Coniferous Myst – VI
A seemingly unstoppable force among the dungeon synth revival, Coniferous Myst has kept the arcane and mystical vibes of classic dungeon synth while pushing the boundaries on reverb-laden, forest-worshiping music. IV is a succinct journey through pine forests and into ancient crypts and castles. This is a perfect soundtrack for your next tabletop RPG session or just to sit back and chill after a long day.
Equal parts mystical, shamanic ambient and hauntingly cryptic dungeon synth. A few nice bits of acoustic guitar and distant soloing lie in the background of “To Dark Castles in the Sky”, making a full bodied listen despite its overall brevity. While one would do well to listen to any Coniferous Myst material, VI is a fine place to start to the uninitiated.
Seven Spires – Emerald Seas
The american symphonic theatrical metal quartet Seven Spires has returned with Emerald Seas, a pirate tinged fantasy concept album acting as a prequel to their debut Solveig. On this sophomore effort the band dug deeper in realms of technicality and advanced composition as well as hooks and melodies. Taking the listener on an emotional journey filled with adventurous power anthems, dramatic symphonic black metal songs and lustful romantic ballads, Emerald Seas is the kind of album that makes you forget about your material surroundings and dream of distant shores, mythical beasts and tales of imortality. It is the ultimate balance of genuine emotion and badass metal bombast. Also the drums are sick!
Necrowretch – The Ones From Hell
France has produced many avant-garde extreme metal bands. Necrowretch isn’t one of them. Now on their 4th album, the blackened death band shows no sign of interest in anything other than old school extreme metal, with the boundaries between black, death, and thrash not being fully established. The Ones from Hell is a little cleaner and more atmospheric than its predecessors, thanks to some cathartic acoustic moments, but when the band really lets loose they’re as ripping as ever. Highly recommended for fans of anything fast and evil.
Aeonian Sorrow – A Life Without
Aeonian Sorrow, the Finnish funeral doom metal group fronted by Greek vocalist and songwriter Gogo Melone, makes an impressive come-back with the E.P. A Life Without, a four track emotional journey through pain, loneliness, loss and death. Trading some of the longing atmosphere for a more furious emotional content favoured mainly by the massive vocal delivery of Vile Rutanen, this second release is shorter, more compact and quite likely more cathartic than the debut album, a definite step forward for the band.
Ye Banished Privateers – Hostis Humani Generis
If I were to recommend one non-metal album to any of my friends in the metal community, it would have to be the fourth effort by Swedish pirates Ye Banished Privateers. The 30-strong band of scurvy buccanneers produce incredibly high-quality authentic pirate-themed folk music and sea shanties which stir the soul and move the heart. Equal parts raucous, drunken singalong and harrowing melancholy lament, Hostis Humani Generis is an ode to a time long-gone, a reminder of our humility, and a gloriously fun immersive musical experience.
Psychotic Waltz – The God-Shaped Void
Progressive metal has one big problem: the majority is as generic as it gets, forgetting the originally progressive nature of their music and following down the path of tried, tested and vastly overused formulae. Enter Psychotic Waltz and their first album in 24 years, The God-Shaped Void. Having lost none of the lustre of their outstanding first four albums, they manage to deliver some of the most organic sounding prog of recent history. No overblown orchestration, no mindboggling technicality, but instead depth, warmth, substance. Yes, the songs are demanding, but at the same time have this immediate accessibility that will reel the listener in and just not let go. Anybody with even just the slightest affinity to prog sounds has to give this at least one chance!
Terrifiant – Terrifiant
Diabulus In Musica – Euphonic Entropy
Usually when I’m listening to a band that tries to cram jazz, prog, folk, opera, and metal into an album, I spend most of the time just waiting for the disorganized mess to be over. However, Spain’s female-fronted symphonic metallers Diabulus In Musica have purveyed yet another offering of limitless colour in Euphonic Entropy, where the vocals, instrumentation, and arrangements are all equally as dynamic. Despite so many layers, though, Euphonic Entropy manages to maintain a cohesive feel through its entirety.
