Brian Eno | 1985 | Thursday Afternoon

Ambient | Minimalism
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 Link | mp3 | 320 Kbps

What can be said about Thursday Afternoon is not very different from what one might comment on Brian Eno's other ambient records. Somehow, it is an album that lies between the more structured ambient of Ambient 1: Music for Airports and the more deconstructive and exploratory approach that Eno adopted in Lux. In that sense, Neroli might be a good close reference, albeit Thursday Afternoon resorts to much calmer and pacific atmosphere than the tension that reigns in Neroli.
Consisting of a single, eponymous track of just over one hour, the sound of Thursday Afternoon is both relaxing and dreamy, and has a delicacy of unparalleled beauty in its fragility. Each sonic brushstroke is simple and even timid, but always conscientious; each brushstroke contributes to the development of colourful, yet never sparkling soundscapes, but subtle and nebulous ones. In sum, Thursday Afternoon is one of the hidden gems in Eno's vast catalog, a record whose relegation within his discography would seem baffling to anyone who undertakes the beautiful instrospective journey which is found here. —IMF

Darkthrone | 2013 | The Underground Resistance

Black | Heavy Metal | Crust Punk
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Link | mp3 | 320 Kbps

Nocturno Culto (guitar, bass, vocals) and Fenriz (drums, vocals, bass on "The Ones You Left Behind")

Since its beginning, Darkthrone was a peculiar band within the Nordic black metal scene. In fact, they didn't even play black metal in their early days, but rather death metal, like the excellent Soulside Journey –their debut album– shows. The bifurcation would come with the classic A Blaze in the Northern Sky and would extend until Panzerfaust, after which the duo would undertake an intermittent return to death metal, alternating with albums in the black metal vein, not always with positive results. Sardonic Wrath would be the last one in this sequence, and The Cult is Alive would then put the first brushstrokes of a new era in Darkthrone's history.
In their twelfth album, Fenriz and Nocturno Culto took a more disruptive spin than before and ventured without hesitation into the introduction of crust punk elements to their sound. F.O.A.D. would bolster this divergence, adding a new dimension to the black metal/crust punk dicotomy: heavy metal. However, although this exploration provided the already powerful sound of the band with renewed energy, neither these albums nor Dark Thrones and Black Flags nor Circle the Wagons reached the splendour of Darkthrone's more classic records.
In this context, the relevance of The Underground Resistance lies on the fact that it constitutes, precisely, the well-deserved consolidation of the new period. There's no hesitation whatsoever in the sonic abrasion that Darkthrone exerts in this album, which is evident not only in more rapid and aggresive songs, but also in a piece such as "Valkyrie", which has a somewhat melancholic character. The confidence that the duo has developed in this new format is especially reflected in the widespread use of clean vocals, which fits perfectly into the sound that the band has been exploring for the last decade. The composing efforts are solid, and instrumentally, Fenriz and Nocturno Culto have already become blood brothers. It is now impossible to classify Darkthrone; pretty much like in the early nineties, they have forged an unrepeatable identity for which The Underground Resistance is the best possible example. Amazing. —IMF

Pabst | 2016 | Skinwalker

Indie | Noise Rock
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The one element that definitely stands out in Skinwalker, Pabst's debut EP, is the attractive fusion of influences that the Berlin trio achieves. On the one hand, the heritage of indie rock in the vein of Sonic Youth, even reaching Dinosaur Jr.'s noise rock; on the other, it is just as clear that the band is strongly inspired by stoner, whose influence, however, appears shaped by the band's melodic sensitivity, which owes a lot to alternative rock. In that sense, Erik Heise's voice is a highlight in Pabst's recipe, without overlooking the instrumental efforts, which are quite remarkable as well. This equation works perfectly particularly in the case of the title track, "Skinwalker", which constitutes a catchy and salient single.
Notwithstanding the above, the band's formula has a serious flaw: it is depleted very, very quickly. This is a critical issue, inasmuch as we are talking of a 15-minute EP and, thus, it seems unthinkable that their resort could be depleted as fast as it happens here. Certainly, Pabst are not looking to reinvent anything or to go beyond the safety of nineties-flavored rock –and they shouldn't be judged for that–, but in the future it will be necessary for them to explore the grounds on which they wander and lead their sound through more sustainable path. But then again, there's another positive aspect: at least Skinwalker shows between the lines that the band has the necessary tools in order to undertake this challenge and to exploit the richness that shines here and there within this debut. It is an unavoidable duty. —IMF