Chris Dick

Steffen Kummerer’s (Obscura) Top 5 Swedish Death/Black Metal Albums

April 11, 2011

5. DawnSlaughtersun (Crown of the Triarchy) (1998) A barely known album. This time not via No Fashion Records. Necropolis Records from the U.S. took care to bring this release to life. Unfortunately, no tour, proper promotion or distribution supported this third album of the band, so maybe a few diehard fans will remember the group….

Live Review: Winter, Union Pool, April 3, 2011

April 8, 2011

Viewing ApparitionsBy Scott Koerber On Sunday night, NY Doom-Death progenitors Winter brought their hypnotic blend of Hellhammer-meets-Amebix-on-quallludes to a sold out crowd at Union Pool in Brooklyn, NY, the band’s first show in 20 years. In the years since their last live appearance (way back in 1991), the band has risen from obscurity to legend…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 10

April 7, 2011

HENDO vs. FEDOR: Should It Happen? When I first heard of this match up, it sounded like a perfect fit: two legends of the sport who have never faced each other despite being in the same promotion for years! Granted, they are not in the same weight class, but since when did petty things like…

STREAMING: Dodsferd “Your Kingdom Was Built in a Lie”

April 5, 2011

Greek grape-leaf dolmas rule. So too does Greek black metal. Stretching as far back as Rotting Christ, Varathron, Necromantia, Zemial, Thou Art Lord, Greece’s storied black metal history rivals the Norwegians. In fact, the Norwegians were heavily informed by the extreme sounds of the Mediterranean. Not to dwell on the past too much, we’ve brought…

Dagon (Inquisition) interviewed

April 4, 2011

Ominous Doctrines of the Perpetual Mystical Macrocosm is your fifth record. How do you feel it compares, artistically speaking, to its predecessors?Dagon: Artistically and technically, it’s the best album Inquisition has done in every sense. The performance is tight, the production is clear and very organic, the riffs are rich and more on the attack…

STREAMING: Vicious Rumors “Razorback Killers” (Album)

April 1, 2011

On March 1st, we streamed new Vicious Rumors tune, “Razorback Blade”. It ruled. Yeah, we’re sure you said, “Vicious Who”? They’re ’80s. Not as in nu-’80s, but ’80s. They were there when riffs were fast (as a shark, possibly?), aggression was the primary emotion, and white Reebok hightops (the ones with the big, floppy tongues)…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 9

March 31, 2011

UFN 24: Quick Thoughts • Antonio Rogerio Nogueira: “I will let Phil choose how he wants to lose this fight.” That has got to be the best quote I’ve heard all year! • There’s only one Mr. Wonderful, and his name is Paul Orndorff (a pro wrestler who is most famous for feuding with Hulk…

Maryland Deathfest: The Movie 2 Premiere

March 28, 2011

Every year — well, the last two for this writer — key parts of team Decibel travel from the City of Brotherly Death (i.e., Philadelphia) to Harm City (i.e., Baltimore) for the exalted festival extremely extreme music, Maryland Deathfest. Every year, Maryland Deathfest is an endurance test. How many kick-ass bands can one — or…

Scott Shellhamer & Adamn Norden (American Heritage) interviewed

March 25, 2011

What’s the difference between American Heritage (MySpace link) and American “Fucking” Heritage?Scott Shellhamer: One has more fucking than the other. Adamn Norden: Regular American Heritage will act like it wants to get to know you first. Your primary influences—if we’re using food ingredient methodology to determine most to least—are “masturbatory fantasies of middle-aged bureaucrats”. Can…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 8

March 24, 2011

Have we seen the last of Cro Cop in MMA? Mirko “Cro Cop” Filipovic is a living fighting legend, of that there is no doubt. But 99% of the clips from his fights on the countdown show to UFC 128 were from his days in Pride – not surprising, since he’s been everything but devastating…

Napalm Death flexi spotlight + Shane Embury interviewed

March 22, 2011

It’s no secret Decibel and Napalm Death aren’t just Facebook friends but bestest pals. We’re the beat to their blast, so to speak. Decibel editor-in-chief Albert Mudrian’s favorite band is, well, Napalm Death. The Brummies (that’d be folk from Birmingham, England) were well chronicled in Mudrian’s Choosing Death book, were cover stars for dB #53,…

STREAMING: Anaal Nathrakh “Paragon Pariah”

March 21, 2011

Obliterating everyone in attendance at this year’s Scion Rock festival in Pomona, California, British black metallers Anaal Nathrakh appear poised for extreme metal dominance. Though the group’s history takes them back to 1998 (debut album, The Codex Necro, landed in 2001), it’s the recent output, namely 2009’s In the Constellation of the Black Widow, that’s…

Dorian Rainwater & Thomas Romero’s (Noisear) Top 5 Influential Grind Songs

March 18, 2011

Hello All! Dorian Rainwater and Thomas Romero of Noisear here. We have been asked to give a Top 5 feature by the amazing people at Decibel Magazine. We have chosen to give our main influences in the extreme metal/grindcore genre, which have had a huge impact on us and serve as a key element to…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 7

March 16, 2011

ZUFFA PURCHASES STRIKEFORCE: Drunken Hallucination or Impossible Reality? When I first read the news about this unexpected deal, I couldn’t believe my eyes! I was at an after party here in Göteborg (HammerFall had just had a listening session for our new album with journalists from all over Europe) and I was just checking the…

Varg Vikernes (Burzum) interviewed

March 15, 2011

Do you see much similarity—musically, thematically—between Belus and new album Fallen?Varg Vikernes: Yes I do. Musically because it’s still Burzum (…) and thematically because to some degree Fallen deals with the same subject, only it’s not in a mythological context, and on a personal level. I know you didn’t see Belus as black metal. But…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 6

