Chimaira, ‘Coming Alive’ — New Album/DVD

If you've got seven hours to kill and you're part of the Chimaira faithful, then you'll be pleased to know the Cleveland band will be releasing 'Coming Alive,' CD/DVD set on July 20. 'Coming Alive' will include a four-part documentary filmed over a year and a half, and there is a total of seven hours of exclusive content. The DVD was filmed in HD and finds the band in the studio recording 'The Infection,' and it also narrows the lens on the touring the band did in support of the album. If you want an insider's insight into Chimaira, this DVD will do it, as does 'The Dehumanizing Process,' the band's previous pull-back-the-curtain video effort.

While we can't wait to watch the DVD, we were also interested in what made the cutting room floor. Since there's seven hours of content, there had to be stuff that didn't make it.

"There was an incident in Europe involving a fire," vocalist Mark Hunter told Noisecreep. "We cut it down drastically so nobody involved would get into any trouble. I can't really comment on the new incident, besides noting that this is the second DVD of ours to feature fire."

Hunter also made no bones about the fact his band is "not edgy," so you won't see them engaging in lascivious acts or throwing lunch meat at a groupies' ass. "I think the world will see how big of nerds we really are," he said. "We like food, being on our Blackberries or iPhones and food. We just happen to be placed in really bizarre and radically different environments daily, and we react to it the best we can." We like food and being on our smart phones, too!

Even with the hijinx and mundane nature of the DVD, Hunter was thrilled about the connection with the fans. "The best part for me was seeing how our fans react to our music," Hunter said. "When I see our crowd from stage, it's a giant blur. To see their faces up close and see what our music is doing to them makes every second of this band worth it. I never knew our audience felt that way. Todd captured everything there is to know about this band. I feel like we will have a new relationship with our fans after they see this."

So if you really are a Chimaira maniac, Hunter said, "You will love the live s---, meeting our crew, the 'fly on the wall' feel of it all, the home videos from the early days and seeing the insane imagery of all of the various cities and countries around the world. I also think fans and aspiring musicians will have a good insight on how things are for us. Hopefully it helps them learn the ropes a little easier, like Metallica's and Pantera's videos did for us back in the day."

What else does the set contain?

The live concert document, 'Chimaira Xmas,' is also included, which celebrates the band's tenth annual Christmas show in their hometown, which took place on the dark and snowy Dec. 30, 2009. It was filmed by 13 high def cameras, so every angle you could possible hope to see the band from is captured.



'Coming Alive' track list

1. 'The Venom Inside'

2. 'Resurrection'

3. 'Power Trip'

4. 'Empire'

5. 'The Disappearing Sun'

6. 'Severed'

7. 'Destroy and Dominate'

8. 'Six'

9. 'The Dehumanizing Process'

10. 'Dead Inside'

11. 'Painting the White to Grey'

12. 'Nothing Remains'

13. 'Salvation'

14. 'Secrets of the Dead'

15. 'The Flame'

16. 'Pure Hatred'

17. 'Implements of Destruction' (included on DVD only)