On the Radar: Here Comes the Djent, Part II

Yesterday I opened up a look at the world of Djent, and how the sound and technique itself opened up a wide realm of musical discovery for myself last year.

So it was a no brainer to do an On the Radar showcase of some of the upcoming releases for 2011 that I've either been tracking for a while, or had recently come across.

The number of groups and varying array of talent I wanted to put up on the Blaarg for this Djent installment of On the Radar was too heavy to throw into one post. It would have just been too damned long, so I decided to break it in two part. Here Comes the Djent, Part I opened up with the following group of Djentlemen: Nova, Volumes, Uneven Structure and Textures.

So here's a look Part II, and the other five groups that I planned to showcase. Each having their own distinct flavor, and all bringing something equal to the table, in the form of aural pleasure.

Periphery - Icarus Lives EP

Label: Sumerian
Genre: Progressive Metal
Release Date: April 19, 2011

About one year to the day that their debut self-titled album was released, Periphery will be releasing the Icarus Lives EP.

Periphery is the 6 piece Djenternaut from Maryland, featuring guitarist Misha Mansoor a.k.a Bulb, one of the most recognized figures in the current rising of the Djent circuit. But you can't take anything away from fretwork the of Jake Bowen, Alex Bois and Tom Murphy on bass, Matt Halpern's prowess behind the drum kit, and Spencer Sotelo up front on the vox.

The EP will feature the remixed version of Icarus Lives from the fan remix contest from this Fall, as well as two other remixes of the song. Also making an appearance on the EP will be the track Jetpacks Was Yes! v2.0, the addition of everyone's favorite intro, New Groove, and the tracks Captain On, Eureka and Frak the Gods, an old fan favorite which they've been playing live for the past few months.

Regardless of what Periphery would have decided to release on this upcoming release, I'm sure fans of the group would surely be pleased.

Elitist - TBA

Label: Unsigned
Genre: Metalcore / Progressive
Release Date: TBD, 2011

Elitist are a 5 piece outfit out of Los Angeles, California, fusing together elements of progressive metal, trademark metalcore riffs, breakdowns and blisteringly elegant guitar work.

In 2010, Elitist released their debut EP Caves, quickly catching the attention of a few friends of mine, and many a metalhead. Not many details about Elitist's debut full-length album have come forward, but the band has released a studio update video, and footage of the band rehearsing together in studio.

It's understandable to make comparisons between bands, when trying to give people an idea of what a group sounds like, however I hate it when people label bands as a clone of another band. I've seen and also heard comments from people claiming that Elitist is just a clone of August Burns Red. I'm not one to argue there are similarities, but every band is unique, each member brings something new to the table, and Elitist and ABR clearly have their differences.

While I'd never use the term clone, comparing one up and coming group to another extremely talented band, such as ABR, that were once up and comers themselves, is actually a great compliment - as far as I see it.

You can check out Elitist on their MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/theelitistband.


Monuments - TBA

Label: Basick Records
Genre: Ambient / Progressive Metal
Release Date: TBD

Many fans of Monuments consider it to be the primary successor, at least in spirit, of Fellsilent.

Originally the spawn of former Fellsilent guitarist John Browne, and Josh Travis of TTDTE, Monuments now feature Browne alongside former Fellsilent vocalist Neema Askari, Mike Malyan on drums and Adam Swan on bass.

If the combo from Fellsilent wasn't enough to inspire oogling from fans of the genre, the fact that Paul Ortiz a.k.a Chimp Spanner often plays guitar with Monuments while on tour, should give you an idea of how talented this group is. And of course if you don't know Chimp Spanner, then you sure as shit need to check out his work, especially the album At the Dream's Edge.

Monuments released an EP in late 2010 entitled We Are the Foundation. While only comprising three tracks, all three tracks are technically beautiful, and show off the talents of the group as a whole. Monuments is currently tracking their debut full-length album, while also doing kickass things like touring with Periphery and Tesseract on the League of Extraordinary Djentlemen tour.

I say this a lot, but if you haven't heard of these guys or their music, be sure to check them out. You can do so by visiting their MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/thisismonuments. The track Admit Defeat is a definite must listen.

TesseracT - One

Label: Century Media
Genre: Experimental / Progressive Metal
Release Date: March 22, 2011

The brainchild of former Fellsilent guitarist Acle Kahney, TesseracT is a five member squad out of Milton Keynes in the United Kingdom.

