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Showing posts with label thrashmetal. Show all posts
Showing posts with label thrashmetal. Show all posts
Sunday, June 19, 2016
SKELETONWITCH UNVEILS SEVEN-MINUTE EPIC 'RED DEATH, WHITE LIGHT'
Thursday, June 16, 2016
Chilean Thrashers LEFUTRAY Announce European/Russian Summer Tour
Chilean Groove/Thrash Metallers LEFUTRAY will embark on its first European tour in July. The 30-date "Sounds Kill Europe Tour" will see the band playing in Germany, Poland, and the Czech Republic, as well as 18 confirmed dates in Russia. There are still a few dates available. Those interested in booking the band should get in touch with Ferroda Booking at felipe@ferroda.cl.
The band is touring in support of 2015 SickBangers release Oath. Stream Oath in its entirety at https://lefutray.bandcamp.com/album/oath.
Check out the official video for "Sounds Kill" at this location. And if you just can't get enough, the official video for "The World Infected" can be viewed here.
Critical Praise for Oath:
"It's fast, intense, and just a well rounded album."
- Head-Banger Reviews
"Oath bashes from start to end, and will resonate with those who desire a more abrasive juggernaut of thrash that still keeps groove in mind."
- Eternal-Terror
"Lefutray have done a great job of cultivating a sound that is their very own. Though they certainly fit into the thrash metal polemic, Oath proves that they can do so much more."
- Two Guys Metal Reviews
"Oath offers fast, powerful guitar runs, raging drums, dominant bass, and intoxicating groove."
- Metalinside.de
"Eleven songs of a modern Thrash Metal with much groove. Pure adrenaline almost from start to finish."
- Queens of Steel
"Deathy groove metal!"
- WORT Mosh Pit Radio
Biography
Formed in january 2005 in Santiago - Chile, LEFUTRAY is a Thrash-Groove band formed by Cristian Olivares (Guitar), Yonattan Muñoz (Drums), Juan Vejar (Vocals) and Julio Yañez(Bass Guitar).
¨LEFUTRAY¨ is a word written in Mapudungún (Mapuche language) and it means "Fast Sound"
Produced completely by Cristian Olivares, the band has released three studio albums (Frente al fin 2008, Last Breath 2011, Oath 2015), One live album (Live Oxido 2012), two Ep (Unbalance 2014, Homonimo 2007) and one DVD (Sick mosh Arica, 2014).
LEFUTRAY has played in a lot of important venues in Chile, inccluding The Metal Fest, Santiago 2014 and Merkén rock, Temuco 2013. Also, the band have made tours in Argentina 2012 and 2013, and Brazil in 2012.
www.lefutray.cl
Twitter.com/LEFUTRAY
www.facebook.com/LefutrayOficialEsp
Sunday, June 12, 2016
Thorhammer & Oracle at The Firebird, Friday June 10, 2016
This show was supposed to feature headliner Sacred Leather (with members of Skeletonwitch & Coffinworm) but, while they were touring, they were met with personal incidents and so, therefore, were not able to play this show. Respect to Sacred Leather! We'd love to see you again when you're in St. Louis.
When I arrived at the Firebird, it was still daylight and the lot was nearly empty save for Thorhammer's Kyle McNeil (guitar, vocals), Ian Parks (guitar) and Chuck Scones (of Tropical Storm! and Melursus). They greeted me with waves and, when I said hello to Kyle, he joked that my voice sounded "so sexy and burly." It's just the result of smoking packs and packs of cigarettes on a daily basis; there's hardly any special practice to it all. We talked about ten minutes and filed inside the club, where I paid the door charge and received my tough, metal wrist bracelet decorated with bumblebees and flowers. After a short time with McNeil, Parks & Scones, Thorhammer's Chris Naes arrived. He and I talked a good deal about his podcast, On The Road With Thorhammer. He showed me a field recorder he'd purchased, which looked a bit like a tricorder from the original Star Trek series to me, and we talked about our respective projects and how they've been faring. Chris has guests on a weekly basis and has, since May of 2015, logged over forty episodes.
