Addaura - Demo (2010)

Hailing from Seattle, Washington (USA), is Addaura.

If you've followed my blog at all, you may have noticed I like to explore "What's in a word", as it were. In this case, as far as I could find, Addaura, could refer to a small fishing village in Italy, though, something of note that may be of some reference here, is the Grotta dell Addaura. It's basically some very famous prehistoric rock art. Follow links for more detail.


Addaura are another promising Cascadian BM band, not necessarily displaying a unique character to pull them away from the crowd of Cascadian BM bands around, yet, they do not disappoint. What they do, they do it well. Really, for a demo, this is a quality release. Better than most demos I hear. I hope the hints of a more individual character here are explored to their full potential in the future.

A full-length is definitely something to look out for from these guys.

Album Name: Demo

Band: Addaura

Genre: Black Metal

Year: 2010

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	White Deer	09:29
2.	Bereavement	07:46
3.	Through the Rain	08:38
4.	Ochre and Ore	10:43
		36:36

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Ash Borer - Self-Titled (2011)

Here's the much anticipated first full-length from Ash Borer.


Self-Titled is Ash Borer finally realising the mastery of sound they first truly displayed in their unforgettable split with Fell Voices. It was from that point, I thought this band had some real potential, and that I would not be disappointed by the eventual manifestation of a full-length release.

Simply put, it's an amazing release, the best of their stuff to date, and not worth missing.

Album Name: Self-Titled

Band: Ash Borer

Genre: Black Metal

Year: 2011

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	In the Midst of Life, We Are in Death	12:09
2.	Rest, You Are the Lightning	07:57
3.	My Curse Was Raised in the Darkness Against a Doomsday Silence	19:39
		39:45

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Alda - Demo (2009), Self-Titled (2009), : tahoma : (2011)

Alda, from Tacoma, Washington (USA).

Meaning of the Name 'ALDA'

• Meaning: Old German feminine form of Aldo and Otto, "Old; prosperous." Variants include Aldabella, Aldea, Aldina, Aldine, Aldona, Aleda, Alida, Alyda.
• Origin: German
• Gender: Female

- Quote here.


Alda is a Cascadian BM band that has been around for a few years now, has a few releases (one of which is quite recent), however, never really took my attention beyond being another Cascadian BM band.

Their first two releases are examples of this. And essentially, they became a band that I put to the side and forgot about.

However, these feelings suddenly changed when I came upon their latest release, : tahoma : (obviously a geographical reference here, being that Tahoma is, according to wikipedia, the original form of Tacoma, the city of which this band originates, or may refer to Mount Tahoma, etc). Honestly, given my previous impressions, I didn't expect much. But this latest release was a complete break from their previous material. As opposed to their other music, this album is an eloquent interwoven eclectic auditory nirvana. Still Cascadian BM, but with lengthier metal passages that keep you captivated, rather than strained, with a strong emphasis on a lighter folk element with clean vocals. These latter parts, are almost meditative, and indeed, a beautiful balance of the darker and lighter elements has been found here.

: tahoma : is quite the surprise, but it is worth it, and one not to miss.

One of my favourite albums of the year.

Album Name: Demo

Band: Alda

Genre: Black Metal

Year: 2009

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	The Seed and the Hailstone	03:53
2.	The Evergreen Womb	06:11
3.	Fimbulwinter	05:31
		15:35

 DOWNLOAD



Album Name: Self-Titled
Band: Alda

Genre: Black Metal

Year: 2009

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	Scattered On the Wind	05:16
2.	Fimbulwinter	05:08
3.	The Seed and the Hailstone	04:07
4.	Vale	06:22
5.	Venom in the Waters	04:43
6.	The Evergreen Womb	06:24
		32:00

DOWNLOAD (thanks to AmusLadmin)

Album Name: : tahoma :
Band: Alda

Genre: Black Metal

Year: 2011

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	In the Wake of an Iron Wind	11:58
2.	Adrift	08:41
3.	Tearing of the Weave	08:24
4.	Shadow of the Mountain	11:17
5.	Wandering Spirit	14:11
		54:31

DOWNLOAD (via mediafire)
DOWNLOAD (via bandcamp)

Petrychor - Effigies and Epitaphs (2011)

Finally, Petrychor's full-length:

Petrychor's first release, the Dryad EP, was highly acclaimed, including by me. And as such, this full-length was ever so anticipated. I could barely wait.

Eventually when I came across this release, it actually didn't catch my fancy the first time, or even the second. I couldn't see the connection between this release and the last that I one, expected, and two, read from an interview of Tad Piecka (the person behind this project).

