If brutal black metal was a genre like how brutal death metal is, Panzer Division Marduk would epitomize it.
This is certainly a flawed album, with the constant blast beats getting more and more repetitive as it goes on. If I skipped to a random portion of the album, I have a feeling that even many fans of it would struggle to identify which song was playing because the general sound of the riffs from different songs here is very similar. However, what Panzer Division Marduk has going for it is ... read more
The music equivalent of “A young man dressed as a gorilla dressed as an old man sits rocking on a rocking chair for 56 minutes and then leaves.” It’s a goofy and interesting idea on paper that gets boring very quickly in practice.
I do respect it a lot for nailing the accuracy aspect of the insane ramblings, however. I could totally imagine a real person with a few screws loose saying all this. I like the idea of the sprinkler as well, it gives the soundscape a distinct sense ... read more
It’s incredible to me that this was nominated for a Razzie for “worst musical score” in 1983, this is one of the few soundtracks that really stuck with me long after finishing the movie. The absolute highlight has to be that ending scene… it’s one of my favorite endings in film history, and the score is a huge part of why it hits so hard.
Also as a completely unrelated side note, the theory that Childs is the Thing because “you can’t see his breath ... read more
Review context at the end bc nobody gaf about the yapping. This review is brought to you by Elijah Craig because listening to a dropkick murphys album sober is like listening to pitbull and not dancing or listening to code orange and not headbanging. Which is to say probably not how it’s intended to be listened to.
My first thought is that a lot of these songs are a lot sadder than I expected. I was expecting it to be like fun party music to drink to (and it absolutely is), but then I pay ... read more
Why does AOTY have such a hate boner for this album? It’s just a regular black metal album. Sure, it’s nothing special and Behexen’s made much better stuff than this (in particular their next album, “By the Blessing of Satan”), but 48 for this is crazy to me.
Yeah I know None so Vile is a basic pick for my favorite BDM album, but I don’t care. I mean just LISTEN TO IT.
What stands out the most about None So Vile to me is just how damn tight this album is. It’s about 30 minutes long, feels like it contains about 45 minutes worth of music, yet somehow at the same time feels like it’s over in 20 minutes. It’s dense with memorable moments but still flies by.
Speaking of memorable, some of the riffs here are really damn catchy. I ... read more
There are some interesting dissonant textures here, but the 3 hour runtime seems excessive and unjustified—wait what do you mean it’s only 46 minutes long??? (Note: will revisit in the future, I can see myself actually really liking this with a couple more listens)
I haven’t listened to much from this year yet but I don’t see anything being more of a disappointment to me in 2025 than this, considering Swatta was one of my favorite albums of 2023. As a longtime Chepang fan this is by far their weakest album, stripping away most of the personality and energy that I loved about the band in previous releases. I don’t think I heard a single saxophone all album! I don’t normally complain about production (I’m a black metal fan, I ... read more
Interesting, it sounds like a mixture of Fail Emotions style cyber metal and Evoking Winds style “epic black metal.” Idk if it’s as innovative as some people are acting, but LS have definitely refined their sound and identity as a band with Rift in Reality, and they’ve carved out their niche in the cosmic black metal / “epic black metal” scene.
As far as execution goes, imo it does sound a little overblown / more grandiose than justified at points, and ... read more
Interesting to see that most of the other reviews here say things like “this isn’t as strong as their earlier albums but it’s still pretty good,” it’s actually my favorite Sabbath album. To me it felt like a refinement of the sound from the earlier albums, generally more consistent and with higher highs. It probably comes down to a matter of personal preference for comparable songs (e.g. I like Snowblind more than Sweet Leaf and Supernaut more than Paranoid) and ... read more
I can't say this was a style I was expecting HHH to explore but she does pull it off surprisingly well /s
But yeah Dawn of Ash is pretty good, it's like Instruments of Torture's long lost brother (which makes sense because Liturgy shares some members with Brodequin), except with louder and crunchier guitar. Do not go into this album expecting it to have clean production or varied songwriting, its main priority is punching you in the mouth as hard as possible. I do love the way ... read more
Good ‘N’ Cheap might be the perfect music to listen to when you’re hung over af getting breakfast at a Waffle House on a Saturday morning. It’s most notable for being highly influential to other artists who make great music to listen to while you’re hung over af at a Waffle House on a Saturday morning.
Arguably the most pretentious album I've ever listened to (and I listened to Tales From Topographic Oceans!)
