It wasn’t all metal this year, as evidenced by attendance at Hartford CT’s Pokemon Regional Championships with my son, a stop at Stowe VT’s famed Alchemist Brewing, a trip to Disney World in August where my family, and I nearly melted or an auspicious afternoon at a Golden Girls-themed brunch in NYC. Below are the 20 albums that are most representative of the wild and varied year that I had, some from bands you know, but a good amount of discovery awaits for you as well. Let’s make sure 2024 keeps the heaviness and variety flowing like this year already did.

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Honorable Mentions:

20. Organ Dealer – The Weight of Being (Everlasting Spew, USA)

19. Cruel Force – At the Dawn of the Axe (Shadow Kingdom, Germany)

18. Smoulder – Violent Creed of Vengeance (Cruz Del Sur, Canada/Finland)

17. Hellripper – Warlocks Grim & Withered Hags (Peaceville, Scotland)

16. Royal Thunder – Rebuilding the Mountain (Spinefarm, USA)

15. Filth is Eternal – Find Out (MNRK Heavy, USA)

14. Helms Deep – Treacherous Ways (Nameless Grave, USA)

13. Blood Ceremony – The Old Ways Remain (Rise Above Records, Canada)

12. Godthrymm – Distortions (Profound Lore, United Kingdom)

11. Church of Misery – Born Under a Mad Sign (Rise Above, Japan)

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Malokarpatan – Vertumnus Caesar

(Invictus Productions, Slovakia)

The Slovakian masters of black metal return with their last folk laden dirge into the Tatra Mountains and the medieval themes of Slovak histories. Their fourth album Vertumnus Caesar is more of what you expect from the band as they continue to draw inspiration from traditional heavy metal structure with more black metal vocal styles and ambience. 

The band throw the kitchen sink at the listener with how they are able to turn on a dime giving way to stylophones, Moogs, bongos, tubular bells, and whatever else they feel fits their unique representation of extreme metal. First proper track “Koár postupuje temnomodrými dálavami na juhozápad” hits a ton of variety and gives way to the rest of the album’s bipolar nature, which is ultimately somewhere between the first and second waves of black metal with a distinct flair for their homeland of Slovakia—Frankly it not only needs to be listened to, it needs to be experienced.

Listen here.

Colony Drop – Brace For Impact

(Nameless Grave, USA)

Right from the opening vocal attack from the title track, lead singer Joseph Schafer demands that you “Brace For Impact.” Coming from the vibrant and growing scene in the Pacific Northwest which Schafer and I spoke about during the album’s streaming premiere, Colony Drop use a wide range of styles that get thrown into their baseline of crossover thrash from which this album was ultimately built. 

The self-proclaimed purveyors of “High Speed, Twin Lead” do not hide their adoration for the forebears of the genre that helped forge the fires of heavy metal within guitarists Ben Burton and Ryan Moon. Masterful tracks like “The Clockwork Grip” and “Fantasize The Best” showcase a “castle full of traps” approach that would make the nearest Metroidvania fan blush, allowing listeners to discover more and more nuance through each diabolical dirge through this scorching debut. 

This album is definitely a grower and one that reveals itself more and more on repeated listens, with each minute detail showcasing the band’s spectacular attention to detail, like finally finding that missile tank after walking through the same corridor 20 times. You never know what is lurking around the next corner.

Listen here.

Katatonia – Sky Void of Stars

(Napalm, Sweden)

Reigning kings of Sweden, Katatonia continue to cement their legacy as one of the best bands in the world. On Sky Void of Stars, they advance their goth tinged rocking metal, tugging at your heart strings in a way that isn’t seen as often these days. 

On “Austerity” Jonas Renske gets to properly ply his trade with beautiful vocal lines that draw the listener in, giving way to a wall of effects and guitars to allow this to properly marinate to maximum effect. “Birds” is more of a straight forward, rocking number that has more bombast on drums than the rest of the album and gives you a good amount of energy to balance out some of the moodiness of the slower tracks. 

It amazes me that a band that has been around as long as they have is able to sound so fresh in 2023, but here we are. Katatonia have released their best album since The Great Cold Distance, and the result is exactly what you want from Katatonia, somber, moody, and stunning.

Listen here.

Century – The Conquest of Time

(Electric Assault, Sweden)

This was an interesting year for heavy metal with the return of Heavy Load, a dynamite debut for Helms Deep (see above) more from recent success stories like Haunt and Spirit Adrift, and then some. Enter Century, one of the more surprising additions to my list. This Swedish duo’s debut is pure classic tinged heavy metal that gallops along without having to be over the top and given the country’s pedigree especially with this subgenre, there was a lot to live up to. 

