The first quarter of the year has passed. Ka-whoosh!! Where the bloody hell did that go I say! Here at The Metal Wanderlust Headquarters we started asking each other what have been our personal favourites so far, and as quality music needs to be talked about, we decided to share our thoughts too!
So, here you have the best and nothing but the best, according to the staff members at TMW. If you have not checked them all out yet, we recommend you to sit back, pop open your beverage of choice, and start digging into some quality Metal!! In no particular order, let’s begin!
MegaDeaf201:
Annihilator – “Ballistic, Sadistic.“
“It’s just a fun as fuck, brutal Thrash album that’s great for getting the negative energies flowing out your body!!”
VUK:
Bütcher – “666 Goats Carry My Chariot.”
“Each of the nine songs on “666 Goats Carry My Chariot” is a sublime reminder of exactly why Metal has become so dear to us as a community. I remember 1988, when “Keeper of the Seven Keys Part II” by Helloween came out. King Diamond, Manowar, and Overkill all had stuff that was just beginning to invade my brain. Slayer, Megadeth, Iron Maiden… All of that can be heard in Bütcher, and I cannot express properly in words how happy that makes me feel.”
ThatAstronautGuy:
Church of Disgust – “Consumed by Slow Putrefaction” EP.
“Hailing from the fiery plains of Texas, these Death driven maniacs have unleashed a three song EP of chugging, down tuned Death, with the sound of the golden age solidified in the DNA of the band. If you’re familiar with them this will come as no surprise: This absolutely fucking kills, but if you are new to these guys, it’s time to grab the swords and stop posing in pictures with your hello kitty backpack.”
Trendcrusher:
Colosso – “Apocalypse.”
“Crushing Death Metal from this Portuguese band based on the concept of the Four Horsemen of the Apocalypse. Personally, this was a terrifying listen for me because of it’s concept.”
MegaDeaf201:
Dyssidia – “Costly Signals.”
“It’s a different take on a genre that’s quite ridiculed by the modern Metal community. It’s done with surgeon like precision and power that makes it stand in a class of its own.”
ProgCaveOgier:
Dödskvad – “Kronike I” Demo.
“I’ve been saying this a lot in recent years, but I’m saying it again: It feels like the best Death Metal these days is often hidden in the demos, deep in the underground. Just like it used to be way, way back. Dödskvad from Norway come across with a touch of early 1990’s Scandinavian Death Metal, combined with Norwegian sensibilities for melody. This demo is simply musical perfection from start to finish! Far from one dimensional, it has it all: Dynamics, melodies and wide array of ever impressive riffs. Songs dive from almost ambient like moods to a full-on battery and I can’t get enough of this. We need a full album from these guys ASAP!!”
Trendcrusher:
ESP Mayhem – “Bloodsportswear.”
“Chaotic Grindcore from the synth based Australian act. The soundtrack to a dystopia which looking at the current state of the world has already arrived.”
ProgCaveOgier:
Faustian Pact – “Outojen Tornien Varjoissa.”
“By far the best Black Metal album I’ve heard in years and years and years! Abigor and Summoning vibes, all enshrouded in the atmospherics of the golden era of the genre, the mid-90’s that is. The tunes have just the right kind of obscurity to them and almost a 70’s Prog vibe here and there. You might not be the coolest cat in the neighbourhood by sporting this pack of poetic weirdos, but that’s how it should be with Black Metal. After all, I see it as obscure music for obscure people.”
Trendcrusher:
Garganjua – “Toward the Sun.”
“This British act play a hypnotic style of Doom Metal that leaves you enraptured. This album got multiple listens from me as I found it soothing during my anxious phases.”
The Great Mackintosh:
Godthrymm – “Reflections.”
“This one brings back all the feels of the old school Peaceville bands such as Paradise Lost and My Dying Bride, but definitely leans closer to the first mentioned act, and that is just fucking fine and dandy by me. Such tone on display here, such melancholy, combined with a vocal delivery that would sit nicely around Paradise Lost‘s ‘Icon‘ stage and an overwhelming atmosphere of another place and another time. I fucking love this, AOTY contender for sure.”
The Great Mackintosh:
Graceless – “Where the Vultures Know Your Name.”
“Those girly Owls may not know your name, but the Vultures certainly fucking do, and they are circling above waiting for you to be crushed into some sort of human mince patty by this unholy monstrosity. Death Metal with a hint of Doom and much else thrown in, Graceless have removed all of the feathers from their proverbial necks and are about to enter your body in the most unwholesome of ways and tear away at your insides! Another one with the album of the Year material, without a doubt.”
