Waldo the Parrot gives the Chicago blackened deathgrinders of Immortal Bird two beaks up in the forthcoming September issue’s Call & Response, but lucky for them, humans like them, too! 

Heavy metal has been flirting with electronic music for decades now, but the lines between the two worlds seem blurrier today than ever before. Chalk it up to Internet culture—with instant access to all the world’s information comes a vast multitude of subgenres that have enough permutations to satisfy all but the most discerning purists. Add to that the recent popularity of synth-heavy horror flicks like It Follows and numerous electronic artists signing to metal labels (Goblin Rebirth on Relapse, Gost/Dan Terminus/Perturbator on Blood Music) and it becomes pretty obvious: dark electronic/ambient music has pulled off a full-scale crossover!

We’re happy to give you the meat and potatoes death metal you need to get through a Wednesday afternoon, although that’s selling Kronos way too short. 

I was planning on only reviewing this band’s photo, but the image came with the rest of that nonsense on the side, and I can’t just move on without saying a little about the moniker Cry Excess. 

Doom legends Cathedral called it a career in 2013, but we all get to enjoy a nice, nostalgic death spasm with the CD/DVD reissue of 1990 cassette demo In Memorium (now spelled In Memoriam).

Gabriele Gramaglia incorporates a love of Converge-heightened, spastic hardcore heaviness into his anguished odes to the great outdoors.  The percussion and vocal rhythms here really set Gramaglia’s solo project apart from the pack.  The music retains black metal’s otherworldly quality without losing the attention of mere mortals like us.

Bassist Jason W. Walton recently completed two-song 7-inch, Mara, consisting of field recordings and largely focused on his struggles with sleep paralysis.

Lucifer I
New partner, same dance, better result
dB Rating: 9/10

In life, that which doesn’t kill you makes you stronger. Back in 2013, Blaze of Perdition were traveling through Austria and were involved in a major car accident that left members severely injured and bassist Wojciech “Ikaroz” Janus dead. Uncertain whether to carry on, Blaze of Perdition invoked the power of the Elder Gods—both benign and malign—and asked them one question: should Blaze of Perdition continue to sing the praises of “Luciferian Illumination”? The weak-minded would’ve come away from the confrontation confused and bereft. Not Blaze of Perdition. They respectfully mourned the loss of Janus and vowed, with ensorcelled swords and overflowing blood chalices held high, to return to the lands of the blackest metal, spiritually and physically rejuvenated.

Seventeen years after they foretold The Shape of Punk to Come, Refused have delivered just that in the form of Freedom. The Swedish post-hardcore legends are back with a vengeance, and Decibel has the inside story on their unlikely reformation.