Tracks like “The Fighting Eagle,” “Master of Hell,” and “Breakthrough” allow this trad twosome to take flight, leaning heavily on the guitars and vocalist Staffan Tengner’s delivery style with production evocative of European bands 40 years their junior. If you are looking for an album that hearkens back to the days of yore in Sweden, a time before death metal reigned supreme in a place once called Svithiod, look no further than the latest scorching stylings of Century.

Listen here.

Frozen Soul – Glacial Domination

(Century Media, USA)

In a battle for death metal supremacy in 2023, there were a lot of contenders, legacy acts like Autopsy, Cannibal Corpse, Obituary, and Dying Fetus all released good to great records, but it was 2 albums from newer bands that managed to make this list (more on that below). I had listened to this record exactly once before speaking to Frozen Soul vocalist Chad Green and guitarist Michael Munday before our album breakdown, and I could tell that there was something special happening here that wasn’t a part of their phenomenal debut Crypt of Ice over two years ago. 

Guitar solos and sections of melody allowed Frozen Soul to properly flesh out their songs in a way that added proper growth and depth to take their sound to the next level. While the early part of the album is similar to their debut, it’s the latter half where the band’s new sense of freedom is on full display with the title track and the blistering “Assimilator”. The former track shows off the melodic flair that is positioned well between their militaristic crawl through a minefield. The latter track is a culmination of all things Frozen Soul past and present with an eye towards LP three, all the aforementioned dynamics are contained with and make for a winning formula that the band isn’t likely done with. One of the hardest working bands in death metal and for good reason.

Listen here.

Mortuary Drape – Black Mirror

(Peaceville, Italy)

When I am in search of new extreme metal, black metal is usually one of the last places I go to find something new which is interesting considering that I have two black metal albums in this top 10; it helps when two of my favorite black metal bands drop an album within the same year. Italy’s greatest extreme metal treasure, Mortuary Drape, have been plying their blasphemous trade for nearly 40 years, and with their last album, Spiritual Independence, a masterpiece in its own right coming all the way back in 2014, who knew when the next chapter would arrive? 

Luckily, 2023 was the right time for Black Mirror, the band’s sixth album overall, featuring all the same things that make the band who they are: demonic vocals, fast and furious riffs, plus the absolutely crushing bass lines that litter all of the best songs that The Drape have ever recorded. Album opener “Restless Death” is no exception to this formula as SC’s bass wobbles and vocalist Wildness Perversion channels the demonic dynamics that he established on All The Witches Dance and has continued to fine tune since. 

The Drape can also do blisteringly fast sections and with that too go the basslines, an odd delivery of vocals from Wildness Perversion have him sounding like an evil wizard evoking spells to be cast upon unsuspecting listeners all while the bass keeps pace with the other guitars and is very high in the mix as always. My favorite black metal release of the year, one that deserves more press than it has been getting.

Listen here.

Baroness – Stone

(Abraxan Hymns, USA)

Returning with an unchanged lineup from the Gold & Grey sessions arrives Stone whose sense of cohesiveness and stability is evident from the album’s first riffs and the one-two punch of “Embers” and “Last Word,” a song that is best reflective of the whole that represents Baroness in 2023. Guitarist Gina Gleason really gets to show her stuff here as her lead duties and guitar solos complement main man John Baizley’s own trademark riffs and guitar tone complete with soulful singing. 

The recording of this beast was a unique endeavor that Baizley, Gleason, and drummer Tristan Thomson spoke about at length around the release of Stone. This radio-friendly heaviness is most comparable to their fourth album Purple in how easily digestible tracks like “Beneath The Rose,” “Anodyne,” and “Under The Wheel” are. Baroness are a gruff band with enough polish to garner fans from outside of the realm of metal and rock, and their powerful reach and work ethic set them apart from many of their contemporaries as they continue to age like a fine wine.

Listen here.

Majesties – Vast Reaches Unclaimed

(20 Buck Spin, USA)

If you told me that a melodic death metal album not recorded by Carcass or At The Gates would have made my year-end list at this time last year, I would have called you a liar. It took the herculean effort of Inexorum’s Carl Skildum and Matt Kirkwold along with Obsequiae architect Tanner Anderson to make it happen—enter Majesties and their spectacular debut Vast Reaches Unclaimed. 

I spoke to Skildum about what brought this project together and went through the minute details of this record too. Right down to the artwork, the band nailed the mid-90’s Gothenburg style of melodic death metal, adding in the castle metal sections that Anderson typically employs in his current main musical vehicle. 

Just one listen to “The World Unseen” and “Across The Neverwhen” from start to finish would have been enough to accomplish this feat, but there are still eight other songs to sink your teeth into. This is the kind of album that toes the line between extreme and beauty on every track, leaving no stone unturned; luckily I have had the pleasure of this being part of my listening experience of 2023 since around February. This one was always high on the list and for fans of the bands contained within this project it is an easy selection, giving a bit of a different look to their already prolific profile.

