100th Post! My 100 Favorite Metal Albums Of All Time
I started this site back in December 2011 for pure catharsis. I simply needed an outlet to vent my thoughts on music, honestly. It’s grown and blossomed into something cool and allowed me to grow as a writer. In honor of this, I decided to make my 100th post special, mostly because I’m shocked the site has gone on this long without me getting bored with it. The reason this site has grown into something awesome is because of the cool people that read it. Now, as a reward to you cool people, I’ve decided to arbitrarily list my 100 favorite metal albums of all time. Before you judge my list too harshly, just remember, this is completely for fun, and based solely on personal taste. I’m not egotistical enough to call these the best metal albums of all time. I just feel that each one of these albums has affected my life in some way or another and regardless of rank, every one of them holds a near and dear place in my heart. Enjoy the list, and be sure and comment below with your thoughts.
100. The Tony Danza Tap Dance Extravaganza – Danza II: The Electric Boogaloo
99. Floor – Floor
98. Napalm Death – The Code Is Red…Long Live The Code
97. Blood Has Been Shed – Spirals
96. Isis – Wavering Radiant
95. Unearth – The Oncoming Storm
94. Napalm Death – Time Waits For No Slave
93. Decapitated – Organic Hallucinosis
92. Torche – Torche
91. Grief – Come To Grief
90. Isis – Celestial
89. Nasum – Shift
88. Pantera – The Great Southern Trendkill
87. Indian – The Unquiet Sky
86. Dillinger Escape Plan – Calculating Infinity
85. Coalesce – 0:12 Revolution in Just Listening
84. Darkthrone – A Blaze In The Northern Sky
83. Sleep – Dopesmoker
82. Between – The Buried And Me – The Silent Circus
81. Cryptopsy – None So Vile
80. Dismember – Like An Everflowing Stream
79. High On Fire – Blessed Black Wings
78. Death – Human
77. Godflesh – Streetcleaner
76. Bolt Thrower – For Victory
75. Pestilence – Consuming Impulse
74. Paradise Lost – Gothic
73. Napalm Death – Scum
72. Crowbar – Crowbar
71. Entombed – Clandestine
70. Carcass – Heartwork
69. Nile – Annihilation Of The Wicked
68. Church Of Misery – Houses Of The Unholy
67. Kylesa – Static Tensions
66. Carcass – Necroticism: Descanting The Insalubrious
65. Botch – We Are The Romans
64. Immortal – Sons Of Northern Darkness
63. Opeth – Blackwater Park
62. Grave – Into The Grave
61. Exodus – Bonded By Blood
60. Suffocation – Effigy Of The Forgotten
59. A Life Once Lost – Hunter
58. Converge – Axe To Fall
57. Bloodbath – Nightmares Made Fleshh
56. Dark Angel – Darkness Desceneds
55. Iron Maiden – Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son
54. Cannibal Corpse – Tomb Of The Mutilated
53. Lamb Of God – New American Gospel
52. Dillinger Escape Plan – Miss Machine
51. Meshuggah – ObZen
50. Killswitch Engage – The End Of Heartache
49. Baroness – Blue Record
48. Nuclear Assault – Game Over
47. Neurosis – Through Silver In Blood
46. Voivod – Dimension Hatross
45. Life Of Agony – River Runs Red
44. Monster Magnet – Dopes To Infinity
43. Autopsy – Mental Funeral
42. Judas Priest – British Steel
41. Zao – The Funeral Of God
40. Entombed – Left Hand Path
39. Testament – The New Order
38. Converge – You Fail Me
37. Anthrax – Among The Living
36. Obituary – Cause Of Death
35. Bolt Thrower – Those Once Loyal
34. Motorhead – Overkill
33. Megadeth – Peace Sells…But Who’s Buying?
32. Mastodon – Leviathan
31. King Diamond – Abigail
30. Electric Wizard – Dopethrone
29. Pantera – Vulgar Display Of Power
28. Judas Priest – Hell Bent For Leather
27. Celtic Frost – Morbid Tales
26. Killswitch Engage – Alive Or Just Breathing
25. Rwake – voices Of Omens
