Hey guys!

Really sorry about the leave of absence from all of us here at DoM. I guess real life got in the way of things.

We don't know whether we'll continue writing for the site or not, so please hang tight and while we make a decision.

Thanks!

Paradise Lost have released their 13th studio album on April 23. It sounds like a continuation of their attempt to go back to the roots, and a pretty gosh darned good one at that. Check out the video above and tell me it doesn't ring the bells of "Icon" and/or "Draconian Times" in your ears.

It's not so much a slow news day, as it is just another excuse to laugh at Limp Bizkit. I know, I know, it's not 1999 anymore, so who cares right? But as my girlfriend keeps reminding me, I act like a child, so I may as well pretend it's a year when I still was one.

The latest news begins with a small riddle.

What's worse than Limp Bizkit?

Answer: Insane Clown Posse.

What's worse than Insane Clown Posse?

Answer: Insane Clown Posse with Fred Durst.

Ok, it's not exactly Limp Bizkit news, but it is funny. Yes, that's right, Limp Bizkit's Fred Durst and Insane Clown Posse have collaborated for a cover of AMG‘s 'Bitch Better Have My Money'. The cover will appear on upcoming album Covered, Smothered And Chunked.

I hope to God I never hear that.

[Source: PRP]

Why would anyone want to meet Lars? I can see why some would want to escape him, but the guy in this movie wants so bad to meet him, a movie has been made about him.

"Mission To Lars" tells the story of Tom Spicer, an autistic Metallica fan who just wants to meet Lars Ulrich -- and the journey he makes to do so.

There are so many jokes I could do right now, and trust me, I'm trying really hard to control myself. I'm just wondering if this guy was the inspiration for the name 'Lulu.'

Okay, I know, I'm going to hell, but the movie does seem pretty touching... Hell, it made Lemmy cry.

To many metalheads, they may just be 'yet another metalcore band', but let's give credit where credit is due. Bleeding Through have always stood out for me, personally, because they're not 'just another metalcore band'. Yes, they play hardcore, yes they play metal, but Bleeding Through also incorporate sounds often heard more in other sub-genres to help create a more unique vision in the sea of metalcore. Beyond the two previous genres, Bleeding Through also make use of elements found more commonly in Swedish melodic death metal, symphonic black metal, industrial and thrash metal, to name a few.

So if Bleeding Through are that good and that unique, why aren't they more widely acclaimed? And why do most metalheads still disregard them as another bland metalcore act? Well it probably comes down to how hit and miss Bleeding Through's catalog is. The Devin Townsend produced 2008 album Declaration may have been sublime, but other albums have been more lackluster when digested as a whole.

With that said, Bleeding Through released their new album The Great Fire a couple of months back, so make the jump to find out how the band's latest effort stacks up.

Bleeding Through - The Great Fire

1. The March - 1:44
2. Faith in Fire - 1:57
3. Goodbye to Death - 2:33
4. Final Hours - 3:56
5. Starving Vultures - 2:44
6. Everything You Love Is Gone - 1:49
7. Walking Dead - 4:05
8. The Devil and Self Doubt - 3:02
9. Step Back in Line - 2:47
10. Trail of Seclusion - 3:41
11. Deaf Ears - 2:54
12. One by One - 1:38
13. Entrenched - 3:42
14. Back to Life - 2:38

Often being hit and miss, besides Declaration (and that's at a push), Bleeding Through have arguably never released a truly brilliant album. After a few decent albums, the band began to find fame with the above average 2003's This is Love, This is Murderous. After this promising start, however, the band were criticized for follow up, The Truth, in 2006, which was viewed by some as "dumbed down" and "generic". 2008's Declaration was met with almost universal acclaim, but failed to sell highly and again did not go by without its fair share of criticisms from some. By the time the last album came out, the self-titled, pretty much no one cared apart from me (and I can tell you, it was average).

So why am I a fan? I pretty much just said the band were hit and miss and that half their discography is average. Well, the reason is because when the band do it right and hit instead of miss, they hit fucking hard. The same can be said for this album.

With The Great Fire, again Bleeding Through do try and stick to what they do best. Which is of course melodic blackened symphonic death metalcore. This means again, you'll be on the receiving end of furiously fast fret work, punishing blast beats , atmospheric orchestration and the collision of brutal aggression and emotional melody. If for whatever reason you don't like Bleeding Through, this album probably won't do much to change your mind. So presumably, it'll be the fans who will be wanting to know whether this album is one of their best, or one of the worst.

Compared to the band's last album, The Great Fire is a far more harder and aggressive effort. Something that fans of Declaration and heavier music in general will no doubt welcome. The album follows for the most part, the general fast and furious verses, and aggressive (occasionally melodic) choruses (sometimes sung, sometimes screamed, sometimes both). Don't forget the traditional hardcore breakdowns either. Although it's business as usual, that isn't to say that there isn't more Bleeding Through bring to the table this time round. The keyboards and melodies have really been honed this time, and on some tracks, really create a much more focused and impressive sound.