Listen here.

Gel – Only Constant

(Convulse, USA)

Another mainstay of 2023 was the hardcore stylings of New Jersey’s Gel, a powerful group of road warriors that were nearly unmatched by year’s end. Right from the opening seconds of “Honed Blade,” it is apparent that the fury here is tough to match, and the abrupt nature of this record allows for the transition to “Fortified” to hit all that much harder. This is only a 17-minute album but it covers a lot of hardcore ground, some blasting drums, and even the humorous interlude of “Calling Card” allow for you to get your money’s worth and having the ability to listen to it 3 times in one hour is a tempting proposition for hardcore stalwarts. 

I spoke to guitarist Anthony Webster in March about what makes this band so special, having toured with big names like High on Fire and Drain with a live show that also needs to be experienced. This isn’t just for the new hardcore fans; it’s for the old ones too and who could forget. This is hardcore for fucking freaks; that’s it. The new face of hardcore is NJHC, and Gel have to be at the forefront of this movement.

Listen here.

Tomb Mold – The Enduring Spirit

(20 Buck Spin, Canada)

Having thought that my album of the year was done by October, it took a surprise record by one of the best current faces of death metal to make me reconsider and eventually change my mind. Tomb Mold are no strangers to my year end lists as they have been a part of them since the release of 2018’s Manor of Infinite Forms, but they were MIA for a few years. When they arrived back into my consciousness in 2023, it was abruptly released, something that happened with a few other albums this year. 

By the time you finish the album’s third track, “Will of Whispers,” you will have taken in some beautiful jazz fusion sections from bassist Derrick Vella, complemented by Max Klebanoff’s growls and Payson Power’s riffs. Tomb Mold have never sounded more progressive than they do on The Enduring Spirit, not like they had to be either, but their experiment in death metal paid off unlike some of their contemporaries this year. “Servants of Possibility” almost comes across like a new ethos from the band, allowing for them to employ some new sounds juxtaposed against what they have been doing for three albums and nearly 10 years to this point, but this new album is the top of their collective heap, besting Manor for what is their best work to this point. 

This was a powerful and mixed year in extreme music, so why shouldn’t a surprise album release from October be the best? Better late than never, The Enduring Spirit is the album you need to compare all death metal current and future against.

Listen here.

If the cottage industry of 1970s worship in hard rock and metal ever needs an official ambassador, Tatsu Mikami should be in serious contention. As the founder and sole constant member of Japanese boogie-doom gods Church Of Misery, his track record stretches over two decades and includes certified bangers like The Second Coming and Houses Of The Unholy, among others. Mikami’s other projects are no slouches either; there’s the Motorhead-tinged metal of Skull Pit, the thrashing punk of G.A.T.E.S., and the most Church of Misery-adjacent of them all, Sonic Flower.

Composed almost entirely of current or former Church Of Misery members, Sonic Flower was essentially a looser, instrumental version of their main gig. The first EP quickly established the template: punchy, swaggering riffs coupled to Keisuke Fukawa’s monster slabs of Bonham-inspired drumming. After recording Church of Misery’s The Second Coming, Mikami reassembled Sonic Flower and laid down the tracks for Rides Again, streaming here in full.

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After running into some personnel issues leading to Sonic Flower’s breakup in 2005, Rides Again was shelved until now. It’s a natural progression from the debut, retaining the singular, crackling live energy and expanding each member’s role. Mikami shows off his solo abilities during an extended bass break in “Captain Frost” while guitarists Arisa and Takenori Hoshi duel and synchronize with equal aplomb throughout “Black Sheep” and “Quicksand Planet”. The laid back nature of the music doesn’t apply to the musicianship; for a genre known to excuse sloppy playing with ‘it’s just a vibe, man’ platitudes, there’s nary a sour note or careless moment to be found.

One of Rides Again‘s most interesting aspects is the choice of covers: “Stay Away”, originally by the Meters, and Graham Central Station’s “Earthquake”, two of the funkiest songs you might ever encounter outside of a Parliament record. They end up working perfectly within Sonic Flower’s wheelhouse, complementing the band’s innate swinging grooves and improvisational nature. “Earthquake” is an especially entertaining jam to end the album on, as it allows all four musicians to stretch their legs and have some fun. Not that there was ever a chance of no fun being had on Rides Again: this is the kind of record you’ll want to blast at the first post-COVID party you attend. Listen to the exclusive pre-release stream of Rides Again (linked above) and read an interview with Tatsu Mikami below.

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After such a long hiatus, was there a specific reason you decided to resurrect Sonic Flower?

