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  • Chiodos Unleash Stunning New Track ‘TAPDAT’, Their First In 12 Years

    Chiodos have kickstarted a new whole new era by releasing their first piece of music in 12 years.

    The band have spent the last couple of years since their resurgence in 2024 touring relentlessly, most notably celebrating the 20th anniversary of their seminal album ‘All’s Well That Ends Well’.

    But now they have revealed that they have signed to SharpTone Records, and shared their first new track since 2014’s full-length ‘Devil’.

    That track is ‘TAPDAT’, a technical, bruising and melodically compelling piece that harks back to their roots whilst surging forward with ambition and intent.

    Vocalist Craig Owens had this to say about the track, stating, “There is still so much work to be done to build out the world of Chiodos. ‘TAPDAT’ is the first step in that direction. Its return to our ethos is what drew me back to creating with this band, and you can feel it throughout every minute of the song. An unapologetic, experimental ride that pulls you in every step of the way.

    “As for the future of Chiodos, I’m surrounded by incredible talent. We are stronger, more focused than ever and eager to continue the story I’ve been waiting 12 years to tell.”

    The band are due to head out on the road at the end of this month, with support coming from 156/silence, sace6 and Second Harbour. Here are all the dates:

    JULY

    30 – DENVER Fillmore Auditorium

    AUGUST

    01 – SALT LAKE CITY Rockwell at The Complex
    03 – BOISE Knitting Factory
    05 – BEND Midtown Ballroom
    06 – SPOKANE Knitting Factory
    07 – VANCOUVER Commodore Ballroom
    09 – CALGARY The Palace Theatre
    10 – EDMONTON Union Hall
    11 – SASKATOON Coors Event Centre
    12 – WINNIPEG Burton Cummings Theatre
    14 – ST. PAUL Myth Live
    15 – GREEN BAY EPIC Event Center
    16 – CHICAGO House of Blues 
    17 – CHICAGO House of Blues
    19 – MONTREAL The Concert Hall
    23 – PORTLAND State Theatre
    25 – PROVIDENCE Fete Music Hall
    26 – HUNTINGTON The Paramount
    28 – ASHEVILLE The Orange Peel
    29 – NASHVILLE Marathon Music Works

    The post Chiodos Unleash Stunning New Track ‘TAPDAT’, Their First In 12 Years appeared first on Rock Sound.

  • Interview – Black Sunday


    1. Tell us about your latest release
    “Our latest release is titled ‘Fallen Son,’ coming out through Wanikiya Record/Promotion. It’s a track that we feel truly stands on its own in the current landscape. We built it around a slow-burning, thick groove that sets a heavy mood before it explodes into a high-pitched falsetto chorus—a sound we believe is unmatched in today’s hard rock genre. Conceptually, it’s designed to transport the listener to a place that feels both magical and dangerous at the same time. Think of it like being surrounded by twisted trees underneath a dark, heavy sky. It’s a visceral experience that we can’t wait for everyone to hear.”

    2. How would you describe your sound?
    “We describe it as ‘in your face’ hard rock. It’s high-energy, unapologetic, and heavy. We aim for a sound that hits you immediately but has enough layers to keep you coming back to find something new each time you listen.”

    3. What do you write about?
    “Our lyrical content is a wide-reaching journey. It expands from the classical depths of Dante’s Inferno to the raw, everyday grit of scribblings on a bathroom wall. We like to mix ancient incantations with absurd commentary on the failings of humanity and the strange complexities of life. It’s about finding the connection between the sacred and the profane.”

    4. What do you listen to when you are home?
    “I’m constantly scouring the web for new sounds. To me, independent music is the only thing left with real soul and edge. Lately, I’ve been spinning a lot of heavy psychedelic and stoner rock—bands like King Buffalo for those thick riffs and All Them Witches for that blues-infused grit. I also dig the progressive, riff-driven energy of Elder, the melodic hooks of Slomosa, and the doom-psychedelic mix of REZN. I love music that is heavy and atmospheric without needing to be extreme just for the sake of it.”

    5. Your favourite live performance so far?
    “It would definitely be our recent show with Live Nation at the House of Blues in San Diego. We had the honor of opening for Stitched Up Heart, who are just an incredibly talented band. What made it even more of a high was the fact that Zakk Wylde was performing in the room right next to us at the same time. Having that much legendary talent in one building at once was an absolute rush and a real milestone for Black Sunday.”

    6. Tell us a funny story that happened in studio or on stage
    “We once played a dive bar where the band we were opening for—who were actually quite good, so I won’t name them—had some very ‘unique’ pre-show rituals. One member was walking around the bar trying to sell everyone homemade soap, while another member was literally screaming Bible verses at me, trying to convince me he was going to convert me to Christianity before the night was over. It was one of those strange, out-of-the-blue occurrences that only happens in the underground scene. Definitely made for an interesting backstage vibe!”

