Tag: experimental black metal

The Round Up Tapes // Submission Edition Volume VIII

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Gonemage – Mystical Extraction

After the release of Cara Neir’s Phase Out in February band member Garry Brents (here known as Galimgim) sought to expand on that already well-rounded universe by creating an offshoot to the story, a side-quest if you will, to explore further what happened when their characters were glitched into a land where video games rule (the lore is explained much more succinctly on their bandcamp pages). Mystical Extraction is a work of bizarre electronic pulses, chiptune, black metal, melody and fantasy and it is clear that Gonemage are deeply in love with their subject matter.

“Chained Castle” is a furiously screamed song of wonder – Who am I? Where am I? – and Brents’ voice is a spark in the darkness, whether that’s during rage-fuelled cries or the subtle clean harmonies that peek through towards the end. “Dust Merchant” also utilises those clean lines to bring new dimensions to this character – much like “Shady Blades” on Phase Out which allows the music to exist in the same universe while also standing on its own. This screamo influenced direction is one which Gonemage settles into often and as the music gets more aggressive, then the vocals become more beautiful and melancholic — it’s a wonderful shift in texture and Mystical Extraction is all the better for it.

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The Round Up Tapes // Submission Edition Volume VI

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Burden – Burden

Burden

There is something quite charming about Burden and their atmospheric and doomed black metal. It could be the intriguing use of accordion which gives the music that rustic, old world aura that many medieval style bands lean towards. It could be the spooky synthesisers that add dimension and soaring notes to songs that are otherwise dark and doomy and it could also be the rough production that shows that this is a band still finding their way and trying to make their music heard is more important that it sounding shiny and clean. It all adds up to a record that is a captivating debut and one that shows enough promise to keep you engaged. 

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Cara Neir – Phase Out

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Cara Neir – Phase Out

The evolution of Cara Neir has been a joy to watch unfold since they began over a decade ago in Texas. Their take on black metal has long been a singular one with differing elements taking their music on a fascinating journey from black metal to hardcore to experimental weirdness and back again but all with the incredible ability to make it make sense. Cara Neir’s trick is to take opposing forces and meld them in such a way as to make it beautiful and Phase Out fully realises that conceit during songs that are rooted in RPG lore and a love for gaming.

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The Ruins of Beverast – The Thule Grimoires

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The Ruins of Beverast – The Thule Grimoires

The land of Thule is one that has long lain forgotten; a faraway place that lies in the dense and abstract regions of the world, a place that is unreachable by modern humanity and one that is used in literary texts and music to describe the unattainable. For The Ruins of Beverast, Thule could be seen to be a mystical and ice-covered land and these songs (Grimoires, or magical texts) are the keys to unlock the horrifying secrets that lie beneath the surface of its crumbling temples. A world in which a civilisation rises up to defeat those who would stand to destroy the Earth for their own gain with the help of hibernating Gods that have been buried in the deepest oceans and under mountains of ice. The spiritual aspect of Alexander von Meilenwald’s creation is wrought through ritual drum patterns and vocals that echo with gothic textures, chants that are dredged from the underworld and an atmosphere that is as cloying as it is fantastical.

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