Interview with Exile The Traitor!

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Genre(s): Melodic Death Metal
Location: Glasgow, Sweden

PSAB: Where did the band name “Exile The Traitor” come from exactly?

ETT: The name Exile The Traitor came from a brainstorming session we had. We wanted something that wasnt too graphic or gory so it wouldn't give away what genre we were. Getting lumped in as a Brutal DM band is basically what we tried to avoid

PSAB: When can we expect new material from you? Sometime later this year?

ETT: We are currently in the process of writing new material for a mini album which will be out later this year. Adding some new elements into our sound so we are excited to let our fans hear it.

PSAB: You're currently unsigned, if you could be signed to any record label, which label would that be and why?

ETT: Metal Blade or Century Media would be the ideal label for us. They are constantly putting out amazing records and they seem to promote their bands really well.

PSAB: What is the local metal scene like in Glasgow?

ETT: The metal scene in Glasgow or even Scotland as a whole is amazing. Some insanely talented bands. Should check out Maelstrom, Co-Exist, Man Made Origin, Kill The Hydra, Scordatura, Party Cannon, Hand Of Horus, Excellent Cadaver & Blood Thread. The list could go on really.

PSAB: What has played the most influence on your music? This can be non-music related.

ETT: The main influence on our music is probably our attitude towards it. We write music that we like to listen to and thats never going to change. We started with an idea to be fast & heavy but to write actual memorable songs with melody & groove rather than just a brutal death metal band where everything sounds the same

PSAB: Do you have any shout outs to give to your fans?

ETT: We would like to thank everyone who has supported us so far, everyone who has come to a show or grabbed a tshirt & to the awesome folk who have put us on their show. We appreciate it.

Conscious Control - Feed The Machine [REVIEW]

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Genre(s): Melodic Death Metal

Conscious Control's debut EP, Feed The Machine, has five songs and roughly 20 or so minutes of listening materials. The EP isn't officially released as of this writing, however, it will be released on February 21, 2014 at their CD release show. Therefore, the songs listed on their Soundcloud are just bits of the full EP, to get a taste of it before purchasing it. Conscious control is a melodic death metal band that hails from Melbourne, Australia.

The first song for review is "Apex." The pace of the song is upbeat, but not overly fast paced. The instrumentals sound very melodic for majority of the song, except there are some breaks here and there. The vocals that are used is high screams and low screams, the former being the main vocal style used in the song. I like the use of the high screams being the main vocal style, because Scott's highs sound better than his lows. But, his lows are good too and are well placed in the song.

The second and final song for review is "Prisoner." When this song is compared to the previous song reviewed, the pace is a bit slower and is nowhere near as fast paced. Instrumentally, it is still very melodic, but with the slower pace, the listener can really hear all the melodic elements and sounds used throughout the song. In the introduction and near the middle of the song, there are purely instrumentals used. The former is a build-up for the actual song, and the latter is a guitar solo. The vocals are roughly the same as "Apex" as well, but Scott doesn't use low screams too much for this song. Like stated before, Scott's high screams sound great and fit well with Conscious Control's sound.

Feed The Machine is a melodic death metal album that provides some awesome instrumentals and fitting vocals. Some of the songs are a bit faster and heavier as others, but that provides a good mix of slow and fast songs for the listener. This EP is Concious Control's first EP, and it sets the pace for the band really well. I highly recommend you checking out Feed The Machine, and picking up the album when it goes up to purchase. It's some really good melodic death metal.

Score: 4.5/5

Infinito in Torqueo - Warlord [REVIEW]

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Genre(s): Melodic/Technical Death Metal/Deathcore

Infinito in Torqueo's song "Warlord" is a five minute song and a mix of tech death metal, melodic death metal, and deathcore. The pace is slow for the first minute and a half, but it picks up afterwards into a faster pace. The faster pace stays for the remainder of the song. Instrumentals are what you hear in a death metal song, but there are some trash metal influences heard throughout the song. Also, near the end of the song, it sounds a bit more melodic. Vocally, it is sticks to low screams for majority of the song. The screams are very raw, brutal, and have a lot of power behind them. Overall, this sound is raw, fast, and good. I highly recommend if you're into melodic death metal or technical death metal.

