Wisdom & Fools – Prophecy Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier

Liminal Dread Productions has been on a roll with releases in the past year. Some really took it home (Vanessa Funke), while others (Weep) didn’t quite hit the mark. Now, they are back with the debut record from LA’s newest thrash band, Wisdom & Fools. As far as I can gather, this two-person outfit was a collaboration between vocalist/guitarist Philip Vargas and bassist John Ramirez, who fronts the one-person progressive death outfit Parasite. The only thing missing is a drummer. So, they bought a computer and did some shit. Prophecy is a brief record that tries to push the boundaries of thrash, technical thrash, and death. The result is a riff machine with harmonizing guitar leads and vocals in the vein of Pantera and Throwdown. It’s an odd combination of elements that could be an absolute hit or a thrash fire behind Albertson’s. Either way, its thirty-six-minute construction should at least get you through your morning coffee shits.

My favorite part about the band’s inception was their first release, a 2020 collab with Parasite called St. Angry (A Loving Tribute to Metallica’s St. Anger). Yep, you read that correctly. These four cover songs include “Dirty Window” and “Sweet Amber,” which absolutely no one asked for, especially considering that I prefer the unfiltered vocals of Papa Het to those of Vargas. After a couple of singles and an EP, Prophecy finally arrives as the band’s official debut LP. With eight original tracks that don’t include St. Anger covers, Wisdom & Fools set out with their programmed drums to leave a mark on the Bay Area thrash scene. But will that mark be a notch on the Big 4 bludgeoning club or that skid mark I had to wash out of my speedo?

The first thing you notice from the opening number, “Escaping Eden,” is its guitar chops and the bass that pops and rumbles like old-school Sadus. But after charging along with one of the better thrash licks on the album, the vocals kinda diminish the mood. The song becomes garbled with all the riff and mood changes, even if the death textures and stomping riff on the back end are nice touches. One of the best tracks on the album is “The Devil in a House of God.” The screaming vocals and heavy riffs deliver the goods, alternating between thrash mixtures and interesting, swirling guitar leads. The song also includes melodic elements, ’80s metal flourishes, and a headbangable interlude that—for some demented reason of my own—resembles the entrance song to WWE’s Hardy Boyz.

After the album comes out attacking, the back half introduces more melodic elements in back-to-back pieces, “Thorns” and “Perpetualis.” While “Thorns” is riddled with some interesting, old-school soloing and harmonizing guitar action, the song’s foundation is completely forgettable. And, once again, the vocals don’t help to bring this track up to the melodeath caliber it should be. Sadly, “Perpetualis” is an identical song to its predecessor. Repeating the verse, pre-chorus, and chorus sections for most of the track, the only interesting part is the harmonizing leads toward the end. Thankfully, the closer brings some semblance of justice to the previous tracks. “Husk” is a marching thrasher that dabbles in death-thrash territories before unveiling its own melodic tendencies. But the lush textures of the song’s outro are not enough to save the lackluster songwriting of the two previous tracks.

Prophecy is an enigma. While the performances are undoubtedly great—especially those harmonizing leads and the gigantic bass presence—the songwriting is lacking. Balancing between being a standard thrash band and a technical one, Prophecy achieves too much and too little at the same time. There are a lot of riffs on this platter, but they tend to blend rather than add memorable weight to the overall song. As stated before, the vocals also do little to contribute, and I find myself ignoring them to focus on the guitar and bass. All that to say, there is definitely something here that, with some restraint, could be great. Of all the songs, “The Devil in a House of God” seems to know what it wants to do, but most of the album becomes predictable, as if the riffs are used to promote the impressive leads and soloing sections. I’m not quite ready to write this band off, but this ain’t the album I wanted.

Rating: 2.0/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: WAV
Label: Liminal Dread Productions
Websites: wisdomfools.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/wisdomandfools
Releases Worldwide: April 25th, 2025

#20 #2025 #AmericanMetal #Apr25 #LiminialDreadProductions #Metallica #Pantera #Parasite #Prophecy #Review #Reviews #Sadus #ThrashMetal #Throwdown #VanessaFunke #Weep #WisdomFools

Dr. A.N. Grier’s Top Ten(ish) of 2024

By Dr. A.N. Grier

If I were to rate the year of our Lord 2024, I’d give it a solid 4.5/5.0. No, I joke. FUCK 2024. Good riddance, fuck off, goodfuckingbye. This year, the layoffs continued (even affected some of our writers here), the prices skyrocketed, the World Series was bullshit, and landfills across the States are twice their capacity thanks to useless election fliers. This year has resulted in practically zero time to work on AMG efforts, write reviews, or listen to music as I continue to try to keep my job. Yay. Cheers to you, 2024—you sack of horse shit. Let’s go, 2025, you sassy bitch who suggests great things to come but probably won’t deliver. If only you could promise me more time doing the things I love—listening to metal, writing about it, and pretending to edit the other writers’ reviews while completely hammered. If so, I’d kiss you as the ball drops, take you to the back alley during the after-party, and promise not to poison your coffee the next morning.

