Sodom Streaming New Video

Legendary thrash metal band Sodom has released the track "Taphephobia" from their upcoming studio album "The Arsonist," which is due out on June 27th. For those wondering, taphephobia is a fear of being buried alive. As Sodom expains the song there's also a dedication to Chris Witchhunter in the new single "Witchhunter" More...

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Sodom Releases "Witchhunter" Music Video

German Thrash Metal legends Sodom released their new single and video for the song "Witchhunter" today. The song is also included on the upcoming studio album "The Arsonist," which will be released on June 27th through Steamhammer/SPV Records.

"Witchhunter" is Sodom‘s homage to their late drummer Chris Witchunter and the video was created by Ex-Sodom guitar player Andy Brings. You can check it out below. More...

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Sodom Announces New Album "The Arsonist"

We all know that good music is always also a question of sound. To this end, the human factor is crucial – along with the right equipment, of course –, after all it‘s about authenticity and individual personality. With that in mind, German thrash metal band Sodom have come to a logical conclusion: To enable the most natural production possible, the drum parts on their latest album "The Arsonist" were recorded using a 24-track analogue tape machine. No studio tricks, no digital overdubs, or, to quote frontman Tom Angelripper: "No plastic! The difference in sound compared to today‘s standard drum productions is amazing and has had a positive effect on all the instruments. Naturally, time and effort as well as costs were also higher, but we‘re happy to fork out for a superior result."

However, it‘s not only the complex production process that testifies to the band‘s exceptional creative spirit, but also their diverse songwriting, which saw all four Sodom musicians – Tom Angelripper (vocals, bass), Frank Blackfire (guitar), York Segatz (guitar) and Toni Merkel (drums) – involved in the development of the material on "The Arsonist."
Tom: "Frank contributed those typical Sodom riffs and hooks again, whereas York favours more epic songwriting. As a perfect complement to both of them, Toni, who is also an excellent guitarist, contributed a number of songs and helped to make the album even more versatile."

The first single and lyric video "Trigger Discipline," the toughest song on "The Arsonist," is released today. The song sounds equally martial and is about a sniper who has completely lost control of his actions and shoots people indiscriminately. You can check it out below.

"The Arsonist" will be released on June 27, 2025 worldwide through SPV/Steamhammer as CD digipak, 2LP version, download and streaming. More...

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Sodom Premiere Video For Remastered “Body Parts”

Sodom has unveiled a video for the 2024 redux version of their track "Body Parts." The German thrash legends released the video alongside the newly re-mixed and remastered edition of their 1992 album, Tapping The Vein, which is now available on streaming platforms and in stores.

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The First Full Day Of Mystic Festival Was Fire!

You couldn’t have asked for better weather on the first full day of this year’s Mystic Festival. The forecast called for zero chance of rain and the temperature was in the middle 60’s Fahrenheit. There was a noticeable increase in the number of attendees at the festival today and there was a reason for it. Today’s lineup was stacked from top to bottom. I had already penciled in eight bands to catch today and there could have been more. There were other bands I wanted to check out, but due to conflicts, the schedule made it all but impossible to do so.

Mystic Festival’s Entrance

I’ve been wanting to see Gutalax ever since I missed them at their infamous Brutal Assault set in 2019. Just do a search on YouTube for that specific show and you’ll be enlightened., Although there was no Toi Toi crowd surfing (the festival organizers moved the portable toilets farther away from the stages this year, a smart move on their part I must say…), today’s show at Mystic Festival did not disappoint. There were plenty of rolls of toilet paper, inflatable pool toys and balloons flying all over the place throughout their set.

Gutalax

Gutalax’s sound may not be everyone’s jam, but the atmosphere at their shows can be likened to a circus on crack. I haven’t laughed so much at a concert in years. My wife and I brought some blow-up pool toys from home for the show, and at one point, our giant pink donut with sprinkles ended up on stage with the band. They had some fun with it for a minute before “singer” Martin Matoušek threw it back into the crowd. Gutalax took a crowd photo at the end of their set and you can see our donut clearly within the elated crowd. That donut did us proud.

Can you find the donut???

The next band Nakkeknaekker is so young that I’m pretty sure they’re still in high school. There’s not a lot of information available online about this teenaged Death Metal band, but I can tell you that they’re going to be a force to be reckoned with in the near future. They play brutal, old school death metal similar to the early Earache Records roster (think Entombed/Morbid Angel) of Death Metal bands. Their energy level was off the charts and they played like they had a chip on their shoulder. If they stick together, they’ll be destined for remarkable things. Check them out.

