| Sputnikmusic
 

SputnikmusicBanner

Welcome, fellow netherfiends, to the second inscription upon the unholy tablet of the Riff Index. Herein we humbly offer cuts deeper than skin deep, names that are not often spoken outside whispers below the fog of the leathery underbelly. Fresh slabs just unearthed from the depths!

Row of Ashes drags post-hardcore through thick, bloodied mud, creating a muck monster that thrashes in the bog water. Elsewhere, Dr. Lipoma churns melodic death riffs and goregrind in a filthy medieval cauldron, his voice bubbling and pus-choked like the sounds of Dark Age surgery. Not to be outdone, Draugveil present potentially the most majestic and romantic album cover in recent memory. Do not be fooled by the blonde page boy coif or the bed of roses; the album delivers thunderous melodic black metal spurred by remarkably vibrant drumming.

There is and shall always be darker corners to explore. Dig through and dig deep. May you find yourself a treasure in the murk.

-ThyCrossAwaits

 


List of Recommendable Guitar Music:
June 9th – June 15th, 2025


Compiled, checked, and recommended by ThyCrossAwaits, Azazzel, and yours truly

 

Somnvs Mortis

Somnvs Mortis – Onírica Evocación de las Auras Condenadas
Genre: Chilean Black Metal
Streams: BandcampYouTube

 
Karçaz

Karçaz – Estrela Palída do Silêncio Mórbido
Genre: Black Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube

 
Ara

Ara – Mutterseelenallein und aus eigener Kraft
Genre: Raw Black Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Deadland

Deadland – The Incantation
Genre: Black Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Verikaste

Verikaste – Verenvirta
Genre: Black Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Draugveil

Draugveil – Cruel World of Dreams and Fears
Genre: Covercore Dungeon-Romance Black Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Aeon Winds

Aeon Winds – An Ode to the Mountains
Genre: Symphonic Atmospheric Black Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Raventale

Raventale – CDXXXII Thousand Years of Crime and Murders
Genre: Symphonic Atmospheric Black Metal
Streams: BandcampYouTube

 
Ars Moriendi

Ars Moriendi – Leur esprit marche dans les ténèbres
Genre: Atmospheric / Progressive Black Metal
Stream: Bandcamp

 
Sun After Dark

Sun After Dark – Tatkraft
Genre: Gothic-Darkwave Blackened Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Asura

Asura – Wielder of the Blacksword
Genre: Deathened Black Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Orthostat / Precipício

Orthostat / Precipício – Alchemical Veritas
Genre: Death Metal / Death Metal
Streams: SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Hatred Inherit

Hatred Inherit – Void
Genre: Death Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Deathgoat

Deathgoat – Dragged into Realms Below
Genre: Scandi-Transitional OSDM
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
After the Plague

After the Plague – Triad of Ruin
Genre: Death Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Drēor

Drēor – Hell’s Kitchen
Genre: Deep-Shell Marching Snare OSDM
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Mutilatred / Iron Front / Wretched Inferno / Dying Remains

Mutilatred / Iron Front / Wretched Inferno / Dying Remains –
Dead & Buried: A Death Metal Compilation

Genre: Death Metal of Various Flavors
Stream: Bandcamp

 
Dark Matter Secret

Dark Matter Secret – New Matter
Genre: Instrumental Tech / Prog Death Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Oksennus

Oksennus – Auringolla ei ole käsiä
Genre: Minimal Avant-Garde Death Metal
Stream: Bandcamp

 
Agabas

Agabas – Hard Anger
Genre: Prog-Death Jazz / Hardcore
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Skelm

Skelm – Belt Fed Assault
Genre: Death Metal / Hardcore
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Noth

Noth – Inhomogeneities
Genre: Brutal Death Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | YouTube

 
ByoNoiseGenerator

ByoNoiseGenerator – Subnormal Dives
Genre: Jazzy-Mathy Brutal Grind
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Faecalized

Faecalized – Craniopagus Parasiticus
Genre: Brutal Death Metal / Goregrind
Streams: Bandcamp | YouTube

 
GROG

GROG – Sphere of Atrocities
Genre: Deathgrind / Brutal Death Metal
Stream: Bandcamp

 
Lipoma

Lipoma – No Cure for the Sick
Genre: Melodeath / Goregrind (TBDM with Gore Vox)
Streams: Bandcamp | Spotify

 
Nightbearer

Nightbearer – Defiance
Genre: Melodic Death Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Stellar Blight

Stellar Blight – Eventide: Synod of the Dying Stars
Genre: Heavy Blackened Melodic Death Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Ritual Awakening

Ritual Awakening – Greed
Genre: Core-Infused Melodeath
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
View From the Soyuz

View From the Soyuz – Ubiquitous
Genre: JP Melodic Death Metal / Core
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Under the Ashes

Under the Ashes – Sacrifices Heaped
Genre: Deathrash
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Outergods

Outergods – Dethroned & Devoured
Genre: Deathrash
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Daggr

Daggr – Torn Veil of Existence
Genre: Cavalera-esque Thrash / Death
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Venus Star

Venus Star – Smokeless Fires
Genre: Black- / Death-Doom
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Hexvessel

