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170 results for “karrbs”
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Sekt oder Selters – in welcher Stimmung sind die Stakeholder der Energiewirtschaft beim Thema #Wasserstoff? Paneldiskussion mit hochkarätigem Podium auf der #get2025. Herzlichen Dank an Vizepräsidentin BarbieHaller (@BNetzA), Eric Ahlers (#NetzeBW), Dr. Boris Bensmann (#InnoEly), Barbara Fischer (@FNB_Gas), Lena Karras (#REFHYNE) und Dr. Valerian von Richthofen #NortonRoseFulbright für die spannende Diskussion.
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The Exorcism is a behind-the-scenes look at a fictional remake of The Exorcist starring an actor, portrayed by Russell Crowe, whose name is Anthony Miller and who has a drinking problem — just like the late, great Jason Miller (born John Anthony Miller, Jr.), who played Father Karras and fathered Joshua John Miller, who in turn co-wrote and directed The Exorcism. Way to step out of your old man’s shadow, dude.
#TheExorcism #MovieReview #Horror #Film
https://ninetypercentcrapmoviereviews.wordpress.com/2024/09/10/the-exorcism/ -
Die Krise des Flugzeugherstellers Boeing spitzt sich weiter zu
Für Boeing sollte 2024 eigentlich ein gutes Jahr werden. Stattdessen gab es bisher jede Menge Pannen. Von der US-Flugsicherheitsbehörde gab es dafür jetzt ein miserables Zeugnis. Das Vertrauen in Boeing sinkt weiter. Von I. Karras.
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Wir präsentieren (natürlich wertfrei und kommentarlos): Die schönsten #Wahlplakate zum Thema #Mobilität der #Kommunalwahl in #Aachen 2025. Ist die #Partei bzw. der/die Kandidat*inn für oder gegen die #Verkehrswende? Ihr entscheidend selbst, schreibt es gerne als Kommentar! 😉
Habt ihr auch schöne Bilder von Wahlplakaten zum Thema? Schickt sie uns per DM, mit eurer Erlaubnis posten wir sie ebenfalls.
Unser Bild Nr. 1 zeigt Dennis Karrasch von der FDP und seine Meinung zum Thema #Verkehr.
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Remembering #JasonMiller (1939-2001), the Pulitzer Prize / Tony Award-winning American playwright and actor, born John Anthony Miller Jr. in New York #OnThisDay. Best known for his intense, moving portrayal of Father Damien Karras in #TheExorcist (1973), he reprised the role in William Peter Blatty's The Exorcist III (1990), with other roles including the inmate staging Shakespeare with dogs in Blatty's sublime #TheNinthConfiguration (1980).
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US-Vorwahlen in New Hampshire: Weltpolitik auf dem Dorf
Schicken die Republikaner Trump oder Haley ins Rennen um die US-Präsidentschaft? Die Antwort darauf hängt stark damit zusammen, was heute in New Hampshire passiert: Ein Zweikampf, der den ganzen Bundesstaat im Griff hat. Von I. Karras.
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By Grymm
2013: A wild Abbathian kitty appears, hellbent and determined to expose the world to bad jokes, hilarious perspectives, and most importantly, absolutely astonishingly great metal and metal-adjacent bands and performing artists. With his trusty minions by his side, this Blashyrkh-born-and-raised feline sets off into the realms of Angry Metal Guy with only one goal in mind: to spread the gospel of incredible music to the ears of those willing to listen. Hungry and passionate, and inspired by the likes of influential writers from the olden days of Metal Maniacs Magazine and Terrorizer, as well as trailblazers in the online world such as Metal Review/Last Rites, this cat marches forth, prepared for battle and the spoils of war to last for generations to come.
2023: A warehouse supervisor from Northeastern Florida, who’s squeezing what little free time he has in-between long work weeks with even longer hours, stares wearily and angrily at a blank WordPress screen. His eyes glaze over, knowing what he has to say but not how to go about it without constantly hitting that backspace key in a combined fit of worry and hesitation. Exhausted from work, and beaten down and heartbroken by what life has thrown his way over the last five years, this gentleman sits at his keyboard, glowing a soft blue like his favorite protagonist from his all-time favorite RPG,1 and prepares to type up a list of this year’s music that barely got him by, while also trying to come up with words to say about how he got here, how he’s really feeling, and everything surrounding those things without angering or disappointing others, knowing full well that it will be a fruitless endeavor because, as we all know, someone will pitch a bitchfit in the comments section. And with that, he sets forth on what is most likely the final thing he’ll write, at least for a good, long while.
These two wildly different characters are, as you can probably guess, the very same person. When I came onboard with Angry Metal Guy over a decade ago, the very idea of reviewing classic and new bands in my absolute favorite genre in the world, a genre that saved my pimply, awkward, teenage ass on many occasions, I jumped at the opportunity without hesitation. I wanted to inspire other metalheads like Alicia Morgan, Ula Gehret, Jeff Wagner, Mike Greenblatt, Greg Moffitt, S. Craig Zahler, Jordan Campbell, Dan Obstkrieg, and the late Katherine Ludwig did for me to hunt for, and write about, great metal music. In my eyes, Angry Metal Guy, not Decibel, was the closest in spirit to the late, great Metal Maniacs, and I wanted in on that. Throughout the last decade, not only did Angry Metal Guy the man take me under his wing, but so did Steel Druhm and Madam X, giving me insight and valuable tips on how to improve and leave my own mark without ever compromising my voice or my views. Also, I met some amazing people here, both readers and writers, that I wouldn’t have otherwise had I not written that review for Vattnet Viskar’s Sky Swallower. Seriously, the writers that are here now are some of the best people I have ever had the pleasure of working with, and they’re all amazing people with good hearts. I will not take their (or your) friendships and teamwork lightly. You’re all a second family to me, one I will cherish always, and I love you all. This is, more often than not, a thankless endeavor where you’re oftentimes been put through the wringer unjustly, so dealing with it at all to continue promoting bands should be commended.
So… what happened? To try to keep it brief as humanly possible, life happened. In 2018, I lost my older brother to a combination of personal neglect caused by depression, combined with a bacterial infection that lead to sepsis and a fatal heart attack. 2019, instead of taking time to grieve, I dove into work and writing. Quickly realizing that it was a mistake in doing so, I promised myself to not do that going forward. From 2020 through 2022, I would not be able to fulfill that promise, as my work exploded due to the pandemic, working myself past exhaustion to the point where I almost died from bacterial pneumonia in the tail end of 2021. This year alone, between losing one of my all-time favorite cats ever to cancer at an alarmingly young age, and having my partner lose his mom not even a full week later, and dealing with an estate that could have very well left us homeless, all combined to do a number on my physical and mental well-being to the point where my (now former) doctor was concerned due to the fact many of my newly-acquired symptoms I was experiencing this year mirrored those of colorectal cancer. Thankfully, it was all “just” the wonderful side effects of extreme burnout and being stressed the fuck out, but it made me realize that writing, and responding to people who are mad that I (checks notes) enjoyed things, needed to take a back seat in a big way.
But two other things set the decision in motion. One is the sorry state of metal sites and magazines, and how they go about covering things. I don’t believe in non-stop hype of mid-to-terrible bands,2 nor do I believe extraneously overwrought word salad to the point of sheer nonsense is the way to go,3 but at least they cover new bands that most would probably never have heard of otherwise. Your Shores of Nulls, your Darkhers, your Vainajas and the like. Sites like Metal Injection, on the other hand, can’t be fucked to do that, since it’s obviously more important to cover everyone’s favorite born-again chucklefuck and how he felt about trying to unalive his ex-wife via hitman/undercover cop, or Greg Kennelty shaming others because his favorite cilantro of the month is now popular. Ever since Albert Mudrian and Decibel decided it would be a splendid idea to not only give Burzum a fucking cover, but also a goddamn Decibel Hall of Fame induction in 2011, giving absolute pieces of shit a voice, or bands who already have a gross overabundance of coverage, is not only welcome, but seemingly encouraged at the expense of those who are battling to just be seen and heard. I don’t care about Sleep Token. I sure as shit don’t give an eighth of a fuck what Tim Lambesis’ shoulder routine is. That said, these days I’m just tickled pink that Kennelty has stopped rewriting negative reviews into way more positive ones, at least for the time being.
But most egregiously, there was something else that happened in the tail end of 2021 that ultimately sealed the deal, and it involved my second coming-out piece, and a certain Top Ten(ish) entry made in response to that (which got its own response). I’m not going into more detail about it out of respect to my fellow writers who also put in the hard work to move on from it, as everyone who’s been reading the site for a long time knows. All I can say is that, even with my best efforts to move on, it did a number on my creativity, humor, and most painfully my desire to write to the point where I feel like I’m merely going through the motions since it happened.
