Eyes Alive, the sophomore offering from Texas’ premiere purveyors of “Alaskan Mountain Metal” Turbid North, is essentially a master class in how to meld the best of various extreme metal subgenres in clever and effective ways without sacrificing any of the primal potency that makes great metal great.

Best Underground Metal Tapes of the Year , pt. II, featuring Ghûllzaraën of Necromantic Worship, hidden messages, Eli W. of Spectral Voice, unpronounceable band names, Hansel of Caligari Records, quotes from the underground and so much more! 

On the two-year anniversary of his death, we look back on Lemmy’s in-depth Decibel cover story.

Every so often, we take a little time on Mondays to pay tribute to the Muthas! That is, reprinting the adorable metal/maternal Q&As that run in the magazine. Today, enjoy Justin Norton’s chat with Dorothy Pendleton, mutha of SubRosa’s Sarah Pendleton. 

The NFL’s Leading Airing of Grievances Vehicle.

There are two kinds of people in the world: Those who think Scorpions only really put out a couple hits and those who are shocked and appalled by the first people.

Our resident video game expert counts down the titles that bring the metal. 

It’s Star Wars week. Let’s get annoying.

Their story was too unreal — surreal — and insane to be true — but it was. — Philip H. Anselmo

We’ve pulled excerpts from some of our favorite interview subjects from the past calendar year, from old-school hardcore vets to legendary professional wrestlers. 

The metalhead’s guide to the NFL

The Color of Noise is an exhaustive and absolutely fascinating look at a label which is now synonymous with the genre, aesthetic and attitude. But it goes way beyond anecdotes about Helmet’s demo tape and the Dope, Guns, and Fucking in the Streets comps. 

Best Underground Metal Tapes of the Year, pt. I, featuring Jon Von Frost, Jake R. of Graceless Recordings, Jullian Rhea of Of Corpse & Cryptic Excision and much more!

Chris Dick’s five essential metal-on-metal covers, by At the Gates, Slayer, Sepultura, and more.

“This direction is Lower. It requires madness, by losing sanity key.”

Former Fangoria Editor in Chief/current Shock Till You Drop overlord and auteur Chris Alexander unleashes a completely remastered, expanded, vivified edition of his strange and beguiling way-the-fuck-down-the-rabbit-hole collection Music For Murder. 

Sera Timms of Ides Of Gemini talked to us about her path in an ancient art often derided as fortune telling and why there’s more to it than many expect.

You have about 90 seconds to spare, give or take? Because that is all this North Carolina three-piece needs to hyperblast their way into your defenseless heart. 

A black metal addendum to our Finnish Metal Issue, starring Sami Tenetz of Thy Serpent.

Your Heavy Metal Guide to the NF FN’ L. 

For a bunch of ferns, Staghorn sure knows how to rock the fuck out…

To commemorate five years of Decibel Flexis we’ve asked Decibel writers to write a review-length tribute to their favorite disc. Today’s installment features two Torche bangers, “Pow Wow” and “80’s Prom Song.”

The metalhead’s weekly guide to the NFL

Ex-Rorschach and Asva guys show off their crazy 88.

“My lyrics deal with us being a post-apocalyptic species, aware of our inevitable demise, quite possibly by our own hands.” 

** Decibel catches Intronaut wizards Sacha Dunable and David Timnick between mind-blowing jam sessions and trips to Jack in the Box. We kid about the Jack in the Box thing. Anyway, the California group are just days away from issuing their new album, The Direction of Last Things, on the Century Media label. And having spent large sums of time with Intronaut’s fifth full-length, we’re of the opinion that it’s yet again a mind-blower. From the innovative brutality of “Fast Worms” to the slick heavy prog of “The Pleasant Surprise”, The Direction of Last Things is an album that’s immediately incredible, but unfolds untold levels of awesome the more you’re with it.

The bustling, thriving heavy metal scene in Puerto Rico may have thus far escaped the attention of metaldom writ large, but that is all about to change courtesy The Distorted Island, a fascinating, edifying, perception-altering, due-giving feature length documentary that takes viewers on an inspiring tour of a extremely extreme, beautiful microcosm of creation and trve fandom.

And we’re premiering the entire goddamn thing right here, right now:

A Metalhead’s Guide to the NFL

Ah, to be young “Infernal Satanic Sinners” playing your “Execution Symphony” as you cry out for “Violent Revenge” and “Death to the False Ones”!

Forgive Yourself

Done

dB Rating: 8/10