Heavy Metal
Trivium Honor Riley Gale with Cover of Power Trip’s “Executioner’s Tax” During Livestream: Watch
Power Trip’s Riley Gale, photo by Jon Hadusek / Trivium’s Matt Heafy, via Roadrunner Records Trivium paid their respects to late Power Trip singer Riley Gale, covering the latter’s “Executioner’s Tax (Swing of the Axe)” on a livestream over the weekend. Trivium played the cover on their “Deepest Cuts” livestream in honor of Gale, who tragically died last week at 34 from unspecified causes. Of all of Power Trip’s riff-laden thrash metal songs, “Executioner’s Tax” is arguably their signature anthem due to Gale’s chorus refrain — “Swing of the axe!” — which instantly went down in heavy metal lore when it was released on 2017’s Nightmare Logic. “Talking about love and talking about good times, we had the pleasure of touring with Power Trip on one of our greatest UK/European to...
New Set of Collectible Metallica Statues on the Way
Metallica’s steady journey to immortalization will continue with a set of statues honoring the metal legends. High-end collectible maker KnuckleBonz has announced a new series of Metallica figurines slated for release in early 2021. KnuckleBonz has been a go-to company for creating life-like mini statues of notable rock and metal acts, having released a set of Pantera figures last year. Other previous artists represented as part of KnuckleBonz’s “Rock Iconz” series include Marilyn Manson, Lemmy Kilmister, AC/DC’s Angus Young, and more. The Metallica figures are modeled after the band’s latest look, beginning with their 2016 album Hardwired … To Self-Destruct and including their massively successful “WorldWired Tour” in support of the LP. Frontman James Hetfield is depicted singing into a m...
Philip Anselmo Honors Dimebag and Vinnie Paul During Down’s NOLA 25th Anniversary Livestream Show: Watch
Down played their first show in four years over the weekend, celebrating the 25th anniversary of their debut album, NOLA, with a livestream concert dubbed “Quarter Century Throwdown”. During the set, filmed at an undisclosed venue in New Orleans, singer Philip Anselmo paid tribute to his fallen Pantera bandmates Dimebag Darrell and Vinnie Paul. The 15-song concert, which streamed for $9 on Saturday (August 29th), saw Down perform all of 1995’s NOLA (except for the instrumental track “Pray for the Locust”) and three songs from 2002’s Down II: A Bustle in Your Hedgerow. It also marked the live return of founding member Kirk Windstein, who had parted ways with the band in 2013 before rejoining the group late last year. Prior to performing “Lifer”, Anselmo dedicated the song “to all the bands ...
Bill & Ted Face the Music Soundtrack Released with New Mastodon and Lamb of God Songs: Stream
Mastodon (photo by Carlo Cavaluzzi), Bill & Ted (Orion Pictures), Lamb of God (Amy Harris) Not only has the highly anticipated movie Bill & Ted Face the Music arrived in theaters and on VOD, but its jam-packed soundtrack is out, as well. Among the highlights are brand-new songs from metal heavyweights Mastodon and Lamb of God, along with new cuts from Weezer, Cold War Kids, FIDLAR, Big Black Delta, and more. Mastodon’s song “Rufus Lives” is a particular highlight, with the title an ode to the late George Carlin’s character from the first two Bill & Ted movies. It’s a fast-paced track powered by some hard-hitting drumming by Brann Dailor. After releasing a stellar new album earlier in the year, Lamb of God add another new song to their 2020 canon with “The Death of Us”, a relent...
Sevendust Unleash “Blood from a Stone”, First Original Song from Upcoming Album: Stream
Sevendust are gearing up to release a new album called Blood & Stone, and the Atlanta-based metal act has unleashed the first original song from the upcoming set. The band previously released a cover of Soundgarden’s “The Day I Tried to Live” as the first single from Blood & Stone, but “Blood from a Stone” marks Sevendust’s first original tune since their acclaimed 2018 album All I See Is War. The track has a vintage Sevendust vibe, with thick, moving riffs from Clint Lowery and John Connolly; heavy rhythms from bassist Vince Hornsby and drummer Morgan Rose; and powerful, soaring vocals from Lajon Witherspoon. “’Blood from a Stone’ was inspired by the endurance and threshold of our band, the wins and the losses, the good and bad years. That we have more to give, more to say an...
New Venomous Snake Species Named After Metallica’s James Hetfield
James Hetfield (photo by Amy Price), Atheris hetfieldi snake (via Dr. Luis Ceríaco) Pretty soon, Metallica are going to need to open their own aquarium to house all the species named after them. A newly discovered venomous snake species has been named after frontman James Hetfield just months after a mysterious deep-sea creature was named after the band. The snake, a species of bush viper, has been dubbed Atheris hetfieldi. It was discovered at Bioko Island in the Gulf of Guinea by a team of Portuguese and American scientists, led by metalhead Luis Ceríaco. According to the official finding, “The newly described species presents a series of morphological characters that clearly differentiate it from all of its congeners.” We’re not really sure what that means, but we’re guessing the snake...
