MetalSucks

When we interviewed Metalocalypse creator / Dethklok frontman Brendon Small on behalf of our readers last month, he told us that members of Mastodon, members of In Flames, Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Slash and others would all be doing voice-over work on the coming season of Metalocalypse. This alone gives reason to be excited about the new season if for some reason you wouldn’t be psyched about it anyway. Now we’ve finally got a sneak peak of one of the episodes, sent in by MS reader Christopher Silverio… and, no surprise, it’s funny. Season 3 begins November 8th!

-VN

So of course I’m loving Slayer’s latest, World Painted Blood. But I won’t be eating a bag of crow over my prediction that the accompanying bonus DVD, “Playing with Dolls,” was going to suck. I’ve seen it now (well, some of it – I couldn’t make it all the way through out of sheer boredom), and despite the involvement of Metalocalypse director Mark Brooks, it is, indeed, lamer than Jason Suecof’s legs.

Are the people who made this aware that in 2009 we can give the illusion of actual movement through pictures that pass by at a fairly quick rate – say, twenty-four frames per second? I have to assume that this news someone never reached them – or that they thought this whole “video-graphic novel” style would somehow make the whole thing spookier. In which they were just wrong. Also, I don’t know if the music from World Painted Blood could have been any more awkwardly shoe-horned into this thing.

Watch it below, if the two previous paragraphs didn’t deter you. It was only s’posed to be on MySpace for a weekend, but of course someone got it up on YouTube – so check it out right quick, before the Slawyers get involved.

Part two is after the jump. And then tomorrow I’ll have my review of World Painted Blood.

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I haven’t gotten to write a review of Brutal Legend yet because, well, I just haven’t had time to play all the way through the game, and it seems like writing a review of half a game or whatever isn’t fair. But I’ve enjoyed what I’ve played so far.

And it seems like the game owes a debt to Metalocalypse. Besides some similarities in general tone, style of humor, and a love of violence, there’s the fact that Legend takes place in a magical, faraway land where everything is related to metal and everything looks more or less like it belongs in Mordhaus. Obviously Metalocalypse already owes a debt to metal imagery as old as Sabbath itself, but… there’s definitely a connection between Dethklok and Brutal Legend.

So kudos to the fan who made the below video. At some point it might get yanked for copyright infringement, so enjoy it while you can… I have to say, it seems pretty impressive for something fan-made. And wouldn’t be awesome if there really WAS a Dethklok/Eddie Riggs crossover?

Major props to Christopher Silverio for sending this in… thanks, dude!

-AR

Pretty big week here at the MetalSucks Mansion. We laughed, we cried, we fired someone, we rocked out with our cocks out. Here’s a rundown of the highlights:

• We debuted a new song by The Devin Townsend Project, a new video by Skeletonwitch, a new song by Javelina, and the cover art for Sigh’s new album.
• Horse the Band’s Lord Gold blogged about Nawlins and cocaine, God Forbid’s Doc Coyle gave us an exclusive statement about that whole cup throwing incident, Dallas Coyle is giving away music for free, and Daath’s Eyal Levi talked about a run-in with the Polacks and drum triggers.
• We spoke to Dethklok’s Brendon Small, Converge’s Jacob Bannon, Gojira’s Joe Duplantier, and Liturgy’s Hunter Hunt-Hendrix.
• We checked out new releases from Baroness, The Red Chord, Skeletonwitch, Immortal, Vains of Jenna, Vampire Mooose, and Javelina. Also, some asshole really likes Oceano.
• We’re sponsoring the incredibly awesome Tyrants of Evil North American Tour 2010 with Arch Enemy, Exodus, Arsis, and Mutiny Within!

Alright. I’m going to see Where the Wild Things Are now. I’m fairly certain that it is going to make me weep like Gary Suarez. See ya Monday.

-AR

I’d love it if some kind of behind-the-scenes DVD came with Slayer’s forthcoming World Painted Blood, but I guess I’ll have to settle for this.

The legendary thrashers’ attempt to get people to buy physical copies of their album – in case the four album covers wasn’t enough – is going to be a twenty minute DVD entitled Playing with Dolls, “a 12-episode video-graphic novel” from Metalocalypse director Mark Brooks. Inspired by the Jeff Hanneman-penned track of the same name, a press release tells us that “the film blends elements of animation and still-photography into a visual style similar to that of a graphic novel.”

Based on that description and the below trailer, that makes me think this is going to be akin to that lame Watchmen “motion comic” that came out earlier this year, which is to say, I have very little interest in watching this, huge Slayer fan though I may be. Luckily all signs point to the actual record being awesome, so I don’t feel too concerned about some bonus DVD.

