photos by Shaun Regan

Converge @ Union Transfer, Philadelphia, 1/19/2012

Congrats to Decibel Magazine on their 100th issue, who celebrated in style in their native Philadelphia on Jan 19th at Union Transfer. Featuring a headlining appearance from Converge as well as well as Pig Destroyer, Repulsion, Municipal Waste, Tombs and Evoken, the show was also chockful of guests including John Darnielle (of Mountain Goats, a regular contributor), J Bennett, Tomas Lindberg (Disfear, At The Gates), John Baizley (Baroness, who would open for Neurosis the next night at the same venue) and more. Pictures from Converge's set are in this post and a full review and photo set is available at at Invisible Oranges.

In addition, the magazine announced their annual tour which will feature appearances from Napalm Death, Cannibal Corpse and Immolation. So far details regarding dates are still TBA, but we'll let you know when those surface.

More pictures from Converge's set at Union Transfer, plus a few live videos, are below...

Continue reading "'Decibel' celebrated 100 issues in Philly w/ Converge + more (pics); announce tour w/ Napalm Death & Cannibal Corpse"

by Fred Pessaro // BBG

One of Europe's best festivals dedicated to heavy music is taking their show on the road. Behold the Obscene Extreme World Tour:

Since its birth in 1999, over 500 bands have played Obscene Extreme festival from almost every corner of the world, bringing with them a horde of diehard extreme music fans from across Europe and beyond to its home base in the Czech Republic.

What brings fans to Obscene Extreme is more than the cross selection of new and old underground grindcore, crust, punk, death metal, thrash metal, hardcore and everything in between, but the incredible atmosphere, the real DIY ethic and the true spirit of community. It doesn't matter where you're from or who you are, everyone is the same when they're in the pit!

For over a decade people have travelled the globe, driven across continents and slept in airports and railway stations to make it to Obscene Extreme, and now Obscene Extreme is coming to you - rolling into Mexico, Indonesia and Australia like the United Nations of Grind.

The previously only-in-Czech-Republic festival's North American date goes down on March 29th-30th in Mexico City. Details so far are sketchy, but look for this vegan-friendly, underground, low cost festival to land some impressive names like previous alumni Asphyx, Portal, Discharge, Nasum, Wolfbrigade, Wormrot, Yacöpsae, Birdflesh, Gride, Disfear, Mob 47, and so many others.

by BBG

Shane Embury on stage with Venomous Concept (more by BBG)

Lock Up is a deathgrind side project originally formed by Shane Embury (Napalm Death, Venomous Concept), Nicholas Barker (ex-Cradle of Filth, Dimmu Borgir) and Jesse Pintado (Napalm Death, Terrorizer). Lock Up was joined by Peter Tägtgren (Hypocrisy) for its debut album, 1999's Pleasures Pave Sewers, and Tomas Lindberg for 2002's Hate Breeds Suffering and a Japanese tour...

Lock Up have played very few live shows. In 2009, the band announced that they would play the Damnation Festival that year. The line-up featured Embury, Barker, Lindberg and Reisenegger. It was touted as the band's last ever live show; however, they later booked more shows for 2010. -[Wiki]

Lock Up, who is now Shane Embury, Nicholas Barker, Tomas Lindberg (At The Gates, Disfear, etc), and Anton Reisenegger (Chile's Pentagram, Criminal), cancelled their MDF appearance last year but will hit the road for a string of US dates this winter with Goatwhore (who just played Europa with Exhumed) and Strong Intention, including Europa on 2/16. Ticketing info and additional support are still forthcoming.

All tour dates and some video below...

Continue reading "Lock Up (mems of Napalm Death/Disfear) schedule tour with Goatwhore (dates)"

by BBG

Disfear

Disfear bass player and long time member Henrik Frykman has passed away after a long battle with cancer. The band, Björn Pettersson, Marcus Andersson, Ulf Cederlund and Tomas Lindberg, has issued the following statement: "It is with heavy hearts we inform you that on Friday the 25th of March Henrik Frykman passed away in his home after a long battle with cancer. Henrik will be greatly missed by family and friends."

Frykman joined ANTI-BOFORS in 1990 and in 1991 the band underwent a name change to Disfear. The band has morphed and evolved over the past 20 years into an internationally recognized and respected band. Disfear has toured the world over and released a number of acclaimed full-length albums including 2008's Live The Storm.

Live The Storm is hands down one of my favorite LPs of the past few years. R.I.P. Henrik

by Black Bubblebgum

sunn o))) @ Knitting Factory (more by Damien Neva)


Ya hear that rumble? Thats the sound of great records perched in the distance waiting to descend on 2009 (more on that later). While this year will bring about great music and another set of "next big things", let's take the time to be thankful for 2008 and all of it's memorable records and shows. Here are my favorite records of 2008:

Continue reading "the year in Metal (Best of 2008, what's coming in 2009)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Deathwish Inc. Summer Sampler (MP3 ALBUM ZIP*)
DOWNLOAD: AKIMBO - Great White Bull (EXCLUSIVE MP3) from the forthcoming Jersey Shores

Lemmy Is God (Rui M Leal)

I haven't even seen it yet, but I have hereby declared the following as one of the most metal movies of 2008. It's called Lemmy: The Movie. A feature-length documentary on the man, the legend, Lemmy Kilmister of Motorhead. In case you had some doubt about how amazing this will be, check out this video of Lemmy and his then drummer "Philthy Animal" trashing a hotel room. Motorhead are one of the Metal Masters, and tickets are still available.

