I first became aware of Pallbearer after hearing singer/guitarist Brett Campbell’s stunning guest vocal turn on Loss’ Despond. I quickly discovered that there was quite a buzz surrounding the Arkansas-bred quartet, based on the strength of a three song demo (which is available as a free download on the band’s bandcamp page), not to mention the fact that they too had signed with the mighty Profound Lore. But as fond as I was of Mr. Campbell’s contribution to Despond, I decided to steer clear of said buzz, purposefully not listening to the demo or any preview tracks prior to hearing Sorrow and Extinction in full. You see, in this day and age, bands rarely live up to their hype, and I feared that if I gave in to the buzz, I’d only be setting myself up for disappointment when I finally had the album in hand. Read more »
Archive for the doom Category
Behold! The Monolith – Defender, Redeemist (self-released, 2012)
Posted in death metal, doom, hard rock, heavy metal, Metal, Music, Reviews, rock, sludge, stoner rock with tags Behold! The Monolith, California, death metal, doom, hard rock, heavy metal, Los Angeles, Metal, Music, Reviews, rock, sludge, stoner rock, USA on 01/25/2012 by THKD
I’ve always been fascinated by power trios. It surely has something to do with my love of all things raw and stripped down, since it doesn’t get any more stripped down than tres hombres against the world, brandishing only electric instruments and bad attitudes. The power trio is the bare minimum of musicians needed to produce a full and complete sound within a rock or metal format (although I’m sure there are plenty of duos who would beg to differ… eh, fuck ‘em); it’s all about maximizing the minimal, and I’ve often found that power trios are inherently heavier and more powerful-sounding than these bands that feel the need to have three guitarists, two vocalists, four drummers, a percussionist, a keyboardist, a DJ, an acrobat, a lion tamer, etc… just listen to Motorhead, Venom, High on Fire or Hellhammer and you’ll catch my drift.
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Black Pyramid – II (Meteor City, 2012)
Posted in doom, hard rock, heavy metal, Metal, Music, sludge, stoner rock with tags Black Pyramid, hard rock, heavy metal, II, Metal, Meteor City, Music, Reviews, rock, rock 'n' roll, stoner rock, USA on 01/14/2012 by THKD
The world needs real rock ‘n’ roll more than ever. Have you listened to the radio lately? Go on then, have a listen to some of the limp-wristed, candy-assed, sub-Nickelback horseshit that passes for mainstream rock music lately and you’ll hear what I’m talking about, a bunch of preening jackasses who look like they stepped out of the pages of the Abercrombie & Fuckface catalogue, playing songs about having sex with sluts, drinking, doing drugs and having sex with more sluts. And I don’t mean that in a filthy/sleazy/awesome Venom or Motorhead way either. I mean it in a soulless, sac-less, nauseating, pristinely produced and utterly contrived faux-grunge frat-rock way, replete with vocals that sound like a cross between Eddie Vedder and a goat with a cob up its ass. Yes folks, we need real rock ‘n’ roll more than ever.
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THKD’S NUCLEAR NEW YEAR’S EVIL GIVEAWAY!
Posted in black metal, contests, death metal, doom, giveaways, grindcore, hard rock, hardcore, heavy metal, Metal, Music, rock, sludge, stoner rock, thrash, traditional metal with tags 2011, 2012, black metal, contests, death metal, doom, giveaways, grindcore, hard rock, heavy metal, Metal, rock, thrash on 01/01/2012 by THKD
Thanks to you, the loyal readers, 2011 was the best year ever for That’s How Kids Die. I can’t believe the great response the blog has gotten over the course of the last year, and I’m honored that so many of you are willing to take time out of your days and nights to read my incoherent ramblings on all things heavy metal.
So, in the spirit of giving something back to you, the readers, and to kick off another year of THKD with a bang, I am proud to announce our first ever giveaway!
