#blackened depressive atmospheric doom

[burninleather]

black metal is funny cuz when I first started I was like "yeah all of its good it all sounds mostly the same anyways" but after a while, I've gotten so picky. when I started I would've been like "yeah this sounds pretty standard and fine" now I'm like "what the FUCK is this alien theme song ass keyboard notes in the background bruh this band fucking sucks" "these vocals sound like dogshit, too blackened death metal sounding for me" "the production quality is too good I can hear the instruments. they must be posers" "where's double bass drums" would've sounded like scrawled ramblings i'd find on the walls of a psychiatric inpatient ward to me a while ago

[abysspersonified]

Genre: Blackened Speed Metal, Blackened Thrash Metal

Link: Here

Genre: Medieval Black Metal, Atmospheric Black Metal

Link: Here

Genre: Stoner Metal, Traditional Doom Metal

Link: Here

Genre: Depressive Black Metal, Atmospheric Black Metal

Link: Here

[tunalad]

[6th of October 2023] make me new

for a while I wanted to expand more on the "funeral trap" sound, so this release pretty much does that

https://tunalad.bandcamp.com/album/make-me-new

https://youtu.be/2HndooQ7yE0

I've noticed whenever I'm posting music on Tumblr that's a lot more personal, I tend to write little to nothing xddd

oh yeah, the painting used here is View of Frederiksværk from Tisvilde Wood

[sociopathicghost]

Heavy Metal

Speed Metal

Thrash Metal

Power Metal

Death Metal

Melodic Death Metal

Technical Death Metal

Brutal Death Metal

Slam Death Metal

Black Metal

First Wave of Black Metal (Blackened Thrash Metal)

True Norwegian Black Metal

Depressive Suicidal Black Metal

Symphonic Black Metal

Post Black Metal

Atmospheric Black Metal

Pagan Metal

Viking Metal

Folk Metal

Symphonic Metal

Gothic Metal

Glam Metal

Hair Metal

Doom Metal

Funeral Doom Metal

Stoner Doom Metal

Groove Metal

Industrial Metal

Modern Metal

Neoclassical Metal

New Wave Of British Heavy Metal

Post Metal

Progressive Metal

Avantgarde Metal

Sludge

Djent

Drone

Kawaii Metal

Pirate Metal

Nu Metal

Neue Deutsche Härte

Math Metal

Crossover

Grindcore

Goregrind

Porngrind/Shitgrind (Yes, those are a thing)

Deathgrind

Powerviolence

Hardcore

Metalcore

Deathcore

Post Hardcore

Mathcore

INFO:

The audacity of some people to say that metal is limited and is the "same thing" when it's not. It has more subgenres than any other music genre lmao. Do your research.

More research (into bands and albums).

[arysguide]

Part 1: Ary's favourite releases of 2023

Before you ask, yes I know that Mitski and Sufjan Stevens released albums this year! I'm gonna go ahead and assume they're already on a lot of other people's lists! However, if you think I'm missing out on YOUR favourite album of 2023, let me know. If you're thinking: "63 albums isn't that many, I wish there were more" - you're in luck because there's a Part 2. Part 2 has a different (more pop? upbeat? accessible?) vibe. Don't think too hard about it...

The chart isn't ranked, just arranged in a way that looked nice to me. Metal, hardcore, rap, emo, skramz, bedroom pop and more!!!

Here are Bandcamp links to all of the albums (for those not on BC there's a YouTube or Spotify link). Honestly I'm never quite sure what genre something is, but there's a lot of metal in any case.

Row 1

Lauren Bousfield - Salesforce [digital hardcore]

Dead Times - Dead Times [harsh noise extreme metal]

Danny Brown - Quaranta [rap/hiphop]

Underdark - Managed Decline [post black metal]

Boris & Uniform - Bright New Disease [psychedelic heavy metal]

PUPIL SLICER - BLOSSOM [blackened mathcore]

Sanguisugabogg - Homicidal Ecstasy [death metal]

Row 2

Full of Hell & Primitive Man - Suffocating Hallucination [death metal/grindcore]

Radeloos//Ziedend - Doodsverachting [blackened crust]

Agriculture - Agriculture [ecstatic black metal]

Victory Over the Sun - Dance You Monster To My Soft Song! [progressive black metal]

fog lake - midnight society [bedroom pop]

Bell Witch - Future's Shadow Part 1: The Clandestine Gate [funeral doom]

Krallice - Mass Cathexis 2 - The Kinetic Infinite [progressive black metal]

Row 3

Svalbard - The Weight Of The Mask [postmetal]

Terzij de Horde & Ggu:ll - Van Grond [vitalistic black metal]

portrayal of guilt - Devil Music [blackened post-hardcore]

SAINT VEHK - Practice​/​Doubt I&II [occult death industrial]

Sightless Pit - Lockstep Bloodwar [dub/power electronics]

Designer Violence - We Gave Peace A Chance [electropunk]

geronimostilton - The Vampyre [skramz]

Row 4

Chat Pile & Nerver - Brothers in Christ [sludgey death metal]

Afsky - Om hundrede år [depressive black metal]

Full of Hell & Gasp - FOH/Gasp (Split) [death metal/grindcore]

Solar Temple - The Great Star Above Provides [blackgaze]

Fluisteraars - De Kronieken Van Het Verdwenen Kasteel - II - Nergena [atmospheric black metal]

Fluisteraars - De Kronieken van het Verdwenen Kasteel - I - Harslo [atmospheric black metal]

Andre 3000 - New Blue Sun [spiritual flute jazz]

Row 5

Aesop Rock - Integrated Tech Solutions [rap/hiphop]

Blood Incantation - Luminescent Bridge [cosmic death metal]

Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter (fka LINGUA IGNOTA) - SAVED! [experimental gospel metal]

Spetterpoep - Stoelgang Van Zaken [coprogrind/grindcore]

Gnaw Their Tongues - The Cessation Of Suffering [blackened drone metal]

JPEGMAFIA & Danny Brown - SCARING THE HOES [rap/hiphop]

The Lemon Twigs - Everything Harmony [70s inspired rock]

Row 6

Old Nick - "The Truest Spell" [dungeon synth/raw black metal]

Armand Hammer - We Buy Diabetic Test Strips [rap/hiphop]

Liturgy - 93696 [transcendental black metal]

Helena Hauff - fabric presents Helena Hauff [hardcore techno]

That Same Street ⁻ Electric Angel [skramz]

That Same Street - Endgame [skramz]

the scary jokes - Retinal Bloom [dream pop]

Row 7

Bull of Apis Bull of Bronze - The Fractal Ouroboros [occult black metal]

Katie Dey - never falter hero girl [hyperpop]

Full of Hell & Nothing - When No Birds Sang [grindcore/shoegaze]

All Men Unto Me - Chemical Transit [classical/doom metal]

RXK Nephew - Till I'm Dead [rap/hiphop]

Panopticon - The Rime of Memory [rabm/black metal]

Yaeji - With A Hammer [electronic]

Row 8

DRAIN - LIVING PROOF [punk/hardcore]

909 Worldwide - Hardcore Will Never Die, and Neither Will You [happy hardcore/rave]

lobsterfight, gingerbee, Cicadahead, godfuck - a lobster, bee, & cicada walk into a bar and find god [skramz]

GingerBee - Our Skies Smile [skramz/5th wave emo]

Curta'n Wall - Siege Ubsessed! [dungeon synth/raw black metal]

GEZEBELLE GABURGABLY - Gaburger [alt pop]

crisis sigil - God Cum Poltergeist [cybergrind]

Row 9

Lamp Of Murmuur - Saturnian Bloodstorm [black metal]

Crystalline Thunderbolts - Blessed Hands Touch The Ophanim Under The Golden Rainbows [experimental black metal]

Tomb Mold - The Enduring Spirit [black/death metal]

FIRE TOOLZ - I am upset because I see something that is not there. [electro-industrial/experimental]

Angel Electronics - ULTRA PARADISE [happy post-hardcore]

Vylet Pony - Carousel (An Examination of the Shadow, Creekflow, and its Life as an Afterthought) [electronic]

Ada Rook - Rookie's Bustle [electronic]

This post took forever to make. Again if you have any thoughts on it please tell me!!!! And share widely with your friends :)

Love, Ary

[reptileshrine]

GRAV|ASKA by Gravkväde

[eddiethehead-uwu]

Here have some underrated or lesser know italian metal bands PART 2

I left the last post by talking about a hardcore punk mixed with black metal band, and it made me think about Nerorgasmo, a short lived hardcore punk band from Torino. The lyrics are only in italian, but I'm sure you could find them translated somewhere (or ask me if you're interested lol). They're not active anymore due to the singer's death (i think it was him), but you can find all their stuff on yt.

