The Podcast That Rocked episode for 9/8/2020 ft. Geaux Gretchen. Discussion on 250,000+ Covid-19 cases being linked back to the Sturgis rally and concert, Gorillaz collaborating with Robert Smith and other musicians, Metallica’s success with S&M2, allegations against Issues and Holy Roar Records, and more.
250K Covid Cases For One Concert | The Podcast That Rocked
The Podcast That Rocked on Spotify
Discussion Topics: -The 2020Sturgis Rally now is linked to 250K+ Covid Cases and the concert with Smash Mouth, Trapt, etc is a huge reason why. -Metallica had the highest selling new album last week with S&M2, beating out Katy Perry. -Gorillaz are going to collaborate with Robert Smith. -SiriusXM Octane Home Invasion highlights. -Issues’ Tyler Carter outed from the band. -Holy Roar records dissolving after allegations come forward. -Thanks to everyone who listened live and who is checking the podcast out on Spotify, Apple, etc. It helps the show and channel out a ton.
There is a big debate going on about Spotify and other streaming services harm to musicians. Spotify’s CEO Daniel Ek has not helped the situation. Is Spotify Destroying The Music Industry?
Click below to watch the video and scroll below for sources cited and other articles about streaming.
Brooklyn metal formation TOMBS will be releasing their new studio album ‘Under Sullen Skies’ on November 20 via Season of Mist. The tracklist and cover art can be found below. In conjunction with the announcement, the band is now sharing the devastating first single, “Barren,” which can be heard at THIS LOCATION.
Pre-orders for ‘Under Sullen Skies’ available in the Season of Mist shop HERE.
Tracklist: 1. Bone Furnace (04:49) 2. Void Constellation (04:55) 3. Barren (05:31) 4. The Hunger (04:30) 5. Secrets Of The Black Sun (07:08) 6. Descensum (04:32) 7. We Move Like Phantoms (01:45) 8. Mordum (04:21) 9. Lex Talionis (04:29) 10. Angel Of Darkness (06:53) 11. Sombre Ruin (04:13) 12. Plague Years (06:59) Total: 1:00:05
There’s a line from Mike Hill’s audiobook/tour diary of ANODYNE’s 2004 European tour in which the gravel-throated frontman affirms, “I will always outwork you.” In that case, Hill was referring to an incident in Germany early on during a six-week long overseas jaunt with his previous band. In actuality, however, he could have been talking about any instance between when he first picked up a guitar as a teen and the present. Whether it’s his history dating back to previous bands OTIS, ANODYNE, KING GENERATOR or VERSOMA, his ongoing solo work in VASILEK, the more recent SCORPION THRONE project or his thirteen year reign as the driving force and nerve center of post-black metal institution TOMBS, hard work is second nature and nothing will keep the guitarist/vocalist from creative endeavor and expression. And it’s not just music in which his propulsive work ethic has gleaned results: Hill also is the CEO and roast master at Savage Gold Coffee (a labelling nod to TOMBS’ 2014 album of the same name), the host/producer/creator of the Everything Went Black podcast, host and producer of Gimme Radio’s Metal Matters flagship podcast, the creator and co-host of horror podcast Necromaniacs as well as a stalwart in the print and online journalism world covering music and MMA fighting. His is, has been and always will be a life steeped in dedication and with unassailable drive in the cross hairs. And despite the world being put on pause, Hill refuses to curtail his innate determination and ongoing tenacity with the result being TOMBS emerging with the next chapter in its impressive catalog and growing legacy: the band’s fifth full-length, ‘Under Sullen Skies’.
“The week VERSOMA broke up in 2007, I started TOMBS,” he says, recalling how, characteristically, the band started before any dust was permitted to settle. “The initial rehearsals ended up being the bulk of material that showed up on the first [self-titled] EP. The intent from the beginning was to get back to playing music I wanted to hear and to not be so concerned with genre or satisfying anyone else’s desires. It was to do music on a personal level and be a reflection of the darkness I’ve felt throughout my life.”
