…time, instead of just doing research and talking diseases? Prins: Definitely. I really enjoyed writing the last album because it was fun doing the research and I was interested in the topics. But this time it was about feelings and things that I think about on a daily basis. It was really nice to put my opinion out there for once. I’m not the type of person to rant on Facebook or have discussions with every person I meet. It was a nice experience…
…ken in an entirely different direction from Chapter 1. This sounds distinctly Russian when it comes to the atmosphere. Of course, the base coating is still progressive metal to the bone (the riffs of “The Healer” are a real triumphant treat), but some well-placed authentic vibes and instrumentation make this feel larger than life, with a tone of elegance/aristocracy. It immediately hits you within the first few seconds of “The Motherland” and reac…
…had at it for decades. And then there’s the global warming issue. The really bad news about it worries me but I’m not entirely convinced that it’s as urgent and real as the media would have us believe. I can’t really say I’ve seen the really compelling evidence, but then again, what do I know? It worries me that when a subject is that complicated and that serious that I don’t think I’ve seen the bottom of it. It leaves you a bit confused about wh…
…ar, it’s just 20% of the year and the rest of the time is yours. Now I’m only playing live with Masterplan and Herman Frank. I may do a guest vocal and backing vocal in the studio – but I have more than enough live with those two bands. Dead Rhetoric: Did you have any fears about stepping up to be a vocalist for At Vance when you had primarily done work as a bassist and backing vocalist in other bands up to that time? Altzi: Of course. When I came…
…Pit Stop…Don’t Stop in the Pit!” that this five-piece bludgeon through deadly riffs, non-stop snare/kick activities and an equally maniacal rapid-fire word spew that contains a bevy of Nuclear Assault, Slayer, and Warbringer influences – but when necessary, can turn in some reflective, clean passages and musically enticing activities. The longest track “Slaughter of Innocents” at almost nine-minutes incorporates narrative news footage and twin gui…
…al sections. 6th Counted Murder incorporate killer skillsets into a musically intriguing effort – never wavering on the melodic death/thrash platform and adding a bit of progressive texture to the mix. Individual contains the best elements of these genres and a potent storyline to keep interest high – let’s hope that the band gains more followers as a result, as this is a solid outing that most ardent fans of these genres will dig. http://www.yout…
…s moment in time? Korsak: Well, there are many metal bands in Russia actually. But as Russia is culturally separated, most of the bands here work for in-country market and even don’t think going abroad. That’s why in general the level of the scene is currently low comparing to Europe or North America. But there are some Russian-speaking bands that are touring worldwide and having success, like Arkona, Jinjer, Infected Rain, Siberian Meat Grinder,…
…ead Rhetoric: What are some of the other topics that you decided to tackle lyrically for this record? Peck: I haven’t had a writer’s block, but coming up with new concepts that I’m passionate about has been a little bit of a challenge. Writing fictional tales is easy- I finished up the lyrics for the new Death Dealer album, for instance. Unless you are doing a really gnarly introspection about feelings, despair, all the emotions – you have to go t…
…afts, while “Mara” went through a couple different iterations – The choral bit towards the end was actually written in the studio! Scheduling delays aside, the recording went fairly painlessly – We’d been playing all the songs live for some time, so we were well acquainted with them by the time we sat down to do the EP. Dead Rhetoric: You’ve been performing throughout New England to build the profile of Adamantis – how would you describe the band…
…low releases definite gems, in that regard. 15. The Lust – Karmalove Not only are Russia’s The Lust insanely prolific in their delivery of new material (there were a number of singles and EP releases in 2018 outside of Karmalove), but they don’t diminish in quality either. Catchy, gothic metal with a solid use of both female and male vocals makes this one band that you can snag an instant discography of an just dive in head over heels. Darkly beau…
…Agony Scene, and Traitors to discuss the new release, the band’s enduring live show, lyrical inspirations, and more! Dead Rhetoric: How’s the tour been going so far? Trevor Phipps: The tour has been good. We started with a couple of sell-out [shows] and have had a number of packed ones. It’s been fun. It’s a good package with good bands. Everybody is bringing something different, even if it’s all aggressive. We are having a good time out here. De…
…onger, a forceful rhythm and equally intoxicating vocal delivery a definitely early album crowd-pleaser – sitting in that sweet spot between latter day Judas Priest and prime-time Metal Church. Speed isn’t necessarily the motivating factor for the guitar parts and general tempos – the band really keying in on catchy hooks for dynamic appeal, whether they are slower and reflective during “Empty Soul” or machine-gun riffing and double bass mechanics…
…done. Dead Rhetoric: How do you feel about the state of the world that we live in currently? What do you believe needs to occur to make things better for the general population across the globe? Stützer: So many things. It’s an unsafe place to live in these days, there is pollution and all the governments between Russia, the United States, and China, all are trying to show the way. Things are very strange, and I hope things will change. It’s hard…
…ic: You had mentioned about a little more touring and writing. What else is concrete at this point for going into the rest of the year? Stanne: Not much at all. We have a few festivals this winter and then we are going on tour in March. Probably Russia, China, and Australia but not much outside of that. Festivals in the summer of course. We’ve been touring insanely for this album. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=suhuQlYZwtE https://www.youtube.com…
…e that that causes, which is damage to your confidence. I feel like I’ve only really finished working on getting my confidence back this year, even though my range came back a year and a half to two years ago. If my headspace was like it is now, I’d have been able to sing that way on Untouchable Glory if I really had to. I was afraid of it. I think it did set us back creatively, to the point that there were things that we couldn’t do that we reall…
