Vice's VBS.TV produced a documentary on Black Metal. Black Metal Jim was unavailable for comment.
True Norwegian Black Metal - Part 1 of 5:
Watch the rest of the documentary at VBS.TV and check out photographer Peter Beste's Black Metal photo essay at NPR. Yes, National Public Radio.
Metal Injection posted a video of The Red Chord playing "Dreaming In Dog Years" off 2002's Fused Together in Revolving Doors. Incidentally, though it was inspired by a 1942 nightclub fire in The Red Chord's hometown of Boston, Fused was released eleven months and a day before the infamous Station Nightclub fire in Rhode Island. Prophecy?
No. We don't believe in that sort of nonsense. "Dreaming In Dog Years" is still the best song they've ever written, though. "It's not gonna be alright!"
The Red Chord - "Dreaming In Dog Years":
Children of Bodom released a video for "Hellhounds on My Trail," off their recently released Blooddrunk. Axl Rosenberg comments:"Hellhounds on My Trail" is a pretty killer song, but the video isn't the best thing in the world. I mean, I guess you do what you can on a budget. But mostly it seems like the band let some five year old just go nuts on the lighting board while some dude filmed it. Maybe next time they'll at least bring back the chick from the "Are You Dead Yet?" video.
Children Of Bodom - "Hellhounds on My Trail":
May 16, 2008
Flick Friday - Black Metal, The Red Chord, Children Of Bodom
May 15, 2008
Crustcake Picks - LA Shows 5/15 - 5/21
by beatmasterspeech (LA)
If I wasn't feeling like a plugged-up piece of shit right now, I'd be preparing for the Abysmal Dawn CD release show tonight at the Knitting Factory. Their new album Programmed To Consume is out now and is one fine example of modern death metal.
Supporting them tonight is another personal fave, Dreaming Dead (formerly known as Manslaughter). This amazing blackened thrash band features Elizabeth Schall (Winterthrall, The Iron Maidens) and Mike Caffell (drums, Exhausted Prayer). You definitely do not want to miss the best of LA's local brutality. And look out for our upcoming interview with Abysmal Charles (vocals/guitar, Abysmal Dawn).
Now, if you've got the coin for it, some of the old school heavy hitters are in town, Megadeth and Metallica.
Metallica is coming down from the bay to take part in KROQ's annual "Weenie Roast y Fiesta." Tickets are sold out by now but you can always try eBay or Craigslist. But honestly, check out the line up first... you have to sit through some serious top 40 modern 'rock' until Metallica takes the stage and even then you don't know if it's gonna be a St. Anger set with one oldie or a completely killer set from the Black Album and before... It may be too pricey and risky (lawn tickets start at $55!).
Gigantour makes its LA area stop this year at the Long Beach Arena (featured in the classic Live After Death Iron Maiden DVD). This year's Gigantour features High On Fire, Job For A Cowboy, Children of Bodom, In Flames, and of course tour organizers Megadeth. I'm on the fence with this one. I love High On Fire but in an arena it might not be as awesome... The others I'm just meh about... I mean Megadeth is awesome but it depends on how Dave is feeling that night, you know?
LA show picks 5/15 - 5/21:Thursday 5/15 - Abysmal Dawn, Letum Ascensus, The Cauterized, Dreaming Dead, Isolation Infamy @ The Knitting Factory [tix]
Saturday 5/17 - Metallica (KROQ's Weenie Roast) @ The Verizon Wireless Ampitheater (Irvine,CA) [tix]
Wednesday 5/21 - Gigantour @ Long Beach Arena [tix]
May 5, 2008
New England Metal and Hardcore Fest - Photo Wrap-Up
words and photos by Jesse Angelo
For the last ten years The Palladium in Worcester, Mass-- quite possibly the dankest venue in all of New England-- has hosted The New England Metal and Hardcore Fest, better known simply as Metal Fest. For those of you who haven't been, it's three days of metal and hardcore-- two stages at a time-- packed into the Palladium. It's sometimes long, painful, and/or bloody, but it's always a blast.
Day one featured the Gigantour line-up: High on Fire, Job for a Cowboy, Children of Bodom, In Flames and Megadeth. Before the mayhem began, I enjoyed a tailgate in the parking lot across from the Palladium with my friends Eric and Steve:
We've been coming to this lot and tailgating for almost ten years, but this year some old troll came and kicked us out. Good thing there's a bar right next door! A few Irish car bombs and we were back on track:
The scene outside of the Palladium:
Equipment lined the streets around the venue:
Metal Fest organizer Scott Lee on the phone outside of the Palladium:
The line to enter wrapped around the block:
Yeah, yeah, it was a total sausage fest...
