Eye of Nix

From Seattle, whose water supply must be nightly tainted with goat's blood by some dark, hooded figure, comes yet another smashing addition to metal's grayest enclave. Eye of Nix is the sound of Empire crumbling: a lone woman's wailing is heard, awakening old despair.  The populace stirs to a mumble of discontent traveling mouth to ear, thrusting the gyres of dissent into motion; the throb and pulse mounts to a critical mass that the mechanisms of power can no longer contain.  Chanting and drumming dissolves to caterwauling and crashing; before long, all is dust and rubble, and the hazy promise of things to come.

Call it black metal, if you have to call it something. Cold, ambient, hypnotic, noisy-- the kind of band you'd want to have play at your next black mass, yet whose lyrics (that aren't in Latin) are refreshingly straight forward.  I came to know Eye of Nix because of their connection with other Seattle favorites, Same-Sex Dictator and Hellgrammite, whom I hope you'll check out too.  For a time, I'll post my tape rips of the Eye of Nix demo below, but I hope you'll go to their bandcamp page and support them if they appeal to you.

Eye of Nix demo, 2013

Live video of another EON track.

Re-uploads:
Counterblast EPs
Counterblast first LP
Counterblast second LP
Mine first 7"
Grinch/Lost Goat split LP

A Cold Gust of Wind

A little bitterness to offset life's sweetness is one thing, but then there's the need now and then to prepare for those inevitable bouts of despair-- stare down the barrel of a gun, glance over the edge of a precipice, or just listen to some metallic Polish hardcore.  Bands from that country have an intimidating tradition of flirting with utter bleakness; favorites of mine would be Lost, Silence, and Insuiciety (I know, technically based in Germany, but still comprised of Polish personnel).  Next Victim became an instant entry to the list with the outstanding From the Depths split LP, which I still regard as one of the best splits I've run across in quite some time.  On this one, Next Victim break up their doomy, hypnotic riffs and rhythms with more buoyant, almost groove laden picking, and one very haunting, melodic interlude.  Although confined to only a small section of wax, their three songs still succeed in capturing the expansive, epic quality of their approach.  But it's on their CD, "The Cold Gust of Wind," that the band was able to fully unroll the intricately realized map of pure hopelessness in sonic form.  The whole disk flutters in circles like our own stomach butterflies as we peer over the beams of a bridge that could be our last stop in life.  The frequent use of space in the songwriting offers moments of clarity, which are then abruptly suffocated by heavy chords and anguished screams. Then, occasionally, our buckled and hunched figure is raised up by Gosia's robust vocal melodies and some truly enervating guitar riffage.  Rarely before has a band succeeded in making the abyss so alluring.

I'm going to offer both records for download, but I hope you'll at least try to find the split or send the label or bands some money.  The split tracks are my own vinyl rips, by the way.  And, if you haven't heard From the Depths before, they are another incredible band, dark and powerful, with almost operatically sung lead vocals (they are also a Crimethinc joint, if that matters to you).  Finally, if Next Victim appeals to you, certainly check into Mind Pollution, a band which not only has NV members, but sounds rather similar too.  They offered much of the darkness and songwriting idiosyncrasies, while kicking up the speed at times and working in more dissonant chords, a la Silence.

Next Victim "A Cold Gust of Wind" CD (Sadness of Noise, 2009)

Next Victim/From the Depths split LP (Nikt Nic Nie Wie, Scream, and Zaraza, 2010)

Mind Pollution "Spalone Dusze" CD (Yama Dori and Sadness of Noise, 2005)

Half Japanese

I have neither sad story nor heroic epic to account for the lack of posts.  I've just been finding other things to do with my time.  To make up for said "lost" time, I offer a resurrected idea, the "grab bag o' splits."  Four splits had to be chosen from my teeming bins; the international theme was not enough to quell the chaos.  Japan would have to come to the rescue!  Each EP in the bag has one Japanese band featured-- beyond that, quality counts, style doesn't; obscurity is a plus.

