Metal Preorder 376 Items

limited transparent/red/orange/black splatter vinyl LP

Ragana is a duo whose members alternate duties on drums, guitar, and vocals to produce some of the most unique and affecting dark music in metal today. The two-piece came together in 2011 in the DIY punk scene of Olympia, WA and are now based in Olympia and Oakland, CA. In their time together so far, Ragana have self-released five albums and teamed up with genre-favourite Thou for a split release in 2018. The following year, Ragana released their heralded We Know That The Heavens Are Empty EP and have quietly been working on new music ever since. The band signed with The Flenser in late 2022 and now present their forthcoming debut album for the label, Desolation’s Flower. On Desolation’s Flower, Ragana draws upon a number of influences from the flora and fauna of their Pacific Northwest origins to the darkly nostalgic folk of Mt. Eerie and, yes, their Olympian forebears Wolves In The Throne Room, synthesising them into an experimental, highly idiosyncratic take on black metal. Held together by an intense focus on raw emotion and haunting atmospherics, Ragana shifts seamlessly from tender, mesmerising vocal harmonies to piercing, heart-ripping screams and back again, yielding music that is heavy, beautiful and punishing all at once. Written over the past few tumultuous years, Desolation’s Flower is the band’s most devastating effort to date, containing seven incantations of loss, rage, pain and hope. Expertly engineered by the masterful Nicholas Wilbur at the Unknown Studio in Anacortes, Washington (Planning For Burial, drowse, Divide and Dissolve, Have a Nice Life), the album serves as the culmination of the past decade plus of the band’s ethos and execution.

The first Burning Witch album. Circa 1996. Recorded by Steve Albini.

Black Vinyl. Limited and Non-Returnable.

Blurred edges of consciousness voids: time manipulation, experiments in black down -tuned drone and harrowing vocals.

Members went on to: sunn O))), Khanate, Goatsnake, Asva.

An important artifact of the cryptic domain.

First new recordings from Godflesh since 2017's critically acclaimed full length 'post Self'.

'purge' musically, amongst the many layers of dirt, revisits and updates the concepts explored on the 'pure' album from 1992; 90's hip hop grooves mangled and put through the Godflesh filter to create something that is still unique and futuristic in style.

Both minimal and maximal, with layer upon layer of filth and heaviness, Godflesh deliver alien grooves that swing whilst also retaining the psychedelic / bad trip edge that Godflesh has always obsessed over. This is, and always has been, feel bad music; the title alone 'purge' references directly how songwriter / creator Justin K Broadrick utilises this music as temporary relief from his diagnosed autism and Ptsd, a journey he has been on since he began creating music and feeling alone and as an outsider in any 'scene' or 'group' from childhood and throughout his adulthood.

Godflesh gives him the means to express a lifetime of feeling misunderstood and overwhelmed by hyper sensitivity, the band being the vehicle to give him some sense of catharsis and transcendence; a way of communicating overload and constant disenchantment at the human condition, and man's abuse of power and the systems that chain us.

The album references the cycle of horror that man has always and will always put us through; those in positions of power revel in the infliction of pain and horror upon individuals, in the name of their religion, their power, their money, their flags....

8 songs, delivered in a concise fashion for fellow outsiders.

limited transparent orange /red /black splatter vinyl LP

The second Burning Witch album. Circa 1997.

Black Vinyl. Limited and Non-Returnable.

Blurred edges of consciousness voids: time manipulation, experiments in black down -tuned drone and harrowing vocals.

Members went on to: sunn O))), Khanate, Goatsnake, Asva.

An important artifact of the cryptic domain.

