No God Only Pain has just released a music video for their new album’s title track, Joy of Suffering. No God Only pain play a brand of primitive black metal with heavy Oi! component which brings to mind early absurd at moments but distinguishes itself with more dynamic songwriting. Atmospheric and at the same time driving, this music maintains coherence and stylistic consistence while never stagnating, an improvement over past approaches to this particular musical blend. While still having loose ends, this music shows a lot of promise.
Altare Productions is proud to present Dolentia’s highly anticipated second album, Iniciação Eversiva, set for international release on June 22nd. The vinyl LP version of Dolentia’s Iniciação Eversiva was released earlier this year the UK’s Mordgrimm, and that release featured six songs. Now, a CD version will be released by Portugal’s Altare Productions in conjuction with Mordgrimm, and will feature two bonus re-recorded songs from the 2007 demo A Idade da Morte,Liturgia do Sangue e da Agonia: “Lapidis/Sacrificium” (two songs glued together, like the band uses to play live) and “Era Portucalensis.”
Tracklist:
1. Voragem
2. Guardião das Almas
3. Entre Túmulos Esquecidos
4. Supremo Desígnio
5. Do Fundo dos Abismos
6. A Noite
7. Lapidis – Sacrificium
8. Era Portucalensis
Rare and out of print for many years now, Profezia’s Black Misanthropic Elite – Moon Anthem debut is finally back in print via Moribund Records, set for international release on July 24th as a limited-edition A5 digibook. Originally released in 2008, Black Misanthropic Elite – Moon Anthem introduced this Italian black metal to the international scene. Tracks 1-6 comprise the Black Misanthropic Elite portion of the album, while track 7 and 8 comprise Moon Anthem, altogether making for stirring spelunking through medieval depths.
Tracklist:
1. Overture Psalm
2. Poem for the Black Misanthropic Elite pt.1
3. Under a pale veil of unconsciousness reckless
4. Interlude
5. Hatred
6. Poem for the Black Misanthropic Elite pt.2
7. Bewitched
8. Hungering
Playing a cavernous underground music, Undergang have crystallized a style in Døden Læger Alle Sår that harks back to the sound not only of obvious Scandinavian forefathers but also to that of Morpheus Descends and Demoncy. Rather than spiraling through serpentine corridors as Incantation does, Undergang uses vocabulary from the Swedeath lingo here, and then the atmospheric death metal riff of Morpheus Descends there, only to descend into a the more inconspicuous atmospheric tremoloing of Demoncy to further the expression. Enriching this mixture of influences, we can also find unexpected doom-like moments with the economical and spacious approach of Worship.
Even though all these are present in Døden Læger Alle Sår, the style parade that a collection of influences often results in is not present here. It is also very important to stress that Undergang does not fall into trope repetition nor does it wink at the listener with a cliche here and a cliche there. The band expertly appropriates the different stylistic conventions under a overall Swedish death metal mantle and, more impressively, escapes the cliches of the latter as well. The reason why it can work is because the grindy Nihilist, the American Morpheus Descends and the decorative ends in Demoncy and Worship – like breaths are all compatible. It is only unfortunate that while all this has been accomplished, Undergang’s own voice still seems only visible as a blurry image behind this coherent, translucid tapestry.
Miserable Failure have premiered a new music video of their song Hang Them.
In other Miserable Failure news, the band has just completed the recording sessions for a new split, this time with label-mates C.O.A.G. and a third band to be announced. The split is planned to be released later this year / early next year. They’re currently working on their next release, but more on that later. Miserable Failure Official Website www.facebook.com/msrblflr
Today we will visit the works of two great composers in their own right who were also the teachers, directly or indirectly, of other composers who are considered musical geniuses. These geniuses were Mozart and Beethoven after Haydn, and Webern and Berg after Schoenberg.
In a way, Haydn and Schoenberg represent opposite ends of the spectrum in terms of the relation between composer and society. Haydn was employed by the Esterhazy family for many years, serving as personal composer for their events and whims. An honored servant, making music in the styles fashionable to the aristocracy. Schoenberg, on the other hand, was a product of a much different era, a century and a half later, when composers had attained a position of independent eminence and power as a result of a process that had started in Mozart’s time and made more clear with Beethoven. Schoenberg’s attitude and music widened the gap between an artists pursuit of perfection and the audience’s taste and preferences. This, of course, was a result of larger historical processes and not the work of a composer; Schoenberg was a result of these, not a cause.
Franz Joseph Haydn: Seven Last Words of our Saviour on the Cross
Originally written for a classical orchestra as a commission for the Oratorio de la Santa Cueva in Spain, Haydn reworked this music intended as accompaniment for the mass as a string quartet at the petition of his publisher. Irrelevant here, but it is worth mentioning that the composer later adapted this work as an oratorio as well.
