One man rode the way through the woods …
A quiet night in the home; all are asleep as I type this. The perfect time to press play and get lost in the myriad forms of extreme music sent our way, whether by PO Box or inbox. Although in separate locations tonight, this week Marty and I have uncovered a mixture of arrivals from both; a complement of demos including an album from Maine death-metallers Shabti, another from black/doom metal-man Portent, and finally a former self-release (put out now by Dark Descent)of Illinois thrash/Maiden worshippers Oblong Box. Of the signed side of things, Marty covers the Aussie black metal of Erebus Enthroned, the polished BM of Cronian and the dark/doom of Finns 0xist. Thank you all for the spirited discussion last week; the importance/unimportance of nostalgia topic inspired a lot good conversation. Topic for this week: We’re over ninety days into 2014 now – have your 2013 favorites remained the same, or have your lasst-year end lists altered in the last few months? Post! Playlist! Comment! Crikey!
Jim Clifton Playlist
Ulver – Bergtatt
Burzum – Belus
Trenchrot – Necronomic Warfare
Bathory – Blood Fire Death / …The Return / Hammerheart / Nordland I
Nebelung – Palingenesis
Mayhem – De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas
Seidr – Ginnungagap
Blasphemy – Gods of War
Deceased – Supernatural Addiction
The Chasm – Conjuration of the Spectral Empire
Marty Rytkonen Playlist
The Lord Weird Slough Feg – Down Among the Deadmen
The Lord Weird Slough Feg – S/T
Slough Feg – Atavism
Putrevore – Macabre Kingdom
Fuck I’m Dead – Another Gory Mess (Zahler bands are infiltrating my listening time!! how did this happen?!? 😉 )
Dirge – Hyperion
V/A – Doomsday News – Noise int’l comp (One of my most beloved comps of all time. This slab was hugely influential on my metal development all those years ago)
Panopticon – Roads to the North
Stilla – Till stilla Falla
Stilla – Ensamhetens Andar
Worm Gear 
My 2013 best of list hasn’t waned but there were some awesome late finds. Not sure if they would have placed but it just goes to show, there is always more awesome stuff out there.
Darkenhold – Echoes From the Stone Keeper
Aenaon – Extance
Setherial – Lords of the Nightrealm
The Everdawn – Poems – Burn the Past
Anagnorisis – Beyond All Light
Order of Leviathan – The Infernal Path to Total Darkness
Vindensång – Alpha
Imperial Crystalline Entombment – Imperial Crystalline Entombment
Gravecode Nebula – Sempiternal Void
Acheron – Rites of the Black Mass
Wildernessking – The Devil Within
Rauhnåcht – Urzeitgeist
Acheron – Kult des hasses
Krieg – The Black House
Flagellator – Channeling the Acheron
Arkanum – Fran Marder
A Canorous Quintet – Silence of the World Beyond
Marty, glad to see you shed some more light on the OXIST. Its an excellent album. I tell people to imagine Samael Worship Him /Blood Ritual right smacked against the heavy might of Evoken and you would get this heavy slab of Doom!
Portent is cool. Picked that up last night. Thanks for that.
Oblong Box is a cool demo! Listened to that many a times over the last year.
Nice going this week guys. Lots of nice stuff!
My list for 2013 hasn’t changed but added Gigan’s newest album plus a few others as well.
Playlist:
Jacula – Pre Viam
Paul Chain – King of Dreams
Cult of Daath – Doomed By the Witch Demo
Satanic Dystopia – Double Denim Shotgun Massacre (the case is hilarious Jim)
Skelthal – Deathmanicvs Revelation
Slomatics – Estron (TONE!!! )
Sodom – Obsessed By Cruelty -Steamhammer (2nd recorded version)
Realm Builder – Fortificatoins of the Pale Architect
Reverend Bizarre – So Long Suckers
Demilich – Box Set – 2nd record demos and 2006 material!
Howdy,
I share both Marty and Jim playlist items today. Metal mind meld attack.
AGENT STEEL — Unstoppable Force
HELSTAR — A Distant Thunder
(TLW) SLOUGH FEG — Traveller, Atavism, Digital Resistance
FLESHCRAWL — Descend into the Absurd
TORCHURE — Beyond the Veil (fucking ace)
THE CHASM — Conjuration of the Spectral Empire
FATES WARNING — The Spectre Within
CREEPMIME — Shadows
SUFFOCATION — Pierced from Within
I keep up on new releases now only nominally better now than I did years ago, which is to say almost not at all. I’m still listening to two of 2013’s best constantly (out of six, seven things that I heard with any seriousness?), and I’d like to announce GORGUTS or CARCASS have nothing to do with them.
