Tracks of Note: 3/28/2025

Jefre Cantu-Ledesma, No Hand Path, Within

No Hand Path - "Διαφθορέας (Curruptor)"

Two of the dudes from Varathron and the vocalist from Ugly Joe, which is not, in fact, the grown-up version of Ugly Kid Joe, are back after a 15-year break with Μυστικισμός της ενηλικίωσης (Mysticism of Coming of Age), a Craft-y blaster that, at its best, just goes and goes and goes. The quintet also reminds me of fellow Greeks Nigredo in that there's just a touch of technical prowess to these riffs from guitarists Antonis and Vasilis. The first track, a real FNBSBM banger, is the best of the bunch as No Hand Path delves into more epic territory afterward, but the whole album is worth a spin.

Jefre Cantu-Ledesma - "The Milky Sea"

What a cool song. "Milky Sea" sounds like classic new age, fitting alongside anything on Light in the Attic's I Am The Center compilation. Beginning with ripples of piano like a sliced and diced Lubomyr Melnyk, the track's background drone and percussion soon moves to the fore as other layers are draped on top. Around the 15-minute mark, the track carves out a drone like a trickle of water does a rock, washing itself in looping cello that takes things in a headier, in the head-change sense, direction. And guess who is providing that cello? Here's a snippet from the Bandcamp PR.

In conceiving Gift Songs, Cantu-Ledesma embraced the possibilities of openness and chance: allowing for the interplay of sounds to guide its course under the direction of the album’s collaborators: Omer Shemesh (piano, arrangements), Joseph Weiss (engineering, bass guitar), Clarice Jensen (cello), and Booker Stardrum (percussion). What emerged was a desire to work as acoustically, and environmentally attuned, as possible, showcasing the humanity of the performers, and an unexpected love affair with piano and percussion, the rhythms and tones of which speckle across the album’s effortless flow.

Clarice Jensen sighting! Drone Studies, worth your time.

Secret Cutter - "Spleen"

Secret Cutter, still going. I enjoyed its previous album, Quantum Eraser, which came out, gulp, nearly seven years ago. In my big metalcore love note on Plague Rages, I described Wombscape as being a descendent of December. That goes for Secret Cutter, too. It's just that these Pennsylvanians are far chunkier, sitting closer to something like The Blinding Light. If you like big chungus chugs, Secret Cutter has got 'em.

Rale - "Prayers Into The Abyss"

I was wondering if I could make it through this entire blurb without making a “getting raled” joke, so we might as well get it out of the way now. Not even funny, but sometimes you have to appease the ol’ brain meat when it starts obsessively cycling. Anyway! Rale! Anything touched by Colin Marston is worth a listen, and he’s on mix and master duties here. Pretty solid prog death.

h/t Rennie

Gláss - "Cheater Bar"

Probably more on this one in the very near future when we take a spin back through Q1. Gláss’s ambitious self-titled album is kind of like if The Psychic Paramount had vocals, with those vocals being acidic spokels. There’s definitely a This Heat-ness running through this material. And, if you wished something like Sprain was gutsier, here you go.

h/t Rennie

The Bonus Dark - "A Certain Kind of Death"

Back on my noise bullshit. Once again, I think this is a pretty good record for neophytes since it isn't too loud, which allows each layer to really pop. That helps someone understand the artistry here. It also sounds cool as hell, so, you know. That, too.

h/t Cody

Gelli Haha - "Bounce House"

"Bounce House," Gelli Haha's lead stream from her first album, reminds me a bit of a cross between Ultraista and Dungeonesse, just...you know...weird. I wouldn't say it sounds very Los Angeles right now because LA isn't a monolith, but the resident might fit in alongside weird jazz-adjacent acts like Dolphin Hyperspace in that it's so very singular in its weird vision. Of course, "Bounce House" is unabashedly pop, taking the lofi aesthetic of Nite Jewel and maximalizing it with the use of analog equipment. Sounds cool.

h/t Art Fin

Entheos - "Sali"

To me, the Quebec outfit's third album sounds like lightly charred Augury, taking that band's time signatures atop of time signatures approach and transmogrifying it to hew closer to its sister band, Givre. (Givre was Entheos at one time but is now back to Givre. Weird story.) I'd call it blackened prog death, maybe. Instead, Entheos is tagged as "experimental black metal" on Encyclopaedia Metallum for reasons I'm sure make sense to the tagger. Anyway, I'm kind of mad I missed this in 2024 because it would've sniffed some listage if I actually did my job well. Alas, I am an idiot, and that's why you're hearing a banger like “Sali” via me in 2025 instead.

BITE - "Longing For Eternal Sleep"

Here's another one I'm pissed about slipping through my fingers. I loved Bite's debut, 2022's Sounds of Agony, which was like Born From Pain turned into a cyborg, giving toughguy riffs a robotic exactness. Two and a half years later, Bite returns stronger, now with some light synth embiggening accents. This is for lovers of breakdowns who want something more serious than Big Ass Truck's big ass hnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnks. I mean, check out the jud at 2:20 in "Inferno." Yes. More. If that's what you're requesting, Bite is more than happy to indulge.

Within - "Life In My Parent's Basement"

Within's final demo, The Way... the Truth... the Light, has been making the rounds in the friend group lately for good reason. Pairing death metal and hardcore a la Odious Sanction, Within is a ripper, slaying in spirit closer to one of drummer Chris Golding's next bands, Sulaco. That's not the only player who landed in a known outfit: bassist Fred Decoste widdles in PsyOpus, and most of the rest of the players landed in Burn Everything. But this slice of Rochester, New York, history shouldn't be discounted simply as a line in everyone's CVs. This 2001 recording absolutely goes, landing between, like, early Lamb of God and Lethargy. Rules.

Infernal Torment - "Perverted"

Lol. Well, if there's a soundtrack for shoving a shovel into someone's butt, it's probably this. One of the stars of the Danish metal documentary Headbang i Hovedlandet cut a superlative sicko album in 1995, digging a grave between Suffocation, Dying Fetus, and Cannibal Corpse. A song title like "Perverted" pretty much nails it.

h/t Aaron

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