News
MetalBite's Top 10 Albums of the Month - November 2023
Welcome back to MetalBite's Top 10 Albums of the Month! In the midst of the ubiquitous year-end lists, we like to keep plugging away at our regularly scheduled column in order to give the same appreciation to albums released in November/December as we do the rest of the calendar year. Gotta make sure we don't let bands/albums fly under the radar because they chose to release an album against the grain of the "industry standard", so to speak. The less we let Spotify wrapped playlists and promo/tour cycles determine what we listen to, the better off we'll all be for it.
Despite November being a thin month for sheer volume of releases, what that means for us reviewers is less white noise distracting us from letting the albums we really like sink in. For that reason, I think this is the best time to discover new albums and check out new releases - lines up well with putting together your AOTY list as well. Plus it's not like we ever had a shortage of the good shit here at MetalBite, where seasoned metal nerds tirelessly dig through harsh and unforgiving sounds to bring you the cream of the heavy crop. We still found 25 albums out in November you should hear.
Let's get it!
-Nate
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Rascal - Lost Beyond Reason
Ossuary Records
Polish speed metal band Rascal has managed to put out a banger of an album that rocks out at full speed ahead from start to finish. Their debut full-length album Lost Beyond Reason is a result of teenage anger mixed with love for all things oldschool in terms of metal, with wild and catchy guitar riffs, powerful solos, high pitch vocals and wall breaking drums, which are pumped up with an extra dose of steroids that make everything go crazier. Their previous EP Headed Towards Destruction was already a fine piece of work, but this album surpasses it in every way possible. Every song is a heavy speed metal attack that goes right in your face and basically says "Death to all who oppose". Fans of oldschool heavy and speed metal should not miss this one, because this album will get your adrenaline going.
-Vlad
Panopticon - The Rime Of Memory
Bindrune
This is good - it's fuckin' Panopticon, if you're a modern black metal fan and haven't heard Kentucky, you're seriously missing the boat. Their style and approach is great, worth familiarizing yourself with if you're a known Agalloch worshiper the way I am.
However, I do feel Austin Lunn's prolific nature gets in the way of creating truly memorable albums nowadays. It doesn't feel like it's been very long since their previous album, and even though I was fairly high on that one, it didn't make its way into my regular rotation and it's hard to even recall what the songs sounded like at this point. Am I just over-saturated with music with all the promos I get? It's hard to tell, but typically if music does something that stands out or catches my attention, I'll come back to it.
These past couple of releases have just kinda felt…there. Fine to listen to while they're playing, but nothing in them grabs you by the scruff of the neck and demands you hear them again. Also, over an hour and 15 minutes? Austin, my brother in Christ, Trim the fat - I promise you'll be able to cut out a repetition or two and the songs will be better for it. I was surprised this was so high on Decibel's Top 40 - it's solid but has no one at that magazine heard Panopticon before or something? It feels like more of a "legacy award" that it does a decision made based solely on the quality of this album alone. Anyways, enough of my ranting, this is still a good album and worth a listen for fans of the style (Agalloch, Wolves in the Throne Room, Falls of Rauros etc).
-Nate
Mêlée Des Aurores - Aube Cannibale
Sepulchral Productions
QCBM is alive and well, and by the sounds of this album, beginning to expand its horizons and move into harrowing, dissonant directions. This is more Phobocosm and Portal than it is Forteresse - a winding stairway that continues to lead downward into nightmare after nightmare. I'll admit I wasn't expecting this kind of sonic assault going in, but color me impressed and intrigued. It's rare that black metal can evoke a real sense of danger and give you the sense that the people behind the music are fundamentally disturbed individuals the way this does.
Aube Cannibale feels more in the spirit of 90s black metal than bands who try to recreate those albums note for note, if that makes sense…the attitude is there more than anything. To put it another way, this is like the Abruptum of the QCBM scene - harsh, discordant, as much about creating a work of art as it is about giving a big "fuck you, I dare you to sit through this" to the listener.
-Vlad
Délétère - Songes D'une Nuit Souillée
Sepulchral Productions
If the new Melee des Aurores was too scary for you, this is a more predictable slice of music from the genre. Not to say it's any less effective. Délétère have always been one of the more underrated bands from this scene. They don't reinvent the well, but they execute well. In reality, it's the quality of the second and third-stringers like these folks that drives the subgenre's success and notoriety.
-Nate
Sombre Héritage - Inter Duo Mundi
Sepulchral Productions
Jesus, not one, not two, but THREE QCBM albums all released on the same day? This is too much to keep up with.
Sombre Héritage is the most melodic and accessible of the three, so if you're looking for a gateway in the genre or just some no-bullshit hard hitting black metal riffs, this will fulfill either urge.
-Nate
Plague Rider - Intensities
Transcending Obscurity
Tense and chaotic tech death that brings to mind Atheist and Pestilence for older influences, mixed with a bit of modern mathcore a la KEN Mode and Psyopus. The influences I mentioned don't even really sound like this - Plague Rider is their own thing, an easy "get into it" for all the avant-garde/dissoheads out there, and even if you're not normally into that, this is one of those albums that is an interesting listen no matter what your "home base" genre is, as album released on Transcending Obscurity typically are.
-Nate
Morne - Engraved With Pain
Metal Blade Records
I saw Morne live (Quebec Deathfest, 2019) and I still think about that set to this day. Morne is like Neurosis in that they don't play a ton of notes and don't clutter their songs up with a bunch of stuff - but what remains is incredibly powerful, purposeful music. Live, I was taken aback with how songs so simple could grow into something so powerful. The drummer wasn't doing anything super complex, the vocalist doesn't have the most piercing and inhuman tone you've ever heard, the guitarist are not household names/shredding virtuosos - but despite all this, everyone knows their place, each musician works in sync to deliver the powerful atmosphere, and over the years Morne has slowly developed into a sound all their own - one that mixes crust punk, post-rock and doom in a way no other group I've heard has. You wonder why a soft-spoken, simple band such as this has gotten to work with a bunch of cool labels over the years (Profound Lore, Armageddon Label, and now Metal Blade) but then you hear one song and all doubts immediately leave your mind. No one sounds like Morne.
The new album is more polished, with smoother songwriting and buildups in addition to a more rounded, professional production job (as one would expect with the transition to the big label). Fortunately, Metal Blade knows better than to tinker with the sound of such an idiosyncratic band, so you can tell this is the same group. I find this doesn't have the same immediate grab as Asylum and To the Night Unknown did for me, but as is the case with anything this band puts out, the potential to grow on you is massive.
Because of the slow-burn, grower nature of this band, it's too early to properly rate this album right now, hence why it is relegated to honorable mentions. However, don't be surprised if I'm revisiting this next year and retroactively calling it one of the best albums of 2023 (that's basically what happened with Etemen Aenka by Dvne in '21).
