Let's speak with Darren Michael Boyd (Instrumental Rock/Metal)

Instrumental musicians work different in my eyes. Since they don't use refrains and anything of that kind they need to put in more and different elements to keep the music attractive to the listener.

This fact makes talking to such musicians extra exciting and when the chance knocked at my door to speak with guitarist Darren Michael Boyd I send him some questions without hesitation. Even more because the first song I listened to had sort of healing effect on me. ("Solitary Green Witch" - which you can listen to scrolling further down this interview)

Darren Michael Boyd creates a lot of positive sounds.

Heavy Metal Underdogs: Did you start to play the guitar already before the car accident that seems to be the spark of your solo career?

Darren Michael Boyd: Oh yes, I’ve been playing guitar for as long as I can remember. I actually started out playing drums – I took lessons for a few years. Somehow, I always knew that guitar would become my main instrument. On my solo albums, I play all the instruments, with the occasional exception, but the guitar is my instrumental “voice”. 

Creating this instrumental music has been therapeutic for me, and I hope other listeners feel a similar benefit.

How did you start to write songs at the beginning?

I started attempting to write songs by about age 7, although I couldn’t really play any instruments. It was just part of artistic development, I suppose. Eventually I started to actually form bands and write complete songs by age 15. Back then it was a case of bringing the idea to the band members and hammering it out during rehearsals.

Is there a preference to write songs on your own or in cooperation with other artists?

I love doing both. Obviously writing music for myself gives me 100% creative freedom, but it’s also important to collaborate for educational purposes, and to be challenged. There’s definitely something magical about teaming up with another artist and creating something special together. I should make a point of doing that more!

Do you write music only when you schedule time for it or spontaneously when inspiration comes your way? 

I can certainly sit down at a scheduled time and write with intention, but I do love that feeling of pure inspiration, creating a killer composition that seemed to just float out of the air. Whenever I pick up an instrument I immediately seem to slide into writing mode for some reason, which makes hard to simply “practice”! I just let it happen, I’m in the passenger’s seat along for the ride, giving some directions. I also have notes and voice memos filling up my phone, like most writers, I assume.

Is there a favorite setup you use for writing music or do you put it all together the moment it happens?

I have a modest home studio where I record almost everything. I tend to take all those idea from my phone memos and start fleshing them out when I have a block of time.

Have you never thought of joining a band for a long time?

Yes, absolutely. I have played in bands my entire life, sometimes as a hired musician, sometimes as the leader. Either way, I’m happy to play great songs with great people, for a great audience. If I’m fortunate enough to get a great paycheck too, that’s a bonus haha!

But after my car accident, things had changed once I started to become active again, and I wanted to make things happen instead of waiting around – starting my solo career it allowed me that freedom.

What's coming up next? Any dates you can share with us?

My new album should be released by Halloween – I had some serious technical setbacks, so I’m currently concerned about that particular deadline, but I’m working late nights and crossing all my fingers (when I’m not playing guitar, of course).

I only have one live show coming up, at Avant-Garde Bar in Ottawa Canada on October 10th.

I will be attending the Josie Music Awards in October as a nominee in three categories; Musician of the Year (guitarist), Instrumental Song of the Year (Darkling), and Instrumental Album of the Year (Hexalogy).

The JMA’s are world’s largest independent music awards show, held at the Grand Ole Opry House, in Nashville, Tennessee, so it’s an honour to be nominated. Especially being this weird Canadian instrumental artist, playing “Spooky Surf” and Metal!

Thanks for including me on Heavy Metal Underdogs; it’s important work you do – sharing new Metal with the people! And thanks to the readers, it’s wicked to meet you!

Darren

You can check out the website or Bandcamp page for more details and music of Darren Michael Boyd.

Striker offers new album Ultrapower with cool rewards

Canadian shredders Striker have already a while ago decided to take their fate into their own hands and to oversee and finance all band activities on their own.

Of course that's only possible due to the constant support the fans of the band have given them over the years. The time has come now for the band to set sails for the upcoming album "Ultrapower". 

The ULTRAPOWER album cover IRL (53.549618, -113.482956) Artwork by @hasr_oner

This time with Josh Schroeder on the helm the guys decided that it was time for a change and expand things a bit. That's why they opened up a Kickstarter campaign to bring in the cash needed to get the new record to life.

By the time I'm typing these lines the goal has already been reached. But besides the reasonable prices it's still a good idea to join the campaign because a lot of cool stretch goals are still waiting to be unlocked, e.g. to have a physical copy with a bonus tracks packed in a special foil cover. So make sure to spread the word around.

Besides that the main question is: how is the music going to evolve? Well, a first teaser has already been given out with a new video single shot and edited by the band themselves.

It's a raunchy styled new track called "Best of the best of the best" that rocks with a mixture of slightly trashing riffs, cool drums, pumping bass guitars and vocals reminding me of classic days where hall effects were much more common in band performances. I think a lot of you will be very happy to hear this again.   

