“Scheduling has been a nightmare for a long time,” says guitarist Rob Caggiano about Temple Of The Black Moon. That seems like hyperbole, but gosh maybe not: TotBM drummer John Tempesta has been dashing between The Cult and Testament tours; singer Dani Filth’s full time job is Cradle Of Filth; Caggiano is bound to Anthrax’s rigorous itinerary, and his TotBM writing partner, Tom Cato Visnes, has been involved with Sahg, I, Gorgoroth, and Ov Hell outings in just the last five years.

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Friendly reminder: as of RIGHT THIS SECOND, the legendary Richard Christy from Death, Iced Earth, Control Denied, and, oh yeah, The Howard Stern Show, is at the MetalSucks/Vertebrae 33  booth at New York Comic Con signing copies of Charred Walls of the Damned‘s ridiculously rocking new album, Cold Winds on Timeless Days, which is out NOW on Metal Blade Records. He’ll be there ’til 7 pm, so there’s still time for you to hop on a bus, subway, or in a cab and get your ass down there — we’re booth #2625. Myself and/or Vince are also there now, and will be there tomorrow and Sunday, too, and we may have some other special guests in store for you yet. So come on by, pick up some free swag courtesy of Indie Merch and Metal Blade, hang out, whatever. It’ll be a blast! Get all the details here.

And now, some other fun shit we did this week:

• We premiered a new live recording of Death’s “Leprosy” and new music from Trapped Under Ice.
• We spoke to Grutle Kjellson from Enslaved, Rex Brown from Kill Devil Hill/Pantera/Down, producer Shane Frisby, and Skateboard Marketing’s Munsey Ricci.
• Valient Thorr’s Valient Himself occupied Wall Street, GWAR’s Dave Brockie gave us the blow-by-blow on the NFL, and Eyal Levi from Dååth and Levi/Werstler and Audiohammer Studios got all Pacino-in-Heat on us.
• We checked out the latest releases from Warbringer and Årabrot.
• We continued The Countdown to The Metal Suckfest and launched a contest in which you can win some sweet swag and a meet and greet session at the show.
• We watched some inter-Emmure drama unfold.
• We begged Sasha Frere-Jones from The New Yorker to stop writing about metal forever.
• We enjoyed the use of Nine Inch Nails in the new trailer for The Avengers.
• We got excited about Cynic’s new line-up + song.
• We celebrated the best Dragonforce cover ever.

Have a terrific, relaxing weekend everyone. See ya Monday, if we don’t see ya at NYCC!

-AR

Yes, it’s true: our interview with Enslaved’s brilliant bassist/vocalist, Grutle Kjellson, came at the end of a very long and stressful day involving behind-the-curtains technical issues here at MetalSucks, and another devastating loss by Vince’s beloved New York Mets. So, yeah, we may have had a few to loosen up before heading into Kjellson’s dressing room to chat. And, yeah, Vince’s can of Bud Light and Kjellson’s can of Corona were both the same color. So, yep yep, at one point, Vince did indeed pick up Kjellson’s beer and take a swig, and, yes, Kjellson did notice immediately. Lucky for us, he was cool about it.

Also lucky for us: the man is a great goddamn interview, and, it should go without saying, a great goddamn performer — later that night, Enslaved absolutely obliterated us, and their stellar performance more than made up for our otherwise crappy day, the embarrassing imbibing of the wrong drink included.

And so, after the jump, get Kjellson’s thoughts on the band’s latest North American headlining tour, their recent collaboration with Scion A/V, plans for their next album, the upcoming celebration party for their twentieth anniversary (!!!), and more.

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Junius are one of those bands whose albums I feel kinda lukewarm on, but who I think are totally fantastic live. And so while I’m still pretty bummed that Ghost had to drop off of Enslaved’s upcoming North American headlining tour with Alcest, I am really happy that Junius are now taking their spot. Like I said yesterday, even Enslaved/Alcest alone would be pretty much unmissable — hell, I’d happily go see either one of those bands just on their own — but now with Junius… well, just think of it as yet another awesome, awesome bonus.

Tour dates remain the same, and you can get those here. Our friends at Brooklyn Vegan are also streaming a new Junius track, “All Shall Float,” and you should give that a listen to, ’cause I may be crazy about that whole “Junius are great live and not great in the studio” thing and I’m curious to hear your opinions. The tune will appear on the band’s new offering, Reports From the Threshold of Death, which comes out October 25 on Prosthetic.

-AR

If you live in the U.S. and you didn’t get to see one of Ghost’s first two North American shows this past May/June (like the one I reviewed), now would be a good time to start weeping. ‘Cause the band has been forced to pull the plug on their previously announced stint touring with Enslaved and Alcest later this month.