-Nate
Morbid Sacrifice – Ceremonial Blood Worship
Godz Ov War Productions
Italian Death/Black Metal band Morbid Sacrifice has returned after 2 years with their second full-length album Ceremonial Blood Worship, which from the very get-go proved that it is a major step forward from their previous album Communion Of The Unholy. The band has improved their songwriting to make it feel more menacing and threatening at the same time, while still relying heavily on the standard war metal approach to the music. It also includes a cover of Sodom's "Conjuration" as the fifth track on this album, which in my opinion is very well executed in its own way without straying far off from the original. If you are searching for anything blasphemous and unholy, give this album a go and do not hesitate to shout "ÖUGH!" when feeling like it.
-Vlad
Aeternus - Philosopher
Agonia Records
I don't think anything this long-running group does will usurp their first two albums - but to be fair, those are minor classics in Norwegian black metal. I didn't actually realize that Aeternus has quietly been plugging away - they've never split up or gone on hold, steadily releasing six more albums between 2000 and now (this is their seventh in that timeframe). I always thought they were one of those oldschool bands that never got the proper attention when they were active only to be dug up by the internet 10-15 years later.
Anyhow, they clearly haven't missed a beat if the sound of Philosopher is anything to go by. They've still got their core sound of heavy, groovy black metal riffing with a solid low-end and a hair of death metal influence. They are true to tradition without being obvious about it, but not using said genre conventions as a crutch in lieu of writing good songs. Get your monthly dose of Norwegian black metal from some of the OGs!
-Nate
Lvctvs - Sobredósis De Pensamiento Fúnebre
Independent
As I mentioned many times before, I am not a fan of depressive black metal at all, I just couldn't find anything about it that really fits my taste. But there have been exceptions where I do kind of like what I am hearing, and one of them is the Venezuelan band Lvctvs, which had already released one album this year, that being the second full-length La Réproba Mazmorra De Mi Ser, however I will be focusing on the third album Sobredósis De Pensamiento Fúnebre which has a strong narrative focusing on the moments before embracing death. The simple but atmospheric musical output is nicely built up with the philosophy behind the concept of the album, which succeeds at giving the songwriting a richer feeling that saves it from other DSBM bands which are very one-dimensional and uninspiring. If you are a DSBM fan by any chance, I suggest that you give this one a try and see what you will experience.
-Vlad
Suffocation - Hymns From The Apocrypha
Nuclear Blast
Ricky Myers is great and a worthy replacement for the legendary Frank Mullen, and the new album is a bit more streamlined and easy to follow, in the trend of their more recent releases - but this is still has that devastating gut punch we've all come to know and love from Suffocation. Full review by Michael here.
Left Cross - Upon Desecrated Altars
Profound Lore
Upon Desecrated Altars is the second album from Richmond, Virginia quintet Left Cross, and unsurprisingly for a release on the ever-dependable Profound Lore, it is a high-quality slab of sickness. Featuring S.B. from Antichrist Siege Machine, Left Cross offer a similarly unhinged and bestial mode of delivery, but with the black metal elements of that band eliminated in favour of pure death metal savagery. Imagine Revenge or Conqueror playing slightly doomy, cavernous death metal in Stockholm, and you won't be too far away from the overwhelming torrent of pure filth that Left Cross fling in the listener's direction. This is not to say that the album is in any way murky – despite favouring a low-end attack, the production is sharp and clear, and this accentuates the impact of each and every chromatic tremolo riff, snaking its reptilian way through a barrage of double-bass, and snapping snare. It's difficult to pick highlights from an album that derives its power from the relentlessness of its forward motion, rather than its variety, but 'Pyramid Of Conquered Skulls' is as good as its title, and 'Celestial Wound' also closes out the album in fine fashion, with a brief mid-tempo section providing sweet respite before the final blitzkrieg concludes a monstrous album. Upon Desecrated Altars is the aural equivalent of being repeatedly assaulted by a blow that you see coming, but are nonetheless powerless to evade.
-Benjamin
Warcrab - The Howling Silence
Transcending Obscurity
It's like High on Fire listened to a bunch of Bolt Thrower and decided they wanted to be a death metal band now. The Howling Science is groovy and bluesy, but with a really heavy, ominous edge that gets you clutching the invisible snowglobes during holiday season. This is music written by, and for, guys with footlong beards - just look at this band photo.
-Nate
NecroticGoreBeast - Repugnant
Comatose Music
Hits a nice little sweet spot between slam and tech-death that should satisfy any brutality fiends out there. They're from Quebec and the production job is from a guy that has worked with Analepsy and Organectomy. If those two sentences didn't give you a good idea of what this sounds like already, you're probably not the target audience for this.
-Nate
Kvelgeyst - Blut, Mich Und Thranen
Eisenwald
This Swiss group is quietly one of the coolest newer black metal bands emerging onto the scene. I got the promo for their previous full length, Alkahest, when it came out, but it got buried because I downloaded a bunch of other albums at the same time. I forgot about it until months later when it randomly started playing in the background on shuffle, and it kept hitting me with riffs that piqued my curiosity and got me dialed in. One of those "who the hell is this, this is sick, why am I not familiar with it" moments if you know what I mean.
I like the approach they have to black metal -they have a certain playful obscurity to them a la Dutch weirdos Laster (who have a great album of their own out this year) mixed with the stripped-down, pukish delivery of Peste Noire. They're understated in their eccentricities, never forcing you to pay attention but always drawing you back in with interesting melodic approaches and intelligent song construction. Eisenwald's a sure bet for some solid black metal no matter what, but this got more time in my rotation than any of their other releases this year.
-Nate
METALBITE'S TOP 10 ALBUMS OF THE MONTH
10: Convocation - No Dawn For The Caligious Night
Everlasting Spew
If you're going to check out a newer funeral doom band, your odds for success are much higher if the band is from Finland. That region has this knack for dragging you into a cavernous pit of despair as an ominous dark cloud swirls and forms above you. Convocation has touches of the wistful, delicate melancholy of Skepticism mixed with the crushing weight of Tyranny and Catacombs. Like all good funeral doom, they never fully reveal what they're about right away, but give you a slow drip of choral ambience, somber violins, deep, resonant growls, and a guitar tone that sounds like a cubic mile of lead slowly approaching your field of vision like some sort of massive alien spacecraft. Make sure you listen to this with enough time to it sink in - you won't get the full effect with a single song, but throw No Dawn For The Calignious Night on for at least 20 minutes and you'll find yourself wondering why you feel the weight of the world on your shoulders. In a good way.