Formed in the gritty corners of pre-gentrified Brooklyn, NY, TOMBS’ early mandate was steeped in the harshness and atonality of black metal but dosed with trace amounts of the varied influences and inspirations ingrained in Hill’s musical muscle memory by previous bands. “The canon of music TOMBS has created has spanned several different genres, but I’ve always had it my intent for there to always be a certain amount of violence and hardness lurking the background.”
Those early years delivered splits and singles, the highly revered ‘Winter Hours’ debut in 2009 and Decibel’s 2011 Album of the Year, ‘Path of Totality’. Never one to sit still, ‘Path of Totality’ was followed by appreciable and impressive amounts of touring in accordance with the lauding afforded by critics and fans and the braying of foes, which only served as fuel for Hill’s perseverance. Savage Gold came three years later after which a restless Hill began nudging TOMBS’ black metal base into territories populated by gothic and death rock artists like FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM and SISTERS OF MERCY as well as avant-garde purveyors Caspar Brotzmann and Live Skull while never forgetting – or being able to – scrape the grime of NYC from under his fingernails. The addition of a second guitar and live keyboards/samples brought a fuller sound and allowed noise sequences and soundscapes to be brought to the live show. It was around the time of 2016 ‘All Empires Fall’ EP that TOMBS punctuated its iconoclastic spirit and thought process. Despite then-being part of the Relapse Records family, the band struck out with the intent of self-releasing the EP in order to retain as much independence as contractual obligations would allow – retaining the digital and publishing rights while eventually licensing the record back to Relapse. A one album stint in 2017 under the Metal Blade banner birthed ‘The Grand Annihilation’ into the world where TOMBS took broader and more daring steps into buffering black metal with morose melody, sullen death rock and classic METALLICA chugging. Following a parting from Metal Blade, the band – now completed by drummer Justin Spaeth, guitarist Matt Medeiros and bassist Drew Murphy, who are also 3/4ths of New Jersey death metal crew KALOPSIA – quickly found a home on Season of Mist and issued the ‘Monarchy of Shadows’ EP literally a week before the world went into Coronavirus lockdown.
“The original strategy assumed we would be on the road for most of 2020,” says Hill with a lamenting laugh. “We had a sick tour with Napalm Death planned right after the EP’s release. We were going to record the new full-length before the tour and have it come out in the fall. There was all kinds of tour talk and plans and 2020 would have been a tour-de-force of TOMBS activity in the United States and Europe. Obviously, none of that is happening, but we’re still going ahead with the record.”
Of course they are. Throw a hurdle in front of Mike Hill and he’ll never shy at rolling up his sleeves and taking on the challenge. Even with the world in shutdown mode, Hill is still brimming with enthusiasm about the input and work ethic of the current TOMBS lineup and how Spaeth, Mederios and Murphy stepped up to the plate in the creation of ‘Under Sullen Skies’.
“Everyone contributes on this record and the door has always been open for others to do so. There has always been this misconception that I’m some sort of tyrant always telling people what to do and play. The fact of the matter is that most of the time I outwork people; that’s just the way I am. No one is ever going to outwork me on any level in any area of my life and I was always coming up with material. Now, I have these maniacs in the band who are equally motivated and there’s a whole new life injected into TOMBS. That’s awesome and I love it. These days we’ll try anything and we actually write stuff and throw it out because it’s not perfect. It’s more like a writing committee, which I really appreciate. It’s not just me writing everything. It’s a big difference from ‘The Grand Annihilation’ which was basically a solo record.”
‘Under Sullen Skies’ is this lineup’s second kick at twisting black metal’s DNA around dank emotional corners, psychological turmoil and the urban underbelly all of which is unavoidably coloured and touched by the present-day status of life on this here Earth.
