Protest the Hero to Hit St. John’s in August, First Show Sold Out, Second Show Added

Ontario progressive metalcore band Protest the Hero have never been shy about their love for Newfoundland, thus it should come as no surprise that the band will be making their way to the Rock for two shows in St. John’s on Tuesday, August 20th and Wednesday, August 21st. The band is currently preparing to embark on tour in celebration of the 10th anniversary of their 2013 record Volition.

Almost as soon as the first show was announced it sold out, and so Sometimes Productions has added the second show. However, as of the time of this writing the second show has also sold out.

Protest the Hero will be joined at The Rockhouse by local experimental hardcore / mathcore warriors The Order of the Precious Blood for both dates.

~ Akhenaten

The Order of the Precious Blood to Perform at NXNE 2024 in Toronto

St. John’s experimental hardcore troupe The Order of the Precious Blood will be hitting the mainland once again this month for their first ever show in Toronto, Ontario. The band will be performing on Wednesday, June 12th at The Bovine Sex Club as part of North by Northeast 2024 alongside Discontinuity, Basterds, Falls for the Elderly, Polluted, and Trick Casket.

Get your tickets at this link: here!

~ Akhenaten

February 2024 in Review

With January 2024 out of the way let’s revisit all of the happenings from February 2024. March and April 2024 will be coming soon!

Biggest Stories
Nameless Friends to Play The Rockhouse on February 27th, 2024
RPM Challenge 2024 Starts Today

New LPs Released
Bodydouble – Lullabies for an Anxious Mind

New EPs Released
Floorwalker – Floorwalker
The Lurk – The Lurk
Metaphora – Metaphora

New Singles Released
Blitzgeek – “Flux”
Killer9000 – “My Least Favourite Things”

New Live Albums Released
Mistwalker – Basement Dwellers

New Demos Released
Disciplinary Action – R.N.C. Demo
QLOI – The Tuvaq Demos

New Music Videos Released
Disposition – “Crisis Averted”

Album Announcements
Guntmold – Untitled New LP
Jigger Reveals Artwork for Upcoming New LP
Ratpiss – Four Humors
Securitron – Post-Apocalyptic Eras

Reviews
C.A.R.E. – Creating a Righteous Energy [by Akhenaten]
Carnage – Free at Last [by Akhenaten]
Falter – Salt in the Soil [by Akhenaten]

New Merch
Heavy Metal Karaoke Reveal New T-Shirts and Tote Bags

We also released Episode 63 of the Heavy NFLD Official Podcast, New Metal from Newfoundland IV, in which I recount some of the newer releases that have dropped from Newfoundland and Labrador bands in the past few months.

Albums Archived
The Beer Patrice – Can’t Talk to Fish [Single / Punk]
The Beer Patrice – Who are the Beer Patrice? [LP / Punk]
Breaker – Breaker [EP / Pop Punk]
Breaker – Do It Yourself [EP / Pop Punk]
Death Ray – Murder Mouth [Single / Sludge Metal]
Fennway – Demo 2015 [Demo / Melodic Hardcore]
Fennway – Julianne [Single / Melodic Hardcore]
Hot x Proxy – Fake It [Single / Hard Rock]
Hot x Proxy – Mean to Me [Single / Hard Rock]
Hot x Proxy – The Operator [Single / Hard Rock]
Hot x Proxy – Tonite [Single / Hard Rock]
Mistwalker – Basement Dwellers [Live EP / Black N’ Roll]
Not Friends – Demo 2012 [Demo / Hardcore Punk]
Not Friends – Stowaway [EP / Hardcore Punk]
Securitron – Post-Apocalyptic Eras [LP / Thrash Metal]
The Strangled – Dead Music [EP / Punk]
The Strangled – Disconnected [Single / Punk]
The Strangled – Straight to Ghost [EP / Punk]
Twerp – Just a Little [EP / Grunge]

~ Akhenaten

The Scrolls of Akhenaten: March 15th, 2024

“Ever thus from the sands of time, I return, with pestilence and famine bequeathed to all.”

Ages ago I used to do a segment on this blog called The Scrolls of Akhenaten in which I would recommend a series of albums or EPs from different genres of heavy and extreme music that aren’t from Newfoundland and Labrador. I did this simply in an effort to spread awareness of other music that I really like and to hopefully put some people on to artists they’ve never heard of. This concept was also inspired by one of our former contributors, Jonathan Simms, aka Abraxas the Reclaimer, who did a similar segment under the title of The Abraxas Decree.