However, perhaps at least connected to the fact their first EP resonated with me so much, I decided to give this release another try. And this time, perhaps it was my mood or the context, or whatever, but I felt a semblance to the resonance I did with the EP.

This album is amazing. It has many of the same similar elements that made Dryad, and fans of that release, like myself, to be draw in again. The folk, the classical, you name it. And of course all the elements that make it akin to Cascadian BM. However, as a full release, it attempts to expand on this expression, and make it whole. However similar they may be, I felt a fundamental difference in it's expression. Dryad may be interpreted as conveying a more "positive" sound, and that is part of what makes it, a positive beauty. But with Effigies and Epitaphs, there's a darkness there not present in Dryad. I feel it in the vocals, but even in the overall atmospheres, amongst other elements. The very existence of the song Seared, Sundered, the epitome of the dark expressions I'm describing, is proof of this. However, I think it is quite deliberate despite what I say, that this song is not at the end of the album, perhaps signifying that the conclusive feeling of this album is not a spiral into darkness, but simply that it is a reaction to the darkness entrenched in the ecological destruction ever-present around us. Afterall, beneath highway and street, things will grow back through the cracks...

Highly recommended album, especially for fans of Cascadian BM with strong folk elements, and classical.

Album Name: Effigies and Epitaphs

Band: Petychor

Genre: Black Metal/Ambient/Post-Rock/Folk

Year: 2011

Country:USA

Track Listing:

1.	I Lift My Voice	02:27
2.	In Remembrance	10:43
3.	Of Grandest Majesties	13:17
4.	Subjugated and Abused	09:19
5.	Seared, Sundered	03:01
6.	Beneath Highway and Street	14:19
Total playing time		53:06

 DOWNLOAD (via bandcamp)

Tad Piecka - Discography

And here's the person behind the amazing Petrychor project.

Fingerstyle guitar inspired equally by folk traditions and modern orchestral composers, following in the footsteps of traveling solo musicians.

Other projects he is involved in include Tremolite, Beware of Safety and Petrychor.

- Quote last.fm ("Tad Piecka")


So as I said, Tad Piecka is the person behind Petrychor. I found out a little while ago, and have been checking out his solo stuff, some such as I present here. However, it's confirmed as being him behind Petrychor now that he has created a Petrychor section at his official website.

Tad Piecka's solo acoustic music is in one word, majestic. It's completely instrumental, very melodic, soothing, and quite diverse. He uses a few different instruments here, blends folk styles (American and Irish according to him), and his fingerstyle and finger picking is a real stand out here.

It's truly beautiful.

It's funny, even before Tad Piecka put up info about Petrychor on his website, upon discovering him as the protagonist of Petrychor, when I heard his solo acoustic stuff, I could hear and feel the parallels in the music instantly. His style really is unique, and if listening the acoustic elements of Petrychor is something you would be into, definitely check this out.

And remember he has some other interesting musical projects too.

Official website
Tad Piecka @ bandcamp (Download for free here, or pay what you want)

Fingerstyle guitar and harp guitar pieces composed in Boston and various towns in Ireland, inspired by many different styles of folk music. Everything is live without overdubs.

This album was used as the source material for my electronic EP, Castles Rebuilt.

- Quote tadpiecka.bandcamp.com ("On Cunning and Castle Building")

Album Name: On Cunning and Castle Building

Band: Tad Piecka

Genre: Folk

Year: 2008

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	Little Boom	02:24
2.	Oso Delicioso	04:17
3.	A Thin Layer of butterscotch	03:36
4.	Snakes	04:38
5.	Slow Beacon Calling	05:37
6.	Commons	04:40
7.	Bring Up	01:28
8.	Quixotic Conundrum	02:29
9.	Killarney	02:39
10.	The Trees are Like Sentries	04:07
11.	Rattle	04:40
Total playing time		40:35

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Unlike On Cunning and Castle Building, this EP was put together with a singular theme in mind. Inspired mainly by traveling music, all of the tracks are fingerpicked, save for Kittyhawk which is mostly tapped. As always, everything is recorded live without overdubs. 

