Zak Bagans Entertainment Most know Zak Bagans as the host of the Travel Channel paranormal series, ‘Ghost Adventures,’ but he’s taking his expeditions a step further by teaming with Lords of Acid’s Praga Khan to create a spirit-filled album called ‘NecroFusion.’ The newly released album features eleven new songs that tell the stories of departed souls who have yet to cross over into the afterlife. Armed with his SB7 Spirit Box, Bagans has been able to record “electronic voice phenomena,” known as EVP, over the years and he’s showcased some of those cases on ‘Ghost Adventures.’ However, the idea came about over time for Bagans to translate those voices in a different kind of way, and that’s where Khan came into the fold. Loudwire caught up with Bagans, who shared how the idea initially came about, if he thinks that by making the album he’s helping some of the spirits to cross over, and he shares one of his more terrifying experiences researching spirits at a music store. Can you discuss how the idea to record this album came about and how you ended up working with Praga Khan from Lords of Acid? The idea behind ‘NecroFusion’ came about when Praga Khan of Lords of Acid contacted me after I started making a bunch of Twitter posts about how big a fan I was. Lords of Acid was my favorite band in high school and Praga is a true pioneer of that style of electronic music. He’s done songs for films like ‘Austin Powers,’ ‘Basic Instinct,’ [and] ‘Virtuosity.’ He’s a legend. I started tweeting how I was a big fan of Lords of Acid, and his manager contacted me and asked if I wanted to do vocals for a song called ‘Paranormal Energy’ on the band’s ‘Deep Chills’ album. Apparently Praga was experiencing some paranormal events in his studio in Brussels, and things just fell into place. So I went down to L.A., I recorded with Chris Vrenna from Nine Inch Nails and Marilyn Manson and we did that song, it turned out really good, it hit the Top 5 in the Electronic music charts, it was a big hit. After that, it’s been revolutionary, and my paranormal research with these spirit voices that I’ve been getting — I use a couple of different devices, the SB7 Spirit Box, and also a digital recorder. About two years ago, we started getting absolutely insane, crystal-clear, intelligent voices from the dead. I tried debunking it. I’m very skeptical of our own evidence until we find those logical explanations to prove it as paranormal. Once we were able to put these voices up on a wavelength so you can see the waveform in an audio program, you can see that the spirit voices were laid on top of these sweeps through the Spirit Box, so we eliminated it as any contamination. The voices were intelligent, we had voices give us details about a murder-rape that happened in the 1970s in Denver that we shared with the Denver police department, and they were absolutely astounded by the findings. I’ve had another spirit tell me what color light that was making our electro-magnetic detector go off, and I established visual communications. So it’s 100 percent, and now that I know I’m documenting these spirit voices, I thought it would be a great way for the most powerful vocal messages of our time to be combined with music, the most powerful way to send a message. If you think about it, when you listen to music — music makes you cry, it makes you happy, it makes you dance, it makes you mad, those are the same emotions that I experience when I feel the energy of a spirit when I’m contacting the spirit and communicating with it. So it’s a full supernatural experience while you listen to these songs. Praga obviously has the musical background with Lords of Acid, but many of the samples he’s using came from you and what you’ve recorded. How much input did you have into deciding what would and would not be used for the record and can you talk about the process of putting the songs together? I had a lot of input on every song. Ideally, every single spirit chose the lyrics for every single track. At times, I would be sitting doing hundreds and hundreds of sessions because you don’t always get spirit voices. Over the course of a year, I did hundreds of sessions, maybe in one session at one haunted location I’d ask 150 questions, I’d get no response. Another time I’d ask another 150 questions and maybe I’d get a spirit response from two questions. So I had to take those two questions and use them for a song, and I never knew which questions would be answered by the spirit. That’s why I say that the spirits answered the questions and chose the lyrics for the songs. What’s really interesting is that once I got the spirit voices, I would then tell Praga the emotions that I was feeling during that time, because when I communicate with spirits, I feel that spirit’s energy. They don’t have a body. They don’t have a mouth. It’s just their energy. And