Once upon a time, Warning controlled the English doom metal scene. A band that formed in 1994 at the hands of Patrick Walker, it's still active despite disbanding three times now. But in that second disbandment, in 2009, Walker had enough and sprouted a new doom metal project from its ashes. This is 40 Watt Sun, a band named after Marillion's 'Emerald Eyes'.

Formed as a three piece, Walker kept Warning's drummer Christian Leitch and brought bassist/producer William ... read more

In 2013, Rammstein visit Portugal as part of their "Made In Germany" tour. Being the third time they visit, it was a big deal and ads for it played on TV for weeks on end. This would be an 11 year old me's first introduction to Rammstein. I did not like it one bit: mind you, at this time my musical taste consisted of mostly post-grunge, with Shinedown spearheading a library, alongside Fozzy, 12 Stones, Good Charlotte, Adelitas' Way, Sevendust, Alter Bridge, Korn, and many ... read more

Jumping back into Hanging Garden, the Finns' next project was released in the same year as "At Every Door". I'm talking about their first EP, "I Was A Soldier".

Released through Lifeforce as a two-track vinyl, I'm listening to the digital version, self-released, as it contains a third track. Having been released only ten months after the above mentioned LP, the sound and mixing here does not fall far from it. So, viewed from the "companion piece" ... read more

Recommended by @B0AH, again.

And now for my final recommendation until I finish my next set. I know I have three recommendations already in line, but I ask you for your patience in these trying times. Now, today I was tossed B0AH's compilation album. Coming as the closer of his first phase before his second LP, "In Between The Sky And The Stars." releases next month, which I will eventually review as they recommended it to me, this 18 track project includes the ... read more

Recommended by @scottL.

Do you like MF DOOM? Do you like his brilliant, one-time side project Madvillain? Do you wish "Madvillainy" had more of jazz rap and sampledelia? Well then, this mixtape is for you. Made by New Jersey resident c.longa, "Jazzvillainy" is essentially a remixed version of eleven "Madvillain" tracks, doubling on the jazz rap aspect while adding some eletronica / sampledelia into it. It's not that long, as much tracks run usually for 2 ... read more

Recommended by @Elynescence.

Per their usual recommendations, I am graced with another electro-industrial album. The lucky winner on my chopping block today is Mexican group Rabia Sorda. Described as a "sonic riot of industrial rock, punk attitude and electronic fury", the group is led by Erk Aicrag of Hocico (a name I know from his feature on an older Lord of the Lost album) towards a less aggrotech sound; verily, Rabia Sorda is basically synth punk meets the electro-industrial ... read more

The moment has come. So many times I've spoken about other nu metal bands, but none can compare to the original, the grandfather of the genre itself. Today, the lesson is all on Korn.

Formed in 1993 in Bakersfield, California as a trio, the former members of the funk band L.A.P.D. sunsetted that project after their debut LP "Who's Laughing Now" lost their vocalist, Richard Morrill, to marriage. The remaining trio sought for a vocalist to replace him and discovered Jonathan ... read more

We sail back to the Faroe Islands, where their doom metal export Hamferð release their debut LP, "Evst", in 2013. During the three years in between, bassist Tinna Tótudóttir left, replaced by Jenus Í Trøðini, whose presence in the band would last until 2014. But that's more appropriate to talk about whenever I talk about their second LP in my next review of them. For now, let's focus on this six track doom opus.

Coming hot from their ... read more

Now here's a more obscure pull: Revelation Theory. Yes, because in 2005, when their debut LP "Truth Is Currency" came out, they hadn't shortened their name to Rev Theory yet. If you ask me whether I like Rev Theory, I'm probably saying it's because of nostalgia. Or because of their second album, "Light It Up". Probably both. In the vast post-grunge world that kept flushing out name after name during the early 2000s, Rev Theory always did little to ... read more

Halestorm's big breakthrough was yet to come in the mid-2000s. However, things were starting to look up for the future Pennsylvania powerhouse.

After the two EPs I've covered, there was a five year gap where a member lineup was in order. Joe Hottinger joined as lead guitar, a position he still retains to this day, replacing Nate Myotte; and in the bass Josh Smith replaced Dave Hartley, who in turned replaced Phil Connolly, who in turn replaced Scootch Frenchek, who replaced the ... read more

From a post-rock review to another post-rock review, I am happy to finally cover the third and most influential We Lost The Sea album.

