Brave Mysteries Contest

I've been sitting on this for a while; had a lot of stuff going on, and wanted to make sure I put the effort into it that it deserves. We at Hammer Smashed Sound have arranged another great contest, this time with our friends at the outstanding label Brave Mysteries.  There is a great package up for grabs, including Burial Hex's Book of Delusions LP (sooooo good, so very, very good), and the four newest cassette releases that the label has put out: Celestial Joy, by Horrid Red (I won't even begin to tell you how amazing this album is, you'll have to see for yourself), the self titled Rose Croix cassette (defiantly original, beautiful, and dark martial industrial-ish), Sylvester Anfang II's Levend Op De Brandstapel & De Braderie CS, and the Wormsblood CS Black & White Art for Man & Beast (which I wrote about here). Nate has also decided to include a completely exclusive set of 3 Burial Hex patches made from the same hand-cut blocks used to print the prayer-flags that came with the die-hard edition of the Book of Delusions LP. You can see this great package below:

I want to make this one a little more challenging, so what I'm asking is that, instead of telling me this or than random thing, tell me (in the comments section of this post) in a sentence or two, tell me what darkness means to you. Take it in any direction that you want, but keep it brief, and try to take it at least a little seriously (because this is the internet, ya know - very serious business).

The contest will run from now until the evening of February 8th, at which time a winner will be chosen at random. If you leave an anonymous comment without including your name and contact info, your entry will not be counted and will not be entered.

So have at it. We will see you on the other side.

Locrian & Mamiffer, Bless Them That Curse You 2xLP

One of the most eagerly anticipated albums of 2012 is nearly upon us, and for those of you who are indeed anxiously pacing the streets wondering when this album will drop... you are in for a treat.

It would be easy to say that if you're familiar with Seattle's ambient/experimental duo Mamiffer (Faith Coloccia and husband Aaron Turner of Isis, House of Low Culture, Jodis, and others) and our friends in Chicago's Locrian, then you will know what to expect. To say that would be easy, and extraordinarily lazy. One listen to this record reveals that this album is much more than the sum of its parts. While the sounds of the respective bands are in a sense "combined" for this album, titled Bless Them That Curse You, that is merely a superficial description, and tells nary a portion of the story.

Thinking about this conceptually before actually hearing it, one may even be tempted to say that these bands may not be suited to collaborate. Mamiffer's hypnotic and majestically beautiful creations, most of which are piano-based, indeed presents an interesting juxtaposition to the distorted, guitar-driven metallic drones that characterizes much of Locrian's work. But the fact is that these two bands have drawn each other into previously unexplored territory, and their work meshes better than anyone could have imagined.

There is a lot of tension on this album, and at the same time quite a bit of letting go. The first track, "In Fulminic Blaze" exemplifies this, as the bands create a wash of lush, textured ambiance, only to crash into a rhythmic and rather scathing, bombastic assault of the senses. The swirling layers of sound will grab you, envelope you, and finally accompany you on a journey through all that these bands have to offer: the serene, the horrific, the majestic and the caustic.

You'll also witness this in the vocal approaches. While vocals don't grace this album until the last track, they more than make up for their absence from the rest of the record. Faith Coloccia's wondrous, enchanting voice ushers us into a world that comes apart when Aaron Turner's growls break in. Coloccia's voice is as beautiful as ever, and Aaron Turner sounds better than he ever did with Isis (which is saying quite a lot). These disparate approaches to singing are the perfect compliments to what what would be an outrageous good song even if it were instrumental, the guitars churning, building, and finally carrying in the grandiose drums that allow the album to come to a close.

... an amazing journey it is.

As you can see in the three above pictures (which are being seen for the first time here), the packaging for this double-LP is also an ambitious and gorgeous undertaking. The deluxe fold-out cover for the vinyl was designed by Faith Coloccia herself, and provides a more-than-worthy container for the visionary sounds contained within the grooves. The double-LP, limited to 550 copies, with hand-stamped labels, is a co-release between Sige Records and Utech Records, with a release date of February 21st. Profound Lore will handle the CD release, while Sige and Locrian's Land of Decay will release the cassette version.

