Wolves In The Throne Room Headline The Echoplex
Review by Andrew Bansal [video by Matt Nielson], July 20th 2014, The Echoplex, Los Angeles CA: Purveyors of the ambient black metal sound for over a decade, Olympia WA-based Wolves In The Throne Room released their fifth studio album 'Celestite', an instrumental, soundscape-oriented and synthesizer-driven adaptation of the previous effort 'Celestial Lineage' that takes them into a whole another realm in terms of musical style and scope. But they embarked on a short US West Coast run with support act Nommo Ogo immediately following the album's release to deliver shows filled with the kind of music their fans have known them for. Read more

Summer Slaughter Tour Brings Extreme Metal Marathon To Los Angeles
By Andrew Bansal, July 19th 2014, House Of Blues Sunset Strip, West Hollywood CA: The 2014 edition of the annual Summer Slaughter Tour started off in San Francisco on July 17th, and following a visit to the Observatory in Orange County the night after, the caravan arrived in West Hollywood for a gig at the House Of Blues Sunset Strip which was sold out 24 hours in advance. Ironically for us LA folks, it was a cold, cloudy, gloomy and windy day, and was the exact opposite to what's typically known to us as summer. But indoors, this 10-band package was ready to turn up the heat. Read more

Harassor, Wayfarer, Dreadnought & The Love Below Play At Complex
By Andrew Bansal, July 17th 2014, Complex, Glendale CA: Los Angeles' longstanding extreme metal force Harassor released their new full-length album 'Into Unknown Depths' earlier this year, and have been playing gigs to present this new material amidst fans and observers in the local underground scene. They performed at Complex in Glendale last Thursday, with two promising Denver-based bands Wayfarer and Dreadnought, and local support from The Love Below. Read more

Ted Nugent Rocks The Grove Of Anaheim
Review & photos by Andrew Bansal, July 14th 2014, City National Grove Of Anaheim, Anaheim CA: Celebrating the release of his 14th studio album 'Shut Up & Jam!', his first set of original material since the 2007 effort 'Love Grenade', perennial American rocker Ted Nugent is currently on an extensive US headline run to present some of these new tunes along with an assortment of some of his most loved classics and a few deeper cuts thrown in the mix. Read more

Helmet Plays At House Of Blues Anaheim
Review by Andrew Bansal [Photos by Brad Worsham], July 13th 2014, House Of Blues, Anaheim CA: Hailing from New York City, Helmet have been around since 1989 and enjoy a worldwide fan-following through a discography that features seven compelling studio albums to go with great live performances to present these tunes to the masses. Led by mastermind Page Hamilton on vocals and guitar, Helmet's last studio effort 'Seeing Eye Dog' came in 2010 but currently they're out on the road in the US with Filter and Local H on ‘The Anti-Folk Revival Tour In Drop-D’. Read more

Grindcore 2014 Takes Place In Downtown LA
By Avinash Mittur, July 12th 2014, 333 Live, Los Angeles CA: Grindcore: to the average music fan, it’s a cacophony. A spastic burst of noisy chaos, something that no one would ever want to intentionally create. To the late Jesse Pintado, the sound he called “grindcore” was exactly what he sought to invent. To him, the music wasn’t merely noise and sonic havoc. It was art. For the second year in a row, Los Angeles’ underground metal scene came together to honor the fallen Pintado on his birthday with a festival monolithically entitled Grindcore 2014. It would prove to be a phenomenal celebration, one that overcame a few issues and detriments. Music talked, and the bullshit walked. Read more