Earache Records is very proud to announce the signing of Canadian thrash metal pioneers ANNIHILATOR to a European deal. Since releasing their classic ALICE IN HELL debut in 1989, ANNIHILATOR has consistently played heads-down, no-frills metal, led by guitar virtuoso JEFF WATERS. Now, in 2009, Earache is proud to welcome one of the originators of […]
Like the deadly bacteria lying dormant at the bottom of your gut, Witchmaster sits and waits until the time is right for them to resurface in a choking, splattering, sickly mess that ruins your golf game or whatever the fuck else you had planned for the day. Their last grime-encrusted offering, a self-titled album released on Agonia Records, came out five years ago, and now the wait is over for Trucizna, a hellacious, gnashing beast that saw its US release in November courtesy of the invulnerable Ibex Moon Records. Axe-slinger and original member Kali talks about the new album, Polish extreme metal, and just not giving a fuck.
Welcome to the first of (hopefully) many band spotlights here at Teeth of the Divine .com. Think of this as our version of VH1’s Behind the Music. The aim with these features is to take you a little deeper into some of the more influential, important and respected band in metal. Band’s that through their albums, shaped genres, defined sounds and for many, changed lives. Some bands are still charging on, continuing to adding to their legacy, while other have since call it quits, allowing their recordings to continue their impact and legacy…
One of many thrash bands of the 80s firing up the engine again in the 21st century, New Jersey’s Whiplash have released an album in Unborn Again that is outstanding on numerous levels. In large part it is due to the dynamic and varied songwriting, which includes not only neck snapping thrash, but also groove based heavy metal and hard rock. Most surprisingly is how well it works as a complete listening experience. Although the band followed up 80s classics Power and Pain and Ticket to Mayhem with a handful of 90s albums, 1998’s Thrashback was the last we’d heard from Whiplash until the release of this year’s Unborn Again. Certainly the passing of original member and bassist Tony Bono in 2002 put a damper on things, to say the least, but the Jersey boys are back and without a doubt better than ever. Guitarist/vocalist Tony Portaro and drummer Joe Cangelosi check in with TOTD to bring us up to date.
Formed in 2007 with the intention of honoring England’s proud ancestral heritage and rich national culture, WINTERFYLLETH (comprised of members culled from the UK’s most devastating doom contingent Atavist) set a solidified mission statement to bring awareness to England’s historical stories, folklore, landscapes and ancestral past through their folk-influenced vitriolic black metal. Coining the term […]
Many bands talk the talk of file sharing being something to be embraced, rather than eschewed, but how many bands do you know that walk the walk and actually release an album for free, especially a band on a big metal label? You’ll know at least one now, as Ireland’s Gama Bomb have done it through Earache Records with Tales from the Grave in Space, the follow-up to the extremely well written, balls out thrash masterpiece Citizen Brain. At the time of this interview I had not yet heard the album, as it was not available, so the idea was to focus on the band’s/label’s decision to release it for free, a preview, if you will. Now that I’ve gotten my own digital copy of the album (and you can too), I can tell you that it is every bit the rip roaring, fun-filled vintage (with modern sensibilities) thrash extravaganza that is Citizen Brain. Vocalist Philly Byrne fills tells that tale of Tales and how file sharing can be a good thing for metal bands.
I-Tunes today premieres “Powershifter,” the first song from Fear Factory’s upcoming new album as an exclusive digital download. Due in stores February 9th, Mechanize is the first album to feature the lineup of vocalist Burton C. Bell, returning guitarist Dino Cazares, bassist Byron Stroud and veteran drummer Gene Hoglan. The anticipated album also welcomes back keyboardist/producer Rhys Fulber (Front Line Assembly).