Keep your eyes open for preorders - you won't want to miss this.

Kolga CDr

I'm happy to report that the Kolga demo is now available for purchase. I wish I had more time to write about it, but since I don't, I want you to at least know you can get it, along with a bunch of great Panopticon music and merch from Austin Lunn's new BigCartel page, here. Records, CD, shirts, hoodies - even a koozie (coming soon) to keep your brew cold.

The Kolga demo is great - it rips with a pretty raw sound, intensity, and energy, but still maintains a wonderful atmosphere throughout. Focused on nature, Paganism, and old history and lore. Kolga contains members of Panopticon, Seidr, and Giant Kind, so that may give you some idea what you will be hearing.  Limited to 50, so act fast.

Order of the HNW/A View From Nihil

I sometimes sit on things for while before I write about them; sometimes I am not afforded that luxury. That doesn't mean that it's necessarily better than things that I will wait to write about - it generally just means that I listened to it right away, for whatever reason, and it immediately filled some sort of need or craving. That is the case with a package I received today from... I'm not sure where. The first two things in the package were CDrs issued by a label called Order of the HNW. Both hit the spot instantly. The first is by Bachir Gemayel, and is titled HNWar. It is 20 minutes of harsh, undistorted noise, from Mack Chami, the fellow who also has also brought us great noise under the monikers Koufar and Insurgent, and who plays with Winters in Osaka and Disgust. All of his projects are excellent, but Bachir Gemayel is probably my favorite. This track was recorded in one take - no mastering, no editing, no distortion pedals. Brilliant stuff. (The newest Bachir Gemayel material is a 2xC12 issued on Fusty Cunt, titled Al-Noumour. You should also pick that up, along with everything else from the newest batch of FC tapes- all of them are great, especially the Hostage Pageant and Sirotek tapes.)

The second CDr, which looks that same as the pic you see above (seriously, I spent WAY too much time looking at both of the covers, trying to find where they differ, and it got me nothing but a headache) is from Die Reitenden Leichen, and is called Rauschen & Simulation. Also amazing. More HNW layered and juxtaposed with blistering feedback. Love it. You should too.

What I love about these two is that they're both packed in jewel cases, and the booklets, which are thick, are printed with text from the artist that puts the music into conceptual perspective. It's clear that both the artists and label take this stuff seriously, as they should. Simple yet totally effective. HNW is no joke, at least not in this case. They also come with Order of the HNW stickers. To put Order of the HNW in a little more perspective, their second, sold out release was from Vomir. Haven't heard it, but I will be looking for it for sure. Hate to pay Dsicogs/eBay prices for stuff, but sometimes it's totally worth it. I'm dying to see the packages of both of these first two Order of the HNW releases, and you can be sure I'll be jumping all over anything that they release in the future.

 The third CD in this pack is in a simple cardboard sleeve with the letters AVFN printed on the front. AVFN is an acronym for A View From Nihil (link goes to the Bandcamp page, which you should definitely check out) and this CD, issued not by Order of the HNW, but by Void Seance, is called Primordial Sea. Really heavy and penetrating HNW. If you dig HNW, you'll dig this. Looks like AFVN's Triumph of the Broken Will was the first Order of the HNW release (can be downloaded for free on the Bandcamp linked to above). Thus the connection, and why I got these in the mail together.

If you recall, Void Seance released Nekrasov's In Solitude and Darkness, the Last Step is Made. Totally trustworthy, and this CD is no exception.

Trist/Lonesummer Split CD

Finally, one of the albums I've really been looking forward to is out, and well worth the wait. I'll say that I've never been a big fan of Trist (this the Czech Trist, not the German Trist, of which I am a huge fan), so my anticipation for this was based solely on the fact that the Lonesummer tracks were being recorded in the studio for the first time. Drew's songs have always sounded great as home recordings, so I was a bit unsure of how they would translate in the studio. But they sound phenomenal - even better than I would have guessed. They come across sweetly and sorrowfully, and the rawness that has characterized Lonesummer since the beginning has not been lost simply by moving the recording process into a studio. The raw intensity of the tracks - most notably in Drew's vocals and Thom's drumming, which are both killer) is what carries this split. It also doesn't hurt that the tracks that were chosen for this are 5 of my favorite Lonesummer songs.

