Yerusalem/The Sublime/Debember Morti Productions/2019 CD Review

  Yerusalem  are  a  duo  from  France  that  consists  of  a  member  of  Blut  Aus  Nord  and  plays  a  mixture  of  black  metal,  industrial,  post  punk,  new  wave,  electronica,  and  goth  rock  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  album  "The  Sublime"which  will  be  released  in  2019  by  Debembur  Morti  Productions.

  Atmospheric  soundscapes  start  off  the  album  before  adding  in  some  melodic  guitar  leads  and  programmed  beats  while  the  clean  vocals  gives  the  music  more  of  a  post  punk  feeling  along  with  the  music  also  getting  very  avant  garde  and  experimental  at  times  and  the  heavy  riffs  also  add  in  touches  of  early  90's  industrial  metal.

  Elements  of  goth  rock.  psychedelia,  new  wave,  electronica  and  dreamgaze  can  also  be  heard  at  times  while  all  of  the  musical  instruments  have  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  along  with  the  songs  also  adding  in  a  great  amount  of  synths  as  well  as  one  of  the  tracks  being  an  instrumental  and  some  of  the  riffing  also  adds  in  structures  of  mid  90's  to  early  2000's  era  experimental  black  metal  and  all  of  the  music  sticks  to  a  slower  direction.

  Yerasalem  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  industrial,  new  wave,  electronica,  post  punk,  goth  rock  and  black  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover  esoteric and  philosophical  themes.

  In  my  opinion  Yeraalem  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  industrial,  new  wave,  electronica,  post  punk,  goth  rock  and  black  metal  and  if  you  are  looking for  something  very  original,  you  should  check  out  this  duo.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "The  Sublime"  "Joyless"  and  "Reverso".  8  out  of  10. 

https://www.facebook.com/Yeruselemprojekt/

Goblinsmoker Interview

1. For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?



Hey, we’re a black metal influenced doom band from Durham in the North East of England. We look to make music with big riffs while telling a story, creating an atmosphere within the music that complements the story telling element.



2. You have an ep coming out in December, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style you went for on this recording?



I’ve seen someone recently describe it’s as ‘the venom of black metal blended with the warm amplifier riff worship of doom.’ Which I feel pretty much nails what we initially set out to do. Classic doom riffs, drowning in fuzz and throwing in the seething bleakness of black metal.



3. The lyrics have a concept involving the Toad King, can you tell us a little bit more about the songwriting?



The concept centres on the story of the Toad King, the discontented ruler of the goblins and their forest home. I’ve always been a big fan of storytelling in music and we’ve had so much fun working on the concept. Also, for whatever reason, I find it much easier to write lyrics that may have emotions personal to me thrown in, but they are hidden amongst the storytelling. As we have fleshed out the concept, it’s aided us writing the music. Kind of like ‘what would you expect a song to sound like that is about a big pissed off toad, sitting in a smoke filled forest.’



4. What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Goblinsmoker'?



The name itself really came from the concept. I had basics of the concept and the first song wrote a while before the name was settled on. The name just felt like a natural choice. The Toad King, cast out by his own kind, has found himself on the goblin throne in the forest. The goblins are in awe of him and willingly sacrifice themselves to be smoked by their king. This goblin smoke helping the king escape his resentment. The Toad King is the goblinsmoker.



5. Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the ep cover?



The guy who did the art has done such a good job of capturing what we were after. He’s nailed it. It was important the art set the tone for the concept as it’s the first thing people are likely to see, before they’ve heard the music. As this record is the start of the story and the introduction to the Toad King, we wanted the main guy front and centre smoking those goblin subjects. We’ll be developing the art with the story.



6. Originally the band was a solo project what was the decision behind expanding into a duo?



After a number of years playing in a band that broke down I (Adam – vocals, guitars, bass) decided to set myself a goal of writing a record alone. I can be a bit of a lone wolf and find it easier working alone than with other people, so it felt like a natural thing to do. I can’t play drums for shit and initially was going to pay for a session drum to drum on the tracks. After talking about the concept with Calum (drums) who I’ve known for years, he was really into it. He also happened to play drums and is the nicest, most chilled out guy so it felt totally right to bring him on board.



7. The ep is going to be released through 'Sludgelord Records', how did you get in contact with this label?



Sludgelord Records actually were the only label I contacted about doing the record. I contacted them quite early on with the concept and asked if they’d be up for hearing the music once it’s done. I’d known of Sludgelord for a long time through their steady supply of good music through the blog. Knowing they had a label, it was something I really wanted to release on. Luckily, months later I sent over the finished tracks and they agreed to release it. I was naturally really pleased and proud they’d taken it on, felt like the ideal home for the record.



