Rolling Metal Thread 2009

Destruction posted this message today about tonight's cancelled show in Calgary...apparently they take muffins very, very seriously.

SORRY MATE BUT THIS "UNDERGROUND" CLUB HAS NO REAL PA & LIGHT RIG. WE TRIED TO TALK TO THE PROMOTER HE DIDN T GIVE A FUCK. YOU NEED AT LEAST SOMETHING THAT FEATURES/SUPPORTS THE VOCALS, OUR BACKLINE IS ALREADY 105 db. SO IT WASN T POSSIBLE TO PLAY,IT'S A BIG DISSAPOINTMENT CAUSE WE TRAVELED WITH A BROKEN TRAILER AND A FUCKED UP MUFFIN FOR TWO DAYS, TO PLAY THAT GIG. THIS SUCKS FOR US BIG TIME

A BROKEN TRAILER AND A FUCKED UP MUFFIN

This needs to be an album title.

>guys if we keep this up there wont be anyone left

That's so metal

thanks for your contribution!

Could some kind mod delete that idiocy? I don't mind idiocy, as long as it's on topic, but that just seems like trolling.

so i'm pretty psyched by the first half of the kylesa album. they seem to be doing the improve slightly with each album thing perfectly. i could hear a lot more cool two-drummer stuff on this one.

The new Unholy album is pretty great thrash-death. The guitar leads remind me of Rust In Peace-era Mustaine, both in terms of tone and speed/execution.

This needs to be an album title

Or a screen name.

Could some kind mod delete that idiocy? I don't mind idiocy, as long as it's on topic, but that just seems like trolling.

― Kickstart My Heartwork (J3ff T.), Thursday, March 19, 2009 4:42 PM (5 hours ago)

yep.

The Cobalt got delivered tonight, can't wait to dig into it.

Still loads and loads of metal to hear in 09, but the Cobalt is looking pretty darn unbeatable right now. It just keeps getting better the more I hear it.

Should I go see a midnight showing of black metal doc Until The Light Comes

I'm confused about Lacuna Coil... I've now heard this album called Manifesto Of. But the song Spellbound doesn't appear to be on it, and anyway I thought their new album was called Shallow Life? Anyone know what's going on, or what I'm listening to?

Nevermind, think I figured it out. It's a Greatest Hits something or other, I think.

I'm interviewing Cristina Scabbia tomorrow - anybody got any questions?

Can I mention hardcore albums I'm listening to here? Not exactly metal, but there's isn't another place for them...

(So far this year it would be the new Thursday album, "Common Existence," the Belle Epoque EP, "Wicked Ones and Thieves," and another New Brunswick screamo band, Let Me Run's new album "Meet Me At the Bottom.")

Speaking of hardcore, the new tracks by Reign Supreme (Philly band on Deathwish) sound really promising. And I'm extremely picky when it comes to hardcore.

http://www.deathwishinc.com/listennow/launch/55/

Should I go see a midnight showing of black metal doc Until The Light Comes

― 14 karat gold steen computer wizard (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Friday, March 20, 2009 3:56 AM (2 days ago) Bookmark

this was awesome btw

Philly + Hardcore = I'm totally there.

I'm finding the new Earth Crisis a little boring. Though I guess I kinda like that the lyrical content is more political than, say, Satanic.

This just in: Cristina Scabbia is a friendly and pleasant interview subject.

Yeah, I really enjoyed interviewing her a couple years ago. Very down to earth, nice person.

Oh, and the new Tyr is good, really good at times. A little top-heavy with more emphasis on the English more than on Land (I prefer it when they're singing in Norwegian and Faroese, their English lyrics can be goofy), the best track being the alliteratively-obsessed, pagan metal rave-up "Hold the Heathen Hammer High". Rousing little tune, that one.

I've been listening, rather repeatedly, to the two advance tracks from the upcoming Emperor live album. Oh man. It'll be the deluxe edition for me.

I'm also still pretty obsessed with this album Only Salvation by Artifact. Gothic death-metal via Gary Numan via Sisters of Mercy. You'll hate it if you can't get into the right mindset, but I think it's really impressive, and one of the catchiest dark metal(ish) albums I've heard in a really long time.

Oh, and I think I said a while back that I was still making up my mind about Saros' Acrid Plains. I've made up my mind. It's good. Not entirely coherent as an album, but coherence isn't everything. And this isn't entirely accurate, but I've started mentally thinking of them as Wolf Pups in the Throne Room.

The new Heaven and Hell album, The Devil You Know, has a great title but is merely good-not-great on a musical level. I don't want to chalk it up to age, but I can't otherwise account for the band's decision to record almost nothing but slow, doomy stompers this time out. Nine of ten songs are closer in spirit to "The Sign Of The Southern Cross" than to "Neon Knights" or "Turn Up The Night"; only "Eating The Cannibals" really lets it rip. And that was always what I liked about Dio-era Black Sabbath - they were a fast, hard-rocking metal band, able to hold their own with Judas Priest and other, younger acts back in 1980-81. This album has epic power, and Dio's voice is still there, but it almost never gets into high gear the way they used to.

