*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*
This month’s State is South Carolina!
State of the Art: South Carolina just got unexpectedly very, very personal with a band that I have listened to long before I started writing for MN. From Columbia, SC, I give you hard rockin’ Osara…
*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*
This month’s State is South Carolina!
So we move on to week two of our State of the Art: South Carolina series. I again went on a tear for something distinctive since I had the time to look for something special after Hurricane Matthew (that bastard!); something that I could really sink my teeth into. Those that have followed my writing know that I like just about everything, but have a particular taste for complex, guitar base Technical Metal of any sort, often with female vocalists. Well this week, I chose the former, so I present you with the Ultra–Tech Metal shredders in Invoking the Abstract.
*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*
This month’s State is South Carolina!
So we have moved on to South Carolina for our State of the Art series for the month of October. Being the first state to ratify the Articles of the Confederation, the eighth state to ratify the U.S. Constitution and the first state to secede from the Union in 1860, South Carolina certainly holds strong historical significance. Bordered by the Atlantic Ocean, North Carolina and Georgia, S.C. has the 23rd highest population at just shy of 5,000,000 people, 32, 020 square miles and the capital being Columbia. I have been all over this beautiful state and it ranks among the prettiest states I have ever been to. One place I have not been is to, however, is the rural town of McConnells, located in the center of the state, just south of North Carolina. With a population under 500, it is amazing that a band as good as Everthrone can be contained within its borders.
*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*
This month’s State is Minnesota!
Well, sadly this week we say goodbye to our State of the Art: Minnesota series for September. I have to say, it has been an absolute pleasure searching for bands to cover this month. I have found tons and tons of good music and wish we had time to cover all of them all. I will absolutely be revisiting some of my other discoveries this month for independent coverage and for additions to my personal play lists. If you are looking for some new material, I would strongly encourage you to do some searching through Minnesota’s Metal scene and discover more for yourself. As we always say: there is always a first time you hear your new, favorite band and the Metal scene will die if it is not supported, no matter where local is. That said, this week I present you with my final band pick: the mighty Cold Kingdom.
*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*
This month’s State is Minnesota!
Not in the mood for my norm this week. Just not feeling it. Need something different to clean my palette. Something out of my comfort zone. Black Metal? Nah. With a few exceptions, I just shut down. Maybe some good Death Metal then? I found a ton of good bands but I am not really in a bad mood, just tired. Good Death usually calms me down, allowing me to let all the frustration out through the aggressive music. Again, not feeling it. Look long enough and am am sure to find something that strikes the right chord (pun intended), so I continue. Then, bang, in drops St. Paul’s Maeth to save the day.
Unfortunately, good bands come and go no matter how big they become all the time. Personal conflicts, outside responsibilities, frustration with the industry, among countless other things all take their toll on performing musicians. While fans often lift them up as super-human, they are not. Most musicians I know, big or small, share a single, what should be obvious goal: to share a piece of themselves through their undying passion for music. The Hollywood glitz and glamor media crowd would have you believe it to be driven by money, fame, girls or whatever other vice fascinates the artist being the driving factor.
*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*
This month’s State is Minnesota!
Coincidence, fate or just good timing, it is funny how things work out sometimes. While we are having no difficulties finding good Metal in Minnesota, a band was brought to my attention just before the state was chosen for this month’s State of the Art series. Heavy Power Metal (which, incidentally, is one of my favorite types of Metal) analogous to legendary bands like Iron Maiden, Hammerfall, Blind Guardian, Amon Amarth and Iced Earth. This week I give you Eternal Voyager.
Well I’ll be damned! I have been listening to Graveshadow for quite a while now and reviewed them as has BloodRoseRed for our State of the Art: California series. Great minds I suppose. Anyway, MN has worked with Online Metal Promo for some time now and was offered an interview with Sacramento’s own, Helion Prime. After listening to them I grabbed the offer and decided to lead in with this review. Too good a band to interview without an introduction. After listening to them a few more times, it struck me where I had heard that beautiful voice before. That’s right. Heather Michele, lead singer of Graveshadow. I am nothing if not consistent!
*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured State*
This month’s State is Washington!
New month, new state. Minnesota was the 32nd state added to the United States in 1858. Known also as the “Land of 10,000 Lakes”, it is bordered to the north by Canada, North and South Dakota to the west, Iowa to the south, Wisconsin and Lake Superior to the east. With a population of about 5.5 million covering 86,939 square miles, Minnesota boasts one of the highest standards of living and among the best-educated and wealthiest states in the U.S. Definitely not necessarily snobby and uptight based on the overwhelming amount of good Metal bands available for this month’s spotlights. I would like to start with a band hailing from Woodbury, just east of the state capital of St. Paul called Aurae. This band gives us all a very bright hope for the future of our beloved Metal genre.
All Logo Designs by Jason McBurney (Greeley, CO)
Here is yet another example of band camaraderie. For those that follow my articles, you are well aware of my absolute love of my SOTA band from Colorado, Source. Recently, they shared a song by another local band called The Caveat. Having respect for my friends in Source, I trusted that they would not drop anything less than great, so I gave them a listen. One song led to another and then to another. Soon enough, I had listened to all of their singles and started over. Instrumental, Progressive Metal with influences from damned near every genre? Oh yeah. Instant fan! “That’s my jam”, in the words of you young pups! I immediately contacted Ben Gleason with Source and asked that he put in the good word for me with The Caveat and was able to get in touch with Nik Schafer, the bass player out of this kick ass band that had grabbed my attention so tightly, to get all the good stuff behind The Caveat’s music. I would like to thank Nik and the rest of The Caveat for helping provide such an extensive explanation of what make them what they are. Good stuff that made this informative piece possible!
