COLD BODY RADIATION - DEER TWILIGHT (2011)

genre : shoegaze, post-black

similar bands :Fall of Rauros, Alcest, Agalloch, Wolves in the Throne Room, The Album Leaf, Sigur Ros
origin : Holland
strong spot : serenity

weak spot : production standards could be higher

''Deer twilight'' is my first encounter with the Dutch band. This is not an album to fully capture your attention. It sounds more like a soundtrack for a national geographic documentary as it encompasses the serenity and peacefulness of an amazon forest. The songwriting is primarily based on chord progressions that lack a certain melody but, oddly enough, the whole album is crafted in a clever manner so as to make you wanna listen to it again and again. It is an album that is really captivating and perfect driving through the night or along a foggy forest. Now I'll have to check their previous endeavour which is equally good according to the rumors...

9,1 out of 10 goatheads

 link

THE DEVIL'S BLOOD - THE THOUSANDFOLD EPICENTRE (2011)

genre : gothic, occult rock/metal

similar bands : Ghost, In Solitude
origin : Holland
strong spot : songwriting, retro atmosphere, diversity in compositions

weak spot : the lack of harsh vocals :)

And Now for Something Completely Different, as the might Monty Pythons used to say. I love bands like Ghost and I could not resist posting this here.  Female vocals, vintage sound and style, hammonds, devil worship and lots of brilliant melodies. This is certainly not extreme but it is worth checking by almost every metal fan.

9 out of 10 goatheads

 link

EBONYLAKE - IN SWATHES OF BROODING LIGHT (2011)

 genre : avantgarde death/black

similar bands : Deathspell Omega, Blutmond, Morbid angel, Smohalla
origin : UK
strong spot : combination of dissonant chaos and symphonic samples, performance

weak spot : nothing obvious

Ebonylake present a chaotic ocean of merciless blastbeats, dissonant chords, screams, strange drum tempos and symphonic elements. I personally enjoyed it a lot. There are lots of bands that try to create something new but their music lacks a certain identity and seems to lead everywhere and nowhere at the same time. Ebonylake stretch the barriers of conventional music but seem to know where to lead their music to. The band has a passion with strange chord progressions and atonality, so this automatically becomes a love it or hate it album.

8,4 out of 10 goatheads

 link

ALCEST - Les Voyages De L'Âme (2012)

genre : pop/ indie metal? (black metal influences)

similar bands : HIM, 30 seconds to Mars, Smashing Pumpkins
origin : France
strong spot : first track

weak spot : songwriting, harsh vocals are almost gone

Well, Alcest is the talk of the town in the black metal cycles. Their previous album gave them huge publicity and established them as kings in the shoegaze/ post black idiom. I hope this stops with their new album which by no means is black or extreme metal. My problem with Alcest is that in both their last albums, there are only 2 or 3 really f^%##ing cool tracks where the music breathes and the songwriting is clever, the rest of the tracks are usually some pop chord progressions that sound dull and naive. They have managed to sound original, their music encompasses a romantic atmosphere  that is  reminiscent of french pop songs, something unique for a band that uses distorted guitars. If only they had better songs, I would really love their albums.

7  out of 10 goatheads

HELHEIM - Heiðindómr ok mótgang (2011)

 genre : melodic/viking black

similar bands : Kampfar, Iskald, Windir, Taake

origin : Norway

strong spot : songwriting

weak spot : nothing obvious

At times blasting, at times pompous, at times serene, this is a viking black metal album whose melodies were made to haunt you. Standard tremolo picking black metal at first listen, it unveils an exeptional beauty after more thorough listens due to its clever songwriting. Epic melodies, themes that stick to your mind, sudden and successful changes of tempo, grandiose symphonic samples and a really diverse vocalist yield in one of the best viking/pagan black metal albums I have heard the last years.

9 out of 10 goatheads

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KLABAUTAMANN - THE OLD CHAMBER

genre :  black metal

similar bands : Satyricon, Enslaved
origin : Germany
strong spot : cover

weak spot : lacks diversity and identity

Klabautamann's previous album ''Merkur'' is what I would call a ''classic'' album. It was one of these albums where your jaw drops and you can not pinpoint a single flow. I was very excited to hear that Klabautamann have a new album on the way. After a dozen of spins in my mp3 player, this is not an album for a 6,5 as I first thought. It is much better than the average mid tempo black since it includes some really beautiful progressive elements. The tracks are solid, every part is nicely combined with the part that succeeds it and there are no filler tracks or parts. I am now sure it is very close to 8,5.

