Entry 524 - Sanctuaire - Echo 3 - Frisson D'Éternité

 

Style: Cinematic ambient, minimalist, drone, and maybe a touch of dungeon synth

Primary emotions: Wonder, loneliness, and mystery

Thoughts: I've had this one on my turntable for a few days now. It's been a slow burn. When I first put it on I didn't care for it that much, it felt samey and without a lot of variation to the songs. After some time though it began to grow on me.

The tracks take their sweet time as they evolve. Every single piece Echo 3 is the definition of subtle. More often than not there is no melody, but rather a collection of ambient pads or soundscapes that play in a repeating order as the songs drone on. These progressions bring to mind vast landscapes, valleys and mountains with low clouds settling into the valleys. If you have seen the painting "Wanderer Above the sea of Fog" this is very much what comes to mind with this music.

The last few tracks are where the album truly begins to find itself for me. There are a few moments where an acoustic guitar plays a few short notes in between the ambient pads. It gives a warmth to the songs that was completely absent to this point... in some ways it gives a feeling of a safe dwelling around a camp fire, or maybe even home. Either way it feels like a tiny bit of comfort in a vast land of the unknown.

Sanctuaire is my first Goato record. I had always heard of the quality of their pressings and packaging but I wasn't quite ready for how sturdy and stout this is. This is undoubtedly one of the finest packages I've ever gotten with a record from any genre. I may not get the hype for all their releases, but I certainly do understand the praise for the packaging.

Entry 523 - Diabolical Masquerade - Nightwork

 

Diabolical Masquerade is one of those projects that is entirely unpredictable. In most albums there is no indication of what the next song will sound like, and in most songs there is no indication of what the next riff will sound like either. It's bonkers.

Nightwork is the third album from Blakkheim's project and it's largely a continuation of where The Phantom Lodge album left off. That being melodic black metal with a large dose of progressive tenancies and heavy metal riffing... and a taste for the unpredictable. Let me explain.

Rider on the Bonez opens the album in excellent fashion. Keyboards start out with a sparkling yet dark melody before the guitars and drums come in to compliment. The first few riffs transition effortlessly from one to another and stay within a mid paced melodic black metal framework. The song takes a sudden and drastic turn during the instrumental portion. It shifts gears from black metal to almost a prog rock/metal style of riff with odd time signatures and solos. It's a bit much to take in at first but after a bit of acclimation it works well.

Something similar happens on All Onboard the Perdition Hearze! The song largely remains in a melodic black metal style until a classical/dungeon synth breakdown at the end. It seemingly comes out of no where and has strong renaissance vibes. The metal comes back in the same tone as they keys and ends the song on a distinctly happier tone than any other point in the album.

The Eerie Obzidian Circuz continues the insanity, starting off like a death metal song before morphing into something that sounds like circus music mixed with something out of a Tom and Jerry cartoon. There is just no telling where these songs are going.

Nightwork takes a bit to get used to, but its a great ride regardless. Sometimes it seems as if a bunch of riffs were just thrown together to make a song. Other times it's so well constructed it makes me go "wow." The end result is somewhat of a head scratcher. If nothing else it is very unique, especially for he late 90's when it came out.

Entry 522 - Bathory - Blood Fire Death

Bathory needs no introduction, they are legends. I will argue till the day I die that Under the Sign of the Black Mark is the first true black metal album. Everything until Requiem is an essential album, and Blood Fire Death is among the best of those.

This is the one and only transition album that Bathory had. It combined the black metal/thrash styling of the earlier works and the beginnings of what would eventually become viking metal.

Odens Ride over Nordland is the very definition of how to do an intro. Played entirely on keyboards, the song plays extended notes that resemble whips of wind weaving in and out of each other. Towards the end we hear Odens horse neigh, it's a small touch but it adds to the immersion immensely.

Immediately following the intro, A Fine Day to Die starts with an acoustic intro that picks up right where the keyboards left off. Clean singing and a sombre atmosphere lead the song for a minute before the guitars blast in. The song maintains a middling pace as it builds into a sweeping epic that climaxes with the metal mixing with the acoustic guitar from the intro. It gives me chills every time.

Unfortunately, the black metal parts of the album are not nearly as good as the viking parts. The Golden Walls of Heaven is an upbeat track that features an intense solo. There isn't much to it outside of speed and aggression. Pace Till Death is very much in the same vein, so is Dies Irae, so is Holocoust. Outside of a few moments that's all there is. 

The one exception is the end of Dies Irae. The song breaks up the monotony with a slower section towards it's end that hearkens in the amazing title track when it finishes. Other than that though these songs are largely forgettable.

The album begins and ends on the highlights, the viking songs are clearly the best songs here. It almost sounds like Quorthon was running out of ideas on the older style and needed something new. With viking metal he found that and so much more.

Entry 521 - Vargrav - Netherstorm

 

Every once in a while you happen to pick the right album listen to at the exact right time. I've been meaning to listen to Vargrav for some time, but never got off my ass and put the record on the table. On a whim I decided to correct that today. I made the right choice.

Some albums make me remember why black metal is my favorite genre, Netherstorm appears to be one of those albums. The instant the needle hit the record, keyboards swell into the wonderful opening riff of the title track. This is the good shit.

At it's heart, Netherstorm is a tribute to early Emperor. The riffs and atmosphere reek of In the Nightside Eclipse. The intro of Limobo of Abysmal Void sounds like it could have been lifted off of any of the songs on there. The way the guitars slowly build in that tremolo riff and how the keyboards blanket the background to create a dark and necro atmosphere. Then the riff returns a few minutes into the song a galloping drum beat underneath... it gives me goosebumps. Easily the best song on the album.

