Appalachian Prometheus- Appalachian Prometheus

 What is Southern Metal? Its a question I've been thinking about a lot lately. And after thinking long and hard, I would define it as a genre with heavy, bluesy doom-laden down tuned riffs dueling with sun-kissed melodies and leads, A rhythm section that locks into a driving yet easygoing rhythm and vocals drenched with humidity, cigarette smoke and bourbon. 

It came into prominence in the mid 90's and, as a southern boy myself, it struck a chord with me. Unfortunately, it just kinda died out about 10 years ago. You have a few of the older bands still playing it but largely younger bands have eschewed it for more traditional fare. There's nothing wrong with that but it does sadden me to see such a regional style go the way of the dodo. That is, until now. 

Appalachian Prometheus are a band from San Marcos, Texas. They released their debut EP this past Friday and I happened upon it and decided to give it a shot. Now, if you've been reading this blog for a while, you might recall I have opined on the fact that a lot of "Southern metal" bands traded in the humidity of the South for the breezes of California. Well, is that also true of Appalachian Prometheus? Let's find out.

No, It's not. This is exactly what I mean by "Southern Metal".  The riffs are heavy as a black hole and drive the songs into further reaches of humid and kudzu laden crunch and groove. The leads and melodies are serene as a breeze through a Georgia pine and take me back to summers of my youth swimming in the rivers and wondering the swamps of my beautiful South Carolina. The bass and drums pound through the songs and lock into a bluesy. laid-back rhythm that only people from the South can get a hold of. The vocals are scorched with cigarette burns and touched by the sunshine taste of Kentucky bourbon, sounding a little like Lemmy with a southern drawl. 

Every song on here is fantastic, from the driving mania of "Appalachian Prometheus" to the threatening crawl of "Last Ride" through the bass  thunder heaviness 1-2 punch of "South American Aphrodite" and "Desert Pawn" finally ending in the pounding "Landing Song/In Black".  Each song smacks you in the face with loud and good Southern groves sweetened with that little bit of melody, just like a pitcher of sweet iced sun tea that's been sitting in the sun for just the right amount of time.

Again, easily a record that will be in my top 5 records this year and also vying for the number 1 spot. These guys claim influences from all the greats but cook up their own original spiced gumbo in the process. 

Highlights include: South American Aphrodite and Desert Pawn, but this is a fantastic release and perfect to blare out of your car stereo on a warm, humid Southern summer day. I'll be revisiting this record in years to come and I hope these guys have a long career and release many great records like this. 

Check them out at: 

https://appalachianprometheus.bandcamp.com/album/appalachian-prometheus

Torver- Witching Hour.

 Anyone who has read this blog for a while knows I'm a fan of black metal. I mean, I am sitting here writing this in my Black Funeral t shirt. I've been a fan of black metal since around 1993. I was 16 years old and just discovered bands like Absu, Master's Hammer, Havohej and, of course, the Norwegian bands. 

People now-a-days really don't have a reference for that time period. Black Metal wasn't really formalized into a genre until sometime in the late 90's.   That's when it became about just copying the Norse bands. Before that, it was a pretty wild territory. At the time, All 3 of the bands I mentioned would have been considered Black Metal.  No one really questioned that. 

Recently I got told by a younger person online that Mortuary Drape isn't actually Black Metal. Well, trust me that is a VERY new idea. Also to young people trying to tell those of us who were there at the dawn of the 2nd wave what is or isn't Black Metal, well, I'll just quote Aslan from The Lion, The Witch and The Wardrobe: "Don't site the deep magic to me, witch! I was there when it was written." (A Pagan siting a Christian author when talking about a largely Satanic music form? This is the kind of transgressive nonsense you guys come here for, right?).

So with that in mind, Let's talk about Torver. Torver are a UK band that until this record I had never heard of. Which surprises me considering there are several luminaries in the scene in this project. There are members of Ethereal Forest and Wreodan Healh in this project. I haven't reviewed Ethereal Forest but I like them a lot and you can find the Wreodan Healh review and read the glowing praise I've heaped on that one singular record. 

So, do Torver live up to the hype  of the members' other bands? Let's find out.

This is one of the best records I've heard in a long time. It IS Black Metal but its different. There's a reason I began talking about my youth with this genre. This record takes me back to a time when Black Metal was less formalized and more free to cavort in the shadows. Musically it has all earmarks of great UKBM. Within the notes and riffs lies an ancient and mouldering majesty that made bands like December Moon, Hecate Enthroned and, yes, even early Cradle of Filth so great.  There's something incredibly gothic about the interplay of the guitar with the keyboards and violin. The bass shines through occasionally adding a depth to the music that Black Metal doesn't always succeed in expressing. The vocalist has a spectacular rasp but also uses spoken clean vocals that adds to the atmosphere in a superb way.

The singular violin that is placed front and center on every single track reminds me of what it might be like if My Dying Bride were a Black Metal band instead of Death/Doom. It sets up such a wondrous majestic and melancholic atmosphere. It gives me the vision of what it might be to wonder through castle ruins on a rainy day; feeling the rain touch your face as you walk through old stone and rotting wood. Black Metal is, in my opinion, at its best when it is cinematic.  I only found this record on Friday and I have listened to it 4 or 5 times already. 

