New York

Ice Age, Waves Of Loss And Power (Sensory 2023)

Wayne Edwards, , , , ,

New York progressive metal band Ice Age wake the sleeping giant with Waves Of Loss And Power.

Ice Age began all the way back in 1991 as an instrumental band called Monolith. In 1999, now known as Ice Age, they released their first album, The Great Divide, followed by their second long-player the very next year, Liberation. Things began to slow on the recording front after that and, other than a self-titled EP in 2004, it was radio silence for the band as Ice Age. In 2015, the reformation occurred, and now fans can hear new music with Waves Of Loss And Power. The band is Josh Pincus (vocals, keys), Jimmy Pappas (guitar), Hal Aponte (drums), and Doug Odell (bass).

As with most progressive rock and metal, the songs on the new album are mainly presented in the long form, although three of the eight dip into radio length. As an example of what to expect, consider “The Needle’s Eye,” the first song that cracks the egg with high energy and complex constructions. The music is a little heavier than I expected, laying more on the side of, say, Queensÿche, than Kansas. The vocals are melodic and beautifully rendered. As we do expect in this kind of music, the musicianship is perfect, crisp, and sharp. There is a bewildering keyboard solo and tasty lead guitar work as well. It is exceptionally well done, as is all the music on the record.

Fans of Ice Age will be thrilled by the way the music picks up on earlier work. For example, “Perpetual Child, Part II: Forever” continues the song began on the first record, while “To Say Goodbye, Part IV: Remembrance” and “To Say Goodbye, Part V: Water Child” extended the saga from both the earlier long-players. If you like your prog on the heavy side, then this album is for you. Highly recommended.

Waves Of Loss And Power is out on Friday, March 10th through Sensory Records. Find it at the links below.

Band photo by Roy Somech.

Links.

Ice Age website, http://www.ice-age.com/

Bandcamp, https://lasersedge.bandcamp.com/album/waves-of-loss-and-power

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

Sensory Records, https://www.lasercd.com/

© Wayne Edwards

Ice Age, Waves Of Loss And Power (Sensory 2023)

Photo Gallery: Black Anvil at The Vogue, 12-6-2022

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

Photos by Wayne Edwards.

Links.

Black Anvil, https://blackanvil.bandcamp.com/album/regenesis

The Vogue Theatre, https://thevogue.com/

FFMB article on the show, https://flyingfiddlesticks.com/2022/12/09/cannibal-corpse-at-the-vogue-indianapolis-december-6-2022/

© Wayne Edwards

Photo Gallery: Black Anvil at The Vogue, 12-6-2022

Castrator, Defiled In Oblivion (Dark Descent 2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , ,

Castrator’s debut full-length album Defiled In Oblivion is a refreshing punch in the gut.

Castator is a death metal quartet from New York that came together in 2013. After releasing a roaring EP in 2015, No Victim, they have been building toward a long-player, and now we have it with Defiled In Oblivion. The band is Robin Mazen (bass), Carolina Perez (drums), Kimberly Orellana (guitars), and Clarissa Badini (vocals).

The ten-track album opens with all guns blazing on “Dawa of Yousafzai.” Grisly vocals and battering rhythm grinds at you and will not allow you catch your breath. The lead guitar break is a swarm of bees swinging chain saws. The next song slows the pace to a step below dizzying in the opening bars, but then “Tormented by Atrocities” hits the gas and doesn’t look back. The guitars introduce a sour perspective now and then, and sometimes tilt the ground to keep you on your toes. The punishment continues on “Befoul My Existence,” where there is a throwback homage if you listen for it. The percussion is killing it on this track, and Badini’s vocals are the menacing centerpiece.

Other tracks I especially like include “Voices of Evirato,” which has a great spacey guitar break in it amidst extremely heavy riffs, and “Sinister Mind” for its absolute relentlessness. I also really appreciate Castrator’s cover of the classic Venom song, “Countess Bathory.” The beats are there as is a fresh infusion of enthusiasm. It is such a good song and it is great to hear it resurrected. Let me add “Sinister Mind” to the list, too, while I am at it. That song flat out rips. I have got to see this band live. Recommended.

Defiled In Oblivion is out through Dark Descent Records on Friday, July 22nd. Hit the links below.