Livestream-Review: Anvil - L'Anti Bar, Quebec City 04.07.2020

Can a livestream event really fit properly to showcase a band's abilities? Anvil proved that it is possible.

Anvil at the very beginning of the set.

The Canadian legend Anvil is well known for all their classics. Recently the band dropped a new full length called "Legal at last". Like so many other bands they had to cancel the already booked shows. The guys behind the L'Anti Bar invited the band for a livestream performance. People who wanted to attend needed to purchase a virtual ticket in advance but were rewarded very well for their money.

The band opened up with a blast of a instrumental intro. It gave a taste that a well balanced and crystal clear sound has been set up. They were on fire that night.

You could see that Anvil had a lot of fun. They smiled all the way through the set, most of all Lips who once more showed why he is a solid frontman. Bassist Chris Robertson choose to move back and forth to the whole songs while showing grimace every here and there. Very cool!

The band showed that they had a lot of fun performing live.

Other times the band showed some guitar-posing in the form of Accept. Applause was added to the sound as no real audience was allowed to show up but the text responses in the chatbox spoke for themselves. They were some lags in the beginning of the stream. Maybe a control panel to change the quality of the steam could help out to prevent such things the next time.

Lips had his typical humor and short banter with him. He had a great high-toned voice on that night. I liked the band introduction. Everyone was allowed to do a solo starting with bassist Chris Robertson. Robb Reiner was unbelievable on that night. He showed a precise drumming that sharply followed the guitars on every step. His drum solo was one of the most entertaining one's I've heard and seen in a long time. Finally Steve Kudlow gave his well known dildo-guitar performance. It was a lot of fun.

Robb Reiner performed a impressive drum solo and overall performance.

The band played for a good ninty minutes and rounded the set with a blasting cover of "Born to be wild" and the iconic classic "Metal on metal". I can only hope they will do more live shows in the near future. I would choose to see them every time again.

Keep a eye on the band's Facebook page. Let's hope we're lucky enough to see the band performing live in the future again.

Crystal Faith release detail-packed song about middle of life

Life is short. Crystal Faith have created a single that talks about reaching the middle of your lifetime and how this feels. That's at least how the music comes around to my ears.

The cover of Crystal Faith's single gives a good preview of what the lyrics are all about. (c) by Crystal Faith.

Besides being a great metal track with dirty rocking vibes in the vocals it's the small elements that let this song shine. There are several non-expected changes that pop up without warning that give "Middle of the road" this special something.

For instance after the first verse and chorus  the human heartbeat is included in a form that fits perfect as a bridge to the second verse. At another position a slow and relaxing part with pictures of the shore comes in before it all explodes into a bold guitar solo. Make sure not to miss out this gem and buy it at iTunes.

Take a look at the homepage to get to know more about this metal band based at Montreal, Qc, Canada. The band will reveal a new song every month so be sure to tune in or connect with them through the socials bookmarked at the very top right corner of the homepage.

Imonolith give a catchy first impression of their music

Some bands come out of nowhere just to slam you down to the ground with their sound. Imonolith did just that with the first single "Hollow".

The cover of Imonolith - Hollow (single release 2019)

The music combines two sides that normally are a contrast to each other. It's a mixture of heavyness in the hooks on the one side and melody and compact riffs in the verses on the other. "Hollow" can be called groovy, infectious. It offers the art of putting together music that is hard in it's core but sounds melodic and is highly enjoyable 'caus of it's overall softer sound package.

Many well known musicians can be heard on this one. Vocalist Jon Howard (Threat Signal, Arkaea), drummer Ryan ‘RVP’ Van Poederooyen (Devin Townsend Project), guitarist Brian Waddell (Devin Townsend Project), bassist Byron Stroud (Strapping Young Lad, Fear Factory), and second guitarist Kai Huppunen (Methods of Mayhem, Noise Therapy).

They have some shows coming up in Canada.

February 23 - Vancouver, BC @ The Red Room
March 1 - Calgary, AB @ Dickens
March 2 - Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Room (Temple)

More music is in the works. Drummer Ryan ‘RVP’ Van Poederooyen already gives a little glimpse about what to expect of further material: “As for 'Hollow', musically it represents the catchier side of IMONOLITH’s music. We have varying influences spread throughout the band and we don’t like to play just one style of music.

We have a more metal crushing side, a catchier radio side and then music that fits in-between our heavy and catchier vibes. We always aim to make IMONOLITH’s overall sound diverse and interesting. Most of all, we’re always focused on trying to write a great song, no matter if it’s heavy or catchy."

You can purchase and or stream the song "Hollow" over here.
The band's Facebook page will keep you up to date about the further progress.

Single Review: Mike Milan Dedic - Escape (Instrumental Rock,2017)

Shred guitarist Mike Milan Dedic presents a brand new track and it's a surprise to the reviewer. I never thought hat he would move on so much further with this release called "Escape".

