… Brandon Ellis. You might recognize the 18-year old (!) Ellis’s name from his run as a touring guitarist with Arsis on their most recent Jim Malone-less tour, or perhaps from his brief stint with North Carolina-based MS-faves Vanisher. Filling in for Jim Fucking Malone in Arsis is pretty dern impressive on its own, but learning a band’s entire live set — let alone a band as technical and precise as Sylosis — in TWO DAYS, then going out on tour with them to open for As I Lay Dying in 1,000+ capacity venues? Mind boggling. This kid’s got my respect.

But the news of Brandon Ellis replacing Alex Bailey — who broke his wrist mere days into Sylosis’ U.S. tour — isn’t new in and of itself, as Ellis started playing with the band late last week and several other sites picked up the news around that time. Mainly I just wanted a reason to post this new live music video of Sylosis playing “A Serpent’s Tongue,” ’cause Sylosis are fan-fucking-tastic and you really ought to pay them attention. I named their 2011 release Edge of the Earth as one of my Top 15 of 2011, so use this as an excuse to catch up on what you missed.

-VN

[via No Clean Singing]

Ever since Jim Malone announced that Arsis would be touring without him — the Dave Mustaine of Megadeth, the Trent Reznor of NIN, etc — we’ve been scratching our heads. Would it be weird? Would it be good? Would it still even be Arsis? If you were to replace all the boards of a ship one at time, would it still be the same ship? If not, at what exact point does it cease to be the same ship?

I saw Arsis Without Arsis open for Firewind in NYC a couple weeks ago, and although the band was ridiculously tight and sounded fantastic it was definitely really fucking weird to watch. I’m sure a few kids there had no idea anything was amiss — perhaps those kids will go on to become huge Arsis fans — but to me it was a strange sight. On a night where Arsis played without Arsis, Firewind were great but played in a venue way too big for them, and the crowd seemed disinterested in Nightrage, White Wizzard — whoever the fuck is in the band this week — were actually the most normal / best thing about the entire night. How crazy is that?

Anyway, here’s Arsis Without Arsis performing a new song called “Sense the Shadows” in St. Paul, Minnesota, earlier this month. Like I said before, really tight, sounds great… just weird to look at.

-VN

Thanks: Fuzzy Dunlop

Regular MetalSucks readers already know Empyreon; featuring Meek is Murder drummer Frank Godla (although it’s worth noting that they sound nothing like Meek is Murder), they’re one of NYC’s finest melodic death metal acts, and were on our free NYC Sucks comp earlier this year. And while we eagerly await their new full-length next year, the band has blessed us with a little taste in the form of a demo of “No Peace No Light,” which you can check out here.

Even in such rough demo song, it’s a prime example of why we love this band so much, and why we’re so stoked for their new full-length. It’s heavy, it’s fast, it’s catchy, and it’s fucking EPIC. Seriously, make sure you check that shit out.

While we continue to wait impatiently for the band’s new album, they’ll be opening next week’s New York stop of the currently-in-progress Firewind/Arsis/White Wizzard/Nightrage tour. We’re giving away two free pairs of tickets here; you can also buy a special ticket package from the band, which includes a copy of the new single and some sweet swag, right here.

-AR

Firewind’s headlining tour of North America with Arsis, White Wizzard, and Nightrage begins in just a couple of weeks, and that’s a great line-up and I’m excited to go…

…only we just got a press release saying that Jim Malone won’t be touring with Arsis. Here’s a statement from the man himself:

“Due to professional and personal commitments I am unable to tour with Arsis at this time. For the upcoming tour with Firewind, rather than drop off the tour entirely, we’ve decided to hire live musicians, some of whom have long been associated with my band.  I have given Nick [Cordle, guitarist] and Noah [Martin, bassist] my blessing and am certain the lineup will be great. My sincerest apologies to anyone who is annoyed or disappointed by my absence. Please go and support Arsis and check out some of our new songs, which they will be playing every night!”

With all due respect to the other members of Arsis, that idea seems, well, totally bizarre to me — like, if Megadeth were to announce a tour without Dave Mustaine bizarre. Jim Malone isn’t just the key creative element in Arsis — he’s been the only constant in the band since its inception. In short, Jim Malone IS Arsis. And we don’t even know who these “live musicians” are! Is it someone awesome? Just some random dudes standing on stage? WHAT THE CRAP IS HAPPENING HERE?!?!

I’ll be kinda curious to see this Malone-free Arsis, but, mostly, I’m pretty bummed out by this news.

