French death metal innovators AGRESSOR are reissuing of their first two albums ‘Neverending Destiny’ (1990) and ‘Towards Beyond’ (1992) on (limited edition) vinyl! The band is simultaneously releasing a special 2CD box, ‘The Arrival,’ which contains both albums with bonus tracks and liner-notes. A true death metal must-have, full of frantic intensity! All versions will be released on September 24, 2021 via Season of Mist.
The vinyl versions and 2CD box are now available for pre-orders HERE.
AGRESSOR were founded in 1986 and immediately presented their first demo, ‘The Merciless Onslaught’ in the same year. The Southern French band’s second demo, ‘Satan Sodomy’ (1987) caused some scandal due to its sexually implicit cover and black metal undertones. At the time of the release of their split with LOUDBLAST entitled ‘Licensed to Thrash” (1988), AGRESSOR had begun touring in French speaking territories alongside such soon to be renowned bands as SAMAEL, SODOM, MESSIAH, and LIVING DEATH.
AGRESSOR became the first French metal act to be signed by an international label after recording the demo, ‘Orbital Distortion’ in 1989. A year later, the band began cooperating with Philippe Druillet for the visuals of their debut album, ‘Neverending Destiny’, which received a warm welcome with its combination of brutal thrash riffing and what would now be considered an early form of technical death metal.
Their sophomore full-length, ‘Towards Beyond’ (1992) was produced by Börje “Boss” Forsberg of BATHORY and Black Mark fame and came with ultra-heavy passages on top of their trademark technical riffing. AGRESSOR continued to spearhead the French extreme metal scene with their following release as well as through touring with such renowned acts as MORBID ANGEL, OBITUARY, PESTILENCE, BIOHAZARD, SINISTER, and WARGASM.
Following a UK tour with CRADLE OF FILTH in 1996, the sole remaining founding member, vocalist and guitarist Alex Colin-Tocquaine put the band on a short hiatus, but AGRESSOR returned with ‘Medieval Rites’ in 1999 and more live activities. Their latest album under the programmatic title, ‘Deathreat’ was released in 2006 and since then the French have occasionally played rare shows.
Musicians from Russia, Belarus and Ukraine have united to fight interethnic intolerance and the segregational system by giving birth to FEELAMENT, a band that operates completely remotely and combines a diversified guitar-driven sound with brutal growlings and soft clean vocals.
«We are worried about what is happening between the relations of our (and other) countries, and we are expressing it through our music», states the vocalist Maria Balyasova. «We’re all brothers and sisters. The media and politicians play us off against each other for their personal gain, promoting ethnic hatred», she adds. «They feed their audience with false information, saying that our enemies live in other countries. We don’t believe them. They are the real enemies.»
The post-USSR band have released a new single entitled DNA (Propaganda). Watch the video right here:
For The Metal Voice Kenny Kessel sat down and spoke to Former singer of METAL CHURCH Ronny Munroe about his new album/project that is coming out self titled ‘Between Worlds’ on Sept 10 2021 Via Frontiers Music Srl as well as his great memories of Metal Church’s late singer Mike Howe.
On the topic of the passing of Mike Howe he told The Metal Voice,” What a tragedy. Quick story: I met Mike and hung out with him one time, I think it was in 2006. He came out to Reno, Nevada and we shared the stage and we did the song ‘ Date with poverty’ together. After the gig ,we all went to a club, had some drinks, sat and talked shop. He was a sweetheart. I never heard anyone say anything bad about the guy. What a tragic loss. You never know what is going on with people, I feel really bad, I know he has a couple of sons and that is devastating. I wish family the best and I send my condolences out to all of Mike’s family, friends and fans.”
The band ‘Between Worlds’ is a vehicle for vocalist Ronny Munroe (ex-Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Metal Church) and highlights his incredible vocal talents. Written and produced in partnership with Alessandro Del Vecchio, this album is a must hear for fans of classic American heavy/power metal we all went to a club, had some drinks, sat and talked shop. He was a sweetheart. I never heard anyone say anything bad about the guy. What a tragic loss. You never know what is going on with people, I feel really bad. I know he has a couple of sons and that is devastating. I wish his family the best and I send my condolences out to all of Mike’s family, friends and fans.
Ronny and Alessandro wanted to involve people in the project that would resonate with Ronny’s history in music and put their mark on this incredible set of songs, so Johnny Lee Middleton (Trans-Siberian Orchestra), Chris Caffery (TSO, Savatage, Spirits Of Fire), Jack Frost (Seven Witches, Savatage), and Joel Hoekstra (also of Whitesnake) all contributed.
