Carl Begai

Fasten your seatbealts for another year. And with it comes more noise to piss off the neighbours, annoy the kids, and make your significant think very seriously about soundproofing his or her personal space…

As most people know, Woods Of Ypres frontman and founder David Gold was killed in a car accident on December 21st, 2011. It’s a tragic loss for his family, friends, any anyone that was a fan of his music.

I’ve posted a tribute to David, who was a good friend. It can be found here.

David’s family is selling the remaining Woods merchandise on hand, with all proceeds going directly to fund his funeral costs. Items remaining are as follows:

- Woods 1
- Woods 2
- Woods 3
- Independent Nature (Best Of Woods 1-3)
- signed Allure vinyl
- signed Home vinyl
- poster

Send your order along with your shipping address to David’s PayPal address at davidypresgold@gmail.com. Note that his sister Marie is in charge of all orders, so this is 100% legitimate. (continue reading…)

By Carl Begai

When a press person sings the praises of a band or artist in a public forum, it’s a safe bet that swag is involved. Every music journo has done it at some point, thinking “I scratch your back, you give me a free (insert item or sexual favour here)” until he or she realizes / remembers it’s supposed to be about the music first and personal gain last.

With the above in mind, I’ve shamelessly pushed and promoted My Ruin to anybody withing spitting distance for the better part of two years… and believe me, I’m a projectile saliva expert at this point. My efforts haven’t been in the interest of adding wearable aggressive blasphemy to my wardrobe, however. Nope; I just happen to be a My Ruin fanboy, dating back to the late ’90s and vocalist Tairrie B. Murphy’s first real metal edged smackdown, Tura Satana. And oddly enough, after years of silence we reconnected somewhere along the way and became friends. Thus, any stories, reviews, thoughts, musings or dirty jokes based on My Ruin’s brand of noise were spawned by that friendship.

Yeah, tough guy, so what? Big deal.

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By Carl Begai

On November 25th and 26th, Hamburg-based AFM Records celebrated 15 years in the trenches. It was a remarkably well-organized weekend of work and play, featuring fine dining, an open bar (or two), great people, an early morning label showcase to introduce new AFM signings (that not everybody attended due to the late late late night), a hotel bar that never closed (and was abused accordingly.. all hail Motel One), culminating with a festival at the Markthalle in the heart of downtown. Rather than the usual cattle call of press hacks, the vast majority of folks invited to attend were in fact AFM business partners, responsible for keep the label in people’s faces over the last several years. Being one of the aforementioned journalists, it was an honour to be asked to come out on behalf of BW&BK for the whole knock-down-drag-out event, and it was certainly worth the time spent.

On the work end of things, the label presented priority releases for early 2012, including German glamsters Kissin’ Dynamite, Orden Ogan, Lyriel, Solution .45, Fear Factory, Buck Satan And The 666 Shooters (industrial country… really) and of particular note, Ministry’s comeback record, Relapse. This included a special video message from frontman / mastermind Al Jourgensen, and two tracks that are the closest Ministry will (n)ever get to a ballad.

As for the play side – other than the carrying on like kids in a candy store backstage – the Markthalle hosted 15 AFM bands on two stages, including U.D.O., The New Black, Voodoo Circle, Mob Rules, A Life Divided, Dark Age and Lake Of Tears. Doro Pesch, a former member of the label’s roster, attended in a strictly non-performance capacity but took plenty of time out for her fans backstage. As did Piet Sielck of Iron Savior fame, who soaked up U.D.O.’s show with us normal folk. And staff members from some of AFM’s international partners – INgrooves.com, Soundforge Music Group, Scream Magazine, Tangra Mega Rock Radio to name a few – kept the good vibes up in the rafters from the first glass of champagne. (continue reading…)

While you recover from those idiotic Christmas carols that did your head in the last time you were out shopping, some info on new quality Canadian noise guaranteed to give Santa a reason to skip your house this year…

Ultimate garage rocker Danko Jones, who just happens to have a huge metal-loving fanbase in Europe, has issued a new five-song EP entitled Mouth To Mouth as a digital-only release. Three of the tracks – ‘Rock ‘N’ Roll Proletariat’, ‘The Kids Don’t Want To Rock’, ‘Guest List Blues’ – have surfaced over the last couple years as b-sides, while ‘She’s Too Pretty’ and ‘Mouth To Mouth’ are previously unreleased must-have songs if you’re a diehard fanboy/girl. An audio player featuring the latter two tracks is available at the bottom of this update.

In addition, Danko will hit the stage for a spoken word set at the Wacken Open Air 2012, which is set to take place August 2nd – 4th in Wacken, Germany. As of today the festival was officially sold out, so anyone who doesn’t have tickets will have to content with watching his performance during the online simulcast. (continue reading…)

Yeah, about a week early, but I’m planning on going out as Silent Bob for Halloween and have to practice not talking shit. So, before I take my vow of quietude…

Eclipse Eternal – home town T.O. black metal skull crushers and a favourite of Swedish producer-to-the-gods Fredrik Nordstrom – have signed with Archaic North Records and will release their new album, The Essence of Hopelessness, on January 14th, 2012 (cover art can be viewed on the left). The band returned to ex-Megadeth guitarist Glen Drover’s Eclipse Studio for the recordings, and according to the pre-release hype sheet it’s going to be the sort of chaos-driven smackdown fans are expecting:

“They have delved into their innermost suffering and wrenched forth an album that is both poignant and memorable. From cold atmospheres to absolute chaos, from acoustic and spoken word interludes to ripping shredding, this album is as brutal as it is stirring.”