I only know this song by this band, I should really look into their stuff (especially cause idk how it has 370k views but only 1k likes, which is weird since they're really good.) Novembre is a progressive death metal band with a very goth aesthetic and way of singing. This song always makes me feel melancholic for some reason, I love it when with just the first three chords you can set a mood for the entirety of a song. Worth taking a listen!

Destrage, a very interesting sounding band. I would like to say they do alternative or nu metal, but I hear so many influences and can't find a valid source on the internet that tells exactly what they do. I guess they have their very unique style and I appreciate it very much! :D they're a little bit more known than the previous artists, but honestly who wouldn't get hypnotized by their music and music videos? (I found myself attached to the screen like a madman the whole time, oopsie)

I got clickbaited by their name tbh, but stayed for the stoner doom metal music, with psychedelic influences. I heard that these guys from Trieste, Ufomammut, are particulary metal when playing live, but as a young deathling who got into metal seriously only during my past 3 years of existence, I haven't had the pleasure of seeing these fantastic musicians live, at least not yet.

Necrodeath is a really fucking cool band, maybe you've heard them already. They make blackened thrash metal, and you know I'm quite a thrasher who also loves black metal, so this is quite the band for me. They're quite an old school underground band, the riffs are very rhythmic but catchy. Check out these guys from Genova if you like thrash and black metal! :)

Do you gamers like medieval shit? Then Folkstone is the band for you! They're a "medieval rock band from italy" (that's what their official website says exactly) and well, you can definetly hear the musical influences. They sing in italian, mostly about things that are going on in our country or about things the members lived themselves. They are a very active band, they relesed some new music not even a month ago so I guess we can expect more things from them in the future!

Now these guys made a dsbm (depressive suicidal black metal) masterpiece. I know black metal in general is a quite underground genre and there are probably thousands of amazing italian bm artists out there I'm missing out on, but Forgotten Tomb is one of the few I know and I thought it would be worth mentioning them. You can definetly feel something deep within with their tracks, and as I mentioned before I'm a sucker for metal music that makes me feel things. Just close your eyes and listen to this amazing track...

Just listen to this atmospheric black metal track and make your own mind about it. I love a good atmospheric track once in a while, and well, Progenie Terrestre Pura did an amazing job portraying the genre and the themes they talk about. Absolute madlads from my same region (they're from Veneto too, just like Tears Of Blood, and extremely underrated too). Honestly I fell in love with their amazingly long riffs, their techicality too is so hypnotizing. If I had to describe their work with one word, it would 100% be ambitious.

Last but not least for today, I chose Deadly Carnage. They're a post-black/doom metal band from Rimini (beautiful place to go to the beach btw). I always loved how pretty and melancholic the singer's voice is, it's a great band to relax to. Their name might sound very scary and super heavy, but trust me when I say that if you like sad boi hours music you will adore this band. There's just something so fascinating about their music, and idk it sounds sad but makes you feel good for some reason. This song I chose is pretty new, and it makes me feel happy for no reason (again I repeat for the 8382002nd time: i'm a huge ass sucker for this type of shit that makes you feel things). Definetly check these beach bois out! ;)

[kayla0art]

My Top Albums of 2018

I guess its that time of year. Only in the past two years have I really been getting into music again, after so long of being disillusioned by the state of radio, with rock and metal basically just being shunned; for about five years before I just listened to Tool, APC, The Cure and Type O Negative over and over. But with the magic of algorithms recommending me some killer new faves, I am completely immersed again, and spent a lot of time this year streaming new music.

Here goes!

7)

The Ocean- Phanerozoic I: Palaeozoic

Sample Track: Nascent (Featuring Jonas Renkse from Katatonia)

First off, it’s this track that makes the album for me. Jonas Renkse is my absolute favorite vocalist and Katatonia my favorite band; he sings with such a soft, soothing melancholy baritone, so the fact he lent his vocals to a track caught my attention straight away. I’d heard of the Ocean before but not listened to much before then. Great progressive post-metal, really solid album start to finish. I need to do more listens as its release was relatively recent! In time it may climb up my list.

6) A Perfect Circle- Eat the Elephant

I’m a big fan of Maynard’s work, and of his projects, APC is likely my favorite. Billy Howerdell is an excellent musician. that being said, I think Eat the Elephant is the weakest of their albums, but by no means is it a bad one. Lyricism can feel a little preachy in places but the compositions are stellar and Maynard’s vocals are gorgeous as ever. I wish the radio station I listen to at work would stop thrashing the shit of “So Long and Thanks for all the Fish,” though. I love it sure, but I don’t want to hear it twice a damn day.

Featured track: Delicious

5) Alice in Chains: Rainier Fog

I used to listen to Dirt on cassette tape in my friend's car as a teen! Who would’ve thought a band could continue to produce such great, cohesive music after the death of a lead singer and founding member. Such a heavy, foggy atmosphere to this album that’s somehow just beautiful. Second track’s opening riff makes me think of Discouraged one’s/ Tonights Decision Era Katatonia up until the vocals start.

Featured Track: Rainier Fog

4) Altars of Grief- Iris

Wow! Honestly, a spiritual successor to the now disbanded Canadian Blackened Doom band “woods of Ypres”, which tragically ended after the death of Lea singer and founding member, David Gold in 2011. That’s not to say they are a carbon copy, with their lyrics a little more abstract and darkly spiritual than David’s straightforward, grounded realistic style; but the clean vocals are eerily similar. the compositions are tight, expertly played and varied.

Featured Track: Isolation

3)

Ghost: Prequelle

I first started listening to Ghost last year, totally sucked in my all the mystery behind the masks and the image, and was very surprised to find Pop metal where I expected blast beats and shrieks like black metal, but it was a pleasant surprise. Meliora remains my favorite of the Ghost offerings, but Prequelle is a solid album start to finish, my only complaint is that it doesn’t feel long enough. Vocals are so unique. Lyrics are simple, somewhat funny and dark. Like life, if you let it be.

Featured song: Faith

2) Ihsahn- Àmr

I love every track on this album. If you like Ghost and are looking to go heavier and more serious, I cannot recommend Ihsahn enough. He is a heavyweight of Norwegian black metal from the infamous band Emperor, and now working on his own experimental solo projects he’s doing such groundbreaking things with progressive metal.

This album is one of his more accessible to the everyman, beautiful vocals with a mix of heavy shrieks/ incredible melodic cleans. Lyrics are deep and well crafted, never veering onto the side of cheesy. It’s hard to pick a favorite track, with Samr, Twin Black Angels Lend me the Eyes of Millenia coming in a tie with my feature track as my number 1

Featured track: Arcana Imperii

1) Deathwhite- For a Black Tomorrow

A stunning, gothic debut. Similar to Ghost, these guys are shrouded in mystery. The members not name themselves and have only played 1 live show in which they wore full hoods for the duration. Mystery aside, they have their own unique brand of dark metal, with exclusively clean vocals similar to later Katatonia, and heavy drum and guitar to make an exquisite contrast.

Lyrics are dark, dealing with isolation and lost love, depression, and hopelessness without veering into themes of self-harm. Therapeutic sadness. Very underrated and relatively unknown, I hope to see them grow and carry on from this solid debut. They are clearly well-established as highly competent metal musicians already with impeccable technique, the tiny clips I saw on Instagram of their live show sounded identical to the album. True professionals.

Featured Track: Dreaming the Inverse

TL;DR: I like depressing music almost exclusively.

[lunar-lattice]

Here At the End of the World (2)

Akira and Ryo continue to confront the many aftereffects of Ryo's crusade; how they feel about themselves, each other, the Earth and God.

