WHAT WE'RE WATCHING: I'm Now: The Story of Mudhoney to be released on DVD February 19

Here at ChiIL Live Shows we've been fans of Mudhoney since waaaaay back in the day.   We can't wait to get our hands on I'm Now!  Order yours today. King of Hearts Productions will release the long-awaited, much-anticipated, documentary film I'M NOW: The Story of Mudhoney. I'M NOW follows Mudhoney's 25-year career, from their early beginnings in the Pacific Northwest through the band's most recent world tour. Complete with testimonials from friends, music industry veterans, and musicians such as Pearl Jam's Stone Gossard & Jeff Ament, Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore & Kim Gordon, Soundgarden's Kim Thayil, Sub Pop's Jonathan Poneman, and the band themselves, the film is the ultimate document of one of the world's most influential and beloved rock bands. The film was directed by Ryan Short and Adam Pease. "I'M NOW  is like Citizen Kane, but with more Grunge!" - Ryan Short (director / producer) 5 out of 5 Stars - Film Threat "Honest, funny, sad, and ultimately, really inspiring" - Susie Tennant     3 1/2 out of 4 stars - Seattle Times     "Highly recommended" - The Stranger

UPON WINGS to Release Afterlife EP Featuring Brett Hestla (Ex-Creed, Dark New Day)

We dig it when classically trained musicians come over to the dark side and kick it up a notch with punk, metal & alternative bands.   Most of our favorite heavy bands feature mash ups of sax, or strings more often heard in other musical genres.   Sound intriguing?  Check out Upon Wings. UPON WINGS combines operatic, female-fronted goth-pop with rousing rock and metal in a unique, ethereal fashion. Frontwoman Anne Autumn Erickson is a classically-trained dramatic mezzo-soprano, and her lyrics take listeners down a path of heartfelt introspection, pain, joy and faith. New Song Available for Streaming!  The EP's debut single and title track is set to hit alternative and rock radio and digital outlets on Jan. 15, but you can hear it first today courtesy of Noisecreep. Head HERE to check out an exclusive stream of the title track "Afterlife". UPON WINGS is proud to announce the release of their new EP, Afterlife, featuring guest vocals and production from Brett Hestla (Ex-Creed, Dark New Day). Afterlife is scheduled for a March 5th release on Sword of the Spirit Records LLC. Rock and metal fans will recognize plenty of names on "Afterlife." Kid Rock recording engineer and Grammy-nominated mixing engineer Glenn Brown mastered the single, while Brett Hestla (ex-Creed, Dark New Day) provided guest vocals and production talents. More metal assistance for the upcoming EP came from producer and guitarist Kevin Jardine, best known as the guitarist of Canadian nu metal giants Slaves on Dope, formerly on Ozzy and Sharon Osbourne's Divine Recordings label. Drummer Peter Tzaferis also contributed to the EP. Recording sessions for "Afterlife" took place at Johnny K's legendary Groovemaster Studios in Chicago, where Disturbed, 3 Doors Down, Staind and countless other heavy music-makers have laid down tracks. For More Info Visit: http://uponwings.com/  http://www.facebook.com/UponWings  https://twitter.com/UponWings  http://www.youtube.com/uponwingsofficial

RECOVERY COUNCIL Launches CD "Into Space" With Release Show #heavyrock

New Album Plan-Do-Check-Act Due Out January 15th on Dot Ultra Records "...Thought-provoking yet raucous" -Sea of Tranquility

