Thought of the day

Tragedy strikes

Yesterday was a black day for hockey.
A plane, carrying the Russian hockey team Lokomotiv Jaroslavl, crashed on it's way to Minsk and the KHL premiere.
No one survived.
The whole team, dead.
And among them Stefan Liv, probably the best goalie in Sweden the last decade.

My thoughts go out to the families and friends of those who died, in all cases too early. And especially to Liv’s wife and two kids.

So tragic.

//Ravn

Note to self.

Note to self:

Working on several posts and reviews simultaneously lessens my productivity.

I will redress this asap.

Most frequently listened to since last time:

- Craft: ”Void”

- Falls of Rauros: ” The Light That Dwells in Rotten Wood”

- King Diamond: ”The Puppet Master”

- Wolves In the Throne Room: ”Malevolent Grain”

- Vomitory: ”Opus Mortis VIII”

- Passiv Dödshjälp: ”Häng Dom”

- Haemorrhage: ”Hospital Carnage”

- Nader Sadek: ”In the Flesh”

- Wormrot: ”Abuse”

Thumbs up and a death-grunt!

//Ravn

A mind and body divided, and things to look forward to.

So the vacation is over, and far to soon at that. Funny, but my mind and spirit is still in that blessed state, while my body is at work. But that’s ok, since things are really slow.

And while my mind and body slowly start to merge, I’m trying to contain my excitement and not bounce like a lemur on speed in my chair when pondering the upcoming releases that looms over the horizon.

Arckanum: ”Helvítismyrkr”

The news about this release came like a lighting bolt from a clear sky for me, and I had no idea that Arckanum’s mainman Shamaatae even had been in the studio. Well I’m totally chuffed by this record, and if the quality is anything close to the last three albums, I know this will be on this year’s top 10… probably higher.

Craft: ”Void”

Six years ago, Craft released ”Fuck the Universe”; one of the most shit kicking Black Metal albums ever to come out of Sweden, and I’ve been salivating for a follow-up for what seems like an eternity. And now the wait seems to be over (barring distribution fails). A greatly anticipated release.

Fleshgod Apocalypse: ”Agony”

According to the faceless voices of the internet, this second album from these Italians contains an abundance of clean vocals and more symphonic elements in their blasting Death Metal. Honestly, this could be a hit or miss… or rather; a cataclysmic disaster or something really cool. Regardless, the idea of symphonic elements together with Brutal Death Metal ™ leaves me a tad bit intrigued.

Pathology: ”Awaken to the Suffering”

The criminally underrated Pathology keeps spewing out guttural Death Metal with zombies, guts and violence. What’s not to like? A definite must-buy.

Old Silver Key: ”Tales of Wanderings”

Hhmmm… what would you get if you crossed Drudkh with Alcest? Old Silver Key. A no-brainer really, since this band basically is Drudkh with Neige from Alcest behind the microphone. Post-Black/Post-Rock, and since I really like what these musicians have created in their respective bands, the ”buy-factor” is a no-brainer as well.

Wolves In the Throne Room: ”Celestial Lineage”

When one of my favourite Black Metal bands release a new record, will I buy it? Do I anticipate it like a withering plant anticipates rain? Do I think that it will land on the top five albums of 2011? Hell yes on all accounts. I have insanely high expectations for this album, and I don’t think I will be disappointed.

Throne of Katarsis: ”Ved Graven”

True Norwegian Black Metal™ that for some reason is reviled by the internet warriors. But I like the band, and seeing that they are about to release their third album, summons the Funeral Fog™ to chill me and thrill me.

Blood of the Black Owl: ”Light the Fires!”

Ritualistic and shamanistic Drone/Doom at it’s best. I’ve loved the band’s earlier outputs and I suspect that this album will serve me well for moody, grey and introspective autumn days.

To quote the almighty Fenriz: "If you think that it's been a bad year in music, you just haven't dug deep enough."

//Ravn

Jex Thoth gig

Yesterday I attended what felt like the first gig in ages (can’t say that Stockholm has been graced with shitloads of them the last couple of months). But yesterday Jex Thoth played a free club gig. Yep, you read that right. Free. Not one penny to get in. As expected the little venue was packed like a can of sardines, but we got there early to avoid getting the cold hand in the door.

And the gig was good. They pulled forth material from both the self titled debut and last year’s e.p. Witness, and that without spacing out in any jam-sessions or instrumental detours (something that definitely isn’t my cup of tea).

given the lack of gigs recently, it’s going to be a blast to go to another one this Saturday, when amazing black/crust band Martyrdöd and the legendary outfit Doom will pulverize Stockholm.

