Musings: Metalian - Beyond the Wall

Happy Halloween, everyone! While not exactly Halloween-centric, I’ve got some musings on a phenomenal album for you today. Montreal-based traditional heavy metal quartet Metalian have struck again with their fifth album, Beyond the Wall. Comprised of Ian Wilson on vocals/guitar, Simon Costa on lead guitar, Andres Arango on bass, and Tony Cantara on drums, Metalian’s latest opus was released a few days ago through Quebec’s Temple of Mystery Records. Being a Montreal native, I’m always stoked when a local band I love releases a new record. It’s already been three years since their last studio offering, Vortex, but “The Canadian Judas Priest” are back better than ever.

Beyond the Wall is a concept album of sorts, kind of a heavy metal cross between Pink Floyd’s The Wall, John Carpenter’s Escape from New York, and Fritz Lang’s Metropolis. The story told through 10 songs deals with the apocalypse and a corrupted system where humans try to reach the paradise that lies beyond the wall. The tale begins with “March to the Death”, a gorgeous opener hearkening back to ‘70s rock, featuring terrific banshee screams from frontman Ian Wilson. “Motorhorse”, the 2^nd single, is an absolutely infectious track showcasing dueling guitars and is one of the highlights of the album. “Fire on the Road” is a speedy, riff-heavy, earth-scorching metal tune. Solid from start to finish. “Last Chance to Ride” is a cool Maidenesque galloping metal anthem while “Solar Winds” slows the frenetic pace and shows the band’s musical versatility. “Rise of the AI” is one of my faves; the tide is turning in the story. The title track, “Beyond the Wall”, is fantastic and has echoes of early ‘80s Judas Priest. Another highlight of this record. “Behind the Lies” was the first single and it’s easy to see why: an instant heavy metal classic with a catchy chorus and riffs galore, deeply rooted in ‘80s metal. Possibly my favourite song on an album of favourites. The aptly titled “Cold Thunder” strikes like a clap of thunder with its relentless onslaught of guitars, falsetto vocals, pounding bass, and rumbling drums. The story comes to an end with “Dark City”, which in my humble opinion should be the next single. It’s an awesome song, maybe the catchiest and most accessible of the LP. It’s radio-ready and has got a ton of vintage ‘80s arena rock vibes.

October has been a very strong month for new releases, including one of my most anticipated albums of the year with Skid Row’s excellent The Gang’s All Here. But I’m here to tell you that Metalian’s Beyond the Wall takes the crown as best LP of October for me, and a sure-fire candidate in my Top 10 Albums of 2022. It might be recency bias talking but I think this could very well be Metalian’s best record yet! If you’re already a fan of the band, you’re gonna love Beyond the Wall. If you’re new to this uber-talented heavy metal quartet, then this is the perfect starting point. It’s traditional metal done to perfection and this is an album that I’ll have on heavy rotation for the foreseeable future.

Metalian on Bandcamp: https://metalian1.bandcamp.com/album/beyond-the-wall 

Pub Day! My novel, Once Upon a Time in Bitternest, is live!

My alter ego, Alan Draven, is publishing his final novel, Once Upon a Time in Bitternest, today! You can grab a copy on Kindle on Amazon at the links below in the United States, Canada, and the UK. It's priced at $4.99 US, $6.90 CAD, and £4.47. If you'd like a PDF version instead (which always looks better and is formatted closer to what a print book would look like), you can message me at my Twitter author handle @alandraven or my Harbinger of D.O.O.M. account @Harbinger_Doom1 or better yet, email me directly through this blog and we'll set it up via PayPal. I hope you'll enjoy this final ride in the city of Bitternest. Thank you for your support throughout the years!

Once Upon a Time in Bitternest  in the USA

Once Upon a Time in Bitternest  in Canada

Once Upon a Time in Bitternest  in the United Kingdom

Musings: Warlung - Vulture's Paradise

Warlung’s fourth album, Vulture’s Paradise, is set to take off on November 4^th. For those unfamiliar with the band, they’re a Houston, Texas quartet that plays a mixture of heavy metal, heavy psych, a bit of prog with a pinch of doom. I’d heard of them but I must confess, I’d never listened to one of their songs before. After perusing their first three albums, I’d say this is their most polished effort yet.

