by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Immolith - "Hymns to the Countess" (MP3)

Woe at Public Assembly (more by BBG)

Woe will hit Saint Vitus on January 30th for a show with Abigail Williams, Immolith, and Vattnet Viskar. Tickets are on sale. The show, a make up date for the cancelled Dark Funeral tour, is one of TWO dates for the Philadelphia/NYC black metal crew, who will also bless Saint Vitus again with Immolith, as support for the latter's record release, along with Dominium, Mortum, and Salo on March 2nd (tickets are on sale).

Immolith are preparing to release their new LP StormDragon via Metalhit. Check out the new track "Hymns to the Countess" above/streaming below and look for the LP on (how appropo) Valentine's Day. Because nothing says I love you like bulldozing black metal.

All tour dates, and some streams of material by Immolith, Woe and Vattnet Viskar are below.

Continue reading "Woe schedules two NYC dates; Immolith prepares new LP"

When we first mentioned the lineup for this year's Bamboozle, which is taking place from May 18-20 in Asbury Park, NJ, it only included Bon Jovi, Foo Fighters, Skrillex, Blink 182, Incubus, and Mac Miller. The generally lame festival has since revealed more artists including a surprising number of not-lame artists like the reunited Promise Ring (their first East Coast date announced, hopefully an NYC show to come?), Hot Water Music, Bouncing Souls, A$AP Rocky, Action Bronson, and Murphy's Law. Take that, Warped Tour.

Tickets for Bamboozle are on sale now. Updated lineup below...

Continue reading "The Promise Ring playing Bamboozle (Hot Water Music, Bouncing Souls, ASAP Rocky & Action Bronson too)"

photos by Greg Cristman, words by BBG

Mayhem @ Gramercy Theater

Believe it or not, Mayhem actually did play (and didn't cancel) the "pre-game" for the Metal Suckfest at Gramercy Theater on 11/3. They hit the NYC venue with tourmates Woe, Keep of Kalessin, Abigail Williams, & Hate as part of their string of dates together. No word on if Necrobutcher's recent exorcism affected his on-stage ability, but judging from the below video of "Deathcrush", I doubt it.

That same night, across town, a member of Mayhem (Rune Eriksen) was providing an original recorded soundtrack to artwork at Saint Vitus as part of "Of Stardust", a exhibition/concert at the venue. How was that?

Pictures & video from Mayhem @ Gramercy are in this post (the actual Metal Suckfest pics coming soon!). They continue, setlist included, below...

Continue reading "Mayhem played Gramercy Theater with Woe, Keep of Kalessin, Abigail Williams & Hate (pics, video & setlist)"

by BBG

40 Watt Sun @ Public Assembly

40 Watt Sun played their US debut at Public Assembly on Friday (9/16), headlining a show with lightning fast black metal crew Woe and traditional doom upstarts Pilgrim. The show, part of a string of US dates for the UK crew of ex-Warning members, saw the band stick to the script with newer material from their current The Inside Room LP, and not venturing into any of the much beloved Warning songs during their set.

40 Watt Sun's sad and clean songs were in contrast to the direct support band, the lightning fast and fierce Woe featuring new drummer Ruston Grosse (ex-Master, Sil Veth). Woe's set was primarily focused on their recent recorded output, but they played a new song from a forthcoming TBD release. Pilgrim, who opened the night, was the biggest surprise for me of the night. Though all three members are barely into their 20s, this band has a sound that goes well beyond their years into classic doom metal.

More pictures from Public Assembly are below.

Continue reading "40 Watt Sun, Woe & Pilgrim played Public Assembly (pics)"

by BBG

Woe @ Acheron in May

Get ready for the ONSLAUGHT of tours this fall! Woe have been added to next week's 40 Watt Sun show at Public Assembly (on 9/16) with one more still TBA. The Philadelphia black-metal crew will also support Mayhem on their upcoming tour. An unpublished set of pictures from their surprise appearance at Acheron in May with Bastard Sapling and Inter Arma is in this post.

Disma is playing the 9/17 at Cake Shop with Drawn & Quartered who play a pair of shows in NYC next weekend. Mausoleum, Death Sick, and Mutant Supremacy are scheduled to play both, the second being at Saint Vitus on 9/16.

A few big shows this weekend... Weedeater/Oxbow/Bison BC/Fight Amp at Europa and Despise You/Magrudergrind/Backslider/Defeatist at Shea Stadium.

Also going down this weekend, and FREE is the Hull/Wizardry/Dead Sands show at Union Pool on Saturday (9/10). Wizardry recently parted ways with long-time guitarist Matt Klickstein. The band's statement on his departure is below.

As previously mentionned, Anthrax are playing a private show at Best Buy Theater in NYC on 9/12 ahead of their "Big Four" appearance at Yankee Stadium. Tou can win tickets on our facebook page. Anthrax also just played Fallon and announed an October tour with Testament and Death Angel.