Despite how strong many of the moments in the album are, there are points where it does overstay its welcome. Obedient, Tolerant, Ensnared could have been about 2-3 minutes shorter and been more impactful. In addition to the length some of the transitions are awkward. The music builds into what would logically turn into a booming crescendo but instead it putters out into a riff that sounds out of place in the album. Instead of a triumphant climax the riff instead gives almost has a death metal chugging feel to it. It breaks the flow of the song for me.

That said, most of the album is well above average black metal. I didn't know this until recently, but the main composer behind Vargrav is the same dude who does Druidan Forest. Prior to this writing I was already well acquainted with the dungeon synth project. It would only make sense that his black metal is also a cut above.

Entry 520 - Mega Man X

 

I owned the full box set of all the Mega Man X titles until recently. I would only ever listen the first record of the set. That record belonged to the first game in the series. When Laced announced that they were going to be releasing it as its own 1 LP set, I grabbed it as soon as I could and sold my box set.

This soundtrack is pure nostalgia for me. This was one of the first Super Nintendo games that I ever played and it blew me away. The bosses were bigger, the stages were more dynamic, the armor was cool as hell, and the SNES soundtrack was one of the best ones I had heard to that point.

The music blasts in with the intro stage, a stage before the boss select, a first for Mega Man. The music here is infectious. High energy and urgency. What's he running towards? What's going on, why does Mega Man have to act swiftly? The music reflects those questions with the same intensity.

When the goal is reached the music morphs into an eerie theme one of the main antagonists of the game: Vile. We are easily outmatched. The music's melody is played with orchestra hits and an off time beat. It's chaotic and reflects the fight well.

After our inevitable defeat, Zero enters with a triumphant theme and quickly removes Vile's arm. In the aftermath the scene and music reflect on the events that just transpired. I remember feeling that this was the coolest moment in video games when I first played it.

Laced put all of these tracks in the same order that they appear in game. This lets me relive those moments as the record progresses. The rest of the album continues the theme with the boss selection and each of the robot masters thereafter. 

This is one of the better soundtracks from the 16 bit era and it's one I'm glad that I have in my collection. This will get spun quite often. It's infectious and one of those soundtracks that n e e d s to be listened to from time to time.

Entry 519 - Sangam & Diamondstein - Oceans Between Us

 

I've always thought that Sangam's best work is when he is paired up with other artists. His repetitive sorrow filled style can be good in limited doses. Many of his albums run together for me. When he is in collaboration with another artist, the music is injected with new life and it elevates it.

Diamondstein is another artist that I consume in small quantities. His discography is not as repetitive as Sangam, but he has never created anything that captures me for an entire album. It's a shame because he's capable of creating incredible music.

So what do you get when you mix the two of them together? You get the sombreness and reflection of Sangam's rain filled tracks interjected with a sense of urgency and life from the more dynamic styling of Diamonstein. I dare to say that the resulting album is better than almost any of their individual efforts.

A song like Orbital is an excellent example of this. It starts off like most Sangam songs. Slow repeating keyboards over a rain filled background. The slow melody repeats for nearly a minute. Out of nowhere a beat slowly fades in accompanied by brighter synths that compliment established melody. This is Diamondstien's contribution to the track.

As the song continues to evolve the original melody never leaves, but the beats and complimenting melodies do evolve. This is a prime example of why Sangam's style works best with other artists. If this was a solo track, we would have the original melody for four minutes and then the song would fade out. With the contribution of Diamonstein the song is elevated to greater heights than it ever could have been on its own.

This is seen over and over again through the album. Finding Peace Where There Isn't is a more upbeat track that more reminiscent of Diamondstein, that is transformed into a more sombre tone by the addition of dour synths. Their styles work so well together, I'm going to have to revisit their other album in short order.

Entry 518 - The 3rd and the Mortal - In This Room

 

Keeping with the theme of 90's doom bands that went away from their metal roots and I lost interest in when they switched vocalists, we have The 3rd and the Mortal. Wow that's a mouthful.

In this Room is strange, very strange. Some songs are instantly accessible, like the dark and brooding opener Stream. It features the deep voice of Ann-Mari to the fullest effect and showcases the bands knack for creating eerie atmospheres. The following instrumental goes into dark ambient territory and further draws me in with its ghostly brooding. Then the album reveals it's true form.

So Pure is the third song of the album and it sounds like a country song gone wrong. It's as if every note of is played off key with intention. Everything clashes and it creates an uncomfortable kind of dissonance. Not the kind you would get from listening to extreme metal. No, this has me wondering if the music is intentionally terrible or if the band are eccentric genius' for writing music like this.

The album continues to get weirder. Sophisticated Vampires merges the craziness of So Pure with the darker ambience of the first few songs of the album. What the hell is this...?

Immediately following is Harvest. An acoustic piece that taps into the first real mournful tone of the album. Much like Stream, everything fits perfectly and is quite powerful. This band makes no sense.

Things continue to unravel as the album continues to evolve. What the hell is going on in Myriad of Peep-holes? The three instrumentals toward the end use the vocals as an instrument instead of a lyrical device. The more I try to figure out the band the more I fail. It's best to let go and enjoy the ride.

The 3rd and the Mortal created something unique with In this Room. It's a combination of dark rock, avant-garde, folk, and plain olde tom-foolery. This would also be the last album with Ann-Mari on vocals, and the follow up would end up being not nearly as good or as goofy as In This Room is. It's a shame because this is some excellent stuff once the shock effect wears off.

Entry 517 - The Gathering - Home

The Gathering is one of the more interesting bands that I grew up with. Few bands have changed style as much as The Gathering and remained consistently good.

Home is the last Gathering album I sought out when I was actively following the band. It is also the last album with Anneke on vocals. That is not a coincidence. 

Anneke's vocals are what brought me to this band, and when she left so did my interest in the band. This is nothing against Silje or any of the other members. Anneke was simply irreplaceable for me.

