What can you say when an icon like Ozzy Osbourne passes? All the achievements, all the landmark moments in a career, all the pieces of a lasting legacy are there for us to cherish. What we lost is the man himself. The man who rose from working-class beginnings in Birmingham, England, to create an entirely new form of music and then shape its sound over the next 50-plus years.
“Back to the Grindstone is a love letter feature dedicated to the appreciation of all things grindcore. This most extreme of extreme niche genres has been kicking since the late ’80s, growing in underground stature as the years march on. The rule of thumb to this feature is simple; spotlight will be on grind albums old and new, though will not include releases from the past five years, or albums previously covered on this website. Genre classics, underappreciated gems, old school and nu school will be covered, highlighting albums aimed at established fans and curious listeners interested in diving into the cesspool of the grind scene.” Truth brutality.
“Pennsylvania-based independent label Willowtip Records was established by Jason Tipton in the late ’90s. From humble beginnings, the label has stood the test of time, becoming one of the most respected and highly regarded record labels in the extreme metal scene. It takes something special to create a label with a consistently unfuckwithable roster of quality, innovative artists while retaining long-term integrity and durability. Willowtip is the self-proclaimed forward-thinking label, releasing a slew of modern classics and top-shelf albums that may have a lower profile but are more than worth your while.” Grind for your mind.
Our man in the Netherlands attended Roadburn and sent dispatches from the front. Then he went missing…
“Long-running Swedish melodeath institution, Arch Enemy recently served AMG Industries with a legal notice alerting them that the band would not be paying for the review of their latest album, Blood Dynasty.”
“Freedom stopped ringing and sales of Machine Head’s new signature “Shotgun Blast” whiskey came to a sudden halt today, as agents of the FDA seized inventory at warehouses and stores across the country in a coordinated operation.”
“After an unexpected shoutout to Angry Metal Guy in Rolling Stone Magazine last week, the entire AMG staff walked off the job Monday to seek greener pastures in mainstream music journalism.”
The tradition at Angry Metal Guy has been the strong start to the year where, like so many people with New Year’s Resolutions, you stick with ’em for a while, and then they taper off, sliding later and later as the year goes on. But this year, even the dopamine kick of listing everything in some kind of ranking order and getting lots of positive feedback from readers didn’t help me shake my funk. Yet, I have dragged myself out of funk in order to make a minimal effort for the greater good. APPRECIATE ME!
“Here we are. The culmination of not just two to five weeks of hardcore listing, but twelve months of hardcore metalling. The AngryMetalGuy.com Aggregated Top 20 Albums o’ 2024 represents the cream of the crop, or more accurately, the cream of a small corner of a field containing some crops. Using the unrestrained power of manual data entry and a mighty spreadsheet, our wonderful little website compiles our numerous year-end ranking articles and the dozens of metal albums therein into one final, dreadful ranking.” One List to Debase Them All, One List to Find Them…
Starting 2025 with a bang was always important, and I elected the “being 26 days late with your Record o’ the Year post” as the best possible way to give everyone that patented Angry Metal Guy feeling of waiting and waiting only to be smacked in the face with 5000 words that you disagree with entirely. Welcome to the Wonderful World of Executive Dysfunction™! Let’s make a list!
