Live Review: CROWBAR, GOATWHORE & LILLAKE In Johnson City, Tennessee!

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Sammy Duet (Goatwhore) and Kirk Windstein (Crowbar)

It’s not often that you get to see two iconic New Orleans bands together in a small intimate venue. This night had several extraordinary factors. The co-headliners were none other than the all mighty Crowbar and the ferociously aggressive Goatwhore. The two bands have not only similarities in geography but have also had intermingling members in the bands or side projects. Goatwhore guitarist Sammy Duet was a member of Crowbar from 1998–2002, and was an integral part of Crowbar’s iconic album ‘Odd Fellows Rest’. Crowbar drummer Tommy Buckley and Goatwhore vocalist Ben Falgoust are also members of the band Soilent Green together. So of course the bands have a great camaraderie. Of course these weren’t the only bands that would grace the stage on this heavy metal showcase. The opening band Lillake formed in 2015, so they are just beginning their musical journey. However, the members of this band are by no means new to the metal world. Drummer Eric Moore is one of the most revered drummers around. Both Eric Moore and Lillake vocalist/guitarist Nico Santora were members of Suicidal Tendencies. Eric Moore was in the band from 2008 – 2015, and Santora was in the band from 2012 – 2016 and left the band to focus his time on Lillake. Continue reading →

DEAD BY WEDNESDAY Release Lyric Video For ‘I Will Define’ Feat. Waylon Reavis!

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DEAD BY WEDNESDAY have released a lyric video for “I Will Define” feat. Waylon Reavis (A Killer’s Confession, Ex-Mushroomhead), the song is taken from their latest album ‘The Darkest of Angels’, released earlier this year on David Ellefson’s EMP Label Group. The album features an assortment of high profile guest vocalists. We of course released some information leading up to the release of the album last February, including all the guest vocalists which you can see here. Continue reading →

State Of The Art: Tennessee’s DAWN PATROL

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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 Tennessee!

Memphis, Tennessee’s DAWN PATROL help make crossover relevant again. Their ability to blend thrash and punk influences makes for amazing output from the band. The power trio is comprised of brothers Tommy Gonzales- Guitar/Vocals, Kyle Gonzales- Drums/Backup Vocals, and rounded out with Spencer Martin on Bass/Backup Vocals. The band lists some of their influences as Dead Kennedys, Exodus, Leftover Crack, and Megadeth. The band has released some independent EPs in the past but they consider ‘Democracy Delivered’ their debut as it’s when the band truly started finding their signature sound. The album was released on July 3, 2015.  Continue reading →

State of the Art: War Within

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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 Tennessee!

Last week for our State of the Art: Tennessee. Yet another state that has an extremely active Metal scene that hosts a plethora of talented artists in a countless number of killer bands. Big touring bands like Whitechapel, Skillet, Red, Tora Tora, Straight Line Stitch and Saliva all call Tennessee home as do hundreds, if not thousands bands that are kicking and screaming to promote themselves above the chaff. This is a huge reason that I love this series. Getting a deserving band in the spotlight helps assure that these artists continue playing what we like and continues to set the foundation for the next generation of rockers to pull themselves up with. This week I am proud to introduce you to War Within from Nashville, if you have not already heard of these Tennessee heavies before…

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Review/Stream: AITTALA – ‘American Nightmare’

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On December 6th, 2016, Aittala unleashed their 4th full length LP: ‘American Nightmare’. The band was formed by Eric Aittala in 1992 in Raleigh, North Carolina and released a short EP, but then remained dormant for many years. After a long break, the project was brought back when Aittala released their first full length album in 2009, ‘Bed of Thorns’. The band went on to release two more LPs in 2011 and in 2014 (‘Haunt Your Flesh’ and ‘Effigy’). After various lineup changes, there has been a stable, strong lineup consisting of Eric Aittala on the lead guitar and vocals, Gary Smith on drums, and Andrew Sullivan on the bass. The new album was recorded at Incognito Studios, Raleigh NC. It was mixed and mastered by Mike Schaefer at Schaefer Sound Productions. Continue reading →

Editor’s 25 Best Albums Of 2016!