Vulture’s Paradise was a bit of an acquired taste for me. It’s only on the third spin that I really got into it and realized how great this album truly is. The LP opens with “Hypatia”, a decent song with a heavy guitar sound. It’s a good rock tune but it didn’t particularly move me. “Sky Burial”, the first single, is a kickass heavy psych song. One of the best on the record. The title track follows and it gets even better. This song really makes you feel like you’re flying, gliding in the air, hovering on the sound of the guitars and bass, catching air pockets when the drum hits, soaring and reaching peaks, then plunging to valleys. A definite highlight. “Demonocracy” is just as awesome as its title is original. It’s a slower tempo track, hypnotic at times, with a flurry of guitars. The second single, “Return of the Warlords”, is a superb song featuring a barrage of guitars and drums, channeling Led Zep at times. “Grave Marauders” is super catchy and is a perfect tune for the Halloween/fall season. It’s got an addictive beat and is my favourite track of the album. “Caveman Blues” is a smooth track, with some blues thrown in for good measure, featuring atmospheric keyboards that add a nice touch to the proceedings. “Worship the Void” is a good song but probably my least favourite. “Runes” is the most epic song of the LP; it builds up like a sacred ceremony, with tribal-like percussion and smoky guitars. A great choice for the closing track.

Warlung’s Vulture’s Paradise is a solid album. The band sounds tighter than on their previous albums. It took me a while to get into it, but once I got it, I was all in. The lyrics about death and destruction, haunting vocals, killer twin guitars, and first-rate time-keeping rhythm section come together to deliver a raw and energetic record that will please metal/psych/doom lovers everywhere.

Heavy Psych Sounds Records’ Warlung Bandcamp page: https://heavypsychsoundsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/warlung-vultures-paradise

Warlung on Bandcamp: https://warlung.bandcamp.com/ 

Musings: Skid Row – The Gang’s All Here

I’ve been a Skid Row fan since 1989, when I first heard “18 and Life”. Ah, the glory days of heavy metal and hair metal! Like many Skid Row fans, for me, Sebastian Bach was the voice of the band. I lost interest after he left/was fired from the band. When they released Thickskin in 2003 with new frontman Johnny Solinger, I sampled a few songs and didn’t care for it. The band would go on to follow it up with Revolutions Per Minute in 2006 (again with Solinger) and it was pretty much the same deal for me—the magic was gone. The band released some EPs, went through two other singers after Solinger’s exit, but never managed to record full-length albums with them. There were even rumours of a reunion with Bach a few years ago. In early 2019, work began on what would become this new record titled The Gang’s All Here, at the time with former DragonForce vocalist ZP Theart. It would not come to fruition as the band would part ways with Theart.

In February of 2022, the band approached 2009 Swedish Idol winner and lead singer of the band H.E.A.T., Erik Grönwall, to replace Theart. Grönwall’s favourite band of all-time is Skid Row, so this was a dream come true for him. He officially joined Skid Row in March of this year. They never actually spent time in the studio together with their new lead singer to record their sixth LP, The Gang’s All Here, and while the rest of the band recorded their parts without Grönwall, he recorded his vocals alone in his studio in Sweden. They finally met a few days prior to performing as an opening act for the Scorpions in Las Vegas and went on to tour about 45 shows during this past spring and summer. Less than seven months after Erik Grönwall became the new voice of Skid Row, we have a brand-new album. This all sounds like something straight out of a Hollywood movie, doesn’t it? But what about this new record, you ask? Is it worthy of Skid Row’s heyday? The answer is a resounding yes!