Hexvessel – Nocturne
Genre: Folky-Progressive Black-Doom
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Klesha

Klesha – A Void Beyond All Comprehension
Genre: Atmospheric Sludged Death-Doom
Stream: Bandcamp

 
L'Impero Delle Ombre

L’Impero Delle Ombre – Oscurità
Genre: Rocking Trad Doom
Streams: SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Lights of Vimana

Lights of Vimana – Neopolis
Genre: Cinematic Prog-Doom
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Dolven

Dolven – In My Grave…Silence
Genre: Acoustic Doom Dark Folk
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Afargang

Afargang – Andvake
Genre: Folk Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
AVKRVST

AVKRVST – Waving at the Sky
Genre: Progressive Rock / Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Sargassus

Sargassus – Vitruvian Rays
Genre: Enslaved Prog / Post-Metal
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Row of Ashes

Row of Ashes – Tide into Ruin
Genre: Noisey Sludged Post-Hardcore
Streams: Bandcamp | SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Altesia

Altesia – The Somnambulist
Genre: Prog-peth Haken / Leprous Metal
Stream: Spotify (Single only)

 
Masseti

Masseti – Odds and Ends
Genre: Progressive / Power Metal
Streams: SpotifyYouTube Music

 
Insania

Insania – The Great Apocalypse
Genre: EU Power Metal
Streams: SpotifyYouTube Music

 


 

Sputnikmusic89
Social Index:

Bluesky

Facebook

Twitter





ThyCrossAwaits
06.15.25
Seriously that Draugveil achieves the perfect amount of cheese and backs it up with damn good MBM.

brickhed
06.16.25
gotta check out the Faecalized record, will report back when listened

Titan
06.16.25
Nex continues to bring the heat

Azazzel
06.16.25
so after the release of Byonoisegenerator I didn't expect to find a better "deathjazz" album this week but hot damn if Agabas didn't steal it for me. that punky hardcore Norwegian sound ala Kvelertak mixed with horny prog-death jazz really gets my blood pumping.

some other favorites from me this week:
Lights of Vimana was stunning the way it builds up really lush gothy structures with synths and cleans that elongate into waves of doom. Not as strained as post-metal or as derivative as post-rock, really accomplished for a debut

Sun After Dark also brought a unique blending of moody darkwave and goth of a blackened variety with memorable payoffs.

the way Stellar Blight punctuates their lurching take on Melo-Death with Heavy Metal infused rhythms really caught my ear, not just skating around candied scales. good stuff

I'd never heard of Raventale before this week but apparently they're a veteran group from Ukraine on something like their 10th album of consistently respected atmo-black. This one has a lot of symphonics but not the cheesy kind that draws attention to itself, it's all amplifying some ripping ferocious black fitting of the war torn cover.

pretty fickle about Power but I liked the earworm singles from Insania well enough but honestly the super cheesy and symphonic Fairyland record this week might be even better. couldn't bring myself to include it here but if you know that's your thing check it out.

Afargang's folk/metal record was nice, it's a professional musician fiddler and he carefully crafted a dynamic record around that, far from the simple and gimmicky pitfalls the genre is prone to.

-oh there's also a new 2 track Trhä release. continuing his progression into Buckethead with a big emphasis on slow clean guitar lead melodies

Hawks
06.16.25
FUCK YEAH!!!

Hyperion1001
06.16.25
"Ars Moriendi"

hey i know that guy!

ThyCrossAwaits
06.16.25
I briefly looked into that Agabas album because the genre tag intrigued me, I'm going back to finish it ASAP.

Besides the ones I mentioned in the intro, both Ritual Awakening and Venus Star are super strong contenders this week. RA sounds like Darkest Hour gone completely off the rails, and Venus Star...imagine OSBM engorged with the fat, syrupy texture of doom. Great stuff.

garas
06.19.25
Let's just forget that Draugveil album's existence. By the latest news, not just the cover, but the music is also AI-generated. Death to fake music!

ThyCrossAwaits
06.19.25
I can see the cover being AI, and maybe the lyrics, but holy mother of fuck if that entire thing is generated then it's Skynet baby good grief

Hawks
06.19.25
I gotta jam Venus Star hard. Gonna do that today.

Voivod
06.19.25
Excellent post, waiting for the planets of free time to align so that I can listen to some of the albums listed.

Azazzel
06.19.25
great job with the intro Cross, really digging the bite on that Ritual Awakening and yeah Venus Star's probably the standout harder doom release from the week but again I really dig the flipside of the genre from Lights of Vimana.

I also saw rumors about the Draugveil cover AND music being AI, but could just be that, rumors instigated by the art and virality - it was everywhere over the weekend. I don't hear it, but I haven't checked in on what AI music is capable super recently. Probably easier than we'd like to reckon to produce some baseline riff salad and screams if they can sand off the giveaway quirks.

You need to be logged in to post a comment
Login | Register

STAFF & CONTRIBUTORS // CONTACT US

Bands: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z


Site Copyright 2005-2023 Sputnikmusic.com
All Album Reviews Displayed With Permission of Authors | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy