Asylum: The Earth is the Insane Asylum of the Universe
Shadow Kingdom Records has unearthed and re-released the 1985 demo of Maryland doom disciples Asylum, who later changed their name to Unorthodox and put out two classic albums in the 1990s.
USA
Riot @ Scout Bar, San Antonio TX, June 2, 2009
I can’t think of another band so long-running whose output has been so consistently excellent. This truth led to my sole disappointment when I heard that the classic late-80s Thundersteel lineup had reformed: it meant that they were likely to ignore the past 20 years as if they never happened. Normally when some old band pulls a stunt like this, you wish they would ignore their last five or six albums, but Riot didn’t put out a single bad album after they retired the speed metal and screams of the Thundersteel years.
High Spirits: 4 song demo 2009
This four track demo EP is pure 80’s metal. It sounds to me like the early output of Scotland’s Heavy Pettin’ fronted by a singer that sounds somewhat similar to Kevin Griffiths of the NWOBHM band Briar.
ISIS: Wavering Radiant
A couple weeks ago, the world’s most accomplished stoner, multiple gold medallist Michael Phelps, returned to the pool after serving out his suspension for inhaling what, considering his lung capacity, must have been enough weed smoke to lay out the state of Utah.
Word Association Fun With… AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED
Agoraphobic Nosebleed has just released their crowning achievement, the stunningly song-oriented ginormous musical fuck-stick that is Agorapocalypse and as the press cycle dictates, it’s time for them to do interviews promoting said record. We could ask about their packaging the CD in old-school longboxes, what took so fucking long and how a band that doesn’t have a drummer managed to place a drum solo in “Question of Integrity.”
Solitude Aeturnus
It’s a good time to be a traditional doom metal fan. After years of inactivity from some of the genre’s most beloved acts, the past year or so has seen a glut of new and archival material made available. From the Pentagram and Bedemon rarities collections through Trouble’s reissues and new studio effort to the solid new Candlemass album – not to mention excellent new efforts by young bands such as Isole and The Gates Of Slumber – we’ve seen a wealth of riches unleashed.
The Dual Lives of Robert Lowe
There are few clean-throated metal vocalists as naturally talented as Robert Lowe. Through six albums with Solitude Aeturnus, plus the highly underrated Last Chapter record on Brainticket, Lowe’s soaring, clean vocal style have made every album he has participated in magical. And now, thanks to his new additional undertaking as lead vocalist in Candlemass, there is even more cause for celebration.