8. On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black, sludge and doom metal?



The response has been insane. Like, way over and above what we expected. Sludgelord Records sold out of their allocation of tapes in 24 hours off the back of a 20 second clip of music. A week and a half later we have sold out of all our tapes after one track being released. When I first start writing this, sat in my living room, I never expected it’d get such a reaction. And to think, we were only initially going to do a run of half the amount of tapes we have sold, and were concerned we’d struggle to sell them.



9. When can we expect a full length and also where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?



We are aiming to do what we have been jokingly calling ‘The Toad Tape Trilogy’. Basically telling the story of the Toad King over three tape releases. We have this first release that kind of introduces the setting with the first song and the final track, ‘Time to Ride’, having the King learn of an upcoming war and his need to ride into battle. This will be where the second release picks up. We want to do three different colour tapes across the three parts of the story, having the artwork develop and the main colours of the art match the tapes. As you’d be able to see the main colour theme of this one being green. Once the three are done, we’d like to release them all as set, either in a presentation box together, or possibly even on vinyl if we are in a position to do so.

We also have our first shows slotted in for next year, so we are currently on bringing a bassist into the fold, so we can replicate the records sound live.



10. What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?



As we’ve previously mentioned, doom and black metal has been a big influence on our sound and what we are trying to do. Not that our musical interests are limited to that. I (Adam) am a big fan of Rush and feel some of their harder riffs are a big influence, along with their story telling. In terms of records that have come out this year, there have been some great albums, probably my personal favourite being Transcanadian Anger by Dopethrone.



11. What are some of your non musical interests?



We are both really into good beer from micro breweries. We are in a pretty good spot for it up here, with breweries like Wylam, so we have invested plenty of time indulging the love good ale while developing the concept. I guess the dream is to get into a position where we have someone brew us a Goblinsmoker ale.



12. Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?



Toad King, worship him.

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Fordomth Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

The band was born in 2013 from the need to create a project around and inside the concept of  damnation, which the first concrete manifestation is I.N.D.N.S.L.E..
The main idea came from the mind of Gianluca, which plays bass on the full length and now the guitar with the current line-up. Following this idea few specific musician, also friends, already into extreme music scene, were recruited to make Fordomth real. In these past years the band had quite a singular background concerning line-up changes. Long story short Gianluca and Gabriele are the only former members still in the band, which consist in a four pieces now.

2.Recently you have released your first full length, can you tell us a little bit more bout the musical style you went for on this recording?

The common ground for the six former members was the same, consisting in Doom Metal and all its shades. In particular Funeral Doom Metal influenced by such bands as Catacombs, Ahab, Evoken, Thergothon and Longing for Dawn, to name few, were the foundation for I.N.D.N.S.L.E.. The many personal influences turned out in a very textural approach to the composition, making the result unique and even more precious thanks to the special featuring of Federica's violin in 'Interlude' and Salvatore's voice in the title-track.

3.The band has been around since 2013 but you waited until 2018 to play live shows or release an album, can you tell us a little bit more about the earlier years?

Concerning the gestation of Fordomth started in 2013, as we already mentioned, the past years were full of events, which were the reasons for the many line-up changes, not allowing the band to play live until now. Only in 2018 the line-up were consolidated to four members and for this reason our first release I.N.D.N.S.L.E. is, for now, not intended to be played live, still, we have many releases we're working on at the moment, which are also our current live sets.
About I.N.D.N.S.L.E. we're very pleased how the album turned out, so we decided it was due to release it in spite of everything.

4.The lyrics on the recording are a concept album, can you tell us a little bit more about the story you bring onto the album?

The theme is the Eternal Damnation, under its satanic and spiritual point of view.
The concept album follows the story of Lucifer’s damnation, from his fall from the heavens to his enthronement in hell. The very specific point of view consist in a first person empathy with Lucifer, who starts his path as bringer of light to culminate both in damnation and in bringing that aforementioned light into himself.

5.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Fordomth'?

Fordomt means condemned in Norwegian language, so this word bears into itself the complete concept which around the band was born. We choose a Norwegian word both as a tribute to this country Black Metal scene, which always influenced us, also because we think Norway has an historical background that is closely bounded to the concept we want to express with the word Fordomt.


6.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the album cover?

All the artworks were developed by View From The Coffin who perfectly caught from the first moment our spirit, so he provided an essential aspect to I.N.D.N.S.L.E. cover art, which mainly consist in the band logo, so the listener attention can be channeled more into music.


