The MetalSucks Podcast

Jake Bowen is our guest this week. The guitarist and multi-instrumental tells us all about Four Seconds Ago, his new electronic project with Periphery bandmate Misha Mansoor, from its formation to the differences in the creative process from his day job band to the need he felt to pursue that musical direction. We also spoke about Periphery's decision to start their own label (3 Dot Recordings), t...

Otep Shamaya returns to the podcast this week. We discuss her upcoming record Kult 45, the intent behind its lead single “To The Gallows" and a whole lot of politics: how important it is not to accept lies from our leaders, how to argue politics with people who have a different viewpoint, when name calling is acceptable and when it's not, how important it is to stand up and fight against injustice...

This week we talk to Obscura mastermind Steffen Kummerer about the band's new record, Dilvium, why it took four chapters to tell the narrative behind it, the meaning of the title, his approach to making the record sound three dimensional, the importance of a good chorus, his study of German philosophy, which philosopher he feels best represents him today, the difficulty of misinformation, and the...

This week we talk with Devin Townsend about his latest release Ocean Machine - Live at the Ancient Roman Theater Plovdiv. We discuss Devin's decision to disband the "Devin Townsend Project" moniker, the various albums he's writing now and the 100 songs that are currently in the works, the trial and error process he goes through prior to committing to a project, the autobiography he released in 201...

Dez Fafara from DevilDriver is our guest this week. We discuss his new country covers album Outlaws Til The End Vol. 1, how he handled people who told him it was a bad idea to mix metal and country, why this is a "Volume 1," his trip to Johnny Cash’s cabin, singing on stage with Lee Ving of Fear, masculinity and its representation in country songs and an update on the future of DevilDriver. Pete,...

Jami Morgan of Code Orange is our guest this week. We discuss the band's latest standalone single “Only One Way," the ways he sees the band releasing songs, albums and other content in the future, his fondness for MMA and wrestling, the importance of validation from established artists, touring Europe with System of a Down, which era of hardcore most inspired him and the youthful energy that is ir...

Ben Ward of Orange Goblin is our guest this week. We discuss the immediacy and sound of the band's latest record The Wolf Bites Back, the reason Ward believes no rock band has captured a generation like in the past, how popular artists rest on their laurels after achieving success, the English metal scene and the unity that used to make it special, why retirement doesn’t make sense for musicians,...

This week we talk to Every Time I Die vocalist Keith Buckley about his new novel Watch. We also discuss his first novel Scale, the authors that influenced him, the importance of writing what you know, the risks he took on the new book, the difference between turning in finished records to labels and books to an editor, the magic behind the song “Map Change," the importance of producer Will Putney...

Doc Coyle of Bad Wolves (ex-God Forbid, Vagus Nerve) joins the podcast this week. We talk about Bad Wolves' recent rise to success, the difference between metal and hard rock, the disparity between fans of those genres, how quickly change occurs in life and the anxiety that brings, how the president has become pop culture and the importance of mobilizing young voters. We also talk a whole lot of N...

Bloodbath vocalist Nick Holmes (also of Paradise Lost) is our guest this week. We discuss the North American tour Bloodbath are about the embark on, his passion for Florida death metal and horror films, his fear of checking Twitter after a night of drinking, the challenge of writing “gore” lyrics and an update on the new Bloodbath record. Meanwhile Petar, Brandon, and Joz discuss MS co-founder Vin...

This week we talk with Lamb of God guitarist Mark Morton about the band's new covers album Legion: XX, released under the band's original moniker Burn the Priest. We discuss how the band selected which songs to cover, which ones were the most difficult to learn, his favorite covers by other bands, the honor of being on the bill for Slayer’s farewell tour and his passion for hip hop.  This week we...

Mike Scheidt from Yob joins us this week. We talk about the trials and tribulations caused by his near-fatal diagnosis of diverticulitis, his near-death experience prior to surgery, the power of being mentally strong when dealing with health issues, the process he took to rebuild his singing voice and the precautions he'll be taking on Yob's upcoming tour with Bell Witch, how our emotions are tied...

TesseracT guitarist James Monteith is our guest this week. We talk about the meaning behind the title of the band's new album Sonder, the dark storytelling process for their music video “King," how shorter records make more sense these days, the importance of trends and timing in modern music, his day job as a music publicist, the correlation between Brexit in Monteith's native U.K. and Trump's Am...

