Turbid North

Didn't hear about this band till today. I thank Metal Sucks, for allowing me to discover them. Any ways.... Alaskan Mountain Metal! I like this band, they have melodic death metal taste to it with a little dab of sludge/thrash metal. They just released their new album Orogeny and the cover is bad ass, I mean a fucking Eskimo Santa Claus looking dude on the front with a mountain landscape background with a horse getting devoured by crows. Also there is some crazy northern light shit in the sky. Personally parts of the songs are to slow for my taste but overall good job for Turbid North, I hope to see more from this band in future years. - www.berserkermetalreview.blogspot.com

Don't let the BEYOND THE PERMAFROST reminiscent art of OROGENY fool you into dismissing Turbid North as a Skeletonwitch rip off band. The art is rad in its' own right, even if skull, witch, wolf and frost heavy as well. Heck, it is metal and that works, so fuck it. Turbid North is from Alaska and are a lot heavier than 36 Crazyfists (not meant as a dis…I like 36CF, just an Alaska reference). Turbid North moved from Alaska to friggin' Texas, oddly. Somehow they didn't melt into nothingness like the enchanted Frost Reaver battleaxes from the Dragonlance saga which could only be used in frozen climes or would dissipate in the hot sun like frosty the snowman. Nope, Turbid North survived the climate change and have come to teach us all about grim, frozen metal. They have played with both Goatwhore and Skeletonwitch and have many sonic similarities to both with a heavier shading of death metal to boot. It is less swamp BM or demon thrash but the dissonance and guttural evil delivery and belief in metal oozes forth on OROGENY aplenty. "Rift" is a standout track and the atmospheric dirge of "Stormblast" is not to be slept on. -Morgan Y. Evans- - www.crushermagazine.com

There’s nothing I love more than a band with a good back story, and while listening to the new album from TURBID NORTH, I thoroughly enjoyed reading up all I could about the band. See, they began their career in the homeland of Alaska, a place that is certainly not known for its metal output in the past. While playing there, they were discovered by the members of the band DROWNING POOL who, realizing they had something special, suggested that they head into a more musically inclined climate which therein they could further their limited possibilities. This suggestion saw the band leaving home and heading for their new base of operations in Texas. Sure, I could think of better places for a metal band to try their luck, but it certainly has seemed to start paying off.

OROGENY is the bands debut album following a five track E.P released a couple of years ago, and one thing is for certain, this album deserves your attention. OROGENY is based in a sludgy, stoner type groove but is definitely a death metal album of the highest order. Hints of many genres appear occasionally, but it’s the death metal element that comes through the strongest. The way that the vocals can alternate from Southern groove metal, to old-school death metal, to a bit of black metal and many things in between is probably the bands greatest asset, but some amazingly powerful double kick drum work, some thick bass lines and some great guitar riffs from the sludge songbook all contribute to what I can only describe as a mighty sound that should be at least sampled by anyone calling themselves a metal head.

While there are many great songs on the album, THE HUNTER stood out to me as something special and is like a mix of NY hardcore and death metal but certainly not deathcore like you would think. The song still uses the beatdowns to break it up, but in a rare instance they actually sound quite fresh here. Also some of the vocals on the song reminded me of Phil Anslemo, but not from his PANTERA days, more like what he sounded like with SUPERJOINT RITUAL or even DOWN to a lesser extent. As I said, there are a few other real great songs, but I think this album is better listened to as a whole piece of work rather than dissecting parts out of it.

Somehow, TURBID NORTH have taken elements from a lot of different cliched metal genres, and not only been able to make them sound fresh but also make the album sound unlike anything else that is out there at the moment. Do yourself a favor and check this one out, I’ve got a feeling that TURBID NORTH are on the fast track to big success and should be enjoyed by anyone into the more extreme side of music.

