Review: Boy Sets Fire – After The Eulogy
Hardcore heavy with so many excursions into melody, you might forget they are hardcore. The CD opens with the title track, a raging over the top jam of yells, riffs with a huge drum presence and gets the blood pumping proper.
Interview: Rob Halford. Metal God.
In the beginning…there was Sabbath. Sabbath begat metal which begat Judas Priest. There is no metal record collection in the world that does not contain a Priest album in there somewhere. They are what many of today’s new metal and hard rock stars were getting stoned to in high school. You just can’t fuck with Priest.
Review: Shelter – When 20 Summers Pass
Krishna-Core? To grasp the band Shelter, one must first come to grips with its singer, Ray Cappo who has done time as a monk and a full on airport hanging out Hare-Krishna disciple. And since a lot of the straight edge ideal translates into some of the same philosophies (especially in the areas of diet and respect of life), the concept doesn’t seem as strange as it initially sounds.
Review: Alien Crime Syndicate – Dust to Dirt
Good pop in the vein of rock, with some occasional slips into some exploration of sound (dash of sample here, dose of keyboards there) that puts a stamp of distinction into the intentional nuggets offered here. Alien Crime Syndicate is what happens when really good songwriters choose to embrace the pop hook more than trying to flex their musician skills.
Review: Deftones – White Pony
Deftones are truly perfecting their command of unsuspecting moody whispers that somehow transfer into such tormented scraping screams and crushing walls of guitar, the formula seems unworkable. Yet as the band progresses from a sound so distinct, the Deftones have evolved into an entity of singularity that other bands will be charged of ripping of their sound.
Interview: Kittie
I arrived with intentions of getting some words in with the kiddies of Kittie. Actually, I think singer Morgan is 18 (or almost) and the rest are between 15-17, and have put in time with bands like Slipknot and are booked for OzzFest. Calling them kiddies might be inaccurate. In fact, I found singer Morgan and guitarist Fallon very mature, intelligent and aside from a bit of disbelief over their own success, quite grounded about what is happening to them and the pitfalls that fame at such a young age can bring.
Interview: Lamb of God
Lamb of God out-pitted Slayer.
Those that fly the horns regularly might not believe such a statement, but at a recent stop at the Sports Arena in San Diego, CA, Randy Blythe and company did something most metal fans wouldn’t think possible. They created a pit larger and got more reaction out of the packed arena floor than one of the most respected metal bands in history.
