Arguably the definitive Impetigo record? It’s hard to say. I’ve struggled to get into Impetigo in the past but with Horror Of The Zombies, that all changed. This has to be one of my favourite sounds in all of metal, punk and grind. It’s just so dirty, grimy and dusty. I just want a million cassettes of this thing, so you can bury them with me once I die. Impetigo perhaps need no introduction, but if you are reading and not familiar with them, they are a band that has been super influential on both the death metal and grindcore worlds with their gore obsessed tunes (think b-movie gore rather than Carcass-style pathological stuff).
Trust Sikfuk to further devolve an already disgusting death metal reference into something even more puerile and gross. Do not be put off by the childish album title however, as Sikfuk do not fuck (or is that fuk?) around. It may take you a short while to adjust to the hollowness of the production, but once that little bit of trouble is aside, the sheer brilliance of this technical yet messy brutal death metal album shines through. It holds the perfect balance of sloppy and razor sharp. To me, it sounds like somebody played None So Vile to a barn full of random animals who then decided to have a stab at playing something like that themselves. Teabagged At Birth is also the only album to feature Sikfuk drummer Jake The Tardsnake before Nikfuk returned to using drum machines. I don’t think their parting was particularly civil, but he adds a welcome dynamic to this record.
I was well into ICP when I was in my teens but I don’t actually recall buying this. I think it was from Play.com or some such archaic method of acquiring physical media. For the most part, these songs are ICP cutting room floor grade of hip hop / horrorcore cheese. I use horrorcore in the lightest sense also, despite this being one half of one of the genre’s most defining acts, the link here to the style is tenuous at best. I have this problem with a lot of the Psychopathic artist’s releases. Not saying folk on that label don’t have any talent or whatever, but sometimes I feel like a full length album is a stretch when it really isn’t needed. A lot of the songs here (and on other releases) just seem weak or forced. There definitely isn’t a need for 17 of the fuckers. That being said, “Owl Face Hoe” is one of the funniest songs I’ve ever heard, just because of the fact someone took the time to write this track and record it in a high-end studio.
This is probably the best live album I’ve heard from this project so far. It seems to offer something interesting aside from the usual 1 man acoustic renditions of all the hits. The recently deceased Albin Julius is a part of the live show, providing a layer of electronic sounds. This live document was taken around the Operation Hummingbird era, so that makes sense. But yeah, a lot of classics from various eras of Di6’s career are re-imagined in the sound collage style of the Take Care And Control / Operation Hummingbird era. Which is cool. There’s a ton of good percussion here too, and the recording quality is great. The only thing that’s a bit shabby is the record sleeve, but even that works in its own kind of way.
I believe the name of this group more less translates to Path, and the record is called Death Songs, which is very fitting with the excellent cover art. I find the metal styles on display a collaborative form between black metal and progressive. The songs are often long and weighty, and the vocals and production are excellent. It’s not really my cup of tea and I went in on the strength of the sleeve alone, but I’m glad I checked this out.
I was a huge fan of others works by this project but Vid Himinsenda fell to the side somewhat. I listened to them both for the first time in the summer of the 2020 lockdown, but whilst Fjällets Gyllene Slott stayed with me, this was lost on me a bit. Everything sounds great, but its a bit derivative and plodding in parts, playing into the safe area of dungeon synth that basically just rips off old Mortiis stuff. That’s not to write this off however, if you are a fan of DS stuff you’d do no wrong in getting involved with this (although you probably already have, this is pretty popular).
Short, fragmented visions into a static-filled future (or past). Each track acts as a snippet into a different world, each world punctuated by its own version of a dreamy or somewhat haunting synthesizer mood or melody (I use melody in the loosest sense of the word). It’s kinda like channel hopping, or band hopping on the radio, and finding nothing but floating synthesizer soundscapes on every channel. One for the small hours. (Also, if that’s not a Twin Peaks reference in the album title than I’ll be a son of a dopplegongah.)