 - Quote tadpiecka.bandcamp.com ("A Feather to the Cheek is Comfort to the Vine")

Album Name: A Feather to the Cheek is Comfort to the Vine

Band: Tad Piecka

Genre: Folk

Year: 2008

Country: USA

Track Listing:

 

1.	Intro	00:41
2.	The Gift of Elocution (Part I)	05:23
3.	A Feather to the Cheek is Comfort to the Vine	03:35
4.	Ojo	01:59
5.	The Gift of Elocution (Part II)	06:17
6.	Kittyhawk	05:51
7.	Shoehorn	02:49
Total playing time		26:35

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More American and Irish folk played with modernist techniques, a touch of Philip Glass, and my oldest fingerstyle song finally rerecorded (Porblem No. 17).

 - Quote tadpiecka.bandcamp.com ("Stars Are Stars and Yours Are Yours")

Album Name: Stars Are Stars and Yours Are Yours

Band: Tad Piecka

Genre: Folk

Year: 2009

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	Stars Are Stars and Yours Are Yours	04:50
2.	A Feather to the Cheek Is Comfort to the Vine	03:13
3.	Porblem No. 17	04:26
4.	Nary a Nastier Dish	06:42
5.	Farishta's Folk I	04:41
6.	Farishta's Folk II	04:19
7.	We Call Each One by Name	02:33
Total playing time		30:44

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At Dusk/Idolater - Split (2010)

And here I present you with two bands from Santa Cruz, California (USA), At Dusk and Idolater.

 

At Dusk is a one-man project headed by Korihor. The songs on this split musically are some sort of a mix of your standard lo-fi BM and some DSBM, additionally with a bit of ambiance. For me, their last song on the split is the high point. The combination of ambiance and faster/heavy BM really drew me in. Themes in this music are a strong appreciation for nature, or "nature worship", and not surprisingly given the name adopted by the single member of this band, vehement anti-Christianity.

Korihor is a prominent skeptic mentioned in The Book of Mormon, in Alma 30. Korihor successfully preached ...that there could be no atonement made for the sins of men, but every man fared in this life according to the management of the creature; therefore every man prospered according to his genius, and that every man conquered according to his strength; and whatsoever a man did was no crime.
Korihor is directly referred to in The Book of Mormon as an Anti-Christ, because he claimed there will be no Christ. Despite a freedom of religion, Korihor's views and teachings alarmed the clerical government, who felt that his views were dangerous to their society. Under his teachings, people had begun to ignore the laws of the land (which were based on the religious beliefs of their society). Under arrest before a high priest, during a hearing for his apparent blasphemy and for causing social discord, Korihor offers a speech in his own defense. Korihor is turned over to higher authority and later gets into an argument with the chief judge and governor, Alma, about the existence of God. Alma refused to accept Korihor's arguments and Korihor finally demanded that Alma show him a sign from God or he, Korihor, would not believe in God. This culminated in Korihor being miraculously rendered deaf and mute, upon which Korihor confessed, in writing, ...I always knew that there was a God. But behold, the devil hath deceived me; for he appeared unto me in the form of an angel, and said unto me: Go and reclaim this people, for they have all gone astray after an unknown God. And he said unto me: There is no God; yea, and he taught me that which I should say. Cast out, Korihor became a beggar and was later trampled to death by a group who had separated themselves from the main Nephite society.

- Quote Wikipedia ("Korihor")


Idolater, another one-man project, and is also a fairly lo-fi production, amongst other similarities. A markedly rough vocal style, and perhaps less ambient (and less DSBM). Lyrically, perhaps a more intense anti-Christianity than At Dusk, and I feel the lyrical similarities end there.

Idolater actually has the two songs on this split on a full length, Black Sexual Blasphemy. As I've read elsewhere on the matter, it's a bit more of a "teaser" in that way, as opposed to a proper split.

For those into more dark/lo-fi stuff.

Album Name: At Dusk/Idolater - Split
Band: At Dusk/Idolater
Genre: DSBM/Black Metal
Year: 2010
Country:
Track Listing:

At Dusk
1.	Invocation of Ancient Power	03:10
2.	Colder Than the Merciless Snow	06:28
3.	End of Being	05:02
4.	My Flesh, A Pittance	05:32
5.	The Profaned Temple	05:29
6.	Forsaken, Betrayed	07:30
Idolater
7.	Lux Et Luxuria	06:38
8.	The Passion In My Heart	05:25
Total playing time		45:11

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When Bitter Springs Sleeps - When Bitter Springs Sleeps (2008)

And now a little bit more on When Bitter Spring Sleeps.

Black Metal Rituals inspired by, performed and recorded in a nature preserve environment blending true night sounds and black metal - Nature sounds in the live tracks are NOT samples mixed with the music - but the actual surrounding atmosphere while the music was being performed and recorded.in the forest. When Bitter Spring Sleeps is an ultimate atmospheric black metal experiment to commune with nature in a truly pagan and ritualistic manner. Organic analog beauty drawing main influences from Nature, Ritual, Paysage D’Hiver, Njiqahdda, Darkspace.