Need that DEMILICH box, sooner or later.
Cheers
I really wanted that Demilich vinyl box set as well, but I just can’t afford the $$ right now. Looked pretty sweet though.
And Jim… we really need to get you situated with Bathory’s stunning Blood on Ice. The Woodwoman? The Lake? Timeless classics.
Arhhggh, Blood on Ice – my least favorite. But I love Requiem!!!!! And even Octagon. Blood on Ice, for me was knives in my ears. However, I am sure it was the same for others with the ones that I like so much as well.
The Demilich is sweet. Very very well done. Sounds excellent too. Svart did a fantastic job on it.
The singing and the “borrowing” of Metallica and Manowar ideas always made me an uncommitted Bathory listener, and Under the SIgn of the Black Mark, which shows less “borrowing” and more successful vocals is probably my favorite album by them/him. Overall, I’ve tried all the supposed classics by them/him and return infrequently, though I see the appeal. A very important transitional band, but I like their inspirations and who they inspired far more.
and Marty, you are listening to grindcore castoffs with Fuck I’m Dead— that is a poor man’s version of The Kill’s superb Make ‘Em Suffer. That album and Insect Warfare’s World Extermination are my top favorites in grindcore, excepting some goregrind like Lymphatic Phlegm, Carcass, Blasted Pancreas, etc. If you dig the okay Fuck I’m Dead, please check out The Kill, which has the best grindcore riffs, and Insect Warfare, which is completely overwhelming, but in a focused and unnerving way.
Playlist
The Crevice Below Below the Crevices
Midnight Odyssey Firmament
Pus Vomit Stoned to Death
Evilfeast Isenheimen EP
The Kill Make ‘Em Suffer
Flux Pavillion Blowing your Mind
John Coltrane My Favorite Things (the latter solos in the title cut shred and the drum breaks in Summertime are great)
Horace SIlver Song For My Father
Michael Schenker Bridge the Gap (this is on the borderline. some decent songs, but not enough memorable soloing from the man)
I still stand by my 2013 year end list, with the only changes that I would make would be additions I would make on albums from 2013 I have heard since then. Nocturnal Graves – From the Bloodline of Cain is one that comes to mind quickly.
Behemoth – The Satanist
Cynic – Kindly Bent to Free Us (Awesome!)
Indian – From All Purity (Shit like this has to be pretty damn good for me to get into anymore. This is pretty damn good.)
Morbus Chron – Sweven
Waldgefluster – Meine Fesseln
Judas Priest – Painkiller
Iron Maiden – Beast Over Hammersmith
Inquisition – Obscure Verses For the Multiverse
Asphyx – Death Hammer
Genesis – The Lamb Lies Down On Broadway
I’ve been picking up some good new releases from various subgenres of metal lately. I generally like listening to metal from many different subgenres and enjoy it particularly when I have good albums from various subgenres to listen to within one sitting. This can make things challenging when deciding on what to buy next. Do you guys like listening to many types of metal or do you prefer focusing more on certain subgenres? Certain subgenres you don’t like? I get a sense for some of your listening habits based on your playlist, but still interesting to hear about.
Zahler, my favorites are ‘Under the Sign of the Black Mark’ and ‘Blood Fire Death’, the former for the reasons you mentioned (originality, vocals, and its influences on the Norwegian styles) and the latter for the Bathory-ness plus Manowar coming through. I will say the odd denial of influences Quorthon often perpetuated was strange, especially when so apparent. Kudos to you for not being afraid to point them out, as some are 🙂
Of course I love Bathory, but Marty I have to agree with Patrick on ‘Blood On Ice’ – the out of key vocals derail it; maybe one day I can get past them as it is a relatively late listen for me, but for now Quorthon’s better performances on Nordland I & II are where I’ll keep my Viking-era flag unfurled \m/
As for my topic I posted, I really feel I should have had Endlichkeit I&II on there. I listen to its simple, mindnumbing BM often. And though I feel Bolzer is the more unique album of the two, I listen to Sacriphyx’s ‘The Western Front’ so much more, so I keep wondering if I should have transposed my 1 and 2 spots. The question herein is, what matters more: something utterly unique that will have lasting influence, or something that takes the hands of many of the old gods and makes them sound fresh? Always an enjoyable conundrum for me 🙂
Patrick, glad you liked Portent. I think there’s serious potential there; the next release will probably show it I’d wager.