The cover of Mike Milan Dedic's brand new release "Escape"

Summary
Heaving heard and reviewd his previous EP I was sure that more shred-oriented material would come along with this one. The new single "Escape" that comes as a one track download is a explosion of progress in my ears. It's much more song-oriented, there's more of a earworm feeling at times than on the first release which sounded more of a demonstration of the guitar playing abilities of Mike Milan Dedic. 

To me it's more of a rocking number that split's the dutys. The guitars take a good part of the sound but the backline of drums and bass also has their moments when they are able to shine for themselves.

The track feels much better, fresher  and sounds overall much more moving, diverse and changing throughout it's full duration. There's even time to relax at some  parts. A big step forward!  

Purchase-Link and Track Stream
Make sure to have a listen for yourselves. You can purchase and listen to the track at the same link (CD Baby).
 
Contact Data
Finally make sure to connect with this outstanding guitarist via Facebook to be notified of what's going on in the future.

Free sampler for Metalocalypstickfest plus volunteer options for free entry available

Some time ago we shared the word about a festival located in Canada that features metal bands with female musicians in them. I'm still of the opinion that women can contribute a lot to a metal band with their difference in sound, optic and stage presence. It just feels different for me when I see and hear a band that has a female part in them.

So if you think about going to the festival or just want to have a quick check in to the sound of those bands you may be happy to read that a FREE digital sampler of the bands that participate in these years edition of the fest has been released. Properly entitled "Metal Queens Vol.1" is features a wide variation of bands of all around the globe.

To get your Free Download, please visit the following link or stream directly from the player below. https://metalocalypstickfest.bandcamp.com/album/metalocalypstick-metal-queens-vol-1

If you're in trouble having money to attend the festival - there are ways to get inside for FREE in exchange of some support you need to show the organizers.

Here's what you can do for them:

- 1st way Volunteer! We need merch girls, photographers, security, front gate peeps! http://metalocalypstickfest.rocks/volunteers-2/
- 2nd way is to share the event page, we will be giving away free tickets randomly until fest time. www.facebook.com/events/1158984924137688
- 3rd way is to come out to our annual fundraiser! May 18th at The Rickshaw Theatre.
www.facebook.com/events/174527276387721

This year's festival is being held during Canada Day weekend July 1st and 2nd on the outdoor grounds of the Interlakes Community Center in Lone Butte, BC.

Artwork by Abradinfluence
www.facebook.com/abradinfluence

2017 Line-Up and Set Times - Metalocalypstick

Saturday, July 1st:
1pm - Sins Of Sorrow (Edmonton, AB) 
2pm - Breaking The Silent (Edmonton, AB) 
3pm - Kymatica (Vancouver, BC) 
4pm - Forsaken Rite (Edmonton, AB)
5pm - Remnants (Edmonton, AB)
6pm - Tessitura (Edmonton, AB)
7pm - Massive Scar Era (Vancouver, BC / Cairo, Egypt)
8pm - Scythia (Calgary, AB)
9pm - Cabrakaan (Toluca, Mexico)

Sunday, July 2nd:
1pm - Life Like Fire (Calgary, AB)
2pm - Meteor Tree (Kelowna, BC)
3pm - HEDKS (Vancouver, BC)
4pm - Korperlose Stimme (Edmonton, AB)
5pm - Juliet Ruin (Edmonton, AB)
6pm - Violent Betty (Saskatoon, SK)
7pm - Anarcheon (Vancouver, BC)
8pm - Atmora (Windsor, ON)
9pm - Sovereign Council (Kingston, ON)

Day and weekend passes plus camping available at http://metalocalypstickfest.rocks/tickets/
Ride Share - www.facebook.com/groups/metalocalypstickfestrideshare/
Event Page- www.facebook.com/events/1158984924137688/

Festival Location:
Interlakes Community Association and the
Roe Lake & District Recreation Commission
7592 Highway 24,
Lone Butte, BC

Metalocalypstick Fest celebrates women in Metal

Some festivals have something special to offer. This particular one caught my attention with it's unusual wooden stage. In addition to that it has mountains as natural backdrop. A really special and cool location.

But what's even better is the fact that this Valemount, BC  Lone Butte, BC (Canada) (Explanation. I got a update in the mail today that the venue has moved.) based festival centers upon the female contribution to the world of Heavy music and has some band in it's line-up from countries you don't see often at festivals (Egypt, Mexico). Founded by Kaija Kinney of Vancouver’s Anarcheon after researching a lack of female based metal festivals to apply her band to, Kinney took matters into in her own and decided to produce the event.