Stream a new Rwake track from their upcoming Rest at Pitchfork.

Some excellent album streams also also below, including Death Of This Dry Season by Brainoil (previewed here), and the Mournful Congregation collection The Unspoken Hymns. Also, don't miss out on the new track from Fuck The Facts' upcoming Die Miserable, "A Coward's Existence"

Serpentine Path (aka Unearthly Trance plus Tim from Ramesses/Electric Wizard) will release a new 7" on Parasitic Records.

Lo-Pan & Suplecs are on the road, and playing Union Pool on 9/20.

Roadburn adds Sleep, Maryland Deathfest solidifies its lineup with Autopsy.

The Body, Bruce Lamont, Man's Gin & Iron Tides played Saint Vitus on Monday.

Have a great weekend, and head out to the shows! More belated Woe pictures, the album streams, the Urfaust after-party details, some classic video and more suggested NYC shows for the coming weeks below.... What did I miss?

Continue reading "Evillive (Woe, Disma, Rwake, Brainoil, Wizardry, Anthrax & more)"

by BBG

Mayhem at Irving Plaza (more by Paul Birman)

After cancelling their last batch of dates, Mayhem will head back out to North America for a fall tour with support from Keep Of Kalessin, Hate, and Abigail Williams. Woe will also join on thirteen dates, though no word on which ones. The tour hits NYC at Gramercy Theater on November 3rd. Tickets info is forthcoming. Full tour schedule is below.

In related news, Woe mastermind Chris Grigg recently penned an open letter to Liturgy's Hunter Hunt-Hendrix, an excerpt of which follows:

To the point, then: we get it, dude. You think you are very, very important. Everything about you oozes a sense of superiority. Looking at only the first few pages of your Transcendental Black Metal essay, we find the following:

You somehow decided that black metal is the "culmination of the history of extreme metal."

You explain that traditional black metal is ultimately unfulfilling: "Hyperborean [traditional, Scandinavian-derived] Black Metal represents the mountaineer's arrival at the peak and a supposed leap off of it... And he is left, crestfallen, frozen and alone, in the Hyperborean realm."

You authoritatively claim the blast beat as belonging to black metal, though far from unique to it, because it allows you to rationalize your I-can't-maintain-a-hyper-blast beat by plainly stating, "the technique of Hyperborean Black Metal is the blast beat."

You audaciously inform us that your work is the next stage of the art's evolution with "[Transcendental Black Metal] is a sublimination of Hyperborean Black Metal in both its spiritual aspect and its technical aspect."

Those passages, the essay on the whole, and every attempt to defend your position shows that you lack even the smallest sliver of modesty or respect for your peers or listeners. These qualities -- rather, the lack of these qualities -- are not unusual for black metal artists to possess; after all, concepts of superiority and elitism are hallmarks of traditional black metal. In your case, though, they do not apply because you have gone so far out of your way to show that you are not the typical black metal musician, you are not part of this world -- you are an outsider wearing some (just some) of black metal's skin. I appreciate you taking the effort to describe what you are attempting to do; however, when you make lengthy, authoritative statements decrying black metal as dead and outdated, when you deride everything that came before you as little more than a failed attempt at something that is unreachable, you're thumbing your nose at everyone who does not see things your way. It's obnoxious. It's rude. It's annoying.

Continue reading "Mayhem announces a new North American tour, Chris Grigg of Woe calls Liturgy rude, annoying & much more"

by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Avichi "Under Satan's Sun" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Disma"Spectral Domination" (MP3)

Only in Japan will you find the unique combination of bratty punk rock, crust, doom, and drone all rolled into one. After releasing the well-received Ill Innocence in 2007, Gallhammer is back albeit without founding member Mika Penetrator. The now-duo hit the studio late last year to record their follow-up LP, The End, which will see its release via Peaceville on May 31st. Recorded by Maniac (Skitliv, Mayhem), the new LP (thats the art to the left) visits familiar blackened themes from their previous Fenriz-approved debut, like the riot-grrl inspired new song "Aberration". Stream that below and preorder a copy at Peaceville.

Reminder, Inter Arma will link up with Bastard Sapling, and Castevet on May 7th at Mother Pugs in Staten Island and at Acheron on May 8th with new addition SALO (Saturday & Sunday).

And you can make Sunday a day of heavy music, as Woe has added a last minute show in NYC, and its an early one. The show goes down at 3PM at Semi-Legit (6 Charles Place in Brooklyn) and will also feature appearances from Primitive Savagery, and MAD. $5 gets you in to the early 3PM show. Flyer below.

Bastard Sapling at BV-BBG CMJ (more by Keith Marlowe)

Check out some snippets from the upcoming Autopsy LP Macabre Eternal at their mini-site. We recently posted the first track, "Always About To Die".

