Music Non Stop: new Soul Cycle

I have talked about Soul Cycle before. They play instrumental thrash. It's very good music. Well out of nowhere I received an email saying they were releasing a new album in a couple of weeks. These guys are pretty good at what they do and with only 4-5 albums on my radar right now (including this one) who knows where this will end up at the end of the year.

Here is the album sampler to get a feel for what I am talking about.

Music Non Stop: another batch of 2012 music

Been kind of a slow year for music, but two bands that I do like have some new songs out. First up is Dirge Within. Their debut was really impressive especially some of the guitar work. This sounds pretty good...nothing special, but hey its new.


Next up God Forbid. They are a hit and miss with me. Some of their stuff I love, other stuff is just meh. They have changed up their guitar tone on this album, can't tell if I like it or not yet. I think I will have to hear the whole thing before I pass judgement.

Music Non Stop: 2012 new music

It's going to be tough to have another year like last year, but so far there seems to be a lot of promise that it won't be a crappy year.

First up is Into Eternity. Their last one was mediocre. I felt that they let Stu go a little to high too much. But by the sound of this clip he seems to be using his new found "mid-range" vocals from Iced Earth.


Another band that I have on my radar is The Resistance. It's a band made up of former members of In Flames and The Haunted. One of my favorite The Haunted album's is One Kill Wonder with Marco Aro on vocals and he is back for this album. Hopefully they throw in some nice guitar solos, but I am ready for this to drop.
COUP DE GRACE by The_Resistance
Also to note would be Lacuna Coil's Dark Adrenaline which sound better than their last album which was just ok...and that would be a positive spin. Add onto that I am also watching for some new Soulfly this year.

So even though this time last year, Times of Grace was already in my hands, I am optimistic it will be a fairly solid year.

Music Non Stop: new (sort of) Iced Earth

I am a pretty big fan of Iced Earth. They were one of the first bands I started listening too outside of Metallica & Megadeth. Matt Barlow's vocals were a huge part of that. He sounded like Paul Stanley (KISS) at times. He was the voice of Iced Earth, heck he's #3 on my top 10 vocalist list. After 9-11 he decided he should do something and quit the band to be a police officer. He was replaced by Tim Owens, who is a great vocalist, but it didn't fit Iced Earth. So Barlow came back to record another album, but realized he couldn't do it anymore. So enter Stu Block of Into Eternity fame. Now Stu has a pretty killer range. I listed him on my top 10 vocalists awhile back too.

I was interested on how he would fit into Iced Earth...well wonder no more. They re-recorded Dante's Inferno with Stu on vocals and I have to admit it's pretty good. He sounds like a better fit than Tim Owens ever did. His vocals fit the music naturally, sometimes he sounds just like Barlow. I will say that he adds a little bit of the "death grunts" in there, and it fits perfectly. He doesn't go cookie monster, but lower than Barlow did. Hopefully this is a sign of things to come. Now if we can just get some of those classic riffs from Night of the Stormrider and Burnt Offerings...


by the way this is a 17+ minute song...enjoy the ride.

Music Non Stop: Anterior - Echoes of the Fallen

This is a surprise for me. Now don't get me wrong, but I liked their debut and was mildly interested in this follow up...but holy crap! This is a lot better than I thought it would be. In terms of newer metal bands (Sylosis, Lazarus A.D., and Anterior), Anterior was probably the one album I didn't really care about. With that said, they might have made the best album out of the three, in all honestly all 3 should make the top 10 this year.

The guitar work on this album is awesome. I have seen this band listed as a metalcore band and while they do have a few breakdowns, there is more melodic death metal/thrash here. The guitar intro for Blood in the Throne Room is a dream for air guitarists everywhere. In fact most of the songs have that similar style, which is great for me. I will also add that most of the breakdowns come towards the end of the album. I am not sure if it was planned that way or not, but it is kind of interesting.


Vocally it is your standard harsh screams, at times it is understandable others...it's not. There really isn't much variety going on, but like Sylosis' latest, the music definitely makes up for it. Take a song like Tyranny, it is your standard song, then all of a sudden it goes into this classic sounding solo that makes you think you might have switched on Iron Maiden. It has that technical feel to it without showing off.  I can't praise this album enough when it comes to the guitar work.


