terraasymmetry Features

SYNCHRONY: Music News, Week in Review & Upcoming (12/01/2019)

SYNCHRONY is a weekly feature focusing on relevant heavy music news, new releases, upcoming releases, as well as a week in review to help folks keep up with all of the content on GrizzlyButts. This’ll also include a list of upcoming releases and some preliminary notes on upcoming reviews or coverage. Some Seattle, Washington area live shows will be intermittently featured. If you have New Releases, show announcements, or important heavy music news that’ll be relevant or interesting to folks contact me at: grizzlybutts@hotmail.com Priority to PR/label submissions and straight up if I can’t hear it, I won’t cover it.

THIS WEEK IN NEWS

  • German death metal band REVEL IN FLESH have released a video for the title track from their upcoming fifth full-length ‘Hour of the Avenger’ due out on War Anthem Records this coming Friday, December 6th. The video features some live footage from the Way of Darkness Festival last year. The bass guitar sound is huge on this otherwordly melodic death song, though it is clearer on the less compressed sounding Bandcamp version. Check out “The Hour of the Avenger” on YouTube: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • Anxietous and primitive Finnish death metal destroyers NECROPSY, have finished their latest EP ‘Exitus‘, which will be released through Xtreem Music on January 20th, 2020. One of the earlier deathgrinders to kick demos around the Helsinki era in the late 80’s ’til 1994, Necropsy have released two albums since reforming in 2008. The first preview song from the EP, “Butcherado”, chunks right back to that late 80’s deathgrinding Carcass-esque sound, ripping forward as if taken from an ’89 demo, check it out on Xtreem Music’s SoundCloud: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • French progressive melodic death/doom band MONOLITHE continue to unravel the complex science fiction narrative of their upcoming ‘Okta Khora‘ album which’ll be out January 30th, 2020 through Les Acteurs De L’Ombre. In this fifth video they discuss “Ignite the Heavens Part I” and influences from classic prog rock, jazz fusion, and choral elements in creation of the track’s unique mood. Check it out on YouTube: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • Shadow Records have announced December 13th, 2019 as the release date for LIFVSLEDA‘s debut the ‘Manifest MMXIX’ EP, which will be available on all formats. Lifvsleda are a Swedish duo who’d formed for the sake of focusing on Norse black metal of the early second wave variety but they’ve made something far less teenaged and furious, more serious and thoughtful with this EP. Melody, dissonance, esoteric howling in conjuration of ancient spirits, it’s all there. Listen to the whole thing over on Bandcamp: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • Dunno how Phil Anselmo‘s elite deathgrinder-assembled (Pig Destroyer, Misery Index, Agoraphobic Nosebleed etc.) crew in SCOUR came together to make such intense, fundamentally righteous black metal out of the United States in recent years but they’re still up to it. This last week they’ve put out a cover of Bathory’s “Massacre” (the third album opener) and announced they’re working on a third EP entitled ‘Black’. Love the vocals on this cover, absolutely sickening past the solos. Check the Bathory cover out on Bandcamp: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • Edged Circle Productions have announced December 20th, 2019 as the release date for ANGELBLAST‘s debut EP, ‘Rotting Paradise‘, on 7″ EP and digital formats. Ultra brand-new and not yet accounted for, AngelBlast features members from Swedish death metal band Excruciate and Darkened. Expect semi-melodic, I’d say ‘blackened’ old school Swedish death metal. Check out the title track on Bandcamp: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • Nuclear War Now! Productions have set February 28th, 2020 as the release date for the vinyl LP version of STARGAZER‘s ‘Gloat / Borne’, which compiles the legendary Australian band’s ‘Gloat’ demo from 1996 and ‘Borne’ EP from 1997. These long sought-after formative releases from the band are a true gift to longtime fans such as myself. Been obsessed with this band since 2005! Listen to the whole compilation on Bandcamp: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • Indonesian death metal band EXHUMATION have announced their third album ‘Eleventh Formulae‘ will be released on February 28th, 2020 via Pulverised Records. Exhumation have always mixed primitive black metal, peak death metal, and a love for occult extreme music but it sounds like they’ve done an especially fine job on this latest record. Check out the first preview track, “Mors Gloria Est”, on Pulverized Records’ YouTube: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • Spanish thrashers HOLYCIDE have revealed details for their upcoming second album, ‘Fist to Face’, featuring cover art from Akirant Illustration (Iron Maiden). It’ll be released on February 14th, 2020 through Xtreem Music in most territories, excepting MDD Rec. for Germany, and Spiritual Beast Rec. for Japan. I love the cover art, and they’ve included a cover of a Recipients of Death song on the tracklist. No doubt it’ll be heavily political, and heavily influenced by that Nuclear Assault, Evildead, ’89 era of classic thrash. Stay tuned to their Facebook for updates: [Click/Tap HERE for more info]
  • NOTABLE ALBUMS AT PRESS THIS WEEK FROM: Nattverd, Reaper, Angelblast, Coffin Curse, Wheel of Smoke, Butcher, and a few more. Look for coverage in the near future. Don’t see your album listed? Send it to me!

