About Steve Savage

Writer and music enthusiast based out of the San Francisco Bay Area, always interested in discovering new and different music no matter what the genre. Hit me up anytime if you know about something I should be listening to or if you just wanna talk music in general. Peace!

AFTERSHOCK: Friday [Review & Photo Gallery]

Following a sold-out crowd of 60,000 last year, the Aftershock Festival expanded to three full days for 2019 with attendance reaching an unheard of 97,500 this year. The eighth annual edition of the Northern California rock festival, produced by Danny Wimmer Presents, took place on Friday October 11th, Saturday, October 12th, and Sunday, October 13th at Sacramento’s Discovery Park. The massive lineup of over 50 bands was headlined by Tool, who debuted music from their chart-topping new album ‘Fear Inoculum.’ blink-182, who headlined the second night, made their Danny Wimmer Presents debut in support of their new album ‘Nine.’ Slipknot, whose new release ‘We Are Not Your Kind’ has been burning up the Billboard 200 album chart, headlined day one. Continue reading

State Of The Art: North Dakota’s FROSTHELM [Album Stream]

*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every week from the featured state. This month’s state is North Dakota.*

Originally formed in 2009 within the dark, icy realms of where thrash and black metal collide emerges Frosthelm. Contributing in no small part to their sound is the extreme cold and bleak environment experienced by band members Dakota Irwin (guitar), Billy Zahn (guitar), Brian Helm (drums), Tyler Pfliger (vocals), and Jimmy Cherry (bass), hailing from the frozen plains of Bismarck, North Dakota. Drawing much inspiration from their surroundings, in 2015 the band released their full-length debut, ‘The Endless Winter,’ which Irwin aptly describes as “bitter, dark, angry, and disgusted.” The LP was critically-acclaimed, landing on numerous “best of 2015” lists, and receiving multiple glowing reviews by respected metal publications. Seeking to top their monumental debut, Frosthelm has just released their second album ‘Pyrrhic’ in March of this year. ‘Pyrrhic,’ defined as “(of a victory) won at too great a cost to have been worthwhile for the victor,” illustrates its bleak theme powerfully through punishing riffage and horrifying vocal imagery. Continue reading

Review: TOOL – ‘Fear Inoculum’ [Song Stream]

Finally, the time has arrived. After a 13-year gap since the last album, ‘10,000 Days,’ the almighty Tool have returned with their 5th full-length release entitled ‘Fear Inoculum.’ With all the hype surrounding the record over the last several weeks and months, the pressure to deliver something monumental is in full force. Teasers, clues, and seemingly insurmountable expectations of what the prog metal veterans will unveil have been buzzing across social media and dominating music news as of late. Front man Maynard James Keenan has been doing his best to fan the flames of anticipation on his own, particularly via his personal Twitter account where he kept followers updated during key steps of the recording progress as they unfolded, and at one point even helped stir a short-lived beef with Justin Bieber’s wife during some classic, tongue-in-cheek, MJK humor. He also recently made his third appearance on the highly popular Joe Rogan Experience Podcast to officially unveil the ‘Fear Inoculum’ album title and to announce that Tool will finally be entering the digital streaming age by releasing their entire back catalog to all major platforms. Like ravenous wolves, the fan response resulted in record-breaking download numbers, landing all four of the band’s previous albums in the top five of Billboard’s Top Rock Albums simultaneously. Similarly, upon release of the band’s first single and title track, “Fear Inoculum,” Tool became the first artist to have a 10-minute song reach the Billboard Hot 100. To say the new album from Tool is highly-anticipated is a massive understatement. ‘Fear Inoculum’ is unquestionably one of the most anticipated album releases of the past 13 years in rock music. Continue reading

The Bucketlist With SAY NEVER

In this series we pose the age old questions to a wide array of music lovers. As fans of music, most of us keep a mental list of active bands we want to see live that we haven’t yet seen. The Bucketlist brings to you those lists of your favorite artists and why those bands mean so much to them*

Since originally forming in 2017 by Jonathan Pruitt (vocals/guitar) and Paul Lawrence (bass), Say Never has been honing their brand of blue-collar hard rock in the thriving Atlanta, Georgia music scene – along with Rick Gatheman (drums) and Ben Sumpter (lead guitar). With big choruses and hard driving riffs, their sound is one that will surely resonate with fans of bands like Seether and Black Stone Cherry. Just last month, Say Never released a music video for their party anthem, “Do It Again,” whose catchy hooks are sure to be stuck in your head for days. Find it below, but first check out The Bucketlist for Jonathan, Paul, and Ben: Continue reading

