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.

 

Aluk Todolo - LUX (2024)

 

It's great to have Aluk Todolo back with a new album, eight years after the previous one. And LUX is again a very fine piece of free rock with a dark ritualistic vibe, in their own very  special style. And maybe that's what we can regret, sticking maybe too much to their style, without really bringing in new elements to it. That won't prevent me from enjoying it, but after eight years I would have expected something more surprising, not sounding so much like a "disc 2" of their previous one. Or maybe listening to it some more times will reveal some changes I didn't get at first? In  ny case they are already so different from other bands that just another typical and good Aluk Todolo album is maybe already enough.

The Bandcamp page.

Fulminate - High Caliber Decimator (EP 2024)

Fulminate is a new grind band from Chicago and this EP called High Caliber Decimator is their latest release (and their fourth one this year!). They play excellent old school gore grind, raw and noisy but with a nice groove. It's really good stuff, and I recommended the rest of their discography as well.

The BC page.