Author Archives: valleyofsteel

Happy/Sad News: Ghost are Coming! But They Aren’t Coming Here!

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So I was totally excited all summer long, anticipating the fall Enslaved tour, because I’d heard Ghost was opening.  Although their debut album Opus Eponymous was released in 2010, I only became aware of the Swedish Satanic hard rock band earlier this year.  But anyway, I grew to like them so much that I didn’t much care WHO else was on the bill; once I found out they were coming to Pittsburgh in September, I was going for sure.

Well, unfortunately, a few weeks before the show was to take place, the band posted an apology on their Facebook page, saying that due to some sort of visa snafu, they wouldn’t be able to make the trip overseas.  So needless to say, I was pretty disappointed.

Then, this afternoon a headline caught my eye, and I was surprised to see that there was a new announcement in the Facebook news feed: the band of nameless ghouls are planning to finally come to North America in the beginning of 2012.  So then I was all excited once more, for approximately 2.2 seconds, or about the time it took to scan through the list of dates and see they’re not coming anywhere near me.  The closest stop on this 13-date tour is just a few hours away, but it’s across the Canadian border, and not having a passport, I’m afraid in this case I would end up with a visa issue of my own.

Anyway, take a peek at the image above and see if perhaps you’re luckier than I, in your proximity to one of the cities listed there.

For more information, check out the official website.

Ghost on Facebook

You might also be interested in:
Ghost – Opus Eponymous (CD | download)

Dia de los Muertos Celebrate Dia de los Muertos by Offering Dia de los Muertos for Free Download!

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Well, Dia de los Muertos (the holiday) has come and gone, so I may be a little tardy making this announcement, but if you haven’t yet taken advantage of this opportunity, it’s still available!  So jump on it!

Dia de los Muertos (the band) announced a few days ago that they had put Dia de los Muertos (their 2005 EP) on their website for free download.  I just got around to grabbing it this morning, myself, and haven’t gotten around to listening yet, but just based on their album Satánico Dramático, which was released earlier this year, I’d strongly urge you to follow the link at the bottom of this post!

These Los Angeleno purveyors of death-thrash have incorporated a distinctively Latin-flavored groove into their metal sound, complete with Spanish lyrics and occasional classical guitar intros or outros.  Their sudamericano-style take on a classic thrashy death metal formula makes for quite an enjoyable listen; you may find yourself wishing every day were the Day of the Dead.

Click here for the Dia de los Muertos (2005 EP) download page.
Bonus!!  Click here for the Satánico Dramático (2011 LP) download page.
Dia de los Muertos on Facebook
Find official DDLM merch here

Upcoming Shows – Don’t Miss Molasses Barge!

Posted by valleyofsteel on

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Pittsburgh’s own Molasses Barge is kind of a recent discovery for me.  I had become aware of them a while back by virtue of the fact that singer Brian ‘Butch’ Balich is also the frontman for the fucking awesome Pennsylvanian doom band Argus.  But, I hadn’t actually heard them until this August when I saw them open up for Pentagram.

In a clear case of truth-in-advertising, Molasses Barge sound just like how something with such a name should sound.  The main thing that struck me as I witnessed this sludgey beast in action was the setup drummer Wayne Massey was using.  He seemed to have all the drum and cymbal hardware adjusted to the lowest possible height, so that it was all barely above the level of his throne.  In this way, he constantly seemed to be hunched over the kit, throwing everything he had into a downward motion as he struck each beat.  While it seems this would take a lot out of a person – in fact, before the second song began, Massey had already cast aside the t-shirt he’d begun the set with, and also by this time he was looking as though he might have benefitted from a jug of water like the one Butch was constantly taking swigs from between sections of vocals – nevertheless the technique was very effective in laying down a thundrously driving rhythm underneath the rest of the band.

Guitarists Justin Gizzi and Ken Houser mainly hung off to their respective sides of the stage, out of the spotlight, but their combined crunchy riffs and melodic soloing built a substantial wall of noise that more than made their presence felt.  And Butch sort of bounced around the area between the two guitarists,with an imposing presence and also very impressive singing; meanwhile, occupying whatever real estate the vocalist had vacated at any given moment, Amy Bianco sort of meandered through the middle of it all, offering up basslines that similarly filled the empty sonic space between the others.

