Ayr - Circling

 Written by: Nick

From Charlotte, North Carolina I bring you a band who now holds the "on hold" status. This is Ayr's first EP entitled Circling. It came out in 2010 and I've had it for awhile. I almost did a "versus" style review back when I did the Circle of Eyes review but for whatever reason (laziness), I didn't do it. Why a versus style review? I think because at the time I got the same kind of stirring emotion from the albums. I bought them right around the same time and mistakenly thought one was the other on more than one occasion. Now that I've listened to Circle of Eyes a thousand times and this about 500 times...I don't know how the hell I ever got the two confused. 

Andramelech - S.U.M.M.U.S L.U.X

 Written by: Nick

That image is far brighter than the one on the actual tape....oh well. Here's an oldie but a recent discovery for myself. Andramelech come from Mexico and released this demo tape, S.U.M.M.U.S  L.U.X in 2008. I'm not sure where these guys are today. This was their last album according to Metal Archives but they're apparently still 'active.' 

Instinct / Myrrdin - Split 7"

Written by: Nick

Here's another 7" for your ears, or eyes since I don't have tracks for you to listen to this time. This one comes from two, one-man projects from the U.K. Chamber Dark / Pagan Bloody Altar comes to us from the ever-evil, Legion Blotan. It comes encased between some black and white, ritualistic artwork that is mildly disturbing (more intriguing than anything) compliments of Milovan Novakovic. 

Ephemer - Guerre et Glorie

Written by: Nick

Welcome back to Quebecois Black Metal! Ephemer hail from Canada and feature members from Forteresse, and Csejthe and were co-released by Spectre Sinistre Records and Les Productions Hérétiques. That's all you need to know to know it's good, really. It could be the music, or it could be the lack of heat in my apartment but something feels frigid. 

The Rain in Endless Fall - Weald of Instrospection [Demo]

Written by: Nick

Coming up this Valentine's Day, Fallen Empire Records will be releasing a couple new tapes. One of these tapes will be the demo from The Rain in Endless Fall, the other, a demo by Wylve.  Break out those paypal accounts, short the woman/man on their fancy dinner and pick these two tapes up because they're both outstanding. 

Obolus - Lament

Written by: Nick

Just the other day, Flenser released a few albums for free download. One of the top releases that piqued my curiosity was the release of five new tracks by Obolus. I recently did a review on their two track demo, Here, so I was infinitely curious to hear what their latest offering, Lament, had to give us.

Cara Neir - Stagnant Perceptions

written by Mark R. Upson

Somewhere, in the dead of night and dark of basement, there is a scene police detective, hard at work, calling bullshit on anything he/she perceives to be hipster bullshit. Right now, he/she has preemptively called in enforcement's from the anti-cascadian task force and the FTT (Far To Technical) tactical division. They are plotting to take Cara Neir down where they stand, as terrorists to the norm. But they have underestimated Cara Neir's position within the Matrix and failed to send corpsepainted agents. Cara Neir have already penetrated the system. They will find you if you don't find them. Its the music that drives them. It is the music that brought them here.

Misery - Miseria Aeternia

Misery are a French blackened funeral drone act. For some reason, this album, Miseria Aeternia instantly reminds me of Jack the Ripper. Y'know, legendary prostitute disfiguring guy from Whitechapel before Whitechapel stole and pissed on the name. Confused? You should be.

I can imagine myself as the ripper, decked out in a multi-piece suit with a cane, pocket watch and bowler hat, prowling through the streets of London looking for ripe whores I can entice with a few coins long enough to disembowel them in some shadowed street corner.

Obolus Demo 2011

Why...the fuck....is this...so short? Two songs...not nearly long enough.

Scroll - Self Titled Tape

Scroll, a one-man band from Washington deliver us some noisy, atmospheric black metal on this self titled, five track tape.

It was recorded in a 1971 Airstream on a farm in Shelton, Washington over this past summer and ironically enough, the first image that came to mind was having some deranged musician handcuffing me to the small table/bed hybrid in an Airstream filled with amps. I imagine he'd plug in with the most menacing of grins, do some wrist stretches, and then start to trem-pick like a madman on a binge of uppers.

Ziel Bevrijd - Self Titled Tape

Having recently purchased a heap of items from Fallen Empire Records after his return from Messe des Morts, I've been overwhelmed with the magnitude of items I have to listen to. In preparation for our "Year End Lists" I figured I'd go through that mound of delectable black metal tapes and pull out any that were released in 2011 to see if they would make the grade to be accepted into The Slugs first round of "Year Ends." (ZB video at bottom)

One of the first ones I discovered was Ziel Bevrijd, which was also one of the first ones I listened to upon receiving possibly one of the best packages of the year. Something about the ocean has always fascinated me even though I'll be the first to admit it freaks me the fuck out. I hate the ocean but become easily entranced by its mystery. The cover of this self titled tape of course has the bad ass logo that you see above, but it also has a ship that appears to be taking on a rocky path, possibly visiting Captain Haggatha in his sea-grave (or slavery, depending what Cthulhu had in mind for him). Because of this, this tape instantly intrigued me.