TWO OF A PERFECT PAIR: An Abstract Illusion – Woe / Tómarúm - Ash in Realms of Stone Icons
A celebration and examination of two albums, intertwined somehow in time and space, that also happen to be some of the finest music on the planet.
Written by: Chuck
Gentle waves embrace a rocky landscape. An ominous wash of colored sounds accented by gentle intermittent piano strokes. A feeling of intrigue and subtle panic. FIRE. The ground shakes and the landscape transforms into anticipatory grandeur. Something important this way comes. This is "The Behemoth That Lies Asleep."
A familiar melody. A latin feel. Dynamic rhythmic movement across a soft fretboard. A moment to think. A moment to feel. Full throated restatement of the melodic progression arrives as a complete arrangement, quickly progressing into blast-beat driven black-ish riffs backed by fretless bass. Despite the already impressive technical display, the instrumentation is last on the mind. This is a moment to think. This is a moment to feel. This is "Introspection I."
RICK MASSIE - O Come, All Ye Faithful (Track Premiere)
Written by: The Administrator
The holiday season fast approaches here at Ye Olde Sleeping Village, and, a such, our slumbering and ink-splattered populace has begrudgingly begun to prepare for the inevitable. A healthy stock of young evergreens have been sacrificed. Stockings have been hung by the chimneys in, erm, a haphazard and disorderly fashion. Our resident confectioner has nailed down a recipe for sugar plums, which we have elected to feed to the numerous resident mice. And, with the arrival of one Rick Massie, our soundtrack is set. Let the festivities begin.
Rick Massie has made quite the habit of releasing holiday-themed singles--the more observant members of our dear readership might remember a premiere of the Halloween inspired "The Dance (of the Dead and Alive)," and those of you who follow Rick's output in general may recall his cover of "We Three Kings" that dropped around this time last year. The tradition continues with a new reimagined version of a well known Christmas tune: today's premiere in question is a cover of the classic "O Come, All Ye Faithful." Give it a listen below, and, as always, we'll catch ye on the other side!
THROUGH MISTS - Mindless Automations (Album Premiere)
No doubt about it: Through Mists' rampant release schedule has reached a new rate of impressive. Indeed, our eagle-eyed readers will note that our latest track premiere, published a few weeks back, was...also a Through Mists release, the slumber-obliterating "Awaken the Sleeping Village."
This newest album, Mindless Automations, offers a conceptual tragic narrative with the trademark progressive inclinations and sharp bite we've only come to expect. The story follows a worse-for-wear protagonist who, after having been driven from his flock, consistently endures vicious attacks. As a lover of A. creative concept albums, B. kickass underground music, and C. bird violence, this album certainly grabbed my attention. I hope it similarly grabs you.
Without further ado, then: check out Mindless Automations in full below! It is officially available now, so if you like what you hear, check it out and grab yerself a copy. As always, we'll meet ye on the other side to discuss (and, of course, wipe up the blood.
THROUGH MISTS - Awaken The Sleeping Village (Track Premiere)
We make a deliberate attempt to keep things from getting too stagnant 'round these parts. However, every once in a while, we slumbering scribes are hit with something utterly outside the confines of expectation: take today's premiere as a prime example. Through Mists' "Awaken the Sleeping Village" is a track that heavily features our moniker, and, beyond that, was inspired by a prompt we randomly tweeted.
This is new. This is unexpected. Most importantly, this is cool as hell. I'm honored to be running this premiere here today.
The prompt in question? On July 3rd, I cast the following into the void: "Death metal song where the solo starts a third of the way through and then just keeps fuckin' going until the song ends." Through Mists immediately responded "Challenge accepted." And here we are, challenge met with great aplomb. Check out "Awaken The Sleeping Village Below, and, as always, we'll meet ye on the other side!
HORNED WOLF - Become Like They Are (Review)
Let's start with the obvious. As anyone you has listened to their music will attest, attempting to pigeonhole or pin down Horned Wolf in the span of a mere introductory paragraph (or, indeed, the span of a whole review) is a fairly fruitless activity. This crew demonstrates little regard for genre expectation or compositional convention on Become Like They Are, and, as a result, their work sticks out from the crowd in a big way. To be markedly different and hence produce unique results is always an excitingly quality. Refreshing, even.
I'll be upfront: I've spent a lot of time with this album this year. A scary amount. If it tops my list o' most listened albums, I won't be surprised in the slightest. If the brilliant title track isn't my most consumed song of the year, I'll eat my boots. Paradoxically, though, this obsessive listening has been to the detriment of my actual ability to wrap up the review. The "listening for enjoyment" phase never really ended, and the "listening for writing" phase never truly began in earnest. In retrospect, this is obviously a Very Good problem to have, as much of the time spent with Become Like They Are has been pure and unadulterated by notions of my own imposed narrative framing or turns of phrase. But! In any case, here we are. Let's get the fuck into it already.
FRESH MEAT FRIDAY: June 24th, 2022 Feat. PAGANIZER, Horned Wolf, Tabahi, and 10,000 Years
Every Friday, a wagon arrives at the Sleeping Village's crumbling gates, stuffed to the brim with our sustenance. Today is the day we must offload all this new music, and so, in the process, we thought it would be worthwhile to share some of our choice picks from this veritable mass of fresh meat. This is what we'll be--and have been--listening to today here at the Village HQ. We hope you join us in doing so!
