Metal News for January 4, 2018
Last updated on October 4, 2025 at 3:07 AM ET
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Hot Topics
- Kreator To Release New Album In January
- Enthroned To Release New Album In December
- Spite Premiere New Single & Music Video
- Carcosa (AngelMaker) Premiere New Single & Video
- Agnostic Front Premiere New Single & Lyric Video
- Potato Premiere New Single & Music Video "YUGE PP"
- Omnium Gatherum Drops "Walking Ghost Phase" Video
- Tailgunner Signs With Napalm Records
- Messa Shares New Music Video "Reveal"
- Stellar Circuits Premiere New Single & Music Video
14 news articles posted on this day.
Column
Thrashback Thursday: Hearts On Fire
It can be surprising where some seeds are sewn. If you were to tell someone that members of two of Sweden's most influential death metal bands were in the same group together at one stage, they'd probably think they already know what the music would sound like. Then tell them that the band in question that featured members of Dark Tranquillity and the founder of In Flames was one of the biggest names in power metal and they might not be so sure of themselves. Nevertheless, Hammerfall has included members from these groups and while starting off as something of a side project, as over time become one of Europe's most beloved heavy metal groups, selling thousands upon thousands of albums worldwide and becoming a mainstay of the summer festival circuit. This week we'll be taking a look at one of their most popular songs, "Hearts On Fire."
"Hearts On Fire" is arguably the stand out track on the "Crimson Thunder" album from 2002, which is not the most revered release by the band but nevertheless has its place in Hammerfall history. After the superb debut, "Glory to the Brave" in 1997 and the strong follow ups, "Legacy Of Kings" and "Renegade" in 1998 and 2000 respectively, some fans were a little disappointed with this fourth effort, feeling it was overproduced and formulaic. Despite this, "Hearts On Fire" is generally seen as a good starting point for those seeking to find out about the band or the power metal genre.
It begins with a two punch opening, led by a memorable riff. The verse itself doesn't offer much musically to be honest, but this is where the song is more focused on the delivery of the lyrics, leaving the listener to focus on the story at hand, told by vocalist Joacim Cans. This works in service of the sweeping, almost football chant style of the chourus. Essentially being a song about brotherhood, the chanting of the title works excellently as a unifying cry, aided by additional lines from Cans. After repeating this structure, the song lulls a little into a more hushed take on the refrain, before exploding with energy again. It may not be the most complex song Hammerfall have ever written, but it will stick in the listener's head for days and has become one of the band's best known tracks ever since. More...
Pestilence Premiere New Song "Hypnotic Terror"
Dutch death metal legends Pestilence premiere a new song entitled "Hypnotic Terror" via Decibel below. The track will NOT appear on their upcoming new album "Hadeon", which is slated for a March release via Hammerheart.
Check out now "Hypnotic Terror" below.
Machine Head Call Out Reviewer Via Instagram
Decibel magazine has given Machine Head's new effort "Catharsis" a devastating review. Reviewer Jeff Treppel even gave the release a shrug emoji (¯\_(ツ)_/¯), rather than assigning it a numeric rating. Looks like Machine Head didn’t exactly appreciate the judgement, taking to Instagram to vent on it and the reviewer in question.
“DECIBEL MAGAZINE SLAMS “CATHARSIS”!
The former-Decibel cover stars new album gets called “juvenile”, “stupid”, “endlessly pummeling” and a “Super Collider-level-miss”.
Oh, and hey… FUCK YOU Jeff Treppel!!
Read the entire review below:
——————
MACHINE HEAD – CATHARSIS
EVERYTHING OLD IS NÜ AGAIN
Let’s just tear off this Band-Aid:
The new Machine Head is a 74-minute rap metal album with a song that sounds like the Dropkick Murphys in the middle. Maybe Robb Flynn really misses the late 90’s (although, let’s be honest who doesn’t these days)? Maybe, after a decade of ridiculously great progressive groove metal records, Flynn decided to blow off some steam by going back to “The Bleeding Red’s” knuckle-dragging simplicity?
The frustrating thing about Catharsis is that Machine Head are great even when they’re making bad music. The Soulfly tribal breakdowns on “Volatile,” the drop tuning on “Beyond The Pale,” the whiteboy hip-hop of “Triple Beam” (nothing more “street” than gymnastics metaphors), the anti-gentrification screed “California Bleeding” –they’re effective in the same primal way that the best Rage Against The Machine and Korn hits were back in the day. None of it feels half-assed; these are clearly well-crafted songs.
It’s all just so stupid.
As intermittently satisfying as the nu-metal approach may be, Flynn and his bandmates have proven themselves more than capable of expressing their rage articulately. This feels juvenile from dudes pushing 50. There are certainly some interesting parts mixed in; unfortunately, with 15 songs, any nuances get lost in the endless pummeling.
Frankly, I’m baffled. This is a “Super-Collider“-level miss from a band that seemed to have ditched this phase long ago.
“Catharsis” drops Jan. 26th
#machinehead #catharsis #spreadthehead”
In an op-ed from Neill Jameson (Krieg), Decibel - indirectly - responds to the matter: More...
