Second rise of the nu metal...

 Don't you wish metal still looked this way?

Has anyone else noticed there's A LOT of nu metal bands deciding it's time to make a comeback?

Dez Fafara has lined up some Coal Chamber gigs, Korn's new album is due, Spineshank, American Head Charge, Biohazard and Puddle of Mudd are all working on shit right now. Even Wayne Static's got his Pighammer...

And have you SEEN the lineup for Australia's Soundwave festival? In J's words - what year is this?!

Are these bands all on the same label? Is some record company A&R dude jumping on trends quicker than a Roadrunner re-release? I don't know and I can't honestly be bothered to find out, but it does make you wonder. Lets see how many other lost, forgotten and somewhat shitty bands come out the woodwork during the rest of this year...

Don't worry, metal still could look this way!

Rap jacket :D

How cool is this?!

James Jirat is an Australian artist who's a bit of a hipster etc etc but whatever, his art is cool and this vest is neat and a lot of work must have gone into it.

It has and will get a reasonable amount of hate (I think someone even posted up something along the lines of "You wear this to Norway and we'll fuck you up"!) but that's obviously coming from posers who are too insecure in their own musical taste to accept how ace this is ;)

M: just sent you this, but check it http://bandungbrawlers.tumblr.com/ they're getting loads of hate for this XD

J: haha, that's pretty well done :D

i like the snoop dogg one :)

M: yeah i like it too :) i like the aaliyah one too - i like aaliyah better than i do anthrax too XD

but i think it's pretty neat :) needs more patches tho :D

J: the doom one's a bit basic tho, MF DOOM :) trying to work out the coffin one, as in what band it actually is, can only think of these ones, which it isnt, only coz the have a coffin :)

http://www.metal-archives.com/bands/Dead_On/12674

i like the subhumans / salt n pepper one :)

Needs more Bruce

M: RYAN ADAMS Performs Acoustic Version Of IRON MAIDEN's 'Wasted Years' (Audio)

i like this....although i dunno, i like the guitar part for the riff thingy - but the problem is wasted years has a bit of a cheesy chorus and in acoustic style it just sounds a bit gay.......i like it, but i kinda wish he'd picked a different song :O

J: i always think of 'wasted time' by skid row, i get the names confused.

it's alright, his vocals never seem to change, just kinda doesnt get anywhere :O

 

M: yeah that, seems a bit flat :O

 

J: needs some ooomph :)

 

M: needs to be sung by bruce :D

 

J: nuff said :D

 

Back to black

J: have you pre-ordered this?

M: i won't lie -

>I.C.S. VORTEX - "Don't Tread On Me"

* BORKNAGAR - "My Friend Of Misery"

am actually looking forward to hearing those, altho not sure they'll work......

the others, fuck it. altho may be interesting to see how finntroll work god that failed....

shame it's black album, i don't like most them songs :(

J: it sucks that the last two metallica ones of these metal hammer have put together have been for the two albums i dont give a shit about :/

 

M: yeah they should do thrash bands doing kill em all or something - i guess they're interesting enough projects, to see how bands work on other stuff, especially popular stuff - but i'm just not keen on the black album :/ or most of the artists that take part :/

   

J: or they should do st anger and try and make it better :)

 

M: that would actually be a cool feature :)

 

J: yeah, open it up for fans to do it :)

 

M: that would be really cool :D come on guys - lets re-record it and show them what people can actually do who have spirit and passion for the music :D

 

J: as if they'll admit to it being a duff album tho :)

 

M: yeah metallica won't, but everyone else does :) the music press should grow some balls and organise this :D

 

J: yeah ;O

 

I can't see, I can't see....

