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Doomsters At the Drive-In: Doom Metal Approved Horror Flicks Presents... The Living Dead At Manchester Morgue (1974) ...

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This article first appeared on 09/18/2013 at www.ravenousmonster.com and was originally published as “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue: A Forgotten Classic.”

This is part six of a thirteen part series.

The zombie film, whether you love it or despise it, is an indispensable part of horror’s dark tapestry. Commingling the gothic dark with the gory red, the zombie film helped to transition terror away from the more cerebral towards the more visceral. Some commentators blame this shift on such things as the sexual revolution, which brought a new level of frankness into the popular realm vis-à-vis the bedroom. Other critics point out that the zombie film, which has its roots well planted in the Universal era of the early 1930s, saw its ascension during the turbulent days of the civil rights movement - a time when America (and indeed the rest of the Western world) struggled over questions of institutional racism and economic inequality. In particular, the notion that zombies represent a type of racial “Other” seems clear in such films as “White Zombie” (1932), which showcases the colonial-like stratification of Haitian society, and George A. Romero’s “Night of the Living Dead” (1968), which forces a micro society of survivors to rely upon the skills and determination of Ben (played by Duane Jones), the group’s lone African American.

As neat and cozy as this sounds, the zombie film is about much more than just race or sex. It is also about the ancient fear of death and the equally ancient distrust of dead bodies. After all, before the wide distribution of antiseptics, dead and rotting bodies were one of the main causes of disease, especially given some of the Old World’s funerary practices.

Zombie films are also about violence - senseless, animalistic violence. It should not be surprising then that the first truly modern zombie films, which rarely have anything to do with folklore or voodoo, were born in the late ‘60s and coalesced into a recognizable sub-genre in the 1970s. These two decades witnessed a televised war in Southeast Asia, numerous race riots, and a growing upsurge in left-wing and fundamentalist terrorism. In short, the zombie film, like the vampire film, is at its most active during times of unrest and anxiety.

Considering that it was filmed in 1973 and released in 1974 and 1975, “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” (which can also be called a staggering fifteen different names) is a film that deftly captures the zeitgeist of a Europe that was struggling to close the culture gap between the supposedly reactionary old and the increasingly radical young. This Manichean polarity is captured in the film through two characters: the sarcastic “hippy” antiques dealer George (played by Ray Lovelock) and the repressive police sergeant (played by Arthur Kennedy). Added to this battle is the underlying politics of the film’s plot, which involves the resurrection of the recently dead via the use of a new type of agricultural technology that forces pests to attack and kill one another. The fact that this machine, which is owned and operated by the Department of Agriculture, causes the undead to lust after human flesh is a clear commentary on humanity’s ill-advised experiments on the environment.

The film opens with George closing up his antique shop and climbing on his beautiful Norton motorcycle. While he makes his way out of Manchester, the viewer is treated to the sights and sounds of the “Warehouse City.” From the sad-looking people outside of a bus stop to the bizarre woman who runs naked through traffic, Manchester seems like a city that one needs to get away from occasionally. George's end goal is the Lake District - that tranquil yet sublime piece of English property that inspired the poems of William Wordsworth. Unfortunately for George, instead of spending his time overlooking Tintern Abbey, he is forced to confront the living dead alongside Edna (Cristina Galbó), an easily excited redhead.

After she accidentally backs up into George’s motorcycle with her Mini Cooper, George demands that Edna give him a ride to his destination. After a brief bit of bickering about where they should go first, the two ultimately decide on first stopping off at the home of Edna’s troubled sister Katie. They invariably hit a dead end (which is set in among some of prettiest country that has ever graced the screen). George leaves to ask for directions and is soon occupied by a new machine that uses ultra-sonic radiation to kill insects. Unbeknownst to anyone at the time, the machine causes corpses to rise and once again walk the earth. While George is busy getting directions and scolding the government men who are putting the experimental machine to use, Edna is attacked by a ghoulish man with wheezing breath and outstretched hands. The man, who is wearing wet clothes, chases Edna into the arms of George. As per usual, after listening to Edna’s hysterical ramblings of a male attacker, George can find no evidence of such a person.


From here, the film takes us to the home of Katie (Jeannine Mestre) and her photographer husband Martin (Jóse Lifante). The film makes it clear that these two are not what one would call entirely reputable people, for Katie is addicted to heroin while Martin’s job is to take nude photographs of his strung-out wife. After a fight over Katie’s continued drug use, the same strange man (who is later revealed to be Guthrie, a local vagrant who had recently drowned) attacks the couple, this time making a successful kill. George and Edna arrive only to find a traumatized Katie and a dead Martin.

Despite protests from Edna, George, and Katie, the police, in particular the sergeant in charge of the case, think that Katie is the one responsible. The Sergeant (who remains unnamed throughout the film) points to Katie’s drug addiction as the root cause behind Martin’s death. Not only does this scene point out the motivations of the Sergeant (who is a caricature of the authoritarian, neo-fascist law enforcer), but it also highlights the film’s engagement with topical issues. Director Jorge Grau specifically choose to not only make drugs and the environment issues in the film, but he also consciously referenced certain true crime events in “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue.” Specifically, the attack on Martin and Katie contains all the trappings of the 1969 Manson Family murders (a strange intruder terrorizing a model and her artistic lover), while a later scene brings up the then widely discussed issue of Satanism. After the police respond to a disturbance in the local graveyard involving one of their own (the doomed PC Craig) who had been tasked with tailing George and Edna, investigators suggest that George and Edna might be “devil worshippers” due to desecrated tombs and a broken cross (which the zombies had used as a ram in order to get at the barricaded PC Craig, George, and Edna).

As the film continues, George and Edna try to both convince the police that they are not to blame for the spate of murders in the area and that the government’s new machine is the reason why the dead aren’t staying still anymore. Like Romero’s earlier film, “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” (which has terribly little to do with Manchester) is set in and around a barren landscape of foreboding nature. Fog is frequent in the film, but more often than naught, the film finds terror in two contradictory landscapes: the sprawling, lonely countryside of northern England and the claustrophobic confines of the village hospital. While Grau’s rural England feels similar to Romero’s rural Pennsylvania, “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” can be seen as a direct influence on Romero, specifically his next installment in his living dead trio - 1978’s “Dawn of the Dead.” First of all, the zombies in Grau’s film are more man than monster. Not a single zombie in “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” contains an ounce of “too much make-up.” For the most part, Grau’s zombies are wheezing, slow-walking dead men that look the same as they did on the dead they died. In “Dawn of the Dead,” only a handful of zombies wear more than the base purple face make-up.

The biggest and most important innovation in “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” is the film’s heightened violence. Taking a page out of Herschell Gordon Lewis’s wet playbook, “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” takes a gleeful delight in showing the gruesome particulars of a zombie feast. In one memorable scene, a small squad of zombies attack and kill a chatty hospital receptionist. After strangling the poor girl, the zombies then target her breasts and stomach, forcibly tearing off bits of skin and muscle and removing whole organs like deranged surgeons. The fact that these zombies (all of whom are male) specifically target these areas will probably ruffle a few female feathers, and it will not in any way help to change the minds of those critics who routinely chastise horror films for their rampant misogyny.


