Posts Tagged ‘black’

Singled Out (9/26 – 10/2): New Music From The Faceless, Megadeth, Coheed and Cambria, and More!

Singled Out is our weekly column to round-up the singles and new tracks from the past week dropped by bands we cover. Consider this our weekly mix to help keep you all on top of the latest releases from across the metallic and progressive spectrums. Read past entries here , and go on ahead below to get Singled Out! Coheed and Cambria – “Eraser” Coheed’s use of a chunky, hyper-distorted guitar tone and their trademark enthusiasm are in full swing here. The “Gravity’s Union”-esque tone in the intro quickly gives way to Claudio Sanchez’s trademarked high-pitched croon and a chorus that shows off the band at their jangliest and most poppy. Despite the defiantly malign undertone, the upbeat drive of this track is incredibly hard to resist; it’s hard to resist a smile when listening to “Eraser”. The whole song reeks of the band’s typical sickly-sweet vibe, the tangy tones of modern alternative rock splashed with the emotive and lush sound of Mars Volta-style prog. It’s a potent combination, and it’s served the band well in the past. We’ll see how it serves them on The Color Before The Sun come October 16th, but seeing as this is Coheed, I can guarantee it’ll be somewhere between amazing and fucking godly. -Simon Handmaker Driftoff – “Dying Light” We’ve often been highly skeptical of supergroups on this blog. That’s why it’s refreshing to hear a collaboration between giants of a certain sub-genre sound so damn cohesive and self-aware. Driftoff combines talent from Junius , Rosetta and City of Ships , all names that are downright seminal in their own fields. The first taste of this heady brew is “Dying Light” and it’s a perfect introduction into the post-punk/hardcore that is Driftoff’s measure. Let us skip over the obviously delicious guitars and drums and focus on the vocals. Put briefly, they are outstanding. Merging the two different styles that are most often heard in this sort of music, they draw on both harsher, raspier sounds that hark to mother-band Rosetta while the more emotional vocals are firmly grounded in the history of the scene. Long story short, this is both new and traditional, fresh and yet wholly recognizable. Get excited for this release. -Eden Kupermintz The Faceless – “The Spiraling Void” After a period of silence and line-up shuffles, out of nowhere, The Faceless are back! As one of the more visible and accessible bands in technical death metal, them putting out new music is always worth watching. This time, they’re back with The Spiraling Void , and it’s such a warm, welcoming feeling to hear the trademark Michael Keene riffing again. Going back to elements of their older sounds and retooling them to create this new tune, the band sound reinvigorated. They’ve brought back the slight Cynic influence from Akeldama , and the more progressive leaning sound from Autotheism ; and the end result is something instantly recognizable as The Faceless. Original singer Derek Rydquist is back, and Justin McKinney of The Zenith Passage is now also on guitar duties. It makes a lot of sense to have Justin on board, as his band is also influenced in turn by The Faceless. Michael Keene’s vocoder cleans from Akeldama are back, the extended solo sections over arpeggios from Autotheism are back, and Planetary Duality ‘s riff style is all over. Basically, The Faceless are back in full force. While they haven’t officially announced a new album, they’re touring with new material so this can only mean one