AO3 Mirror | Fanfic.net mirror

Previous

2. Forgiveness

Akira was conflicted. But moreso he was tired, more tired than he ever had been in his mortal lifetime. It's an important distinction as since he didn't require air or food or water, he must no longer be mortal. It was a sobering, depressing thought.

He never wished actively for death but a part of him wished for nothing more but to be back with his mother, his father, the Makimuras, Miki, Taro—back with everyone who died. But would he even go to heaven, he wondered. Perhaps, because his heart that didn't let Amon possess him. Or perhaps not, since he joined with a demon anyways. If both are the case, it's poetic he remains on Earth. Akira Fudo, who lived in the limbo of being neither human or devil would go neither to Heaven or Hell but would wander the dead Earth.

He sat up, stretching the sleep from his bones. His eyes drifted over to the subject of his conflicted feelings: Ryo Asuka. It was almost alien to see him sleep, wings curled about him like a cocoon. Could angels normally asleep or was it that Ryo was as tired as him?

He had decided against calling him Satan but a part of him wondered if it was denial. Perhaps, if he pretended this ethereal being beside him was Ryo and not Satan, he could shift the blame off the only person left. He knew better but it was nice to pretend. He had a lot of anger inside him that wanted at Satan, to wreck vengeance for each and every human his actions had killed.

He sighed. What was the point. It wouldn't bring anyone back. It wouldn't make Ryo feel any more worse than he did. He didn't know if he'd ever forgive him but he knew that it was past time for fighting. He was too tired to fight anyways.

Even so, he needed to walk. Or rather, to fly. He stood, letting himself shift into his Devilman form. At first, shifting was traumatizing and painful. He'd be hyper aware of how his bones and muscles ripped apart and came back together. How new body parts knitted themselves together without any thought to whether it should be possible. And how new feelings came out of hiding.

Now, it barely took a thought. It felt natural. Even the more demonic instincts had been mellowed by his human heart. He stretched his wings and flapped them. A few more flaps and he was airborne. He directed himself over the sea, relying the strength of his wings to keep him aloft, what with the lack of wind. Finally, at a high enough altitude, he glided lazily downwards to the next island of black rock. In the distance was a city, blackened but relatively intact. He didn't know what he would expect to find but still, he felt drawn to it. So he began to flap again, intent of getting there.

Once he set down among the wreckage, a sobering sadness settled in Akira's heart. If he thought about it enough, he could envision what the city might have looked like. A place where people lived and worked. Maybe it wasn't somewhere that any people knew, only a place that warranted a footnote but still. People lived here. He choked back a sob but continued inward.

Buildings were reduced to rubble, cars were abandoned blackened shells, what steel foundations remained reached to the sky like claws reaching to the sky. Like the Earth was begging to be put out of her misery. He paused by the remains of something reduced to ash, only a blackened outline of what it may have been. Something about the shape of it looked familiar...

When he recognized it, Akira stumbled back then launched into the air again. He spiraled upwards until he couldn't make out the details of the ruined city and definitely not of the ashes of someone, a human. Hovering in the air, where his sorrow was private, he found it in him to sob. Eventually, when he couldn't cry anymore and his sobs produced nothing, he flew back to Ryo.

"Hey, I was wondering where you went," Ryo said when Akira returned, sitting up with his hands in his lap.

Akira sat down with his back to him, his wings shielding him. "Akira..." Ryo began.

"I don't want to talk about it," Akira said, his voice not angry or sad...just quiet.

Ryo sighed, "I see."

They sat in silence for what could have been an eternity. The atmosphere had been shredded by the dying throes of earth so the sky didn't change color. Rather the sun disappeared and reappeared in the sky as the earth turned. Whether its appearance in the sky was the length of a day of Old Earth, Akira did not know. The moon halves were always present, hovering in the sky like twin specters. It was another stark sign that things wouldn't return to normal for a long, long time. He sniffled at the thought.

Before he knew it, Ryo had bolted over to him, peeking over his wings, "What's wrong?" he asked.

Akira looked away stubbornly and didn't say a word. The rejection hurt but Ryo would admit he had no place to comfort him. Akira was upset about the state of the Earth and the fact his friends and family were all dead. Ryo had done all these things. To comfort Akira now would be like the Snake offering comfort to Adam and Eve after their expulsion from the Garden of Eden. He sighed softly and set his hand on Akira's shoulder, rubbing soft circles to comfort him rather than use words.

Finally, Akira spoke up, "I want to go...somewhere."

"Where?" Ryo asked.

He knew where he wanted to go, somewhere where there was some form of life. The chances of there being such a place was slim to none. Still, if Akira decided he wanted to find such a place, he couldn't see himself staying behind. Where Akira went, he did and if Akira wanted to go on a wild goose chase, he'd gladly chase with him.

Akira stood, shaking his wings before folding them against his back, "Anywhere but here," he said, looking around with a grim expression.

He stretched his wings out again with a sharp snap and took to the air. Ryo followed, with much less effort. Seeing how he simply lifted into the air after him was yet another reminder of how different they were. In the air, it was more stark. Akira had to constantly pump his wings to keep aloft while Ryo floated by him, not even having to flap his wings. Seeing him hang against the red sky brought another violent feeling from their previous battle; the cocktail of adrenaline, fear, hope, pain and anger. Akira looked away, shaking his head as if it would dispel the feeling. He then took off into a random direction, not looking at Ryo lest it bring the feelings again.

Ryo noticed his refusal to look at him and tried to not feel hurt. But nonetheless, it did. "Are you still angry, Akira?" he asked.

"Angry?" Akira looked at him.

His mouth stiffened into a straight line. Akira finally said, "I dunno."

"You don't know?" Ryo echoed, gracefully keeping in pace with him.

"Listen, it's confusing. I get all these feelings when I look at you. It's just..." he closed his eyes, coming to a hovering stop, "I am still mad but I don't want to be. It wouldn't fix anything."

Ryo frowned. Yet again, he had no words to give. Akira looked at him, an odd coolness in his gaze. He asked, "Would you have done it again?"

"No!" Ryo recoiled.

He looked around them. Nothing but the expanse of the red ocean was around them. Ryo gestured to it, "Look what I've inherited. I thought maybe, when I won, I'd feel accomplished but..."

He bowed his head, "I just feel like I've made the greatest mistake one can do. Not even God has acted so this must be my punishment. To persist in this doomed world."

"It won't be like this forever, will it?" Akira looked fearful.

"No, it will eventually bounce back, even if God leaves it like this. But it will take a long, long time."

Akira sighed, "I guess that's better than nothing."

They began their flight again, this time in silence, a tentative relaxed silence.

The time they came upon land, it was mountainous. While there wasn't any greenery left, it was better than the flat black expanse they had been stranded on before. Akira dropped suddenly, banking for a valley in between two mountains. A river running from the coast pooled into a moderately large lake at the middle. By this lake, was a small home. Miraculously, it was still intact. Either the mountains or its own stone architecture shielded it from the apocalypse. Once he landed, Akira shifted back into a more human form and smiled. It was the first smile Ryo had seen on his face in a long time.

Akira led them in. Other than a few items knocked off the shelves, it looked almost the same as it had been. It also must have been uninhabited at the time, a thing Ryo was thankful for. He didn't want to see Akira's reaction upon coming across a corpse. Akira collapsed on the couch and sighed in content. Ryo sat by him, tucking his wings in. He let himself smile too, "Lucky find."

"Mhm," Akira rolled onto his back, "I think I could go back to sleep."

He yawned, "Not that there's much else to do anyways."

Akira hummed in thought then asked, "Do you need to sleep?"

"Not really but sometimes its nice. Especially when..." Ryo paused, "...I have a lot on my mind."

Akira propped himself up on his elbow, looking too mundane in the dim house, "Say, how much did humans get right about angels? Like, are there others?"

"I have siblings, yes. I haven't seen them in a while. I'm not particularly upset." Ryo felt tense, his paranoia opting him to glance out the window at the mention of his siblings.

"Are angels close to one another or?" Akira tilted his head.

"Not really. My siblings are devoted to my Father and thus, all they do is for him and in extension, humanity. That's why I believe things will return to normal, one way or another. Without humanity, my siblings have no purpose," Ryo explained.

Akira frowned, "What do you mean "one way or another",”

Ryo would have rather kept Akira in the dark but he went on anyways. Akira deserved the truth. "Either nature will take its course and in the next hundred millennia, humanity will develop once more. Or the Earth will be remade."