Jandek takes you to his house, sits you down, and says "you are going to listen to me fuck around with a guitar and play one out of tune chord for 40 minutes."
Why do I almost like it?
This is so ass that it makes Iced Earth's "A Narrative Soundscape" sound like prime Sabbath
Don’t let this low score fool you: I love that this demo exists. First and foremost, it’s hilarious. However, the people getting unironically mad at this don’t realize that this is one of the best “NSBM parody” releases ever made, succeeding where bands like Neckbeard Deathcamp fail.
Neckbeard Deathcamp doesn’t work at all for me because it’s trying to parodize NSBM by making bad liberal music (which isn’t how parodies work, it has that ass ... read more
Maybe my hottest metal take – I think this album sucks. I have nothing against early Blut Aus Nord, and Fathers of the Icy Age is one of my favorite BM albums of the 90s. But very little of what they’re doing here works for me.
First of all, the synths sound really out of place. I feel like I should LIKE that given that I really enjoy some albums with out-of-place sounding synths (Mescaline Power by Serotonin Leakage and Spikes Through Eyes by De Magia Veterum, for example) but ... read more
This remix actually kind of works for me if I interpret it as making fun of the Disturbed cover. It’s like “oh, *I* ruined the song, how unforunate ¯\_(ツ)_/¯“
I have a feeling this band is going to be on a lot more people’s radars pretty soon, this is some GOOD shit right here.
Please Come Back To The Farm sonically reminds me of The Healer by Sumac in the best way possible, but at the same time, it feels a lot less… grimy I guess? Idk, it’s still really slow and crushing and they both use feedback to their advantage a lot (which I love more than I should), but it’s also a much more airy and open sound. The vocals sound like ... read more
Didn’t like Sunbather but decided to give Deafheaven another try because I’ve been listening to more genres outside of metal and thought maybe I’d like it more now. I thought this was a noticeable improvement from Sunbather, it had a couple more interesting moments and less filler, and I did decently enjoy Magnolia and Body Behavior. However, I was still pretty bored throughout and had to restart it because I fell asleep somewhere between the end of Magnolia and Incidental II. ... read more
Drunk rn so definitely take this with a grain of salt, but this album gave me like Mysticum meets Dictius Te Necare by Bethlehem vibes in a way that I actually kinda liked.
Dictius Te Necare in particular is the only other case I can think of like this where the vocals just sounded horrendous but at the same time I actually kind of liked them. The industrial tinge to the sound really added to the experience as well, don’t think the album would’ve been nearly as good if it was just ... read more
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Recent Review Comments
On ps_vita_enjoyer's review of Peste Noire - La Sanie des siècles - Panégyrique de la dégénérescence
"Bergtatt is the best black metal album for beginners imo"
On Anomander's review of Bríi - Último Ancestral Comum
"The production is what makes this work so well for me tbh"
On MickyT's review of Slayer - Reign in Blood
"If you liked this album you’ll probably like Spectrum of Death by Morbid Saint, it’s one of the highest regarded thrash albums in the metal community. They took a lot of inspiration from Reign in Blood but dialed up the brutality further"
On Damandatnevrwas's review of Аспид [Aspid] - Кровоизлияние [Extravasation]
"Epidemic of Violence and Tapping the Vein were in 92 so something good from 93 doesn’t seem THAT crazy to me, but at the same time I can’t think of much other thrash from 93 lol"
On aelexi's review of Chepang - Jhyappa
"I might’ve been a bit harsh with my score, but it REALLY pisses me off how generic and bland this was after how brilliant their last 2 albums were. Seriously, go listen to Chatta or Swatta, they’re amazing"
On Assemble The Chariots - Unyielding Night
"@deathcorelover yeah I know a lot of people on this site think that, and to me Assemble the Chariots did a better job accomplishing what it seemed like Lorna Shore were trying to on Pain Remains. I’m prob the wrong person to be judging deathcore (and I’ve tended to focus more on other metal genres since making this review) but to my relatively untrained ear it sounded like something Lorna Shore fans may love"
On Dropkick Murphys - Blackout
"Not gonna edit the review but idk wtf I meant by “social and societal,” and I think I meant “struck a chord” not “struck a nerve” lmao"
On DJTigez's review of Hello Kitty Suicide Club - ^_^
"@Anypsotis imagine if Triumph of the Will was trying to be cybergrind instead of black metal"
On PhobixTheGuy's review of Hierarchies - Hierarchies
"If you want to check out an album meant to confuse and disorient you that I thought worked way better than this, listen to "Ship of Theseus" by Jute Gyte. I think it's what this album was going for except black metal and better executed in every way."
