Baroness‘ Yellow & Green was an astounding record. It ended up in my top 5 on last year’s list, and I’ve kept listening to it ever since. I was super stoked to see the band tour, however, with the bus accident that left them with multiple serious injuries and even caused two members to leave the band, it didn’t look like it would happen anytime soon, save for the occasional local gig. However, the band are back!
Crust-core grinders Call Of The Void have blessed us with yet another teaser in anticipation of their Relapse Records debut Dragged Down A Dead End Path later this month. ‘Endless Ritual Abuse‘ get’s it’s own lyric video and it gives us a chance to get up close and personal not only with their lyrics but that brilliantly filthy artwork that adorns the cover.
Great news, fans of next-level death metal; post-death purveyors of brutality Ulcerate have entered the studio to record their fourth album, their first since signing to Relapse Records last year. Really, there isn’t that much to tell at the moment, but the thought of one of my favorite death metal acts releasing new music this year gets me all kinds of excite. Here’s a cut from the press release for those into specifics:
I haven’t heard all that much exciting news regarding doom metal for this year. Last year saw a few excellent releases for the sub-genre, but if I had to be honest none of them really grabbed me like I was hoping. And I was getting a little wary that this year might be a dud for the genre as well. However, a week or two again Jimmy alerted all of us to the trailer for the upcoming Cough/Windhand split EP, Reflection of the Negative, and that immediately got my blood flowing. Since then I have been able to listen to the record in full and it’s just as fucking awesome as I thought it would be when I first watched that trailer. And now, thanks to the kindly gents over at CVLT NATION, all of you can get a pretty big taste of what’s to come with Windhand’s ‘Amaranth’.
Coming off the critical success of their new EP Species at War, Finnish grindcore aficionados Rotten Sound have announced a North American headlining tour throughout the month of May. Featuring a revolving-door of support from the likes of Black Breath, Early Graves, and more, the 21-date trek will hit the following cities:
Scottish death metal act Man Must Die are the latest band getting involved with the crowdfunding process, raising funds towards their, as yet, unnamed fourth album in the interest of helping ‘get thae album oot’. Up until recently the band were involved with Relapse Records but have decided to go it alone for their latest effort and with all the material already written, it’s simply a case of getting the cash to record it.
However, crowdfunding in the metal world is still finding it’s feet and, unfortunately, there’s no blueprint available for a band to follow at this point. So after looking over the proposal, which can be found here at PledgeMusic, I was left asking a couple of important questions:
Pig Destroyer01. Sis
02. The American’s Head
03. The Underground Man
04. Eve
05. The Diplomat
06. All Seeing Eye
07. Valley of the Geysers
08. Book Burner
09. Machiavillain
10. Baltimore Stranger
11. White Lady
12. The Bug
13. Iron Drunk
14. Burning Palm
15. Dirty Knife
16. Totaled
17. Kamikaze Heart
18. King of Clubs
19. Permanent Funeral
It’s finally here ladies and gentlemen — Pig Destroyer’s first studio album in five years. The seminal grind band with the likes of master guitarist Scott Hull and amazing lyricist J.R. Hayes has returned to bring upon us another masterpiece of grind! However, with the long leave of absence, Pig Destroyer face many challenges that rise up when a band takes a significant time between releases. The big question on everyone’s lips is the same question that every band faces when putting out a new album; is it any good?
Death are one of my favorite death metal bands, and revered by many as the founders of the genre. Chuck Schuldiner was a true pioneer and visionary, and it is such a shame to lost such a promising artist so early in their career, with so much more room to grow. Already owning all the Relapse re-issues of Death records, I anxiously waited for the moment they released one of their first three records, and finally my wishes have come true.
Spiritual Healing, the landmark Death album from 1990 is finally being released with remastered quality, demo tracks and outtakes, and as a super deluxe 3CD edition which contains a full live set from 1990, chock full of Death’s earlier material for those real old-school fans. Prices are very reasonable, and I personally ordered the 3CD edition because that’s just how I roll.
Pre orders are available here. In the meantime, check out the remastered version of ‘Living Monstrosity’ below:
-SS
Serpentine Path01. Arrows
02. Crotalus Horridus Horridus
03. Bats Amongst Heathens
04. Beyond The Dawn Of Time
05. Obsoletion
06. Aphelion
07. Compendium Of Suffering
08. Only A Monolith Remains
Sludge and doom can often go hand in hand. Both have very similar stylistic values and their live shows are very similar, with loud guitars downtuned beyond normal string gauges, a wall of amps (usually Sunn), and epic-length songs. Enter new sludge/doom band Serpentine Path, a band featuring members of Unearthly Trance and Electric Wizard. Coming from such a pedigree should lend credibility and confidence in their prowess in the genre, but would they live up to all the hype?
It’s been a long, long wait for the new Pig Destroyer record, but all of sudden, the cogs and gears have all clicked into place and this whirring grind-machine are readying their new release, entitled Book Burner, for an October 23rd due date through Relapse Records. The artwork above looks a little different to what I was expecting and while it doesn’t have the same direct impact that Baroness’ John Dyer Baizley work on Phantom Limb did, it’s definitely a powerful image — providing more of ‘punky’ feel than the normally grotesque art that adorns most of their albums. Decibel has the complete details on their Deciblog, including studio footage of new drummer Adam Jarvis tracking and an extensive tour around their beer fridge, so you should definitely head over there and tell them how awesome they are.
- DL
