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

That’s right, kids: experimental grind maniacs Meek is Murder are hitting the road today for back-to-back with tours, first with the awesome Fuck the Facts, and then with the equally awesome Tiger Flowers. And to celebrate, the band has handed us a new music video, for the track “Recursions,” off their most recent album, Algorithms. The clip — which marks the directorial debut of drummer Frank Godla — is by dirty, lo-fi, evil, and tongue-in-cheek… in other words, a perfect representation of Meek is Murder’s music.

Check out the clip below; you can also watch a behind-the-scenes video, which discusses both the song and the narrative of the video, here. After the jump, get all upcoming Meek is Murder tour dates, with both Fuck the Facts and Tiger Flowers. And don’t forget that Algorithms is now available for download via both iTunes and Amazon!

Here are those tour dates…

Click to read more…

AT LAST!!! We first offered to play a part in the distribution of Meek is Murder’s Algorithms last summer, before we’d heard a single note of a single demo — such was our faith that this incredible band would make something truly memorable. And they haven’t disappointed. With the aide of the masterful Kurt Ballou as their producer/mixer, Meek is Murder have now delivered what Decoy Music recently called “a banger” that is “packed with energy and charisma.”

And now you can hear for yourself — ’cause Algorithms is out today! We’re streaming the entire thing below, so you know we’re not full of shit when we tell you that this album rules. And once you hear that we’re not full of shit, you can order the album here. The limited edition CDs are all sold out, but you can still get a high-quality digital download for just $5, or a download and t-shirt combo for just $15!

And now, with any further ado, we present to you Meek is Murder’s Algorithms. TURN THAT SHIT UP LOUD!

[sorry, this streaming promo is over. buy the album for just $5!]

It’s almost here! Meek is Murder’s Algorithms is almost here! We’re SO FUCKING EXCITED for you all to finally get to hear it… it is going to rip your face off, eat your face, poop out your face, make you eat the poop made from your face, eat the poop you make from eating the poop the album made from eating your face, and then poop it out one more time. It’s that fucking good.

Don’t believe us? Here’s what the critics are saying about the Algorithms:

“Manic, unpredictable, and even a little bit jovial, they’re a colorful headfuck, but they certainly don’t sacrifice brutality in the name of fun.”
-The Village Voice

“This new Brooklyn-based metal band… may have just put out the best metal album of 2011.”
-City’s Best

That’s high praise indeed… but they ain’t lying. And you don’t even have to take their word for it: you can download another new song, “Hope Springs Eternal (Spaghetti Code),” AND read an interview with guitarist/vocalist Mike Keller, right here. Take your socks off before you listen, or you might lose ‘em.

There’s still time to pre-order Meek is Murder’s Algorithms before we release it this coming Tuesday, March 22. It was produced and mixed by the legenary Kurt Ballou! We’ve only got a few copies left of the super-limited-edition CDs that the band personally made, put their actual fingerprints on, and sprayed with drummer Frank Godla’s cologne, so order one of those immediately if you want it, ’cause once it’s gone, it’s gone. But you can always get the digital download or the digital download and t-shirt package.

And the band is still on tour! Get dates after the jump… or just download their free app for your iPhone, iPod touch, and/or iPad.

Click to read more…

Alright! We’re less than two weeks away from the release of Meek is Murder’s Algorithms. And the band is out on tour now! City’s Best recently encouraged readers to “Catch this upstart new combat unit so you can brag about it when they are taking the metal world by storm a year from now.” That’s obviously high praise, but it’s not B.S. — the band absolutely impales aardvark babies live.

There are tour dates after the jump. Of course, what you could also do instead is just download Meek is Murder’s new FREE app for your iPhone, iPod touch, and/or iPad. It was designed by MiM guitarist/vocalist Mike Keller, whose Clark Kentian persona as a maker of apps disguises his Supermanly prowess as a creator of what Brooklyn Vegan calls “off-kilter hardcore-influenced math-terpieces.” It comes with all the usual goodies (tour schedule with links to buy tickets and the ability to add your show to your calendar and maps, exclusive photos, videos, etc.), but it also comes with a new free song from Algorithms.

Yep. You could be listening to new Meek is Murder music right now!

Download the app here.

Don’t forget that MetalSucks is releasing the  Algorithms on March 22. It was produced and mixed by the legenary Kurt Ballou! We’re already accepting pre-orders here; you can get a digital download, a t-shirt package, or one of the few remaining super-limited-edition CDs that the band personally made, put their actual fingerprints on, and sprayed with drummer Frank Godla’s cologne. No, we are not making this up.

And here are those tour dates again:

Click to read more…

In 2009, MetalSucks did a digital-only release for The Binary Code’s Suspension of Disbelief. We did this because the band was unsigned, the album was awesome, and we thought it would be fun to actually help some great music find its way out into the world for once, instead of just bemoaning the state of metal from our armchairs.

And it was fun! We had a blast, and have wanted to do it again ever since. But it’s hard to find good bands period, let alone good bands that meet our particular set of criteria.

But one such band is Meek is Murder, the brainchild of guitarist/vocalist Mike Keller (ex-The Red Chord), who we’ve been raving about for some time now. So when Mike and his fellow Meek Men Frank Godla (drums, also of Empyreon fame) and Sam Brodsky (bass) told us they were entering the studio this month to record a new album with producer Kurt Ballou — yep, that Kurt Ballou — and that the record did not yet have a home, well, we jumped at the chance to partner with them to help get their message to the masses.