World Painted Blood comes out November 3.

-AR

Last week we posted a call for questions to ask Metalocalypse creator / Dethklok frontman Brendon Small, and you all gave us your best questions in the comments. Later that day we hand-picked our favorite ones and got on the phone with Brendon to pass them along. Your questions his answers, below.

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Five heavy hitting heavy hitters — Alice in Chains, Hatebreed, Austrian Death Machine, Steel Panther and Dethklok — all released new records last week. Solid 2nd and 3rd week performances from Three Days Grace, Muse, Megadeth, Five Finger Death Punch and others made it an all-around big week for metal. Let’s see how everyone fared after the jump.

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Good morning, our fellow Metalocalypse and Dethklok lovers! So here’s the sitch. Vince is getting on the phone with Brendon Small in just a few hours, and he needs YOUR help getting some juicy questions for Brendon. Post a question in the comments section below by 3:30 pm EST today, and Vince will cherry-pick the best ones to pass onto Brendon. And if he chooses your question, well, maybe we’ll send you some banana stickers or something.

In case, for some inexplicable reason, you don’t know who Brendon Small is: the man – nay, genius – is the co-creator of Metalocalypse (as well as the equally awesome Home Movies), voices the characters of Skwisgaar Skwigelf, Pickles the Drummer, and Nathan Explosion, and will be the dude you see front n’ center when you go see Dethklok live. In other words, Brendon is the shit.

Dethklok’s Dethalbum II is out now on Williams Street Records, and the band is currently on tour with Mastodon, Converge, and High on Fire. Get a complete list of tour dates here.

The new season of Metalocalypse starts November 8 on Adult Swim. And the episodes are gonna be thirty minutes long now! Niiiiice.

-Axl & Vince

Wednesday night Vince and I went to Metal Insider’s totally bitchin’ Dethklok/Dethalbum II listening party, and while we did drink a lot of dollar beers and mack mad bitches (and by “mack mad bitches,” I mean “speak very politely to platonic friends of both sexes”), we could barely hear the album ’cause, y’know. It was in a loud bar and we were talking to people.

So we get to hear Dethalbum II for the first time with the rest of you. But I’m 99.9% sure it’s gonna rock.

It’s streaming right here. Give it a listen. It comes out this Tuesday on Williams Street Records.

-AR

Dethklok’s Dethalbum II promises to be twice as awesome as their Dethalbum – in fact, this record might actually make you kill people in horrifically violent ways, or be killed in a horrifically violent way, as the band’s fans often are on Metalocalypse. It’s that friggin’ good.

The album comes out September 29 on Williams Street, but our friends at Metal Insider are getting the party started early with a listening party here in NYC a week from today, Wednesday, September 23 at Fontana’s, the site of many an awesome metal party. This is your chance to get drunk, hear the record early, stalk Vince and myself, and throw yourselves at MI’s resident Quaker Jew, Bram Teitelman. Ladies, if you’re not a total cow and ask real nice, I’d wager Bram will sleep with you. Just putting that out there. He’s a very giving dude.

See ya there…

-AR

It’s past normal posting hours here at the MS Mansion, but as we were shuttering the gates for the day the Monkeys were going absolutely batshit so we went to go see what all the fuss was about… and apparently there’s a new Dethklok video that’s hit the web! The song is “Bloodlines,” and it’s on Dethklok’s new album Dethalbum II, available September 29th. Smoke ‘em if ya got ‘em.

-VN

Speaking of our friends at Metal Injection: they found these groovy clips which collect all the metal-celeb guest appearances on Metalocalypse. In case ya don’t know, everyone from Hetfield and Hammett to Corpsegrinder to King Diamond has done voice work for the show… one of many reasons why it’s worth your time.

Here’s the clips from season 1; check out season 2 after the jump. And don’t forget that Dethklok have a new album coming out, to be immediately followed by a ridiculously awesome tour with Mastodon, Converge, and High on Fire.

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You know what I’d enjoy even more than a new Dethklok album? Some new Metalocalypse episodes. When the frick is that show coming back?

While we all hold our breath and wait, here’s the cover for Dethklok’s The Dethalbum II, which comes out September 8 on Williams Street Records. Unfortunately the copy that was sent to us is teeny tiny. Hopefully we’ll get a better look soon.

And in case you’re wondering – yes, there is a “Murmaider II” on the record. Better than “Unforgiven IV,” I guess.

-AR

No, you’re not seeing things – those are Murderface socks. For when you feel like your feet just aren’t metal enough.

According to Topless Robot, the socks are part of Adult Swim’s new, “shockingly understated” clothing line, called – ahem – The Finer Things. And they’ll run you about $15. Which seems like too much to pay for Murderface socks, but, hey, I’ve certainly done dumber things with my money.

