2011

Detroit based quintet Ghosts of August have been hard at work since their formation in 2007. Having had the time to write, record, and perform they have finalized what would be a full-length release titled "Disease". This effort goes to the support of their fans, frontman Dave Holowchak says “For most fans, experiencing and finding music today is really an issue of trust, People find new music and recommendations through their most trusted sources – friends. A large part of how we create our music is built around rewarding that trust and encouraging this process by delivering great music.” Aside from Dave Holowchak (vocals), Paul Delmotte (guitar), Steve Leemgraven (guitar), Terry Freers (Bass) and Kenny Leemgraven (drums) round off this rockin quintet.

In regards to their musical material its filled with hard rock emotion with flawless energy that brings to mind such acts as Papa Roach, Sevendust, and Disturbed. The instrumentals used here is heavy duty with constant riffs, solos, and aggressive drum beats that really keep the music flowing. The title track "Scars", and "Lived It Up", contain that heavy duty material while such songs as "Said & Done", "The Nothing", and "Three Little Words", taken it down a couple of notches and makes the music more mellow for the easy listener rather than the hard rocker.

As such Ghosts of August is a mix-up that offers a variety of tastes that can captive the listener in time.


William Francis or WiL as he likes to be called has recently released his all new EP "Novus Ordo Seclorum" and his other band's recent release "Some Kind Of Hate" by Aiden. Now a whole another project simply entitled "The Control Project" is in the process of formation. Aiden will be hitting the road in the early New Year touring alongside Wednesday 13 and Modern Day Escape. So expect even further mayhem from WiL Francis!


CHIMAIRA have issued the following update:

"We are proud to announce the addition of Matt Szlachta [DIRGE WITHIN] and Jeremy Creamer [DAATH] to CHIMAIRA. The plan was to build an undeniable string section and we have done just that. Jeremy will be pounding on the bass, and Matt shredding alongside Emil [Werstler, DAATH] on guitar. As a way to say hello to the CHIMAIRA fans, Jeremy recently remixed a couple of tracks from [CHIMAIRA's latest album] 'The Age Of Hell'. We look forward to 2012. Thank you all for your overwhelming, and continuous support."

VELVET REVOLVER will reunite with singer Scott Weiland for a short one-off performance at "Love You Madly: A Concert For John O'Brien" on Thursday, January 12 at the House Of Blues in West Hollywood, California. Also scheduled to appear are Adam Levine and James Valentine (MAROON 5), Sheryl Crow, Tom Morello (RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE), Stephen Stills and THE FOREST RANGERS.

It's been almost four years since VELVET REVOLVER parted ways with Weiland, and time appears to have healed all wounds. Although Scott and the band split on unfriendly terms, the vocalist told Classic Rock magazine earlier in the year, "We patched things up and we get along. I see them every now and again, we text each other. And you know, we can never say never. Who knows, maybe we'll do some shows some time."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, Weiland was reflective in the interview about his time in VELVET REVOLVER, which teamed him with former GUNS N' ROSES members Slash, Duff McKagan and Matt Sorum. He said, "That was right when I was getting off dope and those guys were all sober and clean, and I had a very special kind of kinship because we'd all experienced the same things . . . It was a great band to see live, and I think we made two exciting albums."

Weiland reunited with his original band, STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, just as his run with VELVET REVOLVER was coming to a close. STP has toured constantly since and recorded a new album last year.

VELVET REVOLVER has still not found a replacement vocalist and is more or less on hiatus, although it was recently revealed that the group recorded an album's worth of material with STONE SOUR and SLIPKNOT frontman Corey Taylor.

In a July 2011 interview with Brazil's "Lokaos Rock Show", VELVET REVOLVER drummer Matt Sorum said about the band's current status, "After [we parted ways with] Scott Weiland [in 2008]… We had such a great first record, especially. The second album is still a good album, but… It's hard to replace Scott for that particular band, I think.

"When we did VELVET REVOLVER, we wanted to make a modern rock album, and we had to figure out a way to make that work. We didn't wanna be like GUNS N' ROSES. We knew we had that in us anyway, especially the Slash and Duff sound was the initial sound of [GN'R's classic debut album] 'Appetite For Destruction', the way they played together and everything. Part of that chemistry was there, and when we added Scott, it brought it into a more modern rock element. He came more from grunge — the Seattle [sound like] SOUNDGARDEN, PEARL JAM and bands like that. So it took it sort of forward. We became more of a modern rock band and we were on modern rock radio."

"Love You Madly: A Concert For John O'Brien" pays tribute to award-winning ASCAP composer John O'Brien, who was found dead in his Chicago hotel room on August 20. He was 45 years old.

O'Brien's first prominent composing job came in 1997, when he provided music for the horror film "Nightwatch". He stayed active until his death, composing additional music for "Anywhere But Here", "Iron Man" and "Iron Man 2", "Pineapple Express", "Four Christmases" and "Couples Retreat". O'Brien also scored the ABC series "In Case Of Emergency" and "Detroit 1-8-7". He was most recently working as a music supervisor on the NBC sitcom "Up All Night".