    7. Your favourite albums?
    “The first Black Sabbath album will always be with me—it’s where the heavy foundation started. Even though it’s on a different record, I have to mention the song ‘Planet Caravan’; it’s a track I can put on anywhere, at any time, and just completely dig. Pink Floyd’s ‘Dark Side of the Moon’ is another one I can play over and over and still find something new in. I’m also a huge fan of tracks like ‘Mother’ and ‘Fearless.’ For that raw, alternative energy, Smashing Pumpkins’ ‘Gish’ is essential, especially the song ‘Snail’—you just have to turn that one up. I also have to include ‘De-Loused in the Comatorium’ by The Mars Volta. It’s majestic, intricate, and explosive. It took me a while to fully grasp it, but once it clicked, it was life-changing. Lastly, while I love all of Alice in Chains, Mad Season’s ‘Above’ (Layne Staley’s project) is incredibly deep, emotional, and dark. It represents a specific time in my life and hits that somber mood perfectly every time.”

    8. A musician you would like to meet for a beer?
    “Since I write lyrics, I’ve always paid close attention to that craft, and for me, it would have to be David Bowie. He was truly an artist from the future—we still haven’t caught up to him. He had this incredible ability to blend so many different styles of music, and he was always deeply tuned into the art world around him. I’ve always admired how he could cross-reference obscure art expositions or burgeoning music that no one else was even noticing yet. His vanguard lifestyle and unapologetic wildness were legendary. Having a beer and a long talk with someone who saw the world through such a unique and expansive lens would have been an incredible experience.”

    9. What would you ask for backstage, if you were the most important band on earth?
    “If we were at that level, my requests would be all about the theatricality of the show. I’d want massive 10’x10’ marble urns on each side of the stage with huge fires roaring inside them. To kick things off, I’d have an old man in a hooded, translucent cape—where you could almost see through to his weathered, wrinkled frame—walk out onto the stage. He’d be carrying a massive Black Sunday flag, and the show wouldn’t officially begin until he raised that flag high in the air. It’s about creating a sense of ancient ritual and grandiosity before we even play the first note.”

    10. What are your plans for the near future?
    “Realistically, the goal is to continue writing songs that I truly love with my brothers in the band. The term ‘rockstar’ has become a bit of a cliché, so for us, it’s more about finding our audience—our tribe—who truly appreciates what we’re doing. We just want to stay busy, keep creating, and always have new projects on the horizon. That’s what really makes me happy: the constant motion and the chance to keep sharing our music with the world.”

  • The DVD that came with Metallica’s St Anger makes metal’s most maligned album make sense

    When a person goes to rehab for any kind of addiction, almost everything is stripped away from them, until they’re forced to confront the innermost demons that put them into the position they’re in. It’s what Metallica singer/guitarist James Hetfield went through in July 2001, after entering a treatment programme for alcohol abuse and other addictions. Upon his return to his band early the following year, they made St Anger: an album that, not coincidentally, saw the members strip away the frills, solos and melodies of the past and unload 75 minutes of honest aggression.

    Much like Hetfield himself, Metallica as a unit were forced to re-examine themselves between 2001 and 2003. They weathered a PR disaster with their lawsuit against file-sharing service Napster, and longtime bassist Jason Newsted’s exit re-opened wounds from the death of his predecessor, Cliff Burton, that never healed, no matter how many Platinum records lined their walls. They hired a psychotherapist and had conversations they’d avoided for decades, such as with fired lead guitarist Dave Mustaine. In a sense, the band went through its own rehab – and St Anger was the sound of them rebuilding afterwards, getting back to the kind of garage jams they enjoyed before 1983 debut album Kill ’Em All.

    When it came out on June 5, 2003, though, Metallica’s eighth album was largely rejected by fans, many of whom wouldn’t understand its backstory until documentary Some Kind Of Monster the following year. They missed the neoclassical elegance of Master Of Puppets and emotional rollercoasters like One and Fade To Black. The production was lacklustre and Lars Ulrich’s snare drum sounded like a back-alley bin fight. Even when St Anger topped the charts in 18 countries and swiftly went multi-Platinum, its reputation remained cursed, as it was given the nickname ‘the biggest bad album ever made’.

    But, in the deluxe CD edition of the album, there was a bonus disc. It seems that most people never bothered with it, likely put off by the notion of consuming more St Anger than was necessary. It’s live-in-the-studio footage of the band playing the album in full, and even in the internet age, where any curiosity around a successful name has the potential to be picked up and shared worldwide, it’s almost never talked about. Yet it’s the key to understanding the band’s goals around this time – and, arguably, achieves them better than the actual release.