On the docket for today, June 24th, 2022:
PAGANIZER, Horned Wolf, Tabahi, and 10,000 Years
PAGANIZER - Beyond The Macabre
​(Transcending Obscurity Records)
Look, you hardly need me to tell you that the latest from PAGANIZER is a high quality death metal album. This is a given. Regardless, here I am telling you that Beyond The Macabre is, well, a high quality death metal album. This is quintessential stuff, from the buzzing Swedeath tone, to the cranium-cratering double bass, to the meathook riffage, to the sweaty aggression of Rogga Johansson's burly vocal delivery. PAGANIZER sustain their knack for slipping a lil' sliver of progressive death into the fray, which grants Beyond The Macabre a level of interest that transcends the pure knucklehead aesthetic. That said, if you're solely in it for the hallmarks of Swedeath, you will enjoy this one regardless. In a year that is staggering under the weight of excellent death metal, PAGANIZER still manage to make a sizable dent. For those of ye in the mood for good death metal: this'll certainly do the trick.
Find it here!​
Beyond The Macabre (Death Metal) by PAGANIZER
Horned Wolf - Become Like They Are
​(Independent)
Before I get too far ahead of myself, let me just state that this Fresh Meat Friday iteration of the Horned Wolf writeup is but an appetizer for a longer review to follow. In short, then: Become Like They Are is a very intriguing album from a band that is notably difficult to pigeonhole. Horned Wolf fling genre convention and expectation out the window. Instead, they elect to provide a collection of tracks defined less by sonic compatibility and more by snarling 'tude and the sheer power of Sav MangelsDorf's dynamic vocals. From bluesy doom to pop-laden prog to borderline death belligerence, Become Like They Are presents an exceedingly unpredictable journey, and that is a quality I very much enjoy.
But anyways. Much more on this later! In the meantime, give Become Like They Are a well-deserved listen.
​Find it here!
Become Like They Are by Horned Wolf
ONWARD WE MARCH - Nekromanteion (Track Premiere)
​Our council of shadowy and ink-splattered scribes have decreed the following: Wednesdays are for epic progressive opuses. Or at least...that's what this Wednesday is for. Next week may very well deliver something entirely different, but that's to be expected. We're a fickle crew, after all.
In any case, today is for epic progressive opuses. Thankfully, Dallas' own Onward We March was kind enough to approach us with a track for premiere, and what a track it is: a 17-minute-and-change odyssey through the necromantic gates of Hades. "Nekromanteion" is a track that bears the weight of its breadth quite well, delivering both in terms of narrative intrigue and gloriously engaging composition. Without further ado, check out "Nekromanteion" below! Sink into its expansive environs. As always, we'll meet ye on the other side.
RICK MASSIE - The Moor (Opeth Cover) - Track Premiere
If you, dear reader, have A. frequented our humble halls with some regularity, and B., have a remarkably keen memory, you may recall prior coverage/adoration of one Rick Massie.
​Over the past few years, this one-man outfit from the wilds of the Yukon consistently presents a healthy blend of rock, prog, and metal, whether in the form of an ode to Halloween, a foreboding single, or across the breadth of an expansive album. Each Rick Massie moment features a very different sonic and aesthetic backdrop, but the intentionality and sheer quality remains consistent.
For further proof, look no further than today's track in question, a largely faithful cover of the mighty Opeth's "The Moor." It officially comes out on May 20th, but until then, you can listen to your heart's content at ye olde Sleeping Village. Check it out below! As always, we'll meet ye on the other side.
WARM - Time & Blood (Track Premiere)
"How did we get here" is the question I often asked myself when listening to The Human Exemplar, the superb third release from Massachusetts's post/progressive band Warm. It's not that I suddenly lost my grip on reality, rather, the band was just extremely adept at transitioning seamlessly through multiple complimentary styles in a way that allowed me to drift along without questioning the conviction of their direction. Indeed, the appeal was that throughout the entire album each stylistic reference felt deeply authentic. From the heavy grunge syrup, the stoner riffs, the long progressive instrumental sections, the "post" feel to it, and even the occasional Neurosis-worship, it all feels right and it all rings true. Throughout all of it, the band never strays too far in any one direction, or stays too long before confidently pulling the themes together and moving along.
This all got me super stoked to be able to premier their track "Time & Blood" off their new album The Phos Nimitta. Listen below!
AMORPHIS - Halo (Review)
Hello everyone! Welcome to 2022. I feel like it's been a while since I've been here to provide you all an album review. I know that the 200 Stab Wounds album wasn't that long ago, but so much has happened since then. Thank you for sticking around with me, and with the Sleeping Village. We're kicking off the year with a new album from one of my favorite bands of all time, Amorphis, with their latest album Halo. Not much has changed in the Amorphis camp, with the exception of them leaving Nuclear Blast Records and signing with upstart label Atomic Fire Records. Now that we have that out of the way, let's dive in.
First thing you'll notice with this album is that it is HEAVY. This possibly one of the heaviest albums in Amorphis' discography. They've dialed back on the symphonic elements and went for an outright progressive assault on their folk and melodic death metal sound. The songs are more concise than on previous album Queen of Time, but pack more into these 4-5 minute run times. "Northwards" begins on a typical Amorphis note with big double bass patterns and Tomi Joutsen's signature growls and epic clean vocals backed by grandiose choir vocals, and a tasty mellotron solo in the middle of the song.
We provide thoughtful reviews of music that wakes us from slumber. Written by a highfalutin peasantry.
A High Quality Death Metal Album
Antifascist
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Cover Song
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