SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: DAWN OF DEMISE, WAYFARER, SVRM, DISHUMANE, TELESTERION, SLOTH HERDER

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Aug 082026
 

(written by Islander)

I was able to spend a fair amount of time yesterday afternoon checking out new music I’d noticed over the past week, and made the choices you now see — though I again got a late start on the writing due to Friday night diversions that also went late. Here are just a few quick notes on what’s ahead:

I do enjoy making these roundups a roller-coaster ride, genre-wise. It was easier to do that with this one because the music that made the biggest impressions on me as I listened yesterday just happened to make a big spread of different experiences. You’ll see. If you’re not crazy about one thing, just keep on going, because the next thing will be a different kind of creature.

I’m not sure I will be able to post a SHADES OF BLACK column tomorrow. My wife and I are going to a birthday event for an old friend, and we’ll have to leave home well before I usually finish those columns. Maybe I’ll feel like making enough of a head-start this afternoon that I can get something ready, even if it’s short, before we head out. Or not. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD ON A BANDCAMP FRIDAY: CH’AHOM, WELLNESS CHECK, DUMAL

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Aug 072026
 

(written by Islander)

We’ve arrived at another Friday when Bandcamp relinquishes its share of sales to artists and labels. The timing is always a bit awkward for me because I usually post roundups of new music on Saturdays, too late to help people take advantage of Bandcamp’s temporary boon to music-makers. Of course, our usual week-long series of premieres and reviews still provide a lot of recommendations, and listeners can always save things for the next Bandcamp Friday (which will happen on September 4th).

I didn’t plan to do a roundup today because I had agreed to premiere and review a new album, but that fell through at the 11th hour. So I have some unexpected time to fill that hole, though not as much as I would have liked. I wish I could do more today, but a little something is better than a lot of nothing, especially because all of the following three songs are stupendous in different ways. If all goes well, I’ll have a lot more music to share tomorrow.

P.S. Although this little roundup doesn’t include releases by Dark Descent Records or Unholy Anarchy Records, both of those labels have pledged to donate 20% of any purchases made today on their Bandcamp pages to the GoFundMe established by Neill Jameson (of Krieg, and a contributor to NCS) to help deal with expenses after the recent passing of his wife Nikki from cancer and his need to become a full-time caregiver for their autistic daughter Vale. Direct donations to the GoFundMe can be made here. Please help if you can. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: KRALLICE, BEASTLOR, SEKTION VASORÉ

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Jul 282026
 

(written by Islander)

I only had one song premiere to prepare for today and nothing else for us to share with you besides the review from Andy that opened our day. So I impetuously decided to pull together this roundup of new music.

The first two choices attracted my attention because their overlapping lineups include people who I think it’s fair to say are luminaries among discerning metal listeners, those of us who search for more than “the same old, same old”. These artists’ creative interests and impulses also often lead them in unexpected directions, so there was an important intrigue factor in making the choices.

The third choice was much more impulsive. I just decided to listen to the music of the last band to e-mail us yesterday, a band with no reputation I knew of, and only two demo songs to their name. I’m so glad I yielded to that impulse, and I hope you will be too. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: FILTHY ILK, SIDEREAN, WEALTHY WOMEN, THE HU

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  2 Responses »
Jul 252026
 

(written by Islander)

As you know if you’ve stopped by here in previous Saturdays, I sometimes start with a shiny lure, a new song or video from a well-known band, and then drag people down into much deeper waters, kind of the reverse of conventional fishing (fishing from below).

Today I do have a shiny lure, but decided to put it at the end for reasons I’ll eventually explain. Before then I’ve bounced around among savage, strange, and scintillating creatures spotted in the lower depths. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD: MISERY INDEX, FEARTILIZER 1492, VENOMOUS ECHOES, THE ABSOLUTION SEQUENCE

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Jul 242026
 

(written by Islander)

I woke up at 4 a.m. this morning. I wake up early every morning, mainly because of this blog, but not that early. No idea why I opened my eyes then but I couldn’t go back to sleep.