- Quote paganflames.com

WBBS are from Iowa (USA), comprised of the members Lord Sardonyx and Syntax A, both also of the band Satan's Almighty Penis.

And we briefly looked at WBSS with their recent split release with Panopticon. Quite a solid release, most notably I appreciated the WBSS side, given it's improvement in production and all-round better composition of music.

Their previous release, a self-titled demo, I share with you now. However, this original release of their's never really grabbed my attention. Though quite interesting and unique in that the album was recorded in a nature reserve (as opposed to the nature sounds being electronically incorporated), it just really didn't work for me. Poor quality production. The mixture of natural sounds and instruments didn't fit to me. Perhaps the natural sounds were somewhat overbearing. A bit too lo-fi generally, though some might dig that. But I certainly didn't forget them for such a memorable concept.

Obviously, really not my thing, but I do very much reccommend to check out the split with Panopticon.

WBSS @ myspace

Album Name: When Bitter Springs Sleeps

Band: When Bitter Springs Sleeps

Genre: Black Metal/Ambient

Year: 2008

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	What The Rain Knows	08:43
2.	Tears For The Sounds Of Darkness	14:28
3.	Beneath Mother Moon	07:22
Total playing time		30:34

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Nechochwen - Algonkian Mythos (2008) & Azimuths to the Otherworld (2010)

And some Native American stuff from the US.

The name Nechochwen literally means “walks alone” in the Lenni Lenape (Delaware) language.  It was a name given to me about 16 years ago by a friend.  It’s not necessarily an “alter ego” or stage name, just another name I am known by.  I started recording music under the name Nechochwen to connect with other musicians and people with an interest in early American history and American pre-history.  I am using the sounds available to me to create musical textures and scenes representative of western Appalachia and the Ohio River Valley in years past.

When Angelrust folded... ... I decided to concentrate on this music for a while and explore the Indian side of my ancestry a bit more.

- Quote here.

Nechochwen are a project of Aaron Carey (also of Angelrust and Harvist) expressing the Native American Indian side of his ancestry. Again, this stuff is heavy on the folk elements, which by no means demeans it, but infact emphasizes the pagan/folk/cultural/indig elements trying to be expressed in this music. To a lesser degree, there are doom/black metal parts to give it that extra kick, that raw angry emotion, just in case you thought the history of indigenous people in the US (and elsewhere) was all flowery.

Pretty cool stuff, especially if you're all about the folk.

Personally, I'd love a bit more metal in it for me. But it's still really amazingly beautiful. Soothing and calm.

By the way, Andrew Della Cagna is a guest on some of the music here.

Nechochwen @ myspace

Peter: The new album Algonkian Mythos tells stories of your Native ancestors.  What do you hope the listener will get from listening to the album?
Nechochwen: The album’s subject matter is the Northeastern United States in the second half of the eighteenth century into the early nineteenth century.  Not all of the topics or characters are Algonquian in origin, some are Iroquoian.  All these people interacted and either directly or indirectly affected each others’ way of life and belief systems.  I want the listener to learn something and get transported to that dark era.  For those who are already familiar with this subject, this music is for you.  These are compositions to keep history alive.  Try to picture the sights and smells that go along with the music.

- Quote here.

Album Name: Algonkian Mythos

Band: Nechochwen

Genre: Folk/Black Metal

Year: 2008

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	A Blistering Fusilade	00:53
2.	Fallen Timbers	04:45
3.	Algonkian Mythos	05:28
4.	Coffin of the Flesh	02:45
5.	Talgayeeta	04:00
6.	Gnadenhutten	03:57
7.	Cut-ta-ho-tha	03:53
8.	Pilawah	02:00
9.	Nilu-Famu	07:19
10.	West Across the Missi-theepi	03:48
Total playing time		34:56

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Album Name: Azimuths to the Otherworld

Band: Nechochwen

Genre: Folk/Black Metal

Year: 2010

Country: USA

Track Listing:

1.	Allumhammochwen: The Crossing	07:52
2.	At Night I May Roam	04:01
3.	Gissis Mikana	04:18
4.	Red Ocher	06:04
5.	The Eyes of the Mesingw	01:45
6.	Charnel House	04:38
7.	Graves of Grandeur	03:22
8.	Confluence	03:10
9.	Noameatha, You Are the Ghost in the Water	02:30
10.	The Forgotten Death Ritual	01:41
11.	Hunting Among the Stars	03:43
12.	Four Effigies	08:52
13.	Azimuths to the Otherworld	05:30
14.	Graves of Grandeur (Reprise)	03:23
Total playing time		59:36

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In the Sea of Trees - Demo I (2010)

I'm not the first to share this (honestly, I rarely am), but I'll share this anyway.