You can order yourself a pair here.

-AR

Well well well, Rob over at Metal Injection made a very interesting discovery over the weekend:

“I was stumbling through the city this weekend, and while in midtown I looked up and saw a ginormous DETHKLOK ad right in the middle of the city. It was so brutal, I had to stop and take a photo and be mistaken for a tourist [Said tourist photo to your right - Ed.]. Then, I turned on [adult swim] earlier and they were advertising that the show returns next Sunday, May 18th! Fuck. Yes!”

These will be the first new episodes of 2008. Think about that: there haven’t been new episodes of Metalocalypse in almost six months. Who the fuck do Tommy Blacha and Brendon Small think they are, the showrunners for fuckin’ Lost or something?

Oh, well. Look at this way: unlike Lost, when Metalocalypse returns, at least there’ll be some payoff.

-AR

Another good tip for the toy obsessed…

MetalSucks reader Elijah Torn has alerted us to the announcement that Kidrobot are offering a whole series of minifigures based on Adult Swim characters – including Murderface and Toki from Metalocalypse.

Click to read more…

Congratulations to John R. Forrester, the winner of our Dethklok contest; John gets to take home a sweet grab bag of Dethklok / Adult Swim merch. We asked our readers to tell us who was their favorite member of Dethklok and why, and though John — who is a member of the 160th Signal Brigade, stationed in Kuwait — failed to actually answer the question his answer was so kickass that we had to name him the winner anyway:

I am entering for me and my friend who is the smallest biggest fan of dethklok in the army lol…. This guy always watches dethklok I mean that’s what we do at work… watch dethklok and it never gets old….once and a while you hearing the incoming mortar alarms going off and we all hit the bunker…while its still playing.. Once a mortar landed 20 ft from our tent, while the show is playing, right after the mortar hit what was said in perfect timing? That’s Brutal!!!!! Hahahah it was like the funniest thing ever we almost played catch with a mortar and then Nathan says that’s brutal I was about to say it but he beat me to it….we were laughin at that for days…. And not to mention we warm up on guitar hero with thunderhorse! I don’t think we can ever get timing like that again… DETHKLOK strikes again!

Wow. I’m not quite sure whether to be upset that my tax dollars are paying for this guy to watch cartoons at “work” or to be excited that my tax dollars are paying for this guy to watch cartoons at work. At least our idiotic government allows such an awesome ocurrence to take place instead of fighting a stupid war and killing innocent civilians. But regardless… you gotta hand it to the guy… playing catch with a fucking mortar while watching Metalocalypse?? That IS fucking brutal!! Congrats, John.

-VN

Uncle Axl and Vince (and cousin Kip) have done it for you again: we’ve got an incredible contest where you can win a sweet lot of merch from everyone’s favorite cartoon heavy metal band, Dethklok. One winner will receive an Adult Swim Prize Pack containing:

• Metalocalypse Season 1 DVD (20 episodes!)
• Dethklok Dethalbum CD
• Guitar Hero T-Shirt
• Adult Swim T-Shirt
• Adult Swim Notebook
• Adult Swim Postcards
• Metalocalypse Buttons

“How do we win, Uncle Vince?” I hear you asking. It’s easy: just email vince [at] metalsucks.net with DETHKLOK CONTEST in the subject line, and answer the following question:

“Who is your favorite Dethklok member and why?”

Be creative; your answers can be heartfelt, sarcastic, sick, whatever the fuck you want — just make sure they’re good. Axl and I will sort through your answers and pick our favorite. May the best one win.

As you all know, Dethklok will be touring this fall with …Trail of Dead. Click through for tour dates and information about how to get tickets.

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Here’s the new Dethklok video for “Bloodrocuted.” And when is more Dethklok a bad thing?

Be sure to catch Dethklok on tour this fall (with …And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead) if you live near or attend one of the lucky colleges who will be graced with their cartoon presence this fall. Tour dates after the jump.

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Lots of folks weighed in on last week’s poll asking our readers’ opinions on Dethalbum, the first release from the fictional cartoon band Dethklok. The results are as follows:

• “One of the best metal albums of the year, hands down.”
  88 votes (56%)
• “Pretty good, but hard to take seriously seeing as it’s based on a bunch of cartoon characters.”
  49 votes (31%)
• “Not that good, should’ve been much better given who was involved.”
  4 votes (3%)
• “Seriously? It’s a total joke, a fucking cartoon show for chrissakes.”
  15 votes (10%)

Well how ’bout that. Who would’ve thunk one of the best metal albums of the year would’ve been released by a made up band? What does that say about the current state of metal?

-VN