Converge are in the studio right now, and have just announced a two-week tour that will kick off on April 1. And in case you’re retarded, that obviously means they’re going to have completed their new album sometime in March. (Unless they’re doing some Metallica-esque “Escape from the Studio” deal, but I find that unlikely.)

Hopefully that means they’ll unveil some new material at these shows, but even if not, whatever, it’s Converge. They are a rabid dog attack live, so you should go see them one way or the other.

Support is coming from Loma Prieta and Git Some on all shows, with other various cool bands, including Ringworm, Deafheaven, and Weekend Nachos, also participating when regionally convient.

Here are dates, via Lambgoat:

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With Gingrich’s devastating Floridian loss, once again I feel justified for naming this hardcore festival news roundup column Pit Romney. Here’s what’s new…

Don’t sell the Midwest short, as Chicago-based fest The Rumble has declared much of its 2012 lineup, with classic headline acts Negative Approach and Murphy’s Law topping a bill with scene favorites Cruel Hand, Wisdom In Chains, and Harms Way along with curveballs like Coliseum and Sweet Cobra. Other announced acts are 100 Demons, Agitator, Beware, Everything Went Black, No Regrets, The Mongoloids, Rotting Out, Empire Of Rats, FocusedXMinds, The Killer, Argonauts, Rock Bottom, Wrong Answer, and Withdrawal. 2011 included big names like 108, Madball and the reunited DYS, so the pressure was on to match or top that and raise the fest’s scene profile. Also, this year its been moved up to April 27-28, with ticket info yet to be announced.

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Newt may seemingly have Mitt on the ropes right now, but that’s no reason to hold up your Pit Romney coverage! Here’s the latest update on the hardcore festival season…

After a 2011 announcement that didn’t exactly thrill me, United Blood seems to have rebounded for 2012, if this initial lineup is any indication. Big names like Agnostic Front and Ringworm stand out, as do pleasant surprises like New Lows and Power Trip. I count five bands that were part of the 2011 initial lineup announcement: Backtrack, Bitter End, Fire and Ice, Naysayer, and Stick Together. The rest of the list is rather robust as well: Beware, Break Away, Dead End Path, Free Spirit, Harms Way, Lockdown,Outcrowd, Soul Search, Suburban Scum, Take Offense, Tough Luck, United Youth, Wisdom in Chains, and Xibalba. Weekend passes are on sale here and here, and with March 30-31 as the dates, you probably want to snag those tickets sooner rather than later.

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Maybe we shoulda called it MetaSucks?

ANYWAY, here’s some shit we did this week:

• The Austerity Program’s Justin Foley responded to Dr. Katrina McFerran’s study on teens, depression, and music. Then Dr. McFerran responded to Justin’s response. Then Justin responded to McFerran’s response to his response. Then I went permanently cross-eyed.
• We debuted new music by Keith Merrow’s Demisery.
• We spoke to Corey Lowery from Dark New Day and Eye Empire.
• We checked out the latest release from Astomatous and H20, Ringworm, Mindsnare, and Soul Search.
• We showed you some nice photos from both Day 1 and Day 2 of The Metal Suckfest.
• We counted down The Seven Most Metal Video Games Ever Made.
• We were bummed to learn that guitarists Rob Arnold and Matt DeVries are leaving Chimaira at the end of the year.
• We were even more bummed to see Chris Barnes shilling for used cars.
• We argued about the best metal albums of the 90s.
• We found something even worse than Lulu: LIVE Lulu.

Now if you’ll excuse me, I haven’t gotten blackout drunk in a week.

-AR

[The seven-inch record is a cornerstone for hardcore and the format continues to serves as an essential platform for disseminating music. Characteristically shorter song lengths make it possible for a band in this scene to make a statement over the course of multiple tracks and provide it in a way that is affordable. The purpose of this column is to identify and offer short critiques of some new and recent releases in the 7" format.]

Split 7″ releases always carry a risk of one band’s side kicking the ever-lovin’ crap out of the other band’s side. Neither Ringworm nor Mindsnare deign to upstage one another on Your Soul Belongs To Us (A389). Cleveland’s finest dig up two previously unreleased cuts, including the paradigmatic “Leviathon”. Nothing earth-shattering, but ultimately this is just what we want from Ringworm. On the flip, the Australians add doomy flair to an otherwise pounding duo of tunes. Collectors: note the cool EC Comics style insert.

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This according to Lambgoat, who report that the band had to pull the plug on their previously announced trek with The Greenery “due to circumstances beyond their control.” That’s a bummer for Ringworm fans, but, of course, when you hear something like that, mostly you just hope that everyone in the band is okay and that nothing terrible is going on behind the scenes.

So, yeah, it sucks that the band had to cancel the tour… hopefully they’ll get to reschedule it at a later date. In the meantime, please do check out their latest album, Scars, which is out now on on leading independent music retailer VICTORY RECORDS. You should also read this totally hilarious interview that MetalSucks’ own Sergeant D. conducted with the band back in July, because it has lots and lots of good tips for partying… even if you will now hafta do that partying without the Ringworm dudes.

