Category: Experimental

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VEXING HEX – Solve Et Coagula

 

They told me it would never happen. Hell. I was firmly convinced that they were correct.

But..

My blackened little thrasher heart loved this album. I smiled as I jammed to an album with no growls, no pig squeals or corpse painted frontmen spitting blood. (There could still be time for this one though.) Sure the music is softer than my normal listening but this album is just too damn fun.

While the album cover may not look out of place in the Death Metal section, Vexing Hex play an Occult/Stoner/Groove style that stays in the ear long after the album has finished. With some awesome harmonies, catchy riffs and just the right amount of darkness, this is the perfect record to listen to as summer winds down.

“One Thousand Eyes,” is super punchy and makes great use of some added synths to make the track a little more trippy. When “Vviccaphobia,” sounds like it could have come from Ghost or an undiscovered underground 70’s occult band.

With their fuzzy tones, warm vocals and occult worship, Solve Et Coagula is worth checking out even if every T-shirt you own is black, beer stained and bears an unreadable band logo. You want lost your Kvlt points.

Well, probably not.

 

 

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GOHANGMUSIC – Godless EP – REVIEW

 

And now for something completely different.

When you first inspect the cover to GoHangMusic’s EP Godless, with the bloody figure and black crosses you may think you are about to check out some nasty and savage Black Metal. Once you hit play, you’ll find you initial impressions are wrong. Very Wrong.

The title track “Godless,” sounds like something off a generic rock radio station. It’s not bad by any means. It just not the gut punch we are used to. GoHangMusic bills itself as, “misanthropic industrial folk punk.” The music inside is as interesting as the genre they are a part of.  While nothing included here as as heavy as we are used to here at Trve Kvlt, there are plenty of rocking tunes.  Luckily the Ep really picks up with the second track. “Dust,” is full of killer riffs and clean refrains that become earworms. “Necrotized,” picks up the pace with plenty of punk inspired piss and anger.

“Awash,” sees GoHangMusic go in a different direction. The usual clean vocals are left behind for angry and raspy screams. The tempo slows down to a plodding pace creating the perfect eerie atmosphere.

 

 

 

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HEMPLIFIER – The Stoner Side of Doom – REVIEW

 

Alright friends. Grab a seat. Take off your shoes. Lean back and relax. We are going to take off on a journey through the stars with Hemplifier. The group’s debut album is 6 tracks of weed and riffs worship.

Just as their band name and album title suggest, Hemplifier play slow and heavy riffs filled with plenty of fuzz and bong fumes. The 6 track album starts off with “Headless Chicken,” that features a slow drum march. Their sound goes a few steps further with the next track, “Brujo.” The track sludges along for some time until the haunting and howling vocals kick in. While there is plenty of slow and heavy riffing there isn’t much on the vocal front on this album.

This is pretty much the stage that Hemplifier has set. 7 to 8 minute tracks of sludgy, fuzzy and mellow riffing with the occasional howl or scream. Just like Sleep or Weedeater you can practically smell the ganja in these tracks. Keeping it simple Hemplifier have cooked up a nice little listen for the times you just want to relax and let the music take you.

Or you’re just giving your neck some rest.

 

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TEITAN – In Oculus Abyss – REVIEW

 

Anyone else remember Oculus Orbus; the giant sickening bloodshot eyeball from the Madballs toyline? I can’t help but to be reminded by looking at this album cover. With nasty song titles like the soon to be a favorite scent at Yankee Candle, “Menstrual Blood and Pommegrenate, ” Teitan has a few more things in common with the gross out 80s property.

While the foundation of this album is rooted firmly in shocking Black Metal foundations there is plenty more to be heard at its core. At many points the sounds within feel experimental at first but develop for as you listen. It’s a moody listen with plenty of shifts and changes. There are plenty of shrieking vocals and savage guitar tones to keep the purists happy.

  Teitan does seem to like to experiment in how far and hard they can take the vocals. In times the vocals feel like they are made to be jarring just for the sake of jarring. While this is definitely isn’t for everyone, it’s this kind of experimentation that make Teitan interesting,

The instrumental  arrangements are were this album really shines. Unlike the vocals the synths seem to made for a different audience. Its weird, it’s strange but it is accessible.  Synth tones go from dronning to haunting to catchy.

Teitan is out there trying something different and for that reason alone it’s worth checking out.

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DEMONSTEALER – The Propaganda Machine – REVIEW

 

Coming to us from India is Demonstealer. The man behind Demonic Resurrection has put together 8 tracks that are the collective vision of 4 drummers, 4 bassists, 3 lead guitarists and one keyboardist from all across the planet.

While that’s a lot of cooks working on the same meal, the results here are for the most part pretty damn impressive. “The Fear Campaign,” starts off the album with a huge jolt and barley lets up in it’s 6 minute playtime. Everything sounds larger than life from the thunderous bass and drums, sick vocals and some really catchy synth tones. Is it Melodic Death Metal or is it Symphonic? I dont give a shit, all I know this is one helluva a banger and it perfectly starts the album.

As you listen to the following tracks, you can hear the different flavors that each artist brings to the table. Some parts are more brutal, some are more technical but it all feels like it is coming from the same band. That’s a big plus in my book as often times collaborative efforts feel like a different band with each song.