Written By ZeeZee

Rating : 9/10

- ZeeZee, www.myglobalmind.com

I’d never heard of Alaska’s Turbid North before they sent me their new album, and my decision to move it to the top of my “listen to” pile was based soley on their awesome, awesome cover art — which led me to believe that they were some kind of folk metal band. Nope. Turbid North play muscular yet melodic modern death metal that’s much more in line with Misery Index than Finntroll. And y’know what? They kick all kinds of ass. The music isn’t revolutionary by any stretch of the imagination, but Orogeny offers a steady stream of crush-your-ballspectacular riffs, well-structured guitar solos, and massive, booming drums. Given their skill at administering blunt force trauma, it’s impressive that that they also demonstrate a skill for Mastodonian stoner-prog atmospherics, as on the epic two-part “Kodiak,” and the twelve-minute plus closer, “Floating the Ionosphere.” The production is top-notch, too.

(3.5/5)
- Axl Rosenberg, www.metalsucks.net

The only thing I like more than an underdog is an underdog with a compelling back-story. Shit, if music weren’t my world, I could be making a killing as one of ESPN’s bloodsucking journalist/leeches, doing heart tugging pieces on the star player who grew up in the projects, beat the odds to sign a multi-million dollar contract and buy a house for his one-eyed, no legged grandma who worked three jobs to raise him.
Hailing from the town of north pole, AK (really!), turbid North now call Texas home, but have had an interesting journey that has included stints in the Alaskan symphony orchestra (really!), mismatched opening slots for the few tours that actually ventured into the last frontier state (dudes have opened for Godsmack, twice!), employment as full time lumberjacks before moving to Fort Worth, a British bass player somehow getting into the mix and a staunch DIY attitude driving it all. It would really suck hard if this quintet’s musical quality failed to parallel their perseverance. Thankfully, Turbid North pulls it off.
All the ingredients for a full on, metallic smack down are present. They have the scorched earth riffs that recall one of metal’s best years (1986, the year of master of puppets, reign in blood, peace sells…, amongst others), one of Columbia records’ worst (1994, when they tried to sell earache to an unprepared public) and the southern shuffle of present day savannah and Atlanta. The solos are mind-massagingly awesome and the dual vocal ping pong adds an extra dimension to the chilling tales of being trapped in the Alaskan wilderness – the rare faults being that the entire album could have benefited from a more natural recorded feel. (7/10)
- Kevin Stewart-Panko, Decibel Magazine USA

Turbid North originally hail from a town called North Pole Alaska and they’re working as lumberjacks to save enough money to move to more fertile musical climes. Fortunately, their music is also noteworthy of mention. While the production may be a tad over processed, the songs themselves, are grade a slabs of vicious thrash/death as shades of heartwork era carcass spiral around classic Metallica and slayer before nuzzling up against the southern likes of mastodon and baroness. The vocal trade offs between Brian McCoy and guitarist Nick Forkel provide dizzying energy as Forkel and Alex Rydlinski’s solos heave with bluesy, classic rock inflections and awesome fusion inspired finger stretching. (8/10). - Connie Gordon, Metal Hammer Magazine UK

