Diaries of Doom

Note: This is an extract from a review of This Is Turin's upcoming EP "T.U.R.I.N.".  "Talk about saving the best til last. Bloody Hell. I mean, hold tight. You might need to sit down for this one. I can’t speak when I listen to it. It’s mesmerising, brutal, and absolutely disgusting. Literally everything I want to hear in a Deathcore single. Guesting CJ McMahon from Thy Art Is Murder, This Is Turin have pulled out all the stops this time around, and it's certainly payed off. Opening with a bouncy riff and low growls from CJ, we're immediately thrusted into a successive wave of dirty breakdown-style beats that characterise the verse, before taking off at the bridge with unrelenting blast beats. There's a bit of variation throughout the verse and bridge with the drums too, subtly making the listener aware that, whilst the riff remains consistent, there's still a sense of progression. Dare I say I'm reminded a little of Acacia Strain - the pure filth...

  Esoteric Ascendance is the debut EP from Grimorte, a two-piece death doom project from Kieran Scott (Ashen Crown) and Lewis Borthwick (Archierophant). Releasing on October 31st 2020, it is a relatively short for a project of this nature, though the EP packs in as much dreadful atmosphere as any funeral doom may hope to achieve over the space of an hour.  Each of the four tracks on this EP features darkly compelling song writing. Opening track The Procession lumbers forward tentatively, accompanied with a sample of Aleister Crowley's poem The Pentagram, before Scotts's vocals bring the piece into a resplendent cacophony of doom ladened death metal. Sequestrate opens with more imminent darkness, with a chorus that leans towards atmospheric black metal. The glory of Scott's "I ascend!" is almost without parallel. Title track Esoteric Ascendance winds melodic guitar harmonies between Scott's gutturals and screams, climaxing into yet more black metal goodness. Th...

Has Fleshgod Apocalypse gone back in time and had a baby? I heard they have, and they’ve named it Anaal Nathrakh. I mean, let’s just ignore the fact that Anaal Nathrakh were around many moons before Fleshgod, and let that analogy sit… Ok, so this is only metaphorical, as Anaal Nathrakh are a British duet, but stylistically it’s a shift I might not have anticipated.  This is, at least, for the first and title track, “Endarkenment”; the moment we reach “Thus, Always, To Tyrants”, it’s back to the sprawling wall of blast beats perforating tasteful noise. The sort of chaos we’re accustomed to has a strong presence amidst the melodic twists and turns that occasionally pop their head round the corner much like in the first track. You don’t even have to like it to be able to appreciate the versatility that’s shoved up your nose as soon as you hit that play button. “The Age of Starlight Ends” boasts their diverse approach all the more, introducing a flavour of Trivium-esque harmonies in th...

Diaries of Doom tends to focus on the smaller bands, but for me, it was too difficult to ignore these three mind-blowing efforts from larger and better-known bands. All are, without a doubt, career highlights. If you're after your typical dose of obscure stoner metal, have a listen to APF's The Brothers Keg  or my own band Slump , both of which had releases in September. If you fancy a few albums that surely will make most 'best albums of 2020' lists, though, keep reading... Deftones - Ohms (alternative metal) - Reprise Records Deftones’ ninth is a true return to form after the somewhat disappointing Gore in 2016. My own Deftones journey began in the summer of 2013, when I heard the dreamy Koi No Yokan as part of the free entertainment offered on a long flight home after a holiday I’d been on. I was transfixed, having never heard anything like it. Slowly but surely, Deftones became one of my all-time favourites, and I discovered their extensive back catalogue. Eventua...