All that said, I’ve decided to bring this segment back in an effort to continue spreading the good word about awesome music and also to diversify the kind of content that our readers have become used to on this blog. I would like to try to do this segment on a weekly basis, ever Friday, but for now we’re starting off with just one. The way it’s going to work is that each entry in this column will be from a different genre of heavy music, including: black metal, death metal, doom metal, prog, punk, thrash metal, traditional heavy metal, and one non-metal release as a palette cleanser.

Ergo, welcome to the resurrection of The Scrolls of Akhenaten! I hope you enjoy reading these as much as I enjoyed writing them.

Black

Skumstrike – Deadly Intrusions
March 17th, 2023
Blackened Speed Metal
Caligari Records
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Standout Song: “Blood Red Vision”

Some of you may already be aware of Skumstrike due to the band’s association with Profane Order and Spectral Wound, both of whom share an association with Newfoundland through their shared band member Illusory. Skumstrike is the primary project of L.A. who formed the band with Serpent Corpse drummer Z.S. Based purely on the cover art and logo alone you should already have an idea of what the music on this thing sounds like. It is unrepentant, unrelenting blackened speed metal the likes of which I haven’t truly heard before. That said if you’ve ever perused the wares of underground labels like Hells Headbangers or the band’s current home at Caligari Records then you know that what they provide is quality. This album is liable to rip your head clean off your shoulders with wretched vocals, savage riffage, and an unforgiving percussive assault from behind the kit. Raw!

Death

Serpent Corpse – Blood Sabbath
July 5th, 2023
Old School Death Metal
Temple of Mystery Records
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Standout Song: “Let the Rats Feed”

Speaking of Serpent Corpse, why don’t we bring them up for the death metal segment this week? These guys have fast grown into one of Montreal’s premiere old school death metal revivalist acts. While the city may primarily be known for the more technical variety of extreme metal, Serpent Corpse are at the forefront of the movement to revive the sounds of classic 80’s death metal spearheaded by bands like Obituary and Morbid Angel, and they do a damned good job of it too! There’s no bullshit to be found here. This whole album is just riff after riff after riff on top of groovy drums from Skumstrike’s own Z.S. While I would question a band’s decision to name one of their own original songs “Electric Eye” when one of the most famous metal songs ever written shares that title, it doesn’t get in the way of the quality meat n’ potatoes brutality that goes on beyond the album cover.

Doom

V̦lur РDeath Cult
November 13th, 2020
Atmospheric Folk / Doom Metal
Prophecy Productions
Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Standout Song: “Inviolate Grove”

I was first introduced to this band by a partner of mine who is a fan of one of the folk projects that the group’s violinist and vocalist Laura C. Bates worked on. Taking one look through Bates’ page on Metal Archives and its clear that she’s got some serious chops, having worked with other names in the metal world that may be familiar to you such as Blood Ceremony, Witchrot, and Thantifaxath. In listening to this band however we’re gifted a much more somber, brooding, and atmospheric helping of melancholy doom that feels heavily inspired by nature and fantasy. If anyone is old enough to remember when the Saskatchewan band Black Tremor made the trek to St. John’s for a show at CBTG’s back in 2016, well, this band sounds like them but way more intense and with more of a focus on vocals. Völur may not be the first band to incorporate violin in their doom, but they do it damn well.

Prog

Closure in Moscow – Pink Lemonade
May 9th, 2014
Nu Prog / Progressive Rock / Alt Rock
Sabretusk
Melbourne, Australia
Standout Song: “Seeds of Gold”

This kind of record really isn’t for everybody. It’s mixture of progressive rock elements with aspects of pop music, alternative rock, funk, and avant-garde music could certainly be off-putting to people whose taste leans more towards the heavy and extreme. That said if you’re willing to give this record a shot you could be pleasantly surprised. I know I was. Perhaps it’s the theater kid in me that loves the ostentatious presentation and the theatrical grandeur this record provides but god damn do I ever love it. When it comes to the genre of “nu prog”, which is crowned by artists like Coheed and Cambria, a lot of it can be hit or miss with me. Closure in Moscow manage to be one of the best groups in the genre simply for their musical acumen and their ability to craft absurdly catchy tunes through an experimental haze and willingness to genre-bend. Let yourself love the poppy hooks that its full of.

