(In this post, NCS writer Andy Synn reviews the new album from Louisiana’s Goatwhore.)

The first rule of Project Satan is . . . kill for the master.

If Goatwhore were a car, they’d be the were-car from Futurama, a savage, intelligent military car built from the most evil parts of the most evil cars in all the world. The steering wheel from Hitler’s staff car. The left turn signal from Charles Manson’s VW. The windshield wipers from that car that played Knight Rider . . . either that or the stalking murder-mobile from Stephen King’s Christine. Hot and nasty, definitively deadly.

“Blood For The Master” is a pitch-black muscle-mobile that runs on the blood of virgins, devouring the innocent and spewing out noxious fumes of poison thick enough to blot out the sun for a thousand years. Quite simply, it is the finest record the band have ever produced and a fitting soundtrack to the end of all things, a whiskey bottle in one hand, a straight razor in the other.

The record takes the best aspects from both their most recent breakthrough releases, the razor-sharp blackened savagery of A Haunting Curse and the sludgey death-march bludgeon of Carving Out The Eyes Of God, and mixes them up into something utterly toxic and bad for the environment. The production is utterly stunning, going one step beyond its predecessors’ thick and powerful sound by bringing back some of the bite of the more blackened guitar tone from A Haunting Curse without losing those thick, tangling bass tones and high-octane drum blasts.

“Collapse Into Eternal Worth” and “When Steel And Bone Meet” see the album accelerating off the line with neck-snapping speed, its pulsating engine roaring into life with furious blast-beats and pumping shotgun blasts of grime-encrusted, doom-laden black metal, delivered with a shit-eating grin and a cocksure strut. “Collapse…” twists and turns, cornering on a dime as it shifts gears between blackened blast-frenzy, cruise-missile groove (see the barbed and hooky bridge for the perfect example) and dynamite death explosions, while “When Steel…” is a bar-room brawl set to music, chains and fists flying in a drunken, grooving orgy of violence that manages to cram in a swaggering groove, pummelling power-riffage, and some switchblade soloing in barely more than 3 minutes.

“In Deathless Tradition” begins with a morbid, decaying haze of swamp-beast black metal, decaying chord progressions and quicksand chugging overlain with croaking, evil vocals drowning in their own bile. The more blackened vibe of the song sounds like hell’s own house band settling into a crushing, mid-paced groove as the damned drink themselves into a welcome oblivion, some bluesy, smoky solo work spattering the baying crowd with blood and semen until they beg for more.

The vocals are utterly unrelenting throughout, whether gargling and spitting up acid-drenched, blackened vitriol  or groaning beneath the weight of years of death and darkness. “Judgement Of The Bleeding Crown” sees Falgoust spitting venom at hyperspeed over whiplashing riffs and serpentine soloing, striking like a cobra over and over again, and filling the listener with poison and sickness while riff after riff piles up behind him in a demolition derby of ugly thrash dynamics and black metal savagery. The come-down from this is delivered by “Embodiment Of This Bitter Chaos”, a darker and more melodic number which goes down smooth, but leaves behind a lasting burn. The creeping acoustic opening sets the pace, opening up into a chugging, bubbling cauldron of head-banging riffage, topped off with a dizzying, headache-inducing solo.

The record ends with a triple-header of killer songs, “Death To The Architects Of Heaven” (one of the best songs of their career), “An End To Nothing” (an unforgiving punk-inflected blaze of smoky death metal ferocity), and “My Name Is Frightful Among The Believers” (one of the most virulent and spiky black metal tracks they’ve ever recorded).

“Death To The Architects Of Heaven” demonstrates that simplicity in design is not always a bad thing, not when the design is so perfectly lethal as this. Like a diamond-point drill, the song punches through the skull, unleashing demons and freeing the mind for blasphemous visions.  Lurching dissonance and creeping melody vie for attention, the raw and scraping guitars set off by the undeniably infectious chants of the song’s gleefully blasphemous chorus refrain, the air rich with the foul stench of tortured leather and burning brimstone.

Short, nasty, and brutish, “An End To Nothing” strikes with wrath, whirlwind roundhouse blows of anvil-heavy riffage sending the listener crashing to the mat time and time again, the band grinding their heel on the throat of those too weak and feeble to last the full 10 rounds. Time and again, the song drags the listeners to their feet with its spiralling guitars, only to knock their teeth down their throat again with a vicious punch of bone-breaking riff-force.

Closer “My Name Is Frightful Among The Believers” shatters all the windows and rattles the foundations one last time, a volcanic eruption of blackened melody setting the place ablaze with twisting tremolo runs and sand-papered vocals. Barbed hooks and flesh-tearing lead guitars cut deeply and mercilessly into fragile flesh, spilling blood across the killing floor, the band dancing manically in the ashes of the blazing inferno of black metal misanthropy and filthy sludge they have conjured up, praising the name of Satan to the corrupted heavens above.

The blueprints for the Goat-mobile are most definitely based on some classic designs; Crowbar’s growling sludge, Gorgoroth’s spiteful raving, Celtic Frost’s doomy aura, Obituary’s crawling death-rattle, The Crown’s satanic pride, and Exodus’ tightly welded thrash assault, all topped off with a hefty swig of Motorhead’s liver-killing bad attitude. But the end result is far from a mere sum of its parts, it’s a new beast entirely, a massive engine of dominance and destruction covered in scars and pentagrams, spewing alcoholic fumes of deadly menace. Audio carmageddon at its finest. Don’t think, just push play and put the pedal to the metal.

EDITOR’S NOTE:  Blood For the Master will be released on February 14 by Metal Blade Records. It can be pre-ordered (along with related merch) at this place. The band’s Facebook page can be found here. And in case you missed the official lyric video for “Collapse Into Eternal Worth” the first time we featured it at NCS, here it is again:

Yesterday, I was whining about the INFERNO Metal Festival in Oslo Norway this April — exciting line-up of bands, too fucking far away for me to see. One of the comments on that post, from Kazz, pretty much summed up my feelings about the matter:  ”Sometimes the Atlantic Ocean just pisses me off.” To which I responded, “Damned ocean. If it were only smaller, we could kick the shit out of it.”

But look! Now we have help with the shit-kicking! This morning I saw the announcement about the tour featured in that flyer up there. Now THAT is going to be one skull-fucking abomination of a musical extravaganza. It will be particularly sweet because the tour starts only four days after GOATWHORE releases their new album on February 14, which was recorded by Erik Rutan at his Mana Recording Studio in Florida.

And speaking of Erik Rutan . . . HATE ETERNAL! Hells yeah. No one puts the power drill to your cranium quite like Hate Eternal in a live setting.

Oh, and speaking of boring holes in your skull . . . CEREBRAL BORE, all the way from Scotland! And fucking FALLUJAH on top of that!

I’m not saying this is better than Inferno Fest, I’m not saying that we’ve found the secret to subjugation of the Atlantic Ocean, but it do make me feel a damned sight better than I did when I was whining yesterday — because this death metal juggernaut will be stopping in Seattle, which involves no Atlantic Ocean crossing for me to reach. Maybe it will make a stop somewhere near you, too. The full schedule is after the jump. And because these four bands are now on my mind, I’ve got videos from each of them after the jump, too.

GOATWHORE and HATE ETERNAL
Tour w/ Fallujah, Cerebral Bore

02/18 New Orleans, LA Southport Music Hall Hate Eternal ONLY
02/19 Houston, TX Warehouse Live (TICKETS)
02/21 Tempe, AZ Clubhouse
02/22 Hollywood, CA The Whisky (TICKETS)
02/23 Santa Cruz, CA The Catalyst Atrium
02/24 Portland, OR Branx (TICKETS)
02/25 Seattle, WA Studio Seven (TICKETS)
02/26 Boise, ID The Venue
02/27 Salt Lake City, UT In The Venue (TICKETS)
02/28 Colorado Springs, CO Black Sheep (TICKETS)
02/29 Kansas City, MO Beaumont Club (TICKETS)
03/01 St Paul, MN Station 4 (TICKETS)
03/02 Des Moines, IA House Of Bricks (TICKETS)
03/03 Chicago, IL Reggie’s Rock Club*
03/05 Toronto, ON Hard Luck**
03/06 Ottawa, ON Maverick’s**
03/07 Montreal, QC Les Foufounes Electriques** (TICKETS)
03/08 Clifton, NJ Dingbatz**
03/09 Brooklyn, NY Saint Vitus**
*No Goatwhore
**Hate Eternal and Cerebral Bore ONLY

VIDEOS

December and 2011 are both over, and with the end of the last month, it’s time to round up what we saw over the last 30 days about forthcoming albums.