"Departure Songs" comes after major tribulations for the Australian band. Since their 2012 release "The Quietest Place On Earth", they would lose singer Chris Torpy to suicide. This became a defining moment for them. Torpy wasn't just their voice, it was their sound. Responsible for the growls and to some extent, the band's harmony ... read more

Finally, I can finish a batch I started out in February.

Picking up where I left behind, my next listen is Linda Martini's debut EP. I have talked last year about their most recent work "Passa-Montanhas", but let's go back in time to 2003. We are in Lisbon, capital of Portugal, and on a certain day (because they don't have a biography I can pull exact info from), five friends join together to create what, unbeknownst to them, would be a defining band in alternative ... read more

Recommended by @Purinose.

And at last, the final recommendation I got before May. However, on account of wanting to listen to it with a friend, "Jony Driver", which was thrown my way at the end of April, was pushed further for a couple days. Color me surprised when I discovered Papillon is actually Portuguese. Born in Mem Martins (in Lisbon), Papillon rose as a member of the popular GROGnation crew. Though the historic hip hop crew has shut down in 2022, Papillon was already ... read more

Proving themselves on a new label after leaving Sumerian in favor of Spinefarm, "Vindicate" comes two years after "Bleeders", an EP that left much to be desired. Andy Biersack and company may have intended it to be a "signpost of everything BVB past, present, and future", but it was nothing more than a failure at capturing the strong points of Black Veil Brides. At the time, I said there was little to be said about their future - now, "Vindicate" ... read more

Draconian, Draconian, my most recent love, how fare thee?

Discovered not too long ago, I only got the time and the will to dive deep in their rich history last month with the loss of my computer and the clutch that is YouTube Music on the phone. As you've guessed, I came across the Swedes because I craved more of that doom Swallow The Sun has me hunger for. And while I don't think Draconian follows the Swallow The Sun school of doom/death-doom, the melancholy stripped from constant ... read more

Recommended by @ezkaton2000, again.

After a Behemoth recommendation, I'm hit with far more unknown and underground black metal. Today, Kacper introduces me to Plaga, countrymen to Behemoth. Formed in 2008, they have only four records to their name: a 2009 demo, "Trąby zagłady / Triumfalny taniec...", a 2011 EP, "Pożeracze słońc", this LP which came out in 2013 and a compilation album of the demo + EP dated the year after in 2014. Surprisingly, despite no news for ... read more

Recommended by @jbjohnston2011.

After "Luminescence" and the "Dilate" single I was recommended last year, comes a third one, the mixtape "HEIGHTS". Made of fourteen tracks across 22 minutes, it makes me a bit worried the tracks won't have enough meat on them to stand on their own.

Nevertheless, this collection of beats starts off with a decent bang in the shape of 'LOYAL', a West Coast Hip Hop with slight inklings of jazz here and there. ... read more

Recommended by @LinkyDinky.

So soon after their debut LP, we get B. Morton's follow-up, "ROCKET SCIENCE II". Eleven minutes longer and with a harder lean into dream pop and adjacents, the sophomore project is a realization of a vision and cementing a direction future projects will be sure to continue on.

Opener 'BIOLOGY' is two minutes of peaceful dream / chillwave, whereas 'DICE' starts to rely more heavily on Cloud Rap and Sampledelia, as the dream pop ... read more

Recommended by @Elynescence.

When someone thinks of Neue Deutsche Härte, they'll immediately think of Rammstein, the prodigal son of the genre. If you're me, you're probably also thinking of Oomph, who came before and helped form the genre. Obviously, this genre which at its simplest is industrial metal + electronic, isn't just these two; you have others like Eisbrecher, Megaherz, Unheilig and Hämaton. And I confess, though the list might be small, I never came ... read more

Recommended by @ezkaton2000.

Now, here's the recommendation I was most excited about. Usually, the recommendations I get sent are either AOTY users' own projects or niche artists / albums people know I'll probably like. Such was the case for my first recommendation, Bent's "Ariels", and most of @Elynescence's recommendations, including the one I'll be getting to after this one. But this one is a first for me. This is a recommendation of an album I was ... read more