Archive for the rock music Category

STRAIGHT LINE STITCH – Shoot New Music Video, Behind The Scenes Footage Available!

Posted in Heavy Metal, heavy metal albums, Metal, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , on May 4, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

(Alexis Brown – Vocals)

(New York, NY) — STRAIGHT LINE STITCH have shot a brand new music video for their next single “One Reason” off their latest record The Fight Of Our Lives which came out earlier this year. Veteran director and band manager Dale ‘Rage’ Resteghini took on the directing duties.

Watch a sneak peak behind the scenes video here.

The band has no qualms about staying on the road this year. They recently announced off-dates with the one and only IN FLAMES during their run on the 2011 ROCKSTAR ENERGY DRINK MAYHEM FESTIVAL. They’ve recently completed a handful of dates with road mates NONPOINT, Revolver magazine’s “Hottest Chicks In Hard Rock: Hell Hath No Fury” tour supporting IN THIS MOMENT and last but not least, DOWNLOAD FESTIVAL. All dates can be found here.

The band’s latest record The Fight Of Our LIves came out on March 22, 2011 to much critical praise. “‘The Fight of Our Lives’ is a good example of what happens when modern American metal-core is performed with passion and intensity,” says OUTBURN MAGAZINE. The band released their first single “Conversion” soon after with a video to follow, also directed by Resteghini.

STRAIGHT LINE STITCH originally hailing from Knoxville, TN, features Alexis Brown on vocals, Seth Thacker and Kris Norris on guitar, Jason White on bass, and Kanky Lora on drums.

(Source: eOne Music)

* For more info on STRAIGHT LINE STITCH, click the links below:

Straight Line Stitch – facebook

Straight Line Stitch – myspace music

LONG LIVE STRAIGHT LINE STITCH.

Stone.

SHINEDOWN – Somewhere in the Stratosphere: Madness LIVE from Washington State (Electric)… Electrifies!

Posted in alternative metal, alternative rock, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , on May 4, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

SHINEDOWN – After listening to the 17 live songs on Somewhere in the Stratosphere: Madness LIVE from Washington State (Electric), my conclusion is Shinedown electrifies with their live performance. The quality of sound and all encompassing production of this live album is astounding. The sounds of the audience are captured perfectly, with plenty of exaltation and sing-along moments, making this a true live listen into this Shinedown concert.

Before I listened to this live Shinedown album, I did not hear one song prior. I was hoping for high energy from this live concert album, coupled with the commanding spirit of musicianship that Shinedown so dramatically exemplifies. Well… Shinedown sounds electrifying on this live album and I wish I was there to experience this live concert.

Shinedown have released three studio albums with immense commercial success. Leave A Whisper (2003) has gone Platinum, Us and Them (2005) has gone Gold and The Sound of Madness (2008) has reached Platinum status. All three of these studio albums from Shinedown I admire greatly, from the lyrics to the music and all vibes in-between. Shinedown has sold millions of albums for good reason. Albums just don’t sell that easy these days. It’s my guess that the song writing and lyrical themes of Shinedown’s songs obviously touches the human spirit and relates, plus this band really can play lights out.

I’ve always considered Brent Smith to be a premier vocalist in the world of Heavy Music and all of Rock for that matter. Brent has that gift of spilling out real emotion into the lyrics that he sings, nothing has ever come across as fabricated to my ears. To hear these 17 Shinedown songs live, with Brent’s vocals being as inspirational as ever, is riveting. Hearing live versions of Brent singing I Dare You, Heroes, The Crow & The Butterfly and Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom) is proof positive that he was meant for the live stage.

Throughout this live album, the entire band plays tighter than the knots in my daughter’s sneaker laces. All the while, I can feel the enthusiasm of Shinedown through these live songs, it just comes through to me this way and I’m not complaining. The pumped-up and heavy grooves that erupt from Sound Of Madness are so lively it’s downright wild. Fly From The Inside is brought to the live stage brilliantly. The cover song of the Lynyrd Skynyrd classic Simple Man is played in acoustic Southern Rock glory. The last verse of Simple Man has Brent Smith inviting the audience to sing-along and it’s simply put… cool and fun stuff.

Second Chance ends this live album of 17 songs by scarring my arms and face with ostrich bumps of emotion. A perfect song to cap off this concert and album. Thank you, Shinedown. Metal be thy name. This new live album from Shinedown should recruit even more new fans into their Rockin’ stable. Longtime fans of Shinedown should presumably be thrilled to hear and own this album. It is my Metal opinion, this is one of those live albums that will be looked upon as being one of the best of it’s generation.

SHINEDOWN:

Brent Smith – vocals

Zach Myers – guitar

Eric Bass – bass

Barry Kerch – drums

Track Listing:

Intro (Scary Fairy)

Sound Of Madness

Devour

I Dare You

Cyanide Sweet Tooth Suicide

If You Only Knew

Diamond Eyes (Boom-Lay Boom-Lay Boom)

.45

Burning Bright

Heroes

The Crow & The Butterfly

Her Name Is Alice

Save Me

Left Out

Simple Man

Fly From The Inside

Second Chance

* This live album was released on May 3rd, 2011, on Atlantic Records.

* For more info on SHINEDOWN, click the links below:

SHINEDOWN – Official Website

SHINEDOWN – facebook

SHINEDOWN – twitter

LONG LIVE SHINEDOWN.

Stone.

HULL – Issue Tour Wrap-Up Via Decibelmagazine.com

Posted in metal music, metal odyssey, Music, progressive metal, rock music, rock music news, sludge metal with tags , , , , , , , on May 3, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

This past March, Brooklyn-based Progressive Sludge Rock ensemble, HULL, completed a two-week tour with post-Doom troupe Batillus. The journey included gigs with some crushing bands, a near shut down due to “the aural strain” the band reportedly levied upon one unsuspecting neighborhood, running from cops, good food, guns, ATVs, some chest-caving appearances at this year’s SXSW and so much more.

