Don't usually do food porn but this was exceptional. Preset, 3 course dinner based on the food of the North Atlantic, particularly Iceland, Greenland and the Faeroe Islands.
The bread was ridiculously hard and served with a grey tasteless butter which didn't really get my expectations going but what followed was nothing less than stunning in terms of taste and presentation.
Course 1 was a sublime and incredibly fresh Cod topped with fennel, pickled radish, finely chopped herbs and bacon bits paired with a delicate and slightly bubbly juice made of apples and elder flower.
The final course was an absolutely sublime cinnamon cake with rhubarb sorbet, pickled rhubarb, butter milk foam and jellied rhubarb paired with a really delicate rhubarb juice.
Off to France and Hellfest tomorrow and so far it's been a perfect holiday. Scored some amazing records, been eating some amazing food and generally being a lazy vegetable.
SSoS straddles an uneasy balance between metal
extremity and sludge and fail to do justice to both. Ezekial's Hags is like the
easy listening version of Death Mask by Lord Mantis.
There's
something about the opening riff on the first proper song on this album takes
me right back to the band's awesome debut 'A Touch of Medieval Darkness'. It
isn't long before the chug chug chug kicks in and ruins what could have been
quite good. Desaster's been on auto pilot for a while now. Consistent but apart
from a few songs on various albums, also kind of boring. If you've never heard
them, then listen to the first 2 albums and the Stormbringer EP. The Oath of an
Iron Ritual is a bit dull.
Greenleaf reached their creative apex with 'Nest
of Vipers' in 2012 which was a distinctly Swedish take on 70s hard rock.
Everything’s been downhill since then.
Phazm used to be a fun death n roll band with the
occasional doomed out bit. Like stoner death metal. On Scornful of Icons the
band's playing some pretty generic blackened death metal. Very disappointing.
Should have come back with a different name.
Sludgy noise rock done really well. This band
released an amazing but ignored album called 'The Black Sea' with folk band
Indian Blanket which is also worth listening to. Existence is Horror will
probably feature highly if I get round to a year end list.
Much too short. Doesn't last for more
than 25 minutes but Mountain Czar rocks like a motherfucker in that time. K2B
continue to kick ass. This is straight forward heavy rock and a worthy follow up to 'Arch Stanton'.
Vektor - Terminal Redux The last 2 Vektor albums have promised plenty. This new one delivers. Absolutely epic thrash metal that has some great playing backed up by great songs. This album is blowing my mind. Vektor Bandcamp
