Browsing Tag

Black Metal

Unwelcome Soul embraced the shadow self in the abyss of the black metal hit, Time, Don’t Save Me

Posted on 30 July 2024

With the release of ‘Time, Don’t Save Me’, Unwelcome Soul—a one-man black metal behemoth from Tennessee—ushered in a devastatingly potent chapter of his debut album, ‘Dried Petals’.

The track initiates with a barrage of thrashy blast beats that lay the groundwork for a seismic uproar, providing a perfect stage for the vocals to manifest. The guttural proclamations that gnarl and echo across the tumultuously unhallowed ground of the track embody the track’s achingly articulated Nietzsche-esque underpinnings of despair and disillusion.

The lyrics scathe at the naive hope that time might heal or save, hitting raw nerves and exposing a darker acceptance that for some, damnation is a sweeter resolve than salvation.

Instrumentally, ‘Time, Don’t Save Me’ mirrors the lyrical descent into macabre fatalism, gaining relentless momentum with each passing beat until the track wraps the listener in a spectral, gothic atmosphere, reaching a climactic fervour in a melodic outro that mourns the forsaken.

Time, Don’t Save Me was officially released on July 5th; stream the single on YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Settle into an ancient empire with Aklash’s cabalistic black metal single, Babylon

Posted on 8 May 2024

Few true black metal fans will need an introduction to Aklash after their 14-year European reign, yet their expansively styled baroque single, Babylon, prised from their LP, Reincarnation, carries cabalistic cross-over appeal through folk metal finesses and progged-up grooves that ensure that this juggernaut of a single brings plenty more than brutality.

The evocation of tribally kinetic rhythms within the frenetically cultivated progressions fused with the larger-than-material-reality vocal performance puts Aklash on the same convivial level as Nekrogoblikon and Turisas. Instead of merely witnessing the intensity, the immensity of the release uses your soul as a crawlspace, ensuring that passive appreciation is implausible as you attempt to keep pace with the accelerated instrumentals.

If Babylon sets the standard for the rest of the Reincarnation LP, which signifies a rebirth of the band that has thrown black metal traditionalism to the wayside to fully lean into the virtuosity of each member, it’s safe to assume that Aklash won’t just be touring with black metal royalty in the future, they’ll have the most gilded seat at the throne.

Stream the official music video for Babylon which premiered on May 2nd on YouTube.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Tribe of Ghosts wake the subjugated in their industrial post-metal debut single, COLD

Posted on 25 March 2022
https://soundcloud.com/user-453658138/cold/s-TphZFuLSAjN?utm_source=clipboard&utm_medium=text&utm_campaign=social_sharing

With its frostbitten teeth, the industrial post-metal debut single, COLD, from the Brighton-based powerhouse, Tribe of Ghosts, drags you in with its razor-sharp hooks, tension-fraught build-ups, and the cataclysmic cascades of caustic progressive metal.

The contrast between the ethereal female vocals that phantasmally float in and out of the mix to leave a little arcane magic in their wake and the gnarled black metal growls is nothing less than alchemic.

The sweet spot lingers just before the outro, where Tribe of Ghosts throw cinematically symphonic flair into the gutturally raw track that stands as a testament to their commitment to shake the listener from the complacency that they’ve been subdued into to appease the elite. Debuts don’t come much more promising than this. It is only a matter of time before Tribe of Ghosts is one of the biggest names in the UK metal circuit. Watch this space.

Cold officially released on March 25th, 2022; you can check it out for yourselves by heading over to SoundCloud.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Baroque Monody reaches the epitome of etherealism with their single, Plan 2021, feat Kellii Scott.

Posted on 2 September 2021
Plan 2021 (Feat. Kellii Scott) by Baroque Monody

Post-punk and symphonic metal converge in the darkened atmosphere of Baroque Monody’s latest single, Plan 2021, featuring percussionist Kellii Scott (Failure).

With Scott’s thrashing percussive flair, the heavy guitars and the etherealism of Jenifer Rose’s vocals as they emanate the same arcane allure of a 15th-century mystic, all of your senses will surrender to the sublimely-paced progressive furore in Plan 2021.

After making their debut in 2013, Baroque Monody has released two albums, and there is plenty more in the pipeline from the powerhouse duo. Save a spot on your radar.

Plan 2021 is available to stream and purchase via Bandcamp.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Grindcore meets Sludge Metal in XMALCOLMX’s humanity damning single ‘MAN IS THE PREY’

Posted on 16 December 2020

Sludge Metal, Black Metal, Nu Metal and Grindcore all cataclysmically collide in the 2020 album from  XMALCOLMX, ‘MAN IS THE PREY’. Each track exhibits the Stockton, California-hailing artist’s experimental style which has set the benchmark for boundary-pushing within the DIY music scene of Northern California. If you want the best introduction to XMALCOLMX’s addictively visceral sound, hit play on the title single.

The progressive track kicks off with distorted trepidation and hostility before rhythm starts to break through the caustic sonic sludge and punky protestive vocals bounce along with the monumental progressions. With an aural curveball at every turn in the tight instrumentals and the vocals proving to be just as versatile, MAN IS THE PREY quickly entices you through the addictively rhythmic abrasive energy

You can check out MAN IS THE PREY along with the rest of XMALCOLMX’s sludgy masterpiece for yourselves by heading over to Spotify.

Review by Amelia Vandergast

Trap opera emcee Morgane Matteuzzi ghosts in with ”Nightmare”

Posted on 8 July 2020

Produced expertly by Brian Spencer, this is a song like no other. Swiss singer and composer Morgane Matteuzzi studied vocals at the Royal College of Music in London with the well-respected Sally Burgess. She is currently studying modern singing in Berlin and shows off her hard work with the stunning ”Nightmare”.

Morgane sings opera and metal vocals for Etienne Pelosoff: a project mixing black metal and Jazz. With such a glowing resume, you can see why the world music scene is taking note of this wonderful talent.

”Nightmare’‘ is a fantastic fusion between opera vocals, metal vocals and dark electronic sounds. The results are absolutely astounding and my ears can’t believe what they have just heard. I listen again just to make sure and once again I nod my head in approval.

Stream this powerful new song here on Soundcloud.

Find out more about this wonderful talent on her Instagram.

Reviewed by Llewelyn Screen

Dame Tu Alma – Skeleton Key: Monstrously Cinematic Swiss Alt Rock

Posted on 25 November 2019

If you hadn’t noticed, there was no shortage of ominous Halloween releases this year. Up there with the best of them is the Dark Rock single “Skeleton Key” from Swiss artist Dame Tu Alma.

The single may be packed with chilling atmospherics, but the phantasmal air weaves in-between sharp melodic hooks which pull you right into potently energetic choruses. There’s a unique synergy within the soundscape of Skeleton Key which constantly progresses never allowing you to find a moment’s complacency with the aural alchemy you’re ingesting.

It’s not all too often that we come across Alt Rock earworms, but Dame Tu Alma didn’t fail to deliver with their colossal high-octane stylistic offering to the genre.

You’ll hear a smorgasbord of influences within Skeleton Key, from Black Metal to Post Rock to Nu Metal, it’s all fed into the cinematically monstrous hit which stands as a testament to the artist’s authenticity and ingenuity.

You can check out the official video to Skeleton Key which was released on October 31st for yourselves by heading over to YouTube now.

Review by Amelia Vandergast