Time surely plays a joke on us once the good weather hits – seems like the April edition of this column just went out, yet here it is at the end of May. As we get the last big “rush” of new releases Read more […]
Building up a North American fanbase is never easy, particularly for bands where the country isn’t your native land. It requires an almost constant touring to gain any sort of momentum or traction, Read more […]
While many veteran acts tend to latch on to one particular aspect of their sound and rely upon their foothold (and name) within the scene to sell album after album, some bands are a bit more adventurous. Read more […]
Whereas many bands, particularly in death metal, are looking towards the sky to find lyrical inspiration, there is a growing movement to look below. Now we aren’t talking about Hell of course, as that Read more […]
A band that has been rightfully generating a lot of buzz over the past few years is Leprous. Doubling as Ihsahn’s live band for a few years, it’s high time that the band is completely established Read more […]
In my youth, access to proper recording studios was an expensive endeavor – usually necessitating a wealthy band member (or relative) to shell out thousands of dollars for even a good sounding demo. Read more […]
If there’s one thing that many bands are trying to be in the here and now, it’s Swedish death metal. How many times have you run across a band that was trying to sound like Entombed, Dismember, At the Read more […]
Outsiders would think leaving a veteran power metal outfit at their breakthrough in terms of large theater headlining or main slots on festival bills is insane. To the ex-members of Sabaton though, they Read more […]
2015 brings the Norwegian gothic/symphonic metal act Sirenia to a comforting place as a band. Signing a new label deal with Napalm Records- the band’s original label for their first two albums At Sixes Read more […]
Formation: 2002 Location: El Salvador Style: Old school death/thrash Personnel: Carlos Basagoitia (Bass); Jorge Montesino (Guitar, Vocals); Rene Insane Vega (Guitar); Tulio Mata (Keyboards); Iosif Najarro Read more […]
Whatever the reason, we are seeing a groundswell of musicians digging back into the speed/true metal sound that developed in the 1980’s and putting their own take on things. Finland’s Ranger are another Read more […]
Sometimes the key factor towards success as a death metal band is to make sure your band has an identity that separates itself from the pack. Bands consistently use the topics of death, gore, and destruction Read more […]
Neo-classical oriented power metal with symphonic touches probably begins with Yngwie J. Malmsteen and his early efforts in Rising Force – but we know that there have been others that took that inspiration Read more […]
Funny how the months start to roll by once the chilly winter has found its way out of the picture. April ripped right through before you could say “April Showers” (though who among us actually says Read more […]
Formation: 2007 (as Trophallaxy) Location: Switzerland Style: Symphonic Melodic death metal with female vocals Personnel: Damien (bass); Theo (drums); Darryl (guitars); Joelle (vocals, cello); Jonathan Read more […]
Dead Rhetoric: You’ve voiced displeasure on Facebook regarding their post reaching policy as you gather likes and who actually gets to see your updates on a regular basis. With all the instant platforms Read more […]
Bold is the band willing to develop and execute a concept album in the power/progressive metal realm these days. Especially considering the attention span of many consumers to consume music at lightning Read more […]
If there is one unifying theme from the bands chosen this month, it has to be extremity. Admittedly a bit less variety than normal, but all of the bands mentioned below are sure to get your blood pressure Read more […]
For those who followed Kamelot going all the way back to their fabled 1999 The Fourth Legacy album, their success in North America is nothing short of remarkable. Circa the late 90s and early 00s, the Read more […]
Living in a very healthy metal scene as New England, you expect many acts to move up the ranks and gain national/international attention based on the talent and execution level. Boston, Massachusetts is Read more […]
Beloved former Helloween singer Michael Kiske is a busy man these days. His own Unisonic outfit is on the cycle for its second album, the well-received Light of Dawn. In addition, he has his hard rock Read more […]
Dead Rhetoric: How would you describe Raven in a studio environment versus the live atmosphere? Gallagher: Well we try to keep it the same. The idea is the three of us play as a band, no click track, Read more […]
Legacy metal acts are retiring or falling like flies. It’s not easy to keep rolling out quality studio albums that rival the energy, spunk, and exuberance of your teenage or early 20’s days. As much Read more […]
Jumping into the scene with 2012’s Symbiosis, Abiotic quickly established themselves as a force to be reckoned with. However, time wasn’t quite as kind to the band, with a number of member changes Read more […]
Southern rockers Royal Thunder have been hard at work ever since hitting the scene back in 2012 with CVI. Seeming to grab as many tours as they could, they’ve been slugging it out on the live circuit Read more […]
Since the beginning, Nightrage has been a band many view as a “gold standard” when it comes to melodic death metal. Quickly making a name for themselves with high-profile members such as Tomas Lindberg Read more […]
Originally formed back in 1988, Sorcerer disbanded relatively early into their career. Releasing only two demos in their day, the band moved onto other pastures (most notably Johnny Hagel into Tiamat). Read more […]
[9/10] These are head turning times if you are a lifer in the melodic death metal fan club. Realizing that as bands gain more seasoning, life experience, and naturally get older their outlook and style Read more […]
The power of the axe holds court in the halls of heavy metal. There’s just something magical about striking the right chord through a tremendous amplifier or listening to a blistering lead break that Read more […]
With the growing popularity of folk metal, sometimes it seems like the genre is starting to run out of ideas. So many bands go for either the “epic” variety, or the “party” variety and there’s Read more […]
