Upon arriving to the show, I was only really excited to see Absu perform, but as soon as Highland hit the stage they caught my attention. As a local Los Angeles band, they sure stood out as an opening act. They steer away from the same repetitive riffs and are more complex than the hundreds of local act I have seen yet. I can’t wait to see how they grow as a band.

[Show as slideshow]

Photos by Lili.Scarlet Photography

The immortal sorcery of Absu was casted upon us as soon as they hit the stage. They came back with a vengeance after nearly four years of not playing a show in Los Angeles. Prior to their set, the mighty Proscriptor, Ezezu, and Vis Crom answered many questions from diehard fans and were very open to taking photos as a souvenir of such a killer night. Their set consisted of many old tracks of The Sun of Tiphareth to their most recent album Abzu. Some of my favorite songs of the night consisted of; “Swords and Leather”, “Amy” and “Never Blow Out the Eastern Candle”.

This was truly the best treat we could all ask for

The true highlight of the night hands down was the “Stone of Destiny”. I was confused at why they were changing out the snare drum during the set, when he clearly didn’t damage it in any way or didn’t need a different one for a certain song.  It turns out he didn’t need it at all! This was a surprise to all of us, Proscriptor jumps off his kit and belches out his killer vocals for the “Stone of Destiny”. You would not assume he has such a great stage presence moving from one end of the stage to the other, being that he’s always in the same spot while playing the drums. This was truly the best treat we could all ask for. After nearly an hour and a half, I could not begin to think that their set was coming to an end. I will hold them to their word and hope to see them soon again! 

The post Live Review | Absu Conquers LA! appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Dates and Headliners:

10/30/13 Soundstage – Baltimore, MD *KREATOR headlines*

10/31/13 The Trocadero – Philadelphia, PA *Overkill headlines*

11/01/13 The Palladium – Worcester, MA *Overkill headlines*

11/02/13 Club Soda – Montreal, QC – CANADA *KREATOR headlines*

11/03/13 Opera House – Toronto, ON – CANADA *KREATOR headlines*

11/04/13 Altar Bar – Pittsburgh, PA *KREATOR headlines*

11/05/13 Al Rosa Villa – Columbus, OH *Overkill headlines*

11/06/13 Mojoes – Joliet, IL *Overkill headlines*

11/07/13 Granada – Lawrence, KS *KREATOR headlines*

11/08/13 Gothic Theater – Englewood, CO *KREATOR headlined*

11/09/13 In The Venue – Salt Lake City, UT *Overkill headlines*

11/11/13 Rickshaw Theater – Vancouver, B.C. – CANADA *KREATOR headlines*

11/12/13 El Corazón – Seattle, WA *Overkill headlines*

11/13/13 Hawthorne Theatre – Portland, OR *KREATOR headlines*
11/14/13 Fillmore – San Francisco, CA *KREATOR headlines*
11/15/13 The Grove – Anaheim, CA *KREATOR headlines*
11/16/13 Marquee Theatre – Tempe, AZ *KREATOR headlines*

11/17/13 Sunshine Theater – Albuquerque, NM *Overkill headlines*
11/18/13 Trees – Dallas, TX *Overkill headlines*
11/19/13 Backstage Live – San Antonio, TX *KREATOR headlines*
11/21/13 Diamond Pub & Billiards – Louisville, KY *KREATOR headlines*
11/22/13 Empire – W. Springfield, VA *Overkill headlines*

11/23/13 Stage 48 – New York City, NY *Overkill headlines*

11/24/13 Stage 48 – New York City, NY *Overkill headlines*

Pre-sale tickets are available now at EnterTheVault.com. VIP tickets include a pre-show Meet & Greet with both KREATOR and Overkill, plus a limited edition poster. For New York City fans, there will be a special limited number of tickets that will grant admission to both shows at Stage 48.

Frontman Mille Petrozza had this to say:

The mighty Overkill have been a major influence on Kreator and they are killer guys. Our friends from Warbringer will also join us. It does not get more brutal than this!”