so, if the spirit was angry, if it was sad, I would feel that energy. I would explain that to Praga and together we would choose the right tone and tempo of the music and the display and the presentation, so that the listener could be calibrated with that emotional level, that experience of when I was communicating with that spirit, and the emotion from the tone of the spirit, so it’s a full, emotional, personal experience. The spirit voices are complimented by the music that is establishing the emotional tone originally set by the spirit. So, you have the full-on experience. And you never know, you’re listening to these spirit voices, and the spirit may know that you’re listening to the music and their voices, so you’re really helping the spirit to be at rest and have closure and maybe be free from being trapped, just by your listening to the song. The music has so many different purposes. Obviously you’re used to hearing the electronic voice phenomena that you’ve recorded over the years, but what was it like the first time you heard it put to music? The first time I heard the EVPs put into music, it was awesome. On my show, ‘Ghost Adventures,’ you just hear the voice. You’re not there so you don’t get the full experience. You don’t feel the energy of that spirit that’s talking to you. I like to say it’s like being in a bubble – you lose track of time, you lose track of everything. It’s like being in the afterlife, but you’re still alive. You can feel that, and it’s actually a great feeling. Sometimes it’s scary as s—, too. But the first time I heard it in music, it put me back in that moment of feeling the energy when I captured the voice. The spirit voices are immortalized through the music, but the music brings you that emotional energy as well, what I feel when I talk to those spirits. So I’m bringing that full, first experience to you as you listen to it. Having completed the ‘NecroFusion’ album, do you think that it’s helped any of those whose voices are heard on the disc or was this just an interesting thing to put music to? Yes, I believe I’m helping these spirits to possibly be free from being trapped, being stuck here by allowing their voices to be heard. If you think about it, I believe a lot of spirits are trapped, because they’ve been trying for 100, 200, 300 years to tell somebody a clue to their unsolved murder, or just something they need to say or they want to contact someone. So now, with the evolution of technology, I believe that’s to my benefit. The technology that I’m using, we’re able now to tap into these spirit frequencies and listen to them. It’s no different from a cell phone, or being able to send a picture or a video through space. This technology is now allowing us to tap into these frequencies and hear these spirits, and I think it’s helping these spirits. On the track ‘Sing for Me,’ where you hear the female sing — when I was conversing with her — I tried for months to get a spirit to sing a song, and once this woman did — you can even hear her go, “I … sing …,” and then she gives us a note. I don’t know what she’s singing, but during that moment, I remember I was very emotional, extremely emotional. And the tone of the music in that song reflects my emotional experience when it was happening. I believe that putting these spirit voices in this music is helping to free them because their voices are finally being heard. Not only that, but I’ve already gotten tons of feedback from people saying ‘thank you so much, I had a friend who committed suicide, you’re now giving me that closure that I needed to know that there’s an afterlife.’ I’m helping the dead and I’m helping the living with this music. You talk about many of your demonic encounters happening at Bobby Mackey’s Music World, and in particular one case that inspired the song ‘Poor Pearl’ (as seen in the video below). Would you discuss your research into Pearl and your thoughts after hearing the demonic response to whether or not she was fine? For some reason, my investigations at Bobby Mackey’s, Pearl Bryan was very sad. We did an investigation there, and one of the EVPs we captured, you hear a girl crying, and they you hear a male voice going, ‘Precious … No.’ Pearl Bryan was murdered by her boyfriend –- Scott Jackson and Alonzo Walling were two devil worshippers who killed Pearl –- it was a documented case. When they were being hung in the gallows, they said that they would forever haunt Bobby Mackeys [the building that today is Bobby Mackey’s club was a slaughterhouse when the murder was committed). I believe that it is those two spirits who haunt that building today. I believe that the EVP we recorded there was Pearl, and it makes me sad to think that she may be being held hostage there, that she’s trapped there, being held there by these two evil spirits. I believe that these two spirits opened a portal to all of the demonic attacks that have taken place at Bobby Mackeys. Bobby Mackey is a strange guy. He doesn’t believe in the hauntings there, yet he’s had 19 sworn affidavits from police officers, clergy, officials who have signed their names to having had paranormal experiences there that were all demonic. But Bobby is the only one who hasn’t had a paranormal experience — the only one who doesn’t believe in it — yet every single person in his family has had severe experiences there. So I thought it would be a great idea for him to do a song with me and dedicate it to Pearl Bryan, so that’s what we did. I actually documented a voice, I believe that the spirits of Scott Jackson and Alonzo Walling have followed me, have attached themselves to me, having caused my demonic possession at Bobby Mackeys, to where I had to have a demonic exorcism performed on me. It’s been a horrific place. At one point during the investigation and on the song, I said ‘I think Pearl is safe now…’ and unexpectedly, we got a crystal-clear voice that said, ‘Is she?’ mocking me in a sarcastic manner, and I believe it was the voice of one of the two guys who killed her and chopped her head off and threw it down the basement’s well that was used by the slaughterhouse to drain all of the blood into the Licking River. So I believe that they opened up that place to hell. I believe that they came through and said, ‘Is she?’ What was the most interesting track on this album for you and can you explain why it stands out? ‘Demonator.’ I did that song to say ‘f-you’ to the demons who have wreaked havoc in my life. The track starts with two EVPs who were captured during a live event. These EVPs were witnessed by about 25 people as they were captured in real time by a Spirit Box. My friend Tara, her daughter’s voice came through saying ‘mommy’ and Tara immediately knew it was her daughter who was back home. That’s what they like to do, these demons, they like to f–k with you, mess with you, they like to mock your voices. The second voice you’ll hear on ‘Demonator’ goes ‘Guys, be careful.’ That’s MY voice that was captured at the event as well. The problem was, I was in the basement doing an investigation with 15 people, and that voice was captured upstairs with Dave Schrader [fellow paranormal investigator] and another group of people, and the demon was mocking me and used my voice. So I thought it would record a track and dedicate it to all those demons who tried scaring me with these voices. Now I use these voices in a badass song called ‘Demonator.’ You can pick up Zak Bagans Vs. Praga Khan’s ‘NecroFusion’ album via iTunes here . Watch Zak Bagans Talking About His Connection With Spirits
A&M/Octone ‘New Horizons’ is the third studio album from Flyleaf , and the final one for vocalist Lacey Sturm. Just a few days before the album’s release, it was announced Sturm would be leaving the band and would be replaced by Kristen May. Sturm explained her departure. “I am very thankful to have recently become a mom to one of the greatest blessings of my life, my son Jack. You may have also heard that we recently lost our brilliant sound engineer, Rich Caldwell, in a devastating car accident. Now, more than ever, I understand the phrase Memento Mori. I understand that, for me, living life to the fullest in this season means to step down as the lead singer for Flyleaf.’ Sturm is exiting on a high note with ‘New Horizons.’ It’s packed with melodic and catchy rock and hard rock. It’s also a focused effort, just 11 songs clocking in at 36 minutes. That’s considerably shorter than 2009‘s ‘Memento Mori,’ which had an expanded edition that was an hour long. The brevity on ‘New Horizons’ works to Flyleaf’s advantage. The filler is minimal, and it’s always good to leave them wanting more. There’s a variety of styles on the album as well, giving it plenty of diversity. The title track is straight ahead pop/rock, very accessible and instantly memorable. As with Flyleaf’s previous albums, Howard Benson produced ‘New Horizons.’ He has worked with bands such as Halestorm , Skillet and Three Days Grace , and knows how to blend pop hooks with guitar based rock. Tracks like ‘Call You Out’ have a bit of a Halestorm vibe, with Sturm singing more aggressively. The harder-edged tracks are where guitarists Sameer Bhattacharya and Jared Hartmann excel. Flyleaf approach metal territory with ‘Green Heart,’ which is probably the most aggressive track they have done. The guitar duo is able to shift smoothly from gritty riffs on that song to more shimmering tones on mellower songs such as ‘Cage on the Ground.’ Sturm’s strongest performance is on ‘Freedom.’ She transitions from earnest to aggressive and back again, showing both vulnerability and attitude. Her voice has a unique and distinctive sound, which will be hard to replace. ‘New Horizons’ ( available at iTunes ) is a bittersweet album for Flyleaf fans. Sturm’s exit is a bitter pill to swallow, but the band has delivered some of the strongest songs of their career. It’s a great legacy for Sturm, and provides ample hope for for the future of the group. ?
