Seas Will Rise have a strong connection to Landmine Marathon — the band features founding Marathoner Eric Saylor, and their debut album, Disease is Our Refrain, was recorded and mixed by current Landmine Marathon guitarist Ryan Butler. And if you’re sitting there wondering “Gee, does that mean that Seas Will Rise play brutal, filthy, hardcore-flavored death grind?”, then you will be happy to know that the answer is, “Yes. Yes they do. And they are AWESOME AT IT.”

And should you doubt us, well, we’ll prove it, fuckers — we’re debuting the track “A Sleeper’s Cell” below. It is some epic curb-stomping shit.

Here’s what Saylor had to tell us about “A Sleeper’s Cell” –

“Cormac McCarthy’s The Road has been a really big influence on this band. When I started thinking about what I wanted to do for this record, I really wanted to work on a cohesive theme of this post-apocalyptic world. Since we’re from Arizona, I wanted everything to be set in the desert. This is the first song on the record, so I wanted to set up everything that follows and capture that sort of desperate, exasperation that would come with literally being on a run for your life 24/7.”

Mission accomplished, Mr. Saylor. Mission accomplished big time.

Check out “A Sleeper’s Cell Below.” Disease is Our Refrain comes out March 6 via Man in Decline and Anxiety Machine Records. It’s gonna be limited to 500 LPs, 100 of which are bone colored, so if you want one, you should buy it up quick. You can do so here.

Hordes of Zombies is Terrorizer’s first release since the tragic passing of guitarist Jesse Pintado — but despite the loss, the band hasn’t missed a beat. Hordes of Zombies is an unrelenting, no-bullshit, no gimmicks, ugly, ugly, UGLY tumor of a death-grind album, the kind of release that reminds you why you ever got into the genre in the first place. If the music contained on Hordes of Zombies actually DOES wake the dead and induce them into a mad feeding frenzy, no one should be surprised. Pintado would be proud.

MetalSucks is thrilled to debut the title track from Hordes of Zombies, which you can stream below. We’re confident you’ll agree that it’s easily one of the most merciless releases of 2012 so far. The full album comes out on February 28 via Season of Mist; you can, and should, pre-order it here.

Scale the Summit’s breathtaking album The Collective is a sonic masterpiece, the kind of aural adventure that would be perfectly befitting of the sweet grooves of a good old-fashioned vinyl. Lucky for us, Prosthetic Records has decided to produce exactly such a product, a 180-gram vinyl reissue of The Collective limited to just 250 copies. If you haven’t already pre-ordered one of these, what the hell are you waiting (and at only $15, too, a bargain)? They’re gonna sell out any second, and they’ll start shipping tomorrow.

If a big old vinyl disc isn’t enough for you, how about the allure of a previously unreleased bonus track called “Redwoods”? The band’s already been playing it live on their current tour, as of today “Redwoods” is available for purchase on iTunes and Amazon as a single, and we’ve got the exclusive stream for you below:

I’ll defer to metalcore historian Sgt D. for an inevitable full blown “where-are-they-now” series on Victory Records acts, though I hope he might file this blog post away now for research later. One such band, Bloodlet dropped four albums for the label from the mid-90s through 2002, before going on “informal hiatus” the following year. So what has vocalist Scott Angelacos been up to lately? Attendees of this year’s A389 Anniversary Bash got the chance to find out during a set from his current project, the Death Race 2000-referencing Junior Bruce.

And now, so can you! Imminently due on A389 Recordings, The Headless King is the band’s debut 12″, packed with sludgy stonerrific vibes and streaming in full exclusively below. The record is offered on green or red/black vinyl for you wax fetishists out there.

-GS

If the name “Exotic Animal Petting Zoo” doesn’t exactly strike you as being traditionally metal (which is to say, it’s, like, Fucking the Eye Sockets of Decapitated Heads Impaled on Spikes or whatever), well, that’s okay — Exotic Animal Petting Zoo aren’t exactly a traditional metal band. In the Mr. Bungle-esque tradition of bands that don’t conform to conventional genre rules and pretty much do whatever the fuck they want. Take, for example, “Apis Bull,” from the band’s forthcoming Tree of Tongues: the track shifts between movements that owe equal debts to Dillinger Escape Plan-inspired mathcore, the most melodious parts of expansive Between the Buried and Me-style prog, and Vangelis. No shit.

