I don’t hate Soulfly as much as some people — in fact, I quite enjoyed 2005′s Dark Ages, and that Greg Puciato sections of that one song from the last album — but I can’t find a nice thing to say about the album art for the band’s upcoming eighth full-length, Enslaved. It looks lo-fi, but not in a cool way, like the cover Terrorizer’s Hordes of Zombies. And why are the edges blacked out? And why are the edges on the left side more blacked out than the edges on the right side? It just doesn’t seem like that much thought went into this thing.

Enslaved comes out March 13 on Roadrunner. It has some pretty cool guests on it, like Cattle Decapitation’s Travis Ryan and Dez Fafara from DevilDriver (and, uh, Coal Chamber), so it should really go without saying, but if the music on the album is good, then it really won’t matter what the cover looks like. Although the band’s new bass player is the dude who used to be in Static-X, so that doesn’t bode well, does it?

-AR

Today is seemingly “news about albums that are coming out in early 2012″ day. To that end:

• Soilwork are writing a new album called The Living Infinite. Generic quote time: Speed Strid says that “people can expect a continuation of the intensity and presence of The Panic Broadcast, only taken to a higher level” and wishes us all a merry Christmas and Happy New Year. Gee, thanks, Speed!
• Gojira have issued their third studio update video, this one showing bassist Jean-Michel Labadie laying down his tracks. Labadie is the member of Gojira I feel like I know the least about; I’d love to get to know that guy! Gojira are presumably all done or close to done recording their album by now… very exciting.
• Lamb of God released a new trailer for their new album Resolution (January 24th, Epic Records), and it features a good chunk of a previously unheard song. Check it out above, and listen to the first single “Ghost Walking” here if you haven’t yet.

Hey, so remember last week when we told you this year’s Metal Alliance Tour* featuring DevilDriver, The Faceless, Dying Fetus, Job For A Cowboy, 3 Inches of Blood, and Impending Doom? Well, the full tour itinerary has been released, so now you can, like, go n’ shit. I don’t really know what else there is to say about this tour… it’s such a killer line-up, I’m just stoked to go.

Here are the dates, courtesy of Lambgoat:

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Last year’s first annual Metalliance Tour had a sweet line-up — Helmet, St. Vitus, Crowbar, Kylesa, Red Fang, Howl, and The Atlas Moth — and it’s looking like this year’s edition will as well… although, holy tonal shift Batman, y’know? According to Lambgoat, the bill this year will consist of Devildriver, The Faceless, Dying Fetus, Job For A Cowboy, 3 Inches of Blood, and Impending Doom, six bands who are obviously way, way different from the groups that played last year.

But who cares? There’s literally only bad band on the bill — Impending Doom — and if they play first, they’ll be easy to miss anyway. The rest of this bill is a total beast.

Only a few dates have gotten out so far, but more are sure to follow. So, for now:

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MetalSucks photographer extraordinaire Miikka Skaffari has done it again! This time he braved the pits of the Regency Center in San Francisco to bring you some totally awesome shots from The North American Khaos Tour, which we are very proudly co-presenting with Full Metal Jackie. Miikka was able to capture some totally killer photos of headliners Arch Enemy along with support acts DevilDriver and Chthonic. (For reasons beyond his control, he wasn’t able to get any pics of Skeletonwitch. We’re as bummed as you are. But we’re sure we’ll be able to get you some awesome SW shots during the band’s upcoming co-headlining tour with Kvelertak, which we are also proudly presenting.)

And don’t forget, there are still four dates left on the tour! They are…

Sept. 30 – Albuquerque, NM – The Sunshine
Oct. 01 – Denver, CO – The Gothic
Oct. 03 – Minneapolis, MN – First Avenue
Oct. 04 – Chicago, IL – House of Blues

Definitely check the tour out if you can, ’cause it rips.

And now, enjoy the awesome photos!

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This is a really long post and I apologize in advance. I’ve tried to edit it down and this is as short as I can make it without sacrificing any of the points I’m trying to drive home. Sorry.

