Entombed to support Volbeat on European tour

Swedish death metal legends Entombed will be supporting Danish act Volbeat on the latter's upcoming tour. Dates: http://www.volbeat.dk/

Sirius playlist week #24

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:

01. Randy - Who's side are you on?
02. TALK 1
03. Randy - Freedom song
04. Far From Tellus - Rosemary
05. Chicagojazzen - 18 år i en ruttnande kropp
06. TALK 2
07. Andreas Söderlund - Hawaii
08. Noisebud - Truck driver
09. Montys Loco - Heavy
10. TALK 3
11. Maim - Maimed
12. Turboweekend - Sweet Jezebel (Efterklang remix)
13. Pearl Fiction - The ruby fever
14. Meleeh - Hells mouth
15. TALK 4
16. Oranssi Pazuzu - Korppi
17. Brutus - Swedish lady
18. Entombed - Something out of nothing
19. Katzenjammer - To the sea
20. TALK 5
21. Robyn - Dancehall queen

Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.

Entombed interview + live review

Phil Freeman interviews Entombed for the Cleveland Scene: http://runningthevoodoodown.blogspot.com/2010/06/this-week-in-cleveland.html
He also caught the band live in NY: http://runningthevoodoodown.blogspot.com/2010/06/entombed-woe-of-tyrants-gwynnbleidd.html
For those that are curious there are plenty of videos of them (and others) from Maryland Deathfest online now, though most of the reports I've heard say that Entombed weren't so great.

Nirvana 2002
Recordings 89-91
Relapse

Ahhh, the sonic wonder that is old-school Swedish death metal. Remembering the good old days when the likes of Entombed (Nihilist), Dismember, Carnage and the crew were kickstarting a musical style that would not only define a genre, but remain in fond memory for decades to follow. Another band in the fold during those early days of death was Nirvana 2002, also spewing forth the guitar tone from Helvete (you know the one) and blasting out some of the best death metal this side of the "Left hand path". Indeed, the opening track on this, "Mourning", could easily sit on the lauded debut from Entombed and hold its own. In fact, it even kicks the ass of some of the tunes on "LHP" and, since that's probably my all-time favorite death metal record, it's really saying something. The songs here have all the elements of classic Swedish death metal: from the overall, face-ripping sound, to the masterful song construction that offers fast sections, pummelling mid-paced passages, and slow, haunting, melodic runs. Obviously, with this release being a collection of early recordings there's bound to be some variation in production between songs. The quality doesn't really begin to waver though until track seven ("Physical excursion / Truth and beauty"), which is understandable, given the songs from here on comprise the band's very first demos and rehearsal tapes. It's not an issue, however, as they give true insight into the workings of a fledgling genre, essentially serving as a window to the past and offering us the chance to really hear what was going on back in those formative years. On that note, the tracks from 1990's "Disembodied spirits" are presented here in two forms -- the original mix and a fresh 2009 mix. As could probably be expected, while the new mix offers a fuller, beefed out sound, the 1990 mix allows the true power of the original songs to shine through. As a whole, this is an exceptional and very welcome release indeed. An essential album for fans of the genre.
- John Norby

Fred Estby unveils Necronaut

Necronaut, the solo project of ex-Dismember/Carnage drummer/Sunlight Studios engineer Fred Estby, has signed with Regain Records and will be releasing their self-titled album later this year. The band features music written by Estby with a huge cast of metal all-stars contributing guest vocals and guitar tracks including luminaries such as Tomas Lindberg (Disfear, At the Gates), Nicke Andersson (Death Breath, ex-Entombed, The Hellacopters), Robert Pehrsson (Death Breath, Dundertåget), Robert "Strings" Dahlqvist (Dundertåget) and many more. Hear a sample tune at myspace featuring vocals from Chris Reifert (Abcess, Autopsy) and lead guitar from Uffe Cederlund (Disfear, ex-Entombed): http://www.myspace.com/necronaut666

The Generals
Stand up straight
Metalcentral Records

The best way to put a tag on this Swedish quartet is to take Entombed's "To ride, shoot straight and speak the truth" and Dismember's "Massive killing capacity" and fuse the two to create an album that displays the mid-90s death 'n' roll sentiment as expressed by the country's extreme forerunners back then. Both bands have long since left their bop-mosh tendencies to explore different paths (although it was really Entombed's ball, with Dismember lightly toying with the idea amid a more straightforward death metal foundation), essentially leaving a gap in the market for those who fell in love with the style and who strive to make it their own. The Generals manage to pull it off with great conviction, despite not quite achieving the hair-raising impact made by their death metal ancestors. There's one main ingredient here -- the old-school Tomas Skogsberg guitar sound – that elevates this to a status it wouldn't otherwise deserve. It offers what is essentially slightly-above-par songwriting a boost into the realms of acceptance and makes the songs a good deal more enjoyable than if they had some sort of generic death metal tone. That said, the production on here is ever-so-slightly on the wrong side of tinny and it gets a tad annoying after a while. Songwise, it's average with a few shining moments here and there, most notably on their purer death metal moments such as "The offer still stands" and "Consulting with the sinner". Track of the disc must go to "Portal to paradise" though, with its clever use of '80s Sunset Strip hard rock passages that fit so well with the heavier elements that it's a shame The Generals didn't have the foresight to make more use of the amalgam. Overall, "Stand up straight" is a good debut album that shows a wealth of potential, providing the band take the right steps on their next effort.
- John Norby

The Tarantula Waltz - Bacchus (live, feat. Nicke Andersson)

Check out a live video of The Tarantula Waltz playing their new single "Bacchus" with a guest appearance by Nicke Andersson (Hellacopters, Death Breath, Entombed, etc.): http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jtkF6WbpEQ
Be sure to also peep the more/related for lots more clips from the record release show.

