Damn, it’s hard to believe it’s the second to last release week in October, but here we are. Dig in, never let go, and, um, keep holding on to black metal?
WHAT TO HEAR: Our first record this week takes us north of the border, where new-school old-school death metal troupe Outre-Tombe are kicking up the crypt fumes with their new LP, Nécrovortex (Temple of Mystery). Only the band’s second full-length in eight years of existence, Outre-Tombe take their time and it shows, with each crumbling note of their Quebec-does-Entombed sound feeling at once perfectly manicured and totally brutal. The Putrid-crafted album artwork is also incredible, and if I’ve said it once, I’ve said it thousand times, that’s a super important of any complete album package. Check it out via Decibel if you dare.
After that, keep the foot to the floor with Singularity to Extinction (Tankcrimes), the latest sonic bruise from PNW sludge grinders Brainoil. Featuring current and former members of Graves at Sea, Watch Them Die, and DeathGrave (owners of a very good 2018 grind record themselves), Brainoil’s pedigree is matched only by their riffs—one perfectly marbled bone-in ribeye after the next. As punk as you’ll ever hear sludge lifers get, Singularity to Extinction is an immediate tonic to whatever is ailing you this very second, so throw it on and give yourself the gift of pure, bloody-nosed catharsis. Also streaming via Decibel.
Once you’re done there, fire up the chopper and head out to the highways, where Satan’s Satyrs have cooked up their latest batch of heavy metal hoodoo, The Lucky Ones (RidingEasy Records). Maybe you know Satan’s Satyrs from their recent split with Windhand. Maybe you know them for being the kind of rock n’ roll band critics love to ignore while saying things like “roll n’ roll is dead.” Either way, The Lucky Ones—thanks is large part to the addition of second guitarist Nate Towle—is the band’s biggest, baddest effort yet and a must-hear for fans of good times and guitar stuff alike.
If you’re a fan of lots and lots of notes, meanwhile, do no miss Antiverse’s Under the Regolith (Seeing Red)—a searing batch of blackened thrash from the good dudes behind Inexorum/Threadbare—and Aetra (Overpowered), the latest humbler from French tech-death quartet Gorod. Fire up the metronomes and have some fun, kids.
Finally, add another badge to your battle vest with Castle’s swaggering trad metal opus, Deal Thy Fate (Ripple Music) or chill out with Thrawsunblat’s IV: Great Brunswick Forest (Ignifera Records)—a New Brunswick-born, black metal-tinged folk record from the brains behind Woods of Ypres, Immortal Bird, and Obsidian Tongue—and New Others Part Two (Dark Operative) the surprise sequel LP to last month’s New Others Part One from post-rock vets This Will Destroy You.
WHAT TO HEAR: Before the frost sets in, get out there and see some shit, starting tonight with Metalfier at Gramercy Theatre, Iron Angel at Blackthorn 51, The Sisters of Mercy at QXT’s, ZoSo at Starland Ballroom, Night Birds at Market Hotel, LA Guns at Mulcahy’s, and the first evening of the Rising Pulse Records 10th-Anniversary bash at Brooklyn Bazaar featuring Vaureen, Pants Exploder, and more. After that buckle up for Saturday, which goes off the damn rails with Profantica headlining Vengeance Fest III at Dingbatz, Candiria doing the same for the second night of Rising Pulse’s decade celebration at Brooklyn Bazaar, Dee Snider at Tilles Center, Damsel at Revolution, Armed & Dangerous at Rams American Pub, Stabbing Westward at Gramercy Theatre, and Exciter at 89 North, before Sunday sends the weekend over the cliff with Suffocation/Cattle Decapitation at Mulcahy’s, Savage Master/Bat at Brooklyn Bazaar, Rocktober Fest at Revolution, Sketchy at Gold Sounds, and Sebastian Bach at Gramercy Theatre.
Monday brings ya Demon In Me at The Kingsland before Tuesday rolls through with Larry and His Flask at The Kingsland, and Polish grind legends Antigama at Saint Vitus in tow. Wednesday is spearheaded by KEN Mode/Birds in Row at Vitus and She Wants Revenge at Irving Plaza, while Thursday wraps things up with NMA at The Meatlocker, Tesla at The Paramount, Decent Criminal at The Kingsland, The Dickies at Bowery Electric, Kip Winger at The Rail, and Spotlights at Vitus.
WHAT THE FUCK: Want to surprise your special someone (or maybe even yourself) this Halloween season? Well, you’re in luck, because Marilyn Manson—master of all things mom’s find shocking—has unveiled his latest piece of merch genius: An 8” dildo with Marilyn Manson’s face on it. But before you laugh, remember that close to a hundred people will buy this unironically, and that’s not funny, it’s sad.
