OVERFLOWING STREAMS FOR YOUR SATURDAY: TRIPTYKON, MYSTRAS, SERMENT, DISAVOWED, SEWER TRENCH, GRUZJA, THE MONOLITH DEATHCULT, LORD OF THE LOST, SCARY BUSEY, THREADBARE

 Exceptions to the Rule, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  1 Response »
May 162020
 

 

I hope your weekend is treating you well. Because I didn’t over-do things during my usual Friday night virtual happy hours, I was able to spend some time catching up with new songs and videos this morning, and I picked these to share with you. It’s an eclectic mix, even by the standards that I usually apply to these round-ups in an effort to ensure variety (and to keep our visitors off-balance). Lots of videos in this particular collection, too.

TRIPTYKON (Switzerland)

To lead off, here’s a video of a live performance by Triptykon of “Rex Irae” from Celtic Frost’s Into the Pandemonium. The song is the first movement in the “Requiem” trilogy, which also includes “Grave” (performed for the first time at the same concert where this video was filmed) and “Winter” (which first appeared on Monotheist).

The performance of all three movements of “Requiem” took place at Roadburn 2019, and Triptykon was accompanied by the Metropole Orkest, by Hannes Grossmann on drums, and by vocalist Safa Heraghi. The orchestration was composed by Alkaloid and Dark Fortress frontman Florian “Morean” Maier, working with Tom G. Warrior. Continue reading »

OUR LIST OF 2014’S MOST INFECTIOUS EXTREME METAL SONGS: PART 24

 MOST INFECTIOUS SONGS-2014  9 Responses »
Jan 232015
 

For those of you (if any) who’ve been following this series like bloodhounds on a fox’s trail, you will have noticed that I missed adding entries for the last two days. I was more distracted than usual (usually I’m distracted by things like passing cars and the need to chase them), but let’s forget about the explanations and just forge ahead.

For more details about what this list is all about and how it was compiled, read the introductory post via this link. For the other songs we’ve previously named to the list, go here.

TRIPTYKON

The next song I’m adding to the list is “Aurorae” from Triptykon’s Melana Chasmata. I’m adding it not just because of the gripping drum beats or the gravelly riffs or the lead guitar chimes or the transfixing solo or the transfixing vocals or the vivid atmosphere of the song. In addition to all that, in addition to the music’s infectiousness, there’s this: Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (Part 3): TRIPTYKON, WINTERFYLLETH, 1349, OBLITERATIONS

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  7 Responses »
Aug 072014
 

Jet-setter that I am, I’m on the road again this week in my old hometown of Austin, Texas. Until last night I haven’t had as much time as usual to check out new music or write about it. I missed a lot, and am trying to catch up before having to leave the world of metal for the rest of today.

I discovered so many things I want to bring to your attention that I’ve divided them into three parts, this being the third (Part 1 is here and Part 2 is here).

TRIPTYKON

Triptykon’s new album Melana Chasmata is proving to be one of the year’s favorites for me. The band have apparently made two music videos for the album, the first of which has now been premiered by Decibel magazine. It’s for the song called “Aurorae“, and it was directed by Philipp Hirsch (who previously did the video for Triptykon’s “Shatter”). Continue reading »

TRIPTYKON: “MELANA CHASMATA”

 Album Reviews  8 Responses »
Apr 102014
 

(Here we have TheMadIsraeli’s review of the highly anticipated second album by Triptykon.)

For my tastes, there hasn’t been a tome of brutal filth as drenched in its own misery and occult sense of violence since Triptykon released their debut album Eparistera Daimones in 2010.  Triptykon so effectively epitomize the manifold attractions of metal and why people love the music so intensely.  The sound they produce is so dark, so dank, so utterly revolting and devastating, yet so diverse.

I fell in love with the combination of styles Tom G. Warrior started messing around with on Celtic Frost’s swansong Monotheist, and enjoyed Triptykon’s debut immensely, as simply a continuation of the sound found there.  Triptykon are the only band I can think of who have managed to mix thrash metal, doom metal, goth metal, and death metal into something that sounds like all and none of those styles at the same time.

