Posts tagged with black metal
February 12, 2010 | New Music | 
by Gerry Mak |
I listen to a lot of bands that espouse questionable ideologies to put it mildly. With the assimilation of black metal into the mainstream, typically left-leaning music fans like me have had to grapple with the fact that some of our favorite bands have at least expressed sympathy for Nationalist Socialism – you know, Nazism – if not fully embracing it. My rationale, however, for continuing to enjoy this music is that if I only listened to music made by people I agree with, there would be very little I could listen to – no GG Allin, no Merle Haggard, no NWA, no Slayer. Come to think of it, 90 percent of the musicians I admire express rather extreme viewpoints, and that’s precisely what I find so fascinating about them. Read more
August 27, 2009 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
Castevet are a promising new experimental black metal band out of New York. They have a much more complex and technical approach than other bands of this ilk, revealing post-hardcore and death metal influences as evidenced by guitarist Andrew Hock’s work in deathgrind outfit Biolich and Boston jazz/death/doom band Ehnahre.
August 20, 2009 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
Lord Mantis is a mish-mash of several different metal tropes, with slow doom passages transitioning into dissonant black metal parts and vocals that span the styles of the genre – hardcore yelping, black metal screeching, and death metal growls. This is not surprising, given the band’s members are all prominent in the Chicago metal scene, playing in other bands such as Avichi, Indian, and Nachtmystium.
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August 3, 2009 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
Colin Marston seems hellbent on making other musicians feel worthless with his numerous and prolific projects that include black metal quartet Krallice (with Mick Barr), prog-tech-thrash band Behold… The Arctopus, and drone outfit Byla. One of his most intense endeavors, however, is instrumental trio Dysrhythmia, a band in which he took over bass duties for founding member Clayton Ingerson. Read more
July 14, 2009 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
Crusty black metal duo Bone Awl crawled out of their hole in Novato, California to do a nation-wide tour recently and I missed them because I’m a dingleberry. As if that wasn’t bad enough, they had Klaxon label-mates Volahn and Ashdautas in tow, ensuring pure auditory armageddon at every show. I think I need a metal secretary to keep me abreast of these things.
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May 16, 2009 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
The opening of Danish one-man black metal band Angantyr’s third full-length, Haevn, is a somber, minute-and-a-half, double-stopped cello solo that breaks into a harsh blast of the iciest, harshest bm I’ve ever heard. This is one of my favorite moments in music ever. Check it out on their MySpace page.
May 11, 2009 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
I may not have a drop of Viking blood in me, but when I hear bands like Wardruna, I feel like lighting a fire and breaking out the cask of mead. A side project of occasional Gorgoroth drummer Kvitrafn and featuring Gorgoroth frontman Gaahl on vocals, the band attempts to capture the lost sounds of pre-Christian Norway, generating an ambient, folk-based sound that invokes pagan spirits and Nordic gods. Many black metal bands have put out acoustic albums, but the absence of guitars and the use of goat horns and other such traditional instruments sets this apart from other pagan folk projects.
December 15, 2008 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
I love atmospheric, psychedelic black metal, and it doesn’t get much better than the UK’s A Forest of Stars. The quartet uses violin, flute, piano, and other folk elements along with their dissonant guitar washes, terrifying screeches, and demonic growls to create epic, cosmos-expanding incantations that draw from psychedelic rock and shoegaze as much as they do from Norway’s most notorious cultural export.
November 9, 2008 | New Music | by Gerry Mak 
|
Menace Ruine is a husband-wife black metal duo from Montreal. I never thought I’d get a chance to see them live, seeing as most bands of this ilk are one-off basement projects, but when I saw them on a Halloween bill with fellow French Canadians Nadja, I couldn’t skip it. They didn’t disappoint with their harsh noise and feedback, but despite not having a guitar or drumkit in sight, their intricate rhythms and keyboard lines made my head spin (and occasionally bang). The couple displays some psychedelic and avant-garde influences, but the band is indisputably metal even when its feminine half sings like Nico on a few parts.
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October 6, 2008 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
Darkestrah are a kind of perfect storm of everything I look for in music. They’re a German-based black metal band from Kyrgyzstan with a female singer, and they incorporate Central Asian folk elements like throat-singing into their frighteningly harsh yet majestically beautiful and epic songs. When I’m having a crappy day, I go away to a special place with marauding Mongols, wide-open spaces, star-filled skies, and wrathful demons bent on destroying civilization — that’s what Darkestrah sounds like.
August 18, 2008 | New Events | by Gerry Mak |
A couple weeks ago, some buddies of mine in the black metal band Krallice played a show organized by Matthew Barney (a notorious metalhead) at the Deitch space in Long Island City. Whole pigs were roasted, and the head of one became a stage prop for the Texas band Dagon. Read more
November 23, 2007 | New Music | by Gerry Mak |
Deep in the forests of the Pacific Northwest, a dark force dwells. Wolves in the Throne Room are one of the most inspired and original black metal bands in America (and in the world, for that matter). Read more
Jerome Abramovitch is a Montreal-based photograper. His works often convey something morbid or repulsive. Yet he manages to display it in a captivating and intelligent manner. I’m a big fan of his Mannequin series, in particular. Read more
Cyprus-based designer Alexis Marcou has a unique style that looks like images seen through shattered glass, prisms, and crystals. Read more
The Hatton hotel epitomises Melbourne cool. Those who value design, location, and luxury will find The Hatton the perfect Melbourne base. Read more
In this post-everything mash-up culture, it’s still sometimes disarming to see how a small tweak can completely change the meaning of iconic images. Read more
Oh, ok. The Church’s eerily translucent Under The Milky Way has just burst into my headphones like a thousand jolts of sweet pop lightening. It’s nice to know that wistful introspection is only ever but three chords and a melancholic chorus away.
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I’m super hyped about the Australian Summer lurking around the corner, so I’ve been on the lookout for some new protective sunnies for driving. Surprisingly, I found some uber-lovely Le Specs that look funky yet designer-esque due to the stylish sides. Read more
We have a Contribute Section through which you can post onto LAEM under your name about your favourite pop culture discoveries. So help spread the good word about those talented peeps doing talented things. They win. You win. We win!
Vaughn de Heart has tees down to a T: keep them simple, keep them sharp, and let the graphics send a message, literally, by stating a message. Vaughn de Heart tees feature brief statements like ‘heart’ or ‘the courageous ones’ (in French, which totally ups the sexy quotient). The sporty elegance of these pieces make them wardrobe staples. Check out assorted Vaughn de Heart shirts in the Lost At E Minor online store. Read more
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