Daniel's Forum Replies

East Of The Wall - "NP - Complete" (Release date: 29th March) 

The fifth studio album from this progressive post-metal outfit from New Jersey, USA.

Orpheus Omega - "Wear Your Sins" (Release date: 29th March)

The fourth studio album from this melodic death metal outfit from Melbourne, Australia.

Yngwie Malmsteen - "Blue Lightning" (Release date: 29th March)

The Swedish neo-classical metal guitar virtuoso's 22nd studio album.

Lustre - "Another Time, Another Place" (Chapters One & Two) (Release date: 29th March)

Two compilation releases from this Swedish atmospheric/ambient black metal outfit. The first chapter consists of the never before released “The Ardour of Autumn” EP from 2013 as well as “Welcome Winter” EP from 2009. The second chapter consists of the debut EP “Serenity” from 2008, followed by the one-track EP “A Spark of Times of Old” from 2012.

Deafheaven - "Black Brick" single (Release date: 27th February)

Fair enough. Can you please add these:

1. Nokomono - "From The Black World" (1979)

2. All of Samson's back-catalogue

3. The Hand Of Doom - "Poisonoise" (1979)

The new single from Los Angeles death metal establishment Brujeria.

The new single from Canadian progressive metal maestro Devin Townsend. The new album "Empath" will be released on 29th March.

So Body Count guitarist & 'Forbidden' producer Ernie C has responded on a recent episode of 'The Official Danko Jones Podcast':

"On Ice's first record, he sampled Sabbath's 'War Pigs'. And Tony Iommi got a whiff of it and he started listening to it and he said he liked it. And then he heard that I produced those first Body Count records that we did and he just gave us a call. And also, Miles Copeland helped out. Stewart Copeland's brother ran I.R.S Records. Miles helped get it together. Tony listened to the sample on there and then he started listening to our records and said 'I like that.' Miles came and said, 'I can get him to produce your next album].'… So we were in England and Tony came to our hotel. He said, 'I would like you to do our new record.' 

 Producing Sabbath was cool. It was a rock and roll experience that you can just say, 'Well, I did a Black Sabbath record, and I'm done. And it also made me say, 'Yeah, I really don't wanna produce bands that are already established'. It's good to produce young people that are listening. But when you're so set in your ways… I didn't feel any pressure trying to make a Sabbath album that would stand alongside the band's classic efforts. I really didn't pay that much attention to it. I was more of a Led Zeppelin fan. I loved Sabbath and this and that, but I wasn't a 'die-hard die-hard.' I wasn't intimidated… And the thing about that was that was the time when the vinyl was out, and I told them, 'I'm gonna dry the sound up a little bit.' Those records from the '80s were big sounding records. They sound like you're playing in a tunnel. So I told them, 'We're gonna dry it up a little bit.' 'Cause the vinyl was dry — that's what made the vinyl sound. It was so dry and in your face. It's not a big tunnel. That was the Van Halen stuff — the one guitar in the one ear. It's big and large, but if it had been dried up, I don't think it would have been that popular. There's something to that era that lends to you almost seeing 'em on a stage and you're back in the seats. And then when Nirvana came along, it made it more personal, like you're sitting down with someone… Nirvana made it more dried up and in your face, like we're gonna sit down and come to my garage and listen to my band." 

Megadeth - "Warheads on Foreheads" compilation (Release date: 22nd March)

A best-of compilation that contains 35 remastered songs handpicked by Dave Mustaine.

Please add the Zarpa Rocks album, the Heavy Load records & Iron Maiden's "The Soundhouse Tapes" EP Ben.

Personally I think there's a world of difference between the two albums from a quality point of view & I agree with Ellefson to an extent. 'Risk' was an absolute abomination. It represents the clear weak point of the Megadeth back catalogue & is the only one of their albums that isn't regarded as a legitimate metal release. The band clearly didn't have a clue what they were doing with that one & were in a very bad place creatively. 'Super Collider' on the other hand is a bit of a guilty pleasure for me & I think the reason I'm able to view it that way is because I didn't come to it from a position of context even though it was at the time of release. I'd skipped Megadeth completely since 1994's "Youthanasia" but decided to go back & explore what I'd missed just before the release of 'Super Collider' & therefore I was able to take each record for what it was rather than what it represented in the metal climate at the time. And when you look at 'Super Collider' as a record & don't try to make it into something it's not, it's actually not too bad. The production & performances are excellent & there is some very catchy song-writing there too. Sure it's never going to sit amongst the top half of Megadeth's prestigious discography but I don't think it deserves to sit at the bottom either. In fact, I prefer it to three or four of the other post-'Youthanasia" albums. What are your thoughts?

