Dave"s Underground Laboratory: April 2, 2012
There are no April Fools in this week's session of DUL. Either our evil educator is getting soft in his old age, or this week's batch of experiments are exceptional. I'm betting on the latter. Without further delay, open your ears and shut your mouth and revel in another batch of extreme metal.
Here’s something that very nearly slipped underneath my radar, and one that I just managed to get a hold of in the nick of time. Weregoat are crawling out of the depths of Portland, Oregon, the same scene that has produced bands such as Ritual Necromancy and Aldebaran. Not surprisingly, Weregoat share members with those illustrious notables and then some. Given the quality of those bands, and the Portland scene in general, you’d expect Weregoat to be of the same high quality, and that’s exactly what you get with this CD re-issue of Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity.
Originally released late last year on vinyl on Parasitic Records, Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity is a rather long EP of severely down tuned, sloppily played primitive black/death metal with a thoroughly evil, dirty sound. Looks like bands such as Archgoat, Teitanblood, and Impetuous Ritual have a new contender to the throne to deal with, as Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity is absolutely brilliant.
Adding to the primitive genre staples is a deep sense of heaviness, a murky production, and a thoroughly rancid atmosphere to go along with some great songwriting. Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity could very well vault Weregoat into exalted realms. Go get it.
Dave’s Grade: AMore »
The title gives it away, but A Collection Of Depravation is a compilation from General Surgery, not, unfortunately, a new album. Oh, well. However, take note, as this comp gathers together thirty remastered tracks by Scott Hull from Pig Destroyer, no less, tracks that were previously only available on various splits, EPs, and demos (some of which have been previously unheard, as some cursory research reveals) from over the years.
Adding further incentive is the inclusion of extensive liner notes from the band and new artwork, resulting in a sprawling work that probably completes Relapse Records’ reissue of General Surgery’s back catalog.
The remastering by Scott Hull is what really makes A Collection Of Depravation a must have for fans of General Surgery, as what were once very raw tracks are given a chance to shine. Never fear, however, as the choppy brutality is still there, it’s just now that you can hear it. Not to mention the fact that it’s now all wrapped up into a complete package.
Dave’s Grade: A-More »
Chicago’s Kommandant periodically get some flak for flirtations with NS imagery (and less than coherent interviews with band members haven’t helped their cause all that much), but a closer examination of Kommandant reveals just a fascination with war and misanthropy, all gussied up within the iconography of a fictional fascism. The fascism is reminiscent of the anonymous sort depicted in the Ian McKellen-led film adaptation of Richard III from a few years back, one that targeted political dissidents.
Ideology aside, Kommandant play vicious black metal with rasps, scathing guitars, a powerful bass, and a generally fast pace. Rather than just going all out at breakneck speed, however, Kommandant layer their assault with plenty of uneasy atmosphere, delivering a true sense of authentic misanthropy and a pure hatred for humanity. That bile and hatred is a feeling that eludes most bands treading the same ideological waters.
A nice blend of songwriting compliments the assault. Fast blasts, deeply heavy dirges, a dissonant tone that takes on a droning quality, all are seamlessly intertwined within The Draconian Archetype to produce what is easily the best material seen from Kommandant yet. Absolutely stellar.
Dave’s Grade: A
Seems like Impiety have a new release every few months (not to mention a rotating roster as yet another two new members join band founder Shyaithan). The experimentation with 30-minute long tracks is long gone as Impiety return to just blasting away with Ravage & Conquer, an album that consists of all out blasts clocking in around the seven minute range and not much else, Impiety strip down the sound and just simply go for the throat.
The assault is cleaned up as the riffs and guitar picking are fast, clean, and precise, courtesy of new guitarist Nizam Aziz, but Impiety are breathing deeply in Slayer-esque blackened death metal with variety and, to some extent, songwriting, relegated to second tier status. However, the approach does work quite well as you can’t help but nod along at breakneck speed as your head is repeatedly caved in.
