For the final installment in our coverage of the October 8, 2008, Watain, Withered, Krallice show at the Knitting Factory, we’re pleased to present to you four brutal songs from Seattle black metal group Book of Black Earth.

Book of Black Earth were touring behind their 2008 release, Horoskopus (Prosthetic Records).

Below, check out the crew as they play “2160” into “May Your God Deny You” and “Death of the Sun,” “Total Control” and “Clamor Beneath.” (more…)

On October 8, 2008, we went down to NY’s Knitting Factory to catch up with Sweden’s Watain. Before the black metallers hit the stage, we were treated to a good crop of opening bands, including extreme virtuosos, Krallice, Seattle heavies Book of Black Earth and Atlanta, GA, black metal crew Withered.

Below, check out Withered as they play “Drawn Black Drapes” into “Reveal the Essence of Suffering” and “Clamor Beneath” from their 2008 release Folie Circulaire (Prosthetic Records). (more…)

France’s heavy metal eco-warriors, Gojira, are back with new album The Way of All Flesh (Prosthetic Records)—their fourth and most solid record to date. Gojira have really honed the strengths they displayed on 2005’s great From Mars to Sirius, resulting in a powerful, consistent record that rewards with each further listen.

I was really into Gojira’s last record, From Mars to Sirius, ever since I saw the video for “To Sirius.” Visually, it had such a different look than any metal video I had seen in a long time. It felt like a combo of Megadeth’s “Sweating Bullets” directed by the stop-motion auteurs Brothers Quay. Slowly but surely, the song crept into my head and soon it was all I wanted to listen to.

Firmly rooted in extreme metal, “To Sirius,” and the rest of From Mars, was a great mix of death metal, progressive thrash, the best parts of Meshuggah and the sludgy parts of Morbid Angel. Not to mention a dash of Earth Crisis eco-defense, which is always fine by me. I was really into the record, even though it contained some definite filler between it’s stronger moments. Whereas with From Mars I would skip over some tracks, The Way of All Flesh holds my attention by moving from heavy to heavier…and then crushing. One of Gojira’s talents on display with Flesh is their ability to keep riffs evolving so that the music remains constantly engaging and fresh.

They start the record with the killer hammer-on riff of “Oroborus,” which seems to be a continuation of the ending riff from the last album’s closer “Global Warming.” The guys also flex their Morbid Angel–style sludgy triplet parts, like on the beginning of “Yama’s Messengers.”

The Way of All Flesh’s repetitive, off-kilter rhythm guitar parts will still draw Meshuggah comparisons, but the Frenchman imbue their approach with humanity, something Meshuggah, who often come off sounding like they are doing robotic rhythmic exercises instead of actual songs, do not.

And fans of Gojira’s patented backward sweep arpeggios need not fear: they are still there. They are just scaled back and not used so much as on From Mars to Sirius, which was probably a smart move, as they were starting to become like Zack Wylde’s ubiquitous artificial harmonics (I sorta bet Zack Wylde doesn’t even realize he’s doing them at this point).

There is definitely a distinct groove to Gojira’s parts. On a song like “The Art of Dying,” they fall into a groove movement that has a hardcore feel to it, almost like an early Vision of Disorder song, especially when drummer Mario Duplantier starts breaking it down on his china. You can totally picture some dude in a sideways baseball cap, rocking a Merauder shirt doing the hardcore one shoulder sway. But just as I stand behind the VOD 95 demo, I stand behind “The Art of Dying.”

Mario Duplantier’s drum work is definitely the standout gem of Gojira’s sound. No matter what song it is, there’s always something about his drumming that I really enjoy. It is really techy, but never really feels like he is showing off. It all serves the song. He reminds me of a more organic Sean Reinert [Cynic] or Richard Christy [Death, Iced Earth], mixed with the tom work and straightforward beats of older Igor Cavalera [Sepultura, Cavalera Conspiracy].

To tell you the truth, listening to Duplantier’s blast beats is a thoroughly satisfying activity for me. They are not the heaviest, or the fastest. But they have this nice rubbery feel to them, with slight variations mixed in on his ride work. They remind me of [Municipal Waste’s] David Witte’s blasts in that I feel I can always tell when it is Witte blasting. I can always tell Duplantier’s blasting. It just has it’s own distinct feel. Which is excellent.

