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The Best Post-Metal/Avantgarde Metal Album
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Buried Inside - Spoils Of Failure
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Spoils Of Failure is like a massive stream of lava streaming down. The oppressive, bludgeoning sound and the monotone, pained vocals provide a constant stream of audio extremity without losing melody and beauty out of sight. Although you may not hear it at first, there's quite a lot of good stuff going on in the riffs and the drums, which will hold your focus for a long time. Excellent musicianship paired with oppressive vocals and frantic instrumentation sounds like a win-win... win situation to us.
›› Full review... |
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Sing-along songs for The Damned & Delirious?! That's us! Hey! Over here! We're damned and we're sure as hell delirious! Sing-Along Songs For The Damned & Delirious is the new album by the Swedish maniacs. We're all a bunch of tough guys, I know, we like hell, fire, damnation and the great 'n' might S8N, but while listening to the new album by D:S:O there's just this... this itch... this urge... this, almost, primal desire to put on a pretty dress, grab a hairbrush, find a mirror and be the master of the show! Don't worry kid, we know what it feels like.
›› Full review... |
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Giant Squid - The Ichthyologist
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| The Ichtyologist is a must-check for anyone that likes incredibly varied release with a ton of alien influences and rich and crammed song writing. From the very first seconds of "Panthalassa (Lampetra Tridentata)" and its airy, slightly jazzy feel you realize you've bought yourself a train ticket to far far-away land and there's no chance of getting off soon. Aaron's vocals might require some getting used to, but once you've surpassed that point they're more than worth it. Jackie's angelic vocals will embrace you from the get-go, resulting in an album that will grab you by the balls during your first play-through and remains interesting during subsequent plays. |
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| The well-known and much-revered Isis return with Wavering Radiant. Like no one else these atmospheric Sludgers know how to combine melody with aggression and forge that into brutally captivating music. Wavering Radiant won't reveal all its secrets in the first play-through but don't let that get you down, your perseverance will surely be rewarded. Once again a fantastic album. |
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The ever-prolific Justin Broadrick continued forward with his version of shoe gazing post metal, only perhaps looking back to his Godflesh roots for this one. Lurking below the dreamy atmosphere of his next Jesu installment lurks just a shade of his more sinister past. The end result is perhaps his best release in years… and given the quality of his Jesu recordings, that is indeed high praise.
›› Full review... |
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Long Distance Calling - Avoid The Light
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The German Long Distance Calling excels in riveting Post-Rock-ish instrumental journies. Avoid The Light is their second full-length and it shines from the very first second to the last. Where most post-xxxx artists loose the listener due to their seemingly endless (read: boring) songs, Long Distance Calling keeps it concise. One album, six songs, a guest performance by none other than Jonas Renkse, what more could you possibly (come to) need?
›› Full review... |
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Minsk's third album With Echoes In The Movement Of Stone is packed with twirling melodic riffs and spicy dissonance, warm yet desolate vocals and screams-into-the-distance and goes through various crescendos and diminuendos - you got it right, With Echoes is pretty god-damn varied. During every play you'll find new elements of this album and you'll be amazed with it's strength and dynamics every single time. Minsk delivered an album that lasts.
›› Full review... |
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| What We All Come To Need is more Pelican! We need more wildly adventurous, catchy and playful metal in the vein of the awesome foursome. From the very first to the very last second Pelican takes the listener by the hand and guides him through the self-created jungle of post-rock and sludgy riffs and rhythms. An instrumental tour-de-force that still delivers songs with head and tail, what more could you need? |
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| Where most instrumental Post-metal frequently go into sugary soundscaping, Russian Circles dares to sound a lot darker. Geneva often dwells in dark dissonance and frantic, although often veiled chaos. As if the fabric of the space-continuum is torn apart and other dimensions regurgitate their ungodly venom onto our world. But, mind you, all in a very listener-friendly manner and with enough playful ease to never truly discomfort the audience. Let your mind wander. |
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| A truly wonderful mix of various post-metal and even ambient influences on a basic black metal/extreme metal base. Combined with the evocative and, at times, desperate howls, pained clean vocals, and creepy spoken bits, this album somehow creates a warm, yet bleak, almost nihilistic atmosphere that is perfectly fitting either 78 days in the desert, or a week in the ice fields of, er, their native Iceland. |
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