SEVERAL SONGS THAT EXISTED THIS WEEK SEP 22-28

I have been inspired by Blood Incantation this week, so here's the outcome of that being inspired by Blood Incantation this week. I actually don't know what that outcome might be. The inspiration originates in always putting thought into what you do and doing the best you can with that thought. It might not always result in magic, but it's the absolute necessary step to take so as to maybe one day strike magic. This transitional period has not been easy, I hate transitions. I also discovered that I am a very spiteful, unforgiving person. But that's for another day. I have transitions, I hate change, and given the sheer amount of uncertainty and change going on in my life (war, my car battery kinda dying on me, money, girls beginning to enter that age in which they are mean to each other and my perfect daughter being on the receiving end of that, etc), it's kind of a miracle I'm a functioning adult. I think being a parent has taught me a whole lot of forgiveness for my parents. It's not like people are sitting around (for the most part) and thinking "I have an array of choices, what would be the best one for my child?" or "What is the most appropriate way to react to this situation?" We are under fire, constantly, as parents, and, well, kind of literally too, but that doesn't matter. There's always stress in life – sometimes in comes in the form of rockets, sometimes its war, but often it's money, love and the lack of love, frustration, ignorance, car batteries, a lot of stuff that can go wrong does and most of the time I feel like my parenting takes place under that hail of firestones. What comes out isn't, usually, your "parental strategies" but who is that gross person that makes up your unconscious and how seriously fucked his reactions are. Less care-taking figures and more kind and yet wholly dysfunctional robots.

Was that a digression? I might have been. Where I think I was going with this was that given all that shit it's no wonder this blog is in something of a transitional phase, and maybe I need to just ride that wave. Blood Incantation's Secret History was an OK album, but I never really loved it as much as Starspawn, and while Luminous Bridge and Timewave Zero were really interesting experiments, and I did love both at the time, they felt like trying shit out.

 

These new tracks BI released – technically the first half of their new album – don't feel like experiments, they feel like the band going like: "OK, so this is how it fits together, now." Always in flux, obviously, always changing, obviously, and everything is always an experiment when you're making art, obviously, but sometimes the homework you did pays off in creating something new. And that's how that feels right now, and that's why I find that inspiring (other than the fact that they seem like very decent, well-grounded people, and I know for a fact from my interview with Morris a few years back that he's both brilliant and a gem). Get the ugly out, get what you need out. You never know what ugly piece will fit into a future beauty. 

Keep safe. 

PS – BTW, not entirely sure how many tracks I'll actually include here. Might be nine, might not. R.

Déhà and Zeresh – "Still Clings" (Doom Metal Kind Of – Independent). One of the many privileges afforded by being an idiot who writes about music hardly anyone cares about is making connections and seeing people you admire collaborate. That is very much the case with this meeting of the glowing minds, bringing together the voice and infallible sensibility of Tamar Singer's wonderful folk/doom project Zeresh and the many-tentacled brilliance of Déhà. Some people are just made to make art together, and this is very much an example. Both of these amazing people love collaboration, and collaborate often. And yet I think they need to settle down together and give us an album of this.

Urine Hell – "Hometown," from Weight (Noise Rock/Mathcore – Already Dead). The life-is-a-swamp-I-am-but-a-toad auditory act of violence that is Urine Hell are back. They have the riffs, vocals, and drums to kill you, and they have the beautiful noise-rock-oriented attitude that will make you think you deserve it. Attaching, unrelenting, mind-expanding rock.

William Fowler Collins – "The Devil And The River, Volume One" (Experimental/Ambient – Karlrecords). In my mind's eye William Fowler Collins doesn't have a beard, and yet I think he might have a beard. What he also has, by the way, are hands and the ability to take those hands and instead of killing people (which, I guess, he could have done) he has elected to sprout his mighty beard-adorned head every now and again and sprinkle dark magic on us all like some pedal-board-owning version of that Salt Bae dude. I should also add here, since I find it relevant, that the tomatoes are super expensive right now and also why am I still here? Anyhow, stray thoughts, but the kind of thoughts produced by the aforementioned bearded magic of WFC, which is both an acronym for William Fowler Collins and his wonderful ambient landscapes as well as the stock market sign for Wells Fargo & Co and the World Fighting Championship. I'm assuming that's Aaron Turner art on the cover. Hey Aaron, how about retuning my emails?

Soil and Ash – "III: Foul Skin" (Drone / Doom / Black Metal – Independent). I happened upon this musical rendition of a fog spreading over the horizon only it's nevery foggy here I live in the Middle East so super weird by doing what every normal person does instead of taking care for his future, stashing dollars in cash, and/or buying a gun (?) – I went to the Bandcamp page of a favorite black metal band of mine, Vaiya, and scrolled to the bottom to see what the band recommended I listen to. And here this was, a one-track album that came out 13 years ago, and the CD for which you could buy for basically free. Why did I mention that fact? Maybe I thought it would be nice if everyone could buy it, because it's excellent ambient black metal and selling out a 13-year-old album is kind of a nice thing to do for people out of no where. But, yeah. Disturbing, quietly eerie almost-black metal that feels menacing and green.