You can get tour dates here. Below, watch a video of Cordle discussing the tour, which, as kind of a way to appease us fans I s’pose, includes pre-production demos of some new material… which, in all fairness, sounds pretty frickin’ sweet.

-AR

You know him and you love him; Gus G., mastermind and guitarist of Greek metallers Firewind, who also happens to be the newest addition to the band of some guy named Ozzy. We’ve got a Gus G. ESP Gus-200 Signature Series guitar to give away to one lucky MetalSucks reader who comments with our favorite answer to the following question:

What’s your favorite Ozzy guitar solo of all time, and why?

Firewind will be on tour in North America with Arsis, White Wizzard and Nightrage this October. Get a full list of tour dates here.

What makes The Black Dahlia Murder the cream of metal’s crop is that, while never abandoning their face-ripping ways, they refuse to just spin their wheels from album to album. The dudes started out good, and they keep getting better. No amount of flowery verbiage myself could back that statement up more than just one listen to Ritual will. Because just one listen is all The Black Dahlia Murder needs to grab you by the throat, beat you senseless, and leave you lying on the pavement like some ninety-pound moron who just picked a fight with Georges St-Pierre. But, being the sadistic little fuck you are, you’re gonna pop right back up and listen again, aren’t you? Damn right you are, because this is hands down one of the most vicious slabs of metal we’ll get this year.

Click to read more…

Note: Seeing Firewind live will not cause actual breaking of fire wind.

Hey, so remember last month when we told you that Firewind were doing a North American headlining tour with support coming from Arsis, White Wizzard, and Nightrage? Well, that tour has an itinerary now, and that itinerary is after the jump. No need to thank me, I get paid to do this.

In all seriousness: Besides a very small handful of dates last fall, this is the first time Firewind has visited this part of the world in quite some time, so I imagine there’s a reasonable amount of you who have never had the chance to see them live before. You should take advantage of this opportunity. Not only is Firewind fun (I don’t even really like power metal and I like Firewind), but this your chance to see Gus G. shred his brains out without an old man frog hopping around the stage and ruining it for everyone.

Also, Arsis! White Wizzard! Nightrage! Okay so I’ve never really been that into Nightrage, but still! Strong line-up.

And so, the tour dates…

Click to read more…

(I have no idea what the current lineup of Arsis looks like, so here’s a picture of Jim Malone)

Arsis are nothing if not consistent; since 2004′s debut A Celebration of Guilt they’ve released an album once every two years, dotted by the occasional EP. But if the new demo for “Since the Shadows” posted on their Facebook page is any indication, they may actually beat their self-prescribed schedule. Here’s the message the band posted along with the track:

We are indeed writing a new ARSIS album and we want to offer everybody a glimpse into the music that we’ve been building for the last few months. This is a demo of a new one called ‘Since the Shadows’ and it’s from the first batch of songs for the album. It’s still early but a musical direction has emerged from the work so far and we think it speaks for itself without any grand pronouncements, so enjoy it and we will see you on the FIREWIND tour this fall!

Songs like “Since the Shadows” give us good reason to be optimistic. It’s instantly recognizable as Arsis; there’s something about the chord voicings and guitar melodies Jim Malone writes that are instantly recognizable and un-mistakingly distinguishable as being Arsis. This song has tons of Arsis-ness, if you will. There’s a word for that, ____-ness in the general sense, the qualities that make any individual thing unique… but I can’t for the life of me remember it. Any English majors out there?

-VN

I get kinda bummed when we hafta write about tours with no dates yet, because it seems like kind of a cocktease — what’s the point of getting excited when you don’t even know if the trek is coming to your town yet? — but these two tours both seem pretty noteworthy. And so:

• Avenged Sevenfold will headline this year’s Rockstar Energy Drink Uproar Festival. Sevendust are also on the tour. And I’m going to pretend that that’s the entire line-up. Yep, just A7X and Sevendust. Two of the best modern pop metal bands touring together, with no one else. What a great bill!
• Firewind are FINALLY gonna do a proper North American headlining tour, with Arsis, White Wizzard, and Nightrage in tow. Not only am I stoked that Firewind are actually touring, but I think it’s really cool of them to have a diverse range of acts as their support. I bet these shows will be a lotta fun.

And we’ll post dates for at least one of these tours as soon as we get ‘em.

-AR

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Welcome to “Question of the Week,” a (sometimes) weekly debate amongst the MetalSucks staff regarding a recent hot button issue.