All systems go for New Jersey-based heavy rock trio RECOVERY COUNCIL as they prepare for the release of their third studio album, Plan-Do-Check-Act, January 15th on Dot Ultra Records. The band has confirmed a special CD Release Show on January 25th at the RVCC Planetarium in Branchburg, NJ, where they will play the album in its entirety to a laser show under a dome of night sky. Their mission was to find a venue that would support the geek caché befitting of an album entitled Plan-Do-Check-Act. Frontwoman Rebeca Qualls explains: "We wanted to celebrate the release with a bit of sparkle, but in a way that also reflected on our nature as a band. I thought the planetarium would be perfect because it exhibits a type of scientific creativity that everyone can appreciate. Putting on a laser light show along with live music makes for an audiovisual experience like no other, and it quite possibly may be as close as we'll get to a concert in space!" The first single from Plan-Do-Check-Act entitled "Recourse" is available for streaming HERE, courtesy of Noisecreep. RECOVERY COUNCIL is Qualls on guitar and vocals, along with New Jersey native Jeff Trenholm on drums and Dominican Republic-born Isidro Santos on bass. Since becoming a band in 2011, their collective influences across the spectrum of post-punk, metal, progressive, and grunge genres have lent themselves to their rhythm-driven, melodic style. Plan-Do-Check-Act captures a moment in time where the three musicians' unique styles and backgrounds perfectly intersect as a cohesive whole. RECOVERY COUNCIL will be hitting the road throughout the winter showcasing music from Plan-Do-Check-Act. A current listing of shows can be found below. RECOVERY COUNCIL Live: 1/17: Levittown, PA @ Roadhouse Inn 1/25: Branchburg, NJ CD Release Show @ RVCC Planetarium 2/2: Allentown, PA @ Jimmy's Place 2/7: Philadelphia, PA @ JR's Bar 2/16: New York, NY @ Desmond's Tavern 3/1: New London, CT @ El N Gee 3/2: Haverhill, MA @ RG's Pub 3/24: Gloucester City, NJ @ ICAC Club For More Info Visit: http://www.recoverycouncilmusic.com/  http://www.facebook.com/recoverycouncil

Brand New--CLUTCH Unleash Title Track From Earth Rocker #metal

European Tour Starts January 22nd    Here at ChiIL Live Shows, Clutch has been one of our favorites for years.   Usually we put the ipod on shuffle and let it go, but earlier this week we were on an all Clutch bender for a couple of days.   So, I was extra stoked to see the title track off Earth Rocker land in my in box and to be able to share it with our readers!    We have an exclusive video interview with Neil Fallon, live pit photos from their recent tour with Prong and more, coming soon...so check back with ChiIL Live Shows like we vote in Chi, IL...early and often. Before heading to Europe to kick of the first leg of the Earth Rocker world tour, CLUTCH is giving fans a chance to hear the title track and first single from their new album. The band has teamed up with Brooklyn Vegan for an exclusive world premiere of "Earth Rocker". Brooklyn Vegan is a tastemaker blog highlighting indie rock and metal that's expanded far outside of its NYC beginnings. Get a first listen of the track and check out an interview with guitarist Tim Sult HERE. With a little bit more than three months left before the release of CLUTCH's highly anticipated new studio effort Earth Rocker, the band has announced the initial dates for the first leg of the North American Earth Rocker world tour. The dates kick off March 8th in Cincinnati, OH and are currently slated to run through March 24th in Anaheim, CA.   Support on these dates will be provided by Orange Goblin, Lionize and Kyng. Tickets are on sale now! Look for more dates to be announced in the coming weeks. CLUTCH recently unveiled the artwork for Earth Rocker. The artwas created by Nick Lakiotes, long time CLUTCH art director, who has worked on previous efforts including:  Robot Hive/Exodus and Strange Cousins From the West. Fans can keep up on the progress of Earth Rocker by visiting the new website www.earthrocker.com. The website is a hub dedicated to all things Earth Rocker. Fans can expect to see frequent updates including photos, videos from the studio, song title announcements and samples of new songs. In addition to the new website CLUTCH has joined the world of twitter. Follow CLUTCH on Twitter @ClutchOfficial. Earth Rocker European Tour 1/21: Press Day in London, UK 1/22: London, UK @ Koko - SOLD OUT! 1/23: Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg - Tickets  1/24: Press Day in Paris, FR 1/25: Paris, FR @ La Maroquinerie - SOLD OUT! 1/26: Stuttgart, GER @ Universum - SOLD OUT!  1/27: Munchen, GER @ Backstage Club - SOLD OUT!  1/28: Press Day in Berlin, GER 1/29: Berlin, GER @ Lido - SOLD OUT!  1/30: Press Day in Cologne, GER 1/31: Cologne, GER @ Luxor - Tickets  2/1: Brussels, BE @ VK - Tickets  2/2: Hamburg, GER @ Logo - SOLD OUT! 2/3: Copenhagen, DK @ Amager Bio - Tickets  2/4: Press Day in Oslo, NO 2/5: Oslo, NO @ Parkteateret -  SOLD OUT! 2/6: Press Day in Stockholm, SWE 2/7: Stockholm, SWE @ Tyrol - Tickets  Earth Rocker North American Tour 3/8: Cincinnati, OH @ Bogart's - Tickets  3/9: Nashville, TN @ Marathon Music Works - Tickets  3/10: Sauget, IL @ Pop's - Tickets  3/11: Little Rock, AR @ Juanita's Cantina Ballroom - Tickets  3/12: Tulsa, OK @ Cain's Ballroom - Tickets  3/14: Dallas, TX @ Palladium Ballroom - Tickets  3/18: Colorado Springs, CO @ The Black Sheep - Tickets  3/19: Salt Lake City, UT @ The Depot - Tickets  3/21: Los Angeles, CA @ House of Blues - Tickets  3/22: Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee - Tickets  3/23: Las Vegas, NV @ Hard Rock Café Las Vegas Strip - Tickets  3/24: Anaheim, CA @ House of Blues - Tickets  Follow CLUTCH on Twitter @ClutchOfficial  Like CLUTCH on Facebook  For More Info Visit: http://www.earthrocker.com http://www.pro-rock.com http://weathermakermusic.com/ http://www.clutchmerch.com

