by Fred Pessaro // BBG

Carcass in NYC in 2008 (more by Ryan Muir)

Maryland Deathfest have announced their first batch of bands for their 2013 edition, including a veritable buttload of exclusive appearances. Among those scheduled to appear exclusively at the eleventh edition of the fest are Venom, Carcass, a Righteous Pigs reunion, Antaeus (who played Rites of Darkness), Convulse, Aosoth, !Tooh!, Ahumado Granujo, and Ingrowing.

Also on board will be Manilla Road, Pentagram (who play Power of The Riff next month), Integrity (who played A389), Pelican, Midnight (who played Acheron this year and Rites of Darkness), Morgion, and Kommandant (who played Martyrdoom). Now that the details on the "who" are starting to emerge, we just need some details on the "where" now that Sonar is officially kaput. More details forthwith.

In related news, MDF 2011 alums and over-the-top death metal purists Gravehill give fuck-zero about current trends, they just want to rip, drink frothy cold ones and scare the ever-living shit out of you. The California-based band will head to the East Coast this fall to play Saint Vitus on October 26th with Hour of 13, Master's Eve and Mutant Supremacy. Tickets are on sale. So far, no details on an actual tour yet, but we'll keep our eyes peeled (pardon the pun).

by BBG

Gehenna at A389 Anniversary 2010 (more by Chris Bavaria)

Vestiges are currently on a US tour that will take them from coast to coast in celebration of their new LP The Descent of Man, available HERE for free, and on CD/vinyl/cassette via the band and on tour. Lake of Blood will provide the assist on the West Coast, while the East Coast will get Full of Hell. Look for both Vestiges and Full of Hell (with Pharoah) at Stolen Sleeves on June 28th. Full tour schedule below.

Full of Hell are preparing to release a new 12", Roots of Earth Are Consuming My Home, at their new home, A389 Records.

In other A389 news, the infamous Gehenna will revisit their Land of Sodom 7" (reworked and re-titled Land of Sodom II) and Upon The Gravehill for a single release on A389 Records. The 7"/CD package will also include a poster and is one of several releases that the members of Gehenna will release in the coming months on the label. Gehenna also has a 7" with Rot In Hell, Integrity, Vegas, and Cape Ov Bats available now. Gehenna play Outsleazed Fest in Las Vegas on July 1st, and nothing else at the moment.

Another release due from A389 is the Practitioners of Fell Sorcery 12" by the mighty Gravehill! Limited to 500 copies, this early incarnation of the band that were so fun at MDF featured Mike Apokalypse of Gehenna on throat, as well as Shane BastardDemon on guitar who also serves as a member of another Gehenna project, Penetration Panthers. Penetration Panthers, which features DC Grave of Gehenna, will also release a new three song EP on the label entitled Perpetual 80s, which nods to early hardcore.

And last but not least, DC Grave is also involved in Witch-Lord, who will release their Atomized In The Black Solarian 12" via A389. Hardcore this is not. Witch-Lord fits more in the glacially-paced doom realm, while dipping it's toes into strong hallucinogens.

All of the releases above are currently streaming at the A389 site and are available for preorder. All tour dates and some video is below.

Continue reading "Vestiges touring w/ Full of Hell, Gehenna releasing stuff, Gravehill & Witch-Lord too"

words & photo by BBG

Citizens Arrest

After a three days of mayhem (pictures from day 1 HERE, day 2 HERE, and day 3 HERE) featuring sets from Neurosis, Doom, Lack of Interest, Voivod, Extortion, Aura Noir, and tons of notable others, Maryland Deathfest came to a close on Sunday with another full of performances capped by a headlining outdoor set from the reactivated Coroner, their first US appearance in 20 years.

Later that night, the true close to MDF was led by Ghost, whose set was tight and fun visually, but did not impress me as much as the hype suggests (decide for yourself on June 1st at the Studio). The remainder of my day was filled with pretty much every other band on the bill, except for Visceral Disgorge and Doubled Over who I missed in favor of much needed meals. My favorites of the day go to the foul death metallers Dead Congregation and Repugnant, the always awesome Citizens Arrest (who play Europa with another MDF alum, Tragedy, tonight), the energetic Skinless and the over the top goregrind of Last Days of Humanity.

Coroner

Coroner's setlist and more pictures from the final day of Maryland Deathfest 2011, which includes pictures of Oak, Night Bringer, Bad Acid Trip, Gravehill, Malignant Tumour, Dead Congregation, Nokturnel, Repugnant, Orange Goblin, Citizens Arrest, Skinless, Bastard Noise, Nuclear Assault, Wormed, and Last Days of Humanity, are below...