The film ends in a real bloodbath, with zombies, hospital workers, and police falling prey to bullets, teeth, and fire. George and Edna end the film in dire circumstances, with the former being hounded by the police while the latter has to ward off her zombie sister. I won’t tell you who makes it or not, but I can promise you that “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” ends in gory vengeance with a certain party getting their justified comeuppance.

More than just a kitschy bit of ‘70s sleaze, “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” is an important entry in the history of the zombie film. Not only did this Spanish/Italian gorefest escalate the level of violence that is now seen as a requirement in a zombie flick, but its obvious socio-political commentary further developed the sub-genre’s reliance upon real-world fears and anxieties. “The Living Dead at Manchester Morgue” blazed a low-budget path for all subsequent zombie films, and you would do yourself a favor by spending a midnight watching this forgotten gem.

Words: Benjamin Welton

Live Review: Bongripper At The Empty Bottle, Chicago ...

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Bongripper is easily the most notable Doom band from Chicago. Crushing, Instrumental, Doom. Bongripper’s sound is crushing and atmospheric. A void is destroyed, while another one is created in its shell until the atmosphere becomes monolith. I see mountains growing with every strike. Living in Chicago, naturally I had to go see them. I must say Chicago is blessed to have such a unique band, as we’re not big on Doom. Bongripper make up for this.


The stage at The Empty Bottle was crescent shape and the sound spread along the old brick walls, typical of Chicago venues. I couldn’t distinguish when Bongripper’s set had begun. One of the members was also in the previous band Winters In Osaka, this happened to be their last show. They DJ and that sounded like one of Bongripper’s ambient tracks off of Heroin (2007). Out comes the 5 minutes of feedback. Anybody familiarized with Bongripper will know the song doesn’t start at the first riff, as the feedback is as much part of the experience. Few minutes in, the first strike comes with synchronized stomping. The sound is absolutely deafening and I knew it would stay with me into the next day. The riff carried on. I didn’t know the material, until later I found out from Ron (Bass) it was from their upcoming record. Mid song they hit the delay and tuned for the second half of the song. By this point there was no telling when they begun and no sign of an end. The songs blended with feedback and noise, which we openly welcomed.

This was my first experience seeing Bongripper live and plan to do so at every Chicago show. Unfortunately, the band typically plays Chicago shows, with the occasional festival such as Deathfest this May and the double set at Roadburn 2012. If your ever in Chicago make sure your schedule lines up with a Bongripper show.

Here is a surprisingly decent recording of the first song, the humming fits nicely with the style of music, enjoy.


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Words: Aleksander


NEWS: EYEHATEGOD To Kick Off 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Tour 2014 This Friday ...

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In celebration of twenty-five years of audio discontent, New Orleans miscreants, EYEHATEGOD, will kick off 2014 with a short run of live assaults through the West Coast and Australia.

The 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Tour will commence this Friday in Las Vegas and pillage its way through Phoenix and Los Angeles before trekking Down Under for onstage debauchery in Perth, Brisbane, Sydney and Melbourne. From there, team EYEHATEGOD will bring their sonic rumblings back to the States leveling Reno, San Francisco, Oakland, Seattle and Denver.

EYEHATEGOD: 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Tour 2014:

1/10/2014 Cheyenne Saloon - Las Vegas, NV
1/11/2014 Joe's Grotto - Phoenix, AZ
1/12/2014 Los Globos - Los Angeles, CA
1/16/2014 The Rosemount - Perth, AU
1/17/2014 The Hi Fi - Brisbane, AU
1/18/2014 The Hi Fi - Sydney, AU
1/19/2014 The Hi Fi - Melbourne, AU
1/20/2014 The Tote - Melbourne, AU
1/22/2014 Jub Jubs - Reno, NV
1/23/2014 Brick And Mortar - San Francisco, CA
1/24/2014 Oakland Metro - Oakland, CA
1/25/2014 The Highline - Seattle, WA
1/26/2014 The Bluebird Theater - Denver, CO

In related news, NPR recently conducted an interview with vocalist Mike IX Williams during one of two NYC performances in November. Check it out at THIS LOCATION
Further EYEHATEGOD intelligence - including new album details - to be disclosed in the coming weeks. Until then, suffer.

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Source: Earsplit PR

NEWS: Eye Of Solitude's New Video ...

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Eye of  Solitude are presenting their new videoclip!

One of the biggest death doom acts in UK Eye of Solitude are presenting a new videoclip for the song Act II: Where The Descent Began. The song is from their third album Canto III, which is based on Dante's Inferno. Canto III was released on 25 November via Kaotoxin Records.



Eye of Solitude have decided to "print a limited edition hoodie batch which will be available during our tour, which starts on the 29th of January at The Black Heart!"

You can catch Eye of Solitude on Chants of Grief tour on these dates  (with Marche Funèbre):

29.01- London
30.01 - Manchester
31.01- Liverpool
1.02- TBA


Source: JanZajc

NEWS: CULTED: New Hell Hymn From Blackened Doomhounds Now Streaming At Pitchfork ...

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Blackened doomhounds, CULTED, crush all your hopes and dreams with "Transmittal," currently murking up the sound sphere at Pitchfork. The soul-suffocating anti-hymn comes courtesy of the band's Oblique To All Paths long player, scheduled for release via Relapse Records later this month.

Listed among Noisecreep's Most Anticipated Releases of the month, Oblique To All Paths is CULTED's second full-length and first recording in more than four years. An evocatively grim piece of sprawling doom metal, Planet Mosh crowns the production, "a pleasingly unpleasant slice of doomish monstrousness to darken even the brightest of nights," while Exclaim notes in a recent interview with the band, "the intense doom and craggly black sounds coalesce into something that references Celtic Frost as much as it does Swans." Elsewhere, The Sleeping Shaman likens CULTED to, "the bastard child of Sunn O))) and Khanate, conceived after a weird ritual in a forbidden cave, deep in the woods. Yet... something far more dangerous and devious," further comparing Oblique To All Paths' sixty-two minute duration to Dante traveling through the Inferno without Virgil as his guide while No Clean Singing compares vocalist Daniel Jansson's vocals to "pure acid."

Comments Michael Klassen (guitar/bass/percussion/noise) of the track: "'Transmittal' is like the title suggests, a song intended to transmit an experience to the listener. Initially, it may lull the mind with hypnotic effects and repetition perhaps blurring vision and numbing consciousness. But it awakens with a scream to spark a flame and illuminate the world with fire, while scorching the wings of angels to finally reveal the collapse and coldness of space to the listener."

Adds Pitchfork, "The quartet emerges from a gray phosphorescence of feedback, cycling through ghoulish spoken-word vocals and winding through hellish riffs. CULTED records these things by sending files across transcontinental wires, a perplexing approach making CULTED's music willfully obscure. But here, it's especially intriguing, creating multivalent pieces where the layers stack high and the tangents come as a matter of course-not unlike Deathspell Omega, pharmacologically slowed."