Dark Castle is streaming a new song from their forthcoming Surrender to All Life Beyond Form at Invisible Oranges. The band will go on tour with YOB (with Rob Shaffer of DC on drums) and hit Le Poisson Rouge on July 12th (tickets). Invisible Oranges is also hosting a pair of interviews with Earth.

Stereogum is currently hosting a new track by Premonition 13 due on the forthcoming 13 via Summer Solstice/Volcom on 6/21.

Blake Judd admits that Nachtmystium's Addicts was inspired by his own battle with heroin, and that he is working on new Nachtmystium material with members of Avichi as well as Sanford Parker. Judd is also scheming new material with Von! Speaking of Avichi, look for their new LP, The Devil's Fractal, via Profound Lore on 7/19 (thats the art work). Check out "Under Satan's Sun" available for download above.

Last but not least, Disma will release their new LP Towards The Megalith via Profound Lore Records. Check out the new song "Spectral Domination" available for download above and look for the LP on 7/19. More brutal death from these long-time metal/hardcore vets.

That Gallhammer stream and some suggested NYC shows are below...

Continue reading "Evillive (Avichi, Gallhammer, Bastard Sapling, Woe, Disma...)"

photos by Adam Murray and Genie Sanchez, words by BBG

Morbid Angel

Two outdoor tents, a club, and a theater hosted 26 bands. Perhaps by design, the premises lacked alcohol (except for the theater). So bad behavior was scarce. Fans happily bounced from venue to venue, queuing for some bands (Wormrot, Floor, Atheist, Obituary, Morbid Angel), and eating burgers from the Grill 'Em All trucks. To order the Witte Burger (beef, bun, cream cheese, deep-fried bacon, beer-and-Sriracha-soaked onions, malt vinegar aioli), my friend Robert merely pointed several feet away, where Dave Witte himself was standing.
-[Invisible Oranges]

Kvelertak were supposed to play too. but their passports and visas were stolen at the airport moments before they boarded the plane to the US. As a result, they'll also miss some days of the Weedeater/Zoroaster tour, but should "be in the states by Friday" (3/11). That means they should have no trouble making it to SXSW where they're on board to play Full Metal Texas. The band was replaced in Pomona by Black Cobra.

More pictures and some videos from Scion Rock Fest 2011, below...

Continue reading "Scion Rock Fest 2011 in pics & video (Morbid Angel, Obituary, Integrity, Agalloch & more) (but not Kvelertak)"

by BBG

Woe at Knitting Factory (more by BBG)

Woe will join We Are All Savages, Mutilation Rites, and Magrudergrind for a Brooklyn show at The Charleston at midnight on Friday night (2/18, or Saturday AM). The show, billed as the "Official Eyehategod Afterparty", features some overlap with the actual Eyehategod show (happening at Europa), as both Magrudergrind and Mutilation Rites are on-board to play both shows. Eyehategod will also be at SXSW this year, playing an official showcase at Scoot Inn on 3/19 with Pentagram, Naam, Cough, Ancient VVisdom, and Primitive Weapons.

Woe is currently working on new material, and will be sporting a fresh lineup at The Charleston following the departure of the Madden brothers. Woe posted this message:

"First and foremost, we are sad to say that Evan and Shane have left Woe. I think that not addressing it would be disrespectful but if they want this note removed, I will certainly do so. Nobody is going to go into detail about it so please respect everyone's privacy and don't ask. While I cannot and do not claim to speak for them, I have nothing but positive memories of the fantastic shows we played together to say nothing of the phenomenally-received recent album. They will continue with The Green Evening Requiem and recent Earache Records-signees Woods of Ypres (who were recently announced as a headliner for Heart of Winter Fest in Richmond, VA this coming February) so expect to hear a lot from them.

And we soldier on."

Continue reading "Woe playing Eyehategod afterparty, Woods of Ypres touring"

by BBG

Yob at Scion Rock Fest 2010 (more)

Scion has confirmed exclusively to LA Weekly that they will be bringing their metaltastic Rock Fest this year to Southern California.

"Scion's major event of the year," confirms their publicist, "is a huge metal festival with four stages and 30 bands. We did the first in Atlanta and the second in Columbus [check out part one and and two of our pics & review]. It's always a mix of legendary bands, important bands and up-and-coming bands, representing all the areas of underground metal. And like all the stuff we do it's all ages and free."

"What no one knows yet," he continues "is the next one will be on March 5, 2011 in Pomona. We're taking over the Fox Theater and the Glass House and building two more stages nearby."

Headlining the Scion Rock Fest in the LA area will be death metal royalty Morbid Angel with their first US show in six years (and as of now, the only scheduled US date in 2011)

...Founding member guitarist Trey Azagthoth, regarded by many as the greatest death metal guitarist of all time, will be at the helm along with bassist David Vincent (member 1986-1996 & 2004 - present) and Destructhor (member since 2008).

