DYING FETUS COVERS NAPALM DEATH, AND THE RE-ISSUE OF DEATH’S “HUMAN” IS STREAMING

 Metal News, RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  11 Responses »
Jul 062011
 

Many death metal and grindcore bands have got great names, the kind of names that are fun to trot out when a non-metalhead asks you what kind of music you listen to, just to see the resulting facial expressions. Dying Fetus and Napalm Death are among the names I like to use. Of course, it helps that I actually really like both bands.

Death metal and grindcore song names are good for this purpose, too — like “Unchallenged Hate”. Now, if a non-metalhead asks you what you’ve been listening to today, you can tell them: Dying Fetus’s cover of Napalm Death’s “Unchallenged Hate” — because that’s what we’ve got for you in this post. It was just put up for streaming by Metal Hammer, via Muzu.tv, and because the player is embeddable, we’ve got it for you after the jump.

This is the second Dying Fetus cover we’ve featured, the first one being their cover of “Unleashed Upon Mankind” by Bolt Thrower (here). Both songs are from Dying Fetus’ cover album, History Repeats…, which will be released by Relapse on July 19 in NorthAm and internationally on July 25.

And in other news, the re-issue of Death’s Human album (which we covered here) is now streaming in full — all 49 tracks. The link for that is also after the jump. Continue reading »

“THAT’S METAL!” – BUT IT’S NOT MUSIC (NO. 40)

 That's Metal -- But It's Not Music  11 Responses »
Jul 062011
 

Here we go with our latest installment of THAT’S METAL! — where we gather together photos, videos, and news about items that made us think, “Fuck, that’s metal!”, even though they’re not music. We have five items for today. Ready, set, GO!

ITEM ONE (THE EMISSARY OF CTHULHU)

I woke up this morning and staggered outside to make sure the lorises hadn’t taken over the NCS compound while I was sleeping, and what should greet my bloodshot eyes but a pair of giant moths that looked like they’d entered our world from another dimension. One of these things would have made me jump out of my shorts. Seeing two of them convinced me that time is running out and the Elder Gods are about to return and lay waste to our world. Sheeeeit.

I took the photo above of one of the moths, and a photo of the second one is after the jump. Both of the mosts are about 3 1/2 inches in length. Surely we have an entomologist or two out there who can tell us what these things are. Yeah, right.

And if you think these fuckers are strange, wait ’til you see the disgusting creature featured in Item Two. Continue reading »

THE SYNN REPORT, PART 13: ELITE

 THE SYNN REPORT  10 Responses »
Jul 062011
 

(Andy Synn is back with his lucky 13th SYNN REPORT.)

Norway’s Elite have a lot to live up to. With their chosen moniker, they have set themselves up to be seen either as foolish pretenders to black metal’s mystic might or as battle-hardened warriors whose very skill with their chosen muse makes them truly worthy of the title they have chosen.

Just as challenging, no matter their own prowess, is the fact that their sound treads ground already bloodied by the storms and sacrifices of some of their country’s greatest warriors. This battlefield was once walked by giants such as Immortal, Enslaved and Emperor, each of whom left blood and chaos in their wake, before moving on to new worlds to sow their seeds yet further.

For Elite, however, there is no thought of following Immortal into the halls of myth and legend, no desire to lose themselves in eldritch contemplation and progression like their forebears Enslaved, no sense of legacy and majesty that might make them challenge the rule of the Emperor. No, Elite are happy only on the battlefield itself, running rampant over their opponents and challenging the mightiest of warriors to single combat, for death or for glory.

Where their forebears have abandoned the battle, moving further away from the bleakness and blackness of occult warfare, Elite remain yet upon the field, collecting the weapons and the bones of the fallen, paying tribute to the lost and the damned, honing their skills over and over to perfection. Their ambition is not to carve out a kingdom for themselves as their ancestors did, but to prove themselves in combat, to face all challengers and crush them with metallic power and primal ferocity. This is not a lack of ambition, merely a different form of it, a form where bloodshed and brotherhood remain more important than majesty and acclaim. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

BILL BAILEY’S MESSAGE TO METALLICA

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  13 Responses »
Jul 052011
 

UK musical comedian Bill Bailey recorded this special message to Metallica during his rehearsals for Sonisphere UK at Knebworth. It made me horn-y:

NCS reader survey question for the day:

What is more metal: Bill Bailey’s performance or St. Anger? Please respond in the Comments.