But we aren’t there yet. We are still stuck in the past, looking over a mediocre year of metal, regurgitating the same shit we already wrote for each album on our lists. That way, you all can praise, argue, and whine about each choice and its placement. Thankfully, my lists rarely overlap with anyone else’s and no one actually gives a fuck, so my sleep patterns remain the same. Having passed the ten-year mark at this amazing madland, my tastes remain the same, and no one will be surprised that most of the selections here are the items I alone reviewed. That changes occasionally but with no time to think about music this year, you’ll be treated to odd takes and albums that only scored a 3.0. Oh no!1

Thank you to the AMG staff for their lackluster productivity and overrating tendencies. To Dolph, Kenny, and Sharky for introducing new segments and keeping legacy ones alive. And to Cuervo and GardensTale for the additional year-end contributions they deliver. I also have to give a huge shoutout to the top bosses—AMG and Steel Daddy—for all they do2. I guess I should also thank all of you for your continued support. I guess. May this list find you well as we are thrust into 2025 and the potential nightmares that it’ll bring. Cheers.

#ish. I Am the Intimidator // I Am the Intimidator – What? You fucking knew this was coming. When Steel told me to review an album about NASCAR and Dale Earnhardt, I couldn’t not do it. I mean, this one-off, self-titled record from a one-off band was a perfect opportunity to unleash my rage. And then… wait, what the fuck? It’s actually kinda good? In a weird year where I reviewed two racing-related albums, I Am the Intimidator sports3 six wild tracks that combine Dio and Iron Maiden with Ministry. What the fuck? And, somehow, the lyrics would be fucking hilarious if they weren’t so passionate. OK, the lyrics of the surprisingly delicious and crushing “Gasoline” are fucking hilarious, and a regular, all-caps attack in the AMG channels. After all the chaos and wild influences that make up this tight, six-track album, the passion for “The Intimidator” is true, even if it’s weird. But, I can’t stop listening to this album any more than I can stop drinking beer.

#10. Dust Bolt // Sound & Fury – Like so many other Grier lists, there’s always an album that becomes the most frequented in my shit-filled ears. Yup, I know, you all fucking hate it, and I couldn’t care less. For the band (and style), Sound & Fury is a brave effort that I find addictive, fun, and hilarious trolling material when Steel talks shit. Is it thrash? No, but that didn’t stop me from proclaiming Load as Metallica’s best album. Shifting away from the overused thrash concept and mediocre record releases, Dust Bolt chose the unconventional route of cleaner vocals, smoother production, and catchier choruses to remove themselves from their past outings (and, some would argue, from thrash and metal in general). For you naysayers, there are plenty of headbangable moments on Sound & Fury, so you don’t have to feel like a poser singing these new songs in your mom’s shower.

#9. Midnight // Hellish Expectations – Perhaps one of the most prolific metal bands out there, what can I say about Midnight that I haven’t said already? Oh yeah, they’re badass and if you don’t like them, you’re shit. Also, fuck you. Like previous releases, Midnight continues to speed through riffs that bring to mind classic outfits like Darkthrone, Motörhead, Venom, and Celtic Frost at a relentless speed. While other Midnight records are better, Hellish Expectations joins its compatriots in a discog that can do no wrong. Unless, of course, you don’t like this band’s style. In that case, read above regarding that “fuck you” thing. What makes Hellish Expectations great in this frustrating year is that it caps at twenty-five wonderful minutes—which is the same amount of time it takes to shit out your morning coffee. So, this is a chance to correct your poserness. If you like this band, you already know Hellish Expectations is a fun ride that’ll keep your spikes sharp and your leather pants shit free.

#8. Bombus // Your Blood – Like another band on my list, this Swedish heavy metal, hard rock band has seen a lot of ups and downs in their career. And, for some reason, their co-founding vocalist and guitarist walked. But that didn’t stop Bombus. Not only did they find someone to fill those two slots, but they also added another guitarist to round it out to three. With these new additions, the skill displayed on Your Blood is superior to anything the band has ever done. There’re solos, harmonizing leads, and riffs up the fucking wazoo. I’m uncertain if it’s due to this new skillset or an increase in motivation with five years between albums, but Bombus held nothing back for Your Blood. While there are plenty of the bangers you would expect from a band of this caliber, like the addictive “Take You Down,” there are also other interesting inclusions that I should hate, yet love. For example, the weird, Spaghetti Western qualities of “Your Blood,” the Nick Cave-meets-The White Stripes musings of “The One,” and the bizarreness that is “Carmina.” With Your Blood, the band has found their groove and passion again, delivering their best album yet.

