Bonehunter
(Our Norwegian friend and long-standing NCS supporter eiterorm steps up today with a round-up of new music, and we’ll let him give his own explanation of it. [And yes, we were trying to trick him, and yes, it worked.])
“Shades of… wait, what? That’s not a thing! And why is this black metal dude sending speed metal all of a sudden?”
That is how I started my latest e-mail to Islander, which contained a few recommendations about new music. I send him such e-mails from time to time, but I haven’t done so in a little while, because lately I’ve had a bit of a music backlog. So by the time I’ve gotten to the news, they have already been posted on the blog, or they’re no longer “news”. And this blog seems to cover most of what I’d recommend even if I don’t send tips as quickly as usual. It’s almost as if I’m not the only person following great labels like World Terror Committee, Iron Bonehead, Ván, etc…
This time, however, Islander wanted to post my message as a guest post on the blog, for some reason. (I think he’s trying to trick me into writing more posts for the blog.) The e-mail I sent him didn’t quite suffice as a blog post, though, so I decided to add a few more words to what was mostly a list of links to recommended music.
Now, to answer that opening question: I’ve been listening to a lot of speed metal lately, which is why this post is all about the speedy stuff. It’s not at all unlike me to listen to that kind of music, but not so much that it outweighs everything else. And coincidentally, some bits of speed metal news surfaced lately, so I thought I’d round them up here. Well, not all of it is news at this point, but none of it has been featured on the blog, so you’re getting it anyway. Let’s go through them in order of newsiness:
DUNGEON STEEL
“Bloodlust” is the title of the feverish debut EP from this Ecuadorian speed metal band, which was released on Signal Rex on Friday. After an airy, three-minute intro, the EP breaks out into a 17-minute long cascade of filthy speed metal chock-full of squealing guitars, frenzied percussion. and pestiferous vocals. This EP is sure to liven up your day, so turn up the volume and let yourself loose. If you prefer to be grumpy, however, this EP is not something for you.
BANDCAMP:
https://dungeonsteel.bandcamp.com/
WRAITH
The thing about speed metal is that even at its most straightforward, it can still be severely headbang-inducing. That is certainly the case with Wraith, who aren’t veering off the beaten path with the teaser track from their upcoming album, Undo the Chains, scheduled for release by Redefining Darkness on September 24. It’s Wraith, it’s speed metal; you know what it will sound like, and you know it’s going to be good. (And if you don’t know what to expect, their pandemic-infused EP from last year will help you with that.) So plunge yourself into their new track, “Cloaked in Black“, to shorten the wait for the album.
BANDCAMP:
https://wraith-us.bandcamp.com/
https://wraith219.bandcamp.com/
FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/wraiththrash
BONEHUNTER
The filthy, Finnish amalgamation of punk, thrash and black metal that is Bonehunter fits perfectly on just about any party playlist you would want. (Well, maybe not a playlist with clean vocals exclusively, but here you are at “No Clean Singing“, so I’m guessing that an “all clean singing” playlist is already off the table.) Now they are back with another song for that playlist – and soon an entire new album (Dark Blood Reincarnation System), scheduled for release on August 20. You can indulge your ears with the new song, “Black Magic M16“, in the player below, but first make sure you have enough space for all the headbanging, kicking and thrashing about that you will undoubtedly be doing.
BANDCAMP:
https://bonehuntermetal.bandcamp.com/album/dark-blood-reincarnation-system
FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/bonehuntermetal/
PHANTOM FIRE
This is an older bit of news, from late April this year, which is when this new band from Bergen, Norway released their debut 7″, Return of the Goat. The two tracks that make up this mini-release have a total playing time of less than six minutes, which will likely leave you wanting more. Fortunately this 7″ seems to only be a teaser for an upcoming album, titled The Bust of Beelzebub, although no release date has been published yet. In the meantime you can shorten the wait by listening to the 7″ and its relentless rhythms on repeat.
BANDCAMP:
https://edgedcircleproductions.bandcamp.com/album/return-of-the-goat
FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/PhantomFireOfficial
SCHIZOPHRENIA
This isn’t even news at all – in fact it’s so old it actually predates the pandemic. Ah, those were the days! Nevertheless, I only just discovered this Belgian band and their debut EP from January of 2020, so I thought I might include it in this roundup. It’s more on the death metal side than the previous entries, but if you’re like me, you’ll also appreciate the fast-paced bludgeoning that this band delivers. The EP, titled Voices (which perfectly fits the band name), is embedded below and waiting for you to headbang your brain out of your skull.
BANDCAMP:
https://schizophreniaband.bandcamp.com/
FACEBOOK:
https://www.facebook.com/Schizophrenia.Officialband/