Imperial Triumphant - 2013 - Goliath

 

I've been following Imperial Triumphant for a very long time by now. I think it was Abyssal Gods that made me check them out in more detail. I'm happy for them that they blew up with Vile Luxury - an album that I really enjoyed when it came out but sadly my enjoyment of it petered out eventually. Alphaville was alright and so is the new one (I was really happy that they got Kenny G on that single track, shit was fantastic). With all that I said I feel like a complete hipster pseud by having this digital only two track EP as my absolute favorite release by them.

This could very well be because it reminds more of Deathspell Omega than on Imperial Triumphant or that it has a more concise song structure but I still think it's a fantastic pair of songs. Dizzying, spiraling riffs that keep descending and descending backed by pretty intense drum rolls and inhumane (albeit effect driven) growls is what you'll find on these two tracks.

They might not be their most original songs but I like them a lot and whenever I think of Imperial Triumphant these two songs are the first thing I want to come back to.

Check them out!

You can also stream them here!

Alash Ensemble - 2007 - Alash

 

I feel like throat singing (or Mongolian singing or whatever you call it) has become quite known to the internet collective consciousness. Either through memes or genuine interest in it. As is usual with traditional music (this is just my hot take) it can get repetitive and unimaginative very fast, often relying on a few styles and not much variation within those.

Alash Enseble proves me wrong in my thinking providing us with a very enjoyable and varied album recorded way back in 2007. I don't understand the thinking behind the album cover as it conveys a completely opposite feel of the music contained on this album. It's lush, happy and upbeat. Even the ballads or slower songs provide a deep sense of glee and joy inside them (Subudai for example). While the instrumentation keeps to its roots and is fairly basic the vocal deliveries are varied in style, singers (both male and female) and tempos. With so much diversity in vocalizations that often go in harmonization with each other it makes sense to keep the instrumentation out of the spotlight as there are enough elements vying for it already.

If you ever wanted to check throat singing out but never found something captivating or interesting enough I'd suggest you try this album out!

Get it (flac 1 and 2 part) / Stream it

Teleport - 2018 - The Expansion

Man - that's a fucking great cover art. Teleport was a death metal band from Slovenia that I caught live possibly in 2018 or 2017, I can't quite remember the exact date. I am a bit of a heretic as I don't really like any of the local regional bands but this one caught my eye as it seemed different from the usual boring local bands. I'm happy to report that also don't suck on records as well and this demo is a testament to that.

This high quality demo would be their last effort under this name as after this they would reform under a different name and for the first time release a well made proper full length in 2021.

A lot of what is on that full length can be heard or felt on this final demo but in a more rawer and simpler way. Despite being a demo it's competently made death metal akin to more older school stuff from the early 90s and late 80s that had a very noticeable thrash metal vibe. There are three tracks in total which give you about 20 minutes of material. Production is on par and you can hear all of the instruments clearly (including the oft overlooked bass guitar), vocals are raspy and layered nicely in reverb/echo. This isn't the type of death metal that is an full on assault on your senses rather this is more of a contemplative spin on the genre packed with a lot of tempo changes and eerie melodies. Good suff.

Get it.

Also check out their full length under their new name here!