I once heard a story about a deaf neighbor in our townhouse complex who blasted music at all hours. When one of the neighbors went to complain he learned that the man would sit on the floor and let the rhythm wash over him so he could “feel” the music. Even for those fortunate enough…

Long-running, God-poking death metal crew, Deicide released their eleventh album, In the Minds of Evil in late November. This had journalists the world over gleefully rubbing their nubs at the thought of another round of press with the ever-quotable Glen Benton. Those nubs were rubbed a little less vigorously when it was learned that the…

Being a metal fan means having an opinion about whether Slayer is Slayer without Jeff and Dave, or which lineup of Death reigns supreme. You’re used to haggling over the creative impact of band member turnover. What you might not know is that even the most amicable lineup change can involve a host of legal…

East of the Wall dropped its fourth full-length a little over two months ago. But just because we’re a little late getting around to praising Redaction Artifacts doesn’t mean that we don’t hold a special place in our grim hearts for the New Jersey quintet, one that’s been ensconced there since The Postman Syndrome’s 2002…

For years, Opeth toiled in relative obscurity. Caged to Candlelight Records for three fantastic albums and Peaceville for one stupendous full-length, the Stockholmites’ import-only status could’ve continued had Opeth’s new home, Music for Nations, not been a label proper.

In 2014, I resolve to: Descant the insalubrious. Yoko Ono Chimaira. Stop smashing hammer faces. Train my army of attack hamsters. Look into whether or not goat sacrifice requires a permit. Resist your touch of evil. Follow Darkthrone on tour. Convince Albert to do a Hall Of Fame on Nightwish’s Wishmaster. Transcribe Obituary lyrics. Watch…

On November 12th, Norwegian death metal atavists Obliteration finally broke their silence with Black Death Horizon, the long-awaited follow-up to their awesome 2009 LP, Nekrospalms. Where ‘psalms spread the gospel of old-school death metal through riffs redolent of Autopsy et al, Black Death Horizon finds Obliteration visiting a new plane of extreme metal. Death metal,…

** Every year we do it. Decibel assembles a list of killer albums based on a secret algorithm. This year, I wanted to add to our Top 40 list (as published HERE). Albums I felt were overlooked on our list. The artists and albums reflect my opinion only and weren’t subject to the secret algorithm….

What with a holiday season to service and a ten-year anniversary to celebrate, the good people of Seventh Rule Recordings have doubled down on the good cheer and offered you the chance to win their entire vinyl discography in their 10 Year Glitch Prize Package Says a dispatch from Seventh Rule’s Portland HQ: “Seventh Rule…

Many of you might have noticed—If you listen to radio that is, but that’s another blog entirely—on Black Friday many U.S. radio stations flipped from their respective formats to Holiday. All across this great (not so great if you follow Glenn Beck and Sean Hannity with any seriousness) land of ours Adult Contemporary and Pop…