J: who is who in that pic? XD

M: wow they are starting to merge a bit :O

Just like the old days

J: EXODUS Guitarist Wanted To 'Reconnect' With METALLICA's KIRK HAMMETT

M: 1. first comment :)

2. gary's wearing some lame big 4 giant plectrum lanyard - you ain't in the big 4 gary! ;D

 

J: yeah, lame headline XD
gary was, for a bit :D

 

M: not anymore tho :) he's with exodus, allowing poor decisions to be made D: 

 

J: the first being when they let paul baloff go :)

 

M: there was bad feeling involved tho :O 

 

J: i dont see anything wrong with being drunk, forgetting words and inciting violence on non-metal believers :D

 

M: nah not for a fucking thrash band :) gary must have enjoyed his time with slayer, srs business these days ;) 

 

J: that was it, i thought he was in anthrax, but that was andreas :D
would have been awesome if james broke his wrist again, make it PROPER like the old days ;)

 

M: yeah i got confused with them two doing other stuff :)

>would have been awesome if james broke his wrist again, make it PROPER like the old days ;)

bet he don't do any skateboarding now though XD

 

J: i forgot jeff was "ill" (recovering from drug use) ;D
i cant even imagine james skateboarding then, let alone now :) i'm sure it was something to do with them pushead design skateboards, at least i hope it was :)

 

M: i always think of it as that :) 

 

J: trying 'em out for jokes, break wrist XD

 

M: trying them out to advertise for them ;) making money ;) 

 

 J:  

 

 

M: weird thing with james is, even when he was young, he still kinda looked old :) 

 

J: it's them combats he has on doing that ;D

 

 

bathory );

 J: dunno if it's one of the albums you like, but );

 Bathory - Under the Sign of the Black Mark

M: fuck yeah ); its the one i have the t-shirt of <3

J: oh :)
yeah, wicked album :)
i cant remember the one we played round here you had that time, i liked it, but unsure what one it was:)

 M: hammerheart i think :) 

J: i'll check it out :O

M: bathory is fucking cool - one of the few bands (or artists, i suppose) that live up to the hype! 

Quorthon also fits right into the hot-when-he-was-young category ♥ 

Most bands that people bang on and on about just never live up to your expectations. You just can't see why everyone thinks they're SO FUCKING AWESOME, MAN!!! Whilst you can appreciate that they're not bad, you still can't really grasp how someone could think they're the best thing ever. It's happened a few times for me and I'm sure it's happened to everyone at some point.

Bathory however, is a different kettle of fish. People don't even bang on about the records so much - it's more that that fucking goat is plastered from wall to wall of the internet and maybe it doesn't bother anyone else, but I have to say it puts me right off. Forget about that though, because Bathory's legacy should be so much more than that goat. 

Bonded by blood?

M: MÖTLEY CRÜE Bassist: 'I Would Love To Make An Extremely Heavy, Non-Commercial Record'

XD

J: not with t-bone tho, he dont do albums :)

M: tired of music, just wants to dj :) 

tbh i don't think nikki has it in him - he's not a musician and never was - yeah he's better than when he started out but musicially he ain't got anything in him

J: nikki's a good songwriter, maybe he should just write songs and manufacture sleaze bands like stevie does :)

M: i guess in the sleaze/glam world he does fine - tbh he should just stick with what he's doing - being a whiny bitch and letting everyone copy his style :)

J: yeah, he's doing fine as is :) it's not like motley dont make money :)

M: or as i said, everyone seems to want to look like him now, he should just be pleased he ain't vince, mick or tommy XD nikki has a decent life and career, he should count his blessings :)

J: that pic of him on that site i sent you looks like dave from morbid angel so much :)

M: they're becoming the same person, i swear :O

J: they so are XD

...bring a tear to your eye :(

I was away at Bloodstock over the weekend, celebrating my birthday, which was on the 12th. It was pretty mad to get a text from J that morning saying that Jani Lane had died :(

I won't say I didn't love taking the piss out of Jani and Warrant, because it was awesome - I love taking the piss out of stuff, but I only ever do it out of love, not spite. I'm really fucking sad he died - Jani, you were only 47. Gone too soon.

p.s. It's also pretty sad that this and the last post were about awesome people dying. I'll work on that (well, I can't stop people dying, but I can at least talk about other stuff).

Ha ha heart attack

On J's birthday, the last thing I expected was to get a text saying Seth Putnam had died. I had friends staying at my place at the time and not one of them even knew who Seth fucking was, so it sucked pretty bad. So I called my mum and she pointed out that altho he died kinda young, at least when he was alive he spent most his time doing whatever he pleased, which is really all any of us want to do in the end.