Glacial Tomb – "Voidwomb," from Lightless Expanse (Death/Black Metal – Prosthetic Records). The 2018 Glacial Tomb self-titled debut was one of the most unique, memorable and fucking a' awesome death metal albums of the previous decade, and I, for one, was very much waiting for a followup. But it never came. There was a pandemic, a whole shit-boat of wars, and no new album. At least it's fucking great, at least that. Death metal in pacing, black metal at heart, and kinda-sorta weirdly hardcore/post-hardcore at times. A fantastic and very welcomed return. Thank you. Now, make a tape so I can needlessly buy objects of no use so as to fill the widening hole in my soul. 

Sallow Moth – "Relic of Deceptiva, from Vial (Technical Death Metal – Lilang Isla). I haven't been keeping up with Sallow Moth stuff since Stasis Cocoon, which is probably a mistake. It's generally a mistake not to keep tabs on anything delivery deity/musician god Garry Brents does, but there are a few of his projects that I at least try to somehow keep up with, Sallow Moth being one. So, my bad. Awful person – cool. However, given all that – what a fucking first single, god mother-hemming damn. Dynamic, progressive, brutal, weird, and never without overdoing any one element. Perfect techy death metal, basically. 

Rose Ceremony – "This Time," from Iteration II (Hardcore/Screamo – Khya Records). I'm a man of many rules and very little forgiveness. I have found out only this week I think how bad I am at forgiveness. I don't forgive, I keep grudges, most imaginary ones – which are, no doubt the worst. And one of my main rules are: "When Servian Label Kyha Records Releases Something You Better Buy That Shit and Then Also Listen to It." One of those gems of impeccable hardcore/screamo/grindcore, akin other gems such as Lower Class Kids Records and Nerve Altar, among others. Emotive, gut-ruining, crying-in-bed-thinking-about-a-missile-hitting-my-room screamo. Beautiful. 

 

SXAP – "The Wellspring," from-emptiness (Cosmic Death Doom That Sounds Like Your Life Ending – Bloodymountain Records). I can't keep fanboying BMR anymore that I have already (interview here), but I'm going to try! Maybe I'm just at heart a very simple person. Maybe I just like keyboards spelling out a galaxy while weird sounds emit from an evil machine while echoing riffs and burping growls ruin my eyes? Maybe I'm just that easy to figure out. Whatever it is, BMR have figured that shit out very well. Yet another home run that rings in a void because life is meaningless and sad.

 

I said I didn't know how many tracks I would actually do, and this is already #11 but fuck it. I must admit, The Jesus Lizard releasing a new album was cool, but I didn't really care. I always appreciated that stuff, never really chose to reach out my skinny hand to the sky and listen to it. But, HOWEVER, hearing that God Bullies were releasing a new album gave me a whole cosmic surge of blood to the earholes. That's because God Bullies fucking rule, regardless (I guess?) of who's actually in the band right now. So, yes, another track, because it's the fucking legends: God Bullies – "Cops in Plain Clothes," from As Above, So Bellow (Noise Rock – Reptilian Records). Also, btw, a very apt and evergreen song title, also given the shit swamp that is everything going on right now over here.

Midwife – "Rock N Roll Never Forgets," from No Depression in Heaven (Sad Shit – The Flenser I Guess). The honest truth is that I'm adding Midwife as a professional courtesy to Midwife because I believe artistic excellence should be marked, heralded, and promoted. But the reality is that I can't really listen to this shit. I am right now, really, as part of that professionalism aformentioned in my aformnetioned statement, but I can't really listen to that shit. I need noise, I need violence, I need something to take me away from the pain and anxiety and death that fills every empty space in my figurative and physical space. Midwife, you see, they don't give me that, they give me the space between particles of hurt only expanded, and I just can't do that right now. So, job very well done, and go fuck yourself, Midwife. I'm done for this week, I think.

SHORT FACTS ABOUT THINGS

Fact #1: Imperial Triumphant released a very good, very Liturgy-inspired (in parts) new single from a new album. But the fact I really want to highlight here is I think I don't care about Imperial Triumphant any more. Enjoy.

Fact #2: Circle have a new-ish live album that's fucking great. 

Fact #3: Cool blackgaze type black metal from Farsot. 

Fact #4: Nobody wins, eventually. It's all in how you take the loss. Oh, there might be a new Mitochondrion album coming. So, that's a win.