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Sourvein - Ghetto Angel (This Dark Reign)
Three years after their last solo release, the hugely overhauled North Carolina-based Sourvein have dropped another EP of raw, unrelenting sludge. Don’t expect much new territory to be covered on the four short songs here, but there is more than enough of the down-tuned, southern-fried grit that is to be expected of a band who has housed members of bands like Buzzoven, Eyehategod, and Electric Wizard to make this one worth a listen.


Menace Ruine - Cult of Ruins (Alien8)
Almost immediately after releasing an amazing limited cassette on the always-worthwhile Tour de Garde, the two mysterious Canadians who compose Menace Ruine have dropped a full-length that is certain to be one of finest atmospheric black metal albums of the year. Combining the most caustic elements of noise, drone, and electronic deconstruction into a swirling, undulating mass of psychedelic controlled chaos at its finest, the duo single-handedly breathe new life into a genre that can stale quickly. Each track takes a slightly different path, but they all lead to a dreary realm where broken synths and breakneck riffs rumble on in near perfect dissonance.


Harvist - Wolfskin Clad (Stronghold)
Following two well-received albums and a handful of EPs (including last year’s fantastic Lovecraft tribute) and a star-making turn on the oft-lauded ‘Destroyers From the Western Skies’ compilation, Harvist returns with another stellar offering of raw, melancholic Appalachian black metal. Dusk’s disparaging shrieks and howls are the perfect complement to the cold, rough production and are impeccably suited to both the blazing speed of the faster tracks (“The Lycan Draws Nigh” and “Hidden In the Woods…”) and the creeping flow of the dirge-like “Farewell to the Old Forest,” which also features well-conceived flashes of female vocals, banjo, and acoustic guitar. Add a refined sense of folk melody to the mix, and the result is another gloomy masterpiece on par with the best American black metal.


Gnaw Their Tongues - Dawn Breaks Open Like a Wound that Bleeds Afresh (Universal Tongue)
Uncompromising, raw, and brutally noisy, the critically acclaimed Gnaw Their Tongues’ latest is a pummeling three-track affair, once again proving that all of the hype surrounding this upstart is well justified. Twisted, inhuman snarls and distorted, repetitious riffs go toe to toe with sweeping, grandiose synth work, combining to yield one of the most original takes on black noise heard in years and a piece of heartbreaking beauty and devastating cruelty.


Beatrik - Journey Through the End of Life (ATMF)
Originally released in the winter of 2002, the debut album from Italian black metal duo, Beatrik, is once again available, this time in a gorgeous digibook format befitting this majestic contemporary masterpiece. The music is cold and calculated as ever, bringing to mind bleak, dreary landscapes and hopeless depression as the mid-paced, melodic tracks march ever onward. A major doom influence is omnipresent on some of the more deliciously sluggish tracks like “Last Dawn” and the title track, adding an additional level of depth to the already heady pieces. Thanks to the fine folks at ATMF for giving this under-rated cult classic the attention and presentation it deserves.


Sanctum - On the Horizon (20 Buck Spin)
After a couple of highly regarded EPs and a split with the likeminded Stormcrow, one of the west coast’s most promising young crusty crossover acts has finally dropped a full-length, eight tracks of thick, pure, raw aggression guaranteed to get a roomful of sweaty, smelly kids circling up in no time flat. Huge chunky riffs race along with frenetic blasts and a nasty guttural excretion for the majority of the recording, but the album is most rewarding when the quintet slows it down, such as the sludgy breakdown in “False Hope” or the creeping groove of “And We Press On.” Included as a bonus are the complete ‘Enslaved’ and ‘Sanctum’ EPs on this great release from the always reliable 20 Buck Spin.


Chaos Moon- Origin of Apparition (Wraith)
One half of a huge, two album, multi-arc debut, this ambitious offering from Tennessee’s Chaos Moon delivers some refreshing and high-quality ambient black metal. Clocking in at just under an hour, the nine tracks explore the darker side of the depressing, dreary, DIY style that is increasingly associated with the American scene, and this is as excellent an example as any of the genre’s progenitors. The rasped vocals and repetitious, hypnotic riffs are spot on, the atmospheric keyboards moody, and the programmed drums subtle enough not to distract from the ambiance. With the melodic, moving songwriting evidenced in “Tenebrific” and “Pale Cast of Thought” uniquely their own, this is an outstanding debut from a young act that is well worth tracking down.


Korpiklaani - Tervaskanto (Napalm)
The most exciting folk metal band in the land returns with their fourth album under the Korpiklaani moniker. While everything here is pretty much more of the same from the Finnish collective, their take on black metal meets Finnish huppa and folk melodies hasn’t yet worn out its welcome and remains endlessly catchy, fun, and engaging. Old and new fans alike would do well to pick this one up!


Warning - Watching From A Distance (The Miskatonic Foundation)
Reemerging last year after a lengthy seven year hiatus, England’s Warning have crafted one of the best classic/gothic doom albums in years in the form of this mournful five-track masterpiece. Delving into nigh uncharted dank, dark emotional depths, the pure despair that pours out of this trio (particularly Pat Walker’s rich, soaring vocals and oppressive, tectonic riffing, both much improved over the 1999 debut) is a thing of boundless beauty and awe. The melodic title track is as strong an opener as has been heard, and, when followed up by the instantly classic epic doom anthem, “Footprints,” packs an unrivaled one-two punch that is simply devastating. The latter track features a particularly strong performance by Walker and one that any of the legendary vocalists of old would be proud to call their own. The remaining tracks are equally effective in communicating purest misery perfectly suitable for the long, lonely winter nights.


Orthodox - Amanecer En Puerta Oscura (Southern Lord)
Storming onto the doom scene with their phenomenal 2006 debut, Spain’s Orthodox have returned with their sophomore effort, a sprawling, ambitious, and extremely diverse seven track affair. There are traces of the down-tuned, expansive sludge that marked their debut, but the progressive flourishes that were few and far between there take center stage on the new album. Opening track, “Con Sangre de Quien Te Ofenda,” offers up a light, moody nine-minute improv-jazz excursion before “Mesto, Rigido e Ceremoniale” comes crashing in with it’s jittery drumming, and glacial, repetitive riffs. The mostly acoustic “Templos” meanders a little too much at fifteen minutes in length, but there are some great ideas here (especially in the inspired percussion), but “Parte II. Apogeum” finishes off the album on a strong note with its distorted melodic howls accenting the funeral sludge quite nicely. The artwork from the hit-or-miss Seldon Hunt is thankfully spot on, providing a nice aesthetic to a solid album.


Ensepulchred - Suicide in Winter's Moonlight (Autopsy Kitchen)
Self-released sometime last year, Autopsy Kitchen records has seen fit to reissue Ensepulchred’s (formerly Blood of Transylvania) debut full-length, featuring sixteen tracks of unique electronic ambient black metal. The approach is very similar to 2006’s The Night Our Rituals Blackened the Stars, with harsh, processed vocals lurking just below the distorted, symphonic mid-paced digital riffs, and fans of that album would do well to pick this one up.


Forest Silence - Philosophy of Winter (Cold Dimensions)
Nearly ten years after their debut demo, Sear Bliss side-project Forest Silence has finally released their debut full-length, a frosty five-track affair that occupies the more atmospheric realm of black metal while allowing some of the bombast of the trio’s main project to shine through. Most of the tracks keep a rousing, mid-paced tempo complimented quite nicely by symphonic keyboards and sweeping, melodic riffs on this extremely well written and highly enjoyable offering.


Lunar Aurora - Weltengänger (Cold Dimensions)
Ten years in and the debut album from Germany’s Lunar Aurora remains a melodic black metal watershed. Reissued this year by the fantastic Cold Dimensions label (along with an excellent new full-length released a few months back), this classic album should help the criminally under-rated act finally get some more widespread exposure (though it might be a little late, considering the band has been put indefinitely in hold). Starting off with the catchy, oppressively cold “Grabgesonge” and continuing through to the epic, folkish closer, “Conquerer of the Ember Moon,” Weltengänger is a perfect study in combining symphonic and avant-garde elements into traditional black metal and marks the beginning of what became a very long and distinguished career for Lunar Aurora.


