke split is in the plans as well.

bandcamp

Vranac - "Знамение" (2014)

VRANAC "Знамение"

Year: 2014
Genre: Post-Black Metal, Neocrust
Country: Russia

Track List:
  1. Знамение
  2. Навет
  3. Время
  4. Я не верю
  5. Искра
  6. Возвращаясь в холодные дни
DOWNLOAD

One more band that, in my opinion, deserves to be on my blog, even though I have no personal contacts with them. They're coming from the DIY crust/hardcore/metal scene of SPb, and their style is a blend of neocrust and (post-)BM. I have no idea what their name stands for, but I hope it means something cool (all I could find in google was some brand of Serbian wine). Here's is their debut EP, which is good enough for a first release (although not a masterpiece). Can't say they're a super political band, but they're listed as an "anarchist black metal" band on wikipedia (not a very reliable source, yes), and have participated in some RABM-friendly events (i.e. "Karelian Plague"), so I think putting them on my blog would be OK.

bandcamp

Worhs - "Le Temps des Blasphèmes" (2014)

WORHS "Le Temps des Blasphèmes"

Year: 2014
Genre: Black Metal
Country: France/Turkey

Track List:
  1. Fils d'un Avenir Corrompu
  2. Ces Terres Maudites
  3. Fanatisme ?
  4. Les Yeux Ouverts
  5. Destroyers of His Story
  6. Anitkabir ou le Triste Constat
  7. La Mémoire Profanée
DOWNLOAD

Worhs started in June 2014 as a collaboration between WLWD, a metal journalist from Paris (Metallian, Horns Up, Metalliquement Vôtre), and  Emir Togrul, a musician from Turkey (Yayla, Viranesir, Blliigghhtted), initially under the name "Destroyers of History"). Musically, it's old school black metal (reminding me of Profecium for some reason), and the political part of their lyrics is mostly critical of the conservative party that rules Turkey nowadays. "Le Temps des Blasphèmes" is the debut full-length from Worhs, which was released November this year (right now Worhs is an one-man project of WLWD). The whole album is available for preview on youtube:


facebook / bandcamp

Among The Rotting Trees - "The Cold, Misty Morning" (2014)

AMONG THE ROTTING TREES "The Cold, Misty Morning"

Year: 2014
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal
Country: Poland

Track List:
  1. Cold
  2. Mist
  3. Morning
DOWNLOAD

ATRT is a new project of Marek (Garden Of Sadness, Algorithm Ov Void). This debut full-length is called "The Cold, Misty Morning", and contains 3 long tracks of instrumental atmospheric BM. Most of this material was composed and recorded in 2010-2011, work was finished later in 2012-2013 and for some various reasons is released for audience only now. If some label would be interested in release it officially on CD/CD-R (small amount of copies will be sufficient), feel free to contact the author via bandcamp/facebook.

Since all the tracks are instrumental, there are no lyrics (and therefore no political agenda) on this album, but the author is definitely on the far-left side and RABM-friendly. This debut is very good for a self-produced release, and it definitely isn't boring, despite being quite lengthy and purely instrumental.

Wednesday, November 5, 2014

Mácula & Seeds In Barren Fields - split (2014)

MACULA / SEEDS IN BARREN FIELDS

Year: 2014
Genre: Blackened Crust, Blackened Death Metal
Country: Brazil / Sweden

Track List:

Mácula
  1. Seguindo O Coração
  2. Prisões
  3. Ideias Incendiárias
  4. Campos De Concentração Estendidos Ao Mundo Livre
Seeds In Barren Fields
  1. Reverence
  2. Headless/Heartless
DOWNLOAD

I think both Mácula & SIBF need no introduction - both of these bands have appeared on my blog before, and both are very good. I planned to post this split shortly after it came out, but due to large amount of other stuff to review, I forgot to do it in time. Well, better late than never...