This first split sees Norway's Angst wrestling with Idora for the last scrap of whale meat.  Figuratively speaking, I hope.  Both bands represent their respective countries as well as the time period (early '90's) smashingly-- Angst discharging an arctic blast of thrashed-out Norse-core with modern flourish, and Idora doing what their country has mastered for ages, but with an exceptionally scathing guitar sound.

If a bit of South American brutal primitivism is your thing, Venezuela's @patia No deliver it, Machetes in hand.  Their three tracks also appear on the collection LP they put out on Alerta Antifascista/Skuld, but here they are, in their original place of nativity, next to Japan's Jabara.  These guys are probably best known on this coast for the 12" they put out on Prank, and these two Death Side-esque rippers ended up on that one too.

It's Germany and Japan, reunited once again, this time not for world domination, but for intricately wrought ass-brutalization.  Deutschland's Atka provide the fractal grindcore geometry combined with repetitive autistic mind-melting guitar loops, while Swarrrm are up to their usual tricks, escaping the psych-ward long enough to smear their rambling manifesto in feces all over the infrastructure of our decaying civilization.  Ecocentric Records was having a hard time keeping their online store online, and I had a problem downloading my digital version, so my own rips are provided, and I hope you'll contact the label to get a real copy if you can.

  The last goody in the bag is a double creature feature of dirty, metallic sludge.  Hellchild's chugga-chunkiness has graced many a split, and here they are again, busting out Wesley Pipes with Tennessee's very own cannabis crematorium, Bongzilla.  H:G Fact never lets us down, even when the bands are not the label's usual fare.


Get all four splits in this bag.

Recently Re-upped: Mine "Tetanus" LP + Dawnbreed Split 7"

Coming Up: the fulfillment of a request!

Under Midnights and 10,000 Tombs

There are no fewer than six bands with the name Memento Mori, so let me start by establishing that this is the one that did a split with Kylesa way back when.  This Memento Mori hung back in the trenches along the fringes of warring musical worlds, following mainly the protocols of that excruciatingly personal hardcore come to fruition in the nineties, but donning an impenetrable veneer forged in the fires of speed metal, melodic death metal, and early Celtic Frost.  The twelve tracks on their posthumously released CD shows an even more artful melding of those styles than some members' previous band (Sutek Conspiracy tracks have been re-upped here), and were gleaned from MM's 12", split mentioned above, and unreleased recordings. In Memento Mori's case, I think it's more than appropriate to mention that the vocalist later joined Scrotum Grinder and is currently the screamer in No Statik, and that the guitarist is/was in Saros.

Memento Mori Discography CD (Hyperrealist Records, 2004...320 kbps)

Recently Re-upped- No Comment discography!

Coming soon (I promise!)- Re-ripped Despise You/Suppression split 7"

Unsavory Secret Cloaked in Mystery

With tracks as long and complex as the life cycle of its namesake, Hellgrammite amble, trod, and ravage through mindscapes... well, unsavory, secret, and mysterious.  And, not unlike the fungus of the opening track's title, each of the four compositions on the "II" cassette are like deadly spores infecting the listener's brain, splitting sword-like through the cranium, revealing the tangled bramble-patch of the mind's sense of pleasure, euphoria, pain, and fear.  Black metal, doom, prog... these are all comfortable reference points, but like all art/music, it's not just what is present that matters, but the spaces between.  Whether those spaces take the form of bass-heavy drones, or echoey psychedelia, the violent times are all the more confusing and thrilling by contrast.  Hellgrammite is brought to you by one half of Same-Sex Dictator, and members of Forest Friends and ...Wind Swept Planes... The "II" tape is (possibly) available from End Theory Records, or contact the band.