Punk

Glowing Orb – Subterranean Prison
November 10th, 2023
Hardcore Punk
Independently Released
Montreal, Quebec, Canada
Standout Song: “Line Goes Up”

The Montreal hardcore scene, much like that of Newfoundland’s, has exploded in the post-pandemic world. There have been so many new bands that have emerged in the scene lately that it’s been hard to keep track sometimes. That said, with the cornucopia of new groups that pop up, some of them are bound to rise to the top. Enter Glowing Orb. These guys are easily one of the most ferocious and aggressive punk bands in Montreal, at least when it comes to their music and their live shows. If you ever get a chance to see them live, do it. You will not regret it. As for their recorded material, they’ve got a demo and a split, and then this most recent release, Subterranean Prison, which, in my opinion, contains their best tracks yet. Listen to the song “Line Goes Up” and tell me you don’t want to scream along with that chorus in the live setting. Heavy, relentless, and full of piss n’ vinegar.

Thrash

Pizza Death – Slice of Death
November 1st, 2021
Crossover / Thrash Metal
Disdain Records
Melbourne, Australia
Standout Song: “Super Special Supreme Commander”

Have you ever heard of pizza thrash? If you have there are probably a few bands that come to mind with the name. Municipal Waste and Iron Reagan are up there. D.R.I. perhaps. Well, allow me to introduce you to the pinnacle of this so-called sub-genre. The creme de la creme, folks. Pizza Death. This band sings exclusively about pizza, death, and death by pizza. It doesn’t get any more laser-focused than this. Normally I’d roll my eyes at such a concept, but if I’m being honest, this album absolutely fucking rips. The band has released more music since this one but this is the album that I always come back to. It’s a glorious mishmash of crossover, thrash metal, hardcore punk, and fastcore that intersperses absolutely nuclear riffs, unrelenting drums, and vicious vocals with a sprinkling of samples of various characters from pop culture talking about pizza. It’s as hilarious as it is utterly gnarly. It makes me want to shred a half-pipe while holding a pizza box in one hand and a PBR in the other.

Trad

Tower – Shock to the System
November 12th, 2021
Power Metal / Traditional Heavy Metal
Cruz del Sur Music
New York City, New York, USA
Standout Song: “Blood Moon”

Do you ever long for the glory days of heavy metal? Back when the music was real? Like the 70’s? Nah, like the early 70’s? Well, yearn no further my fellow appreciator of the old school sounds. Your search ends here. New York’s Tower are perhaps the most impeccable example of the New Wave of Traditional Heavy Metal that I have been seeking. Other groups like Leather Heart will always have my, well… my heart, but Tower does this style with an unmatched pizazz that I have yet to encounter in my endless sifting through this sub-genre and movement. Whether it’s vocalist Sarabeth Lindon’s incredibly powerful and expressive voice, or the glorious riffs, or the creative, energetic, and commanding drumming, this album has everything that an old head could ever ask for. To match that, I saw this band live back in 2023 at Foufounes Electriques in Montreal and they ruled that stage like true professionals. I can’t speak highly enough of this album and this band.

Non-Metal

Wovenhand – Ten Stones
September 11th, 2008
Alternative Country / Goth Rock
Glitterhouse Records
Denver, Colorado, USA
Standout Song: “The Beautiful Axe”

I have been a long time fan of Wovenhand, the band led by singer-songwriter David Eugene Edwards. The group’s atypical approach to the country genre that they have often found themselves lumped in with immediately caught my ears the first time I decided to check them out, with their record Consider the Birds. However, throughout their discography, it was this album, Ten Stones, that really solidified itself as my personal favourite. Combining elements of country music and Americana folk with the darkness of goth rock and the Southern Gothic aesthetic makes this album a must-listen for fans of any of the musical genres or aesthetics I just listed off. It is gorgeous, emotionally gripping, and darkly unsettling. No doubt this record appeals to metalheads in part because it is heavy, but without an overt reliance on distorted electric guitars. Rather it feels heavy in the same way a pregnant rain cloud feels heavy. There’s a certain atmosphere here, a darkness that cannot be described.

~ Akhenaten

Nameless Friends to Play The Rockhouse on February 27th, 2024

Nameless Friends are a hard rock band from London, Ontario with elements of punk, glam, and prog woven into their music. The band is currently on tour in support of the release of their first full length record, Blasphemy, and one of the stops on that tour is at The Rockhouse in St. John’s, Newfoundland. The band will be performing tonight, Tuesday, February 27th, 2024, with the show kicking off at 7:00 PM. The group will be joined by local power metal outfit Category VI and beatdown upstarts Chokeslam. Tickets are $12 in an advance and $15 at the door.