KLAUS SCHULZE New Album Shadowlands Delayed Until March 2013 in North America

Due to unforeseeable health issues and the resulting delays in production, we have to postpone the release of the upcoming album Shadowlands by KLAUS SCHULZE for one month.

The new release dates of Shadowlands are as follows:

Germany: Feb 22nd, 2013

Europe: Feb. 25th, 2013

USA: March 26th, 2013

"Keep driving down the forest track," KLAUS SCHULZE directs me, "until you think you've come to the end. From there it's another three kilometres." In second gear there's just enough time to listen to half a track from the new album by this seminal artist. Schulze is standing waving in front of his house somewhere in the heathland forests of Lower Saxony. So this is where it's conceived, that electronic music that has made Berlin-born Schulze an iconic musician since he founded Ash Ra Tempel some 40 years ago, developing his own art form as a communicative hermit after his stint behind the drum kit of Tangerine Dream.

Not even Schulze himself knows the exact number of albums recorded and released by him, it must be somewhere between 200 and 500, some of them sounding almost like identical twins, others not even seeming to belong to the same family. Schulze is the only musician from the legendary Krautrock era to have preserved his absolute freedom in terms of formats. His new opus Shadowlands consists of three tracks with a total playing time of 75 minutes on the first CD. "And on the bonus CD," says Schulze, "there are two tracks, one of them 55 minutes long and the other one 20 minutes or so." He simply doesn't know how to keep it short, the 65-year-old laughs. And he doesn't want to, either. Because he simply can't think of a good reason for doing so. And that's all there is to it.

Perhaps this is why his sonic sculptures, which are usually created by Schulze alone and only very rarely with the support of a few select co-musicians, hold so much fascination for their listeners. Schulze was a pioneer on the Moog, and when he looked at the millions of revellers at the Berlin Love Parade some 15 years ago, one of the organisers told him: "All of this is your fault!" He refused to be monopolised, preferring to settle down behind his custom-made electronica in his crimson-carpeted studio, developing new sounds which seemed like the first contact between Planet Earth and outer space.

"Sure, there are sonic aesthetics which have developed over years," agrees Schulze. "In the beginning, I twiddled the knobs and didn't really know what was about to happen, but after a while everything fell into place." He points out that there are few musicians to have recorded whole albums using a Moog. "Usually there's also an organ or a guitar or something else, but not on my albums. Those sequencer things with filter modulation are pretty typical for me. Sometimes I wonder why others don't do this kind of thing, but I enjoy doing it to this day. It's become a stylistic device for me."

And he has a few of those up his sleeve: your average Massive Attack fan would be more than happy to move on the dancefloor to the sound of "Weird Caravan" from Schulze's 1980 album "Dig It". 1996 saw the arrival of "Are You Sequenced?", a Schulze album which would go down well at a techno club at five in the morning. And Shadowlands fits in everywhere. KLAUS SCHULZE is pretty relaxed when it comes to his own status or that of his music: "Trends and fashions come and go," he comments, smiling. "Disco was one of them; techno was another, slightly more significant one. It enhanced the status of electronic music, which used to be considered a musical direction for highly specialised music fans." However, he does consider techno to be more superficial than "what we did years ago, but that's normal: if you make music for the masses, you're bound to become superficial. The more specific you are, away from the common denominator, the more you remain an outsider." In his case, the playing time of his songs is enough to set him apart. "Who would air 45-minute tracks on the radio? There are only a few aficionados left for whom the origins of electronic music date back to me, Tangerine Dream and Kraftwerk, in other words to the Seventies," but the majority of young music fans don't realise this. "They simply don't know - and they don't have to know. If they happen to hear it, they're meant to enjoy it and not start researching."