MetalSucks is proud to debut the insanity that is “Apis Bull.” Stream the song below — we think you’ll dig it.

Tree of Tongues comes out April 12 via Mediaskare.

Exotic Animal Petting Zoo – “Apis Bull” by MetalSucks

If the Germans are the kings of power metal then Primal Fear are gods amongst kings; has any band cranked out the sheer POWER– always solid, catchy and unabashedly self-referential — as consistently as Primal Fear? Unbreakable, their ninth album since their 1998 debut, proves without a doubt that the answer is “no;” Primal Fear are the best. Twin guitarmonies, galloping rhythms, high-pitched screams, scorching solos — it’s all here, as you’d expect. Listen to Unbreakable — out today via Frontiers Records — below, and try, just TRY not to raise your fist to the air in triumph any less than once per minute. Order Unbreakable via iTunes here.

Primal Fear – Unbreakable by MetalSucks

Psycroptic are far and away one of the best technical death metal bands in the world, so much so that MetalSucks specifically requested the privilege of being allowed to premiere to the world one of the tracks from their new album The Inherited Repression. “The Throne of Kings” is one of the rippingest tracks on an album full to the brim of ripperific rippers, sure to rip up all parts of your body and corners of your mind. And because Psycroptic would be just another tech-death band if not for their due diligence in songwriting, “Kings” is guaranteed to get stuck in your head, too.

Psycroptic – The Throne Of Kings by MetalSucks

The Inherited Repression comes out on February 7th in the U.S. and February 10th in Europe via Nuclear Blast; pre-order it here. Stream another track from Inherited, “Carriers of the Plague,” over at Psycroptic’s Facebook page.

Here’s an awesome way for you jumpstart your weekend: with the debut of “I Am Spartacus,” a brand new track from Liberteer. A new one-man project from Matthew Widener of Cretin and Citizen fame, Liberteer is a new, unique spin on the grind game: sure, it’s fast n’ furious, but Widener also injects the music with classic-sounding grooves, allowing the tunes to enjoy more breathing room than grind fans might be used to. We think it’s pretty sweet, and we hope that you do, too.

Check out “I Am Spartacus” below. It will appear on Liberteer’s new album, Better to Die on Your Feet Than Live on Your Knees, which comes out January 31 via Relapse. You can pre-order it here, and get more info on Liberteer here.

Liberteer – “I Am Spartacus” by MetalSucks

Death/doom crew Novembers Doom released their new record Aphotic via The End Records earlier this year, and the album finds the Chicago-based metal vets doing more of what they do best, the sound they helped pioneer over 20 years ago: artful yet punishing death grooves laden with doomy, morose undertones. “Harvest Scythe” is one of the album’s stand-out tracks so we’re pleased to be able to exclusively premiere the song’s official music video.

Vocalist and sole remaining founding member Paul Kuhr had this to say about the song and video: “The song is about internal conflict in one’s mind, somewhat multiple personalities. The video shows her going through different personalties, and not being able to escape from them. The different clothes she wears, the chalk outlines on the floor… The house represents her mind where she’s “trapped” and it’s supposed to play like a loop, where if you watch the video a second time, it almost seems like it’s supposed to start over.”

Vancouver’s Nylithia have become one of my favorite unsigned metal acts since I first discovered them a little over two years ago. Beyond their raw talent and their ability to take a thrash base and make it sound completely fresh and new (qualities they share with Revocation), over the two years and two albums I’ve been following them Nylithia have displayed that they know exactly what it is they want to be. In other words, Nylithia sounds like Nylithia and no one else; their sound is instantly recognizable and assignable to them, and they’re incredibly consistent.

So it’s with great pleasure that MetalSucks is premiering “Vein of Creation,” the third song to be released from Nylithia’s new album Hyperthrash. Nylithia are releasing one song at a time from the album for free download, and they’ll be releasing the full album in physical formats once they’ve cycled through all the tracks. They’re promising a music video with each song too — check out the first two vids here and here, both incredibly entertaining — so presumably we’ve got a video for “Vein of Creation” to look forward to in the near future.

More info at Nylithia’s official website.

