Though we can pretty much rule out a long-awaited follow-up to Axe To Fall before year’s end, Converge aren’t planning to finish 2011 quietly. According to the band’s latest news update, the hardcore hellions will play two December dates, in Denver and Seattle, respectively. The former of these (12/8) is a make-up show with Alternative Tentacles’ Git Some opening, while the latter (12/9) serves as a birthday party of sorts for their tour manager. That second show features some openers you’ll likely recognize, including Black Breath and ex-Botch frontman Dave Verellen’s Narrows. Other things in the pipeline include an “eco-friendly repackaging” of The Long Road Home and a 12″ edition of Unloved And Weeded Out, both due out on J. Bannon’s Deathwish imprint.

Now, two gigs do not a tour make, and unless you live near these towns you’re probably a bit bummed about the whole thing. Still, since Converge claim to be hard at work writing that new record, let’s go a little easy on them, all right?

-GS

Word of who was gonna be on the bill for this year’s Scion Rock Fest, the totally free annual metal super-show, got out yesterday — hell, Wormrot even decided to just go ahead and confirm their presence at the festival. So in that regard, the official announcement of this year’s fest is a little anti-climactic.

Until you realize, holy shit — there really is gonna be a free festival with Morbid Angel, Obituary, Death Angel, Municipal Waste, Agalloch, Wormrot, Kvelertak, Atheist, Black Breath, Nails, Fuck the Facts, and tons more awesome bands. That is a fact about which one ought never to complain.

You can RSVP for the event here starting tomorrow. In the meantime, enjoy the finalized poster:

-AR

I’m enjoying doing these “Cinemetal Round-Up” things, and hopefully you are, too. Actually, I don’t care if you’re enjoying them or not, I’m the one who has to write them and I don’t really know you anyway.

SO, here we go with the latest batch of clips intended to sell you some music.

First up, we have “Bow” from Julie Christmas. The video originally premiered on Stereogum, and the song comes from her new album, The Bad Wife. It’s Julie’s first solo album, although you’d never really know to listen to it — possibly because her Made Out of Babies bandmates apparently helped her write some of the music.

ANYWAY, if you watched this video with the sound off, you’d probably think it was for some viking metal band, ’cause Ms. Christmas and this Sasquatch are running around the woods. Luckily the song is pretty good so you don’t have to watch it with the sound off.

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Black Breath – TBD (Southern Lord/Hot Mass)

The band released the 12″ debut EP, Razor To Oblivion, on their own awhile back, but Southern Lord deftly scooped up the crusty hardcore/metal quintet and re-released Razor on CD with news that the debut full-length would hit streets early in 2010. If this thing is soaked in beer, angst, and riffs as much as the four-track debut was, you might be able to put away those Municipal Waste records and toss in Black Breath at that kegger.

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On paper, Washington’s Black Breath is not the sort of band one typically associates with Southern Lord. Dronesmiths Sunn O))), doomy stoners Eagle Twin, instrumental rockers Pelican, and black metalheads Wolves In The Throne Room all coexist comfortably together on the Californian label. Yet Black Breath’s hybrid of gutter-level punk and classic thrash metal somehow make sense, even if it doesn’t exactly seem appropriate for Southern Lord. Coupled with the August release of Seattle punks The Accused’s all new The Curse of Martha Splatterhead, it almost seems as though the ostentatiously hip imprint is slowly embracing a much less esoteric sound.

On November 10, Southern Lord will re-release Black Breath’s Razor To Oblivion mini-LP in CD format in advance of a proper debut album scheduled for early 2010. That forthcoming full-length was recorded earlier this year and engineered by Converge’s Kurt Ballou. Visit the band’s MySpace page to hear some tracks from Razor To Oblivion.

-GS

[Gary Suarez eats his pizza crust first. He usually manages the consistently off-topic No Yoko No. Say, why don't you follow him on Twitter?]