Shadowlands features, probably for the umpteenth time, a slightly different Klaus Schulze. One of the reasons for this is the fact that violinist Thomas Kagermann accompanied him for the second time since "Contemporary Works" (2000). 

Is he aware of the image which surrounds him and his music? "No, I really have no idea, I steer clear of such considerations," Schulze parries. "Martin Gore of Depeche Mode told me not so long ago that I am a hero for him; with me, that kind of thing goes in one ear and out the other." 

He doesn't like to be referred to as a pioneer of electronic music "because that always brings to mind some kind of Boy Scout camp. I made my music back then because I enjoyed it, not because I wanted to do something that nobody had done before. I simply embarked on a search, the outcome of which has never been clear to me and hasn't become any clearer to this day." That sounds like there could be a whole lot more albums by KLAUS SCHULZE in the pipeline. In other words - it sounds good.

For More Info Visit:

http://www.klaus-schulze.com/

http://www.spv.de

Swedish Rockers MUSTACH to Release Sounds Like Hell, Looks Like Heaven February 26th on Metalville Records #metal

It's quite impressive what MUSTACH has achieved: seven albums, a huge hit with "Double Nature", sold-out tours of Scandinavia, opening- and headline tours with Motörhead, Gluecifer and cult-band Rose Tattoo in Europe as well as three Swedish Grammy Nominations and a Grammy Award for "Metal Album of the Year" in 2008. After all this, the band reached a turning point. It would be full speed ahead focusing on the band or nothing at all. No half-hearted solutions, no compromises. All or nothing! "That's the way I work as a person, Ralf Gyllenhammar (guitarist/vocalist) explains over a cup of coffee a Tuesday morning in Stockholm. Drunk or sober, angry or happy, all or nothing, there are no in-betweens in my world." This time Ralf Gyllenhammar sat firmly in the producer´s chair, Martin Westerstrand did the artwork and Stefan Glaumann (Rammstein, Paradise Lost, Within Temptation) mixed the tracks. Sounds Like Hell, Looks Like Heaven already has gold achieved gold status in Sweden. With the new drummer, Jejo Perkovid, MUSTACH bring their straight forward Heavy Rock to the rest of the world! In addition the 2011 10th anniversary album The New Sound of the True Best is released by Metalville Records at the same time MUSTACH Lineup: Ralf Gyllenhammar - Vocals and Rhythm Guitar David Johannesson - Lead Guitar Stam Johansson - Bass Guitar Jejo Perkovid - Drums Sounds Like Hell, Looks Like Heaven Tracklisting: 1. Speed Metal 2. The Challenger 3. It's Never Too Late 4. Cold Heart Mother Son 5. Morning Star 6. Dead Again 7. Your Father Must be Proud of You 8. Destroyed by Destruction 9. I Don't Hate You 10. Northern Link For More Info Visit: http://www.mustasch.net/ http://www.metalville.de/

TONIGHT CHI, IL LIVE SHOWS ON OUR RADAR: At Township--My Jerusalem

My Jerusalem is the new project of lead singer Jeff Klein (formerly of The Twilight Singers & Gutter Twins)  and they're out on the road for their fall tour in support of their upcoming release Preachers and playing Township tonight. On Preachers, the band worked with producer Jim Eno of Spoon to record and capture their self described “Post-Modern Southern Gothic Soul" sound. Their show brings this sound fully alive on stage. Their new album is due for release October 9th on The End Records.

