Abjection Ritual - Futility Rites

Genre: Dark Ambient, Nightmare Fuel
Label: Malignant Records - 2015

Do you want to have an awful night? If so, listen to Abjection Ritual's 'Futility Rites' while you're alone. My night went from me being bored beyond belief to the point of going, "Man, it's been so long since I wrote a review, I should dust off the ol' 'In' pile and see who I owe muchas disculpas to," to jumping at every sound in the apartment that, before listening to 'Futility Rites', I could identify as the refrigerator, the cat, the other cat and the stupid pipe that rattles under the floor whenever someone in our apartment row flushes their toilet...

After having my optimism obliterated, my self-esteem shish-kababed and my dreams dashed on the sonic rocks laid out by Abjection Ritual (three tracks in, which has got to be some kind of spirit breaking speed record), the malnourished nihilist side of me began to dig for scraps. It was hungry. It wanted more 'Futility Rites'. It had to dig past a unpleasant layer or two before it could feast, however.

It's mostly just the vocals. They were great at shaking me up a bit when I first encountered them (my notes read "Raw. Fucking. Hatred."), but they began to wear on me as the album progressed. I enjoyed the occasional soundbite from the odd televangelist (and the heart attack from 'Objects of Wrath') as well as the tonal respite that came with 'Cum Immersion', probably the least threatening, though still unnerving track offered. 

If I haven't made this clear yet, allow me to be blunt; this album is the very definition of intensity. To listen is to jump head first into the deep end of the derelict, dark ambient/death ambient pool. But in the end, if you have the emotional and mental fortitude, the 'Entropic Embrace' of 'Futility Rites' will welcome you into the 'Tabernacle Of Teeth And Tongues'...

abjectionritual.bandcamp.com

Of Earth And Sun - Uncoiled

Genre: Dark Ambient, Experimental
Label: Malignant Records

Fuck, man. How the hell am I supposed to review an album that chills me to my very core? I've been grappling with this notion for a couple of weeks and I figured that now is as good a time as any to get over my slump with some borderline unreviewable material. Enter Of Earth And Sun (a project manned by one Matthew Huntzker) and his offering, Uncoiled.

Uncoiled reminds me of Rasalhague's Rage Inside The Window in the way it can give me the physical heebies and psychological geebies. Don't get me wrong now, Uncoiled is more of a "death is an inevitable factor in the universe and there's nothing you can do about it, so quit your bitching and enjoy the sounds of this bone flute," where as Rage Inside The Window is more "JESUSFUCKWHYCAN'TIESCAPETHISMADNESS!??!" I guess what I'm getting at is that Uncoiled is one of only two dark ambient/experimental/
etc... albums that I NEED the lights on to listen to, because shit get intense.

The first two tracks acted as a set up, slowly lulling me with lower oscillator tones and slow almost medicinal beats as tension builds and releases to the unheard tempo of some greater lifeform's heartbeat(s)... and then we enter Veil Of Illumination. The title sounds like it should be a light and comfortable experience, right? Well... if the sounds of the breath of the living passing through the bones of the dead is your ideal soundtrack to a relaxing canoe trip... more power to you. To me, it was nightmare fuel for a couple of nights! Worms made of pure energy entered and exited my skull as they saw fit as the ribcage of the family cat played host to a smaller version of it's self that desperately tried to claw its way out.

I could easily do a track-by-track review of Uncoiled and share all of the soul twisting craziness my schizophrenic brain translates this music into, but I have a mountain of reviews to get to, so this is where I apply the breaks on the crazy train. Uncoiled it a trip and a half that can find footing in the libraries of fans of H.P. Lovecraft, Eraserhead and all of that other shit that probably gets you put on a watch list somewhere for something...

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Yen Pox - Between The Horizon And The Abyss

Genre: Dark Ambient
Label: Malignant Records

Having been a rabid fan of Yen Pox's Blood Music (the 2010 two disc re-issue to be precise), you could easily say that I was more than a little excited to find Between The Horizon And The Abyss in my mailbox. The damnedable duo of dark ambient is back in my library and ready to make the missus second guess coming to bed with me (Phelios, Yen Pox and False Mirror are regulars in my nightly rotation and she happens to find them, "scary").

