““AMG’s Unsigned Band Rodeö” is a time-honored tradition to showcase the most underground of the underground—the unsigned and unpromoted. This collective review treatment continues to exist to unite our writers in boot or bolster of the bands who remind us that, for better or worse, the metal underground exists as an important part of the global metal scene. The Rodeö rides on.”” Palnet of terror.
January Filters are scrubbed. Now your ears will be brutally rubbed.
The tradition at Angry Metal Guy has been the strong start to the year where, like so many people with New Year’s Resolutions, you stick with ’em for a while, and then they taper off, sliding later and later as the year goes on. But this year, even the dopamine kick of listing everything in some kind of ranking order and getting lots of positive feedback from readers didn’t help me shake my funk. Yet, I have dragged myself out of funk in order to make a minimal effort for the greater good. APPRECIATE ME!
“Most metalheads are nerds. But nerds come in gradations, and the same goes for bands. On a scale of ‘watched Game of Thrones once’ to ‘alternates LARPing and demoscene meets every other weekend,’ solo black metal bands are along the lines of ‘hobbyist cosplayer.’ So it’s a good thing that Sheogorath founder Matej Kollar got his buddy Patrick Pazour to do vocals, as social interaction automatically decreases the nerdiness. But wait, what’s that? Sheogorath is a character from the Elder Scrolls video games? Oh Matej.” Nerds be raging.
“The thrash revival scene is alive and well, for better or worse. I don’t have a horse in the “for better or worse” race, but any thrash, newe or olde, hits hard when it strikes true. A big part of that impact comes from the spirit of thrash at its core. An inherent political lean and a pointed, punk energy defines much of what makes thrash thrash—to oversimplify the scene—and also makes up a significant portion of its appeal. For Edinburgh’s Black Talon, that spirit thrives and that appeal remains intact, despite ten long years separating Scenes of Agony from their unsung debut, Endless Realities.” Iron claws.
“Woe betide the lowly copywriter / AI bot that dared to write that a band was ‘for fans of’ Iron Maiden, Virgin Steele, Camel, Rush and Rainbow. Iron Maiden and Camel are among my favorite acts in any genre, while the latter two boast a couple of the best rock albums ever released. Following this description I metaphorically elbowed other staffers aside to reach the sophomore Mad Parish record entitled The Dust of Forever. It’s certainly ambitious, weaving its yarn over 71 minutes and 21 tracks, including ten that run no more than two minutes designed to tell the album’s story through atmospheric interludes.” To dust return.
“What is a second life but a life that has just gone on long enough to find multiple waves of success? Artists at all levels that we cover here at Angry Metal Guy HQ, often, deliver their albums to the world for the love of the game—not the glitz or glory. Negative 13, as a collective of friends, reignited their passion for the game to release 2022’s long-awaited Mourning Asteri, a satisfying sludge platter full of punky energy and melancholy. And this time, only three years later, Recover What You Can arrives in a timely and timelessly snarling manner, ready to show again how friends who suffer together come out all the stronger.” Positively negative.
“As the youngest writer currently staffed at and embarrassing the great AMG lineage, I glean real pleasure at the irony of me reviewing The Night Flight Orchestra. I mean, NFO is basically “Hey the 80’s called, they want their music back” whereas I’m smack in the later part of “only 90’s kids remember this,” blessedly not part of the “skibidi” generation by a couple of years. Pimply little scamp though I might be, I fucking love NFO, which just goes to show that all ages are vulnerable to the raw magnetism of that slick, sexy 80’s sound.” 80s 4 forever.
“With the recent departure of Huck N’ Roll and the descent of Steel Druhm into disgusting death metal madness, someone has to cover the real heavy metal. I’ve said it before, and I’ll say it again: you can’t spell Holdeneye without ‘olde.’ It doesn’t get much olde-r, sound-wise that is, than what Germany’s Blackslash have been laying down since their 2007 formation (with the exact same lineup, I might add. Impressive!). Drawing power from their patrons, heavy metal deities like Iron Maiden and Saxon, Blackslash specialize in extremely guitar-forward tunes of all speeds and sizes.” Newe olde guards arise!
“Atmospheric black metal is a deceptively wide (sub-)genre, and it seems like every time I opt to review some, I end up with something different. The UK’s Corroding Soul has me in a musing mood over this because I’m not sure I’ve heard atmospheric metal quite like it before. The solo project of David Lovejoy, Corroding Soul, formerly Sorrow Plagues, is releasing its debut release under that moniker and plays symphonic, highly atmospheric black metal in a way that once again is making me reconsider what I think about when I hear the atmoblack term.” Clean souls are happy souls.