thing. We’ll get our faces shredded off. -Noyan Tokgozoglu Megadeth – “Fatal Illusion” When the years go by and the dust settles, there will be many questions asked about our times: why were there so many wars? Why did it take them so long to go to space? Space is freaking awesome! One of these questions will undoubtedly be: why did Megadeth make more than two or three albums? They clearly ran out of ideas years before they finally took a bow. Don’t believe me that this will be the case? All you need to be convinced is to listen to “Fatal Illusion”, given that the track name itself hasn’t put you to sleep already. If the soporific name wasn’t enough, one listen to the track should be. It has zero new ideas: the guitars are all where you expect them, the pointless shredding follows and above it all is crowned the voice of the man, the ego, the washed out, Dave Mustaine. That is, if you can find it below all the effects and layers they’ve put on it to hide the fact that the man just can’t sing any more. To be sure, he surrounds himself with talented musicians, he always has, but as always he completely under utilizes them. Whatever shine this man’s name once had has disappeared, the glamor is gone and all that’s left is a boring rivet in the already collapsing machine that is “old school thrash”. -Eden Kupermintz Mestis – “Pura Vida” Javier Reyes is rather underrated, but I guess that can happen when you’re the second guitarist in a band where the primary guitarist is one of the most famed one of recent years. This should only be a testament to Javier himself though, as it means he’s up to par. His solo project Mestis had an EP a few years ago, and it was just delightful. Combining Latin and jazz elements with the groovier aspects of the Animals As Leaders sound, the record left many wanting for more. Well, fret not (pun intended), as there’s new Mestis material! It’s still chock full of that relaxing-yet-engaging sound. For “Pura Vida,” Javier has recruited Mario and Erick from fellow guitar-and-chill band Chon , and the combination works well. The track is a bit more mellow and melancholic than the Mestis usual (though admittedly we have a very small sample size to discern the Mestis sound), but that is most likely due to the Chon influence. Either way, this makes us only more excited for Polysemy , the next Mestis outing, which is coming out on the 6th of November. -Noyan Tokgozoglu Revenge – “Wolf Slave Protocol” As I mentioned in my Starter Kit for Bestial Black Metal , Canadian-based Revenge are not only my personal favorite band in the subgenre, but the current poster-boys for anyone wishing to point out why the style is so viciously primal in the best way possible. As the band gears up for their latest, Hemingway-esque titled album Behold.Total.Rejection , they have released the savagely titled lead single “Wolf Slave Protocol (Choose Your Side),” and while claiming that a band is going through the motions may seem like a critique, in the case of Revenge, “going the motions” translates to eviscerating everyone in a one-inch radius. Every instrument blares in a flurry of sound and aggression that initially startles and then commands complete attention. People can may question the quality of this single and Revenge in general, and that is ok; we are all allowed to be wrong about some things. But not a single person can dispute the fact that Revenge is one of the most sonically violent band operating today, and this single both proves that assertion and should stoke anyone keen to truly abrasive metal. -Scott Murphy

