AN NCS PREMIERE: DEIPHAGO — “I, THE DEVIL”

 Premieres  No Responses »
Apr 012019
 

 

“Avant-garde” might not be the first adjective that springs to most people’s minds in thinking about Deiphago. “Bestial”, “violent”, and “Satanic” might come first. But this band’s music completely fits the definition of “avant-garde”, which applies to works that are experimental, radical, or unorthodox, characterized by nontraditional aesthetic innovation and a dedication to pushing the boundaries of what is accepted as the norm.

All of those qualities apply to Deiphago’s music, but never more so than in the case of their new album I, The Devil. Of course, the music is also bestial, violent, and Satanic. And of all the songs on this remarkable new album, perhaps none of them captures all these sensations as powerfully as the title track, which we present today in advance of the record’s April 30 release by Hells Headbangers. Continue reading »

SHADES OF BLACK (PART 1): DEIPHAGO, SXUPERION, CALYX, VOËMMR

 SHADES OF BLACK  5 Responses »
Mar 102019
 

 

I didn’t lose an hour of sleep last night. I just feel less moronic because I woke up at 4:30 a.m. on a Sunday morning instead of 3:30 a.m. Thank you Daylight Savings Time.

Of course, I’ll still feel like shit when it hits me around mid-afternoon that I only got 5 1/2 hours of sleep on one of the few nights of the week when I could have gotten 8 or 9. On the other hand, being awake so early does mean that I have extra time for this Sunday column, enough extra time that I can write a two-parter before having to deal with the rest of my life. Hopefully, my moronic misery becomes your savage pleasure.

DEIPHAGO

Deiphago describe their music as “Experimental Hyper-speed Satanic Bestial Metal” — and every word of that is true. As I’ve written before, their music doesn’t sound like anything else you’re likely to find in the realms of black metal or black/death. It viciously shoves us out of our musical comfort zones; it’s likely to leave most listeners bewildered and bedazzled (or at least severely unbalanced). Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: DEIPHAGO, PHRENELITH, DEFY THE CURSE, ULTHA, LASCAR

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  1 Response »
Sep 212018
 

 

This has been another banner week for new metal, and fortunately I’ve had enough time to compile one more round-up to follow the one from two days ago. Of course, even the combination of the two doesn’t provide a comprehensive display of everything I’ve been enjoying this week. As usual, the choices I’ve made were impulsive, though I also made the usual effort to include variety in today’s post.

I also hope this late-week collection will make up for the fact that I won’t be writing anything for NCS this weekend because I’ll be traveling on a short vacation. However, we should still have a Waxing Lyrical column from Andy tomorrow, and our ally HGD has stepped up to do Sunday’s Shades of Black feature (I’ve seen his selections, and they’re good ones). I’ll be back in the NCS harness on Monday.

DEIPHAGO

Deiphago describe their music as “Experimental Hyper-speed Satanic Bestial Metal” — and every word of that is true, perhaps never more so than on the track I’ve chosen to begin today’s collection. It simply doesn’t sound like anything else you’re likely to find in the realms of black metal or black/death. It challenges convention, it viciously shoves us out of our musical comfort zones, it’s likely to leave you bewildered and bedazzled (or at least severely unbalanced). Continue reading »

SHADES OF BLACK: LEVIATHAN, DEIPHAGO, HOTH, GRÁ, TOMUSZ

 Album Reviews, SHADES OF BLACK  6 Responses »
Apr 082018
 

 

I’m deep in the heart of Texas today for my fucking day-job, and will be deep in the heart of Philadelphia tomorrow for the same reason, but in the meantime I’ve managed to cobble together some streams of new music from the black realms, and some thoughts about each selection.

LEVIATHAN

It may be my imagination, but it seems that more and more bands who have a devout following are choosing to spring their new releases without much warning or PR assistance. That’s what Leviathan did one week ago, with the release of Unfailing Fall Into Naught through Ascension Monuments Media.

