Category Archives: Metal

The Suck: Poison The Well’s Van & Gear Stolen

Further proof that some people out there just SUCK.

Miami’s Poison The Well have just announced that after the first night of their US tour w/ Canadian rock act Billy Talent, in support of their new album The Tropic Rot (out now on Ferret Music), the band has been robbed of both their touring van and all of their instruments and personal belongings.

The band had this to say about what happened:

So this morning we woke up at our delightful Marriott Courtyard hotel (priceline, get into it) and walked outside to get in the van to head to Chicago for our second show of the tour. Only problem, it isn’t there. Either someone is pulling some Merlin shit on us and just waiting for the perfect moment to unveil it and calm our shot nerves, or a talented scumbag stole our van and trailer with literally everything we own inside. Needless to say, we’re crushed. Our most beloved instruments are gone, and trust me, we’re gear nerds.

After a great deal of scrambling and deliberation, we found a way to stay on tour, after a few days off to get some gear and a rental van together. Having something like this happen is the worst thing that can happen to any band short of someone dying, and we’re incredibly stoked to finish this tour with Billy Talent and play every night doing what we love.

Our most sincere thanks to everyone who offered to help us in any way, our friends mean the world to us and everyone who has reached out today is absolutely mind blowing. Huge huge ups to the entire Ferret Records Family (Carl cause hes got the cash and Rick cause he calls the shots), Issac and the entire Indie Merch and Jakprints family, Tour Dog Leasing and Rental (thanks for driving to detroit to come get us), Jimmy and First Act Guitars, Russel Blair and Orange Amps, Derek at Ernie Ball, Tyme Rogers and Tech 21, Evan Obrien and Korg, Scott Uchida and Jim Dunlop, Jon “Shabba on the spot” Linton, John “Badge” Chidley. Some of these people have always helped us out and are further making our lives better. Some of these people barely know us and have helped us this with this shit time.

If you want to help out, we’ll have a limited edition shirt online sometime soon that makes fun of our situation and is awesome, and all proceeds from that will go to wiping away our tears and some new tumbleweeds for the insides of our wallets.

See you in a couple days. Pissed about our gear and passionate about this band as ever.

Love,
PTW

Good luck guys.

Poison The Well – Exist Underground

Thanks to Solid PR for the heads up.

It Dies Today Next Week…

Just received word that one of my favorite metalcore/hardcore/screamo bands out there, It Dies Today, is dropping an album next week.

The Buffalo, NY band formed in 2001 at a very young age and impressed me with their furious sound and mature way of handling the scene.  I love the way they incorporate hardcore with metal and even add a little harmonious singing.  Their songs have been blasted out of my car windows more than once this summer and I can not get enough of them.

Teaming up with Trustkill Records they will be releasing Lividity on Sept. 15th.  I have high hopes of the release and will be sure to review it as soon as I get my hands on a copy of it.  My only concern about the new album is that I learned the band has a new singer since their last album and I am curious to see if he can keep the momentum going that was left in my ears from the previously release Sirens.

Until the CD releases next week I have no idea what to expect, but I was able to find the first single off Lividity entitled “Reckless Abandon”.  The song is freaking awesome.  Give a listen for yourself and see why I dig these guys so much.

DOWNLOAD THIS!It Dies Today – “Reckless Abandon”

I actually like It Dies Today’s take on Depeche Mode‘s “Enjoy The Silence”:

Cypress Hill & The 2 Day Smoke Out (Festival)

I am beyond jealous of this line up…

I have not seen quite a line up like this in a long time.

Where do I start talking about this amazing festival? 

Sublime?  Seriously?  I am so curious to see how this is going to pan out.  Who is this 20 year old Rome who picked up the singing duties?  Will it be just a glorified Long Beach Dub Allstars?

Why am I asking so many questions???  I am excited that is why.

Pennywise will be playing one of the days with their new singer who was just assigned as Jim Lindberg announced his departure of the band last month after being with the band for 19 years.  Zoli Teglas from handcore punk band Ignite is taking over the duties temporarily.  I am so curious to see how this goes.

Pennywise’s Fletcher Dragge had this to say about the replacement:

“As everybody knows, Jim has left the band and we’re looking for a new singer. For the time being our friend Zoli has agreed to fill in for Jim for a couple shows to avoid having to cancel them while we look for a permanent replacement.”

Acts like Cypress Hill, Deftones, Method Man & Red Man, Bad Brains, Afrika Bambaataa (wow, seriously…wow), Mix Master Mike, Goodie Mob (reunion performance), Hieroglyphics, and the Geto Boys (reunion performance) all in a span of two days all hosted by Cheech & Chong really makes me wish this was a touring festival. 

