Tag: doom
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Inter Arma – Paradise Gallows
Generally speaking, I like my coffee downtuned and doomy, just like my metal. Never been a big fan of the blackened stuff, but Inter Arma caught my ear with their 2013 Relapse debut Sky Burial, which owes about as much to Neurosis as it does to Emperor. Hailing from the same Richmond, Virginia scene as…
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Pentagram – First Daze Here
These days, when Bobby Liebling sings “These are gonna be my last days here…” he really means it. The dude looked like death warmed over when I saw ‘em down in Cleveland last year, and his touring troubles continued recently, with missed gigs and pissed-off openers on their last trek. The backing band behind him…
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Briefcasefest: Saturday, 21 May 2016
Gabe Hugh’s review of Briefcasefest 2016 held at Toronto’s Coalition So, it’s the Victoria long weekend again and for those of you getting ready to spend it in the comforts of Kensington Market, either going to see some sights, shopping or getting a drink and grub – be forewarned that you may hear some interesting sounds…
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The Second Coming of Heavy, Chapter III (BoneHawk/Kingnomad split)
In some ways, Ripple Music is sorta like a modern-day MeteorCity—a great little label bringing underground heavy music to the masses. Ripple also has its own series of split albums; of which this is the third installment. I haven’t heard of either of these bands, so I’m not expecting Lowrider/Nebula here, but if Ripple’s logo…
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Völur – Disir
I’ve seen this Toronto trio live at least a couple times, most recently opening for The Body atop a skateboard ramp on Bathurst. The bass/drums/violin outfit notably features Blood Ceremony bassist Lukas Gadke, who also lends some death-metal growls to the proceedings. I suppose you could file this one under “Doom,” but I’d hesitate to slap…
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Beelzefuzz – The Righteous Bloom
This Maryland-based band features players from doom-metal mainstays Revelation and Pale Divine, yet they aren’t really doom, in the traditional sense. There is a strong 70’s influence here, but without too many lugubrious tempos; more of an uplifting sound inspired by everything from 70’s power ballads to 80’s power metal. Righteous Bloom, their second album,…
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Cough – Still They Pray
Virginia doomsters Cough return with their long-awaited third album, following 2010’s Relapse debut Ritual Abuse. This is not a band that moves particularly fast, as the 8 tracks on this 68-minute effort would attest. And while they do tend to drag out and drone on at times, the longest song on this one still falls…
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Warped Cross – Abbot of Unreason
Right away, I’ll say that this sounds like High on Fire. The good news is I don’t find myself believing that the guys in Warped Cross heard Matt Pike’s most prolific band and decided just to copy his approach. The members of Warped Cross are veterans of the German doom scene, and their experience pays…
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Conclave – Sins of the Elders
Though they’re a relatively new name on the Boston sludge scene, Conclave includes members of notable 90’s acts Warhorse and Grief. No word as to whether their debut album’s title is self-referential. What we get here is over an hour of punishing sludge, with most songs ranging between 7 and 10 minutes. After an eerie…
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Mars Red Sky – Apex III (Praise For The Burning Soul)
The splendidly named Mars Red Sky have produced a really good album. I would sum it up as a cross between Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd ( I was reminded of the spacey dynamics of “Astronomy Domine,” for instance), Hawkwind (particularly Lemmy-era Hawkwind such as Warrior on the Edge of Time), Voivod (there is the same…