You’ll enjoy yourself with Ravage & Conquer well enough; just don’t expected anything sophisticated.
Dave’s Grade: BMore »
I normally wouldn’t devote too much time to a two-song release, but Songs Of Flesh: Part I from Megascavenger is one you’ll want to take note of. Swedish OSDM renaissance man Rogga Johansson, an alumnus of who knows how many OSDM giants within the genre, is in the process of putting together a collaborative effort of death metal with the intent of releasing a full-length album consisting of songs with different vocalists. Think Probot meets Bloodbath, and you get the idea.
Songs Of Flesh: Part I acts as a teaser with Rogga handling all of the instrumentation The first track, “Deathobsessed,” features Jörgen Sandström, formerly of Grave. The ageless Paul Speckmann jumps in for the closer, “No Haven For The Sane,” with his patented, slightly nasally inflected style. Both songs are pretty good, and just hint at what may come with a proper full-length.
Dave’s Grade: B
How Vancouver, British Columbia’s Gross Misconduct remain unsigned is beyond me. The band’s second self released full-length, The Disconnect, is one of the better albums directly descended from Symbolic-era Death that I’ve heard in quite awhile. Excellent progressive death metal that straddles the line with melodic thrash is the name of the game with Gross Misconduct, and the influences become very obvious very quickly as these guys have spent many years listening to latter era Death albums on repeat.
Progressive riffing, lots of seamless time changes, moments of aggression mixed with progressive passages, melodies, you name it, right down to the Schuldiner-esque solos. Even the vocals are reminiscent of Chuck, and Gross Misconduct also possess the musical chops to back up their hero worship with engaging and interesting songs that never descend into outright wankery or meaningless self indulgence.
Gross Misconduct greatly reminds me of Vektor, another progressive band that hasn’t sacrificed aggression and songwriting while showcasing their excellent musical skills. Somebody sign these guys, and soon!
Dave’s Grade: A
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•Weregoat - Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity (Dark Descent)
Here’s something that very nearly slipped underneath my radar, and one that I just managed to get a hold of in the nick of time. Weregoat are crawling out of the depths of Portland, Oregon, the same scene that has produced bands such as Ritual Necromancy and Aldebaran. Not surprisingly, Weregoat share members with those illustrious notables and then some. Given the quality of those bands, and the Portland scene in general, you’d expect Weregoat to be of the same high quality, and that’s exactly what you get with this CD re-issue of Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity.
Originally released late last year on vinyl on Parasitic Records, Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity is a rather long EP of severely down tuned, sloppily played primitive black/death metal with a thoroughly evil, dirty sound. Looks like bands such as Archgoat, Teitanblood, and Impetuous Ritual have a new contender to the throne to deal with, as Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity is absolutely brilliant.
Adding to the primitive genre staples is a deep sense of heaviness, a murky production, and a thoroughly rancid atmosphere to go along with some great songwriting. Unholy Exaltation Of Fullmoon Perversity could very well vault Weregoat into exalted realms. Go get it.
Dave’s Grade: AMore »
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•General Surgery - A Collection Of Depravation (Relapse)
The title gives it away, but A Collection Of Depravation is a compilation from General Surgery, not, unfortunately, a new album. Oh, well. However, take note, as this comp gathers together thirty remastered tracks by Scott Hull from Pig Destroyer, no less, tracks that were previously only available on various splits, EPs, and demos (some of which have been previously unheard, as some cursory research reveals) from over the years.
Adding further incentive is the inclusion of extensive liner notes from the band and new artwork, resulting in a sprawling work that probably completes Relapse Records’ reissue of General Surgery’s back catalog.
The remastering by Scott Hull is what really makes A Collection Of Depravation a must have for fans of General Surgery, as what were once very raw tracks are given a chance to shine. Never fear, however, as the choppy brutality is still there, it’s just now that you can hear it. Not to mention the fact that it’s now all wrapped up into a complete package.
