the first of many...

This is active blog number three for me. I decided to create this blog because metal seems out of place on my other pages, but is an integral part of my musical taste and has grown in both breadth and depth over the years. The purpose of this blog will be to highlight bands which I feel are of high quality and/or creativity (which is totally subjective, I know). If you stumble across this page and see something you like please leave a comment or follow it...and be sure to tell your friends.

With that said, here's a shortish list of all the metal I can't stop listening to lately:

Nile - Those Whom the Gods Detest

I haven't really listened to Nile since "Annihilation of the Wicked," an album which I felt lacked the punch of "In Their Darkened Shrines" and other earlier albums. "Ithyphallic" was a step in the right direction, but still left me wondering what happened to this band that made them lose their luster. I am proud to report that "Those Whom the Gods Detest" totally makes up for the the bands last two efforts and, dare I say, has positioned itself at the top of the bands impressive catalog. What I really like about TWtGD is the bands return to an Egyptian theme. Past albums seemed to focus more on straight-forward tech death without the atmospheric quality of "In their Darkened Shrines." I also really love the vocal performances on this record and both Karl Sanders and Dallas Toller-Wade have outdone themselves. If you like technical death metal, or have liked anything Nile has released then you need to get a hold of this gem.

Marduk - Wormwood

Talk about a fucking return to form! This album totally caught me off guard. I haven't ever thought of Marduk as anything more than mediocre black metal, but I had to eat my words after hearing Wormwood. I think the reason I enjoy this album so much has to do with the addition of Mortuus (who also fronts black metal band Funeral Mist) on vocals. I love Funeral Mist's latest album "Maranatha," and I think my adoration of Mortuus's vocal style has made me a bit biased, but whatever, this album stills smokes. The mix of dark atmosphere and clever songwriting make Wormwood memorable and unique. Old fans are sure to love this, and I assume that this album will convert most haters.

Black Anvil - Time Insults the Mind

I'll be honest, I bought this album because of the praise emblazoned on the packaging...so what? and you know what else, who cares? This shit is awesome. "Time Insults the Mind" is a really interesting combination of old school black metal and sludge/doom (think Darkthrone meets Black Sabbath). I really love the guitars on this album, which provide a healthy mixture of technical proficiency and straight up power chord metal. Paul Delaney's vocals aren't setting new standards by any means, but they do fit perfectly with the music and his cadence compliments the song structures well. This record is just plain fun, and anyone looking for some new development in the world of black metal should give this a shot.

Burnt by the Sun - Heart of Darkness

OH FUCK YES! I've been waiting for this album to drop for 6 years, and I'm happy as hell with what this killer band has presented to the masses. When I was younger (18/19) I really had trouble appreciating a lot of math metal bands like Dillinger Escape Plan and The End(their early stuff anyway), but this band showed me that math metal can be pretty badass. There are some noticeable difference between "Heart of Darkness" and the band's last album, 2003's "The Perfect is the Enemy of the Good," and the most obvious is the attention given to big, punishing grooves. I always wished this band would slow down a little and explore melody and hooks, and 6 years later they made my dreams come true. This album kills from beginning to end, so go get it.

Ahab - The Call of the Wretched Sea

I love doom metal. I love it slow and crusty and brutal, and Ahab is all of those things. "The Call of the Wretched Sea" is a beast of an album, with 7 songs clocking in at over an hour, but it never drags. Every song flows beautifully into the next, and I find more to love every time I listen to this. The vocals are guttural and buried in the mix a little bit, which makes this album feel quite epic. There are some bands who are playing up the whole Moby Dick thing (like Mastodon), but this never crosses the line into cheesy metal territory. I know this came out in 2006, but I'm just now getting into this band. I will post a review of their latest album later. For those of you who like doom or think you like doom, you owe it to yourself to check this out.

That covers it for now. Stay tuned for more reviews, etc...

xoxo
Beardo