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Anthrax have released the official music video for “Everybody’s Got A Plan,” the third single from their upcoming album Cursum Perficio. The clip premiered via Revolver and features footage from the band’s recent performance at the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica in Lisbon, Portugal, supporting Iron Maiden.

Cursum Perficio arrives September 18 via Megaforce in the US and Nuclear Blast in Europe — the band’s twelfth album and their first in ten years, following 2016’s For All Kings. It was produced by Jay Ruston with the band, with much of the recording taking place at Dave Grohl’s Studio 606 in Los Angeles. Anthrax are Scott Ian, Charlie Benante, Frank Bello, Joey Belladonna and Jonathan Donais.

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On today’s Metal Breakdown Daily, Scott Penfold gets into the new Anthrax single, the Mike Tyson line at the centre of it, and the genuinely macabre story behind an album title everyone’s been reading wrong. Download the free Loaded Radio App on Apple iOS and Google Play and take the show with you.

Third single, and this one’s the fun one.

The Video

“Everybody’s Got A Plan” arrived today through Revolver, and the clip is exactly what it should be: a tour montage. On stage, off stage, cut fast enough to keep up with the song.

The centrepiece footage comes from the Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica in Lisbon, where Anthrax were supporting Iron Maiden. Frank Bello called it a good representation of a day in the life of the band on tour, and that’s the whole brief — no concept, no narrative, just four decades of professionals doing the job.

Charlie Benante says it’s always been one of his favourites on the record, and pointed at the line the whole thing hangs on: everybody’s got a plan until they get punched in the face.

That’s Mike Tyson, from 1987, and it has since escaped into general usage to the point where most people quoting it have no idea where it came from. Benante’s assessment — great line, and true. Hard to argue.

Scott Ian’s summary was that they wanted to capture the band having fun on tour, and that this was a plan that didn’t end with a punch in the face.

It follows “It’s For The Kids” from May and “The Edge Of Perfection” from July — the latter being the one Ian called the greatest song in the history of Anthrax, which is not a phrase you throw around lightly forty-five years in.

The Title Story Nobody Is Telling

Here’s the part worth staying for.

Cursum Perficio is Latin. It translates as “my journey has come to an end,” “my journey is over,” or “I complete my journey.” Which, on a band’s first album in a decade, reads like a farewell.

It isn’t one. And the reason it exists is genuinely strange.

Benante explained it earlier this year. There was talk circulating that all four of the Big Four might be reaching the point where their next records could be their last. It was in the air.

Around the same time, he was watching a Marilyn Monroe documentary — and saw the crest at the doorstep of her final home in Brentwood, California. The house where she died. The inscription on it reads Cursum Perficio.

He brought it to the band, and what they liked about it was the ambiguity. It says the thing without them having to say it. They don’t have to declare an ending — the phrase does the work, and they get to keep going anyway.

Because they are. The band have been explicit that this is not their final studio album. Anyone reading the title as a retirement notice is reading it exactly the way Benante intended and exactly the way he knew wasn’t literally true.

That’s a smarter piece of album-titling than this genre usually gets credit for.

The Thing Fans Will Notice

One detail worth pointing out, because it’s a genuine milestone.

Cursum Perficio is the first Anthrax album recorded entirely as a five-piece with the same unchanged lineup since Persistence Of Time in 1990. It’s also only the second time since Volume 8 in 1998 that they’ve made consecutive records with an identical lineup.

For a band with a personnel history as turbulent as this one — multiple singers, multiple lead guitarists, decades of churn — that’s the real headline about where Anthrax are in 2026. This is a stable band.

And track one on the new album is called “Persistence Of Memory.”

Nobody in the band has said that’s deliberate, so we’re not going to claim it is. But Persistence Of Time to Persistence Of Memory, on the first same-lineup five-piece album since that record, is one hell of a coincidence.

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Eight Years In The Making

The gap is worth putting in perspective.