Extreme Metal Stalwarts Enslaved, Kataklysm, and Ihsahn All Release New Singles: Stream
Renowned extreme-metal acts Enslaved, Kataklysm, and Ihsahn all released new singles with accompanying music videos on Friday (August 28th), delivering a thunderous dose of new music to metalheads everywhere. Norwegian metal veterans Enslaved have unleashed “Urjotun” as the third single from their upcoming album Utgard, due October 2nd via Nuclear Blast. “The lyrical idea for ‘Urjotun’ had been spinning around in the chaos in the back of my head for quite a while, when Ivar sent me the riff-demo last autumn,” stated Enslaved singer Grutle Kjellson of the song. “I knew instantly that this was it, the very soundtrack of the rise of the primeval giant, the Urjotun! Our mutual love and fascination for that early krautrock scene and for bands like Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk, finally fully as...
Metallica’s S&M2 Cleans Up Nicely for Home Release: Review + Stream
The Lowdown: Last September, Metallica reunited with the San Francisco Symphony for the two performances that would become S&M2 — the sequel to their illustrious symphonic metal collaboration from 20 years earlier. To commemorate the event, the band teamed with Trafalgar Releasing to screen the concert film in movie theaters across the world. The S&M2 shows took place on September 6th and 8th, and the film premiered on October 9th. In film production timelines, that’s an impossibly small window for post-production on a concert film and album. Nevertheless, the theatrical film was a box office success, though a trained eye and ear could tell that it might have been rushed to release. The initial edit of director Wayne Isham’s footage, though clean, had an unfinished quality to it. I...
Deftones Serve Up White Pony Beer in Honor of Album’s 20th Anniversary
Deftones fans have been drinking in the sensational sounds of White Pony for 20 years. Now, they can actually consume “White Pony” beer, as the alt-metal act has announced a new IPA named after their 2000 landmark album. In addition to prepping the release of a brand-new album titled Ohms, due September 25th, Deftones have been commemorating the 20th anniversary of White Pony in style. Previously, the band launched a limited-edition merch capsule, and revealed that they are working on a reissue of the LP, complete with a bonus disc of remixes titled “Black Stallion”. Now, add beer to the White Pony celebration. Deftones have teamed up with San Diego brewery Belching Beaver to create the double dry hopped IPA, and the description is nearly as appealing as Chino Moreno’s soaring vocals: “Whi...
Mining Metal: Cobra Spell (Premiere), Atramentus, Humavoid, Krallice, Necrot, Nug, Question, and Terminal Nation
“Mining Metal” is a monthly column from Heavy Consequence writers Joseph Schafer and Langdon Hickman. The focus is on noteworthy new music emerging from the non-mainstream metal scene, highlighting releases from small and independent labels — or even releases from unsigned acts. As I’m writing this, the metal underground is still reeling from the unexpected passing of Riley Gale, vocalist for Texas thrashers Power Trip. Gale was known for his unabashedly political lyrics, charismatic live performances, and interpersonal messages of kindness. The underground will be feeling his loss for some time. I first heard Power Trip a few days after publishing an essay on Invisible Oranges declaring the post-Municipal Waste thrash revival dead. Power Trip’s debut album, Manifest Decimation rendered my...
Tribulation Announce New Album Where the Gloom Becomes Sound, Unveil 2021 European Tour Dates
Tribulation have announced a new album, Where the Gloom Becomes Sound, due out in January 2021. The dark metal act also unveiled European tour dates alongside Bolzer and Molassess set to kick off around the same time. The Swedish band began as a death metal act before making a major artistic pivot toward a more cinematic, gothic style on 2015’s The Children of the Night. Tribulation have never looked back, embracing new sounds and adjusting their stage show accordingly. The group dons vampiric attire as they present their stage show as a heavy metal ballet, with athletically nimble guitarist Adam Zaars traversing the stage while simultaneously shredding. The new album sounds like it could be even more conceptual than recent LPs The Children of the Night and Down Below, the latter of ...
Uniform Share Title Track from Upcoming Album Shame: Stream
New York City trio Uniform have unleashed the title track from their upcoming new album, Shame, out September 11th on Sacred Bones. “Shame” follows on the heels of previous single “Delco”, showcasing the idiosyncratic blend of heavy music Uniform have honed for their latest LP. John Carpenter-style synths build into a crushing blast of electronic and live instrumentation. It’s not quite metal or industrial or hardcore, though there’s subtle elements of each. Vocalist Michael Berdan stated, “‘Shame’ is the song that sets the thematic tone for the rest of the record, which seems appropriate for a title track. It is a portrait of someone riddled with regret in the process of drinking themselves to death. Night after night they sit in dark reflection, pouring alcohol down their throat in order...