"Transmittal" is currently streaming at Pitchfork for all your cold, dismal pleasures at THIS LOCATION

And fans can still check out "Illuminati" via YouTube HERE

Forged in 2007, CULTED's background is unique: Four band members spread out over Sweden and Canada, having never performed music in the same room as an entire band, instead joining creative forces through the marvels of modern technology to compose wholly compelling, finely executed doom metal. Although the CULTED cooperative - Klassen, Matthew Friesen (guitar/bass/percussion/noise), Kevin Stevenson (drums) and Daniel Jansson (vocals/ambience) - have yet to speak to each other in real time, they unite in mind and spirit through their musical manifestations. A truly collaborative effort across international lines, CULTED's bleak and epic masterworks of dystopian doom serve as a true testament to their long-distance accomplishments.

Oblique To All Paths will see official release on CD, 2xLP and digital formats via Relapse Records on January 21st in North America, January 20th in the UK/World, and January 17th in Germany/Benelux/Finland. For preorders, point your browser to THIS LOCATION  iTunes purchasers should go HERE

For all CULTED coverage requests, in North/South America contact liz@earsplitcompound.com, in the UK contact becky@pioneermusicpress.com, in the rest of Europe contact frank@pettingzoo.nl and elsewhere contact bob@relapse.com.

Culted | Facebook
Relapse.Com

Source: Earsplit PR

NEWS + VIDEO - CANDLEMASS: More Footage Of Stockholm Concert ...

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Legendary Swedish doomsters CANDLEMASS celebrated the 25th anniversary of their third album, "Ancient Dreams", with special live concert on December 28 at Debaser Medis in Stockholm, Sweden.
The LP, which was originally issued in 1988, has long been hailed as a classic and was performed in its entirety by CANDLEMASS, which was last year voted Sweden's best rock/metal band of all time in Sweden Rock Magazine.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Dark Reflections
02. Under The Oak
03. Prophet
04. Bewitched
05. Psalms For The Dead

"Ancient Dreams" set

06. Mirror Mirror
07. A Cry From The Crypt
08. Darkness In Paradise
09. Incarnation Of Evil
10. Bearer Of Pain
11. Ancient Dreams
12. The Bells Of Acheron
13. Epistle No. 81
14. Black Sabbath Medley

Encore:

15. Black As Time
16. Solitude

Fan-filmed video footage of the "Prophet" performance can be seen below.


CANDLEMASS' current touring lineup includes four members of its classic formation: Leif Edling on bass, Mats "Mappe" Björkman on rhythm guitar, Lars Johansson on lead guitar and Janne Lindh on drums. CANDLEMASS played its first show with singer Mats Levén on June 5, 2012 at Debaser Slussen in Stockholm, Sweden. Levén is a former member of YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, THERION and TREAT, who also plays with CANDLEMASS bassist/mainman Leif Edling in KRUX. Also joining the group for CANDLEMASS' recent live performances was keyboard player Per Wiberg (OPETH, SPIRITUAL BEGGARS). CANDLEMASS in June 2012 parted ways singer Robert Lowe. The band stated at the time that this was "a very difficult decision" to make and had "mainly to do with the quality of the live performances."
Lowe — who is still a member of SOLITUDE AETERNUS — joined CANDLEMASS in January 2007 and sang on the band's last three studio albums: "King Of The Grey Islands" (2007), "Death Magic Doom" (2009) and "Psalms For The Dead" (2012). CANDLEMASS released its 11th and final album, "Psalms For The Dead", on June 8, 2012 via Napalm Records. A limited-edition seven-inch vinyl single contaning two album tracks —"Dancing In The Temple Of The Mad Queen Bee" and "The Killing Of The Sun"— preceded the full-length effort on April 13, 2012.



Read more at Blabbermouth

Drunk Motherfuckers - ...and Alcohol for All ...

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Recently I attended a gig and came across this band, which I have to say caught my attention in various ways. I wasn't familiar with their musical actions. Thus I decided to do  my research and present my assumptions. The history of the band unfolds back in 2004, Athens. They were formed by Father W under the name "The Drunk Earth". Due to diverse difficulties the band was forced to split up. In 2009 Father W took the initiative and reformed "Drunk Motherfuckers" with completely different line up and style. They released their debut album under the name "... And Alcohol for All" in February 2013 by Casket Records. "... And Alcohol for All" is a genuine Stoner rock album or a Drunk n' Roll album as the members themselves would like to call it. Their sound embodies the "Stoning mode" while the groovy elements grant a colorful hue to the whole musical effort. The Lyrical theme revolves around the Alcoholic patterns. Jocularity seems to be fusible through the 48 minutes lasting album. As far as the Artwork is concerned, it consists of an ironic caricature of the notorious "And Justice for all" Metallica's album. Justice presented like a drunk motherfucker herself maybe!

Summarizing, the album in question is a worth-listening attempt of the constantly evolving Stoner-Greek scene. For the more pretentious stoners might seem a bit congested but we should not forget that the band is currently creating their sound and this is a debut album.  Personally I am looking forward to their new material.   My rating would be 7.5 . Cheers!

Facebook: Facebook
Soundcloud: Soundcloud

Review Written By Sivylla.

Doomsters At the Drive-In: Doom Metal Approved Fright Flicks Presents... All the Colors of the Dark (1972) ...

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This is part seven of a thirteen part series.

While making the big screen adaptation of “The Big Sleep,” director Howard Hawks and star Humphrey Bogart got into an argument about whether or not a certain character was murdered or committed suicide. The character in question was Owen Taylor - the Sternwood family chauffeur  whose car winds up swimming right off the Santa Monica pier. At an impasse, Hawks and Bogart dashed a telegram off to Raymond Chandler, the American master of hardboiled detective fiction who had penned “The Big Sleep” in 1939. Chandler’s reply was “damned if I know,” and in a 1949 letter to Jamie Hamilton, Chandler recounts how both Hawks and Bogart “hooted” at him for his non-answer.

This could be a real story or it could be apocryphal. Chandler openly despised Hollywood, and the story of Owen Wilson’s death highlights the problems Hollywood faces when trying to convert complex novels into streamlined action films. The final product - 1946’s “The Big Sleep” - is a noir classic, but its plot is notoriously hard to follow.

In a similar fashion, the plot to “All the Colors of the Dark” (or, in its original Italian: “Tutti i colori del buio”) is convoluted to say the least. Billing itself as “Psychedelic Horror,” “All the Colors of the Dark” is at times a chaotic and tiring exploration of the crumbling mind of Jane Harrison (played by the French-born Italian actress Edwige Fenech). Story lines move, converge, and diverge throughout this picture, and even though the film hits the sweet spot at 94 minutes, it feels much longer. Plus, keen viewers will spend far too much time trying to figure out who killed who or trying to distinguish reality from nightmare.

A large part of this confusion stems from the film’s genre. “All the Colors of the Dark” is not a pure horror film and it is a not a pure crime film either, but it is certainly a mixture of both. This concoction is usually called “giallo,” and this word (which means “yellow” in Italian) denotes a postwar type of cinema that emphasized blood, brutality, mystery, and heaps and heaps of busty bosoms. The Exploited said it best: giallo is all about sex and violence.