Guitarist/singer (and brother to Mario) Joe Duplantier’s lyrics and vocals are also a big part of Gojira. The lyrics on this record are focused on the subject of death, as the natural progression from the lyrics on the last record about the dying of the earth. Using the first person narrative in his lyrics, combined with the fact that the lyrics were written in English by a native French speaker, makes for sometimes embarrassingly sincere lyrics. It feels like a mid Nineties hardcore record in that regard.

Lines like “How could I fail to understand. Cities are burning, the trees are dying, My heart awake but still pain is killing me” has such a different feel from your normal death metal lyrics. When it is shouted in Duplantier’s low-yet-understandable rasp you feel like you are right back singing songs about the Animal Liberation Front. Randy Blythe from Lamb of God, does guest vocals on “Adoration For None” which suits the intensity of the song well. Not to mention, that getting the vocalist from one of the biggest metal bands going right now can’t hurt sales.

The only low point on the record is the first half of the third song “A Sight to Behold.” The early Nineties synth riff is embarrassingly terrible. It reminds me of the local industrial band that I think we all had in our scene growing up, playing with subpar equipment and subpar talent. It is so goofy sounding, which is a shame cause the second half of the song is rock solid. But I doubt I’m ever gonna be able to give it a solid listen because I hate the beginning so much. The length of the record can also be daunting. At 12 songs with an average of 5 minutes a song, with “The Art of Dying” itself almost 10 minutes, it can be hard to ingest this record in one sitting.

My minor complaints aside, Gojra’s The Way of All Flesh shows a band that has fine-tuned all of its elements and sculpted it down to a punishing, rhythmic sound that is truly its own. I am definitely looking forward to see where they go from here. —Geoff Garlock

One of the cooler packages to come across my desk in a while was the 10-inch red translucent vinyl EP, Turk Street (Wordclock Records), from San Francisco pummelers Kowloon Walled City.

Like their namesake—a neglected tenement in British Hong Kong unclaimed by both China an Britain and home to gangsters, junkies and whores—Kowloon Walled City generate filthy atmospheres, jerking rhythms and good-old suffocating sonic congestion.

Turk Street’s five songs are led by frontman Scott Evans’ down-tuned, torched guitar work and power-shredded vocals, with the seriously bulldozing rhythm section of drummer Jeff Fagundes, bassist Ian Miller and guitarist Jason Pace in tow.

This is some violent sludge for fans of Torche, early Neurosis and, of course, the mighty Melvins.

To purchase this limited edition vinyl head over to inthewalledcity.com, where you can also download Turk Street EP for free. Score. —Brad Angle

To celebrate the release of Dimebag Darrell: He Came to Rock—the official biography of the fallen guitar hero—MetalKult.com is giving you a chance to win a copy of this exhaustive retrospective of Dime’s life.

The book, written by Susan Doll and David Morrow, is a 400-plus photo driven biography assembled from the private and personal collections of friends and family including Dime’s father, Jerry Abbott, and his brother, former Pantera and current Hellyeah drummer Vinnie Paul. The book also contains anecdotes from Dime’s metal peers such as Kerry King and Zakk Wylde.

Also included is a revised version of Dimevision on DVD that includes some never-before-seen bonus clips made by Dime himself.

So how can you win a copy of this book? Easy. You just have to be one of the first three people to correctly answer the following questions, and email them to metalkult666@gmail.com.

1) What was the name of Dimebag’s country music project?
2) What is the title of Damageplan’s debut album?
3) What is the name of Dimebag Darrell’s signature cocktail?

If you’re too lazy to think, or aren’t lucky enough to win, you can order your copy online directly from bigvinrecords.com.

To launch the release of the book Vinnie Paul will be doing a book signing tour at the following cities:

11/18 – Hard Rock Cafe (outside the casino) Las Vegas, NV
11/19 – Best Buy (location and time TBA) Los Angeles, CA
11/21 – Best Buy (location and time TBA) Dallas, TX
11/22 – Best Buy (location and time TBA) NYC, NY

Extreme metal band SATYRICON have signed a North American recording deal with KOCH Records. The Norwegian outfit will release its seventh studio album, The Age of Nero, on January 13, 2009.