Last song recommendation, Of Gods and Men. This really reminds me of The Autumn Offering's song Ghost. A mind boggling solo that bleeds into a sweet breakdown. I go nuts for stuff like that. I have to admit I am shocked at how much more guitar leads were put in this album compared to their debut.


This album is streaming HERE and it is one of those albums that makes me want to keep listening to it over and over again.

One thing that these 3 bands have in common on their sophomore albums is the great guitar work. While some bands are afraid to play solos, these bands aren't. All 3 are very similar in that they put the guitar work in the front...very guitar driven bands.

Video Killed the Radio Star: Times of Grace - Live in Love

Great video. I love videos that have a purpose instead of just showing guys playing guitars. The message at the end made me feel like I was watching our school's Peer Counseling video they put out every year. Even though I would love this song, I doubt anyone else would. But the message is a good one.

Heck if you aren't into metal, turn it down to watch the stats they show. And as for the message being good...here's the lyrics;

Just live in love, believe in love

In my life I have seen all the ways hatred destroys mankind
Break societies system, change the mind state, there's no compromise
Don't mistake kindness and compassion for weakness
It takes so much more strength to be selfless and live in love

I trust you live in selflessness and live in love

Through all the days, just live in love
Through all the pain, believe in love

(I change to think you not, it tries to function if this world...)
Take the time to think about your life, live righteous

I trust you live in selflessness and live in love

Through all the days, just live in love
Through all the pain, believe in love

The words we speak, the ones we don't say
Power you don't know you could say
Through all the days, believe in love

Don't you see, we are off
Don't you see, we are off
Brothers and sisters, we are one
Brothers and sisters, we are one
WE ARE ONE

And I pray this is not in vain, all that you know about, all you can hide
How would you feel inside (Live in love)
All that you know about, all you can hide
How would you feel inside (Live in love)
All that you know about, all you can hide (Through all the days)
How would you feel inside (Live in love)
All that you know about, all you can hide (Through all the pain)
How would you feel inside (Live in love)

Tirades of Truth: Trivium - In Waves

So here is Trivium's follow up to Shogun, which as I said before is one of those "instant classics", if nothing else the title track is epic.

There seems be a lot of people saying that this album combines the best of Ascendancy and Shogun, basically forgetting all about The Crusade. The Crusade gets a bad rap because they threw out all screams and went for a more commercialized sound. But there are times as I listened to this album that I couldn't help, but think "this is what The Crusade could have been." Some of the songs have that simple song structure that was present on The Crusade, but this time the vocals aren't one dimensional. Listen to A Gray So Dark, that song could have easily been on The Crusade...even down to the vocals.


I don't really hear a lot of the Ascendancy references that I keep reading. Maybe it's in the vocal delivery? I'm not sure. I think Ascendancy is where the band found their sound. They simplified & commercialized it too much for The Crusade, but for the most part it has stayed the same.

A quick note about the title track, In Waves. Holy crap! This song is killer. One thing I have noticed with Trivium is that their title tracks have gotten better and better with each album. The Crusade had that insane instrumental, Shogun was epic...that build up amazing. Now with In Waves, they wrote a song that was definitely catchier and easier to sit through (those other title tracks were 8 minutes and 12 minutes respectively), but that doesn't take away from how great it is. In fact, if not for that stupid intro, this song would easily make my Top 10 lead off tracks.


While not as good as Ascendancy or Shogun, it's definitely a solid album. This would be a good album to introduce people to Trivium. It has their catchy writing, diverse vocals, and does a good job of displaying their playing abilities.

I don't think this will be my number 1 album of the year, Mercenary's latest is just that good.  But it just came out so maybe it will grow on me.

Music Non Stop: New Trivium album streaming

What's up with all of these posts today?

Anyway, the new Trivium album, In Waves, is streaming over here. I don't know how long it will be up, but go enjoy it while you can.

I will be doing a longer review on it later, but first impressions is that it isn't as strong as Shogun. And that's ok because Shogun is one of their best or best (depending on the day of the week) album they have released. I will say that the title track is one of their best songs ever. It is just that perfect metal song.

Hopefully, I will have a review up this weekend before I head back to school, but my daughter's birthday is this weekend, so if it isn't up by Friday, don't look for it before Monday.

Music Non Stop: New Nightrage - Insidious

This year of great music just continues to get better. Nightrage plays that classic melodic death metal that was made famous by At the Gates. When I did my The Clone on At the Gates, they ended up being the first choice...it didn't hurt that At the Gates' singer was on the first two Nightrage albums.