In fact, take a listen to On The Road With Thorhammer. This shit rules: hilarious and awesome!
So, after Naes and I talked, there came a tall, mustachioed young guy who chatted up the band and myself while we sat on the leather lounge seats near the bar. I mistook him for Matt Albers from Damnation STL, actually. I'd thought that because the guy was friendly and early, too, and I'd never seen Matt before. Well, it wasn't Matt Albers.
When Kyle and I stepped outside, this guy followed us out the door. He saw Kyle's fanny pack, a handsome, grey Casino Queen hip pouch and asked, "Does that mean you're gay, or something?" I palmed my face, looking down, dreading where this would go. Where I felt compelled, at first, to take it! Kyle seemed puzzled but cool saying, "Well, I don't see what this fanny pack has to do with me being gay. And even if I were, what would be the big deal?" I'd added, "It doesn't have anything to do with him being gay." I glared at this guy, looked to Kyle's hip and pointed, and resumed my stare.
After a few seconds of looking in to this man's grey-blue eyes, observing his gaunt face and aquiline features and sizing him up, I'd decided he was very harmless and just speaking rude shit out of turn. There would have been no need to get very hared up about this anyway, but I'm protective of friends when it comes to people I don't know.
Kyle is a much cooler character than I, and it's to his great credit that this is so.
After some silence, our conversation resumed. The tan young man with the thin mustache continued his monologues on "peace and love," "hippie stuff" and mood rings. He also explained at some length his situation. Over time and, as I heard him, I honestly felt for him. As the night passed, I borrowed him some cigarettes. I'd figured it was right to do as I'd watched him in between the sets pace the street, telling people who'd listen his disjointed ideas and trying to engage them in conversation. It's only right. He was among peers and wanted to thrash.
It was perhaps forty minutes after the door opened that Oracle, the opening band, a very new power metal outfit from St. Louis, had arrived to begin packing indoors. I caught a look at them all. Perhaps most striking among the members at first was their young bassist who was extremely tall. Six-foot-seven, to hazard a guess, but very skinny. Then came the rest of them, a curly-haired guy in baggy, faded blue jeans and a Skeletonwitch shirt (guitarist for Oracle), their drummer, a larger, bearded man in black, another long-haired kid (guitars) and their singer, another thin young, blonde fellow with a Gorguts shirt.
I hadn't heard Oracle prior to my arrival and hadn't a clue what they'd play but, after they set up their gear, they did a short sound check. It was nice to hear a sampling of their sound prior to their set; particularly striking was the singer's voice, which sounded trained and melodic. The others, there, from Thorhammer watched them and Kyle joked: "Oh man, we have to go on after that?"
The first impression, however brief, was good.
A short time later it seemed a group of nearly thirty of Oracle's friends, family and maybe coworkers came through the door. It was their first show in St. Louis. I'd played shows like this before, years earlier, but hardly with the benefit of very many friends or family members to watch: it's familiar.
Nice of them all to show for Oracle but all but two or three stayed for Thorhammer. I'd figured as much; the majority of them didn't seem like fans of even heavy rock, never mind power or thrash metal and certainly not the usual show-goers for St. Louis metal.
I heard Oracle's first salvos of sound from outside The Firebird. I'd missed their first two songs because I was outside talking to a friend to Thorhammer and myself, Alex "The American Viking" Rudolph. He's a huge man, a professional wrestler and barely has any days off or time to himself, so it was a good opportunity to say hello and catch up. If you're a fan of wrestling and St. Louis metal and don't know him, I'd first ask where you've been? And then I'd suggest you go catch one of his (many) appearances for Outlaw Wrestling and watch him, sometime.