I got home last night around 11:30 pm, and to my surprise and delight, Chimaira’s Mark Hunter was STILL GOING on his tweeting tear (new topics of discussion include the very depressing realities of touring in a van versus paying for a bus, and how a band’s road crew can sometimes make more money than the band itself does), continuing to answer HUNDREDS of fans’ questions on all facets of the music business, and pulling yet even more industry insiders, like DevilDriver’s Dez Fafara, into the mix. In fact, Hunter was still going as of about 3 a.m. EST this morning, hours after I’d finally hit the sack, and literally just as I started typing this, I noticed that he is now awake and at it again. And I would like to re-emphasize the amazingness of this conversation. Not only should you be following Mark on Twitter, but you should also read this really, really incredible interview that Metal Insider published earlier today on the whole topic — not only is it another nice summation of much of what Hunter has been discussing, but it goes into even greater depth on many of these topics.

ANYWAY, my contribution to this ongoing discussion was to express surprise that no one had brought up the topic of publicists yet; Mark promptly did address the topic (and discusses it a little more in the aforementioned Metal Insider interview), and I’m going to publish his thoughts after the jump. But I also want to take some time and express my own thoughts on the important role publicists play in this industry. ‘Cause, as I said on Twitter last night, your band does not need to be signed to have a publicist, and, yes, if you can afford one, a good PR rep is totally worth having.

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The North American Khaos Tour, which we are very proudly co-presenting with Full Metal Jackie, is winding down — there are only five dates left! Hopefully you caught a show, or live in a city/town where you will be able to catch one of these last few shows, ’cause the line-up is killer, and the concerts have been a total blast.

Now headliners Arch Enemy have posted a behind-the-scenes video from the tour, which you can watch below. Support, in case you didn’t know, comes from DevilDriver, Skeletonwitch, and Chthonic.

Don’t forget to check out the special Khaos-themed editions of “Rigged” that Arch Enemy bassist Sharlee D’Angelo and DevilDriver guitarist Mike Spreitzer did for us, too. And you can get those last five tour dates after the jump!

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Back in July, Dave Mustaine announced that he was bringing Gigantour back in 2012, and now, in an interview with Street Date (above – skip to the 3:00 mark), Mustaine claims that Megadeth will soon be touring with Motörhead, Volbeat, and Lacuna Coil “this year coming up.” That’s a pretty loose time frame ,so it’s not clear if he’s referring to Gigantour or just a regular Megadeth tour. Although, come to think of it, Gigantour hasn’t had a second stage since 2006, meaning it’s usually just been a four or five band package anyway, so, uh, I’m not really sure what would differentiate this from a “proper” Gigantour.

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Devildriver are currently out on their MetalSucks-sponsored North American support run with Arch Enemy, also featuring Skeletonwitch and Chthonic (dates here). Devildriver guitarist Mike Spreitzer — who runs the recently re-launched guitar-centric site AllAxess.com with his DevilDriver axe cohort Jeff Kendrick — has taken some time out of his busy touring schedule to guide MetalSucks gearheads through a rundown of his live rig. Here’s Mike:

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For the latest edition of their ongoing series “The Fix,” our number one homies over at Metal Injection got Michael Amott and Sharlee D’Angelo to pick out some of their favorite videos, including clips from Fates Warning, King Diamond, Savatage, Queensrÿche, and Crimson Glory. Check that shit out below, ’cause it’s, like, way entertaining.

Don’t forget that Arch Enemy is currently headlining the North American Khaos tour, which we’re proudly co-presenting with  Full Metal Jackie. Support comes from DevilDriver, Skeletonwitch, and Chthonic. You can get dates here.

And, of course, you can and should check out more episodes of “The Fix” over at Metal Injection.

-AR

While we continue to wait for that Killcorpse Murder project with Adam D., Corpsegrinder, and Shannon Lucas to get off the ground, here’s another newly-teased supergroup to get you all hot under the collar.

Noisecreep noticed on Friday afternoon that DevilDriver vocalist Dez Fafara and Lamb of God guitarist Mark Morton announced — via their respective Twitter accounts, natch — that they were collaborating on “a bunch of KILLER tunes,” with Circus of Power, Soundgarden, and Trouble being cited as influences. And, uh, I really have no idea what that would sound like. I hear the aural relationship between Trouble and Soundgarden, but Circus of Power is where I get thrown for a loop.

