…at never grow old, firing up the legions who can’t get enough of those songs that elevate bodies to scream at the glory of this style. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xcPXAFVZ5N8 Stormhunter on Facebook…
…Leaving in 2022, this solo venture Holler explores more of his classic rock, AOR, and 70s/80s influences for this debut album Reborn. The results are quite inspiring, especially for those who seek broader horizons for the musicians that they love and cherish over the years. A reflective nature sweeps over the atmosphere of these thirteen songs – a melodic sensibility where the guitar lines and keyboards take on an AOR, classic rock angle when arti…
…the past. It’s an utterly beautiful feeling that one can easily get lost in, complete with the vocals being of Norwegian to fit the traditional folklore tales she is channeling. Shepard’s vocals are an obvious standout in this setting, suiting the music with an angelic yet mysterious tone, ushering in this soothing calm (particularly in the quiet of the closing title track) that just washes away all of the other emotions. While it may not make for…
…first single from the album “Cruel World” now! Destroyer of Light’s Degradation Years is: Guitars & Vocals – Steve Colca Guitars – Keegan Kjeldsen Bass – Mike Swarbrick Drums – Kelly Turner Recorded at Austin’s Orb Recording Studios (Grimes, The 1975) and mastered by James Plotkin (Voivod, Botch, Thou). Track listing: 1. Cruel World 2. Waiting for the End 3. Perception of Time 4. Failure 5. Man with No Name 6. Blind Faith 7. Where I Cannot Follow…
…downs with memorable riffing that’s both heavy and melodically retainable, all without sacrificing the all-important aggression, is sure to grab some listeners looking to blow off a little steam. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nz56BcscyU0&pp=ygURYnJhdCBzb2NpYWwgZ3JhY2U%3D https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l5YqrJfPvB8&pp=ygURYnJhdCBzb2NpYWwgZ3JhY2U%3D Brat on Facebook Brat on Instagram…
…cians understand the delicate balance between the creation of melodic hooks, runs, or riff sequences that are quite catchy / memorable, yet also throwing down some serious musical twists or extreme angles that put one foot firmly in the tenacious authenticity camp. Be it opening a song in a thunderous five-second drum solo before hitting into a straightforward thrash template for “Absolüt” or injecting blackened tremolo riffs next to classic early…
…s a tendency to inject a slightly whiny or warble nature in specific verse components, almost sounding a bit more epic/folk-ish versus your Halford, Dickinson, or Dio-styled powerhouse singer. Additional chimes make the ending of “This Is the Way” charming, settling the stage for the next double kick / power barrage within “Evil Dead” – a personal favorite featuring some killer Mercyful Fate-like riffs as well as stunning lead break action. The re…
…nd foremost goal is to keep it really fun with the live show. With the pop samples, the really high energy. As far as the best shows we’ve done… Moate: What sticks out most in my mind is the best shows on the last tour we did. They are most recent in mind – Chicago, Portland, Maine, Detroit. Dead Rhetoric: You also have a special color-scheme going on with your merchandise – can you discuss the thought process behind this? Selfish: We don’t have a…
…4, but the death metal has been flowing like a fine wine. I for one am not complaining, far from it. As long as I have a steady feeding of this and black metal, all is right in my world. Which brings me to my latest find, the Chicago, Illinois band Wounds and their debut album Ruin. This is death metal done right, especially for those who enjoy an ideal mix of heaviness, brutality, plus technicality. From the opening salvo of “The Archfiend’s Apot…
…necessary to garner more than its fair share of appeal across melodic death, power, thrash and modern audiences. Exemplary execution of when to let certain rhythm mechanics groove or propel the next engaging riff sequence keeps a track like “Time to Rise” top of mind in the memorable category – check out the bass/drum unison highlight reel work from Chris Pacey and Cory Hofing around the 3:00-3:32 mark. Influences come from all across the North Am…
…rsatile thrash platform that contains classic roots, yet also injects death, doom, and groove twists to the mix. You can expect a sound that’s very organic – the purity of emotion rings through every one of these tracks, all the way down to the raspy, maniacal vocal presence of the drummer Elias Lepistö (although guitarist Tuomas Lepistö shares duties for a couple of songs). Opener “Torch the Children” is a ripper, the stop/start rhythm to drummin…
…s going to do for us are low. We want somebody to help us get the vinyl out, help us spread the word with their platform. Based on what was going on for us, partnering with them was the most advantageous for us. They have their own community that we can expose ourselves to. We have been with them for the last two releases. Dead Rhetoric: Graveside Grin is the latest album for the group. How did the songwriting and recording sessions go for this se…
…in the melodic hard rock/metal game may remember names such as Psyco Drama, Glenmore, or Letter X – beyond the already mentioned acts, that’s what Cave seems to express stylistically for their first record Out of the Cave. Hopefully this will be a group that develops new records consistently – as we need more acts that push this genre into great songwriting matched with killer performances like what we have here. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u…
…to plenty of great things since then, building up a catalog that’s extreme, fun, and full of over-the-top instrumental gusto. In short, Dragonforce know exactly what they are doing with new material and attempt to spice it up here and there with some new tricks and techniques. Warp Speed Warriors is about what you’d expect from the monster shredders, but it doesn’t make it any less endearing. Embracing that same sort of retro-esque aesthetic that…
…ter their European tour concluded to get some details on their new material, upcoming tours, cinematic approach to music and videos, and more. Dead Rhetoric: You just finished your first tour with Delain. How did it go? Jonas Wolf: We are already experienced with touring, but with this band it was a first. I would say that it was a great team effort. Fabienne Erni: Absolutely. There’s too many things that you just learn by doing with this new cons…