Hardcore metalcore punks The Banner from Bloomfield, New Jersery got their start in 2003 using influences taken from the late 80s hardcore punk rock heavy metal era when making music. But in 2006 The Banner broke up for a brief period of time before reuniting with founding member Garrett Defalco. The band went on to release their third LP "Fraity: the Hellbond Heart" in 2008. Soon after they broke up in 2010 but in late 2011 "Born to Ruin 1: The Way Is Shut" was annouced as the band's next release and will be the first of three Eps to be released throughout 2012. Now that the band is back together yet again they have released a demo version of an all new song called "Wolvesblood".


Mattel's Monster High line is expanding ever so further with the additions of the following basic doll set which is to finally include Jackson Jekyll, and introduces all new ghouls Robecca SteamRochelle Goyle, and Venus McFlyTrap! Expect these to pop up at Walmart, Toys R Us, among other top notch toy stores in the New Year!

Brussels, Belgium just got heavier thanks to the stylings of Now, Voyager! While they began under the name of Nebra with drummer Ben, bassist Thomas, guitarist Antoine, and second guitarist Martin, things just weren't going the right way and after going through a series of changes there was no telling what was going to happen. Not until 2010 when vocalist Nabil came into the picture he decided to join in and since his arrivial and formation of the band it has given them the chance to grow and further expand as a band. Since they have gone on to tour and perform with such acts as The Devil Wears Prada, Memphis May Fire, and Dream On Dreamer among others. Also having recorded their first EP entitled “Seas”, this band is indeed roaring to go and do what they do when it comes to music. Guitarist Martin and vocalist Nabil discusses with me about the band the EP and what they want to achieve when all of this is said and done.


1. Tell us about the band?

Now, Voyager is a band from Brussels, Belgium. The band basically started 4 years ago with Ben (drums), Thomas (bass), Antoine (guitar), and Martin (guitar) under the name Nebra. There were a lot of different vocalists during those 4 years each with their own style, and because of that the band went through a lot of musical changes. It wasn't until 2010 when Nabil (vocals) joined the band that Now, Voyager came to be, with the sound they felt suited them most. Since the band's formation we've had the opportunity to grow as a band, and develop our sound. We've gotten to share the stage with bands such as The Devil Wears Prada (US) during their last tour through Europe, as well as the tour package of Memphis May Fire (US), The Color Morale (US), and Dream On, Dreamer (OZ). Most recently the band opened for While She Sleeps (UK), and Bury Tomorrow (UK), The band also recorded its first EP in England at Outhouse Studios, reputed for having produced bands such as Architects (UK), Enter Shikari (UK), You Me At Six (UK), and Your Demise (UK) among many others. The EP is now available at shows or online, and is entitled “Seas”.

2. Voyager, what does it mean and why did you want to call your band that?

Nabil: Voyager is basically the same as an explorer, or someone who wants to explore the world around them, and its various facets. The band's name is actually based on Walt Whitman's poem which goes as follows: "The untold want by life and land ne'er granted,
Now voyager sail thou forth to seek and find."

We just basically felt it captured the essence and spirit not only of the band and the music we wanted to create, but as well of its members personally. As far as our music goes, we're always looking for new elements to work with and integrate into our music, and as people we purposely set off to England to record because it represented this idea and this journey we had to take, to make this happen, even though it meant leaving everything we knew behind and isolating ourselves to do it. So that's basically why the band's called Now, Voyager, in a nutshell.

3. Why do you want to record and release your own music? (Be very honest.)

Martin: This is a hard question... Before anything else, we write music for ourselves as it's the best way to get out of the everyday routines, and allows us the gift of voyage (no pun intended). So our songs tend to be extremely personal, and end up being to and for us, before anyone else. The most beautiful gift, based on that, is that something so personal can actually end up speaking to a crowd, and connecting with a person other than ourselves. Personally, it's what makes me want to create because seeing our songs, which are in a way our babies, has the capacity to appeal to other people; it's something that has no price. I hope that answers the question.

4. What are your songs about? (What specific themes do they cover?)

Nabil: There's no main focus as far as themes go within the lyrics, I mean every song is based primarily on an idea or a feeling, or a state of mind, or an event that takes place. I mean some songs we have written based on a pre-determined theme, such as 'Astrophoria: The Weight of a Dream' which talks about the idea that sometimes a dream can be the end of us, because we become so obsessive with it, that we lose touch with reality, and in the end letting go of that dream is the best thing to do. Some songs like 'To Every Beginning' just question life and its purpose, and seeks to force the listener to ask himself whether he/she is really living their life, or idly sitting in the backseat and watching everything happen. And some songs like 'Tabula Rasa' are a little more optimistic and talk about acceptance and trying to appreciate all the little things in life we have. Overall, the only real 'theme' we have is actually just life and anything that happens in it.

