British brutal death metal / slam band INGESTED are streaming their new track "Butchered and Devoured" on Unique Leader Records YouTube channel. The tune is part of INGESTED´s new EP "Stinking Cesspool of Liquified Human Remnants" that will be released on January 15th, 2021 through Unique Leader. "Stinking Cesspool..." will feature the tracks: 1- Human Abattoir; 2- Butchered and Devoured; 3- Pre-Released Foetal Mush; 4- Erotic Depravity; 5- Copromesis. More info on:
Colombian black metal band INQUISITION has just released a video for the track "Luciferian Rays". The tune was released as a single on November 11th through Agonia Records. The band released two live albums, "Bloodshed Across Guatemala" and "Demonic Rituals in Unholy Blackness" on 2018. More info on:
Bay Area metal titans MACHINE HEAD have released a new single "My Hands Are Empty," today on Nuclear Blast. The song marks the first musical collaboration between MH mastermind Robb Flynn and original “Burn My Eyes” guitarist Logan Mader in 24 years.
From the haunting opening vocal, the classical drums, the melancholy guitar line, the listener knows they are in for something epic. The sky gets a little darker, the goosebumps start to prickle the skin, ears search to hear what comes next. By the time the verse kicks in, the heaviness overtakes.
"MISERY, cover me in waves, the heartache is slowly, withering, I become her slave"
And so begins a song of depression and opioid addiction, by MACHINE HEAD.
Guitarist/vocalist Robb Flynn begins, “I have some family members who have beaten their opioid addiction, and have some still in the throes of addiction. It is painful to watch, and I deal with it with great difficulty. It is a song of sadness, but there is hope as well. I have beaten my own drug addictions and we can fight through this, together, and share our pain with the world.”
He continues, "Musically I wanted to go for a bit of a “Through The Ashes OF Empires” vibe, and it had a grandiose vibe from the beginning, something about that vocal melody haunted me day and night. I sent it off to one of our collaborators Joel Wanasek, and he came back with a whole depth and dimension with strings and keys that really made the song come alive. I added the guitar harmony in the chorus soon after and I knew we were on to something special.
On the recent “Burn My Eyes 25th Anniversary Tour” I mentioned to Logan about needing a riff or two for a new song, he was excited to collaborate, I sent him the song and the next day he sent me back the heavy riff in the bridge and I was floored. It fit perfectly, and felt really cool to be writing together 24 years later. Jared came up with the rhythm under the lead section and the song really locked into place."
Guitarist Logan Mader adds, "During pre-pro for the BME anniversary tour last year, I had a special opportunity to collaborate with Machine Head for the first time in over 20 years.
This is a big milestone for me, to circle back on a massive orbit around life and end up doing new music with MH is epic and unexpected. The song, "My Hands Are Empty" was almost completed but needed a riff or two. Robb sent it to me, so I jumped in and added a section which ended up in the master after some arrangement tweaks by Robb. The song is amazing. It was a great feeling to be in the studio with Robb after all these years and I hope to do it again!”
The earth-pounding drums were performed by Navene Koperweis (ENTHEOS, WHITECHAPEL, ANIMALS AS LEADERS) who performed on the track “Circle The Drain” (released in February) and the song feature trading vocals in the chorus between lead singer Flynn and bassist Jared MacEachern for a truly dynamic feeling musical piece.
Once again produced by Zack Ohren and Robb Flynn, and masterfully mixed by Colin Richardson, the accompanying video was directed by Mike Sloat / Roaring Mouse Productions and proved to be quite a challenge in the Covid-19-era, with Northern California health officials shutting down the shoot 24 hours prior, but ever the improvisers, were able salvage the whole affair, and the stunning results can be viewed:
Today, Canadian metal upstarts ARRIVAL OF AUTUMN have released the digital single for their cover of OZZY OSBOURNE's 'Bark At The Moon'.
ARRIVAL OF AUTUMN comments, "Ozzy is an influence to all of us and it’s important to pay your respect and appreciate people while they are still here with us. He’s the prince of darkness, he’s earned it! We are stoked to share our take on this classic banger."
ARRIVAL OF AUTUMN's 'Bark At The Moon' cover was recorded at AOA Studios in June 2020. The band produced the single while engineering was completed by Ryan Sorensen and mixing was handled by Mark Lewis. The artwork for the single was created by Thrashwolf (Logan Gray).
»Harbinger« was produced and mixed by Jason Suecof (DEVILDRIVER, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, ALL THAT REMAINS, TRIVIUM) and mastered by Alan Douches (DARKEST HOUR, EVERY TIME I DIE, SUICIDE SILENCE).
