Justin Norton

Here at the shredder’s studio we usually have one chair in the virtual office. Today, we need to pull up two. Nate Garnette and Scott Hedrick agreed to spend some time with us and walk us through their many influences. Please welcome the dual shredders of Skeletonwitch to the shredder’s studio, our 14th episode! Even…

Florida and death metal are practically synonymous. Most of that has to do with the legendary albums cranked out of Morrisound in the 90s by Obituary, Death, Cannibal Corpse and other luminaries. But don’t forget Miami, which is the home of Decibel favorite grinders Maruta and birthed Hall Of Fame inductees Cynic. Let’s showcase a…

For more than half of Decibel’s decade-long history Mark Rudolph has been a key component of what makes the magazine special. He illustrates the lead review in each issue and has designed covers for all of Decibel’s annual specials dating back to our 100 best death metal albums special. When he isn’t busy with the…

André Foisy plays guitar in Locrian and is a certified yoga instructor who teaches in Chicago, including a monthly candlelit yoga event set to dark ambient metal. You can find his yoga teaching schedule and more information about him on his website, Facebook page, and you can find past instructional videos on his YouTube channel….

Back in the day there were shiny things called songs. Albums were filled with good songs rather than two or three wankfests. Now, in the hands of the right band long songs can be potent (see: Sleep and YOB). But heavy songs that are infectious with less real estate are also a very good thing….

It might not be “pungent” stench but plain Stench will do just fine, too. Decibel backed the initial offering from this Swedish death metal trio and we’re streaming their second album Venture, available October 7 in the United States. Venture is the follow up to the debut In Putrescence, but it’s been about four years…

Dark, depressing death metal in the vein of Immolation, Incantation and Deathspell Omega? Yes, please. Montreal-based Phobocosm have been around since 2008 but a full-length album has been elusive, even if they’ve played with Ross Dolan and co. at festivals before. They finally made it to the studio and the resulting music is beyond heavy;…

Glenn Danzig’s fame has never waned. But in today’s constantly connected world he’s stayed famous for the wrong reasons: getting very publicly knocked out after a backstage argument in 2004; suing his former bandmates and buying cat litter at the wrong place. It’s easy to forget why people cared in the first place: Danzig wrote…

Peaceville: the venerable label is home to some of Decibel‘s all time favorites: Darkthrone, Autopsy and My Dying Bride. Lest you think the label is resting on their laurels they continue to push bands out into the extreme universe. Today we’re streaming some Peaceville-approved symphonic metal: “A Prisoner Unleashed” from the forthcoming White Empress album…

“It’s a testament to the boundless creativity of modern, progressive metal.” That’s what label Season Of Mist is saying about the sophomore album from tech death Quebecers (wrestling joke intended) Beyond Creation. Now, if you’re in the label business these days part of your job is saying good things about your roster so people will…

What a bummer. Summer is officially over. It’s Monday. Our readers who aren’t chronic truants are back in school. Pretty much the only upside is that our managing editor’s beloved New York Jets started the season with a win, a nice start to their inevitable 8-8 finish. With that in mind, how about a little…

Globalization really has changed everything, not just for business and our sex lives but for music. How else could you explain the fact that dudes in Mumbai are playing expert technical death metal and the crop of black metal bands in Australia? Case in point: the new album from Overcharge. Now, if you listen to…

By now Decibel readers have come to know and love the young upstarts in Noisem. They turned heads during the last Decibel tour (and almost got Jeff Walker of Carcass in a lot of trouble — check out the details in the instant oral history). So Decibel and our friends at A389 Recordings are excited…

Decibel‘s love of baseball is well documented, from the staff baseball road trip of years past recounted in the oral history of the magazine’s first decade to our annual baseball special. Our editor-in-chief is at this moment wondering why fate decided he should edit an extreme metal magazine rather than play in the majors. So…

Dan Greening — alias Lord Worm — is one of the few true mavericks in death metal. Worm is best known for his work with Cryptopsy; Decibel Hall Of Fame inductee None So Vile and potential inductee Blasphemy Made Flesh are genre classics. Worm’s work with Cryptopsy is inimitable; his lyrics are crazed poetry as…

Since their debut When All Became None was released about four years ago critics have struggled to find a moniker that fits Coffinworm. Are they blackened crust? Doom punk? Blackened death? Blackened tilapia? After a while all of these phrases begin to sound a lot like the Applebee’s menu so we’ll settle with the trustworthy…

André Foisy plays guitar in Locrian and is a certified yoga instructor who teaches in Chicago, including a monthly candlelit yoga event set to dark ambient metal. You can find his yoga teaching schedule and more information about him on his website, Facebook page, and you can find past instructional videos on his YouTube channel….

