FOR THE LOVE OF METAL
“I think quality and uniqueness are what makes books into big sellers. Reading books is a subversive and uncommercial action from the start. Books are the last bastion of quality and uniqueness in mass culture.”
An interview with Ian Christe, founder and publisher of the Bazillion Points publishing company.
“I like the situation I’m in now with the solo thing. With this last album in the trilogy, it’s kind of a natural development from angL and The Adversary. I think they all kind of tie in together, but After is not the most logical step from the two other albums. It’s so different that it points in another direction and leaves the next one a little open ended.”
On the eve of the release of his new album After, Jonathan Smith speaks to former Emperor front man Ihsahn about his burgeoning solo career, the progressive nature it has taken and the surprising use of saxophone on his latest solo effort.
We Came As Romans aren’t your Dad’s sheen of metal, as Bill Adams finds out when he interviews band guitarist Joshua Moore on the eve of their January 2010 tour of Ontario.
If you go to Chicago, I suggest you check out Kuma’s Corner. Yes, the burger joint encased in a fine English pub atmosphere is quickly becoming a metal institution as almost every reputable metal publication has raved about it. The music is friggin’ dirty, the atmosphere is chillax, and the food is awesome.
Laina Dawes reviews the coolest all-metal hamburger joint in the Midwest US,Chicago’s Kuma’s Corner
Yep, Fear Factory’s Burton C. Bell is reunited with the band’s original guitarist Dino Cazares. And it feels so good. Hellbound spoke to the influential frontman about Mechanize and its place amidst Fear Factory’s creative 90s triumvirate of Obsolete, Demanufacture, and Soul of a New Machine.
Since Hellbound.ca is a Canadian-owned and operated metal publication, we thought we’d do things a little differently than most. As 2009 quickly is coming to a close, we asked all of our contributors to pick their Top 5 Canadian metal albums of the year. We then tabulated up their responses and have created our first annual Top 10 Canadian Metal Albums of 2009 writers poll.
Trouble’s guitarist Bruce Franklin’s runs down his current playlist.
“We’ve heard some people ask why did you pick Kory Clarke, because he’s not a doom metal singer or he doesn’t sound anything like Eric, but we weren’t particularly looking for someone to sound just like Eric, and we weren’t necessarily looking for someone who was just a doom metal singer either. And we were thinking that maybe we could branch out and do something – a few little twists of things that maybe we’ve never done before with it, with a kind of vocalist like this.”
Laura Wiebe Taylor speaks with Trouble guitarist Bruce Franklin about the current status of the band, their three new North American releases, progress for their next studio album and what the future holds for the legendary Chicago doom metal outfit.
Find out what HELLBOUND’s contributors are listening to going into the month of December. Each writer has submitted their Top 5 list and have an option to list a book and a film they are into right now too.
After a few years of relative quiet, Devin Townsend came back with two new albums in 2009. The first to fall on anxious ears was Ki, a relatively restrained outing for the often bombastic Townsend, introducing the Devin Townsend Project and what will eventually be a four-part multi-album endeavour. A few months later, Addicted followed, taking the project in a more straightforward and lively direction while shaking up the musical cast. (Addicted features vocalist Anneke van Giersbergen along with previous Townsend collaborators.) Here Devin answers a few logistical questions about the new project, covering distribution, pragmatic accounting, and future touring plans.
Interview by Laura Wiebe Taylor