Everything was a coincidence. It was 2014. I was depressed in the dark. Because three members have left Church of Misery. At that time, I was contacted by a drummer for the first time in about 10 years. After recording for “Rides Again”, He and I were in a quarrel and were cut off. He apologized to me and said he wanted to band with me again. At that time, Church of Misery’s new guitarist ( in 2015,,, previous one ) was interested in Sonic Flower too and he decided to play on both. And the first Church of Misery vocalist Kazuhiro Asaeda who resumed for the first time in 20 years will participate and it has revived. I was always making new songs for Sonic Flower, so when I restarted I had one album in stock.

Did you re-record or make any other changes to Rides Again before its release?

No. First, I want to tell you that Rides Again is old material. This is not a new album. It’s just unreleased studio recording material in 2005.

Were both the self-titled and Rides Again recorded live? The production on the first album sounds a bit more streamlined, but they both have a raw, live energy.

It’s almost live. Except guitar solos, we recorded live. I mean that four members are playing together at the recording studio. And.. yeah, it’s raw with a live concert feeling.

The Meters and Graham Central Station are probably not as well known to doom and psych fans as the bands you’ve covered with Church Of Misery. Was that a conscious decision, or did you just want to play some really funky jams?

To tell the truth I also didn’t know these bands [laughs]. Our drummer Keisuke’s choice. His musical orientation is very wide. He recommended us these funky music. I think it’s fancy but it’s heavy with good riffs. At this recording rehearsal, I chose two songs – Groundhogs and Savoy Brown. We practice both songs. But we choose two funky songs for recording. We thought it was surprising and interesting.

Kazuhiro Asaeda, Church Of Misery’s original singer, has now joined Sonic Flower. What compelled you to add vocals to the band moving forward?

I like his voice and melody which he made. I’m very satisfied with his vocals when we made Church of Misery’s Vol. 1 album in 1996. After some gigs, I and he had a fight and didn’t talk for almost 18 years and we cut off each contact. In 2014, Coincidentally our mutual friends attracted us. We reconciled and returned to drinking together. At that time, I thought that if this band had his vocals, the range of expression would expand even more strongly. I’m playing together now, but my guess is correct. Undoubtedly his vocals made the band even more powerful.

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Rides Again releases January 29th on Heavy Psych Records.

Check out Invisible Oranges’ curated collection on the BrooklynVegan shop.

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Psycho Las Vegas, three years running at this point, has always been an eclectic mix of musical genres where you can see anything from classic rock to world music, jazz fusion to black metal, and maybe even some iteration of punk rock. However, the context still matters. For instance, even the festival’s so-called “pre-fest pool party” brings certain things to mind for most of us, even though people clearly have different opinions as to what a party is, or what it should be.

Wanting to see a band like Bell Witch plod along at six beats per minute while crammed into a tiny area around a concrete stage is a very strange party plan for anyone not looking to deflate all the beach balls and drown themselves in the pool. A band like that is best heard lying down in a dark room with some big fat headphones plugged into the stereo and none of the distractions of the real world. And, to their credit, headlining band Wolves in the Throne Room played better and had more energy on stage than I had ever seen at one of their shows, but all the fog machines in the world couldn’t change the fact that they played outside under non-native palm trees at a pool with people in bathing suits, flip-flops, and floaties.

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Hillarie E. Jason

Elder

Hillarie E. Jason

Elder

Hillarie E. Jason

Elder

Hillarie E. Jason

Elder

Hillarie E. Jason

Wolves in the Throne Room

Hillarie E. Jason

Wolves in the Throne Room

Hillarie E. Jason

Wolves in the Throne Room

Hillarie E. Jason

Wolves in the Throne Room

Hillarie E. Jason

Bell Witch

Hillarie E. Jason

Bell Witch

Hillarie E. Jason

Bell Witch

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Although not likely your ideal location to see a band, the remaining three days of the fest at the pool were booked with bands that had the necessary spunk to get the crowd moving both in and out of the pool. Most notably were Voivod, Eyehategod, Rocket From the Crypt, and Integrity all of which had the crowd thrashing, screaming, and even crowd-surfing (in the case of the Integrity set) — pretty terrifying considering the space between the tiny stage and the pool is only about 20 feet and the stage is literally a solid block of concrete. There is no amount of alcohol I could drink nor level of excitement I could reach that would have me overlook the potential for serious injury by taking a fall head-first into either the pool or the concrete stage, even if I were the crowd-surfing type.

If you are more inclined toward larger venues with better sound, lights, and atmosphere, then Psycho Las Vegas had you covered with the stages at Vinyl and The Joint, as long as you could overcome some scheduling and communication snafus. Let’s face it, these sorts of things happen at fests. Bands cancel, sometimes last minute. Things can run late and throw off your plans, but there were a couple this year that really stood out. The first was the last-minute announcement that the headliners for Friday night at The Joint, Witchcraft, canceled altogether and would be replaced by of all things, Andrew Dice Clay at Vinyl. Yes, you read that correctly. “The Diceman” did a comedy set which I decided to completely pass on for something much better going on at the Center Bar (which I will get into later).