…plenty of melodies that lurk out (much like said the already-mentioned early material). Over the years, more of that ‘80s flair has become a part of Arsis’ toolbox, which really came out on Starve for the Devil, and it’s also well-incorporated into the songs here. The amalgamation of melodic death metal with a solid helping of technical songwriting is primed for some catchy grooves and ‘80s arena rock to fill in the gaps for added memorability. S…
…k that our songs are simple, but they are really fucking difficult to play live properly, like they are on the album. There’s so much going on, and we are trying to get to the point where people would hear the same music and the same sound live as they hear on the album. Maybe this is one of the things that we are slowly learning. Dead Rhetoric: With the simple aspect, do you feel that is due to the drinking songs that have been written through th…
…y thing, go look at commercials from the 50’s for Geritol. You’re essentially fulfilling a Billy Mays thing. Instead take your lazy ass and go write some goddamn good music. Dead Rhetoric: What is the outlook and philosophy for Solium Fatalis when it comes to your live performances? And what have been some of the most memorable shows in the band’s career – moments that will stand out for a lifetime? Gregory: We strive to be as intense and tight as…
…I have old friends that I don’t have the time to hang out with that I really, really love but my relationship with Alissa, for example, I love her. I feel that she’s one of my favorite people on Earth. The same goes with Simone. We have even shared going on tour together, which brings you even closer. I know how they feel in their profession, so we can share those kind of emotions with each other, which I can’t share with any other person on the…
…e Date – May 2018 Location – Israel Style – Progressive metal Tough to really nail down exactly what Shiran is up to on Release the Bounds, and that’s a good thing. There’s a modern, progressive feel but the riffing itself is quite heavy and provides a unique contrast to the varying parts, at time also embracing a more traditional heavy metal sound (albeit darker). The female vocals are emotive yet have a tougher edge to them, matching well agains…
…of a ‘human.’ But unfortunately the rest of the outside world is in a really ugly place. Even though the band is in a great place, I think the record comes off as being absolutely negative, pissed off, and aggressive. There are one or two songs that are a little bit positive, but for the most part, this is probably the most pissed off Terror record in a while. Where you are in life, where the hardcore scene is at, and where we are as a band, and…
…a record with that spiritual vibe. Dead Rhetoric: What did you get across lyrically with this record that may have been different than previous albums? Cavalera: Josh and I worked on the lyrics a lot together. I was trying to tell him that I get accused of repeating some of the same words- a lot of stuff regarding apocalypses and stuff like that. We tried to avoid those words, and come up with different kinds of words. For example, on the song “R…
…lla… John Finberg. He ended up getting pretty big in the booking world. He lived in Philly and he used to manage us. He was the one that took the demo and brought the deal to us. It’s a new label, they are taking on a lot of new bands with a touch of death and heaviness. We said, hell yeah- let’s do it. We were starting to dabble a bit into the deathier style. We took that on a little bit. The obstacles. On the recording, we were rushed as far as…
…io version of the song? Dirkschneider: I chose the song – the song has really good lyrics about what’s going on in the world, and that we don’t need any borders. I left it to the production company to develop the story line in St Petersburg. They came up with the whole idea, and I think they did a perfect job with everything. They were very creative. I’m really happy with the outcome and I think you can see that and feel this through the video. De…
…, thunderous death metal machine and they always will be. TerrorVision simply pushes the boundaries a bit while seeing them continue to make the most addictive yet punishing riffs imaginable. The changes alluded to are all in the atmosphere. Instead of simply steamrolling through every single track with no remorse, tracks like “Vespertine Decay” and “Exquisite Convinous Drama” take a few moments to create a sense of dread and despair – building di…
…his so prepared, when I came into the studio on the first day, he was totally really into the material – we can change something here, do something there, after a minute, 45 seconds we have to change a note here, do something there. I asked him how often he had listened to the songs, and he said you won’t believe how many (times). When you are in a studio, there’s nothing better that you can have as a musician to deal with such a great person, a g…
…the music business during the Dio years that you’ve been able to consistently apply to your craft from this point forward? Goldy: Two things. A long time ago, Ronnie’s best friend and favorite tour assistant is a witness to this. During a rehearsal back when Ronnie was still with us during the Dream Evil days, Ronnie came up to me and said, ‘kid- I’m going to pass the torch onto you.’ And his friend looked at me… I don’t want to put his name out t…
…legiance was a fun album. A whole slew of heavy metal all-stars (both vocally and instrumentally) put together on one epic album. While it wasn’t an entirely flowing effort, even if more so than other ‘get togethers’ like this due to the core membership, it made for an enjoyable collection of tracks. Power Drunk Majesty steps things up from the past in that it truly feels like an album, and not a collection of all-star tracks. There’s a lot more r…
…s have abandoned PayPal as a payment. A lot of people use it, and we actually only raised 8,000 on Indiegogo itself, but around 9,000 on PayPal. We were lucky to do that – it helped us a lot. Dead Rhetoric: Does that tie into the idea that in your PR release, it said the album was ‘strongly influenced by your fans?’ Bigler: Yes. We took that money to make the videos and to make the shirts. Additionally, we made an extra cd of demos and unreleased…
…cific voice, and like you said, he couldn’t be here for this album so he only did some backing vocals here and there, and a handful of lyrics. But what he didn’t bring, it brought room for Sean [Z], and he is an amazing singer. When Attila came here to do the vocals for Ashes, we started to talk about the schedule for the next couple of years. I already knew by that time because he said then that he would not be free for the next album. So I asked…