Home represents another step in the bands evolution as they move further away from their metal roots. Home is a conglomeration of electronic, ambient, pop, and rock - combined with Anneke's beautifully haunting vocals you have the recipe for something remarkable.

Anneke's voice is prominently featured in most songs. That said, the band creates music that compliments her voice perfectly, being just as emotionally charged as her voice. When the two come together for the emotional climaxes throughout the album it often results in goosebumps. \

Waking Hour shows the band at their best. It starts off weak and quiet with vocals being the singular focus. As the song progresses the band comes in and adds additional layers. The guitars and keys meld together to create a sombre atmosphere. The rhythm section fills out the bottom end of the song without ever taking away from the delicate atmosphere.

The song has several movements, each with a different tone. Despite all the changes and evolution the song goes through, it remains consistently good. Be it the rock influenced chorus, the piano lead outro, or the quiet vocal led verses. They all work - as does the rest of the album.

At this point in their careers The Gathering know how to make damn good music. No virtuosos, not one element dominating the music... just an excellent final product. Something I wish more bands would model themselves after.

Entry 516 - Duke Ellington, Charlie Mingus, Max Roach - Money Jungle

 

I'll be the first to admit I'm not expert at Jazz. I feel like the random guy that comes in and goes "I like da sounds it makes," followed by a goofy laugh. Despite this, jazz fits a special place in my collection that no other style meets. The music speaks to me like no other genre can.

Duke Ellington in particular is a master of his instrument. His work on the piano is completely unmatched in my limited listening experience. Every record that I've ever heard him on is pure gold, and Money Jungle is no exception.

This album consists of  Duke on piano, Charlie on the double bass, and Max on drums. That's all you get. It's amazing what these guys do with just that.  

Somehow the trio has created a paradox. This album sounds so full and rich, akin to something you would get out a full ensemble. This is just three guys, playing their hearts out. The other side of this is it never sounds like it's more than the three instruments. It's a huge mystery how it sounds so incredibly full and complex yet so simple and refined all at the same time.

Apparently Money Jungle was recorded in one day... how the hell did these guys do that? I've heard albums that took years to write and prepare that don't hold a candle to the magic that's on this record. It's a mystery lost to the anneals of time.

I'm not going to go into a huge amount of detail about the music on Money Jungle. It's classic jazz. It's one of the prime examples of the best that the genre has to offer. The passion, the fun, the sadness, and the joy all wrapped up into one package performed by three of the masters.

Entry 515 - Gates of Siam - Eve

 

Once upon a time I had another blog. I wrote about this album there a few years ago. I listened to Eve a lot back then, but not much in the years since. It's time to revisit it.

Gates of Siam is a one man project that specializes in atmospheric dreampunk. Eve is the second album to come out under this project. It marks a step up in quality in both songwriting and the album's cohesiveness and flow.

There are a lot of styles on display in Eve. The album opens up with Abyss which is a long, melody driven ambient piece. It features heavy use of phased synth pads and bright lead synths that carry the song forward. By modulating the melodies through different shifts the song progresses with a captivating flow. It sets the stage wonderfully for the rest of the album.

The majority of the album follows this melodic pattern. Some songs incorporating mild beats while others are straight up drone tracks. The album twists and turns through these different styles until it comes to the coup de grace... the final track... the eponymous Eve.

Eve is a special track. It channels deep sorrow through it's use of rain and delayed piano. It resonated with me from the very moment I heard it. The song is the definition of a "soul-crushing" track with the emotions that it produces within me, and it is one of the single best songs that has ever come out of the dreampunk genre. Something that needs to be heard to be fully appreciated - as my words will never do it full justice.

Do I enjoy dreampunk now as much as I used to? Probably not, but it's albums such as this that let me know exactly what I saw in the genre in the first place. It gives me something to come back to when I feel the urge.

Entry 514 - Inferno - Omniabscence Filled by His Greatness

 

I stumbled on these guys a few years back. I knew nothing about them, but the cover stood out and the price was reasonable so I picked it up without listening. I was not quite ready for how good this turned out to be.

The cover has strong religious inclinations, and that effect is carried directly into the music. Inferno play a dissonant, yet highly atmospheric style of black metal that is blanketed in a deeply spiritual atmosphere.

This combination results in one of my favorite styles of black metal. When bands do it well - as Inferno do here - the music lulls me into a hypnosis. A meditative trance where I am able to lose myself in the musics sway. The combination of a lead guitar with ample amounts of delay and reverb played over a wall of sound will instantly have me hooked more times than not. The band never lets up on the atmosphere either. 

From the very start there is an incredibly complete sound throughout the album. As the album matures it only gets better. Of the five real songs here, the last three are the strongest. The atmosphere grows, the riffs are more powerful, and there is tension in the music is unmatched. 

The tension is largely created by tempo variation. The songs generally start slow and dissonant, and slowly morph into an explosion of crazy riffs, blasting drums, and a sound so thick you need a Damascus blade to cut through it.

This is most evident in Their Vertical Fissure of the Most Distant End. The song is nearly unbearably slow to start and over its ten minute run time slowly constructs a sonic vision. A vision of decay that is utterly destroyed by dissonant riffing and insane blasting at the end. Songs like this show that Inferno are masters of their craft.

I had no idea who these guys were when I picked up the album, and I still know next to nothing about the band. I prefer to keep it that way, let the mystery of the band remain and let the music speak for itself. With albums like Omniabscence Filled by His Greatness, this is the way.

Entry 513 - Black Cilice - Banished From Time

 

Sometimes nihilism gets the best of me. What is the point of anything anymore? We're all just bags of meat that will die and feed worms when we are done. It's times like this where finding music that reflects this great void really resonates with me. Banished form Time appears to be one of those albums.
 

I normally don't like this band. Every single thing I've heard from them has fallen flat with me. Either the riffs don't stand out, the vocals don't do anything for me, or some other unknown force gets me to the point where I turn Black Cilice off after a few minutes. That is not the case with Banished From Time.

