Antediluvian
In what has been a rough year for deaths in the metal community, this monthโs edition of Columnicus Metallicus comes to you as weโre still reeling from the death of legendary <a href=โ https://troubleofficial.bandcamp.com/album/psalm-9โ target=โoutโ> Trouble vocalist Eric Wagner, who passed away at the age of 62 on August 22.
Itโs hard to overstate just how important Wagner was to the development of doom metal. There was always something unique about Trouble, even amongst their peers in the โbig fourโ of post-Sabbath doom pioneers. While Pentagram seemingly acted as the missing link between classic rock and doom metal, Saint Vitus brought bags of snotty punk attitude that would prove to be a huge influence on sludge metal, and Candlemass had their own dramatic, theatrical take on the genre, Troubleโs music was arguably the most unabashedly metal of the lot, a direct fusion of Sabbathโs lumbering misery with Judas Priestโs soaring, foot-on-the monitor bombast.
Their first two records, 1984โs Psalm 9 and 1985โs The Skull, are absolutely essential for anyone with even a passing interest in the history of doom metal, and still sound phenomenally heavy to this day. Wagnerโs voice was a huge part of this, excelling at both glass-shattering falsetto and a lower, gloomier and far more vulnerable tone that really lends these albums a unique emotional pull. Itโs remarkable how consistent he was too; after 1987โs equally doomy (and equally awesome) Run To The Light, Trouble embraced a more accessible hard rock sound for their Rick Rubin produced Def Jam debut, 1990โs Trouble, showing off Wagnerโs range whilst still managing to retain that forlorn, doomed atmosphere.
1992โs Manic Frustration is even better to my ears, with proto-stoner rock bangers like โCome Touch The Skyโ sitting comfortably next to whimsical Beatles-esque psychedelia like โRainโ and โHello Strawberry Skiesโ. Whilst Wagner left Trouble in 2008, he still kept flying the flag for true doom; his band The Skull, also featuring ex-Trouble bassist Ron Holzner, released their second album The Endless Road Turns Dark as recently as 2018, a rich, weathered slice of authentic doom metal aged like a fine wine. If youโve been meaning to delve into the manโs back catalogue, now would definitely be a good time.
As we continue hurtling into the latter half of 2021, the release schedule for new records doesnโt seem to be slowing at all. The new full-length from justifiably hyped US black metal solo outfit <a href=โ https://lampofmurmuur.bandcamp.com/โ target=โoutโ>Lamp Of Murmuur still doesnโt have a finalised release date but is supposedly due any day now. The UK underground is still in rude health, with new releases from abrasive grinders <a href=โ https://humancull.bandcamp.com/album/to-weep-for-unconquered-worldsโ target=โoutโ>Human Cull, progressive death metallers <a href=โ https://beyondgrace.bandcamp.com/album/our-kingdom-undoneโ target=โoutโ>Beyond Grace and gruesome death/doom act <a href=โ https://slimelord.bandcamp.com/album/moss-contaminationโ target=โoutโ>Slimelord all due within the next couple of weeks too.
If that wasnโt enough, London doom legends Slabdragger are releasing their first new material since 2016โs Rise Of The Dawncrusher at the end of this month too, on <a href=โ https://sludgelordrecords.bandcamp.com/album/4-way-splitโ target=โoutโ>a four-way split with Brighton noise-mongers Wallowing and New York grindcore acts Thin and Vixen Maw. Thereโs plenty to be getting on with in the meantime however, including this brand new Carcass album that has finally seen the light of the dayโฆ
Carcass – Torn Arteries
(Nuclear Blast)
Itโs hard to believe itโs been a full eight years since Carcass released their storming comeback album Surgical Steel. The wait for this follow-up record was made even longer by the pandemic, with the band opting to delay the release until they were able to tour, tiding us over with the enjoyable but scattershot Despicable EP last year instead. As fun as that EP was, thankfully Torn Arteries is a much more coherent and complete package, building on the Surgical Steel sound in a number of interesting ways. If Surgical Steel felt like a return to that crisp, fast Necroticism era sound, then Torn Arteries feels more in tune with the more spacious, melodic sound of Heartwork with mid-paced songs like โEleanor Rigor Mortisโ allowing more breathing room for guitarist Bill Steer to really let rip with some righteous lead work and those soaring, triumphant guitar harmonies that have become the bandโs trademark. There are still plenty of fast-paced bangers here too, with tracks like โKellyโs Meat Emporiumโ, โUnder The Scalpel Bladeโ and the title track feeling like classic Carcass cuts through and through.