Titled Dawn of the Axe, Cruel Force's long-awaited new album is, in many ways, a new chapter for the band. As presaged by that short-length, Dawn of the Axe harkens to dustier, more archaic times - ones where subgenre delineations weren't so strict and all was mostly Heavy Metal. For sure, Cruel Force can still thrash with the best of them - regular thrash, "blackthrash," whatever - but their sound carries a strong old-style speed metal edge reminiscent of '80s Kreator, Iron Angel, and Germany's Deathrow, sharp as an axe and just as lethal. And while the blackened elements of the first two albums have been dialed back some here, the overall speed of Lp#3 is, in fact, faster. But as Dawn of the Axe slices onward, it soon becomes apparent that that the quartet are subtly integrating a more rarefied field of influences, with the mysticism of '70s Rainbow and especially Scorpions most prominent as well as the blue-collar thrust of early US metal - again, all before the development of speed metal or thrash. Thus, the nine songs comprising the 39-minute album exude a wider variety of moods and dynamics, and also sees Cruel Force exploring their more epic side, with three of those songs topping six minutes. No matter the mood or dynamic, though, energy bristles from every second of Dawn of the Axe - riff, rhythm, lead, vocal, Everything - and with the slightly-more-atmospheric recording style (or a more "mysterious" production, perhaps), it all gels together to create the band's strongest and most complete statement to date. No matter how you (axe)slice it, there's no wimping out whatsoever! It's rare for a band to be away a full decade and then come back with their best work, but such is the case with Cruel Force and Dawn of the Axe. There's some strange magick brewing in the Devil's Dungeon, and they've crossed the Styx to bring you that Power Surge!

No conversations discussing who are amongst the heaviest of the heaviest of UK metal acts can be complete without mentioning Bristol based sludge trio Torpor. Over the past ten years this colossal band have been obliterating stages across the UK and mainland Europe, leaving behind an impressive discography along the way. Rising London based label Human Worth proudly present Torpor's third full length album Abscission. A fine tapestry of sludge metal, lumbering doom riffs, forward thinking post-rock dynamics, cerebral drone passages, ambient textures and stark spoken poetry - Abscission sees Torpor distilling all their greatest strengths and influences into their tightest and leanest set of songs to date. Recorded by producer Wayne Adams (whose credits include Wallowing, Green Lung, Possessor and more), Abscission is a paean to earth shattering tones, subtle detailed textures, immersive sound design and most importantly... Absolutely Crushing Heaviness. "This is another world." - Aural Aggravation "Torpor shoot straight to the top of the pack by interspersing savage lumbering grooves and bleak growls with melancholic chimes and cinematic soundscapes." - Astral Noize

Crypt of the Wizard is proud to announce the debut LP from Riders of Rohan. Arise now, arise, and listen to these here ballads of courage, kinship, gracious good and ultimate evil heralded by Sweden's Riders of Rohan. This power trio of epic proportions was forged in the dark smithies of Gothenburg and founded of black steel by Marcus Ferreira Larsen at No Master's Voice studio in Copenhagen. Our heroes play an enchanted breed of heavy adventure-rock, where KISS-like melodies merge with the punk rock 'n' roll delivery of Dead Moon to tell tales written for the love of Tolkien. Don't miss out on the first release from this fine fellowship. Stream it now or look out for it on cassette and vinyl later on this year. Ride now, ride now, ride! Ride for ruin and the world's ending! Death! Death! Death! Forth Eorlingas!

180g pressing in gatefold sleeve, cut at 45rpm, black vinyl

Limited box set incl. 2CD wih 3D lenticular cover, 1LP with translucent blue & red marbled vinyl, the cassette, a flag, a lyric folder, certificate. Limited to 3000 copies.

