Norway’s Manes have finally called it quits for good according to their official blog. Fortunately they’ve also left us with tons of musical ideas and unfinished tracks which should keep fans busy for quite awhile. Included is a rough version of the Be All End All album which never actually got released.

I’m a little late to the party with these guys, having only just recently picked up a copy of Vilosophe, but I’m still bummed out that we won’t be seeing any more official Manes releases. The band’s avant garde metal approach is starting to see more and more imitators in today’s scene, but none have been quite up to the same level as Manes’s concoctions on albums like Vilosophe and View. Very cool and classy of these guys to give the fans some last pseudo-releases to chew on.

» Manes Official Blog

So far in 2011 there seem to be an unusual number of interesting album reissues and re-recordings, including some old favorites of mine. Here’s a rundown of what’s been getting released lately:

French black metal entity Blut Aus Nord has been stirring back to life lately, gearing up to releasing their new full-length 777 - Sect(s) in a few weeks. They are also reissuing an augmented version of their second album, 2001’s Mystical Beast of Rebellion:

“French black metal label Debemur Morti Productions’ reissue of the BLUT AUS NORD classic The Mystical Beast of Rebellion is now available in North America. Debemur Morti is now taking orders for the 2xCD version of this black metal masterpiece, the second disc of which features brand new material, “The Fall (Chapters 7, 7 & 7).” A new T-shirt design is available as well.”

US metal heavyweights Neurosis are also re-releasing their second album Souls at Zero, their second recent reissue after last year’s updated version of Enemy Of The Sun. Souls at Zero showcases a rawer, somewhat less experimental version of the band, but the brutality of the riffing is no less oppressive.

“Neurot Recordings is proud to reissue this perpetual flame of a release while celebrating the band’s 25 years of brilliance. With demo version additions of ‘Zero’ and the title track along with a bonus live cut ‘Cleanse III’, this updated release is the perfect portal to witness the development of underground music’s titan force. Artwork by the revered Josh Graham completes an awesome package worthy of timeless worship, which Neurot will officially release on February 15th, 2011.”

The success of Lantlôs’s latest album should have new fans scrambling to get ahold of their self-titled first release, and fortunately Prophecy is putting together a new edition to make that task a lot easier. From Prophecy:

“The album will be released in a high-quality Super Jewelcase and is supplemented by a bonus CD with seven tracks, featuring the sought-after demo “Îsern Himel”, two previously unreleased demo recordings of “Kalte Tage” (instrumental) and “Þinaz Andawlitjam” as well as another unreleased track with “Farbensturm”. The enhanced booklet not only contains the lyrics, but also extensive liner notes by Herbst on the album’s creation as well as previously unreleased band photos. “

German black metal band Eïs (formerly Geïst) released updated versions of their first two albums earlier this year, and the reissues sound pretty sweet. Their debut Patina was mellower and more atmospheric, while follow-up Kainsmal is faster and more energetic and should sound familiar to fans of the band’s 2009 release Galeere. Some details from Prophecy:

The first two albums by Eïs (formerly known as Geïst), “Patina” (2005) and “Kainsmal” (2006), are now available again! These clearly improved re-releases are coming in Super Jewelcases, each containing an optimised version of the album (newly recorded guitar tracks, a new mix and new mastering) as well as the original version on a second CD. The new version of “Kainsmal” now also includes a cover version of Carpathian Forest’s self-titled song. In addition, both albums boast new artworks as well as extensive liner notes by band leader Alboin. Both re-releases will be available in North America on February 22nd.

Southern Lord is reissuing Winter’s often-overlooked 1990 full-length Into Darkness, one of the early classics of soul-crushing doom death metal. There’s no news about additional tracks or other extras, but Winter’s bleak sound should have no problems finding new fans in today’s modern audiences. The release will be in both CD and LP formats, and comes as the now-reunited group prepares for their first live show at this year’s Roadburn festival.

Katatonia is reissuing a couple of their albums, although their selections strike me as a bit odd. The band will release new versions of Last Fair Deal Gone Down, which is probably my least favorite out of all their albums, and their last album Night Is The New Day. I’m not sure why they felt the need to re-release an album that just came out two years ago, but at least both reissues will contain several songs from the band’s singles and EPs, so that’s a nice touch. Both releases will also feature updated cover art, and will come out April 25th to help celebrate the band’s 20th anniversary.