Scott Ian was asked back in May 2018 whether Anthrax had started work on album twelve. His answer: very, very, very preliminary stages, a couple of great riffs, some ideas from Charlie, nothing actually started.

We covered him aiming to finish it by the end of 2023. That didn’t happen either.

It arrives in September 2026. Eight years from the first riffs, ten years since the last album — the longest gap in the band’s career.

Benante has been open about why it took that long, and it wasn’t laziness. They threw out a batch of finished songs mid-process because the newer material was better, and he’s said every song on the record stands on its own. Bello has said parts of it are genuinely hard to play, and that Belladonna delivers his best performance on an Anthrax record.

Artwork comes from Mark Stutzman, the conceptual artist behind David Blaine’s visuals — Benante’s description of it was, roughly, extremely trippy.

If you want the full campaign background, we covered the album announcement and first single back in May.

Cursum Perficio — Tracklist

1. Persistence Of Memory
2. The Long Goodbye
3. It’s For The Kids
4. Everybody’s Got A Plan
5. The Edge Of Perfection
6. Infectious
7. NYC93
8. Cursum Perficio
9. T.O.M.B.
10. Watch It Go
11. My Victory

Out September 18 — Megaforce in the US, Nuclear Blast in Europe.

The Midnight Signing

Nice touch to close on.

Anthrax play Louder Than Life in Louisville on September 17. Immediately after that set, they’re heading to Guestroom Records on Bardstown Road for an in-store signing starting at 12:01am on September 18 — the exact minute the album is released.

Space is limited, and the only way in is to pre-order the album directly through Guestroom. Nothing bought elsewhere qualifies.

Four guys who’ve been at this since 1981, coming straight off a festival stage to sign records at midnight. That’s the job.

You can also catch them on 70000tons Of Metal if a boat is more your thing.

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TL;DR

• New single: “Everybody’s Got A Plan,” third from Cursum Perficio, video premiered via Revolver
• The video: a tour montage including footage from Lisbon’s Estádio do Sport Lisboa e Benfica, supporting Iron Maiden
• The hook: built on Mike Tyson’s line about everybody having a plan until they get punched in the face
• Album: Cursum Perficio, out September 18 via Megaforce (US) and Nuclear Blast (Europe). Eleven tracks
• The gap: their first album since 2016’s For All Kings — the longest of their career. Ian described it as being in preliminary stages as far back as May 2018
• Produced by: Jay Ruston and Anthrax, largely at Dave Grohl’s Studio 606
• The title: Latin for “my journey has come to an end.” Benante took it from the crest at Marilyn Monroe’s final home. The band have confirmed it is not their last album
• Milestone: the first Anthrax record made entirely as a five-piece with an unchanged lineup since Persistence Of Time in 1990
• Release event: midnight in-store signing at Guestroom Records, Louisville, from 12:01am September 18, following their Louder Than Life set. Pre-order via Guestroom required

FAQ

Ten years, eight years of writing, and an album named after the plaque outside Marilyn Monroe’s last house. September 18 can’t come quick enough. Which single has been the best so far? Let us know in the comments.

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The post Anthrax Release Everybody’s Got A Plan, Built Around A Mike Tyson Line And Filmed Opening For Iron Maiden In Lisbon appeared first on Loaded Radio.

U2 frontman Bono passes through the world with the ease of a man with enough money to do whatever the hell he likes, and enough clout and confidence to choose whomever he does it with. He’s a Zelig-like figure, as comfortable entertaining vast crowds as he is attending political summits with high-powered leaders. Put very simply, he finds himself in situations the rest of us never will, simply by dint of being Bono.

Which explains why he was flying on Jimmy Buffett’s plane the day Jamaican police filled it with bullet holes.

It’s January 1996. Bono has spent much of his time since the Zoo tour ended working on humanitarian endeavours and the Passengers album, a collection of tracks written with Brian Eno for imaginary avant-garde film soundtracks. U2 reconvene in late 1995 for the writing sessions for what will become the Pop album, after which the frontman takes a break and flies to Miami with his family: wife Ali, daughters Jordan and Eve.

