Destruction – Savage Symphony
Savage Symphony is an excellent commemoration of a band still in its prime 25 years on. The DVD is a terrific piece of history for Destruction fans and for fans of heavy music period
Rimfrost – Veraldar Nagli
As the album grows significantly colder, it is evident that Rimfrost are able to maintain a distinct black metal sound that isn’t too cliché. Their sound infiltrates each ear because of its varied elements and sub-genre qualities that intertwine with each other.
Parkway Drive – Deep Blue
Fans of the hardcore spectrum yet consistently pegged as metalcore, Parkway Drive have never been considered an outright metal band. However, with latest endeavour Deep Blue, they just might be responsible for blurring that thin, thin line to an incredibly indiscernible extent.
Fall Into Darkness 2009 DVD
If you ever find yourself reading press releases about metal tour announcements on the West Coast and suddenly wondering, Now why the hell am I not living in Portland? don’t worry, you’re not the only one. Thanks to local booking agent Nanotear, whose clients are some of the coolest, most cutting-edge artists in heavy music, the Oregon city has turned into a very strong metal market, a fact hammered home annually with Fall Into Darkness.
Rage – Strings To A Web
My first listen to this record had me tagging it as a possibility for my album of the year, my second listen had me not too sure about it, but my third, fourth and fifth brought me right back around to my original opinion. Strings To A Web may well be Rage’s finest.
Danzig – Deth Red Sabaoth
Sure, it’ll be a frosty day in Danzig’s nether lair before you’ll ever see a reunion of the band’s classic lineup – but until Lodi finally freezes over, you can certainly find solace in Deth Red Sabaoth, which goes a long, long way to recapturing that classic Danzig sound.
Black Tusk – Taste The Sin
On Taste the Sin, Black Tusk inject more howling punk à la Kylesa than instru-prog à la Baroness and Mastodon, and the result is a disc that has the potential to incite fist pumping, moshing and a little John Baizley fan-boy love.
Kalmah – 12 Gauge
I’m just going to come right out and say it: 12 Gauge is a great album.
The Melvins – The Bride Screamed Murder
Oh, what a strange race Buzz Osborne and The Melvins have run.
Handshake Inc. Films Sequel to Maryland Deathfest: The Movie
As for the content itself, I asked Hall, who prefers the Cinema Verite approach to filmmaking, if he and Cardoso had given the crew specific instructions as to what images they were to capture, he said that he preferred not to. “I just decided to let them film the images that invoked something in them, to focus on what they felt was important to convey to the viewing audience about the performance, he said. “I trust these guys and know that they will come up with something great. How you make a film is just as important as what the film is about…and the way we make movies is to keep it real.”
Laina Dawes recalls her Maryland Deathfest experience as a full-time observer of Handshake Inc’s experience shooting the fest for DVD.