#pallbearer — Public Fediverse posts

You’ve likely never heard of him, but Mauricio Guerrero has been a busy man of late. I hadn’t either, until Peruvian stoner-doom band Illwind, featuring lead guitar from Guerrero, dropped their debut album in early July. Clarkkent’s positive review of The Unfolding at the End of Light drew my attention to this ‘chill record with some outstanding moments,’ many of which arrive via Guerrero’s transportive solos. Not two months later, Guerrero returns with another stoner/doom debut: Argul’s Soledad & Orgullo (‘Solitude & Pride’). In Argul, Guerrero shares guitar and vocal duties with Jose María Venturi, both of whom formed the band in 2014. Filling out the lineup are Peruvian scene veterans Jian Holmes (bass) and Alonso Guerrero (drums).1 In snatching Soledad & Orgullo from the promo bin, I was quite curious whether Argul’s debut would continue Guerrero’s hot streak or flood Peru’s stoner-doom market with middling/subpar wares.

Argul build their musical edifice on doom and stoner cornerstones, old and new. Based on Soledad & Orgullo’s cover art alone, you wouldn’t be wrong in guessing that this Peruvian quartet primarily channels early Black Sabbath. While its sylvan visual aesthetics scream ‘self-titled debut!’, Argul’s debut more closely parallels the tones and riff-work of Master of Reality. Indeed, M. Guerrero and Venturi generally keep the guitar lines dark, slow, and bluesy (“Ritual”), but they also bust out some livelier boogies that get the head boppin’ (“Hor Hodin”). The duo frequently melodicize in funerary modes (“Animal Dog”), sure to bring joy to those wallowing in sorrow at the extinction of old Pallbearer. And in their droniest moments, Argul recall Matt Pike’s minimalist axe-work in Sleep (“Engendro”). Soledad & Orgullo’s artwork perfectly portends its open, earthy music; the production is spaciously organic, and the interplay between the guitars, Holmes’s exploratory bass runs, and the backbeat drumming feels refreshingly present. You can hear minor deviations during rhythmic shifts, which is not a criticism—the album sounds like a well-curated live band.

Vocally, Argul avoid the bombast frequently found in doom and the coarseness often favored in stoner metal/rock. Instead, M. Guerrero and Venturi utilize not quite reverb-drenched ethereal lilts, frequently harmonizing with one another. This isn’t to say that Argul are peerless in how they drape voices over doom/stoner metal. Their approach reminds me of the way bands like Windhand and REZN summon ghostly atmospheres through singing, emphasizing the somber, resigned aesthetics of the genre. Soledad & Orgullo doesn’t deal out memorable hooks like the above-mentioned acts, but M. Guerrero and Venturi stitch a warm vocal blanket that’s enchanting in its own right. Other than the occasional sound clip,2 which took me out of the album’s aura, Argul have a compelling vocal duo on their hands that could be further enhanced with more attention to memorability.

Soledad & Orgullo plays as a consistently enjoyable album, though it suffers from some issues. For starters, the album can be divided into stronger/weaker cuts. Epic opener “Ritual” sits in the stronger category, itself opening with an instantly striking descent that’s harmonized to Pallbearian heights. “Hor Hodin,” a shorter track, also triumphs, developing absolutely delectable Iommian shuffles. Meanwhile, “Engendro” and closer “Animal Dog” are comparatively weaker tracks, though they aren’t bad by any means. Soledad & Orgullo can also be knocked for its occasionally overdone songcraft. While “Ritual” mostly succeeds as a long song, “Animal Dog” definitely drags at times. Nevertheless, this four-track album runs for a reasonable 31 minutes, if you don’t count the concluding bonus track. With “Kamog,” Soledad & Orgullo clocks in at 45 minutes. Yes, that’s right—the bonus track (which could be trimmed) adds a whopping 15 minutes to the runtime.3

On the whole, though, count Soledad & Orgullo as another solid stoner-doom offering from Mauricio Guerrero. He and Venturi are a talented duo that know how to dress irresistible riffs in morose guitar melodies and gossamer vocal harmonies. While Argul’s songwriting is a bit hit-and-miss, they possess a captivating sound out of the gate that bodes well for the future. Argul should be proud of this debut, which fans of doom and stoner metal should certainly sample.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 10 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Personal Records
Websites: Bandcamp | Instagram
Releases Worldwide: August 21st, 2026