"Both of those sound...not great."

"Either we wait for a very long time or God takes it in his hands and this all happens once more."

Akira sat up, "It happens once more?" he looked troubled.

Ryo sighed, "This has happened before and it will happen again. Granted, you've never..." he grimaced, "...lived to this point."

"You've killed me," it wasn't a question.

"Yes," Ryo breathed, "Before, I ceased to see you as Akira and only saw you as an obstacle to my plan. This time...I tried to do just that but when I went to do it, I couldn't.

An uneasy silence settled on them. Akira said quietly, "Well, I'm glad you couldn't...kill me," he paused then couldn't help but snort at the absurdity of the statement.

"Akira!" Ryo said, aghast at the fact he was laughing.

"What! That's not a normal thing to say but I just did!" Akira laughed.

Ryo crossed his arms but couldn't help but smile. Akira sobered up after a few minutes, "Anyways, so you remember these past...er, cycles?"

Ryo nodded. Akira didn't answer but instead narrowed his eyes as he stared at the floor. Then after a minute, he said, "Maybe I'll remember!"

"I don't understand," Ryo said.

"Easy! You lived and were remade and then remembered! So here I am, living!" Akira smiled, wagging his hands at himself.

Ryo's face fell, "That's not how it works. You're a good person. You don't deserve to be punished. And even then, I didn't remember the whole story until after everyone else was dead. Before that, when I remembered I was Satan, it was only that."

Akira frowned and bowed his head. Ryo felt a rush of shame envelop him. Perhaps, it was better he lived in ignorance. Akira huffed, "That's not fair. To punish you when you realize the error of your ways. You even said you wouldn't do it again if you remembered."

Ryo's instinctive response was to tell him life was simply not fair. But Akira looked so miserable. He found himself saying, "I know it's not fair. I'm afraid God isn't fair."

Akira sighed, laying back down, staring at the ceiling. He asked, so softly, Ryo could barely hear, "Is it too much to hope otherwise?"

Ryo couldn't think of characterizing his Father as anything by a cold person that punished him for one transgression. Did He think Ryo was worthy of forgiveness? Ryo had been through this song and dance so many times, he didn't feel that way. But for Akira's sake, he laid by him and softly replied, "No, it isn't."

[doomanddead]

Drown Yourself in Ghostsmoker’s ‘Grief’

If you like your doom metal blackened and disgustingly sludgy, then listen up, friends. Ghostsmoker’s gargantuan riffs and dread-inducing compositions are guaran-fucking-teed to blow the meaty bits right off your skull. Join me as I trudge through the dismal swamp that is their latest EP, Grief. 

The band’s first offering is Astral Realm. This track sits on your chest like a cement truck, and only gets heavier. The plodding groove and blackened screams create a nightmarish atmosphere fit for your darkest personal demons. 

Eternal Veil looms large on the horizon with a threatening bass line and vocals like curdled milk. It’s depressing and black, with a kiss of trauma. Foul and beautiful. 

The title track, Grief, lives up to its moniker. Weighty and oppressive, this song inundates you with the oily muck of agony. A second vocalist adds unexpected complexity to this piece.  Primitive howls, vile drumming, and noxious guitar riffs permeate the space. Just when you think this piece is on its final legs, the tempo speeds and lashes out like a wild beast fighting back against the pain. This track holds your head under, and things slow to their final end amidst vinyl pops and atmospheric noise.

The last song to be unleashed is Mass Grave. This one is sludgy with massive riffs and an interesting hook. The melody twists and turns through soundscapes that are brutal and intense, to moments that are quiet and stripped-back.

It’s bass-driven, face-ripping, black, sludgy, doom metal from Melbourne. Go fucking buy it.

Grief by Ghostsmoker

[kvlt-ov-romance-blog]

