Bay Area post-metal, doomgazers MOUNTAINEER recently unveiled plans to release their highly-anticipated, third full-length album, “Bloodletting,” on May 22nd with Lifeforce Records. Today, the band has unveiled the record’s first new track, an... More

Bay Area post-metal, doomgazers MOUNTAINEER recently unveiled plans to release their highly-anticipated, third full-length album, “Bloodletting,” on May 22nd with Lifeforce Records. Today, the band has unveiled the record’s first new track, an intense, crushing song titled “Shot Through With Sunlight.” Commenting on the new song, guitarist Clayton Bartholomew says, “‘Shot Through With Sunlight’ was one of the first songs written for “Bloodletting,” and it's also one of the heavier songs we've ever made." WATCH THE VIDEO FOR “SHOT THROUGH WITH SUNLIGHT”: [jrEmbed module="jrYouTube" youtube_id="r_FFWA3U1X0"] Discussing the new album, the band explains, “Like its predecessors, ‘Bloodletting’ is something of a concept album, with all of the songs tied together under one overarching idea. From the moment we started working on the project, we knew we were artistically taking a step in a darker direction. Every conversation about the record always seemed to center on themes of letting go, shedding our skin, and casting off non-physical things weighing us down. As each of us grows older we try to become better versions of ourselves, and in that process we have learned it often becomes necessary to distance ourselves from certain people and places in our pasts. While the meaning of these themes may differ from band member to band member, from the onset our unified intention was to write an album that served as a goodbye letter to those people and things we've had to leave behind.” MOUNTAINEER’s upcoming record follows the band’s critically heralded, 2018 sophomore record, “Passages.” The band is currently plotting their return to stages across the U.S. later this year. Details forthcoming.For More Information:https://www.facebook.com/mountaineerbayareahttps://www.instagram.com/mountaineerband/https://www.facebook.com/lifeforcerecords/ Less

The Reticent has a new single out, a cover of Metallica’s classic “Fade To Black”, which will be featured on the progressive metal band's forthcoming album “The Oubliette”  produced by Jamie King (BTBAM, The Contortionist, etc.) and due out later... More

The Reticent has a new single out, a cover of Metallica’s classic “Fade To Black”, which will be featured on the progressive metal band's forthcoming album “The Oubliette”  produced by Jamie King (BTBAM, The Contortionist, etc.) and due out later this year via Heaven & Hell Records. The already somber tune is matched up with an equally solemn black and white video. Chris Hathcock, the founder of the band, who performed all main instruments and vocals on the track, goes into depth about choosing the cover: “The original is a timeless classic, but in listening to it I thought that perhaps the sadness of the words were somewhat attenuated by the catchy and driving riffs. It thematically fell right in line with the over concept of “The Oubliette” as that blanket of loneliness and despair can fall over the suicidal and Alzheimer’s patients alike. I decided to reduce the instrumentation as much as possible to increase that sense of isolation and only used effects to increase the atmosphere. Minimalist and empty sounding like a hospital room.  The result hopefully draws more attention to the stark hopelessness in the lyrics. The distance and atmosphere in the track are meant to feel not just isolated, but almost ghostly - as if we are hearing the baleful thoughts of a man void of hope trapped in a hospital bed.” The Reticent began as an almost exclusively melancholy acoustic project for Hathcock. As time has gone on, the sound of the band got heavier and more diverse. The progressive nature of the band’s most recent offerings now encompasses such a wide scope that one can’t listen to a single song and know the band’s sound.  Recommended for fans of Opeth, Porcupine Tree, and Katatonia; “The Oubliette” will be the fifth album in The Reticent’s discography and is expected out in 2020 as the release date is TBA.To hear the stream of The Reticent's cover of Metallica's "Fade To Black", please the following link: https://youtu.be/h4rUYRcVbys To listen to The Reticent's previous release “On The Eve Of A Goodbye” produced by Jamie King (BTBAM, The Contortionist, Scale the Summit) please visit one of the following links on Spotify, Bandcamp or Apple Music. For more info:TheReticent.netFacebook.com/thereticentmusicInstagram.com/thereticentofficialAbout: The Reticent are an NC outfit that Hard Rock Haven put it, “progressive in the truest sense of the term”.  Beginning as an atmospheric acoustic side project for mastermind Chris Hathcock while he toured with war-metallers Wehrwolfe, The Reticent has become a fully realized emotional experience rooted in progressive rock and metal. This is epitomized in the band’s critically acclaimed latest release on Heaven & Hell Records, “On The Eve Of A Goodbye”, produced by Jamie King (BTBAM, The Contortionist, Scale the Summit) - a tragic autobiographical concept record that chronicles the day before, day of, and day after the suicide of Hathcock’s childhood friend Eve. Critics and fans of the record alike have been moved by the compelling narrative and heartrending performances. The Reticent has gone even further in their live performances to create an audiovisual emotional experience unlike any other by utilizing film, story-telling, and the sheer intensity of the music. Such unique and evocative performances have earned The Reticent a reputation throughout the east as a stellar live show - taking in awards for their live performances from magazines like YES! Weekly. This intense live experience is achieved thanks to the incredible talents of The Reticent’s other members: James Nelson (Ozai), Cliff Stankiewicz (Abacab, Interstellar Overdrive), and Mitch Moore (Rites to Sedition, Inferion). As of 2019, Hathcock has begun preparing The Reticent for a new concept album and all new stage shows. The forthcoming album (again produced by Jamie King), “The Oubliette” is another stirring autobiographical tale, this time of the tragedy of Alzheimer’s disease. Fans and critics alike are eager to sink their teeth into another intense emotional outpouring of progressive metal as The Reticent prepares to release new music and strike back out on the road. Less

WINDBURN DOOMED & STONED FESTIVAL Last year the very first Sun Burn Doomed & Stoned Festival took place in Melbourne, Australia, boasting some of the most excellent heavy bands from both Australia and New Zealand. This year the aptly... More

WINDBURN DOOMED & STONED FESTIVAL Last year the very first Sun Burn Doomed & Stoned Festival took place in Melbourne, Australia, boasting some of the most excellent heavy bands from both Australia and New Zealand. This year the aptly named Wind Burn Doomed & Stoned Festival was to take place in Wellington, New Zealand ( Wellington is known for being quite windy ). Eighteen bands from Australia and New Zealand were set to converge on Valhalla bar to annihilate ear drums over two nights during the apt month of 4/20, but then global pandemic struck. Our best laid plans were dashed against the rocks of a Government taking quick and decisive action on something for a change. As the festy is now postponed for an undetermined amount of time, we’ve put together a compilation to remind you all of what was, and what shall hopefully be again at some point in the future! Please note that this particular compilation is a fundraiser to benefit the bands who planned to participate. We offer it to you for a suggested donation: $6.66. However, you are welcome to download it for free, as well, or (better yet) "Name Your Price." Windburn Doomed & Stoned Festival by Doomed & Stoned Cheers, -Doug McFarlane- Project Curator credits released April 3, 2020 Less

No one is more disappointed that we can't be partying this weekend with you guys than team Decibel. But since we are doing our socially-distant part, we're calling on you to do yours. Pick up an exclusive Decibel book or three, check out our... More

No one is more disappointed that we can't be partying this weekend with you guys than team Decibel. But since we are doing our socially-distant part, we're calling on you to do yours. Pick up an exclusive Decibel book or three, check out our extensive back catalog of over 100 issues filled to the brim with essential metal history, sign up for a subscription to ensure you're always up to date and please, just stay home. Decibel isn't going anywhere, but hopefully we'll soon be coming together again. https://store.decibelmagazine.com/ Less