Monday, December 14, 2020

Mahr - Maelstrom (2020)



•  †  •

Each band out of the enigmatic and elusive Prava Kollektiv all released an album on November 18, all of which, from what I have heard thus far, have delivered a devastating sonic landscape under the umbrella of atmospheric black metal. Mahr are just one of these bands, and Maelstrom is nothing if not suffocatingly obtuse and crushing, both in the weight of its sound, spacing and tonality. Similarly not unlike Sonance, Mizmor, Leucosis and or Skáphe in its ability to convert instrumentation and the space between the instrumentation into a cohesive sound rife with ferocity and new ideas.

I can't recommend checking all of which I have mentioned above, enough. These are groups pushing through the banality of generic soundscapes with zeal and authenticity. Buy everything for a 'Name Your Price' donation. 

Mahr - Maelstrom (bandcamp) 


Wednesday, November 18, 2020

Of Feather and Bone - Sulfuric Disintegration (2020)



•  †  •

I was pretty content with how 2018's 'Bestial Hymns of Perversion' sounded and find myself dipping back into it every once in a while still, but I think 'Sulfuric Disintergration' is an even better attack on the banality of standard death metal. Meat and Potatoes with a lot of bulk but staunchly invigorating and zealous in its approach: Bestial with a nations worth of ire and grime caked throughout it with an emphasis on speed a la grind. Profound Lore doesn't often disappoint, and I hope it stays that way!

Sulfuric Disintegration (bandcamp)

Monday, November 9, 2020

Lure - Morbid Funeral (2020)


•  †  •

This was just unearthed on Halloween and I don't think it's too early to call this one of my favourite purely black metal records of the year. Lure consists only of Pierre Perichaud, an accomplished illustrator and tattoo artist within France and evidently knows his way around writing frigid forward-thinking black metal. I know this is technically supposed to be a demo and all, but this is 45-minutes of some of the best black metal you'll hear all year. I want to say the last time I enjoyed a purely black metal release this much was when Akitsa released 'Credo' in 2018… or maybe I'm just being obstuse.

•  Ω  •


This is exactly what I'm looking for in black metal today, which might lend itself to the fact that I'm pretty tired with most things passing under the banner of black metal these days. I don't think myself some jaded purist who is stuck in the past of a genre spinning its wheels, it's just that when it comes to something as down-trodden as black metal or death metal I want to hear something straddling the line of paying homage to the intended essence of the genre while simultaneously finding new ground. Lure's 'Morbid Funeral' does exactly that for me with absolute poise. The production is spot on, murky enough to still sound good but it's sure as shit cold, raw and feral sounding. The vocals are another really strong point of what make this record so great, shrill and dismal as they battle through a wall of churning guitar riffs and drum fodder… It feels lame and trite to dig into the details of vocal-work, but really, just listen to the range of emotions being summoned by Pierre here, it sends shivers down your fucking spine.

Only 250 copies of these were pressed and sold out pretty quickly and I'm seriously bummed I missed out on this limited run. If you snagged one, lucky you. If you snagged one and want to trade though, let me know. This album is 'Name your Price' on bandcamp right now, you'd be out of your skull not to shill out a few bucks to support an often thankless gig. Dig in!

Morbid Funeral (bandcamp) 

Wednesday, October 28, 2020

Mindforce - Reign of Terror (2020)




•  †  •

Mindforce
released one new song. Just one. Not sure if it's leading to a latter full-length release in 2020 or not, but I don't care either way. Mindforce are meat and potatoes hardcore with their approach heavily grounded in the old-school Boston hardcore sound with an unrefined and gruff take on old thrash metal of the 80's. It's not reinventing the wheel or anything, but it's fun and raw and I don't need a damn thing else. Do you? Triple-B Records still got it.

Mindforce (bandcamp)

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

Akhlys - Melinoë (2020)




•  †  •

I've been following most things affiliated with Naas Alcameth, the main song-writer behind Akhlys and force behind the likes of Bestia Arcana, Nightbringer and Aoratos, since the essence that permeates everything he touches is smeared in some cosmic ferocity. Akhlys has been on my radar since I heard The Dreaming I, a feral amalgamation of black metal and dark ambience is the backbone behind the barrage of double-bass and whirring tremolo picking.

From the teaser tracks, it's more of the same. A meat and potatoes barrage of black metal with passages and sequences dipping heavily into ambient territory, and it's equally plummeting and challenging to get through, in the sense of auditory fatigue, but I still find myself hitting the play button. KNEEL has released my favourite take on black metal this year so far, so everything else comes second. 

Melinoë (bandcamp)

Wednesday, September 9, 2020

Interview: Dan Sartain



This is a discussion I have been meaning to have for a long, long time. With a musician who has long maintained my curiosity since a girl I was dating at the time threw on 'Join' that beautiful day we got into a car accident in earthly Lake Place, NY. It was fitting. Ever since then my love goes faster than a rocket for Dan…He was brave and kind enough to let me bother the shit out of him for a few days. This is the conversation that took place. 

•  †  •

SHOM) Hi Dan, before we get too deep and cerebral into our discussion let’s just start with; If you were to write your own epitaph, what would you have it say?

DS) I thought you said we wouldn't get deep this soon! (laughs) All I would want it to say is "Proud Father".

SHOM) This has been bothering me for years, what the hell do you say at the beginning of the song ‘P.C.B. 98’?

DS) "Hey, Shitboy! Whatcha gonna do now?" At the time I was working at Domino's Pizza. I used to work with several gentleman from Turkey. English was their second language, and they hadn't quite grasped the art of curse words. They knew that "shit" could be used as an insult; they also knew that calling someone "boy" is degrading. When they wanted to insult you, they would call you "shit boy". I thought this was an absolutely glorious insult I had never heard anyone else use before. It became an inside joke in the workplace. I was joking around with John Reis, then it became our inside joke. To this day we still call each other shit boy. I don't know man. It was just funny at the time. I didn't think the joke would have legs, but I still say it to this day. 

SHOM) I know you created the crack-whip sound on the Western Hill’s ‘Rawhide’ by slamming a slab of meat from the butcher shop you work at onto a mic’d up concrete floor, so what was the technique for the crack-whip sound on the earlier Dudesblood’s ‘Rawhide Moon’? 

DS) The answer to this one may not be as exciting as you were expecting. We just used some stock sound. 

SHOM) With Western Hills you’re up to 10 studio albums and you’ve had an impressive two-decade run as a heavily DIY lone musician from Beatle burnin’ Alabama, what has been the best and worst part of this experience so far for you? 
DS) You know, the Beatles burning thing is really embarrassing. But there is another side to the story. The man you're referring to was named Tommy Charles. He was a radio DJ in Birmingham for very many years. They never actually burned Beatles records in Birmingham though. The fire marshal shut that down. Any footage you see of burning Beatles records did not take place in Birmingham. Birmingham has a very shameful history, especially in the 1960s. If I may, I would like to play Devil's Advocate on behalf of Tommy Charles. Tommy Charles was a friend to rock and roll. He spun early rock and roll records in my hometown live on the radio as early as rock and roll records were made. I guess you could call him a shock jock. By the time the Beatles came around, rock and roll was 10 years old. I think for guys like Tommy Charles The Beatles represented a Changing of the Guard. For the original rock and rollers, it made them uncomfortable and feel threatened. It seems quite silly now.