What takes me aback about this album is that the formula established on previous albums is directly carried forward here. The production is exceedingly raw. The vocals are howled into a cave with a microphone placed twenty meters away. It's hard to make out anything but the blur of riffs and distant banging of blast beats. This is about as raw as it gets while still being somewhat discernible.

I truly don't know what I like so much more about this album than the rest of Black Cilice's discography.  Maybe there is more urgency to the songs? Maybe the riffs are written slightly better? Maybe the songs are arranged a bit better? Maybe it just clicked where the others didn't? Who knows... what I do know is that this album kicks ass.

Raw black metal has a special place for me. When it is done well it fucking slays like no other genre does. In the whirlwind of noise and muck there are instruments that reward the listener for their patience.

This is not easy music to get into. You have to sift through layers upon layers of horrid production until you get to the real meat of the music. But in doing so the music takes on a unique character.  It fully embraces the inaccessibility and obscurity of the music. Maybe that's why I like it so much when I feel like there is no point to anything. It rewards me for my listening efforts.

Entry 512 - Tom Waits - Swordfishtrombones

 

I'm going to fail at describing how strange this record is. There is no way that I can do justice to the fifteen songs contained within Swordfishtrombones. There is no way.

Swordfishtrombones is a great album title. Before hearing the album I thought "what on earth is a swordfishtrombone?" This was my exact reaction to the music contained within the album... "what on earth is this?" 

Every single song is different from the next, there is no continuity. Ironically, that is what makes the whole thing work. It's a chaotic mess that comes together to create near perfection.

Prior to this, Tom Waits was largely known as a male vocal lead slow lounge songs. That started changing with the later 70's albums, but no one could have seen what was coming in the 80's.

Swordfishtrombones has blues, lounge, classical, swing, circus music, spoken word, rock and roll, jazz... and about thirty other genres worked into one record. One moment Tom will be crooning over a piano as if he's in a smoke saturated bar. The next track is a blues guitar that sounds like its recorded in someones garage.  Tom sounds like someone who is trying to sing but is held back because hes smoked three packs of cigarettes for ten years straight.

More songs have Tom narrating in his natural speaking voice over percussion, wailing like a banshee, or raging like an alcoholic. Instrumentals of various styles and some just plain bizarre songs round out the album. 

There was a rumor I once heard that the xylophones used on the album were made out of bone. I don't know if there is any merit to that, but it gives the listener a sense of how strange and off the wall this album is.

I don't think I've even scratched the surface on how utterly strange, fascinating, and mindbogglingly fucked this album is. There is nothing in the world like Tom Waits 80's albums, and there never will be. Tom launched himself into a new world of music. One that is strange and horrific, yet beautiful in the most unexpected ways possible. A masterpiece, calling it anything less would be uncivilized.

Entry 511 - Oublieth - Mornelance

 

What happens when you mix dungeon synth with a frozen landscape and a healthy dose of ambient? You get Mournelance.

Oublieth is one of the more fascinating modern dungeon synth artists. Their music somehow pays tribute to the olden times while still sounding modern. Derivative and innovative at the same time.

Mounelance falls within the wintersynth genre. Pictures of frozen tundra or snow covered mountain top are found within the six songs of Mornlance. 

Oublieth takes typical dungeon synth's slowly repeating melodies and weaves them together over all-encompassing chords, all played on a keyboard of... questionable quality. Where Oubieth starts to differentiate themselves is with the melding of the ambient genre with the wintersynth. This isn't just dungeon synth, this is a fully realized ambient album with dungeon synth mixed in equal parts.

The symbiosis of the two genres turns out to be a great boon for Mornelance. Not only does it capture the old familiar feelings of early dungeon synth, it has a sense of grandeur brought in by the ambience. This marriage not only elevates the melodies, but also the entirety of the music. Mornelance is larger than the sum of its parts. It's a journey, complete with a destination, that we as listeners are being guided to during the albums playtime.

At the time of this writing, I think at this point the album has overstayed its welcome with me. Even though this is a fantastic dungeon synth album, I've been listening to it non stop for well over a day. Even the greatest albums in my collection have a hard time staying on the table for more than a few spins before I start craving something else. The fact that Mornlance has made it a dozen or so spins so far is a huge testament to the quality held within this spinny disk that makes music.

Entry 510 - Bruce Dickinson - Accident of Birth

 

I was devastated when Bruce left Iron Maiden. I didn't know what would happen with the band. He was one of the strongest vocalists in the metal genre at the time (and still is). I wasn't too thrilled with what I had heard with Bruce's earlier solo work. That all changed with Accident of Birth.

Enter Adrian Smith, arguably the best song writer in Maiden, joining Bruce for this album. The result is nothing less than one of my favorite traditional metal albums ever recorded.

While Accident of Birth contains some facets of Iron Maiden, this is very much it's own album. For one this is much heavier than any Maiden release. Secondly the variety showcased on here not only showcases Bruce's voice to the greatest extent possible, but also the songwriting chops of both Adrien and Roy Z.

There are slow emotional songs - Man of Sorrows in particular is highly emotionally charged, with Bruce's voice echoing the loss of a father figure in a child's life. When he screams "Do what thou wilt, do what thou wilt he cried..." goosebumps, shivers... vocal perfection.

There are faster songs - Road to Hell immediately comes to mind as the most Maiden influenced song on here, though again it is more focused on the lower frets. There are epics - Road to Aquarius has no business being as good as it is in such a short time frame. It feels like a ten minute song wrapped up into just over six minutes.

There are a couple of duds on here as well. Both The Magician and Welcome to the Pit don't do much for me. The fact that they are back to back on the album also breaks me out of the flow somewhat. Luckily they are soon forgotten by the excellent songs that follow - including the flawless Arc of Space to close the album.

