For your belated Throwback Thursday post, I'm going with a solid track from one of the best albums by one of the titans of modern American metal. Any guesses? And don't cheat and just look at the title...
Lamb of God's 3rd full-length LP, 2004's Ashes of the Wake, remains one of my favourite LoG records. From front to back, it's Lamb of God at their best, before their 'best' become a little more cookie-cutter on more recent albums. These newer records aren't bad or anything like that, but Randy and Company have yet to break the mold they so masterfully crafted on albums like Ashes of the Wake and tracks like your Throwback Thursday song, "Blood of the Scribe".
Showing posts with label Randy Blythe. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Randy Blythe. Show all posts
Sunday, 13 September 2015
Tuesday, 16 June 2015
Monday: Lamb of God - 512
It's been about a month since my last post about a new Lamb of God song, and in the interim they've released another track, so it's probably time I put that one in front of your eyes too, right? The fact that there's a video for it doesn't hurt either.
The titular number "512" is a reference to Randy's cell number in Czech prison, in case you're wondering, but the lyrics probably make the song's subject clear enough. Also clear enough is how much this song slays like Lamb of God at their best -- the riffs are big and groovy, the mood is suitably menacing, Randy is in prime form. All in all, Sturm Und Drang is shaping up to be a pretty solid record. Make a fist and jam this one.
The titular number "512" is a reference to Randy's cell number in Czech prison, in case you're wondering, but the lyrics probably make the song's subject clear enough. Also clear enough is how much this song slays like Lamb of God at their best -- the riffs are big and groovy, the mood is suitably menacing, Randy is in prime form. All in all, Sturm Und Drang is shaping up to be a pretty solid record. Make a fist and jam this one.
Sunday, 26 April 2015
Teenage Time Killers - Hung Out to Dry
You know how normally I'm asking you for ten minutes or more of your time for some epic jazz prog saga or other? Today's brief, furious blast of proto-punk is an apology of sorts. We're cool, right?
You may or may not have heard of Teenage Time Killers already, as they're a bit of a supergroup featuring members of Corrosion of Conformity and My Ruin along with an expansive supporting cast of guest musicians. I won't go into the lengthy list here, except to drop a couple of names that are pertinent for our purposes here today: Dave Grohl and Randy Blythe.
Pertinent how? Well, they're both featured on the first Teenage Time Killers single "Hung Out to Dry", from the upcoming Greatest Hits Vol. 1. That's right, that's Randy you're hearing (or are going to hear) those rapid-fire verse vocals from. And believe it or not, Dave is handling the low end of things here, rather than the drumming duties.
And best of all (maybe, I don't know how strapped for time you are on a Sunday afternoon) is that "Hung Out to Dry" clocks in at seconds shy of two minutes long, so you have no excuse for not giving it at least a listen or two. You could probably be just about done with its two minutes of grungy deathpunk by the time you're done reading this post, so get clicking already.
You may or may not have heard of Teenage Time Killers already, as they're a bit of a supergroup featuring members of Corrosion of Conformity and My Ruin along with an expansive supporting cast of guest musicians. I won't go into the lengthy list here, except to drop a couple of names that are pertinent for our purposes here today: Dave Grohl and Randy Blythe.
Pertinent how? Well, they're both featured on the first Teenage Time Killers single "Hung Out to Dry", from the upcoming Greatest Hits Vol. 1. That's right, that's Randy you're hearing (or are going to hear) those rapid-fire verse vocals from. And believe it or not, Dave is handling the low end of things here, rather than the drumming duties.
And best of all (maybe, I don't know how strapped for time you are on a Sunday afternoon) is that "Hung Out to Dry" clocks in at seconds shy of two minutes long, so you have no excuse for not giving it at least a listen or two. You could probably be just about done with its two minutes of grungy deathpunk by the time you're done reading this post, so get clicking already.
Monday, 13 April 2015
Sunday: Solipsist - End This Day
I told you I'd get you back into metal territory soon enough, and lo, I am a keeper of promises. Enjoy your Sunday song kids.
