Last time I updated my blog was back in December of 2018, it has been a bit of a crazy 2019 for me both personally and work-related so I apologize for not updating as regularly as I hoped to be. I have since settled my affairs and ready to get back into the blogging metal realm. If I could give one phrase to describe the metal releases of 2019 so far it has been insanely consistent! This year is one of those years where I just kept buying new releases over and over again. So many big bands have come out of the shadows with new stuff and the bulk of it has been excellent. 

This also has been the year of me diving down the rabbit hole of vinyl collecting. I found a pretty awesome record store in the new city I am living in and bought a really nice player. Since then I have had many introspective evenings having a beer and listening to records. I think I will find a way to give an update of the latest record I bought at the top of the blog. Currently being shipped to me is Wolcensmen’s new album “Fire in the White Stone”, and Toby Driver’s solo outputs “Madonnawhore” and “They Are the Shield”. And many future albums on preorder, with, of course new reviews to follow when those albums get released. 

Like last time when I gave an update and reasoning for my hiatus I gave my own personal metal highlights for the year. Once again I will give you my take on some of the highlights of metal in the year 2019:

The first album that came out this year that I really loved is Heilung’s album “Futha” all of a sudden there has been this resurgence of primitive, dark, and beautiful folk music first spearheaded by Wardruna. Heilung released their new album and it follows the same vein as Wardurna but it is so unique in its own way. The atmosphere, instrumentation, and vocals on “Futha” are spellbinding. If you are itching for more ancient Scandinavian folk music give Heilung’s album “Futha” a listen.

The next album that really stood out strong to me is Cult of Luna’s album “A Dawn to Fear” to me Cult of Luna’s is one of those bands who always blow it out of the water for each subsequent release. The first thing that came to mind when I dived into “A Dawn to Fear” is how pulverizing Cult of Luna hits the senses right out the gate. The album would not let up its aggression, beauty, and incredible wall of sound. There was never much of a moment to breathe or relax while getting through the songs of “A Dawn to Fear” a highly recommended listen!

A third album that really hit all the right notes for me was Borknagar’s new output “True North” this was the first album that did not have Vintersorg on vocals. All vocals were done by one of the most underrated vocalists in the metal world, I.C.S. Vortex. I have always been drawn to his style and how epic he can be in songs he has sung in. To once again hear him do the bulk of the vocal duties for Borknagar is really cool to hear and he has really tried some new styles to make the songs each unique in their own way. Once again Borknagar has crafted a behemoth of an album that goes into so many interesting directions.

Finally another major highlight for me in 2019 was finally seeing Bell Witch and Neurosis live for the first time ever. They played at the Paradise Rock Club in Boston, MA. They put on a hell of a show that was so memorable to me. To hear some of Neurosis’s classic songs in a live setting was chilling, and beautiful beyond words. As for Bell Witch there has been multiple opportunities for me to see them live and I never was able to, now that I was able to see them live I can see why they still stand out as one of my favorite bands. There are murmurings of them working on a collaborative album with Erik Moggridge from Aerial Ruin and I am beyond excited about what the future holds for Bell Witch as well as this new project.

As for what the future will hold for the Dreaming Metal Muse blog there are new irons in the fire being developed and I look forward to giving you a new year of quality content. I hope to actually stay much more up to date and consistent with the blog. As always, thank you for the support I appreciate each and every one of you out there in the world. Stay metal and stay true!