-Nate
MetalBite's Rating: 8.2/10
9: Diabolic Night - Beneath The Crimson Prophecy
High Roller Records
After a suitably portentous intro, Diabolic Night's follow-up to 2019's Beyond The Realm explodes into life with 'Tales Of Past & Mystery', and rarely lets up across eight tracks of high-class black-thrash. There is something wonderfully wild and ragged about the Germans' sound, which variously recalls Darkthrone, Spectral Wound, and Midnight, albeit with just a hint of classic metal creeping into the baroque phrasing of the short and sweet guitar leads. Like much of the best of this dark corner of the metal universe, Diabolic Night's music doesn't waste too much time worrying about how it should be categorised – some of the tracks are fairly straightforward thrash ('Vicious Assault'), while others display a more old-school black metal approach ('The Sacred Scriptures'), and although the feel differs a little from track to track, the album as a whole evokes that glorious period of the early-to-mid 1980s, when black, thrash, and death metal were more closely interlinked than perhaps they are today. Indeed, the brilliant 'Voyage To Fortune' even has the audacity to incorporate a section of near-Helloween speed metal, as if to remind the listener of the full heritage of Teutonic heaviness, and it's to their credit that it doesn't sound even slightly out of place. Beneath The Crimson Prophecy probably has a slightly limited appeal – it's not terribly progressive, and it's certainly not cutting edge, but for a certain breed of headbanger, it is a nostalgic treat not to be missed.
-Benjamin
MetalBite's Rating: 8.3/10
8: Night Crowned - Tales
Noble Demon Records
This is an "inverted supergroup" of sorts - members have ties to more established bands like Nightrage, The Unguided and Dark Funeral, but they're connected more as live fill-ins as opposed to core members who have substantial songwriting input. Night Crowned seems to be the project where drummer Janne Jeloma and guitarist/keyboardist Henric Liljesand put the majority of their ideas and creative energy - their "main band", so to speak.
I give this introduction because it helps to give context for why this band immediately grabs your attention - one riff in and you can tell they've been around the block. You can also instantly hear why the drummer got tapped for Dark Funeral. He's got serious chops but always makes his beats catchy enough to give it that "stadium black metal" vibe. The immediacy and catchiness of their riffing quickly becomes apparent - this is like the black metal version of Wretched Fate. Tales does not experiment or change anything about the Swedish meloblack formula and it's a better album for it. It thrives on hitting that sweet spot of fast sugary tremolo riffs with enough bite to prevent cheesiness and enough flair to stick in your head. They know what they're good at and play to their strengths, and it's one of my favorite black metal releases this year primarily because they know better than to try stuff they're not good at.
Night Crowned is relatively under the radar, but it's about time they start getting mentioned among the forerunners of melodic black metal because they're right up there with the best of their contemporaries.
-Nate
MetalBite's Rating: 8.4/10
7: Dyssebeia - Garden Of Stillborn Idols
Transcending Obscurity
This is honestly what I wanted the new Stortregn album to sound like. I thought there were some similarities in sound, and sure enough, Dyssebeia actually has the same drummer and bassist. Compared to the mind melting blitz of Finitude, though, Garden Of Stillborn Idols is a more restrained, even atmospheric affair - much closer to Insomnium than Inferi, but the more sparse moments help to bridge the gaps and make the more technical moments stand out.
It sometimes feels like "melodeath influence" is a huge faux pas for bands nowadays - the only way you'll get critical acclaim is if you rigidly adhere to the 90s style influences (example: that new Majesties album). This album is a great example of how to properly use modern melodeath in your guitarwork without it feeling stale or predictable. Songs like 'Retriubtion' and 'Sacrificed On The Threshold' have great push and pull, heaps of gorgeous melody and enough intricacy in the more uptempo moments that let you know these fellas could play way more complicated music if they want to - they just choose to write to serve the song more than to showcase their chops. And oh man am I ever happy they took that route. This rules.
-Nate
MetalBite's Rating: 8.4/10
6: Green Lung - This Heathen Land
Nuclear Blast
On the back of a sensational live show, good enough to transform this cynical, agnostic listener into a true believer almost instantly, Green Lung's third album This Heathen Land might just mark the point at which the band will cease to be an underground phenomenon spoken of in hushed tones, and flourish into their seemingly inevitable future status of credible mainstream band, with main stage festival appearances and high profile support slots within their grasp. Their doom-laden take on classic metal, which positions them somewhere within a triangle that points simultaneously at Black Sabbath, Rainbow and Ghost, is not particularly ground-breaking or cutting edge, but there will always be a seat at the table for great songs, executed brilliantly, and This Heathen Land has songs in spades. Seemingly recognising the uniqueness and perfect timing of their opportunity, Green Lung have also delivered a beautifully realised and coherent quasi-concept album, which leans into a theme which sees the band telling mystical tales of olde, occult Albion. A musty, pastoral, 'Wicker Man' horror atmosphere pervades every track, and it suits them, lending a timeless sheen to a sound which is less obviously retro than it could so easily be. This is most satisfyingly apparent on the brilliant 'One For Sorrow', the centrepiece of the album, musically closer to mid-period Ozzy Osbourne than the more Sabbathian sound that typifies much of the record, and the dragging tempo and soaring leads bring a stately majesty, enhanced by one of the numerous unforgettable choruses that litter a memorable album. This Heathen Land feels like a true statement release from a band who know that their time is now, and do not want to waste a second.
-Benjamin
MetalBite's Rating: 8.7/10
5: Mephorash - Krystl-Ah
Shadow Records
Boy was this album a pleasant surprise or what. Swedish black metal band Mephorash has put out another great album that is both epic and cinematic with its complex songwriting that conveys so much atmosphere and emotions from one song to another. The band continues to incorporate a lot of esoteric and occult elements in their music but with a bigger emphasis on storytelling through music, which is where this album stands out. You can hear that they put so much blood and sweat with all they got and the result of their effort is a worthy successor to their previous album Shem Ha Mephorash that was already quite successful back in 2020. It is still debatable whether this album is better than Shem Ha Mephorash or not, but it is without a doubt a great continuation of that album which still shines on its own.
-Vlad
MetalBite's Rating: 9/10
4: Vastum - Inward To Gethesmane
20 Buck Spin
Compared to Orificial Purge, which was the band's most polished and delicate album, Inward To Gethesmane is a grimier, more focused affair, hellbent on creating a sickly and menacing atmosphere. It's got our boy Michael raving - this is the most inspired and fresh the band has sounded in years. Full review here.
MetalBite's Rating: 9/10
3: Destructor - Blood, Bone And Fire
Shadow Kingdom Records
US thrash/heavy metal veterans Destructor return with their badass wall-breaking fifth album Blood, Bone, And Fire, which in all its might and glory basically oozes with blood, bone and fire. The riffs and the songs in general still sound as fresh and strong as if the band is still young and wild as they were back in 1985 when they released their cult debut Maximum Destruction. I was expecting that this album would sound heavy, but I did not expect it to sound so heavy to the point where it literally turned into maximum destruction (pun intended). So many older heavy and thrash metal bands simply fail to create anything inspiring, but Destructor is a very notable exception that deserves both endless praise and support from oldschool fans. I strongly believe that my teenage thrasher from many years ago would have definitely banged his head against the wall to this album and probably left a big hole in the bedroom as a testament to my craze and excitement.