5. Do you write your own songs? (Discuss the songwriting process in detail.)

Nabil: That's a rather funny question, I feel. Any real band should write their own songs, shouldn't they? I mean there's nothing wrong with doing a cover once in a while, but being a band is about finding out who you are as a musician and as a person within that band. The songwriting process is somewhat similar to those long belts you see in factories where every step is a necessary step to an items production. At first, before there are any riffs, words, or drum beats composed, we talk about an idea, or a theme. Based on that, Martin begins composing a rough draft which he brings over to Ben and Antoine who review it and send it back to Martin. That happens a few times until everything's perfect. Ben and Antoine then take the music, and add on all the finishing touches and everything that makes all the difference to the song. When that's over and done with, it basically goes over to me for the lyrics. That's what happens most of the time, but it can happen that sometimes Martin will feel inspired and start composing something, or that I'll be going through something, or thinking about something a lot, and just start writing lyrics, and then send them over to Martin and he composes around that. That's how 'Tabula Rasa' started off. I just wrote down the lyrics and sent them to Martin, and he was going through a hard time personally, and just began composing the music around the words, and it all worked out. The starting point can vary, but the rest of the process remains the same. The most important part for us is to keep the songs very honest, and make sure it carries over the feeling we originally had for it, over to the listener.

6. So tell me about your debut EP, when did you begin to write it, record it, and finish it all up and how long did it take?

Martin: Actually, two songs (Foundations and To Every Beginning) were already composed before even considering the idea of going into a studio. Two other songs (Tabula Rasa and The Surface) were composed, worked on and reworked on in pre-production, a few weeks before heading off to the studio. We left for the studio sometime in April, and we recorded the entire EP in 7 days. It was our first experience in a studio, and we keep an amazing memory of the whole thing that will never fade.

We opted for the name “Seas” for the EP mainly because we've always been inspired by sea-based elements, such as the ocean, boats, etc... On top of that, it kind of just brought up a number of other things such as the idea of voyage (which is quite dear to the band), and the distance between our hometown and the studio in England, and having to travel the sea to achieve that dream.

7. Who are your musical influences?

Nabil: That's a hard question to answer, because to be honest we all listen to a wide variety of music, and I think our individual preferences all differ greatly. I know for myself I tend to listen to a lot of pop rock, indie, and anything really chill and mellow. My favorite band of all time's Lifehouse so I guess that probably says it all. Overall, not a whole lot of metal since I feel like a lot of it is recycled these days, so you've got to find your inspiration elsewhere.

Martin: I listen to everything, as long as it's got a rock'n'roll spirit to it. That could be anything from metal, to indie rock, to experimental, to hip-hop, etc. The most important part is that it's got to have a bit of craziness to it and a lot of feeling. To give a few artists that particularly have an influence on me, I'd say Korn, The End, Foals, The Arcade Fire, Thrice, The Dillinger Escape Plan, and Nine Inch Nails.

8. How do you describe your music to people?

Nabil: I think the best description I could find for our music is a mixture between Thrice, Architects, Norma Jean, and a touch of Oh, Sleeper. We tend to mix in a lot of ambient atmospherical parts, with more technical parts and odd time signatures, and then some more straight up in your face parts. Overall I think there's something for everyone in what we do.

Martin: I'd say we do a mixture between rock and hardcore, with a little touch of “post-randomsomethingcore”.

9. What image do you think your music conveys?

Nabil: We've never really been asked that before... to be honest, I don't really think it's even something we even think about. We just know that we play something that is very honest to us, and that we firmly believe in, and we think that transpires over into our live performances and anything else we do that's band related. We don't try to give a specific image, we just create music we connect with, and try to relay that feeling over to the listener. We try to give something more than a big heavy breakdown, or a few catchy lines, that's all I know.

10. Have you ever cried while listening to music? If so what were you listening too?

Nabil: I think I've cried to music twice... One time was when I was a teenager and going through a tough break up, and for some inexplicable reason I decided to put the most depressing song ever (Everything by Lifehouse) and at some point it just hit me, and I started balling my eyes out. Looking back on it, I kind of laugh at myself since it's such a cliché movie type moment, but it was definitely the music that set me off. The second time was while we were in the studio on the last night after all the recording was done, and we all sat together to listen to the raw recordings, and I ended up tearing up on 'Tabula Rasa' just cause we saw all our hard work finally pay off, and all the risks we took to go record in the UK were somehow justified. It was a dream come true to succeed in that endeavor, when the odds were stacked up against us.

Martin: I've cried a number of time while listening to music, and I wouldn't be able to say the number of times it's happened though, but I started tearing up while listening to the outro of “The Canyon Behind Her” by Dredg, Jeff Buckley's “Hallelujah” cover, or even “Wake Up” by The Arcade Fire. It happens often when there's a moment where I listen to a band and I feel as though I begin to vibrate in the same way, as though the artist was speaking to me personally, and it's a very unique feeling to have.

11. What do you guys have planned for the future?

Nabil: As of right now, we've got our first official video clip scheduled to be released end of January, as it's currently being edited by our amazing friend, Sam Velghe. We're also working on brand new songs, of which is an acoustic track. We've just signed a deal with a booking agency here in Belgium called Noize Agency, which we hope will open a lot of doors for us as well. And we can only hope touring is somewhere in there for 2012.

12. What music do you listen to when you are having a bad day?

Nabil: It all matters what kind of bad day! If it's a sad kind of bad day, then something more mellow. Probably Lifehouse, The Appleseed Cast, Say Anything, or Deaf Havana. If it's an angry kind of bad day, then probably something along the lines of The Plot In You, Like Moth To Flames, The Chariot, or Underoath.

