It feels a little odd reviewing stuff like the Pyramids/Horseback split and the new House of Low Culture release for a site with “metal” right there in the goddamn name. They aren’t “not metal” in the “they’re almost more of a shoegaze band” sense, but are aggressively unconventional in terms of even basic popular music construct. In fact, the only thing even slightly metal about either of these releases is less than two-and-a-half minutes at the beginning of Horseback’s only solo song on the aforementioned split. And theoretically, that’s fine: there’s no rule on the books that says being involved in heavy bands — as members of House of Low Culture have been and are — means you can’t take part in projects that are the antithesis of metal altogether. Or at least there shouldn’t be.

But these two releases pose a very interesting question: does a project’s mere existence in contrast to its creators’ most well-received work make it worthwhile? Or, in this case, does it make it even listenable?

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If you can’t figure out why you awoke this morning with a persistent boner (like me) or a tingly bottom (uh also like me), let me tell you it probably is related to Hydra Head’s announcement that tomorrow brings the premiere of a new Cave In jam! Welcome to Horny City. Population: you.

But there’s big fun today too! So that we have a use for our various states of arousal, MetalSucks is proud to unveil Hydra Head’s killer new free sampler of recent, unreleased, and upcoming jamz by the likes of Oxbow, Neurosis, Discordance Axis, and Clouds. This is rare and tasty stuff, like the hard-to-find Cave In cover of “N.I.B.” and an exclusive Austerity Program remix of a Pyramids jam. Get it here.

–ADF

It takes cojones to put two drastically different albums together at once, even more cojones to organize the contributions of two-dozen collaborators. In the case of R. Loren, whose two new projects Sailors with Wax Wings and White Moth were both released in October on Angel Oven Records, we’re not talking 24 random kids from the local high school brass band. The sonic mastermind, best known for his blurry experi-metal outfit Pyramids, contracted folks from Swans, Godflesh Slowdive, Unwound, My Dying Bride, Katatonia, Current 93, Frodus and Atari Teenage Riot and more. Many of them he was e-mailing out of the blue. That’s, like, post-cojones. No wonder the lengthy process of completing the two albums nearly drove Loren insane (more on that later).

But the iconic guest spots spread across these two albums are only a small part of what makes them special – indeed, the many contributions are naturally subsumed into each album’s whole, and that’s necessary for their absorbing power. Listen to the rapturous immersion of Sailors With Wax Wings, and the detailed digital anarchy of White Moth, and you’ll detect something greater than an assembly of musicians at work in the studio. Read on for Loren’s thoughts on the creation of, and concepts behind, the two albums.

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I was catching up on my Deciblog today when I came across the below video for “And Clash and Clash of Hoof and Heel,” by Sailors with Wax Wings. The outfit is apparently a side-project for Pyramids’ R. Loren, so I now have to admit that although our friend Corey Mitchell is a Pyramids fan, I really don’t know much about the band and can’t comment on them. But I can say that between the quality of the below song and the list of guests who apparently appear on the Sailors with Wax Wings album (including but not limited to Katatonia’s Jonas Renkse, Swans’ Ted Parsons, My Dying Bride’s Aaron Stainthorpe, and Colin “Best Haircut EVER” Marston from Krallice, Dysrhythmia, Gorguts, Behold… The Arctopus, and a million other bands), I plan to check this record out ASAP.

As for the video itself, well… it’s pretty bizarre. I kept expecting there be some kind of “twist” or whatever, but, nope. Just pure, unadulterated strangeness. Still, I was never able to take my eyes off of it… I find it oddly compelling. Hypnotic, even. And, like I said, I dig the music.

Check this out, then weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section below.

-AR

I am currently in the midst of a signing tour for my latest book, PURE MURDER. Nothing helps me keep my sanity more when I am on the road paying outrageous sums of money for gas, dealing with complete fucking morons behind the wheel, and trudging through Texas-sized traffic jams than listening to heavy metal at full volume.

Here are some quick reviews of some of the metal I cranked on my recent trip to the Texas Prison Museum in Huntsville, Texas, home of “Sparky” the out-of-service electric chair, for a booksigning.

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