Thatโs not to say Torn Arteries is a simple re-tread of former glories though, as there are definitely moments here where the band reach out of their comfort zone. The ten minute centrepiece โFlesh Ripping Sonic Torment Limitedโ is probably the biggest surprise, a sprawling Mercyful Fate style epic with numerous different sections including a sombre clean passage in the middle featuring some of Steerโs most emotive and melancholic soling yet. They manage to pull it off though, and the song doesnโt feel out of place at all surrounded by more traditional Carcass rippers. โThe Devil Rides Outโ, on the other hand, is a galloping, classic metal workout, eschewing the bandโs usual gory or socio-political subject matter to explore more satanic themes โ albeit flavoured with bassist/vocalist Jeff Walkerโs usual sardonic sarcasm, of course. Torn Arteries may not be as ground-breaking as the bandโs early records, but itโs still a fine Carcass album in its own right โ itโs nice to hear them trying new things and continuing to challenge themselves whilst also busting out that classic sound we all know and love.
The Body & Big Brave – Leaving None But Small Birds
(Thrill Jockey)
The pandemic may have slowed Carcass down, but both The Body and Big Brave have been as prolific as ever; this collaboration is each bandโs second full-length outing this year, following Iโve Seen All I Need To See and Vital respectively. In stark contrast to the deafening sound of Big Braveโs latest or the industrial misery of The Bodyโs last one, Leaving None But Small Birds is a bright, joyous and gentle folk record, with Big Braveโs Robin Wattie really demonstrating what a diverse, emotive and distinctive vocalist she is on tracks like the classic rock tinged โOh Sinnerโ or the fragile โBlack Is The Colourโ.
Whilst The Body guitarist Chip Kingโs piercing shriek is absent for the duration, this definitely feels like a collaborative album rather than just Big Brave with The Body backing them up. The way Chipโs thick, menacing guitar tone subtly fades in as gorgeous, summery opener โBlackest Crowโ draws to a close is very effective, and foreshadows how much their sound will creep in by the end of the record. โPolly Gosfordโ, for example, is one of the doomiest tracks here, with the stark, ritualistic percussion and Wattieโs dramatic, passionate vocals making it sound uncannily like early Jex Thoth. Although Leaving None But Small Birds is notably more upbeat and elated than either bandโs usual output, thereโs still a palpable darkness beating at its core, with the anxious, wounded Carla Bozulich-esque โHard Timesโ perfectly encapsulating the sense of emotional burnout Iโm sure all of us are feeling as we emerge from the toil of last year. In that sense, this album is just as heavy as youโd expect from these two, albeit whilst showing off an entirely new side of each band.
Succumb – XXI
(The Flenser)
This Californian quartetโs self-titled 2017 debut is still one of the most unique, abrasive and fascinating death metal records of the 2010s, and this follow-up doesnโt drop the ball whatsoever. The lightspeed, grinding insanity of โLilimโ leading straight into the sinister Portal-esque claustrophobia of โMaenadโ is one hell of a way to open the record, immediately demonstrating how much more lethal the bandโs faster sections have become and how much creepier and more uncomfortable their slower passages are now too. At just over half an hour, the intensity of those first two-tracks doesnโt dissipate at all for the duration of XXI. The churning six-minute โSmokeโ is a great example of how adept Succumb are at maintaining that tension, juggling dizzying stop-start grindcore phrases with dense, dark death metal and sustained, rolling tremolo riffs that feel like having your skin slowly peeled off.
