#TheMetalDogArticleList
#BraveWords–WhereMusicLives

SHORES OF NULL Shares “A Nature In Disguise” Live Video; Beauty Over Europe Out Now

https://bravewords.com/news/shores-of-null-shares-a-nature-in-disguise-live-video-beauty-over-europe-out-now/

#ShoresOfNull #BeautyOverEurope #LiveAlbum #MaskedDeadRecords #Munich #Budapest #SwallowTheSun #Draconian #Avatarium #EuropeanTour

Savage Master – Dark & Dangerous Review

By Kenstrosity

I had the pleasure of catching Savage Master live during January’s Heavy Mountain Music Festival. Eight straight hours of killer music, with no duds across the entire bill, played a key role in rekindling my lust for live music after the hurricane tried—and failed—to wash away my spirit. For their part, the Kentucky occult/heavy metal quintet were one of the best acts of the night, brimming with classic crowd-rousing energy and sparkling stage chemistry. However, their reputation for varied reception by our Ape ov Steel on this blog precedes them. Can they recover some devilish grace with upcoming fifth record, Dark & Dangerous?

Citing such reference points as Cirith Ungol, Bitch, and even Saxon, not much about Savage Master’s BDSM-based, Satan-seducing approach to heavy metal changed since With Whips and Chains and Myths, Magic & Steel. Guitar and vocal forward, Dark & Dangerous doubles down on catchy riffs, shreddy solos, infectious verses, and sticky choruses delivered with the same occult swagger I love about acts like Saturday Night Satan and Avatarium‘s bouncier material. Challenging the status quo of heavy metal at large isn’t on Savage Master’s agenda, but rollicking tracks like “The Edge of Evil” suck you into a hellish party vibe that doesn’t want to let you go until it has your body and soul for itself for all eternity. In other words, Dark & Dangerous is oodles of fun, and it gives the impression that Savage Master has as much, if not more, fun than you.

Despite Stacey Savage’s sultry, powerhouse delivery, it is Julian Fried’s and Larry Myer’s dueling axe antics that lock the devil’s seal on Dark & Dangerous. Much to my great joy, their shimmery leads and emphatic solos on record match the sensually charged aura they exuded on stage. Standout tracks in the middle of these tight 38 minutes, “The Edge of Evil,” “Devil’s Child,” and later highlight “When the Twilight Meets the Dawn” showcase their enthusiastic fretwork best. In these, bright and ebullient melodies twist their forked tongues against the scalding flesh of heated solos and trotting riffs such that my attention never wavers from such carnal debauchery. Yet, Savage’s venomous wails and full-bodied belts still ring out with clarity, solidifying her role as the troupe’s merciless dominatrix (“The Edge of Evil,” “Never Ending Fire,” “I Never Wanna Fall in Love”). Adam Neal’s bass guitar offers fun bounce to that low-end counterpoint that juggles rhythmic duties with drummer John W. Littlejohn’s youthful gallops on the kit, maintaining ample momentum to keep Dark & Dangerous from losing any steam (“Never Ending Fire,” “When the Twilight Meets the Dawn”).

While it is evident that Savage Master clearly have a ton of fun writing and playing this well-worn variety of heavy metal, as many individual cuts on Dark & Dangerous fade out of memory as those which brand the gray matter for all time. Where bar-crawling rockers “Devil Rock” and “I Never Wanna Fall in Love” maximize the sweet and sticky hooks of 80s hair and glam, solidifying their eternal presence in my mind, other cuts like “Warrior’s Call,” “Black Rider,” and “Screams from the Cellar” fail to make any impression at all. These tracks follow a similar formula as stronger options like “The Edge of Evil,” but distinguishing characteristics or cleverly packaged writing come at a steep premium, squandering any chance of being remembered. Overblown ballad closer “Cold Hearted Death” attempts a slower and more somber number, but it, too, falls flat outside of its powerhouse chorus and satisfying final-third solo.

Perhaps most damning of all, at the core, Dark & Dangerous is an extremely simple, by-the-numbers affair. As fun as this record can be in the moment, it’s hard to argue that it competes well against standout contemporaries like Tower or Saturday Night Satan in this competitive field. Several cuts off Dark & Dangerous are a shoo-in for any quality heavy metal playlist, but as an album, it’s but another point in the pentagram. Still, Savage Master’s fifth is worth a spin or two for a good time. And if you ever get the chance to see them live, don’t miss!

Rating: Mixed
DR: 8 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Shadow Kingdom Records
Websites: savagemasterofficial.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/savagemasterofficial
Releases Worldwide: March 28th, 2025

#25 #2025 #AmericanMetal #Avatarium #Bitch #CirithUngol #DarkDangerous #HeavyMetal #Mar25 #OccultMetal #Review #Reviews #SaturdayNightSatan #SavageMaster #Saxon #ShadowKingdomRecords #Tower

Now playing:
Avatarium - Between You, God, The Devil And The Dead 🇸🇪
Doomish Rock

#avatarium #doom #rock #metal #music #nowplaying

Det är ju #blandbandsfredag så bidrar med en tung C90. Tung musik passar fint i dessa tider.

#fairtomidland #rendezvouspoint #esoterica #avatarium #untoothers #apocalypseorchestra #lifeofagony #solstafir #theoldtree #moonsorrow #agalloch #observers #weedpecker #riversofnihil #múr #porcupinetree

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3qdxhPq5cVskbw9vRmT4UV?si=huCKAfPISKiPpXzVkPw82w&pi=t6VUF4EvQHa_n

Divendres, faves tendres! #NewMusic #OutNow #Century #HarakiriForTheSky #Wardruna #Abduction #Avatarium #TheGreatOldOnes #Irae #Putred #Metal #HeavyMetal #BlackMetal #DeathMetal

In den Rezensionen der aktuellen deutschen #metalhammer -Ausgabe völlig fehlbewertet: Das neue Album von #avatarium #doommetal #doom . Das sieht der Soundcheck (Platz 5) in derselben Ausgabe glücklicherweise anders. Katrin, höre es dir nochmal an.

Avatarium – Between You, God, the Devil and the Dead Review

By Steel Druhm

As a hardcore Candlemass enthusiast,1 I was predestined to love Leif Edling’s spinoff project, Avatarium. Featuring Leif’s original doom alchemy and the truly awe-inspiring vocals of Jennie-Ann Smith, there was a lot to love about them. The debut had enough nods to Candlemass to satisfy, and The Girl With the Raven Mask began to build a unique entity, fusing ’70s psychedelic rock, prog, and jazzy cabaret coolness into the doom foundation. Each subsequent album had its own thing going on with the doom element waxing and waning according. 2022’s Death, Where is Your Sting was the first album without Leif Edling and it ended up their least “metal” outing, often feeling like an early ’70s rock release close to Jefferson Airplane. It was still an enjoyable spin, but the heaviness factor was minimal. This left me longing for the older, more forceful sound and hoping for more actual metal. Now we get Between You, God, the Devil and the Dead. Will the scales rebalance and put things right, or has the slide into retro rock intensified?

Between is a slightly heavier album than Death, Where is Your Sting, with a few rougher edges to the ’70s rock-oriented sound, but it’s far from a return to the band’s early days. However, it’s still a tremendous showcase for the massive vocal talents of Jennie-Ann Smith, and the lady could sing me a Chinese take-out menu and still hold my rapt attention. The songs run the gamut of ’70s hard rock, delta blues. jazz cabaret fare and sometimes, actual doom, but I’d be hard-pressed to claim this is a metal album. Opener “Long Black Waves” is a cool blend of ’70s rock and classic doom with Jennie-Ann leading the way with her pristine, soulful vocals supported by oceans of retro organ work and restrained but toothsome lead work. It’s an instant winner and sticks like hot tar in long hair with a sullen but sultry hypnotic attraction. “Being With the Dead” is about as close to a call back to their debut as Avatarium gets these days, and the song is legitimately doom and fairly heavy too. There’s tons of Deep Purple-centric organ abuse coursing through the song and the riffs recall Sabbath’s “Buried Alive” a bit too closely at times.

The remainder of Between shows off the band’s “softer” side. “I See You Better in the Dark” is an upbeat, Delta blues-inflected mood rocker, with Jennie-Ann impressing as always though the song needs more oomph and punch. “My Hair is on Fire (But I’ll Take Your Hand)” approaches Messa’s cozy cabaret energy and it’s good but doesn’t fully stick with me. The closing title track is a schmaltzy emo-ballad that smacks of the excesses of Jim Steinman-era Meat Loaf and it’s a bit much. Toss in an instrumental with a greater doom-focus than the surrounding cuts and you have a slightly frustrating listen if you hoped for more metal tuneage. Keeping most songs in the 3-5 minute window with fairly tight writing aids the album’s flow, and Jennie-Ann can elevate pretty much anything to likable, but this isn’t the Avatarium I fell in love with originally. I find myself desperately wishing for more crunch and power and in the end, I’m a bit bored by the band’s output for the first time.