For #SaturDoom:

#Khemmis: Khemmis

https://album.link/t/528863215

#DoomMetal

FFO #CryptSermon #FiresInTheDistance #Pallbearer

It’s not that often that I’ll have difficulty talking about an album that’s hitting its 20 year anniversary soon. In the case of Watching from a Distance, the second (and at the time, final) album from UK doom metal (then-) trio Warning, giving words to the atmosphere, the weight, and the aching hurt emanating from these five songs proved to be more than daunting. It’s not that often that you come across an album that feels like a sonic gutpunch that just doesn’t stop punching you into emotional submission, and guitarist/vocalist/mainman Patrick Walker did so effortlessly. It’s hard to not feel something while listening to the album, then or now. It’s this encapsulation of utter sadness and yearning that would influence many since, and what better time than now to induct Watching from a Distance into the Halls of the Olde?

Warning didn’t come from the more Gothic sounds of their contemporaries (and fellow YMIO inductees) Anathema, My Dying Bride, or Paradise Lost. Lyrically, they also couldn’t be more different. Whereas not many people could sing about fighting the gods like Darren White did, nor can we all take Aaron Stainthorpe’s hand or do we all have the ability to opaque the dissident establishment that we all suffer like Nick Holmes,1 we’ve all encountered the aftermath of a break-up or losing a loved one. If you haven’t, rest assured it’s coming, and no one can articulate the sheer crushing feeling that comes with that like Walker does here, and it’s especially not at the level of maturity he exhibited. No fingers pointed, no blame assigned, no good/bad person(s) to smear… just the aftermath, the pain that comes with it, and the knowledge (or lack thereof) of what to do next to move on.

Take the devastatingly heartbreaking “Bridges,” in which there’s very little variation between riffs and percussive patterns, and that’s on purpose: the rhythm section of bassist Marcus Hatfield and drummer Stuart Springthorpe knew to keep things plodding and controlled by design, further accentuating the repetitive riffs and lyrics of Walker’s. Speaking of, each verse ends with Walker achingly bellowing “I wish you were here with me tonight,” with each passing verse more dire and heartwrenching than the last, with the final pass preceded by “Can someone feel too much?” Tear-inducing on its own, but when it’s immediately followed by Walker harmoniously bellowing towards the end, those who are unprepared2 will be reduced to a quivering pile of sobs. Emotionally decimating.

The other four songs also float by with the grace and delicacy of a cinder block thrown right at your heart and emotions. The closing combo of “Faces” and “Echoes” do a fine job of further bringing the sorrow and pain, with the former lamenting a sense of normalcy amongst the crumble of a failed relationship, while the latter recalls pleasant memories of what was, but will never be again. However, it’s the opening one-two suckerpunch of the title track and “Footprints” that everyone remembers, and with good reason. The title track feels like a moment in time where Walker sees the wreckage of a the relationship and sees what he remembers are the good qualities, but it’s far too late to turn back the clock and repair the damage. And “Footprints”… man, fuck “Footprints” so much. At first a bit more upbeat than “Watching from a Distance,” all seemingly feels almost uplifting when suddenly Walker bares all in the song’s final few minutes, complete with a desperate delivery, complete with an emotionally charged voice that cracks and warbles in a broken manner that I made the mistake of listening to it the first time on my way home from work, and I had to pull over to partake in the ugliest of purging crying sessions. It’s ultra-rare that doom metal can make me feel that way, and Walker and company succeeded in accomplishing this in spades.

It was a sad time when Walker disbanded Warning in 2009, due to the simplest of reasons: artistic integrity and keeping his vision intact, forming the formidable 40 Watt Sun, an acoustic continuation of what Warning achieved. However, with their influence driving the likes of Pallbearer and Khemmis (among others), it was only a matter of time before Warning would return with Hatfield in tow, and now with their long-awaited third album, Rituals of Shame, on the horizon, it’s only fitting to induct Watching from a Distance in the Halls of the Olde. Give this a listen, but bring tissues.

