The MetalSucks Podcast

Volumes vocalist Michael Barr is our guest this week. We talk about his journey from exiting Volumes to eventually returning to the band, and we get an update on the band's next album. Michaels tells us about their recently-released standalone single, "Pixelate," its message about the dangers of growing up staring at a computer screen, the digital imprint being more important to your legacy than h...

The Sword axeman Kyle Shutt is our guest this week. We discuss the recent release of two rarity, b-side and live compilations, Chronology 2006-2018 and Conquest of Kingdoms, the difference between the two, and the effects of taking a hiatus as a band after 15 years. We also discuss how Primus brought the band back together, how the death of Neil Peart put a pause on their reunion shows, his hobby...

Legendary thrash metal vocalist Bobby “Blitz” Ellsworth (Overkill) is our guest this week. We discuss his supergroup cover band, BPMD (featuring Mike Portnoy, Phill Demmel, and Mark Menghi), we break down their album track by track as he shares his memories of seeing the songs performed live in the 1970s, learn how Saturday Night Special and busting balls was the catalyst for the creation of the b...

Within Temptation vocalist Sharon del Adel is our guest this week. We discuss the band's latest standalone single, "Entertain You," the song's lyrical exploration of why people film altercations instead of helping humans in distress and the debate of filming being used as evidence versus getting involved. We also talk about how the majority of silent voices aren't represented on social media, the...

Nita Strauss is back on the show! This time we discuss Nita's new guitar tutorial website, iwanttoplayguitar.com, the story behind the programs she's created for guitar players of all levels, how learning from instructional videos was very important to her as a developing musician, and the teacher-student relationship that she has experienced across the world. We also talk about the motivation beh...

Nightwish vocalist Floor Jansen is our guest this week. We discuss the band's new album, Human. :II: Nature., whether there were any concerns about releasing it during the quarantine, working with a real choir and orchestra instead of using samples, and finding her vocal timing in the studio, as well as how COVID-19 has taught people to slow down in life and why not doing concerts is the safest wa...

Khemmis bassist Daniel Beiers is our guest this week. We discuss the band's new release, Doomed Heavy Metal, why he calls it a mini-album instead of an EP, how they chose which live tracks made it onto the album, and the band's plans for an eventual full-length album. Beiers also talks about how his job as an engineer has kept him extremely busy during the pandemic, trusting his kids to homeschool...

In This Moment vocalist Maria Brink is our guest this week. We discuss the theme behind the band's new album, Mother, how the death of family members influenced the writing and recording of the record, the visual aspect of In This Moment's live presentation and the difficulty of making that work on a budget, how collaborating with different singers is always exciting for her, the possibility of do...

Jamey Jasta of Hatebreed is our guest this week. We celebrate 500 episodes of his own podcast, The Jasta Show, the importance of his show's sponsors for its survival, how he gets in trouble for speaking his mind and the lessons he has learned from his peers in podcasting. Turning to his band, he reveals how he thought The Rise of Brutality would never be released, feeling competitive with other ba...

John Kevill from Warbringer joins the show this week. We discuss the band's new album, Weapons of Tomorrow, how his lyrics can be misinterpreted in light of recent events, the importance of the success of Woe To The Vanquished for Warbringer to survive as a band, how having a near-death experience as a band sharpened them musically, and breaking out of the neo-thrash mold. John also tells us about...

Trevor Strnad is back on the show to discuss the new Black Dahlia Murder album, Verminous. We tackle the vampire-related lyrical themes of the record, how it's easy to trace the new elements on each of the band's albums that helped them evolve to the next era, the myriad easter eggs on Verminous, and Ritual landing on many best-of-the-decade lists. We also discuss the power Bram Stoker’s Dracula h...

Testament vocalist Chuck Billy is our guest this week. We discuss the band's new album, Titans of Creation, how it's the biggest risk the band has taken in their career, what it was like touring with Slayer on their farewell run, and the reason he prefers being on the road over being in the studio. We also talk about his recent bout with COVID-19, his fear of assimilating back into the public now...