Check out our interview with Satyr and Frost here.

Largely written in a remote cabin in the Norwegian mountains by frontman Satyr, The Age of Nero features eight compelling songs, from the unstoppable urgency of “Black Crow On A Tombstone” to the epic frenzy of “Die By My Hand” to the bleak nihilism of album closer “Den Siste.”

Recorded in Los Angeles’ Sound City Studios (Metallica, Slayer) with Satyr acting as producer and “Evil” Joe Baresi (Tool, Saviours, Queens of the Stone Age) twisting the knobs, The Age of Nero is a notable departure from the band’s previous way of working, as the guitars have been seriously downtuned, adding to the raw power of the record’s sound. Once again, drummer Frost adds his cyclonic percussion to Satyr’s pronounced guitar work.

When asked to comment on The Age of Nero, Satyr stated, “Everything that we do in Satyricon is built around the music itself. That means that our artwork and visuals are chosen or created to function well with the music – either to emphasize elements in the music or to contribute to a sense of totality. The layout for The Age of Nero is truly a fine piece of art; everything from the pictures chosen to the fonts and colors of the letters are carefully picked in order to feel right for this album and its general atmosphere. The album title has multiple references to subjects that on some level pertain to the album itself; ‘Nero’ is a metaphor for darkness but also for destructive elements in mankind that threaten to bring down an empire. The ‘Age of Nero’ refers to Satyricon as that famous piece of literature depicts scenes from Nero’s Rome, but it also refers to our own time and the threat of downfall that is again mirrored in the apocalyptic feel of our music. It all neatly comes together.”

The final track listing for The Age of Nero is as follows:

1.) Commando
2.) The Wolfpack
3.) Black Crow on a Tombstone
4.) Die By My Hand
5.) My Skin is Cold
6.) The Sign of the Trident
7.) Last Man Standing
8.) Den Siste

The brand new music video for the song “Black Crow on a Tombstone” has been posted online and is available for viewing now at this location HERE.

SATYRICON will launch a North American tour in support of The Age of Nero beginning January 15 in Sayreville, NJ. The band will hit the road alongside Cradle of Filth for a 33 city trek that is scheduled to run through February 28 in Philadelphia, PA. Check out the full listing of 2009 SATYRICON tour dates below.

SATYRICON TOUR DATES: (more…)

L.A.-via-Chicago instru-metal band Pelican have just debuted the new video for “Lost In the Headlights,” from their 2007 release, City of Echoes. Check out that footage HERE.

While you’re at it, dig our interview with guitarist Laurent Lebec.

For all those familiar with Vikings, you already know that they were quite infamous for their reckless brutality. They would travel from coast to coast in those kick-ass long ships and just pillage the shit out of everything they saw. After a hard day’s work raising Hel in the name of Oden, they’d celebrate by drinking massive amounts of mead…out of giant animal horns, no less. Can you think of anything more metal? You can’t. Because there just isn’t.

I’ll tell you from first hand experience: going to an Amon Amarth show is not unlike what one might have experienced during an actual Viking pillaging. From the moment the giant Swedes walked onstage at NYC’s The Fillmore NY at Irving Plaza to the moment they left, no one was left unharmed.

But let me take a step back. The night’s carnage began with Florida’s new leaders of death thrash, the Absence. There were a good amount of people for their half-hour set (considering the early set time), and the audience really seemed to be into the band. As a special treat, they finished with a cover of Testament’s thrash classic “Into the Pit.”

Up next were Austria’s deadliest black metallers, Belphegor. I didn’t know much about them, beyond hearing and enjoying 2008’s Bondage Goat Zombie (how evil does that title sound?). Their fans were out in force (as evidenced by the tons of Belphegor shirts), and they weren’t let down: the guys put on a pretty good show, even if the drummer was quite off during the double-kick drum parts.

Amon Amarth’s Johan Hegg

The final spot before the headliner was held by Finland’s finest warriors Ensiferum, who really brought the iron (pun intended). They put on a great show and the crowd really loved them. Once they loaded off the stage, and the intro music started, everyone knew that the true masters of war were coming.

