photos by Greg Cristman; words by BBG

Nergal (sans makeup)

Saturday night (5/12) at Irving Plaza was the final night of the Decibel Magazine tour, featuring names like Watain, The Devil's Blood, In Solitude and most notably, the return of Behemoth following Nergal's battle with leukemia. The sign on the door that read "sold out" was more than just a triumph for the bands, it was a personal triumph for Nergal too.

Local doom greats Evoken opened the show as part of a string of dates for the band with the tour, but sadly we missed them. Pictures from the remainder of the show are in this post.

Watain is currently on the road with Black Anvil. Meanwhile, The Devil's Blood is preparing to play Maryland Deathfest next weekend. Hopefully, their troubles are behind them.

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Watain @ Irving Plaza

If you weren't at Behemoth on Saturday, maybe it's because you were at one of the other notable heavy shows going on the same night, like Tragedy/Boston Strangler/Perdition/Sickoids at Le Poisson Rouge (pictures).

More pictures from Irving Plaza are below...

Continue reading "Behemoth, Watain, The Devil's Blood, In Solitude, and Evoken played Irving Plaza (pics)"

by BBG

Dead Congregation at Maryland Deathfest (more by BBG)

Signature Riff, BrooklynVegan, Order of The Serpent, and Catharsis PR are proud to announce the inaugural Martyrdoom fest! The two-stage Brooklyn metal extravaganza will feature exclusive area performances from Dead Congregation (Greece), Grave Miasma (United Kingdom) and Cruciamentum (United Kingdom), along with rare appearances from names like Sanguis Imperem (California), Kommandant (Illinois), Prosanctus Inferi (Ohio), Anu (North Carolina), Encoffination (Georgia / California), Father Befouled (Georgia / California), Perdition Temple (Florida), and Evoken (New Jersey), and will go down across two stages at Public Assembly on June 30th. Tickets are on sale NOW and will set you back $20 in advance and $27 at the door.

Dead Congregation's last area appearance went down at Maryland Deathfest 2011. Cruciamentum recently destroyed at Rites of Darkness.

Show flyer and some video is below.

Continue reading "inaugural 'Martyrdoom' fest hits Brooklyn this summer (lineup)"

by BBG

Inquisition @ The Studio

Inquisition are on their way to the crumbling four-day Texas festival known as Rites of Darkness, where they'll join-up with an ever decreasing number of bands. Since "finalizing" the lineup earlier this year, a staggering 20 of the 54 bands, most of them headliners and exclusives, have all fallen off of the lineup due to an issue with Paypal.

As the festival has grown closer, the list of casualties has increased. Some bands succumbed to the pleas of fans begging to stay on (like Zemial), and others tried but ultimately still had to drop off (like Pagan Altar). The festival issued a definitive statement on 11/30 which confirmed the lineup, but then six more bands cancelled. It has, to say the least, been a rollercoaster ride for Rites of Darkness ticketholders, who are now still awaiting confirmations from Zemial, Hell Militia and Nunslaughter. Regardless, I'll see you there this weekend.

UPDATE: Both Hell Militia and Nunslaughter have cancelled. Nunslaughter's official statement is here, while Hell Militia's is here.

Meanwhile, Northwestern black metal duo Inquisition played The Studio at Webster Hall on Friday 12/2, joined by Disma and Agrath (after Mortuary Drape and Negative Plane dropped off of the show). NJ death metal crew Disma were also scheduled to play Rites of Darkness but cancelled their appearance alongside related bands Evoken and Funebrarum, so the NYC show was unfortunately their last of the year.

Drenched in fog (courtesy of the itchy trigger finger of Tooth from Natur) and red lighting, both Inquisition and Disma ripped at The Studio, playing favorites from their recent LP offerings Ominous Doctrines of the Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm and Towards the Megalith respectively. Agrath, which contains members of Negative Plane, opened the evening to a mostly packed house with their primitive blackened stomp.

