Gigan - Anomalous Abstractigate Infinitessimus (2024)

I won't compare Anomalous Abstractigate Infinitessimus with Gigan previous four albums, because I'm discovering them with this one (No, I don't live under a rock, but previous album was seven years ago and by that time I was still mostly sticking to the old school death metal). But what I can say is that it's an awesome album, the embodiment of how mind-blowing technical death metal can be. Gigan is tech death at it's most radical, dissonant and abstract, but also progressive and catchy in it's very special kind of unhuman groove. Highly recommended!

The BC page.

 

Graveyard - 6 (2023)

Usually graveyard is where people end, but for a change I'll start this new year for Blasting Days with a Graveyard review. Their sixth album, called 6, and released in September 2023. After a couple of albums in which they had modernised a bit their sound, they are back to their proto-heavy metal / heavy blues roots. The result is a very quiet album, but filled with excellent songs that I enjoyed listening many times. Good stuff.

GAUDI - 100 Years of Theremin (The Dub Chapter) (2020)

GAUDI is an English dub producer who has worked with the best in the scene. On this very special release, 100 Years of Theremin (The Dub Chapter), called he's paying tribute to Theremin  (the theremin is an electromagnetic instrument invented by Russian inventor Leon Theremin in 1920) with a dub album with theremin. He's playing the theremin and invited the best dub producer to craft the riddims : Mad Professor, Scientist, Prince Fatty, Dennis Bovell, and Adrian Sherwood among others. So we have theremin melodies over dub riddim and the result is really catchy and trippy. Highly recommended!

The BC page.

 

Usurper - Hand of the Usurper (2024)

After an already excellent first album in 2021 Usurper, from Newcastle Upon Tyne (UK), released a five track release, called Hand of the Usurper and also full of very traditionnal NWOBHM heavy metal, with a strong influence from Iron Maiden (and I guess Powerslave might be their favourite album, and I won't blame them for sure). Heavy and epic, with good vocals and memorable riffing. Not scoring much on the originality scale, but great for everything else. I enjoy it, and I'm looking forward to their second album.

The Bandcamp page.

 

Oranssi Pazuzu - Muuntautuja (2024)

Each album from Oranssi Pazuzu is different and special, and Muuntautuja is no exception. This time the prog/psych elements is less obvious and the band goes in a more dissonant industrial avant-garde black metal direction, with also some ambient/trip-hop elements. Like always with Oranssi Pazuzu it defies easy description, but imagining a music somewhere between Blut Aus Nord and Massive Attack could give you an idea of the kind of atmospheres they built in Muuntautuja. Another sucessful experiment and really interesting album from Oranssi Pazuzu.

The BC page.

Killa P & Numa Crew - Killing Time (2024)

Killing Time is the first album from London vocalist Killa P and Italian collective Numa Crew. But everything sounds very British bass music with most vocalists (Killa P and guests) expertly delivering a ragga style flow, over productions going from grime to jungle to dubstep to dancehall and dub. Really recommended for anyone into these kinds of music. Good stuff!

The BC page.

 

Blood Incantation - Absolute Elsewhere (2024)

Chances are, a death metal album named Absolute Elsewhere won't be a basic death metal album. And a Blood Incantation album has zero chance to be a basic album. Their previous (and excellent) two tracks release was a good indication of what to expect : the progressive/technical and with a Morbid Angel feel death metal of their first two albums, but with also elements from their synth/ambient in a Tangerine Dream/Popol Vuh vein album, to push their death metal further into strange territories, able to go from Morbid Angel to Pink Floyd in the same song. And as usual with Blood Incantation, it sounds at the same time very natural and very special. Certainly one of the most memorable album this year and highly recommended! 

The BC page.