If you noticed the faint smell of burning plastic mixed with dust and Rockstar energy drink this past Sunday, then you were probably hanging around San Bernardino where metal gala Mayhem Fest was in full swing. Gearing towards the Hot Topic and KROQ generation, thousands of oppressed youth and the seemingly browbeaten citizens of the Inland Empire gathered to take part in the manufactured anger fest to support bands like Walls of Jericho, Suicide Silence,......

The 2008 installment of KROQ's Annual Weenie Roast Y Fiesta was decidedly nostalgic this year with sets from punk legends Bad Religion, Orange County rockers the Offspring and the biggest force in metal in its history, Metallica. It was a return to force for the latter band as they finally broke out of a touring holding pattern and "escaped" from the studio to show why they are one of the loudest and most commanding bands......

Image courtesy of Paul Graham Raven via flickr Just when you thought stoner doom metal was dead, Austin natives the Sword have stormed onto the scene with some of the darkest riffs and sickest solos since Sabbath. With their sophomore release entitled "Gods of the Earth" in their arsenal of show material, the Sword took the stage at the El Rey and just started destroying ear drums one song at a time.......

It's been a long time since EARLY MAN did that sold out show at Spaceland in Feb. 06. But the early boys are back, and they expect Los Angeles to prove their worth in metal pride. That means come out, get wild, and show the boys why they need to visit LA more often. And if you haven't heard of EARLY MAN, let's just say they are a couple of shredders who hail from......

It's hard to imagine someone surreptitiously making off with something that's 7 feet tall and made of bronze, but it seems that's what has happened in a park located in the Mid-City neighborhood of Carthay Circle. Last week, residents discovered that the statue honoring a miner that had stood in their small neighborhood park had gone missing. The initial fear of the community was that the statue was snatched for scrapping, since currently there is......

Xasthur Subliminal Genocide Hydra Head (2006) As with any hyper-stylized music genre, black metal walks a fine line between inspired emulation and unintentional parody. With Xasthur's latest album, Subliminal Genocide, multi-instrumentalist and sole band member, Malefic, manages to defy both. Although adhering to certain conventions of the genre -- tinny, claustrophobic production, raspy, unintelligible vocals and bleak thematic elements -- his use of silence, extended instrumental passages, repeating melodic motifs and changes in tempo reveal......