Bloodstock Open Air, rebooked for 2021, has announced a new headliner! The great Heavy Metal legends Mercyful Fate, featuring King Diamond, will headline the Ronnie James Dio stage on Saturday, along with Dimmu Borgir as special guests. Watch a new trailer now!
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Bloodstock Open Air 2020 is still hoping to go forward with its 20th-anniversary edition this summer in spite of the coronavirus pandemic. The festival has announced that BOA 2020 event planning is proceeding with full care and attention, in order to bring you the best event yet to celebrate 20 Years of Bloodstock. The team is closely monitoring government guidelines and cooperating with the relevant authorities to assure the best and safest environment for our Bloodstockers, bands, staff, and site workers come August and will continue to keep you updated with any further developments. New bands added to the bill include Lost Society, Video Nasties, Wolf Jaw, Grave Lines, Vexed, and more TBA. Continue reading
Bloodstock Open Air 2020 continues to pile on the big names with six new acts added to the lineup! Savage Master, Blasphemer, Liberty Lies, Black Tongue, Pist, and Sharks In Your Mouth have joined a bill that includes headliners Devin Townsend (Friday), Behemoth (Saturday), and Judas Priest (Sunday) as well as Hatebreed, Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals, Skindred, Paradise Lost, Life Of Agony, Bury Tomorrow, Black Dahlia Murder, Diamond Head, Jinjer, Vio-Lence, Sacred Reich, Gloryhammer, Dark Tranquillity, Bloodywood and more! The fest also named this year’s charity partner will be the mental health charity Mind. Mind provides advice and support to empower anyone experiencing a mental health problem, and campaign to improve services and raise awareness. 1 in 4 of us will experience a mental health problem every year and Mind won’t give up until everyone experiencing a mental health problem gets both support and respect. In addition to guestlist donations, raising funds on behalf of Mind on site at BLOODSTOCK will be festival attendee Michael Lacy, with his Patch Amnesty initiative. Bring your old, spare, or new patches to donate, browse patches to buy, or even just stop by for a chat. All proceeds go to Mind. Please look out for Patch Amnesty/Mind signage and stop by his stand in the main arena to give your support. Continue reading
Lurching forth from the blackened sewers of Manchester (UK) come Leeched with their debut album You Took The Sun When You Left (Prosthetic). UK metal is in a frankly fantastic place now, whether large or small the sheer amount of genuinely exciting and vital bands is staggering. Leeched are hot the heels of UK luminaries Employed To Serve and Conjurer with their own monolithic take on the crushing doom/hardcore sound.Continue reading
It could be argued that Deathcore as a genre has become stagnant with bands happy to stay the course whilst offering nothing more than small changes in sound, almost unable or not willing to push themselves. However along come Martyr Defiled from Lincoln, UK, who have torn Deathcore a new arsehole with their second album Young Gods (self-released).Continue reading
Hidden in the deepest and darkest shadows of the United Kingdom, the Heavy Metal demons Belial are releasing their début album Nihil Est (Siege Music), meaning “there is nothing” in Latin.Continue reading
As we hit the end of the summer, I was able to get my hands on the latest album from Black Tongue entitled The Unconquerable Dark (Century Media). Being on quite a doom kick this year, hearing about Black Tongue being considered “doomcore” I had some higher than typical expectations going in. I feel the album as a whole is a solid release, but I think I was let down a little thinking it would sound more like doom than hardcore/deathcore. Sure we get the slow tempo through most of the album aside from a few passages in a few tracks but those are greatly outnumbered by the endless amounts of breakdowns. There were some tracks that did stick out to me though on this release.
The first track, ‘Plague Worship’, is one of the better tracks on the album as it has an evil opening and really sets the bar for what to expect on The Unconquerable Dark. The extremely low tuned guitars and the thunderous drums keeping everything together is sure to kick you right in the face from the start. Eddie Hermida (Suicide Silence/ex-All Shall Perish) adds guest vocals on ‘Vermintide’ and it is pretty obvious for those who know Eddie. Especially when it comes to Black Tongue pushing nothing but disgusting, gutturals and then he jumps in with his high pitched screeches. And for those who like longer tracks to lose yourself in, this one comes in at just over six and a half minutes, longest on the record.