“The album’s title came during all this and the sort of post-apocalyptic world we’re living in,” Hill explains. “It encapsulates an overall feeling of gloom and depression which is pretty much how we’ve been living for most of this year. The title was the last piece to fall into place. I remember standing on the roof of the building I was living in at the time on a grey day and it was raining – actually, it wasn’t even raining; it was a half-assed attempt at rain! – and depressing and I just thought, ‘What a sullen sky’ and it just stuck with me.”
The album starts with “Bone Collector,” a furious blast of melodic black metal that shifts gears towards an anthemic fist-pumping slog through the goth rock-thrash metal VENN DIAGRAM. “Void Constellation” takes as many cues from Peaceville Three gloom and doom as it does the death metal stomp of OBITUARY and INCANTATION. “Descensum” mines the various well-worn parts of Ride the Lightning for influence before blasting the doors open with some startlingly spacious chromatic single-note atonality. As the album progresses, further textures and moods are employed via acoustic instrumentation and keyboards as well as sampled soundscapes all butting heads with furious second wave black metal and sly to nods to death rock heroes SISTERS OF MERCY and FIELDS OF THE NEPHILIM, all of the band’s motivations and interests being dropped into the chameleonic pair of tracks closing the album, “Sombre Ruin” and the appropriately titled “Plague Years.”
“‘Barren’ stands out as the song that’s most collaborative,” notes Hill. “Justin wrote the bulk of the riffs on that one, that sort of NWOBHM/SCORPIONS ending part is something I came up with, Matt added a bunch of guitar harmonies over it and Drew’s bass is laid thick underneath. That one is one of the biggest group efforts and one of the strongest songs on the record.
“I explore a lot of the archetypes that are used in folklore on this record, like werewolves and vampires which I’ve always been interested in, and on a song like ‘Secrets of the Black Sun’ I talk about the finite nature of our time on this planet, that nothing is really permanent and being aware of that whether as an individual or as a civilization, which I guess fits in with the pandemic and the changes that are going on. There are all kinds of other people, civilizations and creatures that have come and gone long before us and if you think about it over a long enough time span, everyone’s life expectancy goes down to zero.”
The new album not only sees Hill expanding his creative and collaborative comfort zone by wholly embracing the offerings of his band mates, but he’s also let down the drawbridge to allow folks from beyond the immediate TOMBS family to include what he describes as “mad guest spots.”
“There’s Cat Cabral, who does the spoken word piece on ‘Angel of Darkness.’ She’s not a musician per se; she’s more from the occult and witchcraft world. I’ve been friends with her for a really long time and she’s a great resource for esoteric knowledge. She’s also an actress who has done plays and commercials and been in films, so I figured she’d be the perfect person to deliver dialogue in an emotionally deep way, and be good at taking direction. Ray Suhy from SIX FEET UNDER rips the guitar solo in ‘Barren’ and that solo is its own masterpiece, in my opinion. BLACK CROWN INITIATE and former TOMBS live guitarist Andy Thomas contributed a guitar solo in ‘Void Constellation.’ Todd Stern from PSYCROPTIC plays the solo in ‘Mortem.’ Sera Timms from IDES OF GEMINI and BLACK MATH HORSEMAN does guest vocals on ‘Secrets of the Black Sun.’ We’ve got INTEGRITY’s Dwid Hellion singing the chorus on ‘The Hunger’ and BLACK ANVIL’s Paul Delaney also doing a couple of verses on ‘Angel of Darkness.’ So, yeah, there are a bunch of people on there and it’s like a community effort which I enjoy. I like involving people I respect and having them be a part of the whole thing.”
After spending his entire adult life navigating the pitfalls and pratfalls of the industry for expressive and creative opportunity, Hill has amassed an impressive legacy, one that ‘Under Sullen Skies’ contributes to admirably and irreverently. Like most, the extreme music underground lifer and veteran is probably justified in approaching the future with very muted optimism, but while the world works at screwing its head back on straight, Hill is going to do what he wants to do as well as he possibly can. Uncertainty may reign at the moment, but Hill and TOMBS are still going to do their thing and will be content to please themselves in the process. If anyone else happens to be along for the ride, then welcome aboard.