As a person from Birmingham that loves old rock and roll records, I've had internal struggles about my feelings for Tommy Charles. On the one hand, he brought rock and roll to the airwaves. On the other, he was kind of an asshole for what he did. I'm a huge Beatles fan but I also have space in my heart for Tommy Charles. I believe at the end of the day he was a show-man. I think the whole Beatle burning thing was a publicity stunt and he didn't foresee this being his lasting Legacy. They never actually burned Beatles records in Birmingham. What he did do was have a lot of Beatles records steamrolled and buried in a small town east of Birmingham called Roebuck. I never met Tommy Charles, but I have many friends that knew him. They said that he had no hate for the Beatles. What he did have was a lot of PT Barnum in him. He just wanted attention and ratings, and he got it. I don't think the criticism of him is unfair, but I do think that it is unfair to paint him as a enemy of rock and roll. 

Birmingham is a weird town. It's my home and I don't really want to live anywhere else. That's not to say that I don't have my problems with it to this day. At this point it's just the devil I know. I've always found it to be cliquey. I never felt fully accepted there. You kind of have to go out a lot and kiss everyone's butt and tell them they're great in order to have people at your shows. It's like a goddamn abusive relationship. But I always come back, and I always love it. 

SHOM) Back in 2014 you and Jacob Turnbloom of Mrs. Magician gave birth to a little side-project that had you release a great two-song EP. Did you guys mean for this to just be a one-off or were there plans for more in the future that have never came to fruition? 

DS) Jacob is a strange guy. I absolutely love him. We have exchanges at least once a week. He always writes me and has these kooky ideas. He's one of the most prolific musicians I know personally. Most of the ideas that he or I have never come to fruition. Sometimes they do. There's a lot of distance between Birmingham and San Diego. I tried to live in San Diego a couple times. It never really worked out. I still feel like my greatest musical soulmates live there. I count Jacob among them. All those Southern California guys are so laid-back it makes me wonder how they get anything done at all. Somehow they always do. I honestly believe that some of the greatest music of my lifetime was created there. Those people are goal-oriented, but super chill at the same time. I guess the two things don't have to be mutually exclusive. When you travel a lot your heart gets spread out. A big piece of my heart will always reside in San Diego.

SHOM) My favourite album cover of all time is Muddy Waters ‘After The Rain’, what’s yours? 

DS) The Geto Boys. We can't be stopped.

SHOM) Your 6th record ‘Too Tough To Live’ was Dan at full down-stroke Ramones mode, would you say this phase came in more as a necessary means of catharsis following ‘Lives’ or was it as simple as you getting a runners high off the down-stroke? 

DS) After we made Dan Sartain Lives with Liam Watson at toe rag Studios, I felt like that was my pinnacle. I learn so much from Liam. After working with him it was like a demon was exorcised. I felt like he got the best out of me in that vein of music. Basically I felt like I couldn't top that. It was time to switch modes completely. I was coming to the end of my twenties and the beginning of my thirties, and I wanted to hang on to my youth. I felt like doing everything harder and faster would be my Fountain of Youth. I allowed myself to nurture my most juvenile thoughts. In a way, that phase of my career also felt like an exorcism. I didn't want to be a whiny emotional arthouse rockabilly kid anymore. I felt the need to prove myself in other ways. To whom I felt the need to prove myself, I don't know. I didn't feel like my previous formula was so precious that I couldn't change it. 

SHOM) I saw an interview with you and a German skeleton during a tumultuous time that had you teary-eyed and honest as hell, so I have to ask, what albums do you think are the envenom for a broken heart? 

DS) that was a tough time for me. I was Rife with inner turmoil. I was going through a breakup and I hadn't realized yet that behaving that way only alienated my friends. I was disappointed that working with The White Stripes didn't really lead to bigger things for me. Now I realize that it was my expectations, and that alone, which was causing my inner turmoil. I was still at a point in my life where I blamed everything else for my problems rather than take accountability for them. I felt like I was expected to always overachieve. Mentally I had to move the goalposts in order to feel like I was winning. I not only looked at music as a competition, but an all out War. I realize now that that was a ridiculous thought. I was taking myself way too seriously. 

To answer your question though, The Ramones brought me out of it. Specifically the demo version of 'I don't care'. It's not like that was my first Ramones phase, but it suddenly hit me like a ton of bricks. That footage you were talking about with the skeleton was actually taken at the Ramones Museum in Berlin. It is a small but staggering Museum. I guess I didn't fully realize the power of simplicity until that point. I also didn't fully appreciate the complexity of what the Ramones were actually doing. It seems simple, but I know very complex musicians that couldn't hang in the Ramones. For instance Clem Burke from Blondie was the drummer for The Ramones for one show before he was fired. Clem Burke is a very respected person in his field. He's among the most celebrated drummers I can think of. He couldn't hang with the Ramones though. 

SHOM) It’s well documented that you have a penchant for all things old and eccentric, is there anything in the modern world you love and champion that might be a surprise to those of us who only know the surface level you? 

DS) I do certainly like old things, old ideals not so much. I don't know how to say this without pussyfooting around the subject… but I like being able to eat in a restaurant and go to movies with black people. 

SHOM) Has your daughter shown an increased interest in music as she gets older? What tunes get her goin’? 

A) my daughter absolutely loves music. Even at Age 3 she has very diverse taste. Friends since one of her favorite songs is Pineapple Princess by Annette Funicello. She likes all that Disney princess stuff too. She's obsessed with the Wizard of Oz and Dorothy, but she also really likes Buddy Holly. I hope she doesn't follow in my footsteps toward a Rock and Roll Lifestyle. I hope for better things for her than that. Rock and roll is fun and everything, but making it your identity the way I did is stupid. 

SHOM) Is there an unexpected moment from any song existing in the ether that you can pin down as your favourite or just something that makes you smile ever time you hear it? I think of Lee Hazelwood’s quip at the end of the song ‘Greyhound Bus Depot’ of “Look at her standin’ there with chilli all over her dress... if I knew her better I’d get her a puppy.” 

DS) once a song is recorded and published, I don't ever want to listen to it again. By the time my songs reach the ears of the public they are dead to me. Occasionally I'll listen to them so that I can remember how to play them live, but they aren't a part of "Who I Am" anymore. My latest recording is always my favorite. I got to work with one of my favorite artists, Ganksta Nip. Nip has become a friend of mine over the years. He is a rap Legend. I've gotten to work with many great artists throughout the years, but this guy invented an entire sub-genre of rap music. He has gold and platinum records on his walls, but somehow I never made it out of the Underground. Our Song "Where is Candyman" is currently my favorite song. Until the next one. 

