As well as being a mainstay of Psych-Noise stalwarts Comets On Fire, and frequent collaborator with such Experimental artists as Current 93, Ben Chasny is frighteningly prolific in the guise of his solo Folk / Americana project Six Organs of Admittance. Latest album Companion Rises (Drag City) is a shimmering trip through the stars which enriches the soul.Continue reading
Legendary American heavy metal band Metal Church has announced their new album, their 12th, for release this December 7th, via Nuclear Blast/Rat Pak Records/America & King Records/Japan. Damned If You Do promises to be full of killer songs and amazing singing in the vein of their best material. Watch the new video for the title track right now! Continue reading
If you want prolific, look no further than Polish psych fiends Spaceslug. This is their third album in four years, all graced by the greatest sleeve covers since Coheed & Cambria found the Milky Way and a monstrous roar that never gets tired.Continue reading
There has been a certain inevitability about the de-Rocking of 30 Seconds To Mars’ sound. They have always embraced electronica as being as integral to what they are as the guitars, bass, and drums, with Jared Leto’s distinctive tones up-front and centre. If 2013’s Love, Lust, Faith + Dreams (Virgin) advanced matters, progressing things from flirting with pop and electronics to full on stepping out, to (painfully) extend that metaphor, America (Interscope) is the lavish engagement party, as the band walk confidently off into the sunset hand-in-hand with modern, mainstream and minimalist pop-sensibilities. Continue reading
Hurricane Matthew ripped through Florida on Friday morning, with wind speeds recorded at 120 miles per hour, but that didn’t stop one Slayer fan from having some fun. Continue reading
Machine Head debuted their brand new song, inspired by the Paris Terror Attacks of November 2015, ‘Is There Anybody Out There’. Ghost Cult first broke the story of the forthcoming single a few months ago. The track premiered at SiriusXM radio’s Octane channel 37 and can be streamed at this link:
Robb Flynn commented on the track:
“The song is about love, loneliness, racism, and not getting what is going on in the world/America. It’s very much about current events, but applies to a bigger picture.”
Set for release this Friday, June 3rd from Nuclear Blast ,’Is There Anybody Out There?’ will be made available for purchase on iTunes, Amazon and Google Play, Spotify, Apple Music, and all streaming services. The track was produced by Flynn and co-produced and mixed by Joel Wanasek.
The band continues to tour the world in support their last release, 2014’s Bloodstone & Diamonds album.
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The Skyharbor story is a real triumphant battle against the difficulties of geography if anything else. What began on an seemingly insignificant stage of computer files by guitarist Keshav Dhar resulted in a truly international affair with a completed lineup of Indian, American and British personnel. The resulting album Blinding White Noise: Illusion And Chaos (Basick Records) was very well received by critics and fans alike, and even the logistical nightmare of live shows was even managed, including a support slot to Lamb Of God in India. The achievement this band has made in a short time should not be downplayed.
Follow up album Guiding Lights (Basick) sees the (ahem) light of day after around only 20 live shows, and sees them writing as a unit rather than as scattered pieces written mostly by Dhar; and it does show. Where Blinding White Noise… at times felt mismatched and lacking in focus, Guiding Lights is all the more wholesome and cohesive throughout. Proving all the more spacey than many of their djent counterparts, Skyharbor offer a more prog friendly variant, based more on soaring melodies and expansive time frames, but still with splatterings of groove. TesseracT frontman Dan Tompkins matches the softer element perfectly with his delicate pipes, eschewing the use of growls completely.
The albums only pitfall is the somewhat taxing running time, feeling like it runs just a little too long. This aside Guiding Light shows progression in huge leaps and bounds from its predecessor, more beautifully flowing and even near ambient in part. Skyharbor already forged a reputation as a shining (sorry) presence in progressive metal, now Guiding Light is one of the brightest jewels in the tech metal crown.
8.0/10
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CHRIS TIPPELL