Yeah, Blood on Ice just sounds awful and there isn’t much of anything really ‘new’ going on but repeating ideas from the previous Viking albums. Have you ever revisited Requiem? Its a great nasty Black Thrash album.
Shawn – Putting general mood aside, which largely affects what we want to hear, I like to believe that I am eager to listen to anything DARK and crafted well, be it any genre or subgenre within. Doesn’t have to be Metal. I ideally want creative, at least semi-original dark stuff that inspires me. Could be Tom Waits, could be Miles Davis, could be Wagner, could be Incanation.
You guys are crazy! Blood on Ice is amazing! haha. Again, it’s amazing how we all interpret the same piece of music differently. And vocals out of key? Hard to slam it on that point, as all his pitch vocals are shaky, to sometimes just plain bad. But this is part of the charm! Twilight of the Gods in particular. Either way… The Woodwoman and The Lake…. magic!! So bombastic and triumphant. To me anyway.
Patrick… Regarding Requiem and Octagon. I HATED those albums when they came out, but many years later, like aspects of both. Octagon is the worst of the 2 to me anyway, but Requiem is pretty solid.
yeah, i didn’t like them either when they came out. but in retrospect after over a decade, i fucking love requiem.
Favorite Bathory Viking Album – Hammerheat!
Gonna throw in my hat with Marty about Blood On Ice. One of the best hunks of cheese I’ve ever had the pleasure of overdosing on. So much perfect, memorable riffing on this one.
You two have serious rotten corncobs in your ears. If you like Blood on Ice more than Hammerheart, well, you are, well….a POOP HEAD!
I love all the viking era albums. Even most of destroyer of worlds, though there is crap on that one. Hammerheart vs Blood on Ice… both are really undeniably awesome. It depends on my mood which one i spin, but i get the same feeling of awesomeness from both.
It may be a boring answer, but my 2013 preferences have stayed the same as we progress through the new year.
Bathory talk? I’ll have to, on first impulse, hold up the Hammerheart flag. For no other reason that it is attached to more ‘life-experience’ memories than the other albums.
Playlist: (the first two are remnants still spinning from last week’s nostalgia binge … ha!)
Coven – Worship New Gods
– Really an amalgam of influences at work on this old recording. The more I listen, the more I enjoy it. The Bauhaus-esque vocals really add to the charm for me personally, as I have been a long time admirer of the dark, post-punk work from Peter and the boys).
Black Hole – The Land of Mystery and Behind the Gravestone
Sangre de Muerdago – all
– great nature-oriented music from Spain.
Lykauges – Swan Song
– just digging the simple old-school blasting and riff-attack of this track in particular … I cannot help but be reminded of one of my old favorites, Algaion
Enmerkar – Starlit Passage (Zahler, perhaps this project is already known to you, but in case it is not: The atmosphere on this one has the same charm to it that Sacrilegium’s material holds for me. Check ‘Where the Mountains Will Hide Your Ghost’ intro, and ‘Scaling the Throne Of Arhemanius’!
Sentimen Beltza – Zulo Beltz Eta Sakon Honetan
Eald – Perhaps, In the End from their 2010 demo
Domains – Sinister Ceremonies
Vintersemestre – Jaaverisaatana
Poccolus – ST
Zephyrous – A Caress of War and Wisdom (love the bass interplay … Ichor!)
I have also been enjoying the material from Eternal Champion, Graven Rite, Wrathblade (dolorous shock!), latest Realmbuilder, etc. I am quite picky about these particular ‘styles’. Finding albums that actually ‘click’ for me seems difficult, and I was wondering if you guys might be so kind as to share some of your favorites?
Hails to you all!
It may be a boring answer, but my 2013 preferences have stayed the same as we progress through the new year.
Playlist: (the first two are remnants still spinning from last week’s nostalgia binge … ha!)
Coven – Worship New Gods
– Really an amalgam of influences at work on this old recording. The more I listen, the more I enjoy it. The Bauhaus-esque vocals really add to the charm for me personally, as I have been a long time admirer of the dark, post-punk work from Peter and the boys).