Accident of Birth gave Bruce's solo career life. It put him on the map again as a force to be reckoned with. With this and the follow up, in my humble opinion, Bruce released two of the most essential traditional metal albums from around the turn of the millennium. Actually make that of all time.

Entry 509 - Agrypnie - Grenzgænger

 

Silence is broken by a low reverberation in the ground. The air grows uneasy, nature stills. Something is coming... something immense.

The world is changed around me, peace I once knew has been thrown into chaos. A maelstrom of winds, quakes, and hail disintegrate the peace. Thus is heralded the coming of the Agrypnie.

Painful shrieks break the silence as the beast tramples across the landscape at inhuman speeds. The wind makes rhythmic sounds that are nearly musical with their wisps. As I slowly regain my footing, I become used to the presence within this place. It is indeed intimidating, yet reassuring and tranquil, despite the violence around me.

Agrypnie play an intense form of melodic black metal. It's filled with pain, incredibly somber melodies, tight speedy drums, and a rich atmosphere. The account above is one of first time listening to the opening track, Auferstehung.

The song starts off incredibly quiet before the band storms in with a blast beat and furious guitar riffing. It almost blew me backwards in my seat. During the songs 11 minutes the band phases through intense riffs, quiet and calm moments, repetitive build ups, all while maintaining a profound sense of melody. It's a lot to take in at once, but once acclimated the track quickly grew on me and now is a highlight of the album.

The vocals on the other hand are less thrilling. They are more a pained wail that is unappealing on the ears. It took me more time to get used to this than any other facet of the music. With time though it's become an essential part to Agrypnie's sound and the music would not be the same without it.

Grenzgænger is a tough nut to crack. There is an intensity to the music that drew me in from the get go, but there are also parts that turned me off. I've spent a few years with it at this point and I thoroughly enjoy the album now.  It's likely one of the better melodic black metal albums in my collection.

Entry 508 - Drudkh - Forgotten Legends

 

It's been hard for me to find repetitive black metal that I enjoy... difficult to find that riff or combination or riffs that puts me into a meditative state rather than getting bored, or worse yet... irritated.

Drudkh are one of  the few bands that gets it right. Even of their debut album they knew what to do: long songs, epic sweeping riffs that flow like a peaceful stream, and a clear sense of when to move from one riff to another. All of these ingredients are important in more conventional songs, but they are of paramount importance in an album like Forgotten Legends.

The lifeblood of Drudkh's sound is swirling riffs that repeat for several minutes. These riffs build or evolve, they are simply content to be as they are. They ride that razors edge of being too repetitive and sweeping me into another realm. 

Drudkh are exceptionally good at knowing when a riff is about to overstay it's welcome. They move on to another part of the song before its too late. This mastery is something the band has always done well, and it's especially evident on the debut. I can only think of a handful of bands that do this at the same level that is on display on Forgotten Legends.

This is accomplished by having a keen sense of how to make all the instruments work together. The guitars have a rhythm to them and the drums will accent them perfectly. The band will then switch to a full chord riff and the drums will pick up the pace, again working in perfect harmony. Whatever the final result, every riff, every section, every song work together with near perfection.

This style would be mastered in Drudkh's next few albums. Forgotten Legends is something special though. It feels more like the bands fifth or sixth album (rather than a debut) with how well put together it is. It's the perfect album to put on as the night takes hold - listening to the repetitive art as the night takes over the day.

Entry 507 - Nocturnus - The Key

 

The Key is an album that I stumbled across in my youth. The cover was cool as hell and it was a few bucks, so I figured why not. When I got home I popped the CD in and was greeted by some old school death metal... with keyboards!

I didn't know it then but Nocturnus was the first death metal band to incorporate keys into their core sound. They aren't ever present like they are in some bands, but they are present enough that they play a major role in Nocturnus' sound.

Noctourns' sound is more than just heavy riffs, growled vocals and keyboards sprinkled on top though. I didn't remember this at first, but there is quite a bit going on here. The riffs have the guitars playing off each other in complex patters. The drums in particular adapt to the music in dynamic ways that I don't often hear in death metal. Blast beats are incredibly rare on the album, and when they do come they are short lived. The snare and bass drums interact very much the same way a bass and guitars intermingle and compliment each other. It makes for an enjoyable listen.

The melodies also are very much an artifact of their time. They have a strong "old school" feel to them, except when this album released they were contemporary. The riffs gallop, change pace instantly, and shred like they could only do in the early days of the genre... and there is a lot of them. Each song goes through riffs like they are going out of style.

This isn't as brutal as a lot of death metal. This isn't as technical as a lot of death metal. This isn't talking about gore or satan. This is riff fueled, sci-fi driven early death metal... it knows exactly what it wants to be and it should be celebrated.

Entry 506 - Fear Factory - Re-Industrialized

 

I hated the original album of The Industrialist. Burton's vocals were weak, the drumming was not good. The production was all wring. It was one of the worst Fear Factory albums ever... worse than Digimortal or Transgression. It was such a huge let down, especially considering how excellent it's predecessor Mechanize was.

When the band said it was getting a complete re-master with re-recorded drums I was cautiously curious. The main problem I had with the original was that it sounded so impotent. Nothing hit with the power and authority that Fear Factory is known for. Outside of the excellent intro to the album and some very brief moments I found the entire affair to be a big waste of my time.

Re-Industrialized is essentially a rerecording of the original album. The drum machine has been replaced by the excellent drumming of Mike Heller. The guitars have been beefed up and have the tightness and control that I expect. The industrial elements have been beefed up as well. This is a HUGE boon, Fear Factory are at their absolute best when the electronics and metal are in symbiosis - this is what distinguishes them from other groups.

Outside of the obvious changes to the production, there are some small changes to songs as well. I think Virus of Faith is a bit faster than the original, if not it is certainly more intense. Disassemble hits harder than it ever did previously as well, there is a venom in Burton's voice that I don't think was present previously.