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It’s an incredibly hard task to narrow down all the amazing albums that released in 2016 to a short list of 25. This year seen the reunion of some amazing acts and we lost several iconic musicians. My personal top 25 albums of the year not only includes veteran acts that you are probably familiar with, but also brand new bands or lesser known bands that blew me away with their sound. There are just some bands that have a way of capturing you moments into the first track. There are several other albums I wish I could have included in this list, but without further ado here is my top 25 albums of 2016:    Continue reading →

Review: FORESTERR – ‘The Town Dies Screaming’

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Foresterr is a noise rock band from Long Island, New York. Formed in 2013, Foresterr is composed of Danny Meigel (Guitar, Vocals), Kevin Sangalang (Drums, percussion) and Geoff Gader (Bass, Vocals). The band’s music is characterized by its unconventional song structure, changes in style, angular guitar riffs & frenzied stage performance that allow it to stand on its own amongst their contemporaries. Foresterr have released 3 EPs this far in their career. The band has just completed their upcoming full-length, ‘The Town Dies Screaming’ produced by Jay Maas (SOMOS, Citizen, State Champs, Title Fight) formerly of Defeater. It was recorded at Getaway Recording in Massachusetts The album is set to release January 27, 2017. Continue reading →

Show Review of Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s “The Ghosts of Christmas Eve” Tour

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Trans–Siberian Orchestra 2016:

Al Pitrelli – Guitar

Andrew Ross – Vocals

Angus Clark – Guitar

April Berry – Guitar

Asha Mevlana – Strings

Autumn Guzzardi – Vocals

Ava Davis – Vocals

Bart Satto – Vocals

Bryan Hicks – Storyteller

Chloe Lowery – Vocals

Chris Caffery – Guitar

Dave Z – Bass

Derek Wieland – Keyboards

Dustin Brayley – Vocals

Babriela Guncikova – Vocals

Georgia Napolitano – Vocals

Jane Nangini – Keyboards

Jeff Plate – Drums

Jeff Scott Soto – Vocals

Jodi Katz – Vocals

John Brink – Vocals

John Lee Middleton – Bass

John O. Reilly – Drums

Kayla Reeves – Vocals

Lisa Lavie – Vocals

Mee Eun Kim – Keyboards

Natalya Rose Piette – Vocals

Paul O’Neill – founder/guitar

Philip Brandon – Storyteller

Rob Evan – Vocals

Robin Borneman – Vocals

Roddy Chong – Strings

Russell Allen – Vocals

Vitalij Kuprij – Keyboards

Tran-Siberian Orchestra is the brainchild brought to fruition by the genius of writer/guitarist/producer/etc. extraordinaire Paul O’Neill. Growing up in New York City, O’Neill was exposed to everything ranging from Broadway musicals, to Motown to singer-songwriter greats like Jim Croce and Harry Chapin. As he got older, Paul began playing guitar in the touring band for Jesus Christ Superstar and Hair before being brought on with the management company, Leber–Krebs in the later portion of the 1970’s. With clients such as Aerosmith, Ted Nugent, AC/CD, Def Leppard, The Scorpians, The New York Dolls and a plethora of other A-List bands, O’Neill’s influences and influence gained a huge market share, putting him at the top of the promotional game. After a stint as a major concert promoter in Japan during the 1980’s, he returned to the States to write and produce full-time.

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SEPULTURA Unveil Music Video For “Phantom Self”!

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Brazilian heavy metal icons, SEPULTURA, will unleash their upcoming studio album, ‘Machine Messiah’, on January 13th through Nuclear Blast. With their new music video “Phantom Self” they provide another thrilling look into their 14th studio release and deliver haunting images and sociocultural criticism in this clip directed by Mauricio Eca. A few weeks ago, the band has already released the lyric video of their first digital single, “I Am The Enemy”. Check it out here. The album was produced by the band and Jens Borgen (Soilwork, Opeth, Katatonia, Amon Amarth) of Fascination Street Studios in Orebro, Sweden. The stunning cover artwork for ‘Machine Messiah’ was created by Filipino artist Camille Della Rosa.  Continue reading →

REAPTER Release Lyric Video For “Useless”!

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Italian thrash metal / prog metal band REAPTER released new lyric video for the song “Useless”! The song is from their recent album ‘Cymatics’ which was released on September, 23th 2016 via Revalve Records. The band was formed in 2005 and has toured along side acts such as Testament, Dark Funeral and Sadist. ‘Cymatics’ is the follow up to the bands critically acclaimed debut album ‘M.I.N.D.’ which was released in 2013. “Cymatics” is born from several factors: lyrics talk about the daily life in order to plunge the listener in a specific situation. Each song is a different situation with the individual focused on it. Furthermore, the band says “we wanted to use the 432Hz frequency on the instruments tuning, in order to produce a sound which can be found in nature.” The band not only combines elements of thrash and prog but you can also hear moments of classic heavy metal inspiration as well. REAPTER also tells captivating stories within their music, which you can see a great example of in their new lyric video below.

Follow REAPTER on Facebook here.