The culprit, according to a press release, is “last minute complications with the Ghouls’ visas.” Sigh. Ghost may be able to rise above the metal pack, but they can’t rise above red tape. Bummer bummer bummer.

The band is hoping to come back and do a full U.S. tour soon, and we will definitely let you know when/if those hopes become realities. In the meantime, take solace knowing that an Enslaved/Alcest tour is still totally worth your time, even if having Ghost on the bill would have made it that much more awesome. You can get tour dates here.

-AR

Norwegian black metal is a genre whose history is fraught with controversy and full of murder and church burnings and all other manner of awfulness.  So, naturally, Norway has now given twenty of its diplomats “a black metal crash course,” according to this report:

“The objective is to show Norwegian culture in all its diversity. In the musical field, it goes from (Romantic music composer) Edvard Grieg to black metal,” its deputy head Steinar Lindberg said, adding he hoped to repeat the experience.

“In Italy, Japan or France, young people are learning Norwegian to decrypt the lyrics. Black metal is an export product and it’s important that future diplomats are interested in it,” he added.

Of course, I’m only kidding about the looming shadow of some assholes from twenty years ago being a good reason not to teach this stuff to Norwegian diplomats. Really, I guess Norway deserves a pat on the back for being so chill. So, y’know, three cheers for Norway.

On a semi-related note, my favorite part about the article where we found this story is that they opted not to use a photo of a member of Emperor or Mayhem or Enslaved, but, rather, a picture of Ronnie James Dio, who was neither Norwegian nor a black metal musician. Oh, the mainstream media. So lulzy when they try to cover metal!

-AR

Thanks to everyone who e-mailed us about this.

Last week I saw Ghost live for the first time (at the Studio at Webster Hall, which, if you’ve never been there, is a very, very small venue — I’d be surprised if I ever get to see the band play someplace that intimate ever again). I’m gonna have a live review of the show at some point this week, but for now, I will sum up the concert with but a single word: YES.

The band was here for Maryland Deathfest (where, I’m told, they also dominated) and then they did that one gig here in New York and then, sad for you, they flew home. But now it’s been announced that not only are they coming back to the U.S. this fall, but they’re coming back to the U.S. this fall to play support for Enslaved (featuring Ivar Bjørnson, #22 on our list of The Top 25 Modern Metal Guitarists), and that further support will come from France’s Alcest. I mean, WHAT A FUCKING BILL, right? This is going to be one of the most exciting tours of the fall, and you absolutely cannot miss it.

Here are dates, via Lambgoat:

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Earlier this week we got to hear a little sample of a potentially-quite-good cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Immigrant Song” by Academy Award© Winner Trent Reznor and Karen O from Yeah Yeah Yeahs when it showed up in a trailer for the new movie version of The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo; now Metal Injection have posted a video of Enslaved covering that very same song during a recent performance at the Henie Onstad Cultural Center in Oslo. You can check out video below; the audio quality isn’t great, but it’s good enough!

If you wanna see Enslaved do another cover — this one of King Crimson’s “Red” — head over to Metal Injection. And, lest ye forget, Enslaved’s own Ivar Bjørnson was named #22 on our list of The Top 25 Modern Metal Guitarists; you can read all the nice things Sammy O’Hagar wrote abotu him here.

-AR

It’s damn hard to fault Scion for investing in the metal community unless you’re some kind of anti-corporate-AT-ALL-COSTS punk with a major chip on your shoulder and “DIY” tattooed inside your asshole. I mean, it’d be one thing if they were ramming shlock like Godsmack or Disturbed down our throats, but at least the folks have good taste; local shows and full-on festivals with amazing lineups (all band travel expenses paid for), new releases by Magrudergrind, Cannibal Corpse, and now Enslaved… at least the people have good taste. All that for the price of having to read the word “Scion” every now and again; sweet deal. (I happily drive a Honda, btw)

The latest car company-funded record, of course, is Enslaved’s The Sleeping Gods EP, which is available starting today for free download (you’ll have to d/l each of the EP’s four tracks separately instead of in one .zip; alas, they can’t always get everything right.) Yesterday Axl told you about the new song “Heimvegen,” streaming over at Metal Injection, and today Decibel’s got “Alu Misyrki,” a decidedly more old-school feeling track. Download the full Sleeping Gods EP here, entirely for free.

While you’re busy trolling our comments section over the legitimacy of a car company releasing a Norwegian black metal record, consider doing the same for our #22 Top Modern Metal Guitarist, Enslaved’s Ivar Bjørnson. We’d be most grateful.

