Generally Impressed With Riffs
[Cover art by Jef Whitehead] Cognizance’s In Light, No Shape serves as a useful reminder that when it comes to our musical preferences, our whats are subservient to our whys. If, for example, you are a fan of the early …
[Cover artwork by Michael Cloutier] Prog, of course, is known for technical musicianship and songwriting complexity above all else, a reputation well-earned by the early giants of the genre and happily maintained by their progeny ever since. It’s also true …
[Cover artwork by Timbul Cahyono] In the interest of full disclosure, I will admit that I’ve always found the concept of the split to be flawed. It works best when there’s a shared theme or the band’s involved cover each …
[Cover art by Mars Triumph] Petrichor, the sixth full length album from Greece’s epic metal stalwarts Battleroar, commences with the sound of rain and an invitation to reflect. That word, “petrichor,” is a relatively new one (coined by scientists in …
Everything sucks. You don’t even need details why. You know it’s a struggle to get up in the morning and open Facebook, and yet it’s also impossible to look away. This is not meant to …
The reunion of Norway’s In the Woods… a few years ago was as pleasant as it was unexpected. In the 90s, the band released three wildly different albums that brought a whole lot of sweeping …
The deeper you care to dig into the underground, the more likely you’ll eventually unearth crews of thorny bangers who “only care about the demo material.” It works for a band like Sodom because the …
While Scandinavian black metal does not have a definitive third wave, it would not be hard to argue that if it were to exist, it would have begun peaking right at the turn of the …
“Album Of The Day” is a Last Rites Facebook feature we started whose purpose is quite straight-forward: highlight one album per day and say a few words about it. Understanding that not everyone chooses to …
Deceased has long felt like a timeless, immovable object within heavy metal, the type of band that looks back on decades of ripped jeans and leather jackets while also being a predictor that the culture …
Corpsessed came flying out of the gate like a foal on the front end of a quinella, ridden by a bug boy and pushing the Look of Eagles down the homestretch. Their debut EP, The …
The self-titled debut album from the Washington State-based project Vouna is a relatively simple, immersive album, yet it draws elements from a number of styles. The tempo and ragged synths are funeral doom, the melancholy …
