Powerglove: Batman – new video

 

Way too busy as I am these days and mightily confused after watching this very popular video (over 28,500 views on YouTube in just three days) as I was, I found comfort in AllMusic's Phil Freeman's words: “Boston-based instrumental power metal band POWERGLOVE are absurd, but they know it. They record metal versions of video game and cartoon theme songs, after all.” ‘Batman’ is the track off POWERGLOVE's latest release, ‘Saturday Morning Apocalypse’, which came out in 2010 via eOne Music, and was produced by the band itself and engineered, mixed and mastered by its drummer Bassil Silver.

“This one offers an array of theme songs from cartoons the members grew up watching, including “X-Men”, “Pokemon”, “Transformers”, “Inspector Gagdet”, “The Flintstones” and “The Simpsons”,” explains further Phil Freeman in his review of ‘Saturday Morning Apocalypse’. “This album is fun while it lasts. Ultimately, though, POWERGLOVE's mastery of their instruments is impressive, and/but their modus operandi is good for a few giggles, and little more,” he concludes.

Thankfully formed as a side project in 2003, and named after the Power Glove, a Nintendo Entertainment System controller accessory, the band's first recording was “Dr. Wily's Theme” from Nintendo's “Mega Man 2” game, followed by similar gems. Becoming a serious project now, POWERGLOVE released their debut EP, ‘Total Pwnage’, in 2005 (actually re-released in 2008). Debut full-length, ‘Metal Kombat For The Mortal Man’, released a year later, was, appropriately, received warmly by the listening public.

POWERGLOVE features: Nick Avila – bass, Alex Berkson – guitar, Chris Marchiel - guitar and Bassil Silver – drums.

Loch Vostok: Sacred Structure – new video

 

LOCH VOSTOK, progressive metal band from Uppsala, Sweden, has released new music video for the song ‘Sacred Structure’, due to appear on the band's fourth album entitled ‘Dystopium’. The effort will be released on September 23rd, 2011, via ViciSolum Productions. The video for ‘Sacred Structure’ was directed by Martin Gustafsson; you can download the song free of charge here.

LOCH VOSTOK was formed in 2001 by multi-instrumentalist and producer Teddy Möller. Along with keyboardist Sebastian Okupski, bassist Tomas “Tym” Jonsson, second guitarist Niklas Kupper, and drummer Alvaro Svanerö, the band had released a self-financed album in 2004 entitled ‘Dark Logic (thematically based upon infamous serial killers such as Henry Lee Lucas, Andreij Tzjikatilo and Ed Gein). The album was produced by Daniel Bergstrand and distributed by Portuguese label Magnetism Records. LOCH VOSTOK's second album, 2006's ‘Destruction Time Again’ (Escapi Music), was recorded with keyboardist Andreas Lindahl, and introduced new permanent member, keyboardist and composer Fredrik Klingwall. Produced, recorded, mixed and edited by the band and mastered by Lawrence Mackrory and released through new label Nightmare Records, third album, ‘Reveal No Secrets’, was released in 2009. LOCH VOSTOK describe their music as comparable to the avant-gardism of CYNIC, to the progressiveness of DREAM THEATER, to the black “metalish” assault of EMPEROR, to the thrash metal of FORBIDDEN, to the cult personality of VOIVOD, to the sheer power of AGENT STEEL, and to the melodic death metal of SOILWORK. “Can you say no to this?” they ask.

LOCH VOSTOK feature: Teddy Möller – vocals & guitar, Jimmy Mattsson – bass & vocals, Fredrik Klingwall – keyboards, Lawrence Dinamarca – drums and Niklas Kupper – guitar & vocals.

LOCH VOSTOK: Sacred Structure – courtesy of vicisolum

World Under Blood: Tactical – new album

WORLD UNDER BLOOD, a project founded in 2006 by CKY guitarist and vocalist Deron Miller and drummer Tim Yeung, debut album entitled ‘Tactical’ has been released in North America on July 26th, 2011; the album awaits its European release on July 29th, 2011 via Nuclear Blast Records. The album's producer, James Murphy, commented on the project the following way: “WORLD UNDER BLOOD bridge a gap between genres that has never been bridged… a few have tried with mixed results, but this is the first real resounding success of using brutal, blasting death metal with a melodic American rock vibe and it opens a door that will turn into a floodgate.” The band has uploaded three songs from the new CD on their official MySpace; Decibel Magazine subscribers can stream the entire album right here. ‘Tactical’ features ten songs - including two covers; MEDADETH's ‘Wake Up Dead’ and MELEVOLENT CREATON's ‘Alliance Of War’ (iTunes exclusive). Album's artwork was created by Pär Olofsson. Check out the album preview here (YouTube), buy the album here (Nuclear Blast USA), here (Nuclear Blast Europe), or via Amazon and/or iTunes.