We usually try to post these updates on the first of the month, but the first of this month was New year’s Day, and I was moving kinda slowly that day. Plus, I’ve been focusing on year-end lists from a variety of sources, and, well, I’m late with this. I have more excuses, if you’d like to hear them.  No?  Okay, I understand.  I’ll just shut up and get going with this list.

So, here’s the deal:  In these METAL IN THE FORGE posts, I collect news blurbs and press releases I’ve seen over the last month about forthcoming new albums from bands we know and like at NCS (including occasional updates about releases we’ve included in previous installments of this series), or from bands that look interesting, even though we don’t know their music yet. In this series, we cut and paste those announcements and compile them in alphabetical order.

Remember — THIS ISN’T A CUMULATIVE LIST. If we found out about a new forthcoming album before December, we wrote about it in previous installments of this series. So, be sure to check the Category link called “Forthcoming Albums” on the right side of this page to see forecasted releases we reported earlier.

This month’s list begins right after the jump. It includes some real eye-openers. In fact, it’s not too soon to say that 2012 is already looking like yet another royally skull-fucking year for metal. But as usual, this list is half-assed rather than comprehensive. I confess that in December I was even more half-assed than usual in keeping my eyes open for news about new albums. So, feel free to leave Comments and tell all of us what I missed when I put this list together. Let us know about albums on the way that  you’re stoked about, even if you don’t see them here!

ABORTED: “”The Origin Of Disease”, a brand new song from Belgian death metalers ABORTED, can be streamed at NO CLEAN SINGING. The track comes off the band’s seventh studio album, “Global Flatline”, which will be released on January 24, 2012 (one day earlier internationally) via Century Media Records.”

THE AMENTA: “Australia’s extreme metal unit THE AMENTA is working on material for their third album for a 2012 release. Vocalist Cain Cressal states, “All arrangements and lyrics are 90% complete. I’ll be flying over to Sydney soon to finetune vocal patterns/lyrics after much demoing over the last few months. We intend to start tracking the album in January.” Tentatively titled “Flesh Is Heir”, the follow-up to 2008′s “n0n” is a crystallization of THE AMENTA‘s methods.”

ASPHYX: “Deathhammer is the title track of ASPHYX‘s new studio album, which will be released on February 27, 2012 in Europe and February 28, 2012 in North America via Century Media Records.”

BLOODSHOT DAWN: “First formed in 2003, Bloodshot Dawn have evolved from a straight forward, groove orientated death metal band into an unrelenting, hyper speed, extreme-metal machine. Hailed by Terrorizer as a band that delivers “blistering live shows”, Bloodshot Dawn have become a household name in the UK underground.  In September 2011, Bloodshot Dawn entered the studio again, this time at 11th Cellar Studios in Rome (Fleshgod Apocalypse, Hour Of Penance, Inherit Disease), to record their debut full-length release. The album was finished in December 2011 and is set for a limited release on 26 January 2012.”

BORKNAGAR: “Norway’s BORKNAGAR has entered Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden to begin mixing its new album with Jens Bogren, who has previously worked with such acts as KATATONIA, OPETH, PARADISE LOST and AMON AMARTH. The CD is tentatively due in February 2012 via Century Media Records. ”

CANCER BATS: “‘Old Blood‘, a brand new song from Canadian metallers CANCER BATS, was premiered on tonight’s (Monday, January 2) edition of BBC Radio 1‘s “Rock Show With Daniel P Carter”. You can now stream the track in a YouTube clip here. “Old Blood” comes off CANCER BATS‘ fourth album, “Dead Set On Living”, which is due in April via Distort Inc. ”

THE CONTORTIONIST: “Indianapolis, Indiana’s prog-metal prodigies THE CONTORTIONIST will enter AudioHammer Studios in Sanford, Florida in February with producers Jason Suecof (TRIVIUM, CHIMAIRA, DEVILDRIVER) and Eyal Levi (AUGUST BURNS RED, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER) to begin recording their sophomore album for a late spring/early summer 2012 release via Good Fight Music.”

CONVERGE: “Terrorizer have heard on the hardcore grapevine that the mighty Converge are set to start recording their eighth album, the follow up to 2009′s smasher, Axe To Fall. This is to be titled ‘All We Love We Leave Behind’ and it’s due out in the late spring/early summer through Epitaph.”

DRUDKH: “Unconventional, dramatic and mysterious, Ukrainian black metal outfit Drudkh are announcing a new album called Eternal Turn of the Wheel out February 24. The new album “marks a return to the band’s roots and early sound,” according to Season of Mist, the French label that has been releasing Drudkh‘s albums since 2009.”

DYING FETUS:  ”John Gallagher, guitarist and vocalist of Dying Fetus, has announced that the group has entered the studio to record a new full-length album. The band will once again be working with long-time producer Steve Wright (Slipknot, Misery Index) at Wrightway Studios in Baltimore, MD. Set to be released in mid 2012 through Relapse Records, the album will feature nine tracks and is a “return to roots” with production focused slightly more on slam than in the band’s last few works.

DYSRHYTHMIA: From the band’s facebook page: “Happy new year, all. We are excited to announce we will be working with Profound Lore Records, for the release of our next album! Recording will commence this Spring with Colin Marston, with a projected late Summer/ Fall release date. We’re gonna do our most to make this the best Dysrhythmia yet.”

ELUVEITIE: “ELUVEITIE’S fifth studio album, Helvetios, will be released on February 10 (Europe) and February 28 (North America) 2012 via Nuclear Blast.”

ENOCHIAN THEORY: Life . . . And All It Entails, the new album by UK progressive metallers Enochian Theory will be released on Feb 12, 2012 by Mascot Records and is available for pre-order here, where the album art is also on display.

ENTHRONED: “Belgian black metallers ENTHRONED have inked a two-album deal with Agonia Records. The band’s new album, “Obsidium”, will be released in early 2012.”

GOATWHORE: “New Orleans’ GOATWHORE has set “Blood For The Master” as the title of its new album, due on February 14 in North America via Metal Blade Records. The follow-up to 2009′s “Carving Out The Eyes Of God” was recorded at Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, Florida with producer with Erik Rutan.”

HEIDEVOLK: “Dutch folk/viking band Heidevolk announced that it will release the band’s fourth LP entitled “Batavi” on March 2, 2012 through Napalm Records. The album is the follow up to the 2012 release “Uit Oude Grond.” More details on the album are expected shortly.”

HIGH ON FIRE: “Oakland, CA hard rock band HIGH ON FIRE has entered Salem, Massachusetts’ GodCity Studios to begin tracking their as-yet-untitled new album. The world renowned group featuring drummer Des Kensel, bassist Jeff Matz and guitarist / vocalist Matt Pike (also of legendary stoner metal trio SLEEP) is collaborating with producer and Converge guitarist Kurt Ballou on the new effort; the band’s sixth studio recording and follow up to 2010′s Snakes for the Divine which debuted at #62 on the Billboard Top 200 and has been called “wonderful” by The New York Times and “an exhilarating rush” by The Chicago Tribune. A mid-2012 release date is expected via eOne Music.”

MAGENTA HARVEST: “MAGENTA HARVEST, the Finnish death metal band featuring current and former members of FINNTROLL, CHTHONIAN, MYGRAIN and …AND OCEANS, will enter the studio later this month [December] to begin recording its second demo. According to a press release, the new effort will see the group widening its soundscape with the help of Aleksi Virta of FINNTROLL, who “will create some epic keyboard stuff” to go along with the material. An early 2012 release is expected.”

MESHUGGAH: “Swedish experimental extreme metallers MESHUGGAH have issued the following update: ”After a long time of deep soul searching and intense wrecking of the psyches, the new album is finally done. Soon you will meet this colossus that will pulverize your being. Welcome to the other side on March 27.”"