SHOM) How did the collaboration with Ganksta Nip come about? You’re not the type to be bogged down by comfort-zones and all but did working with thee progenitor of Horrorcore feel like it came with its own set of unique intimidations and limitations or did you just make like Alan Vega and do whatever the fuck your wanted to?

DS) His real name is Rowdy. I think we're on a first-name basis now, (laughs). We've been friends for several years now. I was a fan of his before I even knew about him. Let me explain. He wrote some of the best music for The Geto Boys. I suspect that he ghost wrote a lot more songs that I like that he wasn't credited for. I've always been a big fan of rap, but I respected it as an art form enough to stay out of it. Until now. I always wanted to work with Rowdy, but I could never come up with a good enough idea to justify making it happen. I attempted to work with him several times, but the ideas I had weren't good enough. When the trailer for the new Candyman movie came out, I wrote him to get his thoughts on it. He seemed as excited about it as I was. It's a good trailer. I hope the movie is just as good. When I knew that we were both excited about Candyman returning, I guess I knew it was time to make something actually happen. I didn't really want to rap, but I didn't feel like a guitar sample was a good enough reason to put my name on the release alongside his. I decided to step up to the plate and try to rap. Who cares if I get made fun of. Who cares if I sound out a place. I'm secure enough in my place as an artist to step out of my comfort zone, as you said. I'll rap in my car. I'll rap in the shower. Why not do it in front of a microphone?

I knew if I put my name on it, a small but loyal fanbase would pay attention. I've got to work with lots of great musicians, but Rowdy invented something. He invented something that people still copy, even if they don't know it's him They're copying. He's still putting out good material. He might be better than he ever was. I know he feels he is. Some of his newer work is some of his best. I just want more people to know about him. He said some pretty crazy stuff. He's just a normal guy though. He likes horror movies and video games just like everyone else. He has a unique gift. I think he really stands apart from his peers. I respect him as a poet. I know that's really strange to say considering his lyrical content. I find beauty in it. I find humor in it. I love that he has no filter at all when it comes to writing lyrics. I just wish he had a wider base. He has gold and platinum selling records on his wall, but he still remains unknown to many people. I find that unacceptable. If there's anything I can to get his name out there, I'm going to do it. I've never really tried to be an artist that made political statements. I really respect artists that do, I just never wanted to be one.

This Record came out the same week the riots happened due to George Floyd's death. Where is Candyman is not a political song in in any way. It just happened to coincide with the movement that is currently happening. As shallow as the song is, I felt it was our message of racial Unity. At the end of the day, it's just a couple of guys that really like Candyman. The time frame in which it came out is coincidence. We could have made this 6 years ago, or six years from now. I'm glad it came out when it did. It was not intended to be a statement, but Rowdy and I both acknowledged the significance of it in that way.

SHOM) Songs like ‘Mr. Shorty’ by Marty Robbins, ‘A Boy Named Sue’ by Johnny Cash, ‘Talkin’ Karate Blues’ By Townes Van Zandt and of course Alli Guthrie’s ‘Alice’s Restaurant’ all tell of a peculiar story in a sort of a spoken word delivery, do you think you have a song that strikes the same vain? Do you have a favourite within this style?

DS) My speaking voice isn't raspy or cool enough sounding to do something like that. I did try to hire someone to do something like that for Western Hills though. We asked several genre actors to do a song like this with me for Western Hills. We approached William Shatner, and all kinds of people. At one point, Tom Wopat was going to do it. Those talks dissolved, along with our album's budget. If we ever hear back from William Shatner, or Lee Majors, I'll make it happen.

SHOM) Besides the current state of things, what’s stopping you from playing that show at Pasquale’s Pizza? Any chance We’ll get to see you in Canada again or is the chance fat?

DS) I would be too busy stuffing my face to play a show at Pasquale's (laughs). As far as Canada goes I rule nothing out! If you're going from coast to coast in America, playing shows along the Canadian border makes a lot more sense sometimes.

SHOM) Have you got your ears to the ground on the Australian punk scene at all? There’s something in the well water out there, they’re no Hot Snakes but Eddy Current Suppression Ring is getting things done!

DS) I don't know much about any scene anymore. I knew I would get old one day and become out of touch, what I didn't know is that I wouldn't care if I was out of touch.

SHOM) This isn’t a question, just wanted to thank you for turning me into the demo version of ‘I Don’t Care’, it’s so dismissively snotty and primitive!

DS) It's one of those things that is so simple, you hate yourself for not coming up with it. Even though that song was written before I was born, I'm envious of how stupid and effective it is.

SHOM) Chuck Berry once duckwalked his way over to you at a Casino show when you were a youngster and sang to you, do you think that had a significant impact on you in anyway?

DS) I wasn't that young. I was 25ish when that happened. He was already my hero at that point. I did see Jerry Lee Lewis when I was really young. He came out and played the halftime show for a minor league football team in Birmingham. I didn't really care at the time. I think I just wanted the cheerleaders two come back out. (laughs)

SHOM) How have you been spending the last 5 months besides putting out a new record and running a historical barbershop? Any silver linings to this strange time for you to draw upon? 

DS) Life has become incredibly difficult for me during this time. I'm facing some of the most heavy obstacles I've ever faced. My needs mean very little in the grand scheme of things. I did get to record and you record at Sun Records in Memphis, which was a dream come true. I haven't really been the same person since we did it. It made me feel like anyting in the world that I want is at my disposal. It made me feel like I can manifest anything I put my mind to. If this is the end of the world, arrivederci, baby. I had a blast.

•  Ω  •

SHOM) I ended our few days of messaging back and forth with the following:

Let's steer this runaway tram back home, Dan! Any final thoughts, feelings, complaints or grievances you's care to impart on to the lost souls of the world? Again, a big thanks for taking some time to chew some fat with me, and thanks for the music. Keep sane and happy with your loved ones and good luck with the Hippodrome, until I hear from you again…


DS) Right on, Chris! If I figure it out I'll let you know. I'm just in the same boat as everyone else. Writing has always been my outlet, and I'm doing more of that now. My best to you and yours. Thank you for your thoughtful questions, it's nice to know that people are still paying attention to me after all these years!

Dan released an album this year and as always it's well worth your time, energy, money and complete focused concentration.



Here is the "Where is Candyman?" song released this year by Ganksta Nip and Dan Sartain:




Wednesday, August 26, 2020

Vassafor - Vassafor III, To the Death (2020)


•  †  •

New Zealand's soil is no stranger to dredging up some filthy and uncompromising death metal over the last few decades and Vassafor has always been at the forefront of this auditory barrage, along with the likes of Heresiarch, Diocletian, Witchrist, and Vesicant to name a few of the prominent forces within the Kiwi stratosphere.

