SEEN AND HEARD: DEMONWOMB, ISVIND, HARDBANGER, ABYSSGALE, THRONE OF MOLOK

 

Well, just this past weekend I made a big deal about how I was going to be out of town for 2 weeks in Texas working day and night for my fucking day job and dismally watching the content on our site fall to a trickle. I am indeed in Texas for my day job, and it won’t be long before I really do have to knuckle down and earn my keep — but things haven’t been that crushing so far. And so… I continue to blog!

Here are some musics I enjoyed over the last 48 hours that I hope you will enjoy, too — reviews of three new short releases, some praise for one more new song from an eagerly anticipated album, and a feature on three tracks from a recently discovered album.

DEMONWOMB

Demonwomb are from Wien, Austria. Powertrip Records is going to release a self-titled, five-track 7″ by the band on June 19 (their second EP) — but you can hear all of it on Bandcamp right now, and you damn well should. Why should you? Well, let me count the reasons:

 

 

First, it will only take 13 minutes of your time.

Second, it may be the most invigorating 13 minutes you’ll experience today, unless you nearly get run over by a bus. The music is a hybrid of hardcore and metal that’s loaded with electrifying thrash riffs, scintillating guitar solos, raw vocal vituperation, and breakdowns that are so goddamned crushing you’ll think some hateful giant dropped a mausoleum on your head. Grade-A mosh fuel and guaranteed headbang triggers — highly recommended.

You can pre-order the 7″ at Powertrip Records here. And because Powertrip has a Bandcamp page, I’m guessing there will be a digital version of the 7″ available at some point.

https://demonwomb.bandcamp.com/
https://www.facebook.com/Demonwomb

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ISVIND

Last month I frothed at the mouth (here) over the first advance track to appear from the new album (Gud) by Norway’s Isvind. Now there’s a second one available for listening, and it’s fantastic.

This new one is named “Dåren“. It moves from a high-powered, d-beat-driven romp into an extended melodic segment that’s mesmerizing, and then erupts in a fury of blast-beats and racing guitars before romping once again to the finish line. The vocals are as scarring and hateful as you could want, the riffs are electrifying, and the changing styles and moods within the song work very well.

Gud will be released by Folter Records on June 26.

https://www.facebook.com/Isvindband
http://folter666.de

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

HARDBANGER

It’s been a while since we last heard from the French band Hardbanger. So far as I know, their last release was an excellent EP named Foursome that I reviewed (here) almost exactly two years ago. Here’s an excerpt of my drivel from two years ago:

It’s not exactly gothic metal. It’s not really death rock. You wouldn’t call it old-school heavy metal either. Maybe it’s a combination of all three, plus some other things, including a superb production that gives it a massive sound. Whatever you want to call it, it’s music that will make you want to move, preferably inside someone else. It chugs and swings and it feels kind of dirty and doomed. In short, it’s killer stuff, and it lit me up like a Roman candle.

Now, finally, we have a new Hardbanger single named “Leave Your Ghost”, which is available as a “name your price” download on Bandcamp. It’s a little bit off our usual beaten paths around this site, but the song has really grabbed me. The grinding bass line and gunshot drumwork are bone-rattling, the dark, twisting melody oozes illness yet is quite entrancing, and the mix of vocals (which includes clean song) fits the haunting atmosphere of the music really well.

https://hardbanger.bandcamp.com/track/leave-your-ghost
https://www.facebook.com/Hardbanger

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

ABYSSGALE

I discovered this next selection of music via a link from KevinP. I don’t know whether he liked it or just thought that I would — but I sure do.

It’s a two-song 7″ entitled Tenet Extorris by a Greek black metal band named Abyssgale that was released in April by Ill Damnation Productions and is now available on Bandcamp. This is the band’s third release, following a debut album in 2014 and an earlier EP in 2006.

The two songs are completely electrifying blasts of black metal savagery. They fly as fast as a bullet train, pushed hard by jaw-dropping drum propulsion and a hailstorm of riffs that slash and writhe like creatures at a demon orgy. The music does slow here and there, providing the band an opportunity to weave bleak, doomed, melodic incantations that heighten the music’s aura of infernal malevolence. Really excellent!

https://abyssgale-official.bandcamp.com/album/tenet-extorris-5

 

 

 

 

 

THRONE OF MOLOK

Throne of Molok are a Sicilian band who released their third full-length last year in limited distribution under the title Beat of Apocalypse. I found out about the album through a press release announcing that the album will now be released in CD format, with a bonus track, on July 6 by Beyond…Productions. I doubt I will have time to review the album, but I at least wanted to comment on three tracks from it that are available on Bandcamp.

They’re all turbocharged explosions of violence that meld together elements of extreme industrial metal, black metal, and death/thrash. The riffs jab like piledrivers, the vocalist is thoroughly unhinged, and the electronic samples prove to be effective rather than distracting. The industrial qualities of the music, of course, mean that the songs are packed with jolting grooves. It’s a high-flying, unpredictable ride that I quite enjoyed.

The CD can be ordered here. Check out the three tracks below.

https://throneofmolok.bandcamp.com
https://www.facebook.com/throneofmolok
https://www.facebook.com/beyondproductionsitaly