ANYWAY, on Saturday The PRP strung together a bunch more of Fafara’s tweets, which seek to clarify/update the news:

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Nope. Not if their new song, “Reduced to the Failure of Prayer,” is any indication. ‘Cause that shit is positively Satanic. In fact, it’s hard to listen to it and not picture cities tumbling, populations ravaged by plague and forced to watch Kevin James movies, fire, brimstone, torment, and complete fucking misery — y’know, all the most fun parts of the Bible. Get your neck-snappin’ windmill on here.

And good timing on the release of the tune, too, ’cause guess what? The awesome North American Khaos tour that we’re co-presenting with Full Metal Jackie, and which features Arch Enemy, DevilDriver, Skeletonwitch (natch), and Chthonic, starts this Thursday, September 8!!! You do no wanna miss out. Get dates here. Skeletonwitch are also doing a bunch of off-dates with DevilDriver, and a bunch of headlining shows in the Midwest; you can get those dates here.

Forever Abomination comes out October 11 on Prosthetic.

-AR

In 2006, Kerrang! celebrated the twentieth anniversary of Metallica’s Master of Puppets by releasing Remastered, a re-recording of the entire album with each song performed by a different band (Machine Head did “Battery,” Trivium did the title track, Mastodon did “Orion,” etc.). I don’t actually remember that release very well, but the only track that remains in my in iTunes library is Chimaira’s cover of “Disposable Heroes,” so, uh, yeah, I guess I didn’t like it very much.

ANYWAY, I mention it because now apparently Metal Hammer is doing more or less the same thing in celebration of the twentieth anniversary of The Black Album, which made many of us feel ready for the retirement home earlier this month. I have no idea if this will be more or less cool than the Remastered thinger; frankly, a lot of the bands on the comp are ones with whom I am not currently familiar (Motorjesus?) or don’t like (Neaera). But Metal Hammer has released samples of three of the tracks, so you want to start passing judgment early.

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You know what’s an awesome way to prepare for the North American Khaos Tour, the super-incredible Arch Enemy/DevilDriver/Skeletonwitch/Chthonic trek we’re co-presenting with Full Metal Jackie? By checking out this stream of Chthonic’s new album, Takasago Army.

Chthonic are the only band on that tour I’m only kinda-sorta familiar with — which is to say, I’ve heard some of their music before, but I’ve never seen them live. But this Takasago Army makes me wanna check them out that much more. It’s kinda like Dimmu Borgir, if Dimmu Borgir has more Asian elements to their music, and hadn’t completely lost the thread. This is some catchy, catchy stuff.

Headbang here, then come back and let us know what you think in the comments section. Takasago Army comes out September 6 on Spinefarm; the North American Khaos Tour starts September 8. Get dates here.

-AR

Arch Enemy’s North American Khaos headlining tour — which we’re co-presenting with Full Metal Jackie and which also features DevilDriver, Skeletonwitch, and Chthonic — starts next week!!! I’m so goddamned excited I can’t even tell you. I haven’t seen Arch Enemy live in, like, I dunno, two years I think? And they ALWAYS MURDER in concert.

The band’s new video, for “Bloodstained Cross,” isn’t doing anything to lessen my enthusiasm, either. It’s a collection of live footage — I’m assuming filmed at the band’s recent appearances at various summer European festivals, although don’t quote me on that — and just seeing how rabid those crowds are… man. Can I go see Arch Enemy tomorrow, pretty please?

“Bloodstained Cross” comes off of Arch Enemy’s latest, Khaos Legions, which is out now on Century Media. You can get dates for their upcoming tour right here.

-AR

Skeletonwitch have released the first in a series of webisodes chronicling the making of their new album, Forever Abomination. And I know there’s a real glut of in-studio webisodes being released in this day and age of flip cams and iMovie, but you should seriously check this one out, ’cause a) Skeletonwitch rules, b) you get to hear a little bit of new music, c) you actually do get some really good dish on the album, d) you get to learn a lot about new drummer Dustin Boltjes, e) it looks like it was shot by the people who made that movie Bellflower, and f) all of the above.

