Girls in stripper heels, Boys rolling in Maserati's

This concert was a part of an unusual couple of days in my musical life. I am now probably one of the few people who can claim that I saw Metallica and Lamb Of God (and fucking loved them) just days before going to an Adam Lambert concert. Yes, I was front row at the runner-ups Down The Rabbit Hole Tour in Auckland, New Zealand, only 3 days after headbanging my way through a nearly perfect Metallica/LoG show at Vector Arena. It is not a position most people find themselves in, but I always seem to find myself in contradicting situations like that. Getting front row was no problem really, the hardest part was dealing with all the screaming and squealing of his obsessive, female fans. There was no good opening act and the venue was a pretty average place, but the atmosphere completely made up for all that. Adam Lambert's show was a true spectacle, filled with glittery make-up, brilliant costumes and crazy hair. He is the essence of pop music, with super-catchy music that makes everyone want to move. He put on a real show, and everyone cheered like crazy when he would kiss bass player, Tommy Joe Ratliff. His setlist was masterfully crafted, it started with a real bang and was filled with bouncy and electric tracks, then he slowed everything down and played the more sombre songs from his album, like Soaked and Broken Open. His voice is so strong that those slower songs were really the highlight of his set, and then he built everything back up into party mode for the rest of the show. At the end of the show, my best friend and I (who were front row wearing Metallica and Lamb of God t shirts) were treated to an amazing surprise when guitarist Monte Pittman announced that in honour of Metallicas recent show, he convinced Adam to cover Enter Sandman! We were probably the only 2 people in the venue who truly appreciated how fucking cool that was. Adam read the lyrics off sheets of paper on the ground while Monte shredded away to the legendary song, giving his guitar pick directly to my friend after the song in honour of her t shirt. Now, Metallica and LoG still fucking rock more than anything, but seeing Adam was an amazing night and made even better thanks to Metallica.

Adam Lambert. 17/10/2010. Trusts Stadium, Auckland, New Zealand

Adam + Tommy

Adam Lambert

Top Ten - The Best Heavy Metal Albums

This is a list of my favourite heavy metal albums of all time. I first started getting into the heavier forms of rock 'n' roll when I got my first Linkin Park album, Hybrid Theory, and ever since then my love for the genre continues to grow. I am only a part-time headbanger though, despite what my long hair and the black t shirts may suggest. But please, no one get to upset about specific genres and sub-genres, I've never been one to give a shit if something is metalcore or deathcore, I just don't care at all. To me, metal is metal, and that is what this list is all about: The Greatest Metal albums that were ever made...in my opinion.

10.   Maximum The Hormone - BUIIKIKAESU

I was first introduced to this band through the opening and closing credits of the Japanese anime, Death Note. I had to order the album all the way from Japan just to get my hands on it, but it was extremely worth all the effort. This album is such a symbiotic combination of heavy metal and J-pop, it really brings the intensity of thrashing guitars and screaming vocals but also has catchy pop beats and clean, female vocals. The 2 styles juxtapose each other brilliantly and really bring the fun back to metal, this album just makes you want to bang your head and dance at the same time.

Best Songs: Buiiki Kaesu!!, What's Up, people!?, Koi No Mega Lover, Chu Chu Lovely Muni Muni Mura Mura Purin Purin Boron Nurururerorero

9.   The Black Dahlia Murder - DEFLORATE

This was the second BDM album I ever heard, but I was already madly in love with this band before I heard it. It is their fourth full length, studio album and their first with guitarist, Ryan Knight. Knight has a much more technical style and really brings a whole new level to the solos and instrumentals on this album. It has all the usual appeal of an album made by The Black Dahlia Murder but this album is perhaps their best on a technical level and it is the most well produced and finished. It really proves that their is a strong evolution in this bands style and it just keeps getting better.

Best Songs: Black Valor, Necropolis, I Will Return, Death Panorama, Christ Reformed

8.   August Burns Red - CONSTELLATIONS

Don't be put off by the 'christian' tag this band has, their faith only makes their music that much better. This is probably one of the heaviest bands I listen to, purely due to the fact that ABR completely abuse the use of breakdowns to assist their music. Even though my favourite ABR song ever, Composure, is on an earlier album called Messengers, I feel that this album is a much more complete piece of work. It is strong from start to finish and really has a good flow that leads from one song to another. The cover art is extremely beautiful as well.

Best Songs: Marianas Trench, Thirty And Seven, Existence, White Washed

7.   Arch Enemy - DOOMSDAY MACHINE

I am only a fan of the Angela Gassow era of Arch Enemy, I never saw the appeal of their previous vocalist, but I have loved them ever since I first heard Angela's powerful and demonic voice. I had a tough choice between this album and their 2007 album, Rise Of The Tyrant. ROTT was the first Arch Enemy album I ever heard so it has a lot of nostalgia attached to it, but I feel that this album is a much stronger example of their unlimited potential. The amazing vocals coupled together with the electrifying guitars is what makes this the best album AE has made to this day. Right from the opening instrumental, it explodes into the beginning of the album and stands strong.

