Episode 9 brings us Toxicology’s Mike Maher to talk about his band, the local metal community and social issues in America.
Check out Toxicology at http://www.facebook.com/ToxicologyBand.
Tag Archives: Metal
Bonesaw Podcast – Episode 7: Midnite Hellion’s Drew Rizzo
Episode 7 features Heavy Metal maniac Drew Rizzo who plays drums in New Jersey’s Midnite Hellion. We chat about crowdfunding, Midnite Hellion’s history in preparation for the recording of their debut album, and some high points in their career – such as opening for the legendary Overkill at the Starland Ballroom. Goings on in the metal community is also discussed in vivid detail so sit back, relax and enjoy the show.
Check out Midnite Hellion: www.facebook.com/midnitehellion?fref=ts
Donate to Thrash Bash BBQ IV:
www.kickstarter.com/projects/206782…ash-bash-bbq-iv
Bonesaw Podcast: Episode 5 – Egokill’s Brian Schermicide
Episode 5 gets rude and crude with Egokill’s Brian Schermicide as we speak of 90’s cartoons, classic wrestling and metal in the most unapologetic way.
WARNING: This episode contains strong language.
Check out Egokill here.
Bonesaw Podcast Episode 4: Greg Groom of Vantafrost
Our guest is bassist Greg Groom of New Jersey Black Metal band Vantafrost in one of the more interesting installments. This time host Chris Butera chats with Groom about Vantafrost and their origins as Urethra Butter, America’s ongoing student loan crisis, and recount some great times at the infamous Meatlocker venue in Montclair, New Jersey.
WARNING: This podcast contains strong language.
Check out Vantafrost HERE.
Band of the Week: Temple of Dagon
Awaken the almighty Cthulu with California’s Temple of Dagon.
A band whose lyrics are centered around H.P. Lovecraft’s tales of terror, Temple of Dagon unleashes a unique breed of metal blending death metal, thrash metal, doom, crust punk and New York influenced hardcore grooves.
Taking their name from Lovecraft’s “Dagon” story, the band formed in 2009 and released “The Book of Azathoth” EP, which contained a more primitive sound. Temple of Dagon would later perfect their sound on 2014’s “Rituals of the Deep,” their first and only full length record to date.
On January 22, Temple of Dagon announced via Facebook that they will be playing the OC Cruststock Volume 3 festival from June 26 to June 28. Tickets can be obtained at this link.
Check out Temple of Dagon HERE.
Download “Rituals of the Deep” HERE.
Band of the Week: Life of Agony
From the primal concrete sledges of Brooklyn, New York comes the legendary “Life of Agony.”
Formed in 1989, the sludge infested hardcore band was formed and shortly landed a deal with Roadrunner Records, releasing classic album after classic album, starting with 1993’s “River Runs Red.”
“River Runs Red” would be the bands best selling album and is widely acclaimed to be their best work. Mina (then Keith) Caputo’s emotional pain being painted onto the albums lyrical canvas, contorting the music of guitarists Alan Robert and Joey Z. (ex- Carnivore) and drummer Sal Abruscato (ex- Type O Negative, A Pale Horse Named Death) into a masterpiece. “River Runs Red” would be re-released five times by four different labels (three times on Roadrunner) and was performed in its entirety by Life of Agony in 2009 and 2010.
“River Runs Red” would be followed by “Ugly” in 1995 and would take a darker tone than “River Runs Red,” bearing a broader spectrum of the psyche and how much more it could be bent following further depression. Loss of identity and fear would take a major focal point lyrically and would be blended with even more crushing rhythms than “Ugly’s” predecessor.
Life after “Ugly” would change for the band. Abruscato left after touring for the album and was replaced by Dan Richardson (ex- Pro-Pain, ex- Crumbsuckers), who played drums on 1997’s “Soul Searching Sun,” the more commercial album of Life of Agony’s career. Shortly after the release, Caputo would leave the band with Ugly Kid Joe Whitfield Crane fulfilling his duties on tour. The band would then split up for the first time in 1999.
After three years, Life of Agony would reform with the original lineup, performing sold out one-off shows that later lead to a full-fledged reunion – complete with a spot on Dave Mustaine’s (Megadeth) inagural “Gigantour” and the release of their final album, 2005’s “Broken Valley.”
2011 would mark yet another change for Life of Agony. After 20 years of life as a man, Caputo slowly began transitioning into a woman. Her announcement was initially met with mixed responses, but eventually blossomed into a plethora of support. Musically, there were not many sparks for new material. Abruscato would form “A Pale Horse Named Death” later that year
Life of Agony would choose to dissolve again in 2012, as they would rarely tour and did not plan on releasing any new material. They would reform again in 2014 playing several European festivals.
On February 13, it was announced that Life of Agony will be playing at The Wick in Brooklyn, New York on May 1 and 2.
Band of the Week: Nailbomb
Nailbomb was a side project of Max Cavalera (Soulfly, Ex – Sepultura) and Alex Newport (Fudge Tunnel) that should have taken over the world.