Forever Abomination comes out October 11 on Prosthetic. Skeletonwitch are going to be one of the support bands on Arch Enemy’s upcoming North American headlining tour, which we’re co-presenting with Full Metal Jackie; DevilDriver and Chthonic are also on the bill. You can get dates for that tour here. Skeletonwitch are also doing a bunch of off-dates with DevilDriver, and a bunch of headlining shows in the Midwest; you can get those dates here.

-AR

Skeletonwitch must be one of the most metal metal bands out there right now; there’s no pretense to their music, no core, nothing about it that’s retro, nothing about it that’s trendy, no way to describe it as anything other than “fucking metal.” Combine this with the fact that Chance Garnette is absolutely one of the most entertaining frontmen on the scene today, and, well, it is absolutely no shock that people love this band. They are worth loving.

So you’ll be happy to know that their just-released new song, “The Infernal Resurrection,” does not disappoint. It is EXACTLY what a new Skeletonwitch song should be. Check it out:

The band has also unveiled the cover art for their new album, Forever Abomination, via that album’s pre-order page. Although it’s at a slight angle for some reason. Still looks pretty fucking cool, though:

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That’s right! As many of you have correctly guessed by now, the headliner of the Magical Mystery Tour 2011 we’re co-presenting with Full Metal Jackie is none other than the great Arch Enemy. Yep. We basically pulled the same trick on you that we did the last time we sponsored an Arch Enemy trek. Hey, we did say that this tour has a different line-up, and, technically, we weren’t lying!

And what a line-up it is! As you now know, Arch Enemy will be joined by DevilDriver, Skeletonwitch, and Chthonic. Arch Enemy’s latest, Khaos Legions, might be their strongest album in years, which is saying something, since they’ve never made a bad record; DevilDriver’s recent Beast is, well, a beast; and while we haven’t gotten to hear any new Skeletonwitch or Chthonic material yet, people in the know assure us that it’s awesome — certainly all their old stuff is!

In other words: These shows are going to be ABSOLUTELY FUCKING INSANE, so make sure you get your ass to a gig!

Get tour dates after the jump! And don’t forget that Khaos Legions is out now on Century Media.

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So this being metal, the powers-that-be decided they wanted to shift the schedule for this tour announcement slightly. Apologies to those who were waiting impatiently for the reveal of the identity of the next band.

The good news is, many of you correctly guessed last week that the third of the four bands on the upcoming super-duper awesome tour we’re sponsoring is, indeed, DevilDriver. They’ll join the previously announced Skeletonwitch and Chtonic on the trek, which is sure to cause chaos and cruelty without beauty wherever it goes.

But who will headline this godless entity of a tour?!?! We’ll let you know one week from today — but for now, here are some clues…

• Like Skeletonwitch, two members of this band are related.
• This is their first U.S. tour in almost two years.
• They have a new album coming out very, very, VERY soon. Like, very soon.

So get with the guessin’… come next Monday, the complete line-up shall be unveiled!!!

-Axl, Vince, and Everyone at MetalSucks

Jennifer’s Body was screwed before a single image flickered in public. The immediate reasons were twofold.

First, Karyn Kusama directed it. That would be that same Kusama whose gritty indie-film Girlfight was celebrated, but whose pricey, high fashion futurist Æon Flux was shredded by the studio and then released without reviewer pre-screenings. The press surveyed the carnage, located the person least responsible— ironically, Kusama — and promptly laid blame on her.

Around the same time, Diablo Cody was still flush with the out of the box success of her first screenplay, Juno. Was it time to knock the attractive ex-stripper down a few pegs no matter what she wrote? Yes it was.

So — deadset on consigning Kusama to the dustbin of one-hit-wonders and eager to loathe anything Cody crafted, the critics promptly lowered themselves to the occasion by trashing the hard-to-pigeonhole Jennifer’s Body on its release in 2009 for reasons that were united mainly by their inchoate ugliness. But later for what may have explained Body’s kneejerk drubbing.

For I am here to praise Cody/Kusama’s great film, which may have MetalSucks readers going, “What the fuck is Jennifer’s freakin’ Body release doing in the New York Times of Metal anyway?”

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