Back in 2015, an unknown band from Denver called Khemmis came out of nowhere and clobbered me with their massive Absolution debut. It was a shrewd and crafty mixture of classic doom, stoner, and sludge idioms, and I ate it up greedily. They came back the following year with an even bigger, better opus called Hunted, and it looked to all the world as if Khemmis would be joining acts like Pallbearer and Crypt Sermon as the vanguard of an American doom revival. 2018s Desolation saw the band inject loads of epic and trve metal into the sound, and it worked, but felt less stellar overall. 2021s Deceiver pushed this concept even further, loading down their long compositions with 80s metal influences, losing more of the doom cred they’d developed over their crucial early releases. It felt as if Khemmis were drifting away from what made them so thrilling, much as Pallbearer did, and they too would end up lost at sea if things continued this way. With this negative trending in mind, I approached their eponymously titled fifth album with a gnawing sense of dread. Would this signify surrender to the forces of diminishing recordings, or would they make a push to reclaim the lofty heights of Absolution and Hunted? With teeth clenched, I pressed play and prayed for Mojo.

It turns out, Khemmis is a partial return to what we heard on Desolation, but with some crucial differences. Firstly, the songs are all much shorter and tighter, with only one cracking the 6-minute mark. Secondly, their blending of classic and epic doom with trve and traditional heavy metal and blackened influences feels more carefully thought out, and it flows better than it did on Deceiver. The songsmithing is also vastly superior this time. Most importantly, they haven’t lost sight of the fact that they’re a doom band at heart, despite this being a more “accessible” sound for them. Opener “Invocation of the Dreamer” runs from black metal aggression into classic heavy metal and onward into doom without becoming disorienting. It’s an engaging, entertaining song from start to finish, and it will remind you of roughly 20 other acts as it shifts tempos and genres in smart, interesting ways. There are even hints of Archspire in some of the neo-classic guitar noodling. “Corpsebloom Garden” is a dead ringer for Crypt Sermon, and it works as an epic doom sonnet despite the occasional death vocals, which add a nice edge to the otherwise forlorn clean singing. “Grief’s Reverie” keeps the epic doom coming with an uptick of trve badassery, and the death vox shares space with a kind of radio-ready vocal style from Phil that’s unexpected but cool.

The best stuff comes later on, with my personal favorite being “Beneath the Scythe.” This is doom for those who want the classic style married to the trve in never-ending holy headlock. It adroitly conjoins classic doom and heavy metal with just enough chest-thumping badassery to win me over. It’s a legitimately great song and one of the band’s best. “Carrion King” starts with scathing, blasting black metal before settling down into a sort of mellow doom with upbeat clean vocals, only to mutate into absolutely crushing death-doom. There are some harsh, gruesome moments here that reek of Triptykon, re-establishing the band’s doom bona vides. Closer “Benediction Tones” is classic doom with moments of upbeat, poppy vocals that could be on a YES album, and it shouldn’t work, but it definitely does. At a trim, muscular 42 minutes, Khemmis glides by effortlessly and demands replays.

As ever, the Khemmis formula depends on Ben Hutcherson and Phil Pendergast successfully beguiling us with killer riffs and memorable vocal exchanges. Phil improves as a singer with every release, and some of his most gripping, poignant moments occur here. He drifts from wounded sadboi to burly trve metal and hits into AOR at key moments, all effectively rendered. Ben provides nasty death roars and guttural spewings and plays the rampaging beast to Phil’s morose beauty. Guitar-wise, they deliver a lot of killer moments too, with somber, melancholic leads and harmonies rubbing against blackened mania and death-doom when they aren’t engaged in 80s metal gallops and NWoBHM noodling. It’s a heady mix, and it all hangs together because the writing is sound and focused.

While Khemmis doesn’t bring the band back to the glory days of Hunted, it does find them righting the ship and sailing in the right direction. In fact, the album glides right between the Very Good and the Great with no song feeling like a letdown. I’m very relieved to see Khemmis back in the black with a release I enjoy from start to finish, and this will be getting mucho airtime over the next few months. Mojo listens to his faithful apes!