Black Hole – The Land of Mystery and Behind the Gravestone
Sangre de Muerdago – all
– great nature-oriented music from Spain.
Lykauges – Swan Song
– just digging the simple old-school blasting and riff-attack of this track in particular … I cannot help but be reminded of one of my old favorites, Algaion
Sorry for the duplicate text, guys. Getting late here. Ha!
Re Bathory…My preferences on Bathory’s albums have evolved or devolved over the years depending on how you look at it. If you would have asked me 10 years ago I would have told you without hesitation that Hammerheart was my favorite album. I spent most of my listening time with their Viking era material especially Hammerheart, Twilight, and the Nordland albums. I do like Blood On Ice, but prefer the aforementioned albums. However today I find myself spending more time with their black metal albums and the transitional Blood Fire Death album. I probably listen to The Return and BFD the most. Hammerheart is still one of my favorites I just don’t listen to it quite as often as I used to. I have never heard Octagon, Requiem, or Destroyer of Worlds. It’s been a long time since I have done a Bathory marathon…I am starting to feel the need for one.
Zahler… where did you buy the Sacrilegium CD from? It’s an old release and a lot of $$ on ebay.
Unearth,
Thanks for suggestions— Lykauges sounds good too. and Wrathblade- yeah, i really dig the “all rights!” and closing S-H-O-C-K! in dolorous shock. some filler in the middle of that one, but the last two songs and first few are really good. Black Hole and Coven are both right on the edge for me in terms of consistency (and pitch), but have their moments, and clearly, we both value Shadow Kingdom Records, which is my favorite label for years. Be sure to get those excellent Ritual albums and the Dragonslayer comp if you don’t have them. Other than Angel Witch, Diamond Head, Di’Anno Maiden and Trespass, those are my top favorite NWOBHM releases.
Rytkonen,
I bough Sacrilegium for about 30 bucks on Amazon, used, but in great shape. There were no cheaper ones available, so I’d check there.
Thanks for the info, Zahler. I am going to snag that Ritual and Dragonslayer. I grew up on black metal, dark post punk, death metal, and dark folk predominantly. In all honesty, most of the NWOBHM/traditional/speed/power metal just wasn’t/isn’t my thing. This was mostly due to a lot of the vocals, ‘hard rockin’ riffs, and general atmosphere. However, I have been recently discovering, and really enjoying, a bunch of artists/albums that seem to fall within that epic/heavy/doom ‘category’, some of which I have recently mentioned. I figured it was high time to do some work, exercise some patience, and open my ears to some sub-genres that I have not naturally gravitated towards in the past. Thanks again for your input. Also, thanks to all of you other wise spirits for any recommendations or personal highlights you might wish to advocate. I appreciate the input/discussion.
Marty, you MUST have the Sacrilegium album already? If not, let me know, and I can probably (and gladly) help you out.
Spinning tonight:
Crimson Relic – Purgatory’s Reign
Solitude Aeturnus – Beyond the Crimson Horizon
… and because of the nomial similarities, I had to pull out one of my old favorites …
Aeternus – Beyond the Wandering Moon
Unearth… No sir!! I lack Sacrilegium. Just spun Wicher on youtube this evening. How did I miss this band the first time around? Anyway… Wicher was amazing… if you could point me in the right direction on that, it would be greatly appreciated.
On a related note… going through a stack of CDrs several months ago, I came across the North / Grom/ Marhoth – Sovereigns of Northern Lands split CD that I dubbed from someone down the line. I’ve been spinning the 2 North songs on this constantly. They were “shoe gaze” before the term took off and became a thing. Both of those tracks are otherworldly and possess such an amazing vibe. I know they have changed considerably, but my hunt for their older titles is on as well.
I’m off to work right now, but I’m on it Marty. I’ll get back to you very soon with info and some comments. Hails!
First: Creepmime! Good to see them mentioned, that album is MANDATORY! And John Coltrane! Horace Silver! Nice!
Best of 2013; ehm… That got lost in the day to day listening shuffle, I forget pretty quickly which album is from which year. Seidr, right?!
Bathory; that’s the first time I see/hear someone openly mentioning Quorthon’s riff stealing! I always thought the fast songs on Blood Fire Death are mostly made out of old Slayer ideas. The Golden Walls of Heaven vs. Hell Awaits? But when played with so much rage and raw abandon, who cares? Hard to pick a favorite from the first six but I think I’ll go with Hammerheart, those songs really hit me in the gut. Goosebumps!
