Lüger– Cosmic Horrör (2020) / 85%

Leather in Space

The dangerous Montréal quartet is back with a four track extended play and it’s pure fire. I liked their 2018 opus (the Realm reviewed it) quite a bit but Cosmic Horrör (the umlauts are important, of course) sees the band improve and push their sound to the next echelon. They’re a pretty unique beast in the Montréal metal scene with their apocalyptic blend of influences and I’m stoked to see them on stage again whenever it will be possible.

“Space Coma” opens the record with blistering drums and features insane guitar solos with a melodic psych rock edge. It’s an effortless mix with their bass heavy approach to Motorized and Pentagrammed heavy metal. Jim Laflamme’s semi-harsh, tough vocals are emphasized by being judiciously but sporadically used (they only appear midway through “Call of the Snaggletooth”) and they feed the riffs perfectly.

The opener of side B appropriately named “Psychotropia” could have been twenty minutes as far as I’m concerned. It starts with an extended spacey intro that wouldn’t be out of place on a Ufomammut album before descending in their usual airy but demented riff heavy affair. It’s like driving a Martian bulldozer that’s been fueled with acid.

There’s a lot of stuff in Lüger’s cosmic Harley Davidson’s leather pouches but it’s so adequately condensed in one potent formula that’s both original in its dated but timeless recipe. Incorporating more than just heavy metal, doom metal or hard rock, the boys also feed their machine with adequate doses of punk, thrash, space rock or even hints of black smoke here and there. It’s raw but it sounds like a wall of brick that’s been built by master builders who look like deviant bad boys based on what your boomer aunt thinks. Even if there's a sense of familiarity to their music, it's exciting and enticing enough to be a fucking good record.

They’re the type of bands that are able to develop an image that becomes deeply tied to their sound. Leather, shades, tattoos, wearing vests while being shirtless etc. All bands have an image, the ones who say that they don’t have are the same ones who will gladly tell everyone that “they’re one a political band”. The important is to craft a solid and interesting look that will instantly embody the music you play. Well, Lüger plays rocky, punky sexy metal exploring the vastness and deserted confines of space and they look the part. The old school video game look of the artwork also does a great job at describing their sound. Undead evil knight? Space Castle? Yes, you betcha.


Bandcamp

Shezmu - À Travers Les Lambeaux (2020)

Controlled Chaos

The first proper album for Shezmu after a bunch of extended plays and demos, À travers les lambeaux (could be translated to “through the shreds”) is a blistering piece of occult death metal that will help you get through this summer if your main vice is listening to hellishly dark music. Their first release as a three piece since the arrival of Yannick as a full time bassist, the short but sweet album doesn’t mess around with any aspects of their identity.

With their inspirations fully assimilated and ready to torn apart the competition, Shezmu delivers a well written and intelligent record full of twists and turns. Without playing a fully epic blend of metals similar to what bands like Sarpanitum or Necros Christos do, the Montreal band prefers to focus on pure death metal while incorporating some slightly foreign touches. The vocals of axeman and band leader Olivier (also in a wide array of other cool bands like Palmistry, Complot! or Moulin Banal) are deep, thunderous but also tortured clean screams reminiscent of Bolzer. It’s not a technical band, the focus is on riffs and riffs alone, there’s no unnecessary wank, it’s just riff worship and that’s totally fine with me. They’re mixing this sort of subtle antique feel with the evil energy of Incantation and it works. Not totally unlike Dead Congregation did.

The interlude “La rage” divides the album in two with a middle-eastern feel similar to the grandiose instrumental compositions found on Melechesh’s “The Epigenesis” and it was a welcomed respite since Shezmu are so fucking intense. There’s some shorter numbers like “Les secrets des ziggourats” and it brings forth a quasi blackened grind element to the fast compositions. Still, the bulk of the album is the two bread slices around it, its two longer compositions located at the start and at the end. They allow themselves to slow down and pummel you with “Lex Talionis”. At the edge of cavernous death metal, Shezmu’s guitars are pretty clear as far as death metal is concerned. The opener and title track has those hypnotic riffs that almost gives me the same effect (good) stoner metal has on me. This is perhaps their biggest strength, this sort of thundering but controlled chaos handled through efficient but minimalist musicianship is just so good. Shezmu are the cream of the crop for Québec death metal alongside Outre Tombe. Let’s see if Sedimentum can beat ‘em with their upcoming debut album.

