Ah yes, February. Wait, what? It’s almost MAY!!! Who approved this two-months-late bullshit? Oh… right, that would be me. Shit. Well, you know, sometimes life gets in the fucking way, you know? It’s been rough days, and I know I’m not the only one struggling. With 2024 on such a rocky start, it should come as no surprise that we grasp desperately for media to help us escape and find solace in the art of others. Unfortunately for my Filter minions, they don’t get to escape from the mire and muck of the neglected filtration system from which we find what could be generously described as “art ..read more

Hi, I’m Angry Metal Dolph, and I want you to know that I’m mad at Katatonia. I’ve been a long-time admirer of their Swedish sadperson exports, and after putting out what stands as one of my favorite releases of the past decade, Fall of Hearts, they went and put out City Burials, which was just not good.1 2020 had a lot of lows, but that one still stings. Regardless, Katatonia, the institution of gloom they are, have remained a steady force of sullen output. As such, Renkse and co have been predictably busy distilling from tear water and stained diary pages this latest collection of twilig ..read more

One of the nicest surprises I get as a reviewer is unexpected agreement about an album’s high quality. After more than half a decade in these hallowed halls, I think I have a decent intuition to the general consensus any one album will receive. When I write yet another 4.0 for Aeternam, I don’t expect much dissent in the comment section. But some albums seem to speak more to my particular tastes and I tend not to anticipate much interest to be garnered. When I highly rated Crone‘s sophomore record Godspeed, I was pleased at the acclaim it received. When word reached me of the follow-up approac ..read more

Madam X and Steel Druhm wield immense power over promo distribution. Their headline genre summaries dictate whether a promo will be chosen for review or not. Among the detritus of adjectiveless “stoner metal” and “old school black metal,” the memorable “thrash prog with darkwave” stood out like a beacon. Such description is conferred on Oregon’s Box and their record entitled Cherry Blossoms at Night. Given my wide-ranging fondness for 80s music beyond mere metal, I was immediately invested. Cherry Blossom’s one sheet provides that “Box doesn’t simply breakdown genre boundaries but rather oblit ..read more

Anyone who follows Oceans of Slumber on social media is aware of the stylistic evolution the band has been undertaking. The band, notably leaders Cammie Gilbert and Dobber Beverly, have been hammering on the fact that this new album will not be another progressive doom metal outing. Starlight and Ash is the band’s fifth album; fourth with Gilbert at the helm, and second in a row with the current lineup. The fact that they have all stuck around through the turmoil of the last couple of years and have also all bought into the stylistic shift is a positive thing. But will they see such similar su ..read more

Ghost is a divisive band. Forget red states and blue states; don’t bother with Yankees or Red Sox; and I don’t want to hear whose side you take in the Montreal Screwjob debacle. There’s only one true rivalry, and the debate only grows more contentious with each new Papa. Indeed, the rift between Ghost adherents and their vehement detractors is a vast, otherworldly chasm, overflowing with hate-kindled magma and plumes of blackened self-righteousness. All that being said, I really like ’em. The spawn of an unholy tryst between Black Sabbath, ABBA and Blue Öyster Cult (with Mercyful Fate looking ..read more

Of all the things Europe has begun to assimilate from across the ocean, Halloween is probably the best one. Though it’s not yet an official celebration, grassroots parties and events are springing up more and more every year. My fiancée and I, and a few of our friends, have taken to carving pumpkins and eating lots of candy as well, and why not? It’s one of the few holidays that still has an everything-goes quality, and doesn’t force you to either spend time with family or be a social outcast. Darkwave artist Daniel Belasco (Glass Apple Bonzai) clearly adores Halloween as well. The Necromancer ..read more

Expectations. We all have them, or have had them placed upon us, by parents, fans, and editors. Bands fall prey to expectations constantly, with fans most often demanding a band’s newest release be the same as their last, only better. It rarely happens. Portland’s Unto Others have some high expectations on their shoulders; their debut album, Mana, was the critical darling of 2019.1 It placed second on my year-end list, and third overall on our aggregated List to End All Lists, with no less than ten writers heaping accolades on it. So, now we come to Strength, a new album from the newly renamed ..read more

Lunar Shadow is a relatively young act, but they’ve logged more miles on their progress-o-meter than some bands do over several decades. Here on album number three, Wish to Leave, they’ve undergone their third significant style shift. Having started life playing a form of  retro epic metal fused with black metal, they quickly shifted and incorporated a significant Goth rock element on 2019s The Smokeless Fire, while still trying to make their traditional/epic/NWoBHM/black style function. Now a scant year and change later they’ve shifted deeper into Goth rock and post/indie territory, plac ..read more

Idle Hands took the metal scene by storm last year. Their debut Mana had an unexpectedly widespread appeal and proved conclusively that the love for gothic rock among us was not as dead as many thought. The comparison to Idle Hands is easily made when looking at Rope Sect’s The Great Flood, another band seeking to revive old school gothic rock, and perhaps that may contribute to the quickly amassing buzz around the fledgling band, but two quality EP’s and a guest spot for Grave Pleasures and Hexvessel frontman Matthew McNerney a.k.a. Kvohst will do nothing to quell the surging tide of hype. An ..read more