Review: Obituary – ‘Obituary’ [Song Stream]

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Florida based death metal legends Obituary, are coming out with a new album via Relapse Records on March 17th 2017 and will run a 10 song track listing. This will be the bands 10th studio album, spanning a long career started all the way back in 1989 with the bands debut release titled ‘Slowly we Rot’. Obituary has been considered death metal elite ever since, you cannot bring up death metal without hearing the name Obituary. The bands previous release ‘Inked in Blood’, set a very high standard to surpass or even match, with great reviews from critics and fans alike. The year is 2017 and one of the giants of the genre has returned. Continue reading →

Interview With Starbynary Founder and Vocalist, Joe Caggianelli!

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Starbynary is:

Joe Caggianelli – Vocals
Leo Giraldi – Guitars
Luigi Accardo – Keyboards
Andrea Janko – Drums
Sebastiano Zanotto – Bass

Starbynary is an absolutely amazing heavy, Progressive Power Metal band from Trieste / Milano, Italy. Started by friends, vocalist Joe Caggianelli and guitarist/composter Leo Giraldi in September of 2012, Starbynary was the result of a project idea after Joe left his former band Derdian. With the addition of Luigi Accardo on the keys and taking a collaborative effort with Mike LePond (Symphony X bass player), Starbynary released their full-length debut, Dark Passenger in 2014 before completing the existing lineup with drummer Andrea Janko and permanent bass player Sebastiano Zanotto in 2015. At this point, Caggianelli pitched a fifteen year old idea about a trilogy of concept albums based on Dante’s Divina Commedia and the band got to work and ultimately released the first of the series, Inferno a little over a month ago. I have to say that this huge undertaking is off to one helluva great start! Everything about Inferno has been done tastefully, professionally with mind-boggling musicianship. A real stunner. Once you read what Joe has to say, be sure to check it out on Spotify, iTunes, Amazon or wherever you get your musical fix. Well worth the time! Continue reading →

Unearthing An ACID DEATH Album, A Quarter Century’s Past [Teaser Video And Stream]

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The classical Roman poet Virgil wrote in ‘Aeneid’, one of his most well known epics, to “be wary of Greeks bearing gifts”.  Of course, Virgil was referring to the historically significant delivery of the subterfuge Trojan horse by the Greeks in order to gain access inside the fortified walls of the Trojan stronghold in the midst of a ten year siege. Ol’ Virgil, though, never could have, in all his poetic grace, imagined the Greeks handing the metal world the offerings of Hellenic Acid Death.  Floga Records announced on March 10th that they were releasing the long buried first album from the legendary death/thrash/prog/tech metal collective known to the world as Acid Death. This album is finally seeing the light of day after a quarter of a century (25 years!) of staying in the shadows of someone’s long forgotten stash.  The band originally formed in 1989, and “Balance Of Power” was recorded in 1992 by the fledgling group who would go on to release several albums: “Pieces Of Mankind” (1997), “Random’s Manifest” (2000), “Eidolon” (2012), and most recently “Hall Of Mirrors” (2015).  The gorgeous grounds of Greece spawned this apocalyptic philosophical quartet, apropos, considering the rich history of the country. Comprised of Savvas Betinis (ex-Brainfade and ex-Kinetic) on vox and bass, Kostas Alexakis (ex-Braindfade and ex-Kinetic) keeping the beats busting on drums, John Anagnoston (ex-Released Anger and ex-The Crucifier) on rhythm guitar and last but certainly not least is axe slinger Dennis Kostopoulus (ex-Infidel) on the lead.  Despite some breaks over the years, the band returns to its’ core roots more often than not and have firmly cemented themselves as one of the major innovators and mainstays of the Greek metal scene.  Acid Death have shared the stage with such titans as KREATOR, THE HAUNTED, IMPALED NAZARENE, CHILDREN OF BODOM, ROTTING CHRIST, MAYHEM, PESTILENCE, and SEPTIC FLESH over the years, alongside some epic and raved about performances on the festival circuit.    Continue reading →

Enter To Win Two Free Tix to Decibel Mag’s 2017 Tour!

