Metal Storm staff picks

The Ocean - Pelagial

Darkside Momo — Tue, 14 May 2013 22:55:51 +0200

Precambrian part II, at last!! Well, quality-wise, that is; musically it's a different beast...

Are you ready to dive in the deepest of waters?

Lychgate - Lychgate

!J.O.O.E.! — Fri, 10 May 2013 22:36:05 +0200

Ever wondered what Esoteric might sound like if they played black metal? Well wonder no more. Featuring Esoteric's Greg Chandler, as well as members from UK black metal masterclasses Archaicus and Omega Centauri, this has literally become the crème de la crème of England's extreme metal talent. The result is quite incredible and I predict this will top most people's black metal lists this year.

LISTEN

Hammerforce - Access Denied

Fat & Sassy! — Thu, 09 May 2013 02:10:21 +0200

Rock-solid, high-energy, synth-driven progressive power metal that doesn't fuck around. No heel-dragging ballads and the synthesizer doesn't sound like an afterthought, but is an integral part of the music? On a power metal album? Well, slap my ass and call me babycakes! Sign me up for another listen!

Slayer - Decade Of Aggression

BitterCOld — Fri, 03 May 2013 02:58:45 +0200

traded a copy of Nirvana's "Bleach" for this in '91. never looked back. Adios, Jeff. gonna break out the Slayer Food Mart mug tonight and hoist a few listening to this...

Apocynthion - Sidereus Nuncius

Nefarious — Sat, 27 Apr 2013 13:43:59 +0200

Following on from my most recent staff pick, Vallendusk, here is another great debut Black Metal release from the Pest Productions label. This time it is of the Post Black Metal variety.

Listen here.

Eibon - II

BitterCOld — Wed, 24 Apr 2013 03:28:38 +0200

II is pretty much what I thought it would be... 40 minutes or so of ugly, foul blackened sludge. Only instead of 6-7 tracks they crafted two 20 minute double-epics, tossing in some groovy psychedelia to boot. Rawr.

Octopus - Into The Void Of Fear

!J.O.O.E.! — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:20:06 +0200

Octotastic metal.

LISTEN

Hacride - Back To Where You've Never Been

Darkside Momo — Mon, 22 Apr 2013 16:15:26 +0200

With a renewed line-up (featuring Klone's drummer, no less), Hacride are back with their most accessible, melodic yet technical album to date. But, most of all, it's the emotional intensity that truly makes the difference.

Listen!

Rob Zombie - Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor

psykometal — Sun, 21 Apr 2013 00:58:47 +0200

White Zom...I mean...Rob Zombie is alive!

The Video

Vallendusk - Black Clouds Gathering

Nefarious — Sat, 20 Apr 2013 13:43:59 +0200

The Indonesian metal scene is more known for its brutal death metal but Vallendusk try and break that mould by showing that the scene has a lot more to offer by serving up some seriously high quality atmospheric black metal. Unlike the majority of atmospheric black metal bands that operate with that more depressive mid-tempo sound, Vallendusk differentiate themselves by employing a faster & more upbeat tempo with undoubted post & folk influences. The standout element of this record is without a doubt the excellent guitar work. Whether it's the melodic hooks or acoustic folk passages, it will grip you throughout.

Black Clouds Gathering consists of 7 tracks with the shortest track being 8 minutes long and is admittedly not the most varied record out there, so it will not suit those with a short attention span. But if epic melody-driven atmospheric black metal is your thing, I seriously suggest you give this a spin.

Listen here.

The Meads Of Asphodel - Sonderkommando

!J.O.O.E.! — Sun, 14 Apr 2013 14:50:38 +0200

Quite clearly a band with no interest in pandering to the the naysayers who never wrapped their noggins around them, Sonderkommando brings The Meads Of Asphodel back to their most abstruse. Gone is most of the whimsy and the euphoric melodies of The Murder of Jesus the Jew, here we see them at their darkest, murkiest and most nuanced. Many accuse them of "stirring the shit" with regard to their lyrical content and imagery, but that's something you should most certainly read about yourself before throwing any stones.

LISTEN

Anciients - Heart Of Oak

Nefarious — Wed, 10 Apr 2013 10:45:46 +0200

Anciients employ an extremely varied and eclectic mix of styles, from blues rock to black metal, that combine together so effortlessly to form what is surely one of the best debut albums of 2013 so far. Heart Of Oak is as unique & ambitious as it is memorable, and will undoubtedly be a hit with any fan's of progressive, expansive music.

Listen here.

Eschatos - Hierophanies

psykometal — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 23:04:46 +0200

These dudes (and chick) hail from Latvia and play a rather atmospheric variety of progressive black metal. They just barely started out in December 2012 and already they have recorded a video, released this beauty in late January, and started playing shows. That should give you an idea of the talent in this band and their music (not to mention the killer artwork).

The Bandcamp
The Video

Wormed - Exodromos

Baz Anderson — Sun, 07 Apr 2013 10:29:14 +0200

Almost a decade since the debut album, these Spanish lunatics finally unleash their second slab of utter brutality. Exodromos is half an hour of some of the craziest brutal death metal you could possibly wish to hear. Sit back and enjoy!

Way To End - Various Shades Of Black

!J.O.O.E.! — Thu, 04 Apr 2013 15:06:04 +0200

Yes, "French Black Metal" might as well become its own subgenre because, damn, it's usually that good, and this is no exception. Way To End's 50 Shades of... I mean Various Shades of Black is a complex and proggy album and one of an initially perplexing nature but it certainly yields great rewards for the persistent. To clarify, this isn't super-ultra-mega dissonant, rather it's the snaking and morphing progressive structures and avant-garde affectations that make this a bit of a challenge to start with. It's worth sticking with though as those trying moments frequently give way to a rich, mystical tapestry of sights and sounds, often melodic and atmospheric, always intriguing and surprising.

LISTEN

Funeralium - Deceived Idealism

Abattoir — Wed, 03 Apr 2013 18:09:18 +0200

The experience of French romance in its own way. Ferocius, crushing, devastating, relentless sound. The album, that shall not be overlooked.

Thrawsunblat - Thrawsunblat II: Wanderer On The Continent Of Saplings

psykometal — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 23:04:46 +0200

Featuring all the surviving members of Woods Of Ypres, these North Americans (1 is Canadian, the other 2 are American) have recorded an outstanding blend of black and folk metals with a good bit of melody.

I never really listened to Woods Of Ypres but from comments I've seen here and there this album is more akin to their black metal era than their later work. Musically, it also reminds me of Panopticon's Kentucky but not quite as "country-ish" and better.

Check it out!

Voices - Voices From The Human Forest Create A Fugue Of Imaginary Rain

BloodTears — Sun, 31 Mar 2013 13:58:50 +0200

The tomb-like silence of Akercocke might be painful to our little longing hearts but there is always Voices, the new project of Akercocke members David Gray, Peter Benjamin and Sam Loynes. This is ferocious and violent black metal, at times faster than your heartbeat, malicious, unsettling, with splashes of serene voices from the human forest which create a fugue of imaginary rain.

Antediluvian - λόγος

!J.O.O.E.! — Thu, 28 Mar 2013 14:06:04 +0200

This is where you get sent when you've been too evil for Hell.
LISTEN

In The Company Of Serpents - In The Company Of Serpents

wormdrink414 — Wed, 27 Mar 2013 09:14:46 +0200

I don't always hang around snakes, but when I do they're accompanied by some excellent filthy music from early 2012 that's gone overlooked.

Listen here.