Rolling Metal Thread 2008

lol. wife is smokin.

God, the daughter's face! <3

Rarely have I been a parent and a metal fan so simultaneously!

Today's new love for something (slightly) old: Down, by Sentenced. I missed this the first time, as I had written them off pre-Ville and not gotten around to reconsidering (lured back by HIM comparisons) until about when they disbanded. But ahh. Churning and overblown and majestic.

dude Down rule.

He's talking about Down the album not Down the band.

The Sentenced reissues are really good. Down just has one bonus track, and Crimson doesn't really have anything, but those are still pretty killer albums, especially Down. Frozen has the real good stuff, though: four pretty entertaining covers as bonus tracks. I also have the Moonspell and Samael reissues, but I haven't gotten around to listening to them yet. The Moonspell reissues have a second disc that's basically the albums performed live, and the Samael reissues have an EP at the end of Passage, and a bunch of alternative mixes at the end of Paternal. I have the original issues of the Moonspell albums, and they're both great already. Interested to hear the live versions.

In high school I was into Amok (the album).

The new In Flames album: pretty good. Comfortable, which isn't a bad thing.

The new Arsis: astounding. I've been listening to Neuraxis so much lately, that I forgot just how much better at combining tech death with hooky melodies Arsis is. I mean, underneath all the death noodling and drum fills, this is one wickedly catchy album. There are those who are still gonig to cling to A Diamond For Disease (awesome as it is), but I think in embracing melodiy like they have here, Arsis is doing something considerably more interesting.

Down still rule

did anyone else get the nadja reissue from The End? and did you listen to the bonus track? which is, like, 25 minutes of minimal ambience until around the 26th minute when it turns into a blast of friggin' nadja death metal. pretty cool.

love the three proper songs too. pretty massive.

I'm getting the Nadja disc right away. The online stream doesn't have the bonus track, which is annoying because I've heard on a couple of occasions just how incredible it is.

Their upcoming release for Crucial Blast looks really cool, they have a live drummer for the first time and the songs have a bit more groove to them apparently.

I can't wait to see Nadja live.

Which Nadja? One of the old tracks remade again that adn mentioned on dffd?
I cant keep up with him hehe

which Nadja was reissued on The End? I can't seem to find it on their site. Is it not out yet?

also wtf.. they are only coming to Aquarius Records.. my living room is bigger than that place (slight exaggeration)

Skin Turns to Glass is the release on The End.

Got Nadja, In Flames and Arsis all in today's mail, along with the new Sahg and a few other things I can't remember now.

This is kind of awesome, a band called Powerglove that does heavy metal versions of videogame themes: http://www.myspace.com/vgmetal

Ha, I like that Powerglove. They should tour with Graf Orlock.

How's that new Sahg? Are they any good live? I didn't mind their last album, and I'm considering going to see them next week.

The In Flames has grown on me nicely, it's a good, consistent album. "The Chosen Pessimist" has them going all Radiohead, but in a tasteful, effective way.

That Arsis, though, I just love it.

I hd a very metal Valentine's Day. This was my gift: http://fici.bira.gen.tr/06.04.2007DVDVILE7_Misanthrope260.jpg, and we watched this: http://www.merchdirect.net/x/detail_image.php?imageid=16621

(In lieu of actually going to see them, which was my fault.)

You sound like the best girlfriend ever, Roxy.

Haw, no, that was his gift to ME! But yes, you are correct. :D

Oh, I know. I just meant, the fact that you're so psyched over receiving those things is pretty awesome.

<a href="http://www.masterpiecedistribution.com/shop/vedi_articolo.php?id=15259&order_id=";>The Horna/Peste Noire 7'</a> is really really great, esp. the Peste Noire side. Vinyl is heavy as fuck for a 7", too, and the sleeve is great. The whole thing just pleases the hell out of me.

ok damn bbc code when am I gonna remember.

This new Eluveitie album Slania is the best folk-metal thing I've heard since early Skyclad!

See, sentences like that are why I come around here.

I'm loving the new Taint so far.

one of my goals as a human is to get more people to realize how awesome and cool Zatokrev are. This is still my fave song by them:

http://youtube.com/watch?v=1vilnNfYnds

maybe my fave Swiss band since Young Gods!

anyway, if you are a doom metal fan and a Godflesh fan, and you have never heard them, then you would probably dig them.

:-D

The new Testament album is great. It's like they picked up right where The Gathering left off. Out April 29 (I think) on Nuclear Blast.

I've heard the Cavalera Conspiracy record, and I have to say, it's pretty much exactly what I was hoping for: what Sepultura would sound like in 2008 if Max had never left the group. A lot of catchy tunes, some killer guitar solos, and a song that sounds like Dethklok. Max hasn't matured much in the lyrical department, but the words sound fine when he's shouting them. Very solid release.