-VN

WHAT AN EMBARRASSMENT OF RICHES!

As if a new Revocation song wasn’t enough to make your day, our Big Lebroski’s over at Metal Injection are now streaming “Heimvegen,” the latest unpronounceable song from Enslaved, the band which features Ivar Bjørnson, a.k.a. the twenty-second top modern metal guitarist. It’s catchy and heavy and beautiful and epic and dreamy all at once — in other words, it’s an Enslaved song. Check it out here.

“Heimvegen” will appear on Enslaved’s The Sleeping Gods EP, which Scion A/V will release for *free* download sometime in the not-too-distant future. Okay now Enslaved are just going out of their way to piss off tr00 kvltists, right?

-AR

MetalSucks recently polled its staff to determine who are The Top 25 Modern Metal Guitarists, and after an incredible amount of arguing, name calling, and physical violence, we have finalized that list! The only requirements to be eligible for the list were that the musician in question had to a) play metal (duh), b) play guitar (double-duh), and c) have recorded something in the past five years. Today we continue our countdown with Enslaved’s Ivar Bjørnson…

Enslaved arrive at our feet as a package deal: woozy synths and atmospherics; Pink Floyd-ian touches; Grutle Kjellson’s harsh, phlegmy scream; and the back in forth between prog-flecked black metal and black metal-flecked prog. But considering the band’s individual achievements, none come off better than Ivar Bjørnson, founding axeman. Their metamorphosis into what they are today — a truly great metal band you could at best arguably call “black metal” — would have been impossible without him. The bold steps between Frost — their debut full length — and their latest — the dense masterpiece Axioma Ethica Odini – are like listening to someone grow up, taking in more music and life experience. Along the way Enslaved always flourished, and there isn’t a band in black metal with more interesting, bizarre, and pleasing guitar work than them. Ivar was at the helm for that the whole time.

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Sure, it’s been a shitty week for Kvelertak and their stateside fans: We reported Saturday that the Norwegian scream-rockers got separated from vital travel documents right before departure for their first-ever US tour dates (including the MetalSucks co-presented SXSW super-jam). That bums me out cuz duh those fuckerz jam (which is good for concertgoers), but moreso because I was pumped for the band’s imminent chance to, like, collect on their roaring buzz here (which is good for them). Okay sorry about that mixed metaphor. But the point is that if I were a member of Kvelertak (please can I be a member of Kvelertak?), I’d want to further enable American rockers to pony up some cash for the record that about a billion of us have possessed/loved for months ahead of its proper US release. All is not lost cuz a bonus track-laden US version of Kvelertak still drops Tuesday, but I can’t help but lament the fact that a string of ballsack-singeing live sets would’ve cranked open a lot more wallets a lot wider. And deservedly so.

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That’s right: MetalSucks photog Alyssa Lorenzon once again braved the smelly, pushy crowds at The Electric Factory in Philly, all in the name of snapping some awesome shots for you to lunkheads to enjoy. This time, she got some ridiculously cool pics of Dimmu Borgir, Enslaved, and Blood Red Throne when they stopped at said venue last month. And, once again, the results are awesome!  Check out Alyssa’s pics after the jump!!!

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Better late than never… MS photographic whiz Jacqueline Cheng was back at it November 8th at NYC’s Terminal 5 to catch Dimmu Borgir with opening act Enslaved. Check out her epic-as-usual photos after the jump.

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

Tomorrow is Thanksgiving, which means we’re taking off early today and won’t be back ’til Monday. We’re sorry to leave non-American readers high n’ dry, but PLUS ONE FOR FREEDOM, MOTHERFUCKERS.

ANYWAY, in honor of the holiday, we decided to do a special Turkey Day-themed QOTW designed to make you feel all warm and cuddly inside:

WHAT (IN METAL) ARE YOU THANKFUL FOR?

The MS staff’s answers after the jump.

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Before there were blogs there were these things called magazines, and the only metal magazine we still get excited about reading every month is Decibel. Here’s managing editor Andrew Bonazelli.

Axl was rad enough to mention it on Tuesday, and many of you have probably seen our newsletter already, so we’ll just reiterate the basics super fast:

• The Decibel Flexi Series will commence unlubricated face-decimation with the January 2011 issue (out in early December).
• Flexis are clear vinyl incorporated into the actual magazine.
• Every month a new band will drop never-before-heard awesomeness on said flexi.
• “Never-before-heard” means unreleased tracks, covers, liveage, demos, alternate takes or re-recordings. Who knows, maybe even a skit like the kind Type O used to open albums with. I’m sure, like, Pig Destroyer have been dying to cover “Skip It.”
• Brutal Truth are doing the first one. Enslaved are doing the second.
• Only subscribers get to handle these super collectible, extremely limited, most brutal of truths.