-Vlad
MetalBite's Rating: 9/10
2: Xoth - Exogalactic
Independent
Perhaps the most whimsical record I've gotten familiar with this year. It's just so…bouncy? It's really funny listening to this right after a crushing emotional experience a la None or Godspeed You! Black Emperor. It sounds like the riffs are yelling "wheeeeee this is so fun!!!".
That being said, when it comes to the quality of the songs on Exogalactic there is nothing here to laugh at. The band draws from various tenets of metal including modern death, thrash, melodeath, black metal, power metal, 80s speed metal - the base elements and how they mix them is similar to Slugdge. They then add a colorful, cosmic touch that sounds like Rings of Saturn if they were primarily influenced by Voivod instead of deathcore. It's a cartoony depiction of space, for sure - this is not the suffocating despondency of Darkspace or even the somber, delicate introspection of Midnight Odyssey - but it works incredibly well with Xoth's boisterous energy and natural sense of humor.
I missed the boat on their previous release, but Exogalactic convinced me to give it a listen, and sure enough it's really good too. I'd say the newer release is a bit more refined and simultaneously more adventurous, but Interdimensional Invocations is absolutely worth your time as well and I'm a bit mad I missed out until now.
I knew there was a band from the 90s that had almost identical themes and a very similar approach to style blending, and for a while it was eluding me - but it hit me like a ton of bricks while I was writing this. Xoth is, without any doubt, the spiritual successor to Bal-Sagoth. Both bands end their name with the same three letters (which I also just realized) and that only cements this Seattle group in my head as the offspring of the English sci-fi storytellers. Anyways, Bal-Sagoth is fucking dope and very few bands sound like them, so this is only further insistence you check Exogalactic out.
Also, Bal-Sagoth was put on hold in 2013 and Xoth formed in 2014…just saying…
-Nate
MetalBite's Rating: 9/10
1: Valdrin - Throne Of The Lunar Soul
Blood Harvest
I had two words to say about this album when I heard it: HOLY SHIT! I did not expect to stumble upon something so beautiful that is on the same level of greatness as Moonlight Sorcery's Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle from two months ago. This work is coming from a US melodic black metal band Valdrin whose music is heavily influenced by classic Swedish melodic black metal bands from the 90s and it shows. Their fourth full-length album Throne Of The Lunar Soul is an epic fantastic tale covered in gold, shining in all its glory with melodic black metal majesty. There is so much progression and complexity throughout every song with strong emphasis on storytelling through music, which was wonderfully executed. Despite its 1 hour and 13 minute long run, this album keeps your attention going and the adrenaline flowing, pulling off a risky move that only few bands ever succeed at doing. If the cover art itself does not convince you that you should definitely give this album a try, then I don't know what will, because it is truly a modern-day masterwork for fans of Dissection, Sacramentum, Unanimated, Dawn and Vinterland.
-Vlad
MetalBite's Rating: 9.2/10
Thanks a ton for using MetalBite as your source for what's what in extreme metal. We can't even begin to tell you how much we appreciate it.
If you're still hungry for more music, view all the previous AOTM lists from 2023 below:
And, of course, Follow MetalBite on Facebook, Spotify and Instagram so you can be there right when the next Top 10 list drops!
Entered: 12/11/2023 4:57:38 PM
5.88k
MetalBite's Top 10 Albums of the Month - September 2023
Welcome back to MetalBite's Top 10 Albums of the Month! This is busy season for album releases, as is evidenced by not one, not 10, but THIRTY-FOUR albums on this list that we think are worth listening to. This is hands down our biggest AOTM list in history. The floodgate of riffs has opened and we're barely able to keep up with it all!
You're not here for my intro paragraph, let's cut the shit so you have more time to delve into a literal mountain of September 2023 albums. Onward!
-Nate
HONORABLE MENTIONS
Fossilization - Leprous Daylight
Everlasting Spew
You know who bands need to rip off more? Dead Congregation. Leprous Daylight provides a great argument for this - the riffing has a real ominous vibe but doesn't have to resort to murky production or perplexing note choices to get to where it needs to go. You can follow the melody, but that doesn't detract from its emotional weight - if anything, it adds to it. You hang on each tremolo'd note.
Moreover, despite its all-consuming atmosphere, I could actually see myself moshing to this live. The drums are ardently serious, with absolutely no bounce or jig to their groove, instead immersing you in waves of double kick and mid-paced blasting that give a sort of push-and-pull. It's hard for bands to capture that immediacy in groove without shoehorning in a riff that totally kills the vibe, but this feels carefully composed and each riff perfectly meshes with what came before and what follows. Long story short, this album creates a vibe, and one that helps them to stand out in a quality group of death/doom comparables that includes Spectral Voice, Undergang, Krypts and Mortiferum.
-Nate
Necrotted - Imperium
Independent
Another immensely entertaining experiment by the band, not only combining elements of death metal, deathcore and black metal in a unique way, but delivering more exciting and engrossing melodies than ever before. A must-listen for anyone looking for an unusual deathcore band that doesn't overly rely on the genre's cliches, instead creating powerful, memorable and atmospheric hymns of modern metal.
-TheOneNeverSeen
Tomb Mold - The Enduring Spirit
20 Buck Spin
The new Lunar Chamber album did what this does but better, but it's still nice to hear more from Toronto's trendiest death metal band. Manor Of Infinite Forms is a near-certified classic at this point, and the more technical influences and Dream Unending vibes on The Enduring Spirit don't vault this past their breakout album in terms of quality, but this is still a quality listen with tons of potential to grow on you.
-Nate
King's Rot - At The Gates Of Adversarial Darkness
Hypnotic Dirge Records
Melodic black metal that scratches the Dissection itch, while having enough residual influence from bands like Mgla to round it out in a modern context. Think Winter Eternal, Feral Light, Perennial Isolation…there's a surprising amount of groups lurking in the underground that can pull this style off well. Hypnotic Dirge rarely misses, and this is no exception.
-Nate
Woe - Legacies Of Frailty
Vendetta Records
I don't have a ton to say about this, but that's not a knock on the quality of this album. Woe (i.e. one-man army Chris Grigg, the only constant of the project) has been quietly plugging away at a specific brand of USBM for some time now - long stretches of tremolo underscored by pained aggression in the vocals, a little bit of melody but not too much - adhering to the strict US black metal template perpetuated by bands like Ash Borer, early Krallice and Mo'ynoq. It does what it has to and should satisfy seasoned fans while pulling in a few more.
Semi-related tidbit: Grigg is launching his own music streaming platform, ampwall.com, which he is positioning as a Bamdcamp alternative. Check it out if you like supporting grassroots/indie music stuff that is by artists for artists and whatnot.