Primordial - To the Nameless Dead (Metal Blade)
The rousing Irish black metal legends return with the sixth album in their twenty years, a nearly perfect album further strengthening their reputation as one of the elite Celtic musical acts of all time. This time around, the lyrics explore the topic of unfairly uprooted peoples the world over while the quintet digs even deeper into their vast catalog of fist-pumping folk melodies and precise, efficient compositions. Naihmass Nemtheanga’s soaring vocals once again command respect and attention, whether rallying the troops with a jaunty fighting tune or lamenting over a battle lost and impending enslavement. It’s incredible when such a long-running band can continue to impress in such a way, and this effort will end the year on many a critic’s list.


ahab-the_oath.jpg (Deviant)
Following the success of last year’s debut album, The Call of the Wretched Sea, German funeral doom troupe Ahab have reissued their 2005 demo via Deviant Records. The Moby Dick-inspired lyrical content and imagery is front and center, and “The Hunt” and “The Stream,” though a little rough around the edges, reveal the plodding, crushing greatness that would become fully realized the next year.


The Puritan - The Puritan (I Hate)
Formed by Albert Witchfinder of the acclaimed Reverend Bizarre, The Puritan has released their debut offering consisting of just over half an hour of solid, dreary classic doom. Much slower and more depressing than his previous act, Witchfinder explores a significantly darker and headier musical territory here, and his instantly recognizable rich and powerful baritone suits the bleak dirges quite nicely. The glacial sludge of ten-minute epics “The Stars Above Us Are All Evil” and “The Sepulchral God Holding A Speech For The Moribund” are a great representation of Witchfinder’s new direction, and hopefully some more new material is soon forthcoming.


Walknut - Graveforests and Their Shadows (Stellar Winter)
Formed in 2006 by members of the mighty Russian hordes Forest and Nitberg, Walknut have unleashed one of the finest ambient black metal albums of the year in the form of this six-track masterpiece of utter despair and desolation. Combining powerfully epic, sweeping melodies and dense, cold, hypnotic repetition with a constant pummeling drive, the duo avoid the usual drawbacks that befall most limp-wristed attempts at the genre, while at the same time nurturing a unique sound that could go extraordinary places on future releases. The haunting “Motherland Ostenvegr” and the grand anthem “Come, Dreadful Ygg” manage stand out on an album filled to the brim with quality.


Audiopain - The Switch To Turn Off Mankind (Vendlus)
The second album from Norway’s Audiopain sees the trio continuing to hold aloft the blackened thrash banner they have dutifully carried for the past decade. The frantic, punky blasts of frosty hate and thick, raspy delivery, which while not the most original in the world, are spot on and pay worthy tribute to their predecessors, making the perfect album for those looking for nothing more than exceedingly high quality, no-frills metal.


The Howling Wind - Pestilence & Peril (Profound Lore)
Picking up where the incomparable Thralldom left off, Killusion’s (also of Unearthly Trance and Villains infamy) latest noise/black metal project changes its name from Drifting Collision and releases one of the best debut albums of the year in the form of this eight-track beast of an album. Buzzing, swirling guitars, punky black’n’roll drum blasts, and twisted, distorted vocals dominate the majority of the recording, with “Sin Continuum” and “Deadlands” leading the charge. The ambient “Projections” and “Southhaven” and the dirge of “Forced Into the Pits of Technology” add a bit of variety (though it is not necessarily needed), further solidifying the debut of yet another promising new project.


V:28 - VioLution (Vendlus)
Following two ambitious and well-received slabs of industrial metal filth and featuring guest spots from members of Ulver, MZ.412, Lycia, and Red Harvest, it goes without saying that the third full-length from Norway’s V:28 is one massive undertaking, filled to the brim with harsh processed vocals, tripping, biting sequencers, and plenty of atmospheric keyboard work. The more traditional instrumentation leans towards mid-paced black/death metal territory with a slight progressive edge, but never really settles on one particular style for any extended period of time. While this restlessness could harm lesser albums, the experimental drive behind the wild diversity proves endearing and works on several different levels, making for a slightly different listening experience each time through.


 

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