Archive for August 2021

This was an absolute beauty of a listen, and surprisingly it didn’t drag, considering it contains both a 12 and 17 minute track. Funeral-paced death doom is the order of the day, with weepy guitars and devastating lows. Despite this, there is a lot of melody. Brilliant stuff. I’ll be giving these guys a further listen in the future.

Haraam can always be relied upon to bring the dense and horrible atmospheric noise. The electronics pummel you, yet almost fall into a rhythm here or there, which I find really exciting – where does techno end and noise begin? Where indeed! This effort from Haraam toes the line expertly, for a noisy head-scraping experience.

Lost Episodes was my first unofficial yet commercially released WAD. It starts off really strong, and whilst I don’t own the actual book that came with it, I was able to navigate and enjoy most of the earlier levels. The problems begin however, when towards the end of episode 2, a second designer takes over. The maps all of a sudden become sprawling, enormous and mostly empty. This is proper amateur hour here, with the…

Hellraiser is a tough act to follow, and admittedly during watching there was a lot to Hellbound that I really didn’t like. However, in hindsight, the plot and the trippy hellscape elements, whilst not super entertaining at the time, have stuck with me and remain with me, purely for their unusual and bizarre imagery, and for their disturbing dreamlike feel. Freddie’s boiler room can do one, the maze of Hellraiser’s hell is a true nightmare.

The Cloverfield Paradox is the third entry into the uhh, Cloverfield universe. Going far beyond the previous two entries into the series, at least in terms of lore and general sci-fi vibes, the Paradox entry further muddies and complicates the end of the world setting that was introduced in the Marmite-like first movie. Honestly, this was a nice addition, but it wasn’t that great. Where are we now? Where do we stand? Was the earth…

Moon is great. A paranoid, twisty-turny sci-fi that plays up the protagonist’s isolation as he continues to uncover a mystery about his career, his moon base, and his entire existence. Can’t really say more than that without ruining it, but this was a great sci-fi movie.

The name of this movie amply describes the reaction I had about 45 minutes in, and therefore sustained throughout the remaining runtime. Dear God No! showcases the danger of having fucking amazing cover art on your DVD or BluRay. This steaming pile of shit does nothing to justify how awesome its cover art is, which is what lured me in.

Day Of The Dead is another classic entry in the classic horror series. Set underground, the story once again plays with the isolation that breeds in the setting of a world-wide apocalypse of sorts. The increase in domestic violence in the real world Coronavirus lockdown spookily and worryingly echoes that of the madness that transpires in the pocket-communities of humanity shown by the …Of The Dead series. Art imitates life, so they say. But there…

How is it that a cartoon about a talking horse is able to be the most realistic in its portrayal of depression, anxiety and the human condition in general? Its even more impressive when said horse is a washed up Hollywood superstar, which isn’t exactly relatable for most people. Its a strange one, but in one of the boldest and most original shows to ever come out of Netflix, Rafael Bob-Waksburg’s anthropomorphic comedy hits in…

I was sold on Priest when I checked out “The Pit” single. Admittedly it was the art that got me, promising dark and sadistic techno, and whilst its not as sleazy as I would have expected from a single with a studded gimp mask on the front, it did deliver the stunning, dark techno pop I was looking for. Thankfully, the band is not a one hit wonder, there are tons of stunning tracks here,…

I was Re-ally surprised to Re-alise, on a Re-cent Re-listen to Metallica’s Re-Load (I’m sorry), just how much I enjoyed the listen. I used to be all elitist about this thing because it represented everything about Metallica that I didn’t like; the whiskey drankin’ mainstream normie metal verses the blistering thrash of old. However, in my old age, and for the purposes of cataloging my thoughts on it here once and for all, I can…

I don’t want to shit on any musician who puts their own thing out there for the world to hear, and doubly so I don’t want to shit on any Psychopathic Records / juggalo stuff because I feel like its an easy target and “music” “journalists” have often had a field day stroking their beards and shitting all over this stuff. But, I’m afraid that is exactly what I have to do here. South Of…

Draugen is a mostly disappointing collection of really old dusty Burzum demos. That sentence alone mostly sells this release to me (lol), but in reality I don’t find Draugen to be even remotely enjoyable or stimulating. At this point I would usually say this is for the more full-on fans only, but apparently that’s me and I don’t really like it. Either way, I’m sure there are plenty of people out there that enjoy this,…

Another chunky, well produced offering from Killing Joke in what I like to call their “second wind” period. The band did absolutely not fuck around during this time and MMXII, which is followed by Pylon and preceded by Absolute Dissent, is a meaty chunk of industrial rock. Tracks like “FEMA Camp” and “Premobile” exist to remind you that Killing Joke are one of the best bands on the planet. Geordie’s guitar is absolutely huge and…

5 Inch Graves is one of my favourite Phyllomedusa releases, not that I claim to have heard them all (I even have a 5IG t-shirt!). The project’s bizarre mix of everything from gorenoise to sludgy doom metal is astounding, packaging all these styles up in a gloomy, dense atmosphere. 5 Inch Graves is cataclysmic in its heaviness, and this extended edition is a good a place as any to start with this band.

