Song of the Day: The Fall of Troy - F.C.P.R.E.M.I.X.

     While we're still on the subject of bands gone by that I wish I could raise from the dead with the click of a mouse, we might as well mine the subject for all the idea gold it's worth. And since it's been a bit since the last Loud Noises theme week, why not kill a couple of pigs will this well aimed bird* and do a Back from the Dead week about bands I like that have fallen apart before their time. To start things off there's one now-defunct band that always sticks out in my mind at times like this: The Fall of Troy.

Song of the Day: Straight Reads the Line - The Jig is Up

     Since I did another Kingdoms song yesterday, I figure it's only right to attempt the same resurrection voodoo on another Canadian band I've mentioned before that expired before its time, in the admittedly vain hopes that exposing them to some new fans might somehow magically change the past. Sigh. At least we've got some great songs from bands like Straight Reads the Line.

Song of the Day: Kingdoms - Pyramids

     One of the handy-dandy features of Blogger is that in addition to being able to view raw page view data, I can also see what kinds of views individual posts are getting. So it pleases me to see that over the last couple of weeks or so, there seem to have been at least a few of you showing some interest in now-defunct Canadian post-hardcore band Kingdoms. If 'twere within the realm of possibility for me to resurrect a band with the mere power of this blog, Kingdoms would be near the top of that list.

Song of the Day: Reflections - An Artifact

      Not surprisingly, none of you have given me any addition box ideas to keep the whole Boxing Day thing going. That's OK, I didn't think anybody would anyways, so I have a contingency plan. Just in case you were worried.

Song of the Day: Cynic - Box Up My Bones

     Yeah, I'm lame and continuing the "box" theme started yesterday on Boxing Day. Fuck off. You'll like today's song, I promise.

Song of the Day (26th): Alice in Chains - Man in the Box

     The Christmas season continues, but here in Canada it's Boxing Day today, so we leave Christmas music behind and embrace...box themed music?

Song of the Day (25th): Bing Crosby - God Rest Ye Merry, Gentlemen

     I know I said yesterday that I'd be back later and everything with another song, but yeah... that clearly didn't happen... Oh well. 'Tis the season, right? Anyways, I'm back today, and Loud Noises is back on track with its regular schedule of programming, starting with a Christmas ditty.

Song of the Day (24th): Scale the Summit - Collosal

     Running a little behind, what with it being Christmas and all, but you still get some song recommendations for all your metal merrymaking. Tonight (for yesterday) I've got a song from a band I've mentioned before but never featured on their own day. Bit of a theme from yesterday, eh?

Song of the Day: Blotted Science - Cretaceous Chasm

     I was going through my notes earlier, casting about for a song as I'm wont to do, and I came across a band I've written about before, back when I was writing longer non-daily posts, but one that's never gotten their own featured day. They're badass enough to warrant their own day, in my opinion, so here it is!

Song of the Day: Sublime - Smoke Two Joints

     So I know I'm a few hours late with today's (or yesterday's) song, but I'm blaming it on both today's recovery from last night's round 2 of our holiday merrymaking and this evening's round three of said merrymaking. But on the upside, as I sit here casting about for a song before I call it a night, all this merrymaking has given me an idea.

Song of the Day: Dave Brubeck - Take Five

     So it's Friday evening, on the 21st of December, and the world, having neglected to end, continues to spin. Crazy, huh? Maybe now people will get that, just like our own calendar, the Mayan one was cyclical, with the end of a cycle not representing the end of everything.

Song of the Day: Glass Cloud - Memorandum

     I know I've written about techy melo-djent act Glass Cloud before, but their debut album The Royal Thousand came up in my shuffle this morning on the way to work and convinced me that they deserve another day in the sun. Like I said before, they're certainly not reinventing the genre, but they are rocking it out well enough to warrant a second look at least. Given that I've featured a Glass Cloud song on Loud Noises before, consider today your second look.

Song of the Day: Mestis - Menta

     Today's song comes from an act that's kind of a friend-of-a-friend sort of thing. You see, there's this instrumental prog-tech-jazz metal type band you probably know called Animals as Leaders, and in this band there are two guitarists: Tosin Abasi and Javier Reyes. These two slingers of many-stringer guitars are so full of ideas that they're in another band together, the jazz-influenced T.R.A.M. Even more than that, Reyes is so super chock full of material that he's got his own solo side-project called Mestis. It's from this project's first EP that I've drawn today's song.

Song of the Day: Tesseract - Eden

     One of my current favourite bands changed the cover photo on their Facebook today. I don't know whether it means new single or new album or what, but Tesseract's cover photo now reads "Altered State". Regardless of what this might mean for us Tesseract fans, at the very least it means an excuse to show you a badass band.

Song of the Day: Haji's Kitchen - Nocturnus

     Today's band is one I've been very remiss in not sharing with you before now. I've known about them at least since the summer, having learned of them because I'm a bit of a Dan Tompkins fanboy (as you may already know) and prolific chap that his is, he does some vocal work on their latest album. But I've just never gotten around to picking a song for you to listen to... until now...

Song of the Day: Slipknot - Left Behind

     Just a quick one tonight, as I've got to get to bed so I can get up for work tomorrow morning. I was trying to think of good songs or bands to feature while we're on our voyage in the Wayback Machine, and I think I've come up with a doozy.

Song of the Day: System of a Down - Toxicity

     Due to the high cost of operting the Wayback Machine, we're spending at least another day in my high school past. Which band are we dealing with today? I'll give you a hint: I saw these guys live this year.

Song of the Day: Nothingface - Breath Out

     I ran into an old acquaintance/sibling of an old friend tonight, and it made me feel a little nostalgic, so for today's song we're going to take a ride in the ol' Wayback Machine and listen to a(nother) song by one of my favourite heavy bands back in high school. Let's go!

Song of the Day: Pomagranate Tiger - New Breed

     Boy, do I have something for you today. If you've been following along at all, you know that among my favourite things when it comes to metal and heavy music are a) progressive, complicated stuff and b) cool instrumental bands. I like progressive, complicated stuff because I find it interesting (and sometimes challenging!) to listen to and because it represents the work of artists with incredible skill and command of their craft. I like finding good instrumental bands because I think it's an interesting exercise to take modern listeners of music on the same journey emotionally and intellectually without any words, as well to hold the listener's interest without the typical focal point of the vocalist. (I say modern listeners as music fans during the time of, say, Mozart, would likely be more used to musical performed without the accompaniment of vocals...but I digress)

Song of the Day: Glassjaw - Radio Cambodia

     In the same way that yesterday's song came about because I felt that Opeth was underrepresented in theLoud Noises Song of the Day catalogue, today's song comes from another band you should know about if you don't already, and a band that's like the Guns and Roses of post-hardcore in the sense that their new album has been so long in coming that  one doubts it'll ever arrive. But in the meantime...

Song of the Day: Opeth - The Devil's Orchard

     In coming up with a song this evening, I've been going through my records (yes, I keep records) to see if there might be somebody I felt was underrepresented and deserving of a day in the sun. Lo and behold, I've found something just right.

Song of the Day: Circles - Another Me

     If you've been following along, you know that a little less than a week ago, I featured a song by rising Australian djentlemen Circles in honour of the impending release of the first single from their forthcoming full-length debut. Of course then Circles would have to go and mess with my shit by putting out a video for this new single just a couple of days later.

Song of the Day: Trioscapes - Separate Realities

     Happy Sunday night, everybody. Since it was Kelsey's birthday yesterday and we spent the weekend at her parent's house, and of course because she is so awesome, I figure she deserves another song. But as much as I love her, I'm not writing this blog just for her, right? So the challenge then becomes picking a good song that she really digs but that the rest of you should find equally bad ass. Challenge accepted.

Song of the Day: The Pixies - Here Comes Your Man

     Today is a very special day here at Loud Noises, because today the best girlfriend in the world turns 24! So in honour of Kelsey's birthday, she gets her own Song of the Day today.

Song of the Day: The Black Dahlia Murder - I Will Return

     I was driving around today and The Black Dahlia Murder came up on shuffle, and it occurred to me that it's been a while since I've written about them, and that there might be a handful of metal fans among you who aren't converts yet. So bam! Song of the day it is!

Song of the Day: Sam Roberts Band - Let It In

     Today's song might not be very metal, but it's a cool song and it's been stuck in my head all evening -- not for the first time either. Hopefully by sharing it with you I can exorcise it from my

     Your song today is "Let It In" from the 2011 album Collider by the Sam Roberts Band. For me, it's the perfect little slice of poppy rock: it's super catchy, it's got some cool melodies, it's got some interesting lyrical turns of phrase, and it's even just a shade weird. It is, in the words of those funkiest of monks the Red Hot Chili Peppers, a pretty little ditty.

     So now it's in your heard, which hopefully means it's out of mine. Good luck with it!

Song of the Day: Ever Forthright - Latency and Tendencies

     Evening everybody. I've got something for you today you probably haven't heard, which is always something I'm looking for, and on top of that it's something I haven't written about yet, which is always a bonus.

