Lycus-Tempest ALBUM REVIEW

A favorite genre among aspiring metal musicians who don’t have the technical ability to properly execute a perfect 64^th note harmonized run in 11/8 time, doom metal can be relatively easy to play, but not necessarily easy to listen to. The listener must first get past the fact that doom metal is rife with ten-plus minute dirges played at tempos so frustratingly slow that they seem to impede time. There are no shout-along choruses like in power metal or catchy riffs like in thrash, and this is particularly true for funeral doom, one of the main dervishes of the greater doom style that we have available for our dark listening enjoyment. Pioneered by European bands such as Esoteric and Thergothon in the 1990s, the microgenre has since spawned several acolytes who specialize in crafting the least commercial-friendly music imaginable, all played at (what feels like) 4 beats per minute. When done well, funeral doom can make for a compelling listen to those who are conditioned to the more extreme side of the metal spectrum, and one of the latest artists to emerge from this style is Oakland’s Lycus.

Limp Bizkit-"Ready to Go" TRACK REVIEW

Still better than Coal Chamber.

Yung Lean-"Hurt" TRACK REVEW

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Earl Sweatshirt-"Hive" TRACK REVIEW

Earl's hotly anticipated studio album Doris is finally going to be released upon the world on August 20th and Kvltwalter is awaiting its arrival. Sure, I have to wait a whole month, but it's not that unfortunate now that we have three official singles to rock out to until the time comes. All of them are fantastic, and his latest "Hive" is no different. This may even be the best out of the three, and after "Whoa", that's really saying something.

The Black Dahlia Murder-Everblack ALBUM REVIEW

When it comes to consistency in metal, Michigan metal crew The Black Dahlia Murder is one band that’s always been worth paying attention to, even worth buying in to. Over the course of six albums, the band has refused to compromise on their signature and unmistakable brand of melodious death metal, producing music where its purpose and conviction is undeniable. On their most recent album, Everblack, BDM sounds tighter and more focused than ever before doing what they have proven to be most adept a doing. Unfortunately, “doing what they’re most adept at doing” also entails the total avoidance of throwing any surprises at the listener.

Future-"Missing": Worst Song Ever?

Until we come to a time where we will face a Lil Wayne/Drake/2 Chainz/Future/Wocka Flocka/Gucci Mane/Rick Ro$$/Lil B/Soulja Boy/New Boyz collaboration album (that might bring about the apocalypse) we'll all just have to suffer through each "artist" and their material individually. One of those rappers, the artistically worthless entity who for some reason goes by the name of Future, released a song called "Missing" a few months ago and it baffles me how anyone could consider this guy a viable rapper in the industry. It is simply one of the worst songs I have ever heard on par with songs from any of the other rappers I just mentioned, and I don't know exactly what to say about it.

Straying from the path and why it's good

The picture above is of the band Deafheaven (whose album Sunbather I reviewed here) and they have recently been convicted of a major crime, a crime punishable by a lifetime of ridicule and being mocked relentlessly. What did they do wrong? What kind of heinous crime was committed on their part to justify punishing them with such a sentence?

They fused black metal with post-hardcore.

Amon Amarth-Deceiver of the Gods ALBUM REVIEW

Must we apply a genre tag to every single little dervish that pops up in metal music? Apparently we must, as is evident from the two dozen or so metal genres and subgenres that have been created over the last four decades that fans use to categorize their favorite bands, whether the bands themselves approve of them or not. Some of the more, uh, interesting genre tags that have been concocted by fans include death-grind, powerviolence, death-doom, djent, blackened death metal and, of course, progressive/sludge/post-hardcore/tribal/ambient (the genre that Neurosis fits under according to metal-archives.com) and I can only wonder what people are going to call the new Altar of Plagues album with its black metal-meets-Godflesh sound. However, there are a blessed few bands out there in the metal world that defy categorization and fly above the stigma associated with certain sub-genres. Sweden’s Amon Amarth is one such band.

Nicki Minaj. Not That Bad?

Hating on what's popular is a staple among music fans and has been for time immemorial. Whether it be '30s swing fans hating the rise of be-bop or old-school metalheads ragging on modern metalcore, what is deemed popular at any given time is going to be polarizing and probably will be for as long as music continues to exist. And how can it not be? Anything that's subjective (like music) will produce lovers as well as haters because there is no one way to view the art, and that's just the way it is by default, so keep that in mind the next time you want to start a war with that one guy who doesn't love ICP as much as you do.

"Revivalist" Bands: Cool or Lame?

So, have any of you fine people ever heard of a British post-punk band called Savages? You haven't? Well, let me tell you all about 'em! They are a group of punky-looking girls who take great influence from early '80s post-punk and goth rock bands such as Joy Division, Bauhaus, U2, and vocally, Souxie and the Banshees. So, what do they sound like? Well...a mixture of all of those bands plus Souxie and the Banshees. Everything even down to the guitar and bass tones are copied

BADBADNOTGOOD-"Hedron" TRACK REVIEW

Thanks to a friend of mine who goes by the very epic name of Matias, I have become enamored with the Canadian trio of hip-hop loving jazz deviants called BADBADNOTGOOD. Their irreverent approach to jazz has struck a chord with me, and their innovations should leave modern jazz musicians who are still playing “Giant Steps” and “Take the Fucking A-Train” obsolete. Jazz purists be damned! BBNG is ushering in a new wave of jazz for young people who would otherwise avoid the hell out of their grandparent’s Duke Ellington and Benny Goodman records.