24. Meshuggah – Chaosphere
23. Living Sacrifice – The Hammering Process
22. Sepultura – Arise
21. Voivod – Killing Technology
20. Suicidal Tendencies – Lights, Camera…Revolution!
19. Saint Vitus – Born Too Late
18. Death – The Sound Of Perseverance
17. At The Gates – Slaughter Of The Soul
16. Overkill – The Years Of Decay
15. Kyuss – Welcome To Sky Valley
14. Iron Maiden – Powerslave
13. Metallica – …Master Of Puppets
12. Converge – Jane Doe
11. Metallica – …And Justice For All
10. Pantera – Cowboys From Hell
9. Metallica – Kill Em All
8. Slayer – Reign In Blood
7. Black Sabbath – Paranoid
6. Megadeth – Countdown To Extinction
5. Down – NOLA
4. Slayer – Seasons In The Abyss
3. Iron Maiden – Number Of The Beast
2. Metallica – Ride The Lightning
1. Megadeth – Rust In Peace
Listomania: Favorite albums of 2012….so far
When the year began, I had high hopes that it would be full of some awesome metal releases from some huge bands and so far my expectations have been met. There have been some incredible albums dropped already this year and with new albums by Nachtmystium, Murder Construct, Pig Destroyer, Converge, Kylesa, Neurosis, and C.T from Rwake’s other band Iron Tongue as well as many other big bands still pending, the release schedule for metal albums coming out in the second half of the year could be incredible. Here are my favorite albums to come out this year so far and though they are in numerical order, nothing is really set in stone at this point.
25. Unsane – Wreck
Incredibly pissed off bluesy noise rock from New York. Saw these guys play most of this album at MDF X and they were incredible.
24. Black Breath – Sentenced To Life
A wonderful mixture of hardcore, punk, and death metal. They use the HM-2 Heavy Metal Pedal which takes an intense sound to new levels.
23. Municipal Waste – The Fatal Feast
These guys are arguably the best new thrash band on the planet right now. This album is their most creative yet and shows how talented they are.
22. Cannibal Corpse – Torture
These death metal legends have returned with a new album that helps maintain their brutal legacy of razor sharp brutality.
21. Paradise Lost – Tragic Idol
Paradise Lost are a legendary gothic doom metal band and this album is easily one of the best records they released in a decade.
20. Pilgrim – Misery Wizard
The style on this album is mega depressing doom and Pilgrim take their razor-sharp weapon and repeatedly bludgeon you until you submit.
19. Grand Magus – The Hunt
The album is an incredible mixture of rock n’ roll mixed with NWOBHM riffs and lyrics about Odin and Thor and other viking themes.
18. Asphyx – Deathhammer
This record is certainly one of the heaviest you’ll hear all year. It features a stunning amalgam of brutal death metal and crushing doom riffs.
17. Cattle Decapitation – Monolith Of Inhumanity
I’ve always been a sucker for awesome deathgrind and this album is absolutely incredible. The best part is Travis Ryan’s disgusting vocals.
16.Inverloch – Dusk…Subside
Formed from the remains of the mighty dISEMBOWELMENT, these guys pick up right where they left off with a funeral doom/death masterpiece of epic proportions.
15.Dying Fetus – Reign Supreme
Another incredible album from one of the most brutal death metal bands of all time. Definitely their strongest effort in years.
14. Corrosion Of Conformity -Corrosion Of Conformity
They are back as a three-piece and just as incredible as ever. This album perfectly blends both era’s of the bands legendary catalog.
13. Conan – Monnos
This album features what could only be considered one of the greatest tones of all time. A burly, doomy, stomper of an album for sure.
