Doomed For Metal Reviews

What is this?  What kind of name is that?  Those were the thoughts that poured into my head when the promo for this duo's fourth full-length album “ Bear .” But they have a Metallum page and were featured on a Weedian compilation so it had to be something I would enjoy and feature on my blog right? Well, they are from Nashville and I'm a fellow Tennessean, so I figured why not at least give it a chance? I still don't know what this is, but I enjoy the hell out of this album! Is this doom? Sludge? I think I would say it's in the doom category—the album is full of massive guitar riffs and bass that could level a forest. But it has a “grunge” feel at times and can be melodic when needed.   It is also catchy as hell. I mean, every song WILL get stuck in your head for days. On top of all that, the musicianship is tight as hell.  Vocalist Buick Audra sings her face off. Her vocals are clean, but they are extremely potent with a lot of nuances to them. She's also a rif...

Cromlech is a one-man black metal band from Gerline, Germany who formed in 1994 by musician Impurus .  His latest album under the moniker is “ Of Owls and Eels ” and it is the second full-length. This is an album that is engaging and gripping from the intro song, “ Old Incineration Hymn ,” all the way through the end of its 39-minute runtime.  The energy is wild and infectious, paring well with some of the best production I’ve heard on a black metal album this year.  It sounds just raw enough to be effective, but the atmosphere, organs and keys/synths still have room to stand out–without over taking the essence of the very aggressive blackened assault.  I don’t want to call this symphonic, atmospheric, cinematic, or melodic.  No, that wouldn’t be too easy and also imply that any one of those adjectives are the band’s main approach.  Instead, these elements are just another tool used to expand this journey.   It’s fast and harrowing yet scary and pensiv...

Revocation is a death metal band from Massachusetts who formed in 2000 as Crypt Warning and released one album before changing their name in 2006. “ New Gods, New Masters ” is their 9th full-length album. David Davidson is the main guy, offering up vicious vocals and extreme talent with the guitar. Even though the band is popular for their style, I still feel he is vastly underrated. He's also one hell of a songwriter, as evident by the fact that Revocation has never released a bad album. The band's style death infused thrash (or thrash infused death, depending on how you look at it) remains as firm as ever. Initially, I was worried when I realized how many guests are on the album, as that has a possibility of taking away from the band but I wasted my time on such pointless thoughts because each guest musician adds to the album's already deep depth. The bass is much more audible this time around and Alex brings it hard. The mix is pretty good and the tones of the instrumen...

An Abstract Illusion is a progressive extreme metal band from Sweden who formed in 2007.  Their latest release, “ The Sleepy City ,” is their third full-length album; they have also released an EP. This is unquestionably one of the best albums of the year, regardless of genre.  It is progressive and adventurous without being convoluted or pretentious.   While its seven tracks add up to just over an hour of runtime, each song has several epic, wow moments and crafted so expertly that the hour will breeze. Before you know, you’ll find yourself smashing the play button again. I like the flow of the album a lot.  The three longest songs are spread enough among the four shorter ones, so each song feels like it has its own time to shine, and listener fatigue doesn’t become an issue.  The production is amazing too, almost as important as the songs themselves.  It’s very clear and clean but when it comes to prog like this, that is exactly the kind of the world the ...

Withering Soul is a blackened melodic death metal band from Chicago, Illinois who formed in 1999.  Their latest release, “ Passage of the Arcane ,” is their fifth full-length album; they have also released two demos.  Somehow this band has flown under my radar for a long time as this is my first experience with the band.  Upon pressing the play button on my promo, it immediately hit me that their brand of melodic metal is quite a bit more vicious than most in the style.  The blackened influences certainly help with that.  Overall, the album is fast, catchy, and filled with a ton of melodies while still having an aggressive atmosphere. The production is pretty damn good too.  So much melodic death doesn’t seem to focus on the bass but “ Passage of the Arcane ,” does.  Not only is Joel’s bass a pleasure to listen to, it’s also a strong rhythm presence that makes each song sound meaty, instead of thin and stale. Both Rick’s drums and Krystofer’s guitars h...

Silent Tombs is a death/doom band from Mexico, who formed in 2017. Their latest release, “ Mourning Hymns From Beyond ,” is their debut full-length album; they have also released a demo.  Before I even dive into the album, there is something you must know: “ Mourning Hymns From Beyond ,” is a stunning debut album and as engrossing as anything I’ve heard this year. It’s dark and scary, disturbing in only a way death/doom can be. The primal, urgent energy that is often lacking in doom metal permeates every song.   But it lives in two worlds, and the other one is a heart wrenching tapestry of melodies and melancholic tapestries. Atmospheric clean passages find their place among guitar melodies, themselves living amongst more carnal representations of the genre’s foundations.    There is an oppressive sullen vibe that exists alongside the violent parts, the band and album effectively living in both worlds even while exceeding expectations for each of them....

Ohio’s blackened funeral doom/sludge project Lowered Head is from Ben Vanweelden , the same musician involved with Venomous Echoes , Ceremonic Buryment , Wallow , and Axiom Chaos .   Just when I thought I'd heard the most miserable, heaviest doom albums this year, Lowered Head comes along and drops this beastly self-titled debut. This is nearly 46 minutes of some of the most despondent, depressing, and abrasive doom metal I’ve found in this second half of the year.   The vocals sound inhuman: a primal mixture of desperation, frustration, any other negative human emotion that can be dredged up from the psyche. If I stuck my head down into a pile of mixed glass and rocks and began inhaling, the resulting situation of dying in bloody asphyxiation might sound something like Ben’s vocal performance. It’s blackened but it’s also something else, like another dimension of pain. The production is perfect for this type of sickening doom, raw and with a live feel but not...