Metal Blade Metal Blade Records founder Brian Slagel took some time to chat with us recently about a ton of different topics. Having had a very strong year in 2012, including releases from Between the Buried and Me , Six Feet Under , Cannibal Corpse , As I Lay Dying + many more, we got to pick the brain of Slagel about all things metal. Along with Metal Blade’s 2012 releases, Slagel spoke with us about competition in the business of metal music, GWAR continuing on after the death of guitarist Cory ‘Flattus Maximus’ Smoot , releasing the first ever Metallica song + much more. Check out our exclusive interview with Metal Blade Records head honcho, Brian Slagel. Between the Buried and Me just released ‘The Parallax II: Future Sequence’ and it’s an amazing record. When was the moment that you knew that you needed to sign this band, once they became free agents? I’ve always been a huge fan of theirs, we’ve had so many bands that have toured with them and I’ve seen them around. I’ve hung out with them so I always liked them not only as a band, but because they are really, really good people. Pretty much what happened was, I didn’t even know that they were free agents, but one of the managers that we work with a lot, this guy named Paul Conroy, he ended up managing them and he called me up and said, “Would you be interested in signing Between the Buried and Me?” I said, “Are you kidding me? In a heartbeat!” So it came pretty quick and we were able to put it together just great because we all love those guys. It was really that simple? Was there any sort of bidding war for them or did they just jump straight on? Luckily for us they really wanted to be at Metal Blade, so there wasn’t a huge bidding war or anything. I think basically what had happened was the band and the management decided, “Well let’s go to Metal Blade if they’re interested and if they just give us basically what we want then just go there!” It was really super easy and like I said, I was unbelievably happy because I always have been a huge fan of those guys. Metal Blade has definitely had a strong year with new Cannibal Corpse, Six Feet Under and As I Lay Dying records. The new Goatwhore record is phenomenal, along with Between the Buried and Me, of course. What’s your personal favorite Metal Blade release of 2012? Oh boy, that’s always difficult because I really do like all of them. I kind of go through phases; if you would have asked me six months ago I would have said Cannibal Corpse, and then if you asked me four months ago I’d probably have said Six Feet Under, and a couple of months ago it would have been As I Lay Dying. My current favorite now is the Between the Buried and Me record because I’ve been listening to it over and over and over again. We get these records really early so I tried not to overdo it. I wanted to wait until closer to the release date, so for the last week or two, I’ve been listening to it non-stop. So, as of today, I will say Between the Buried and Me. One of your most legendary bands is Gwar and the majority of their albums have been put out on Metal Blade. They’re starting another tour with their new guitarist Pustulus Maximus. How has the band been dealing with having to replace the late Cory Smoot? That’s never a fun thing to do. Cory was such a great guy and losing him so suddenly was horrible. Those guys definitely have done an amazing job of how they’ve handled it. I mean, it was obviously hugely difficult for them, but I think doing a tour without Cory and kind of doing it as this big tribute to him was really amazing and they’ve retired the character and got a new guy in there. I think that everything that they’ve done has been right. Whenever we talked about this stuff and they said, “Hey this is what we’re thinking about doing,” I said all along the way, “I think you guys are doing the right thing.” So as difficult as it is I think they did a really impeccable job of remembering Cory and celebrating his life. He will always be a part of that band because he was such a huge intricate force for them for so long. I think they’ve done a really good job, I think they’ve done it classy and in the right way. When they really got a chance to sit down, did they ever just consider remaining a four-piece or did they know they’d become a five-piece once again when they found the right guy? Well, definitely the right guy was a huge issue. I think the way that so many of the songs were written, you need to have a five-piece, and also it takes a lot of the pressure off of Mike Derks. He’s a phenomenal guitar player and I think he did a