“Some musicians pour all their energies into one project, shaping and molding until they’ve chiseled their own David out of sonic marble. Others, like the members of Melbourne’s Black Lava, mix aural color across different mediums, leaving different permutations of themselves in the wake. Consisting of members of Vipassi, Ne Obliviscaris, and Metalstorm, these Aussies emerged from the wilderness two years ago with Soul Furnace, a sludgy platter of death metal completely different from its associated acts. Not content to rest on their laurels, the trio has churned out their sophomore album, The Savage Winds of Wisdom two years later.” The speakers are lava.
Iceberg
Million Moons – I May Be Some Time Review
““I am just going outside and may be some time.” These were Lawrence Oates’ last words as he walked into the wild of Antarctica, crippled by frostbite and looking, purportedly, to alleviate his doomed team of the burden of his body. I May Be Some Time, the sophomore album from U.K. trio Million Moons tells the tale of the Terra Nova polar expedition through synth-heavy instrumental post-metal. Relating a story in the absence of lyrics brings with it its own difficulties, but the band had success before; 2022’s A Gap In The Clouds dealt with the chronic progression of dementia, and similarly was a wordless endeavor. Can Million Moons capture the indomitable courage and harrowing despair of the fated explorers on I May Be Some Time, or will this album ultimately perish in the icy wilderness?” Ice, ice, maybe.
Sons of Arrakis – Volume II Review
“Break out the questionable popcorn buckets everyone, we’ve got Dune-themed stoner rock inbound! Since 2019, Montreal quartet Sons of Arrakis have been preaching the Gospel of Herbert. Dropping Volume I in 2022, they made a quick turnaround with follow-up Volume II and this one managed to wriggle its way out of the sump like a determined sand trout. The promo language describes the band as “melange rock and cinematographic sci-fi rock,” but my eyes were drawn to the Black Sabbath and Queens of the Stone Age name drops.” Stone, sand, and spice, oh my!
Nightmare – Encrypted Review
“Starting out life as a classic heavy metal act, they reformed in the late ‘90s sporting a new Euro-power veneer. The addition of a rotating lineup of female vocalists in recent years has given the band a more modern, melodic direction, and Encrypted continues the path away from the Grotto of Gouda to the Cathedral of Corset. New vocalist Barbara Mogore aside, veteran bassist Yves Campion has led a mostly stable band lineup during Nightmare’s modern period, and if 2020’s Aeternam was any indication, these Frenchmen have a certain je ne sais quoi when it comes to the RIFF.” To sleep, per chance to Nightmare.
Vitskär Süden – Vessel Review
“Los Angeles County is about the last place I’d expect to find a band name Vitskär Süden, but the promo sump has been known to act like an Infinite Improbability Drive when I’m mucking around. The psych/stoner rock four-piece last graced these halls in 2022 with The Faceless King, an album that was quite favorably reviewed by our gone-but-not-forgotten Huck, a reviewer whose bands I have apparently been stalking.” Promo stalking and stoner rocking.
Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats – Nell’ Ora Blu Review
“Nell’ Ora Blu, or “the blue hour,” is a love letter to Italian cinema, particularly the Poliziotteschi (crime) and Giallo (horror) styles. While Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats are famously a four-piece fuzzy psych-rock band, the vast majority of this record was conceived, written, and performed by main brain Kevin Starrs. This is by and large an instrumental, soundtrack-adjacent album, though there are tracks on here that will remind fans it’s still Uncle Acid and the Deadbeats.” Time to pay up, Deadbeats!
Six Feet Under – Killing For Revenge Review
“Oh my, look what has fallen into my deceptively large, crystalline lap. A brand new slab of knuckle-dragging caveman death metal from USDA-certified veterans, Six Feet Under. They’ve blazed a bloody trail of resentment and glass-eating rage through these hallowed halls, rarely resting long before moving on to the next hapless victim reviewer. Said reviewer happens to be me, resident master of the masochistic arts and winner of the highly attended AMG lottery for Six Feet Under reviewing rights.” No hole too deep.
Kólga – Black Tides Review
“Texas-based Kólga bill themselves as a “blackened surf rock collective.” With a descriptor like that, and an album cover like THAT, there’s no way I could pass up on seeing what lurked beneath the Lizard People pool. Boasting members from a boatload of bands from across the spectrum (Dead to a Dying World, Cleric, Tyrannosorceress, Sabbath Assembly, to name a few) this is Kólga’s first stab at a full-length: and barely at that, running at a lithe 27 minutes. But if the band calls it an LP, then an LP it is, and a review it receives.” Surf’s up, Smurfs up.
Deception – Daenacteh Review
“Daenacteh is a melodeath record at it’s core, but augmented with so many other elements it’s become it’s own unique monster. The orchestral accompaniments, which are both omnipresent and superbly executed, seem of the Italian neo-classical school of Septicflesh and Fleshgod, but MENA-tinged like Aeternam.” The many sounds and flavors of the desert.
Iterum Nata – From The Infinite Light Review
“Another week, another genre mashup for Iceberg, the frozen fringe-dweller. After a disappointing—and apparently controversial—dive into more straightforward waters, I was excited to spy the black/neofolk/prog tag on the newest release from Finnish one-man band Iterum Nata. Jesse Heikkinen spent some time with countrymen and fellow genre-blenders Hexvessel before striking out on his own, and this will mark his fifth solo release.” Moose mania.




















