Mish-Mash

First on the agenda today, we’d like to extend our deepest sympathies to the friends of Frankie Sparcello, bassist of “deserve more cred than they get” death metal band Exhorder. There’s been no statement on the cause of death. Here’s some classic Exhorder to remind us all of Sparcello and Exhorders talent.

My good friend DiGi over at Movie Buzzers.com has shared the hilarious new poster for soon to be cult classic “Rubber”. As I’m sure you can tell deduce from the not exactly subtle poster, “Rubber” is about a serial killing tyre. I shit you not. Awesomeness awaits!

Devin Townsend as released the album art for his upcoming release “Ghost”. Very nice.

Anaal Nathrakh are streaming a new track, “Paragon Pariah”, over at Decibel’s website. Follow this link to have your ears blown off.

Amon Amarth have released a pretty deadly cover of System of A Down’s “Aerials”. I like it. Have a listen and make up your own minds on it.

11-11-11

Anyone here familiar with the 11-11 phenomenon? I most certainly wasn’t until this morning I was checking out Bloody-Disgusting.com and saw the trailer for the upcoming “11-11-11”, the latest offering from Darren Lynn Bousman, the man behind the camera for Saw II-IV.

Now, personally, I’m a big fan of religious horror. “The Exorcist” is among my favorite films ever (still scares the beejusus out of me every time I see it!) and others like “The Exorcism of Emily Rose”, “Martyrs” and “The Omen” all have a special place in my heart. So after checking out the trailer I was pretty pumped for this movie (which you can learn more about on its official site).

At the same time, I was intrigued. I’d never heard about the “11-11” phenomenon and wanted to know more, especially if it meant something spooky was gonna be going down in the future. I Googled “11-11-11” and to be honest, was left pretty disappointed. Apparently, people all over the world have started seeing the number “11-11” in random places, like on pones, watches, clocks, tv, everywhere. When a person sees these numbers, they become obsessed with them and search for a meaning in them. long story short, they seem to then go on to become good people and help others in their everyday lives….YAWN!

What a jip! I get teased with a spine tingling trailer about some haunting prophecy and when I look into it further, theres nothing to it but people becoming helpful and friendly. However, when I decided to ceck out the more Mr. Bousman, after getting me all worried about a new prophecy, one that will finish us off before the Mayans in 2012, you owe us all a damn scary movie!

Blogging Is Hard!

I’ve been sitting in front of my laptop for the past 20 minutes trying to think of something to write about and I keep drawing blanks.

First I was going to give you guys a review of Red Fang’s “Murder The Mountains”, which by the way is an AWESOME album which fans of Black Sabbath, Mastodon, Kylsea and maybe even old school Kings of Leon will enjoy. Seriously, “Murder the Mountains” is a groovy as hell record that will have you banging your head and stomping your feet uncontrollably. Listen to track “Wires” below and tell me it didn’t have you jumping around the place!

However, I couldn’t think of anything more than the 2 or 3 sentences above to write about the album so I decided to try writing about Scream 4. While I’m excited to see the 4th installment of Wes Craven’s slasher series, I just couldn’t think of anything interesting to write about it apart from it comes out on April 15th and I can’t wait to see Ghostface terrorize the survivors of past films. Take a look at the trailer below if you want to know more.

I went snooping throug a few more sites then to try and get the creative juices flowing but to no avail. However, my times wasting was not in vain as, while reading through Metal Sucks SXSW festival review (side note: SXSW seems like the coolest festival in the world!Movies, music, gadgets; what else do you need!), I stumbled across Turbid North, who are now top of my bands to check out list. Warning: Turbid North are HEAVY AS HELL. If you don’t like metal, TURN AWAY NOW!

Well looky here!After all that I’ve gone and got myself a blog post! And not only have I written a blog post but I’ve reviewed an album, hyped a film and recommended a band…all in under 300 words!Mybe this blogging stuff ain’t so hard after all…

Nothing Like A Healthy Dose Of Grind To Get You Up In the Morning!

