The most interesting releases of the week!
Crimson Dawn, released on Hells Headbangers, is somehow only Deathhammer‘s sixth full length. Thought that they’d been around longer. In addition to having a name that’s impossible for me to remember to spell correctly, Deathhammer bang out irreverent, jagged blackened thrash that sounds timeless. In a subgenre that’s increasingly mired with prestige and respect, Deathhammer do their best to drag the genre back to the ground as their forefathers intended.
If you’ve heard a Deathhammer release, you know what Crimson Dawn sounds like. Yelps and barks and laughts, blast-beats, riffs that just go on until the band is bored of them, and attempts to distill pure energy into breakdowns litter Crimson Dawn as they do every other Deathhammer release. Very few bands can get away with the level of irreverent celebration that Deathhammer give their listeners. I love this album.
Giants & Monsters was released on Reigning Phoenix Music and continues the well-celebrated revival of the power metal titans that started on their self-titled release in 2021. Helloween still have a towering past to live up to, and they still sound a bit more polished and calcified than they did in their first few albums. But Giants & Monsters is far and away the catchiest album I’ve listened to this year.
Helloween‘s triple-headed vocal attack continues to work shockingly well. Giants & Monsters leans into the band’s strengths with earworm choruses attached to arena rock beats and authentically cheesy 80s power metal riffs. It is heartwarming to see masters of the genre continue to play this well. Every single power metal fan should listen to Giants & Monsters.
Niht was released on Season of Mist. Sowulo play dark folk mixed with rasping throat singing countering soaring cleans. What the songs lack in twisting songwriting they make up for with raw emotion. The instrumentation sets Sowulo apart from other folk bands, but the melodies and song structures are direct enough to let the listener grasp onto.
Sowulo have created an entrancing, calming experience. The vulnerability of Niht combine with the band’s unique sound to create songs that I found difficult to turn away from. This simply does not function as background music, in the best possible way. It feels disrespectful to try to discuss an album like this in words when the artists have already said everything they intend to via song.
Formless Ruin of Oblivion is Hexrot‘s debut full-length, released on Transcending Obscurity Records. This progressive death metal band has a hint of Ad Nauseum about them, albeit with a bit more of a straightforward songwriting approach. The relievingly clear production lets the listener hear the nifty bass lines, the drums that sound like they’re having a panic attack, and superbly controlled guitar twists.
Hexrot‘s songwriting never stands still. Songs dart from one idea to the next but manage to maintain cohesion. Outside of the behemoth final track, the tight runtimes help prevent sprawl and keep the listener engaged. The layering of vocals and guitars on top of each other give a sense of claustrophobic immensity. The drums and bass both sound like they’re playing closer to the top of the beat than the guitars and vocals, leading to a constant feeling of unease. And while I’m not always a fan of the higher vocals with more hardcore influence, I never found them to be too grating.
