All posts by Dan Obstkrieg

Happily committed to the foolish pursuit of words about sounds. Not actually a dinosaur.

Aluk Todolo – Voix Review

How do you know what music is about? It seems like a silly question, but the answer often strongly influences how one experiences a given piece of music. The easiest clue is usually lyrical: if

Avantasia – Ghostlights Review

This is, I swear, a review of the new album from Avantasia. It just… well, sometimes it takes a minute to get to where you end up wanting to go. Bands like Avantasia seem to

Hostium – The Bloodwine Of Satan Review

Your enjoyment of an album likeThe Bloodwine of Satan, the debut album by Canada’s Hostium, depends entirely on how much “type metal” you have or want in your life. Type metal is easy to spot, though

Dan Obstkrieg’s Best of 2015 – Ia Ia Qapla’ Fhtagn

Sit with me, friend. Perhaps you are laboring under the misapprehension that, come year-end list-making season, writers and critics and dorks and nerds of all stripes turn thoughtful and circumspect, reflecting on the subjective and

Dead To A Dying World – Litany Review

One of the things that seems most consistently difficult to understand for people who don’t particularly like heavy metal is just how it is that it can be soothing and meditative. And certainly, if you

My Dying Bride – Feel The Misery Review

If I were the type of person who worried about “guilty pleasures” (I am not) or whether some thing I enjoy will set me up for ridicule (I am not), I might have to admit

Christian Mistress – To Your Death Review

Interrogate yourself: love and hate are easy, but tepid enjoyment or moderate disappointment? Your book club doesn’t give a shit about that kind of weak sauce. Point being, it’s a hell of a lot simpler

Hooded Menace – Darkness Drips Forth Review

Nostalgia is big business. In the time it takes you to read this, probably a dozen bands have formed out of nothing other than the desperate urge to make something new. Their songs – and