Hammerfest

Well this may be a little late, but I can still feel my neck aching so Hammerfest obviously hasn't worn out of my system just yet huh? Waking up before 06:00 wasn't the most exciting prospect – having to catch a train to Birmingham to get a supposed coach (minibus), and arriving at one of the most un-metal locations I've ever laid eyes on. But regardless, we figured we'd check out the locations and start with some bevvies. Wandering about - our eyes are drawn to a Scandinavian gentleman looking very biblical with a cigarette and it turns out to be Mr. Akerfeldt of Opeth. After that it was obvious that the day was going to be all right even it seemed to take a while to get going. Fellow Bristollian based metallers Trigger The Bloodshed opened up the main stage – a band that simply just isn't my cup of tea, but a better performance since I last saw them in support of Meshuggah, though I think during that set or possibly Hammerfall's a midget was thrown over the barrier which was a very 'lulwut' moment. The best bands on the Friday were Opeth, Paradise Lost (despite some initial difficulties and Nick Holmes' terrible mood) and Mutant. Also managed to get Hammerfall's drumstick despite not being much of a fan. Kiuas also seemed to be pretty good but we were pretty burned out by that time in the morning. But it was the Saturday I was more concerned about, seeing as though anyone who knows me will know that Sepultura are my favourite band. Despite the line-up changes, there's still a big place in my heart for them and meeting them was an absolute honour. They were the band of the festival for me aswell, kicking off the set with a lot of new 'Derrick-Era' material but then the moment the cyber-godzilla'ish sounding introduction of Dead Embryionic Cells hit it was pure old school Sepultura, dishing out classics such as Arise, Mass Hypnosis and one of the greatest songs of all time – Refuse/Resist. It was also good to see Skindred in an intimate acoustic performance on the Jagermeister Stage despite only doing two songs - Grand Magus, Cathedral and Alestorm also kicked a lot of ass – and Alestorm even decided to rustle up a wall of death which was pretty admirable. The crowds were generally pretty bad, to the kind of degree when you question if most of the people had even been to a show before, it got pretty uncomfortable sometimes. Even during Opeth everyone was shouting for the Bloodbath song 'Eaten' to be played which after a while got pretty fucking annoying. The weekend in general was a very good one though, and it's awesome to look back at the photos standing next to some of my favourite artists – I'll definitely consider going to it again next year, but there were only a few names here that really sold me. However I'd be willing to trade my child or something just to see Sepultura again; hopefully I just wont have to wait another three years this time.

Wales Awaits!

I might be a little busy this weekend! I'll hopefully provide a little review on how Hammerfest went down. With Sepultura, Paradise Lost and Opeth - three of my all time favourites all on the bill it should be something to remember.

There's Just Something About Live-Action Anime...

Within days of eachother I've watched two very good live action-anime based films: Speed Racer and Mushishi. Yeah, it's no surprise that I'm a fan of anime but looking at IMDB, the films boast little over a 6/10 score - yet I happened to thoroughly enjoy both. I thought Speed Racer was brilliantly done, the races were expertly created and the plot was very positive and uplifting. Mushishi was however a very different film. Though it was also beautifully artistic, it had a 15 certificate although that was all probably only due to one fairly bloody scene in the film. It had been on my 'to watch' pile for a while, possibly the longest of my unwatched DVDs but it was worth the wait. Directed by the much acclaimed writer/director Katsuhiro Ôtomo of Akira fame and based on a very highly ranked anime and manga Mushishi it was a very ...strange film.

The only sad thing is that I don't think that viewers who aren't familiar with the anime counterparts would really appreciate the films all that much, especially as Mushishi has a very surreal plot and Speed Racer being all about a guy and his car. This is the only reason I can think of to explain the poor reception for films I really enjoyed.

With all that said, there are many other projects to turn anime into live action, including Akira and Dragonball Z in the near future. I thought Akira was quite overhyped and DBZ I just couldn't get into at all. Other forthcoming films I can think of are Blood: The Last Vampire, Hellsing, Neon Genesis Evangelion, another Street Fighter movie (if that counts) and Battle Angel. Talk about cashing in...