~ Akhenaten

2023 in Review

2023 has been over for a little over a month now so I think it’s time we took stock of all the cool stuff and not so cool stuff that happened over the course of the last year. Let’s dive in!

This year was another rough year for businesses as both Bar None and The Abbey were forced to shut down, nixing two venues for live music and other events from the underground music community in St. John’s. Aside from that, things got rougher as members of the music community mourned the loss of Will Hapgood, the owner of The Deck who passed away suddenly earlier in 2023. His loss sent shockwaves throughout the community and resulted in an enormous show happening at the Bowring Park Amphitheater to celebrate his life and memory.

An absurd amount of new music was released throughout the year, perhaps more so than any year prior since I’ve been involved in this scene. A slew of new records from bands like The Skeats and Category VI were joined by a cavalcade of EPs from the continuously exploding hardcore punk crowd that seems to churn out new bands at the same frequency that rabbits reproduce.

There were also a ton of mainlander bands who came through Corner Brook and St. John’s this year, including Montreal black metal bands Akitsa and Infernach, Halifax d-beat warriors Black Dog, long time Newfoundland expats Brutal Youth, Montreal hardcore group Deadbolt, New Brunswick stoner punks Diner Drugs, Montreal death metal power trio Obelisk, Toronto thrashers Ammo and Californian NWOTHM upstarts Night Demon, as well as Halifax deathcore ensemble Pale Ache. For a province that sees precious few touring acts pulling through, this past year was exceptionally great.

We also held the very first edition of the Heavy NFLD Fest this past year! This was something that was a long time coming, and has always been my ultimate goal for this project, so finally seeing it come to fruition was a triumph. We’re hoping to do it again this year so stay tuned for Heavy NFLD Fest Vol. II!

Here’s hoping that this year brings with it more good news and less of the bad. Here’s to a kickass 2024.

Biggest Stories
– Bar None Closes Its Doors
– Big Space Win Jazz Recording of the Year at the ECMAs
– Da Slyme Wins Music NL ‘Loud Artist of the Year’ Award
– The Deck Renamed to Pavlov’s Electric Verandah
– Friends Hold Raffle for Sheavy Frontman Steve Hennessey’s Recovery Following Cancer Diagnosis
– Grenadier Release Trumpets Blare in Blazing Glory on Vinyl
– Heavy NFLD Fest Vol. I
– Ken Power Tattoo Company Reopens at New Location
– Lawnya Vawnya 13 Announces Lineup
– Madison Strip Calls it Quits
– Memorial Show for Will Hapgood to Happen at Bowring Park Amphitheater July 9th
– Precious Blood Announce 2023 Maritimes Tour
– Precious Blood and Da Slyme Nominated for Music NL Loud Artist of the Year
– R.I.P. Will Hapgood
– Stanley’s Pub Now Hosting Heavy Metal Karaoke Nights
– Triskelyon Signs to Moribund Records
– Triskelyon Resigns to Moribund Records in Two-Album Deal
– Yes, Officer Signs to Scilly Cove Records

Come from Aways
– Akitsa and Ifernach to Perform at The Rockhouse in September with Grole and Grenadier
– Black Dog (HFX) to Play at First Light CPAC on July 15th
– Brutal Youth to Return to the Rock for Two Shows in August
– Deadbolt to Play The Rockhouse & First Light CPAC on September 8th and 9th
– Diner Drugs to Play The Deck and The Abbey on May 12th and 13th
– Mistwalker and Øbelisk Announce 2023 Tour with Shows in St. John’s, Corner Brook, and Glovertown
– Night Demon and Ammo to Perform at the Bella Vista Events Venue on August 25th
– Pale Ache Announce Fall Tour Including Multiple Dates in Corner Brook and St. John’s
– Slaughter, Quiet Riot, and Great White to Perform at Iceberg Alley Performance Tent 2023

