waldo

First of all, I’ll be around, guys. Just will be a little busy doing a whirlwind tour of press for the new Hatebeak record. But, hey, no selfless self-promotion, eh?

Is it me, or are the releases pretty slow? I mean, there’s stuff coming out, but nothing that gets my feathers ruffled, if you get my gist. Just seems like a lot of reissues coming out, but hey, that’s cool, too. So, you know, it’s like, whatever. Teutonic death metal band MORGOTH release their first…

What’s up, motherpeckers? The releases are coming fast and furious, but maybe your old pal Waldo is a little jaded and would like to review some stuff that I don’t need to birdshit all over. Well, anyway, let’s get to it. First off, we have the supergroup FULGORA from the frosty nether-regions of, well, Baltimore and…

OK, after about a month I’m back. Don’t worry, you haven’t missed too much. Thanks to my human counterparts at Decibel for letting me slip this long. This winter has been a trial for your tropical friend Waldo — too cold. Anyway, this is about that time of year where the releases actually start picking…

What up, fools? We got all of the things fine enough (or bad enough) for you to check out or don’t check out. So, let’s just get into it, shall we? Napalm Death release Apex Predator-Easy Meat. Attacking this one for review is a little difficult, as I typically don’t do the “this track, that…

Happy New Year, you pecking geeks. There’s not much going on at the end of the year, and not much going on in the beginning of the year either. At least we’re out of the doldrums of the reissue cycle, although there have been some that are cool. Hailing from Portland, OR, LORD DYING release…

Ok, ok, ok, it’s getting to be the end of the year, so the releases REALLY slow down here. I’m going to just go ahead and get my end of the year list out of the way now, in case you want to get your Xmas shopping on.  If you have a curiosity or have…

Well, the end of the year doldrums have started upon us. There are some re-releases (HIM, Voivod, Sinister, Samael), but for the most part, the releases are going to slow down quite a bit. SOOO, I’m just going to like pick some stuff at random, and you know, because I’m feeling punchy, I MAY OR…

So much not thrilling going on this week. I dunno, maybe my beak is sore from all of this typing, I have a (ahem) hunt-and-peck approach to typing, you know… BLOODBATH are releasing Grand Morbid Funeral; get your HM-2 pedals a-ready for the stompin’. It harkens back to the so-called glory days of early death metal,…

Here we go. Mercury is still in retrograde, so you know, a parrot can be moody too. The cavemen of death metal (self-proclaimed), OBITUARY, release Inked in Blood on Relapse. Beginning as a Kickstarter project, this comes out of the gate relatively fast, and then really slows the pace down. Like puts the brakes on…

Here we go. Let’s just peck it right up. All positive reviews. Hmmm… HORRENDOUS releases Ecdysis. The title refers to the process of molting, and you know I don’t know ANYTHING about that.  Having made some waves in the underground typically makes me more judgmental on a release, and I definitely was, but you know…

WOW, there’s FINALLY some releases trickling in. I’m going to start off with a much maligned genre. Get your slam on! INTERNAL BLEEDING release Imperium, and I gotta say, I’m pecking digging it.  This IS slam metal, something they’ve been known for for years, but there’s more to it than just  pure slamz. I mean, don’t…

Isn’t this supposed to be a good time of year for releases?  Hmmm… well, there are SOME things. Welcome, oh ye Wizards of Gore. CANNIBAL CORPSE are back at it with A Skeletal Domain.  And what’s to be said about the 12th release by a forerunner in the genre of death metal? Well, if you’re not familiar…

BURZUM has been described as “music to make mortals dream,” and  The Ways of Yore (Candlelight) will do just that, because it’ll put you to sleep. I guess living in France can’t be that cheap; it seems like Varg cranks records out once a year or so. I’m not going to delve into his politics, the…

Well, the editors of this told me “if you don’t have anything nice to squawk, don’t squawk anything at all.”So like you’re not going to be able to bear what I have to pecking say about this week’s major release, like can’t peck  it at all, Paul. What time is it? MIDNIGHT release No Mercy for…

