I’ve never heard this band’s music. I don’t know when their record is coming out and I was able to even avoid their name. All I know about these fellas is that they chose to take this picture. This, out of everything they could have done, is what they decided on. 

Next week, Denver heavies Abrams crash any party worth a damn with their self-released debut Lust. Love. Loss.

The puns fly with reckless abandon on the tracklist of Oakland “stonerviolence” outfit Connoisseur‘s fourth full-length, Stoner Justice 

Italy’s Forgotten Tomb may’ve helped spearhead depressive black metal, but they’ve moved on from the group’s early monochromatic, manic styling to emerge as a mature, self-aware black metal act with influences ranging from Burzum to Pitch Shifter to Eyehategod. Forgotten Tomb’s new album, Hurt Yourself and the Ones You Love, is massively heavy, penetratingly introspective, and, yes, pitch black dark. From its lyrics (read Ferdinando ‘Herr Morbid’ Marchisio’s response below), its stark cover, to its cross-over black, Hurt Yourself and the Ones You Love is Forgotten Tomb’s best work yet.

Luminiferous
Blinded by the Light
dB Rating: 9/10

French death metal vets take on Anthrax as one of three covers from new album.

Here’s a brief excerpt of Blythe’s memories of prison (he did 37 days), and an explanation of one of the two songs on new album VII: Sturm und Drang related to his incomparable experience. 

Decibel recently had the pleasure of chatting with Ramon Martos about his lush, edifying, fascinating, surprising tour de force history of extreme metal album covers, …And Justice For Art. Check it out below:

One of Cannibal Corpse’s more infamous albums is Eaten Back to Life. The theme of Cattle Decapitation‘s Flexi Series debut, “Cannibalistic Invasivorism,” might as well be “eaten back to death.”

It was an honor to moderate a roundtable discussion featuring a good friend of mine and great writer, Dave Hofer, and a metal legend like Danny Lilker.