Tri-Valley Party Paradise

I never knew Mike Paré but he was a name I likely heard from my friend & neighbor Robert & my sister both of whom were 2 years ahead of me in school. Party Stories Gallore are listed on his site. From down south in Fremont to the "Far East" of Springtown (at least from my Pleasanton-ian isolation) I have more of my own, coming soon. In the meantime check out some zombie party thrash from Municipal Waste:

Temptation, Pain and Hope

This is a random fan video from the UK edition of MTV's "Headbanger's Ball". The video itself isn't remarkably interesting compared to the list of "bargin bin" of hair metal contained within. This is my first time really viewing the style of host Vanessa Warwick. She seemed like an alright presenter. She did her research on the band (or at least read her cue cards really well) and put a decent amount of emphasis into what she was doing. Plus, she looked pretty good doing it. Although it's not in a that "Hey, look at me I'm a hot metalchick, muthafucka! Woo!" like her contemporaries "The Face of Metal" (?) Mistress Juilya, street team zombie Metal Sanaz and the ultra-skanky Jasmine St. Claire. Regardless of looks, it's more the to do with the simple and generally honest presentation that makes Warrick standout from these one sheets in fetish boots.

The list of bands read off in these clips reads like a "who's who" of Rip and Kerrang! circa: 1988-92. You can imagine flipping through piles of $1 bin LPs and cassettes that have collected dust from here to Helsinki. These are the bands not even VH-1 or Hit Parader has bothered with. Despite their major label (or "major indie label") status, the major of these bands failed instantly in the States. Does anyone remember the Fred Coury (Cinderella) & Stephen Pearcy (Ratt) "supergroup", Arcade? Sven Gali? Baby Animals? Tailsman? Skew Siskin? Sleeze Beeze? Dogs D'Mour, anyone? I heard them on KSJS...once. It wasn't half bad but that was in 1989, so who knows how it holds up today? Oh, yeah there's an unidentified Ramones interview in here. Blink & you'll miss it.

Being a mark for geography, Warrick & co. get kudos for doing "Swedish" and "Dutch" specials. Anyone truly obsessed with metal can tell you that it always has been an international phenomenon. The American Headbanger's Ball would've never tried that. Although, doing a "Bay Area Thrash" special or a "New York Metal" special would've been a lot more interesting than the umpteenth interview with Sebastian Bach or another Motley Crüe "update". All you had to do is interview say, 4 well known bands, and give mention to a few others that "the kids" should check out. Not that hard but it's not like anybody's hiring me to be research director.

Best of 2007 Albums

In no order of preference. Reissues & live shows will be in a later post.

Metal, Punk, Hardcore Best of 2007

1. Alcest - Souvenirs d'un autre monde (Profound Lore/Prophecy)
2. Red Dons – Death To Idealism (Deranged)
3. Totalitar – Vi Ar Eliten (Prank)
4. Marduk – Rom 5:12 (Regain)
5. Municipal Waste – The Art of Partying (Earache)
6. Jesu - Conqueror (Hydrahead)
7. Neurosis – Given to the Rising (Neurot)
8. Candlemass – King of the Grey Islands (Candlelight)
9. High On Fire – Death Is This Communion (Relapse)
10. Entombed – Serpent Saints (Candlelight)
11. Born/Dead – Final Colapse (Prank)
12. Turbonegro – Retox (Cooking Vinyl America)
13. Pig Destroyer – Phantom Limb (Relapse)
14. Big Business – Here Come The Waterworks (Hydrahead)
15. Chelsea - Faster, Cheaper & Better Looking (TKO)
16. The Fucking Champs – VI (Drag City)
17. Urgehal – Goat Craft Torment (Southern Lord)
18. Darkthrone – F.O.A.D. (Peaceville/Tyrant Syndicate)
19. Witchcraft – the Alchemist (Candlelight)
20. Deathspell Omega - Fas - Ite, Maledicti, in Ignem Aeternum (Southern Lord/Norma Evanglium)
21. Tangorodrim – Justus Ex Fide Divit (Southern Lord)
22. Infanticide – Extiction Scheme (Emetic)
23. Mammatus – the Coast Expodes (Holy Mountain)
24. Middian - Age Eternal (Metal Blade)
25. Nadja – Radiance of Shadows (Alien 8)
26. Nominon - Terra Necrosis (Ibex Moon)
27. Signal Lost - Prosthetic Screams (Prank)
28. Sodom – The Final Sign of Evil (SPV)
29. Parlimentarisk Sodomi - 2006 & 2007 Demos (self-released)
30. Wolfbrigade - Prey To The World (Unrest)
31. Baroness - Red Album
32. Fucked Up - Year of the Pig (What's Your Rupture?)

Everything Else (Noise, Folk, Space Rock, Ambient, Prog, Kraut Rock, Psych)

1. Mariee Sioux - Faces In The Rocks (Grass Roots)
2. Ulver – In the Shadows of The Sun (The End)
3. Titan - A Raining Sun Of Light And Love, For You And You And You (Tee Pee)
4. Earthless - Rhythms From A Cosmic Sky (Tee Pee)
5. Sixes – Cursed Beast (Troniks)
6. 16 Bitch Pile Up – Bury Me Deep (I Heart Noise/Troniks)
7. Arachnid Arcade – Sinophore Forest Organ (Organs)
8. DDR - DDR (Slusaj Najglasnije!)
9. Godheadscope - A City Out Of Sight (God Is Myth)
10. Human Anomaly – Human Anomaly (Life Is Abuse)
11. Julie Dorion – Woke My Self Up (Jagjaguwar)
12. Microscopic Suffering – Live At Hanta House 10-28-06, CD-R (self-released)
13. Kosmos – Kosmos (the End)
14. KTL – 2 (Mego)
15. Kiss The Anus Of A Black Cat - Turn Hegel On His Head 7" (Public Guilt)
16. COLL: Donec Ad Metam Part 1 and Donec Ad Metam Part 2 (www.neo-folk.it)

Depressive Black Metal "Jumps The Shark"?

Seriously? A band called "Happy Days"? This is literally saaaaad! I like the basics of the "depressive" Black Metal sound but this is pathetic - it's just a kid whining some "Psych 101" stuff about "denial" and "staring at the pool of razorblades". A pool? Wouldn't a goldfish bowl of them be enough? Must be the work of some stereotypical "emo" teens with a penchant taking the sonics of Burzum,
Xasthur and Leviathan and completely fucking it up.

This one man band creates some of the tinniest, shittiest guitar playing and vocal whining you'll ever hear. Really I don't think this is real. I think this sad fucker named Morbid wouldn't get his music on the jukebox in the satanic version of Al's Diner.

Metal Archives reveals they have a demo called "Alone and Cold". I get the first part but "cold"? Dude, you're in Miami!



Versus:

More evidence

And his side project is called Deep-Pression.
The Fonz ain't gonna like this...
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"Meeet me in 'da office, kid!"