Seth, the world probably won't miss you (save one or two of your friends), but you really didn't give a shit and for that, you'll always be one of my heroes.

I once emailed Seth to ask him if he'd do a banner for this website - the title of which was inspired by him. He said he'd do it for cash...which I never got round to sending him. It'll always be one of my biggest regrets.



Also - this is an auspicious date!

made it for J :D

Albums I like - 3

 

It was thinking about the first two "Albums I like" posts that got me posting again today after a lengthy break. Or rather, it was thinking about this album and how I would definitely include it: Hydronomic Wave by Lunarsea.

I love EVERYTHING about this album. I love the metal vocals (remind me of Disarmonia Mundi ♥), I love the clean vocals (remind me of Sting), I love the drums, which are super awesome...fucking everything. If I had paid for this album, it would be well worth the money, I can assure you.

For me, it's the clean vocals that really make this such a great album. Normally I hate the clean, metal-core style rousing chorus bullshit whatever, but on this album they're done really fucking well. The tunes aren't predictable, neither is the format - these are definitely not choruses, they're just sections in the song and they fit perfectly. My ear drums LOVE IT.

So, yeah, their Marchives picture is a bit faggy, but fuck it, this is one of my favourite albums ever :D

How does it feel to be part of the picture

(emails sent 7th April 2011 - pics will probably change at some point, so the links may not make sense forever...)

J: slayer looking awesome :D

M: omg yeah, check out all the hair XD

J: nuclear assault have an old pic too :D

M: back to their roots ;)

J: literally XD

M: yeah :DDD

J: anthrax might consider doing the same, since they love having their pic changed :)

M: they do XD might want to get in on the hair action too :)

Don't be alarmed now

M: Iron Will is a new band formed this month from Singapore...

after the whole retro thrash thing, doom seems to be now the trendy thing to do :/ also iron will is grand magus' most famous song, just sounds like a tribute band...

J: same with most doom/drone/etc bands. i could name fuck loads that are named after songs by older bands, like Boris are named after a melvin's song, teeth of lions rule the divine are after an earth song and so forth. > iron will is grand magus' most famous song sounds like what bonded by blood did XD

M: >sounds like what bonded by blood did XD

god yeah, i think it is the album title and all! so silly :)

>i could name fuck loads that are named after songs by older bands, like Boris are named after a melvin's song, teeth of lions rule the divine are after an earth song and so forth.

yeah, at least they picked more obscure names :) people seem to make these bad judgements - if you say a phrase and i makes you think of a caertain band - DO NOT use that as your and name, unless you really are a tribute act XD

perfect examples of bad names for bands:

whiskey in the jar

seasons in the abyss

cowboys from hell

british steel (i can see it being a band tho haha)

see? bonded by blood, this is so simple, why couldn't you realise?! XD

J: > see? bonded by blood, this is so simple, why couldn't you realise?! XD

it's okay to use it just starting, but if you get major interest, then change it - this for me spoils the first album, their fucking name :/ Plus also; it's exodus, and a staple thrash album, it's a bit brazen to call your band that.

> unless you really are a tribute act XD

like that Creeping Death band :) see that's fine. Also, Dopethrone, that band that stole venom's font, that's also a dumb move too /

> cowboys from hell

british steel (i can see it being a band tho haha)

these are perfect from tribute pantera/JP bands tho :D

M: >Plus also; it's exodus, and a staple thrash album, it's a bit brazen to call your band that.

again - kinda like what i was thinking when i said "cowboys from hell" or "british steel" - perfect for a tribute act, as it sort of encapsulates the band you're imitating, but RETARDED to try and use them for a regular band XD you just can't say those things without thinking of the original act! :)

>Also, Dopethrone, that band that stole venom's font, that's also a dumb move too

like this, i read "dopethrone", but i see "venom" :::::) just stupid. you want people to remember your band, not that you stole something from someone else's!