Well Mille…it does, if we can deliver them packed shows for each date!

Pre-Order tickets here: http://www.enterthevault.com/artist.php?id=45

The post New Tour | Kreator w/ Overkill and Warbringer – Legends of Thrash 2013 appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Paul: First thing’s first, as a huge fan, it’s a true honor to be speaking with you and I just wanted to thank you in advance for taking the time to do this interview.

James: Yeah, no problem man, thanks for the interview I really appreciate it.

Paul: So you guys are all set to release Unwelcome in a couple of weeks. How prepared were you to go into the studio, and how did the entire process play out in comparison to earlier Arsis albums?

James: Well, with Celebration of Guilt being our first album, we obviously had some demos out prior to recording, with a few of those songs actually being on the album. Even with Diamond and Disease and the second full-length, the way Mike Van Dyne and I used to demo stuff out was really super primitive. I would demo everything out on a full-track cassette recorder, then program the drums with a drum machine from the mid 1990s (laughs). So, it wasn’t high tech at all. Then I’d send it to him and he’d make boom box recordings of himself jamming along to my demos and mail it back to me. So by the time we got to the studio, I had an idea of what his drum parts were going to be like, but there were always some surprises that would turn out different than I imagined. But with the latest album, Noah and I actually demoed a lot of the stuff out at his place, went over and fine-tuned it, then sent it off to Shawn. Shawn would program pretty much exactly how he was going to play it, so we were actually super prepared to record Unwelcome.

Paul: Both you and Brandon are excellent guitar players, so how did you divide the guitar solos?

James: When we tracked Unwelcome, it was before we actually asked Brandon to officially join the band. Well, we had the idea that we were going to ask him to join; I had just never met him. The other guys had toured with him when he filled in for me. We did plan a lot of guitar solos for the album with the idea that he would be joining Arsis. If there was a song that I had planned two guitar solo sections for, I wanted him to have one of those sections, and then there are a couple songs when he had the only solos on the song. “Let Me Be the One” is all Brandon, and there’s a lot of rocking 80s kind of riffs. It’s a really weird progression harmonically at the same time, but Brandon loves 80s music and he really gets off on being able to play over weird stuff, so it was really a perfect solo section for him to take.

Paul: How did his joining the band come about given that he’s considerably younger than the rest of the band?

James: It’s working out great actually. Brandon is pretty mature for his age, he keeps a level head, and he’s actually taken quite a bit of interest to the business side of things. Not only that, but Brandon Ellis is THE best guitarist I’ve ever played with in my life.

Paul: I’ve just gotta say, isn’t it amazing how he’s only 20 years old? He’s a young player but the stuff he’s doing is incredible! I remember listening to him play for the first time and was just like, WOW.

James: Oh yeah, Brandon’s a very mature player. And he really plays like a man, y’know? I’ll be like “you’re beating the fuck out of your strings dude.”

 Paul: What struck you guys to do a cover of Sunglasses at Night? Did it just come about as a joke like when Children of Bodom covered Britney Spears, or did you guys actually put a lot of thought into it?

James: (Laughs) Noah and I… Noah especially had really wanted to cover that song, probably for 5 or 6 years now, ever since he joined the band. He’d just be like “let’s do a melodic death version of that song, it’d be so awesome.” We were finishing writing up stuff for Unwelcome when we went over to his house, and he had the intro and the first riff written out in death metal style, and I was just like, “that is fucking badass.” (laughs) And I just sat down and finished arranging the rest of the riffs in a death metal type context, brushed up on the vocals really quick and was just like, “hey, I guess we’re covering Sunglasses at Night now!”

Paul: I actually had no idea that it was a cover of an 80s song in the first place, but I was wondering why you were singing “I wear my Sunglasses at Night.” Then I was playing it in the car with one of my bandmates and he burst out laughing and was like dude, you know this is an 80s pop song right? Then he played the original for me and I felt like the biggest idiot. It was like, “I already wrote the review! Fuck!”