Lets just get straight to it. Grind legend’s Agorophobic Nosebleed and new grind heroes Wormrot both released new material from their upcoming releases. These tracks were released earlier this week, as reported by Uber-bloggers Vince and Axl over at Metal Sucks.net, so I’m a little late in posting this news but hey, better late than never.

Agorophobic Nosebleed are streming two tracks from their upcoming split with Despise You, “And On And On”. The tracks, “Possession” and “Ungrateful” are, as expected, as brutal as a swift shot to the nads with a sledgehammer and have me all kinds of excited about the release. “And On And On” will be released by Relapse on April 26th and you can do yourself a massive favor and go and pre-order it here

Wormrot meanwhile gave us a second taste of their upcoming sophmore album “Dirge” (which will be released on Earache and should come out on May 3. The track, “Spot a Pathetic”, again shows why Wormrot are creating such a stir in grindcore land and sounds like an explosion of pure aggression. I’ve embedded it below for you guys to enjoy.

Nergal Released From Hospital

Due to a pretty hectic day of college, I didn’t get a chance to post about this yesterday. However, it is with a huge smile on my face that I can report(to those who may have missed it, which I doubt many of you did) that Behemoth frontman Nergal has been released from hospital following a bone marrow transplant procedure he underwent 4 weeks ago. Here’s an official statement from the man himself:

“Hey! What’s up! At last – one could say. After almost half a year of treatment in various hospitals, several cycles of chemotherapy, irradiation and a bone marrow transplant, I have been finally released home in a pretty fuckin’ good condition. I’m feeling ok, taking the intensity of treatment under consideration. That was not an easy period of my life, but, as I envisioned, I left the hospital victorious. I never considered any other options, but anyway, there were rough moments too… At this point I must express my thanks to the people who made all of those downs fairly bearable. My parents – thank you. You deserve a monument for all your love and patience. Dorotka, thank you for your heroic attitude, love and support. I can’t forget Doda’s fans, who made a gigantic effort for me and other ill people. You rule! Absolutely fantastic Behemoth fans from all over the world were organizing various events to make people aware of what leukemia is. To all of you out there – my deepest respect! Thank you – the real heroes – Prof. Hellmann, Dr. Piekarska, Dr. Knopinska, Doc. Giebel, Prof. Hołowiecki and all the nurses of the hematology division of the Medical Academy in Gdansk and the Oncology Clinic in Gliwice for all the professionalism and great hearts. My band mates for all the friendship and never-ending support. All my friends for sticking to me throughout the whole period of my illness. The list is too long to mention you all, but remember, you have special place in my heart.”

Neragal seemed upbeat about what is going to be a difficult recovery and seems pretty keen to get back to playing and writing some new Behemoth material.

“Although the whole treatment went really good, as well as the bone marrow transplant and the post-transplant period, the next several months is the time when I must really take care of myself. Of course I will have plenty of time to recover, think about the strategy and my return to the stage – which approaches imminently (laughs). First of all however I must rebuild my physical condition… apart from that, I hunger for playing, I haven’t been playing the guitar for a half of year now! Really much to catch up, but also a huge motivation and a desire to work again at the same time. This year will be a really important one for me and the band!”

Its great to see Nergal so upbeat and we wish him a speedy and healthy recovery from everyone here at the Tomb. We also can’t help but be curious as to how this whole experience will affect Nergal’s songwriting and the next Behemoth album. Will it be a more upbeat record since Neragl has survived a potnetially life threatening condition and saw how supportful his family,friends and fans were? Will it be more angry due to the fact that it has robbed him of 2-3 years of his career? Will the lyrics become more philisophical and personal, seeing as he threaded a fine line between life and death? We’ll have to wait some time to discover I imagine but whatever it is, the next release from Nergal and Behemoth will definitely be a vital listen. In the mean time, we send our best wishes to Nergal and all his famliy and friends! Here’s a clip to remind us all of what Nergal and behemoth has brough to the metal community already.

