Heavy Metal
Iron Maiden Craft Their Most Diverse Album in Years with Senjutsu: Review
The Lowdown: Metal legends Iron Maiden were riding high prior to the pandemic. The band were in the midst of their “Legacy of the Beast Tour” — a career-spanning celebration of the band’s discography. The comprehensive setlist pulled from every era of Maiden — even the Blaze Bayley albums — hitting major highlights as well as obscure deep cuts. Somewhere in the middle of the jaunt, in early 2019, the band found time to hit the Guillaume Tell Studio in France to track the material that would become Senjutsu. Perhaps running through 40 years of songs every night worked as the ultimate songwriting stimulant, because Senjutsu is easily Iron Maiden’s most diverse work in years — no easy task for a band that continues to chiefly operate in a long-since-established heavy metal style. The Goo...
Iron Maiden Release New Album Senjutsu: Stream
Heavy metal legends Iron Maiden have released their highly anticipated 17th studio album, Senjutsu. The 80-plus minute opus was recorded in early 2019 at Guillaume Tell Studio in France during a break in the band’s “Legacy of the Beast Tour.” Later that year, longtime Maiden producer Kevin “Caveman” Shirley strongly hinted that a new album could be on the horizon. Prior to officially announcing Senjutsu, Iron Maiden built the hype with cryptic ARG-style teasers before breaking the silence with an epic music video for the single “The Writing on the Wall” — their first new song in six years. The full album details were then unveiled, including a new “Samurai Eddie” for the cover art. Advertisement Related Video As singer Bruce Dickinson explained in a press release, the songs on Senjutsu are...
Slayer Announce Reissues of Metal Blade Catalog, Including Show No Mercy and Hell Awaits
Slayer have announced new reissues of their Metal Blade Records catalog, including vinyl re-pressings of seminal albums such as Show No Mercy and Hell Awaits. They’re due out October 22nd. In addition to the aforementioned albums, the Haunting the Chapel EP and 1984’s Live Undead will also be reissued. Each release will be available in multiple vinyl colorways and on CD and cassette tape. Metal Blade was Slayer’s label home during the band’s early years and played a vital role in proliferating thrash and speed metal in the 1980s. Slayer would go on to sign with Def American and work with producer Rick Rubin for 1986’s groundbreaking Reign in Blood, but for many hardcore fans, the early material remains just as vital. Advertisement Related Video Slayer’s obsession with Satanic and occult th...
R.I.P. Inge Ginsberg, Holocaust Survivor and “Death Metal Grandma” Dies at 99
Inge Ginsberg, a Holocaust survivor who later became known as the “Death Metal Grandma,” has died at the age of 99. According to the New York Times, she passed away due to heart failure on July 20th in a care home in Zürich, Switzerland. In her youth, Ginsberg fled the Holocaust and helped US spies during World War II. Her life took her all over the world, and she lived in New York City, Switzerland, Israel, and Ecuador at various times. Ginsberg would go on to write songs in Hollywood and also worked as a journalist. When she wasn’t on the job, she wrote poetry. Refusing to give up her passion, her songs and poetry would become the crux of her foray into heavy metal in her latter years. Advertisement Related Video Fronting her band, Inge and the Tritones, Ginsberg appeared on Swtizer...
Jason Newsted: “I Was F**king Livid” After Hearing Metallica’s …And Justice for All for the First Time
Jason Newsted has admitted that he was “livid” after he first heard Metallica‘s 1988 album, …And Justice for All, which famously had much of the bass removed during mixing. “I was f**king livid!” Newsted told The Metal Hammer Podcast in a new interview. “Are you kidding me? I was ready [to go] for throats, man!” He continued, taking a more serious tone: “No, I was out of my head, because I really thought I did well. And I thought I played how I was supposed to play.” Advertisement Related Video The phantom bass on Justice has become the most controversial mixing decision in the history of metal. The official mixing credits belong to Steve Thompson and Michael Barbiero, but Metallica’s Lars Ulrich and James Hetfield were heavily involved in the process. Some suggest Newsted’s parts wer...
Mining Metal: Alchemy of Flesh, Diskord, Filth Is Eternal, Hooded Menace, Oxygen Destroyer, Qrixkuor, Sculptured, Wormwitch
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. I’d hoped to be done with obituaries for a while after last month’s one-two punch of Metal Church’s Mike Howe and Slipknot’s Joey Jordison. No such luck. As I’m writing this, the metal world received news that Eric Wagner, vocalist of The Skull and former singer for Trouble had passed away from complications related to COVID-19. He was 62 years old. Advertisement Related Video Wagner had a singular voice and lyrical approach. He used his warbling upper register without apology, channeling the rough-around-the edges t...
