Tag: sludge

  • Agnes Vein – Duality

    Agnes Vein have well steeped themselves in the lore of Blood Fire Death-era Bathory and latter-day Celtic Frost, but at times, the music also hints at the drone and mood of Jesu. There’s also the strong aftertaste of Primordial in the guitar tone. It’s an eclectic mix, but the influences serve them well and Agnes…

  • Roareth – Acts I-VI

    Although they aren’t too creative with the written word—all songs are entitled Acts I through VI, and the band name itself is cringe-worthy—Seattle’s Roareth does have something to offer musically with this, their debut album. Take Zoroaster circa Dog Magic, sprinkle in a few non-distorted slow passages a la Neurosis, and a handful of Cisneros…

  • Mares of Thrace @ Kilroys, Thunder Bay, ON, August 8th, 2010

    Mares of Thrace are one hell of a lot of fun to watch live and they will blow you away. If the new song they played at Kilroys is any indication (Pale Neck), their next record is also going to be a monster, possibly better than The Moulting but I’m not sure if that could…

  • Introducing: Mares of Thrace

    Guitarist/vocalist Therese Lanz and drummer Stefani MacKichan have been part of Calgary’s music scene for a while now, Lanz as frontwoman for grindcore band Exit Strategy and the pair most notably comprising two-thirds of the hard rock trio Kilbourne, but since forming Mares of Thrace it feels like they’ve stumbled upon something special. One album…

  • Jucifer/ Mendozza/ Ahna @ Funky Winkerbean’s, Vancouver BC, August 6, 2010

    Jucifer live is Total Ritual: Thick smoke and hot underlight, howling fury and gnashing of teeth, sonic overkill pouring forth from Amber Valentine’s monolithic wall of cabinets. From the second she steps onto the pitch-dark stage to begin her rite of setup to the moment the cloak is removed and the Flying V is strapped…

  • Sleepbringer – Compendium

    Another one of those bands I somehow stumbled onto by accident, there’s very little I can tell you about Indianapolis’ Sleepbringer. Born out of the ashes of Heroes Laid To Rest, an Internet search bore only one other short review (so far) of Compendium, although I have the feeling that once this record gets heard…

  • Ufomammut – Eve

    Eve—the song and the album—sounds like it’s been shaped from molten rock. Ufomammut have dug deep; crafting elusive, unruly elements into something inspired and monumental

  • Black Tusk – Taste The Sin

    On Taste the Sin, Black Tusk inject more howling punk à la Kylesa than instru-prog à la Baroness and Mastodon, and the result is a disc that has the potential to incite fist pumping, moshing and a little John Baizley fan-boy love.

  • Kingdom of Sorrow: Side-Project Comes Into its Own

    Kingdom of Sorrow: It’s a name that conjures up images of some grizzled warrior-king, his throne coated in ash, his body caked with blood. It evokes both torpor and power. And indeed, the quintet plays a blend of filthy swamp sludge and growling hardcore, courtesy of Crowbar/Down string slinger Kirk Windstein and Hatebreed vocalist Jamey…

  • From The Archives: EYEHATEGOD Interview from 1996

    I originally wrote this interview for Canada’s EXCLAIM! in June, 1996 but they no longer archive back that far on their website, so I thought I’d make it available here again. I did this interview with Brian Patton upon the release of Dopesick, which I still think is one of their best releases ever.