Anyway, they have changed vocalists a couple of times since then, but for the most part the music has stayed the same. If you like that classic sound, they play it. So here is the first song, Insidious, from the new album. I should note that the original singer, Tomas Lindberg, sings on this track as well.

My first reaction is that this sounds similar to The Tremor from their debut album. Doesn't bother me...just noticing. There are also a ton of guest musicians on this album, including 4 who were apart of the first two albums. It seems like they are really trying to recapture the past. I'm not sure it's necessary, but I'm not going to complain because their 1st two albums are classics in the genre.

Music Non Stop: new Anthrax - The Devil You Know

Another new Anthrax song is out there. Definitely not as thrashy as their other one. It has a little bridge in there that reminds me of something that could have come out of Stomp 442. As long as Joey doesn't do any "ball-grabbing" screams, I think it will be ok.

I would really love to hear this album with Dan Nelson's vocals, not because Dan is a great vocalist, but he is a dead ringer for John Bush. It would be really interesting to see how this would have turned out with Bush.

Music Non Stop: new Into Eternity - Sandstorm

Well this is a totally unexpected surprise. Out of nowhere, Into Eternity is releasing a new song, Sandstorm. To make it better their former "death" vocalist is back on the track. Who knows what this means because Into Eternity changes members almost as much as Megadeth. But like I said, a nice little surprise. Who knows if an album is far behind.

Music Non Stop: New Anthrax - Fight Em Til You Can't

We have heard this song for awhile now, but it is nice to hear a studio version.

This song sounds like it was made for John Bush, but whatever, that ship has sailed. It's not bad, but it's almost a rehash of the problem with Persistence of Time, the vocals don't match the music.

Music Non Stop: Limp Bizkit - Gold Cobra preview

title says it all. If you have 22 minutes to spare, check out samples from Limp Bizkit's new album Gold Cobra
Gold-Cobra-Preview by thearmpit
sounds pretty good. I don't think it is as good as The Unquestionable Truth Part 1, but that was only 7 songs, this has 13. So while TUT Part 1 had no filler, this will probably have some.

Music Non Stop: new Machine Head

Don't know how long this will be up, but Machine Head has released a new song, Locust, for their upcoming album. Machine Head's last album, The Blackening, was awesome...album of the year for me. I doubt they can recreate what happened there.

This new song is pretty solid. Some are blasting it already, but I really can't complain. It isn't good as most of the material off of The Blackening, but it's not bad by any means. There is some really nice guitar work going on in the song, better than most this year.  I'm looking forward to it, but with this year being packed full of great albums, who knows where this will end up.

Music Non Stop: Unearth...where did this come from?

I have been posting some of Unearth's new music from their upcoming album, Darkness in the Light, and I have been impressed with the variety of music they have had. This latest track, Watch It Burn, is similar to their older stuff with the breakdowns, but once again it's different because of the "bridge" towards the end that gives you some clean vocals and some different tempo. Overall it's pretty good, the guitar work in the intro is killer. I have no idea where all of this great music came from, it's not Adam D. because he has produced a lot of their stuff before. This is looking to be a pretty solid album.

Music Non Stop: New Limp Bizkit song - Gold Cobra

It's the title track off their upcoming album, Gold Cobra.
Limp Bizkit - Gold Cobra by thearmpit
I like it. It has some old school style, but it also sounds like their last album. Musically, I loved their last album. Vocals are what dragged that one down, Fred tried to emulate Rage Against the Machine too much. He sounds more natural here.

The sad part is that this album is coming out in a year that is full of great album.

Who Decides: Mid-Albums of the Year 2011

This will probably be the hardest year for me putting together a Top 10 list.  If this list isn't already packed, I have Trivium, In Flames, Sepultura, Dead by April, Blood Stain Child, Unearth, Anthrax and who knows what else.  It's an awesome year for metal music, so let's get started;

1(tie).  Mercenary - Metamorphosis: I talked about this album HERE already.  And there isn't much I can add.  It's near perfection. Each song is heavy & catchy with killer vocals.  I'm not sure what else you could ask for in a metal album.