For something to be “ecstatic,” the feelings and emotions it evokes must transcend what one tends to experience most regularly in their lives. Ecstatic joy isn’t just happiness; it’s a feeling of jubilation which impacts one emotionally and in a metaphysical, arguably spiritual sense too. Although it has long been associated with connotations of the dark and macabre, extreme music has the ability to be a powerful mode of expression for these feelings of absolute bliss, overwhelming love, and awe-inspiring sublimity. Extreme emotions no less and those which black metal quartet Agriculture evokes with its ecstatic subversion of the subgenre’s tropes. What was initially a meeting and subsequent series of jam sessions between Kern Haug and Daniel Meyer, two musicians in the Los Angeles underground noise scene, would eventually manifest as a shared vision to portray the sublimity of the human experience through the vehicle of heavy music. Following the additions of veteran guitarist Richard Chowenhill and bassist / vocalist Leah Levinson to the band’s lineup, this idea would crystalize into the “ecstatic black metal” backbone of Agriculture’s music, first heard on the band’s 2022 debut EP, The Circle Chant. With Agriculture’s self-titled record and first full-length LP, it’s abundantly clear that the band’s use of heavy music to showcase the most resplendent emotions and moments of the human experience has a far deeper meaning. Woven between the flurries of soaring tremolo picking, crescendoing guitar harmonies, celebratory screamed vocals, thoughtful improvisation, and meditative atmospheric passages is the record’s mission statement to experience the wonders and joys of both the esoteric and physical world.

Out of the smoke of the pandemic, Intoxicated return with a renewed energy in the form of their debut full length, Watch You Burn. Recorded at Morbid Angel's old rehearsal studio in Tampa that Intoxicated literally rehabbed and converted into a state-of-the-art studio for renown producer, Ryan Boesch (Foo Fighters, Whores, Helmet, Melvins, Andrew WK), now known as Candor Recording, Watch You Burn is a product of a band on a mission who's Florida roots are worn proudly on their sleeves. While you can hear traces of Obituary, Massacre, and Chuck Schuldiner sprinkled all over the album, Intoxicated offer much more than shades of death. There is a heavy crossover vibe present ala D.R.I. or early C.O.C., as well as some Skate Punk /Thrash like the early Venice Beach bands. In addition, there are moments you'll swear you heard a Matt Pike riff or something out of the Nola playbook. With guest spots courtesy of friends Tony Foresta of Municipal Waste and Ken Andrews of Obituary, Watch You Burn is a bonafide rager! Intoxicated took little time off during the pandemic, adding a new guitarist, John Sutton, who is no stranger to the Florida metal scene having spent time with 90's act Pain Principle. In the last 6 months alone, Intoxicated have supported Obituary, Massacre, Nasty Savage, Gruesome, D.R.I., The Casualties, Inhuman Condition and High Reeper. With Andrew WK's disappearance leaving Erik Payne and Gregg Roberts to their own devices, Intoxicated have certainly taken a front seat and there is no sign of slowing down - the band have the pedal to the floor and plan to be out supporting the album all Summer. You can catch them this Summer supporting Obituary and Municipal Waste on select dates as well as Into the Darkness Fest and Full Terror Assault Open Air!

Blight Year is a cosmic black metal bulldozer, On Anti-God Hand’s second album, frontman Will Ballantyne enlists engineer Colin Marston (Krallice, Indricothere, Gorguts, etc.) and powerhouse drummer Greg Fox (Liturgy, Ben Frost, Colin Stetson). Together, they veer from pummelling odd time signatures and downtuned riffs into ascendant, widescreen climaxes that subvert tired black metal tropes. Ballantyne is an in-demand performer, playing guitar for Debby FRIDAY’s breakout album Good Luck (Sub Pop), writing and performing electronic music as City, and performing endurance performance art with Chinese collective Trance. The result is an ideological and sonic crystallization that pushes Anti-God Hand’s cosmic black metal into something still more emphatic, distinctive, dynamic.