     So New York City djenty-type band Ever Forthright have been on my musical radar for a while now: back in September they toured southern Ontario a little with Intervals and Mandroid Echostar, both Canadian bands I'm always trying to talk up, and last week I finally picked up a copy of their 2011 self-titled debut. I've only given the disc a couple of plays, but I'm already intrigued by Ever Forthright's jazzy, glitchy take on the increasingly over-saturated tech metal/djent subgenre. Let's see if you are too.

     Your song today is called "Latency and Tendencies". So far it's one of my favourites on the album, so it's the one I'm going to share with you. Enjoy!

Song of the Day: Circles - Clouds Are Gathering

     Hey everybody, got another quick one before bed again, dealing today with up and coming Australian prog-metallers Circles. I've written about these guys before, but now they're hard at work on the first full-length, and have just debuted the first single. I haven't heard it yet, but that's no reason not to check out something from their 2011 EP The Compass.

     So your song today is "Clouds Are Gathering". Check it out and then go get stoked up for the new album.

Song of the Day: Intervals - Mata Hari

     Evening, friends. Just a quick one today since I gotta hit the hay so I can get up super early tomorrow for work. I've written about Canadian instrumetal band Intervals a couple of times before, but since my CD copy of their new EP is finally here (yay!) I figure it's a good time to promote this band again.

     So your song today is "Mata Hari" from October's EP In Time, and as an added bonus, you get a play-through video by guitarist/songwriter Aaron Marshall, so you can watch him play this song's badass leads as well as listen to them. If heavy, progressive, instrumental music is your thing, you need to know about these guys already, and if it's not, this band is one of example of why maybe it should be.

Song of the Day: Jimi Hendrix - All Along the Watchtower

     Evening kids, it's your friendly neighbourhood Beardy here with the final day of Under of the Covers of Darkness Week. There's so many things I could have picked for today (and maybe some of those possibilities will show up as future songs, so stay tuned...) but I've decided to go with a hall of fame, honourable mention, lifetime achievement type pick. Since this week's theme was covers, today's song is arguably the cover to end all covers.

Song of the Day: Biffy Clyro - Buddy Holly

     Happy Saturday Morning everybody! Under the Covers of Darkness Week is nearing its conclusion, but boy have I got a cover for you today. I'll come right out and confess that I've been saving this one, and that it might even be the whole reason this theme came to me in the first place.

Song of the Day: Coheed and Cambria - The Trooper

     I suppose I could probably find enough decent Pink Floyd covers to just keep going that way for the rest of the week, but variety is the spice of life and all that, so let's switch it up just a tad, shall we? Today I've got another cover of a classic song by a similarly immortal band.

Song of the Day: Misery Signals - Us and Them

     Under the Covers of Darkness Week continues apace, and today I'm going to keep rolling along with a very specific mini-theme that you didn't even notice me establishing yesterday: heavied-up covers of Pink Floyd songs. Too specific, you say? No way I could come up with another such cover after yesterday's song? Watch me. I've got a good one by one of my favourite heavy bands.

Song of the Day: Shadows Fall - Welcome to the Machine

     Under the Covers of Darkness Week continues on this Humpday, and if yesterday we took a step away from more conventional covers, today we take a step back towards them. Not only that, but your cover for today comes from a band that's had a song featured lately. But all of the being said, it's a cool cover of a great song, so you're gettin' it whether you like it or not.

Song of the Day: Cake - War Pigs

     Afternoon everyone. Today we're back doing day two of Under the Covers of Darkness Week here at Loud Noises, and I've got a good one for you. Yesterday's song, Thrice's cover of "Eleanor Rigby", while being cool, was a pretty straight-forward cover. It was heavier, sure, but definitely recognizably "Eleanor Rigby". Today's cover is a little further afield from the original -- in some very good ways.

Song of the Day: Thrice - Eleanor Rigby

     A little over a month ago, Loud Noises had its first theme week when I did Classic Rock Week. Now, maybe classic rock isn't your favourite thing in the world, but I hope the concept of having some sort of running theme for songs from one day to the next isn't too offensive to you, because I've got a couple of ideas for doing it again, and I'm going to do one of them this week.

Song of the Day: The Tea Party - The Bazaar

     I was having trouble thinking of a song for today, until my girlfriend suggested something we'd been rocking out to earlier in the car. Yeah, I think that'll do.

Song of the Day: Soundgarden - Jesus Christ Pose

     I'm sure you're well aware that Soundgarden is back together. You probably know they put out a new album, King Animal, a couple of weeks ago. You might even have heard the first single off said album "Been Away Too Long" on the radio or online. But if you're like me, you're not a huge fan of this song. I haven't heard anything else off the album yet, but if the single is any indication, I vote it best to remember the good ol' days.

Song of the Day: Monuments - Blue Sky Thinking

     Today's band is definitely Djent with a capital D (which isn't surprising given their pedigree, with guitarist John Browne being an alumnus of defunct British djent pioneers Fell Silent) but that doesn't mean they're not worth a listen or two. I just got a copy of their debut full-length last week, and I've been digging on it quite a bit.

Song of the Day: Big Wreck - That Song

     I try to go to good shows when they come to town, but sometimes the composition of a bill isn't enough to justify the price, even if I'd like to see one or more of the acts on it. Tonight is one of those nights.

Song of the Day: Shadows Fall - A Fire in Babylon

     Today's band certainly isn't new, and they don't have a new album out or anything, but I got thinking the other day about how I haven't heard these guys in forever, and then I got thinking about how that's a perfect excuse for a Song of the Day, and, well, here we are.

Song of the Day: Slice The Cake - The Siren's Song

     Some days it's hard to come up with something that is both a) new and potentially undiscovered by the majority of you, and b) nice and heavy. No worries today though, because I've got both.Tasty.

Song of the Day: Faith No More - Epic

     I know you know it, but I've chosen today's song in honour of reaching one thousand all time page views here at Loud Noises. Here's to another thousand!

Raise a Glass to 1000 Views!

     So there's still going to be a Song of the Day today, but I feel the need to just put up a quick post to share with you the fact that as of this morning Loud Noises now has more than 1000 all-time page views! It was a slow start, but things have been picking up, so thanks for stopping by, and by all means, keep reading.

Song of the Day: Closure In Moscow - Kissing Cousins

     Yesterday when I was writing about Thank You Scientist and trying (somewhat vainly) to come up with some way to describe their sound, I mentioned a band called Closure in Moscow. Checking my records (yes, I do keep records) I see that I haven't done a Song of the Day for them yet, and since they're the kind of band that I don't imagine too many of you are into, I figure they could use a day in the spotlight.

Song of the Day: Thank You Scientist - My famed disappearing act

     I read reviews on sites like Heavyblogisheavy and MetalSucks, and if somebody I don't know sounds particularly interesting I'll go and check them out. I'm sure you do much the same thing when you're looking for new stuff. That's how I discovered today's band.

Song of the Day: Slipknot - The Nameless

     Nothing super new today, although I should have a few new things for you in the coming days, so today we're just going to do a cool (and perhaps underappreciated song) by a band I'm sure you all know.

Song of the Day: Deftones - Swerve City

     I've posted about Deftones new album a couple of times now, showcasing the first couple of songs they released from it, but since it was actually released on Tuesday, I figure what better time to do another Deftones tune.

Today's Song: Refused - Refused Are Fuckin' Dead

     For today's (quick) song, we're going to visit a band not dissimilar from yesterday's band Numbers, in that they're both a little hard to pin down, genre-wise, and also in that I've written about both before.

Yesterday's Song: Numbers - Oh Teh Monies

     I know this is getting a little old, but it is what it is. Old habits die hard, so what can we say about the longevity of bad habits? Hopefully that it's short-lived. All I can promise I'll try to get the Song of the Day train back on track. That said, let's get to yesterday's song.

Song of the Day: Metallica - Fade to Black

     It's Monday, and it's been a while since I've done a Metallica song for a Song of the Day, so buckle up kids, because it's Metallica Monday again!

Song of the Sunday: Black Sabbath - War Pigs

     It's Remembrance Day here in Canada (or was yesterday ...) and it's hard to come up with an appropriate song that isn't too cheeky or one of the ones they play at ceremonies at 11:11. So I've just gone with a song I think is a good war song, but not overly silly or "metal".

     Your song for yesterday is Black Sabbath's "War Pigs" (ok, the name is a little silly maybe...) the first track from the epic 1970 album Paranoid. Lest we forget...

Song of the (To)day: Visions - Attentive: Continuum

     So for today's actual song, I'm reverting to my original mandate and featuring something you might not have heard before, although if you follow the modern techy/core scene then you might know today's band after all. Ladies and gents, I give you Visions.

Song of the (Yester)Day: Thrice - Under a Killing Moon

     I know it's technically late, but it's also really early in the morning and therefore not quite Saturday yet, so conceptually I'm going to imagine I finished this last night like I intended to and go from there...

