Category Archives: Reviews

Gaupa – FYR (2025); Drowned in Silver – Mothers (2025)

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Hello, Internet friends! Guess what — it’s freezing outside. But this is GOOD news. Because for more than two weeks, we hadn’t seen any temperatures this high. Sub-freezing every day, and single digits (Fahrenheit) AT MOST every night. And I’ll be honest, I’m tired of it. Tired of the anxiety of waking up every couple hours and checking on the kitchen sink and the bathtub to make sure the pipes haven’t frozen in either place AGAIN, despite the supplemental electric heaters in both rooms plus one in the basement, when it has dropped below zero outside.

But then on Monday it crept slightly above freezing finally, and then Tuesday the temperature anomalously soared up into the 50s (Fahrenheit)! And while the rest of this week has been closer to normal for this time of year (highs in the 30s, lows in the 20s), at least I can rest a little easier for now. At least, until all those mountains of snow that have lined the driveways and roads all melt too quickly and then we have the potential for the river to flood.

Anyway, you haven’t come here for me to sit here like some elderly at a nursing home, chattering nonstop about what’s happening with the weather. Instead, I present you with not one but TWO excellent albums that dropped last year, in case you may have missed out on these…

 

Gaupa – FYR (digital: Nuclear Blast / physical: Magnetic Eye Records, 04 July 2025)

 

Drowned in Silver – Mothers (Pagan Records, 07 November 2025)

 

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Bog Wizard – Journey Through the Dying Lands (2024), Satanik Panik (2025)

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It’s Bandcamp Friday once again — hope you all are having a happy one!

Feels like a good time to check in on our Michiganian friends Bog Wizard. Back when we published a review of their 2020 and 2021 releases, there were a few specific references to the “Satanic Panic” of the late 20th century. Well, since that time, the band went and released a whole damn album named for that concept. They also put together an album with literary tie-ins, both of which are highly recommended for you to check out!

 

Bog Wizard – Journey Through the Dying Lands (self-released in collaboration with Madness Hearts Games, 25 October 2024)

 

Bog Wizard – Satanik Panik (self-released, 31 October 2025)

 

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Gavran – Indistinct Beacon (2022), The One Who Propels (2026)

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Hello, friends. Hope you’re having a pleasant Friday.

Here, we’re still slowly but surely shoveling ourselves out from last weekend’s storm, trying our best to keep ourselves warm and keep our pipes from freezing, with recent high temperatures refusing to rise above the tweens (Fahrenheit), and Alexa blinking its caution-colored yellow light at us every day with a new notification about a severe cold warning, with overnight lows hovering around zero or below (also Fahrenheit).

Meanwhile, I haven’t ventured out anywhere since last Saturday morning (to pick up groceries and library books) — in the days since, I’ve only been outside to shovel the front walkway, the driveway, and as much of the surrounding street as I could, given that the borough either felt it was unnecessary to plow all the way to the end of our road OR they were unable to get past our neighbors’ annoying arrays of vehicles parked all over the place.

Nevertheless, without leaving the house or any contact with outsiders, I’ve somehow managed to now find myself practically bedridden with some kind of dreadful sinus infection or cold or perhaps turtle flu. But there’s new music out today and I’d be derelict in my duties if I didn’t take some time out of my day to share it with you folks!

 

Gavran – Indistinct Beacon (Dunk! Records, 02 December 2022)

 

Gavran – The One Who Propels (Dunk! Records, 30 January 2026)

 

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Sacri Suoni – Time to Harvest (2026)

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Well good morning, and happy Friday (I guess)!

After about a day and a half of reprieve during which I turned off all our auxiliary heaters in the kitchen, bathroom, and basement — because the outdoor temperatures actually had hovered just slightly above freezing for a brief while — we’ve dipped back into frigid cold and it’s projected to continue to get worse over the next day or two.

Plus the entire eastern part of the USA is bracing for the worst snowfall we’ve had in quite some time. Around here (western Pennsylvania), folks are already making comparisons to the Snowmageddon of 2010 or even the Blizzard of ’93 … and we haven’t even seen a single flake yet.

So obviously it seems like a perfect day to be listening to music that comes from a region known for its extreme cold and winter weather! Presenting the first new 2026 release we’ll be checking out: Time to Harvest by Sac—

Err, whoops. I’m being informed (pretend for a second I’m wearing an earpiece) (and that you can see me rather than just reading these words I’ve written) that I’ve apparently misread the band’s name, which is Sacri Suoni (which means “Sacred Sounds” in Italian), not Suomi, and as it turns out the band is therefore not actually Finnish as I had initially thought, but they’re from Milan, Italy. Where it’s currently — (checks notes) — in the mid-40s. (Degrees Fahrenheit, that is.) And probably significantly higher than that during harvest time.

Well since we’re all here already, let’s listen to this album anyway. Brand-new off the presses today! (Also, don’t you hate when people say “checks notes”? Isn’t that so annoying? It’s just the worst, right?)

 

Sacri Suoni – Time to Harvest (Electric Valley Records, 23 January 2026)

 

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Nomadic Rituals – Fust (2025) || Cursed Monk Records – Year IX Compilation (2026)

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Fucking earwigs, amiright? I watched Spike Lee‘s 2025 film Highest 2 Lowest over the weekend (which I enjoyed, by the way, despite its middling ratings — although admittedly I have not seen the Kurosawa original it was based on; I guess I probably should), and almost nonstop over the past few days I keep finding “Oh What a Beautiful Mornin’” (originally from Oklahoma, but it plays during the opening of this movie as Denzel‘s character looks down over New York City from the balcony of his probably-billion-dollar apartment.