Deron Miller, joined by drummer Tim Yeung (DIVINE HERESY, MORBID ANGEL, ex-HATE ETERNAL, ex DECREPIT BIRTH) had posted a couple of project's songs on their MySpace page as early as 2006, with another track following a year later. “The songs came so fast,” remembers Miller, “it didn’t matter that some of the parts had weird time changes, or difficult arrangements. Tim was so easy to work with and understood immediately what I was trying to do. I was blown away. While we were writing those first three songs, I got a strange call from FEAR FACTORY guitarist Dino Cazares. He told me that Tim was no good and would probably steal from me or do something shady, and you gotta love Dino because that was just Dino the businessman who was just preparing to yank Tim right out from under me for his new band DIVINE HERESY. I don’t blame Dino at all for that because it was something that I probably would have done, and besides, it was a better paying job than WORLD UNDER BLOOD was at that point.” Joined by bassist Risha Eryavac (ex-DECREPIT BIRTH) and guitarist Luke Jaeger (SLEEP TERROR), WORLD UNDER BLOOD would record another four new songs in 2008 and would complete the record after signing with Nuclear Blast in 2009. “The remaining six songs were instrumentals for a very long time. I wanted to be very careful with what I came up with lyrically,” recalls the band's mastermind. In 2010, Deron Miller finished writing lyrics and flew to James Murphy's house in Lakeland, Florida to track all remaining vocals. ‘Tactical’ was finally handed in April, 2011, almost five years after the band's formation.

WORLD UNDER BLOOD: Dead And Still In Pain – courtesy of Nuclear Blast Records

Becoming The Archetype: Breathing Light – new video

         

BECOMING THE ARCHETYPE's new video for ‘Breathing Light’, tune taken from their fourth studio album, ‘Celestial Completion’, released in March 2011 through Solid State Records, “boasts cartoon versions of the band members wearing animal skins as sheaths, as well as animated ships, space, planets and a colorless earth. However, they run into an anti-beard tyrant and that makes all the difference,” reads the description on Noisecreep, where the video has premiered. Created by David Prindle, the animation features the band's official mascot, Clifton, as well: “As our official mascot, Clifton the Beardskull battles the face of evil with his little-known ability to shoot lasers out of his eyes. While all of our (obviously realistic) muscled physiques were able to obliterate the minions of evil, we were no match for Lord Todd. So it’s good we have Clifton on our side,” explained guitarist Seth Hecox. He and David Pindle worked on the concept for the video for a few weeks before settling on all the details: “For instance, the Evil Overlord can’t have just any old name. A good “bro” name like Todd was perfect, plus it allowed us to subtly reference “Mom and Dad Save the World”,” he wisely added. “This video was a realization of all of those influences [graphic novels, Metalocalypse and Aqua Teen Hunger Force] and the good times that ensue when experiencing any good art in the comic/graphic novel world.”

BECOMING THE ARCHETYPE features: Seth “Count Seth” Hecox – guitar, keyboards and vocals, Brent “Duck” Duckett – drums, Daniel Gailey – guitar and vocals and Jason Wisdom – bass and vocals.

Jamey Jasta: Jasta – new album

Jamey Jasta's - of HATEBREED and KINGDOM OF SORROW – first solo album has been released today, July 26th, 2011, in the U.S. (a day earlier in Europe via Century Media Records) via eOne Music. The album is available as Ltd. Edition CD Digipak and luxurious Gatefold LP (both versions include 2 bonus tracks) as well as CD and digital download. The record features guest appearances by a number of renowned artists, including Tim Lambesis (of AS I LAY DYING fame), pro skater Mike Vallely (REVOLUTION MOTHER), Philip Labonte (ALL THAT REMAINS), Randy Blythe and Mark Morton (of LAMB OF GOD renown) and guitar god Zakk Wylde.