The History of American Black Metal

[I wrote this article out of pure passion for the genre in July of 2012. It can be read on my deviantART page, Fatal-Nostalgia]. Black metal has a rich history, primarily one of European descent. Although it was Venom who coined the genre's name with their 1982 release "Black Metal," it was not for awhile until the genre became what it is known for: Darkness, hatred, aggression, atmosphere, forests and nature worship, and all that frostbitten stuff. The earliest black metal releases date back to 1983, when Hellhammer released their album "Death Fiend." They released a rehearsal demo in 1982, and a total of three albums in 1983, but the previously mentioned is held with the highest regards, as it came first. Influence then came from bands such as Sodom, Outrage and Nasty Savage. It was in 1984 when Bathory released their first album, "Bathory." It was primitive, aggressive, and thrashy. In my opinion, this is where black metal was truly birthed. We can see though that black metal in Europe was growing in the eighties, but black metal in America was quite scarce. The only American artists releasing albums in the vein of black metal were rather short lived bands who generally only made demos. NME were at the forefront of the proto-USBM movement, but a few lesser known bands were around too. Angel Death and Hatred were among the first couple of artists to release material vaguely reminiscent of black metal. Angel Death released a demo in 1986 "Death to Christianity," incredibly amateur and with more elements of eighties thrash than black metal. Hatred, who formed in New Jersey in 1984, released a demo in 1985, but it was their 1986 demo "Drowning in Afterbirth" that got more attention, at least among truly hardcore metal fans. Though more focused on a grindcore like sound, and undeniably amateur, it at least had the spirit of typical "demo metal bands," which have always been prevalent in the genre. Majesty, Bestial War, Goatlord, and a very small selection of virtually unheard of bands continued to make virtually unheard of demos between 1986 and 1987. A lot of these American metal bands were playing death or thrash at this time, not so much influenced by Norwegian scenes either. By the nineties, black metal in America wasn't necessarily as huge as in Scandinavia and Europe, obviously, but black metal bands actually worthy of carrying the title (rather than being thrash or death metal with some somewhat vague similarities) started to emerge. There was no one band or label that really started American black metal, more like various groups in general, who influenced each other greatly. The most obvious were Judias Iscariot, Inquisition, Absu, and Grand Belial's Key. Bands like I Shalt Become, Averse Sefira, and Demoncy gained more attention in later years, but their influence on early American black metal was important nonetheless. The nineties bands were starting to sound very similar to the Scandinavian second-wave bands. 1990 was a great year for black metal internationally. Canada's Blasphemy made their debut album "Fallen Angel of Doom," which now has a cult following. This was a definite turning point for black metal, which now had even more reason to be dark, aggressive, and black, white, and red in visual themes. As a result, New York band Profanatica were probably the first Americans to release a "trve" black metal demo in 1990, two actually.They clearly showed visual, aesthetic and especially lyrical influence of Scandinavian black metal, and were a truly blasphemous band for their time. The band was very outrageous too, and their antics as well as their music helped set them apart from other emerging bands. By 1992, demo tapes were starting to gain circulation among the metal community. Not just of Profanatica of course, but fresh new bands like Von, who released "Satanic Blood" that year. It was repetitive, hypnotic, raw, and maybe even not necessarily meant to be taken with total seriousness. Nonetheless, it became incredibly influential to early American black metal. It got reissued in 1999 and 2001 as a matter of fact, and Von's 2003 compilation album of the same name is now highly sought after. I would say "A Blaze in the Northern Sky" by Darkthrone, released in 1992, was the earliest turning point for black metal as we know it. It gained a wide ranging audience, and overtime has become considered a masterpiece by many. Raw aggression was now key to black metal. Judas Iscariot, the one man band of Akhenaten, came out with a demo in 1992 as well, taking cues from bands like Darkthrone and Von, but it was too rough to gain much appreciation in comparison to later work such as 1999's "Heaven in Flames." By 1993, more bands than ever were getting into American black metal, probably due to the emergence of Burzum, who released "Aske" that year. Tape trading American black metal now became international, proof that the scene was growing. In my own opinion, it was in 1994 when the first landmark of American black metal was released. "Barathrum: V.I.T.R.I.O.L" by Absu. Although Absu are now primarily known for being blackened thrashers, their debut is a stunning mixture of black and death metal, with especially competent drumming. The timing was perfect for Absu, considering Darkthrone, Mayhem, Emperor, and of course Burzum all made masterpieces that year, solidifying black metal as a reputable and important genre in the global metal community. Absu must have realized their early success because the following year they released "The Sun of Tiphareth," a major improvement on their part. This was where the band began experimenting with black and thrash combinations. Three vocalists were used on the album for various parts, creating a very diverse and intense mix. I would say that Usurper, who formed in Chicago, were the most influenced by Absu at the time. They upped the thrash and death metal influences and created "Diabolosis," and though it wasn't necessarily as black of an album as it could have been, the sound was there. Equinox, Naked Whipper, Black Funeral, Ritual, and others took inspiration from these early black metal bands such as Absu, and it was clear that by 1995, black metal was here to stay in America. 1996 was a good year for American black metal as well, with Judas Iscariot finally releasing more competent material, and new bands emerging. Hell,1994-1996 had to have been the most important couple of years for early black metal as a whole. Burzum, Sacramentum, Blut Aus Nord, Kvist, Forgotten Woods, and virtually every early champion of the second wave were all releasing albums those years; it was like a worldwide black metal festival, and America was finally being invited. 1998 saw America start to take on more independence and uniqueness from Scandinavian black metal. Likewise, black metal in Europe was spreading beyond the birthplaces such as Norway. Although Inquisition formed in 1988 in Colombia, Dragon was born in the US, and the band moved back to the US by 1996 anyway. They focused a lot on thrash and did not release their first acclaimed album until 1998. But because of that album, they were the proof in the pudding that American black metal bands could be different and successful without undermining black metal's true form. Inquisition were most noted for their croaky, bizarre vocal styling mixed with a highly occultish, doom and thrash laced black metal atmosphere. It was unexpected, and certainly polarized fans more used to vocals like Darkthrone's, but most eventually recognized the individuality of the style. It seems to me that between 1998 and 1999, American black metal bands finally mastered combining the Scandinavian style with their own unique twists. Demoncy for example took a major influence from Beherit, but added more death-doom elements to the sound on "Joined in Darkness." Averse Sefira took a slightly more technical approach to black metal. Symphonic black metal was also growing slowly but surely in the country as well. But what would the future hold for American black metal? The new styles of sound being practiced by bands was welcome by many, but others wanted to retain a more traditional approach and worried that the future of black metal would be compromised by "impurities" such as genre mixing. Unfortunately for those purists, by 2000, black metal was definitely changing. Artists like Craft, Gorgoroth, and Paysage d'Hiver were still keeping almost completely true to the pure origins of the genre, but many bands were now interested in developing their sound further. Enslaved started to experiment with progressive metal, and bands like Abyssic Hate began to develop depressive black metal. New horizons were just up ahead for black metal. In post-nineties America, no band took more advantage of this than Weakling. Their only album "Dead as Dreams" was a masterpiece of atmospheric black metal, with long playing tracks, technical skill, and screeching vocals, it was an album that many reacted to with awe, but also with confusion. To this day it still polarizes many; some see no American bands having managed to capture the sound, and others still see it as over-hyped. Regardless, Weakling's influences quickly spread and many saw Weakling as the most maturely developed black metal band America had to offer at the time, even if they did technically disband quickly. Partially owed to Weakling, 2002 onwards saw a rise in kvltists worst nightmare: Bands that were no longer focusing on the "pure themes" of early black metal. California even started to become interested in the black metal scene; those hippies and Indie kids, oh dear Satan, no! Xasthur, an artist who would soon, for better or worse be the artist many Europeans pictured when thinking of American black metal, released his first album at this time, focusing more on themes of depression than traditional hatred and Satanism. Ludicra released their debut album "Hollow Pslams," a very progressive album, lacking a whole lot of raw, frostbitten elements that originally made black metal what it was. Before they became so controversial for being "hipsters," bands such as Velvet Cacoon and Nachtmystium also started to churn out albums. American black metal was progressing, moving away from stagnant traditionalism and purism. 2003 even saw more influence from punk rock in some black metal artists like Bone Awl, and the esoteric VLE started producing what can only be described as rather uplifting black metal and ambiance of sorts. In 2004, Velvet Cacoon then released "Genevieve." The Portland based band still hadn't broken out into controversy among the black metal community, but now they were getting some attention for sounding more unique. This was arguably the first "blackgaze" album as it was made even before Alcest's major albums. In other words, it combined a strong, fuzzy, almost shoegaze like influence into a watery black metal sound. The same year, Krieg released "The Black House," and covered The Velvet Underground's song "Venus in Furs;" even sixties pop music was starting to have an influence on black metal now.  Wolves in the Throne Room released their first album. They had yet to find their trademark "Cascadian" sound, but were obviously inspired by Weakling on this album. The Cascadian black metal scene is a style of American black metal with from the Cascade region, with a strong emphasis on nature. More than that, it is generally less Satanic and individualist. Many Cascadian bands have adopted leftist beliefs such as anarchism, environmentalism and socialism, and many refrain from wearing corpse paint. Clearly, this set off a lot of purists who saw black metal being misrepresented and weakened. And although Wolves in the Throne Room are considered the originators of Cascadian black metal, 2004 also saw Echtra's debut album "Burn it All Away," a more subdued, sludge-pace-like style of black metal that would surely influence the likes of future Cascadian bands; of course Echtra themselves are now considered one of the main Cascadian bands as well. At any rate, the rise of Cascadian black metal should have been anticipated as a logical progression of the genre. Between the hypnotic nature of Weakling's style, the increasing prevalence of progressive and ambient influences, and even the geographical spread of black metal more west toward California, where genres like post-rock were so influential at the time, it was only natural. Despite generally not being Pagan black metal, the Cascadian bands do share similar lyrical themes and ideas with some of the nature worshiping Pagan bands of Europe. They are often also influenced by various forms of folk music, one of the most organic genres. And speaking of organic, they still sing of deeply emotional themes such as isolationism and rejection of modern society. All of these themes of Cascadian black metal, mixed with the fact the bands are clearly competent and forward thinking, should prove they are in actuality, fully aligned with black metal, not "hipster offshoots" as some believe. 