This new album is a compilation of tracks previously released in other formats. It includes Leviathan’s contributions to a 2004 split CD with Xasthur (released by Profound Lore Records) and a 2006 split with Sapthuran (released by Battle Kommand Records, and then later released by Southern Lord in 2007 as a stand-alone Leviathan EP called The Blind Wound). Continue reading »

INDEPENDENCE DAY (HANGOVER) METAL: DEIPHAGO, DEMONA, MAJESTIC DOWNFALL, SOURCES OF I, NO TRUST, ANOPHELI

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  8 Responses »
Jul 052015
 

 

I wrote most of this post yesterday and then got side-tracked trying to deal with the technical problems inflicted on our glorious site by scum-sucking spammers. And then when I’d done all I knew to do, I spent the rest of the day and the night celebrating The Fourth. Rather than start over on this post, I just added one word to the title and wrapped it up this morning.

I checked our Google Analytics data yesterday, and it confirmed what I’ve suspected: Over the last year, only 40% of the total visits to our site have come from people in the United States. And that means that the for the majority of people likely to pop in today, July 4 was just another Saturday. Continue reading »

DEIPHAGO: “RED DRAGON OF CHAOS”

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  5 Responses »
May 262015
 

 

It’s really not fair to all the other bands around the world who have been drenching their arms in the blood pool of black/death. When Deiphago unleash their brand of red dragon chaos, you just have to shake your head. How do you keep up with something like this?

I was lucky to hear this new Deiphago song — “Red Dragon of Chaos” — many weeks ago and I meant to write about it the moment I was free to do so. But when it finally became public I was just beginning my Maryland Deathfest XIII sojourn and missed the news. Better late than never, I hope.

Speaking of MDF, I discovered that Hells Headbangers was selling the new Deiphago album that includes this song at their MDF merch tent, more than two months in advance of its official release. By the time I got my ass in gear and visited the HH installation, only two CD copies were left. And then there were none, though one came home with me to Seattle. And speaking further of MDF, I think enough time has passed since Deiphago’s last appearance there in 2013 that they should be invited to return next year, especially because I didn’t make the trip in 2013. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: DEIPHAGO, DOOMAS, IRREVERSIBLE MECHANISM, IZAH, SOLSTICE

 Exceptions to the Rule, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  3 Responses »
Dec 302014
 

 

I’ve fallen a bit behind in my efforts to collect news items and new songs I think are worthy of attention. There was some holiday recently that proved to be a distraction, plus I’ve been spending time on year-end lists of one kind or another. So this collection includes items of interest I spotted over the last 4 or 5 days, presented in alphabetical order, along with a recommendation from NCS contributor Grant Skelton at the end.

DEIPHAGO

I checked — 18 months have passed since the last time I wrote about Deiphago, reviewing the vinyl edition of a 2012 split release they did with Ritual Combat. But as far as I can tell, that split was the last recording these Filipino marauders released, and we’re now more than two years on from their last full-length, the devastating Satan Alpha Omega. Therefore, I’m really pleased to report that Deiphago have recently finished recording a new album with producer Colin Marston that should see release early next year on the Hells Headbangers label.

The name of the album is Into the Eye of Satan, and the cover art by Axel Hermann (above) is a real eye-catcher.

I have no music to share with you yet, only high hopes for a highly anticipated assault of blackened death metal. Continue reading »

SHORT BUT SWEET: DEIPHAGO AND RITUAL COMBAT — “ACCEPT THE MARK”

 Album Reviews, SHORT BUT SWEET  2 Responses »
Jul 122013
 

Last fall a U.S. label named Red Stream Inc. made a limited CD release of a split entitled Accept the Mark by two sonically destructive bands — Deiphago and Ritual Combat. Now, the German label Iron Bonehead Productions is on the verge of giving the split the vinyl treatment, and that gave me the opportunity to hear the split for the first time. Here are some thoughts about it, plus the chance for you to hear one track from each band’s two contributions (we thank Iron Bonehead for giving us permission to do this).