-Nate
Taake - Et Hav Av Avstand
Dark Essence Records
When somebody mentions Taake, you instantly think of the cold and primitive riffs with pure hellish rock 'n roll energy, which are so damn "in your face". Hoest still holds up both as a vocalist and as a songwriter, and the eight full-length Et Hav Av Avstand is the direct result of that passion and dedication that's basically in his blood and this one is a banger. Sure, it may not be the best or it may not be perfect, but it is certainly classic Taake which we all know and love. Surprisingly this album doesn't feel like it's over 42 minutes long because you become absolutely mesmerized in every song that you realize suddenly it's over before you even knew it. If you are a simple man like me who is looking for a good black metal album with tons of cold riffs and frozen harsh vocals, look no further than Taake's new album Et Hav Av Avstand.
-Vlad
Thorn - Evergloom
Transcending Obscurity Records
This is a more serious venture for one of the guys from controversial goregrind band Fluids - harrowing death/doom with thick, viscous dissonance, a slight affinity for black metal without fully immersing itself in that sound, using the tension to plummet you further down a despondent groove. The drums are programmed from what I can tell, but it's done tastefully enough that I could see them finding a hired gun to flesh out a live outfit.
Speaking of which…Thorn shows soon? Cum 2 Canada????
-Nate
Uada - Crepuscule Natura
Eisenwald
It's nice to see this group has shed their "Mgla but American" origins to become a melodic black metal band that has a bit more of their own thing going without ever really moving away from the vibe they had going for them. The nods to Dissection and Agalloch are palpable and appreciated. This is really solid but it's not even my second favorite black metal album that came out this month, which just tells you how stacked this September is.
-Nate
Cannibal Corpse - Chaos Horrific
Metal Blade Records
It's the Corpse. What else do you need to know?
If, for some reason, you need two paragraphs of text to convince yourself that this has the exact same appealing qualities as every other Cannibal Corpse album, you can read Michael's review here.
Alkaloid - Numen
Season Of Mist
This is a really hard one for me to take a stance on, because the riffs absolutely fuck, and the vocals are just not my thing at all. The abundance of ill-fitting clean vocals doesn't sit so well for me, and even the harsh vocals could use a bit more volume and depth. When this gets going, it can be phenomenal - there's an all-star lineup here, after all - but some of the songwriting choices are perplexing and they cover a lot of ground, but with the caveat that not everything sticks. I guess that's what the honorable mentions are for!
-Nate
Baxaxaxa - De Vermis Mysteriis
The Sinister Flame
A lot of my close friends have been talking about this band non-stop and I was so tempted to give it a go with their brand new and officially second full-length album De Vermis Mysteriis. I was actually quite pleased with the result because this is some macabre, wicked and nasty black metal with hints of death metal and Brazilian extreme metal as well. The entire album's atmosphere transcends some seriously occult vibes from start to finish, and I believe that it is indeed a worthy go for fans of underground black metal.
-Vlad
Asinhell - Impii Hora
Metal Blade Records
If you're even a slight fan of Volbeat, you likely know that the core members played in death metal groups before pivoting to a more accessible style and exploding in popularity. Well, Michael Poulsen must have longed to return to his roots, because his new group Asinhell hearkens back to their more extreme origins - with convincing results, according to MetalBite AOTM mainstay Michael, and he should know - he's been following these musicians since they were known as Dominus back in 1994.
Full review by Michael
Interview with Michael Poulsen
Ethereal Tomb - When The Rivers Dry
Black Throne Productions
This young group is turning heads in the Ontario scene - go check out their Instagram page, it's exclusively clips of these kids playing packed house venues going nuts with hundreds of likes per post. I keep pretty close tabs on new music coming out in my area, and this came out of nowhere on a rapid, meteoric rise that - as someone who plays in bands and dreams of the same thing happening with my own groups - I can only watch in awe and jealousy.
When you examine the parts at play, everything makes complete sense. This power trio plays sludgy, hardcore-infused doom, a perfect sonic ballpark for a scene far more fervent about their hardcore than their metal. They fuse a trudging, groovy sound with stripped-down, very memorable and intentional song structures and transitions, underscored by the legible, goblin-esque snarl of vocalist/guitarist Alex Senum. The songs are angry, the forceful intent comes through clear as day, which makes it the perfect vessel for their message - this is a band that wears their Indigenous heritage on their sleeves, with lyrical themes based around colonialism, Indigenous resistance, and societal critiques delivered in a way that makes them feel like urgent calls to action. The riffs aren't going to blow your mind at a million notes per second, but I remember the part of the song that goes "FUCK YOUR REALITY, AND YOUR VICTIM MENTALITY" clear as day.
It's been a while since I've heard a band with such a powerful, purposeful message and music that effectively backs it up. This doesn't just make me want to mosh, this makes me want to start a revolution and slit billionaire throats.
-Nate
Cryptopsy - As Gomorrah Burns
Nuclear Blast
When it comes to the heavy hitters of death metal that all put out albums this month (the other two being Cannibal Corpse and Dying Fetus…there's been a ton of new death metal this month), this is the album that drew me in the most. Flo is still Flo, when it comes down to it he was one of the first to do it and he still continues to do it at a high level, and it took over a decade but any of the concerns that old-school fans might have had with McGachy and the non-Levasseur guitarists at the helm have now finally been nullified. They've fine tuned the riffing and vocal performances to be tight and intense, with less versatility in the vocal delivery but more power and the riffs aren't gonna be None So Vile groovy brutality, or even And Then You'll Beg-era discordant frenzy - but they have a personality of their own, and this is honestly the first Cryptopsy album since the early-mid 2000s I've felt really fit the Cryptopsy mold in that way. It took a while, but I think I'm finally ready to patch up my differences after the nasty divorce that was The Unspoken King and remarry this darling all over again.
-Nate
Cognizant - Inexorable Nature Of Adversity
Selfmadegod
Sweet jesus this is some spastic fun! Frantic, bludgeoning grindcore that literally never slows down - just riff after riff at a machine-gun pace with enough variety and Gorguts influence to make each little minute-long jaunt its own thrilling experience. It's hard to call this grindcore because there's really very little hardcore influence here. Perhaps some of these riffs might bear traces of the genre if you slowed them down, but did you read the first part of my paragraph?
-Nate
Ushangvagush - Pestmo'qon
Vigor Deconstruct
Indigenous-themed black metal has been percolating in the past couple of years with groups like Pan-Amerikan Native Front, but it's only with Blackbraid's recent explosion in popularity that we can truly consider this scene to be breaking out. I love Nechochwen and always longed for more music in a similar vein, so this is a change I wholly welcome. Black metal was in need of some fresh blood.
With such a fertile, blossoming scene, standout bands in the style are going to get a lot more attention, and as such Ushangvagush finds themselves in the perfect PR position to release their second full-length album. Normally I'd be wary of a band in this position because their cred is going to be slightly inflated, but I gave this a listen on chance recommendations from a couple of trusted music homies and my skepticism immediately disappeared when the d-beat riff kicked in.
