New Music Release

Lord Mountain, The Oath (King Volume 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , ,

California doom band Lord Mountain present their debut long-player, The Oath.

Lord Mountain has been creating traditional doom in California since 2014. Their first EP (self-titled) came out two years after their founding and held four heavy tracks that left their growing fan base hoping for more. At last, the wait is over. The band is Jesse Swanson (guitar, vocals), Sean Serrano (guitar), Andy Chism (bass), and Pat Moore (drums).

There are seven primary tracks and an interstitial piece on the new album. The classic metal song “Well of Fates” gives us a nice introduction to the set. As the music goes on, it fills in, coloring the adventurous metal with shadows of doom. The vocals have a nostalgic 1980s feel to them, and alternating lead guitar opens the passage to the finish. “The Giant” is more confrontation than the opener, which had the feel of quest. Here there is a foe that must be addressed – the mesmerizing guitar is the perfect tool. “Beyond the Frozen Sea” is a short instrumental giblet, leading to “The Last Crossing,” a fast one that rambles hard for a time. Halfway through, the mood and tempo shift, becoming more reflective.

Side two begins with “Chasm of Time,” a radio song if I ever heard one. It is a punchy tune that is a good wake-up for the middle bit, especially since the remaining songs carry the essence of epic metal and doom, leaning heavily on fantasy ideals in musical themes and narrative characterizations. “The Sacrifice,” “Serpent Temple,” and “The Oath” – the final three songs – seem very much like a triplet to me, fitting perfectly together and displaying similar, and related, ideas. Traditional heavy metal fans who like dark fantasy elements with the colors of doom in their music will welcome the album. Recommended.

The Oath is out now through King Volume Records. Have a go at the links below.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://lordmountain1.bandcamp.com/album/the-oath

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/lordmountaindoom/

King Volume Records, https://kingvolumerecords.bandcamp.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Lord Mountain, The Oath (King Volume 2023)

Kabbalah, Spectral Ascent (Ripple 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , , , ,

Kabbalah’s first full-length album Spectral Ascent gets a new release from Ripple Music.

Kabbalah is a doom rock trio from Pamplona, Spain. They released a triplet of EPs in rapid succession beginning in 2013 that established them as a significant force in heavy music. Spectral Ascent was their first long-player, originally released in 2017 by Twin Earth Records. Ripple Music released Kabbalah’s second album, The Omen, through their Rebel Waves Records imprint in 2021. Now Spectral Ascent will be available to the wider audience that has been clamoring for it, especially the physical versions. According to the Metal Archives, Kabbalah is Marga Malaria (bass, vocals), Carmen Espejo (drums, vocals), and Alba Díez de Ure (guitar, vocals).

The music is a combination of doom and classic rock, ritual music and occult psychedelics. “Resurrected” sounds like a rock song from the 1960s that has been updated with current sensibilities. It has a smooth rock side and a trippy side that come together to create a greater whole. “Phantasmal Planetoid” is a beautiful steady doom piece that brings out the darkness through tone more than volume. “The Darkest End” exploits moments of pop rock ideation and cool choruses to engage the listener while at the same time introducing more subtle spells.

My favorite track on the album is probably “The Darkness of Time” because of its extra active posture. “The Shadow” sticks in my memory as well because it seems misty to me, like something you can see well enough but still, somehow is behind a barely-visible veil that masks something nonphysical. This song truly has sway over me. This set deserves to be heard by a wide audience because it is sure to be embraced whole-heartedly by a broad swath of heavy music fans. We should be grateful for the re-issue. Highly recommended.

Spectral Ascent is out now digitally through Ripple Music. CD and vinyl versions will ship around June 23rd and can be preordered now – a good idea if you want to get one before they sell out.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://ripplemusic.bandcamp.com/album/spectral-ascent-reissue

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/Kabbalahrock/

Ripple Music, https://www.ripple-music.com/

FFMB review of The Omen, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2021/01/17/kabbalah-the-omen-rebel-waves-records-2021/

© Wayne Edwards

Kabbalah, Spectral Ascent (Ripple 2023)

Voidhaven, Lithic (Ardua 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

German doom metal band Voidhaven release their first full-length album, Lithic.