This will be in my top 5 records this year and is in the running for my number one spot. If you like majestic, melancholic and cinematic Black Metal, you could do a LOT worse than putting your money toward this record. Highlights: Nocturnal Serenade, Reformation of the Trinity, Where Angels Fear to Tread and Walk Alone.


https://wulfhereproductions.bandcamp.com/album/witching-hour

Bewitched- Diabolical Death Mass

 In 1996/1997, I was a freshman in college and deeply drawn in Black Metal but I have to admit I had become a little tired of it. Especially at that time, Black metal had actually become pretty popular and already started to morph away from what I loved about it. In just a few years, I would rediscover the black flame but, in that moment, I was ready for something else.

Luckily, I was apparently not the only one. As right after Nifelheim's debut a new class of bands began to rise. They were loosely classed as "retro-thrash" but really what they were doing was combining 80's first wave black and thrash with the darker sensibility of modern black metal. I fell hard for these bands and still listen regularly to them to this day. These bands included: Nocturnal Breed. Gehennah, Absu's Third Storm of Cythraul(still my favorite Absu record) and, yes, Bewitched. 

Bewitched started out being pretty unoriginal(the first track on the first record basically uses and inverts the song Evil by Mercyful Fate) and then grew to be kind of campy silly fun. I loved them anyway. They remained one of my favorite of those bands until Spiritual Warfare. So when I heard they were releasing a new record I immediately preordered it. I admit to some trepidation since most of those bands have either disappeared or don't sound nearly as good as they used to but here we are. So does the new record recapture the black flame? Well, let's find out.

I have to say that I think Diabolical Death Mass is their best record. Gone is the campiness of times past and replaced with a razor sharp focus. Vargher is in fine form. The ughs and punctuated high-pitched screams are all still there, as well as the Motorhead/Venom riffing but the difference is any amount of camp or goodnatured goofiness is gone. This record is bathed in black candle light and makes no bones about it. The themes are still satanic in nature but gone is any silliness. The lyrics are more focused and lacking the horror movie schlock of the lyrics in earlier records.

Beginning with an intro that appears to have an infant sacrificed in a ceremony to the title track all the way through Vicious and Wild, this record proves deadly serious and violent in it intent. Oh, it still inspires fist banging and headbanging but its more dark, deadly and razor sharp. Good and heavy with no side smirking in the delivery.

As I said this is the best Bewitched album and its a delight to get such a focused and heavy record 30 years after a band's debut. You should definitely check it out and , like me, plan to check out this reinvigorated Bewitched on tour. Hightlights: Diabolical Death Mass, By Satan Enslaved and Vicious and Wild. Its a great record from beginning to end, though. 

Hello

 I know its been a bit since I posted anything.

This is because of several family issues (good and bad) that have cropped  up since the beginning of May. Don't worry I still have more reviews coming. 

A new review should be posted by Friday.

Also if you're interested in post-industrial/ambient music check out my other project:

https://germtheory2.bandcamp.com/

Part of the reason for my tardiness is working on music for this project.

Thank you for reading and I should be back soon.
 

Live Report: Acid Bath, Crowbar, EYEHATEGOD and Whores

 I meant to write this up last weekend but life got in the way. Don't worry. I'm not going anywhere. Just had a busy week.


So Acid Bath... Well, I've been a fan since randomly picking up "When the Kite String Pops" in 1994. That year was my biggest leap into extreme metal as it also represents about the time I got deeply into Black Metal as well. I never got the chance to see them in their prime. I was very glad to hear they were playing some shows and hoped for a local gig here. And sure enough, I was blessed with a stacked show.

But could Acid Bath 2026 live up to the hype? Let's find out.


Whores- Look this just isn't my thing. They really just sound like Helmet to me. It's noise rock. If you like Helmet, you'll probably like these guys. Live they were fun. You could tell they were having a good time. The bassist spent the whole time bouncing around the stage. And they were incredibly happy to be playing for us. They put on a great show so if noise rock is your thing you should definitely check them out.

EYEHATEGOD- I've seen these New Orleans gents a few times and they never disappoint. Same was true hear. The drummer pounded out doom grooves and the bassist held down that low end. Jimmy slammed into bluesy down tuned riff after riff. And Mike caterwauled his broken heart out about all sorts of horrific things. They truly captured their essence in this show and gave a great and angry performance. Always a recommend from me.

Crowbar- Probably the most accessible of the southern sludge bands.  Crowbar got up and plowed through a handful of songs reveling in the slow feedback drenched riffs. Hearing them live, I get why they were the first of these bands to get popular. Even though I'm not really familiar with them there were a number of songs I could sing along with. And Kirk sounded great especially since he had some sort of upper respiratory infection at the time of the show. Anyway they definitely put on a solid show. And even ended with my favorite song, "All I Had (I Gave)". 

