Tag: doom

THE BUTTHOLE ALBUM ART AWARDS OF 2023

Welcome to the Butthole Album Art Awards! (BHAAAs)


Hello friends, and welcome to the 7th Annual BHAAAs! There were no fewer candidates than in previous years, but I’ve pared 2023 down to the following 20 holes.

NECROVATION cooking up a fish stew BH [Bandcamp]

THE ZENITH PASSAGE and there’s always one every year [Bandcamp]

BEASTWARS with that not-so-fast BH [Bandcamp]

ODZ MANOUK offering an up close and inside look [Bandcamp]

OUTER HEAVEN (say hello to) [Bandcamp]

AMONGRUINS got us saying again, “you don’t HAVE to draw a sun with tendrils” [Bandcamp]

WOJTEK this peacock has some STRUT [Bandcamp]

This WORN MANTLE release is entitled, “Hole” [Bandcamp]

ISPOSNIK: Run too fast, fly too high BH [Bandcamp]

ARDENT NOVA: “Does that look like a —-“
“Yes”
[Bandcamp]

Ring-A-Round The BH by CRYPTDWELLER (not the first time I’ve used this caption) [Bandcamp]

FRACTURUS: Now That’s What I Call A Close Encounter! [Bandcamp]

CREEPING DEATH (2nd BHAAA appearance) with their swamp of sadness BH [Bandcamp]

MiR: yoooooohoooooo [Bandcamp]

ORTHOSTAT wants to play a game of scatterjacks [Bandcamp]

THE MON with ‘Eye’ (caramba!) [Bandcamp]

SULPHUR AEON: Blaegh! [Bandcamp]

OAK: This tin roof is rusted baby [Bandcamp]

AVENADE: Ope forgot something! [Bandcamp]

2023 marks VOIDSPHERE’s 4th BHAAA appearance, our most decorated artist to date [Bandcamp]

Thanks for tuning in! And if that’s not enough and you want to see all 2019-2023 BHAAAs, click my category link.

EXCARNATED ENTITY: DEATH DOOM DANCE REVIEW ‘Mass Grave Horizon’

I am currently moving to the new EXCARNATED ENTITY ‘Mass Grave Horizon’ (Sept 8) whose miserable death doom packs 43mins of thunderous riffs with a melodic nod to the classics. Complete package that will rank high on my year end list.

Listen at Bandcamp (Nuclear Winter Records)

JUSTIN’S MID YEAR RIPPERS 2019

jtx
constantly sorting through new releases in my native habitat

Oh hey! Just a quick little recap of the year to date. Here are 10 of my fav albums of 2019 so far! So screw the foreward, let’s get to it! And you’re damn right I wore the same shirt of an album I’m going to be discussing in 5 seconds! Exclamation points!!!

Continue reading “JUSTIN’S MID YEAR RIPPERS 2019”

YEARLY RIPPERS: JUSTIN’S FAVORITE TOP BEST ALBUMS OF 2017

revealing my favorite albums at my annual year end party METAL MASS (and wearing comfy slippers is the best part of hosting, fyi)

[insert reflective diatribe re: 2017’s dismal climate and express gratitude for heavy metal here]

In all seriousness, it is and thankfully, it was another great year for metal. After the countless hours spent on Bandcamp, Twitter, and my friends’ Slack channel, 2017 boiled down to the following 20 albums (EPs count if they’re ~20mins long = my rules). They hold the highest personal replay value. Of course, some got neglected due to time, length, and the sheer magnitude of releases.

So give these a whirl and let me know what sticks with you. Hang ’til the very bottom if you want to see my crabbypants rant re: the albums that caused extreme irritation.

As always, thank you for reading!
-Justin

Continue reading “YEARLY RIPPERS: JUSTIN’S FAVORITE TOP BEST ALBUMS OF 2017”

JUSTIN’S MID-YEAR RIPPERS 2017


Hey! I moved my site from goodshakes.com (RIP) to here. This is unimportant as I only post twice a year. So I’ll get right to it! You are here to read my digest of 2017 rippers (so far).

Woe – Hope Attrition (Vendetta)
Woe is one of my favorite bands, period, and this new batch of pissed-off, hardcore/aggro USBM songs properly rips some shit. Chris Grigg’s screams are more vicious than ever on topical tracks “No Blood Has Honor” and “Drown Us With Greatness” (iseewhatyoudidthere), and this is one of the finest drum performances in recent memory (Lev Weinstein, also of Krallice). The bright, large, and crisp production makes it so easy to spin again, and the 3-minute instrumental intro of “Unending Call of Woe” might be my walk-out song of 2017.
Bandcamp

Below The Sun – Alien World (ToT Records)
I slept on their 2015 album Envoy, and I’m trying to make up for it with newly released Alien World. I was instantly hooked with “Mirrors” (above), a crushing doom number that boasts an intriguing atmospheric mid-section that doesn’t get soft or boring. They jump genres gracefully, and “Black Wave” (my personal fav) even has a Soundgarden vibe to it, made especially chilling given recent events. Their sound and image are not to be ignored, even if the bass player wearing the mask on his head gives me the gd willies.
Bandcamp

Continue reading “JUSTIN’S MID-YEAR RIPPERS 2017”