The second big hiccup was Zakk Sabbath (Zakk Wylde) who was scheduled to play the big venue on Sunday, but you wouldn’t have known that wasn’t happening until you were already in line to get in for it. For whatever reason, Zakk was moved to the pool stage later on that night and nothing was happening in his original spot and he would, we were told, play after Big Business, which also isn’t what happened. To the dismay of many standing outside sweating and waiting for Big Business to go on, watching in total confusion as the crew set up the Zakk Sabbath gear, we finally found out Big Business was either bumped or canceled. No one knew or could/would say what happened to Big Business. There were no posts on social media about it anywhere until hours after when finally they announced that they would play at Vinyl after everyone else finished. It all worked out in the end, but a bit of communication would have made a better experience for the fans and bands.

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Odd musical pairings are one thing that can make or break a fest. At times it’s like a breath of fresh air, and others it’s just plain strange to experience these extreme ups and downs. On Friday, there was a strange but wonderful clash of genres that notably began at The Joint with the horror movie soundtrack electronic stylings of S U R V I V E who many may have heard of from their musical score of the popular Netflix series, Stranger Things, moving right into Japan’s doom metal heroes Church of Misery. Once you got your fill of bell-bottom jeans and smoked enough weed to put an average person to sleep for a week, Tinariwen, a band from Mali formed in 1979 and probably the most rebellious band of the fest (quite legitimately, as members were part of the Tuareg rebel community in the 1970s) literally filled the stage (I think there were at least 9 of them) with their version of traditional West African beats and guitar sounds all wearing smiles ear to ear.

Another good example of the swings in musical diversity at Psycho occured on Sunday. After an absolutely massive, fist-clenching set from the Norwegian extreme metal band Enslaved (not black metal according to them), and while Zakk Wylde was hammering away on his guitar and wah pedals at the pool, the Swedish band The Hellacopters played some good time garage rock with Nicke Andersson (formerly Entombed) firmly at the helm. Along with their highly energetic guitarist Dregen, they shot adrenaline into the crowd inciting the headbangers and horn-throwing effiianatos to do their thing just to be pulled back down to Earth by the slow, heavily dramatic drones and extreme fog machine use of Sunn O))) (without Attila of Mayhem fame). The drop to Sunn O))) without at least Attila to look at after the huge up-lift garnered from the last few bands, was a challenge. We were so deep into the mental and physical exhaustion of a four-day fest in Vegas, where everything becomes a constant struggle to stay focused, hydrated and on task and this was not going to keep fans attention, unfortunately.

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Some of the bands that stood out for just being great were Godflesh playing Merciless (which was perfect), Uada in the intimate and darkly lit venue Vinyl (how else should you see a black metal band?), Monolord, who absolutely pummeled the huge crowd, a truly blistering set from All Pigs Must Die, and a haunting musical experience watching Batushka from Poland.

It would be a mistake to forget that Danzig headlined Saturday night as he was the most important part of the fest for most in attendance. As expected, there were security guards scanning the crowd and shutting down anyone brave enough to try and use their phone to grab a photo and he stopped between songs to rant about people on the internet being incorrect about something only he seemed to care about. Even so, you have to give the guy credit. He could easily skate through a set, putting little to no effort into it and people would still com simply because of who he is but he didn’t do that at all.

The real fun of the fest was to be had at the Center Bar for the guest DJ spots. Specifically, Friday and Saturday night with Nicke Andersson, Johanna Sadonis, and Andrew W.K. respectively, playing some of the best mix of classic rock, metal, and punk I could have asked for to end each night or begin each morning, depending on how you look at it.

— Hillarie Jason

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In case you were wondering if it was possible for the stacked Psycho Las Vegas 2018 lineup to get even better, the answer is yes. The fest has now added headliner Danzig, who will be playing the classic Danzig III: How the Gods Kill in full (like he did at Riot Fest and his own festival last year). The Psycho organizers are saying, “This will be the only performance of this album in the US this year.”

Bell Witch and Haunt have also been added to the pre-party that happens the day before the fest (8/16). Previously-announced bands for Psycho include Dimmu Borgir, The Hellacopters, Witchcraft, Sunn O))), Godflesh, Enslaved, High On Fire, American Nightmare, Rocket From the Crypt, Goblin, Boris, Venom Inc, Eyehategod, Pallbearer, Integrity, Voivod, Coven, Today is The Day, and still SO much more.

The fest goes down August 17-19. Tickets are still available. Updated lineup below.

Meanwhile, Danzig and the rest of “The Original Misfits” are playing a one-off in NJ in May with Suicidal Tendencies and Murphy’s Law.