Which, to be frank, isn’t fair to me, it isn’t fair to anyone here writing for this great site, and it sure as shit isn’t fair to you. This year’s top ten is going to be the last thing I write here, at least for a long time, until I can find the passion, the hunger, and the drive to write again about the music I still love, even if portions of it want me gone, peacefully or not. I will continue to support my favorite bands. I will continue reading and chiming in to Angry Metal Guy. I will continue to quietly fight for those whose voices need to be heard. I’ll just be supporting from the sidelines from this point forward. If I find that passion again, things could be different. For now, though, the site needs people who are far hungrier than I am, and I need time to break away and rediscover my smile again.
I guess what I want to say is… thank you all, writers and readers, for the memories, the friendships, the great music, and the ability to give a worn-out warehouse supervisor a voice and an attempt at a teenage dream. Ten years is a long, long time, and I love you all for putting up with me for that long. In departing, I’ll quote Anaal Nathrakh’s anthem, “Endarkenment”:
“Take what small comfort there may be left;
seize what you love, and damn all the rest.”Onward, now and forever…
#ish. Wormhole // Almost Human – Anything even remotely coming close to the wheelhouse of Voivod will get a near-Pavlovian response from me, and Wormhole’s skronky, atonal, and relentlessly heavy take on our favorite Québécois is undeniable. To quote our favorite resident sponge, “WOOOOOOOOORMHOOOOOOOOOLE!!!”
#10. Saturnus // The Storm Within – Denmark’s Saturnus is quickly joining up with the Peaceville Three in terms of being a doom/death institution, and their fifth album showcases just why that is. With crushing riffs, soaring leads by Indee Rehal-Sagoo (ex-Eye of Solitude), The Storm Within is a deadly catch, indeed.
#9. Sulphur Aeon // Seven Crowns and Seven Seals – Germanic blackened death metal prodigies Sulphur Aeon finally returned after a five-year absence with the remarkable Seven Crowns and Seven Seals, an album that many claim to be not as strong as their three prior releases… which is an awful lot like saying comparing a championship win against another from the same sports team in subsequent seasons. It’s still a winner, and head and shoulders above their contemporaries.
#8. Thantifaxath // Hive Mind Narcosis – This anonymous Canadian trio continues to impress and terrify, with atonal riffs, barely-together rhythms, and the foreboding sense of everything feeling like it’s caving in and collapsing all at once add up to one of 2023’s most chaotic and frightening albums. If you enjoy excessive headfuckery, this is your ticket.
#7. Karras // We Poison Their Young – There needs to be more albums that just get to the point without any fat or bullshit getting in the way, and France’s Karras say more in 21 minutes than most band with three, even four, times as much length. Get in, fuck shit up, move the fuck on. More, please.
#6. Wreathe // The Land Is Not An Idle God – I miss Fall of Efrafa. I also love Morrow. Chances are, you do, too. Wreathe features key members of both bands, as well as Arboricidio, and it throws down just as hard and passionately as all three aforementioned bands. If you love emokrust, you are either onto this, or discovering it right the fuck now. You’re welcome!
#5. Fires in the Distance // Air Not Meant For Us – If you told me years ago that some of the best melodic doom/death would be from Connecticut, I would have laughed in your face to the point of an asthma attack. Yet, Fires in the Distance took what makes Insomnium and Omnium Gatherum4 and added their own unique embellishments to create a truly captivating album in Air Not Meant For Us. I await further installments.
#4. Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter // Saved! – Healing isn’t easy, joyous, or pretty. It can be downright ugly and uncomfortable. So when the former Lingua Ignota decided to bury that moniker and go by her birth name, nobody knew what to expect except that it would be brutally honest and at times discomforting, and Saved!, with its sound akin to a field recording of an Appalachian fundamentalist cult, definitely nails both while not only being painful to experience, but in an odd way, provides a beautiful, if disturbing, painting of the healing process.
#3. Wayfarer // American Gothic – Black metal should not go well with the Old West. Denver, Colorado’s Wayfarer flew against this very notion, and crafted not only their best album to date, but also an absorbing, engrossing classic that begs to be absorbed in full with your complete, utmost attention. Never has black metal felt or sounded so goddamn warm, like a freshly-killed outlaw baking in the hot Tucson sun.
#2. Shores of Null // The Loss of Beauty – One of the things I loved most about writing here is watching new bands make their ascent, and on The Loss of Beauty, Italian doom lords Shores of Null are soaring now. With their captivating riff work, melancholic melodies, and Davide Straccione’s incredible vocals, The Loss of Beauty is the sound of a still-young band bringing their A-game to the fore.
#1. Godthrymm // Distortions – Reflections, the 2020 debut from Godthrymm, just barely missed the top spot that year, but still showed off how strong of a debut it was. Distortions improved what Reflections laid down, with meaty riffs, soaring leads, a fantastic rhythm section, and keyboardist Catherine Glencross’ angelic voice providing a complimentary accompaniment to her husband Hamish’s improved5 vocal delivery. This classic-doom-meets-classic-Pallbearer configuration landed my top spot as soon as I finished listening to it for the first time, and again, and again, and…
Biggest Disappointments o’ 2023
- The Passing of Kevin “Geordie” Walker – As a fledgling metalhead dipping his toes in the underground, one of the videos that helped nudge me into the direction of the more heavier, deeper waters was “Millennium,” the first single off of Pandemonium, the comeback album by legendary post-punk/industrial pioneers Killing Joke. So taken back by how vital, energetic, and direct it sounded, I bought Pandemonium, and was instantly blown away by how multi-faceted and talented guitarist Kevin “Geordie” Walker was. Slowly but surely, I would pull from different eras of Killing Joke’s discography, including both self-titleds, and besides Jaz Coleman’s frantic end-of-days proselytizing and gravel-coated voice, it was Walker’s hypnotically inventive guitar licks and powerful riffs that would become the soundtrack for many a workout session. Hearing of his passing in November was like losing a favorite uncle, and I know my listening habits would have changed drastically had I not been exposed to Walker or Killing Joke. Honour the fire forever, good chap.
- Aaron Lewis – Before I begin, this isn’t against hunting. If you’re at all carnivorous (like me), it’s a necessity in order to… y’know, live. But when everyone’s favorite whiner who bemoans how much of a bunch of snowflakes my generation and younger are while gleefully supplying the soundtrack of such snowflakery decides to use the bodies of 32 dead coyotes to promote his favorite businessman-turned-former President, you go from “nu-metal has-been” to “absolute piece of shit” in record time. And seeing as how nu-metal’s got no shortage of pieces of shit, that’s saying something. Speaking of pieces of shit…
- K.K. Downing – …dude, just fucking stop. Just. STOP. When I quit my last job acrimoniously, I didn’t try to win my job back while simultaneously taking a steaming shit on the owners. I left and never looked back. K.K., on the other hand, is special. I don’t know the full details, and I don’t want to know the full details, due to K.K. deciding to act like a crybaby and a perpetual victim, instead of behaving like he was one-half of Judas Priest’s highly influential guitar duo at one point. They even reached out to play the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the current line-up, to try to mend fences, and he still bitched up a storm. Be happy that you’ve got Judas Priest at Home your namesake Dollar Tree rip-off band now.
- The Sale and Butchering of Bandcamp – If you’ve known us for any length of time, you can probably guess that we all love Bandcamp around these parts. Easily the most artist-friendly music service out there, Bandcamp gave upcoming bands and labels, especially those who could use the reach, a voice and a chance, and even more so during Bandcamp Fridays, where the site’s fees were waived for all purchases. So of course Epic Games would buy it in March of last year, and then sell it to Songtradr, who would go on to lay off half of Bandcamp’s staff, including all those who were trying to unionize in order to protect their jobs. Was Bandcamp perfect? No, but I guarantee you most of your favorite new bands would have suffered if Bandcamp didn’t exist. To call this “heartbreaking” and “callous” would be a gross understatement. My heart goes out to those affected by the layoffs, and a giant, massive fuck you to Epic Games and Songtradr for fucking up an awesome thing.
Song o’ the Year
Godthrymm // “Devils” – Distortions possesses a number of songs that could easily fit into the #1 slot for Song o’ the Year.6 But, to me at least, “Devils” best exemplifies what the album’s all about: heavy riffing, somber melodies, enchanting vocals, and a slight tinge, no matter how small it might be, of hope. Also, the first half just kicks so much ass.
It’s been a wild, wild ride. Y’all be good.
#2023 #AaronLewis #AnaalNathrakh #Arboricidio #Bandcamp #Burzum #Darkher #DecibelMagazine #EpicGames #EyeOfSolitude #FallOfEfrafa #FiresInTheDistance #Godthrymm #GrymmSTopTenIshOf2023 #JudasPriest #KKDowning #Karras #KillingJoke #LinguaIgnota #Lists #Listurnalia #MetalInjection #MetalManiacsMagazine #Morrow #Pallbearer #ReverendKristinMichaelHayter #Saturnus #ShoresOfNull #SleepToken #Songtradr #SulphurAeon #Thantifaxath #Vainaja #Voivod #Wayfarer #Wormhole #Wreathe
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By Grymm
2013: A wild Abbathian kitty appears, hellbent and determined to expose the world to bad jokes, hilarious perspectives, and most importantly, absolutely astonishingly great metal and metal-adjacent bands and performing artists. With his trusty minions by his side, this Blashyrkh-born-and-raised feline sets off into the realms of Angry Metal Guy with only one goal in mind: to spread the gospel of incredible music to the ears of those willing to listen. Hungry and passionate, and inspired by the likes of influential writers from the olden days of Metal Maniacs Magazine and Terrorizer, as well as trailblazers in the online world such as Metal Review/Last Rites, this cat marches forth, prepared for battle and the spoils of war to last for generations to come.
