TOURISM: “END OF DISCLOSURE” TOUR ANNOUNCED — WITH HYPOCRISY, ABORTED, ARSIS, STARKILL, AND AUTUMN’S END

 Metal News  7 Responses »
Feb 272013
 

The last 24 hours have turned out to be full of tour announcements. I collected details about three new ones that appealed to me in an earlier post today, and I just saw another one that elevated my pulse rate.

This North American jaunt is headlined by Sweden’s Hypocrisy in support of their forthcoming album End of Disclosure (which we’ve written about before). That’s sweet news, but it gets a whole lot sweeter when you take a look at the other bands alongside them: Krisiun, Aborted, and Arsis! 

In addition, Starkill (who I’ve featured before at NCS) and Autumn’s End will appear on selected dates.

The schedule is after the jump.  You’ll be relieved to know that the tour is coming to Seattle and that I’ll be able to see it. I know that wil brighten your day. Continue reading »

LONG DISTANCE CALLING – “THE FLOOD INSIDE” ALBUM STREAM

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  8 Responses »
Feb 272013
 

 

(DGR provides some thoughts about the band Long Distance Calling as a prelude to their new album, which has recently become available for streaming.)

This one is more of a personal share because I know for a fact that Long Distance Calling probably don’t line up with much of this site’s stated ethos (although to be fair, we’ve had to explain the No Clean Singing thing being like the speed limit – a suggestion) but Long Distance Calling are a really good group of musicians who haven’t failed me yet when it has come to making enjoyable music.

I first got into these guys with 2006’s Avoid The Light – which saw Jonas Renske of Katatonia performing on the song “The Nearing Grave” —  and found out that the rest of their disc was entirely instrumental, something I had only known groups like Scale The Summit to do. It was a similar atmospheric, progressive approach but seemed less reliant on atmosphere and more on melody.

I plowed through the group’s back catalog and then enjoyed the hell out of their self-titled disc when it hit back in 2011. Now we find ourselves in the opening of 2013 and the group are releasing a new album entitled The Flood Inside, and there have been some big changes. Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (Part 2): WITHIN THE RUINS, AOSOTH, AND NEAERA

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  11 Responses »
Feb 272013
 

This is Part 2 of a round-up of new things I saw and heard last night that I thought were worth sharing. Part 1 can be found here.

WITHIN RUINS

As the years have rolled on my interest in deathcore has waned, but I haven’t completely lost the taste for it. Within the Ruins (from Westfield, Mass.) is one of the bands in this genre who have maintained my interest, and from what I’ve heard of their new album Elite (released on Feb 26 by eOne Music), I’m still interested.

Yesterday the band premiered a music video for one of the new album’s tracks, “Feeding Frenzy”. The song brings high-caliber pneumatic thrusting, bestial hardcore vox, and a bunch of instrumental flourishes that remind me of a carnival atmosphere.

And the video (directed by Kevin J. Custer) is a complete hoot to watch. I’ve never been to a dinner party like this one, and I honestly can’t say that I worked up an appetite watching it. But I do pronounce it egggzelent. Here ya go: Continue reading »

SEEN AND HEARD (Part 1): THE DEATH TO ALL TOUR, THE HATE ETERNAL AND FEAR FACTORY TOUR, THE KVELERTAK-CANCER BATS-BLACK TUSK TOUR, DEAFHEAVEN, and GOD SEED

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  10 Responses »
Feb 272013
 

As previously reported, your humble editor’s blog time is being squeezed mercilessly by the old fuckin’ day job. There is no relief in sight yet. The consequence is that I can’t spend as much time as usual checking out new music and news. But I did make a quick survey of my typical sources last night and saw and heard many things of interest. Details about 3 new tours and 2 cool live videos are in this post, and I’ll have more goodies in a second one later today.

DEATH TO ALL TOUR 2013

In Tourism news I saw the following report on Metal Injection: The Death To All tour, which pays tribute to the late Chuck Shuldiner is returning for another run in 2013. The tour had its first run last year and featured an all-star lineup of former members of Death, “but was later plagued with drama surrounding the financials of the event, with some musicians not getting paid by one of the promoters.”

Unlike last year, the 2013 tour will feature one line-up, the Human–era lineup consisting of guitarist Paul Masvidal, bassist Steve DiGiorgio, and drummer Sean Reinert. In addition, Metal Sucks is reporting that Max Phelps, Masvidal and Reinert’s bandmate in the most recent line-up of Cynic, will be providing the vocals. The tour will focus on Human, and the three Death albums that came before it, Scream Bloody Gore, Leprosy, and Spiritual Healing. Hell yes. Continue reading »

BLOG SPOTLIGHT: METAL BAND ART AND POETRY OF SUBCULTURE

 Metal News  14 Responses »
Feb 262013
 

(Dictionary.com)

(Our ardent supporter and occasional guest contributor Utmu wants to introduce you to two other blogs. Surprisingly, our feelings are not hurt.)