Giallo has its origins in the mass market world of pulp paperbacks. Beginning in the 1920s, the Milanese publishing company Arnoldo Mondado Editore started producing Italian translations of American and British mystery novels with bright yellow jackets. Some of the line’s more popular authors included Americans such as Chandler, Ed McBain, and Mickey Spillane, while Brits like Agatha Christie and Edgar Wallace also went over well with sensation-hungry audiences. In 1946, the giallo paperbacks were renamed as I gialli Mondadori and after World War II these novels were regularly serialized in periodicals and often came to book stores once every fifteen days.

Italian directors influenced by Alfred Hitchcock and Michael Powell’s “Peeping Tom” started to make films in the 1960s that blended traditional suspense with the sensationalism that they found in the giallo paperbacks. Foremost among these directors was the Ligurian Mario Bava - a man who would not only initiate the giallo and slasher genres into being, but who would also make some of the last great Gothic horror films (1960’s “Black Sunday” and 1963’s “Black Sabbath”). Bava’s best giallo films - 1963’s “The Girl Who Knows Too Much” (which not only explicitly references Agatha Christie, but also borrows its plot device from Christie’s “The ABC Murders”) and 1964’s “Blood and Black Lace” - are beautiful and lush meditations on highly sexualized violence and mystery. Before Wes Craven and “Scream,” Bava was the man making sometimes self-aware fright flicks that hinged upon masked men doing really bad things to buxom women.

Bava’s influence on Italian cinema is immense, and the Roman Sergio Martino certainly took more than a few tips from the older maestro. Martino, whose best work was done in the ‘70s and stretched across the genres of giallo, police procedural, western, and SciFi, was the man behind the helm of “All the Colors of the Dark.” Besides Martino, “All the Colors of the Dark” also belongs to its screenwriters - the prolific Ernesto Gastaldi and the equally workmanlike Sauro Scavolini. These three men clearly set out to make a giallo mind trip with “All the Colors of the Dark,” and they succeeded but for all the wrong reasons.

 The film opens with a tranquil shot of a morning lake. No thrills here - it’s all build-up to the next scene’s orgiastic oddness. There, Jane’s mind plays out a nightmare which involves a laughing old woman dressed like Baby Jane Hudson (played by Bette Davis in “What Ever Happened to Baby Jane?”), a pregnant woman with frizzy hair who keeps rubbing blood on her swollen stomach, and a silent, dagger-wielding man with unnaturally icy blue eyes (played by Ivan Rassimov). The scene is pure Freudian exploration, and the various items (a crib and an operating table) speak to a dark past involving the death of a child.

As it turns out, Jane and her long-term boyfriend Richard (played by George Hilton) have recently survived a terrible car accident that resulted in a miscarriage. The memory haunts Jane, and while Richard - a salesman attached to a pharmaceutical company - suggests that Jane take a daily regimen of pills, Jane’s sister Barbara (played by Nieves Navarro, but billed as Susan Scott) tells her to seek the help of Dr. Burton (played by George Rigaud). Barbara calls Dr. Burton the best psychiatrist in England, and it’s not until this point that you realize that this joint Italian-Spanish production is set in England (more than likely London).

Of course, given the film’s emphasis on Jane’s rapidly evaporating sanity, the setting of “All the Colors of the Dark” doesn’t matter a whole lot. After all, psychological thrillers can happen anywhere. Still, the gloomy and grey atmosphere of England helps to enhance the paranoia of the film, and when Jane crosses paths with her new neighbor Mary (played by Marina Malfatti) and her coven of friends, the castle setting of the black magic ceremonies is just too perfect.

Seeking to both end her nightly nightmares and avoid confronting the man with the ice blue eyes (who continually stalks Jane throughout the film), Jane turns to Mary and her suggestion that a Sabbath would cure her of all her ills. Mary takes Jane to the remote and mostly empty castle, and while there they fall into one bizarre ritual after another.




The coven’s leader - a feathered-hair warlock with fake claws (played by Julián Ugarte) - proves to be big on two things: killing puppies for their blood and drinking that blood as a way to moisten the lips. With bloody lips and teeth, he frequently kisses Jane on the mouth and urges the other members to do the same. This makes for hard viewing, and even though Jane eventually gives in and has intercourse with the post-Hippy Merlin, she (and us) never get comfortable.

There’s a reason for this, for after the group makes Jane kill Mary (who actually forces herself upon the same dagger that has been haunting Jane’s mind since the beginning), they keep telling her that she cannot leave them. More than that, the blue-eyed man reminds her that her mother once tried to escape them and failed.

So, at this point in the film, “All the Colors of the Dark” is a witchcraft movie with heavily borrowed elements from psychoanalysis. In short, it represents the early 1970s in all their polyester glory. From interests in the occult and “alternative” religions to the fact that Jane and Richard are an unmarried, live-in couple, “All the Colors of the Dark” is horror for the first yuppie generation.

But, since “All the Colors of the Dark” is a giallo and therefore must rely on this-wordly explanations, this occult horror turns out to be nothing more than an elaborate scam to take Jane’s part of a fortune. Before she died, Jane and Barbara’s mother named them both as the joint heirs to her sizable wealth. Knowing this, Barbara, the heroin addict Mary, the muscle Mark Cogan (the man with the icy blue eyes), and the ringleader J.P. McBrian (the warlock-priest) set out to drive the impressionable Jane crazy. Their end goal was the end of Jane, but Richard catches on when a solicitor named Francis Clay (played by Luciano Pigozzi) sends Jane a letter outlining the terms of her mother’s will. He confronts Barbara not only because of the letter but also because he earlier saw an occult tattoo on her arm. The letter tells him Barbara’s motivation, while the tattoo, which is shared by all the criminals and was inked on Jane, damns Barbara for her attempted fratricide. Barbara tries to appeal to her and Richard’s former history as lovers, but nothing doing: Richard shoots her with a Beretta pistol.


The killing of Barbara leaves McBrian on his own (the whereabouts of the others is haphazardly discussed in about two minutes), and after Jane and Richard are given the entire case’s conclusion at the police station, McBrian confronts them in their apartment complex. This leads to a very giallo-esque chase on the roof, and after a solid punch from Richard, McBrian dramatically falls to his death. Before the final credits roll, Jane bemoans the fact that outside forces might be controlling her and allowing her to see actions before they happen.

This seems to be the case, for “All the Colors of the Dark” is full of premonitions and alternative endings to scenes already seen. This is a noble idea, but tricky to pull-off, and as this synopsis has probably already shown, “All the Colors of the Dark” is jumbled up and not expertly executed. It’s a pretty film and Bruno Nicolai’s score is feels better suited for a better film. Still, despite these flaws, several metal musicians have found inspiration in Sergio Martino’s film, with the two biggest standouts being Electric Wizard and Ilsa.