New LPs Released
– 6000apez – January 12
– Beereaucracy – Beereaucracy
– Beereaucracy / Catshit – Split
– Brutal Youth – Rebuilding Year
– C.A.R.E. – Creating a Righteous Energy
– Category VI – Firecry
– Chris McGee – The Strange Ritual of the Golden-Faced Man
– Count Cromulent – Thrillhouse
– Desperta – Desperta
– Falter – Salt in the Soil
– First Frost – It’s Dangerous to Go Alone
– Lithops – ((BendeR))
– Mike Fisher – Diary of a Psychic Vampire
– Mistwalker – Oceanic Heritage
– Mistwalker – Under the Fallen Sky: 10 Years in the Mist
– Needle Crafts – Frow’d Up
– Neko Suicide – Bound by Chains and Ripped in Half
– Neko Suicide – Midtown
– Neko Suicide – St. Georges, Hell 3:00 AM
– Nfrared – Under the Stairs
– The Skeats – The Skeats IV
– Triskelyon – Artificial Insanity
– WXO – Waxsongs
– Zack St. John’s – Prince of Fogtown
– Zackary Anderson – Graveyard Filled with Snow

New EPs Released
– 6000apez – Farmlife
– 6000apez – Glauchoma!
– 6000apez – Mule Touch
– Adam Sharr – To the Woods
– A Body Without Organs – Broken Terminal III: Milk Blood
– Bog Rot – Sex, Drugs, Bog N’ Roll
– Canvas – Down Horrendous
– Carnage – Free at Last
– Cerebral Palsy – Seas of Bloody Mist
– Chimp Apparatus – Sober
– compareyourself – Mary and the Misanthropic Buzzard
– Cortex Strikes Back – Cortex Strikes Back
– The Crevice – 11th Hour / Valley of Flies
– Foundation Chain – Sanrio-core
– Fucked to Death – The Penile Code
– Glitterglue – Friends Club
– Jaded Truth – Bitter
– Knarl – Bad Luck
– Lil Dirtbag – It’s Been Too Real
– Love Letters to Lewis – Letter One: Vemödalen
– Mistwalker – Pumpkinsmasher
– Mistwalker – War on Christmas
– Neko Suicide – Cross
– Ninth Quarter – Below Knee
– Nuclear Casket – Irascible
– Of Wilds – A Ghost at the Strid
– The Order of the Precious Blood – I No Longer Wish for Salvation
– Pouch Dweller – Goes to the Movies
– Ratpiss – Misanthropy Now!
– Roach Smoking Buddies – Roach Smoking Christmas
– Sex Hole – Kill or Be Killed
– Shit Dildo – Odes to the Fecal Phallus
– Skreeched In – Skreeched In
– Smoke Signals – Send Me Flowers While I’m Still Here
– Sons of an Eastern Moon – Borealis
– Winterhearth – Beyond the Frosted Graves
– Winterhearth – Rape of Eden
– Wiremouth – EP2
– WXO – Albert Rolling Down the Magical Infinite Hill

New Singles Released
– Amer Ali – “Face in the Clouds”
– Amer Ali – “Forever”
– Amer Ali – “Never Say I Don’t Care”
– Artach – “Black Metal Drummer Boy”
– Artach – “Hell on Halloween”
– Bonewing – Assorted Singles
– Category VI – “Firecry”
– Cerebral Palsy – Assorted Singles
– Chimp Apparatus – “Garfield”
– Choplicker – “Brigandine”
– Choplicker – “Heliouroboros”
– CR – “Last Address”
– Dendron – “The Glass Spire Redux”
– Disposition – “Decomposed”
– Disposition – “Slow Haze”
– Drop Your Trust – “Hacked”
– Drop Your Trust – “Think for Yourself”
– Elder Caius – “Alien Space Bats” / “From Below”
– Elder Caius – “Kailash, When It Rises”
– Everose – “Flourish”
– Ex Press – “The Island”
– Guntmold – “Menstrual Shark”
– Guntmold – “Munging”
– Guntmold – “You Suffer” [Napalm Death Cover]
– Homesick N’ Wanderlust – “When I Grow Up”
– Jaded Truth – “Bottom of the Bottle”
– Jaded Truth – “Samsquanch”
– Jaded Truth – “The Shake-Up”
– Last Cigar – “Pitchforks”
– Love Letters to Lewis – “I, the End”
– Needle Crafts – “Worried Sick”
– Neko Suicide – “2015”
– Nemophilist – “Aurora”
– Nemophilist – “Failure, Goodbyes. Isolation”
– Nemophilist – “Put Me on a Ship That is Sinking”
– Nemophilist – “Tragedy and Loss Never Known”
– Nerve Shack – “Ash”
– Nerve Shack – “Forever in Your Lie”
– Nerve Shack – “Yellow Teeth”
– Nfrared – “Betrayed for the Better”
– Nfrared – “Innocent Criminal”
– Nfrared – “Piece of Mind”
– The Order of the Precious Blood – “Suffer and Die”
– Qyn – “Ideologue”
– Rot – “Rupture” / “Delight”
– Sex Hole – “Stay Out of My Way”
– The Skeats – “Fine Wine”
– The Skeats – “Torch”
– The Skeats – “Twitch”
– So Violento – “Elegia Moderna”
– Sought – “Samqwan”
– Sought – “Valorous Asinus”
– This Day – “Euphoric State”
– Triskelyon – “Visionaires”
– Vertebraeker – “Buried Again”
– Winterhearth – “Winter Punks”
– WXO – “A.I. Instincts”

