Creeping Ivy

So let it be written

Necrofier – Transcend into Oblivion Review

By Creeping Ivy on February 23, 2026 in Reviews, Black Metal, Melodic Black Metal, 30 comments

“Houston’s Necrofier first came on my radar when they played the 2024 Decibel Magazine Tour with Hulder, Devil Master, and Worm. Sadly, I missed their opening set, but gladly, I caught a recording of it on YouTube. Their raucous, crowd-pleasing performance compelled me to check out their recordings. At 36 minutes, debut Prophecies of Eternal Darkness (2021) is a lean, mean barrage of melodic black metal, while Burning Shadows in the Southern Night (2023) ups the ante with 47 minutes of stronger, more polished material. Necrofier’s (lone?) star seems to be on the rise since Decibel 2024, as their third album arrives on the mighty Metal Blade Records.” Necro is the new 6-7.

Sleeping Giant – The Beauty of Obliteration Review

By Creeping Ivy on February 20, 2026 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Sludge Metal, Stoner Metal, 22 comments

“”Sleeping Giant” was always a standout song for me on Mastodon’s Blood Mountain. After two thrashy, pummeling tracks, “Sleeping Giant” slows the pace and ups the atmosphere, doling out chunky riffs and creepy leads. Its name aptly captures its role on Blood Mountain, feeling like the stirrings of an album (and a band) with gigantic aspirations. Speaking of slow risers, Iceland’s Sleeping Giant has finally roused for their first LP after forming in 2006.” Giant-sized shoes to fill.

Hällas – Panorama Review

By Creeping Ivy on January 29, 2026 in Reviews, Hard Rock, Progressive Rock, Psychedelic Rock, 129 comments

“Hällas—Sweden’s self-styled administrators of ‘adventure rock’—has suffered a nearly decade-long absence from AMG. Back in 2017, El Cuervo (rightly) awarded Excerpts from a Future Past a 4.0, praising the debut for its transportive aesthetic and cohesive performances. Since this one-off review, Hällas has become a premier neo- proto-metal act, yet they haven’t reached the exceptionality of their entrance.” Adventure rock or butt stock?

Moon Wisdom – Let Water Flow Review

By Creeping Ivy on January 20, 2026 in Reviews, Black Metal, Punk, Shoegaze, 33 comments

“Metal Fatigue is not a moral failing: it is a physiological phenomenon, befalling even the most honorable of headbangers. Though traditional metal can tire in its own way, Metal Fatigue mostly lurks on the severe side of the genre. Too often, extreme metal exhausts by coupling sonic monotony with album lengths more appropriate for episodes of prestige television. Given my own struggles with Metal Fatigue, I was intrigued to see Let Water Flow—a 28-minute black metal record from Moon Wisdom—sitting in the sump.” Waterborn or waterlogged?

Bygone – Bygone Review

By Creeping Ivy on January 7, 2026 in Reviews, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, Psychedelic Rock, 50 comments

“Being a non-native Bostonian in Beantown allows me to exercise a dispassionate objectivity towards the city’s musical culture. I vicariously experience the pride of housing The Pixies but don’t feel the shame of inhabiting Aerosmith Land. And yet, I’m always curious about local artists who can obliterate this objectivity, making me feel proud of Boston. Bygone, a heavy metal/hard rock sextet, may be able to liberate my revolutionary heart from its Tory shackles.” Wicked haad music.

Weeping Sores – The Convalescence Agonies [Things You Might Have Missed 2025]

By Creeping Ivy on December 12, 2025 in Things You Might Have Missed 2025, Death Doom, Death Metal, Doom Metal, 25 comments

“Pleasure—as Judas Priest, sadomasochists, and Flagellants teach us—can be found in pain. Doug Moore and Stephen Schwegler, the guitar/drum duo behind Weeping Sores, also teach this lesson with The Convalescence Agonies. As its title suggests, the sophomore Weeping Sores album chronicles Moore’s recovery from a shoulder injury that, quite unfortunately, prevented him from playing guitar. Quite fortunately for us, Moore sublimates his agony into the listener’s ecstasy with The Convalescence Agonies.” Art requires pain.

Pale Horse Ritual – Diabolic Formation Review

By Creeping Ivy on November 25, 2025 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Psychedelic Rock, Stoner Metal, 11 comments

“2025 must have been a challenging year to occupy the Sabbath-worship lane. Ozzy’s passing on July 22nd—seventeen days after the Back to the Beginning concert—hit metaldom hard, but it surely hit harder for bands that treat Master of Reality as a sacred text. Videos from the concert, especially of a throned Ozzy performing one last time with the original Sabbath lineup, provide solace, as do covers from legends like Metallica and Slayer. Tragically, 2025 has revitalized Sabbath; Sabbath-inspired bands walk a tightrope of honoring the original and wilting under its renascence. Merging into the Sabbath lane late in the year is Pale Horse Ritual, a Canadian quartet.” Take a walk on the Ozz side.

Monograf – Occultation Review

By Creeping Ivy on November 13, 2025 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Drone, Folk, Progressive Metal, 8 comments

“In the world of academia, the ‘monograph’ reigns supreme. A book-length study of a single subject, a monograph should synthesize essay-length analyses into one argument that contributes something new to the scholar’s field. To analogize the world of music to academia: the monograph stands in for the album, demonstrating an artist’s ability to cohere individual songs into one holistic listen. Monograf, a Norwegian post-rock collective, published its first monograph in 2019. Nadir made a novel contribution to post-rock by adding Norwegian folk music to soundscapes reminiscent of Godspeed You! Black Emperor.” Book smart vs. garage smart.

Revenge – Night Danger Review

By Creeping Ivy on October 25, 2025 in Reviews, Heavy Metal, Speed Metal, 17 comments

“Like all subgenres, speed metal exists at the nexus of other genres: namely, classic heavy metal and thrash. Whether a band leans towards a classic or thrashy version of the sound becomes the primary distinguisher. Night Danger, the latest LP from longstanding Colombian band Revenge, is a speed metal record in the vein of Running Wild and Razor. But Revenge leans in a classic direction, claiming Judas Priest and Helloween as inspirations.” Night danger is the best danger.

Harvest — For the Souls We Have Lost Review

By Creeping Ivy on October 14, 2025 in Reviews, Death Doom, Doom Metal, 16 comments

“Since nostalgia drives the creation and consumption of so much contemporary metal, metalheads might be interested in its etymology. A borrowing from post-classical Latin that combines the ancient Greek νόστος (‘return home’) and ‑αλγία (‘pain’), ‘nostalgia’ meant something like a pathologized homesickness when it came into English usage in the eighteenth century. So if you’re nostalgic for, say, the gothic doom metal of the 1990s, then 90s gothic doom is your musical home, your longing for this home rises to the level of a physical ailment, and Harvest may have the cure. A new Italian quintet, Harvest describes itself as an earnest tribute to bands like My Dying Bride, Paradise Lost, and Katatonia.” Peaceville to the world.