Joseph Schafer

Who are the best drummer/vocalists in metal? Decibel ranks some of the most impressive.

Former The Oath and Grave Pleasures guitarist returns with the cutting Maggot Heart.

Norway’s Fleurety rarely get mentioned in the same breath as Darkthrone or Mayhem, but trace their origins back to the first seeds of Norwegian Black Metal. Founding members Svein Egil Hatlevik and Alexander Nordgaren united in 1991 and released their first demo, Black Snow, in 1993. Their first album in 17 years, The White Death,…

We select the 10 best songs about giant monsters.

Tune into the solo debut from the former guitarist of Ghost and In Solitude.

Decibel caught up with longtime Chelsea Wolfe collaborator Ben Chisholm to talk about Hiss Spun, playing Blood Moon sets with Converge and more.

Thirty years ago, Big Black released their final opus, Songs About Fucking. We revisit what exactly made that last album so important.

This coming Friday, a new film adaptation of Stephen King’s iconic and massive horror novel ‘IT’ will be released in American cinemas. Will it be good? King does not have the best history with cinema. The beloved miniseries based upon the novel, starring Tim Curry as the shapeshifting clown monster Pennywise, does not hold up,…

In the wake of the announcement of Trap Them‘s final shows, we consider ten essential tracks from the metallic hardcore outfit.

Gothic doom trailblazers Paradise Lost are this week’s Best New Noise.

We look at some of the best metal songs of all time… that have never been performed live.

“Without big money bullshit (the quartet’s 100% independent) Striker have struck an ideal balance between nostalgic hooks and blue collar work ethic.”

The Synarchy of Molten Bones
Synarchy in the EU
dB rating: 8/10

Music criticism, and the reviewing of musical pieces in general, is not obsolete. You’d be forgiven for thinking so, though. 

Metallica’s Load reconsidered 20 years later.