Vocalist Cheri Musrasrikโs eerie, disembodied wail really helped Succumbโs debut stand out, and although she adopts a slightly different approach here, sheโs no less distinctive. Whilst her vocals on the debut felt spectral and distant, for the most part theyโre much more upfront and feel much more human โ thereโs a dry, hoarse and anguished quality to her voice in tracks like the blistering โOkeanosโ that sounds a bit like Pig Destroyerโs J.R. Hayes at times. On the twisted, disorientating war metal of โGraalโ her voice sits back in the mix a bit more but with stunning effect, sounding like a chorus of distant howls echoing through from another dimension. This is pretty much everything I wanted from a new Succumb album, and itโs further proof that this is one of the most unique, uncompromising extreme metal bands to have emerged in recent years.
Employed To Serve – Conquering
(Spinefarm)
Employed To Serveโs meteoric rise from drum machine-backed grindcore duo to Kerrang! cover stars has been a joy to watch, with the now-quintet dropping new records like clockwork every two years and demonstrating significant musical growth on each one. Conquering may be their most consciously metallic offering yet, moving away from the more hardcore sound of records like The Warmth Of A Dying Sun to embrace a denser, contemporary metal sound. Their hardcore roots are still readily apparent, especially in the pounding tom grooves and aggressive gang vocals on tracks like โExistโ or thunderous crowd-pleaser โWe Donโt Need Youโ, but thereโs a bombastic, widescreen heaviness to opener โUniversal Chokeholdโ, as well as a much more overt melodic flavour too. Itโs hardly surprising the band have been picked to support Gojira on their upcoming UK arena tour, although if the likes of incendiary, blast-addled ragers like โThe Mistakeโ are anything to go by, theyโre likely to blow the French quartet off stage.
Thereโs definitely a more accessible feel to this album, but thankfully never at the expense of the bandโs trademark intensity. Tracks like โTwist The Bladeโ boast big, bold, radio-friendly hooks, but also some seriously intricate, technical riffing too, whilst โSet In Stoneโ peppers frantic hardcore battery with warm, curiously upbeat melodies and โMark Of The Graveโ delivers all the swaggering bravado of 90s groove metal without the genreโs off-putting knuckle-headed machismo. Conquering isnโt quite as immediate or visceral as The Warmth Of A Dying Sun or Eternal Forward Motion, but thereโs a real sense of weight and grandiosity here โ check out the way that humongous, neck-snapping groove in โSun Up To Sun Downโ is augmented and broadened out by layers of eerie, almost Eastern sounding guitar swells for example. Itโs as if Employed To Serveโs sound is expanding in size at the same rate as the venues theyโre playing, with the lavish, full-bodied sound here custom-built to bounce off arena rafters. If this is the album that finally makes them a household name, itโll be well deserved.
Skepticism – Companion
(Svart Records)
Whilst Finnish funeral doom pioneers Skepticism graced us with new material on their sprawling 2015 live record Ordeal, this is the bandโs first studio album since 2008โs Alloy, and, as the name implies, itโs a much less bleak and foreboding affair than some of their previous work. This is still Skepticism weโre talking about, so if youโre looking for good time party vibes, youโre definitely in the wrong place, but thereโs a warmth and sense of compassion here thatโs a million miles away from the oppressive gloom of their classic debut Stormcrowfleet. Take โCallaโ, an oddly jubilant opener that gives keyboardist Eero Pรถyry centre stage whilst moving at a pace more akin to Paradise Lost than the leaden crawl of peers like Thergothon, for instance. โPassageโ, whilst darker in tone, is even faster, delivering sinister tremolo licks and huge chugging grooves topped off with one of frontman Matti Tilaeusโ most aggressive performances in years.
โThe Intertwinedโ slows things down a bit more but still feels uncharacteristically driving for the band, with the optimistic keys in its latter half lending it an eerie, otherworldly beauty. The ten minute โThe March Of The Fourโ is easily the most funereal offering here and is mostly exactly what youโd expect from Skepticism, but even then the rich, emotive swells and spiralling riffs that punctuate itโs soaring, emotive finale feel much less bleak than their usual fare. Companion may not be able to touch Skepticism at their peak and may sound too clean and joyous for doom heads of a more despondent persuasion, but itโs still a strong addition to the bandโs discography and itโs nice to hear them continuing to push themselves and expand their sound. If their previous albums felt like attending a funeral, this is like receiving a heartfelt hug from a friend you havenโt seen in years at the wake.
