Category: Articles

There are heavy metal documentaries. And then there’s this. For starters, ‘Scream For Me Sarajevo’ is not Iron Maiden’s film. It is not Bruce Dickinson’s film. It is not even a concert film. Written and directed by Tarik Hodzic and produced by Adnan Cuhara, it is the story of a Bruce Dickinson concert that took place in 1994 in Sarajevo, but it encompasses a whole lot more, and transcends far beyond the scope of your run-of-the-mill rock/metal documentary. Continue reading “More Than just a Heavy Metal Documentary: ‘Scream For Me Sarajevo’ is The Most Intense Film You’ll Ever See”

The genre of heavy metal as we know it today, began to take shape in the 1970s and early ’80s, but one band that formed in 1982, took inspiration from their heroes and created something undoubtedly groundbreaking, is Queensrÿche. Their self-titled debut EP and the first two full-length releases ‘The Warning’ (’84) and ‘Rage For Order’ (’86) clearly showed what they were capable of. But they brought about a storm with their third album, ‘Operation: Mindcrime’, released on May 3 1988, exactly 30 years ago to this day. The world of heavy metal, and that of progressive metal, was never the same again. Obviously, a lot of praise has been heaped on this album over the past three decades and rightly so, but I still feel the need to once again stress the importance and sheer magnificence of what is and will always be one of the greatest metal albums of all time. Continue reading “A Timeless Classic: 30 Years of Queensrÿche’s ‘Operation: Mindcrime’”

By Sebastian Vazquez

Let me preface this by saying that it was ultimately difficult in determining what would make my top twenty. So much can affect one’s concert experience, such as being slightly ill, hung over, attending with different people amicable or not, various intoxicants etc. I strongly believe that one could attend the same exact show, if it was even possible under the most perfect circumstances to replicate, and experience it in many different ways. Thus, I decided to omit any personal, subjective factors that influenced my experience at any concert. I also was at loggerheads if I should factor sound quality, as it greatly determines how an artist’s performance will be heard, but I ultimately determined that I should. Sound quality actually knocked down my favorite concert of all the year from number one to number two, so more on that later. Continue reading “Best Live Performances Of 2017”

We revealed the editor’s picks for the best albums of 2017 earlier this month, and now it’s time to take a look at the picks made by our lovely staff! Check them out: Continue reading “Best Albums Of 2017 (Staff Picks)”

By Andrew Bansal

The 2017 year-end listathon continues, and here are the Metal Assault editor’s picks for the best songs of 2017, in order from #20 to #1. We have also included a Spotify playlist with the entire selection at the bottom of this article. So sit back, press play and enjoy this as loud as you can! Continue reading “Best Songs Of 2017”

By Andrew Bansal

Once more round the sun we have traversed, as another year is about to end, and with that it’s time to look back at what 2017 has offered to the world of heavy music. Countless albums were released, some forgettable, some disappointing, some downright laughably bad. But as is the case every year, there were many great ones that stood out, with some longstanding bands proving they still have the creative fire burning within, while younger, newer bands also stood up to be counted. Without further ado, here are my picks for the best albums of 2017. Continue reading “Best Albums Of 2017”