Ninjaspy – Spüken

Eden Kupermintz
Reviews
How does one incorporate elements of poppier, more upbeat music into metal's mix and perhaps even its external themes like album art, lyrics and delivery? While many bands have taken a pass at this question, none of have solved it quite as well as Ninjaspy. In 2013, the Canadian band released their short (and excellent) debut EP, coupling it with a home-brewed, Ninja themed comics that elaborated on and worked together with the album (NOTE: we'll not be referencing the obvious similarities between Ninjaspy and a certain Australian band who shan't be named. A simple look at a timeline will give you all the facts you need). Their music incorporated elements of reggae and surf right into heavier influences from hardcore and modern metal. The result drew comparisons to System of a Down, SikTh, Limp Bizkit and others.

45 – An Apple A Day Keeps The Spotify Away

Noyan
Podcast
This week we're joined by fellow editor Nick again! And as you can probably tell from the title, we talk about some streaming service drama! Specifically, the trainwreck that followed Frank Ocean's new Apple Music exclusive album, the UMG salt that followed, and Spotify stirrings in relation to industry trends. But wait, there's more industry drama! A former Victory Records employee wrote a huge expose talking about all the stuff that goes down in the label, confirming the suspicions of many. We then talk about SubRosa and their interview about the music they wrote in relation to the Mormon church's treatment of LGBTQI individuals. We talk about a bunch of new music and music-related announcements as well. Including: poorly-realized analogies about post/weird-death metal involving Ulcerate, Coma Cluster Void, Car Bomb, Negura Bunget, Meshuggah, Mithras (and more Mithras), Allegaeon's Rush cover, WRVTH being awesome, In Flames being terrible (seriously), Ninjaspy, Darkthrone, Emperor, Brujeria (and their tongue-in-cheek interview), Ion Dissonance, Leander Kills, The Dear Hunter and The Aurora Borealis Project x Drewsif Stalin's Musical Endeavors. Finally, we talk about the passing of Tom Searle of Architects. Enjoy! (the episode, hopefully, not the terrible news)
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Twelve Foot Ninja – Silent Machine

Heavy Blog
Reviews
In the five years that they have been together, Twelve Foot Ninja have developed a fearsome reputation as a live act, and have even been described by Misha Mansoor of Periphery fame as being one of the best live bands he has ever seen. However, making the transition from being a scintillating live band to successful recording artists is no easy task, and unfortunately, Twelve Foot Ninja’s much anticipated debut album, Silent Machine, falls somewhat short of expectations. This is in no way due to a failure of production, the band having compiled a stellar technical team, including Circles guitarist Ted Furuhashi and mastering legend Howie Weinberg, to give the album a polished veneer. Moreover, it is quite obvious that Twelve Foot Ninja are entertainers, and seemingly innovative ones at that, the album being not only packed full of eminently danceable tunes, but also accompanied by a savvy multimedia package, including 12 incredible comics drawn by UK artist Keith Draws, and to this point, two very humorous video clips.