Acid Bath- So, finally, the moment came. I was ridiculously excited. So how did this older version hold up? Pretty damn good. First Dax sounded great. He still has this great ability to make even out of tune singing sound good. He stood there in sunglasses barely moving and talking to the audience but somehow radiating everything that Acid Bath is; A Southern Gothic Psychedelic Black Nightmare. Lemmy once used that phrase to describe his time in Hawkwind but I think its far more appropriate here. There was a screen behind them that the other bands used to show their names but with Acid Bath it became a screen that perfectly reflected the music.  Dark visuals collided with twisting bright colors perfectly accentuating the songs and the performances. They played pretty much every song I could hope for them to play. This is definitly a show worth taking in. The only thing that wasn't great was Sammy and his cringy banter. It was out of place and felt really weird in this performance with this band.  I know they said there are no plans to record new music but there's a side of me that would be interested to hear what they would come up with 30 years later. Either way, we got a piece of American metal history and a great show to boot. 

So thank you for reading. Should have a couple of reviews up this coming week. Still banging along on this blog thing. Thanks for hanging out and bang the head that doesn't bang!

Live Report: Helloween and Beast in Black- Helloween 40th Anniversary tour

 So I have been a fan of Helloween for 35 years. I first picked up a best of in 1991. I loved all the songs and just kept listening. I still love their catalog and revisit it often to this day. 

I have, however, never seen them live. So when they announced last year that they were coming around, I knew I had to go. What I got was a mixed bag of sorts but all in all it was a fun night.

Beast In Black- What the fuck did I just hear? Honestly, I can't imagine worse music in my life. It's like combining hard rock with the worst of the Euro techno stuff that got popular in the late 90's. Basically imagine that "Barbie Girl" song done as  a metal cover but much, much worse. Imagine if "Eye  of the Tiger" sucked. That's the kind of music we're talking about here. But what do I know. There were several people who seemed to enjoy it. But as far as my girl and I... well, we were basically passing notes mocking them the whole time.  As far as their performance? Well, it was fine. They definitely had a good time and they capably played to and with the audience. So, if you're a fan of the band, I bet you'll enjoy it. Why you're reading this blog I can't imagine, though. 

Helloween- And finally the pumpkins arrive. A seven member band is a lot and I imagine a lot can get lost in the shuffle. Did the pumpkins pull it out? Were they good? Quite frankly, absolutely! It was one of the best shows I've ever seen. They had a electronic backdrop that changed with each song and had moving images on it. Each and every member looked like they were having the time of their lives. With three guitars, they could lean into the twin guitar thing but still have the rhythm playing. This actually made the songs feel heavier. The drums and bass held the rhythm down admirably and that drummer is one of the few that got a drum solo and truly deserved it. The vocal duties were perfectly balanced with Andi, Michael and Kai each singing songs from their specific era of the band except on some of the best known songs like "Halloween" and "Eagle Fly Free" where they would trade off. And speaking of vocals, all three sounded amazing! I really felt  like I was 14 again listening to the older stuff. Unfortunately curfew laws made them cut "Keeper of the Seven Keys" down to just the last verse after "Eagle Fly Free" but otherwise it was a great night and I left with a sore neck and a hoarse throat from yelling all the lyrics along with the band.

Either way, Helloween is a band firing on all cylinders. If this tour comes to your town I fully recommend it. Well, except Beast In Black. Maybe get a few drinks at the bar then take in a fantastic show.  

Locus Noir- Shadow Sun

 Hey, ain't you lucky! Two posts in one day. Amazing!

So, one style that I have always had a very love/hate relationship with is Gothic Metal. I love Type O Negative and some other bands but the style seemed, in the 2000's, to morph into what I call "Sad Bastard Metal" (to paraphrase Nick Cave). It lost what made it darkly triumphant and just became people whining about stuff and I've never been a huge fan of that. 

So here comes Locus Noir. This is a band that comes from the singer, Ben DMN, of Sybreed... who I know almost nothing about with the exception that they made some waves 10-15 years ago. The lead singer formed this project to reclaim the "spirit of 90's Gothic Metal". Well, I AM a fan of 90's Gothic Metal so let's see if he succeeded.

Actually I would say so. Locus Noir released two singles, one with Ben Christo (for those of you playing the home game, the guitarist of Sisters of Mercy). I rather enjoyed both songs. I played them pretty often. But listening to the record those are probably the weakest songs. The album bounces with keyboard driven darkness over metal guitars and clashing drums.  Ben's voice definitely has that low tone you want in a good Gothic singer but his voice has texture and character all its own. The keyboards set the right atmosphere and the guitars chug enough to remind the listener they are listening to a metal album. Even the Lady Gaga, "Marry the Night", works well and sets the pace for triumph in darkness as opposed to crying about stuff all the time. There are themes of tragedy, of course. They are just dealt with in a manner of more defiance than sadness, which I prefer. All in all an effort I have already revisited a few times since it was released in February. 

Highlights: Shadow Sun, She Haunts the Night and Death, that Elusive Mistress. While these are the best songs on the record the whole thing is worth the price of admission even the two bonus tracks (one of which is the cover I mentioned). So go on and check them out especially if you're a fan of Type O Negative, early Moonspell and Dreadful Shadows.