J: see, like with Superjoint Ritual, that was taken from a lyric from a darkthrone song. lyric! it's what these bands need to know, dont use the obvious :)

M: >dont use the obvious :)

that :)))) when done well, its a cool thing to do, and like you said, loads of bands get their names from books or previous bands - just don't pick the fucking most obvious title of something :))) "between the buried and me" - shit band, but it works for the current styles of bands/names you have coming out :) it doesn't make anyone think of counting crows, thats for sure :)

except superfan hannah :D

J: and silverchair were apparently named a nirvana song, which i cant see the relevance, but if they did, i have no fucking clue! :O

M: yeah, i was thinking of that earlier :) (i only know that via you) :) or like down's second album is "bustle in your hedgerow", which is a line from stairway to heaven :) obvs song, but not obvs lyric :D

or....hmm...you prolly know more of these than me :)

J: > or like down's second album is "bustle in your hedgerow", which is a line from stairway to heaven :) obvs song, but not obvs lyric :D

hehe, i live in a world where that song doesnt exist, i've never knowingly heard it :)

M: oh yeah :D its well long XD

J: idk :D

Spades of Aces

M: >I have this vinyl

Yeah, great XD

J: i bet they have it reissued XD

M: blatantly at least 3000 times XD

J: i meant the person who posted it :)

M: oh i see :)))) haha, yeah probbaly :) i think mine is an old one, but i don't think the tape works anymore, same with my iron maiden ones i'm pretty sure D:

J: what maiden do you have on tape :?

M: killers and powerslave :)))

J: i didnt know you liked killers :O

M: hehe i don't really, they were from a job lot of cassettes i got on ebay :) i did tell you that once, but a long time ago :O

J: oh, i knew you got a job lot, but never knew you got those with it :O

M: yeah :)))) too old for me to own by myself :3

J: you should have got a retail version of killers on cd, might have saved paul dianno from claiming benefit :)

M: LOL yeah, too many people buying second hand stuff XD

Where death is most alive

I went to see Dark Tranquillity with Insomnium and Cypher16 at the Underworld last night and I had a lot to say about it, so I thought I'd share my wise and well-informed opinions with the rest of the world.

First of all - Cypher16. J hates the name, but I don't think it's so bad, although numbers with any name just make it look like a bad email handle. Terror 2000 remain my exception to the rule, because I love that band :D

So, crappy name...and crappy band, for me at least. I think they have a lot of potential and some people may well think what they're doing is cool already, but they were not my cup of tea at all. If I'm honest, I checked them out on MySpace, decided I didn't like them and so only bothered to turn up right at the end of their set. A little unfair, but I'm hardly Lady Justice.

Moving on...Insomnium fucking RULED. They owned that place; every song was awesome. It's the second time I've seen them and both times they've blown me away - I'm not saying they're technically the best or they have the best sound or whatever, but overall, they are one of my favourite live acts. They had a lot of fans there, which was great to see and they had an incredible atmosphere for a relatively unknown band here in the UK. I got one of their albums after I saw them the first time and didn't think much of it, but I'm definitely going to try again. If not then hey, I only like Immortal live, there's nothing wrong with that.

Dark Tranquillity were really really good, despite a few technical difficulties, but overall, I think Insomnium won the day. DT are one of my favourite bands, but in terms of what they play they can be very hit and miss. More than half their set was songs I really didn't care for at all - although the upsides were two from The Gallery (my favourite album - they played the title track and Punish my Heaven) and ended with Terminus, for me the setlist wasn't that great. My highlight would have to be Punish my Heaven as it's one of my favourite songs ever.

The other highlight of the night, I have to say, was Michael Stanne himself. Obviously I don't know him, but he comes across as a really, really nice guy. There was a lot of crowd interaction - he surfed, didn't mind holding hands or holding out the mic to people and generally seemed incredibly happy and at ease with everything. At the end he said the band were going to be at the merch stand and would be sticking around for a couple drinks after the show, which is great to hear from a band that's big enough to get away without doing that shit nowadays.

In terms of venue, I'd say they could have done with a bigger place. The Underworld is small and has many pillars and last night was probably the busiest I'd ever seen it. Even the merch stand could have done with more room - the bar just ain't big enough. Had the Astoria not been razed (bastards), that would have been a perfect venue, but without it, London's really lacking a great medium-sized venue. Last time DT played the UK it was at the stupidly small Barfly in Camden, so I don't know whether the band's management are too cautious with the bookings or just undervalue their commercial appeal, but I'd say they could easily play Islington and with a little more advertising, they could even fill Brixton or Shepherd's Bush.