For those who lost track, the current lineup is Dave "The Snake" Sabo on lead/rhythm guitars, Rachel Bolan on bass, Scotti Hill on rhythm/lead guitars, Rob Hammersmith on drums, and Erik Grönwall on lead vocals. The Gang’s All Here opens with a superb banger, “Hell or High Water” in which Grönwall sounds like Jon Bon Jovi at times. This guy has a solid set of pipes! Next up is the title track, which was also the first single, and it’s a great rallying tune. A lot of Skid Row fans didn’t react so well to this song, some saying that it’s the weakest track on the record. If that’s the weakest song on here, then it just shows how strong of an album it is! I personally love it. “Not Dead Yet” sounds like vintage Skid Row, with echoes of Sabastian Bach. “Time Bomb”, the third and latest single, is catchy as hell and full of energy. “Resurrected”, “Nowhere Fast”, and “When the Lights Come On” are standout sing-along songs, with awesome guitar solos and memorable melodies. “Tear It Down” was the second single and first video we saw of the new lineup and it’s an instant classic Skid Row song through and through. I never tire of it and it’s bound to become a staple of live shows. “October’s Song” is epic and absolutely phenomenal! The only slow song on the LP, running at seven minutes in length, this one has it all. “World’s on Fire” is a great closer with a commentary on the state of the world today.

The Gang’s All Here is easily Skid Row’s best album since 1991’s Slave to the Grind. Grönwall is a breath of fresh air and he injects much-needed vigour into this band. There’s no filler on this album, all ten tracks are first-rate heavy metal gems. While it’s not as heavy and aggressive as Slave, it would fit in nicely between their self-titled debut and Slave to the Grind in terms of sound. If you’ve ever been a Skid Row fan and aren’t acquainted with this new lineup, then I urge you to reintroduce yourself to this band, it’ll be worth your while. Even if you weren’t into Skid Row back in the day (or if you weren’t born when they were at their peak), you should really take it for a spin. The Gang’s All Here comes highly recommended for fans of heavy metal, of course, as well as hard rock and hair metal. It’s a definite Album of the Year contender for me. I can’t wait to hear their follow-up to it once they’re all in the studio together and to have Grönwall give some creative input beyond singing. I cross my fingers that I’ll get to see them if they play near me while on tour in the coming months.

Skid Row’s The Gang’s All Here on vinyl, CD, and digital: https://skidrow.lnk.to/TheGangsAllHereAlbum 

Movie Musings: Halloween Ends

Halloween, the holiday, is almost upon us and what better way to welcome the best holiday of the year than by talking about the final entry in the most famous slasher franchise of all-time. For the record, John Carpenter’s Halloween (1978) is my favourite movie of all-time. It is one of the reasons why I became a horror writer. When this new trilogy began in 2018, I was really excited … only to be let down by David Gordon Green’s sequel/reinvention. It just didn’t do it for me. Sure, I was thrilled to see Laurie Strode (Jamie Lee Curtis) and Michael Myers back on the big screen, but I had a lot of issues with the film. Then, part two came out last year, Halloween Kills (2021) and I had zero expectations. In the end, I actually enjoyed it more than I thought I would. A definite step up from the previous entry for me. I really dug the angry mob aspect of the movie in which Haddonfield strikes back at Michael. Still, I had a lot of issues with the film, the major one being that we didn’t get enough of Laurie Strode. And now the time has finally arrived to conclude the trilogy with Halloween Ends, the 13^th entry in the series since 1978, after many sequels and reboots and what not. I caught a showing of Halloween Ends at the theatre last night, having only watched the film’s final trailer once, having not read any reviews prior, keeping myself away from reading/watching any fan reactions. I literally had no idea what to expect going in.

Here’s the synopsis of the film taken from IMDb: “Four years after the events of Halloween Kills, Laurie is living with her granddaughter Allyson and is finishing writing her memoir. Michael Myers hasn't been seen since. Laurie, after allowing the specter of Michael to determine and drive her reality for decades, has decided to liberate herself from fear and rage and embrace life. But when a young man, Corey Cunningham, is accused of killing a boy he was babysitting, it ignites a cascade of violence and terror that will force Laurie to finally confront the evil she can't control, once and for all.” This sums it up pretty well. This will be a spoiler-free review/musing and I strongly recommend going into the movie with as little knowledge of what happens as possible. The first twenty minutes or so had me captivated and fully in. Could it be, they actually made a swan song worth remembering to this lengthy franchise that I’ve enjoyed for the most part? Well, yes and no.