Voidhaven started out eight years ago in Hamburg, Germany. They are a doom band that infuses a doses of death metal into the mix. Prior to the new album, all we had to listen to was the two-song self-titled EP that came out in 2018. In that sense Voidhaven a band of mystery – unless you have seen them live, you don’t know what their music sounds like. The musicians are Simon Schorneck (vocals, guitar), Phil Kruppa (guitar), Marcos Lege (keys), Jakob Gozdzielewski (bass), and Norman Müller (drums).

There are six big tracks on the new album. First up, “Resting on Tombs.” The music is somber and almost mournful to begin with, in sort of a melodic doom kind of way. The heavy guitar riffs get more serious soon enough, and we hear the vocals step in, rough yet decipherable. Quietening bars come back and then the music shifts toward a reflective piano, with sounds of destruction in the distance, a voiceover, and finally back to the established earlier presence. It is quite a journey. “Sermon of Scorn” has many of the same elements, but it is more mysterious, more otherworldly. High marks for that. “To Walk Among Ghosts” finishes the side, and it is the clearest presentation of doom so far. Melodic vocals give a funereal, hymnal feeling, and deepen the impression of finality. It is an excellent song – my favorite on the album.

“The Everblazing Picture” fits in with the others, and has an expansive burst toward the end. “The Desolate Throne,” on the other hand, is more reserved and serious, with grand expressions. “Something Cruel Within” brings the set to a close. The vocals emit suffocated suffering and the placing of the shifts and changes barely rescues you in time. The keys here are even more expressive, and the death metal elements are honed to match the hopelessness of the adjoining music. Well done. Recommended.

Lithic descends upon our planet on Friday, June 9th through Ardua Music. Get yours at the links below.

Links.

Voidhaven website, http://voidhaven.de/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/voidhaven/

Ardua Music, https://www.arduamusic.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Voidhaven, Lithic (Ardua 2023)

Lucifer’s Fall, Children Of The Night (Morbid and Miserable 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Lucifer’s Fall make their final recordings before the last curtain: Children Of The Night.

Lucifer’s Fall is a doom band from Adelaide, Australia. They formed in 2013, and they have been an enormous presence in the doom world Down Under ever since. Last year they decided they had had enough and were going to disband. Before they wandered off into the abyss, they decided to make one more record, Children Of The Night. The band is Deceiver (vocals), Heretic (guitar), Invocator (guitar), Cursed Priestess (bass), and The Hammer (drums).

“Children Of The Night” starts with spoken words: “At midnight they come crawling / behold, the Children of the Night.” As the song proceeds, the speaking turns into singing and the guitars rise to menace. The pace picks up at midway, and the darkness bubbles in on a sanguine hook. “Doom In The Grave” has a big guitar presence on the first bar, thick and oppressive. The song does not break tempo, and the ending features disembodied voices presaging fantastic lead guitar work. It has almost a Candlemass kind of feel to it.

“Fight With The Beast” is a banger; short, rapid, rugged. The punk brute flashes its fangs here and runs around on a rampage ripping flesh. This is a high-energy affair, and just the pump-up we can make use of to get ready for “Judgement Day.” The doom is back in force here, crushing anything and everything within reach. The pace speeds up and you start to feel Venom in spirit. Blasting beats, heavy chop, and careening shredding bring both order and disarray – I can see the circle pit when I close my eyes, forming a vortex to the dark beyond. Excellent.

The set ends on a new (2022) version of the band’s eponymous “Lucifer’s Fall,” a song that goes back to their 2014 self-titled album (and it was on demos even before that). It is a monstrous doom song. This version is a bit longer than the original and it benefits from newer recording capabilities, so it sounds great. Fans are going to like having this latter day take. I hate to see Lucifer’s Fall shut it all down, but if you’re going to go out, this is the way to do it. Recommended.