2023: A warehouse supervisor from Northeastern Florida, who’s squeezing what little free time he has in-between long work weeks with even longer hours, stares wearily and angrily at a blank WordPress screen. His eyes glaze over, knowing what he has to say but not how to go about it without constantly hitting that backspace key in a combined fit of worry and hesitation. Exhausted from work, and beaten down and heartbroken by what life has thrown his way over the last five years, this gentleman sits at his keyboard, glowing a soft blue like his favorite protagonist from his all-time favorite RPG,1 and prepares to type up a list of this year’s music that barely got him by, while also trying to come up with words to say about how he got here, how he’s really feeling, and everything surrounding those things without angering or disappointing others, knowing full well that it will be a fruitless endeavor because, as we all know, someone will pitch a bitchfit in the comments section. And with that, he sets forth on what is most likely the final thing he’ll write, at least for a good, long while.
These two wildly different characters are, as you can probably guess, the very same person. When I came onboard with Angry Metal Guy over a decade ago, the very idea of reviewing classic and new bands in my absolute favorite genre in the world, a genre that saved my pimply, awkward, teenage ass on many occasions, I jumped at the opportunity without hesitation. I wanted to inspire other metalheads like Alicia Morgan, Ula Gehret, Jeff Wagner, Mike Greenblatt, Greg Moffitt, S. Craig Zahler, Jordan Campbell, Dan Obstkrieg, and the late Katherine Ludwig did for me to hunt for, and write about, great metal music. In my eyes, Angry Metal Guy, not Decibel, was the closest in spirit to the late, great Metal Maniacs, and I wanted in on that. Throughout the last decade, not only did Angry Metal Guy the man take me under his wing, but so did Steel Druhm and Madam X, giving me insight and valuable tips on how to improve and leave my own mark without ever compromising my voice or my views. Also, I met some amazing people here, both readers and writers, that I wouldn’t have otherwise had I not written that review for Vattnet Viskar’s Sky Swallower. Seriously, the writers that are here now are some of the best people I have ever had the pleasure of working with, and they’re all amazing people with good hearts. I will not take their (or your) friendships and teamwork lightly. You’re all a second family to me, one I will cherish always, and I love you all. This is, more often than not, a thankless endeavor where you’re oftentimes been put through the wringer unjustly, so dealing with it at all to continue promoting bands should be commended.
So… what happened? To try to keep it brief as humanly possible, life happened. In 2018, I lost my older brother to a combination of personal neglect caused by depression, combined with a bacterial infection that lead to sepsis and a fatal heart attack. 2019, instead of taking time to grieve, I dove into work and writing. Quickly realizing that it was a mistake in doing so, I promised myself to not do that going forward. From 2020 through 2022, I would not be able to fulfill that promise, as my work exploded due to the pandemic, working myself past exhaustion to the point where I almost died from bacterial pneumonia in the tail end of 2021. This year alone, between losing one of my all-time favorite cats ever to cancer at an alarmingly young age, and having my partner lose his mom not even a full week later, and dealing with an estate that could have very well left us homeless, all combined to do a number on my physical and mental well-being to the point where my (now former) doctor was concerned due to the fact many of my newly-acquired symptoms I was experiencing this year mirrored those of colorectal cancer. Thankfully, it was all “just” the wonderful side effects of extreme burnout and being stressed the fuck out, but it made me realize that writing, and responding to people who are mad that I (checks notes) enjoyed things, needed to take a back seat in a big way.
But two other things set the decision in motion. One is the sorry state of metal sites and magazines, and how they go about covering things. I don’t believe in non-stop hype of mid-to-terrible bands,2 nor do I believe extraneously overwrought word salad to the point of sheer nonsense is the way to go,3 but at least they cover new bands that most would probably never have heard of otherwise. Your Shores of Nulls, your Darkhers, your Vainajas and the like. Sites like Metal Injection, on the other hand, can’t be fucked to do that, since it’s obviously more important to cover everyone’s favorite born-again chucklefuck and how he felt about trying to unalive his ex-wife via hitman/undercover cop, or Greg Kennelty shaming others because his favorite cilantro of the month is now popular. Ever since Albert Mudrian and Decibel decided it would be a splendid idea to not only give Burzum a fucking cover, but also a goddamn Decibel Hall of Fame induction in 2011, giving absolute pieces of shit a voice, or bands who already have a gross overabundance of coverage, is not only welcome, but seemingly encouraged at the expense of those who are battling to just be seen and heard. I don’t care about Sleep Token. I sure as shit don’t give an eighth of a fuck what Tim Lambesis’ shoulder routine is. That said, these days I’m just tickled pink that Kennelty has stopped rewriting negative reviews into way more positive ones, at least for the time being.
But most egregiously, there was something else that happened in the tail end of 2021 that ultimately sealed the deal, and it involved my second coming-out piece, and a certain Top Ten(ish) entry made in response to that (which got its own response). I’m not going into more detail about it out of respect to my fellow writers who also put in the hard work to move on from it, as everyone who’s been reading the site for a long time knows. All I can say is that, even with my best efforts to move on, it did a number on my creativity, humor, and most painfully my desire to write to the point where I feel like I’m merely going through the motions since it happened.
Which, to be frank, isn’t fair to me, it isn’t fair to anyone here writing for this great site, and it sure as shit isn’t fair to you. This year’s top ten is going to be the last thing I write here, at least for a long time, until I can find the passion, the hunger, and the drive to write again about the music I still love, even if portions of it want me gone, peacefully or not. I will continue to support my favorite bands. I will continue reading and chiming in to Angry Metal Guy. I will continue to quietly fight for those whose voices need to be heard. I’ll just be supporting from the sidelines from this point forward. If I find that passion again, things could be different. For now, though, the site needs people who are far hungrier than I am, and I need time to break away and rediscover my smile again.
I guess what I want to say is… thank you all, writers and readers, for the memories, the friendships, the great music, and the ability to give a worn-out warehouse supervisor a voice and an attempt at a teenage dream. Ten years is a long, long time, and I love you all for putting up with me for that long. In departing, I’ll quote Anaal Nathrakh’s anthem, “Endarkenment”:
“Take what small comfort there may be left;
seize what you love, and damn all the rest.”Onward, now and forever…
#ish. Wormhole // Almost Human – Anything even remotely coming close to the wheelhouse of Voivod will get a near-Pavlovian response from me, and Wormhole’s skronky, atonal, and relentlessly heavy take on our favorite Québécois is undeniable. To quote our favorite resident sponge, “WOOOOOOOOORMHOOOOOOOOOLE!!!”
#10. Saturnus // The Storm Within – Denmark’s Saturnus is quickly joining up with the Peaceville Three in terms of being a doom/death institution, and their fifth album showcases just why that is. With crushing riffs, soaring leads by Indee Rehal-Sagoo (ex-Eye of Solitude), The Storm Within is a deadly catch, indeed.
#9. Sulphur Aeon // Seven Crowns and Seven Seals – Germanic blackened death metal prodigies Sulphur Aeon finally returned after a five-year absence with the remarkable Seven Crowns and Seven Seals, an album that many claim to be not as strong as their three prior releases… which is an awful lot like saying comparing a championship win against another from the same sports team in subsequent seasons. It’s still a winner, and head and shoulders above their contemporaries.
#8. Thantifaxath // Hive Mind Narcosis – This anonymous Canadian trio continues to impress and terrify, with atonal riffs, barely-together rhythms, and the foreboding sense of everything feeling like it’s caving in and collapsing all at once add up to one of 2023’s most chaotic and frightening albums. If you enjoy excessive headfuckery, this is your ticket.
#7. Karras // We Poison Their Young – There needs to be more albums that just get to the point without any fat or bullshit getting in the way, and France’s Karras say more in 21 minutes than most band with three, even four, times as much length. Get in, fuck shit up, move the fuck on. More, please.
#6. Wreathe // The Land Is Not An Idle God – I miss Fall of Efrafa. I also love Morrow. Chances are, you do, too. Wreathe features key members of both bands, as well as Arboricidio, and it throws down just as hard and passionately as all three aforementioned bands. If you love emokrust, you are either onto this, or discovering it right the fuck now. You’re welcome!
#5. Fires in the Distance // Air Not Meant For Us – If you told me years ago that some of the best melodic doom/death would be from Connecticut, I would have laughed in your face to the point of an asthma attack. Yet, Fires in the Distance took what makes Insomnium and Omnium Gatherum4 and added their own unique embellishments to create a truly captivating album in Air Not Meant For Us. I await further installments.
