Spring was in full swing for a while there, but now I have the heat back on and I’m bringing my plants indoors every other night. I sure wish I had some sick name-your-price releases that could save me some money AND help me work through my ineffectual annoyance with the weather…
As luck would have it, that’s exactly what we have in store for this edition of Cheap Thrills. These albums won’t solve your first-world problems, but you’ll probably feel better about yourself after supporting underground metal!
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Moon Wisdom – Let Water Flow (January 16, 2026)
There’s plenty of heavy metal influence on this hard-riffing debut from Italian black metal trio Moon Wisdom, making it a surprisingly fun and diverse listen. “As Rain” leads the charge with a series of galloping melodies that plunge into the fray with swords held aloft. I usually don’t like my black metal to be particularly clean and/or catchy, but I found it hard to argue with that earworm main riff and how the band keeps finding new ways to recontextualize it throughout the track. Then we have the album’s centerpiece: the mid-paced blackened ballad “Frozen Soul” (not to be confused with Texan death metal band of the same name), which draws equally from the epic Hellenic sound of the 90s and the misty neofolk textures that ruled the Cascades in the 00’s. Among the releases in this month’s column, Let Water Flow is probably the furthest outside my wheelhouse, but maybe it’s a sign that I should try to have more fun with my black metal.
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Hostile – Anhédonie à perte de vue (January 20, 2026)
Stop me if you’ve heard me say this before, but there’s a new one-man project worth following! Hostile’s debut LP is a misanthropic, blackened maelstrom that really means business. Hell, the very first track on this thing clocks in at 13:37, and while this relentless opener won’t make you any better at Counterstrike 1.6, it may flay the skin right off your bones–and that’ll probably make your hands that much lighter and more aerodynamic, right? One of my favorite tracks, “Knives of the Night,” dials back the tempo and cranks up the gain on damn near every instrument to create a crackling haze laced with haunting guitar melodies and indecipherable chants. Mr. Hostile, AKA Sommeil, really has something special going on with this project.
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Powerplant – Bridge of Sacrifice (March 13, 2026)
Wouldn’t you know it—this is also the work of a solo musician. But what sets Bridge of Sacrifice apart from the rest of the releases in this month’s column is that it’s absolutely baffling. Theo Zhykharyev initially conceived Powerplant as a synth-punk band, and while this release is very much built upon that punky foundation, Bridge of Sacrifice also sees Zhykharyev experimenting with black metal in a serious way. Well, maybe serious is the wrong word, as there is definitely an endearing campiness to the whole package, similar to what you might find on an unrelated label whose name is synonymous with “muck rock.” But it’s that cheese-factor that keeps me coming back to tracks like “Bad Moon Motel,” which opens with languid, warbly singing shadowed by drunken slide guitar and vampiric rasps that hint at the coming darkness. Halfway through, you’re suddenly teleported from the counter of a dingy lobby bar to a Castlevania level, complete with flying Gorgon heads and fire-breathing dragon statues. The paintings on the wall are trying to kill you and these tiny hunchbacks are leaping about maddeningly. Then, before you know it, you’re back to nursing your drink, blinking in the dim light of the bar, unsure if that was all a dream.
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Slave Agent – Silent Universe (March 22, 2024)
I swear this one isn’t from a solo musician, but our story starts with one. Hear me out!
The other day, I was sitting around and idly thinking to myself, “What happened to Autonoesis: that one-man tech-y blackened thrash band from a few years back?” I got to Googling, and it turned out that Tyler Lidstone, the lone member of Autonoesis, had since joined up with a merry band of fellow sci-fi thrashers to form Slave Agent. Silent Universe is their second album, and despite the relentless tempos and wanton shredding that drive each track into hyperspace, there is an impressive amount of melody—enough to catch your ear just before you are atomized in the event horizon.
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Potion – Split w/ Failure Addict (October 20, 2023)
Speaking of projects that I forgot about, why did no one tell me that Potion released new material—a few years ago? Damn it, I’m even later to this one!
Anyway, this is as good an excuse as any to introduce you to Potion. The California trio plays some of the most insane grindcore you’re likely to hear on this plane of reality. The combination of agonized howls, knifelike atonality, and firecracker percussion is utterly nonsensical and, to be honest, somewhat headache-inducing, but it makes for such a unique auditory experience that I can’t help but respect it. The folks in Failure Addict ain’t chumps either—over on side B, their note avalanches are slightly less manic but still unhinged and ear-splitting in the best (worst) ways. Blast from your car stereo or backyard Bluetooth speaker and you are guaranteed to ruin someone’s day.
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