DEIPHAGO

Deiphago, who we’ve written about repeatedly in the past, were initially what caught my interest in this release. Originally from The Philippines and now based in Costa Rica, they’ve mastered the art of inflicting black/death musical assaults that are both incinerating and transfixing. Their 2012 full-length Satan Alpha Omega was one of the best in this genre that I heard last year, and their two songs on Accept the Mark are just as compelling.

“Beast of Annihilation” is an original song that will eat you alive from the head down. It’s a mass of uber-distorted, vicious riffing, snare-heavy beats, and reverberating bestial barks and howls. Massive bass vibrations segment the maelstrom in brief slowdowns, and a shrieking solo tunnels into your skull like an overheated drill. It’s an eviscerating, brain-slamming experience. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: MESHUGGAH, ENSLAVED, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, ERIC CUTLER (AUTOPSY), MARK RIDDICK, MITOCHONDRION, AND DEIPHAGO

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  5 Responses »
Nov 132012
 

Here’s a collection of items that came my way over the last 24 hours that I thought were worth sharing — in addition to all of the awesome posts that already graced the site yesterday.  (I can use the words “awesome” and “graced” without tarnishing my well-known reputation for humility because I’m not directly responsible for any of ysterday’s posts, even though this post will also be awesome.)

TOURISM: MESHUGGAH AND ENSLAVED

I saw via Heavy Blog Is Heavy the rumor that Meshuggah will be touring the U.S. along with Animals As Leaders and Intronaut early next year. The rumor is based on a flyer for a date in Minneapolis that you can see above.Yes please.

That same photo up there also provides evidence of another tour that I read about previously. This one is official: Norway’s Enslaved will be returning to the U.S. and Canada in early 2013 for a headlining, 20-show “Winter Rite” tour joined by U.S. doom metallers Pallbearer and occult rockers Ancient VVisdom (and both of those bands are killers).

The tour begins January 30 in Philadelphia and ends February 22 in New York City. The full schedule can be seen after the jump. And in case you missed our earlier post yesterday, Osmose Productions has just uploaded three older Enslaved albums for streaming and download on Bandcamp for the first time. Continue reading »

HAPPY FUCKING MONDAY

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  6 Responses »
Sep 242012
 

I’m sure there are exceptions, but if Monday’s are awesome for you, please keep it to yourself so I can wallow in the misery of a new work week without having the suck factor multiplied.

About all I can say for Monday’s is that they go down better with metal, which is sort of like saying that a fresh dog turd tastes better when it’s wrapped in crisp bacon and smothered in peanut butter, though that’s probably a true statement, too, except of course I don’t have direct personal knowledge of that because I’ve never been that hungry or that high.

Where was I?  Oh yeah, Monday’s suck but they go down better with metal. I do have personal experience of that. Today, in fact, I am having such an experience, thanks to Deiphago, Valdur, and Ade. All this music is so bestial that it makes this Monday seem like a cute fluffy kitty by comparison.

DEIPHAGO

Satan Alpha Omega is a hell of a record. I mean that literally — it’s metal hell, as good an example of being burned by sonic fire as you’re likely to find this year, an unrelenting storm of molten black/death that moves at the speed of a pyroclastic flow and is just as unstoppable. Despite (or maybe because of) how utterly ferocious the music is, I found it utterly gripping.

If you haven’t heard it yet, it’s now streaming for a limited time at Zero Tolerance magazine’s web site (here). [UPDATE: Thanks to NCS reader JC, I now know that it’s also streaming on Bandcamp, so I’m adding that player to this post right after the jump.] If you survive the experience and you like what you hear, Satan Alpha Omega can be ordered in various physical formats through Hells Headbangers, and it’s downloadable at Bandcamp, iTunes, and Amazon mp3. Find Deiphago on Facebook here. Continue reading »

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