#4. Reverend Kristin Michael Hayter // Saved! – Healing isn’t easy, joyous, or pretty. It can be downright ugly and uncomfortable. So when the former Lingua Ignota decided to bury that moniker and go by her birth name, nobody knew what to expect except that it would be brutally honest and at times discomforting, and Saved!, with its sound akin to a field recording of an Appalachian fundamentalist cult, definitely nails both while not only being painful to experience, but in an odd way, provides a beautiful, if disturbing, painting of the healing process.
#3. Wayfarer // American Gothic – Black metal should not go well with the Old West. Denver, Colorado’s Wayfarer flew against this very notion, and crafted not only their best album to date, but also an absorbing, engrossing classic that begs to be absorbed in full with your complete, utmost attention. Never has black metal felt or sounded so goddamn warm, like a freshly-killed outlaw baking in the hot Tucson sun.
#2. Shores of Null // The Loss of Beauty – One of the things I loved most about writing here is watching new bands make their ascent, and on The Loss of Beauty, Italian doom lords Shores of Null are soaring now. With their captivating riff work, melancholic melodies, and Davide Straccione’s incredible vocals, The Loss of Beauty is the sound of a still-young band bringing their A-game to the fore.
#1. Godthrymm // Distortions – Reflections, the 2020 debut from Godthrymm, just barely missed the top spot that year, but still showed off how strong of a debut it was. Distortions improved what Reflections laid down, with meaty riffs, soaring leads, a fantastic rhythm section, and keyboardist Catherine Glencross’ angelic voice providing a complimentary accompaniment to her husband Hamish’s improved5 vocal delivery. This classic-doom-meets-classic-Pallbearer configuration landed my top spot as soon as I finished listening to it for the first time, and again, and again, and…
Biggest Disappointments o’ 2023
- The Passing of Kevin “Geordie” Walker – As a fledgling metalhead dipping his toes in the underground, one of the videos that helped nudge me into the direction of the more heavier, deeper waters was “Millennium,” the first single off of Pandemonium, the comeback album by legendary post-punk/industrial pioneers Killing Joke. So taken back by how vital, energetic, and direct it sounded, I bought Pandemonium, and was instantly blown away by how multi-faceted and talented guitarist Kevin “Geordie” Walker was. Slowly but surely, I would pull from different eras of Killing Joke’s discography, including both self-titleds, and besides Jaz Coleman’s frantic end-of-days proselytizing and gravel-coated voice, it was Walker’s hypnotically inventive guitar licks and powerful riffs that would become the soundtrack for many a workout session. Hearing of his passing in November was like losing a favorite uncle, and I know my listening habits would have changed drastically had I not been exposed to Walker or Killing Joke. Honour the fire forever, good chap.
- Aaron Lewis – Before I begin, this isn’t against hunting. If you’re at all carnivorous (like me), it’s a necessity in order to… y’know, live. But when everyone’s favorite whiner who bemoans how much of a bunch of snowflakes my generation and younger are while gleefully supplying the soundtrack of such snowflakery decides to use the bodies of 32 dead coyotes to promote his favorite businessman-turned-former President, you go from “nu-metal has-been” to “absolute piece of shit” in record time. And seeing as how nu-metal’s got no shortage of pieces of shit, that’s saying something. Speaking of pieces of shit…
- K.K. Downing – …dude, just fucking stop. Just. STOP. When I quit my last job acrimoniously, I didn’t try to win my job back while simultaneously taking a steaming shit on the owners. I left and never looked back. K.K., on the other hand, is special. I don’t know the full details, and I don’t want to know the full details, due to K.K. deciding to act like a crybaby and a perpetual victim, instead of behaving like he was one-half of Judas Priest’s highly influential guitar duo at one point. They even reached out to play the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame with the current line-up, to try to mend fences, and he still bitched up a storm. Be happy that you’ve got Judas Priest at Home your namesake Dollar Tree rip-off band now.
- The Sale and Butchering of Bandcamp – If you’ve known us for any length of time, you can probably guess that we all love Bandcamp around these parts. Easily the most artist-friendly music service out there, Bandcamp gave upcoming bands and labels, especially those who could use the reach, a voice and a chance, and even more so during Bandcamp Fridays, where the site’s fees were waived for all purchases. So of course Epic Games would buy it in March of last year, and then sell it to Songtradr, who would go on to lay off half of Bandcamp’s staff, including all those who were trying to unionize in order to protect their jobs. Was Bandcamp perfect? No, but I guarantee you most of your favorite new bands would have suffered if Bandcamp didn’t exist. To call this “heartbreaking” and “callous” would be a gross understatement. My heart goes out to those affected by the layoffs, and a giant, massive fuck you to Epic Games and Songtradr for fucking up an awesome thing.
Song o’ the Year
Godthrymm // “Devils” – Distortions possesses a number of songs that could easily fit into the #1 slot for Song o’ the Year.6 But, to me at least, “Devils” best exemplifies what the album’s all about: heavy riffing, somber melodies, enchanting vocals, and a slight tinge, no matter how small it might be, of hope. Also, the first half just kicks so much ass.
It’s been a wild, wild ride. Y’all be good.
#2023 #AaronLewis #AnaalNathrakh #Arboricidio #Bandcamp #Burzum #Darkher #DecibelMagazine #EpicGames #EyeOfSolitude #FallOfEfrafa #FiresInTheDistance #Godthrymm #GrymmSTopTenIshOf2023 #JudasPriest #KKDowning #Karras #KillingJoke #LinguaIgnota #Lists #Listurnalia #MetalInjection #MetalManiacsMagazine #Morrow #Pallbearer #ReverendKristinMichaelHayter #Saturnus #ShoresOfNull #SleepToken #Songtradr #SulphurAeon #Thantifaxath #Vainaja #Voivod #Wayfarer #Wormhole #Wreathe
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my #openjsworld talk was accepted:
“How the npm CLI Team Manages (Almost) 100 Open Source Projects”
i think our team has some really useful experience in processes and tooling around managing all that goes in to open source software at that scale that i’m excited to share!
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Könnten Campus-Proteste zum Problem für Biden werden?
Studierende im ganzen Land protestieren gegen die US-amerikanische Unterstützung von Israel. Hunderte wurden bereits festgenommen. Für Bidens Wahlkampf könnten die Proteste der jungen Menschen zum Problem werden. Von Isabell Karras.
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Sekt oder Selters – in welcher Stimmung sind die Stakeholder der Energiewirtschaft beim Thema #Wasserstoff? Paneldiskussion mit hochkarätigem Podium auf der #get2025. Herzlichen Dank an Vizepräsidentin BarbieHaller (@BNetzA), Eric Ahlers (#NetzeBW), Dr. Boris Bensmann (#InnoEly), Barbara Fischer (@FNB_Gas), Lena Karras (#REFHYNE) und Dr. Valerian von Richthofen #NortonRoseFulbright für die spannende Diskussion.
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Sekt oder Selters – in welcher Stimmung sind die Stakeholder der Energiewirtschaft beim Thema #Wasserstoff? Paneldiskussion mit hochkarätigem Podium auf der #get2025. Herzlichen Dank an Vizepräsidentin BarbieHaller (@BNetzA), Eric Ahlers (#NetzeBW), Dr. Boris Bensmann (#InnoEly), Barbara Fischer (@FNB_Gas), Lena Karras (#REFHYNE) und Dr. Valerian von Richthofen #NortonRoseFulbright für die spannende Diskussion.
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Sekt oder Selters – in welcher Stimmung sind die Stakeholder der Energiewirtschaft beim Thema #Wasserstoff? Paneldiskussion mit hochkarätigem Podium auf der #get2025. Herzlichen Dank an Vizepräsidentin BarbieHaller (@BNetzA), Eric Ahlers (#NetzeBW), Dr. Boris Bensmann (#InnoEly), Barbara Fischer (@FNB_Gas), Lena Karras (#REFHYNE) und Dr. Valerian von Richthofen #NortonRoseFulbright für die spannende Diskussion.
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Sekt oder Selters – in welcher Stimmung sind die Stakeholder der Energiewirtschaft beim Thema #Wasserstoff? Paneldiskussion mit hochkarätigem Podium auf der #get2025. Herzlichen Dank an Vizepräsidentin BarbieHaller (@BNetzA), Eric Ahlers (#NetzeBW), Dr. Boris Bensmann (#InnoEly), Barbara Fischer (@FNB_Gas), Lena Karras (#REFHYNE) und Dr. Valerian von Richthofen #NortonRoseFulbright für die spannende Diskussion.
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Baltimore: Schiffscrew verhinderte wohl größere Katastrophe
Nach dem Einsturz einer Brücke in der US-Stadt Baltimore wird immer deutlicher, dass die Crew des manövrierunfähigen Schiffs wohl viele Leben gerettet hat. Die Regierung in Washington segnete derweil 60 Millionen Dollar Soforthilfen ab. Von I. Karras.