Reads a snippet from their well-documented adventure: “I noticed one of the cops was coming after me. Although my first instinct was to protect the cavalry, my next instinct was to run from the possibility of going to jail and ruining our SXSW.  Next thing I knew, I was hiding out in a random garage in bumfuck Ft. Worth…”

Check out the band’s entire tour diary — which includes photos and random video footage — at Decibel Magazine’s website HERE.

HULL are gearing up to release the follow-up to their critically-acclaimed Sole Lord debut, issued via The End Records in 2009. Their sophomore full-length will be co-produced by Brett Romnes (who played drums on their pummeling Viking Funeral EP) and mixed by Billy Anderson (Sleep, High On Fire, Neurosis, Eyehategod, Melvins, et al). Stay tuned for further details…

(Source: Earsplit PR)

* For more info on HULL, click on the links below:

http://www.myspace.com/hull

http://www.hullorhighwater.com

http://www.facebook.com/hull666

LONG LIVE HULL.

Stone.

ANA KEFR – “THE BURIAL TREE (II)” ALBUM OFFICIALLY RELEASED!

Posted in Extreme Metal, Heavy Metal, heavy metal albums, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, progressive metal, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , on May 3, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

Today, May 3, 2011, California-based Extreme Progressive Metal outfit ANA KEFR have released their second full-length effort, titled “The Burial Tree (II)”. Hailed by critics as “an instant classic,” “a landmark LP in the Metal community” months before its official release, this album has the Metal community buzzing. “The Burial Tree (II)” was recorded at Lunch-Box Studios in Perris, California, engineered by David Franklin and produced by Ana Kefr and David Franklin. The cover art (“The Watcher”) was created by Dutch artist Bianca van der Werf (www.biancavanderwerf.com).

“The Burial Tree (II)” – Track Listing:

Ash-Shahid

Emago

Monody

In the House of Distorted Mirrors

Thaumatrope

Bathos and the Iconoclast

The Zephirus Circus

Jeremiad

Apoptosis

Parasites

Paedophilanthrope

Fragment

The Blackening

The Collector

Runtime: An hour and two minutes

Line-up:

Rhiis D. Lopez (founding member): lead vocals, keys, clarinet, rattlesnake rattle

Kyle Coughran (founding member): rhythm guitar & vocals

Brendan Moore: lead guitar, saxophone & vocals

Alphonso Jimenez: bass guitar

Shane Dawson: drums & djembe

* For more info on ANA KEFR & where to purchase “The Burial Tree (II)”:

ANA KEFR official website:–
www.anakefr.com

“THE BURIAL TREE (II)” on CD Baby–
http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/anakefr2

“THE BURIAL TREE (II)” on iTunes–
http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/the-burial-tree-ii/id433807490

* To read the Metal Odyssey album review for The Burial Tree (II), (posted on February 9, 2011), click the link below:

ANA KEFR – “The Burial Tree (II)” Progressively Extreme and Resists Metal Boundaries

* To read the Metal Odyssey interview with ANA KEFR, (posted on February 18, 2011), click on the link below:

ANA KEFR – A Metal Odyssey Interview!

LONG LIVE ANA KEFR.

Stone.

SLEEP – Confirm Support For New York City Show On June 22, 2011

Posted in concerts, doom metal, Heavy Metal, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news, stoner metal with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on May 3, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

West Coast Stoner Metal Legends SLEEP recently confirmed support for their special New York City show at Terminal 5 on June 22 . The bill will now include two New York based acts: Space rock duo White Hills and recently reunited Death/Doom trio Winter. Both bands were featured on this year’s illustrious Roadburn Festival in Tilburg, Holland.

SLEEP 2011 Tour Dates:

6/22/2011 Terminal 5 – New York, NY w/ Winter, White Hills

6/24/2011 Sled Island Festival – Calgary, AB

6/26/2011 The Wiltern –  Los Angeles, CA

(Source: Earsplit PR)

* Album cover at top: SLEEP – Holy Mountain (1992/Earache Records)

* For more info on SLEEP, click here: SLEEP – facebook

* For other recent press release info on SLEEP, click the link below:

SLEEP – Stoner Metal Legends Announce 2011 Live Dates!

LONG LIVE SLEEP.

Stone.

Fair To Midland – To Shoot A New Music Video, More New Album Details Revealed!

Posted in alternative metal, Heavy Metal, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, progressive metal, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , on May 3, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

New York, NY) — FAIR TO MIDLAND will be shooting a video for their newest single “Musical Chairs” in the coming weeks. Director Kevin Custer (Flogging Molly, Gaslight Anthem) has signed on to handle directing duties. 

FAIR TO MIDLAND will release their brand new full length entitled “Arrows and Anchors” on July 12th, 2011. This is the band’s follow-up to the highly acclaimed record “Fables from a Mayfly: What I Tell You Three Times Is True” released in 2007. The first single off the new record can be heard here and purchased here. The band recently released a behind the scenes clip of how the song came to be, watch it here. 



FAIR TO MIDLAND is Darroh Sudderth (vocals), Cliff Campbell (guitar), Brett Stowers (drums), Matt Langley (keyboards) and Jon Dicken (Bass).

Arrows & Anchors Track List:

Heavens to Murgatroyd

Whiskey & Ritalin

Musical Chairs

Uh-Oh

Amarillo Sleeps on My Pillow

A Loophole in Limbo

Typhoid Mary Sends Her Best

Short-Haired Tornado

The Upset at Bailey Bridge

Rikki Tikki Tavi

Golden Parachutes

Bright Bulbs & Sharp Tools

Coppertank Island

Three Foolproof Ways to Buy the Farm

The Greener Grass

(Source: eOne Music)

* For more info on Fair To Midland, click the link below:

Fair To Midland – myspace music

LONG LIVE FAIR TO MIDLAND.

