v/a - Vinland vs. Finland

The clear winner for me is Vinland, but it's all pretty good. Bone Awl's part is what anyone has come expect of them with their raw black metal goodness. Hammer was surprisingly good. Volkurah created some good rifs, but Vordr. No. That was pretty bad. The vocals, Oh god, the vocals. They sounded horrible, and some of the isntrumentation sounded like there was a cat scratching on a scratching post in the background. Luckily, it wasn't bad enough to ruin the whole split, but especially during "Sabbath of Ruin" my ears were not happy when I was listening to it. So, this is a great compilation... if you just skip Vordr's part.

Rites of Thy Degringolade - An Ode to Sin (2005)

Band: Rites of Thy Degringolade
Album: An Ode to Sin
Year: 2005
Country: Canada
Genre: Black/Death

Why hello there, lovely grim bros. Today I am here to present you with what I consider to be a fanfuckingtastic piece of black/death of the more chaotic variety. A style I've gotten heavily into in recent times, this would be one of my most favorite albums that I've heard of it. If you're not so familiar with the style, think Blasphemy. And if you haven't heard Blasphemy, then what good are you? Anyway, as I said before this shit is pretty damn chaotic but not to the point of where it gets lost on you. Actually, this one seems to be far more structured than previous albums(which especially makes it a great starting point) yet it still has that chaotic edge which makes it such a badass piece of metal. And, it even slows down the tempo in a few parts. Also, there's some pretty sweet leads that crop up a bit which lends some variety too. As per usual with these type of albums, the drumming is pretty high in the mix. And of course those are pretty fucking crazy too, in an extremely pleasing way without leading to tedium. Clocking in at a little under 30 min, I'd say the length is perfect for this kind of metal. So sit back, let this wonderful music fill your ears, and have the time of your life like the trve metalhead that you are.

PS: If you're left craving more cause the short length. Then definitely move backwards to their album Totality (which I shall include as a bonus because I'm nice like that)for a more chaotic and seemingly less structured affair!

An Ode to Sin
Totality

Kiss the Anus of a Black Cat - If the Sky Falls, We Shall Catch Larks (2005)

Genre : NeoFolk \ Apocalyptic Folk \ Drone

Kiss the Anus of a Black Cat. No, it's not a snappy insult. Although it could be. The name is derived from a florid description of part of the instructions that a witch had to perform back in the 1800s. Fun times.

Instead of a one-man bedroom black metal project, Kiss the Anus of a Black Cat is Stef Heeren's (formerly of some unnamed punk band) one-man freak folk solo project; a tribal, ritualistic extravaganza of layers upon layers of folk drone, chanting, bells ringing, whispers and atmosphere. A live band and occasionally full orchestra hits the road alongside him for gigs.

Those of you who enjoy weirdy-beardy freak folk along the lines of Six Organs of Admittance, Espers or even stoner drone like Om, you'll probably dig it. The vocals have a distinct Current 93-esque quality, which is probably why this is labeled as apocalyptic folk; the music does not really bear out that comparison either.

Of this project, Stef Heeren writes:

"Although the songs on this cd are folksongs really and have a structured course, my musical approach and interest goes out to religious and shamanistic music, be it buddhist, krishna or american indian music. Not because of it's contents but because of it's repetitive, mantra, dronelike character. I tried to create this timeless, trancelike atmosphere which you can find in religious music through using non-western instruments such as harmonium, tanpura, bowls and bells and repetitive singing. I very much enjoy their rattling and clanging."

Rejoice, It's Mediafire

Sólstafir - Masterpiece Of Bitterness (2005)

So here it is, by request Solstafir's Masterpiece of Bitterness.

With this years release of Kold it seems Sólstafir are gaining popularity, which they deserve. However, it seems that a lot of fans of the new album are not recognising Masterpiece of Bitterness.
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Without a doubt this is Sólstafir's best release to date, and in my opinion one of the finest albums to grace my collection. With a much more atmospheric feel to it then any of their other releases this album flows together so perfectly, switching from fast aggressive style riffing to epic drawn out laid back sections in the blink of an eye in a beautifully constructed piece.

Contrary to popular belief this is neither a black metal album or a viking metal album, in fact you can throw a lot of genres on this band and it is very difficult to tie them down just to a single style of music; from the stoner/sludge Esq vocals, there is a psychedelic overall sound mixed in with a huge amount of atmospheric metal and the riffs contain elements of Solstafir's black metal days also it's worth nothing each song has an almost post - rock song structure, huge build ups with crushing endings.

To pick a highlight from this album is nearly impossible as each song really does have it's high points, each song has it's part on the album and it's one of the few albums I feel that nothing should be changed. Also, the second longest song on the album 'Ritual Of Fire', starts with a beautiful piece of music that sounds like it's been lifted straight from Sigur Ros's Takk, both bands are Icelandic and both albums came out in the same year, strange hey?! Well not really, must be an Icelandic thing.

I really could go on and on about this release, but for now I'll just say check it out. Even if you do dislike this album it deserves to be heard.


Download: Mediafire
Disclaimer: None of the albums I add are uploaded by myself and are intended for promotional purposes only, if you enjoy the album please support artists by buying records.



- RTG