U.K. rockers Muse have unleashed the video for their song, “Supremacy,” off their last album, The 2nd Law. In a surprising turn, the clip features corpse-painted surfers and a corpse-painted wedding party. Check it out below and let us know what you think in the comments.
]]>
Leading up to the end of the year, Revolver has asked some of our favorite artists to pick their Top Albums of 2012 and tell us why each record rules. Here, Kyle Gruninger (pictured left), vocalist of the hard-rock band Incura, selects his faves.
5. Gossip, A Joyful Noise
“Not only are the vocals amazing and original, but you just can’t help but wanna get up and dance to this record.”
4. Muse, The 2nd Law
“They just keep pushing the music and creativity further and further. This album jumps from pop to rock to symphony. Amazing songwriting. Can’t get away from it.”
3. Periphery, Periphery II: This Time It’s Personal
“Technical, aggressive, heavy, just fucking amazing. Polyrhythms for life!”
2. Coheed and Cambria, The Afterman: Ascension
“The vocal range is just stunning. The guitar and voice combo in this band keeps the ‘epic’ in me alive.”
1. Lamb of God, Resolution
“After the shit this band has gone through this year… They still keep putting out huge metal records to get messy with.”
Leading up to the end of the year, Revolver has asked some of our favorite artists to pick their Top Albums of 2012 and tell us why each record rules. Here, Gus Wood (pictured left), vocalist of the hard-rock band Young Guns, selects his faves.
5. Smashing Pumpkins, Oceania
“It’s great to hear that nasal drawl again and not think back in a nostalgic way. This record sounds classic but also current and contemporary. It finally feels like a ‘new’ Smashing Pumpkins record. Trippy and a bit cosmic in places but with great riffs and melodies packed in there too. Great stuff.”
4. Muse, The 2nd Law
“Maybe the whole record is about excess and unsustainability and how we’re all basically royally fucked, but Muse don’t seem to show any sign of slowing down. This record is insane, from the thriller stomp of ‘Panic Station,’ to the Queen-on-acid of ‘Survival’ to the subtle pop George Michael genius of ‘Madness’ to the smaller more introspective moments like ‘Animals,’ this band blows me away and this record more so than the rest. Awesome.”
3. The Gaslight Anthem, Handwritten
“I always had an appreciation for The Gaslight Anthem, but this is the first record I can say I really liked. The songwriting feels like they hit a higher level and it feels maybe a little less drowned in nostalgia which helps me to interact with it–seeing as I wasn’t born in mid 20th century America. Almost has a Kings of Leon quality to it. Was surprised by how much I liked this record.”
2. Make Do and Mend, Everything You Ever Loved
“To me, this record has an almost unassuming Jimmy Eat World quality to it. It doesn’t bang you over the head. You just suddenly realize, Hang on, this song is amazing! And it happens song after song. Maybe it’s James Carroll’s gruff delivery or the understated production, but either way this record is a gem.”
1. Deftones, Koi No Yokan
“I was one of the few that liked but didn’t quite love–at least as much as everyone around me–Diamond Eyes, but with this record, they absolutely nailed it and have delivered an album as quintessentially Deftones and as brilliant as any of their earlier work. They sound revitalized and I love it.”
Leading up to the end of the year, Revolver has asked some of our favorite artists to pick their Top Albums of 2012 and tell us why each record rules. Here, Aaron Buchanan (pictured left), vocalist of the hard-rock band Heaven’s Basement, selects his faves.
5. Muse, The 2nd Law
“An all-round great album, influences and tips of the hat all over the shot and I don’t even care that some of it borders on plagiarism. It’s just a good album by a good English band–what’s not to like?”
4. Jack White, Blunderbuss
“Has more vibe in the first three minutes than most bands do in their entire career. Outstanding? I’d say so…”
3. Rage Against The Machine, XX
“This is the reissue of their debut album and it’s crazy to think that it’s 20 years old as it still sounds as aggressive and fresh as it did the first time you heard it. Every time they come on the radio, it makes other bands sound juvenile in comparison.”
