Author Archives: Capt

About Capt

Hey Folks, the name is Capt. Hailing from the cornfields of Illinois, I've been a fan of this genre since I was introduced to Metallica and Pantera as a child. If you don't catch me at shows, I'm more than likely enjoying my other two favorite things, Gaming and Being with my metal-head lady and son.

State Of The Art : AMERICAN STANDARDS

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

This month’s state is Arizona!

 

When we found out what state would be featured for our weekly series of STATE OF THE ART, I automatically knew who I wanted to introduce to the world, the fantastic guys in American Standards. American Standards is a chaotic hardcore band that you probably do not know and will kick yourself for not knowing them before today. But don’t be saddend by this, even I was late to the party, not discovering them until sometime in late 2016 when meeting their vocalist Brandon Kellum through the Facebook fan group for Dillinger Escape Plan, The Dillinger Compound. American Standards story is that of separation, loss and the adaptability that allows us to preserver. Formed in Phoenix, AZ in the summer of 2011, the band released their first album ‘Still Life’ through We Are Triumphant, an imprint of Victory Records. Musically, the record walked a fine line between subtle melody and raw chaos providing a platform for vocalist Brandon Kellum’s emotionally and politically charged lyrics. The band quickly became known for their intense live shows and undeniable work ethic playing over 300 shows to date.

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State Of The Art: BLACK RITUAL [Videos]

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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 North Carolina!

Welcome to the fierce world known as Black Ritual. Coming from Charlotte, North Carolina the band consists of: Charlie Calebro (Vocals), Gary Rackley (Guitar), Eddie “E-Rock” Cousins (Bass), Jody Gibson (Guitar) and Brad Sellers (Drums). They have been around 10 years playing in the local music scene and supporting their fellow musicians, Black Ritual is firmly grounded in their own unique style. With their original hardcore, thrash, southern, power groove metal, and melodic sounds and influences, this band aims to stand apart from the rest. Guitarist Gary Rackley is quoted, “We just want to make every song its own, our own. For each song to sound different in more ways than the last” Always ready to throw down whether in the studio or onstage, this band brings the energy and the passion of music. With all the members having a rock solid history in playing live music, they bring heavy rhythms, blood curdling vocals, chunky guitars, and a stage performance that’s sure to get the crowd pumped and moving. In 2008, the band released their debut album ‘1,000 Yard Stare’. After a six year hiatus and trying different avenues the band knew that Black Ritual is where they belonged. The beginning of 2017, Black Ritual released a three song EP named ‘Resurrection’. One thing that the crowd can be certain of is that they are going to see an amazing and unforgettable show by this band. Black Ritual have created their mark in the metal scene and will continue to do so for years to come. Continue reading →

Interview With TRICKY LOBSTERS Vocalist\Guitarist Sarge!

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Copyright: Christian Thiele

 

On June 23rd, Tricky Lobsters will release their new album ‘Worlds Collide’. Formed in Germany around 1996, this band has spanned the genres with their sound throughout the years. Tending to be unknown outside of their native Germany, they still enjoy quite the substantial following back home. After four years of wadding in the waters, the Lobsters have returned to shore with a western-driven face off in an epic clash of stories, riffs, and drama on ‘Worlds Collide’. The power trio consisting of Sarge (Guitar/Vocals), Doc (Bass/Backing Vocals), and Cpt. Peters (Drums/Backing Vocals) come at you with thunderous rhythm sections that take shape song after song. Continue reading →

Album Review : MARZI MONTAZERI Ft. TIM “Ripper” OWENS – “THE UPRISING” [Live Videos]

