Taking their name from the universe of Dune, this intriguing band releases its latest record, Litanies. Post metal might be the easiest way of describing Gholas but that would be unfair to their much deeper and more complex nature.The beginning of the album comes in and hits you straight in the face with “…And the Lives Come Flooding,” as the … Read more
Post Metal is a pretty loaded genre tag. Most people (myself included) find it misleading. The idea relies on the idea that more effects on your guitars and a sense of dynamics and ambience equal being less than metal. Gholas are a band that seem to fit in this general idea of a genre. They play with a sense of … Read more
Swedish theatrical rock outfit Ghost unleashed their fifth studio album entitled Impera at the beginning of March this year and for a little while the rock/metal community was saturated with interviews from Tobias Forge not to mention everyone and their dog were posting reviews of this new album. Sorry to be the one that prolongs this but I'm here to … Read more
Swedish heavy metal/doom band Ghost (who I adamantly refuse to call "Ghost B.C.", vague American "legal reasons" be damned) made quite a splash on the heavy metal scene with the well-received (and confusingly-titled) debut Opus Eponymous in 2010. Between the band's very obvious interest in subversive Christian themes, unexpectedly ostentatious stage presentation, and oddly dedicated insistence on their members' anonymity, … Read more
When Ghost first materialized on the scene in 2010 with their debut album Opus Eponymous, they made quite an impression. First there was the image: five "nameless ghouls" performing the music in hooded robes (now silver, horned masks) and vocalist Papa Emeritus, dressed as a sort of anti-pope with a penchant for fog machines and blacklight paint. These aspects of … Read more
From the first taster of Phantomime... a cover of "Jesus He Knows Me", released in early May, I had a feeling that good things were to come with this new covers EP! This five track EP was released a few weeks after the Genesis cover on May 19th and follows after last years Impera as a between album aperitif which … Read more
Ghost Buffalo is an alt-country-ish band from Colorado. They lean more to the "alt" side of that genre as they don't really use (at least on this record) lap pedal steel guitar, banjo, or any other instrumentation that one would expect to hear on a country record. The record is also largely absent of country twang. This is a good … Read more
Sometimes one needs a good reminder not to let expectations run amok in order to avoid disappointment. In general I always try to get positively surprised rather than the other way around, but you can't always be at the top of your game. Sometime you let yourself hope of something good only to be let down. This may sound more … Read more
"To speak of money and music in the same sentence is a fucking travesty. I'd rather keep losing money, rather keep scraping by than be a part of a scene constantly talks about sales, guarantees, and marketing prowess... Because this is how simple it should be; music is inside you, boiling, and it needs to get out because it's your … Read more
If "The Champ" has not, by the time of publication, been mass produced onto 12" record and shipped to every club DJ in the hip-hop speaking world then there is something truly fucked with the world. You see, with summer fast approaching the dance floors of the world are screaming out for a new jam that will make women emit … Read more
I'm a big Ghostface fan. Iron Man? Supreme Clientele? Fishscale? Love em'. The guy is by far the most consistent rapper of the Wu-Tang Clan. He's got great flow, can pull off the stream of consciousness rapping quite well, and his lyrics cover a nice variety of topics including the usual life on the street struggle, explicit sexual acts, as … Read more
On his seventh album it sounds like Ghostface is handing over the reins to the less noted, giving more of his name and less of his talent, allowing the up and comers to ride on his success. The overall presentation of the album seems rushed and halfhearted; perhaps he assumes that people will purchase the album solely on the premise … Read more
Oakland's Ghoul are a mysterious bunch, going by pseudonyms, apparently hailing from Creepsylvania (a quick Google map check tells me this isn't actually a real place), and looking like they just stepped off a 70's horror flick set. Sounds crazy. And it kinda is, but what else would you expect from a band with a Kill-bot and members (supposedly) of … Read more
Well, that was a short album. At only thirty-five minutes long, doom/sludge metal group Giant Squid have almost halved the runtime of their previous album, The Ichthyologist, for the release of their third studio album, Cenotes.But what does brevity matter, when the music is top quality? This album is every bit as weighty as the giant squi--er, creatures on the … Read more
I've always been fascinated with oceanography, or anything related to the ocean for that matter. And with the oceans covering nearly three-quarters of our planet, there is a lot to be fascinated with. My quest to learn as much about the history of the sea and everything contained within will likely never be completely fulfilled. But, as I continue in … Read more
For the following reasons I'm a firm believer that every CD collection should contain a few albums that confuse people when they are slipped into rotation. These albums a) give us credibility amongst different groups of people; b) make our knowledge of music superior amongst people within our own groups; and c) gives us chance to experiment with different types … Read more
Post-rock has predictably reached its stage of full saturation, becoming the self-loathing cliché that wasn't hard to see coming. Bands are unfairly and mockingly compared to Explosions in the Sky, Mogwai, and This Will Destroy You, whose stranglehold over the genre have made them a benchmark for those that follow suit and a constant reminder of the jadedness of the … Read more
Gifts From Enola should be fairly recognizable to anyone into the post rock scene at this point. The Virginia based band have been putting out music and logging road time for the better part of 6 years at this point. The band have worked hard to progress their dynamics-laden post rock sound. So it comes as little surprise that after … Read more
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