Tuesday, November 4, 2014

Ambergris - s/t (2014)

AMBERGRIS "Ambergris"

Year: 2014
Genre: Experimental Black Metal
Country: USA

Track List:
  1. Led to a Stone Chamber
  2. In the Royal Cemetery
DOWNLOAD

Ambergris are a duo (guitar/drums) from San Diego, which released their first EP in late September this year. If I understood it correctly, right now the project is on hiatus, and it isn't certain if they'll release any new material in the future. Even though Ambergris isn't an explicitly political band, at least one of its members is highly sympathetic to the RABM movement, and entirely unsympathetic to the right-wing/elitist tendencies that are so pervasive in the metal culture. If there's an ideology that motivates his interest in black metal in particular, then it's what's been called "pessimistic materialism":

"...It's certainly not an eco-anarchist or "pro-nature/anti-humanity" ideology - in fact it's almost an apparent inversion (anti-nature/pro-humanity) of such an ideology. But the inversion really is only apparent, since it shares with such an ideology (at least as far as I understand it) an anti-anthropocentrism (it seems to me that eco-anarchism, with its emphasis on human beings as the source of all natural ills, is actually rather closer to anthropocentrism), and the opposition of "a good nature to a corrupt civilization."

Pessimistic materialism recognizes class society as the other principal source of human unhappiness, but stresses that, were the elimination of class society to be achieved, men would still suffer from their biological limits and the knowledge of their insignificance in the universe. Through this fusion of class politics and pessimistic materialist philosophy, such an ideology aims to bring about the creation of a pessimistic culture
for all. This music, I hope, is a contribution to the creation of such a culture.

Sorry if I ragged on eco-anarchism too much, but I want to stress my support for all the forces (bands, blogs, communities) associated with RABM, whatever their politico-ideological stripe, in their opposition to the rightist forces dominating metal culture!"


bandcamp

Monday, November 3, 2014

Bereft - "Lost Ages" (2014)

BEREFT "Lost Ages"

Year: 2014
Genre: Post-(Black) Metal
Country: USA

Track List:
  1. Lost Ages
  2. Unwelcome
  3. The Secret Fate of All Life
  4. Loss
  5. For Nothing
DOWNLOAD

Line-up:

Zach Johnson (guitars/vocals)
Alex Linden (guitars/vocals)
Neil Weiss (drums)
Cade Gentry (bass)

Bereft are a post-metal band from Madison, WI, formed in the summer of 2011 by Alex Linden & Zach Jonson. Their style can be described as a blend of BM, post-metal, and doom metal. They're currently signed to an independent label called Silent Pendulum Productions. The owner of SPP is a professional drummer for such bands as Black Table and Downfall Of Gaia, so I think the fans of these bands might be interested in Bereft and other bands on SP Productions as well.


bandcamp / facebook / twitter / official blog

Sunday, November 2, 2014

Capgrass - "Reflections" (2014)

CAPGRASS "Reflections"

Year: 2014
Genre: Black Metal
Country: Argentina

Track List:
  1. Intro
  2. Dead In The Crowd
  3. Disruption Of The Deepest Dreams
  4. Material Agony
  5. Shade
  6. Voice Of Perdition
DOWNLOAD

Line-up:

Martin Alexis Franco Santillan - drums
Julian Corbera - guitar
Isaias Daniel Cañete Lucena - voice
Gabriel Ruiz Diaz - bass

Capgrass started in 2010 and released their first EP "Reflections" in June this year. The lyrics on this EP contain some social criticism, as well as the topics of psychology/psychopathology, but in general it's apolitical. However, at least one of the band members considers himself an anarchist, and in the future they plan to release more material that may be considered a statement against fascism, etc. 



bandcamp / facebook

Saturday, November 1, 2014

Reek - "Necrogenesis" (2014)

REEK "Necrogenesis"

Year: 2014
Genre: Technical Thrash Metal
Country: Spain

Track List:
  1. The Sound of Decadence
  2. Violent Winterlight
  3. Hypochondriac
  4. Ethereal Shadows
  5. Landscapes of Elysium
  6. Human Condition
  7. Pernicious Gerontophiliac Commitment
  8. Babidi Resurrection
  9. Scions of the Void
DOWNLOAD

Not black metal, yet very good. Reek are a Catalan progressive thrash metal band which released their debut full-length "Necrogenesis" this year, with help of several quite well-known musicians: "“Necrogenesis” has been mastered by Magnus Lindberg (Cult of Luna) and its artwork has been designed by Ideophony (Ihsahn, Leprous)". If I'm not mistaken, they're also acquainted with Obsidian Kingdom (who, by the way, have released their new video not so long ago, and currently are on a European tour w/ Sólstafir, Sahg, and Esben & the Witch).

bandcamp / facebook / twitter / youtube / press kit

Friday, October 31, 2014

Cepheide - "De Silence et de Suie" (2014)

CEPHEIDE "De Silence et de Suie"

Year: 2014
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal
Country: France

Track List:
  1. A la Croisée des Ames
  2. Là où les Idoles demeurent
  3. L'Homme Ruine
  4. Deluge
bandcamp

One more band that's significantly influenced by Ash Borer, WITTR, etc., although they're quite far from the Cascadian region. Cepheide are a 3-piece band from Paris, started this year by a member of a DSBM project Scaphandre. The demo is self-produced, and intended to be "without artifice & based on feelings".