Perhaps my favorite album among all the ones in this list, obscure progressive death metal act Lykathea Aflame’s masterpiece Elvenefris is getting a much-needed re-release by Obscene Productions. The new version will be re-mixed and remastered, and will feature two bonus tracks: a 1999 version of ‘Shine Of Consolation’ and a 2002 version of ‘To Give.’

So Metal Injection recently posted a list of 10 New Black Metal Bands You Should Care About. If you read this site frequently you can probably guess how I feel about Krallice, and most of the other bands were US bands whose work I’ve been largely unimpressed with. The only pick I really agree with is Altar Of Plagues, who fucking rule.

I do agree with the spirit of such a list, however. Here’s a list of 25 new bands I think you should care about, in no particular order:

Woods of Desolation (Australia) - This Australian group shares members with the similarly depressive Austere, cranking out incredibly bleak, emotional black metal that also includes some catchier, Alcest-like parts.

Borgia (France) - Another gem from the rich French black metal scene, Borgia plays a visceral style of black / death metal with a strong medieval feel.

Waning (Sweden) - Waning has a very modern, sterile sound but manages to fill their songs with powerful riffs, and conceptually these Swedes are much more interesting than most of their peers as well.

Fen (UK) - Melancholic, folk-influenced black metal in the vein of Agalloch, although Fen’s use of keyboards lends a certain fluidity to their music that makes it extremely addictive, especially on their newest release Epoch which came out earlier this year.

Winterfylleth (UK) - Having started with a rather basic Viking-type sound, Winterfylleth’s sound has matured rapidly, and their latest album’s mixture of driving, warlike riffing and tasteful acoustics has elevated them to the top of the genre.

Read the rest of this entry »

I figured I should post my favorites from 2010 before we get too far into 2011. It’s kind of amusing looking back at my original list of 2010 albums I was looking forward to and seeing how few actually made the list.

Here are my absolute favorites from the year:

The Body - All The Waters Of The Earth Turned To Blood
At A Loss Records
[Review]


Svart - Förlorad
Frostscald Records
[Review]

Orphaned Land - The Neverending Way of ORwarriOR
Century Media


Locrian - The Crystal World
Self-Released
[Review]


Burzum - Belus
Byelobog Productions
[Review]


Imperium Dekadenz - Procella Vadens
Season Of Mist

Other albums I really enjoyed:

Todgelichter - Angst [Review]
Blood Of Kingu - Sun In The House Of The Scorpion [Review]
Deathspell Omega - Paracletus
Various Artists: Der Wanderer über dem Nebelmeer
Whirling - Faceless Phenomena
Agalloch - Marrow Of The Spirit
Intronaut - Valley Of Smoke
Manuscripts Don’t Burn - The Breathing House [Review]
October Falls - A Collapse Of Faith [Review]
October Tide - A Thin Shell [Review]
Watain - Lawless Darkness [Review]
Winterfylleth - The Mercian Sphere [Review]
Sorgeldom - Inner Receivings [Review]

Antimatter have finally released their long-anticipated two-disc retrospective collection Alternative Matter. With tracks from all phases of the band’s career, Alternative Matter features numerous live tracks, alternative versions of several songs, and some highly sought-after recordings. The first track, ‘Black Sun’ from the Lotus Eaters Dead Can Dance tribute album, is easily one of Antimatter’s better songs and is a great reason for die-hard fans to pick up this release. Several songs from the bands debut Savior are present in various forms, and Lights Out and Planetary Confinement are both also represented reasonably well, while Leaving Eden is mostly ignored.

One shortcoming of Alternative Matter for me personally is the lack of tracks with lead female vocals - I’ve never really been sold on Moss’s voice and always have preferred the band’s earlier songs like ‘Mr White,’ and ‘Line Of Fire’ which featured their assorted female singers. So if you’re like me then that’s something to consider. For any fan of the band though, the wealth of material here should be hard to pass up, since probably most of your favorite Antimatter tracks are present on this release in some shape or form. Sometimes when you’ve listened to a band so much that your enjoyment of their songs has faded, it’s nice to have slightly different versions to help rekindle your enthusiasm.