New Demos Released
– 6000apez – The Consequential Mudhole
– Bazooka – Demo 2022
– Beereaucracy – Vote for Us
– Blender – D03s 1t Bl3nd?
– Choplicker – Rollercrisis
– Disciplinary Action – Floor Demo 2023
– Doberman – Shed Demo ’23
– Glitterglue – Shed Demo ’23
– Guntmold – Guntmold
– Kicker – Kicker Demo
– Kris Butt – Old Path Demos
– Life Jolt – Floor Demo ’23
– Malpractice – We Don’t Go to Church
– Nerve Shack – Sheep Kill
– Paranoia – Paranoia
– Vehement Slaughter – Demo
– Vomit Denial – Demo ’23
– Wannabe Erudite – Remembered Demos
– Winterhearth – The Rehearsal Session

New Compilations Released
– Aeria – The Deadman Collection

New Live Albums Released
– Defense Force – Live Like Death
– Killer9000 – Live at The Deck 02/11/23
– Malpractice – Live June ’89
– Smoke Signals – Live at The Rockhouse 01/28/23

New Music Videos Released
– Artach – “Hell on Halloween”
– Beereaucracy – “Beerboarded”
– Category VI – “Coven”
– Category VI – “Valkyrie”
– Hakapik – “Don’t Make Me Laugh”
– Jaded Truth – “Bottom of the Bottle”
– Jaded Truth – “Riders”
– Jaded Truth – “The Shake-Up”
– Jaded Truth – “Worthless Meek”
– Nerve Shack – “Forever in Your Lie”
– Nerve Shack – “Yellow Teeth”
– The Order of the Precious Blood – “Bastard! Rejoice!” [Live]
– The Order of the Precious Blood – “X You Out”

Album Announcements
– Artach – Untitled New LP
– Bog Rot – Untitled New EP
– Da Slyme – If There’s No Rubble, You Haven’t Played!
– Grole – Untitled New LP
– Guntmold – Blackened Infection
– The Hellfire Club – Volume III
– Jaded Truth – Bitter
– Mistwalker – Oceanic Heritage
– Nocturnal Prayer / Funeral Fullmoon – Disciples of the Moonlight Worship
– The Order of the Precious Blood – I No Longer Wish for Salvation
– Qyn – Untitled New Release
– Riproar – Untitled New Release
– The Skeats – The Skeats IV
– Smoke Signals – Send Me Flowers While I’m Still Here
– Triskelyon – Artificial Insanity
– Wendigo – Untitled New Release
– Winterhearth – Rape of Eden
– Yes, Officer – Untitled New LP

Live Sets Filmed
– Bazooka – Live Set @ Peter Easton Pub – December 23rd, 2022
– Defense Force – Live Set @ The Dank Basement – August 17th, 2023
– Dendron – Live Set @ The Rockhouse – August 19th, 2023
– Everose – Live Set @ The Rockhouse – August 18th, 2023
– InfectDead – Live Set @ The Rockhouse – August 18th, 2023
– Jaded Truth – Live Set @ The Rockhouse – August 19th, 2023
– Kaspam Cult – Live Set @ Gower Street United Church – August 19th, 2023
– The Mill – Live Set @ The Corner Pocket – August 16th, 2023
– Mistwalker – Live Set @ The Dank Basement – August 17th, 2023
– Mistwalker – Live Set @ The Rockhouse – August 18th, 2023
– Mistwalker – Live Set @ The Rockhouse – August 19th, 2023
– Needle Crafts – Live Set @ Peter Easton Pub – December 23rd, 2022
– Obelisk – Live Set @ The Corner Pocket – August 16th, 2023
– October Wasp – Live Set @ The Corner Pocket – August 16th, 2023
– Shit Dildo – Live Set @ The Dank Basement – August 17th, 2023
– Sick Puppy – Live Set @ Peter Easton Pub – December 23rd, 2022
– The Skeats – Live Set @ The Rockhouse – August 19th, 2023
– Tunnel Vision – Live Set @ Peter Easton Pub – December 23rd, 2022
– Wretched Fiend – Live Set @ The Dank Basement – August 17th, 2023