And, after the jump, you can watch professionally filmed footage of Metallica’s July 3 performance at Ullevi stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden, which was originally broadcast on the Swedish TV channel SVT. Continue reading »

SUICIDE SILENCE: “THE BLACK CROWN”

 Album Reviews  25 Responses »
Jul 052011
 

(NCS writer BadWolf has a few thoughts about the new album from Suicide Silence.)

The Black Crown is absolutely Suicide Silence’s most enjoyable record, but it appeals in no way to the group’s traditionalist detractors, which is an asset. The band has absolutely no reason to kowtow: If they make a traditional DM record—which would amount to career suicide from a commercial standpoint—the same cadre of tunnel-vision morons would continue ripping them apart for their past, their taste in Justin Bieber haircuts, their love of neck tattoos.

Haters, acknowledge the progress Mick Lurch and co have made as songwriters in four years: Their debut, The Cleansing, was an overstuffed slop-bucket of random note runs pretending to be riffs; its saving grace is a series of youtube-approved sing-along breakdown-choruses.

Fast forward. Suicide Silence is now a full-blown pop metal band. This is an improvement—pop demands the cleanliness and simplicity they lacked. The redeeming quality SS had at the start was precisely what people hate them for; of course they capitalized on their strengths and reforged the aforementioned breakdowns into choruses and easy riffs.

In other words, Suicide Silence have come out of the closet as careerists. (more after the jump . . .) Continue reading »

HOLY SHIT! NEW FREE SONGS FROM VADER AND FLESHGOD APOCALYPSE

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  11 Responses »
Jul 042011
 

I shit you not. This has to be the mother of all happy coincidences.

Four days ago we featured a video update from Fleshgod Apocalypse in one of our posts as a teaser to their appearance on this year’s edition of the SUMMER SLAUGHTER tour, and included the news that the band intended to play new songs from their next album on the tour.

Then, the next day we featured a new video of Vader performing in Germany on June 25 and included the news that Nuclear Blast planned to begin streaming a new Vader song on July 15.

And now, Nuclear Blast Europe has just made new songs from each band available for free download! And finally, my slow-as-molasses wireless data card decided to speed up enough that I could actually download the two songs without waiting all day for it to finish. Both of them will blow the top of your head right off into the stratosphere.  (more after the jump, including streams of the songs and the download links . . .) Continue reading »

LARGE COJONES AND LOOSE WIRING

 Off Topic  8 Responses »
Jul 042011
 

No, I didn’t forget that it’s Independence Day. I’ve been without high-speed internet service for the last 36 hours, and of course there’s no fucking way it will get fixed on the 4th of July, so I’ve had to fall back on a data card on a different carrier, which is slower than a three-legged sloth and just randomly disconnects as if it can’t be bothered — which makes uploading and downloading tedious, and streaming is impossible.

Well, enough spoiled whining from me. Happy Fourth to all you motherfuckers! Hope all you Americans are enjoying your holiday. In honor of the occasion, I thought it might be worth remembering a bit of history.

Almost five years ago, I found myself in Philadelphia with some time to kill and I sought out the Christ Church Burial Ground because I wanted to see the grave of Ben Franklin — who, among many other things, was a signer of The Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution — and the grave of Commodore William Bainbridge, for whom the island where I live was named. Also, I like graveyards.

After prowling around the cemetery for an hour, I wandered into Christ Church itself, which was founded in 1695. It’s a relatively un-ostentatious building, but it’s steeped in history. It was the first parish of the Church of England in Pennsylvania, it was the birthplace of the American Episcopal Church, and the rector of the church gave the opening prayer to the first meeting of the Continental Congress in 1774. (more after the jump . . . and there will be metal . . .) Continue reading »

KRODA: “SCHWARZPFAD”

 Album Reviews  19 Responses »
Jul 042011
 

About two months ago, thanks to a laudatory Facebook post by Agalloch, I found out about a Ukrainian black-metal band called Kroda. They had just begun streaming a not-completely-final version of their fourth album, Schwarzpfad (“the black path”), for a limited time. I was completely enthralled by the music and had that stream on a nearly continuous loop for as long as it lasted.