The result will be Algorithms, which we’ll be releasing on March 22. You can check out the awesome cover art by Mr. Keller himself above, and there will be a demo of one of the new songs appearing on the album, “Sundowners,” on our upcoming NYC Sucks comp.

We’ll give you lots more details about Algorithms in the coming weeks, but for now, we just wanted to put it on your radar and let you know to get excited about it — ’cause we sure as hell are!

-Axl & Vince

I saw Meek is Murder again on Sunday night; I think this is the fifth or sixth time I’ve seen them this year, although it might be more like the seventh. In any case, I’ve seen them perform a lot in 2010, and the gigs really never get old. There’s a fun drinking game to be had in doing a shot every time Frank Godla breaks a drum stick, or bassist Sam Brodsky crashes into the audience; this band feels truly spontaneous and unpredictable in a way most modern extreme music outfits do not. I am determined that as many Suckalos as possible will see this band live, or, at the very least, start listening to them.

The group guest-hosted the latest edition of “The Fix,” Metal Injection’s weekly video podcast, and you should all watch it below, ’cause, surprise surprise, they have great taste. Frank told me that this is the most number of videos to have ever been selected for an episode of “The Fix,” and, yet, it is still the shortest episode in the series’ history; that should surprise absolutely no one, given that MiM’s sets are so short (roughly twenty minutes, maybe even less), and a cover of Botch’s “Japam” is usually the longest song.

Watch more episodes of “The Fix” right here. And for the third time this article, in case you still haven’t clicked through, Meek is Murder on MySpace.

-AR

Empyreon is one of New York’s best unsigned acts, a band so metal that their music will make you shit nuts and bolts for a week. They haven’t necessarily gotten the amount of attention they deserve in the past, but hopefully all that’s about to change, in part thanks to this excellent, David Brodsky-directed video they just released for the title track to their 2009 album,  Beyond Perception. It’s basically just a performance clip, but it’s a really excellent performance clip, unlike some recent videos.

Empyreon’s Beyond Perception is out now; you can download it from iTunes, or you can order a copy in Empyreon’s merch store. It was produced by the great Anssi Kippo, who has also worked with everyone from Children of Bodom to Insomnium to Rotten Sound. Good shit.

On a semi-related note: Empyeron drummer Frank Godla’s other band, experimental grind freaks Meek is Murder (who sound nothing like Empyreon), are playing at the Charleston in Brooklyn tonight. And they are so much fucking fun live, I can’t begin to tell you. If you live in the NYC area, don’t miss it.

-AR

[via Metal Injection]

So we had a lot of fun hanging out Nevermore’s Jeff Loomis last night – definitely a very laid back and humble dude, considering that he could probably kill us all with his guitar playing. Attendees included MetalSucks’ own Anton OyVey and Antonin Skullia, Esq., as well as Empyreon drummer Frank Godla (who, despite one of my poorly phrased tweets, has not replaced Van Williams in Nevermore.). When we weren’t passing my iPhone around, enjoying the entries for the Nevermore/MetalSucks “Create Your Own Conspiracy” contest (it ends Friday and there is definitely a front runner already – so enter now if you’re gonna!!!), it should surprise no one to learn that significant portion of the evening was devoted to music dorkery; so while I can’t remember exactly how it came up, at some point Mr. Loomis recommended we all check out MasterTracks18, a YouTube user who has uploaded literally hundreds of individual tracks from various well-known songs spanning different genres – metal and hard rock being primary amongst them.

Of course, it’s all pretty fascinating; you could lose hours of your day listening to all of these. I’ve only listened to a handful myself so far, and I already feel like I’m about to lose hours of my day listening to these. I’m sure all you instrument nerds can are gonna love really getting into the nitty gritty of the various tracks, but even if you’re not an instrument nerd… it’s just a really, really awesome look behind the curtain, so to speak.

You can check them all out at MasterTracks18′s YouTube page, which now, for legal reasons, is segueing to page for MasterTracks19. But in the meantime, here are just a few of my favorites…

“Crazy Train,” Guitar Track

Some more after the jump.

Click to read more…

Dear Meek is Murder,

I am sorry it took me so long to finally see you guys live. Even though there were multiple opportunities for me to do so. Even though guitarist/vocalist Mike Keller used to be in The Red Chord. Even though drummer Frank Godla is in Empyreon, who are a totally awesome band that sounds nothing like Meek is Murder. Even though your bassist is named Sam Brodsky, and dudes with the name “Brodsky” have a good track record working in heavy music. Even though Vince has already written about how awesome you are. I have no excuse. I am a schmuck.

But if it makes you feel better, I did finally see you play last night, and it was by far the most fun I’ve had a show this year.

Click to read more…

Our bro-dogs at Metal Injection were on-set for the filming of Municipal Waste’s “Wrong Answer” video last month, and have now posted their report – including an interview with vocalist Tony Foresta and bassist Landphil. There’s even a cameo by yours truly. MI’s Frank Godla shot me from a low angle, Michael Bay-style, so I’d look extra handsome.

While Frank and on-camera sexy d00d Rob Pasbani were doing their interview, I was on the other side of the set interviewing guitarist Ryan Waste and drummer Dave Witte. We’ll have the transcript of that interview, and some cool behind-the-scenes pics, for you sometime real soon.

-AR

Holy crap. After what seems like forever, God Forbid finally released their first DVD, Beneath the Scars of Glory and Progression, earlier this week (trailer and clip above).

And you know what?

It was totally worth the wait. Click to read more…