Maybe it's time for a Gillan and Hell album...

Ian Gillan's got a new album coming out. It's not very good.

A little late on this, but count me in the camp of those enjoying the new Buried Inside.

Have any of you heard Distorted, and are they any good?

If you're talking about the Israeli death metal band that release Voices From Within last year, then yes I have (reviewed the for Phil). I thought they were alright, some potential but some of the gothier songs reminded me a little too much of Evanescance. But some of the middle-eastern influences that bled through were kinda cool. Isn't really my favorite mode of metal, but I've heard far worse.

Hmmm. Oriental Metal + Evanescence sounds right up my alley. I'll check them out. Orphaned Land, who made one of my fave metal albums of the decade ("Mabool") is slated to release a new album this year. So I'm psyched.

Ian Gillan's got a new album coming out. It's not very good.

Then why do I like it so much?? Guess I just like not very good music, oh well! (It may well be my favorite hard rock record of the year so far, actually, give or take the ZZ-worthy Rufus Huff one on Zoho Roots featuring the excellently louder-as-he-gets-older Kevin Martin from the Kentucky Headhunters on badass boogie guitar. Which I will hereby shut up about.) (Also still in the running: Diagonal, Dirty Little Rabbits, Sinner, and lots of reissued older music that probably shouldn't count.)

Er, Greg Martin, I meant. (NOW I'll shut up.)

Still on the fence about Heavy Metal Killers (could use more tuneful tunes) and 16's Bridges To Burn (could use less bloated vocals) and Meercaz's Meercaz (kind of inaudible), though those three might grow on me. As might other things.

so on the mastodon end of things, should i bother to care about the deluxe version w/the DVD, or is it just odds and sods "hey look we are in the studio partying and rocking" stuff?

Dunno but mine shipped. Hope its worth it considering with shipping it came to $50. I get a signed lithograph with it.

Hmmm. Oriental Metal + Evanescence sounds right up my alley. I'll check them out. Orphaned Land, who made one of my fave metal albums of the decade ("Mabool") is slated to release a new album this year. So I'm psyched.

Yeah, I mean, it isn't horrible. Just didn't square well with my tastes in metal. Of course I hate absolutely hate Nightwish, so that element of the band's sound was never going to win me over.

sounds like jeff might like it

"Dunno but mine shipped. Hope its worth it considering with shipping it came to $50."

There's also a middle-priced version that's going for $10 on Amazon with the DVD, but without all of those extras like the lithographs.

Hey, I do have some discerning taste when it comes to that stuff. The songs on their MySpace page aren't bad, although the guitar is a little too crunchy for my taste and it sounds like a zillion other bands I've heard.

As for Mastodon, it looks like the big appeal of the bonus DVD is that it comes with track commentaries for each song. Cool idea, don't really see myself watching it more than once, so I would probably stick with the regular CD version.

Chuck, the day you and I like the same album for the same reasons is the day the universe collapses in on itself.

Re Mastodon, I'm gonna give it a week and if Warners hasn't sent me one, I'll take the plainest version Best Buy's offering.

I've listened to one track so far off the upcoming Warbringer album, and it's pretty good. They're still not my favorite retro thrash band (that would be Merciless Death), but they're near the top of the heap.

My first impression is that Warbringer have really honed their chops since the last record, and I like how ferocious they sound, but they still have a problem coming up with distinct songs. That may change on subsequent listens, though.

I forgot they had a new one out soon, anxious to hear that.

Waiting for a spare hour to give the Warbringer a listen...I actually think they have some of the catchiest songs of the whole new thrash wave, so I'm hoping this new one delivers.

After listening to this Nadja covers album, I can't help but hear unflattering similarities to Type-O-Negative on here. It's especially apparent in the Kids in the Hall cover (also my favorite song on here). Replace deep dramatic vocals with Baker's thin-sounding mumble style, and muddy production, and it sounds like Type O.

Something about applying the Nadja formula to these pop songs just pulls the mask off for me, and all I see underneath are sub-par musicians without a bunch of droney production covering the fact that this stuff isn't very compelling on its own. The drumming is so bad I can't even tell if it's a live drummer or if they went back to playing a distorted SR-16 with index fingers, and the guitars are indistinguishable from the bass (another Type-O trait).

The song I think suffers most from their heavy-handed production style is the "Faith" cover, which actually seems like it could be really pretty and atmospheric if the individual elements stood out a bit more.

xpost - I'm more than ready for an "all-doom" Heaven & Hell record. Children of the Sea and After All and Sign of the Southern Cross are exactly what I like about that band...

"Bible Black" sure sounds impressive. Love the build-up to that gigantic riff.

new wolves in the throne room ep and album are great, some great ambient drone sections. Are they on their own in what they do? or can anyone reccomend similar artists to this part time metaller (other than the obvious burzum/southern lord etc)

Weakling, Ludicra, Enslaved and Ved Buens Ende would be good bands to look up if you like WITTR.

Especially Weakling.