As soon as the intro tape finished, Amon Amarth stormed out and ripped right into the title track of their new album, “Twilight of the Thunder God.” Next they went straight into a fan favorite from the 2006’s With Oden on Our Side, “Runes to My Memory,” replete with great a cappella intro from vocalist Johan Hegg.

“North Sea Storm” was a memorable piece and it was great to see how the lights really added to the effect of battling on a ship. “Guardians of Asgaard” was definitely a crowd pleaser, as evidenced by the huge mosh pits and widespread headbanging. Staples like “Death in Fire,” “Victorious March,” and “Valhall Awaits Me” were received with much appreciation.

As always, it was all about the night’s closer “Pursuit of Vikings,” the band’s breakthrough hit in the States. By that point the crowd’s intensity had reached a fever pitch. Fans were singing the chorus louder than Johan, headbanging and windmilling faster and harder than guitarists Olavi Mikkonen and Johan Söderberg, bassist Ted Lundström and drummer Fredrik Andersson. Although I was in a 2,000 person club, I witnessed pits that compared to those I’ve seen at Wacken Open Air. So if you want to see a band that knows how to deliver the most Viking of metal experiences (mead horn included), Amon Amarth is definitely the band to see. — Henry Yuan

Photos by Thomas Mellenthin Fotografie.

I love Iced Earth.

Well, I used to love Iced Earth. The Iced Earth of Jon “King of the Ridiculously Fast Muted Triplets” Schaffer, and whatever brave musicians served under his iron fist. Iced Earth were always a great mix of ridiculous, over-the-top power metal, but with just enough classic metal/NWOBHM tendencies to make them feel a bit more legit. I loved their secret weapon, the mighty vocalist Matt Barlow. Barlow had a great, distinct voice that soared far above most of the genre’s singers—manly, but with the ability to rocket into castrato range if needed. And somehow he could sell even the cheesiest of cheese ballads. I was a sucker for Iced Earth.

Then the unthinkable happened. 9/11. Matt Barlow felt a strong patriotic pull, and chose to give up the metal lifestyle to do something more for his country. So he left Iced Earth and became a cop. Jon Schaffer seemed to process his patriotism a little differently, and opened up a revolutionary war antiques store. To each their own. Unlike Barlow, Schaffer was not ready to abandon Iced Earth, and recruited ex–Judas Priest vocalist (and inspiration behind Marky Mark Wahlberg’s character in Rock Star) Tim “Ripper” Owens. This is the point in the story where, for me, their music takes a turn into “I am falling out of love with Iced Earth” territory.

Iced Earth’s first album with Owens was the totally adequate The Glorious Burden, a record I tried to like a lot more than I actually did. Granted, how can you compete with something like 2001’s Horror Show, which is possibly their best release and features some of Schafer’s choicest songwriting and Barlow’s best vocal performance. To say nothing of Steve DiGorgio’s nimble bass playing and the ever-incredible Richard Christy on drums (Christy delivers one of my favorite drum riffs ever with the intro to “Wolf”).

Point is: the songs on The Glorious Burden felt lacking. It was still Iced Earth but the material just felt a little reheated. It also didn’t help that Ripper’s voice is just not that, how do you say, good. Not to mention the fact that Iced Earth gave Toby Keith a run for his money with the jingoistic travesty “When An Eagle Cries.” But the biggest downfall was the horribly inflated and supremely terrible one-disc-long song “Gettysburg.” Sooooo long. And sooooo boring. Seriously. If you heard it then you know the true pain of this unbelievably boring song.

Jump to today—right over the final, disappointing Ripper effort and first of the Something Wicked saga, Framing Armageddon: Something Wicked Part 1—and Iced Earth’s latest record The Crucible of Man: Something Wicked Part 1 (SPV GmbH). I was so excited to be back in the listening seat, mostly because Barlow had taken a break from making the streets safe and returned to belt his heart out. My hopes were high that with Barlow back in the fold my love for Iced Earth would return.

Nope. Not the case. Right from the beginning, with the female chorus of “In Sacred Flames,” the record is so self-consciously wrapped up in its concept and storyline that Iced Earth seem to have forgotten about writing great, individual songs. Instead they’re left with a big pile of adequate songs that serve the story, but don’t really stand on their own.