Kinney comments:

“This festival means the celebration of both sexes coming together and creating something amazing. People like to say women in metal aren’t a big deal anymore and that we are all the same. I feel that is untrue, this is still a male dominated world and woman are still looked as lesser. I want to showcase all these bad ass ladies and celebrate the differences of men and woman rather than pretend we are all equal. Truth is we are different why can't we celebrate that?”

Check the short trailer below to find out how it's like to be at METALOCALYPSTICK FEST. Even if you can't make it there I recommend to watch the movie. It has some great band's rocking the stage so it's well worth checking it out.


METALOCALYPSTICK is being held during Canada Day weekend on July 1st and 2nd in Valemount, BC. Lone Butte, BC (Canada) at the outdoor grounds of the Interlakes Community Center in Lone Butte, BC. (Explanation. I got a update in the mail today that the venue has moved.)

This year's line up features bands from across Canada and beyond with Cabrakaan (Toluca, Mexico), Sovereign Council (Kingston, ON), Violent Betty (Saskatoon, SK), Atmora (Windsor, ON), Scythia (Calgary, AB), Massive Scar Era (Vancouver, BC / Cairo, Egypt) and many more.

There are day-tickets available (64 Candian Dollar) but there's also a option for both days (priced at 95 CAD including camping).

Poster created by Abradinfluence
https://www.facebook.com/abradinfluence/

Update 2017/04/26: The venue has moved. The festival will be held in Lone Butte, BC at the outdoor grounds of the Interlakes Community Center in Lone Butte, BC.

In addition to the festival celebrating women in metal, the METALOCALYPSTICK FEST gives back to the community by being a non-profit organization dedicated to raise funds and donating 100% of proceeds to local charities Girls Rock Camp, Vancouver Rape Relief and Women’s Shelter, Earth Protectors plus an audience picked foundation.

For tickets and more info, please visit the following links:
  
www.metalocalypstickfest.rocks
www.facebook.com/metalocalypstickfest/
Event Page- www.facebook.com/events/1158984924137688/
Ride Share - www.facebook.com/groups/metalocalypstickfestrideshare/

CD Review+Tourdates: Illyrian - Round 2: Fight! (Thrash, 2016)

A album as heavy and dark as black coffee: strong, refreshing and getting better with every sip you take.

Introduction
Illyrian came as a quick neckbreaker to me. The first time i've been introduced to them was the time they put out the video single for the title track of Round 2: Fight! The riffs beat me down and besides the unbelievable drums that hit my ears it was the tri-vocal attack I loved so much. This was for sure a album to have a eye upon. The longplayer finally found it's ways into my ears and here's what went through my mind while listening to this Thrash metal album.

The cover of the album Round 2:Fight!, (c) by Illyrian, used with kind permission

Summary
What a record! This is for sure a album for the lovers of strong thrash. If you're really deep into this genre of metal but other albums never were able to feed you completly you should try this riff hacker. It's heavy as hell! But the coolest part of it all is that after the first half the album get's even heavier.

The first five tracks put the foundation with building the foundation and introduction to the sound. They introduce most of the classic thrash formula (plus slightly modern elements on "Opulent & Imperial") with scream-along refrains plus tight guitars and even harder pushing drums. The drums have left me with a open mouth behind. It's few times you hear a drummer putting out so much energy on one album. Just check "Zeta Reticulan" to experience what I mean.

Track six "Mindbender" feels like turning the wheel. It's a midtempo thrasher with many changes and much diversity in it. The vocals become more sick this time they sound much more bad ass than on the first half of the CD. This set's the direction for the second pack of songs which are all kept smore riff-orientied, slightly more complex at times and cutting it more towards the rough edge. It's like in a fight: things have become heavier the longer it takes.

Album Stream and Purchase-Link
As for me this is a thrash sensation of 2016. Never thought I would ever come across something like this one. If you love the old thrash formula to be combined with vocals of changing rougher, darker and sometimes screaming nature along with pure energetic drums you should check this one out.


It's available for around 10 CAD from their Bandcamp page or you may pick it up from iTunes or Amazon. A CD version is available from their Bandcamp site.

Tourdates 2017
Best of all the band will hit the road in Canda in a few days. Don't miss out the chance to see them. I've checked out a live video on Youtube and that flashed me. 

April 20 – Calgary, AB – Nite Owl
April 21 – Edmonton, AB – DV8
May 2 – Banff, AB – Hoodoo Lounge
May 8 – Grande Prairie, AB – Better Than Fred’s
May 12 – Abbotsford, BC – Brothers Billiard
May 13 – Vancouver, BC – Media Club
May 14 – TBA
May 15 – Nanaimo, BC – The Cambie
May 17 – Vernon, BC – Record City
May 18 – Kelowna, BC – Chaos w/ NoMessisah Radio Show
May 19 – Prince George, BC – Fore Bistro
May 20 – Burns Lake, BC – The Dungeon

Contact Data
You can contact Illyrian on Facebook, Twitter or check out their homepage for all the latest.

