Archive | May, 2012
It’s pretty much like the late ’90s are coming home to roost. Today, we not only get another song from Fear Factory’s forthcoming album, The Industrialist (which is out this coming Tuesday), but also the first new music in eight years from sludgy supergroup of sorts Old Man Gloom. We’ll start with them first.
Since 2004′s Christmas, leader Aaron Turner chose to focus on Isis, who have since broken up. Guitarist Nate Newton has been keeping busy with Converge and Doomriders, and rhythm section Caleb Scofield and Santos Montana have been focusing on Zozobra. Yet like the Avengers, they came back together last year to record their fifth album No with Converge’s Kurt Ballou (I mean that they assembled to record an album, not that the Avengers recorded an album with Ballou). Pitchfork is streaming the first taste of the album, an epic eight-minute track called “Common Species,” here. That should get you plenty psyched for the full length, which comes out on June 26 on Hydra Head. Unless of course you were lucky enough to see them on their recent tour and picked up a copy then. Because you totally could have.
“New Messiah” is the second taste of Fear Factory’s The Industrialist, following “Recharger.” The band went through somewhat of a new renaissance with 2010′s Mechanize, when guitarist Dino Cazares rejoined the band. That sense of being reborn continues through the new album, which can be heard by “New Messiah.” While the band have admitted using a drum machine to program the album, it’s a compliment to both Raymond Herrera and Gene Hoglan that it’s hard to tell the difference between them and the machine. This fits in right alongside Demanufacture and Obsolete. Check that out above.
For those of you not reading Pitchfork or caring that much about hip-hop, OFWGKTA (Odd Future Wolf Gang Kill Them All or Odd Future for short) are a Los Angeles hip-hop collective that many are viewing as the future of hip hop. Not unlike the Wu-Tang Clan, they have multiple members, many of whom have solo projects. What does any of this have to do with metal? Well, they have their own label, and they’ve just signed Sacramento hardcore band Trash Talk to them. This marks the first project on the label that isn’t part of the Odd Future collective. Odd Future’s L-Boy released a statement about the signing, and while it should be pretty easy to fill in the blanks, we’ve provided a translation after the release:
So them muthafu***** ova at Odd Future records done signed a fu***** group of crackas and ni**** in a hardcore punk band called Trash Talk. I mean it makes sense since Odd Future fans is them white ni**** anyway. Trash Talk is supposed to be releasing they album called “119″ or some sh** thru they Trash Talk Collective Label in the fall.. don’t ask me what the f*** that means cuz I don’t fu***** kno. I asked Tyler’s trick ass what he thought about that sh** and I really didn’t give a f*** so I’m not gone put that sh** on here. Them Trash Talk ni**** is currently over in Europe with them musty muthaf******.
If you give a f*** about they sh**t then listen to them ni**** EP on iTunes called Awake or watch the fuckin video ni***.
Here’s our translation: We at Odd Future Records are very excited to have signed the multicultural hardcore punk band Trash Talk. Since Odd Future draws a crossover crowd, this signing makes sense. Their forthcoming album, 119, will be released on our label via the band’s Trash Talk Collective Label. I’m not quite sure of the business details. I asked my cohort Tyler the Creator, and his answer wasn’t interesting enough to include in this press release. Trash Talk is currently touring in Europe, where I believe people smell bad. If you’d like to acquaint yourself with Trash Talk’s previous material, I’d suggest their EP Awake, which is available on iTunes.
via [Pitchfork]
Chew on this: While Slash has kept himself extremely busy after leaving Guns N’ Roses in 1996, it took him until 2010 to release his first solo album. That’s almost as much time as it took for Axl and friends to record Chinese Democracy, which came out in 2008. The man legally known as Saul Hudson appears to be making up for lost time, however, with his second solo album, Apocalyptic Love, coming just two years later. And while it’s billed as “featuring Myles Kennedy and the Conspirators,” it seems like more of a solo album than his last one, which featured tons more vocal contributors. At any rate, there are quite a bit of debuts this week, so let’s read on.
Notable Debuts:
Slash, Apocalyptic Love (Dik Hayd) Debut #4, 37,5000 sold
The album, which features more of a steady frontman in Myles Kennedy, sells about 23,000 less than his last album, which debuted at #3. Ironically, Chinese Democracy, also debuted at #3.