“’Under Sullen Skies’ is a dark and introspective album,” he asserts. “It’s not a happy record that anyone is going to use to get pumped up on a Friday night. We wanted to pull out the stops, go full-on and make a nice body of work. I could care less if anyone likes the band or not because I’ve been through so many ups and downs with this thing that I don’t give a fuck if people enjoy the music. I know I like it, I know the guys in the band like it and we’re just rocking and rolling. This record and the EP came out about as close as I could imagine to what I have in my brain about how this band should sound. The whole trajectory of the band has had each record never quite hitting, but ‘Monarchy of Shadows’ and ‘Under Sullen Skies’ have both really come out how I envisioned the songs to be.”
Miss the ferocity, groove and aggression of the one-and-only LAMB OF GOD live? Well, the wait is over.
The mighty LAMB OF GOD will offer fans first-time-ever live performances of the band’s critically acclaimed new album, Lamb of God, and the landmark 2004 album Ashes of the Wake, both performed live in their entirety in the band’s hometown of Richmond, VA. As standalone ticketed events, these performances will be LAMB OF GOD‘s only chance to perform these songs for fans this year – and the band are ready to deliver to the highest degree.
The first stream, scheduled for Friday, September 18, will see the band perform songs from their latest self-titled album, released June 19 via Epic Records, live for the very first time. For the second stream, on Friday, September 25, the band will perform the ground-breaking RIAA certified Gold album, Ashes of the Wake, in its entirety for the first time ever. Both sets will feature encores, including fan favorites as well as songs that haven’t been performed in years.
The streams are scheduled to begin at 5 p.m. EDT/2 p.m. PDT on their respective days. Livestream tickets will be $15 per show or, for a limited time, $20 for both shows and are on-sale now. Streams will be available to watch video-on-demand through 11:59 p.m. EDT on Sunday for fans who purchase a ticket. Additionally, the band will be offering ticket and limited-edition merch bundles plus an exclusive merchandise store available only to ticket holders during the stream.
A pre-show is scheduled to begin at 4 p.m. EDT/1 p.m. PDT before each stream, hosted by Jose Mangin, featuring exclusive interviews with members of the band and opening sets from Bleed From Within (September 18) and Whitechapel (September 25). Bleed from Within will be airing a brand new full production 30 minute set and Whitechapel will air their memorable 2014 hometown performance from Knoxville, TN.
Click here for more information including tickets and merch bundles.
LAMB OF GOD propelled heavy metal into the new millennium two decades ago with the prophetically titled New American Gospel. They followed with 2003’s As the Palaces Burn, which made the Rolling Stone list of the Top 100 Greatest Metal Albums of All Time. Ashes of the Wake (2004) was the first LAMB OF GOD album to be certified gold by the RIAA, followed by Sacrament (2006), which debuted in Billboard’s Top 10. Wrath (2009) earned the No. 1 spot on Billboard’s Hard Rock, Rock, and Tastemaker charts and was No. 2 on the Billboard 200. Those No. 1 positions were repeated with Resolution (2012). VII: Sturm und Drang (2015) debuted at No. 3 in North America and in the Top 5 in several countries. The single “512” from VII: Sturm und Drang received a Grammy nod for the “Best Metal Performance,” making it LAMB OF GOD’s fifth Grammy nomination.