Song of the Day: Revocation - No Funeral

     I know it hasn't been all that long since I did a Revocation song, only a couple of weeks, but I've recently picked up a copy of their 2011 full length Chaos of Forms and I'm really getting into it and them. So today you get another Revocation tune. Lucky you!

Song of the Day: The Receiving End of Sirens - Planning a Prison Break

     Like a drowning man grasping at a piece of wreckage that until recently was part of a boat, I'm going to cling to a theme from yesterday's song to arrive at today's. And that theme is Casey Crescenzo.

Song of the Day: The Dear Hunter - In Cauda Venenum

     Ever heard of The Dear Hunter? No? I'll forgive you, since I don't think I've written about them yet. But after today you've got no excuse, OK?

Wham Bam Boom: Three Day Catch-Up

     Another rapid fire day today, as Saturday night's belated Hallowe'en party left me very ineffective this weekend. First up is your song for Saturday.

Today: White Zombie - More Human Than Human

     Writing the post for yesterday's song by Rob Zombie gave me another of my "thematic connection"-type ideas, so I thought I'd keep the Rob Zombie going today in the form of Rob's other gig, White Zombie.

Yesterday: Rob Zombie - Dragula

     I thought I did a song yesterday, but apparently not. So blammo!

Song of the Day: Michael Jackson - Thriller

     I know what you're thinking: what the fuck is Michael Jackson doing on this metal blog? Well, it's Hallowe'en, and I needed a good spooky song for today. But aren't there any evil and/or scary metal songs, you ask? Aren't there like a million of them, you demand? Sure, but therein lies the problem. There's umpteen gazillion metal songs that could be good for Hallowe'en, but there's also only so much time in the day for me to choose from them. So I've decided to just go with my gut and present the most Hallowe'eny song I can think of.

Song of the Day: Intervals - Tapestry

     Guten tag, everyone. Today I've got a killer new tune for you from a band that I've been talking up at every available opportunity over the last few months. They've been streaming their new EP online for the last week or two, but since said EP is officially out today, what better day to crank some instrumental metal?*

Song of the Day: Machine Head - Aesthetics of Hate

     Afternoon everybody, it's Monday once again (funny how it happens every week...) and it's imperative to start the week off right. Normally this might mean a Metallica Monday, but today I'm going to go with another M band, albeit one with which you're probably already familiar. That band is Machine Head, which means that this is Machine Head Monday.

Song of the Day: Enter Shikari - Mothership

     We're going to change directions again today, moving from yesterday's Canadian indie-emo-alt-rock to some British post-hardcore electro-metal* in my ongoing quest to provide you, dear reader, not just with some rockin' tunes, but with some rockin' tunes you might not already know. To that end, let's talk about Enter Shikari.

Pit Report: Protest the Hero

     As you may be aware (since I told you as much) I saw Protest the Hero play on Monday night, so I thought it might be fun to do a quick little pit report about the show. Enjoy!

Song of the Day: Moneen - Tonight, I'm Gone...

     Today we're going to shift gears a little, given yesterday's foray into quasi-satirical, quite possibly offensive hip-hop. From that we move to Canadian alt-indie rock. Too big a jump for you? Too bad.

Song of the Today: Weerd Science - Girl, Your Baby's Worm Food

     Hey everybody, I'm back with today's Song of the Day for today, but I've got a bit of a caveat before we get started, and here it is: this song is super duper NSFW and probably pretty offensive if you don't have a good (read: dirty, filthy, and generally terrible) sense of humour, or if you're just pro-life. Huh? What does TheBeard mean by that? Read on.

Song of the Yesterday: 3 - Alien Angel

     No excuses today, just late with yesterday's song, so you get another double header. The first one requires a bit of a walk, so bear with me. Now, by now you should all at least have heard of Coheed and Cambria, what with all the talking about them I've done: a couple of songs of the day and the Super Tuesday post in anticipation of their new album, The Afterman Part 1: Ascension (which, by the way, is pretty good). If you read that super Super Tuesday post, then you might remember me mentioning a gentlemen named Josh Eppard, Coheed's original drummer, who was gone for an album or two but is now back with the band.

Song of the Day: Deftones - Tempest

     Just a super quick one today, since I'm exhausted and need to get to bed ASAP. In honour of the new Deftones album coming out in a couple of weeks (November 13th, to be exact) and the good reviews that are starting to pop up online, you song today is "Tempest", the second song released from the forthcoming Koi No Yokan. I'm starting to get pretty excited about this one, and after hearing the first couple of songs off of it (today's "Tempest" and "Leathers" from about a month back) I hope you are too.

Song of the Day: Trioscapes - Blast Off

     I've got something a little different for you today, and something I can't believe I haven't posted about before. However, I warn you now, there be saxophone ahead. I know sax isn't everyone's favourite thing, and can in fact be quite divisive, so consider this your fair warning that today's song includes sax.* Intrigued? Read on.

Song of the Day: Protest the Hero - C'est la Vie

     I don't know if I've mentioned it before now (it might very well not have come up) but I'm going to see Protest the Hero tonight. I've seen them a couple of times before at another venue, and I've seen several other band's at tonight's venue, so by doing the maths I've come to the conclusion that seeing a high energy band like Protest the Hero in a small comedy club should be a good time. I'm looking forward to putting another notch in my Protest the Hero belt.

Song of the Day: Revocation - The Grip Tightens

     Yesterday I promised you that today we'd be back to business as usual here at Loud Noises and I don't intend to disappoint. I think Classic Rock Week went well, and I might explore other ideas for theme weeks in the future*, but for now it's time to get back to some metal. And today's song has the added bonus of having a fun video to go along with it.

Song of the Day: The Who - Pinball Wizard

      OK kids, it's been fun, but Classic Rock Week is coming to a close. Starting tomorrow, we'll be back to regularly scheduled programming with some tasty, tasty metal, but today I've got one more slice of classic rock for you to feast your ears on before we zip up our time hoodies and return to the present. It was a tough call today, as there are so many good classic rock songs that have stood the proverbial test of time. I've tried to pick songs this week that are not just songs I like or that I think others will like, but ones that are also good on their own merit and not just because we hear them through the hazy filter of nostalgia. Some classic rock is definitely enjoyable largely for nostalgic reasons, while some transcends those nostalgic reasons and remains kick-ass because it was kick-ass to begin with.

Song of the Day: Jimi Hendrix - Castles Made of Sand

     In my humble opinion as both a guitarist and a fan of music generally, there are a number of names that one simply has to touch upon in any discussion of classic rock, names that you just can't leave out. I've included several of those names so far this week, and today I present to you one more. Today's song just might be my favourite by this artist, and it's not necessarily one of his most well known songs, so I thought it would be a perfect choice to recommend to you.

Songs of the Days: Yeah, I know...

     Yeah, I know, shut up. My excuse today is that I've been working a bunch and it's midterm time, so students have been e-mailing me with a million and one silly questions. But no matter. Still a day late and a dollar short, so once again you get a double dose of classic rock today as Classic Rock Week continues not-quite-apace.

Song of the Day: Pink Floyd - Us and Them

     Classic rock week continues here at Loud Noises with yet another band that needs no introduction. Once I settled on this particular band, the choice of song was made for me by the fact that today's song is covered by not one but two great bands - Misery Signals and Between the Buried and Me. Open and shut case, really.

Song of the Day: Led Zeppelin - Moby Dick

     It would be next to impossible for me to do any kind of classic rock week without having a song by today's band. The tough part is picking a song. After all, British rock gods Led Zeppelin have an extensive catalogue that's stuffed to the gills with great songs. One could probably write an entire blog (and someone out there probably is) about Zepp, so monumental was their impact on rock and/or roll. Ultimately, I decided today to go with one you might not know if you're not a Led Zeppelin fan.

Songs of the Weekend/Classic Rock Week Kick-Off

OK, I missed doing a song yesterday, but unlike usual I have a valid excuse: we were at a friend's wedding yesterday. But on the plus side (for you, anyways) is that it kind of gave me the idea for today's Song, and possibly some direction for the rest of the week. Allow me to explain.

For a while now I've been contemplating doing a week (or more than one, if things go well) of themed songs. The idea I've been kicking around is a classic rock week, but not in a traditional sense so much as with the spirit of metal in mind. Some classic rock is considered to be directly presaging early metal, while other stuff may only have elements that have found their way into some form of metal or other, but the bottom line is there's a lot of good stuff from back in the day that's not The Beatles or The Rolling Stones or some other band you here on classic rock radio all the time (not that any of those bands isn't good). Now, I know classic rock isn't the most cutting edge music and that most of you will have heard most of it before. But maybe you're a young metalhead who hasn't heard it all and is curious about what came before. Or maybe you have heard everything before but just need to be reminded that metal isn't the only thing under the sun. Either way, I've been thinking for a while now that a week of classic rock might be a fun idea.

