Guest Post from Bored In Pittsburgh

Today’s listen is a new release coming to us from “mountains and maws in Colorado and Washington.” Bull Of Apis Bull Of Bronze is a black metal band from out West, and they’ve harnessed a truly powerful force with the song “What Awaits Us (A Void Is But An Open Mouth).” A nearly eleven minute epic, the song features everything from brooding, atmospheric guitar interludes to pummeling blast beats and anguished, howled vocals, and ends with an outro that sounds like an earthquake happening in outer space. It’s an intense listen, but it doesn’t drag, despite its hefty run time.

The song is elevated by some poetic and evocative lyrics from vocalist and synthesizer-ist Achaierei; they touch on themes of destruction and rebirth, as well as transcendence from false beliefs and traditional patterns of thinking. Also I didn’t know that “At the end of…

By Ben Gibbons of Bored In Pittsburgh

If I were a betting man, I’d put some money on the possibility that the members of Winston Salem, NC’s Brought To The Water are big Deafheaven fans. From the fact that they’re named after a song by the popular San Fran metal band, to the strong resemblance between the cover art for the newly released Oblivion EP and 2013’s Sunbather, to Brought To The Water’s strong experimental streak…it’s a safe guess.

That’s not to say that this band is derivative, though; I’d go so far as to say that “Creator, Destroyer” is stranger than anything I’ve heard from Deafheaven. The song kicks off with an atmospheric three minute intro featuring harmonized vocals, a sample that sounds like some infernal machine revving up and then dying, and legitimately jazzy guitar and keyboard flourishes. Then comes the ass-kicking in the form of molten…