What sticks with Doug Moore about his time at Menegroth, The Thousand Caves, Colin Marston’s old studio located in Woodhaven, Queens, New York, is the laughter.“Recording an extreme metal album can be a tense, exhausting process, but Colin is such a steadying presence that we rarely felt stressed while working there,” Moore, the vocalist/multi-instrumentalist and former head honcho of this column, writes.
“He’s a hilarious person and a keen observer of music culture who’s quick to remind clients of the subjective nature of the art in question.This approach resulted in a lot more levity and even joy during the recordings I participated in than the usual struggle-session vibe of getting a metal album on tape.
When things went wrong, we found reasons to laugh together; we did the same when things went smoothly.I also have many amusing memories of consuming vast quantities of grub from Mr.
Wonton, Colin’s preferred local Chinese spot, while laughing at YouTube nonsense at the end of tracking days.” Pyrrhon’s Exhaust and Scarcity’s The Promise Of Rain, albums on which Moore sings, were the results of those sessions.They’re also some of the final recordings proudly inscribed with Menegroth’s imprimatur.
After 18 years and well over 300 bands and artists that either convened at the Thousand Caves or sent their music over to be mixed and/or mastered, Menegroth shuttered last May.It closed the chapter on an incredibly fertile period for underground metal.
“Take a look at his catalog,” Imperial Triumphant’s Zachary Ezrin writes, drawing attention to Marston’s resume, one packed with landmark recordings, notably from bands that call New York home.“All the avant-death bands, black metal, and forward-thinking metal projects have all been influenced to some degree by Menegroth and Colin.
I think the 2010s particularly were an era when a lot of bands in NYC were pushing the boundaries.” Krallice’s Years Past Matter, Gorguts’s C...