New Merch Drops
– Artach Reveal New T-Shirts
– Everose Reveal New Patches
– Fog Coffin Reveals New Pins
– Fog Coffin Reveals New Stickers
– Grole Reveals New Hoodies
– Grole Reveals New T-Shirts
– Guntmold Reveals New Stickers
– Heavy Metal Karaoke Reveals New Stickers and Pins
– Metaphora Reveal New T-Shirts + Other Merch
– Mir Reveals New T-Shirts
– The Order of the Precious Blood Reveal New T-Shirts
– Ratpiss Reveal New Black on White Patches
– Ratpiss Reveal New White on Black Patches
– Sea Shanty Studios Now Offering Patch Services
– The Skeats Reveal New Hats
– Skreeched In Reveal New Patches
– Smoke Signals Reveal New Circular Patches
– Winterhearth Reveal New Diamond Patches

Album Reviews
– Category VI – Firecry [by Akhenaten]
– Count Cromulent – Thrillhouse [by Akhenaten]
– Dead Inner Youth – Dead Inner Youth [by Stephen]
– Jaded Truth – Take a Seat [by Akhenaten]
– Triskelyon – Triskelyon [by Akhenaten]
– Vertebraeker – Spinal Sword [by Akhenaten]

EP Reviews
– Bog Rot – Sex, Drugs, Bog N’ Roll [by Akhenaten]
– Chimp Apparatus – Sober [by Akhenaten]
– The Crevice – 11th Hour / Valley of Flies [by Akhenaten]
– Glitterglue – Friends Club [by Akhenaten]
– Foundation Chain – Sanrio-core [by Akhenaten]
– The Order of the Precious Blood – I No Longer Wish for Salvation [by Akhenaten]
– Ratpiss – Misanthropy Now! [by James Titford]
– Ratpiss – Vermin Urine [by James Titford]
– Sick Puppy – Haunt the Hill [by Stephen]
– Skreeched In – Skreeched In [by Akhenaten]
– Sons of an Eastern Moon – Borealis [by Akhenaten]
– Winterhearth – Rape of Eden [by Akhenaten]

We also released twelve new episodes of the Heavy NFLD Official Podcast this past year. We did our typical installments such as the RPM Re-Cap in March, Heavy Halloween in October, and Merry Fucking Solstice in December, but we also had genre-specific episodes focusing on grindcore, hard rock, hardcore, and grunge. Other episode topics included focuses on metal and punk from Prince Edward Island, a smattering of new metal and punk released in Newfoundland and Labrador over the past year, bands who have come to Newfoundland from elsewhere in recent years, a re-cap of artists that my own band played with during the Atlantic Annihilation Tour, and a re-cap of the bands who played this past year’s installment of Heavy NFLD Fest. You can listen to all these and more on the Heavy NFLD Bandcamp which will be linked down below.

2023 Podcast Episodes
Episode 050: January 2023 – Newfoundgrind
Episode 051: February 2023 – Hard Rock from the Rock
Episode 052: March 2023 – The RPM Re-Cap MMXXIII
Episode 053: April 2023 – NLxHC
Episode 054: May 2023 – P.E.I. Punx
Episode 055: June 2023 – New Metal from Newfoundland
Episode 056: July 2023 – Come From Away
Episode 057: August 2023 – The Atlantic Annihilation Tour Re-Cap
Episode 058: September 2023 – Heavy NFLD Fest Vol. I Re-Cap
Episode 059: October 2023 – Heavy Halloween
Episode 060: November 2023 – Newfoundgrunge
Episode 061: December 2023 – Merry Fucking Solstice IV

~ Akhenaten

Heavy NFLD Official Podcast – Episode 056: July 2023 – Come From Away

On this episode of the Heavy NFLD Official Podcast we pay deference to those bands from the mainland who have deigned to make the treacherous and expensive trek eastward to the humble isolated hellhole we call home.