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Blitzkrieg #8: Oooh Baby I Like it Raw (from the Trashmen to Transilvanian Hunger)
Posted in black metal, Columns, crust, death metal, doom, gothic rock, grindcore, hard rock, hardcore, heavy metal, Metal, Music, noise rock, Norwegian Black Metal, NWOBHM, Punk, reissues, rock, sludge, Songs, stoner rock, thrash, traditional metal, USBM with tags 45 RPM, A Blaze in the Northern Sky, Alice Cooper, Atheist, black metal, Darkthrone, Deuce, Dirt, Down on the Street, Fun House, garage rock, Gorguts, hard rock, heavy metal, I'm Eighteen, Iggy Pop, KISS, Loose, Mayhem, Metal, Music, pathos, rock, rock 'n' roll, surf music, Surfin' Bird, The Stooges, The Trashmen, Transilvanian Hunger, TV Eye, Under a Funeral Moon on 12/27/2011 by THKD
In a recent conversation about music, my wife pointed out that I tend to gravitate towards stuff that is very raw and simplistic. I believe “garagey” was the term she used. She’s absolutely right. I guess this has long been the case, but I had never really thought about it consciously until she brought it up. I mean, I’ve certainly done my fair share of writing and espousing the virtues of raw, primitive music, but I never really considered just how much my listening preferences are dominated by these characteristics.
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THKD’s Top 10 Metal Albums of 2011
Posted in black metal, death metal, doom, drone, grindcore, hard rock, hardcore, heavy metal, industrial, Metal, Music, reissues, Reviews, rock, Satan, sludge, stoner rock, thrash, traditional metal, USBM with tags Metal, Nuclear Blast, black metal, death metal, Black Market Activities, Metal Blade, thrash, doom, Vader, Today is the Day, Burzum, Music, Maruta, Willowtip, SunnO))), heavy metal, Profound Lore, Century Media, Disma, 20 Buck Spin, Southern Lord, drone, The Ash Eaters, Fiends at Feast, Pentagram, Antediluvian, Deafheaven, Relapse, Hell, Exhumed, Passive Aggressive, Byelobog, Azarath, Uncanny, Opeth, Blut Aus Nord, Roadrunner, Witching Hour, The Lurking Corpses, Wolvhammer, Mournful Congregation, Deathwish, Debemur Morti, Conqueror, Katatonia, Best Metal Albums of 2011, Nuclear War Now!, Dark Descent on 12/23/2011 by THKD
WARNING: The following year end rant contains numerous piss poor attempts at humor and a healthy dose of cynicism. Reader discretion and a grain of salt are advised. THKD cannot be held responsible for anyone suffering from a severe case of butt-hurt as a result of exposure to this rant. Thank you for your support.
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Mournful Congregation – The Book of Kings (20 Buck Spin, 2011)
Posted in death metal, doom, heavy metal, Metal, Music, Reviews with tags 20 Buck Spin, Adelaide, Australia, death metal, doom, funeral doom, Metal, Mournful Congregation, Reviews, The Book of Kings, The Unspoken Hymns on 12/04/2011 by THKD
As a metal journalist and critic, I occasionally run into albums that are so fucking good that they’re confounding. No amount of hyperbole will suffice with which to convey the brilliance of their myriad layers and intricacies. Such is the case with The Book of Kings, the fourth full length from Australian funeral doom practitioners Mournful Congregation. In listening to it, I feel as if my meager skills as a wordsmith are completely incapable of describing such a masterful recording, and yet I’m still compelled to spill the digital ink in service of this great work.
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New music from The Ash Eaters.