2. Halestorm, The Strange Case of…
“We’ve just finished a European tour with these guys and all the songs from this album sounded banging live! Lzzy has an awesome voice and they put on a great show.”
1. Led Zeppelin, Celebration Day
“OK, this may not exactly be a ‘new album’, but come on… It’s Led Zeppelin… It’s genius, and anybody who argues it isn’t is an idiot!”
]]>
Leading up to the end of the year, Revolver has asked some of our favorite artists to pick their Top Albums of 2012 and tell us why each record rules. Here, Mike Sarkisyan (pictured left), guitarist of the industrial-metal band Spineshank, selects his faves.
5. Spineshank, Anger Denial Acceptance
“It’s the best thing that I have ever been a part of and it’s as real as it gets.”
4. All Hail The Yeti, All Hail The Yeti
“Dirty, heavy, melodic, dark, real–did I mention heavy? Not to mention, it sounds nothing like these cookie-cutter metal bands that have been coming out the past few years.”
3. Machine Head, Machine Fucking Head Live
“As far as metal is concerned, it doesn’t get better. These dudes can school most metal bands out there.”
2. Muse, The 2nd Law
“This band just keeps pushing the envelope. It’s a very experimental record but has hooks for days and is very well produced.”
1. Deftones, Koi No Yokan
“Because it’s Deftones, and it’s heavy, melodic, emotional, moving, and powerful.”
Leading up to the end of the year, Revolver has asked some of our favorite artists to pick their Top Albums of 2012 and tell us why each record rules. Here, Brooklyn Allman (pictured left), vocalist of the hard-rock band Picture Me Broken, selects her faves.
5. Shiny Toy Guns, III
“A well-written album and a strong comeback for Carah-Faye Charnow.”
4. Rush, Clockwork Angels
“I’m really stoked to see a classic and legendary band like Rush release something that sounds so modern. I think a lot of ‘comeback releases’ sound entirely dated as if the band was too stubborn to evolve, but this is not the case with Rush.”
3. Lana Del Ray, Paradise EP
“I think Lana Del Rey is breathing new life into pop music. This follow-up EP to her debut, Born To Die, is melodically and lyrically rich and very sexy.”
2. Muse, The 2nd Law
“This album sounds like Queen from space. Muse is always three steps ahead sonically.”
1. Jack White, Blunderbuss
“This album was my favorite of the year. He makes an incredible solo artist and his songwriting only gets better as time goes on. I also love how he used two bands on this release, one with all women and one with all men.”
By a huge margin, the voters have declared Papa Roach’s The Connection the Album of the Week. This hard-rock band won our poll, but check out the other top five vote-getters:
1. Papa Roach – The Connection
2. Three Days Grace – Transit of Venus
3. Muse – The 2nd Law
4. AxeWound – Vultures
5. The Amity Affliction – Chasing Ghosts
Stay tuned for this week’s poll, which will be live on RevolverMag.com on Wednesday, October 10. Until then, you can check Papa Roach’s “Still Swingin’” off The Connection below:
]]>
When we interviewed Picture Me Broken’s Brooklyn for the new Hottest Chicks in Hard Rock issue–she’s also featured in the 2012 Hottest Chicks in Hard Rock calendar–we talked about a range of topics, from her band’s upcoming album to how she celebrated her milestone 18th birthday. Unfortunately, due to space constraints in the issue, we weren’t able to include most of our chat–but that’s what the Internet is for! Read what she has to say below.
REVOLVER How’s the new album coming along?
BROOKLYN I’m absolutely ecstatic about the new album. We have two phenomenal new guitar players and fresh vision for the band entirely. I’ve been taking a very active role as far as the songwriting goes, using my eight years of classical piano training to write a lot of the instrumental work, arrangements, and songs as a whole, and that’s been very rewarding for me as a passionate musician. Collaborating with my boys has also produced something that stands as an album capitalized on musicianship and being in a real band that formed organically, setting us apart from the plague of manufactured gimmicks out there today.
