Category Archives: Artist Showcase

State Of The Art: Iowa’s GREEN DEATH [Album Stream]

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In this installment of State Of The Art over here at Metal Nexus, we’re gonna be analyzing some of the top underground Metal acts from the great state of Iowa! Famous for having some of the most vast farmland in the USA, and the home of some household Metal names like Slipknot and Stone Sour, what seems to be a very rural part of our country is also home to a very strong and sturdy underground Metal scene. This month we will be giving you all a look at Green Death, an up and coming thrash outfit from Des Moines.

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Providing us with music from EMP Label Group, Dan by Dave Ellefson, these young guys have already shared the stage with the likes of Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals, Trivium, Suicidal Tendencies, and many many more. Having charted across Amazon and iTunes, there’s no surprise as to why this outfit are growing as quickly as they are. The quartet consists of guitarist Mark Reinking, vocalist Sol Bales, drummer Ryan Berrier, and bassist Parker Willis.

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State Of The Art: Wisconsin’s MY MEMORY REMAINS [Album Stream]

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mmr

My Memory Remains

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

My Memory Remains formed in June of 2015. The band consists of Nicole Steinmetz on vocals, Aaron Aull and Justin Perry on guitar, Kyle Miller pn drums and CJ Schmidt on bass.

They are based in Eau Claire, WI and have appeared on the same bill as killer bands such as The Devil Wears Prada, All That Remains and Otep.

From their biography, the band “write music in a way that everyone can relate to and can feel a connection with.” They are a hard rock band with Metal leanings and a singer with an incredible voice and range.

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ALIEN WEAPONRY Kick Off First-Ever North American Tour!

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Three teenagers, known as Alien Weaponry, from a tiny town in the small South Pacific nation of New Zealand have managed to capture the imaginations of people all over the world with their unique thrash metal sound and commanding live performances.  Proclaimed by Noisey as a band “well on their way to world domination,” Alien Weaponry are invading North American shores for the first time ever, supporting industrial legends Ministry.  The tour kicked off earlier this month in San Francisco, CA and runs through December 21st in Los Angeles, CA.  A complete list of dates can be found below including a special headline show on November 23rd in Gallup, New Mexico can be found below. Continue reading →

State Of The Art: 20 WATT TOMBSTONE [Album Stream]

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20 Watt Tombstone is a ballbastic duo playing deafening rock to their fans. Coming from Wausau, Wisconsin 20 Watt Tombstone combines metal, country, Hip Pop and Jim Bean intravenously into their music. They have been nominated twice for the people’s choice WAMI in 2013 and winning in 2014. 20 Watt Tombstone is combined of Grand Master Oh to the Zee handling drums and yellin’ and Reverend Meantooth riffing on guitar and hollerin’. Continue reading →

State of the Art: Wisconsin’s KNAAVES [EP Stream]

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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 Wisconsin.*

Absolutely everything about Knaaves sounds so incredibly pissed off you can’t help but call out, “GET THE FUCK UP” in your car alone while enjoying their 2018 EP, ‘January’, that was released in February. Knaaves is a four-piece modern beatdown hardcore unit from Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Andy Parmann fronts the group with venomous vocals. The rhythm section consists of Jamie Kerwin on guitar and Amanda Daniels on bass. Rounding out the bunch on drums is Antonio Ninham. The band formed in 2016, coming together from various local projects such as Amora Savant, Die Alone and Enabler.  Continue reading →

State Of The Art: Wisconsin’s HIGH GALLOWS [Album Stream]

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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 Wisconsin.*

Hailing from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, High Gallows brings bluesy stoner rock with a guitar tone filthier than month-old bong water. Consisting of Shawn (vocals), Tim (guitar), Louie (guitar), Josh (bass), and Jon (drums), the underground quintet just finished up their stint on the Black Magic Flower Power tour with Black Pussy and released their debut album, ‘Hymns in the House of Son’ earlier this year. The album takes the listener on a sonic trip through the murky swamps of the psyche while channeling a similar doom and smoke-filled haze of Black Sabbath and Electric Wizard. It’s mostly a slow to mid-tempo, riff-heavy ride with vocals reminiscent of a more soulful, grittier Buzz Osbourne (Melvins). Continue reading →