Global Metal

Anyone else hyped about Global Metal's release? Well, if you aren't then you should be. I thought Metal: A Headbanger's Journey was great and this has the potential to be just as good. I mean, look who's in it: Lars Ulrich (Metallica), Max Cavalera (Sepultura, Soulfly Cavalera Conspiracy), Yoshiki (X Japan), Iron Maiden, Slayer, Orphaned Land, Marty Friedman, Lamb of God, Kaiser Kuo, In Flames, Ritual Day, Demonic Ressurection, Angra, Salem, Sigh and more. How fucking awesome is that? And what's better is the trailer makes it out to have Sepultura as the main focus. From the history of metal to what seems to be the geography, god knows what he'll do next but I'll be very keen to see.

April : A month of Music

Well now that April's drawing to a close I feel that I should reflect upon it, seeing as though it's been a pretty busy month music-wise. I'm not talking about the 'mediocore' In Flames album - I'm talking about gigs.

It kicked off on the first of April, where I was able to witness VAST in what was their first UK tour as far as I'm aware. I've been a consistent fan of them for a few years now but never expected them to be touring, let alone at my venue of choice. Scanners were the support for the evening and even though indie music has never really been my thing they weren't bad at all. None of the songs really stuck with me, but my hat is off to them. VAST were great, and well worth the wait. Had the venue been better (Birmingham Bar Academy) I'd say it was excellent. They played almost all my favourite songs of their's and it came to be a huge surprise to hear the likes of Turquiose. Even though I didn't think that much of their latest album, April, seeing them perform some of the songs has made me appreciate it a fair bit more. A really good night.

About a week later it would be time to be graced with some metal legends. Down. Undoubtedly a supergroup featuring the likes of Phil Anselmo, Pepper Keenan and the great Rex Brown. However - once again the venue didn't do the band justice. Having no support and instead having a video (of tour footage and other selected music videos) lasting a good hour was a good idea, but I practically weared my neck out before the actual gig had begun, having to tilt towards the screen almost directly above me. The tour footage was good, so I'll probably end up getting that DVD - but dayum... the video even jammed for a while. And did I mention that the video didn't start until an hour after doors had opened? It's just another reason for why supporting bands are such a good idea... The performance however was very good. I only had Down III to know them by, and was completely addicted to On March The Saints at the time - but all of their songs offered something a bit different. They loved the crowd as well as there wasn't a motionless person in the building. Overall, it wasn't much fun but I couldn't say it was a bad performance as I would certainly want to see them again.. even if it meant chronic neck injuries.

The following week it was 65daysofstatic over in Wolverhampton. I had already seen them before just under a year ago - so I knew they were a great live band to begin with and they didn't dissapoint. Sadly other people failed to realise it seemed - and the venue was demoted to something much smaller. Gay For Johnny Depp opened. They were just.. well, there aren't many hardcore bands I'm a fan of and I can't say that GFJD won me over either. Although I was bearing a front row status, the singer made little contact with me which is something to be proud of when during his closing song he comes into the crowd getting up close and personal with crowd members - going as far as taking one person to the ground and trying to take their top off... A memorable performance, if not just for the crowds honest and negative reactions towards them. Errors came next who were pretty good even if they all looked like nerdy oxbridge students. They were fairly lucky though jumping in after GFJD, things could only get better really, but being fairly reminiscent to post-rock artists they were very well accepted by the crowd. 65dos were great again. I hadn't really listened to their stuff in a while so it was a great reminder why I liked them in the first place.

And then the week after that, it was Defenders of the Faith, a small tour endorsed by Metal Hammer which featured 3 Inches of Blood, DevilDriver and co-headliners Arch Enemy and Opeth. I had been waiting for this gig for ages. The last time Opeth played it was one of my favourite gigs and although 3IOB, DevilDriver and Arch Enemy combined aren't quite as good as Paradise Lost, I still had high hopes! When we got in, it 3IOB were already playing, and take in mind this was at about 6:50, ten minutes before doors were 'opening'. They weren't that good but like I said I didn't see all of it. DevilDriver however were great. Of the very limited DevilDriver discography I actually knew they seemed to play them all. The sound was a bit off in places but it was a solid performance and they seemed genuinely happy to be playing there. Arch Enemy I've never been into.. just something about them and that doesn't neccasarily mean the female front. They weren't bad however. The instrumental interlude's they played every so often were brilliant as even though the music isn't that great they do have the talent to progress. But when it comes to progression, Opeth is tough competition. The setlist wasn't as good as last time I saw them [see The Roundhouse Tapes] but it had some brilliant numbers such as opening with Demon of the fall, and including the little played Wreath. I had to leave one song early, missing out on the great The Drapery Falls but they were great yet again, just a brilliant live band. For a package tour it was quite good, but there could have been better acts alongside Opeth. Can't wait to see them again one day.