I was thinking recently on the mystery of Revenant Marquis and I went over to Spotify to see if any of the records were there and what do you know, turns out the project has a new(ish) release that I haven’t heard yet! Eagerly excited for more muffled kvlt metal that I can’t make head or tail of due to the extra rubbish production, I instead was met with a very invocative series of atmospheric instrumentals. To call this dungeon synth is probably correct but most (if not all – I recall one moment where there is a small melody or tune) of these are just long, morphing dirges. There’s not a shriek or cardboard box drumkit to be heard. Just gorgeous, dark synthesizer works. I threw this on whilst driving to work and it enraptured me in a little cacoon of gothic darkness, which was nice considering the urban sprawling hell that I was currently in.
I’ve always preferred electronic/experimental Ulver to the black metal era of the band but you cannot argue with the sheer genius that is Bergtatt. Easily my favourite of the 3 original “metal” (or folk) records, this is up there with the other classics of the genre in the early 90s. Do not expect intense harshness; the mix is fairly balanced, but the record is all the greater for it.
These guys catch a lot of shit for their association with Mikko Aspa, having all of their records so far released on his label, Northern Heritage. But anyway, I’d downloaded and listened to this thing before I knew that so – how does Mgła sound? These guys are intensely hyped in the scene, and to be honest, I can kinda see why. Exercises In Futility is an intricately woven blanket of sound. Broken into six parts, it can be a dense album to penetrate, but once your in and underneath it, it will utterly consume you. Yeah. Seems a bit OTT, but its a good black metal record, what can I say?
A random suggestion (cheers Ifan!) was one I couldn’t turn down once I’d checked out that cover art. Some solid death metal is afoot, played in the “new” old school style, but with the clarity of a modern production. There’s a ton of this stuff around at the moment and its becoming increasingly difficult to stand out in the bog. Thankfully however Sarcoughagus do just that, with a tidy delivery of disgusting death, released (of course) on Maggot Stomp. Cheers!
Mashing slam and death metal with the boisterousness of the UK hardcore scene, AOAA exploded onto the underground circuit with this EP. I remember being a little pissed off at all the core and emo kids all of a sudden being into heavy shit (I was a battle-jacket wearing dickhead back then), but I was also low-key super into the slams, bro. Especially after seeing these guys live. Some of the lyrics have aged like milk (“drinking and fighting, that’s how we roll!” or my absolute favourite cringe-moment “when I’m done with you, you won’t have a cunt left!” being chanted by like 6 guys or whatever) but the production is solid and this is far chuggier than what would come on the band’s debut album.
Probably high time I reviewed this as today I got the news that Betty Davis had passed on. RIP. (This review was written in February 2022 – Ed). Her voice is something else, really pushing that cracked, strained and from-the-soul delivery, even if most of her songs are about getting dicked down instead of having a broken heart (perhaps both? Haha). Honestly though this thing is absolutely dripping with style, funk and passion. I bet it sounds even better on a beaten, dusty vinyl copy.
I enjoyed the previous King Dude record heavily (if you mean Love then that was several albums back – Ed). It seemed to blend the mystique of the neofolk world with that of a more Type O Negative sensibility, if you get what I mean. Sadly, on Sex, King’s stripped down occult swagger is replaced instead with fairly basic rock and roll. There is still a Satanic feel to it, and your Dude here still croons like Pete Steele, but the full band affair has a country and western edge to it as well. All in all, its just not for me.
I’ve never been the biggest fan of Bolt Thrower. I think that’s entirely because I never really bought into the hype, more than out of any dislike for what I’ve heard. My knowledge of this band however, begins and ends with this album. I’ve never heard any others. That may change however, as I’ve spun this a few times recently and really gotten into it. “World Eater” is a beast of a track. And that bass! Intense.
This ambient piece seems to be revered online, and I suppose with good reason. Towers presents 4 enormous atmospheric chunks, where the sounds of life and – I guess – the city, are mangled and distorted into surreal passages of relaxing noise. It is as equally daunting in parts as it is uplifting. Words can only do so much for this kind of cerebral recording; it’s best to just listen to it.
We’re about to drop a new Sanguelia album on our label Two Man Tape Co, so it was cool to look back several years to this debut. Inspired by the music present in Italian horrors and giallos, and driven thematically by a similar horror aesthetic, Sanguelia combine synthesizers with real live drumming for a performance that reminds of Goblin or Zombi, if I could make such bold comparisons.
