What’s up, tar dwellers. We hope you’re all hanging in there. This new “Reviews and Other Rambles” episode marks what should be the last shift in our podcast format. We’ve been keeping steady at one episode every two weeks, but we’re going to alter that to one episode every three. The reason being that our personal lives have been sapping up more of our free time, and it’s been tough to keep pace with the biweekly output.

That being said, we’ve added some more coverage to this episode (i.e., more bands) to offset our change in schedule. We’ll be sure to keep each future episode a touch lengthier so that we can maintain momentum with the stupid number of solid releases that have been trickling out the first quarter of 2022. In this episode, we ramble about noises that are sopping and putrid, warped and rhythmic, chill, dreamlike, and excoriating. You can find all of the artists we chat about, in roughly chronological order, in the list down below.

If you have some artists, albums, singles, or any other form of musical media you’d like us to consider for an upcoming episode, please feel free to send us an email or reach out at one of our various social media channels. In a couple of weeks’ time, there will a new “Reviews and Other Rambles” episode that covers even more artists than we do in this episode. Thank you all so much for your continued support!

Bands/artists discussed in this episode include Carpenter Brut, Greg Puciato, All Them Witches, Hermit Knight, Heat Deth, Meshuggah, Soul Glo, Effluence, Blowtorch, Rhino Body Lover (Compilation), Solid Feces, Serotonin Leakage, Sunless, Andrew Black, The Sway of the Mountains, Coilguns, Hippotraktor, Foxtails, Dormant Ordeal, Yuggot, and others.

What’s up, noxious wasteland inhabitants! We hope you’re all well. As is expected, we’ve been sluggish to drop a new “Reviews and Other Rambles” podcast episode, but we have an excuse. Several months back, we commissioned William Hay to create an original art piece to pair with our new podcast format. Now that it’s complete, we wanted to debut his bizarre flesh monstrosity alongside the first episode we recorded in the new year (yes, we recorded this episode in the first couple weeks of January).

We’re ecstatic with how the uncanny piece turned out and we hope you enjoy it too. That being said, this new episode follows the same episode format we’ve adopted in the past few months. In it, we ramble about frequencies that are meditative and harsh, doomy and heartfelt, eccentric, cheeky, and cudgeling. You can find all of the artists we chat about, in roughly chronological order, in the list down below.

Bands/artists discussed in this episode include Keosz, Vein.fm, Dog Fashion Disco, Pike vs The Automaton, Dead Neanderthals & Aaron Turner, Breaths, Malevich, R. Josef, Heel Turn, Wanderer, 3 Ringos & a Banjo, Obscure Skuadron, Papangu, Sugar Horse, Remain Sedate, Creature, Trenches, Ethereal Shroud, and others.

What’s up, void dwellers. It’s been a few months since I’ve published a podcast interview, but I’m keen to share with you this fresh conversation between myself and Art Tuttle of Uttered in Tongues and Diva Karr.Art is a licensed and practicing trauma therapist based out the Boston area, who often works with patients that live with long-term episodic trauma. Uttered in Tongues is his solo harsh drone meditation project, and Diva Karr is a blackened, grinding noise quartet where Art plays bass and constructs noisescapes. While the former endeavor is the primary focus of this discussion, we do dig into the contrasting strains of catharsis each project yields toward the episode’s back-half.As Uttered in Tongues, Art explores the intersection of harsh drone as meditation and mental health. Whether a piece is six minutes or twenty, Art aims to craft his noise as a calm oasis one can visit to center themselves. Now, it likely sounds bewildering to state that his frequencies are calm and simultaneously harsh; however, his pointed attention toward gurgling low-end vibrations renders his compositions akin to a full-body meditation—especially when the volume knob is cranked.In this conversation, Art digs into topics like how his work as a trauma therapist informs his approach to drone. He speaks on how he’s gone about crafting several of his own noise instruments, his live performances as Uttered in Tongues, his latest album Ego, the various techniques he’s tinkered with to produce his growing catalog of noise, and a litany of other tangents. All this is to say that my conversation with Art was a pleasant excursion through resonances I haven’t dabbled with in many months. Thank you all so much for tuning in, and I sincerely hope you enjoy our exchange!