MORBID ANGEL: “On February 24, 2012 (February 28 in North America), Season of Mist will release a compilation of remixed tracks from MORBID ANGEL’s latest album, “Illud Divinum Insanus”. Far from being just revamped versions of the seminal extreme metal band’s newest songs, this collection will present the work of 39 artists from the electro / industrial, techno and club scene.”

MUNICIPAL WASTE: “Virginia crossover thrash metal band MUNICIPAL WASTE has completed work on its fifth studio album, “The Fatal Feast”, for a spring 2012 release via Nuclear Blast Records.”

MURDER CONSTRUCT: “MURDER CONSTRUCT, the Los Angeles, California-based band featuring Travis Ryan (CATTLE DECAPITATION) on vocals, Leon del Muerte (EXHUMED, PHOBIA, IMPALED) on guitar and vocals, Kevin Fetus (FETUS EATERS, WATCH ME BURN) on guitar, Danny Walker (INTRONAUT, EXHUMED, UPHILL BATTLE) on drums, and Caleb Schneider (BAD ACID TRIP) on bass, has entered the studio to begin work on its full-length debut full-length for a mid-2012 release via Relapse Records.”

NAGLFAR: “Swedish black metallers NAGLFAR have completed work on their sixth album, “Téras”, for a March 2012 release via Century Media Records. The drum tracks on the CD were laid down by Dirk Verbeuren (SOILWORK).”

NAPALM DEATH: “NAPALM DEATH will release its 14th studio album (excluding the cover album “Leaders Not Followers”), “Utilitarian”, on February 27 in Europe and February 28 in North America via the band’s longtime partner, Century Media Records. ”

PALLBEARER: “Little Rock, Arkansas doom metal disciples PALLBEARER have completed work on their debut album, “Sorrow And Extinction”, for a February 21, 2012 release via Profound Lore Records.”

PSYCROPTIC: “Pre-orders are now available for Tasmanian technical death metal outfit PSYCROPTIC’s upcoming fifth studio album, The Inherited Repression. The Inherited Repression will be released in Europe on February 7th in North America and on February 10th in Europe on Nuclear Blast Records.”

SEAR BLISS:  ”Eternal Recurrence, the 7th album from Sear Bliss, is set to be released in February, 2012 through Candlelight Records. The songs are dramatic and unsettling, dark and painful.”

SHINING: “Sweden’s SHINING the, extreme metal band founded by controversial front man Niklas Kvarforth, has today [Jan 2] entered the Sonic Train Studios in Varberg, Sweden, with producer Andy La Rocque to begin recording the band’s eighth full-length album, which, as is usual with SHINING, currently only bears the working title VIII.”

SIGH: “Japan’s SIGH will release its ninth album, “In Somniphobia”, in March 2012 via Candlelight Records. According to a press release, the CD is “by far more musically varied” compared to the [band's] last two albums. Put heavy metal, classical music, jazz, Indian traditional music, Stockhausen, and Xenakis into a cauldron of hell and stir it, you’ll get ‘In Somniphobia’. It is a pure sonic nightmare that lasts more than an hour.”

SOILWORK: “After a highly successful run of European festivals and select club shows, Swedish melodic metal maestros SOILWORK have started writing music for the follow-up to The Panic Broadcast, which debuted the US Billboard charts at #88 upon its release in July 2010.”

SOREPTION: “Soreption will enter the studio in February to begin the recording of the next album. The release is not set yet, but we´re aming for fall next year.”

SPAWN OF POSSESSION: Swedish tech-death assassins SPAWN OF POSSESSION have completed work on their third full-length album, “Incurso”, for a March 13, 2012 release via Relapse Records. The CD, which will contain nine tracks plus an instrumental intro, was recorded at Pama Studios in Kristianopel, Sweden with engineer Magnus “Mankan” Sedenberg.

SWALLOW THE SUN: “SWALLOW THE SUN’S fifth full-length album, “Emerald Forest And The Blackbird”, will be released on February 1 via Spinefarm Records. The CD was recorded during September and October 2011 by Mikko Karmila (NIGHTWISH, AMORPHIS, CHILDREN OF BODOM) at Drumforest Studios in Viitasaari and Sonic Pump 2 in Helsinki, and by Hannu Honkonen at Noisework Studios in Helsinki. The effort was mixed by Hiili Hiilesmaa (HIM, APOCALYPTICA, AMORPHIS, MOONSPELL) and will be mastered by Mika Jussila (NIGHTWISH, AMORPHIS, SENTENCED) at Finnvox Studios.”

TESTAMENT: “TESTAMENT‘s new album, “The Dark Roots Of Earth”, is tentatively due in late April/early May 2012 via Nuclear Blast Records. Due to a “serious injury,” TESTAMENT drummer Paul Bostaph was unable to take part in the recording sessions for the CD and was replaced by Gene “The Atomic Clock” Hoglan (DARK ANGEL, STRAPPING YOUNG LAD, FEAR FACTORY, DETHKLOK). Bostaph has since announced his departure from the group.”

Oh baby, did yesterday bring some titillating musical teasers. Actually, only two of the four teasers featured in this post are actual music. The other two are simply forecasts of music that will become available shortly.

By the way, I’m writing this in a hurry because I’m about to leave for the airport. The old fucking day job is sending me to the East Coast for a couple of days. I’ll tell you, the life of a coke mule isn’t as glamorous as it’s cracked up to be. The prospect of parking my tender, balloon-filled butt in a cramped airplane seat for 5+ hours isn’t appealing. But it comes with the territory, y’know? Anyway, when I ignore all your comments until tonight, it won’t mean I don’t love you.

THY CATAFALQUE

This talented Hungarian band has already teased us about their new album on Season of Mist, Rengeteg, which won’t actually see the full light of day until November 11 and fucking January 10, 2012 in North America. Yes, last month we got some snippets of music (featured at NCS here) — not even a full song, but certainly enough to stir our loins in anticipation. Now we have a full song, the first to debut from the new album. It’s called “Fekete mezők”, which means “black fields”. And guess what? Season of Mist has made it available for free download HERE. Listen up (right after the jump):

Next up . . .

VEKTOR

This Arizona outfit is “a progressive sci-fi thrash metal band” — their words, not mine. I would have thrown in some reference to black metal, along with those others, if it had been my description. Their last album, 2009′s Black Future, was . . . distinctive and distinctively impressive. Attempting to describe the band’s sound is extremely challenging, because it’s so unusual. Vektor puts most nu-thrash bands to shame precisely because they are doing so much more than attempting to replicate something we’ve heard many times before.

We’ve been eagerly awaiting their new album, and now we have a taste of what it will be like. It’s called Outer Isolation, and it will be released by Heavy Artillery Records on November 11. Yesterday, the label put two songs from the album on its Bandcamp page for streaming. They do not disappoint. Check it out:

Cool album art, too. Vektor’s Facebook page is at this location.

IMMOLATION

Yesterday, thanks to our buddy Phro, we told you about a new, free Wormrot EP released by Scion A/V. Also yesterday we found out that the very same Scion A/V will be releasing a free EP from Immolation on October 11 to commemorate the band’s 20 years of brutal existence. Put it on your calendar. You’ll be able to download it HERE. It will contain five tracks, it will be called Providence, and this is the cover art:

Here’s the track list:

1.  What They Bring
2.  Illumination
3.  Still Lost
4.  Providence
5.  Swallow the Fear

To Scion A/V, we say, Bravo!

GOATWHORE

One more piece of news about new music, because it’s Goatwhore. Flexible Goatwhore. If you’re a subscriber to DECIBEL magazine, you know they’ve been including a Flexi-Disk with the magazine. Each month, a new disk includes a cover song by a notable metal band, and next month the band is Goatwhore and the cover is a Motorhead song called “(Don’t Need) Religion” from that band’s 1982 album Iron Fist.

I subscribe to DECIBEL. It’s a great read. But as I’ve said before, I have no turntable. I’ve tried all sorts of things to get the music into my ears from the flexi-disk, including sleeping with it under my pillow, but in the end, it just becomes a coaster. I’m trying something new this time, because I don’t think i can wait for the song to hit Soundcloud or YouTube. I’m going to crush it into dust, marinate it in turpentine, and then huff it. I’ll let you know how that turns out. And when the song does become streamable, we’ll have it here for you at NCS.

Picture of flexi-disk, instead of actual music:

Motörhead’s “(Don’t Need) Religion,” the penultimate track from 1982 crusher Iron Fist

I spent some time yesterday catching up on metal news over the last week and came across an assortment of videos I thought were worth sharing.

The first one is footage of the almighty Goatwhore playing a club in Fort Walton Beach, Florida on September 16. What makes this video worth sharing is that they’re playing a NEW SONG, called “Beyond the Spell of Discontent”, and it’s a smokin’ hot piece of black ‘n’ roll. The video quality isn’t great, but the sound is pretty good. I’ll have the vid of that song for you after the jump; video of the band’s entire set can be viewed here.

The second video is a clip of Insomnium playing “The Gale” and “The Mortal Share” at the 2010 Summer Breeze Festival. The band linked to this video on their FB page last night, which is how I found it. Again, the video quality isn’t pro-standard, but the sound is decent, and it’s fucking Insomnium, and I’m getting tremendously tumescent in anticipation of their new album, so yeah. (Okay, this video isn’t exactly new, but I’m going with it anyway.)

The third video is a recent official release by a Finnish band called Grendel for the song “Apocalyptic Rain”. I wasn’t familiar with Grendel before seeing the video, but I likey the song — it’s a headbanging blast of melodic death metal. The video, which is organized around a game of Russian Roulette, proves two things: (1) the guys in this band weren’t very lucky that night; and, as if we needed more proof, (2) dudes will do almost anything for a chick with big knockers.

Last, but not least, I have a recently posted MetalInjection video of Revocation performing “Conjuring the Cataclysm” live. I always have a shit-ton of fun at Revocation shows, and I really like this song, so there.
GOATWHORE

INSOMNIUM

GRENDEL

REVOCATION

OK, time to court some (albeit minor) controversy. To compare and contrast with the “Wintermoon Wednesday” piece on post-millennial black metal by Tr00 Nate (unseen at the time of this writing) over at TheNumberOfTheBlog, I’ve decided to list my own picks for the prize.

I’ve left out the obvious choices, so no Satyricon or 1349 – even though the former have transformed themselves post-2000 very successfully, courting both success and controversy in equal measure, while the latter have pushed their hyper-blast style beyond the breaking point, only to discover a new lease on life through their exploration of gnarled, twisted atmospherics.

No Rotting Christ? Or Samael? Nope. I love both of them, but they both had long pre-millennial careers and spent much of the post-2000 stage of their careers exploring less focussed, less black metal sounds — although both have recently released masterful examples of their own focussed and distinctive brands of black metal.

I have left out records which are perhaps less “purely” black metal — records for which a strong case can be put forward that they belong more as “blackened” examples of another genre — so there’s no place for Altar Of Plagues or Withered, both great bands in their own right. No Akercocke either, the sheer weight of their crushing death metal heft disqualifying them for this list.

I have also by choice left out artists/albums I have covered recently. Therefore, no Iskald (though The Sun I Carried Alone IS one of the best black metal albums of the last ten years), or Elite (see HERE for my thoughts) or The Axis Of Perdition (HERE), even though I’d argue that each of them has at least one example under their belt of near perfect post-millennial black metal.

So who have I chosen? Well look upon my choices dear reader, and despair…

5 Records That Epitomise The Potential And Quality Of Post-Millennial Black Metal

Dark Fortress – Ylem

A record I truly consider a masterpiece, almost capable of being all things to all people, delivering an epic display of controlled chaos (“Ylem”), brooding intensity (“Evenfall”), sinuous structures (“Redivider”), malevolent melodies (“As The World Keels Over”) and gargantuan grooves (“Hirudineans”) with focussed precision and, at times, almost sexually charged potency (“Silence”).

Though every member performs at the top of his game, band mainman V. Santura (also in Triptykon) is in particular both a stunningly talented composer and technically gifted guitarist, while much-in-demand drummer Seraph (also of Thulcandra, et al) proves his incalculable might again and again with a performance that is both punishing and intelligently nuanced.

The record is also a compelling piece of progressive art, something which is exposed when examining the dichotomy between the truly monolithic, devastating “Osiris” and the melodic, desolate “Wraith”, songs which express the extremes of the band’s sound without ever straying from their core identity.

Sample song: “Osiris”

Secrets Of The Moon – Privilegivm

Crushingly heavy, equally influenced by the proto-black metal stomp of Celtic Frost/Triptykon and the swaggering Satanic grooves of Satyricon, whilst also building on the pseudo-industrial death metal bludgeon of Zyklon, this is a record with a stunning amount of style and nuance.

It thrashes like a wounded animal, hammering away with ominous slabs of claustrophobic riffage and warped drumming, the extensive and progressively structured material crawling and staggering under the weight of its own agonising death throes, constantly on the edge of collapsing into the abyss.

Blacker than black, the group weave strands of eerie, unsettling melody into the grander tapestry of thick, machine-like riffage and clanging, dissonant dis-chords, atop which the orthodox occult pronunciations of vocalist sG dictate an almost reverential atmosphere to the proceedings as a whole.

Sample song: “Black Halo”

Setherial – Ekpyrosis

Often written off as a sub-Dark Funeral blast-friendly black metal act, the last two albums (Death Triumphant and Ekpyrosis) by this Swedish wrecking machine have seen them step out of the shadows of their forebears and carve an individual path for themselves. Though I personally prefer the previous album, there’s no doubt in my mind that Ekpyrosis represents a new pinnacle for frenzied, blasting Swedish black metal, incorporating shocking technicality to help conjure an utterly unforgiving and inhuman sense of discorporation.

Lyrically, the group have melded post-Satanic, anti-cosmic philosophies with clinically scientific meditations on the overwhelming celestial horror and beauty of existence, giving the record a more vibrant and wholly individual vibe that melds the raging inferno of their black metal assault with the icy clarity that comes from contemplating the bleak insignificance of human existence.

Sample Song: “The Devouring Eye”

Anaal Nathrakh – In The Constellation Of The Black Widow

Managing to meld several genres into their black metal stew, without losing that stupefyingly dark aesthetic, these British-grown tyrants of misrule are utterly unparalleled in their ability to harness flesh-flaying vituperative fury and unchallenged in the realms of speed and aggression by all but a few of extreme metal’s most powerful proponents.

The combination of the obliterating ferocity of Mick Kenney’s symbiotic guitar and drum assault with the sheer range and grandeur of Dave Hunt’s nihilistic vocal exhortations make Anaal Nathrakh, to my mind, perhaps the only legitimate heirs to the throne of the now-departed Emperor, with a sound that is epic and expressive in scope and vision (“Oil Upon The Sores Of Lepers”), yet never less than utterly enthralling and unflinchingly brutal (“Blood Eagles Carved On The Backs Of Innocents”).

Though my personal preference is for Hell Is Empty…, I would be forced to say that In The Constellation… is arguably the superior record, both men pushing their skills and psyches to the breaking point to deliver an album that revels in its own excess and intrinsic, almost arrogant, superiority.

Sample Song: “The Lucifer Effect”

Vreid – V

If Metallica had grown up in Norway, then their career might well have echoed the enviable quality and progress of Norway’s finest black metal resistance force, Vreid. With this, their fifth album (aptly named V), the group have produced a dynamic album that filters the thrashy energy and classical aspirations of Ride The Lightning through a blackened prism of primal aggression and haunting, folk-infused atmospherics.

The songs vary in length and complexity, some attacking with pure, animalistic fury (“Welcome To The Asylum”), others delivering restrained yet powerful arrangements of harsh riffage and moody passages of folk-led, ritualistic melody (“The Sound Of The River”). Though “The Other & The Look” may be the album’s crowning, progressive song, 10:30 of arrogant, martial riffage, scything tremolo sections and captivating diversions of calm, meditative clean guitar and vocals, each and every song on the record packs in multiple layers and levels of expression without ever feeling cluttered or bloated. It’s an effortlessly tight and utterly compelling spectacle.

Sample Song: “The Sound Of The River”

Honourable (and shorter) mentions:

Naglfar, Deathspell Omega, Kampfar, Keep Of Kalessin, Melechesh, Ludicra, Ikuinen Kaamos, Khold…

5 Albums To Watch For In The Future

Martriden – untitled

Hailing from the icy plains of Montana, this four-piece delivered an album’s worth of unfettered experimentation and existential angst only last year with Encounter The Monolith (reviewed by Islander here), a complex and layered display of articulate anger and impressive instrumental skills, wrapped up in a progressive and spacey structure. Being hand-picked to support Emperor on their reunion tour several years back should tell you just how much potential remains untapped in this band’s sound. Thankfully, the band have apparently begun the writing and recording process for their next record, which will doubtless continue to push and expand the boundaries of their esoteric black metal sound.

Abigail Williams – untitled

Controversial choice? Not really. The band have shown both ambition and fortitude in continuing down their own path through the years, two of black metal’s defining traits. Their perseverance has paid off with the band growing and expanding their sound as well as gaining the opportunity to demonstrate their impressive musical talents on a series of tours with such metal luminaries as Vader and Rotting Christ. Currently recording their third album, the band have a variety of tour dates coming up with Landmine Marathon, Misery Index and the legendary Mayhem. They may never get the respect they deserve, but I doubt this will stop them producing some top notch, technically adept black metal in the future.

Negură Bunget– The Transylvanian Trilogy

Not to argue with Tr00 Nate (oh, go on then, I will), but to my mind and ears it’s Negură Bunget who were/are the finest proponents of folk-black-metal. In fact, it seems to me that their many endeavours into murky folk realms and progressive instrumental excursions have made their particular brand of Romanian black metal a legitimate style of folk music in and of itself. Therefore, the announcement of The Transylvanian Trilogy should whet the appetites of anyone who relishes the creation of art for art’s sake, the band endeavouring to craft a trilogy of releases combining both audio and visual elements into a greater, unified whole. The first part of this trilogy, Tău, is set for release in 2012 and “will unveil the natural landscapes, by exploring 9 unique natural places, with their mystique, atmosphere, legends and meanings”.

Goatwhore – untitled

Sludgy, nasty and alchemically fuelled, The Goat (as they shall now forevermore be referred to) have managed to craft such a distinctive sound for themselves, that is clearly black metal, but a form that has grown from a totally different environment to that of many of their peers. The group’s swampy roots ensure that the flower of their black metal is of a different hue than that of any other, yet still recognisably the same species overall. Their thick and heavy sound will surely only get nastier in the future, the band planning to enter the studio in late July to vomit up another gut-wrenching expulsion of narcotic, Satanic filth.

Pantheon I – untitled

The continued presence of Live Julianne Kostøl’s cello will doubtless keep the haunting, classical atmospheres alive on the next Pantheon I record, but most important of all, the addition of Aethyris McKay (ex-Absu) on guitar will bring a totally new dynamic to the group, both through his guitar playing and through the promised use of McKay’s clean vocals. Perhaps just as important, this addition also frees up Kvebek to focus purely on being a solo vocalist, which promises an even more venomous vocal performance from this alcohol-fuelled madman. This will be an emotionally cathartic, violent affair, I predict.

What the hell is that big yellow thing up in the sky? It looks vaguely familiar, but it’s appeared so rarely here in The Emerald City over the last six months that we’re having trouble placing the name. Well, maybe the name will come to us. The great wheel of the seasons surely must continue to turn someplace, but in Seattle it seems to have been stuck on Winter since, like, forever. In some parts of the world, April showers bring May flowers, but here, April showers will probably bring . . . May showers.

Okay, enough whining. At least we don’t get tornados dropping from the sky like atom bombs and wiping whole towns off the map. And even though the weather hasn’t been our friend, we have metal to make up for the cold shoulder — and there’s a bunch of new metal headed our way.

What we do with these installments of METAL IN THE FORGE is collect news blurbs and press releases we’ve seen over the last month about forthcoming new albums from bands we know and like (including updates about releases we’ve included in previous installments of this series), or from bands that look interesting, even though we don’t know them yet. And in this post, we cut and paste the announcements and compile them in alphabetical order.

This isn’t a cumulative list, so be sure to check the Category link called “Forthcoming Albums” on the right side of this page to see forecasted releases we reported in previous installments. This month’s list begins right after the jump. Look for your favorite bands, or get intrigued about some new ones.

AMORPHIS: “‘You I Need‘, the new single from Finnish metallers AMORPHIS, is available for streaming at this location. The song, which will be released digitally in Finland on April 20 and in other countries on April 22, comes off the band’s new album, The Beginning Of Times, due on May 27 via Nuclear Blast Records.”

AUGUST BURNS RED: “Lancaster, Pennsylvania-based Christian metalcore quintet AUGUST BURNS RED has set Leveler as the title of its fourth album, due on June 21 via the band’s longtime label Solid State Records. For Leveler, AUGUST BURNS RED re-teamed with super producer Jason Suecof, the man behind the board on the band’s previous CD, 2009′s Constellations. The result is an album that pushes the band’s sonic boundaries in every direction, and yet is unquestionably heavier than its predecessor.”

BEHEMOTH: “The masters of Polish blackened death metal BEHEMOTH have set Abyssus Abyssum Invocat as the title to the band’s expanded repackaging of their early 2000′s EPs “Conjuration” and “Slaves Shall Serve”. Set for release in the U.S. on June 7 via Metal Blade Records,Abyssus Abyssum Invocat features both EPs remastered and includes bonus tracks, new artwork, and new liner notes from BEHEMOTH frontman Adam “Nergal” Darski.”

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER: “Michigan’s unstoppable sons of molten melodic death metal THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER will release their new album, Ritual, in Europe on June 17 and in North America on June 21 via Metal Blade Records. The effort will also be available as a box set, limited to 2,000 units including special, exclusive digibook, witch board, magic wand, sage, incense sticks and coffin nails. The CD was once again be produced by Mark Lewis (TRIVIUM, BURY YOUR DEAD, DEICIDE), who also worked on 2009′s Deflorate.

BLOOD MORTIZED: “BLOOD MORTIZED — the Swedish death metal band featuring former AMON AMARTH guitarist Anders “Hansson” Biazzi (who played on AMON AMARTH’s first two albums, 1996′s “Sorrow Throughout The Nine Worlds” and 1998′s “Once Sent From The Golden Hall”) and CRYPT OF KERBEROS drummer Mattias Borgh — has inked a deal with Chaos Records for the release of the group’s Bestial EP. The effort was recorded, mixed, mastered and produced by drummer Mattias Borgh at Underworld Recording in Sweden. The four-song EP features artwork by Thomas Kynst and Daniel Devilish and is slated for a June/July 2011 release on both CD and vinyl format.”

BOOK OF BLACK EARTH: “Seattle, WA blackened death metal outfit Book Of Black Earth, will release their new album, The Cold Testament, on May 24th via Prosthetic Records. The album was tracked with Chris Common (Pelican, The Sword) at the Red Room Studio in Seattle and mixed and mastered by Dan Swano (Bloodbath, Nasum, Opeth) at Unisound in Sweden.”

BRUTAL TRUTH: “BRUTAL TRUTH (Kevin Sharp: vocals, Dan Lilker: bass, Richard Hoak: drums, Erik Burke: guitar) has completed work on their brand new full-length album titled End Time. BRUTAL TRUTH recorded End Time with Doug White at Watchmen Studios in Lockport, NY. The self-produced album was mixed by Jason P.C. at Goatsound Studios and is currently being mastered by Scott Hull at Visceral Sound. . . . End Time is expected to see a late summer 2011 release date with additional album information will be made available shortly.”

CHROME DIVISION: “CHROME DIVISION, the Norwegian five-piece featuring DIMMU BORGIR frontman Shagrath (a.k.a. Stian Thoresen) on guitar, will release its third album, 3rd Round Knockout, in Europe on May 6 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was recorded at Marius Strand Studio in Oslo.”

DAWN OF DISEASE: “German death metallers DAWN OF DISEASE will release their debut album, Legends Of Brutality, on April 29 via Noise Art Records. The CD was recorded at Soundlodge Studio (GOD DETHRONED, DEW-SCENTED, SINISTER) with producer Jörg Uken.”

