Death Evocation-s/t 7" EP (2011)

This one's a bit of a throwaway post, but that's not to disparage Death Evocation. Personally I can't stand most metal-between the Nazi undertones of a large part of contemporary Black Metal and the overall macho wankery of the genre as a whole, there ain't much goin' on with metal power.

Death Evocation, however, delivers the goods. Those goods consist of colossal, wailing, [fill in the blank hyperbolic adjective ehre] guitar blitzkrieg,a  pummeling rhythm section, and a singer who just barely manages to stay within range of the rest of the band.

These three tracks are suitable for doing activities that make you angry, feel powerful, and/or outraged at [fill in the blank injustice here: war, the NSA, Obama, Asad, whateverthefuckthisismetalwhogivesashitreally].

YOU CAN'T COPE. Death Evocation seems to be one of those "mysterious" bands with no internet presence, so I can only recommend that, if you're interested in buying this record, go find the nearest junky crustpunk nodding out in a gutter, and offer him $10 and/or a bag of heroin in exhange for his/her copy.

Ramlord/Cara Neir split EP (2012)

Continuing my celebration of all things Punk, and the break from garage/lofi blather, I bring thee a split EP featuring New Hampshire blackmetal/crust masters Ramlord and Dallas wizards Cara Neir.

Ramlord's epic 10-minute "Affliction of Clairvoyance" is an ugly, multi-sequence track that alternates between heavy sludge and thrashtastic speed bridges. One of my favorite LPs this year has been the new Anhedonist LP and, while it's not really the same sorta metal, fans of Anhedonist will prolly dig Ramlord.

That said, I'm not an expert on metal and can't really comment much on Cara Neir's side. This sounds like speed metal to me: blastbeats, epic (like, running around lookin' like a Viking killin' motherfuckers epic) riffs, gremlin vocals. It's not exactly my cup of tea, but I appreciate the contrast in styles on the split: I can't stand splits where the two bands sound the same. Smoke a blunt to this when you need a change from dub.

You can buy this over at Broken Limbs Recordings, or check it out before buying, here. Ramlord lives here,  Car Neir lives here.

Whipstriker-Midnight Crust EP (2012)

A few weeks ago I was hanging on a Portland street corner with a good friend, who made an important distinction between punks and Punks: the former listen to punk but dress like civilians, whereas Punks look like these guys.
Although I haven't spiked my hair or worn a bullet belt since I was 16, there's an enduring soft spot in my heart for Punks and the music they listen to. In an era where every asshole around, from my clueless fratboy students to the jackasses in the band you just saw wear tight pants, Buddy Holly-by-way-of-Rivers Cuomo-glasses, and "ironic" thrift store clothing, Punks is keepin' it real: if you see a dude walking down the street in a Discharge shirt, tight black jeans, combat boots, a bullet belt, and charged hair with studded bracelets, you know EXACTLY what that dude's into and what's on his turntable. Billy Bao might've said "fuck separation," but I sez, sometimes subcultural ghetto walls should be maintained.

Rant aside, Brazil's Whipstriker makes it very clear where they stand in the culture wars: no ironic art-punk or "whitty" social commentary here, just crushing Motorhead-inspired riffs and raw, growled vocals condemning warfare, Christianity, etc. "Bombhead" could very well be the Discharge song "And Children": the vocal phrasing is exactly the same. The musicianship is top notch: these fellas certainly spent a lot of time playing along to Discharge and Motorhead records, and the solos aren't boring or inept, just heavy as a bombload.

You'll dig this demo if, like me, you feel that subcultures are tribal for very good reasons or if you just like gettin' drunk and bobbing yer head along to "Realities of War."

Check it out here. You can also read an interview with Victor, the singer of Whipstriker, here.