Ronny Munroe first came to prominence in the metal world when he stepped into the role of frontman for the legendary band Metal Church. During an audition for a project principal Metal Church member Kurdt Vanderhoof was working on, Ronny was first put on Kurdt’s radar. After watching Munroe’s performance, Vanderhoof decided to resurrect Metal Church with Ronnie on lead vocals. He would go on to sing four albums with the band, “The Weight Of The World” (2004), “A Light In The Dark” (2006), “This Present Wasteland” (2008), and “Generation Nothing” (2013). Ronnie would also wind up singing for Vanderhoof’s progressive rock project, Presto Ballet, further showcasing his vocal talents.
Album Tracklist: 1. Between Worlds 2. These Walls 3. Life Enough For Me 4. Times Of Change 5. No Escape 6. Soul Chaser 7. Scent Of An Angel 8. Beautiful Disaster 9. Flip The Script 10. Beneath The Surface 11. Calm Before The Storm
LINE-UP: Ronny Munroe – Vocals Alessandro Del Vecchio – Keyboards, Backing Vocals Pete Alpenborg – Rhythm Guitars Jack Frost – Lead Guitars Alex Jansen – Bass Michele Sanna – Drums John Lee Middleton – Bass On “No Escape” Joel Hoekstra – Lead Guitar On “Soul Chaser” Chris Caffery – Lead Guitars On “Angel” And “No Escape”
As summer draws to an end, PIL & BUE prepare for fall with the release of one last single before they drop their new album The World is a Rabbit Hole on September 3rd.
PIL & BUE’s new single “True Disaster” is a powerful and emotional exposition of Pil & Bue´s fight against their own inner demons. Petter comments:
“True Disaster is a kind of inner monologue where the best version of oneself takes a stand against the worst version. In other words, the ambitious and confident part of the self, let the inner demons know who really has their hands on the wheel.
The inner demons are your greatest enemies, they can rob you of your will, spark, and faith. True Disaster is a declaration contesting that they will never truly succeed because love and ambition will triumph. Every time.”
“True Disaster” is now available on all streaming platforms – listen to the single here: https://orcd.co/truedisaster
Pil & Bue – “The World Is a Rabbit Hole” coming on Sep 3rd via Indie Recodings, pre-order the album HERE.
English extreme metal legends CARCASS have released a new album trailer in which they discuss the origins of their new single “Kelly’s Meat Emporium.” The song is featured on the band’s impending 7th studio album, “Torn Arteries,” that’s out September 17th with Nuclear Blast Records. Watch below to see how one of the year’s most devastating songs came together.
“Torn Arteries” is available for pre-order in a variety of bundles and formats, including CD, Box Set and limited edition vinyl pressings. Pre-Order “Torn Arteries“: http://www.nuclearblast.com/carcass-tornarteries
“Torn Arteries” Tracklisting:
01. Torn Arteries 02. Dance of Ixtab (Psychopomp & Circumstances March No. 1) 03. Eleanor Rigor Mortis 04. Under The Scalpel Blade 05. The Devil Rides Out 06. Flesh Ripping Sonic Torment Limited 07. Kelly’s Meat Emporium 08. In God We Trust 09. Wake Up And Smell The Carcass /Caveat Emptor 10. The Scythe’s Remorseless Swing
Ferocious and uncompromising in their execution, CARCASS’s ability to intricately dissect the innards of death metal, and display them for us to sonically understand has been their point of excellence for over three decades. In 2019 the band released their first single in over 5 years “Under The Scalpel Blade,” followed by a 4 song EP entitled “Despicable” (October 2020), setting a potent precedent for the full length album coming in September: “Torn Arteries.” With the album title itself referencing an old demo created by original drummer Ken Own back in the 80’s, “Torn Arteries“sits as a bookend on the modern side of the CARCASS discography, connecting directly back to where everything began over 30 years ago.
The album artwork also rings reminiscent of the grotesque photography that appears on classic CARCASS album covers like “Reek Of Putrefaction“ of “Symphonies of Sickness.” Artist Zbigniew Bielak traveled outside his normal wheelhouse to bring forth a time lapsed set of photos showing vegetables shaped like a heart, rotting over time upon a white plate. This form of artwork was influenced by Japanese Kusôzu, meaning: ‘painting of the nine stages of a decaying corpse.’
“It’s very clean, white, which we’ve never done before,” explains vocalist and bassist Jeff Walker, “it doesn’t look evil, or typically death metal, but I like how clean it is; almost like a coffee table book.” This new album presents images, lyrics, and sounds that so distinctly scream CARCASS, but ferry us into a new era of production, songwriting, and art all together.