Children Of The Night is out now through Morbid and Miserable Records. I listened to it on Bandcamp. You can get it there or through the label’s on-line store at the links below.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://lucifersfall.bandcamp.com/album/children-of-the-night

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/LucifersFallDoom

Morbid and Miserable Records, https://morbidandmiserable.storenvy.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Lucifer’s Fall, Children Of The Night (Morbid and Miserable 2023)

Ignominy, Imminent Collapse (Transcending Obscurity 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Canadian dissonant death metal band Ignominy present their first full-length album, Imminent Collapse.

Formed in Quebec, Canada ten years ago, Ignominy create dissonant, avant-garde death metal that is an all-out attack on your senses. The EP Fear The Living (2019) established the fundamental ideas the band wanted to deal with. The new record, their first long-player, takes these notions further, and deploys them with fuller force. The band is Philippe Gariépy (guitars), Marc-Antoine Lazure (drums), Alexandre Desroches (vocals), and Alexandre Préfontaine (bass).

There are six primary tracks on the album plus two short transition pieces. “Frantic Appeasement” starts the show with a clank and a bang. It is a noisy affair that does lay down a riff and rhythm to guide the vocals in their guttural exertions, screams, and howls. Chaos breaks out now and then, like a sudden, unexplained stabbing. “Defaulting Genetics” is a bit more linear in a Primus kind of way. It feels like an expression of mindless violence and/or hatred. “Reminiscence of Hatred” starts quietly, but you know it is a trick, a lure. Given what has come before, you know that something heavy this way comes. There is less raggedness in this track, although some is there. “Premonition of a Dead End (Interlude I)” is an airlock between side one and two.

“Nightmare Bacteria” speaks to me most, perhaps because of the doomish interiors. There are long spaces of heaviness drawn across the ground with periodic eruptions of abstract activity. “Visceral” cleaves a way through the hedge and is reminiscent of Tool for a short while. Sour clangs beat insurgent order into submission. “Prélude Vers L’angoisse (Interlude II)” is the sound of placidity in the distance, leading to the final track, “Visuals.” It is the longest piece by a hair, and stands out for its creativeness in a set that is defined by creativeness. It goes out on a scream. This music is work for you unless you are into avant-garde metal, and if you are, you will revel in it.

Imminent Collapse is out now through Transcending Obscurity Records. Have a look at the links below.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://ignominydeath.bandcamp.com/album/imminent-collapse

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/ignominydeathQC/

Transcending Obscurity Records, https://transcendingobscurity.aisamerch.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Ignominy, Imminent Collapse (Transcending Obscurity 2023)

Khan, Creatures (2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

Psychedelic prog stoners Khan sidle over toward a darker space on their new album, Creatures.

Khan is band from Melbourne, Australia. Their musical style is an unusual mixture of industrial, heavy-psych, stoner rock, ambience, and progressive rock. The vocals are variegated, too, traveling a wide range. Their first recording was the EP On Silent Space (2019), followed by the full-length albums Vale (2018) and Monsoons (2020). All three of these are fairly different to each other, as is the latest, Creatures. The trio is Josh Bills (vocals, guitar, keys), Mitchell Kerr (bass), and Beau Heffernan (drums).

“Slow” brings out the bass first by itself. In a few bars it is joined be spacey warbling and percussion, moving us along through this universe. Josh Bills’ vocals dip in, sounding a bit reminiscent of Eddie Vedder. The music is heavy on the trippy as we proceed. Halfway through, strong riffs drop in causing a sudden sea swell that temporarily unseats you. It is almost the five-minute mark before the rumbling starts in earnest, and when it does it is an earthshaker. “How Old” is probing, like a signal searching for a receiver. The loud parts in this song sound very industrial. “Follow” is the big dog of the set, weighing in at ten minutes. Different to the ones that came before, it starts out heavy, throwing itself around early. There is a lot going on here. What stuck with me most were the parts where the guitar took over – beautiful work.

Side two opens on “Eyes, Lungs, Arms, and Mind,” a quiet and creepy song. Maybe eerie is a better (and more accurate) word. The music is not necessarily sinister, but it is mystical. When it speeds up and goes heavy, the illusion is shattered. “Confusion” is the opposite of what the title implies, I think, as it is a nice demonstration of the band’s primary tools. The set closes on the title track. To me, this piece is the most sorrowful. Listening to it is a reflective experience so you are likely to have other feelings. It is a good wrap-up piece to finish off an excellent. Recommended.