orogeny: the process of mountain formation especially by folding of the earth’s crust (Merriam-Webster.com)
turbid: 1) a : thick or opaque with or as if with roiled sediment <a turbid stream> b : heavy with smoke or mist (2) a : deficient in clarity or purity : foul, muddy “turbid depths of degradation and misery — C. I. Glicksberg” b : characterized by or producing obscurity (as of mind or emotions) “an emotionally turbid response” (Merriam-Webster.com)
north: the opposite of south
Never could there be a less brutal-sounding word than “Turbid” to use in one’s band name. Such a cloudy band must be a stoner metal band, right? Turbid North have songs on their album topping eight minutes – only stoners could possibly pay attention to a dirge of that length. Yes, I’ve made a discovery! Turbid North is a stoner metal band. But any band from the “north” must, therefore, don spikes and corpsepaint and sing like Popeye, right? Some of the world’s most volatile tectonic action is in the north, a land of ruthless cold and constant orogenesis. Don’t let anyone fool you: they’re not from Texas, they’re from Alaska, so to call their weather brutal is an understatement. I’ve changed my preconceived notion. Turbid North is a cold and frostbitten black metal band.
My latter supposition almost became true but, as the first track opens with a hauntingly reverberating, Bathory-esque acoustic accented with rising swells of distortion, I’d found that I was completely wrong. This cold peace is abruptly skewered by a running-paced thrash mélange which runs most of the length of the record. Turbid North’s riffage is delightfully schizophrenic and genre-bending, a 15-minute clinic of Blackened Blastgrind 101. The first long tracks of the album, “The Hunter” and “Stormblast,” blend into each other. These two tracks cover the myriad of emotion on the record, beginning with brutal deathcore, and Turbid breaks down the “The Hunter” with Floyd-esque passages and a Neurosis-styled, nervously-groovecored closer. Enter the cold of “Stormblast” with more of a “Dark Side of the Moon” tribute and Opeth drumming. With its tension-building instrumental intro and crushingly thrash-groove peak, these tracks are certainly cold enough to give the Swedes a run for their money or, at least, grins on their faces. Turbid North bends yet more genres with the deliberately two-part “Kodiak,” another journey through myriad of metal textures that Turbid North is capable of unleashing on us all. “Floating the Ionosphere” showcases these Alaskans’ musical passion and ambitions to transcend the confines of genre through good ol’ fashion’d riffage. The closing near-instrumental jam opus clocks out at over 12-minutes, an attention-span testing length for the casual listener. But remember the definition of the album title: nature takes centuries to form mountains, so what’s another 12-minutes to witness metal greatness?
Nothing seems overdone and no two riffs even come close to sounding the same. All guitars are exceedingly clear, if slightly underdriven as a stylistic choice. The fuzztone is juicy and slightly obnoxious, just like it’s supposed to be, and acts as an abrasive counterpoint to the numerous clean passages on the record. What the guitars lack in growl, the basswork fills in with an organic command of the rhythm department, the sound of constant boulder collisions synchronized to song. The drumwork, while not as ADD as many death metal acts out there, has the patience and restraint of a veteran player; once again, nothing is overdone. Ornamental drum fills are blindingly numerous and jazzy, and yet are dispersed evenly and separated by precise amounts of silence. Somehow, the drumming on this record makes me anxious for more, while also being nervous about what’s coming next. While Turbid’s vocalist exhibits the myriad of brutal vocal styles and tonalities, the instrumental periods without his blaring screams seem all the more musically sacred. That he skillfully lays down both death and hardcore vocals is more than any band could ever ask for; that he knows when to be effectively silent is a classy decision indeed.
Too many albums nowadays are, for lack of a more diplomatic term, predictable. And some those albums that aren’t predicable are so frenetic that the listener must chase down the music through dozens of listens, and tie it down firmly in order to absorb any enjoyment from the composition. Although Turbid North does its fair share of drifting, the bombardment of riffs on “Orogeny” is not dumbfounding to the ear. Rather, the near-70-minute progression faithfully encapsulates and concentrates the widely-varied musical interests of the band, from sludge to speed to doom to blues to hardcore to et cetera and beyond, without forgetting that the music is, at the end of the day, pure and honest metal. The big question: is this a psychedelic band? Only if using a rotary speaker effect on the guitars every once in a while denotes a metal band to be a psychedelic metal band. I’d have to see how spectacular the Turbid North stage/light show is before I slung that label at them. Nonetheless, this album is a trip. Let’s all hope that Relapse gives these guys a chance.
“Orogeny” is available on Amazon in MP3 format.
Album-Defining Track:
Definitely “Kodiak,” but in its entirety. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it by breaking it again. This 10+ minute pair of tracks is worth the price of the album.
Notable Riffage:
Where do I begin? This entire album is a brilliant step forward for all genre-bending “post-metal” bands.
Pros:
• This album is a smorgasbord of riffage. Tasty.
• The long tracks nourish themselves in the atmosphere.
• A temperate yet chaotic haze surrounds this whole release.
Cons:
• Limited production run. Relapse, please re-release this record for the fans.
• The album spends so much time bouncing from style to style that it doesn’t take time to establish Turbid North’s personality. That being said, I can’t wait to see this band live, because I can tell that they’ll jam up a storm!
• Many are calling this a psychedelic band. I just don’t see it. Go all out, Turbid. Get a keyboardist and get really weird. Or, better yet, go on tour with Cephalic Carnage.
Recommended for fans of:
Opeth with no clean vocals, thrash/black/death metal fusion
(4/5)
- TJ Flores, www.themetalregister.com

Orogeny is the process that the earth takes to sculpt mountains; it's not an easy process, and there could be no greater name for Turbid North's second release. Beyond the crushing defiance of metal Turbid North display, they have built their own challenges and truly conquered them, the first being getting out of Alaska.