The Scion Rock Fest will include 26 bands on four stages (including The Fox Theater, The Glass House and two outdoor stages). -[LA Weekly]

One of the bigger names at Scion Rock Fest in 2010 was Shrinebuilder. Don't forget that half of Shrinebuilder, Scott Kelly and Wino, are going on a solo tour in February. Tickets are still on sale for the February 12th Mercury Lounge show which now looks like this:

Scott Kelly (of Neurosis) 11:30
Wino (of Saint Vitus) 10:30
Man's Gin (of Cobalt) 9:30
Hunter Hunt-Henrix (of Liturgy) 8:30

The PRP is also reporting a rumored list of other artists playing Scion Rock Fest 2011. I can confirm that at least half of a dozen of those are true. That list is reprinted below...

Continue reading "Scion Rock Fest 2011 will be in California, Morbid Angel confirmed (and more artists rumored) ++ more Liturgy dates"

by BBG

"What a better way to celebrate Halloween then w/ a black metal show of epic proportions! Woe & Krieg" - Wren Leader

"I know nothing about either band, 'cept that
I just saw Woe & they killed" - AnUncontrollableUrge

Chris Grigg on stage with Woe

Woe frontman/Krieg drummer Chris Grigg did double duty late Saturday night, in the wee hours of Halloween, as Woe supported Krieg at Knitting Factory as part of the BrooklynVegan/Haunting The Chapel production that directly followed the AGE/Hellshock which concluded before 12. Pictures and video from the late show are in this post.

Both Krieg and Woe are touring in support of their new Candlelight LPs, The Isolationist and Quietly, Undramatically respectively. Both are out now and worth a listen.

More pictures and some video from the midnight black mass are below.

Continue reading "Woe & Krieg played Knitting Factory Halloween morning ---- (pics & video) "

by BBG

Chris Grigg at The Studio at Webster Hall with Woe (more by Samantha Marble)

This year, as the clock swings from devil's night to Halloween, BrooklynVegan and Haunting The Chapel will present a night of black metal with the return of Krieg and the fantastic Woe at Knitting Factory! The show takes place at 11:59PM on Saturday, October 30th directly after the previously discussed AGE/Hellshock show happening in the same venue that evening, and will be $5 to get in, or just $2 if you paid to see the show earlier that night. Tickets are on sale.

Both Krieg and Woe feature Chris Grigg (on drums and guitar/vox respectively) and both have new LPs on the way in October via Candlelight Records. The new Woe, Quietly, Undramatically, hits record stores on 10/12 while the new Krieg, The Isolationist, impacts 14 days later.

Neil Imperial of Krieg also logged hours on he latest Twilight (the band) record, and two of his Twilight band mates (Blake of Nachtmystium and Steve of The Atlas Moth) played The Studio at Webster Hall on 9/15.

In related BV-presented show news, a reminder that the Batillus and Kowloon Walled City tour kicks off tomorrow (9/18) at Cake Shop with Riff Cannon. The early show will have doors at 5PM and cost you $10.

Halloween show flyer (created by the uber-talented Sophie Penrose), and some videos below.

Continue reading "Krieg & Woe releasing albums, ringing in Halloween in NYC"

words by BBG, photos by Samantha Marble

Andrew of Castevet

Though reportedly no champagne bottles were popped, nor was the gatorade dumped on anyone, Lit Lounge's bill on June 7th was a celebration on many levels. Castevet welcomed their new LP Mounds of Ash into this world via Profound Lore Records (cop it) and brought along with them an unstoppable bill to mark the occasion. Precious Metal recently celebrated four years in existence, and it was PM founder Curran Reynolds's birthday!

No matter what occasion it is, whenever you combine Castevet, Woe, Batillus, and Flourishing, its going to make for an unmissable night of punishing metal. Pics from the show continue below.

Castevet is hitting the road with Altar of Plagues and Velnias for a string of shows leading up to their NYC appearance at The Studio at Webster Hall on August 1st with Man's Gin. Tickets are on sale.

Continue reading "Castevet, Woe, Batillus & Flourishing @ Lit Lounge (pics) "

words by Kim Kelly, photos by Greg Cristman

Though barely a month after their first show EVER in Bucharest, Alcest hit the US for a string of dates that included The Studio at Webster Hall on Thursday, 4/29. Presented by Haunting The Chapel and The Blackened Music series, the show, which featured black metal greats Woe and the post-punk/goth/industrial Have a Nice Life, was the second Alcest outing for Kim Kelly (she also went to the Philly show), who filed the review in this post. Read it below, with Alcest's setlist, more pictures and some videos too... -BBG

Continue reading "Alcest, Woe & Have a Nice Life @ The Studio @ Webster Hall (pics, review, setlist & videos) "

by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Alcest - "Percees De Lumiere" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Woe - "Alone with Our Failures"
DOWNLOAD: Have a Nice Life - "Bloodhail"
DOWNLOAD: Have a Nice Life - "I Don't Love"

Alcest at their first ever live performance in Bucharest (more by Stefan Raduta)

Wardruna at the 2010 edition of by:Larm in Norway

April is supposed to be the gateway to rejuvenation; spring is around the corner and warm sun awaits. Yet Thursday, April 29th is a dark day in NYC despite upward swinging forecasts, as the city will host a pair of black metal events.