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Known for his groundbreaking musicianship and energetic showmanship, Marzi Montazeri AKA “The High Priest Of Distortion” is a guitarist, producer, and songwriter from Houston, Texas. Currently the guitarist for Heavy As Texas, Marzi has been the man behind the axe for Superjoint Ritual and more recently in 2010, he rejoined with Philip Anselmo to work on Anselmo’s first solo project, Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals. In 2015, Montazeri and Washburn Parallax Guitars united to co-design his own signature electric guitar series called “The Priestess”. Montazeri’s collaborations as a guest artist include Prong, Doug Pinnick (Razr 13), Defiatory, and the Judas Priest tribute record ‘Hell Bent Forever’, also featuring the vocalist on this album, Tim “Ripper” Owens.  It was through this tribute how he came to know Mr. Owens. “A while ago I was asked to play a couple of solos on the tribute album ‘Hell Bent Forever’ and the track was, “Exciter”” recalls Marzi of first meeting Owens. “When I arrived, Tim was walking out of the vocal booth for the evening. I was blown away by his performance and personality. He’s a super cool and funny dude. So when it came to this EP where I knew I wanted a powerful metal vocalist, I just made a call to him and here we are with some original music.” Tim Owens is a Grammy-nominated American hard rock singer who first gained attention as the vocalist for Judas Priest (1996-2003) and then Iced Earth and Yngwie Malmsteen. Owens currently tours the world as a solo artist and performs as the lead singer of Charred Walls Of The Damned. Also worth noting, the movie Rockstar (featuring Mark Walhberg) was loosely based on Owens’ time in Judas Priest. In 2001, Marzi released his first solo effort ‘The Need’ and after 16 years, he has come back with what could be some of his best solo work yet with ‘The Uprising’.   Continue reading →

Album Review : TRICKY LOBSTERS ‘Worlds Collide’ [Official Video]

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Copyright : Christian Thiele

It’s said that if the term “Insider Tip” wasn’t so drawn out, it would be perfect to describe Tricky Lobsters. Formed in Rostock, Germany around 1996, this band has spanned the genres with their sound throughout the years. From the early days of noise to punk rock, to their last effort, ‘The Blue Hospital Conspiracy’ that took on a gnarly sludge rock blues sound. Tending to be unknown outside of their native home of Germany, they still enjoy quite the substantial following back home. After four years of wadding in the waters, the Lobsters have returned to shore with a western-driven face off in an epic clash of stories, riffs, and drama on ‘Worlds Collide’. The power trio consisting of Sarge (Guitar/Vocals), Doc (Bass/Backing Vocals), and Cpt. Peters (Drums/Backing Vocals) come at you with thunderous rhythm sections that take shape song after song. Their new album ‘Worlds Collide’ courtesy of Exile On Mainstream, coming out June 23rd, is a perfect example of this statement. Rocker after Rocker, their newest effort is a must listen for all stoner rock and blues rock enthusiasts. Continue reading →

Album Review: ENTRAILS ‘World Inferno’ [Offical Videos]

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Entrails are a Swedish death metal band that was formed in 1991. With dreams to follow in the scene around Stockholm they were unsuccessful in recording any satisfactory sessions and in 1994, half the band decided to move onto other things. Jimmy Lundqvist (Guitar) kept writing until 1998 when even he decided to hang it up. Fast forward to 2008, when Entrails was resurrected. Lundqvist dug up some old recordings and decided they needed to be released through modern technology. And with that,  the first ever Entrails demos were finally recorded, ‘Reborn’ and ‘Human Decay’. Jocke Svensson took the helm at vocals in 2009. Following those two demos, they were signed to German label FDA Rekotz. Then Entrails released their debut album ‘Tales From The Morgue’ in 2010. The album featured tracks from both previous demos. Shortly after this release, the band welcomed Adde Mitroulis as their drummer at the time. Their follow up effort was in 2011 with ‘The Tomb Awaits’, which featured the rest of the songs from the demos along with a few older tracks and some new material. That winter they started working on a new deal with several record labels and ended with signing to Metal Blade Records in 2012. They started work in the fall of 2012 on their Metal Blade debut and released ‘Raging Death’ in 2013. This release also marks the departure of  Mathias Nilsson with Pontus Samuelsson replacing him on guitar. A new song was written and released on 7″, in early 2014, called ‘Berzerk‘. The B-side was a cover of Swedish heavy metal legends Heavy Load. Also in 2014, they released their old demos under  ‘Resurrected From The Grave-Demo Collection‘. 2015 saw the release of their 2nd full length under Metal Blade in ‘Obliteration’. After a few shows in 2015, Jocke Svensson (Vocals) and Adde Mitroulis (Drums) both parted ways with the band, on good terms, and were replaced by Tommy Carlsson (Bass/Vocals) and Martin Michaelsson (Drums). In 2016, they began work on their most recent effort ‘World Inferno’ and will be released June 16th, 2017 via Metal Blade Records. Continue reading →

Chicago Open Air Spotlight : The Dillinger Escape Plan

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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 The Dillinger Escape Plan.