The band also included Enhanced Reality as an additional track. The song is possibly the best one on the album, and it's a huge shame it was left off before  and the whole album is better for it.

Re-Industrialized is quite a large step up from the original release. The album is also incredibly back loaded, with the last three to four songs being some of my favorites on the album. The band also threw in five bonus tracks on side D as a nice bonus. This is how you do a re-release of a sub par album and bring it up to the standards set by previous releases.

Entry 505 - Nurse With Wound - Homotopy to Marie

 

There are some strange recordings in my collection. Some border on unalienable, while others play around with the idea of "what really is music?" At the forefront of all the odd, peculiar, and bizarre records in my collection is Homotopy to Marie; Nurse With Wound's seminal album.

Nurse With Wound has always been a challenging listen (putting it lightly).  This album in particular is so bizarre and strange that even someone who is quite used to noise, abrasive music, ambience, and field recordings may have a tough time fully embracing the music found on Homotopy to Marie. I know I did.

The first time I ever listened to this album my initial reaction was "what the fuck is this shit?" The first track - I Cannot Feel You as the Dogs Are Laughing and I Am Blind - is filled with such alien sounds, static, field recordings, and seemingly random events that it's almost overwhelming...
 
The thing is that none of the individual elements are that jarring and of themselves. It's the fact that Nurse With Wound is so good at putting them together that it becomes genuine unsettling. In the title track for instance, there are samples of a child speaking to a woman followed by long stretches of silence. In the silence there is truly nothing... I keep listening for something, anything - but it's not there. Then, out of no where there is a huge symbol crash accompanied by feedback and what sounds like someone playing a violin on the wrong side of the bridge. It's incredibly startling, even if you know its coming.

The whole album is built to mess with you, every second of every song is nothing but a mindfuck for the listener. The atmosphere and ambiance of the album is pure terror mixed with an eerie unease. It's incredibly difficult to listen to, and it's even harder to wrap my head around it.

This album was released in 1982. 41 years later the album is still one of the finest examples of truly extreme music. This album is not for the feint of heart. Those who decide to brave the journey that Nurse With Wound has offered here though will be met with a memorable experience. This is not an album you easily forget.

Entry 504 - Collapse of Light - Each Failing Step

My god... how long has it been? How long has it been since I found a funeral doom album that really hit all the right notes? Years?

The idea of male and female vocals with ultra slow tempos has been done before - and it's been done very well before. What Collapse of Light does with this style though is nothing short of profound.

So much of funeral doom fails to live up to the potential of the genre. When a band plays as slow as the genre calls for, I expect the impact to be immense. I don't just want to hear the music, I want to F E E L it. I want the riffs to be the weight of a glacier moving over the landscape and crushing anything in its path. It is incredibly rare that a band actually achieves that. Collapse of Light is one of the few bands that does.

The album starts out with a cello playing a sombre and mournful tune. It's joined periodically by a violin and the duet form a musical dance that whisks me away with it's splendor. When the guitars finally do come in they do so with a crashing command that has all the crushing weight that I want out of this genre. Shortly after the duet of clean male and female vocals take the place of the stringed instruments for a time.

Several minutes in and the song has not even introduced harsh vocals. When they finally do come in, the song shifts down a gear and even slower as the hearken in the gutterals.  This is the point where the song has fully evolved from it's fragile beginnings into a behemoth that is near unstoppable.

The beauty of Each Failing Step is exactly such. The album goes through ebbs and flows like few other albums can. It knows when to be quiet. It knows when to be fragile. It knows when to rage. It knows when to dominate. It just knows what to be and when. A near perfect representation of the funeral doom genre and all the potential it is capable of.

Entry 503 - Youske Tokunaga - 8 Quadrants

 

There is something about Japanese artists that hits just a bit different. They have a mystique to them that other countries don't often match. It's this intangible quality to the music that makes it stand out in different ways. In the case of 8 Quadrants, this quality is manifested through a deep sense of mystery.

From the very first notes of the album, its immediately evident that 8 Quadrants is going to be an album shrouded in a deep haze, where the obscure and atmosphere is king. There are no real melodies on the album, only a collection of moods that make up the runtime of the album.

I've said before that certain albums have a "Silent Hill" type feel to them. Where the music pays tribute to the legendary soundtracks in their own ways. 8 Quadrants absolutely falls into that description. Whereas, there are no rock or structure on this album, it fully embraces the hazy ambience that was pioneered on the Silent Hill soundtracks.

That's not to say that there is nothing original here, in fact - quite the contrary. Quadrants utilizes soundscapes and instrumentation that were never used within the aforementioned games, what is similar is the overall f e e l of the album... and it's remarkable.

Be it the slowly decaying piano and metallic sounds on Quadr ants, or the only beat oriented song Qua drants. Each song sounds like it belongs on this album, there is no other place it could possibly belong to. The use of delay, reverb, and repetition are used so incredibly well throughout the album that even though the memories of the music's details are foggy, I remember deeply how it made me feel.

Youske Tokunaga has created an album that I will be revisiting very often. This fits a very specific mood that I find myself seeking out on a regular basis. The combination of mystery, combined with the deep emotional connection I feel with the soundscapes is pretty rare. Rare enough that when I do come across an album like this, I hold onto it for a long time.

Entry 502 - Abigor - Leytmotif Luzifer (The 7 Temptations of Man)

 

God damn this is a tough nut to crack. Abigor's albums are almost always inaccessible at very best, but this one in particular is taking me quite some time to get any sort of connection with... like, years.

What makes this one so difficult to get into? That's the enigma of this album, I really don't know. There is so much here that I love about the band: the obscure song structures, the almost random changes from riff to riff, the endless flurry of each song - never giving the listener a break. Everything that Abigor excels at is on this album, including the much welcomed return of Silenius on vocals. I figured by trying to write down my thoughts as the album sits on the turntable for a few spins, maybe I can solve the riddle of Leytmotif Luzifer.