Alex and I went inside to watch Oracle and I was almost right away taken with the clarity and volume of the vocalist's voice. It did not take me very long to find their galloping, power metal groove and begin headbanging and dancing. I always listen for bands' rhythms and can sometimes easily catch them: this was another one of those times. The drum patterns, over their set, did not often vary from these paces but were played very sharply and without error on the part of the drummer. He smiled often during Oracle's set, pausing in between songs to twirl or flip a drumstick. It's good to see metal drummers have a nice time of it.
The guitarist in the Skeletonwolf shirt seemed to possess nearly the most physical energy of the quintet and certainly the most virtuosity of the guitarists. It was great to hear his leads and soloing juxtapose against the (very) simple bass rhythms and the competent guitar work from the other side of the stage, and it was also nice to see someone besides the vocalist actually MOVE.
Besides him, the bassist and rhythm guitarist were extremely static and the rhythm guitarist's hands seemed at times hesitant, playing riffs that were a fraction of a second off time with the remainder of the musicians. I could excuse this, once, and chalk it up to a case of nerves and youth. However, I'd hope very much that, with time, Oracle's bassist and rhythm guys would begin to be more animated on stage because what they're doing is not at all so mired in technicality as to render them nearly immobile.
Unfortunate.
Oracle's singer has apparently spent time on television as a contestant for the show The Voice. One in the crowd pulled me aside and said, "That guy's been on The Voice! He's got a set of pipes!" I agreed with him there, saying, "Very good voice." The Voice is a singing competition broadcast over NBC and the guy, I suppose, did reasonably well on it but he explained, after their set, that there was "too much politics" to major show business. I agreed with him wholeheartedly and told him that, "Maybe it's not in you or of you to be part of pop music like that, but this is different. Perhaps you're best suited to smaller shows and the St. Louis scene."
The singer's voice was a good Bruce Dickinson impression. That's what I left with after hearing Oracle. There were no extraordinary examples of his vocalizing to be heard through their set but his spirited and proficient delivery was unique and appreciated. He was also, at times, very much in the small crowd gathered at the front of the Firebird's stage but leaving me mostly alone to sing to his friends.
He'd also take time to commit to brief and theatrical poses during their songs which may have been an extension of his singing spirit but left me mostly very unimpressed. Perhaps it's a personal thing! I don't go to power metal shows, so maybe that's part and parcel with the genre. While it's good to be engaging and fill as much of the stage as you can, it's unfortunate to have to be so very busy onstage while most of your band mates stand flat-footed and play the music.
During their set, the drummer's snare drum fucked up. He'd asked for help from Thorhammer's drummer and, during this, I'd went to the bathroom. It was about four minutes of unplanned intermission. Things happen, but I can't guess how they filled the down time. I didn't hear much in the bathroom and usually a person can hear everything and then some as the sound rattles the Firebird's men's room stall walls.
During their set, the drummer's snare drum fucked up. He'd asked for help from Thorhammer's drummer and, during this, I'd went to the bathroom. It was about four minutes of unplanned intermission. Things happen, but I can't guess how they filled the down time. I didn't hear much in the bathroom and usually a person can hear everything and then some as the sound rattles the Firebird's men's room stall walls.
Apart from that and, in all, Oracle sounded their best, to me, when they engaged in more heavy sounds in minor keys and took time to build tension and mood through their songs which was only, at this show, very occasionally. I think Oracle was at their most unimpressive when the singer exhorted us to mosh during one of their tunes. He'd suggested one of us "claim the throne of the king of mosh." None did and, not because we're all a lot of sticklers or unwilling to throw down; quite the opposite! Oracle's tunes, by now, seemed hardly mosh material. Great to headbang to! I never once had a problem banging my head to this music or enjoying it when I wasn't busy eyeballing the rhythm guitarist's hands or dissecting the performance in my mind. But this was not to mosh to.
A few of the friends in the crowd would occasionally, drunkenly moan the word "More-acle!" which I suppose was something very clever thought of on the spot by one of them. When Oracle's singer told the crowd to stick around for Thorhammer, I just heard more low, wailing refain of, "Yeah, for more of ORACLE!" I wasn't surprised. I was more surprised to see one of these wailers stick around and watch Thorhammer.