This week’s question was once again suggested by “Hipsters Out of Metal!” columnist Anso DF, and even though the Grammy nominations were actually announced last week, it still seemed like a fun debate to have. So:

WHAT ARE YOUR NOMINATIONS FOR BEST METAL GRAMMY?

The MS staff’s answers after the jump.

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And, I mean, they’re not wrong — we did, in fact, report the mid-tour (well, after only one date) departure of bassist Nathaniel Carter before anyone else did thanks to our army of sleuthing tipsters. Check out the above video interview from Aux.tv conducted during Arsis’ MetalSucks-sponsored Facemelter Tour with Dying Fetus in which they name-check your favorite metal gossip site.

For whatever reason I really haven’t listened to Arsis’ latest album Starve for the Devil all that much since it came out, which is too bad, because it really is good. I don’t love it as much as I did its predecessor We Are the Nightmare, but like vocalist/guitarist/genuisman James Malone says in this interviewit’s just as technical as Nightmare but it’s more song-focused. And Malone most certainly lets his inner hair metal fan shine brightly: “Skid Row with blast beats.” I love that description… so true!

-VN

Thanks: Lauren Vega

Cam Argon, a.k.a. “Big Chocolate,” is nineteen years old, and meanwhile, he’s the vocalist for at least three different projects, he’s a DJ, he’s in college getting his degree, and, oh yeah, now he’s directed the new Annotations of an Autopsy video, for the song “Bone Crown.” I mean, Vince and I have both been keeping really busy lately, working ridiculously long hours on a lot of projects both related to MetalSucks and not really related to MetalSucks, and this kid makes us look lazy. Cut it out with the being so productive, Cam! Slack off, watch some internet porn, take a nap for no good reason. Sheesh!

Don’t forget that AOAA are part of the <shameless plug>MetalSucks-sponsored Facemelter Tour with Dying Fetus, Arsis, Misery Index, and Conducting from the Grave. Get dates here. </shamelessplug>

-AR

SECOND UPDATE: It’s official. Just got the press release. Hoo-ray!

UPDATE: Longtime MS tipster Saul Hudson just sent the below screencap from Noah Martin’s Facebook page. So I guess it’s true! Original story follows after the jump.

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Let me begin by saying that this should be treated as hearsay until further notice. There’s been no official statement by the band, so we’re really just going on a reader e-mail here. And while we love you guys, y’know. We also love not reporting false information and/or getting sued.

So ANYWAY, MS Maniac Brutal Jay e-mailed us about the MetalSucks-sponsored Facemelter Tour‘s recent stop in Spartanburg, SC – and, specifically, the fact that the band now seems to be a member short. Says Brutal Jay:

“When Arsis took the stage the first thing I noticed was the absence of a bass player. Now, on stage Jim [Malone, guitarist/vocalist] tried to play it off by saying ‘We had a bass player last night but… I guess his face melted… or something.’ So of course after their set I went up to Nick [Cordle, guitarist] to see what actually happened. And Nick said ‘[Bassist Nathanial Carter] smelled pot on the bus and got all pissed off. We didn’t know this but apparently he’s real militant about this sorta thing. He pulled his cell phone out and was threatening to call the cops and shit. So we got him a plane ticket back to Texas and I guess we’ll be without a bass player for a few shows.’”

Click to read more…

I’m in the process of falling in love with Heirs to Thievery – and I think we all know that the courtship is the most exciting part of any relationship. I can’t decide which song is my favorite – I have it narrowed down to either the fifth track, “The Spectator,” or pretty much anything that comes after it – and it probably has some flaws, but I can’t really see them right now. Am I still gonna wanna hit that in six months? Only time will tell, but right now, I’m seriously considering calling Vince to be a witness and running down to city hall.

So the album comes out this Tuesday on Relapse, but you can fall in love with it right now – Heirs to Thievery is streaming right here. Don’t let your other albums see you headbanging to it or they might get jealous.

And, of course, don’t forget that Misery Index are part of the MetalSucks-presented Facemelter Tour 2010 with Dying Fetus, Arsis, Annotations of an Autopsy and Conducting from the Grave. The trek kicked off last night in Baltimore – was anyone there? Did Misery Index play much of the new album? Drop us a line and let us know how it was if you went. And the rest of you can get the ongoing dates here.