The only parts I can’t deal with are the Metalcore clean chorus parts. They are too monotonous and take me completely out of the song. Maybe I’m just an old man and don’t understand the genre. The Death Metal vocals however are brutal as fuck and thoroughly make up for it.

While the album seems to loose a little steam at the midpoint, the first 2 tracks on this recording are so intoxicating, you’ll find yourself wanting to listen to more.

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BLASTED HEATH – Vela – REVIEW

 

Black Thrash Space Metal. Those 4 words could sum up Blasted Heath’s debut album, Vela, perfectly. Its as raw and vicious as the great unknown. This group from the far reaches of Indianapolis blend dirty punk riffs with a savage death metal edge. The vocals have an eerie production effect that amplifies the reverb giving it an empty feeling that works well for their “outer space” theme they are going for.

At first glance, this album sounds almost like an homage to some early pioneers of the Black Metal sound such as punk speed and foulness of Venom and the empty darkness of Bathory. “Big Chill,” opens the album up with some nasty dark riffs and echos that match the vocals.

While the first track may feel like an homage, there is plenty going on in this recording. No 2 songs sound alike. Blasted Heath seem to love delivering a variety of styles. Besides the pummeling Blackened Thrash, Blasted Heath includes plenty of slower Doom and Sludge like elements that give the album a more psychedelic and haunting feeling.  “The Wind in Vela,” is an instrumental mostly somber track except for some entrancing sound bites about the real life horrors of interstellar space.

The album closes with the 7 minute epic, “Strange Matter,” that perfectly blends the moodiness, eeriness and thrashing foulness into one song. This is definitely one of those types of albums you need to spin a few times until you “get it.”

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THE HUMAN RACE IS FILTH – Echo Chambers – REVIEW

 

You gotta love that band name. Straight to the point and utterly complete statement. The Human Race is Filth or THIRF for short,  was formed back in 2017 by a bunch of veterans of the Maryland and Pennsylvania extreme music scenes. With a shit load of experience between the band members, THRIF deliver exactly what you would expect on this short EP.

THRIF does a great job playing blistering old school Grind. The closing track, “Shit States USA,” is just a little over 30 seconds and length but starts out with a cool groove before going into full blown blast mode. It’s one of those tracks that remind of the early days of Napalm Death where you would want repeat the shortest tracks over and over.  The group does take time to slow things down a bit in parts. “Mindless Thoughts,” starts with a groovy crawling bass that is followed by a creeping guitar before the blast beats hit What sets THRIF apart is their ability to blend in some Sludge and Doom elements that perfectly fill out a song. It dosent feel at all out of place and still delivers a meaty hook to the jaw.

At less than 10 minutes in length, you can spin Echo Chambers a few time before clocking in to work.

 

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HELL NIGHT – Unlimited Destruction – REVIEW

If you haven’t been hip to Hell Night yet, now is the time to correct that mistake. The band had several 7’s and singles throughout their career and released their first full length in 2019, “Unlimited Destruction.”  The title  fits perfectly as this recording is full of enough hard hitting guitars, pummeling drums and vicious vocals to level a city. Brian Fair replaced original vocalist Mike Craft for “Unlimited Destruction,” taking the sound further with even more fury than before.

Hell Night have a hardcore/metal/punk approach filled with pure aggression that comes in part from Andy White’s brutal and murky guitar work that perfectly compliments Brian Fair’s pissed off vocals. While their exact genre of music is difficult to pinpoint, their ability to write killer riffs and songs that may a mosh pit to break out in your living room is without question.

For even more details regarding this album check out our recent interview with Brian Fair.

 

 

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SNOGG – Dan, ko jer vrag salo – REVIEW

Snogg’s offering to March’s subscribers is an epic 20 minute single track. The song, titled “Dan, ko je vrag vzel šalo,” translates to, “The Day the Devil Took the Joke.” Throughout the song listeners will be treated to several tempo and vocal changes. There are elements of experimental Black Metal, noise and general strangeness on this track. Despite the different styles included in this piece, it connects and flows well into each style without any jarring changes.

If you are looking for something to different and far from the norm, “Dan, ko je vrag vzel šalo,” is unquestionably worthy of your attention. With so many musical changes and styles coming at you, this track just begs for multiple listens. So pour yourself a cup of your favorite Trve Kvlt coffee, kick off your shoes and take a journey with Snogg.

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MYRDOD – The Mourning Hollow – REVIEW

The Pennsylvania duo unleash a portal into a dank a swampy void of Hell with their latest release, ” The Mourning Hollow.” Myrod provide plenty of thick Black Metal atmospheric chaos that warps the mind as they take you with them beyond this realm. The recording is just as thick and murky as any good ol’ classic Black Metal sound should be with echoing rasps and tortured screams oozing through each track. “Orb Weaver,” starts the album with a somber and eerie tone that gradually adds in blast beats drums and guitars like a rolling storm. “Drom,” is the standout song here with sick guitar riffs that make you want to put your fist through a wall, inhuman garbage disposal sounding lyrics  It’s a brutal assault on the senses that will leave you scrambling to pick your brains off of the floor. (Naturally, in a good way.)  “Diabolical Ancient Blessing,” closes things out with enough adrenaline and speed to leave you thirsty enough for another spin.

Myrod’s blending style of raw Black and touch of Death Metal is a brutal and spiritual assault that is as melancholy as it is savage. A must listen for this Holiday season.