GRIZZLY BUTTS‘ WEEK IN REVIEW (11/22/19 – 11/30/19)

WEEKLY FEATURES:

  • Ten From the Tomb 11/18/19: Nothing but Black Metal November Pt. IV
    • The last entry for ‘Nothing but Black Metal November’ is admittedly a little bit anemic because I was focusing on another black metal list in tandem. Normally folks do this as a ‘challenge’ where they listen to nothing but black metal for the month and essentially journal/blog about it.
    • Must hear: Hexenbrett, Katechon, Druadan Forest.
    • Next week (12/02) will cover some new releases for December.
    • Ten From the Tomb will change in 2020, a Monday feature focusing on releases from the coming week that won’t receive a full-sized review.
  • Thrash ‘Til Death #48: R.A.V.A.G.E. (United States) 1984-1988
    • I received a strange e-mail, ranting about how I’d been coy (?) by not simply titling this entry as Atheist. Right, okay, well I cover the first Atheist demo and album too so… anyhow these demos are as equally interesting to scour through as Cynic‘s because the final product was such a leap forward in the long run but, not as much as ‘Focus’ I suppose. For decades ‘Piece of Time’ has been one of my all time favorite albums and to dig a bit deeper, read several old interviews and realize that Florida death metal had lost its Cliff Burton in Roger Patterson when Atheist flipped their bus touring for that first album. The last two entries in this series will be Sepultura and Death.
  • 20 Underground Black Metal Albums You Missed in 2019
    • Here is the third of many sub-genre specific ‘end of the year’ lists for 2019. It was such amazing year for Sludge Metal! There are still plenty of good/great things to check out. I could to three of these lists for black metal and still have a hundred more albums to talk about.
    • Highlights: Hellvetron, Aihos, Non Opus Dei, Shrine of Insanabilis.
  • Metal of the Month: November’s Finest 15 Releases (2019)
    • Every November all of the ‘biggest’ releases come out at once to pointlessly clog the headspace of listeners with a thousand options. The thought process here is effective use of the recency bias, so you’ll see a lot of November releases on end of the year lists. This won’t be the case for me necessarily, though a few of these are going to be in my top 20 for the year for the sake of me being a huge fan.
    • Includes: Reveal, Bölzer, Obsequiae, Witch Trail, Blood Incantation, Child Bite, Sentient Horror, Cryptic Brood, Aggressive Perfector, Disharmony, Buildings, Mesmur, PH, Into Coffin, Teeth.

REVIEWS: The big releases this week were from: Reveal, Bölzer, Sentient Horror, Deivos, Teeth, Into Coffin, Cattle Decapitation, Misery Loves Company none of which I’ve had time to review since I’d been working on lists and enjoying the Thanksgiving holiday this past week. There are currently 15 drafts of reviews (for October/November releases) in my queue with about 15 more planned for December releases alongside three more sub-genre lists, a site year in review, and a Top 50 for the year in the works for December.

RELEASED/OVERLOOKED THIS WEEK (11/23/19 – 11/30/19)

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NOTE: This small sample includes overlooked releases that are not yet reviewed or covered but are recommended. Some of these will still be featured in other coverage. An asterisk (*) indicates that a review is drafted or in preparation. Click/Tap on RECORD LABEL name for preview, stream, or store.

UPCOMING RELEASES (12/01/19 – 12/06/19)

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NOTE: This is not a comprehensive list, some titles are already reviewed and/or covered and some have yet to enter the final queue for consideration and processing. An asterisk (*) indicates that a review is drafted or in preparation. Click/Tap on RECORD LABEL name for preview, stream, or store.

Did I miss something important this week? Send me an e-mail and tell me about it. It is always worthwhile to speak up for the lesser known stuff. Please remember you can donate to help keep me in front of the computer writing about metal. Thanks.

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