Terminus Episode 87 - Astral Tomb, Ostots

TERMINUS: extreme metal podcast

Tonight's episode of Terminus is another lean, cold, efficient one, but for good reason- this is the first half of a double-header recording session, the second being a long-awaited new episode of Terminus Prime! On the new bonus show, we cover Absu's Tara and Bilskirnir's Wotansvolk, but you can't hear it unless you send me the 16 digits on the front of your credit card, the expiration date, and the 3 digit security code on the back. And maybe your billing address too. Send that just in case.

The first half of our show is dedicated to the eagerly awaited debut full length by Astral Tomb, the young death metal upstarts from Denver whose previous EP we covered last season. Astral Tomb plays truly bizarre, experimental death metal that's equal parts Gorguts and Frank Zappa, but the primary DNA might surprise you- slam death and bludgeoning beatdown hardcore. Does this head-on collision of high and low culture result in brilliance or confusion? Without question, the former- this immediately jumped onto our preemptive album of the year lists and we guess it will for you too.

On the flipside is the new record by Ostots, long running Basque black metal band who make a lateral move into slightly symphonic but by no means "nicer" territory. Drawn from the well of mid-00s trenchcoat obscurity, Ostots makes harmonically challenging and deceptively complex music from simple building blocks. This is a band which etches out rich yet rigid forms not unlike a 19th century charcoal sketch- highly detailed but crafted with sharp, dangerous angles. In some sense quite challenging, but undoubtedly highly worthwhile.
0:00:00 - Intro

0:04:06 - Astral Tomb - Soulgazer (Blood Harvest)

0:48:32 - Interlude - The Stooges - “Fun House,” fr. Fun House (Elektra, 1970)

0:56:16 - Ostots - Madarikazioa (Altare Productions)

1:40:01 - Outro - Azrael - “Untitled 5” fr. Into Shadows Act II: Through Horned Shadows Glimpse (Moribund Records, 2004) (Out of print and not available digitally, but easily found on the used market)
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