News

Decapitated's new album Anticult is out tomorrow (July 7) via Nuclear Blast. The Polish oufit have offered two previews of the upcoming record so far: lead scorcher "Never," as well as the thunderous "Earth Scar" (which just got an occult-inspired music video). With the LP's release imminent, the band is letting go of another new track. This one's called "One Eyed Nation," and you can stream it below.

Speaking with Alternative Press today, Decapitated guitarist Wacław "Vogg" Kiełtyka described "One Eyed Nation" as a song inspired by his lifelong love of grooves from across the musical spectrum. "I'm a big fan of Lauryn Hill; it's not metal, of course, it's more soul music, but the groove the musicians have on their albums is unbelievable," he said, "but if I talk about my inspiration for making groovy riffs, I would say that Pantera was the band — they were the most heavy, groovy band on the planet for me, always." 

As previously reported, Decapitated will tour behind Anticult this fall. That North American trek, which begins August 20 in Pittsburgh, features support from Thy Art Is Murder, Fallujah and Ghost Bath.

Aug. 20 – Pittsburgh, PA – Rex Theater
Aug. 21 – Richmond, VA – Canal Club
Aug. 22 – Greensboro, NC – Blind Tiger
Aug. 23 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade
Aug. 24 – New Orleans, LA – Southport Hall
Aug. 25 – Houston, TX – Scout Bar
Aug. 26 – Austin, TX – Come And Take It Live
Aug. 27 – Dallas, TX – Gas Monkey Live
Aug. 29 – Denver, CO – The Summit Music Hall
Aug. 30 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex
Aug. 31 – Spokane, WA – The Pin
Sep. 01 – Portland. OR – Hawthorne Theater
Sep. 02 – Vancouver, BC – Rickshaw Theatre
Sep. 03 – Seattle, WA – Studio Seven
Sep. 05 – Reno, NV – Jub Jub's
Sep. 06 – San Francisco, CA – DNA Lounge
Sep. 07 – Hollywood, CA – The Roxy Theatre
Sep. 08 – Santa Ana, CA – The Observatory
Sep. 09 – Mesa, AZ – Club Red
Sep. 10 – El Paso, TX – Tricky Falls
Sep. 11 – Albuquerque, NM – Sunshine Theater
Sep. 13 – Lawrence, KS – Granada Theater
Sep. 14 – Joliet, IL – The Forge
Sep. 15 – Grand Rapids, MI – The Intersection
Sep. 16 – Toronto, ON – The Opera House
Sep. 17 – Montreal, QC – Corona Theatre
Sep. 18 – Ottawa, ON – Brass Monkey
Sep. 19 – Boston, MA – Brighton Music Hall
Sep. 20 – Syracuse, NY – The Lost Horizon
Sep. 21 – New York, NY – Gramercy Theatre
Sep. 22 – Philadelphia, PA – Theatre Of Living Arts
Sep. 23 – Baltimore, MD – Baltimore Soundstage
Sep. 24 – Columbus, OH – Park Street

Boris are gearing up to release their new album Dear next Friday (July 14) via Sargent House. Today, the Japanese trio are streaming the LP in full. The ten-track effort features the previously-shared singles "Absolutego" and "Memento Mori," plus "Dystopia (Vanishing Point)", an atmospheric prog-metal jam that clocks in at nearly 12 minutes. "We don't feel comfortable calling Dear a return to our slow and heavy style," says Boris of their latest, "We've been heavy since day one." Listen below via NPR, and pre-order the album here.

Dear arrives just as Boris celebrate a quarter-century of melting faces; They originally conceived the record as a curtain call, but ultimately turned it into a victory lap. "At the very first moment, this album began as some kind of potential farewell note of Boris," the band explains. "However, it became a sincere letter to fans and listeners–you know, like 'Dear so-and-so, this is the new album from Boris' or something like that."

This fall, Boris will continue their 25th anniversary celebrations with an extensive North American tour, including stop-offs at the Sound on Sound, Desert Daze, and Days of Darkness festivals. They'll be supported by a rotating cast of openers: Torche, Sumac, Thou, Mutoid Man, Helms Alee, Subrosa, and Endon.

