Category Archives: Punk

Vhöl – s/t (Profound Lore, 2013)

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VHOL cover artGiven the players involved and the label putting it out, it’s quite surprising that there hasn’t been more hype surrounding the release of Vhöl’s self-titled debut album.  I mean, we’re talking about a band that includes current/former members of the likes of Hammers of Misfortune, Ludicra, YOB and Agalloch on the goddamn mighty Profound Lore for chrissakes; if ever there was a modern band that should be having the term supergroup lobbed at its feet, it’s surely Vhöl.  And while I (fortunately) haven’t seen too many folks chucking the dreaded “s word” about in reference to this quartet of West Coast killas, their opening salvo is nonetheless pretty gosh darn super.
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Darkthrone – The Underground Resistance (Peaceville, 2013)

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darkthrone the underground resistanceI don’t know that I have a favorite band anymore; in my old age I’ve become more of a favorite album guy. But, if I was forced at gunpoint to pick a favorite band, chances are the first one that would spring to mind is Darkthrone. They’re one of the few that can do no wrong in my eyes, whether we’re talking about the twisted death metal of Soulside Journey, the genre-defining pure Norse black metal of the A Blaze in the Northern Sky/Under a Funeral Moon/Transilvanian Hunger trilogy, or their current incarnation as a black/punk/traditional heavy metal hybrid. Even Goatlord, by far the worst album in their entire catalog, has its charms. No matter what direction Darkthrone take their sound in, they do it more than competently and with plenty of attitude, and I in turn always seem to find something to enjoy in whatever they do.

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Exclusive album stream: The Beyond – Frostbitepanzerfuck

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PrintIn a time when both black metal and punk rock are about as threatening as a switchblade comb, The Beyond are bringing back the danger and showing us how to get rude, crude and evil as hell with their debut full length, Frostbitepanzerfuck, which is being released tomorrow by the mighty Horror Pain Gore Death Productions (you can purchase the CD HERE).  From the gnarly Murder Junkies-esque assault of “Roto-Cunt” to the zombified crawl of “Exterminate Humanity,” the album is a twenty-eight minute lesson in violence that wastes no time in slitting your throat and sodomizing the bloody corpse.

THKD is excited to present an exclusive stream of Frostbitepanzerfuck in its entirety; you can find the stream after the jump, as well as a brief interview with vocalist/guitarist Danny Starkiller.  Enjoy or die.
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The Beyond – Frostbitepanzerfuck (Horror Pain Gore Death Productions, 2013)

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frontcoverPennsylvania-based miscreants The Beyond bill themselves as a cross between punk rock and black metal; picture for a moment GG Allin fronting ’90s Profanatica and that’s almost exactly what you’re getting with the band’s debut full length, Frostbitepanzerfuck.  When the first song on an album is called “Roto-Cunt,” and two tracks later you’re getting bashed in the skull by a cover of the aforementioned Allin’s own “Cunt Sucking Cannibal,” with “Goat Sodomizer” sandwiched in-between, you should have a pretty good idea of what you’re in for.  This is gutter-piss punk metal that wants to fill your every orifice with sticky black jism; PC police, enter at your own risk and prepare to get fucked.
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Voivod – Target Earth (Century Media, 2013)

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Press_Cover_02For over three decades now, Canadian legends Voivod have been making a name for themselves as one of the most forward-thinking metal bands to ever pick up instruments. Their sci-fi-damaged punk-thrash has never been copied (though some have tried); they are one of those bands that is truly unique in every sense of the word, thanks to the singular musical alchemy created when its individual members come together. That alchemy seemingly came to a tragic end in 2005 when founding guitarist Denis “Piggy” D’Amour passed from this plane of existence due to a bout with thyroid cancer. The band went on to release two albums welded together using riffs D’Amour had recorded prior to his untimely death (2006′s Katorz and 2009′s Infini), but it appeared for all intents and purposes that the warriors of ice were no more in the wake of the loss of their beloved guitarist.

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The Black Coffins – Dead Sky Sepulchre (Black Hole Productions, 2012)

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400849_425540304172964_1320979080_nAs the old school death metal revival reaches critical mass, the men are beginning to separate themselves from the mice; the bands that mean it, maaan are putting out seriously shit-kicking records in order to show they’ve got what it takes to hang with the old guard and then some.  One such group of hungry young upstarts is Sao Paulo’s The Black Coffins.  Possessing the South American penchant for filth ‘n’ fury and combining it with the gut-busting rumble of Stockholm Swe-death, these metal miscreants are putting other would-be OSDM practitioners on notice with their debut full length, Dead Sky Sepulchre.
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Pig Destroyer – Book Burner (Relapse, 2012)

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I think I was the only person in the world that wasn’t excited about the prospect of a new Pig Destroyer album. After the grinding greatness that was Prowler in the Yard and the warped masterpiece that was Terrifyer, the band’s fourth album, 2007′s Phantom Limb, was a total letdown. It wasn’t that Phantom Limb was bad by any means, but with its emphasis on longer compositions, breakdowns and grooves, it simply wasn’t what I wanted from a Pig Destroyer album, and as a result it failed to resonate with me. So, when the news broke that the Virginia-based grinders would be unleashing their first batch of new material in half a decade in the form of Book Burner, and the wheels of the hype machine subsequently started to turn, it only served to further lessen my enthusiasm for a long-overdue album from a band that had seemingly “lost it.”

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Early Graves – Red Horse (No Sleep Records, 2012)

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If you were to listen to Early Graves’ Red Horse without knowing anything about the band’s history, you’d probably never guess that this is a band that has risen from the ashes of tragedy.  This is not a band that sounds broken down or beaten; this is a band that sounds lean, mean and hungry, ready to raise Hell and rip some fucking heads off.  It is a testament to Early Graves’ intestinal fortitude that they were not only able to recover from losing their original vocalist in a horrible accident, but to write, record and release their definitive album (so far) in the process.
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Early Graves @ Vaudeville Mews, Des Moines, IA 10/21/12

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The last time I wrote about Early Graves, it was with a heavy heart. A planned review of their 2010 album Goner became a lamentation of vocalist Makh Daniels, whose life had been taken in a van accident while the band was out on tour. I assumed it was to be the first and last time I would write about the devastating young quintet who had shown so much promise. However, the remaining members of Early Graves regrouped, making the undoubtedly difficult decision to soldier on with new screamer John Strachan (also of The Funeral Pyre) at the helm, proving the old cliche that you just can’t keep a good band down. The result is Red Horse, a snorting, stomping, snarling beast of a recording that’s beyond a shadow of a doubt the San Franciscans’ most potent statement to date. The album isn’t out until October 30th, but Early Graves are already hitting the road hard, bringing their patented brand of pure Hell to the stage.

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Blitzkrieg #10: Old Gods Almost Dead

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A few weeks ago, I was sitting on my couch watching the Bad Religion episode of Guitar Center Sessions.  For those of you that are unfamiliar with the show, it consists of the band playing their “hits” in an intimate setting interspersed with interview segments.  As I watched Greg Graffin, Brett Gurewitz and Co. rip through “Generator” and “21st Century Digital Boy,” all I could think is “goddamn they look old.”  The same thing occurred to me when I watched Animal Underworld, Henry Rollins’ new show on Nat Geo (which is fucking awesome, by the way).  Sure, Rollins looks like he could still kick the living shit out of just about any mere mortal, but his hair is mostly grey and his face is showing the kinds of craggy lines that only come with advancing age.  He definitely doesn’t look the same as when I started going apeshit over Rollins Band videos on MTV in junior high, or even when I saw him speak at my college.
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