Unfortunately, Nailbomb’s run was short lived as the band would only play one show at the 1995 Dynamo Festival (which would become their live album, “Proud to Commit Commercial Suicide”) after releasing their only album of extreme aggression, 1995’s “Point Blank” on Roadrunner Records.
“Point Blank” was highly chaotic and wild with its blend of thrashing breakneck speed and heavy, sludgy grooves. The political and confrontational lyrics were just as offensive as its album art – a female Vietcong member with a U.S. soldier’s gun pressed against her temple. The brutality of the artwork was only a metaphor for what Nailbomb would sound like.
This is some of the most raw emotion to be captured on audio.
“Point Blank” also featured guest musicians Dino Cazares (Fear Factory), Andreas Kisser (Sepultura) and Igor Cavalera (Sepultura) and would become a highlight of every career involved.
“Point Blank” also had some box office success as the song “Wasting Away” was featured in Gus Van Sant’s 1995 comedy-drama “To Die For” where Nicole Kidman seduces a young Joaquin Phoenix in order to convince him to kill her husband.
For whatever reason, Nailbomb chose to release only one album, but Cavalera, Newport and friends gave every bit of anger and frustration they had to getting a phenomenal record out of “Point Blank”. While there’s always a possibility for a return album in the name of nostalgia, perhaps it is better in the long run that Nailbomb’s legacy is left where it peaked.
Band of the Week: GZR
As much as people love Black Sabbath and Heaven and Hell’s bass player Terrance “Geezer” Butler, rarely do they mention his solo project GZR (also spelled Geezer and g//z/r/ depending on which album you’re listening to).
1995 saw the debut album “Plastic Planet,” which contained darker melodies than what Sabbath fans were used to featured the brooding vocals of Fear Factory’s Burton C. Bell, Pedro Howse (who is also Butler’s nephew) on guitars and Deen Castronovo’s (Journey) drumming abilities on top of Butler’s iconic bass playing. The album received mixed reviews but established a small cult following. Songs such as “Seance Fiction” were met with praise due to the heavy rhythms and haunting vocals.
1996 and 1997 marked two more releases from GZR, the “Cycle of Sixty” EP and their sophomore album, “Black Science.” The lineup shifted from Bell to Clark Brown on vocals due to Bell’s commitments to Fear Factory. The style of the album continued in the same fashion as the first and was met with similar reviews as well. 1996 also saw the project release “Outworld,” a song exclusively for the Mortal Kombat soundtrack. After a handful of live performances in 1997, GZR would disband until 2005 when they would release their last album to date: “Ohmwork”.
“Ohmwork” was met with praise and another lineup shift, this time in the drum department. Castronovo would be replaced with Chad Smith (not Smith from Red Hot Chili Peppers, Smith from Anacrusis), who had been brought in for live dates in 1997. While continuing the trend of scientific and horror based lyrics, “Ohmwork” was a sonically different record than its predecessors, using more ambiance than before.
Butler would eventually play again for Black Sabbath and Heaven and Hell until this day, lending his expertise to several albums between the two bands. Butler has confirmed that GZR has been working on new material and is expecting to release a new album in 2015.
Band of the Week: Blood Feast
One of the unsung heroes of old-school Thrash – New Jersey’s own Blood Feast.
Taking their name from the classic gore movie, Blood Feast originally formed in 1985 as “Blood Lust.” They changed their name the following year, shortly after the release of their “Suicidal Mission” demo.
In 1987 Blood Feast released their debut album “Kill For Pleasure” and the “Face Fate” EP on New Renaissance Records. These releases were innovative with the speed and technicality of their work reaching a new level of ferocity in the Thrash Metal world.
Several years and a shift in the lineup would go by before Blood Feast would release their sophomore album, “Chopping Block Blues” in 1990 on Colossal Records. Guitarist Adam Tranquilli had left the band and Blood Feast would record “Chopping Block Blues” as a four-piece. Blood Feast then split up a year later in 1991.
Blood Feast seemed to be over, but they would later reform for two one-off shows in 1999 and 2007. The latter would lead to Blood Feast officially coming out of retirement with Tranquilli returning to the fold and a slew of lineup changes. Since then, Blood Feast have released two compilations (2002’s “Remnants: The Last Remains” and 2013’s “Last Offering Before the Chopping Block”) and have been working on new material for quite some time. The clip above is the official video for their new song “Off With Their Heads.”
The only question that lingers is if and when a new Blood Feast album will see the light of day. In the meantime just sit back, relax, and don’t forget to drink the blood of every corpse.
Band of the Week: Iron Reagan
Iron Reagan is a crossover thrash metal band featuring members of Municipal Waste, ANS and Hellbear and there is no way of avoiding their barrage of noise.
With two albums (Worse than Dead, The Tyranny of Will), a demo, an EP (Spoiled Identity), and a split with Exhumed, Iron Reagan is quickly climbing the ranks of the underground metal scene.
The band has an undeniable presence combined with a wild, high-octane live performance that captures the spirit of hardcore beautifully.
2015 looks to be off to a great start as Iron Reagan will be hitting the road again in January on the “Through Space and Grind” tour with Exhumed, Napalm Death, and Voivod with special guests Ringworm, Dayglo Abortions and Phobia playing select dates.
The Bonesaw 