The Official Metal Appreciation Thread®

It is funny seeing all the grifters decrying it as satanic music considering Gojira's music is all about nature, becoming a better person etc.

What about Gulch?

I'm getting a way heavier vibe generally than their other recent stuff. Maybe it's the halo effect of the growls but the whole thing feels a lot more metal generally to me. I really like it.

Of the prog rock era I've liked a few songs but generally it's just not grabbed me no matter how many chances I've given it. In Cauda Venemum in particular did not do anything, the others all had a few really good tracks.

But this new one -

I think Akerfeldts harsh vocals may have always been the killer ingredient for me, that probably explains it.

Also, album cover is metal monochrome vs the last few brown/red colour schemes.  Therefore, metal Opeth is back.  Looking forward to seeing them headline Bloodstock with a full death metal set a week from today 

Guys, if you're interested this is genuinely the heaviest thing I've ever heard. I have never been scared by a song before this

I wasn’t a fan sorry. Seemed like 10 minutes of avant guard with 90 seconds of djent stuck in. I think a lot of the heaviness is coming from it being too compressed as well. Horses for courses though, and it did have some atmosphere.

Found myself listening to this for the first time in years, and this is how it’s done:

Thanks for sharing that Cauchemar song blizeh that is something else indeed. Not sure it'll get many repeat listens, but it was very good. Found the band (Mirar) on Spotify so going to listen to their other singles out of  curiosity (no album yet).

Clean or just intelligible?

Plenty of prog wtih clean well-sung vocals, but it's not really my cup of tea. Maybe Leprous?

Also a fair bit of trad metal and doom/stoner with clean (or at least not harsh) vocals but that tends not to fit the "modern" tag despite being new. Could try Crypt Sermon?

You are most welcome!

Most of the bands I mentioned are still going and gigging, so if you like any you probably can see them live as well (at least the EU based ones).

This is a bit of a random recommendation, but Bilmuri's new album is basically a pop/country album with down-tuned guitars and a sprinkling of heavy parts:



Also, the music videos are absolutely top tier - just him doing gardening basically (:

yes

Been listening to the new Zeal & Ardor album.

I like it, but it's very odd. I think each individual song is great, and it sounds fantastic, and Manuel Gagneux's voice is amazing (tying into the conversation above, fans of "clean" singing should like most of what he does, though he does still do a few black metal harsh vocals here and there.)

But whilst Hide in Shade still contains the black-metal-meets-spirituals sound that the band focused on previously, for the most part the band are exploring different areas.

Disease gave me Bowie-influence vibes. Are You The Only One Now? made me think of Blur (at least until the blast beats kick in). Thrill made me think of Queens of the Stone Age. Clawing Out has a tempo shifting primalism that reminded me slightly of Nine Inch Nails - or it's just come to me more like something like Mike Patton's Tomahawk, or Fantomas. Whilst the harsh vocals and tremelo picked distorted guitars make appearances, it's much more cleanly sung and use undistorted guitar, and there's a few tracks where synths come to the fore.

And it's all very good. But by going off in so many different directions it just lacks cohesion. It sounds more like a collection of unrelated songs, or maybe 3 or 4 different EPs that have been packaged together.

All of which is to say it's actually really good, just not what I was expecting (which the lead singles had kind of suggested), and it's just a bit strange to digest. but I keep going back to it.

Didn't mean this to become a review but there you go. 4/5 stars.