So, take that as you will, but past experience has taught me that anything Eclipse Eternal releases rips metal trendies like Dimmu Borgir and Cradle Of Filth to shreds. (continue reading…)

For you Hoser-loving heathens…

First off, unless you’ve been living under the weight of a large rock and your own self-importance, you’re aware that former Skid Row vocalist Sebastian Bach has released his new album, Kicking & Screaming. (Yes, yes, I know he lives in the U.S., but Doodness grew up in Peterborough, Ontario and cut his teeth in Toronto). As I mentioned in my review (found here), the record didn’t do anything for me during the first spin, but it won me over and has since become a regular listen in the hallowed halls of BW&BK’s European crash pad. Apologies to Baz for my initial misgivings, but the album is a brilliant piece of work. If you were ever a fan of the Skid Row debut and Slave To The Grind, pick it up.

Check out my illustrious BW&BK colleague Aaron Small’s recent interview with Bach here. (continue reading…)

Back in February, folks with discerning taste in Canadian rock had lots to talk about. Hands down one of our country’s best kept and severely underrated secrets – kept in the limelight thanks to frontman Hugh Dillon’s successful acting career – the Headstones reunited for a number of select shows, putting an end to eight years of silence. The band’s hometown show in Toronto at the Sound Academy is one of those gigs that anyone who claims to be a diehard fan will swear to having been in the audience. I will gladly lie to your face and say I was in the front row.

Sadly, I couldn’t be there as I was out of the country, which sucks beyond words.

It was a momentous occasion because the Headstones were easily (and remain) one of the most original acts to come out of the Canadian music scene. The reunion shows went over a storm and then some, to the point that, all these months later, they’ve committed themselves to a project that lifers like myself have been clamouring for:

“Make no mistake, you’ve kickstarted the machine. The next record is a direct result of that wave of interaction. You made us remember what the fuck it is we do.” (continue reading…)

By Carl Begai

The remaining members of legendary Toronto club band Slash Puppet, who were a fixture on the Canadian scene from 1989 – 1995, paid tribute to late guitarist Lou Garscadden on August 4th, marking 10 years since his passing. He was 36 years old.

The band issued the following statement:

“Ten years ago, Toronto, Canada, and the world lost a phenomenal guitar player and a true rock star when Louis Peter Garscadden passed away on August 4, 2001. It is truly unfortunate that more people the world over were not able to experience his obvious and overwhelming talents as a guitar player and his warmth and charm as a unique personality. A true original, and a true rock star who deserved a hell of a lot of more notoriety than he ever received. One of the best… period.”

No Strings Attached, a CD version of Slash Puppet’s 1989 demo tape known as The Demo, was issued through Sun City Records out of Australia on September 3rd, 2007. I caught up with frontman Mif for BW&BK to discuss what was an unexpected release, and during the course of the interview he addressed Garscadden’s tragic passing: (continue reading…)

Hails, hosers! For those that care about metal happenings in the first nation of poutine and disgraceful postal “service”, read on…

Calgary-based Kobra And The Lotus – a band that I loved to hate once upon a time – recently released a video for the new song ‘Welcome To My Funeral’, the second track featured on their forthcoming album, Visionary. To say that big things are brewing in the Kobra camp is an understatement, as the video showcases a much darker and heavier side of the band. While their metal roots have never been in doubt given the old school approach of their debut, Out Of The Pit, folks that are expecting the same will be pleasantly surprised by the new and improved sound. Vocalist Brittany Paige’s voice has gone through a startling transformation, as she’s ditched what she calls her “character voice” for a deeper and rich natural voice. No operatic crap, no worries. Just… balls. Not the first thing you think of when you see the lovely lady, but you get my meaning.

Stay tuned for an interview with Ms. Paige, coming soon. In the meantime, check out the new video here. (continue reading…)

Some loud and obnoxious activity in and coming out of Japan these days; check out the rundown below. And for the record, we finish things off with an exclusive X Japan-related history lesson…

Veteran bashers Anthem are gearing up for the release of their new album, Heraldic Device, due to hit shelves (yes, I still have a record store mentality) in July. Fans outside Japan can pre-order it here. This marks the band’s 14th studio album since 1985 and in reportedly in the vein as their last few records. So, no big surprises, but a guarantee of quality shred.

Click here for the complete tracklist and the band’s tour schedule for Japan. No word as to whether Heraldic Device will receive an official release outside Japan, but it’s doubtful considering they haven’t had one since No Smoke Without Fire in 1990.

X Japan are due to release their first ever internationally distributed single, ‘Jade’, on June 28th in all available digital formats. Live recordings of the song have been plastered all over YouTube for months, and I believe a rough studio mix is floating around as well, but a properly mixed sample of ‘Jade’ is now available at this location. The song is the precursor to X Japan’s full length international debut, which is still a work in progress at the moment.

In the meantime, check out my interview with drummer / founder Yoshiki, conducted in the fall last year, available in two parts here and there.
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