Waldgeflรผster – Dahoam
(AOP Productions)
This German black metal outfit has been going from strength to strength over the past few years. Originally a solo project, multi-instrumentalist Winterherz recruited a full band shortly after the release of 2014โs breakthrough Meine Fesseln and went on to deliver two dense, hour-long epics with 2016โs Ruinen and 2019โs Mondscheinsonaten. Dahoam is a good ten minutes shorter than either of those records but no less vast in scope, streamlining the bandโs yearning, windswept sound into an efficient and immediate package. The record is predominately based around three sprawling ten-minute epics interspersed with several shorter atmospheric segue tracks โ which may not sound like much on paper, but the whole thing flows so organically it feels like much more than the sum of its parts.
The wistful, Agalloch-ian beauty of โIm Ebersberger Forstโ really showcases how much stronger and more emotive Winterherzโs soaring clean vocals have become, and glides seamlessly into the portentous acoustics of โAm Stoaโ, a dead-ringer for Kveldssanger era Ulver. Dahoam isnโt all as morose, however, with โAm Tatzlwurmโ delivering some of the albumโs most ferocious and vitriolic black metal riffing, making its curiously sparse, emotive mid-section and suitably grandiose final coda hit even harder by contrast. A loose concept album exploring the idea of belonging, identity and what it means to call a place โhomeโ, thereโs an even more introspective air here than usual, which really pays off โ especially on its sombre, folky apex, the melancholy โMim Blick Aufn Kaiserโ, featuring guest vocals from Panopticonโs Austin Lunn.
Antediluvian – The Divine Punishment
(Nuclear War Now!)
If you like your black metal weirder and less brooding however, this new Antediluvian is easily one of the most โout thereโ metal releases Iโve heard this year. Arriving a full eight years after their second album ฮปฯฮณฮฟฯ, The Divine Punishment is a much more experimental record, tearing apart their murky, Teitanblood-esque black/death sound and layering it up with field recordings, unnerving ambience and psychedelic freak-outs to create a genuinely disorientating experience that raises more questions than it answers. Why does โObscene Pornography Manifests In The Divine Universal Consciousnessโ sound like a Beherit track with the guitars, drums and vocals all playing at different speeds? Why does it only take a minute and a half for โGuardians Of The Liminalโs cavernous death metal riffs to derail and unfold into the sort of noisy but oddly beautiful avant-folk cacophony you might find on an Amps For Christ LP? Why does โHow The Watchers Granted The Humans Sex Magick In The Primordial Aeonโ contain what sounds like the vocal from a Killing Joke chorus played through a malfunctioning loud-speaker from a couple of rooms away? Why does the kick-drum on the frantic โAll Along The Sigils Deepโ sound like a horse slapping a man repeatedly in the face? And more importantly, why does it all work so well?
The Divine Punishment will probably be a hard sell even for hardened black/death addicts, but it feels like an authentically visionary record in a sub-sub-genre that has been bereft of them for a while. There are plenty of bands ripping off the likes Portal to create harrowing, claustrophobic metal releases that are great in their own right, but few of them are daring enough to push that sound beyond the veil of their influences and into truly uncharted terrain. Even at its most straightforwardly gnarly (like abrasive nine minute closer โWinged Ascent Unto The Twelve Runed Solar Anusโ), thereโs a deranged, otherworldly quality to this album that recalls the free-form improv madness of the sorely missed Chaos Echลs, but delivered with an unflinching focus and manic intent โ thereโs most definitely method behind this madness, even if that method is utterly incomprehensible to our puny human minds. If youโve got the fortitude for some truly brain-mangling extreme metal, this is one wild ride.
Serpent Column – Katartisis
(Mystรญskaos)
Still hungry for more oddball avant-black metal? US solo project Serpent Column has got you covered, continuing their pattern of following up a great album with a great EP with Katartisis arriving almost exactly a year after their last full-length Kathodos. Whilst that album was characterised by longer, more elaborate pieces, itโs remarkable how well Serpent Column adapts to shorter structures, with almost half of the songs here sitting around the minute mark. Despite this, the EP flows really nicely, and all these tracks feel very much like fully fledged songs in their own right โ sort of like Krallice riffs twisted into Minutemnen structures. โDereliction IIโ, for instance, veers violently between rollicking thrash and proggy, dissonant riffs, whilst the 52 second long โSubductionโ sounds permanently on the cusp of collapse (in the best possible way), as raucous punk riffs suddenly overturn and are sent careening off into a deep, black void.
