clee

My review of Year of No Light’s Nord is up at Stylus. An excerpt: The proliferation of Isis-alikes has reached epidemic proportions. Every time you turn around, there’s another band with atmospheric riffs, eight-minute songs, understated artwork, and a beard (or two). It’s easy to see why this sound has caught on: Black Sabbath, Godflesh, […]

Stylus has a (roughly) monthly metal column called “Left Hand Path.” Issue #003 is up now, and it’s a monster – 32 reviews and a label profile of Aurora Borealis. Among the albums we’ve covered are the new Archgoat, Drifting Collision, Enthrallment, Eyes of Ligieia, Giant Squid, Passion, SunnO))) & Boris, Throne of Katarsis, Totimoshi, […]

This is a demo, but it aspires to more, with eight tracks and fairly involved artwork. I must note that this Chilean band emailed me this demo as MP3’s and jpeg’s, citing the high cost of postage. That’s fair enough. However, most labels don’t accept MP3 submissions, and if the band wants to get anywhere, […]

Sunday the 22nd was the last show at The Pound in San Francisco. Evidently, the club was evicted for reasons beyond its control by the city’s Port Authority. The Pound was the place to see metal and hardcore punk in San Francisco for the past five years. Occasionally there would be a fight or accusation […]

Jared Anderson recently passed away at the tragically young age of 30. He was the bassist/vocalist on Morbid Angel’s Gateways to Annihilation tour and on Hate Eternal’s first two albums. He also had a solo project called Internecine, which released one album, 2002’s The Book of Lambs. On this album, Anderson handled bass, guitars, and […]

Converge makes intensely painful sonic workouts that sometimes feel like scraping knuckles over rock. But they’re also emotionally fulfilling, if only for the feeling of, “Man, I thought I had problems.” Converge albums are definite moments in our lives, and No Heroes (on Epitaph) is a fine addition to the legacy of one of the […]

This past weekend, I attended a wedding that was half Jewish. One of the Jewish customs observed was dancing the hora. If you’re unfamiliar with the hora, it’s a lot like a mosh pit. There’s tons of circle pits dancing around the bride and groom, who get raised above the crowd on chairs – kind […]

My review of the new Trivium album The Crusade is now up at Stylus.

My review of the new Ludicra album Fex Urbis Lex Orbis is now up at Stylus. It’s awesome, hands down one of my favorites of the year. I usually listen to music in headphones before I go to sleep; this album is one of the few I’m afraid to hear before bedtime. Not even the […]