Monthly Metal Mixtape: June 2021

Oh man, I dropped the ball on this one. Cry Baby Hank raves about Japanese black metal legends Sabbat, while Mike enlightens us to Nashville’s Saidan who apply inspiration from Japanese folklore into their black metal. We had a whole theme going. The opportunity was there for me to rant about how amazing Sigh is; whether it’s the raw black metal of Scorn Defeat that Euronymous released on Deathlike Silence or their spazzed-out avant-garde black metal on recent releases like Scenes from Hell or In Somniphobia, they’re truly one of the most creative and consistent underground bands out there. And instead I couldn’t shut up and resist talking about the new Panopticon record. Enjoy some black metal regardless, folks.

Panopticon – .​.​.​and Again into the Light (2021, Bindrune Recordings)

There are few people who I look forward to hearing their latest musical output like I do with Austin Lunn. The Panopticon mastermind, who’s been on an unstoppable creative run since 2012’s landmark Kentucky, writes instantly recognizable material and seamlessly blends folk music with his brand of atmospheric black metal. Whereas on his previous release, 2018’s The Scars of Man on the Once Nameless Wilderness, these elements were largely separated into two distinct halves, his latest, .​.​.​and Again into the Light, mixes them all together. Opener “.​.​.​and Again into the Light” is an entirely somber folk piece, feeling right at home with part two of The Scars of Man…, and the first quarter of follow up “Dead Loons” continues as such. It’s only about three minutes into “Dead Loons” when this starts sounding like a metal record. Now this opening stretch is impressive and the heights (or should I say lengths) he reaches on “Dead Loons” highlights one of the themes with this record: long – we’re talking eleven, twelve minutes – songs that pass through multiple movements over their run time. “Dead Loons,” “A Snowless Winter,” “The Embers at Dawn,” and “Know Hope” are all like this and all sit right up there in the pantheon of stellar songs Lunn has crafted.

With its doomy pace and haunting strings, sections of “Dead Loons” feel like a My Dying Bride tune at times. When it transitions into black metal it hits hard – I’ve long been a fan of Lunn’s absolutely hammering drums – but maintains that sense of melancholy and melody due to the presence of strings. They weave in and out, and make this music that really pulls at your heartstrings (pun fully intended). There’s also a stretch where Lunn straight up shreds, which feels like a bit of on outlier as we don’t see that too often on his records, followed by a stretch where the violin straight up shreds, before an atmospheric/ambient-esque outro. Pure majesty.

Oh, I need to talk about songs other than the glorious “Dead Loons.” Very well. “Rope Burn Exit” and “Moth Eaten Soul” are your more prescribed atmospheric black metal songs here. If you’re familiar with Panopticon’s back catalog these two feel like they’d fit right at home in any of the Kentucky/Roads/Autumn trilogy. No frills (at this point the violin is a very essential element) atmospheric black metal. They’re both grand tunes, but pale before the grandiosity of some of these monoliths. “A Snowless Winter” is kind of that middle ground, somehow exceeding twelve minutes without ever feeling long. For most of its run time, it feels much like a traditional long atmospheric black metal tune, the kind Panopticon has perfected over their previous decade of song-crafting. About a third of the way through though, it drops into ambient/post-metal feels, which makes the return to hammering black metal feel even more weighty; you get a brief respite before the pummeling begins again. Even amidst that cacophony, there’s a distinct closing section, again with some impassioned shredding. After the folk stretch of interlude “As Golden Laughter Echoes (Reva's Song),” “The Embers at Dawn” begins much the same way. It’s quiet, ethereal and light. Think of the adjectives you use to describe shoegaze or chill post-metal and they fit here. Guest vocalist Erik Moggridge, of Aerial Ruin, provides the cleans, only adding to the calm vibe. It feels like that’s how the whole song is gonna go, usually by the six-minute mark you know what you’re getting, but when the transition into black metal hits it’s absolutely gorgeous. Waldgeflüster’s Winterherz lays down some black metal rasps really giving “The Embers at Dawn” some unique sounds amongst the Panopticon canon.

