Things that I have scene lately
Recently, there was posted a pretty informed review of DC metal/crust band Ilsa’s debut full-length, Tutti il Colori del Buio, posted on the band’s page at Metal Archives.
The review itself came from one of the primary contributors over at the metal review blog From the Dust Returned. I think their review is thorough — and is well-observed — but 6.5/10 must be more respectable to me than the reviewer himself. I mean, the same guy gives Scar Symmetry’s latest release a 7/10. That particular band is objectively terrible; they’re on a big label and the sound is so dated and artistically stale.
Ilsa is meanwhile a good looking-glass into the sound of an underground wave of metal that has emerged in the past 10 years. The review does them justice, describing a wave of heaviness unlike previous generations, and an inspiration unhappier than anything else I can really think of. FYI — the band also did an interview with Brooklyn Vegan recently, and there were some nice words here.
Other cool bands to check out:
- Northern Cali’s Amarok is the heaviest live band I have seen in a long time (maybe ever at a house show?).
- Austin’s Lions of Tsavo is rolling through DC in mid-May, and plays a killer progressive sludgy form of blackened metal, kinda like Inter Arma and other bands of that ilk happening now.
- Melodic doom/sludge/drone dudes Anhedonist, out of Seattle, are playing some upcoming east coast dates
- Ohio’s Artillery Breath just played some cool dates in the area and they are most excellent. Hear for yrself.
BONUS: the Norwegian group Ulver has a new album out in 2011, Wars of the Roses — and it sounds much promising from what I’ve heard:
Lately I have been considering throwing together a quarterly heavy metal zine for the DC area. I’ll keep you fanboyz n gurlz posted. It will feature all the hip underground metal news, plus all those satirical comedy stylings you have come to love me for.
Fretbored CRM 