CD Review: Mike Milan Dedic - Mike Milan Dedic (Instrumental Guitar Rock)

This is one man and his guitar plus few other instrumentation. Is this enough to create a good record? It is! Come inside and find out how Mike Milan Dedic made something great out of few elements.

Short Introduction

Mike Milan Dedic comes from Toronto, Canada. He has released a album that consists of 5 instrumental guitar shred type of songs. (1. Energy, 2. Zoom, 3. Run!, 4. Launch, 5. Shall We Dance!). 

The front cover of Mike Milan Dedic's debut record, (c) by Mike Milan Dedic, used with kind permission

 

Summary

This album is quite a surprise to me. I've been a bit sceptic in the beginning. Is the performance of one guitar player suitable to completly fill the air with music enough to rock? The answer came quickly and blew me away. I expected the music to have a lot of solo content. Surely there are a lot of those elements in there. But the album is far more. It also has identifiable song structures with it. I mean those classic riff elements that everybody knows that is used to Rock and Metal music these days and that's a big plus as for me. It makes the songs much more understandable and gives them a structure that you can always follow.

Another good idea was to keep the tracks short. You will not be stressed out with endless songs that you will think should have been shorted to be better. The sound for sure is rough and loud so make sure to turn the volume level at a comfortable one - it helps to enjoy the music much more.

The song structures include besides the mentioned riffs a lot of classic shred guitar. Those are rounded out with particular modern soundwriting elements. This goes most notably for number three "Run!" which is my favorite of the record. The songs are easy to listen to. They are build up like a step by step path. For sure they need a re-listen to fully let sink in all the enjoyment that has been put inside but that's for sure much more a reason to buy this record to quickly have it at hand whenever you feel the need to listen to pure guitar music.

Purchase-Link and Song snippets

The album is available as a hardcopy via CD Baby or online retailers such as Amazon, itunes or GooglePlay. If you're into music of this style please consider to purchase a copy so artists like Mike Milan Dedic can create more music for people like you and me.

Here are some snippets of the album that Mike has uploaded to Youtube:

Contact Data
Make sure to hold the line to Mike via his personal Facebook account.

Santa Claus comes along with free 40 track compilation

Finally Santa Claus knocks on your door! It's time for a little present to all of my readers for following the Underdogs so constantly. Thanks to Asher Media Relations we can hand a great free download compilation to all of you.

The cover of Asher Media's 2016 holiday season free download sampler, (c) by Asher Media Relations, used with kind permission

It holds a mixture of 40 great new and upcoming bands of various styles of the heavy genre that are all well worth to be checked out. Enjoy and have happy holidays! You can pick up your free package at Bandcamp.

About Asher Media Relations:

For nearly a decade, Montreal, QC based PR firm Asher Media Relations & staff have followed one rule and one rule only, that is getting artists the media attention that they deserve. Developing pr campaigns for image awareness and media support, AMR showcases & represents talented artists to all media outlets ranging from Print, Radio, Online & Television across Canada to around the world.

For more info, please visit the following links:

Website: www.AsherMediaRelations.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AsherMedia
Twitter: @AsherMedia

Jupiter Hollow reveal tourdates and send us Deep in Space

The release of the debut EP of the progressive duo Jupiter Hollow is drawing near. And as much as you (hopefully) are excited about the release as much I am looking forward to hear the final product.

As of today I can at least share one more video of the EP with you. It reveals one more track and shows how much diversity and feeling the two guys are able to transport with thir music to the listener. This time around it comes more to the rough and cutting side of the band but don't worry: there is still enough space for the melodies and big riffs to shine through the harder parts of the sound. Besides that it is also a perfect demonstration of how good the guys are when it comes to playing shows.

Shows is a good word: the band was able to confirm more dates in the meantime. Just check the column underneath the video to read all the details about the new tour dates.


Show Dates:
December 9 - Barrie, ON - Foxx Lounge
December 10 - Montreal, QC - Club Lambi
January 14 - Toronto, ON - Smiling Buddha (CD Release Show) - info

In the meantime pick up a free download of their track 'Ascending' available at http://www.grantmackenzie.ca/jupiterhollow

The prog duo Jupiter Hollow,
L-R- Grant MacKenzie (guitar, bass, synth), Kenny Parry (vocals, drums, synth/keys). Photo by Sandra Beatty 

The EP 'Odyssey' will drop on January 13th. The concept record will feature 5 tracks to introduce their ambient experimental progressive songwriting plus will act as a prelude to their planned full length 'AHDOMN'. Their sound is referred to as spacey, experimental and refreshing, reminding listeners of bands like Tool, Pink Floyd, A Perfect Circle, Tesseract, The Contortionists and Rush.

For more info make sure to see the band's homepage.

Jupiter Hollow introduce upcoming social/Sci-Fi concept EP with new video

As for me it's impressive to see what people are able to do if they really want to. This thought just came across my mind when I heard about this ambient progressive rock/metal duo from Barrie, Ontario.