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Ese coro lánguido seguido (¿y roto?) de esa percusión trotona suena a ceremonial. En parte lo es, un aquelarre pop.
Una ceremonia con sacerdotisa roja. Justo el rojo, el color del derroche y la única concesión demoniaca a la saturación, como contraste al paisaje y sus secundarios. El mismo acierto de Kylie en ese nuevo clásico que fue Padam y que apunta a ser Everybody Scream. No por poco arriesgado es un acierto de categoría inferior.
Es esta una canción mucho más oscura (aquella en realidad solo tenía el beat como sombra) y no menos pegadiza. La Welch recita versos cargados de significado, atmosféricos, sin apabullar. Antes de eso, se desborda y ofrenda al público unas instrucciones ultrapop para despendolarse subrayadas por unos vítores pregrabados que realzan el poder absoluto (no pensaba en ti, Clint) de semejante temón ya en su primer tramo.
La cosa sigue. Las notas alargadas y ligeramente vibradas vuelven a repintar lo recitado y a exacerbar el plano melódico, tan rico y llamativo por la belleza informal, y también técnica, con la que está llevado, mucho más sutil de lo que aparenta al oirse con los arreglos. Incluso sus contoneos entre lo sexy y la necesidad de buscar el número del padre Karras son totalmente procedentes. ¿Cómo si no bailar un tema tan bizarro y pop a la vez?
Al final la canción parece querer sobreponerse a las cosas feas que nos suceden y para ello opta por sacudirnos de cabo a rabo. A tenor del resultado no se me ocurre mejor manera de darle un portazo a la vida y tomarnos un respiro de ella.
Florence, por medio de esta alegoría que recuerda a la notable No estarás sola (2022), nos regala un talismán, para ponernos en el pechito y lucirlo en el escote.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=03iBgkXb1EE
#popazo #nowplaying #music #musica #pop #florenceandthemachine #florencewelch #single #sencillo #song #rock #everybodyscream #indie #underground #indiemusic -
#DieWelt #Welt 16. Januar #Scholz #CumEx #Mails #IfG
Die Mails von Olaf Scholz, die niemand sehen soll
Die CDU/CSU-Fraktion will die Versteckspiele um bis heute gespeicherte Mails aus der Zeit von Scholz als Finanzminister im Bundestag thematisieren. Interne Unterlagen belegen, wie die Bundesregierung trickste - offenbar unter Verstoß gegen geltende Bürgerrechte auf Einsicht
Die WELT schon im Dexember berichtet hatte, hält die Bundesregierung bis heute drei Mailpostfächer von Kanzler Olaf Scholz (SPD) aus seiner Zeit als Finanzminister beim bundeseigenen Dienstleister ITZ Bund unter Verschluss — offenkundig unter Verstoß gegen das Informationsfreiheitsgesetz (IFG). Auch die Mailkorrespandenz seiner damaligen wie heutigen Büroleiterin Jeanette Schwamberger beim ITZ Bund noch erhalten, aber für die Bürger ebenfalls nicht zugänglich,
VON HANS-MARTIN TILLACK
Kinen 6 Antrag von WELT auf Zugang zu bestimmten Mails von Scholz und Schwamberger zum Cum Ex Untersuchungsausschuss im Hamburger Landesparlament hat das ITZ Bund jetzt jedenfalls abgelehnt, Der Grumd: Das Bundesfinanzministerium (BMF) sei „als Urheber der angeforderten Informationen verigungsberechtigt“; man tor Bereits 2022 hatte das Vinanzministertum einen fast gleichlautenden Antrag auf Zugang zu solchen Mails ebenfalls abschlägig beschieden. Der Antrag sei „mangels vorhandener amtlicher Informationen abzulehnen“. Tatsächlich hatte das BMI" aber offenkundig gar nicht erst versucht, die Mailfächer von Scholz und Schwamberger nach einschlägiger
Karrespondenz zu durchsuchen - obwohl das nisterium laut ITZ Bund verfügung rechtigt ist.Die heute von Finanzminister Jörg Kukies (SPIX geführte Behörde beharrt dennoch weiter auf der Auffassung, sie habe keine „rechtliche Verfügungsbe- Cugnis“, um auf die Postfächer zuzugrei- fen. „Für ein ungelragtes, investigatives Durchsuchen der persönlichen EK-Mail- Konten der (chemaligen) Beschäftigten fehlt es an einer Ermächtigungsgrundla- ge“, behauptete das Ministerium bereits im Dezember 2022 als Erwiderung auf cine Klage, die WELT vor dem Verwal tungsgericht Berlin eingereicht hatte, Damals war noch nicht bekannt, dass das BMF die Mailkonten von Scholz an das ITZ Bund ausgelagert hatte und dort speichern ließ — offenbar auf Wunsch des heutigen Kanzlers.
Anfang Dezember 2024 bestätigte Sa- rah Ryglewski (SPD), Parlamentarische Staatssckr a im Finanzministerium, dann in aller Form im Bundestag, dass die Mailfächer beim ITZ Bund gespei chert seien und ein Zugriff „technisch möglich“ wäre. Aus Gründen des Daten- schutzes würden Zugriffe aber „grund- sätzlich“ nur den jeweiligen Inhabern gewährt. Der Rechtsexperte Thomas Henne nennt das „eine im deutschen Recht nicht vorgesehene Form der KEi- genarchivierung“ - also eine Art Privati- sierung amtlicher Dokumente. Henne ist Professor an der Archivschule Marbu der zentralen Finrichtung für die Aus bildung deutscher staatlicher Archivare,
Juristisch dürfte es zudem unzu sig sein, ganze Mailpostfächer pauschal von geltenden Kinsichtsrechten aus- zunehmen und sie quasi in ein von der Informationsfreiheit ausgenommenes Niecmandsland auszulagern. Zu dieser Einschätzung kamen jedenfalls mehrere von WELT befragte Rechtsexperten.
„Wenn der chemalige Finanzmini: ter sein dienstliches Mailpostfach — wie es den Vorschriften entspricht - zu dienstlichen Zwecken verwendet hat, dann handelt es sich bei den E-Mails um amtliche Informationen“, sagt etwa der Berliner Anwalt David Werdermann, In diesem Fall hätten Bürger „nach dem In Formationsfreiheitsgeserz grundsätzlich einen voraussetzumgslosen Anspruch auf Zugang zu den E-Mails“,Mit einer aus heutiger Sicht irrefüh- rend klingenden Begründung hatte das Finanzministerium - damals noch unter Führung von Christian Lindner (FDP) — bereits im Mai 2022 auch auf einen 11°G- Antrag des Linken Bundestagsabgeord- neten Christian Görke reagiert. Er hatte um Zugang zu Mails gebeten, die der heutige Kanzleramtschef und damalige Staatssekretär im Finanzministerium Wolfgang Schmidt (SPD) im Jahr 2020 mit dem Unternehmer Nicolaus von Rintelen ausgetauscht hatte, Das Minis- terium Tchnte den Antrag von CGoerke damals ab. Wegen des Anmtswechsels sei ein „Zugriff auf etwaige zuvor empfan- gene und versandte 5 Mails ehemaliger Staatssekretäre“ nicht mehr möglich.
Beobachter harten daraus geschlo: dass das Mailpostlach - wie vielfach in der Bundesregierung bei Amtswechseln üblich - gelöscht worden war, Doch Mitte Dezember 2024 bestätigte Staatssekretä- rin Ryglewski auf eine parlamentarische Anfrage der AfD übe: ‚hend, dass auch das Schmidt-Postfach beim ITZ Bund „noch vorhanden“ sei. Anders als dem Abgeordneten Görke im Mai z022 mit
mitge teilt, wäre ein Zugriff demnach schr wohl noch möglich. Das Finanzministerium sicht sich dennoch im Recht, Man habe auch bei den Schmidt-Mails keine „recht- liche Verfügungsbefugnis“ mehr.Der EU-Parlamentarier Fabio
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Who Let These Clowns in the Hall? The AMG Staff Pick Their Top Ten(ish) Records o’ 2023
By Steel Druhm
2023 draws to an end and the glory of Listurnalia is upon us. Over the coming days, we will unveil a vast array of hot takes, puzzling choices, and shocking omissions to gawk over and judge. And that’s why you all come here: to second guess the staff of AMG while making godawful “yer mom” jokes. We know what sells and puts butts in the seats, so here comes the cannon fodder. Up first is the AMG staff list. You don’t need to agree, but please refrain from throwing anything more impactful than well-rotted fruits and vegetables.