First up, is the seminar 'A Blaze In The Northern Sky - Norwegian Metal and The Culture That Spawned It", a discussion featuring Nocturno Culto (Darkthrone), Gaahl (ex-Gorgoroth, Wardruna), and Harold Fossberg (Turbonegro) at Scandinavia House (58 Park Avenue):

In the last two decades, a bizarre, intense, and violent musical subculture called Black Metal has emerged in Norway, and has subsequently become a worldwide phenomenon. In a unique seminar-meets-radio show format moderated by Patrizia Mazzuoccolo (also known as Miss Pee), the lecture will explore and promote the genre and its country through audio clips of bands, interviews with musicians and special guests (see below for details), and an audience Q & A session.

Nocturno Culto recently played Roadburn 2010 as part of Sarke, part II of Kim Kelly's review is on the way.

Wardruna, Gaahl included, recently played Folketeateret at the by:Larm Music Festival in snowy Norway (on Saturday, Feb. 20th) . An unposted set of pictures from that show, which was one of the major highlights of the long weekend, is continued below.

Details on how to win those Alcest tickets, some videos, and flyers for both events are below too...

Continue reading "Alcest is almost here (win tix), a Norwegian Metal seminar in NYC (w/ Gaahl, Nocturno culto, more), Wardruna pics & more "

by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Altar of Plagues - "Atlantic Lights" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Black Breath - "Children Of The Horn" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Celeste - Morte Nee(s) (Zipped LP)
DOWNLOAD: Get Rad - "Life Without A Plan" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Get Rad - "Honest Man/Wild Man" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Inter Arma - "Epicenter" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Ufomammut - Eve Snippets (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Nachtmystium - "No Funeral" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Yakuza - "Stones And Bones" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Sayyadina - "Razor Discipline" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Culted - "Spirituosa" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Year of No Light - "Hierophant" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Castevet - "Grey Matter" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Deathwish MMX Spring Sampler (Zipped MP3 files)

Twilight

Surprise! After a few CDs made their way into record stores accidentally (I am told) Twilight, the Blake Judd/Wrest project that now features N. Imperial (Kreig), Aaron Turner (Isis), Stavros Giannopoulos (The Atlas Moth) and Sanford Parker (Minsk) is out NOW on CD via Southern Lord! The record was engineered by Sanford Parker, who also contributed synths, and features eight tracks with Robert Lowe (Lichens) contributing vocals to three of them. No official word on a release date for the LP, but get out and order a copy... I think I may enjoy it more than the new Nachtmystium. Speaking of the new Nachtmystium, Stereogum recently premiered the keyboard heavy "No Funeral" from the forthcoming Addicts: Black Meddle Pt. II. Dig on that above.

Call me obsessed, but the new Black Breath, Heavy Breathing, is on serious rotation lately- much like their previous EP Razors To Oblivion was last year. The new LP has Kurt Ballou's dirty little fingers all over it, bringing their rich early Swedish death metal meets hardcore sound to life, as exhibited in "Children of The Horn" available above. Get Heavy Breathing now via Southern Lord. Black Breath will open the BV/1000 Knives/AEG Live Converge extravaganza at Santos Party House on 5/6 along with Touche Amore and Lewd Acts. Make sure and get their early (their live show is worth it), and get your tickets in advance (it WILL sell out). Seriously brutal and fun stuff... you gotta love a band that screams "reject Christ, spit on the cross" at the top of their lungs. Or am I alone on that one?

Though it only lasts two tracks (but conversely- 35 minutes), the new EP from Altar of Plagues, Tides, is every bit as powerful as White Tomb, one of my favorite LPs of last year. AoP's new Tides EP is currently up for pre-order via Burning World Records (cop it), but until that package arrives, make sure and dig on "Atlantic Lights" from the EP (50% of the record!) , which makes it's world premiere here!

An LP from last year that was just too good to be free was Celeste's Misanthrope(s). With a potent mix of black metal, furious hardcore, and even melody, it was a seriously underrated record that deserved much more attention than it got. Even though Misanthrope(s) is barely in the rear view, the band has released their new LP, Morte Nee(s) for FREE download (get it above). Make sure and order a copy of the LP for yourself via Denovali as well though, it's one to keep for posterity.