There, he meets Mr Miami himself, Jimmy Buffett, the Margaritaville hitmaker with a famous penchant for all things tropical. Buffett is planning to go shopping for jerk chicken in his plane, a Grumman HU-16 Albatross flying boat named Hemisphere Dancer. It’s a former long-range search and rescue aircraft that served in the U.S. Navy – including as an observation craft during Pacific nuclear testing in 1956. The plane was retired in 1967 and left in storage before being purchased and restored by Buffett in 1995.

Buffett decides to fly to Jamaica, against the wishes of his co-pilot, Jim Powell, who warns the singer that inclement weather may make a water landing difficult, and that neighbouring areas may not take too kindly to unexpected craft showing up. There have been problems, you see, with flying boats used to smuggle drugs in the Caribbean. Powell – wisely, as it turns out – backs out of the trip.

Bono and his family don’t. And they’re joined by Chris Blackwell, their former boss at Island Records, who’d grown up in Jamaica and built the famous Compass Point Studios in Nassau, Bahamas. Bono and Ali had honeymooned in Jamaica in 1982 as guests of Blackwell at his GoldenEye Estate, a 50-acre site at Oracabessa Bay that had once belonged to James Bond creator Ian Fleming.

As Powell predicted, Mother Nature does not oblige. The water at Buffett’s intended destination, near Montego Bay on Jamaica’s northern coast, is too rough to make a landing, so the flight diverts to Negril, on the island’s west coast, where Hemisphere Dancer is able to touch down in calm water.

The local authorities are less calm, and open fire on the plane as it sits in the water, apparently convinced that the unannounced arrival is carrying illicit cargo. Thankfully, its passengers have just disembarked, and are on board a launch heading towards the shore when target practice commences

“These boys were shooting all over the place,” Bono later told the Belfast Telegraph. “I felt as if we were in the middle of a James Bond movie – only this was real. It was absolutely terrifying, and I honestly thought we were all going to die.”

More than 100 rounds were fired at Hemisphere Dancer, leaving several bullet holes in the fuselage, the windshield shattered, but its human cargo undamaged.

“Thank God we were safe and sound,” said Bono. “My only concern was for their safety. It was very scary, let me tell you. You can’t believe the relief I felt when I saw the kids were okay.”

The Jamaican Goverment were swift to apologise to the Irish special envoy to Jamaica, Peter King, who revealed that the apology had been “unreservedly accepted” by the U2 frontman. An official investigation eventually ascertained that Hemisphere Dancer had been a victim of mistaken identity, and that no criminal charges would be filed against the officers involved.

Buffett, meanwhile, who had capsized another seaplane the previous year while landing in Nantucket, documented the Negril incident in the unfortunately titled Jamaica Mistaica, a track on his 1996 album Banana Wind, with lyrics recounting his brush with death.

Just about to lose my temper
As I endeavoured to explain
We had only come for chicken
We were not the ganja plane

Come back, come back, back to Jamaica
Don’t you know, we made a big mistake-a
We’d be so sad if you told us goodbye
And we promise not to shoot you out of the sky

Jimmy Buffet died in 2023, but Hemisphere Dancer lives on as a permanent outdoor exhibit at the Lone Palm Airport Bar at Universal CityWalk in Orlando, Florida. It was refurbished in 2025, when a bullet hole patched in 1996 to meet aviation standards was restored. It’s a permanent reminder of the day Buffett and Bono went out for chicken and almost got killed.

“One of the inescapable encumbrances of leading an interesting life,” Buffett once mused, “is that there have to be moments when you almost lose it.”

