Mortuorial Eclipse, The Aethers’ Call (2012)

Tracklist:

1. The Summoner’s Procession
2. Advent of a Sinister Omen
3. Crepuscular Necromantic Visions
4. Perpetual Covenant
5. At the Gates of the Marduk’s Shrine
6. Brotherhood of the Serpent
7. Orion’s Progeny
8. Submission

Bands with death and gothic slants may have stolen the headlines in metal this year, but the past months have born witness to the continued relevance of black metal.  With 2012 already seeing the coarse, rusted gratings of traditional black metal recreated and revamped by groups as diverse as Denial of God and Anno Diaboli, it seems fitting that the year should be ended with a hat-tip to the slightly-different debut of Argentinian deviants, Mortuorial Eclipse.  Mid-way between an EP and a full-length album, The Aethers’ Call looks, instead, towards a tightly-strung symphonic heresy, resplendent in weighty, string-laden drapery, and demonic, misty utterings.

Sound of the Underworld Goes Live on Facebook

Sound of the Underworld's very own Facebook page has been launched at https://www.facebook.com/SoundOfTheUnderworld.  Links to all reviews, interviews, and commentary on the blog to be posted as and when the arise, as well as other updates.

INTERVIEW AND FEATURE: Morte McAdaver

 

He might not be a household name yet, but there are few characters as intriguing, talented, and colourful in metal as Morte McAdaver.  The fertile mind behind numerous American alternative metal projects agreed to meet for a virtual coffee to discuss particulars.  Amid great excitement and an extremely dodgy internet connection, we gathered to consider the past, present, and future...

Schoolcraft, Rushing through the Sky (EP, 2012)

Tracklist:

1. Into the Night
2. Your Mind
3. December Rain
4. You Forever
5. Masquerade
6. Darkness Falls
7. December Rain (instrumental)

If Lovecraft has delivered terror, vengeance, and bestial lust to the gothic scene, then how to credit the gentle touch of young passion, sorrow, and Indian headdress?  One Canadian girl and her keyboard reckons she’s come up with the answer.  And, suitably, she’s named it Schoolcraft.  Having emerged with a debut single in 2011, late 2012 has seen the internet release of Schoolcraft’s first EP, an unassuming 7-track offering of keys, strings, and swaying vocals entitled Rushing through the Sky.

One Last Month of Metal...For Now

Over the past couple of months, Sound of the Underworld has really begun to take shape as a more serious project.  Unofortunately, it's going to take a looooong break after the end of December, as I'm heading off abroad for 3 months for study.  This will be the first of two 3-month study trips that will take up half of my 2013.  Most likely there'll be no posts during either of these, although I might well use the exotic location to explore the local metal scene.