I’ve raved about Jennie-Ann on enough reviews to feel like I’m beating a dead horse, but the woman has a one-of-a-kind voice and can fit into almost any style and sound great. With Leif gone, she’s the center of gravity for the band, and rightly so. She’s got a love it or really love it voice and it’s hard to find fault in anything she does. Marcus Jindell (ex-Royal Hunt, ex-Evergrey, ex-Soen) is a gifted riff crafter capable of creating a wide spectrum of moods, often looking to 70s rock for inspiration. He’s on his game as usual here, though he dips into the metal pond too sparingly for my tastes with only a few big doom leads surfacing. Former Candlemass keyboardist Rickard Nilsson provides a lot of 70s-centric organ noodling to flesh out the various soundscapes the band dabbles in, and he hits the Deep Purple button early and often for some Moog rocking fun.

There’s a wealth of talent and interesting music here, I guess I just want them to trend heavier when that isn’t their predilection anymore. Between is a solid slab of ’70s rock worship with a few high points, but this isn’t something I see myself returning to much, just as I rarely spin their last album. I’ll keep checking in on future releases though, because Avatarium could do something special and I’d hate to miss it.

Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 6 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: AFM
Websites: instagram.com/avatariumofficial | facebook.com/avatariumofficial
Releases Worldwide: January 24th, 2025

Dolphin Whisperer

Every now and then a band rolls around featuring a one-of-a-kind performer that near regardless of their choices will keep them in good graces. In the case of Swedish doom-rockers Avatarium, this kind of star rests in none other than premier vocalist Jennie-Ann Smith. Her penchant for powerful, highly enunciated, and frightfully fragile deliveries mirrors no one else in the active metal world today, allowing Avatarium to live as morphing and thoughtful riff-based support for her wiles. Mostly anyway, as Avatarium’s Candlemassive roots with doom maestro Leif Edling had raised them in a lumbering, Sabbathian tradition. But starting with Edling’s complete step away from songwriting for 2022’s Death, Where Is Your Sting and into this newest Between You, God, the Devil and the Dead, Avatarium has forged a path steeped in their own emotional rock rather than just fat, evil riffage. An omission of true metal, though, does not necessary spell out a bad time.2

Fortunately for Avatarium, the husband wife duo of guitarist (and cellist and pianist) Marcus Jidell (ex-Royal Hunt, ex-Soen) and Ms. Smith continues to provide a beyond steady songwriting flair, even if it isn’t quite of the epic and crushing variety. Choice intros like jagged crunch of “Long Black Waves” or the rolling tom thunder of “Until Forever and Again” bellow in a familiar, foreboding manner the ambience of all things smoke-filled and brooding. But rather than lean on amplified fuzz for dramatic impact, a comfortable and punchy master highlights stadium weight kicks and growling organ underpinnings to frame a grooving sway and occult atmosphere around Jidell’s bluesy licks and Smith’s Heartfelt croons. No matter the influence, Avatarium sounds huge.

Though retro has always been the flavor of Avatarium’s grand plans, Between wears more proudly than past outings a Coverdale/Hughes-era Deep Purple aura in its bones. From the bass-led swagger of “I See You Better in the Dark,” complete Smith’s blue-eyed soul, stomping verses, to the psychedelic instrumental “Notes from the Underground,” a constant burn of attitude-toned string bends and snaking neoclassical charms color Avatarium’s unique personality. And though Heart comes as an easy comparison for the power balladry of cuts like “My Hair Is on Fire” and “Lovers Give a Kingdom to Each Other,” there’s a panache to the guitar-forward nature and careful vocal escalations that reminds of 70s Scorpions before the arena took over their more psych-leaning sound. Returning keyboardist Rickard Nilsson (of Hurricanes and The Fire I Long For) provides that extra cherry on top with hissing Hammond and blipping Nord flurries that provide the low end with an oscillating swell that sizzles under Smith’s sultry lines.

The path that Avatarium follows is well-worn, right down to the conflicting mood that arises from the monstrously squishy but nonetheless sticky serenade that closes Between. Similar to the gentler mood of preceding album Death, nuance in the recording of Smith’s vocalizations tether an interest just as much as the inherent fortitude of her proudest offered crescendos. Forceful “p” pushes, slithering and tooth-whistling sibilant crackles, and tickling fricative “f” squishes (especially on titles that feature the “f” like “Until Forever and Again”) pepper the texture of every passing lyric. Smith tonally is already a joy to the ears, and the attention to detail that twists letters into moments elevates the experience of lesser passages. While it’s true that I don’t necessarily want to listen to sappy credits roll title track, I can’t help but pay attention when Smith rests so elegantly over its cloying construction.