#7. Vanessa Funke // Void – This year brought a surprising new addition to my favorite bands of all time. In this case, it was the newest release from the multi-instrumentalist, Vanessa Funke. With a small but stellar catalog, Ms. Funke continuously dabbles in new influences and song approaches with each album and Void is no different. Coming off last year’s acoustic masterpiece Vanessa Funke rewinds to her debut record, Solitude, alternating between rasps and cleans, acoustic and distorted guitars, and her perfectly molded combination of folk, melodeath, and atmospheric black metal. The textures created by the vocals, guitars, keys, and piano take Void down into some incredible depths, engulfing its listeners in blankets that can be both soft and stabby. Albums like this are rare for me these days, so when they do completely submerse me to the point that I can’t think of anything else, there’s no doubt it’ll make it on my year-end list.

#6. Crystal Viper // The Silver Key – Maybe not everyone’s favorite Polish act,4 Crystal Viper’s founding vocalist and guitarist, Marta Gabriel, has been knocking around her blend of heavy and power metal for nearly two decades. But, it’s been a rocky road of great, mediocre, and rage-inducing records. Where Crimen Expecta shines like a bright star in the sky, Tales of Fire and Ice is a dumpster fire that topped my most disappointing album of 2019. When I approached this year’s The Silver Key, I was expecting another mid album (or worse) but was immediately engrossed—maybe even more than Crimen Expecta. Though many of you dislike the vocals, Gabriel is in top form. But, her vocal performance is only one aspect of the Crystal Viper sound. Her guitar work is some of the best of her career, lending new ideas to the song structures and album flow. While plenty of bands are—and are not better—than Crystal Viper, The Silver Key is undeniably one of the best albums of their career.

#5. Sidewinder // Talons – Most likely one of the only overlaps I’ll have with the cunts that work here,5 Sidewinder’s newest release, Talons, threw me for a loop. Not expecting anything from a band I’ve never heard about, Talons immediately got my noggin’ bobbin’ in the most pleasing way. I can’t pinpoint exactly why I like this style of heavy, bounding stoner metal, but every time I hear it, it clicks. And nothing is better than diving right into a record where one of the band’s best pieces is the opener. “Guardians” is a quintessential Sidewinder piece that personifies the band and everything they stand for. But that’s only the beginning, as the guitars cruise down the road and the bass rumbles through the gravel. Clocking in at a mere thirty-four minutes, this eight-track beauty never reaches beyond its means, ensuring the songs are straight and tight, allowing Jem’s powerful vocals to direct the varying moods. While the band resides in the lush and beautiful landscapes of New Zealand,6 if a sound could represent the harsh desert lands of my home, this would be it.

#4. Aborted // Vault of Horrors – As many know, death metal is not my cup o’ tea. Once upon a time, death metal was my life, but that ship sailed when my favorites grew old and repetitive, and what you all call death metal these days bores me to tears. But the one band that continues to make me salivate is Aborted.7 And, boy, did this year’s Vault of Horrors deliver. With tracks like “Dreadbringer,” “The Golgothan,” and “Malevolent Haze,” this new release offers some incredible depth and relentless brutality. Aborted has always delivered good-to-great albums but after nearly thirty years, how can these lads continue to improve and produce such quality releases? Vault of Horrors is a great record and arguably one of the band’s best. It’s been several months since this beauty was released, so if it passed by you, rectify your posersivity.

#3. The Vision Bleak // Weird Tales – I don’t know what it is about The Vision Bleak but they fucking hit me and hit me hard. On the surface, their style is quite simple, but it’s the layers, stories, mood, and damning vocal performances that draw me in like I’m viewing a Vincent Price horror marathon. Combining their Type O Negative vocal characteristics with atmospheric moods that can be depressive at one point and ethereal at another, The Vision Bleak took a massive leap by releasing Weird Tales as (technically) a one-song album. Eight years since their incredible The Unknown, Weird Tales doesn’t skip a beat, maintaining the duo’s title as one of the greatest bands in gothic metal. With magnificent builds, eerie transitions, mind-bending fluidity, and heart-wrenching passages, the haunting nature of Weird Tales leaves you contemplating your existence in a world controlled by the fate instilled in it by the late, great H.P. Lovecraft.

