Dreams of Consciousness

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 188 features an interview with Herb Burke of Drawn And Quartered. For nearly three decades, Drawn And Quartered have been flying the flag for putrid death metal. The band never wavered from their style, and amassed a body of work that sounds indifferent to the trends of the larger metal scene throughout that time. I spoke with bassist/vocalist Herb Burke abo...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 187 features an interview with Dan Caycedo of Withered. Formed by members of Social Infestation (the cult Atlanta deathgrind band that also contained members of Mastodon), Withered have spent decades ignoring genre classification with their self-described "tortured blackened doom/death". Their atonal and claustrophobic sound finds common ground between Neuro...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 186 features an interview with Infernal of Desaster. Formed during metal's Eighties heyday, and forged in the crucible of early Venom and Teutonic thrash, Desaster are rooted in the hectic sound of early black metal. Though they have undoubtedly benefited from (and possibly helped inspire) the renewed interest in the early "bestial" sound of black thrash, th...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 185 features an interview with Jeff Longo of The Blood of Christ. With a recording history that goes back more than 25 years, The Blood Of Christ are veterans of the Canadian death metal scene. Their blasting style is reminiscent of other Canadian bands, but with extended melodic sections and the rhythmic flair of classic Sepultura. I spoke with Blood Of Chr...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 184 features an interview with Aort of CODE. Over the course of 5 albums, the UK-based CODE have refused to settle in to predictability. Their music encapsulates the adventurous spirit of Seventies progressive rock whilst retaining the coldness of black metal. I spoke with founder/guitarist Aort about how CODE emerged from from his solo project Seasonal Code...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 183 features an interview with Dennis Muñoz of Solstice. Solstice were an early part of the Florida scene who recorded their debut Pray at Morrisound, and shared members with Cannibal Corpse and Cynic. Their thrashy style may have caused them to be overlooked during death metal's Nineties heyday, but it allowed them to find acclaim with later heshers as the...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 182 features an interview with Jarle Hváll Kvåle of Vreid. Emerging from the dissolution of Windir, Vreid has continued the eclecticism of their previous band by fusing mid-paced tempos, classic metal melodies, and a progressive rock mentality into more traditional Norwegian black metal. Their music is often referred to as "Sognametal" - a reference to the b...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 181 features an interview with Pia Isaksen and Ole Teigen of Superlynx. Oslo-based three-piece Superlynx have no affinity for genre descriptors, choosing to refer to their music as "floaty" and "dreamy". Picture a mix of Black Sabbath and Mazzy Star, and you're close to understanding their mix of dark psychedelia, shoegaze, and doom metal. I spoke with Super...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 180 features an interview with Eric Daniels and Twan van Geel of Soulburn. Formed over two decades ago by members of Asphyx, Soulburn eschew the speed-for-speed's sake dictum of death and back metal. Instead, the band employs a sinister mid-paced stomp that hearkens back to the genre's earliest recordings, whilst maintaining the level of professionalism you'...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 179 features an interview with Abbey and Tommy Davis of Oryx. If sludge and doom metal seem simplistic and repetitive, Denver's Oryx provide a compelling counterpoint. The band make texture and ambience a big component of their sound, giving their bleak, crushing songs an additional dimension beyond "slow" and "heavy". I spoke with Oryx drummer Abbey Davis a...

Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 178 features an interview with Johnny Urnripper of Ghastly. As I discussed with the authors of Rotting Ways To Misery: The History of Finnish Death Metal, there has been a resurgence in the Finnish death metal scene, with a plethora of new bands taking up the mantle once held by Demigod and the like. To whit: the three-piece Ghastly, who combine the characte...

This is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 177, featuring an interview with Mike "Muleboy" Makela of Bongzilla. When Bongzilla were releasing albums in the Nineties, there weren't many that shared their love of Sabbath-inspired riffs, piercing feedback, and tongue-in-cheek drug references. Now that the stoner/sludge metal pioneers are back from (as they describe it) their "HIGH-atus", they're...

