Generally Impressed With Riffs
[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 Battlelore, commences with the sound of rain and an invitation to reflect. That word, “petrichor,” is a relatively new one (coined by scientists in …
To start, let’s acknowledge that you and I don’t really know each other. This means, among other things, that I can’t say what “war metal” means to you. To some extent, maybe you just throw your hands in the air …
Kia ora, compadres. Welcome to the latest edition of In Crust We Trust. Below you’ll find a bunch of ear-wrecking noise to help you process and/or drown out the 24/7 horror show currently occupying our screens. Wherever you are, and …
A bear, Salvator Rosa, and the two old guys from the Muppets walk into a bar… Wait… Before we go there, let’s get serious. Line up ten veteran bands and ask them to regale you …
Ten entries into this Blast Rites barrage and we have our first repeat offender… Belgium’s chainsaw grinders Barren got the compilation treatment earlier this year from Esagoya Records in Japan, rounding up the two demos …
I ride a commuter train into downtown Chicago to get to my office. (Yes, I am going somewhere with this.) Several years ago – likely late 2019 or very early 2020 – there was a …
SkullShitter’s press materials declares that “Goat Claw is a fully realized Satanic grindcore experience.” Well, now… That certainly sounds like fun… Apparently fueled by various hallucinogens, SkullShitter – and by extension, Goat Claw – is …
Replacing a band member is rarely a simple task, and it becomes an essentially impossible one when a replacement is needed because the original member’s life was tragically cut short by a terrible accident. Caleb …
Sick Sinus Syndrome’s debut Rotten To The Core wormed its way into my earholes on a regular basis right around this time last year, a blistering blast of classic Carcass-cloning gurglegrind that absolute smokes from …
Portland’s Rigorous Institution first hit my radar via the ever impressive efforts of Last Rites’ alum Craig Hayes and his dauntless study of all things crust, grind, punk, D-beat, et cetera In Crust We Trust, …
The great thing about heavy metal (apart from, well, most of the things about it) is how many different moods it can summon. From the most decrepit, wizened metal crone (hi, hello, how are you) …