Rising New England death metal agitators FUMING MOUTH have officially joined Nuclear Blast, and will release a new EP titled "Beyond The Tomb" on November 20th. Today, the band has launched a pre-order for the record and debuted crushing new song, "Master of Extremity." The EP follows the band's critically lauded, breakout album "The Grand Descent," which Stereogum affectionately called a "positively disgusting record, an ugly and cathartic full-length rage-vent," with BrooklynVegan stating it was "one of the finest debuts of its kind in recent memory."
Commenting on their signing to Nuclear Blast, vocalist/guitarist Mark Whelan states: "The first time I spoke to Monte Conner at Nuclear Blast it clicked. We had finally found someone with the same exact goals as us. They're a label that strives to see their bands at their best and we're a band that thrives off that energy. WE HAVE SIGNED TO NUCLEAR BLAST RECORDS, and I want to scream it in your face until you hear me."
Formed in 2013, FUMING MOUTH has been on a mission to create an unbridled brand of death metal. The band set out as a 3 piece taking influence from bands like DISMEMBER while simultaneously taking inspiration from the likes of MOTORHEAD. Geared up now as a 4-piece band, they set out ready to take on the world with a brand new EP titled "Beyond the Tomb" and Nuclear Blast Records right by their side.
Sweden’s Symphonic Metal pioneers THERION are proud to unleash the first single and title track from their upcoming 17th studio album “Leviathan”, which is set to be released on 22 January 2021 on NUCLEAR BLAST.
Balancing ominous atmosphere and powerful, seducing chants, “Leviathan” succeeds in virtually conjuring the mythical sea creature the song has borrowed its name from.
THERION have always been a band that have challenged themselves to explore new paths, while remaining true to their musical core values. For their 17th studio album, “Leviathan”, mastermind Christofer Johnsson and his collaborator Thomas Vikström have created something that has been previously unthinkable to the guitarist and the singer. "We have done the only thing that was left of all the different angles to explore", explains Christofer. "We have decided to give the people what they kept asking for. 'Leviathan' is the first album that we have deliberately packed with THERION hit songs."
When THERION came into being in 1988 by changing name from the already existing band BLITZKRIEG, which was founded a year earlier, Christofer had rather taken inspiration from SLAYER's "Reign In Blood" among other classic metal albums. At the beginning, the Swedes were firmly rooted in death metal, a genre which they helped to define, as witnessed by their debut album "Of Darkness...." (1991). Yet even back then, there were hints of "something else" lurking beneath the rough surface.
The use of female vocals is another core ingredient of THERION today, which developed gradually. CELTIC FROST had basically introduced the female element to extreme metal on "To Mega Therion" in 1985. THERION began with both a female and male vocalist emulating a church like choir already in their sophomore full-length 'Beyond Sanctorum' (1992). With Symphony "Masses: Ho Drakon Ho Megas" (1993) and "Lepaca Kliffoth" (1995), Christofer continued to developed his trademark sound by gradually drifting towards cleaner vocals and more keyboards. With "Theli", the Swedes had firmly established a reputation of pushing the boundaries of metal in the 90s – among such acts as their compatriots TIAMAT, THE GATHERING, and MOONSPELL that were often referred to as "gothic metal" at the time.
THERION continued to break new ground leaving inspiration for others to follow in their wake: On "A'arab Zaraq - Lucid Dreaming" (1997), Christofer further explored the use of Near Eastern music in metal which he had already begun in 1992, while "Secret Of The Runes" (2001) dared to have Swedish lyrics in some songs. While critics were left confused and fans challenged, THERION were often ahead of their times and vindicated in hindsight. Even the band's 25th anniversary excursion "Les Fleurs Du Mal" has by now overcome the initial shock the album caused and is only beaten in terms of streaming by the classic "Vovin" (1998).
When Christofer faced the question of where to go next after the dramatic "Beloved Antichrist" (2018) had finally fulfilled his musical mission, his answer is "Leviathan" named after a giant sea monster from Judeo-Christian myth that has roots in Babylonic lore: THERION have created a giant hit album – and for the first time in the history of the Swedes, their fans are not asked to explore something new, but simply to lean back and enjoy the best from their band!
“Leviathan” (out: 22 January 2021) is available in the following formats:
- CD Jewelcase
- CD Digipak
- Ltd. CD Digipak + Patch (Ltd. to 500 / Mailorder only)