Cleveland's Solipsist is an interesting beast. Their vocalist has a bit of a Randy Blythe thing going on sometimes, but their sound is definitely more death metal than Lamb of God's. So think Lamb of God with the deal metal quotient turned up a bunch, and you'll at least have a starting point for Solipsist.
The band's latest album, last month's The Burning Mass, offers a number of tasty tracks that I could have chosen as your belated Sunday song, but I've decided to go with the melo-deathy "End This Day" simply for its driving energy. There's almost a bit of a Black Dahlia Murder feel to this one. Give it a listen, and then check out the rest of The Burning Mass. It's not anything mindblowing, but there's some rock solid riffage to be had. Have at 'er!
Cleveland's Solipsist is an interesting beast. Their vocalist has a bit of a Randy Blythe thing going on sometimes, but their sound is definitely more death metal than Lamb of God's. So think Lamb of God with the deal metal quotient turned up a bunch, and you'll at least have a starting point for Solipsist.
The band's latest album, last month's The Burning Mass, offers a number of tasty tracks that I could have chosen as your belated Sunday song, but I've decided to go with the melo-deathy "End This Day" simply for its driving energy. There's almost a bit of a Black Dahlia Murder feel to this one. Give it a listen, and then check out the rest of The Burning Mass. It's not anything mindblowing, but there's some rock solid riffage to be had. Have at 'er!
Monday, 27 January 2014
Ever Forthright - Riot: Part 1
The djentlemen in Ever Forthright are hard at work on their second LP, but even though it's still a work in progress the band has been kind enough to give us a taste of the new material in "Riot: Part 1".
Opening up bludgeoning and dissonant, "Riot: Part 1" covers a good deal of angular Meshuggah-type ground before bringing in some big jazzy chords and leadwork near the end that succeed in softening the song's edges only slightly. There's also some decent clean vocals to be had, and some growls that are at times very reminiscent of Randy from Lamb of God. Could be an interesting sophomore disc, don'tchathink?
Opening up bludgeoning and dissonant, "Riot: Part 1" covers a good deal of angular Meshuggah-type ground before bringing in some big jazzy chords and leadwork near the end that succeed in softening the song's edges only slightly. There's also some decent clean vocals to be had, and some growls that are at times very reminiscent of Randy from Lamb of God. Could be an interesting sophomore disc, don'tchathink?
Monday, 18 February 2013
Song of the Day: Lamb of God - Blacken the Cursed Sun
Randy Blythe's manslaughter case has been back in the news lately as the trial itself has gotten underway in the Czech Republic. The fact that the trial has also been delayed for a month or so due to the illness of one the witnesses doesn't mean we have to stop sending our good vibrations out into the universe on Randy's behalf.
Sunday, 12 August 2012
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?
Thursday, 2 August 2012
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.
Sunday, 1 July 2012
Free Randy Blythe!
Seriously, Czech Republic. What the fuck?
So I'm traversing the internet the other day, minding my own business, when scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed I see a post from Darkest Hour sending their love out to Lamb of God and Company in the wake of vocalist Randy Blythe's arrest for manslaughter (!) in the Czech Republic.
Say what?
I've got a few other posts in the works, but all of that has to go on the back burner for a second because I would tremendously fucking remiss if I didn't comment on what has to be one of the biggest stories in metal right now.
First off, the facts as far as I know them, with credit and thanks for the info going to the good people over at Metal Sucks (here's the link I've been following, in case you'd rather read it from someone other than me). The situation stands thus: Lamb of God was in the Czech Republic this week, specifically in Prague for a show, when Randy Blythe was arrested on charges of manslaughter connected to a concert in May of 2010. At this concert, a fan apparently leapt on stage (repeatedly, according to a statement from Lamb of God's publicist) and became engaged in some kind of physical altercation with Randy, which ended with Randy pushing the fan off the stage and back into the crowd where he hit his head. This fan later died from his injuries. Randy was taken into custody on either Wednesday or Thursday, but was released on bail yesterday (June 30), and will be in Prague until at least tomorrow (July 2).
Let me preface the following by saying that if Randy is guilty of something, he should be held accountable. Money, fame, being from a different country, even being the lead singer for an internationally renowned metal band -- none of these things should protect a person from culpability for their actions, especially if those actions are illegal, or worse, lead to the injury or death of another person. As much as I love Lamb of God, if authorities in Prague have evidence that can prove Randy responsible for this fan's death, then unfortunately Randy should be made to face the music*.