Hellgrammite "II" Cassette (digital rips... 320)

** Special thanks to Justin for hooking up the tape and the WAV files (and for the awesome drumming)!

Atolls and Serial Killers Part II

The time has come to rehash the surliest and burliest metallic hardcore of the nineties.  Two factors prompted this (yet another) Enewetak post: a request for a re-up, and a long ago kick-down of some rarities, compliments of a mysterious stranger.  The first link below includes re-rips of the band's "Easyrider Sessions Vol. 1" 7" and 8 previously unposted tracks including a Guns n' Roses cover and another recording of "Deadbird" among other raw and nasty numbers.  Dirty sludge twists around chunky mosh in this JG Ballard-like collision of tissue and metal that always sends me reeling.

Enewetak- "Easyrider Sessions Vol. 1" and rarities

It has come to my attention that the Enewetak/Unruh split 7" link died, so here is a refresher:

Here

The Darkness Revisited

In wading through the bone heap of dark and obscure hardcore that this blog has become over the years, it's hard not to stumble over a few relics that could use a bit more polishing, or which deserve some further exposure befitting their hallowed place (at least in my world).  The records you see above and below are getting the treatment today due to previous ripping issues, such as low bit rate (Zero Hour),  a turn table apparently on meth (Asebia- thanks Mikexxx for pointing it out), low volume (Nux Vomica), or a barely-attached needle (Ambulance).  Obviously, I felt they were worthy of doing this all over again, and I can't recommend these bands enough if they are new to you.  We begin with Zero Hour, who became one of my all time favorite bands on the strength of their 7" alone way back in 1995.  I still can't listen to these four songs without feeling like I've been nailed in the chest by a flying hobo sack of wisdom and emotion.  This is the EP's third and probably last appearance on this blog, the first being almost five years ago.

The folder also has re-ripped versions of the band's excellent tracks from the split LP with Apeface.

Zero Hour Tracks

Original Post

Asebia was incredible, dark, metallic Scandi-thrash from Denmark.

"Face of Civilization" LP

Previous Post





Nux Vomica have former members of Wake Up On Fire, and are now based in Portland.  Their fantastic debut always kills me.

The Uninspired 7"

Original Post

Ambulance didn't last long with this line-up, sadly, but they managed to put out one unrelenting, long-playing manifesto of Swedish gloom and despair.  This was the last record I ripped/played before my last needle broke off the cartridge.  I should have re-ripped this long ago...
                                                "The End of Our Time" LP

                                                            Original Post

A Very Special Brew

Whether you're of the opinion that Axegrinder was derivative or just happened to be doing similar things at the same time as other early UK crusties, you can't deny their place in the 'evilution' of the genre.  I for one have thoroughly reveled in their savage and methodical torments since discovering them for myself about a decade ago.  "Grind the Enemy" was Axegrinder's raw punisher of a demo released before their opus, "Rise of the Serpent Men;" but the rips I've been stringing along for years were a bit lacking. Now that I think of it, I probably could have found better rips if I was more persistent.   But, enter the (Italian?) bootleg operation, Pelvic Alee, who got it in their minds to release the demo on LP recently.  When this arrived at my doorstep, I was quite the giddy mess-- so much so that I decided to rip it.  The "label' did a quality job all around from the sound (keep in mind this is a 26 year old punk demo), to the covers, to the insert which includes lyrics and a biography of the band.  Check it out; I don't know if the quality is any better than what you have, but I wouldn't be much of a host if I didn't share.

Axegrinder "Grind the Enemy" demo, unofficial LP release

Amber Are These Days

Institute first blipped on my radar a few years ago during a random search for Damad, but this post can be credited to eastcobb for finally getting me to upload the goods. Institute materialized from the same vapors as Damad, Kylesa, Karst, etc., but opted for a more expansive sound. The same dark universe is seen tinted through colder, slightly industrial eyes, kindred spirits of which might include early Counterblast, In Nomine Christi, and Christdriver. The voice samples and noise effects add a nice layer to the mix, but for me it's the hypnotic rhythms and driving metal riffs that are the real flesh. I'm posting my own rips of the one vinyl piece I own by the band ("Two Shadows") and tracks from "The Piano Player" which I downloaded from the band back when they made available both records to the public.

