Tag: drone
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The Body / Sandworm split
I still have fond memories of the one and only time I’ve seen The Body live. The local promoter had a hard time finding a venue that would accommodate their awesome amplitude, and they ended up being double-booked with some indie-rock band at The Shop, a pre-fabricated Parkdale punk-rock dive. After the respective local openers…
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Northumbria and Famine – Blood Orchid
Blood Orchid is a nearly 16-minute live collaboration between Northumbria and Famine. The ambient drone unfolds over an expanse of time that feels much longer than it actually is because of how deeply you can get lost in it and lose your sense of reality. It feels futuristic and ancient at the same time as…
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Electric Wizard – Time to Die
I’ve heard all sorts of mixed reviews of this new Electric Wizard record, though most tend to be favourable (perhaps none more so than this liquidized-teeth kid). But for me, even before I lay wax to the turntable, my opinion is coloured by the whole Greening vs. Wizard feud, which is readily apparent just by looking…
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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…
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Sorxe – Surrounded by Shadows
Though I haven’t heard of them before, Sorxe is part of the same Arizona sludge scene as the likes of TOAD, Godhunter and North — not to mention the Southwest Terror Fest, which I hope to attend some day — so that’s good enough for me to give ’em a listen. “Steamroller” comes rolling out…
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Liturgy – Renihilation (reissue)
For a genre founded on the tenets of rebellion and individuality we metal fans sure are a fickle bunch. Freedom of expression is what it’s all about, but those who don’t conform to what “we” believe metal in whatever form (black/death/what have you) should be are ostracized and ridiculed (or hated). Making music is about…
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Blakkr Nið – Drones, Dirges, and Dark Ambient Sounds
Bands like Earth, Boris, Sunn O))), Corrupted and Nadja have all used low frequencies and overdriven instrumentation on uber-slow songs to bring drone front and centre for a metal audience. However, as a form of musical expression, drone existed for aeons before any of those bands arrived. Drone is there in the core vibrations of…
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Primitive Man/Hexis – split 10”
Here is something to ruin your day. The new split 10” from Denver’s Primitive Man and Copenhagen’s Hexis available from Halo of Flies. If this slice of wax was playing while you found out you won the lottery while having sex with a supermodel, you’d still want to hang a noose around your neck and…
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Doomeastvan – ‘Tis We
If you guessed, judging by their name, that Doomeastvan was a Vancouver doom-metal band… well, you’d only be half-right. The artwork on this album screams 90s death metal, while their song titles and stage names (ie. Cazbo Low Rifferson, 333 Thee Half Beast) would make Oderus Urungus proud. I guess you could call opening track “Humans…
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If you only see one band at NXNE this weekend…
Post-ambient shoegaze drone doom duo (for lack of a better term) Nadja make their triumphant return to Toronto at The Garrison this Sunday. This is literally the only NXNE gig I’m attending this year. Yes, it’s that worthwhile.