DEGRADEAD: “Stockholm, Sweden-based melodic death metallers DEGRADEAD will release their third album, A World Destroyer, in North America on June 28 via Metalville Records. The CD was recorded at Peter Tägtgren‘s (HYPOCRISY, PAIN) Abyss studios in Pärlby, outside Ludvika, Sweden, with producer Jonas Kjellgren (SCAR SYMMETRY, CENTINEX, WORLD BELOW).”

DERANGED: “‘Depraved And Zombified‘, a brand new song from Swedish death metal masters DERANGED, is available for streaming in a YouTube clip . . . The song comes off the band’s eighth full-length album, Cut, Carve, Rip, Serve, which is scheduled for release in May via Sevared Records. The CD was recorded at Berno Studio in Malmö, Sweden.”

DESCENDING: “After a long period of intensive work in Greece and Sweden along with producer Fredrik Nordström (IN FLAMES, DIMMU BORGIR, ARCH ENEMY) at Fredman studios, Athens, Greece-based death/thrash metal band DESCENDING has completed work the follow-up to its debut album, Enter Annihilation, which was released in European and Japanese markets in 2008-2009. The as-yet-untitled new CD will be made available on September 23 via Massacre Records. A brand new digital single will be posted online on June 1.”

THE DEVASTATED: “THE DEVASTATED, the Southern California-based band featuring former members of IMPENDING DOOM and OBLIGE, has inked a deal with Century Media Records. The band is currently in the studio with young producer Chris Eck recording its debut album for a summer release. The CD will be mixed later this month with Daniel Castleman at Lambesis Studios in San Diego, California.”

EARTH CRISIS: “Reunited hardcore legends EARTH CRISIS have set Neutralize The Threat as the title of their seventh album, due on July 12 via Century Media Records. The CD was produced by Chris “Zeuss” Harris (SHADOWS FALL, HATEBREED). ”

EXELOUME: “Norwegian death/thrashers EXELOUME have inked a deal with the Swedish label ViciSolum Productions as their first non-Swedish band. The group’s debut album, Fairytale Of Perversion, will be released on Friday, May 13. Produced by Rune Stavnesli (KEEP OF KALESSIN,BLOODTHORN) and mixed/mastered by Dan Swanö, the CD does features guest appearances from Andy La Rocque (KING DIAMOND) and Dan Swanö (ex-EDGE OF SANITY, BLOODBATH, NIGHTINGALE). The artwork was created by Ed Repka (DEATH, ATHEIST, MEGADETH).”

ELITIST: “Portland, Oregon-based grind/death metal act ELITIST will release its debut album, Fear In A Handful Of Dust, on June 21 (one day earlier internationally) via Season Of Mist’s Underground Activists division. The CD is described in a press release as a ‘wild piece of old-school death metal mixed with sludgecore influences.’”

FALCONER: “Swedish metallers FALCONER will release their seventh album, Armod, in Europe on June 3 via Metal Blade Records. The CD features 11 songs completely sung in Swedish and four bonus tracks that are said to be English versions of the bandmembers’ favorite new songs. Armod was once again recorded at KING DIAMOND guitarist Andy La Rocque‘s Sonic Train Studios in Varberg, Sweden.”

FATHER BEFOULED: “American death metal act FATHER BEFOULED has inked a deal with Dark Descent Records for the release of the group’s third album, Revulsion Of Seraphic Grace, on CD and LP formats. The effort will be recorded in August 2011 and is tentatively due before the end of the year. A new split seven-inch single with Chile’s DEMONIC RAGE will be made available in May, featuring the FATHER BEFOULED song“Abolition of the Seraphic Vestige”.”

GALLHAMMER: “GALLHAMMER — the Japanese extreme metal group that draws on black metal, doom metal, and crust punk — will release its third studio album, The End, on May 31 via Peaceville Records. A mini-site for the CD containing an album teaser, desktop background, free song download, and more can be accessed at this location.”

GHOST BRIGADE: “Finnish metallers GHOST BRIGADE have completed work on their third album, Until Fear No Longer Defines Us, for a late summer release via Season Of Mist.”

GOATWHORE: “New Orleans extreme metallers GOATWHORE will enter the studio in late July to begin recording their new album for a late 2011 release.”

HATE ETERNAL: “The first in a six-part series of clips featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the making of Phoenix Amongst The Ashes, the new album from Florida-based extreme metal veterans HATE ETERNAL, can be viewed below. Due on May 10 via Metal Blade Records, the CD was recorded at HATE ETERNAL mainman Erik Rutan’s Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, Florida and was mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side Music (SEPULTURA, SUFFOCATION, UNEARTH) in New Windsor, New York.”

KRISIUN: “KRISIUN will enter Stage One Studios in Bühne, Germany in May to begin recording its eighth full-length album for a fall release via Century Media Records. The CD will once again be produced by Andy Classen, who previously worked with the band on the Conquerors Of Armageddon (1999), AssasiNation (2005) and Southern Storm (2008) releases.”

MACHINE HEAD: “San Francisco Bay Area metallers MACHINE HEAD will enter GREEN DAY‘s Jingletown Studios in Oakland, California this Saturday, April 16 to begin recording their as-yet-untitled seventh album for a late summer release via Roadrunner Records.”

MALIGNO: “Mexican doom rockers MALIGNO will release their third album, The Funeral Domine, in May. The CD was recorded by MALIGNO at La Nave studios in Monterrey, Mexico and was mixed at 7hertz Studios in Los Angeles, California with American producer/engineer Billy Anderson (MELVINS, NEUROSIS, CATHEDRAL, SLEEP). The effort was mastered by Alan Douches at West West Side Music (CONVERGE,HATEBREED, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN) in New Windsor, New York. The Funeral Domine features collaborations with the acclaimed Mexican guitar duo RODRIGO Y GABRIELA and TESTAMENT guitar legend Alex Skolnick.”

CHRISTIAN MUENZNER: “Guitarist Christian Muenzner (OBSCURA) has revealed the cover artwork and track listing for his upcoming, all-instrumental solo album, Timewarp. The CD features Hannes Grossmann (OBSCURA, BLOTTED SCIENCE) on drums and Daniel Galmarini (MERCURYFALLING) on keyboards, with bass duties split between Steve DiGiorgio (DEATH, SADUS, ex-TESTAMENT, ex-ICED EARTH) and Jacob Schmidt (DEFEATED SANITY). Due by the end of April, it features guest appearances by Shrapnel recording artists Derek Taylor, Per Nilsson (SCAR SYMMETRY, KAIPA), Ryan Knight (THE BLACK DAHLIAMURDER, ex-ARSIS), Bob Katsionis (FIREWIND) and Alex Guth (STORMWARRIOR).”

HIDEOUS DIVINITY: “Italian death metallers HIDEUOS DIVINITY have inked a multi-album deal with Unique Leader Records. The band’s debut album, Obeisance Rising, will be released in June. The CD was recorded at the renowned 16th Cellar Studios by mastermind Stefano “Saul” Morabito, the man who has turned the knobs on Italy’s most acclaimed extreme productions. The lyrical concept is based on John Carpenter‘s immortal masterstroke “They Live”.

INFESTUS: “German black metal heathens INFESTUS will release their new album,“E x | I s t”, on May 19 in North America (one day earlier internationally) via Debemur Morti Productions.”

MY DYING BRIDE: “2010 marked the 20th anniversary of U.K. doom metal legends MY DYING BRIDE. To commemorate two decades of doom and gloom from the elite British act, the band embarked upon a special project to re-work familiar melodies and themes from its extensive catalogue into long, flowing symphonic compositions, incorporating new vocals and passages from vocalist, Aaron Stainthorpe. These arrangements have been brought to life in co-operation with keyboard maestro Johnny Maudling (of BAL-SAGOTH fame), as well as a clutch of talented classical musicians, and shared vocals courtesy of professional opera singer Lucie Roche. The collection — titled “Evinta” — will be released on May 31 via Peaceville Records as a two-disc set and deluxe three-disc edition with 64-page book inspired by MY DYING BRIDE’s illustrious recordings of the past two decades.”