The lone Trist song (all 20+ minutes of it) opens the album, and to tell the truth, it's not bad. It's one of the few Trist songs that I really enjoy. It's nothing new, and it's fairly repetitive, but still quite enjoyable. Whether you like Trist or not, there's no denying that the guy has his heart in this 100%, and I give him nothing but respect for that.

This is a must-have. Get it now from Ars Magna.

M. Todd/L. Kerr - Beyond the Threshold

One of my favorite truly underground labels, No Visible Scars, strikes again, this time with a short (35 minute) CDr of dark ambient and death industrial from M. Todd (Transcendent Device) and L. Kerr (Steel Hook Prostheses). Falling more toward the dark ambient end of the spectrum, these recordings reflect bleak feelings of hopelessness and will leave you feeling unfathomably lost. There's honestly not a whole lot of difference from one track to the next, in some or most cases, but that's part of the beauty of the album  - it works mostly as an organic whole. The subtle variations communicate deeper details, so this album should be played when you can give it your full attention. Loud, and alone.

Available on a pro-pressed CDr or as a digital download, both of which can be obtained here.

Sutekh Hexen, Larvae Gatefold LP/CD

The past year has been big for Sutekh Hexen. 2011 saw several releases, including the full-length Luciform, which turned out to be one of the major accomplishments of the year. Numerous lives dates on the West Coast solidified the band as a force to be reckoned with.  Indeed, there is an increasing amount of talk about Sutekh Hexen in underground circles - on the internet and in real life. And while they are often spoken of in terms of black noise - an appropriate and fitting description - the forthcoming album Larvae, due out on February 21st on Handmade Birds,  proves that there is more to the band than black noise would necessarily imply.

Black metal and noise are certainly major contributors to Sutekh Hexen's overall sound, and this album showcases marvelously those parts of the Sutekh Hexen dynamic. Scott Miller's vocals (with significant and awesome contributions from Dwid Hellion and Thomas Rodahl Dedekam) are intense, caustic, and  guttural, aptly communicating the dreary, hellish, blakkened nature of this music. Noise-amped drones, heavily-distorted guitars, field recordings and junk-maneuvers lend a heaviness that previous Sutekh Hexen recordings have touched on, but never quite reached. They have raised the bar, no doubt.

But it's on the final track, "Let There Be Light," that the more subtle, textural nature of Sutekh Hexen summons forth the true dread of this recording. An acoustic guitar (via new member Lee Camfield) and whispered vocals float over a layer of hissing, muted noise, to lower us into the depths. But we are not allowed to rest - at least not for long. We hit bottom only to be ultimately raised up by the final five minutes of the track (and album), drenched in waves of distortion, feedback and crude sweat.

This is the sound of reconciliation and also the sound of violent transgressions. This is the sound of release.

This is the sound of never coming back.

I thought Sutekh Hexen had reached their peak with Luciform. I was quite wrong. Larvae is very real, in the Lacanian sense that this is a true event, and it remains to be seen just how much this band can accomplish.

The artwork was conceived, birthed and presented by Kevin Gan Yuen and Dwid Hellion, and houses this gentle chaotic massacre well. Preorders will be up in one week, and the album will be released on February 21st via Handmade Birds. Digipack CD and a special edition, colored gatefold vinyl (100 on clear with pink splatter, 200 on black). 

3(4) New Strange Rules Tapes

Always time to rejoice when Strange Rules releases new tapes, but especially so when one of them is a Cremation Lily tape. This new one is called infant. High-quality power electronics, limited to 50, and mastered by Kris Lapke (Alberich). Label's description: "infant missing in the crop, during the harvest moon a statue is erected in mourning. power electronics in memory. heavy, layered, pulsating."  Don't miss out, Cremation Lily tapes, and really all Strange Rules tapes, always sell out.

The other two I have not heard, but given the Strange Rules record of putting out nothing but the absolute best, you're probably safe to take your chances if these genres interest you. This one is from Winter Resistance, and it is limited to only 35 copies. "in the grip of the british winter, strange rules administers a resistant dose of industrial electronics. analog synthesizers, drum machines, feedback + vocals distressed against the backdrop of a dense, shivering, white sheet."

