Alright kids, we’re back for an extra special, combined October/November Staff Infections. I was going through some shit in October, so I wasn’t able to get that edition out in a timely fashion. Truth to tell, things haven’t really improved in November, but in light of recent events, I don’t see much improvement for any of us on the horizon. Nonetheless, the show must go on, so here are the October and November Staff infections, all smooshed together.
I’m sure you’ve all been practically frantic with worry over this lengthy enforced ignorance as to the listening habits of your dear friends at Last Rites, but the wait is over. As it turns out, we have not been listening to a whole lot of the same stuff. With two months to draw from only five albums appeared on more than one playlist, and only two albums appeared more than twice. All of this amounts to a four-way tie for second place and a plain old regular tie for firstplace. First among our runners-up is the brand-new Blood Incantation album Absolute Elsewhere, which I’m quite pleased to find contains actual death metal. Our pal Jozzsh has a review for you right here. Next, we have Kraanerg with Heart of a Cherry Pit Sun, an album I am loathe to classify, but for the sake of argument, let’s call it weird. The third piece of the tie is The Periapt of Absence, the second album from Indiana doom / death quintet Mother of Graves. Mr. Hams has a thorough review here, which he composed at no small risk to his personal safety. Rounding out the second-place tie is some wholesome, brutal death metal in the form of Theurgy’s Emanations of Unconscious Luminescence.
Finally, the big winners of the past two months include The Stars Will Light the Way, the seventeenth full-length album from Japanese power metal band Galneryus, and Muuntautuja, Oranssi Pazuzu’s recently released sixth album. Our own Admiral Zachbar has a fine review of Muuntautuja for you right here.
That just about does it for this month, last month, and most likely the year. You will imminently be bombarded with year-end lists, so Staff Infections generally takes December off. For our final group discussion of the year, share with us, in the comments, what is your favorite Japanese metal band? I don’t listen to a whole lot of Japanese metal myself, but I rather enjoy Intestine Baalism, a melodic death metal band that put out three records between 1997 and 2008.
Be sure to listen to the Spotify playlist below and share your own playlist in the comments. Until next year, you all take care of yourselves and enjoy the holidays.
- Zach Duvall
PJ Harvey – everything
Oxygen Destroyer – Guardian of the Universe
Kraanerg – Heart of a Cherry Pit Sun
Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds – Wild God
Funebre – Children of the Scorn
Purtenance – Member of Immortal Damnation
Papangu – Lampião Rei
Theurgy – Emanations of Unconscious Luminescence
Moss Upon the Skull – Quest for the Secret Fire
Tom Petty – Wildflowers
Black Sabbath – Technical Ecstasy
Neil Young & Crazy Horse – Ragged Glory / Smell the Horse - Andrew Edmunds
Sepultura – Beneath The Remains
Extreme Noise Terror – Holocaust In Your Head
Mother Of Graves – The Periapt Of Absence
Life Abuse – Systemization
Agathocles – Mincer
Allman Brothers Band – Eat A Peach
Overkill – Scorched
Cryptopsy – Blasphemy Made Flesh
Submerged – Tortured At The Depths
Mob 47 – Til Du Dörs
Nak’ay – Closed Doors Open Veins
Electric Assault – Shocked Into Coherence - Danhammer Obstkrieg
Doedsmaghird – Omniverse Consciousness
Oranssi Pazuzu – Muuntautuja
Polypores – There Are Other Worlds
Oliver Nelson – The Blues & the Abstract Truth
Tenhi – Maaäet
Galneryus – The Stars Will Light the Way
Theurgy – Emanations of Unconscious Luminescence
Lake People – Foreverer
Patricia Brennan Septet – Breaking Stretch
Hammers of Misfortune – The Locust Years
Thumbscrew – Wingbeats
Brutally Deceased – Chasms - Captain
Galneryus – The Stars Will Light the Way
277 other power metal albums
Aluk Todolo – LUX
Oranssi Pazuzu – Muuntautuja
Shantidas – Musique pour Ombres Mécaniques
Inselberg – Voyage d’hiver
William Basinski – September 23rd - Lone Watie
Aluk Todolo – Lux
At Night I Fly – collision/fusion/division
Galneryus – The Stars Will Light The Way
Yusuke Shima – Silent Jazz Case 5
Kenny Barron – Beyond This Place
Low – Ones And Sixes
War Dogs – Only the Stars Are Left
Cemetery Skyline – Nordic Gothic
Forgotten Silence – Thots
The Cure – Songs of a Lost World
Tyler, the Creator – Chromakopia
Scott Colley – Three Visitors - Spencer Hotz
The Black Dahlia Murder – Servitude