Score: 4/5

Inferi releases new album "The Path of Apotheosis"

Earlier today, Inferi, a melodic death metal band, released a new album titled The Path of Apotheosis. The album eleven tracks and has been released digitally and physically. This is the type of album that is too good to describe in words, so I'm only going to say this, check out this fucking album because it's great.

PURCHASE (Digitally)

PURCHASE (Physically)

At The Gates announces new album with Century Media Records

Melodic death metal band, At The Gates, announced today that they will be releasing a new album through Century Media Records. The album has no set time of release, or album artwork to show off, but definitely keep your eye out for this album later on this year.

Official status via Century Media Records, "Seminal Swedish Metallers At The Gates are back! Following the heat of an ample and highly praised live-reunion, the pioneers of the “Gothenburg style” melodic death metal sound have announced to be working on a comeback studio album in the classic line-up of their latest masterpiece effort from 1995, “Slaughter Of The Soul”, expected to be released worldwide by the end of 2014!"

From The Embrace's new album The Sun Betrays Us To The Night will release through Total Deathcore

Melodic death metal band, From The Embrace, announced yesterday their upcoming album The Sun Betrays Us To The Night will release through Total Deathcore on January 27, 2013. From The Embrace is coming out of Tampa, Florida and will be touring in February and April with another band, The Absence. 

Total Deathcore has put out many great album throughout the course of 2013, so I expect this to be another good album that has been released through them. So, pre-order a physical copy when you can!

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NYN releases new song "Torrential Flames"

Death metal band, NYN, released this new song earlier today. The song is titled "Torrential Flames." It is a mix of progressive and melodic death metal, as I am a fan of both those sub-genres, I really enjoy this song. Give it a listen below and pick it up for your name your price on their Bandcamp page!

Interview with Hollow World!

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Genre(s): Melodic Death Metal

PSAB: Why did you guys choose the name "Hollow World" for your band?

HW: We threw around ideas for quite a while before we settled on "Hollow World", most of our members were part of the band "Wychbury Hill" but after numerous lineup changes it felt like it had really become a new band, so we all agreed a name change was in order. It was actually our drummer who first suggested "Hollow World" just in passing, the name fit our fantasy themed lyrics and stuck pretty quickly.

 

PSAB: Your EP, Beneath The Frozen Sky, released last month. How has the feedback been from that?

HW: We couldn't be happier with how the EP has been received. It was recorded entirely in bedrooms and mixed/mastered by our vocalist Karl! When first hearing it my reaction was something along the lines of "bloody hell... is this really us?!" It sounded a lot slicker than I'd expected our first release would. For those who are interested you can stream our EP for free here: http://hollowworld.bandcamp.com/

PSAB: You've played with a few big-name bands like Make Them Suffer and Boris The Blade. Which band has been your favorite to play with and why?

HW: I really don't know if I could pick just one, over the last 6 months I think we played a total of thirteen shows, shows with bands like Boris the Blade, Make Them Suffer and Bleeding Through have been amazing as well as playing a couple of local metal festivals (Metalfest and Sonic Forge).

PSAB: What bands have played the most influence on your music?

HW: We are all pretty heavily into the European metal style, so bands like At the Gates, the older In Flames have had a huge impact on us along with the American equivalents like The Black Dahlia Murder and Arsis. Our newer material that has yet to be released will be mixed up a bit more again, think orchestral accompaniment along the lines of Dimmu Borgir or Fleshgod apocalypse, In saying that we are definitely not doing a complete overhaul, just bringing in new flavours to the mix.
 