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How can you not love a band called Whores, whose music has been pitched as “sweet noiserock/pigfuck?” The answer is, you CAN’T not love a band called Whores whose music is sweet noiserock/pigfuck. Dirty, crunchy, bouncy, anthemic (we’re already dying to see these dudes live and scream “LLLLLLIIIIE TO ME UNTIL IT’S TRUE!!!”, and catchy as heckfire, Whores’ debut EP, Ruiner, is a must-have for fans of bands ranging from Eyehategod to Fight Amp. Just check out the below tune, “Tell Me Something Scientific,” and tell us we’re wrong.

You can’t, can you, you poor bastards? That’s okay, we still love you. So now we’ll give you another hot tip: go here to pre-order Ruineron 12″ vinyl in advance of its December 20 release via Brutal Panda, and go to Whores’ official Bandcamp page to check out another track from the EP, “Daddy’s Money.” And tell ‘em MetalSucks sent ya.

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On January 17, 2012, Relapse Records will reissue From Ashes, the debut album from perennial MetalSucks faves Abysmal Dawn. Fully remastered and now featuring three demos for songs from the album, this is THE way to hear the first release from one of the most intense death metal bands of the 21st century. Even if you think you’ve already heard From Ashes, trust us: you ain’t never heard it like this.

MetalSucks is proud to debut both the original demo AND the final, remixed and remastered version of “Blacken the Sky” from this stellar reissue. Since we so enjoy getting insights into the minds of the artists we admire here at MetalSucks, getting to check out the two versions of the song side-by-side is a real treat for us. How did the band originally envision the song? How did it change by the time the final product was complete? What can we learn about the band and their process from those changes? Crank the two versions of “Blacken the Sky” below, pre-order the From Ashes reissue here, and then ponder the answers to those questions in our comments section below!

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By the time Resolution comes out on January 24th, 2012 it will have been almost three full years since the release of Lamb of God’s last album of new material, Wrath. Three years is a long time for fans to wait for new music from a band, but Lamb of God aren’t just any band. From their humble beginnings in Richmond, VA in the mid ’90s, Lamb of God grew to become one of the celebrated champions at the top of the budding New Wave of American Heavy Metal scene in the early 2000s. A decade later, thanks to relentless worldwide touring and a dogged devotion to improving their musical chops while staying true to their roots, Lamb of God are inarguably the biggest modern metal band in the world. If you don’t believe us, try this little thought experiment out for size: what other band this side of Metallica (who stopped qualifying for the “modern” tag long before Lamb of God released their first album) whips the metalsphere into such a dizzying fury whenever they release new music? Lamb of God may reach the dreaded/vaunted “legacy” status some day, but that day is not today: one listen to their brand new track “Ghost Walking” should prove that Lamb of God are is vibrant and relevant as ever.

Get your exclusive first listen of “Ghost Walking” below, then pre-order Resolution in one of several different combo packages through Lamb of God’s official webstore.

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Now, now, no need to worry — we’ll still be posting on a regular basis until December 16. We just thought it might be convenient for you guys to have all of our awesome year-end coverage gathered in one place. So if you haven’t checked out all the lists yet, well… have at ‘im! And things will be back to normal (well, normal for us at least) next week, when we have a series of awesome music premieres for you guys… get stoked.

And now, the listmania!!!

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Did you know that Canadians celebrate Thanksgiving more than a month before we do? Gosh, that’s efficient, although since they hold it on a Monday, I wonder if they do Black Tuesday. But enough of my comical ugly Americanism for a minute; there was a point I was working towards…

Oh yes! Straight outta Montreal, Enforcers have got a crossover thrash update for you with their soon-to-be-released End Of Time 12″ on A389 Recordings. Think DYS, Best Wishes-period Cro-Mags, and ever-lovin’ Madball, and you”ll pick up what I’m putting down. In keeping with the thankfulness of the season, get ready to get grateful because we have an exclusive stream of the record for your listening pleasure. If you dig what you hear, pre-order it directly from A389. And if you’re live in or near Montreal, catch the band’s record release party, which will feature performances from the band and openers Plus Minus, Agitator, True North Strong, Easy Way Out, Wrong Hands, and Sabotage.

-GS

Coalesce are not your average band, and Give Them Rope, the new re-release of the band’s groundbreaking 1997 debut full-length, isn’t your average reissue. Because not only does it feature the original album repackaged and remastered, and not only does it feature extensive liner notes from guitarist Jes Steineger — but it also features a second disc with 2004′s completely re-mixed and re-jiggered version of the release. That’s right: there are TWO versions of Give Them Rope included with this reissue. Pretty frickin’ sweet if you ask us.