When I think about it, this is really my favorite kind of album. An album that I know I should like, but I can't get into... so I keep coming back. Repeat the process indefinably until the album clicks... I will likely never give up on this thing.

Abigor's particular brand of black metal is unique. No other band has sounds like them, and that continues with Leytmotif Luzifer. The riffs are so razor sharp and intricate that they are instantly recognizable as Abigor. The riffs on this particular album hearken back to the earlier days of Supreme Immortal Art minus the keys. They are ever changing, never repeating, a million ideas in a minute. One moment the band will be blasting at lightning speeds, then it all stops seemingly mid riff and goes to a series of notes that seemingly don't belong together. Throw in some random clean vocals and passages where everything comes together in triumphant fashion and you have Abigor's core sound on this album.

Even though the sound is incredibly challenging, these seven songs are incredible. Even the few short spins I had of the record today got me closer to breaking through... I can feel it's close. This album is always a fascinating spin and I anticipate that it will be back on my turntable in short order.

Entry 501 - Carpenter Brut - Trilogy Part 3 - EP 3

 

 

I just can't get enough of this album (Trilogy). I normally would break this up over the course of several weeks and space the entries out so I don't get sick of a specific band, but god damn I can't stop listening to Carpenter Brut right now. This shit is exactly what I needed to listen to the last few days.

EP 3 continues where the other two left off. The nostalgia, the horror themes, the aggression... it's all here, and its still excellent. EP 3 does contain a few welcome surprises when compared to the first two entries though.

The first is the superb Turbo Killer. This song revisits the insane driving bass that Escape from Midwich Valley has, but in a full song rather than just a climax. This song also uses a pipe organ sample to good effect. Neither of these are things I expected on a full song, but both are incredibly well executed and begin to break the mold a bit for Carpenter Brut.

Anarchy Road is a full on vocal track that borders on a pop song. Coming right after the take no prisoners Turbo Killer, the song offers a huge contrast and a demonstration of how wide a palate Carpenter Brut is capable of creating.

While the songs on here are well written there isn't that mind blowing song that is present on both EP 1 and EP 2. It's a bit of a disappointment considering how good Hang'Em All and Escape from Midwich Valley were. That said this is still a solid EP and acts as a launching point for the full lengths that would start coming after the three EP's.

Carpenter Brut created three of the better synthwave albums with these three records. They all contain six songs, and with the conclusion of the third EP the trilogy of 666 can is complete. What a ride.

Entry 500 - Carpenter Brut - Trillogy Part 2 - EP 2

 

Listening to EP 1 and EP 2 back to back is a bit of a treat. You get to see the remnants of the idea's that were on EP 1 come to fruition on the follow up, EP 2. Whereas the first started out with a huge bang and then became quite a bit tamer throughout, EP 2 has the opposite effect. Starting out relatively tame and going out on one of the best synthwave songs ever recorded.

The songs on EP 2 are almost all of equally high quality. There really isn't a low point on the album, only high points and higher ones. Many of the same ideas that were on EP 1 are also found on EP 2. The obvious homage to the 80's sci-fi themed based tropes are here. So are the John Carpenter influenced horror soundtrack elements. No matter what Carpenter Brut takes influence from, each of the songs on EP 2 pay a deep homage to the synth music of the 80's with a modern production.

That's not to say that Carpenter Brut's music feels dated, in fact it's quite the opposite. This music is so deeply rooted in viewing the 80's from a modern perspective it ends up sounding like a fresh take on a familiar idea. All of the synths sound clearer and well defined than the 80's material. In doing so, some of the mystique and magic of the true 80's material is lost. In it's place though you get a masterful demonstration of what the genre is capable of within a contemporary framework.

Both EP 1 and EP 2 are two sides of the same coin. EP 1 focuses more on coming in with a bang and then filling out the album with 80's influenced ideas. EP 2 starts off strong but ends with one of the single best synthwave songs I've ever heard. Hang'Em All is easily one of the catchiest and most infectious songs I've heard in the genre. It channels the same energy that Escape from Midwich Valley does.

These two EP's essential for anyone looking to get into synthwave. Essential listening.

Entry 499 - Carpenter Brut - Trilogy Part 1 - EP 1

 

Wow did this release come out of no where. One minute there was no such thing as Carpenter Brut and the next moment... BAM! One of the best synth wave debut's ever created is unleashed upon the earth.

EP 1 is a tour de force of what good synthwave is all about. It's dynamic, it's got interesting synths, it's got a crazy cool song structures, and it just plain kicks ass.

Let's break down the first song Escape from Midwich Valley. This song encompasses everything that I love about Carpenter Brut. Starting off with a few solitary over-saturated notes that gives way to a low pulse that will become a backbone for the slow build that occurs over the next few minutes. As the song progresses more and more elements are added in: a guitar fading in and out, an old ham radio signal, and finally we get to the bass heavy synths. These are beefy boys.

It's the beefy synths that act as the main driver for the song. They give the song a depth that few other synthwave artists are capable of, and have become synonymous with the Carpenter Brut sound. As the song builds over its first four minutes we are treated to a sudden pause and near ambient section... and it's here where Carpenter Brut shows his true colors.

The explosion that occurs is like nothing else I've ever heard in synthwave and is so iconic to Carpenter Brut that it becomes a reference point for other artists and songs. Those same beefy synths form earlier? Yeah they come back but on steroids. They drive the song forward with a force and passion that most other artists can only catch a glimpse of.... it's nothing short of genius.

The rest of the EP continues to mess around with variations of synthwave styling. Some sound like Night Rider is coming in to save the day. Others still remind me of a noir film from the 80's. Whatever he does he does it well. This is nearly the perfect synthwave album and would be an excellent reference point for anyone looking to get into the genre.