great job while they were doing it as a four-piece. He didn’t really go and say, “I’m missing a lot,” but they do need that extra thing there. So much of the stuff that Corey had a big hand in was stuff that you need two guitar players for, so they knew that they had to do it, but they had to get the right guy and they definitely took their time before doing it. Unfortunately, with that band, there’s been a few guys in and out [Laughs] so they’re a little used to that. Another landmark for Metal Blade was when As I Lay Dying released “Frail Words Collapse,” which sort of launched them into the stratosphere of metalcore. Were you surprised to see how huge that they became? Yeah, you never think that things can get as big as they were, but we did really feel something. It’s kind of funny when you look back on things; it seems like every turn of every 10 years, every decade, there seems to be some new stuff coming in. You know, we felt like with bands like As I Lay Dying and Unearth and that crop of metalcore or whatever you want to call it; bands that we felt like were something really new and cool and fresh and we love the sound, and the As I Lay Dying guys are really smart and made a good record. We knew it was going to do well, but we never would have predicted they would have become as big as they have. I wanted to ask about one of your lesser known bands, but still a very fantastic band, Ipsissimus. What is their future with Metal Blade going to be like? It’s cool that you like them, they’re an awesome band and those guys are really great dudes. It’s hard to say; it’s not really a “band band,” so it’s kind of a project, but those things are always difficult to do. They’re fun to do because it’s really good music, but without a lot of touring and other commitments they make, it’s kind of difficult to do. So, it’s a good question; it’s really up to them and I think we’ll see how far they want to take it and what they want to do with it. Metal Blade was the first label to ever put out a Metallica song — on that first ‘Metal Massacre’ compilation. What was it like seeing an act that was just a local band at the time turn into legitimately one of the biggest metal acts ever? [Laughs] It’s still crazy when you think about it. I was friends with Lars before there even was a band; I knew those guys before they existed, so it’s still pretty surreal. I’m still friends with all of them and Lars and I are still good friends. When they get to these milestones like the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame and some of these other milestones, we end up getting together and just sitting around and going, “How did all of this happen?” It’s amazing but it’s also a huge testament as to how dedicated, smart, and talented those guys are. I mean, they get bashed here and there, obviously from other different things, but those guys are the same people today as they were 30 years ago — same guys. They haven’t been affected by everything else. I think they did an incredible job of kind of pulling up that flag for a long period of time so yes, it’s pretty crazy. I’m just insanely grateful to play a small part in it and those guys have been nothing but great to me. Do you credit any one band that kickstarted and really made Metal Blade records? It’s hard to say. Obviously the first ‘Metal Massacre’ with the Ratt, Metallica and stuff certainly helped paved the way. I think in the early days there were probably three separate things that happened; the ‘Armored Saint EP’ that we did and they immediately got signed at Chrysalis Records, that was the third or fourth release that we’d done. Both Chrysalis and the band were really good about giving us a lot of credit, so that really helped us in national magazines and stuff. Probably ‘Show No Mercy’ by Slayer was the first record that we put out where we really got to that next level, so the building process of the label kind of came, that was kind of the next step. I can’t really pinpoint one thing because it was such a small growth process, but certainly the first ‘Metal Massacre’ and that Armored Saint release was big in giving us that exposure. Back then, independent labels were just tiny and nobody knew that we existed. Are there any other labels you feel like you’re in constant competition with in terms of continually signing great bands and releasing both classic and modern albums? I guess theoretically we’re competitors with all of the labels, but we’re also all fans, so we’re kind of all in this together. So whether it’s Century Media, Nuclear Blast, Relapse … There are times where we compete for bands, where there’s a band and there are two or three labels working with them, but it’s never gets to a bidding war because I think all of us work together all the time. We have bands that do tours together, so we know everybody really well and