Then last night we're at this wedding, my girlfriend and I, and "Bohemian Rhapsody" by Queen comes on, and it seems like everybody in the room is belting out every word. That led me to the thought today that maybe I should take that as a sign that now's the time (the time is now*) for a classic rock theme week. So starting today, this week here at Loud Noises is Classic Rock Week, and today's a double feature because I missed yesterday. And your first song, as you might have guessed, is "Bohemian Rhapsody" from 1975's A Night at the Opera.  At first glance, not very metal at all, but take another look. Operatic vocals (quite literally), multi-instrumentation, an unorthodox arrangement and some heavy riffing are all qualities of this song that you might also expect to find today in proggier stuff like Opeth, making "Bohemian Rhapsody" a song that still rocks and sounds fresh today.

So that's yesterday. Now today. Your second song is one more traditionally connected with metal, namely "War Pigs" from Black Sabbath's 1970 classic Paranoid. If I have to tell you why this one's metal, you should probably just leave now.

* a million bonus points to anyone who can correctly guess the classic rock reference there.

Song of the Day: Puscifer - REV 22:20

     I've decided to complete the Maynard James Keenan trifecta today, even if the third part of this trinity is the least metal of the three. Unlike Tool and A Perfect Circle, Puscifer is Keenan's solo project, in which he can explore whatever musical experimentation strikes his fancy. Such musical experimentation is considerably more electronic and more pop-y than either of his other gigs, but still worth checking out as yet another showcase for his powerful voice.

Song of the Day: Tool - 46 & 2

     I had a deeply unsettling thought after posting yesterday's Song of the Day. As I said, I pretty much assume that you all know who I was talking about yesterday - A Perfect Circle aren't exactly new or underground. But then I pictured the one metal fan out there in the world who (hypothetically) read yesterday's post and reacted with a hearty "who the fuck is Maynard James Keenan?"  Today's song is for that one poor bastard.

Song of the Day: A Perfect Circle - Judith

     I bet you've heard of today's band, but if perhaps you've been living under a rock or on a different planet for the last ten to fifteen years, you might not know that Maynard James Keenan has more gigs than just Tool. Sure, Tool's awesome and easily Keenan's best stuff, but that doesn't mean that everything he touches isn't rock solid, because it is. Even Puscifer. But the Maynard James Keenan side-project* I like best is definitely A Perfect Circle.

Song of the Day: Sylosis - Out From Below

     Well, it's been a long wait, but Super Tuesday is finally here! It certainly doesn't rival Christmas morning or the last day of school or anything, but there's a little part of me that's been looking forward to today for months, largely because today's band's new album drops in North America today (fuck you, Europe). Don't get me wrong, I'm really looking forward to new Between the Buried and Me and Coheed and Cambria as well, but of the three, Sylosis is the one I've really been waiting for.

Song of the Day: Metallica - One

     It's already getting late, so today's going to be short and sweet. And since it is getting late, and it is Monday, I'm going to take the easy way out and call it a Metallica Monday. And since each passing day convinces me more and more that Metallica will never release any more good music, your song's going to have to be an old one.

Song of the Day: The Black Dahlia Murder - Miasma

     I guess it's more than a two-day theme, because today I have another band for you that I've written about before (back in the United Nations of Metal post) but never given a Song of the Day, and although I don't really like retreading old ground, I think today's band is awesome enough and underground enough to warrant some more exposure. So if you're not listening to The Black Dahlia Murder, what the fuck is wrong with you?

Song of the Day: Russian Circles - Malko

     Today is a continuation of yesterday's theme of reminding you about shit I've already mentioned. However, unlike Refused, a band you should almost be ashamed not to have heard of by this point, today's band is not one I'll shun you for not knowing. That being said, they're cool, and you'll still be a cooler, less shunnable person for having heard them, so do yourself a favour and wise up right now to instrumental masters Russian Circles.

Song of the Day: Refused - New Noise

     I've talked about today's band and their importance to modern heavy music before before in a Song of the Day, but I feel like there's probably some among you out there who still don't know how much the music you like probably owes them. So today you get another song from the classic final album by Swedish punk pioneers Refused.

Song of the Day: High on Fire - Snakes for the Divine

     Today's band put out a new record earlier this year, and while I haven't heard anything from it yet, they're definitely one of those metal bands that I'd like to listen to more of than I do and be more into than I am. I do however have a copy of their previous album, and just in case you don't know them I'm taking a track from that one for today's song.

Song of the Day: Tesseract - Nocturne

     I've written about today's band before (they are, after all, What You Should Be Listening To), and they've even had a song of the day before, but after a summer of relative quiet from them, things are once again happening and so they deserve another look in case you don't know them yet. Based on that description, I could be talking about Sylosis, but today's song actually happens to be the new tune from another of my absolute favourites, Tesseract.

Song of the Day: Coheed and Cambria - Domino the Destitute

     A few days ago I started some Super Tuesday prep when I said we'd be doing some Songs of the Day based on the badass albums coming out next week. Last time we did this was Between the Buried and Me's new video "Astral Body" and today is round two: Coheed and Cambria's new video.

Song of the Day: The Faceless - Autotheism: Movements I, II, III

     Super buzzed-about tech death metal band The Faceless released their third album, Autotheism, in August, and it's a doozy. I guess I'm well behind the curve on this one, since it came out a month and a half ago, but I've been listening to it a bunch over the last week or so. I liked The Faceless before; Planetary Duality is an opus of sci-fi tech-death goodness, and they played a great set this summer at Heavy TO. But Autotheism has gotten in my brain like some kind of ear-burrowing space slug, thanks in no small part to today's song. Today's songs, actually. What do I mean?

Song of the Day: Straight Reads the Line - Pilgore

     Whether or not you knew it at the time, yesterday's song was the start of a them. Sure, it's a very niche theme, and one that only extends to yesterday's band and today's, but it's a segue between the two nonetheless. What's this theme, you ask? Awesome defunct Canadian metalcore bands you've never heard of. Yesterday it was Kitchener's Kingdoms, and today it's Stoney Creek's Straight Reads the Line.

Song of the Day: Kingdoms - Split the Sky

     Today's Song of the Day sees another band that's probably new to you, but is also unfortunately no longer in existence, meaning that if you like what you hear you'll have to be content with their current body of work. And while in the case of today's band that may be a fairly small body of work to have to be content with, but it's a pretty solid body and a pretty high note to go out on.

Song of the Day: Between the Buried and Me - Astral Body

     A couple of days ago I told you about a few upcoming records that I'm excited about, partly in an effort to get you excited about them too. In a further effort to stoke your anticipatory fires, between now and Super Tuesday, October 9th, I'm going to be sprinkling some new stuff off said upcoming albums into the Song of the Day mix. The stars have aligned (pun intended) and today is such a joyous day!

Song of the Day: Evita - Thrown to the Wolves

     I've got some new stuff for you today, or at least some stuff that's probably new to you. As I was saying yesterday, fans of heavy music are by now familiar with terms like metalcore, if not annoyed by them. We're almost to the point where bands labeled metalcore are derided out of hand by deathgrind elitists simply because they can conceivably be considered to fall under the massive metalcore umbrella. But we shouldn't forget that metalcore has produced some stellar bands, and continues to produce some stuff that's worth listening to. Exhibit A is today's song.

Super Tuesday

     I used to follow American politics somewhat closely, back during the... ahem...tumultuous term of Bush II. As a Canadian, it's a little hard not to. We're so closely commercially and culturally linked, and on top of that our own politics are so much...drier than those of our neighbours to the south. Don't get me wrong, as a voter I like the fact that the Right and the Left in Canada are both pretty Centrist positions. But as a spectator, I can't deny the appeal of a little political drama, things like mudslinging and the like. I don't really follow any sports closely, so stuff like that can be fun to see when they're not my politicians. Hence, I used to follow American politics. I haven't payed as much attention to this election as I did the last couple, but I still maintain more than a passing interest in Obama vs. Romney.

Song of the Day: Every Time I Die - Turtles All the Way Down

     No doubt as a fan of heavier music, you're familiar with the term "metalcore", and the witches' brew of metal and hardcore it was coined to encapsulate. Were I pressed to dissect my musical taste, I would say I prefer my metalcore heavier on the metal and lighter on the hardcore, but I certainly acknowledge that there's good bands at the other, more hardcore, end of the spectrum too. Again, were I pressed, I would put today's band at that hardcore end, and I would further note the generous helping of southern-fried swagger and grungy, sleazy rock mixed into their metalcore sound.

Song of the Day: As I Lay Dying - Greater Foundation

     Today's song is one of those no-brainers. There's a new album out by a band that I follow, and they've got a single with a video. If that's not the recipe for instant Song of the Day action, I don't know what is.

Song of the Day: Lamb of God - 11th Hour

     As is too often the case, it's Monday once again, and although I'm not doing a Metallica Monday this week, some metal would be desirable on such a morning. With that in mind you get some old(er) stuff today in the form of a Loud Noises favourite, the tried and true "first song I ever heard by this band" trope.