March 14, 2011

Quick thoughts on UFC Live 3 Sanchez vs. Kampmann Martin Kampmann got ripped off. He should have won that fight, and not just because Diego Sanchez’s face looked like he had been run over by 14-wheeler, but because Kampmann landed more accurate strikes all evening and defended all of Diego’s relentless take-down attempts save for…

STREAMING: Assaulter “Slave to King”

March 11, 2011

What happens when members of Aussie brutes Destroyer 666 and Aussie precision bombers Razor of Occam team up? Assaulter. Is it thrash metal? Yes. But does it have a bit of black metal? Yes. Actually, it’s the very sound replicated in the mid-’90s but with a double-punch to the nuts and noggin. Says Simon Turner…

Breeding Death…Er, Reading Death

March 10, 2011

So, you haven’t picked up our cover story [db #77] on the inimitable Death. Yeah, I know. Reading’s hard, but somebody’s got to do it. No, you say? OK, then. You’re missing out on the most exhaustive Death story ever told. Not by journalists (well, there’s one interviewed for the story), but by the ex-members…

Dez FaFara’s Road Runner A Go-Go, A Tribute to Saturday Morning Cartoons (Final)

March 9, 2011

By Dez FaFara (DevilDriver) What the fuck happened to Saturday morning kids TV, otherwise known as Saturday cartoons? Honestly, have I grown out of rolling out of bed on a morning, putting on comfy clothes, warm socks, a robe and going downstairs to get a bowl of Capt’n Crunch and putting on Scooby Doo? No. …

Schmier (Destruction) “Day Of Reckoning” track-by-track commentary

March 8, 2011

Someone in grand old Europe stole our thunder by premiering new music by lauded German thrashers Destruction. So, we fought back by asking lead destructer, bassist/vocalist Schmier, to provide a track-by-track breakdown of new album, Day of Reckoning. Sure, a lot of the old guard have reformed and are releasing new albums with pretty decent…

STREAMING: Pentagram “Call the Man”

March 7, 2011

In many ways, the opportunity to stream new music from legendary rockers/proto-metallers Pentagram is both an honor and a surprise. The Virginians, who have been kicking around in some shape or form since the early ’70s, are, to many, on the same level as British gods Black Sabbath or Judas Priest. Sure, the latter have…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 5

March 4, 2011

What: UFC 127When: February 26th, 2011 Where: Acer Arena, Sydney, Australia Te Huna vs. Gustafsson Sweden’s own Alexander Gustafsson made it onto the Ion broadcast of the prelims, and did not squander the opportunity as he put on quite the performance and defeated James Te Huna by rear naked choke towards the end of the…

Top 6 Songs That Influenced Maruta

March 3, 2011

By Mitchell Luna (Maruta) It actually turned out to be a lot more difficult—than I anticipated—to narrow down the list to 10 bands that have greatly influenced Maruta, let alone 5. So, 6 made the cut! These are bands that in our opinion(s) did something new and fresh at the time. They all managed to…

STREAMING: Vicious Rumors “Razorback Blade”

March 1, 2011

On rare occasions, it’s best to shut the “Forget You” up and let the music to the talking. I could blab about the last Vicious Rumors album to stay in the collection was 1990’s superlative Vicious Rumors album, but what’s the point? The Californians have, for all intents and purposes, survived every heavy metal trend…

STREAMING: Trap Them “Slumcult and Gather”

February 28, 2011

OK, Entombed’s Wolverine Blues hit store shelves and my gut on October 4, 1993. That’s like almost 18 years ago. To date, no single band has been able to capture the immediacy of rock ‘n’ roll and the grit of death metal quite like heyday–for certain individuals; not me, the Crawl EP is the pinnacle–Entombed….

Dez FaFara Hails the Tour Bus Driver

February 25, 2011

By Dez FaFara (DevilDriver) Since 1996, I’ve been on the road, meaning away from home and most of this time has been spent on a tour bus. The road life brings its unmistakable highs and torn down, dragged out lows. It also brings about characters. Our business is based on unique, one-of-a kind characters. You’ve…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 4

February 24, 2011

BJ Penn, a prodigy at UFC 127 Coming up from Australia on Saturday is UFC 127, featuring one of my all-time fave fighters who has had some very entertaining bouts over the years, against someone who has gotten a lot of criticism for his perceived “boring” style: BJ Penn vs. Jon Fitch. Apparently, UFC President…

Albert Mudrian & Requiem Metal Podcast Get Napalm Death-ed

February 22, 2011

Requiem Metal Podcast has been going since April 2008. To date, podcast creators Mark Rudolph (also known for his awesome review illustrations and the cartoon Danzig dB cover) and Jason Hundey have 118 episodes under their respective Atlantean-like belts. That’s a lot of talking and, if I’m being highly subjective (which I am, ’cause both…

Fight Amp (video interview)

February 21, 2011

South Jersey’s Fight Amp always sound as if they’re one fragile step away from total collapse. Line-up changes, guts-everywhere noise…er, music, and partakers in all things hard partying (rumored; maybe) are partial reasons for this particular ‘feeling’, but hearing Mike, Mike, and John coherently explain Fight Amp’s challenges (and production techniques) in this video interview…

Oscar Dronjak’s (HammerFall) MMA Hammer of Justice, Part 3

February 18, 2011

By Oscar Dronjak (HammerFall), Strikeforce Heavyweight Tournament Being raised on the early UFC, I am a sucker for tournaments. While I completely understand why it was eventually abandoned, I do miss the real sport-feel coming with an elimination event. Just look at TUF (The Ultimate Fighter); I’m sure the format of winning to stay in…