Utopia Platafórmica

Dolentia “O Ressurgimento da Verdade” (Altare Productions, 2022) I have always thought of Dolentia as a sort of secret the Portuguese Black Metal scene did not allow to escape the claws of the Warlock. Melancholy and Nature were always two of the adjectives I have used to describe the band’s music and overall existence. Cripta Oculta always sounded to me like a very medieval Black Metal band. The band crafts melodies that have the ability to “paint” specific images, and Dolentia follows the same path. Melancholy and Nature, as mentioned before, are the best way to describe the band. A sound that carries the weight of Sadness and Despair. A band, in Portugal, that “paints” the same image in InThyFlesh, which makes sense given their connections, but musically speaking we approximately have the same feeling when we listen to Luctus, then when we listen to Satarae (and I have always loved his work with ITF): you can feel the despair, the pain, the sense of failure and destruction. It is

Auld Ridge “Folklore from Further Out” (The Hermetic Order of Ytene, 2023) It is not easy to describe what Auld Ridge is. Well, it is Black Metal in essence, of that we are certain; however, O.W.G.A.’s music carries so much weight, so many emotions, so much more with it, that simply calling it Black Metal sounds… basic and a depreciation of the Artist’s craft. Auld Ridge is what I picture rural Britain to sound if it was a Black Metal project: Dark, Rustic, Forlorn, Harsh, and yet, Beautiful. O.W.G.A.’S music is all that. A beautifully harsh vision of bucolic locations. His voice is the exaltation of millions of emotions, scattered throughout the plain and by the river. This rural and rustic painting flashes before my eyes and hypnotizes. The emotions, oh the emotions. Very few bands are able to provoke such piercing emotions; Primordial is one of the few I can think of, and they flash the same image as does Auld Ridge. Heritage and Black Metal are two things that live closely toge

Grundhyrde & Verflucht Split 2023 (Nithstang Productions, 2023) Grundhyrde is, along with a few other USMB acts, some of the best Black Metal I have heard in the last few years. I have never been a big fan of ultra-fast-cutting-violent Black Metal and have always preferred to absorb artists that had a higher melodic presence, less buried beneath the fast drumming, for example. Grundhyrde is a very good example of the Black Metal I identify with the most, today. I have always been a fan of Black Metal bands that used keyboards and were able to create those haunting and decrepit melodies, and many bands have recaptured the instrument, used it properly, and launched a new wave of keyboards in Black Metal. No Marduk for you, my friend. And it is not that I do not enjoy a good “Panzer Division…” or even “Iron Dawn”, but THAT Black Metal is far from the one that truly pulled me in. And melody is the basis of this Split, beautiful melodies, and ancient melodies. It is not easy to put

 Portuguese Hardcore Appreciation Post Linger "Hope you are finding sleep..." (Records DK, 2022) Linger Official Bandcamp Neighborz "Lost Feathers" (Hell Xis Records, 2023) Neighborz Official Bandcamp Take Back "Empire of Dust" (2022) Take Back Official Bandcamp Northern Blue "Northern Blue" (2012) Northern Blue Official Bandcamp.com Somber Rites "Somber Rites" (Salad Days Records, 2016) Salad Days Records Official Bandcamp

Túmulo “Cristo Demente” (Tapeworm Records, 2023) The idea of a Swiss band, singing in Brazilian Portuguese, and playing Speed Thrash Metal from the 80ies, South American style, made no sense until I came across Túmulo, from Zurich, singing in Brazilian Portuguese, and playing Speed Thrash Metal from the 80ies, South American style. Yes, it might sound… misplaced or even confusing, but it happened, and thank them for that. Túmulo is a 3-piece Heavy Metal attack from Zurich: Death Vomit, Forhammer, and Miasma are the Wretched Three, and repulsive Heavy Metal is their game. Totally intoxicated on Sarcófago, Holocausto, Rotting Christ, and Hellhammer, the trio brings forth a sound that could be classified/labeled/named/etc., as an homage to Old School Extreme Metal. From the logo to the band member names, all stenches of Old School Heavy Metal. Their sound is not 100% full throttle; it has some calmer moments where that frantic dynamics breaks, and Celtic Frost atmospheres rise up into

Cavalera - “Morbid Visions” (Track. Nuclear Blast, 2023) I discovered Sepultura around the time they released “Chaos A.D.” - which is a fantastic album of Extreme Heavy Metal, period - but it on “Roots” that I was absorbed by their music. Sepultura was, at this time, a massive creative machine. “Roots” was “denied” by the Old School fans, and embraced by avid music lovers that were getting into Heavy Metal via Nu-metal. The album has, in all honesty, moments that now make me question the band, but at the time it was all awe for me. Later on, I travelled back and get acquainted with their older stuff, that did not have a great impact at that time. I was into a more “commercial” side of Heavy Metal with the likes of Megadeth, Metallica, and Iron Maiden, mostly. So, an album like “Arise” was a slap on the face and a big question mark! Old Sepultura is, to this day, some of the best Black Death Thrash Metal we can find. The band did reach much higher levels of commercial success, but t

