Durf's Weekly Workout # 26: July 30th, 2021

A sixty hour work week, late (for me) nights, 2am workout wake ups, 100 degree temperatures, smokey skies, both Durflings out of nowhere deciding that sleep is for suckers, yard work, consults with professionals about additional yard work, and quite honestly a little bit of poor time management all conspired together to make this blog post an exercise in persistence to just finish.  Which is probably a good lesson about perseverance, but I'm probably grasping there.  Either way, this is probably the shortest Durf's Weekly Workout yet, and I deeply, deeply apologize to the amazing bands below who deserve so much more than I was able to give them this week.

Durf's Weekly Workout # 23: July 2nd, 2021

Well holy cow, it's July already!  This year is going by much, much quicker than last year, which is a huge relief.  If you've been with us for a bit, you know that for my first post in April I did a baseball-themed sort of quarterly recap, and I said then that you should expect similar posts in July and October.  Well, as we've established, it's July, so I think you know what lies ahead.  So without further ado, play ball! 

Durf's Weekly Workout # 22: June 25th, 2021

It is getting hot here in Idaho.  Like real hot.  Like hot enough that my work is considering having us come in super early next week in order to avoid the 108 degree highs in the afternoon.  Which on the one hand, is real nice, because super fuck that noise.  On the other, going in to work early means either waking up even earlier to work out OR working out after work in that insane heat.  Which is just as appealing as working in it.  So I'm not sure how next week is going to go, so I'm using this week's intro blurb to prepare you for the fact that there might not be a post next week.  Got it?

Durf's Weekly Workout # 21: June 18th, 2021

Obviously, when a lot of people think about working out, they think about it in physical terms.  Wanting to lose weight or build muscle.  Trying to be healthy.  Things like that.  And it makes sense to think about it this way, since it's a physical act.  But there is a mental/emotional component to working out too.  Pride in your accomplishments in the gym, confidence from looking and feeling your best are two big mental aspects; I know that I personally feel off all day if I skip a workout during the week.  I've been able to get around that feeling on weekends, which is great, but if I don't lift before work, it takes a whole lot of mental energy to stay on top of the workday with a good attitude.  I've had coworkers say to me "No workout today?" because it's that pronounced; I'd like to say I'm getting better at it and maturing to the point where I don't let it affect me like that... but I'm not, and it's a whole lot easier for me to just not skip a workout than it is to skip one and then deal with the fallout.  But there's another emotion that I routinely find driving my workouts, and it can definitely seem strange: Fear.

Durf's Weekly Workout # 20: June 11th, 2021

Things are finally, slowly starting to open back up after fifteen months of pandemic (I know, it feels like fifteen years).  The Durfette and I went golfing with her dad and his girlfriend when they were in town, and then we went to a local restaurant, sat on the patio, and had a glass of wine.  I went into the coffee shop that I stop in after grocery shopping, and didn't wear a mask as I picked up my americano to go.  We had friends over - in person - for a barbecue.  Major league sports are operating with full crowds, which may not be the best example, because they would have done that all last year if local governments hadn't forced them to put safety above profit.  We still have a ways to go (and it would certainly help if everyone got on board), but for now things are certainly trending back toward normalcy.  And the icing on that long-delayed cake has been trickling out of the baker's bag for the past couple of weeks: real, in-person, honest to Dio concert announcements.

Durf's Weekly Workout # 18: May 21st, 2021

I mentioned a couple weeks ago that I've been dealing with another Crohn's flare up recently.  I wrote about my Crohn's disease in more detail a few years ago, and since that post nothing and everything has changed regarding my disease and my approach to treating it.  However, after getting out of the hospital eight weeks ago, I felt like I wasn't quite healing as fast as I had in the past, despite a pretty high dose of prednisone (and also tramadol, which I felt was highly unnecessary, and didn't really take).  So I thought about it, and did some research, and kept thinking, and kept reading, and then took some pretty drastic steps, all in the name of health. 

Durf's Weekly Workout # 17: May 14th, 2021

Next week is the Durfette's last week of maternity leave.  Aside from being amazed that it's already been almost three months since The Durfling Strikes Back was born, this means that I'm going to have to stop being a deadbeat during the week and help out when he wakes up and needs to eat.  So far, I've been taking weekends to let the Durfette get some uninterrupted sleep then, and she's been doing the week so that I can get a good night's sleep before work, but now the schedule is being upended.  And you know what that means: It's time to change up my workout routine!

Durf's Weekly Workout # 14: April 23rd, 2021

A couple of weeks ago, I was minding my own business, doing nothing in particular, when I stumbled across this.  I was intrigued, and then confused, because it all seemed so familiar, and yet so different.  I feel like there's already a pretty definitive blog dedicated to workouts and metal, I just can't quite remember where.  Maybe I should ask Decibel about it; they clearly found this other, superior blog post and then tweaked the idea to fit their needs...

Paysage d'Hiver - Geister

Black metal in its purest form, which I associate with the Norwegian, second wave mold, is an area that I've never spent a ton of time deep-diving. I've listened enough to appreciate the contributions its had in metal's evolution, but aside from A Blaze in the Northern Sky, the rawness of this sub-genre's sound has never connected with me on the primal level you often hear it being touted for. That all changed for me when solo project Paysage d'Hiver emerged from obscurity last year with his release of Im Wald. Though one would understandably think an album with a two hour runtime would be a bit of slog, Im Wald managed to cultivate an aura that elevated it from "just" a black metal album into an all-encompassing journey. It made clear to me that Paysage d'Hiver's 20+ years worth of demos was something I had to dig into. I have yet to take that plunge, but the project's second full-length endeavor, Geister, is here to remind me of how that procrastination is, for lack of a better word, dumb.

Durf's Weekly Workout # 10: March 26, 2021

I got my first Covid vaccine on Saturday.  My arm hurt for like a day after, and that was it.  I feel super lucky to have had access to it, and I highly recommend everyone get it when they get the chance.  It feels like for the first time in forever, we’re closer to the end of this thing than the beginning.  There’s still work to be done, and we aren’t out of the woods yet, but for the first time in a year, I can actually picture myself in a record store or at a concert, and that ain’t nothing.  On to the music!

 

Izthmi - The Arrows of Our Ways

I'll forever be a sucker for atmospheric black metal. The genre is certainly saturated, but the tried and true formula of juxtaposing the harshness of black metal with moments of serene ambiance usually allows for something engaging to emerge. The Arrows of Our Ways, the full-length debut from Seattle's Izthmi, not only engages in this way but also offers its own refreshing take that piecemeals elements from other genres into its stylistic palette. It's a very concise effort; one whose elements have enough room to seamlessly interlock with each other while never meandering. For each moment of calm, Izthmi will in turn pack a mean punch.

Skeletonwitch - Devouring Radiant Light

Skeletonwitch’s original claim was being a bit different from bands of the re-thrash movement of the late oughts, with vocalist Chance Garnette leading the fracas with black metal rasps and tremolo picked frets to back him; equal parts chaos and melody. Garnette was easily the most recognizable member of the band; then he was replaced. Devouring Radiant Light ushers in a completely new era for the band, even though The Apothic Gloom was their first proper material with ex-Iron Thrones and current Wolvhammer frontman Adam Clemans.

Gaerea - Unsettling Whispers

Time will show the true extent of how much Mgła's Exercises in Futility is a milestone for black metal, not only by its own merit, but also by how it's currently paving the way for other like-minded bands to emerge and thrive. Cue in Portugal's Gaerea. By harnessing a straightforward approach to Mgla's droney-ambiance, Gaerea made a big impression on me with their self-titled EP from two years ago. It only missed my last year-end list on a technicality because I misread the release date. But this year may be the year I get to rectify that error because Gaerea's full-length debut, Unsettling Whispers, makes it rather clear that their previous EP was far from a fluke.

Møl - Jord

Metal, like other art forms, has a loosely structured cycle in which innovation begets imitation begets inspiration begets innovation, and so on.  The critical juncture in this cycle falls on the imitator; if they are simply a cardboard cutout of the innovative band, then they will be dismissed, lost amid a wave of other imitators.  If, however, their inspiration pushes them to heights from which they can distinguish themselves from the innovative band, then they will stand out and be heard.  The critical and commercial success of Deafheaven made it inevitable that a new wave of bands would grab on to their style of black metal/shoegaze amalgamation with ambient tendencies (I've heard some people call it "pink metal," and until I know for certain it's not meant as an insult, I won't have it) and have a go at it.  Møl is one such band entering the "imitation" point of the cycle with their debut Jord.  Does it manage to step out of Deafheaven's shadow, or will it be lost to the seas of time, a passing reference to a (potenial?) metal fad?