PSAB: If you had the choice of any musician to have featured on one of your tracks, which musician would that be?

HW: If we could have absolutely anyone guest on our music I think Ryan Knight and Phil Bozeman would possibly win. Stylistically they fit and are both so damn good at what they do!

 

PSAB: Do you have any shout outs to give to the readers and your fans?

HW: We would just like to thank everyone who comes to gigs, listens to our music or buys our merch. What we have achieved in the last 7 months is just so incredible and it wouldn't be possible without the support of fans!

Abdomen Canvas, a death metal band, releases new music video for "Cannibal Manifestation"

Abdomen Canvas, a melodic technical death metal band, released a new music video for their track "Cannibal Manifestation" today. The band hails from Orlando, FL and from other bands coming out of Florida, you would know that state brings the heavy. This song is fucking good, like... really good. A lot of technical parts, melodic parts, and some pig squeals. So give it a listen!

Inferi releases new song "The Ancients of Shattered Thrones"

Inferi, a melodic death metal band that hails from Nashville, TN, released this awesome song last night. There is a ton of shred to be heard throughout this whole song, and it's just fucking good. "The Ancients of Shattered Thrones" is taken from their upcoming 2014 album The Path of Apotheosis; which can be pre-ordered down below. I highly recommend checking out this song and Inferi

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Echoes of a Nightmare - Ashes of Remembrance [REVIEW]

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Genre(s): Melodic/Symphonic Death Metal

I honestly did not know what to expect from Echoes of a Nightmare's album Ashes of Remembrance. Man, was I pleasantly surprised. It is a combination of symphonic death metal, melodic death metal, and deathcore. Though the deathcore is very subtle and barely noticeable. The symphonic and melodic elements are very prevalent. This is a good fucking album. Also, it has seven tracks and about 30 minutes worth of listening materials.

"Descending" is the second song off of this album. The pace is very upbeat and face from start to finish. The instrumentals are very melodic, symphonic, and heavy. The one thing you can notice the most is that there are a lot of blast beats, I mean, a ton of them. The symphonic sounds are prevalent and well placed throughout the song, so they are not overdone or the only thing you can hear in the song. Same goes for the melodic parts, those are mixed in well enough so they don't stray the song away from its path. Everything just works very well together in this song. Vocals are high screams, low screams, and some pig squeals. The high screams are the main vocal style used, while the low screams and pig squeals and used in certain parts of the song. The high screams sound similar to screams you would hear in a black metal song. Overall, this is an awesome song.

The sixth song is "This Empty Embrace" and the pace of this song is roughly the same as "Descending" has. The instrumentals are about the same too, but there are more melodic parts added in and less symphonic parts. The vocals are the biggest difference between this song and "Descending," and this is due to the clean vocals added it. The clean vocals are well done and add to the "epicness" of the song itself. In all honestly, I didn't know the vocalist was a female until this song. But, that really makes no difference. Other than the clean vocals, the vocals are still good as they were in previous songs. Overall, again, an awesome song.

Ashes of Remembrance is definitely something I would recommend to someone who enjoys symphonic death metal, melodic death metal, or just plain death metal. It is very, very good, and is one of those great albums that are overlooked and/or not too known. So! Definitely give this album a listen or a purchase!

Score: 4.5/5

Interview with Of Ruins!

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Genre(s): Melodic Death Metal / Deathcore

Questions answered by Randy, the vocalist, and John, the guitarist.

PSAB: Where does the band name "Of Ruins" come from exactly?

Randy: I Wanted a name that will remain stuck in your head and will remember easily. Of Ruins seemed to fit in that category at the time, and still does.

PSAB: You released a new single back in October named "Genocide Design." How was the feedback for that single?

John: It has been great. A lot of people have been diggin' it and it even got a share on Pure Deathcore!

Randy: Yes, we have been getting a lot of good feedback about the new single. It's been shared through various social pages, including the Pig Squeals and Breakdowns October sampler!