I suppose you might be aware of the existence of websites often called metal blogs. There are a few reasons I think you would be. For example, you’re on a metal blog right now. But I have a couple of blogs I want to talk about because they’re doing something really cool; they are called Metal Band Art and Poetry of Subculture. One focuses on artwork related to heavy metal (as if you couldn’t tell), and the other reflects on metal subculture and music. Continue reading »

THE REINVENTION OF NINE INCH NAILS — AND BIG TOUR PLANS FOR 2013 AND BEYOND

 Metal News  6 Responses »
Feb 252013
 

(photo by Rob Sheridan)

This morning, Pitchfork reported some very good news for fans of Trent Reznor and Nine Inch Nails: Reznor is “reinventing” NIN from the ground up, with a new lineup that will include Reznor, Eric Avery of Jane’s Addiction, Adrian Belew of King Crimson, and Josh Eustis of Telefon Tel Aviv, as well as previous NIN collaborators Alessandro Cortini and Ilan Rubin. The purpose of this reinvention is to mount a campaign of extensive touring later this year and extending into 2013.

Here is Reznor’s recently released statement:

“Nine Inch Nails are touring this year.

I was working with Adrian Belew on some musical ideas, which led to some discussion on performing, which led to some beard-scratching, which (many steps later) led to the decision to re-think the idea of what Nine Inch Nails could be, and the idea of playing a show. Calls were made to some friends, lots of new ideas were discussed, and a show was booked – which led to another, which somehow led to a lot of shows. Continue reading »

DARK DESCENT SHIFTS GEARS ON BANDCAMP

 Metal News  24 Responses »
Feb 252013
 

Many of you are already quite familiar with Dark Descent Records. For those who aren’t, it’s a small independent label based in Colorado Springs, Colorado. It specializes in death, black, and doom metal — music that’s dark as night and dangerous as a mine field.

I wish I had time to dive deeply into every one of their releases, because the ones I’ve heard have been dependably lethal.

Dark Descent have had a Bandcamp site for some amount of time, but until recently I’m pretty sure they’ve only used the site to stream music, with actual sales limited to physical media. However, NCS supporter Vonlughlio alerted me to the fact that over the weekend Dark Descent began offering some of their releases for download on Bandcamp — and they’ve been adding new albums to their Bandcamp page, with more to come this week.

Last night Dark Descent also announced the creation of a “sub imprint” named Unspeakable Axe, which will focus on “bands influenced by and existing in the same indefinable territory as some of the founders of extreme metal – bands like Possessed, early Sepultura, and Hellhammer – as well as the ones that deliberately blurred the lines after they were already established, like Messiah, Merciless, Deceased…, Varathron, Mortuary Drape, and others.” Continue reading »

THIS AND THAT: PRISTINA, AETERNUS, ZETALAMBMARY, AND VEKTOR

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  4 Responses »
Feb 242013
 

Here are a few things I saw and heard this morning. I hope you enjoy them. And by “enjoy” I mean “whimper fearfully and moan miserably”.

PRISTINA

I was bowled over by this Connectuicut band’s 2010 debut album, The Drought (Ov Salt and Sorrow), and I wasn’t the only one. It has received plenty of attention and critical praise.  You can peruse my review of the album here, and check out a revealing interview of Pristina’s mainman Brendan Duff by using this link.

I have really been looking forward to Pristina’s second album, Hopeless•Godless, which is now scheduled for release on February 26 through The Path Less Traveled Records. I’ve made my way through it once . . . but needed time to recover and hear it again before attempting to make notes for a review. It’s just utterly crushing and searing. I felt like a raw steak that had been tenderized with a mallet and then char-broiled over a hot open flame. Continue reading »

ENTHRONED – LONDON, MARCH 2ND – WITH SOME OF THE CRÈME DE LA CRÈME OF THE UK UNDERGROUND BLACK/DEATH METAL SCENE

 Metal News  2 Responses »
Feb 242013
 

(Andy Synn wishes to bring a show to your attention.)

So Islander’s been kind enough to let me use NCS for more of my own nefarious purposes, in this case bringing some attention to a big show we have down in London next week.

Now I’m not sure how many of our readers are UK-based, nor how many of you crazy foreign-types have friends over here in this green and pleasant land, but if you are/do, then perhaps you’ll consider coming along and witnessing nine of the UK’s finest black and death metal bands tear up the stage at The Electrowerkz at an event headlined by Belgium’s finest purveyors of obsidian majesty, Enthroned.

That being the case, I thought it would be prudent to introduce you all to the various bands performing, so you can pick and choose your own favourites.

Aeon Promotions in association with Nazgul Agency presents… Continue reading »

ROUND-UP: ROTTING CHRIST, HYPOCRISY, TRAIL OF TEARS, VHÖL

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  3 Responses »
Feb 232013
 

When it comes to music debuts and hot breaking news, Friday’s aren’t usually very eventful. But yesterday was an exception. I posted a lot of new things yesterday as they were happening, but still didn’t cover everything, due to day-job bullshit. Today I’m catching up, with a collection of more sweet new items.

ROTTING CHRIST

These Greek heavyweights have been rolling out many new songs from their new album Kata Ton Daimona Eaytoy, which Season Of Mist will be releasing next week. But yesterday, the entire album became available for streaming on several sites, including Metal Hammer.

I’m completely sold on this album, though I’ve been holding fire on explaining why because we do have a review in the works. I will once again merely say that you should hear this album. And now you can — via the player I’ve embedded right after the jump. Continue reading »

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