Patrick is a homeowner, proud father and partner. He also routinely babbles into his cellphone about heavy metal records and punk records. The result is a YouTube channel called Ground Zero Salem.
Loss – Horizonless (Profound Lore)
A cinematic plunge into despair. Funeral doom at it’s finest. The lower volume, somber moments combined with guttural vocals are what cinches this one for me. Glacial and crushing. Spectral Voice – Eroded Corridors of Unbeing (Dark Descent) Killer otherworldly slug-death from the southwest. Similar in many ways to almighty Aussie Grind/Doom/4AD weirdos disembowelment, but very much their own beast.
Incantation – Profane Nexus (Relapse)
It’s Incantation. They’re still very, very good traditional song structure eschewing, dark death metal. This latest slab is their strongest work in some time.
Concealed Blade – s/t (Beach Impediment)
I didn’t buy too much hardcore this year, but I’m glad that I dropped a few beer nickels on this ripper. Great fast violent noise with mid paced busts, which kind of bring Boston’s almighty Mental to mind. Not sure if that’s exactly what they were going for, but fuck it, Mental ruled.
Cruthu – Angle of Eternity (Self Released)
70s fueled doom, devoid of cliches. Cruthu draws a good amount of influence musically and lyrically from Irish sources, and it’s pretty nift. Recommended if you enjoy trad doom and Thin Lizzy / Early Slough Feig. Sons of Crom – The Black Tower (Nordvist / Bindrune) Mostly melodic speed/power metal with a prominent Viking vibe, particularly from Quorthon’s Odin obsessed eras. There’s also just enough scathing BM shriekery present on The Black Tower to keep you guessing, which held my attention quite well.
Worm – Evocation of the Black Marsh (Iron Bonehed)
Rising out of the swamps of southern FL. Like a malignant vine encrusted biped, this record is a fantastic ode to late 80s demo era death and black metal. Evocation of the Black Marsh successfully captures a time before all of those “extreme” metal genres splintered without sounding directly like any particular act. That being said, if you like Seraphic Decay records, early Peaceville Records bands and the entirety Goatlord’s recorded output, this should lurk well up your proverbial alley.
Craven Idol – The Shackles of Mammon (Dark Descent)
How could I not fuck with a record featuring a Skeksi for jacket art? Craven Idol are at the top of their game in terms of crafting riffy black metal with a nice soot-encrusted 80s speed metal vibe. One of the best bands of this style going.
Dialysis – Pretty Men (Hex Records)
Another great hardcore record from this year, and a beautiful marriage bashing discord and laser focused rage. With influences ranging from Sax laden noise rock to death metal, this record is a short slap in the face that leaves you invigorated and utterly confused.
Perverted Ceremony – Sabbat of Behazael (Nuclear War Now!)
Perverted Ceremony have mastered the art of recording simple, raw and utterly entrancing black metal featuring a filthy recorded sound without forsaking juicy riffs or quality songwriting. The Hellenic Masters and Samael would be proud.
Mindkult – Lucifer’s Dream (Caligari Records)
I can’t think of a more appropriate title for this release. Again, this is doomy heavy metal utilizing 70s style riff structures, but with an incredibly raw, yet layered recording quality and a haunting, ethereally mournful vocal approach.
Foreseen – Grave Danger (20 Buck Spin)
Upping the ante from their debut LP, Helsinki Savagery, Foreseen’s sophomore LP, Grave Danger is an off-the-rails crossover juggernaut, with far more of foaming at the mouth relentless rhythmic approach rather than some cutesy, half baked, “Thrash Part, Moshy Chorus, Thrash Part, Breakdown / Bridge, Moshy Chorus Thrash Part” horseshit.
Napalm Raid – Wheel of War
This is a pressurized tunnel of pure spite. Wheel of War, is a real corker of a D-Beat driven crust record. The instrumentation, coupled with some seriously noise laden production merges into a serious-ass experience. Beneath it all, there are riffs aplenty and some of the most pissed vocals that I’ve heard for this style in over a decade.