The more the story unfolded, the more I was applauding the writers/director for taking a ballsy approach and going for something completely different than what we’ve seen countless times: Michael going after Laurie, large body count, a few twists, climax, the end. Not so with this movie. My biggest gripe—and from what I’ve now seen having watched/read some fan reactions—is why don’t we get to see Michael more than the small amount of screen time he gets? He’s seldom in the film but when he does show up, they really make it count. Although, it does make sense after the events that transpired in Halloween Kills for him to need to retreat and gather his strength again. What angers people is the fact that a large part of the film is dedicated to Corey’s story arc. Here is a character that is being introduced late in the game, in the final film for the first time, and the plot’s focus is heavily geared towards him. But you know what? While it wasn’t perfect, I quite enjoyed this arc and how they went about it. It was different. Is that so bad? Rohan Campbell gave a terrific performance as Corey, with all the nuances of his character’s progression. At least we get to see Laurie a lot more and Jamie Lee Curtis shines in her portrayal of the character (as she always does). This time Laurie seems to be more optimistic about the future and is doing her best to live on the side of grief rather than letting it overwhelm her completely. It’s a nice change of pace from the two previous entries.

When we finally get to the third act, the last twenty minutes or so of the movie, it’s a thing of beauty! The kills are original for the most part, the violence level is amped up, Michael shows up and we get the best fight between Laurie and Michael that we’ve ever witnessed on film, in my opinion. The film’s climax is also excellent all the way to the epilogue which felt fresh compared to the way the Halloween movies typically end. Again, this film, like the other two, is not without its issues. It does feel like two very different movies spliced together. I’d be willing to bet a lot of dough that this wasn’t the initial script they had in mind back in 2018 when they announced it would be a trilogy. I’m almost sure that the pandemic that sidelined production (and the entire planet for that matter) had something to do with it, pushing shooting schedules back and having to work around that. Still, the end result is satisfying enough for me.

So, what’s my final verdict? I found Halloween Ends quite compelling. It threw us all a curve ball, and of course, most die-hard fans will be angry and hate it. Not this fan. It’s actually the film I’ve enjoyed the most out of this trilogy. It’s far from a flawless movie, but it does give us glimpses of greatness at times, turning out to be a good, not entirely great movie. It feels a lot more like a standalone film rather than the conclusion to this new trilogy. Is it the sendoff I was hoping for? More or less because its climax was near pitch-perfect. Sure, I miss Michael and there’s far too little of him and that’s a shame. But the story we got was one that kept me entertained and on the edge of my seat on a number of occasions. I’m glad this saga finally comes to an end and I’m completely fine with the way they ended it. Of course, it could’ve been better executed, but whenever I finish watching a movie and I think to myself, “I could watch that again”, it’s always a good sign. I didn’t feel that way with Halloween (2018) and wasn’t sure if I’d wanna revisit Halloween Kills when it was over. I’d watch Halloween Ends again in a heartbeat. If I were to give it a rating, I'd give it a 7 out of 10. If you’re a fan of the series, then I urge you to go see it at the theatre and make up your own mind about it. Who knows, you might have a really good time! Thank you to everyone involved for 44 years of Halloween movies. It’s been a fun ride. 

Musings: ExpiatoriA - Shadows

ExpiatoriA is a 6-piece doom metal band from Genoa, Italy. They’ve been around since 1987 but Shadows, their upcoming album due out November 4^th, is their first LP. They had a few demo tapes released in the 1990s, but many lineup changes would lead to the band splitting up in 1998. In 2010, ExpiatoriA returned with a 6-track EP titled Return to Golgotha, followed by a 3-track EP, Crimson Evil Eyes, in 2016. Fast forward to 2022 and the band has recorded a debut LP, Shadows, with a new lineup consisting of David Krieg (Tony Tears, Neith and ex-Malignance) on vocals, Edoardo Napoli (ex-Damnation Gallery) on guitar and keyboards, and Massimo Messina on drums (Stefano Caprilli plays drums on “When Darkness Falls”). The band's current line-up includes Flux (Tony Tears and Tenebrae, touring member of Abysmal Grief) on keyboards and Enrico Meloni (IKITAN and The Healing Process) on drums.