Legendary and acclaimed Bay Area act LUDICRA are putting the finishing touches on their next full-length album (their fourth) entitled ‘The Tenant‘, which will be released through Profound Lore Records. Known as one of the initial acts to help spearhead the black metal underground movement of the Bay Area and featuring the line-up of guitarist […]
Tampa, FL’s kings of groove laden death metal SIX FEET UNDER are back with their 3rd installment of the band’s cover series, Graveyard Classics 3, due out on Metal Blade Records January 19th 2010. Graveyard Classics 3 was recorded at D.O.I. Digital Audio in Tampa, FL, was mixed at Audiohammer Studios by Mark Lewis, and […]
It is not often I’m totally smitten with a doom band, much less a funeral doom act, but Germany’s Ahab has shocked and awed me ever since I reviewed The Call of the Wretched Sea, the act’s second release (after The Oath EP) in a trilogy (the “Nantucket Saga”) of sea-based tales, based upon stories […]
The last couple of years has been spectacular for old school classic Swedish styled death metal; you’ve had albums from the likes of veterans such as Bloodbath, Séance, Necrovation, Evocation, Dismember as well as new blood from Hail of Bullets, DeathEvocation and Fatalist just to name a few. Heck, even Entombed returned from the land of suck on 2007s Serpent Saints. What was missing was a big name reunion- a glorious name from the past, the return of a legend (Séance doesn’t quite count). And that happened earlier this year (at least here in the US) when Ibex Moon Records released Death …the Brutal Way from Dutch death metal legends, Asphyx. Complete with the duo that was mostly responsible for the legendary The Rack, suddenly busy vocalist Martin Van Drunen, founding member Rob Bagchus returned to the fray in spectacular fashion and I caught up with Mr. Bagchus to find out how this legendary comeback came about and other things….
While doing your own thing is the way to go when running a site like TeethoftheDivine.com, it’s always better to also keep your head up and know what’s happening around you. In order to serve our readers better, we realized we need to go out more. Thus, we dressed up in our fancy work clothes (casual and friendly but with a hint of authority) and took a step outside from our dark, murky cave and signed ourselves up to the biggest social entities in the World Wide Web. Just to be closer to you.
Even though European heavy metal fans have always trounced their stateside counterparts in terms of dedication to their bands, it still puzzles me that so many folks on this side of the pond bypass Novembers Doom. Not only has the Chicago act perfected a unique brand of doom/death, but they’ve improved and expanded their sound, resulting in albums like The Pale Haunt Departure, The Novella Reservoir, and Into Night’s Requiem Infernal that are filled with quality metal and memorable songwriting from top to bottom. That Novembers Doom can play a Minneapolis festival with the likes of Primal Fear and Atheist and be lucky to draw 100 people, then turn around and fly to Spain to play a show for 800 people that sold out in advance speaks volumes about the difference between European and U.S. punters. In the interview that follows I discuss that contrast, the new album and generally all things Novembers Doom with guitarist Larry Roberts.
Legendary metalers Armored Saint enters Tranzformer Studios in Burbank, CA to record first studio album since 2000’s ‘Revelation’Los Angeles, CA, October 2, 2009 – Los Angeles’ sons of metal, ARMORED SAINT, are set to enter Tranzformer Studios in Burbank, CA to begin recording the band’s 6th full-length studio album. Tranzformer Studios is owned by Dave […]
Reunited Swedish death metallers DESULTORY will begin recording their as-yet-untitled new full-length in November with producer Tore Stjerna at Necromorbus Studio in Sweden (Watain, In Battle, Nominon). The album will mark the band’s first long player in nearly 14 years. Said DESULTORY guitarist Håkan Morberg: “The songs are a mix of fast and heavy melodic […]
Acheron is one of those bands that has been making quality death metal for a long time, yet has remained far underground. Whether due to the overtly Satanic/anti-religion themes – which I find odd, considering that this is death metal – or vocalist Vincent Crowley’s sometimes controversial views and comments (or, rightly or wrongly, the interpretations of such), Acheron has never gotten the level of acclaim that its peers have, yet continues to give the fans what they want. The Final Conflict: Last Days of God has been a long time coming, but it has been worth the wait. Released on Displeased Records, the album is proudly rooted in the old school with an organic sound (from Bill Korecky), beefy riffs, strong arrangements, and a songwriting approach that is pretty damn catchy (in a death metal sort of way). I spoke to Mr. Crowley by phone, but failed to ask him whether he rode his white horse or spoke to the dead. It’s still a good read though, helped in no small way by the guy’s affable nature and willingness to leave it all on the table.