Creatures is out now. I listened to it on Bandcamp. You can go there or explore the band’s website for more information.

Links.

Khan website, https://www.khanbandofficial.com/

Bandcamp, https://khanofficial.bandcamp.com/album/creatures

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/khanbandofficial

Full Contact Safari Records, https://www.fullcontactsafarirecords.com/info/khan

© Wayne Edwards

Khan, Creatures (2023)

Buckcherry, Vol. 10 (Round Hill 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , ,

The tenth album from California hard rock regulars Buckcherry is the appropriately title Vol. 10.

Buckcherry formed in Anaheim, California in 1995. Their first album (self-titled) came out in 1999, and I loved that album. It had great cover art, and the first few tracks really grabbed my attention. Time Bomb came out in 2001, and I got that one too, on the strength of the first (back then we had to buy an album if we wanted to hear it because you were lucky if even one or two songs popped up on the radio). And then they broke up. Although founders Josh Todd (vocals) and Keith Nelson (guitar) reformed Buckcherry just a couple of years later, I had lost track of them by then, and it wasn’t until well into their renaissance that I started listening again.

I started seeing Buckcherry live a few years ago at festivals. I knew about them, of course, because I liked those early albums. Their live shows were very impressive, having crisp performances of catchy hooks and a generous amount of flash in their stage presence. I have caught up with the band’s music again and, while Josh Todd is the only remaining original member, the music still sounds like Buckcherry to me.

Josh Todd with Buckcherry at Blue Ridge Rock Festival 2022

There are eleven tracks on the new album. “This And that” goes first, and it is a bold choice. It has a clippy intro that transforms without you even realizing it into a decidedly Buckcherry riff and chorus. It’s clever, creative, and catchy. Hard rock guitars with a bluesy lean and Todd’s signature voice are the perfect combination. “Good Time” is next, and it is a more directly recognizable Buckcherry groove with a singable chorus and a snappy lead guitar break. Then there’s “Keep On Fighting,” an up-tempo high-energy rocker that will get the crowd moving. There are a couple of slower songs, “Feels Like Love” and “Pain,” but mostly these tracks are movers and shakers, finishing up with a rousing cover of “Summer of ’69.” Buckcherry delivers again. Recommended.

Vol. 10 is out everywhere on Friday, June 2nd through Round Hill Records. Touch the links below to secure our copy.

Band photo by Wayne Edwards.

Links.

Band website, http://buckcherry.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/buckcherry/

Round Hill Records, https://store.roundhillrecords.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Buckcherry, Vol. 10 (Round Hill 2023)

Corpsessed, Skeletal Grotesquery (Krucyator 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Finland’s Corpsessed bring their live performance from Braincrusher in Hell Festival to the wide world: Skeletal Grotesquery.

Ask any diehard death metal fan about Corpsessed and you will get an earful. Formed in Finland in 2008, Corpsessed has released four full-length albums and a couple of EPs (plus a split with Solothus and Undergang that is really hard to find these days). The latest record, Succumb To Rot (2022), is one of their very best, and I think the band is performing at the highest level of their career now, fifteen years in. Corpsessed is N. Matilainen (vocals), M. Mäkelä (guitar, vocals), J. Lustig (guitar), T. Kulmala (bass, vocals), and J-P. Manner (drums).

Skeletal Grotesquery is a live recording from Corpsessed’s performance at Braincrusher in Hell Festival in Hirschaid, Germany, on November 25, 2022. Reportedly, there are no overduds on this set, which is amazing when you listen to it. The precision and execution is beyond impressive. The set list is “Succumb to Rot,” “Relentless Entropy,” “Death-Stench Effluvium,” “Spiritual Malevolence,” “Sortilege,” “Ravening Tides,” “Demoniacal Subjugation,” “Forlorn Burial,” and “Pneuma Akathartos.”

