REVIEW: OCCULTATION [Silence In The Ancestral House]

REVIEW:

OCCULTATION

SILENCE IN THE ANCESTRAL HOUSE

PROFOUND LORE RECORDS
by Feind Gottes

Occultation Will Haunt You With Silence In The Ancestral House

Every now and again I search for new music just for the chance of hearing something I haven’t heard before. Sometimes this experiment is awful ending with a hurried press of the stop button (icon usually these days) but I can’t help it when I have a thirst for something new I have to try and quench it. In an attempt to play it safe I went straight to the bandcamp page of Profound Lore Records. They seem to always have impeccable taste when it comes to doom or doom-ish bands so I was fairly confident I could easily find something to appease my nagging need for something new, something doomy yet something unlike every other band out there. This is how I discovered Occultation.

Silence In The Ancestral House was released by Profound Lore Records on October 14th and I find myself hard pressed to describe their sound adequately. The comparisons on their bandcamp page itself while accurate to a degree really tell you nothing of how they actually sound as I can’t think of a single band I can point to and say, “Occultation sounds like insert band name here.” The description from Profound Lore of “a wicked mix of classic Mercyful Fate, Death SS, Siouxsie and the Banshees, and The Cure.” tells you what? Yeah, basically nothing. What I can tell you is that Occultation play hauntingly creepy, eerie music that would fit perfectly into some John Carpenter horror film setting the mood for terrible things to unfold before your eyes. Silence In The Ancestral House is one you truly need to hear and judge for yourself as it mixes elements of black and doom metal into an end product that is as progressive as it is experimental. Also of note, it was produced, mixed and recorded by Converge’s Kurt Ballou who has come to be one of the premiere producers in all of metal. I’ve never been a fan of Converge, they’re just not my flavor, but I am a huge fan of Kurt Ballou in the production booth. Some producers have a way of bringing out the best sound a band has to offer and Ballou has proven to be one of those and this album is no exception.

REVIEW: THE ORDER OF ISRAFEL [WISDOM]

★★★★

REVIEW

THE ORDER OF ISRAFEL

WISDOM

NAPALM RECORDS

by Eerie Eric

It’s been a good year for heavy music, particularly if you’re a lover of all things dark and doomy. Here in North Carolina summer has officially ended and the shades of autumn are beginning to take over. As the season of Samhain nears, the time is right for night skies, bonfires, and indulging in the dark musical offerings from the latter half of the summer. The choice selection for me? The Order of Israfel’s epic, “Wisdom,” which was released in late August. The band hails from Gothenburg, Sweden, a town known for producing superior dark music, (including, but not limited to doom giants, Graveyard.) The Order of Israfel also has the boast-worthy attribute of featuring guitarist, Tom Sutton. With this impressive debut, and in wrapping up a recent successful tour, Tom may have given us one of the strongest traditional doom releases of 2014, (and may be giving other new releases, such as superstar doomsters Electric Wizard’s “Time to Die,” a run for their money.) 

REVIEW: SPIDERS [SHAKE ELECTRONIC]

★★★

REVIEW

SPIDERS

SHAKE ELECTRIC

SPINEFARM RECORDS

by Alex Buckellew

Swedish band Spiders play old fashioned, unironic, long haired, leather jacket wearing, in-your-face rock & roll.  Their new album is Shake Electric, and its heavy licks and bold female vocals will draw immediate comparisons to Heart and Joan Jett - but Spiders has an undefinable Scandinavian quality that sets them apart from their earlier influences (not too surprising, as Sweden is the nation that gave us The Hives and Sahara Hotnights and more recently Ghost).

All the songs are strong and gutsy, infused with harmonica and cowbell and lots of layered background vocals, and they cover all the tried and true classic rock subjects - sex, love, loss, and hard living.  "Mad Dog" and "Lonely Nights" are standouts - only the Joplin-esque ballad "Hard Times" seems out of place .  Spiders have the tools and talent - right now they're just one infectious earworm away from greater things.

REVIEW: PURSON 'IN THE MEANTIME'

REVIEW

PURSON

IN THE MEANTIME

MACHINE ELF RECORDS

by Alex Buckellew

 

Following their much vaunted debut album, Purson re-emerges triumphantly from a haze of hookah smoke and incense for their new e.p. In The Meantime.