Jamey Jasta explained his project in an interview with Metal Assault: “I wrote a lot of it [the material] by myself and some stuff with the help of Charlie & Nick Bellmore [KINGDOM OF SORROW], except for the guest parts. I did a lot of the music/lyric writing throughout 2008, 2009 and 2010 so it was fun to go back, listen to those old tracks and go, “These are still good, let’s release them!” I’m just very lucky that I’m in a position to be able to do this and I’m grateful that the eOne label is giving it such a great push.” When asked if the release of his solo album will impact songwriting for the next HATEBREED CD, he replied, “No, not at all. Actually that’s why I wanted to get it out now because the next HATEBREED album is going to be short, to the point and brutal, and there will be no melody. This is my one chance to kind of get it out of the system.”

Click here and here (YouTube) to listen to the man doing some track-by-track explaining and listen to two brand new songs from the record below.

 

 

M.A.N: Identical Abuse – new video

 

‘Identical Abuse’ comes off M.A.N's third album, ‘Massive Audio Nerve’, released in March 2010 through German label Tiefdruck Music. ‘Massive Audio Nerve’ was mixed by Ulrich Wild and mastered by Maor Appelbaum. The video was directed by Gabriel Engberg as were the group's videos for ‘Don’t Wake Up’ and ‘Logocide’, both embedded below, both taken from M.A.N's latest effort. The band plans to release a new digital 3-track single entitled ‘Massive Audio Outtakes’ which will include a previously unreleased track ‘Song#3 The Redemption’, a video re-mix of ‘Identical Abuse’ and a industrial remix of the track ‘Loveless’.

“In general, the tempo on ‘Massive Audio Nerve’ does not vary very much,” writes Ricarda Menn in her review of the album, “the songs are mostly pretty fast and in-the-face, although slower elements are adjoined. At times, parts appear rather predictable and repetitive, but on the other hand, no big experiments are accomplished. It is audible, that lots of effort has been put into this record, nevertheless, some songs only seem like makeshifts. Yet open-minded fans of metal or nu metal in general should give this album a listen, since especially the vocals are presented in a diversified way.”

M.A.N formed in 2007 in Gothenburg, Sweden, from the ashes of nu metal band TRANSPORT LEAGUE. Their first record, ‘Obey, Consume, Reject’, produced by Svein Jensen, was released that very same year. Tiefdruck Musik released the second album, 2008's ‘PeaceEnemy’. M.A.N recently parted ways with guitarist Rob Guz who explained his reasons for leaving thusly: “… I’m also sick and tired of music and of making music, and all the hard work that has to be done to be able to keep up with the severe competition with all other bands. I do not have the passion for it anymore, and my loyalty to M.A.N brings me to this decision; [to] leave my position to someone else; to bring new blood into the band.”

M.A.N features: Tony JJ (Tony Jelencovich) - vocals, Marcus Bertilsson - guitars, Rob Hakemo – bass and Engberg – drums.

 

Blindead: Affliction XXVII II MMIX – new video

 

‘Affliction XXVII II MMIX’ is BLINDEAD's first original video, taken from the aforementioned band's third album of the same title. The video was directed and produced by film director Roman Przylipiak. The album, ‘Affliction XXIX II MXMVI’, was released in 2010 via Polish label Mystic Productions.

Poland's sludge & doom metal band BLINDEAD was formed in 1999 in Gdynia, by bassist Michael “Winter” Zimorski and guitarist Matthew Maurice “Havoc” Śmierzchalski (ex-BEHEMOTH). With Mark “Deadmana” Zielinski (guitar), Konrad Ciesielski (drums) and Patrick Adamczyk (vocals), the group – then known as “Incorrect Personality” – released a demo in 2000, with another one following in 2002. A third demo, ‘dig for me’, was recorded with new vocalist, Patryk “Nick Wolverine” Zwoliński, in 2003. Co-founder Michael Zimorski left the band before the release of its first proper album, 2006's ‘Devouring Weakness’ (Empire Records), and was replaced by ex-BEHEMOTH's Rafał Brauer on bass, who, in turn, was soon replaced by Piotr “Zwierzak” Kawalerowski. Second album, ‘Autoscopia / Murder In Phazes’, released through Deadline Records in 2008, introduced yet another new member keyboardist  Bartosz “H_12” Hervy. After recording a mini-album, 2009's ‘Impulse’, BLINDEAD signed a deal with Mystic Productions for the released of their third album.

