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

At MetalSucks we love tours that mix the old and the new (see also: The Tyrants of Evil Tour we sponsored which featured Arch Enemy, Exodus, Arsis and Mutiny Within), which is why we jumped at the chance to sponsor this Spring’s Facemelter tour, guarantee to melt faces with death metal spanning two decades. Tours like this offer the older bands a chance to reach younger fans, younger bands a chance to win over hardened OG heshers and you, the fans, a chance to learn about new music you’re pre-disposed to enjoy. Everyone wins!

Though Dying Fetus are the only true old schoolers on this tour — and by the way have you seen Dying Fetus live lately?? holy fuck, they alone will make this tour live up to its name — Misery Index and Arsis both have a bit of an old-school vibe despite their music’s firm roots in the present. And for the kids we’ve got Annotations of an Autopsy and Conducting From the Grave, two excellent new school death metal-inspired bands we’ve yet to see live.

Definitely one of the most exciting touring lineups of the Spring. Full list of confirmed tour dates after the jump, with more to be added soon.

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