Je m'excuse, mais...

I apologize for the lack of recent posts, but I've had a lot on my plate recently - most importantly, my wife and I have a baby on the way in less than a month and we're trying to get everything ready (finishing the nursery, doctor's appointments, etc.).  I'm working on a bunch of reviews, extra credits, etc., so keep checking back for updates.  Thanks for your understanding.

Class of 2013: Blåhø - Through Sinister Nightfall

Blåhø is a Norwegian black metal band that gets it name from a mountain in Oppland, Norway.  Debut record Through Sinister Nightfall features synths, clean vocals (purists beware), and catchy hooks that almost feel anthemic.

Album opener "Eternal Dreams" is immediately memorable and highlights Blåhø's strengths, especially the band's ability to write a catchy chorus that mixes black metal vocals with clean ones.  In fact, throughout Through Sinister Nightfall, clean vocals are deftly mixed in, often in the background, and they complement the black metal vocals very well.

Extra Credit: Apothesary

Apothesary is a four-piece out of northern California that plays a mixture of technical death and thrash metal.  The band released They All Carry Ghosts, which includes four originals and one cover (At The Gates' "Blinded By Fear"), in December of last year.

"Hamartia" starts things off, and while it's pretty good, it may well be the weakest of the originals.  In fact, They All Carry Ghosts seems to get better and better as each song plays through.  "Parting at Morning," the EP's longest track, shows just what Apothesary is capable of.  It has a piano/synth intro and outro and features some classic-sounding heavy metal guitar solos.

They All Carry Ghosts is available at Apothesary's bandcamp page for the "name your price" option, so you can download the EP for free or pay what you can to support the band.