Stone.

Between The Buried And Me – The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues is Divergent and Exceptional

Posted in Extreme Metal, Heavy Metal, heavy metal albums, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, progressive metal, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , on May 2, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME: Released on April 12th, 2011, via Metal Blade Records, The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues is the seventh studio album released by BTBAM and first on the legendary Metal Blade Records. This new album from BTBAM may contain just three songs, only each song is a Progressive Metal epic to behold. The total playing time for all three songs is just around thirty minutes. This is thirty minutes of listening to a Metal band that takes song structure, lyrics and musicianship very, very, seriously.

While listening to the tempered down guitar and vocals on Lunar Wilderness, along with it’s rhythmic deceleration, I admittedly hear a progressiveness from the Classic Rock era of YES and very early RUSH. It’s the resonance of that classic tone that spills out from the vocals of Tommy Rogers, with Dustie Waring and Paul Waggoner giving that feel of a long ago Progressive Rock era that they have brought to relevance in this song. Lunar Wilderness can certainly be pointed out as having it’s Extreme vocal and Metal moments, qualities that BTBAM manifest brilliantly.

Specular Reflection clocks in at 11:21 and is progressively enriched with all things great about BTBAM. The piano key intro accompanied with orchestration and chorus, only leads me into the mind blowing, Extreme Metal journey that this ultra-talented band is so vastly known for creating. BTBAM fans won’t be disappointed while new fans shall be mesmerized and pulled into the Progressive and Extreme circle of sound that they’ll hear from Specular Reflection.

Augment Of Rebirth from the onset is a furious Metal assault onto the senses. Easily the heaviest song of the three. With unyielding Extreme vocals, the raging tempo subsides with soothing vocals for a few intervals, beginning at the three quarter mark. Is Augment Of Rebirth a dream? A Nightmare? A daydream? Lyrically, this song casts a melancholy image of battling oneself within the framework of one’s own mind. Be it sub-conscious or conscious, BTBAM sets the mood musically around the lyrics of Tommy Rogers which culminates in a surreal and yet still, Extreme way.

When I listen to an uncommon Progressive Metal band such as BTBAM, I come to the realization that barriers are meant to be torn down within the framework of any Rock genre. Any BTBAM album needs to be absorbed for hours in order to hear almost everything that is happening within the layers of it’s music. This is what thrills me about remarkable Progressive Metal, when I have to dive into an album such as The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues and actually discover sounds and/or parts of songs that I’ve missed after the first ten listens.

Being one who grew up with the profoundness of Pink Floyd and their Dark Side Of The Moon and The Wall masterpieces of Progressive Rock art, I tend to chuckle to myself as I think of BTBAM as a Metal metamorphosis of this iconic band. Seriously, BTBAM are as unique as The Periodic Table Of The Elements itself. Just like this same Periodic Table, BTBAM encompasses a level of discipline and conclusiveness that is Metal meritorious. BTBAM takes this discipline and arranges their songs with an uncanny and explicit manner, to take you on their Progressive Metal exploration. BTBAM may very well be unparalleled, within this exceptional genre known as Progressive Metal.

BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME:

Dan Briggs – bass

Blake Richardson – drums & percussion

Tommy Rogers – vocals, keyboards & lyrics

Paul Waggoner – guitar

Dustie Waring – guitar

Track Listing For The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues:

Specular Reflection

Augment Of Rebirth

Lunar Wilderness

* For more info on BTBAM, click on the links below:

Between The Buried And Me – facebook

Between The Buried And Me – myspace music

METAL BLADE RECORDS

LONG LIVE BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME.

Stone.

9 CHAMBERS – Hard Rockin’ Studio Update: Through Sights and Sounds!

Posted in Hard Rock, hard rock albums, hard rock bands, Heavy Metal, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , on May 1, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

(Left: Ed Mundell, Right: Greg Hampton)

(Photo Credit: Rockframe Media/Karen Murphy Mundell)

9 CHAMBERS – Rockin’ right along in the studio and currently making cool progress on their forthcoming debut album is the Hard Rock supergroup known as 9 Chambers. The lineup for 9 Chambers with their storied backgrounds: Vocalist and guitarist Greg Hampton (Alice Cooper, The New Czars, Lita Ford, to name a few), guitarist Ed Mundell (ex-Monster Magnet), Jorgen Carlsson on bass (Gov’t Mule) and Vinny Appice (Black Sabbath, Heavn & Hell, DIO) on drums.

The Rock world is a better place, when musicians such as 9 Chambers can unite and create their unique brand of Hard Rock! Check out the video below for the newly released sights and sounds collection that is 9 Chambers… as they’re recording in the studio right now!

* Stay tuned to Metal Odyssey for constant updates on 9 CHAMBERS, as they progress closer to their debut album’s finish and release date!

* Read the initial cover story about 9 CHAMBERS, as it was posted on Metal Odyssey back on April 8th, 2011 by clicking the big header link below!

9 Chambers – Hard Rock Supergroup Of: Greg Hampton, Ed Mundell, Jorgen Carlsson and Vinny Appice!

* For more info on 9 CHAMBERS, click on the links below:

9 Chambers – Official Website

9 CHAMBERS – Official facebook

9 Chambers – Reverbnation

9 Chambers – Audio Samples

LONG LIVE 9 CHAMBERS.

Stone.

MADDAM INK – Live At The Crocodile Rock Cafe, Allentown, PA, March 19th, 2011: Exclusive Photos and Overview

Posted in alternative rock, concerts, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, metal odyssey, modern rock, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , on May 1, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

(Left: Adam Burke/vocals & guitar, Right: Steve Benecke/bass)

(All live photo credits: Tom Coderre)

MADDAM INK – Back on March 19th, 2011, Maddam Ink closed out the evening of Hard Rock at The Crocodile Rock Cafe in Allentown, Pennsylvania. This night featured the Alt/Modern Hard Rock legends COLD on their: A Tour Of The American Dream. On this Hard Rockin’ bill, the other supporting bands for COLD were: Oceans Divide, Kopek and Egypt Central.