Starting things off with a Twin Peaks sample is always gonna get my attention. To be honest, it’s not needed, because Brother’s self titled is punishing powerviolence from the word go. It’s got that buzzsaw modern PV production but with an old school hardcore punk feel to some of the tunes. All in all, this is a nifty EP.
A pillar of the sludge world, both as a band in Eyehategod and as an album. This record is a pure classic. There is few things that can touch it for pure sleaze and alcohol / narcotic fuelled depression. Opening track “Blank” sets the pace and really, if you are only ever gonna listen to one Eyehategod song, make it this one. The remaining tracks are filled out with such ditties as “30$ Bag”, and the charmingly-named “Sisterfucker” (parts 1 and 2). Let’s not forget “White Nigger”, which despite its offensive name, feeds and loops back heavily into the overarching themes of poverty, desperation and drug use that permeat this whole thing. Truly, this album is a disturbing listen but one that comes with a rusty pickup truck full of intense groovy riffs to drive that message home.
I got this 12″ free with a Discogs order probably about a decade ago, and I finally listened to it. Featuring a few cuts and extras from his 7 Deadly Sins album sessions, Valuable Game is actually a pretty fun listen. My favourite song has to be “Always Wanted To Be A Ho”, which is tongue in cheek but actually heavily calls out those who prey on vulnerable women, which is nice considering how misogynistic hip hop can be. Don’t get me wrong, this isn’t exactly flattering towards “hos” but it was a refreshing take all the same, especially considering how old this is.
Pulse Demon takes the crown – or should I say the spotlight – when it comes to Merzbow’s most famous release. As the man transitions from the worlds of analogue into digital noise, we saw a bit of a shift in the sounds in general. This mid-90s period was specifically harsh. Venereology, which quickly followed that very famous Pulse Demon album, seems to step up the harshness, if you’ll forgive me for my lack of inventive language. Everything seems so goddamn loud and unforgiving and I realise that may read as ridiculous considering who we are talking about here, but damn! “Ananga-Ranga” – that first track alone is 29 minutes of absolute aural hell, rendering what comes afterward almost pointless. Definitely a record for those who feel like they would like to clean out the inside of their skull with a brillo pad.
The Yacopsae stuff opening up this is clearly pushed to the front due to the underground weight that this act brings. However, it sounds like complete shit, if I can be so bold as to declare that in such an environment. LOL. But yeah, the Gdorks stuff that follows (RIP Katz) I’m pretty sure is the stuff from our failed split, which was also released on its own through Grindcore Karaoke. Here it is again, in typical Agathocles-baiting fashion. SMG sound like a horrid mush, before NxVx present their usual tone and I instantly recognise their input from Maria’s intense bass. Honestly, a lot of the other bands kinda just blur into one at this point, as much as I like bands like Fascist Insect. My man Paul in RxTx rounds this out with a few blasts of ridiculous noisecore for good measure. What more could you possibly want, eh?
I got into a bit of a shit-slinging incident with a bunch of randos on the internet when Mortiis of all people, posted a picture of himself on his Instagram with who I could only assume from comments was the dude from Blood Axis. The guy had a shaved head, a t-shirt sporting the crutch cross, boots and a belt sporting the reichsadler eagle. Now, wearing boots doesn’t make you a Neo Nazi, but they certainly complimented all that other shit. I got slammed into oblivion for calling out this guy’s dodgy state of dress, so I decided, let’s see what Blood Axis are all about then, seeing as I have clearly got it all wrong. To say that Blood Axis is not a fascist or white supremacist project would be a fucking lie. This proves, if anything, you can’t trust people in internet comments sections, even if they get more likes on their replies than you (lol). Not only are Blood Axis’ themes clumsily on the nose, but these guys are Americans, with no real weight or knowledge at the horrors of fascism and what it did to Europe. Therefore, The Gospel Of Humanity smacks of silly fucking idiots playing about with ancient symbolism and ideals that they know absolutely nothing about. Not that I’m an expert, but come on. To top that off, and to really sink the boot in, The Gospel Of Inhumanity has to be one of the goofiest, tone-deaf attempts at noise / industrial / martial / neo-folk / whatever that I have ever heard. Mixing classical music with Charlie Manson and bad black metal guitars does not make a song, I’m afraid. At least, not a listenable one. Leave that to Dragged Into Sunlight. Anyways, I’ve wasted enough time on this bullshit. Avoid.
