It’s only been 7 months since the last A Thick Mist episode, not that anyone’s counting… So here’s the thing. I clearly don’t have room in my life to do radio shows the way I was kinda doing them since the pandemic started (which was basically not at all) so I thought I’d try something new. A new process that might fit into my life and a new approach to curation that might appeal to more people (although that’s besides the point).

The new process involves no spoken commentary during the show. It’s kind of like my Halloween episodes where I just play my stuff for a couple hours so as to not interrupt the vibes. However I will be adding some written commentary here in the playlist when I have anything to say.

The new curation sees an end to my psychotic combinations of black metal followed by Haitian Voodoo rituals followed by zoned out minimalism followed by turn-of-the-century country blues followed by some dude reading about seashells followed by… Instead, each episode will focus on a more unified genre/theme. This is great for those of you who hated the doom but loved the Hindustani ragas. I assume those of you who liked the craziness will still enjoy each episode because the primary content isn’t changing and now you can still listen to A Thick Mist with a migraine, just pick a chill droney episode instead of the one full of Peruvian dances.

Let me know what you think of this new setup. Are you going to miss hearing my super sexy voice? Are you psyched about not spilling your coffee when the caustic black noise jumpscares you?

This first incarnation of the New Way is a metal episode because that’s pretty much all I’ve been listening to lately. Enjoy.

00:00:00 Spider God – Forever (from Black Renditions)
Free* record by new-to-me band and it’s black metal covers of pop songs. You won’t believe how fucking good this is. I chose to highlight their version of Viva Forever by the Spice Girls but I highly recommend checking out their Whitney or their Brittany or their No Doubt or everything else.

00:03:37 Пуща (Pušča) – Ça Brûle (from War Is Hell)
Amazing Ukranian black metal with some clean female vocals. They put out a 2-song single to raise money for Come Back Alive. And while you’re at it, grab their fantastic new EP for just $4.

00:10:03 Mizmor – Wit’s End (from Wit’s End)
Everyone loves Mizmor. New record is the best.

00:24:49 An Evening Redness – The Judge (from An Evening Redness)
New dusty doom drone band inspired by Cormac McCarthy’s Blood Meridian. Into it.

00:35:24 Deathbell – Come To Trouble (from With The Beyond)
Some killer doom from 2018 that I only just learned about. They have one that just came out in February and that’s great too.

00:44:59 Blackwater Holylight – Every Corner (from Silence/Motion)
Amazing record from last year that’s got lots of stoner doom sounds but also plenty of moments of true evil bursting through. Not sure why this song sounds so muffled and quiet in the mix. I tried to mess with it but no dice.

00:52:45 Det Eviga Leendet – Yield (from Reverence)
New release on Mystískaos. It’s their second record and it’s awesome atmospheric black metal. They “take their name from Pär Lagerkvist’s 1920 writing about a group of dead people who are now stuck in the dark with nothing to do besides talk in order to pass eternity.”

01:03:53 Whourkr – Squirk (from Concrete)
Not sure what took me so long to hear this record from 2008. It’s fucking insane. “This is what happens when animals pretend to be human. An acclaimed cybergrind record… worse than death metal.”

01:07:54 The Body & OAA – Fortified Tower (from Enemy Of Love)
Not gonna lie, I absolutely love everything The Body touches. Doesn’t matter what they’re doing or who they’re doing it with. This new collaboration from OAA is absolute madness. Veering way into noise territory.

01:11:28 Negativa – XXIX (from 04)
Supremely underrated Spanish noisy black metal. This new one is on Mystískaos but their last one was released by Sentient Ruin, which is much more their style.

01:20:57 Holy Fawn – Dark Stone (from Death Spells)
Another 2018 record I only just heard about thanks to their recent tour with Deafheaven and Midwife.

01:27:18 Rinuwat – Laknat Bumi (from Dua Naga)
This record would have been on my top metal list in 2021 if I knew about it. Weird as hell experimental doom featuring Southeast Asian instruments and styles. Their name is Javanese and translates to “to liberate oneself from a curse.” The singer is bonkers and I love everything about this.

01:33:26 Rolo Tomassi – The End Of Eternity (from Where Myth Becomes Memory)
Didn’t think I’d ever love a shoegazey proggy post-hardcore record this much but here we are. Definitely a year end contender.

01:39:31 Zeal & Ardor – Hold Your Head low (from Zeal & Ardor)
I feel like when a band puts out a self-titled record when it’s nowhere near their first release, they’re trying to make a statement like “this is our definitive sound.” Zeal & Ardor further cements my theory. The one and only gospel metal is at the top of their game here.

01:44:14 Ustalost – Bright Window Closing (from Before The Glinting Spell Unvests)
The second record from Yellow Eyes singer/guitarist Will Skarstad’s solo project. Yellow Eyes is amazing. Ustalost is better?

01:53:12 Sadhaka – Surrender (from Surrender)
I swear I almost had a heart attack when I saw this song dropped. Sadhaka put out one of my all time favorite records in 2013, Terma, and then basically vanished. It’s kinda standard post black metal but something about it is absolutely perfect and I can’t really describe why. The fact that Yianna Bekris (aka Vouna, from Eigenlicht and Vradiazei) is involved probably has something to do with it. Anyway, this new single is fantastic and I really hope it means more is on the way.

02:02:50 Messa – 0=2 (from Close)
I had the best timing in finding out about Messa. I discovered their 2018 record Feast For Water a couple months ago, loved it, played the heck out of it, then found out Close was right around the corner. Didn’t have to wait long at all. This is some premium droney doom psych out of Italy and it fuckin rips.