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Heads up, Metal Nexus followers!  Decibel Magazine’s 2017 Tour is close to kicking off with a lineup featuring metal giants Obituary and Kreator as the headliners!  Stalwart metal label Nuclear Blast USA is sponsoring the tour and the contest via Instagram, and the winners get to pick which show they’d like to attend!  Also on the bill are Midnight and Horrendous with regional support to boot in select markets.  All you have to do is re-post Nuclear Blast‘s post and hashtag it according to the instructions; tagging a friend nets you extra entries!  What are you waiting on?! Get it on this immediately as the tour opens 03/17 in Charlotte, NC! Best of luck to you, and if you win, remember us here at Metal Nexus and let us know by tagging us in a post!

Find Nuclear Blast USA on Instagram here:

For more information about the tour, including show dates, click here:

State of the Art: Virginia – Valkyrie

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*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*

This month’s State is Virginia!

After starting our State of the Art: Virginia series off with a bang last week, I would like to introduce or reintroduce a band that has been turning Traditional Doom fans on their heads since 2002. Started by vocalist/guitarist Jake Adams, bassist Eric Seaman and drummer Luke Shafer in Rockbridge County, VA, Valkyrie quickly released a five song EP in 2003 which included the track “Wintry Plains” that was later used in their most recent release, some twelve years in the future. By 2004, Jake’s brother Peter (also of Baroness) was added to the band, sharing guitar and vocal responsibilities. A second demo was recorded at a local radio station shortly before Shafer split with the band and was replaced with Mike Hoke on drums. Sunlight Shines followed along with a 7” split with VOG. By the end of 2004, the young band lost Seaman and Hoke and were replaced by Nick Crabill on bass and Nic McIntrurff on drums. Once being picked up by Twin Earth Records, their debut, self-titled, full length album was released with the assistance and engineering talents of Chris Kozlowski (Pentagram, Trouble, The Obsessed, Spirit Caravan, The Melvins, Blue Cheer). Changing the lineup once again, bass player Will Barry–Rec and drummer Gary Isom (Spirit Caravan, Pentagram) were recruited into the band, allowing Valkyrie to play many festivals including the final Emissions from the Monolith Fest in Austin, TX and the Stoner Hands of Doom festival in Phoenix, AZ. Isom left the band in 2007 and was replaced by Warren Hawkins. The next year, Man of Two Visions was released on their own label, Noble Origin. Valkyrie’s debut and Visions were later re-released on 12” vinyl in 2007 and 2008, the year that Pete joined Relapse Records recording artist Baroness which called him away for full time touring. In 2010, Meteorcity Records (The Obsessed, Nebula, Atonic Bitchwax) re-released the first two albums on CD. Joining Valkyrie on bass while still playing with Earthling, Alan Fary released a new split with both bands in 2013. 2014 proved to be a huge year for Valkyrie and its members. With production from Sanford Parker (Nachmystium, Pelican, Voivod), Shadows was released shortly before Pete was asked to play with Glen Danzig’s Samhain where he toured their reunion shows throughout the United States (information from Valkyrie’s online resources).

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SARCASM Release Lyric Video Ahead Of 2nd Full Length Album [Lyric Video + Album Review]

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We’ve all heard at least a half dozen or more tropes about preservation, about finishing what we start, and about how anything worth doing is worth doing right, and approximately a thousand variations upon the same and similar themes.  The Swedish death metal band Sarcasm wants you know those important and oh-so-persistent lessons in life did not fall upon their deaf ears.  The core duo of the current quintet, vocalist Heval Vozarslan (also of Third Storm) and Anders Erikson have written and recorded together as Sarcasm since 1994. While an EP appeared in 2000, and along the way a bunch of demos, their material from that time did not see a proper full length release until 2016 on Dark Descent Records.  Yes, you read those last two sentences correctly. Less than a year after their proper debut, Sarcasm rounded out their lineup, bringing back Peter Laitinen on guitar (who previously played with the core in ’94, also of Imperial Domain, The Hidden, ex-Goatworship), and fleshing out the rest with Jonas Soder (Imperial Domain, also ex-Goatworship) thundering along on bass and Matte Modin (Firespawn, The Hidden, and ex-Dark Funeral) taking on the role of beat master.  July of 2016 saw the release of their proper full length release ‘Burial Dimensions’, and, in breakneck speed as if making up for lost time, the sophomore effort ‘Within The Sphere Of Ethereal Minds’ is scheduled to drop on April 28th of this year.   Continue reading →