Oct. 03 – Fresno, CA – Strummers *
Oct. 04 – Sacramento, CA – Harlow's *
Oct. 06 – Eugene, OR – WOW Hall ^
Oct. 07 – Seattle, WA – Neumo's ^
Oct. 08 – Vancouver, BC – Rickshaw Theatre ^
Oct. 09 – Portland, OR – Doug Fir Lounge ^
Oct. 11 – San Francisco, CA – The Independent ^
Oct. 12-14 – Joshua Tree, CA – Institute of Mentalphysics (Desert Daze Fest)
Oct. 14 – Tucson, AZ – 191 Toole %
Oct. 16 – Salt Lake City, UT – Metro Music Hall %
Oct. 17 – Denver, CO – Bluebird Theater %
Oct. 19 – Lawrence, KS – Granada Theatre %
Oct. 20 – Omaha, NE – The Waiting Room %
Oct. 21 – Minneapolis, MN – Triple Rock Social Club +
Oct. 22 – Milwaukee, WI – Turner Hall +
Oct. 23 – Chicago, IL – Thalia Hall +
Oct. 25 – Detroit, MI – El Club +
Oct. 26 – Cleveland, OH – Grog Shop +
Oct. 27 – Millvale, PA – Mr Smalls +
Oct. 28 – Philadelphia, PA – Union Transfer +
Oct. 29 – Baltimore, MD – Rams Head Live! (Days of Darkness)
Oct. 31 – Allston, MA – Brighton Music Hall =
Nov. 01 – Brooklyn, NY – Warsaw =
Nov. 04 – Durham, NC – Motorco =
Nov. 05 – Knoxville, TN – The Concourse =
Nov. 07 – Atlanta, GA – The Masquerade, Hell Stage =
Nov. 08 – Nashville, TN – Exit / In =
Nov. 09 – Birmingham, AL – Saturn $
Nov. 10 – New Orleans, LA – One Eyed Jacks $
Nov. 10-12 – McDade, TX – Sound on Sound Fest
Nov. 14 – Albuquerque, NM – Sister +
Nov. 15 – Phoenix, AZ – Crescent Ballroom #
Nov. 17 – San Diego, CA – Casbah #
 
* w/ Endon
^ w/ Sumac, Endon
% w/ Subrosa, Endon
+ w/ Helms Alee, Endon
= w/ Mutoid Man, Endon
$ w/ Thou, Endon
# w/ Torche, Endon

This fall, Mastodon will headline a benefit concert in Chicago to support suicide prevention and mental health education. All proceeds from the September 9th event, to be held at Metro, will go directly to Hope for the Day, a Chicago-based nonprofit that provides outreach and mental health education through creative platforms. They'll be supported by experimental trio Brain Tentacles and speed-metal mainstays Powermad, the latter of whom have tapped Anthrax's Charlie Benante to sit in on drums. Tickets for the event can be purchased here, starting Friday, July 7th. VIP and Meet & Greet Packages will go on sale at the same time.

September's benefit marks Mastodon's first Metro show since 2009, when they were touring behind Crack the Skye. The band has a deeply personal connection to this cause; Brann Dailor has described that album as a tribute to his sister, Skye Dailor, who took her own life at age 14. 

For this special event, Munster, Indiana, microbrewery 3 Floyds' Brewing Co. will be serving its Crack the Skye beer (which hits shelves the day after the concert), and Dark Matter Coffee will be re-releasing its Crack the Skye blend. 

Mastodon released their seventh full-length, Emperor of Sand, this March. The Atlanta sludge outfit are currently on the road in Europe, touring behind the record; In late September, they'll return stateside for another set of North American dates alongside Eagles of Death Metal and Russian Circles, with a U.K. trek to follow in December. Check here for a full list of dates.
 

Beer-loving metalheads, rejoice! Iron Maiden and Robinsons Brewery are teaming up to unleash Hallowed, a Belgian-style ale set to hit shelves in October. Clocking in at six percent ABV, the limited-edition brew, which will be available for four months only, comes in a 330 ml bottle adorned with artwork of the legendary band's mascot, Eddie, who's dressed like a monk (a nod to Belgium's long history of monastic breweries.) A list of participating vendors will be revealed "in due course," according to Robinson's website.

Hallowed is the latest in a string of collaborations between the legendary band and the British beer purveyors: It arrives in the wake of the Trooper — which has sold 15 million bottles over the past four years — the Trooper 666, and the Red N' Black. According to Iron Maiden frontman Bruce Dickinson, the beer's Belgian yeast sets it apart from the rest of the band's previous concoctions. "I'm a big fan of Belgian beers, so I jumped at the chance to brew my own," he says. "While I get very excited about experimenting with new formulas and ingredients, the thing about Belgian beer is that it's as much a way of life as it is a drink."

Robinsons' head brewer, Martyn Weeks, says Hallowed drinkers are in for a treat. "Belgian yeast yields a very distinct taste and presentation," he explains. "You can sniff out a Belgian beer simply from its aromas: fruity, spicy and earthy. Belgian yeasts withstand higher alcohol levels, they attenuate well and create an array of phenolics and esters…put simply, this means more flavor."