On July 14th, the guys in The Dillinger Escape Plan will take the stage in what could be the final time in the Chicago area. The energy and raw emotion displayed by all five men are something not to miss and seeing how this could be one of your few chances left, I highly suggest you do not pass up this set. The Dillinger Escape Plan are an American mathcore band from New Jersey. Formed in 1997 by  Ben Weinman (guitarist), Adam Doll (bass) , Dimitri Minakakis (vocalist), and Chris Pennie (drummer). Named after depression era bank robber John Dillinger, the band went on to release 6 studio albums and 1 EP with Mike Patton (Faith No More, Mr.Bungle, TomaHawk, Dead Cross) on Vocals, developing an influential musical style characterized by chaotic sonic onslaughts, technical complexity, and eclectic experimentation. Known for their high energy and ,at times insane live shows, the guys have been a force in the mathcore scene for years. The band’s final line-up which consists of Ben Weinman (only original remaining member\guitar), Liam Wilson (bassist), Greg Puciato (vocalist), Billy Rymer (drummer) and  Kevin Antreassian (guitarist) are currently touring for the last time and will break up later in 2017. Continue reading →

Review: Unleash The Archers – ‘APEX’ [Offical Videos]

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Photo By: Shimon Photo

Unleash The Archers are a Canadian heavy metal group with a classic feel from Victoria, B.C.  Starting in 2007 by vocalist Brittney Slayes and drummer Scott Buchanan with guitarist Brayden Dyczkowski, and soon to be joined by Mike Selman (Guitar), Zahk Hedstrom (Bass) to round out the group. They released two albums with this lineup ‘Behold the Devastation’ (2009) & ‘Demons of the Astrowaste’ (2011), both of which were released independently. ‘Demons’ marked the departure of Mike Selman and introduced Grant Truesdell into the fold, who had previously recorded two solos for ‘Demons’ prior to joining the band. In 2012, they released a three song EP, solely on 7” vinyl, titled ‘Defy The Skies’. This release also marked the departure of original bassist Zahk Hedstrom. In 2015, Unleash The Archers was signed to Napalm Records and released ‘Time Stands Still’.  This was the first album without guitarist/songwriter Brayden Dyczkowski, who left in 2013, and is said to have altered the band’s sound into a more traditional heavy metal direction with the addition of new guitarist Andrew Kingsley. In 2016 they began work on their 2nd effort under Napalm Records with their current lineup of Brittney, Scott, Grant, Andrew and introducing new bassist Nikko Whitworth. Their new album is called ‘Apex’ and will be released on June 2nd via Napalm. Continue reading →

Review: Camel Driver – ‘Camel Driver’ [Album Stream]

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Photo Credit : Andreas, PsyKArin    neckbreaker.de

Camel Driver is a three piece instrumental group coming out of Kiel, Germany. They started up in 2012 and are consisting of Christoph (bass), Alex (drums) and Lutz (guitar). These guys have worked and earned their respect both on stage and in their scene and in their native home of Germany. Camel Driver are quoted as “Going Deeply into versatile songwriting to create their own colorful and massive sound landscape.” They are citied as desert rock with metal infusions along with some fine-tuned jazz oriented parts. Their album was via Pink Tank Records. Pink Tank is a DIY label that was founded in 2013 and is based out of Hamburg, Germany. Camel Driver is one among the 20 bands on the Pink Tank roster. Though the band released their self titled debut on August 31st, 2014, it still resonates with fans both new and old.
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