“Balls to the Wall” back in ’83 was a wall breaker, demolition metal anthem. Accept was the most powerful Teuton answer for the NWOBHM. Accept’s beginnings can be traced back to 1968, when Udo Dirkschneider and Michael Wagener formed a local band called Band X, which in 1976 changed its name to Accept. But Udo left Accept in 1987 and a large fan community followed him to U.D.O., proved to be continuously pure heavy metal without any Trend-Sound influences.
At the beginning of 90s, Accept and Dirkschneider met and spontaneously decided to relaunch the band with the core members Hoffmann, Kaufmann, Dirkschneider and Baltes.A new album, ” Objection Overruled” was released worldwide in 1993 followed by “Predator” in 1996, but the chemistry between Accept and Udo was again strained and Udo left once again. Later, asked if there will be another Accept album with him as vocalist, Dirkschneider replied: “That would be a problem. You know, it’s easy to play the old songs, because they already exist. Especially for me it was easier, because I still do those classics with U.D.O., but for some of the guys it was a bit harder. But everybody did a great job on stage. I understand that people want a new Accept album, but composing songs together would have been a disaster. That way we would destroy more than we would create. We have a good relationship now and it’s best to keep it that way.”
But fans have U.D.O. and Udo never disappointing his fans, “Rev-Raptor”, the 13th studio album of his band sounds just the same as his debut, “Animal House” 24 years ago. Read more U.D.O. – Rev-Raptor (2011)
Metal
Engineer – Crooked Voices (2011)
Dirty and contorted, merging hardcore with sludge, twisted riffs and slow grinds with breathe acoustic relieves and blue collar breaks, Engineer bring to the surface a world of darkness and suffering, pour their pain on us and drown us under the weight of their sick songs.
From Syracuse, NY, Engineer are compound of three brothers and a brutal dude behind the drum kit: Bobby – vocals, Ryan – guitar, Brad – bass, respectively Mike Auclair – drums. Decibel Magazine ranked Engineer’s 2006 release “Reproach” one of the top 50 Best Albums of the Year and their noisy, deranged, modern metal have something unique and exciting. Read more Engineer – Crooked Voices (2011)
PAIN – You Only Live Twice (2011)
Peter Tägtgren started playing drums at the age of 9 and later learned to play guitar, bass and keyboard. After he’s first band Conquest disbanded, he went to the United States where he became part of the death metal scene, participating in practice sessions with Malevolent Creation’s guitarist, Phil Fasciana. After spending three years in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, Tägtgren moved back to Sweden in 1990, he formed the band Hypocrisy, at this time a one-man project, and played all instruments himself. Get the attention and signed a recording contract with Nuclear Blast and since released eleventh studio albums. Although Hypocrisy is his main focus, he has also worked on many other Swedish metal projects. These include PAIN (industrial metal), for which he performs all instruments and vocals and composes all songs, Lock Up (grindcore/death metal), in which he was the vocalist, The Abyss (black metal), where he performed drums, bass and vocals, War (black metal), where he performed drums, and most recently Bloodbath (death metal), also with him on vocals. He also appeared as a live guitarist for the bands Marduk and E-Type. Read more PAIN – You Only Live Twice (2011)
Black Veil Brides – Set the World on Fire (2011)
Their video for the song “Knives and Pens” has gained over 26,000,000 views over YouTube, so, the group’s debut album “We Stitch These Wounds” released in 2010 and sold nearly 10,000 copies in its first week, ranking at #36 on the Billboard Top 200 chart, and #1 on the Billboard Independent chart. Having the look of the 80s Motley Crue and the sound of some emo/post-hardcore band, Black Veil Brides merging dark and heavy themes, balancing smoothly between the traditional heavy sound and the modern, grungy approach. Andy Biersack have powerful voice, he singing strong and catchy choruses, while the band delivering pretty intense metal support. The new set consist of 11 songs, shows a stronger and more determined, perhaps more mature band, somehow it’s quite a fracture between their look and their music. Read more Black Veil Brides – Set the World on Fire (2011)
The Black Dahlia Murder – Ritual (2011)
Frontman Trevor Strnad said about “Ritual”, the upcoming fifth studio album, that this is “the most focused Black Dahlia Murder strike of all time.” Scheduled to be released on June 17, 2011 in Europe and June 21 in North America, the 45 minutes of slaughter compressed in 12 tracks are a mixture of pure aggression with consistent death metal marks, intriguingly melodious heavy metal riffs, extreme grindings and brutal vocals on a scale from death to black metal. Formed in 2001 at Waterford, Michigan, their name is derived from the 1947 unsolved murder of Elizabeth Short, often referred to as Black Dahlia. Out of their four studio albums, the latest three charted on the US Billboard 200, with the previous 2009’s “Deflorate” peaking at #43. This is a considerable performance for a death metal combo of this intensity. And fans have nothing to worry, “Ritual” is another intense and grinding collection of extreme, modern metal. Read more The Black Dahlia Murder – Ritual (2011)
Unexpect – Fables of the Sleepless Empire (2011)
Twisted and schizophrenic – perhaps psychosomatic 😀 – Unexpect is exactly what they name suggest to be: expect the unexpected.
