Plasmatics - Wendy O. Williams (WOW)

WOW is technically a Plasmatics record, but due to some licensing issues, it was released under the name Wendy O. Williams - WOW as a 'separate' release. The Plasmatics started out as more of a punk rock band, but their sound gradually progressed into heavy metal. WOW, despite having a lot of ballads/slower songs, is actually a really solid album. It really shows how the band had progressed at this point: able to make more complex, melodic songs without sacrificing any of the power or aggression Wendy/The Plasmatics were known for.

It's both a blessing and a curse that this band was big in the 80s: it seems like the popularity of punk/metal at the time both helped this band rise to fame, but also meant it was far too easy for (the band) to become lost in a sea of talented metal/punk bands. Aside from having a great front[wo]man, The Plasmatics were a truly talented band, and it's a bit of a shame they never achieved a bigger level of success.

ARTIST: WENDY O. WILLIAMS/THE PLASMATICS

ALBUM: WOW

GENRE: HEAVY METAL

MEDIAFIRE

Blood Ceremony - Living With The Ancients

Blood Ceremony are a doom metal band from Toronto, Ontario, Canada. They play good ol' doom in the vein of Sabbath, and with a wide array of instruments/musically talented members, they're a great addition to Canada's growing metal scene. Their first self-titled record focuses more on the band's diversity (that comes with having an incredibly talented female vocalist who puts her keyboard and flute skills to good work here), and there's a lot of odd tempo-ed songs on this album. Ultimately, it feels like a bit more of an experimental record, where the band is waffling on whether to be a traditional doom sounding band, or something a bit more ecletic.

Having said that, their next album, Living With The Ancients, is more of a return to classic doom metal. Even though people seem to like this album less, I feel like the band has greatly improved: the band has found where it wants to be with it's music, and the songs generally feel less repetitive/sporadic than they did on their previous album. And the music talent/atmosphere is no less pronounced here: if anything, it's amplified by the cohesiveness of the songwriting here.

In short: traditional sounding doom metal with female vocals and flute solos. Good. Both albums are excellent and worth listening to, so really it's up to what you prefer with your music.

ARTIST: BLOOD CEREMONY

ALBUM: LIVING WITH THE ANCIENTS

GENRE: DOOM METAL

PURCHASE BAND MERCHANDISE

MEDIAFIRE

Flagitious Idiosyncrasy in the Dilapidation - S/T (2008)

Flagitious Idiosyncrasy in the Dilapidation were brought to my attention via their split through Insect Warfare that was featured in Short Fast & Loud #19. Similar to Insect Warfare, FLitD play a blend of grindcore and death metal. Only they're cute 'lil asian chicks (although I think they have a male band member now? or something), which makes it a million times better -- especially when you consider how fucking immaculate some of those death metal grunts are! It's shame they haven't put out more material other than an EP (which I haven't heard yet) after this, because their S/T is a promising release. They DO have a Facebook page however, which is a promising sign that these girls are still active and may very well put out some more killer grindcore someday!

Overall, this album may not be particularly groundbreaking, but it's a lot of fun to listen to: even just for the fact that these girls blow 95% male-fronted deathgrind bands completely out of the water.

ARTIST: FLAGITIOUS IDIOSYNCRASY IN THE DILAPIDATION

ALBUM: S/T 

GENRE: GRINDCORE, DEATHGRIND

MEDIAFIRE

FACEBOOK

Derketa - In Death We Meet

Premiering at this year's Maryland Deathfest, Derketa is an all-female death/doom metal with members from Mythic and Behind Enemy Lines. They released some material in the 90s, but this is their first full-length album. Honestly, in spite of my high hopes for this release...it's not the most memorable album in the world. That's not to say it's not good -- far from it, but it's a far cry from the sorta-maybe-Mythic re-incarnation I had hoped for. There are some good riffs on it -- as well as some great musicianship -- it's just not as good as I hoped it would be (if it were absolute tripe I wouldn't be uploading it here in the first place, so there ya go)

Again, I found the Mythic EP to be more satisfying than this -- mostly on account of Dana Duffey's ridiculous ball-crushing vocals. But if you're into death/doom or female-fronted vocals, this one's awesome.

ARTIST: DERKETA

ALBUM: IN DEATH WE MEET

GENRE: DEATH/DOOM METAL

MEDIAFIRE

Truncheons - Demo 2011

Truncheons are a noisy punk band from Montreal, QB. They feature ex-members of After the Bombs and Kontempt. A lot of people won't need more of an introduction than that, but basically these guys play punk rock that's much in the raw, noisy style that's typical of Japanese punk. Only they're from Canada. Very low-fi production, nothing is really distinguishable from one another -- just pure chaotic noise.

ARTIST: TRUNCHEONS

ALBUM: DEMO 2011

GENRE: RAW PUNK, CRUST

MEDIAFIRE

Blacklace - Unlaced

I was introduced to this band through an old friend of mine, who described them as 'awesome female fronted heavy metal.' And while he's not wrong on that front, he failed to mention that they're also in the top 5 for Cheesiest Heavy Metal Band to Ever Exist. Don't get me wrong, it's awesome. I'm just still blown away by how unflinchingly 80s heavy metal this band is. In terms of musicianship, it's a decent album. Mostly what puts it on my radar is the female vocals (which are quite good, and remind me a bit of ACID) and the overall no-fucks-were-given-at-any-point cheesiness of this album. Bon appetit.

ARTIST: BLACKLACE

ALBUM: UNLACED

GENRE: HEAVY METAL

MEDIAFIRE