Photo by Gobinder Jhitta
BLOOD MOTHER - BLOOD MOTHER (Self Released)
Showcasing the prowess of Rick Giordano of The Lion's Daughter, Blood Mother is a haunting meld of post black metal power and eerie Americana-tinged atmospherics. Asserting a narrative, cinematic quality to extreme music, Blood Mother's range flexes a competent control of ebb and flow, making for a dramatic listening experience that makes songs feel like journeys. Poignant, pummeling and provocative, Giordano proves a remarkable talent.
WARNING - RITUALS OF SHAME (Relapse Records)
Essex doom titans Warning return with their first full length album in twenty years with Rituals of Shame. While Patrick Walker has since gone onto achieve acclaim with 40 Watt Sun, his ability to channel personal turmoil and real catharsis into dark, dreamy doom makes for a masterful return. The album's slow burn and somber tone emphasizes Walker's expertise as a songwriter and storyteller. The nuanced compositions, the passionate stanzas and the pairing of metal and the melancholy make for a presentation that only solidifies Warning's lofty rank as defenders of doom.
QUIET FEAR - LA TIERRA ARRIBA / EL ABISMO ABAJO (Iodine Recordings)
Post-hardcore prospects Quiet Fear shine on their latest full length, La Tierra Arriba / El Abismo Abajo. The bilingual effort fuses urgent, scathing 90's era screamo with airy, expansive post hardcore in a way that feels fresh, familiar and seamless. Jonatan Patino's verses detailing isolation and fear create a sense of foreboding that ratchets up the tension of the musically taut tracks - only to cool off with moments of delicate, graceful instrumentals. The band's ability to ride waves of emotion as each track progresses makes for a presentation that translates as both articulate and authentic.
PROMPTS - PARASITE DREAM (Papercut/Greyscale Records)
Japanese metalcore modernists Prompts aim to level up the genre with their latest EP, Parasite Dream. Sourcing the kind of insidious, intrusive thoughts that fester below the surface as the emotional fodder for the music, the band's explosive delivery results in a musical purge that packs a wallop with each entry of the EP. Contrasting the band's more devastating moments, Prompts finds a balance of powerful choruses to ensure an the anthemic angle is worked into the fold - making the songs both dominant and dynamic.
LOST IN KYIV - WE'RE ALL GOING TO BE FINE (Pelagic Records)
French unit Lost In Kyiv turn a corner with their latest LP - an effort that signals the band's shift from Lost In Kiev and their emergence as a bonafide, cinematic post metal powerhouse. While many bands lay claim to crafting narrative with their music, the band's soundtrack is equally heavy as it is vivd - amounting to a collection of songs that is ambitious in concept and brilliant in execution. Exploring dark thematic corners with the sonic radiance, We're All Going to Be Fine is a masterclass of composition that raises the bar across all subgenres of rock music.