Anyway, it is NOT a Beautiful Mornin’ here in the valley. It’s like six degrees outside (Fahrenheit, which I think is something like negative a hundred in the rest of the world), and it’s been the kind of windy that wakes you up sporadically throughout the night because it keeps rattling the windows. So I am very much dragging this morning. Fortunately I don’t actually need to go outside (thank you, remote work) so I can just throw on an extra layer or two and push through it. And anyway by this afternoon I heard it’s supposed to go up to like 15F (aka minus 50C or something).

And fortunately, there is a simple doctor-recommended remedy for getting rid of earwigs: listening to something else, ANYTHING else. Especially at a high volume. And I’ve got some great candidates here.

 

Cursed Monk Records – Year IX Compilation (03 January 2026)

 

Nomadic Rituals – Fust (digital: self-released, CD/vinyl: Cursed Monk Records, 14 March 2025 | cassette: Fiadh Productions, 11 July 2025)

 

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Daevar – Amber Eyes (2024), Sub Rosa (2025)

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Hey y’all. Remember the other day when I told you about The Lasting Dose Fest? If you’re planning on hitting the Hamburg gig tonight, you should probably already be on your way there! Since it’s around noon here in the eastern U.S., it’s probably getting close to showtime in Germany, if my understanding of time zones is correct (which is rarely the case).

But if you were sleeping on the event or weren’t already excited about it, what if I told you one of the performers put out one of my favorite albums of the year — in each of the past two years? Interested now?

 

Daevar – Amber Eyes (The Lasting Dose Records, 22 March 2024)

 

Daevar – Sub Rosa (The Lasting Dose Records, 28 March 2025)

 

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GRIN – Acid Gods (2025) || The Lasting Dose Fest 2026

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The Lasting Dose Fest 2026

 

The Lasting Dose Records has announced a showcase festival for several bands involved with the label, to be held later this week in Hamburg and Berlin.

The Hamburg show will be taking place at MS Stubnitz on Friday the 16th (tickets and more information here), and will feature performances by Daevar, GRIN, Ultrablut, and Earthbong.

Then, in Berlin at Neue Zukunft on Saturday the 17th (tickets/info here), with GRIN, Ultrablut, Earthbong, Sarkh, and Blacksmoker.

 

So if you find yourself in northern Germany on those dates, or if you’re anywhere within driving/train/whatever distance of the country’s two largest cities and feeling adventurous, it’s highly recommended that you go check out what TLD has to offer.

But if you need a bit more encouragement — or for those of us who find ourselves on the wrong side of the planet, but who would like a little something to listen to at home in order to live vicariously — let’s check out Acid Gods which was released last year by one of the bands who’ll be gracing both nights of the fest with their presence: GRIN.

 

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New Cathedral Release! || Bandcamp Friday Merch

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Inbox overflowing with messages from every band and label you’ve ever heard of (and tons you don’t even remember subscribing to)? Must be Bandcamp Friday!

If you need help wading through the oceans of stuff being marketed at you all day, I’m here to help with a few selections to highlight.

 

First: our good friends over at Philip K. Discs have dropped some sweet exclusive merch today.

  • They’ve got super-limited mystery bundles, packed in custom-designed cereal boxes and filled with tons of label-related goodness, but there are only TWO sets available!
  • “This Vending Machine is a Compilation” full-color poster-sized prints as companion pieces to last year’s compilation of the same name.
  • From Chaos to Ambiguity: A Theology of Noise Rock – the guidebook to noise rock written by the label’s owner (spoiler alert: not Philip), now available signed by the author.
  • And there’s lots more where these came from, from printed ‘zines to sculpted mini-figurines to hot sauce bottles to a special edition Touching Grass CD bundled with an actual packet of grass seed — check it all out right here!

 

Next, get yourself ready for winter weather with a brand new pair of socks! But not just any socks, these ones come emblazoned with the logo of Italian dark-occult/doomsters Messa. Wear them in good health!

 

And finally…

 

Cathedral – Society’s Pact With Satan (Rise Above Records, 03 October 2025)

 

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Hell – Submersus (2025), S/T (2017)

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Happy Friday!

I haven’t seen a lot of people talking about this (of course, having withdrawn from all major social media platforms, I don’t see a whole lot of much these days!) but a new album is coming out today that just might end up in the running for Album of the Year. At least, it’s at the top of my list of everything I’ve heard so far in 2025.

Although it wouldn’t be shocking for Hell, the Salem, Oregon-based purveyors of corrosive sludge-doom, to be flying under the radar. The single-member ensemble (though they did come together as a full band at least once, because I saw them perform in Pittsburgh approximately eleven years ago, and they absolutely killed it) have always been relatively anonymous and never seemed very big on self-promotion.

Part of the Gilead family (at least tangentially) for several years, and more recently affiliated with Sentient Ruin; over their first decade, Hell released four different albums called Hell (the most recent of which we’ll talk about here), in addition to various splits and EPs (some of which were also called Hell). And today, the next soul-crushing chapter has emerged, which for a fun change of pace, has been given a title other than Hell…

 

Hell – Submersus (physical: Sentient Ruin / digital: Lower Your Head, 11 July 2025)

 

Hell – Hell (Sentient Ruin, 11 April 2017)

 

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Coffin Womb – Godless (2024), The Trauma Process (2025)

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If you haven’t figured it out based on your email inbox bursting at the seams, It Is Bandcamp Friday.

Before we all head out for the weekend, real quick let me call your attention to two releases (one from early last year and one from early this year) by Pittsburgh’s Coffin Womb, self-described as “A bunch of losers who just want to ruin your day.”

 

Coffin Womb – Godless (Syrup Moose Records, 23 February 2024)

 

Coffin Womb – The Trauma Process (self-released, 10 January 2025)

 

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