James: (Laughs) it fooled everybody. When it was being reviewed for production, the guy was like “I dunno about these lyrics James.” And I was just like, “It’s a cover!” (laughs)

Paul: Then I showed it to my mom so you can imagine how that turned out.

James: Oh my god, what did your mom say?

Paul: We come back to the house, and I say, “Hey Mom, have you ever heard of the song Sunglasses at Night?” And she’s like “Oh, yeah, that’s a really cool song from the 80s!” And I’m like, “yeah, well this metal band covered it.” So I put it on. And at first, she’s kind of getting into the intro. Then she hears “I WEAR MY SUNGLASSES AT NIGHT!” (laughs) and her eyes pop out of her skull.

James: (laughs) Oh man, that’s a great story, glad it’s shocking some people. Mission accomplished with that! I think we kind of made it our own though.

Paul: Oh, yeah totally! I never would have guessed it was actually an old pop song, because I never heard the original before. I just wondered, “Why is he saying I wear my Sunglasses at Night?”

(laughs)

Paul: Anyways, I know that you guys are really big on King Diamond. When I saw you guys open for Sonata Arctica, I remember seeing you wearing a Mercyful Fate shirt, while Brandon was in a King Diamond shirt. And I said to myself, “Hmmmm… I think this band really likes King Diamond.”

James: I’m sure you weren’t paying attention to this, but I was actually wearing a King Diamond belt buckle.

[youtube=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SNDf5y9CU7Q]

Paul: Oh, awesome! But yeah, after listening to Unwelcome, I felt that the album drew a lot of influence from them. Would you agree?

James: Oh yeah, for sure. They were a really big influence on me when I first started playing guitar. Especially Don’t Break the Oath. It’s just so dark; I remember I was 13 years old when I bought it. I talked my mom into taking me to the record shop and bought Judas Priest’s Painkiller on cassette and Don’t Break the Oath as well. I fell asleep listening to Don’t Break the Oath and realized that this is what I wanted to do. After that I’d just take money my relatives gave me and bought King Diamond albums, and it all went downhill after that (laughs). But yeah, we’re definitely influenced by King Diamond, Brandon really loves Andy LaRocque. Big time.  

 Paul: More specifically, who are some guitar players who have inspired your sound? I’ve heard that your taste in music is rather diverse, so I’m especially curious to know.

James: Growing up as far as learning guitar, well, we talked about King Diamond. And I was a big fan of Paul Gilbert, especially his stuff on Street Lethal with Racer X. Also, Cacophony with Marty Friedman. Then after that I got into the more brutal stuff. Like Carcass and Dissection. Stuff like that.

Paul: I’ve noticed a lot of diminished arpeggios in your playing, which gives it a cool neo-classical kind of flavor. Are you classically influenced or trained?

James: Yeah, I guess so. My first instrument was violin, where I was taught a lot of theory and stuff like that. I was never really a classical guitarist though. I could never get into finger styled playing. And of course I like Yngwie Malmsteen.

Paul: Rising Force is one of my favorites.

James: Yeah man, that’s good stuff.

Paul: What do you guys do to pay the bills when you’re not on tour? I read somewhere that you’ve worked with hair. Did you go to cosmetology school or anything?

James: I did. I don’t work at a salon anymore. Right now, I’ll be a parks operation coordinator for a couple months at a time. The way it works is that I’m on call, but it’s a pretty cool job.

Paul: Do any of the guys balance the band with school?

James: The only one who I think is taking classes right now would be Noah. I know he works as well; he does stuff with audio visuals. Brandon I think just shreds for a living. Shawn… what does Shawn do? I think Shawn is the manager at a grocery store.

Paul: How much metal do you listen to nowadays? Is it stale now that you’re playing it every night alongside a bunch of other metal bands, or is it still fresh and exciting to you?    

James: Some metal is still fresh and exciting. I don’t listen to it as much as I used to, I’m not gonna lie, but we still listen to a fair amount of metal. If we listen to metal on tour, it’s usually going to be 80s metal. Or even glam rock. You know, the fun stuff. But yeah, I still am a metal fan.

