EX EYE – EX EYE

Nick Cusworth
Reviews
It's been a long road, but the sax is back, baby. For years the instrument, once employed lavishly upon all sorts of classic and progressive rock tracks through the 60s and 70s, became a revolting cliche and symbol of rock excess, softness, and melodrama. And, frankly, given how the instrument became abused and synonymous with the type of smooth jazz playing that would coat pop and rock ballads through the 80s into 90s with a sonic perfume strong enough to make you gag, it's not surprising that it fell out of style. In many ways it went hand-in-hand with the back-to-basics mentality that ran through the punk, DIY, grunge, indie, and (to a different extent) metal movements of the 80s through the 90s and well into the turn of the century. Since then, though, the pendulum has slowly but steadily moved back into the other direction, and more bands and listeners view the sax and other woodwinds as viable and enticing flourishes or even centerpieces to give their music either a certain distinction or whiff of nostalgia. And though metal has perhaps resisted incorporating the instrument for longer than most other genres, there is now an utter wealth of examples of artists and bands using the instrument to (mostly) good effect, particularly in the more progressive black, death, and doom spheres, where bands like Wrvth, Aenaon, Dreadnought, and, of course, SHINING - Jorgen Munkeby probably more than anyone has made the idea of sax-heavy metal sound forward-thinking and "cool" - are releasing high-quality work that makes use of the instrument in a whole wide range of ways.

Jørgen Munkeby of SHINING’s Guide To Playing Sax In Metal

Nick Cusworth
FYI
When I wrote my article on incorporating sax into metal a few weeks ago, I was not subtle in my praise for the man and the machine known as Jørgen Munkeby. As the individual behind Shining and the player responsible for so many of modern metal's great sax solos, it would be near impossible to get far in discussing the instrument's use in the format without landing squarely on him. So I was just a little bit more than flattered when Jørgen shared the post himself and praised it. I figured that would be the end of it, but I was wrong in the best possible way, because Jørgen took this whole thing one step further and contacted us out of the blue with a list of seven excellent tips he feels are crucial to any aspiring sax player who wants to doot some brutal-sounding shit.

Standing In Solidarity Against Bigotry

Noyan
Editorials
I know it’s not always easy to stand up and say something. It’s awkward. It could get you ostracized—or worse. But you have a choice. Those who are on the receiving end of bigotry don’t have the luxury to make this choice. You do. The more people let bigotry slide, the more it gains ground. No one feels like they can stop it by themselves. That’s just it—they can’t. As a group, however, by standing in solidarity, we can slow its tide, one voice at a time. It truly makes a difference and it’s the only way we can eventually make metal as open to anyone who wants to be part of our family.

Hey! Listen To Resurrecting Id!

Nick Cusworth
Listen To This!
Resurrecting Id is the brainchild of Chris Herald, a talented sax player/composer and fellow metal nerd. The premise of Resurrecting Id appears to be answering the question of, "Hey, what would happen if there was progressive, djenty metal with sax playing the usual guitar lead and guitar playing support?" He answered that question in the form a self-titled 5-song EP last year, and I gotta say, it's definitely worth the time of anyone who read my article last week, as well as any fans of interesting, technically-demanding jazzy prog metal.
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Shining – One One One

Heavy Blog
Reviews
As you can probably tell, we really enjoy our avant-garde. We dedicated a whole week to it, and many of the writers here, this one included, have countless favorites. One of the bands that many of us really enjoy, however, is Norwegian blackjazz avant-garde specialists Shining. Their last album, 2010’s Blackjazz, completely blew us away, and their live DVD that followed was every bit as good. However, it’s been nearly three years since the band have put out a new studio record, and the question remained: how could they possibly top such a phenomenal record?