Category Archives: Mini-Review

Facegrinder – Kugelblitz

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

If the name itself of the band—Facegrinder, Face. Grinder. GRINDER OF FACES—doesn’t invoke visceral sentiments, or if the album’s title, Kugelblitz—a black hole made of pure energy—, doesn’t resonate with higher orbital levels, then let the music speak for itself. The Perthbound deathgrind trio just released one of the big titles for today’s grinding repertoire.

The band’s sound is harsh, raw-sounding; thanks, in part, to the absence of a bass guitar to the mix, giving the wall of sound a razor sharp quality that often is a hallmark of grindcore as a genre. … Read more

Bollywood – Bollywood

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

Experimental is the land of all possibles. Bollywood paints a rather stellar example of this in the realm of jazz with their self-titled debut album. Released on 12 August, it was briefly available through TVL Rec‘s page, and abruptly taken down—forbidding my sharing it. However, this can’t stop me from talking about it.

A few minutes over thirty, Bollywood is an album of what sounds like free jazz meets lowercase music, with each track fronted by a different solo instrument—here saxophone, here bass, and so on—backed by insectile percussions, noise backing tracks, or electronic experimentations. … Read more

Ring van Möbius – Past the Evening Sun

by Jeff Nixon

The Music

The Words

Ring van Möbius released their debut album Past the Evening Sun back in May, containing three very proggy tracks, including an epic twenty-one-minute title track, the full video of which is featured above. The Norwegian trio provide a hefty dose of Hammond organ, mellotron synths, and strong instrumental grooves, right out of 1971. There are lots of prog bands that take influence from that era, but few that make it sound new and original. Ring van Möbius are one of those few.

The lineup consists of Thor Erik Helgesen on lead vocals and keyboards, Håvard Rasmussen … Read more

EXCLUSIVE STREAM: The Mercury Tree and Cryptic Ruse – Cryptic Tree

by Dæv Tremblay

The Music

The Words

It’s here! It’s finally here! Listen to the Cryptic Tree EP in full right now, 24 hours before its official release! Let’s bask in the glory of heptadecaphonic music, and the occasional polyharmonic passage with icositritonic tuning, crafted in collaboration by Portland, Oregon’s The Mercury Tree and Seattle, Washington’s Igliashon Jones of Cryptic Ruse.

I shan’t say more! Let the music speak for itself. This record is mind-blowing, so check it out!

The Links

Bandcamp – The Mercury Tree
Facebook – The Mercury Tree

Bandcamp – Cryptic Ruse
Facebook – Cryptic Ruse

The Recs

Cryptic … Read more

The Lion’s Daughter, Manta, Void Eater, Eli Wallace, Frontierer, Neckbeard Deathcamp, 春ねむり, The Bepis Brothers, and Elaine the Singer

by Dæv Tremblay

The Lion’s Daughter – Future Cult

Kiara impressed with their 2016 album Existence Is Horror, yet they surprise with their 2018 Future Cult. By putting aside some part of their sound to make space for the inclusion of synth horror—for lack of a better term—, the St Louis band manages to conjure a new aspect of their character. The sawtooths merge well with the dissonant distorted guitars, the near-constant blast beats, and the guttural vocals. Get on this.

Manta – Manta

There are few things better than uncovering a new experimental jazz band. Rimouski’s Manta quartet—saxophone, electric bass, … Read more