It's only these two guys called Grant MacKenzie (guitar, bass, synth) and Kenny Parry (vocals, drums, synth/keys) who've put together music that is breathtaking for me. It is for sure dominated by a progressive tonality but they keep things more straight forward and give the music room to breathe.

You never feel stressed with all the elements they bring in to the sound but instead it's more of a deeply emotional music which keeps sounding straight forward, harmonic and you can understand the song structures straight away. In addition to that the new video is calming with it's beautiful nature recordings. What's even better is the fact that this song is part of their upcoming EP 'Odyssey' which has some concept behind it that reminds me of a novel-like social/Sci-Fi story.

The EP that will be distributed by Milagro Records and is set for release on January 13, 2017 will feature 5 tracks to introduce their ambient experimental progressive songwriting plus will act as a prelude to their planned full length 'AHDOMN'.  

The following column contains spoiler! Please only read on if you like to know things in advance instead of discovering them for yourselves step by step.

The cover of the upcoming Jupiter Hollow EP "Odyssey", (c) by Jupiter Hollow, used with kind permission

"This EP is a concept record, it will tell the story about two characters fighting one another in order to save their civilizations, but they just can’t do it. They’re in control of their civilizations future, but then you actually find out that there's only one person, who’s actually fighting with themselves. They're unhappy with who they are when they look in the mirror and realize they can’t grow past their indifference, and that they actually aren't a good person and the people from their civilization will die." says the duo. "The cool thing about the EP's title track Odyssey is that the story then takes place after the civilization is destroyed, and the character leaves on a spaceship somewhere else looking for a new start. This track will be the introduction into our second record, which will be about them looking for a new start. It will be a more hopeful record. Spoiler Alert! Overall this EP is like the “trailer” to a movie. Odyssey will help listeners get acquainted with us and prepare them for our full album AHDOMN later in the year."

If you'd like to listen to some more stuff right now (like me) you are surely happy to read that some tracks of the EP have already been released. You can buy and listen to these songs on the band's homepage and keep the contact via YouTube, Facebook or Twitter.

2017 – Armstrong Metal Fest Band Submissions Now Open (Free 2016 sampler inside)

So the Open Air season is slowly coming towards the end for this year. But what is going to happen in 2017? Well, no one knows for sure except for a few announcements that have been made so far.

What's far more interesting in my eyes is that bands can send submissions for the Armstrong Metal Fest right now. There's a good chance that you'll be chosen to play there if you apply with your music. Why?

69.4% of the total band line up for AMF 2016 was made of bands that had placed a band submission.
58.3% of AMF 2016's line up were bands that had never played the festival before.

Band submissions open September 1, 2016 and end November 1, 2016 11:59pm PST.

Please send submissions to the following email: bandsamf@gmail.com

What should you send?
– BAND NAME
– ONLINE MUSIC (Where can we check out your music example: bandcamp)
– AREA/CITY BANDS FROM
– GENRE/ DESCRIPTION OF WHAT KIND OF BAND YOU ARE
– HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN TOGETHER AS A BAND?
– LAST ALBUM RELEASE DATE/NEXT PLANNED ALBUM RELEASE DATE
– EXPERIENCE/ WHO HAVE YOU SHARED THE STAGE WITH
– CONTACT PERSON/CONTACT EMAIL
– ADDITIONAL INFO/COMMENTS

Don’t worry about sending an EPK right off the start! They are great to have, but not for AMF’s initial submission; once a band is on the roster an EPK may be requested for media outlets.

What exactly is the Armstrong Metal Festival?

Taking influence from Europe’s music festival circuit, Armstrong Metal Fest is a heavy metal celebration that encourages metal heads from across Canada and the globe to mosh and camp with the backdrop of great outdoors of British Columbia’s Okanagan Valley.

What started as a backyard party in 2009 with nothing but eleven local metal bands such as Terrifier, Xul and Odinfist to name a few, has grown into a a huge success admired by the Western Canadian Metal scene. 2016 was the eighth year of the festival and was its largest year for music and attendance. Previous years of the festival have seen line ups with Cattle Decapitation, Suffocation, Anciients, Bison BC, Striker, Crimson Shadows, Holy Grail, Archspire, Cryptopsy, Unleash The Archers, Divinity, Into Eternity, Ninjaspy, Vesperia, XUL, Odinfist, Death Toll Rising, Gomorrah among many others .

For more info, please visit www.ArmstrongMetalFest.ca

If you want to check out some of the bands of the 2016 edition of the festival try the stream below or better download a free compilation package directly from Bandcamp.

Illyrian share free beat'em up thrash anthem

As you all know Metal is my passion. But there are more things in my life that found my interest. One of them is gaming. I prefer the old plattforms. Games back in the day were more direct and straight forward. It was the fun that mattered most and you didn't needed to fiddle around so much or worry about system requirements and what not.