I did have some gripes with The Unconquerable Dark with it not really meeting what I was expecting. However, I do have to say I thought this release, while expecting deathcore, is certainly better than the rest that comes out today in that genre. At the end of the day, I may not listen to this as often as other releases from other artists this year, but if I have “one of those days” then Black Tongue may just get a spin on the ride home.
5.5/10
TIM LEDIN
Sworn In is streaming “I Don’t Really Love You,” off their second studio album The Lovers/The Devil, out April 7, 2015 via Razor & Tie, here.
Stream their previously released song “Sunshine here.
The third IG track, “Oliolioxinfree,” will be made available on March 17, while “Lay With Me,” the fourth and final IG track, will be available on March 31.
The album is the follow up to 2013’s The Death Card and it is a provocative concept piece produced by Will Putney (Amity Affliction, For Today, Miss May I). It chronicles a destructive relationship and is split into two halves.
The first half is “The Lovers,” which tells the story of the man feeling obsessed, psychotic, depressed, and drowning in unrequited love. It tells the story of the desperate romantic who lives inside his own head because the real world has become too unbearable. But such is life and this character reaches a breaking point. And with that comes the split of the record.
The second half is “The Devil,” which charts the course of the role reversal, where the man snaps and becomes the cold, bitter and numb person that drove him mad, while the female occupies the position the male just went through.
Despite the dark and difficult subject matter, the record does not glorify self-destructive love; rather, it details the scenario and can be interpreted any way that feels personal to the one listening. The album cycles through extreme highs and lows, taking the listener along for a sonic thrill ride.
Sworn In – The Lovers/The Devil
1. Sweetheart
2. Sugar Lips
3. I Don’t Really Love You
4. Oliolioxinfree
5. Waltz
6. Pins and Needles
7. Lay With Me
8. Weeping Willow
9. Pocket Full Of Posies
10. Sunshine
11. Scissors
12. Sour
13. Love Drunk
Sworn In Tour Dates
w/ Chelsea Grin, Carnifex, Black Tongue, The Family Run
Mar 06: Murray Theater – Murray, UT
Mar 07: The Summit Music Hall – Denver, CO
Mar 08: The Granada Theatre – Lawrence, KS
Mar 09: Blue Moose Tap House – Iowa City, IA
Mar 10: The Bottom Lounge – Chicago, IL
Mar 11: St. Andrews Hall – Detroit, MI
Mar 12: Theatre of Living Arts – Philadelphia, PA
Mar 13: The Palladium – Worcester, MA
Mar 14: The Gramercy Theater – New York, NY
Mar 15: Agora Ballroom – Cleveland, OH
Mar 16: Emerson Theater – Indianapolis, IN
Mar 17: Fubar – St. Louis, MO
Mar 20: Kapone’s – San Antonio, TX
Mar 21: South By So What? – Grand Prairie, TX
Mar 24: Sunshine Theater – Albuquerque, NM
Mar 25: Nile Theater – Mesa, AZ
Mar 26: The Glass House – Pomona, CA
Mar 27: Soma – San Diego, CA
Mar 28: Ace of Spades – Sacramento, CA
W/ The Plot In You, I Declare War, Gift Giver
Mar 29: Eagle Aerie Hall – Henderson, NV
Mar 30: 191 Toole – Tucson, AZ
Apr 01: Dirty Dog – Austin, TX
Apr 02: Walter’s – Houston, TX
Apr 03: The Conservatory – Oklahoma City, OK
Apr 04: The Outland Ballroom – Springfield, MO
Apr 07: Vaudeville Mews – Des Moines, IA
Apr 08: The Metal Grill – Cudahy, WI
Apr 10: Mohawk Place – Buffalo, NY
Apr 11: Rum Runners – London, ON (Canada)
Apr 12: Hard Luck Bar – Toronto, ON (Canada)
Apr 14: Ritual – Ottawa, ON (Canada)
Apr 15: Foufounes – Montreal, QC (Canada)
Apr 16: Saint Clair Theater – Syracuse, NY
Apr 17: Bogies – Albany, NY
Apr 18: Heirloom Arts Theatre – Danbury, CT
Apr 22: Game Changer World – Howell, NJ
Apr 23: Planet Trog – Whitehall, PA
Apr 24: Double Happiness – Columbus, OH
Sworn In on Facebook
Sworn In on YouTube
Sworn In on Instagram
Sworn In on Twitter
Sworn In is releasing their new studio album The Lover/The Devil on April 7, 2015 via Razor & Tie. The album was produced by Will Putney (Amity Affliction, For Today, Miss May I). Stream the first single “Sunshine” here.