Solbrud - "Jærtegn" (2014)

SOLBRUD "Jærtegn"

Year: 2014
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal
Country:
Denmark

Track List:

  1. Sortedøden
  2. Afbed
  3. Klippemennesket
  4. Ursult
bandcamp

As I said before, I need at least mention the new album of Solbrud on my blog (won't post a direct download link, but you'll easily find it if you need it). I've seen a lot of comments saying it's "nothing special" or "average at best", but I found it to be very good. Solid atmospheric BM album, definitely more WITTR-influenced than the previous one, and coming from a band that has certain anarchist sympathies... what's more to wish for?

Thursday, October 30, 2014

Haltlose - "Natural" (2014)

HALTLOSE "Natural"

Year: 2014
Genre: Metallic Crust/Hardcore
Country: Finland

Track List:
  1. Slump
  2. Unshocking
  3. Extremist
  4. For Once
  5. Natural
DOWNLOAD

Haltlose have just released their 2nd EP, and since you're already familiar with this Finnish band, I'd be brief: just like their debut, it's quite intense metallic crust/hardcore. Not disappointing at all.

bandcamp

Monday, October 27, 2014

Iamí - "Luz e Sombra" (2014)

IAMI "Luz e Sombra"

Year: 2014
Genre: Raw Black Metal, Dark Ambient / Dungeon Synth
Country: Brazil 

Track List:
  1. Crença Profana
  2. Lamento
  3. Rito Iniciático
  4. Orvalho do Crepúsculo
  5. Cura e Magia
  6. Quietude 1
bandcamp

One more release from my inbox that isn't available for free, but still streamable on bandcamp, and intended primarily for the fans of DIY black metal and (to a lesser extent) dungeon synth:

"Iamí (means "night" in the ancient indigenous Tupi language) is a one man band from Brazil, intended to play a different kind of black metal, without losing it's roots, and increasing with the dungeon synth atmosphere. The lyrical themes goes from ancient shamanism practices, spirituality, nature, human consciousness and meditation.

 This is Iamí's debut album. It contains 6 tracks which goes from black metal to dungeon synth, with very profound meanings, influenced by personal transcendental experiences. Produced in a small dungeon room with only a few resources, an old keyboard and a simple guitar, it got a very artistic sound.  The lyrics are in brazilian portuguese, but the music speaks to all"

facebook

Siberian Hell Sounds & NØNE - split (2014)

SIBERIAN HELL SOUNDS / NØNE

Year: 2014
Genre: Grindcore, Metallic Hardcore
Country: Australia 

Track List:
  1. SHS///By the voice of his Master
  2. NØNE///Reap///Finding a Way
  3. SHS///A Cult will rise.
bandcamp

You're already familiar with Siberian Hell Sounds, and here's their new release after a 6 months-long hiatus - a split 10'' with their fellow Brisbanites NØNE. The band themselves recommend it to the fans of Pig Destroyer, Amenra or Converge (or basically any bands that sound similar to the aforementioned). Unfortunately, they can't put it up for free for the following reasons (although you still can listen to it @ bandcamp):

"It would be great if we were able to give these songs away for free and not have to subsist on a diet of Mi Goreng and crack for the next year but unfortunately we were reamed pretty fucking hard on the cost of putting this together and can't afford to put together a vinyl order without a bit of support from you.

 We put a lot of effort into our products and sell them as close to cost price as possible and will never release or sell anything that we wouldn't personally be stoked on. If you're reading this it means you're already properly engaged with the DIY music scene and I don't have to expound upon grindcore's ability to empty your bank account in the funnest way possible..."