Check out some samples from Alternative Matter:

Former member Duncan Patterson’s new project Ion also recently released their second album Immaculada last May, and fans of Antimatter’s older material that haven’t checked these guys out might want to give Immaculada a listen. It’s more ethereal and folk-based than Antimatter’s material, and while Ion features some talented female vocalists, I found myself enjoying the instrumental offerings on the album a bit more. It’s nowhere near as melancholic as Antimatter’s compositions, but texturally the two projects are not that far apart.

Check out samples from Immaculada:

Here’s another act I found recently while looking up this year’s releases. Benighted in Sodom, a US black metal band from Florida has been around for several years and had somehow escaped my attention up until now. What makes them special? Well, this duo has somehow managed to release SIX FULL LENGTH ALBUMS THIS YEAR. And that’s not even everything, they’ve also cranked out five EPs, and already have another full-length and a best-of album queued up for 2011.

It wouldn’t be quite so surprising if Benighted in Sodom flat out sucked or if their music didn’t display much in the way of talent, but that doesn’t seem to be the case. The few samples I’ve heard so far actually sound pretty good - kind of a dreamy, melodic and depressive style that reminds me a little bit of Forgotten Tomb’s older stuff, although certainly quite a bit different. And hey, if he’s releasing that many albums someone’s gotta be digging it, right?

So if you haven’t heard these guys before, definitely give them a listen. The Benighted In Sodom MySpace page contains a bunch of samples that should give you a decent idea of what they sound like. You can also check out their stuff on YouTube:
» I Believe You
» Rust

Frontman Matron Thorn aka Reuben Jordan also has a blog called The Light That Veils It Grey that’s worth a read. Apparently he doesn’t like being called DSBM.

It’s that time of year when everyone starts posting their year-end album lists, and I start frantically looking around for albums I might’ve missed out on over the course of year.

One band I’ve come across as a result is Vom Fetisch der Unbeirrtheit (The fetish of the undeterred impetus), whose first full-length Psychohygiene came out earlier this year on Chinese label Temple of Torturous. It’s already pretty clear that these guys are weird from the lengthy description of the band’s concept, and their music is suitably freakish and disturbed as well.

Psychohygiene comes as a DVD-sized digibook and includes an interesting poster as well as a lengthy booklet providing even more conceptual explanation of the band’s music, in both German and English. But by far the coolest thing about this band is that the first 100 copies of the album come with a jar of rat preparation, which is just a fancy way of saying dead rats in a jar. Fucking Awesome!

Ominous Domain, which is rapidly becoming my favorite go-to US distro for weird/obscure black metal albums, should be getting some copies of Psychogenie in stock pretty soon.

You can check out a sample track from Psychogenie at ToT’s MySpace page. Their other acts are worth checking out as well.

Though I don’t often post about local acts, lately I’ve come across a couple of Seattle-based bands that deserve some attention and seem to be doing quite well for themselves, so I thought I’d help spread the word.

SOMNAE

A friend turned me onto progressive death metal band Somnae, whose debut EP Forever More came out earlier this year. Somnae’s basic sound features well-crafted harmonics and melodic dual-guitar riffing accompanied by powerful guttural vocal delivery. One of the things you notice right away is how great the EP’s sound is, particularly for a debut. Probably a lot of the credit for that goes to the mastering job done by the legendary Dan Swanö, but it’s also clear that the members of Somnae know what they’re doing. The band will soon begin playing shows in the Seattle area, and we can probably look forward to some new material soon as well.

» Somnae @ MySpace
» Somnae.net

WESTERING

One-man black metal project Westering also released their first length Help A Body this year, and when your first album gets released by Paradigms Recordings you know you’re doing something right. Westering plays depressive, ambient black metal that’s vaguely reminiscent of bands like Velvet Cacoon or Germany’s Trist. There’s a bit of shoegaze influence as well, but it’s kept mostly in the background unlike a lot of the “black-gaze” bands out there these days. I kind of doubt that Westering will be touring any time soon, but it’s certainly nice to have an obscure ambient black metal band as part of the local scene.