I’ve been thinking a lot about the ways that video games treat different medieval or fantasy armaments. With some obvious exceptions, blades are almost always viewed as the more dextrous weapons. Knives and daggers are mostly for rogues, assassins, thieves, and any other class that fights from a distance or some hidden, advantageous position. Then you have swords, which are further diversified by blade types: are you parrying and stabbing with a rapier or swinging a huge greatsword to decapitate your foe, their horse, and probably the guy next to him? At some point, the balance shifts from dexterity to strength. There are, of course, blunt weapons like maces and mauls, adept at crunching through armor and bone alike. But this left me thinking…do axes fall somewhere in the middle of all this? Vibes-wise, they definitely seem more savage than a sword but not nearly as primitive as a hammer. Was this the medieval equivalent of the “Knife vs. Bat” debate? 

Here’s what I did. I dove into some online wikis for three fantasy RPGs that I have played recently: Diablo II, Elden Ring, and Tainted Grail: The Fall of Avalon. It turns out that each had a radically different approach to the humble axe. The oldest game of the bunch, Diablo II, treated axes primarily as strength weapons, with only some double-sided battle axes requiring about 70% of the user’s strength as dex (whereas swords could demand anywhere from 20% to 200%). Elden Ring was similar even when dividing the weapon type into axes and greataxes. Strength remained the governing attribute, with many axes requiring dex and a few uniques requiring magical stats like Intelligence or Faith. Tainted Grail, however, throws an interesting curveball, as none of its axes require any dexterity whatsoever. Instead, wielders must put points into endurance, perception, or practicality depending on the particular axe. The first two function as you would expect if you’ve played any sort of RPG, digital or otherwise, but the latter is one of the game’s more interesting stats, governing crafting, trading, crit damage, and stamina and mana costs. I have no idea how the developers made this decision, especially considering that the axes in question have a diverse assortment of additional effects in combat, but if you think about it, axes certainly are “practical” implements with far more uses than swords or maces: forestry, carpentry, farming, executions, etc. Perhaps they were onto something…

Anyway, I’m sure you didn’t come here for my musings on video games or bladed implements. No, you’re probably awaiting this month’s batch of name-your-price digital releases, especially considering that Bandcamp Friday is this Friday, August 7th. Let’s dig into some of my favorite discoveries from the past few months, some of which feature bladed weapons in some capacity, and while we’re at it, let’s support underground metal by picking up some tunes and merch. Maybe some of this installment’s offerings will inspire you to take up thy axe and…well, I’m certainly not going to tell you what to do with that thing, but maybe there are some of those license plate cameras around?

…

R’luhh – Ornamental Undoing (August 1, 2023)

As a fan of Turpitude since Brume hiémale, I was delighted by Bandcamp’s recent interview with Alice Simard, the lone musician behind that icy, mystical black metal project. Apparently she has over two-dozen different extreme metal irons in the fire, and while the article spotlighted five that were all new to me, the one that resonated the most was the instrumental project R’luhh. Simard’s first two releases under this moniker blended glowing, astral lead melodies with frenetic blast beats and layers of alien harmonies reminiscent of some of my favorite Brooklyn black metal bands (I trust you can fill in the blanks yourself). 2023’s Ornamental Undoing trims down the song lengths and dials up the dissonance for a gnarled yet expansive sonic odyssey. I hope that Simard will return to the world of R’luhh amidst all of her other musical endeavors, but then again, I’m sure that there will be plenty of other material from her in the coming years. 

Oh, and you should also check out that Turpitude album from January if you’re into raw, relentlessly melodic black metal. It got stuck in my backlog when it was released, but it may very well end up on my year-end list.

…

Hajduk – Хвърковата чета (April 30, 2026)

It’s almost hard to believe that this is Hajduk’s first full-length album, considering that they released a trio of EPs in 2019 and a four-way split in 2020 before laying low for six years. Fans of that initial material know exactly what to expect here: crackly and triumphant black metal that hits like a cavalry charge, swords held aloft as hooves pound the bloodied soil. Even when the band slows things down on “Три бюлбюла”, which builds upon solemn samples of a women’s choir to create a scorched, sweeping elegy, the music still retains its rawness and aggression.

