Latest Reviews
There are way too many records released every week - which one should you listen to? We want to help you by reviewing lots of records every week and you can also check out a little teaser before reading the whole thing. And if you want to, you can also browse through our archive and have a look at the amazing records you might have missed out on.
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An Abstract Illusion - Woe
10 Sep 2022 - Knut
Atmospheric Progressive Melodic Death Metal/…and moreWhat can be described as a splendid grandeur beauty? This release can. This long musical work of art is such, even if it unveils violence, abuse, despair and rage, although combined with revenge and a glimmer of hope and resilience. The trio follows up their two previous magnificent releases and, unbelievably, exceeds them with a release six years in the making. The haunting cover and title of the record give a hint to the multi-faceted music that unfolds.
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Sunflo'er - All These Darlings and Now Me
09 Sep 2022 - Dan D.
MathcoreSunflo’er sure can make a racket. And I mean that as a compliment of course. These Potsdam, New York-natives effortlessly combine elements of ‘The Wave’ bands such as Touche Amore and La Dispute as well as Converge and, at points, the sorely missed The Chariot to create a heady cocktail of ‘core’ goodness. I’m not a drinker but one whiff of what the band has blended on All These Darlings And Now Me I know that the mix sure is potent enough to get the party started!
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The Sombre - Monuments of Grief
08 Sep 2022 - Thorsten
Doom MetalOkay I admit defeat. Maurice de Jong, you are a master of not only one craft but of many. Each genre known to metal fans has now been done to perfection by the Dutch jack-of-all-trades. Following his sheer endless releases is like trying to count the bees around the freshest, strongest-smelling flowers in the middle of summer. And he has done it again – now in one of the genres he grew up with: The Sombre gives us some of the most wonderfully arranged and structured Death-Doom this side of the millennium.
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Stray From The Path - Euthanasia
07 Sep 2022 - Sebastian
HardcoreAre you in or in the way? This urgent question is basically the whole idea behind Stray From The Path, one of modern hardcore’s most outspoken bands and that is something to behold in such a politically charged genre of music.
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Asunojokei - Island
06 Sep 2022 - Brayden
Blackgaze, Post-Hardcore, ScreamoBlackgaze has always been a genre I’m not too fond of – I still harbor rigorous criticism against the sub-sub genre. Asunojokei have always proved themselves the exception to me: most other blackgaze artists are repetitive and melodramatic. Then there are the ones like Alcest, an overflowing well of unique ideas sewn together to craft something blissful counterpointed by metal’s endless ferocity; and then there is Asunojokei, who sits comfortably between these archetypes. Their debut album Awakening left a massive legacy that Island does its best to live up to.
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Mo'ynoq - A Place For Ash
05 Sep 2022 - Thorsten
(Atmospheric) Black MetalThere surely has been no shortage of good American black metal bands but come on, one can never have too many good Black Metal bands, right? And if they show some Death Metal influences on their sleeves? Even better. Mo‘ynoq from Raleigh, North Carolina check these boxes and also offer some Pacific Northwestern tinges and even some Classic Rock sounds on their new album A Place for Ash.
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Tuhaf - Mere Guld
04 Sep 2022 - Thorsten
Folklore, Psychedelic RockFirst of: I speak neither Turkish nor Danish, so this review is based solely on the music and the vocal expression! Nevertheless, this record surely hits a lot of sweet spots with me which have nothing to do with any understanding of lyrics! Tuhaf perform this kind of soulful, folklore-laden psychedelia which can be understood in Laurel Canyon or in Berlin as well as in Istanbul or Copenhagen!
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Nitelight - Oblivion
03 Sep 2022 - Stephan
SynthwaveBased on the sub cultural demographic of its musicians, labels and fans it doesn’t feel far-fetched to say that that there’s at least a certain brand of synthwave music which you could rightfully call the only worthwhile subgenre of metal that isn’t actually metal at all. Or at least for a while it has been that way. Not only with Carpenter Brut’s guitar shredding or Gost going full extreme metal the lines have already been blurred. Enter Nitelight, who have developed their related, but still distinct idea of merging the worlds while staying true to their fully electronic instrumentation.