Sadly though, it is in California and there is no way I am going to be at that show this year.  I hope to read good things about it and I thank my pals over at Earshot Media for giving me the heads up.

Converge Posts A New Track From Their Upcoming Release!

Are you in the mood to listen to something that very well may damage your eardrums in the best way possible?

If so you should head over to Converge‘s MySpace page and check out their first track titled “Dark Horse” off of their upcoming album Axe To Fall that is scheduled to be released on October 20th on Epitaph Records.

I can not even tell you how pumped I am to see that they are dropping a new album.  After all it’s been about three years since their last studio album.  I am sure this will be just as amazing as the previous. 

I’m feeling a little old here too realizing that the band has almost been together now for 20 years.  That is impressive and it really looks as if this band has no intention at all of slowing down. 

As an added bonus Converge will be going on tour in support of the album as well as will be opening for Mastodon and Dethklok for their [adult swim] tour.  That tour is going to be insane. 

Converge will be making a stop in Cleveland with High On Fire, but they will be without Mastodon and Dethklok.  The good thing about this is that the stage will be all theirs providing for a longer and more intimate set.  The bad news is the obvious.  If you want to see that amazing freaking [adult swim] tour with Mastodon and Dethklok headlining you will have to venture to another city.  Click the picture below for more info on that.

The following comes from a press release from the good folk over at Epitaph Records:

CONVERGE’S AXE TO FALL ON OCTOBER 20

Essential Hardcore Outfit Announces New Album and Fall Tour

August 18, 2009 – Los Angeles, CA. – Groundbreaking hardcore-metal band Converge will release their long anticipated new studio album, Axe To Fall, on October 20 via Epitaph (vinyl on Deathwish). Considered one of the most intense, important, and influential metal/hardcore bands ever, Converge continue their uncompromising evolution, experimenting and manipulating the fiercest form of music with the most aggressive album of the year, Axe To Fall.

Fitting like a puzzle piece in their all but flawless catalog, Axe To Fall is an undeniable progression in the band’s canon of cacophonous sound, dexterous skill and ingenious art, as thirteen of the most viciously powerful songs Converge has ever written reign down on listeners in a surge of sonic fury. True to their meticulous DIY style, guitarist Kurt Ballou helmed production duties once again from his infamous GodCity studios in Salem, MA.

Without warning, Converge lets their metal flag fly on Axe To Fall when drummer Ben Koller’s galloping beats meet Ballou’s lightning fast riffs as bassist Nate Newton provides a pummeling backbone and vocalist Jacob Bannon takes command with menacing growls on the album’s shattering opener “Dark Horse.” Perhaps Converge’s heaviest music they’ve ever recorded, the foursome invited a slew friends to contribute to the album, and the result was a wall of metal-infused hardcore on a level that’s never been heard before.

Songs like the hardcore pit-swirling “Effigy” (feat. Steve Brodsky/Lead guitar, Adam McGrath/Guitar, J.R. Connors/Drums), the furiously relentless neck-breaker “Wishing Well” (feat. Ulf Cederlund/Lead guitar/backing vocals) and the blazing thrash-track “Cutter” (feat. John Pettibone/backing vocals) keep the album moving with power and energy. As defiant as ever, Bannonroars through songs about despair and self-indulgent choices warning that “we’ll show the demons for what they are.” As the album comes to a close it takes a doom-ridden turn as Neurosis’ Steve Von Till shares vocal duties with Bannon on the brooding track “Cruel Bloom” and Genghis Tron’s Mookie Singerman providing lead vocals on the beautifully dark post-metal album closer “Wretched World.”

After 19 years as a band, Converge still maintain the steadfast individuality and uncompromising artistic vision they had when they formed. The band has been credited with giving rise to a genre of music and influencing bands worldwide, yet by never wavering have created a sound that is entirely their own.

Withthe release of Axe To Fall on the horizon, Converge are readying an arsenal of music from their storied catalog to unleash on audiences across the US when they tour with Mastodon, Dethklok and High On Fire in October.

Prepare yourself for the year’s most vicious album, Axe To Fall.

