Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Moon Above, Sun Below by Opeth

Today's Metal Track is Moon Above, Sun Below by Opeth. It's really more progressive rock than metal but who cares. This is off of their latest album, Pale Communion, which was just released last month. 1:25 -1:55 is just fantastic and the solos throughout the song are free flowing and fit really well with the song.

The entire album is really a progressive rock album with all clean vocals that is sending many Opeth faithfuls into tizzies right now because they want their old Opeth back! I'm really enjoying this album but I didn't go into it expecting the traditional death metal Opeth from Blackwater Park and Deliverance. I look at it as the great progressive rock album it was intended to be.

Scott's Instrumental Track of the Day - Arpeggios from Hell by Yngwie Malmsteen

Today's Instrumental Metal Track is Arpeggios from Hell by Yngwie Malmsteen. As stated in the video, this piece was put together for an instructional video and was simply dubbed Arpeggios from Hell. An Arpeggio is a musical technique where notes in a chord are played in sequence instead of all at once. It was later released as a bonus track on his 2010 album Relentless.

Easy Like Sunday Morning Track - The Weight by The Band

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is The Weight by The Band. This is off the their 1968 debut album Music from Big Pink. This song is about a traveler who visits a southern town called Nazareth and meets different characters when trying to find a place to stay; The Devil, Carmen, Miss Mosses, Luke, and Crazy Chester. The band Nazareth got their name from this song.

When I first heard this song when I was little I thought the chorus said "Take a load of Fanny" and it always reminded me of my Aunt Fannie. Then for years I thought I was wrong and that it was actually Annie until I looked it up today. Turns out I was right to start with. There is a character named Anna Lee but there is also a character named Ms. Fanny who charged the traveler with the responsibility (The Weight or the load) to send her regards to the people in the town.

Weekend Wildcard - Lady by Styx

This Weekend's Wildcard is Lady by Styx. This is off of their 1973 album Styx II. After the song became a hit a couple of years later, the band switched record companies. This is the only song from the band's four Wooden Nickel-era albums that is still performed live. They have disowned all other songs from that era.

The singer wrote this song for his wife. He initially wrote it on an electric piano but when he got to the recording studio, there was an acoustic piano there and he liked the sound so much that he ended up recording it on that instead.

In hindsight, I should have worked this into our wedding reception! This was used in Old School as at Frank the Tank's wedding reception performed by the The Dan Band.



Old School

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - World Ablaze by Killswitch Engage

Today's Metal Track is World Ablaze by Killswitch Engage. This is off of their breakthrough album The End of Heartache which was released in 2004. This was the first album to feature Howard Jones on vocals and the first where Adam D was the lead guitarist. Prior to this album he provided the drums.

This particular YouTube video added the instrumental And Embers Rise to the end for some reason (The last 1:10). I couldn't find a version with just World Ablaze.

"Let it all fall!!!!
Set this world ablaze"

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - A Warrior's Call by Volbeat

Today's Metal Track is A Warrior's Call by Volbeat. This is off of the Danish band's 2010 album Beyond Hell/Above Heaven. It is dedicated to Mikkel Kessler, a world champion Danish boxer who provides guest vocals in the song ("Fight, Fight, Fight, Fight").

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Eyes of the Insane

Today's Metal Track is Eyes of the Insane by Slayer. This is off of their 2006 album Christ Illusion. This song won a Grammy for Best Metal Performance in 2007.

This is a really cool video that portrays the hardships and mental anguish of an American soldier through the reflection of one of his pupils. The reflections show horrific scenes of war and flashbacks of his family at home. I really like the part at 2:40 when the bomb drops and he is covered in debris before waking up in the hospital.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Salt the Wound by Exodus

Today's Metal Track is Salt the Wound by Exodus (Featuring Kirk Hammett). This is off of the band's upcoming album Blood In, Blood Out which is scheduled to be released October 14. This is the first album with vocalist Steve Zetro since 2004. Kirk Hammett, the original Exodus guitarist before joining Metallica, provides a guest solo on this song.

Scott's Instrumental Metal Track of the Day - Plateau of the Ages by Agalloch

Today's Instrumental Metal Track is Plateau of the Ages by Agalloch. This is my favorite song off of their newest album The Serpent & The Sphere.

The band is named after a resinous wood found in larger evergreen trees that are native to Souteast Asia. When the wood becomes infected with a certain type of mold, the trees produce a resin to fight off the infection which results in a dark and dense heartwood. The resulting wood is valued in many cultures for its fragrance and is use for incense. When I saw them live earlier this year they burn some of the incense during the show.

