TEN FROM THE TOMB is a weekly feature in the form of a themed list devoted to grouping together albums of similar interest that I missed throughout the year. These albums were overlooked for review for any number of reasons with the most common reason being constraints of time. I have a policy of covering 99% of everything I receive in some form, be it mini-review or full-feature, so don’t hesitate to send anything and everything my way.

Here I present a ten album sampler of some weird and interesting shit and/or avant-garde releases I’ve so far overlooked this year. Consider it a loosely themed soundtrack to your weekend spent trying to find that old Andy Summers & Robert Fripp vinyl then getting frustrated by it’s disappearance to the point of just hitting random on your digital collection and staring at the ceiling while your dog farts next to you. Most of these albums made it here to Ten From the Tomb because I couldn’t manage the time for a long-form review or because I really didn’t have more than a paragraph or two’s worth of insight beyond banal description. If you don’t like barely metal oddities, relax! This’ll be back every seven days with 10 more albums from different styles, genres, themes, etc.

Hey! Don’t dive in thinking this will all be post-metal and progressive rock with growls, a lot of it isn’t metal at all. I generally skipped over gimmicky shit but some of this music is just weird for the sake of it; I tried to find releases that at least manage a damn good concept or redeeming sound… Some sort of depth. I post a poll on Patreon every two weeks so that Patrons can pick between genre/concepts as I dig through hundreds of not-yet-reviewed releases. This isn’t so much a collection of dregs and flops but rather a selection meant to convey diversity within underground/independent metal music’s sphere of influence, keep in mind I’m not an expert on experimental music and these releases are all just slightly out of left field from an arbitrary ‘normal’ set by convention. Think my opinions are trash and that I suck? Want to totally tell me off, bro? Click away and let’s all live more sensible lives full of meaningful interactions. I’m too old and bored with people to care. NOTE: This was early this week because I need to work on the Metal of the Month list for August most of tomorrow.

Artist	Heikki Hautala & Hyvät Veljet
Title [Type/Year]	Rauha Ja Harmonia [Full-length/2018]
Rating [3.0/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp! | BUY from Ektro Records

Why am I starting with a chill Finnish indie rock album? It is a good place to start as we head towards strange horizons. In singing of “peace and harmony” vocalist/guitarist Heikki Hautala (Sokea Piste, Pyövelin vaatteet) intends to portray the concept as a fairytale kept alive by folks who cannot see the dystopia around them. Beautifully dark and very Finnish. For his second solo record in this style he is joined by rock band Hyvät veljet. The album should appeal to fans of the post-rock singer/songwriter side of Sólstafir but with the a bit of 70’s psych simmering under fairly minimal, downtempo folk rock songs. Dreary and a bit alien.

Artist	Nonsun
Title [Type/Year]	Black Snow Desert [Remaster/2018]
Rating [3.25/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

It might seem odd, or perhaps even cynical for a band to remaster and remix their 2016 album just two years after release but in the case of Ukranian instrumental drone/doom post-metal act Nonsun, it has made quite a difference. Already a long, atmospheric trip through waves and rivers of static, heaving doom riffs, and post-metal guitar work the extra fidelity helps the listener take the piece a bit more seriously. Cleaned up and wiped of some amount of cheapness ‘Black Snow Desert’ is still the sort of post-metal you’re most likely to put on while you clean the house or get high and have sex to. So, why not just keep those Explosions in the Sky LPs and never move on? Doom, of course. The hints of drone are a nice touch but I stuck around for the hearty, lumbering guitar parts. They’re a bit few and far between for my taste but should be on point for fans of both early Pelican and later Earth. Something to space out to.

Artist	Goddess of Fate
Title [Type/Year]	Spiral Orchard Pt. I [Full-length/2018]
Rating [2.75/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

When Indonesian prog-metallers Goddess of Fate first popped up in 2011 they were playing a very standard form of progressive technical/death metal and in the six years since their first EP they’ve taken some notes from modern Scandinavian prog metal. There is a ton of filler on this record padding out three main extended prog metal compositions amidst several acoustic/folk rock intros and interludes. I don’t see the relation between the “Aromantic” tracks and their progressive death metal songs, nor did I understand the placement of “Limbo” as it didn’t serve any purpose or relation to the songs around it. What I will say is that the blend of extreme metal and modern progressive music is interesting in a good way. I spent a lot of time with this record but could not resolve it’s schizophonic nature, one moment it is fantasy keyboard driven drama, the next folk rock, the next death metal, and then dips into elevator muzak and back again. The ‘art’ of albums like this is in the connections between disparate elements, and not just grouping together things in awkward juxtapositions. In short, I didn’t -get- it, but it isn’t bad.

Artist	Isa
Title [Type/Year]	Chimera [Full-length/2018]
Rating [2.5/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

When I wasn’t sure of what to make of ‘Chimera’ I took a look at what some other sites had to say about Isa and it was one of those cases where it seemed like the writers just wanted to make friends with a musician on twitter and didn’t have a ton of objections to it’s substance. I found the album’s strength was in it’s atmosphere as the occasional sci-fi ambiance of ‘Chimera’ lends a slightly warm sense of isolation to otherwise under-developed and overly ambitious tech-melodeath compositions. That isn’t to say that Isa lacks any detail or focus, in fact for a solo project the artist has an intense vision on display here; The release ultimately shows a lack of finesse to deliver on ideas. Performances seem most confident and engaged during high-speed, technical moments. Going from “Reflection” to “Lust” was both my favorite transition on the album but also the brightest highlight for how the potential of the arrangements is stifled by myriad ideas that disrupt one another without any larger meaningful arc or ‘flow’. The mood is conveyed, and that is what matters most, but the salad I had to dig through to get there was unnecessarily cramped with ideas.

