KXM — Circle Of Dolls
✦✦✧✧ Of course George Lynch shreeds in this. But, where’s the bass, Dug?! See the rest here
First Listens With Two-Star Ratings
Sonata Arctica — Talviyö
✦✦✧✧ Tired riffs and arbitrary chord progressions mar this latest effort from these power metal mainstays. Worst still, there’s just not enough cheese here to distract from the rest of the material, which feels like a retread. There are lots of examples in 2019 of veteran bands coming out with new, invigorating material; this is definitely not one of them. See the rest here
Vitriol — To Bathe From The Throat Of Cowardice
✦✦✧✧ This techdeath album sounds like a tornado of razor blades: devastating, mechanistic, chaotic almost to the point of unintelligibility. Unfortunately, the band’s expertly-deployed technical onslaught and deranged composition skill also shreds any sense of dynamics or memorability. See the rest here
Entombed A.D. — Bowels of Earth
✦✦✧✧ Yeah, this is just 36 minutes of grossness, more Morning Star-era than Left Hand Path or Wolverine Blues. It’s a good soundtrack for alcohol-fueled destruction, which if we’re being honest is definitely on-brand for this band, no matter what you call ’em. See the rest here
Cloudkicker — Unending
✦✦✧✧ For an instrumental proggy metal album four years in the making, there’s just not enough “there” there. Sure, it evokes a mood, but the tracks which aren’t electronic filler tend to not go anywhere and leave you wanting more. Not in the good “Encore Encore!” kind of way, but more like “And then what?” See the rest here
Killswitch Engage — Atonement
✦✦✧✧ Sometimes, the KSE formula yields pure gold. This, by comparison, is a bronze album. Not too much to hate on here, but not a lot to yearn for either. This of course will do nothing to dissuade anyone from seeing this as another sign of the decline of this metalcore stalwart, but fortunately that’s not going to stop Adam Dutkiewicz et al from persevering. See the rest here
King Gizzard & the Wizard Lizard — Infest The Rats’ Nest
✦✦✧✧ I absolutely didn’t want to like this at all… but it’s fun! Dirty-ass riffs, dirty-ass vocals, massive dirty-ass bass… even the production makes a point of being filthy. If you’re not an uptight purist, have even a little respect for a punk sensibility, and don’t mind getting some mud on your clothes, this album may be just the treat you need right now. See the rest here
Slipknot — We Are Not Your Kind
✦✦✧✧ Hey, this new Linkin Park is pretty rockin’! See the rest here
Russian Circles — Blood Year
✦✦✧✧ To be honest, this one’s kinda boring. (Just contrast this to the new Elder album, and you’ll see how much Russian Circles could have done with instrumental shoegaze.) See the rest here
Abyssal — A Beacon in the Husk
✦✦✧✧ This doom album is a very mixed bag for me. On the one hand, if you’re looking for a recording of a band who are delivering jawdropping riffs, or you want to shake your fist triumphantly at the sky, this album is not for you in the slightest. On the other hand, I’m hardpressed to name another album this year that is as successfully moody, evocative, or noisome. See the rest here