Bandcamp

Québec Dank Kush Special with Lochness and Marécages

There’s some sort of doom/stoner movement going on in Québec right now with a small scene resurging from the dank abyss to create weed fueled riffs. The doom/stoner vibe from the province was mostly due to Max Tremblay from The Death Wheelers, Strange Broue and Marécages. Tremblay also runs Brouemaster Visual Decay and provides art for many bands, even international ones like Haunt or Idle Hands. He, of course, did the art for both Lochness and Marécages. I like his art, always colourful but also always pretty grim and dark, it’s full of contrasts!

Lochness – Black Smokers (2019)

First Puff - 83%

Lochness, now, eh! The Montréal trio plays slow, thundering doom/stoner with a definite aquatic feel. Composed of Alban Bachand and Mathias two tattoo artists from the Ligne Verte shop (awesome spot!) and Tony Ross from  Aiauasca (also into tattoos!), the power trio really surprised me with the quality of this release. Compared to most doom/stoner, it’s not overlong and it has a distinctive and interesting identity other than the commonly used “blaze it 420” one. Lochness are all about the pressuriezed heaviness of the deep sea and how foreign and alien that mysterious part of the world is. The album starts with a long seven minutes instrumental track that really shows the colours of what the band is all about. They’re not heavily focused on vocals usually (Ross handles both the drums and the vox) and they also dig the use of samples. When there’s vocals, they’re unhinged and they feel like they’re underwater (check out “Alien Deep”), it’s oddly fitting.

The guitars of Fortier are loud and strong and like American traditional tattooing, it’s bold and there to stay as Black Sabbath foretold. Their songwriting is quite loose and natural, their songs are long but busy with riffs. It’s never boring or overly slow and “atmospheric”. They do like repetitiveness though but they’re good enough to achieve a form of riff hypnosis.

All in all, Lochness delivers a compact thirty-five minutes opus full of huge tones. I’m usually bored by most stoner/doom but they had enough originality to distinguish themselves from the pack. I’ll go swim in the Lochness, I hope I’ll see you there.

Lochness on Bandcamp

Marécages - Marais Juana - Une Ode Cannabique (2019)

Second Puff - 4x20=80%

Speaking of Marécages (swamps), their debut EP is literally a brick made of frozen weed. Max Tremblay (The Death Wheelers, Strange Broue) is joined by Seb Dallaire and Christian Labrecque (AKA Crock 0))) haha) both known from grind bands like Fistfuck and Mesrine and together, they had a lot of fun on this release. The artwork is striking and amusing, it’s just a really big frog that would eat if you were small enough. Frogs and toads eat everything, they’re like me at an all you can eat sushi restaurant.

Their song titles are full of portmanteaus like “Cannabysse” and their lyrics are all in French (always happy to see that), it’s massively fun. The opening song “Marais Juana” is also exactly 4:20, hopefully on purpose. Their metal is aggressive, not too dissimilar to the Hochelaga approach of Dopethrone in a way. It’s dirty sludge/stoner/doom with a really thicc groovy bass, riffs made of rusty steel and bludgeoning drumming played by a madman who hasn’t slept in weeks. Their vocals are, of course, harsh as hell and sounds like a resin infested worm in the best way possible. The use of samples about weed and horror movies is also on point, I personally liked the one about krokodil a lot!

The EP is tight and goes hard. It sounds like a big toad rumbling in a swamp looking for some tasty worms and flies. It doesn’t sound like they’re on weed... Well maybe marijuana laced with cocaine, acid and PCP...

Marécages on Bandcamp

Akitsa – Credo (2018) / 95%

I’m a credible reviewer so I’m not gonna namedrop Darkthrone

Unlike Quebec’s sovereignty project, Quebecois black metal has been quite healthy recently. The scene is diversified and hits hard from both Québec City and Montréal. There’s the occultism of Gevurah, the icy winds of Cantique Lépreux, the atmospheric/post power of Basalte or, obviously the nationalistic panache of Forteresse. Akitsa, at least for me, has always been a lone wolf in terms of sound even if they have a varied discography. With Credo, their sixth full length and first for Profound Lore, they bludgeon the competition with their sharp riffs and their arcane knowledge of second wave black metal.