Once Maddam Ink took the stage the crowd of fans certainly did thin out quite a bit. It’s a shame for Maddam Ink played a set of songs that Rocked with cool, melodic vibes. The hooks, riffs and head-turning beats were abundant in Maddam Ink’s songs and not one song was a yawner. Tom Coderre (Metal Odyssey’s staff photographer) and I were more than willing to stick around to catch Maddam Ink’s set, we actually were in no big hurry to get home! I’ve always said: it’s not over until the last band plays.

What I like about Maddam Ink isn’t so much that they’re from my home turf of Eastern Pennsylvania, it’s that this band knows how to play accessible Rock and Hard Rock, with a shimmer of Alt and a thick coating of Modern flavor to their overall sound. Adam Burke’s vocals are not sugar coated. Adam’s edgy Hard Rock delivery is unique and downright cool. Maddam Ink is currently playing many a gig to support their sophomore release: Inklination. These guys weren’t pounding their chests on stage, they were four musicians displaying their impressive and credible talents while paying their dues, as they have been doing for several years now.

Before this night of Hard Rock bliss, I never listened to Maddam Ink. I’m listening now though. This is a band that kicked out any annoying Rock Star attitude out the window. It may be just my opinion, still I can see Maddam Ink supporting the likes of Daughtry or even Alter Bridge on an extensive tour… right now. They’d fit right in. Maddam Ink may have something to prove, they proved it to me that they have the sound and style within their well written songs to go as far as they dare to dream.

(Left: Matt Scott/lead guitar, Right: Adam Burke/vocals & guitar)

(Kyle Young – drums)

MADDAM INK:

Adam Burke – lead vocals and guitar

Matt Scott – lead guitar &  backing vocals

Steve Benecke – bass guitar & backing vocals

Kyle Young – drums

MADDAM INK – INKLINATION

Maddam Ink’s sophomore release Inklination was produced by Grammy nominated engineer/producer David Ivory (Halestorm/Atlantic Records, SilverTide/Sony/BMG and The Roots). Inklination was released back in May of 2010.

* Inklination can be purchased on iTunes, cdbaby and the Maddam Ink online store at their official website: MADDAM INK – Official Website

* Maddam Ink have performed many high profile concerts and festivals. One such high profile festival was the Heaven and Hell Tour/LocoFest at The Tweeter Center in Manchester, New Hampshire, back in 2007. Sharing the stage and an audience of 50,000 fans, Maddam Ink supported legends Heaven and Hell, Alice Cooper and Shadows Fall at this amazing festival of Heavy Music. (Source: Maddam Ink – Official Website)

* For more info on MADDAM INK., click on the links below:

MADDAM INK – Official Website

MADDAM INK – facebook

MADDAM INK/Adam Burke – twitter

MADDAM INK – REVERBNATION

MADDAM INK – myspace music

LONG LIVE MADDAM INK.

Stone.

HAVOK – Denver Thrashers To Kick Off Tour With Thrash Legends Forbidden

Posted in concerts, Heavy Metal, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news, Thrash Metal, thrash metal bands with tags , , , , , , , , , , on April 30, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

Young Denver Thrash battalion, HAVOK, who recently wrapped up a tour supporting Florida Death Metal legends Malevolent Creation, are gearing up for two very special treks. The first is a short run of headlining dates that will commence in Salt Lake City, Utah on May 3 and run through to Amarillo, Texas on May 12. From there, the band will head home for a short break before joining Bay Area Thrash Legends, Forbidden, for a near month-long journey that will kick off in West Hollywood, California and level 22 North American cities before drawing to a close in Escondido, California. Also joining the tour will be Revocation and White Wizzard.

Commented vocalist/guitarist David Sanchez: “Starting May 3, we’ll be heading out for a west coast run.  Touring the west coast was how we got our start, so it always feels like home. It will be great to return for some head-smashing headline shows. Then in June, we’ll be doing a US/Canada run, coast to coast, with Forbidden, Revocation and White Wizzard! I am so psyched to be touring with all of these great bands!  Forbidden is one of my favorite Thrash Metal bands and I really hope to hear some songs from their first two albums. Revocation is one of my favorite bands to have come out in the last 10 years and they’re all friends of ours, so I’m super pumped to get to hang out with them every night! I anticipate White Wizzard to be epic-as-fuck every night as well. I’m very excited to be a part of this tour because I feel that it will be one of the best Metal packages of the 2011. Metal fans definitely won’t want to miss this tour. Prepare for some massive amounts of headbanging. Looking forward to seeing you all on the road!”

HAVOK Headlining Dates:

5/03/11 – Club Vegas – Salt Lake City, UT

5/04/11 – Metalheads – Las Vegas, NV

5/07/11 – Lost On Main – Chico, CA

5/10/11 – Big Fish Pub – Tempe, AZ

5/11/11 – Juggernaut – Gallup, NM

5/12/11 – Sorority House – Amarillo, TX

HAVOK w/ Forbidden, Revocation & White Wizzard:

6/09/11 – Whiskey A Go-Go – W. Hollywood, CA

6/11/11 – The Alley – Sparks, NV

6/12/11 – Hawthorne Theater – Portland, OR

6/13/11 – Studio Seven – Seattle, WA

6/14/11 – Rickshaw Theater – Vancouver, BC

6/15/11 – Sapphire Nightclub – Kelowna, BC

6/16/11 – Pawn Shop – Edmonton, AB

6/17/11 – Riddell Centre – Regina, SK

6/18/11 – Royal Albert Arms – Winnipeg, MB

6/19/11 – Station – St. Paul, MN

6/20/11 – Mad Planet – Milwaukee, WI

6/21/11 – Reggie’s Rock Club – Chicago, IL

6/22/11 – Peabody’s – Cleveland, OH

6/23/11 – Montage Music Hall – Rochester, NY

6/24/11 – Championship Bar – Trenton, NJ

6/25/11 – Alrosa Villa – Columbus, OH

6/26/11 – Fubar – St. Louis, MO

6/27/11 – Beaumont Club – Kansas City, MO

6/29/11 – Marquis Theatre – Denver, CO

6/30/11 – Launchpad – Albuquerque, NM

7/01/11 – Clubhouse – Tempe, AZ

7/02/11 – JT’s Limelight – Escondido, CA

HAVOK will be touring in support of their critically acclaimed Time Is Up full-length released via Candlelight Records late last month.The  follow-up to the band’s pummeling Burn debut, Time Is Up features ten tracks of meticulously crafted Thrash Metal anthems that have been garnering praise from critics nationwide.