Aires & Rui P. Andrade & Earthly Beasts - split (2014)

AIRES / RUI P. ANDRADE / EARTHLY BEASTS

Year: 2014
Genre: Dark Ambient / Drone
Country: Portugal 

Track List:
  1. Aires : Solvet Cosmos in Favilla
  2. Rui P. Andrade : Turdus Merula
  3. Earthly Beasts : Erebus
DOWNLOAD

The newest release from Aires, made in collaboration with Rui P. Andrade (a member of the noise/BM trio Ecos) and Earthly Beasts (a dark ambient project based in Lisbon), and released by the netlabel Enough Records. Just like the first release, it's very good and completely free for download. Aires himself describes this split as "one track is quiet, almost timid, another one is mechanical, almost industrial, and the other has this ghostly quality to it", yet he thinks that the music should speak for itself, and it's up for you to decide if you enjoy this kind of stuff.

bandcamp

Thursday, October 23, 2014

DRÅP - "En Naturlig Död" (2014)

DRÅP "En Naturlig Död"

Year: 2014
Genre: Metallic Crust, Grindcore
Country: Sweden 

Track List:
  1. Preparat
  2. Avsked
  3. Förstörd
  4. Häktad
  5. Horblod
  6. Nekad Till Vård
  7. Vedergällning
  8. Höstmörker
  9. Ett Hopplöst Fall
  10. En Naturlig Död
DOWNLOAD

Line-up:
  • Vox - Joachim
  • Guitar - Jesper
  • Bass - Samuel
  • Drums - Lejon
DRÅP are a self-described "death metal/crust/hardcore/whatever"-band from Sundsvall, Sweden. Their first 12'' LP "En Naturlig Död" ("A Natural Death") was released DIY, and this link is band sanctioned, yet it's also can be found in distros and their bandcamp. Musically it's Scandinavian crust in its best, and I'm sure a lot of my readers are into such stuff too.

bandcamp / facebook



Wednesday, October 22, 2014

Ignis Gratis - split w/ Warhounds (2014)

Year: 2014
Genre: Epic Crust
Country: USA 

Track List:
  1. We Wait
bandcamp

Ignis Gratis (formerly Vomit Assault) are a 4-piece band from Kansas City. This track is their side of a split 7'' w/ Warhounds from Houston, TX (they've disbanded since then). Right now, Ignis Gratis are on their 4th tour (see facebook for dates), and preparing for their first East Coast tour in November.

Parusía - "Y Su Noche No Tendrá Fin" (2014)

PARUSÍA "Y Su Noche No Tendrá Fin"

Year: 2014
Genre: Neocrust, Post-Metal
Country: Spain 

Track List:
  1. Cajas Destemplás (Introducción)
  2. Brumas de Desesperanza
  3. Víctimas De Una Sinrazón
  4. Secretos en la Oscuridad
  5. La Misma Muerte Que Hoy Nos Separa, Nos Reunirá Algún Día
  6. Vuestro Silencio Os Hace Complices
  7. ...Y Su Noche No Tendrá Fin
DOWNLOAD

Line-up:


Julio • Drums
Adri • Bass
Samu • Guitar
Fran • Vocals & Guitar 


Parusía are a neocrust band from Andalusia (South-West Spain). All the 4 members are involved in the metal/harcore/punk scene since the beggining of the 00’s with other several bands, and describe their current style as: "a mixture of metal, doom, d-beat, hardcore etc taking as mayor influences bands such as Ekkaia, Ictus, Momentum, Protestant, Horseback etc." 

Release notes:


"The lyrics are in spanish but I have translated all of them and all the info related to the album since it is a conceptual album dealing with anarchism, anti-fascism and the problems with despots in Andalusia, something that (sadly) still lives on here. It’s about the Mano Negra (Black Hand) group, a ‘terrorist’ group (it was a secret political group), acused by the spanish goverment of that time (late 19th century) of crimes that they did not do in order to stop a peasant rebellion"

bandcamp

Monday, October 20, 2014

KHÖI - s/t (2013)

KHÖI "Khöi"

Year: 2013
Genre: Blackened Crust/Sludge
Country: Mexico 

Track List:
  1. Reticula Aurea
  2. Mors Hominum
  3. Disturbio
  4. El Nacimiento de la Oscuridad
DOWNLOAD

An EP from my readers in Mexico, which is a kind of instrumental blackened stoner/post-rock. There's more info on their bandcamp page, but it's mostly in Spanish. Anyway, the stuff presented on this EP is quite good, hope for more releases from them in the future.

møl - s/t (2014)

Year: 2014
Genre: Post-Black Metal, Blackened Hardcore
Country: Denmark 

Track List:
  1. Sundrowned
  2. Airy
  3. Makhachkala
DOWNLOAD

Line-up:

Guitar/composition: Nicolai Hansen
Drums/percussion: Ken Klejs
Bass: Frederik Lippert
Vocals: Steffen Rasmussen

møl are a band from Denmark, formed in late 2012 in Aarhus, and closely linked to Solbrud (whose new album I'll review a little later too). While their lyrics aren't particularly political, they're centered around experiences, life and struggles (the song about Makhachkala is based on the conflict/terrorist attacks in that city, if I understood right). The music is post-black metal/shoegaze, even with some "Cascadian" overtones, but there's a significant hardcore/screamo influence as well.


facebook / bandcamp

Infantile Dissention - demo (2014)

INFANTILE DISSENTION "demo"

Year: 2014
Genre: Blackened Punk/Hardcore
Country: Canada 

Track List:
  1. Hidden Ploy
  2. Greasy Sludge Vampires
  3. Ignoble Dutch Hell
  4. Always in the Peripheral
  5. Demonized
  6. It's Only Natural
  7. Static Life
  8. Radio Schizo (Rudimentary Peni)
DOWNLOAD

Line-up:

Harry - Drums
Jon - Bass
Callum - Guitar / Vocals
Damian 'The Power' Grind - Cover Art

Infantile Dissention are a self-described "punk, anarchist, and anti-colonial" band from Victoria, BC, Canada. They claim to be influenced by both punk and metal, but, honestly, this demo is much closer to punk and hardcore/powerviolence than to metal. It consists of 7 short and fast tracks, recommended to those who wants something like Iskra, but less heavy.


bandcamp

Friday, October 17, 2014

Endor - "The Angriest Angel" (2014)

ENDOR "The Angriest Angel"

Year: 2014
Genre: Blackened Death Metal
Country: Netherlands 

Track List:
  1. Intro: Satan's Return + The Angry One
  2. The Forgotten Son
  3. The Most Evil
  4. Tomorrow Is Dead
  5. Judgement Day
  6. Satan Prevails
DOWNLOAD

One more free release which came into my mail without much additional information. After a little research, I found out that Endor are a quite old band (formed in 1988). This album is said to be originally recorded on a IV Track Recorder in 2001-2004, and released by Torn Flesh Records in July 2014. The label itself is based out of Portland, and seems to be specializing in grindcore. Most of the bands from their roster are unknown to me, although there are at least two bands that appeared on my blog before (Ramlord and Gukurahundi). As for this album, it's pretty good, even though the lyrics seem to be on the level of an average raw black metal band. Recommended if you're into more atmospheric yet brutal kind of death metal.

Aires - s/t (2014)

AIRES "Aires"

Year: 2014
Genre: Dark Ambient / Drone
Country: Portugal 

Track List:
  1. orgânico I - vozes sem corpo
  2. orgânico II - monolítico
  3. isósceles
  4. contraplacado
DOWNLOAD

Finally, another ambient/drone release from my inbox, which probably has no direct relation to the topic of my blog, but it's really good and released under a free license - so why not to post it?

"I've been playing experimental music for a couple of years,most of the times solo, under diferrent aliases, but as Aires I explored drones, samples and field recordings for the first time. On this release I tried to keep things as varied as I could, yet still keeping a distinct mood, somewhere between the mechanical and the animal. Mixed in the drones and noises there is also a distinct black metal influence, most present on the last track, "Contraplacado"..."

Release notes:


"The Aires project is only a couple of months old yet it represents years of experimentation with sources as diverse as digital sounds, samples and field recordings. The self-titled debut album, just released by netlabel Enough Records, shows this sonic evolution in 30 minutes, divided by three tracks and an interlude. Dark, machine-driven yet emotional and ambitious, "Aires" is a firm first step into the world of experimental music"


bandcamp / facebook

Emerson Dracon - "La Capital De Todos Los Males" (2014)

EMERSON DRACON "La Capital De Todos Los Males"

Year: 2014
Genre: Darkwave / Neololk / Martial
Country: Argentina

Track List:
  1. Pésame
  2. Credo
  3. Sanctum Poterentur
  4. All Mine (Portishead)
  5. Dirtnap Stories (Lee Hazlewood)
  6. Vencedores Vencidos (Patricio Rey y sus Redonditos de Ricota)
DOWNLOAD

After some 3 years of waiting, here's a new release from Emerson Dracon. It's titled "La Capital De Todos Los Males" ("The Capital Of All Evils"), and if I'm not mistaken, conceptually it's mostly against organized religion. Like the debut EP, it also includes a lot of covers.