-AR

Last month, MetalSucks’ own Sergeant D. interviewed Cleveland’s legendary metallic hardcore band, Ringworm, about the art of partying; now the band (And its fans!) will get a chance to put those skills to good use. They’ve announced a U.S. headlining tour in support of their new album, Scars (out now on leading independent music retailer VICTORY RECORDS), with support to come from The Greenery. If these shows feature even a modicum of the debauchery the band discussed in that interview, they’ll be more than worth the price of admission.

Here are tour dates, courtesy of Lambgoat:

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Horns up for reader Alex Goldberg. He correctly identified last week’s logo as belonging to the band Harrow, and for his troubles, he wins a copy of Unearth’s new album, Darkness in the Light, PLUS a killer Unearth beer bong. Alex, I sincerely hope you use that beer bong until you puke everywhere, preferably while cranking that Unearth CD!

This week we have another killer prize for you: five — yes, FIVE — copies of of Ringworm’s killer new slice of metallica hardcore, Scars, which is out today on Victory Records. Ringworm have been a major force in the scene for years now, and, apparently, they can party like no one else. In other words: you want this album… you NEED this album! And here’s your chance to win a copy.

All you gots to do to win is identify the name of the band whose logo appears below, then shoot me an e-mail at axl AT metalsucks DOT net with your answer, your name, and your address. ALL ENTRIES WITHOUT AN ADDRESS WILL BE DISQUALIFIED. From everyone who gets it right, we’ll randomly select five winners and announce their names a week from today.

This week’s very, very challenging logo was sent in by Kraghen… thanks, dude!

-AR

As I peel the skin off my back while I endure the summer of scenic Nebraska, metal as a whole has dropped a ton of new releases in my lap. Yes, this was a great excuse to stay in the air conditioning for a day to do my column this week, but with new releases from Hail!Hornet, Ringworm, City Of Ships and Toxic Holocaust, sitting at a laptop in the summer was a double win. Check out my anger-inducing opinions below.

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So, to review the ways in bass players let us down this week:

• Coheed and Cambria’s Michael Todd robbed a pharmacy.
• Nick Oliveri from Queens of the Stone Age/Kyuss held his girlfriend hostage in a four-hour standoff with a S.W.A.T. team.
• Jeroen Paul Thessling quit Obscura.

As anyone else over 30 knows, there was once a time in which it was definitely not cool for hardcore bands to be into metal. It’s probably hard to imagine, but back in the early 90s hardcore and metal didn’t mix all that much, at least not to the extent that they do these days. I’m not sure they get the credit they deserve for it, but RINGWORM were true pioneers who blurred the boundaries between the two genres: they were one of the first overtly metal bands in the early 90s hardcore scene, or one of the few metal bands who had such overt hardcore influences, I’m not sure.

But that’s all nerdy bullshit for record collectors to argue about. The truth is that the only album of theirs I have ever owned or listened to is “The Promise,” which came out in 1993 (although I did get tattooed once by Human Furnace about 15 years ago). We are here to talk about something way more interesting.   These guys are no strangers to poor life choices, and since most of the readers here seem to be more interested in what kind of guitar strings the guy from Periphery uses than getting laid, I figured we should talk about getting wasted, banging strippers and other elements of HOW TO PARTY, RINGWORM STYLE!

Details on how to rage like it’s a Nunslaughter show at The Phantasy after the break!

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In a scene where yearly festivals are as abundant as they are sweaty, This Is Hardcore has emerged as the leader of the pack, unequivocally the most anticipated of all hardcore music events in America. Combining coveted reunions with plentiful appearances by modern acts big and small, the event brings revelers and pit beasts to Philadelphia for a humid August weekend. Part of the fest’s success stems from its notorious secrecy, and 2011′s is no exception. The lineup was embargoed until noon EST on Monday May 30, at which point tickets immediately went on sale online and at AKA in Philly. Extended from three to four days of music, the fest boasts performances from metallic acts like Madball, Maximum Penalty, Mother of Mercy, Nails, Reign Supreme, Ringworm, Suburban Scum, Terror, and Victims.

If you’re reading this now and you haven’t bought your ticket yet, you’re not attending This Is Hardcore 2011. Four-day as well as weekend passes sold out in less than 24 hours, and at the time of this writing, extremely limited numbers of single-day tickets were available. The full lineup, organized in order by day, can be found below.

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Rot In Hell
As Pearls Before Swine
Label – Deathwish Inc.
Release date – February 1, 2011

Thanks to artists like Integrity and Ringworm, Cleveland has a hardcore legacy that spans the globe. Indeed, Rot In Hell manage to follow that tradition an entire ocean away. Still, you’d never guess the Innsmouth, UK group’s geographic origins given their ferocious devotion to the downright devastating metallic Holy Terror sound. Their upcoming full-length As Pearls Before Swine, due out in February on Converge frontman J. Bannon’s Deathwish Inc. imprint, will make that crystal fucking clear. Two of its tracks are currently streaming at the Deathwish site. “Traitor’s Gate” is virulent, furious Clevo-core, while the blistering pit beast “Coyotenia” benefits from some beauteous metallic soloing amidst the sonic tsunami.