That discrimination is an alien element to the metal scene is common knowledge. Today it’s played by people in every walk of life, from high school students to street cleaners, from conservatory graduates to white-collar clerks. Daniel Estrin, the leader of Australian Melodic Metal phenomenon Voyager, is a lawyer. But first of all, he is a man of huge musical gift and romantic spirit, who writes songs nearly as exotic for metal as his motherland’s aborigines are exotic for the rest of the world. No wonder, the band’s upcoming third album I Am The ReVolution is being impatiently awaited by the fans all over the globe. It’s not that frequent that we are exposed to metal stuff proposing such a perfect match of 80’s neo-romantic grandeur a la Depeche Mode, Ultravox and A-Ha and catholicity of contemporary metal. If you are still in the dark, it’s high time to ‘come to light’ and jump the leaving train, for the revolution has begun and it won’t be waiting for latecomers.
Swedish Progressive Metal act, Katatonia, is set to release their latest album, Night is the New Day, on November 10th via Peaceville Records. The highly anticipated album, from one of Europe’s premier Progressive bands, Night is the New Day is the follow up to Katatonia’s groundbreaking 2006 release, The Great Cold Distance. It is their […]
“Terraphobic” from Lansing, MI’s Dagon is one of those albums I casually grabbed from my ever overflowing box of promos to check out. I’m not ever certain why I decided to grab it. Perhaps it was because I’d realized that I’d not reviewed any albums yet from Bombworks Records. Regardless, it was a fortuitous grab, as Terraphobic knocked me square on my ass with what is sure to end up one of my favorite albums of 2009. The band’s self-described “ocean metal” is a blistering slice of classic Swedish melodic death metal (In Flames, Dark Tranquillity, Hypocrisy) with traditional metal (ala Iron Maiden) flourishes, thrashing riffs, white hot soloing, and a knack for writing memorable melodies. This one has got it all. Oh yeah, and the lyrical themes are entirely ocean-centric. Guitarists Chris Sharrock and Briant Daniel, bassist/vocalist Randall Ladiski, and drummer/vocalist Jordan Batterbee better be ready for the big leagues because metal this good won’t go unnoticed for long.
Kicking Off October 2nd, High On Fire and Converge Will Tour With Stars of Adult Swim’s Metalocalypse and Grammy® Award Winner, Mastodon During Seven-Week Tour EA’s “Brütal Legend”; to Sponsor Metal Tour. This fall, two of the most popular bands in metal will co-headline a 34-city North American tour as the Grammy® Award-winning Mastodon hits […]
According to the label’s website: “We are proud to inform you that Sickening Horror (Athens, Greece) signed a deal with SFC records to release their second full-length album, which will be out on August 21-st 2009.The band was founded in 2002 and the first stuff has been created under the influence of monsters of the […]
Fresh off a successful stint on this year’s Summer Slaughter Tour, Finnish folk metallers ENSIFERUM will kick off a US headlining tour in support of their upcoming full-length From Afar on November 5th. Support will come from Nuclear Blast recording artists HYPOCRISY and EX DEO as well as Sumerian recording artists BLACKGUARD. Said ENSIFERUM guitarist […]
Prosthetic Records’ has signed Seattle’s Trap Them. The band’s sound combines elements of old school Swedish death metal, punk, and d-beat and takes influence from bands such as Entombed, Black Flag, Nasum and Tragedy. Trap Them has spent time on the road with Napalm Death, Disfear, Skeletonwitch, Victims, Rotten Sound, Toxic Holocaust, and Coliseum, amongst […]
Williams Street Records Newest Album from Best-Selling Williams Street Records announced today details on the most highly-anticipated death metal album release of the year — and it’s for none other than the animated band from Adult Swim’s Metalocalypse. On September 8th, the world’s most brutal animated band will once again reign supreme with the all-new release […]
(July 20, 2009) – Vagrant Records announces an October 6, 2009 release date for Desperate Living, the fourth full-length from Southern California’s HORSE The Band. The twelve-track set was recorded at White Buffalo Studios in Los Angeles with producer Noah Shain and includes several special guests. “Noah really cared about helping us get exactly the […]