Metallica are in the Studio, and Deftones, Testament and Mastodon are all Writing
There’s not a whole lot going on during these January doldrums in the metal world; seems like most of the news we’re posting has to do with either bands heading into the studio or plans to head out on tour later in the year. Even our metal heroes need to recharge their batteries sometimes, ya know?
To that end, a few bands we already know who have been currently hard at work on new albums are Dream Theater, TesseracT and Scar Symmetry. But that’s certainly not all.
Add to that list Metallica, who posted a photo on Instagram over the weekend of bassist Robert Trujillo laying down tracks in front of a giant mixing board. The setup of the studio would make it seem as if this is the real deal — not just demos (see Testament, below!) — but with Metallica, who knows… if anyone can afford to rent out a big, professional studio space just to lay down demos, it’s them. Here’s the photo, via Metal Injection:
Elsewhere in the metalverse, Deftones bassist Sergio Vega hinted on Twitter that the band would resume writing (or recording?) this week. On top of that, the band posted some footage of the recording sessions for their long-lost Eros album, shelved in 2008 after bassist Chi Cheng’s horrific car accident left him comatose and, tragically, after a five year fight, dead. The clip features over two minutes of the band jamming on a new song in the studio, and, to my knowledge, it’s only the second time we’ve heard any music from Eros (after “Smile,” released by the band early last year). Watch:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Wcfei0lhMeU
Late last week Testament posted a few photos of the band in the studio on their official Facebook page. Though the album is labeled “In the Studio 2015,” you might be surprised to see that it looks as if the band is recording in someone’s bedroom or basement; surely one of the greatest thrash bands of all time can afford better? And you’d be correct: upon closer examination of each photo’s caption, it turns out they’re just working on demos at the moment. But recording-related activities in the Testament camp are exciting nonetheless, and if demos are being tracked now it’s not unreasonable to think we could have a new album out by the end of 2015, or early 2016 latest.
Today’s recording round-up ends with an Instagram post by Mastodon’s Brent Hinds, in which the Mastodon guitarist is pictured playing a pedal steel guitar (allegedly acquired from pedal steel whiz Robert Randolph) and claims to be working out a new Mastodon song. Pedal steel is one incredibly difficult instrument, but if there’s any metal musician that should attempt to master it, it’s Hinds: he’s proved more than adept at playing slippery, twangy, lightning speed, chicken-pickin’ leads in his side project Fiend Without a Face (below), so translating those skills to 13 strings (!) and who-knows-how-many pedals certainly seems like the next logical step. One “really cool new Mastodon song” does certainly not a new album make, and Once More ‘Round the Sun just came out last year so we’re presumably quite a while off… but still, new Mastodon, fun!
Фото опубликовано bhinds (@bhinds)