Between The Horizon And The Abyss starts off like just about every other dark ambient record you've ever heard; low rumble droning that gives way to small crackling noises and eventually syths and yadda yadda yadda. If you're a fan of dark ambient/noise/drone/blech, you know the drill... wait, did a ping pong match break out during the recording of Cold Summer Sun? What the hell is that and why does it sound out of place, yet it feels like it fits right in as if it were guided by some kind of auditory feng shui?

The point is, Yen Pox takes what you thought you understood about this genre and the abilities of the various instruments therein and tears down the veil to reveal an infinitely expanding universe of sonic possibility and impossibility. It's goddamned crazy, man.

I don't think that I can make my admiration for this project any clearer than that, but I'll just hammer the point home here in case you missed it: Yen Pox are fucking geniuses. Just shoot the next Yen Pox albums into my veins...

Yen Pox On FaceBook

Ancient Wind - The Chosen Slain

Genre: Blackened Thrash, Death Metal
Label: To The Head Records

Hailing from Glenwood Springs, Colorado, an aspiring hotbed of scathing molten metal mayhem, Ancient Wind bring the passion and the pain with their debut album, The Chosen Slain.

Here, Ancient Wind fuels a massive storm of deathened, blackened thrash with raw vocals, a hatred for all things "poser" and enough aggression to level a city. The meeting of these styles has led to the actualization of what, I believe, Feasting Amon Amarth would sound like... only a fuck-ton more thrashy and way better than I could of imagined!

Vocalist Roberto Inferno rips the mic to shreds with his battle ready roars and occasionally sounds like the man-mountain, Johan Hegg. So, no complaints here. Next, I have to mention Girth Brook's drumming. Kudos to you, sir. You managed to smoothly blend together genres that, while normally do blend well together, tend to leave lumps in the batter. Normally in a situation like this, you usually hear more of one influence than the other(s). Here, Mr. Brook manages to give equal time to three different styles.

As for the string section of Ancient Wind... fuck. Do I have to keep writing? I think you get how I feel about this band already. They fucking rule! If they were a Portland band, I'd be at their next show with a tray of my special brownies as an offering to their godliness... though, living in Colorado, they've probably had they're fair share of magical baked goods...

In summery, Ancient Wind out-metal some veterans of metal scene that are 15+ years their senior! Keep your bloodshot eyes on these guys! Easily recommended for those of you who are just straight tired of Skeletonwitch's even softening sound...

Ancient Wind On Facebook

Xibalba - Tierra Y Libertad

Genre: Hardcore, Death Metal
Label: Southern Lord

Xibalba is a band, nay, an experience that nobody prepared me for. I assumed from the name that I was going to be thrown into the razor lined maw of a savage black metal band akin to Sarcofago or maybe an old fashioned Sepultura-like deal. I was right about the savagery, but I missed the genres by a bit and underestimated to which degree I'd be brutalized by the Pomona, California based hardcore act. Within the first minute of the first track, 'Enemigo', I found myself compulsed to message my friends, going, "Oh my God, dude! Xibalba! XIBALBA!!!", like I were advertising for a horror flick in the 1950's. (Minus the, "dude!" part, I guess.)

The assault, hereon in to be known as Tierra Y Libertad, begins with a bloodthirsty growl. The kind of growl that is usually the last thing someone hears when they're pissing off a fucking lion! And then... the drums. Like some sort of futuristic, concussive machine gun that fires sonic booms made of giant fists, they pummeled and bludgeoned and beat and (get it? They're fucking brutal) bloodied the absolutely hell out of me! This vicious attack didn't relent until the forth track ('Pausa', a minute and a half long breather).  The guitars chug and chunk up and down the heavy riff spectrum, undoubtedly breaking the notably sturdy measuring instrument in the process.