Paul: You’re magically thrown back in time and can play in any band from the 70s or 80s. Which would you pick and why?

James: Wow, that’s a good question. Let me think… any band?

Paul: Any band, it doesn’t even have to be metal.

James: (long pause) Man… that’s a really good question. (More silence) I’m thinking hard about this one actually. I’m wrestling between artistic value and popularity. I would say King Diamond. I think they made money too, back in the 80s. They also had that glam imagery I really loved in the 80s, just darker.

Paul: As I mentioned before, I saw you guys back in December with Sonata Arctica. How did that tour go? What were those guys like?

 James: Oh, they were really nice. Everybody was really spot-on every night too. Tony really is an incredible singer. I know it seemed like a weird package to a lot of people but I had a good time. I mean, I know a lot of the fans weren’t as receptive to our style as I would’ve liked, but it was a good tour to get back into the swing of things. It wasn’t super long… We had a great time, we really did.

Paul: When you guys are touring, how do you guys make most of your money and how is it distributed?

James: Well, you sell merch of course, and have a guarantee from the venue every night. So what happens is we first pay off our dues, and then we just split the rest four ways.

Paul: Is it something you can make a living with while on tour?

James: Yeah, to be honest with you we’re smart about the money. We don’t order merch that we can’t pay off immediately, so we never have debt hanging over our heads. After we pay off everyone we need to, the rest is all profit and we keep our spending very minimal. It’s actually equivalent to what I make working my day job 40 hours a week so I can’t complain about that.

Paul: Plus you love what you’re doing, so that must make it even better.

James: Yeah, exactly.

Paul: Well thanks again James for taking the time to do this interview, it was great talking with you.

James: No problem man, thanks a lot for the review!

 Paul: Anything else to say to the fans?

James: Thank you all so much for the support, looking forward to seeing you on tour soon!

Catch Arsis on tour with Hypocrisy, Krisiun, and Aborted!

05/01 – Gramercy – New York, N.Y. *
05/02 – Palace – Stafford, Conn. *
05/03 – Foufounes Electriques – Montreal, Quebec *
05/04 – WreckRoom – Toronto, Ontario *
05/06 – Reggie’s – Chicago, Ill. *
05/07 – Station 4 – St. Paul, Minn. *
05/08 – The Zoo – Winnipeg, Manitoba *
05/09 – The Exchange – Regina, Saskatchewan *
05/10 – Pawn Shop – Edmonton, Alberta *
05/11 – Republik – Calgary, Alberta *
05/13 – Rickshaw Theater – Vancouver, British Columbia *
05/14 – Studio Seven – Seattle, Wash. **
05/17 – The Vex – Los Angeles, Calif. **
05/18 – 910 Live – Tempe, Ariz. **
05/20 – Trees – Dallas, Texas **
05/21 – Korova – San Antonio, Texas **

* with Starkill
** with Autumn’s End

The post Interview | James Malone of Arsis appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

They’ve been using the power of social media to make sure EVERYONE KNOWS that the Vikings are back and here to pillage your ear drums.  Earlier this week they unveiled the EPIC ALBUM ART via their Official Reddit…yeah reddit, how awesome is that? 

Click for Glorious Full-Resolution

And today they unveiled the title track off of the album for streaming via their official website.  However, there have been some streaming issues so you can listen to it here as well: http://official.fm/tracks/H8oa

You can expect us to bring you more on this already epic sounding LP.  Now we do have a special request for you. GO SEE THEM OPEN THE MAINSTAGE ON THE ROCKSTAR ENERGY DRINK MAYHEM FESTIVAL.  Tour dates here.  This may be one of the only times you’ll have the opportunity to see Amon Amarth in a festival setting without having to recycle your beer bottle collection for that CA CRV, just to afford a damn plane ticket to Europe.  

