” With Relapse, it was kinda like we just recorded our record and they put it out, it was cool. We made it very clear to Warner Brothers that we are not a radio band, we’re not making hits, we’re just writing the music we like for ourselves. There’s a fan base and we’re cool with that.”
— Mastodon guitarist Bill Kelliher talking about the band’s signing to a major label.
This week’s most listened to CDs by yours truly were The Esoteric’s “With the Sureness of Sleepwalking” and the Divide by Zero disc…
I keep forgetting to mention that I tracked down the new Obituary song “Insane” online recently (feel free to check it out over here). It’s sick! It sounds just like the band of old, with a slightly newer spin.
And, to set the record straight, the band have settled on “Frozen in Time” as the title for the new album, which was originally set to be a self-titled affair.
In tribute to the new album, I want to point readers toward “The End Complete,” the band’s third album released way back in 1992 (wow, was it that long ago?), While not my favorite album by the band (that would be 1990’s “Cause of Death”), it’s probably one of the more accessible of the catalogue, chock-full of ominous riffs, thick vocals and sick drumming. I’ll probably put together an Obituary “mix” down the road (I had different plans for this week), so until then, check out “The End Complete,” my pick of the week…
As an aside: I always wanted to get this album cover tattooed somewhere on my body …
..:..New GnR out by Christmas?!?!..:.. I know, I know … there’s been constant speculation for many, many years about the next Guns N’ Roses disc, “Chinese Democracy.” I figure I might as well fill you in on the latest: the Web site Sp1at.com is reporting an employee over at Universal Music Group has said release of the album is being worked on. “(The release) is being dealt with by the top people” and that specific information wouldn’t be available for a couple of months. “‘Chinese Democracy’ will be out by Christmas. I am quite certain of that.” Don’t get your hopes up … just thought I’d share…
..:..Kittie kontinues..:.. Morgan Lander, front woman for the band Kittie, recently posted an update on the band’s official Web site and addressed rumors of a band break-up. “We will continue on regardless of our label and member situation…so look forward to more KITTIE news and music in the future!” These rumors started when the band lost half it’s line-up, bassist Jennifer Arroyo and guitarist Lisa Marx, earlier this year. The band supposedly demoed some new material last month in Ontario. It’s a shame really, as you could tell by my review of the last Kittie album, “Until the End,” and Lander sisters could really use some sort of idea-filtering situation when writing material. The last couple of albums came across as unfocused and if there was some yin to their yang (even in the form of a solid producer), the band’s material could sound stellar. We’ll have to wait and see…
..:..Ozzfest line-up complete..:.. It was confirmed earlier this week, that Wicked Wisdom filled the final vacant slot on this summer’s Ozzfest tour. If you’ve never heard of the band, it’s described as an Evanescense-esque group fronted by actress Jada Pinkett Smith (she who is married to Will Smith). Smith has said the band is influenced by Ani DiFranco, Prince, Tori Amos (there’s some names I never thought would come up in this column) and Sevendust. Oh, and the group has previously opened for Papa Roach and Britney Spears. UGH! This totally smells of either money or big-name politics as I can’t imagine anyone thought fans of Ozzfest would desire seeing such a band. Whatever! To quote an MTV.com article on the matter: “The addition of the Christian-leaning rock-and-soul hybrid to a summer touring package that boasts ferocious metal merchants like Black Sabbath, Iron Maiden, Shadows Fall, Mudvayne, In Flames and The Black Dahlia Murder is unexpected, to say the least.” You don’t say!
..:..Corabi joins Ratt..:.. John Corabi, the once-front man for Motley Crue, has confirmed he will be touring with Ratt this summer as a guitar player; Jizzy Pearl is currently handling vocal duties in the band. I only mention this as I feel Corabi is one of the more overlooked guys in the metal scene … all he needs (needed) was that one band to break in to the big time. And I’m not talking about fronting the Crue — one good group that could’ve stood on it’s own and he’d be a much bigger star. Plus, Ratt’s one of those cool bands from that certain era. For more information on Corabi, check out www.john-corabi.com.
..:..New Clutch material online..:.. A Clutch e-card, which features the (new) tracks “Burning Beard,” “Mice & Gods” and “10,0011,10101” popped up online. The songs will be released officially on the band’s upcoming studio album, “Robot Hive / Exodus” (set to hit stores June 21). Check out the new tracks here. Clutch will be on the road this summer co-headlining the Sounds of the Underground tour with Lamb of God.
Bane: “The Note” … a new release from one of the best hardcore outfits out there …
Light This City: “Remains Of The Gods”… a sick mix of hardcore and death metal …
The Red Chord: “Clients” … combine the best aspects of the hardcore, death, grind and metal genres …
System Of A Down: “Mezmerize” … getting a lot of mixed reviews on this one. Plus, it’s only 30 minutes long. I’m feeling gypped already and I haven’t bought the album yet …
Various Artists: “Ferret Music 2005: Progression Through Aggression II” … featuring sick tracks from Every Time I Die, Remembering Never, Zao, Twelve Tribes, From Autumn to Ashes, Killswitch Engage, Every Time I Die, Blood Has Been Shed and more …
Alkaline Trio: “Crimson” … new material from this band that blends puck, rock and metal …
Audioslave: “Out of Exile” … The stuff I’ve heard has been pretty mellow, but this is supposed to be a pretty rockin’ affair …
Bruce Dickinson: “Tyranny of Souls” … the Iron Maiden front man releases another solo effort …
Seether: “Karma and Effect” … I haven’t heard anything off this but if it’s like the last album, I’ll probably want to pick it up but never find time (just like last time) …
Here’s a little mix I put together featuring the songs of Anthrax (with John Bush on vocals). I wanted to spotlight a band to try and turn readers on to music they might not be aware of. Check one, some or all of them out … who knows, you might discover something you like or remember something you used to …
“Room For One More” (off “Sound of White Noise” )
“Inside Out” (off “Volume 8: The Threat is Real” )
“Safe Home” (off “We’ve Come For You All” )
“Indians” — re-recorded(off “The Greater of Two Evils” )
“Only” (off “Sound of White Noise” )
“Random Acts of Senseless Violence” (off “Stomp 442” )
“Cupajoe” (off “Volume 8: The Threat is Real” )
“What Doesn’t Die” (off “We’ve Come For You All” )
” Black Lodge ” (off “Sound of White Noise” )
“Bare” (off “Stomp 442” )
Trust me … that doesn’t even scratch the surface …
Two quick things before I go:
First, check out this link to a story about the re-emergence of rock/metal bands over in Egypt. It sounds strange, but once you actually start reading the story it opens up this whole (cool) world. Plus, it’s nice to know people are rockin’ out throughout the world. The story can be found here.
Then, Guitar World magazine recently culled several tales of excess from several rock gods with the generic question of “What’s your most ‘Spinal Tap’ moment? “Ozzy Osbourne had the best story which I would almost dub my quote of the week: Ozzy Osbourne remembers when he lost his patience with the midget Black Sabbath hired for a tour. “He showed up late, he drank….It got to me after awhile. So, one night, when he wanted to get on the tour bus, I threw him in the luggage compartment. Somebody grabbed me and said: ‘What you’re doing is not only illegal but it’s inhumane.’
“I lost it. I yelled: ‘He’s my [bleeping] midget and I’ll [bleeping] do what I want with him.’ There was a silence and then a small voice emerged from the luggage compartment: ‘He’s right: I’m his midget and he can do what he wants with me.'”
And that’s that. As always, drop me a line. Until next time, I’ll be here at Inside Pulse making sure no metal news falls through the cracks.
Take it easy…
