DUMPSTER SLAM MARCH 2022

by Planex on Tue, Apr 5, 2022

The resident slammer of the Vortex is making his best racoon impression once again

We find ourselves again in the dumpster. How did we get here? Were we hungry and hoping to find a stale bagel without too much mold? Is this dumpster a shelter from the harsh natural elements of the alley behind the Burger King? No. This dumpster is the source of the $LAMZ. We dig through the muck to find a four minute weebslam demo with Family Guy samples. Yes. This is why we are here.

trash

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Ghost - Impera

by Tarbeaux on Mon, Mar 21, 2022

From the pinnacle to the pit

In my last review, I mentioned Ghost as an example of a simulacrum, an imitation or a reproduction of a previous work that is just different enough to make it appear fresh and original. I thought it suited Ghost well, as Tobias Forge doesn’t seem to consider his work as an homage to Blue Öyster Cult, Candlemass, Witchfinder General, etc.. but more as a revival of the style of those bands in each different album.

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How to make 2021 actually good

by Tarbeaux on Sun, Jan 9, 2022

2021 albums sucks, so I had to find good ones in the past

The past year I have intelligently and purposefully avoided 2021 and her wagons of mediocre albums to focus on listening to older albums, finishing discog runs and taking time to discover new genres. Ultimately, I ended up listening to 249 albums, with 31% of them managing to be a 7 or above; compared to the meager 6% of good albums released in 2021, it was bliss. Some discog runs were rewarding, like The Doors, SepticFlesh or Immolation, others were… let’s say, mixed (Josh Homme and Ihsahn).

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Why 2021 was actually a great year

by Snyde on Wed, Jan 5, 2022

As long as you avoided music released in 2021

The State of the Vortex 2021 wrap-up post made things look pretty dire. All but heralding the death of music, we whined and complained about the state of current music and how it’s been going downhill for a while. This, however, presents us, dedicated listeners, with a choice: shall we continue to trudge through the seemingly endless mire of current releases or should we pause and reflect on whether this is a truly useful and rewarding way to spend our listening time.

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