The Black Dahlia Murder Album Streaming In Full

Wow. WOW. WOW!!! This album is the best album to date by Michigan death metallers The Black Dahlia Murder. From the first second of this streaming madness I knew it was going to be a sick album. The album is fast and brutally heavy, yet it still remains incredibly melodic. Most importantly in the increasingly saturated death metal genre, the album remains tangible. They are still songs, not just intense sometimes impressive wankery. The band has progressed on this release as well. The album sounds more cohesive now that they have settled in with Shannon on drums. The new guitarist Ryan formerly of Arsis has definitely brought some unique influences to the table. I don't know how much writing he did since most is done by riffmaster Brian, but to me the riffs sound more diverse and the solos blow anything away that was done in the past. It just seems like they are experimenting more with layering different riffs instead of just relying on harmonies of the same riff. Trevor vocals have expanded their range and tone as well. Honestly I can say within the first go round of this album that it is my favorite album of theirs and I am discovering new nuances with each listen. This is one of those albums that has earned a legitimate CD purchase from me, due to the quality of the intricately tasty ear candy it delivers. I might even purchase a hoodie or shirt for good measure. If these dudes keep churning out bludgeoning metal of this caliber I will do whatever it takes to keep them living the dream and writing jams. Do yourself a favor fellow metalhead shredders and check out this sure to be album of the year candidate by The Black Dahlia Murder!



Trevor says listen to our metal mastery HERE!

Good Day For Metal Videos

I stumbled across a few beauty videos at Metal Injection and thought them Badskblog worthy. The first video is the Massachusetts metalers Shadows Fall debuting a new song from their forthcoming release entitled Retribution. These guys aren't the heaviest band in the world, but it is still pretty badass that they are getting some national play. The new song Still I Rise actually sounds a bit heavier than their last few albums. The singing is a bit cleaner and more melodic, but it sounds pretty heavy to me. See what the dudes at Metal Injection had to say below as well as upcoming metal performances on Jimmy Fallon.

I stayed up to watch SHADOWS FALL on Late Night w/Jimmy Fallon last night, and for an old man like me, that's sort of a big deal. Anytime any metal band gets some good old national exposure on TV, I always get excited and feel the need to support. The Massholes came out and completely rocked the house at 30 Rock last night. As much as I don't really favor Fallon's comedic stylings, I think it's really cool that he is having metal bands on his show. Fuck, MEGADETH was just announced as performing there on Thursday, September 17th (technically Friday morning). Anyway, if you missed the performance, we uploaded it here. The band's new CD, Retribution is in stores September 15th.

The next clip, also found on Metal Injection, is the new video from one of my favorite bands of all time; The Black Dahlia Murder. Not only is the song ridiculously awesome and brutal, the video is one of the funniest I have seen since....well their last video. Nothing says metal like bowling shirts. The band recently added a former Arsis guitar shredder who, judging by this tune, will only make their next album all the better. I really don't think their is anyone doing death metal better than The Black Dahlia Murder right now. They have the best riffs, are extremely technical, yet they remain melodic, interesting and most importantly tangible. I cannot wait for the band's new CD, Deflorate, to be released. It is in stores September 15th so go buy it....or if you download it then buy some of their merch because we need to keep these guys pumping out tunes for as long as humanly possible.



Sorry for the duel play videos. I haven't figured out how to get rid of the auto play.

New Megadeth Song - Headcrusher

I ran into this new Megadeth song the other day and it is just plain awesome. These guys have a few albums where they were treading dangerously down modern day Metallica road getting less and less metal and more and more unforgettable. Their last two albums have gotten increasing heavy and back to their roots and this next album looks to be even better if this song is any indication. I saw Megadeth a long time ago and it still is one of the best shows I have ever seen. They shredded for like 3 hours and played all their songs to perfection. I love Megadeth because they truly are amazing musicians and they can pull it off live better than on an album. You can't successfully play thrash metal for 20+ years for a living and not be doing something right. Enjoy this beauty track and share it.

Concert Summary - A Death Metal Monday

I went to my first show in quite a while the other day and I must say that I think the recession has hit the music industry because the crowd was pretty light. Or maybe it was just the fact I was at a death metal concert in a shitty area of downtown Portland. Only two bands worth mentioning and that is Abysmal Dawn and Abigail Williams. I basically went to see Abigail and they didn't disappoint, but it was Abysmal that surprised me.

My buddy and I were talking about how death metal can be so unimpressive live. A lot of the bands just come off as a wall of unmemorable sound that is pretty muddled and undecipherable live. Good death metal uses dynamics and actually considers songwriting instead of just resting on their unimaginable technicality laurels. After a few bands that fit into the aforementioned unforgettable category, Abysmal Dawn came out and put on a good show. Without knowing any of their songs prior I was still able to dissect what they were going for and was pretty engaged the majority of the show. Having been to quite a few shows I think this is a band who is on the cusp of doing some good things. I imagine their next album is going to make a mark in the metal world. Check out some of their stuff here.