Songs of the Days 2

     Yeah, I'm terrible. I missed Song of the Day again yesterday. My excuse? I was at a friend's bachelor party. Although that doesn't excuse me for not doing it during the day, but whatever. The long and the short of it is that you get two songs today. I don't really have a connecting theme in mind, just a couple of songs for you to rock.

Song of the Day: Skyharbor - Maeva

     I've written about today's band before, along with their transformation from bedroom project in India to international sensation, back in the United Nations of Metal post. But I really dig them, and I figure there's still lots of you out there who aren't listening to them. What better reason to give them a Song for the Day.

Song of the Day: Deftones - Leathers

     There are times when it's worth it to fight the current, and there are times when it's not, when you should just go with the flow. Today I know it's time to go with the Internet's flow. Rather than try and come up with something you don't know, or aren't listening to right at this very second, I'm just going to recommend what everyone else on the Internet is recommending today, what you're probably already digging, because I'm digging it too.

Song of the Day: Finch - Worms of the Earth

     Today's band has been rolling around in my head as an idea for Song of the Day for a while now, but I could never think of the right song to showcase them to those of you who might not know them. Today, however, it came to me.

Song of the Day: Uneven Structure - Awaken

     Getting back to things a little bit newer than, say, Master of Puppets, today I've got a band I believe I've mentioned maybe once before, but only in passing and never again. Back in the United Nations of Metal post, I remember saying that I had some choice for the representative from France and that I went with Gojira because I wanted to save the other alternative, today's band, for another post. I've never gotten back around to bringing these guys up again, which is a shame because they're pretty good, so at the very least, even if they don't ever end up getting their own post, they deserve a Song of the Day.

Song of the Day: Metallica - Master of Puppets

     It's Monday once again (funny how it rolls around, like, once a week or so, eh? and I figure everybody (myself included) could use a bit of a pick-me-up this morning. And what better pick-me-up could there be for the metal fan lamenting the end of yet another weekend than listening to the band that wrote the book? So in an effort to brighten up your Monday, dear reader, I give you a new twist on the Song of the Day that I'll be pulling out every once in a while: Metallica Monday!

Song of the Day: Primus - Wynona's Big Brown Beaver

     Today might be just about over, but there's still time for a little fun. That's where today's song comes in. Not exactly metal, and certainly not exactly new, but awesome all the same.

Song of the Day: Glass Cloud - Counting Sheep

     Today's song isn't exactly hot off the press, but it is by a band new enough and small enough that you might not have heard anything about them, although chances are you've heard at least one of the other outfits in which members of Glass Cloud have done time. Vocalist Jerry Roush used to be a member of both Sky Eats Airplane and Of Mice And Men, while guitarist Joshua Travis continues to sling strings for The Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza in addition to his duties in Glass Cloud. Along with bassist Travis Sykes and drummer Chad Hasty, Roush and Travis started Glass Cloud last year, and a couple of months ago they released their first album, The Royal Thousand.

Songs of the Days

     So I completely spaced yesterday, and apparently went to bed last night somehow thinking I had done a Song for the Day when I had in fact done no such thing. So today you get a double dose of tasty, tasty tunes to sink your ears into. I promise to be a good boy and stop missing my own somewhat arbitrary self-imposed deadline. On with the show!

Song of the Day: Alexisonfire - Counterparts and Number Them

     If you live in Canada, you've probably heard of today's band, so subsequently today's song will (probably) only really be new stuff to you if you live somewhere else. But then that's your problem, not mine.

Oops...

     So it was brought to my attention a while ago that the video I'd posted for The Sound of Animals Fighting's "The Ocean and the Sun" was the wrong video. Oops. It's taken me this long to remember to get around to changing it, but I have done so now, so you don't have to lose sleep over it any more.

Song of the Day: Exit Ten - Technically Alive

     The last couple of days have been somewhat light on metal in the strictest sense of the word, so today we're going to start easing our way back into some heavier stuff. To help with this transition, I've got another band from across the pond that you've more than likely never heard of. As has been the case lately, Exit Ten aren't a straight-ahead metal band, but their catchy post-rock/post-hardcore sound definitely has a metallic edge to it (thanks in part to Exit Ten's drummer being one of the many former members of UK thrash gods Sylosis).

Song of the Day: Mogwai - Christmas Steps

     Yesterday's song by Oceansize was a bit of a slow burn kind of song, and it is in keeping with that feeling that I've chosen today's song. Mogwai have been around a long time, and I've mentioned them before (back in the Cool Videos List) so there's a decent chance you've heard them before, or at least heard of them, but in case you haven't I'll do you the favour of treating you to the first song I ever heard by these prolific Scottish instrumentalists.

Song of the Day: Oceansize - Only Twin

     I have one or more of the guys in Periphery to thank for today's song. They're among the bands I follow on Facebook, and every once in a while they'll do something like I'm doing and recommend a song they like to their fans. When I've got a few minutes I try and check them out, and the other day I was very glad I did. Interestingly named Oceansize deliver heavy post-hardcore and post-rock of appropriately epic proportions. I've only listened to a couple of tracks so far (including today's song, Periphery's recommendation) but I'm really looking forward to hearing some more next time I'm in focused listening mode.

Song of the Day: Night Verses - I've Lost My Way Back Down

     This one's fresher than fresh. This afternoon I was in a Shoppers Drug Mart flipping through a copy of AP when I read about Night Verses, the new project from former The Sleeping vocalist Douglas Robinson. Despite never being a huge fan, I definitely dug The Sleeping when I used to listen to them back in undergrad. This new outfit, which apparently originated as an instrumental trio that Robinson has recently joined, isn't metal per se, but it is heavy and it is worth checking out. I know I'm going to be listening more of them.

Song of the Day: Rage Against the Machine - Calm Like a Bomb

     I know, I know, Rage Against the Machine is neither terribly heavy nor terribly new, but they're still getting the Song of the Day nod today. Why? It's a bit of walk, but here goes. I've had people tell me that The Battle of Los Angeles is the best Rage record, to which my reply has always been (as it usually is) "No way! The old stuff is better!" or something similar. And while I still like older Rage better, today I finally get what my friends are talking about.

Song of the Day: Thrice - Deadbolt

     Just like yesterday, today's band isn't new at all, and unlike yesterday, I would say Thrice are actually pretty big in the world of heavier music, with eight solid albums and a live double CD and DVD (with another live double album forthcoming this fall) under their belts. However, if you've only heard their more recent stuff, you could be forgiven for not knowing that Thrice can be pretty fucking heavy. They started off during the days of emo as a punky, hardcore-type band with strong sense of melody that was tempered by a bit of metal.

Song of the Day: Architects - The Darkest Tomb

     OK, today we're actually back to business as usual, for realsies, which means heavy music. I often try to come up with something you're probably not familiar with, and today I think I've got one. UK-based Architects* aren't a new band, but they might be new to you. They've also got a pretty deep catalogue now, so if you like today's song at all, you can chart their progression from techy, mathy metalcore through to more "mainstream" post-hardcore and (somewhat) back.

     Your Architects song today is "The Darkest Tomb" from their very first album, 2006's Nightmares. I can't remember if this was the first song I ever heard by these guys (which would make it an archetypal Song of the Day here at Loud Noises) but I do remember this being the first song I really dug. It made me give a little bit more time to the rest of the album, and I've been a fan ever since, even if never a huge one. And listening to this song now, I think it still holds up as one that will make you want to hear more of Nightmares.

* I phrase it this way because that's how you have to look them up online. There seems to be at least of couple of bands called Architects in the US, hence the distinction.

Song of the Day: Pink Floyd - Another Brick in the Wall Pt. 2

     I said something yesterday about getting back to business as usual today, but I lied. While fall's not officially here yet for another few weeks, but it might as well: the weather's not so warm, the leaves have already started to fall, and kids have gone back to school. As a show of support with beleaguered students everywhere, and because I myself am a cog in the education machine (albeit at the post-secondary level), today's song is a special tribute for the end of summer.

Song of the Day: Sublime - Santeria

     So here it is, people. The unofficial last day of summer, and for some (including my younger brother) the practical last day, in the sense that kids in public and secondary schools are back in class starting tomorrow morning. This doesn't really affect me, but since it's also the Monday of a long weekend (happy Labour Day, workers) it means I owe you one more summer weekend song before it's back to business as usual. As with yesterday's choice of "Drive" by Incubus, I have little doubt that, should you put today's song on at a party, a great deal of singing along will result.

Song of the Day: Incubus - Drive

     This one's a little more "radio friendly" than some of the stuff I put on here, but it is at least in keeping with the more relaxed summertime weekend Loud Noises feel. Incubus is another one of those bands that we used to listen to a lot of, but have lost interest in in recent years. I don't know whether this is because our tastes have changed, or because the band's musical direction has changed (or more likely a combination of the two), but I do know that Incubus' back catalogue has a bunch of good songs in it, like today's good-time sing-along.