Martin: At the end of a long, tiring day and I end up in the metro, I love blasting some Meshuggah, The Chariot, or anything else that's just really loud. If I feel a little down, or in need of optimism, I'll play through the albums of Biffy Clyro, Chevelle, or even Florence & The Machine.

13. If you had your life to live over again, what one thing would you change?

Nabil: I don't think there's a whole lot I would change, to be perfectly honest. I am who I am today because of everything I've gone through, and I am extremely proud of the way I've turned out considering all of that. Maybe the only thing I would change is perhaps to have taken the piano lessons I took when I was 12-13 a little more seriously instead of just not caring at all. That's about it though!

Martin: With regards to our music, I think I would've started on the artwork for “Seas” way, WAY before having gone to the studio, which would've allowed us to bring the EP out a lot faster.

GOATWHORE has set "Blood For The Master" as the title of its new album, due on February 14 in North America via Metal Blade Records. The follow-up to 2009's "Carving Out The Eyes Of God" was recorded at Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, Florida with producer with Erik Rutan.

In a recent interview with Decibel Magazine, GOATWHORE's guitarist Sammy Duet stated that the band's forthcoming CD will feature "the same exact [guitar] sound I used on 'Carving Out The Eyes Of God'. We're just trying to improve on that sound — make it bigger and fatter. That 'Carving' guitar sound was fucking incredible, and that's why me and Rutan spent half the week trying to get it to sound even better, which I believe we achieved. It's gonna have that growly, sub-nuclear kind of sound, but I think it's gonna be almost more refined in a way — but still very nasty."

He added, "The drums are a lot more natural-sounding. A lot of producers today, I don't know; they make the drums sound fake. They sound good, but almost too good. We're just trying to make it sound real and not like a drum machine.

"There's the same amount of solos on 'Carving'; maybe a few more. But there's gonna be a lot of other… I wouldn't exactly call them guitar solos that are gonna be going on underneath the music, but there's gonna be certain things there that will be very different. There's definitely some shit I've never really done before ever that I've just been experimenting with. You have to hear it. It's hard to explain. It's like a solo and not a solo."

"I think a lot of people are expecting us to repeat ourselves, but it's not gonna be like that. We could have easily gone and written 'Carving Out The Eyes Of God Part II' because that album is such a natural feeling for us musically. But we didn't want to do that."

Footage of drummer Zack Simmons performing a brand new song "Collapse in Eternal Worth" can be seen below.


Burn Halo, Hell Or Highwater, and Girl on Fire will be touring in the west next month.

TOUR DATES:

1/12 - Tempe, AZ @ 910 Live
1/13 - Ramona, CA @ Ramona Mainstage
1/14 - Las Vegas, NV @ Vamp'd Vegas
1/17 - Denver, CO @ Marquis Theatre
1/18 - Kearney, NE @ The Garage
1/20 - Sioux City, IA @ The Chesterfield
1/21 - Omaha, NE @ Louis Bar + Grill
1/22 - Fargo, ND @ The Nestor Tavern
1/24 - Tulsa, OK @ The Marquee
1/28 - El Pase, TX @ Tricky Falls


Decoder will be heading out with A Lot Like Birds (Kurt Travis), Just Like Vinyl (Thomas Erak), and Dance Gavin Dance. The first set of dates have been listed and more will be dated soon.

TOUR DATES:

01/12 - San Francisco, CA - Bottom of the Hill *^
01/13 - Portland, OR - Branx *^
01/15 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon *^
01/16 - Boise, ID - The Venue *^
01/18 - Denver, CO - Marquis Theatre *^
01/19 - Omaha, NE - Sokol Underground *^
01/20 - St Louis, MO - Fubar *#
01/21 - Indianapolis, IN - Earth house collective *#
01/23 - Minneapolis, MN - Station 4 *#
01/25 Columbus, OH The Basement *#
01/26 - Cleveland, OH - Peabodys *#
01/27 - Lansing, MI - Macs Bar *#
01/28 - Buffalo, NY - Xtreme Wheels *#
01/29 - Lemoyne, PA - The Champ *#
01/30 - Providence, RI - Firehouse 13 *#
01/31 - Worcester, MA - The Palladium Upstairs *#
02/01 - New York, NY - Webster Hall *#
02/02 - Baltimore, MD - Ottobar *#
02/03 - Allentown, PA - Croc Rock *#
02/04 - Richmond, VA - Kingdom *#
02/06 - Columbia, SC - New brookland Tavern *#
02/07 - Charlotte, NC - The Casbah *#
02/08 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade (Purgatory) *#
02/10 - Tulsa, OK - Marquee *#
02/11 - Wichita, KS - The Scene-ary *#
02/17 - Pomona, CA - Glasshouse +
02/18 San Diego, CA - Soma +
02/19 Phoenix, AZ - The Nile +
02/20 Tucson, AZ - The Rock +
02/21 Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theatre +
02/22 El Paso, TX - Tricky Falls +
02/23 San Antonio, TX - White Rabbit +
02/24 Houston, TX - Warehouse +
02/26 Corpus Christi, TX - House of Rock +
02/27 Dallas, TX - The Door +
02/29 Denver, CO - Marquis +
03/01 Colorado Springs, CO - Black Sheep +
03/03 Sacramento, CA - Ace of Spades +

* = w/ Just Like Vinyl
^ = w/ I the Mighty
# = w/ Decoder
+ = Dance Gavin Dance


Having released the new Sweet 1600 line starring the fangtastic Booday ghoul Draculaura celebrating her Sweet 16 with Frankie, Clawdeen, and Clawd and the rest of the ghouls, what more could you want? Well why not some love in the air with Ms. C.A. Cupid! She is the daughter of the Eros while her dad handles human love C.A. takes care of the Monster ghouls with her lovey freaky style! Now that you know about our love ghoul her doll is also a part of the Sweet 1600 line and is available now! So you may not have her in time for the howildays but you will have her in a matter of no time at all!



