Remasters of metal albums are a tricky thing. Sometimes remastering can breathe new life into a classic album that happens to have some pisspoor production. Other times the original mixes (warts & all) are so beloved and engrained in your psyche that any deviations are utterly alien and verboten. Where do these remasters fit in?…
12 Months of Things I Enjoyed – The 2023 Edition
Sorry folks…. no overly exacting or over-wordy “Best of…” list this year. I’m too lazy, and I always inevitably forget to include albums purely because they slipped my mind, only to remember them later on when I read other and frankly better written lists, haha! No, this is just a quick monthly break-down of cool…
Marduk – Momento Mori Review
With my busiest travel year finally starting to wind down, I’m finally starting to catch up on the new releases this year. Some of the higher profile albums that came out this calendar year have been a bit “meh” for me (sorry, Cannibal of the Corpse!). But this one, the first from Marduk since 2018,…
Todd’s Top 10 for 2022 (with Extra Hot Sauce on the Side)
Another year in the books — and another batch of great music! I was remiss in keeping track of a lot of what came out in both the mainstream and the underground — spending a total of 198 days of the year on the road (mostly for work, with some fun here and there too!)…
Municipal Waste’s “Electrified Brain” Review
A band that’s been around for seemingly 47.3 Thrash Metal Years (more commonly known as the year 2001), but a band that has never really drawn me in. Much like their post-Y2K peers (Havok, Violator, Warbringer, et al)…, I’ve never been quite sold on their “D.R.I + Nuclear Assault alcoholic lovechild” NWOUSTM1 vibe. In fact,…
Behold! Three Bands’ Odes to Bal-Sagoth
“Whatever happened to Bal-Sagoth??”, you say? Well…, when the insane mastermind of anything and everything Bal-Sagothian (Mr. Byron Roberts) decided to put the band on a very permanent hold back in 2013 to become a writer, poet, and whatever else…, it created a huge sad gap in the Symphonic Blackened Metal scene. Or did it…?…
Bandcamp Bonanza: Four More Random Things to Check Out in 2022 (and One To Ignore)
For laughs sometimes I go to the Metal section on the main page on Bandcamp, and randomly poke around. It is organized and updated continuously to always show the latest releases first, so there is always something new to check out there. Huge big-name bands, one-shot demos from broken up bands, mainstream acts, underground groups,…
Crowbar “Zero And Below” Review
The sun rises, the sun sets; the tides ebb and flow. Like death and taxes, some things are inevitable – and inevitably reliable. Along those lines, you can always rely on Crowbar‘s Kirk Windstein to bring a 55-gallon drum of sludge to anything he touches. Is that reliability a help or hindrance for their 12th…
Preview: Wacken Metal Battle 2022 @ Brick by Brick (25-26 FEB 2022)
The Wacken Metal Battle USA is part of an international competition where ultimately one independent metal band is selected to play the infamous international Wacken Open Air festival. The mighty Brick by Brick is once again hosting a two-night battle of the bands, with only two of the twelve bands moving on the Finals…! SDMetal.org‘s…
Voivod “Synchro Anarchy” Review
So it’s no secret that I’m a Voivod fanboy. They have been my favorite metal band longer than some of you have been alive lol! And yeah, I even have Voivod in the coveted back patch position on my metal vest. Can I post a truly fair review of their latest platter? All systems go…!…
