black metal / post black metal

“I want ordinary corrupt human love. Dear God, you know I want to want your pain, but I don’t want it now. Take it away for awhile and give it to me another time.” with a title being sourced from one of the lines from Graham Greene’s The End of the Affair (1951),

Deafheaven is back after three years with Ordinary Corrupt Human Love, released on July 13, 2018 through Anti- and produced by Jack Shirley who also did the producing on their previous three records. The visceral new release is probably a convergence of everything at once. Just like how they’ve always been, they stay true to their idealism when it comes to their sounds and they don’t seem to belong to any specific scene or categorization. It is a record that settles to break boundaries vehemently and radiates triumphant vibes with all its aggression on eradicating the status quo of genre stereotypes.

As a band that is free from stereotypes, Deafheaven have diverse elements ranging from post-metal, shoegaze, post-rock, ambient, black metal, to dream pop. I personally can sense the references of Darkthrone’s blasting riffs, as well as the soaring post-rock vibe of Godspeed You! Black Emperor’s. Being a subdued yet aggressive record that it is, Ordinary Corrupt Human Love speaks of love and loss, of existence, of both hope and anguish, and the record has done a remarkable job in manifesting the complexity of the profound feelings that it offers. The record takes the subject of human relationships into a more visceral level, just like the lyrics of “Canary Yellow”, which vocalist George Clarke describes as “..a song about living on in the memory of others.”

The poetic opener “You Without End” features a spoken word poetry piece performed by guest Nadia Kury, taken from excerpts of Black and Borax by Tom McElravey. In this tune, the sounds are expansive and it features ethereal piano lines that are also accompanied by subdued guitar lines and a drum transition. “Honeycomb” is intense with its fast-paced raging riffs with convoluted vibes. It is a heavy track but also the kind of tune that shows a ray of light to its listeners. The lengthy “Canary Yellow” possesses vibrant colors and shoegaze elements, while the anthemic “Glint” is strong on metal vibes and distortions. “Night People” features a remarkable additional vocal performance from Chelsea Wolfe and it’s an eclectic tune that breaks stereotype, possessing a dream-pop vibe. It also features a lot of clean vocals. “Worthless Animal” did a good job as a subliminal closer that appears to be chaotic in the end. 
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Ordinary Corrupt Human Love is a piece on healing, repair, and regrowth— it just seems as if Deafheaven redeemed themselves with all the liveliness that this album has to offer, after dwelling in some sort of impending desolation before. It is full of hope and redeeming qualities. 


Ralka

thrash metal

After two split releases on 7 inch vinyl with the bands Rust and Purgatör, this two-member band release (12 October 2018) their debut album Infernal Moon.

E, from France on vocals and guitar and R, from Holland plays drums. The two friends, who met while studying in Italy share the same interest for thrash and speed metal bands of the 80’s. R stands for Rene Aquarius who is known for his drumming in several experimental projects in The Netherlands  (Dead Neanderthals, Cryptae and Celestial Bodies). 

The duo plays old school thrash metal. The first track, Infernal Moon sets the key for the whole album. Filthy guitar riffs with a deep thrash throat and pumping drums refer to the legendary Celtic Frost-Hellhammer glory days. The musicians managed to put a certain punk attitude in their songs and production of the album. Although they bring nothing new, they still get away with it.  E and R  constructed their songs on one hand, with an eye and heart to their heroes and the other to avoid playing covers. The instruments are played very tight and with precision.

Solitudinem Mysteriis is to our opinion one of the best songs on the album together with Perpetual Funeral Winds, which starts with an old fashioned acoustic intro and altering into a very good, old school thrash metal song with a not so common style. The thought of Tom G. Warrior on vocals is never far away.

DungeönHammer kicks your butt with this eight song retro album. Infernal Moon brings nostalgia that reminds us the wonderful days of metal music in the 80’s. They play with deep respect in remembrance of the founders of old school black-thrash metal. We should honor those who honor and respect the old gods of metal. Let’s bang that head again.

