Asmodee - Chlorosis
Hey, Bro-dudes and Bro-dettes, since I've been lagging on posts so much lately I'm gonna give you a double kick to the crotch tonight in the form "brainy" modern Black Metal. The first and probably the "brainier" of the two is Asmodee, coming to you from where else but France? Now, I know you've all heard blast-beats, tremolo-picking and stop-and-go riffing before; but you haven't heard it done like this before (at least, I haven't). It's pretty tough to put my finger on it, but these guys just sound different than Enslaved, Deathspell Omega, or whatever Prog BM band people are raving about. Asmodee bring so much more variety, sophistication and balance to the table. I haven't heard Black Metal this impressive since Misery's Omen. Everything seems to flow so nicely: the fast with the slow, the tonal with the atonal, the melodic with the rhythmic. This has everything a great album needs, except for maybe clean vocals, but I always thought those were Black Metal kryptonite anyway.
Abgott - Artefact of Madness
Don't let the song titles and cover art fool you, this is some pretty fancy shit (by Black Metal standards anyway). At it's core, it's some pretty straightforward brutal BM, but what gives it that "brainy" edge are the fretboard gymnastics going on. I honestly can't remember the last time I heard actual "shredding" on a Black Metal album, as everyone seems to be totally appeased by Darkthrone-level playing. Don't get me wrong, there's some great primitive BM out there, but that doesn't mean the bar should be set at that minimalist standard. Beyond the sweet guitar work, there's also some tight drumming, crisp bass, and surprisingly intelligible and forceful vocals. While not setting any new standards, this is a nice and more "stimulating" alternative to whatever Marduk just put out. Also, on earlier albums these guys used to do that whole "frog vocal" thing, so that should interest those of you that are still on the bandwagon riding Inquisition's dick.
does this guy have cleavage?
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