TesseracT has been one of the most popular groups in the djent community ever since their inception. Blending together incredible instrumental technique, rhythm, and melody, along with alternating clean vocals and screams from Dan Tompkins, TesseracT provides one the most enjoyable progressive metal experiences of recent memory.

Fans of the group were obviously disappointed when in 2010, news that their debut album One would once again be delayed, however when news broke out that they had signed with Century Media, fans had good reason to get excited again. Following that announcement, the band released their debut EP Concealing Fate which I've discussed previously on the Blaarg and in my top 10 for 2010 post, where I named it my favorite EP of 2010.

Concealing Fate serves as a great prelude to their debut album One, which will finally be coming on March 22nd - which is officially a Smorgasbord day in the Metalverse also featuring new releases by Born of Osiris and Protest the Hero.

If you don't know them yet, get acquainted, and fast. You can check out TesseracT on their website at: http://www.tesseractband.co.uk/.

Vildhjarta - Irreversible

Label: Unsigned
Genre: Ambidjent
Release Date: TBD, 2011  

A seven member group out of Sweden, Vildhjarta have come to describe themselves, their style and their sound as being Ambidjent.

Vildhjarta utilizes a fusion of technicality and eloquence, featuring transitions between sections of abstract riffage, aggressive melodies, and ambiance that shifts between beautiful and dark at a moments notice.

Their debut album, entitled Irreversible has been, so far, something of a myth, as fans of the group have waited with bated breath to find out if the day will ever come when they can wrap their hands around a piece of this groups technical wizardry. Up until now we've had to do with the single pack Omnislash, released in 2009, a few sporadic releases and snippets.

Vildhjarta has been featured before on the Blaarg, in my first Djent oriented post from August entitled Forecast: A 90% Chance of Djent, the post which has actually received the most overall traffic (by a large margin) on the Blaarg to date, according to my stats - Nifty.

Regardless, rumors abound as to whether Irreversible will finally see the light of day in 2011. Personally, I fucking hope so, as it has been one of the albums I've been looking forward to for well over a year now.

You can check out Vildhjarta by visiting their MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/vildhjarta. Omnislash, the single pack released in 2009 is also available free for download, and contains the tracks Shiver and Don't Fail Me Now (Lady Luck).

A little trip around the tubes and Youtube will also net you with a wealth of Vildhjarta's instrumental work, which is sure to please, if you haven't heard these guys prior to right now.

This concludes my outlook on what I have On the Radar in the Djent community for 2011. Here's to another great year in djent, and hopefully all of these releases will spank my ear drums this year, including those featured in Part I.

- J

On the Radar: Here Comes the Djent, Part 1

In terms of musical discovery in 2010, there was one 'genre', or more like one onomatopoeia that seemed to dominate throughout much of the year.

While you've got those who'll argue that it can be classified as it's own sub-genre - amongst a plethora of existing sub-genres - others will say that it isn't.

It's all a matter of perspective, but one can easily argue that Djent is less about a being it's own standalone genre, but rather being a technical set piece that when used well, can incorporate itself into almost any type of metal (or otherwise!) with varying results.

Last year saw a lot of news and releases in the Djent circuit, including the release of Periphery's debut self-titled album, the release of TesseracT's Concealing Fate EP and many other masterpieces of Djentistry of which it would take way too long to list.

Fact of the matter is Djent is here, and it's picking up steam, with many scheduled (and hopeful) releases to come throughout the year. Some of which myself and many others have been anticipating for quite some time, and other nuggets sure to please.

Here's part one of the list of Djentlemen artists and releases that are currently On the Radar for 2011:

N O V A - Invert Theory

Label: Unsigned
Genre: Instrumental Progressive Metal
Release Date: TBD, 2011

A two-member instrumental project out of San Francisco, California, Nova is the spawn of Chazz McConnell (Sol Asunder), and Max Seeman, (Anomalous). Nova is yet another in a long list of interesting instrumental projects to pop out from the woodwork, so to speak. They've released a number of tracks which are available on their MySpace, Soundclick and Bandcamp pages.

The tracks Ley Lines, Temporal and Shard should provide you with a good idea of what you can expect from these guys on their future full-length release. Blending sounds that are both technically strong, mellow and at times, just plain funky.

Volumes - TBD

Label: Mediaskare Records
Genre: Groove Metal / Progressive

Release Date: Summer/Fall 2011

One of my favorite discoveries of 2010, Volumes is a six piece metal outfit out of Los Angeles, California. Grouping together musicians from a variety of backgrounds, they've created a sound which incorporates the intricacies of jazz fusion, the aggressiveness of straight to the core Metal, and everything in between, including the kitchen sink.

Their debut EP The Concept of Dreaming was my second favorite EP of 2010, behind only TesseracT's Concealing Fate, which should attest to how much I enjoy these guys musical capabilities. After finishing up a recent tour, they announced that they will be devoting their time to finishing the recording of their debut full-length album, with a targeted Mid-2011 release, and the simple demand that everyone should get appropriately stoked.

If you haven't yet, check them out, you can get an earful at their MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/volumes.

Uneven Structure - Februus 

Label: Unsigned
Genre: Ambient / Experimental Metal

Release Date: TBD, 2011

Uneven Structure are a six piece outfit with members playing out of France and Sweden. Their debut eight track EP, simply entitled 8, was released in late December 2009, and serves as a great introductory set piece to another very talented group fusing Progressive Metal, djenty goodness and Ambient sounds into a delightful brain massaging experience.

The best part is 8 is available free to downloaded via the groups official website (http://www.unevenstructure.net/), and all eight tracks are also available for streaming on their MySpace page. You'll also notice they uploaded a short preview of their upcoming full-length album Februus, which is definitely worthy of a listen, and will surely convert a few new followers to their cause.

Textures - TBD

Label: Nuclear Blast
Genre: Progressive / Technical Death Metal / Groove Metal

Release Date: Early 2011 (speculated) 

Previous Releases: Polars (2003); Drawing Circles (2006); Silhouettes (2008)

Arguably, this group could have easily fit into my future Prog Metal focused post, or any other number of them, but they also just as deservedly fit into this bracket.

Formed in 2001, Textures is a six piece metal band hailing from the Netherlands, with a long history of blending elements of progressive, technical death metal, groove metal and metalcore in their own unique, intricate and complex style. They have a long history of success as a group, showcasing strong performances on all three of their previous full-length releases.

In 2010, longtime frontman Eric Kalsbeek announced that he was leaving the band for personal reasons, wanting to focus on his personal work and family. Because of this, Textures were forced to delay the recording and release of their next album until early 2011. In March 2010, Daniel de Jongh was announced as his replacement.

I was looking forward to Textures fourth release, originally scheduled for last year, but with Eric's leaving the group it obviously added an unfortunate hiccup. I'm still hopeful that the group will be able to push forward with another solid release and look toward the future, so needless to say, Textures next release is still very much on my radar - hopefully sooner than later.


Part II of On the Radar: Here Comes the Djent will be up in the following days and will focus on four of my most anticipated Djent-tastic releases of 2011.

- J

The Contortionist: Review

The Contortionist - Exoplanet

Grade: 5 - No gymnastic feats, but feats nonetheless

Label: Good Fight Entertainment
Genre: Progressive Death Metal
Release Date: August 31, 2010
Site(s): http://www.myspace.com/thecontortionistband


High Points: Great blending of styles gives a unique vibe to each track.
Low Point: The fact that I missed this album in 2010.

My first contact with The Contortionist was when a friend of mine showed me their second EP, entitled Apparition, back in 2009. The seven track EP was quite the surprise and flooded my ear canals for quite some time.

Which is why I feel like a real turd burglar for having missed out on the fact that their debut album Exoplanet actually dropped this past August. Had I known this a couple weeks ago, it would have easily graced the top echelons of my Top 10 in 2010. So I figured the only way I could repent for this obvious sin was to throw up some sort of a Review of the album.

The Contortionist blend together core, death metal, progressive-jazz fusion and djenty goodness into something that when done incorrectly, you would expect to be an incoherent mishmash of discordance. The Contortionist however is yet another band that manages to blend each style together in ways that provide a unique sound experience from one track to the next. You'll find graceful melodies, technical fretwork, djentarific riffs, breakdowns and the kitchen sink.

While you'd expect non-stop face crushing destruction from how many of their tracks begin, you get treated to a wide range of transitions, from chuggy, meaty, bone crushing riffs, to melodic interludes with clean and pleasant vocals. The most important aspect of any group seeking to transition from one sound and style to the next is being able to do it seamlessly, a trait that The Contortionist clearly has down.