That said, there are a few things about this story/situation that give rise to my reaction from above (serisouly Czech Republic, what the fuck?), the first of which being the timing of the whole thing. I admit my complete ignorance of Czech laws, meaning I have no idea whether or not there might be some sort of statute of limitations on a crime like manslaughter, but I would think that if there was any evidence at all to suggest Randy's being more than superficially responsible, it would not take two years to bring charges against him. I realize police investigations don't happen overnight, and that various forms of evidence take time to assemble and analyze, but come on. This incident occurred at a show, presumably in full view of hundreds or even thousands of witnesses, with footage from the show supposedly being up on Youtube, and yet it would seem that authorities have needed two years to build enough of a case again Randy?
Again, I profess legal ignorance; maybe the wheels of justice simply turn slowly. But the fact that this happened at a metal show brings me to my second point: this happened at a metal show. Metal shows are inherently dangerous. Hell, any concert where people are crammed together, hot and sweaty, possibly crowdsurfing, possibly with a few beers in them, can get a little rowdy, and as a result attendance at any big concert, not just a metal show, can carry with it a certain level of bodily risk. Now take into account the fact that metal can be an aggressive, high energy style of music, and you have a situation in which any reasonable-minded person realizes there is at least the potential for injury. Anyone who tells you otherwise has clearly never been to a metal show.
To say that you take your life in your own hands when you attend a metal show would of course be overly dramatic, but there is a kernel of truth there. You as an autonomous attendee do have a measure of control over your own safety at a concert. If you don't want to risk being dropped (or having your wallet, shoes, etc, stolen...), you don't go crowdsurfing. Simple. If you don't want to get slammed by that scary-looking guy in the circle pit, you hang back more toward the edge of the crowd. And if you aren't prepared to jump off the stage and into the crowd, or be "helped" off by security, with all the ensuing risks to your safety that leaving a stage in such a manner entails, you don't fucking climb onstage in the first place. Again, simple, no?
But let's leave that responsibility on the part of the fan aside for now and move to the other thing I want to comment on, the responsibility Randy and the other guys in Lamb of God have for their safety. Every metal fan worth his or her salt knows that on December 8, 2004, Dimebag Darrell was shot and killed by a fan at a Damageplan show in Columbus, Ohio. Now I'm not saying this Czech fan had any ill intentions whatsoever, or that he even had the appearance of having any, but then I wasn't there. I don't know how threatened Randy or anyone else felt or didn't feel, and while it is terrible that this situation ended with the death of the fan, I would like to think that if Randy, or any member of any band, felt threatened by a fan, they should have at least some recourse to defend themselves other than politely asking said fan to vacate the stage in a timely fashion. This seems like a case where this recourse, maybe a shove and a "back the fuck up, buddy" might simply have led to the accidental death of the fan in question, which I suppose is why these are charges of manslaughter and not murder. I guess from where I sit there's just something not quite right about looking to assign blame for a tragic accident at an inherently (somewhat) dangerous recreational event more than two years after the fact
OK, rant over. I'll close by saying that I just hope this situation gets resolved quickly and fairly. If Randy is guilty of something, he should be held responsible, and if he's not, let him get back on the fucking road already.
And now back to your regularly scheduled programming.
* I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself.
So I'm traversing the internet the other day, minding my own business, when scrolling through my Facebook newsfeed I see a post from Darkest Hour sending their love out to Lamb of God and Company in the wake of vocalist Randy Blythe's arrest for manslaughter (!) in the Czech Republic.
Say what?
I've got a few other posts in the works, but all of that has to go on the back burner for a second because I would tremendously fucking remiss if I didn't comment on what has to be one of the biggest stories in metal right now.
