Dead Rhetoric.com Week in Review December 14 – December 20, 2014
Saturday, 20th December 2014
The news cycle received a shot in the arm this week when Iron Maiden dropped a subtle hint of being back in the studio. The band, who for all intents and purposes are the biggest in metal, haven’t released a studio album since 2010’s mildly redeemable The Final Frontier, with many growing tired of their meandering quasi-progressive antics. Never one to listen to their detractors, it’s unlikely Maiden will return to their past epic glories, but still, the prospect of a new album (and tour) from Steve Harris and his band of merrymen is worth getting excited about. – David E. Gehlke
General housekeeping
More best-of lists for you to fawn over: Daniel Keating checks in with his thoughts on the year that was.
Features
Finnish melodic death metal outfit Mors Principium Est are enjoying the spoils of a revamped lineup, something they were happy to share with our own Matt Coe.
Get the scoop on Colorado Cascadian upstarts Wayfarer.
Reviews
Pine-cone shapes and post-metal…that would be Pineal’s Smiling Cult.
Reformed cult thrashers Indestructible Noise Command work around the style’s conventions on the surprisingly good Black Hearse Serenade.
Finland’s Apocryfal play thick and crunchy death metal of the highest order on Aberration of the Mind.
Chile’s Animus Mortis look quite able to be the next force in atmospheric black metal with Testimonia.
More “weird” death metal, this time with Veilburner’s The Three Lightbearers.
The cover gave it away: Zero Down’s No Limit to the Evil is a pretty standard thrash album.
The once-promising Isole sounds uninspired on The Calm Hunter.
Worst album title of the year? Possibly Lonely Kamel’s Shit City.
The news in ten
1. Keep of Kalessin to release new album in February.
2. Leprous also to release new album at some point in 2015.
3. GWAR wraps up a North American tour, their first without Oderus Urungus.
4. In Flames tack on another leg to their North American tour. No word if they’ve decided to abandon playing any songs from their new album.
5. Anthrax, like so many of their peers, now have their own brand of alcohol.
6. Iron Maiden could be hitting the studio soon.
7. Dark Funeral releases a new video.
8. Armored Saint nearing completion of their new album.
9. Enslaved announces a run of North American headline dates.
10. Angra releases the video for “Storm of Emotions.” A killer song.