 

Eschewing any metal conventions in exchange for brilliantly executed retro-psychedelia, In The Meantime starts strong with "Death's Kiss".  The song puts Rosalie Campbell's powerful voice in the forefront of a churning rock ensemble fortified with heavy organ and flute, evoking an alternate universe where Mellow Candle's Clodagh Simonds sang lead for The Strawberry Alarm Clock.

 

"Danse Macabre" continues with a riff similar enough to its predecessor that you'd be forgiven for thinking it a continuation of that track.  It's rawer and muddier though, the vocals more buried in the mix, making it the weakest on the record.

 

"Wanted Man" slows down the tempo and adds the obligatory mid-song acid freakout.  Purson, however, remembers what many of their psych-rock contemporaries don't - that such indulgences work best built around a strong hook, and "Wanted Man"'s trippy midsection is sandwiched between a riff that sounds like it was plucked from the brains of the original Alice Cooper band.

 

The e.p.'s closer is at times spooky and heavy, and sporting a middle-eastern vibe.  "I Will Be Good" Campbell purrs the track's title - based on this record and their career thus far, it's a safe prediction.

REVIEW: BLACK TRIP [GOIN' UNDER]

Rating: 3.5/5

REVIEW

BLACK TRIP

GOIN' UNDER

PROSTHETIC RECORDS

BY  EERIE ERIC

Are you sick of tight, rocking throwback bands from Sweden yet? Of course not. You know why you’re not sick of these bands? Because they always manage to sound so freakin’ good. Throwback hate generally comes in the form of those incessant gripes that retro-leaning bands are “unoriginal” or “uninspired” rip-off artists. Bands that gain their inspiration from the past are seldom given credit for writing creative music. Instead they tend to get the scoff treatment. My thoughts on that perspective? It’s a crock of a shit. People who make those claims against retro bands have probably never written a song, nor had the pleasure of making music before. Five seconds was all it took for me to realize that Black Trip’s “Going Under” is the kind of record that could silence those naysayers, (because there will undoubtedly be naysayers regardless of all the musicians’ individual contributions to the Swedish death metal scene, like Nifelheim, Exhumed and Necrophobic.) Only now, instead of guttural growls and blitzkrieg riffing, these fine musicians have given us a howling throwback that still sounds fresh and original, one that’s sure to make all the NWOBHM lovers out throw the horns and scream for vengeance.

REVIEW: ELECTRIC WIZARD [TIME TO DIE]

RATING: 4.5/5

REVIEW

ELECTRIC WIZARD

TIME TO DIE

SPINEFARM

BY  EERIE ERIC

Question: What happens when a legendary band releases a new record after a long gestation period? Answer: One of two things. Fans will either be delighted and celebrate the efforts of said band, hailing it as a masterpiece, or they will react in sheer disgust and turn into the most rabid, scathing pack of wild dogs imaginable. They will not only denounce the latest offering, but they will also turn back time, either pining for the “good old days,” or even going as far as to wonder if they ever truly liked the band in the first place. It happens all the time with the fickle public. When Electric Wizard unveiled their teaser track “I am Nothing” from the upcoming “Time to Die,” the Internet went wild with excitement over hearing a new Wizard tune, but there were some occasional remarks over the song being “tedious” or “nothing new,” or even a “12 minute snoozefest.” Those latter remarks leave one questioning as to whether or not those people have even heard Electric Wizard before, as epic length heaviness is a common trait of theirs. The band has been going strong for 21 years now. Regardless of lineup changes, inner strife, legal issues, and shameless substance abuse, Electric Wizard has long since left the ranks of being “just” another doom band. They are officially one of the most beloved heavy bands in the world.

REVIEW: BLACK MOTH [CONDEMNED TO HOPE]

★★★

REVIEW:

BLACK MOTH

CONDEMNED TO HOPE

NEW HEAVY SOUNDS

BY ERIK SUGG



The world of heavy music has seen no recent shortage of good bands with female singers, often ranging from the pagan witches, to the thrift shop hippies, to the hypersexual, and even the masculine, “tougher than men”-types. Every style has the perfect fit regardless of the varying degrees of womanliness, and it’s clear that the heavy music world not only embraces women singers, but women in general. This constantly challenges that ages-old misconception that metal and heavy rock are for “dudes only.” Blood Ceremony, Witch Mountain, Kylesa, Royal Thunder, Jex Thoth, The Devil’s Blood... The list goes on and on. Black Moth, from Leeds, England, is one of the latest groups to feature a front lady whose vocal prowess could send most men whining back to their pub seat. Their follow-up to 2012’s “The Killing Jar” will drop in September of this year. If the response from their recent European tour with Uncle Acid & the Deadbeats is any indication, all signs are pointing to the upcoming “Condemned to Hope” as a record that will be cranked up and rocked out on both sides of the Atlantic.

