Upcoming Metal Releases: 9/14/2014 – 9/20/2014

September 15, 2014

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Flawed Editor – Reign in Flubs | That Was Quick Records | Retrash
Invisible Oranges editor finally steps down. Related to boring things, depression, and the drummer Hellhammer (because, if you’ve played in a band, we’re all related to Hellhammer).

Lame jokes aside (man, has that ever been a theme), I’ll keep this quick: Today is my last day in the editor chair. My term filled with zzzzzzs and tpyos is now complete. Stepping up tomorrow as Features Editor is the wonderful, whip-smart, and extremely capable Joseph Schafer. He has big plans that you’re going to love, so if we lost you, come on back. I’m quite excited for the future of Invisible Oranges because Joseph has the skills to do incredible things. Good times are a-coming. Treat him well.

As for me, I greatly appreciate the opportunity to map the metal world, work with a killer staff of brilliant brains, and engage with a ton of diehard metalheads who continually remind me why this genre will never die. And that’s my parting message, really: Metal is going to be fine. If you love it, you’ll always find something to love about it, so don’t sweat the present. Metal has survived supposed world-ending scourges like glam, the PMRC, groove, nü-metal, metalcore, and djent. It’ll survive the next fad, too, while incorporating the best new elements grown as a reaction to the old enemy into an already rich and diverse palette. However, the songs that got you here will remain, comfortingly, the same. As long as there’s storage space, a way to play, and someone to listen, “Black Sabbath” will be “Black Sabbath,” Reign in Blood will be Reign in Blood, Steve Harris will gallop, and King Diamond will wail. These things won’t change, but the amount of energy you can devote to them eventually will. That said, the exchange rate doesn’t fluctuate: metal returns whatever you honestly put in. If you need it, it’ll be here.

Thanks.

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Anyway, on to the reason you’re here. Is this slate stacked? Oh man, I’ve got back pain just looking at it. (Also, I’m old.) Expect to see more weeks like this one as summer starts to fade away (“Holy crap, when?!” – America) and autumnal colors start creeping in. Fall is the season for the large releases and we’re already getting trampled by some biggies running ahead of the stampede. Cannibal Corpse, Iron Reagan, and Ides of Gemini will certainly get conversation around the water cooler started. . . if you talk about metal at a water cooler. What I’m saying is. . . spice up your life? Only boring people are bored? (Sigh.)

Still, a lot of thrills are taking place in Of Note. Emeth‘s progressive brutality is nuts and Reverorum Ib Malacht are responsible for an irresistible cacophony. Plus, check out the trinkets in Things We Missed. I, uh, missed a lot, including the new Darkspace album which isn’t really out but was available at a live show last weekend. Consider it a heads up. What’s that? I should be canned for getting your hopes up? Welp. . .

See something we missed? Goofs? Let us know in the comments. Plus, as always, feel free to post your own shopping lists. Happy digging.

— Ian Chainey

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New metal releases for the week of 9/14/2014 – 9/20/2014. Release dates are formatted according to proposed North American scheduling, if available. Expect to see the bulk of these records on shelves or distros on Tuesday unless otherwise noted. Blurbs and designations are based on available promotional material and perceived buzz.

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Cannibal Corpse – A Skeletal Domain | Metal Blade Records | Death metal
The Buffalo Music Hall of Famers cut their 13th full-length of the death metal they made famous.

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Ingurgitating Oblivion – Continuum of Absence | Willowtip | Death metal
Dissonant death metal that moves with a monstrous lurch. Stream the full album here.

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Ides of Gemini – Old World New Wave | Neurot Recordings | Rock, doom, folk
Ominous and dark psych-tinged rockers that carry a doom-y weight.

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Iron Reagan – The Tyranny of Will | Relapse Records | Crossover, hardcore
A blistering throwback speedfest that remembers the ’80s. Contains members of Municipal Waste and Cannabis Corpse.

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Lago – Tyranny | Battleground Records | Death metal
Phoenix-based purveyors of steady and solid death metal. Stream the full album here.

