Lmst

"avant-garde" good-mornings from Norway 🇳🇴, by Leprous
https://insideoutmusic.bandcamp.com/track/atonement

#music #ERisNowPlaying #μουσική #παίζειτώρα #βαράτε_βιολιτζήδες #leprous #avant-garde

Katatonia – Nightmares as Extensions of the Waking State Review

By Dolphin Whisperer

Sixteen years is all Jonas Renkse had to his name when he and Anders Nyström formed Katatonia back in 1991. A myriad of classic influences and the bravado of youth guided their fledgling minds down much rawer, doomier, and death-colored paths than Katatonia travels in 2025. But after thirty-plus years on the job—and a messy spat between old friends—nothing could possibly stay the same. The urge to find efficiencies in expression may overcome the urge to blaze an unknown path or revisit roots. What always remains in the Katatonia expression, though, is an unshakable and downtrodden atmosphere—time hasn’t rid the remaining Renkse of a bleak outlook on the world. So even if times are different, Nightmares as Extensions of Waking State remains, as always, a sad, Swedish affair.

Freshly onboarded axeslingers Nico Elgstrand (ex-Entombed A.D.) and Sebastian Svalland (Letters from the Colony, ex-In Mourning) harbor a burly guitar edge that’s a pleasure to hear—in vicious solo (and oh what solos!) or thunderous riff. And continuing the same stadium-minded attitude that pervaded every chorus of 2023’s Sky Void of Stars, booming builds and sticky-smooth serenading coat just about every nook of Nightmares. None of this rings that new for Katatonia, of course—2009’s Night Is the New Day cemented this lane of stream-of-conscious verse work that bubbles and broods to a Renkse-helmed croonfest. And since 2016’s iconic The Fall of Hearts idealized the mesmerizing rhythms and nature-fueled ambiance that serve modern Katatonia best, subsequent releases have strayed too wandering in electronica or comforting in safe songcraft to stand up against a loaded catalog. But the new blood and immediate stance in attack gives Nightmares a fighting chance in memory.

Given that Renkse has been the majority songwriting stakeholder over the past fifteen years, familiarity plays a hefty role in both the draw towards and push away from Nightmares. Yet, ever seasoned in crafting slinky vocal hooks, Renkse peppers lyrical spats like “Assemble a temple of steel / To stand on top of that building” (“Wind of No Change”) and “I wait for falling snow [dramatic shuffling break] You wait for me to go away” (“The Light Which I Bleed”). These goth night beat poetics add welcome color to melodic backdrops that sound like so many that have come before them. Does “Warden” waltz along that buttery line more like “Ambitions” or “Rusted” or “The Longest Year”—you decide. But against the locked-in, tom pounding struts (“The Liquid Eye”) and bouncing wah-chord hypnosis (“The Light…”), Katatonia possesses all the necessary parts to rope in prospective sadpeople looking to sway and bob in well-toned melancholy.

While cozy, crunchy riffs can go a long way in keeping Nightmares above water, its patchwork, song-based construction gets in the way of easy, straight-through enjoyment. From the get-go, the transition from a straightforward churner (“Thrice”) to a classic Renkse whimsical lilt (“The Liquid Eye”) to a sure-to-be arena staple (“Wind…”) feels like a stuttered exposition rather than a shared experience. And later, Renkse pulls out a Eurovision-ready, dim lights, full Swedish language synth pop ballad in “Efter Solen,” which struggles to justify its cost of admission as the longest, slowest, and guitar-void track on Nightmares. With as fragile a voice as ever in his native language, though, it’s hard to discount its charm, and repeated listens (as often is the case with a Katatonia) see it flowing better through my ears and heart. However, after the long fadeout of “The Light…” and before the radical, creaking blues pick-me-up of “In the Event of,” “Efter Solen” still feels as though it could have fit better as a separate bonus track.

Alas, at forty-six minutes composed of quality songs, Nightmares as Extensions of Waking State pushes through its lesser attributes as another Katatonia album with plenty of room to grow and revisit. In the hands of the hard-working engineering duo of Adam Noble and Robin Schmidt, who have most notably tackled the past few Leprous releases, Nightmares shows a contemporary gloss with an amplified edge while maintaining a wobbly buzz and pop in the additional electronics. Whether it’s the exact order or the songs themselves, this newest Katatonia outing stands in the shadow of any number of albums that someone calls their favorite—and a true favorite Nightmares is not likely to be. As an iterative entity that has lived rather well in its late stages, though, Katatonia holds the power to shine brighter with these same parts, even if this arrangement is plenty fine on its own.