In the Sea of Trees is an LA-based project, and straight from the source's mouth:

In the Sea of Trees inspired by the aokigahara forest of mt. fuji. My music is somewhere between (post) folk/black metal/ neofolk along with more traditional folk musics (old time, bluegrass, gypsy, celtic). I play Mandolin, Violin, Acoustic Bass, Saw, and Washboard in these songs. I am planning on adding acoustic guitar, some percussion and banjo on my upcoming songs. 

While my music is completely instrumental I am completely outspoken about a lot of issues such as green anarchy, veganism, feminsim, anti-racism, etc... pro-equality, pro-collapse.

Aokigahara (青木ヶ原), also known as the Sea of Trees (樹海, Jukai), is a 35 km² forest that lies at the base of Mount Fuji in Japan. The forest contains a number of rocky, icy caverns, a few of which are popular tourist destinations.
The forest, which has a historic association with demons in Japanese mythology, is a popular place for suicides; in 2002, 78 bodies were found, despite numerous signs, in Japanese and English, urging people to reconsider their actions.
Due to the wind-blocking density of the trees, and an absence of wildlife, the forest is known for being eerily quiet.

- Quote Wikipedia ("Aokigahara")


In the Sea of Trees is certainly beautiful acoustic music. Melodic folk at it's best. I can definitely see how it is influenced by, of course folk, but also folk (black) metal (specifically of the North American variety). However, I do not see where any BM is present. Perhaps it will surface in later releases, or perhaps I simply have misunderstood the description given to me about this music. Irrespective of that, I love it. And with solid radical left and green politics to match, it's definitely something worth checking out.

And by the way, this is perhaps some less "happy" folk than say Blackbird Raum, for those interested in such.

http://www.last.fm/music/In+the+Sea+of+Trees

Album Name: Demo I
Band: In the Sea of Trees
Genre: Folk
Year: 2010
Country:
Track Listing:

1.	Decaying Existence	09:57
2.	Downcast and Lurid	04:47
3.	The Darkening Skies	03:30
4.	The Discontention	06:31
Total playing time		24:45

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Panopticon - On The Subject Of Mortality (2010)

And more from Panopticon, however, as noted on the RABM blog (where I give credit for getting this), this release contains nothing entirely new, as the contents of this is comprised of Panopticon's recent split's with Skagos and WSS.

So I post this pretty much just for the sake of completeness than for anything distinctly new.

Album Name: On The Subject Of Mortality
Band: Panopticon
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal
Year: 2010
Country: USA

1.	Living In The Valley Of The Shadow Of Death	11:34
2.	Living Eulogy	07:33
3.	To Make In Idol Of Our Fear And Call It God	06:30
4.	A Mesage To The Missionary	07:06
5.	...Seeing	08:08
6.	Watching You	09:14
Total playing time		50:05

 DOWNLOAD


Personally, I am eager for the apparent Panopticon split with Wheels Within Wheels - a favourite BM act if mine, who I'll cover more when this next split comes out.

Panopticon/When Bitter Spring Sleeps - Split (2010)

And yet another release from Panopticon.

This time it's a split with When Bitter Spring Sleeps (more on them later).

Panopticon definitely never ceases to push boundaries and experiment within and outside the confines of BM.

WBSS also represent well on this release, and infact, their use of outdoor recording works alot better here than I remember so on their previous release, though it's been quite a while since I heard that.

Check it out.

Album Name: Panopticon/When Bitter Spring Sleeps - Split
Band: Panopticon/When Bitter Spring Sleeps
Genre: Atmospheric Black Metal/Black Metal, Ambient
Year: 2010
Country:
Track Listing:

Panopticon
1.	Living in the Valley of the Shadow of Death	11:32
2.	Living Eulogy	07:33
3.	Make An Idol of Our Fear and Call It God	06:30
When Bitter Spring Sleeps
4.	Flames That Taste the Rain	09:36
5.	We Cower in the Storms of Her Retribution	11:14
6.	All Things Rise	05:57
Total playing time		52:22

 DOWNLOAD

Blackbird Raum - Discography

And now for some folk, without metal.

The first thus far in this blog, but this is really a stand out.