Shadows, while it may seem like it’s been 45 years in the making, only features new compositions. This is a very atmospheric album, and fans of Mercyful Fate and Candlemass will particularly enjoy it, I believe. This is some old school metal with doomy vibes and gothic undertones done extremely well. The record has the feel of a concept album, its six songs forming a cohesive whole. “When Darkness Falls” gets things off to a great start; it’s got a classic metal sound with an ominous doom mood and features a splendid guitar solo. “Ombra (Tenebra Parte II)” is sung in Italian and it made me yearn for more Italian songs! It adds an air of mystery when you listen to a song sung in a language you don’t speak. A slower number that eventually picks up the pace highlighted by the gloom of an organ, featuring the hypnotic vocals of Raffaella Càngero to add a woman’s touch to the proceedings. Epic in scope, it’s a highlight of the record. “The Wrong Side of Love” has Krieg’s vocals reminiscent of Type O Negative’s Peter Steele and Rammstein’s Till Lindemann. “7 Chairs and a Portrait” is the latest single and a very evocative track with chiming bells, catchy riffs, and terrific graveyard atmosphere. “The Asylum of the Damned” is a beautiful instrumental—the shortest track on the record—and features flute and sax that lend themselves perfectly to the overall setting of the piece. The album culminates with “Krieg (My Last Song)”, a more gothic song with a great acoustic beginning that turns into a lavish melancholy tune.

ExpiatoriA’s Shadows, whether you were waiting for it or not, is well worth the wait. You can tell a lot of effort and planning went into this 44-minute record. This is an album that is ideal to listen to on dark autumn days, when it’s windy and grey outside. It conjures the gloom of graveyards and the magic of this picturesque season, all carefully crafted by a group of multi-talented musicians. There’s really something for everyone here: doom, traditional heavy metal, goth, and even hints of prog rock throughout. Shadows comes highly recommended from your friendly Harbinger of Doom.

ExpiatoriA on Bandcamp: https://expiatoria-official.bandcamp.com/album/shadows 

Audiobook Showcase: A Night in the Lonesome October

Roger Zelazny’s A Night in the Lonesome October has become a modern-day October and Halloween literature classic. First published in 1993, it made its first appearance as an audiobook this year, released at the end of August. I’d often heard of it but never got around to reading it over the years, so when Audible announced its publication in audio format, I decided it would be the perfect opportunity to finally check it out. I waited for the spooky month of October to come around to listen to it as the book’s story unfolds from October 1^st to the 31^st, culminating on the magical night of Halloween. This was Zelazny’s final novel before his untimely passing and is considered by many as his finest.

Here’s the novel’s official synopsis: “Loyally accompanying a mysterious knife-wielding gentleman named Jack on his midnight rounds through the murky streets of London, good dog Snuff is busy helping his master collect the grisly ingredients needed for an unearthly rite that will take place not long after the death of the moon. But Snuff and his master are not alone. All manner of participants, both human and not, are gathering with their ancient tools and their animal familiars in preparation for the dread night. It is brave, devoted Snuff who must calculate the patterns of the Game and keep track of the Players—the witch, the mad monk, the vengeful vicar, the Count who sleeps by day, the Good Doctor and the hulking Experiment Man he fashioned from human body parts, and a wild-card American named Larry Talbot—all the while keeping Things at bay and staying a leap ahead of the Great Detective, who knows quite a bit more than he lets on.”

Cover Art for the 1993 Print Edition

This is a lovely book! It’s not a really a horror novel, but more of a fantasy with a pinch of mystery and at times a quite humoristic story. Think of the classic Ray Bradbury novel Something Wicked This Way Comes and his short story collection, The October Country, but even lighter at times. It’s the perfect read for the month of October to get you in the mood for Halloween. It’s not for everybody in the sense that it’s entirely told from the point of view of animals, mainly Snuff, our protagonist who is Jack’s dog. Who is Jack, you ask? I won’t divulge that here. But I will say that this book is a love letter to the Universal Monsters movies of the 1930s, featuring Dracula, Frankenstein, the Wolf Man and also a homage to the writings of Ray Bradbury, old gothic novels, and features lots of H.P. Lovecraft references with things like the Elder Gods and Cthulhu. As I said, if a story told by animals isn’t your thing, then you should give this book a pass. However, if you’ve enjoyed the kind of storytelling found in Richard Adams’ Watership Down and/or Richard Bach’s Jonathan Livingston Seagull, you’re very likely to enjoy this story.