Pestmo'qon is an album that chronicles humanity's disconnect with the natural world, and as much as it seems like a lazy descriptor to say this, you can actually feel the theme in the riffs. The guitars are ostensibly made up of chords that strive for a certain melodic catharsis, but it never hits, despite the abundance of kinetic energy present. At first you long for some form of melody, but in time you realize it's by design - the music being at constant odds with itself and what it wants to be conjures up an image of a modern city slicker who buys a cabin in the woods, eventually succumbing to the elements because he knows nothing about survival in nature, completely displaced from his evolutionary origin.
When an album conjures mental pictures and stories in my head like this, you know it's good shit.
-Nate
Iskandr - Spiritus Sylvestris
Eisenwald
I don't usually like post-punk albums in metal clothing - god, we get it, you're artistic and cultured - but I must admit, this has a very somber, heavy vibe without using the typical methods to achieve this goal. I've seen some people mention later Solstafir and even Johnny Cash as comparables, and honestly, both of those make sense.
Recommended if you're one of those weirdos who used Agalloch and Ulver as a jumping off point to get into neofolk. The clean vocals are really nice, and the ambiance takes up a surprising amount of room despite being subtle and minimalist.
-Nate
Ashbringer - We Came Here To Grieve
Translation Loss
It's been intriguing to see how this particular project evolves, being the brainchild and main project (or at least the longest running) of Nick Stanger, a prolific musician who is still evolving into the full range of his potential. Ashbringer has covered a lot of ground in a relatively short period of time, with their fourth full-length bringing more anguish and immediacy to the guitarwork, more sludgy doom couched in post-hardcore. There's always similar connections to the same base sound, but they find different ways to express their sound, and I look forward to hearing how they continue to evolve.
The reason this gets relegated to honorable mentions is entirely because of the production. I had similar qualms with Yugen, and try as they may they just can't seem to get a proper mix. On this one, the vocals are far too loud and dominate sections of the music where other elements are clearly meant to be in the foreground. The tracks were mixed by the band members themselves (different musicians worked on different tracks) and I'm wondering if outsourcing the engineering job might help to give some extra perspective.
If you're not too finicky about production qualities, this is absolutely worth a listen if you're a fan of the style, though! Don't let me hold you back from checking this too much.
-Nate
Altarage - Worst Case Scenario
Doomentia
Hella underrated nightmare death metal from Spain. I recently got into Succumb, their previous album, and already enjoyed the half-Portal half-Aeviterne styled dissonant rabbit hole. Their music is spacious and simple enough to be discernible - despite the claustrophobic guitar tone and layered, screeching vocals, there's not a ton of murk clouding the production values, and being able to clearly hear what Altarage are trying to do only makes them more terrifying. A lot of bands in this vein lean too much on noise and production values to make their point, but Altarage conjures up a harrowing atmosphere through very international, winding songwriting, which I think sends a more effective message.
-Nate
Terminalist - The Crisis As Condition
Indisciplinarian
I'm not typically a big thrash guy, but Terminalist is not a typical thrash band - there's a healthy amount of influence taken from black metal and modern aesthetics to give a sleek, cosmic flavour, similar to Imperialist or even Miscreance with the prog dialed back. Their debut album, released just a couple short years ago, piqued my interest and got me into their style (enough so that it got the #6 spot on the May 2021 list itself), and now they're already back with a new album very much in the same headspace.
The only critique I could possibly give (which is basically justifying to myself why this is more of an 8/10 as opposed to a 9/10 album) is that there's no significant musical evolution from the debut. The Crisis As Condition is more of the same, with perhaps a slight refinement of what was already there. That's really the only reason this is really good and not extraordinary, but shit, I liked the first album well enough, why would I dislike this? If you were buying what they were selling before, you'll almost certainly be satisfied, and if you missed the boat the last time, you have your chance to get on board.
-Nate
Demoniac (Chi) - Nube Negra
Edged Circle Productions
With their sophomore album Nube Negra the Chileans once again prove they are masters of their craft. Wailing seagulls and a slightly Mediterranean atmosphere signal an approaching storm, which then suddenly washes over you. Rushed like a bull seeing red, the title track obliterates everything in its path, mixing pure chaos with ingenious virtuosity - you notice the rage, but also the graceful movements of the bull like it has to teeter on a rope before resuming its rampage. This early, wild chase of the first three songs is reminiscent of old Slayer (especially in the solos). However, in the course of the album, more precisely from 'Synthèse D'Accords' on, the bull shows some restraint and the music goes in a few different directions, including unusual circus music arrangements, relaxed clarinet tones, and more thrash hammers with great melodic arcs. Nube Negra is furious, virtuosic, ugly and beautiful at the same time!
-Michael
Den Saakaldte - Pesten Som Tar Over
Agonia Records
Pesten Som Tar Over is the fourth offering from Greek / Norwegian black metallers Den Saakaldte. Given the extensive connection with a number of other significant bands from the same region (the band shares or has historically shared members with Shining, Gehenna, Arcturus and many more), there is a danger that this slightly less-heralded group could suffer in comparison to the lofty work of their associated projects, but in fact, this is not remotely the case. Den Saakaldte effectively bridge the chasm between the classics of the mid-90s second wave (the prominent bass immediately reminds one of De Mysteriis Dom Sathanas), and a more contemporary sound inflected by pagan metal touches, and the band's primarily mid-paced dirge considerably more compelling than the description might lead one to suspect. The album really hits its stride on the superb 'En Ode Til Spinnersken', as the classic metal harmonies evoke memories of Dissection and Abigor, and despite the marathon track lengths, the myriad twists and turns of each song, together with the strident vocals, maintains interest throughout, particularly when Svik's growl is augmented by the majestic clean vocals that are used just sparingly enough to delight when deployed. Overall, Pesten Som Tar Over is a pounding, but surprisingly sophisticated piece of work, the deft guitar harmonies weaving through each track creating a complex and fluent, but always aggressive attack, an attack that leaves this warrior perfectly sated.
-Benjamin
Marduk - Memento Mori
Century Media
"Has it dawned on you yet?
Have you begun to grasp
That life is not a clock
But an hourglass?"
Those iconic words from the song 'Shovel Beats Sceptre' are still carved into my mind after I heard this album. When somebody mentions Marduk, you instantly know what to expect. Sure, it may seem like a very bad thing to some, because people have pretty much become familiar with the band's signature style, but that doesn't mean that even the stereotypical and formulaic can't achieve anything great. In the case of Marduk's fifteenth full-length album Memento Mori, they did just that. In my opinion, I think the band made this one a successful album launch that managed to surpass their previous albums Frontschwein and Viktoria, which weren't bad by any means, but in my opinion, they can't even compare to this macabre funeral serenade that is Memento Mori. Their trademark sound dominates from one song to another, but there are some instant hits like the aforementioned 'Shovel Beats Sceptre' and other songs like 'Blood Of The Funeral', 'Marching Bones', 'Year Of The Maggot' and 'As We Are'. Even though the band is loved for their fast songs with tremolo riffs and blast beats, the slower sections also do a great job at creating something truly menacing. Although I do become unamused when people constantly praise Marduk as a band, I still think that no diehard Marduk fan will overlook this album or say anything bad about it.