2005 was another important year for American black metal. American musicians finally started gaining more attention as individuals as well. Twilight was formed as a supergroup with members from Leviathan (Wrest released "Lurker of Chalice" that year as well, a stunning mixture of ambiance and black metal that has become critically acclaimed), Nachtmystium, Krieg, and Isis. Bands were of course developing more as well. Cobalt took an influence from Southern sludge and war, Leech emerged as another important Cascadian styled band, and Frost Like Ashes even became a semi-successful Christian metal band. Dominick Fernow's sideproject Vegas Martyrs was one of the first mixtures of noise and black metal in America as well. By 2006, Wolves in the Throne Room developed their trademark, shimmering, nature inspired sound on "Diadem of 12 Stars," Nachtmystium developed a mixture of psychedelics and black metal, Wrath of the Weak mixed noisy drone and shoegaze like sound with harsh black metal, Fauna released "Rain," one of the most ambient and nature inspired black metal albums in America at that point, and Pagan black metal was starting to gain more attention in America at this time as well with artists such as Wolfhetan. I would say that it was 2007 however where America became truly remarkable and unique for it's modern black metal. Globally, 2007 was a year of great releases from artists like Deathspell Omega, Shining, Gris, and Drudkh. There were essentially more influences for Americans to cite than ever before. "Two Hunters" by Wolves in the Throne Room was released that year, and it became perhaps the most influential, and one of the most important American black metal albums the last few years. It's long, swirling ambient passages with nearly operatic female singing and transcendentalistic themes went on to inspire the Cascadian scene in full force. Krohm took on more influence from that scene, Fauna released another album "The Hunt," and other bands such as Velnias took note. Ash Pool, another project from Fernow, made noise music and black metal even more important at the time too, and that showed in artists such as The Mausoleums. But for the small rise in noise inspired black metal, an even larger rise of ambient and drone inspired black metal began too. Servile Sect and the prolific Njiqahdda were among the most important ambient black metal releases of the year in America, as they mixed hazy, psychedelic drone with hypnotic black metal to create their own unique style. Still, for all the innovations of American black metal, it wasn't reaching a wide American audience at the time. 2007 saw bands like WITTR gain more critical acclaim, but 2008 saw even more diversity thanks to last years various efforts from other bands as well as "Two Hunters." Krallice released their self-titled album, a shimmering, technical display of black metal and progressive power. The Weakling influences were still coming through, and now, even influences from bands like Sonic Youth, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and other Indie favorites were showing more clearly in many modern American black metal acts. Falls of Rauros took influence from neofolk, Panopticon took a more radical leftist stance, Somnolence took a post-punk influence, and Pyramids took an incredibly obvious influence from shoegaze that year. Depressive black metal was also on the rise. Once again, American black metal was no longer "trve black metal," but less people seemed to care, aside from mainly Europeans. There were still plenty of older, more purely black metal bands releasing material those years as well, but the majority of attention was focused on the young bands like WITTR, who released "Black Cascade" as well the following year; 2009 was definitely the year Cascadian black metal set itself out to be huge. Alda, L'Acephale, Fell Voices, Ash Borer, Panopticon, Aldrag, a myriad of new Cascadian releases for 2009. Their nature loving and left leaning philosophy went on to influence Oaks of Bethel, a sideproject from members of Njiqahdda, and other artists such as Deafest, who took a post-rock approach to the genre. Cascadian black metal wasn't as obvious in it's shoegaze influences, but the "blackgaze" style was also gaining a strong emergence this year as well. Velvet Cacoon, Draugadróttinn, Lonesummer, Benighted in Sodom, and other American artists took a strong cue from a "blackgaze" like sound. Technically speaking, many never necessarily took direct influences from shoegaze, though; such is the case for Niege of Alcest, who said the similarities were somewhat of a coincidence (even if he is a fan of the style and of artists such as Sigur Ros). Regardless, American black metal was starting to now reach a somewhat more mainstream audience, appealing to the Indie crowd especially, at least in terms of Cascadian and "blackgaze" style, perhaps a little bit of the noise style of black metal. The Indie crowd never embraced "trve" black metal, nor claimed to for that matter, however, so the hatred they have received is unjust in those regards. At any rate, artists such as Abigail Williams, who combined symphonic black metal with metalcore influences, and Eyes of Noctum (featuring Nicholas Cage's son of all people) were starting to make black metal somewhat more accessible to the average metal fans of the time as well. Although bands of this nature are scorned by purists, their influences should be noted nonetheless. But of course, not all American black metal fans were happy with accessibility, or nature loving music. Many still wanted the hateful, Satanic style of the early black metal acts to once again reign supreme. Enter the Black Twilight Circle, a group of American black metal artists, inspired by earlier circles such as the original Black Circle of Norway, Les Legions Noires of France, and to some extent, Blazebirth Hall and The Temple of Fullmoon, national socialist circles of Russia; the Black Twilight Circle are not a national socialist group, however (a few bands have some somewhat prideful lyrics, but nothing overly violent like the Russian circles). Many of the bands in the circle originated in the early 2000s, but it wasn't until 2009 when the Black Twilight Circle released a compilation album under the Crepúsculo Negro label. Volahn, Axeman, Arzimenda, Kallathon, Ashdautas, and Kuxan Suum were all featured on the compilation. Dark, mysterious and utterly hateful black metal, a true return to form while still being innovative. Each band offers something unique, such as influences from thrash and crust in Axeman, fast shredding beats and guitars in Volahn, psychedelics in Kuxan Suum, lengthy and hateful atmospheres in Arzimenda, and so forth. The Black Twilight Circle has supposedly grown to include other artists such as Tukaaria, Shataan, Odz Manouk, Mata Mata, Glossolalia, The Haunting Presence, Dolorvotre, Absum, and Blue Hummingbird on the Left, all truly unique. Being a highly exclusive black metal circle, it's unclear what other information there is on the bands and labels associated, but nonetheless, they have gained some worldwide attention for successfully rejuvenating raw black metal in America. Ten years after Weakling's debut influenced a wide variety of American black metal acts, American black metal has still continued to develop beyond belief. For those wondering why Portland based band Agalloch wasn't mentioned yet, it's primarily because everything since "Pale Folklore" hadn't really been "black metal enough." I am not one of those people who denies Agalloch a spot in the black metal community of course, but their earlier work was more folk metal, doom metal, and a mixture of other genres than purely black metal. At any rate, 2010 marked Agalloch's highly acclaimed album album "Marrow of the Spirit." Up until that point, Agalloch had been at the forefront of modern American metal in general, receiving copious amounts of praise. Many of the Cascadian bands took a strong influence from Agalloch's folk and doom styled music, and seasonally appropriate themed lyrics. In turn, Agalloch took a slight hint at "blackgaze" on "Marrow of the Spirit," as well as some more post-rock influences. Of course they kept parts of their neofolk and folk metal influences, but there was less doom and progressive metal influences. The reason this album is so important is because it shows how influential American black metal had become, especially on a band that had already established itself with such highly acclaimed status. The drumming on the album was done by Ludicra member, Aesop Dekker, partially accounting for a more blackened sound to Agalloch. Nonetheless, Agalloch still didn't sound like any raw black metal, but instead a good mixture between clean production and atmospheric, emotional rawness; they thus proved once and for all - not that it hadn't been proved before - that black metal does not have to be extremely lo-fi to be successful in capturing mood and atmosphere. Our recurring sweethearts of Inquisition also made an album in 2010, their first in three years. But 2010 was really the year of "blackgaze," especially when Alcest released another gem of the genre. This heavily inspired America especially, as artists such as Woe, Castevet, Finnr's Cane, Westering, Airs, and others started to release some "blackgaze" of their own. By this point, it should be evident that American black metal is an adapter of sorts; it finds something interesting happening overseas and makes it it's own. Yet at the same time, it's also a trendsetter of it's own, having developed Cascadian black metal and had a long time history of unique acts like Weakling. Just a personal note, 2010 also saw Darkwor release their first album, which I take some pride in because they are a band located really close to my hometown. Their album was a chaotic and hateful black metal masterpiece, unique for New England based black metal which is generally more nature and folk inspired. Anyway, 2010 also saw an increase in "war metal" or "bestial metal," which is heavily aggressive blackened death metal. Nightbringer, Von Goat, Nocturnal Blood, Black Witchery, and many others took strong cues from the style, and labels such as Nuclear War Now! Productions therefore gained more attention. Velvet Cacoon, who had disbanded in 2009, formed a new project called Clair Cassis in 2009 and finally released a full length in 2010. It sounded quite similar to their original project. But this is still significant. Velvet Cacoon are now famous for essentially fooling the black metal scene. People were initially skeptical of any bands from Portland claiming to be black metal (just go watch Portlandia and you'll see why), but Velvet Cacoon were different. They were mysterious, claiming to be inspired by drugs and decadence, and they had a unique, hazy sound. They started rumors about themselves, such as that they played a "diesel harp," and there were various incidents related to the band. They stole material from an ambient producer, Korouva, and sold it off as their own. When they finally came clean, they claimed almost all of it was done in the name of obtaining drugs. They also claimed they often didn't even really try when they made their music. Fans were divided. Many saw it as an act of borderline dadaist genius; fool the uptight black metal elitists into liking everything they hated and prove how easy it is for the black metal scene to fall into deceit and image worship. Others just saw the band as assholes of course. Either way, Velvet Cacoon remain talked about by plenty of international black metal fans. America has been lacking in a series of newsworthy events related to black metal. There were, as far as I know, no church burnings, and acts of violence have been more randomized, and certainly not between legendary people either. Wrest of Leviathan was recently charged for abusing his girlfriend, but otherwise, you never hear the same level of gossip and speculation as with Varg or Euronymous with American black metal artists. 2011 was for many purists, the year black metal truly died. Or at least died again. Who knows how many deaths black metal has had with those purists, right? The most famous incident was with Liturgy's frontman, Hunter Hunt-Hendrix. They released "Aesthetica" in 2011. Liturgy is a chaotic, energetic black metal band who plays with a strong influence from noise rock. The band claims to play a style of black metal known as "transcendental black metal," based on writings from Hunter. Liturgy were initially criticized for not being "metal enough" based not just on their music, but also on their image; they look like average Indie kids to some extent. But that wasn't what made people talk. It was when Hunter gave an interview during the Scion festival attempting to talk about his philosophy of "transcendental black metal" that people became polarized. He said how the band doesn't like negativity, and how they are actually rather optimistic people. He rambled on about his philosophy, but it really didn't come out in a coherent manner. In other words, Liturgy became the definition of a hipster black metal band. Although Hunter has said he is embarrassed by the interview, his and Liturgy's influence is still far reaching, or at least still heavily talked about. Indie darlings at Pitchfork have taken to praising him and Liturgy, and it has become interesting to see a black metal band in the same category, even attending concerts with artists like Sleigh Bells. But Pitchfork's love of Liturgy proves a positive point in my opinion, and that is that black metal performed by people not normally associated with the scene, or with different ideas than just Satanism and hatred, can make for some interesting discussion and of course, some interesting music. By this time, "post-black metal" was being thrown around to apply to bands like Liturgy, Alcest, and Deafheaven. It was especially used among American bands, but even bands like Drudkh had started taking cues from "post" styled metal. The Liturgy incident overshadowed much of 2011's black metal releases, even with artists like Wolves in the Throne Room, who were previously one of the most hated modern black metal artists among the purists. Ultimately, if black metal wishes to continue to thrive, it cannot be so close minded. It is entirely possible to retain the initial rawness and hatred of the second-wave styled black metal while utilizing elements from other sources. Based on the development of American black metal in the last ten years, I foresee that the genre will split into various categories. Many bands will continue to make "pure" black metal, while many more will continue to make "post" black metal. Regardless of what happens, and regardless of the average opinion, American black metal has come a long way since the early demos of the eighties. It has gained massive attention from the European community. To think that American music has influenced early black metal legends is an amazing thing, and it shows just how fast the times change. The media has finally begun to pay attention to black metal as a whole, and so we must make sure we represent ourselves well. People have also realized that black metal is not necessarily a genre of elitism and stagnation, but of great beauty and creative potential. If we as fans and musicians can harness creativity and development, we can make black metal, American and worldwide, even more of a truly great genre than it already is. The history of black metal is rich, but it can only get richer as time marches forward.        