Song of the Day: The Beta Band - Squares

     Last weekend of the summer, people. Time to get your ya-yas out. As has been the case the last couple of weekends, I'm going to chill things out a bit today, so hold on to your drinks/bongs. When we were in high school, in addition to listening to a lot of heavy stuff, a lot of rockin' stuff, we also like some different stuff too. That's when my love of Radiohead was born, and that's when we spent at least one summer listening to a particular mix of bands and songs from which I've drawn today's song. I'd never heard anything by these guys before, and haven't since, but my buddy Ben was into them, so this song made it into our regular rotation.

Song of the Day: As I Lay Dying - Meaning in Tragedy

     My friends and I used to be big fans of As I Lay Dying. We haven't been as enthusiastic about their last couple of albums because they're definitely a band that has "found their sound" and seems content to rest on their admittedly heavy laurels. But their first couple of albums were apparently just what the doctor ordered when they came out, with Shadows Are Security being a real classic, and the album that made the band.

Song of the Day: Glassjaw - Tip Your Bartender

     Glassjaw is a bit like Guns and Roses. How, you ask? Well, it's been ten years since their last full length, the stupidly awesome Worship and Tribute, and we're all still waiting for the follow-up that has supposedly been in the works off and on for years. Of course the difference is that Glassjaw have at least put out a couple of EPs worth of new material in that time, if only in limited release. Hopefully my comparing them to Guns and Roses will somehow speed things along.

Song of the Day: Avenged Sevenfold - Darkness Surrounding

     Today's song requires a little bit of a walk, but I promise I'll make it as quick and painless as possible. At work this summer, we've been listening to a lot of Sirius satellite radio. Mainly it's been Alt Nation, I'm pretty much the only metal enthusiast where I work, but the past couple of weeks there's been some Octane in the mix. Among the bands I've heard on there lately that I used to listen to but don't really follow anymore is Avenged Sevenfold. But Octane plays their newer stuff, and I was always a fan of their first couple of albums. True to form, today you're getting the song that first alerted me to the existence of Avenged Sevenfold.

Song of the Day: Tool - Aenema

     So I was going through my playlist, looking for a song for today, when it occurred to me: I've been at this Song of the Day thing for going on two months now and I've yet to do a Tool song. Shame! Time to set things right!

Heavy TO Pit Report - Part 2: The Rest

     I told you I'd be back with more thoughts about my trip to day 2 of Heavy TO, and you know I wouldn't lie to you, so here I am! In no particular order, here are my ramblings about everything I didn't cover last time around:

Song of the Day: Mudvayne - Internal Primates Forever

     Once again it's Monday, time to get back to work and back to metal. Today's one of those days when I just let my playlist's shuffling do the choosing for me*, and I for one think it came up with something good. It's been a while since I've listened to any Mudvayne, but they're another one of those bands that I listened to a ton of in high school and university, back when I was still forging the penchant for metal that I have today. As with anything from one's youth, some bands I listened to back then don't stand up as well as others, but Mudvayne isn't one of them. I haven't heard much off of their last couple of discs, but the ones I've got and used to crank can still hold their own alongside more modern stuff.

Song of the Day: The Sound of Animals Fighting - The Ocean and The Sun

     It's Sunday (still, for a little bit at least) which means your song for today is going to be a little bit laid-back, a little less metal. Today's choice struck me as a bit of a no-brainer, given the whole "weekend-chill-vibe" thing, since I haven't even ever mentioned this band yet and they're definitely worth mentioning. The Sound of Animals Fighting was a super-group of sorts, counting members of Finch, Rx Bandits, Chiodos, and Circa Survive among its alumni, though the band has disbanded since the release of its third and final album in 2008. Still, the three album catalogue they produced is pretty interesting and definitely worth checking out.

Song of the Day: Queens of the Stone Age - Better Living Through Chemistry

     Once again it's the weekend (funny how they come around every week, eh?) and since there's only a couple of them left this summer, I thought maybe I'd go back to the template from last weekend, by which I mean picking some songs that are perhaps a little more laid back, a little more chill. As is so often the case, the band was the easy choice. My friends and I listened to a ton of Queens of the Stone Age through high school and into university; the first three QOTSA albums in particular were never far from our Discmen (yeah, I'm that old). The choice of song was less obvious, given that QOTSA can rock a laid-back groove with the best of them (*cough* Kyuss *cough*), but I think I settled on one that will take your day and set it to "chill" without too much difficulty.

Song of the Day: The Fall of Troy - Rockstar Nailbomb

     Afternoon everyone (or morning for me, as I just got up). I had to have a little Think to come up with the band for today's song, but once I got it, the old tried and true method of picking the song that first exposed me to said band kicked in, and Robert's your mother's brother. Inspired by yesterday's song (love you Kelsey!) I ended up going with another noodley, emo-y kinda band that's still capable of some heavy.

Song of the Day: Dance Gavin Dance - Uneasy Hearts Weigh the Most

     Today is a very special day here at Loud Noises, with a very special song to go along with it. Three years ago this evening, my girlfriend Kelsey and I went on our very first date (it was Tarantino's Inglorious Basterds, if you're wondering, which you probably aren't). It was super awkward, but maybe that's how I knew it was the start of something special. Three years later, we've been through a lot together, and we've had a lot of special shared musical memories, but one sticks out as the first song we connected over. It may not be Metal with an upper case M, but tough titties.

Song of the Day: The Contortionist - Holomovement

     Today I've got an adventure in Progland for you to embark upon. Ever heard of The Contortionist? Yes? No? Maybe so? Well you should hear of them. Their second LP, Intrinsic, was released last month, and while they're not yet ready to unseat a band like Between the Buried and Me for prog-metal supremacy, they're definitely worth checking out if, like me, you're a fan of this kind of thing, and I don't doubt that Intrinsic will appear on more than a few "best of 2012" lists come the end of the year.

Song of the Day: Circles - Eye Embedded

     Another day, another song here at Loud Noises, and today, like yesterday, I'm going to do a little retreading of ground from days gone by. A week or two ago, I posted my United Nations of Metal with a whole slew of international recommendations. Maybe you checked them out, maybe you didn't, but today I intend to make sure that at least one of these bands gets a little attention from you.

Heavy TO Pit Report - Part 1: The Bands

     I told you I'd have some thoughts from Heavy TO, and here they are, even if it did take me a week to write them down. And I have so many thoughts that I think I'm going to make this a two-parter. In this first installment, I'm going to go through each of the bands we actually payed attention to (ie: the ones we went to see) and give little baby reviews of their sets. I'm not going to try and remember set lists or anything like that (mostly because it's 2012 and the Internet does that shit for me), I'm just going to give you my impressions of each band's performance. So let's go!

Song of the Day: Tesseract - Deception (Concealing Fate Pt. 2)

     Morning, metalheads. It's Monday (all fucking day, I know) and it's back to the grind with some metal (if only I were into some Grind, that segue would be much better...). Today I'm covering a little bit of old ground, in the sense that I've already recommended this band to you, telling you they're some of What You Should Be Listening To (check the archives). But just in case you disregarded my earlier recommendation, or you're new to Loud Noises, or just whatever, please, PUT SOME FUCKING TESSERACT ON RIGHT NOW!!

     To that end, your song today is "Deception (Concealing Fate Pt. 2)" from Tesseract's debut LP One. I could have chosen virtually any song off this album, but I thought you might like this one for its opening riff. I guarantee headbanging by the time Dan start singing or your money back.

Song of the Day: The Beastie Boys - Make Some Noise

     I think we'll go with another laid back track today, before getting back to the slog of the week with some heavier stuff once again tomorrow. But what to choose? It's hard to believe, but Summer's winding down, and Fall is fast approaching, so perhaps some good time party music would be in order. Well, if chilling music is called for, I might have just the thing. It's not metal, but I think it'll get your head going.

Song of the Day: Radiohead - Lotus Flower

     I was wracking my brain, trying to decide what metal band deserved a song today, when it hit me: do something different today. It's the weekend, so perhaps something a little more chill is in order. I've been a Radiohead fan for a long time, and they're a band that's gone through so many changes, that I could pick a song from any number of stylistic directions. But if I'm thinking something chill, something decidedly not metal, I know where I'm going.

Song of the Day: Misery Signals - Nothing

     Today's choice of song was brought about by yet another studio video from yet another good band. It seems this fall is going to be chalk full of good album releases, as there's a bunch of bands either with records done and ready to go or records in the works. One such band is Misery Signals, one of my favourites for a long time now. Dense, technical, aggressive, and cathartic, Misery Signals is a band I call metal with the hesitation that such a classification doesn't do them justice. At any rate, Misery Signals isn't ready to put anything new out yet, but things are in the works.