The book is narrated to perfection by Matt Godfrey who acts out a plethora of voices and gives every animal character its own accent and personality. It was a joy to listen to him narrate for the short running time of six and a half hours. The atmosphere he and Zelazny paint easily comes to life in the listener/reader’s mind. One thing that occurred to me as I was listening to it was that it’d make a gem of an animated film, whether it be in traditional 2D animation or CGI. I’m actually a little shocked it hasn’t been done yet!

A Night in the Lonesome October is a novel I’ll most likely be revisiting every year in October to go along with my tradition of watching certain movies on a yearly basis during that wonderful autumn period leading up to Halloween. If you’re looking for something different and new to do this year to spend the days until All Hallow’s Eve, then I highly recommend lending your ears to Mr. Zelazny’s now classic October tale.

Rating: Four stars out of five

Get your copy on Audible 

Musings: Ellefson-Soto - Vacation in the Underworld

Collaborations between superstar musicians are always exciting. Back in 1993, one of my favourite albums of all-time resulted from Led Zep’s legendary guitarist Jimmy Page joining forces with Whitesnake and former Deep Purple vocalist extraordinaire David Coverdale. While the album didn’t have the success they’d hoped for and the ensuing world tour didn’t cross the finish line, I am grateful that they did come together for a very special album with Coverdale/Page. Many collabs fizzle or don’t deliver. This time around, it’s former Megadeth co-founding member, bassist David Ellefson, teaming up with metal/hard rock vocalist Jeff Scott Soto who’s been part of a dozen bands over the past three decades, including Yngwie Malmsteen, Sons of Apollo, and Trans-Siberian Orchestra among many others. They are joined by Andy Martongelli on guitar and keys, along with Paolo Caridi on drums to complete the lineup of the Ellefson-Soto supergroup.

On to the album. This debut is a terrific blend of heavy metal, hard rock, and power metal with hints of thrash. The opening title track, “Vacation in the Underworld”, and first single is an instant metal classic! An earworm, a speedy and super catchy tune that is sure to have fans singing along at concerts. “Like a Bullet”, the second single, is almost equally great, featuring plenty of cool riffs. It’s followed by a bridge of solid songs: “Sharpen the Sword”, “The Reason”, “S.T.N” (which stands for Something to Nothing), and “The Revolution”. “Celebrity Trash” is a highlight of the album, a fun track with an old school hard rock feel to it. “Live to Die Another Day” has a Megadeth-type riff and overall vibe. It’s a mean song, with awesome guitar soloing and one of my favourites of the record. “The Day Before Tomorrow” is a keyboard-driven, slower number. It features Soto duetting with Jade Etro from power metal band Frozen Crown—another highlight of the LP. “Hercules” is a gorgeous, albeit too short, bass-heavy instrumental that evokes Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour with its guitar sound. “Rise to Win” is a banger of a song, with a killer guitar solo that’ll make you bob your head along to the music. On top of the album’s eleven tracks, we get three bonus songs and they aren’t your average throwaway extra material, no sir! “Out of the Blue” is a bona fide rock ballad with piano, reminiscent of Dream Theater’s Images and Words ballads. “Lone Star”, with its awesome intro, is one of the catchiest songs of the album. It’s an ‘80s-tinged arena rock number that is right up there with my favourites. “Writing on the Wall” brings things to a close on a quiet but very strong note. A power ballad worthy of the best metal ballads of the ‘80s and early ‘90s. I don’t know how metal fans will react to the inclusion of a number of slower songs/ballads on this record, but I find they are a welcome addition and I personally enjoy the heck out of them.

This album came out five weeks after Megadeth’s The Sick, The Dying… and I’m sure a lot of Ellefson fans are eager to see if it can hold its own against the behemoth that is Megadeth. The answer is yes, with a small caveat: they are both very different and I don’t think they’ll appeal exactly to the same audience. Vacation in the Underworld is a much more mainstream metal album than Megadeth’s and if you love hard rock, traditional metal, power rock with some ballads, then you’re bound to enjoy it immensely. I’ve only had the chance to spin it three times so far, but I can tell you it’s gonna wind up on my year-end list of best records. Jeff Soto’s vocals have aged like a fine wine, Ellefson on bass is just as great here as in Megadave, Martongelli (whom I wasn’t familiar with) is a phenomenal guitarist, and Caridi adds power to the mix, keeping excellent rhythm on drums. Ellefson-Soto proves that merging a plethora of influences can give fantastic results and Vacation in the Underworld is a testament to that. Here’s hoping this isn’t a one-shot deal and that we get more albums from this lineup in the years to come!