On their 2004 album “We Live,” Electric Wizard included two songs that are only available on re-issued copies. One of these songs is “Tutti I Colori Del Buio” and it only appears on vinyl. This is not Electric Wizard’s first taste of giallo, and one could easily assume it won’t be their last. And while Electric Wizard are known for basing their material around the horror and exploitation films of yesteryear, D.C.-area doom/crust band Ilsa are newcomers to the world of ‘70s sleaze. There sophomore full-length, “Tutti il Colori del Buio,” is a hymn to the giallo genre, with song titles such as “Roving Blade” and “The Butcher’s Castle,” while the album’s artwork displays giallo’s requisite black leather gloves and shining knife. It seems that giallo is a well worth returning to, even if such examples as “All the Colors of the Dark” leave some things to be desired.

Words: Benjamin Welton



Walk Through Fire - Furthest from Heaven ...

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What is it to be truly hateful; to be so enraged that malice is oozing from your every pore? And not the simplistic hatred that so many have for any given religion or group of people either, but rather actual, visceral and tangible hatred? Many claim to be the most hateful but it's just talk. Some actually walk the walk but most don't. Walk Through Fire is one of those very few who do however and it's not just a general hate for everything either. This is pain on another level entirely.

The stripped down production and presentation instantly create an environment of pure hostility. There is no flair or subtlety here as each riff bludgeons you into submission. Musically we have one part funeral and two parts sludge, not something you typically get blended together as one relies on the beauty of death and the other the ugliness of life. The combination works exceptionally well in-spite of the more coreish vocals.

Walk Through Fire bring to mind Eyes of Fire (albeit a LOT heavier) and Loss while being more hateful and bitter than both. Over driven and somewhat dirty guitars play very discordant riffs while the tortured vocals underscore the misery of existence. The music drones to the beat of simplistic and plodding drums. Thankfully the typical punky aspects of your average sludge band are lost here. The abstract disharmonious notes constantly leave you feeling anxious and drained.

If there is any down side it would be this album is only thirty-nine minutes long. What the band lacks in length they more than make up for in conviction. This band is on a level all their own. Once again Aesthetic Death found another diamond in the rough. This get's a 7.5/10

Words: Grimm Doom



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Bandcamp
Bandcamp

Zoroaster - "Dog Magic" ...

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The book is the first track of this opus, a song that start aggressive and then the candles are lighten ,this deep ritual riff rise from smoke against all winds….It has began, fuzz worshiping, slow motions in your head extinguished by the spell….smoke, feel the vibe exhale, repeat. It’s all about the riff, this could play for so long…until the water dropped in your head to stop the burning…Brazen bull is the next mid tempo song, influenced by the speed kings (you know who are they).Bass is sitting on his throne for this track as he has all the field to let loose the riff. The voices are in your head, fuck it up they are here to destroy you from the inside!!!

Tualatin is a torrent of in your face music, drums are solid and the mighty hi-hat slice your thoughts, bass wants to explode from the heaviness, and guitar is the dark prophet who burn in the flame of this new dark road exploration…When this lead start it fuck you up, you know the deal, hit the bong, feel the vibe, exhale…and follow them to their mystical path. This fucking riff could play eternal like the smoke goes up in the center of the universe…For the end, appear's some wind instruments…as the band reach the highest level of approach. (Fuck I need a hit). Terminally charged another mind blasting song, with the alacrity of piano and some oscillated frequencies to make you mad and bring you back to the 70’s.This is HEAVY. Distortion voice is raw and has a blackened spirit but this not avert it from  playing along with piano, guitar goes for exploration as the leads start and drums keep the road clear…Bass is in the deep bottom and repeat  the riff, as long as it takes to an end. Admitted for granted this piano idea is all about this track.

Algebra of need, solid slow tune, full of heaviness, many voices to make you feel that someone is in your head, feedback and riff at their way to the altar…The drums here are deep and heavy,  but also have their space in the mix. I like the solid snare and emphasized tom hits. The leads of guitar is focused in need of brain burning, amps are in the phase of detonation! And after that… something change… Last minutes are totally chilling, is the sound of a trip melted in your ears.  I like the antithesis… Oscillators show the end, and the birth of an   (((((((Enormous song)))))))

But it doesn’t finished yet …Dog magic is aggressive in the beginning but roaring and become mid-tempo as it unfold. Inside a maniac’s head you hear many things, take a hit and focus on the oscillators, voices are in the vice of hypnosis, drums again are solid and are the foundation for others to explore… Is all about oscillators!!!  This album is about mega watt high gain amps, fuzz, loudness, solid heavy drums, oscillators and in your head voice of a madman’s journey… It also has some blackened parts mostly in voice but you can find more of them in the arrangements. These guys know how to make woofers tune with your brain frequency and make vibrations arise! Need something more doom freaks???

Conclusion… One of my favorites, from 2008 I first listened it, I was blown out, until the present day I’m listening it many times during a month, this is my meditation. This is their initial to the doom community. So do you feel hag-ridden??? Press repeat on your player.

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Words: Spiros Likoudis

Brotherhood Of Sleep - "Brotherhood Of Sleep" ...

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These guys are from Greece, and this is their first album, it is an album influenced by their dark side…and performed live.

…of fear unspoken and Hate forecast I believe is one big song or concept song, is a trippy one, which reveals slowly his appearance…Start slowly and heavy with drums and bass play along, bass on a stiff rhythm and drums kind of explore it…guitar is on his altar and produce big riffs…When the bass riff start, listen how they are following and produce their explosion of feelings …Drums are the madman who can’t hide himself, Guitar spread these big riffs one after another with mind blessing bents, and bass keep on pushing them to the altar of continue the exploration of their inner substance…This song have many faces, it has dynamics which saw you the way to what they feel. It is dark and repeatable, but with a continuing feeling. You can listen some mystical Egyptian riffs to the path of dark sorcery. One riff is memorable and has a feeling that wisdom finds you no matter how dark is up the sky. I like their innuendo for post parts…
As for the end they are furious with the bass playing a (stoner) lead…

Into our sea of melting dreams has a slow entrance, is some kind of meditation and has a hypnotic aspect, when this bell ride being hit they are awake and relate us their trip inside the sand of the cosmic eye…it has some doom riffs and feeling through this song…Haloweed start slowly to emphasize the exhale of smoke coming out of you…Do you feel this buzz coming up? It’s a doomy song with stoner bass parts, drums are keep tight and guitar is playing Anatolian scales for once more! This song has his identity on how THC act in your mind and spirit. As for the end of this track a more mid tempo approach with the bass guitar in lead and nasty stoner riff!

It is an album with many ideas and well built synthesis, it has his roots on Anatolian/Egyptian chords, stoner bass riff and fusion drumming, but in a heavy doom approach! They have one more album “Dark as light”, which review can be found here in the forum. They are in ice right now, but I think they don’t consummate their exploration yet…Let there be doom my fellow brotherhood. “Wisdom is the light.”

Words: Spiros Likoudis

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Bandcamp

Mars Red Sky - "Be My Guide EP" ...

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Mars Red Sky is continuing to leave their psychedelic groove mark on doom world of today. Their latest EP entitled Be My Guide is living and breathing proof that these French Doom artists have no thoughts of quitting their craft. After hearing the first couple seconds of the intro song with the same name as the EP title, it is notable that the Mars Red Sky has slightly changed for the better. Their earlier self-titled debut album quickly defined that they could as musicians; create some dark spacey doom riffs that were easily pleasing to the ear, but this latest EP did that and much more.  Mars Red Sky definitely utilized their love for the wah wah pedal with this one and it is just magnificent. Every song is so perfectly and professionally constructed on this four-song masterpiece.