* * * * * *You can peruse Uttered in Tongues’ discography over at his Bandcamp page. If harsh drone isn’t your speed, then might I suggest diving into Diva Karr. Art noted that they’re planning to hit the studio in the summer to record their next full-length record. Their 2019 LP, Healing, is a scorcher, and I’m still kicking myself in the ass for sleeping on it.In a couple weeks time, we’ll have a new Reviews and Other Rambles episode up! Among the artists featured are Creature, Trenches, Unwell, Ethereal Shroud, and a metric ton of others.if("undefined" !== typeof jQuery && null!= jQuery){jQuery(".sfsi_plus_widget").each(function( index ) {

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Salutations, cavern revelers. Happy 2022! It’s the fourth iteration of our new podcast format, wherein Connor and I endeavor to cover a deluge of new(-ish) singles, EPs, albums, and other developments from the underbelly of extreme music. The vast majority of what we yammer on about can be found in the list down below, but you can expect a few easter egg morsels to be discovered only within the audio (Connor littered this one with quite a bit of “mainstream” detritus).

As is typical, we span an array of various genres, from biting hardcore punk and sweeping, melodic death metal to blistering tech-death and harrowing avant-garde black metal. There is much more discussed in the episode’s approximate two-hour runtime, but we’ll leave all of those tidbits for you to discover.

If you have some artists, albums, singles, or any other form of musical media you’d like us to consider for an upcoming episode, please feel free to send us an email or reach out at one of our various social media channels. In a couple of weeks’ time, there will a new podcast interview I conducted with Uttered in Tongues, where he discusses the intersection of harsh drones and mental health. After that, our “Reviews and Other Rambles” series will continue to trudge ahead. Thank you all so much for your continued support!

Bands/artists discussed in this episode include Blut Aus Nord, Voidsphere, Jordan Guerette (Falls of Rauros), Blood Incantation, Chained to the Bottom of the Ocean, Heavy Meta, Moon Tooth, Willzyx, LETTERBOMBs, PORTRËIT, I Shot the Duck Hunt Dog, Airlock, Elephant Rifle, Dead and Dripping, Be'lakor, Scowl, Plebeian Grandstand, Archspire, and others.

What’s up, abyss wallowers. It’s round three of our new podcast format, wherein Connor and I endeavor to cover a deluge of new(-ish) singles, EPs, albums, and other developments from the underbelly of extreme music. The vast majority of what we yammer on about can be found in the list down below, but you can expect a few easter egg morsels to be discovered only within the audio.

As is typical, we span the gamut of various genres from doom-laden death metal and excoriating hardcore punk to epic progressive folk and hammering noise rock. Connor gets a bit too giddy with a new soundboard (that may have inadvertently toasted his computer) and we may or may not have dedicated a few too many minutes to a “popular” tune that’s been making the rounds on the web, but we’ll let you be the judges of that.

If you have some artists, albums, singles, or any other form of musical media you’d like us to consider for an upcoming episode, please feel free to send us an email or reach out at one of our various social media channels. We’re going to take a small breather to recuperate over the holidays, so don’t expect a new episode until the first or second week of January. Thank you all so much for your continued support!

Bands/artists covered in this episode include: SAOR, Det Eviga Leendet, Regressor, Blindfolded and Led to the Woods, Imperial Triumphant, Climb, Malignant Altar, Wilderun, Mors Verum, Trigger Cut, The Ruins of Beverast, Rongeur, Stormkeep, Down with Rent, TEETH, and others.

Greetings corner dwellers! We hope you're all doing well. This is the second stab at our new podcast format, wherein Connor and I attempt to cover a slew of singles, EPs, albums, and other releases in roughly two hours.

In this episode, we cover quite the disparate amalgamation of blistering frequencies, as is tradition. We have some new tech-death from one of Connor's favorite bands, deranged noise rock with a sludgy, mildew-soaked twist, a girthy compilation featuring a fresh black metal track from the sludge titans known as INTER ARMA, plus banter over some experimental hip-hop, heady post-metal-infused noise rock, emotive hardcore, and scathing electronic-laced mathcore. Many other tones are discussed, but no one wants to read a laundry list of adjectives.

Bands/artists contained in this episode include: Tongue Party, Firelink, Patrik Jarlestam (Valheim videogame soundtrack), Porcupine Tree, Allegaeon, Outrun the Sunlight, Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs Pigs, Fleshvessel, Infinity Land, Machine Music, Bríi, Frontierer, MASADA, Injury Reserve, and The Grasshopper Lies Heavy.

‘Sup sluddites! Several weeks after Connor and I published our review of Atvm’s debut LP, Famine, Putrid and Fucking Endless, Harry, the band’s vocalist got in touch with me to have a chat about the project. Most perplexing to us was the contrast of their record’s vibrant artwork—penned by Harry Jenkins (@ineptaliens)—against the lyrical content that purports the Egyptian God Atum wreaking havoc on civilizations. While we do address that point in this conversation, a litany of other topics is explored.