    As a musical experience, the DVD is just better. Where the St Anger mix bafflingly emphasised their weaknesses – that snare sound being the chief offender – here Metallica actually sound like what they wanted to be: a raw, unencumbered metal band. They’re performing in sync, with a chemistry and even joy that producer Bob Rock never channelled onto the tapes. When the beat drops on the title track, Hetfield is euphoric, shaking his head and sticking his tongue out in time with the riff. “Please, say next!” he jokes after laying down the taxing, eight-minute take.

    It’s also vital to see the state of the band to understand it. When St Anger first hit shelves, people had long been accustomed to witnessing Metallica the superheroes: the fire-spewing Papa Het asking tens of thousands of people “Oh yeah?!” night and night out. When you have that stadium-conquering vision in your head, and the soundtrack is something grubby and unrefined, of course it’s going to suck. On the DVD, though, all you have is four blokes in t-shirts and jeans, surrounded by amps. It’s the environment that St Anger was made in and made for. Guitars are strewn about at random, there’s a sign calling the space a “sanitarium” and the head of Lady Justice from 1989’s Damaged Justice tour precariously hangs in the background. It’s no accident that the film begins with footage of Hetfield graffitiing ST ANGER REHEARSALS on a wall. He’s returning to that teenage mindset in more ways than one.

    It would be too much to say that the St Anger DVD amends every problem with the music. If you find the songs on the album overly long for what they are, this won’t change your mind. And Hetfield’s vocals are sometimes too immature for their own good, squealing as he tries and fails to reach for high and low notes. But the film commits fully to what the album wanted to be, has a lot more fun doing it, and adds an essential visual element. You’re watching Metallica rebuild themselves from the ground up with the scrappiest music of their career, and everything that came after – the return to form, the tours, the films – was only possible because of this return to roots first.

    Metallica will perform at Las Vegas multimedia venue The Sphere from October 1 to March 13.

  • Chiodos Premiere New Single & Music Video “TAPDAT”

    Post-hardcore outfit Chiodos have signed with SharpTone Records. After going inactive in 2016, frontman Craig Owens revived the band in 2024 with an entirely new backing lineup. The reformed group subsequently re-recorded their debut album, “All’s Well That Ends Well,” in full to celebrate its 20th anniversary—a move that drew criticism from at… Read More/Discuss on Metal Underground.com
  • Apocælypse Announces Debut Album ‘Fænix’, Out August 28th

    Following the breakout success of their debut single ‘Intell-I-Gents’ metal powerhouse Apocælypse returns with ‘Black Box‘, an emotionally charged new single that arrives alongside the announcement of the band’s highly anticipated debut album, ‘Fænix‘, due August 28th. Stream ‘Black Box‘ – here Founded by acclaimed guitarist Ira Black (Vio-Lence, Lizzy Borden, Metal Church), Apocælypse made an immediate […]

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  • Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats Premiere New Single “Shapes Of Midnight” From Upcoming New Album

    Following their recent feud with Gorillaz earlier this month, British psych rock outfit Uncle Acid & The Deadbeats have announced their seventh studio album, “Shapes Of Midnight.” The new record draws partial inspiration from Edgar Allan Poe's 1842 short story ‘The Masque Of The Red Death‘. The album was recorded entirely in analog at the le… Read More/Discuss on Metal Underground.com
  • When Listening to Music Was a Team Sport

    An exhibition at the Cooper Hewitt celebrates the glorious machines that gave us the soundtracks of our lives before streaming sites shoved them toward obsolescence.
  • Hatebreed Premiere New Single “Kill Count Increase” From Upcoming New Album “Fatal Paradox”

    Veteran metalcore band Hatebreed have revealed the details of their ninth studio album, “Fatal Paradox,” which is set for release on November 06th through their new label home, BLKIIBLK. The 11-song effort was once again recorded with longtime producer Zeuss (Rob Zombie, Vision Of Disorder). The album features a guest appearance from Obituar… Read More/Discuss on Metal Underground.com
  • Matare – Dancing With The Spirits

    When it comes to writing, composing, and producing profoundly emotive post-punk songs, no one even comes close to
  • Chris Johnson & The Hollywood Hillbillies Release New Single ‘Better Days Ahead’

    ‘Better Days Ahead‘, the new single from country rock band Chris Johnson & The Hollywood Hillbillies, is out now as the first official release from newly launched record label and creative platform Rustbelt Electric. The track is taken from the upcoming album ‘Tales From The Cowboy Palace‘, set for release on November 11th, 2026 via […]

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