Grizzlyman - Grizzlyman (2014)

When I finished that review for Teorema, the publicist got back to me and asked if there was anything else I wanted to cover, giving me a list of bands. Well, I checked them all and couldn't find any in the Promise Pool (that Simulacro completely skipped right by me though, so I'll be listening to it shortly) except for this Grizzlyman record that I found in the shortlist. Apparently this one's a demo from a Swedish progressive sludge act and there aren't too many of those around to be honest, so I'm more than happy to cover it (regardless of the fact that it is a tape only release that goes back to '14). We're certainly getting a warm disc which has it's moments of hefty riffing, but that isn't all the band offer and sometimes it feels like we're getting a little bit of Pelican. That can be a bit of a detriment as there are already a dozen songs out there like “Last King” and hopefully they can throw some more vocals into the mix to offset what seems an unnecessary instrumental. Vocals do manage to slide their way in, but right near the very end where they almost seem just as unnecessary as the song. The same thing seems to happen on the demo's final track, “Beneath/Rebirth” which almost sounds bizarre to me. Why compose an entire song and only put vocals in towards the end? It literally sounds like a band just toying around with ideas to me and these guys aren't really sure as to what kind of band they should be. According to the lack of releases after this demo, they haven't been sure for nearly three years. I must admit that I'm a bit confused by this and wonder what I ever really saw in it. According to Metal Archives, they are still active and perhaps working on a follow-up to whatever this was supposed to demonstrate. Time will tell as to where they'll go next.

(3 Tracks, 15:00)

5/10

The Lion's Daughter - Existence Is Horror (2016)

It's very difficult to get around the three word bands these days, as many of the poppier and trendier acts are using three word monikers and in the process turning off metal fans. It's become a sort of tag, telling listeners “you'd better be careful with that act as it has three words in it's name” but sometimes that isn't the case. Trust me, I felt that I was in for the same mediocre vapor music when I looked at the name of this Missouri based progressive blackened/sludge metal act, but it seems that that was certainly not the case or I wouldn't have spent my time reviewing them. A three-piece made up of Erik Ramsier on drums, Scott Fogelbach (Bastard) on guitars and bass and frontman Rick Giordano (Ssothm) on guitars and vocals, these guys sound like what would happen if members of Dark Funeral and Marduk got in a fight with EyeHateGod, Between The Buried and Me and early Mastodon. Most commonly compared to another great US act by the name of Coffinworm, these guys certainly provide both chilling and extremely dirty atmospheres. Check out the riff oddities that appear right in the middle of “Nothing Lies Ahead” and you'll see a band that's not afraid to experiment as electronic static somehow finds it's way into the mix as well.

Giordano doesn't use a scowl or anything even close, instead preferring a brutal man growl, which sounds kind of like a bear bellowing because it's been caught in a trap. Though I'd simply expect nothing more from such a sludgy and quite intuitive act as this one, where the tremolos one hears are often accented by dark progressions that one might not expect (thus where I get the BTBAM influence) right before taking us right into Mayhem friendly territory, because why in the hell not? It's 2016 and if these guys don't want to have boundaries, then we won't give them any boundaries to play by.

For some of you, this style might prove too much as it is more experimenting and sludge madness than actual blast beats and tremolo riffs, but it allows the band to stand out a bit more than if they had just been black metal and sludge period. As a matter of fact, it says to me, “hey, someone's actually going to remember The Lion's Daughter because they stand out.” Take for instance the nearly clean shouts of “Four Flies” where it seems like Giordano is trying his very best not to go full clean and might try that on the next record. Even so, that would not be a detriment to me. Why hold yourself back? You've already kicked yourselves firmly out of the black/sludge corner and are moving into something a bit more interesting. Even Metal Archives seems to think so, with a 90% so far for the entirety of the record proving that The Grim Lord knows what the fuck he's talking about when it comes to these reviews and if I could, I'd split myself into four identical versions of myself, each with a laptop and the rest of the albums I couldn't cover.

