Thanks!

I'm y'all send the thing'ing my mom some symphonic metal (no, I'm not kidding), so I figure there are still a few downloads in these links. Take 'em if you want 'em:

Edenbridge - The Grand Design
hxxp://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=C579EC3D0FBC7145


Savatage - Dead Winter Dead
hxxp://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=522981E822D4825A


Venin Noir - In Pieces of the Lunar Soil
hxxp://www.yousendit.com/transfer.php?action=download&ufid=6DC0DD397969F8A2

Did anyone see the first part of "Heavy: The Story of Metal" last night of VH1? I'm slowly getting into more metal stuff and I found it pretty interesting. There are three more parts at 8 tonight, Wednesday, and Thursday, and I'm sure that they'll be repeated.

It's also being shown on VH1 Classic -- I've seen all four parts. They're all pretty similar, with a focus on mainstream metal of whichever chronology.

Having said that, I had intended to clean house when it was on, but instead was glued to tv.

What's most impressive isn't that the band interpret each song in different ways, but that they faithfully duplicate the originals.

New Strapping Young Lad!

"You Suck"

It's typically wacky. In a very good way.

Worse than that it seems like the producers only collected quotes that mention how influential the bands that they're focusing are. It's a "Revisionist Story of Metal" instead of a real Story of Metal. I can understand that they only had 4 hours to fit it all in, but they left out or glossed over major bands and influences and no one mentioned them? Not even in passing "Oh, I like this band, too..."

They could've cut Marilyn Manson's section in half & added more Motorhead or Speed/Death/Thrash/Black Metal.

See, I was disappointed about this. I wanted them to do something different with the songs. I'd rather just listen to the originals than these note-for-note covers. It's just boring.

I saw Russian Circles the other week and I'm starting to get into Metal, math rock or whatever people call it. All I really know that I like is Pelican and Russian Circles, I've heard of Isis and Boris, does anyone have any suggestions or could you (you send something) from one of the aforementioned bands. And if there is anything like Pelican but has shorter songs and has a crazy bass player, I would appreciate the suggestion.

New Strapping Young Lad!

"You Suck"

It's typically wacky. In a very good way.

So then an Immortal reunion is no longer out of the question?

“No!”

Pardon?

“I didn’t really want to say it, but I don’t give a shit. We will come back, stronger than ever. I’ve met with Horgh for the first time in over a year. He’s built his new house here, right around the corner. In the next few days we will begin to rehearse our old ‘Blizzard Beasts’ classics. I’m already really hot on the idea.”

And you’re certain we should print that? Then there’s no way back…

“I’m a little out of practice, this being my first interview in two years. But somehow feeling good, that it’s out now. I’m mostly glad for our fans.”

The petty cash rattling should be good again also.

“Don’t say that! To clear that up: we’re not coming back for the money. If we had been going for the cash, we wouldn’t have allowed Immortal to split”

Then only the date is missing.

“Immortal are timeless frost. One year more or less doesn’t make a difference. We have all the time in the world.”

The new Strapping Young Lad album has already leaked, but I haven't had time to get it yet. Anyone have it?

Iron Maiden plan to release their new studio album entitled A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH, in early September.

The band started writing songs at the end of 2005 after a short break from their hugely successful festival appearances in Europe and the USA. After Christmas the songs were completed and rehearsed when the band then got together with producer Kevin 'Caveman' Shirley at Sarm West Studios in London to start work on recording the backing tracks.

Kevin Shirley has now co-produced three of the bands studio albums alongside Steve Harris, as well as two of their recent Live DVD's and albums. From this the working relationship between Kevin and the band seems to get stronger and stronger. Says Kevin, 'The Beast is back! I feel from the outset we all clicked on this one. We spent two months in the studio, from Go to Whoa - from Nicko's 'tubs up' to final mixes and sequenced master! That's a tiny gestation period for an album. Producing Iron Maiden is like sitting in the head and driving one of those mammoth automatons from Star Wars or Saturday morning cartoons! And there's nothing that can stop it!'

'I feel incredibly privileged to have been around to see this album born and breathe life. There have been only a couple of occasions in my career when the ENTIRE process of recording felt so complete - and it is on display here.'

As on previous projects all of the tracks were performed live and together in one room. No click tracks or computer tightening or manipulation has happened at any stage of the recording.

Says Steve Harris,' I think in many ways this has been the easiest album in terms of recording that we've ever done. The whole process of writing through to recording was very natural. I think in terms of the material we've also pushed our boundaries yet again and I think it will please our fans but also really surprise a lot of people as well. The sound we've managed to get is very powerful for a Maiden record and all of us have pushed ourselves in our own ways to create something that we're all immensely proud of and I think working as quickly as we did with Kevin really was part of that process. We simply can't wait to take this out on the road. We've played some great shows and had a lot fun recently introducing some of our older songs to a new generation of fans. However for us personally we're incredibly excited about getting out and performing these new tracks.'

