Three recent CD purchases that fall (very) loosely under 'Metal' -

* Mastodon - Remission

I had high hopes after some very positive web reviews but I found the music a little disappointing. Essentially they sound like a more talented Metallica with hardcore vocals (eg barked not sung). They're certainly not bad but they don't bring anything particularly new or interesting to my ears.

* Boris - Pink

Again I had high expectations based on very positive web reviews and seeing live YouTube footage. The CD itself is actually pretty good but fell short of the hype. Pink sounds like a heavy Japanese garage rock band (maybe like a chunkier Superfuzzbigmuff era Mudhoney). Apparently each of their releases has a different sound so I'll definitely give them a second chance.

* Sunn O)) - Black One

Definitely my favourite of the three (Boris is a close second and Mastodon is a distant third). The album is basically ambient doom - really really really slow, drumless, droney, heavy and oppressive without being difficult to listen to (depending on your tastes of course ;-)

Chris points to a rather brilliant DIY sticker - Richard Has A Posse. If you've seen Richard Dawkins in a recent South Park episode you'll see him in an entirely new light :-)

Similar to the Darwin Has A Posse stickers from a few years back.