As for Thorhammer, this band rules so goddamned hard. They're known and respected in the metal scene in St. Louis for hard-hitting shows and were nominated by the Riverfront Times for best metal band of the year in 2013. This band absolutely owns a stage.
As for Thorhammer, this band rules so goddamned hard. They're known and respected in the metal scene in St. Louis for hard-hitting shows and were nominated by the Riverfront Times for best metal band of the year in 2013. This band absolutely owns a stage.
When Oracle tore down their gear it wasn't long until Thorhammer's Chris, Tim, Ian and Kyle began to set up. Kyle and Ian checked their guitars and vocal levels, which were fine for them but their voices were far too low for my liking, and Chris and Tim took the stage to check themselves as well. Very soon after this check and after a good bit of odd shuffling and dancing from Kyle, he howled in his now-signature and engaging, sometimes comedic growl that they were Thorhammer and they began their set with a song called "The River," which is featured on their 2015 debut album "Indomitable."
Here's "Indomitable" on Bandcamp so you can hear for yourself how much this song (and more!) rips:
Here's "Indomitable" on Bandcamp so you can hear for yourself how much this song (and more!) rips:
Thorhammer blasted through the paces of this song and I could see Kyle's eyes widen and become more mad-looking as the "The River" progressed. Chris Naes' extremely tight and unique thrashing rhythms always make me lose my goddamned mind every time I see them live and Ian's fierce playing, low, wide stance and hair-whipping is always good to see. This is frenetic! This, now, is true physical energy and technical prowess!
It was through "The River" we thrashed and trudged in to bloody terrain, but barely pausing to catch a breath before rocketing in to the next songs. If anything, Thorhammer's paces usually quicken and tighten as their sets advance forward which is always awesome to see and hear.
This is a band that has, over six years, gotten their sense of timing down very well and their sudden stops and starts in songs, always orchestrated and executed extremely well, are good cues to throw your fists up and dance along.
This is a band that has, over six years, gotten their sense of timing down very well and their sudden stops and starts in songs, always orchestrated and executed extremely well, are good cues to throw your fists up and dance along.
Thorhammer had the remaining few from the first set going mad, actually. A small guy in a powder-blue polo and a hat with a curved brim (why is this style of hat becoming so rare, now?) would hang on me, now and then, drunkenly hollering "Whooo!" into my ear.. this he did four times. I was polite the first few times. He placed his arm around my shoulder in an attempt, I think, to be convivial. I don't drink and I wasn't drunk, so his want to shuffle with me in some shambling, alcoholic pattern was rejected pretty soundly. I just pulled his arm off of my back with two hands and resumed thrashing and, later, when he tried it again, I pushed him far away from me. I'm there for a band and, when I know you, that's fine, but I don't do that with people, generally, and definitely not with guys who I never see at metal shows who stand up at the front of the stage pretending to fuck it.
But, for Thorhammer, it's always excellent to see guitarist Kyle and bassist Tim Kutterer play back to back. It's something I see at nearly every Thorhammer show but it's always awesome to see good unity and shared purpose in a band's live setting.
But, for Thorhammer, it's always excellent to see guitarist Kyle and bassist Tim Kutterer play back to back. It's something I see at nearly every Thorhammer show but it's always awesome to see good unity and shared purpose in a band's live setting.
Another remarkable song from their set is a more recent one they've begun to feel very comfortable with, live, and that is "Crimson Mask." Kyle barked in to the microphone, "Do we have any professional wrestling fans in the audience tonight?!"
Small cheers emerged from the floor to which he quickly interjected, "IT DOESN'T MATTER if there's any pro wrestling fans in the audience tonight! This is a song about the nature boy, Ric Flair, and it's called.. CRIMSON MASK!" Of course it was a nod to The Rock's patented smack talk and a metal ode to Flair's notoriously bloody mug from matches and magazines.
