The Grind
That Annoys’ End of Year Report earlier this month was a roaring success so
thank you all for that, and now once again we look upon our crystal ball for
the forthcoming year for what albums there is to look forward to.
Alcest will
release their third full-length album Les Voyages de L'Âme on January 6th. With
one song already released, ‘Autre Temps’, it’s looking like Neige is taking
Alcest further away from his black metal past and going all out on the
shoegazing/post rock vibe. ‘Autre Temps’ and live footage of ‘Summer’s Glory’
have shown so far that this could very well be a smart decision.
Sludge
masters Thou will also put out a new full length next year called Heathen. The
band always keep busy releasing several EPs and splits every year so there’s no
fear of a drought ever from them. Meanwhile, Swedish crust veterans Wolfbrigade
recently signed a new deal with Southern Lord for their new record, Damned.
Finnish death doom band Swallow The Sun are still working away on their new
album Emerald Forest and The Black Bird.
Scottish
crust band Absolutist will release their debut LP Ave next month, through
Dublin label Suburban Mayhem. The band showed reasonable potential in their
demo but this album is going to destroy it entirely. It’s like night and day
between the two. Scheduled for release in February, this is already looking
like a highlight for 2012.
A number of
months ago Sweden’s In The Hearts of Emperors released their split LP with
Downfall of Gaia. They’re a really impressive post metal band, heavy in dark
atmosphere and sporadic vocals to complement the mostly instrumental output.
2012 is sure to see a new release in some form from this band, and it’s
definitely worth keeping an eye out for. Downfall of Gaia’s side is also hugely
impressive affair, making for a massive step-up from their 2010 LP, Epos.
Denmark’s
Hexis are a band that I’ve kept a keen eye for a while now. They released their
storming demo this year and followed it up with a split 12” and most recently a
new 7”. I’m very excited to see what the band is going to do next.
Anathema
have roughly slated an April release for their as yet untitled follow-up to
2010 album of the year We’re Here Because We’re Here. Needless to say, hopes
are staggeringly high for this one. Neurosis will also release the long, long
awaited follow-up to Given To The Rising (2007). And Pelican will release a new
EP at some stage early in the new year, via Southern Lord.
In Ireland,
several bands have releases in the pipeline, including Twisted Mass and
Sickener. Putrefaction will also finally release their first LP and Drainland
have split 7”s with Enabler and Crows landing soon and are working on album
number two. If you saw the Top 10 Irish Releases of the Year, you’ll know that
I rated Refraction’s self-titled as #1, they’ve been on a hiatus since April so
hopefully they’ll re-emerge from the depths at some point in 2012, the sooner
the better.
I really
could go on and on about the records I’m looking forward to, but I won’t, there
are literally dozens. But I’ll finish by saying the highest expectations I have
are for Anathema and Neurosis, two bands that can’t do any wrong in my book.
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