12.Horseback – Half Blood
While not metal at all, this album is incredibly heavy. Wonderful, trippy, psychedelic rock n’ roll with amazing vocals and alot of creativity.
11. Torche – Harmonicraft
The tone on this album is much more fun and upbeat than their previous albums. Their unique mixture of styles create a monstrous sound for the ages.
10.Meshuggah – Koloss
Though “Koloss” is much slower than their previous albums, it features the same kind of mechanical, brutal as hell, impossible to headbang along to riffs that have made them the stuff of legend.
9. Saint Vitus – Lillie: F-65
The greatest doom band on the planet have put out a new album with Wino for the first time in many years. Though it’s short, this album goes a long way in cementing their legacy as one of the truly great bands of all time.
8. Ihsahn – Eremita
The former leader of Emperor has put out nothing but stellar material thus far and this album is no exception. A wonderful mixture of so many musical styles it’ll make your head spin, there are alot of saxophone solo’s to increase the brutality.
7. Royal Thunder – CVI
With the release of their first full length, Royal Thunder play a blend of hard rock, blues, psychedalia, and southern rock that is second to none. There are so many incredible solo’s and riffs on this album that they could be confused with seasoned veterans.
6. Liberteer – Better To Die On Your Feet, Than Live On Your Knees
This album is the first 2012 release I heard that completely floored me. It’s grind, but it’s played with a swedish death metal type guitar tone and a Napalm Deathesque fury, but there’s also alot of other civil war themed sounds involved to make the most creative grind album of the year…or ever really.
5. Overkill – The Electric Age
Overkill are one of the best thrash bands on the planet and one that has risen above the odds and managed to stay relevant. This album is a beefy slab of in-your-face thrash metal and bonecrushing riffs and they have, one again, left their competition licking their boots.
4. Baroness – Yellow And Green
I know it’s not out yet, but believe me, this album is going to put a huge smile on your face if you let it. It’s got alot of their signature guitar riffs, but there are also alot of moments you’d never expect to hear on a Baroness album that give them a sort of indie vibe. Though it’s two discs and the songs rollercoaster between rockin and chilled out beauty, this record never once gets boring and you gain more with each listen.
3. Pallbearer – Sorrow And Extinction
If there’s a better doom album released this year, i’ll be shocked. This album has a huge sound, monstrous riffs, and an incredible amount of emotion. It’s got alot of elements of funeral doom mixed in and it grabs you by the balls as soon as the album starts and doesn’t let go until you’re six feet deep.
2. Christian Mistress – Possession
This album is definitely the ultimate beer drinking record of 2012 so far. I gave this record a perfect 10 in my review in Feb and I still stand by it. The riffs are furious and feature many excellent solo’s and general awesomeness, particularly Christine Davis’ whiskey soaked vocals.
1. Napalm Death – Utilitarian
I’m not sure if this album will stay in the top spot, but for now (and always) Napalm Death reign supreme. Most of my strong connection to it come from listening on the way to Maryland Deathfest and hearing alot of songs from it performed live, but despite that, you can’t deny how amazing this album is. It shows the world’s first and best grind band at the peak of their songwriting ability, it even features a sax part by John Zorn and vocals by Mick Harris that sound like Burton C Bell of Fear Factory at times. If this album doesn’t make you want to punch every human in a ten foot radius, you’re doing it wrong.
Record Reviews: March 27th New Releases
I’ve been incredibly busy lately and it’s been hard to keep up a steady writing pace, but i’m really excited about this weeks crop of albums because all four of them are absolutely fantastic. Hopefully soon things will get back to normal and I will be able to finish my thrash bracket this weekend. Stay tuned, and please check out these awesome albums mentioned in this post.
