This week’s Heavy Music HQ reviews include releases from 1349, Ad Infinitum, Alias Noone, Cemetery Skyline, Chat Pile, The Crown, Def Leppard, Doedsmaghird, Fixation, Hell Is Other People, Krvl, Master Boot Record, Myles Kennedy and Oranssi Pazuzu.
The ratings are on a 5 star scale.
1349 – The Wolf & The King (Season Of Mist)
The veteran Norwegian black metal band 1349 were prolific in their early years, but as time went on they took a more deliberate approach to new material. There was a five year span between 2014’s Massive Cauldron Of Chaos and The Infernal Pathway, and another half decade between that one and their newest album The Wolf & The King.
As on previous releases, the music is rooted in old school black metal that’s extreme and sometimes chaotic but also dynamic and injected with melody and groove. Archaon really delivers on this album with creative riffs that help make the songs memorable. Standouts include “Shadow Point,” “Inner Portal” and “Obscura.” The mighty Frost drives the proceedings with a varied performance on drums. While not breaking much new ground, with The Wolf & The King 1349’s execution is flawless as the album flies by in under 40 minutes.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Ad Infinitum – Abyss (Napalm)
The Swiss/German band Ad Infinitum have been prolific during their relatively brief existence. Abyss is their fourth studio album since they emerged just over four years ago. Their early material was more in the symphonic vein, and while there’s still some of that, they have shifted to more of a modern metal style.
Both the music and vocals are varied. Tracks like “Outer Space” are accessible and melodic, with Melissa Bonny adding harsh vocals giving the track some edge. Straightforward and catchy numbers such as “Euphoria” alternate with heavier but still memorable tracks like “The One You’ll Hold On To.” For those that miss their more symphonic days, there’s also an orchestral version of opener “My Halo.” Bonny’s versatile vocals and a plethora of earworms make Abyss another quality Ad Infinitum release.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Alias Noone – Weight Of The World (Inverse)
Alias Noone hold nothing back on their debut album Weight Of The World, supplementing their melodic death metal with orchestration and programming courtesy of producer Jarno Hänninen. Hänninen, who is also the keyboardist for Dead End Finland, has a presence on every song with pianos and angelic choirs all over.
It can sometimes overshadow the rest of the band, though they try to fit themselves in when hurried tempos are called for. Guest vocalist Saara Nurmela provides a female counterpart to vocalist Teemu Ratamaa’s deafening roars, especially when they harmonize on the choruses to “Shadowkeep” and “Left Behind.” Weight Of The World is dedicated to their guitarist Janne Öysti, who passed away earlier this year after the album was recorded.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Cemetery Skyline – Nordic Gothic (Century Media)
In addition to the recent Dark Tranquillity album and with a new record from melo-death all-stars The Halo Effect due in early 2025, Mikael Stanne is also fronting Cemetery Skyline. Therefore, the Swede’s in the running for busiest vocalist in metal right now. Also enlisted for Nordic Gothic, the band’s debut full-length, is guitarist Markus Vanhala (Insomnium, Omnium Gatherum) as well as Amorphis, Dimmu Borgir and Sentenced alumni.
For Stanne aficionados there’s a key point of difference with this project – the album’s title offers a clue. As opener “Torn Away” indicates, it’s a gloomy, emotive, often gothic brand of hard rock and metal owing a debt to the likes of The Sisters Of Mercy and Type O Negative, with a little Paradise Lost too. Stanne’s voice has long emanated a sense of melancholy, and the decision to only utilize clean singing suits this approach, elevating fare like cinematic ballad “When Silence Speaks.” There’s plenty of incisive melodies and hook-laden riffs, while the keyboards often infuse an atmospheric, symphonic-like feel without being overbearing. “The Darkest Night” and “The Coldest Heart” boast a pop sensibility, adding to the variety. Given the members’ respective schedules, it will be curious to see how active Cemetery Skyline are going forward. But this is a case of an LP truly doing what it says on the tin.
Rating: 4
(Brendan Crabb)
Chat Pile – Cool World (The Flenser)
Midwestern musical machinists Chat Pile follow-up to 2022’s God’s Country with an excursion to Cool World. Back is the noise a la The Jesus Lizard and muddied sludge complete with Stin’s fat bass work and Raygun Busch’s spoken and shouted vocals to help set the band apart from other aural oddities. The 1-2 punch of “I Am Dog Now” and “Shame” welcomes the woe that comes with playing music such as this.