The recording starts out with some crowd noise so you can get the feel of a live performance, then plows right into “Succumb To Rot.” The music was captured directly from the soundboard, so the large presences as well as the nuances come through exceptionally well. There aren’t any issues with the sound to report at all. The crowd rumblings in between songs gives you the feeling you are in a club and they enhance the experience measurably. Live recordings do not always live up to our expectations because they frequently do not really sound the way the band sounds live. This one is done right and does make you feel like you were actually there when it all went down. Recommended.

Skeletal Grotesquery becomes real on May 29th through Krucyator Productions on digital and CD. Get yours at the links below.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://krucyator.bandcamp.com/album/skeletal-grotesquery

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/Corpsessed/

Krucyator Productions, https://krucyator.com/

FFMB review of Succumb To Rot, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2022/04/21/corpsessed-succumb-to-rot-dark-descent-2022/

© Wayne Edwards

Corpsessed, Skeletal Grotesquery (Krucyator 2023)

Tombstalker, Age Of Darkness (Boris 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Death metal thrashers Tombstalker are back with a new EP, Age Of Darkness.

From Lexington, Kentucky, Tombstalker came together in 2008. In the first couple years of their existence, the band dropped two demos and two splits (one with Glass Coffin and one with Dawn Of Wolves), working up to their self-titled EP in 2011. The full-length album Black Crusades hit the streets in 2015, and since then they have slowed down on the music publishing side. Fans are going be thrilled with the new EP, the band’s first new music in six years. There have been a few line-up shifts over the years, which is a regular thing for long-lived groups. The band is now Conqueror Horus (vocals, guitar), Defiler (bass), Gruftspüre (guitar), and Contagion (drums).

The four-song EP begins with “Astral Combat,” an avalanche of thrash with the powerful growling threat of death metal. It is an overwhelming musical attack. Toward the middle, the music heads along groove territory where you can catch your breath for a minute. The metal builds then to flurry, adding heavy riffs and savage snarling to finish. “Titan Warlord” blazes with just as much ferocity, putting a groove in as well, establishing a memorable precedent.

“Age of Darkness” runs at radio length and begins quietly with acoustic guitar. The sentiment is preserved throughout, finally fading into the distance. The finish is “Final Night,” a calamity of guitars roaring at a blistering pace. It is speeding metal with a nice glide, combining rough death metal with polished composition and production – a winning combination. Recommended.

Age Of Darkness is out on vinyl and cassette on May 29th through Boris Records, and on CD from Morbid Aggressor Productions. Bandcamp is a good place to start looking at your options (link below).

Links.

Bandcamp, https://borisrecords.bandcamp.com/album/age-of-darkness

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/tombstalkerband/

Boris Records, https://boris-records.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Tombstalker, Age Of Darkness (Boris 2023)

Tumble, Lady Cadaver (2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

Toronto hard psych trio Tumble give us the first glimpse of their music with Lady Cadaver.

Tumble got together just last year. The sponsor a retro hard rock sound with a psychedelic purpose. The band is Liam Deak (guitar, vocals), Tarun Dawar (bass), and Will Adams (drums).

This EP has two songs, a situation we used call a single in the old days of physical media. “Lady Cadaver” is the feature, and it comes out punching. It is a fuzzy delight. This is an up-tempo airplay single if I ever heard one. The bluesy stoner set-up is joined with Deak’s exemplary rock and roll voice to mingle in synchronicity. There is even a drum solo just past the middle. When is the last time you heard one of those in a studio recording? Purportedly about a bad trip, this one slaps.

The B-side is “The Plague” – the band says it is a “psychedelic heavy rock instrumental for your hip shakin’, head banging pleasure.” That’s what we can call truth in advertising. It is trippy and catchy, and it also rips. It is a wonderful showcase for guitar, and the rhythm section gets a workout, too. I can’t wait to hear more. Highly recommended.

Lady Cadaver is out now, far and wide. Listen in at your favorite streaming source, and find out more information about the music and the band through the links below.

Links.

Tumble website, https://www.tumbleband.com/

Facebook, https://www.facebook.com/tumbletheband

© Wayne Edwards

Tumble, Lady Cadaver (2023)