It’s a rare talent that a band like Avatarium, who actively makes musical choices that are at odds with my listening desires, continues to make compelling collections of songs that I want to hear again and again. In this case, though, the closer might be a little too sweet in the tooth still—and signaled in an odd manner after the vibey instrumental piece. Yet as part of a greater whole, Between You, God, the Devil and the Dead possesses a classic trajectory and classy ensemble of killer tunes. The power of doom may no longer much reside in the foot-tapping thump of Avatarium’s catchy shuffle, but volume and repetition assists its enjoyment all the same.

Rating: 3.5/5.0

#2025 #30 #35 #AFMRecords #Avatarium #BetweenYouGodTheDevilAndTheDead #BlackSabbath #Candlemass #DeathWhereIsYourSting #DeepPurple #DoomMetal #HardRock #Heart #HeavyMetal #Jan25 #JeffersonAirplane #Messa #Review #Reviews #Scorpions #SwedishMetal #TheGirlWithTheRavenMask

Avatarium share “I See You Better In The Dark” video:

#Avatarium #ISeeYouBetterInTheDark #Videwo #NewSong #JanuaryReleases

https://metalinsider.net/video/avatarium-share-i-see-you-better-in-the-dark-video

#TheMetalDogArticleList #BraveWords AVATARIUM Debut "Between You, God, The Devil And The Dead" Music Video bravewords.com/news/avatari... #Avatarium #SwedishDoom

#TheMetalDogArticleList
#BraveWords
AVATARIUM Debut "Between You, God, The Devil And The Dead" Music Video

https://bravewords.com/news/avatarium-debut-between-you-god-the-devil-and-the-dead-music-video

#Avatarium #SwedishDoom

hello @Kitty's #MittwochMetalMix
remember how good #Avatarium's first album was
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GWuGTYiQs8U
#Doom #Metal

Avatarium unveil “Long Black Waves” lyric video:

#Avatarium #LongBlackWaves #NewSong #AFMRecords

https://metalinsider.net/video/avatarium-unveil-long-black-waves-lyric-video

One more song for #MusicWomenWednesday & #MittwochMetalMix, The Master Thief by Avatarium with Jennie-Ann Smith on lead vocals 🖤

On invidious/youtube here:
https://yt.artemislena.eu/watch?v=ikftbANnX9Q
https://youtu.be/ikftbANnX9Q

#Music #Metal #DoomMetal #Avatarium

About #photographing day 3 of #IntoTheGrave #festival 💫

#Bands in this video:
- #ParadiseLost
- #Brutus
- #nanowarofsteel
- #whiplash
- #avatarium
- #devastator
- #dymytry
- #conjurer
- #endseeker
- #thecallousdaoboys
- #dvne
.
.
.
📷 by me: #sethpicturesmusic #sethabrikoos
#concertphotography #metal #metalband #metalmusic #metalhead #metalband #band #leeuwarden #nederland

🤘✌️

Ja krass. Das kommt davon, wenn man hektisch wird. Hier ist mir leider der Fokus komplett verloren gegangen und ich danke @fasi für die Identifizierung des 11. Novembers.
#GeezerButler, #Slipknot 🤘🏻, #InFlames 🤘🏻🤘🏻, #Avatarium, #Ophis und #Entombed.
#theartofmetalcovers2

My musical listening highlights for the week ending 2023/10/26 as curated by https://www.Last.fm

#happyCurrentListening #LastFM

#BonnieTyler #FleetwoodMac #MaryReynaud #Avatarium #Acolyte #JoanneShawTaylor #RitaCoolidge #ShelbyLynne

Good morning everyone 😁. It’s beautifully sunny and crisp here this Tuesday Melbourne morning. I’ve struggled to find a fitting track for @Kitty’s and @AqiDrago’s #DragoAndKittyDarkHeartDare. Here’s a bluesy little number from self-described occult-prog-doomers #Avatarium. How good is Jennie-Ann Smith’s voice! Have a lovely day all. 🤘😆🤘. https://song.link/au/i/1478125965

Listening to the 2015 album The Girl with the Raven Mask by Avatarium right now. Been a while that I did 🎶

Here is the title track on youtube via invidious:
https://y.com.sb/watch?v=nHiM5RHOwhk

Links for the album on multiple streaming services are here on album.link:
https://album.link/de/i/1458745130

#Music #DoomMetal #Avatarium

#NowPlaying #TheMetalDogIsNowPlaying
#Avatarium
Avatarium
Moonhorse

YouTube Search:
https://youtube.com/results?search_query=Avatarium+Avatarium+Moonhorse

Lyrics:
https://genius.com/Avatarium-moonhorse-lyrics

#doommetal #metal #Progressivemetal #greatlyrics #5of10stars

https://youtu.be/I36kTvu4yNM

La meva #CançóDelDia per al diumenge 12 de febrer és aquesta de les #Avatarium #Stockholm #DoomMetal #ProgRock 🤫!