The Crucible of Man just never really grabs you at any point. It’s just one stock Schaffer riff after another. He actually sounds kind of bored by his own riffs. Barlow’s voice is as great as ever, but, again, he isn’t really given anything substantial enough to knock out of the park. Not to mention, you just might go insane if you ever hear the words “wicked,” “mankind” and “prophecy” used in a song again. I smell a new drinking game. And P.S., you’ll be smashed after the second song.

There are a few bright spots in the record, though. The song “Sacrificial Kingdoms” is pretty solid. Reminiscent of something off of Horror Show, it has an inspired, off-kilter riff and a solid Barlow vocal line. But that is the 11th song! On a 15 song album! Up until that point I was alternately bored and mesmerized by all the ancient drumming and female chanting.

So as it stands, in the The Crucible of Man I do hear some glimmers of hope of the once-great Iced Earth of old. I am truly happy that Barlow is back in the mix, but I just don’t think they’re living up to their full potential on this album. So until the time of deliverance comes, I guess will just go listen to Horror Show again. Or maybe the new Pharaoh record (that shit rocks!). —Geoff Garlock

OM, Six Organs of Admittance, Skullflower and A Storm of Light, along with Neurosis have been confirmed for the inaugural European version of Neurosis’ acclaimed Beyond The Pale festival, set to be held at Roadburn 2009 on Saturday, April 25, the 013 venue, Tilburg, Holland.

“Om is such a rare bird in the vast landscape that is sound, music, art, and emotive expression that they absolutely defy description”, says Neurosis’ Scott Kelly, “The straightest line is the quickest path to the godhead, Om know this, it is the foundation of their mountain. The meditative nature of the patterns and rhythms found within the speaker flexing sonic blanket that they weave is unparalleled. Om is the heaviest band to ever walk the face of the earth.”

“Josh Graham is a prolific individual, a man driven to create. In the years that we have spent together collaborating in Neurosis he has shown himself to be a visionary artist as well as a diligent worker. A Storm Of Light is born of this obsession; it is an ominous sound, a cloud of oppressive doomage. Equal parts heavy and hypnotic, A Storm Of Light is a band grown from truth.”

Neurosis’ Steve Von Till comments: “All must bow before the pagan wall of drone –I couldn’t agree more with the opening quote of Skullflower’s semi-official website. Hearing the tortured distorted and eerily shamanic drones emanate from the stereo for the first time in the early nineties was truly a revelation. “IIIrd Gatekeeper” and “Obsidian Shaking Codex” are two of my all time favorite albums and have been extremely influential on the way my brothers and I approach guitar-based heavy music: to grab an electric guitar, drive a loud amplifier to its physical limit, and ride the drone into oblivion is ecstasy, and Matthew Bower has been showing us all how it is done for 20-odd years. Finally after all these years we will all get to witness the power together at Beyond The Pale 2009.”

“The words “psych folk’, although being a genre of music I feel a passion and affinity for, have begun to lose their meaning and significance over the last several years. A so-called “revival” has dredged up wave upon wave of shallow rehash. Ben Chasny and his Six Organs of Admittance, often tagged by that limiting genre, is a bright flower of inspiration to bring us all hope and remind us that as movements devolve, free spirits can rise above and remain vital among the pale imitators. Fearless and able to avoid the pitfalls and traps of classification he has constantly managed to play cathartic soul music. Not “soul” music, but music that accompanies transformation and the journey of one’s spirit. We are pleased to have this tonal psychonaut join us for this special event.”

Also scheduled to appear at Beyond The Pale / Roadurn 2009 are The Young Gods, Akimbo, Guapo and U.S. Christmas, with more bands to be announced.

Roadburn 2009 will run for three days from Thursday, April 23 to Saturday, April 25 at the 013 venue in Tilburg, Holland. There will be an additional Afterburner event on Sunday, April 26, 2009. Pre-sales for Beyond The Pale / Roadburn 2009 will start Saturday, December 13th. Recently, Saint Vitus, Amon Duul II, Mono, and Cathedral were also announced to be performing at Roadburn 2009. More info about Roadburn, including confirmed bands for Beyond The Pale and the full festival will follow soon.