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 5 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Nuclear Blast
Websites: khemmis.bandcamp.com | khemmisdoom.com | facebook.com/khemmisdoom | instagram.com/khemmisdoom
Releases Worldwide: June 12th, 2026

Lavender Larcenist

Over a decade ago, I made a concerted effort to get into doom metal. Like many of my fellow writers, sitting down to delve into new genres or artists is a favorite pastime. So, I bought myself a copy of Decibel Magazine’s special edition issue that focused on their top 100 doom metal albums and dove right in. Needless to say, I fell in love, and one of my favorites to this day is Khemmis. The band’s brand of doom was immediately captivating, with Phil Pendergast’s echoing, enveloping vocals and sword-and-sorcery-as-metaphor lyrics. They remain a staple in my household to this day, and their 2016 magnum opus Hunted is one of my all-time favorite records. Now they are back after a five-year gap with their eponymous album, Khemmis. Typically, a self-titled release signals a change in direction or the solidification of a trademark sound, but is this record a new lease on life for Khemmis or a creative stumble for an incredibly consistent doom metal staple?

Contrary to our Simian Sovereign (lashings forthcoming for this difference in opinion), I found Deciever to be one of Khemmis’ best records, and their trademark sound was still as affecting and pervasive as ever. The last thing I expected was a reevaluation of their endeavors, but as an artist myself, the war against creative stagnation never ends. I fully understand why the band would want to branch out, and while Khemmis isn’t a sea change in the way some acts completely reinvent themselves, it feels markedly different than anything they have previously done. The doom is toned down significantly, and the heavy metal is dialed up, while a not-insignificant number of death and borderline power metal influences have seeped in. Big choruses anchor each, while the roaming guitars and drawn-out tones of previous records are all but missing. There are no thirteen-minute epics, and the majority of the tracks follow the lines of songs that were previously one-off pace-breakers, such as the indomitable “Three Gates” or the bouncing “Isolation”.

Khemmis is straightforward as far as the band’s previous records go. The album bleeds together on the first few listens, and songs tend to follow the same flow and general pacing. It falls into the trap of being stuffed with mid-paced rockers, making it hard to differentiate between listens without really digging in. While not immediately grabbing, Khemmis begins to show its strengths with repeated spins. Tracks may all be mid-paced and conceptually repetitive, but every one is incredibly solid to downright great. Only one chorus stuck out to me as grating; “Gilded Chambers” is an all-around solid song with a ripping opening riff and great melodies, but the chorus reminds me of power metal or even something like Boston, ripped straight from the annals of classic rock. Ultimately, it is campy, and the backing harmonic vocals send it into the stratosphere of cheese. The track isn’t bad, but just not to my taste, especially for Khemmis.

Longtime fans like myself may be left wanting for the doom epics of olde, but there is no shortage of great music on this record. Outside of the album’s repetitive pacing and some odd stylistic choices, there is very little to complain about. “Invocation of the Dreamer” is classic Khemmis and an immediately gripping song that features incredible work on the low end instrumentally and vocally from Ben Hutcherson. Production throughout is solid if a little safe; everything has its place, and the bass is a highlight, but there is little range from song to song. For a self-titled record, I was hoping for more creativity and bombast from a band that has so many great records under its belt. Khemmis, like the production, is very safe. While not breaking the mold, it does stand as a testament to the band’s ability to write catchy, melodic death doom. “Grief’s Reverie,” “Beneath the Scythe,” and album closer “Benediction Tones” are highlights outside of the aformented opening track.

While Khemmis slightly disappointed me as a superfan, I was able to move beyond what I wanted from the record and fully appreciate its more focused approach. Khemmis doesn’t reach the heights of previous releases, but it is still a very solid album that straddles the line between heavy metal and death doom, making for a listen that is immediately more approachable than their previous records but less rewarding as a result. It seems like Khemmis wants to move away from their traditional doom metal trappings and lean into more arena-driven, heavy metal tracks, and for a band with their talent, the sky is the limit.