One genre that is very cool is the beat 'em up genre. There are many great games out there. They all have their own speciality to offer and you can unlock new stuff if you manage to beat a good many of opponents.

The cool thing is that the canadian thrashers of Illyrian have picked up the beat 'em up theme and formed the title track and cover of it for their upcoming album "Round 2: Fight!" that is coming up on October 7nd.

The cover of Illyrian's album Round 2: Fight!, (c) by Illyrian, used with kind permission

As a little teaser to the record the band has set up a first insight into what's to come with putting out a single of the same name as the album. Just look at the cool lyric video and if you like those games and music you'll quickly pick fire on the fighting characters shown at the beginning as well as on the music. It's thrash with some incredible progressive extras added to the sound formula and drums that are nearly impossible to replay in my ears. Plus they have this tri-vocal attack in their sound. I've not heard a band doing this before so it was one more reason for me to check 'em out. This refrain is a kicker and fits perfectly to the topic. I can already hear the fans screaming it out at the shows. I love the way the lyrics move forward during the song. It's like someone tells a mini-story and that's a good feeling to me.

If you like what you hear you'll be happy to read that you can pick up this song for free. The band has teamed up with PureGrainAudio to give you this nice freebie.

Make sure to see the band live on stage in the coming weeks and months and/or follow them on Facebook for more news on the album release.

October 1 - Calgary, AB - Distortion - CD Release Show - Facebook event info link
w/ Tyrant, Gales of Avalon, Leave The Living
October 22 - Medicine Hat, AB - Oly's Ale House
w/ WMD, World Class White Trash, Junkies Rush, Poke the Bear

Medevil stream full album for limited time only

If you've read my article about Medevil's video "Nightwalker" you probably know about the band's qualities. Don't worry if you missed it out. You're still in for a treat.

Photo Credit - Kevin Eisenlord,  L-R - Eric Wesa (Bass/Backup Vocals), Ross Collingwood (Drums), Liam Collingwood (Vocals), Gary Cordsen (Lead Guitar), Brett Gibbs (Rhythm Guitar)

A little dream has come true for me with this band. Medevil capture all the things I love so much about metal. They combine elements of the best oldschool bands like Metal Church when it comes to the riffs, add the songwriting abilities of Iron Maiden and put in vocals that Udo Dirkschneider couldn't have layed down better on tape.

I guess many of you out there that have heard and seen the video can't wait to hear the full thing. Happily we are in luck and I can share a stream of the full "Conductor of Storms" record as a stream right here. But seize the opportunity. It will be up for a limited time only (from Aug 26-Sept 9).



If you like what you hear you can order a copy of the album over at medevilmusic.com or catch the band on the road in Canada these days (and maybe pick up a copy of the CD directly at the show).

Tourdates

Aug 28 - Chilliwack, BC - Main Street Night Club
Sept 5 - Kelowna, BC - Muninn's Post
Sept 8 - Calgary, AB - Verns
Sept 9 - Edmonton, AB - DV8
Sept 10 - Calgary, AB - Overtime Sports Bar

I'm sure this is a band we're going to see and hear of a lot in the coming years. I hope for that. Make sure to follow them via Facebook or Twitter.

Medevil mix thrash of the 80's with classic metal and razorsharp vocals

Today it is more than ever a exciting time that see's a lot of new bands emerging that are offering a wide variation of styles, influences and mixes. Today's metal scene has become more diverse and colourful than ever in my eyes offering a bandwith like never before. It's like the best is yet to come so we all should do our best so the metal scene can continue to evolve and survive and bring us all the music we love and need.

So how would it sound like if you mix up elements of old thrash classics of Metal Church, comine them with a songwriting attempt in a style of old Iron Maiden albums and round it all out with raw vocals reminiscent of Udo Dirkschneider? Well, Medevil is the answer in my ears. The new album of them is straight around the corner and set for release on 26th August 2016. In support of the release the band has set up three tracks as a prelisten and I'd like you to check out their newest video of the track "Nightwalk" which is the opening track of the record. You can pre-order the album "Conductor Of Storms" through the band's website. 
You can find the other songs on the Youtube channel of Medevil.


Medevil will play some shows these year. See the flyer below for the exact dates and the album cover.

The flyer for the Medevil tourdates 2016, (c) by Medevil, used with kind permission

Make sure to connect with them for updates via Facebook, Twitter or their homepage.

CD Review: Celestial Ruin - Pandora EP (2016)

Do you remember the myth of the box of the Pandora? It is greek mystery about a ancient box holding a lot of evil. In today's context it is often used as a phrase expressing that with a small decision one can cause a lot of negative consequence as a result.
How would it sound like if you opened up the box of the Pandora? The symphonic band Celestial Ruin has created a record that could be a soundtrack to such a experience. Open the box right now. There's no risk for you this time but a lot of great music you can find...


