Ghost and Jess & the Ancient Ones have a lot to answer for. Between them they seem to have started this classic rock-tinged occult psychedelic thing where the next, more underground generation think that loose 'n' lo-fi is the way to go. Although Seremonia sound nothing like fellow countrymen Beherit, they have gone for an odd production choice similar in ethos to "Drawing down the moon". The difference is that going out on a pre-planned lo-fi limb like that really worked for Beherit back in '93 and resulted in a legendary album. Here it sounds too gimmicky. It's like, "Oh, we're so loose and chilled out when we're playing that we just go with what flows from our inner souls." In reality it comes across as either a get-out clause that makes excuses for sloppiness or a deliberate attempt at sounding genuinely nekro. This lack of integrity in the sound kills the vibe completely. If you want something with an authentic form of the off-kilter atmosphere that Seremonia strives to achieve you should get your hands on Black Hole's "Living mask". - John Norby
More like this please: killer early 80s synth-heavy gothrock outta Finland, recently given the vinyl reissue treatment via . So, so good; such a shame I only just heard about them a few weeks ago.
has just reissued Finnish metal act Lurk's self-titled debut, first released on CD only back in January, on vinyl for the first time; 500 copies, purchase here.
This is quite the surprise release by this relatively new Finnish seven piece. There's an immediate atmosphere here that's both unique and captivating -- a retro heavy rock psychedelia that doesn't sound quite like anyone else. That said, the Finns obviously pull their musical inspiration from the likes of Iron Maiden, Thin Lizzy and Mercyful Fate as is evident on numerous occasions throughout the album. There's also a slight hint of early Metallica found here and there, although it must be stressed that this isn't a metal album by any stretch. Frontwoman Jess has a great sounding voice, although it seems to lack power in some areas, most likely a result of the vocals being slightly dimmed in the mix. There's a touch of a feminine Patrick Dubar in her voice who, for those of you who don't know, was the extremely underrated vocalist of '90s hard rock band Mindfunk. For the most part this album is upbeat, driving stuff, with incredible musicianship on display -- from the Maiden/Lizzy pummel of "Ghost riders" to the "People are strange" vibe of "Devil (in g minor)" and the subdued Opeth-prog of closer "Come crimson death" -- and almost perfect pacing throughout. It's an exciting body of work with a powerful production that hints at bigger and better to come from these occultists. - John Norby
The Scrags' long-awaited 7" "Void lodge" will be officially released on via and will include the track "Cold wind" on the flip. Help the band celebrate with a show at Bar Brooklyn/Strand in Stockholm on September 5.
Now this is where it's at! This four-tracker kicks off like the ugly cousin of something that The Cult would have put out back in the day and it's immediately evident where talk of the Helsinki quartet being a lo-fi outfit comes from. It's not that they're lo-fi though, it's more that the guitars have been given a dirty post black metal(ish) production and remain subdued when compared to the sublime vocals. They're like an apocalyptic marriage of the voices of Ian Astbury and the enigmatic Czral from Norwegian oddballs Virus. Kvhost of Hexvessel infamy is the man here and he simply kills. After opening track "Void mother" the band venture into a more retro-based aesthetic and, as weird as it might sound, from here on out "Use your deluge" is probably best described as hippy '60s surf-punk for the 21st Century. There are many influences at work here and the concept has clearly been built from a punk foundation. It's also a grower that runs from "not sure" to "utterly amazing" in the space of a few days. Awesome stuff. - John Norby
Been meaning to get this written up for over a week now, but I haven't found the time and now that I'm about head out on vacation to Sweden for a couple weeks, I figure I need to get at least something up. So without further ado, here's my picks for the best releases of 2012 so far (in alphabetical order):
Agent Side Grinder - Hardware () Beastmilk - Use your deluge () Diskoteket - Det ska se ut som slutet () Magnus Ekelund & Stålet - Supernova EP () Nitad - Rastlös & vild () Susanne Sundfør - The silicone veil () Tvärvägen - Staring directly into the sun () Vånna Inget - Jag ska fly tills jag hittar hem ()
On the cusp/too early to tell: Anchorless - Every nook and cranny () Norra Kust - s/t () Westkust - Junk EP ()
Reissues: Missbrukarna - Zooma in en zombie () Ratsia - Jäljet ()
Listen to a selection of these records below via Spotify:
has announced that they will be releasing the next two albums from Finnish ritual/dark ambient artists Arktau Eos this coming fall, the vinyl-only release "Unworeleds" and the CD "Ioh-Maera". Even better, the band will coming to the US for their debut performance at the Esoteric Book Conference in Seattle on September 15 to be followed by an appearance at the Stella Natura Festival in the Sierra on September 20-23. See you there?
Avant-garde Metal is not too impressed with the self-titled debut from Finnish occult-rockers Jess and The Ancient Ones: http://avantgarde-metal.com/content/beyond2.php?id=180
Sad to say that I'm in agreement; they're a good sounding band on the surface, but it's far too safe sounding and the songs are lacking. puts out a ton of amazing releases, but this is not one of them.
Excellent Finnish occult rockers Hexvessel have announced that their sophomore album will be called "No holier temple" and will be released on September 5 via , both on CD or 2LP. And speaking of Svart, their latest release from similarly-minded act Jess and the Ancient Ones is streaming in full now via Terrorizer: http://www.terrorizer.com/blog1.php/2012/05/22/terrorizer-stream-jess-and-the-ancient-ones
' upcoming release schedule is bonkers -- in addition to the new Beastmilk and Hexvessel 7"s, as well as the "Dawnbearer" 2LP repress, they've also got like 5 new releases coming out every week from May through June. Here's the Finnish/Scandinavian highlights:
05/09 - Sähkö-Isku - Sata kaljaa 12"
05/09 - Kovaa Rasvaa 7"
05/09 - Problems? - Ei tää lama päähän käy 7"
05/09 - Unicef - Käkimassaa 7"
05/09 - Kollaa Kestää - Jäähyväiset aseille LP
05/16 - Abhorrence - Completely Vulgar 2LP / CD
05/23 - Jess and the Ancient Ones LP/CD
05/23 - Callisto - Noir 2LP
05/23 - Sarcofagus - Envoy of Death LP
05/23 - Sarcofagus - Go To Hell 7"
05/23 - Kimmo Kuusniemi Band - Moottorilinnut LP + DVD
05/30 - CMX - Kolmikärjen veljeskunta 4LP
05/30 - Musta Paraati - Peilitalossa LP
05/30 - Reverend Bizarre - Crush The Insects 2LP
05/30 - Rattus - WC räjähtää LP
05/30 - Mana Mana - Maria Magdalena 7"
06/06 - Pelle Miljoona & NUS LP
06/06 - Pelle Miljoona & 1980 - Pelko ja viha LP
06/06 - Carpathian Forest - Strange Old Brew LP
06/06 - Candlemass - Ancient Dreams 2LP
Finnish doom act Callisto will see their 2006 album "Noir" get the 2LP vinyl reissue treatment by this coming May. The new edition will include the previously unreleased demo track "Coming aeons" as bonus and will be issued as 300 copies on black, 200 on silver.
Seremonia
Jess and the Ancient Ones
Beastmilk