Arnold Schoenberg: String Quartet No. 2
Powerful and particularly lyrical in its melodies, this quartet is unusual in its use of a soprano in its last two movements. About this quartet, the composer says:
“I was inspired by poems of Stefan George, the German poet, to compose music to some of his poems and, surprisingly, without any expectation on my part, these songs showed a style quite different from everything I had written before.” – Arnold Schoenberg (1937)
The work uses a wide array of work tools, starting with a very late romantic feeling and moving into atonal experiments; the last movements in which all chromatic tones are used.
Greyhaze Records is set to reissue Goetia, the second full-length album from Brazilian black metal horde Mystifier. Originally released in 1993 by Osmose Productions, Greyhaze Records has restored and remastered this black metal milestone to ensure each venomous track permeates the listener’s senses to the fullest effect. In addition to the 10 tracks that appeared on the original release, the CD version of the Greyhaze reissue features three live bonus tracks. The album is available a six-panel digipak CD and double vinyl LP (black vinyl or red w/ black smoke vinyl). The vinyl version does not include the bonus live tracks.
The album Memento Mori from Black Metallers The Negationon July 6 (July 7 digital and North America). The first pressing comes as a limited edition (500 copies) DigiSleeve CD.
The Negation’s second full-length, Memento Mori was produced at the Hybreed Studio (Temple of Baal, Glorior Belli, Azziard), with artwork by Metastazis (Morbid Angel, Behemoth, Watain), influenced by famous acts with whom they’ve toured (Marduk, Belphegor) as well as bands such as Dark Funeral and Deathspell Omega. Enough said!
Tracklist:
Intro
The true Enemy
Sacrifice the Weak
Parasite Fall
A Prayer for the Ones I Will Have to Kill
Faith in God’s Corpse
End of Cycle
Visions of Doom
Résistance
Outro
Check out their mega-awesome nihilist and modern music in their album teaser.
Dying Humanity are the perfect metalcore product. They’ve got all the moves, they know every trick in the book. Trope-masters Dying Humanity present us with a compilation of metalcore cliches titled Deadened which at its most lucid moments almost reaches the sobriety of Blinded by Faith‘s Chernobyl Survivor. Here and there we find nods to more mainstream acts like Killswitch Engage and then back to more extreme modern metalcore and other so-called melodic death metal bands following in the steps of Slaughter of the Soul. Tying mostly unrelated melodies in riffs in that last style, Dying Humanity supports them by the same square, straight-up d-beats ala Adrian Erlandsson.
While Dying Humanity will not appeal to fans of the old school, it will not appeal to fans of any kind of music that revels in attention to logical construction and detail. Deadened may nonetheless prove to be a satisfying commercial success with the casual head-banging crowd which only needs a catchy dose of sterile, well-produced music that has as much staying power as a Big Mac.
The cause: Too many labels, too many resources, too many enabled idiots. The result: tons and tons of mediocre music. Occasionally a decent release or two. A handful of good albums each year. A classic every few years. In the advent of such a shitstorm, should we ignore the fecal matter covering our windshields, obstructing our view as we look for actually worthwhile releases?
Groteskh – Code: END
Some think death metal is all about brutal riffs. The brutaller your riff, the awesomer your music. And if you pack your music with brutal riff after brutal riff, then of course, your music will be the brutallest. Some also think that black metal is “all about the atmosphere”. And what does atmosphere mean, according to simple minds? Well, come flat-sounding strummed riffs with an “evil” feeling. Groteskh plays in the modern style of boring death metal pretending to be black metal. And in doing so, trying to excuse the lacking death metal the band produces. Code:END amounts to “brutal riffs with atmosphere”, a delight for the moronic modern extreme metal commoner. Add in some parts with groovy drums, bopping bass and strummed “evil sounding” chords, and you got your death black party metal formula.
Seven7 – The Follower
Best described as Mike Portnoy syncopations, Matt Halpern groove poserism, power metal inclinations with Fred Durst and Chester Bennington deciding the musical direction, Seven7 make Nu Metal bent on taking the fraud of Dream Theater’s pseudo-prog as part of its language. Frankly, it sounds like a Dream Theater unveiled to what it truly is: pretentious pop music. Disgusting at every level, this album is a collection of tropes from the mainstream melodic extreme metal appropriated to a Nu Metal and Alternative Metal context.
Jarun – Pod niebem utkanym z popiołu
Jarun gives us a musically consistent Blackwater Park that is only folk in name. Lose melodies out of context, racing double bass drums and “progressive” riffs riding under disorganized music that attempts to hide its simple structure under a lot of flare and affectation. The music here is essentially rhythmic appeal to headbangs and slightly bittersweet melodies ala Pink Frothy Aids. The introduction of purposeless riffs is a clear sign of a lack of vision in composition, but this crowd and those who surround them are oblivious to what this means. Condemned to live in delusion and pretension, this music appeals to those who want to pose as if they listen to deep or complex music but only want music that is easy to digest and headbang to.