Vassafor is one of my favourites out of the bunch, consistently being a barbaric force within the arena of death/black metal and with the newly released Vassafor III, To the Death I'm even more bullish. This album is a big breath of fresh air in a genre that sees a lot of futile attempts at invoking any real atmosphere, which Vassafor has done in spades on this record, giving lengthy songs ample room to move around a cavern of densely layered guitars, mollifying and calcified under the weight and plod of the drumming. Everything is recorded and produced perfectly, harkening to a much more underground sound, nothing plasticky or over-produced to be found on here, pure old-school filth and sonic evisceration that lends itself to be one of the better death metal albums of the year by my count. Absolute penetration!

Vassafor III, To the Death (bandcamp)

Thursday, August 6, 2020

Spike Fuck - The Smackwave EP (2019)



•  †  •

Here's a really janky one for this blog, neither touching the spectrum of genres I normally post up on here but hey I have a taste that goes much beyond the borders of what's baked into the DNA of Severed Heads Open Minds since I created this blog 10 years ago…

•  Ω  •

A good buddy of mine turned me onto this one knowing that it would be something I'd be into and he was perfectly right and I revere him for it. The EP's title is a direct nod to the type of genre Spike Fuck of Australia is championing, which she has described as an impersonation of a washed-up middle aged rock star attempting a comeback in the 1960's or 1970's. Seems accurate, straddling the line between personification and uniqueness, of the halcyon days smothered in fog machines, fluorescent lights and clubs that smelled of sweat, semen and cigarettes and half-shut eyelids. This music is absolutely infectious, coming across at times like Jonathan Richman of Modern Lovers, or floating around Lou Reed's deadpan delivery and structures that nod to the Velvet Underground & Nico, or a more minimal Joy Division playing through Duran Duran songs with Rowland S. Howard's dismal driving guitars.

This might be something for you to get into, or it might not. Doesn't matter, your loss, pal.

The Smackwave (bandcamp)

Monday, August 3, 2020

Primitive Blast - Animalistic (2020)



•  †  •

Primitive Blast as a name for the band really shows total awareness of ethos, even moreover that the name of this EP is 'Animalistic', which it is. These Aussies know exactly what they're going for, a clear vision of an almost primordial sounding mix of Mental-era hardcore with a stripped-down and raw punk sensibility, delivered in an almost stomp like cadence a la bands like Judge, Close Shave or even Unified Right. A primitive blast it most definitely is and just another very sharp arrow in the quiver of the Australian punk scene… I don't understand what's in the drinking-water down there but it's been a consistent hotbed for a plethora of good bands. And I mean good as an absolute understatement. Give this a try, and if it doesn't click you're probably just soft… and that's okay too.

Animalistic (bandcamp)

Monday, July 27, 2020

Drown - Subaqueous (2020)



•  †  •

Here's an album I could hardly find a flaw in even if I were to be truly vicious, truly picky and up my own ass in a tizzy of pretentious elitism. It's very well devoid of any faults as it sets out to do one thing and to do that thing very well: To create a sonic representation of what it would feel like to be crushed by the oceans weight through virtue of glacially placed funeral

•  Ω  •

It's heavy and it's bleak despite its penchant for dipping into very thoughtful and melodic passages, but alas never quite sacrificing any of its crushing weight, a death grip of floating guitars bounce around a vast expanse of atmosphere created through plodding drums, the space between and a bellowing vocal delivery as heavy and desperate as the music itself. It's production is bang on, so thanks for that. I don't know if I've cared this much about a straight funeral doom record since Ahab's 'The Call of the Wretched Seas' and I commend its ability to simultaneously pacify and stimulate. Get into it or just flounder, punk!

Subaqueous (bandcamp)

Tuesday, July 21, 2020

Divide & Dissolve - TFW (2020)



•  †  •

Divide & Dissolve are a two-piece – Very loud and supremely glacial doom and drone encompassed of Takiaya Reed and Sylvie Nehill of Melbourne, Australia, who met and united under the bond that they are both of indigenous background and began to create music, pounding and hypnotic, as a means to lay down the bedrock of their creative outlet, beliefs and messages. All of this is accomplished through a dense wall of sound that utilizes Takiaya guitar and saxophone drone over top the churn of Sylvie's drums, it's powerful and transporting and I'm eager to hear more than just this one song off of TFW.


I don't know where it's going, but I'm all in…

TFW (bandcamp)

Sunday, July 19, 2020

Bloodshot Bill - Get Loose or Get Lost (2020)


•  †  •

Montreal's legendary Bloodshot Bill strikes again and can still cut the mustard better than almost anyone else in the genre out there, the nostalgia in a bottle jukebox rockabilly croon of Bloodshot Bill is about as authentic as it gets, and his guitar is sounding so good on this one. This album just came out, but it resonates with a certain potent accuracy the sounds of 70 years ago with flourishes of modern panache within the frenzied minutia. Can't wait for the days when I can watch this man pour his sweat and heart out on some dingy bar stage in Toronto and maybe even catch a rare cover of Hasil Adkins 'No More Hotdogs'. The idea is simple, accept no substitutes and get loose or get lost!

Thursday, July 16, 2020

Ruin Lust - Choir of Babel (2020)



•  †  •

Another 20 Buck Spin release to lay at your feet, and it's another begrimed mixture of tonal ferocity and sonic dissonance via the mode of fusing together equal parts death, doom and black metal with overlaying tinge of crust wrapped around the carapace of reverb. I hate to draw another comparison to punk or hardcore, but the overlapping sound and feel sounds like all those old metal bands that worshipped and embraced the raw and sloppier aspects of the early thrash/punk/hardcore production styles a la Slaughter, Bolt Thrower, Obituary, Carcass, Terrorizer, etc. Ruin Lust aren't really pushing any boundaries on Choir of Babel, but it is succeeding excessively in where it's meant to, it's ferocity and heft, and the right choice in production is what sets it apart from weaker links within this ilk.

Choir of Babel (bandcamp)

Tuesday, July 14, 2020

Skeleton - Skeleton (2020)



•  †  •

The formula on this self-titled is an easy enough one to pin down, a grab bag influence of first wave black metal riffs and vocals with early thrash and hardcore passages a la Venom and Bulldozer and tempo shifts with a barebones structure of early Entombed death metal and a fraction of the meatiness that Bolt Thrower had with some of the rough around the edges punk of all those bands. I was healthily skeptical of this debut release from Austin, Texas, but the more spins I inevitably cycle through, almost out of compulsion, the more I accept its unavoidable filthy and unrefined charms. it's hard not to be a sucker for an amalgamation like this, and it's done well to boot. Dig in, creeps!

Skeleton (bandcamp)

Monday, July 13, 2020

Ars Magna Umbrae - Apotheosis (2020)



•  †  •

It's a bit early on this one, as its set for release in late August and as of now there's only one song up on the bandcamp page, but Ars Magna Umbrae released an uncompromising slab of slavic sounding black metal back in 2018 called Lunar Ascension and it was mostly overshadowed and or overlooked. Polish black metal that's built up on layered dissonant riffs that wade through an icy terrain of ambient passages and a crude and cosmic atmosphere, very little to not like here. I, Voidhanger Records continues to be reliable!

