Category Archives: Review

OSR: January 21st, 2016

by Deidre House

Amsterdam’s Spinifex erupt with chaotic intensity on Hipsters Gone Ballistic, a set of avant-punk-jazz aberrations that are simultaneously crushing, refined, and unpredictable.

Based on his incorporation of retro synths into his cutting edge jazz fusion style, I get the impression that Evan Marien is a fan of chiptunes,  however his production skills and bass chops help put his latest release, Artifacts, on an entirely different level.

The debut Advent EP from blackened folk metallers Wandering Oak is a promising display of occult darkness forging a distinct identity without forgetting the roots from which it sprung.

Satan’s Secret is … Read more

Book of Sand – The Face of the Deep

by Dæv Tremblay

RELEASE-distro-bookofsandBook of Sand is a black metal one-man band that has been around since 2009, and The Face of the Deep is their fifth full-length. It seems that, specifically for this release, they went out of their way and dove head first in experimental and avant-garde waters. However I feel they did so in the shallow and might have broken their neck…

Their previous catalogue comprises pretty traditional black metal with various external influences that almost go unnoticed if it were not for the addition of violin. Some songs are very decent, like “Arran Boat Song“, with its contemplative monotony, … Read more

Bambino dell’Oro – Los Belvos

by Deidre House

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Oxford, UK’s progressive fusion duo Bambino dell’Oro‘s latest album Los Belvos is a set of sumptuously textured modern jazz pieces underlaid by complex grooves. The core of the band is made up by two multi-instrumentalists specializing on drums and piano/keyboard respectively, but they also have a bassist with them most of the time and occasionally a soprano sax player as well on this release.

The album’s overall feel is energetic, effortlessly flowing between odd time signatures that are given time to breathe without overstaying their welcome. They make strategic use of a wide texural palette including instruments such as … Read more

OSR: January 9th, 2016

by Dæv Tremblay
Let’s begin with a 2011 album because why not. And it’s not even metal, for a change! Rather, it’s a fantastic funky neo-soul EP that you should definitely grab to add some colour to your all-black music library. Ghost Horizon previewed this song for their upcoming album; I’ll surely listen to it when it comes out! A very enjoyable mosh-inducing hardcore album; reminds me of my teen days in an unashamed manner. A rock-solid combination of black metal and sludge. This thing is Osmium-heavy, and just friggin’ great! Super-violent deathgrind. 6 minutes of unfiltered powerviolence. An interesting sort of blackgaze… Read more

Warp – Anima

by Dæv Tremblay

a1759932394_16I have lauded Warp Prism (now known only as Warp) more than once in the past. Their 2013 concept album, The Infinite II, was – and still is – one of the best prog metal releases I’ve heard. It mixed in djent and electronica in a more than decent manner, and the song structure there was stellar: continually evolving while still keeping its place under the overarching story. The album was a marked step up from any of their previous works, namely Evolution and Transcode. This led me to pre-order Anima as soon as it was made … Read more