Dr. Wvrm
#5. Fires in the Distance // Air Not Meant for Us
#4. Moonlight Sorcery // Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle
#3. Ascension // Under the Veil of Madness
#1. Carnosus // Visions of Infinihility… and #1. Xoth // Exogalactic – I’ve agonized over this decision for weeks, and you know what? Fuck it. I cannot choose, and no one can make me, not you, not my last shred of dignity, certainly not that damned dirty ape with the hammer. Carnosus and Xoth lapped the field this year and deserve to be recognized as such. Both Exogalactic and Visions of Infinihility epitomize their respective genres, prostrate before that holiest of holy, The Riff. So of course, the end products are impeccable, incredible, impossibly fucking good. I struggle to imagine better blends of execution and energy, mercilessness and memorability. I am still, a hundred spins later, as hopelessly in love with these records as the day I laid ears upon them. As I struggle to carve a place in my life for metal and this wonderful, stupid website, Xoth and Carnosus remind me why it’s all worth the effort.Honorable Mentions:
Abstract Void // Forever
Svalbard // The Weight of the Mask
Twilight Force // At the Heart of WintervaleSongs o’ the (Previous) Year: Moonlight Sorcery – “For Thy Light Is Ice” and “Wolven Hour”
Itchymenace
#10. Thulcandra // Hail the Abyss
#9. Begravement // Horrific Illusions Beckon
#8. Thy Catafalque // Alföld
#7. Rotpit // Let There Be Rot
#6. Obituary // Dying of Everything
#5. Morwinyon // Wastelands
#4. Prong // State of Emergency
#3. Kalmah // Kalmah
#2. The Howling Void // Into Darkness Ever More Profound
#1. Night Demon // Outsider – When I wrote the review for this record back in March (my first 4.5), I suspected it would be a contender for AotY. The Howling Void gave it a run for its money, but Outsider is a near-perfect slab of good ol’-fashioned heavy metal. The fact that a band can create an olde school record that is so fun, so well-produced, with such great musicianship is a thing to celebrate indeed!Honorable Mentions:
Blackbraid // Blackbraid II
Panopticon // Rime of Memory
Moonlight Sorcery // Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle
Tanith // Voyage
Danava // Nothing But NothingSong o’ the Year: The Howling Void – “Into Darkness Ever More Profound”
Disappointment of the Year: Seeing Carcass struggle to energize the crowd at First Avenue. Apparently, letting Municipal Waste play ahead of you isn’t a good idea. Municipal whipped up what is probably the most energetic and chaotic mosh pit I’ve ever seen. Poor Jeff Walker just couldn’t get the exhausted crowd frenzied again no matter how hard he tried. They still sounded great though!
Iceberg
#10. Crypta // Shades of Sorrow
#9. Gorod // The Orb
#8. Vanishing Kids // Miracle of Death
#7. Wayfarer // American Gothic
#6. Sigir // Rainmaker
#5. Stortregn // Finitude
#4. Wormhole // Almost Human
#3. Silver Bullet // Shadowfall
#2. Night Crowned // Tales
#1. Sodomisery // Mazzaroth – Yes, the name leaves something to be desired. Yes, this is melo-black in a banner year for death and doom. But Sodomisery’s 2023 opus filled the Mistur-shaped hole in my heart in a way few bands have done since the heady days of In Memoriam. The 36 minutes of Mazzaroth are as lean and mean as you can get and are proof of the band’s superior sense of editing. In the age of endless bloat, Sodomisery sharpen their knives and kill all their babies Spartan-style, leaving only razor-sharp riffing and inescapable songwriting in their wake. I spent the final months of the year trying to find something to top Mazzaroth, but no such contender arose. Each time that Nordic curb stomper of a riff closes “Demon in Heaven” and the orchestra draws down the curtain of “Ephemeral Requiem,” I’m more and more confident that Mazzaroth is this floating berg’s AotY. Dinner-table talk with extended family might still be sketchy this year, but hey, at least it’s not Fvneral Fvkk.
Honorable Mentions:Convocation // No Dawn for the Caliginous Night
Panopticon // The Rime of Memory
Moonlight Sorcery // Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle
Karras // We Poison Their YoungSong o’ the Year: Silver Bullet – “Soul Reaver”
Mystikus Hugebeard
(ish). Thragedium // Lisboa Depois de Morta
#10. Insomnium // Anno 1696
#9. Rotpit // Let There Be Rot
#8. Sodomisery // Mazzaroth
#7. Panopticon // The Rime of Memory
#6. Scar Symmetry // The Singularity (Phase II: Xenotaph)
#5. Blackbraid // Blackbraid II
#4. Wormhole // Almost Human
#3. Fires in the Distance // Air Not Meant for Us
#2. Subsignal // A Poetry of Rain
#1. Ne Obliviscaris // Exul – I had a lot of catching up to do as I was forming this list. Before the monstrous pantheon of writers at AMG plucked me out of the Styx and bestowed me with the power and legitimacy to embarrass myself to our dear readers, I’d been kinda slacking on new metal releases. As I tore through the recommendations of my betters peers, I waited for something to reveal itself to me in all its AotY splendor… but I realized that nothing was drawing me back quite like Exul by Ne Obliviscaris. I love just about everything by these Aussies, but goddamn if Exul hasn’t all but trivialized everything they’ve made before. This is Ne Obliviscaris as they’ve always been, but perfected and wickedly essential. Peaks of light-speed extremity tower above valleys of expressive violin wailing launched into and beyond the stars by laser-precise drumming and what is one of my favorite bass performances ever, all betwixt the almost painful beauty of the clean vocals and relentless growls. Exul feels like what Ne Obliviscaris have been building towards for their whole career, the perfect marriage of ferocious intensity and a dancer’s elegance. Hell, every part of Exul is the best part of Exul, and the album has a vice-grip on me that declares “You will listen to the whole thing again, you dumb idiot.” Who am I to say no?Honorable Mentions:
Theophonos // Nightmare Visions
Godthrymm // Distortions
Bulletbelt // Burn It Up
Dødheimsgard // Black Medium CurrentSong o’ the Year: Insomnium – “White Christ”
Disappointment ov the Year:
Mercenary // Soundtrack for the End Times – I don’t hate this album, but “disappointment” is an apt word. After years and years of eagerly checking on them to see when they’d release something new, it was disheartening to finally get my hands on an album that was just so meh. -
Who Let These Clowns in the Hall? The AMG Staff Pick Their Top Ten(ish) Records o’ 2023
By Steel Druhm
2023 draws to an end and the glory of Listurnalia is upon us. Over the coming days, we will unveil a vast array of hot takes, puzzling choices, and shocking omissions to gawk over and judge. And that’s why you all come here: to second guess the staff of AMG while making godawful “yer mom” jokes. We know what sells and puts butts in the seats, so here comes the cannon fodder. Up first is the AMG staff list. You don’t need to agree, but please refrain from throwing anything more impactful than well-rotted fruits and vegetables.
Dr. Wvrm
#5. Fires in the Distance // Air Not Meant for Us
#4. Moonlight Sorcery // Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle
#3. Ascension // Under the Veil of Madness
#1. Carnosus // Visions of Infinihility… and #1. Xoth // Exogalactic – I’ve agonized over this decision for weeks, and you know what? Fuck it. I cannot choose, and no one can make me, not you, not my last shred of dignity, certainly not that damned dirty ape with the hammer. Carnosus and Xoth lapped the field this year and deserve to be recognized as such. Both Exogalactic and Visions of Infinihility epitomize their respective genres, prostrate before that holiest of holy, The Riff. So of course, the end products are impeccable, incredible, impossibly fucking good. I struggle to imagine better blends of execution and energy, mercilessness and memorability. I am still, a hundred spins later, as hopelessly in love with these records as the day I laid ears upon them. As I struggle to carve a place in my life for metal and this wonderful, stupid website, Xoth and Carnosus remind me why it’s all worth the effort.Honorable Mentions:
Abstract Void // Forever
Svalbard // The Weight of the Mask
Twilight Force // At the Heart of WintervaleSongs o’ the (Previous) Year: Moonlight Sorcery – “For Thy Light Is Ice” and “Wolven Hour”
Itchymenace
#10. Thulcandra // Hail the Abyss
#9. Begravement // Horrific Illusions Beckon
#8. Thy Catafalque // Alföld
#7. Rotpit // Let There Be Rot
#6. Obituary // Dying of Everything
#5. Morwinyon // Wastelands
#4. Prong // State of Emergency
#3. Kalmah // Kalmah
#2. The Howling Void // Into Darkness Ever More Profound
#1. Night Demon // Outsider – When I wrote the review for this record back in March (my first 4.5), I suspected it would be a contender for AotY. The Howling Void gave it a run for its money, but Outsider is a near-perfect slab of good ol’-fashioned heavy metal. The fact that a band can create an olde school record that is so fun, so well-produced, with such great musicianship is a thing to celebrate indeed!Honorable Mentions:
Blackbraid // Blackbraid II
Panopticon // Rime of Memory
Moonlight Sorcery // Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle
Tanith // Voyage
Danava // Nothing But NothingSong o’ the Year: The Howling Void – “Into Darkness Ever More Profound”
Disappointment of the Year: Seeing Carcass struggle to energize the crowd at First Avenue. Apparently, letting Municipal Waste play ahead of you isn’t a good idea. Municipal whipped up what is probably the most energetic and chaotic mosh pit I’ve ever seen. Poor Jeff Walker just couldn’t get the exhausted crowd frenzied again no matter how hard he tried. They still sounded great though!