“Frownland” is one of the band’s heaviest songs to date with a bass that is about as oppressive as it can be played and guitars whose devilish distortion add layers to this already complex and violent concoction. The album also displays themes of real-world violence on “Camcorder” and “Tape,” referring to the prevalence of cruel crimes being normalized and easier to digest further cementing Chat Pile’s misanthropic view of the world. If you enjoy noise with an emphasis on heavy sounds and themes with an overwhelming sense of pessimism, then Cool World is the soundtrack to exactly that.
Rating: 4.5
(Tom Campagna)
The Crown – Crown Of Thorns (Metal Blade)
Swedish melodeath titans The Crown pay homage to their original band name on their twelfth studio album Crown Of Thorns. The cover art also features a bridge from their hometown of Trollhättan. With those elements, it could be assumed this is a throwback album, and while there are certainly nods to their early days, The Crown continue to look forward.
Two new band members and a change in guitar tuning infuse a different energy and a few new twists. Songs like “Churchburner” and “Gone To Hell” are groovy and melodic, while tracks such as “Martyrian” and “The Agitator” are more intense with a quicker pace. Most songs are compact and streamlined, but “The Storm That Comes” is seven minutes long and unfolds more deliberately for maximum impact. The Crown did a nice job with track order, as the songs ebb and flow with varied tempos and textures. When it comes to death metal vocals, Johan Lindstrand has few peers, giving Crown Of Thorns even more gravitas.
Rating: 4
(Chad Bowar)
Def Leppard – One Night Only: Live At The Leadmill Sheffield May 19, 2023 (Mercury)
These days, Def Leppard play mostly stadiums and arenas. But last year they played an intimate club show at The Leadmill in their hometown of Sheffield. After initially being issued on Record Store Day earlier this year, that show is now available in numerous configurations including CD, DVD+CD, Blu-ray+CD, LP and digital.
When a band has as many albums and hits as Def Leppard, putting together a setlist that will please everyone is impossible. But One Night Only: Live At The Leadmill Sheffield May 19, 2023 has songs from numerous eras: early tracks like “Wasted” from On Through The Night and “Bringin’ On The Heartbreak” from High ‘n’ Dry, some of their biggest hits like “Hysteria” and “Pour Some Sugar On Me” and new songs like “Fire It Up” from their latest album Diamond Star Halos. The energy at a club show is completely different than a stadium concert, and Def Leppard embrace that intimate connection with the audience as they blaze through their set.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Doedsmaghird – Omniverse Consciousness (Peaceville)
Dodheimsgard’s Yusaf “Vicotnik” Parvez teams up with his bandmate, guitarist Camille Giradeau (Void, Ysengrin), for the new project Doedsmaghird. Their debut album Omniverse Consciousness follows in the same direction as Dodheimsgard while blazing their own musical trail.
There are moments of traditional black metal, but avant-garde and atmospheric parts are the dominant style of the album. The compositions are mostly expansive and varied, switching between aggression and atmosphere. There are more focused tracks, like the intense “Then, To Darkness Return,” along with a couple of brief instrumentals for a change of pace. Most of the songs on the album exceed the six-minute mark, with plenty of opportunities for experimentation and stylistic forays. Even with these musical detours, Doedsmaghird always bring Omniverse Consciousness back home in a cohesive fashion.
Rating: 3.5
(Chad Bowar)
Fixation – Speak In Tongues (Indie)
For their latest EP Speak In Tongues, Fixation have gone from internalizing their rage to using it as a tool for creativity. They have never sounded as aggravated and looking for a fight than they do on this release. New vocal approaches, such as hostile screams, gives the group an advantage in expressing their concept about a person looking for meaning in the wrong places.
Fixation tie Speak In Tongues together with interludes between each of the four main songs, giving off a connective tissue that is lost if split apart. Electronics are all over the interludes, which halts the pacing of the EP whenever they appear. However, they do add a cinematic flair, giving the band direction that was missing a year ago on their debut album, More Subtle Than Death.