Given their recent Niu 12″ (recorded live in concert off the soundboard) for A389 Records, it’s only fitting that Rot In Hell are part of the label’s Seventh Annual Bash, a one-night event at Sonar in Baltimore headlined this year by Integrity, whose latest LP The Blackest Curse came out on Deathwish last year. Also on the January 22 bill are Drop Dead, Haymaker, and The Love Below, among others. The flyer is below, and you can buy tickets here.

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2011 marks the 10th anniversary of metallic hardcore band Ringworm‘s Birth Is Pain LP. Their first for Victory Records, the album remains a essential entry in the Clevo hardcore discography, and a decade later it still retains its ferocity. So it seems only appropriate that Ringworm would celebrate this auspicious occasion with a series of tour dates during which the band plays the entire record live. (There was a rumor that Ringworm would be playing this year’s United Blood fest in Virginia, but the organizers put that one to rest on the B9 board.)

Before this tour goes down, you’re going to want to re-familiarize yourself with the record, so check out live footage of album track “Amputee” from 2006 and peep the announced Birth Is Pain dates below. These are only a handful of the anticipated gigs, so don’t get too upset if you don’t see your city just yet!

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“BIG PANTS WASTE PRECIOUS FABRIC”

Step into my Nocturnus time machine and take a magical journey with me into a time long, long ago, an excursion into a world that scarcely resembles our own. In this world — we’ll call it Moshtopia — hardcore kids are known for wearing giant, baggy pants, not skinny jeans; there are people under 30 that know who Black Flag is; and metalcore bands worship Krishna, not Christ. This is not a fanciful episode of Jojo’s Bizarre Adeventure fan fiction, my friends, — it is the strange and wonderful world of mid-90s hardcore!

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Okay. So. On Friday night Vince, Kip and I went to this freaking incredible Cynic/Intronaut/Dysrhythmia show with our number one homies from Metal Injection, and then we all went to this other really awesome show, with My America and Keelhaul at The Acheron in Brooklyn. And, yeah, I totally missed My America because I was socializing outside the venue, but I hear they were awesome, and Sean “Spleen Latifa” Gresens has posted some good footage on his “Belly Full of Hell” channel on Metal Injection.

BUT, I did see Keelhaul, and they were excellent. I mean really, really killer. You’d kinda think that anything following the aforementioned Cynic/Intronaut/Dysrhythmia show would seem totally weak in comparison, but Keelhaul really kicked ass.

So I hope you don’t take it the wrong way I tell you that the most memorable part of the show involved a loogie.

See, at some point during the first or second song of the set, vocalist/bassist Aaron Dallison (also of Ringworm and a bunch of other Cleveland outfits) hocked a HUGE loogie right into the air… and it stuck to the very low-hanging ceiling. And it hung there. Like, forever.

I got seriously distracted as I watched it, fearful that it might fall on Dallison or guitarist Dana Embrose, who was also standing pretty close to it. Ever heard Alfred Hitchcock’s definition of suspense? It’s when you’re watching a movie, and you know there’s a bomb ticking down in the room somewhere, but the characters on-screen do not — in other words, dramatic irony = suspense.

And this was suspenseful as all fuck. It shook, it swayed – but it would not fall.

I was so obsessed with watching to see if the damn thing was gonna fall or not that I actually snapped a (admittedly very shitty) picture of it on my iPhone:

Look at the size of that fucking thing!!!

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If you’re one of those people who read this site every day (God bless you, you fucking masochists!), you may have noticed a lack of premium content from yours truly these past couple of weeks. That’s because I’ve been in Japan soaking in neon, dining on fresh sushi, and recoiling in horror at the perverse underbelly of otaku. I did manage to hit up a few rock bars in Osaka (Rock Rock — check out who else has been there!) and Tokyo (Beat Cafe), but otherwise this was a pretty metal-free trip–and that’s okay with me.

So, shit, man. Quite a bit happened in the wonderful world of hardcore while I was away! Ruiner broke up. This Is Hardcore 2010 finally revealed its drool-inducing lineup and sold out in less than two days. (I wasn’t able to get my tickets in time, sadly.) Unsane announced a series of U.S. dates where they’ll play 1995′s awesome Scattered Smothered & Covered live in its entirety. Notable releases included Ceremony’s Rohnert Park, for which I’ll be posting a review later this week. Some pretty awesome tours were announced as well. Check out the dates for some of these below.

Looking forward to your “Welcome Back” sentiments in the Comments section!

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Chronic Youth, which is an awesome website you should definitely familiarize yourself, has been singing the praises of Ringworm as of late, and so, for the second or third time over the course of the past ten years or so, I have made an effort to understand what the big deal is about Ringworm. And I just don’t get it. Sorry.

So someone explain it to me. ‘Cause it sounds fairly generic to these ears. Was the band just part of a moment in time that I missed, or is there something legitimately awesome about their sound I’m just not picking up on?

-AR