The Mire – Vice Regalia

a1848591908_16 (1)UK’s The Mire is a black metal band fond of experimentation, and not so much of preconceived ideas about the genre. They’ve been active since 2009 with a two-song demo, and Vice Regalia is their most recent release, which classifies as an EP, clocking in at just under 25 minutes. Unfortunately, the band has announced this release as their final one, and apparently won’t be making new music anymore.

The band blends clean singing with different styles of harsh vocals, which pulls them towards the side of avant-garde black metal just a little, sound-wise. To that is added their experimentation, … Read more

Panzerballett – Breaking Brain

Munich, Germany’s Panzerballett has been one of my favorite bands for some time now. Merging the intricate brutality of progressive metal with the grace and elegance of modern jazz together with a dash of German humor and a healthy awareness of how bizarre this combination is, they are in my opinion one of the most original and virtuosic bands active at this time. Their fifth full length album, Breaking Brain, sufficiently expands on the formula that they’ve developed over the years and manages to meet my high expectations yet again.

Featuring a sax player in what would otherwise be … Read more

Instrumental (adj.) – A Series of Disagreements

a1446988580_16Plini, Fat Guy Wears Mystic Wolf Shirt, The Helix Nebula, SEIMS, and Violence In Action have a baby together. The name of the child with such a terrifying genealogy is Instrumental (adj.). In fact, it’s not even an actual name. But as we shouldn’t mock anyone’s name, let’s tackle this one with no preconceived ideas.

Instrumental (adj.) is an instrumental (…) band from crazed Australia. If the portfolio of its progenitors is any indicator of how the offspring will turn out, then it’s going to be quite a listen! And oh boy how it is! A Series of Read more

Two amazing math rock bands team up for a promising collaboration!

ni and PoiL are two French math rock bands that blew us away the minute we heard of them, respectively. Thus, the news of them both collaborating for a new project, Piniol. It is not said whether it will be a one-time only thing or if the merging of these two beasts will be perennial. All the information we’ve got is that video, and that we’ll have more early 2016.

Let’s be patient!… Read more

Frontierer – Orange Mathematics

a2835857791_16I remember when Sectioned was the shit, and all their noise and heavy riffs were amazing. Then, the band’s guitarist suggested we also listen to his other band, Frontierer, which was a perhaps more “hardcore” take on the sound. Here comes their debut album, and second release, Orange Mathematics.

It’s a 15-song album, 14 of which are new compositions, and one comes from “The Collapse”, their previous EP. The sound here is improving on the qualities that were already there. The fast-paced, staccato riffs are loaded with guitar manipulations (in the style of Car Bomb) and djenty subdivisions, … Read more