Category: Reviews
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Dream Death – Dissemination
Dream Death’s 1987 debut Journey Into Mystery is one of the great lost metal classics of all time. On their debut album, this Pittsburgh outfit combined the nascent sub-genres of thrash and doom into a self-styled concoction called sludge metal—that’s right, they were the Possessed of all things tuned low and played slow. Problem is,…
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The Arrival of Satan – Passion Sodomy Terror
“when there is no more god, no more soul, no more hope, there is the obscenity of flesh, the anguish of death, the darkness of despair. then it gets totally fucked up. this is the arrival of satan.” While it may have taken Grenoble black metal outfit The Arrival of Satan (TAOS) six years to…
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Black Shape of Nexus – Carrier
This German sludge sextet returns with Carrier, their first full-length since 2012’s oppressive 80-minute effort Negative Black. This one’s considerably less lengthy, but equally punishing, with six tracks clocking in just shy of 50 minutes. “I Can’t Play It” opens the album on an ominous note with tortured screams and squealing feedback. This one’s a…
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Low Flying Hawks – Kofuku
After a while as a writer you come to rely on certain PR companies and labels to deliver the goods seemingly without question. In my case Sheltered Life PR and Magnetic Eye Records fall into that category. So when K0fuku by Low Flying Hawks landed in my inbox there was no hesitation as to whether…
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Wake – Sowing the Seeds of a Worthless Tomorrow
Writing about grindcore almost demands violent language: churn, blast, crush, ad nauseam. Descriptions follow a tried-and-tired vocabulary. You could fit Sowing the Seeds of a Worthless Tomorrow, the third full-length from Calgary grinders Wake, into that familiar mold. It would easily fit in some ways, but it wouldn’t exactly be accurate. I’m hedging against those…
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Church of Misery – And Then There Were None
I’ve always been a big fan of Church of Misery. Their last record, Thy Kingdom Scum, was one of my 2013 favourites, and I’m still bummed out that their Canadian tour dates got cancelled that year. (I blame Ted Cruz. No, really.) But hey, should they get together for some North American dates, the formerly…
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La Chinga – Free Wheelin’
Super stoked for the sophomore slice from these Vancouver-based bashers, who put out their stellar self-titled debut back in 2013. These retro-rock revivalists are kinda like the West Coast’s answer to Monster Truck…y’know, with better weed. Free Wheelin’ comes rolling outta the gate with “Gone Gypsy,” which sounds like early Aerosmith with some Robert Plant…
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Rush – Grace Under Pressure LP
Perhaps the most important thing that Rush proved when they released Grace Under Pressure is that (to paraphrase what George Orwell wrote in 1984) the best albums are those which reiterate those things of which people were already aware. In this case, fans already knew that Rush had been the greatest and best-kept secret in…
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Black Cobra – Imperium Simulacra
Another sludge band coming out of the woodwork after a considerable recording hiatus; Imperium Simulacra marks Black Cobra’s first release since 2011’s Invernal. That said, this heavy duo has never really stopped touring—they’re due back on these shores in April with Bongzilla, CBSA-permitting. Imperium Simulacra comes barrelling outta the gate as expected, with “Challenger Deep”…
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Sierra – 72
Really interesting backstory to this record. Kitchener trio Sierra has put out a 22-minute, one-song concept album about a murder that happened in their backyard in the early 70’s, and the dude who was wrongfully accused. (Turns out he’s one of their bros, or something.) 72 starts off with some slow-rolling stoner grooves, setting a…