Meshuggah – Koloss – 9/10
Meshuggah are a band who doesn’t leave room for alot of grey area, it seems. People either absolutely adore them, completely despise them, or (like everyone i’ve played them for) just don’t get it. With the release of their seventh album “Koloss”, they are faced with their biggest challenge to date; their last album “obZen” came out in 2008 and completely spawned it’s own genre, and I don’t need to tell you that when you release an album that creates an entirely new genre, it’s difficult to follow that up.
Musically, Koloss is just as technical and complicated as previous Meshuggah albums, but the thing that sets it apart the most for me, is it’s incredibly simplistic approach. I’m not saying that they toned down the robotic technical prowess they displayed on previous albums like “obZen”, and “Nothing”, and even “Chaosphere”, but I can definitely tell they have gone with a less robotic approach to their music. There are no songs on this album like “Bleed” that just pound through with the same riff being played over and over for sure. The album features a few different approaches, specifically when you hear a song like “Behind The Sun” which features a super heavy riff played at a much slower pace than these titanic swedes are used to, then they launch into a song like “The Hurt That Finds You First” which is one of the faster songs they’ve written in years. There are a couple of songs on the album that have the same type of vibe as “obZen” however, namely “Swarm” and “The Demon’s Name Is Surveillance” which features an intro that reminds me of “Bleed” a little, but the album also throws back to “Chaosphere” a bit with songs like “The Hurt That Finds You First” which is insanely fast, but it also features a rogue snare drum which seems to chase you down a dark alley with a long machete in hand. In my opinion, the stand out track on this album is definitely “Break Those Bones Whose Sinews Gave It Motion, which got it’s name from a poem about revenge. There are no words for me to describe the main riff of this song except maybe that it sounds like having your head smashed repeatedly by an aluminum trash can, but honestly, you have to listen to it with headphones on to even understand what I mean by that.
Overall, I have to applaud Meshuggah for looking back on their previous accomplishments and instead of resting on their laurels, deciding to move forward with one of their most forward-thinking albums yet. Admittedly, i’m a HUGE fan of Meshuggah, so i’m kind of biased with my review, but if you are somebody who can listen to Meshuggah and enjoy them and what they do, this album is definitely worth your time.
Overkill – The Electric Age 9/10
Here’s the deal, man, as much as I want to write a super long, descriptive review of the new Overkill album, it doesn’t really need to have that much said about it. Simply put, this album is an absolute beast of a thrash album.
There’s been a huge thrash resurgence in the last few years, but not just with the big four; bands like Exodus, Testament, Mortal Sin, and Forbidden have all put out great releases in recent years, yet somehow Overkill has managed to keep up with all of them, especially the latest album by Anthrax which kind of blew, and lacked many important elements of their classic sound. Though “Electric Age” is Overkill’s sixteenth album, it contains every single bit of fury they’ve had on the fifteen albums before it, if not moreso, in fact, they seem to be on a huge winning streak lately, because their last album “Ironbound” was also fantastic. As far as standout tracks on this album go, there’s not one particular song on here that’s better than the others, but my favorites are definitely “Old Wounds,New Scars”, “Black Daze”, and “Electric Rattlesnake”. Each song on the album stands up nicely in the Overkill discography because they all feature Bobby Blitz’s legendary barking vocal style and D.D. Verni’s signature style of thrash with alot of groove and a bonecrushing pace, but, like Megadeth, they are able to keep a razor sharp edge thanks to their lineup, which is rounded out by the hotshot guitar duo of Dave Linsk, and Derek Tailer on guitar, and Ron Lipnicki on drums
I didn’t know what to expect from this album because I figured Overkill had kind of reached their peak and couldn’t outdo themselves anymore…boy was I wrong. It’s always nice to hear a legendary thrash band able to put out legit, relevant music these days, and Overkill have done just that with their new album, in fact, I can guarantee you this album will be on my top albums of the year list because it’s a bonecrusher from beginning to end and I just can’t get enough of it.