Psycho Las Vegas — 2018 Lineup
DANZIG ***
DIMMU BORGIR **
HELLACOPTERS
SUNN O))) **
GODFLESH **
WITCHCRAFT
ENSLAVED
AMERICAN NIGHTMARE
HIGH ON FIRE
ROCKET FROM THE CRYPT
RED FANG
ZAKK SABBATH
CHURCH OF MISERY
TINARIWEN
GOBLIN
CKY
VENOM INC
EYEHATEGOD
VOIVOD
BORIS
COVEN
INTEGRITY
PALLBEARER
WITH THE DEAD *
MONOLORD
LUCIFER *
ACID WITCH
S U R V I V E
DOPETHRONE
BIG BUSINESS
UNEARTHLY TRANCE
MUTOID MAN
TODAY IS THE DAY
HELMS ALEE
SPIRIT ADRIFT
BATUSHKA
PRIMITIVE MAN
DVNE
ALL PIGS MUST DIE
EIGHT BELLS
WORMWITCH
INDIAN
NECROT
HOMEWRECKER
BRAIN TENTACLES
CLOAK
BLACK MARE
MAGIC SWORD
UADA
TEMPLE OF VOID
DREADNOUGHT
WOLVHAMMER
ASEETHE
DISASTROID
FORMING THE VOID
VENOMOUS MAXIMUS
GHASTLY SOUND
HOWLING GIANT
KING BUFFALO
NIGHT HORSE
THE MUNSENS
GLAARE

*= Exclusive US Performance
**= Exclusive West Coast Performance
***= Exclusive Album Play

Paradise Pool Pre-Party
BELL WITCH
WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM
ELDER
DENGUE FEVER
FIREBALL MINISTRY
TOKE
HAUNT

DJ SETS BY:
ANDREW W.K.
NICKE ANDERSSON (ENTOMBED/HELLACOPTERS)
JOHANNA SADONIS (LUCIFER)
JENNIE VEE (EAGLES OF DEATH METAL)

After announcing a very initial lineup in December, the full 2018 lineup for the awesome Psycho Las Vegas festival is here. It includes Dimmu Borgir, The Hellacopters, Witchcraft, Sunn O))), Godflesh, Enslaved, High On Fire, American Nightmare, CKY, Red Fang, Rocket From the Crypt, Goblin, Boris, Venom Inc, Eyehategod, Zakk Sabbath, Tinariwen, Pallbearer, Integrity, With The Dead, Church of Misery, Voivod, Coven, Lucifer, S U R V I V E, Dopethrone, Helms Alee, Big Business, Monolord, Today is The Day, Mutoid Man, Indian, Unearthly Trance, Batushka, All Pigs Must Die, Acid Witch, Spirit Adrift, Primitive Man, Wormwitch, Eight Bells, Cloak, Wolvhammer, Necrot, Dreadnought, and still more. Is that a lineup or what????

There are also DJ sets from Andrew WK and members of The Hellacopters and Luficer, and a pre-party the day before the fest starts (8/16) with Wolves in the Throne Room, Elder, Young and in the Way, and more.

The fest happens August 17-19 at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino in Vegas. Tickets are on sale and the full lineup is on the poster above.

Speaking of Dimmu Borgir, the Norwegian symphonic black metal vets released a new song today. Listen:

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Honorable Mentions:

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Asphyx

Incoming Death

An Asphyx album in the past might have been tough to come by, but since it is now vocalist Martin Van Drunen’s main vehicle, he has dedicated himself to this band first and foremost. Their 9th full length, Incoming Death has the band full entrenched in their old school assault. whether it be the fury and speed of “Candiru” or the plodding “Wardroid”; Asphyx do both well and showcase their doom in step with their death. 2016 may have been lean on death metal as a whole but Asphyx are clearly one of the stronger parts of this overall collective.

Listen Here.

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Khemmis

Hunted

Absolution was one of my final cuts from the 2015 list and I said to myself, “If they out do this album, it’ll have to make my list.” So enter a year later with Hunted and Khemmis did just that. Being a popular pick list-wise in 2016 has led to  scrutiny much like what was seen in the past with Pallbearer; which was fair in that regard, but is unjust with Khemmis. You should be able to release a top quality doom metal album with melodic vocals and eschew the dissension in the ranks. “Three Gates” is nearly a song of the year candidate, leading with growled vocals and then moving towards the melodic, combining elements of Neurosis with soaring vocals of Candlemass and more recently Crypt Sermon. A varied song on a very strong and varied album, I see you too peanut gallery.

Listen Here.