…ts Mark Coglan and Nathan Montalvo pulling out all the stops in the tapping, shredding, or neoclassical knowledge banks to make the twin harmony into separate break movements for “Seeds of Sorrow” a necessary highlight, while the slower, controlled “Close My Eyes” pushes the limit in an early Testament meets Forbidden manner for this aspect. Hunger elevates the songwriting plus performances as if no time has passed – a swirling mix of mid-tempo to…
…th Alex from Despised Icon in the most intense of ways. The following track, “Hellbound,” with Matt McGachy of Cryptopsy also serves as one of the strongest cuts and is all but a maelstrom of chaos as the two vocalists bring all of the possible goods to the table for the entire track. “The Golgothan” takes things in a more atmospheric yet battering direction similar to some of their more recent albums, offering some eerie melodies while the drums…
…ing in America for the first time in over a decade, his evolution as a songwriter, pivotal moments touring with Arch Enemy and being in the Ozzy Osbourne band that made his career, as well as future plans. Dead Rhetoric: The latest Firewind album is Stand United, the tenth studio record for the group. How do you feel the songwriting and recording process went for this set of material? Gus G.: The recording was done in different parts throughout th…
…ull of a variety of tempos and melodic touches that are sure to catch your ear. The best part, is that they avoid the usual power/symphonic metal ‘more is more’ philosophy and keep things short, sweet, and full of energy. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YfPDijUzgqM https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iLlu54XVvVc Alterium on Facebook Alterium on Instagram…
…om Saturnalia Temple – the faithful already welcome to the reflective despair present on Paradigm Call. This scribe imagines small club settings or doom-oriented festival audiences raising a glass, pint, or favorite beverage in homage to the honest material pouring out of your speakers. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kLbo9tYyAl8 Saturnalia Temple on Facebook…
…ments, while also ensuring specific parts (and songs) contain the key hooks, melodies, or harmony-laden movements that capture your headspace. It could be a calmer, lower register vocal melody next to some ethereal, distant keyboards or reflective guitar lines during “Tenary”, the pulsating, robotic nature that moves into Pain of Salvation meets Tool in a Middle Eastern motif of bombast for the 1:31 “Static Mind”, all the way through to stunted, k…
…over the years. This album features our original guitar player Joe D’Angelo, who comes back into the band. It’s his first recording with the band since our 2010 EP Along Came Life. He started the band with us, me and our old bass player Chris. The writing this time, it was back to Joe and I putting things together. A lot of what Joe had – one of the songs he had, the lead single “Knowing That You’re There”, was a Joe song he had demoed over twenty…
…again for these gentlemen. Let’s hope much like Wolfheart, we can get some touring action going across North America to let the melodic death/gothic hordes savor the outstanding performances, songwriting, and talent on display. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AMy70EjbnvQ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qCqk_d63DHE Before the Dawn on Facebook…
…rial fueled by the inspiration of global stories, fighting personal battles, struggles, and feelings at a point in time like never before. While previous records established a sound that incorporated a mix of alternative rock and gothic metal elements, these eleven tracks appear to push more of the electricity and purity of their sound, only incorporating synth /electronic accents on one specific song this go around. The combination of emotionally…
…in quite some time, Henrik Klingenberg setting the stage through his piano, keyboard, and orchestration angles along with Tony to give this arrangement an alluring power rock meets classical feel. Also returning is Mikko Karmila on the mixing board – last working with the band back in 2012 on Stones Grow Her Name, the man knows how to bring the essential aspects of Sonata’s sound to the forefront with reverence and charm. Best songs for Clear Col…
…music are you trying to get out there? We have a funny video that’s so carefree, and then we have a serious one. Usually, the music is really serious based, the instrumental parts, the lyrics, everything altogether. But we put out a funny thing. Just because the video is funny doesn’t mean that the actual meaning behind the song is funny. We wanted to have something that was different for that video because we are silly, and anyone who knows us, e…
…itous in output (scroll Metal Archives for his lengthy discography of demos, EPs, split, or live offerings beyond the albums), no one will dispute the blackened speed metal approach attacks in a caustic fashion, the purity effective while wasting no extraneous energy in spots to impress others. Composing the follow-up to Let There Be Witchery over the course of one weekend, its apparent that the lethal dose of venomous metal remains at peak levels…
…f you live for a crushing hard and fast sound that straddles the lines of death/thrash. Standout Tracks: “Centipede Bite”, “Acid Bath’, “Soul Observatory” https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZOPQLkohyrs https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I42aha75zIg Messiah on Facebook…
…albums in the Judas Priest catalog? Time will tell of course after say six months, a year, or more – but at this point in time, it’s an energetic effort full of varied anthems plus memorable songs, living up to its namesake Invincible Shield. Who would have ever expected bands like Accept, Saxon, or Judas Priest to be still vital and as creatively fruitful as they are in the 2020’s – let’s enjoy these recordings, as if it’s the final studio full-l…
…e are always references to Priest – it’s the same band with Halford, Tipton, Hill, Travis has been there for thirty years, and the ground work that they’ve laid for the last fifty years. That character is alive, well, and strong in Invincible Shield. Hopefully we try to push somewhere differently sonically, or whatever way we can to make the album sound like it’s own animal with its own two legs. The writing and recording, we were able to get toge…