(Source: Earsplit PR)

* For more info on HAVOK, click the links below:

http://www.myspace.com/havok

http://www.facebook.com/HavokOfficial

http://www.candlelightrecordsusa.com

LONG LIVE HAVOK.

LONG LIVE FORBIDDEN.

LONG LIVE REVOCATION & WHITE WIZZARD.

Stone.

FOREIGNER – Revisiting Their 1979 Album: Head Games

Posted in classic rock, classic rock albums, Hard Rock, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on April 30, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

FOREIGNER – Back in 1979, I was exiting seventh grade in the Spring and entering eighth grade for the coming Fall season. I turned thirteen years of age in January of 1979, kicking off this memorable year as a teen. I used to think the world was mine for the pickings back then… I know much better now. One album that was released back in 1979 was definitely mine for the pickings though, it was Head Games by the forever steady and legendary Foreigner. Head Games was the third studio album from Foreigner, released on Atlantic Records.

When I realized my mother was going to buy me this album, as a reward for doing yard work and other chores, I was ecstatic. You see, Foreigner would be the very first band where I owned every one of their albums! Fortunately for me, Foreigner did not have an extensive catalog of albums back then, so corralling their first three releases was not a difficult task… I just had to earn these albums. Let me tell you this much, I did feel like a big shot and a tad cocky among my school buddies back then, due to my Foreigner loyalty in owning all three of their albums. I chuckle about it now for did it really matter? I guess it did matter at that age.

With albums being such a rare gift or reward for me, (back in 1979 that is), I kept this Head Games album in ultra mint condition. Yes, I did play Head Games like the cows were coming home to fart. I played this album and made certain that my favorite song Dirty White Boy was cranked up the loudest. Being thirteen and turning up the volume to Dirty White Boy, with my bedroom windows open during the warm days, so the neighbors could hear it, was my big idea of rebellion. Yes, I thought I was a rebel by doing that. Metal be thy name.

The big hit was the title track of course and Head Games was played on FM radio all the time back in ’79. I remember like it was yesterday, the ostrich bumps I would get up and down my arms and face whenever I played this song loud… or heard it on the FM dial. Um, I still kinda get ostrich bumps from this song… kinda. Rev on the Red Line is another song on Head Games that never lost it’s Classic Rock cool to my ears… it plays out so smooth and flows so well, while holding it’s hard edge.

Back in ’79, I considered Head Games to be my third favorite Foreigner album, behind their debut/self-titled from 1977 and Double Vision from 1978. I still feel this way. (Double Vision is hands down, my favorite Foreigner album ever). Yes, I do hold fond memories for this Foreigner album. I can remember the album cover giving off the “wow factor” to us kids back then, now I can only shrug and chuckle at it’s classic innocence.

I was into Lou Gramm’s vocals before I ever knew who Joe Lynn Turner was. I was into Foreigner before I can honestly say I was really into Black Sabbath. In reality, thirteen was the age I was during this year of ’79, which was part of the beginning years of my journey, a Rock music journey toward discovering more bands and albums that I could ever dream of. Head Games is an album I will always consider to be a building block of my lifetime infatuation with Hard Rock and yes… Metal.

FOREIGNER as they appeared on Head Games:

Lou Gramm – vocals

Mick Jones – guitar

Rick Wills – bass

Ian McDonald – guitar

Al Greenwood – keyboards

Dennis Elliott – drums

Track Listing For Head Games:

Dirty White Boy

Love on the Telephone

I’ll Get Even With You

Seventeen

Head Games

The Modern Day

Blinded By Science

Do What You Like

Rev on the Red Line

* One nifty fact about Foreigner:  Guitarist (multi-instrumentalist) Ian McDonald was a founding member of the legendary Progressive Rock band: King Crimson.

* For more info on FOREIGNER, click on this link: FOREIGNER

The word “nifty” was used in this Metal Odyssey post. Um, yup.

LONG LIVE FOREIGNER.

Stone.

VOIVOD – To Release Live Album In The U.S. Via Sonic Unyon Metal

Posted in Heavy Metal, heavy metal albums, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, progressive metal, rock music, rock music news, Thrash Metal with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on April 29, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

Sonic Unyon Metal is extremely proud to announce the confirmed upcoming release of a live album from the almighty VOIVOD!

Late in 2009, VOIVOD released their live Tatsumaki DVD, filmed the previous fall when they toured Japan for the first time ever. To celebrate its release of the DVD, VOIVOD performed in front of a sold-out crowd on December 12th, 2009 at Club Soda in their adopted hometown of Montreal, Quebec. It was their first headlining show in the city of Montreal in more than ten years and it was celebrated in grand style. It was a fitting end to a busy year that saw them named Metal Band Of The Year at the 2010 Indie Awards in Canada. The show was recorded for posterity and is now being released as the fifteen-track Warriors Of Ice, the first official VOIVOD live album to feature original band members Denis ‘Snake’ Belanger on vocals and bassist Jean-Yves ‘Blacky’ Theriault, as well as new guitarist Dan “Chewy” Mongrain.