The brand new Underworld Awakening soundtrack will be available on January 17, 2012!

"Underworld Awakening" Soundtrack Tracklisting:

01. Made of Stone (Renholdër Remix) - Evanescence
02. Heavy Prey - Lacey Sturm of Flyleaf feat. Geno Lenardo
03. Blackout (Renholdër Remix) - Linkin Park
04. Apart (Renholdër Remix) - The Cure
05. Killer & a Queen - Stella Katsoudas of Sister Soleil feat. Geno Lenardo
06. Watch Yourself (Renholdër Remix) - Ministry
07. Trip the Darkness (Ben Weinman Remix) - Lacuna Coil
08. Young Blood (Renholdër Remix) - The Naked and Famous
09. It Rapes All In Its Path - Black Light Burns
10. The Posthumous Letter - William Control
11. How’m I Supposed to Die- Civil Twilight
12. Consolation Prize - & SONS
13. Liar (Revenant mix by 8mm) – 8MM
14. You Won't See The Light - Ryan T.Hope of The Lifeline feat. Geno Lenardo
15. Bottle of Pain - Combichrist
16. Intruder – Collide
17. Exit Wounds (Justin Lassen Remix) - Justin Lassen feat. Silent Fury

Currently headlining The Alternative Press Tour in support of their November 8th release of “In Some Way, Shape, or Form.,” Universal Republic / Decaydance Records band Four Year Strong - Alan Day (vocals, guitars), Dan O’Connor (vocals, guitars), Joe Weiss (bass) and Jake Massucco (drums) - has announced dates for their annual "It's A Wonderful Gig Life." The holiday shows kick off on December 27th in Lancaster, PA with Set Your Goals, Balance and Composure, Transit and Diamond opening.

Fans purchasing pre-sale tickets to “It’s A Wonderful Gig Life” will be treated to a special intimate acoustic performance and early entrance to the venue. Additionally, for every ticket purchased during the pre-sale, $1 will go to The Leukemia & Lymphoma Society, for which the band will match with a $1 donation. Pre-sale tickets can be purchased HERE and attendees are encouraged to bring canned food and non-perishables to the shows, which will benefit The Greater Boston Food Bank.

To celebrate the album’s first single, “Just Drive,” Four Year Strong has launched a photo contest via Instagram inspired by the Andre Arevalo-directed video which you can watch HERE. Select items used in the clip along with signed items will be given away, for more details visit: http://FYSTAGRAM.com/. The band’s limited edition T-shirt design collaboration with Johnny Cupcakes Clothing will be available for purchase HERE beginning December 8th. So in short why not just usher in the holiday season with Four Year Strong!


Four Year Strong Headlining The AP Tour:

11/16 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @Culture Room
11/17 St. Petersburg, FL @ State Theatre
11/18 Atlanta, GA @The Masquerade
11/19 Charlotte, NC @Amos’ Southend Music Hall
11/20 Norfolk, VA @The NorVa
11/22 New York, NY @Irving Plaza
11/23 Sayreville, NJ @Starland Ballroom
11/25 Pittsburgh, PA @Altar Bar
11/26 Cleveland, OH @House of Blues Cleveland

Four Year Strong Headlining “It’s A Wonderful Gig Life”:

*12/3 Syracuse, NY @The Lost Horizon
12/27 Lancaster, PA @Chameleon Club
12/28 Poughkeepsie, NY @The Chance
**12/29 S. Burlington, VT @Higher Ground
***12/30 Worcester, MA @The Palladium
*KROCK radio show benefitting Toys For Tots - $5 donation or new toy to enter
**Balance and Composure will not be performing


Seattle post punks Mutiny Mutiny have released their debut LP "Constellation" which you can purchase HERE. But besides that they have put together a unique source of style that is considered noise within the 11 songs that make up this debut and the band mates have gone into saying that making music is what they live for and couldn't be happier.

1. So tell me why the name Mutiny Mutiny?

Jason: I know we had narrowed it down to either Mutiny Mutiny or Clustercuss. Mutiny Mutiny was Marc's contribution and I'm not actually sure where it came from. I'm glad it won out though. It's the better name.

Marc: It kind of came out of nowhere. I guess I just thought it sounded catchy.

2. What type of band are you?

We're an angular, sometimes noisy post-punk band.


3. Tell us the brief history of your band.

Jason: I've been trying to get a band like this going forever. I put out a musician's classified ad in early 2009 and Marc answered. We played together for a bit, tried out a bunch of different bass players and thought we might just have to be a two piece. Jenn used to play bass and said she'd be interested in trying to play with us. It clicked right away and we've been plugging away ever since.