People familiar with The Contortionist prior to Exoplanet will recognize some familiarities and the return of the track Oscillator from the Apparition EP.

Stand-out tracks for me include the two opening tracks, Primal Directive and Flourish as well as track five, Advent. But I'm still acclimating myself to the overall awesomeness of the album to be able to say that any of the tracks truly destroy another - I'd rather just say the album destroys shit on it's own.

I'm not sure whether I should be more mad at the fact I didn't catch this album earlier in the year, or that none of my friends did either. Unless they didn't tell me... Fucking conspiracy!

Regardless I did come across a fine nugget of good news, in that The Contortionist will be playing in Ottawa in February - which I also only found out about, right now.

You can check out The Contortionist on their myspace, as linked above. Or better yet you can catch them on tour in a foxhole near you.

The Contortionist will be sharing the stage with Within the Ruins, Suffokate and Last Chance to Reason on February 17th at the Alexander CC in Ottawa. 

And of course, a small parting gift, in the form of some Primal Directive:


- J

Legacy Tour: A Little Overdue

So last Tuesday was when the Legacy Tour arrived on the scene in Montreal and me and the boys humped it, 5 dudes cramped in a tiny Toyota, for what was to be quite the interesting evening.

Prior to this trip, I'd never seen a show down at La Tulipe. The venue itself isn't bad, average size, average acoustics - hell, pretty plain average, but decent. The one problem is with their advertisement of upcoming shows and a bit of a SNAFU on the part of the tour organizers.

The Legacy Tour was comprised of Darkest Hour celebrating their 15th anniversary as a band, Veil of Maya, Periphery and Revocation. This lineup in itself justified the quick drive down to get our faces melted and heads Djented off.

Remember I mentioned advertising? There's a reason. Apparently the Legacy Tour was, for one day only (I'm assuming) merging with another tour passing through the city and instead became Extensive Fest. This fact brought in some pleasant surprises and some disappointments.

The other tour which merged with the Legacy tour ended up featuring The Acacia Strain, Terror, The Red Chord, Gaza and The Contortionist. Altogether a pretty diverse and strong lineup, with some good performances from all of the headliners and co-headliners.

The problem is when you put this many bands together, you get short sets - and when transitions sometimes don't go as planned, even shorter sets.

This was probably my biggest gripe, as my friends and myself included came down to see four bands and not nine. While that might not sound like a let down (dude, you get MOAR!), the fact remained that the majority of my friends were primarily focused on getting in some quality performances from those four groups.

Prime focus however, were some sick Djentings from Periphery. While we did get some, their set was cut to an abysmally short 20 to 25 minutes, which was probably the low point of the night. Periphery ended up getting yanked from the stage before they could really get a great groove on - and before they could let loose the new version of Frak The Gods which should be appearing on their forthcoming EP.

The trade-off however was that we got to hang out and talk with Misha Mansoor and the other band members in between sets and outside the venue. And got to confirm his lineage and place of origin - grats to me and Luc on totally calling that.

Second gripe? Hardcore Dancers. People can argue it's part of the experience, but only to an extent. When 8-12 guys are occupying 75% of the show floor so they can grab for falling coins and flail around like someone with epilepsy on speed, there's a problem.

I've got no problem with getting a little banged up when you mosh or do a circle pit, that's part of the experience. Getting kicked in the shins, elbowed in the ribs and kidney punched by douchebags who need to take the stickers off of their NY Yankee caps, that's not what I call collateral damage - it's what I would call a death wish if I see you lolly-gagging during some gnarly pit movements.

Worst moment goes to Wannabe Dallas Green who dove from above the show floor, into the back of the crowd - yeah, from behind - and knocked over a few people and kicked me in the back of the head. I hope you trip and fall into a vat of piranhas.

Douchebags aside, the rest show was pretty decent, and the rest of the bands we intended to see did not disappoint.

Revocation played a short set early into the evening and despite my prior lack of knowledge of most of their material, still managed to provide a good tone for the rest of the evening.

Once again, Veil of Maya brought on the hurt with their brutal breakdowns and powerful presence. I've said it before that these guys are an easy show stealer on almost any tour, but I would easily place them near the top of my list as being one of the best bands to see live.

Show-stealers or not, the night belonged to Darkest Hour.

It was somewhat sad that nearly half of the venue cleared out when they hit the stage - 90% of the hardcore dancers and scene kids left, leaving a somewhat vacant show floor. But it was all for the better, as you didn't have to constantly keep your eye out for any potential bullshit and focus on enjoying the show.

