Today this very blog turns a sprightly five years old. Where does the time go? And honestly, why haven’t I got a life yet? Shocking carry-on altogether.

As you may have noticed (actually you probably didn’t but that’s cool), The Grind That Annoys got a facelift recently and I’m changing the posting format here with just a few, hopefully decent, posts a month. There are things planned but it’s all about finding the time to do it. This is after all a labour of love.

Anyway thanks for reading this or any other post over the last few years. Seriously, thanks. It’s very much appreciated. To end I better include some actual music, you know the thing this blog is about. Here are a few bands with new releases that have been tickling my fancy of late.

Nothing – Guilty of Everything
Relapse Records’ new shoegaze beaus – Nothing. This album is a slow burn. It rehashes many of the shoegaze hallmarks but eventually grows on you.

Thou – Heathen
You can read the full review here but you know the drill – oppressively heavy yet ultimately cathartic doom from Baton Rouge’s finest. No tracks online just yet but keep your ears peeled.

Twilight – III: Beneath Trident’s Tomb
The arrival of Thurston Moore may have actually done some harm to Twilight in that people will have bizarrely lofty expectations. III: Beneath Trident’s Tomb is a solid outing and is a much more abrasive and difficult album than Monument To Time End and makes for a fitting conclusion to the band’s triptych of albums. SPOILER: They’re breaking up now. Stream the track ‘Below Lights’ HERE.

Bvdub – I’ll Only Break Your Heart
The always prolific and reliably brilliant Bvdub is back with another LP of gorgeous ambient soundscapes. His last three records in particular have been stellar and this one toys with some new vocal samples that work a treat.

Lantlôs – Melting Sun I: Azure Chimes
This is just one track from the new Lantlôs album, Melting Sun coming in May. Neige is gone so Herbst has taken over vocals. Neige has most notably ditched all metal from Alcest and you’d almost think that with Neige gone from Lantlôs now, Herbst would continue along their post black metal path. Wrong, ‘Azure Chimes’ is stunning clean-vocal led shoegaze-imbued metal.

Finally, the new Sun Kil Moon Benji is on steady rotation around these parts and still being digested. More words on that soon.