The Cult, Choice of Weapon (12th Street) Debut #32, 11,300 sold
While 2007′s Born Into This was supposed to be the band’s last album, this one had a much nicer chart debut than the #72 position their last one had. It’s hard to say if it sold more copies, but this is still a solid debut for a heritage band.
Six Feet Under, Undead (Metal Blade) Debut #146. 2,700 sold
This is a great debut for Six Feet Under’s first album in four years. Maybe all the exposure the band has picked up through Chris Barnes’ car commercial?
Sonata Arctica, Stones Grow Her Name (Nuclear Blast) #174, 2,100 sold
The band’s seventh studio album is off to a pretty solid beginning.
Kill Devil Hill, Kill Devil Hill (SPV/Steamhammer) 1,800 sold
Given that it’s the band’s rhythm section (Pantera/Down’s Rex Brown and Black Sabbath’s Vinny Appice) are more popular than it’s frontman and guitarist, this is a nice solid start for the band.
Saint Vitus, Lillie: F-65 (Season of Mist) 1,100 sold
It’s been 17 years since the doom band’s last album, a time which has seen many other bands are their style. However, they’ve been active in (mostly) this incnarnation since 2008, and this is a solid beginning.
Firewind, Few Against Many (DisManic, Inc.) 1,000 sold
Since the last Firewind album, guitarist Gus G. has joined a little bit of a higher-profile act in Ozzy Osbourne. This is the first release he’s done on his own label, and it’s paying off with a nice, albeit modest start. Read more »
Why should major label bands be the only ones who get love? Unsigned & Streamed is a column where we stream a song from an unsigned band we at Metal Insider really dig.
This week, we’re proud to be showcasing Zombies And Diamonds from La Vega Baja (Alicante, Southeast Spain). The group started off as a power trio in mid-2008 following guitarist Miguel Hernandez and drummer Gustavo Rodriguez’s time in the hardcore/punk outfit The Assbreakers. After releasing their first three track demo, Zombies And Diamonds made a name for themselves live, having shared the stage with bands like The Cynics and The King Brothers. And by 2009, the band finalized their lineup with the addition of frontman Adrian Filiu. The following year, Zombies And Diamonds released their full length debut Walk With Me! Zombies And Diamonds’ blend of hardcore and Southern grit reminds us of bands like Every Time I Die and Coliseum. So without further ado, listen to the sing “Ten Years” in the stream below.
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Zombies And Diamonds have just completed work on their second effort Dogs Become Wolves, and are currently looking for a label for distribution. They’ll also be opening for Comeback Kid in Madrid on July 4. You can stream and purchase their debut album Walk With Me! in its entirety via Bandcamp, while you can stay posted on Zombies And Diamonds upcoming plans via Facebook.
If you’re in an unsigned band and would like to participate in Unsigned & Streamed, email a link to your band’s music and a brief bio to tips [at] metalinsider.com for consideration.
Two weeks ago, Periphery not only let the release date to their new album slip, but also guest appearances (including Dream Theater’s John Petrucci, The Faceless’ Wes Hauch and The Aristocrats’ Guthrie Govan). And late last night, the djent metal group revealed more details regarding their sophomore album.
Simply titled Periphery II, Periphery officially revealed the cover artwork and track listing for their latest. In addition to that, the group also released a promo video for the album. The two-minute long clip features some sparse, moody electronics before guitars come in, and if it’s any indication of the rest of the album, we can’t wait for July 3. Check it out above, and make sure to catch them on the Summer Slaughter tour. The track listing of the album is after the jump, and track 3 shows that at least the band have a sense of humor about themselves and/or the djent genre they helped popularize. Read more »
Last Summer, Ihsahn recorded a guest appearance on Devin Townsend’s “Juular.” Fast forward a year, and now Hevy Devy has returned the favor to the former Emperor guitarist, making a guest appearance on his new solo album Eremita.
And now the song “Introspection,” featuring Townsend, is streaming over at Guitar World. Just like with “Juular,” Townsend and Ihsahn’s unique vocals complement each other perfectly. To put it shortly, the track does not disappoint, just like “The Paranoid” (which was offered as part of Candlelight’s free sampler). But don’t take our word for it, head over to Guitar World now to stream “Introspection.” And in case you already forgot, Eremita (which also features appearances from guitarist Jeff Loomis, drummer Tobias Ornes Andersen and numerous others) comes out on June 19.
