Ian Christe
11 Heavy Metal Songs Inspired by Comic Book Heroes
Once upon a time, there were masked men in capes battling injustice across the land -and they called themselves heavy metal musicians. Though metal and its equally misunderstood mistress of the printed page, comic books, both grapple with similar themes of vengeance, honor, and evil, the two cross paths less often than you'd think...
Maryland Deathfest: 10 Dark Horse Bands to Check Out This Weekend
By now, anyone headed to Baltimore for the tenth anniversary weekend of Maryland Deathfest (May 24-27) has already sewn fresh patches on their denim vest, salted their livers, and said goodbye to their loved ones.
Star attractions such as Napalm Death, Saint Vitus, Suffocation, Brujeria, and Morbid Angel promise a solid assault on the senses from three stages for three days...
Happy 45th Birthday to Death’s Chuck Schuldiner
As May 13 brings what should be the happy 45th birthday of Chuck Schuldiner, the legacy of the late Death/Control Denied/Mantas main man is found in the best state since his untimely passing over ten years ago.
With an ongoing ambitious reissue and rarity series appearing with regularity, the man's musical progress from 1984 through 2001 has been preserved, repaired where needed, and annotated by
Mommy, Can I Go Out and Kill Tonight?: A Heavy Metal Mother’s Day Playlist
Forget about the biggest moshpits, walls of death, deafening amp towers, and nailed armbands. No experience is more brutally intense than childbirth, having your body turned inside out or cut open while you watch, as the case may be. Forget about flowers and cards, every single mother among us deserves a suitably potent metal playlist this Mother's Day...
Los Gritos de Mayo: A Mexican Underground Heavy Metal Primer
As the greatest drinking holiday the United States ever concocted on behalf of Mexico arrives this Cinco de Mayo, Noisecreep seizes the chance to celebrate the most powerful, repulsive, and violent underground metal bands Mexico has presented to the world over the past 25 years...
Van Halen: An (Almost) 60-Year Timeline
In the 1970s, Van Halen lit up the sky and toppled their rock elders; in the 1980s they conquered MTV and reigned supreme on the pop charts; and in the 1990s they went off the deep end recording with three lead singers. Along the way, many legends were born, and now the band seeks to reopen the book...
Best Metal Songs of 1986
By all rights, the early 1980s heavy metal craze should have been done by 1986, leaving behind only the neon scars, pink bandannas, and bootleg Quiet Riot T-shirts. Instead, an underground armada led by Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer reconfigured metal from the ground up, bringing bullet belts to the masses while injecting energy, integrity, and even some intelligence into its aggression...
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1986: The Year That Thrash Broke
1986 was a very good year for trailblazing thrash metal and quirky musical tangents that would have long-lasting impact. That year, young lions Metallica, Megadeth, and Slayer usurped the original old-school British masters, first on the streets and then in the record stores...