Marc: Ya, the chemistry was pretty immediate; within two months together, we wrote eight songs. We started playing shows around Seattle in early 2010, and recorded our first full-length record, Constellation, later that year.

4. Who are your musical and non-musical influences?

Marc: Our musical influences are post-hardcore and post-punk bands like Sonic Youth, Fugazi, Jawbox , Hoover, Mission of Burma, and stuff like that.

Jason: Ya, Marc and I both grew up listening to lots of 90s stuff from DC and Olympia on record labels like Dischord and Kill Rock Stars. I listen to a lot of different music and we all have pretty diverse musical backgrounds but this band is kind of about keeping in the spirit of that sound. I read a lot of modern poetry and that sneaks its way in sometimes. I think, generally, most musicians have pieces from whatever is going on in their lives consciously or subconsciously winding up in their music too.

Marc: Left-leaning politics and activism, contemporary poetry and philosopy, and the DIY community are definitely influences for me as well.

Jenn: My background is as a cellist, so I guess classical music is an influence for me. A lot of my bass lines are pretty melodic.

5. Who writes the songs, what are they about?

Jenn: We write all of our songs together, although they usually start with whatever bass line pops into my head. I do come up with vocal melodies and harmonies for some songs, but I really don’t do much lyric writing. I kind of hate that part about song writing, actually. Marc and Jason are much better at it so I leave that part to them.

Marc: Our songs are about a lot of different things. Everything from current events and politics ("Oil and Water" was written around the time of the BP oil spill in 2010) to our daily work lives ("Close of Business") to relationships ("Some Fresh Disaster") to nothing in particular (sometimes it's a bunch of words thrown together that simply sound nice, like "Villanelle").

Jason: I had a couple of songs kicking around that I wrote early on that wound up on the first record. What are my words are about? Well, that could take a while to go into here. Mostly they are reflections on and reactions to what is going on in my world and the world at large.

6. How about the single you currently have available can you tell me a little about it?

Jason: This was our most recent song at the time we recorded the record. Jenn and I came up with the vocal parts in the studio by letting the song roll and trying out different ideas. I used some words that I had a written for a different song that I thought might work for this one. Good thing they did because that was all I had at the time. I kind of lifted a bunch of them from ideas in the book, The Revolution Of Everyday Life by Raoul Vaneigem.

7. What inspires you to do what you do?

Jason: Not to go on a complete nostalgia trip but I got exposed to some amazing bands and saw pretty intense shows early on that really inspired me. Seeing a band like Fugazi when you're 16 or 17 years old is pretty powerful. There are still some great bands that are passionate about what they do but seeing a band like that with no pretense give that much in a performance is pretty incredible. I feel like we're trying to capture some of the energy and spirit of bands like Fugazi, Nation of Ulysses, Sleater-Kinney and a lot of the bands happening in the mid, late 90s, early 2000s that you don't hear on "indie" rock radio or see when a lot of newer bands are playing.

Jenn: What Jason said. Also, I lead a bit of a left-brain existence at work and in the rest of my life, so music for me is a really cathartic counter-balance to that.

Marc: I love music, both listening to and performing it. It’s in my blood, and is something I likely will never stop doing in some form or another. We enjoy challenging ourselves to write songs we hope other folks will love as much as the music of the bands we love.

8. What’s new in the recording of your music?

Jason: When we recorded “Constellation”, we looked for a really good-sounding room (Soundhouse Studios) and recorded to tape, so there isn’t really anything new about that. Our producer, Brandon Busch, is really on top of his game though so I think he was able to take the old school approach but keep things cool and modern in the mixes. On a more general level we wear our influences on our sleeves a bit but I don't think we're totally rehashing things that you've heard before. I like to think we keep things rooted in the past but still moving forward with our own individual take on math rock, post-punk, post-hardcore, whatever you want to call it.

9. What do you plan to do to celebrate the upcoming holidays?

Marc: My girlfriend and some of my other close friends are Jewish, so the holidays for me are usually a mix of Hanukkah and Jewish Christmas (going out for Chinese food and a movie on Christmas Day).

Jason: Holidays are pretty mellow for Jenn and me. Our families are in the Seattle area so we hang out with them. My Mom makes a ton of Christmas cookies every year. Our new puppy just turned six months old and it's her first Christmas so that's pretty fun.

Jenn: Jason and I also just bought our house earlier this year, so it has been really cool to put up some full-blown Christmas decorations for the first time. And yes, Christmas cookies. His Mom’s Christmas cookies are epic.

10. What can we expect to see from Mutiny Mutiny in the New Year?

Jason: We're working on writing a bunch of new stuff that is taking us in some new directions. Our first songs were great and happened pretty organically but we're really working on pushing ourselves to be as good as we can be. We've been thinking about the parts of each song, what and how we're playing and tweaking things until we feel like they're the best songs they can be. Once we've got a solid batch of new stuff we'll probably be heading back in the studio with Brandon and cranking out a new album.

Marc: We also want to maybe do a West Coast tour and try to do some local festival gigs.

11. Is that your final answer?

Jason: For now. Hopefully we'll be chatting again in the future, though. Thanks for your time and interest in our band.

Jenn: And Happy Holidays to you and your readers!

