The Final Post

Alright metalheads, this is the final post of “Into the Pit.” It has been a fucking killer past couple of years, but it is time to lay this blog to rest. So what was the point? Why did I do this in the first place? Well, let me explain.

I wanted this blog to serve as a guide for all things metal for the readers and writers of ACRN. The early posts of this blog were really focused on defining the sub-genres of heavy metal. Those posts should be used by readers and writers as a means to figure out exactly what kind of metal they are listening to.

Beyond that, I wanted this blog to serve as a modern commentary on the state of heavy metal. I live and breathe this genre of music. I have an encyclopedic knowledge of heavy metal. It’s my passion and I wanted to share my expertise with you, the readers.

Before I put this blog to rest for good, I thought I would make one final top five list. These are the five songs that I consider to be the HEAVIEST OF ALL TIME. Not necessarily the best, just the heaviest. Thank you, readers, for checking out my blog over the past few years. It has been real. Now here we fucking go!

Honorable Mention: Meshuggah - "Bleed"
No one forgets the first time they hear “Bleed.” The technical precision of the track is astounding. Beyond that, there is so much power behind the song. Meshuggah are out for blood and ready to fucking kill. The song is dark and comes from a real pit of despair. This is one of Meshuggah’s finest moments and absolutely one of their heaviest.  

5. Bloodbath - "Eaten"
Everything about this song screams “HEAVY!” The band’s name, the cover art for the record it’s on, the song’s name and its subject matter all make it unbelievably fucking powerful. The song is about getting eaten by a cannibal. Gore, blood and guts are the centerpiece of the song's lyrics. The music that compliments the lyrics and is just brutal. Peter Tagtgren and pals simply nail the delivery of "Eaten," and the song’s final moments are jaw-dropping. Stop what you are doing right now and check out this absolutely monstrous tune! 

4. At the Gates - "Slaughter of the Soul"
The first riff of "Slaughter of the Soul" is bloodcurdling. It’s so powerful and so intense. The song just builds from there. Tomas Lindberg’s terrifying shrieks and poetically deadly lyrics make this song an absolute monster. "Slaughter of the Soul" is timeless and a masterpiece of heavy metal.  

3. Behemoth - "Lucifer"
This song is from another world. It thrusts listeners into the depths of hell where they await their final judgment. It’s the little touches that make this song so thrilling and so captivating. The atmosphere is so immersive and so intricately crafted. Everything about this song is built around the world the band creates. "Lucifer" is a brutal song that will terrify even the toughest of listeners. 

2. Gojira - "The Heaviest Matter of the Universe"
This song could not be more appropriately named. Gojira understand what it takes to create a heavy song. They understand this more than any other band and that is why this tune is just so blisteringly powerful. This song just takes control of its listeners and forces them to mosh. Joe Duplantier leads listeners into madness from the stage as the song calls for a pit. This song has a groove that is so intense that it is hard not to lose control. Rock out to "The Heaviest Matter of the Universe" and just try not to lose yourself in the pure fucking metal! 

1. Strapping Young Lad - "Oh My Fucking God"
Do I even need to explain why this song is the HEAVIEST OF ALL TIME? Devin Townsend and his crew are fucking mad men. This is a song that is just pure passion. It’s controlled chaos in the finest of ways. Even the song’s chorus is heavy as hell. If you have never listened to "Oh My Fucking God" before, do yourself a favor and just take a moment to get annihilated by its ferocity.

US Summer Metal Festivals

Hey, metalheads! Summer is coming up, so this week we will talk about the few traveling metal festivals that are going to be making their annual circuits around the US in the coming months.

The big daddy of them all is the Rockstar Mayhem Festival. This festival has been around since 2008 and always boasts some of the most popular heavy metal acts around. This year the festival will take place solely in July and August. 

The Mayhem Festival will have four stages this year, giving more bands than ever before the opportunity to perform. The main stage will consist of Avenged Sevenfold, Korn, Asking Alexandria and Trivium. Meanwhile the side stages will have tons of other groups, the most noteworthy ones being Cannibal Corpse, Suicide Silence, Body Count and Emmure. 

Suicide Silence and Body Count are bound to be highly anticipated since Suicide Silence hasn’t toured much since their original vocalist passed away, and Body Count hasn’t been actively touring in a long time. Those two bands alone are bound to draw hordes of fans to the ever popular music festival.