Small cheers emerged from the floor to which he quickly interjected, "IT DOESN'T MATTER if there's any pro wrestling fans in the audience tonight! This is a song about the nature boy, Ric Flair, and it's called.. CRIMSON MASK!" Of course it was a nod to The Rock's patented smack talk and a metal ode to Flair's notoriously bloody mug from matches and magazines.
These songs of theirs have such a furious and honest quality to them that I can't help but enjoy them immensely when I see them played live. The showmanship of each musician is vital to their cohesion as a live unit and has improved a good deal in the time since I began to see them.
It's shows like this that make them candidates for best metal band in St. Louis from magazines like the Riverfront Times and it's in the songs they have; they're great thrashers which never cease to inspire tremendous response from a crowd, whether big or small, and these songs are played just the same whether the room is very packed or thinly attended.
It's in their music and attitudes as musicians. They'll be honest with you, they'll talk to you. They don't have dick rock star attitudes. It's because they have respect and pay dues, locally and abroad. This is what helps Thorhammer comprise, with other underground metal bands, the heart of St. Louis metal.
It's shows like this that make them candidates for best metal band in St. Louis from magazines like the Riverfront Times and it's in the songs they have; they're great thrashers which never cease to inspire tremendous response from a crowd, whether big or small, and these songs are played just the same whether the room is very packed or thinly attended.
It's in their music and attitudes as musicians. They'll be honest with you, they'll talk to you. They don't have dick rock star attitudes. It's because they have respect and pay dues, locally and abroad. This is what helps Thorhammer comprise, with other underground metal bands, the heart of St. Louis metal.
Friday, June 10, 2016
NOISEM Sign to Relapse; Prepare New Album
Photo credit: Josh Sisk
Relapse Records is proud to announce the signing of Baltimore, MD's NOISEM! Formed in 2013 as teenagers, NOISEM quickly established themselves as the most promising young band in extreme metal and have already graced the cover of Decibel Magazine in addition to having toured with countless heavyweights such as Carcass, Obituary, Nails, Dropdead, The Black Dahlia Murder, Gorguts, Iron Reagan and many more during their short time as a band. NOISEM bring an incredible energy to their mix of death metal, thrash, grindcore and hardcore and have released two full-lengths and an EP via A389 Recordings. Their most recent album, Blossoming Decay, can be streamed in full HERE.
NOISEM will enter the studio this summer to begin recording their third full-length. The band commented on the signing and the new material,
"We’re very excited to be able to work with everyone at Relapse. We look forward to what we’ll be able to do in the future and am glad they decided to add us to their already incredible line-up of bands. Without giving too much away, Noisem record C so far has come to be about the sense of memory in loss, and gain. How everything before you pass could have a never ending impact on how you are seen, but within yourself will be forgotten in an instant. You can live a dream walker, but ultimately it's all just a Cancered Delusion."
Stay tuned for more info on NOISEM and further details on the new album TBA in the coming months.
Noisem is:
Tyler - Vocals
Sebastian - Guitar
Billy - Bass
Yago - Guitar
Harley - Drums
Stream Noisem's 'Blossoming Decay' via Bandcamp HERE
Friday, June 3, 2016
NJ/NY Thrashers NUCLEAR HATRED Performing at Thrash Bash BBQ V
NJ/NY Crossover Thrashers NUCLEAR HATRED (formerly Zamboni) will be performing at Thrash Bash BBQ V in Wantage, NJ on July 30. Also featuring LICH KING and WITCHTRIPPER, among others, event details can be found at this location. A promo video for the fest is available here.
