"Songs of engagement and endurance"

Like Tariq Goddard, I've found myself listening to and enjoying an increasing amount of what could be fairly described (at least by anyone with mainstream tastes) as extreme metal as I've approached middle age: Neurosis, Kowloon Walled City, Deafheaven, Locrian, Oathbreaker. There are two differences between us, though: I've always had an occasional liking for a bit of metal (it's certainly not a new discovery) and I can't really explain the reason behind the recent enthusiasm - or at least not with any eloquence.

Neurosis' gig at Koko last month gave Goddard the platform (or the excuse) to write about his conversion to the dark arts in a review that is perhaps too self-centred and Quietus-esque for some tastes - but it nevertheless makes for an interesting perspective on a genre often seen as something you're supposed to grow out of rather than into.

(Of course, there's no reason that I'm mulling over the approach or arrival of middle age today - no reason at all...)