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Endonomos - s/t
02 Sep 2022 - Thorsten
(Death/) Doom MetalDeath meets Doom. A classic combination which is always somewhat promising to my ears as I have come to consider this one of my favorite genres of all time, because it mixes many things I like – melody, darkness, growls, heaviness, some blast-attacks. Austrian newcomers Endonomos deliver all of this on their self-titled debut full-length.
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Veldune - Veldune
01 Sep 2022 - Joshua
Rock, Art Pop, Desert NoirSabbath Assembly were unique. Conceived initially as a performance art collective, its rotating cast of devotees released several albums exploring the liturgy of the Process Church of the Final Judgment, a poorly understood 1960s religious movement that eventually fell prey to circumstance and exploitation. Was it Gnosticism, Satanism, Reformed Christianity? No one could seem to agree. (What if we just chucked it all to worship women and animals?) When its core membership emerged, the band wed its mysticism with materialism to explore new sounds over several more albums—somewhat of a contemporary intellectual merger of the metal-jazz stylings of Black Sabbath and folk-rock ethos of Fairport Convention. Sounds awesome? It was. So, when three wayward disciples announce they will congregate anew to recapture a certain songcraft, it’s natural to wonder: is this Sabbath Assembly 2.0? Decidedly not. On their eponymous debut, Veldune travel new westward routes, awash in the variegated colors of a sunset horizon as they chase the evanescent union of earth and sky.
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Death Bells - Between Here & Everywhere
31 Aug 2022 - Thorsten
Post-Punk, Synthwave, Progressive”I’ve been lookin, I’ve been lookin, believe me / I’ve been searchin’, I’ve been searchin’ for you” What sounds like one of the schmaltziest lines in music history ever, is actually delivered so well, that many, many people will be fallin, will be fallin in love with Death Bells. Whether again or for the first time doesn‘t matter. This record is a somewhat sunnier version of Post-Punk than what most people would expect but it delivers some of the warmest, brightest songs this side of “She‘s Lost Control“ or “Crystal“.
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Might - Abyss
30 Aug 2022 - Thorsten
Noise, Heavy Metal, Indie-RockEclecticism can be a two-sided sword musically. On the one hand it can be highly entertaining, if a band is able to master more than two or three or four different musical styles. On the other hand, then some other things must be well-done as well, like the tracklist, the arrangement and tonality of the songs and also the vocals. Northern Germany-based married couple MIGHT might have found a good way to give us another really great highly eclectic release, Abyss.
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Sarattma - Escape Velocity
29 Aug 2022 - Joshua
Experimental Post-Metal, Doom, Progressive RockSarattma’s debut full-length, Escape Velocity, is a tale of two albums. Alchemizing inconsolable grief, pain within and without, and the spiritual vagrancy that emerges when the very idea of home undergoes collapse, this is music conceived for the best and the worst of times. Throughout a suite of dynamic instrumental compositions interweaving a bevy of drums and guitars, the post-metal duo presents a Janus aspect: a large jaw set by past musical influences and fair face turned toward an uncertain future for terrestrial kind.
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Orochen - Anthroposcenic
28 Aug 2022 - Gene
Neo-Folk, Post MetalUnlikely, unexpected, and not to be overlooked, Anthroposcenic pursues an unworn path to aural enlightenment, paved with scathing social commentary and unforgettable hooks. Put Orochen on your ’top new artists to watch’ list!
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AEIR - A Frith Befouled
27 Aug 2022 - Thorsten
Post-Hardcore, Crust-Punk, SludgeMinnesang is a German literary term for a certain kind of medieval music with a singer accompanying himself on the lute or maybe even performing acapella. Mostly one must envision these singers composing songs about either love or some high nobility circumstances. Why am I writing this? Because to me, there is a certain parallel between Minnesang and the debut album by US/UK crust outfit AEIR. And that is not only due to the cover of the record but to several other things.
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Roji - Dual Gaia
26 Aug 2022 - Stephan
experimental, noise, jazzCome on! You can pretend to be all grown-up and mature all day, but I’m seeing right through you. Yes, your taste in music is super sophisticated, deep and diversified. And I respect that! But you cannot for the life of me tell me that there’s isn’t at least a part of you that deep down just regularily needs an eardrum-lambasting fix of new always louder and crazier extreme shit which just smashes your face and pummels your body in some form. And if there’s a noise that can scratch that itch while still maintaining its creativity and musical relevance, that’s even better, isn’t it?