Formed at Montreal, Canada in 1996, they delivering since an unique – and quite sick – blend of different music styles, including black metal, death metal, thrash metal, progressive metal, melodic heavy metal, classical music, dark cabaret, opera, medieval music, jazz, funk, electro, ambient, noise, gypsy music, and just name anything you can think of.
“Utopia” they self-released, 1999 debut album, sold quite successfully, while the band market it only through internet and by man to man. Critically acclaimed, “Utopia” drew enough attention which lead to the release of the EP entitled “_We, Invaders” in November 2003 through the Canadian label Galy Records. Next they signed with New York-based The End Records and the band’s second album In a Flesh Aquarium was released in 2006 and they were winners of the 7th annual Independent Music Awards Vox Pop, voted for best Hard Rock/Metal Album “In a Flesh Aquarium”. Read more Unexpect – Fables of the Sleepless Empire (2011)
In Flames – Sounds of a Playground Fading (2011)
And this is the heavily awaited tenth – anniversary number! – album by In Flames, the first album recorded by the band without founding guitarist Jesper Strömblad, who left the band in February last year. Cut to the chase, “Sounds of a Playground Fading” sounds intense, it’s a perfect blending of heavy and technical elements with more melodious, classic and progressive (heavy) metal schemes. They low-tuned heaviness and catchy melodic hooks signature is recognizable, pithy and In Flames is holding steady to the same path they’ve been on for over a decade.
Formed in 1990 as a side project of Ceremonial Oath, the band where that time guitarist Jesper Strömblad played, In Flames gained major popularity and became a trademark for what we call the “Gothenburg style and sound” and managed to remains a good metal band while being also “radio friendly” and one with constantly good selling. Some of the conservative death metal fans probably considered they “sell out”, but In Flames actually never giving up being metal. Read more In Flames – Sounds of a Playground Fading (2011)
Kourgane – Corps De Chasse (2011)
Can’t dig and figure out too much about Kourgane, but I know for sure, they delivering a sick, twisted mixture of contemporary music including explosive spices of noise-rock, post-hardcore, jazz and experimental avant-garde elements. This is future-hardcore. Gloomy, heavy, contorted and restless. This universe was revealed for us by Tool at the beginning of the 90s when almost out of the blue the EP “Opiate” (1992) and their debut album “Undertow” (1993) opened a new doorway to an unexplored path of music expression of anger and twisted thoughts.
Unfortunately they are not willing to share any information in other language than French, and well, my French resume to “merde” – and I don’t wanna sound disrespectful. Frederic Jouanlong – vocals, Jarame Renault – drums, Gilles Lahonda – bariton guitar and Ryan Kernoa – guitar, introduced us in the world of pulsing riffs, pumping drums and shattered feelings. Read more Kourgane – Corps De Chasse (2011)
Bone Dance, Divider Plebeian and Grandstand – Three-​Way Split (2011)
Throatruiner Records from France in a common effort with Mayfly Records from USA tempting us with this 12″ split which will be released on early July. Noisy, contorted, experimental and exciting incursion in the area of modern (or quite post-modern) metal with flavors of avant-garde melt into extreme brutality. Three bands, three songs, different approaches, but all of them bringing to the surface new excitements.
Bone Dance from Boise, Idaho, USA, are nihilists and doesn’t want to be your friend. “Conniver” is a raw, chaotic mixture of hardcore and sludge, expression of pure brutality.
Diveder from Long Island, New York, USA blending the raw punk emergency with filthy hardcore brutality and the result is a modern, groovy, explosive metal. This sounds like the future of hardcore. “Gaia” is already an anthematic track and looking forward to listen into “Halios Geron” as well. Diveder introduce Chris Tzompanakis behind the mic, best known for his work with the influential group Skycamefalling in the early 2000’s.
Plebeian Grandstand from Toulouse, France will ripping off your head and destroy your loudspeakers instantly. Extreme, brutal, noisy and explosive, these guys promised to don’t leave survivors left behind and well, they are not joking. Read more Bone Dance, Divider Plebeian and Grandstand – Three-​Way Split (2011)
Marc Broude – Psychological Warfare (2011)
Reminds me of Ministry, Godflesh, Schnitt Acht, Bail and other contorted oddities from the industrial metal area of noise aggression, Marc Broude comes crushing. Marc Broude (born August 23, 1984) is an American cross-genre composer who started in the Chicago-based noise outfit Panicsville in 2005. He has collaborated with a diverse array of artists and groups including Cock E.S.P., Richard Ramirez and Lasse Marhaug. In 2010 Broude and Tim Lash formed Sick Spider. In 2009 Broude released Rites of Zen, a seventy-two minute dark ambient piece similar to projects like Lull and Lustmord. Working independently of major labels, Marc Broude primarily records for his own label, NoZen Records.
“Psychological Warfare” was originally released in 2006 as a 50 piece limited edition 7†which became out of print and unavailable, it was digitally remixed and re-released in May 2011. Two tracks, “Psychological Warfare” and “God Smacker”, 11:33 minutes containing pumping, grinding, twisted, extreme and noisy, quality industrial metal. Read more Marc Broude – Psychological Warfare (2011)