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Patsker

black metal

If I have to be honest, the black metal scene is not a constant in my playlists anymore. Back in the nineties and early 2000's, I pretty much devoured everything evil and extreme but lately I've evolved towards the calmer side of the musical universe. However, that doesn't mean I don't enjoy a decent slab of blackened torture once in a while. Besides, there is a huge difference between recorded black metal and the live version. I simply prefer the latter, to be part of the crowd, witnessing those harsh, abrasive and often occult rituals in person. In that aspect, Finnish terror metal specialists Azaghal must be an absolute blast, especially armed with a punisher like 'Valo Pohjoisesta'.

The album opens with the traditional atmospheric intro, 'VLE'. In fact, this is a brilliant one, cinematic and intriguing. It promises a stunner of an album, something where many black metal acts often disappoint. Not so with Azaghal, they forcefully throw in 'Mato Joka Sinut Turmelee' next, a fierce, intense and terrifying piece of black metal. Of course, formed back in 1995, these guys are seasoned musicians by now but this track is one of those fascinating examples of old school blackened chaos and it's bloody awesome.

Since the creation of Azaghal, the members must have seen the genre evolve and expand. In a way, that evolution also appears in the music. While traditional black metal still is the main ingredient, you can find influences from the black 'n roll scene but also some excellent heavy metal riffs and solos. As i mentioned before, these guys can play. They can do melodic, they can do atmospheric, they can do dark, but they mostly prefer to crush, destroy and tear apart, like it the vile and vicious 'Ruumistie'.

What i like most about this album, is the one thing I often miss about other black metal releases these days: identity. I've heard many albums which are mostly a collection of harsh, intense tunes which aren't bad but lack things that separate them from one-another. They all sound alike. Not so with Azaghal, where every fan can easily pick out his favorite song. For me that's 'AIWASS', an instant classic, so to speak. It has its own sound, fitting in with the rest but still unique.

So yeah, I like this album. It takes me back to when this genre was first bursting open, with fantastic compilations like 'World Domination' grabbing new listeners around the globe. Old school black metal fans should not doubt and quickly get their filthy hands on a copy of this gem. For those disapproving of today's post-black metal scene, this album is a bright shimmer of nineties hope, one that will get you headbanging from start to finish.


​Serge

drone / experimental / noise / bues

One of the artists who regularly appear on Merchants Of Air is Finnish experimentalist Junkyard Shaman, although I have to say that it has been a while now. Since the last time he was featured here, several new released have been published on bandcamp, all interesting examples of experimental music.

I picked out the blues experimentation of 'Noise Eater' for this review, since it is more than just some jamming and looping. This is a guitar based meditation, minimal but immersive. It's also best to be enjoyed with your eyes closed and your mind open.

The three track album opens with the elaborate 'The Space Between The Walls', a tune with an aptly chosen title. Slowly meandering blues guitars and repetitive loops really manage to fill a room with blissful sounds. Although I wrote 'blues', this music doesn't contain drums, vocals or anything else that might ruin the overall atmosphere. Instead, this track explores the slow, minimal regions, those where acts like Expo70 and people like Aidan Baker often stroll.

'Allegory of an Empty Room' does contain percussion but also not in a conventional manner. Here the main instrument is the sax, and an almost empty room with only some pots and pans, so to speak. The result is a strange free jazz tune that lasts for fourteen minutes. It's not my favorite but the experimental souls among us will surely enjoy this. The album ends with another nice drone ambient exploration in title track 'Noise Eater'.

In all, this is a splendid and enjoyable album and Junkyard Shaman still has a lot more up his sleeve. Take this other album, 'Dokkōdō' for example. If you want to experience sonic solitude, you might prefer this one over 'Noise Eater'. The tracks are shorter, but contain heaps of emotion. 'Syyt' is one for noise fans, a more abrasive and aggressive side of Junkyard Shaman while 'Flesh Consciousness' seems to aim at the avant garde specialists.

In any way, if you're into non-conventional music, this artist has a neat discography to explore. There is something for everyone, except maybe mumble rap and disco funk fans. My advice? Check it out, you'd be pleasantly surprised.