Rat Pak Records’ Ellefson-Soto Page: https://ratpakrecordsamerica.com/ellefsonsoto 

Celebrate Spooky October with Bandcamp Friday!

The spookiest month of the year is here and so’s Bandcamp Friday! You know the drill: Bandcamp waives its cut and the artists and labels get to keep all the dough from their sales. There’s no better time to support bands than on Bandcamp Friday! As usual, here is my roundup of suggestions for you.

First off, Freedom Hawk unleashed their sixth LP, Take All You Can, and unless you’ve been living under a rock, you know this one is a sure-fire contender for album of the year. You can read my review of it here and pick up the record at your earliest convenience right here. 

Second, a really original band that goes by the name of Surfsquatch put out a cool album titled Planet Neptune. It’s a blend of surf rock, doom, and stoner rock. There’s even a track with a Theremin solo and I’m always a sucker for that! Check it out here. 

Third, a bit of a supergroup in the form of a band called Umbilicus, featuring members of Cannibal Corpse, Deicide, FORE, and Anarchus released an old school, late ‘60s/70s-tinged masterpiece titled Path of 1000 Suns. This is a must-listen for fans of classic rock and hard rock. Give it a spin over here. 

Fourth, just released two days ago, Calgary’s Riot City return with a killer sophomore album, Electric Elite. For fans of NWOBHM/speed/traditional metal, particularly Judas Priest, this one’s a barn-burner from start to finish. Raise your fist and grab it over here. 

Fifth, if you’d like to save some music for later, then Ruby the Hatchet’s forthcoming Fear Is a Cruel Master comes out October 21^st and is a gem of an album. After a five-year absence, this beloved psychedelic band delivers on all fronts. I reviewed the LP here and you can pre-order it over here. 

And finally, sixth and last, a shameless plug; yours truly released the “Name Your Price” Bandcamp compilation Doom Comes Knocking a couple of weeks ago featuring a who’s who of the best doom/stoner/metal bands. With bands like Doctor Smoke, Alunah, HAZEMAZE, and Titanosaur, you definitely can’t go wrong! You can support good old Harbinger right this way. 

And that’s it for me, folks. There will two more Bandcamp Fridays before we say goodbye to 2022. Man, what a fantastic year this has been and continues to be for music! Show your love to bands and labels by splurging on some songs and albums today, they’ll be grateful you did. Until next time, enjoy the tunes! 

Whatever Happened To… Spacegoat

This is the first entry of what will be a new column on the blog about bands that seem to either vanish off the face of the earth or that we haven’t heard from in a long time. For this first article, I’ll be focusing on a psychedelic/occult/doom band that I adore from Mexico: Spacegoat. Two weeks ago, they were one of the bands featured on Weedian’s Trip to Mexico compilation and it reminded me that I hadn’t heard anything new from them in years. I first found out about them in late 2016. One spin of their 2016 Superstition album and I was hooked. I immediately picked up their 2012 self-titled EP and it was equally excellent. But where are they now?

Their last post on their Facebook page is from August 2020 and in Spanish (which I don’t speak) but it’s with regards to the release of Superstition on vinyl via Electric Magic Records. On their YouTube channel, there hasn’t been an update since the fall of 2018, but what a cool update it was: a 31-minute live performance showcasing just awesome this band is! On the popular and reliable The Metal Archives site, they are still listed as “active.” I really hope they are. It’s been six years since their Superstition LP and I’d love to hear a new album from this fantastic band. I’m not on Facebook so I can’t message them but I am hoping they’ll be back in the near future to bring us their unique flavor of occult rock/doom. In any case, I highly encourage you all to give them a spin, it’ll be well worth your while, I promise!

Spacegoat on Bandcamp: https://spacegoatmx.bandcamp.com/

Spacegoat on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Spacegoatmx

Spacegoat on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/user/spacegoatband