Iron Maiden are currently wrapping up their world tour behind 2015's album The Book of Souls. Eddie's keeping busy, too: He's set to appear in a new Iron Maiden comic book, to be published in this month's issue of sci-fi/fantasy magazine Heavy Metal.

Danzig have announced a short tour with Corrosion of Conformity ahead of their appearance at Riot Fest 2017, where they'll perform their seminal album Danzig III: How the Gods Kill in its entirety to mark its twenty-fifth anniversary. The seven-show trek, which begins September 7 in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire, includes stop-offs in Philadelphia, Cleveland and Detroit, among other cities. Danzig and company haven't elaborated on whether September's outing will be part of their How The Gods Kill anniversary festivities, or just another lap behind last month's album Black Laden Crown. For now, all we can do is speculate, and check out the itinerary below.

Speaking with Revolver last month, Danzig offered fans a taste of what to expect from their How The Gods Kill tribute shows, and detailed his personal connection to the classic album. "We still do a track or two [from that album] in our regular set," he explained, "but this time we're gonna do five or six songs from it. That album is a personal favorite of mine. It was the first Danzig record to crack the Top 20 on Billboard; It was also the first record of ours that I produced, and it broke us massively over in Europe; It was a really good record that people responded positively to." He also plans to bring back old props from the band's original tour behind the record: "If you're coming to the show, we're gonna have the gigantic gargoyles," he revealed, "and I think I have the old backdrop, too."

Sept. 7 – Hampton Beach, NH – Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
Sept. 8 – Philadelphia, PA – Electric Factory
Sept. 9 – Montclair, NJ – The Wellmont Theater
Sept. 11 – Huntington, NY – The Paramount
Sept. 12 – Lewiston, NY – Artpark Amphitheater
Sept. 14 – Cleveland, OH – The Agora Theatre
Sept. 15 – Detroit, MI – The Fillmore Detroit

On February 4, Black Sabbath took the stage at the Genting Arena, in their hometown of Birmingham, England, to play the final concert of their 81-show farewell tour, appropriately titled "The End." Now, their epic curtain call is coming to theaters around the world for one night only on September 28, in the form of a new documentary: Black Sabbath: The End of The End.

Directed by Dick Curruthers, Black Sabbath: The End of The End offers an up-close and personal look at the historic two-hour set from the band's own perspective. In addition to pro-shot footage of the entire show, the documentary features never-before-seen studio performances of several songs that didn't make it onto the setlist, plus reflections from Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi, and Geezer Butler. A list of participating theaters can be found on the film's official website. If you can't find a screening near you, don't fret; Potential viewers can request screenings here.

"To bring it all back home after all these years was pretty special," the band said in a statement to the press. "It was so hard to say goodbye to the fans, who've been incredibly loyal to us through the years. We never dreamed in the early days that we'd be here 49 years later doing our last show on our home turf."

In related news, today marks the grand opening of Black Sabbath drummer Bill Ward's Reverb shop. As previously reported, the co-founder's selling a wide array of cymbals, drum kits, and drum heads, among other rare gear. Browse the offerings here.

Folk metal composer Amalie Bruun — who performs as Myrkur — is gearing up to release her sophomore album Mareridt, the follow-up to 2015's M, on September 15 via Relapse. Today, she's shared "Måneblôt," the record's haunting debut single. Like the album writ large, the song, which portrays a nightmarish universe of pagan sun worshippers and feminine power, was produced by Randall Dunn (Earth, Sunn O))), Boris). Listen below, and pre-order the album here.

Recorded between Copenhagen and Seattle, Mareridt (which is the Danish word for "nightmare") finds Bruun pushing the boundaries of her instrumentally rich, thematically dense songcraft, by way of a cadre of unorthodox instruments: violin, mandola, nyckelharpa (a type of key harp which dates back to ancient Sweden) and Kulning (a Scandinavian herding call that also dates back to antiquity). The 11-track album also includes a collaboration with Chelsea Wolfe, who's also got an album on the way. (Wolfe's latest, Hiss Spun, arrives a week after Mareridt.)

"I wanted to make an album that I always needed to exist but never did," the multi-instrumentalist said of the forthcoming release. Bruun wrote the album amidst a period of intense suffering, dogged by night terrors, sleep paralysis and lingering trauma. "You know how they say that when you have been through trauma or abuse, you tend to recreate the situation in an attempt to take ownership of it?" she asked. "I think I was doing that. I was trying to solve things [in my nightmares] that I could not solve in real life — things I could not run away from." The resultant product, she added, is "very connected to [my] true self, without an ego or persona."