Institute

"Two Shadows" LP (Yellow Dog Records, 2001?) ripped @ 320.

"The Piano Player" (@ 192)

Calling the Waffle House Home

Mr. Nuclearpowergrind requested anything by pre-Assfactor 4 bands Unherd and Tonka. Mike at Twisted Tracks stepped up and posted the Unherd LP, and after some searching, I managed to track down some odds and ends. We start with the Tonka 7", a collection of four high-energy, youthful tracks bathed in DC post-hardcore, but hung to dry in a more southern clime. The cover design indicates either the band's affinity for early Jawbreaker, or a mere coincidental resemblance to a certain album of theirs. Tonka wasn't as fast or hardcore as Assfactor, but they nailed this style damn well, as did Unherd.
Both bands contribute solid offerings on the "Stupid by the Grace of God" comp, which showcases four South Carolina bands. In addition to Tonka and Unherd, we're "treated" to some syrupy pop-punk by way of Toast, and a helping of "cereal-core" compliments of Bedlam Hour. I thought "Frankenberry Mosh" might be a silly fluke in their discography, but the photo on the back depicts one member wearing a Cheerios box on his head. Good thing this never became a trend.
Finally we arrive at another Unite and Fight Records release, the "Please Stop" comp., relevant here for its two solid Tonka tracks, and curious for its inclusion of Orange County peace punkers, Media Children! Demise play decent old-school hardcore, but I'm not too fond of Officer Friendly's track.

Get all three records HERE

Starving The Starving

So maybe we won't be leaving Canada alone just yet. I got bitten by the summer bug since the last post and thus the delay; but in the meantime I secured a cheap copy of the Wisigoth/Jobbykrust split LP which I'm happy to share with you today. Wisigoth continue with their raw and ugly doom/crust/metal, and Jobbykrust compile some early demo material for 12 tracks of charged-up political hardcore done right. Both bands are so distinct, yet the pairing seems just perfect and both match each other in intensity and sincerity, making the 47 minutes of music seem all too short. Get more Jobbykrust music and info here, here, and here, and get the Wisigoth 7" here.

Wisigoth/Jobbykrust split LP (Funai Records)

Hybride

I'll go ahead and leave Canada alone for while, but not without first dropping a double regiment of Hybride. I can't find much information about these guys, but on the 10" depicted above, prepare yourself for a seriously fucked up guitar sound and some noise rock/sludge/hardcore that leaves me with the same sickened satisfaction as the Gasp demo or the Insuiciety 10". There's a looseness of structure and direction that the band would shed a bit on their...
...7" a year or two later. On this, their final (?), outing the band stripped their sound down almost to the bones and opted for a mean, almost unencumbered sludge-metal approach. They also kept only Mélanie on vocals, and in isolation she reminds me a lot of the Daymare singer (maybe it's just because her screams are high-pitched and in French). I can't pick a favorite between the two records as it really depends if you're in the mood for some psychedelic chaos or more measured heaviosity. Both are in the folder below.

Hybride 10" & 7" (Spineless and Bad Card Records respectively)

In the Wake of an Ethereal Nightmare

In collaboration with 15 Counts of Arson, Ire week comes to an early terminus. Head over there to download Ire's first LP and scroll down a little for the second and some early tracks. I predict some disagreement as to which of the band's releases showcases their best material; since I have the floor, I'll say that "What Seed, What Root?" is my favorite. It really is a matter of taste, but on "WSWR?" I love the way the band exchanged some of the emotive sentimentality and cold mathematics of their previous two phases for warmer, riff-centered song-writing, along with some crushingly repetitive, hypnotic sequences. The song lengths are a bit shorter than their first LP, but the entire project retains an expansive feel as each song flows into the next with a narrative fluidity. To allocate Ire to a genre at the end of their career is not easy, but they might have found a comfortable spot near Token Tantrum or Lost, yet I can see logically how some of the members would be involved in The Black Hand demo as their next project. For full enjoyment, play it loud, and play it when you're not too antsy or distracted.