NECROPHAGIA: “Legendary gore metal pioneers NECROPHAGIA will release their new album, Deathtrip 69, on May 17 (one day earlier internationally) via Season Of Mist. The band’s fifth official full-length CD, which features guest appearances by Maniac (SKITLIV, ex-MAYHEM) and Casey Chaos (AMEN), was recorded at Last House On The Left Studios in Ohiowith vocalist Killjoy and guitarist Boris Randall handling production duties. The cover concept and title track are based on the “Manson family” ordeal of the late 1960s.”

NOCTEM: “Spanish black/death metallers NOCTEM will release their sophomore album, Oblivion, on June 13 via Rising Records. A “signed limited tour edition” of the CD will be made available in Spain on May 24.”

ORIGIN: “American technical death metal innovators ORIGIN will release their new album, Entity, on June 7 in North America and June 10 in Europe via Nuclear Blast Records.”

POISONBLACK: “POISONBLACK — the Finnish band featuring former SENTENCED frontman Ville Laihiala — will release its fifth album, now titled Drive (working title was “Lead & Roll Vol. 5″), in Scandinavia on April 27 via Hype Records. The CD was recorded at Antfarm Studio in Århus, Denmark with producer Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, MOONSPELL, DARK TRANQUILLITY, GOREFEST).”

QUEENSRŸCHE: “Seattle progressive rockers QUEENSRŸCHE will release their twelfth studio album, Dedicated To Chaos, on June 28 in North America via Loud & Proud Records, a Roadrunner Records imprint focusing on established artists. The band is currently planning a tour in support of the new opus, which was recorded in the group’s hometown and produced by Kelly Gray.”

REVOCATION: “REVOCATION has recently completed work on their brand new album titled Chaos of Forms. The band recorded Chaos of Forms at Damage Studios in Southbridge, Massachusetts with engineer Pete Rutcho. The follow-up to the band’s break-through Relapse debut Existence Is Futile will feature 12 new tracks totaling a little over 45 minutes in length. An August 2011 release date is expected with additional album information to be posted soon.”

SCAR SYMMETRY: “The Unseen Empire, the new album from Swedish progressive melodic death metallers SCAR SYMMETRY, will be released on April 15 in Europe and May 17 in North America via Nuclear Blast Records.”

SUICIDE SILENCE: “California deathcore masters SUICIDE SILENCE have set The Black Crown as the title of their new album, tentatively due in July via Century Media Records. The CD was recorded with heavyweight producer Steve Evetts (THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, EVERY TIME I DIE, HATEBREED) and will feature the following songtitles, among others: “Human Violence”, “Cancerous Skies” and “Fuck Everything”.

SUPREME PAIN: “Dutch brutal death metallers SUPREME PAIN, who feature in their ranks members of SINISTER, CONSOLATION, PUTREFIED and FONDLECORPSE, have inked a deal with Massacre Records. The band’s third album, Divine Incarnation was recorded at Soundlodge Studiosin Leer, Germany with producer Jörg Uken and is scheduled for release on May 27. According to the group, the album will contain “nine blasting death metal tracks with an evil and twisted atmosphere.”"

SYBREED: “Swiss metallers SYBREED have recorded a new song called “Challenger”, which will be released for download on April 23 exclusively on iTunes. The track will be enhanced with three “ass-kicking” remixes from BAK XIII, Voicians and Drop. The Challenger EP is a standalone release, meant to serve as a sneak preview of the “catchy” kind of material SYBREED is working on for its next CD, tentatively due in the spring of 2012. ”

TRAPPED UNDER ICE: “Baltimore, MD hardcore band Trapped Under Ice will enter the studio in June to begin recording a new full-length titled Big Kiss Goodnight. The effort will be produced by Chad Gilbert (of New Found Glory) and engineered by Paul Miner (Death By Stereo, Terror). A late-fall release via Reaper Records is planned.”

UNEARTH: “US metallers Unearth have revealed their upcoming new album will be titled Darkness In The Light. Darkness In The Light is due for a Summer-2011 release via Metal Blade Records. The album was recorded at Zing Studios in Massachusetts, US with producer Adam Dutkiewicz (Killswitch Engage guitarist).”

VADER: “Polish extreme metal veterans VADER entered Hertz Studio in Bialystok, Poland last month to begin recording their new album,Welcome To The Morbid Reich. The band is laying down a total of 12 songs for the CD, which will be mixed and mastered in May for a tentative late 2011 release.”

VOIVOD: “Canadian metal innovators VOIVOD will release a new live album, Warriors Of Ice, in the U.S. on June 21 via Sonic Unyon Metal. The CD, which can already be purchased digitally, will be made available in Canada on June 17 through Indica Records.”

YGGDRASIL: “Swedish folk metal masters YGGDRASIL will release their new album,Irrbloss (English translation: “Will-o-wisps”) on April 25 via Grand Master Music. The long-awaited follow up to 2008′s Vedergällning was recorded, mixed and mastered at Grand Master Audio in Sweden.”

The next time your grandma asks you, “honey, what does black ‘n roll, NOLA-style, sound like?”, you can tell her it sounds like this:

(and this is Goatwhore, in a high-quality video of the band performing “In the Narrow Confines of Defilement”, live in Denver on November 10; more videos from this show are available here)

UK’s Telegraph reports this morning about an article written by the Rev. Rachel Mann, an Anglican priest at St. Nicholas church in Burnage, England, in a publication called Church Times. It’s about metal, and it’s probably not what you would expect from a priest. Granted, our impression is that the Anglican church is somewhat more tolerant and somewhat less judgmental than many institutional forms of religion, but still, Rev Rachel’s article is a refreshing change of pace.

It’s also humorous, in a guileless, probably unintentional way. It’s also a tad condescending. And it doesn’t go far enough.

Nevertheless, we thought it was worth re-printing the Telegraph piece, along with our own running commentary, and of course some musical accompaniment. We also invite you to comment, because we have a feeling this will inspire some thoughts — so don’t keep ‘em to yourselves.

Christians could learn a lot about life from heavy metal, says cleric

By Martin Beckford, Religious Affairs Correspondent
Published: 7:00AM BST 31 Aug 2010

The Rev Rachel Mann claims that the much-maligned form of music demonstrates the “liberative theology of darkness”, allowing its tattooed and pierced fans to be more “relaxed and fun” by acknowledging the worst in human nature. She says that by contrast, churchgoers can appear too sincere and take themselves too seriously.

This is a defense of metal from an unusual quarter — not that we feel metal needs to be defended, by anyone, especially priests. Sure, sometimes it’s frustrating to hear people who don’t know the first thing about metal condemn it, but usually that frustrated feeling passes quickly, because, basically, we don’t give a fuck what non-metalheads think about our music. On the other hand, we’re not sure we agree with Rev Rachel’s defense.  (more of the Rev’s thoughts, and ours, after the jump . . .)

Does metal “acknowledge the worst in human nature”? I guess it depends on what she means. If she means that metal often expresses outrage about the worst in human nature, I’d agree. If she means that metal itself is an expression of the worst in human nature, I couldn’t disagree more.

Are metalheads “relaxed and fun”? Well, some are. And some are nasty, pissed-off pieces of shit, just like many non-metalheads. Does listening to metal and being part of the scene make you “relaxed and fun”? No, it ain’t that easy. If only it were.

The priest admits that many will be “concerned” about metal lyrics praising Satan and mocking Christianity, but insists it is just a form of “play-acting”.

Miss Mann, priest-in-charge of St Nicholas’s, Burnage, writes in this week’s Church Times: “Since Black Sabbath effectively created it in 1969 by using the dissonant sound of the medieval ‘Devil’s chord’, heavy metal has been cast as dumb, crass, and on, occasions satanic; music hardly fit for intelligent debate, led alone theological reflection.

“And yet, as both priest and metal musician and fan, it strikes me that the Church, especially at this agonized time, has a serious gospel lesson to learn from this darkest and heaviest music.”
Miss Mann says that heavy metal songs, characterized by distorted guitar sounds, “intense” beats and “muscular” vocals, are “unafraid to deal with death, violence and destruction”.

“Unafraid to deal with death, violence and destruction”? Yeah, you could definitely say that. Can’t wait to see what “gospel lesson” she has in mind.