"There was nothing up there. We knew we had to get out pretty quick," guitarist Nick Forkel told Noisecreep, recounting that there wasn't much for a metal band in the cold far north of the U.S. Six hours removed from the largest city (Anchorage), the band found it too hard to make the trek more than twice a year, leaving them to play shows at the only metal-friendly club near them once a month, with the same bands. "Everybody knew each other -- very tight scene."

The turning point came after the band opened for Drowning Pool. "They actually watched us," says Forkel. "They came up to us afterward and told us, 'You guys were really good. What are you doing up here?'" They asked where they should go for the best exposure and Dallas was what they were told. "You guys will get picked up easily," Forkel recalled hearing from one of the Drowning Pool members.

Other places were looked at, but something kept drawing them to double city of Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas. "We saved up money, put our two weeks in and got out of there."

Dallas was a drastic change: shows going on constantly, an actual metal scene and, of course, the attack of the sun. "It took like a month to get used to weather and the heat, but we were so like, 'We Want do this!' It didn't matter." Turbin North jumped into playing shows rather quick, having already gained connections online while they were still up in Alaska working away at a lumberyard, planning the move.

Not too long after establishing their base of operations in Texas, frontman Jason Hippert went back, unable to deal with being away from home. Turbid North didn't go long without a singer, pulling local friend Brian McCoy to step in. "He filled in for a couple months and we were secretly thinking, 'Wow this would be great if we could steal him!'"

With prayers answered from the metal gods, McCoy left his band to join Turbid North. "Everything we've gone through since the move has been a constant struggle," says Forkel, defining the themes of 'Orogeny' as straight from their lives.
- Matt Debenedictis, www.noisecreep.com

Some bands get lucky, other bands have to work hard and pay their dues. Turbid North, having dominated their local scene, were advised by Drowning Pool to relocate to an area with a bigger scene in order to make it. They worked full time as lumberjacks in a place called North Pole in Alaska in order to save up enough money to move to Texas. As far as I’m concerned, that’s their dues paid.
Describing themselves as “Mountain Metal”, they play fast, aggressive and often technical songs interspersed with digressive solos and overlaid with distorted duel vocals — one a typical death style growl, the other a Cradle Of Filth-esque shriek. Inspired by their frigid surroundings and the tale of a hunter trapped in the wilderness, both the album and the band’s own story parallels the hunter’s fight for survival, kept going by a will of stone. The result is a complete, all-or-nothing approach — no compromise, no surrender offered as they blast cold-as-death Alaskan fury.
Orogeny is a pretty good example of how to engineer a collision of doom, thrash and death/black metal and tracks sometimes veer between genres for interesting effect. “Stormblast”, for example, slows things down a bit with an unusual waltz-like three beat section to throw you off when you thought you’d got a handle on things, differentiating itself from previous scorchers like rabid opener “Wolves” and “Rift”, which smacks of Mastodon in its construction, but then we’re back to a full-frontal aural assault with no regard for survivors in “Between The Glacier And The Sea”.
The title track “Orogeny” is the band at their frenetic, breakneck best. Drummer Rev. Adam North must have legs like an ogre to play the bass pedals at this blistering pace for so long, with the blurred hands of Nick “Savage” Forkel and Alex “Power” Rydlinksi providing even more pace alongside viscera-churning chord progressions. Later into the track things slow down, becoming more thoughtful. The chords mellow into a dark backdrop, with wandering guitars seeming to muse on what has gone before.
This leads us perfectly into the d’enouement of “Floating the Ionosphere” which feels almost ironically like the first sharp intake of air after tunneling out from under an avalanche of aggression and ferocity, with long pondering distorted notes reaching into acoustic sections. Catching our breath, at about five minutes into the track, there’s another change of pace as we drag ourselves up and begin the long but hopeful journey back home. The trials are not over yet however, as at twelve and a half minutes and almost fully instrumental, this is by far the longest track on the album and although there are plenty of changes to keep you interested, sometimes it feels like it’s just about to end when another theme rears up, forcing you to keep your wits about you. Truth be told it’s a little self indulgent and overblown, but rounds out the album in a very definite “it’s finished” kind of way.
The album is generally well put together but I think the vocals are what will make people love it or hate it. Sometimes the post-production work on the vocals can be heard a little too much for my liking, although it’s nothing most bands don’t do — a little echo here, a touch of reverb there — and there are no “clean” vocals to speak of, which again, some people will love and others might be put off by. That would be a shame as the self-proclaimed masters of mountain metal stand tall against the desolate backdrop of tundra that spawned them and are well worth a listen.
- Mike Rickard , www.thenewreview.net