Song of the Day: At the Drive-In - Arcarsenal

     Morning kids. I'm building on the last couple of day's songs today. Yesterday we had Death Before Disco because the day before I'd said Exotic Animal Petting Zoo reminded me of them. Well I also mentioned At the Drive-In, and even though I did remind you that At the Drive-In came up way back in the first Loud Noises post about The Mars Volta (meaning that if you wanted some ATDI, you should know where to look for a few recommendations from yours truly), I've decided to give them a day so that I can be sure you know what I'm talking about with this vibe I'm getting from these three bands.

Song of the Day: Death Before Disco - Modern Times

     Yesterday when I recommended Exotic Animal Petting Zoo's "Thorough. Modern." to you, I mentioned that EAPZ reminds me a little bit of Death Before Disco and At the Drive-In. Chances are you're familiar with ATDI (if for no other reason than I talked about them way back when I started this sucker), but it's also likely you don't know Death Before Disco, especially if you're a metalhead, as they're not the most metal band.  They've got their own heaviness, tinged with poppier, punkier flavours -- I hesitate to use the words "emo" and "screamo" for fear of sending you fleeing, but were I to use such words, I would mean them in the best possible way.

Song of the Day: Exotic Animal Petting Zoo - Thorough. Modern.

     See? I told you I'd see you later for today's song. Today we're back to our regularly scheduled programming, in the sense that Heavy TO themed stuff is done with (other than my pit report, which is in the works), so once again I've got some cool new shit for you. These guys are another pretty new discovery for me, but I'm liking their kinda chaotic sound, and they've got a cool video for one of the tracks from their new album. Sometimes these songs just pick themselves...

Song of the Day: August 13th

     Oh hai there! I'm back from Heavy TO, and my lack of sleep over the weekend caused me to miss doing the Song of the Day yesterday. But I'm back, and in addition to getting back to the regular Song of the Day schedule, I'm also working on some impressions I had from this weekend's onslaught that I'll be posting later in the week. For now, it's time for yesterday's song.

Song of the Day: Lamb of God - Ashes of the Wake

     Well, it's here people: day 2 of Heavy TO, and I'll be there! Or, more accurately, by the time you read this I probably am there. So who do I pick for a song on the last day of Heavy themed picks? Easy. They're not playing at Heavy anymore, but they're still awesome, and of course if you haven't heard, Randy Blythe is back in the US, so what more reason could I need to play a Lamb of God song?

Song of the Day: System of a Down - Soil

     Well kids, Heavy TO is almost here (or if you're going today or for both days, it's here already, you lucky sod!) So I've got one more day of preparatory listening for you to do, and if you've been following along (both with me and with the Heavy line-up) then you should be able to tell me who today's song is by (without looking at the title of this post, smart ass). Give up? Quitter. It's System of a Down.

Song of the Day: Deftones - Rocket Skates

     It's almost here people. Heavy TO (and Heavy MTL, of course) is this weekend, and so my Song of the Day prep work is coming to a close as well. But we're not quite there yet. You may or may not have noticed that I've just been going through line-up, starting with Saturday, and showcasing songs by the band's I'd want to to see. Luckily, as it happens, there's a couple more days I have to cover, and a couple more bands left to do. Today's band is the subheadliner on Sunday, the second to last act to go on.

Song of the Day: Killswitch Engage - Numbered Days

     Heavy TO approaches ever closer, and that means more songs from more bands playing this weekend. Today we've got another band that has new material in the works, and another band I'm pretty stoked about seeing: Killswitch Engage. I'm also stoked to see them back with original vocalist Jesse Leach, who's recently rejoined the band. It's one of the many things that informed my choice of song today.

Song of the Day: The Faceless - Prison Born

     Heavy TO prep continues apace today, with a track from a young band that seems to be the up and coming tech-death darling de jour. The fact that they announced the completion and impending release of their new album Autotheism sort of out of nowhere, the fact that we've so far heard only a minute-long snippet of the new stuff even though the record comes out next week, and the fact that their last record, Planetary Duality, was so awesome all combine to make Autotheism an album I'm pretty stoked for, and I'm certainly not the only one. Yes, you may have figured out by now that I'm talking about The Faceless.

Song of the Day: Periphery - Scarlet

     There is absolutely no doubt in my mind that if you're listening to metal in 2012, you have at least heard of Periphery before. Exactly how you feel about the band that Bulb birthed* might vary, and might have a lot to do with how you feel about this whole "djent" thing they're one of the leading purveyors of, but I know you know who they are. They just released their second full length, Periphery II: This Time It's Personal, and they're on the Summer Slaughter tour alongside the likes of The Faceless and Between the Buried and Me. Oh yeah, did I mention that all three of these bands are playing Sunday at Heavy TO?

Song of the Day: Slipknot - Disasterpiece

     We're almost done working our way through my favourite bands from day one of this year's Heavy TO festival, but we haven't done the Saturday headliner yet, and they're a big one. I saw Slipknot way back in the day (2001, to be exact) when they were just about to release Iowa, and it's really too bad that they're playing Saturday instead of Sunday, because I'd love to see them again. I guess I'll just have to settle for cranking some Iowa on the way to the show on Sunday.

Song of the Day: In Flames - Take This Life

     Heavy TO grows nearer daily, and so today I've got another song for you by a band appearing next weekend. This time around, it's the band that's replacing Lamb of God, Swedish metal veterans In Flames. I'm not the biggest In Flames fan, although I haven't heard any of their most recent material, but they've good some cool songs in their catalogue for sure. Today's might not be the best of the bunch in everyone's opinion, but it's the song that first exposed me to In Flames.

The United Nations of Metal

    I’ve got something kinda fun planned for this time out. Or at least I think it’s fun. Maybe I’m just a big dork. Anyways, some set-up: I recently got thinking about how insular we metal fans can be. I mean, we do listen to a pretty niche genre of music. Even your most mainstream modern metal bands, your Lamb of Gods (Lambs of God?), your Killswitch Engages, your Slipknots (OK, maybe Slipknot is a bad example...), even bands like these aren’t getting top 40 radio play, or appearing on People magazine, or even being followed by douchebags from TMZ. Even the biggest fish in the metal pond are seldom caught by the nets of mainstream popular culture. (How’s that for a metaphor?)

Song of the Day: The Dillinger Escape Plan - Widower

     A couple of days ago, when posting Gojira's "Liquid Fire" as the Song of the Day, I mentioned that these Frenchmen have pulled out of Heavies TO and MTL to rejigger their schedule, and that they've been replaced by The Dillinger Escape Plan. Either way this affects Saturday, and since I'm going on Sunday, I won't see either band. But I can still make you listen to them with me!

Song of the Day: Trivium - Rain

     More Heavy TO prep for you today, as well as the first Song of the Day repeat: Trivium. This is also the only kind of Song of the Day repeat allowed (ie: band) because I've been choosing songs, and will continue to choose songs, based on two simple unwritten rules which I will now commit to writing.
1) A band can't have back to back songs on consecutive days, or even days that are close together.
2) No repeat songs.
I won't be breaking either of those by picking another Trivium song (since it's been a few weeks since "The Crusade" was Song of the Day) so we're all good.

     Your Song of the Day is "Rain" off of 2005's Ascendancy. This is the song that got me into Trivium. I'm not the hugest fan of their newer stuff (don't get me wrong, I still like some of it) but when this came out this was a pretty solid, pretty thrashy metalcore album. And it got stuck in my craw partly because of this song. Even though it's the second track, it almost serves as the album opener, since it's the first "real" song, and boy does it fucking boot the door of the album wide open with that intro/verse riff. Have a listen, and then tune in again tomorrow.

Song of the Day: Gojira - Liquid Fire

     Day 2 of Heavy TO prep here, and today I'm going to go with one of the bands that was originally on the bill but has had to back out -- there are in fact two now. If you've been following the Randy Blythe story at all you know that Randy is still in jail in the Czech Republic, so any summer dates Lamb of God had scheduled, such as Heavy TO and Heavy MTL, have been cancelled. In Flames have awesomely taken Lamb of God's spot at both shows.

Song of the Day: Protest the Hero - The Dissentience

     Well, it's official: I'm going to Heavy TO! In case you're not Canadian, or you are Canadian and don't live in Ontario or Quebec, Heavy TO and Heavy MTL are a pair of metal festivals happening in Toronto and Montreal on the weekend of August 11th and 12th. All of the bands in the fairly deep line-up (which can be seen here for Heavy TO...) are playing both cities on alternate days, giving fans in both areas a chance to see everyone, which is a pretty rad idea in my book. Due to budgetary constraints and scheduling issues I'm only going to be at the second day, but lucky for you, you get to attend (in spirit, anyways) because from now until then I'm going to be featuring some of my favourite bands from this year's Heavy TO and MTL festivals in the Loud Noises Songs of the Day.

     So without further ado, today's song. We're going to start with Canadian punk-metal-prog badasses Protest the Hero today, and their song "The Dissentience" from 2008's Fortress. Since I'm going Sunday, I won't get to see them this time out, but if I were I'd like to see them play this one. Enjoy.