» Westering @ MySpace

Portland’s Soriah is currently touring the West Coast, playing shows at various odd venues and also holding a few very exclusive workshops. I managed to catch Soriah this past week in Seattle as part of a Dia de los Muertos ceremony, and his performance was certainly one of the most amazing and mind-altering that I’ve experienced, so needless to say this tour is highly recommended. If you’re at all interested in throat singing and similar vocal techniques, you should definitely inquire about the workshops as well, since you’ll have the chance to learn from one of the art’s masters.

For those who aren’t familiar with him, Soriah is a vocalist and multi-instrumentalist whose music and performances draw influence from many different global musical traditions such as raga, shamanism, butoh, and especially Tuvan throat singing. Soriah has established himself as one of the world’s masters of this style of singing, having received several international awards including “Best Foreigner” in the 2008 Ustuu-Khooree World Music Festival in Tuva. Soriah combines these various influences into a musical experience that is deeply moving and spiritual, while demonstrating his unparalleled vocal abilities. Nothing else out there comes close to sounding like this.

SF Workshop Info:

An Introduction to Khoomei
The Ancient Art of Tuvan Throat Singing with Enrique Ugalde

Friday, November 5th from 2pm - 5pm
at 1543 Mission Street, 3rd Floor,
San Francisco, CA 94103

This workshop will offer:
An introduction to Tuvan Culture.
Instruction in the three main Tuvan throat singing styles Khoomei,
Sygyt and Kargyraa, their history and application to traditional folk songs.
Unconventional but effective ways to utilize and activate your instrument properly.

3 hours of group and one on one instruction

$60 sliding scale donation for 3 hours of instruction. Limit of 13 people.
To register, contact oshan anand: info@omshantea.com

Remaining Tour Dates:

Friday November 5th
San Francisco, CA
OHM SHAN TEA

Saturday November 6th
SHADOW DANCE FESTIVAL
Oakland, CA
The Metro

Tuesday November 9th
Santa Fe
TBA

Wednesday November 10th
Sedona, AZ
THE CHOCOLATREE

Thursday November 11th
Tucson, AZ
Solar Culture Gallery

Friday November 12th
San Diego
Tin Can Alehouse

Saturday November 13th
Hollywood, CA
Bar Sinister

Head over to Soriah.net for more details.

Unlike seemingly every other metal fan out there, I never really got into Neurosis. However, I am certainly familiar with many of today’s artists in the genre that Neurosis helped spawn: heavyweights like Intronaut, Mouth of the Architect, Isis, Pelican, The Ocean, and Mastodon all share some debt to Neurosis’s pioneering blend of hardcore and crushing doom. I finally got a taste of Oakland’s forefathers of post-metal with the re-release of 1993’s Enemy of the Sun, and I’ve gotta say that even today, most bands out there pale in comparison.

Neurosis’s own label Neurot Recordings is celebrating the band’s 25th anniversary with another reissue of their classic Enemy of the Sun, which was also reissued in 1999. Enemy of the Sun is really where Neurosis’s potent post-hardcore sound came into its own, and even among today’s slew of heavy post-metal and sludge acts, this album remains one of the most brutal and uncompromising slabs of music ever released. In a genre where new bands seem to be intent on one-upping each other in heaviness and extremity of sound, it’s a testament to Neurosis’s talent and vision that their early albums such as Enemy of the Sun still stick out as some of the most pummeling and difficult to listen to in the genre. Many of today’s bands have mastered the soft-loud-soft pattern of mixing sludgy downtuned riffing with moody acoustics, but back in ‘93 there was none of that. Enemy of the Sun doesn’t let the listener go for a second of its cataclysmic length, and Neurosis’s use of dense, tribal percussion patterns only added to the primal onslaught.

The tracklist of Enemy of the Sun 2010 is the same as the previous reissue, with the only perceivable difference being that this edition bears a completely redesigned booklet courtesy of Neurosis’s visual mastermind (and ex-Red Sparowes guitarist) Josh Graham. So if you already have the album, I’m not sure this new edition has much to offer, but if you’re like me and haven’t checked out Neurosis yet, you probably won’t find a much better place to start.

» Buy the Enemy of the Sun reissue and t-shirt from Neurot Recordings