Apotheosis (bandcamp)

Saturday, July 11, 2020

Convocation - Ashes Coalesce (2020)



•  †  •


Convocation's debut record 'Scars Across' was one of 2018's best in the arena of metal, without question, and a lot of people got that wrong last year but what can you expect a from a flock of dorks that put Sleep before Thou in the same year… Has everyone lost their goddamn skull? "But Chris" you tell me "opinions are meant to be subjective, that's what's so beautiful about them, kumbaya and Hakuna Matata, my man." and I'll simply look at you and say "No."

•  Ω  •

Finland's Convocation released Ashes Coalesce a few days ago through Everlasting Spew Records and it stands firmly as another staunch example of how to craft a song that feels heavier than a dead dog and how to adeptly maneuver around lengthy tracks without becoming frivolous and tedious through use of some impressive range. I'm purposely trying not to delve too deep into this as far as praise (or critiques) go as I have only listened fully through the one time, but through the merit of how good 'Scars Across' I am putting this one out into the ether. I will say this: In comparison to 'Scarss Across", the way in which 'Ashes Coalesce' was produced, in particular the prominence of the vocals in the mix and the omission of weight behind the kick drum in favour of clarity is something that might be too lofty for its own good, with an album cover matching in grandiosity. OF course this is more a matter of personal preference but…Gut instinct, I prefer the more primitive aspects of the former. See, I can be critical too.

How about Drown though? Holy shit.

Ashes Coalesce (bandcamp) 

Thursday, July 9, 2020

Murderer - I Did It All For You (2018)


•  †  •

This sucker is a couple of years old but I only just stumbled onto it the other day by complete accident and I'm floored by it. This is one of those records that sound ahead of its time, which is likely a hyperbolic statement, but this is why I write on this blog and not you, because I get to say whatever I want, and you get to roll your eyes or whatever it is you do – If that sentence had its own chapter, it would be titled "Attitude dude."

•  Ω  •

A seedy New York three-piece fronted by Hank Wood of Hank Wood & The Hammerheads and the festering energy they are known for is obvious on 'I Did It All For You', an atmosphere conquered by fuzzy guitar tones and grooves that pack force like a kicking mule. It's super jangly and weird, and features four-different takes on the same track called 'Perfect' which I should hate, but I really couldn't and I really don't. This album succeeds at everything it's been doing and if you don't like it, well that's just like, your opinion, man. Keep cool.


I Did It All For You (bandcamp)

Wednesday, July 8, 2020

Sunset Images - Centro de la Ciudad [single] (2020)



•  †  •

I've talked about these guys a while back on here, and I still find myself returning to Obscure Daze for a listen though pretty often due to the potency of its sound – Which to be sure is completely mired in noise and shoegaze psychedelia, but still manages to capture a lot of beautiful sounding passages throughout the ensuing chaos, which as a juxtaposition in sound, works very, very well.

I check on these guys from time to time to see if anything new has been put out but unfortunately there hasn't been anything other than two songs in the last three years… This tune came out this year though and if it's a teaser for anything new to come, I'm all ears. Get some reverb into ya!

Centro de la Ciudad (bandcamp)

Tuesday, July 7, 2020

Mountain Witch - Extinct Cults (2020)


•  †  •

It's hard not to call any band that sounds like Mountain Witch a Black Sabbath worship band, since any band worth their salt probably worships Sabbath anyway, especially when their sound is dripping with that THC soaked doom and tonal psychedelia that Black Sabbath very well created… so I'll resist the urge to do so. Mountain Witch are pure Black Sabbath worship. Fuck.

I'd be remiss to call it there, there's more to Mountain Witch than just another copy-cat band that only wants to play heavy and riff out in a sea of retro doom with flourishes of heavy metal, they do well to explore some refreshing territory with light synth use and the drums sound meaty and varied (no gated snare!) which if done poorly weigh a band like this down to the point that no amount of tight riffing can make up for. Thematically I'm all in too, lyrically dabbling in the esoteric and the occult and a healthy presence in the foothills of campy Horror that you'd expect out of this ilk. Even though I do them from time to time, I dread trying to contrive comparisons, but let's just call this a loose mix of Hour of 13, Captain Beyond, Blood Ceremony, Ghost (early) and Purple Hill Witch.

Extinct Cults (bandcamp)

Saturday, July 4, 2020

Failure Ritual - Apathy (2015)


•  †  •

Everything that has been put out under the umbrella of Failure Ritual has been great, hypnotizing and plodding ambient black metal that utilizes space and repetition to drive the listener into a state of hypnosis or induced psychosis. It's drone is long and consistent and sounds like a sonic form of mania through a winding channel of muffled screams against a wall of dense mollifying guitars as war drums beat in the distance. It's hefty and haunting but somehow manages to be catchy in its rhythmic way, and it often feels as though you have turned the same corner over and over with only the faintest difference to set it apart.

And to add even more layers to its already enigmatic presence, It's mostly unknown as to who is behind Failure Ritual, but I have read speculations that it might be Adam Kalmbach of Jute Gyte. I have nothing in common with somebody who can't get behind this, as the Swedish people say, PURE FUCKING ARMAGEDDON!

Apathy (bandcamp)

Thursday, July 2, 2020

God's Bastard - Last Standing Village (2020)



•  †  •

I try to keep my ears planted to the ground when it comes to anything released by I, Voidhanger Records if not for how consistent they are with really good releases for the consistency in pushing the barriers of metal and chewing up new soils in sound and forward-thinking song structure. God's Bastard is such a release. Comprised of two members, one of which is prolific in the sonic arena, being a member of Krallice, Coral Cross (very good), Woe, Anicon and a handful of other bands whose sound have never entered it into my atmosphere.

•  Ω  •

Say what you will about anyone who tinkers with puritan black metal, when experimentation falls into the right hands it can be a breath of fresh air in a stale environment of a genre that sometimes takes itself too seriously… and let's call a spade a spade here, sometimes purist black metal is also bad. ThisGod's Bastard is charged and found guilty of tinkering, but at least there are a lot of good things happening here on Last Village Standing and I"m going to keep listening to it on the merits that Coral Cross is really good and Krallice and Woe have done a lot of good things as well.

Last Village Standing (bandcamp)

Tuesday, June 30, 2020

Spirit Possession - Spirit Possession (2020)



•  †  •

Here's another album flying under the venerable Profound Lore Records label, a well-oiled machine run by Chris Bruni who always seems to be ahead of the curve, and it's another album that will be heavily listened to by yours truly – The sound and production is exactly what I'm looking for right now, albeit I have only listened to the only two tracks released, I am staunch in knowing that this album nails down primitive sounding black metal.

