Bandcamp Picks - Abyssal, Tomb Mold, Superstition, Nucleus

Having expanded from a solo project to a full band with a handful of festival appearances under their belt, the UK-based Abyssal are only slightly less mysterious than when they started. Their fourth album A Beacon In The Husk elucidates why the band stands out in the increasingly crowded world of dissonant death/black metal - with extended ambient interludes, unpredictable song structures, and I have no problem saying that this is the best and most interesting metal band to emerge in the last decade. [$8 CAD]



Don't be fooled by their name - Toronto's Tomb Mold are more than just another old school death metal band. At odds with its cement mixer production, Planetary Clairvoyance displays a thoughtfullness to its songwriting, packing the songs with multiple time changes and even the occasional acoustic interlude. It may be a stretch to call them "progressive", but Tomb Mold are potentially the next Gorguts in the making.  [$7.77]



Currently touring with Tomb Mold, New Mexico's Superstition also present a thoughtful tweaking to the old school formula. The thrashy death of their debut The Anatomy Of Unholy Transformation verges into psych rock terrain, thanks to its heavily reverbed production and the unusual lead work of Ash Borer/Vanum guitarist Kyle Morgan. The gulf between Chuck Schuldiner and Roky Erickson got a little smaller. [$7.77]



With their second full-length, DoC friends Nucleus show that "raw" and "progressive" aren't mutually exclusive. Filled with unorthodox time signatures and discordant riffs, Entity is as raw as you'd want a death metal album to sound, and as inventive as the genre should be. A cosmic opus of Demilich-meets-Voivod strangeness. [$6]

Bandcamp Picks - Advent of Bedlam, Abyssal/Carcinoma, Voidthrone, Our Place of Worship is Silence

Storming out of Costa Rica, ADVENT OF BEDLAM represent a quadrant of the metal map that's often overlooked - and criminally so, if this album is indicative of that scene as a whole.  Supremely assured in its approach and flawless in its execution, Human Portal Phenomenon is a high-water mark for blackened death metal, combining dissonance and unrelenting brutality with a musical acumen reminiscent of Emperor at their swaggering peak.  This smokes 90% of the releases currently coming out of Europe and the US - don't miss out. [$6.66]



DoC faves Abyssal have finally returned with their first new batch of songs since 2015.  Apanthropinization, a split release courtesy of Goatprayer Records, features 4 new Abyssal compositions that showcase the band's claustrophobic and psychedelia-tinged sound.  Fellow Brits Carcinoma kick off the split, and hold their own with four songs that are as heavy and unyielding as an invading tank battalion.  The future looks bright for total fucking darkness. [£6 GBP]



Add Seattle's Voidthrone to the growing field of dissonant blackened death metal bands.  Kur keeps the listener on edge, transitioning between atonal blasting and creeping atmospherics, finding the dread in both calm and storm.  Anyone growing impatient waiting for Mitochondrion's return should find their appetites sufficiently sated here. [$3]



Originally an off-shoot of DoC friends Teeth, Our Place of Worship is Silence has quickly established itself as a separate and distinct entity.  Their sophomore release With Inexorable Suffering sees the L.A. band (now stripped to a duo) putting a new emphasis on confounding rhythms, avoiding the trap of monotony and oversimplification that affects most two-pieces.  Their inclusion on the Translation Loss roster should be taken as a sign that they're a cu(l)t above the rest. [$10]