Amoeba berkeley Staff
Kurt
Amoeba Berkeley
Burning In Celestial Poison (LP)
Black Curse
Excellent album. There is a balance of scorched earth black metal and dissonance death metal. Add a pinch of war metal from the days of yore. Bombarding, relentless, repeated listens unlock hidden depths of audial bliss. No mere side project, this is the real deal folks.
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Omniverse Consciousness (LP)
Doedsmaghird
Sounds, more sounds, shapes because of sound, listen-avant-garde, listen - metal, what is this, overdriven fever dreams and preoccupation, hallucinogenic, listen - outsider, dissociative, art, yes, please.
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The Crying Out Of Things (LP)
The Body
Heavy as heavy can be. I have not been let down by this band.
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Machines I-V (LP)
The Bug
Every once in a while, some stalwart label like Relapse Records promotes something that totally catches me off guard and introduces some amazing musician to these old ears. The Bug was such an artist. Machines 1 to 5 are a collection of self released e.p.’s made by producer Kevin Richard Martin. As fuzzed out, dystopian and bleak as these sound, this music was also very inspiring for me. I will definitely keep my eyes and ears open for more BUG, you should too.
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The Wolf And The King (LP)
1349
Sometimes I just need a well produced straight forward metal album. 1349 has delivered this request with their offering of the alchemical blackened sonic warfare of The Wolf & The King. Two horns up!
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Undying Spectral Resonance
Mammoth Grinder
It’s too bad that this is only an e.p. This rips and roars, it is super focused and full of vigor. Mammoth Grinder absolutely delivers the goods with Undying Spectral Resonance.
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Black Magic Rituals & Perversions Vol. 1 (LP)
Electric Wizard
Live albums are kind of a weird cheat for a lot of bands to fulfill contracts or make a quick buck. In the case of Electric Wizard I think this is a pure passion project. From interviews I have read it sounds like they were touring, and wanted to keep going but Covid hit and that was that. I feel the whole world just coped, maybe even in weird ways we don’t want to remember. Electric Wizard coped by setting up a 16 track tape and recorded live on Walprurgisnacht anno 2020. This is a great document, raw and heavy showcasing what makes Electric Wizard such a great doom metal band. Now, all I’m asking for, is to come tour this side of the pond.
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The Maldoror Chants: Old Ocean (LP)
Schammasch
October 2024 was a great month for metal. Blood Incantation, 1349, Doedsmaghird, Oranssi Pazuzu,, and Schammasch’s offering “The Maldoror Chants: Old Ocean”. You can read all about the inspiration Schammasch took from the poem “Les Chants de Maldoror” from online reviews. What I hear is a fully realized spell woven with complexity, depth and character. This is a very strong vision and it shines very bright. Another one of my favorites.
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Sorceries Of Sanguine & Shadow (CD)
Pestilent Hex
Symphonic Black metal is ether good or it sucks. This is good.
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Exhaust (LP)
Pyrrhon
If you thought The Dillinger Escape Plan or Converged sucked you probably won’t like this. I thought it was great.
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The Bad Fire (LP)
Mogwai
The art of writing about what one feels when listening to a particular album is problematic. Music is to be listened to. Often when lyrics are just read or looked at, they often fall flat or don’t hold up, but when sung at just the right moment, ahh pure bliss. Which brings me to my point about giving a review. Sometimes I will hear something and go arrgggh what is this awfulness, why did they, how could they make such a horrendous album. Other times there is an instant connection. Sometime some things I like at that moment in time but they just don’t stick with me in the long run. Other albums are a building block in my musical journey. I remember first hearing Mogwai around the same time I heard Godspeed You Black Emperor. Both bands definitely left a lasting mark on me and opened up new possibilities. While I have dived in and out of the world of Mogwai, I was glad to see a new album from them. Does this rock, does it give me some kind of emotional response and bring me some joy, yeah it does. A great way to start off the new year.
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Alreet (CD)
Edvard Graham Lewis
A wonderful solo release. I find my self head bobbing and getting lost in the post this or that music, and that great voice that recalls a bit of Scott Walker or Peter Murphy without sounding like ether. A wonderful album from a bloke that is 71!
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So Lonely In Heaven (LP)
The Legendary Pink Dots
So Lonely in Heaven is fragile and beautiful. It is harsh and ugly when it needs to be. As usual it is avant-garde with a lot of different musical descriptions scattered about, textures, tones, atmosphere and kraut rock like synths. I have a feeling that this is going to be on my best of 2025 list.
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Forces Of Nature (LP)
Mcoy Tyner & Joe Henderson
Hard to believe that Jack Dejohnette keep this hidden away for six decades. A live recording from 1966 that showcases all the musicians in the midst of stretching out, of change and finding common passions. This is on fire, showcasing each musician’s quality and strength. It is also captures the adventurous spirit of the jazz artists while creating, having fun and transcending limits.
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Textbook Tenor [Tone Poet Reissue] (LP)
Booker Ervin
Yeah! An excellent hard bop album with an all star line up. Snarling tones and a fiery session just makes this a magical album. Another quality reissue and a worth addition to your library.
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Genuine Dexterity (LP)
K-the-I??? & Kenny Segal
Backwoods brings us another tasty album. Excellent angular rhythms with outsider type of weirdness that has plenty of artistic integrity that works perfectly with the lyrical masterpieces being spit out. Seriously good. Get this before it’s gone.
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Opera (BLU)
Dario Argento
One of the last truly great Argento films. Severin does right by a great scan and whatever other juju they do to make this look as great as possible. Comes as a 4k UHD/Blu Ray pack too. Packed with a ton of great extras, this makes it a worth while upgrade from older releases.
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A Simple Plan (BLU)
Sam Raimi
Arrow video is another company that I have come to trust when it comes to restoring/remastering a film. A Simple Plan looks great, sounds great and was another worth while upgrade from my dvd.
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Silent Night, Deadly Night
Charles Seller
You get 1 4k of theatrical release and 1 Blu-ray of Theatrical release and 1 Blu-ray of the Unrated version. Again, defiantly a better presentation than my older dvd with plenty of extras, Don’t punish yourself and don’t be naughty, this is another worthwhile upgrade.
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