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Honorable Mentions:

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Nuke

Nuke

Speedwolf is dead, long live Nuke! The world will always need sleazy speed metal, and Detroit’s bastard sons are delivering it here in spades. They’ve been kicking around long enough in other great bands (Shitfucker, Acid Watch) to know what they’re doing, and also pay homage to the Eighties without coming across as disingenuous. Metal is still allowed to be fun, right? Nuke is A LOT of fun.

Listen Here

Church Of Misery

And Then There Were None

After a few missteps on 2013’s Thy Kingdom Scum, Church Of Misery returned with a brand new lineup and one of their best albums to date. With Scott Carlson in ‘tortured doom’ mode on vocals, CoM added a more streamlined approach to their sound and we’re all reaping the benefits. Serial killers, samples and sludge still reign supreme; Tatsu Mikami & Co. are just elevating their game.

Listen Here

Opeth

Sorceress

I, for one, welcome our new prog-rock overlords.

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Nails

You Will Never Be One Of Us

After all the hype, the jokes, the drama, the breakup, the reformation, one thing remains: this album will still kick your teeth in and not give it a second thought. Expanding the band’s sonic palette was risky, given their signature blistering aggression, but Ballou and Jones managed to find a place for melody in the chaos. It’s still surreal to see music like this covered so extensively by mainstream publications, but that’s just another testament to its excellence.

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Whores.

Gold

Signing to a bigger label doesn’t quite have the negative connotations it used to, but that won’t stop some keyboard warriors from slinging “sellout!” at whomever. But with the changing face of the record industry, some labels are more willing to let bands with proven track records keep doing their thing, and that’s exactly the case for Whores. The noise rock knights of Atlanta finally put together a full-length, and it lives up to the expectations of previous EPs Clean. and Ruiner. It’s an ugly duckling that you can’t help but love.

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Wretch

Wretch

Karl Simon transferred anguish and loss into one of the most soulful, beautiful doom albums in years. The inherent elements of the genre – swinging Sabbathian riffs, galloping drums, groove for days – are out in force, but with an even more melancholic, slightly sinister vibe permeating the proceedings. If this is Simon forgoing fantasy for reality, I’ll take it.

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Alaric

End Of Mirrors

Tribalistic but not simplistic, melancholic but not melodramatic, End Of Mirrors is what Alaric has been building towards in their impressive eight-year career. Each instrument, as well as personal-new-favorite singer Shane Baker, contributes an equal yet unique element to the songs, creating a democratic sound rare for its genre. Drawing equally from the wells of post-punk, goth and doom, the album drives straight to the emotional core of how music can affect the listener; it creates a mood and transports one into its truest form. RIYL: rainy days, “me time”, hope and despair in equal measure.

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Khemmis

Hunted

Destroying any notion of ‘sophomore slump’, the band responsible for my favorite metal album of 2015 came roaring back, grand scope and thunderous riffs intact. Right from the opening moments of “Above The Water”, it’s apparent Khemmis have no plan to scale things back or mess with their winning formula (that formula being Warning + Thin Lizzy + High On Fire x Denver elevation). I’m not the only one to latch onto this worthy bandwagon, but there’s still plenty of room and the soundtrack will never suck. Jump in!

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Neurosis

Fires Within Fires

Trading in the suffocating density of Honor Found In Decay for a return to more visceral pastures, Neurosis return from a rare misstep and find their focus on Fires Within Fires. It benefits greatly from more streamlined songwriting, which in turn created accomplished, memorable songs. “A Shadow Memory” and “Fire Is The End Lesson”, especially, carry the hallmarks of classic Neurosis, with Scott Kelly and Steve Von Till trading off vocals and that trademark psychedelic heaviness bringing it all home. This band is almost incapable of making bad music, just different variations on good and great. Fires Within Fires is incredibly great.

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Like Rats

II

I get it: not many bands/labels/releases have a lot of readily available capital to spend on exposure. There are only 24 hours in a day, *insert cliche platitude*, etc. But, holy shit, how are so many people sleeping on this album? OK, it’s been four years since Like Rats had an album out. (That album, by the way, is a vicious slab of primitive death metal that you owe yourself to seek out.) II retains the ‘death’ tag, but it’s been shaped, refined and sharpened to a fine point. Imagine Tom G. Warrior writing songs for Obituary, then said songs being covered by Gehenna (the Norwegian one) and also Gehenna (the American one). There is an undeniable groove pervading the entire album as well; sometimes it swings like an Asphyx hammer (“Dissociate”), other times like a hardcore circle pit (“Primeordial”). Not a second of filler is to be seen, which makes the entire album eminently replayable. It came out in March and I’m still spinning it on a weekly basis; that really says it all.