#2. Kingcrow // Hopium – For fucking months, our progressive cunt, Dolphin Whisper, tried desperately to steal Kingcrow’s Hopium from me—somehow thinking he’s better than me when it comes to describing the lushness of Kingcrow. The fuck. Even though Kingcrow hasn’t released an album in six years, there’s no way some flipper fucker would take this from me. Sure, I’m not a huge fan of progressive metal, but at least I know what’s good progressive metal instead of lazily making love to everything with the tag of “prog.” Anyway, Hopium continues to deliver gorgeous tapestries painted with soothing vocals, synthy atmospheres, and impressive performances for all involved. Though I consider Eidos their best, Hopium is not far behind. While tapping into common influences like Dream Theater and Spock’s Beard, this Italian outfit is very much on a level all its own. If you like prog, you’ll find Hopium—with such wildly varying tracks like “Vicous Circle,” “Parallel Lines,” and “White Rabit’s Hole”—to be the most diverse prog record of the year.

#1. Borknagar // Fall – Goddammit, I love Borknagar. Few bands have such high album scores for a career that spans thirty years and a dozen albums—especially with a constant rotation of players and vocalists. Though, how can you be pissed off about having any of the great vocalists Borknagar has employed throughout the years? Since the beginning, the band has continuously introduced more melody and keys in their music, but Fall is special compared to the output in the last twenty years. Though this new album hasn’t hung up that hat by any means, Øystein G. Brun, Lars A. Nedland, and crew dug through the ashes of the past to bring some of those old-school black metal moments back into the mix. From the blackened assault of “Summits” and the Dimmu Borgir-esque vibes of “Northward,” the band continues to shock and surprise, avoiding a repetition from a previous album. So, dive into the best album o’ the year in all its glory.8

Honorable Mentions

• Portrait // The Host – While I didn’t like the production of Portrait’s The Host, I’m still a slut for King Diamond and Meryful Fate-adjacent metal. Especially when it comes to Portrait, who continues to be less like a copycat and more like a pioneer of the style.
• Attic // Return of the Witchfinder – More King Diamond-core! Easily one of the best examples of the sound, Attic continues to keep me coming back with each release. As their predecessor, Return of the Witchfinder brings a new story, more twists, and those pleasing falsettos that trigger my “O” face.
• Sarke // Endo Feight – Sarke (the artist) and crew have had one hell of a busy couple of years. This year, in particular, sees not only a new Sarke release but also a new Khold record (see below). Endo Feight is a wonderful addition to the band’s catalog and, by god, it’s wonderful to see the man himself back behind the kit.
• Khold // Du dømmes til død – See? I told you it would be here. While 2022’s Svartsyn was better record than Du dømmes til død (and a fantastic comeback), Du dømmes til død still has those elements that make the band so unique and fun to listen to.
• Blood Red Throne // Nonagon – Three years ago, Blood Red Throne released not only one of their best albums but 2021’s best death metal record. Unsurprisingly, it’s difficult to follow something like Imperial Congregation without some hiccups. That said, Nonagon is still a brutal piece of work worthy of mentioning.

Disappointments o’ the Year

• Darkthrone // It Beckons Us All……. – Like Sarke, Nocturno Culto has also been busy this year. If that’s part of the reason for the utter bore that’s It Beckons Us All……., I don’t know. But, this new record feels like Darkthrone is going through the motions. While I respect that they don’t care what the fuck any of us think, this is one of their worst albums.
• Exhorder // Defectum Omnium – After Exhorder’s incredible comeback album, Mourn the Southern Skies, I was more than a little excited for this new one. Unfortunately, like Darkthrone’s newest, Defectum Omnium is a dreadfully boring record that lacks all the passion of Exhorder’s comeback, leaving me confused and pissed the fuck off.

Songs o’ the Year

• Kingcrow – “White Rabbit’s Hole” – With an album full of great songs, there’s just something about the energy of this track that makes me so happy.

• Sidewinder – “Guardians” – This song represents some of the best stoner metal of 2024, and I can’t stop listening to it.

• Bombus – “Take You Down” – This song is just badass. I couldn’t care less what you think. Die.