[patricksilvrrozartistry]

My Top 5 Favorite EP’s of 2017

It's time for me to finally start posting about my favorite music releases of 2017! I know I'm extremely late on this, but I had A LOT of releases to get through, and I still have some I need to listen to before I'm done with the albums portion, so that will be happening somewhere within the next few weeks. I listened to a total of 25 EP's that were released this year and I have 5 that are my absolute favorites. But before that, let's look at the honorable mentions!

The first 10 were the ones that had a high chance of making the top 5. The 10 below that were great, but not great enough to make it that high on the list.

HER - Vol. 2 (R&B) Sunterra - Reborn (gothic industrial metal) Deadspace - Reaching for Silence (blackened doom metal) October Ends - A New Path (metalcore) Vetrar Draugurinn - I (gothic/dark metal) Aly and AJ - Ten Years (pop) Gaidjinn - L.O.V.E. Rise from the Ashes (djent/progressive metal) Qveen Herby - EP 2 (R&B/rap/hip hop) Dawn of Morgana - Revelations (symphonic gothic metal) Face Off - Massive (djent/post metal)

Scarlet Haven - Heaven of Dust (industrial metal) Cyclocosmia - Immured (gothic doom metal) Kingfisher Sky - To Turn the Tables (symphonic/progressive metal) AfterTime - World We've Lost (symphonic metal) Lightfall - Uncharted (hard rock) Gung Ho Catalyst - Murmurisms (progressive/funk metal) Black Mirrors - Funky Queen (psychedelic rock) Aborted - Bathos (tech-death metal) Skygraph - Lost Pages (djent) Mastodon - Cold Dark Place (progressive metal)

Now here are my favorite EP's for 2017!

5) Qveen Herby - EP 1

Karmin have rebranded themselves as Qveen Herby, a R&B/hip hop project with Amy still on the vocals and Nick still producing. Rebranding your music can be VERY risky, but they did it and turned it the fuck out. The songs are beautiful and so great to jam out to. It was so hard to choose between this and EP 2 since they're both brilliant, but I went with this one since it's been out longer and I've jammed to it more. I can't wait to see what the future holds for them.

My favorites off the EP:

Gucci Busta Rhymes

4) Vvon Dogma I - Communion

If you know of the avant-garde metal band Unexpect, then you know the hype that was centered around this new project of their nine string bass player, ChaotH. This EP was well worth the wait. It packs a great punch. It's very different from Unexpect, but it's absolutely amazing. The bass, the djent, the strong electronic element and the ambient vocoder that ChaotH uses all come together to create this bombastic and cool release.

My favorites off the EP:

Communion Lithium Blue

3) The White Swan - The White

This is psychedelic/sludge/doom metal at its best. For those of you who don't know, this project is fronted by Mercedes Lander of Kittie, which is how I discovered this wonderful band. This is a rather short EP, but it leaves such an insane impression and makes you wish their was more. It's so great to just jam out and zone out to. Definitely can't wait to see what these guys bring in the future.

My favorites off the EP:

Lions The White

2) Clouds - Destin

If you're into depressive doom metal, this is a band for you. The atmospheric nature of their music mixed with the melancholy lyrics complement each other so well. There's not a track on here that doesn't invoke some sort of longing brought by sadness. They convey sadness so well in their music that it can be really tough to listen to at times, but that's what makes this band so wonderful and beautiful.

My favorites off the EP:

The Wind Carried Your Soul feat. Ana Carolina (Mourning Sun) In This Empty Room feat. Gogo Melone (Luna Obscura, Aeonian Sorrow)

1) Epica - The Solace System

It should come as no surprise that this is my favorite EP of the year. I am a bit biased since they are my favorite band of all time, but even with that out of the way, this EP is absolutely AMAZING. Powerful, dramatic, full of so much energy. Immortal Melancholy is honestly the only track on here that I'm not the biggest fan of. It's a GORGEOUS song, but I know they have better songs than it.

My favorites off the EP:

Wheel of Destiny Decoded Poetry

There were some really great EP's released in 2017, but the albums that were released were just as amazing and full of EPIC music! I HIGHLY encourage you guys to check out every release I showed in this post, especially my top 5. Be sure to watch this space for when that post will come out in the coming weeks! I'll be sure to have a link to it on this post once it goes live and I'll have a link to this post on that one.

[tunalad]

[17th of April 2024] tvnalad - clouds to shield the shame

yet another funeral trap

https://tunalad.bandcamp.com/album/clouds-to-shield-the-shame

https://youtu.be/DLhv2kyG-AI

The painting used here is Louis Eysen's "Oil study (clouds)"

[blogjavieralejo]

100 álbumes destacados del 2019

100. L.i.t.A – A terrible beauty is born (Post-metal/post-rock. China). 99. Windwaker – Empire (Post-Hardcore/Metal-core. Australia). 98. Downcross – What Light covers not.  (Black Metal. Bielorusia) 97. River Like Veins – Iskier Srebrnych orszaków (Black Metal atmosférico. Polonia) 96. Astronoid – Astronoid (Blackened Post-Hardcore/progressive punk. Estados Unidos) 95. Borknagar - North -Viking Metal 94.  Cattle Decapitation – Dead Atlas (Tech. Brutal Death Metal. Estados Unidos) 93. Lana del Rey - Norman Fucking Rockwell (indie/synth/pop.USA)  92. Ancient Bards – Fantasy’s Wings (Power/Symphonic Metal. Italia) 91. Dyathon – Colors of my Soul (Piano/ Neoclásica. Moldavia) 90.  Zammorian – The Theory. (Post-Rock/Experimental/Progresivo. Romania)

89. Ison – Inner Space (Indie/Folk/ Electrónico. Suecia). 88. Tanith – In another time. (Power/Hard Metal. Estados Unidos) 87. Maelle - Maelle (Indie/dreampop/ pop francés) 86. Plaguebringer – Diabolos (Technical Death Metal). 85. Nile – Vile Nilotic Rite (Death Metal Técnico. Estados Unidos)  84. Aswekeepsearching – Rooh (Post-rock Experimental. India) 83. Her name is calla – Animal Choir. (Post-rock Experimental. Reino Unido) 82. Meltt - Swim Slowly (Dream-pop / Surf Rock / Indie. Canada) 81. Tool – Fear Inocolum (Rock Progresivo. Estados Unidos). 80.  Of Monster and Men - Fever Dream (Rock alternativo. Islandia)