After making my way inside, High on Fire started playing. If you're surprised to see Matt Pike wearing a shirt, keep in mind it was only 5pm.
Job for a Cowboy was up next.
Gigantour really brought some cool lighting gear with them!
I'm not really a fan of Job for a Cowboy, so after watching a few songs I decided to check out the merch.
Scott Lee now has a clothing company. My favorite item has to be that giant mug shot t-shirt!
Myspace had a table where they were giving away bandannas and pins. They didn't look to be in high demand.
Metal Maniacs had a huge area where band signings were taking place.
Children of Bodom came up next:
In Flames were great, but to be honest I was having trouble paying attention to their set. I was so excited for Megadeth!
Hell yeah Megadeth! I saw them once before last year with Heaven and Hell. I never was a huge Megadeth fan, but they are a lot of fun live.
"Skin O' My Teeeeeeeeth!"
Dave Mustaine is the only original member at this point.
And there you have it! Photos from the rest of the festival will be up later this week, and be sure to check out all the interviews from the fest at Boston.TV.
April 14, 2008
Crustcake Picks - New Music 4/15
Hey, did you hear that one about the string ensemble that recorded a tribute to Bullet For My Valentine? Seriously, we can't make this shit up people. It's very real and it's really being released tomorrow by Koch. Scream, aim, fail.
Fortunately, there are a few new albums this week that won't make you cringe at the merest thought of hearing them.
As we mentioned on Friday, Soilent Green will be releasing their fifth full-length tomorrow, Inevitable Collapse in the Presence of Conviction via new home Metal Blade. Inevitable Collapse (see below) joins In Flames' A Sense of Purpose for worst album cover of the year eligibility.
Download: Soilent Green - "Antioxidant" [MP3]
Technical death metallers (but not in the Hate Eternal way) Arsis are releasing their third studio album tomorrow, We Are The Nightmare. Check out a few tracks at their MySpace and an interview discussing the album at MetalSucks.
And lastly, Children of Bodom's sixth LP, Blooddrunk is out tomorrow, and it sounds pretty much like, uh, Children of Bodom. Though Alexi Laiho and Co. certainly aren't pushing the envelope with this one, we do give them credit for being the only band ever to make General MIDI (specifically 'Orchestra Hit') sound cool. If you don't know what any of that means, you're probably better off.
Children of Bodom - "Blooddrunk":
Our picks:
Arsis - We Are the Nightmare [Amazon]
Children of Bodom - Blooddrunk [Amazon]
Soilent Green - Inevitable Collapse in the Presence of Conviction [Amazon]
November 20, 2007
Crustcake Reviews: Slayer - Unholy Alliance DVD
Thine Eyes Bleed kick off the DVD with a too-long explanation about how getting bigger tours than before is, you know, good and how they want people who've not been exposed to them before to have an open mind. Fair enough. With only one cut to get their point across, Thine Eyes Bleed face a tough challenge-- and they don't quite succeed. "Dark White" isn't a terrible song, and their performance-- with the exception of drummer Darryl Stephens' intolerably sloppy triplets-- is passable, but we'll most likely be hearing about as much about Thine Eyes Bleed in the future as we did in the past-- nothing.
Next, Alexi Laiho and company talk about how tourmates affect each other, 24/7 hangovers, and their nude bus bacchanals before we get to see Children Of Bodom play two songs-- the ballad-esque "Angels Don't Kill" and "In Your Face", a relentless barrage of pounding rhythm and, well, in-your-face lyrics.
Next up, the boys from Atlanta, Mastodon. Drummer Brann Dailor and guitarists Bill Kelliher and Brent Hinds chat about shitting in showers, arson, infant impalement, "crazy town" (apparently Brent's permanent mental locale and having nothing to do with this disaster), and how to make records (it involves levers, pulleys, water, dry ice, smoke, mirrors, baby powder, and Windex) while bassist Troy Sanders sits quietly getting a haircut. After his haircut, Troy's bandmates don't recognize him at first, and when they ask, "who is that guy," Troy responds cheekily that he wants to be their "new lead singer." Brann hands him a toothbrush-- a makeshift microphone-- and we get Troy's sound check ("one and two... one and two.. nervous nervous") but regrettably not a full-blown audition.