Entry 498 - Misthyrming - Algleymi

With the previous success of the debut album fresh in my mind I had to go back to Algleymi to see if it had a similar change for me. I've been listening for a few hours at this point and I think that Algleymi was the album that largely formed my opinion on the band. While it does have something to offer, its nowhere near as powerful or potent as the debut album.

The first few tracks of Alglemyi pick up right where Söngvar elds og óreiðu left off. Interesting musical progressions, tasteful use of ambience and dissonance. These two songs in particular are exceptionally strong and start the album off with a bang. From there the album starts to falter a bit.

The band have decided to incorporate overdrive into one of the guitars rather that full on distortion. This is normally something that works pretty well within black metal, but for whatever reason it doesn't do anything for me here... in fact it makes the album sound rather anemic compared to the more distortion oriented tracks.

I think what happens is the music is missing the intensity of the debut. It's there from time to time, but this has more of a methodical and plodding feeling for most of the album. Again this is not inherently a bad thing, its just not what I'm looking for from Misthyrming.

Whereas the debut's riffs were dynamic and often dissonant. The riffs throughout Algleymi are slower and repeat to an almost unwelcome degree. I wouldn't mind this as much if it was spaced out throughout the album but almost 70-80% of the album is done in this style, and almost all of the songs are back to back. It's just not for me.

Entry 497 - Misthyrming - Söngvar elds og óreiðu

Misthyrming is one of those bands that I never quite know how I feel about their music. I keep revisiting their discography over and over again because of this. I don't know why this happens, but I'm very curious as to why it does.

This time through Söngvar elds og óreiðu sounds amazing. I remembered this album being boring and meandering through a bunch of pointless ideas... holy shit was I ever wrong about an album. Misthyrming have always been this enigma to me, I did not understand why people liked them. I could never get into them... I finally feel I can start to understand where they are coming from.

Misthyrming play a form of black metal that combines melodies with dissonance, ambience with overwhelming harshness, deep calm with abject terror. It's an album that is a paradox in every sense of the word, it's calming and terrifying at the same time.  

The atmosphere and energy that the band has on their debut album is pretty unique. One minute it sounds like a standard black metal album, then the music will devolve into a jazz ridden blackened breakdown. Ambience will come out of no where and cloak the entire album in a shroud of mystery. Silence will overwhelm the listener in a blanket of darkness.

The thing is that none of the individual parts of the album are that unique in and of themselves. I've heard all of these things by themselves before... but I've never quite heard them put together like this. A melodic riff will devolve into dissonance and the reconstruct itself back into something my mind can wrap itself around. A horrifying yell/screech will fade out into ambience, only to be completely destroyed a few moments later in a whirlwind of horror.

This album is something I have been missing out on, its too good to ignore. It's been spinning non stop for nearly three days on my turn table. Now as my time with it comes to an end I'll be happy to admit that I was so very wrong about this one.

Entry 496 - Abstract Void - Back to Reality

 

A few years back I got super into synthwave. I've since moved on, but one thing struck me as odd back then and still does to this day. You don't really see that many cross over acts within the genre - that is you don't see artists fusing synthwave with other genres. Abstract Void is a strong exception to that.

Taking the retrowave sub-genre of synthwave and mixing it with black metal, Abstract Void has created quite a nice little nook for themselves... one that not many other artists are in. In fact as far as I'm aware Abstract Void is the only artist that is recording in this space.

When I first heard of the projects existence I wasn't sure if the mix would work, but I decided to check it out on bandcamp regardless. When I did, the album sounded exactly as you would expect... and it works. It really works.

The execution here is so simple. The synths are front and center and dominant the music most of the time. The guitars are mixed a bit further back but are still audible. The drums alternate between what sounds like a real drum kit and the 80's electro drums you would expect from synthwave.

The album goes through quite a few ideas and atmospheres. Some have the typical retrowave sound to them, just with a helping of black metal on the side. Others are darker in tone and are more blast beat driven. Yet others sound nearly happy and are slower in pace. No matter what the song brings though the end result is always high quality and warrants repeated listens from me.

Back to Reality is the second album from this project and my personal favorite. It hones some of the best ideas that came out of synthwave and combines them with simple black metal. It shouldn't work as well as it does but god dammit, this stuff rules.

Entry 495 - Summoning - Minas Morgul

 

In my early years Summoning was a highly mysterious band. I was never able to hear their music in the 90's, all I ever heard were whispers about how good it was and how unique it was. That all changed one day when I found Napster and downloaded one song from the mystifying duo: Marching Homeward.

To say that I had never heard anything like this before is a bit off the mark. I had heard early video game soundtracks, and I had heard black metal before. What I had not heard was how well they were combined in this one song, and with the high fantasy theme to boot. I instantly fell in love with the song and played it endlessly for about a week.

I finally found an international distributor that could import CD's from Europe and put an order in for Minas Morgul and Dol Guldur and a few weeks later they arrived. It was a glorious day. I spent weeks listening to the two albums almost exclusively, much to the chagrin of my university roommates.

Summoning play a mixture of what what we now call dungeon synth and black metal. Back when this was recorded, this was just keyboard driven black metal. The pace is often slow, much like a march and the sections of a song repeat over and over and over, almost to a hypnotic effect (not in the same way as Burzum, but more like an army marching off to war or a team of vikings rowing a ship).

While future releases from the band would tone down the guitar, here it is front and center of nearly every song (the instrumentals are keyboard driven). They are nearly exclusively tremolo picked and there are only two to three riffs per song (with 7+ minute songs).

The keyboards are interlaced between the guitar riffs, only sometimes taking over. The mixture of the two main instruments is what makes this album so compelling. It's delightfully simple and never outstays its welcome. This album was the true birth of Summoning and their glorious discography.