Black Breath – Sentenced To Life 8/10
Black Breath are a band that’s been active in the underground metal scene for a few years now and they made a pretty big name for themselves with the release of their 2010 debut album “Heavy Breathing” on Southern Lord Records. Honestly, I wasn’t that impressed with “Heavy Breathing”, but I decided to give their new album “Sentenced To Life” a chance despite it’s cheesy album cover, and i’m incredibly glad I did.
The thing about this album is that Black Breath play a very heavy style of hardcore/punk in the vein of Converge, but they play with the same type of pedal made famous by bands like Entombed and Dismember, so what would normally sound like a rip off of Converge, or The Hope Conspiracy ends up sounding like Dismember if they had an album produced by Kurt Ballou. The attack on this album is very straight forward, and the album isn’t very long, but something about that Entombed guitar sound just really gives me a huge boner for this album. The best song on this album, and the main reason I love it, is the track “Sentenced To Life” which has that Entombed guitar sound, but it’s got a fury you might find on a hardcore album and the “chorus” makes me pump my fist every time. My other favorite track on this album is “Home Of The Grave” which is more of a death metal oriented song, but it’s still got that Converge/Trap Them type fury and that killer guitar tone.
Overall this album has a million awesome riffs on it, and each one of them would normally not impress me, but the tone that their guitars have is really the difference between it being meh and completely amazing. I know it sounds weird to only love an album because of the guitar tone, specifically when it’s a direct ripoff of other bands, but the way they creatively used that tone to play violent, angry, hardcore music really makes this album one of my favorites of the year.
Angel Witch – As Above, So Below 7/10
When word got out that Angel Witch was going to have Bill Steer of Napalm Death and Carcass joining Kevin Heybourne on guitar, I got incredibly excited that a new album would be coming out. Two years later, thanks to Metal Blade Records, Angel Witch’s fourth studio album “As Above, So Below” has arrived and it is an absolute marvel considering this band should have been dead 30 years ago.
If you’ve ever heard Angel Witch’s 1980 self titled album, or if you at least played the game “Brutal Legend”, then you should be singing “you’re an angel witch, YOURRREEE AN ANGEL WITCH!” right now, because it’s one of the catchiest songs ever written. Though Angel Witch are a legendary NWOBHM band, one thing that’s ever present on this album that’s different from their contemporaries is the fact that the music absolutely rules, in fact, it’s 100% relevant which is something Raven and Saxon can’t say for themselves these days. The album has alot of familiar elements of Angel Witch’s classic 1980′s sound, but it has been updated thanks to technology, and it’s taken on kind of a strange doomy sounding guitar tone despite the upbeat boogie of the riffs on the album. One of the best tracks on this album is the upbeat “Gebura” which reminds me alot of “Atlantis”, other stand out tracks on the album are the doomy “Dead Sea Scrolls” and “Into The Dark” which features some incredibly groovy guitar work and very infectious vocal melodies. Despite adding the legendary Bill Steer to the lineup for this record, all of the praise for this album has to go to the band’s founder, and only original member Kevin Heybourne, whose determination to make Angel Witch relevant again has paid major dividends, and his epic vocal style and fantastic guitar playing make this album an absolute monster.
Jams Of The Week 02/26-03/03
Over the last few weeks, there have been some great albums released, in fact, February has been the best month for metal in quite a while. Aside from all the new music i’ve been digesting over the last month or so, i’ve also been returning to some old classics. This edition of Jams Of The Week is a tribute to some of the awesome albums i’ve been listening to this week that I haven’t busted out in a while.
Metallica – Ride The Lightning
Every time I try to decide which Metallica album is my favorite, it’s always a tie between this album and Kill Em All. I recently pulled this record out after a long, stressful day at work, and immediately I forgot that I was pissed, and all I wanted to do was rage. Ride The Lightning has three of my favorite metal songs of all time: Fade To Black, Creeping Death, and For Whom the Bell Tolls, but it’s also got skull-crushing thrash anthems like Fight Fire With Fire, Ride The Lightning, and Trapped Under Ice. There is literally, not one bad moment on this entire album, and in my opinion, it’s better than Master Of Puppets…that’s right, I said it.
