Prophets of Rage

“We’re doing to demonstrate what it means to be anti-establishment. We’re going to demonstrate what it really means to rage against the machine. It’s a locomotive-like fury.”

The words of a certain Tom Morello, a man you may have heard of. He is, of course, talking about the newly formed Prophets of Rage. An amalgamation of Rage Against the Machine men Morello, Brad Wilk, Tim Commerfield, Chuck D of Public Enemy and B-Real of Cypress Hill. But are Prophets of Rage the best the music industry can do?

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07/06/2016 1

Farewell To The Defiled

The Defiled are the latest band to throw in the towel, announcing that like many of their peers, the financial cost of remaining a band is too much to bare. This follows high-profile cases like CJ from Thy Art is Murder, who left the band while claiming that trying to live life as a member of a touring band in 2016, is hard fucking work.

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21/03/2016 0

Download So Far

The Download line-up is shaping up and, as usual, it is setting itself up to be one hell of a weekend. While the headliners all felt a bit same old, same old the real joy is usually to be found on the lower stages, where you can see the bands that will hopefully be headlining in 10 years ripping it up in front of a handful of fans.

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16/02/2016 0

Anselmo

I’m a bit behind the rest of the world but today I figured I’d throw my two pence into the whole Phil Anselmo debate. When I say debate, what I really mean is I am going to agree with everyone else. YES, Pantera are one of the greatest bands of all time. YES, Anselmo was a big part of that. YES, he has since gone on to be in some other brilliant bands. YES, he is also a massive racist cunt.

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01/02/2016 0

Where Next?

There is an unsettling feeling in the air right now, rock and metal heroes seem to be dropping like flies and for the first time, we are about to see an enforced changing of the guards. In the last few months, we have lost Lemmy, Scott Weiland, David Bowie and now today the sad news of Glenn Frey of Eagles fame. We are reaching an age where the rock and roll bands of yesteryear are getting old and their members are passing away. So the question is, what next?

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19/01/2016 0

Top 20 Albums of the Year

Today I am going to tell you my top twenty albums of the year, but before I get to that I think it would be remiss of me to not mention the death of Lemmy Kilmister. There are going to be a thousand people writing a thousand words about Lemmy over the next few days. Most of whom are in a better place to do so than me. However, for my two pence, the man was rock and roll. Few have lived as fast and as loud as Lemmy and none of them have done it until the age of 70. His blend of punk rock attitude with rock and roll has been influential on everyone who likes to play loud and he will he be missed. In tribute today, I suggest you play your music a lot louder and live life just that little bit wilder. Anyway, on with the show.

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29/12/2015 0

Covering the Best

Covers. They are as much a part of music as anything else. A great cover can put a band on the map while murdering a classic is never a good career move. So what makes a cover stand up? Why are people like Marilyn Manson and Johnny Cash as well known for their interpretations of someone else’s music as they are their own? While others efforts are scorned.

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30/11/2015 0

That’s Not Metal

My musical education took off when I discovered the Metal Hammer Podcast. It was the show that kindled my love of hardcore and introduced me to a whole host of bands that I still love today. When it ended, I was genuinely gutted. It was a weekly insight into heavy music provided by a group of guys who knew what they were talking about. Therefore, I was rather chuffed when Terry Bezer and Stephen Hill, who were both on the aforementioned podcast, started That’s Not Metal. A new podcast which is looking to fill the gap the death of that show left in my life.

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13/11/2015 0

Skindred

There’s a common misconception that Skindred are purely a live band. While there is no denying that you haven’t truly experienced Skindred until you have seen them live. It does hide the fact that they have one hell of a back catalogue. While their last album, Kill the Power, seemed to be an attempt to shoot for the stars and may have failed (although I personally quite liked it) their discography to that point had been near flawless. Joining those lofty standards is Volume and it’s unsurprisingly brilliant.

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03/11/2015 0

MG & The Juggernaut

Before kicking off this review, I should perhaps throw in the disclaimer that I discovered MG & The Juggernaut due to Simon Miller’s other job as a truth knowing games journalist. I’m a big fan of what he does at VideoGamer and I am a supporter of their Patreon. Of course, that makes no difference to my opinion on the EP and I’m more likely to be swayed by the fact he’s a big dude who could easily kick my arse if I ever met him.

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30/10/2015 0