Serge

alternative / noise rock 

Don't you just love it when a band forgets all about trends, genres or popularity and just goes wild on their instruments? That's the magic of music: people with a wide variety of influences and favorites coming together in a rehearsal room and bark out something completely unexpected. At least, that's the feeling I get when I listen to 'Driven'. In the past the members of this Swiss trio might have been active in the worlds of shoegaze, punk, noise, grunge or hardcore but now they're Asbest, a raging steamroller that sounds like Melvins had babies with Bikini Kill. Ugly, abrasive and noisy babies that refuse to fit in anywhere.


I think it's safe to categorize Asbest in the noise rock scene, although they do borrow elements from a wide variety of genres. The Melvins immediately came up during opener 'Driven' but with pissed of female vocals. Something sure is wrong in the world of Asbest, something poisonous and deadly. 'Deceit' follows a similar path, that of creeping sludge doom, mixed with something Sonic Youth will definitely appreciate.

But then there is 'Means Of Reproduction', a sick and twisted tune that feels like slowly being eaten by an ant colony. I'm scared of this. Vocalist Robyn is yelling at me, "be productive', while I'm trying to be positive about the whole thing. Being creepy is not only for the dark ambient producers among us, that's for sure. Now, don't get me wrong, this is one powerful piece of music, loaded with anger and frustration. It's just that it might haunt your dreams for years to come.

Speaking about dark ambient, 'I Need A Spacesuit To Leave My Home' brings exactly that, at least for a short while in the opening. In a way, this track is exactly what you need after the aggressive bullying of 'Means Of Reproduction'. Here, elements from post rock appear, providing the listener with a little breather. You'll need that, for the rest of the album will continue to slowly pummel you into a bleeding pulp.

My personal favorite here is 'Pillar', oddly the tune that completely dives into the muddy soils of sludge doom and post hardcore. 'They Kill', the single you can already enjoy on their bandcamp page, might be a nice introduction to Asbest but it's not their best tune. If you like this one, the others will completely overwhelm you and if you don't like this one, the others will drill holes in your skull. 

Oh well, it's pretty obvious that Driven' is not an easy digestible album. It is however a great example of non-genre bounded experimentation. The album is loaded with power, aggression and anger. It contains influences from everything between the Riot Grrrl scene to the post hardcore world, like PJ Harvey on meth, or something like that. Anyway, if you like sonic knives through your eardrums, this is definitely your thing. 


​Serge

post rock

Firn is an album released on September 7, by German post rock group cataya. Thirty-eight minutes long, the record has four long tracks: destiny, madera sagrada, vis-à-vis and ausblick. With a calmer style, and a plausible sonorous cosmogony whose greatest ambition is an overwhelming expansion on the vastness of serenity, firn is a very good, passionate and consistent album. If by one hand the sound can be perceived as generally conventional, on the other, the group definitely knows how to maintain a cohesive sonority, that displays a confident sagacity on the virtuosity of its simple, but graceful melodies. 

With a very clean sound, the music of cataya has an eloquent elegance, that is abundant on sensational harmonies and proverbially intense rhythms. Their technique is an elusive mixture of spontaneous density and synchronic precision, although the sound exasperates its cataclysmic proclivities in the boundaries of its eruptive oceans of sentimental disillusions. Despite the fact that there’s not a single element in their style that could be described as exceptional or surprising, a placid beauty emanates with subtlety from within the songs. It’s easy to be enchanted with a charming resonance that undertakes the sensibilities of its intonations, and cordially concedes them a life of their own.

While the album is, indeed, saturated with a great amount of commonalities inherent to the genre, and the band suffers from a lack of artistic grandiosity, there is a fantastic degree of beauty on the surface of the melodies. The group is – as a matter of fact – very competent and skilled in displaying with a certain conjuncture of qualities an interesting work within their genre of choice. The sincere delicacy they exhibit in their elegant sonority, standardized by the majestic devotion upon which they adorn their music, delivers an abundant grace that ostensibly drives the soul out of its natural limits.

I definitely think this work could be more playful and surprising, although I haven’t been disappointed at all; firn is not a bad album, on the contrary. Despite its restrictions and limitations, it’s a very good work, if you maintain your expectations low. cataya follows a more traditional and conventional style, but, nevertheless, they were successful in creating an interesting, reasonable and effective album. Enthusiasts of the genre will appreciate. firn will certainly please you, as long – as I wrote some lines above – you maintain realistic expectations. 