Dave’s Grade: A-More »
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•Kommandant - The Draconian Archetype (ATMF)
Chicago’s Kommandant periodically get some flak for flirtations with NS imagery (and less than coherent interviews with band members haven’t helped their cause all that much), but a closer examination of Kommandant reveals just a fascination with war and misanthropy, all gussied up within the iconography of a fictional fascism. The fascism is reminiscent of the anonymous sort depicted in the Ian McKellen-led film adaptation of Richard III from a few years back, one that targeted political dissidents.
Ideology aside, Kommandant play vicious black metal with rasps, scathing guitars, a powerful bass, and a generally fast pace. Rather than just going all out at breakneck speed, however, Kommandant layer their assault with plenty of uneasy atmosphere, delivering a true sense of authentic misanthropy and a pure hatred for humanity. That bile and hatred is a feeling that eludes most bands treading the same ideological waters.
A nice blend of songwriting compliments the assault. Fast blasts, deeply heavy dirges, a dissonant tone that takes on a droning quality, all are seamlessly intertwined within The Draconian Archetype to produce what is easily the best material seen from Kommandant yet. Absolutely stellar.
Dave’s Grade: A
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•Impiety - Ravage & Conquer (Pulverised)
Seems like Impiety have a new release every few months (not to mention a rotating roster as yet another two new members join band founder Shyaithan). The experimentation with 30-minute long tracks is long gone as Impiety return to just blasting away with Ravage & Conquer, an album that consists of all out blasts clocking in around the seven minute range and not much else, Impiety strip down the sound and just simply go for the throat.
The assault is cleaned up as the riffs and guitar picking are fast, clean, and precise, courtesy of new guitarist Nizam Aziz, but Impiety are breathing deeply in Slayer-esque blackened death metal with variety and, to some extent, songwriting, relegated to second tier status. However, the approach does work quite well as you can’t help but nod along at breakneck speed as your head is repeatedly caved in.
You’ll enjoy yourself with Ravage & Conquer well enough; just don’t expected anything sophisticated.
Dave’s Grade: BMore »
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•Megascavenger - Songs Of Flesh: Part I (Selfmadegod)
I normally wouldn’t devote too much time to a two-song release, but Songs Of Flesh: Part I from Megascavenger is one you’ll want to take note of. Swedish OSDM renaissance man Rogga Johansson, an alumnus of who knows how many OSDM giants within the genre, is in the process of putting together a collaborative effort of death metal with the intent of releasing a full-length album consisting of songs with different vocalists. Think Probot meets Bloodbath, and you get the idea.
Songs Of Flesh: Part I acts as a teaser with Rogga handling all of the instrumentation The first track, “Deathobsessed,” features Jörgen Sandström, formerly of Grave. The ageless Paul Speckmann jumps in for the closer, “No Haven For The Sane,” with his patented, slightly nasally inflected style. Both songs are pretty good, and just hint at what may come with a proper full-length.
Dave’s Grade: B
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•Gross Misconduct - The Disconnect (Self Released)
How Vancouver, British Columbia’s Gross Misconduct remain unsigned is beyond me. The band’s second self released full-length, The Disconnect, is one of the better albums directly descended from Symbolic-era Death that I’ve heard in quite awhile. Excellent progressive death metal that straddles the line with melodic thrash is the name of the game with Gross Misconduct, and the influences become very obvious very quickly as these guys have spent many years listening to latter era Death albums on repeat.
Progressive riffing, lots of seamless time changes, moments of aggression mixed with progressive passages, melodies, you name it, right down to the Schuldiner-esque solos. Even the vocals are reminiscent of Chuck, and Gross Misconduct also possess the musical chops to back up their hero worship with engaging and interesting songs that never descend into outright wankery or meaningless self indulgence.
Gross Misconduct greatly reminds me of Vektor, another progressive band that hasn’t sacrificed aggression and songwriting while showcasing their excellent musical skills. Somebody sign these guys, and soon!
Dave’s Grade: A