This is a pretty coolio album. I’m not sure what I expected but it wasn’t this. It’s almost funky and kinda upbeat (I think). It’s really unique, every song just had me doing little bops and it’s consistently really, really fire with some outstanding highlights. The opener kinda reminds me of Slipping Into Darkness by War, which is obviously a huge compliment, and the closer has a super nice build. And of course Cameron Winter has majestic vocals, something about ... read more

Godspeed works are always so hard for me to talk about, let alone describe the sound of. This was a really beautiful project with so many sections of the most incredible instrumentals you could think of. 20 minute tracks feel like they fly by and they go so many wild places during them and do just the craziest shit. Pretty, is how I can describe it, GY!BE music sounds pretty, terrifying and depressing sometimes, but always comes back to being gorgeous. It sucks they’re not on Spotify or ... read more

This is the hypest album I’ve ever fucking heard. Every song slaps and there is no downtime, which works amazingly. Jane’s vocals and flow are incredible too, they just sound so nice over literally anything. Apart from just the energy though, the album is brilliantly made with weird samples, ear-splitting bass and just really cool instrumentals in general. It feels like the culmination of so many ideas and adjacent genres, combined into perfection while retaining such a unique sound ... read more

I went into this friend recommendation thinking it’d be a lot worse. Worse as in, sadder but also quality-wise. I wouldn’t call this my thing, but it was actually pretty engaging. Tracks on here are genuinely a bit disturbing and depressing sometimes, the lyrics aren’t that whiny and the instrumentals, while feeling very derivative as most Slowcore does to me, wasn’t bad at all and did some cool things like on the opener. Definitely don’t think I’m the ... read more

Horribly depressing in a despair kinda way. The way where you just sit there and feel sad and apathetic somehow at the same time. I don’t speak Korean and I couldn’t really discern any of the English vocals and I only vaguely know the basic themes of the album. Despite that, I can feel everything Parannoul is trying to convey. This is Shoegaze done right, it’s not boring, it’s not derivative and does its own thing. That all being said, I don't think I really get it, ... read more

This was surprisingly fantastic. I really enjoyed her debut but honestly don’t really come back to it. It was really cute and pretty but when it wasn’t playing I barely thought about it. With her new album recently out though I was thinking about listening to more of her music and speak of the devil, that’s what was next. This album is just banger after banger after banger, every track is so funky and the dream-like atmosphere is perfected, the lyricism is really sweet ... read more

I’ve never in my life heard Joy Division and Bauhaus compared to each other, but I for some reason thought they’d sound super similar. Droning riffs and deep, atmospheric bass hit something in the brain just right and I can’t get enough of it. I’m definitely not very involved in these lyrics but this feels a tad light-hearted, with some genuinely nice lines while others, and the overall tone, are still kept decently dark. It’s an interesting contrast that I could ... read more

Part of me wants to call this album a mess and say nothing works, it's just too many ideas thrown together. But the other part of me is freaking out to the breakdowns. Some tracks can sound samely, the production isn’t the greatest and the vocals and lyrics aren’t really for me, but this album surprisingly clicked with me, a lot of these tracks are straight up amazing and I’ll definitely be looking at what else this band has done. Being introduced through Flashback ... read more

The changes between the hardest of bangers to atmospheric ambience are so jarring I love it. This isn’t what I think of when someone says Breakcore since the genre has kinda shifted so much, but this is a fantastic Breakcore record, the energy is perfect and the darker, slower long tracks work between them to divide up the insane speed this album moves at. One of the most consistent things I’ve heard in a while too, everything is solid and there is only a single small dip on the 8th ... read more

I was pleasantly surprised by this Candlemass album. Their debut is one of my favourite Metal records and I was honestly a bit worried they might not live up to that standard again. This is fantastic, amazing Doom Metal with a lot of early Sabbath inspiration just like their debut, although I believe all the synths and most of the acoustic guitar have been subbed out to go for an even more bombastic feel which more or less works, it just depends on your preference I feel. They also have a ... read more