The longer tracks here are just as satisfying too; โDisobedienceโ conjures up a hissing, acidic wall of blackened noise before transitioning into the kind of wonky prog death groove youโd expect from an Artificial Brain record, and the six minute โEdelweissโ delivers some of the EPโs most mournful melodies, the harsh, cold buzz of the guitars complimented nicely by the warm, throbbing bass tone underneath. In just 24 minutes, Katartisis manages to squeeze in more inventive ideas than most of 2021โs black metal full-lengths.
Replicant – Malignant Reality
(Transcending Obscurity)
After reaching a wider audience on last yearโs impressive Chasm Of Aeons split alongside Cryptic Shift, Inoculation and Astral Tomb, this New Jersey trio have been the last of the bunch to follow up with a new release, but this second album was worth the wait. Despite their moniker, Replicant are far from another clone band, combining head-spinning technical death metal with a similarly maniacal bounce to Demilich and a subtle but effective hardcore flavour that helps them stand out from the pack (and makes me think this stuff would be absolutely devastating live). โCaverns Of Insipid Reflectionโ is a great opener, pairing fiddly tech-death riffs with neck-snapping hardcore grooves before abruptly breaking into layers of dreamy, reverb swamped clean guitar. โDeath Curseโ also dips itโs toes into more ominous, atmospheric passages, with wobbly Primus style basslines rubbing up against pummelling death/doom riffs, whilst the twisting โRabid Futureโ hints at the same warped psychedelia that Blood Incantation mined on their latest full-length.
Not every song here is as elaborate โ tracks like โRelinquish The Selfโ and โExcess Wombโ are more concerned with obliterating your ear drums as swiftly as possible, with vocalist Michael Gonรงalves alternating between guttural roars, a harsher, drier bark and a wailing, tortured shriek that really compliments the bandโs tense, uncomfortable sound. โChassis Of Deceitโ wields some of the recordโs burliest, most crushing grooves, but eight minute closer โThe Ubiquity Of Timeโ is the real stand-out. Featuring spoken word from Tombsโ Mike Hill and violin from Windfaererโs Ben Karas, itโs one of the most ambitious pieces Replicant have put together so far, and a great way to finish off such an imaginative and incendiary death metal record.
Big Lad – Power Tools
(Hominid Sounds)
Lastly, Big Lad are finally back with the follow-up to 2018โs Pro Rock. Not that Wayne Adams has been slacking off of course; his projects in the interim like Petbrick or Wasted Death (who I covered just last month in this very column) were all great, but thereโs something about the chemistry between him and Big Lad drummer Henri Grimes that is just absolute magic, especially in a live setting. Power Tools might just be the most accurate representation of that live energy theyโve captured yet, and certainly features some of their most high-octane, punishing material. Opener โBig Juggernaut Rave Partyโ kicks off in full-on abrasive Drumcorps style, with Adamsโ synths distorted to the point they sound like guitars and Grimesโ kinetic drumming lending the whole a thoroughly punky energy, The pounding โPrince On Crackโ, meanwhile, knocks their usual breakcore sound down to a threatening, jittery stomp, with infectious results, whilst the sickening crunch of โSelf Care Is Cancelledโs speaking blower synths colliding with Grimesโ furious percussion is insanely satisfying.
Despite this, Power Tools still manages to make room for some of the duoโs calmest moments to date. โGary The Singerโ is like one of those bite-sized chunks of haunted ambience that break up Burial records, whilst the luscious but despondent pads and anxious percussion of โBenny Was My Friendโ sound a lot like the more sombre moments on Venetian Snaresโ Cavalcade Of Glee And Dadaist Happy Hardcore Pom Poms, albeit with an unexpectedly massive hard rock ending. Even during these more reserved moments though, thereโs a starker, harsher vibe to Power Tools than the glossier, happier sound of Pro Rock, and it wears it well. This is music to get absolutely annihilated to in small, sweat-drenched venues and I cannot wait to witness it firsthand.