Speaking of beer, have you seen AA’s custom brew? (That’s short for Amon Amarth…not Alcoholics Anonymous) Unfortunately, RAGNAROK, as it was so “appropriately” named, was only brewed once by the Three Floyds Brewing Company in Indiana, US.  At least we can look at bottle art! Huzzaahh.  

Click for Larger Alcoholz

Okay, I’ll stop over fluffing this post.  It just seemed so non-Viking to just post “album art…song link. K thanks”

The post New Album | AMON AMARTH – Deceiver of the Gods appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Iron Maiden is bringing the US another leg of the Maiden England tour! Megadeth will be their brothers in arms throughout the tour. They will be hitting North Carolina, Tennessee, Missouri, Texas, Las Vegas, as well as San Bernardino for all of you Southern Californians!

Will YOU Be attending the Battle for San Bernardino? Because we’re getting an all-star line-up of Megadeth, Anthrax, Testament, Overkill, and Sabaton as well!

Click for Full-Resolution

Iron Maiden + Megadeth
Sept 3. – Time Warner Cable Music Pavillion, Raleigh, NC
Sept 5. – Bridgestone Arena, Nashville, TN
Sept 7. – Sprint Center, Kansas City, MO
Sept 8. – Verizon Wireless, St. Louis, MO
Sept 10. – 360 Amphitheater, Austin, TX
Sept 12. – Mandalay Bay Events Center, Las Vegas, NV
Sept 13. – San Manuel Amphitheater, San Bernardino, CA *

*+ ANTHRAX, TESTAMENT, OVERKILL, SABATON

Official Statement from IronMaiden.com

IRON MAIDEN will make a brief return to the USA this September, playing seven specially selected shows en-route to Latin America where they will once again headline at the legendary Rock In Rio Festival, Brazil, on 22 September, their show there having recently sold out to 70,000 fans in just a couple of hours

These will begin with a first-ever visit to Raleigh, NC, for the opening show on September 3rd at the Time Warner Cable Music Pavilion followed by taking Metal back to country music capital Nashville, TN where Maiden haven’t played in over twenty years, at the Bridgestone Arena on September 5th. There will also be shows in Kansas City, MO, Sprint Center on September 7th, St Louis, MO, Verizon Wireless on September 8th and the Mandalay Bay Events Center in Las Vegas, NV on September 12th , all of which Maiden last visited way back in 2000 on the Brave New World Tour. Plus a return to Austin, TX for a show at the 360 Amphitheater on September 10th,  the first time the band have played in that city since the original Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son Tour twenty-five years ago!

Very special guests on all these dates will be MEGADETH.

Before they finally head south towards Brazil, Maiden will also headline a very special event at the San Manuel Amphitheater, San Bernardino, CA. The Battle Of San Bernardino will take place on Friday 13th September. Anthrax, Testament, Overkill and Sabaton will join tour special guests Megadeth for this performance only, making for a big, loud and exciting day out for Metal fans in Southern California. (Read more about The Battle Of San Bernardino)

Tickets for the Las Vegas and San Bernardino shows go on sale 12 April. Tickets for Raleigh, Nashville, St Louis and Austin go onsale 13 April. Tickets for Kansas City go onsale 17 May. See below for exact onsale times and links.

An exclusive first ticket pre-sale for Iron Maiden Fan Club members will run on Wednesday 10 April. Fan Club members will also be eligible in the draw to be ‘First To The Barrier’.

The post Tour | Iron Maiden – Maiden England 2013 US Tour (Megadeth, Anthrax, Overkill, Sabaton) appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

The post Video Interview | Ensiferum (Sami Hinkka) on Paganfest America 2013 appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

The post Live Pics | Meshuggah – The Ophidian Trek 2013 appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Band: Arkona
Album: Decade of Glory
Genre: Folk/Pagan Metal
Label: Napalm Records
Release: February 22nd, 2013

Well this album was the exact opposite of anything else. Decade of Glory, is IMMENSE with 31 live songs spanning the entire  career of Arkona. You have classics such as ”Slav’sja, Rus’” and live favorites such as “Yarilo” and “Goi Rode Goi”. The impressive part, however, is the sound itself. Not only are the sounds crisp and near studio quality, but very seldom can you hear the wonderful live vocals in harmony with the crowd singing the hooks to the catchy bounce of ”Stenka na Stenku” and many other songs.