ultimately we’re all fans of the music and we all want it to be better, which I think is one of the reasons why the metal scene is pretty healthy, because we work together as opposed to “being competitors.” In your opinion, what direction do you see metal heading? I guess I should get my crystal ball out now. [Laughs] You know, I don’t know. It’s always really hard to say because I wish I could predict everything perfectly, but I definitely feel that bands that have real singing; that sort of thing is coming back quite a bit. A band for example like Ghost has gotten quite a lot of success and they’ve gotten this huge deal and stuff. Personally, I’m like that because I lived in the ’70s and ’80s so I love singing stuff. So many of the new bands that are coming out are doing that, but anything that’s kind of happening now all has a really big influence of the late ’70s and early ’80s, so whether that’s the more melodic stuff or there’s a lot of really cool thrash components, it’s kind of coming back again, that really old school thrash. Anything that has those sort of influences, it seems like these younger bands are taking that and making something fresh and interesting out of it. Newsletter Sign up Form Receive the latest rock and metal news via email! Email *
Paul Kane, Getty Images Formed shortly after the legendary singer’s death two years ago, the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund has raised hundreds of thousands of dollars for cancer research. The organization’s second Awards Gala is set for Halloween night (Oct. 31) at the Avalon in Hollywood, Calif. Performing at the ceremony will be the Dio Disciples, which includes former Dio members Craig Goldy (guitar), Simon Wright (drums) and Scott Warren (keyboards) along with vocalists Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens and Oni Logan and bassist Bjorn Englen. There will also be an all-star jam session including Joey Vera (Armored Saint), Billy Morrison (Billy Idol), Glenn Hughes (Black Country Communion), Frankie Banali (Quiet Riot), Stephen Pearcy (Ratt), Joey Belladonna (Anthrax), Michael Sweet and Oz Fox (Stryper,) David ‘Rock’ Feinstein and members of Buckcherry. Hughes, Banali, Pearcy, Belladonna and Feinstein are also awards presenters along with Geezer Butler (Black Sabbath) and Eddie Money. Butler’s bandmate Tony Iommi, who has been battling lymphoma, will receive one of the awards. In addition, Iommi donated a Gibson prototype guitar for the event’s silent auction. The performance troupe Cirque Berzerk will also perform at the Gala, and Eddie Trunk of VH1 Classic’s ‘That Metal Show’ will serve as emcee. General admission tickets start at $200 and are available at the organization’s official site . Dio’s widow Wendy is the president and founder of the Ronnie James Dio Stand Up and Shout Cancer Fund, dedicated to cancer prevention, research and education. The organization has already raised more than $500,000. Monies raised have been committed to the cancer research work of the T. J. Martell Foundation for Cancer, AIDS and Leukemia Research and the gastric cancer research unit of the M.D. Anderson Cancer Center in Houston, where Ronnie was treated for gastric cancer during the last six months of his life. In related news, the aforementioned Dio Disciples kick off a North American tour tonight (Oct. 23) in Seattle. The group will be out in support of the ‘The Very Beast of Dio Vol. 2′ collection that recently hit store shelves. Check out the full itinerary below and click here if you’d like to purchase the CD compilation. Dio Disciples Tour Dates: 10/23 El Corazon, Seattle WA 10/24 Hawthorne, Portland OR 10/26 Hard Rock On The Strip, Las Vegas NV 10/27 Club Red, Tempe AZ 10/28 Ventura Theater, Ventura CA 10/30 Brick By Brick, San Diego CA 10/31 Avalon Theater, Hollywood CA 2nd Annual RJD Stand Up And Shout Gala 11/03 House Of Rock, El Paso TX 11/04 Trees, Dallas TX 11/07 Underground, Sandusky OH 11/08 Pierre’s , Ft. Wayne IN 11/10 Harpo’s , Detroit MI 11/11 Tap House, Akron OH 11/13 Asylum, Portland ME 11/15 Starland, Sayerville NJ 11/16 The Met, Providence RI 11/17 Revolution, Amityville NY 11/18 The Chance, Poughkeepsie NY 11/20 Crocodile Rock, Allentown PA