Artist	Latreaumont
Title [Type/Year]	Silence of the Deceased [Full-length/2018]
Rating [2.75/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

We certainly dropped into the darkest point of the rabbit hole here and continuing on that same thread comes Novorossiysk, Russia based modern black/death metal band Latreaumont with a sound that mixes in elements of djent and modern melodic death metal with their black/death intentions. What helps and hurts ‘Silence of the Deceased’ is it’s reliance on dissonance to create interest and though the trio’s sound is polished and smartly achieved their songwriting is too subtle in differentiating each track. I like the chugging, dissonant sludge-like mathcore influenced stuff in relation to the modern black/death metal sound but it feels like an exhibition rather than songwriting. They reminded me of Polish death metal band Trauma at first but unfortunately didn’t switch things up enough to really be engaging beyond one or two listens.

Artist	Hukutus
Title [Type/Year]	Oksitosiini [Full-length/2018]
Rating [3.0/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

Formed by ex-members of My Fate and various other Finnish melodic extreme metal bands Hukutus is a dirtier, more conceptual sort of black metal project that has taken seven years to whip up their debut album ‘Oksitosiini’. At first I wanted to liken it’s contents to Ajattara but as the album spun a few more times I’d say that only fits about a third of the time. Despite not being memorable as a whole Hukutus‘ debut is at least listenable and unique with elements of sludge metal, black metal, and death metal coming together in a groovy almost black n’ roll sort of way. My favorite track here is probably “Metsa ja Yo” as it’s atmoblack/post-metal intro leads into a track that felt superior to the 3-4 songs preceding it.

Artist	Survival
Title [Type/Year]	Murkin Hella Fools [Full-length/2018]
Rating [3.0/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

So if that was all too aggro for you and you need to calm down, there’s no hope for you. Next is Survival and they’re nothing like anything else. This Oakland, California group of millennial dopers, skaters and thrash freaks has basically become a Nick Noro solo project at this point after a couple year’s hiatus. It is rough and really just sounds like a pre-production demo made on a laptop. What makes ‘Murkin Hella Fools’ interesting is it’s mix of thrash and hardcore riffs, beats, and experimentation that really doesn’t give a shit about conventions or expectations. If it wasn’t for those terrible programmed drums this’d probably be a rock-solid crossover record, as it is… I think the material needs a more serious approach. Still cool stuff, worth sitting through the whole thing because the guy has some wild ideas that’d make Turnstile blush.

Artist	A Cunning Man
Title [Type/Year]	To Heal a Broken Body [EP/2018]
Rating [3.5/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

A Cunning Man offer a brilliant progressive metal opera on their first release featuring guitarist Theo Le Derf. Originally a solo project of vocalist/composer Ged Cartwright their material is immediately striking for his vocal performances which soar with a most professional air and a gorgeous Scottish accent. The compositions are less pop songs and instead seem to pull from progressive rock and modern singer/songwriters for influence with ethereal arrangements. I am a sucker for a vocal harmony and a strong accent and it is fairly rare to hear that brogue in hard rock/progressive metal. Even more interesting are the occult lyrical themes atop otherwise bright, chiming vocal music. I meant to review this early in the year but lost track of my original ‘to do’ list and unfortunately this was one of the records that got lost in the shuffle until I’d gotten myself better organized. If you look to lists like this for something truly different, I think this will be the biggest surprise on offer, especially if you stick with it and listen to the entire EP.

Artist	Vampillia
Title [Type/Year]	Happiness Brought by Endless Sorrow [EP/2018]
Rating [3.0/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

The amount of potently catchy moments Vampillia‘s blackened 10 piece orchestra is able to shove into just seven minutes is almost too much. Fans of Boredoms and symphonic black metal should be in some sort of heaven as members of Japanese experimental rock/noise royalty create a crazed and detailed blur with Vampillia‘s latest EP. They’ve been incredibly prolific so I’d recommend checking out their own Bandcamp to get an idea of the wild collaborations they’ve done with other artists. Cheap instant gratification but easily worth the seven minutes it lasts.

Artist	Gnaw Their Tongues & Crowhurst
Title [Type/Year]	Burning Ad Infinitum: A Collaboration [Full-length/2018]
Rating [2.75/5.0]	BUY/LISTEN on Bandcamp!

Harsh noise is one of the more perplexing fascinations as thousands of folks around the world sit and listen to recordings that sound like faulty grounds, running machinery, and static discharges. Like any other genre you’ll have to dig to find the artists and textures you’re most responsive to and the difficulty is that the desired effect can be elusive. Should I be revolted and in pain, just to feel something different? Is it art or barely controlled excessive over-sampled nausea? Well, it is certainly art and part of a long tradition of experimental noise. A fascinating ‘cleansing’ effect is possible in most cases, and should be sought out. Prolific Philadelphia noise artist Crowhurst is a maniac dedicated to drone, noise, and has a gift for textures above all else. I feel his ear for the experience reigning in Gnaw Their Tongues‘ typical abandon, and generally like the results; This should be a surprise because I generally do not like Gnaw Their Tongues‘ work or sound. “Nothing’s Sacred” is the centerpiece for my taste with “The Divinity of Our Great Perversions” providing something more for the curious experimental metal fan to latch onto, but the middle portion of the album only serves as a bland bridge between the two greater moments.

Did I miss your favorite 2018 album? I’d like to know if there are any 2018 releases you loved but thought didn’t get enough recognition. Drop me a line to tell me! It is always worthwhile to speak up for the lesser known stuff. Please remember you can contribute to my Patreon @ only $1 USD per month ($12 a year) to help keep me in front of the computer writing about metal. Thanks.