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.’
Dave Hogan, Getty Images It has been a while since we’ve heard anything about the progress of Black Sabbath ‘s upcoming album , but Metal Injection has uncovered some details about the recordings, including a song title. Sabbath are working on the album at Shangri La Studios in Malibu, Calif. As previously reported, 15 songs have been recorded, and now bassist Geezer Butler revealed to SiriusXM’s Jose Mangin that 12 will make the album, with the other three likely being used as bonus tracks for special editions. Ozzy Osbourne is currently recording vocals with Rick Rubin. Butler is writing all the lyrics, and the two are working to complete the songs in five track increments. They are reportedly working on the first five now. One song title has been confirmed – ‘God Is Dead.’ Guitarist Tony Iommi completed all 15 guitar tracks during the band’s sessions in England earlier this year. As for Iommi’s health, Ozzy told Mangin that he spoke to Iommi recently and he is in good spirits and recovery is coming along very well from his cancer treatments earlier this year. Drummer Bill Ward has not been part of the Sabbath reunion because of a contract dispute , and it looks like he won’t be. If the guitar tracks are done, most likely the drum tracks have been finished, as well, although the band has not confirmed that. Snippets of Mangin’s interview with Ozzy and Geezer will begin airing on Ozzy’s Boneyard (SiriusXM channel 38) starting next week. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/black-sabbath-release-pro-shot-2012-performance-of-paranoid-live-in-birmingham-england/” title=”Next: Black Sabbath Unleash Pro-Shot Performance of ‘Paranoid'” align=”center”]
Liz Ramanand, Loudwire Clutch have been quiet as of late, but the band is ready to emerge from the studio with their latest chugging opus, ‘Earth Rocker.’ The group just completed the effort, and they currently have circled March 2013 on their calendar to release the disc. Singer Neil Fallon tells Antiquiet , “Last minute overdubs are fun — Harmonicas, tambourines (yes, we use those), claps, the odd backing vocal. Recording can be monotonous, so those unintended moments can be a lot of fun. It’s kind of like kindergarten music class, but with beer. And sometimes the spontaneity of a last ditch idea breathes a lot of life back into a song that we’ve been beating up for weeks on end. A looming deadline can be a great muse!” As for the sound, the frontman adds, “It has a lot in common with ‘Blast Tyrant’ in that Machine’s production techniques are really unique. It differs from ‘Blast Tyrant’ and a lot of other Clutch records in that, overall, the songs are faster and concise.” With the record ready to go, Clutch will get their live chops in order. The band has booked a handful of late October/early November shows in the Midwest, and will also take part in a late year holiday tour in the period between Christmas and New Year’s Eve. After that, the group will head to Europe for January and February dates before ‘Earth Rocker’s’ March release. Clutch Tour With Lionize and Monstro 10/31 — Flint, Mich. — Machine Shop 11/1 — Flint, Mich. — Machine Shop 11/2 — Joliet, Ill. — Mojoes 11/3 — Detroit, Mich. — St. Andrews Hall 11/4 –Detroit, Mich. — St. Andrews Hall Holiday Tour With Mondo Generator, Saviors and Wino 12/26 — Washington, D.C. — 9:30 Club 12/27 — Asheville, N.C. — Orange Peel 12/28 — Lexington, Ky. — Buster’s Billiards & Backroom 12/29 — Columbus, Ohio — Newport Music Hall 12/30 — Sayreville, N.J. — Starland Ballroom 12/31 — Worcester, Mass. — The Palladium
Victory Records Ill Niño ‘s new album, ‘Epidemia,’ hits stores on Oct. 22, but fans won’t have to wait until then to hear the disc. The band is teaming up with Loudwire to provide listeners with an exclusive stream of the album. The New Jersey-based rockers took a musical journey with their sixth release, recording in Hoboken, Austin and Denver before wrapping up the disc. Singer Cristian Machado tells Loudwire, “The recording of ‘Epidemia’ was definitely an amazing experience. We’ve set the bar higher than ever before. I truly believe this record is one of Ill Niño’s best efforts. I really can’t wait for our fans to hear the new record. I know it will connect with many of them on a new level. I can definitely say it’s going to be a crusher but will not lack any of the beauty and passion that appears on our early records.” Machado previously stated that this was the time for the band to redefine Latin metal, while drummer Dave Chavarri mentioned that they were delving more into Latin and tribal rhythms that will just expand their boundaries further than they’ve gone before. Ill Niño already gave fans a sample of the new music by recently unveiling a trailer that featured their song, ‘ The Depression .’ Fans also may have caught them building up to the new record over the past month while on tour with Static-X , who recently had to drop off the trek due to frontman Wayne Static’s medical condition. Ill Niño continue to remain on the road — check out their current tour itinerary here . So, listen to Ill Niño’s ‘Epidemia’ below. If you dig the tunes, you can pre-order the album here . Listen to Ill Niño’s ‘Epidemia’ Album