STATE OF THE ART: Milwaukee’s H1Z1

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It’s that time of the month again here at Metal Nexus, with that being said let’s jump right into this month’s installment of State Of The Art! This month we are covering America’s Dairyland, Wisconsin. One of the bands we are covering in our spotlight this week is a heavy metal band from Milwaukee by the name of H1Z1, an up and coming group of headbangers out of the Bucks city. Formed originally in the summer of 2010, and, shortly after, evolving into a five piece act, this quintet are nothing short of spectacular. While listening to their music, it is clear that they are doing an incredible job of blending all our favorite sounds of the early 2000s with thrash, groove, and even death metal. The band released their debut album, Unbounded, on August 11th, 2017 under Gunderslam Records and are surely not showing any signs of slowing down. Tracks like, “A.D.H.D.,” perfectly display their mixture of groove and sludge-filled goodness, along with songs such as, “Paralytical,” which are more riff heavy and focus more on getting the point across with in-your-face METAL. Wanna check out more from these Milwaukee rockers? Listen to, “Unbound,” in its entirety everywhere on all major streaming platforms now! As always, thanks for checking out Metal Nexus! Continue reading →

State Of The Art: MOON RATS [Album + Track Stream]

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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 Wisconsin.*

Moon Rats was formed in 2016 by members of Calliope and Sonic J. The hard hitting 5 piece is dedicated to psychedelic stoner rock that is out of this world. The band is comprised of  Al Kraemer  on vocals and guitar,
Victor Buell laying down riffs on lead guitar, Brendt Dondero behind the kit on drums, Myles Coyne on bass, and
Nathan Toth on organ. The bands first release came in the form of a single back in May of 2017 with the track “Motor Sword”. The track would also appear on the bands debut full length ‘Highway Lord’ which released on June 23rd 2017. The album was recorded in the remote northern woods of Wisconsin. It was written, produced and recorded by the band and mastered by Justin Perkins at The Mystery Room. The album was released on cassette via Gloss Records, however the band is an independent/unsigned band. ‘Highway Lord’ is by far one of the best debut albums I have heard in years. To think this band formed and recorded this album themselves within a year is an astounding feat that deserves attention. I believe their ability to record on their own and the added ambiance that recording in the remote Wisconsin woods helps the chemistry of the band and keeps their sound unique with no outside influence. Moon Rats have also proved they aren’t lazy and have already released a new single since their debut. The track ‘Ride Or Die’ released in February of this year and claims to be the first glimpse at Moon Rats’ second installment into the Highway Lord mythology, ‘Lonestar.’

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State of the Art: Rhode Island’s GOLDENHALL [Track Stream]

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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 Rhode Island.*

Rhode Island may be one of the last places that comes to mind when pondering anthemic, symphonic metal. Goldenhall, however is about to change that entirely. Since their formation in 2014 by way of numerous local bands, they have lent credence to idea that Rhode Island has been a hidden hotbed for heavy music. Started by guitarists Ryan Spahr and Greg Rosche, formerly of Condolence; it did not take long before recruiting Nico Cannella (Acerose) and Matt Young from Chaos Before Creation, on bass and drums, respectively. Goldenhall is fronted by classically trained vocalist, Jason Shealy. All of the music is recorded and produced by this independent band. Continue reading →

State Of The Art: Rhode Island’s PUBLIC POLICY [Album Stream]

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Public Policy Band

Public Policy – Photo by Stuart Window

*This is part of our State Of The Art series, showcasing bands every Monday from the featured state. This month’s state is Rhode Island.*

There is not a great deal I know about Rhode Island’s Public Policy, but their Facebook page gives a colorful overview – “Public Policy is a sinewy, brash, and beautiful rock ‘n roll band from Providence, RI. Complex, tightly-crafted rock songs churn and boil under dense and plaintive lyrics. It’s not jangular, and there’s no saxophone in sight.“

The band is comprised of Dean Gardner (vocals, guitar), Nick Cooper (guitar, vocals), Dan Moriarty (drums, backing vocals) and Dan Sliwinski (bass guitar, backing vocals).

public-policy-human-resource

Public Policy – Human Resource

Their sophomore release ‘Human Resource’ was recorded by Daryl Rabidoux at The Radar Studio, Clinton, CT and Axion Media Lab, Pawtucket, RI. It was mixed by Daryl Rabidoux at Axion Media Lab, Pawtucket, RI.

This is five tracks of steaming emotion, a stream of consciousness that brings back Grunge and Emo in one post-hardcore package. The vocals veer between sneers and tears and the guitars rip away right in your face.

The band are artists, first and foremost. Nothing on this release cries out any rock star pretentions. They are a ball of concentrated acidic chords and some bitter gospel songs for the new generation. The concerns of the young are howled out on tunes such as “Ice Age“, with its eco-sermon “burn down together” refrain.

Other fine numbers include “Insulin“, with its chopping chords and grinding punk verses. Make no assumptions, these guys can play and have melodies weaving their way around this release. They know they want to talk to you and they know their message needs to get through.

They also have the same alternative vibes as the early Eighties indie bands, but they have the power that eludes those artists. They sound as if the struggle has been all too real…

Check out Public Policy and see if you can get behind their human resourcing.

https://publicpolicy.bandcamp.com/