Something you've never before seen here.

a dogme 95 constraint.

Made a conscious decision to not have any French or Polish metal involved in this post, and, let me tell you, it was a difficult choice not to given what noise I’ve heard.

Catchin’ Heat announced by U Sco late last week. Can you guys put a price on this already and take my money? Power trio working instrumental magic in a way that simultaneously conjures Coptic Light and The Psychic Paramount in full stride. Total wizardry. I imagine this will be a top ten album for me this year. No pressure, U Sco.

Victory Over the Sun hit with a monster sledge over anvil on “WHEEL.” Akin to a supremely atonal Godflesh or Coma Cluster Void interpreting Godflesh slow motion pummel.

Speaking of Godflesh …Nero. I dunno. Not doing it for me. Maybe for you?

Coma Cluster Void announced Absurd Romanticism and the wait will be legendary. One song now and full album by February 2024. Appears at least 3 songs are ironed out and 6 more “TBA.” “Plague Devourer” kicks this off (kilter). Multi-layered vocal attack with Mike DiSalvo being at the fore while Lindsay O'Connor and Austin Taylor’s voices add texture and sometimes boil up in the mix.

Spinning from the Coma Cluster Void is BLVGTH which also has Lindsay handling vocal chores and Lucas Wyssbrod (no stranger here as Golden Cannibal has made the rounds). This first track shows a lot of promise with its deranged black metal musical assault and Lindsay tearing through different voices of demonic entities.

Los Angeles jazz doom ensemble Circle of Sighs Performs an Invocation. Sun Ra metal opera theater.

Sleepytime Gorilla Museum appear to be reopening shop. Sign up for updates.

“No more of this art shit” The Hyenism duo come to level listeners with dissonance and black metal destruction. 7 songs across 2 tracks, at a little more than 43 minutes and all of it quality. Howling, growled vocals, countless riffs with counterpoint guitar textures, quality bass work, a fantastic drum performance and strong song arrangements that aren’t afraid to get adventurous and experiment adding different angles (post punk, shoegaze, ambience). If I had to compare this to anything maybe Wesenwille. Though that isn’t 100% accurate. Pro tip: buy their entire discography.

An Axis of Perdition outtake from the formidable The Ichneumon Method escapes the asylum in remixed form by non other than Haeiresis mastermind Saulius Bielskis. Seems Saulius has entered the Sisyphean order of sonic abuse. We will get to them shortly. The task at hand is “Chained in the Damnation Asylum” and it is a little over 5 minutes of twisted atonal wreckage that almost spilled its filthy, squirming tentacles 20 years ago. This outfit and Blut Aus Nord were the heralds of uneasy mechanized dissonant death that pushed against the fabric of reality. The guitar sound here isn’t as abrasive as the Ichneumon Method’s Exhorder the law caustic aesthetic, but, there are some interesting things happening with the guitar riffs, particularly some of the, ahem and gasp, melodic flourishes. Great track full of gurgling and insectoid noises billowing out of a sewer from hell.

A new Sisyphean track following hot on the heels of their highly touted Colours of Faith full length. Nothing that is a huge departure, retaining their semi-melodic and discordant meld of atmospheric black metal intact across a catchy arrangement.

Second song and video for Umbilichaos Mourning Carnivals From Now On which is due mid May on Time To Kill Records. Elements of Godflesh, Crowbar, Gorguts “Clouded,” the eerie reverbed acoustics of Alice Cooper “Dead Babies” find their way slithering through this epic sludge doom journey given a hit of psychotropics. This is shaping up to be quite the monstrous release.

From Winnipeg with noise the likes of the UK in the 80s or San Diego in the 90s. The Tunic mission statement of “noise rock. atonal punk. feedback laden filth…” hits the nail on the head. 9 songs to punish your body and ears. Nervous, jittery guitar antics with a bit of Daniel Ash aesthetic, huge bass, pounding drums and vocals ranging from disaffected to impassioned.

please support: Everything Went Black, The Metal Dad and his fiendish five podcast, No Clean Singing, Stereogum: The Black Market, The Devil’s Mouth, Aversionline, Invisible Oranges, Horror Wolf 666, Into the Necrosphere, Sol Nox Podcast, The Book of Very Very Bad Things, Plague Rages, Thrown to the Abyss Podcast, Freedom Has No Bounds, and Doktor Dismemberment’s Midnight Murderplex…. these sites update daily and weekly, probably more frequently than what I do.

Genre blender Lanayah have announced I'm Picking Lights in a Field​.​.​. for release in June. I get the feeling this is going to be terrific. If you were all in on Endless Nameless’s Living Without from earlier this year there is no reason this won’t be in your wheelhouse. Ferocious combination of screamo, shoegaze, bass driven Breach post hardcore, angular guitar riffs and beyond. This one really goes MBV meets VBE just shy of a minute and half into “Knife, Mirror.” Clever as all hell and goes further into the guitar effects as it moves forward, and, in a very strange turn of events (but probably owing to me being old) the end sort of hints at a theme similar to Joe Jackson’s “steppin’ out.”

Why not cap this off with another SSD related piece of ephemera? This time by way of The Mighty Mighty Bosstones (featuring none other than Impact Unit’s Dicky Barrett.) If the embed doesn’t work - go to 33:49

Oh, and to the Boston Bruins fans out there…

At least the Bruins had a historic regular season to only fail in the first round while the Philadelphia Flyers couldn’t fail spectacularly enough in the regular season to bring Bedard to Broad.