Rating: 3
(Dan Marsicano)
Hell Is Other People – Moirae (Transcending Obscurity)
Moirae has Hell Is Other People making the full transition into black metal, dropping much of the hardcore sounds their previous releases had. The five songs on their sophomore album go further into an atmospheric/post-metal side, increasingly doing so leading up to the nearly 14-minute closer “Atropos.” Emotive guitar leads pop in like a whispering breeze, providing solace in times of sonic unrest.
Like their last album, 2017’s Embrace, Moirae uses its tendency for longer compositions to its benefit. The opening title track goes for minutes simmering on a jam nearing a combustible stage, but never reaches it until almost halfway in. The album does this regularly, justifying the long-form design Hell Is Other People have made their own.
Rating: 3.5
(Dan Marsicano)
Krvl – Donkere Paden (These Hands Melt)
Krvl are a black metal group from Belgium concealed in anonymity, keeping their names a secret and using their native Dutch language for the lyrics. Donkere Paden, their second album, has toxicity and serenity in equal parts. When the phrase “atmospheric black metal” gets thrown around, it’s a band like Krvl that falls into that description. Even at their most buzzy, there’s a lone guitar ready to pluck away melodically.
It’s not always in the introduction or outro to a song when it’s used, but usually a few minutes in, sometimes abruptly. Then it’s right back to the distorted retaliation to jolt the listener back into the shadows. Krvl does it with composure and care, though Donkere Paden doesn’t make the case for a distinct perspective.
Rating: 3
(Dan Marsicano)
Master Boot Record – Hardwarez (Metal Blade)
The machine spirit of Master Boot Record has awoken once again with the release of their fifteenth album Hardwarez. Coming from the brainchild of Italian multi-instrumentalist Vittorio D’Amore , the album shows his willingness to push the limits of technology in the name of art.
Following up 2022’s Personal Computer and 2020’s Floppy Disk Overdrive, this album features even more heavy riffs along with the titular chiptune synth hybrid style he is known for. From the opening notes of “BIOS” to the closing drum blasts of “CASE,” Hardwarez serves as a continuation in style all while expanding and improving with each track. The blended use of technology and traditional heavy metal instrumentation leads to creating a unique sub-genre and album.
Rating: 4
(Dalton Husher)
Myles Kennedy – The Art Of Letting Go (Napalm)
With his bandmates in Alter Bridge revisiting their 1990’s glory days with a reunited Creed, Myles Kennedy opts to keep the flag flying on his latest solo release, The Art Of Letting Go. Possessing one of the most powerful and distinctive voices in hard rock, comparisons to his other projects seem inevitable, but the heavy rock tones here hew more closely to the soaring grandiosity of Alter Bridge than the slinky grooves of Kennedy’s work with Slash, or the roots vibe of his previous solo work.
Somewhat ironically, Kennedy delivers a more memorable set of tunes when compared to the last Alter Bridge album, which was solid but plagued by being “more of the same.” Here, the Hendrix-y clean guitar work that opens “Behind the Veil” or the blues touches on “Saving Face” provide some welcome contrast to the heaviness. Exotic closer “How The Story Ends” brings things to an epic and satisfying conclusion.
Rating: 3.5
(Gino Sigismondi)
Oranssi Pazuzu – Muuntautuja (Nuclear Blast)
No matter how hard you try to find an exact equivalent to Oranssi Pazuzu, this Finnish psychedelic black metal band remains unique and genius. Their sixth studio album Muuntautuja opens new horizons and boundaries of their ability to create a highly imaginary, dark, and story-telling musical world.
The abstraction and illusion that Oranssi Pazuzu try to depict on this album are influenced by Krautrock and trip-hop, Portishead, Archive, and electronic/experimental-era Radiohead more than before. The path that Oranssi Pazuzu follow on Muuntautuja is to empower their music’s experimental, avant-garde, and artistic aspects. Exploring dark musical concepts lies within the sonic layers of dark electro and Krautrock-fused trip hop rather than black metal. Muuntautuja is a cohesive album, the songs sharing a single compositional language, and the production’s approach to enhancing the raw sound of Oranssi Pazuzu to new standards contributes to this unity and coherence.
Rating: 4
(Arash Khosronejad)