Iceberg
#10. Crypta // Shades of Sorrow
#9. Gorod // The Orb
#8. Vanishing Kids // Miracle of Death
#7. Wayfarer // American Gothic
#6. Sigir // Rainmaker
#5. Stortregn // Finitude
#4. Wormhole // Almost Human
#3. Silver Bullet // Shadowfall
#2. Night Crowned // Tales
#1. Sodomisery // Mazzaroth – Yes, the name leaves something to be desired. Yes, this is melo-black in a banner year for death and doom. But Sodomisery’s 2023 opus filled the Mistur-shaped hole in my heart in a way few bands have done since the heady days of In Memoriam. The 36 minutes of Mazzaroth are as lean and mean as you can get and are proof of the band’s superior sense of editing. In the age of endless bloat, Sodomisery sharpen their knives and kill all their babies Spartan-style, leaving only razor-sharp riffing and inescapable songwriting in their wake. I spent the final months of the year trying to find something to top Mazzaroth, but no such contender arose. Each time that Nordic curb stomper of a riff closes “Demon in Heaven” and the orchestra draws down the curtain of “Ephemeral Requiem,” I’m more and more confident that Mazzaroth is this floating berg’s AotY. Dinner-table talk with extended family might still be sketchy this year, but hey, at least it’s not Fvneral Fvkk.
Honorable Mentions:Convocation // No Dawn for the Caliginous Night
Panopticon // The Rime of Memory
Moonlight Sorcery // Horned Lord of the Thorned Castle
Karras // We Poison Their YoungSong o’ the Year: Silver Bullet – “Soul Reaver”
Mystikus Hugebeard
(ish). Thragedium // Lisboa Depois de Morta
#10. Insomnium // Anno 1696
#9. Rotpit // Let There Be Rot
#8. Sodomisery // Mazzaroth
#7. Panopticon // The Rime of Memory
#6. Scar Symmetry // The Singularity (Phase II: Xenotaph)
#5. Blackbraid // Blackbraid II
#4. Wormhole // Almost Human
#3. Fires in the Distance // Air Not Meant for Us
#2. Subsignal // A Poetry of Rain
#1. Ne Obliviscaris // Exul – I had a lot of catching up to do as I was forming this list. Before the monstrous pantheon of writers at AMG plucked me out of the Styx and bestowed me with the power and legitimacy to embarrass myself to our dear readers, I’d been kinda slacking on new metal releases. As I tore through the recommendations of my betters peers, I waited for something to reveal itself to me in all its AotY splendor… but I realized that nothing was drawing me back quite like Exul by Ne Obliviscaris. I love just about everything by these Aussies, but goddamn if Exul hasn’t all but trivialized everything they’ve made before. This is Ne Obliviscaris as they’ve always been, but perfected and wickedly essential. Peaks of light-speed extremity tower above valleys of expressive violin wailing launched into and beyond the stars by laser-precise drumming and what is one of my favorite bass performances ever, all betwixt the almost painful beauty of the clean vocals and relentless growls. Exul feels like what Ne Obliviscaris have been building towards for their whole career, the perfect marriage of ferocious intensity and a dancer’s elegance. Hell, every part of Exul is the best part of Exul, and the album has a vice-grip on me that declares “You will listen to the whole thing again, you dumb idiot.” Who am I to say no?Honorable Mentions:
Theophonos // Nightmare Visions
Godthrymm // Distortions
Bulletbelt // Burn It Up
Dødheimsgard // Black Medium CurrentSong o’ the Year: Insomnium – “White Christ”
Disappointment ov the Year:
Mercenary // Soundtrack for the End Times – I don’t hate this album, but “disappointment” is an apt word. After years and years of eagerly checking on them to see when they’d release something new, it was disheartening to finally get my hands on an album that was just so meh. -
#AnnaBrzezińska #Uwolnione z FB
W 1481 r. Katerina z Eschenau została poinformowana przez radę miasta Norymbergi, że z pocałowaniem w rękę otrzyma prawa miejskie i wiążące się z tym przywileje, jeśli tylko się przeprowadzi wraz z mężem do ich pięknego frankońskiego grodu. A skąd ta łaskawość władz miejskich? Bo pani Katerina była położną.
Tak, to jest wpis polityczny.
Spośród średniowiecznych niemieckich miast Norymberga stworzyła najlepiej zorganizowany system publicznej opieki medycznej nad położnicami i noworodkami. Stanowił on obiekt podziwu i zazdrości. Norymberskie położne były słynne i tak cenione, że ościenni władcy i inne miasta uprzejmie prosili magistrat o ich użyczenie na czas połogów ukochanych małżonek. W źródłach jako odrębna profesja położne pojawiają się w XIV w., a w 1417 r. są wymienione wśród innych grup zawodowych, zobowiązanych co roku składać przysięgę przed radą miejską.
Tłumacząc na nasze, stały się zawodem zaufania publicznego. Jak notariusze.
W 1522 r. władze Norymbergi wydały pierwsze zarządzenie regulujące całościowo pracę położnych. Zobowiązano je, by wszystkich, bogatych i biednych, traktowały tak samo. W szczególności zakazano im porzucania w trakcie porodu biednej kobiety, by asystować przy porodzie bogatszej, która więcej zapłaci. Nie mogły przyspieszać porodu. Jeśli trwał długo i położna się zmęczyła, zobowiązano ją do wezwania innej zaprzysiężonej położnej, nie zaś po prostu swojej uczennicy. Za porzucenie obywatelki miasta Norymbergi w potrzebie położne mogły być obciążone grzywną w wysokości 5 florenów i stracić prawo do wykonywania zawodu.
Poza tym w Norymberdze część z nich – nie wszystkie – zatrudniało miasto. Tłumacząc na nasze, pracowały w budżetówce.
Certyfikowane miejskie położne zarabiały znacznie mniej niż balwierze/chirurdzy, bo ich też miasto zatrudniało: one dostawały 2-8 guldenów rocznie, oni 10-25. Nie były zadowolone z pensji. Zwracały się do magistratu z prośbami o podwyżki i to niespecjalnie pokornie, twierdząc, że proszą o to „co im się należy.” Miasto podwyżek raczej nie dawało, za to oferowało im za darmo drewno, zboże czy ulgi podatkowe, zaznaczając przy tym, że czyni to nie z przymusu, tylko dobroci serca. Aha, bo i tak zaraz jakiś cwaniak zada to pytanie – zarabiały mniej więcej tyle, co czeladnik albo wyzwolony rzemieślnik, ale nie dostawały zakwaterowania i wyżywienia.
Tłumacząc na nasze, płace w sektorze publicznym już wówczas były nędzne.
Pomimo to władze starały się pozyskiwać fachowe służby medyczne i nakłaniały położne do osiedlenia się w Norymberdze, ofertując im – jak Katerinie z Eschenau – prawa miejskie bez związanych z tym opłat. Zachęcano je również do kształcenia kolejnych akuszerek, mogły więc liczyć na wysokie bonusy za wzięcie uczennic (w 1483 r. od 2 do 3 florenów, w 1484 r. – 5 florenów). Dostawały też dodatkowe wynagrodzenie od rodzin bogatych położnic. Na przykład w 1534 r. Sebastian Welser, bogaty sukiennik i członek rady miejskiej, zapłacił położnej 1,5 florena za poród żony i kolejnego florena za opiekę nad żoną podczas 3 miesięcy po porodzie. Ale władzom zależało, by miejskie położne nie faworyzowały patrycjatu, stąd tak surowe kary za porzucenie biednej położnicy.
By zapobiec nadużyciom i błędom w sztuce, Norymberga stworzyła cały system kształcenia i nadzorowania pracy położnych. Świecki, podczas gdy np. we Francji położne były pod nadzorem Kościoła.
Zarządzenia miejskie nakazywały, by położne były statecznie i uczyły się fachu u boku doświadczonej położnej aż przez 4 lata, podczas gdy w wielu miejscach był to tylko rok. Dopiero po roku asystowania uczennicom pozwalano odbierać porody i to wyłącznie proste, u wieloródek. Potem były egzaminowane przez lekarzy miejskich, uzyskiwały – lub nie – prawo do wykonywania zawodu.
Ponadto w 1463 r. rada miejska powołała instytucję Ehrbare Frauen, czyli patrycjuszek, które nadzorowały pracę położnych i raz do roku – po Wielkanocy – składały radzie miejskiej raport z ich pracy. W Norymberdze nie dostawały wynagrodzenia, choć w innych miastach to się zdarzało. Nie odbierały porodów – przynajmniej w teorii, bo położne skarżyły się magistratowi, że pokątnie to robią, więc powinny też zdawać egzamin – ale kontrolowały pracę miejskich położnych, wizytowały matki w połogu, wysłuchiwały skarg, służyły radą, wsparciem i pomocą.
