Heavy News In Heavy Metal

Been a while since I've managed to compile enough worthwhile news to crush it all together into one of these articles. So here we go!

- Above, you see the video of "Cruise Ship Terror," which is an easy candidate for my new favorite video of 2009. It's been a while since I've seen a metal video so blissfully ridiculous. I'm only somewhat familiar with the band, but you better believe I'm going to look into their upcoming album now. Side note, this has not swayed my opinion in the ongoing internet "Ninjas vs. Pirates" debate. Ninjas all the way.

- Alice in Chains had released a complete video for one of their leaked new tracks. I managed to catch it, and apparently just in time, as the video has all but been removed from the internet. It was directed by the same guy who did some of U2's videos, and seemed pretty solid. What makes me the most excited/anxious for the album in September is that William Duvall sounds hauntingly like Layne Staley. I might have hope for this album yet.

- Lamb of God singer D. Randall Blythe gives a short and not terribly enlightening interview about the upcoming move "The Graves" where he plays Tony Todd's right hand man. Overall, the movie doesn't look very thrilling, but we'll just have to see if the casting is any good.

- Sebastian Bach claims he's trying to partner up with a writer to help him pen his memior. I'd rather read the "ADA/PDR Guide to Dental Therapeutics, 5th Edition."

- I think we all saw this coming. Fear Factory cancelled their German tour and is rapidly moving toward canning the rest of their European dates, since Burton and Dino and now being sued by ousted (unbeknownst to them) former members Wolbers and Herrera. This one's gonna get messy, folks.

- Early returns on Anthrax's upcoming album say it might be their heaviest album in quite some time, and that the new singer is dynamite. That seems like the usual stock phrase for a new metal album with a new singer, so the statement really tells us nothing. Still, I'm excited.

- Slash swears that Velvet Revolver is still alive, that they're just trying to find the right match for a new lead singer. The longer this goes on, the less I care about it.

- In your latest Gene Simmons watch: In a recent interview describing the hiatus of Nine Inch Nails as a touring band, Trent Reznor declared that he didn't want to get to a point where the band felt stale or tired, or that he couldn't channel the old energy he needed to do his songs well. In his words: "I'd never want to be Gene Simmons, an old man who puts on makeup to entertain kids, like a clown going to work." No return fire from the Simmons camp that I've seen so far.

- And in your metal obituary of the month, Metal Church, citing overall frustration and declining support, have called it quits. Their death was preceded by the death of metal record label SPV.

Live Loud.