I’ve probably said it before but for me, the quality of the riffs is the most important thing in black metal (if you’re not Summoning, that is). You’d say that it’s important in all metal genres and you’d be right but for that specific style, it’s usually the main focus, especially when we have to deal with raw bands. If you do a simple pizza and its only topping is the tomato sauce, your sauce needs to be fucking good. It’s the same here. We’re lucky though since Akitsa are master riff crafters. They cultivate rawness like we cultivate apples to make ice cider. “Siècle pastoral” opens the album with an introduction buildup of urgent and primal guitars. You know what you’ll get right from the start.

They’re skilled at creating atmosphere with the strict necessary (like our ancestors dealt with life), they could do it with the strength of their riffs alone but there’s some interesting touches like that chanting on the opening track. Those riffs are so good that they’re able to hypnotize by their drony repetitiveness and their punk might akin to Darkthr... uhh Bone Awl or Raspberry Bulbs! Furthermore, the vocals of Outre-Tombe are spiteful and they’re able to deliver the French lyrics well. If you think they’re too raw, you might not listen to the adequate genre for you.

The blast beats ferocity of “Espoir Vassal” transports you into the frigid time of the year in Québec where the snow melts and cold mud just enters every pore of your body. Speaking of its thematic approach, Credo develops themes very well. It’s mixing history, poetry and a clear focus on the rough Quebec winters. Just like their music, it’s abrasive, buried in dark realities. Akitsa burns with coldness. It’s like sticking your tongue on a frozen hockey net on a dare. For some weird reasons, once your tongue is released from that ordeal, you’ve still enjoyed yourself.

They’re strong musicians but they’re also quite apt at creating a solid identity for themselves. From the old campfire photo used as the artwork (taken in 2000) to the cult forest band pictures, it’s rooted in traditional black metal aesthetics and I mean, I’m fine with that since I’m a big fan of Darkthr...oh shit!

All in all, Akitsa defied my expectations and managed to beat Cultes des Ghoules to gain the prestigious number one spot for black metal released in 2018. It combines excellent riffs, epic song structures and a mighty ambiance. 

 

Akitsa on Bandcamp

Basalte - Vertige (2018) / 95%

The Righteous Mastery of Atmosphere and Might

Basalte’s debut album was a thoroughly impressive piece of Quebec black metal and it impressed the hell out of me when it was released in 2014. Four years after “Vestige”, they’re back with “Vertige”, an album with an intricate and exhaustive sonic approach. The work on the production was meticulous, almost to the point of being monastic and it paid off.

Between the two records, the trio became a quartet when they got a full time bassist and he now contributes to the songwriting while improving the live performances of the band. They also played a special, secretive gig in the forest back in 2016 in front of about fifty people (including yours truly) and it added an aura of mystery and DIY attitude to the project. After that, their drummer was flown to Indonesia for a year to study music and while it made the recording process more complicated, it will certainly add something extraneous to the band’s future compositions. After L.’s return in August 2017, they finished the album, played one of their first gigs in a while when they opened for Falls of Rauros and now, they just released their sophomore effort. An album I had to chance to digest a bit before the actual release. It’s not an easy piece of art to assimilate but it’s a rewarding one.

Let’s not waste any time here, “Vertige” is an excellent album and it will certainly end up to be one of the most memorable and essential black metal albums of 2018. The four extended tracks are vast and filled to the brim with riffs, interesting time signatures, emotional tremolos and intense but yet natural drumming. The bass acts as the icing on the cake while the subtle, electronic bits can be seen as an added layer to their solid foundations. The vocal approach (three different vocalists but all four members sing live nowadays) is full of raw strength and unwieldy passion. From high pitched screeches to deep and buried aggression, their palette has a wide variety of colours, mostly shades of black and grey though but you don’t need anything else.