Now here we finally have Melana Chasmata, Warrior’s second outing with this band.  He had a fuck ton of hype to live up to, given how near-flawless the debut was.  He’d have to make a record so utterly suffocated by its own personal demons that listeners could feel the voices starting to creep into their heads and begin wishing for psyche meds — and he succeeded.  Listening to this record may make you feel like you’re trying to break your way out of a strait jacket in the most feral and desperate manner possible. Continue reading »

LISTEN TO TWO NEW TRIPTYKON SONGS: “BREATHING” AND “BOLESKINE HOUSE”

 Metal News  3 Responses »
Mar 142014
 

In early February, Century Media announced that it and Prowling Death Records Ltd. intended to release the second album by Triptykon on April 14 in Europe and April 15 in North America. The title is Melana Chasmata, which according to Century Media means (roughly) “black, deep depressions/valleys”. It will feature nine songs and a playing time of around 67 minutes. The cover art is above, and yes, we have yet another pairing of HR Giger and Triptykon. And now we’re pleased as fuck to bring you a stream of two album tracks: “Breathing” and “Boleskin House”.

“Breathing” is absolutely bruising and massively headbangable (massively). The riffs are titanic, V. Santura turns in a screaming guitar solo, and Tom G Warrior sounds like Tom G Warrior and no other. Of its own accord, this chugfest of a song vaulted right onto our list of candidates for 2014’s most infectious extreme metal songs.

“Boleskin House” comes next, and it’s something else altogether — a slow, rumbling, grinding, bleak behemoth that lumbers and stomps, with a change in vocal style and a fat load of tribal drumming, concrete-scraping bass leads, and psychedelic guitar melody. And still… it’s massively headbangable, too. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: TRIPTYKON AND MORDBRAND

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  12 Responses »
Feb 072014
 

Due to the demands of your humble editor’s fucking day job, we will be a little light on the content at NCS today. We will have this little round-up, a show report from Umeå, Sweden, and (I hope) one more installment in our list of 2013’s Most Infectious Extreme Metal Songs — and that will probably be it. So, to start, here are two items of interest that I commend to your attention.

TRIPTYKON

This morning, Century Media announced that it and Prowling Death Records Ltd. will release the second album by Triptykon on April 14 in Europe and April 15 in North America. The title is Melana Chasmata, which according to Century Media means (roughly) “black, deep depressions/valleys”. It will feature nine songs and a playing time of around 67 minutes. The cover art is above, and yes, we have yet another pairing of HR Giger and Triptykon.

For me, Triptykon’s first album Eparistera Daimones (2010) was a grower rather than an immediate love interest. But come on, how could you not get a bit tingly with anticipation over new music from Tom G Warrior and V. Santura? Continue reading »

NEW TRIPTYKON ALBUM COMING IN 2014

 Metal News  4 Responses »
Oct 252013
 

This morning my comrade Andy Synn passed along a link to this press release from a few days ago. You can of course read it for yourselves, but here’s an executive summary, because we are your humble servants and you are our executives.

Triptykon, for those executives who have been living in caves since 2008, is the band formed by ex-Hellhammer/Celtic Frost singer, guitarist, and main songwriter Tom G Warrior, and its lineup also includes V Santura (Dark Fortress).  To date, they’ve released one album, 2010’s Eparistera Daimones. Today the band announced that a second album, entitled Melana Chasmata, will be released on April 14, 2014, in Europe and April 15 in North America, through a collaboration between the group’s own label, Prowling Death Records Ltd., and Century Media Records.

The album has been recorded “intermittently” since 2011, with engineering handled by V Santura. According to the press release, “The album’s title may be translated, approximately, as ‘black, deep depressions/valleys'”. And here’s a quote about the album from Tom G Warrior: Continue reading »

AN NCS INTERVIEW: V SANTURA (DARK FORTRESS, TRIPTYKON)

 Interviews  1 Response »
Nov 302012
 

photo credit: Natasha Xavier

We’re delighted to present here Andy Synn’s recent interview of famed guitarist and producer V Santura (Dark Fortress, Triptykon).

Before we get into the interview I’d like to extend my sincere thanks to Victor (V. Santura) for answering the questions I sent to him, which were originally written to be asked and answered during the UK leg of the band’s current tour. Despite the delay I really appreciate how he engaged with the interview and worked with the material.