Some of the best parts of the album are where the band push things further than they have before. For example the black metal-esque style pushed in both 'The Devil and Self Doubt' (Which features some brilliant piano work courtesy of Marta Peterson) and 'Step Back in Line'. My favorite tracks, however, are the ones where the band have really pushed their aggressive, yet emotive sound further. The perfect example of this is tenth track 'Trail of Seclusion' which somehow manages to combine the heaviest and most melodic side of the band, with a bit of 80's cheesy power metal thrown in for good measure, and still be damn fucking good.

Despite being an incredibly strong effort, like predecessors, The Great Fire suffers from the moments in between the 'hits'.  Although noticeably fewer 'misses' than some of their albums (*cough* The Truth *cough*), some of the tracks do kind of blend into one and follow a similar pattern. That said, this time around the misses are fewer and further in between.

As a whole, The Great Fire picks up where Bleeding Through left off and doesn't stray from the formula too much. However, it is the more focused use of keyboards and melody this time that has really helped the album be one of the band's best. While other metalcore bands struggle to right more than 12 songs together without it sounding like one long load of breakdowns and horse ejaculation, Bleeding Through again manage to stand out from the crowd with this effort. Luscious use of keys, haunting melodies, eerie synths, viscous riffs and pummeling riffs make this album a must for Bleeding Through fans. For those who can take them or leave the band though, you won't find much you haven't heard before here.

Overall, while it may not re-invent the wheel, The Great Fire is home to some of Bleeding Through's finest tracks yet. A far more brutal album, blending some of the finest element of the wide metal genre, but let down by a few filler tracks.

I was pretty damn happy today. Damn fucking happy in my ignorance. And then I learned that Linkin Park, not being contempt with raping my ears back in 2010 by releasing one of the shittiest albums ever, are back again.

Snippets of brand new single, 'Burn it Down', from the band's forthcoming album have been doing the rounds on the internet. The verdict? It fucking sucks of course. Sounding like some desperate attempt at releasing a pop/club sounding song, Linkin Park have managed to sink even lower than previously imagined.

Luckily, Warner Bros have stepped in and are doing the world a favor. They are kindly searching the internet for any trace of the leaked snippets and having them removed. Those kind, kind, kind hearted people. Hopefully by the time you read this, the samples below will have been removed and your soul will have been saved.

Again, a day late (I know, how shit am I?), but it's finally here. The greatest band ever to be named after a panty liner, Pantera, will have a deluxe special edition of classic opus Vulgar Display Of Power released on May 21 to coincide with the album’s 20th anniversary. I'll probably pick it up. Will you?

Anyways, the previously unreleased track 'Piss', taken from the Vulgar Display Of Power sessions has been released and it has an accompanying video for you to watch too. Check it out above.

Yes, I'm a day late with this, but so what? I was busy getting laid while you were on Blabbermouth hitting F5.

Last night (or the night before) was the official Revolver Golden God awards ceremony (or something... The fact Korn won best album tells me it's redundant and I shouldn't care) and Trivium, Corey Taylor (of Stone Sour and Slipknot) and Robb Flynn (of Machine Head) got together to play through this fairly mediocre rendition of Metallica's 'Creeping Death'. You can watch the live video above.

The main problem is Corey sounds like ass. But then, maybe you like ass.

P.S. If you're wondering what the title is about, here.

"Craigslist can be whatever you want it to be. You can use it to find a flat, secure a new job, sell your car…and now, it seems, search for the father of your unborn child after a brief encounter at a rock concert.

As observed by Fuse, an American woman has turned to the online classifieds site  to track down a man who knocked her up at a Megadeth & Motörhead concert in Chicago in February. The woman in question describes herself as: “Blue hair, silver tube top, fishnets, Knee high black biker boots,” whilst the dude is sporting a similar look: “Red mohawk, black pentagram gauges, viper piercings.”

[Source: Thenextweb]

Fucking bollocks. Knew I should have worn a condom.

Jeff Loomis just released his second solo effort (well, that depends upon what your definition of "just" is). As it features a few friends of his, such as Attila Voros, Tony Macalpine, Chris Poland and one Marty Friedman, I think it's worth a listen. Or two.

Those feeling depressed from the two long years it has been since Envy's brilliant last album, wash those tears away, because there's a new hardcore band on the block, and one well worth checking out.

Formed in 2010, Echoes are a post-metal band from Winchester, UK, playing a diverse blend of ambient hardcore and metal and drawing influences from artists such as This Will Destroy You, Rinoa, Devil Sold His Soul and Hans Zimmer (you can check out the band's awesome cover of 'Time' here by the way).

A couple of weeks ago Echoes released their debut EP With an Eye on the Shoreline & a Hand to the Sea (thanks for making me spend 3 weeks typing your EP title guys!) and I can't resist giving it a Dose of Metal review.

Echoes - With an Eye on the Shoreline & a Hand to the Sea

1. 'Leaving None Behind' - 5:25
2. 'Rivers' - 5:10
3. 'Safe it Seems' - 5:06

With an Eye...  opens with the epic and ambitious 'Leaving None Behind'. Desperate screams from vocalist Joshua resonate over ambient melodies and explosive harmonies, succeeding in coercing emotion to the listener without reducing the music to generic Clichés and cheesy lyrics. The murky bass moves the verses forward and helps the melody flow whilst atmospheric clean guitar lines glisten upon the surface.

