Tag: doom
-
Northern Crown – In the Hands of the Betrayer
It’s not often I’m compelled to listen to an unsolicited, unknown band nowadays, but when said outfit covers Candlemass—and a cut from Epicus Doomicus Metallicus, no less—now they’ve got my attention. Much as Candlemass’ debut was largely a studio project, masterminded by Leif Edling, Northern Crown also appears to be mostly a one-man endeavour with…
-
Earth – Primitive and Deadly
I was certainly intrigued by this latest Earth album. Although their newer stuff has been more Americana—not that there’s anything wrong with that—advance singles offa this one indicate somewhat of a return to heaviness. And that includes not one but two guest vocalists, with one being Mark Lanegan. Actually, I’m not sure if they’ve had…
-
Transmaniacon – The Darkening Plain
Now, this is a band-name well chosen, for ‘Transmaniacon’ is a track from Blue Oyster Cult. Blue Oyster Cult are a criminally overlooked act in the inspiration stakes, with most people just knowing them for the track ‘Don’t Fear The Reaper.’ This is in part due to it being featured in films like Halloween (the…
-
Mike Scheidt: The Hellbound Interview
Mike Scheidt has been busy over the last couple of years, having seen the release of his first solo album, the first VHOL record, and the Lumbar record. He also found time to guest on the last Red Fang album. This year sees his main band, Yob, put out a stellar new record, Clearing the…
-
Norilsk – Japetus
This is an excellent three-track introduction to a very worthy band. On the title track and “Potsdam Glo,” the band show a talent for strong, original atmospheric doom. My only criticism is a constructive one: I’d like to see the vocal more forward in the mix. Interestingly, what sums up Norilsk the best is their…
-
Cardinal Wyrm – Black Hole Gods
There have been enough notable sludge/doom outfits from down by the Bay Area—Sleep, Noothgrush, Neurosis, to name but a few—that when a newer outfit from San Fran or Oakland starts getting some press, I’d naturally be inclined to stop and check them out. But Cardinal Wyrm, much like the Finns in Cardinals Folly, employs the same…
-
YOB – Clearing the Path to Ascend
YOB is one of those names where I expect quality before I even take off the shrinkwrap. Only in this case, it’s been a while; their last album, Atma, came out about three years ago. Still, I wouldn’t expect any less from Mike Scheidt and co—I’m pretty sure its predecessor was on my year-end top 10 in 2011,…
-
Norilsk – Japetus
Although they’re actually from Ottawa, this doom duo is named after a former Siberian slave-labour camp now known as one of the most polluted cities on earth. Incidentally, it says here that Norilsk is “Home to the world’s largest heavy metal smelting complex,” which probably means it has a pretty decent metal scene. 😉 Alas,…
-
Barghest – The Virtuous Purge
For their second full-length, The Virtuous Purge, Louisiana deathened black metal titans Barghest have ratcheted up the production quality several notches. They still sound raw and born from the places hidden from the sun’s piercing glare, but now all the hellish screams, ice cold, bowel-shaking guitars and manic percussion can be heard with a new…
-
Cardinals Folly – Our Cult Continues
Wasn’t a huge fan of the previous demos from Cardinals Folly, which were a little too black-metal-sounding for me, but I really want this to be good. Maybe it’s unfair to expect this outfit to fill the void left by another Finnish doom trio named after a quirky religious figure… but at least on paper, you’d think…