A true collaboration between all members of the band, LAMB OF GOD’s eighth studio album is an amalgam of each individual’s contributions, blended to create a singular style. Guitarists Mark Morton and Willie Adler fuel the album with a mountain of riffs, taking what Lamb of God are known for, and unbelievably, upping the ante to new levels. The rhythm section of John Campbell, looming large as a rhythmic shadow, and drummer Art Cruz, who makes his studio debut with LAMB OF GOD here on this record, underpin the proceedings with passion, sweat and expansive dynamics. Vocalist D. Randall Blythe is as angry, insightful, and informed as ever. Never one to shrink from facing the darker aspects of our nature head-on, Blythe delivers with no punches pulled, and as only he and Lamb of God can in 2020.
LAMB OF GOD‘s co-headline tour with Megadeth plus special guests Trivium and In Flames has been postponed to 2021. For new dates and tickets visit: http://metaltouroftheyear.com
One-Hit Wonders were a big thing in past decades, especially in rock and alternative. This video takes a look at 10 one-hit wonders in 90’s rock. Click below to watch the video and scroll below for links to each song discussed.
10 One-Hit Wonders In 90’s Rock | Rocked
Know of another one-hit wonder in rock? Drop a comment below or let us know on Facebook and Twitter!
Today, globally adored rock band The Struts share a powerhouse new single called “Another Hit of Showmanship,” with Albert Hammond Jr of The Strokes on guitar. The UK-bred four-piece’s first new music in over a year, “Another Hit of Showmanship”is available now via Interscope Records at all digital retailers.
Listen to “Another Hit of Showmanship” by The Struts with Albert Hammond Jr HERE.
Sparked from a Britpop-leaning riff dreamed up by Struts guitarist Adam Slack, “Another Hit of Showmanship” features a particularly poignant vocal performance from singer Luke Spiller, who perfectly captures the tension between giving in to temptation and rising above. After laying down the initial version of the track, Spiller reached out to Hammond, who’d previously invited the band to open for him on a series of solo shows in 2018.
“‘Another Hit of Showmanship’ reminds me of being at a club night called Ramshackle years ago at the O2 Academy in Bristol, where they’d play bands like The Libertines and Razorlight and Scissor Sisters, and of course The Strokes,” says Spiller. “I hit up Albert out of the blue and told him, ‘We’ve got this song, and I’m so excited to see what you would do with it.’ As soon as he got his hands on it, he took it to a whole different level — it really just shows why he’s so brilliant at what he does.”
Graced with Hammond’s melodic but blistering guitar work, “Another Hit of Showmanship” finds The Struts working again with Jon Levine, who co-produced their 2018 sophomore effort YOUNG & DANGEROUS(including the album’s chart-climbing lead single “Body Talks”).
Formed in Derby, England, in 2012, The Struts have found themselves massively embraced by some of the greatest icons in rock-and-roll history. Along with opening for Foo Fighters, The Rolling Stones, The Who, and Guns N’ Roses, the UK-bred four-piece band was handpicked by Mötley Crüe to serve as the supporting act for their last-ever performances. The Struts released their sophomore album YOUNG & DANGEROUS in 2018 and have toured incessantly since their formation, including worldwide headline shows and major festivals like Lollapalooza, Governors Ball, Isle of Wight, and many more.
SEVENDUST RELEASE LYRIC VIDEO FOR “BLOOD FROM A STONE”
THE FIRST ORGINAL TRACK FROM THE UPCOMING ALBUM BLOOD & STONE
On the heels of the current single “The Day I Tried To Live” moving up the radio charts (currently #16 on Mediabase Active Rock chart), heavy metal legends Sevendust are releasing the first original song from their upcoming album Blood & Stone. “Blood From A Stone” is quintessential Sevendust filled with driving riffs from guitarists Clint Lowery and John Connolly, pulsating rhythms from bassist Vince Hornsby and drummer Morgan Rose, and captivating vocals delivered as only Lajon Witherspoon can. A lyric video for the song was created by Wayne Joyner (known for his work with Dream Theater) who also did the video for “The Day I Tried To Live.” The lyric video for “Blood From A Stone” can be seen here: https://youtu.be/7f-ljyfb4yg.