-AR

The MetalSucks-sponsored “Facemelter Tour 2010″ is sure to be the most bone-breakingly, ass-rippingly, and, yeah, face-meltingly br00tal tour of the season. Dying Fetus. Holy shit, do those dudes crush live. Arsis? Misery Index? If you ever wanna have childen, I hope you’ve donated sperm recently, because those bands are gonna crush your balls into dust. Sadly, I’ve never seen Annotation of an Autopsy or Conducting from the Grave live before, but given their excellence in the field of “FUCK YOU GGGRRRRR!!!” and brain-melting, it’s hard for me to imagine they’ll do anything but crack skulls and break necks.

And the tour kicks off tonight in Baltimore! Only pansies are gonna miss this thing… and you’re not a pansy, are you? So get dates here, and then get your ass out to a show. It will rule your world.

-AR

We’ve already heard a bootleg live recording of the title track from Misery Index’s new album, Heirs to Thievery; now the actual studio recording is streaming on the band’s MySpace page. And – no shocks here – it’s a scorcher. Alongside “Carrion Call,” the other new song from the album the band has released (and which has an opening riff that increasingly kind of reminds me of The Red Chord’s “Lay the Trap” – anyone else get that feeling?), it’s starting to become pretty clear that Misery Index have done it again. If this don’t scratch Vince’s DM itch, ain’t nuthin’ gunna.

Heirs to Thievery comes out via Relapse on May 11. And don’t forget that the band are on the MetalSucks-sponsored Facemelter Tour with Dying Fetus, Arsis, Annotations of an Autopsy and Conducting from the Grave. Get dates here.

-AR

I’ve always hated top-whatever lists. Best guitarist, best band, best blowjob, best double anal with a horse, whatever. I think that those lists are pretty much all slanted by politics, or bought and paid for. I first got that idea in my head when Titanic won as many Oscars as it did. There were so many movies that year that were far more deserving of the title that my faith in the award system died.

Jump forward about ten years. I just got back in town from the Revolver Golden God Awards. I’ll just say that I’m stoked they exist. Metal needs that in the U.S. I have no issue with their nominees and obviously you can’t pick everyone so this is definitely not directed at them. Again, THIS IS NOT DIRECTED AT REVOLVER MAGAZINE, but the concept of picking “best shredder” or “shredder of the year “is just one of those things you can’t accurately do with the amount of talent that’s out there. You want to nominate Zack Wylde or Dave Mustaine? Okay. That’s cool. Those guys have earned it. But when you leave the circle of greats and legends, how exactly do you pick a BEST shredder? I mean am I alone in thinking that when so many amazing guitarists are overlooked that the award itself loses its meaning? What guitarists am I talking about? Okay… I’ll name a few. In my opinion these guys should be winning all the awards. If I left someone out, it’s because either I haven’t heard of them, I’ve heard them and I don’t think they’re among the very best, I forgot to mention them, or I’ve heard them and I know for a fact that what you think is shredding is just studio trickery.

So here it is. My personal list of whom I think should be winning all the metal guitar awards. Am I biased? Maybe. But I’d like to also think that considering what I do for a living that I’m a good judge of competency in the field. This is in no particular order. These guys all rule for different reasons. (DISCLAIMER: Sorry that there aren’t videos for every dude I mention, but sometimes finding quality footage is tough.)

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I haven’t listened to the promo Relapse sent us of Heirs to Thievery, the new Misery Index album, because it has beeps over the music every thirty seconds or so, and, well, brutal death grind, lacking in melody though it may be, was not meant to be constantly interrupted by beeping. I’m really excited to hear this album, but when I do finally hear it, I want it to hear it properly.

So “Carrion Call,” the new studio recording the band has posted on their MySpace page, is our first real taste of Heirs (We’ve also heard a bootleg live recording of the title track). But it’s a good taste! Tastes like Misery Index. Mmm… Misery Indexxxxxxxx [slobbers].

Heirs to Thievery comes out, beep-free, on May 11. And don’t forget that the band are on the MetalSucks-sponsored Facemelter Tour with Dying Fetus, Arsis, Annotations of an Autopsy and Conducting from the Grave. Get dates here.

-AR

We’re giving away a signed Arsis shirt for “Completely Unreadable Band Logo” this week, but one reader, Bretton Melanson actually e-mailed me to say that while he can’t read the logo, he doesn’t give a shit – ’cause he made his own Arsis shirt and got it signed when he saw the band play the MetalSucks-sponsored Tyrants of Evil North American Tour 2010 with Arch Enemy, Exodus, and Mutiny Within. And, I gotta say, the shirt he made is pretty funny. Here are some pics of Bretton with the band:

Click to read more…