In 1990 guitarist/vocalist Fredrik Mannberg formed a band called Necronomic, then by the end of the same year the only two remaining members (Fredrik and drummer Tommy Eriksson) recruited bassist Nils Eriksson and started with the monicker of Nocturnal Rites. In 1991 the band made their first, and still only, official demo recording. A four track release called "The Obscure". It attracted some indie-labels but the band decided to wait for something better. While writing material to be a two track promo recording they found themselves having drifted away from the death metal sound, towards a more melodic and harmonic oriented sound. This new approch, again, attracted some label attention. But the band was not be willing to sign. Around this time drummer Tommy Eriksson left the band and was replaced by Ulf Andersson. The band also added a second guitarist, Mikael Söderström. Through 1993 the band continued writing material and by this time their sound had come to grow into traditional heavy metal, influenced by the likes of Iron Maiden and Judas Priest. The band describes this transition as a normal continuance on what they started on in 1992. By the end of 1993 they felt they had gathered enough good material for another recording. This recording, however, made the band realized Fredrik's vocals didn't quite fit their new sound. So they felt they had to recruit a proper, melodic singer. Fredrik's replacement was found in Anders Zackrisson, a talented and experienced vocalist, formerly of Gotham City band. With 1993's recording with newly recruited Zackrisson they felt the songs had potential and it was sent out to various labels. The tape caught swedish label Dark Age's attention. A deal was worked out and by the end of 1994 the band signed it. Dark Age's intention was always to license the album to a bigger label with better funds and distribution. The partner was found in Megarock Records and finally Nocturnal Rites debut album "In a Time of Blood and Fire" (1995) was launched upon the world. It was critically a big success but, unfortunately, due to some distribution problems and poor efforts in promoting the album, it never became “big” as it potentially could have been. While writing for a follow-up, guitarist Mikael Söderström decided to leave the band and was replaced by Nils Norberg, equally talented as musician and songwriter. In late 1997 the band's second CD, "Tales of Mystery and Imagination" was released in Japan. But since Megarock didn't please Dark Age, they looked for a better deal in Europe and found it in Century Media and so the album was finally released in March 1998. At this point, a whole new era was to begin for the band. After touring Europe in support of the "Tales..." album, the band came back with a newfound confidence to write and record its third offering, the critically acclaimed "The Sacred Talisman" (1999). It showed a more mature and able side of the band and a new addition to the rythm section, the drummer Owe Lingvall. Then the boys joined Nevermore and Lefay for an intense european tour. When all touring duties were done the band and vocalist Anders Zackrisson separated. Quite quickly a replacement was found in local singer, Jonny Lindqvist and with him Nocturnal Rites released the following albums: "Afterlife" (2000), "Shadowland" (2002), "New World Messiah" (2004),"Grand Illusion" (2005), "The 8th Sign" (2007) all under Century Media, then "Phoenix" (2017) under AFM.

Debut full length for one woman band Marthe on Southern Lord.

True Valkyrian metal inspired heavy riffing in a dark atmosphere of feasting ravens over a thunderous battleground.

The war cry belongs to a distorted horde of crust punk and black metal venture.

The dust settles over the power of Bathory, the melancholy of Tiamat and the stench of Amebix.

Antifascist. Feminist. Misanthropic.

Includes cover of Siouxsie and the Banshees ‘Sin In my Heart'

Svart Records proudly presents the reissue of Bleed From Within's 2018 album Era!

Bleed From Within is a heavy metal band formed in 2005 at Glasgow, Scotland. Era, originally released in 2018 by Century Media, is the band's fourth studio album. This is the first reissue of it on vinyl and features the two bonus tracks that were originally only available on the first CD pressing.

"Bleed From Within have breathed life into a kind of metal that has long become stagnant and they have done this on their own terms. No backing down and no comprising can be found within Era, they have shown here just what can be done if you really believe in the music you’re writing. One of the standout releases of the year." -Ghost Cult Magazine

"If you are a fan of riffs then Era is definitely going to be an album for you. Every song is packed several great riffs. The influence of bands like Lamb OF GOD and Pantera can certainly be heard but things never sound completely derivative." -Distorted Sound Magazine

Era is available on Svart exclusive pitch black vinyl, natural clear vinyl and transparent yellow vinyl.