Best Songs: Enter The Machine, Taking Back My Soul, Nemesis, My Apocalypse

6.   Trivium - ASCENDANCY

I remember when I was much younger and the fantastic Alt TV was still on the air, I would stay up all night and just watch all the cool and strange videos that they would play. This is where I was really exposed to my first bit of heavy metal, when I saw Trivium's video for Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr. At first, I wasn't even sure if I liked it or not, I was quite young and hadn't been exposed to vocals like that before but as time went on, I fell more and more in love with that style of music and here we are today. This is easily their best album to date, it has all of their greatest songs and is so signature to the Trivium style. Matt Heafy creates a great balance between clean and death vocals with the instrumental work being out of this world.

Best Songs: Pull Harder On The Strings Of Your Martyr, A Gunshot To The Head Of Trepidation, Rain, Like Light To Flies, Drowned And Torn Asunder

5.   Lamb Of God - ASHES OF THE WAKE

LoG is one of my favourite bands ever, so it was unbelievably hard to pick which albums were going to make the list. I would've loved to have included As The Palaces Burn, New American Gospel and Wrath as well, but I had to make a choice and this was the clear option. AOTW is LoG's 4th album, but it also has a much more memorable/catchy element which makes all the songs that much better. The album slightly fades over the last 2 songs, but the beginning is so explosive that you could almost use the break from thrashing riffs and timeless songs.

Best Songs: Hourglass, What I've Become, Omerta, The Faded Line, Now You've Got Something To Die For

4.   At The Gates - SLAUGHTER OF THE SOUL

This album is one of the godfathers of Swedish Melodic Death Metal, along with Dark Tranquility's The Gallery and In Flames' The Jester Race. A landmark album for the genre, it was the fourth and final from ATG. As it was recorded so long ago, the quality of the songs is not up to today's high standards, but it is that slightly rough element that makes it sound so unique and powerful. It is a brutal album from start to finish (with a couple of slightly out of place instrumentals) and with most of its songs being no longer than 3 minutes, it really is a fast paced, high energy experience. The lyrics are so intense, you can really feel the emotion and the hate flowing from this album. The high point is definitely the first few seconds on Suicide Nation, where a gun is cocked into the microphone before the band explodes into the song.

Best Songs: Slaughter Of The Soul, Suicide Nation, Cold, World Of Lies

3.   Burn The Priest - BURN THE PRIEST

The album that came before Lamb of God. Now I am not one of those people who gets all defensive about the difference between BTP and LOG, I believe that they are pretty much the same band, just with a different name. When it comes down to it though, I absolutely feel that BTP was the strongest period in the history of Lamb of God. Burn The Priest is the most stripped back and raw version of the band that there ever has been, it is a savage and brutal album of destructive songs and rip-your-face-off vocals. It is the best vocal performance I have ever really heard from Randy Blythe, or anyone for that matter. It is a lot heavier, faster and more intense than any other LOG album and that is why I love it so much.

Best Songs: Bloodletting, Dimera, Resurrection #9, Departure Hymn

2.   Nightrage - A NEW DISEASE IS BORN

This was the dominant album of my 2007/8 and it completely redefined my taste in music. It was truly the first metal album I ever fell in love with and became obsessed with. It's extremely memorable riffs and powerful vocals were mind blowing. The only problem with this album was that it was a one off event in the history of the band, because the vocalist would leave after this album (It was the only album he performed vocals on). It was the perfect line-up but never again will it happen, so now I just choose to pretend that the other Nightrage albums don't exist and I listen only to ANDIB. It's a strange way to live my life but it suits me just fine.

Best Songs: Spiral, Scathing, Death-like Silence, Drone, Reconcile

1.   The Black Dahlia Murder - NOCTURNAL

Easily the best heavy metal album, in my opinion. There is no doubt in my mind, I discovered this band last year when I went to see an Unearth concert and BDM was co-headlining. Ever since that day, I have been obsessed with every piece of music BDM have released. This album is absolutely perfect, from the first song all the way through to the last. Those 10 songs are everything that is good about the previous 9 albums all together in one. Trevor Strnd is my favourite vocalist, his voices complexity is astonishing, the way he goes from blood curdling scream to a deep, demonic growl is amazing. The guitar and instrumental work is so catchy but drives the album along with its blinding pace and brutal intensity. The song writing is some of the best I have ever heard, especially on songs like Deathmask Devine, where Trevor manages to create the most beautiful and horrific tale of love and obsession. LISTEN TO THIS ALBUM!!!