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Auzawandils – Laste Eclipse Ouer Golgothas Pytt (May 27, 2026)

AP of Skaphe, Chaos Moon, Haxanu, Krieg, and a stable of other stellar black metal projects has returned with – surprise – a new dissociative nightmare called Auzawandils that will purge all your chakras at once. Laste Eclipse… is both bewildering and entrancing, the sort of soundscape whose layers peel back to reveal the horrifying truths beneath. The delightfully titled “Þe Particioun Betwixt Ye Carrion and Ye Torne Veiles” was one track (of several) that I found totally absorbing, with dizzying torrents of guitars swarming like locusts as monks of an esoteric order howl and self-flagellate by torchlight. I just so happened to listen to this album while reading Robert W. Chambers’ The King in Yellow, and y’know what? I wholeheartedly recommend that combination. 

…

The Blind Philosopher – Innergazer (June 17, 2026)

Innergazer was a pleasant surprise for me, and I wish I could remember how I stumbled across it. In any case, this debut album from The Blind Philosopher features swirling, thunderous death metal enhanced by spacey textures, perfect for your next 40k battle or an evening of existential crisis beneath the stars. “Ambience” may still be a dirty word among death metal purists, but the crushing atmosphere of Innergazer would not have the same impact without those synths…or those ripping solos, for that matter.

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Äxe – Autogeddon (July 17, 2026)

I really should have saved that Warhammer reference for this one, huh? Well, it’s too late for regrets now, because Äxe is already bearing down on your location–just follow the acrid black smoke and the roar of their engines. Autogeddon’s cover art tells you everything you need to know about the London band’s second demo. To draw a comparison to a different sort of grim sci-fi universe, this is raucous blackened speed metal that would inspire Immortan Joe to fire up the war rig and raid the Bullet Farm. I won’t spoil any of those newer Mad Max movies, but I will say that things might have turned out differently if that guy with the flamethrower guitar called the members of Äxe for back-up.

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Midwinter Sunset – Midwinter Sunset I & II (July 26, 2026)

Reset the counter: there’s a new Damián Ojeda project, and there are already two releases. This time, Ojeda is playing hardcore-influenced black metal that blends furious tremolo melodies with crunching, thrashy breakdowns. This opening salvo features some of Ojeda’s most viscerally satisfying work to date, hewing closer to letterstoyou and life than Sadness or Trhä. Just check out some of the tempo changes on “Whispered Name” or “Enrichment” and try to remain seated for the duration of the ride.

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Considering I was hired 3000 years ago by the Almighty AMG Himself to be the “power metal guy,” I sure do end up reviewing a lot of moldy death metal. Toss Norway’s Horrifier on the rotpit next as I tackle their sophomore slab of purulence, Revelations of Gore. With cover art straight from the early 90s, Horrifier regale you with tales of body horror, serial killings, and unlawful graveyard carnal knowledge. Their core sound measures in at 79.5% Autopsy worship, with 12.3% Obituary and 8.2% early Pestilence influence. That means you get hammered with old school, cesspool-ready shitfun with a heavy emphasis on scuzz, crust, and scabs. Is it newfangled? Fuck no. Is it going to stain your carpet and leave a lasting stench? Absofuckinglutely! Let’s see what’s behind the gore.

After an appropriately creepy intro, Horrifer get medieval on your ass with “Compelled to Slaughter” as evil, ominous riffs and a skronky bass set the coroner’s table for you. It’s very much in the vein of early Autopsy and Adrian Risøy’s disgusting and disturbing vocals are a dead ringer for the legendary Chris Reifert. It’s a big intestine sandwich that leaps from d-beating to slow, doomy segments, and it sounds as infectious as an Ebola ward. You’ll want a shower after to disinfect, and that’s the sigh of effective death. “Human Butchery” keeps the rancid times rolling, and I swear this one could have appeared on any of the first 4 Autopsy albums. Go ahead and deny that the piece starting at 3:50 wasn’t ripped directly from Chris Reifert’s diseased brain. You can’t. It’s entertaining without reinventing any wheels, and the band’s commitment to excess and a horrific atmosphere is to be commended. When this formula clicks, it works quite well. “Body Hoarder” is an especially fun bit of unhinged death with plenty of textures and moods splattering the walls. Parts even remind me of Leprosy-era Death.