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…

Sweat-drenched August nights, warm beer, dried blood: it’s amazing how music can evoke our senses, memories and emotions in such a specific way. It doesn’t even necessarily have to be our own experiences that are being channeled. When I first got around to listening to them Japanese doom quartet Church of Misery became an instant favorite. Their music transports me to 1969 California. Charles Manson’s California. That’s pretty impressive for a group of guys from a completely divergent culture and time. Yes, all of their songs are inspired by serial killers and mass murderers, but it’s more than that. The distorted boogie riffs, extended swamp jams and off-kilter vocal delivery all serve as a conduit to the dark psychedelia of that time and place, the flip side of the hippie-dippie scene that is now pop culture lore. They’ve also been doing it since 1998, long before Making A Murderer, Uncle Acid, and think pieces.

At this point Church Of Misery isn’t so much a functioning band as it is a vehicle for founding bassist and sole constant member Tatsu Mikami’s songs. The constantly rotating lineup finally went tits-up last year and Mikami found himself alone; rather than let a dire situation get him down, he ended up assembling his best lineup to date for new album And Then There Were None. Guitarist Dave Szulkin of legendary doom-horror troupe Blood Farmers knows his way around fuzzed-out killer (ha!) riffs, as evidenced on monster tracks like “Make Them Die Slowly” and “River Demon,” while drummer Eric Little (Earthride, ex-Internal Void) has been pounding out Ward/Bonham beats for more than two decades.

The coup d’état, however, was bringing in underground legend Scott Carlson (Repulsion, Death Breath, everything) for vocals and lyrics. Known primarily for his death metal growling, Carlson shows a talent for sludgier fare throughout And Then There Were None. A few “yeah!”s and “ooh”s are a nod to his days in Cathedral with Lee Dorrian, but otherwise Carlson’s distinctive rasp is intact, albeit slowed to a more appropriate doom crawl. Album closer “Murderfreak Blues” is the perfect showcase, an epic dirge about notorious serial killer Tommy Lynn Sells. Carlson demonstrates he can write about real-life monsters just as well as the ones conjured up by Lovecraft: “Agony, bitterness and anguish/Compulsion growing day by day/Endless pain, misery and sickness/Disintegrating into rage.”

While the lyrical inspirations run the gamut from early 20th century killer cults to murdering drifters put to death as recently as 2014, the core “devil’s blues” vibe still resonates strongly. The lineup may have changed, but the players are clearly on the same page as Tatsu Mikami when it comes to style: Sleep and Sabbath highs, evil bloody lows.

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And Then There Were None is now available from Rise Above Records. Follow Church of Misery on Facebook.

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. . .

It’s safe to say we’re all big Church of Misery fans around here, so when they release something or announce a tour, we take notice.

Their latest, Thy Kingdom Scum just came out in July, and they promised a US tour to follow. Well, it’s nearly here.

The band is playing in Australia in early October and then they head to the West Coast for a string of shows across the nation that will see them through the end of November.

Joining them for the West Coast dates will be Saviours and Wizard Rifle, while The Gates of Slumber and Against the Grain will pick up in the Midwest and carry on east before Church of Misery head back west. Apparently, California needs a double dose. Also forthcoming is a new DVD on Emetic Records, called “Terror in Tokyo” that captures them in December of last year and also includes the entirety of their Maryland Deathfest performance as bonus footage.

. . .

Here’s a clip of their Maryland Deathfest performance:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gicprpxOOMU&feature=player_embedded

OCTOBER

18 Oakland, CA @ Oakland Opera House !?
19 San Francisco, CA @ Thee Parkside !?
20 Portland, OR @ Rotture !?
21 Seattle, WA @ The Crocodile !?
22 Bellingham, WA @ The Shakedown !?
23 Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theater !?
24 Edmonton, AB @ Pawn Shop ?
25 Calgary, AB @ Palomino ?
30 Fargo, ND @ The Aquarium ?
31 Saint Pau,l MN @ Turf Club ?

NOVEMBER
01 Chicago, IL @ Ultra Lounge #%
02 Rock Island, IL @ Rock Island Brewing Co. #%
03 Grand Rapids, MI @ Pyramid Scheme #%
06 Pittsburgh, PA @ 31st Street Pub #%
07 Syracuse, NY @ Lost Horizon #%
08 Toronto, ON @ Hard Luck #%
09 Ottawa, ON @ Mavericks #%
10 Montreal, QC @ Il Motore #%
11 Providence, RI @ AS220 #%
12 Brooklyn, NY @ Saint Vitus Bar #%
13 Richmond, VA @ Kingdom #%
14 Baltimore, MD @ Ottobar #%
16 Atlanta, GA @ The Earl #%
17 New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jacks #%
18 Austin, TX @ Mohawk #%
19 Dallas, TX @ Club Dada #%
22 Tempe, AZ @ Yucca Tap Room %
23 Los Angeles, CA @ The Satellite %

! = with Saviours
# = with The Gates of Slumber
? = with Wizard Rifle
% = with Against the Grain