REVIEW: BLUES PILLS [SELF-TITLED]

REVIEW:

BLUES PILLS

SELF-TITLED

NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS

BY ERIK SUGG

 Oh, Sweden. Cold, Scandinavian country of the northern hemisphere known for its socialism, potted herring, beautiful women, and its friendly, near-timid, residents whenever they’re not shooting their prime minister. Sweden is also known for music–well written and well executed music, often rivaling seminal musical countries like the United States and England. Whether it’s classic Swedish prog groups like November or Kebnekaise, death metal bands like Entombed or At the Gates, retro garage rock like the Hellacopters and The Hives, or the current wave of doom traditionalists like Graveyard and Witchcraft, it’s doubtful you’ll find a music lover who doesn’t celebrate at least one Swedish group in their catalog. Besides, everyone has a secret soft spot for Abba, right?

Blues Pills is the latest talent to blast out of Sweden and into our collective orbit, (although the band technically features members from all over the globe). The band emerged in 2011 and immediately took the European festival scene by storm with their good looks, their flowing locks, and their ‘69-era Fleetwood Mac-infused sound. If you’re reading these words, rolling your eyes and groaning, “Just what need… ANOTHER Swedish retro band,” just stop there. These soulful, psychedelic blues rockers will make you eat those words. Blues Pills is inventive and authentic, and is sure to blaze through seas of mediocrity and apathy to shine like the stars these incredibly young musicians were born to be. Their self titled debut, courtesy of Nuclear Blast, may very well be one of the best releases of 2014.

Review: Blood Ceremony "The Eldritch Dark"

Blood Ceremony graced our FALL 2012 issue for good reason… they are simply the coolest fucking band ever. Now they have emerged from the studio yet again to bring us their 3rd album and a true rock masterpiece! No wait… A GOD DAMN TRUE  ROCK MASTERPIECE! I would underline that 666 times if I could.

When I put this album on I expected to like it but FUCK, it’s even better than I expected! “Witchwood” delivers cool organ and guitar riffs one after the other. The hair on my arms looks like I sprayed them with aqua net… standing straight up through this whole song. It swaggers along as loose as a truck stop hooker and the first two words sung are “Black Magic…”, I can’t get past this song. This is a fucking brilliant track and on top of the awesome musical grooves, vocalist (and organ/flute) Alia O'Brien delivers an excellent melody that stays glued to your brain for hours afterwards.

BUT WAIT THERE’S MORE, WAY MORE! ... We’re just getting started! Here comes “Goodbye Gemini” and I’m just shaking my head… I can’t believe it. The flute work at the opening is sick but this thing just explodes into a catchy hook rich rock and roll face ripper! This will be their encore number for years to come.

Next up we have the Wicker Man tribute and bong-reacher “Lord Summerisle”. Just puff and let this track take over. It will certainly make the crops grow. “Ballad of the Weird Sisters” captures some of the best flute work from Alia I’ve heard. She is the Hendrix of flute players. Never has a flute been played with so much soul. There is so much soul and groove from all the players on this album. Everything is perfect… stars aligned… Magic!

The title track, "The Eldritch Dark" shows why Sean Kennedy should go on the list of the top all-time riff masters. He is just stellar throughout this record and Lucas Gadke has achieved at capturing one of the best bass sounds ever recorded. Furthermore, this is some of the best bass guitar work I have heard on any record so far this year. Anyway, back to The Eldritch Dark… yeah this song has some sharp teeth and is sure to be a favorite.

“Drawing Down the Moon” happens and I can’t believe there have been so many great songs in a row. All killer, no filler. The closest this album gets to any filler might be the instrumental track, “Faunus” but it rocks too, I just like songs with vocals so… and it’s only a couple minutes anyway.

The last track is the ambitious 8 minute epic “The Magician”. I don’t remember hearing Alia play organ this well before. It seems she has really been putting in some hours on the Hammond because she’s ripping here. A great choice for an album closer.

This record will propel Blood Ceremony into major rock star status. I feel bad for whatever band has to play after them live. I would not want to have to follow this material. I would fake a belly-ache and go home.

So stop what you are doing and order this album now. I hope Rise Above/Metal Blade printed a ton of copies because this is going to fly!  5/5 Stars