"Raum is a great earl, he is seen as a black bird... he stealeth wonder-fullie out of the King's house and carry it whither he is assigned, he destroieth cities and hath great spite unto dignities of men, he knoweth things present, past and to come, and reconcileth friends and foes."

Pseudomonarchia daemonum
Johann Weyer

- Quote Anti-Politics ("Blackbird Raum")

Blackbird Raum formed out of the nucleus of a squatter community living in abandoned buildings and greenbelt treehouses in Santa Cruz, CA, in the early 2000's. Finding themselves living without electricity, they began to learn to play folk instruments from each other and other members of the traveling punk/folk culture. They all grew up playing in anarcho-punk, indie and ska bands and then, knowing next to nothing about traditional music, slowly gathered together the skills to create a new genre of music, based somewhere right in the middle of punk and folk.

Refusing the retro cliches of many of their contemporaries, they write entirely original music (in both senses of the word) that is reflective of the world they live in: a realm of abusive police, ecological devastation, creeping ambiguity and vague fear, but also a strong sense of community and a deep love of a natural world constantly on the verge of collapse. They jump back and forth between extremely fast metal-influenced jug band dance numbers and quasi-medieval chant-and-drone while doing herky-jerky hardcore-influenced time signature gymnastics. They toured the country in a tiny truck, playing mainstream folk festivals, punk houses, squats and all ages clubs. When they aren't touring, they play various American and European traditional music, hang out in the woods, raise children and read a lot of library books.

- Quote Black Powder Records ("Blackbird Raum")

Blackbird Raum is a band from Santa Cruz, California, where they have become a prominent part of the downtown street life. They are well known for their influence on Gypsy Punk but are generally considered to be the founders of a new genre. Influenced by American String Bands of the 1920's and Modern Anarcho-Punk such as CRASS, their music brings together rhythms of olde-tyme music with lyrics that reflects the sense of impending collapse of the current civilization that pervades much of green anarchist culture in modern times as well as criticizing the human and environmental destruction caused by the current civilization. The lyrics and song names often contain references to historical events, mythical creatures and cultural icons, such as a song titled "Silent Spring", which references the book Silent Spring by Rachel Carson. Blackbird Raum has been on several tours, such as the “burnin’ gasoline while there’s still such a thing,” tour a cross-country tour and a 2010 tour to Alaska. They have appeared both as street performers and on stage at Northwest Folklife, a folk festival based in Seattle, Washington.

- Quote Wikipedia ("Blackbird Raum")

What kind of music is Blackbird RAUM? We have no idea, leave the name of the genre for some hack critic to invent. We're influenced by american string band music of the nineteen twenties, anarcho-punk bands like CRASS and a score of other disparate and incongruous bullshit too numerous to mention.
How we think of ourselves: in the same way that gypsy bands like Taraf de Haidouks feel equally comfortable playing village weddings and large concert halls, we're equally comfortable playing squats, parking lots, and riots as we are playing big folk festivals like Folklife in Seattle. In the same way that your local klezmer band act as emmisaries from their tightly knit jewish community to the world at large, we act as emmisaries from your local tightly knit community of anarchists and squatters to the outside.

- Quote Anti-Politics.net ("Blackbird Raum")

------------------

So what can I say? This might not be (black) metal, but this is some of the most amazing music around. Certainly drawing from the historical context of the American vagabond, and sound wise gives the feelings of playing music by a campfire, being amongst the natural world, or simply waiting at a crew-change. The acoustic nature of their music makes it so much more organic and Luddite than electrical dependent metal could ever be. The lyrics are as radically Green as any anti-civ BM act around.

Some of the most positive music I listen to.

-------------------

Official Website
Officical Myspace
Old Website

Album Name: Purse-seine
Band: Blackbird Raum
Genre: Folk/Punk
Year: 2007
Country:
Track Listing:

1.	Pistol Dance	05:04
2.	Honey in the Hair	04:10
3.	We Believe in Us Versus Them	03:36
4.	Coal...	04:13
5.	Witches	03:55
6.	Sadie's	02:52
7.	It Is a Poor Sack	02:43
8.	Ars Goetia	04:08
9.	A Life in the Corn Syrup	03:20
10.	Cities	04:56
11.	Fortuna, I Am a Spear Fisherman	11:36
Total playing time		50:33

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Album Name: Swidden
Band: Blackbird Raum
Genre: Folk/Punk
Year: 2008
Country:
Track Listing:

1.	Valkyrie Horsewhip Reel	03:12
2.	California/Fetid Adder’s Tongue	03:33
3.	Rubicon Drawn	02:31
4.	Silent Spring	04:21
5.	Witches	03:54
6.	Greymare	00:30
7.	Story from Strawmouth	02:40
8.	Woodwose	03:05
9.	Shot Coplifting	01:39
10.	Unregistered Firearm/Ravachol in Valhalla/Crom	06:14
11.	A Rat in My Dream	01:08
12.	Still Sick (years after the draft)	03:04
13.	Honey in the Hair	03:21
14.	Coal	04:12
15.	Germinal	04:25
16.	Everyone up to the Wall	03:09
Total playing time		52:00

DOWNLOAD Album Name: Under The Starling Host Band: Blackbird Raum Genre: Folk/Punk Year: 2009 Country: Track Listing: 1. Turning Away 02:39 2. Catherine's Wheel 02:34 3. Lucasville 03:21 4. Allturningbacksinthemeadowandwaitwhilebonesarethrown 00:55 5. To the Barricades! 02:36 6. William 02:18 7. The Helm of Ned Kelly 03:26 8. Crumbs 02:18 9. Snare 02:36 10. Ensemble Suicide 04:28 11. Old One Eye 00:55 12. Conquest of Bread 02:26 13. A Rat In My Dream 00:44 14. Path of Raven 03:23 Total playing time 34:39     DOWNLOAD

Xolotl - Xolotl (2009)

From the US, Xolotl - a side project of some of the members of Yaotl Mictlan.

Xolot is brought from his eternal rest in the underworld in the mid 2007 during a break of nearly 12 months of “Yaotl Mictlan”. The need to continue to play extreme metal and after some talks between “Yaotl” (drums), “Xolotl” (guitar) and “Adrian” (guitar) lead to invoke one of the most infamous ancient aztec gods, “Xolotl“. To complete this ancient worship they enlisted two mexica warriors, “Nahualli” (bass) and “La Bruja” (screams). The principle idea was to create a studio project band, but after a short time “Xolotl” proved to be the dark infamy that it truly was. So the idea of only being a studio project band was abandoned and now the band takes life as a well established band of aztec black metal. With this new lineup, some hymns are composed but after the first show Adrian disappears and is considered a deserter and is expelled from the band. Quickly a new mexica warrior is enlisted “Mo’ol Balam” on the bass, and warrior “Nahualli” is moved to guitars. With this line up and after many months of hard work by all members of the band, the debut CD is completed which was recorded in November 2008. Immediately an old friend, mexica warrior Joel Morales of American Line Productions (Alprods.) blindly trusts the band and offers to make the debut album under his signature label. In August of 2009 after several delays in the production of the CD the first attack of “Xolotl“, under the production of Alprods sees the light of day…”

- Quote Xolotl Myspace Page

In Aztec mythology, Xolotl (Nahuatl pronunciation: [ˈʃolotɬ]) was the god with associations to both lightning and death.
Although often depicted in relation to the underworld, Xolotl was not a psychopomp in the Western sense. Xolotl did, however, aid the dead on their journey to Mictlan, the afterlife in some myths.
Xolotl was also the god of fire and of bad luck. He was the twin of Quetzalcoatl, the pair being sons of the virgin Coatlicue, and was the dark personification of Venus, the evening star. He guarded the sun when it went through the underworld at night. He also assisted Quetzalcoatl in bringing humankind and fire from the underworld.
In art, Xolotl was depicted as a skeleton, a dog-headed man or a monster animal with reversed feet. He was also the patron of the Mesoamerican ballgame. He is identified with Xocotl as being the Aztec god of fire.
Xoloitzcuintle is the official name of the Mexican Hairless Dog (also known as Perro Pelón Mexicano in Spanish), a canine breed endemic to Central America dating back to Pre-Columbian times. This is one of many native dog breeds in the Americas and it is often confused with the Peruvian Hairless Dog. The name Xoloitzcuintle makes reference to Xolotl because, mythologically, one of this dog's missions was to accompany the dead in their journey into eternity. In spite of this prominent place in the mythology, the meat of the Xoloitzcuintle was very much part of the diet of some of the ancient peoples of the region.

- Quote Wikipedia ("Xolotl")


Xolotl as already mentioned, is a side project of Yaotl Mictlan, so some similarities are inevitable. As far as prehispanic BM goes, they both adhere to that genre generally. However, I think Xolotl tends to be faster (I guess that correlates with the short song lengths), and with less ambient/atomospheric elements like Yaotl Mictlan. If you are a fan of one, quite possibly you'll be a fan of the other. Indeed, I like both, but I'm a fan of ambient/atmospheric BM, and for that reason, for example, Yaotl Mictlan stand out more for me.

