Notes and echoes - November 23

The night unfolded in a cloak of shadows as he trudged along the dimly lit alleyways, his footsteps echoing the percussive beats of the underworld he adored. The streetlights flickered, but his eyes burned with the fire of a thousand broken sigils. His thoughts, a tempest of disdain for the feeble imitations and diluted strains that dared call themselves metal. The leather jacket, worn and adorned with patches of obscure bands, creaked in tandem with his determined pace.

Arriving home, he entered a realm that echoed his soul: a sanctuary where the air was thick with the musty scent of aged vinyl. The room, a catacomb of sonic relics, housed a dusty desk beneath a flickering bulb. With the precision of a ritualist, he carefully selected vinyl from his sacred collection, the ones that spoke the language of ugliness, of unyielding brutality. The turntable whirred to life as he lowered the needle onto the grooves, each pop and crackle a prelude to the impending sonic onslaught. 

And the needle dropped.

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• Aeon Winds - Night Sky Illuminations (2023)

Quite synth-loaded, aiming for a symphonic / atmospheric black metal template. Okay until some dull guitar solos appear here and there. Aims for epicness but only half-delivers. [3 out of 5]

• Anal Stabwound - Reality Drips into the Mouth of Indifference (2022)

Creative song writing, but all over the place. I don't feel the brutality sometimes. [3 out of 5 - Good]

• Ceremonial Bloodbath - Genesis of Malignant Entropy (2023)

You have to try a lot more if you want to sound heavy. [2 out of 5 - Below average]

• Chaotian - Effigies of Obsolescence (2022)

It's how things should be. [4 out of 5 - Excellent]

• Galvanizer - Sanguine Vigil (2019)

This band should have been found way earlier. Deathgrind worshippers dripping with the traditional sound of early Carcass, General Surgery, Sadistic Noise, all in a blender. [3.5 out of 5 - Great]

• Imprecation - In Nomine Diaboli (2022)

Ugly and brutal. Constantly improving band for the last decade. Production slightly too clean here, but it's fine. [3.5 out of 5 - Great]

• Minenwerfer - Nihilistischen (2012)

The only bad thing here is the damaged drum sound. Hostility and aggression flows through it nonetheless. Great band. [3.5 out of 5 - Great]

• Precambrian - Tectonics (2020)

Covered it when it was released, it still slams. Avanalche album from start to finish. [4.5 out of 5 - Brilliant]

• Stabbing - Extirpated Mortal Process (2022)

Plastic sound, and deplorable cover art. Some tracks are decent, and their newest demo is promising. Not this though. [2.5 out of 5 - Average]

• Ymir - Ymir (2020)

Raw-ish black metal, with some atmospheric elements. However, extremely standard and predictable. [2.5 out of 5 - Average]