The Great Mackintosh:
Innards – “Back From The Grave, Straight In Your Face!!” EP.
“Portuguese duo Innards certainly haven’t got the title wrong on this one, what an awesome display of Death/Grind goodness, reminiscent to me of Benediction and the mighty Napalm Death, and many more way back in the day when mosh pits contained more shattered bones than a camel has fleas. Utterly magnificent, absolutely enjoyable, and just plain sick as fuck!”
Hayduke X:
Live Suffer Die – “A Voice From Beyond Death.”
“The five tracks on this posthumous (for one of the members) release literally makes my skin crawl. In short, this is essentially a one man project with a vocalist in addition. Lance Gifford, the musician and creator of this project, took his own life between completion of the album and the release. Vocalist Lörd Matzigkeitus fulfilled a promise to Gifford by making sure it came to fruition. The final project may be the most visceral and wrenching piece of music I’ve ever heard. If all DSBM was this heartfelt, I would probably like the genre more. Listen and buy from Moribund Records. Proceeds go directly to Gifford‘s family.”
VUK:
Primeval Mass – “Nine Altars.”
“This freakishly extreme Greek Thrash/Death/Black/Progressive/NWOBHM colossus is the brain-child of a man simply known as Orth. With the help of George C. on drums, Orth gives us a smorgasbord of tasty Metal-ness. Not sure what particular form of violence to plunge into your cerebellum? Look no further! Primeval Mass has got you covered!”
The Great Mackintosh:
Proscrito – “Llagas y estigmas.”
“Doom/Death from Spain with a large touch of insanity thrown in for good measure vocals wise, lead singer Dani‘s delivery is nothing short of that of a gurgling, raving horror recently risen from the local cemetery. Riffs thicker than concrete drive this right into your skull at a measured pace, making this album positively massive in all aspects. A must have.”
VUK:
Skyforest – “A New Dawn.”
“An extremely prolific multi-instrumentalist, known simply as B.M., has composed a crushingly beautiful Atmospheric Metal masterpiece with “A New Dawn.” An absolutely stunning album. In every direction possible, this thing sprouts passion and inspiration. I picture him as the red-cloaked figure on the cover, looking out at that majestic landscape, and conjuring the enclosed music with his mind. A truly magical listening experience.”
The Great Mackintosh:
Igorrr – “Spirituality and Distortion.”
“What the fucking fuckety fuck am I supposed to say about this conglomeration of utter magnificence, outright bloody strangeness, and musical genius! As discussed between staff members, this is almost as if Devin Townsend smoked some crack, that had already itself smoked some crack. Pick a musical direction, it’s probably in there, and yet it all fits so well into one big mind blowing package of fuck yes!”
Hayduke X:
Wake – “Devouring Ruin.”
“Long one of my favourite projects, the western Canadian Grind champions appear to have had a bit of an identity crisis since their last album. The quintet have always incorporated other styles into their mix, but they have jumped the Grind ship here with an album that sounds more like Blackened Sludge in the vein of the mighty Primitive Man. I’m grateful to say that none of this is an issue, as the band pull it off flawlessly. The album is gripping from start to finish. It’s almost as if they ten grind tracks at two minutes a pop, then clamped onto either end and stretched them out to nearly eleven minutes in one case. Into the spaces created, they poured all of their personal bile and vengeance. Devouring Ruin is completely obliterating and an early favourite for my AOTY.”
The Great Mackintosh:
Abrupt Demise – “The Pleasure to Kill and Grind.”
“Absolute face melting skin shredding ridiculousness abounds on this one, complete with plenty of fully sick sound bites that will get you playing the ‘Who the Fuck was that?’ game, and they all fit perfectly with the subject matter and music contained within. Uncompromising would be an understatement. Yes, I have to say it, this one may well bring about your very own Abrupt Demise!”
ProgCaveOgier:
Solothus – “Realm of Ash and Blood.”
“If there are two genres I’ve been following a lot in recent years they would be Finnish Death Metal and Death Doom. With their latest release, Solothus are topping both categories. This album is a classic. Not in the making, but a goat-damn, full-blown classic already. Heavy, atmospheric, emotional and crushing. Everything one could want from a Death Doom record.”
And there you have it, check out each and every one of these if you so wish, or none at all, the power is in your hands people, but some great tunes abound amongst all of the above. Many thanks to all the bands mentioned for bringing us such joy, and many thanks to the labels and or people that deliver us such goodness!
See you in another three months!
The Metal Wanderlust.
The Metal Wanderlust 