 And thirdly, a tape called Blooming Carcass, by an artist called False Moniker. "the anonymous natural order remains unbroken. caustic droned industrial noise from this european master of subtle, painstaking detail." Intriguing to say the least. Again, limited to only 35 copies.

There was a Natural Assembly tape of two new recordings up, but it sold out in just about no time flat - from Strange Rules and from the artist. A few copies should be available in time from Second Layer, Avant Records and Zeitgeists, but they won't last long, obviously.

To get the three tapes that remain, go here.

Velnias Kickstarter Campaign

Doom heathens Velnias are working on the finishing touches of a new album, to be called RuneEater, and what can be seen in the preview video sounds great. The album was recorded by only analog means, and to finish up the process of having it mixed, mastered, pressed to (limited triple-gatefold) vinyl, cassette, and CD, Velnias and Pesanta Urfolk are asking for your help. They've started up a Kickstarter campaign in which you can contribute some of your hard earned dollars as a sort of preorder, since Pesanta will not be accepting preorders. I must say that I first balked at their goal of $13,000, but after reading what's to be presented, and what the expectations are for this project, I gave in and made a pledge myself. You can make your own decision, but if you're at all familiar with Velnias's atmospheric, folk-laden, and blackened approach to doom, and Pesanta Urfolk's dedication to ultra high-quality deluxe physical releases, you may be more inclined to contribute. The release will see the light of day whether the goal is met or not, but if they can reach that goal, it should be out by April.  For more info (including that video), and to contribute, go here.

Regress Zine #2

Just over a year ago, I wrote a short snippet on the first Regress Zine. Soon after writing it, I became immersed in it; I must have read it cover to cover about 25 times, and it still is a favorite when nothing else satisfies.  One of the better zines I've come across in recent memory, the first issue featured Sexdrome, Horrid Cross, White Medal, Luciation, and others.

The second issue of Regress is now here, and it features bands/artists such as Vucub Cane, Nastran, One Tail One Head, Grave Miasma, Terrence Hannum (of Locrian), and Sutekh Hexen, among others.  Another winner. The layout, the art, the paper... all perfect. Really an outstanding zine that gets nothing but respect and admiration from HSS. For more information, and to order, go here. Don't sleep on it; it's limited to 150 copies, and the first issue sold out. This one will too, so get to it.

If you're interested in picking this up and maybe something else on vinyl or cassette, like maybe that Black Cilice album A Corpse, A Temple, you can go to Analog Worship and get this too. Lots of great stuff in stock there.


...and I'd also like to mention that my review of Sutekh Hexen's forthcoming album on Handmade Birds is coming soon. Fucking incredible album.

New Vinyls from Parasitic Records

Holy shit, major drop from Parasitic Records. All sorts of great stuff - some available now, some in a couple weeks. All of it is absolutely essential, and all of it is fucking awesome. (In case you don't know, Tim ONLY does awesome, so this is normal and expected). First, as you see above, is the classic funeral doom 4-way split Four Burials . Recently released by Flenser as a CD, Parasitic has pressed up a deluxe 2xLP version that is just insanely awesome. Remastered, of course, and pressed on 180 gram black vinyl, packed in a reverse-board gatefold jacket. Featuring long tracks from Orthodox, Mournful Congregation, Loss, and Otesanek.  If just thinking about this doesn't arouse your inner doomed-one, I don't know what will. Also, you don't belong here, so move it along. This one is available right now.

Next up is Antediluvian's 3rd demo, Under Wing of Asael. Antediluvian is only one of the best black/death metal bands on the planet right now, and this is their best demo. Violent, destructive, and crushing, there's nothing about this that's not awesome. 180 gram black wax, with double-sided printed inner sleeve. This also is available right now. Not pictured but also available for immediate shipping is Weregoat's MLP Unholy Exaltation of Fullmoon Perversity. Violent, bestial blackened death metal from Portland. Must-own.