Sworn In is Tyler Dennen (Vocals), Chris George (Drums), Zakary Gibson (Guitar) and Eugene Kamlyuk (Guitar).
Sworn In: The Lovers/The Devil Track Listing:
1. Sweetheart
2. Sugar Lips
3. I Don’t Really Love You
4. Oliolioxinfree
5. Waltz
6. Pins and Needles
7. Lay With Me
8. Weeping Willow
9. Pocket Full of Posies
10. Sunshine
11. Scissors
12. Sour
13. Love Drunk
The band recently announced their first headlining tour this spring with special guests The Plot In You, I Declare War, and Gift Giver. Prior to the headlining tour, Sworn In will hit the road as direct support to Chelsea Grin on The Ashes to Ashes Tour, presented by Substream. The tour also features special guests Carnifex, Black Tongue, and The Family Run.
Sworn In Tour Dates:
w/ Chelsea Grin, Carnifex, Black Tongue, The Family Run
Mar 06: Murray Theater – Murray, UT
Mar 07: The Summit Music Hall – Denver, CO
Mar 08: The Granada Theatre – Lawrence, KS
Mar 09: Blue Moose Tap House – Iowa City, IA
Mar 10: The Bottom Lounge – Chicago, IL
Mar 11: St. Andrews Hall – Detroit, MI
Mar 12: Theatre of Living Arts – Philadelphia, PA
Mar 13: The Palladium – Worcester, MA
Mar 14: The Gramercy Theater – New York, NY
Mar 15: Agora Ballroom – Cleveland, OH
Mar 16: Emerson Theater – Indianapolis, IN
Mar 17: Fubar – St. Louis, MO
Mar 20: Kapone’s – San Antonio, TX
Mar 21: South By So What? – Grand Prairie, TX
Mar 24: Sunshine Theater – Albuquerque, NM
Mar 25: Nile Theater – Mesa, AZ
Mar 26: The Glass House – Pomona, CA
Mar 27: Soma – San Diego, CA
Mar 28: Ace of Spades – Sacramento, CA
W/ The Plot In You, I Declare War, Gift Giver
Mar 29: Eagle Aerie Hall – Henderson, NV
Mar 30: 191 Toole – Tucson, AZ
Apr 01: Dirty Dog – Austin, TX
Apr 02: Walter’s – Houston, TX
Apr 03: The Conservatory – Oklahoma City, OK
Apr 04: The Outland Ballroom – Springfield, MO
Apr 07: Vaudeville Mews – Des Moines, IA
Apr 08: The Metal Grill – Cudahy, WI
Apr 10: Mohawk Place – Buffalo, NY
Apr 11: Rum Runners – London, ON (Canada)
Apr 12: Hard Luck Bar – Toronto, ON (Canada)
Apr 14: Ritual – Ottawa, ON (Canada)
Apr 15: Foufounes – Montreal, QC (Canada)
Apr 16: Saint Clair Theater – Syracuse, NY
Apr 17: Bogies – Albany, NY
Apr 18: Heirloom Arts Theatre – Danbury, CT
Apr 22: Game Changer World – Howell, NJ
Apr 23: Planet Trog – Whitehall, PA
Apr 24: Double Happiness – Columbus, OH
Sworn In on Facebook
Sworn In on Twitter
Impericon Festival have added more names to the UK leg of the 2015 run, which hits Manchester Academy on May 04, 2015. The lineup is now consisting of:
Suicide Silence (UK exclusive festival appearance)
Stick To Your Guns
Black Tongue
The Ghost Inside
Whitechapel
Deez Nuts
Adept