A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD - IMMORTAL'S APOLLYON AND I HAVE A BEER AND A CHAT

Immortal bassist Apollyon took time out from organizing festivals (sorry to mention Aura Noir again), touring, teaching kids music, and playing in six or seven different bands (he's lost count) to come to London and meet me for an interview. Here's some of what we talked about over a few beers (and a lot of Pantera) in The Hobgoblin in Camden last week. By the way, did you know that he played bass for Gorgoroth at the now infamous Krakow show? Well, now you do.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD FACES THE SLAYER

Slayer have a new album, World Painted Blood, due out next month. Hopefully it will better than anything that they've released since 1986. They were in town promoting this new record and I was lucky enough to get an interview with frontman Tom Araya and legendary shred machine Kerry King – albeit individually.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD - A CHAT WITH NEKROMANTHEON AND OBLITERATION'S SINDRE

I caught up with Obliteration frontman and Nekromantheon singer/bassist Sindre Solem after their blistering performance at the Smuget Club in Oslo a few weeks back. Well, actually, somehow the interview got deleted so I interviewed him again, this time before Aura Noir's excellent performance at Øya Festival. Here's what he had to say about the scene. Again.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF OSLO - I AM YOUR GRANDMA AND YOU WILL LOVE IT

Hey, remember that trip to Oslo I keep on talking about? (Here, here, here.) It was fucking great so you're going to hear more. Let's go through some images, just like how your grandma did the first time she went back to the mother country and took a shitload of snapshots of nothing and hijacked entire dinner one night showing you pictures from different angles of the statue in front of the hotel she stayed in. 

LONDON - A FIST IN THE FACE OF ØYA FESTIVAL

I just got back from Oslo's Øya Festival, an amazingly organized and diverse affair featuring performances from Enslaved, Aura Noir, Satyricon, and Ulver, as well as some more obscure acts like Arctic Monkeys, Lily Allen, the Big Pink, and Ungdomskulen. I mainly only saw the Norwegian metal acts (surprisingly). Here are some pictures from the festival. There will be more from my stay later in the week.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD - AURA NOIR AT ØYA

Mortals, it has been a hectic week since my previous post. I find myself sitting in Oslo writing this week's installment. I've just come from Øya Festival, where I saw an unholy thrash attack from Aura Noir in the blazing sunshine this afternoon.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD - WHIPLASH

 

A full moon has passed since last the face of God received a metal fisting. Well, back we are, dealing an overdue slab of classic speed/thrash metal courtesy of Jersey's Whiplash.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD - NEKROMANTHEON

A week has passed since the Mayan black metal prophecies of Xibalba, and today I have more ancient mythology-themed metal for you. This time of the Greek kind, courtesy of Norway's Nekromantheon.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD - XIBALBA

So it seems I have overlooked black metal somewhat on here. The reasons are many; however, now is the time to bore a new hole in your mind with Mexico's Xibalba.

A FIST IN THE FACE OF GOD - FENRIZ PRESENTS... TRAPPED UNDER VICE VOL.I

Back when I started this weekly blog at the beginning of the year, I wanted to interview Darkthrone's Fenriz. The reasons are pretty obvious, but he declined, stating a rigorous interviewing schedule that had just finished. I was a little bummed out but we kept in contact and he would tip me off on so many bands I would never have heard of without his vast knowledge of music. Anyway, I then tried to get him to DJ to no avail. When I heard the Actual Pain mixtape I was naturally lost for words and asked him if there was any possibility he could do one for Vice. No problem, he said. He would love to. And here it is. Intro from the man himself (including all capitals) below.