The guitars are loud, heavy, distorted but clean at the same time. The interplay between the two guitarists is always joyous but what they play is downright dark and brooding. Furthermore, the production did wonders to highlight all the instruments in a clear but troubling raw way and I’m glad they took their time to truly craft their songs like they wanted to.

Interestingly enough, they’ve always had an urban approach. While I thought “Vestige” explored the figurative and literal decay found in urbanity, “Vertige” acts as the opposite. It seems to look for the suffering in newer, modern and seemingly intact structures (as seen on the artwork) and that’s a fresh way to grow as a sonic storyteller. This research, reflected through their music, puts them at odds with the rest of atmospheric black metal, often busy contemplating waterfalls and picturesque landscapes. What Basalte declares with their poetic but somber lyrics speaks of neurosis, claustrophobia or apathy. Concepts I personally consider to be related to the city life.

The best bands are often hard to categorize and it’s true here as well. Basalte doesn’t play safe and adds a wide array of other styles to their formula and not just as afterthoughts or sprinkles of “hey listen to our prog metal section!”, it’s integrated within their songs and effectively changed their identity. The main aspect is surely the hardcore presence (“Acouphène” is the best example) but there’s loads of post-whatever (or whatever the hell is “atmospheric sludge”), shoegaze and ambient elements. Regardless of what Basalte play as a genre (it’s ultimately unimportant), there’s nothing faulty, boring or unpleasant on “Vertige”. What’s also worth mentioning is that the Montréal quartet never forgets to unleash the heaviness and riffs, “La sclérose coule dans ses veines” even goes into funeral doom territory with great results.

“Vertige” is a modern masterpiece transcending the outlines of what black metal should be in 2018. I mean, Deafheaven should be opening for ‘em. They’re a revamped, hungry and evolving band that’s pushing the envelope into foreign but exciting directions. Full support.

Bandcamp
Tape release

Metal Bounty Hunter: Volume 11 /// 2017 DOOM SPECIAL

"Doom metal is dead", that's what Reverend Bizarre told us back in 2007 but more than ten years after the final album of the Finns, the genre is still alive and kicking. Thank god! Here's a bunch of demos or extended plays released this year. Canada, Germany, the US and even Israel are represented in this special volume. 
Enjoy!

Palmistry – Demo (2017) / 80%

Magickal Doom from Poutineland


Full disclosure: I work with half of Palmistry as a gig promoter/booker in Montréal and I also know his wife who's the second half. My relationship with them has nothing to do with my appreciation of their music. Doom metal is dead, anyway.

This new project from Montréal unleashed their first demo back in July and it's an insanely great first effort. Composed of a young couple, Palmistry plays super catchy trad doom with a penchant for epic moments and melodic leads. Obviously influenced by Candlemass, their music goes beyond worship and has this special touch.

The two songs are short (for doom, eh) affairs and considering it's a demo, it's really well produced. The guitar is crisp and just plain fun. The riffs are well composed, dynamic and has this quasi arabic vibe. It feels like crusader doom! The solos on "Capharnaüm" are subtle, soft and aren't unecessarily flashy. The vocals of the feminine side of the duo are solid. They sound like an occult incantation and they're pretty ballsy.

All in all, the Palmistry demo shows a lot of potential and talent and I'm stoked to be able to follow their development. It's great when the music made by friends is actually good and you don't have to force yourself to dig it!

Palmistry on Bandcamp

Fvneral Fvkk ‎– The Lecherous Liturgies (2017) / 91%

Essential doom, epic as fvkkkkkk!

With members from known to almost known German bands such as Ophis, here comes Fvneral Fvkk and despite their silly name, they probably released the best doom demo/EP of 2017. Their style is midway through epic doom and traditional doom and they're already at the top of their game. I mean, we're talking of veteran musicians and not simply newcomers. The situation is similar to Dautha, the new Swedish band formed by members of Griftegård, Scar Symmetry or Wardenclyffe. Those guys know what sound they're looking for and they have the experience and skills to create it.

Fvneral Fvkk comes from the tradition of tongue in cheek doom bands but even if their lyrics are blasphemous and somewhat fun, the riffs and compositions are serious. They do evolve in the modern doom sound as well, the Warning/Pallbearer sound is present but the Germans bring an added urgency and evilness to the formula. The production is crisp, the guitars heavy as fuck and the vocals sombre and dark. The songs are packed to the brim with desecrated doom and there's no wasted moments to be found here.