That much you probably already know. As for the future, trust us, there’s no shortage of bands being considered for this series. But right now that’s mostly just in-house fantasy draft stuff. Now would be a good time to hear from you guys: Who would you like to see in this thing? Got any dream covers? Know of anything crazy-rare that would blow minds if it just finally fucking got out there? Please tell us, in the spirit of Ludacris and weak-ass gamer puns, what’s your vinyl fantasy?

P.S. A particularly badass one might be Incantation smashing through Golgotha live, which you can check out for yourself on their Decibel Hall of Fame mini-tour , which kicks off tomorrow at Reggie’s Rock Club in Chicago.

-AB

Like the man said, the only way to get these awesome flexi discs is to subscribe to Decibel, so get off your tuchus and do that. You can also buy the flexi-less-but-still-killer December 2010 issue here.

I can’t think of anything clever to say right now, so I’m just gonna leave to my homies, Ozzy and Forest:

Here’s what we did this week:

• Veil of Maya’s Marc Okubo gave us our first Legacy Tour diary, Intronaut’s Sacha Dunable gave us a lesson in why Californians should have voted to legalize weed, and The Red Chord’s Greg Weeks gave MetalSucks readers a chance to write about the NFL themselves for once.
• We debuted new music by The Secret.
• We spoke to Dredg’s Gavin Hayes, Enslaved’s Ivar Bjørnson, and Nails’ Todd Jones.
• We checked out new releases by Masters of Reality and Colombian Necktie.
• We kicked off the arguing regarding the best albums of 2010.
• We wondered, “Which is better, death metal or black metal?”
• We also wondered if we should like Mogwai.
• We regretted learning about Gump-core.
• We watched a chick shred some Faceless.
• We tried to find a stage big enough to hold Glenn Danzig’s ego.

Have nice weekend everybody. See ya Monday.

-AR

Before there were blogs there were these things called magazines, and the only metal magazine we still get excited about reading every month is Decibel. Here’s managing editor Andrew Bonazelli.

In 1998, there was Lords of Chaos. In 2008, there was Until the Light Takes Us. Somewhere between that, aired amongst a bunch of shitty Victory ads on Headbangers Ball, there was this. One might logically conclude that, between this biography, documentary and $100-budget commercial, the history of black metal has been comprehensively documented.

Not so! With this much personality, talent, vision, rampant egotism and disdain for non-Aryans, the genre remains entertainingly unstable — the more you talk to its original practitioners, the more weird new anecdotes bubble up to augment a perpetually-contested whole. That — along with the need to finance multiple third-term back-alley abortions for the staff’s favorite strippers — is why we’ve concocted our second exclusive Decibel one-off, the Black Metal Hall of Fame issue.

Our staffers busted ass to bring you eight tales from black metal’s vast crypt. Three of them you’ve never seen before — touchstones from Burzum, Satyricon and Rotting Christ — and the Darkthrone feature was only previously available in our HOF anthology, Precious Metal. This monster’s not included with subscriptions and is only available online and at select indie record retailers starting around November 8.

The final roster is, as you can see above, Immortal, Burzum, Venom, Darkthrone, Emperor, Satyricon, Enslaved and Rotting Christ. I’m too lazy to copy and paste the album titles, but are there any bands you’d prefer for a prospective round two? (Bear in mind that everyone’s gotta be alive to do these things, so no dice on Bathory and Mayhem.)

-AB

Please help the staff of Decibel finance all the necessary third-term back-alley abortions for their favorite strippers by purchasing the special Black Metal Hall of Fame issue here. You can also help contribute to this tremendous cause by buying yourself a copy of the December 2010 issue of Decibel or, better still, buying yourself a full subscription.

Enslaved are in that rare category of bands: You can safely get excited every time they announce the release of a new album, because they’ll never let you down. Their latest offering, Axioma Ethica Odini, only proves this point — eleven albums and nearly twenty years into the career, Enslaved are at past the point where even the most-revered metal bands often seem to lose creative steam. But Axioma feels just as unique, challenging, forward-thinking, and just plain rockin’ as anything the band has ever done.

This past Friday, just hours before taking the stage for the kick-off of Enslaved’s North American tour as direct support for Dimmu Borgir, guitarist and co-founder Ivar Bjørnson spoke to MetalSucks about the concepts behind Axioma Ethica Odini, the value of albums having a “side A” and a “side B” (remember those?), American beer, and more. Read the full transcript of our chat after the jump.

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