Współpraca nie zawsze układała się najlepiej, skoro w 1549 r. położne zażądały od rady miejskiej wyznaczenia innych osób do nadzorowania ich pracy, ponieważ, jak twierdziły, damy z patrycjatu nie chciały zajmować się biednymi kobietami i ignorowały prośby położnych. Zażądały, by do nadzorowania wyznaczono zwyczajne żony i wdowy po rzemieślnikach. W ten sposób powołano instytucję Geschworene Weiber, w której zatrudniano – na drobną opłatą – żony i wdowy po rzemieślnikach i skromniejszych urzędnikach, które miały wspierać położne i pomagać przy najtrudniejszych porodach.
Tłumacząc na nasze, służby medyczne artykułowały swoje oczekiwania i władze starały się wypracować konsensus, który poprawi działanie systemu.
Liczba tych wszystkich kobiet w systemie opieki nad położnicami wahała się od 16 położnych do 65 w 1530 r. Potem ustabilizowała się na poziomie 40-50 kobiet, z czego położne stanowiły ok. 1/3. Oczywiście nie były to wszystkie niewiasty w municypalnych służbach medycznych. Wiele pracowało w szpitalach, także położne, które przyjmowały tam porody ubogich kobiet spoza miasta (nieposiadających obywatelstwa), w ramach zinstytucjonalizowanego miejskiego miłosierdzia. Inne w instytucjach charytatywnych, zwanych Seekhaus, opiekowały się zakaźnie chorymi i przygotowywały zmarłych do pochówku. Badacze szacują, że było ich w tym świeckim systemie municypalnej opieki medycznej więcej niż mężczyzn.
Oprócz odbierania porodów położne pełniły w Norymberdze – i innych średniowiecznych oraz wczesnonowożytnych miastach – jeszcze inne funkcje. Mogły samodzielnie podawać lekarstwa położnicom – te najprostsze, sporządzane przez aptekarzy bez zlecenia przez lekarza – przy czym jeśli położnica nie była w stanie zapłacić za medykamenty, rachunek u aptekarza pokrywano z kasy miejskiej. Zapewniały opiekę poporodową matce i dziecku, w razie potrzeby chrzciły, występowały w sądach jako ekspertki, informowały władze o przestępstwach związanych z seksualnością i naruszeniach obyczajności, instruowały szczęśliwych rodziców w sprawie praw przeciwko zbytkowi (czyli np. ile maksymalnie osób mogą zaprosić na chrzciny). Czasami ojcowie miasta mieli dość zabawne pomysły. Wprawdzie nie w Norymberdze, ale w Strasburgu w początkach XVII w. położnym nakazano, by – jeśli asystowały przy narodzinach dziecka nieślubnego – informowały władze, czyje imię wykrzykiwała w bólach rodząca, bo a nuż ujawniała w ten sposób niecnego tatusia-cudzołożnika.
To jest system południowoniemiecki i nie, nie odnotowano tam procesów położnych oskarżonych o czary, choć w innych regionach cesarstwa się trafiały. Ale tu rządzili kupcy. Rozumieli znaczenie słowa „inwestycja” i nie puszczali inwestycji z dymem ani nie pokrzykiwali: „Niech wyjeżdżają!”.
Wśród historyków toczy się zajadłą dyskusja na temat zmian, jakie na przełomie średniowiecza przyniosła profesjonalizacja medycyny i jak dalece wypchnęła kobiety z praktykowania medycyny. Otóż w południowoniemieckich miastach nie wypchnęła. Najwyraźniej system był tak skuteczny, że przetrwał szczęśliwie aż do XVIII w.
Wypracowano go na przełomie średniowiecza. Epoce, kiedy społeczeństwo było fundamentalnie zhierarchizowane, a pochodzenie przesądzało w ogromnym stopniu o dalszym losie człowieka. Właśnie wtedy miasta takie, jak Norymberga – ale też Ratyzbona, Monachium, Stuttgart czy Frankfurt – zorganizowały świecką, jednolitą i publiczną opiekę zdrowotną dla obywatelek w ciąży i małych obywateli, których kolejne pokolenia postanowiono jak najbezpieczniej sprowadzać na świat. Certyfikowały i zatrudniały położne, by służyły wszystkim obywatelom, bogatym i biednym. W tym samym podstawowym standardzie.
Za kasę z podatków.
I tak, wiem, że cesarskie miasto Norymberga należało do najbogatszych i – wraz z Kolonią i Augsburgiem – największych niemieckich miast. Ale te miasta, zarządzane przez zachłannych patrycjuszy, bogatych kupców, bankierów i wyspecjalizowanych, nowatorskich rzemieślników, miały silną tożsamość i municypalny etos, którego wyrazem były m.in. działające służby publiczne, podatki i prawa zapewniające żonie ubogiego łatacza trzewików tę samą podstawową opiekę zdrowotną, co żonie Sebastiana Welsera, który, bądźmy szczerzy, mógł sobie zapewnić tuzin położnych na miesiąc. Dlaczego tego nie robił? Bo ładując kasę – z podatków – w system publiczny, szlifując wykształcenie i kontrolę nad służbami medycznymi, doprowadzono do takiej ekscentrycznej sytuacji, że władcy – mogący sobie pozwolić na wszystko, co się da kupić za pieniądze – zabiegali o wypożyczenie miejskiej położonej. Publiczne było lepsze niż prywatne. Taki mały frankoński cud nad Pegnitz.
I racjonalna inwestycja w przyszłość miasta.
Mamy w rządzie historyków. Jest nim na przykład premier. Wprawdzie ze specjalizacją z legendy Piłsudskiego, czyli bajek z mchu i paproci, ale to i tak lepiej niż poprzednik, który też jest historykiem i bronił się jeszcze bardziej egzotycznie, z Solidarności Walczącej. Tak, wiem, historycy to plaga.
Może niech mu ktoś zalinkuje ten tekst i szepnie, jak ci straszliwi Niemcy to robili już w zacofanym średniowieczu?
Bo tak, to jest wpis polityczny.
Literatura:
Judith P. Aikin, Welfare of Pregnant and Birthing Women as Concern for Male and Female Rulers: A Case Study, - Sixteenth Century Journal, 35, 1 (2004): 9-41.
Green, Monica H. “Gendering the History of Women’s Healthcare.” Gender & History, 20, 3 (2008): 487–518.
Annemarie Kinzelbach, Women and Healthcare in Early Modern German Towns, - Renaissance Studies, 28, 4 (2014): 619-638.
Alison Rowlands, Monstrous Deception: Midwifery, Fraud and Gender in Early Modern Rothenburg ob. Der Tauber, [in:] Gender in Early Modern German History, ed. Ulinka Rublack, Cambridge: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2002, pp. 71-101.
Steven Ozment, When Fathers Ruled. Family Life in Reformation Europe, Cambridge&London: Harvard Univ. Press, 1983.
Tiffany D. Vann Sprecher, Ruth Mazo Karras, The Midwife and the Church: Eccsiastical Reglation of Midwives in Brie, 1499-1504, - Bulletin of the History of Medicine, 85, 2 (2011): 171-192.
Merry E. Wiesner, Early Modern Widwifery: A Case Study, Women and Work in Preindustrial Europe, ed. Barbara A. Hanawalt, Bloomington: Indiana Univ. Press, 1986, pp. 94-113.
Merry E. Wiesner, The Midwives of South Germany and the Public/Private Dichotomy [in:] The Art of Midwifery. Early Modern Midwives in Europe, ed. Hilary Marland, London&NY: Routledge, 2006, pp. 77-94.
Heide Wunder, He Is the Sun, She Is the Moon. Women in Early Modern Germany, Cambridge&London: Harvard Univ. Press, 1998.
Ilustracja: Albrecht Dürer, Narodziny Maryi, ok. 1500
Scena po napisach: W renesansowych polskich miastach również były certyfikowane położne, np. w Gdańsku składały taką przysięgę: Przysięgam, że będę odwiedzać potrzebujące mojej pomocy ciężarne, rodzące i położnice o każdej porze dnia i nocy, będę im służyła radą i pomocą niezależnie od ich stanu majątkowego, aby ocalić życie i zachować zdrowie matki i dziecka. Będę zwracać pilną uwagę na to, aby nie doszło do zamiany dziecka, nie dopuszczę do obumarcia i spędzenia płodu. W przypadkach ciężkich i w niebezpieczeństwie życia będę dokładnie wypełniać zalecenie duchownych, lekarzy i chirurgów i nie zapomnę dokonać chrztu dziecka. W razie wezwania mnie przez władze do więzienia będę spełniała swe obowiązki bezpłatnie. Będę zgłaszała władzom wszystkie porody przedwczesne i odbywające się w podejrzanych okolicznościach, do których będę wezwana. (Za: Bożena Zaborowska, Pomoc przy porodach w Rzeczypospolitej w epoce nowożytnej w świetle zielników i poradników medycznych [w:] Wśród córek Eskulapa. Szkice z dziejów medycyny i higieny w Rzeczypospolitej XVI-XVIII wieku, red. Andrzej Karpiński, Warszawa: Instytut Historyczny UW, wydawnictwo DiG, 2009, ss. 279-312.).