-Vlad
Baroness - Stone
Abraxan Hymns
It feels weird hyping up Baroness - they're not exactly unknown - but they are low key one of my favorite bands despite cramming a bunch of fucking indie rock into sludge of all things and just repeatedly releasing absolute bangers. I don't really like anything that has to do with indie rock, and I don't even like sludge metal a ton unless it's on the fringes of extremity (Meth Drinker, Body Void) or extremely ambient and airy (Isis, Dvne), but Baroness doesn't give a shit about your genre conventions, they just write songs that fuck. The bounciness of the lighter genres they take influence from mixed with metal's gritty tones makes for songs that just have an incredible amount of energy, tons of melodic flourishes in every direction, your head starts to bang a bit, the rhythms are distinct and interesting by having the energy of metal beats without the everpresent double-bass and other beaten-to-death conventions of the genre - I mean, they recruited a post-rock drummer for chrissakes! When they do get soft and do the acoustic chanting thing, the results provide a perfect contrast to the songs they surround, and feel anthemic and rich in their delicate, sublime emotion.
This band could probably shit in a bowl, eat it with a fork, record the entire process and release it as an album and I would have it pre-ordered already. Incredible band, this album is just as great as everything else they've ever done, buy it or whatever.
-Nate
METALBITE'S TOP 10 ALBUMS OF THE MONTH
10: Omnivortex - Circulate
Independent
Beautiful, elegant tech-death that realizes you don't need to cram eleventy billion notes in a song for it to be worth a listen. There's a perfect amount of melody and restraint, much more about weaving a story through sick riffs that aren't too bare, but are never more complex than they need to be either. The gorgeous legato arpeggios bring to mind Siderean's slightly blackened, slightly techy style, while the sense of melody mixed into a riff-driven atmosphere parallels Stortregn and Sulphur Aeon.
You never hear a ton about Finnish tech death - the Swedish and German scenes have a lot more immediate clout - but if this is the music that comes out of it, I wanna hear more!
-Nate
MetalBite's Rating: 8.7/10
9: Wormhole - Almost Human
Season Of Mist
I'll admit this didn't slap me in the balls right away when I heard it the same way The Weakest Among Us did, but I knew better than to doubt the Kumar bros right off the bat. This is purported by its creators to be the truest iteration of "Tech Slam", a specific genre fusion that they always wanted to hear but never quite found, so they set out to create it themselves. The first album is where you make your mission statement, the second album is when you expand on it - but the third album is where you have a chance to define yourself, and I think they've done just that here. The album isn't more technical in the Blotted Science way. but rather, incorporates higher register melody like Artificial Brain (but richer) infused with the textured, multifaceted slamming of Disentomb.
The album is best experienced as a whole - I find individual tracks don't give you the full range of motion, as the full 26 minutes goes through a flowing progression of lifting you to stratospheric heights with the gorgeous melody and then pulverizing you with slams until it feels like they might wear out their welcome…so in comes an ass-rippin' solo from some of the best in the biz. Matt Tillett sounds unbelievable as always - god, what a fucking drummer. Super underrated and should probably be hyped more than he is. The new faces in the band step into their Wormhole skin so flawlessly you don't even remember or care that they had someone else there before. Yep, this band is hummin' on all fronts, and dropping this on the heels of some huge tours (and what I can only imagine are bigger tours next year) makes it feel like they have finally arrived in the "mainstream underground" and the fun is just about to really begin.
-Nate
MetalBite's Rating: 8.8/10
8: Imperial Crystalline Entombment - Ancient Glacial Resurgence
Debemur Morti Productions
Imperial Crystalline Entombment (or the snappier I.C.E. for acronym fans), might be slightly less prolific than Guns 'N' Roses, but the follow-up to their 2004 debut is well worth the wait. This writer will confess to being unfamiliar with their earlier work, and on the evidence of Ancient Glacial Resurgence this is quite the oversight, as I.C.E. combine savage black metal with the kind of memorable songwriting that often seems to lie beyond the legions of bands that have a nice line in brutality and aggression, but little else beyond the ability to convey their immense hatred of organised religion. I.C.E. on the other hand, have an admirable habit of throwing utterly addictive classic metal riffs into each blast of Arctic air, with the monstrous 'Ravaskeith's Crystalline Return' being possible the best example, dropping rolling death-metal grooves into the Aborym-meets-Marduk hyperspeed of the rest of the track. It's a neat trick, and one that recalls Behemoth during their Demigod / Evangelion era, before Nergal discovered Fields Of The Nephilim and outlaw country. There's something very cohesive about the concept and execution of I.C.E. as a band that allows them to transcend the simple association of their name with the grim and frostbitten nature of black metal in general, and this allows the listener to totally buy into the band, ensuring their position close to the top of the pile of 2023's most crucial black metal releases.
-Benjamin
MetalBite's Rating: 8.8/10
7: Moonlight Sorcery - Horned Lord Of The Thorned Caste
Avantgarde Music
Neoclassical symphonic melodic black metal from Finland?! Surely that can't sound good, right? Well, whatever you may be thinking, you are wrong. Finnish band Moonlight Sorcery proved exactly that you can make that happen and also make it work. Their debut full-length album Horned Lord Of The Thorned Caste absolutely dominates with melodic guitar riffs, neoclassical guitar solos and symphonic keyboards, even at times reminded me of Children of Bodom from their classic early days. Indeed, this album is not for everyone, especially if you are not a fan of any kind of Yngwie Malmsteen inspired stuff, but if you are someone who is always open to discover new things, I highly recommend that you check out this album.
-Vlad
MetalBite's Rating: 8.9/10
6: KK's Priest - The Sinner Rides Again
Napalm Records
One more shot at glory and what a shot it is! KK's Priest absolutely brought down the heavy metal thunder for those who dared to reap the whirlwind, which is what you'll get to hear on their second full-length album The Sinner Rides Again. After all these years, KK Downing still remains one of the best heavy metal guitarist and songwriters of all time, and what his new Priest has done on this album is nothing short of amazing. So much was promised with their previously released songs 'One More Shot At Glory' and 'Reap The Whirlwind', yet the entire album managed to fulfill just that with other great songs such as 'Strike Of The Viper', 'Hymn 66', 'Keeper Of The Graves' and 'Wash Away Your Sins'. Simply put, this album is "all killer, no filler", an absolute banger from start to finish and it does not need any further explanation or any kind of introduction. This band may not be THE Judas Priest we know and talk about all the time, but it is indeed the overlooked but still magnificent spiritual relative of the band.
