In a year of great tragedy and upheaval, where the word ‘unprecedented’ became a mantra spoken around the world, music has been a stabilising force for millions of us. It has been a consistent power for good at a time when many of us have struggled with unemployment, illness, and bereavement. Whether providing companionship during stretches of isolation, rallying us to fight for change when faced with corrupt political machinations, or even just handing us a convenient distraction from the horrors outside our window, never have I felt such a kinship with music and the people who dedicate their lives to the art.
For just one weekend the Banc of California Stadium was transformed into a carnivalesque outdoor funhouse for the Adult Swim Festival. The stadium was alive with colorful distorted animations reminiscent of children’s cartoons and claymation scenes warped and hyperbolized beyond the mind’s comprehension, while a giant Meatwad dome sat across an even larger inflatable slide shaped like Morty’s head vomiting a rainbow.
Being the biggest band the world has ever seen, both in the mind of fans and in terms of success is not all wine and roses. Metallica has taken their fair share of hits in the career from the fans and press at times, casting a fair but unflattering light. One such case is Death Magnetic (Warner/Vertigo), released ten years ago today, on September 12th, 2008. Although the album was considered a return to form musically after St. Anger, production issues sent diehards and haters alike into fits over the sound quality. Continue reading →
Ghost Cult once more brings you “End Of Year” lists, memories, and other shenanigans from our favorite bands, partners, music industry peers, and other folks we respect across the world from 2016. Today we have Pete Edwards, bassist of the awesome and awesomely named Mammoth Weed Wizard Bastard. Pete breaks down his top 10 albums of last year for our readers. Continue reading →
The December edition of The Netherlands’ long-running avant-garde festival supreme, Incubate is fast approaching in a few weeks. Taking place December 10th and 11th; final performers, a creator-based comic book fair, and a Pole-Dancing Contest with Drone Plane experts have all been added to complete the lineup. Continue reading →
In a new published interview, Metallica drummer Lars Ulrich confirmed that the band’s long-awaited new album would be completed this summer. The bands hasn’t released a new studio album since 2009’s Death Magnetic.
“We’re now coming towards the end of the musical creative process and we’re starting to look ahead and the process of how we’re gonna share this record with the universe.”
Lars talked about the timeline of finally finishing and releasing the new album, the band’s 10th studio release:
“The month of June is basically when we’re gonna sit down and figure what we’re gonna do with it all; what we’re gonna call it and what’s gonna be on it.”
Lars also discussed Fidelman: “Greg Fidelman is 24/7 on this record and has been since last summer. He’s doing an insanely great job and has been putting his heart and soul in it pretty much every waking moment of his life in helping us engineer and produce this record”.
Regarding an actual release date:
“If the record doesn’t come out this year then it won’t be because it’s not done. It will be because there’s some sort of cosmic reason that it would be smarter to hold onto it until next year. But the record will be done this summer.”
In an interview with Alternative Press, Metallica lead guitarist Kirk Hammettrevealed that Greg Fidelman is the de facto producer of the bands new album, which is said to be currently in the final phases of recording. Recently performing their first show of 2016 at CBS Radio’s The Night Before concert event at Super Bowl 50, both James Hetfield and Lars Ulrich claimed on stage that there would be a new Metallica album released during 2016.
Kirk commented on Fidelman’s level of involvement:
“We have not brought in any [other] producer and it looks extremely [unlikely] we’d bring one in this late into the project.”
“The title ‘producer’ itself is a bit ambiguous. It differs from person to person. You can call Rick Rubin a producer, but he’s not the [same] type of producer as Bob Rock, who is there for every note. At the same time, Rick Rubin gets stuff done. Greg Fidelman is a different type of producer in that he’s with the engineer always looking to try and move the project forward. And that’s different from, say, Dr. Dre, who is the type of producer who is actually making backing tracks, producing music, writing music. In the hip-hop world, Dre is a producer. It’s so ambiguous. If you go by the traditional term, we’re doing it with Greg, pretty much.”
“Greg is a real pleasure to work with. Even though he can be a bit of a taskmaster, he listens to you. He’s super-flexible. He knows how to crack the whip without fucking pissing people off.”
Hammett also commented on the difficulties of making an album for Metallica at this point in their career:
“The hardest part” about recording Metallica is coordinating the bandmembers’ schedules so that the production process can move forward at a comfortable pace. “Hey, for us, life has its demands,” he said. “We’re trying to make an album and go on tour, trying to be a band, but we all recognize that if someone has a family situation, that takes priority over everything. That’s another reason why [the new album] is taking so long. That’s another obstacle for Greg Fidelman He’s always joking about it, but it really takes a lot of, like, you know, tap dancing and juggling.”
The new Metallica album will be their 10th album of original music, not including live albums, compilations and covers. It will be the first new full length album from the band since 2009’s Death Magnetic. Fidelman may be seen by fans as a controversial, but safe choice for the band in the producer’s chair. Known for his work with Slipknot and Slayer, Fidelman came under fire from fans for the sound quality (clipping) associated with the Death Magnetic finished product.