“I think as our 7th album, it does stand out from the others both sonically and stylistically,” says Walker. “You can definitely tell that it’s CARCASS; when you drop that needle on the vinyl, when you hear that guitar tone, you can tell it’s Bill Steer, but each album is always a product of its time.”
With “Torn Arteries,” each track stands unique from the rest in its approach to guitar, bass, vocals and drumming, along with all the finer details. Filthy and dominating guitar work creates thick layers of tone and melody, piling on top of each other like the weight of dead flesh in tracks like “Kelly’s Meat Emporium.”
“The working title for Kelly’s was originally ‘Stock Carcass,’” laughs Walker. “We knew that one was a real meat and potatoes track for the album.” Meanwhile the elevated speed and catchy beat in “Dance of Ixtab” tell a robust and airier story, one that is certain to get a reaction from live crowds. “We built this song around the beat. We had an approach to each song that was a definite idea. It’s all about ‘what haven’t we done before?’”
Recording and Production for “Torn Arteries” wasn’t as simple as sitting down for a few weeks and knocking it all out, but rather spread out over the course of approximately 1 year bouncing back and forth between England and Sweden. Initially, drummer Daniel Wilding did session work in Sweden at Studio Gröndahl with David Castillo while guitars were recorded at The Stationhouse with James Atkinson in Leeds, England. Eventually needing some form of residential location to finalize vocals, bass, and other guitarwork, the band headed back to studio Gröndahl in Sweden to continue work in a very relaxed atmosphere with Castillo. “There was no real big plan to do it this way, the process just organically grew on its own,” says Walker.
Most will find that the only real struggle when indulging in “Torn Arteries“ is fighting the desire to start it over the second it finishes. It covers substantial new ground for a band with such a reputation, while still retaining that addictive, time honored CARCASS sound that has come to represent the face of true death metal.
As the band’s debut single “If Not For You” impacts at Active Rock radio, TREMONTI has released another song from their upcoming fifth studio album. The epic album closer and title track “Marching In Time” clocks in at 7:34 and is now available on all streaming platforms. “Marching In Time” tells the story of a father having a child during a global pandemic and how he prepares for life during that time – something Mark Tremonti recently experienced in his own life.
The release of the new song comes on the heels of the recent announcements of TREMONTI’sNorth American touring plans and fifth studio album Marching In Time, scheduled for global release on September 24 via Napalm Records.
Watch the performance video for “Marching In Time” HERE:
Mark Tremonti is no stranger to storytelling. Throughout his years with top-charting bands Alter Bridge and Creed, and most recently his solo band, Mark has never strayed from his love of writing memorable songs. With the upcoming fifth album, Marching In Time, the band looks to continue this trend while exploring their love for heavy music, drawing from current events from the last year to form the basis of each song. While its predecessor, A Dying Machine, was an overall concept album seeped in darker sentiments and story, the vibe of Marching In Timeis different – emerging as a charging rock/metal offering that takes the listener on 12 individual journeys.
From the driving drum beat of opener “A World Away” to the epic closer “Marching In Time,” the new album is a reflective look at the world around us today. TREMONTI’s unmatched musicianship bleeds through the album, showcased on tracks like “Thrown Further,” “In One Piece” and the thought provoking “Would You Kill.” Alternatively, the band displays their softer side on pensive tracks “The Last One Of Us” and “Not Afraid to Lose.” Debut single “If Not For You” shows the evolution of the band’s sound in 2021 and the music video is a frenetic, high-energy performance video that visually compliments the single that is currently impacting at radio.
Marching In Timewas produced by longtime friend and collaborator Michael “Elvis” Baskette – the producer Mark has worked with exclusively since 2007.
Marching In Time track listing: 1. A World Away 2. Now And Forever 3. If Not For You 4. Thrown Further 5. Let That Be Us 6. The Last One Of Us 7. In One Piece 8. Under The Sun 9. Not Afraid To Lose 10. Bleak 11. Would You Kill 12. Marching In Time
TREMONTI will hit the road in advance of the release of Marching In Time with longtime friends Sevendust, before being a part of the recently announced tour with Daughtry and Sevendust through the US.
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Kimmo Kuusniemi’s ASA unveil the long-overdue release of "Collective Failure" + first music video for title-track! Check it out and stay tuned for more news! Click image to watch the video
Kimmo Kuusniemi’s SARCOFAGUS return with a Historic 2010 Concert Video Premiere on YouTube! Click image to watch the video
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Visionary artist KIMMO KUUSNIEMI's ANCIENT STREAMING ASSEMBLY (ASA) have released “Aurora Nuclearis”, a powerful 12-minute audiovisual experience, dedicated to the Late Keyboardist Esa Kotilainen. - Click image to watch the video
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Metal Shock Finland (World Assault ) 