“Blood From A Stone” – Sevendust
“Blood From A Stone was inspired by the endurance and threshold of our band, the wins and the losses, the good and bad years. That we have more to give, more to say and we pull that out of each other,” explains Clint Lowery.
Blood & Stone, the band’s 13th studio album, is scheduled for release on October 23rd via Rise Records (the second for the band on the label). The latest release also marks a return for the band with producer Michael “Elvis” Baskette, known for his work with Alter Bridge; Tremonti; Slash; and others. Blood & Stone is available for pre-order in various configurations at https://RiseRecords.lnk.to/BloodAndStone.
A video album review on Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum, the eighth studio album from Seether. Produced by front man Shaun Morgan, this album is described as having some of the band’s most angsty and politically charged songs to date.
Album Review: Seether – Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum
Seether are a South African rock band founded in 1999 in Pretoria, Gauteng. The band originally performed under the name Saron Gas until 2002, when they moved to the United States and changed it to Seether to avoid confusion with the deadly chemical known as sarin gas. Lead vocalist and guitarist Shaun Morgan is the band’s longest serving member, bassist Dale Stewart joined shortly after formation while drummer John Humphrey joined them for the band’s second album. Since 2018, the band has been employing second guitarist Corey Lowery. Several notable guitarists like Corey’s brother Clint and Troy McLawhorn has toured or recorded with band, however Shaun has recorded most guitar parts for the band’s records.
Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum is the upcoming eighth studio album by South African rock band Seether. It will be released on 28 August 2020 through Fantasy Records and was produced by lead vocalist Shaun Morgan. This is the follow up to 2017’s Poison The Parish. #Seether #SiVisPacemParaBellum
The Podcast That Rocked for 8/25/20 ft. Geaux Gretchen. Discussion on new Deftones song and album “Ohms”, The Batman trailer using Nirvana, 22 years of Rob Zombie’s Hellbilly Deluxe, and more.
Are Deftones Fans All Hipsters? | The Podcast That Rocked
The Podcast That Rocked on Spotify
Discussion Topics: -Deftones discussion about “Ohms” and how Deftones fans are hipsters -The Batman trailer has Nirvana and missing when movie soundtracks featured tons of bands -22 years of Rob Zombie’s Hellbilly Deluxe -Atreyu confusion on whether Alex V is still in the band or not -Billboard Mainstream Rock Top 3 -Thoughts on Seether’s new album Si Vis Pacem, Para Bellum -Some monster tried to destroy the Chris Cornell statue in Washington
Breaking down the major releases from Nine Inch Nails and compromising where to put each album in a tier list from gold to trash. Joined by Pushing Up Roses, this video is all about Nine Inch Nails and how we love NIN and discussing each album.
Nine Inch Nails, commonly abbreviated as NIN (stylized as NIИ), is an American industrial rock band formed in 1988 in Cleveland, Ohio. Singer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist, and producer Trent Reznor was the only permanent member of the band until the official addition of English musician Atticus Ross in 2016.
Reznor recorded the band’s debut album, Pretty Hate Machine (1989), while working overnight as a janitor at a Cleveland recording studio. After feuding with the label TVT Records about promotion, Reznor signed with Interscope Records and released the EP Broken (1992). The following albums, The Downward Spiral (1994) and The Fragile (1999), were released to critical acclaim and commercial success.
Following a hiatus, Nine Inch Nails resumed touring in 2005 and released their fourth album, With Teeth (2005). Following the release of Year Zero (2007), Reznor left Interscope after a feud. Nine Inch Nails continued touring and independently released Ghosts I–IV (2008) and The Slip (2008) before a second hiatus. Their eighth album, Hesitation Marks (2013), was followed by a trilogy consisting of the EPs Not the Actual Events (2016) and Add Violence (2017) and their ninth album Bad Witch (2018). In 2020, Nine Inch Nails released two further installments in the Ghosts series, Ghosts V: Together and Ghosts VI: Locusts.