My final point - oh dear god, £4 a pint? I spent almost a tenner, wasn't even close to drunk then decided I couldn't possibly afford to get drunk. Doesn't make for a fun night, Underworld (and all you other venues charging stupid amounts for watery beer). Improve please!

Seasons in the Bathroom

J: Slayer Guitarist's Food Poisoning Forces Tilburg Cancellation - from the comments;
> Seasons in the bathroom
i lol'd XD

M: >... maybe this will help Kerry to shed a few pounds. In fact, maybe he can give the bug to Hanneman...When I caught the Big Four movie, I was amazed to see they made leather pants that big.
:D

J: > When I caught the Big Four movie
what is this :?

M: >what is this :?
ohh, the first set of it, they showed in cinemas across europe, tickets were bear dollar tho :3 i don't think that many people went, i don't know any that did. i only knew it was happening 'cause P told me...

J: so it's some film about the big 4 now? :O

M: no, not a film, they literally screened the sets in via satellite link so you could 'watch as if you were there' sort of thing...

J: oh that, i've noticed that on other gigs.

M: orly? i never seen it before :O

J: yeah, read about it on the nme (i think), some band have a proper director involved in doing it :/

M: omg that's lame :(( what's the point? i hate live stuff unless i was there, someone i know was there or....well yeah, that's about it. apart from s&m, which most people hate anyway...

J: just in case you didn't feel like showing up :)

M: :DDDDDDDDD yeah hehe :)

Jammer

M: FEAR FACTORY Drummer GENE HOGLAN Discusses His Technique In New Interview - "i enjoy triggers and joining as many bands as possible. you could say i model myself on nick barker. we're fat and we're both in a lot of bands..."
is what the interview should say.

J: that made me lol irl XD

M: :D true tho ain't it :))

J: yeah :)

Cash Fiends

M: METALLICA To Play Special 'Old-School' Show In Christchurch - ohh, i thought they meant old-school set. they do not. they just mean they're not gonna be playing in the round 'cause it's not big enough...... but to be fair, that's how 99% of other metal bands play, so it's not that old-school or significant at all. thanks bbmouth, for making me think there was a story when there was none.

J: they should play on the same level as the fans with no barrier, see how that goes, or how many people spit and fall into them :)

M: LOLOLOL that would be awesome :D sadly, instead of getting spit, piss and other secretions they generally deserve, people would just want to get up close to their "heroes" (heroes that ruin music, i might add!!) or to touch their guitars or whatever. lameness.

J: > or to touch their guitars or whatever
whilst kirk's playing a solo, help mess it up :)

M: ooooooops :) i'd love that :D you could listen to the bootleg after and feel pleased :D

J: clumsy dudes at the front twiddling their fingers, get pushed into james, ooops :O

M: i reckon metallica are the sort of band now that would get pissed at that. not like those old shows with dave and everyone, just arsing around. friends :)

J: ah, friends :)
they're friends now, gaying it up an shit :)

M: yeah, not nice friends like they used to be, but seedy friends because they've come together in their love of screwing people out of their cash....

J: cash friends :)

M: that :)

J: cash fiends XD

Albums I Like - 2

Death - Sound of Perseverance

Here's number two on the list and it's an album I'll never, ever get tired of hearing. It's the only Death album I listen to now because it's as if all the albums built up to this point - it really is the sound of perseverance - so why listen to anything that came before? All the preceding albums were just practice runs: this is the real thing.

And why do I like it so much? Like I said about Artificial Emotions, it sounds nice in my ears. It's crunchy and chunky, but often delicate and pretty too - even the solo it all builds up towards is bordering on cheesy, but the complexity of the album overall means all of the cheese is still complete joy. Over the years, Death went from, well, death, towards the Control Denied mark that Chuck Schuldiner ended up at, and if you imagine Scream Bloody Gore colliding with The Fragile Art of Existence, The Sound of Perseverance is kinda where you'd end up. Which pleases me greatly.