Ingurgitating Oblivion – Ontology of Nought
Cadavoracity – Vitiosis Forma Exilium
Art Tatum – The Complete Masterpieces
The Dillinger Escape Plan – Calculating Infinity
Deterioration – Paranoia & Violence
Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere
Immortal Bird – Sin Querencia
Oranssi Pazuzu – Muuntautuja
Iniquitous Monolith – Monstrous Degredation
Mdou Moctar – Funeral For Justice
Kraanerg – Heart of a Cherry Pit Sun - Isaac Hams
Mother of Graves – The Periapt of Absence
Nero – Into the Unknown
Jeanne Lee and Ran Blake – The Newest Sound Around
Saturnus – The Storm Within
Pyrrhon – Exhaust
PJ Harvey – I Inside the Old Year Dying
Charlie Parr – Cheap Wine
Serpent Column – Tassel of Ares
Katatonia – The Great Cold Distance
ELUCID – REVELATOR
Nick Cave & the Bad Seeds – Ghosteen
Unleash the Archers – Abyss - Blizzard of Jozzsh
Mork – Syv
Katatonia – Dance of December Souls
Katatonia – Brave Murder Day
Black Sabbath – Vol. 4
Blood Incantation – Starspawn
Nails – Every Bridge Burning
Agalloch – Pale Folklore
Agalloch – The Mantle
David Bowie – Heroes
Pink Floyd – The Final Cut
Iron Maiden – Killers
Kreator – Phantom Antichrist - Ryan Tysinger
Luzbel – Pasaporte al Infierno
Vórtize – Desde Bajo Tierra
Ángeles del Infierno – Pacto con el Diablo
Horcas – Oíd Mortales el Grito Sangrado
Barón Rojo – Metalmorfosis
Hermética – Acido Argentino - Jeremy Morse
Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere
Enforced – A Leap into the Dark
Monster Magnet – Dopes to Infinity
Obituary – Dying of Everything
Cemetary – An Evil Shade of Grey
Amorphis – Tales from the Thousand Lakes
Vader – Revelations
Sacrilege – Behind the Realms of Madness
Bolt Thrower – Realm of Chaos
Bolt Thrower – Those Once Loyal
Dream Death – Journey into Mystery
High on Fire – Cometh the Storm
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I’d have to go with Sigh – Imaginary Sonicscape. It’s funny because I think the Japanese make the best rock, indie rock, and pop in the world, but I don’t find their metal to be a significant step up from other regions.
Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere
Undeath – More Insane
Ripped to Shreds – Sanshi
Tribulation- Sub Rosa in Aeternum
Balthvs – Harvest
Iron Maiden – Piece of Mind
Motorhead – Ace of Spades
Accept – Restless and Wild
Morbid Angel – Altars of Madness
Nick Drake – Pink Moon
Not exactly metal but shout out to DMBQ, incredible garage rock.
Bütcher – Of Fowl Tryant Wing
Type O Negative – Life is Killing Me
Alan Howarth and John Carpenter – Big Trouble In Little China Soundtrack
Old Man’s Child – Born of the Flickering
Graveripper – Season Dreaming Death
Aklash – Reincarnation
Outside of the likes of the “bigger names” (e.g., Sigh, Church of Misery) my knowledge of the Japanese metal scene is woefully lacking. It’s always on my list to explore further, especially bands like Coffins, Intestinal Baalism, Flagitious Idiosyncrasy, but just haven’t gotten to it yet. (I do have a huge soft spot for BabyMetal though … fight me.) That’s the long way of saying, I’m too uneducated on this particular subject to have an opinion.
It’s been a packed couple of months trying to listen to add much as possible before the end of year
Opeth – The Last Will and Testament
Monolithe – Black Hole District
Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere
Anciients – Beyond the Reach of the Sun
Infestus – Entzweiung
Mother of Graves – The Periapt of Absence
Oranssi Pazuzu – Muuntautuja
Ufomammut – Hidden
Wormed – Omegon
Ingurgitating Oblivion – Ontology of Naught
The Alan Parsons Project – I, Robot
Oasis – Definitely Maybe
As for Japanese metal, I’m sadly ignorant. Sigh is the main band from the country I listen to.
Moss Upon The Skull – Quest for the Secret Fire
Kvaen – The Formless Fires
The Circle – Of Awakening
Eye of Horus – Noxium
Slechtvalk – At Death’s Gate
Rhun – Conveyance in Death
Satanic North – Satanic North
Iron Maiden – Killers (RIP, Paul Di’Anno)
Japanese metal, lets see…Coffins is one of the few Japanese bands I know and listen to. I can’t get into Sigh that much. I saw Anatomia live some years ago and they were cool. I’ll have to check out Intestine Baalism.
Iron Maiden – Killers
Richard Strauss – Elektra
Iotunn – Kinship
Blood Incantation – Absolute Elsewhere
Zola Jesus – Arkhon
Quincy Jones – Big Band Bossa Nova
Dark Angel – Time Does Not Heal
Tarja Turunen – Colours in the Dark
Forbidden – Twisted Into Form
Spiral Architect – A Sceptic’s Universe
Spirit Possession – Of the Sign…
Winterfylleth – The Threnody of Triumph