This is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 176, featuring an interview with Martin van Drunen of Asphyx. It was 30 years ago that Asphyx released their first album The Rack; though the band were a respected product of the Dutch death metal scene, their doomy, unvarnished sound fell out of favor as the decade wore on and tastes veered towards more blastbeat-oriented styles. But everything goes...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 175, featuring an interview with Paul Mazurkiewicz of Cannibal Corpse. Do Cannibal Corpse really need an introduction? Their influence has been seismic, and their imitators are legion. While there are endless variations of "death metal", there may be no better representation of the genre in its purest form than Cannibal Corpse. I spoke with drummer P...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 174, featuring Iotunn. Denmark's Iotunn combine elements of progressive and space rock with the grandiosity of modern black metal. Their music conjures images of other worlds in line with their progressive aspirations. I spoke with guitarist Jens Nicolai Gräs about how Iotunn grew out of a love of classic prog, and why they decided to scrap their fir...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 173, featuring an interview with Marko Tervonen of The Crown. It was on an obscure regional compilation that I discovered The Crown, back when they were still known as Crown Of Thorns. Amidst tracks by Grotesque, Liers In Wait, and Sacrilege, The Crown represented a resurgence in the Swedish Death Metal scene, as well as a new standard of extremity i...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 172, featuring Wode. This interview with Manchester's Wode has been a long time coming. A mutual friend has been prodding me to interview the band for years - and as they're about to release their third album through 20 Buck Spin, it didn't seem like something I could put off any longer. I spoke with drummer Tim Horrocks and guitarist/vocalist Michae...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 171, featuring an interview with Kim Strömsholm and Markus Makkonen, authors of the book Rotting Ways to Misery: The History of Finnish Death Metal. "There's so many stories in the Finnish scene that should be told, and somebody should write a book." That was the mission statement that led to Rotting Ways to Misery, a 300 page tome that traces the ev...

In this supplement to episode 170, Culted guitarist Michael Klassen spoke to me about Neurosis, Godflesh, and Winnipeg. MUSIC IN THIS EPISODE: "Opiate The Hounds" "Crush My Soul" (Godflesh cover) taken from the album Nous "A Prayer For Emptiness" taken from the EP Vespertina Synaxis - A Prayer for Union & Emptiness Interviews, reviews, and more at www.dreamsofconsciousness.com

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 170, featuring an interview with Michael Klassen of Culted. Since 2009, Culted have been releasing a black metal and noise inflected vision of doom - and as unlikely as it sounds, the four members of the band have never played in the same room. Most of the group is based in Canada, while their vocalist lives in Sweden, making his contributions remote...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 169, featuring an interview with Galen Baudhuin of Infera Bruo. With members spread out from New Mexico to New England, Infera Bruo might be the most literal representation of the expansiveness of the US black metal scene. I spoke with Infera Bruo founder/guitarist/vocalist Galen Baudhuin about the history of his band, and the creation of their lates...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 168, featuring an interview with Myopic and At The Graves. Washington D.C.'s Myopic play discordant black/death metal with a progressive mindset; Baltimore-based solo project At The Graves play slow heavy music with a strong shoegaze influence. But these seemingly disparate approaches didn't stop the two bands from embarking on a full-length collabor...

In this supplement to Episode 167, I spoke with Warg and Crypt Hammer from Heretical Sect about what makes metal "metal", their lyrical inspiration, and the scene in Santa Fe, New Mexico. MUSIC IN THIS EPISODE: "Rising Light of Lunacy" "Pit Abominations" taken from the album Rapturous Flesh Consumed "Plateau of Stars" taken from the EP Rotting Cosmic Grief Interviews, reviews, and more at www.drea...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 167, featuring an interview with Warg and Crypt Hammer of Heretical Sect. Heretical Sect drummer/vocalist Warg and bassist Crypt Hammer spoke with me about the classical influences that creep into their songs, and their use of unorthodox time signatures. We also discussed thow the history and landscape of New Mexico inspired the songs on their first...

Here is Dreams of Consciousness Podcast Episode 166, featuring an interview with Kurwa Doktor of Cannibal Accident. "The main rule is to have fun," is the guiding principle behind Cannibal Accident. Hailing from the town of Turku in southern Finland, the band keep grindcore fun with mosh parts, tongue-in-cheek lyrics, and more mosh parts. As the story goes, alcohol is a big part of their process....