Gimme Metal Program Director Brian Turner delivers the week's top 5 office buzz-worthy tracks.
FUNERAL – Erindring I – Hovmod
Founded in 1991 in Norway, this Candlemass-inspired legion morphed through lineups and recurrent tragedies with key members, but soldiered on thanks to the perseverance of founding drummer Anders Eek. The band is a strong septet these days (complete with violinist) still devoted to its funereal doom vision; 'Praesentialis in Aeternum,' is out on December 10 via Season of Mist.
MALIGNANT ALTAR – Rite of Krasue
Even more downtuned death, with a slow-crawl style whose floodgates seemed to have opened even more this past year with so many new releases. This Texas quintet rise to the occasion with a technical prowess that belies the sludgy primitive putridity here, it's almost a willingly-enforced dumbdown of higher prog potential to lay this out as bareboned as possible. They know their crowd.
STRANGULIATORIUS – The Plans of the Madmen
Death/doom insanity from Lithuania as earmarked by the Horror Pain Gore Death stamp of quality. Buzzsaw guitars, blast beats abound.
TOWER – Prince of Darkness
On their second album 'Shock To the System' (Cruz de la Sur) this NYC combo led by vocalist Sarabeth Linden scale the heights of classic NWOBHM, augmented by some epic flairs. Spiralling twin guitar solos, great vocal performance, no-frills production accenting the inventive riffs and sweeping song structures. Tower wed style and aggression in an excellent way.
HYPERDONTIA – Hideous Entity
This Turk/Danish hybrid plumb some dark caves of death metal, heavy on atmosphere, low on the downtune, a pummeling slab of negativity to contend with. Plodding drums (courtesy Tuna!) and truly tortured vocals of Mathias add a doom-like gravity to the overall heft of what's going on. The crawl is on towards 2022 and Hyperdontia lead the charge.
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