Written by:	nikarg, musclassia, Starvynth, AndyMetalFreak, F3ynman
Published:	February 04, 2023

Clandestine Cuts Volume 13, Issue #1
The Metal Storm Demo/EP Spotlight



Is independent, unsigned, and underground metal what you seek? Weary traveller of the metal world, rest here a while. Clandestine Cuts are the best demos and EPs from these bands, the heart and soul of metal music. These musicians are slaves to their passions, and their blood keeps the metal machine alive and turning. Support them with a simple listen, and discover the future.

Metal Storm users: you can vote in the poll below to choose your favourite demo/EP of the issue. The winners each year are nominated in our annual Metal Storm Awards, so exercise your rights: this is the one category chosen completely by YOU the readers. Make sure your favourite independent metal is recognized each year!

(Think your band has what it takes to be featured in the Cuts? Email demos@metalstorm.net to submit your music.)

In case you're new to this, go back and enjoy our last few issues:

Clandestine Cuts Vol. 12 #12
Clandestine Cuts Vol. 12 #11
Clandestine Cuts Vol. 12 #10

And now to the new music...

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O Sluggard are a self-described "two-piece caveman jam band from Sydney" that are ready to kick your teeth in with this groovy, sludgy riff-fest. Recorded during the sluggish year of 2020 and finally released three years later, the Australian duo's debut EP Dragging Time takes inspiration from the likes of early High On Fire, centering their music around crunchy rhythms and deep, spiteful vocals. Despite the title, the music here doesn't drag on in the slightest. The four tracks flow extremely well, carried by the catchy, buzzing melodies that keep the listener continuously entertained — and headbanging! One of the great virtues of this style of doomy sludge is its effective simplicity. There's no need for complex guitar solos or crazy time signatures. The best doom acts show off just how powerful a couple of well-written riffs can be — and these 20 minutes of fun, dirty, thunderous metal do just that. In the end, all it takes are two motivated musicians: one to chug and one to thud.

by F3ynman2000

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If you're going by the gothic genre tag, the howling wolf, and narrative intro at the beginning, you might be fooled into expecting something along the lines of Moonspell, perhaps? Well, shortly after the eerie atmospheric intro, once the first track begins to take its shape, it's evidently clear that this is going in the direction of anything but. This musical style is surprisingly fascinating with its heavy use of clean vocals (and a great voice he has too, I might add), psychedelic keyboard effects, catchy guitar work, groovy bass lines, and general upbeat sound; there is actually a hint of Ghost here, which I find personally intriguing and satisfying. However, harsh vocals and heavier doom metal sections are also occasionally present along with the gothic lyrical themes, so this isn't entirely a rock release; there is just as much metal within its structure, making it all the more interesting. Into Imagination is certainly a pleasant surprise for fans of hard rock in the classic sense, and gothic and doom metal in the traditional sense, and a tasty delight for those of you who seek a combination of both.

by AndyMetalFreak

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A Day Of Sorrow is a debut EP, but the man behind Druids Of Eld, Matt Dodds, is not a musical novice; not only is he a guitarist-vocalist in Arbrynth, but he’s also previously performed live in Be'lakor, and that past experience can be heard in the maturity of this record. The melodeath of Be'lakor and the blackened folksiness of Arbrynth can be heard in A Day Of Sorrow, but this is arguably more of a melancholic doom effort, with hints of gothic metal in there as well; ‘Be'lakor-meets-Swallow The Sun-meets-Agalloch’ might give some idea of what to expect from A Day Of Sorrow. The touching melodies, the melancholic atmospheres and the power of the album’s more extreme elements blend together quite sumptuously on what is a highly accomplished first offering from Druids Of Eld.

by musclassia

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Fasten your seat belts — we're going on a bumpy ride straight into the dimension of chaos. Servant Of Sorrow is the name of this US band, although "Servant Of Pain" would be more fitting, as they deliver a mercilessly aggressive batch of metal that's not for the faint of heart. Like a herd of stampeding buffalo, these five musicians trample everything in their path, laying waste with the rapid-fire drumming and signature intense riffs of slam death metal, fueled by the ferocious attitude of hardcore punk. The first song on this EP starts with a blast, immediately grabbing every headbanger's attention, while the second song indulges further in the chaotic musicianship. The third and longest song, "Gravelung", is the highlight of this band's output, presenting eerie melodies to combat the brutal riffage. One thing's for sure: if you need a break from grandiose black metal atmosphere or sombre doom melancholy, if you want to embrace catchy, crushing death metal, this band's got you covered.

by F3ynman2000

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This demo was released just before the new Conjureth album in the beginning of the year, and, in fact, Tumulation’s members are the same as Conjureth’s, but everyone has switched around instruments and roles. The core of the music is still death metal, but unlike the thrash-boosted and technical style of Conjureth, Tumulation are exploring the doomy, sludgy, and swampy side of death. On this first demo, every member wrote a song for it, so there is some variety between the tracks. The best of them has to be “Rites Of Forgotten Misery”, which has more hooks in the riffs than your local abattoir. The sound is superbly cavernous and covered in just enough filth to get its point across; after all, it’s a demo recorded in the same studio that Conjureth record, and it was mixed and mastered by Gabriele Gramaglia from Cosmic Putrefaction. Savage Blood Domain is ruthlessly heavy, stomping, and old-school death metal that definitely does not give the impression of a demo at all, neither in the songwriting nor in the performance department. Fans of Incantation, Bolt Thrower, and Demilich, make sure you dive into this bile-blasted pit.

by nikarg

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Cyrillic names are always a bit tricky. Are they actually called Сатано or is it supposed to be Satano, and is the official title of their first EP really Анафема or maybe Anathema? There's a certain ambiguity about the album cover too, as the artwork illustrated on the Bandcamp page (the one with crows or ravens moving along a cloudy, grey sky) has little to do with the embedded Bandcamp player's sacral motif as shown above. However, the quality of the music leaves no questions unanswered – Сатано's domain is atmospheric, highly melodic black metal with frequent outbreaks into symphonic realms, which is produced so professionally and crystal clear that one can hardly imagine hearing the work of a new and still completely unknown project. Especially in the polyphonic passages, Анафема unfolds its true strength, because when black metal shrieks and death metal growls duel each other, while in the background a hymnal male choir unflinchingly gives its best, this interplay has just as stirring and majestic an effect as a religious experience.

by Starvynth

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