bandcamp / facebook / reverbnation / soundcloud

Cervidae & Mother Of Toads - "Mercian Cosmic Alliance" (2014)

CERVIDAE / MOTHER OF TOADS "Mercian Cosmic Alliance"

Year: 2014
Genre: Experimental, Dark Ambient / Drone
Country: UK 

Track List:

Mother Of Toads
  1. Princess Tinymeate
  2. Wuthoqquan
  3. IV
Cervidae
  1. Sermon Of The Seven Suns
  2. Consolamentum
DOWNLOAD

A new release from Cervidae, an Eco-Anarchist raw black/ambient/drone from Staffordshire, England. It's a split with a fellow psychedelic/drone/improvisation project Mother Of Toads. Both sides of the split are quite experimental stuff, here's one track for example:


There's one more 2-track demo from this project, but the author preferred it to be left unpublished, because it was hastily produced, and the result turned out to be just raw repetitive noise. I still think some of my readers would enjoy it, though.

Cervidae / Mother Of Toads

Frostland Tales - "Paths Of Life" (2014)

FROSTLAND TALES "Paths Of Life"

Year: 2014
Genre: DSBM, Death/Doom Metal
Country: Czech Republic 

Track List:
  1. Paths Of Life Pt.I
  2. Paths Of Life Pt.II
  3. Paths Of Life Pt.III
  4. (666.) Don't Want To Live Anymore
DOWNLOAD

For those who became interested in Frostland Tales after I posted that split w/ Forgotten Dawn - here's the first demo EP of this project, recorded in 2013 and released in 2014. It consists of 3 untitled tracks, and a bonus one which originally was intended for a second EP (which was going to be named "Soul Cuts", but most of the material for it was lost due to a PC crash).

The author thinks it's rather DSBM than blackened doom or something like that, but for me it sounds a lot like 90's death/doom metal. The main sources of inspiration were the Czech band Trist (R.I.P.), and the  Swedish one Hypothermia. The low quality of recording and the absence of vocals were intended to make the release more atmospheric. The sole member of Frostland Tales is also active in several other bands, some of which may be more RABM-themed than this one (anarcho-grindcore, oldschool raw BM, etc.)

Wednesday, October 15, 2014

Solitary Depression - "Her Lament" (2014)

SOLITARY DEPRESSION "Her Lament"

Year: 2014
Genre: Dark Ambient / Drone
Country: Sri Lanka 

Track List:
  1. Into the Void
  2. Her Lament
  3. Dead Dream
  4. Her Demise
DOWNLOAD

As promised in my previous entry, here's another release coming from Sri Lanka. Solitary Depression is an one-man band started in 2009 as a DSBM project, but this EP seems to be pure ambient/drone to me.

Another Sri Lankan band that's certainly aware about the existence of my blog is Forlorn Hope, one of the first BM bands from there (formed in 2002, even before Funeral In Heaven). Their new album "Diabolism" is going to be out in mid-2015, but I'm not sure if it should be on here, since their lyrics are mostly about standard misanthropic stuff.

Funeral In Heaven - "Shaanthikarma" (2010)

FUNERAL IN HEAVEN "Shaanthikarma"

Year: 2010
Genre: Black Metal
Country: Sri Lanka 

Track List:
  1. Colors of Bhimpalaasri
  2. The Origins of Evil (Abhaawaya)
  3. The Winds of Uva (Wellasse Satana)
  4. Blashyrkh (Mighty Ravendark) Immortal tribute
DOWNLOAD

Recently I started to receive demos from a quite unexpected place: Sri Lanka. Before I started to post them, I'll introduce you one more band from there, which I got familiar with in 2010. Funeral In Heaven seem to be one of the oldest and best known metal bands in Sri Lanka. Started in 2003, they've released several demos and EPs, but no full-length releases so far. "Shaanthikarma" is a live EP that was recorded in 2010, and it's their latest release up to date (if their participation in some split in 2011 doesn't count). Of course the quality of sound is on the level of amateur live recording, but the material itself is very interesting, more so than a lot of Western black metal. What makes it even more interesting, apart from that it comes from a war-torn country with a quite small metal scene, is the fact that it's strongly influenced by pagan myths and spiritual practices, which apparently are alive and well in modern day Sri Lanka. I'm pretty sure they know about the existence of the RABM movement (I think I've seen them posting in our facebook group), so I think this EP would fit in here.