Summary

It's a deep and meaningfull record. Besides the obvious female symphonic surface this output has a lot more to offer than similar EPs. It starts with the song structures which build up in a more clever way. It's far more subtle and you need to listen closely so you won't miss out on the fine elements that are kept inside.

The songs build up step by step through a good part of the duration and often redemption awaits at the end rewarding you for your listening patience. Overall the music comes around in a slower tempo compared to other band's of the same genre but if you prefer a intense, emotion-breathing atmosphere over fast rhtyhm patterns you will find a lot of satisfaction through listening to the Pandora EP.

It's a intense experience reflecting a lot of passion that has gone into the making of Pandora. You'll feel this when you take a closer ear to the guitar solos, the powerfull vocals and the overall fine-tuned sound package the whole band banned on tape.

The cover of Celestial Ruin's Pandora EP, (c) by Celestial Ruin, used with kind permission

Meaning of the lyrics

Lyrically the EP talks a lot about life experiences. They are thought out in detail and every track comes with a deep and meaningfull message. I'll list up a resume statement below so you have a idea of what the lyrics are all about.

Vocalist Larissa Dawn comments on the tracks of the EP:

“All the lyrics on "Pandora" were written about unleashing destruction into the world. Chaos caused by all the pain that negative emotions can create. A sort of cause and effect scenario. Each of the songs tells a different story and explores what happens when you make the wrong decision or fail to make any decision at all. Remaining stagnant and letting the world collapse in on you. The only song that kind of swerves from this theme is "No Quarter", this song is more of a movie told through song. It follows the story of infamous pirate Davy Jones and the battle that ensues between him and a rival ship.

Pandora has a much darker feel to it and I hope it paints different pictures in peoples minds when they hear it. I want them to be able to imagine exactly what is going on, like it's their own personal movie.”


Purchase-Link

You can pick up a digital copy of "Pandora" through the band's homepage or order one of the silver discs that are available there as well. Alternatively you can buy a digital copy via iTunes.

Please support such outworked creations with your purchase. Bands can only survive and continue with your own personal support. They'll thank you with more music and concerts taking you far away from your everyday troubles.

Connect with Celestial Ruin through the well known social channels such as Facebook, Twitter or add them on Youtube to your watch list.

Sludgehammer share massive guitar attack studio performance video

Today's bands give so much - it has become completly unbelieveable in my eyes how massive the level of skill and power is that metal bands provide the listeners with. Nearly all the combos out there perform massively blasting their way with sheer power and finesse using their instruments up to it's limits.

A good example for this is the band Sludgehammer from Toronto, Canada. Set to unleash their debut full length album 'The Fallen Sun' officially on June 10th the band has posted a new music video for their track 'Carrion Eater' in advance of the record release. If you would like to be one of the first to hear the new tracks go to the CD release show on on May 28th at Peterborough, ON - w/ Cryptelisk, Sacrificed Alliance, Anthropophagy - check Facebook for more info. The band will have the brand new record with them for sale on the good old silver discs.

L-R - Chris Szarota - Vocals, Jeff Wilson - Guitars, Tyler Williams - Guitars, Dan Ayers - Bass/Vocals, Fernando Villalobos- Drums
Photo Credit: Hayden John Wolf

The music as for me can be best described as a mixture of the power of Pantera mixed up with a lot of progressive elements and also a slight bit of Testament. The main trademarks of Sludgehammer source of  the dynamic vocal performances from lead vocalist Chris Szarota and bassist Dan Ayers, along with a showcase of mind bending guitar solos, heavy riffs and a blistering drumming fury. If you watch the in-studio footage you can sometimes hardly trust your eyes what these guys are able to perform on their instruments.


The album "The Fallen Sun" was self-produced by the band and mixed by guitarist Tyler Williams and mastered by world renowned producer & engineer Lasse Lammert (Gloryhammer, Alestorm, Teramaze) at LSD Studio in Germany.

Don't forget to stay in touch with the band so you won't miss out on more details of the album release and more annoucements using Facebook, Twitter or Bandcamp.

Album preview: Vortex - The Asylum

Ok, let's sneak a bit into a upcoming record. We haven't done this in a whle here on the blog but this new album trailer of the canadian metal band Vortex somehow got me.

The band Vortex, (c) by Vortex, used with kind permission

Besides the growls there's something in the compact and pure sounding recordings that found my attention.

I think it's the coolness of how the band performs the different song segments. It's also the many changes in the song structures that made me like them. It doesn't get montone so quickly and most of all with the lighter overall feeling the sound remains enjoyable while still staying in a heavy tonality.


The brand new record "The Asylum" will be shipped out on Friday the 13 via their label PRC music. You can pre-order the silver disc on the website of the label. So it looks as if that day will hopefully not be a black friday. :-)

Check out Vortex's Facebook page to see a video for a first full song of the album.