Seriously, Check Out This Vinyl Repress Of Caged Grave's Demo

Caged Grave were a band that I posted about at the tail end of 2013, regarding their excellent debut demo. They showcased some quality Vaccine-ish sounding fast hardcore with a more modern, HM-2 pedal abuse sound. Great stuff that I got hooked on instantly, and they were promptly added to the ever growing list of excellent Australian bands.  Functioning on a pure DIY work ethic, Caged Grave have so far recorded, produced, and released everything they've put out themselves. And if this self-released 7" re-release of said demo is any indication to the care, attention to detail and quality output for the future, then watch the fuck out. My particular copy was given to me very graciously by the band, a thousand thank you's.

(Photo's by VII)

The boys really went all out on the packaging with this one. Solid black vinyl with a large center label, and a flipping silk-screened box envelope to encase it. It's a super tidy, neat and honestly, very deluxe looking package. Like something that labels like Youth Attack! or Deathwish Inc. would make the "special addition" variant. When I first opened my package up I oogling over this whole presentation like it was a priceless gem stone.

A lyric sheet insert, download code, and a sticker are also included. Personalized note from the band, maybe included.

Now you all are probably saying "VII, this looks great, music's is great, I want this, tell me how to get this incredible record NOW!" Well dear reader, unfortunately you're a bit SOL unless someone decides to sell their copy online. Only 100 copies of this were made and it has since gone completely out of print. Bit of a bummer, no doubt, but Caged Grave seem to already be making a name for themselves in their home country, and record and release bits and pieces of new material on a semi-regular basis. A new record should be on the horizon, and you bet I'll be here to hype it up! Can't wait to see where this band goes. Check out the demo here.

~VII

New Music (Bleak, Ether Binge, Phyllomedusa, Archagathus)

The new jams have been flooding in at warp speed. A random perusal of bandcamp becomes an intimidating force of new and bizarre sounds to take in. I've been slacking around long enough, so let the hype train begin. Allow me to throw some of your favorite new tracks in ya di-rec-tion.

Starting off with a bit of an über-late 2013 release. The 2nd official demo of Syracuse, NY megalords of the heavy, Bleak. Though I say throw that fucking "Demo" title out the window, this is wayyy above any recording that should bear that title. This release is not grind, first and for most. Not a single blast beat graces these walls of sound, but goddamn this shit is just so good! The limitations of this blog will not be controlled by it's name dammit! But I digress. This recording is not for the faint of heart. It's heavy, ooooh man, it's heavy. Like something akin to a village being crushed by an avalanche. It's the kind of twisted sludgecore that hits me the same way as my favorite Gaza and Coalesce records. Learn up IMMEDIATELY! Listen here.

Ether Binge aka Victim Of A Drive-By, who impressed the hell out of me with their split tape with Chainsaw Squid (and have climbed their way up into becoming one of my favorite current grind bands), have blessed the world with four more tracks of their branded mutoid hypergrind. Sounding a million times better then their previous split as well. EB play a style of grind that I have really never ever heard before. The guitar/bass hybrid instrument that this band utilizes is utter perfection. Quite honestly some of the most interesting stuff I've heard come from a grind band in a while. These four tracks are on the upcoming 3-way split with Cancer Patient and Inzaine which will be released by the excellent Opaques Records. Also coming out on Opaques Records...An Ether Binge/Shooting Spree split 7" and a vinyl reissue of the Chainsaw Squid split. Unstoppable. Listen and become a believer here.

Phyllomedusa, of course. Been far too long since I gave my favorite amphibian worshipping noise god some love. Mr. Phyllo has been a bit of a busy guy, putting out a steady stream of new full lengths/EP's of all a wide variety of disgusting sounds. Bouncy, slam filled goregrind ("Puddle Dependency"), slow moving, atmospheric-doomy-blackened-noise ("Rainforests Are Only Pretty On The Outside"), straight up doom metal ("Empty Inside This Clear Skin"), harsh Japanoisecore worship with the new Toad Birth project, and of course that brutal gorenoise that I know and love ("Glorify The Plump"). Dude seems to just record literally whatever pops in his head. It's bewildering and all around impressive how this man pulls it all off, with consistently heavy results. Keel over and die right here.

New new Archagathus tracks! Fucking awesome!! Word of new recordings don't usually pop up on my radar before I actually hear of a new record that's come out, so word. First up, five tracks for an upcoming split tape (?) with Canadian goregrinders Hyperemesis. I guess in spirit of their split partners sound, the fella's have recorded some Regurgitate inspired gore tunes. The recent activity with Parfumerie probably isn't a far off influence as well. The boys do this style well, of course, and these tracks rip. In addition, there are also four new, untitled tracks for an upcoming EP entitled "Cold Universe". More down-tuned gore smeared grind on this too, but with better recordings. Seems like their rough mince roots are getting more and more put to the side so this tighter, more Euro-style sound can take over. I'm digging it so far, a lot. For a band with an output like Archagathus, I commend them for the continued quality. Love the green logo on the cover as well, nice touch. This EP will be released Spring 2014 on haunted Hotel and Coffee Grinder Records. Listen here.

~VII