Machine Head – Bloodstone & Diamonds

It’s been a turbulent three years in the metal world since Machine Head released Unto the Locust to much critical praise. We’ve seen the continued rise of djent and it’s bastardizations, deathcore’s leanings into more progressive territories, progressive metal’s leanings into softer and more introspective territories, black metal through the eyes of shoegazers, and the return of a few old school death metal bands. The late nineties saw the band conform to the sound of the times, adopting the nu-metal style introduced by bands like Rage Against the Machine , Korn , and Limp Bizkit in years prior. Luckily, the current musical climate has had no impact on Machine Head, who have chosen to pound the flag they’ve been flying since their triumphant return to form with 2004’s Through the Ashes of Empires deeper into the ground, resulting in Bloodstone & Diamonds , their latest gem and first release for Nuclear Blast . Whereas Machine Head merely flirted with orchestral arrangements in the past, opening track ‘Now We Die’ starts off with a full on string section, setting the tone for the prodigious journey that lay ahead. The return of producer Colin Richardson is immediately apparent once things kick in: buzzsaw quad-layered guitars, drums punchier than Mike Tyson, and distorted bass sitting perfectly in the mix to complement the guitars. The sonics of Unto the Locust were perfectly appropriate for most metal albums of its caliber, but Richardson’s return makes it apparent that there is an intangible magic when the two work together. This is also the first album to feature new bassist Jared MacEachern after the well publicized fallout with original bassist Adam Duce , leaving Flynn as the sole original member. The band has been fraught with lineup changes over the years, but the heart of Machine Head has always been with Flynn. By the time second track, ‘Killers and Kings,’ bulldozes it’s way through the speakers, any apprehension is completely removed. Drummer Dave McClain ’s tasteful and simple ride bell play during the choruses carries the song masterfully, and his performance throughout the album is a testament to powerful modern metal drumming. Bloodstone & Diamonds does not wear any masks, exuding an honesty lost on much of today’s metal. In Machine Head’s case, perhaps it is a continued rebellion against their “experimental” period from 1999’s The Burning Red to 2001’s Supercharger . Despite this, the band have retained the best parts of said period while keeping the foundation they built in the beginning with Burn My Eyes , and also venturing into new territory. ‘Eyes of the Dead’ is the most representative track of their career by far, and perhaps the strongest track on the album. The intro reeks of early Megadeth with the ascending tapping lick over the pulsing drums, calling to mind ‘The Conjuring’ from the classic Peace Sells…But Who’s Buying? . The verses thrash about in the melodeath way the band adopted on Through the Ashes of Empires , with a deadly infectious chorus with Flynn chanting “Murder! Murder!” and a follow-up hook worthy of the best melodic moments from The Burning Red . Add a whammy bar breakdown groove in the mid-section worthy of 1997’s The More Things Change and you have a massive recipe for success, all while not sounding the least bit derivative. From a performance aspect, this album marks some of Robb Flynn ’s most impassioned and versatile singing in years. The airy falsetto of the verses on ‘Ghosts Will Haunt My Bones’ are simultaneously sensuous and foreboding, counteracting perfectly with the bendy groove that follows. Without a doubt the biggest surprise found here is the brooding and eerie ‘Sail Into The Black’. Parts of this song reek of Ulver ’s dark ambient masterpiece Shadows Of The Sun , which is absolutely not a bad thing. Whether this is mere coincidence remains to be seen, but the drone of the baritone choir, thick and enveloping vocal harmonies, and subtle orchestral elements call the album to mind. It’s not until around the halfway mark when the trademark chainsaw guitars, distorted bass, and pounding drums kick in do we have any inkling that we’re still listening to Machine Head. While past tracks like ‘Violate’ and ‘Down to None’ extracted the sludgiest roots of the band, they have dug even deeper into the muck with the swampy ‘Beneath the Silt’. The track opens like an audio engineer’s dream, with the drums pounding out a gigantic fill that highlights the perfectly roomy mix. This is followed by possibly the lowest tuning the band have used to date, with a simple, bluesy, and filthy riff flinging gunk all over the precious and pretty melodic moments delivered on the previous six tracks. The song is not lost on melody however, with Flynn’s hypnotic falsetto covering the chuggy verse like an opiate laced wine basted over a stuffed pig. ‘Game Over’ smacks of bitterness and regret lyrically, quite obviously being an elegy to the friendship between Flynn and Duce. As Flynn cries “Another time, when music’s all we had, bonded by anger and addictions, so glad, always together, but no words are spoken, this is the sound of a friendship broken”, it’s hard to imagine it being anything but. Flynn also took to the mic in the past to deal with former guitarist Logan Mader ’s departure with the Sabbath infused ‘Devil With the King’s Card’ from The Burning Red , so this comes as no surprise. The only downside to this album is the sprinkled on patriotism of ‘In Comes the Flood’. The majority of the music is superb, with the use of orchestra in the beginning and the cascading classical melodies on the tail of the main riff. The problem is the uninspired populist ranting over the top of everything, especially the tired sounding “Wake up, America!” over a riff that drags harder than Ru Paul. Leaving this track off the album would have eschewed a perfect score. Despite this setback, Machine Head have delivered yet another classic addition to their catalog to rival and revel in the most triumphant moments of their career. ? Machine Head’s Bloodstone & Diamonds gets… 4.5/5 -DW