Darkest Hour played through songs from their entire catalog in celebration of their 15 years as a band and it provided a fair bit of nostalgia, as they're a band I've been pretty familiar with for the past decade.

The highest point of their set was when they pulled out and setup the two acoustic guitars for Veritas Aequitas and played a magnificent extended version of their instrumental classic. They also played my personal favorite track, Demon(s) near the end of their set, which definitely made the prior disappointments of the evening just disappear.

At least until the next morning when I woke up pretty sore, to go into a 12 hour day of class after only four hours of sleep. But as always, no rest for the wicked.

And now for a public service announcement:

Remember, if you see a Hardcore Dancer, show him proper venue and moshing etiquette. If he doesn't listen, kick him into a circle pit - he'll learn eventually.

- J

Tour de Force: The Legacy Tour

November has been a pretty sub-par month so far - in fact I've started referring to it as Suckvember, because it's been pretty much one sucktastic event of suckitude after another for the past two weeks.

I forecasted about 3 good days throughout the entire month. So far there's been about one day and a half, cumulative in the first half of the month. But I do know when the next full day - and probably the only full day of awesome will be and that's next Tuesday.

Luckily for me Suckvember will take a break from sucking ass on November 16th when me and the boys head down to Montreal for what I'm already declaring the show of the year. That show being The Legacy Tour featuring Darkest Hour, Veil of Maya, Periphery and Revocation.

I've never seen Darkest Hour live, but I've been a longtime fan of their music. DH is headlinging the Legacy Tour as it is celebrating their 15th anniversary as a band, and they've chosen a great set of traveling minstrels to accompany them on this late Fall tour.

I discovered Veil of Maya nearly two years ago and have been a huge fan of hem ever since. The Legacy Tour will be the second time I see them in the past year, as the same group I'll be traveling with on Tuesday caught them at the the Summer Slaughter Tour, which I shortly chronicled this past August. They definitely stole the show for me on that occasion and I expect nothing less than an awesome performance from them, especially considering the great company they'll be sharing the stage with.

Periphery is one of the first bands to launch me and other friends of mine into what I'll simply refer to as: the Djent-plosion.

I was actually lucky enough to catch them when they were in Ottawa last Spring, at a show that a friends local band (Rising City States) was opening at, along with another of my local favorite groups, Structures. Needless to say I'm excited at the fact that I'll get to see them again, but twice within such a short span is doubly awesome. This time I'll definitely prepared for Misha Mansoor's antics and the djentings that will ensue.

Revocation is the one group of the mix that I'm the least familiar with, but from what I've heard they should be a solid opener for an evening full of destructive breakdowns, djentings of doom and uber-melodic riffage.

You can check out all of the aforementioned bands on their MySpace pages, which you'll find linkage for below: 

Darkest Hour - http://www.myspace.com/darkesthour
Veil of Maya - http://www.myspace.com/veilofmaya
Periphery - http://www.myspace.com/periphery
Revocation - http://www.myspace.com/revocation

So bust out your party hats Ladies and Djentlemen, the Legacy Tour officially kicks off tonight in Worcester, Massachusetts and will be in Montreal in just 4 (hopefully) short days.

Suckvember, prepare to be annihilated - at least temporarily, which is fucking good enough for me, cause you're seriously cramping my style.

- J

TesseracT: Music for the Win

I haven't been home in a couple days, and as such haven't had a chance to get my hands on something that I've been eagerly awaiting for the better part of a year.

This past Tuesday, October 12th, TesseracT released their Concealing Fate EP.

The UK based group have captivated the likes of the Djent circuit and metal fans in general with their blend of Experimental/Progressive/Ambient and just plain Amazing metal, over the past couple of years.

Their debut album which was originally set to be released this year was pushed back to 2011, which left a lot of people slightly disappointed. However news shortly broke loose of the release of an EP featuring their six part masterpiece, Concealing Fate, of which only parts 1 and 2 were previously seen in the wild.

When I put the first track of the EP on play I instantly recognized the opening I was familiar with from the earlier version of the song. Cleaner and slightly different (very slightly) from the original I had heard, the first track of this EP instantly draws you in, letting you know you're in for a good bit of aural pleasure for the next 27 minutes.