The intro track “Be My Guide” immediately grasps your interest no matter what state of mind you may be in. Three fuzzed out guitar chords begin the journey and are met with a wet psychedelic guitar riff under a rhythmic clean bass. The vocals echo so clearly it feels like the whole performance is right there in your living room with you. The song eventually speeds up as the drums pick up the tempo creating an almost running sensation. The song is so flawlessly heavy and constructed that I almost feel guilt in revealing it with you before you have taken the grand pleasure of experiencing it your self.

The second song “Clean White Hands,” begins with a substantial fuzzed out guitar riff with a tone that feels like it can be felt. The bass riff through out the whole song is so simple, but so damn groovy and needed. Once again Mars Red Sky utilize every piece of their gear in the perfect way. It could be very easy to over do the wah wah or fuzz in this song, but this band makes sure that this is not the case.

Song number three called “Seen a Ghost,” is the most bass driven song out of the whole EP. The vocals melody follows each note in the song creating an almost obscure setting. An acoustic guitar enters half way through and sets up the dark mood once again. The song ends like every song on the EP, with a psychedelic jam leading to an outro. I would like to point out that the song changes tempo and time signatures for the outro to work not making it known. There’s something for you musical knowledge buffs.

The last song “Stranger,” is the slowest chord driven song on the EP. It begins with guitar chords moving at a slow but dark pace. The drums come in and echoes through out the foundation of the song. When listening to “Stranger” you get lost in a sense of hopelessness. Being a stranger is something no one wants to be and this song executes that very feeling.

My only conflict with this EP is that it’s only four songs! I want more of their sound. I believe they have more songs in store, but only released four to amp up the anticipation. How these guys are not to well known household name in the doom music world when they produce music like this is simply put, beyond me. 

Words: Stephan Boissonneault



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NEWS: EYEHATEGOD: Australian Leg Of The 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Tour Cancelled ...

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EYEHATEGOD's recently announced 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Tour 2014, which included five Australian dates, was derailed today when the band was left stranded at the airport.

Comments the band in an official statement: "Due to poor planning by the Australian booking agent, EYEHATEGOD are sorry to say our Australian tour is now cancelled. We were left at the airport without our flights booked and then were expected to pay for them out of pocket an hour before boarding time. We were literally left standing with passports in hand but no way to travel. Many, many apologies to our Australian friends and fans. We will be back as soon as we can. Please understand this is not our fault. EYEHATEGOD loves Australia and were super excited to come back over." Further info is available at the band's Facebook page HERE

The band is currently looking to book some last minute US shows in place of these cancelled dates. Previously announced performances in Reno, San Francisco, Oakland, Seattle and Denver later this month are unaffected by the unfortunate news.

EYEHATEGOD: 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Tour 2014 [remaining dates]:  

1/22/2014 Jub Jubs - Reno, NV
1/23/2014 Brick And Mortar - San Francisco, CA
1/24/2014 Oakland Metro - Oakland, CA
1/25/2014 The Highline - Seattle, WA
1/26/2014 The Bluebird Theater - Denver, CO

Official Website
Facebook

Source: Earsplit PR

Black Shape Of Nexus - S/T ...

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First album for BLACK SHAPE OF NEXUS, back in 2008 for this 6 person band. I believe is the mk1 members. III is heavy and solid, very tight and roaring, vokills are aggressive and brutal, is on a heavy slow/mid tempo speed, feedback and noise are take the main act as the song pass the mid section, and band flowing to the end of this track. VI start with a massive sound of the bass on tight riff, and one of hell hitting ride bell (drums sounds amazing) and has a focus on the construction of a feeling that is heavy and tight, a riff that make you solid in your indica sense! Until the band explodes with a sludgy contribution part! Vox are aggressive and maniac, totally out of control!!! Band grooves and electronic gives a psycho feeling, with guitar and bass trade leads, solos. They produce an outrageous finale of delayed looped frequencies.


V is the final song of the vinyl version. As it starts you hear the slow doom feel in the vein of MOSS, but also I hear that from this riff VIIIe born. Heavy and big with space in the mix, until the marching drums and yeah, typical BSON construction of the riff, accentuation and electronics, samples, loops and a maniac scream! It is slow and can send you to the mental institution, those fx are alive and burning your mind. IV start with a noisy reach and hypnotic words! Then the band roaring in your face, with a mega massive riff! The main riff has a post feeling sound approach, but is heavier and doomier. As for the end of the song, bass is over-driven and steady, he push the band to hypnotic vision. HEAVY. 

II is the next song, doom and massive, as the samples giving their place to the vox, this song become harsh and dark, it’s something pompous in the air, a desire for appease….the waiting of the last riff is coming! Bison in his field is inviolate! I believe you will be banging your head from the mid-tempo turnout of the track.  This album has very good producing, mixing, you can hear everything and spot them in the mix, it is loud and focused. 40+minutes (lp), 60+(cd) Of slow, heavy, tight DOOM/Sludge. Vinyl version has 3 songs, cd version 5.

Words: Spiros “Treliarhs”




Black Shape Of Nexus | Official Website
Black Shape Of Nexus | Bandcamp
Black Shape Of Nexus | Facebook

Bson / KODIAK - Split ...

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This is a heavy split, consisting of 2 big songs!!!

With the first hit, you know that song will be HEAVY and roaring!!! BSON deliver us “VIIIe” (or as I prefer to call it vile), written back in 2009 this masterpiece heavy riff is outrageous, heavy and tight as fuck!!! Memorable and uplifting in the destruction way of mind sickness! Lyrics here are performed by the rabid dog Malte and you know, talks about love and happiness …The band at his best with a big wall of sound, tight and heavy, vokills from the madmen makes you crazy, the fx they uses control your mind with a shotgun ready to fire! As for the end, the oscillators and fx start to wipe out every conscience you have…the voice talks in your head.

Be prepared for KODIAK song “Town of machine”, written in 2009 this  song explodes in my speakers with a noisy distorted action! And make me an evil smile as their accentuation and feedback  reach me…Their melody is very esoteric (fuck you esoteric), very dark vibe, inhale-exhale slowly, feel power growing deep inside their spirits…post apocalyptic dark shine of shiver is in the air…((((Explosion)))) as the band once again start play the accentuation  type of post/drone that they own very well! Riff is dark, they are in a place that falling from the edge is sharper than destruction itself…

This split is one of the best out there, for you doom/drone/sludge freaks. Slow and heavy, dark and loud. I believe you don’t need something else… (((((Crank it up)))))

Words: Spiros “Treliarhs”

Black Shape Of Nexus | Official Website
Black Shape Of Nexus | Bandcamp
Black Shape Of Nexus | Facebook
Kodiak | Facebook
Kodiak | Official Website

NEWS: SONS OF TONATIUH: Atlanta Sludge Goliaths Kick Off US Tour; Band To Take Japan Next Month ...