Most frequently played since last time;

1- Alda: ”:Tahoma:”

2- Origin: ”Entity”

3- Seidr: ”For Winter Fire”

4- Seeds in Barren Fields: ”Sounding the Siren Song In Vain”

5- Abigor: ”Nachthymnen”

6- Martyrdöd: ”In Extremis”

7- Misery Index: ”Traitors”

8- Interment: ”Into the Crypts of Blasphemy”

9- Kroda: ”Schwarzpfad”

10- Agrimonia: ”Host of the Winged”

Cheers

//Ravn

Big Four

Yesterday the Swedish State Television (yup we have a state financed television) aired the Big Four gig in Gothenburg in all it's metal packed glory.

And even if I don't particularly care for any of these progenitors of thrash metal (Anthrax, Megadeth, Slayer and Metallica) I found the whole thing commendable.

Generally my feelings towards this subgenre of metal can be summarized in the typical Swedish way of pronouncing its name, "trash metal", but I can't help to be a bit enamored by the whole spectacle; prime time television filled with something that deffinitely can’t be categorized as mainstream culture. It might seem strange that a metal-head as myself don’t like any of these legends, and while I can think of a cazillion bands I’d rather listen to, I certainly acknowledge their importance and influence. Happy that my girlfriend feel the same about them, we had the TV going in the background and checking in now and then to see/hear how these old timers fared.

Sad to say, we missed 99% of Anthrax, and they were honestly the one band that I kind of like (after all, Among the Living IS a magnificent album) so that was a bit of a bummer. But seeing that Scott Ian was at home on parent leave, being replaced by Andreas Kisser of Sepultura fame, I shrugged it off. Anthrax without Scott Ian just isn’t Anthrax if you catch my drift (even if Caught In a Mosh is a song that makes me wanna stagedive from the nearest elevated surface).

What to say about Megadeth? I haven’t got the slightest clue to why anyone proudly would say that they like that atrocity of a band. I seriously thought that my brain was dislodged a bit from the horrible horrible vocals and uninspired riffing. And to give any attention to Dave Mustaine, the born-again Ted Nugent of metal, is just a waste of energy. Yeah I will continue to avoid this band like door-knocking, plague-smitten Jehova’s Witnesses.

Slayer; the band that everyone who’s into extreme music must adore. Well that’s according to the unwritten rules of underground etiquette at least. But when it comes to that sort of scene-policing and ”musts” I just simply shake my head and turn my back. That’s right, I don’t like Slayer. Or rather, to clarify myself, I like two or three songs from the band. But I’ll give it to them; they are a consistent live-band. Tight, aggressive and intense … and not to forget, full of stamina since it’s like they played the same song in the same high tempo over and over again from start to finish (with the possible exception of Mandatory Suicide). As with Anthrax, the lacked one original guitarist (Jeff Hanneman) who was replaced by Gary Holt from Exodus (who by the way should have been included on the bill… who says that the Big Four can’t be five?). If you like Slayer, I guess it was good, but to me it just sounded like a looooong song with some silence thrown in for good measure.

Metallica was like… well … Metallica. They presented a well put together set I guess, but the energy was dampened by overly many of their more mellow songs. There’s no question that they are accomplished showmen, but the whole thing was severly marred by Mr. Ulrich’s shoddy drumming. Or as my girlfriend commented; ”Even Rick Allen (drummer in Def Leppard) is better, and he’s only got one arm!”.

Well, even if I don’t like the bands that much (apart from the earlier mentioned Anthrax record and the three first Metallica albums in small doses), I must say that the whole thing was a well concieved spectacle with the airing on national television, and stand as a proof that metal as a genre really is respected and worthy of public attention in Sweden.

Highlights: James Hetfield wearing a Ghost-shirt, and the fact that E. of Watain fame was in the ”Metallica expert panel”.

10 records and...

Most frequently played the two weeks of June:


- Ascension: "Consolamentum"


- Darkthrone: "Soulside Journey"


- Autopsy: "Mental Funeral"


- Pestilential Shadows: "Depths"


- Peregrine: "The Agrarian Curse"


- King Diamond: "Give Me Your Soul ... Please"


- Jungle Rot: "Kill on Command"


- Skogen: "Svitjod"


- Stench: "In Putrescence"


- Nader Sadek: "In the Flesh"



Oh, and happy Canada Day to all the awesome people across the pond!

//Ravn