Jun 172016
 

Mr. Trash Wheel-Baltimore

 

(DGR takes over round-up duties today, featuring commentary and a wide array of recent song, video, and album streams. This would have been posted much earlier in the week if our editor weren’t so lame.)

If you’ve been reading the site recently you’ve no doubt noticed that quite a few of us shirked work and decided instead to go out to Maryland for the Maryland Deathfest shindig that the internet likes to talk so much about. However, the internet doesn’t take time off like we do and quite a bit of stuff came out during that period that despite our best efforts slipped right by us.

On top of that, since we’ve been playing catch-up for the last two weeks, a veritable pile of new music landed on top of us as well. And so I find myself opening my great maw wide in order to capture as much of it as possible — as well as using this as an opportunity to share some stuff that flew right past us long before we had MDF as an excuse for being terrible people.

Contained in this here news roundup is a veritable smorgasboard of new music, some of which came to us by the bands themselves and other times was discovered whilst I was spinning in circles on the internet. Either way, there’s a ton of stuff what floated down the river here — only to be captured by my net/boat/if only there was some sort of metaphor or object I could compare my news capturing ability to… ah well, maybe next time. Let’s get on with it. Continue reading »

Jun 062016
 

Nails-You Will Never Be One of Us

 

(Wil Cifer reviews the new album by Nails.)

Over the years trends in metal come and go, leading up into 2016 when grindcore and powerviolence seemed poised to break through into the metal mainstream. What Weekend Nachos failed to deliver is now jackhammered into your face by this trio from California, who possess a guitar tone as nasty as the instrument can achieve while still being able to create riffs capable of holding together actual songs. For the purpose of this review, the word “song” is used to refer to sharp bursts of rage.

Grindcore has never been my forte, as the genre’s range of dynamic expression sonically feels like coloring with only the red crayon of anger. While this might limit what many bands do, Nails are savants at coloring with this crayon so well that your only choice is to hold on for the jolting ride. Continue reading »

May 192016
 

Inquisition-Bloodshed Across

Here are a quartet of things I saw and heard over the last 24 hours that I thought might peak your interest as they did mine.

INQUISITION

Yesterday Season of Mist revealed details about the new album by Seattle-based Inquisition as well as a new song. The name of the album is Bloodshed Across The Empyrean Altar Beyond The Celestial Zenith, it includes 13 tracks, and it will be released on August 26. Here’s a statement about the album by guitarist/vocalist Dagon: Continue reading »

Feb 182013
 

Hey, happy fucking Monday to all you brain-dead metal heads. Here’s a big collection of new music and news that I came across at the start of my bleary-eyed morning today.

LOST SOCIETY

I’ve confessed before that straight-up old-school thrash is not among the metal genres that are nearest and dearest to my black heart. In addition, I’ve become even more numb due to the avalanche of re-thrash releases by many new bands who all sound alike to me. But with that said, I’m digging the shit out of a new song clip that premiered today by a Finnish band named Lost Society.

The song title alone hooked me: “Braindead Metal Head”. And then the music Finnish-ed me off. It’s a jet-fueled, out-of-control thrash rocket with multiple warheads. The riffing is catchy as fuck, the vocals are pleasingly drunk on the high energy, and the obligatory guitar solo is a first-class trip to shred city. This is speed metal I can get behind.

The video strings together words of high praise by the likes of Mille Petrozza (Kreator), Schmier (Destruction), Andreas Kisser (Sepultura), Craig Locicero (Forbidden), and Kragen Lum (Heathen), and they might know what they’re talking about. Continue reading »

Mar 262011
 

Okay, I’m fully awake now. I was getting there rapidly after listening to that new song from Tombs (see immediately previous post today). And then I saw this new video from California’s Nails, and that brought me to a state of full alertness, or at least as alert as I ever get, which come to think of it is only about as alert as a pupa in a chrysalis.

Where was I?  Oh yeah, the new video from Nails. It’s for the song called “Conform/Scum Will Rise” from their killer album Unsilent Death on Southern Lord. It’s about a minute-and-a-half of rancid grindcore with a nice little change of pace at the end. It will tear the skin from your face. What a nice way to wake up (thank you Metal Injection).

Feb 162011
 

Here at NCS, we’re perfectly happy to stay hunkered down in our metal bunker and let the rest of the world do what it will, completely unknown to our ignorant but happy selves. As long as we’ve got a steady flow of metal to satisfy our meager desires, we don’t really need or want intrusions from “the real world”. But, every week or two, in a feeble effort to provide you some variety, we browse the “hard news” (while stifling an almost constant gag reflex), hoping to find items that make us think, “that’s fucking metal!”, even though it’s not music.

Today, we have an item about an overlooked gift idea that makes so much sense when you think about it — roaches. Plus we’ve got a story about an innovative use for crematorium heat and an example of what can go wrong if you get careless with a nail gun (and we couldn’t resist adding some musical accompaniment for that last item). And, at no extra charge, we’re including our own tasteless commentary on each of these items. Let’s get started!

ITEM ONE

I’ve never been to the Bronx Zoo, though I have been to The Bronx. Did you know that in addition to being one of New York City’s five boroughs, The Bronx is also a separate county, with its own flag (shown to the right) and its own Latin motto, which translates to “Do not give way to evil”? Did you know that The Bronx was named after The Bronx River, which was itself named after Jonas Bronck, an early settler from Småland, Sweden whose land bordered the river on the east (“Bronck’s River”)?

Where was I?  Oh yeah, The Bronx Zoo. Did you know The Bronx Zoo is home to a colony of Madagascar hissing cockroaches? Did you hear about the zoo’s promotional Valentine’s Day idea? Well, you’re about to.  (after the jump . . .) Continue reading »