Abigail Williams came out and like I said before did not disappoint. They play more of a black metal style with atmospheric keyboards and more emphasis on melody from the guitars. They came out to a fairly unenthusiastic Monday night crowd and soon had the limited crowd base engaged and excited. For how simplistic the guitars sound on the albums I was amazed at some of the technical riffs they had layered together to achieve their overall sound. Their drummer was insane and in the black metal style you must have a solid drummer to anchor the band and to mix up the feel of the riffs. They had good stage presence and killed it. Here are a few pictures of the band I took on my antiquated blackberry as well as a sample of my favorite song from the show. Enjoy.

Music Review - Lamb Of God "Wrath"

I recently bought Lamb of God's most recent release entitled "Wrath" and I must say that it reigns. I think it is pretty cool that these guys are like mainstream metal (Videos on MTV2 and Billboard 200 are considered mainstream to metal) yet they still are an extremely heavy band. No pop choruses, no songs about girls, no ballads, just a fresh dose of the New Wave of American Heavy Metal. I don't even really like that phrase but that seems to be how this band always gets described. I think it has more to do with the fact that they are from Virginia and have redneck beards, but rest assured these guys aren't just a redneck band from Virginia. They are a well oiled machine both on stage and off.

Wrath is definitely the most mature album Lamb of God have done. Their last album Sacrament made a huge leap musically from prior efforts, yet it sounded very produced. Still a great album, but it sounded like a Pro Tools' proudest projects release. Wrath did an excellent job of getting back to a more raw sound and production while still showcasing the band progressing as song writers. These are some heavy but well written tunes, and all the songs highlight the fact that these guys can really play. I think their enhanced playing is showcased in the majority of the songs and they have pulled out some tricks that haven't been done before on prior releases. Randy Blythe the drunken screamer of a singer tried his hands at some cleaner (still far from clean) vocals on Sacrament but like I said before they had a very produced vibe. He continues the trend on this album but it just sounds so much better without an excess of reverb and echo. He is really hitting tones and is nailing down pitching his screams which has increased his range from either high or low to encapsulate everything in between. He sounds like a new age Chuck Billy from Testament at times and the rest of the time stays true to the Randy guttural growls and high pitched screams. Guitar work is flawless on the album. Very heavy riffs with very few actual breakdowns. I really like that they can make riffs sound heavy as hell without chugging through 25 open C chords (tuned down two steps of course!). Where there are breakdowns, they are not forced and they generally are layered upon after a few measures to deny monotony. The rhythm section of the band spearheaded by Chris Adler is as tight and creative as ever which must be a blessing for guitarist Mark Morten and Willie Adler who can have even the most generic riffs transformed to sound intricate and creative. All in all a strong album from start to finish.

What I really respect about Lamb of God is the way they go about their craft. They are true professionals that run, in essence, a very innovative start up business. They started in college dorm rooms in Virginia and worked to where they are today. These guys don't complain about the nature of the music business today. They think creatively and provide the fans with the extras that keep them buying albums. I bought their CD and it came with a bonus CD that is all studio mp3's of individual tracks from the album. I can jam alongside each dude in the band or just hear clearly how each guy plays their part on the tracks. Very simple, very cheap, very effective. These guys give away lessons with the band, backstage passes, whatever you can think of. They have a few gold DVDs that basically let the fans enter into the world of Lamb of God to see the good, bad, and ugly. They do whatever they can to brand themselves as a fan's band and in return they actually sell records, as a brutal metal band no less. They are passionate about what they do and the intend to take their b(r)and down the long touring road for as long as the fans will let them. I have embedded some new shreddage for your personal listening pleasure. Take care of that neck!

Music Review

I am starting a new segment that hopefully I can contribute to on a consistent basis; music reviews. I love music. My true passion is metal so I imagine most of my contributions will be geared towards that genre and its sub-genres, but who knows what the future may bring. The band I want to write about is fresh on the scene and truly serves as a breath of fresh air. I am speaking of Sylosis. These guys come to us from the land of forgotten bands the UK. It seems like it has been so long since I actually liked a band from the UK so it was a treat to get my hands on their stuff. I cannot take credit for their discovery. Those accolades must be directed towards my little brother who is the Lewis and Clark of metal, as it seems that every badass band I find comes courtesy of him.

Their debut full length Conclusion of an Age is one of those albums that truly sets the bar high for this young talent. Some of my best memories as a kid were of putting on cheesy metal shirts over my bowl cut head and taking the bus with my brother and buddy to the mall or to records stores to "live the metal life." Living the metal life basically entailed being in public with an Obituary long sleeve death metal shirt, talking about chicks, talking about metal, and going to 'discover new trues' which were legitimate metalists by the standards we set at the time. What a great time in my life. When I first heard Sylosis the first thing I thought of was how they shredded life, but the second thing I thought of was the glory days living the metal life.

What's the point you ask? Well the point is that my metal life story is synonymous with what this band is all about. These guys have an uncanny ability of bringing back the thrash days of old while incorporating new influences and playing styles. These guys mix master of puppets era Metallica, rust in peace Megadeth, and beneath the remains Sepultura with newer melodic guitar styles and harsh singing of In Flames, All that Remains, Killswitch Engage. Am I saying these guys are better than all those bands....no. But they kick ass and their debut full length shows that they have the potential to be a great band for many years.

If you have a craving for a bowl cut and metal shirts then check these shredders out. They reign!. Check out the posted videos on my blog or look them up on Myspace and spread the word...they deserve it.