Set for release on June 21, 2011, Warriors Of Ice highlights the classic period of the original VOIVOD lineup as well as a few new songs, all raging with the band’s notorious live energy. Containing songs from their classic albums, spanning from 1984’s War And Pain right up through 1991’s Angel Rat, as well as two songs from their 2009 Infini LP, the album is built of VOIVOD’s signature songs, from “Voivod” and “Nuclear War” to “Tribal Convictions” and “Astronomy Domine.” View the cover art for Warriors Of Ice — designed by drummer Michel Langevin, a.k.a. “Away”.

VOIVOD:

Denis “Snake” Belanger – vocals

Jean-Yves “Blacky” Theriault – bass

Dan “Chewy” Mongrain – guitar

Michel “Away” Langevin – drums

Warriors Of Ice Track Listing:

01. Voivod

02. The Unknown Knows

03. The Prow

04. Ripping Headaches

05. Ravenous Medicine

06. Tribal Convictions

07. Overreaction

08. Panorama

09. Global Warning

10. Treasure Chase

11. Tornado

12. Nothingface

13. Brain Scan

14. Nuclear War

15. Astronomy Domine (Pink Floyd cover)

The 15-track set captured on Warriors Of Ice is undeniably packed with VOIVOD fan favorites, making it an absolute must-have release for diehard fans and a great starting point for the uninitiated as well. This is the main set VOIVOD ravaged their audiences with on their 2010 US tour alongside Kreator, and at their headlining slot at the 2010 Scion Rock Fest.

VOIVOD are currently touring Europe, and will begin to assault the North American masses again this May when they are scheduled as one of the top headliners of the 2011 Maryland Deathfest. Stay tuned for more North American tour dates to be announced in the coming weeks.

(Source: Earsplit PR)

* For more info on VOIVOD, click on the links below:

http://www.voivod.com

http://voivod.net

http://www.facebook.com/Voivod

http://www.sonicunyon.com/metal

LONG LIVE VOIVOD.

Stone.

CHIMAIRA – ANNOUNCES SPRING 2011 TOUR DATES!

Posted in Extreme Metal, Heavy Metal, heavy metal tours, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock concerts, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , on April 28, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

New York, NY) — CHIMAIRA have announced a handful of tour dates this spring throughout Ohio and Michigan.

5/25/11 Flint, MI – The Machine Shop
5/26/11 Sandusky, OH – The Underground
5/27/11 Louisville, OH – The Carriage House
5/28/11 Cleveland, OH – Peabody’s Down Under
5/29/11 Geneva, OH – The Cove
5/30/11 Mentor, OH – Live Wire

The band is fresh out of the studio having completed their upcoming yet to be titled record due out later this year. After making headlines with recent member changes and Charlie Sheen related shenanigansCHIMAIRA are ready to get back to playing live shows.

CHIMAIRA is Mark Hunter (vocals), Rob Arnold (guitar), Matt DeVries (guitar), Emil Werstler (Bass), Sean Zatorsky (Keyboards/Samples) and Austin D’Amond (Drums).

(Source: eOne Music)

LONG LIVE CHIMAIRA.

Stone.

HUNTED – Progressive Metal Band Signs To Massacre Records!

Posted in Heavy Metal, heavy metal albums, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, progressive metal, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , on April 28, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

HUNTED – Based in Cardiff, Wales, the Progressive Metal band HUNTED has signed on with Massacre Records. This very cool Metal news was expressed to me, via correspondence, from HUNTED guitarist Steven Barberini. This Metal news was also released by HUNTED via their twitter page on April 21, 2011, which read: “Hunted sign to Massacre Records! Official announcements coming soon!!” As more Metal details surface, Metal Odyssey will bring it to you! Visit HUNTED on twitter: HUNTED – twitter

Metal Odyssey gives HUNTED a Metal congratulations and horns up! This is well deserved Metal news for an excellent band that has released a debut album that is one of 2011’s very best in Metal: Welcome The Dead.

To read Metal Odyssey’s complete album review for HUNTED – Welcome The Dead, (posted on March 23, 2011),  just click on the big header link below:

HUNTED “Welcome The Dead” – Colossal Progressive Metal To Prize

* For more info on HUNTED, click on the link below:

HUNTED – myspace music

LONG LIVE HUNTED.

Stone.

MORPHINE KILLER – SICKENING: AN OVERDOSE OF METAL NEVER FELT SO GOOD

Posted in Extreme Metal, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, heavy metal albums, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , on April 27, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

MORPHINE KILLER – Just about two years removed, from Morphine Killer’s 2009 back-to-back EP releases of Unapologetic and Nightmares and their first full-length album Sickening is unleashed. Morphine Killer has self produced each release thus far, all released on their very own Final Breath Records. If I’ve said it once, I shall never stop saying: the do-it-yourself ingenuity of Eski and Belle Roka, combined with the music genius and production expertise of Eski and the premier vocals that both musicians bestow are what will catapult this Metal duo to great heights one day… very soon.

I look back on the time when I happened to cross paths with this band and it has served me right ever since. A Metal band that gravitates towards a never ending improvement approach, from album to album, instead of levitating, will continuously create music that will stand out. This is the Metal mindset and work ethic of Morphine Killer. What Eski has accomplished with his multi-instrumental and multi-tasking talents on Sickening is nothing short of stunning. Then again, after becoming so absorbed by this bands first two EP’s, I should have expected an album like Sickening to sound this strong and mature.

Eski recently summed it up best to me: “If you have something to prove, you’ll have an edge to your sound. Each new CD is the next chapter of Morphine Killer”. How true are those words from Eski. Sickening is without doubt, a brand new listen into dark lyrical themes which are carried aloft by edgy Metal vibes. This is what shakes loose any status quo cobwebs within my ears. The Metal of Morphine Killer is real, street and non-contained.