August Burns Red guitarist JB Brubaker is our guest this week. We discuss the band's new record, Guardians, its loose lyrical theme, how the music he's written has changed since becoming a dad, and knowing when to call a demo a finished piece. We also talk about celebrating the 10th anniversary of Constellations with fans, the band's plans for rescheduling their scrapped tour with Killswitch Engag...

Johanna and Nicke from Lucifer join us on a special in-between episode of The MetalSucks Podcast. We discuss the band's new record, Lucifer III, leaning more towards horror themes, the importance of using older equipment to their band's sound, how Johanna has always drawn inspiration from cemeteries, how mediocrity has contributed to quickly-changing trends, the look and style that is still very i...

Our guest this week is the one and only Ice-T of Body Count. We discuss the state of emergency in our respective states, the reality of our country not being prepared for an outbreak and how he compares the current situation to other states of emergency he has experienced. We also talk about Body Count's new album, Carnivore, getting a Grammy nomination for Bloodlust and the importance of adding W...

Continental Concerts booking agent and Unique Leader Records marketing guru Daniel DeFonce joins the show this week. Dan has a whole lot of advice for bands, including his strategy on how to book a tour for a band that has a lot of buzz behind them, the importance of a band being self-sufficient in promoting, emerging trends in social media (and some nostalgia on the switch from MySpace to Faceboo...

Jami Morgan of Code Orange is back on the show following his appearance on episode #243 back in 2018! We discuss the band's forthcoming album, Underneath, the hundreds of hours the band spends working on their visual aesthetic, shaking up fans with something new every album, working with Chris Vrenna from Nine Inch Nails this time around and upgrading the stage show for this new album cycle. Jami...

Every Time I Die guitarist and All Elite Wrestling newcomer Andy Williams is our guest this week. We discuss all things Every Time I Die, wrestling and the intersection between those two worlds, including Andy's road from metal icon to wrestling star, the anxiety of recording the new ETID album and having to leave to get in the ring, his fandom of the WCW as a kid and more. We also talk about othe...

Intronaut guitarist and vocalist Sacha Dunable is our guest this week. We discuss if the band's long break between albums benefited the music on their new record, Fluid Existential Inversions, the decision to let go of founding drummer Danny Walker following abuse allegations leveled against him, how the band dynamic has changed after that decision was made and how close Sacha himself was to quitt...

Devin Townsend is back on the show for his record-setting fourth appearance! We discuss his upcoming North American tour with Haken and The Contortionist, how his latest album, Empath, has ties to his journey into middle age, his realization that he is not a great band member and how that affects the creative process, how being a working musician is 80% logistics, all of his tours becoming special...

Our guest this week is Suicide Silence guitarist Chris Garza. We discuss the band's new album, Become The Hunter, the accompanying trilogy of music videos, if he considers Become The Hunter a return to form after the band's controversial self-titled album, how the door has been opened for more experimentation after that record, his gratitude for being able to continue with Suicide Silence after th...

Delain vocalist Charlotte Wessels and keyboardist Martijn Westerholt join us on the podcast this week. We discuss the band's new record, Apocalypse and Chill, their ideas for the best possible apocalypse experience, the hopeful vibe that the lyrical approach on the record conveys despite the dark subject matter, the use of technology in the making of the album, the importance of never planning a d...

This week riff-master Kirk Windstein of Crowbar comes on the podcast to discuss his first solo album, Dream in Motion. Kirk tells us about the challenge of covering Jethro Tull, which solo artist he thinks successfully broke away from their main band to flourish on their own, the major influence of Carnivore on the Crowbar sound, his favorite Type O Negative record, which festival would be perfect...

In this special half-episode of The MetalSucks Podcast we get a quick chat with Poppy to discuss her new album, I Disagree. Poppy tells us about the lyrical growth from her YouTube persona to this record, the importance of having a following on multiple platforms for success in today's music climate, the dark imagery that motivated her to change her persona into something more realistic, and the c...

Sepultura frontman Derrick Green joins us this week. We discuss the band's new album, Quadra, how the numerology concept throughout it relates to social issues, the importance of branching out in different musical directions with each record for both the longevity of Sepultura and for reaching Derrick's personal goals, the fear of being in a band that traps themselves into one particular musical s...