NAKKEKNAEKKER

The next band on my list was a last minute, fill in the gap type band before my actual next penciled in band. Black Gold is a Nu Metal band that wasn’t as popular as their contemporaries during the height of the genre’s popularity. I’ll be honest here. I can’t stand Nu Metal and Black Gold didn’t change anything in that regard, but I thought the costuming and their stage look was cool. At least it made for some great photos.

Black Gold

Sodom was next on the list and even though I’ve seen them three times within a year’s span not including today’s set, I’m still not burned out on them. They played a different set-list for Mystic Festival from the last time I saw them on 70,000 Tons Of Metal, a deeper dig into their forty years’ worth of thrash classics.

What else can I say about Tom Angelripper and Frank “Blackfire” Gosdzik? These two have been keeping Sodom afloat for over forty years. Sodom are at the pinnacle of the German Big Four and only Destruction can rival them in my opinion. If you’ve never seen them live, need I write more to convince you to catch them before it’s too late and they call it a day?

Tom Angelripper and Frank “Blackfire” Gosdzik of Sodom

The next band, LIK, was slated to play at the smallest indoor venue at the festival (Sabbath Stage) and by the time I arrived, I had to shove my way through the already packed venue towards the photo pit. When this happens, it’s usually a good sign that the band is going to be good. Like Nakkeknaekker, LIK play an old school Death Metal style. LIK are several years older, so there was a certain “battle hardened” feel to them.

This was my first time seeing LIK and I have to say I was impressed. They have a very Swedish Death Metal sound to them and that should come as no surprise due to the fact they’re actually from there. I’ve been listening to Death Metal since its inception, so the fact that I’m impressed by any “newish” band within the genre, is a rarity. I immediately downloaded a couple of their albums after their set.

LIK More...

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What's So Great About Mystic Festival? Read This.

1. Certain bands that hardly come stateside but are easier to see if you’re in Europe. The bands I’m specifically referring to for this article are Gutalax, Asphyx, Furia, Satyricon and Blasphemy. Gutalax are actually going to be playing a couple of dates in the U.S. come September, but I didn’t want to wait that long to see them live for the first time. Asphyx, well…it was 2017 when they were stateside and Furia, I bet never. Satyricon has played some scattered dates here and there but are definitely more active in Europe. Mystic Festival has all of them this summer!

2. The cooler temperatures! This is my third Mystic Festival in a row and because it kicks off the metal festival season in early June, you can still comfortably wear a jacket at night. In fact, in 2022, the temperatures at the end of the first night of the festival were in the 40’s Fahrenheit. The Polish attendees are used to these types of temperatures but for someone that splits their time between Phoenix, Arizona and Athens, Greece, that’s called winter! The days, however, are beautiful. No complaints there.

3. The festival foods. It’s Poland, but this festival offers more than just pierogi and kielbasa. In fact, they are both more difficult to find at Mystic Festival than everything else available. There’s really good pizzas, hamburgers, some Mexican, Portuguese (!!!), lángos (think frybread with sour cream) and plenty of vegan and vegetarian options. The prices are fair for festival food but the lines can be long at times. There’s an actual indoor food court with plenty of seating if you need to get away for a bit. More...

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70,000 Tons Of Metal 2024 (Day Four)

The last day of any music festival is always bittersweet. In the back of your mind, you know it’s inevitable, but you do your best to distract yourself. Today was our last chance to see as many bands as possible and enjoy every moment like it was our last. Death by 70,000 Tons of Metal was our objective and we were going to meet it at any cost to our bodies.

The final day on 70,000 Tons Of Metal has always been by tradition a mini-Halloween of sorts. Survivors will dress in costumes of all types ranging from funny to crude to basically nude. I noticed some costumes being worn during every day of the festival, but the majority still garbed up on the last day.

There were some great getups this year. One of my favorites was a stormtrooper from the Star Wars movies. We saw him meandering the boat on several occasions but once I saw him checking out the merch selection, I had to tell him/her that I hoped their aim of picking out the correct shirt was better than their marksmanship with their laser gun. They turned towards me and just stared me down. They obviously were not amused by my snarky comment.

Stormtrooper Is Not Amused

The first band on the list today was Einherjer. Einherjer has been part of a few 70k line-ups, but I’ve never actually stopped and watched them. That changed today. I can honestly say that they were very good for the style they played, old school Viking metal. It’s really not my thing, but at least I could finally check that box of finally seeing them.