Obituary – Cause Of Death
This album is, without question, one of the definitive 90′s death metal albums. Everything about “Cause Of Death” is awesome; it’s got fantastically heavy guitar tone, mixed with the incredible lead guitar work of James Murphy, it’s got John Tardy’s maniacally violent vocals, and it’s got one of the best Celtic Frost covers you’ll ever hear. Admittedly, I didn’t like this album, or Obituary in general when I first heard them, however, after listening to more and more death metal over the years, it’s easy to listen to Obituary and appreciate exactly what they did for the genre back in 1990 with this glorious masterpiece of destruction. As a side note, after listening to alot of Autopsy recently, I would love to hear Chris Reifert and John Tardy compete in a “who’s vocals sounds more like the violent ramblings of a serial kiiller from hell” contest.
Meshuggah – Chaosphere
Meshuggah are definitely one of my favorite bands ever. Oddly enough, I first heard about them when Jack Osbourne used “Destroy, Erase, Improve” to terrorize his neighbors on an episode of “The Osbournes”. I honestly think Chaosphere is my favorite Meshuggah album, mostly because it’s got the thrashiness of their first few albums mixed with the technical prowess that has helped them continue to drop jaws. Songs like “Corridor Of Chameleons” and “The Mouth Licking What You’ve Bled” are pure audio violence thanks to their incredibly thrashy, belligerent, strangely timed riffs, and “New Millenium Cyanide Christ” was built specifically to cause serious degrees of whiplash. Their new album “Koloss” comes out in 24 days, and i’m not sure how it’s going to sound, but even if it sounds crappy, at least I have Chaosphere to fall back on when I just want to bang my head and break everything in a 20 mile radius..
Descendents – Milo Goes To College
I’ve listened to this album seriously five or six times in the last two days. In fact, i’m listening to it right now. Something about this album is perfect to listen to when i’m in a really bad mood. The lyrics are angry enough to appeal to my metalhead side, but they are also cheeky and humorous enough to make me crack a smile. Though I grew up in Florida on the east coast, and not the west coast in California, and even though I don’t ride a skateboard, this iconic punk album speaks to me in ways some records just can’t. My favorite song on this album is “Catalina” and always makes me miss home. There are also songs like “Hope” which anybody who’s ever been in “the friend zone” can relate to. It’s a shame that nobody makes records this good or meaningful anymore.
Dead Kennedys – Fresh Fruit For Rotting Vegetables
This is my favorite punk rock album of all time without question. It’s got angry political songs, as well as humorous tongue-in-cheek songs that create a perfect molotov cocktail. Songs like “Holiday In Cambodia”, “California Uber-Alles” and “Kill The Poor” are three of my favorite songs ever, and definitely three of the best punk songs ever written. You can have your Clash and Sex Pistols sell out, poser punk, DK are the real deal and this album still stands the test of time perfectly and it’s lyrics are still very meaningful even to this day.
Interview with Aynrei
I’ve been involved with my local music scene for many years now, and in my travels i’ve made plenty of friends, with various bands along the way and i’ve decided to start occasionally posting interviews bands both local and not so local. The band I interviewed today, Aynrei, is a project started by Michael Carpenter and Clay Shroeder in Austin, Tx. I know Michael from his days in the band Dhalsim which was started in Ruston, La. Dhalsim were definitely the most original band to ever come from North Louisiana, they were also featured on Metalsucks as one of the winners in their “Best Local Band” contest a few years ago. Aynrei just released their debut EP and you can listen to it HERE or HERE and i wanted to interview them about this project and find out about their plans for future world domination.
What does Aynrei mean?
Michael: It means infinite nothingness. Just a mashup of an esoteric and a japanese word really. Ayn is the nothing. Rei is the soul. Just something I came up with that I felt was unique to our metaphysical interests.