Long before he took up residence in a pair of New Jersey record stores Krieg frontman Neill Jameson (aka Imperial) was a kid looking to make a buck during the long, hot East Coast summers. He found a job as a professional ghoul at a boardwalk haunted house in Wildwood, New Jersey. The Deciblog convinced…

For your streaming pleasure this Wednesday, the Deciblog presents a British sludge noise vs. doom knife fight courtesy of the Bastard of The Skies and Grimpen Mire joint LP from Future Noise Recordings. Bastard Of The Skies, last heard from two years ago on their LP Tarnation, do their damage via monster riffs touched with…

This week brought the news that a Fight Club sequel (in comic book form) is forthcoming. We aren’t sure if this will work out for the best but it seemed like an ideal time to revisit a book and movie that inspired many. Mike Hill of Tombs has embraced the book’s underlying ideal: that you…

Happy Thursday. For your viewing pleasure at the Deciblog today we have an exlusive premiere of the video of King of Asgard’s “The Runes of Hel.” The track is from their forthcoming album Karg, due from Metal Blade on July 22. Watch the video below and then learn more and preorder the album here.

Hod wants to make sure you get their name right: “Hod is not an acronym. It is not H.O.D. It is Hod. Can we all get it straight now?” Yes, we can. We can also stream a new track from their forthcoming album Book Of The Worm. Give it a listen below and then find…

We’d like to say that we were overwhelmed with video responses paying tribute to Oderus. Actually, it’s probably appropriate that too many people were busy partying this summer to record an ode. But one proud blog reader stands out: Mr. Kyle Messick. True to our word we are sharing his video entry with the world…

Ricktor Ravensbrück was one of the mainstays of The Electric Hellfire Club, a band that made all of the stuff mentioned in metal fun again on industrial albums like Calling Dr. Luv and Burn, Baby, Burn! Seeing EHC in their 90’s heyday was quite an experience. Ravensbrück is back and Decibel is excited to stream…

André Foisy plays guitar in Locrian and is a certified yoga instructor who teaches at Turbodog Yoga in Chicago, IL. You can find his yoga teaching schedule and more information about him on his blog. — A lot of musicians get wrist problems. Playing guitar, bass or pounding on drums places a lot of strain…

Woody Weatherman of Corrosion of Conformity has influenced generations of shredders. His career has spanned many phases: the massively influential crossover albums, their unexpected commercial run in the ’90s and the return of the old school lineup in recent years. COC remains as relevant as ever and just released their new record IX. Mr. Weatherman…

Jamie Myers: her voice is the stuff of both fever dreams and Byzantine nightmares. Since getting involved with underground music back in the 90s she has progressed from punk bands to playing bass and singing in Hammer of Misfortune and a guest slot with Wolves in The Throne Room. After returning to Texas to start…

No matter how many people think black metal has gone mainstream or become hip because a few dozen bands from Brooklyn have small label deals the reality is that the vast majority of the population doesn’t know a thing about it. They’re listening to .38 Special or Lana Del Rey. If there is a black…

For your streaming pleasure today we have a new/old track from Swedish death metal legends Entrails. “Voices” is from the upcoming Resurrected From The Grave demo collection, an 18-track compilation featuring Reborn and Human Decay. The material was never released and is finally coming out many years later. The album is due next week; preorder…

When they released the DVD Majesty five years ago The Black Dahlia Murder proved that not only did they understand their fans, they understood how to make a watchable documentary. On their second DVD Fool ‘Em All our tour co-headliners take it another step. Not only do they make you laugh, they make you care…