Einherjer

One of the festival’s most looked forward to attractions is the belly flop contest. By the time we arrived at the Solarium Pool, there wasn’t any open spots on the top deck to watch, we had to squeeze in from below. All shapes, sexes and sizes participate in this immensely popular and traditional event. The judges are always members of the bands and it’s a fun time for everyone involved. We were able to watch a few flops before grabbing lunch. It should come as no surprise that the person with the most body mass ended up with the highest score and winning the contest.

Sunblocked!

Another one of the highlights of the cruise is the Jamming In International Waters All Star Jam. It’s basically members of different bands getting together to cover classic metal songs. Many of the members have never played with each other before so there are some glitches here and there, but it’s worthwhile going to at least once if you’re a 70k newbie.
My Dying Bride was next on the day’s list and this would be our first time seeing this historic English doom band. As the crowd waited for them to take to stage, the fog machines were putting in some overtime. From my vantage point in the photo pit, I couldn’t even make out faces a couple rows behind me because there was so much fog. This is the ambience that great doom metal bands strive for and it worked out beautifully for My Dying Bride. Their gothic style of doom still holds up to this day and vocalist Aaron Stainthorpe is in a class all by himself not only in the classic doom genre, but for all heavy metal itself. More...

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70,000 Tons Of Metal 2024 (Day Two)

Day two of 70,000 Tons Of Metal was an early start, and by early, I mean around noon. The first bands of the day normally start playing around ten in the morning, but only the very hardcore or the still inebriated fans are having metal for breakfast. One of NWOBHM’s elite bands, Tygers of Pan Tang, was the first band on our list that day. They were good, but at this point of their career, they reminded me of your friend’s fathers band playing classic heavy metal at your local bar and grill. Next up was Nervosa. There have been so many line-up changes over the past couple of years, I wasn’t sure who was currently in the band other than Prika Amaral. There were some technical issues at the start of their set, but they were cruising along by their second song.

Tygers of Pan Tang

With our boat cruising through the Atlantic Ocean towards Puerto Plata in the Dominican Republic, it was time to enjoy some of the other things on the Freedom Of The Seas other than just metal. There are several restaurants on board the ship that are not included within the price of admission. You pay extra for these restaurants and you must make reservations right away because the spots are limited. My wife and I made reservations at the Izumi Hibachi (Japanese steakhouse) and at Chops Grill (steakhouse) on back-to-back nights.

Nervosa

There is absolutely nothing wrong with the Windjammer Grill or the main dining room, but sometimes you just want to get away from it all and these restaurants are a good option and a not too terribly expensive option. There is also an Italian restaurant and a Johnny Rockets burger grill to choose from.

For late night eats, the standbys have always been Sorrento’s Pizza and the Promenade Café. However, the Windjammer is now offering late night eats from midnight until 4 am. This wasn’t available in 2020 and was much appreciated by the looks of all the metalheads filling up their plates to refuel in the middle of the night. More...

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Body Count And Sodom Added To Mystic Festival 2024

Uncompromising Body Count, veterans from Sodom, metalcore visionaries from Crystal Lake and Lik, 100% of Swedish death metal, are coming to Mystic Festival 2024.

Mystic Festival 2024 will be held at the Gdansk Shipyard from June 5-8. The program includes Bring Me The Horizon, Machine Head, Bruce Dickinson, Satyricon, Accept, Biohazard, Chelsea Wolfe, Body Count, Sodom, Furia, Thy Art Is Murder, Life Of Agony, Leprous, Lord Of The Lost, Graveyard, High On Fire, Orange Goblin, Suffocation, Vio-Lence, Ithaka, Asphyx, Mysticum, Blackgold, Crystal Lake, Endseeker, Humanity’s Last Breath, Lamp of Murmuur, Wayfarer, Lik, Ghøstkid and Sanguisugabogg.

Festival passes are available HERE! More...

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Sodom Releases "1982 (Remix)" Music Video

German Thrash Metal legends Sodom has released their new single and video for the song "1982 (Remix)." The song is taken from the upcoming EP "1982" and is also available on all digital platforms.

Frontman Tom Angelripper states: "These days, we‘d probably compose those songs differently and arrange them in a more contemporary style. But we see this EP as a little journey back in time to recapture the atmosphere of the early eighties. For us, it‘s about remembering those wild years. Back then, people hated bands like Motörhead or Venom. But we didn‘t give a shit about their opinion, we wanted to shock and outrage." More...

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Brutal Assault 2023 - Seven Most Memorable Bands

Sometimes as a writer, you must mix things up from time to time. I normally write up festival reports, day by day, band by band, blah, blah, blah…it gets mundane for the writer and more importantly, the reader. Brutal Assault 2023 took place in early August of this year and we’re already in mid-September as of this writing.

