Pig wham it up, Children of Bodom cut the grass, Carnifex blaspheme, Grace Lachance sounds it out and more in today’s Roundup. Is there still cake in the break room?
1 Everybody loves Wham! And Elvis Presley. And John Lennon. Including Raymond Watts of post-punk doom merchants Pig. Which is why they’ve covered all three for their new holiday EP Black Mass. And presumably why they’ve released it as a free download on Bandcamp — though there’s also a donation option, with all profits going to the International Rescue Committee. Give until it hurts. And check out their animated video for Last Christmas above while you do. SEZ THE PRESS RELEASE: “I have always absolutely loved George Michael and his work, especially this song,” says Raymond Watts. “It’s equally cheesy and gorgeous!” Hail Santa!
2 Children of Bodom singer-guitarist Alexi Laiho is the only guy I know who has broken his shoulder bowling. That has absolutely nothing to do with the Finnish melodic death-metal outfit’s just-announced new album Hexed — or the video for their majestically heavy new single Under Grass and Clover — but it’s the one thing I remember from interviewing the firebreathing guitar hero years ago, so there you go. SEZ THE PRESS RELEASE: “Under Grass and Clover is the sound of COB on fire and has been my favorite song since it was written. It’s fast, melodic, heavy and dark but also short and sweet. Someone told me that it’s kinda like old school Dimmu Borgir and AWK and that’s pretty damn cool in my books so we must’ve done something right.” Just be careful picking up that split, dude:
3 You know the old saying: Nothing says Friday afternoon like a new blast of symphonic deathcore. And nothing says symphonic deathcore like California’s Carnifex, who just released their new EP Bury Me In Blasphemy — and a video to accompany the technically impossible title track. SEZ THE PRESS RELEASE: “Carnifex began carving out a bond with the audience way back in 2005. Over the course of four albums — Dead in My Arms, The Diseased and the Poisoned, Hell Chose Me, and Until I Feel Nothing — the band attracted a diehard following.” Plug in the inverted pentagams and light 100 candles:
4 It’s hard to be a teenager. And even harder to be a teenager who wants to be a pop star. But if there’s one thing harder than that, it’s being a teenager who wants to be a pop singer and releases a song titled No Sound, which is what Ontario’s Grace Lachance has done. You’re just asking for it there, lady — although truth be told, the tune is actually a cut above most of the other pop fluff out there these days. SEZ THE PRESS RELEASE: “No Sound has dark overtones, introspective lyrics, pulsing synths and engaging vocal harmonies and features an appearance from rapper G.Grand.” Not to mention a Canadian tuxedo:
5 The apple doesn’t fall far the tree. Unless that tree happens to be named Fratelli (or at least pretends to be). If you’ve been paying attention, you’ve already noticed that Fratellis singer-guitarist Jon Fratelli (whose real last name is Lawler) has a solo album coming out. And that it doesn’t sound much like the rocking fare of his day job. The title of his latest song Dreams Don’t Remember Your Name pretty much sums it up. SEZ THE PRESS RELEASE: “I guess you could say Dreams Don’t Remember Your Name is a lullaby. Not the kind that you sing to your kids to send them off to sleep but the kind that you might serenade the world weary with. The title itself says all that needs saying… dream any dream you like, whether it’s a nightmare or a tale of bliss it’s all the same in the end but you might as well dream yourself some bliss after all no one is keeping score!” Nighty-night:
6 What’s in a name? Ask StayLoose. The Denver electronica and dance artist — whose real handle is Ross Ryan — used to go by StéLouse. Why did he change it? Maybe he got tired of people calling him a louse. Or thinking he was from St. Louis. Either way, you should probably let it go. Which fits right in with his new single Let Go, featuring a vocal cameo from Andrew Paley and some seriously heavy bass synths. SEZ THE PRESS RELEASE: “StayLoose has always maintained the ability to genre-bend and produce emotionally charged songs that resonate with all who listen.” Yo, Dre, kick in the bass:
