Owlswald

Feathery majestic wisdom

Desert Storm – Buried Under the Weight of Reason Review

By Owlswald on March 5, 2026 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Sludge Metal, Stoner Rock, 27 comments

“For nearly two decades, Desert Storm has stood at the cornerstone of England’s fuzz-drenched underground. One can imagine my surprise, then, to find that I claim the first review of their catalog here. The group’s maturation has been a process of trial and error, evolving from smoky, blues-soaked stoner and southern rock roots into a heftier, sludgy, doom-infused form. Despite the unevenness of the Oxford outfit’s earlier efforts—Forked Tongues and Horizontal Life—Desert Storm’s more recent output (specifically Sentinels and Omens) found that sweet spot where sludge, doom, and stoner rock collide.” Sand, storms, sludge.

Harrowed – The Eternal Hunger Review

By Owlswald on February 27, 2026 in Reviews, Death Metal, 25 comments

“I’ve kicked off this year with a good old-fashioned death binge. My putrid immersion has taken me around the world so far: first to Chile, then across the Pacific to Australia, and now back across continents to Sweden. Next up is Stockholm-based duo Harrowed. Consisting of dual-threat drummer and vocalist Adam Lindmark (ex-Morbus Chron) and guitarist/bassist Tobias Alpadie (VAK and former live guitarist for Tribulation), the pair linked up through a past project to pay homage to the SweDeath sounds of olde.” Death comes back to Sweden.

Desoration – NON Review

By Owlswald on February 18, 2026 in Reviews, Death Metal, Melodic Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 22 comments

“Self-releasing an album is a monumental effort. Between production, distribution, artwork, press, yadda yadda yadda, the logistical weight quickly consumes vast amounts of time, money and energy. And that’s before you factor in the arduous task of creating music that’s actually fucking good. Indeed, for a young band, initial encounters are everything, which means it behooves one to ensure everything is as polished and professional as possible. Desoration understands this” Self against self.

Malignant Aura – Where All of Worth Comes to Wither Review

By Owlswald on January 27, 2026 in Reviews, Death Metal, Doom Metal, 30 comments

“The marriage of death and doom is a well-trodden path, but Malignant Aura’s 2022 debut proved they had quickly mastered the formula. Abysmal Misfortune is Draped Upon Me was a crushing blend of old-school death metal (OSDM) misery and funeral desolation, establishing the Australian quartet as another worthy addition to an already vibrant scene. Now a part of the Memento Mori roster, their sophomore effort, Where All of Worth Comes to Wither, arrives to push Malignant Aura out of the nether realm and into a world all their own.” Aura Borealis.

Oraculum – Hybris Divina Review

By Owlswald on January 12, 2026 in Reviews, Death Metal, 23 comments

“New year, new beginnings. And just as my resolutions refresh and my word count resets to zero, Chilean quartet Oraculum arrives to break the seal. These connoisseurs of the “tried and true” first graced these pages more than ten years ago with their counter-breaking EP, Sorcery of the Damned—back when EPs still qualified for regular reviews outside of our now annual EP/Split/Single Roundups. That initial offering was a grim manifesto on old-school death metal (OSDM), forging deathly Incantations into a sharp, lethal slab of barbaric hostility.” Olde but still bolde?

Pillars of Cacophony – Paralipomena [Things You Might Have Missed 2025]

By Owlswald on December 5, 2025 in Things You Might Have Missed 2025, Death Metal, Technical Death Metal, 25 comments

“Amidst the routine of our daily lives, it’s easy to overlook the hidden, complex universe that exists just outside our normal gaze. It only takes a bit of magnification to reveal it: a place where cells shift and collide, forming the invisible architecture of existence. Capturing the awe of this biological machinery is a tall order. Yet, Dominik, multi-instrumentalist and mastermind of Pillars of Cacophony, has created a soundscape with second LP, Paralipomena, that does exactly that, exploring the building blocks of life through sound.” Life and death metal find a way.

Morbikon – Lost Within the Astral Crypts

By Owlswald on November 23, 2025 in Reviews, Black Metal, 22 comments

“When he’s not dealing in the Slime and Punishment of Municipal Waste or pissing off the neighbors with Iron Reagan, axe-wielder Phil “Landphil” Hall channels his focus into Morbikon. Formed in 2020, Hall’s black metal side-project earned recognition from AMG Industries when FeroxFerox highlighted the supergroup’s debut, Ov Mournful Twilight, as his surprise record of 2022. Rooted in all things kvlt and trve, the album’s second wave frostbitten anthems plunged into the remnants of burned churches and stale corpse paint, resulting in “eight meloblack rippers calibrated to bring winter to your soul and whiplash to your neck.”” Gaze into the Morb.

Novembre – Words of Indigo Review

By Owlswald on November 6, 2025 in Reviews, Doom Metal, Progressive Metal, 39 comments

“Melancholic is the word that best describes the atmospheric sound of Italy’s Novembre. Existing in the dark corners of doom and death metal since their origins as Catacomb in 1990, the group—spearheaded by brothers Carmelo and Giuseppe Orlando—adopted the name Novembre in 1993, spending over three decades fusing their emotive sound of metal aggression and classical composure. Despite being largely underrated, their output includes the acclaimed cornerstone, Novembrine Waltz (2001), and the progressively leaning Materia (2006) and The Blue (2007).” Novembre-coming fire.

Despised Icon – Shadow Work Review

By Owlswald on November 3, 2025 in Reviews, Deathcore, 33 comments

“Widely regarded as one of the original architects of deathcore, Canada’s Despised Icon hardly needs an introduction. But just in case you’ve been living under a rock for the past two decades, here’s a brief introduction: back in 2002, when MySpace was all the rage and everyone had a friend named Tom, five dudes from Montreal dropped their debut LP, Consumed by Your Poison. Heavily influenced by the likes of Suffocation and Dying Fetus, these Canadians continued to hone their crushing sound on 2005’s The Healing Process by injecting metalcore and hardcore elements into their deathly framework. This unique formula culminated with their third LP, The Ills of Modern Man (2007)—the crown jewel of their discography that made Despised Icon deathcore royalty.” The crown of disgust.

Sanguisugabogg – Hideous Aftermath Review

By Owlswald on October 20, 2025 in Reviews, Death Metal, 55 comments

“This review almost didn’t happen. As the recently demoted were scraping the last bit of slime off the bottom of the skull pit to prepare for the new haul of Fall promo, we inadvertently found Sanguisugabogg’s third full-length, Hideous Aftermath, submerged in the sludgy remains of two ex-n00bs. Mistakes were made for which we do do not apologize. These Ohio-based purveyors of grimy, gore-inspired brutal death may have a name worthy of the national Spelling Bee and a logo that looks like blood-soaked, tangled string, but these chaps know how to dish out the goods.” Out of the Sanberry bogg.