More pictures from the NYC show are below.

Continue reading "Inquisition played Studio @ Webster w/ Disma & Agrath (pics); Rites of Darkness festival continues to crumble UPDATED"

by BBG

Inquisition at MDF (more by BBG)

"This is Danny, the promoter for Rites of Darkness. I understand people have been getting frustrated with lack of news so I personally apologize for that. We have gone through a rash of cancellations which were beyond our control.. Paypal froze the Festival's account which caused delayed flights for months. By the time Paypal decided to release our account flights escalated beyond our set budget. So the show is NOT cancelled by any means but the following bands will not be performing: Root, Akitsa, Interment, Demonical, Valkyrja, Dead Congregation, Hour of 13, and Strid"

The festival has remained silent about the situation for close to two weeks, but finally updated festival-goers today. Their message, excerpted above and available in full below, explains the situation, but neglects to mention that Pagan Altar also cancelled (they were slated for a two hour set) and that Zemial cancelled too. Another band that is currently in flux, Stargazer, is reportedly without flights (the band is from Australia) at the moment. The listing is missing General Surgery, and no announcement has been made about the pre-fest which includes France's Hell Militia. Previously announced cancellations include Ondskapt, Urfaust, Behexen, and Sargeist. RoD has added new Profound Lore signees Pallbearer.

Reminder: two RoD bands, Inquisition and Disma, are scheduled to play The Studio at Webster Hall on 12/2 with Agrath. Tickets are still available.

UPDATE: Both Zemial and Pagan Altar are reconsidering their appearances. Statements from both are below.

UPDATED AGAIN: Disma, Funebrarum, Evoken, and Oak have all cancelled their appearances.

The most recent Rites of Darkness statement and the current lineup is below.

Continue reading "Rites of Darkness 2011 still on despite heavy cancellations UPDATED"

by BBG

Inquisition at Maryland Deathfest (more by BBG)

NYC's Studio at Webster Hall will soon host a trifecta of black metal greatness! Inquisition will headline the venue on December 2nd with a rare appearance from Mortuary Drape and Negative Plane. Tickets are on sale.

Italy's Mortuary Drape and Inquisition will then tour their way to Rites of Darkness 3 in San Antonio, Texas where they'll join the newly added Disma, but NOT Urfaust:

URFAUST vs RITES OF DARKNESS III

URFAUST is very sad to announce that we have to cancel our Intoxication Ritual at Rites of Darkness III in Texas, USA.
Our last Alcoholic Rites on US soil where splenditory, so this is just fucked up...
Nothing more to say about this, we hope to return to the USA and Rites of Darkness in 2012!
All hail the madness!
Cheers,
Ix & Vrdrbr on behalf of Urfaust

All known Inquisition dates, the full Rites of Darkness lineup, and some video is below.

Continue reading "Inquisition & Mortuary Drape playing NYC w/ Negative Plane before Rites of Darkness 3 (lineup & dates)"

words and photos by BBG, additional photos by Greg Cristman

Monarch at Union Pool

They just can't get enough! French doom greats Monarch have added a third and final NYC show. It happens WEDNESDAY (11/17) at Death By Audio in Brooklyn. The BrooklynVegan-presented show will also feature performances from Vaura (a new project featuring Kevin Hufnagel of Gorguts/Dysrhythmia & Toby Driver of Kayo Dot/Maudlin Of The Well) and Brian Chase & Seth Misterka (Brian of Yeah Yeah Yeahs playing free-jazz with saxophonist Seth Misterka). The show kicks off at 8PM and costs $8!

We already posted pictures from the Monarch/Bloody Panda show at Cake Shop (which happened 11/12 with nutjobs Tinsel Teeth), but until now, haven't posted the shots from the show that happened at Union Pool the following night (11/13). Evoken opened that party with roar (and to similar audience applause), with Bloody Panda following and Monarch batting clean-up. Again, another great showing from both Bloody Panda and Monarch, who sounded incredible on the PA at Union Pool.