There are Metal bands that want to be cool and accepted, while forgetting about song writing, production and substance. Then there’s Morphine Killer, where the music ingredients and chemistry within the band mean something. Eski states: “The biggest benefit is that it’s just the two of us and we’re constantly evolving which breeds continuity”. We’re most proud of this album production wise, we feel we’ve come into our own vocally on this new album”.

The 2010 Morphine Killer single Throw It All Away has made it’s home on Sickening and it already made it’s mark on Metal Odyssey’s “Top Ten Songs of 2010” list, (posted on December 24, 2010). Belle Roka’s vocals on Throw It All Away, It’s Too LateCrack The Whip and Sacreligious Celebration makes for a legitimate reminder to me, that she can sing like a Classic Rock diva. Morphine Killer’s wild card strength lies in their approach to Heavy Music diversity. Both Belle and Eski are not bashful in bestowing what Rock genres have influenced their creativity and talents. From Grindcore to Classic Rock, there are many Metal nuances to be heard on Sickening.

An Air Of Disrespect and Time To Destroy are blasting reminders that Morphine Killer will grind it out, shred and deliver their brand of Extreme Metal. This song is a formidable statement that Morphine Killer can get pissed off and put some potent rage into their Metal and vocals. The instrumental New Industry is a swirl of macabre sound, courtesy of some ominous keyboards that swirl about and engulf the atmosphere with chilling vibes. Eski remarked: We introduced keyboards on Sickening more often than in the past. It’s another layer of excitement, another wall of sound versus the guitar, bass and drums.”

When speaking to Eski on what the lyrical thought process was behind Sickening, Eski stated: “People want problems solved, but they want someone else to solve them. In our everyday lives, it really has become a real sickening display of how we say one thing and do another. We can’t write happy songs just because it’s what everyone wants to hear, we write how we feel. There is a real beauty about something being so strange, mysterious and scary, we just want to help show that”.

Morphine Killer has released a killer album with Sickening… certainly one of the best in Metal releases this year.

MORPHINE KILLER:

Belle Roka – vocals & keyboards

Eski – vocals, guitar, bass & drums

Track Listing For SICKENING:

Another Day In The Flames

Crack The Whip

Sacrilegious Celebration

An Air Of Disrespect

It’s Too Late

The Breeding Ground

Time To Destroy

Throw It All Away

New Industry

* Sickening album cover designed by: Bobby Rodriguez.

* For more info on MORPHINE KILLER, click the links below:

MORPHINE KILLER – Official Website

MORPHINE KILLER – facebook

MORPHINE KILLER – Myspace music

MORPHINE KILLER – STORE

IF THE FUTURE OF HEAVY MUSIC IS IN THE HANDS OF BANDS LIKE MORPHINE KILLER, THEN I CAN SLEEP WELL AT NIGHT. – Stone

LONG LIVE MORPHINE KILLER.

Stone.

ARGUS: Full Album Stream and Contest Hosted By MetalReview Is Live Today! April 25th, 2011

Posted in doom metal, Heavy Metal, heavy metal albums, heavy metal bands, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news, stoner metal with tags , , , , , , , , , on April 25, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

With the street date for Pennsylvania-based traditional/Doom Metal warriors ARGUS‘ sophomore album, Boldly Stride The Doomed, just over a week away, high-traffic Metal ‘zine MetalReview.com is hosting a stream of the entire ten-song opus until its official for North American release on May 3, via Cruz Del Sur Records. Stop by and crank up the album stream at this location now!

In addition to the album stream, MetalReview is also hosting a contest in conjunction with Cruz Del Sur and ARGUS directly. Running from now until the May 3 North American release date, the “Name That Mascot and Tell Us What the Hell He’s Doing On Those Two Covers” contest focuses on the cover art for ARGUS‘ new Boldly Stride The Doomed full-length, as well as their 2009 self-titled debut album, both crafted by artist Brad Moore. Check out the full details and enter the contest at this location.

(Source: Earsplit PR)

* For more info on ARGUS, click the link below:

ARGUS – myspace music

LONG LIVE ARGUS.

Stone.

SEETHER – Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray: Releases May 17th, 2011!

Posted in alternative metal, alternative rock, Hard Rock, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , on April 25, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

SEETHER –  Following their incredibly successful 2007 studio album Finding Beauty in Negative Spaces, Seether will be releasing Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray on May 17th, 2011, via Wind-up. With 12 new songs on this hotly anticipated Seether release, the deluxe edition includes 4 bonus tracks! Holding Onto Strings Better Left to Fray features Country Song and you can currently purchase this new Hard Rockin’ slice of Seether on iTunes!

Stone says, about Country Song:

Country Song re-establishes Seether as an Alternative Metal/Hard Rock band that leaps away from the Rock norm, while leading by example. The flirtatious Country Rock vibe gives way to the heaviness that is Seether. The combination of Shaun Morgan’s vocals and heavy guitar, with foot stompin’ and fist raising rhythms, inventively elevates Country Song into a stratosphere of Modern Hard Rock perfection. Great music happens, with great song writing.

SEETHER:

Shaun Morgan – lead vocals, guitar

Dale Stewart – bass, backing vocals

John Humphrey – drums

Troy McLawhorn – guitar

Track Listing – Holding Onto Strings Better Left To Fray:

For Cue

No Resolution

Here and Now

Country Song

Master of Disaster

Tonight

Pass Slowly

Fade Out

Roses

Down

Desire For Need

Forsaken

* The Deluxe Edition includes the following bonus tracks:

Dead Seeds 

Yeah

Nobody

Effigy

* For more info on SEETHER, just click the links below:

SEETHER – Official Website

SEETHER – Official facebook

SEETHER – myspace music

Wind-up

LONG LIVE SEETHER.

Stone.