Diocletian needs no introduction. Their War of All Against All is an insanely good album - so heavy, so fierce, so fucking powerful - and it's now being pressed to wax. 180 gram wax, of course, packed in a full-color gatefold sleeve, with a double-sided insert and 21"x29" poster. Massive. Preorder now, should be ready in a couple weeks.

Last but not least, Australia's StarGazer released their album A Great Work of Ages in 2010 on CD, and now the double vinyl pressing is nearly here. Incomparable avant-garde death metal that's just overflowing with creativity and brutality. I love this album, and can't wait to have the vinyl in my hands. 180 gram vinyl, full-color gatefold sleeve, and an 11"x17" poster.

All this and more (much more) is available from the always-excellent Parasitic Records. NOW, chump.

The Best of 2011: Another Year-End List for You to Critique and Ridicule

The death of 2011 has come and gone, so we at HSS (well, just me - this is my list and doesn't speak for anyone else here) have decided to clog up your browser with another year-end list of the best albums of 2011. It was a hell of year for music - so great that I spent way too much time trying to make this list as accurate as possible. Out of personal preference, I make just one list for my favorite albums, rather than one for each of the various genres I enjoy. I don't expect anyone to take it seriously, but since people, including myself, seem to enjoy reading these, here it is: The best of 2011.

#1. Giles Corey - Giles Corey (Enemies List Home Recordings)

There's no way around it, folks. This album floored me in a way that no other record in my lifetime has, and it continues to do so every time I hear it. It was highly anticipated, and every agonizing second spent waiting for it was justified when I finally heard it for the first time. When I first reviewed this, I said that it was perfect, and I stand by that. It is an absolutely perfect record in every way. The most genuine, intensely personal musical recording I've ever heard, it is not only the best album of 2011 -when all is said and done, it may be the greatest album ever.

#2. Falls of Rauros, The Light That Dwells in Rotten Wood (Bindrune Recordings)

If there is one record that even comes close to matching the power of the Giles Corey album, it is this one. The passion, the sorrow, and the immediacy of the music on this album is virtually unrivaled. I've played both of these top two albums hundreds of times each, and neither of them have gotten old, boring, or repetitive. This record feels like home to me, and it has since I first heard it. Timeless and magical.

#3. Of The Wand and The Moon, The Lone Descent (Heiðrunar Myrkrunar)
An album that took me completely by surprise, somehow. It had been six years since Sonnenheim, so I couldn't be sure what to expect, but what was delivered was one of the most chilling and beautiful neofolk albums I've ever heard. As the title suggests, it sounds like loneliness - but not just anyone's loneliness. It sounds like your loneliness, as well as my loneliness. You'll have to listen to it to understand what I mean. Suffice to say, it's an intensely personal and introspective record.

#4. Prurient, Annihilationist (Hospital Productions)
I suppose Time's Arrow and Bermuda Drain were the "bigger" Prurient releases of 2011, since they both came out on Hydra Head, but this limited cassette that came out on Fernow's own Hospital Productions label made by far the biggest impression on me. Very, very, heavy, but not as caustic as some other work in Fernow's catalogue, the tension created on this album is quite real.

#5. Crooked Necks, Alright is Exactly What It Isn't (Handmade Birds)
There's really not much I can say about this album. This is why music exists, and this should be why we all listen to it. A highly emotional, indeed schizophrenic, recording that still manages to present itself as a unified whole. This will occupy a very special spot on my turntable for years to come.

#6. Syven, Aikaintaite (Vendlus)
Released just earlier this month, this is a breathtaking, magical and timeless recording that will only get better with time. One of the most stunning pieces of music you'll ever hear. Open your heart, let this in, and it will occupy a spot there for eternity.

#7. Jesse Sykes & The Sweet Hereafter, Marble Son (Fargo Records)
It baffles me, after reading so many year-end lists, that I didn't see this mentioned even once. I've concluded that people just didn't hear it, which is a sad piece of news in and of itself. Mrs. Sykes and her band have always occupied a special place in my ears and in my heart, and this album, which I admit I didn't even know had been released until it had been out for over a month, has been stunning me over and over again with every listen. Her voice is beautiful, her ability to write a great song is virtually unparalleled, and her band is simply awesome. Make sure you hear this record, it's seriously that good.

