Archive for June 2016

I was asked to review this recently; jumping at the chance to do so (frankly, I’m just so happy to finally hear studio material by Conjurer). I can be quite wary of being asked to review things, or of bands that “farm out” reviews, because usually, if you have to ask for something to be written about, then it’s going to be shite, but this is something incredibly special. Conjurer have been gigging maniacally for…

I’ve been listening to Holocausto Canibal on and off for quite some time now, as well as that, Judas Cradle share a split with them and have played live with them, but one thing I’ve never done is looked backwards at the bands older stuff, until now, and I literally could not be happier that I did so. This shit leans more towards the late 80s / early 90s dirgy goregrind sound rather than the…

I’ve caught Benediction live a few times (with Dave Hunt on vocals) and they have always killed it, so in my recent hunt for new tunes I decided it was probably time that I check out a studio recording by the band. They’ve got a pretty long and eventful career, so I wasn’t sure where to start, but the name of this record just jumped right out at me (I wonder why…). I’m not entirely…

Exmilitary is the debut mixtape/record/whatever from seminal noise-meets-rap maniacs Death Grips. I can’t believe this thing is five years old, especially considering I’ve been planning on reviewing it since I started this website! But yeah – I don’t think the hip hop world was prepared for Death Grips, and neither were the legions of fans from outside of that sphere; would-be converts sidling on over due to this group, and this mixtape. I first came…

Grunt (the Portugese gore/porn/whatever/grind band, not the power electronics project of the same name) have been causing quite a stir lately for various reasons, and the main response among “haters” online is that the music made by Grunt is for neanderthals. So I listened. Ha! I’m not exactly a stranger to the seedier sub-genres of grind (shhh though, don’t tell the real trve grinders I called this grind) but I was very much blown away…

Gore Beyond Necropsy are nothing short of legendary on the noise/grind underground for a multitude of reasons (the hilariously titled split/collab with Merzbow springs to mind). They have long since changed their name and disappeared into total obscurity, but for a short while they kinda flew the flag for this kinda noisy shit, and this 12 minute EP showcases a slightly different side to the band’s infamous noisy grindcore. It all starts off with horror…

Bad Brains are nothing short of legendary so it’s kinda hard to sum this up in two paragraphs or so. I have to admit that I am a recent convert to this group. I’ve always been a fan of dub reggae and the like but not so much hardcore punk, but as time is quickly ticking away the hours of my life I have grown something of an appreciation for the genre, and Bad Brains…

Debridement is (I believe) the third album by Italian goregrind / death metal squad Bowel Stew. Whilst Debridement owes more to brutal death metal than any goregrind record, it manages to maintain that authentic air of dodgy pathological madness that is often lost in the ‘brutalism’ of much death metal. Bowel Stew is a nasty band, and whilst the cover art might not be a real picture of disgusting gore, you know they mean business…

I love power electronics and noise but when this came out I completely lost it….what the fuck is actually going on? Estuary English is one of those rare records that I completely fail to understand, so I wrote it off for a while, completely unable to comprehend what I was listening to. It just sounded like Vyvyan from the Young Ones screaming over sub par bits and blips of electronic mush. If that’s what you…

Surgical Steel is Carcass’ big comeback record, 18 years after their original death rattle – Swansong – in 1995. This was a big noise when it first came out, due to the high profile of the comeback, but my ears were elsewhere, as being an elitist goregrind-loving asshat I had written anything post-Necroticism off as widdly death metal shite. To be fair, I’m still completely 100% right, but I’ve stopped being such a dick about…

(2016 edit: this review was written about 7 years ago for my old blog Even Shakespeare Fed The Worms. I’ve rejigged it so I don’t sound like so much of an immature ass, but please keep this in mind whilst reading. Enjoy!) As I start this compact disc I am unaware entirely of what to expect, but I am met with a fairly typical sample, but it is followed by a very interesting and refreshing…

Glowering is a side project ov the tr00 and totes brutes invokator of gore noise havoc, Bobby Maggard. This time however, Bobby puts aside his hacksaw and bloodstained apron in favour of a pentagram-topped staff and a severed goat’s head hollowed out to make a snug little mask, as black metal is the theme of the day. But this ain’t no ordinary romp through black metal, no sir. It’s quite annoying actually, because a few…

It’s been a while since the last Gwen Stefani solo album, and being a No Doubt fan and enjoying the bands last release (Push and Shove), I was interested to hear how this new solo effort would sound, and mainly the vibe it’d have this time around. Opening track “Misery” is a great introduction to the album; and in regards to the route the album goes down, this album is an awful lot less R’n’B/hip…