Squawk it, I’m not into an intro today. Let’s just get into it, shall we? Now, this will be a difficult one for me to review. It’s a little hard to separate people from the music they create at times, but I’m going to give this one a fair peck… or attempt to anyhow. NACHTMYSTIUM’s swansong, The…

The dog days of August are almost upon us and, man, this parrot is wiltin’. Anyway, not too much for me to get excited about this time around, but you know, read for yourself and find out. “Consistent” is a good word to describe OVERKILL’s White Devil Armory. I mean, this band DOES change, and…

Ok, Happy Fourth of July. You know, like, it’s  that day and all. GOATWHORE release Constricting Rage of the Merciless. Let’s not really discuss the title, as I don’t know what it means. Produced by Erik Rutan, this definitely has a full sound, full of clarity and definition without losing any teeth (or beak, in this…

Sometimes it’s really hard to do this column here, you know? There’s just nothing I want to crap on, or it’s generic, or it’s a well-known band that everyone knows will be good. Looks like it’s a noise rock kind of week. GODFLESH release Decline and Fall on Avalanche, and I gotta say, I beaking…

Looks like there’s some stuff worth talking about. Could it be? Two columns in a row? So, you leave Carcass, start a successful band, your ex-members make a comeback and kill it, and your singer quits. Where to now? ARCH ENEMY answer that with War Eternal. There seemed to be a lot of hurdles to…

Wow, my beak is stuffed up. Who knew a parrot could get seasonal allergies? Finally we’re getting some traction here… MISERY INDEX are releasing The Killing Gods, their first for Season of Mist, and I gotta say: it’s pecking great.  In their amalgam of punk, grind, death, crust and doom lies, well, more of the…

AGALLOCH, who seem to be getting more and more press with every release, are putting out the full-length The Serpent and the Sphere on Profound Lore. The most immediately striking thing here is the mood. This is dark and takes the listener on a journey. Not one track alone can really sum this up: it’s…

You know, the hardest part of this column here is looking for clever things to write in my intro (ignore the fact that it’s pretty squawking hard to type with your beak). Dust the crust, the oh-so-filthy AUTOPSY are back at it again with Tourniquets, Hacksaws and Graves on Peaceville.  If you’re a fan, prepare…

I’m not really sure what to make of this week. Just seems like it’s pretty dry out there lately. Hopefully that new Autopsy or Misery Index will be out soon. THE OATH S/T is released on Rise Above. They basically pump the fact that this is a female-fronted band; not that it matters to me,…

OK, I know, its GOT to get better. There’s not too much I found this week, so I guess I’ll get into it. Nux Vomica releases the oh-so-crusty Nux Vomica (self-titled, for those of you that aren’t that quick on the uptake) on Relapse.  Calling this just crust would be a little unfair, sure there…

Well, I’ve been reading some of my past reviews, and it seems that some of you want me to review some particular releases. I’m open to this idea; just leave your ideas in the comments. Obviously, I can’t review everything — Decibel pays me by the word, and the budget for this column is $4.35…

What up, beak freakz?  Notice the “z”? Yeah, I’m going nu-metal; a-parrot-ly it’s making a comeback. Nah, juzt kidding. Did you know there were two bandz named Portal? I did, and I’m going to review one of them. Oof. What time is it? Huh? PORTAL — no not that one, the one from Sweden — release…

Still a little slow around here, if you know what I’m pecking about. But let’s just dive into it, shall we? Culted release Oblique to All Paths on Relapse.  Culted are a file-sharing kind of group that never really all get into the same room. Amazingly, though, they’ve crafted an angry, nasty ambient drone/black metal/sludge…

Happy New Year, you pecking geeks. There’s not much going on at the end of the year, and not much going on in the beginning of the year either. I know I’ll sound like a mimic over the next few columns stating that again and again, and you know, parrots don’t like to mimic. EXHUMED/IRON…

Well, we all know that the year is winding down, so it’s that pesky time for end of the year lists. These are in no PECKticular order, so, you know, these are just some of the releases that are a better than fit to line my cage with. Noisem, Agony Defined:  This is thrash played the…