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Myrkur – Myrkur | Relapse Records | Black metal
Mysterious Danish solo project that expands the second-wave sonic palette.

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Сивый Яр – Из Тьмы Вымерших Деревень (From the Dead Villages’ Darkness) | Avantgarde Music | Black metal
Russian-based black metal swept along with pastoral grandeur. Stream a track here.

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Of Note:

Abusiveness – Bramy Nawii | Arachnophobia Records | Black metal
A blast of tremolo from these Polish black metallers with links to Blaze of Perdition and Moon.

Algebra – Feed The Ego | Unspeakable Axe Records | Thrash
Swiss thrash in the Nuclear Assault vein that sounds like an update instead of a rehash.

AntropomorphiA – Rites Ov Perversion | Metal Blade Records | Death metal
Continues the super-heavy Dutch death metal tradition.

Black Moth – Condemned To Hope | New Heavy Sounds | Doom, stoner rock
Hard rockin’ doomers that have a garage-y vibe.

Bloodtruth – Obedience | Unique Leader Records | Death metal
Italian brutal death with a tech dexterity and slight blackened dissonance.

Calm Hatchery – Fading Reliefs | Selfmadegod Records | Death metal
War-obsessed death metal accented with sweep-picked flutters.

Darkenhold – Castellum | Those Opposed Records | Black metal
Stately black metal with a lyrical interest in “Castles, Medieval, Fantasy.”

Death Penalty – Death Penalty | Rise Above Records | Doom
Gaz Jennings (Cathedral) is joined by Serpentcult members for this slice of catchy classic doom.

Emeth – Aethyr | Xtreem Music | Death metal
Brutal death metal that isn’t afraid of brainy leads and progressive structures. Ex-members of Aborted, Agathocles, Leng Tch’e, and Suppository.

Galg – Afzicht | Tartarus Records | Drone, doom, black metal
An agonizingly slow din of howling catharsis. Linked to Fluisteraars and Bong Breaker.

Highgate / Venowl – Venowl / Highgate | Tartarus Records | Doom, sludge, black metal
Two US blackened doom/sludge practitioners go big on this two-track, hour-long split.

IRN – Sewer Disease | Self-released | Sludge, doom
Painful, misanthropic sludge that has a Corrupted-esque sense of dynamics. Members were in Dead of Winter and the Great Sabatini.

Majestic Downfall / The Slow Death – Majestic Downfall / The Slow Death | Chaos Records | Death/doom
Two underground death/doom up-and-comers. Majestic Downfall hail from Mexico. The Slow Death come from Australia and feature members of Backyard Mortuary, Crone, and Murkrat.

Mondvolland – Kwade vaart | Heidens Hart Records | Black metal
A moody, avant-garde, and folky Dutch outfit. Their last album.

Mortuus – Grape of the Vine | The Ajna Offensive | Black metal
Solidly Swedish black metal with death on their minds. Members have played in Ofermod and Ondskapt.

Old Wounds – Death Projection | Good Fight | Hardcore, metalcore
A freshened-up throwback to the age of dissonant metallic hardcore.

PHILM – Fire From the Evening Sun | UDR Music | Prog, experimental
Dave Lombardo and company explore the outer reaches of rock.

Reverorum Ib Malacht – De Mysteriis Dom Christi | The Ajna Offensive | Black metal, dark ambient
A smear of unsettling and dark tones that melt together into a foreboding whole. Another ex-Ofermod and ex-Dödfödd project.

Snailking – Storm | ConSouling Sounds | Stoner doom, sludge
These Swedish lovers of the heavy tune their guitars to low and turn their amps to growl.

Threshold – For the Journey | Nuclear Blast | Progressive metal
Long-running UK group balancing proggy extravagances with powered-up hooks.

Towers of Flesh – Antithetical Conjurations | Candlelight Records | Blackened death metal
Charred-black death metal that has its fair share of anthemic sections. Related to Binah.

Xerath – III | Candlelight Records | Groove metal
Red-lined groove metal with orchestral flourishes.

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