Sludge

Acidsloth – Acidsloth Review

By Thus Spoke on July 7, 2025 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Post-Metal, Sludge, 22 comments

“Can you guess what genre Acidsloth plays? Yes, that’s right, it’s thrash! Ok, no, obviously not, it’s stoner doom—what else with a name that’s a portmanteau of a drug and a notoriously slow-moving animal? Kicking around since 2021, Kraków’s Acidsloth already have two LPs to their name, but it’s their third that they bestow the honor of being self-titled. The reason is that this time, they’re a “full band” (to use their own terminology), totaling eight(!) musicians, five of whom perform vocals.” The hateful 8 and the danger sloth.

Blood Vulture – Die Close Review

By Saunders on July 6, 2025 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Sludge, 16 comments

“Corpse-painted host and comedian of metal show Two Minutes to Late Night, Jordan Olds (aka Gwarsenio Hall), spearheaded some nifty entertainment during the height of the pandemic. Snapping up the limited release digital covers EPs during Bandcamp Fridays allowed me to net some cool stuff. Olds and a host of musicians, including Chelsea Wolfe and members of Dillinger Escape Plan, Mastodon, Mutoid Man, Royal Thunder, and Baroness amongst others, put their wacky spin on a variety of metal anthems and other classic tunes.” Olds, borrowed, and blue.

Stuck in the Filter: April 2025’s Angry Misses

By Kenstrosity on June 30, 2025 in Stuck in the Filter, Black Metal, Death Metal, Hardcore, Mathcore, Melodic Black Metal, post-punk, Sludge, Sludge Metal, Thrash Metal, 49 comments

The April Filters are now fully de-scuzzified. You can approach and examine the scuzz flotsam.

When the Deadbolt Breaks – In the Glow of the Vatican Fire Review

By ClarkKent on June 26, 2025 in Reviews, Avant-Garde, Doom Metal, Sludge, 16 comments

“When the Deadbolt Breaks is a name designed to elicit feelings of horror. It could be the mundane horror of needing to shell out cash to replace a busted deadbolt, or the life-and-death horror of the deadbolt snapping while you’re trying to lock out a deadly assailant. This fits with the band’s exploration into unsettling music that evokes psychological horror. In the Glow of the Vatican Fire marks album number seven in the 20-year career of these Connecticut doom-slingers.” Double bolt or die.

Row of Ashes – Tide into Ruin Review

By Owlswald on June 19, 2025 in Reviews, Noise Rock, Post-Hardcore, Sludge, 12 comments

“Bristol post-hardcore group, Row of Ashes, likes to make noise—and they’re good at it. Known for their untamed live energy and drawing heavily from revered acts like Unsane, Will Haven, and Kowloon Walled City, Row of Ashes crafts an unyielding and suffocating wall of sound; one that fuses post-hardcore and sludge together with the experimental, dissonant fringes of noise rock. After releasing two EPs, their raw, physical force exploded onto the scene with 2022’s Bleaching Heat, a ruthless debut that earned them a tour with Will Haven. Now standing on the brink of broader recognition, Row of Ashes is ready to unleash Tide into Ruin, their second post-hardcore punch designed to be as overpowering and instinctual as their live performances.” What walks behind the rows?

Witchrot – Soul Cellar Review

By Tyme on May 22, 2025 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Sludge, 29 comments

“Before snagging their new album out of the sump pit, I knew next to nothing about Ontario, Canada’s Witchrot. It turns out the band gained a fair amount of notoriety in 2018, after releasing just one EP, when co-founder and original bassist Peter Turik posted an unexpected message on Facebook announcing the band was taking an ‘extended hiatus,’ revealing his girlfriend of seven years had slept with the guitarist. And that, oh, yeah, in a grave, Spinal Tapish post-script, Witchrot’s drummer had died.” Witch in the system.

Gigafauna – Eye to Windward Review

By Kenstrosity on May 16, 2025 in Reviews, Progressive Metal, Sludge, Sludge Metal, 61 comments

“Established in 2015, Swedish progressive sludge quartet Gigafauna toiled in obscurity, releasing a couple of albums and marching bravely forward into a heavily contested field. This is the first time they’ve graced our little corner of the blogosphere, reaching out to us via our contact form, pushing their third record Eye to Windward. Equipped with a gorgeous cover by the largely unsung Moonroot Art, what otherworldly creatures lie before me in Gigafauna’s Eye to Windward?” Frequent wind.

Cave Sermon – Fragile Wings Review

By Thus Spoke on April 26, 2025 in Reviews, Black Metal, Death Metal, Experimental Metal, Post-Metal, Sludge, 100 comments

“For the second year in a row, I was blindsided by a silent Cave Sermon drop. At least it didn’t take me 11 months to catch up this time. Album number three, Fragile Wings, sees Charlie Parks returning as a solo act, but now handling vocals on top of everything else. This latter is a welcome development, given how well the previous record proved vocals complement and enhance the unique musical style. After Divine Laughter blew my socks off and nonchalantly pushed its way to the top half of my 2024 year-end list, a follow-up so soon filled me with a mixture of excitement and trepidation. Surely he couldn’t do it again?” Rave in the cave.

Chestcrush – ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ Review

By Tyme on April 18, 2025 in Reviews, Black Metal, Death Metal, Sludge, 28 comments

“Chestcrush is what happens when you fuck around and find out. These three blackened death dealers from Edinburgh, Scotland, formed in 2020, released their independent debut album, Vthelygmia, in 2021. That’s when Chestcrush caught my ear for the first time, penning one of my favorite songs, “Different Shepherd, Same Sheep.” After swapping original vocalist Thomas Blanc for Topias Jokipii, who debuted his wares on 2022’s Apechtheia EP, Chestcrush is back with its sophomore prüno-piss and vinegar-filled platter, ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ. Translated from Greek to mean ‘soul extractor,’ ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ metaphorically describes an experience or person that is so incredibly tormenting to you that it feels like it’s pulling your very soul out through your mouth.” Open up and say ΨΥΧΟΒΓΑΛΤΗΣ!

Mizmor & Hell – Alluvion Review

By Carcharodon on April 3, 2025 in Reviews, Black Metal, Doom Metal, Drone, Noise, Sludge, 9 comments

“A.L.N. (a.k.a. Mizmor) and M.S.W. (Hell) inhabit similar territories: geographically, the Pacific Northwest; sonically, abrasive, droning, blackened doom; and, perhaps critically, emotionally, all claustrophobic, tortured heft. Although they’ve collaborated live before, Alluvion, which refers to the sedimentary deposits left by a body of flowing water, is their first studio outing together. Billed as a map to aid the listener in navigating through bouts of psychic distress, the prone form on the cover could easily be me by the time I’m finished with this review, crushed beneath the weight of Mizmor & Hell.’s compositions, corpse abandoned on that mountainside rising from the promo sump.” A hill to die on.