Rad Jackson is a collection of tracks from splits that Hemdale did with various bands over the years. Personally, I’d rather get out there and listen to the splits, but as time goes on and life goes on I find that task more and more impossible. There’s just too many good bands! Luckily, Rad Jackson is a fucking great compilation and showcases the strength of Hemdale as a grindcore band. The flow, as with most…

Music For Being is a lengthy, intense trip that I checked out off the back of the fantastic Sweetface EP, Mighty Atom. Ranging from atmospheric ambient tracks, beatwork akin to the more spaced-out Scorn output, and harsh explosions of power electronics, Music For Being is a mixed bag. I suppose its part of the fun, not knowing where its going to turn next, but I also can’t help but shake the feeling that the record…

One of the longest running stalwarts of the traditional goregrind sound, Spain’s Haemorrhage have been mostly consistent over the years. Its funny, tons of modern bands are now channelling this intense level of Carcass worship, but Haemorrhage have long ago made this sickness their own. Hospital Carnage, despite its cartoonish artwork, is a serious goregrind record, drawing from the school of bands like Exhumed and delivering a sound and production more on par with the…

Incredible, dense, brooding ambient soundscapes in the vaporwave style. Reminiscent in ways of Towers but without that ominous oppressive feel. The project name conjures stunning visuals as these three soundscapes unfold. Glorious stuff.

I’ve always know that Atomck’s Linus created his own electronic music, but I never knew just how good that it was. Clear The Level is so good in fact, that I immediately shared the record with my good friend and LIW contributor Burra and we released it on cassette under our Two Man Tape Co. label (there’s one or two left at the time of writing, if you want one!). Expect fantastic synthesiser pop music,…

I can’t decide if this is genius or just downright awful. Either way, I respect the guts to pull off this kind of experiment, even though listening now in 2021, there is nothing futuristic about this album. If anything, it sounds like a relic from the past, from the days of proto electronic music, suffering the same fate as some of Miles Davis’ records from this era.

As good as any a subject to base a record around, Songs About My Cats – one of Aaron Funk’s first full lengths with Venetian Snares – is partly a homage to our whiskered friends and partly a breakcore mindfuck of the highest order. If I had the power to give out those little seals like the Queen does, I’d appoint Aaron Funk one for “purveyors of exceptional and finest Breakcore” or something. Cracking stuff.

Gorgeously composed, proggy music with just the right production balance between that rough around the edges retro / analogue sound and that clarity and polish required to make prog work. I know absolutely nothing about classic rock or the prog scenes, give or take a few of the bigger band names, but I went out on a whim with this one and fully enjoyed it. Cracking!

Riley Gale from Power Trip, another one gone too soon! RIP my friend. I will take this brief moment however to remind everyone just how fucking great Power Trip are, and in particular their 2nd album Nightmare Logic, a dark, chunky production taking the template of crossover thrash to exciting new places.

What I’ve dug out here is the two disc version of Hole In The Heart, a haunting masterpiece of early Ramleh. Whilst not as aurally punishing as some of their works, Hole In The Heart instead focuses on how power electronics can create intense atmospheric soundscapes. There is a mournful aspect to the record that I can’t really do justice with words.

Well this is just absolutely absurd. I gotta be honest, I only listened because of the title of the album – none of this is even remotely in the ballpark of what I usually enjoy. Nevertheless, it served as a decent background soundtrack to my blasting through of The Lost Episodes of Doom lol. Question is – would I ever listen to it again? The answer is, a firm no.

Anal Barbeque is a perfect continuation of the sessions the band brought to the split with XXX Maniak. The songs are pure nonsense, and sometimes verge on noisecore, but I have a softspot for this band and their gutteral, squealing goregrind. Granted, I probably don’t sell it all too well with that description, but this is really great, noisy stuff. Right up my alley.

