Weekly Digest 22-28 February
This week we got new music by NOFX, Architects and Melvins in the original lineup! But in addition to big names, there are interesting things from the depths of the underground: Polish black metal radio theater, Japanese speed metal, sludgecore from Los Angeles, Canadian-Swedish blackened industrial doom, death grind, heavy metal and high-energy hard rock from metalpunks in Weekly.
Architects – For Those That Wish To Exist
Architects is probably one of the few mainstream metalcore bands that I don't immediately skip if come up in my Spotify. Even though the music is not my cup of tea at all, Architects' recordings always very well produced, I can't argue with that. On the album "For Those That Wish To Exist" stylistically, music has changed a bit, but still sounds powerful and is designed for crowds of emotional fans singing along.
spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
Black Sheep Wall – Songs For Enamel Queen
Post-metal / sludgecore band from Los Angeles, named after the cheat code to StarCraft, perfectly alternates between short and long tracks, has a really hardcore approach to their post-metal, which makes it sound aggressive and dynamic. And although the cover of the album is not my favorite, its content pleasantly impressed me.
bandcamp | spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
Culted – Nous
Blackened industrial / sludge band that practiced social distancing “before it was cool”. The vocalist lives in Sweden, and all the other band members reside in Canada, and all the instruments except the drums musicians record in their home studios, so despite the fact that the band have been playing since 2007, they have never been all together in the same room. Musically, Culted it is very southern sounded sludge metal with industrial loudness and black metal eeriness, reminiscent of the early Rotting Christ, Samael and Godflesh, the latter, by the way, on the album is a cover.
bandcamp | spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
Furia - W śnialni
„Our goal was something on the border of a radio play / theater of imagination and a music album...” – says Furia´s frontman Nihil and it looks like they have succeeded. Musicians call the music they play necrofolk, an eerie and experimental sound with a taste of black metal and theatrical drama. The atmosphere is just incredible, and I am delighted with the album cover.
Jarhead Fertilizer – Product Of My Environment
“I don’t want to be a product of my environment. I want my environment to be a product of me.” The debut LP from Ocean City Maryland’s Jarhead Fertilizer is a hot dose in your veins. Our modern dystopian reality meets a brutal mixture of death and grind with primitive groove with blistering low end. On Product of My Environment, Jarhead Fertilizer makes a simple statement. Death is easy. Life is hard.
spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
Melvins – Working With God
Melvins in the original lineup as in 1983 - Buzz Osborne, Dale Crover and Mike Dillard - with a new release! The album begins with the song "I Fuck Around" - a teenage rethinking of the classic The Beach Boys "I Get Around" followed by noise-sludge-punk, which is to be expected from the early Melvins.
spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
NOFX – Single Album
“When you write a double album, you write differently,” Fat Mike said. “I was writing really different songs, and some fun songs, but you have to make a double album interesting enough to listen to the whole way. “I wanted to make a perfect double album, and I didn’t accomplish that. So I decided to just make a single album, hence the title.” Of course, there is a place on the album for the traditional NOFX humor and self-irony, but the whole album vibe is mostly sad and deeply personal. Probably the most depressing LP NOFX ever put out (if you’re not counting Cookie The Clown by Fat Mike).
bandcamp | spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
Sandstorm – Desert Warrior
The Vancouver heavy metal band demonstrates what productivity means. Sandstorm released their first demo in 2019, in 2020 on Dying Victims Production they released their debut full-length "Time To Strike" and in early 2021 the band releases a 21-minute four-track EP, thematically unified by classic late ‘60s / early ‘70s sci-fi tropes.
Significant Point – Into The Storm
Fast and unstoppable as a katana hit speed / heavy metal from Japan. There are songs in both English and Japanese that may resemble anime openings and the most difficult level of Guitar Hero, but without crossing that line. Significant Point showcases a strong love for the music of Metal Church and Agent Steel and in addition to mastering their instruments, they do also have decent composer's skillset.
spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
Wenches – Effin’ Gnarly
“High-energy screaming hard rock played the only way long-haired punk metalheads know how.” – so on point. Detroit band inspired by MC5 and The Stooges, ZZ Top and AC / DC (if you know your early AC / DC, you will find a cover on this album!) alongside with Negative Approach, Portraits of Past and Antioch Arrow. You can feel the electricity!
bandcamp | spotify | apple music | deezer | youtube music
You can find previous Weekly Digest here.