In Photos: Psycho Las Vegas 2021 Brings Doom, Sludge, and Metal Merriment to Sin City
After canceling last year’s event due to the pandemic, and a plethora of last-minute lineup changes due to travel restrictions, Psycho Las Vegas seemingly pulled an ace from their sleeve. The festival returned this past weekend for a reworked and revamped 2021 edition that still rivaled any of their previous years. The festivities kicked off on Thursday (August 19th) with the annual Psycho Swim party, despite the cancellation of The Skull (sadly, singer Eric Wagner just passed away from COVID pneumonia). Old Man Gloom, Bongzilla, and Blackwater Holylight had all those who arrived to the festival early in the pool, beers in hand. The festival got off to its official start on Friday, with Twin Temple on the main stage at 1 p.m. COVID protocols were in place throughout the resort, and everyon...
Corey Taylor on Current COVID Bout: “Had I Not Been Vaccinated I Shudder to Think How Bad It Would Have Been”
Corey Taylor has offered an update on his current battle with COVID-19. The Slipknot singer says it’s “the worst I’ve ever been sick in my life,” adding that he has gotten “over the brink” thanks to being vaccinated. The metal vocalist revealed that he tested positive for COVID on Friday (August 20th), offering apologies for missing the Astronomicon pop-culture convention that took place this past weekend in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In a new video message posted Monday (August 23rd) on his social channels, Taylor offered the latest on his condition, saying the following: “I am out of the woods. I’m still positive, but the fever’s gone, aches are gone. I’m sweating everything out. I’m still congested, but … it shouldn’t be too much longer before I test negative, so that’s great. I wanted to say...
Exodus Announce New Album, Unveil Single “The Beatings Will Continue (Until Morale Improves)”: Stream
Exodus have announced their 11th studio album, Persona Non Grata, arriving November 19th. They also shared the video for the lead single “The Beatings Will Continue (Until Morale Improves).” True to its title, the single packs a wallop. Blazing fast riffs, snarled vocals, and gang-shout choruses make for a potent thrash metal attack. This is classic stuff from the pioneering Bay Area band. “After what seems like an eon, we now have the debut of our first single, ‘The Beatings Will Continue (Until Morale Improves),’” remarked guitarist Gary Holt via a press statement. “I’m so jacked up for this and the release of Persona Non Grata! Let’s get the bloodletting started!” Advertisement Related Video Persona Non Grata translates to “an unwelcome person,” and the album “touches on themes of moder...
Corey Taylor Contracts COVID-19: “I Woke Up Today and Tested Positive, and I’m Very, Very Sick”
On the heels of his latest solo tour, Corey Taylor has tested positive for COVID-19. The Slipknot singer is vaccinated, but revealed that he still felt “very, very sick.” Taylor made the announcement in order to let everyone know he would no longer be attending the Astronomicon pop-culture convention this weekend in Ann Arbor, Michigan. In a video message posted on the Astronomicon Facebook page, a raspy and congested Taylor spoke from his bed, stating the following: “I wish I had better news. I woke up today and tested positive, and I’m very, very sick. So I’m not gonna be able to make it this weekend. And I am absolutely devastated. I am so sorry. I hope everyone has a good time, and I promise you I will absolutely try to get back there as soon as I can. I should be okay — it [feels like...
Motörhead Tribute Album to Feature High on Fire, Eyehategod, Philip Anselmo, and More
A Motörhead tribute album, Löve Me Förever: A Tribute To Motörhead, is set to be the first release on Psycho Waxx, a new in-house label from the founders of the Psycho Las Vegas Festival. Better yet, the covers are being recorded by the bands booked for the 2021 iteration of Psycho Las Vegas taking place this weekend. High on Fire, Eyehategod, Exhorder, Stöner, and Mothership are among the 16 acts tapped to record Motörhead songs at National Southestern Recording in downtown Vegas. In addition, an all-star cast has been assembled to tackle the iconic “Ace of Spades”: Philip H. Anselmo (Down, Pantera), Gary Holt (Exodus, Slayer), Chuck Garric (Alice Cooper), Sacha Dunable (Intronaut), Nick Oliveri (Stöner, Queens Of The Stone Age, Kyuss), Dwid Hallion (Integrity), and Zach Wheeler and Tom P...
Iron Maiden Unleash New Song “Stratego”: Stream
Iron Maiden have shared the new song “Stratego,” the second single from the forthcoming album Senjutsu, out September 3rd. “Stratego” is another epic slice of heavy metal from the masters of the craft. Bruce Dickinson’s voice soars above churning riffs and well-placed synths, with the band employing some different tones than the Southern-rock inflected lead single, “The Writing on the Wall”. It’s one of two songs on Senjutsu written by guitarist Janick Gers and founding bassist Steve Harris. It was recorded back in 2019 at Guillaume Tell studios in Paris and was produced by Kevin ‘Caveman’ Shirley & co-produced by Steve Harris, likely during the sessions mentioned by Shirley in late 2019. Advertisement Related Video Iron Maiden broke the silence with “The Writing on the Wall,” their fi...
