Post-Millennial's Guide To Metal (And Some Other Stuff)

Editorial Evaluation is a column where the editor of this lovely blog, Sam, crawls out of the woodwork to tackle a particularly notable release with a review that hopefully provides a deeper level of insight than your average consumer appraisal. Leprous are an interesting band, to say the least. After years of shifting lineups and promising demos, the Norwegian group finally solidified and released an impressive debut in 2009 in the form of Tall Poppy Syndrome. This album’s sound consisted of an intriguing blend of death metal, jazz and classic prog which more closely resembled Ihsahn’s solo material than anything else. This makes perfect sense, as the group's founder, vocalist and keys player, Einar Solberg is the brother-in-law of the Norwegian metal legend himself, and they would gain prominence in Europe as Ihsahn’s live backing band and consistent opener during the early 2010s. Leprous of course used this newfound momentum and released two phenomenal prog metal r...

In high school, I had a brief dream of being an astrophysicist. Already excelling at my science classes, I took an astronomy class that really opened my eyes to the magnificence of the stars. However, it was the far-off cosmos that invigorated me the most: nebulae, hypervelocity stars, and of course, black holes. The almost mystical majesty of massive celestial bodies moving at millions of miles an hour motivated me to an extent I hadn't found before. This was until the pivotal factor of the subject came into play; math. I have an analytical brain, but the amount of brainpower needed to excel in this field is far beyond my comprehension, and I subsequently buried the idea of becoming an astrologer or a profession in a similar position. Some part of me, however, will always want to look up at the stars and discover something magical in the eons beyond.  Now, while the lyrical content of the self-titled debut record from New Jersey-based technical grindcore group No One Kno...