79. Tambour – constellations (ou comment arreter le temps) (Neoclásico. Canada). 78. A Flock Named Murder – An appointed time (Post-black-death metal. Canada). 77. Alnea – The Last. (Post-rock Instrumental. Italia) 76. Rotting Christ –The Heretics. (Death Metal. Grecia) 75. Cigarettes After Sex – Cry (Dreampop/Ambientpop. Estados Unidos). 74. Earth and Pillars - Earth II -Black Metal Atmosférico- 73. Evalir – the awakenings. (Black Metal atmosférico. República Dominicana) 72. Aukai – Reminiscence (Neoclásica/Piano. Estados Unidos) 71. Fabrizio Paterlini – Autumn Stories (Piano. Italia) 70. Evohé –deus sive natura. (Black Metal.  Francia)

69. Dreams of Nature – Naturaleza Ancestral (Black Metal Ambiente. Colombia). 68. Cellar Darling – The Spell (Metal progresivo. Suiza) 67. Pomme - Les Failles (Indie. France) 66. Dissilusion – The Liberation (Metal Progresivo. Alemania) 65. Silvain Circle – Chronophopia. (Post-rock/Post-BlackM. Inglaterra) 64. Everwinter – De brevitate (Post-black metal. Italia). 63. Spell Of Dark – the vastness (Black Metal. Rusia) 62. NMLSS_VGR – 01100011011011110… (Black Metal Cósmico/Atmosférico. Alemania) 61. Hecate Enthroned - Embrace of the Godless Aeon (Black metal sinfónico. Gran Bretaña) 60. Devin Townsend – Empath (Experimental/power/electro/dance/ambiental/grind. Canada)

59. Firmament – Nightside valkyries (Black Metal Ambiental. Alemania). 58. Message to bears – constant (Neoclásica/Soundscape/Ambient. Reino Unido). 57. Rings of Saturn – Gidim (Technical Death core/metal. Estados Unidos) 56. Monarque –Jusqu´a la mort (Black Metal. Quebec). 55. Kampfar – Ofidians manifest (Black Metal. Noruega). 54. Flamen– Furor Lunae (Black Metal. Italia) 53. Eskapism – Ancient songs of the Wind (Black metal Atmosférico. Ucrania) 52. Antigones Fate – Zum Horizont (Atmospheric/Depressive Black Metal. Alemania) 51. Two People – First Body. (Indie Pop. Australia) 50. Nullingroots – Malady’s Black Maw. (Black Metal Atmosférico. Estados Unidos)  

49. Cedric Vermue – Left upon us (Neoclásica. Holanda) 48. Babymetal – Metal Galaxy (Kawaii Metal. Japón) 47. Impavida – antipode. (DSBM/Atmosférico. Alemania) 46. Roaring Empyrian – Monuments (Funeral Doom Metal. Iran). 45. Aeons Winds – Stormveiled (Black Metal sinfónico. Slovakia). 44. Lustre – Another Time, Another Place… (Compilación/Black Metal Ambiente. Suecia) 43. Ashes –ashes (Black Metal. Polonia). 42. Hour of Penance – Misotheism (Technical Brutal Death Metal. Italia) 41. Sur Austru – Meteahna Timpurilor (Black/Death Folk Metal. Romania) 40. Sieghetnar –Gebirge (Black Metal Atmosférico. Alemania)

39. Ofdrykkja – Griningvisor (Folk Ambiental Dark Metal. Suecia). 38. Gjendod –Krigsdoger (Black Metal. Noruega). 37. Order of the Ebon Hand  - VII the chariot (Black Metal. Grecia) 36. The Great Old Ones – Cosmicism (Black Metal atmosférico. Francia) 35. Allegaeon – Apoptosis (Technical Melodic/Math Death Metal. Estados Unidos) 34. Mayhem – Daemon (Black Metal. Noruega). 33. Twilight Force - Dawn of the Dragonstar (Epic/Power Metal. Suecia) 32. Nishaiar –Igewanda. (Cosmic Atmospheric Black Metal. Ethiopia) 31. Hath - Of Rot And Ruin (blackened brutal death metal. Estados Unidos) 30. Grima – Will of the primordial (Black Metal atmosférico. Alemania)

29. Suhnopfer – hic regnant (Black Metal. Francia) 28. Madra – Bittersweet temptation to disappear completely (Black/Ambient Doom Metal. Hungría) 27. Weyes Blood –Titanic Rising (Folk-pop/psicodélico. Estados Unidos). 26. Imperium Dekadenz – When We are Forgotten (Black Metal Atmosférico. Alemania). 25. Musmahhu – Reing of the Odious (Raw Black Metal. Suecia) 24. Thomas Méreur – Dyrhóley (Neoclásica/Instrumental/Ethereal. Reino Unido) 23. Anoice –ghost in the clocks (Neoclásica. Japón). 22. Fen – The Dead Light (Post-Black Metal. Reino Unido) 21. Blut Aus Nord – Hallucinogen (Black Metal Atmosférico/Avant-Garde. Francia). 20.  Vltimas – Something whicked marches in (Black/death/trash metal)

19. Sebastian Zawadski – Songs about time (Neoclásica/Piano. Dinamarca). 18. None – Damp Chill of Life (DSBM. Estados Unidos) 17. Mono –Nowhere Now Here (Post-Rock/Neoclásica. Japón) 16. Sols – The Golden Atom (Neoclásica/Post-rock. México!) 15. Wormwood – Nattarvest (Black Metal. Suecia) 14. Abigail Williams – Walk Beyond the Dark (Black Metal Sinfónico. Estados Unidos). 13. Remete –Into endless night (Black Metal Atmosférico. Australia) 12. Gardsghastr - Slit Throat Requiem (Black Metal Sinfónico. Suecia). 11. White Ward- Love Exchange, Failure. (DSBM. Ucrania) 10. Ellende – Lebenshemer (Black metal Atmosférico. Alemania)

9. Alcest – Spiritual Instinct (Post-Black Metal/Shoegaze. Francia)  & Lapetus - Cosmic Body (progressive/cosmic death/black metal. Estados Unidos). 8. Obsequiae – The palms of Sorrowed Kings (Black Metal Melódico. Estados Unidos). 7. Saor –Forgotten paths (Folk/Atmospheric Black Metal. Escocia). 6. Downfall of the Gaia–Ethic of Radical Finitude (Atmospheric/Sludge Post-Black Metal. Alemania) 5. Imber Luminis – Same old Silence (Atmospheric Depressive Black Metal. Bélgica) *. Fleshgod Apocalypse – Veleno (Technical/Symphonic Death Metal. Italia) *. Hovert – Sol (DSBM. Rusia). *. Insomnium –Hearth Like a Grave (Melodic Death/Black Metal. Finlandia) *. Violet Cold – KOsmic (Cosmic Atmospheric Black Metal. Azerbaiján)

Otras 10 menciones:

I Built the Sky – Zenith Rise (Melodic Post-Metal. Australia)  Sleep Dealer – The Winter was… (Classical/Piano/Instrumental. Rusia) The Chasing Monster – Errant (Post-rock. Italia) Men I trust – Oncle Jazz. (Electro/Indie/Jazz/Trance. Québec).  Stormlord – far (Black metal sinfónico. Italia). Stella Donelly – Beware of dogs. (Indie Pop. Australia)  When Waves Collapse – Movements I (Post-Rock. Países bajos)    The Shaking sensations – How Are we to Fight… (Post-rock Experimental. Dinamarca)  Starkill – Gravity (Power/Death/Melodic Metal. Estados Unidos)      Dream Machine – Broken Souls.  (Neoclásica/ambiente. Ucrania) 

[onlyhurtforaminute]

RAVENTALE- Давно ушедших дней

[reptileshrine]

Recent upload to the Order ov the Black Arts YouTube channel: the second equinox-oriented split between US-based Apothecary, and the Norwegian one-man act UtenHåp. The underlying whirl of melancholic daydreaming, of leaves and the mist, is so constant that wherever the journey goes from there, it is yours alone. Subscribe: youtube.com/OrderovtheBlackArts Join the community on Facebook: facebook.com/orderovtheblackarts