Easy Like Sunday Morning Track - Walking in Memphis by Marc Cohn

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is Walking in Memphis by Marc Cohn. This is off of his 1991 self-titled debut album. This one hit wonder landed Marc Cohn a Grammy for Best New Artist in 1992.

Weekend Wildcard - Beds Are Burning by Midnight Oil

This Weekend's Wildcard is Beds Are Burning by Midnight Oil. This is the opening track off of the Australian band's 1987 album Diesel and Dust. The band had many more songs but this was by far their biggest hit.

This is a protest song about giving native Australian lands back to the Pintupi, who were among the very last people to come in from the Gibson Desert in Australia. In 1984, due to a severe drought which had dried up all of the springs and depleted the bush foods, a group of the Pintupi people who were living a traditional semi-nomadic desert-dwelling life, walked out of the desert and made contact for the first time with European-Australian society.

"The time has come
A fact's a fact
It belongs to them
Let's give it back"

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Mist by Protest the Hero

Today's Metal Track is Mist by the Canadian progressive metal band Protest the Hero. This is off of their latest album, Volition, which was released in 2013. Chris Adler, from Lamb of God provided drums on this album because the previous drummer and founding member left before the recording process started.

This is  a pretty neat song that the band wrote honoring the people of Newfoundland. It's explained in more detail in the video but one of the big things they talk about is the fans holding up the stage and the drummer for them to finish a song after they almost knocked it down by rushing to the front.

Music starts at 1:55

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - People of the Lie by Kreator

Today's Metal Track is People of the Lie by the German thrash metal band Kreator. This is off of the band's 1990 album Coma of Souls. After this album the band began to experiment with other musical genres before returning to their thrash roots in 2001.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Funeral Bell by Black Label Society

Today's Metal Track is Funeral Bell by Black Label Society. This is off of their 2003 album The Blessed Hellride. This rhythm guitar in this song is pretty brutal. I think the song is about self-destruction through excessive lifestyles.

"Ohhhhhhhh
So high, and then I fell
Ohhhhhhhh
Can't stop the ringing of my funeral bell"

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Jake Leg by Baroness

Today's Metal Track is Jake Leg by Baroness. This is off of their 2009 album Blue Record. Jake Leg is a reference to an ailment caused by a Jamaican ginger extract (Jake) that was used to bypass the Prohibition laws. In 1930, Jake users started to lose the use of their hands and feet and had difficulty walking. Those that were afflicted were said to have Jake Leg.

Scott's Instrumental Track of the Day - 87 by Polyphia

Today's Instrumental Track is 87 by Polyphia. This is the opening track off of their debut full-length album Muse which was released just two weeks ago. This album was self-funded by the band's fans through an Indiegogo Fundraiser Campaign this year. The band also released two EPs during 2013. I haven't heard a lot by this young group but what I have heard has been decent.

Easy Like Sunday Morning Track - Lily (My One and Only) by The Smashing Pumpkins

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is Lily (My One and Only) by The Smashing Pumpkins. This is off of their 1995 double album Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness.

If you don't pay attention to the lyrics you might think it is just a sweet little love song. Instead, it is a Peeping Tom singing about peeping on Lily from a tree by her window. Eventually the cops come and get him and take him away. Very romantic.

"Oh Lily, I know you love me
Cause as they're draggin me away
I swear I saw her raise her hand and wave (goodbye)"

Weekend Wildcard - She Drives Me Crazy by Fine Young Cannibals

This Weekend's Wildcard is She Drives Me Crazy by Fine Young Cannibals. This is off of their 1989 album The Raw and the Cooked. This was the group's only major hit. They only released two studio albums with the other one being their 1985 self-titled album.

The band got their name from the 1960 film All the Fine Young Cannibals. It's hard to believe that they never were able to hit it big again after this great song.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Question! by System of a Down

Today's Metal Track is Question! by System of a Down. This is off of their 2005 album Mezmerize which is the first half of the Mezmerize/Hypnotize double album although they were released 6 months apart.

This song has to do with life, death, and reincarnation. The color red is central to the video, tying together the bird, the girl, the woman, and the baby in a cycle of rebirth.

"Do we, do we know, when we fly
when we, when we go, do we die..."

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Surprise! You're Dead! by Faith No More

Today's Metal Track is Surprise! You're Dead! by Faith No More. This is off of their 1989 album The Real Thing. This was the band's third album but the first to feature Mike Patton on vocals. This is one of the heaviest songs released by the band.

On September 2, the band revealed that they are working on a new album which is set to be release in April 2015. It would be the first FNM album to be released in 18 years!

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Shadow In Our Blood by Dark Tranquility

Today's Metal Track is Shadow In Our Blood by Dark Tranquility. These guys are from Sweden like many other Metal Bands. This is off their 2010 album I Am the Void. This was seen as the second part to their previous album Fiction.

From singer Mikael Stanne: "It's about a person, having a fatal disease, fighting with the thought that he's about to die soon. That evil lives inside him and may put him to an end any moment. This song reveals the thoughts that go through his mind."

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Descending by Lamb of God

Today's Metal Track is Descending by Lamb of God. This is off of their 2006 album Sacrament. Back when Jimmy and I lived in the Fraternity house, he had his drums set up in his room and I would bring my guitar up and we would jam to this song. It sounded just like this (just take my word on it :-b).

This song is about the singer's descent into alcoholism. He see's alcohol as both a god and a demon. On the one hand he worships it because it helps him deal with life, while on the other hand he blames it for all of his problems. Pretty vicious cycle. Randy Blythe, the singer who struggled with alcohol in real life, has now been sober for almost 4 years.

"This god that I worship
This demon I blame
Conspire as one, exactly the same
It's exactly the same"

Scott's Instrumental Metal Track of the Day - Scarified by Racer X

Today's Instrumental Metal Track is Scarified by Racer X. This is off of the band's 1987 album Second Heat. This video is taken from a 2005 DVD by Paul Gilbert titled Space Ship Live. Paul is the founding guitarist of Race X but is performing here with two non-Racer X band members for the DVD.

Easy Like Sunday Morning Track - Waiting for a Girl Like You by Foreigner

Today's Easy Like Sunday Morning Track is Waiting for a Girl Like You by Foreigner. This is off of their 1981 album 4. This song set a record on the billboard charts for spending 10 straight weeks at the #2 spot without ever hitting the #1 spot. It was kept out of the #1 spot by Olivia Newton-John's Physical and Hall & Oates' I Can't Go for That (No Can Do).

Weekend Wildcard - Freakin Out by Death

This Weekend's Wildcard is brought to you by another band that will be playing at Hopscotch tonight. This is Freakin Out by Death off of their debut 1975 album ...For the Whole World to See. This protopunk band was 3 black brothers from Detroit; David, Dannis, and Bobby Hackney.

While the album was recorded in 1975, it wasn't officially released until 2009 when the band was rediscovered by record collectors and the band members' children. Death was offered a record deal in the 70's but the record company demanded that they change the name of the band. When the brothers refused, the record company wouldn't sign them.

The band pressed a few copies of the album on their own but ultimately never made it. About 30 years later, record collectors came across these rare records and suddenly the songs were being played in underground clubs and eventually one of their children heard it and recognized his father's voice. This lead to the record finally being released by Drag City records in 2009.

David Hackney, the guitarist and creative leader of the band, prophetically stated that his music would not be appreciated until after he was gone. David died of lung cancer in 2000. (RIP) An outstanding documentary of the band's incredible story is available on Netflix titled "A Band Called Death".

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Sudden Death is Nothing by Valient Thorr

Today's Metal Track is Sudden Death is Nothing by Valient Thorr. This is off of their 2010 album Stranger. This a great metal/rock track with a great groove and some killer riffs.

A group of us are going to see them play at Hopscotch tomorrow along with Mastodon and Death. Really looking forward to seeing these guy live again because they put on a great energetic performance.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - From Bulwark to Bane by Today I Caught the Plague

Today's Metal Track is From Bulwark to Bane by Today I Caught the Plague (Now named The Kindred). This is off of their 2011 album Lore.

Bulwark is something that provides protection while bane is something destructive. So I think the song is about going from a state of protection to destruction.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Swerve City by Deftones

Today's Metal Track is Swerve City by Deftones. This is the opening track off of their 2012 album Koi No Yokan.

For this album, the band used the Fractal Audio Systems Axe-FX Preamp FX Processor which creates the sound of multiple outboard amps and pedals and allowed for different tones. This was the first album that guitarist Stephen Carpenter used a different amp than he had used on all previous albums.

Scott's Metal Track of the Day - Art of the Mourning by All Hail the Yeti

Today's Metal Track is Art of the Mourning by All Hail the Yeti. I came across this band listening to Liquid Metal on Sirius the other day. This track is off of their self-titled 2012 debut album All Hail the Yeti.

Nothing says metal like a good ole western video :).

Scott's Intrumental Metal Track of the Day - In the Fading Light by Andy James

Today's Instrumental Metal Track is In the Fading Light by Andy James. This is off of his 2013 EP Psychic Transfusion. Andy shows off his skills for EMGtv in this playthrough video. Enjoy!