40 Watt Sun: The Inside Room – new album

Featuring five original tunes, 40 WATT SUN's debut album, ‘The Inside Room’, came out in North America on July 19th, 2011 via Metal Blade Records; Cyclone Empire is the label to turn to for the record if stationed in Europe. The new music project of singer, guitarist and songwriter Patrick Walker, best known as vocalist and guitarist for doom metal band WARNING, features drummer & percussionist Christian Leitch, (guitarist and founder of London-based band THE RIVER), and bass player William Spong. ‘The Inside Room’ was recorded over three days and nights at The Library Studio in London, produced entirely by the band and engineered and mixed by bassist William Spong. Below you’ll find 40 WATT SUN's new songs ‘Carry Me Home’ - and its acoustic version – and ‘Between Times’. Head over to Brooklyn Vegan for the third tune, ‘This Alone’. And since you just won’t be able to continue on without hearing the two remaining songs, buy ‘The Inside Room’ here (Metal Blade) and here (Cyclone Empire).

“The debut album by 40 WATT SUN,” writes Natalie Zed for About.com, “is extraordinary. In a year already rich in excellent releases, ‘The Inside Room’ shines much brighter than a 40-watt bulb. With all the emotiveness needed to cut a listener to the quick, and none of the drag that often mires the subgenre in muck, this album is nothing short of a doom metal triumph.” Read the rest of her review here.

40 WATT SUN: Carry Me Home – courtesy of Metal Blade Records

 

Full Album Stream: Hail!Hornet: Disperse The Curse – new album

HAIL!HORNET, southern metal band featuring “Dixie” Dave Collins (WEEDEATER, BUZZOV*EN, BONGZILLA) on bass, Erik Larson (ALABAMA THUNDERPUSSY, BIRDS OF PREY, PARASYTIC) on drums, Vince Burke (BEATEN BACK TO PURE, LUNCH) on guitars, and Troy Medlin (SOURVEIN, BUZZOV*EN) on vocals, have returned with their second album, ‘Disperse The Curse’, released in North America yesterday, July 19th, 2011 via Relapse Records. The band and the label are graciously allowing us to listen to the album in its here (BandCamp). Two years in the making, ‘Disperse The Curse’ was recorded at Sniper Studio by the band's own Vince Burke. Album's artwork was created by Brian Mercer. You should buy the album here (Relapse Records).

“ ‘Disperse The Curse’ is a relentless metallic onslaught laden with burly, locomotive riffs and raw and ragged vocals that spit paeans of misgiving and disgust,” reads the press release, and The Obelisk's H.P. Taskmaster adds: “[This album] is a little more focused, more linear than was HAIL!HORNE's first outing - all things relative, but it’s still dirty as hell tonally and topped off with Medlin's trademark throat-searing screams. It’s not all sludge, but those elements are definitely in there, and there’s no denying that when these guys kick into a groove, it’s absolutely brutal.” Read more here (The Obelisk).

HAIL!HORNET's debut self-titled album was released in 2007 on Dwell Ministries Records: “When one considers the, shall we say, “social” interaction that is usually involved with smoking weed, it’s no wonder that the stoner rock community seems to produce more intra-group collaborations than most musical cliques, and in HAIL!HORNET, the genre has yet another such “supergroup” to follow in the footsteps of luminary predecessors like DOWN, DESSET SESSIONS and THE MIGHTY NIMBUS,” offers his expertise Eduardo Rivadavia (AllMusic). “HAIL!HORNET's pedigree certainly reads like an embarrassment of riches, and their eponymous debut album doesn’t give failure a chance with its notably energetic brand of stoner metal.” Read the rest here.

Beast Of Bourbon – courtesy of Relapse Records

Malefice: Awaken The Tides – new album

MALEFICE's third album, ‘Awaken The Tides’, will hit European music stores tomorrow, July 18th, 2011 and will become available in the American ones on August 2nd, 2011 – due to Metal Blade Records. The album was recorded at The Face in Reading, with drums being laid down at Fortress Studios in London. All tracks were mixed and mastered by Justin Hill. Below you’ll find the album's title track, ‘Awaken The Tides’, as well as the music video for the track, which was shot at the Hack Green (nuclear bunker) in Cheshire, UK. The video was directed by Stuart Birchall and produced by You Know Ltd, and ‘Minutes’, courtesy of ALT-sounds. If you click here you’ll get to Metal Hammer Germany, where another new MALEFICE's track, ‘Delirium’, has premiered. As for the album, order and/or pre-order it here (Metal Blade Records).