Trespass America is the second big traveling US heavy metal festival. The festival is organized by Metal Hammer and Five Finger Death Punch. FFDP always headlines the tour and brings along some other popular mainstream metal groups. The tour made its first run in 2012 and it looks to be back again this year. If you’re a fan of Five Finger Death Punch, keep on the lookout for dates and supporting acts.

If mainstream metal isn’t really your thing, Summer Slaughter is going to be the festival that you are going to want to attend. Summer Slaughter began in 2001, but wasn’t that successful. It was brought back in 2007 and has continued every year since. The tour is known for boasting popular underground metal acts that are particularly brutal. Death metal is their specialty. The bands and dates of the festival have not yet been announced for 2014. The tour’s Facebook page has been teasing bands a lot recently, though. Expect an announcement rather soon.

Melodic Death Metal Revival

This week on “Into the Pit,” we are going to discuss the ongoing revival of melodic death metal. Several of the subgenre's most popular bands have put out comeback albums recently. The most exciting record may have yet to come, though. This fall, At the Gates is planning on releasing its first album in 19 years titled At War With Reality.

The release of At the Gates' hotly anticipated new record is coming at the perfect time. Melodic death meal has seen an insane resurgence in the last couple of years. Many new melodic death metal bands have made it into the heavy metal mainstream, whereas a lot of classic melodeath bands are experiencing comebacks. 

In Flames was a precursor to this trend. In 2011, the band released Sounds of a Playground Fading. While the album wasn’t a total return to form, it was still the best record In Flames had released in years. Hints of In Flames’ old style were definitely noticeable through tracks such as “Ropes” and “A New Dawn.” In Flames is currently working on a new record, which will hopefully be even better than their last.

Last year was a huge year for melodic death metal comeback records. The biggest of those releases was Carcass’ Surgical Steel. There were a ton of fans who never thought there would ever be a new Carcass record. Once the album was announced, the hype was unbearable. The expectations of metalheads were extreme, to say the least. When Surgical Steel was finally released it totally blew everyone away. It was one of the few instances of a record actually surpassing the crazy expectations set for it. Surgical Steel was the clear indicator that melodic death metal was about to enter a new glory age.

Releases from Dark Tranquillity, Hypocrisy and Children of Bodom last year also brought some life to the subgenre. Dark Tranquillity put out Construct, the band’s most experimental release in years. The album was a roaring success that pleased both critics and fans. Construct was without a doubt the band’s most acclaimed release since Character. It was a sign that the melodic death metal standards can still be tampered with while remaining in the confines of the subgenre. 

Hypocrisy’s End of Disclosure was a highly anticipated release of 2013. The album was criticized for being more of the same from the band, but was still generally praised. Hypocrisy has been one of the few melodic death metal bands that hasn't really declined throughout the years. The band has always stayed sharp, so having another above average release from them was a pleasure last year.

While creating End of Disclosure, Hypocrisy main man Peter Tagtgren was also busy producing the newest Children of Bodom record, Halo of Blood. Upon release, Halo of Blood was seen as a return to form for Children of Bodom. While it didn’t go completely back to the band’s neoclassical metal days, it pulled from that era, and was seen as a positive hybrid of styles.

Melodic death metal bands with cult followings have even put out great new releases recently. Arsis put out Unwelcome last year, which was seen as their comeback effort. Meanwhile, Wintersun released the first part of Time in 2012, which fans had been waiting eight years to hear. Time I was positively received and the second part should be out next year.

New popular melodic death metal bands who have certainly made their presence known include Battlecross and The Resistance. Battlecross is the big name going around right now. The band is receiving a lot of acclaim for its ability to combine melodic death metal and thrash metal. The Resistance is made up of In Flames’ old guitar team, Jesper Stromblad and Glenn Ljungstrom. Also featuring The Haunted’s vocalist Marco Aro, The Resistance released a gritty melodeath debut in the form of Scars. The album has received acclaim for being a bold display of power from these aging musicians. 

With impending releases from In Flames and At the Gates this year, melodic death metal as a subgenre is in a great place. This decade will surely be seen years from now as a melodic death metal revival. Sit back and enjoy it, metalheads, because it may be gone before you know it.