Richmond's Inter Arma totally floored me at The Charleston with their furious mix of black metal, southern stoner style and Neurosis-style imperial riffage. Besides being a jawdropping live band, Inter Arma has also put together a pretty memorable record as well in the form of Sundown, out soon on Forcefield Records. Featuring members of another great Richmond band, Bastard Sapling, check out the band when they hit the road in July, but until then, check out Sundown!

A darkness has settled over the land... details on Watain's new album have been revealed! Entitled Lawless Darkness, the effort was recorded at Necromorbus Studio (Deathspell Omega, Funeral Mist, Ondskapt, Nominon, Unanimated et al) in Alvik, Sweden, and is due on June 7 with the below cover art and the tracklisting as listed down below. The release follows their picture disc EP Reaping Death which quickly disappeared, though the CD single is currently available.

That Watain cover, plus news on Blood Revolt (Primordial + Revenge), Loss, Man Is The Bastard, Hail of Bullets, Woe, a new Inquisition LP, and more as Short Wave Warfare continues....

Continue reading "Short Wave Warfare (04/20/10)"

by BBG

DOWNLOAD: Alcest - "Percées De Lumière" (MP3)

Alcest is a French band created by Neige (also in Amesoeurs, Peste Noire and Forgotten Woods) in early 2000. ...The first chapter of this journey was Le Secret EP, which was released in 2005 by Drakkar Productions. In 2007, Neige agreed to a contract with the German label Prophecy Productions and released Alcest's debut album Souvenirs d'un autre monde the same year. All music/lyrics/artwork are deeply linked to Alcest's concept and aim at depicting that "place" and the ecstatic feelings one can experience there. This project is a real quest, a perpetual wandering through unknown regions, the hope of which is to shed some light on some mysteries of this esoteric experience.

Full tour dates, tour flyer and a youtube clip of "Écailles De Lune (Part I)" from the new album are all below.

Continue reading "Alcest coming to the US - 2010 dates include Studio w/ Woe"

words by Kim Kelly with intro by BBG, photos by Diana Lee Zadlo

Woe ruling

Those of you who travel in the underground metal circles, and live to tell about it, have probably encountered Kim Kelly. The current Philadelphian, whose credits include Terrorizer, Hails & Horns, Metal Injection, Noisecreep, her own PR company (CatharsisPR) and many other ventures, is probably the girl you see on the verge of whiplash in the front row of Eyehategod, or the smiley one with the invisible orange.

In her latest travels, Kelly took a trip to Richmond to take in the Heart of Winter Fest at Alley Katz in Richmond, VA (Friday, Jan 29- Saturday, Jan 30, 2010). The two-day festival featured appearances from Woe, Bastard Sapling, Battlemaster, Evoken, and many others. The "Winter" fest was also, appropriately enough, hit with a major storm that buried the mid-Atlantic in snow. Rather than get buried south of the Mason-Dixon line amidst 24 inches, she and Diana Lee Zadlo opted to leave before it was over, or as the kids call it, GTFO. Her full story is below...

Continue reading "Heart of Winter Fest 2010 (Woe & snow) in words & pics "

by BBG

Laura of Kylesa (more by Paul Birman)

Earlier I discussed my favorite LPs of the year, but why leave the fun to just one? I asked some of my favorite artists and promoters for their 2009 highlights. The responses were great. You already saw some of them. Justina listed some quotes, Liam Wilson talked about Philly, and Josh Graham listed good things about 2009. They continue below. You'll find lists of favorite songs and albums of the year, not to mention answers to crucial questions like:

• What are Coalesce's favorite pizza toppings?
• Which one of my top 20 artists of the year tried to get in a cab with Kirsten Dunst?
• What is the #1 sauce/condiment of 2009?

Continue reading "The Year in Metal continued (BBG asked countless others to make lists... and here they all are)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Cannabis Corpse - "Shit of Pot Seeds" (MP3)

Tombs @ Gramercy (more by Chris La Putt)

The killer Burnt By The Sun / Tombs / Black Anvil / Bloodhorse / Torchbearer rockstravaganza blasts off TOMORROW (10/2) at the motherlovin' Cake Shop, but if you were to have to miss Friday (why?), luckily, another Tombs show is right around the corner. (BBTS, that's another story... )

After supporting gigs with the likes of Marduk, Isis and Pelican, and Genghis Tron, Tombs have scheduled a headlining show of their own at The Studio @ Webster Hall with star-gazing post-metallers Rosetta, the emo-meets-Isis stylings of Junius, and the ever-technical Irepress. Tickets are on sale. Yikes! 'Tis a good 'un.

Tombs play Richmond tonight with Cannabis Corpse and Infernal Stronghold, a pairing that will hit NYC on Saturday (10/2)! Cannabis Corpse plays ABC No Rio during the day and then hits The Charleston with Infernal Stronghold that night. We premiered two new tracks from Infernal Stronghold, and now you can check out a new song from Cannabis Corpse's EP The Weeding available above!

