MORE 2010 SICKNESS (Part 10)

Another month has passed. Another Halloween has come and gone. Here in Seattle, we are looking forward to what is supposed to be an especially wet, dark, cold, sucktastic winter — which is really saying something, given that all Seattle winters are wet, dark, cold, and sucktastic. If they weren’t, we would have the population of Los Angeles, so there’s a silver lining to that massively dark cloud.

Yes, the seasons come and they go, the great wheel of life rolls forward, and we are all one month closer to our end, whatever it may be. But as time inexorably passes, new things happen. In particular, we find out about new metal gestating in studios around the world, struggling and kicking and yearning to erupt into the air, screaming like a banshee.

And that brings us to another monthly installment of METAL IN THE FORGE, in which we cobble together a list of forthcoming new albums, cribbing like rag-gatherers and lint-pickers from PR releases and metal news sites like Blabbermouth in order to construct a line-up of new music that at least we’re interested in hearing, even if no one else is.

What we do in this series of posts is update the list of forthcoming new albums we first posted on January 1. (All the other updates can be found via the “Forthcoming Albums” category link on the right side of our pages.) After the jump, in alphabetical order, is a list of still more projected new releases we didn’t know about at the time of our previous updates, or new info about some of the previously noted releases.

AFTER THE BURIAL: “Minnesota quintet AFTER THE BURIAL will release its new album, In Dreams, on November 23 via Sumerian Records. Commented the band: ‘We’ve spent the last year putting all of our hard work into this album, and we can assure you that the intricate dynamics of In Dreams will satisfy your appetite for the crushing guitars, driving drums and powerful vocals you’ve come to expect from us.'”

AGALLOCH: “Pacific Northwest band AGALLOCH will release its new album, Marrow Of The Spirit, on November 23 via Profound Lore Records. A track from the CD, “The Watcher’s Monolith”, is available for streaming at Stereogum.com.”

AKELEI: “Dutch doomsters AKELEI will release their full-length debut, De Zwaarte Van Het Doorstane, at this year’s Dutch Doom Days festival, which is being held November 6-7 at Baroeg in Rotterdam, Holland. De Zwaarte Van Het Doorstane contains five songs with a running time of 54 minutes.For more information, visit Akelei.org.”

BELPHEGOR: “Austrian blackened death metal outfit BELPHEGOR has set Blood Magick Necromance as the title of its ninth full-length studio album, due on January 14, 2011 in Europe and on February 8, 2011 in the U.S. via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was produced by Peter Tägtgren (IMMORTAL, CELTIC FROST, HYPOCRISY, DIMMU BORGIR) at his Abyss Studios in Pärlby, Sweden and mastered by Jonas Kjellgren.”

BORN OF OSIRIS: “Born Of Osiris entered the studio late last month to begin recording their next album. Tracking has been taking place at BOTA Studio (Dirge Within) in Lake In The Hills, IL with an early-2011 release via Sumerian Records expected. As of Saturday the group had recorded six songs, with a total of fourteen planned.”

THE CHARIOT: “Georgia’s THE CHARIOT will release its new album, Long Live, on November 23 via the band’s new label, Good Fight Music. The CD was produced by Matt Goldman (UNDEROATH, MYCHILDREN MYBRIDE, FOUR LETTER LIE), who previously worked with THE CHARIOT on Wars And Rumors Of Wars (2009), The Fiancée (2007), Unsung EP (2005), and Everything Is Alive, Everything Is Breathing, Nothing Is Dead And Nothing Is Bleeding (2004).”

DEFILED: “Seven years after their last collaboration, Season of Mist and Defiled are joining forces again! The label is pleased to welcome back the Japanese death metallers in the fold. Irashaimasu! ‘Our long awaited new album, In Crisis is finally at hand’, band leader Yusuke Sumita comments. In Crisis, Defiled’s fourth full-length, has been scheduled for a January 17th, 2011 (January 25th in the US) release. Expect nothing but pure technical and brutal death metal!”

EKTOMORF: “Hungarian extreme metallers EKTOMORF will release their new album, Redemption, on December 17 via AFM Records. The CD was recorded at Antfarm studios in Århus, Denmark with producer Tue Madsen, who has previously worked with DARK TRANQUILLITY, THE HAUNTED and HEAVEN SHALL BURN, among others.”

EXHUMED: “Gore-metal originators Exhumed are currently in the studio recording their first full-length album since 2003’s Anatomy Is Destiny. Exhumed guitarist/vocalist/founder Matt Harvey, bassist Leon DelMuerte and guitarist Wes Caley are currently at Arcane Digital Recording in Arizona working with engineer Ryan Butler (Misery Index) to record vocals, bass and guitar tracks. Exhumed drummer Danny Walker previously laid down his drum tracks at Trench Studios with John Haddad (Abysmal Dawn, Intronaut). Mixing and mastering will be handled by Brian Elliott (Graves Of Valor) at Mana Recording Studios (Cannibal Corpse, Goatwhore, Nile). All Guts, No Glory is expected to see a spring 2011 release date.”

GOD DETHRONED: “Under The Sign Of The Iron Cross, the title track of the new album from Dutch death metallers GOD DETHRONED, is available for streaming at this location. The CD was recorded at the Soundlodge Studios in Leer, Germany and will be released on November 23 (one day earlier internationally) via Metal Blade Records.”

GORGOROTH: “Norweigian black metallers GORGOROTH have issued the following update: ‘GORGOROTH will spend the following week in [drummer] Tomas Asklund‘s Monolith Studio to put the finishing touches on a project which has been kept secret until now: a complete re-recording of the band’s third album, Under The Sign Of Hell. It has long been Infernus‘ [guitar] wish to do such a re-recording, and now the work is close to an end. No release date has been set yet, but an early-to-mid-2011 release is likely.'”

IMPALED NAZARENE: “‘Enlightenment Process’, the new video from Finnish extreme metallers IMPALED NAZARENE, can be viewed [here]. The clip was written and directed by Aki Mäki and Aski Tolonen for Filmokratik. The song comes off the band’s eleventh full-length album, Road To The Octagon, which is scheduled for release on November 20 via Osmose Productions.”

JESU: “Hydra Head Records has confirmed plans to release Jesu’s latest on November 16th. Titled Heart Ache & Dethroned, the effort is comprised of a re-release of Jesu’s debut EP, Heart Ache, in addition to their recently completed Dethroned EP. Notably, the four tracks from Dethroned were actually conceived and partially finished in 2004, but not totally completed until earlier this year.”

MILKING THE GOATMACHINE: “German grindcore/death metal act MILKING THE GOATMACHINE will release its sophomore studio album, Seven… A Dinner for One, on November 26 via the band’s new label home, NoiseArt Records. The follow-up to 2009’s Back From The Goats… is said to be a concept effort about ‘the wolf and the seven kids’ and will contain the song “Like A Goatmachine”, which is apparently a remake of the JAMES BROWN classic “Like A Sex Machine”.”

MY FUNERAL: “Finnish thrashers MY FUNERAL will release their debut album, Carnal Obduction, on November 10 via Violent Journey Records. The CD was recorded at Studio Watercastle by Arttu Sarvanne and was mastered by Hannu Honkonen at Studio Noisework.”

MYGRAIN: “Finnish melodic death metallers MYGRAIN will release their third, self-titled album on January 12, 2011 via Spinefarm Records. The CD was recorded at Seawolf Studios in Helsinki with producer Janne Joutsenniemi (SUBURBAN TRIBE, STONE) and was mixed and mastered by Dan Swanö (EDGE OF SANITY, BLOODBATH, NIGHTINGALE) at Unisound studios in Örebro, Sweden.”

ONE MAN ARMY AND THE UNDEAD QUARTET: “The Dark Epic, the fourth full-length album from ONE MAN ARMY AND THE UNDEAD QUARTET — the Swedish band featuring former THE CROWN vocalist Johan Lindstrand — will be released in Europe on February 25, 2011. The CD is currently being recorded at Black Lounge studios in Avesta, Sweden with producer Jonas Kjellgren (SCAR SYMMETRY, CARNAL FORGE).”

PITCHBLACK: “Danish modern ‘melodeath thrashers PITCHBLACK have posted 30-second audio samples of all the songs that will appear on their second album, The Devilty, tentatively due in early 2011 via an as-yet-undetermined record label. The CD was recorded at guitarist Thomas “Pede” Pedersen‘s Earplug Studio in Copenhagen and was mixed and mastered by Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, SICK OF IT ALL,MNEMIC, HEAVEN SHALL BURN).”

SAMAEL: “Swiss industrial black metallers SAMAEL have signed a North American deal with Season of Mist. The band’s new EP, Antigod, will be released on November 19 as a digital download exclusive.”

SCALE THE SUMMIT: “Houston, Texas-based progressive-instrumetalists SCALE THE SUMMIT have entered Paint It Black Studios in Orlando, Florida with producer Mark Lewis (DEVILDRIVER, ALL THAT REMAINS, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER) to begin recording their new album for an early 2011 release via Prosthetic Records.”

SODOM: “The digipack version of In War And Pieces, the new album from German thrash metal veterans SODOM, features the following:  CD 1: the studio album; CD 2: bonus live CD (Wacken 2007); 16-page booklet. In War And Pieces will be released in North America on January 11, 2011 and in Europe on November 22, 2010 via SPV/Steamhammer.”

THENCE: “THENCE, the new Finnish band featuring SHADE EMPIRE members Juha Sirkkiä and Erno Räsänen, will release its debut album, These Stones Cry From The Earth, in late 2010/early 2011 via an as-yet-undetermined record label. The drum tracks for the CD were laid down in 2009 by Sami Niittykoski (SHADE EMPIRE, SILENTIUM, MORIA). The album, which is a nearly hour-long epic consisting of only one song. was mixed by Aksu Hanttu (ENTWINE, POISONBLACK, KORPIKLAANI) and mastered by Hannu Honkonen at Noisework Productions.”

THULCANDRA: “THULCANDRA — the reactivated German black/death metal band featuring members of OBSCURA, DARK FORTRESS and HELFAHRT — has issued the following update: ‘We are very proud to announce that we have almost completed the songwriting process for our upcoming release, which will be entitled Under A Frozen Sun.”

YES: “Grammy Award winners YES, one of the most influential and groundbreaking progressive rock and roll bands, has announced the signing of a new worldwide recording deal with the Italian record label Frontiers Records. Songs such as “Roundabout”, “I’ve Seen All Good People”,“Owner Of A Lonely Heart”, and countless others, have served to place the group upon the pantheon of rock and roll history. But history is still, yet to be written, because Steve Howe, Chris Squire and Alan White, along with Oliver Wakeman (Rick Wakeman‘s son) and new lead singer Benoit David, will enter the studio to record the groups first new CD in a decade. It is anticipated for release before summer 2011.”