Kvelertak

Q&A: Kvelertak wants more…Kvelertak

Kvelertak: MeirKvelertak: Meir (Roadrunner, 3/26/13)

“Bruanne Brenn”

Kvelertak: “Bruane Brenn”

In 2010, metallic Norwegian sextet Kvelertak introduced its riff-heavy sludge ’n’ roll to a global audience via its self-titled, Kurt Ballou-produced debut, an 11-track monster that sounded equally fit for a house party as it was for the pit. Three years later, the band has refined and honed its sound, and on its Roadrunner Records debut, Meir — which boasts blast beats and Southern rock riffs in equal measure — Kvelertak has evolved into one of the heaviest rock-’n’-roll bands on the planet.

MP3 Premiere: Opera, heavy-metal drums, and dubstep bass drops in Chaostar’s “Truth Will Prevail”

Chaostar: AnomimaChaostar: Anomima (Season of Mist, 5/28/13)

“Truth Will Prevail”

Chaostar: Truth will Prevail

Opera and experimentation come together in Chaostar, a project whose impetus was Septicflesh guitarist Christos Antoniou’s desire to use a more “classical approach.” With his background in composition, the group released four orchestral albums before a hiatus in 2008. Returning, it started work on an operatic concept album built around the myth of Medea. Though it has since evolved, Anomima has kept that scope intact.

Punk-rap super-group The White Mandingos vs. #swag in “The Ghetto Is Tryna Kill Me”

The White MandingosThe White Mandingos:The Ghetto Is Tryna Kill Me (Fat Beats, 6/11/13)

Super-group The White Mandingos, comprised of rapper Murs, Bad Brains bassist Darryl Jenifer, and Ego Trip magazine founder Sacha Jenkins, is releasing its debut album, The Ghetto Is Tryna Kill Me, on Fat Beats in June. A concept album about a Harlem projects-dwelling rocker, it’s shaping up to be an incisive, satirical, and unique blast of dub-infused rap punk.

Retox redefines police brutality in gory video for “Mature Science”

Retox: YPLLRetox: YPLL (Epitaph, 5/7/13)

Manic punk band Retox is an intelligent machine made of unstable energy. And in the NSFW (unless you work in a butcher shop, I guess) new video for “Mature Science,” the band throws on leather jackets to hold court on a classic musical topic, previously pondered by groups like Black Flag, NWA, and Body Count: the police.