"What Seed, What Root?" by Ire (Scorched Earth Policy Records, 1999)

Appreciating Darkness

Our exploration of Canada's contribution to nineties hardcore and metal continues with a fairly unique split LP between Seized and Ire. For most of its life on my turn table, I had only listened to the Seized side-- their sound being unlike anything else I was listening to at the time, yet the tracks were powerful and engaging. Perhaps I was seduced by each track's serene opening, each following an idyllic trail that slowly darkens into a forest of mysterious and sinister goings-on. To say that the tracks are bass-driven is a redundancy after we see in the notes that there are three bass players and no guitarist in the lineup. Seized also employed a violinist who knows her limitations and adds great ambiance, and a vocalist who might have listened to some Cathedral records at some point. If all of this sounds strange, it's because it is; but not in a bad way. Seized is a case where oddness enhances greatness. These would be the last tracks the band would record (and the best), but they also left behind two split 7"s and I believe a 7".
My avoidance of Ire would end with time and the inevitable opening-up of my musical tastes. I still have reservations over the "PC" spoken word portion at the end of "She," (not over its validity, but over its necessity/delivery) but now I just dismiss it as a product of the zeitgeist. At this point, the backbone of Ire's metal was ossified of the same stuff as Rorschach, but tending in the more "sentimental" direction (read: "EMOtive") of bands like Groundwork or Grievance. As the band worked out its ideas, it's easy to see that these guys were endowed with considerable skill and conviction which would continue...

... on their follow-up 7" also posted below. These three tracks see the band giving into their aggressive tendencies and abandoning some of the dissonant flourishes present in past tracks. As is perhaps predictable with musicians like these, the band would experiment a little more with their style on their ensuing two LPs, which I hope to post later this week.

Seized/Ire Split LP (Spineless/Fetus Records)

Ire 7" (Schema Records)

The Slaughter of Immortals

I was looking for more Wisigoth material in order to compliment this excellent 7" and offer a more extensive post. Unfortunately, this didn't happen before the urge to post it took over. Wisigoth was a Canadian band that sliced and trampled its way into the secret society of bands ruled over by Dystopia-- bands with a definite metal base, but with leanings toward crust, a DIY hardcore ethic, and tempos that earn them sludge honors. If you're into other French-Canadien metal/crust/grind/sludge, you either already dig these guys or will have no problem doing so. Since I'm on this whole kick of doing series, look out for more Canadian stuff this week.

Wisigoth- "Une Hécatombe Pour Les Immortels..." 7" (Spineless Records, 1997)

Shrieking in Three Movements

Alarido is an anomalous arctic blast, ravaging the sun-smitten Nevada desert landscape. The band's first cassette is a three-part odyssey of what Painajainen calls "crust/d-beat with black metal influences," and that sums it up as well as any label could. What he's too modest to say is that this tape completely rules. What turns out to be nineteen minutes of music, seems like only five, as the band seamlessly navigates through violent blizzards of blast-beats, searing d-beat siroccos, and the occasional rest on an inland sea of acoustic tranquility. You definitely don't want to miss this one, or the next tape which is in the works.

Buy the first cassette here

Download here

The Redeadening

Same-Sex Dictator continue to document the escalation of the long-going interplanetary war the rest of us have been blind to as our attentions are affixed on expensive little bleeping toys and glowing screens. "From Beneath You It Devours" is the band's insanely brilliant first (hopefully not last) full length, which to untrained ears may sound not unlike both Yeti records mixed together at different intervals and at incorrect speeds. Further examination will find that these very original compositions are the score of a bipolar inner space opera, interpreting the role of a heretofore undiscovered, subterranean guerrilla force and their role in said conflict. Taken at face value or analyzed for subliminal content, these eight tracks are consistently and simultaneously engrossing, crushing, and ultimately not quite like anything else out there. I recommend this LP to anyone whose dendrites have remained reasonably intact even after all the deadening exposure to the aforementioned distraction instruments. Below I have provided the entire record for download, but I don't expect it to remain there long; there are forces out there beyond my control. Plus, I really want you to buy a copy (see links below).