•  Ω  •

A sound that harkens back to the cold and primeval sounds of 90's black metal, with angular riffs, shrill atmosphere, ghostly production at its centre, and on the sonic periphery a torrent of influences takes shape in the form of heavy metal that borrows perfectly from early hardcore, in the same way that Razor did back in the late 80's during the festering metal scene of Toronto until they unfortunately and unceremoniously faded away into obscurity… It was a perfect. This to me is everything going right for forward thinking black metal. Imagine fusing together the best elements that make up Hellhammer, Mercyful Fate, Negative Plane, Razor, mid Darkthrone and Finland's (underrated and under appreciated) Swallowed and you will come up with a sound that is comparable to Spirit Possession's impressive, maybe immaculate, self-titled debut. What a release!

It's also worth noting that the vocalist/guitarist in Spirit Possession is the same vocalist/guitarist that makes up the band KNEEL, of which I posted about a few days ago and another release I think is basically perfect. Some accounting for taste for sure.

Spirit Possession (bandcamp)

Sunday, June 28, 2020

Couch Slut - Take a Chance on Rock n' Roll (2020)



•  †  •

Couch Slut have been around for the last 6 years quietly making a lot of noise in the form of noise-rock mixed with a healthy amalgamation of influences and soundscapes running the gamut of punk, doom, sludge, hardcore and throwing in glimpses of anything else they can get their grubby mitts on – experimentation. Amidst the chaos, Couch Slut have managed to create a sound that is almost wholly unique in their delivery and I can't help but find myself reaching to hit the play button. If sonic aspects of Brainbombs, Indian, Jute Gyte, Converge and Iron Lung were distilled into a singular sound it might come out sounding like this.

Take a Chance on Rock n' Roll (bandcamp)

Thursday, June 25, 2020

KNEEL - Infinite Worship, Slaves Eternal EP (2020)


•  †  •

Probably one of the finest EP's cut from the cloth of black metal I've heard this year, and if it were instead a full-length I'd probably say it was up there with one of my favourite releases of the year so far by virtue of it's sheer ferocity and unyielding production.

KNEEL offer up their first musical output on the sacrificial altar, and it's in the form of absolutely nailed-down raw black metal with a clear influence in ethos and sound from the more caustic aspects of punk. Not in the same vain as Raspberry Bulbs or Okkultokrati, where emphasis and structure is more simplified and unison but more akin to Morbid Insulter or Bone Awl who have traded the affects of simplicity for intensity and are built around a thicker viscosity, with more layers and dimensions floating around the bones of the songs.

Musically Infinite Worship, Slaves Eternal charges through 3-songs of densely layered black metal that pulls heavily from elements of bestial death metal a la bands like Swallowed, Teitanblood and Triumvir Foul so sonically and atmospherically everything is bloated and caked in grime and the vocals lurch between schizophrenic howls, belches and grunts which is something if not recorded and executed right it just sounds like a mess, but this is spot on. Everything is spot on!

Infinite Worship, Slaves Eternal (bandcamp)

Wednesday, June 24, 2020

Hank Wood and the Hammerheads - Use Me 7" (2020)



•  †  •

Hank Wood and the Hammerheads might be the last bastion of defence in the realms of sonic austerity, in the swirling ether of New York garage punk, amidst the grime of the sewage causeways and alleyways there is definitely a beating heart that still rides under a tattered and torn banner proclaiming rock and roll in all its authenticity, and Hank Wood and the Hammerheads have been a clear, albeit modest, part of that ticking heart.

•  Ω  •

Use Me continues along with the bands progression in sound and explores some untrodden territory within its grooves and has moved even further away from the more feral and caustic sound of their earlier releases but what it gives up in speed and ferocity it hits back with equal force in musical heft and the hooks go so deep. If you're unfamiliar with the bands earlier releases and ignorant to the sound they helped pave, stop reading this now and go do a deep dive because it's absolutely worth it. This new record is still crass and charged full of jangling energy, but it's a different energy source, drawing from the well of The Stooges, Richard Hell, MC5, but with an attack plan that's more akin to Germany's Dean Dirg rather than the former studs. Still snotty and shooting out phlegm behind poignant if not potent words is Hank Wood and if you ever saw these guys play live you were enthralled, filled with vim and vigour and you wanted to do something about something… You just forgot what it was. Get into this, or forever accept defeat!

Use Me 7" (Bandcamp)

Tuesday, June 23, 2020

Warp Chamber - Implements of Excruciation (2020)



•  †  •

Chris Bruni of Profound Lore Records has always had his hands on the pulse of death metal, feeling for signs of life and then giving that life existence on the planes of sonic annihilation. He's had a few misses during his tenure (my opinion) but other than that, Profound Lore Records is one of the most consistent record labels out in the abyss of all things metal or tied to that which is heavy.

•  Ω  •

Warp Chamber come out swinging on their debut full-length, a full-bodied attack of churning and cavernous death metal with a predilection for fetid guitar tones, bloated vocals and a backdrop that sounds nothing short of putrid. You get the point I'm not so subtly making, yeah? implements of Excruciation isn't reinventing the wheel or anything, but the integrity and brute force in which they will pummel you for thirty straight minutes is a thing to behold. There isn't a single second of filler floating around in these caves of churning riffs and vocal belches, it's absolutely filthy, and the way the drumming manages to bob and weave its way around with adept blasts and fills restores a fragment of my faith within 2020's ability to impress upon me. One of the better releases of the year so far, and it's not even close.

Implements of Excruciation (bandcamp)

Monday, June 22, 2020

Spectral Lore / Mare Cognitum - Wanderers: Astrology of the Nine (2020) [split]


•  †  •

This split is blowing so many releases out of the water – It's less of a split and more of a joined-collaborative of full-lengths between two gladiators in the arena of discordant black metal with a penchant for the esoteric and cosmic – Between the two of them, Spectral Lore and Mare Cognitum are punching way over their weight on Wanderers: Astrology of the Nine with a total running time just shy of 2 hours. It's colossal in full sway of the word and It's a lot to digest in one sitting and though it might even be guilty of being lofty at times you should pay attention. If not, you're getting it all wrong.

Wanderers: Astrology of the Nine (bandcamp)

Friday, May 15, 2020

Black Curse - Endless Wound (2020)

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•  †  •

Black Curse seems to be something of an amalgamation from the bands Spectral Voice, Blood Incantation, Khemmis and Primitive Man, which is to say they are in no way strangers to the sonic equivalent to swamp water. This album is a heady trip down into the depths of death metal, raw and smouldering almost to the point of decay, guitars that sound like stuck pigs marinated in reverb and grime and vocals that stylistically remind me of a lot of the Spanish sounds of death metal – bands like Teitanblood, Proclamation, Wrathprayer and glimpses of the neurotic nature of Swallowed.

Black Curse - Endless Wound (bandcamp)

Saturday, March 7, 2020

Nox Formulae - Drakon Darshan Satan (2020)



•  †  •

Dark Descent Records is a label you can set your watch to quite consistently when it comes to digging into something that satiates that filthy hankering you may or may not often get for something putrid, something that exudes fumes of rot from a bloated corpse, with leaking bile and black candles of ceremony. Take that as you will, or as you won't, it's all the same really.