Tribulation - Down Below

I don't think "fitting" is the right word, but I find it humorous that in my Top Albums of 2017 list, I mentioned how Tribulation hadn't fully clicked with me while praising the latest album from Cloak. And now for my first review of 2018, I'm here getting to ready to gush about how on board I am with Tribulation. It's a strange world we live in, but that's what keeps things interesting, right? Anywho, Tribulation's latest endeavor, Down Below, is bringing in the new year in a big way. The band's rock sensibilities shine through with gravelly vocals casting an eerie ambiance over the otherwise upbeat and spirited guitar rhythms and riffs. Even though they are accurate descriptors, "black n' roll" and "goth-rock" are terms that are being used too liberally and make it easy to look past what Tribulation has achieved with Down Below.

Wolves in the Throne Room - Thrice Woven

Since their phenomenal debut Diadem of 12 Stars in 2006, Wolves in the Throne Room have been a force in the US black metal scene.  Their songs, drawing inspiration from the band's home in the Pacific Northwest, have always blended a serene sense of melody and atmosphere with a primal, animalistic fury.  In the ensuing decade, "atmospheric black metal" has become the genre du jour, but for the most part, these bands have been chasing WitTR's tail, trying to capture the alchemy that makes Diadem, Two Hunters, Black Cascade, Celestial Lineage, and the Malevolent Grain EP stand out in a sea of imitators and lesser bands.  Wolves in the Throne Room took a bit of a detour for their last album; 2014's Celestite was an ambient, synth-heavy companion to Celestial Lineage, and while it wasn't bad, it was certainly a departure from the band's trademark sound.  So now, three years later, after a re-release of Diadem of 12 Stars, the band has returned with Thrice Woven, an album they say marks their return to black metal.  So does Thrice Woven hold up to the band's impeccable track record in their home genre?

Myrkur - Mareridt

I know it may be hard for some of you to believe that polarization exists within the metal community, but Myrkur has perpetually been in the cross-hairs ever since the self-titled debut EP. Black metal is perhaps the murkiest of purist waters you can try to stay afloat in, but Amalie Bruun's solo project has been gliding through these waves since day one. While the approaches differ, Myrkur brings to mind bands like Alcest and those who followed in the "blackgaze" craze. Myrkur sticks closer to maintaining the rawness of traditional black metal, but like Alcest, there is an even mix of serene melodies to juxtapose the harsher tones. The only complaint I've ever had with Myrkur's output is that I've never been captivated by a full release. It's as if after every listen, I find myself thinking about the album's "what could have been" potential more than anything else. Unfortunately, Mykur's latest album, Mareridt, follows suit in this trend.

Dakhma - Suna Kulto

 

Last year, Oathbreaker landed on many a year end list for blending ambiance with the aggression of hardcore. While it was a release that I thoroughly enjoyed, it seemed to delve too far into tranquility, without striking the necessary balance with the volatile energy that hardcore is known for. I loved the idea of the sound, but ultimately wanted something a little more relentless. "Ask and you shall receive" is what I remember thinking to myself immediately after listening to Suna Kulto, the latest release from Grand Rapids, Michigan three-piece Dakhma. Every year there's bound to be an album or two that I miss out on before I put my year end list together; you can count this one as a huge miss for 2016.

Pillorian - Obsidian Arc

By now, all metal fans know the story: Agalloch broke up last year, due to a schism between singer/guitarist John Haughm and the rest of the band.  Don Anderson, Jason Walton, and Aesop Dekker joined up with Aaron John Gregory (of the late, great Giant Squid) to form Khôrada.  Jon Haughm teamed with drummer Trevor Matthews and guitarist Stephen Parker to create Pillorian - an adjective defined as "of, or relating to, scorn and condemnation."  Good thing there's nothing to read too deeply into there.  It isn't - well, shouldn't be - a competition between the two bands, but it's naive to think that if one band succeeds while the other flounders, the successful band will be hailed as the victors of the Agalloch break up.  While that is a silly way to look at it, we can finally start the actual conversation: Pillorian's debut album Obsidian Arc was released last Friday.  Is it a worthy follow up to one of the most acclaimed American black metal bands of the 21st Century?  Or is it merely a celestial effigy of what once was?

Fen - Winter

"Winter" is a word that holds a lot of meaning to me.  Living in Chicago, I associate it with feet of snow, driving winds, sub-zero temperatures, whiskey for warmth, and the resilience needed to go outside while it's still dark and wait for a bus, hoping it gets there before you freeze to death like Jack Nicholson in The Shining.