Its “predominantly male and white” fans “generally like tattoos and piercings” but are “graceful, welcoming and gentle”.

“The music’s willingness to deal with nihilistic and, on occasion, extremely unpleasant subjects seems to offer its fans a space to accept others in a way that shames many Christians.
“Metal’s refusal to repress the bleak and violent truths of human nature liberates its fans to be more relaxed and fun people”.

“Graceful, welcoming and gentle” probably overstates the case, but I’m beginning to get where she’s coming from. We definitely want other people to give us space to be who and what we want to be, which usually is something different from the norms of society at large. But metalheads can also be pretty fucking judgmental, even about kinds of metal they don’t like. The “tattoos and piercings” thing is also a bit of a stereotype. I’ve got lots of tats, but I know lots of metalheads who have neither ink nor piercings.

I guess the “gospel lesson” she wants to draw from metal is to be less judgmental and more accepting of other people. Can’t disagree with that lesson. Problem is, religion itself (of all stripes) is the root cause of all sorts of destructive intolerance. The problem runs a lot deeper than getting your panties in a bunch over Slayer.

She goes on to claim that “metal has no fear of human darkness” and while some Christians are similarly unafraid, “many are yet to discover its potential as a place of integration”.

Miss Mann quotes lyrics by the famous thrash metal band Slayer that describe Christianity as an “abortion” and state: “I’ll take the devil any day, hail Satan.” But she claims: “Much of metal’s fascination with Satan or evil is play-acting, driven by a desire to shock. Metal invites Christianity to be less afraid of wildness and the ridiculous.”

Putting aside certain Norwegian black-metal artists, she’s probably right, for the most part, about the play-acting thing. As for that last sentence, what do you think? I wish people in general were less afraid of things they don’t understand, but mainly I wish they would just stay the fuck out of the lives of people who don’t subscribe to their beliefs.

She says metal festivals such as Sonisphere, where she saw Iron Maiden play last month, are modern versions of the Feast of Fools held in England in the middle ages, where “excess and anarchy” were allowed for a day.

Miss Mann says she worries that Anglicans have made their faith “too reasonable and ordered” rather than passionate.

“I am not suggesting that as Christians we have all had a humour bypass, but we are inclined to take ourselves too seriously even when we are having fun.”

Maybe Rev Rachel is right about Anglicans. I wouldn’t know. But here in the U.S., the problem with many Bible-thumpers is that they’re too fucking passionate. I’d be quite happy if they were more reasonable and ordered. I’d be even happier if they’d keep their opinions to themselves.

Rev Rachel seems like a good-hearted person, and I’m not blaming her a bit for defending metal or for trying to get Anglicans (or Christians generally) to chill out when it comes to extreme music and metalheads. She also seems to recognize that music which is liberating is a good thing.

But I have a feeling her words will fall on a lot of deaf ears, and lots of those ears have been deafened precisely by too much faith-based certainty and intolerance.

Liberation requires more than listening to liberating music, and unfortunately, teaching people to think for themselves isn’t on the curriculum of most churches, Anglican or otherwise.

Here’s your musical accompaniment for this rant.

Goatwhore: Carving Out the Eyes of God

Rotting Christ: Enuma Elish

Saturday mornings have to be the least memorable mornings of the week. If you remember anything about Saturday mornings, it’s usually just the fallout of whatever you did on Friday night, and the fallout usually isn’t worth remembering. In fact, sometimes all you want to do is forget.

If you’re like me on a Saturday morning, your ass is dragging and your brain feels like it’s swimming through a pool of rapidly cooling tar. All you want is to be left alone until you recover your senses in the fullness of time.

Well, fuck that shit. You may think that’s what you need, but your friends here at NCS are trained medical professionals, and we know better. We have a prescription for what ails you on this Saturday morning. We think what you need is the aural equivalent of a stun gun to the back of the head. Y’know, something that will jolt you into the world of the living.

Of course, if you really outdid yourself partying last night, this prescription could seriously fuck you up. That’s why we’re taking a page from the playbook of the pharmaceutical companies that run those obnoxious TV ads for drugs you don’t need: We’re giving you a warning:

In rare cases, people who listen to the music you’re about to hear on a Saturday morning will bleed from the ears and nose, develop uncontrollable convulsions, experience explosive diarrhea, and/or fall into irreversible comas. If you’re pregnant, listening to this music may lead to spontaneous abortions or cause your child to come into the world with its eyes permanently crossed. Do not listen to this music while driving, or while sitting, standing up, or laying down. If you are in the middle of a vicious hangover, you should induce vomiting now, in the privacy of your own bathroom, instead of risking a spew down the front of your shirt once the music begins.

By clicking past the jump to listen to the music that follows, you and your heirs and assigns agree to irrevocably release and hold harmless NO CLEAN SINGING from all resulting claims of damage, past, present, or future, whether currently known or unknown, anticipated or unanticipated, minor or fatal, and you assume all risk of paralysis, impotence, rectal bleeding, facial boils, hair loss, necrotizing fasciitis, seeping mouth ulcers, and chronic ventricular dysrhythmia.

Okay, now that we’ve got the legalese out of the way, we can proceed to dispense our medication — immersion in bass drops and apocalyptic havoc.

This is actually a sequential course of medication, beginning with the immersed part.

IMMERSED

Immersed is a band from Ottawa, Canada, that we checked out following a friend request from them on MySpace. That’s a photo of them at the top of this post. They have a debut album coming out on September 3 called In the Ire of Creation. Two songs from the album are streaming on their MySpace page. You can also hear those two songs on the widget we’ve embedded below.

The music reminds us of the almighty Fleshgod Apocalypse and the equally almighty Decapitated. It’s faster than a cheetah at dinnertime. It leaps like a hare with its ass on fire. If it don’t wake you the fuck up, then it’s time to call the morgue. We’re panting for the release of that album.

BASS DROPS

The second course of your treatment involves bass drops. In a previous post, we were confessing our love for them after getting hammered by All Shall Perish at the SUMMER SLAUGHTER tour last weekend. One of our readers (“Dan”) added a comment, explaining that those giant bass waves are called 808 drops because they used to be done with the Roland TR-808 drum machine, though the sound is now produced (as All Shall Perish did it) by triggering a sample on an electronic drum pad.

That sound has become a fixture of deathcore breakdowns, and some death-metal purists undoubtedly sniff haughtily (or more likely hock a loogie) at the use of it, but we sure dig it. And it seems like just the right follow-on to those Immersion tracks as a way of getting the blood pumping on an ass-dragging Saturday.

One of our NCS collaborators, Alexis, pointed us to Fear Factory’s “Shock” (from the 1998 album, Obsolete) as an early example of that 808 kick-drum effect in extreme metal, and Dan suggested a few other choice examples — “Meticulous Invagination” by Aborted and “Entombment of A Machine” by Job For A Cowboy. There’s tons more examples out there, but these three will do nicely. Click and drop:

Fear Factory: Shock

Aborted: Meticulous Invagination

Job For A Cowboy: Entombment Of A Machine

UPDATE:  If you want to explore bass drops a bit further, we’ve added something after the Goatwhore video.

APOCALYPTIC HAVOC

And for your third course of treatment, this song popped into our heads, because it’s just such a fucking awesome riff injection — evil and nasty and still as groovy as you could want. By the inimitable Goatwhore, of course.

It’s the final stun-gun shot to the dorsal part of your cerebrum. After you listen to this, you should now be fully alert and ready to face the day — or passed out on the floor in a pool of your own vomit.

Please send your co-pay to us promptly. We’ll bill your health insurance carrier for the balance of our fees. (Next Saturday morning, you can avoid these expenses by just moistening your finger and jamming it into a light socket.)

UPDATE: MORE BAAAASSSSSSS DROPS

Go on, admit it. You didn’t get enough bass-drop action from those three songs we offered up above. So, courtesy of our Dutch blog brother Niek at Death Metal Baboon, we have this video, which stitches together just the bass-drop portion of dozens of extreme metal songs. It’s heavy on the deathcore, but also includes choice excerpts from the likes of Hour of Penance, Strapping Young Lad, and even that Fear Factory song we featured up above.

Find a machine with a sub-woofer and crank it up.