9 Chambers: In Studio and Recording “Goin’ The Other Way” – See The Video Here!

Posted in Guitar, Hard Rock, hard rock music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , , , on April 24, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

Left: Ed Mundell, Right: Greg Hampton

(All Photo Credits: Rockframe Media/Karen Murphy Mundell)

9 CHAMBERS – Led by multi-instrumentalist and producer Greg Hampton and ex-Monster Magnet guitarist Ed Mundell, the new Hard Rock supergroup of 9 Chambers is currently in the studio and recording for their forthcoming debut album.

The lineup for 9 Chambers with their storied backgrounds: Vocalist and guitarist Greg Hampton (Alice Cooper, The New Czars, Lita Ford, to name a few), guitarist Ed Mundell (ex-Monster Magnet), Jorgen Carlsson on bass (Gov’t Mule) and Vinny Appice (Black Sabbath, Heavn & Hell, DIO) on drums.

“Some guest drummers of recognition will be on board to finish off a few songs”, Greg Hampton has recently told me. Stay tuned for more updates, videos, song samples and news as it breaks from 9 Chambers… it will all be covered right here on Metal Odyssey! Check out Greg Hampton and Ed Mundell below, trading off and playing their guitar licks while recording “Goin’ The Other Way”:

Jorgen Carlsson – bass

Vinny Appice – drums

* Check out some very cool song samples from 9 Chambers by clicking this link: 9 Chambers – Audio Samples

* For more info on 9 Chambers, click on the links below:

9 Chambers – Official Website

9 CHAMBERS – Official facebook

9 Chambers – Reverbnation

* Related post (click below) on 9 Chambers, featured on Metal Odyssey:

9 Chambers – Hard Rock Supergroup Of: Greg Hampton, Ed Mundell, Jorgen Carlsson and Vinny Appice!

LONG LIVE 9 CHAMBERS.

Stone.

Ted Nugent – “Tied Up In Love” From 1984 Revisited!

Posted in classic rock, Guitar, guitar legends, Hard Rock, Heavy Metal, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on April 23, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

TED NUGENT – Back in 1984, the 8th studio album from guitar and Rock legend Ted Nugent was released on Atlantic Records. This album was Penetrator and it ROCKS, regardless of what any snotty, red carpet, plastic faced, poser ridden, “professional” and overpaid Rock critics may have written about it over the decades. Ted Nugent had the vocal talent of Brian Howe on Penetrator. I’ve always enjoyed the vocals of Brian Howe, his solo material and (career) albums with Bad Company is always an excellent listen for me.

I bought Penetrator on vinyl back in ’84 at a department store called Bradlees. I no longer have that slab of vinyl… it’s a shame. One of my favorite songs from Penetrator is Tied Up In Love. This Ted Nugent album saw the inclusion of keyboards. Tied Up In Love gets a tempo boost from the keyboards. The elevation of sound these keys give this song never fails to psyche-me-out. Ted Nugent also adds many kickin’ guitar licks to Tied Up In Love. A true hard and heavy song classic from an album that I’ve never forgotten about. Metal be thy name.

Getting back to the keyboards, which are so prevalent in this melodically accessible Ted Nugent piece of history, is my maybe being a tad bias about keyboards in the first place. I’ve always revered the Classic Rock backbone sound of the B3 organ, only that takes us off topic by a few strands of corn hair. My love affair for the keyboards in Hard Rock and Heavy Metal is rather unshakable. The too numerous to count European Power Metal bands that I scream for in Metal glee, is true Metal measurement, to my everlasting infatuation towards the mighty sound that the keyboards bring to the Rock ‘N’ Roll party.

Here’s hoping you dig Ted Nugent’s Tied Up In Love as much as I do!

Track Listing For Penetrator:

Tied Up In Love

(Where Do You) Draw The Line

Knockin’ At Your Door

Don’t You Want My Love

Go Down Fighting

Thunder Thighs

No Man’s Land

Blame It On The Night

Lean Mean R&R Machine

Take Me Home

* For more info on TED NUGENT, just click on the link below:

TED NUGENT

TED NUGENT SHOULD BE INDUCTED INTO THE ROCK AND ROLL HALL OF FAME. DAMMIT.

LONG LIVE TED NUGENT.

Stone.

HEMOPTYSIS – Drummer Travis Thune Announces Endorsement Deal With Los Cabos Drumsticks

Posted in Death Metal, Extreme Metal, Heavy Metal, metal music, metal odyssey, Music, rock music, rock music news, Thrash Metal with tags , , , , , , , , , , , on April 22, 2011 by Metal Odyssey

Hemoptysis are proud to announce that their drummer, Travis Thune has inked an endorsement deal with Los Cabos Drumsticks.

Travis had this to say:
“I am proud and honored to become the newest member of the Los Cabos family. I fell in love with their drumsticks the first time I tried them. They provide the extra weight and durability I need to play drums for Hemoptysis. There is no other drumstick I would rather use”.

Hemoptysis Upcoming Live Dates:

Apr 29  The Drunken Lass  Prescott AZ.
Apr 30  Burts Tiki Lounge   Albuquerque NM.
May 7   The Cubhouse       Tempe AZ.* Tickets
*with Sepultura, D.R.I., Hate, Belphegor, Neuraxis, Bonded By Blood, and Keep of Kalessin
May 13  The Rock Tuscon AZ.

Hemoptysis full length debut “Misanthropic Slaughter” will be available in stores throughout Europe on May 27, 2011. The album is being released throughout Europe via Rock It Up Records, and the European version will include the music video for “Shadow of Death” as a bonus feature. Digital copies of Misanthropic Slaughter are available through iTunes, physical copies can be purchased at: Hemoptysis – Official Merchandise Store

(Source: Hemoptysis)

* For updated news on Hemoptysis:
Official Site:   http://www.hemoptysismetal.com/
Myspace:        http://www.myspace.com/hemoptysismetal
Facebook:      http://www.facebook.com/hemoptysis

LONG LIVE HEMOPTYSIS.

Stone.