Faceless Burial – Speciation Review
A tasty riff; a prime cut; a hearty slab; a juicy lead; vocals that bite; drums that bring the heat and band members that look like a snack…wait, what? When it comes to describing music, it is very common to …
Bedsore – Hypnagogic Hallucinations Review
There might have been a situation in high school where you liked jam bands. Don’t worry about it, we aren’t going to out you to the heavy metal police, the scenester militia, or even the …
Vassafor – To The Death Review
To the Death is the latest pitch-black, all-enveloping masterwork from Aotearoa New Zealand colossus Vassafor. The band’s third full-length is a mammoth work of esoteric artistry, which paints nightmarish scenes while imperious black and death …
Black, Raw, & Bleeding: Another Dive Into The Nethers Of The Black Metal Underground
Last night marked the new moon. The darkest night of the lunar month, when the terrestrial body, in its tireless rotation about the tellurian rock, is blackened by the very shadow of the earth itself, …
Staff Infections – July 2020
Greetings, friends. It’s time for Staff infections—the feature wherein the Last Rites staff shares what it’s been listening to for the last month, and you, dear readers, get to marvel at our spectacularly good taste …
Defeated Sanity – The Sanguinary Impetus Review
[Artwork by Jon Zig] Humans are predisposed to routine and generally avoid change as if it comes standard with a lifetime supply of random groin kicks in the middle of the night. Of course we …
Haken – Virus Review
Alright, first off: no, Virus is not the product of a cynical marketing ploy designed to exploit current world circumstances. In fact, the notion of Haken’s sixth album and sequel to 2018’s Vector germinated while …
Draghkar – At The Crossroads Of Infinity Review
Blackened thrash is a strange beast. It was certainly, in retrospect, present before the second wave of black metal, but it never really found that tag until after black metal became an established, definitive style. …
Mystras ‒ Castles Conquered and Reclaimed Review
[Cover illustration by Loukas Kalliantasis] Considering the extremely wide range of styles Ayloss has brought to Spectral Lore over the years (atmospheric black metal, electronic, chamber, a general progressive mindset, etc.), it might come across …