Dimmu Borgir guitarist and founder Silenoz is our guest this week. We discuss the writing process of the band's new record Eonian and the motivations behind it, how after eight years a new record becomes an event for fans, Dimmu Borgir's 20-plus year relationship with Nuclear Blast Records, the 15th anniversary of Death Cult Armageddon, his thoughts on eventual retirement after 25 years of doing t...

Legendary frontman John Bush (Armored Saint, ex-Anthrax) joins us this week to discuss the early days of Armored Saint, their goal of getting signed prior to playing 50 shows, Mike Piazza’s favorite track by the band, the writing process for classic album Symbol of Salvation, the stories behind the Anthrax records he performed on, his approach to writing lyrics with a broad appeal while remaining...

We talk to Benji Webbe of Skindred about their new record Big Tings, the change in sound on this record, surviving getting stabbed in the neck and how close he came to dying, how gun control works in the UK, the importance of listening to the children, and the Babymetal controversy he was part of during the Kerrang awards. Petar, Brandon, and Jozalyn have a field day with Frankie from Emmure's dis...

Anthrax drummer Charlie Benante and MS co-founder Vince Neilstein go one-on-one in a debate about how technology has affected the music industry. We discuss Benante's assertion that "Apple had a big hand in destroying music," his preference for listening to music on physical formats, the income artists and labels earn from streaming platforms like Spotify and YouTube, "pay what you want" pricing m...

Underoath vocalist Spencer Chamberlain is our guest. We discuss the band's new record Erase Me (out April 6th), the decision to make a new record after reuniting to tour, the reason the band decided to call it quits in 2013, the importance of the break-up in hindsight, his past struggles with addiction and the way he beat it, the most irritating thing about the current state of our country and muc...

Emperor guitarist Ihsahn returns to the podcast this week to discuss his latest solo record Amr. He also tells us why a new Emperor album doesn’t make sense, how money and fame dictated peoples' views in the early days of black metal, his views on the crimes associated with the early black metal movement, the way Americans view those same crimes, his feelings on sharing the stage with Faust and Sa...

This week our guest is Thomas Youngblood of Kamelot. We discuss their new album The Shadow Theory, how Lauren Hart of Once Human (who guests on the new record) performed her first show with the band opening for Iron Maiden, how Kamelot made it into the Olympics, recent lineup changes, the reason he choose to film in the Netherlands for their upcoming live DVD and more. Petar, Brandon, and Joz get...

This week we get to chat with BTBAM vocalist Tommy Rogers about latest the band's latest record, Automata 1, the reason behind the decision to release this record in two parts (Automata 2 is out in June), the process of making music with his bandmates, why concept records work so well for BTBAM, which of his albums is his most personal, the importance of North Carolina to the bands sound, the way...

Will Haven guitarist Jeff Irwin is our guest this week. We discuss the band's new record Muerte (out March 23rd), how the band functions and makes decisions these days, their evolution and three distinct chapters of their career, their debut album El Diablo turning 21 years old, the crucial role dark and angry art plays in his life, the possibility of a live album in the near future and growing up...

This week we chat with Rivers of Nihil guitarist Brody Uttley. We talk about the band's third record Where Owls Know My Name, out March 16th via Metal Blade (order here), the depression millennials suffer due to technology, creating art in the form of heavy metal, the difference between artists and craftsman, his love of post-rock, the struggle he has with communication through text messages, his...

Howard Jones is our guest this week. We discuss his latest project Light The Torch (formerly known as Devil You Know) and their new album Revival, the project he has been working on with Peter Wichers (ex-Soilwork), his bucket list moment with Dee Snider, his take on Floyd Mayweather Jr.'s rumored fight in the MMA, his thoughts on touring as a solo artist and much more. Petar, Brandon, and Jozalyn...

Dave Wyndorf of the legendary Monster Magnet is our guest this week. We discuss the band's latest record Mindfucker, how Dave's approach this time differed from the last few records, the perfect live set list and how he tried to sequence the new record to mimic it, why “stupid is the new smart," writing lyrics during Trump’s inauguration, and his take on the current generation gap and all things r...