#8. Alda, : tahoma : (Eternal Warfare)
Another album that no one has mentioned, and I'm not sure if that makes me want to laugh, cry, or rage against everyone supposedly supporting the underground. How virtually no one could take notice of this album, which is a spellbinding mix of emotive black metal and gorgeous, sorrowful folk music, is beyond my understanding. If you want to hear brutal honesty, devastating sadness, and unbridled anger at man's destruction of Mother Earth, this album delivers. Brings me to tears every time I hear it.

 #9. Subrosa, No Help For the Mighty Ones (Profound Lore)
This album has shown up on quite a few year-end lists, and with good reason. I've been hypnotized by this album since I first heard it. Stunningly heavy and arresting in its beauty. Was not much of a fan of their first record, but this one is as good as it gets.

#10. Anatomy of Habit, Anatomy of Habit (BloodLust)
While not that heavy in the obvious sense, once you get to know this album, it's as heavy as anything else you will have heard. Crushing, atmospheric, and delicately brutal in its use of space, Mark Solotroff and company really delivered a truly great album.

#11. Cremation Lily,  Sexless Merit (Strange Rules)
Honestly, this could have been any of the tapes that Zen Zsigo (of Maths, Life in the Dark) put out on his Strange Rules label under the moniker Cremation Lily. Amazing power-electronics - the quality here is incomparable. Can't wait to hear more from this project.

#12. Ash Borer,  Ash Borer LP (Psychic Violence [cs]/Pesanta [LP])
This, Ash Borer's first full-length album, confirmed what many of us had known after hearing the demos and tour recordings - that Ash Borer is simply one of the most exciting black metal bands to emerge from the underground in quite some time. Hopeless, bleak black metal that cannot be beat.

 #13. Pyramids & Horseback, A Throne Without a King (Hydra Head) 
An outstanding album from beginning to end, but it's worth its weight in gold simply for two songs on the 7" that accompanies the 12" (especially "Thee Cult of Henry Flynt" - woah...). The rest is more subtle - more ambient/noise influenced, but no less engaging, unpredictable, and enlivening.

#14. Panopticon, Social Disservices (Flenser)
Austin Lunn continues to shape the face of today's black metal by infusing his unique black metal sound with elements of crust and post-rock. This is the most brutal and perhaps the most intriguing Panopticon record yet, raging against a social welfare system that fails daily. Intensity is the key here.

#15. Locrian, The Clearing (Fan Death)
Locrian is one of those bands that somehow continues to improve. No matter how amazing each album is, they somehow manage to top themselves over and over again. I figured that The Crystal World was as high as they would get, but I was quite wrong.

#16. Various Artists, White Eye of Winter Watching (Hospital Productions)
The general rule of thumb is that compilations don't count for these lists, but that's a silly rule, especially for an album like this. Two cassettes and over three hours of exquisite material that covers a lot of what Hospital has been doing all these years. Industrial, power electronics, noise... all covered with (mostly) exclusive material from 52 different artists. Absolutely essential.

#17. Nyodene D, Every Knee Shall Bow (Assembly of Hatred)

The first time I played this CD, I knew this was the album that I had been waiting for this dude to make. Better than any of his previous efforts, this one really achieves that hauntingly violent death-industrial vibe.

 #18. Mount Moriah, Mount Moriah (Holidays for Quince)
Quite possibly the most American record I've ever heard. So amazingly soulful, heartfelt and heart-breakingly gorgeous. Heather McEntire's voice will stop you in your tracks and possibly knock you dead. She could be screaming racial slurs and I think that voice would still bring me to the verge of tears. This is another album that I think a lot of people missed, but that's criminal. So good.

#19. Circle of Ouroborus, Eleven Fingers (Handmade Birds)
Total game-changer. This album transformed a lot about how I personally listen to music, especially how I approach listening to Circle of Ouroborus. Armon Keitaalla is also of note, because it's an incredibly awesome album, but it didn't necessarily change me the way this one did.