Frontman Dale Butler commented the new album: “And so the time has finally come, we’ve been locked away for six months working on this record, a release that’s going to take your fucking head off. We promised something different, a bigger production, and a slightly different look on the genre. We’ve found our sound and it’s going to bring a whole new level to our live show, something we all felt was missing. We’ve come back a new band, confidant and more of a unit than we’ve ever been. This is our next step; make sure you’re around to see it!”

MALEFICE was formed in Reading, England in 2003. After recording an EP entitled ‘Relentless’, distributed by Hangman's Joke Records, the band had signed with Anticulture Records for their debut full-length ‘Entities’, which created quite a stir among the metal press. In 2008, MALEFICE signed a worldwide deal with Metal Blade Records: “Arriving with nothing in the way of fancy haircuts, cheesy gimmicks or music industry hype, MALEFICE are a band that captured the minds and banged the heads of every metalhead that missed metal in its purest, most uncompromising form; brutal, tuneful and heavy as hell,” acknowledged the label. Second studio album, 2009's Dawn Of Reprisal’, was produced by Justin Hill and Dan Weller: “ "Honest to goodness British thrash metal." It’s been quite a while since you could honestly say a group fit that description, but MALEFICE certainly comes darn close on their 2009 release,” wrote AllMusic's Greg Prato, “Not a lot of surprises here, and therefore, not a lot to separate [the band] from the rest off the metal pack. But if you’re looking for straight-ahead, vintage metal, ‘Dawn Of Reprisal’ fits the bill.” Long-time drummer and one of the band's founders, Craig Thomas, left MALEFICE in 2010.

MALEFICE features: Dale Butler – vocals, Ben Symons – guitar, Alex Vuskans – guitar, Tom Hynes - bass and Chris Allan-Whyte – drums.

MALEFICE: Awaken the Tides – courtesy of Metal Blade Records

MALEFICE: Minutes – courtesy of altsounds

Frankenbok: Dine In Hell – new video

 

‘Dine In Hell’ is apparently Melbourne, Australia's FRANKENBOK new single, now accompanied by video, due to appear on the band's upcoming full-length, expected to be released in August 2011, through, I suppose, Australian label Prime Cuts, with a “mega” DVD soon to follow.

“It’s definitely the most intense record that FRANKENBOK’s done," explained vocalist Dan McDougall in an interview, “it’s definitely a thrash metal album. We’ve got a couple of sorta slower songs, but they’re still pretty heavy. It’s gonna surprise a lot of people, primarily with the lyrical content, and what we’ve decided to discuss on this album. With the previous singers, it was hard to know what they were really on about; this one’s a little bit more direct.”

“These blokes have been around since 1997 and they still won’t go away!” the group's label lovingly announces. FRANKENBOK (reportedly a mispronunciation of Australian slang phrase “fair dinkum”) was formed by guitarist Aaron Butler and vocalist Adam “Hutch” Glynn, who were later joined by bassist Tim Miedecke and guitarist Scott Lang. FRANKENBOK's unique mix of grind, death & thrash, topped by Mike Patton-inspired vocals diversified with death growls, attracted the attention of producer and engineer Richie Norton who offered to record and release the band's debut full-length, 2000's ‘Greetings & Salutations’ via his own Faultline Records (re-released in 2002 through Dark Carnival with an additional eight bonus tracks). The album's sound, recorded with a drum machine, was shrewdly described by FRANKENBOK as “taco metal or a lot of meat with a little bit of cheese”. The band went on tour in support of the record, joined by real-life drummer Mick Morley. 2001's EP ‘The Loopholes & Great Excuses’ (Dark Carnival Records) “proved a minor hit” for the group, sending them on more touring with the likes of DREADNAUGHT and landing them opening slots for the likes of SLAYER and MACHINE HEAD. Vocalist Adam Glynn would leave the band in 2002 and FRANKENBOK filled the vacancy with frontman Adam B. Metal (Adam Miles) in 2003. Second studio album, and first for Roadrunner Australia, entitled ‘Blood Oath’ was released in Australia that same year and would eventually gain a European release in 2004. Relentless touring that ensued would cost the band their longtime guitarist Scott Lang in late 2005. With Adam B. Metal taking upon himself the string-duties as well, FRANKENBOK released their third full-length, 2007's ‘Murder Of Songs’ (“ten tracks of speed, thrash & bent-out-of-shape melancholy metal with little foot notes from hell about lies, persecution and what it’s really like being Down to the Wire or to Worship before the Dead”) via Prime Cuts Records. But, as these things tend to happen, vocalist and guitarist Adam B. Metal, would split even before the album's release, and new vocalist, Dan McDougall, would become his replacement. Guitarist Nathan “Yeti” Amaknieks eventually joined the band. An EP entitled ‘The Last Ditch Redemption’, featuring track-titles as ‘The Walls Closed In, And The Voices In My Head Were Telling Me I’m Guilty. Guilty. Guilty.’, was released in 2008 via Prime Cuts.