7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

By now we decided to not play live very often to focus on the studio production, still our first live exhibition, Jettasangu Fest vol.1, was very significative for us, because both started the series of event branded by Tifone Crew, a D.I.Y. booking and promoting agency for extreme music which every member of the current line-up is involved into, also because it was the first and only live show played in a five pieces line-up. The extra member was Riccardo, guitarist and former member of Fordomth. He had to move to Budapest the day after the show, so it was a goodbye to our friend.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the new album?

No. We do not plan to play I.N.D.N.S.L.E. live at the moment.
Still we are planning to play several gigs and perhaps an Italian tour with our new current set.

9.The new album was released on 'Endless Winter Records', can you tell us a little bit more about this label?

Endless Winter Records was immediately interested in releasing I.N.D.N.S.L.E..
Gennady's great enthusiasm and professionalism were great resources for us from the first approach. We planned together how and when to release the album and everything was very fast and efficient. We are deeply honored to be part of the Endless Winter roster.

10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of black. sludge and funeral doom metal?

By now we received great approvals and support by everyone who listened to the album, especially from the ones who are into this musical panorama. This support made us even more motivated to keep up the good work and we're doing our best for the next releases.

11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

First it’s appropriate to talk about what happened until now to better understand what will be in the future. The Funeral Doom style have been mixed with Sludge Doom and Black Metal by now, sometimes this last influence one is more prominent then the other ones, sometimes it’s the opposite. Still, during the composition process, we always want to stay true to our funereal intents. About the future, we will see.

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

Despite some slight differences in music preferences and previous band experiences, we spontaneously found a synergy between us, also thanks to our common grounds which are bands like Primitive Man, Mgła, Wiegedood, Catacombs, Vermin Womb, Sargeist to name few.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?

We live our lives with the consciousness to follow our very own natures, that’s it.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

We are deeply thankful to everyone out there supporting us and for those who keep their eyes peeled we’ll deliver some exciting news soon, thank you.

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Goblinsmoker/Toad King/Sludgelord Records/2018 EP Review

  Goblinsmoker  are  a  band  from  the United Kingdom  that  plays  a  mixture  of  black,  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  ep 'Toad  King"  which  will  be  released  in  December  by  Sludgelord  Records.

  Guitar  amp  noises  start  off  the  ep  before  adding  in  some  slow  and  heavy  riffs  that  are  very  heavily  rooted  in  sludge  and  doom  metal  along  with  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  as  well  as  all  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length.

  Vocals  are  mostly  high  pitched  black  metal  screams  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  dark  and  melodic  style  along  with  the  music  also  adding  in  a  stoner  metal  edge  at  times  as  well  as  all  of  the  songs  sticking  to  a  very  slow  direction  and  dark  sounding  melodies  can  also  be  heard  briefly.

  Goblinsmoker  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  black,  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  create  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  a  concept  album  based  upon  The  Toad  King.

  In  my  opinion  Goblinsmoker  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  black,  sludge  and  doom  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACK  "Time  To  Ride".  8  out  of  10.

https://www.facebook.com/Goblinsmoker/

https://thesludgelord.bandcamp.com/album/toad-king

  

Absence Betrayal Interview

1.For those that have never heard of you before, can you tell us a little bit about the band?

ENG: The project Absence Betrayal was formed after my main group Escadaia suspended its activities. I (Andrey Baranov - the Author of the project) decided to finish my musical activity and do something else, but after some time the desire to write music took over and I began to compose songs just to throw out my energy. After recording the first song (When the sun goes out), I showed it to a few people who were impressed with my work and convinced me not to give up and release the
album. Absence Betrayal is a solo project of one person.

2.In September you had released your first album, can you tell us a little bit more about the musical style you went for on this recording?

ENG: In writing music, I never rely on a particular genre, so each composition may differ in its style from the others. The style of this album I call Extreme Metal, I think it is a mistake to say that it is
specifically Death or Black style, I can get a hard song, and lyrical, and maybe even epic.

3.What are some of the lyrical topics and subjects the band explores with the music?

ENG: For the most part this is a philosophical and life themes, but not always.

4.What is the meaning and inspiration behind the name 'Absence Betrayal'?

ENG: I was just looking for a beautiful phrase that starts with the letters A and B since these are my initials. Picking up the words for the name of the project I liked the phrase Absence Betrayal, as its
meaning has a great meaning for me.

5.Can you tell us a little bit more about the artwork that is presented on the album cover?

ENG: On the cover is used silhouette of my face.

6.Originally the band was supposed to be a solo project, what was the decision behind adding other members?

ENG: Project as it was solo, so solo and stayed. The composition was recruited once for live performance, but later on I left my old friend and colleague in the Escadaia group, Nikolai Sokolov on the guitar, he will take part in the next concerts and upcoming studio work.

7.What are some of the best shows that the band has played so far and also how would you describe your stage performance?

ENG: Presentation of the album in the city of Irkutsk.