Our disappointment is soon cured by the tight-as-ever riffing of Mastodon. Mastodon bring nearly studio-perfect performances to the DVD giving Slayer-- who are only able to match Mastodon thanks to their sheer thrash onslaught and because, well, they're fucking Slayer-- a run for their money. Mastodon gets a healthy three cuts on the DVD, which include the technical "Capillarian Crest" and the supercharged "Crystal Skull" from their most recent album Blood Mountain, as well as lead cut "Blood and Thunder" from their 2004 album Leviathan.
Mastodon - "Crystal Skull":
Next is Richmond's Lamb Of God, who surprisingly are only alloted a single song which happens to be "Vigil" from their five-star 2003 release As The Palaces Burn. Palaces was their final release before being signed to major label Epic Records, which for licensing reasons may very well have something to do with the brevity of Lamb of God's appearance on the DVD.
"Vigil" begins with a slow, dark, quiet and melodic guitar line (which also happens to be the spot of the only major mix mishap on the DVD-- the line is barely audible) before the band kicks in with a slow, heavy groove. If "Vigil" was a shape, it would be a massive less-than sign or crescendo-- the song builds from its slow and minimal beginnings into a final, very much Slayer-influenced climax as vocalist Randy Blythe calls for "the biggest mother fuckin' circle pit this town has ever had." In only one song Lamb Of God successfully remind us-- whether you're a fan or not-- why they are the kings of the new wave of American heavy metal.
Finally, the headliners take the plate. Drummer Dave Lombardo shows us all how metal he really is when he talks about how "you get tired" and "you can't call in sick" on tour, and reminisces about the time his mom wouldn't let him play a show because he was sick. "C'mon, mom, I wanna play," he had pleaded with her.
After some more behind-the-scenes banter with the band, we finally get to the thrash. Slayer's selections represent a nice cross-section of their discography and include:"South of Heaven"
Slayer deliver exactly what's expected of them-- energy, metal, excitement, riffs, thrash, more riffs, ripping guitar solos, and politically charged vocals. Their performance is just as fresh and energetic in 2006 as it was in 1986 and, unlike a certain someone, Dave Lombardo can still keep up with his band.
"Silent Scream"
"Blood Red"
"Cult"
"Chemical Warfare"
"Eyes of the Insane"
"Dead Skin Mask"
"Hell Awaits"
"The Anti-Christ"
"Angel of Death"
Verdict: The Unholy Alliance Tour DVD may not be a home run, but it's worth picking up because 1.) the Mastodon footage is top notch; 2.) the price is right, at around $13 retail; 3.) the mix is generally good and; 4.) Slayer.[MP3] Mastodon - "Circle of Cysquatch"[MP3] Lamb Of God - "Vigil"[MP3] Slayer - "Raining Blood"
October 29, 2007
Crustcake Picks - New Music 10/30
Though it contains a mere three new songs, Intronaut's latest EP, The Challenger, is worth checking out: if the title track (which you can listen to here) is any indication, Intronaut has improved leaps and bounds over last year's Void. Intronaut are going to Europe soon and will be back in the states for a few dates with High On Fire, A Life Once Lost, and Saviours early next year.
Also worth checking out is Trap Them's Seance Prime (Deathwish) and Slayer's DVD release for the Unholy Alliance tour looks pretty swell as well, with the tracklist divvyed up according to each band's relative awesomeness (8 tracks for Slayer, 3 for Mastodon, 2 for Children of Bodom, and 1 for Lamb of God).
Finally, Levon Helm's got a new one out and Rhino/Wea are cashing in on Joy Division.Intronaut - The Challenger [Amazon] [iTunes]
For more new music, head to Decibel, Prefix, or Largehearted Boy. What will you be picking up/loading down this week?
Trap Them - Seance Prime [Amazon]
Slayer, Lamb of God, Mastodon, Children of Bodom - Unholy Alliance DVD [Amazon]
Levon Helm - Dirt Farmer [Amazon] [iTunes]
Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures [Amazon] [iTunes]
Joy Division - Closer [Amazon] [iTunes]
Joy Division - Still [Amazon] [iTunes]
Joy Division - Vinyl Box Set: Unknown Pleasures/Closer/Still [Amazon][MP3] Intronaut - "Gleamer"[MP3] Trap Them - "They Followed the Scent of Jihad All the Way to Thieves Paradise"[MP3] Slayer - "The Antichrist"[MP3] Levon Helm - "Poor Old Dirt Farmer"[MP3] Joy Division - "Disorder"[MP3] Joy Division - "Twenty Four Hours"[MP3] Joy Division - "Dead Souls"