I got this CD years ago (2006?) when Divine Noise Entertainment stock was swallowed up by a then-new Rotten Roll Rex. Both bands are great, but I think CxMxPx take the prize here. Their grind is absolutely savage. Everything hits hard but the vocals in particular are super intense. D.H.I.B.A.C. have a warmer, more rounded sound and more of a powerviolence vibe, with chuggier riffing and a dual vocal attack that includes that PV low…

Well then, what a disappointing shower of shit. Its like they took everything that was fun about the first record and purposefully decided to remove it all from the next record. Honestly, there are some good songs here or there, sure, but this just reeks of a cash-in. There was no good reason to return to this project, at least without a good portion of the original line-up.

I decided to go way back, waaay back to the nasty cult stuff, to get my Gut hit; a hit that can only be got from the sleazy pits of the spawning vats of pornogrind. This live tape has been on the to-do list for a while now, especially since some maniac uploaded the impossible to find relic to YouTube for everybody’s listening displeasure. Unfortunately, the cassette contains a fairly weak live set with far…

I’ve been coming back to this one on and off for a few months now. I’m unsure why it failed to grab me, I love this treacle-paced darker side to the vaporwave movement. Anyways, I finally got through the whole length of Nostalgi Gaius in one sitting and I have to say that I’m glad I committed and in the end I thoroughly enjoyed the record. I bet it would sound fantastic on cassette.

I’ve always liked Exhumed, but going back I didn’t realise how much I loved this album. What a disgusting mess! Bringing the aural vibes of early Carcass (particularly with the vocals) and mixing it with elements of thrash and death metal, Exhumed’s Gore Metal is a standout release in an often dismissed subgenre (in the grand scheme of things, at least). As stinking as the album cover or your money back!

Terror Wheel is absolutely prime rib classic era ICP, falling somewhere between The Ringmaster and The Riddlebox records. It calls forward to The Riddlebox with the inclusion of a slightly-less polished “Dead Body Man”, and contains such insane classics as “Skitzofrantic” and the hilarious “I Stuck Her With My Wang”. ICP have a lot of hit or miss stuff but honestly they have a bad reputation that they absolutely do not deserve. This is a…

Jeez, did they get enough different covers for this fucking thing out over the years, or what? Ha! Love or hate pornogrind (I’m looking at you Metalsucks, with your “lets attack grind but actually I’ve mislabelled some misogynistic slam” hipster think pieces), CBT do what they do and they do it well. Everything about this is just stinking; the art, the production, the riffs, the vocals. And this isn’t so much of a review but…

I’ve long been a fan of Pilotredsun’s insane animations (my favourite of which I’ve linked below for your viewing displeasure), so it was an absolute pleasure to find out that the animator had dropped this full length album of bizarro electronic tuneage. Honestly, the “cartoons” are waaaay weirder than any of the tracks here, but its a wobbly and pleasant listen, like visiting old friends and familiar places for the first time in years, after…

Imagine how hyped I was when I found out that this 5th episode of Doom was a thing! As someone who has played through the first 4 episodes countless times as a kid and then as a teenager, this WAD, billed as the unofficial 5th episode of Ultimate Doom, but created entirely by John Romero, was the icing on the cake when I started looking for reasons to play through Doom again. Those of you…

Haggus is on top form as usual. The Agathocles cover is a nice touch, and there’s a sillier vein running through the tracks here, which is refreshing to see in some ways. A brilliant quality recording too; the bass really pops. One criticism I could give is the snare is a little quiet. Otherwise, all good! Weedeous Mincer sounds like complete arse in comparison, but I’m OK with this. I really enjoyed some of the…

I’ve had this knocking about for years on cassette, but fuck knows where its gone now. Early days NxVx meets the noise holocaust of Smersh on this (also early days) release from the now legendary Bringer Of Gore records. For true grimy noise fiends!

Picked one of these up on cassette recently as I couldn’t remember the last time I bought anything noise-related on tape. Plus, y’know, its always good to support new labels. This is wall noise at its finest, you really don’t need to look past Vomir when it comes to this subgenre (not to undersell everyone else involved – myself included) – but White Widow is worth a goose too. For the most abstract noise fans…

Human Atrocity is the bigger, better sounding brother to the band’s self titled release a year previous (its also the name of the 12″ record released not long back that includes both of these releases – confusing!). This is, unless I’m wrong, where the pitchshifter sound first was heard for LDOH? Which is cool to know, considering how much of a staple it would become. There still doesn’t seem to be any descernable riffs or…

Uilos is an interesting project. It is dungeon synth to its core, but with the added element of guitar playing thrown into the mix too. Sounds simple no? It probably is, and I’m a cretin. Nevertheless, this is a fantastic full length and there are some truly haunting and mesmerising tracks on it. Hey, if it makes me wanna dig out TES III: Morrowind then that can only be a good thing.