I’d also like to thank Stefan for helping set this up, since (as you all know) Dark Fortress are amongst my favourite bands. So thank you Stefan!

********  

Firstly, how is the tour going?

Well, what shall I say? I guess it’s a typical UK underground tour which means it is not exactly the glamorous rock-star dream coming true, haha. Sometimes the circumstances are a bit “adventurous”, but no matter how many people are attending the shows, the reactions of the audiences are fantastic. I also have the feeling that the band is very well in shape at the moment. Personally I enjoy playing live a lot and shows like the one in London for example had something truly magic. It’s those moments why you are doing all of this.

 

How are you finding your UK tour mates?

Very good, both bands have strong material. I’ve been in contact with Ethereal for a while and even know some unreleased song ideas. And I know Wilson from Saturnian since several years. Nevertheless I have to say that Saturnian kind of blew me away with their tight and super professional musicianship. I also like their album a lot. Go and buy it! Continue reading »

INFERNO FESTIVAL 2012 – DAY 1 – ANAAL NATHRAKH, THE KONSORTIUM, 1349, TRIPTYKON, BORKNAGAR

 Concert Reviews  9 Responses »
Apr 112012
 

(Our man Andy Synn attended the INFERNO FESTIVAL in Oslo, Norway, on April 4-7, 2012, and here’s his review of the first day’s inferno.)

Running a little late, the first band of Inferno Festival 2012 for me was, somewhat ironically, a band from just down the road from my own home. Anaal Nathrakh were, as always, a nasty proposition in the flesh, delivering some seriously abusive blasting accented by Dave Hunt’s tormented screams and regal singing voice. Definite highlights were the annihilating (and deceptively melodic) “Satanarchist” and the unforgiving mindfuck of “Pandemonic Hyperblast”, the band seemingly focusing on their more unrelenting material this time out.

Tonight’s show was noticeably (and unusually) sloppier than I’m used to, with a few obvious errors in timing and tightness evident to the familiar listener. This was all explained though, with Dave Hunt educating the crowd on the shittiness of US border control who had failed to allow his cohort Mick Kenney over to Oslo for the show, leaving them to conscript a last minute stand-in guitarist, whom the extreme pressure understandably left ill at ease.

Even more pissed off than usual, at one point the band’s ever-volatile frontman, responding to an ill-advised heckle from the crowd, verbally confronted his abuser, saying that although he didn’t “want to sound like Phil Anselmo”, he was in no mood to take shit from anyone after the band put all the effort into pulling together and making it over to Inferno despite these last minute setbacks. Despite its problems, this set proved that nothing short of total global extinction can stop the march of Anaal Nathrakh. Continue reading »

HIT AND RUN

 Album Reviews  No Responses »
Mar 282010
 

Not long ago, we confessed on this site the reason why we so rarely post negative reviews about new music. It’s not because we like everything we hear (though undoubtedly some readers think we’re too easily impressed). It’s because we’re devoted to extreme metal and we’d rather sing its praises than spend our time slagging hard-working bands whose music doesn’t happen to zap the right chords in our addled brains.

The problem is that sometimes we hit a stretch of listening where, by sheer chance, we go through several albums in a row that don’t strike those chords — and then we’re out of time. We’re under self-imposed pressure to get something new up on this site, but we just don’t have any new music we can honestly praise at that moment. So then what the fuck do we do? We post pictures of catz. Or woodpeckers.

We hit one of those stretches the last couple of days. So, what to do? We were thinking about pictures of toads (don’t breathe sighs of relief too quickly — we might still do that eventually). But this time, with apologies to all our toad lovers, we’re trying something new. Just for a change, we’ll say a few brief words about those albums we heard recently that, by random chance, just didn’t get us all hot and bothered. They’re not bad. In fact, the musicians are extremely talented, and there’s parts of them we think are pretty fucking cool. But on the whole? Not music we’re likely to listen to a second time, given our tastes.

So, after the jump, hit-and-run comments about Triptykon (pictured above), Ne Obliviscaris, and Persefone.  And just so you can form your own conclusions, we’ll give you a song to hear from each album — because this really comes down to a matter of personal preference.  (continue reading after the jump . . .) Continue reading »