Who was involved in the recording of your debut EP? Did you only play drums on this record?
Michael: It was just Clay and myself. Yea, I just played drums and percussion. We constructed the whole record together pretty much, so I had input on all the guitar and some of the bass parts as well. I didn’t use the big Yamaha kit either, so I was sad, but it still turned out well with the Roland and there’s a few programmed parts we added in, but most of the playing is me trying do my thing on the e-kit.
Where did you record this album?
Clay: Was recorded and mixed entirely “in-the box”, meaning guitars/bass were recorded and mixed with amp simulation (POD XT, Axe Fx, and Logic amp designer). The drums were performed on a roland electronic kit and then sample replaced with Toontrack’s Superior Drummer 2.0. The EP was recorded between January and May of 2011. We had to delay the release due to tense arrangement battles and rock star indulgences that nearly crushed Aynrei’s existence. Originally, the idea for The Great Circle was to include input from a vocalist and bassist, but after being dissatisfied with local auditions, I was forced to handle the sparse bass parts and we decided Aynrei’s musical vision was beyond words..at least for now.
Michael: Clay covered that one, I think. We are still on the fence with vocals though. I’d like the added element, but it has to be a perfect fit for what we do. There are lots of cliche vox in heavy music right now. If it’s not going “h.a.m.” then we aren’t fooling with it. The rock star indulgences are limited to me sleeping on random couches and eating expensive fresco bean burritos from Taco Bell.
What seperates this project from your previous bands?
Clay: Aynrei grew from pure organic struggle. Mike was previously the drummer for my band Atlas Versus, but after artistic visions split with the addition of more members, we parted ways, luckily on good terms… shortly thereafter, he threw an 8 string guitar in my hand and started hating. 47,568 riffs/noises later, the EP was complete. No blood shed. Just feelings. For the record, Mike loathes the metronome as much as I fear experimentation.
Michael: I think the quality of the recording and the arrangements are a lot different. In my previous bands, I obviously wasn’t the same caliber player that I am now, so there’s more concise and cleaner execution of the parts. Also, most of this stuff was built up on the spot. We didn’t write the songs, then go practice them, and then record full songs. It was basically us sitting in a room with guitar and drums plugged in to a comp. Oh, i think I mentioned that I didn’t play an acoustic kit this time, to so I had to adapt to some rubber pads and latency stuff. The full length will have the Oak customs on it though, promise!!!
What are your plans for the future of Aynrei, and where do you see this band in a year or two?
Clay: We are currently developing ideas for a full album, although nothing will be set in stone until we have the input of a bassist. As we like to develop ideas slowly within this band, I am eager to have fan input on arrangement ideas. I feel like this would be a natural evolution for the “DIY” movement. In my opinion, Progressive Metal got it’s rebirth from the rise of affordable home studios and a direct connection to fans around the world via internet. With such outlets why would we not want to hold our listeners’ attention spans by involving them into our world.
Michael: There’s going to be the full length, some regional touring initially, then some straight up road dogging. I’m trying to play 300 shows in a year once the record is done. Hopefully we will keep receiving positive reviews and make enough noise to get some label support and some legit tours.
When people see Aynrei live, or listen to your debut album, what would you like them to take away from that experience?
Clay: Experience. I want this to be beyond an audio stimuli. The listener should be able to close their eyes and feel the emotion that the sounds produce. As as a songwriter, I have always been drawn to odd meters and odd note movements, basically chasing the dragon of complexity while still attempting to hold the listeners grasp, unfortunately the musician part of me needs to be held at bay with this project. Working with Mike has allowed me to surpass my boundaries as a musician, although one of the most fierce collaborations i’ve had to endure. I think we’ll agree that the results are validated.