David Draiman’s Device: First Single ‘Vilify’ Leaks

Facebook – Device In this day and age in the music industry, it’s hard for bands to keep songs under wraps before their official release. Disturbed singer David Draiman ‘s new band Device are no exception, with the first single ‘Vilify’ off their self-titled debut hitting YouTube today (Feb. 17). Listen below. Draiman himself acknowledged the leak via a Twitter post, even including the YouTube link for his fans to hear the song. “It’s out there, so I might as well share it,” tweeted the singer in his usual all caps. As for the song itself, ‘Vilify’ features the rapid-fire vocals Draiman has delivered with Disturbed for more than a decade. Musically, the aggressive tune boasts industrial rock and electronic elements, as Draiman has indicated when he began talking about the direction of Device’s music. Lyrically, Draiman sings of a relationship gone bad, with a chorus that declares, “When you vilify / You begin to nullify / Everything that we’ve ever done / You’re f—ing with my head.” All told, Disturbed fans will likely embrace ‘Vilify,’ as it incorporates Draiman’s trademark vocals while adding a fresh sound to his repertoire. The leak of the song should only increase anticipation for Device’s self-titled debut album. The disc drops April 9 and features such guest musicians as Black Sabbath’s Geezer Butler, System of a Down’s Serj Tankian,  Avenged Sevenfold’s M. Shadows and Halestorm’s Lzzy Hale, among others. ‘Vilify’ officially hits radio on Tuesday, Feb. 19, but, with Draiman’s permission, you can listen to the song below and let us know what you think of the tune in our comments section. Device, ‘Vilify’ [button href=”http://loudwire.com/david-draiman-device-fan-support-disturbed-future/” title=”Next: David Draiman Talks Device and Future of Disturbed” align=”center”]

Black Sabbath’s Tony Iommi + Queen’s Brian May Plan to Collaborate on Guitar Riffs Album

Paul Kane / Daniele Venturelli, Getty Images Two masters of the guitar are apparently making plans to create a “riffs” album. Black Sabbath ‘s Tony Iommi and Queen’s Brian May are expected to begin this riffs record soon, which will allow fans to build their own songs using the recordings. What if you had the men who wrote ‘Iron Man’ or ‘Bohemian Rhapsody’ in your very own musical project? You’d be a made man! The riff masters are bonafide legends, and will break new ground once again with this new idea. The Iommi / May project was meant to be kept a secret for a while longer, but Iommi accidentally broke the news earlier than expected. “When are we going to get to work on that album of riffs together?,” Iommi asked May in the Kerrang! interview. “You know what I’m talking about.” May replies, “Yes, I do know what he’s talking about, and I’m very, very keen. The record he’s talking about what supposed to be a secret, but I guess he’s blown it now.” [via NME ] May came up with the idea for the record after visiting Iommi’s studio, noticing the massive amount of unreleased material the Sabbath guitarist has conjured over the years. “I thought it would be great to make a compilation out of them,” May says about the demos. “The idea was to put all these riffs out in some form so that people could build their own songs from them. You could make your own music with Tony Iommi on guitar!” There’s no word on when fans can expect the album to be recorded or released, but Black Sabbath followers will be gifted with the new album, ’13,’ in June. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/black-sabbath-first-look-studio-sessions-new-album-13/” title=”Black Sabbath Reveal Look at Studio Sessions for New Studio Album ’13′” align=”center”]

Win a 10 Years / Young Guns Tour Prize Pack!