I took plenty of notes after each day so I know most of the details of each day. However, I’m going to write up Brutal Assault 2023 in such a way where I’m going to list my top seven most memorable bands of the festival and why I remembered them. I’ll refer to my notes only to confirm what I remembered, but the meat of it will be from my own personal, gray matter hard drive.

For reference, here are some personal stats regarding my Brutal Assault band viewing numbers. I saw at least 30 bands over 4 days and I photographed 28 of them. Most bands were headliner type bands you would see on tour or that put out releases through well-known metal labels. Most of these bands are in the extreme metal genre.
Without further ado, and not ranked in any particular order, my top seven: More...

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Marduk And Wind Rose Confirmed For 70000 Tons 2024

The organisers of the 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise has confirmed two more names for next year's edition of the floating festival. Joining the stacked lineup are Italian power metal dwarves Wind Rose and Swedish black metal stalwarts Marduk. The event is scheduled to take place from January 29th to February 2nd and will sail from Miami, Florida to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

The lineup is now as follows:

Aborted
Angra
Blind Guardian
Blood Red Throne
Crypta
Dalriada
Depressive Age
Draconian
Dynazty
Epica
Equilibrium
Fleshgod Apocalypse
Grave Digger
The Halo Effect
Heidevolk
Infected Rain
Iotunn
Kataklysm
Legion Of The Damned
Lord Of The Lost
Marduk
My Dying Bride
Mystic Prophecy
Nanowar Of Steel
Nervosa
Nile
Omnium Gatherum
Saor
Scar Symmetry
Serenity
Sodom
Thyrfing
Tygers Of Pan Tang
Unleashed
Victory
Warkings
Wind Rose

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Sodom Announces New EP "1982"

Flashback to spring 1982, Essen, Stauderstraße in the Altenessen district, a small musty rehearsal room in an industrial wasteland area. Three long-haired hopefuls have tuned their instruments and are hard at work, recording their first demo tape at top volume. The track they’re cutting is called "Witching Metal" and turns into bludgeoning thrash metal of the purest variety. "Basically, we chose the wrong key, but we then weren’t about musical correctness, we were all about attitude. We were against the establishment, were in trouble with our teachers and training supervisors because, in their opinion, we wore the wrong clothes and listened to the wrong kind of music," remembers Sodom boss Tom Angelripper, looking back at his adolescence. "At vocational college, I was the only one into metal. All the others listened to New Wave or Neue Deutsche Welle."

That’s 41 years ago, but the influence of that formative era still affects the present, which is why Tom and Sodom wrote the track "1982," recalling the band’s first steps both musically and lyrically. Now, "1982" as well as re-recordings of their early songs "Witching Metal," "Victims Of The Death," "Let’s Fight In The Darkness Of Hell" and "Equinox" have been immortalised on vinyl and some on CD for the first time. And as any self-respecting, dynamic band would, they’ve also scheduled a tour in the spirit of that early Sodom phase in 2023 and 2024.

"1982" will be released on November 10, 2023 through SPV/Steamhammer in the following configurations:

=> CD-EP DigiPak
=> 12" Vinyl, 140 g, cristallo vinyl, printed inner sleeve
=> Download / Streaming

Tracklisting:

1. 1982 (Remix)
2. Witching Metal
3. Victims Of Death
4. Let`s Fight In The Darkness Of Hell
5. Equinox More...

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Dynazty Added To 70000 Tons 2024 Lineup

Swedish power metal outfit Dynazty has been confirmed as the latest name for next year's edition of the 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise, which will take place from January 29th to February 2nd. The voyage will sail from Miami, Florida and head to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

The current lineup is as follows:

Aborted
Angra
Blind Guardian
Blood Red Throne
Crypta
Dalriada
Depressive Age
Draconian
Epica
Equilibrium
Fleshgod Apocalypse
Grave Digger
The Halo Effect
Heidevolk
Infected Rain
Iotunn
Kataklysm
Legion Of The Damned
Lord Of The Lost
My Dying Bride
Mystic Prophecy
Nanowar Of Steel
Nervosa
Nile
Omnium Gatherum
Saor
Serenity
Sodom
Thyrfing
Tygers Of Pan Tang
Unleashed
Victory
Warkings

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Heidevolk And Kataklysm Confirmed For 70000 Tons

The organisers of the 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise have added a further two names for the 2024 edition of the event. Joining the already impressive lineup are Dutch folk metal outfit Heidevolk, as well as French Canadian death metal machine Kataklysm, who will be performing two very special sets for sailors on board 70000 Tons Of Metal. For the first time ever, they will exclusively play their Album "In the Arms of Devastation" in its entirety for one performance. For the other set they will exclusively play their album "Serenity in Fire" in it's entirety.