Downloadable above, check out the first tasty nugget from Akimbo, pulled from their upcoming Jersey Shores LP! Akimbo's new concept album, about how "sharks.... will totally fuck you up" is due later this year on Neurot Recordings. Akimbo are scheduled to play Jello Biafra's 50th BDay party with the Melvins.

While all of us are getting riled up for Monticello, All Tomorrow's Parties have announced the curators for 2008's Nightmare Before Christmas.... Melvins & Mike Patton! Info is limited so far, but we do know it'll take place between December 5 - 7 at Butlins Holiday Camp in Minehead and you can expect to see the following confirmed performers: Melvins, Isis, Neil Hamburger, Dälek, Big Business, The Locust, Zu, and Fantômas performing The Director's Cut! More deets are available here. Melvins will drop Nude with Boots this July on Ipecac. Mike Patton recently released a soundtrack to a short film, A Perfect Place.

keep going....

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (06/03/08)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: The Sword - "Fire Lances Of The Ancient Hyperzephyrians" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Soilent Green - "Antioxidant" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Iron Maiden - "Intro", "Aces High", & "Two Minutes To Midnight", Live in Tokyo Feb 16th, 2008 (VIDEO, WMV)

Neurot Recordings have announced details for THREE Neurosis-related releases in the next two months! First up, a new solo album from the mighty Scott Kelly, who will release The Wake on May 5th, his first release in the seven years since his debut Spirit Bound Flesh. Two weeks later, the world's most intense elementary school teacher Steve Von Till drops A Grave is a Grim Horse, his first non-Harvestman release in six years (Harvestman recently collabo'd with Fear Falls Burning). More details on A Grave Is A Grim Horse can be found here. The third we knew about, but has now gone official: A Storm Of Light's debut And We Wept the Black Ocean Within will be released on June 2nd. Read our recent interview with Josh Graham here.

Tickets for the previously mentioned second At The Gates show go on sale Thursday April 3rd at 10 AM here. Tomas Lindberg's other band, the mighty Disfear, have announced a few more dates, including another show in Brooklyn at Europa on May 22nd with Trap Them and Bloodhorse! Ticket info for Disfear at Europa isn't available, but there are still tickets for their show at the Knitting Factory. New tour dates are down below.

MUCH MORE..............

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (04/02/08)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Disfear - The Cage from "Live The Storm" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Saviours - Cavern Of Mind from "Into Abandon" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Wolves in the Throne Room - I Will Lay Down My Bones Among the Rocks and Roots from "Two Hunters" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Kylesa - Where The Horizon Unfolds from "Time Will Fuse Its Worth" (MP3)

Disfear will bring "The Storm" across North America in April, including an appearance at the New England Hardcore & Metal Festival (that bill is unbelieveable), the Maryland Deathfest, and the Knitting Factory on April 16th with Bloodhorse. Tickets are on sale.

Unfortunately, the obituary (not the legendary band) section for this week is way too big. Modern Life Is War has called it a day, their recently announced spring tour will be their last. Check out tour dates below and get out to the show! Prog-metal legends Voivod have announced that their next LP for The End, constructed by riffs left behind by Dennis "Piggy" D'Amour, will be their last. Piggy succumbed to colon cancer in 2005. Current members Snake, Away, and Jasonic (aka Jason Newsted, ex-Metallica), will join ex-members Blacky and E-Force to put together the final 13 songs, and possibly do some farewell shows.

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (03/01/08)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: At The Gates - The Dying (MP3) (unreleased)

We knew they were coming back from the dead..... they were scheduled to play at a gajillion European festivals. What we didn't know is that melodic death metal legends At The Gates were making other plans as well.... plans for a two week tour of the US! According to the guys at Decibel, At The Gates will embark on their first US tour in eleven years. They last toured here in the summer of 1996 - in the opening slot for Napalm Death. The NYC show was at the now defunct Wetlands. Stay tuned for the new dates and cities. We'll post them when they get announced.

The core of At The Gates splintered into multiple bands including The Haunted, Disfear (who has an excellent new record), Skitsystem, and Cradle Of Filth. For more, read the whole awesome feature Decibel ran in their March issue.

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Disfear - "Get It Off" from "Live The Storm", out 1/22 (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Lair Of The Minotaur - "Horde of Undead Vengeance" from "War Battle Metal Master" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Rwake - Leviticus from "Voices Of Omens" (MP3)

A Storm Of Light

How do you top what will surely be one of the greatest metal shows of the year? Try adding A Storm Of Light - the new project from Josh Graham (recently ex- Red Sparowes, Battle Of Mice, Neurosis visuals)! Graham, Domenic Seita (ex-Asea), and Pete Angevine (Satanized) will open the January 25th date @ the Brooklyn Masonic Temple (now sold out), but not before playing Union Pool on Jan 20th with Ghastly City Sleep & Titan. Stream their new track, "Mass" from their upcoming LP "And We Wept The Black Ocean Within" @ MySpace. (and look for my interview with Josh coming very soon!)

D-Beat fiesta up in this mutha! Swedish D-Beat badasses Disfear will release their new crusher-of-an-album, "Live The Storm" on 1/22 via Relapse. Produced by Kurt Ballou (Converge, et al.), the album features the first go around by ex-Entombed axeman Uffe Cederlund.... Download "Get It Off" above!

more below.....

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (1/18/08)"