Best Songs: What A Horrible Night To Have A Curse, Deathmask Devine, Everything Went Black, Nocturnal, Climactic Degradation, Virally Yours

The Social Music Revolution

Last.FM is a social networking site that focuses on peoples addiction to music. In my opinion, it is the greatest social networking site out there, because it allows you to communicate and befriend people with similar musical interests as you. The most addictive quality of this website though, is the fact that it 'scrobbles' all the music you listen to on your computer/iPod and displays your music habits in the form of charts. It is a pretty rad feature that can get anyone really addicted to this site and even slightly obsessed with perfecting their music charts so that they accurately reflect how you rank your favourite bands. The scrobbling can be slightly inaccurate though, my Last.FM charts never match my iTunes play count, but that is just something you have to overcome, otherwise the obsession to perfect your charts will slowly consume your soul. I have been a member since the 16th of February, 2010 and I have never looked back since. In that time, I have scrobbled over 50,000 plays and this is how my Top Artists chart looks overall:

1.     The White Stripes                     3906
2.     T. Rex                                       3484
3.     The Black Dahlia Murder         2408
4.     Lamb Of God                            2377
5.     The Dead Weather                    2261
6.     Robert Johnson                         1961
7.     Led Zeppelin                             1865
8.     Queens Of The Stone Age        1758
9.     The Velvet Underground          1743
10.   Them Crooked Vultures           1597
11.   Marina & The Diamonds          1595
12.   The Kills                                   1482
13.   Trivium                                     1312
14.   A Tribe Called Quest                1185
15.   August Burns Red                    1146
16.   Nightrage                                  1128
17.   The Distillers                            1123
18.   The Mars Volta                        1072
19.   Alter Bridge                               994
20.   John Mayer                                936
21.   Arch Enemy                               885
22.   Yeah Yeah Yeahs                      862
23.   Street Chant                               848
24.   Karen Elson                               795
25.   Popstrangers                              792
26.   Lou Reed                                   702
27.   The Raconteurs                          671
28.   Foo Fighters                              654
29.   The Drab Doo-Riffs                   628
30.   Maximum The Hormone           609

Come vist me! http://www.last.fm/user/Harrison1630

Check Out The Social Music Revolution II

Smite the sheperd and the sheep will be scattered

This is a sheep, made with willow charcoal and water-colour paints. He lives humbly somewhere in the majesty of New Zealand and has no idea that he is being uploaded to the Internet so people in countries all over the world can observe him. For privacy reasons, I will not be releasing the name of this specific sheep but for the purposes of this post, we will just refer to him as Case Study #222.301. Now I am fairly certain that #222.301's is really into heavy metal, with one of his favourite bands ever being Lamb Of God. I can only assume that is why he chose that particular title for this blog post, it is taken from the first metal song he ever loved, Vigil from the album As The Palaces Burn. #222.301 really enjoys their relentless musical brutality and Blythe's face-melting vocals....or maybe he just really appreciates the reference to his kind in their name? What ever the case may be, LoG is truly one of the best bands in the genre and a defining band of our generation. I had quite the surprise last time I went to visit #222.301 because he had found something in his mouth for me, it turned out to be the set list from Lamb Of God's 2010 supporting tour with Metallica! I have been in debt to that humble creature ever since, it was possibly the best show I have ever seen in my life. And now I will share it with you.

Lamb Of God (supporting Metallica). 14/10/2010. Vector Arena, Auckland, New Zealand

Lamb Of God Set List 2010

Randy Blythe

Randy Blythe

Lamb Of God - Randy Blythe

Robert Trujillo

Lars Ulrich

Kirk Hammett

James Hetfield

Metallica: Kirk Hammett, Robert Trujillo, Lars Ulrich & James Hetfield

It's raining leprosy and acid.

On the 23rd of February, I saw Amanda Palmer (The Dresden Dolls) at the Kings Arms Tavern. The KA's is one of my favourite places, it is just perfect for hosting the smaller, slightly less popular bands. It is quite an intimate venue so you always get a chance to have a drink and talk to the musicians. Ive seen quite a few shows there before, including The Black Dahlia Murder, Unearth, Cancer Bats, Cairo Knife Fight, Street Chant, Cobra Khan and The Dauntless. But on that night, I was blown away by AP's opening musician who was a man named Jason Webley, a Seattle-born singer-songwriter known for playing a mix of gypsy, folk, and punk. He is the most badass piano-accordionist I have ever seen and his performance was violently beautiful. Needless to say, I highly recommend you check this guy out. That's him down there, he loves sweaty hugs right after a show.

My favourite song of Jason's is a post-apocalyptic tale of remorse and destruction called 'Dance while the sky crashes down', it is fucking amazing. But it really got me thinking...and now it has become my life's purpose to dance while something epic is happening in the background. It is a repeating theme that occurs in the music I listen to and I've decided I can no longer ignore this message, surely it is a sign that this will be my destiny. So just as Jason Webley dances as the sky crashes down, Lamb Of God dance as the palaces burn and The Black Dahlia Murder dance by night and drink the blood of a child's broken neck, I too, will one day achieve this epic feat

It is my calling.