Album Name: Xolotl
Band: Xolotl
Genre: Black Metal
Year: 2009
Country:
Track Listing:

1.	La gran limpia de Ix Chel	03:32
2.	Tlamanaliztli (La ofrenda suprema)	03:07
3.	El regreso de Tlaloc	03:26
4.	Huitzilopotchli	03:10
5.	Chaac	04:05
6.	Kulto de Ketzalcoatl	03:52
7.	El Sol de manana	03:04
8.	Xolotl	03:36
9.	Xaman Ek	02:38
Total playing time		31:05

 DOWNLOAD

Lake Of Blood - Heed the Primal Calling

Lake of Blood from the US.

Lake of Blood is a black metal band from Southern California with lyrical themes regarding existence, morality, and isolation. The band has collaborated with other projects such as Panopticon. Influences are drawn from across a vast spectrum of different metal sub-genres and the band combines an aggressive sound with that of an atmospheric approach.

- Quote Last.fm ("Lake Of Blood")



Lake Of Blood are one of the less ambient/atmospheric of the Cascadian BM bands around in my opinion, and more heavy.

For those more specifically interested in vegan BM.

Their split with Panopticon can be found in the post on Panopticon.

Album Name: Heed the Primal Calling
Band: Lake Of Blood
Genre: Melodic Black Metal
Year: 2008
Country:
Track Listing:

1.	Nameless I Arise	06:11
2.	Heed the Primal Calling	03:49
3.	The Darkest Path	04:52
4.	Lake of Blood	06:03
Total playing time		21:00

 DOWNLOAD (via bandcamp)



Quote mouthforwar.net:

This four track EP from Milkweed Records essentially captures “…the story of man’s return to a primal state of existence, free from the spoils of civilization..” in epic, raw black metal. Heed the Primal Calling certainly has that underground metal feel, complete with murky production and a slight tinny echo — it all adds to the band’s delivery nicely. Thick, crunchy riffs pile on top of driving rhythms like demons on a fallen angel as Haagr’s vocals spit vehemence and pestilence.
There’s actually quite a bit to like about these four songs. Besides them being brutally raw in every sense, there’s a decent groove to a few moments within each track that will have you banging your horned head along with the band. It’s not inventive or unique, but the band’s sound is infectious as hell.
Nameless I Arise
Dark, ambient noise greets the listener, setting the mood for the first 50 seconds before driving riffs and rapid fire drums explode from the speakers. The riffs that follow are memorable and have a nice groove to them. The vocals come in around 1:30 with a raw, nasty edge. The band halts their onslaught momentarily at the four minute mark for some string orchestration and acoustic guitar. That stillness is shattered quickly though with melodic riffs that carry the listener into a sea of black. Man, this track is epic with sweeping riffs and well timed blasts. The track ends with a bit of ambient noise.
Heed the Primal Calling
The title track wastes no time getting down to business. After the brief silence that ends “Nameless I Arise,” Lake of Blood erupt like an axe wound to the skull with pummeling drums and driving riffs. The drum work is that of a maniac as Haagr comes in with his tortured screams. The second of the track has a chaotic, disjointed feel with off kilter guitar squeals and tempo changes. It’s an interesting way to end the track, and I think I like it.
The Darkest Path
“The Darkest Path” opens up with a flurry of driving riffs and unrelenting pounding of the drums. The vocals come in much earlier than the previous two tracks as the group summon the darkest of demons with churning guitars and bruising rhythms. I think this is my favorite track on the album. For the most part, the tracks straightforward approach is simple, yet barbaric in its delivery. There is a lull in the black storm that stretches on for about 40 second or so before more thunderous drums and driving riffs come back in to end out the song.
Lake of Blood
The EPs final track starts off with eerie, ambient noise for the first 20 second before a cacophony of guitars and drums flows from the speakers in a flood of black metal. There is a nice underlying melody to this aggressively paced track that gives the song a nice layered dynamic. The vocals seem that much more urgent and ferocious as the band shifts quickly from a mid paced tempo to a demonic sprint into hell.

~ ~ ~

A pleasant surprise in an ever growing glut of black metal, Lake of Fire embrace the underground feel, but also push their skills into otherworldly realms of evil with blasting rhythms, melodic guitars and desolate landscapes. Heed the Primal Calling is just what every malcontent needs in their daily consumption of metal.