On VVVase's review of Tougher Than Nails - Delusional Blasphemies Destroyed
"@Hekamusic I mean the video he featured Tougher Than Nails in was literally called “Worst Death Metal Band I've Ever Heard” so I’d say it’s like the opposite of a suggestion lmao"
On SotisGaze's review of Ahab - The Call of the Wretched Sea
"Check out the live version of this (“Live Prey”) if you get a chance! I liked it even more than the original, and I liked the original a lot"
On PhobixTheGuy's review of Black Sabbath - Master of Reality
"“If I had a nickel for every time a classic metal band had an album title starting with, “Master of…”, I’d have two nickels, which isn’t a lot but it’s weird that it happened twice!”
Ah yes, this and Master of the Rings by Helloween"
On Grelle (Taz)'s review of Vetharn - Netherrack Barbarity
"I think I had the opposite opinion actually, thought it was cheesy but in an endearing way which was most of the appeal of the album for me."
On Dsnikles's review of Bull of Heaven - 299: Self-Traitor, I Do Bring the Spider Love
"Personally I’m partial to 344, but this is easily top 3"
On Deafheaven - Lonely People With Power
"@knewnie Thank you! I’m always surprised when anyone else cares abt these bc I mainly just do them for myself, but I’m glad you like them!"
On Trisumun's review of Bolt Thrower - Those Once Loyal
"@Raskol124 ahhh, makes sense, I knew I was forgetting one!"
On Trisumun's review of Bolt Thrower - Those Once Loyal
"Interesting perspective, I actually like the back half of the album a lot more. Still incredible all around. Also idk if you’ve listened to other Bolt Thrower albums but that intro to Killchain is a recurring motif throughout some of their other songs (there may be more but ik it’s in Embers and Cenotaph off the top of my head). Kind of makes the song even cooler to me in a way bc it’s almost like they called their shot, it’s like a musical way of saying ahead of time “yeah this one’s enough of a banger we’re including it into this lineage” and then absolutely delivering"
On spaceashes's review of Deafheaven - Sunbather
"Ahahaha yes, join us on the dark side… we have good riffs! >:)
jk but yeah I didn’t get it at all either, none of it worked for me. Idk why ppl think this is better than Alcest"
On redsus's review of Trivium - Ascendancy
"If you liked this you may enjoy Mindtricks by Disarmonia Mundi, imo it’s a little closer to Soilwork’s sound than Trivium’s but it’s pretty well done and worth a listen if you’re into Gothenburg-sounding melodic metalcore"
On Maddy's review of Deafheaven - Ordinary Corrupt Human Love
"How different is this from Sunbather stylistically? I didn’t like Sunbather at all but it might be worth giving them another chance if it’s different"
On CaptainSquirrel's review of Chat Pile - Cool World
"“The Healer” by Sumac is another sludge metal album from 2024 with a completely different approach (that I honestly liked way more tbh). It’s admittedly not the most approachable album at 76 mins for 4 songs, but it absolutely justifies it imo.
If that’s too slow for you I also really enjoyed “Murder Phobia” by Insect Corpse, which is one of the rawest albums I’ve ever heard."
On Doxophobia - Basic Intellect May Burn Out
"@DeathOfHumanMus also when it goes hard, it goes HARDDD. The other guy who reviewed this so far (sickriffsman) is the guy behind Defaced, who made Opium Angel, one of the heaviest albums I heard all year. For you to make something that he of all people considers "mind-blowingly intense" while being so multifaceted that it doesn't even feel like being as brutal as possible was a major focus is damn impressive to me at least."
On Doxophobia - Basic Intellect May Burn Out
"@DeathOfHumanMus it's an amazing album!! Sorry I meant to make an actual review for this at some point but haven't gotten around to it yet. I will say I'm pretty sure Magnets and Astronomy is somewhere in my top 3 songs of 2024, and I've listened to a TON of stuff this year. I LOVE how at times it sounds proggy but like almost 70's prog rock style proggy while still being metal, not regular "prog metal" prog if that makes any sense lol. What I liked most is just that the album is so versatile but everything fits together and still feels really cohesive."
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