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Atlanta sludge goliaths, SONS OF TONATIUH, kick off another road riot tonight. Set to commence on their home turf at Club 529, the four upcoming domestic shows serve as a precursor to the band's nine-date Japanese takeover next month where the band will drench six unsuspecting cities in their acerbic bottom-end sound implosions.

Comments SONS OF TONATIUH guitarist/vocalist Dan Caycedo, "With some new tunage on the way, a Japanese tour in February, and a solid lineup of myself, Rico and Twitch, 2014 has never looked so good. A new record is in the mix for the Spring of this year and Europe is only a bomb string away! For those of you who have stuck by us and helped us along the way, we owe you our very souls. For without you, we would still be selling ourselves out to the capitalist pigs who pulverize all of our aspirations into dust for their own personal greed."

SONS OF TONATIUH Winter Tour 2014:
1/15/2014 529 - Atlanta, GA w/ Fistula, Order Of The Owl, Capsized
1/16/2014 Hog Wild Brew & BBQ - Jackson, TN
1/17/2014 Siberia - New Orleans, LA w/ A Hanging, Ossacrux, Mailbomber
1/18/2014 The Bottletree - Birmingham, AL w/ Capsized, Stoned Cobra, Collossus
2/21/2014 Morgana - Tokyo, JP w/ The Donor
2/22/2014 Hokage - Osaka, JP w/ The Donor
2/23/2014 Studio 246 - Nagoya, JP w/ The Donor
2/24/2014 TBA - Kanazawa, JP w/ The Donor
2/26/2014 Wildside - Tokyo, JP
2/27/2014 El Puente - Yokohama,JP w/ Cripple Bastards, Coffins
2/28/2014 TBA - Saitama, JP
3/01/2014 Wall - Tokyo, JP w/ Terror Squad
3/02/2014 Moonstep - Tokyo, JP w/ Omawarisan, Chaos Mongers


SONS OF TONATIUH - Caycedo, bassist Twitch and drummer Josh Lomanto - continues to tour in support of their earth-rumbling full-length, Parade Of Sorrow. Issued via Hydro-Phonic Records in 2012, the Kyle Spence (Harvey Milk) produced, grisly riff fest was championed for its "joining of galloping thrash and arching doom, bruising hardcore and crackling guitar solos," by Independent Weekly, likened to "sinking in quicksand" by Exclaim! and continues to charm listeners internationally with its gnarly brand of punk-infused, lead-footed, sludge rock anthems.

Check out Parade Of Sorrow streaming in its entirety at the official SONS OF TONATIUH bandcamp page HERE.

"Each number builds around screaming vocal harmonies, unexpected melodies, and monstrous guitar solos. But the real power lies in the uncomplicated design of it all." - Creative Loafing

"...a savagely aggressive, sonically belligerent album that is among the rawest to emerge from the southern USA in the last decade..." - This Is Not A Scene

"...filth-encrusted and viciously heavy..." - One Metal

"...an extremely potent follow-up that any fan of modern day angry sludge can invest in with confidence." - Doommantia

"...a head-on-collision between early Black Sabbath and Eyehategod." - Sea Of Tranquility

"...ten tracks of viscous, hard-livin' Southern doom." - Ad Hoc

"SOT meld the visceral, unrefined DIY sounds of sludge, punk and hardcore into ten tracks and thirty-seven minutes blues for the disenfranchised. SOT songs boomerang from the most atherosclerotic sludge to sick crossover breakdowns and Ginn-esque punk rock." - Hellride


Official Website
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Bandcamp
Hydro-Phonic Records

Source: Earsplit PR

NEWS: LOCRIAN: 'A Visitation From The Wrath Of Heaven' Video Released ...

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"A Visitation From The Wrath Of Heaven", the new video from the experimental, dark ambient/noise trio LOCRIAN, can be seen below. The eerie clip for the eight-and-a-half-minute-long track was directed by J.P Bradburn.

Terrence Hannum (keyboards/vocals) commented: "John Bradburn has crafted a nightmare like vision from our song by flipping personas, timelines, settings to muse upon the nature of surveillance and identity."

"A Visitation From The Wrath Of Heaven" is taken from LOCRIAN's latest album, "Return To Annihilation", which was released in June 2013 via Relapse Records. The CD was recorded by Greg Norman (PELICAN, RUSSIAN, CIRCLES, SERENA MANEESH) at Steve Albini's Electrical Audio Studios in Chicago and was mastered by Jason Ward at Chicago Mastering Service.

A two-part concept album inspired by LOCRIAN's love for prog-rock progenitors GENESIS, YES and KING CRIMSON, "Return To Annihilation" is described in a press release as "the group's most ambitious recordings to date."

LOCRIAN lyricist/multi-instrumentalist Terrence Hannum comments on the album's concept: "I think for the album concept we were inspired by GENESIS''Lamb Lies Down On Broadway' and how it is a surreal narrative telling a story. We sought to make our own but we wanted to give our nod to the prog bands that inspired us; KING CRIMSON or YES with the multi-part songs. So we had looked at the novel 'Dhalgren' by sci-fi writer Samuel Delaney as a big influence too. How it is a circular narrative, ours is more of a mirror of itself, one that changes and shifts. It also borrows extensively from Walter Benjamin's 'Arcades Project'.

"Our story is about a cataclysm that changes the world and all manner of perception in two parts. I would say the real and the perceived. And it is all told to you through a narrator, one who you cannot tell if he is asleep or dreaming or sleepwalking through this shifting landscape. Part 1 begins at the end of a song whose lyrics discuss a dawn in which all of our monuments dissolved, the next track the wrath of heaven (a massive cataclysm) visits earth, then two moons appear in the sky (perhaps the most direct reference to Delaney's novel but also an homage to Nick Drake). It ends with the first multi-part track 'Return to Annihilation', a more metaphysical description of the changes apparent in the world. One in which minerals work against man, there is only evolution. We also gain insight into that what we've been told may be unreliable as the narrator admits to 'noctambulism' (sleepwalking). But it is intentionally unclear if this is his state or the state of everyone. Part 2 is a view back through this mirror or lens of Part 1. We exit the hall or vapor and light and enter a panorama of mirror, the entire world as reflection. It ends with a four-part piece about worshiping equilibrium in a world where it has been extinct (isostasy), discussing the qualities of the air that is now poisoned, witnessing the burial of urns (hydriotaphia) and finally awaking to awareness.

"One of the things we wanted to accomplish was a sense of texture with mirrors, prisms, lenses, etc. being referenced in the sounds and tone. I think it does."

Formed in late 2005, LOCRIAN consists of André Foisy (electric and acoustic guitars, arp avatar, electronics), Terence Hannum (vocals, synthesizers, piano, organ, mellotron and tapes) and Steven Hess (drums, electronics). The group, located in Chicago, Illinois and Baltimore, Maryland, has released over 20 recordings on an eclectic array of labels in their relatively short but prolific career, including a split with labelmates HORSEBACK.