Digging through all these can be an absolute nightmare, but when you find an act like The Lion's Daughter that really seems to make their presence known, you know that you're doing the right thing in this industry. I feel it's almost unfair to completely explain such a textured and volatile release as this one, but I can say that whatever experimental sludge record it is that you're listening to right now, I can guarantee you that this one's better. Season Of Mist signed these guys for good reason, and I really hope that enough people get their hands on an act like this as they should. To me, The Lion's Daughter sounds like sludge metal evolved into something far more intellectual and unique, rather than just dirt for dirt's sake.

Existence Is Horror is the kind of record I'd nearly bathe in, but I just don't quite have the time to give such an enthralling listen as much time as it truly deserves. This is an act I'd love to see live and I'd hope they head by my neck of the woods soon (and I can actually get to the venue as well) so that I can see this experimental black/sludge mindfuck in action. If you're sick of a lot of the same old things when it comes to metal and are looking for a crushing album that still speaks to you on some otherworldly conscious level, you might want to pick this one up. It's been out for a while now, but that's no excuse to pass it by if you're a fan of this stuff.

(10 Tracks, 40:00)

9/10

Entropia - Ufonaut (2016)

Of the several acts with the name Entropia out there, (I found about seven on Metal Archives) this Polish five-piece creates a style of music that is considered “black/sludge/post” even though I'd certainly throw in experimental and electronic. With the exception of guitarist Kuba Colta, these guys have been together since the very beginnings back in 2007. Most interestingly about the band is their use of both a keyboardist (Damian Dudek) as well as a sampler (Michal Dziedzic) that makes for a pretty interesting mix of progressive sludge riffs and slightly spacial electronic elements. Sometimes the bass (Marek Cenkar) and strong drumming (Patryk Budzowski) can completely drown out the electronic elements, but that's to be expected with a sound as thick as the one I'm witnessing here. Entropia utilize vocals (Cenkar and Dziedzic) but they're often not necessary as this is the kind of record that is so textually superior that it doesn't even need working verses or a chorus. Ufonaut is an experiment in the very sense of the word, it is an atmosphere and it draws you in fairly quickly from it's out of the box and rather bizarre approach to something that I can't even call black metal. Other than Budzowski's occasional use of blast beats, there's very little here that I can even consider to be black metal – at all. I mean, if you're hearing black metal in some areas, that's fine; but I feel that with this release the act have become something far more than just black metal. There are very few acts that I just want to sit down and enjoy on a musical level like these gentlemen have delivered, and even if some of the leads and electronic bits have a rough time peering out from the thick sludge of it all, I still want to open my ears up to what I can discern as a rather potent and memorable sound. Why no one else really gave a damn about this one, I'll never know. I guess there were other things going on in January, like best of lists and whatnot.

That being said, anyone who purchases this record is in for a trip. It might sound cruel that I could literally care less about the vocal or lyrical element of this album, but I just consider Cenkar's screams to be part of the music and they don't have any bearing on the rest of the performance. Even when these guys utilize djent riffs I don't feel that I mind, because they're actually using the riffs in a style that focuses on more than just those damn riffs. Again, I feel that these guys have a few mixing issues but it could very well be my laptop speakers and you might be able to discern other things on your first listen. Ufonaut is definitely the kind of listen that I'd want to experience more than once, and at forty-three minutes you're not really devoting an awful lot of your time to it. Just don't go expecting anything familiar in terms of classic black metal and you'll be alright. I did hear some tremolos here and there and felt some nihilism in the vocals, but I wouldn't compare this to anyone else out there in the black metal scene. With some exceptions, I still stand behind my earlier observations and feel that it is very hard to consider an act like Entropia to be black metal unless they're trying very hard for that style. It's a shame that this one had to wait for so long, but I mean to cover as many of the older releases that stood out as I can. It's quite obvious that Entropia did and I'm really not in a hurry for them to release another one. They don't really have anything else that they need to prove after this sophomore and I think you'll agree that the material here on Ufonaut is good enough. Entropia are a good band and this a good album. That's a pretty simplistic description, but the album itself is most certainly not. Please give it a listen and experience it for yourself. I really hope that this one isn't too hard to find, considering that there are so many bands with similar monikers. Perhaps these Polish mad scientists will one day become the definitive version of that moniker, as this record definitely feels promising enough for them to do so.

