NINE SONGS THAT SLAP THE JOY OUT YOUR FAT FACE SEP 15 – SEP 21

Hi. I'm keeping sane, trying to stay productive. Still on the fence on whether I like this any better than the way this format's been going for a few years, not sure the change is big enough for me. Maybe I'll just make into an actual list and fuck it to hell. Suggestions would be appreciated. Keep safe.

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The Track that Made Me Actually Miss My Youth in the 90s Watching Euro-Dance Trash and Loving It While Also Loving Weird Music:

Wędrowcy~tułacze~zbiegi – "Agapa," from Droga do domu (Post-Punk / Experimental – Devoted Art Propaganda). The Polish masters of whatever the fuck they feel like doing are back with yet another piece of whatever the fuck they feel like doing. Not only that, a slab of whatever the fuck they feel like doing that a) sounds like it could have been part of Now That's What I Call Music! in 1997 and b) is probably the last album from one of the most unique musical voices out there. Come for the black metal pedigree, stay for the Snap! vibes. FFO: Rope Sect, Haddaway.

The Track that Draped Me in Silk, Whispered Loving Words in My Ears in a Cool Yet Not Wholly Appropriate Way, and Brought in Sunset-Like Colors into My Room:

Isleptonthemoon – "Safety," from Only the Stars Know of My Misfortune (Post-Rock/Black Metal – Bindrune Recordings). Shoegazy spirits may find their way into the nether regions of your waning consciousness with this one, a new release from Atlanta project Isleptonthemoonfrom that pulls so hard from shoegaze/post-rock that another name for the band could have been "Sad Eyeliner." As opposed to maybe 98 percent of music that pulls from that sadboy energy + black metal, this sounds super good. As in could have been a forgotten Alcest/Amesoeurs albums levels of good. Like a good bowl of warm soup that can also drown you. FFO: Sadness.

The Track that Got Me to Almost Lease a Viking Canoe and Burn a Church When I Remembered that Everything Else is Burning Here Too So No Real Use:

Vafurlogi – "Hvi​́​ldarsa​́​lmur," from Í v​ö​kulli á​þ​j​á​n (Black Metal – NoEvDia / Oration). Weirdo, menacing Icelandic black metal used to be a big part of my musical diet, and yet the bands that made up the spear-head of that reverb-happy spear aren't really around that much. Sinmara is dormant, Svartidaudi is done, Wormlust is MIA, where the fuck is Almyrkvi, and more recently Sól án Varmatc released a one-and-one album that felt more like a Greatest Icelandic Hits than anything else. Into said void march new/old band Vafurlogi. New because, well they're new. Old because, yet again the avengers of IBM (ha) gather to rekindle the (I guess very cold and PAGAN) flame. Only this time around it feels like an album, and not only that a good one. Yes, a bit on the chanty Árstíðir lífsins side of things at times, but very cool overall. Now I'm primed and ready for my Wormlust, Mr. DeMille. Fun fact, I just realized I already wrote about this album three months ago, and I basically wrote the same damn thing. Ha.

The Track That Enveloped My World in Darkness and Sent Me Forth To Murder the Heathen/Priest Or Something:

Ghemhamforash  – "Spear of Decreation," from Bloodletting (Black Metal – Altare Productions). My quest to fill the void mentioned in the previous blurb vis-a-vis no new Wormlust had sent me, as I am known to do (by no one) to search for whatever it is Alex Poole is doing these days. That dude is always up to something! And thereswith (not a word) I found this nasty demo filled with all the magic and drive of AP's brilliance along with a very also brilliant cast of known characters. Very cool, very "we've gone so plaid as musicians that all we do is record albums that worship at the altar of the bands we loved as teens" and just great.