I remember hearing this when it came out and struggling to really get my head around what they were trying to do. Personally, I’ve had a go at this several times over the year but have always failed to make it through to completion. Why am I still trying? Well, the concept of it is right up my street. Longform, intense songs covering a gamut of extreme metal genres, including other stuff like noise and atmospherics. What’s not to love? In the case of Aporia:Kāla:Ananta, which is 1 solid 40 minute track, it comes across like a much more serious and grown-up version of Abruptum. Less chaos, more menance.
I think I prefer the songs on the earlier classic releases but this thing sounds absolutely enormous. Mortician’s intense fuzz hits you in the face like 10,000 dirty hypodermic needles. The production is huge, allowing those buzzsaw riffs to fully be appreciated. What more can I say? It’s Mortician. I bought a Darkest Day Of Horror shirt back in 2006/2007 and I still have and wear it to this day. LOL.
I got given this tape by someone at Leeds Deathfest in either 2009 or 2010. I can’t remember who it was, which is really annoying – it may have been someone from Lazarus Blackstar. But anyway, it was one of the dudes who played in this band too. I never really played it all that much, always losing interest after a few songs. I decided this week to finally play through the whole thing and I just can’t get into it. The music isn’t an issue. It’s a tidy go at the British template of doom metal that was so prevalent in the 90s, but I just can’t get into the vocals at it. It’s not that the fella can’t sing or anything, he reminds me of Goatsnake’s Peter Stahl in many ways, I just don’t think it really works with this kind of music. I had a similar issue with Kroh’s debut record, before they switched to the female vocals / occult rock vibe. I don’t know why, but it just doesn’t work for me. It was nice to look back at a time and a place whilst listening to this, though.
This is massively outside of my wheelhouse in pretty much every aspect (and then some), from the style of punk through to the very questionable subject matter. Celtic Warrior are a white power band from around my local area. I’ve been doing a lot of research into these kinds of things recently, in regards to what goes on locally, from these kind of bands, to suspect motorcycle clubs, even to the Free Wales Army and the more radical groups further north. Celtic Warriors, like Blackout (not The Blackout lol), are both notorious local bands to me that I’ve never really checked out until now. Musically, the production is no better or worse than any other punk music and the only musician that has any virtuosity to his playing is the guitar player. Otherwise, this is just bad metal, bad rock and bad punk all rolled into one disinteresting ball. If it wasn’t for the tedious right wing subject matter, there would literally be nothing to this at all. I would probably not even know that it existed. But yeah. I listened to it, so it’s here on Linesinwax. I don’t condone listening to it, nor would I ever recommend listening to it. I’ll leave it to Napalm Death and Dead Kennedies to adequately explain where I stand with this kind of shit.
Following on from my recent foray back into Oxygen (a classic), I followed up with Chronology, which is perfect music for keeping your mind sharp whilst reading or engaging in some other task of concentration. To say Chronology is not “spacey” would be a lie, there is just a different vibe here.
The 2021 remaster of this cold classic is admittedly my first brush with Borknagar. I’ve known the name for seemingly aeons, but as is the way with this game (as with many others), time is my greatest enemy. The production was a little too crisp for me, if I could be so bold in announcing such; I had to turn down the treble a bit on my stereo to stop the harshness of the cymbals and guitar fuzz grating my head. However, with that out of the way, I fully enjoyed listening to this record for the first time. The production, despite the above complaint, holds a welcoming density that gives the compositions weight, without drowning out the complimentary keyboard and synth work. Suprisingly, after a brush with a lengthy piece earlier in the tracklist, hammy instrumental interludes were kept to a minimum, and the punishing black metal flowed fully. Vocally, its worth noting the particularly hellish screeches of the front man, as well as the occasional use of more traditional sung vocals, which have a heavy Norse feel. Great stuff all round!