  8,5 out of 10 goatheads

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THY CATAFALQUE - RENGETEG (2011)

genre : experimental black
similar bands :  Solefald, Damned Spirits' Dance, The kovenant

origin : Hungary

strong spot : originality

weak spot :nothing too obvious
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Thy Catafalque's ''Roka Hasa Radio'' was really one of the best black metal albums I have ever heard in my short life.So, once again, the expectations were dangerously high. ''Rengeteg'' is very similar to its predecessor, it is actually the twin album of ''Roka Hasa Radio'': the production is the same, the drums and guitars sound, the songwriting very similar etc. This is not bad,  the band has established a personal mark and works it over developing it. The mixture of black metal, industrial sounds and folk atmosphere/melodies (without the actual use of folk  instruments) is again stunning and highly original. I don't get the lyrics but I very easily sneak into the dreamy world of the Hungarian combo every time I listen to their music. I still prefer their debut since it included some really incredible tracks and parts but ''Rengeteg'' is an excellent follow-up.

9,1 out of 10 goatheads 

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LANTLOS - AGAPE (2011)

genre : doom/black

similar bands :  Heretoir, Alcest, Fen
origin : Germany

strong spot :production, performance of the band (mainly drummer)

weak spot : songwriting is absent, duration is only 35 mins

Neige: Well, listen to me Herbst, we have to write a new album for Lantlos
Herbst: Do you have anything new in mind, any new tunes?
Neige: Hmm, actually no. but I can write 4 or 5 songs within a couple of days. I'll make them really simple but the fans will love them, the hype you know...
Herbst: Let's put some jazzy shit there to make the songs sound weird!
Neige: Coool! And a really good artwork, a brilliant production and promotion from the label! But fuck, we have no songs now. But who cares?
Herbst:  We can claim  the songs are simple because we are modern and we make minimal music.
Neige: You are on fire!!
Herbst: Well, let's start with B minor and then....hmm no inspiration, help me Neige!!
Neige: And...we end with B minor man! This is minimal!!
Herbst: Awwweeesomeee!!

2 out of 10 goatheads 

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SMOHALLA - RESILIENCE (2011)

genre : psychedelic/atmospheric post-black

similar bands :  Solefald, Transcending Bizarre? (1st album), Kadenzza, Murmuure, H.O.P.E.
origin : France

strong spot : originality,songwriting

weak spot :natural drums would definitely give a boost to the whole album

Here is another band from France that stretches the barriers of conventional music and in this case, black metal.  A mosaic of distorted guitars, choirs, violins, electronic loops, noise, screams and clean vocals, synths etc that sounds more or less unique. Chaotic beauty in simple terms. Imagine it as the background music for the very first minutes of creation, the big bang.

9 out of 10 goatheads 

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ORANSSI PAZUZU - KOSMONUMENT (2011)

genre : psychedelic black

similar bands : -
origin : Finland

strong spot : originality, performance

weak spot : suffers from songwriting

Oranssi Pazuzu was one of my best findings the last years. With their debut album ''Muukalainen Puhuu'', the band managed to craft their own sound and differentiate their style from the rest of the metal bands out there. The recipe was highly successful: psychedelic performance and chord progressions, rock-like distortion, noise used as part of the compositions, repetitive notes in the background and lots of others were characteristic of the band. So, the expectations for their new endeavour were high..but sadly not fulfilled. ''Kosmonument'' is not bad, it has a large dose of psychedelia but it suffers from songwriting. The band wasted this album  in creating repetitive music that would fit as the background sound for a cult movie but fails to stand on its own. Their previous works combined psychedelic repetition with musical themes and their development. Here, if we exclude 2 or 3 tracks, the rest don't serve any other purpose than to manifestate that ''hey, we are a different band''. Sadly...