Fen - "Sea & Stone" E.P. (Release date: 8th March)

Atmospheric black metal from London. A limited edition 12" E.P. that includes remastered versions of the tracks included on the 2016 split CD with Brooklyn-based one-man atmospheric black metal project Sleepwalker.

Here's the first single from the upcoming Dream Theater album "Distance Over Time" which due to be released on 22 February.

Here's a song from the upcoming Periphery album "Periphery IV: HAIL STAN" which is due for release on 5th April.

Here's a track from the new Queensryche album.

Here's Downing taking further strides to tarnish his relationship with Rob Halford in a recent interview with All The Shreds:

"When Ripper joined the band... We would have to say that, physically and technically, Ripper was a better singer than Rob, because Tim was always in tune, he was always in key. I mean, Rob was good. Rob got better after he started to wear in-ear monitors. But Tim was stronger. He still is. I mean, the guy is a powerhouse. But the thing is that the tonality of his voice is not Rob's, and I guess that's what the Priest sound is. That's why it had to come to an end. We would come offstage. Tim would absolutely murder the show, and we would still come offstage and the fans would be saying, 'Oh, yeah, yeah. I enjoyed the show. But when's Rob coming back? Is Rob coming back?' And it was hard. And it must be hard for those guys in Priest out there now, hearing fans say, 'Is K.K. coming back? Is Glenn coming back?' It must be tough for them." 

Here's what he said about the events that led up to Rob coming back to Priest: 

"It's a long story. Sharon Osbourne rang up one day and said, 'Hey, what's happening with Rob? Is he back in the band? Because I want you to do the Ozzfest and I'm gonna pay you a lot of money for doing it.' And that didn't happen the first time around. But then another year or so went by, and kind of the same thing happened again. But by this time, we'd done 'Demolition', and things seemed to be on the decline for us. The venues seemed to be getting worse. And eventually, I took part in the 'Demolition' album, but I wasn't happy. Glenn said he wanted to produce the album and stuff like that. It was all getting a bit funky, so I walked away from it for a while, but I came back and put as much into it as I could. I just think it's the fact that…it was what the fans wanted — it was fan demand, really. And I couldn't see that getting any better, really. Because everything that the band had done before Ripper seemed to be getting more and more popular, having more acclaim, like the 'Painkiller' album. The 'Painkiller' album wasn't very big when we first released it; it was just mediocre. But it started to gain momentum year after year, and it started to become a big album. And the fans wanna hear the band, the original bandmembers." 

Tim 'Ripper' Owens' has recently suggested that he'd like to go back and re-record "Jugulator" and "Demolition". Ripper's been quoted as saying that he feels that Priest is trying to remove any mention of his involvement with the band & is annoyed that it's hard to find "Jugulator" anywhere and that "Demolition" isn't terribly accessible either. Here's Downing's take on it when prompted during the interview:

"It would probably be legal reasons, I think. Somebody actually must own the rights. But it's worth finding out, because one thing is for sure, between me and Ripper, if nobody owns the rights to them, then we'll start producing them and marketing them. I'd be happy to do that. I'll do some research and find out who owns the rights to those albums. But somebody must have acquired the rights, I'm sure."

Downfall Of Gaia - "Ethic Of Radical Finitude" (Release date: 8th Febraury)

The fifth album from these German atmospheric black metallers. I absolutely adored 2012's "Suffocating in the Swarm of Cranes" so this is definitely on my list.

Soen - "Lotus" (Release date: 1st February)

The fourth full-length album from this Swedish progressive metal/rock outfit that features former Opeth & Amon Amarth drummer Martin Lopez. I really enjoyed their 2012 debut album "Cognitive" so I might need to check this one out.

I really enjoyed their 2011 debut album "The Harvest Wombs" but haven't checked them out since so I might join you. I believe they've gotten a little more progressive in recent times.

Fallujah - "Undying Light" (Release date: 15th March)

The fourth full-length album from these San Francisco-based tech deathsters.

Queensrÿche - "The Verdict" (Release date: 1st March)

The fifteenth studio album from this legendary Washington heavy metal institution.

Saor - "Forgotten Paths" (Release date: 15th February)

The fourth studio album from this one-man atmospheric black metal project (or third if you don't count the one he did under the Àrsaidh moniker).

Can you please add Quartz Ben? I want to add a rating for "Quartz" & a rating & review for "Stand Up & Fight".