All songs belong to the original artists. Podcast recorded by Greg “Akhenaten” Ravengrave.

Tracklist:

01. Pale Ache – “Blood”
02. Obelisk – “The Architecture of Suffering”
03. Black Dog – “Gnashing of Teeth”
04. Ammo – “Too Metal for Metal”
05. Diner Drugs – “Under Fire”
06. Black Absinthe – “On Earth or in Hell”
07. Doom ‘An Blue – “Ran Down”
08. Deadbolt – “Natural Born Hater”
09. Mistwalker – “Frigid Lacerations”
10. Shit Dildo – “Throbbelisk”

~ Akhenaten

June 2023 in Review

Biggest Stories
Black Dog (HFX) to Play at First Light CPAC on July 15th
Friends Hold Raffle for Sheavy Frontman Steve Hennessey’s Recovering Following Cancer Diagnosis
Memorial Show for Will Hapgood to Happen at Bowring Park Amphitheatre July 9th
Mistwalker and Obelisk Announce 2023 Maritimes Tour
Night Demon and Ammo to Perform at the Bella Vista Events Venue on August 25th
Winterhearth and Precious Blood to Perform at Merciless Metal Festival 2023

New LPs
Beeraucracy + Catshit – Beereaucracy / Catshit Split
Brutal Youth – Rebuilding Year
Mistwalker – Oceanic Heritage
Neko Suicide – Midtown
Zackary Anderson – Graveyard Filled with Snow

New EPs
Knarl – Bad Luck
Lithops – ((BendeR))
Of Wilds – A Ghost at the Strid
Precious Blood – I No Longer Wish for Salvation
Smoke Signals – Send Me Flowers While I’m Still Here

New Singles
Cerebral Palsy – “Artillery, Fire!”
Cerebral Palsy – “Blood Boiled Human Organs in Rehab”
Cerebral Palsy – “Cerebral Palsy”
Cerebral Palsy – “Convulsions”
Choplicker – “Brigandine”
Disposition – “Slow Haze”
Homesick N’ Wanderlust – “When I Grow Up”
Precious Blood – “Suffer and Die”
So Violento – “Elegia Moderna”

New Demos
Vomit Denial – Demo ’23

Album Announcements
Mistwalker – Oceanic Heritage
Precious Blood – Suffer and Die
Smoke Signals – Untitled New EP
Triskelyon – Untitled New LP

Merch
The Skeats Reveal New Hats
Winterhearth Reveal New Riverbed Empire Diamond Patches

Watch
Glitterglue – Live 04/15/2023

Album Reviews
Bonginator – The Intergalactic Gorebong of Deathpot [by Abraxas]

Albums Archived
– C.A.R.E. – Creating a Righteous Energy [Crossover / LP]
– Mistwalker – Beaumont-Hamel [Black Metal / Single]
– Mistwalker – Oceanic Heritage [Black Metal / LP]
– Zackary Anderson – Graveyard Filled with Snow [Noise / LP]

~ Akhenaten

Night Demon and Ammo to Perform at the Bella Vista Events Venue on August 25th

Californian traditional heavy metal outfit Night Demon will be returning to St. John’s this summer alongside Toronto speed thrashers Ammo for a night of searing metal at the Bella Vista Events Venue. Courtesy of Make It So Productions, the show will be taking place on Friday, August 25th, 2023, and both bands will be joined by local thrashers Vertebraeker and metal vikings Sons of an Eastern Moon.

Pre-sale tickets are available for $30 while cover at the door will be $40. Doors open at 6:00 PM and the show starts at 7:00 PM.

Tickets are available at this link: here!

~ Akhenaten

Hakapik Release Music Video for “Don’t Make Me Laugh”

Hakapik, the two piece grindcore band with members split between Ottawa and Montreal (with one member originally from Labrador), released their first demo back in 2020. One of the tracks on that demo was “Don’t Make Me Laugh”, a grinding cover of a song by the fictional band Fruit Blood from the Adult Swim TV show Brad Neely’s Harg Nallin’ Sclopio Peepio. On December 21st, 2022 the band released a music video for the track, which features their own version of the song playing over the performance clip from the show.

You can watch the music video for “Don’t Make Me Laugh” through our YouTube embed below.

~ Akhenaten