Unfortunately, the writing is a bit inconsistent as the album grinds along, with some songs feeling less essential than others. “Rejoice, Children of the Flesh” reminds me of the loopy but lovable days of early Carnivore where they lurched between thrash and bombastic doom willy-nilly, and the tempo changes don’t always work in their favor as segments drag on too long. I do love that fat, clanging N.M.E.-styled bass though! “Morbid Lust” is aggressive and angry but feels fairly generic, and it also runs past its expiration date and meanders weirdly. “The Final Oblation” is even longer and feels more bloated and overstuffed, despite cool moments. Revelations of Gore does finish strong with longest track, “Blood for Ascension,” however. It puts a vaguely Voivodian spin on a ragged d-beat and makes everything feel jarring, unsteady, and exciting. The classic Autopsy asswax and maggot garden vibe is present, but with a strange new edge. There’s even a massive doom segment that feels like classic Saint Vitus, so that’s pure Steel bait. At 38 minutes, I hesitate to say Revelations of Gore feels longer than that, but it does drag at times. The production is masterful for a caveman death slab such as this. The guitars have force, the bass is fully unleashed and everything feels dangerous and murky as fook. Kudos!

Adrian Risøy and Sander Halvorsen do a very respectable job pummeling and abrading with nasty, corrosive riffs and horror movie harmonies. They hurt when they must, and torture when they like, and there’s a creepy, unsettling vibe that flashes through the material. Erik Krokan’s bass is large, in charge, and right in your face. It thumps, twangs, and bangs all over the place and adds a delicious layer of low-end extremity. Risøy is a great death croaker and brings a repulsive and inhuman stink to the coffin orgy. He’s the kind of vocalist this style of death needs, and boy does he go all in. Last but certainly not least, Andreas Langås lays the lumber hard and mean, shifting from bedragled doom trots to d-beat gallops and straight-up blastbeatery.

Horrifier live in death metal’s infamous past and evince no sign of evolutionary tendencies. Revelations of Gore could have dropped in 1990 and been a genre touchstone. Since it drops in 2026 instead, it’s entirely olde but still well worth a trip down its greasy gutslide into the body fluids. I think Horriffier could do big things in the future. Until then, play this loudly as you carve a rare and bloody roast over a public toilet. Bon Appétit!

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Rating: 3.0/5.0
DR: 10 | Format Reviewed: 320 kbps mp3
Label: Personal Records
Websites: horrifiermetal.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/profile.php | instagram.com/horrifier_official
Releases Worldwide: August 7th, 2026

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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
James Legendforge Unleashes Cinematic Power Metal Debut “The Witchfinder’s Flame” Ahead of Upcoming Album
UK Independent Artist Combines Dark Fantasy Storytelling, Symphonic Metal Grandeur, and AI-Assisted Production in a Bold New Chapter of Modern Metal
Listen / Pre-Save “The Witchfinder’s Flame”:
https://distrokid.com/hyperfollow/jameslegendforge/the-witchfinders-flame-2?ref=release
Purchase the Album:
https://jameslegendforge.bandcamp.com/album/the-witchfinders-flame
United Kingdom-based independent power metal project James Legendforge has opened the gates to a new world of cinematic storytelling with the release of debut single “The Witchfinder’s Flame,” the first chapter in an ambitious multi-release campaign leading toward the upcoming debut album The Witchfinder’s Flame , arriving September 20, 2026.
Blending symphonic power metal, melodic hard rock, dark fantasy themes, and dramatic orchestration, James Legendforge creates an immersive sound built around epic melodies, anthemic choruses, and stories of myth, conflict, transformation, and inner struggle.
“The Witchfinder’s Flame” introduces listeners to a world of ancient fears, judgement, and defiance. Driven by soaring vocal melodies, powerful guitar work, theatrical arrangements, and a cinematic atmosphere, the track captures the feeling of a legendary tale brought to life through modern metal production.