Axe To Fall Tracklisting:
1. Dark Horse
2. Reap What You Sow
3. Axe To Fall
4. Effigy
5. Worms Will Feed
6. Wishing Well
7. Damages
8. Losing Battle
9. Dead Beat
10. Cutter
11. Slave Driver
12. Cruel Bloom
13. Wretched World

Converge Tour Dates:
09/05: Los Angeles, CA @ F Yeah Fest w/ F*cked Up, Cold Cave, and more
09/24: Durham, NH @ UNH w/ TBA
09/28: Iowa City, IA @ The Picador w/ TBA
09/29: Gillette, WY @ Knights Of Columbus w/ TBA
10/02: Portland, OR @ Roseland Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/03: Seattle, WA @ WaMu Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/04: Vancouver, BC @ Orpheum Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/06: Calgary, AB @ Big Four Building w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/07: Edmonton, AB @ Shaw Conference Center w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/09: Salt Lake City, UT @ Great Saltair w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/10: Denver, CO @ Fillmore Auditorium w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/12: Kansas City, MO @ Uptown Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire 10/13: St. Louis, MO @ The Pageant w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/14: Des Moines, IA @ Val Air Ballroom w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/15: Nutty’s North @ Sioux Falls, SD w/ High On Fire
10/16: St. Paul, MN @ Myth w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/17: Chicago, IL @ Aragon Ballroom w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/18: Milwaukee, WI @ Eagle’s Auditorium w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/19: Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop w/ High On Fire
10/20: Columbus, OH @ LC Pavilion w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/21: Detroit, MI @ The Fillmore w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/23: Toronto, ON @ Sound Academy w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/24: Buffalo, NY @ The Fairgrounds w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/25: Albany, NY @ Armory w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/27: Boston, MA @ House Of Blues w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/30: New York, NY @ Hammerstein Ballroom w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
10/31: Washington, DC @ Patriot Center w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/01: Philadelphia, PA @ Electric Factory w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/05: Atlanta, GA @ Tabernacle w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/06: Myrtle Beach, SC @ House Of Blues w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire 11/07: Orlando, FL @ Hard Rock Live w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/08: Pompano Beach, FL @ Pompano Beach Amphit w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/11: Dallas, TX @ House Of Blues w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/12: Houston, TX @ Verizon Wireless Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/13: Austin, TX @ Austin City Music Hall w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/14: Tulsa, OK @ Brady Theater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/16: Las Cruces, NM @ Pan American Center w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/17: Mesa, AZ @ Mesa Ampitheater w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/18: Las Vegas, NV @ House Of Blues w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
11/19: Los Angeles, CA @ Palladium w/ Mastodon, Dethklok, High On Fire
05/28: Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest w/ Entombed, Obituary, 16, and more
05/29: Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest w/ Entombed, Obituary, 16, and more
05/30: Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest w/ Entombed, Obituary, 16, and more

Mastodon & Dethklok?

Prepare to have your eardrums destroyed.  Two of my favorite metal acts have announced that they will be touring together this fall. Mastodon & Dethklok team up on an [adult swim] tour with special guests Converge and High On Fire.

Oh man I am so there…


DETHKLOK AND MASTODON JOIN FORCES FOR 34 CITY TOUR 2009
Joined by HIGH ON FIRE AND CONVERGE
Date Venue City, State
10/2/09 Roseland Theater Portland, OR
10/3/09 WaMu Theater Seattle, WA
10/4/09 Orpheum Theatre Vancouver, BC
10/6/09 Big Four Building Calgary, AB
10/7/09 Shaw Conference Centre Edmonton, AB
10/9/09 Great Saltair Salt Lake City, UT
10/10/09 Fillmore Auditorium Denver, CO
10/12/09 Uptown Theater Kansas City, MO
10/13/09 The Pageant St. Louis, MO
10/14/09 Val Air Ballroom Des Moines, IA
10/16/09 Myth St. Paul, MN
10/17/09 Aragon Ballroom Chicago, IL
10/18/09 Eagle’s Auditorium Milwaukee, WI
10/20/09 LC Pavilion Columbus, OH
10/21/09 The Fillmore Detroit Detroit, MI
10/23/09 Sound Academy Toronto
10/24/09 The Fairgrounds Buffalo, NY
10/25/09 Armory Albany, NY
10/27/09 House of Blues Boston, MA
10/30/09 Hammerstein Ballroom New York, NY
10/31/09 Patriot Center Washington, DC
11/1/09 Electric Factory Philadelphia, PA
11/5/09 Tabernacle Atlanta, GA
11/6/09 House of Blues Myrtle Beach, SC
11/7/09 Hard Rock Live Orlando, FL
11/8/09 Pompano Beach Amphitheater Pompano Beach, FL
11/11/09 House of Blues Dallas, TX
11/12/09 Verizon Wireless Theater Houston, TX
11/13/09 Austin City Music Hall Austin, TX
11/14/09 Brady Theater Tulsa, OK
11/16/09 Pan American Center Las Cruces, NM
11/17/09 Mesa Amphitheater Mesa, AZ
11/18/09 House of Blues Las Vegas, NV
11/19/09 Palladium Los Angeles, CA
* schedule subject to change