Dendritic Arbor - Romantic Love

 

Make no mistake, there is nothing romantic about this album.  I am still in the process of truly digesting all that is going on.  What genre is it?  At times I feel like I am listening to a particularly grimy grindcore act, others I am thinking about black and death metal in the vein of Malthusian or Portal.  Then they hit you with the occasional breather of straight ambient, even when the music is at its most vile.  It is all over the place, and I love it.  It has already shot up pretty high on my 2015 list.  Not quite top 10 material, but who knows what a few more listens might bring?  Be sure to stick around for the full run time, as things don't truly pick up until my personal favorite, "Horizontal Key Vertical Gate."  "Ewaste" is also quite good.  Check out the whole album HERE.  It's only $5 for

digital.

 

 

Vermin Womb - Permanence

Taking a break from 2015 releases, someone dropped this bomb on me yesterday from 2014.  Think Primitive Man meets Pig Destroyer on steroids.  Within these 18 minutes of "music" are some of the most brutal vocals I have heard to date.  Not to be outdone, the drums and guitars crank out some ugly, punishing riffs at breakneck crust speed.  There is a track that is less than a minute, but I think that one left the biggest smile on my face.  It takes a certain type of mind to leave a memorable mark within that short a timespan, and to Vermin Womb that seems to be just business as usual.  You can listen to the album HERE and also name your price for purchase.  Another easy decision added to my library.

The Crinn - Shadowbreather

Time for a little technical grindcore to break up the action.  I see The Crinn as Calculating Infinity-era Dillinger Escape Plan mixed with some Converge and put on fast-forward. The musicianship is pretty jaw-dropping, albeit occasionally at the sacrifice of solid hooks and compositions. But I think the point of this is mainly just to drag you to the floor and beat you to death with calculators in various time signatures. Fun stuff.

Enjoyability=8
Musicianship=9
Innovation=7.9
Overall=8.5

Blastomycosis

 

You there, yes you, the naive uninformed Joe. Have you any idea of what Blastomycosis is? Well I'll tell you. Blastomycosis is a fungal infection of humans caused by the organism Blastomyces dermatitidis. Fear not though, as incidence of this fatal disease is rather rare. On a slightly more reassuring note in a morbid sense, Blastomycosis are a Brutal Death Metal band hailing from Toronto. They aren't your standard run of the mill Brutal Death Metal relying on relentless chugging to create a "heavy" sound. They combine quality clean death metal while giving off vibes of the oldschool that so many of us enjoy. If bands like Jungle Rot, Morbid Angel and  Suffucation were to procreate, Blastomycosis would be the lovely end result. With their new album set to be released anytime now (So I've been told) It will be a joy to listen to some quality tunes.

Fulgora - Stratagem

Sorry for the overload today, but I wanted to strike this one while it's hot. Stream is up here, but I'm not sure for how long. Fangora is a bit of a deathgrind supergroup featuring members of Pig Destroyer, Misery Index, and Agoraphobic Nosebleed.  Nothing super original here, but that doesn’t stop it from being fun.  Think PD’s more accessible, groovy riffs with hardcore punk vocals.  Song lengths are pretty average rather than following the typical 30-50 second blasts of the genre.  Still a short listen with only 7 songs, but I think the length is perfect for what it is.

Enjoyability=8.5
Musicianship=8
Innovation=6
Overall=7.7

Six Brew Bantha

 

 Six Brew Bantha are a three piece grindcore band from Victoria BC.  Clocking in at a whopping 18 minutes, this release is full of all the quintessential elements you would expect from any grind release. From the howls, and frenzied shrieks to disjointed in your face guitar, Six Brew Bantha's self titled release has it all. Who knew Canada had such quality grindcore to offer. 

Discography

Chapter X. at Bethlehem - 2007
Earation - 2009
Live at CFUV - 2009
Descent Into Nothing - 2010
Split with Archgathus - 2011

Six Brew Bantha - 2012

Flourishing 

This release here is perhaps the most immense and perplexing debut known to man. Prior to listening to this, Ulcerate had that honour, and topping that is quite a feat in itself. The best way to think of Flourishing is them being Ulcerate V2 with more variety, and cutting edge. Words simply do no justice for a release of such quality, just do yourself a favour and listen to it immediately and prepare to be amazed.

Discography

A Momentary Sense of the Immediate World - 2010 

The Sum of All Fossils - 2011