New crop from old and new breed

It was a long time till I had a look to Swedish death metal. In fact it must be over 11 or 12 years (with the exception of Kaamos' Lp's that always caught my attention). For the last couple of months there are 3 Lp's that have reinforced my interest for said scene.
These can act as a worthy antidote to today's worthless plastic death metal, so heavily endorced by the mainsteam press like Terrorrizer and co.


Necrophobic - Death to All

One of the old breed, that are still making it until today. I only have heard their first Lp The Nocturnal Silence from 1993 and then none of the rest. The band have been a little too overexposed with their new album so I gave it the almost mandatory listen. This is blackened death metal in the melodic vein of Dissection. I like it although sometimes it strikes me as a tad too easy listening for death metal and I can't help it but have the feeling that the lyrics are too naive for my taste.


Karnarium - Karnarium

A record from last year and the band that alongside Kaamos has been my favourite Swedish death metal band for the last years. Karnarium don't strike you immediately as being swedish, as Incantation's death metal is for them equally important as Entombed's. Totally recommended.


Maim - From the Womb to the Tomb

Gore themed death metal has never been my cup of tea but I can't help but recognise the sickness that this new band's debut exhales. A band that is said to be taking up Repugnant's legacy and with the obvious Autopsy reference, this is an interesting case.

The great cessation

Crushing, oppresive, fucking heavy.
That's how I like my doom.

This granny tells dark tales - Τα παραμύθια της βρωμόγριας

Dirty Granny Tales is one of the most interesting acts to emerge from Greece for the last few years. A well balanced combination of puppet theatre and music, experimental and acoustic, with dark and gothic lyrics/stories. All these are wrapped in a carnivalesque atmosphere topped with the black metal influenced shrieks of the narrator. The outcome reminds of groups like Tiger Lillies or the much loved Residents.
Recently they have released their second album, 'Didi's Son' that continues the story told on their debut 'Inversed World'. As much as their records are truly amazing, one cannot capture the group's true essence and brilliance without witnessing one of their shows.



What happens when music brings puppets to life?
http://www.myspace.com/dirtygrannytales

Head on the stake

I'm not into the band (Kult of Azazel), but I'm into the picture. Besides a little blasphemy never harmed anyone.
Except of course the ones it is meant to harm.

Curses to y'all.

Playlist for the fiery days

Spiritus Mortis - The God Behind the God Traditional doom metal from the Finnish masters with vocals by Sir Albert Witchfinder of Reverend Bizzare, The Puritan and fucked up black metalers Armanenschaft. Great record.


Oranssi Pazuzu - Muukalainen Puhuu

You have heard a lot of wannabe psychedelic, progressive black metal. Forget all of them. This one , again from Finland, embodies everything you expect to listen when you think of progressive or experimental or psychedelic black metal. Much more than just a tag.


Mortuus Infradaemoni - Imis Avernis

Raw black metal from Germany by skilled and experienced musicians. One of the best pure and raw bm records I've heard recently.


Miasma - Spirit Death

Lately I realy love American bands like Miasma and the ones that follow. Raw, atmospheric, dark, excellent.


Malkuth - Sefirah Gevurah

Malkuth fall to the category mentioned above. Their music is raw yet experimental. One of the few cases of a band with no background in black metal, with members coming from the avant garde/experimental scene, that seem to have a feeling for black metal.


L'acephale - Stahlhartes gehäuse

L'acephale divide opinions as far as I can say but I realy like their blend of black metal, folk and martial rythms.


Katharsis - Fourth Reich

One of my all time favorite bands who I follow blindly. This is their most focused and organised work, yet the chaos they create is ever present and prevalent. Katharsis are twisted geniouses, I humbly kneel before them.


Chaos Moon - Languor into Echoes, Beyond

A band in the same vein as Miasma, evoking darkness in similar ways, using prety much the same weapons. Recomended.


Impiety - Terroreign

The mighty Impiety strike as we would expect them to strike. Fierce death/black/thrash with exceptional quality. Vientos de holocausto.

Dead man

I wanted to write something about this awesome soundtrack for quite a while now but I was either lazy or forgot about it. Now that I remembered I am still lazy. So I won't say much other than whoever hasn't listened to it is a cunt. And I wouldn't like any cunt listening to music I like. And normaly I don't really like soundtracks. And Neil Young is god. And I'm not the one to usualy deify anyone.

1000 Curses.

Total fucking revelation

I never really paid any attention to 1349. They always seemed to me like a fairly average band, one of the tones coming out of Norway, playing the same tired (and tiring) things, recycling the same members that have been doing this thing in100 other bands before (or at the same time).
What was always a mystery for me is the friendship and support that Tom Gabriel offered to the guys. I was never an admirer of persons into the metal scene. Nevertheless Tom Gabriel was always a figure so special and different that couldn't be but the exception to the norm.
What the fuck this guy was seeing into 1349 I never knew.

Until now....
Now I see. To deny the magnificence of the new 1349 cd would be mere stupidity. Or just incapability to truly comprehend the dark and gloomy nature that black metal shall have.
But who cares about what the fools have to say?
Gabriels influence is present in all it's dark glory, even if he didn't have any direct involvement to the creation of the music. To be around such a figurehead is a blessing by itself.
This is arguably one the biggest surprises I had in all those years I am involved with music.
My highest recommentations.

AMSG