Metal Roundup Week of 11/24
From the dark and twisted to the beautiful and bright, this week brought us an incredible variety of great underground metal albums!
Sacrum Funeral by Cultum Interitum
Cultum Interitum returns with raw and unrestrained blackened death metal in their new release Sacrum Funeral. Shifting with ease from frantic guitar sections with unrelenting drums to brutal, grating breakdowns, Cultum Interitum plunges into total darkness and doesn’t let up.
Wrapped in Mist by Helga
HELGA makes their debut with Wrapped in Mist, a very well-executed prog metal album that skillfully avoids cliches commonly associated with more symphonic-leaning works. With strong storytelling skills and ethereal vocals, the group delivers conceptual songs that balance elements of neofolk with dark pop and black metal. Helga doesn’t get stuck in one musical idea for too long, comfortably shifting from one sound to the next while remaining grounded. We rarely describe metal albums as “pretty,” but this one certainly is!
Hunting God Tapes Vol. 2: Romance by Pincer+
We don’t cover a ton of metalcore on this series, but this is an absolutely exemplary project that warrants discussion- Hunting God Tapes Vol. 2: Romance by Pincer+. Nihilistic and unhinged, Pincer+ barrels forward with a natural sense of momentum. Where other metalcore projects may be tempted to slide into a pop-leaning sound, Romance fuses the best elements of metal and harcore, delivering nothing but brutality with a charged sense of aggression. This group is definitely on the rise, now is the time to get into Pincer+!
Blut, Milch, und Thränen by Kvelgeyst
Our favorite Swiss alchemystic black metal group KVELGEYST returns with Blut, Milch, und Thränen. Their new project is led by a strong storytelling concept- an alchemist experiences powerful visions and seeks out a spiritual goal only to be met with strife and sacrifice. KVELGEYST explores atmospheric sections of poetic spoken word that plunge into thrashy black metal, remaining intense and dramatic throughout its run.
