We gathered the releases of the last few weeks that stood out, from underground black/death to noise rock and brutal death. Brief thoughts on nine records worth your attention — with the full albums playing below.
“`Behemoth – I, Scvlptor (EP)
Behemoth bridge their old and new face: two new tracks, re-recordings from «The Return of the Northern Moon» (1992) and «Pandemonic Incantations» (1998), an unreleased track from the previous album and two covers of Venom and Bathory. «Lord ov the Horizons» reaches the band’s standards from 2018 onward, while the title track «I, Scvlptor» shows the direction the group is following.
Polymoon – Mariposa Magic!
Polymoon from Tampere, Finland evolve their “psychedelic post-gaze” on their brightest and most immediate album. The seven tracks lock in with the listener more than their previous work — less exploration, more celebration for the senses.
Hadopelagyal – Zalmathic Necroichorion (EP)
The German black/death duo picks up where «Haematophoryktos» left off: four tracks of chaotic, suffocating atmosphere with bestial vocals. «Dakryopneumatic Canticles» is the most representative moment of this sunken hell.
EXP – EXP
The debut of EXP from Brooklyn alchemizes garage psychedelia, noise rock and distant post-rock. With J. Natz of Cop Shoot Cop on vocals and bass, the record hits like a late 80s underground cut, with psychedelic interludes such as «Isle of Skye» and «Speed of Light». It takes patience and more than one listen.
Mr. Phylzzz – Fear the Lord
The duo from Chicago keeps provoking with its idiosyncratic noise rock. «Build to Nothing» and «Switch Bitch» have arena-sized scope, while «Emma Draws a Dog» and «Over and Over Again» descend into darker, mathematical paths.
Foreign Body – Libertine
The Brooklyn quartet’s second album is an enraged, anti-rock outburst set against the self-destruction of the privileged. The slow moments like «Hind Legs» balance the intensity, with the title track standing out.
Discouraged – A Farewell in Stages
Discouraged from Münster play melancholic melodic death/doom in the romantic early 90s tradition. Their debut rests on rhythmic variety and aggression, without gothic clichés, with the title-track opener and «Descension» impressing from the start.
Cartilage – Operating Altar
The deathgrind quartet from San Francisco takes us back to the mid-2000s, combining groove metal, thrash and heavy metal riffing on their fourth record. Fast 3-4 minute tracks, with Mark Wallace sowing panic with his fractured vocals. For fans of Impaled.
Vulgar Mephitis – From Dust
The Pittsburgh quartet’s debut album is a short but relentless brutal death assault, with deathcore roots. From «Exterminating Profane» to «Peer Into the Abyss», the record leaves no room to breathe — eighty-five percent of it hits hard.
See also
BEHEMOTH: Nergal returned to his black metal roots · Misery Index – The new single «Feral Future»