The only silver lining to that unfortunate cloud is that after putting the finishing touches on that Agonanist song premiere I posted earlier today, which I hope you’ve explored, I had time on my hands. And so I decided to get a head-start on the usual Saturday roundup of new songs and videos, time enough to focus on four new things from the usual giant list of possibilities. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: BEYOND GRACE, ENTHEOS, HÄMND, SEV LEZU, BOÖTES VOID, HAIL CONJURER

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Jul 182026
 

(written by Islander)

I did enough listening over the last couple of days to make the usual difficult choices for this Saturday roundup, but other activities prevented me from getting a head-start on the writing. Those same activities last night caused me to oversleep this morning, so this is arriving much later in the day than is ideal. And because I’m late, that’s the end of this introduction. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: NORILLAG, POACHER, LITOST

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Jul 112026
 

(written by Islander)

My spouse and I are going to an early lunch with a friend we’ve known for… ahem… decades. She’s always a ton of fun to be with, but the timing’s not great for this column. I had added dozens of new songs and complete releases arriving over the past week that I intended to check out. And I didn’t get a head-start yesterday because I spend a chunk of the afternoon and early evening watching a Mariners baseball game that was… ahem… dispiriting. Don’t ask me why I did that, because I knew our opponents were very good and the odds were very high that my team would… ahem… suck (again).

Anyway, I had a lot of hard choices to make this morning and a rapidly vanishing amount of time in which to make them and then peck out some thoughts. I hope I’ll be able to catch up with more new music for the usual Sunday collection. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: SNĚT’, GREH, GOMMA, SHABTI, HOLY DEATH, CARCERAL

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Jul 042026
 

(written by Islander)

I have mixed feelings about the Fourth of July, probably a result of living through wars in Vietnam, Iraq, and Afghanistan in which U.S. government officials wrapped themselves in the flag, exalted themselves with military fly-overs, and belched “patriotic” rhetoric while lying to citizens and sending their children overseas to be maimed and die, and using the flag and that same distorted rhetoric in many other contexts to cudgel their political opponents and try to silence dissent.

The feelings are even more mixed on this 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, as we see the legacy stained by a megalomaniacal old man with the moral compass of a snake who has attempted to co-opt the anniversary and turn it into a celebration of himself. He rages, foments rage, and has prepared for the arrival of this milestone anniversary with a daily dose of hatred, division, and dementia. He maliciously erodes our democracy instead of protecting it, “seeing it as a hindrance to his lust for untrammeled power and cash grabs” [as one writer put it today].

On the other hand, I still revere the revolutionary ideals set forth in the Declaration, respect the best parts of the country’s history in which people sought to make them a reality, and hope for better days ahead. I also enjoy fireworks and parades and eating and drinking to excess with family and friends. If you have such plans today, I hope you have an abundance of fun (and I hope you wake up tomorrow with all 10 fingers still intact).

But I know you didn’t come here to read about my mixed feelings concerning the Fourth. As you’ll easily guess, I don’t have mixed feelings about the new songs and videos I’ve collected for today’s roundup, but recommend them whole-heartedly. (Heyo! How’s that for a transition?) Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD ON A SATURDAY: BEHEMOTH, RUSSIAN CIRCLES, FUMING MOUTH, SÉPULCRE, LUMINOUS VEIL, JØTNARR, THOLN, MAUNAH

 Album Reviews, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC, SHORT BUT SWEET  2 Responses »
Jun 272026
 

(written by Islander)

Sometimes we lead off these roundups with shiny lures (bands whose names are well known) to attract hungry fish (you), in the hope that the fish will get hooked by something sharp hanging below in darker waters. That’s what I’ve done today, though to be clear, I was also attracted by the lures.

(Note to self: don’t use the fishing analogy again since you haven’t gone fishing in decades and the only lures you used were worms.)

The lures are themselves quite different from each other, and so are the lesser-known hooks, and altogether they provide a lot of listening (and viewing) pleasure. Be forewarned: there’s a bit of singing in the mix until you get to the end — when there’s a lot of it (and extraordinary singing it is). Continue reading »

OVERFLOWING STREAMS: AZIMUT, ONUS VITAE, HAINTGROVE, FLEHMEN POSITION, APHONIC THRENODY, CABINET, STAIN, MAGEFA

 Album Reviews, Exceptions to the Rule, Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC, SHORT BUT SWEET  No Responses »
Jun 202026
 

(written by Islander)

Just like this same time last week, I’m feeling overwhelmed by the volume of new music I want to recommend, and just like last week I’m resorting to some shortcuts so as to pack more into this column. It’s usually called SEEN AND HEARD, but you’ll probably understand why I change the title on Saturdays like this one.

I suppose it’s up for debate whether I’m really doing a favor to bands when the collection is this large. Maybe if I just focused on the usual four or six selections, more people would listen to all of it. Maybe most listeners won’t make it to the end or will skip over some of the music. But if I leave out something, it’s guaranteed that no one will find their way to it through their visits here. (Of course, I’m not vain enough to believe that coming here is the only way anyone discovers music.)

There’s probably no right answer, only doing what feels right in the moment. So, off we go…. Continue reading »

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