All the elements quintessential to death and thrash metal are present on Orogeny; shredding leads, furious double-bass, undulating bass and irate growls.
Alex Rydlinski and Nick Forkel hold things down in the guitar department and do so extremely well. Their playing is varied from track to track; you never feel like you are listening to the same track over and over again with this band.
The vocals are your typical death growl as well as a half shout reminiscent style of Mastodon. Adam Rydlynski, the drummer, does his job well and pushes the music forward without overwhelming the other instruments in the mix. The bass, played by Chris O’Toole, is nicely low in the mix, giving the songs and extra kick.
The production on this album is noteworthy due to its power and clarity, every instrument sounds perfectly placed in the mix. Over all Orogeny is an impressive sophomore release for this Alaskan band and it’s certainly worth adding to the collection.

– grade B-
- Dejon Turner, The Aquarian Weekly

Turbid North is a band mostly dominated the Alaskan metal scene with their thrash-heavy brand of metal, supposedly after a successful tour with Drowning Pool they were advised to come more down south in order to get exposure. And where else, but Texas itself which led to my exposure to the band. I was given a copy of “Under the Eight” which had some solid riffs, but lacked a lot of originality. Afterword however members started fleeing back to Alaska, and the group started to bring in more Texan members which turned out to be the fire they needed to really start getting attention.

The style on this album is vastly different from the last. The group refers to it as "Alaskan Mountain Metal" which basically sounds like the instrumentation is more along the lines of melodic death metal, while the new vocalist has a strong death metal growl, while also ranging into a high black metal like shriek. The band occasionally veers off into more subgenres throughout (sludge, and post-metal for examples), but manages to keep it within their new melodic death metal meets sludge style. This new style has managed to be the smartest move for the band offering atmosphere and overall just a much more interesting listen. For those who are worried about the almighty riffs there are still plenty and seems to be stronger then it was on the last record.

The intro song “Wolves” is a nice hard smack to the eardrum and almost instantly your in for one heavy ride. The album seems to be keeping a pretty heavy, fast, but definitely enjoyable formula right up until the track “Stormblast” slowing things down to an almost Mastodon-esque style, and gives a nice change of pace. Before heading back to one of the most heavy tracks “Between The Glacier and The Sea”, before leading to the epic, atmospheric tracks “Kodiac pt. 1 & 2” which shows off the band's talents quite impressively. The real problem with this record is the final track “Floating the Ionosphere” which while blends a lot of subgenres into a nice blend, seems to be long winded and really seems to slow down then start right back up, giving a heavy sense of “is it over yet?”.

Overall this is a heavily promising release from an upcoming Texas metal act that values riffs and solos over breakdowns. Nice use of atmosphere, top notch production, and a diverse range of styles manages to make this one of the more interesting releases from an underground band I've heard in a long time. While some improvement would be nice, they have come far enough to garner plenty of attention.

(4.5/5) - Hunter Ramirez, www.sputnikmusic.com

Hailing from The Last Frontier, Alaskan metal band Turbid North has released a very atmospheric, epic album in ‘Orogeny’. Being a fan of epic black/death/doom metal, I was looking forward to hearing this album. While not blown away by the album, I can safely say that I would recommend this album to those who also enjoy the genre.

The production of the album is very tight but maintains a bit of a raw feeling that very much benefits the sound of the album. A glossy sounding production probably would have cost the music a lot of feel. The production also accentuates the dynamic scope of the album. Shifting musical styles even so far as a bit of blues, each style has a tone that is complimentary.

