“Independent U.K. undergrounder’s, Unmother, have been holding a mirror up to urban dystopian dehumanization since forming in 2019. Their 2021 debut, Lay Down the Sun, garnered significant underground acclaim that, according to the promo kit, established Unmother “as a restless and forward-thinking presence within the scene.” Foregoing the nature-scapes and mythological motifs of other post-black metal outfits, Unmother draws inspiration from the streets and, with their sophomore effort, State Dependent Memory, examines “urban isolation, inner dislocation, and moral decline, reflecting a world formed by concrete environments and social erosion.”” Rough parenting.
Ashenspire
Maud the Moth – The Distaff Review
“We all take shape in the form that others prescribe—an embodiment that may run counter to how we see ourselves. Yet, in this world of heavy artistry whose inception rests in the bravery and drama and drive against the on-the-tracks trajectory of rock music—often too in sneer at traditional thought patterns—we search for freedom in amplified wisdom, reckless rhythms, and voices that soar above it all. Maud the Moth, in piano and vocal-based lamentations, appears to us not in the rev and leather that symbolize the traditional call of heavy metal.” Leave the lights on.
GardensTale Goes to Roadburn 2024
Roadburn is the strangest of heavy music festivals, and we had a man on the ground to get weird and report back.
Laster – Andermans Mijne Review
“What a weird band Laster is. As a name in the ever-expanding roster of strange, wailing, and skronk-toned black metal spilling off the banks of Utrecht, Netherlands, the three cloaked comrades join the ranks of other regarded underground acts like Grey Aura, Nusquama, and Verval—each featuring a Laster member no less—truly pushing the bounds of what the genre can harbor.” Laster man standing.
UKĆ – Coming Out Review
“UKĆ is the brainchild of Łukasz ‘Icanraz’ Sarnacki, a Polish artist who has knocked around the local scene for a while. Billed as “black-prog from the heart,” I was impressed by some of the early singles, and the promo pit wasn’t exactly overflowing with goodness, so I grabbed Coming Out.” Out in the cold.
Stuck in the Filter – April’s Angry Misses
April Filter scum brings May audio chum. Get yours while supplies last!
Maud the Moth + Trajedesaliva – Bordando el manto terrestre Review
“Unquestionably I spend most of my listening time browsing this site’s namesake aesthetic, but I also enjoy sticking my nose elsewhere to try to catch a whiff of what else may inspire that same special beauty in ugliness I desire. Though the Maud the Moth (Amaya López-Carromero also of healthyliving) side has a metallic line to the pleading halls of Scotland’s Ashenspire, Trajedesaliva (the duo of Mon Ninguén on synths and unavena on voice) hosts no such connection, living in their own experimental electronic ambient world.” MOAR Moth?
Anareta – Fear Not Review
“Somethin’s a brewin’ down in Nawlins, and it’s not just the festering street sludge that remains from this year’s Mardi Gras bash that has gone and passed. In fact, despite the region’s historical connection to the genre of that festering namesake, Anareta hasn’t an ounce of that groove and vitriol-fueled sound in their DNA—Fear Not comes with its own determined sense of dread and horror, though. You see, this sextet of stringed things and a drum kit play a form of gloomy and rollicking blackened metal led by the screech and saunter of a chamber orchestra trio—cello, viola, and violin fill the air of this grief-laden venture.” Crouching ferocity, hidden chamber pot.
AngryMetalGuy.com’s Aggregated Top 20 of 2022: The Never-ending Quest for Listing Perfection (ft. Plebeians)
You’ve seen all the lists, now see what the data nerds have to say about the top albums of 2022. NERDS!!!!
Saunders’ and Felagund’s Top Ten(ish) of 2022
Saunders and Felagund demand to have their Top Ten(ish) lists heard across the land. We obliged.





