I can't stress enough just how brutal every aspect of this album is. And not in that "br00tal" or whatever kind of way you might assume. I wasn't entirely wrong with the Sarcafago comparison earlier since I ended up thinking of them throughout this album. The spirit is there. That attitude. That intensity. That rage. It's all there. But in a fresh, new form that will stomp you just as dead. If you're going to walk away from this review, please let it be this: Xibalba and Tierra Y Libertad are more than worth your time if you consider yourself a fan of raging hardcore or intense music in any form. The concussion it inflicts is also worth it.

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Lord Dying - Poisoned Altars

Genre: Sludge Metal
Label: Relapse Records

Ah, Portland. Home to Voodoo Doughnuts, entitled bicyclists, The Roseland and far too many sludge/doom metal bands. Seriously, the city is crawling with them. I always figured that we'd be known as a thrash or speed metal town before anything else. Eh... at least, that was what I was thinking before I played Lord Dying's sophomore album, Poisoned Altars. Well, I still think that there are too many sludgey/doomy type bands in the area. Only now, I just really dig one more of them (the others being Deep Sea Vents, Red Fang, YOB and Agalloch... those all count, right?).

Poisoned Altars forces you to bang your fucking head (thankfully it allows you the option of wall or no wall) with it's HEAVY riff driven songs. So much so that I managed to work up a sweat while doing so. This may be the first album that gave me a fucking workout! That being said, the riffin' is definitely the strongest aspect of Poisoned Altars. Songs like, '(All Hopes Of A New Day)... Extinguished' and 'The Clearing At The End Of The Path' are prime examples of C. Evans lead guitar work and vocalist E. Olsen's rhythm guitar work. His vocals are also nothing to sneeze at. Yeah, they're not anything you probably can't do yourself, but this just fucking sells it! Olsen stays steady with a gruff bellow for most of the album, but occasionally he breaks off into a raspier vocal that isn't quite singing or shouting. (I dunno, you tell me what I'm supposed to call it...)

I'm not trying to sell the rest of Lord Dying short here. Rob Shaffer's drumming is fun and at times can even be a little on the experimental side of wild and crazy. Now, I'm not sure if it was my head phones of if it's the mixing, but I had one hell of a time isolating the bass. However, from what I can tell, it's right were it needs to be. (Kinda the lot of the bassist, eh?) It really sucks that I couldn't make it out since I assume that it's on par with the rest of Lord Dying's sound and is just as deserving of this praise.

I highly recommend Poisoned Altars to anyone who digs their sludge on the lighter side of serious, heavy on the heavy and less than zero fucks given about it. Lord Dying bathes in the puddle of muck that is thier genre and ends up leaving it sludgier than they found it!

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Karma To Burn - Arch Stanton

Genre: Stoner Metal
Label: Faba Records

Karma To Burn didn't waste any time kicking my ass with thier newest stoner metal sentinel, "Arch Stanton" so I won't waste any time boring you with a history lesson about West Virginia's shameful, smokey secret, Karma To Burn. All you need to know is that these guys are the best at what they do.

"Arch Stanton" starts things off by galloping straight over you with another of Even Divine's driving beats. These things will get into your head and stay there for at least a couple of days, effectively throwing off your foot taping playlist's queue. Three tracks in however, things take a turn for the heavy and we begin to experience a dirtier sound with everything thickening up like the world's sludgiest roux.

After that, things kinda go all over the place in terms of heavy/fast/etc..., like a mesquite, musical smorgas board of William Mecum's tasty riffs. I've said it aloud before and now I get to type it out; it's like the guy knows exactly what we want to hear and when those transitions need to be made. It's almost eerie, but still completely welcome since the end result are songs like these.

Once again, Karma To Burn keep to their instrumental ways and forgo having to deal with the perpetual pains in the ass known as, "vocalists" (unless you count Clint Eastwood in the last track) and are, once again, better off without one. And at this point, it would be pretty odd to just suddenly have one, right? I mean, I think we all loved Waiting On The Western World and their cover of Never Say Die, but a permanent singer now would just feel off. So, YAY! Instrumental album!

The only complaint I have about "Arch Stanton" is that the song titles are still numbers. Ask your average Karma To Burn fan what their favorite song of theirs is and I bet it doesn't go over too well. Other than that, it's what we want and what we always get from the guys in Karma To Burn: their best.

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