Review: GHOST BATH – ‘Starmourner’ [Single Track Stream]

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The name Ghost Bath refers to the act of committing suicide by being submerged in a tub of water, and given the music this band has brought forth on their previous EP and full length releases, it’s an appropriate one.  Ghost Bath, hailing from the state of North Dakota, play an interesting brand of depressing black metal, chock full of rough, howling vocalizations accompanied by razor sharp instrumental passages that send the listener on a trip through the throes of a depressive mind.  The forthcoming  album, ‘Starmourner’ releases April 21st, 2017, via Nuclear Blast, finds Ghost Bath stretching their wings, much like the angelic theme that threads the album, and exploring old and new territory alike.  Continue reading →

Louisville Based Order Of Leviathan Roars To Life With ‘Death Worship’ [Album Stream]

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Quickly: what comes to mind when you think of the state of Kentucky? Hillbillies? Country music? Horses and bourbon? Maybe UK basketball? Whatever it is, I highly doubt that death metal is among what pops up.  Defying what outsiders think they know about the Bluegrass State, Louisville (aka Louis-evil) based Order Of Leviathan has launched an all out assault on convention via an “eternal quest for total darkness through transcendent art.”  Founded in March 2012, these guys pulled the band together not for the promise of fame, but to create art purely for the sake of art. 

Comprised of vocalist Nathan Bowling, Levi Crandell-guitar, Derek Tipton-guitar, Dustin Rawlings-bass, and Mike Hargrave-drums, Order Of Leviathan have released two full albums thus far, and have played with such acts as Cannibal Corpse and Cattle Decapitation.  2013 saw their first full length release, “The Infernal Path To Total Darkness”, an absolute BEAST of a debut, and more recently, the sophomore satanica offering of “Death Worship” in August of 2016.  This band of nihilistic misanthropes are only growing in scope and skill, and with razor sharp intent, they’re hellbent on opening your eyes to ultimate nothingness of life.    Continue reading →

Chicago Open Air Spotlight: AVATAR

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*Every Thursday from now until Chicago Open Air gets here we will be releasing an article about a band playing the festival to get you familiar with them.*

This week’s artist is Avatar!

Swedish metal band Avatar will be making their debut at Chicago Open Air to “steal the show” on July 15th. Forming in 2001, the band went through several lineup changes before releasing their first full length album, ‘Thoughts of No Tomorrow’ in 2006. ‘Schlact’ followed that in 2007 and then their self titled album was released in 2010. This was the start of the band’s rise to fame having been signed by Sony Music and releasing their biggest song yet “Queen of Blades”. The song received recognition from Blizzard Entertainment as it was about a character from the game Starcraft. Throughout these years they hit the road with many experienced bands like In Flames, Obituary, Helloween, and Dark Tranquility. Continue reading →

Review: DOWN THE STONE – ‘Life’ [Official Video]

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DOWN THE STONE formed in 2013 in Italy. The band has retained all of its original members: Lorenzo “Lau” Ricci (guitar and vocals), Jordan “Gio” Conti (guitar), Lorenzo “Abbo” Grassi (bass) and Fabio “Hammer” Catozzi (drums) since their formation. The band has a modern and powerful rock sound, with some major influences from the rock and metal bands of years past. In the year of their formation they released their debut EP ‘Metamorphosis’. That EP was recorded at Frequencies of Monza Studio. In June of 2014, during a concert at the Legend of Milan, they were noticed by Marco Barusso, and he offered to produce their first full album, ‘Life’. Marco Barusso is mostly known for engineering and mixing 4 of fellow Italian band Lacuna Coil’s albums. Fast forward to June 17, 2016 when the band launched “Walking In My Shoes”, the first single from the album, which received excellent feedback. The band then released the album in December of 2016. DOWN THE STONE bring a lot of well-planned elements into their music. It really sits in that grey area between modern and old school metal and it’s the best of both worlds. Continue reading →