Sunday, January 28, 2018

Chelsea Wolfe - Hiss Spun

Chelsea Wolfe - Hiss Spun
Sargent House (US)  /  2017 / Experimental metal

Chelsea Wolfe famously skirts the edges of a lot of loosely-related genres, including gothic rock, industrial music, electronica, folk rock, and doom metal, but 2017's Hiss Spun commits decisively toward metal. I've been on the fence about Wolfe's previous albums, which have a ton of atmosphere and tension but only rarely push that into some type of release. It's an approach I associate with gothic styles of music, which are content to inhabit mood without going on a journey. Hiss Spun throws that ethos out the window.

Monday, January 15, 2018

Sinistro - Sangue Cássia

Sinistro - Sangue Cássia
Season of Mist (FRA)  /  2018 / Doom metal

In a genre full of belters, shouters, growlers, crooners, and screamers, it feels odd to hear someone who can legitimately sing. Patricia Andrade's voice makes Portugal's Sinistro sound instantly unique. If you like her idiosyncratic brand of ethereal, haunting vocals, you'll probably love Sangue Cássia. Otherwise, look elsewhere.