Angel Vivaldi Premieres "Adrenaline" Playthrough
World renowned guitar prodigy, Angel Vivaldi, rings in 2018 with a killer, play-through of the scathing original, new track, "Adrenaline." States Vivaldi:
"After months of touring around the world, I'm thrilled to finally launch the first video from the Synapse album play-through series for the song, 'Adrenaline.' It features an incredible new talent by the name of Julian Cifuentes, who's style blazes through this song to help show us what 'Adrenaline' is all about. Excited to have this and all of the other videos finally underway!"
The Dead Centuries Debut New Track
Canadian instrumental prog metal trio The Dead Centuries debut their second single "Attack of The Mutant" that features a guest guitar solo from Jeff Tremblett, brother of TDC guitarist Adam Tremblett.
Listen to "Attack of The Mutant" below:
Adam Tremblett adds: More...
Dustin Behm's "The Beyond" To Be Released in NA
Released this past November in Europe, Rockshots Records announces the North American release of progressive metal guitarist Dustin Behm's debut solo album "The Beyond" on January 19th, 2018.
Picking up the guitar at the age of 13 and attending the Guitar Institute of Technology at the Musician's Institute in Los Angeles where he studied with world renowned guitarists such as Paul Gilbert, Scott Henderson, Greg Harrison and tapping master TJ Helmerich this offering from Behm features 13 shredding tracks.
Vespera (Periphery) Premiere New Song "Paradise"
Vespera - featuring Periphery’s Spencer Sotelo - premiere a new song entitled "Paradise", taken from their upcoming full-length debut "The Thoughts That Plague You", which will be out later this year. The record was produced by Taylor Larson (Periphery, Darkest Hour).
Check out now "Paradise" below.
Lucifer Share New Song "Faux Pharaoh"
Doom metal outfit Lucifer - consisting now of ex-The Oath vocalist Johanna Sadonis, Entombed drummer Nicke Andersson on drums and guitars, and Saturn guitarist Robin Tidebrink - offer a new song titled "Faux Pharaoh", taken from their upcoming new album "Lucifer II", which will be out in stores sometime in summer 2018.
Check out now "Faux Pharaoh" below.
Clamfight Premiere New Song "Echoes in Stone"
New Jersey sludge outfit Clamfight premiere a new song entitled "Echoes in Stone", taken from their upcoming new album "III", which will be released by Argonauta Records on January 19th.
Check out now "Echoes in Stone" below.
Supreme Carnage Debut New Song "The Fire Prevails"
German old school death dealers Supreme Carnage debut a new song entitled "The Fire Prevails", taken from their upcoming new album "Morbid Ways to Die", which is slated for a June 2018 release via Redefining Darkness and Raw Skulls.
Check out now "The Fire Prevails" below.
Tell Supreme Carnage about the song: More...
Druid Lord Premiere New Song "Night Gallery"
Druid Lord premiere a new song entitled "Night Gallery", taken from their upcoming new album "Grotesque Offerings", which will be out in stores January 19th on CD, vinyl LP, and cassette tape formats via Hells Headbangers.
Check out now "Night Gallery" below.
Satyricon Hope To Finish Covers Album
Satyricon hope to sometime finish work on their covers effort. Says Sigurd “Satyr” Wongraven of the album:
"That is something that we did do quite a lot of work with, but we had to shelve it because ‘Deep Calleth Upon Deep‘ took all of our attention. In general, we would like to pick up on that again. I don’t know when that will happen, because we have to really want to do it — we can’t just do it because it’s something that we didn’t finish; we have to finish it because we want to finish it.
When we left it on the shelf, it was because, even though we were enjoying it, it took a lot of time and it took time away from the [‘Deep Calleth Upon Deep‘] album, which we thought was a more important project. So when you do a project like a covers album, it has to be because there is space for it in your life right now. But once we get there, yeah, it’s possible."
Asked about what kind of material Satyricon plan to cover, he offers: More...
Red Fang To Release "Red Fang Red" Wine
Red Fang teams up with Teutonic Wine Company for a collaborative wine dubbed "Red Fang Red". It's a blend of Pinot Noir, Tannat and Gewürztraminer. "Red Fang Red"'s release will be celebrated with a special wine party at the Teutonic Wine Company in Portland, OR on January 13th. The band’s own drummer John Sherman will be doing a special DJ set during the event.
Says John Sherman of the wine:
"Everyone thinks we’re very much about beer and our videos definitely portray us that way. We do drink beer, but I personally prefer wine and consequently, I’ve always wanted to make a Red Fang wine. To meet winemakers who also dig heavy music was a dream come true. The first time I went to Teutonic’s tasting room, they were playing Saxon on vinyl and I said to myself, ‘these are my people.’"
Red Fang have these shows booked for January and February: More...
Shining Premiere Pre-Release Full-Album Stream
Shining premiere the pre-release full-album stream of the band's upcoming new album "X – Varg Utan Flock", which will be out in stores this Friday, January 05th.
You can take it in below:
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