Roadrunner Records Stone Sour singer Corey Taylor knew early on he wanted to do something special with their latest disc, and with ‘ House of Gold & Bones Part 1 ,’ the band doesn’t disappoint. In fact, this dark tale of a person’s inner battles getting over a traumatic relationship break leaves us yearning for more (thankfully, there will be a ‘Part 2′). The singer says of the disc , “It’s really a morality play. It’s about a person trying to find himself, or herself. You know, everyone in their lives finds themselves inevitably at a crossroads when it comes to a personal evolution and whatnot, trying to figure out what they want to do with the rest of their lives.” Much like a person trying to move on from a difficult split, ‘House of Gold & Bones Part 1′ plays like the emotions of that experience, spanning from bitter, vitriolic, and selfish to broken, mournful and depressive. Listeners got their first introduction with the release of the double-single, ‘Gone Sovereign’ and ‘Absolute Zero.’ The two songs lead off the album and descriptively show where the title character is at their life — a splintered shell of themselves feeling that every legend has been shattered in ‘Gone Sovereign’ and that they’re so filled with hate that there’s nothing left to offer in ‘Absolute Zero.’ Both tracks are filled with hard-hitting guitars courtesy of Josh Rand and James Root and at times powerful and thunderous drumming from Roy Mayorga. Rand recently stated , “‘House of Gold & Bones’ takes everything that’s great about this band and amplifies it. The riffs, the lyrics, the grooves and the songs are like Stone Sour times 10. There’s also heavy stuff that’s like nothing we’ve ever done before. It’s dark as hell and a complete experience from the first track to the last.” Taylor vocally is hitting on all cylinders with this album. ‘A Rumor of Skin’ shows him delivering a deeper register; ‘RU486′ and ‘Last of the Real’ unleash a full blast of his aggression; and ‘Taciturn’ allows the listener to feel every ounce of emotion he’s pouring into the track. ‘ Taciturn ‘ received its live debut by Taylor earlier this year, with the singer primarily on acoustic guitar. While it can pass as a solo song live, on the album there’s some extra pieces as the track builds from an intimate and sorrowful song into something more epic and filled-out by the end with Taylor begging, “ Give me a sign / Show me a light / Maybe tonight I’ll tell you everything .” ‘The Travelers, Pt. 1′ and ‘Tired’ also flow particularly well together in the middle of the record, with the string-backing coming to the forefront. ‘The Travelers, Pt. 1′ provides ‘A Day in the Life’-type conclusion to the title character’s downward spiral, while in ‘Tired,’ the strings pick up the pace and provide a building feel of the character’s increasing instability. While we’re not sure how many singles ‘House of Gold & Bones Part 1′ may have, that’s not the point of the record. Stone Sour have provided the story of a character’s personal voyage and their inner dialogue that works as one album-length idea, and in that aspect they have definitely succeeded and left us anxious to see where the story continues in ‘House of Gold & Bones Part 2.’
Ethan Miller, Getty Images Three Days Grace are usually pretty good about signing on for causes, but bassist Brad Walst has a personal reason for participating in the James Fund’s walk-run fundraiser for neuroblastoma research. His young son was diagnosed as having a cancerous neuroblastoma tumor several years ago. Walst will join the group of runners and walkers around the world in taking part in the international event on Oct. 28. He’s started a page where fans can sponsor his participation. It’s his goal to reach $3,000 in donations and at last check he’d raised 46 percent of the figure with just over $1,400 contributed. In the seven years the James Fund has been in existence over $275,000 has been raised for neuroblastoma research. Walst posted a photo of his son James rocking out at the Rockstar Uproar Tour earlier this year, along with his personal appeal for support. His message read: Hello Everyone… On October 28, 2012, I will be participating in the Walk/Run for The James Fund. Four years ago, my life was changed forever when I heard the dreaded news that my son James (who hadn’t even celebrated his second birthday yet) had neuroblastoma, one of the most devastating childhood cancers. When I look back on all that he has been through, it is still shocking to know that his tiny spine has been taken apart and put back together again (not once, but twice!) to rid his body of this awful disease. It has been over 3 years since his tumor has stabilized – James is one of the lucky ones. Not all children with neuroblastoma are as lucky, in fact the majority are not. This is the reason we support the James Fund. In the past 4 years the supporters of our team James Rocks! have raised over $65,000 for the Walk/Run! There are no words to express our extreme gratitude – THANK-YOU!! This year’s event will support a national Neuroblastoma Drug Discovery Project to discover new drugs to treat neuroblastoma. This project has many facets, from the lab bench to the clinic.?? There are no cures for neuroblastoma, and it is the goal of the Drug Discovery Project to discover an effective treatment to save our kids. Sincerely,? Brad Walst — Three Days Grace To find out more about the James Fund organization and the upcoming walk-run, check here . To make a personal donation sponsoring Walst, visit his sponsorship page here . [button href=”http://loudwire.com/three-days-grace-transit-of-venus-album-review/” title=”Next: Three Days Grace ‘Transit of Venus’ – Album Review” align=”center”]