Rating: Very Good

#saturdoom #slowmetalweekend #doommetal #nowplaying - #Pallbearer https://youtu.be/RV9qCaIoVJ0?is=S0uViU1Vc7qiq08H (absolute gem)

Sigh – I Saw the World’s End – Hangman’s Hymn MMXXV [Things You Might Have Missed 2025]

By Grymm

Before we start… yes. Yes, we received I Saw the World’s End – Hangman’s Hymn MMXXV on time back when it was released this past June. There was a debate behind the scenes whether a complete remake of Sigh’s seventh full-length from 2007, Hangman’s Hymn, justifies a full-length review. At the end of the day, newer, current bands and releases that were created in 2025 needed precedence, and thus a remake of a classic album, one that many feel didn’t necessarily need one, took a backseat. In doing so, many people slept on it and decided to move on. Which would be a shame, as not only does I Saw the World’s End sound a hell of a lot better than the original, it improves upon it in almost every aspect.

What Sigh mainman/bassist/vocalist Mirai Kawashima possessed in 2007 was a plethora of ideas and a hunger to see them to fruition. The Mirai of 2025 still possesses those qualities, but also now has a backing band to see them come to life, and the results are a jaw-dropping improvement. Former guitarist Shinichi Ishikawa and former drummer Junichi Harashima weren’t slouches when Hangman’s Hymn was originally released, but current guitarist Nozomu Wakai and session drummer Mike Heller (Malignancy, ex-Fear Factory) bring so much more to the table creatively. The revamp of “Me-Devil” sees Wakai turn the chorus from a straight-ahead thrash riff to a near-blackened assault. His solos are also a massive departure over Ishikawa’s, soaring as opposed to just being a placeholder.

And Heller? Seriously, just listen to “Introitus/Kyrie” of 2025 and compare that to the original. While the original kept a straight-ahead marching attack, Heller’s variety, speed, and skill elevate the song, with rolling tom flourishes, blasts, and fill after glorious fill highlighting Kawashima’s songwriting genius. Elsewhere, his near-militaristic take on “The Memories as a Sinner,” combined with Wakai’s shred-tastic soloing, turns the song into a much meaner tune. In fact, what both men bring to the reworking of Hangman’s Hymn is such a vastly superior improvement that showcasing a few examples was difficult, when they’re all impressive.

It doesn’t hurt that the Lasse Lammert production cleans things up where they’re needed (especially in the bass and live brass instrumentation), and beefs things up where necessary (the drums and guitars). The vocals of Kawashima and his wife, Dr. Mikannibal (who joined just after the original was released), also cut through with alarming clarity and focus, often playing off each other’s delivery. Sure, some of the original’s hiccups remain (I’m still trying to wrap my head around Kawashima’s impish Baby Ms. Piggy-like vocals in the choruses of “Inked in Blood,” but I recognize that that’s a Me Thing), but everything else answers why Kawashima would choose to rework an album that’s already a classic in many people’s eyes. While I loved the original, I Saw the World’s End is several notches above it; it’s frightening. After all, I would take this over a poorly-produced, massively downgraded redux any day of the week.1

Tracks to Check Out: This really is a “sit and absorb” kind of album, so sit and absorb it, will ya?

#2025 #AvantGardeMetal #FearFactory #HangmanSHymnMMXXV #ISawTheWorldSEnd #JapaneseMetal #Malignancy #Pallbearer #PeacevilleRecords #Sigh #ThingsYouMightHaveMissed2025

🇺🇦 #NowPlaying on #KEXP's #SeekAndDestroy

Pallbearer:
🎵 Foundations

#Pallbearer

https://pallbearer.bandcamp.com/album/foundations-of-burden

https://open.spotify.com/track/3qFSWP5xpfsocLX1nbat5W

🎶 show playlist 👇
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/1uZ3GLf6lDtDqJSQrY0lMU

🎶 KEXP playlist 👇
https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6VNALrOa3gWbk794YuIrwg

@Kingu

The #Pallbearer album is nice. Quality #Doom Metal, good riffs, good vocals.
But the songs have too many boring parts.
The secret of a good doom metal track is that it is slow, long and repetitive, but manages to not be boring.
And that is something that the #Sleep album manages to do.
And that is despite the fact that #Dopesmoker is just one single one hour song.

Stuck in the Filter: May 2025’s Angry Misses

By Kenstrosity

Every day we toil, rain or shine, to find you the semi-finest ore of the month. Lately, though, it’s been mostly rain. Leaks abound, uniforms are soaked to the bone, the chutes are slick and slippery. We must continue, however, to provide for the masses!

