It’s Friday, which means two things: giving this week the finger, and new music! Tune in every Friday for The Pit’s round-up of new releases, from singalong hard rock to pus-drenched underground death metal. Keep those ears bleeding!
Marilyn Manson, WE ARE CHAOS (Loma Vista)
For fans of: Hank III, Nick Cave, David Bowie
Standout track: “Solve Coagula”
Resident fuck god Marilyn Manson has always been a fan of adopting new identities over the years, and this time it’s a glam-country troubadour of sorts. WE ARE CHAOS will probably disappoint fans of the arch, kinetic vibe present on earlier albums like Holy Wood and The Golden Age of Grotesque, but for people buying into the last-surviving-rock-star vibe around the singer over the past decade, this’ll feel like a necessary reinvention. Manson for weed-smoking — who ever thought such an album would come out?
Mastodon, Medium Rarities (Reprise Records)
For fans of: Previous Mastodon releases
Standout track: “Fallen Torches”
To call “Fallen Torches” the standout track of Mastodon’s new rarities album is kind of cheap, we suppose, as it’s really the only “new” track on this collection of mixtape/compilation cuts and live versions. Thing is, what a track — “Fallen Torches” reminds us of why we’ve always loved this band, its mixture of ethereal weirdness and sludgy metal umph bringing out the headbanger in even your casual rock listener. Honestly, Mastodon could release a collection of Brann Dailor’s burps and it’d probably be more awesome than most bands’ material, so check this one out.
Ihsahn, Pharos EP (Candlelight)
For fans of: Ghost, Lychgate, Beastmilk
Standout track: “Manhattan Skyline (A-ha Cover)”
At this point, Ihsahn has surpassed the need to reference his older black metal work while discussing his career. Pharos is the culmination of a long period of progression, showcasing just how many influences and concepts the guitarist is willing to embrace. One need only listen to his cover of A-ha’s “Manhattan Skyline” to hear this (remember A-ha? “Take On Me?”). That said, the EP has more than just oddities, with tracks like “Losing Altitude” and “Spectre at the Feast” sure to please prog fans. In the Mr. Brightside eclipse (shit, see, I referenced it anyway).
Skeletal Remains, The Entombment of Chaos (Century Media Records)
For fans of: Vital Remains, Morbid Angel, Krisiun
Standout track: “Congregation of Flesh”
Don’t like your death metal too cavernous, but wary of any of that high-fallutin’ melody or tech-death? Let LA’s Skeletal Remains kick you awake this this gnarly slab of rattling cacophony. The label “old-school death metal” actually applies here, as The Entombment of Chaos genuinely sounds like what Morbid Angel would make if their ‘92 versions were time-traveled into the modern day and sent to the studio. If you’re not here to reinvent the fire and just want some brutal breakdowns that sound like the Reaper tiptoeing across the battlefield, boy howdy, here you go.
Ghoulhouse, Rigor Mortis Intermezzo (Horror Pain Gore Death)
For fans of: Impaled, VHS, All Pigs Must Die
Standout track: “Necroholics Anonymous”
Grinding melodeath with horror-themed lyrics and two zombie skulls in the logo? I live for this shit. Ghoulhouse are for anyone who like their music with human entrails streaming out of its mouth. Every song sounds like it fucks the dead, and then dances around in a suit made from pieces of them. If you’re looking for something fascinating and progressive, eat ass and die; if you’re down to watch The Beyond, again, then get in here and rage.
Other crushers:
- Putrid Offal, Sicknesses Obsessions (Xenocorp)
- Ordinance, In Purge There Is No Remission (The Sinister Flame)
- Darkened, Kingdom of Decay (Edged Circle)
- The Passing, self-titled demo (Caligari Records)
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Words by Chris Krovatin