Wagner 

indie rock

Banker’s Hill is an album released by American indie rock duo El Ten Eleven, from Southern California, composed by musicians Tim Fogarty and Kristian Dunn. With an interesting style, exceptionally charming, flamboyant and captivating, the duo really knows how to create a beautiful, graceful and poetic work of art, that can be masterly colossal and consistent, but – at the same time – exceedingly simple, rustic and devoid of pretentious ambitions. Amazingly energetic, with abundantly effective and elegant harmonies, Banker’s Hill is a fascinating record, that subtlety elevates in the collision of its own atmosphere of sensible qualities the ascending components of its formidable layers of creativity. 

Forty three minutes long, the record has nine tracks: Three And A Half High And Rising, Phenomenal Problems, You Are Enough, We Don’t Have A Sail But We Have A Rudder, Gyroscopic Precession, Banker’s Hill, Listening to Cloud, Reverie and
This Morning With Her, Having Coffee. With an exceptional level of beauty, Banker’s Hill displays an abundant, pure and intriguing level of sophisticated graciousness, throughout an ever patient, but meticulous universe of fantastic harmonies, that are ostensibly simple at the core of its anatomy, although they do present a sensible and endurable level of artistic profoundness, that enables you to deeply submerge into their allegorical world of preciously sonorous dissertation of laboriously existential expansion.     

Despite the fact that – at least in certain passages – they pass through more conventional musical boundaries, that could mistake them as a more ordinary indie rock act, their sound consciously travel to common ground boundaries to subvert them in very subtle, but genuinely creative ordeals, that surpass in an extraordinary level their own irreplaceable musical intentions. With a sound that appears to be almost visual at certain melodic scenarios, the splendid virtuosities that emerge from El Ten Eleven’s music is explicitly surreal, and the soft mordacity that comes out of its nucleus of vibrating sensibilities certainly can be highlighted as one of its most peculiar qualities.    

 With a music that emerges as the perfect soundtrack for a melancholy afternoon in the suburb, Banker’s Hill is an everlasting elegy for a life with glorious serenity and reflexive tranquility. As a weaker point to be described, their sound exhibits some uniform tendencies in certain passages, giving space to monotony. Nevertheless, this is not enough to provoke any damage to their music – nor to this album in particular –, that reveals itself a formidable and increasingly pleasant work to be enthusiastically appreciated. Certainly, a very different, more original and creative style upon which indie rock is reinvented, Banker’s Hill is an amazing album, that deserves to be extensively recognized and celebrated.  


Wagner

post rock

Fall Of The Moon is an album released on September 8, by Italian post rock group 42DE. Almost thirty-eight minutes long, the record has eight beautiful tracks: In Drama, Solitude, Interlude, Call Of The Giants, Creation Of Something Abstract, Magnitude, Submerge This World, Holy Rain and Dawn Of The Day. A very philosophic and imponderable work of art, the music of 42DE elaborates its own universe of stupor and splendor, throughout a miraculous synergy of melodic grace, that plays with its own aphorisms of poetic serenity, intensity and monumental calmness, upon which your soul is slowly diluted by the majestic vicinities of its marvelous sonorous indulgencies. 

All in all, the album is a fantastic allegory of brilliant creativity. The general harmonies are efficiently serene, and they transpire such a vapor of fragile, but infinite tranquility, that the marvelous intonations of the music instantly reverberates throughout the most precious sidelines of your soul. Despite the fact that the group follows a somewhat conventional pathway of the genre, there is no doubt they are exceedingly original, audacious and genuine, regardless of some musical restrictions.   

With revolving harmonies that dilacerates your perceptions, but at the same time, increasingly agitates the virtuosities of a consistent happiness, the style of 42DE is very elegant and sophisticated, and – all the way through –, Fall Of The Moon proves to be a splendid, singular and proverbial work of art. With masterfully created poetic overtones, that instills the omnipresence of a colossal universe of wonder at the heart of the listener, the album captures an ephemeral perception of beauty, that elevates an abundant and everlasting state of grace with its overwhelming placid sensibility. 

