Author Archives: Old Disgruntled Bastard

Spirituality in black metal and Highland’s Loyal to the Night Sky

Posted on June 15, 2017

D.A.R.G. left an interesting comment on a previous post which expressed my general ambivalence towards what passes for black metal today. According to him, “…what we want from black metal, is its capacity to transmit an experience of transformation, of … Continue reading →

Posted in Music Reviews, Thoughts | Tagged , , | 6 Comments

Abominant’s Napalm Reign: Does all metal warrant release?

Posted on June 10, 2017

Why does a band like Abominant keep on with practically no recognition from the mainstream or the underground? Napalm Reign is this band’s eleventh full-length album in twenty years, but never once in all that time have I known them … Continue reading →

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Oscar Wilde on the critic as artist

Posted on June 6, 2017

The Critic As Artist is the most comprehensive picture of Oscar Wilde’s aesthetic philosophy. Here, using the form of the Socratic dialogue, Wilde contrasts the role of artist with that of the art critic, and comes away with the conclusion … Continue reading →

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What does veganism have to do with metal?

Posted on June 1, 2017

(1) The advent of social justice in heavy metal and ignorance of metal philosophy Thrash metal, speed metal, whatever one chooses to call it, did a profound ideological disservice to metal at large by introducing politically charged themes from the … Continue reading →

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Retrospective: Morbid Angel’s Gateways to Annihilation (2000)

Posted on May 26, 2017

I demand to know the light of a promised land I demand to see this corrosion wiped away – Morbid Angel, ‘Summoning Redemption’ Morbid Angel evolved without pause until Heretic, developing technique and songwriting in a manner that had no … Continue reading →

Posted in Death Metal | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Neocaesar – 11:11 (2017)

Posted on May 21, 2017

Year 2017 presents an interesting clash between former cohorts in death metal. Sinister, containing only Aad Kloosterwaard from the original lineup, have released Syncretism; Neocaesar, on the other hand, are a band formed from some of the most significant personnel … Continue reading →

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On suicide

Posted on May 19, 2017

There is one school of thought which deems suicide to be the ultimate display of cowardice. No one is excused from the troubles of life, as disparate and unjust as the degrees to which they are inflicted on various people … Continue reading →

Posted in Thoughts | Tagged | 3 Comments

What is the essence of metal? Part I

Posted on May 16, 2017

British philosopher John Locke in his seminal Essay Concerning Human Understanding wrote at length on the subject of essence or that which is immanent in an idea. To give the briefest of primers, ideas, according to Locke, can be classified as simple … Continue reading →

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My take on elitism

Posted on May 13, 2017

This blog at times has been accused of promoting mediocre music. If such has been the case, then that would lie at cross purposes with the many vituperative posts previously published here, ranting against the rot plaguing the metal scene, … Continue reading →

Posted in Thoughts | Tagged , | 5 Comments

Solstice – To Sol a Thane (Demo, 2016)

Posted on May 13, 2017

It is a fool’s gold that makes rich a man now and your truth will buy you only the lonely walk to our hungry gallows – Solstice, ‘White Horse Hill’ For those in the know, Solstice have been one of … Continue reading →

Posted in Doom Metal, Heavy Metal | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 2 Comments