Essential Albums #2: “Angel Dust” by Faith No More

After the release of “The Real Thing” in 1989, San Francisco’s Faith No More became – most likely to the band’s surprise – commercially successful. The album, the first to feature vocalist Mike Patton, took off after rock radio and MTV embraced the song “Epic.” The band was also nominated for a Grammy Award in the category [...]

Interview: Enslaved’s Ivar Bjørnson talks about the band’s first major U.S. tour

Norwegian psychedelic Vikings Enslaved have been crossing and recrossing the United States all the month of May, as the main support on Opeth’s latest U.S. tour.
The tour has  been a golden opportunity for Enslaved to play before large audiences. On paper, tour has been hectic, with only four days off between May 1 and the [...]

Coming this week …

I was a little overloaded with work last week, so I didn’t have time to post anything new. Sorry. Work’s a jungle sometimes.
However, this week I plan to make it up to you with a tour update with Enslaved’s Ivar Bjørnson, an interview with Devin Townsend and another recommendation from my Essential Albums list.
Look for [...]

Giveaway! Win two tickets to the Owensboro Maylene & The Sons of Disaster show

Yes, kids. I have two free tickets to this Sunday’s (May 17) Maylene concert at the Brothers venue in Owensboro. And they can be yours, all yours.
Just send an e-mail with “Maylene” in the subject line to: jmayse@messenger-inquirer.com. I’ll pick a winner at random.
Be quick. The show is this Sunday, so I’ll be picking a [...]

Interview: Candlemass vocalist Robert Lowe talks about “Death Magic Doom”

Candlemass released the album “Nightfall” in 1987. The album has been credited with creating the “doom” metal movement – which could be true, if your definition of “doom metal” is so strict that it doesn’t include Black Sabbath. But even without the “doom” label, “Nightfall” was a monster.
With its huge, ton-heavy riffs and black atmosphere, [...]

Obligatory notice about the upcoming “Music As A Weapon” tour

Part of the fun of running a site like this is that I can essentially pick and choose what I want to cover. If I don’t like a particular band rolling through St. Louis or Cincinnati, why, I don’t interview them. I simply add the date to the Upcoming Regional Concerts  page and move on.
But, [...]

Interview: Exodus guitarist Gary Holt discusses “Let There Be Blood,” working with Warbringer and “Atrocity Exhibition: Exhibit B”

In thrash metal, there are only a handful of guitarists who have the pedigree of Exodus’ Gary Holt.
More than 20 years ago, Holt was one of the pioneers of the San Francisco metal scene. To this day, the band’s debut album, “Bonded By Blood” is considered a thrash classic, worthy of ranking alongside great thrash discs like Metallica’s “Kill Em [...]

A Life Once Lost to Play free Owensboro show Saturday

Did I wake up in an alternative universe Owensboro, where everything is suddenly much cooler?
This Saturday (May 9), another nationally known metal band will grace the city, when A Life Once Lost will play a free show at the International Bar-B-Q Festival.
A Life Once Lost will play the Old-School Stage School-Age/United Youth Stage beginning at [...]

Metal Mood Stabilizer Song of the Day #3: Dimmu Borgir: “Progenies of the Great Apocalypse”

Misanthropy never tasted so sweet. The footage comes from Dimmu’s “Invaluable Darkness” DVD.
Enjoy.