First off, the facts as far as I know them, with credit and thanks for the info going to the good people over at Metal Sucks (here's the link I've been following, in case you'd rather read it from someone other than me). The situation stands thus: Lamb of God was in the Czech Republic this week, specifically in Prague for a show, when Randy Blythe was arrested on charges of manslaughter connected to a concert in May of 2010. At this concert, a fan apparently leapt on stage (repeatedly, according to a statement from Lamb of God's publicist) and became engaged in some kind of physical altercation with Randy, which ended with Randy pushing the fan off the stage and back into the crowd where he hit his head. This fan later died from his injuries. Randy was taken into custody on either Wednesday or Thursday, but was released on bail yesterday (June 30), and will be in Prague until at least tomorrow (July 2).
Let me preface the following by saying that if Randy is guilty of something, he should be held accountable. Money, fame, being from a different country, even being the lead singer for an internationally renowned metal band -- none of these things should protect a person from culpability for their actions, especially if those actions are illegal, or worse, lead to the injury or death of another person. As much as I love Lamb of God, if authorities in Prague have evidence that can prove Randy responsible for this fan's death, then unfortunately Randy should be made to face the music*.
That said, there are a few things about this story/situation that give rise to my reaction from above (serisouly Czech Republic, what the fuck?), the first of which being the timing of the whole thing. I admit my complete ignorance of Czech laws, meaning I have no idea whether or not there might be some sort of statute of limitations on a crime like manslaughter, but I would think that if there was any evidence at all to suggest Randy's being more than superficially responsible, it would not take two years to bring charges against him. I realize police investigations don't happen overnight, and that various forms of evidence take time to assemble and analyze, but come on. This incident occurred at a show, presumably in full view of hundreds or even thousands of witnesses, with footage from the show supposedly being up on Youtube, and yet it would seem that authorities have needed two years to build enough of a case again Randy?
Again, I profess legal ignorance; maybe the wheels of justice simply turn slowly. But the fact that this happened at a metal show brings me to my second point: this happened at a metal show. Metal shows are inherently dangerous. Hell, any concert where people are crammed together, hot and sweaty, possibly crowdsurfing, possibly with a few beers in them, can get a little rowdy, and as a result attendance at any big concert, not just a metal show, can carry with it a certain level of bodily risk. Now take into account the fact that metal can be an aggressive, high energy style of music, and you have a situation in which any reasonable-minded person realizes there is at least the potential for injury. Anyone who tells you otherwise has clearly never been to a metal show.
To say that you take your life in your own hands when you attend a metal show would of course be overly dramatic, but there is a kernel of truth there. You as an autonomous attendee do have a measure of control over your own safety at a concert. If you don't want to risk being dropped (or having your wallet, shoes, etc, stolen...), you don't go crowdsurfing. Simple. If you don't want to get slammed by that scary-looking guy in the circle pit, you hang back more toward the edge of the crowd. And if you aren't prepared to jump off the stage and into the crowd, or be "helped" off by security, with all the ensuing risks to your safety that leaving a stage in such a manner entails, you don't fucking climb onstage in the first place. Again, simple, no?
But let's leave that responsibility on the part of the fan aside for now and move to the other thing I want to comment on, the responsibility Randy and the other guys in Lamb of God have for their safety. Every metal fan worth his or her salt knows that on December 8, 2004, Dimebag Darrell was shot and killed by a fan at a Damageplan show in Columbus, Ohio. Now I'm not saying this Czech fan had any ill intentions whatsoever, or that he even had the appearance of having any, but then I wasn't there. I don't know how threatened Randy or anyone else felt or didn't feel, and while it is terrible that this situation ended with the death of the fan, I would like to think that if Randy, or any member of any band, felt threatened by a fan, they should have at least some recourse to defend themselves other than politely asking said fan to vacate the stage in a timely fashion. This seems like a case where this recourse, maybe a shove and a "back the fuck up, buddy" might simply have led to the accidental death of the fan in question, which I suppose is why these are charges of manslaughter and not murder. I guess from where I sit there's just something not quite right about looking to assign blame for a tragic accident at an inherently (somewhat) dangerous recreational event more than two years after the fact
OK, rant over. I'll close by saying that I just hope this situation gets resolved quickly and fairly. If Randy is guilty of something, he should be held responsible, and if he's not, let him get back on the fucking road already.
And now back to your regularly scheduled programming.
* I'm sorry, I couldn't help myself.
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