Aftershock 2019 Spotlight: THE HU [Video Stream]

*This is part of our “Aftershock Festival 2019 Spotlight” where we branch out and focus on some of the up-and-coming bands that fans can see at this year’s Aftershock Festival on October 11th – 13th.  This week, we’re checking out THE HU*

Mongolian phenomenon, The HU (derived from the Mongolian root word “hu” for human beings) will be bringing their one-of-a-kind brand of “hunnu rock” to Sacramento this October. Infusing elements of Western rock and metal music along with traditional Mongolian instruments (like a horsehead fiddle and Jaw harp) and guttural throat singing, The HU have become online, viral sensations, having already racked up over 22 million views of their two YouTube videos, “Yuve Yuve Yu” and “Wolf Totem” this year. In addition to their rapid rise to Internet fame, The HU – who originally formed in November of 2018 – have been mesmerizing audiences worldwide with their hypnotic beats and powerful stage shows. Just recently, Metal Nexus caught up with The HU at UK’s SWX Bristol. Check out the full show review and photo gallery here. Continue reading

Aftershock 2019 Spotlight: SPIRIT ADRIFT [Video Stream]

*This is part of our “Aftershock Festival 2019 Spotlight” where we branch out and focus on some of the up-and-coming bands that fans can see at this year’s Aftershock Festival on October 11th – 13th.  This week, we’re checking out SPIRIT ADRIFT*

Phoenix, Arizona’s Spirit Adrift will be offering a taste of darkness and doom under the hot Northern California sun this October. Originally formed in 2016, the quartet consists of Nate Garrett (vocals/guitar), Marcus Bryant (drums), Chase Morgan (bass), and Eric Wagner (guitar). Spirit Adrift’s late 70s/early 80s, retro metal vibe is a sharp contrast to the more extreme death metal project, Gatecreeper, of which Garrett, Mason, and Wagner are also members. Impressively, both bands are devastating in their own right; but where Gatecreeper takes its influences more in the form of bands like Entombed and Bolt Thrower, Spirit Adrift’s inspiration seems to lie somewhere within the stoney realms of Black Sabbath and Candlemass. Continue reading

The Bucketlist With THE NORTHMEN

In this series we pose the age old questions to a wide array of music lovers. As fans of music most of us keep a mental list of active bands we want to see live that we haven’t yet seen. The Bucketlist brings to you those lists of your favorite artists and why those bands mean so much to them*

Originally formed in Watertown, New York, The NorthmeN have a sound that is equal parts epic, grandiose heavy metal and catchy, hard rock groove. For my ears, The NorthmeN are kind of what you might get if you threw Iron Maiden and Load-era Metallica into a blender with a dash of Scorpions guitar harmonies – a refreshing treat indeed. Check out their music video for “Forevermore” that not only features a killer track, but some interesting behind-the-scenes footage of the band as well. Continue reading

OPETH Releases New Single, “Svekets Prins” Off Upcoming Album, ‘In Cauda Venenum’ [Track Stream]’

Swedish progressive metal legends, Opeth, have just released the new single “Svekets Prins” off of their highly anticipated 13th album ‘In Cauda Venenum,’ which is set to drop September 27th via Moderbolaget/Nuclear Blast Records. Recorded in 2018 at Stockholm’s Park Studios, the upcoming full-length release will be offered in both Swedish and English language versions. “Svekets Prins,” the track’s Swedish version, will be followed up next week by the release of the English version, “Dignity.” Continue reading

AFTERSHOCK Announces Experiences & Food Offerings For October Festival With TOOL, SLIPKNOT, BLINK-182, And More

With the eighth annual Aftershock Festival rapidly approaching this October, festival producers Danny Wimmer Presents have revealed details for the additional entertainment and unique culinary options featured at the event taking place at Sacramento, California’s Discovery Park. Continue reading

Review: ENTOMBED A.D. – ‘Bowels of Earth’ [Video Stream]

Entombed A.D. – the band who rose from the ashes of Swedish death metal legends, Entombed, in 2014 – return with their third studio album, ‘Bowels of Earth.’ Set to release on August 30th, 2019 via Century Media Records, ‘Bowels of Earth’ continues the tradition of groove-laden death metal that defined the Swedish scene back in the 90s. With buzzsaw guitars chugging out string tension-defying, ultra-downtuned riffage, and the monstrous growls of vocal veteran LG Petrov – along with Victor Brandt (bass), Nico Elgstrand (guitar), and Olle Dahlstedt (drums) – Entombed A.D. are keeping the spirit of death n’ roll alive and devastating in 2019. Continue reading