Posted in black metal, doom, gothic rock, Metal, Music, rock, USBM with tags Angelfuck, black metal, Brown Jenkins, Cold Hearts, Death Comes Ripping, doom, gothic rock, Misfits, The Ash Eaters, The Cruel Side, USA on 11/28/2011 by THKD
The Ash Eaters have released a new two track digital EP, The Cruel Side via their bandcamp page. For those not familiar, the band is the new project of former Brown Jenkins mastermind, Umesh Amtey. Amtey is probably one of the most underrated guitarists in metal, his playing a schizophrenic locust swarm that attacks from all sides and encompasses elements of black metal, doom, gothic rock and beyond. But as abrasive as this material may appear on the surface, it is also strangely catchy, the sheets of insectoid distortion burrowing deep into the inner recesses of your mind. I’m listening to the EP for the first time as I type this; I’m already eager to listen further. Amtey doesn’t just write songs, he creates musical labyrinths for the ears to explore.
Those of you familiar with The Ash Eaters’ Cold Hearts demo (also available via bandcamp), will instantly notice a distinct progression in playing and composition (as well as the return of Amtey’s Cthulu-esque vocal assault); indeed, the beautiful thing about this music is that it is constantly progressing, changing, morphing into something beyond the confines of extreme music.
I could say a lot more, but I’d rather let the music do the talking. Go grab this now!
http://theasheaters.bandcamp.com/album/the-cruel-side-ep
I’d also highly recommend stopping by The Ash Eaters’ blog to download their cover versions of the Misfits’s “Angelfuck” and “Death Comes Ripping.”
Acid Witch – Stoned (Hells Headbangers, 2011)
Posted in death metal, doom, Metal, Music, Reviews with tags Acid Witch, Alice Cooper, An American Werewolf in London, death metal, doom, Goblin, halloween, heavy metal, Hell's Headbangers, horror, Metal, Michigan, Music, Reviews, Stoned, The MC5, The Return of the Living Dead, The Stooges, USA on 11/25/2011 by THKD
Acid Witch is a band that appeals to me on so many levels that it’s virtually impossible not to like them. On sophomore album Stoned, the Michigan monster squad’s use of horror soundtrack synths, down-tuned doom riffage, battery acid gargling vocals and Halloween decorations gone hallucinogenic artwork is irresistible, as if someone combined all of my obsessions to create one killer recording. It’s also the perfect antidote to a metal scene that’s become a little too serious for my liking of late. I mean, how many po’ faced transcendental post-black fruit-bot-core bands do we really need?
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Blitzkrieg #7: Metal vs. Religion
Posted in black metal, death metal, doom, grindcore, hardcore, heavy metal, Horror, Metal, Music, Occult, religion, rock, Satan, thrash with tags Anton LaVey, Atheism, black metal, Bram Stoker, Catholicism, Christianity, Danzig, death, Dracula, Jesus Christ, Metal, Metallica, Mona Lisa, Nietzsche, Reign in Blood, religion, Satanism, Slayer, The Beyond, thrash, zombies on 10/29/2011 by THKD
As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, metal gave me the strength to accept my budding Atheism during my youth. I wish I could say there was some epiphanic moment that came late one night while listening to Reign in Blood, but the truth is that metal’s part in the formation of my beliefs was much more subtle. Reflecting back on those times, I’ve come to realize that my Atheism manifested itself long before my love of metal did, and that metal only helped to cement those beliefs.
I went to Catholic school from kindergarten all the way up through my senior year of high school. A lot of people still have some interesting ideas of what Catholic school is like, but I can assure you there were no draconian nuns in black lording over us with yardsticks and paddles, nor were we forced to go to church every day. That doesn’t mean that the presence of the almighty didn’t loom over us on a daily basis. We did have an extra period for religion class, and although we didn’t go to church every day, there were still multiple opportunities to kneel before the saviour, any excuse to have a mass in the gymnasium or set up confessionals in the auditorium.
I tried my damnedest to believe. I folded my hands, closed my eyes, drank the grape juice, ate the stale crackers (why does the body of Christ taste like cardboard and glue?), and none of it worked. I participated willingly in the three c’s, communion, confirmation and confession, but felt no closer to any “God”. For the longest time, I felt like there was something wrong with me, like I was the only one in the world that didn’t believe. There was nothing I could do about it, no one I was comfortable talking to. If there were others like me, they were keeping it well hidden.
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