This is one song, I refuse to accept that it isn't. I have no idea what the lyrics are, and knowing how this usually goes they're probably depressing as hell, but this sounds so cute and pleasant and Shinji Sato's voice is really peaceful and he does some weird stuff with it. I know a lot of people don't like the water sounds, but I really didn't mind them, and the start and end are incredible with beautiful instrumentals and I don't even know how to talk about ... read more

Hey another cool Australian band. I haven’t heard much of this ‘flavour’ of Post-Rock/Metal but I’m quite a big fan. The long droning builds and the ambience this album creates are genuinely amazing and the longest songs are truly impressive with how they pull it off. The releases and what those build-ups lead to could be a lot better I feel though, none of them were bad but they left me feeling like it should’ve had more, especially on With Grace. Phenomenal ... read more

Kind of a hot take. The style of this album and the weird ass sounds it produces are incredible, I'd never deny that. Songs like Holy, Holy are absolute masterpieces and do so much with the time they're given, but that isn't something I can say carries over the whole record. There are glimpses of peak on here that would make me agree this is one of the greatest albums of 2024, but most songs just feel like too much. They feel like they go far out of their range and still feel ... read more

I’ve heard this is one of the best Black Metal albums, beyond just Melodic Black. I think I’d have to agree. It’s not perfect, I know it’s a genre staple but I wish there were a few less blastbeats and more focus on cooler things on the drums, and there are 1 or 2 songs that stick out as clearly being weaker compared to some of the incredible ideas on this, especially that first half. The vocals took me a bit of getting used to, but I’ve heard Where Dead Angels Lie ... read more

Because I do albums at random on a wheel, it has led me to listen to this before Moonman, but that’s alright, I’ll assume that it is of similar quality for the meantime. Nine albums in and PPC has a similar but evolved style when compared to their debut. I’m not critiquing that part per se, but it does feel a bit stale especially being quite familiar with their discography and their earlier work which I prefer and think is done better. There are great ideas here too, the first ... read more

I was so pleasantly surprised by this, it's insane. In my opinion, a lot of Metal is sort of approaching an event horizon, where a lot of it is kind of doing the same thing. Of course there's great stuff out there, there always has been just as there's always been bands I hate doing the same thing I'm complaining about. I'm not saying it's only started now, absolutely not, but I feel more and more artists and bands are losing a lot of what sets them apart, just ... read more

It’s pretty good, but I thought it’d be a lot more experimental in terms of Sludge or Drone, but for a (from what I can tell) essential album for the genres, I can’t complain. The riffs are mostly great, the tone is perfect, the drumming is great too, my main gripe is the vocals. There’s nothing wrong with them, but when everything is as thick and heavy as the instrumentals are, it kinda sticks out as not fitting, but he has a lot of character so I respect it. I would be ... read more

I’ve been using this cover as a reaction image for ages, it was about time I listened to what’s behind it. I knew it was Slacker Rock/Midwest Emo, but nothing could prevent the sheer disbelief I felt when the album that looks like a shitpost from last year produced some of the most beautiful vocal harmonies, catchy chord progressions and entertaining drum work I’ve heard in a bit. It’s not the greatest piece of music in the world, or even its genre, but the juxtaposition ... read more

Doom Metal is so cool. This isn’t as solid as my favourites from the genre, but it’s close. This is a damn good album with some bangers that are honestly some of the best the era has to offer. The production - while cool - is a bit too muffled for my tastes, I am listening to the reissue in the old track order so if these mixes are just bad then oops, but if that’s how it always was I wouldn’t be surprised. I’m a bit more used to the fuller, melodramatic sound of a ... read more

I take back whatever bad things I said about the genre on Life Metal, I love Drone.

Boris is a band I’ve heard so much about and that I’m madly intrigued by, albums like Pink and Flood have come up many, many times and while I will get to those, this was the perfect introduction to the band. They keep the music interesting even during long sections of practically nothing and when they let everything loose, such as on Pt. 2 it’s phenomenal. It’s pretty much one giant 40 ... read more