So there you have it, a gig a week. I'll be taking a break from gigging until the legend that is Ronnie James Dio comes to town, but it was a great month!

Top Eight - Metallica Covers

Metallica, love them or hate them, are a great band who have created some incredible songs. They've done some brilliant covers in there time as well, but hundreds of bands, metal or otherwise have attempted to cover Metallica, with only a few succeeding. This, is what I consider to be the eight best Metallica covers. Enjoy! Oh and Why 8? Because I'm lazy.

Sonata Arctica - Fade to Black

You know, the thing is, this isn't actually that good a cover. Metallica's version is what I'd argue to be a 10/10 song, but the reason I include this is because at 2:49, the note the guy hits and sustains is great, and makes it all worth it.

Cannibal Corpse - No Remorse

First off, I'm not really a fan of these guys so for me to include them must mean it's a great cover, and it is. The vocals are crazy, but putting them along side the great sound of there guitars (and what's already a killer riff) allows CC to make the cut in my list.

In Flames - Eye of the Beholder

Although the vocals are more Hetfield than Friden... the main reason for that being because it isn't actually Friden on vocals. If it was I'd think it'd be even better, but this cover still remains to be good, and heavier than the original.

Machine Head - Battery

I'm a huge Machine Head fan and I picked up a poor quality version of this cover a while back. Even with the poor quality it sounded good, but then hearing that Kerrang (a magazine I had long stopped purchasing) would be having a Master of Puppets album with it performed by other bands I had to buy it. The only good tracks on there though were Mastodon and this, but it was still money well spent. I should really give an mp3 of this out, seeing as I have it on that, and a special edition version of The Blackening, but my only version of it on my itunes is the poor quality one I was telling you about, ahah.

Apocalyptica - Fight Fire With Fire

It was tough to choose which Apocalyptica song was best when it came to Tallica covers. Especially when considering I don't even have Metallica on Four Cellos. But this isn't to say I'm not a fan of them by any means! Sadly, even with itunes to give me assistance, my top played song by them wasn't a Metallica cover. The top played cover was Nothing Else Matters, which is beautifully done, but - avoiding to choose two covers by the same band I chose Fight Fire With Fire. Yeah. The fact that the original start in a fairly 'classical' fashion to what Apoc are familiar with, must have made it an obvious song to cover. Plus, seeing them live, this song was certainly one of there most memorable.

Dark Tranquillity - My Friend of Misery

YOU JUST STOOD THERE SCREAMING!!! Great opening line and a great cover. I consider this better than the original, but still the vocals weren't perfect. Still, I wouldn't say it's an obvious track for a melodic death metal band to cover, but they nailed it and made me want to listen to the original one even more.

Rodrigo Y Gabriela - Orion

My third favourite track from there self titled release and one of the best covers I've ever heard. They are pretty well known nowadays and so you should have really heard this by now. If you haven't, do. Rod and Gab, though an acoustic act, have very metal influences. Their cover of Metallica's One was also a close contender to put on here - but this is just incredible.

Therion - Fight Fire With Fire

Yep. This is what I consider the best Metallica cover. Even before the guitars get going I'm already in a state awe over the violin intro. The song is just so layered, and Therion make it there own. Trying to listen to it motionless is an impossible task for me. I'm either banging my head or air guitaring, or even air drumming - something I don't do as much. It's a great song anyway, but even when trying to decide which Apocalyptica cover was best, as far of versions of this song goes I don't think you'll find much better than this. Well, maybe the original. ;)