NUCLEAR HATRED's Chris Brutera had this to say about the return for the fifth and final time of the single most metal East Coast event:
"The Thrash Bash BBQ has been going on since 2011. Rob [Orr] and myself founded it because we realized nobody does barbecue shows anymore and thought it'd be a great time to hang out with our friends and appreciate each others music. After a time it statred getting traction and we began getting touring bands. The venue is Rob's garage in Wantage, NJ (116 Libertyville Rd) because he has a lot of land and it's in an isolated area, so we don't have to worry about noise complaints. It's also got a pot luck type of vibe as far as food goes where everyone has to bring something. After a fun 4th event last year where Sonic Pulse headlined, we decided it'd be best to end the event after 5 bashes, as it's becoming too expensive to put on for free. The purpose of the bash is to showcase the best local bands NY and NJ have to offer and give bands on the road a drama-free day to play and eat - because food is expensive on the road and you're wallet dictates what you eat, which is not always the best thing for you. It's about bringing people together for our love of music."
This year's lineup:
Lich King - East Coast Bay Area Thrash Metal
Witchtripper - Wicked Long Island Doom
RÖÄRGH - Wild Upstate NY Powerthrash
BILLxNYE - Science Grind
Nuclear Hatred - The Artist Formerly Known as Zamboni
Toxicology - Not Your Father's Grindcore
Vantafrost - Blackened NJ Crust that's back with a vengeance!
The event will start at 2:00 pm with the first band going on at 3:00 pm. A $10 donation is suggested.
NUCLEAR HATRED's self-titled debut album is available for purchase and/or streaming at: https://nuclearhatred.bandcamp.com/album/nuclear-hatred. The album features the bombastic bass and booming vocals of Chris Butera, and the RAMONES-esque buzzsaw riffing guitars of Robert Orr. The album is also available from CD Baby at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/nuclearhatred.
- WeLoveMetal.com
"An amalgamation of metal and hardcore punk. A ton of fun in the exact sort of spirit one would expect from such a combined genre."
- Glacially Musical
"Faithful to the principles of the crossover, the album consists of short and violent titles, and palpable punk influences."
- Metal C*nt
"On this flat-out fun album we're treated to a vast array of influences that range from thrash (Testament, Exodus, Kreator, Overkill, Megadeth, Lääz Rockit, Anthrax, and Forbidden) to crossover (The Accused, C.O.C., Suicidal Tendencies, M.O.D., Cryptic Slaughter, Leeway, and D.R.I. ) with a few cool odds and ends (Carnivore, Dead Kennedys, S.N.F.U., October 31, and The Ramones) tossed in for good measure!"
- Heavy Metal Time Machine
"Hard-hitting, quick-paced numbers...raw, reckless punk-like fury."
- JP's Music Blog
BIO
Hailing disrespectively from Brooklyn, NY and Wantage, NJ comes the worst band ever to attempt any form of music - NUCLEAR HATRED.
Formed in October 2010, the crossover two-piece began life in the ashes of Butera's former thrash metal band Obliterator, whom Orr once saw open for Hexen, Mantic Ritual and Rattlehead at The Meatlocker in Montclair, NJ. Butera had a vision for something "so stupid and offensive it had to work." Fusing a lethal cocktail with ingredients ranging from Carnivore and D.R.I. to NWA and the Wu Tang Clan,the original lineup consisted of Butera, Orr and drummer "Nuclear" Nathan Wolff, releasing the "Blood on the Ice" demo, the "Mother of the Resistance EP," their live album "Live Stupidity" and finally, "Sucks! The Stupid EP" before Wolff left the band due to career and personal reasons.
The ban would perform sporadically utilizing various live drummers from either other bands on the same bill or outright pulling random people out of the crowd before Butera would meet Roger Padilla at an Obituary concert in 2012. Padilla joined shortly after and the band continued playing occasional gigs that they would book themselves, mostly to "help out underground touring bands that were coming though the area and needed a show." Among these bands were Texas' Insinnerator and Terrorist, Boston's Sonic Pulse, Sweden's Six In Line and Alabama's Cancerslug. NUCLEAR HATRED would also organize and run the annual "Thrash Bash BBQ" festival - which is in its fifth year currently.
https://www.facebook.com/NuclearHatred
https://twitter.com/NuclearHatred
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