Been a while since I’ve posted, laptop crashed and didn’t have the opportunity to replace it right away. Gotta say it does have its charms, living without internet for a while… The musical menu has been all over the place since I last posted (been enjoying a major jazz phase) but lately I’ve been gravitating toward the old school sound, be it old or new:
Incantation – Onwards to Golgotha (never gets old)
Embrace of Thorns – Praying for Absolution
Father Befouled – Revulsion of Seraphic Grace
Imprecation – Satanae Tenebris Infinita
Blood Ritual – Black Grimoire (received a promo of this one with an order from Moribund some time ago, left it lying around until last week when I played it out of curiosity as I saw it was on several of Moribunds staff members’ playlist. Hell, this is GOOD! Early Morbid Angel worship done right!)
Infernal Legion – Spear of Longinus
Plus some more blackened stuff:
Pact – The Dragon Lineage of Satan (looking forward to their new album!)
Dodsferd – A Cursed Heritage (anyone heard the new one yet?)
Arckanum – Kampen
…and also some Overkill stuff on shuffle and I’m rediscovering Dar De Duh by Dordeduh, a late night listening favorite.
So, I have a lot of playlists and reviews to explore now… What did I miss? Shit, still have to get me that Waldgeflüster album.
Marty,
I sent you some info at the bindrune@charter.net address.
Shoegaze-esque … indeed! Astral Wings was one of my favorite labels back in the 90’s, and that three-way-split is still near and dear to me. If you have not already, make sure to grab: Thorns on the Black Rose, Jesienne Szepty (split with Sacrilegium), and From the Dark Past. Great releases by North, in the old style.
Zahler,
I was just spinning some Blaspheme from France. I am actually digging it quite a bit. The vocal style might be somewhat odd for some, perhaps. It took some getting used to, but it actually fits the music really well, and in my opinion is quite charming once it sanks in. You mentioned a slight dislike for the ‘pitch/quirkiness’ of some other projects, so this might fall into that category. ??? Just thought I would toss it out there in case it was of any interest.
Back to work …
unearth,
blaspheme is okay, though when dealing with sorta wobbly, sorta nwobhm-style frenchmen, i’m doubtful there’s something more awkwardly fun than sortilege’s metamorphose album. the sound on that is much closer to the sound of black hole, but (a little) more competent with some of the elaborations of witchcross.
ikbenfreek,
welcome back to the board: it’s nice to see you again over here!
my memory of hammerheart was that entire sections of metallica’s finest moment ever– creeping death—happened on the album— not a lick, but entire sections— and that my friend and i laughed at how blatant the stealing was when we heard it: neither of us had to point out what was being ripped off because it was so obvious. i just feel that the only time bathory successfully landed 100% with something that was their (his) own was under the sign of the black mark, an album that essentially contains everything that carpathian forest would do for a dozen albums.
i’ve mixed views on coltrane the composer, but really enjoy his solos, especially on my favorite things. love supreme and meditations have some great stuff, whereas blue train and soultrane bore the shit out of me, and giant steps is fun, especially the second half, which is less flip. in terms of jazz composers whom i find far more consistent, i strongly prefer mingus and jackie mclean. wayne shorter, horace silver, and oliver nelson each have a great album, and some stuff i like less.
Thanks Zahler!
Re: Bathory: Quorthon did steal riffs and ideas but I do think what he made with it was really his own. Although his building blocks were stolen from here and there, the final product sounded like Bathory and nothing else, especially album 4-8 (the viking trilogy) me thinks.
Re: jazz: Agreed on Coltrane. His early stuff is a bit bland imo (although his albums with Miles Davis are brilliant I think). Later Coltrane can be jawdropping, but he doesn’t make it easy for you… Mingus is great, in terms of composition (and bandleadership) second only to the great Duke Ellington and his bass playing is superhuman sometimes. Plus I love all the passion that drips from his recordings (the shouting, urging his bandmates to play their asses off). McLean, Shorter and Silver are all favourites, Nelson; yeah, that one album. I’ve been listening to drummer Art Blakey and his Jazz Messengers a lot lately, imo his are the heaviest, most driving grooves in jazz (although Elvin Jones with Coltrane is also really something).
Shit, we talking jazz here?? Get the fuck out! 😉
Back to Motörhead…