#20. Abuse Patterns, Reproducing the Pathology (Anabolic Dimensions)
Harsh power electronics that explores some very interesting and perhaps disturbing territory. I liked this a lot when I first heard it, but I can't seem to stop going back to it, and it has become one of my very favorite releases of the year.  The whole package, which includes a screened envelope to hold the C30 and a small zine that explores the same topics the music does, is a winner. Not for the faint of heart or for the easily offended.

#21. Xenophobic Ejaculation, Vala (Filth and Violence)
If you can get past the hideous ideology represented here, this is an amazing piece of noise. 2 cassettes, nearly an hour and a half of one of the best pure noise releases of the year. Everything released by Pasi Markkula's Filth and Violence label is great, but this was the best thing I heard from it all year.

#22. Antediluvian, Through The Cervix Of Hawaah (Profound Lore)
Can't get enough of this. I've played this CD about a thousand times and it does not get old. These guys will be dominating for years. Fucking rules.

#23. Brighter Death Now, Very Little Fun (Cold Meat Industry/Tesco)
So much music on this 4xLP or 3xCD. All of it brilliant. And it's not even new music, all of it recorded between 1998 and 2005, and said to chronicle a slow, gradual breakdown of sorts. Death-industrial at its finest. Roger Karmanik still knows how to keep it fresh and real.

#24. Omit, Repose (Secret Quarters) and Loss, Despond (Profound Lore)
Perhaps the hardest part of compiling this list was trying to decide which of these albums I liked better. Both have been killing me repeatedly. I wanted to give the gothic doom of Repose the nod because it came out of nowhere, but the funeral dirges of Despond were even better than I had anticipated them being... in the end, it was just too hard, so they sit here tied. You can't lose with either one of them, as they both represent the ultimate musical embodiment of utter sorrow, despair and hopelessness. Kill yourself; there's no point to carrying on like this.

#25. Ordo Obsidium, Orbis Tertius (Eisenwald Tonschmiede)

It may have been 2010 when I first heard this record, but no matter; this is one of the finest, most memorable black metal albums to come out in 2011. Another one of those records that seriously deserved a lot more press than it got, and I sadly have not seen it on any year-end lists. But it seriously deserves to be on all of them, because it's that damn good.

Honorable Mention:

Mamiffer, Mare Decendrii (Conspiracy/Sige)

False, Untitled (Gilead Media)

Necros Christos, Doom of the Occult (The Ajna Offensive)

Amebix, Sonic Mass (self-released)

Airs, Gloomlights (Music Ruins Lives)

Lake of Blood, As Time and Tide Erodes Stone (Human Jigsaw)

Gnaw Their Tongues, Per Flagellum Sanguemque, Tenebras Veneramus (Crucial Blast)

Nekrasov, The Ever-Present (Crucial Blast)

Bizarre Uproar, Viha & Kiima (Freak Animal/Filth and Violence)

Asva, Presences of Absences (Important)

Sutekh Hexen, Luciform (Wands)

Njiqahdda, Disciples of Flame (Agni Yoga) (EEE Recordings)

Echtra, Paragate (Temple of Torturous)

Altar of Plagues, Mammal (Profound Lore/Candlelight)

Bosse-de-Nage, ii (Flenser)

Seidr, For Winter Fire (Flenser)

* * *

So there you have it. Do what you will with it. Goodbye 2011.

Burial Hex, In Psychic Defense LP

Said to be the last Burial Hex album (though I have it on good authority that there is one remaining album to be released, early in 2012), In Psychic Defense is as good an album as Clay Ruby has made, even as good as Initiations. Creepy, cerebral, and overwhelmingly meditative, this is not meant to be background music; as is much of the music that we cover at HSS, this is meant to be experienced, perhaps in a darkened room, late at night. Or maybe you'd prefer to be outdoors, under some sort of trance, performing a seasonally-attuned ritual. Whatever the case, this album, which consists of one 20+ minute track,  and offers a bit of everything that Burial Hex has been about for all these years.

The one-sided, hand silk-screened 12" vinyl is not to be missed, and since it is limited to 300 copies, you may want to be quick about getting one. In the US, it can be purchased from Experimedia, and in Europe, can be had direct from the label, Sound of Cobra.

A digital version can be downloaded for a small fee from Sound of Cobra's Bandcamp as well.