The Metal Storm Demo/EP Spotlight
Brand New Independent Metal Lives Here.
Welcome to the Clandestine Cuts!
Welcome to the Clandestine Cuts!
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!
(Do you think your band has what it takes to be featured in the Cuts? Email demos at metalstorm dot net to submit your music.)
In case you're new to this, go back and enjoy our last few issues:
Clandestine Cuts Vol. 15 #9
Clandestine Cuts Vol. 15 #8
Clandestine Cuts Vol. 15 #7
And now to the new music...
Temple Of Salem - Of Witches And Finders (Finland)
[Doom Metal]
In the beginning, there was Black Sabbath. Then, came Reverend Bizarre. This is what Temple Of Salem must have been thinking when they wrote and recorded this EP. The old-school, no-frills riffs of guitarist Ron the Bearer of Orkrist, who is a member of Ashen Tomb, and the powerful, skull-piercing drum beats of Volburg the Conqueror, also of Ashen Tomb fame and member of Smoulder’s European live version, leave no room for questions regarding this band’s influences. The voice of Count Silversword is an acquired taste, and follows a long line of eccentric vocalists in doom metal, appreciated by those of us with good taste. The cover art is Shedding Leaves by Finnish painter Torsten Wasastjerna from 1897, and depicts the olde spirit that permeates the music. Of Witches And Finders celebrates the existence of pure monolithic riffing with sermons of eternal doom. All you have to do is press ‘play’ and follow the staircase down to the catacombs.
by nikarg
Schwarzwasser - Von Wahn Und Sehnsucht (Germany)
[Atmospheric Black Metal]
There is something irresistible about black metal that is inspired by nature, and there is also something very satisfying when just by looking at a release’s cover art, you feel that you can almost hear the music. Schwarzwasser’s debut EP takes the listener on a long, meditative walk through a snow-covered trail in the forest, where the birds are chirping, the wind is blowing through the towering pines, the weak rays of sunlight caress the wet leaves, and the river water is flowing as far as the eye can see, until the mountain fog settles in to provide a hiding refuge for those who want to disappear. Quiet and melancholic moments blend with aggressive and triumphant passages in Von Wahn Und Sehnsucht, where beauty and brutality clash and coexist, the atmosphere is key, and the solitude of the natural world offers a place for the human spirit to travel far and away.
by nikarg
Crowgod - Emergence (UK)
[Progressive Sludge Metal]
Fuelled by ugly riffs, psychedelic soundscapes and ethereally savage vocals, Brighton’s Crowgod continue their gradual emergence with their second EP, coming 4 years after Graveyard Planet. Emergence offers a real journey across 25 minutes; the mix of gloomy yet restrained sludge riffs with delicate clean vocals initially on the song brings to mind bands like SubRosa or Lotus Thief, while the sudden turn to gnarly tonality and harsh vocals is more in the vein of Obscure Sphinx. The length of the songs also leaves room for more melodic and progressive meandering, along with dynamic contrast. “Mother” is especially remarkable for the sheer contrast between the slick, airy clean-sung sections and the crushing intensity of the intervening passages.
by musclassia
Acephalic Void - We Chose Death
[Dissonant Black Metal]
The anonymous fiends behind Acephalic Void have chosen death, but their debut EP is of a more blackened persuasion. The dissonant extreme metal contained within We Chose Death is malevolent, twisted and uncompromising, contorting listeners with its evil dissonant riffs and frozen, shrieking vocals howling through the void. It’s not a relentless blast attack, with moments of quiet contemplation and satisfying mid-tempo shifts to revel within the bleak atmospheres. There is also some room for experimentation across the EP, most notably with the extensive use of harsh noise electronics throughout “Forget”, a track that is arguably even more abrasive than the cacophonic metal. Fans of the likes of Deathspell Omega and Pharmakon would do well to give this some attention.
by musclassia
Darktide - Mourn (New Zealand)
[Blackened Deathcore]
From the darkest corner of Auckland emerges Darktide with their sophomore EP, Mourn. This five-piece is labelled as deathcore but doesn’t really play by standard deathcore rules. As their Bandcamp blurb puts it, they "channel grief and fury into an unrelenting storm of sound", and yeah, they’re not joking. A sense of menace hangs heavy throughout, brooding like a dark, ominous thundercloud. Dripping in blackened elements, the music crawls forward at a mid-tempo pace, deliberately building up tension rather than speed. Heavy, atmospheric soundscapes and catchy hooks are scattered all across these three tasty tracks, with pummeling heaviness and bruising grooves pounding down like hailstones. The whole thing feels unsettling yet weirdly mesmerizing – kind of like peeking through the bushes at a blood ritual led by hooded silhouettes in the eerie ruins of an abandoned cathedral (or, you know, whatever else black metal
by Thryce
[
Apathosis - Pernicious Atrocities (Poland)
[Death Metal | Goregrind]
Apathosis - Pernicious Atrocities (Poland)
[Death Metal | Goregrind]
I appreciate it when bands don’t make a secret of their influences and pay respectful tribute to the heroes of their youth, instead of rambling on about innovation or some supposedly modern musical approach that simply doesn’t exist. And I love it when, despite the inevitable closeness to the genre-defining works of their predecessors, the result doesn’t sound like a cheap imitation but still manages to surprise. Pernicious Atrocities is a good example of such a successful homage: every other riff carries a bit of Regurgitate, and some song structures strongly recall Haemorrhage, yet just when you’re expecting a groovy guitar solo after a short drum intro “like back in the old Carcass days”, the pedal hits the floor, and things turn out quite differently than expected. In short: anyone who’s into old-school goregrind, lyrical corpse-mangling, and lovingly detailed depictions of operating room mishaps will feel right at home with the debut EP of the Polish one-man project Apathosis.
by Starvynth