Let me just finish off by quoting FRANKENBOK in their prime: “Before (insert pre-fab bogey men here… Osama Bin Laden, Jason Voorhees, Tiger Woods) there was Colonel Gaddafi. For someone feared, loathed and vilified in the 80's, he has come across in the 21st century as a wise forward thinker. As compared to who and what? Well, to us in this country and our western friends that’s for sure. Gaddafi did a recent press tour with his all female entourage of body guards – a display of one man's belief in equal rights. The fact that they were trained killers may make them more equal than others… . Hence the new BOK song, ‘Women's Libya’ [heh].”

FRANKENBOK features: Aaron Butler - guitars, Tim Miedecke - bass and backing vocals, Mick Morley - drums, Dan McDougall – vocals, Nathan “Yeti” Amaknieks – guitar. 

Weedeater: Mancoon & Turkey Warlock – new video

 

WEEDEATER's new video for ‘Mancoon’ and ‘Turkey Warlock’, tunes taken from the band's latest effort entitled ‘Jason… The Dragon’, released in March 2011 through Southern Lord Records, was imagined by director David Brodsky “as a heavy metal fairy tale that takes a nightmarish turn. The story begins when a smug, well-dressed gentleman and a man in a raccoon mask steal the band members from their couch-slumber. It doesn’t end well for them.” ‘Jason… The Dragon’ was recorded and mixed by the legendary Steve Albini at Electrical Audio Studios in Chicago, and mastered by the equally legendary John Golden at Golden Studios in Southern California.

“Oh, and don’t forget physical abuse, because over the two years they spent touring, off and on, in support of 2007's ‘God Luck And Good Speed’, WEEDEATER's accident-prone musicians managed to tear themselves some knee ligaments (drummer Keith “Keko” Kirkum), break pinky fingers (bassist Dave Shepherd) and, best of all, blow off a few toes with a shotgun (vocalist and bassist “Dixie” Dave Collins)! All of which begs the question: does Southern Lord offer its acts health insurance?” asks Eduardo Rivadavia in his witty review of ‘Jason… The Dragon’. “Don’t panic, now, the new material still comes familiarly slathered in the grimiest of guitar tones, fuzziest feedback, growliest bass, rowdiest drum work, not to mention Dixie's inimitable alligator croak, all of which wrestle for supremacy both on their trademark zombie marches (‘Hammerhandle’, ‘Turkey Warlock’, ‘Long Gone’, etc.) and occasional grinds in double time ( ‘Mancoon’, ‘Homecoming’, the title track) … and the album-closing ‘Whiskey Creek’ amusingly sounds like a banjo taking a shower. Funny guys, WEEDEATER, and we’re not just laughing at their various injuries, either, but rather ‘Jason… The Dragon’s admirable musical merits, of course. That’s entertainment.”

WEEDEATER features: Dave “Dixie” Collins – vocals and bass, Dave Shepherd – guitar and Keith Kirkum – drums.

Free Album: Falling To Pieces: Memoria In Aeterna – new album

            

California's thrash & metalcore band, FALLING TO PIECES, is offering a free download of their new album ‘Memoria In Aeterna’, released in honor of the band's late vocalist Nicci DeSoto, who died in a motorcycle accident in November 2010, when the band was in the middle of preproduction for their new record.