Rating: Good.
DR: N/A | Format Reviewed: Sadboi Stream
Label: Napalm Records
Websites: katatonia.com | katatonia.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/katatonia
Releases Worldwide: June 6th, 2025

#2025 #30 #AlternativeRock #GothicMetal #Jun25 #Katatonia #Leprous #NapalmRecords #NightmaresAsExtensionsOfWakingState #ProgressiveMetal #ProgressiveRock #Review #Reviews #SwedishMetal

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#BraveWords–WhereMusicLives

ROYAL SORROW Premier Official Video For New Single “Give In”

https://bravewords.com/news/royal-sorrow-premier-official-video-for-new-single-give-in/

#RoyalSorrow #GiveIn #Finland #JaroKoho #HeavyMetal #Leprous #Gåte #EuropeanTour #MarkusHentunen #BraveWords

Electri-fucking-fying performance by #Leprous (with assistance of fan choir) of their song "Faceless". What an amazing song, what an amazing treat for the fans: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Q5nsmkMw9EA

(Incidentally, the album is on Bandcamp: https://insideoutmusic.bandcamp.com/album/melodies-of-atonement)

I’m Glad Leprous Are Norwegian

That means Trump probably won’t deport them. Which is good for us because, even with us audience in chairs, they’re epic. Something we already knew, but not that I’ve experienced personally.

What do I mean, “us audience in chairs”? Well, for some reason, the Boulder Theatre was like, “hey, let’s put down chairs for this metal show. That’ll be a good idea!” And it kinda wasn’t. People started standing during Wheel, the opener, and just didn’t sit for Leprous. There were no AEW wrestlers so no violence, but also there was no sitting.

Which, if you’re at a concert with chairs, the amount of people sitting is linear to how shit a show it is, no matter the genre or age of the crowd. 100% of the crowd sitting? A 100% shitty show. 50% sitting? 50% shitty show. Wheel and Leprous, together, got it to about 5% people sitting. You do the analogy.

Wheel kinda got a bit boned in that it’s hard, especially as the opener, especially in a genre that requires not chairs, to give it 100% when the audience’s tooshes are planted in cushions. There’s no give and take with the crowd. But these lespecial-esque motherfuckers did leave me wanting to experience more. They left me going, “damn, I bet they get aggressive and commanding as fuck during non seated shows!”

But they did warm up the audience well, because Leprous was straight up epic and no one 95% of people weren’t sitting. Leprous’ operatic metal lends itself so well to a live show. The vocals are superb and ear catching while the changing time signatures force the backing band to, not phone it in, but actually play with one another. And as we know, watching good musicians sync up with one another is amazing. It’s captivating. It’s intriguing. And I’m glad these guys toured Colorado before our president picks an unnecessary a fight with Norway.

Shoutout to their drummer who didn’t study for the ~~fucking tour~~ one complicated song they never put on the set and required a local, Sierra White, to fill in on. I was like, “what the fuck happened to their drummer?” Then it made sense.

This is the drummer that did her homework

Don’t forget to check out our merch – just like fine wine, the longer you look, the less shit it will be. I don’t know how to drink.

#leprous #metal #wheel

freaking masterpiece

#prog #leprous #avantgardemetal

The image is an album cover for the music album "Illuminate" by the band Leprous. The cover features a dark, space-themed background with a reddish hue, suggesting a celestial or otherworldly setting. In the center, there is a large, jagged crystal formation with sharp edges, illuminated by a reddish light, creating a striking contrast against the dark background. A small figure, possibly a person, is seen in the foreground, standing on a grid-like surface, adding a sense of scale and solitude. Above the crystal formation, a large, blue celestial body, resembling a moon or planet, is visible, enhancing the cosmic atmosphere. The text "leprosus" is displayed at the top, and "[MALINA]" is written below the crystal formation. The album title "Illuminate" and the band name "Leprous" are prominently displayed at the bottom of the cover in white text against a black background.

I'm finding myself returning to music by #Kalandra a lot over the last few days. Metal-folk-adjacent, and were a superb support act for #Leprous when I last saw them.

Kalandra also had a great set at ArcTanGent last year, and they're due again this year (though sadly on Wednesday - I think they should be higher on the bill!)

Anyway - if Monday is getting to you, give their latest album "A Frame Of Mind" a try.