Feels Like Heaven “Extended Play” (Svensk Hardcorekultur, 2022)   F.L.H. is a Hardcore band from Stockholm, Sweden. They play Emotional Hardcore. Yes, the label Emo might scare people, make them blind, lose a leg, a stroke… something, anything, everything. People are stupid, Humanity is dumb, and I give 0 fucks about tags. However, if we had to place these lads inside the Emo label, we would have to go back to the 90ies, the birth of the Real Emotional Hardcore, not those kids with a disgusting haircut and sad souls… no hate, no hate. Funny enough, I have been presented to a few Hardcore bands that have a more mellow and emotion-based sound, and I am really enjoying it. One needs more emotions than just hate and aggressiveness, I reckon. F.L.H. has a sense for melody, a sense for delicate melodies. It is not an overly mellow album, it has some density and power, although it is immensely well-balanced with a more powerful facet of the band. Man, “Bright Angel Trail” has a bit of the

Money - “Money” (2022)   Now this was a very curious finding, as well as an excellent one. The 90ies, as I have said more than once, were a tremendous era for music. No matter how much you curse what was done in that decade, artists found inspiration everywhere they went, in everything they did… it was massive. The 90ies were a time of experimentation, of trying out what was never done, and that was one of the dynamics of Arts throughout the decade. And then you had those musicians who simply were more than others. Not necessarily more skilled, but more inventive and less afraid to risk. The whole Grunge scene was proof of that. Ok, Grunge was a mash of styles, nevertheless, it was a step towards an unknown direction. And then we have Money, a Post Alternative band from Oakland City, deeply into Deftones’ “White Pony” and most of what came afterwards. However, these are my words, not the band’s, so take them as an opinion. The band’s sound does not limit itself to copying what Chin

Immortal “Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism” (Osmose Productions, 1992) Ah, the sweetness of Immortal’s first full-length. Massive release, and probably their best, ever. Well, in my book at least. Immortal is a household name in terms of Black Metal and seen as playing a big role in the development of the genre as a whole. Honestly, I have never been drawn into the band as I have been by some of their countrymen, but that did not prevent me from dwelling into their first years as a band. “Diabolical Fullmoon Mysticism” is a beast of a record! A near perfect representation of what Black Metal was in the early 90ies, and still remains as a colossal representative of Norway’s finest export. Harsher than most of the releases that followed, “Diabolical…” portraits a band “testing the waters” and developing skills. “The Call of the Wintermoon” is an impressive rendition of the genre at that time and age, just like the full release, as mentioned before. Immortal was always a band that lived

Devil in Me “On the Grind” (Cargo Records & Dead Serious Recordings, 2021) This one came out a while back, but for better accuracy I went back to 2006 and their first record, “Born to Lose”. The band has been, since their inception, on a constant evolution. DIM is a classic Hardcore band. More melodic, or more “rough around the edges”, the band has plenty of versions of what Hardcore is. I have always loved their more melodic side, and I got that with “The End”. It is also, in my opinion, their darker release. The title of the album and some of the songs, the atmospheres… nonetheless, I always believed that this was their best album ever. “Soul Rebel” came out in 2015 and it showed a band in full force! Crazy riffs, lots of energy and spot-on messages. In that specific point I always felt the band had a very Hardcore message; very straight to the core of the genre and all its richness and “Statutes”. 2021, and a new release is announced. I do not remember what the first single

Dark Age of Ruin “From Northern Skies” (Independent, 2022) “Son of Satan” (Selvajaria Records & Museu do Heavy Metal Açoriano, 2023) “False Messiah and The Abstract” is Dark Age of Ruin’s first full-length after the 2022 EP “From Northern Skies”. The Azorean duo brings forth an interesting sound. Truth be told, Black Metal is reaching a level of exhaustion, from my personal perspective at least, and the ability musicians have, to present something completely challenging is diminishing. Portugal has been in the forefront for a while, and we keep on presenting class acts. I was totally unaware of this duo that started off in 2022 with the mentioned EP. Let us see… the EP is composed of 1 intro and 2 songs, clearly Black Metal. The intro is a short, yet very pleasant, acoustic piece. Very delicate way to start off. 2nd track starts off with a punishing riff and roaring drums. This is a nice tune, no doubt. The whole atmosphere is dark, yet dynamic. Raging moments intersect with sl

Neighborz - “Lost Feathers” (Hell Xis Records, 2023) I am very proud of the Portuguese Hardcore scene. I am immensely proud of the Portuguese music scene in general. We go from A to B, from Heavy to Mellow. We cover all the genres, and more, and do it with good taste and quality. The Hardcore scene has always been very solid, with bands from all over the spectrum and more. On it since 2007, Neighborz released their new EP, “Lost Feathers”, very recently, and I am going on a ride with the lads. The Lisbon based Hardcore machine has always given us a very powerful Hardcore, and the new EP follows that line. 5 tracks are all it takes to confirm that their flame is alive and well. Opener “Lost Feathers” is an exquisite slap in the face, period. It is a very dynamic track, going from the standard hard & heavy Hardcore, to a slower pace, giving it an even heavier ambience.  The second track is, again, a tune that goes up, then down, the up again. Never a dull moment, never a moment o