Rolling Metal Thread 2012

I prefer the new Cauldron album

Anyone heard the Dordeduh album? Feat ex-members of Negură Bunget

I've heard that Dordeduh album once. I don't remember a thing about it. That's not necessarily a criticism; I hear a lot of records. I'll get back to it again soon.

But at the moment the two things I'm totally loving are:

- last year's massive beauty-and-the-beast-style gothmetalcore album Sweet Relief by the Swedish band One Without, who have apparently already broken up since

- new massive shriekberzerker-pagan-black-thrash-metal Ekte Westfäölske Svatte Metal by German band Heimdalls Wacht

Preferably at crushing volume.

I think I wrote about One Without last year, wasn't overly impressed. That reminds me, though – haven't done my girly metal column in a while.

I found more lukewarm reviews of One Without than you probably wrote personally, and their we-quit note sounded pretty beaten down, so obviously there's something not-quite-universal to my response, but yow, I think they're fantastic. Listening to the first album now, and liking that too.

Apparently I did like them. Here's what I said three years ago about their debut: "One Without win the Amy Lee Smeared Makeup Award for Angstiest New Female-fronted Metal Band (not a real award, by the way). Some derivative alt-rock influence, but Catrin Feymark’s emotive singing and the band’s Swedish-born ability to write memorable songs helps Thoughts of a Secluded Mind (Lifeforce) stand out. Plenty of room for improvement, but the potential is there. Watch your back, Lullacry!"

Well worth checking out the second album. I'm enjoying Thoughts of a Secluded Mind plenty, but the second one takes the male/female vocal thing way, way over the top.

And on the poppier end of the German goth/rock/metal spectrum, I'm also liking Eisblume's new album Ewig. Arguably more rock than metal, and more pop than either, but their most metal songs are more metal than Xandria or Flowing Tears' least-metal ones, so I say them qualify.

Wait, no, I was mixing up two different bands and albums above. The one with the really wildly crazed male roaring over pretty female singing is Pleasures and Fear by Regardless of Me. They are Italian, and have not broken up (that I can tell). One Without does the same vocal thing, but not nearly to the same extreme as Regardless of Me, and have a slightly proggier feel to the music. Had. They're the ones who broke up. So that's three albums I'm loving, not two.

At least I didn't confuse any of those with the also-promising 2009 album Don't Fear the Revenge by the synthier, dreamier Alight (also Italian), or either of the more darkwavey albums by Sengir (Belgian, defunct).

Or any of the 100s of other bands on this: http://open.spotify.com/user/glennpmcdonald/playlist/1s6DGJAFH8vA1LHFkQnrTU

So I've joined your dirty journo ranks, loosely, very, very loosely.... lol!

http://www.hailsandhorns.com/featuresandinterviews/soldiering-on-an-interview-with-early-graves-by-sean-boyles/

Feedback welcomed but not required.. I won't wave this flag too often if at all. Note, this is my first time ever doing anything like this, but whatevs..

traitor!

lol!

And just to prove that I don't automatically like all gothic metal, I enthusiastically do not recommend Nova Vita, by Aevum. They are Italian. I will not be listening to this album. In fact, I'm not listening to it already.

that was a solid piece Sean

oh, word, thanks!

yeah nice one (you traitor)

I just had two extremes pop up in my facebook feed.. couldn't be more opposite really..

First this, and band called The Algorithm (wasn't someone asking about dubstep metal? This sounds pretty close..)

http://basickrecords.bandcamp.com/album/polymorphic-code

then this behemoth from Thou

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IjGCVOX6tOA

I just thought it funny these two extremes in metal popping up back to back in my feed..

I got to see Rush and Voivod in a 48 hour period. Life is grand!

Tempted to post a picture of Nate in that 'pictures of people who have figured out how to live' thread, tbh.

Twitter just blew up with this, if anyone is curious what the Decibel top 40 list is this year before receiving the magazine, here you go. SPOILERS: http://www.brooklynvegan.com/archives/2012/11/decibel_magazin_2.html

I'll wait until I get my copy. Hey bloggers, just because you CAN print something, doesn't mean you SHOULD. Let me climb on my grumpy old man horse here, but does everything have to be instant gratification anymore? Fuck. I like some anticipation in my life.

Yeah, me too, but like 18 people already spoiled the winner for me. Super lame.

Anyway, Jon, we both know that that's antithetical to the blogging philosophy: if they don't publish it, somebody else will, so they may as well be first.

The band who got the top placement put it on their facebook page before the whole list made it out there.

sweet, that was gonna be my #1 record this year too. i don't read decibel, so i don't know - is that gonna help make me seem more kvlt and less false?

yes.

whew! safe to look for a spot for taylor swift downlist then

print media is dead. deal with it losers.

your FACE is dead

Man, Viceroy is wrong on this count. And I'm not just saying this because of all the posters here that write for it, but Decibel is one of the only mags out there keeping my hopes alive for print media as a viable thing.

Tangentially related, I picked up the Cryptopsy comp today. Nice liner notes Adrien, congrats! And I like how you, erm, let's say "delicately" handled covering their last album.

it's so weird to me that graveyard's singer can actually sing

Best Black Friday sale EVER – entire Seventh Rule catalog going up for free download at midnight tomorrow: releases.seventhrule.com

so many good things on there, too.

wait whoa seriously

Man, that is an awesome sale. I can pick up the rest of the stuff I didn't get back when they had thier last $5 CD sale.

Seventh Rule ‏@seventhrule

On BLACK FRIDAY we don't care about your money. ALL Seventh Rule Digital Downloads are free via Bandcamp. Midnight. http://releases.seventhrule.com

So unless the twitter account is lying, I'm going to undo all the work I've put into clearing out space on my iPod on Friday :/

speak loud pay nothing

Most other labels and I'd be super skeptical, but Seventh Rule is known for uber-cheap sales.

Oh hey, looks like they've already started tossing stuff up for free. Have at it!

if you dont grab wizard rifle from there you are wasting your life

Gimme a list of 5-10 of the best titles, please...

Definitely these:

Ursus Americanus - Author & Punisher
Wizard Rifle - Speak Loud Say Nothing
Wetnurse - Invisible City
Kongh - Shadows of the Shapeless
B A T I L L U S - Furnace

Wetnurse and Kongh are already up for free. I also like Raise the Red Lantern, but they are basically just very good High on Fire-style stoner metal, nothing necessarily essential. Other people might have thoughts about the stuff I haven't heard.

not a complete endorsement but i do get a kick out of author and punisher

I'm also into Sweet Cobra, super sludgy stuff, not sure how into them you'd be, though. Wizard Rifle also went up for free just now.

Indian is awesome.. and that Batillus is AMAZING!

Don't forget about Atriarch. And the new Millions album is really solid as well.

I will also vouch for wetnurse and batillus

I'm woefully behind the curve, as ever, but this Witchcraft album is really good.

i once accidentally slept through a batillus show in the next room, i was really pissed at myself. ive been begging them to come back since