•  Ω  •

I'm impatiently waiting for more releases as we're already in March and there's only one full length (almost out) to speak of thus far, and one phenomenal split release from Anhedonist and Spectral Voice. To come out at the end of March though, is this promising release from Nox Formulae. I've only heard the one song up on bandcamp but I can already say I'm fully bought in. All in on the pot, pre flop, as some might say. Take a listen for yourself and understand that form isn't always linear, and style isn't always cohesive, but chaos can be beautiful especially when its saturated in that cold sonic sound that often comes out of the scene in Greece.

Here's the thing though, (I feel like I get into this frame of mind every single year) we're approaching the first quarter of the new year and I have yet to be floored by any one release yet in the arena of metal. Which I only bring up because maybe I'm missing something? I mean my ears aren't constantly on the ground, so I hope I am. If anyone has any sources or recommendations please smack me upside the head with them. Forever grateful, Chris.

Nox Formulae - Drakon Darshan Satan (bandcamp)


Saturday, February 22, 2020

Raspberry Bulbs - Before the Age of Mirrors (2020)



•  †  •

Raspberry Bulbs have been quietly lurking around for over a decade dishing out a venomous mix of black metal and lo-fi punk with a considerable amount of grime gunked up between each riff and a penchant for the colour pink, which is of no consequence or importance, I just wanted to prove I'm not colourblind. On their 4th LP, the band sell their souls to Relapse Records (who with full credit to them has made major improvements from their earlier days) which for whatever reason I find daunting when it comes to anything that thrives off a raw and DIY aesthetic, but I don't want to be a defeatist and besides I'm liking what I'm hearing out of 'Before The Age of Mirrors'. More of the same, a ratty marriage of black metal and punk curtained in filth as you would expect from Bone Awl's Marco del Rio. HARK!

Raspberry Bulbs - Before The Age of Mirrors (bandcamp)

Saturday, February 8, 2020

Jordablod - The Cabinet of Numinous Song (2020)



•  †  •

Here's a new one I've just landed on from the Iron Bonehead faction, I'll normally scour the new releases found there as the label has earned its way into my trusting arms (ears, whatever) thanks to a plethora of solid releases – How about that Blot & Bod album last year, a real crusher – So when I saw this new album by Jordablod, a motley trio from Sweden hellbent on pulling from sounds across a wide range of sonic landscapes, but still adamant about the bulk of sound being a mixture of doom, death and black metal. It works, and I'm compelled to enjoy the way in which the drums are recorded,  a thick rumbling, and at times plodding, kick drum, that positions itself between a layer of guitar fog which at times seems to float around old rock n' roll and psychedelia riffs. I might be doing a poor job of describing that, to be fair, I'm surviving off the fumes of a few hours of sleep and a undercurrent of a lingering hangover daze. Listen on, my wayward sons.

Jordablod - The Cabinet of Numinous Song (bandcamp)

Saturday, February 1, 2020

Interview; Harassor / Vorpal Sword / Moonknight / Pray For Snow - Horus aka James Brown III


This is an interview, or rather, more of a conversation that I've been meaning to have with James Brown III (His real name) for a long time coming now, and we finally did that sporadically over the summer, (which says a lot about how late I am to posting this up on here). It's more of an organic conversation rather than a set of pre-mediated questions, which admittedly was far more music based than I sometimes go for, so rather than ask 'what is your favourite kind of soup' or 'do you like your Corn Flakes soggy or crispy' or whatever else I might normally contrive.

I digress, I've been a long time appreciator of Horus' work since I first heard Moonknight's Ligeia back in 2012 and I've been subsequently listening to just about everything else out on Rising Beast Recordings ever since, totally ambivalent to the fact that it was all done by a singular human being. Over the course of a few weeks, him and I talked back and forth and I had the privilege of parsing between this bit of meaningless minutia and that. Everything is meaningless.  But I humbly thank James Brown III for his time anyway. An exemplary musician with the coolest name I've ever heard.


•  †  •

Before we dive into the vast ether that is your music and massage through the fascia of this sound and that, let’s wade through a few icebreakers. What music out there currently has it’s hooks in you and what is it particularly about it that is appealing to you?


Horus) I’m constantly checking out new music. For black metal I really like some of the bands coming out of the Korpsånd Circle in Denmark. Ærekær is fucking fantastic, a really magical blend of dungeon synth and raw black metal. Grifla da la Secta is great too, and I like Jordslået. I also love this band Pa Vesh En from Belarus, it crosses between the later-era Velvet Cacoon / Clair Cassis and the raw hypnotic style of Black Cilice or Candelabrum from Portugal.

Outside of metal I listen to a lot of dreampop and indie pop music. My favorites are No Joy, Tamaryn, Ariel Pink, Barlow, The Cleaners From Venus, Matt Berry, Dum Dum Girls, lots and lots more.

I guess I just think about what draws me to like a band...I seem to always search for some type of beauty in the music-whether it’s pretty and uplifting, or a sad beauty, or even a malevolent beauty. And I find beauty in lo-fi music. The hiss and gritty textures can add emotive power to the atmosphere. It’s all about the atmosphere. I want to drown the world in reverb.


Hahaha drown the world in reverb, nice. You being into the Korpsånd Circle sound makes total sense, I think those interests clearly shine through in your sound, but did you ever go deeper into the dungeon synth side of things?

I can see how influences of dreampop and indie pop have seeped into your music as well, especially in the warmer flourishes of Moonknight or Vorpal Sword. Did you ever fall into John Maus’ work? He's collaborated often with Ariel Pink, especially on his 2006 debut ‘Songs’ (something I’m currently over playing). Finally, What’s your take on Darkthrone’s latest album ‘Old Star'?



Horus) Hmm dungeon synth as a whole hasn’t fully grabbed me, I love Old Tower and Stefan Traunmüller’s ambient work from the 90’s but I don’t return to the style too often, I need to be in a certain mood.

Oh yeah, shoegaze and dreampop have always influenced me. Really the first Moonknight album Toplov, it’s all there, I was trying to blend shoegaze pop and raw black metal. That album is almost a thesis statement for everything I’ve done since then. The seeds of Vorpal Sword are also in Toplov.
I don’t know John Maus, I will have to look him up! Yeah after listening to Ariel Pink I’ve become a fan of many of his collaborators too. This guy Jorge Elbrecht plays in his live band but is also a solo artist and prolific engineer/mixer, everything he touches is gold. He recently released a shoegaze black metal album under the name Coral Cross, it’s great!

Oh man I love the new Darkthrone, which is not too surprising, I’ve really enjoyed the direction they’ve been going in. I think the new album is a little heavier and doomier than the last one, and the songs are simpler too. Fenriz just locks onto these simple and monotonous drum patterns. The riffs are lean, with no-frills and the songs just pummel you.


Likewise, the direction since 'F.O.A.D.' has really done it for me. Would you say both Fenriz and Nocturno’s extensive understanding of music new and old, across all genres can be attributed to how well the two of them can execute a song? * I like to think there's some accounting for taste.