TesseracT's debut album One is still scheduled to be released in 2011 through Century Media. If this EP has done anything it's just left every one of their fans eager for more, especially considering many of them have been waiting for the release of One for, quite some time.

Regardless, Concealing Fate has proven itself to be one of the better releases in the genre, in 2010.

The Track listing for the Concealing Fate EP is as follows:

1. Acceptance: Concealing Fate Part One - 8:33 
2. Deception: Concealing Fate Part Two - 5:22
3. The Impossible: Concealing Fate Part Three - 4:50
4. Perfection: Concealing Fate Part Four - 2:38
5. Epiphany: Concealing Fate Part Five - 1:29
6. Origin: Concealing Fate Part Six - 4:43

TesseracT just recently kicked off a tour in the US and Canada in support of Devin Townsend - of which I would probably do many nasty, unmentionable things, in order to go to Montreal and see on November 2nd.

You can check out TesseracT by visiting their website at: http://www.tesseractband.co.uk.

If you haven't heard of these guys yet, do yourself a favor and give them a go, you shan't be disappointed.

Cloudkicker: Sending My Dreams Into A Talespin

I'm the type of person that gets an average of 5 hours of sleep per night, during the week. I don't really have a choice since I can't fall asleep unless it's well past 1AM and I usually have to wake up by 7AM if not earlier. I'm also the type of person who'll lay down to go to sleep and finds himself staring the at the ceiling, unable to drift off as planned - sometimes for quite a while.

Not this Cloudkicker.

My own personal remedy for this is picking up my iPod, plugging in my headphones and laying back to some jams, until I finally feel Mr. Sandman calling, or until I out right fall asleep, headphones on and all.

Last night was such a case, as I woke up this morning with my headphones hanging off the side of my bed and the cable twisted around my arm and head.

My music was trying to kill me in my sleep. Alright, maybe not, but the prospect of asphyxiating myself with my headphone cable is something I'll be sure to take into consideration before I fall asleep the next time.

My chosen sleeping aid for the past few days has been Beacons the newest LP released by Cloudkicker.

That's the one-man instrumental phenom Ben Sharp, not the character from Talespin.

Cloudkicker has released two LP's and three EP's in the past two years, each of which bringing it's own style and brand of asskickery.

Cloudkicker's repertoire includes everything from slow evocative melodies, to powerful progressive metal overtones and djent. The one thing that stands out above all else is the quality of the productions, seeing as how Cloudkicker produces all of his material by himself, mainly on his own laptop. Recording all guitar and bass tracks himself and using technical wizardry to fill out any other necessary rhythms.

Sharp has made all of his releases free to the public, using the pay-what-you-please system, beginning with his debut LP The Discovery, which was released in 2008.

Beacons, follows this tradition and is currently available for streaming and digital download via Cloudkicker's Bandcamp page.

For the first time, Sharp is also selling physical copies of Beacons for 10$, well worth it for the quality of music he consistently provides. One is soon to be sitting upon my mantle, framed in fucking platinum.

Be sure to check out Cloudkicker on MySpace at http://www.myspace.com/cloudkicker.

You'll also find his entire repertoire, as mentioned before, on his Bandcamp page.

And as always, a little taste for you schmucks (I'll look into finding a better quality upload, once one goes up):

25 Random Posts: Time to Add Some Structure

Much to my surprise, people are actually reading my collection of random gibberish, ravings and even my post-script open letters. They're not only reading - they're coming back and reading more.

It's practically unheard of.

The Blaarg's description does clearly state that these are a few random days in my life - and my entries have been nothing short of random. In my first 25 posts I've covered topics such as:

• Metal;
• Hockey;
• World Cup soccer;
• Concerts/Shows;
• Birthdays;
• Bruschetta mix;
• Pan Galactic Gargle Blasters;
• Djent;
• Upcoming music tours;
• Video Game Villains and
• My lack of a future need of Bullshit

I'd qualify that as being a pretty random pile of topics for only covering the first 25 posts of Have You Met Jay.

For people the people who keep coming back, you never really know what to expect. So I figured that for my inaugural 25th post, I would provide some much needed structure to the Blaarg. So for my loyal (and most likely deranged) readers, here is the structure you require:

I first came across Structures while checking out bands for a show last March which was being opened by Rising City States, a local band of which one of my old childhood friends is the drummer. The show was being headlined by Periphery, a focal point I brought up in my Djent Forecast post from a couple weeks back.