Michael: What Clay said. For me, the tunes are like soundtracks to a film. It’s like a trippy mind journey type of vibe where you sort have this abstract type of narrative going on and you can create your own dialogue. I want the audience to interpret the music on their own terms.
What are your thoughts on the term “djent” that is used to describe bands like Periphery, Meshuggah, and Animals as Leaders who have a sound similar to yours?
Clay: Obviously, we’re a huge fan of all these bands, I wouldn’t be recording if it weren’t for Misha. Then again, I wouldn’t enjoy odd time signatures without Tool or Crimson, nor extended range instruments without Korn…(cough) I mean Meshuggah. I think Djent is just a cute word to describe the recent surge of poly-rythymic metal. They can’t very well call it “Shugging” haha, regardless, I can see how Aynrei can be put into that category, but I think you’ll notice our unique Don Caballero (Check Them Out NOW!) approach of syncopated/separated meters..basically we want to develop multi-pocket groove. YA. One gigantic trench coat that makes your ears ejaculate.
Michael: I never got caught up in the whole djent as a genre vs. djent as a tone characteristic stuff. Whatever people need to do to define something they will do that and if that’s something we can use to reach a certain demographic that will support what we do as artists then I’m all for it.
What are your thoughts on the direction the music industry is heading, and are you for or against people downloading music?
Clay: NO! Music should be free. I feel like if an artist doesn’t struggle, they’ll lose their voice. Their material will become as saturated as their facade lifestyle. They become walking advertisements, utterly soulless. I sigh in relief that we have the means of spreading our music to millions within a matter of days. The money train is gone, oh well. At least I can still share my art…which is what music is supposed to be, art. Not products restricted by the laws of cash. It’s meant to move and inspire people.
Michael: I disagree with Clay with the whole free thing. I’m a painter, and I play music. Two different mediums, but the goal is the same, to share your unique vision with the rest of the world and to make a living doing it full time if you’re lucky. The internet has leveled the field as far as reaching an unlimited fan base. If you spend enough time online hustling your work, you can get your band heard and get folks out to shows to see you live once you’re touring. We are giving away this album at no cost because it’s not a physical copy. The quality is great and it makes it easier for people to spread the word about us. Bands that play the music we do aren’t rockstars at all. There’s lots of grinding it out, sleeping in vans, and not getting girls, going on. Every dollar that’s made is more than likely being put back into the band to keep them on the road, or to finance a record or whatever. Merch and money from a guarantee are a big chunk of it, but if you sell 5000 cd’s for 10 bucks, then that’s more money in the furnace to keep things going. It’s not getting stacked up in a savings account for Bentleys, dude! Every little bit helps and is very appreciated. I understand that the record industry’s price gouging in previous years has the price of music in a bad light, but we are artists that still want to make a living doing our thing. You can’t tour or make records with nothing. It’s just impossible.
As a musician living in Austin, is it harder or easier to get your music heard?
Clay: Word to the Bluth family. The live music capital of the world is biased. I’m more worried about our online existence at the moment, we need fans to play live to. When the time comes to bring our sound to audiences, it will have reached a heightened maturity.
Michael: It’s tough because EVERYONE’s a musician here. Everybody has a band that they are in and folks get tired of getting begged to come to their friends shows, i’m sure. On the other side of it is the fact that there aren’t many bands doing what we do, nor is there a lot of local support for it. There’s only a handful of places that really deal with heavy music here, because this is a blues and country town, but when heavy bands come through the people come out in droves. We’re focused on spreading the word through the web because it’s just a more efficient way to hustle art. You can stand on the corner all day with some paintings, or you can stand on top of a mountain with a beacon of light, and illuminate the city with your presence.
If you could have written any song ever, what would it be and why?
Clay: Tough question. Hmmm, definitely “In The Air Tonight” by Phil Collins. That atmosphere is deeeeep.
Michael: I don’t know what’s wrong with Clay, man. Thanks for taking the time out for us Johnny!! We really appreciate it.
