New Spins: 12th April 2021

We're covering a lot of different ground on this week's New Spins, so there may be some new music that appeals to everyone here...

Empty Throne - Glossolalia

When blackened death metal is done well it can be so so soooo good, and Empty Throne are a stunning example of how to do this style to near perfection. Featuring members with a pretty solid and extensive roster in both death metal and black metal, Glossolalia is a relentless wrecking ball of intricately crafted riffs and vicious melodies. The performances are all phenomenal in a technical sense, but they also have enough of a human touch to prevent the sound from becoming too sterile. The band don't engage in any of the softer clean sections like many others in the style, instead putting their focus fully on the pummelling brutal tones. Each track seems to have it's own character too, and while there are course recognisable elements from genre legends like Behemoth, Angelcorpse, Akercocke and Cradle Of Filth, there is also something very fresh about the sound too, and I'm really looking forward to even more from these guys in the future.

Glossolalia is released May 7th via Wise Blood Records, you can pre-order the album and listen to the opening track on Bandcamp

trajedesaliva - Ultratumba

Moving to the complete other end of my listening spectrum, we have the new album from Galician ambient duo trajedesaliva. Ultratumba is a remarkable work comprised solely of analogue synthesiser sounds and spoken word. Although I don't think that music should be inherently defined by the instruments used to create it, there is something incredibly human about the analogue synthesiser sound that trajedesaliva craft. There are so many subtle and incidental nuances within the waves of glacial melodies that it seems to follow an impressionist style, bringing the natural haziness of the human psyche to the forefront of the sound. Embedded within this soundcraft are the pieces of spoken word, and although I don't speak Spanish, it is a very beautiful language to listen to regardless. Because the words offer no linguistic meaning to me as such, they stand instead as a musical element representative of the direct human consciousness. It's a breathtaking album that simply gets better with every listen.

Listen to and purchase Ultratumba by trajedesaliva on Bandcamp

Buzzard - Eye Of The Sun

Sometimes you just want some simple, trippy, stoner doom grooves in your life, and Brazilian duo Buzzard deliver this in spades. Their debut four track EP Eye Of The Sun is a wonderfully stripped back exposition of psychedelic stoner doom. The bass/drums/vocals duo have crafted a sound which is, unsurprisingly, heavily indebted to Om, but they've paired back some of the restless nature of Al Cisneros and co, and instead for the most part have kept things focussed on the minimalist riffs and psychedelic atmospheres. They do have the ability to go hard though, as they show on the raucous final movement of Mantis. The sound is certainly raw, but it's fun and engrossing to listen to, and the band still manage to eke out a lot of dynamism. For a first release the duo should be very proud of what they have created.

Listen to and purchase Eye Of The Sun by Buzzard on Bandcamp

If you'd like to be considered for future editions of New Spins then please email your music and some info to wolvesinthedronedoom@gmail.com