MetalSucks is proud to be debuting the complete Give Them Rope reissue — yep, BOTH versions of the record — in advance of its release via Relapse tomorrow, November 22. You can stream it below, then go here to order yourself a copy. ‘Cause let’s be real: you NEED to own this.

And now, enjoy not one but two versions of the Coalesce classic Give Them Rope…

The cover art to Czar’s debut album, Vertical Mass Grave, is some kind of fucked-up metal tribute to Stanley Kubrick’s 2001: A Space Odyssey… and that’s somehow very fitting for the music contained therein. Combining lots of disparate elements into one powerful, anthemic package, Czar are one of those bands who could build a bridge between those who considers themselves tr00 and those who just wanna rock; their style of metal knows no boundries.

MetalSucks is proud to debut the track “Family Crest” from Vertical Mass Grave in advance of the album’s release on December 6 via Crack Nation Records. If you like what you hear — and we’re assuming you will — go to Czar’s official website for more info on the band, and to get links to pre-order the album in various formats.

And now, enjoy “Family Crest” by Czar!

We’ve been telling you about Keith Merrow’s death metal side project Demisery for months now, and we’ve even given you a sample of what the album has in store. Today we give you the exclusive premiere of Hive of Mutation in full, evil riffs, searing solos, churning blast beats, bowel-rumbling death growls courtesy of Gord Olson, and all. You all should know by now that Merrow can work his way around a guitar, but that he’s able to execute a death metal record so well — with songs and riffs that actually stick in your brain, no less — shows just what a master of modern metal he is. Click “play” and let the grimness wash over you, then head over to Keith Merrow’s website to pre-order the record, which comes out on November 14th.

Hey, so, remember when Devin Townsend promised that, following the completion of all four albums in The Devin Townsend Project’s Ki/Addicted/Ghost/Deconstruction cycle, there would be a “monumental box set” containing “eight records plus a DVD?” Well, as you are most surely aware by now, all four albums have been completed and released — which means it’s time for the super-duper-awesome box set.

MetalSucks has exclusively obtained specs on the collection, which will be entitled Contain Us.  (Please note that the details outlined in the below document are not 100% final, but they’re pretty close — for example, there will actually be 5,000 copies worldwide, not 2,500 as the sheet says, and the vinyl featuring two exclusive tracks will be a 7″, not a 10″.) The so-incredible-sounding-it-has-us-drooling-already packaging was designed by Tom Bejgrowicz from manAlive Design; you probably already know Bejgrowicz from his work with God Forbid, Rolling Stone magazine, and the also-so-cool-it’s-silly coffin box set he designed for the Misfits. But, frankly, this new piece for Heavy Devy sounds like it’s gonna blow that Misfits thing right the hell out of the water.

Click on image of the specs below to enlarge, download, and get all the details for yourself, and start saving up for it now, because they are going to be limited edition, and you are definitely going to want one. Contain Us is scheduled for release later this very year! More details as we get ‘em!

Man oh man, do we have an awesomely weird one for you today. To our delight, Jucifer asked us to premiere their new video, for the song “Hiroshima,” and we can pretty guarantee you that you haven’t seen a metal video like this before. It might be fun (or horrifying, we’re not really sure) to drop some acid before watching this clip. But if you don’t have acid, well, no worries — the images in this video will more than convey the feeling that you are tripping balls. Seriously, this is a strange, strange video, and we mean that as a very high (!) compliment.

Check out the David Hall-directed clip below! “Hiroshima” appears on Jucifer’s latest, Throned in Blood, which is out now on Nomadic Fortress/Relapse. The duo has a new album and a European tour planned, both slated for April.  In the meantime, they’ll celebrate their nineteenth year as a band and twelfth year of nonstop touring with dates across the midwest and east coast. You can get all their upcoming tour dates here. The band’s early four track EP Nadir has recently been mastered for reissue by Scott Hull, and will see its first digital release via Grindcore Karaoke soon.

But wait! There’s more! Director David Hall — who also made the Maryland Deathfest movies, as well as videos for Today is the Day, Agoraphobic Nosebleed, Sigh, Fuck the Facts, Hail of Bullets,and Woods of Ypres — is getting out of the of the music video business, and into… the VHS business??? Read more after the jump.

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