They're a progressive metalcore unit that hails from Toronto - which just adds another name to the already deep talent pool that our fine country boasts on the Metal scene. They released their debut EP All of the Above shortly after that show, on April 6th.

The band was recently back in Ottawa at Ritual in support of the Holly Springs Disaster's farewell tour, along with Architects early this month. I imagine it won't be the last time we see these guys in town and I highly recommend checking them out on their next tour shot through Ottawa - or wherever you may find yourself, if you get the chance.

And there you have it folks, some much needed Structure(s) for the Blaarg, as promised.

You can check out Structures via their MySpace at: http://www.myspace.com/wearestructures.

Fall Tours Update: Nerdfest USA Confirmed

Devin Townsend announced a short West coast tour about a month ago featuring British Djent phenoms TesseracT, who have more than a few people eagerly awaiting their long overdue debut album release.

This would be the first time they'd be touring on this side of the pond, however there were only 7 or 8 dates announced for what would be a truly short tour. 

But then a few days ago MetalSucks let word loose that more dates were planned to be added to the tour, having it take a swing through the East Coast, in Canada and the US. It seemed almost like they pulled these dates out of thin air, as Devin and TesseracT only officially added a handful of those 'new' dates to the tour, following the news - until yesterday anyway.

Dubbed Nerdfest USA by MetalSucks, the tour will be rolling into Montreal on November 2nd - and I expect to be there - or die in a fire otherwise.

My last meeting with Devin was when I very luckily managed to catch him on tour with Between the Buried and Me, Cynic and Scale the Summit this winter - which sits near the top on my list of best live shows I've ever seen. His recent work is varied and quite awesome, I'm looking forward to the last two parts of his four part project, which according to the man himself, are to be released either simultaneously or very close together in the future.

TesseracT is one of the first bands I discovered upon delving into the world of Djent, so to be able to see them live would be quite awesome and would provide me with another check on my list of bands high on my current Must See list.

As for Ottawa, some recent tour announcements will make my current home look even better, following the mild bashing I gave it in my post from a few days ago. The Black Dahlia Murder announced a tour today with support from Goatwhore, adding to an already awesome looking start to the fall.

Here's are some other dates and names to keep an eye on in Ottawa in the coming months:

Sept. 24th - Comeback Kid, A Whilhelm Scream + Devil in Me @ Ritual
Oct. 5th - The Black Dahlia Murder, Goatwhore + Arkaic @ Ritual
Oct. 11th - We Came As Romans, In Fear and Faith, Upon A Burning Body @ Maverick's
Nov. 21 - Evile, Bonded by Blood @ Maverick's

Surely more to come, so keep an ear to the ground.

Forecast: A 90% Chance of Djent

Anyone familiar with the band Meshuggah or the name Bulb should already be well familiar with the concept and sound of Djent.

When I was younger I - hell I'm only 23 - I used to enjoy listening to Meshuggah purely for their intriguing, complex and technical style of music which evolves constantly with each new album. Tracks like Rational Gaze, Glints Collide, New Millenium Cyanide Christ, Stengah, Future Breed Machine and many more,  provide a good intro primer to the world of Djent.

Despite my past knowledge of the 'genre', it wasn't until six months ago when my seeming love affair with Djent kicked into high gear. In March of 2010, Misha Mansoor (aka Bulb) rolled into town with Periphery for what turned out to be an eye (and ear) opening evening. I had recognized Misha when he came on stage from some Youtube videos I had seen of him, under his moniker Bulb. Once I got home after their set I immediately went on the manhunt for more. It wouldn't take me long to find out that their debut album would be dropping on April 20th and that got me excited to say the least.

More recently I was able to get in two distinct and quality acts when I saw Animals as Leaders and Veil of Maya during their stint on the Summer Slaughter tour, whom comprise two of my currently favorite bands.

Since then I've found myself drowning in Djent, always trying to keep up on news and new releases from a truly extensive collective of music, bridging gaps all over the progressive and metal scenes. The next few months promise to bring some very high quality sounds from the Djent circuit, including album releases which are sure to vie for my personal choice for best album of the year.

So don't be surprised to see this Blaarg get drowned in Djent. I plan on doing some highlights in the future on artists and songs that have piqued my interest - and reviews of albums I'm hotly anticipating, including Irreversible by some of my favorite Swedish Djentlemen, Vildhjarta.

On that note I'll leave you with a bit of Djenty goodness: