Doom metal has always been centered on the concepts of death, grief, and the cold denseness of life. These ideas are fully implemented into Swallow The Sun's latest gloomy spectacle, New Moon. The pace is agonizing, the mood is constantly sterile, and the lyrics are submerged in darkness. While the Finnish band's fondness for epic melodic doom metal is apparent, tempo changes and catchy songwriting surface in several key places.

While opener "These Woods Breathe Evil" has superb harmonic guitar work and an eccentric mix of deep bellows and raspy screams from vocalist Mikko Kotamäki, "Falling World" is an upbeat track with a sullen atmosphere. Kotamäki's clean vocals on "Falling World" are fantastic and brought to the forefront again during the powerful melodic title track. These two numbers introduce a streamlined - some may even call mainstream - sound to the band that is a nice contrast to the rest of New Moon.

Read the complete Swallow The Sun - New Moon Review

(CD cover courtesy Spinefarm Records)

The latest CD from the Swedish band Katatonia is Night Is The New Day, which is getting great reviews and is destined to appear on many best of 2009 lists. I caught up with the band's guitarist Anders Nyström, who is also in Bloodbath along with some of his Katatonia bandmates and members of Opeth. He gives the scoop on the new CD, the early days of Katatonia, the band's upcoming tour plans, and if his former band Diabolical Masquerade will get back together.

Chad Bowar: How has the band's sound progressed/evolved from The Great Cold Distance to Night Is The New Day?
Anders Nyström: Well, we definitely aimed to tear down a few walls on what people or even ourselves thought couldn't be done. Musically, I still think the direction takes off from where we left with The Great Cold Distance, but emphasizes on a lot more depth and atmosphere as cornerstones. The sound picture is therefore bigger, and there's a lot more stuff going on in the background. The album feels more dynamic and ranges from brutally heavy to swirling soft, not only between parts in one and the same song, but also from song to song.

It feels like a more progressive album as we're definitely not stranded at the same spot. We have a couple of songs that are a bit different like "Idle Blood" that takes on a more '70s approach with acoustic guitars, Fender Rhodes and mellotrone etc., and we have "Nephilim" which can be seen as a heavy doom metal tune. There's a few songs that reach fully into the electronic sound picture of our "Unfurl" sound that people came to love, and there's last but not least a few tracks that are heavier than ever bearing the Katatonia trademark. This album holds a lot of more variation, but within the walls of what is to be considered Katatonia, of course.

Read the complete Katatonia Interview

(photo courtesy Peaceville Records)

Doom metal has its origins in the early 70's, with heavy metal band Black Sabbath playing songs with slow riffing and dark, foreboding lyrics. In the '80s, bands like Saint Vitus, Trouble, and Candlemass took those elements and warped them into what became known as doom metal. The genre spanned out in the early '90s to include other musical genres, including death, thrash, and black metal to form a multitude of subgenres. Today, the genre is still going strong, especially in the underground scene. Check out our list of essential doom metal albums, and recommend ones you would add.

Essential Doom Metal Albums

(CD cover courtesy Pricegrabber)

As a two disc collection, Where Death Is Most Alive offers plenty of bang for the buck, for both old and new fans alike. Disc one features a massive live set filmed in Milan, Italy on Halloween night in 2008, which runs through the band's entire catalog, from the primitive demo days ("Yesterworld"), to the band's frenetic early years ("Edenspring", "Lethe", "Dreamlore Degenerate") and fully-fleshed present incarnation ("Misery's Crown," "The Treason Wall," "Focus Shift").

The rapturous Italian audience responds in kind, singing along to each word and melody while the band gives every ounce of energy back within their mesmerizing performance. Current Theatre Of Tragedy vocalist Nell Sigland offers her lovely 'n lilting voice to "The Mundane and The Magic"--taken from the DT's most recent Fiction opus--and The Mind's Eye classic "Insanity's Crescendo" as well, engaging in a touching and powerful duet with Tranquillity frontman Mikael Staane.

Read the complete Dark Tranquillity - Where Death Is Most Alive DVD Review

(DVD cover courtesy Century Media Records)

The cartoon Metalocalypse debuted a couple years ago, and immediately became a hit with both metal and non-metal fans. Creator Brendon Small is also a musician who writes and performs all the music. Dethalbum, featuring extended versions of music from the show was a big hit, and the recently released The Dethalbum II is doing even better. Dethklok are currently on the road with Mastodon, Converge and High On Fire. I caught up with Small before the show in Charlotte, NC and talked about the new season of Metalocalypse, the latest CD, his background in standup comedy and many other topics.

Chad Bowar: How has the tour been going so far?
Brendon Small: It's been really great. The crowds are really big, they are totally energetic, and we are spoiled rotten by how excited the audience is.

When you first started touring, what was the reality of life on the road compared to your expectations going in?
I thought it would be more difficult than it was. It ended up being a little more nice and easy. It's not like we're starting out as a band. We have this weird anomaly situation where it's a TV show, so it has this awareness. And so when we put a tour together we can book places because there's a TV show component and people understand that will sell tickets. That means we aren't going to be traveling in the back of a dump truck. It means we get a tour bus, which is really nice. They are like luxury cruise liners. There's wi-fi, satellite TV, and the bunks are easy to sleep in. I prefer this to my regular life producing a TV show. It affords me the ability to escape from my responsibilities on the show.

Read the complete Dethklok Interview
Dethklok - The Dethalbum II Review
Dethklok Concert Photos

(photo courtesy Chad Bowar/About.com)

Swedish power metallers Hammerfall will be returning to North America for a 2010 tour in support of their latest CD No Sacrifice, No Victory. The 27-show trek is set to launch in West Springfield, Virginia on March 5th with the finale planned for April 8th in Houston, Texas. Powerglove will be opening for the first 18 dates on the tour; Echoes Of Eternity will open the remainder of the tour.

Hammerfall and Powerglove Tour Dates:
03/05/10 Jaxx - W. Springfield, VA
03/06/10 The Palladium - Worcester, MA
03/07/10 The Fillmore @ Irving Plaza - New York, NY
03/09/10 The Trocadero - Philadelphia, PA
03/10/10 Club Soda - Montreal, QC - CANADA
03/11/10 Imperial - Quebec City, QC - CANADA
03/12/10 The Opera House - Toronto, ON - CANADA
03/13/10 Peabody's - Cleveland, OH
03/15/10 Metro - Chicago, IL
03/16/10 The Rave - Milwaukee, WI
03/18/10 Station 4 - St. Paul, MN
03/19/10 The West End Cultural Center - Winnipeg, MB - CANADA
03/21/10 Starlite Room - Edmonton, AB - CANADA
03/22/10 Warehouse - Calgary, AB - CANADA
03/23/10 The Venue - Vancouver, BC - CANADA
03/24/10 El Corazon - Seattle, WA
03/26/10 Grand Ballroom @ Regency Center - San Francisco, CA
03/27/10 House of Blues - Hollywood, CA

Hammerfall and Echoes Of Eternity Tour Dates:
03/28/10 House of Blues - San Diego, CA
03/30/10 House of Blues - Las Vegas, NV
03/31/10 The Galaxy Theatre - Santa Ana, CA
04/01/10 U.B's Bar - Mesa, AZ
04/02/10 The Rock - Tucson, AZ
04/04/10 Bluebird Theatre - Denver, CO
04/06/10 Trees - Dallas, TX
04/07/09 Emo's - Austin, TX
04/08/09 Meridian - Houston, TX

Tour Dates For Other Heavy Metal Artists

There are albums that are easy to describe because every song is similar, or maybe has one song that's a little different than their norm. Not so with Katatonia. The Swedish band is always pushing the envelope. Twists and turns await around every musical corner, with constant changes in tempo, intensity and texture. Each song on their eighth studio CD Night Is The New Day transforms frequently, making for a compelling and interesting listen.

Night Is The New Day gets off to a rousing start with "Forsaker." Heavy guitars give way to an acoustic section before kicking back in. Mellow and progressive sections ensue, along with more intense parts. "The Longest Year" veers into electronica, with synths and poppy sections alternating with more traditional metal.

Read the complete Katatonia - Night Is The New Day Review

(CD cover courtesy Peaceville Records)

Rammstein has been back in the news lately, particularly for their decision to shoot an explicit video to accompany the first single off the new album Liebe Ist Für Alle Da (love is for everyone). The album has been banned from public display in German stores because of the artwork and lyrical content. About.com spoke with guitarist Paul Landers about whether the video was a publicity stunt or an artistic statement; the difference between European and American audiences and if Rammstein can ever live up to the mainstream success of the hit single "Du Hast."

Justin M. Norton: How do you feel about the reception of the new album? It's been a few years since you've come out with new material.
Paul Landers: The feedback has been great. It's our sixth record and something we can be really proud of.

What was the band's mindset when you wrote this album? Was it written in the studio or was the material finished?
The writing process began after a one-year break. The plans were to go on a small tour and then go to the studio or to bring out a best-of record and tour on that. None of those ideas panned out. We ended up deciding to make a record without any touring in advance. It took a while for things to gel, but it wasn't long before things got intense. It was a long, arduous process, but also really pleasant.

It was interesting the way the band jammed on ideas. Instead of taking huge amps and monster drums, we took small amps and an electric drum kit. It allowed us to work on ideas and whole new range of sound that otherwise wouldn't have been possible recording at our normal volume.

Read the complete Rammstein Interview

(photo courtesy Vagrant Records)

There are a ton of combinations that seem awkward when put together: peanut butter and tuna fish; chocolate and scrambled eggs; Kid Rock and Pamela Anderson. So when it was announced that Mastodon would tour alongside Dethklok, there were a few eyebrows raised in the metal community. It is a strange pairing to say the least, but at Philadelphia's Electric Factory on November 1, 2009 the nonbelievers were cast aside, as the two bands put on a hell of a show. Backed by the sludge/doom griminess of High On Fire and the hardcore antics of Converge, the eccentric lineup delivered a great show on a chilly Sunday evening.

Read the complete Dethklok, Mastodon, Converge and High On Fire Concert Review

(photo courtesy Chad Bowar/About.com)

Between The Buried And Me will be launching a tour in January, 2010 in support of their latest CD The Great Misdirect. Joining BTBAM on the tour will be Cynic, Devin Townsend Project and Scale The Summit.

BTBAM, Devin Townsend Project, Cynic, Scale The Summit Tour Dates:
January 08th Nashville, TN - Rocketown
January 09th Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade
January 10th New Orleans, LA - The Masquerade
January 11th Houston, TX - The Meridian
January 12th Dallas, TX - The Prophet Bar
January 13th San Antonio, TX - The White Rabbit
January 15th Tempe, AZ - The Clubhouse
January 16th San Diego, CA - House Of Blues
January 17th Hollywood, CA - Sunset Strip
January 18th San Francisco, CA - Slim's
January 20th Denver, CO - Cervantes
January 22nd Louisville, KY - Headliners Music Hall
January 23rd Detroit, MI - Magic Stick
January 24th Chicago, IL - House Of Blues
January 25th Cleveland, OH - Peabody's Downunder
January 26th Toronto, ON - Opera House
January 27th Montreal, QC - Club Soda
January 28th Boston, MA - House Of Blues
January 29th Clifton Park, NY - Northern Lights
January 30th New York, NY - The Fillmore
January 31st Philadelphia, PA - Trocadero
February 01st Baltimore, MD - Sonar
February 03rd St. Peterburg, FL - State Theatre
February 06th Charlotte, NC - The Fillmore

Tour Dates For Other Heavy Metal Artists

(photo courtesy Victory Records)