Adult Swim It’d be easy to forget that Dethklok are seen as an animated band, since braintrust Brendon Small is such a skilled guitar player, and the music isn’t secondary to the hilarious and bombastic plots of the show ’Metalocalypse.’ Strip away the funny and fantastical elements of the ‘Metalocalypse’ cartoon and listen to the music of ‘Dethalbum III,’ and it’ll become painfully obvious why metalheads love the show, the band and Small. First of all, the guitar riffs rip and snort. They are as well-constructed and as gnarly as it gets, fitting squarely into the melodic death metal categorization. But here is where the humorous aspect certainly adds some levity to music that is serious as a delinquent tax bill. How can you not have a chuckle at a song titled ‘I Ejaculate Fire’ before launching into fast and furious headbanging, courtesy of guitarwork so swift that it likely burned the fingerprints right off Small’s fingers? Small has rendered himself a more than capable riffsmith. Journeyman drummer Gene Hoglan’s footwork is as complex, propulsive and powerful as ever, with the percussion and blast beats being a signature and anchoring element of Dethklok’s sound. ‘Crush the Industry’ is a death metal gem, loaded with fills, guttural growling and overall chilling atmosphere. Put simply, it crushes skulls. ‘Andromeda’ sounds like it could have been reared in Florida, after hang sessions with Cannibal Corpse, Six Feet Under and Obituary, as it hacks a deep groove, thanks to its riffery. The galloping solo is as potent as moonshine. Most of the songs hover at four to five minutes, which is just enough time to get in, scramble your brain and get out, moving on to the next slab o’ metallic goodness. ‘Dethalbum III’ is certainly not extra progressive nor is it dynamically dazzling or esoterically experimental, but we don’t want it to be, either. It’s the extremity of the music that keeps us tuned in for 12 tracks. Another standout track is ‘Impeach God,’ which features an opening salvo so vivid, you can almost imagine fingers sailing up and down a fretboard. ‘Killstardo Abominate’ is a battering ram, as is ‘Biological Warfare.’ The riffwork on ‘Skyhunter’ is also exceptionally standout. ‘Dethalbum III’ is able to take a super serious (and often gore-slathered) genre like death metal and make it ‘deth metal.’ That is, it fuses skilled playing with a sense of humor, which is often not the case in the genre’s offerings. Big ups to Small for having created and continued his own genre. [button href=”http://loudwire.com/dethklok-discharge-crotch-blazing-new-video-for-i-ejaculate-fire-nsfw/” title=”Next: Watch Dethklok’s ‘I Ejaculate Fire’ Video” align=”center”]
Razor & Tie Nonpoint have just released their self-titled seventh studio album. The new disc is the first to feature guitarists Rasheed Thomas and Dave Lizzio as well as bassist Adam Woloszyn. Nonpoint come out swinging with the first track ‘Lights, Camera, Action.’ Frontman Elias Soriano’s signature vocal style of a quick deliverance of lyrics accompanies by some serious melody. Speaking of melody, Soriano shows off his melodic vocals in the track ‘The Way I See Things’ as he sings the chorus, “ The way I see things / I could use a serious change of scenery / The ways I see things / I’d be better off / Better off if I leave .” Even though the song ‘I Said It’ is not the strongest example of Nonpoint’s usual catchy chorus on the album, it does show another level of Soriano as the track displays aggressive screaming and the vigorous drums skills of Robb Rivera. The lead single off of the album, ‘Left For You,’ is filled with deep riffs, deep bass lines and soaring vocals with a certain softness. Two minutes into ‘Left For You,’ Soriano slows the pace down as he croons, “ I’m trying to lead you away but i can’t / ’cause trying to keep us together is something that i know i can’t… do / I know I can’t do / Without you .” Additionally, the album is filled with faster-paced anthems where Soriano spits out lyrics with venom on tracks like ‘International Crisis,’ ‘That Day’ and ‘Temper,’ which features lyrics that shout as much warning as the galloping drum patterns and stern guitar solo and riffs. Guitarists Thomas and Lizzio also offer some enticing riffs on ‘Go Time’ that ring like an alarm, while Rivera shows off his serious skills behind the skins on the song ‘Independence Day,’ which is a prime example of the way Soriano merges both screams and harmony. There is a certain balance to ‘Nonpoint,’ which weaves in mid-tempo tracks that show off the melodic flow of the band such as ‘Another Mistake’ and ‘Pandora’s Box.’ Another notable track is ‘Ashes,’ which is definitely one of the more eclectic tracks on ‘Nonpoint,’ complete with Woloszyn’s tantalizing bass lines as the album ends as strong as it begins. There’s no doubt this forceful record will make you sweat and even pull through those dreadful last 15 minutes at the gym, especially since Nonpoint, both the album and band, are filled with a continuous flow of unyielding energy. ? [button href=”http://loudwire.com/nonpoint-taproot-new-york-concert/” title=”Check Out Photos of Nonpoint Performing in New York City” align=”center”]
Mary Ouellette, SheWillShootYou.com Three Days Grace and Papa Roach make strong showings on the latest Billboard 200 album chart, as both bands’ new discs debut in the Top 20. ‘Transit of Venus’ from Three Days Grace lands at No. 5 in its first week, selling 48,000 copies. Our review of the album states, “They’ve stepped out of their comfort zone, ditched the formula, and went all in, holding nothing back in the true spirit of rock. The reward clearly outweighed the risk on this one and the additional elements enhance the songs without taking them hostage and the identity that Three Days Grace has forged for the past 20 years is clearly better for it.” Papa Roach’s new album ‘The Connection’ also debuted in the upper echelon of Billboard 200, coming in at No. 17 with 22,000 copies sold. Our review of ‘The Connection’ reads, “The band mines the well of interpersonal connections again with their latest record. Jacoby Shaddix, a master at baring his soul in tracks like ‘Last Resort,’ ‘Scars,’ and ‘Broken Home,’ puts his heart clearly on his sleeve with the standout track ‘ Before I Die .’ ” After debuting at No. 2 last week, Green Day ‘s ‘ ¡Uno! ‘ slips to No. 11 this week, selling another 29,000 copies. Topping the album chart this week is ‘Babel’ from Mumford and Sons, followed by Muse’s ‘The 2nd Law.’ New albums from Between the Buried and Me , Converge and Nonpoint were all released this week, and we’ll see how they do on next week’s Billboard 200.