8.Do you have any touring or show plans for the future?

ENG: I have plans to tour Russia to present the album in the first half of 2019. We would also like to present the album in other countries, but it remains only in dreams.

9.Currently you are unsigned, are you looking for a label or have received any interest?

ENG: The debut album Emotions was released on the independent Russian label Metal Renaissance. I would like to try to publish the next release on another label that could give substantial support. So yeah, I'm looking for a label.

10.On a worldwide level how has the reaction been to your music by fans of melodic black and death metal?

ENG: Globally, at the moment, there are not very many people who have heard my music, but those who have heard have left positive reviews.

11.Where do you see the band heading into musically during the future?

ENG: Work on the second album has already begun and there are even a few recorded songs that will begin to come out in the form of singles in the 1st quarter of 2019. For the most part, the style remains the same Extreme Metal because it is not possible to specify the style, also on the album there will be several experimental compositions.

12.What are some of the bands or musical styles that have had an influence on your music and also what are you listening to nowadays?

ENG: I don't want to answer that question, sorry.

13.What are some of your non musical interests?

ENG: Creating games for computers and phones. This is not my main activity, but I love doing it very much.

14.Before we wrap up this interview, do you have any final words or thoughts?

ENG: Thanks to all those who read this interview! Be always adequate
people!

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Sulphur Aeon/The Scythe of Cosmic Chaos/Van Records/2018 CD Review

  Germany's  Sulphur  Aeon  have  returned  with  a  new  recording  which  continues  the  melodic  blackened  death  metal  style  of  previous  releases  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "The  Scythe  of  Cosmic  Chaos"  which  will  be  released  in  December  by  Van  Records.

  Atmospheric  sounding  synths  and  ritualistic  spoken  word  parts  start  off  the  album  before  going  into  a  heavier  direction  while  clean  vocals  can  also  be  heard  briefly  along  with  the  solos  and  leads  being  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  as  well  as  the  riffs  also  adding  in  a  decent  amount  of  melody.

  Vocals  are  mostly  death  metal  growls  along  with  a  few  black  metal  screams  while  the  songs  also  add  in  a  great  mixture  of  slow,  mid  paced  and  fast  parts  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them  and  some  of  the  tracks  are  very  long  and  epic  in  length  and  as  the  album  progresses  a  brief  use  of  spoken  word  parts  can  also  be  heard.

  Sulphur  Aeon  creates  another  recording  that  remains  true  to  the  melodic  blackened  death  metal  style  of  previous  releases,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  are  based  upon  the  writings  of  H.P  Lovecraft.

  In  my  opinion  this  is  another  great  sounding  recording  from  Sulphur  Aeon  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  melodic  blackened  death  metal,  you  should  check  out  this  album.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Cult  of  Starry  Wisdom""Sinister  Sea  Sabbath"  and  "Liungs  into  Gills".  8  out  of  10. 

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Heidra/The Blackening Tide/Time To Kill Records/2018 CD Review

  Heidra  are  a  band  from  Denmark  that  plays  a  mixture  of  folk,  viking,  black,  melodic  death  and  power  metal  and  this  is  a  review  of  their  2018  album  "The  Blackening  Tide"  which  was  released  by  Time  To  Kill  Records.

  Acoustic  guitars  start  off  the  album  along  with  some  epic  sounding  synths  a  few  seconds  later  before  adding  in  some  heavy  riffs  and  power  metal  style  vocals  while  black  metal  screams  are  also  utilized  at  times  as  well  as  all  of  the  musical  instruments  having  a  very  powerful  sound  to  them.

  Death  metal  growls  are  also  added  into  certain  sections  of  the  recording  while  the  solos  and  leads  are  done  in  a  very  melodic  style  along  with  the  songs  also  adding  in  elements  of  folk  music  as  well  as  some  of  the  tracks  being  very  long  and  epic  in  length and  at  times  the  music  also  gets  very  symphonic  sounding  and  when  the  music  speeds  up  a  small  amount  of  blast  beats  can  also  be  heard.

  Heidra  plays  a  musical  style  that  takes  folk,  viking,  black,  melodic  death  and  power  metal  and  mixes  them  together  to  crate  a  sound  of  their  own,  the  production  sounds  very  professional  while  the  lyrics  cover Scandinavian  Tales.

  In  my  opinion  Heidra  are  a  very  great  sounding  mixture  of  folk,  viking,  black,  melodic  death  and  power  metal  and  if  you  are  a  fan  of  those  musical  genres,  you  should  check  out  this  band.  RECOMMENDED  TRACKS  INCLUDE  "Dawn""Lady  Of The  Shade"  and  "Hells  Depths".  8 out  of  10.

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