Links.

Bandcamp, https://darkdescentrecords.bandcamp.com/album/defiled-in-oblivion

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

Dark Descent Records, https://www.darkdescentrecords.com/shop/

© Wayne Edwards

Castrator, Defiled In Oblivion (Dark Descent 2022)

Immolation, Acts Of God (Nuclear Blast 2022)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , ,

New York death metal icons Immolation let loose their eleventh studio album, Acts Of God.

After a couple of early name changes, Immolation got going in 1988. Their first full-length album, Dawn Of Possession (1991), planted a death metal flag that still flies. The new album has been five years in the making and fans are ready to reap the rewards of the long wait. Acts Of God certainly fits the bill. The band is Ross Dolan (bass, vocals), Robert Vigna (guitar), Steve Shalaty (drums), and Alex Bouks (guitar).

There are fifteen tracks on the album, including a couple of transitional pieces. Dolan’s rough vocals are the first thing about Immolation that imprints on your memory when you listen. The percussion and rhythm have such an unswerving reliability that they show themselves as co-necessities up front as well. The lead and melody guitarwork sail sublime seas whenever they appear. Their music is a full-force attack from every angle.

I love “Noose Of Thorns” because it is so dreary and oppressive with a caustic grind and shimmering lead break. “Blooded” is another stand-out, with the guitars seeming in a way to be mercurial. And then there is “Incineration Precession,” establishing immediately its breath-taking insistence and sure-footed forward push that cannot be resisted. These three songs might be my most preferred, but there is something remarkable that can be said about each one in the set.

There are a few heavy bands out there that have been around as long as Immolation, but there aren’t many at all that can match them. This new album is exceptional. I can tell already after a couple of listens that it will be one of my favorites of theirs. Highly recommended.

Acts Of God is out now through Nuclear Blast Records. Check out the links below. Immolation is on tour right now as well so catch them live if you can.

Links.

Immolation website, https://www.immolation.info/acts-of-god

Bandcamp, https://immolation.bandcamp.com/album/acts-of-god

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

Nuclear Blast Records, https://shop.nuclearblast.com/en/products/sound/cd/cd/immolation-acts-of-god.html

Immolation, Acts Of God (Nuclear Blast 2022)

King Buffalo, Acheron (2021)

Wayne Edwards, , , , , , ,

The second album of a proposed trilogy from King Buffalo is Acheron.

King Buffalo is a heavy psychedelic rock trio from Rochester. They have been quite prolific in the last lustrum, and their new album is the second of 2021. They excel musically at the long form and Acheron is a welcome showcase for their talents. The band is Sean McVay (guitar, vocals, keys), bassist Dan Reynolds (bass), and Scott Donaldson (drums).

Each song on the new album is about ten minutes long, and there are four of them. “Acheron.” You hear dripping water, running water, then a guitar. Percussion and rhythm. Gentle vocals in a surprisingly upbeat tone for a song sung in a cave (the album was recorded underground at Howe Caverns in New York). Punctuating coarse intrusions do not despair the languid underlying currents, even when the roughhousing guitar takes the lead for an extended time.

“Zephyr” has a different attitude, a more active demeanor. Still there is the gentleness, which we can begin to interpret by now as intrepidness. The guitar leads are expansive, as if moving toward an ideal that has been established by the keys. “Shadows” I find to be more reflective than the first two tracks, more introspective. It ticks and pulls at your inner core.

“Cerberus” is the deepest song, in my hearing. It feels dank and unsettling, a little frightening, even. The distorted lead guitar claws at the fabric of reality, searching for a way out (or maybe a way in). The tension grows and builds all the way to the end where the riff gives no respite. The music is dramatic and powerful.

There is no telling where the third part of the series will land. So far, though, with the first two sessions locked in, it looks for all the world like the totality will be something special. Make sure you hear The Burden of Restlessness and then go spelunking with Acheron. Highly recommended.

Acheron is out now. Look to the band’s website or Bandcamp for hardcopies and/or stream it wherever you stream.

Live photo by Wayne Edwards, State Theatre, Portland, Maine, 2021.

Links.

Website, https://kingbuffalo.com/

Bandcamp, https://kingbuffalo.bandcamp.com/

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

King Buffalo, Acheron (2021)