BBTS/Tombs extravaganza isn't the only massive show of the weekend. BV is also proud to present Woe, Aluk Todolo, Malkuth and Castevet at Union Pool on 10/4! It's only $8 to get in, but a lucky TWO WINNERS will receive a pair of tickets gratis! Just email us at BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM with the subject line of "Woe is ME!" (include your first and last name).

Rosetta is preparing to release a three way split with the awesome Year of No Light and East Of The Wall on Translation Loss. Preorder that bad boy here. Irepress recently released Sol Eye Sea I on the same label.

Junius is currently offering their new LP for free in digital form and on pre order in the physical

Full Tombs and Cannabis Corpse tour dates and an awesome Cannabis Corpse video is below!

Continue reading "Tombs shows, a Cannabis Corpse EP & dates ++ win Woe tix"

by Black Bubblegum

Woe, photo by Scott Kinkade

As if Burnt By The Sun, Tombs, Black Anvil, and Bloodhorse at Cake Shop (10/2) wasn't enough, now you can look forward to a SECOND helping of heaviness on the first weekend in October! Just two nights after the Cake Shop is set ablaze, storm clouds will roll into town as BrooklynVegan is proud to present Woe, Aluk Todolo, Malkuth, and Castevet at Union Pool on 10/4! $8 gets you in the door.

Woe's smashing LP, A Spell For The Death of Man, recently saw a vinyl release and is currently available for pay-what-you-want download.

Frenchmen Aluk Todolo dabble in a hybrid of black metal and krautrock (seriously!), and feature members of Diamatregon. Their new album Finsternis is out NOW, pick that up at Aquarius Records, who called it "a slow shifting otherworld defined by This Heat, Geronimo, Laddio Bolocko, Can, [and] Faust". The Union Pool show is part of a short US tour that also includes a few other NYC dates including Music Hall of Williamsburg with Faust on 10/1 (part of the WFMU Festival). All dates below.

Malkuth and Castevet both played shows this past weekend: Malkuth at Lit Lounge with Dark Castle, Orphan, and The Body, Castevet at Show No Mercy on 9/6 with Gnaw, Mick Barr, and Period. Pic sets from those shows are on the way.

A Woe video and the show flyer are with the dates below...

Continue reading "BV Presents Woe, Malkuth & Castevet @ Union Pool w/ Aluk Todolo (2009 Tour Dates) "

by Black Bubblegum

Seth Putnam of AxCx at his most thoughful (more by Justina Villanueva)

June's Show No Mercy event is this Sunday (6/7), and we already have another event to look forward to after that! Eclectic is the name of the game as Anal Cunt (who recently played Europa) will team up with grinders Fuck The Facts, Locrian, Gwynbleidd, and Copremesis for a July 5th show at Public Assembly. Until then, Salome awaits on June 7th with Black Anvil, Woe, and Snake Sustaine (mems-A Life Once Lost).

Want to go Sunday? I have two pairs of tickets to give away. Email us at BVCONTESTS@HOTMAIL.COM with a subject line of "SALOME", and include your first and last name. Two winners will be selected at random and notified the afternoon of June 5th.

Fuck The Facts recently announced the vinyl release of Disgorge Mexico via Stillborn Records on June 9th. The limited edition pressing will have 500 total copies, with 400 on white and 100 on black vinyl. Preorder that here.

Locrian has been busy since the beginning of 2009, dropping Drenched Lands earlier this year on At War With False Noise, and more recently, the Land of Decay VHS + 3" CD available here. 2009 will also see the releases of the Drenched Lands LP (via BloodLust) and a split 7" w/ Harpoon on Hewhocorrupts Inc. Show No Mercy is not their only upcoming NYC-area show either. They've added another on July 3rd at Lucky Cheng's. All dates below.

Copremesis, who describe themselves as "NS Death/Grind performed by minorities to hail the ARYAN RACE!!!", recently released the lilting ode to transexual perversion Muay Thai Ladyboys and are now offering all of their other releases for gratis download.

Rosetta recently played a Show No Mercy show, and will be in NYC once again on June 5th at Death By Audio.

Full AxCx, Fuck The Facts, Locrian, Copremesis, and Rosetta dates are below...

Continue reading "Show No Mercy's eclectic lineup for July, free tickets for June ++ more tour dates "

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Nebula - "The Dagger" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Dark Castle - "Awake In Sleep" (MP3)

Dark Castle

DIY is the name of the game for Florida's Dark Castle, as the duo has garnered a ton of buzz on the southern metal scene as of late due to their self-released EP and incessant touring. The northeastern touring love is on the way (this summer?), but in the meantime, Dark Castle's new LP, Spirited Migration is out NOW in digital formats (iTunes, amazon) with one of those amazing tracks, "Awake In Sleep" available for download above! Spirited Migration is due on May 26th in hard formats (CD, Vinyl) via the mighty At A Loss Records, so y'all wax lovers betta recognize!