It's an essential release for any doom fans and I don't know how they'll be able to top it.

Make sure to get the digital version with the 3 tracks since the bonus song is also excellent.

Fvuneral Fvkk on Bandcamp

Bridegeist – Waste of Kings (2017) / 75%

Fresh and tight sword & sorcery doom

The Wichita, Kansas quartet doesn't waste any time in establishing their identity. Their sound is huge, rough and immensely heavy. The dual guitars makes 'em quite fun and punishing and the harmonies are present underneath the heaviness. Just like Khemmis, they do like to mix sludgey influences to their heavy/doom and it's apparent in the use of semi harsh vocals used by Steven Turner.

Their metal is groovy, full of catchy manly riffs and while it's mostly extroverted metal, it's easy to enjoy. I mean, complex and "smart" metal is often shit and annoying. You get what you ask for here, solid steel for twenty minutes.

Residing in the same city as epic metal forefathers Manilla Road could had been an ordeal but Bridegeist delivers their own take on sword and sorcery by cranking the amps to the max and by being more aggressive than a pack of hungry hounds.

https://bridegeist.bandcamp.com/releases

Lavaborne – Demo 2017 / 65%

Peculiar Midwest garage doom

With the technology we have today, demos are a bit of a dying art. It's totally possible to have a semi professional suburbian recording done in your mom's basement nowadays. Unfortunately, that's not the case for this demo. Ok, Lavaborne's production isn't that bad but I've heard better for doom demos. Chris Latta's (also in Spirit Division) vocals are decent but they're way too loud in the mix and it's hard to focus on anything else. His deep voice almost goes into spoken word territory at times and it adds a certain weird charm to the band. The drum machine is annoying as it often is in metal.

The songs are pretty good though, it's heavy/doom but it's peculiar and doesn't really sound like what we could expect of the genre. It has a wide array of influences ranging from grunge, hard rock to thrash. While I can't really say that I'll go back to the demo, I can say that it's interesting

P.S.: I have conflicting feelings about the artwork. It looks like a skateboard ad made in collaboration with a local nu-metal band. Sorry Chris!

https://lavaborne.bandcamp.com/releases

Still Dead – Demo no. 1 (2017) / 67%

Still Dead are the first Israeli doom band I've came across that aren't Orphaned Land (who played doom for like twenty minutes anyway) and they're not bad at all! The raw production highlights the thick bass lines and the cavernous clean vocals well and for a debut release, it's quite professional.

The songs are moderately lengthy and offer a lot of repetitive riffs and atmosphere. It's a gloomy affair with Still Dead as you could expect from their moniker.

The thing is that the songwriting is mostly derivative and boring. They're not really fresh, exciting or super heavy to compensate for the lack of groundbreaking ideas (a direction many doom bands pick) but it's worth checking out if you want to hear true doom coming from an unusual location!

https://stilldead.bandcamp.com/album/demo-no-1

Malebranche - Enlisé (2017) / 78%

In Movement

The young quartet from Montréal took their time to produce their first release and it was a judicious decision. They went straight to the EP format and did no demos. That’s fine nowadays where it’s entirely possible to get a great sound with ease. That’s something the boys of Malebranche got right on their debut.

In fact, they got a lot of things right. They got their style right, for sure. At first, I wasn’t quite convinced by their approach but it won me over after a while. Their blend of black metal genres is subtle and effective. They include elements of post black metal without never fully embracing it, same for Cascadian atmospheric black metal. Those two sub genres are toppings to the intense, fast paced black metal style of Malebranche. They’re a good representative of the actual Québec black metal scene as they’re removing themselves from the famous aesthetics. Like Basalte, Eos or Entheos, they’re the new wave of like-minded bands who aren’t afraid of exploring other genres.

Their compositions are dense and even though they’re not really lengthy, they’re epic in scope. The riffs are evocative and varied, the vocals obscure and powerful and the drumming strong and above average. Their sound is midway through traditional blistering black metal and the more subdued, prone to ambient side of the genre. A strong debut.

Bandcamp