Unfortunately, we don’t have any resources to keep anything dry in this godforsaken place. I hope you like your Filter nuggets soggy!

Kenstrosity’s Meanest Meanies

Death Whore // Blood Washes Everything Away [May 16th, 2025 – Self-Release]

Hailing from Nancy, France, crust/death newcomers Death Whore unleashed what is surely one of the meanest records of the year so far. A debut capable of humbling some of the better releases by far more seasoned acts, Blood Washes Everything Away is a nonstop cavalcade of stank-face, bone-shattering riffs. From the onset of vicious onslaught “Inhaling the Dead,” to the stomp and swerve that is the massive “Infernal Terror Machine” and “None Are Forgotten,” to the blistering and evil “12 Worm Wounds,” Death Whore crafted 11 brutally addictive, but smart and lean cuts guaranteed to snap necks. They allow only the sharpest hooks to imbue accessibility to this killer material, but make no sacrifice to the filthy, crust-laden tones and textures determined to pummel and paste (“Noyé dans le sang,” “Motorthroat ’79,” “Savage Aesthetic Revenge”). Throw in a refreshing message criticizing late-stage capitalistic trends, worldwide misappropriation of wealth by the elite class, and the futility of hard work in the modern era for those struggling to meet their basic needs (“You Owe Me a Living”), and you’ve got a record after my heart. I can already tell that I’m going to regret not saving Blood Washes Everything Away from Filter relegation by the time this publishes, but don’t let my transgression in this matter stop you from enjoying of deep Death Whore.

Executionist // Sacrament of the Sick [May 16th, 2025 – Self-Release]

West Virginian death thrashers Executionist were not on my radar. First off, I am, historically, very picky when it comes to thrash. It slaps when it slaps and leaves me cold when it doesn’t. Lately, though, I’ve been digging the style more and more, and Executionist’s particularly meaty take on Kreator WIOLENCE has my attention thoroughly affixed. With debut LP Sacrament of the Sick, Executionist bring on the riffs, but elevate them with blackened tremolos, rabid barks, and an immense bass tone. Opener proper “Edge of Annihilation” pulls no punches, but only hints at the quality held beyond. There’s an almost At the Gates-like sense of melody here, one which works in tandem with deadly riffs and blackened char instead of as a mere surface-level decoration (“Wheels of War,” “Divided We Stand… United We Fall”). While Sacrament of the Sick relies heavily on the long form for its song structures, creating a spot of bloat, there’s usually something memorable and interesting to keep me invested in the story from beginning to end (“Thy Kingdom Come,” “Sacrament of the Sick”). With just a little tightening of the screws, Executionist could easily become the next big name in thrash. Until then, rest easy knowing Sacrament of the Sick is a worthy contender on its own merits.

Thus Spoke’s Shiny Scraps

Ghost Bath // Rose Thorn Necklace [May 9th, 2025 – Nuclear Blast]

DSBM is a genre of necessity tied to a particular mood, and it’s not a happy one. In spite—or perhaps because—of this,1 it’s one I usually enjoy. Ghost Bath’s take on this particular type of misery music has fluctuated between more black metal and more post, and I personally found it never quite stuck. Rose Thorn Necklace, however, has kept me coming back for repeated mope sessions for weeks. It’s still recognisably Ghost Bath thanks to those same echoing howls that lurch into voiceless high-pitched wails (“Well, I Tried Drowning”), and a familiarity about the bitter refrains. But synths now play a prominent role in driving melody2 both dreamy (“Grotesque Display,” “Throat Cancer”) and uncomfortably upbeat (“Vodka Butterfly”), as things swing back in the direction of post-leaning DSBM. Layered strums lace into pessimistic chord swings and scream-resonant atmoblack (title, track, “Dandelion Tea,” “Stamen and Pistil”), sometimes recalling Harakiri for the Sky. It manages to be pretty, in that characteristically depressing way, as minor melodies bleed into blackened tantrums (“Well, I Tried Drowning”) or ride on synths as harrowing screams narrate (“Throat Cancer”). The snippets of coughing (“Dandelion Tea”), sobbing (“Vodka Butterfly”), and sirens (“Throat Cancer”) are par for the course, but still very effective, and the ending duo “Needles” and the horribly—but brilliantly—named “Throat Cancer” is kind of…genuinely lovely in a really gross, demoralising sense. I’m converted.