Says the band: “Head over to our official website and download the new album, ‘Memoria In Aeterna’, for free! Available in multiple formats and quality as well as a downloadable PDF with album art, lyrics and more! Physical copies also available through Pay-Pal for the price of shipping plus a penny directly on our site!

Our goal is not to profit on this album, but to share the album that we had the pleasure and privilege to work on with Nicci. We are extremely proud of this release and are grateful and thankful for all our fans and friends who have supported us through this tragic time.”

‘Memoria In Aeterna’ features a great deal of guest appearances by musicians and vocalist the late singer was inspired by, including UNEARTH's Trevor Phipps, BLEEDING THROUGH's Brandan Schieppati, DIVINE HERESY's Travis Neal, THE BREATHING PROCESS' Jared Sloan and numerous notable others.

FALLING TO PIECES formed in 2004 in San Francisco Bay Area, released their debut recording, ‘The EP To Kill By’, in 2005, followed by debut full-length 2007's ‘Left To Rust’. In 2008, the band was joined by female vocalist Nicci D. and guitarist Scott Danough (co-founder and long-time member of BLEEDING THROUGH). ‘Awaken The Weak’, FTP second album released in 2009, “combines Nicci's wicked screams and beautiful clean singing (both of which can compete with any of today's leading ladies of metal) with the band's unique blend of thrash oriented, melodic, and brutally groove driven song writing.” Nicci DeSoto was 25 years of age when she died.

FALLING TO PIECES features: Nicci DeSoto – vocals, Kimo Sanborn – bass and backup vocals, Scott Danough – guitar, Erik Ruxton – guitar and Nick Benigno – drums.

Blackfire Revelation: Blackfire Revelation – new album

New Orleans' blackened blues-metallers', BLACKFIRE REVELATION, self-titled album can be currently streamed in its bluesy entirety right here at AOL Music. The long-delayed, self-titled debut album  was released on July 5th, 2011 via the (nearly one-man) band founder J.R. Fields' Southern Reconstruction label. This digital-only release is available for purchase through iTunes, Amazon MP3, eMusic, MySpace Music, Napster, and the Zune Market Place. Below you’ll find the album's opening track, ‘Flood’, as well as BLACKFIRE REVELATION 2005's EP ‘Gold And Guns on 51’. Visit the band's SoundCloud page for more music and free downloads.

He with a “live like a snake - die like a bull” life-purpose, J.R. Fields, founded BLACKFIRE REVELATION in New Orleans, Louisiana, in 2002. “Fields was in film school at the University of New Orleans at the time,” reads the official bio as written by Mark Hiram, “and growing increasingly disinterested in both college and the film industry. Later that year his grandfather, a farmer and Baptist deacon from Mississippi, passed away and left him an inheritance of $5000 dollars. He used the money “wisely” and dropped out of college, bought two half stacks, a drum set, and rented a rehearsal space. He put the word out to friends that he was looking for a drummer and soon met drummer R.K. “Hank” Haney through a former classmate. The duo began rehearsing and were soon gigging around New Orleans and throughout the southeast.” In 2004 the duo entered producer Jerry Teel's Funhouse South studio in New Orleans and recorded their debut EP entitled ‘Gold And Guns On 51’: “The five-song EP sounds exactly as if the boys are blaring away on a sweaty stage somewhere. The tunes are heavy and murky, which will serve as a doom metallist's dream. Included are three originals, including the album-opening standout, ‘Battle Hymn’, as well as a pair of curious covers, and BLUE CHEER ‘Second Time Around’- the latter of which includes a cameo from former WHITE ZOMBIE bassist and major BLACKFIRE REVELATION supporter Sean Yseult. As proven throughout ‘Gold And Guns On 51’, nothing beats the sound of a band playing live together - something the majority of “Pro Tools bands” should take note of,” writes about the release AllMusic's Greg Prato. The EP was licensed to Fat Possum Records through Fields' own Southern Reconstruction label and was released in the U.S. in March of 2005. While on the road supporting the record, Hurricane Katrina struck New Orleans leaving the future of the band and its hometown uncertain. Unable to return home, the band had spent the next several months picking up gigs where they could, to earn cash and stay afloat. In 2006, Fields and Haney enlisted producer Grant Curry and began recording their debut LP at his Fugitive Sound studio in Ponchatoula, Louisiana. With the record mixed, mastered and completed, Fields had put the band on indefinite hiatus. Five years later and with the record finally out, Fields insists that the BLACKFIRE REVELATION is not over and refers to his absence from music as “merely a pro-longed sabbatical”.