Emerald Weapon - "Part II: Earth Encrypted" (2014)

EMERALD WEAPON "Part II: Earth Encrypted"

Year: 2014
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal/Drone
Country: USA 

Track List:
  1. Internet Mountain
  2. Crypto-Imprisonment
  3. Cement Rivers
  4. Earth Exposure
DOWNLOAD

A follow-up to the debut Emerald Weapon EP, again consisting of 4 tracks. Like the first EP, it's atmospheric black metal, but quite experimental and not really in the "cascadian" style (even though the band is from Portland).

"Emerald Weapon is the musical, creative, and recording experiments of Frederick Michael Troina (Guitar, Bass, Synth, Programming) Matthew Earl Ramsey (Vocals, Visuals) and Salvatore Edward Troina (Drums)"

bandcamp 

Wildspeaker - "Revenge Of The Hunted" (2014)

WILDSPEAKER "Revenge Of The Hunted"

Year: 2014
Genre: Metallic Hardcore/Crust
Country: USA 

Track List:
  1. Call To Arms
  2. Justify
  3. Monochromatic
  4. Clarity
  5. One Legged Crow
  6. Revenge of The Hunted
DOWNLOAD

Line-up:

Natalie - Vox
Nelson - Guitar
Zak - Guitar
Vince - Bass
Rob - Drums

Wildspeaker is a new band of Zak (see downpour.), which recently released a debut EP titled "Revenge Of The Hunted". It was recorded and mixed 100% DIY in a living room, and it's completely free. The ideology of the band is green anarchism with heavy emphasis on primitivism, so it may be appealing to those you who's more into the "green" side of RABM (even though this release isn't black metal, it's definitely more metal-oriented than the earlier stuff by downpour.)

bandcamp / facebook

Tuesday, October 14, 2014

Forgotten Dawn & Frostland Tales - "Requiem for mankind" (2014)

FORGOTTEN DAWN / FROSTLAND TALES "Requiem For Mankind"

Year: 2014
Genre: Blackened Doom Metal
Country: Czech Republic

Track List:

Forgotten Dawn
  1. No man´s land
  2. Babylon must fall
Frostland Tales
  1. Do lesů a do hor
  2. Ztracená víra
DOWNLOAD

Two Czech one-man projects, both playing a kind of black/doom metal. Forgotten Dawn definitely has anarchist leanings (see the release notes for "Passive Resistance"), while Frostland Tales seems to be mostly apolitical. The guy behind Frostland Tales is only 17 y.o., and he's a member of several other bands and projects. According to Petr of Forgotten Dawn:

"His songs are more DSBM than mine, but still very doomy. There´s just few words in each song, so they sounds almost like instrumental music.

To Forgotten dawn: I tried to make my new tracks more "funeral" and less "atmospheric" than my previous work and I changed my vocal style a bit. It´s quite different than "Passive resistance" but I believe there is still significant handwriting" 

Tuesday, October 7, 2014

Kvltyst - "Zweifel" (2014)

KVLTYST "Zweifel"

Year: 2014
Genre: Blackened Hardcore
Country: Germany

Track List:
  1. Zweifel
  2. So dunkle Flammen
  3. Kreis
DOWNLOAD

Some more good blackened hardcore from Germany (Munich), presented by Negation Records:

"It's their first EP and they're playing a mix of black metal, post-metal and modern hardcore. You can definitely hear they're influenced by bands like Downfall of Gaia or AmenRa, but they're a bit more straight forward. The short EP is going to be released on tape on September 27th on Negation Records and Dingleberry Records, but we're already having a free download up. If people want to spend money on it, they might want to visit the band's bandcamp"


By the way, the same label also has released a compilation of old works by Flagellant not so long ago:


"Back to the Old House consists of some reworked material that has been recorded about 6 or 7 years ago. It's an instrumental album, which contains mostly highly distorted songs that might resemble shoegaze or a rather punkish style of black metal, if it wasn't for the fuzz and noise. Think of Vegas Martyrs doing an album after having listened to too much My Bloody Valentine. The tape is limited to 20 pieces, but you can download it for free on our bandcamp-page (of course)"

bandcamp / facebook

Depravation & Slowly We Rot - split (2014)

DEPRAVATION / SLOWLY WE ROT

Year: 2014
Genre: Blackened Hardcore
Country: Germany / Belgium

Track List:
  1. Depravation - With Dead Eyes To See
  2. Slowly We Rot - Leftover
  3. Slowly We Rot - Solitary Realm
DOWNLOAD

"Depravation was founded in December 2011. In March 2012 we’ve released our demo-tape “I:PRAEDICTVM, followed by our first LP "II:MALEDICTVM" in July 2013. Since then we've played a bunch of shows. In April 2014 our drummer moved to Hamburg and had to leave the band. We've recorded the song "With Dead Eyes To See" with our new drummer in June. I guess it's fair to say that our new music has a different vibe, compared to our older tracks. But I'll let you be the judge of this...