Turbid North describe themselves as ‘Mountain Metal’. As silly as that sounds, it’s actually a very fitting description. The band is heavy and sharp but there are moments of clarity and haunting beauty. At nearly 70 minutes, you’re getting a hefty dosage of epic metal. Think you can handle it all?

4 out of 5 skulls
- Jonathan Barkan, www.bloody-disgusting.com

Turbid North's sophomore CD, Orogeny, proves their versatility and resilience. Their music formula and direction has changed vastly since 2008's Under The Eight. With this change ,they've welcomed the addition of vocalist Brian McCoy (Debri) in place of former vocalist Jason Hippert. With their latest opus, Turbid North borrowed heavily from black, death, melodic and sludge, and still found time to squeeze in some technical and post-metal . If you are a die-hard fan of Turbid's thrashy days, the new album might require a bit of patience in order to listen to. Aside from the musical shift, seven of Orogeny's ten tracks clock in at six minutes plus and two ,edit: errrrr, one of the ten is instrumental. Orogeny is as mighty as it is a gutsy move.

From beginning to end, Orogeny repeatedly thrusts you to the brink, and then demands you to leap. Metal like this renders one vulnerable and helpless by its uniqueness, at the end leaving one with no other option than to surrender to its appetite. For example, "Stormblast" sweetly and cunningly draws you in with slow and quiet guitars courtesy of Nick Forkel and Alex Rydlinski plus drums (Adam Rydlinski) and bass (Chris O'Toole). Then with little warning, the true harshness is suddenly realized when the music kicks into overdrive with the addition of shared and varied vocals (Brian-lead, and Nick). "Between the Glacier and the Sea" contains the CD's jeweled anthem-like vocal melody. "Kodiak (part 1)" serves as a hypnotic/psychedelic instrumental gateway for part 2. Opening with an epically-fat riff "Kodiak (part 2)" soon incorporates a piercingly-sharp Iron Maiden style twin guitar harmony while maintaining its girth between breaks. Then starting at about 5:40 the song begins its last leg with the distinctly thick and dirty riff-filled atmosphere it began with. The first half of "The Hunter" is furious and denotes a mostly black and death metal feel, at about 4:20 a lofty and emotional guitar solo lasts for approximately two minutes, then it morphs into a sludge-paced head bob.
This type of music continually summons visions equal to the CD's artwork and lyrics, making for a more solid album. Rich flows, abrasive textures, enduring beats, involved musical arrangements, refined vocals, exquisitely detailed artwork by Alex, deep grooves and poignant lyrics are just a few elements that make up Orogeny.
"Fleeing the scene, I could hear them sing * with dead breath of relished flesh we serenade the night"-from opening track "Wolves".
- Misty Johnson, www.birdandgrog.com

Alaskan bred, now Texas Metalheads, Turbid North has released it’s Debut full-length CD “Orogeny”. The band released a 5 song EP not too long after moving to Texas and it showed a lot of promise with a style very familiar to the DFW Metal Music scene. Just a couple of years later and with new vocalist Brian McCoy (formerly of Debri), Turbid North has created a new style and sound that will most likely put them in the spotlight for many years to come. Turbid North is the epitome of metal music today. They now have a style of music that entwines southern metal with death metal, hardcore and thrash. Orogeny is the CD which has all of the above, but arranged in a way that makes each song unique to the band.
The blend of M16 machine gun double-kicks in perfect rhythm and guitar solos throughout this CD mixed with Dark growls changing over to southern metal vocals is a twist that was very unexpected. In many cases Orogeny should have a label stating “Do Not Try This At Home” because what you hear seems almost impossible to do, but unlimited talent is what this band has been blessed with and this CD is the outcome of it all.
The band shows their unlimited talent in other ways as well, such as the band plays the music, recorded the tracks, mixed the CD and also did the artwork for it. As they put it in the CD cover, “This album is 100% Homemade”. On top of that, it is more impressive in many ways than some of the nationally signed bands who have professionals record, mix and master their CD’s as well as a professional doing their artwork.
Orogeny will be one of this years best releases in metal music. As mentioned in a previous post of ours, Turbid North has the ability to be one of the next big metal bands out of DFW and this CD just proved our point with that statement.
- Lesley, DFW Metal Garage