"Return To Annihilation" track listing:

A:

Part I
01. Eternal Return
02. A Visitation From The Wrath Of Heaven
03. Two Moons
04. Return To Annihilation
a. Into One Light
b. Anathemata
c. All Mineral in Upheaval

B:

Part II
05. Exiting The Hall Of Vapor And Light
06. Panorama Of Mirror
07. Obsolete Elegies
a. Isostasy
b. Digression of Air
c. Hydriotaphia
d. In Felsic Splendor




Read more at Blabbermouth

NEWS: EYEHATEGOD Announces Last Minute California Takeover ...

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Following the unfortunate cancellation of the Australian leg of their 25 Years Of Dysfunctional Family Abuse Tour, New Orleans road hounds, EYEHATEGOD, will take over California with seven recently booked matinee and evening assaults throughout San Diego, Santa Ana, Ventura and Los Angeles. Now christened the Undermining Society's Rules Since 1988 West Coast Tour, the late additions, which will commence this evening, serve as a precursor to the band's already announced live attacks on Reno, San Francisco, Oakland, Seattle and Denver next week.

Comments the band: "We believe these things happen for a reason and have now arranged a number of pick up gigs on the West Coast. Sincere apologies to our Australian friends and fans. We love you and are truly disappointed in what happened. We are already in talks to reschedule the tour and get back over as soon as possible."

EYEHATEGOD: Undermining Society's Rules Since 1988 West Coast Tour

1/17/2014 Bancroft Bar - San Diego, CA
1/18/2014 The Observatory - Santa Ana, CA (matinee show)
1/18/2014 Bombay - Ventura, CA (evening show)
1/19/2014 East 7th Street Warehouse - Los Angeles, CA (matinee show)
1/19/2014 5 Star Bar - Los Angeles, CA (evening show)
1/20/2014 Down And Out - Los Angeles, CA
1/21/2014 Aladdin - Pomona, CA
1/22/2014 Jub Jubs - Reno, NV
1/23/2014 Brick And Mortar - San Francisco, CA
1/24/2014 Oakland Metro - Oakland, CA
1/25/2014 The Highline - Seattle, WA
1/26/2014 The Bluebird Theater - Denver, CO


Can't make your way West? Check out EYEHATEGOD's guest appearance on the The Very "M.A.N.I.C." Jimmy Cabbs Show this Sunday from 1:00pm - 4:00pm PST at THIS LOCATION

Official Website
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Source: Earsplit PR

NEWS: THE WOUNDED KINGS: New Hymn Now Playing At Vice/Noisey ...

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With its release just a little more than a month away, today the sound peddlers at Vice/Noisey thrust forth "Consolamentum," from English progressive doom cultists, THE WOUNDED KINGS.

The tune comes by way of the band's impending new full-length of the same name. Dark, desolate, at times emphatically sinister, Consolamentum -- listed among The Obelisk's most anticipated albums of the year -- was produced by sound wizard Chris Fielding (Electric Wizard, Primordial, Winterfylleth et al). Recorded and mixed in just six days completely live during one of the hottest weeks of the year in a studio miles away from civilization, the seven sprawling tracks that comprise Consolamentum capture a sentiment of isolation, doom and gloom in ways few acts can. Led by the comsuming vocals of front woman Sharie Neyland, who seemingly casts spells with her apocalyptic words of wisdom, THE WOUNDED KINGS churn a singular heaviness that's difficult to dismiss.

Boasts Vice/Noisey of the title track, "One of the strongest assets of English doomers THE WOUNDED KINGS is the soaring gothic vocals of Sharie Neyland, who's croon sails eerily over the band's massive riffs and ominous keyboards. It's clear that elements of My Dying Bride's massive sound is a strong influence, one that sustains in the title track from the band's LP Consolamentum."

Get gloomy with "Consolamentum," now streaming at Vice/Noisey at THIS LOCATION

Overcoming numerous lineup shifts since their formation in 2005, THE WOUNDED KINGS -- Neyland, guitarist/keyboardist Steve Mills, guitarist Alex Kearney, bassist Al Eliadis, and drummer Myke Heath -- have continually stunned audiences with their commanding stage personae. The two-time Roadburn alumni are adored by attendees and popular festival promoters, who call the band, "British doom of staggering power that is made all the more distinct by the unsettling presence of singer Sharie Neyland, who stands on stage almost trance-like, invoking her lyrics in a chanted voice that holds the entire venue in thrall." To date the Dartmoor-based five piece has released three full-length studio albums and a well-received split album with Richmond, Virginia's Cough. The band has been finding a growing American audience since the release of 2011's In The Chapel Of The Black Hand, the first offering to feature Neyland.

Consolamentum will be released in North America via Candlelight Records February 25, 2014. Digital preorders are currently available via iTunes

"THE WOUNDED KINGS have a mystical and mythical quality which makes them an enormously appealing prospect..." -- Terrorizer

"THE WOUNDED KINGS sound is so organic that the room actually starts to feel damp and musty..." -- Blabbermouth

The Wounded Kings | Facebook
Candlelight Records
Source: Earsplit PR

NEWS: CULTED: Oblique To All Paths Streaming In Full At Cvlt Nation ...

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With its official North American release now less than twenty-four hours away, today the henchmen at Cvlt Nation bring you Oblique To All Paths -- the latest full length from blackened doom conjurors, CULTED -- in its entirety!

Listed among Noisecreep's Most Anticipated Releases of the month, Oblique To All Paths is CULTED's second full-length and first recording in more than four long years. A hauntingly grim piece of expansive doom metal, Planet Mosh crowns the production, "a pleasingly unpleasant slice of doomish monstrousness to darken even the brightest of nights," while Exclaim notes in a recent interview with the band, "the intense doom and craggly black sounds coalesce into something that references Celtic Frost as much as it does Swans." Elsewhere, The Sleeping Shaman likens CULTED to, "the bastard child of Sunn O))) and Khanate, conceived after a weird ritual in a forbidden cave, deep in the woods. Yet... something far more dangerous and devious," MeatMeadMetal christens CULTED, "a mighty, scary band, and hopefully their campaign of disaster lasts long into the future," Cvlt Nation dubs the record, "an ambitious and exhausting trek through frosty terrains of blackened doom metal, touched with noise and melody in equal measures," while Target Audience Magazine adds, "Whether you're a fan of Sabbath or Venom, or hopefully both, CULTED will give you something to love."

Witness the dark, murky magnificence of Oblique To All Paths, now playing in its entirety courtesy of Cvlt Nation at THIS LOCATION

Forged in 2007, CULTED's background is distinctive: Four band members spread out over Sweden and Canada, having never performed music in the same room as an entire band, instead joining creative forces through the marvels of modern technology to compose wholly compelling, finely executed doom metal. Although the CULTED cooperative - Klassen, Matthew Friesen (guitar/bass/percussion/noise), Kevin Stevenson (drums) and Daniel Jansson (vocals/ambience) - have yet to speak to each other in real time, they unite in mind and spirit through their musical manifestations. A truly collaborative effort across international lines, CULTED's bleak and epic masterworks of dystopian doom serve as a true testament to their long-distance accomplishments.

Oblique To All Paths will see official release on CD, 2xLP and digital formats via Relapse Records on January 21st in North America. Order your copy today at THIS LOCATION . iTunes purchasers should go HERE
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