The cruise will take place from January 29th to February 2nd, sailing from Miami, Florida to Puerto Plaza, Dominican Republic.

The lineup is now as follows: More...

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Fleshgod Apocalypse Confirmed For 70000 Tons 2024

Italian symphonic death metal giants Fleshgod Apocalypse has been announced as the latest band joining the lineup of the 2024 edition of the 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise. The journey will depart from Miami, Florida on January 29th and head to the Dominican Republic, before returning on February 2nd.

The lineup is now as follows:

Aborted
Angra
Blind Guardian
Blood Red Throne
Crypta
Dalriada
Depressive Age
Draconian
Epica
Equilibrium
Fleshgod Apocalypse
Grave Digger
The Halo Effect
Infected Rain
Iotunn
Legion Of The Damned
Lord Of The Lost
My Dying Bride
Mystic Prophecy
Nanowar Of Steel
Nervosa
Nile
Omnium Gatherum
Saor
Serenity
Sodom
Thyrfing
Tygers Of Pan Tang
Unleashed
Victory
Warkings

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Tygers Of Pan Tang Confirmed For 70000 Tons 2024

New Wave Of British Heavy Metal stalwarts Tygers Of Pan Tang has been announced as the latest band for the next year's edition of the 70000 Tons Of Metal. The cruise will set sail on January 29th and head to Puerto Plaza, Dominican Republic before returning on February 2nd.

The lineup is now as follows:

Aborted
Angra
Blind Guardian
Blood Red Throne
Crypta
Dalriada
Depressive Age
Draconian
Epica
Equilibrium
Grave Digger
The Halo Effect
Infected Rain
Iotunn
Legion Of The Damned
Lord Of The Lost
My Dying Bride
Mystic Prophecy
Nanowar Of Steel
Nervosa
Nile
Omnium Gatherum
Saor
Serenity
Sodom
Thyrfing
Tygers Of Pan Tang
Unleashed
Victory
Warkings

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Iotunn & Dalriada Added To 70000 Tons 2024

The lineup for 70000 Tons Of Metal's twelfth voyage continues to grow with the addition of two more bands. Joining the already impressive lineup are Danish progressive metal outfit Iotunn and Hungarian folk metal veterans Dalriada. The festival will take place on board the Freedom Of The Seas ship and sail from Miami, Florida to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic between January 29th and February 2nd.

The lineup is now as follows:

Aborted
Angra
Blind Guardian
Blood Red Throne
Crypta
Dalriada
Depressive Age
Draconian
Epica
Equilibrium
Grave Digger
The Halo Effect
Infected Rain
Iotunn
Legion Of The Damned
Lord Of The Lost
My Dying Bride
Mystic Prophecy
Nanowar Of Steel
Nervosa
Nile
Omnium Gatherum
Saor
Serenity
Sodom
Thyrfing
Unleashed
Victory
Warkings

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Serenity Confirmed For 70000 Tons Of Metal 2024

Austrian symphonic metal veterans Serenity has been announced as the latest name for 2024's 70000 Tons Of Metal cruise. The floating festival will take place from January 29th - February 2nd. The event will take place on board the Freedom Of The Seas and sail out of Miami, Florida, making its way to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

The lineup is now as follows:

Aborted
Angra
Blind Guardian
Blood Red Throne
Crypta
Depressive Age
Draconian
Epica
Equilibrium
Grave Digger
The Halo Effect
Infected Rain
Legion Of The Damned
Lord Of The Lost
My Dying Bride
Mystic Prophecy
Nanowar Of Steel
Nervosa
Nile
Omnium Gatherum
Saor
Serenity
Sodom
Thyrfing
Unleashed
Victory
Warkings

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My Dying Bride Confirmed For 70000 Tons 2024

British Gothic doom legends My Dying Bride has been announced as the latest act for the 2024 edition of 70000 Tons Of Metal, which will take place from January 29th - February 2nd. The event will take place on board the Freedom Of The Seas and sail out of Miami, Florida, making its way to Puerto Plata, Dominican Republic.

The lineup is now as follows:

Aborted
Angra
Blind Guardian
Blood Red Throne
Crypta
Depressive Age
Draconian
Epica
Equilibrium
Grave Digger
The Halo Effect
Infected Rain
Legion Of The Damned
Lord Of The Lost
My Dying Bride
Mystic Prophecy
Nanowar Of Steel
Nervosa
Nile
Omnium Gatherum
Saor
Sodom
Thyrfing
Unleashed
Victory
Warkings

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