5 out of 10 goatheads 

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VOID - VOID (2011)

genre : post black

similar bands : Code, DHG, Deathspell Omega
origin : UK

strong spot : production, performance

weak spot : nothing too obvious

Hmm, VOID. The name rings a bell. After a short research I found out that Void used to include members from Satyricon, Dodheimsgard, Aura Noir and tons of others in their line-up. This is their 2nd full length album and it is definitely worth listening from all black metal fans. Dissonant chords, furious blastbeats, paranoid screams, an amazing performance (especially from the drummer) and on top of them a brilliant production, similar to Deathspell Omega's 'Paracletus'. I was not really thrilled by the songwriting but even so, I am sure that lots of fans will love this one.

8,5 out of 10 goatheads 

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IMPERIAL VENGEANCE - BLACK HEART OF EMPIRE (2011)

genre : symphonic black

similar bands : Carach Angren, Transcending Bizarre?, Cradle of Filth
origin :UK

strong spot : songwriting, symphonic orchestrations

weak spot : female vocals (my personal NoNo)

Imperial Vengeance is one of the few bands whose music really captures a dreamy/unearthly atmosphere similar to that from the cinema. The symphonic orchestrations are once again close to perfection and the songwriting combines passion and wrath with beautiful melodies and fairytale-like sounds.  The metal elements fortunately are not put aside but on the contrary constitute the main core of the music (there is also a very clean and solid production). 
 

8,5 out of 10 goatheads 

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WOLVES IN THE THRONE ROOM - CELESTIAL LINEAGE (2011)

genre : funeral/atmospheric doom/black

similar bands :Agalloch, Drudkh, Woods of Desolation, A Forest of Stars, Fen
origin :USA

strong spot : atmosphere

weak spot : compositions could be better

Wolves in the Throne room is no doubt one of the bands that crafted what we today call american black metal. They are also one of the first bands who incorporated post-black and shoegaze black influences in their sound. Lots of bands followed later on. Here is their new endeavour, atmospheric, ritualistic and evocative as always. My objections are the following: 1) we have heard this kind of astral atmosphere in their previous releases, only now the production standards are much higher and 2) There are no actual compositions, meaning chord sequences, diverse tempos, tonalities, changes of scale etc etc, here we have some chords played in a minimalistic manner so as to yield in a ritualistic transcendental atmosphere. Simple as that. If you are up for this kind of styff, this album is really convincing. Regarding me, this is not my cup of tea...

6 out of 10 goatheads 

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OPETH - HERITAGE (2011)

genre : prog rock/ metal

similar bands : old Opeth, King Crimson,
origin : Sweden

strong spot :  arrangements, vintage production

weak spot : has some dull moments, no screams attached

Mikael Akerfeldt is no doubt one of the best and most influential musicians in the modern day metal scene. Most of the fans hated this album at first listen but appreciated it later on. I remember my self listening to ''Masquerade Infernale'' from Arcturus and saying ''well, quite good experimentation but that's all''. Needless to say that this is now one of my all time classics, Arcturus were simply ahead of me, ahead of the metal world and fans. Mayne that's the case with Opeth here. I am not implying that this is a future classic but I am sure in a few years from now people will think they misjudged this album and underrated it. The influences from bands like King Crimson or Camel and in general the 70s prog rock scene are audible but Akerfeldt does not copy/paste anyone. There is till enough Opeth identity here.  This an album that contains a huge amount of magic and transcendental atmosphere. Psychedelic landscapes, serene instrumentations, peaceful melodies yield in a ''different'' but lovable album.

9 out of 10 goatheads 

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AENAON - CENDRES ET SANG

genre : post black

similar bands : No Hand Path, The Konsortium, Dornenreich
origin : Greece

strong spot :  songwriting

weak spot :nothing obvious

Greece is full of surprises lately. Here we have the newcomers Aenaon that recently signed with Code666 and present a multidimensional, diverse, thrashy and melodic post black album with avant garde touches (i.e. the use of saxophone in a couple of tracks). There is but a tiny amount of synths or effects here. Aenaon are definitely capable of writing good songs and in the end of the day that's what makes an album stand out from the pile of albums out there. Here the listener tastes darkness, despair, jazzy serenity, wrath and lots of other feelings. The band sometimes  follows the old school black metal paths while others sounds extra modern.

9 out of 10 goatheads 

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