Portland Cello Project and Alan Sparhawk of Low cover Suicidal Tendencies
The Onion’s AV Club has been doing a pretty cool weekly series called Undercover, where artists come into their offices and cover a song from a pre-existing list. This week features one of the oddest ones they’ve done: Alan Sparhawk of shoegazey band Low with the eight-person Portland Cello Project backing him for a cover of Suicidal Tendencies “Institutionalized.” Sparhawk does a pretty good job of channeling Mike “Cyko Myko” Muir, complete with a headband and a bottle of Pepsi (which is all he wanted). He sounds a lot like the paranoid, ranting Muir through the verses, but adapts a black metalish shriek for the chorus. And the Portland Cello Project, who have been known to sprinkle covers of Kanye West, Britney Spears, and A-Ha into their sets, hold up admirably, even if they come off as a more indie rock version of Apocalyptica.
Earlier today, Slipknot released the video teaser above. Focusing on DJ Sid Wilson, the clip teases the release of Antennas To Hell. But what does it mean? Well on July 17, Slipknot and Roadrunner Records will be releasing a new album… actually, a new greatest hits album.
That may not exactly be the news fans hoping for a new Slipknot album (their first without the late bassist Paul Gray) wanted to hear. However, there is still reason to rejoice, as frontman Corey Taylor revealed the following via Twitter [note, the “HoGaB” mentioned in the first tweet likely has something to do with Stone Sour’s new album]:
“11 days till the meaning of HoGaB is revealed. And I believe 7.17.12 is when the Slipknot greatest hits album drops.
To anyone asking, Slipknot is not currently working on an album. Yet. We are putting together demos, but we’re not recording. Yet.”
So they may not be officially entering the studio yet. And granted, the status of a new Slipknot album always changes depending on who you ask (namely either Taylor or Joey Jordison).However, the fact that they’re “putting together demos” definitely sounds promising.
More details regarding Antennas To Hell (including the track listing and cover artwork) have yet to be revealed. However, we have a feeling that we’ll be seeing more video teasers similar to the one above.
Metal Insider’s Top 5 is a column where we count down the top five of…well basically anything.
We love a good old fashioned cover song, especially when the artist is able to make said song completely their own. However, we recently saw video of a half-naked Ukrainian folk band called Los Colorados covering Rammstein’s “Du Hast” (as seen above), and let’s just say it made three kids performing a Rammstein song look “normal.” But seeing these half-naked men performing “Du Hast” got us to thinking: is this truly the most random cover we’ve seen?
After long thought, we realized that indeed it is not. And that’s what lead us to listing the top five odd cover songs (either performed by a metal band or of a metal song). But before we move forward, there are a few things we should make clear about this list:
-We’re only taking into account recorded covers that have appeared on albums, soundtracks, or at the very least b-sides. In other words, no one-off live performances.
-To make it a little more interesting, we tried to exclude artists who haven’t officially released cover albums (so sorry Children Of Bodom and Metallica, but your covers are not on the list).
-In no way are we saying that these covers are “bad.” We’re merely just highlighting the unusual song choices made by certain bands.
So without further ado, click on the page numbers below to see our picks, along with the original renditions.
Pages: 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9
Relapse Records have been one of the few well known metal labels to actively use Bandcamp. Now Relapse has become an even bigger supporter of the “name your price” online platform, having just uploaded their entire catalog on their page.
Relapse’s Bandcamp page now features music from 122 bands, including Baroness, Dying Fetus, Pig Destroyer, Red Fang, Revocation and many others. Not only are they offering high quality 320k mp3 or FLAC downloads of albums from their artists, but also free streaming and select free downloads. In addition to the catalog from their current roster, Relapse has created another page for alumni (including Mastodon, Neurosis, Nile, High On Fire, The Dillinger Escape Plan and others). Albums from these past bands will also be available for download with select streaming.
Bandcamp has been showing lots of potential for growth, with recent reports suggesting that the platform is helping fight piracy. The service has been helping many unsigned bands expand their reach online, but maybe more labels will eventually follow Relapse Records’ (and others like Candlelight Records) lead.
Posted by Bram Teitelman on Wed, May 30, 2012 at 5:38 pm
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