Continue reading "Maryland Deathfest 2011 - Day 4 pics & recap (Coroner, Ghost, Citizens Arrest, Dead Congregation, Doubled Over, more)"

by BBG

Only Death is Real is the extensive history of Thomas Gabriel "Warrior" Fischer, Eric Martin Ain, Hellhammer and early Celtic Frost:

[Only Death Is Real] combines hundreds of unseen early Hellhammer and Celtic Frost photos with a vast treasure trove of artwork and memorabilia. A substantial written component by Fischer details his upbringing on the outskirts of Zurich, Switzerland, and the hardships and triumphs he faced bringing the visions of his groundbreaking bands Hellhammer and eventually Celtic Frost to reality.

Without question Only Death Is Real goes farther than any other source in exploring the origins of underground heavy metal.... the written chapters combine Tom Fischer's often shocking stories with lengthy quotes from Martin Eric Ain and the other main Hellhammer members, explaining in intimately human terms how extreme metal was born.

For a fan of any of those bands it's a killer look (in photo and verbal history) into the mind of the band. It also details the pre-Hellhammer days and Tom Warrior's early band Grave Hill.

Though I can't really confirm that the name of Tom Warrior's band was their inspiration, I do know that the current band named Gravehill (one word), from the bleak stretches of California, toil in some of the same murky waters as Hellhammer. The old-school death metal team are on the road with Cardiac Arrest and HOD, and will team up with Philadelphia's Gorephobia for an NYC show at Fontana's on July 13th. They hit Dingbatz in Clifton, NJ one day earlier.

Cardica Arrest's Haven For The Insane impacts on June 8th on Ibex Moon. Gravehill's Rites Of The Pentagram is out NOW via the same label.

Full Gravehill dates and some videos are below...

Continue reading "Gravehill touring (dates) - not to be confused w/ Grave Hill (whose Tom Warrior is the author & subject of a new book) "

by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Shadow Of The Torturer - "The Walk" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Fatalist - "Internal Misery" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Mala Suerte - "Wine Like Clotted Blood" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Coffinworm - "High On The Reek Of Your Burning Remains" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Clone II Snippet Sampler (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Sleep - Demos 1990 (Mediafire Link, courtesy of Chunklet)
DOWNLOAD: Thou - "Don't Vote" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Thou - "I am the Leviathan" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Nirvana 2002 - "Mourning (Projections of a Stained Mind)" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Mala Suerte - "Entrance/Black Art" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Brown Jenkins - "Ashes In Her Mouth" EDIT (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Brown Jenkins - "Lords Of Suicide" & "Lifetaker" (Mediafire Link)
DOWNLOAD: Witchmaster - "Two Point Suicide" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Witchmaster - "Total Annihilation" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Gravehill - "Rites Of The Pentagram" (MP3)

Consider this the "Swedish Death Metal" edition as we'll focus on a few bands that have taken cues from the great sounds of Entombed, Dismember, Grave, and so many others. As such, lets start off with Fatalist! Though they hail from the land of sun and surf (California), Fatalist have nailed the tone of early (Stockholm) Swedish Death Metal sound, putting their own spin in their songwriting. Featuring ex members of Exhumed, Fatalist's debut album The Depths of Inhumanity is out on 11/23 via Ibex Moon and for a taste of the killer riffs that the band has cooked up, dig on "Internal Misery" above.

Lets get it out of the way, Nirvana 2002 is not a boxset from a certain Seattle band. In fact, Nirvana 2002 is the name of a lost Swedish Death Metal band who will finally release their full recorded output via Relapse Records, Recordings 89 - 91. The band that featured vocalist/guitarist Orvar Säfström (ex-Entombed) have released the "Mourning (Projections of a Stained Mind)" MP3, available for download above after it recently premiered on Decibel. If you love the sickening Swedish Death Metal buzzsaw sound, these long lost tracks are a welcome surprise. Orvar Säfström recently discussed his top 6 favorite Swedish Death Metal albums.

Much like Fatalist, Gravehill is also a sickening early death metal worship act from California. Gravehill's Rites Of The Pentagram LP is out NOW via Enucleation and the title track is available for download above. The band recently played the NJ Death Fest along with Acheron, who are releasing their latest LP and first in six years, The Final Conflict: Last Days Of God, on Ibex Moon.

Mala Suerte doom away on their latest crusty, dimly lit LP, The Shadow Tradition, available via Hellride Music. Download a pair of tracks from that Austin band's LP above. Mala Suerte have been around since the 90s and released a few LPs of their filthy Grief-like psychotic doom as well as a split with Japan's Coffins.

A Mala Suerte video for "Non Servium", Coalesce, Ghast, Eyehategod, Fuck The Facts, Zoroaster, Graveyard, thoughts on the new Slayer, and more as TWIM continues...

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (11/03/09)"