(7 Tracks, 43:00)

8/10

AlgomA/Chronobot - Split (2016)

When you mix sludge and electronics together, you get Canada's AlgomA which sounds just as you might expect – thick drudging riffs, furious grooves and a mix of both deep growls (Pthisis) and harsh screams (Electric Fence.) It has some potential and I can't say that I've ever heard electronics infused into such thickly composed sludge before. Honestly, it's pretty cool. As for fellow Canucks Chronobot, they actually have more of a psychedelic feeling to them, taking us on a trip laced with death, doom and good old Alan Moore approved LSD. Some the effects need to come up in the mix a little and I'm having a tough time hearing them over the bluesy sludge, but I'm certainly not going to turn down this interesting of a performance. If Acid Witch was really on acid, you'd get something that sounds like this, proving that keyboards really make a difference in groovy blues/doom. All in all, this is a damn good split from two really stellar and certainly out of the box metal acts. To say that their approach isn't all that common is an understatement. I hope both continue and further evolve their approaches in the future.

(5 Tracks, 24:00)

8/10

Sarvas - The Throne (2016)

In actuality, there are five people in this Finnish sludge/groove act, but it only sounds like there are about three or four. That's not always a good thing, but it does make for a pretty solid listen here. You're definitely getting a kind of post-metal and doom mixture, which some tend to categorize as sludge for some reason, but The Throne is not all it seems to be on the outside. Deep within the recording we'll find a more Finnish take on the performance, which includes a bit of folky acoustic guitar. There are still some electronic soundscapes to be had (at least from the intro to opener “Revelation Apparition”) as we might hear from similar acts, but these Finns haven't forgotten where they came from, nor do they overload us with so much doom that it becomes tantamount to staring at a large rock. Tatu Hutri (lead) and Tommi Blum (rhythm) actually help to offset most of the pounding riffs that Jonne Kekki (bass) brings to the table, and it keeps the listen interesting. Samuel Lindroos (vocals) is a pretty one-dimensional frontman though, which is where I think some improvement can be had. Clearly there's a lot of technicality as well as some extreme metal injections being implemented into this thick and sludgy mess, but a gritty roar seems to be all of the vocal capability that Lindroos possesses and that can make things a bit dull. Even so, he does put a lot of passion into those notes, which definitely pack more of a punch when combined with the attention to detail from Hutri and Blum that I mentioned earlier. I think the EP will still come off pretty entertaining and rather damn fierce anyway, especially for fans of the genre like myself. While Sarvas aren't the best sludge act in the world, they're extremely far from being the worst, and I'd definitely recommend The Throne to anyone looking for something more from their sludge. It's safe to say that this is a step in the right direction and it gives the genre some well needed ingenuity.

(3 Tracks, 28:00)

7/10

Bound By Fate - Steadfast (2016)

Ohio's Bound By Fate are an act that I would personally consider a bluesy type of southern fried stoner/doom and sludge metal that sounds a lot better on this sophomore than they did with the first time I heard it. I seem to recall passing on these guys the first time they were sent to me, but for some odd reason I really seem to dig it now. There's still some rough edges, like “Condemnation” which still has some harsh vocal issues. I understand he's going for a sort of death metal approach, but it seems like he might be killing his throat here. On the less vocal intensive cuts like “Broke Apart” and “Rebuild The Man” I'm reminded a bit more of Down and I think it suits both him and the rest of the band a bit better. I remember hearing “Crooked Blue” a while back and I did like it, but I'm hearing what I'd consider even better material on this debut record. Even though it's short, it shows you that these guys could really be something. I'll add that the entire solo on “Rebuild The Man” faded right into the background and needs to be raised (I literally couldn't hear it at all) but I'll be lenient as these guys do offer enough of a bite for people to take notice. Steadfast is a really thick and furious metal album that stands on it's own two feet pretty well, regardless of the fact that a few things might not have gone so well in the studio this first time around. There's no reason why a band like this shouldn't get some attention and I'm quite pleased with the amount of enraged vigor that I'm hearing here. I just don't think the growls on “Condemned” should be attempted again, as that just didn't fucking work at all. Other than that, I think it's a pretty decent record and I'd definitely recommend people looking for a hard-hitting shot of adrenal sludge to give it a listen. Bound By Fate certainly sound better here than on the last time I heard them, and hopefully they'll continue that trend on future albums. There's definitely promise here, especially if you're looking for a fist to the jaw.