NEI
New agenda
National

If System of a Down appeared in the '60s, prior to the invention of super-heavy distortion, this is probably what they would sound like. Swedish quartet NEI take that style and make it their own, offering an eccentric and upbeat collection of songs that envelops the sounds of the '60s in a pseudo-punk meets Queens Of The Stone Age infused veil. While this is far from a metal album, it's also quite reminiscent of Entombed's polarizing "Same difference" opus, the album that found the Swedish death metal stalwarts relinquish their characteristic grinding guitar tone in favor of a more alternative warmth. "New agenda" even offers whole chunks of music that wouldn't sound out of place on "SD" in terms of song construction and guitar sound -- take "The destroyer man" and "Hello" as prime examples. Variety comes in abundance on this album with a perfect amalgam of styles and a wealth of tempo changes, and it makes this one of the most enjoyable and exciting albums to emerge from Sweden in a long time. It must be said that it's a grower, though. First listen doesn't really make that much of an impression but on successive spins it gradually reveals its true genius. For the most part it's airy and driving with occasional pensive moments placed sparingly to inject a cool dynamic into the mix. A brilliant album indeed! One minor point, though: guys, what's with the 'cabaret-magician-meets-original-series-Star Trek' outfits? Jeez!
- John Norby

Entombed extracurricular activities

Metal Bastard gives the lowdown on Entombed's many various sideprojects throughout the years, complete with samples of each: http://metalbastard.blogspot.com/2010/02/entombed-side-projects-galore.html

Entombed back in America

Entombed have confirmed a short run of US dates:

05/30 - Maryland Deathfest, Baltimore, MD
05/31 - Champ Bar and Grill, Trenton, NJ
06/01 - Opera House, Toronto, ON
06/02 - The Gramercy Theatre, NYC, NY
06/03 - Peabody's, Cleveland, OH
06/04 - Blondie's, Detroit, MI
06/05 - Reggie Rock Club, Chicago, IL
06/06 - Rave, Milwaukee, WI

Tortyr
Ingen kommer undan
D-takt & Råpunk

There's not really that much to say about Sweden's Tortyr other than if you like your crust bassy and dirty as hell then you'll love them. Musically, they're a mix of punk and crust with a tiny hint of death metal that goes a long way to surpassing the likes of genre luminaries Skitsystem in the heaviness stakes. As with a lot of this type of music, however, it tends to get a bit samey after a few tracks. Thankfully, Tortyr do offer a little in the way of variation, although not nearly enough. "De blindas lakej" kicks off like an oldschool Swedish death metal effort, and doesn't sound a million miles away from something you'd expect from an early-90s Entombed. For me, at least, it's the track of the album and showcases an aspect of this band that they should really explore. Vocally, there's some work to be done here. It's just too shouty-screamy and, although that's the style generally used for this type of music, it's clear that these guys would benefit greatly from the odd death-growl passage here and there. It's more of this type of variation -- both musically and vocally -- that could elevate Tortyr to greater recognition and see them output a truly monstrous album. Here's hoping for next time...
- John Norby

Sirius playlist week #50

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU, 100% pre-millennium edition:

01. TALK 1
02. Honey Is Cool - Bolero
03. Beyond Dawn - Addictions are private
04. Commando M Pigg - Baby doll
05. TALK 2
06. Kent - If you were here
07. Fireside - Let Rasputin do it
08. CMX - Ainomieli 97
09. Docent Död - Bensin i blodet
10. TALK 3
11. Bitch Boys - Automobile
12. Nicolai Dunger - This town
13. Broder Daniel - I'll be gone
14. Starmarket - Ten seconds
15. TALK 4
16. Madrugada - Beautyproof
17. Breach - Black sabbath
18. Silverbullit - Thank you Mr.
19. Camouflage - Syster sol
20. TALK 5
21. Entombed - Lights out

Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers. Next week's show will feature tunes from my top 10 albums of the year.

Entombed to tour South America

Swedish death metal legends Entombed are heading to South America for the first time ever:

11/19 - Circo Volador, Mexico City (MEX)
11/21 - Bar Orange, Armenia (COL)
11/22 - Teatro la mama, Bogotá (COL)
11/23 - Mao Bar, Lima (PER)
11/25 - Centro Comercial Mundial, La Paz (BOL)
11/27 - Club Cadilac, Santiago (CHL)
11/28 - El Huevo, Valparaíso, Valparaíso (CHL)
11/29 - Hangar, Sao Paulo (BRA)

Also check out myspace for European dates in December: http://www.myspace.com/serpentsaints

Metal Bastard's #1 album of the 90s revealed

Metal Bastard says that Entombed's "Clandestine" is the best album of the 90s: http://metalbastard.blogspot.com/2009/08/metal-bastard-reveals-best-album-of-90s.html

Sirius playlist week #29

Here's the playlist for this week's radio show Sirius XMU:

01. Gocart System - Always been the same
02. TALK 1
03. [ingenting] - Halleluja
04. The Kid - Transient dance
05. Thåström - Kort biografi med litet testamente
06. TALK 2
07. Small - Sunshine lover
08. Heroin and Your Veins - The trigger
09. Kongh - Tank pa doden
10. Villebråd - Vaknar aldrig
11. TALK 3
12. Anna Leong - Guillotine
13. Ison & Fille - Jag skrattar idag
14. Dyno - Burning blood
15. TALK 4
16. The Bear Quartet - Sweet beef
17. Entombed - State of emergency
18. Skatan - Top of the mountain
19. Familjen - Mine øyne de ska se
20. TALK 5
21. Suzy Thunder - Big

Reminder: my show airs every week on Sundays and Mondays at 11pm ET on Sirius XMU. That's channel 26 on Sirius, 43 on XM and 831 for DirecTV subscribers.