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ROOK - Infinite Empty
25 Aug 2022 - Thorsten
Synth-Pop, Post-Rock, Ambient DoomThe cupboard in C.S. Lewis’ Narnia realms. Platform 9 ¾ in the Potter-verse. The river in Heart of Darkness: spots in famous books where someone transfers from one sphere to another, from one form of existence to another. That trope is far too often applied to music - ”when listening to this track, you will be transported to another place”. Far too often and yes, we also used this one here on VoS already. However, for the very, very first time I have heard a track for which this might be really true: ”White Wall” opens ROOK’s debut full-length and man, after listening to this synth-ambient-psychedelia that is as much Amon Düül as it is Brian Eno, as much Bauhaus as 13th Floor Elevators, you are open enough for what follows next. I am pretty sure that one wouldn’t be without. It is quite overwhelming.
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Hush - Pornography of Ruin
24 Aug 2022 - Thorsten
(Funeral) Doom Metal, Post-MetalPhiladelphia is so much more than bad fans (which is not quite true, imo), a mighty cheese steak sandwich, Cold Case and Rocky – it is also home to some mighty interesting bands and one of them is Hush, who just released a strong outing in the form of their third full-length The Pornography of Ruin! A record that was more than five years in the making but which sounds like it was done in the last five months. Timeless (funeral) doom metal.
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Motorpsycho - Ancient Astronauts
23 Aug 2022 - Thorsten
Motorpsycho, Progressive RockNo matter if you like them or not, one has to admit that Motorpsycho from Norway are not only one of the more productive bands of our time (basically one album a year is their average) but that their output is also of a constantly high level. So the question for the new record Ancient Astronauts is not a level of quality but rather one of differentiation – what does this record different and/or better than the other umpteen records the trio has put out in their long history?
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Long Distance Calling - Eraser
22 Aug 2022 - Sebastian
Progressive Metal, Post-RockIt feels a bit weird writing this review just after releasing my interview with Jan from Long Distance Calling and I hope I don’t just repeat what we said about their new album. But man is this new record just amazing. It is so vastly different from their last one, that it is almost like a completely different band.
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Hexis - Aeternum
22 Aug 2022 - Knut
Blackened Hardcore/Post Black Metal/DarkwaveHowever long or short each fast-blasting Hexis-song is on this album, they always manage to bring on elements of elongated post-metal structures into their songs, even with dips into Darkwave. After numerous EPs, splits, two full-length albums and constant touring (800 shows and counting) since their inception in 2010, the pandemic forced the band and the world to a full stop. Now Hexis comes thundering and screeching back with their third full length and promises of new shows. Brace yourselves, for this is a breathless rollercoaster of an album seeping of urgent desperation and anger that in the end sink into eternal echoing.
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Pjusk - Svaberg
21 Aug 2022 - Skyler
Electronic, AmbientPjusk and Chihei’s new magical soundscape.
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Buried Under Sky - Darkest Corners
19 Aug 2022 - Knut
Melodic Hard Rock/Death MetalHaving day jobs, but wanting to make music in their spare time these seasoned musicians joined forces to make an engaging album with catchy melodies. Having gone through almost every genre on the heavy side of rock and metal, they fuse their influences into five songs with memorable melodic themes.
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Dalila Kayros - Animami
13 Aug 2022 - Stephan
Electronic, ExperimentalEarlier this year Dalila Kayros’ unmistakable voice already shone on the album Pyramiden by the equally unique Italian post djent (or whatever you’ll want to call them) band Syk. If you either missed that phenomenal release or just got addicted to the intriguing vocal perfomances on it - rejoice, because here comes more! And it’s a lot more, because on her new solo work Animami the vocals are front and center, left and right, and everywhere in between and all around.
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Russian Circles - Gnosis
12 Aug 2022 - Simon
Post-MetalRussian Circles return with their eigth album Gnosis which was written remotely due to the pandemic (unlike previous albums where they were all in the same place), which if anything has galvanised the band to even greater heights
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