Slowly We Rot is the follow up band for Niels after Worms Feed (http://wormsfeed.bandcamp.com/ ). Founded in late 2013, the 3-piece delivers evil and filth soaked sonic terror in the form of metallic hardcore. The two tracks on this split are their first recordings. Keep your eyes open for these young guns, as there is way more good stuff to be coming from them in the future.



Our new split was released on tape by Dark Omen Records (GER) and Skin & Bones Records (UK). It’s available in three different colors and limited to 100 pieces in total. You can get it here: http://darkomenrecords.storenvy.com/


Feel free to upload this album on your blog and if you feel inspired to write a few words about it, please do so" (unfortunately, right now I don't feel like writing any detailed reviews, but thank you anyway for sending me your music and being interested in what I write on here - B.K.)

facebook / bandcamp / official site

Sunday, October 5, 2014

Fear Of Unknown - "Don't Mess With The Unknown" (2013)

FEAR OF UNKNOWN "Don't Mess With The Unknown"

Year: 2013
Genre: Blackened Crust
Country: Brazil

Track List:
  1. Intro
  2. Thermonuclear Devastation (Onslaught cover)
  3. Damned Youth
  4. Extermination
  5. Devastate
  6. Back To The Scene Of The Holocaust
  7. Curfew
  8. Blindland
  9. Dawn Of The Black Forces
DOWNLOAD

Fear of Unknown is an one-man blackened crust/thrash project from Uberlândia, Brazil. "Don't Mess With The Unknown" is a short D.I.Y.-recorded demo released about an year ago. There's not much information about the project besides that; however, anything done in the spirit of Do It Yourself and with a passion about this kind of sound certainly has a place in my blog.

bandcamp

Dunnock - split w/ Intergalactic Holocaust (2014)

DUNNOCK "split w/ Intergalactic Holocaust"

Year: 2013
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal, Dark Ambient/Drone
Country: USA

Track List:
  1. Flower of Flesh and Blood
  2. Jan 28th (my harp is turned to mourning)
  3. Kudryavka
  4. Facedown in the Ohio
DOWNLOAD

Dunnock is a black metal project from SF Bay Area which released the debut full-length album a couple of years ago, but I decided not to post it back then, since it seemed to be not particularly in my taste. This is a new release with a more interesting concept which some of my readers might be interested in.

These 4 songs comprise Dunnock's part of a split with a project from Australia called Intergalactic Holocaust. IH mostly specialize in apolitical space-themed horror lyrics and atmospheric BM, while Dunnock's side is more political and therefore more suitable for my blog. The material is divided between two black metal tracks and two dark ambient pieces. The quality of production is still quite "lo-fi" but better than their early works. Here are the release notes:

"The black metal tracks explore the nature of sacrifice in light of the Cold War Space Race with a song being dedicated each to the US and Soviet Union.  

The US track ("Jan 28th") is about the Challenger Disaster, specifically the death of teacher-astronaut Christa McAuliffe, who's presence on the shuttle was primarily a propaganda stunt.  It is told from the point of view of her students who watched the shuttle explode on live television.

The Soviet track ("Kudryavka") is about the Space Dog Laika, who was rushed into space on an unsafe rocket, again as a publicity stunt, and died a horrible death as a result of poor planning. The song is told from the point of view of her trainer. (All things above considered, the track name still sounds quite funny for a BM song. - B.K.)

The ambient pieces are also about sacrifice of one sort or another, and have a political bent to them.  "Facedown in the Ohio" is about a classmate of mine who supposedly drowned in the Ohio River after abusing inhalants.  It's later come to my attention that he may have been murdered and the drowning staged.  In either case it is a reflection on the sorry condition of my home state of West Virginia, which has been robbed and raped by the coal and oil companies, the people left jobless and destitute, prone to violence and substance abuse, with perhaps the lowest life expectancy rate in the developed world.

The other piece "Flower of Flesh and Blood" is named after the film, itself an exploitative story about the sexualizing of violence and literal bloody sacrifice in the name of personal pleasure"

bandcamp