“The Witchfinder’s Flame is the first spark of the James Legendforge world, a dark, cinematic power metal track about fear, judgement and defiance. It brings together my own lyrics and original vocal source recordings with AI-assisted production to create something that feels huge, cinematic, theatrical and completely true to the story I wanted to tell.”




— James Legendforge


The creative force behind the project, UK artist James Spreadbury, brings together original songwriting, human-created lyrics, and original vocal source recordings with AI-assisted production tools supporting arrangement, instrumentation, sound design, and studio effects. This unique approach allows James Legendforge to achieve the scale and atmosphere of a full production team while maintaining a personal and independent creative vision.
The debut single is only the beginning. The upcoming release campaign will continue with additional singles including “Alter Ego – The Beast Within” arriving August 2, 2026, and “The Grip of Insanity” arriving August 23, 2026, before the full 10-track debut album The Witchfinder’s Flame is unleashed on September 20, 2026.
Drawing inspiration from the worlds of fantasy, folklore, history, and personal reflection, James Legendforge delivers melodic metal for fans of Dionysus, Rhapsody, Avantasia, and listeners who crave powerful hooks, epic arrangements, and music that tells a story.
With “The Witchfinder’s Flame,” James Legendforge begins a journey where myth meets melody, and where the past, present, and imagination collide in a blazing new era of independent metal.
Release Details

Artist: James Legendforge
Release: “The Witchfinder’s Flame”
Release Date: July 19, 2026
Upcoming Album: The Witchfinder’s Flame
Album Release Date: September 20, 2026
Genre: Cinematic / Symphonic / Melodic Power Metal / Melodic Hard Rock
Label: Independent / Self-Released via DistroKid
Credits

Lyrics: James Spreadbury / James Legendforge
Original Vocal Source Recordings, Melodies & Creative Direction: James Spreadbury / James Legendforge
Arrangement, Instrumentation, Production Support, Sound Design & Studio Effects: AI-assisted production workflow utilizing Suno and related digital audio tools
Final Mastering / Audio Preparation: Mixea Mastering via DistroKid
Management: Self-managed / Independent Artist
For interviews, reviews, airplay, and promotional inquiries:
zach@metaldevastationradio.net

80 songs will appear on this year's version of the hugely popular video game. Continue reading…

(written by Islander) Last summer we had the pleasure of premiering and reviewing Dreadlands, the debut album from Ravenna-based Stygian. As we wrote then, the music was “an intersection or fusion of two worlds, a hybrid of crust punk and black metal” that proved to be “as fierce, as wounded, and as defiantly resilient as […]

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It’s been a while since Decibel checked in with avant-grind outfit Squid Pisser, led by Baxter Yogurt aka Tommy Meehan aka GWAR’s Grodius Maximus, but the band are back and gearing up for their latest release, Throat Slave. Dubbed a “full-length EP,” the new release comes with five new songs and some heady remixes. Of course, you’ll have to wait until August 28 to hear the full shebang but Decibel is give you a taste until then.

“Tumors” is the conclusion to the A-side of the EP, which features a number of electronic remixes on the flip side. In addition to the new song, Decibel spoke to Yogurt about the new EP, remixes and playing with a new lineup. Throat Slave is out August 28 on Skin Graft.

Talk to us about the song “Tumors.” What’s it about? 

Lyrically, “Tumors” is about identifying and removing malignant people from your life. There are emotional vampires out there who try to steal your light and then pretend it was theirs all along. They survive through manipulation, lies, and borrowed identities because there’s nothing substantial underneath.

The song is about finally sticking a fork in those people. They’ll move on and become somebody else’s problem, but not before they try to drain everything you’ve built and rewrite the story to make themselves look like the victim. Often, their own patterns will catch up with them though…

Experiencing people like that can leave you questioning yourself for a long time. A lot of abusive behavior is learned at an early age, and while that’s tragic, it’s still every person’s responsibility to break those cycles. Many never do. At a certain point, you stop trying to fix them. You have to learn to recognize them, keep your distance, and protect your peace.

