Suicide Silence – Ending Is The Beginning: The Mitch Lucker Memorial Show 12.21.12 Cd/DVD Review

              

              This Cd/DVD which came out February 18, 2014 is an effort to raise money for the late Mitch Lucker’s daughter. As quoted from the Cd booklet; “On December 21, 2012, the metal community came together in an amazing way to celebrate the life of Mitch Lucker & raise money for his daughter’s future education with an unforgettable evening of collaborative performances between past/present Suicide Silence members and elite heavy vocalists.” Purchasing this Cd/DVD is our way to contribute and remember Mitch’s legacy.

                With an all-star list of vocalists like Jonny Davy (Job For A Cowboy), Greg Wilburn (Whitechapel), Rob Flynn (Machine Head) covering Black Sabbath’s “Die Young”, Max Cavalera (Soulfly/Former Sepultura) doing “Roots Bloody Roots”, Randy Blythe (Lamb Of God), and many other covering Suicide Silence songs with the band. It was amazing to hear all these different metal vocalists come together and do their best at singing Mitch’s songs. The songs sounded great and hearing all the different vocalists doing their interpretation of the songs was defiantly an experience. There is also a song of Mitch and Suicide Silence covering the Deftones “Engine # 9”. This cd is a must have for any metal fan and a great way of helping Mitch’s Legacy live on.

Metal Up Your Mass; Part 1

Massachusetts is full of history. It is 10,555 sq. miles, ranking it the 7^th smallest state. It was one of the leaders in the industrial revolution with the introduction of textile mills. It is where the pilgrims first settled.  It is the birthplace of basketball. But most of all, MA is home to some of the most exciting metal bands to rip your faces off and make your ears bleed. Killer riffs, sing along choruses, monster themes, MA has it all.

Let’s start with some bands more in the hard rock category, but still part of MA metal history. Staind is a hard rock band that started in 1994 out of Springfield, MA. They have 7 studio albums, not all which is metal, but still catchy as all hell. Their newest album which is self-titled is a much rawer, angry album than their previous few albums. Godsmack is another rock band hailing out of Lawrence, MA in 1995. With 5 albums, 3 of which reached number 1 according to the Billboard 200 list. With catchy songs and a stage show that demonstrates their raw energy, Godsmack have been a powerhouse in the rock scene. Rob Zombie whose career in White Zombie, then later his solo career is another example of a MA metal/rock act. Hailing from Haverhill, MA, White Zombie’s first studio album came out in 1987. He has successfully written albums based around horror themes, as well as wrote and directed quite a few horror movies. 

Salem, MA’s Converge is a metal band that brings punk, metal, and hardcore together in one unrelenting blend of music. Formed in 1990 by Vocalist Jacob Bannon and Guitarist Kurt Ballou, they have created incredible music throughout their 8 album career. 2001’s Jane Doe was included in Decibel Magazine’s Hall of Fame. It was the album that defined them and their style of music and will go down as a classic in any metal heads dictionary.  Their 2012 album All We Love We Leave Behind was Decibel Magazines 2012 Album of the Year and was well deserving of it. The album was an unrelenting blend of metal from start to finish and a great example of what MA has to offer the metal community. Also guitarist Kurt Ballou owns his own producing/recording studio Godcity Studio out of Salem. What this means for the metal community is, not only do great bands come out of MA, great albums can be produced and recorded there too.

              The Red Chord is a metal band out of Revere, Ma. The band formed in 1999 and has 4 albums that assault the ears with blistering metal. Singer Guy Kozowyk on top of being the founder and main growler for the band became a police officer for the Manchester, NH police force in 2013.  The band is currently on Metal Blade’s label, but unfortunately hasn’t had a new album since 2009. Guitarist for the band Mike McKenzie, aside from being the main riff master for The Red Chord is also the mastermind for Doom/Death band Stomach Earth whose debut album under the same name, came out July, 16, 2013. The album reached number 18 according to Rolling Stones “20 Best Metal Albums Of 2013”.

 

So I am going to end part 1 here. Part 2 will be coming soon and will feature bands such as; Killswitch Engage, Shadows Fall, Unearth, All That Remains, plus a few local bands I can think of. MA has had a lot of music come out of it throughout the years, some not even metal. With any luck, lots more bands will come out as well.