-Vlad
MetalBite's Rating: 9/10
5: Sodomisery - Mazzaroth
Testimony Records
I must confess, this is my first time hearing this Swedish group, but they've quickly made a new convert out of me. Sodomisery old-school melodic death/black metal, which reminds of a mixture of very old In Flames, Dark Tranquillity or ...and Oceans. The opener 'Coming Home' alone proves how multifaceted the band is as the harsh black metal alternates with soft acoustic parts and clear vocals ato create a spine-tingling atmosphere. 'Delusion' is dense and bombastic. 'A Storm Without A Wind' shows Dissection influence without losing their own individuality. This song is a highlight because of the cleaner vocals and acoustics passages, both a strength of this band - If The Gathering's first album ("Always...") wasn't an influence as well, I don't know where the sound comes from.
I could write a lot more about the individual songs here, but I think it's better if everyone listens to and experiences Mazzaroth for themselves - note the modern production, though, which might be a turnoff for some given the older elements at play.
-Michael
MetalBite's Rating: 9/10
4: Kerrigan - Bloodmoon
High Roller Records
The side-project / other band of German funeral doomsters Lone Wanderer, Kerrigan are a considerably more up-tempo proposition to their elder sibling, even if one senses that the influences are not necessarily too different, even if they are being manifested through a different sub-genre. Kerrigan play unapologetically traditionally heavy metal in the vein of Haunt (whose vocalist bears an uncanny resemblance to Kerrigan's Jonas Weber) and Night Demon. A little more muscular than the former, without straying too close to Manowar, Kerrigan's output is oddly elegant, perhaps owing to the stately vocal harmonies deployed throughout, harmonies that call to mind a less progressive Hallas. Restrained passages of twin lead guitar add a rich depth to Kerrigan's innate sense of hooky melodicism, and their NWOBHM influences really shine through in the obvious devotion to ensuring that each song stands alone, never once devolving into the kind of forgettable murk that bands who have the riffs, but not the songs are prone to. Virtually every track contains a knockout chorus purpose built for the stages of true metal festivals the world over, and it becomes quickly clear that Kerrigan have arrived fully-formed, ready to take on all-comers. If you have been beguiled in recent years by the output of Herzel, Solicitor, or virtually anything on Gates Of Hell, you can celebrate the arrival of your next favourite band, because Bloodmoon completely slays.
-Benjamin
MetalBite's Rating: 9/10
3: Tideless - Eye Of Water
Chaos Records
In a month that was overwhelming for new releases with an abundance of big name bands dropping albums, this noticeably stood out. It fuses the "ethereal, uplifting doom" vibe that Dream Unending has made marginally popular recently with more long-form, funeral doom styled songwriting, a la Mournful Congregation with more release and less torturing buildup.. "Deathgaze" has been used to describe their music, and while normally that feels like an arbitrary fusion of subgenre terms, it's wholly accurate here. There's no major black metal influence (the opening of 'Oblations For The Sun' suggests some familiarity with the style, but it feels coincidental), but nonetheless Eye Of Water uses frequent repetition in the same way to create this gliding, entrancing feel. They lock you into a riff for several minutes, repeating it for almost an absurd amount of time, but you never find yourself yearning for the next moment - you're perfectly content to immerse yourself in these full, developed riff sentences. The opening of the album is a great example - so simple, the same idea dwelt on for so long, yet it's mesmerizing all the while. I could listen to that little note bend for an eternity without getting bored.
The repetition partially justifies the absurd runtimes of these five songs, but there's more going on here. The range of motion this has is incredible. Just when you think you've got Tideless pinned down, they take you down a rabbit hole that fuses different elements of death metal, doom, shoegaze, ambient and post-rock together in ways you'd never even fathom, much less expect, much less thoroughly enjoy. The drawn out songwriting approach combined with the careful layering of styles makes for a versatile album - this can function as background music for studying, can be carefully examined with your full attention, or could serve as a thrilling soundtrack to your next psychedelic experience. I'm itching to try the latter in particular.
Easily my favorite doom album of the year, and the way I'm feeling about this right now it's challenging for a top spot on my 2023 AOTY list.
-Nate
MetalBite's Rating: 9.1/10
2: Trivax - Eloah Burns Out
Cult Never Dies
Surely you must have thought that no other black, death or extreme metal album in general could surpass Marduk's Memento Mori, right? Well, I have got to tell you, in recent years I have not heard such a violent album that is Eloah Burns Out by the death/black metal band Trivax from Birmingham. For all those whiny elitists all over the world who keep moaning and complaining about how neither death nor black metal can look or sound dangerous, shocking or extreme, this album proves all of you wrong big time. This album was one of my most anticipated releases for the other half of 2023, and it successfully exceeded my expectations. From one song to another, it is pure misanthropic musical aggression that will make your face melt. So many great songs on this album that I just don't know where to start, but certainly keep an eye out for hits such as 'Azrael', 'Alpha Predator', 'Serpent's Gaze', 'Against All Opposition (By Aeshma's Wrath)' and 'Twilight Death'. If you are looking for something that is so aggressive and complex, but with great songwriting, look no further than Trivax and their second full-length album Eloah Burns Out. Hail Master Death!
-Vlad
MetalBite's Rating: 9.3/10
1: Dying Fetus - Make Them Beg For Death
Relapse Records
Yet another crushing avalanche of sound with John Gallagher's bestial growls, rampant drumming and brutal and technical riffs and solos from the legendary death metal trio. Not a second to catch a breath, just a neverending ruthless wall of sound and killing adrenaline you will definitely want to feel again. 30 years after their inception, Dying Fetus still reign supreme on the throne of death metal, stopping at nothing and offering evolving yet consistently excellent music.
-TheOneNeverSeen
MetalBite's Rating: 9.5/10
Thank you for stopping by! This list should keep you busy for a while, but if you're still hankering for more cool music from this year, look no further than the links below:
And, of course, Follow MetalBite on Facebook and Instagram so you can be there right when the next Top 10 list drops!
Entered: 10/13/2023 4:10:43 PM
6.30k
Latest Reviews
Godthrymm
(9)
|
Neolith
(8)
|
|
Neolith
(8)
|
Mayhem
(9)
|
|
Mayhem
(9)
|
Haiduk
(8.1)
|
|
Haiduk
(8.1)
|
Taake
(9)
|
|
Taake
(9)
|
Terrestrial Hospice
(8.5)
|
|
Terrestrial Hospice
(8.5)
|
Moonspell
(7.2)
|
|
Moonspell
(7.2)
|
Zørza
(8.9)
|
|
Zørza
(8.9)
|
Sworn
(10)
|
|
Sworn
(10)
|
Litosth
(9.5)
|
|
Litosth
(9.5)
|
Hor
(9)
|
|
Hor
(9)
|
Morgal
(6.7)
|
|
Morgal
(6.7)
|
|
Zørza
(8.5)
|
|
Zørza
(8.5)
|
Vomit Division
(7.7)
|
|
Vomit Division
(7.7)
|
Nunslaughter
(8.5)
|
|
Nunslaughter
(8.5)
|