More pictures and video of all bands from Union Pool, including video of Monarch's full set, below...

Continue reading "Monarch played Union Pool w/ Bloody Panda & Evoken (pics, video), add Death by Audio show w/ Brian Chase, Vaura, more"

by BBG

Bloody Panda at Knitting Factory in May (more by Greg Cristman)

A reminder: Bloody Panda and French doom band Monarch! will kill Cake Shop dead tonight (11/12) with an assist from the fantabulous Tinsel Teeth. They'll do it again Saturday at Union Pool, but with Evoken instead of Tinsel Teeth. Both shows are brought to you by BrooklynVegan and Haunting The Chapel. Look for the great Rob Shaffer (of Dark Castle fame) behind the kit for Monarch!

If you can't make it to see Evoken, the band is playing Sunday (11/14) at Bowery Electric with Batillus, Man's Gin, and Moth Eater and Maegashira. Tickets are on sale. Evoken will also team up with Goreaphobia, Mutant Supremacy, Hessian, and Pilgrim to play Brooklyn Fire Proof on Dec 4th.

If you aren't into glacially placed riffs and thundering drums, this weekend has other choices in store for you.

Tonight (11/12), Neon Blud will team up with The Men, Pollution, and The Marsh Hens at Death By Audio. Saturday, Neon Blud will be at Brooklyn Brew House with White Suns, Pygmy Shrews, and Remnants. Full Neon Blud tour sked is below.

Acheron will host The Brought Low, Pigs, and Freshkills on 11/13 (Saturday) as part of a celebration for Coextinction Records, a new label brought to you by some of the twisted minds behind Unsane. Coextinction Records already as a few interesting records up their sleeve, including a new EP from Unsane, and releases from Goes Cube, Shrinebuilder (!), Pigs, Julie Christmas, and Freshkills. Stream some of those new tracks now.

Did you miss Sweden's Mob 47 at Europa on Wednesday night? Catch them at an incredible show at 538 Johnson on Saturday night (11/13) with Punch, Loma Prieta, Vaccine, Death First, and Passive Aggressor. As previously mentioned, Punch, Loma Prieta, Vaccine, and Death First will all play ABC No Rio that afternoon.

More of my picks for the shows of the week, as well as some video is below...

Continue reading "Evillive (upcoming heavy shows & tours) (Neon Blud & more)"

by BBG

Bloody Panda in May at Knitting Factory (more by Greg Cristman)

BrooklynVegan and Haunting the Chapel are proud to present two nights of punishment. The great Bloody Panda will descend upon NYC with French doomers Monarch (!) as part of a short tour for the two bands. The NYC shows will take place on November 12th at Cake Shop with the incredible Rhode Island noise destructors Tinsel Teeth (who are known for their out-of-control - NSFW - shows) and November 13th at Union Pool with a decidedly more metal touch from death-doom dealers Evoken.

NYC is just one stop on a larger US tour for the fantastic Monarch, who will tour the West Coast with Trees before heading out for the Bloody Panda dates. They are all listed below.

Monarch's current release, the punishing Mer Morte, is out now via Crucial Blast. The one-track LP has sections streaming at the Crucial Blast site, and is out now. Awesome band.

Tinsel Teeth, if you aren't familiar, is psychotic noise-damaged punk from Rhode Island. The band released their latest LP, Trash as the Trophy, on Load Records and is absolutely unmissable (Pandas may not be the only 'bloody' ones at Cake Shop).

There aren't many bands that do funeral doom as sickening as Evoken, and luckily as an NYC'er, I have been able to catch the band a few times. The Union Pool show is one of two shows on the calendar for these sickos and then the band will go into slumber until early 2012 when they will release their new LP. More details on the second show on 12/14 are coming, but if you want to see Evoken in the next year, these are your two chances.