AFM Records is proud to announce the worldwide signing of industrial veterans MINISTRY, one of the most innovative and legendary bands of our time. AFM will release MINISTRY's highly-anticipated comeback album Relapse in March. Prior to the album, MINISTRY will release a digital single, entitled “99%” on December 23rd, 2011 via the band's iTunes store.

Currently, MINISTRY mastermind Al Jourgensen is finalizing the last mixes on the new material. Commented Jourgensen on the signing: "Our 13th Planet Record releases have been distributed in Europe via AFM through our partner Soulfood Music in Germany for several years now, and we have established a solid business relationship, so it made perfect sense to take the next step and have AFM Records come on board and be involved with the new Ministry release for worldwide and digital distribution. I’m pretty psyched about the collaboration, based on the response and enthusiasm I’ve received from AFM so far…"

Stay tuned for further info on the upcoming album, tour updates and more on MINISTRY heavily throughout 2012.


The new Monster High line called Skull Shores has added the addition of Frankie Stein to its current line which has Lagoona, Ghoulia, Gil, and soon to be released Draculaura and Frankie. AngelicDreamz.com posted photos of the new ghoul for all of the unbelievers out there who doubted this doll was even real. Check out the photos for yourself and there is no telling when this doll will be hitting the shelves, according to AngelicDreamz they got the doll and will be issuing her as a XMAS gift to all of those who had pre-ordered the other new line Sweet 1600 back in November.



Detroit, Michigan - Following last week's successful Beatport.com Charting with a #6 Dubstep Release, #35 Overall Release, electronic-rock mastermind Celldweller (Klayton) has released a new music video today for his track "Frozen" (Celldweller vs Blue Stahli).


His full-length electronic/DJ-Mix Album "The Complete Cellout" is out now at the Fixt Store and will be worldwide (iTunes, Amazon, CD Baby, etc.)on Jan 10th, 2012.

Michigan's We Came As Romans announces The Fire and Ice Tour, a Spring 2012 US headlining run with support from Emmure, blessthefall, Woe, Is Me and The Color Morale.

"Just Keep Breathing", We Came As Romans' second music video in a three-part series, premiered on Friday, December 16th. The video was directed by Travis Kopach [AFI, 3OH!3, Panic! At The Disco] and is a continuation of the band's previously released video for "Mis//Understanding", with the story carrying over into "Understanding What We've Grown To Be", the band's forthcoming and final music video of the series. The band debuted "Just Keep Breathing" on Livestream.com, followed by an interactive chat with fans. The video is now available HERE.

We Came As Romans concluded their seemingly non-stop touring schedule of 2011 this past weekend by headlining the December to Remember festival in Anaheim, CA. The band will keep up their dedication to the road in 2012, kicking off the year with a European co-headlining tour with Alesana, which will be presented by Keep-A-Breast and Macbeth. Soon after, the band will travel to Japan for the first time, to perform at Scream Out Fest. We Came As Romans is touring in support of their recently released sophomore full-length album, Understanding What We've Grown To Be.

WE CAME AS ROMANS w/Emmure, blessthefall, Woe Is Me and The Color Morale:

Mar 09 Covington, KY @ Madison Theatre
Mar 10 Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
Mar 11 Ft. Lauderdale, FL @ Revolution
Mar 12 Orlando, FL @ The Plaza Theatre
Mar 13 Tampa, FL @ The Ritz Ybor
Mar 15 San Antonio, TX @ White Rabbit
Mar 20 Scottsdale, AZ @ Venue of Scottsdale
Mar 21 San Diego, CA @ Soma
Mar 22 Anaheim, CA @ The Grove of Anaheim
Mar 23 West Hollywood, CA @ House of Blues
Mar 24 Bakersfield, CA @ Golden State Hall
Mar 25 San Francisco, CA @ Regency Ballroom
Mar 27 Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theatre
Mar 28 Seattle, WA @ El Corazon
Mar 30 Salt Lake City, UT @ Salt Air
Mar 31 Denver, CO @ The Summit Music Hall
Apr 01 Lawrence, KS @ Granada
Apr 02 Minneapolis, MN @ The Cabooze
Apr 03 Joliet, IL @ Mojoes
Apr 04 Grand Rapids, MI @ The Orbit Room
Apr 07 Worcester, MA @ The Palladium
Apr 09 Portland, ME @ Port City Music Hall
Apr 11 Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of Living Arts
Apr 12 Baltimore, MD @ Ram’s Head Live
Apr 13 Pittsburgh, PA @ Club Zoo

MACBETH AND KEEP-A-BREAST PRESENT:
We Came As Romans and Alesana w/Iwrestledabearonce, Glamour Of The Kill:

Jan 13 Karlsruhe, DE @ Substage
Jan 14 Jena, DE @ F-Haus
Jan 15 Aschaffenburg, DE @ Colos Saal
Jan 16 Paris, FR @ Divan Du monde
Jan 17 Lyon, FR @ MJC O Tem
Jan 18 Zürich, CH @ Abart/Komplex
Jan 19 Cesena, IT @ Vidia
Jan 20 Wien, AT @ WUK
Jan 21 München, DE @ Backstage
Jan 22 Prague, CZ @ Rock Cafe
Jan 23 Berlin, DE @ Columbia Club
Jan 24 Münster, DE @ Sputnikhalle
Jan 25 Hamburg, DE @ Knust
Jan 26 Malmö, SE @ KB
Jan 27 Gothenburg, SE @ Brewhouse
Jan 28 Stockholm, SE @ Klubben
Jan 30 Helsinki, FI @ Nosturi
Feb 01 Copenhagen, DK @ Vega
Feb 02 Amsterdam, DE @ Melkweg
Feb 03 Köln, DE @ Essigfabrik
Feb 04 Antwerp, BE @ Trix
Feb 05 Cardiff, UK @ CF10
Feb 06 Birmingham, UK @ The Library
Feb 07 Nottingham, UK @ Rescue Rooms
Feb 08 Glasgow, UK @ Cathouse
Feb 09 Manchester, UK @ Academy 3
Feb 10 London, UK @ The Electric Ballroom
Feb 11 Colchester, UK @ Arts Centre
Feb 12 Brighton, UK @ Concord 2

SCREAM OUT FEST 2012:

Feb 18 Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya Club Quattro
Feb 19 Shibuya-ku, Tokyo, Japan @ Shibuya Club Quattro

The European leg of GWAR's "Return of the World Maggot" tour, scheduled to kick off in January 2012 has been cancelled after several promoters pulled the plug on shows, citing poor ticket sales.

GWAR spokesman Dave Brockie commented on the tour's cancellation:

"Several of the promoters were alarmed by the low ticket sales, and they decided to start pulling the plug on shows. It got to the point where we had lost so many shows that we simply could not afford to do the tour."

Brockie continued:

"We are super disappointed that this happened, and we apologize to all of our European fans for cancelling the tour. We did everything we could possibly do to save it, but it just didn't work out. The tickets are fully refundable so make sure you get your money back!"

In other GWAR related news, Oderus and Balsac were recently "hired" by MTV's Next Movie to review the new Steven Spielberg's new epic, "War Horse". Are your Mutant Overlords the next Siskel and Ebert??? Find out HERE.


Northern California death metal pioneer AUTOPSY will make a rare live appearance and headline the Gathering of the Bestial Legion festival on Saturday, January 14 at The Echo & Echoplex. This highly anticipated event was originally scheduled for August of 2011, but was postponed due to unforeseen circumstances. Alas, it will certainly be worth the wait!

Hopeless Records is excited to announce that we have partnered with The Used and their label, Anger Music Group to release their highly anticipated follow up to 2009’s Artwork. “The Used are proud to announce the birth of Anger Music Group. Anger Music Group is an all inclusive art production company. We have teamed up with Hopeless Records for the release of our new record Vulnerable. We can’t wait for you to hear it! Love, The Used”

The final touches are being made to the album which will be released in the Spring of 2012. Vulnerable will be the bands 5th studio album. Alternative Press Magazine declares it as one of the Most Anticipated albums of 2012, frontman Bert McCracken explains, “Vulnerable is about taking one step back and two steps forward. The sound of the record is as evolved as it possibly could be, it maintains the same emotional integrity as the first record [2002’s The Used], yet it sounds like the future (and the future sounds bright). Vulnerable is about taking a chance to let the real you shine. This record is for the outcasts, the misfits, the misunderstood, and the ones who have always dared to be themselves. I can’t wait for you to hear it.”

A brand new song from Vulnerable will be released in January! For more details and to read an exclusive interview with Bert head over to the Alternative Press's website to read all about it HERE.


Modern Day Escape who have been hard at work writing, recording, and finally performing with two new members guitarist Mark Burns and drummer Sandra formerly of the Black Veil Brides. They had a little break period and decided to come out to perform at the infamous Chain Reaction in Anaheim, California on December 15, 2011. During their set they perform two new songs off their upcoming sophomore release "Under The Gun" set to be released March 27, 2012! You can catch the performances of "Under The Gun" HERE and the other new song HERE. Expect to see them hit the road alongside Wednesday 13 and Aiden at the start of the New Year!

Still The Sky's Limit was a side project that guitarist/back up vocalist Johnny B thought up but now the project is in full bloom and on the fore front of the rock n' roll scene. These Orange County, California locals got what they wanted to do in order and from there began to write and make music which leadto the release of their debut EP "Last Chance Past" with that they went on to perform and write even more material that would end up being on their debut LP "Why Not?" released before the end of this year ran out.

They source of still brings to mind Green Day meets Simple Plan and Good Charlotte except their earlier works being more pop punk based than their current material. Either way "Why Not?" delivers a solid punk rock attitude with an agressive twist that truly delivers that rock n' roll feel. The lyrics are catchy and really flow with the groove of the music. While the guitar and drumming is head on with each and every note.

These modern day rockstars are surly to be the next best thing to ever hit the rock n' roll scene in quite sometime.


In the new Monster High webisode "Game of Denile" it takes the ghouls to Cleo De Nile's household and has them all kicking back at a slumber party and new ghoul Abbey Bominable has bee invited and is sporting her nighttime wear so perhaps she will included a new extended addition of the Dead Tired line? The current line features the original ghouls, Frankie, Draculaura, Clawdeen, Lagoona, Cleo and Ghoulia.



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