ClarkKent’s Bestial Beats

Animalize // Verminateur [May 23, 2025 – Dying Victims Productions]

While the album cover might not inspire confidence, make no mistake, Animalize is worthy of your attention. On their sophomore album, Verminateur, these Frenchmen bring youth and energy to the old school speed and traditional metal scene. They mix up mid-tempo tunes with high-octane thrash, and even throw in a lovely piano ballad for good measure (“Priere de Remords”). On tracks like “Chevel Astral” and “Au Jugement de Soi” you can hear influences ranging from Accept to Def Leppard, while the lightning-fast “Verminateur” sounds like a blast from Judas Priest’s Painkiller. Front man Coyote brings plenty of charm, ranging from excitedly shrill to cool-headed, all while executing some well-timed “oohs” and infectious laughter here and there. Fortunately, he doesn’t carry all of the weight. Jessman and RattleGab keep the riffs spicy throughout, ensuring Animalize never phones it in, while Lynx’s drumming adds some much-needed heft. The songwriting is nice and tight, allowing the album to clock in at a tidy 36 minutes. As good as each song is, the icing on the cake is “Envahisseurs,” which will end up as a strong candidate for song of the year. It brings a killer riff and thrilling energy that’s sure to get the Statue of Liberty to drop her torch and make some devil horns.

Owlswald’s Feathered Echoes

Pandemia // Darkened Devotion [May 16th, 2025 – Hammerheart Records]

After a decade between releases, Czech death metal veterans Pandemia burst back onto the scene with their sixth full-length, Darkened Devotion. Still channeling the menacing souls of legends like Vader and Immolation, Darkened Devotion marks a significant yet successful pivot towards a more accessible sound for Pandemia. Delivering bone-crushingly heavy and succinct songs that are both memorable and easily palatable, Pandemia haven’t lost their edge—they’ve simply refined it. From “Nightmare Paradox’s” gut-punching, wicked riffing to “Catalepsy’s” gratifying, atmospheric thrash-inspired arpeggiations, every part of Darkened Devotion feels focused and tastefully executed. New drummer Jake Bayer (Cutterred Flesh) is an absolute beast, shaping Darkened Devotion’s mammoth backbone with thunderous rapid-fire double bass runs (“Blessed, Blessed Oblivion,” “Depths”), intricate tom fills (“The Pallor of Detest,” “The Wretched Dance”) and precision blasts (“Nighttime Paradox,” “A Sea to Breathe In”). Returning guitarist Alex Marek—last heard on 2005’s Riven—unleashes a barrage of infectious shredding that makes headbanging involuntary. Jaroslav “Jarda” Friedrich’s bass and Jikra Krš’s vocals complement Bayer and Marek’s authority with angry drawls and guttural, gravely growls. The album’s overall tone is immense, effortlessly engulfing listeners into its nocturnal anxieties with ease. With Darkened Devotion, Pandemia have forged a refined and brutal auditory feast that genuinely took me by surprise. Embrace the darkness.

Killjoy’s Dreamy Delights

Asthénie // Iridescence [May 5th, 2025 – Self-Release]

Iridescence is literally a colorful piece of music. Named after the naturally occurring phenomenon of an object appearing to change colors, Asthénie assigned a different color to each of these five songs. The guitars are the main focus here—whether with a glimmer (“Mélèze”) or a shimmer (“Indigo”), they brilliantly showcase the prettier side of post metal. Hardcore-tinged screams boldly accentuate the guitars’ vibrant hues, providing heft and urgency. Somewhat ironically, “Gris” (meaning grey) takes up the most time at 11 minutes and is the most developed contrast between the calm and furious. At only 35 minutes in total, Iridescence passes like a beautiful breeze with little fluff or filler. While by no means necessary, some clean vocals could potentially add even more color to a future release. Though this is not the first instance this year of a post-black record patterned after various wavelengths in the visible light spectrum, Iridescence is resplendent in its own right.