1(tie).  Times of Grace - Times of Grace: Reviewed HERE.  This isn't a more "metal" album than Mercenary, but it is a more complete album.  You have some acoustic tracks, some doom-like tracks, and some classic metal tracks.  It's a great album.  The worst part for both of these albums is that they might not end up number 1 at the end of the year.

3.  Cavalera Conspiracy - Blunt Force Trauma:  I was not a fan of Infliked or the last two Soulfly albums, but this one hits the spot for me.  It is very light on the whole "tribal metal", but Marc Rizzo definitely makes up for it with his guitar work.  For some reason I feel like I am listening to some NWOBHM with harsh vocals thrown on top of it.  Right now, this is my surprise album of the year.

From here on out, these albums can change from day to day.  It's not like they aren't good, they are so good it's difficult to put them in order.

4.  Before the Fall - Antibody: brutal modern industrial style metal.  I have always had a soft spot for bands like Fear Factory, Strapping Young Lad, and Divine Hersey, and Before the Fall are in that same vein.  Don't hold your breath waiting for that clean chorus...cause it ain't coming.

5.  Lazarus A.D. - Black Rivers Flow: a more mature Lazarus A.D. shows up this time around.  Still thrash-oriented, but they aren't afraid to slow it down and push the envelope.  Some real solid metal here for classic metal fans.

6.  Sylosis - Edge of the Earth: this one reminds me a little of Machine Head's The Blackening.  It is a long album and takes some time to digest.  Musically it sounds a lot like Metallica's classic albums of MoP, RtL, and AJFA.  Vocally, mainly harsh screams.  It works, but I think the lack of variety hurts this just a bit.

7.  Deadlock - Bizzaro World:  I talked about it HERE.  It's solid, nothing new, but nothing bad if you liked their last 3 albums.  I said they were going into that KsE path of writing the same music over and over again.  I'm not sure another album like this will work.

8.  Soul Cycle - Soul Cycle: Soul Cycle play instrumental classic thrash metal.  It's good.  I talked about the high amount of solid instrumental albums HERE earlier.  If you like thrash and don't need vocals to enjoy the music...this is a must.

9.  Amaranthe - Amaranthe: I talked about them last year and finally the album is here.  This is pop metal at its best.  Female, clean male, and harsh male vocals really works well here.  If you don't mind keyboards playing a big part of the music, then try this.

10. Tyrant of Death - Dark Space: another instrumental album.  Think SYL meets Fear Factory without the vocals.  It's great heavy metal...the guitars and drumming are insane.

This can change any day because bands like DevilDriver, The Haunted, Protest the Hero, The Human Abstract, Inside It Grows, Titans Eve, Degradead, Arch Enemy, Izegrim, Artas, Circles, and Mygrain have all released solid albums.  Each one of the bands mentioned could easily end up in the top 10.

But just do some quick math, there are 10 above, plus the 12 that barely missed out, and the 7 known albums that haven't been released.  That's 29 albums I am looking at trying to narrow to 10.  good luck to me.

Music Non Stop: one more In Flames song

Enter Tragedy.

This album isn't too bad. I know I wasn't expecting too much after A Sense of Purpose, but from the 3 songs I have heard so far, the album is shaping up to be better than A Sense of Purpose and Soundtrack to Your Escape.

I really like that guitar tone they have on these songs. It sounds more like Come Clarity than anything else.

Music Non Stop: Another New Unearth song - Ruination Of The Lost

Well this starting to look like my surprise album of the year. I posted a new song from Unearth a couple of weeks ago and was impressed by how much different and better they sound now. Well now there is a second new song, Ruination of the Lost, and it's just as good. I have never been a fan of an Unearth album from start to finish, but this is now two songs in a row.

Music Non Stop: New Blood Stain Child - Sirius VI

I listen to a wide variety of music. I know it doesn't seem like it, but I have "soft spots" for pop music and techno. So when I heard Blood Stain Child for the first time I was blown away. They mix techno with death metal and what comes out is nothing short of magical. Some other bands have tried to mix the two genres, but BSC seems to just have it down.

Their last album, Mozaiq, came out in 2007 and I have been waiting ever since for some sort of follow up. Well that time has finally come. They released a single, Sirius VI, from their upcoming album, which will hopefully come out later this year. Anyway here is that song;


Not too bad. Heavy on the female vocals, which isn't bad, so I will just wait for more.  On a side note, here is my favorite BSC song Freedom;