In this interview, I am joined by Harry and Luke, Atvm’s bassist. Both are not originating members, but Luke has been a part of the project since their 2015 EP, Out of Chaotic Waters. Harry joined in subsequent years after one of Atvm’s founding members, Max (guitarist and vocalist), moved on to start a family. After establishing some background details on the project’s formation, we get into lyrics, the democratic process by which they compose their songs, and working with Colin Marston from across the pond. They also spill a couple details regarding new tunes they’re working on that we will be part of an upcoming split with Penance Stare. There are many hilarious tangents contained herein and I sincerely hope you enjoy our exchange.

Oh! And at the time this conversation was recorded, it was not yet announced that Atvm had signed to Transcending Obscurity Records! A huge congratulations to them for this exciting step in their growth as a band.

Salutations void denizens! This new podcast episode marks a shake-up in our typical approach to covering music. While we maintained a steady pace of publishing single album review episodes for the past couple of years, this formula has become increasingly cumbersome. There are so many albums we want to cover from this year that we just don’t have the time for in our current format. Plus, we wanted to take a stab at making the episodes more conversational. (Note: We do have two more episodes that are, more or less, in our now old format that we plan to drop in due time).

With that in mind, this new format endeavors to cover many more artists. Upcoming records to look forward to, some fresh(-ish) singles from bands we dig, newer EPs, splits, and demos, and even some peculiar finds from the dregs of Bandcamp. The back half of the episode aligns more with what you’d expect from our old format. In it, we cover four records with some depth and banter. Connor picks two and I pick two.

In this episode, we cover: Pomegranate Tiger, Pound, Allegaeon, Unfurl, Mastodon, Intercourse, Don't Grow Old, Gonemage, Knock Over City, Insomnium, Knocked Loose, Bossk, LLNN, Abstracter, Vixen Maw, Wordclock, BUMMER, Trophy Scars, and GRIZZLOR.

Another podcast episode, another death metal band to muse about. Reflecting on the year to date, it's staggering how many bands of this strain have unfurled new material, and yet more is to release in 2021's remaining two months. Phrenelith, 200 Stab Wounds, Archspire, and Worm (granted, their album just released, but it is ace), give us plenty to look forward to as the daylight decays in the northern hemisphere. However, of all the death metal albums we've yammered about this year thus far, none compelled us to cobble together some rambles quicker than Ophidian I's Desolate. I think it took the two of us, at most, fifteen seconds of the album's opening track "Diamonds" to compel us to prepare this word salad for you.

Ophidian I was founded back in 2010. Within a year of their formation, they dropped a three-track demo followed by their debut album, Solvet Saeclum, in 2012. Then the project mostly fell silent. According to an interview with Echoes and Dust, members of Ophidian I journeyed on to other projects, but after a handful of years, some of them regrouped to revitalize the band. And instead of picking back up where they left matters off, they decided to reinvigorate every fiber of the project's being. The result: a tech-death marvel that is as blistering in its speed and ferocity as it is exhilarating in its melodies and sharp arrangements.

We knew we were going to struggle in dissecting Desolate, as so much kinetic energy is bottled within every track, but nonetheless, we made it through. Thank you so much for tuning in, and we sincerely hope you enjoy our exchange.

Hope things are going smooth, orphans of the infinite void! Prepare your earholes for some more nonsensical ramblings from Ryan and myself (Bear-snack Benson). In this week’s episode, we unroll our slobbery tongues to chat in detail about Orphan Donor’s latest opus, Unraveled.

Unraveled is a flurry of excoriating grindcore burdened with leaden sludge, corrosive dissonance, and a strident belligerence a la screamo. Founded sometime in 2010 by Jared Stimpfl—the drummer of Secret Cutter—Orphan Donor has amassed a modest body of work with a handful of musicians contributing throughout its lifespan. Most recently, Chris Pandolfo of Clouds Collide has taken on vocal duties for both Unraveled and Orphan Donor’s 2020 record, Old Patterns. Although we had not heard of Chris’s project prior to experiencing Orphan Donor, he catapults the emotional tumultuousness of Unraveled to altitudes seldom felt. Anguished shrieks often slice against cudgeling percussion and walls of writhing bass. Yet every so often a melody will spasm, or a surge of catharsis will unfurl. Most poignant, however, are the lyrics that reflect upon the passing of Jared’s father in his youth.

We had a bunch to say about Unraveled, particularly the lyrics and how they sharpen the intensity of the instrumental arrangements. I wish I could punch myself in the teeth the next time I describe guitar sounds as “skronk” because I said that one too many times during the episode. At any rate, we hope you enjoy the rambles in this one. Thank you for tuning in!