Facebook: While She Sleeps UK act While She Sleeps are ready to break in America after winning Kerrang’s Best Newcomer Award . Now, in addition to getting to know the band, you can win a signed copy of While She Sleeps’ ‘This Is the Six’ album, as well as a bunch of other great items from the group’s label, The End Records. Included in the bundle is a Skull t-shirt, a Paradise Lost box set, a Cradle of Filth box set, two The End Records beer cozies, an AxeWound flat, an Audio Bullys bag, a “Here’s the Metal” hot sauce, and, of course, the While She Sleeps ‘This Is the Six’ signed CD. To learn a little more about While She Sleeps, check out our interview with the band, and then enter your details in the contest box at the bottom of the story for a chance to win The End Records Bundle Contest. We spoke with While She Sleeps guitarist Sean Long, who discussed the significance of their new album title, how they’re differentiating themselves from their peers, and what it was like to win the Kerrang award at such an early stage in their career. The title track, ‘This Is the Six,’ definitely has a special meaning for the band. Can you talk about where it comes from and if it was the obvious choice to be the first song heard off this record? It’s really hard to find an album title that is original and means something to you, we are really happy we landed on ‘This Is the Six.’ It basically means that we are the 5 and 6th member of the band is the crowd, our fans, anyone who has supported us in anyway, they are the six. So together we are part of the same this, THIS IS THE SIX! Guitarist Mat Welsh has stated that the band wants ‘This Is the Six’ to be an album that people grow up on? What were the qualities that drew you to the bands you listened to growing up and do you feel this album captures that, as well? Just music that stands out to me, I am a big fan of note selection. I believe the slightest change in note selection can change how you feel instantly so picking the right note for a certain song is very important. I really hope we have captured that because there are notes on that album that make me feel great and I get a feeling in my stomach that makes me love music. While She Sleeps have gotten some credit for thinking outside of the box in terms of their sound. What’s your take on the music scene and how do you differentiate yourself from other acts? I guess we just try our hardest to be different inside of all the music we love. I believe that all the music we listen to, which ranges from folk to metal, is captured in our music even without us knowing. You have a hard-rocking sound and there’s definitely a punk ethic to how the band addresses lyrical content. How much do you value having the platform to discuss things like politics, patriotism, and issues affecting the youth in your songs? I’d like to say at least we are singing about things that are real and that we are living in, things we all have experienced and about our lives as friends. The more people who like our band, the bigger voice we will have to let everyone know our opinions and join us! What are a few of your favorite songs off the record and can you discuss why they stand out to you? If I picked one I’d be lying to myself. I honestly love them all so much. We all really surprised ourselves with this so we listen to it like another band. Haha, but why not you know, we are very proud of it and love what we have created. What did winning the Kerrang Best Newcomer Award mean to you this early in your career? You have no idea. I cried for a start and I rarely cry. It just felt so amazing to know that what we are doing is real and people are actually agreeing with what we are doing. It was the best day of my life for sure! Fans wishing to check out While She Sleeps’ ‘This Is The Six’ album can currently pre-order the effort here . To enter to win a signed copy of the disc, along with items from Audio Bullys, AxeWound, Paradise Lost, Cradle of Filth and more as part of The End Record contest bundle, be sure to enter your information in the box provided below: While She Sleeps + The End Records Giveaway Enter your e-mail address for a chance to win a singed copy of While She Sleeps’ ‘This Is the Six’ CD plus a Skull t-shirt, a Paradise Lost box set, a Cradle of Filth box set, two The End Records beer cozies, an AxeWound flat, an Audio Bullys bag, a “Here’s the Metal” hot sauce. Contest ends Nov. 19, 2012. Click here for official rules . By entering this contest, you will receive email newsletters from Loudwire. You may unsubscribe at any time. Email Watch While She Sleeps’ ‘This Is the Six’ Video