At last night’s Rock And Roll Hall of Fame Ceremony, Jerry Cantrell of Alice In Chains joined Ann Wilson of Heart to pay tribute to their late friend and Seattle brethren Chris Cornell. Cornell passed away on May 18th, 2017. Watch a video of them covering Soundgarden classic ‘Black Hole Sun’. Continue reading
The 2018 Northwest Terror Fest will be taking place at three separate venues in Seattle from May 31st through June 2nd, and the lineup is absolutely insane. Continue reading
The music world is still reeling from the loss of Warrel Dane. The Nevermore and Sanctuary vocalist died of an apparent heart attack last month, and left a hole in the scene that no one will be able to fill. Yesterday his band mates, friends, and fans gathered together in Seattle to share their memories of Warrel, and thankfully for those of us who couldn’t make it, the entire service was streamed online. Continue reading
A memorial is being held tomorrow for Warrel Dane (Nevermore/Sanctuary) who passed away following a heart attack on December 13th. The service will be livestreamed at the link below.Continue reading
Nearly three months have passed since Chris Cornell‘s death, and while we do have a huge catalog of music to help keep his memory alive, his wife is going one step further for her late husband. Continue reading
Photo by Josh Behm
GWAR just kicked off their run on this year’s Vans Warped Tour, and as you’ll see in the footage below, they are performing a killer new track, entitled ‘Fuck This Place’, live!Continue reading
Badmotorfinger, Soundgarden’s game-changing 1991 album turned 25 years old this year. The band has released an Anniversary Edition as well as deluxe editions today via Ume/A&M Records.Continue reading
1990s hit making rockers Candlebox have released a new music video for their song ‘Supernova’. You can watch the clip below: Continue reading
Submitted for your approval, the year is 1991. Already a bang up year for monumental rock and metal releases, Soundgarden releases Badmotorfinger on the now defunct A&M records sets the heavy music world on its ear. Sure in the climate where Nirvana’s Nevermind was climbing the charts and Metallica’s “Black Album” was already a legit hit too. Residing right in the middle, just as the “Seattle” craze was capturing people wad Soundgarden. That Badmotorfinger would go on to be the defining moment in their career wasn’t a surprise considering their history.
This multinational bill covered three continents and crossed several extreme sub-genres, which may have accounted for a disappointing attendance. A mere dozen witnessed Hampshire quintet Ageless Oblivion take to the stage but a Death-Groove explosion, orchestrated by the phenomenal drumming of Noah See, steadily roused the populace. The brooding, savage ‘Penthos’ displayed the band’s versatility, a pensive progression offset by bone-crushing main sections, and was the high point of a dramatic and technically superb performance.
Ageless Oblivion. Star & Garter, Manchester, 2015. Photo Credit: Rich Price
The intensity with which Bell Witch drummer Jesse Shreibman leant over his kit whilst studiously watching bassist Dylan Desmond, accurately portrayed the belief and intent with which he subsequently laid waste to it. Desmond’s huge 6-string bass towered over the bewitched throng as he softly intoned into the mic, his fingers caressing the fretboard and producing notes usually out of reach to mere mortals. ‘…Awoken (Breathing Teeth)’ was harrowing, omnipotent and bewildering: Desmond’s mournful strings weighing on Schreibman’s bowed head until he pounded back in with the force of a fucked-off juggernaut, roaring to the sky like a wounded musk ox. The track’s frame-shuddering and impossibly moving finale sent more than one person to the benches, overwhelmed by emotion.
Bell Witch. Star & Garter, Manchester, 2015. Photo Credit: Rich Price
Michael Hoggard, Ulcerate. Star & Garter, Manchester, 2015. Photo Credit: Rich Price
Auckland Technical Death purveyors Ulcerate displayed every element of their undoubted proficiency with urgency and muscular action. Guitarist Michael Hoggard and frontman / bassist Paul Kelland jerked lithely in almost reptilian fashion, their heads pouncing on the buckling beat like raptors. Jamie Saint Merat, meanwhile, considered one of the best sticksmen in the world, danced around his kit with the dexterity of Nijinsky whilst pounding the crap out of it. Involving yet brutal, the groove of ‘Soullessness Embraced’ was pushed through every bone by a wiry frontman wielding his bass like a demanding lover; while Hoggard, his freakishly long, flexing neck moving with the articulation of a Bosc Monitor, flung his instrument around like a toy in a kid’s hand. ‘Weight of Emptiness’ meanwhile, its sinister clashes and clangs shot through with brutal portent, highlighted again the incredible work of Merat who hypnotised all by slamming perfected, multiple rhythms down our throats whilst appearing to do nothing.
For a New Zealand band to perform 11,000 miles from home with this intensity to a room of 50 people was both criminal and admirable. An eclectic bill in many ways, Bell Witch just about stole it but every band played their part in a remarkable show of strength.
Paul Kelland, Ulcerate. Star & Garter, Manchester, 2015. Photo Credit: Rich Price
WORDS BY PAUL QUINN
PHOTOS BY RICH PRICE PHOTOGRAPHY