(7 Tracks, 25:00)

7/10

Department Of Correction/Agathocles Split EP (2016)

The following is a split between two extremely diverse acts from France and Belgium. The first one we have here is France's Department Of Correction (DOC for short) and five tracks of relatively decent grind with some segues into brutal death metal that come off without a hitch, but don't exactly leave a real mark on me. So I think about it for a second and wonder, “what was it about this split that fascinated me enough to want to promote it?” Then I was immediately answered with the only offering (unfortunately) from Belgium's Agathocles. They're described as a sludge act with grind elements or “grinding sludge” but that's actually a lie – I think it was made only to try to get the attention of grind fans, but there's absolutely no grind to be found within this masterpiece of sheer depravity. Grind comes and goes, but “Into My Crypts” is the kind of track that I'll remember for a long time to come. It sounds extremely thick and filthy, very raw and full of static. But they do it unlike anyone else I've ever heard. The vocals are just...unreal. I mean, it sounds like the man is lumbering towards death, especially close to the end of the song, where it begins to feel like he's hanging onto the last shard of his humanity. There's a creepy synth effect in the background, which is actually where the song first starts – and this is revisited several times throughout the madness. Described on the album cover as “slumbering sludge” I still feel there's a bit of psychotic madness not being properly echoed in this description. This is literally the sound that the undead would make if they could make music, and literally sounds like it's being played by actual zombies. Actual fucking undead. Everything from the way the track is made, to the inhuman sounds that bellow forth from their gaping holes makes me think of zombies that had regained some of their humanity overtime and remembered that they were metal musicians. Since their verbal skills had dwindled, all that comes out are horrendous noises by which no human could utter. Someone might actually want to fly out to Belgium to make sure these gentlemen are indeed still among the living. I'm serious. I've heard a lot of doom and sludge before, but this is new on me. Again, you'll get five songs of serious grind, but the sludge track is really where it's at. I've listened to the damn thing four or five times already because I seriously can't get enough of that song. This split is actually worth getting your hands on, at least until Agathocles release a full-length record with that track on it. Maybe I'm a bit biased here, but at least it's the truth. (The Grim Lord)

3/5

Keeper - The Space Between Your Teeth (2016)

California's Keeper play a type of rather raucous doom metal, which seems to edge towards the more darkest of moods. This isn't quite your Candlemass or Manilla Road, it's something with a bit more emotional gravity and although these songs are named “The King” and “The Fool” respectively, the dumped out pill bottle with the wedding ring inside of it tells me that they're not singing about fanciful realms filled with mighty warriors and great beasts. No, The Space Between Your Teeth seems to take a more human approach, which only the darkest and palest realms in this genre can take. It's not funeral doom, either. There's too much life in it, so I'd put it closer to something a bit more ravenous. The vocals especially describe this, as I'm literally being confronted with a man who is one-hundred percent completely pissed off and frustrated with his life, society and the world at large. I can relate, as many of you have (and soon will) witness in my next musical offering. I'm not sure if these guys will tour or anything of that matter, but if conditions were ever ripe for my band to tour a couple of states, I'd definitely want to play a show with these guys. Keeper make the kind of doom that you feel right down in the pit of your gut. It's the sound of real pain and anguish, not bullshit like “my girlfriend left me” even though that admittedly does suck. But I don't think such a cardboard instance in society is worthy of true sorrow like has been experienced here. Some might want to throw the sludge title on here because of the vocal approach and maybe how the bass sounds, but in all honesty that's just silly. Musically, there's nothing “sludge” about these guys, it's just melodic doom metal with thundering drums and horrendously scowling vocals. But we'll let the hipsters have their terms, as “sludge/doom” becomes quickly thrown in. If I were to grade this record by means of personal opinion, I would definitely say that I prefer the nearly twenty minutes of “The King” over “The Fool” which contains a lot of drone and drum portions that I feel take away from the melodies and sorrows laden here. I'm all for experimentation, but when it sounds like you're trying to echo a cement mixer in there, I feel that I'm far too covered in concrete to identify. Keeper offer two extremely long and slightly varied approaches on the disc, and the one you'll prefer more will depend completely on taste. You may even wind up liking them both. But with a frontman like that, by which such passion flows forth from his venomous jaws, it's very easy to see how these guys could become a household name in the genre. (The Grim Lord)

