(Andy Synn beats the drum for the upcoming new album from Tzompantli, out next week) A great many people have spent a lot of time arguing, both online and off, about the answer to one of life’s most fundamental questions. Namely, “what is heavy?” Some people say it’s chunky chugginess or pounding, pneumatic rhythms, while [...] The post TZOMPANTLI – BEATING THE DRUMS OF ANCESTRAL FORCE appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

(Our Denver-based friend Gonzo has turned in the following review of the debut album from the French metallic hardcore band Sorceror, which is out now on Delivrance Records.) Don’t look now, but something big is happening in France. And no, this time it’s not protesters burning down half of Paris after the government tried to [...] The post SORCEROR: “DEVOTION” appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

(DGR has detoured off most of our well-beaten paths to bring us his review of the latest offering from the Norwegian band Gothminister, which was released late last week by AFM Records.) I recently crossed the twenty-year mark of following Norway’s Gothminister, the result of an initial missing of the musical bus years ago and [...] The post GOTHMINISTER: “PANDEMONIUM II: BATTLE OF UNDERWORLDS” appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

(Today we present Part 1 of an interview by our Hanoi-based contributor Vizzah Harri with Nattsvärd from the Vietnamese black metal band Imperatus. Part 2 will follow tomorrow.) Imperatus is the latest black metal act hailing from Hanoi, Vietnam. Their debut album that we reviewed here can be described as nothing other than a piece [...] The post AN NCS INTERVIEW: IMPERATUS (PART 1) appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

“Not all black metal must be about Satan. There’s plenty of bands who can be obscure and straight-to-the-point with a peculiar image and, of course, very powerful music.” That is how the Dusktone label announced the debut album from the Swiss black metal band Vígljós, and indeed, it is not about Satan. As signified by [...] The post AN NCS ALBUM PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): VÍGLJÓS — “TOME I: APIDÆ” appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

(Andy Synn presents four albums from April which you may well have overlooked) Depending on when you’re reading this there’s a pretty good chance I’ll be several thousand feet in the air, on my way to link up with the rest of the NCS crew for this year’s edition of Northwest Terror Fest. As a [...] The post THINGS YOU MAY HAVE MISSED (BUT SHOULDN’T) appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

The phraseology of “diving into” a record is intended to capture the idea of an auditory experience in which your mind is quickly surrounded by the music. Sometimes you want to get out of the stream and towel off as quickly as possible, left cold or, worse yet, finding the waters skin-temperature and drab. Or [...] The post AN NCS EP PREMIERE (AND A REVIEW): JUST ONE FIX — “SUBMIT OR DEATH” appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

(What you’ll find below is Comrade Aleks‘ in-depth and wide-ranging interview of Michael Chavez, the mastermind behind the California death/thrash band Hemotoxin, whose new album When Time Becomes Loss is set for release on May 17th via Pulverised Records.) Fresh and savage death metal from Hemotoxin is rooted in thrash and shaped in twisted progressive [...] The post AN NCS INTERVIEW: HEMOTOXIN appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

I don’t have as many different things to share with you in this week’s edition of SHADES OF BLACK as I usually do, mainly because I’ve devoted most of my time to expressing detailed thoughts about a forthcoming record which I’ve found to be one of the most gripping black metal albums I’ve encountered so [...] The post SHADES OF BLACK: DØDSFERD, DARKEND, LIMINAL SHROUD appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more

Wormed I think I’ll begin by previewing some likely disruptions in our usual roll-out of posts during next week. As you may know, our site is a principle sponsor of Seattle’s Northwest Terror Fest, which will have its latest incarnation on May 8-10. Andy Synn, DGR, and I (islander) will all be working the fest, [...] The post SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: WORMED, 1349, WRACH, WOUND COLLECTOR, CEREMONY OF SILENCE appeared first on NO CLEAN SINGING ..read more