Au Clair de Lune // In the Wake of Dusk [May 16th, 2025 – Self-Release]

Moonlight and bodies of water share an intrinsic artistic bond. There’s something deeply enchanting about a celestial, ghostly source of illumination amidst a dark, murky setting. Leonard Sinaguglia’s blackgaze project Au Clair de Lune aurally combines these two aesthetics via dreamy, floaty guitars and synths akin to Autumn Nostalgie and, of course, Alcest’s Écailles de Lune. At times, the melodies are smooth and glassy like the surface of a lake (“Echoing Silhouettes,” “Neon Dusk”). Other times, they’re upbeat and catchy as a rip current (“Anaemoia,” “Distant Glow”). The principal vocal style is a mild rasp, more for flavor than heaviness, though Falyriae adds her airy singing voice on occasion. Although the track order and overall pacing usually find a good balance between the atmospheric parts and the punchy parts, the longer track lengths make In the Wake of Dusk feel a bit fluffy in places. But even so, Au Clair de Lune provides a satisfying and transportative experience to an unearthly realm.

Dolphin Whisperer’s Dusky Deposition

Slumbering Sun // Starmony [May 9th, 2025 – Self Release]

Music is the closest thing we have to magic in this world. When a great song or a great album graces your ears, it’s a clean sweep to any combo the head, heart, and gyrating body. Such was the case with Lone Star Doomsters Slumbering Sun and their debut release The Ever-Living Fire back in 2023. With a fragile heart in one hand and a fat riff in the other, their take on the kind of sadboi doom you’d hear in bands like Warning or early Pallbearer struck me deep. On Starmony, much of the same elements return: growling bass underpinning stadium-sized riffs, Ozzy-like vocals that bustle with a modern emotion and charisma, and a posty playfulness that allows long-form compositions to swell and soar. The only trouble is that it takes a couple songs for Starmony to settle into that same form of riffed-out hypnosis, with the one-two intro of “Together Forever” and “Keep It a Secret” sounding like the middle drive of a live set rather than the start of an introspective journey. But with the violin-assisted weeping catharsis of “Midsommar Night’s Dream” and “Wanderlust,” the waltzing melody of “Danse Macabre,” and the Thin Lizzy-styled dueling leads of “The Tower,” Slumbering Sun again finds a monstrous groove in hopeful and hammering songcraft. And, of course, if you get a chance to catch this act live like I did, just a few days before The Dolphlet emerged, you’ll fall extra prey to the kinds of doomy incantations that Slumbering Sun conjures with their mystic-minded compositions. In fat riffs we trust, and in sorrowful hearts we linger.

Tyme’s Tragic Tones

Enterré Vivant // 悪罪 (Akuzaï) [May 26th, 2025 – Antiq]

Comprised of French multi-instrumentalist Erroiak and vocalist Sakrifiss—whose 25-year residency in Japan heavily influences the music—depressive black metallers Enterré Vivant’s3 third album, Akuzaï, blew me away. My DSBM bar was set long ago by Shining‘s unfuckwithable V: Halmstad, and yet Akuzaï has come along to give it a run for its money. Centered around 10 Buddhist sins, Akuzaï relates the experiences of Japanese civilians and victims during the Second World War. From the emotionally charged cover photo depicting a mother breastfeeding her newborn shortly after the bombing of Nagasaki,4 to the haunting interludes and shimmering, melancholic melodies within, Akuzaï melds traditional, tremolo-picked guitars and icy vocals ala Summoning and Emperor (“Sesshô,” “Shin’i”) with Moonsorrow-esque keys, Japanese-influenced flutes and violins, along with ghostly moaning howls to create its depressive atmospheres. Transitioning from the twisted croaks of interlude “Waraguchi,” album highlight “Jain” begins with mournful pianos and a pensive, tremolo-picked lead before crashing forth in waves of crushingly cascading chords and Sakrifiss’ tortured screams, its eight and a half minutes awash in black metal sadness. By the time the wails of a suffering child floated in around the seven-and-a-half-minute mark, my arms had broken out in goosebumps, and my heart was fucking broken. Offering yet another lens through which to view the torturous horrors of war, Akuzaï is harrowing, relentless, and not to be missed.

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