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Refraction Interview

Having just reviewed Refraction’s fantastic self titled debut album, I felt it was the perfect time to ask the lads a few questions about the album. Here’s my short chat with Kalr and Co.:

“Refraction” came out last week and based on early reviews, its gotten a great reception. You guys must be thrilled!
Its too early to tell. Feedback has generally been positive, what little there has been. We are just grateful that people are interested in what we are doing

You guys recorded a demo a while back. What was wrong with it that you decided to keep it from the public?
Most of those tracks ended up as our first Myspace tracks. We recorded it ourselves with the little resources and experiences we had. It just transpired that the end result, despite a lot of effort, was just not something we were happy to release, we couldn’t get it to sound how we wanted. We also felt a full-length was better suited to the flow of what we were trying to achieve

What lessons did you guys learn when recording the demo that you applied to the full length?
John (Kelly) has been studying sound for years, so he would have learned quite a lot in the interim which was beneficial during the recording of the album. We also learned that recording an album away from the toil and smog of the City worked well to our advantage, as did thousands of fields full of cows when it came to photo opportunities. Cows are not stirred by the insults of a human. They have amazing resolve

How did you guys find working at Data Studios?Those guys are making quite the name for themselves!
Both Ross O’Donovan and Tadgh Healy are such great guys and amazing to work with. They made everything as comfortable as possible. Everything is so relaxing in that part of the Country, it made the whole process so seamless. If Data Studios are making a name for themselves it is because they excel at what they do.

What are your favorite tracks on “Refraction”?
All of them were at one point, I’m sure. Now, none of them.

Have you guys ever tried adding vocals?
In our former incarnation as ‘Illuminatus’, we employed vocals. This did not work out. We felt them unneccessary for this release, and would detract from what we were trying to achieve

Is it something you’d like to do in the future?
We are ruling nothing out with regards anything for the future. We have intentions of introducing an array of new elements into the music, this could very well include vocals. Time will tell

With yourselves, Altar of Plagues, I”l Eat Your Face all releasing killer albums and getting widespread recognition, the irish metal scene is really booming. It must be really exciting to be apart of it?
‘Widespread recognition’ might be a tad over-zealous. We have not received any calls from Ryan Tubridy, as of yet. We have sold approx. 5 CDs. In fact its 4 because one CD is just missing from the case. Thats 3 more CDs than anyone has downloaded. And that person was you. Cheers!

Ok, so you mightn’t be making a fortune just yet, but the buzz is growing and people are really impressed with the output, which is great. It takes time and alot of touring to start making money and getting bigger. Any plans to tour around the country or further a field to promote the album?
We have big plans to make plans. We certainly intend on playing various dates around the country in light of the release.
Any promoters,ringmasters, farmers or other parties interested, please contact us at refractionband@gmail
Thanks a lot for your time and interest man!

No problem guys!

New Amon Amarth Album Artwork Unveiled!

And its pretty damn cool if i do say so myself. Featuring more flames and fiery colors like older album covers such as “Fate of Norns” and “Once Sent From The Golden Halls”, the “Surtur Rising” artwork, done by long time favored artist of Amon Amarth Tom Thiel, is exactly the kind of album cover you’d expect from the Viking metallers. Take a peek at it below.

The less than friendly looking, flaming sword wearing giant is, according to the Metal Blade press release “Surtur”, the leader of the flaming giants of Muspelheim and the Surtur of the album title. He’s also the oldest character in Norse mythology. Pretty metal, huh?

Here’s the official press release from Metal Blade regarding the album and it’s track listing:
“Sweden’s AMON AMARTH are currently gearing up to unleash, Surtur Rising, the eighth studio offering in their critically revered pantheon of Viking-inspired death metal. Named in tribute to Surtur, leader of the fire giants of Muspelheim (“flame land”) and the oldest being in the nine worlds of Norse mythology, the record, which was listed among Decibel Magazine’s most anticipated albums of 2011, features 10 tracks of sword-wielding, fist-pumping, hyper climactic battle anthems. The follow up to 2008’s monolithic Twilight Of The Thunder God full-length, was recorded again at Fascination Street Studios Örebro, Sweden with Jens Bogren and features strikingly brutal cover art by Tom Thiel. ”