Says Bruce Dickinson,'This album has to be our best since working with Kevin. There is such a wide scope of musicianship on this album and in parts this album is truly epic. I thought with the likes of Paschendale from the last studio album that we could only hope to surpass that but having now heard the album back as well as sitting with a few select people and hearing their reactions as well I truly believe we have managed it. Every one of us has put everything into this record and it's really paid off. However we've had such fun making it that it's almost difficult to believe what we've managed to achieve in the time it took.'

The full track listing is as below.

A MATTER OF LIFE AND DEATH

1. Different Worlds (Smith/Harris) 4.17
2. These Colours Don't Run (Smith/Harris/Dickinson) 6.52
3. Brighter Than a Thousand Suns (Smith/Harris/Dickinson) 8.44
4. The Pilgrim (Gers/Harris) 5.07
5. The Longest Day (Smith/Harris/Dickinson) 7.48
6. Out Of the Shadows (Dickinson/Harris) 5.36
7. The Reincarnation of Benjamin Breeg (Murray/Harris) 7.21
8. For The Greater Good of God (Harris) 9.24
9. Lord Of Light (Smith/Harris/Dickinson) 7.23
10. The Legacy (Gers/Harris) 9.20

Christ...those songs long enough, guys?

I'm not really complaining, because they'll probably be good, I hope, but man...only one song is actually short enough for "single" consideration. Not too shocked, though...the last two albums have mostly been given over to epics, as well.

Smith is a good songwriter, I have to admit. Hey Sask - did you ever listen to that Psycho Motel album back in the day?

i'd like a return to some great cover art as well. whatever happened to derek riggs?

No, but I do remember ASAP (the horribly named Adrian Smith and Project), which he formed right after Seventh Son. Smith's got a good voice...the "Reach Out" b-side is proof of that.

Spektr is a black metal duo from France about whom little is actually known. Their debut album, No Longer Human Senses (aka Et Fugit Interea), issued in 2004, took virtually every one in the scene by surprise prompting those good folks at Aquarius Records in San Francisco to laud it the "weirdest black metal record ever." While there are heavy distorted guitars and frantically pummeled drums, and utterly unfathomable vocals, this is simply one mode of attack for the duo. Long noise drones, found sounds, radio transmissions, etc. are equal parts. ON Near Death Experience, the band ups the ante. From the opener, "The Violent Stink of Twitching Terror," we hear not only parts of Emperor, Bathory, and label mates Blut Aus Nord, but also Swans, early Lustmord, Whitehouse, and more. The crack and boom of guitars make their appearances well known of course, but they are wrapped in a narcotic, utterly slithering mix of creepy ambience that sets the listener's guts to churning. This is experimental music, where ambience and sound sculpture play equal roles, there is nothing remotely settling or pleasant about this sound. It's pure black. Everything is woven together in fuzzy high end shimmering glass-like sound. Buzzes and glitches, bells, found voices, film a soundtrack dialogue, all of them are stuck into the black hole and are vomited out in swathes of something approaching black metal, but somehow both more and less metal. If one thinks of Circle of Ouroborus meeting Stormcrowfleet and the Anaal Nathrakh of The Codex Necro, you get the beginning of the picture, that is this wonderslab of creepy crawly messed up sickness. Toss in the early Burzum or Emperor, mix with sheer strangeness and lots of despair and you have a winner. Near Death Experience also comes packaged with a video playable on the computer that further "illustrates" the band's trademark insanity. Highly recommended if you have the stomach.

Ooh, this looks good.

Hey Burzum - by any chance would you have Weakling's "Dead as Dreams"? I can't find it anywhere.

Ask and you shall recieve...


Weakling - Dead As Dreams


This is as good as black metal gets. Anyone not familiar with this one should grab it.

Ask and you shall receive...


Weakling - Dead As Dreams


This is as good as black metal gets. Anyone not familiar with this one should grab it.

Oh to see them do Leper Messiah, Orion & Damage Inc....

I was more than pleased to see them pull out Leper Messiah and Damage, Inc. back in 2004.

Orion would be great to hear, what with the cool bass bits and Hetfield's solo...as would Disposable Heroes, that one is rarely performed.

This month's article is about Chicago black metal band Nachtmystium. I never thought I'd get good black metal recommendations from P-fork, but I just grabbed their new album from Oink and it's quite good. So check these guys out and support your local BM scene, Chicago.

If there are any Eyehategod fans around here be sure to check out the deal on the new reissues you can get here. $9 (includes shipping) for any of them or $25 for all three. There also getting rid of the original versions of these for $3 each while they last. Great deal if you don't already own these.

New Lamb of God:

"Redneck"

It's gonna be mega.