4/5

Sea - Self-Titled EP (2015)

If you've ever wondered what Chino Moreno might sound like in a doomy, sludgy post metal act, then this demo recording from Sea might be just up your alley. Despite it being a demo, it's actually quite audible and I can discern all the riffs quite well. It's certainly warm and fuzzy though, which is what we should expect from a band of this nature, demo or not. There's a harsh, bear-like growl used during the thunderous parts of the record, much as we might expect and if it had been something like that completely, I'd have probably thrown these guys over shoulder. But the thing is, there's such a cool and glassy texture to the Chino Moreno influence clean vocal style here that it all balances out. These guys also don't mind throwing in a couple of those old fashioned blues solos too, as well as some interesting instrumental atmospheres. It's not full of heavy drones, and instead feels like a post metal disc with hints of jazz and blues. With “Moros” though, you have a more aquatic nature, which might be why the band is called Sea. It ebbs and flows as it begins with some very angelic vocals and heads towards heavier territory which might have even had a slight tinge of black metal influence (as in, if you blink, you'll miss it.) I'm saying that I half-heard a tremolo riff here. I also heard some computer sounds towards the end of the piece. (Was I supposed to hear that?) In any case, what I've heard here has enough in the vein of clean vocal harmonies to really make some waves. It still has a lot of thunder, but could make it big in a commercial standpoint, especially that high note towards the end of “Chronos” where said singer is channeling his Freddie Mercury. It's a pretty interesting little effort in the end and I'd like to hear where this one goes in the future. Sea is really shaping up to be a memorable band.

(3 Tracks, 20:00)

7/10

Seven Sisters Of Sleep - Ezekiel's Hags (2016)

Made up of members of Tafkata, these California sludgers actually managed to capture my attention with what is their third full-length album on Relapse Records. I guess it's about time I hear them now, even though their previous two records received some rather high scores over at Metal Archives from one person. But I'm one person as well (at least I think I am) so here's my input on the newest offering. Quite simply, it's just damned good sludge. It doesn't stick to the basics, but it has enough of the basics to keep it from wandering too far off. Ezekiel's Hags is the kind of record that contains extensively heavy bouts of doom along with moments of blistering death metal, some grind and maybe even some tinges of atmosphere. Honestly, I think one of the greatest things about this band would be that of their frontman, Tim McClary. The guy has one hell of a set of pipes, sounding like everything from The Creature From The Black Lagoon, to a frantic punk or even a garbage mouthed monstrosity. If there's anything that you really need to take from this album though, it's that these guys like to play their music as with as much fuzz and amp squeal as humanly possible. Just like the old days.

You'll even hear them making nods to EyeHateGod in the form of the blues notes captured here in closer “Bastard Son.” When I went to see EyeHateGod for the first time, all that I thought of them was that they were a really heavy blues band and I'm not sure if anyone else really caught that. Sure, they're heavy as can be and sound like an eighteen-wheeler headed down the road at ninety miles per hour, but there's no doubting those good old fashioned blues riffs. Even so, you couldn't compare Seven Sisters Of Sleep to EyeHateGod in any other similarities though, because there are mountains of doom here that stand tall before anything else on the recording, especially blues. Ezekiel's Hags is actually the kind of sludge record that I would recommend to doom fans too, because there's just that unmistakable fucking thump. That's what I've heard makes up “the doom!” so rest assured, you'll find it here. It's sludge, but it's definitely good solid sludge that I think stands out. Did I mention all “the doom?”

(11 Tracks, 49:00)

8/10