The Track that is a Fun-House-Mirror of Riffs that Shred and at One and the Same Time Confound and Delight:

Ifryt – "Frustracja seksulana jest źr​ó​d​ł​em mocy Vril," from Nudy (Black Metal – Godz Ov War Productions). As Iceland freezes over, Poland stays as weird and as inspiring as ever. This time in the form of a new release from the absolutely delightful Ifryt that, much like other fantastic Polish black metal acts – Gruzja, Biesy, Kły – draw heavily from the post-punk vocabulary, creating dazzling contrasts between almost Immortal-like riffing and Gang of Four-esque hunor and originality. My favorite from them thus far, and just a delight. FFO: Gang of Four with corpse paint.

The Track that Caused Me Bodily Harm of the Kind that Brings One Joy Not that I Would Advocate that Kind of Thing But You Know:

Lwstndrds – "Loathing," from Songs of Atrocity (Hardcore/Grindcore – Lower Class Kids Records / Nerve Altar). It's been a while since I've dipped my delicate toes into the warm waters of whatever it is LCKR decide to release, and let me tell you folks, these toes are now wet and happy. Yet again representing the great nation of Poland, these hardcore fiends sound like they record in a pig stye and kind of play their instruments like they live there too. But while that might sound like a vote of no confidence, these wizards of filth turns mud and shit into disgusting magic. So good it'll make you mosh yourself and then cry a bit. FFO: Oldschool Wake.

The Track that Smells like Gasoline Fumes and Burnt Clowns:

Ploughshare – "The Fall of All Creatures from Second Wound (Death/Black Metal – I, Voidhanger Records). It's been quite the while since I've last written about these Australian maniacs, mostly because, if memory serves, I wasn't a huge fan of their most recent release. But this here track marks not only their arrival in the warm Italian hands of I, Voidhanger, but also a much weirder, much more, shall we say, "aesthetically dissonant" release to date. Which also makes it sound to my humble ears like a cohesive shitstorm of sounds that just might be one of the best releases of that general ilk this year – which, given the sheer quality of disso-esque releases this year, is a saying a lot. FFO: 2010s Plebeian Grandstand, Ulcerate.

That One Track the Magic of Which is that Elusive Qualtiy of Making One Forget Where One Actually Lives and What Shape One's Life Actually Has:

Vargaskri – "Den Tappres Fr​å​nf​ä​lle," from Hyllningskv​ä​den (Black Metal – Northern Silence Productions). I guess this was the year of mining ole Metal Archives for unknown projects by bands I love. This time it's this Stilla/Bergraven-associated album that came out way back in 2021 and is currently rocking my world. That magical ear for beautiful melodies a-la Stilla is very present here, as well as the general knack for creating sinister music that feels like watching a Romantic body of water. Might not be as weirdo as the Bergraden branch of the family, but just absolutely gorgeous and, to me, brand new. FFO: Obsequiae.

The Track that Made Me Blind with a Blaze of Eastern Jealousy For Not Finding this Beautiful Gem Myself, Although Those Things Shouldn't Matter Yet Somehow They Do: 

Feldspar – "Last Taste of Soot," from Feldspar (Heavy Metal / Doom Metal – Yuggoth Records). This dizzying little EP was dropped into my world via a man of good taste who goes by the name of Shon on the wondrous Facebook group Midnight. Lightning Steel. Was advertised as a Negative Plane type deal, and I can see where that comes from, but I think it veers away from black metal and more toward almost proggy hard rock, while keeping that same wavy vibe. I can see how this could grow on me very quickly. 

SHORT FACTS ABOUT THINGS

Fact #1: Dawnwalker are slowly becoming an indie band and I fucking love it. First single off of a new album here.

Fact #2: Friends of the show Myrdod have a black metal project of which I had never heard called Electric Animal and it's pretty cool.

Fact #3: K It's been a while since I've checked what's the latest rotten produce on the shelves of Transmissions from the Dark and I'm very glad I did because this Tiwaz EP is very good rockin' black metal. 

Fact #4: Just noticed I never said anything about the most recent Svrm, for which I apologize. It's gorgeous and it's here.