Yeah, it's grown on me quite a bit. I didn't like it much on first listen, but that was sitting in the Roadrunner offices. Once I got my own copy and threw it into my iPod and spent a day or two with it, I started hearing lots of interesting little details.

This artwork looks so Roger Dean

http://home.online.no/~hilde-ej/ansur-wf.jpg

BLABBERMOUTH.NET - ANSUR: Warring Factions Artwork, Track Listing Revealed

Norwegian progressive extreme metallers ANSUR have set "Warring Factions" as the title of their follow-up to 2006's "Axiom", due later in the year via Nocturnal Art Productions/Candlelight Records. The CD contains seven songs with a total running time of 62 minutes.

"Warring Factions" (cover artwork by Israeli designer Eliran Kantor) track listing:

01. The Tunguska Incident (8:45)
02. Sierra Day (5:53)
03. Phobos Anomaly (6:20)
04. An Exercise In Depth Of Field (12:16)
05. At His Wit's End (7:59)
06. Cloudscaper (7:42)
07. Prime warring Eschatologist (12:39)

o_O at that cover

Geez is Ayreon shitty.

did anyone else get the nadja reissue from The End? and did you listen to the bonus track? which is, like, 25 minutes of minimal ambience until around the 26th minute when it turns into a blast of friggin' nadja death metal. pretty cool.

Just got it today...that track's one of the coolest things they've ever done. They have to speed up more often!

I haven't actually checked to confirm this, but it must be right: Slania, the title of the new Eluveitie album, is a combination of "Slayer" and "Shania Twain".

new Tiamat album front cover

http://static.rateyourmusic.com/album_images/s1170636.jpg

Saviours today for free at amoeba sf!

it's nice to know that some people have a sense of humor. got an e-mail from Ayreon today:

Subject: Review Ayreon 010183763362728912899823248959875873258324643598436584358743
Date: Feb 25, 2008 2:32 PM
Hahaha, may you rest in peace, Scott!

Cheers,
Arjen Anthony Lucassen, 160 feet tall at least.

ps. And thanks again for your great vocals. Or weren't you on it?

Oh God, "Ansur"!! This album looks gross! Are they being liked elsewhere?

scott, that is the funniest damn thing i've ever read.

I am so happy. True fan mail, that. :-)

Technically it's late 07, but Evoken's Caress of the Void is really really good.

Scott, that is the best thank you note ever!!

The only metal album I've really liked much in recent weeks is the Helrunar one, on some label out of Ohio called Lupus Lounge. Here's their myspace:

http://www.myspace.com/helrunarhorde

The Farsot one is not nearly as good, I don't think, though I do find the 20-minute long track 7 higly admirable. Haven't decided about the Drauton one yet.

(Actually, it's spelled "Drautran.") (And "highly.")

Have not yet decided what I think of this industrial reptile anime metal band from Bogota, Koyi K Utho, who were written about in Billboard's Latin column last week thanks to their social networking success:

http://www.myspace.com/koyikutho

http://youtube.com/watch?v=Um7Q0mBbJzU

http://youtube.com/watch?v=QvSM5vJqPRY

http://youtube.com/watch?v=SDcI2_QMbQY

I bought Kiss's Gold anthology yesterday - it's a 2CD best-of covering 1974-82, and is the first Kiss record I have ever purchased (and the second-ever Kiss product, period; I bought one of the comics when I was a kid). I'm pretty sure it will be the last Kiss product I ever purchase.

In the mail: the new Boris (US version; downloaded the Japanese version yesterday - it's unbelievably beautiful, the first Boris album I've ever really loved), the new Lair Of The Minotaur (love those guys), the new Haiyuki Whateverthefuck EP (Jon Chang's new band, kinda punk-meets-power metal and pretty awesome), and a reissue of Testament's First Strike Still Deadly.

Just back from Oslo, where I saw a gazillion bands in three days (plus an extra day to sightsee!). No black metal, which kind of seems just plain wrong, being Norway and all, but I did see a few noteworthy acts. In Vain is a band that does a progressive blackened death sort of thing, which is cool, and Sahg was awesome...I think they've grown to the point now where they top The Sword when it comes to retro-doom.

Best of the lot though, was the Shining. Not Swedish depressive BM band Shining, but the Norwegian jazz metal Shining. Absolutely insane stuff, loads of sax and math metal, with some gool groove pieces too.

Phil, being a jazz guy, have you heard The Thing? Jazz trio who incorporates laptops and effects pedals into their compositions. Really, really aggressive free jazz, and they just lit up the place when I saw them.

Did other fun stuff like see the viking ships, found some mead, and went to Neseblod Records, which is quite the metal treasure trove.

it's unbelievably beautiful, the first Boris album I've ever really loved

I've enjoyed other things by them but I do agree this one's pretty special, and gets better as it goes.

Metal (Sweat)Shirt Watch: dude sitting out in the lobby bent over a book, wearing what looks like a brand spanking new Death Angel hoodie.