Full link has been removed, but chew on these killer tracks and go buy a copy if you like 'em

Same-Sex Dictator (2 sample tracks)

Buy:

Robotic Empire

End Theory

Rumor has it, there will be a cassette release with a download code coming soon.

For a more accurate review of the band, see here.

Cleansed by Flame

Here's Unruh's two part prescription for the most brutal form of Euthanasia: the first to knock you out, the second to end it all. This is the most extraordinary of renditions Arizona-style that's caught in the Rorschach dilemma of being either metallic hardcore or hardcore influenced metal depending on what angle you view it from. After all these years, Unruh's Hell is still hotter than Satan's crotch, like a chunk of coal emerging as a shining jewel after smoldering in His loins for 13 or so years. For the take today is Unruh's debut LP "Misery Strenghtened Faith" and...
their follow-up/swan-song "Setting Fire to Sinking Ships." While both are nearly equal in their raw brutality, I would venture to say that "SFTSS" surpasses its predecessor in production and technical precision, as well as in the impact and originality of the lyrics. As to which I enjoy more, I lean toward the first, but really you just can't go wrong with either one. Both have been ripped from the vinyls at 320 kbps as per request from Mike, but you may want to check Pessimiser Records (if you can find them) or ebay to find the CD version of "SFTSS".

"Misery Strengthened Faith" by Unruh
"Setting Fire to Sinking Ships" by Unruh

Another Day In The Void

You knew Grievance would have to make another appearance here, didn't you? Before throwing this one against the wall to see if it sticks, I recommend sampling the previous 7" posted below. The 7" at hand today, which I'm calling "Un Altro Giorno" after the first track, is a bit flawed. Let's begin with the positive-- the songwriting is amazing! The guitars are even more dissonant than their other material, and while the tempos aren't as varied and oddly placed, the riffs perform some pretty impressive time signature gymnasticism. Where this little record falls short is in the weak production (specifically on the drums), and in the absence of the usual vocalist. But seriously, the music destroys.

Whenever I can I like to add a little bonus track. The "Resistance Is futile... Assimilate" comp has another outstanding Grievance offering (with the other vocalist!). It reverts back to their other 7" with its whacked-out tempo progressions and emotive build-up. I was going to just add this track, but I figured you might also like the other material from Konstrukt, Stalingrad, and No Comply (they do a Spazz cover with pretty much a drum machine and bass!).

Grievance "Un Altro Giorno" and "Resistance Is Futile" Comp.

Zorn

While drawing the contrast between '90's bands of Europe vs. America, I was led to dig up some old Zorn 7"s. No, not the Avant Guarde composer, nor the black metal band. You may know the hardcore band from the classic "Plot" compilation, or if you're German perhaps they were a household name. I fear they were glossed over in my country, although the harsh, metallic hardcore hybrids that came out a couple of years later (in Arizona, for example) share some things in common. The "Heftig Aufflammender Unwille" 7" brings us stiflingly heavy hardcore that is emotive without being "emo" and metallic without being, well, metal. The "clean" passages nicely break up the relentless pummeling of the guitars I think, but some of you I fear will probably just want the guy to hit the damned pedal already. Anyway, this is classic stuff for me, and if you already love Systral, early Dawnbreed, Ego Trip, Gogatha, Acheborn, and maybe Wounded Knee, this is a band for you (as well as for lovers of Absinthe, Unruh, Jeremin, etc.)

A simple click will also get you Zorn's split with Zelot, who fall into a similar subgenre slot. I enjoy the Zorn tracks on their 7" much better, but really both bands do a fine enough job on this one.


*I have to apologize once again for the condition of the vinyl rips. I bought these for a buck each out of a used bin circa 2000.

Zorn 7"s