Surtur Rising Track Listing:
01. War of the Gods
02. Töck’s Taunt – Loke’s Treachery Part II
03. Destroyer of the Universe
04. Slaves of Fear
05. Live Without Regrets
06. The Last Stand of Frej
07. For Victory or Death
08. Wrath of the Norsemen
09. A Beast Am I
10. Doom Over Dead Man

The album will be released in Europe on March 25th and in the USA on March 29th, so mark grav your viking helmets and drinking horns and get ready for a killer slab of viking metal

Refraction “Refraction” Review

If Refraction’s self titled debut is anything to go by, then 2011 is going to be one helluva year for Irish metal! The lads have really created a great, atmospheric instrumental album that brings the listener on a ride that at times is picturesque and tranquil and is kept interesting with moments of rising, sheer epicness.

“Refraction” is the lads debut release since they started jamming (in their current form) in 2007 (even-though they did try their hands at a demo but were unsatisfied with the results) and it looks like all the practice really has paid off. “Refraction” is an album that needs to be listened from start to finish as all of the 6 tracks (averaging at around 6/7 minutes a track) flow seemlessly into each other. As mentioned earlier, each song takes the listener on a journey and the songs never bore as each tracks shifts momentum and emotion. It felt like I was listening to a movie soundtrack.

I have recently been on a bit of an “the Ocean” binge at the moment, with Anthropcentric and Heliocentric listened to daily, and this album reminded me alot of a less aggressive, instrumental version of those albums.

I loved everything about the guitar on this album. The tone was distinctive and clear, with each note perfectly audible. I also loved how the guitar lines worked almost as vocals, carrying each song from passage to passage and narrating the whole album. the drumming too was immense, eventhough at times the double kicked seemed to go off time when sustained for too long. It was also cool to be able to hear the bass and notice how it added to the songs. A great production job done by the lads at Data Studios (Which is building quite the name for itself, having been the home of I’ll Eat Your Face’s “Irritant” and Altar of Plagues).

My personal favorite songs on the album are the middle tracks “Into Nothing”, which has a killer outro, and “Light Fades”, but each and every track on this album is full of quality and worth a listen.

The only thing that I could complain about is that I found all of the song structures almost too similar and hope the guys will try and mix it up a little more on the follow up album, even maybe delving into more aggressive or darker territories to give the songs a dufferent dynamic. Theres a few hints to suggest that they are delving into darker sounds and this is something I could really see working for the guys.

With bands such as Wound Upon Wound, I’ll Eat Your Face and now Refraction releasing quality albums, the future is looking bright as the sun for Irish metal. “Refraction” is a great album that sets the standard high for all other releases,(all over the world, not just in Ireland), extremely high.

Refraction will be playing a launch gig for the album on the 4th of March in metal watering hole Fibber Magees and I strongly suggest you guys go and check it out and pick up a copy of the album while your there.

Happy Christmas!

Hey guys,

Just want to say Merry Christmas to everyone who has wasted a few seconds/minutes of their life reading this blog! Have a great holidays and hopefully we can keep you guys reading in the new year!

What’s In A Name?

“Dead Skin Mask”, “Those Whom The Gods Detest”, “Rotting In The Free World” and the immortal “Entrails Ripped From A Virign’s Cunt”. All of these are just a selection of the wonderfully powerful and evocative song names that one may stumble across in the jolly, happy world of metal.

For me, personally,song names hold a huge significant. Song titles, such as those listed above can intrigue, entertain and even horrify and offend. Emotions like this are usually only brought about by music, movies and people…by art forms. Therefore, since song titles can evoke such a range of emotions, does this not make them an art form themselves? I think so.

Song titles are the first impression the majority of people get of a song. I love when bands release track listings of new albums. I love reading through the titles, trying to imagine what each track will sound like. Which one will be the creepy one? Which one will be the stand out track? which one will be the epic one?

I know this is a short post that most will see as pointless but this is my blog and I’ll write about whatever I want!