When you’re writing new material,  do you ever take into account the elitism within purist black metal and try not to deviate too far from that path or do you always do what you want with no second guessing?


Horus) Regarding Darkthrone, I think their vast knowledge of music informs them a lot. I come up with a riff sometimes and I have no idea where it came from, or what the hell I was listening too. I get the sense that with Darkthrone there are no accidents, those guys know exactly what they want and their tastes can get really specific.

Wow that last question is a big one for me. The truth is I am constantly wrestling between doing what I want musically and then worrying what other people will think of it. I have a whole batch of Vorpal Sword songs that got cut because I was afraid they went too far in the pretty/dreampop direction and I freaked myself out. I’ve recorded entire albums and then shelved them for years, I have a vast archive. I’m coming around these days and trying to have courage, I want to get some of this stuff out there cause I believe it’s really good… But yeah, releasing music is terrifying hahaha.


I agree about Darkthrone, they seem to exist and operate in a musical realm of their own, and they almost can’t fuck up. On that note, what's your favourite Darkthrone album, song and album cover?


Horus) Man, this question sent me into a frenzy of revisiting all the old Darkthrone albums and artwork haha. Favorite album would have to be Under a Funeral Moon with Panzerfaust a close second. Those early albums can’t be beat. The artwork too, the high-contrast black & white, classic. But I always thought the original art for Total Death was great too, that sci-fi landscape sticks out from all their other cover art.



This segues into my next question. Across all of the music you release, there seems to be more than just a modicum of thought on the layout design and artwork itself, where does all of that come from?


Horus) I’ve always done my own layouts and most of the art. One of my best friends in Louisville, Kentucky is this artist William David Pollard, he’s been my regular Moonknight cover artist since Ligeia. He  and his partner Eric Rakutt started Ghost Cat Studio here and they are always throwing art shows and local events. 

Anyways yeah, I learned how to use Photoshop pretty much so I could do my own layouts. I really enjoy it, it’s another part of the creative process for me. All my life whenever I got a new cassette, CD or LP I always studied the art and layout, looking at all the pictures, reading all the credits and lyrics etc, so yeah that’s an important part of it for me.


Going back to what we were saying before, about the vulnerability of putting your music out there and it being terrifying is a fair point. Whenever you put anything out there it's wide open for critique, but I’m thinking you should find a way to release those unreleased songs.


Horus) I am actually working on a lot of archival music now, starting with my old shoegaze project PRAY FOR SNOW. I have a “lost” album of neofolk/dreampop songs called “Inheliopic”, I just finished mixing and mastering it after it had sat on a shelf for nearly 12 years. There is a TON of unreleased Moonknight material too, and I’ve got a batch of that in the pipeline. As for VORPAL SWORD, I will either eventually gather up the balls to release the really pretty stuff or I will come up with another name for it, I dunno yet, haha.


I’m trying to wrap my head around what a mix of neofolk and dreampop would sound like - good I imagine - any band recommendations there? I'm equally trying to wrap my head around how you manage to be so prolific… What's the secret sauce of productivity, Horus?



Horus) Soon I’ll be sending you a DL code for that PRAY FOR SNOWInheliopic” album. I don’t exactly combine neofolk and dreampop on it; it’s more like there are some neofolk songs and some shoegazey electronica songs. I’m imagining myself what neofolk and dreampop combined sounds like. There is a band I can point to as a reference - KEY from Finland, it’s a side project of one of the Circle of Ouroboros guys. Gothic folky songs, almost a medieval vibe, with these snappy beats and a hazy, lo-fi production. It crosses into 60’s psychedelic pop for me. There are two albums of really wonderful and catchy songs, they have been on my regular rotation.


There was a piece of advice I read from an artist somewhere, he said, when it comes to your art, "you have to immerse yourself to the point that it hurts you to be away from it." I definitely go through spells, but when I’m really excited about working on music it’s all I can think about. And if I’m going to work, or out with friends, or shopping or whatever, in the back of my mind I’m editing song arrangements, or coming up with song titles, and thinking about what I’m going to work on when I get  home. But also I work very fast. I have my writing and recording process streamlined, it’s very efficient.


Haha that quote sounds like something Bukowski would say, only with a less fatalistic tongue.  What things non-musically would you say inform and inspire your sound?


Horus) I draw inspiration from all sorts of places, I have a wide range of interests. I’m always borrowing titles for songs or lyrics from somewhere.


What releases specifically out in 2019 (and within the walls of metal) had your full attention? Any unequivocal end of year favourites? Also, anything on the horizon for Harassor?


Horus) Man, I had to go back and review the last 6 months of releases to see what stood out to me. There have been a lot of good ones and I don’t even cast as wide of a net these days. In no particular order:

Vaal - Ondood Rehearsal
Golden Ashes - Gold Are the Ashes of the Restorer
Ærekær - Avindskjold
Pa Vesh En - Cryptic Rites of Necromancy 
Psychotomimetic - Delirio Dimensional
Mork - Det Svarte Juv 
Wishfield - Wishfield
Måneskygge - Untitled MMXIX
Sadness - Circle of Veins
Phobonoid - La Caduta di Phobos
Coral Cross - 002
Trübsal - Verfehlte Entsagung



Harassor is on an “extended hiatus” of sorts as I left Los Angeles last fall and moved back to my hometown of Louisville, Kentucky. The other two guys Sandor and Pete are still in LA. So that has slowed us down but there are still a few unreleased songs kicking around, and I wouldn’t rule out the possibility of playing live again in the future. 
Sandor is very active these days with his solo project Andorkappen, he plays out a lot and is always recording new material. Pete has a new doom band called Qaalm, they just released their first demo and started playing live, it’s pretty exciting stuff.


Damn, that’s a big list of names I’m unfamiliar with. I thought Ærekær, Mork, Pa Vesh En and Coral Cross were great though! You familiar at all with Void Eater from Norway? Real ugly stuff.

Ahh right on, so it’s a matter of proximity. Unfortunate for everyone but it happens. Is Living in LA on your radar again or are you happy not to uproot out of Kentucky?


Horus) I haven’t heard Void Eater! I’ll have to look them up.
I miss Los Angeles a lot, I have really great friends there and it’s an epicenter for all sorts of art, culture and food. But I was perpetually frustrated with the crowds and traffic. Being back in Kentucky is a big change. Louisville has grown as a city and there’s a lot more going on here than I remember. I was away for 17 years and enough has changed that it feels new again. My family is here and it’s good to be with them now.


•  Ω  •

We'll end it all there, thanks for engaging, and equal thanks to anyone reading. 

"I'm currently going through a prolific phase" - Horus, aka James Brown III

I hope to enter into my prolific phase real soon, with more of these to come in the future, if the future ever gets here. Stay heavy, brothers and sisters.

Moonknight (bandcamp) * The new EP 'Discernment' was one of my favourites last year
Vorpal Sword (bandcamp)
Pray For Snow (bandcamp)
Harassor (bandcamp)