Us Death Metal - Tumblr Posts
Churchacide- Bilesoaked Blades
This EP from Austin, Texas area death metallers Churchacide is a rip-roaring take on classic death metal. Riffs upon riffs drive this bludgeoning force, full-steam ahead to tear apart your ears. The musicianship is top-notch, coming from several central- Texas metal masters, and the excellent song-writing will keep you spinning this over and over. While the album title might make one envision a grimy, slimey death metal sound, this album is a barrage of violence, a speedy battering ram for your senses that still maintains plenty of groove. I definitely look forward to a future full-length!
(CDs have mostly been sold out on the band's end, but if you contact them they can tell you which distros may still have copies!)
Hinayana
"The Window"
-Order Divine-
New music video from Austin, Texas based progressive melodeath band Hinayana. Got to see them play earlier in the year, they are an incredibly talented bunch and its cool to see them getting picked up by a label like Black Lion Records (who are also in charge of the fantastic symphonic black metal group Hyperion as well).
If you're a fan of bands like Insomnium, Dark Tranquility, Paradise Lost, Opeth, etc. then check these fellows out.
The Top 20
20)Alkymist - Canada- Spellcraft Ceremony
- This is just good, intricate black metal that is both melodic yet fiery, with great structure and delivery.
19)Trenchant- Martial Chaos
-This is some great new Texas death metal that is simultaneously bludgeoning and melodic, with a smooth delivery to the roar of the music. I need more death metal bands like this.
18)Elegiac- Pagan Storm
- A beautifully melancholic black metal album, raw but slower, with an expansive sound that pulls you in and worships times past. This project keeps growing, incorporating new elements, yet does so well enough that the growth remains organic and delightful.
17)Thy Dying Light- Cold in Death
- This is pure traditional black metal worship from Britain that sounds like it crawled right out of Norway in the 90s, yet instead of sounding cliche it just sounds amazing and fresh. It is awesome.
16) Churchacide- Bilesoaked Blades
- Roaring Texas death metal that will crush you with riffs. Its fast, its fun, it'll blast you off your feet. This was a good year for Texas death metal, and this was my favorite release for it.
15)IMPERIAL TRIUMPHANT- Vile Luxury
- Another one of those perfectly titled albums, this thing is amazing. A mixture of the perfect slimey death metal undercurrent, with soaring brass interspersed and stellar musicianship, this album is a pinnacle of art. They're a great live show too.
14)Arketh- 12 Winter Moons Comes the Witches Brew
- This psychedelic, avant-garde black metal release is just so much fun. It's weirdly wonderful in all the right ways, and I listened to it a lot this year.
13)Gary Numan Official- Savage: Songs from a Broken World
- This is an amazing electronic album, and the song "My Name is Ruin" is one of my favorite songs this year. This album should not be overlooked. Another older musician showing the young ones he's still got it.
12)Lord Of The Lost- Thornstar
- This is an excellent album from this band, possibly my favorite of theirs yet. They've solidified their sound and delivered something exceptional.
11)Kvalvaag- Seid
- If I put you on par with Emperor, it means I really like your music. This is one of the few modern black metal bands that for me achieves that chaos made melody sound Emperor specialized in. I love it.
10)Lucifer's Child- The Order
- Its a really good take on the Rotting Christ black metal sound, roaring like a beast from the pits and just not stopping. Plus, riffs.
9)Crawl/Leviathan - Split
-So the Leviathan side of this split is good, but the Crawl side? Holy crap. It's stunning. He remains one of my favorite local musicians for precisely this bone-crushing, soul shattering sound, and this track is immense. And I find that it makes the Leviathan side better, like it feeds off the sound of the Crawl side.
8 )Morok (MOPOK)- Carpathian Fullmoon Ritual
- This is awesome traditional black metal with some of my favorite synth work this year. This is just too awesome for words. If you like black metal, check this project out.
7)Urfaust- The Constellatory Practice
- These guys are another band that get better and better, and they were already amazing. This atmospheric, beautiful black metal swallows you whole for a transcendental experience.
6) Ghost- Prequelle
- Much like Mastodon's Emperor of Sand from last year, here's another album about death that tends towards an upbeat sound. This album is all plague and fire and Eighties. An ode to music heroes now gone, it expertly blends the band's recognizable style with flourishes from said music heroes, and its a ton of fun too. Learn to let loose, but don't forget that you will die.
5) Powerwolf- Sacrament of Sin
- I love these guys, and this album exemplifies how well they've come into their own sound. They're fun, catchy, and just a wonderful music experience, and this album fully displays their range of style perfectly, from goofy good fun to beautiful ballads to even hints of Medieval metal.
4)Uruk- Nihilistic Warfare in Inhuman Realms
- This Austin black metal band took their already awesome black metal and made it even better. A pure inferno at the start, it transforms into something great with the incorporation of folkish passages a-la early Satyricon, and blends itself into a maelstrom of rage and beauty.
3) Zeal & Ardor- Stranger Fruit
- I cannot say enough good things about this album. A fantastic blend of Spiritualism, Americana, Folk, Occult Rock, and Black Metal, this is far and away one of my favorite releases this year. Do yourself a favor, and don't sleep on them like I was.
2) Orga- Demo
- So I spent a good portion of this year not shutting up about this demo, because it slays. Raw blackened punk that decimates everything in its path, while remaining an almost groovey thing. Riffs upon riffs upon riffs, and a fantastic barking vocal delivery that ties the whole thing together. It was a stiff competition.
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1)Black Jackal- Rock N Roll Nightmare
- I consider myself very lucky, having grown up on a farm in bumfuck nowhere South Texas, to now have the opportunity to witness so much amazing music on a regular basis. The reason I've come to constantly hype so many local bands is because THESE BANDS ARE GENUINELY AWESOME, and I am so happy to get to see and hear them. And this year, Black Jackal took the cake. For the first time in a year and a half, I had to work 7 am morning shifts, after growing accustomed to being at work until 12am. This album is how I survived. Its an injection of burning black n roll that is full of energy, spirit, and an indomitable soul. The vocal work is perfect, the bass lines roar, the drumming keeps you headbanging, and the guitarwork, from BOTH guitarists, is fantastic. Its catchy, fun, powerful, and just pure fucking rock n roll. It chewed the competition up and spit it out. I will miss Jesse's godlike guitar playing in the future, but a certain Nerd is doing just fine, and just continues to get better. Overall this band rules, this album rules, and for the billionth time, check them out!
** Hey, you survived this ridiculously long list. Happy New Year, here's to more awesome music in 2019! **
Ulthar and Scorched are going on tour through North America this year.
Ulthar killed it at Red River Family Fest III, so it'll be awesome to see them again.
Support for the Austin, Texas date are Crawl and Haunter, so if you're in that area it is a show that shouldn't be missed.
200 Stab Wounds 5/16/2023
Empire Control Room and Garage
Photos by me
Cattle Decapitation 5/16/2023
Empire Control Room and Garage
Photos by me
Crossspitter 8/30/23
The Lost Well
Photos by me