What are you guys trying to do differently this time around?
I say with confidence that we are an entirely different band. We’re abandoning all genre criteria, musical trends, and silly subgenres like “screamo”–that’s not to say I wont continue screaming–and simply creating music regardless of whether or not it fits into any of the boxes we’ve been placed in or are expected to fit. We’re no longer a group of 15 or 16 year olds experimenting as we were on our previous releases. We’re seasoned musicians with a vision and much more mature songwriting capabilities.
Can you share some song titles?
My current favorite track is titled “Corrupt Me.”
What have you been listening to recently?
In seeking lyrical inspiration, I’ve been immersing myself in a lot of Eminem and Bad Meets Evil simply because they so clearly convey the most high-strung emotions and dramatic life situations. I’m trying to capture this more in my own lyrics. I’ve also been gravitating back to a lot of my HIM albums lately because I love electronic textures mixed with dark rock music.
Congrats on turning 18. How did you celebrate your birthday?
Thank you. I spent my 18th birthday on the set of the first Black Veil Brides music video shoot of their new album, with Andy and the rest of the guys. It was a blast!
How does it feel to be officially an adult?
I’ve felt like an adult and always had a sense of maturity since I was in grade school, perhaps because I started working toward building my music career so early in life, but turning 18 certainly makes it more official. I even got myself a lip piercing in honor of being legal that I took out three months later.
Who are you musical heroes and why?
Davey Havok has always been the figure that I’ve looked to both as a musician and as a person. I remember stumbling upon a couple of AFI albums when I was about 10 years old and they sparked my interest in darker, more aggressive music, which is what I continue to write to this day. I also practiced a vegan/vegetarian and straightedge lifestyle throughout high school to match his. He has had a very positive effect on my life in terms of being a role model and I think that’s rare to find in rock musicians. Other heroes include [futureusgalleryMuse's] Matthew Bellamy, Skylar Grey, [futureusgalleryHeart's] Ann Wilson, and Eminem.
What’s the sexiest hard-rock or metal song and why?
“Welcome to the Jungle”–Guns N’ Roses. It’s the essence of sexy and rock and roll.
Already huge in their homeland, Australia, with stadium tours alongside Muse and Linkin Park under their belts, prog-inflected alt rockers Dead Letter Circus are finally putting out their acclaimed full-length debut, This Is the Warning, in the U.S. on July 26, via Sumerian Records. In anticipation of the release, the band has given us this exclusive remix of their song, “The Drum,” by Grammy-winning producer-mixer Lee Groves. Crank the track below, and read what vocalist Kim Benzie has to say about it.
REVOLVER What’s the song “The Drum” about?
KIM BENZIE “The Drum” is about a point I reached in my life where everything seemed gray, where all I could think was, Surely there is more to life than this. Where are the profound moments? When will I be in awe ? This was going on right when the song came about. As the song wrote itself over a couple of days, it dragged me through the melancholy to a brighter place. I remember leaving our studio and looking out over the lights of our city at night thinking, This city is alive, and that life isn’t about circles. There are always fresh starts and new beginnings. So I guess the song is a story about longing for the beat of your drum to grow loud in your chest, turning a corner in life, and feeling it banging loud and strong as if for the first time again.
How did you hook up with Lee Groves? How did he end up remixing the track?
We have been massive fans of his work. He produced Bertie Blackman’s Secrets and Lies, which is such an incredible sounding album. He came up and said, “Hi,” at a festival, and we were all pretty much thinking simultaneously, Holy shit…that was Lee Groves. I think we maybe begged him or bribed him or something. Maybe blackmail?
What do you think of the remix? Did it make you reconsider the original?
We love the remix. Love the original format equally. Based on the success of the merging of styles, don’t be surprised if Lee’s work features on the next album.