Rolling Metal 2016

Found a CD in my collection I have no memory of buying by Unconsecrated from Spain. Really excellent death metal, albeit with little in the way of originality, just gnashing riffs and ribcage-cracking vocals. Drum machine, too, but programmed excellently and not distracting.

the LLNN album plugged earlier itt is amazing, what a sound they have

loving the new 40 Watt Sun too, not many bands could pull off a 17-minute opener nearly as gracefully

>that said, there are a lot of kids now who think Slayer or metallica were the first true metal band and anything before thrash was 'hard rock'. Twats

Metal obviously came about some time in the late 60s but the thrash stuff was when metal started defining itself as something separate from rock--blues as basis for melody goes out the window, much less emphasis on syncopation, etc etc. Talking about something being "more metal" than something else is silly but it can have a meaningful basis in the music & the culture surrounding it.

I mean even back in the 80s, a lot of thrash kids far as removed from Blue Cheer/Black Sabbath/early Priest as hip-hop heads. Nothing wrong with language evolving to reflect stuff like that

Anciients, Voice Of The Void is basically early-2000s Opeth meets early-2000s Mastodon. The death vocals > the clean vocals. It's good enough; sounds nice in early autumn. I doubt it'll stick with me into 2017, though.

that's p much exactly how I felt about their first album

A track from the forthcoming Hail Spirit Noir:

https://youtu.be/nQ1oop-wvjs

Today I did this important work: https://open.spotify.com/user/glennpmcdonald/playlist/3xSoYVOXxgFGUcNksc1owE

Bestial Evil are really good death/thrash, but they're fucking crazy if they think I'm paying $10 for six minutes of music.

https://bestialevil.bandcamp.com/

Looking forward to the new Hail Spirit Noir, they're always good fun.

If you want to pay $3 for six minutes of music the individual tracks are on sale for a buck apiece...

Memoirs of a Secret Empire
Vertigo
(Signal Rex)
Release Date: CD 9/30/2016; Cassette 12/10/2016

http://f4.bcbits.com/img/a4248239730_16.jpg

http://open.spotify.com/album/5oAUrSgM9PWd4ZeUm4DP0x
http://memoirsofasecretempire.bandcamp.com/

Portugal post-metal. This is the band's debut after a 2013 EP. MOASE will appeal to fans of Russian Circles and Alcest in how the band makes delicate passages of inertia seem powerful and the more metallic parts seem introspective and calming. The subtle (and sometimes not so subtle) keys help tie it all together. Three listens so far, one while driving, and I found something new each time and get the feeling that could happen with many more spins.

Metal obviously came about some time in the late 60s but the thrash stuff was when metal started defining itself as something separate from rock--blues as basis for melody goes out the window, much less emphasis on syncopation, etc etc.

No, not obvious at all. I know some like to call Blue Cheer, Led Zep, even Cream, Steppenwolf and Hendrix metal, but that's just not accurate. They were heavy blues rock and not remotely metal. Interestingly, it was MC5 who inspired Deep Purple to get faster and louder on In Rock. But they and Black Sabbath were adamant that they were not metal, at least at first, though I definitely think of them and Uriah Heep as proto-metal. The first album to really meet the above criteria was Judas Priest's Sad Wings Of Destiny.

I have been living and breathing the Khemmis album. Like their labelmates Magic Circle, jobs (or Ph.D. programs) are keeping them from properly touring, but luckily they're coming to Chicago. I'm buying tickets today!

October 23rd - Southwest Terror Fest
January 13th - Reggies Chicago IL
January 14th - St. Vitus, Brooklyn NY

http://listen.20buckspin.com/album/hunted-2
http://fastnbulbous.com/khemmis-hunted/

Heavy metal was more of an insult at the time, wasn't it?

Peste Noire banned from Blastfest because if they were allowed to play, """anti-fascists""" would attack.

Heavy metal was more of an insult at the time, wasn't it?

It depends on who said it. The first use of it I found was an insult, but then Saunders turned it around. Most examples I saw were positive, but I'm sure it was used negatively too. It still is sometimes.

Mike Saunders who first used it consistently, first in a very derogatory way in a November 12, 1970 Humble Pie review in Rolling Stone.

“Safe As Yesterday Is, their first American release, proved that Humble Pie could be boring in lots of different ways. Here they were a noisy, unmelodic, heavy metal-leaden shit-rock band, with the loud and noisy parts beyond doubt… This album, more of the same 27th-rate heavy metal crap, is worse than the first two put together…”

More positively and appropriately, he used it in his May 1971 review of Sir Lord Baltimore’s Kingdom Come in Creem.

“ALL YOU TRUE blue Heavy fans, take heart. This album is a crusher. Sure enough, Sir Lord Baltimore is none other than a new heavy band discovered by Dee Anthony, Who Should Know (Joe Cocker, Free, Humble Pie); and while SLB’s degree of success hasn’t been determined yet, they’ve certainly got what it takes to rake in a million.

This album is a far cry from the currently prevalent Grand Funk sludge, because Sir Lord Baltimore seems to have down pat most all the best heavy metal tricks in the book. Precisely, they sound like a mix between the uptempo noiseblasts of Led Zeppelin (instrumentally) and singing that’s like an unending Johnny Winter shriek: they have it all down cold, including medium or uptempo blasts a la LZ, a perfect carbon of early cataclysmic MC5 (‘Hard Rain Fallin”), and the one-soft-an-album concept originated by Jimmy Page and his gang.” | More.

Interesting! I always had the impression it became considered "cool" circa late 70s...

Anyways you guys, this Khanus EP is awesome. Little bit of that crazy occult quality Root has with some great guitar work. I like the new guitar trends in black/death stuff, weird, string-y sounds and some twang and discordance but without losing track of legible riff forms.

Thread playlist is updated; 250 tracks and 24 hours plus to wade through.

ILM's Rolling Metal Thread 2016 Spotify Playlist

BTW, I finally got to the Dark Space III I album on my 2015 listening list and "Dark 4.18" is grrrrrrrrrreat

I saw Satan last night, and they were just as great as last time (a couple years ago). Brian Ross was more talkative this time, telling jokes, partly because he said he was fighting a bug and and his voice was suffering. However he still hit those incredible high notes. Recommended (Detroit tonight, Toronto, Montreal, then Finland). I picked up a long-sleeve tour shirt for the winter. Cauldron's vocalist Jason Decay may not be the strongest singer, but his enthusiasm wins me over, plus I love Ian Jones' guitar playing.

I also bought tickets for Horisont and Electric Citizen next week, Alehorn of Power IX with Thor (yes the same Thor featured in the movie Rock 'n' Roll Nightmare), Professor Black and Argus, and Khemmis in January. All are at Reggie's, just a mile up the street from me.

I'll also be going to this on Nov 19: DOOMED & STONED: BELL WITCH, BRIMSTONE COVEN, DEMON EYE, PALE DIVINE, etc.

Solid Bandcamp Daily piece on "the New Wave of American True Metal." I don't know why, but I always thought Chris Black (Dawnbringer, High Spirits) was Canadian. Anyway, a good piece about good bands, some of which I wish I liked more than I do but any one of which I'll take over this week's "controversial" black metal whatever.

Eternal Champion sounds promising.

so relieved to learn your stance about black metal, been wondering for so long

Man every day, the black metal controversies
It's llike I can't BREATHE I'm drowning in it

like the Nightspirit, thus he has spake

the band Wretch is really going all in on the "82 St. Vitus SST glossy promo shot" aesthetic

I like true metal, much better than false metal imho

Nice! That Bandcamp piece nails most of my favorites from the past year except for Spirit Adrift, Christian Mistress, Castle and Valkyrie. Lucky to have Chris Black in Chicago, I've seen all his bands many times. He's performing at Alehorn in a couple weeks as Professor Black. I'm not sure if that's a new project, or just cherry picking songs from all his bands. I got tired of unwieldy terms like new old wave and retro wave. It's just heavy metal.

new Testament is fun as usual, seems a little more vibrant than the last one, which I also liked.

but i'm only a few songs in, maybe the polka and xylophone songs show up 3 songs in

well. that's a first. something must be wrong with like the mp3s on Amazon as the second halfo f each track just cuts out to silence. tried on multiple devices.

it's only three songs it does it on. having to msg them now.

Drakkar productions has been licensing TONS of recentish French black metal lately, and I'm resolutely trying to audition at least a track each time they send me an email. FOMO is a terrible curse.

Anyway, last year's entry from Malcuidant, "Et la terra brula" is one the keepers that justifies the search. It's more straightforward BM than what I usually go for, but spritely tempos and crisp production make this one stand out for me.

https://drakkar-productions-official.bandcamp.com/album/malcuidant-et-la-terre-br-la

spinning the new Crowbar. I'd kinda given up on these dudes after the shitty Oddfellow's Rest but I liked the one they did a few years back. a few tracks in, though, this one adheres to the trad Crowbar formula but it seems vibrant as fucking hell. Kirk is roaring his ass off again, there's purpose to the writing that was missing. this is almost making me feel high school aged again.

not gonna top "Broken Glass" but I really like how many metal elder statesmen there are still making good fuckin' shit in addition to the new blood.

Mr. Amalgamoth if you read this I don't know how to/if I can reply to ilx emails so: I'm glad you're carrying on and I have all your stuff anyway because Ophidian Forest fucking rule. Thanks.

Happy Halloween. 2CD out today, other formats in the coming months. Really glad bands can still pull off these sneak attacks nowadays.
http://i.imgur.com/op4mxgJ.jpg

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zTGw5xbhvyI

ah, correction: the release date was changed for the CD version - Nov 25

New CdG sounds promising! New Hail Spirit Noir is awesome. This Prostitute Disfigurement (sigh) CD from 2006 I got today? Also awesome.

Dio fans rejoice(?) - Elf's two albums, Carolina County Ball and Trying to Burn the Sun, are being reissued next month on one of Cherry Red's sub-labels.

Cannot wait for the Cultes des Ghoules. My favorite black metal band going, and the vocalist is amazing.

the bandcamp article continues to be a great resource

https://highspiritsmetal.bandcamp.com/album/motivator

this is so fucking great, great songwriting and sense of fun. gets at a lot of great stuff about 80s metal w/o feeling like it's just aping it.

Email I just got: "EARACHE RECORDS ACQUIRES NACHTMYSTIUM BACK-CATALOGUE TITLES"

Wonder if they got a used toaster and car stereo as part of the package.

I wonder if they just paid him in drugs or

new Khanus track here, where they up both the Finnish folk quotient, and general occult vibe. Maybe closer to dark ambient than metal actually
https://khanus.bandcamp.com/album/dance-of-the-shaman

if the Cultes des Ghoules doesn't trump them, 2016 may go down as the year two metal EPs (Khanus & Cadaveric Fumes) topped my best of list.

about to buy the hell outta the new Ulcerate, one of the best death metal bands in the world

It's really dope. Nice Halloween soundtrack

hey hey the new DSO is streaming in full

https://deathspellomega.bandcamp.com/album/the-synarchy-of-molten-bones

They have not gone pop metal, in case you were worried.

Oh, the Lifespell Omega conversion album is going to be amazing.

Ditto the tropical-metal album from Blut Aus Sud.

Sweet Hollow by Them is pretty fun King Diamond mimicry. The vocals, the horror album concept... they actually pull it off not too badly.

https://them6.bandcamp.com/ (whole album is on Youtube)

This Bhavachakra album... scrapy, trebled out guitars (with that modern underdriven distortion sound I'm not super fond of), discordant, DsO, probably own "Obscura," yeah yeah. Some of the riffing attempts eloquence successfully but the production's kind of distracting - sounds like the guitars were recorded on a cassette four-track while everything else was done in a pro studio. Especially those drums.

That's not to say I'm not going to listen to it a lot for a week or so, though.