Nebula will illustrate truth in advertising on July 7th when the trio drops their new album, Heavy Psych. Tee Pee Records will plead guilty to releasing the follow-up to 2006's Apollo, which includes "The Dagger" downloadable above. For the unaware, Nebula features former members of Fu Manchu, Mondo Generator, and Karma To Burn (who recently played Lit).

Australia's dark kings of blackened thrash, Destroyer 666, will release their NEW album on July 14th via Season of Mist! Defiance will be D666's first release in six years and first LP in seven, and will have artwork that'll look a little somethin' like this:

Another set of Aussies, black metallers Nazxul, will release their first new material in more than ten years via Moribund! Look for more details on the new album, Iconoclast, in the months ahead as well as some US dates.

Show No Mercy on June 7th at Public Assembly is SET with the recent additions of the the ungodly Woe, Black Anvil, and Snake Sustaine (mems-ALOL) to the previously announced Salome. While we wait for the show, you can check out some recent interviews that the guys in Woe did here, here and here. Flyer is below.

Obscura has pulled out of the previously mentioned Relapse Contamination tour due to sickness, rendering all dates after May 11th cancelled. That includes NYC's date at Fontana's.

News and videos from Clutch, Ocean, Swarm Of The Lotus, Torche, Cripple Bastards, Orange Goblin and More, as This Week In Metal continues!

Continue reading "This Week In METAL (05/08/09)"

by Black Bubblegum

DOWNLOAD: Woe - "Alone With Our Failures" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Castevet - "Stones" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Crucifier - "When The Bough Breaks" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Crucifier - "The Funeral" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Dimentianon - "Dead and Forgotten" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Batillus - Batillus EP (ZIPPED MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Wetnurse - "Not Your Choice" (MP3)
DOWNLOAD: Ocean - "The Beacon" (MP3 Snippet)
DOWNLOAD: Ocean - "Of The Lesser" (MP3 Snippet)

Woe on 1/7/08, photo by Scott Kinkade

The Ocean/Salome/Riff Cannon/Batillus edition of Brandon Stosuy (Pitchfork)'s Show No Mercy showcase at at Public Assembly isnt even here yet (that's on 2/15. Check out the Seldon Hunt flyer below), but we have already have word on some of the bands in the months to come, including Genghis Tron, Krieg, Tombs, Wetnurse, Villains, and Crucifier!

First up, March 1st, a scant two weeks after the Ocean/Salome rumble off, Show No Mercy turns the speed waaaaay up with the pairing of the black metal horde Krieg and Philly's Woe (others TBA). Krieg is the brainchild of Imperial, former member of Nachtmystium and Twilight, the defunct black metal super group that at one time featured Blake Judd (Nachtmystium), Malefic (Xasthur), Wrest (Leviathan, Lurker of Chalice), Hildolf (Draguar) and even, for a short time, Aaron Turner (Isis). Woe released the awesome A Spell For The Death Of Man, which is available for pay-what-you-want digital download.

Three weeks later (3/22) as part of a record release party for Paragon Records, Crucifier, will team up with Villains, Castevet, Nocnitsa, and Dimentianon. Crucifier are welcoming their new 10", Trampled Under Cloven Hooves and have posted a pair of MP3s for download... check out "The Funeral" and "When The Bough Breaks". Castevet are welcoming the Salt/Stones 7", which is available for pre-order here. Check out "Stones" from that 7" available for download above. The new Villains album, Lifecode of Decadence, is due "soon" on Nuclear War Now.

And finally, on April 12th, Genghis Tron will headline an eclectic night with Tombs and Wetnurse. Genghis Tron are also playing a show scheduled a few weeks before at Europa, with Converge/Coliseum/the entire Deathwish roster (not really) (tickets). Genghis Tron are also playing Coachella. Tombs will release their new album Winter Hours on Feb 17th. Wetnurse recently played The Charleston with Graf Orlock and Lewd Acts.

Woe and Tombs will team up on Feb 21st to play ABC No Rio with Black Anvil and Bastard Sapling. Later that same night, Tombs plays Death By Audio with Defeatist, Engineer & The Wayward. We interviewed Mike Hill of Tombs here.

Villians & Castevet recently played Public Assembly with the mighty Malkuth and Ipsissimus.

Cannabis Corpse recently played Show No Mercy with Skeletonwitch. Vice Magazine dressed up as the Cannabis Corpse Weed Monster and lived to tell about it. Here's a great quote about the experience:

"The costume smelled of many many many men, and beer, and scrotum, and more beer and MORE scrotes."

February 15th flyer below...

Continue reading "upcoming Show No Mercy lineups, other metal shows, MP3s"