Of course, I can say all the words in the world describing the show these folks put on, but nothing would help you envision the experience as much as an actual video of the event.  Well fortunately, some kind soul recorded the show I saw, and then made it available on Youtube for all who had missed it.

Part One | Part Two

Anyway, now you pretty much know all you need to know, in order to know that you need to get out there and see this band live, as soon as possible!  And you are in luck, because over the next few weeks you’ll have not one, but TWO opportunities to do so – as long as you are fortunate enough to be within driving distance of the greater Pittsburgh area.  See below for descriptions and details for each of the upcoming shows.

Molasses Barge on Facebook

You might also be interested in:
Molasses Barge – Jewels (download)
Argus – Boldly Stride the Doomed (CD | download)

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Rescheduled! MorgueMart CD Release Show on Black Friday

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Click here for the official Facebook event page.

This was supposed to be going down last Saturday, but then some sort of last-minute problem came up and forced them to postpone.  Well, the party is back on and rescheduled for Black Friday night (November 25) at the 31st Street Pub in Pittsburgh.

$5 gets you in the door and also includes a free copy of the new MorgueMart disc.  Their debut, Ten Cent Cadaver, was an excellent slab of local (well, local to me- these guys hail from Charleroi, PA, just across the valley from here) grindy crusty punky awesome, so I’d highly recommend getting to this show if at all possible!  Unfortunately I will be out of town that weekend- already got my tickets for Korpiklaani and Arkona in Cleveland- or I’d be there for sure.  However, I’ll see what I need to do to snag myself a copy of the CD, so you can probably look forward to a review sometime in the near future.

For more information:
MorgueMart official page
MorgueMart on Facebook
31st Street Pub page
31st Street Pub Facebook page

Free Download Includes New Root Song, Chance to Win Upcoming Album!

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Metal 1st, Metal Maniacs, and Metalhit.com are known for putting out lots of quality compilations that they make available for free download.  You’d be doing yourself a great service by signing up for their e-mail list, because since May of this year they have consistently been releasing new collections of decent music each month.

Today marked the release of the next in this monthly series, and it includes material from upcoming releases by Black Tusk and Devil, among others.  However, the one that has me the most excited is the inclusion of a song (titled “Son of Satan”) from the forthcoming album Heritage of Satan (due November 9 from Agonia Records) by Czech thrashy-doomy-blackened metal band Root.

The news gets even better, though, because in addition to the free compilation, you also have the opportunity to enter to win a copy of Heritage of Satan when it comes out!  Just click here to visit the page where you can snag the download, get added to the mailing list for further updates, and also put your name in for the contest.

Breaking news!! Behemoth Have Sold Out.

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According to a recent e-mail newsletter from Nuclear Blast, Polish black(ish) metal band Behemoth have officially sold out.

Click here for further details on this shocking announcement, including some related quotes from Adam Darski, one of the judges from the reality show/singing contest The Voice of Poland.

New Cynic Song has Me Feeling Very Cynical.

Posted by valleyofsteel on

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So it’s not often I see the interwebs so abuzz over an upcoming release, especially one that doesn’t have the words “Devin” or “Townsend” in the name, as they have been lately for the new EP Carbon-Based Anatomy, by Cynic (due 11/11/11 on Season of Mist).

I just got done listening to the advance sample, the title track — which was made available for free download (here) earlier this week — and I haven’t quit yawning yet.  I can’t believe how bent-out-of-shape folks have been about Opeth‘s latest being too un-metal or whatever (stay tuned for a separate post on that whole situation, coming soon), and yet people are somehow all frothing at the mouth for this?

Now, I’m fully aware that I’m too old and out-of-touch to really understand most current musical fads, but here is a band that has been around (off and on) for the past twenty-four years, and reportedly is now considered some sort of “progressive death metal fusion” hybrid (according to the Encyclopaedia Metallum).  I don’t really know what this song was, but I feel like I’ve been robbed of the past six-and-a-half minutes of my life.  I haven’t heard this much ‘pretty boy’ singing, synthy electronic ambience, and particularly, such an absence of anything metallic, since the last couple Muse albums.  I’m pretty sure my wife would adore this, and I don’t mean that in a good way.

Of course, you don’t have to take my word for it (just ask LeVar Burton), so feel free to give it a spin using the link up above, and if by some chance this really floats your boat, you can pre-order the CD here, or pre-order the digital download here.