Next track 'Rivers' demonstrates Echoes' desire to not repeat themselves. The song is a lot gloomier in its approach, with an initial grunge sound in the verses. The bridge and chorus are more upbeat however, once again being driven by the powerful, emotional vocals and instrumentation.

The EP's closing track 'Safe it Seems' is a climatic and fitting conclusion to the demo. Providing a mix of high uplifting shrieks of  guitars with pummeling drums. When the track break downs into a beautiful interlude, the final crescendo is used to create maximum impact, providing a haunting finale to what has been a fantastic start from this young band.

Overall, Echoes have made a impressive start to their career with this EP/sampler, and with it being offered as a free download via their website, there really isn't any excuse to pass up on this excellent release. Now all I can say is, bring on the full album!

Links:
Facebook
Official website
Merchandise

Global mega star Lady Gaga literally can't go five minutes without trying to prove how 'metal' she is. Whether it's attending Iron Maiden concerts, hanging out with members of Anthrax or whatever else it is she does, she's always trying to prove she is a heavy metal lover.

So what's her next move?

It was revealed earlier today that Lady Gaga has tapped The Darkness as support when she hits the UK this September.

Awesome, a Queen parody act supporting a Madonna parody act? This is going to be fun kids (please note obvious sarcasm).

[Source: Metal Hammer]

Who's the chick? One of my ten wives, of course.

It's been a while since I've posted at Dose of Metal. It had to happen. At some point, I had to wake up, snap out of it and realize that I'm not a rock star (or should that be metal star?), earning millions and married to my ten wives (all of which are Playboy bunnies, of course). Enter real life: A world where I have commitments, have to earn money and pay rent. We all do it, but hey, I'm still going to bitch about it - because I can.

But sooner or later, I would need to post back on DoM, for at least my sanity's sake. So here I am, and I figured the best way to get back into it, would be to post some reviews of the music I've listened to, good and bad, over the last month or so. So here we go...

Archetype self-titled EP (2011)

1. 'Decease to Exist' - 4:39
2. 'The Fault of My Design' - 3:50
3. 'The Silence' - 3:04
4. 'Into Infamy' - 4:02
5. 'Ruination' - 4:03

An EP logged in my recent purchases on Amazon comes from relatively unknown unsigned UK act, Archetype. The two-member melodic death metal band, hailing from my hometown, combine a fury of ferocious screams, death metal blastbeats and thrashy riffs, making them one of the more interesting melodic death bands in recent years.

Being an unsigned, young, two-member band, you could be forgiven for thinking that Archetype will be another generic At The Gates ripoff act with little talent. However, this is far from being the case. The amount of talent on display from the two members is incredible. Combining the groove of At The Gates, the triumphant melodies of Arch Enemy and the thrash style of early era The Haunted (before they went a bit shit), Archetype merge various styles, as well as their own unique progressive vision to craft what is a creative take on the melodic death metal genre, avoiding many of the pitfalls and clichés that a lot of their contemporaries fall into .

Musically, the band are on fire for the entire EP, with vocalist Danny McAuley screaming with conviction often unseen with modern metal acts. Musically, Matthew Phillips' guitar harmonies interweave with violent chords and  pummeling drums. Additionally, the demo is full of some powerful hooks, melodies, and brilliant solos that make this a must have for fans of melodic death metal. The most interesting aspect of the songwriting, however, is the use of motifs throughout the EP, creating continuity between tracks.

Melodic death metal fans looking for something new and fresh, look no further. It's short and sweet, but for just 3.45 Great British Pounds, you can't go wrong with this entry EP from newcomers Archetype.

Stream the entire EP for free at Myspace - I know, remember that? I wonder what Tom is up to.

Uh-oh, everyone's favorite nu-metal band is disbanding. Well, not completely, but apparently the drummer and DJ are out of the band. I guess no more solos in the band, right?

If you don't get the joke above, watch this cover of Metallica's Sanitarium.

Anyway, here are a couple of tweets from DJ Lethal:

"So far the only news I've heard is that fred has plans for a "new" limp bizkit which doesn't include [drummer]John Otto or I. I'm hoping for the best"

Read full article here.

They'll probably be replaced by a Macbook, so it's not all bad news. I'm sure it's more power efficient than all those heavy rigs. EARTH HOUR 2012!!!

Aerosmith? More like Aerosmithsonian... Get it? Cause they're old enough to be in museums LOLOLOL!!!1111

Anyway, they have a new album out. It has an old vibe to it (duh, their combined age is 1000), and...

"The camaraderie's there, there's some songs that are new rock, and old rock and middle-of-the-road rock, and blues, piano. Joe Perry singing a couple of songs, I'm playing the drums, Joey sings, just all kinds of stuff."

Read full article here.

They switched instruments? Awww, isn't that cute. Was it even intentional, or is it just old age?