Liz Ramanand, Loudwire / Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com 10 Years  and  Young Guns  are embarking on a joint tour and we’re teaming up with both bands to offer fans the chance to win an amazing prize pack in conjunction with the U.S. trek. By entering our contest, you could end up with a 10 Years tour t-shirt, autographed CD, an autographed 10 Years poster and an autographed 10 Years vinyl LP. But that’s only half of it, as a Young Guns t-shirt, an autographed Young Guns CD, a Young Guns wristband and a Young Guns watch are also included in this packed-full merchandise prize pack. The two bands hit the road together Feb. 18 in Nashville, with shows booked into March. Check out a promo video for the tour, as well as the full itinerary, below. 10 Years are currently supporting their 2012 effort, ‘Minus the Machine,’ which arrived back in August. The group’s latest single, ‘Dancing With the Dead,’ has rocking radio for a while now. Meanwhile, Young Guns are enjoying a breakout year with their new album ‘Bones’ and the rapidly ascending title track from the disc. Having made some inroads on the U.S. touring circuit last year, the U.K. outfit hope to continue that momentum on the 10 Years trek. So how would you like this package of 10 Years and Young Guns autographed merchandise? To enter to win the shirts, CDs and assorted items, follow @loudwire , @10years + @YoungGunsUK  on Twitter and retweet this announcement of the contest by March 16. We’ll choose a winner at random. Good luck! If you’d rather guarantee yourself entry into one of the shows, tickets are available for purchase here . Watch the 10 Years / Young Guns Tour Trailer 10 Years / Young Guns 2013 North American Tour Dates: 2/18 — Nashville, Tenn. — Exit/In 2/19 — Columbia, Mo. — Blue Note 2/21 — Colorado Springs, Colo. — The Black Sheep 2/22 — Denver, Colo. — Marquis Theatre 2/23 — Salt Lake City, Utah — In the Venue 2/24 — Boise, Idaho — Knitting Factory 2/26 — Spokane, Wash. — Knitting Factory 2/27 — Seattle, Wash. — Studio Seven 3/2 — Reno, Nev. — Knitting Factory 3/3 — Sacramento, Calif. — Ace of Spades 3/5 — Los Angeles, Calif. — The Roxy 3/6 — Las Vegas, Nev. — Vinyl 3/8 — Tempe, Ariz. — The Marquee 3/9 — Flagstaff, Ariz — Orpheum 3/10 — Farmington, N.M. — Top Deck 3/12 — Tulsa, Okla. — The Vanguard 3/13 — Dallas, Texas — Trees 3/15 — San Antonio, Texas — Backstage Live (NO YOUNG GUNS) 3/16 – Houston, Texas — Scout Bar (NO YOUNG GUNS)

Win a 10 Years / Young Guns Tour Prize Pack!

Liz Ramanand, Loudwire / Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com 10 Years  and  Young Guns  are embarking on a joint tour and we’re teaming up with both bands to offer fans the chance to win an amazing prize pack in conjunction with the U.S. trek. By entering our contest, you could end up with a 10 Years tour t-shirt, autographed CD, an autographed 10 Years poster and an autographed 10 Years vinyl LP. But that’s only half of it, as a Young Guns t-shirt, an autographed Young Guns CD, a Young Guns wristband and a Young Guns watch are also included in this packed-full merchandise prize pack. The two bands hit the road together Feb. 18 in Nashville, with shows booked into March. Check out a promo video for the tour, as well as the full itinerary, below. 10 Years are currently supporting their 2012 effort, ‘Minus the Machine,’ which arrived back in August. The group’s latest single, ‘Dancing With the Dead,’ has rocking radio for a while now. Meanwhile, Young Guns are enjoying a breakout year with their new album ‘Bones’ and the rapidly ascending title track from the disc. Having made some inroads on the U.S. touring circuit last year, the U.K. outfit hope to continue that momentum on the 10 Years trek. So how would you like this package of 10 Years and Young Guns autographed merchandise? To enter to win the shirts, CDs and assorted items, follow @loudwire , @10years + @YoungGunsUK  on Twitter and retweet this announcement of the contest by March 16. We’ll choose a winner at random. Good luck! If you’d rather guarantee yourself entry into one of the shows, tickets are available for purchase here . Watch the 10 Years / Young Guns Tour Trailer 10 Years / Young Guns 2013 North American Tour Dates: 2/18 — Nashville, Tenn. — Exit/In 2/19 — Columbia, Mo. — Blue Note 2/21 — Colorado Springs, Colo. — The Black Sheep 2/22 — Denver, Colo. — Marquis Theatre 2/23 — Salt Lake City, Utah — In the Venue 2/24 — Boise, Idaho — Knitting Factory 2/26 — Spokane, Wash. — Knitting Factory 2/27 — Seattle, Wash. — Studio Seven 3/2 — Reno, Nev. — Knitting Factory 3/3 — Sacramento, Calif. — Ace of Spades 3/5 — Los Angeles, Calif. — The Roxy 3/6 — Las Vegas, Nev. — Vinyl 3/8 — Tempe, Ariz. — The Marquee 3/9 — Flagstaff, Ariz — Orpheum 3/10 — Farmington, N.M. — Top Deck 3/12 — Tulsa, Okla. — The Vanguard 3/13 — Dallas, Texas — Trees 3/15 — San Antonio, Texas — Backstage Live (NO YOUNG GUNS) 3/16 – Houston, Texas — Scout Bar (NO YOUNG GUNS)