Despite the fact that I haven’t found the album to be a masterpiece, Fall Of The Moon is, as a matter of fact, a very intuitive, energizing and refreshing record. The group has a striking sense of creativity, can be described as categorically original, and knows how to genuinely surprise its audience. If you are a post rock enthusiast, you have to listen to this fantastic album. You will be positively astonished! 


Wagner 

post rock

For Better Of For Worse is an album by Swiss post rock group Leech, released on September 15. Almost fifty minutes long, the record has six very extensive tracks: Melide, Sure! Looks Real., Hell 8, Dirty Seconds, Arrete and Herbstmonster. A very beautiful, splendorous and fantastic album, with amazingly crafted and imponderable atmospheres, the work is a consecrating, lucid and vivacious anthem to infinity, that registers in the core of its creative and passionate ambitions a virtuous alliance between serenity, synergy, synchronism, majestic elegance and reverberating existential grace. Probably one of the most refined albums that I’ve ever heard in the genre, the group displays a unique and very singular style, that knows how to accommodate time and meticulously arrange space at the epicenter of exceedingly salutary and virtuous harmonies, as they expand, and aggregate entire universes of graceful sentimentality into the void of its melancholy.

With an introspective level of discreet ambivalence that works over its own colorful creative densities, Leech definitely embraces its own standards of voracious infinity, where the sound has no frontiers nor barriers to disrupt its waves. With a calmness that also seeks to create a natural balance between rhythm and melody, the sound agglomerates on the crest of its beauty a consistent, but robust and cohesive fragrance, that harmonizes the audacious tenacity of its technical elements in a zone of effective musical tonalities. Essentially, the creative sensibilities that comes out of this fabulous ordeal comprehends on the diagram of its fate the most sensitive path to execute with a majestic level of splendor its infuriatingly authentic perceptions of artistry.    
With such a singular degree of audacity, and an exceptional level of creativity that is formidably genuine, and runs through a new palace of creative cosmogonies, the music of Leech is simply a wonderful collision of splendorous galaxies of everlasting serenity, upon which conscience becomes relaxed, and devoid of all deceptions. Instantly fulfilled by a universe of marvelous sonorous interactions, your organic vitalities are converted into the most magnificent allegory of peace and tranquility, that could ever be transplanted into music. 

A magnificent album that greatly works in very introspective nuances the most elemental qualities of the genre, For Better Of For Worse is a wonderful state of the art work, that will dramatically change your perceptions about music. With the elaboration of a very peculiar and original harmonious galaxy that maintains the fundamental beauty of its axial sonorous diagram, Leech definitely creates a style of their own, and deserves to be recognized as one of the most consistent and unique exponents of post rock in the underground scene. 


Wagner 

dark ambient

Common Eider, King Eider creates deep, creepy drones that bring you to a dark alien universe. A Wound Of Body should be the first part of a two album series. The music collective is based in San Francisco California and has already produced some good dark ambient albums since 2007.

The members of this fellowship explore the boundaries of the psyche, creating shivering soundscapes with the experimental use of strings and choirs. Darkness will be your friend while listening to this album.
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‘Remembrance A Threnody’ starts with a drone, slowly  opening the gate to an interesting dark ambient journey filled with desolated landscapes and abandoned places. The strings and the drones generate an atmosphere filled with doleful reflections so addictive that you want to stay in. The same tension continues with ‘Sinew Stretched Over Crumbing Bones’.

A viola rules the track ‘We Sing Over These Bones So That They May Rise Up And Run A Way Into The   Night’, and makes you feel the absolute loneliness with no escaping from mind disintegration. The intensive drones with some ritual sparks on ‘Helene’ will energize your fear of walking in dark woods, because the sounds make you feel like something is waiting for you behind every tree.

The last track, River of Blood, ends with drones and soundscapes which paint hallucinating images of unknown creatures in your mind. The mournful viola pushes your thoughts further into the shades of Hades and beyond.  Common Eider, King Eider succeeds in keeping up the dark cavernous vibes with enough variation to have this album in your music collection. I am already curious what the second part will bring.

Patsker