Your new EP Throat Slave is a little weirder and a little more thoughtful than your last release. How do you balance serious topics like paranoia and self-examination with the ridiculous antics of the band? 

I’ll say this is probably the most personal record I’ve written lyrically and I also think it’s our most accessible. I don’t really know what’s weird anymore. I don’t pay much attention to what everyone else is doing. To me, making art that looks and sounds like everybody else is fucking weird. What’s the point? How desperate are we to be part of a scene? Take us or leave us, but we’re here to be as honest as we can be.

Squid Pisser has always been about shooting straight from the hip and from the heart. Life’s too short to make something you don’t actually believe in. We have a chance to build our own world, and I’m not going to second-guess myself. There’s definitely an absurdist side to what we do, but none of it feels calculated. We just follow whatever feels honest, and the music, artwork, videos, and live show grow naturally from there.

There are also a bunch of dance and electronic remixes on Throat Slave, which are maybe more extreme than the traditional songs. Did you give the remixers any guidelines or just encourage them to go wild? 

We’re fans of fucked-up music, so when it came time for remixes, we already had a pretty short list of people we wanted to ask. We had just played with Fartbarf earlier this year. Mark Fischer from Skin Graft introduced us to Hyper Gal and KK Null. DJ Embryonic Petite Sac and I go back more than twenty years. We’re lucky to know so many absolute freaks.

We wanted each artist to completely reinterpret the material through their own lens, and the only direction we gave them was to just go nuts.

I’ve always loved collaborating with people. Our first LP, My Tadpole Legion, had a bunch of guest vocalists all over it, and my old band The Manx was constantly doing collaborative releases. It’s one of my favorite parts of making music. You end up creating something that neither artist would’ve made on their own, and that’s exciting to me.

My understanding is that Throat Slave is the first time Michael Armendariz and Raz Azraai are involved on the record, instead of just playing live guitar for Tommy’s compositions. How did that affect the outcome of Throat Slave? 

Yeah, this is the first Squid Pisser record to feature guitar players other than myself, and that’s exciting. It’s starting to feel like a real band now.

We got some different flavors on this record with Michael and Raz spearheading two of the newer tracks, “Rats” and “Tumors,” respectively. I’m excited about the direction we’re headed, and there’s a real comfort in knowing we’ve got capable, creative minds bringing new ideas to the table.

Michael brings this disgusting thing to the fold. His taste is impeccable, all while oozing out of those little leather pants of his. He’s sensitive, thoughtful, hilarious, and just a nasty little boy.

Raz is probably the most technically-proficient guitarist I’ve ever personally known. He’s definitely overqualified for the job, but he gets what this band is all about and then brings his own kind of fuck to the pile. He and I also played together in Cancer Christ for years, so we’ve been through a lot together.

These guys are two of my best friends. It feels great to be in a band with people you genuinely enjoy being around.

The post Video Premiere: Squid Pisser – ‘Tumors’ appeared first on Decibel Magazine.

A phenomenon in every sense, Ren makes his debut on the cover of Rock Sound.

Honest, surprising and on the verge of something truly special, Ren tells us his extraordinary story and what his hopes for the future, both musically and societally, are.

You can pick up your copy, with a deluxe A4 poster print, only at SHOP.ROCKSOUND.TV

The post Ren Is On The Cover Of Rock Sound appeared first on Rock Sound.

Hey, here’s a random-ass combination! Right now, Guns N’ Roses are on one of their many global stadium tours. On Wednesday night, they hit Toronto’s Rogers Stadium. In the process, they crossed paths with big-voiced country star Chris Stapleton, who will headline a show at the very same venue tonight. Presumably, that’s why Stapleton put in a surprise appearance during GNR’s set last night.

The post Guns N’ Roses Bring Out Chris Stapleton In Toronto appeared first on Stereogum.