2013 Grammy Award Winners

Kevork Djansezian / Jason Merrit, Getty Images On Sunday night (Feb. 10) at the 2013 Grammy Awards in Los Angeles, the big winners in the rock categories were the Black Keys and Halestorm . The Black Keys took home trophies for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song for their hit ‘Lonely Boy,’ which they also performed during the ceremony, while also winning the award for Best Rock Album (‘El Camino’). Additionally, frontman Dan Auerbach won Producer of the Year. The Black Keys were also nominated for Record of the Year and Album of the Year, but lost out in those categories to Gotye and Mumford & Sons, respectively. Halestorm, meanwhile, beat out a slew of veteran acts to earn the Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance for their No. 1 active rock hit ‘Love Bites (So Do I).’ During their backstage Q&A in the press room, frontwoman Lzzy Hale said, “It’s an incredible genre to be a part of because rock isn’t always the most popular genre. Sometimes we’re underground, but we all work really hard on the road. We all look out for one another.” Also among the winners was Nine Inch Nails mastermind Trent Reznor , who shared the award for Best Score Soundtrack with Atticus Ross. Reznor didn’t attend the event, but Tweeted, “Why thanks, y’all.” Below is a list of all the winners in rock categories at the 55th Grammy Awards: 2013 Grammy Awards Rock Categories – Winners in Blue Best Hard Rock / Metal Performance Anthrax, ‘I’m Alive Iron Maiden, ‘Blood Brothers’ Halestorm, ‘Love Bites (So Do I)’ Lamb of God, ‘Ghost Walking’ Marilyn Manson, ‘No Reflection’ Megadeth, ‘Who’s Life Is It Anyways?’ Album of the Year The Black Keys, ‘El Camino’ Fun., ‘Some Nights’ Mumford & Sons, ‘Babel’ Frank Ocean, ‘Channel Orange’ Jack White, ‘Blunderbuss’ Best Rock Performance Alabama Shakes, ‘Hold On’ The Black Keys, ‘Lonely Boy’ Coldplay, ‘Charlie Brown’ Mumford & Sons, ‘I Will Wait’ Bruce Springsteen, ‘We Take Care of Our Own’ Best Rock Song Jack White, ‘Freedom at 21′ Mumford & Sons, ‘I Will Wait’ The Black Keys, ‘Lonely Boy’ Muse, ‘Madness’ Bruce Springsteen, ‘We Take Care of Our Own’ Best Rock Album The Black Keys, ‘El Camino’ Coldplay, ‘Mylo Xyloto’ Muse, ‘The 2nd Law’ Bruce Springsteen, ‘Wrecking Ball’ Jack White, ‘Blunderbuss’ Producer of the Year Dan Auerbach (The Black Keys, Dr. John, Hacienda) Jeff Bhasker (fun.) Diplo (Usher, Major Lazer, Snoop Lion, Marina and the Diamonds, Santigold, No Doubt, Wale, Justin Bieber, Alex Clare) Markus Dravs (Mumford & Sons, Coldplay) Salaam Remi (Anthony Hamilton, Amy Winehouse, Alicia Keys & Nicki Minaj, Miguel, Nas, Melanie Fiona, Usher) Best Score Soundtrack for Visual Media Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross, ‘The Girl With the Dragon Tattoo John Williams, ‘The Adventures of Tintin’ Ludovic Bource, ‘The Artist’ Hans Zimmer, ‘The Dark Knight Rises’ Howard Shore, ‘Hugo’ Austin Wintory, ‘Journey’ Full List of 55th Annual Grammy Winners [button href=”http://loudwire.com/category/grammys/” title=”Full 2013 Grammys Coverage” align=”center”]