Record closer “Know Hope” starts off like your traditional black metal churchburner before delving into some of those mournful doom tones. The last couple minutes have that triumphant black metal feel before bowing out with some nice ambiance. Lunn bellows and roars with the best of them; seriously, his vocal deliveries are some of the best in the genre, but too often they get buried in the mix. It’s a shame, because he writes some great lyrics and they’re not published here, leaving you wondering what he’s singing about. I can make out something along the lines of “never give up / never give in / never back down / fight to the end” amongst the blistering buzzsaw he lays down in “Know Hope”. It is part of what gives it that uplifting feeling and is a great capstone for the record, tying in the targets Lunn’s been hitting all record. Like all the physical releases I have for Panopticon’s material, the packaging and layout is gorgeous and fits well with the sounds contained within. Definitely spend some time with this one. – SteveO

Sabbat – Evoke (1992, Evil Records)

It’s interesting to see black metal bands from the early 90s that stick with the first wave style of black metal rather than adopt the mannerisms of the second wave Norwegian scene. The second wave so completely altered the nature of black metal that, for the longest time, I argued that the first wave was not true black metal due to its proximity to NWOBHM. It was a natural extension of that genre but with certain pronounced innovations (satanic imagery, shitty production, etc). Those two main iterations of black metal are so foreign to one another; and yet Sabbat seems to weirdly bridge that gap. They follow the first wave but push the limits in certain nuanced ways to be closer to the Norwegian scene. This album touches on the greatness of Venom, very early Sodom, and Bathory but with the benefit of having been exposed to thrash. One riff in “Torment in The Pentagram” reminds me of “A Fine Day to Die” but played in a manner that would fit on an early Sepultura album. Despite wearing their influences on their sleeve, Sabbat still manages to tread new ground and push the listeners’ limits. They’re not afraid to get a little weird and move outside of the template of what black metal and thrash can be. “‘Hellhouse (Kanashibari Part 3)” is a great example of this. I love the interesting choices they make throughout; like how they utilize vocals. They pan different vocal tracks hard to the left and right with vocal lines being delivered in rapid succession. The delivery is raw, chaotic, and just a little off the beat. It sounds like demons growling in your head when you listen to it with headphones. Overall, this album is where Sabbat really come into their own. Envenom is great but it’s a bit all over the place; very hit or miss. Evoke, however, is a bit more reined in. It’s more cohesive while still managing to be chaotic. Do yourself a favor and check this band out. They are criminally underrated. – Cry Baby Hank

Saidan – Jigoku: Spiraling Chasms of the Blackest Hell (2021, Obscurant Visions)

The debut of one-man USBM project, Saidan, based out of Nashville, is raw melodic black metal at its finest. The project pays homage to the dark ghost stories and occult history in Japanese folklore, an aesthetic I’m most familiar with from experiencing modern Japanese horror movies like Ringu (or The Ring) and, of course, watching a lot of anime with occult themes. Speaking of anime, this project has a distinct and intentional J-rock influence that emerges in its melodies. A couple minutes into the jaw-dropping “She’s Buried Under the Cherry Blossoms,” it becomes incredibly clear the raw and visceral black metal on this project is often channeled through soaring anthemic melodies that wouldn’t be out of place on a Pillows record. There are moments in this piece that gave me goosebumps and made me tear up, the blazing energy and melodic nuance all comes together so well.

The melodic black metal chops on display here echo bands like Immortal, but it’s the eclectic quality of the influences and the willingness to experiment with the model with other metal influences and J-rock on top of just genuinely great performances and songwriting. Galloping gorgeous melodies with buzzsaw black metal riffage and throat shredding anthemic screaming is what you get here, and it’s the absolute best of what you’re imagining. Even the interludes, including the very strange noise ambient backwards talking sound collage of “untitled,” are intriguing experiments and serve to build tension around the enthralling melodic black metal pieces. This debut needs to be heard to be believed. Let this gripping, masterful take on this sound surprise you and send you soaring through the sky. – Mike Tri

xbxrx – O (2010, Polyvinyl Records)

Starting July 1 I’m hosting an all 7-inch vinyl challenge over on Instagram along with Don’t Panic Records. 31 days, 31 categories, 31 7-inches. Feel free to jump in and share your picks with #7inchvinylchallenge. I thought I’d get started a little early and choose a 7-inch for this month’s mixtape and wow is this a ripper. One of the last releases from Los Angeles noise/thrash rock outfit xbxrx wastes no time kicking you in the teeth. There is literally no time to waste when they’re trying to squeeze 10 songs on a 45rpm 7-inch. They do it here without turning the release into pure novelty. Their proper full-length albums are chaotic, so O didn’t exactly come out of nowhere.

The band probably got more attention from the indie rock scene in their day but there’s certainly enough going on here to fit in with more traditional metal. Just don’t expect any big guitar solos. Again, no time. I found this band when I was in Champaign, home of Polyvinyl Records, in the mid-2000s. I spent a lot of time listening to Of Montreal, Mates of State, and Headlights in particular, which are all strange matches for experimental thrash. xbxrx has more in common with Deerhoof, in terms of the playful choppiness of the music. O will surely be my pick for the 10+ song 7-inch. Luckily it is also available to stream on Bandcamp. – Phil Collins