#2024 #Aborted #Attic #BlogPosts #BloodRedThrone #Bombus #Borknagar #CelticFrost #CrystalViper #Darkthrone #DimmuBorgir #Dio #DrANGrierSTopTenIshOf2024 #DreamTheater #DustBolt #Exhorder #IAmTheIntimidator #IronMaiden #Khold #KingDiamond #Kingcrow #Lists #MercyfulFate #Metallica #Midnight #Ministry #Motörhead #NickCave #Portrait #Sarke #Sidewinder #SpockSBeard #TheVisionBleak #TheWhiteStripes #TypeONegative #Vader #VanessaFunke #Venom

Vanessa Funke – Void Review

By Dr. A.N. Grier

I love it when a rando intrigues my old bones and half-deaf ears. Especially after so many years at AMG and so many damn reviews. But even with all my years of metal knowledge and undeniable musical taste,1 even I can be surprised by something that floats to the top of the pit. After seeing nothing of interest for a July 12th release date, I summoned Leviathan to tread the waters and bring forth something that would possess me and give my arthritic hands the strength to write. What that majestic creature brought up to the shore was the third full-length album from Vanessa Funke. This one-person band has been around for some time, releasing albums, singles, and splits, and yet has remained hidden by all those who’ve secured large label deals. But, for better or worse, her promo for Void has made it into the hands of grumpy, ole Grier.

After exploring Vanessa Funke’s previous material, one thing is apparent: Funke is an incredible instrumentalist, from clean and acoustic guitars to distorted ones, piano, and keys. Incorporating folk with melodic death and atmospheric black metal, her songwriting appears to have no limitations. For instance, after combining all these elements in an Alcestian way (including vicious rasps and distant cleans) on the debut record, Solitude, Funke completely changed course for last year’s Dawn. With only two songs in forty minutes, Dawn explores similar territories to October Falls’ brilliant acoustic compilation, Kaarna. Mostly instrumental, Funke shows off some impressive skills on the acoustic guitar and piano to paint a beautiful tapestry of blissful nature. Now, she’s back with perhaps the heaviest and most intricate record she’s ever created.

The back-to-back opening tracks roll into one another to introduce Void. “The First Word” begins with acoustic guitars, piano, and low whispers before the distortion introduces the atmoblack elements. It alternates between calming sections and a chugging riff on the back half before handing the baton to “Broken Ground.” With this track, the album gains steam as the guitar and key solos push this ditty to a climax of distant, overlapping clean/rasping vocals. When we arrive at “Infelicity,” the intensity increases ten-fold as Funke reaches for other influences. After opening with the standard acoustic guitars and soft vocals, the song transitions to a Insomnium-inspired melodeath charge that shows the diversity and power provided by the guitars, drums, and gnarly growls. But this eight-plus-minute track becomes more interesting when we pass through a Dark Tranquillity-like riff and vocal approach before closing with the crushing machine-gun fire of the guitars and drums—making this track the most rounded and pleasing of the bunch.

Other highlights are “Blood on My Hands” and the closer, “Closing the Book.” These two tracks are the black sheep of the album, showing another twist in Vanessa Funke’s approach and making it difficult to tie it to even a couple of genres. “Blood on My Hands” is cool because of its tone, using a muddled distortion for the guitars and vocals. Not to mention the completely unexpected midpoint where you’re hit square in the face with a trumpet lead. Throughout, that nifty distortion remains, giving the song a unique character compared to the rest of the tracks. “Closing the Book” is special because Funke invites the Rinke brothers from Germany’s melodeath outfit, Storm Unleashed. Magnus Rinke lends some clean vocals to pair with Funke’s, while Lukas Rinke contributes some flugelhorn to this beautiful track. Marcus’ part is gorgeous, giving off some While Heaven Wept vibes that work beautifully on a Funke song.

I can hear it already (and have already from other staffers), you don’t like Funke’s distant clean vocals. Get over it. It’s traditional to the style and with hopeful passages like those in “The Funeral” and “Closing the Book,” there are a lot of Alcestisms where it works. That said, the vocals were more dominant in Solitude, which I prefer. Funke’s guitar, bass, drums, and piano skills are impressive, and the stories the instruments tell deserve their limelight. The major downfall of an album with over an hour of material is when song introductions are predictable. Solitude was similar, but it had enough variation when introducing songs that I didn’t notice it so much. Regardless of the song, you’re sure to get clean/acoustic guitars and piano to kick things off, where the real differences between the songs come later. Once you experience Void, you’ll also wish for better dynamics to capture the performances even more. None of these criticisms cripple the album by any means because this band is an underappreciated treasure for those who like moods, impressive guitar work, and albums you can lose yourself in.

Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: WAV
Label: Liminal Dread Productions
Website: vanessafunke.bandcamp.com
Releases Worldwide: July 12th, 2024

#2024 #35 #Alcest #AtmosphericBlackMetal #DarkTranquillity #FolkMetal #GermanMetal #Insomnium #Jul24 #LiminalDreadProductions #MelodicDeathMetal #OctoberFalls #Review #Reviews #StormUnleashed #VanessaFunke #Vøid #WhileHeavenWept