I have a pet hamster. His name is Ozzy. He is adorable but terrified of everything. However, over the course of his cohabitation with me, he’s become acclimated to the sounds of heavy metal, probably due to the fact that I play it for 16 hours a day. I’ve discovered that he actually has quite…

We can make this introduction brief: Crucial Blast is hands down one of the most innovative, adventurous labels currently operating in the world of extreme music, specializing in capturing sounds from that nether region where ethereal beauty intermingles with disquieting darkness. As such, the first day of October seemed the perfect time to query label…

Ladies and germs, pray silence please for Craven Idol’s Towards Eschaton. Pull up the easy chair, pull on the headphones; you’ll no doubt find the north Londoners’ debut long-player an extreme metal album of rare power. This here’s a bona fide contender for album of the year, a soundtrack for those evenings when your ouija…

Last Monday, Decibel and Valkyrja teamed up to premiere “Madness Redeemer” (click HERE) to great applause and buxom ladies defiled. Well, what you didn’t know was that the evil that courses through our collective veins—ours is more like Snake Mountain-type evil, if we’re being honest; Valkyrja’s is something that would make 1990-era Glen Benton run…

If Bad Religion had never made another record after 1983’s sophomore prog experiment Into the Unknown, it’s doubtful those familiar with the band at the time would have been surprised.

Your intrepid hosts sit down with perpetual good sport/extreme music tastemaker Gordon Conrad (Season of Mist) and divulge the stories behind the best covers in the Decibel Flexi Series. Featuring:Revocation “Pull the Plug” (Death) Anaal Nathrakh “Man at C & A” (The Specials)Evoken “Rotting Misery” (Paradise Lost)Watain “Fuck Off, We Murder” (GG Allin)In Solitude “Mother of…

Welcome to Tales From the Metalnomicon, a twice monthly column delving into the surprisingly vast world of heavy metal-tinged/inspired literature and metalhead authors… Writer/editor extraordinaire Kriscinda Lee Everitt‘s brand new Despumation Press “seeks to champion writing that explores the diverse themes metal customarily addresses using language in such a way as to evoke the feeling…

I love me some Secrets of the Sky.  I loved their album To Sail Black Waters when I first heard (half of) it last year.  I loved it more when the other half made it to the Soundcloudosphere (beyond the stratosphere, just underneath the Bandcamposphere).  I love it now that it’s being released by Kolony Records….

Given the opportunity to write about craft beer every month in Decibel has been eye-opening. The idea that our “Brewtal Truth” column would have lasted more than four years (and counting) and even spawn a book—The Brewtal Truth Guide to Extreme Beers, out in November—is pretty amazing. Now it’s time to bring a little “Brewtal…

Ever been to Great Falls, MT? Surprisingly, I have. Ever heard of/heard Great Falls, the band? I have. Hell, I even enjoy them. Ever seen Great Falls live? Done that too and I enjoyed it some more. Ever seen a show in Great Falls, MT? Even more surprisingly, that’s also something I’ve managed to tick…