Shortly after dropping Mareridt, Myrkur will embark on a headlining European tour, with support from Icelandic post-metal outfit Sólstafir. In the interim, Bruun's playing a smattering of European summer festival dates, as well as two North American shows. Find her full itinerary below.

Jul. 21 – Katowice, PL - Metal Hammer Festival
Jul. 22 – Sheffield, UK - Tramlines Festival
Aug. 17 – Brooklyn, NY - Saint Vitus
Aug. 18 – Las Vegas, NV - Psycho Las Vegas
Oct. 26 – Stockholm, SE - Close-Up Baten Cruise
Nov. 04 – Leeds, UK - Damnation Festival
Nov. 17 - London, UK - Heaven #
Nov. 18 - Leeuwarden, NL - Neushoorn #
Nov. 19 - Lille, FR - Maison Folie Beaulieu #
Nov. 20 - Paris, FR - Alhambra #
Nov. 21 - Rennes, FR - Antipode MJC #
Nov. 23 - Bilbao, ES - Santana27 #
Nov. 24 - Madrid, ES - Caracol #
Nov. 25 - Barcelona, ES - Razzmatazz2 #
Nov. 27 - Milan, IT - Circolo Magnolia #
Nov. 29 - Munich, DE - Theaterfabrik #
Nov. 30 - Salzburg, AT - Rockhouse #
Dec. 01 - Bologna, IT - Locomotiv #
Dec. 07 - Budapest, HU - A38 #
Dec. 08 - Vienna, AT - Arena #
Dec. 11 - Prague, CZ - Roxy #
Dec. 12 - Berlin DE - Heimathafen #
Dec. 13 - Cologne, DE - Kantine #
Dec. 15 - Rotterdam, NL - maasSilo #
Dec. 16 - Brussels, BE - VK #
Dec. 18 - Copenhagen, DK - Pumpehuset #
Dec. 20 - Stockholm, SE - Debaser Strand #

# - w/ Solstafir

We're gearing up for a massive relaunch of Revolver magazine and its website this fall. In the meantime, though, we thought it would make sense to bookend these crazy 16 years of Revolver by giving it a Viking funeral. So, for this issue, we've collected some of the best stories, photos, illustrations and covers, dating back to the very beginning of "the World's Loudest Rock Magazine," and we asked some of our favorite writers, photographers, illustrators and musicians to look back with us.

Below is a preview of what's in the June/July 2017 issue. Pick up the new mag on newsstands July 4th or at the Revolver Online Store.

This past weekend, Earache Records descended upon Somerset, England, to give Glastonbury attendees a healthy dose of metal with the Earache Express, the festival's first-ever stage devoted entirely to heavy music. From Napalm Death and Extreme Noise Terror to the Dead Kennedys and Ho99o9, the temporary venue – fashioned from an old London Underground train car – honored musical brutality in all its forms. Singaporean grindcore outfit (and Earache signees) Wormrot headlined the Express on Saturday, June 24, and today, they've uploaded their entire 40-minute, career-spanning set in full. What the band lacked in square footage, they made up for with volume, turning an otherwise ordinary trolley into a temple of noise. Wormrot's set was also an historic one that marked the first performance by a Singaporean band in the festival's 46-year history. Watch below.

Wormrot's train take over arrives in the wake of last year's excellent album Voices, as well as their first North American tour in years, which wrapped up earlier this month. 

Are you a comics fan? Do you dig Iron Maiden? If you answered "Yes" to either of those questions, you're in luck: The legendary metal group are getting their very own comic book, Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast. The epic tale, set to appear in next month's issue of sci-fi/fantasy comic magazine Heavy Metal, follows the band's beloved mascot Eddie as he journeys through a series of terrifying worlds inspired by Iron Maiden's discography. Check out some scans from the upcoming comic book below via Nerdist.

Detailing the upcoming comic book to Nerdist, Heavy Metal offered the following synopsis: "Eddie's immortal soul is shattered and strewn across the cosmos. Now, Eddie must journey across space and time to battle the twisted legions of The Beast, seek out the lost shards of his soul, and bring order to the realms." Iron Maiden: Legacy of the Beast was written by Llexi Leon and Ian Edginton, with art from Kevin J. West; It's inspired by Iron Maiden's mobile video game of the same name, which the band unleashed last year. 

"As a lifelong fan of Iron Maiden, it is a privilege to publish the first comic giving a narrative to their iconic mascot, Eddie," Heavy Metal's Jeff Krelitz told Nerdist of the project. "When we discussed the potential of coming together on this project, it was immediately clear that there was no better home for Iron Maiden than Heavy Metal. Heavy Metal's nearly half-century-long history of either working with or launching the careers of only the most accomplished artists continues here with the amazing team Iron Maiden has working on this series."