Every so often we are lucky enough to be around for an album that seems absolutely emblematic of a musical movement. With Larvae, Sutekh Hexen have crafted a transcendentally chaotic masterpiece, bound for canonization by metal fans and  outsiders alike. With a line up as disparate as their sound, including Dwid Hellion of Integrity, Sutekh Hexen have outlined a blueprint for a new form of black metal. Infused with a murderous surge of noise blended with the frigid brutality of raw black metal, Larvae seems immensely familiar, yet completely new all at once. At three tracks, and weighing it at just over thirty minutes, Larvae covers tremendous ground.

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Teitanblood’s Purging Tongues is a fifteen minute long chaos ritual,capturing a foreboding, occult atmosphere like no other. Opening witha Spanish spoken word introduction consisting of a reading from Revelations, buttressed by chaotic organ and the sound of distant thunder, it swiftly descends into a cosmically heavy death metal riff while possessed screams build in the background, battling the spoken word before the entire thing caves in. Committed to the assault, NSK’s vocals are a force to be reckoned with. Somewhere between a guttural death metal growl, and a high pitched black metal shriek, he provides a sonic core to the madness of the rest of the track. Spoken word interludes provide the listener a trance to recover, yet they build a tidal tension as you await the next wall of death.

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Neofolk had a tremendous year in 2011.   Expanding the soundscapes laid out by legendary acts like Current 93, Nature and Organisation, and Death in June,  we saw releases from classics like Sol Invictus, Rome, and Of The Wand and The Moon, while newcomers to the scene, such as Hexvessel and King Dude, took neofolk and merged it with novel folk traditions.  Apocalyptic, and brooding, the perfect accompaniment to the dark days ahead, these six releases made a lasting impression on us here at CVLT Nation.  Check out our list after the jump.

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2011 was a huge year for death metal.  With the return of some classics, and the debut of some bound to be legendary acts, anyone who says the genre is dying is simply isn’t paying attention to the underground.  Hard as it may be, we have pared down the releases of this year to our top six.  Check it out after the jump.

1. Disma-Towards the Megalith (Profound Lore Records)

Ritual Necromancy’s Oath of the Abyss is the perfect soundtrack for the bleak and ruthless winter that is ripping it’s way across the country. A black wave of classic death metal, Oath of the Abyss doesn’t try to reinvent the genre, but rather strips it to it’s rotten core. Opening with the instrumental “Accretion”, distant spoken word mingles with droning feedback before pounding drums and guitar kick in, heralding the beginning of the album proper. “Cacophonic Dementia” is a full on assault. Insane drumming linking with an apocalyptic riff while singer JF unleashes his hellish growl. Their songs spin along a chaotic gyre, riffs and drumming morphing as the song progresses, yet always remaining coherent.
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In what can be described as a field recording of a hellmouth tearing the earth asunder, Antediluvian make their full length debut on Profound Lore with Through the Cervix of Hawwah.  Canada’s Antediluvian have already made their mark on the death metal scene with their early demos which promised a primitive, chaotic form of death metal.  Through the Cervix of Hawaah delivers on the promise, offering listeners a tremendously complex, utterly unhinged form of death metal, amping up the legacy of bands like Portal and Mitochondrion to the next level.  This record is almost psychedelic in it’s utter chaos; reminiscent of Deathspell Omega, but drawing upon a completely different musical legacy.  As a whole it can be a daunting listen; nine tracks long and each a complete journey in and of themselves, this is a record that requires a close and loud listening to truly appreciate. 

Beneath the wall of terror lies some incredibly intricate instrumental work.  Take for example the titular “…Through the Cervix of Hawwah”.  Opening with brutal blast beats and frantic guitar work it rapidly mutates into a near grindcore sound before a warped and distorted guitar solo drops in, then disappears into a sludgy breakdown. As we approach the end vocals merge and distort into a horrid echo, manipulated into something not of this earth.  “Scions of Ha Nacash (Spectre of the Burning Valley)” is another track showcasing this bands dynamics.  An utterly insane, purely progressive death riff drives the song, before dropping into a slowed down, traditional death metal riff.  It’s this ability to both reference the classic and the forward thinking that makes this album particularly compelling.  Production wise it walks the line between lo-fi and clean, maintaining a sludgy, brutal sound, without losing anything in the mix.  This is an impressive feat considering just how much is going on here.  Though originally a duo, Antediluvian have evolved into a fourpiece, and the additional members contribute much to the albums soundscape. 

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Cultus Sabbati’s latest EP, Woden’s Galder, is a darkly evocative, unclassifiable piece of music. Cultus Sabbati’s entire approach, one of ritual and worship, manifests itself in their spontaneous recording sessions. Reminiscent of Abruptum, their tracks bleed and blend into one another, crafting an experience where each record must be taken in full, beginning to end, to truly appreciate. Woden’s Galder weighs in at merely 30 minutes, but ultimately feels like a far longer journey.

“A Serpent Came Sneaking” opens the EP, a slithering, sinister, dark ambient piece. Buried hisses merge with dripping and gurgling noises, evoking a shadowed, subterranean world. Driven by a sparse synthesizer line, with abrupt stabs of noise and feedback throwing the serenity of the track into chaos, it’s a frightening piece of noise that builds in intensity, utterly demonic vocals piercing through. Somewhere between dark ambient, black metal, and power electronics, you begin to understand Cultus Sabbati’s inability to be classified in any one genre.
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To put it simply, King Dude’s Love may be one of the first truly American neofolk albums.  Too often entrenched in the trappings of traditional English folk, neofolk artists have lived in the shadow of Death in June, Sol Invictus, Current 93, and the other monoliths of the genre for far too long. Undergoing a bit of a renaissance, artists such as Cult of Youth, Waldteufel, and Skurv are taking neofolk and twisting it into their own craven images. Influenced by tropicalia, punk, black metal, and anything else that may cross their ears, theres a generative spirit in all of these bands (and many more) that’s breathing life back into a genre that seemed to be dying with the retirement of the old guard. In the case of King Dude ( TJ Cowgill of Book of Black Earth, and creator of the brand Actual Pain), Love plays out like a Smithsonian Folkway recorded at an Appalachian Satanic commune.  Dais records cites Woodie Guthrie and Johnny Cash as two prime influences on this record, but after a few listens it’s clear that his record is a paean to the apocalyptic spirit that inhabits the dark corners of this countries traditional music. There’s murder ballads, love songs to ghosts, spirituals about lucifer; though Cowgill hails from the rainsoaked Pacific Northwest, Love feels like a journey around the frost rimed back roads of all this countries forgotten towns.

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Midnight, for those who don’t know, play beer soaked, blackened heavy metal. Equal parts classic Bathory and Judas Priest with a massive dose of punk energy, their latest release, Satanic Royalty, takes the blueprint laid out by their singles and split compilation, Complete and Total Fucking Midnight, to the next level. A whirlwind of NWOBHM inspired, heshed out metal, Satanic Royalty is a blast of sulfurous air in a genre so often taking itself too seriously. With a live set consisting of black hooded maniacs setting their instruments on fire, destroying their gear, and wreaking general mayhem, Midnight take no prisoners. Opening with the eponymous “Satanic Royalty”, the differences from their earlier releases are clear. A noisy intro consisting of backwards vocals, organs, distortion gives way to a fist pumping guitar lead. For fans who were worrying about the production on this record, do not worry-this is a near perfect mix. With guitars right up front, drum and bass driving each track (not buried!), and the vocals of Athenar crisp and clear, the production on here puts the immense talent of each member on full display.    READ MORE…