PSAB: You say you are working on a new EP set to release this year. When can we expect it this year? Late 2014?

John: Probably around mid 2014. We are set to enter the studio in the next couple of weeks to start tracking so we are hoping to have everything ready to go by summertime at the latest.

Randy: We will be recording a 4-5 track EP, with very diverse influences added to the mix. We are very excited to be doing this EP for everyone to check out and listen!

PSAB: You've shared the stage with All Shall Perish, Decapitated, and Rings of Saturn. Just to name a few. What band has been your favorite to share the stage with the most?

Randy: There's too many great bands to name, but we recently played with As Blood Runs Black in El Paso, TX. That was a great show, and the scene there is strong!

John: Molotov Solution for me, Molotov Solution is a big influence on me personally so getting to share the stage with them was totally awesome!
 

PSAB: What is the local metal scene like in San Antonio, TX?

John: It's very divided but in a good way. There's something for everyone in a way, and there's a lot of good bands in our scene right now, Darkness Divided, One We Created, And Memories In Broken Glass just to name a few.

PSAB: Do you have any shout outs to give to the readers?

Randy: Thank you guys for the endless support since the beginning of the band back in 2009 until now. We will release everything at our best for you guys, and we're very excited to show all of you what we've been working on hard!

John: Thank you to everyone that has supported us through out the years. And to everyone that continues to support us.

Interview with Into The Divine!

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Genre(s): Melodic Death Metal

PSAB: Where does the band name "Into The Divine" come from?

ITD: Our guitar player, Cole, was in church a few years back, and the pastor was talking about the Book of Revelations and saying how, "humanity will rise out from the ashes and into the divine." Basically talking about the apocalypse.

PSAB: Into The Divine has been around since 2010. In the last four years, what is the biggest change you've noticed in the metal scene?

ITD: It seems that a lot of people have shifted their attention from metalcore styled bands to hardcore and djent bands, as the reason why there is a really big rise in hardcore and djent bands all around the area.

PSAB: What is the local metal scene like in Indianapolis, IN? Any ideas how to improve it?

ITD: It's all a matter of opinion really. There is a thriving scene here, maybe not for music like us, but the people that don't see a scene are the people that don't support their own scene. The scene is improving a lot back to it what it used to but it all matters on the fans.

PSAB: What has played the most influence on your music? This can be non-music related.

ITD: Listening to other genres of music, and being open to everything. It's also a venting process for some of us. There is so much that we can talk about in music that we can't even put into words.

PSAB: You're currently working on a new EP. When can we expect a single from that EP, or the EP itself?

ITD: We plan on releasing our EP in the late spring/early summer. We have begun recording it already, and we're planning on releasing a music video that we just finished up as our single. In the meantime when we finish recording, we will set up a pre-order date where we can provide more merchandise to our fans such as t-shirts, posters, maybe bracelets.

We also plan on having an album release party with some bands that we been sharing the stage with for the past two years. Also in case no one knows, we have also added our friend Wilson Sherels on voals, and have become a five piece band rather than the four piece that we performed as for the past two years. Bringing Wilson into the band was a great decision for it brings us new opportunities as a band.

PSAB: Do you have any shout outs to your fans or the readers out there?

ITD: We would like to thank our families for supporting us and dealing with our shit for all this time. We also would like to thank every one of our fans for listening to our music in a daily basis and coming to our shows and using all their energy on us. We could also like to thank our middle school band teachers, Mr. Decaro and Mr. Payne for convincing us to play our instruments, we never knew we'd get this far without them. 

 

We also like the following bands who we hang out with at almost every show: Cast From Perfection, Infamous, Villisca, We Are Forever, and a lot more. Wilson would like to thank his girlfriend, Jordyn for supporting him a lot. We also thank all the venues that dealt with our shit, Sam Ash Music Stores for being one of the best music stores in our area.