“If you love folk, if you love Arkona, if you love vodka, you will love this album, and you will mark your calendar for when these Russian pagans storm your city next. “

There isn’t much to else to say besides that this is a compilation of some of Arkona’s best works intertwined with the energy they bring live. This is the only live album I have heard that can bring some of that tangible energy of the live event into the ears of headphones walking between classes. If you love folk, if you love Arkona, if you love vodka, you will love this album, and you will mark your calendar for when these Russian pagans storm your city next. 

Rating

Track Listing:

CD I

1. Az’
2. Arkaim
3. Ot Serdca K Nebu
4. Goi, Rode, Goi!
5. Leshiy
6. Zakliatie
7. Marena
8. Liki Bessmertnykh Bogov
9. Nevidal
10. Kolo Navi
11. Slav’sja, Rus’
12. Kupala i Kostroma
13. Odna
14. Sva
15. Kupalets
16. Katitsja Kolo

CD II

1. Kolyada
2. Skvoz’ Tuman Vekov
3. Maslenitsa
4. V Tsepiakh Drevney Tainy
5. Slovo
6. Bol’no mne
7. Pamiat
8. Arkona
9. Po Syroi Zemle
10. Oj, Pechal’-Toska
11. Yarilo
12. Stenka na Stenku
13. Vyjdu Ja Na Voljushku
14. Rus’
15. Zov Predkov

Personnel:

• Maria “Masha Scream” Arkhipova – Vocals/Keyboard
• Sergei “Lazar” Atrashkevich – Guitars
• Ruslan “Kniaz” Rosomaherov – Bass
• Vlad “Artist” Lyovushkin Sokolov –  Drums
• Vladimir “Volk” Reshetnikov – Wind instruments

Follow Arkona on Facebook!

Pre-Order the Album:

Limited Edtion Double Digipack. First Orders will receive a FREE EXCLUSIVE A2 ARKONA Poster.

The post Review | Arkona’s Decade of Glory – Live and Dangerous appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

Click the banner for Hi-Res bros!

5/10 Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s
5/11 Dallas, TX @ Trees
5/12 San Antonio, TX @ Backstage Live
5/14 Tucson, AZ @ The Rock
5/15 Ramona, CA @ Ramona Mainstage
5/16 Santa Ana, CA @ The Observatory
5/17 Oakland, CA @ Oakland Metro
5/18 Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
5/19 Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
5/21 Vancouver, BC @ Commodore Ballroom
5/22 Calgary, AB @ MacEwan Ballroom
5/23 Edmonton, AB @ Starlight Room
5/24 Regina, SK @ Riddell Centre
5/25 Winnipeg, MB @ The Garrick
5/26 St. Paul, MN @ Mill City Nights
5/28 Chicago, IL @ Bottom Lounge
5/29 Detroit, MI @ Harpos
5/30 Buffalo, NY @ Town Ballroom
5/31 Toronto, ON @ The Phoenix
6/1 Montreal, QC @ Club Soda
6/2 Boston, MA @ Royale
6/4 New Haven, CT @ Toad’s Place
6/5 Brooklyn, NY @ Music Hall of Williamsburg
6/6 Philadelphia, PA @ Union Transfer
6/7 Cleveland, OH @ Peabodys
6/9 St. Louis, MO @ Pops
6/11 Atlanta, GA @ Masquerade
6/12 Orlando, FL @ Beacham

The post Decibel Magazine Tour 2013 Lineup – CANNIBAL CORPSE, NAPALM DEATH, IMMOLATION) appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.

[Show as slideshow]

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The post Live Pics | Wintersun – Helvetios/Time I Tour 2012 appeared first on Der Metal Krieger.