Flood – courtesy of BLACKFIRE REVELATION

Gold And Guns On 51 – courtesy of BLACKFIRE REVELATION

Last Chance To Reason: Upload Complete – new video

 

LAST CHANCE TO REASON, progressive metal group from Augusta, Maine, has released Corey Norman-directed video for ‘Upload Complete’, song taken from the album ‘Level 2’, released in April 2011 via Prosthetic Records. ‘Level 2’, produced by Jamie King, is a concept album, set in a “Tron”-like virtual world, revolving around the relationship between man and technology, our move from physical reality to virtual spaces and what these changes mean to our lives and our art. The lyrics are expressed from the point of view of an artificial intelligence facing the violent reality of a videogame world.

“On ‘Level 2’,” writes AllMusic's William Ruhlmann “LAST CHANCE TO REASON's mental capacity (their ability to reason, you might say) seems to have expanded to match their musical chops. The heavy metal band was already one cut above standard-issue metal, and here it continues to be, with the guitars sometimes diddling into Steve Vai territory and, in particular, keyboards that, with the stop-and-start rhythms, evoke the sound of prime-era YES.” Read the rest of it here.

LAST CHANCE TO REASON features: Chris Corey – bass, AJ Harvey – guitar, Mike Lessard – vocals, Brian Palmer - keys/synth, Evan Sammons – drums and Tom Waterhouse – guitar.

Full Album Stream: Morta Skuld: Through The Eyes Of Death – EPs reissue / Prolong The Agony – new video

Relapse Records has recently compiled a couple of demos old school death metallers, MORTA SKULD, have originally released some twenty years ago (1990's ‘Gory Departure’ and 1991's ‘Prolong The Agony’) along with previously-unreleased material. You can listen to the “collection of unstoppable Midwestern death! a must for collectors of classic, primitive death metal in all its forms” right here in full. Both demos were produced by former DEATH manager Eric Greif and remastered by Chris Wisco at Belle City Sound. Album cover art comes from Travis Smith, known for his works for DEATH, OPETH, NEVERMORE and KING DIAMOND. The ‘Prolong The Agony’ video was directed by Doug Cook and produced by Eric Grief. Buy the album here (Relapse Records).

“ ‘Prolong the Agony’ was written 21 years ago,” explained guitarist Dave Gregor to Deciblog where the video has premiered. “When we started shooting the video, I felt a bit lost and as we went take after take the vibe started to come back to me, kinda like that adage about riding a bike. When we were writing this song I was really into everything must be evil stage. My drummer Jef Jaeger and I wrote the lyrics not to glorify crucifixion but to describe the act of what one would feel and what one would go through being subjected to that act. The entire second MORTA SCULD demo, ‘Prolong The Agony’, was about what one would feel or experience going through these horrid things. Doug Cook had a great vision for the vid that was a realization of the lyrics.” Read more on Deciblog.

Founded in 1989 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, by guitarist, vocalist and songwriter Dave Gregor joined by guitarist Keven Zeitler, bassist Jason Hellman, and drummer Jesse Rofritz, MORTA SKULD released the two aforementioned demos and a split single with VITAL REMAINS (1993) before being signed by British independent metal label Peaceville Records for the release of their debut full-length ‘Dying Remains’ (1993), with ‘As Humanity Fades’ following in 1994. Third album, ‘For All Eternity’, came out the following year; “But,” writes AllMusic's know-it-all Eduardo Rivadavia, “none of these releases, though brimming with ably performed American death metal, made it into [American] record stores unless imported from overseas, and so MORTA SKULD's frustrated members, Dave Gregor (vocals and guitar), Jason O’Connell (guitar), Jason Hellman (bass), and Kent Kent Truckenbrod (drums), decided to link up with U.S.-based Pavement Records for the release of fourth album ‘Surfice’ in 1998.” After the release, Jason O’Connell left the band and was replaced with a string of several different fill-in guitarists - the most notable of these was Takis Kinis (REALM). Kent Truckenbrod, who bounced next, was replaced by Jason Mooney. MORTA SKULD went on hiatus by the 2000s. In 2005, Peaceville Records issued a “best of” compilation album entitled ‘Re-Surface: The Best of Morta Skuld’.