The NYC shows are two of three collaborations between myself and Brandon Stosuy, as we will also present Krieg and Woe at Knitting Factory on Saturday (10/30) at 11:59 PM. $5 gets you in the door (tickets) or you can pay $2 if you're already there to see AGE/Hellshock earlier that evening.

Full Monarch tour schedule is below, along with some live video, though: caution, the Tinsel Teeth video may be NSFW...

Continue reading "Monarch touring w/ Trees & then Bloody Panda (NYC shows w/ Tinsel Teeth & Evoken included) "

by BBG

Sourvein at BV-BBG 2009 (more by Jason Walker)

North Carolina's Sourvein will team up with Hull to take on The Acheron on August 27th. The all-ages jam will run you $10 and the festivities will kick off at 8PM. The show is one of a pair of shows lined up in the coming months for Hull; the band will also play THIS FRIDAY with Black Tusk, Zoroaster, and Dark Castle at The Studio at Webster Hall (tickets).

Florida's Khann will team up with Mockingbird, Before The Eyewall, and Divider for an all ages show at Acheron on August 24th. $10 gets you in the door. Khann are prepping their new LP, Erode, due on Black Market Activities later this year. The band recorded the LP with Chris Owens (Lords) during a recent East Coast tour that saw them appear at Lit Lounge with Tiger Flowers.

Canadian folk-black metal combo Woods of Ypres will hit the road for a short tour next week, tagging NYC on July at Bowery Electric with Vektor, Martyrd, and Fin'Amor. For the unaware, Woods of Ypres features the Madden brothers (bass, drums) of Woe amongst their ranks, and recently completed a tour diary for Decibel magazine.

Speaking of Bowery Electric, I have a pair of tickets available for giveaway for tonight's (7/6) Nominon / Evoken show. Details on how to win, as well as a gang of tour dates and some video, are at the bottom of this post...

Continue reading "Sourvein, Hull, Khann, Woods of Ypres, Nominon, Evoken & other upcoming metal shows"

words by Kim Kelly, photos by Erik Luyten

Eyehategod

It's been a long few days for Kim Kelly, who is currently gallavanting around Europe with Mike Scheidt and YOB, but the metal maven filed the below Roadburn report to tie up the rest of her time at the 2010 edition of the epic festival that took place during an equally historic time. If you're just joining us, check out Kim Kelly's report from Day 1 before continuing below... - BBG

Continue reading "Roadburn Festival 2010 in review"

words by Kim Kelly,

Goatsnake at Roadburn! (Erik Luyten)

Kim Kelly knows her (good) metal, and as such, we couldn't think of a better ambassador than this Philadelphian/writer for Terrorizer/Hails & Horns/Metal Injection. Kim checks in from Roadburn (April 15-18, 2010) in Tilburg, Holland, where she will take in some of the best metal bands currently in existence (and some resurrected from the grave), reporting back on what havoc the riff, and the volcano, hath wrought... - BBG

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ROADBURN DIARY - DAY 1 (Thursday, April 15)

The road to Tilburg is a very long one, indeed - at least if you're coming from the mean streets of Philadelphia. After an 8am flight from Newark that landed at Heathrow at 8pm London time (before the volcano!), a few restless hours of sleep in a hostel (where a very nice Scottish boy had acted as my human alarm clock after I discovered that both my US and UK cell phones weren't working), an hour-long bus ride to Standsted Airport (chauffeured by a rough-looking lad who spent the trip dancing in his seat to Lady Gaga and singing along under his breath), an hour flight to Eindhoven, twenty minutes on a bus to the city's central train station, forty minutes on the train to Tilburg, and a five-minute walk with my Terrorizer mates to the Grass Company cafe/weed emporium, I was finally there - the stoned Mecca that is Roadburn.

continued below...

Continue reading "Roadburn Festival 2010 kicks off despite the volcano - our Day 1 report includes Goatsnake, Eyehategod, a wedding & more"