My Jerusalem Premiere Two New Tracks "Mono" and "Preachers" Announce Winter Tour With X Preachers Out October 9th On The End Records Tour Dates 09.26 - Township - Chicago, IL 09.27 - Club Garibaldi - Milwaukee, WI 09.28 - Smalls - Detroit, MI   09.29 - Pygmalion Music Festival - Champaign, IL     10.05 - Club Dada - Dallas, TX 10.06 - Hot Water Hills Festival - Hot Springs, AR        10.07 - The High Watt - Nashville, TN 10.09 - Glasslands - New York, NY 10.11 - Thursdays - Beaver, PA        10.12 - Slims - Raleigh, NC        10.13 - Tin Roof - Charleston, SC        10.15 - The EARL - Atlanta, GA        10.18 - The Conservatory - Oklahoma City, OK        10.19 - Holy Mountain  - Austin, TX 10.25 - Fitzgerald’s - Houston, TX* 10.26 - Chelsea’s - Baton Rouge, LA* 10.31 - Pensacola, FL - Vinyl Music Hall ^ 11.02 - New Orleans, LA - House of Blues^ 11.04 - Dallas, TX - Granada Theater^ 12.21 - The Fonda Theater - Hollywood, CA# 12.22 - The Coach House  - San Juan Capistrano, CA# 12.27 - Ace Of Spades - Sacramento, CA# 12.28 - Slims - San Francisco, CA# 12.29 - Slims  - San Francisco, CA# *w/ Centro-Matic ^w/ The Psychedlic Furs #w/ X Click here to pre-order 'Preachers' (Digipak or White Vinyl) 'Preachers' Tracklisting 01  Preachers 02  Shatter Together 03  Born In The Belly 04  Mono 05  This Time 06  Death Valley 07  Devoe 08  Between Space 09  Oh Little Sister 10  Chameleon 11  I Left My Conscience In You Links  My Jerusalem Website My Jerusalem Facebook My Jerusalem Twitter The End Records Website The End Records Facebook The End Records Twitter Click here to listen to "Mono" on PopMatters Click here to listen to "Preachers" on Spinner “Nobody ever paid money to see Harry Houdini escape being buried alive” says My Jerusalem founder and singer Jeff Klein. “They wanted the small chance of seeing him killed by the weight of the earth on top of him.” Behold the concept behind Preachers, the second full-length release from Austin’s My Jerusalem. From the opening piano of the haunting title track, to the unexpected pummeling guitar and drums on closer “I Left My Conscience In You”, Preachers leads the listener on a cinematic journey through a reckless, jagged landscape of Raymond Carver-esque stories, fueled by Klein’s persuasive baritone, ominous guitars, dream-like keyboards and a deep rhythmic pulse. Recorded in under three weeks by Spoon drummer Jim Eno (Heartless Bastards, Polica, Black Joe Lewis) at his Public Hi-Fi studio, Preachers is the first My Jerusalem album genuinely made by a band, not just performed by a group of musicians. Pushing aside hard drives and laptops to make way for analog tape machines and vintage keyboards, what Klein describes as the “Post-Modern Southern Gothic Soul” sounds of Preachers were born from organic, live performances Eno carefully captured and tweaked. Preachers is the follow-up to 2010’s critically acclaimed debut, Gone For Good, an album that earned the band performances on BBC Radio 6 and Daytrotter, as well as notices from NPR’s All Songs Considered, AOL/Spinner’s Song of the Day, and the iTunes Weekly Rewind. Along with European festival appearances at the Frequency Festival, Musikfestwochen, and Rock Im Saal, the band toured and played shows with a eclectic set of bands including Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, Har Mar Superstar, Avett Brothers, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, and White Arrows. Buoyed by the success of Gone For Good, Preachers showcases a band headed into the studio with a renewed focus and confidence.Preachers contains equal parts swagger (the swampy gospel of title track “Preachers”, the strutting intensity of “Born In The Belly”) and groove (the spooky beauty of “Shatter Together”, the crescendoing, feral drive of “Devoe”, the infectious crooner “Mono”); as much primal (“Death Valley”) as it is humane (“Chameleon”). “It’s a darker record,” says Klein, who, before forming My Jerusalem in 2010, made 3 records under his own name. “So much had changed since Gone For Good. We’d all kind of been through hell and back again in different ways, and this was the natural artistic result of all of that.  But I think it’s a beautiful, comforting darkness. It’s real, but not selfish.” “We finally have a shared collective vibe,” adds guitarist/keyboardist Jon Merz, “I believe it’s more representative of what our live shows sound like. This time around, Jeff would bring us song ideas and we would add our own perspectives to it.” The five-piece, which also features multi-instrumentalist Michael St. Clair, drummer Grant Van Amburgh, and bassist Geena Spigarelli, also had the opportunity to road-test much of the new material before recording, during their extensive touring behind Gone For Good. It was a luxury they didn’t have the first time around. “Working out the kinks live before recording them makes a big difference,” reflects Klein, “They get a chance to breathe and grow before committing them to the world permanently. Because of that process, some songs, like ‘Death Valley,’ sound nothing like their early version. We’re excited to take them on the road and see how they evolve even further.” Equal parts sweet, morbid, strange, and sincere,Preachers is an experience that could convert the most steadfast of non-believers. Copyright © 2012 Tell All Your Friends.

CHI, IL LIVE SHOWS ON OUR RADAR: The Intelligence at Empty Bottle 10/10

The Intelligence Announce Fall Tour With King Tuff + Solo Dates Everybody’s Got It Easy But Me Out Now on In The Red Records Everybody’s Got It Easy But Me Tracklisting I Like LA Hippy Provider Evil Is Easy Techno Tuesday The Entertainer Reading And Writing About Partying Dim Limelights (They Found Me In The Back Of) The Galaxy I’m Closed Little Town Flirt Return To Foam Sunny Backyard Fidelity  Press Quotes “You always wonder, listening to deliberately lo-fi albums, whether the fuzz is there to cover up weaknesses, and what these songs would sound like if you could actually hear them. In The Intelligence’s case, they sound pretty damned good. I’m just not sure that would hold true for everyone.” - Dusted "Everybody's Got It Easy But Me is at once the Intelligence's most lyrically direct and musically exploratory album to date, introducing pastoral psychodelia, space-age bachelor-pad vibes, and at least one proper ballad to the mix." - Pitchfork "Although Everybody’s Got It Easy But Me is notably less frenzied and raw than the band’s past decade of output, The Intelligence has not lost their edge, despite some of the slower, acoustic-based numbers. Rather, they’ve created an often thrilling voyage that defies repetition and predictability." - Cosequence of Sound "Everybody’s Got It Easy But Me is a punk rock record that sporadically soothes your spirit, gets you pogo-ing, and almost always will make you dance. The Intelligence (and lest we forget Shannon Shaw) have made a rock record that anyone could ask for, and that everyone should remember." - Heave Media Tour Dates 10/04 - The Satellite - Los Angeles, CA 10/06 - Hi-Dive - Denver, CO 10/08 - Triple Rock Social Club - Minneapolis, MN 10/09 - Cactus Club - Milwaukee, WI~ 10/10 - Empty Bottle - Chicago, IL 10/11 - The Lager House - Detroit, MI* 10/12 - The Garrison - Toronto, ON* 10/13 - ll Montore - Montreal, QC* 10/14 - Le Cercle - Quebec City, QC* 10/15 - Signal Kitchen - Burlington, VT 10/18 - CMJ - New York, NY 10/19 - CMJ - New York, NY 10/20 - AS220 - Providence, RI* 10/21 - Whitson's - Purchase, NY* 10/22 - Johnny Brenda's - Philadelphia, PA*% 10/23 - Black Cat (backstage) - Washington, DC*% 10/24 - Duke Coffeehouse - Durham, NC* 10/25 - Earl - Atlanta, GA*# 10/26 - Nobby's - St. Augustine, FL* 10/28 - Will's Pub - Orlando, FL* 10/30 - Retrofit Records - Tallahassee, FL* 10/31 - Bottle Tree - Birmingham, AL*^ 11/01 - One Eyed Jacks - New Orleans, LA* 11/02 - Victoria House - Beaumont, TX* 11/05 - Low Spirits - Albuquerque, NM 11/06 - Topaz Tundra - Tucson, AZ 11/07 - Yucca Tap Room - Phoenix, AZ 11/08 - The Griffin - Sand Diego, CA * w/ King Tuff %w/ Poor Moon # w/ Mike Watt ^ w/ Man or Astroman? ~ w/ footballs   The Intelligence have been a band / musical project since 1999. To date The Intelligence have released seven singles, five split singles, two EPs, seven albums and have made eight compilation appearances. I’ve probably even missed a couple. They join the ranks of artists like Thee Oh Sees and Ty Segall in the department of those whose output could be considered hyper-prolific or impossible to keep up with. That said, like the afore mentioned artists, with each release The Intelligence continue to evolve, grow artistically and top themselves. And, YES, you do need to keep up with all the releases. On “Everybody’s Got It Easy But Me' The Intelligence do indeed top themselves. Like their last album, “Males” from 2010, they have returned to The Hangar with Chris Woodhouse to record. As with “Males” they seem to continue to jettison their previous deliberate blown-out, lo-fi recording approach for a much clearer sound. Not that there’s any give-up in intensity. The band’s scrambling post-punk guitars, its straight-up, dry-as-a-bone drums, its laconically abstract verses are all here, just viewed through an unusually clear lens. If you didn’t have the songs or the chops this sort of thing could reveal some weaknesses but, in this instance, it showcases Lars Finberg’s knack for writing catchy songs, which incorporate pop hooks, metronomically repetitive guitar riffs and new wavey synth moves. For those who haven’t been paying attention, "The Intelligence" are the brainchild of Lars Finberg (former of the A-Frames, currently of Thee Oh Sees and Wounded Lion). The Intelligence began as a studio project in which Finberg played all instruments on his home recordings. As the band began to play live and tour the releases have volleyed between full band recordings and Lars layering all tracks himself. On “Everybody’s Got It Easy But Me” Finberg has gone for a mixed approach. Having recently relocated to Los Angeles, Lars assembled an LA line up of the band. Still spending much time at the band’s original home base of Seattle, he has retained a separate line up in that city as well. For this new album he has used them both….as well as doing some songs all by himself. He also invited a number of guests to come in and add to it. The result is the most varied yet cohesive Intelligence album to date. Links: Band Website Band Facebook

SCELERATA to Release The Sniper November 6th on Nightmare Records #metal #newreleases

Artwork and Tracklisting Revealed   The Sniper the new release from SCELERATA will undoubtedly turn heads, forcing metal icons to watch their rearview mirrors as these guys pull up fast with the nitrous afterburners firing! Testosterone infused, melodic power metal best describes their music, though there are also many moments showing a progressive edge and showcasing immense vocal talent. The Sniper presents a stunning vocal performance from Fabio Juan, showing a much more matured band that delivers a heavier more aggressive sound, beautifully mixing power metal and melodic progressive elements ranging from angst ridden lyrics of corruption to sorrowful love lost. The huge and intricate production makes this album a must hear for any true metal fan. The Sniper was produced, mixed and mastered by Charlie Bauerfeind with guitarist Renato Osorio. The album also features Andi Deris (Helloween) and Paul Di'Anno (ex-Iron Maiden) as very special guests, who not only sing but helped compose and co-write the songs. SCELERATA got their start with their debut Darkness & Light which was released in 2006.  It was mixed and mastered by Dennis Ward and featured guest appearances by Renato Borghetti (Accordeon), Edu Falaschi (Angra) and Thiago Bianchi (Shaman). The band followed up with their sophomore release Skeletons Domination in 2008.   This effort was mixed and mastered by Charlie Bauerfeind (Helloween, Blind Guardian, Rage, Saxon, Halford, Hammerfall, Motorhead). Performing with giant names in rock and metal over the last decade, the band is looking forward to hitting the road soon on their own headlining tours. The Sniper Tracklisting (Digital): 1) Rising Sun 2) In My Blood  3) Road To Death  4) Breaking The Chains  5) Unmasking Lies 6) Must Be Dreaming 7) Drowned In Madness  8) Welcome Home  9) 'Til The Day We Die  10) Money Painted Red 11) The Sniper North American CD Exclusive Bonus tracks re-recorded with New Vocalist Fabio Juan: 12) Spell of Time (Bonus 2012)  13) Eminence (Bonus 2012) 14) Leave Me Alone (Live Bonus 2012) 15) Phoenix Tales (Live Bonus 2012) SCELERATA is: Fabio Juan (Vocals)                                                                Magnus Wichmann (Guitar) Renato Osorio (Guitar)                                                          Gustavo Strapazon (Bass) Francis Cassol (Drums) SCELERATA Discography: Darkness and Light (2006) Skeleton's Domination (2008) The Sniper (2012) For More Information Visit: http://www.scelerata.com/   http://www.facebook.com/scelerataofficial  http://www.nightmarerecords.com