AARRGH IT'S SO CALM AND BEAUTIFUL AND FULL OF NOSTALGIA!!!!
Yesterday was shitty. Today was wonderful, also thanks to this album. The atmosphere in most of the songs kind of reminded me of the Land of Livid Dead from Rayman 3 - especially the opener.

Schleife Schleife Schnitt (Ribbon Ribbon Cut) is such an adorable title for such a beautiful track. As a fellow German I really loved some of the titles and how they portrayed the instruments.

Not a jazz expert writing this review. Having only listend to some basic coffeehouse playlists, take five, and Eberhard Weber I can't dig deep into the musical aspects. Oh I forgot to mention Jesus Molina! Nana Rizinni's Epiblast is closest to Molina's style out of all four options I've mentioned (lol).

I stumbled across this album scrolling through the new releases featured on Qobuz. The first track had me hooked immediately. The staccato sax in the beginning is slowly ... read more

The first half is absolutely insane. Fabienk is an absolute funky nose swinger that keeps you dancing through and through and is a perfect warmup for track 2 and 3. Mata Zyklek kickstarts your neck in 5/8 (or 5/4 idk really know lol). And finally Sarniezz is the culmination of everything Fabienk and Mata Zyklek prepared you for. Switching between 12/8 (4x12) and 4/4 (12x4) this track absolutely hypnotizes you with its cliimbing and falling riff (i don't know how to describe it ... read more

Didn't expect sound Alt-Rock and Dream Pop on that for sure. MØL is one of my biggest surprises in this decade which doesn't really fit into the narrative of this review.

The first song instantly reminded me of Deafhaven's Winona from their latest album. Same chord. Different transition and therefore different energy. MØL is most of the time staying in their classic tunes: hard hitting drums, uplifting riffs in a somewhat major key, screeching vocals and working ... read more

fuck me this is a banger

The air in canada is just different. Filled with polyrhythms to the absolute brim, building up tension with some nasty riffs and releasing it again with raw power and some really delicious dissonant riffs, Canvas is itching my brain at spots other bands can't hit.

The technicality on this album is incredible. Yet it's not too much going on, inviting you for a few more listens in one session, also since it's "just" 30 minutes long. There are lots of jazz influences ... read more

we're witnessing greatness

A little bit too close to their latest album concerning structure, but it still has some nice new ideas. The atmosphere is nicely adjusted to the "warmer" setting. As always, haunting melodies! Very excited for the album!

Well that's one way to start 2026.
The cover reminds me a bit of An Abstract Illusion's Woe. Love it!

Upiór is definitely not messing around here. Though I am not a fan of the intro of Act I they manage to make it interesting with The Black Paintings. It's furious, dark, has a cool solo, the lyrics are alright but, well, they are pretty forgettable. Overall the songwriting is very well done but the lyrics don't really strike here for me. It's dark, it's ... read more

An Abstract Illusion's new album is... not quite my taste. I adored there 2022 Album WOE with all its captivating energy, highly emotional passages and really memorable tracks like "Slaves", "In The Heavens Above, You Will Become A Monster" and "Blomsterkrans".

THE SLEEPING CITY's production is different. I would say it's more crisp, but exactly that is a problem for me. The harsh vocals don't blend in as beautifully as they did in WOE. I ... read more

This year, black metal is at an all-time high in terms of quality relative to the number of releases. Der Weg Einer Freiheit has also set its sights on reaching the top with its sixth LP this year.

The album starts off epically, like in a thriller or horror movie, virtually representing the album cover as sound, and after a buildup, it clouds the mind with continuous pounding and extremely atmospheric riffs, which really come into their own thanks to a very clean production. It becomes clear ... read more

An album that crashes into your ears like waves on a boat, with violent passages. Metamorphosis was my first Agrypnie album in the summer of 2022. At the time, I was plagued by a lot of stress in addition to a current low phase—I deliberately don't say depressive phase, I forbid myself from self-diagnosis! Regardless of the severity of my condition, the album helped me overcome this phase much more easily. The riffs sometimes allowed my thoughts to sink away and I was able to ... read more

Batshit crazy. Beautifully written. There are so many emotions to process in this one. It's a generational album and being part of this generation. I am thankful for Quadeca being the voice of all our problems, of all our shattered hopes and dreams, of all our lost childhoods and that he is, with his music, also trying to remind us not to drown in our own sorrows as this happened with himself in the album video. At least that's what I'm taking from it.

I think this is going to ... read more

With Kanonenfieber being on the rise after their insane debut album in 2021 and several strong single releases in the years after, it was hard to believe that another german band can achieve the same quality soon. Antrisch sounds different than your average atmo-black metal band. Combining soothing melodies with altering tempo, hard riffs and really raw vocals they display the horrific experiences in the cold arctic for your ears.

The lyrics are beautifully written. That right here is peak ... read more

Possibly the best power metal album ever made. Talk about a Magnum Opus! Blind Guardian's Nightfall in Middle-Earth is what many modern Power Metal Bands can't be: Complex but easily accessible, epic but not corny, raw and heavy but beautiful.

The album simply flows from one track to another, telling the story of Tolkien's Silmarillion with various emotions through songs and interludes. The amount of all-time classics on this is insane. Into the Storm, Nightfall, Mirror Mirror ... read more

I think Zack from Sputnikmusic has already found the best way to describe this album. Politically charged, offering intense moments - also visually on their full album stream on Pelagic Records - the music of BRUIT ≤ shows our world through the eyes of the past and present that's excited about the future. How will the 2020s look like? It's hell. And also, how will the future from now on look like? It's not going to change. We have come a long way to improve, optimize, solve ... read more

Listening to this album never gets boring. There is so much to discover: beautiful leads, wildly changing rhythms that don't destroy the whole structure of a song or the album, a powerful voice and so many small nuances that keep the drumming near perfection.

The climax in Systematomic and Katsushika and the whole song Feathergun in the Garden of the Sun are perfect examples of incredibly skilled songwriting. Sometimes I forget myself listening to this album, drift off into the fantastic ... read more

The saxophone really needed a cigarette after recording this album. Agabas' third album improves the band's unique sound once more. Balancing hard-pushing or hard-pounding sequences with delicious grooves, short breaks and THE SAX.

Not one second did I feel bored or lost. Really great pacing and songwriting, though the second half of the album does feel a little disconnected to the first one. But the songs are great nevertheless and I kinda love the intro of track 6 that already ... read more

EVIDENCE's riff gave me an orgasm. This whole album is so well constructed. It's technically demanding, it's got melodies, it's got THE SAX and a nice choice of layered mixed vocals.

While not coming close to their 2018 magnum opus it's definitely an improvement from their 2021 LP The Work. The songs have a good flow, give the listener time to breathe and understand what the hell just happened but also pull them back with awesome solos, brutal riffs or overall high ... read more

Listening to this album while late breakfast definitely improves the culinary experience. The album is breathing well and offers much more depth than Mirar's LP from thisi year because it's not going for a 24/7 pounding but rather tries to work with buildups, climaxes, atmospheric breaks and also has the advantage of using mixed vocals.

Vildhjarta's third album is very creative, sometimes catches you while just enjoying the wall of sound with nasty and unexpected sequences of ... read more