Eventually, the stream ended, I began experiencing withdrawal symptoms, was admitted to a hospital for observation, was ultimately released, and was a broken man for weeks afterward until Schwarzpfad became available for unauthorized download at the end of May.

I’ve listened to a shitload of other music since then, but I continue returning to Schwarzpfad. It’s more than 50 minutes of music, but I’ve lost count of how many times it has kept me company. It’s way past time for me to repay Kroda for all that pleasure, and for much more to come, with a few words of heart-felt praise:

Schwarzpfad is without doubt one of the best albums I’ve heard this year and one of the most memorable black-metal albums I’ve ever heard — an immaculate marriage of beautiful, folk-influenced melodies, black ‘n’ roll strut, and bestial voraciousness. It’s a brilliantly conceived, complex work that yields something new with every listen. Highly recommended.

Okay, I wasn’t being completely honest when I said “few words”; there are more words after the jump, plus music, of course. Continue reading »

CYPHER: “TYRIAN MMVIII”

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  1 Response »
Jul 042011
 

Almost one month ago, NCS writer Israel Flanders reviewed a 2006 album he loved called Darkday Carnival from a Dutch band called Cypher. That album attracted quite a following when initially released, and the band started work on a follow-up album to be called Tyrian MMVII. They recorded three songs which became available for streaming on Cypher’s MySpace page. In Israel’s opinion, those songs were the foundation for what could have been “the best melodeath record released in the last 10 years”. And then all activity appeared to stop.

As a result of his review, Israel became acquainted with the main-man behind Cyper, Tobias Borra, who confirmed to Israel what fans of the band had suspected — that Cypher is no more. However, a new band is rising from those ashes. Tobias has been joined by Joost van der Graaf (bass) and Koen Herfst (drums) in the successor to Cypher. The new band is working on an album that, with good fortune, will see release before this year is over.

As for Tyrian MMVIII, Tobias explained to Israel that it was intended as a 3-song promo for a new Cypher album, and therefore may never see release. But Tobias provided us a copy, which we made available for download with Israel’s review. Now, thanks to Tobias, we’ve got something even better — a new download package that includes high-quality FLAC versions of the three promo songs, album art for Tyrian MMVII, and a tablature book for the three songs. All that is included in a file you can download from our own high-speed Fileburst account via . . .

THIS LINK

SCRAMBLED BRAINS FOR BREAKFAST! (QUARTER THE VILLAIN AND RXYZYXR)

 RANDOM FUCKING MUSIC  10 Responses »
Jul 032011
 

Time to get your tech-metal on. Pick your metaphor: A cocktail blender set to puree, with your brain in there along with the crushed ice; a centrifuge whipping around at max-speed, with your mushy grey matter stuffed into the tubes; a jet engine whining at full-power, with your head sucked into the front end like a wayward goose who couldn’t get out of the way.

Those will all do, but this morning I prefer a breakfast food metaphor: Whipping up your brain with a little milk into a nice froth and then scrambling the mix in a hot pan with some diced onions, chopped tomatoes, shredded cheese, and sliced jalapeños.  Yum yum!

You’ll have to supply the ingredients, but Quarter the Villain and RXYZYXR will supply the scrambling action via two music videos we’ve got for you.

QUARTER THE VILLAIN

We first encountered Florida’s Quarter the Villain last October through one of our MISCELLANY expeditions, and the song we featured back then was called “Frontier Justice”. And then just yesterday, I saw that QTV had uploaded an official video for the same song. So all I need to do here is repeat what I wrote before: “This is the soundtrack of daily life in the asylum. It’s got the over-the-borderline insanity of grind, coupled with mind-boggling technical picking, but anchored by a recurrent rhythmic theme executed expertly by the bass and drum lines.” And now we’ve got something pretty cool to watch while we listen to the tech-grind craziness. Continue reading »

 Older Entries  Newer Entries