Song of the Day: Opeth - The Lotus Eater

     It's been almost a month of songs of the day now, and I have yet to do an Opeth song. Shame! Odds are you don't need me to tell you how awesome Opeth is, so I won't waste a lot of time and energy trying to convince you of said awesomeness, but if you don't know Opeth... seriously, what's wrong with you? Have you been living under a rock for the last 20 years or something? Stop reading this right now and click play already, OK?

     Your song for today is "The Lotus Eater" from Opeth's phenomenal 2008 album Watershed. This was such a great album that I could really recommend the whole thing, one song a day, for a week, but I'll settle for having you listen to this thoroughly badass track from it. If the demented metal circus break at about 5:45 doesn't get you going, you're a stronger man than I.

Song of the Day: Mandroid Echostar - Kingdom and the Crown

     We're back in the present today, and I've got yet another recently-discovered band to share with you. I found Mandroid Echostar (yes, that's their name) at the same time that I found Intervals (they're going on tour together this fall), and both bands are proggy outfits based in southern Ontario (go Canada!). But while Intervals is heavier, instrumental (for the moment, anyways) and kinda djenty, Mandroid Echostar sounds like Coheed and Cambria if the latter leaned away from proggy punky pop-rock and towards proggy metal. Vocalist Michael Ciccia even resembles Coheed and Cambria's Claudio Sanchez a little. But make no mistake -- these guys aren't just Co&Ca copycats, and I think they're definitely worth a listen.

     As such, today's song is "Kingdom and the Crown", the lead track from Mandroid Echostar's self-titled first EP, which you can download from the band's bandcamp FOR FREE! So if you like the song, check out the rest of the EP and let me know what you think.

Song of the Day: Marilyn Manson - The Speed of Pain

     We're stuck in the past for one more day today before we set out for more modern metal tomorrow, and I think I'm going to slow things down, change the mood up a bit.  When Marilyn Manson's Mechanical Animals came out in 1998, that CD didn't leave our stereo systems and discmen for a while. Even now, I can put it on and genuinely appreciate it, rather than just digging it nostalgically. There were a bunch of cool songs on it, but for today I'm picking a song with a not-exactly-metal vibe.

     Today's song is "The Speed of Pain" by Marilyn Manson. It's a bit of a slow-burner, but its spacey, psychedelic, Pink Floyd feel is worth the build-up. If you know Mechanical Animals, this'll take you right back, and if you don't, this'll help you get acquainted.

Song of the Day: Nothingface - Goldtooth

     Due to the great expense involved in operating the Wayback Machine, we'll be hanging out in the past for at least another day whilst raising funds for the journey back to 2012. In the meantime, you get to hear another great song from back in the day, by another great band that my friends and I listened to a fair amount of. Like Sevendust, Nothingface were in their heyday roughly concurrently with nu-metal, but also like Sevendust I've always thought of Nothingface as more of a straight up metal band. In fact, if anything I'd say Sevendust was the more nu-metally of the two, although that's really neither here nor there. Bottom line, Nothingface was awesome.

     Today's song is "Goldtooth", the opening track from Nothingface's 1998 An Audio Guide to Everyday Atrocity (which is a pretty fucking cool album title, if you ask me). Put it on and prepare to be assaulted. Matt Holt's arrogant, aggressive delivery of the line "feel your cunt dripping, it all smells the same" is worth the price of admission on its own.

Song of the Day: Sevendust - Black

     Won't you step into the Wayback Machine with me for today's song? Well, not way way back, just back to my time in high school. One of the better bands to get big around the time of nu-metal (though they weren't necessarily quite a nu-metal band themselves) was Sevendust. My friends and I listened to lots of Sevendust, and while they had a lot of great songs back then ("Denial", "Waffle", and "Bender" come immediately to mind), I think our favourite was -- and still is -- today's song.

     Your song today is "Black" by Sevendust, off of their 1997 self-titled debut. Put it on and bask in the nostalgia.

Song of the Day: Intervals - Sonar

     I've got some cool Canuck instrumetal for you today. I just recently discovered today's band, Intervals, and downloaded their debut EP The Space Between. I've only had the chance for a couple of listens, but so far I'm digging it: djenty, headbanging grooves, some good leadwork, a couple of nice (and audible, thank the gods!) basslines, and some solid drumming courtesy of Anup Sastry of Skyharbor (among other things). There's even some electronic-style manipulation and ambient-ish stuff, and the whole package amounts to something that makes me very excited for the new material that their Facebook page tells me will soon be in the works.

     Your song today is "Sonar" by Intervals. Check it out.

Song of the Day: Between the Buried and Me - Telos

     Once again, today's song picked itself. If you're a metal fan, you probably already know by now that death-tech-prog-everything  gurus Between the Buried and Me have finished working on their new album, The Parallax II: Future Sequence, a conceptual sequel to last year's The Parallax: Hypersleep Dialogues EP. Future Sequence is due out on October 9th, and I'm stoked, but I don't have to wait that long to hear some new stuff, and neither do you.

     The song of the day for today is "Telos" by Between the Buried and Me, and it's the first song released off of Future Sequence (though at more than nine minutes long I don't know if it can be considered the first "single"). It's epic, it's all over the place, and it's exactly the calibre of awesomeness you'd expect from Between the Buried and Me. Have a listen and mark your calendars.

Song of the Day: Animals as Leaders - An Infinite Regression

     Today's song aims to correct a mistake that's been bugging me for months (literally, more than one month). Way back in May when I put together the Instrametal list, there was one band that I shamefully forgot to include on the list, even though I had very much intended to. That band is Animals as Leaders, and led by Tosin Abasi's seven- and eight-string guitar acrobatics they are definitely worth checking out, and more than worthy of inclusion in a list of cool instrametal acts.

     So as an act of penance (and an all around act of awesomeness) your song for today is "An Infinite Regression" by Animals as Leaders. It's the opening track from their second LP, 2011's Weightless, as it's also a good example of the slightly off-kilter, guitar-driven instramental madness that Animals as Leaders are capable of. See what you think and let me know.

Song of the Day: 7 Horns 7 Eyes - Delusions

     I've got another new band for you today, and they're one of those acts that definitely has a bright future in metal. I'm a big fan of British metal label Basick Records, so when I see a band like 7 Horns 7 Eyes hyped so thoroughly on their website and their Facebook*, and I then read that Jeff Loomis guests on their debut album, well I've got to at least check that shit out. And I'm glad I did.

     Your song today is "Delusions" from this year's Throes of Absolution by 7 Horns 7 Eyes. The whole album is pretty damn solid, so why this song? Simple: the guitar solo in the middle. Shreddy and technical but still tasteful and soulful, the perfect culmination of what this slow burner of a song has hitherto been building towards. Have a listen, and if you're suitably tickled, try something else off the album. You'll be glad you did too.

*A kind of hype to be taken with a certain grain of salt, of course, as Basick are trying to sell records too...

Song of the Day: Numbers - Figured You Forgot

     I've got some tasty new stuff for you today. I was just reading some reviews the other day over on good ol' Heavy Blog... Is Heavy, and I came across a pretty positive one for a self-titled debut EP from an act called Numbers out of Seattle. Now, much of what I listen to sometimes blurs genre lines and defies easy description, and Numbers is no exception. Heavy and aggressive, melodic, technical, catchy, infused with elements of electronica and metal and... well, I really shouldn't even try to get into it, as Tentaclesworth over at Heavy Blog does a better job than I could (check his review of the EP here). Suffice to say, it's pretty crazy, pretty cool, and definitely pretty fucking interesting.

     Today's song is "Figured You Forgot" by Numbers. Listen with an open mind and you might just fall in love. And yes, the song is a little late today, but no, I didn't forget, no matter what you figured...

Song of the Day: Arsis - Closer to Cold

     I've got something a little heavier for you today. When I was in the process of getting into heavier and more out-there metal a few years ago, starting to add full-on death and tech metal type stuff to my collection of melodic metal and metalcore, Arsis was among the bands that really showed me that Death metal with a capital D isn't just blast beats and cookie monster growls, that it can be melodic and hooky while still being fast, technical, and generally fucking heavy. They're not my favourite or anything, but they do have some really cool songs, like the one I've chosen for today.

     Today's song is "Closer to Cold" by Arsis, from 2010's Starve for the Devil. Take a bite and let me know what you think.

Song of the Day: Mastodon - Iron Tusk

     Today I find myself in a bit of a similar situation to yesterday, in the sense that the band I've chosen for today's song, Mastodon, has so many great tracks that could serve as part of the soundtrack for your day. But my method for choosing is a little different today: instead of leaving selection in the hands of the gods, I decided (as it seems I often do) to take a trip down memory lane by picking the song that served as my introduction to Mastodon.

     Today's song is Mastodon's "Iron Tusk", from 2004's epic Leviathan, and its relentless pummeling is what hooked me on Mastodon way back when. Climb aboard the Pequod and subject yourself to the onslaught without delay.