Last night in Las Vegas during Wrestlemania 41, Kerry King of Slayer, solo'd over the entrance music of WWE superstar Damien Priest. Social media was abuzz about a possible Slayer appearance during night one of Wrestlemani 41. Wrestlemania is a two night extravaganza of pro wrestling action. Damien Priest, a former world champion is also a heavy metal fan. You can clearly see that Priest was in his glory as he threw up the horns while King did his signature riffs and squeals. Priest would lose in night two's SIN CITY STREET FIGHT match against Drew McIntyre. I must mention that Living Color also appeared the previous night playing their hit Cult of Personality during WWE superstar CM Punk's entrance. WWE has embraced heavy metal over the years especially in their promo packages and entrance music. Great to see this during the most watched wrestling event of the year.
PHOTO COURTESY OF WWE.COM
Saturday, April 19, 2025
PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS PIGS:
DEATH HILARIOUS
Two years after releasing one of my favorite albums of 2023, England's Pigsx7 are back with another heavy masterpiece. While they don't seem to take themselves too seriously, they clearly put a lot of thought and effort into what they do. Their music sounds like nobody else's, with a love for the lower frequencies, and half-tone progressions. The guitar playing is brilliant, and the vocals are powerful and catchy. Definitely made for a stereo whose knob goes to eleven.
Every song on this album is worth your while if you like heavy rock and crave something different. Surely this will make an awful lot of top ten lists at the end of the year.
Riki Rachtman takes New Bedford By Storm during "Record Store Day" Week!
New Bedford, Mass was the place to be this past week. Headbanger's Ball Host Riki Rachtman made several appearances in the city during a three day stint. On Thursday, April 10th, Rachtman and Ace Von Johnson (Faster Pussycat/LA GUNS) made an appearance at The Dipper Cafe. The Dipper has gained acclaim for their great bar style pizza in the area. It's a real cool hang with rocker/biker style adornment. Riki and Ace were guest pizza chefs for the night.
Courtesy of Purchase St. Records Instagram
On Friday, April 11th, at Play Arcade, Riki and Ace put on a live set opening for some great local acts including Purchase St. Records Owner, Roger Chouinard's own band ALL SINNERS. Riki who admitted during the buildup for this show that he was just learning how to play guitar & bass was excited and nervous about the performance. From all who attended, Ace and Riki put on a great set that included hits from bands like Social Distortion and Zodiac Mindwarp. Roger and All Sinners Vocalist Mike Golarz joined in on the fun.
A screen grab from Riki's Instagram Video
A screen grab from Purchase St. Records Instagram Video
The three day whirlwind concluded with a two hour meet and greet at Purchase St. Records on Saturday. The store was packed! There was a line throughout the event. I was fortunate to stop in for a quick second to speak to Riki about his sobriety and my appreciation for his social media stories about the subject. He was really down to earth, even signing a special limited edition trading card he had on hand. He expressed that many of the sober stories he recounts on social media are as much a reminder for himself than it is to "preach a message".
I couldn't resist a selfie with Riki
Riki's Trading Card
I absolutely love Record Store Day and this was made more special by getting to meet a star of my generation. Riki set the tone for so many other hosts of shows on music and entertainment. He's always stayed true to his roots being a fan of the music first and foremost. He's definitely inspired how I approach covering music, meeting musicians and promoting bands.
A brand new Dead Meadow, with the last bass tracks ever laid down by Steve Kille, who succumbed to cancer last April. This was released today, but after one listen I believe it will land in my top few favorite Dead Meadow albums. Check out the lead track:
The incomparable Dead Meadow, originally from Washington D.C.:
Jason Simon: Guitar, Vocals
Steve Kille: Bass
Mark Laughlin: Drums
L'IRA DEL BACCANO/YAMA: TEMPUS DEORUM
L'Ira Del Baccano produced one of my top 10 favorite albums of 2023, and now they have a new single, released in a split with a band I had never heard before, but am so glad I found. Also released today, this album has already blown me away. Check out these amazing tracks:
This is so freaking heavy:
And here is the band that caused me to pre-order this album:
Yama are from The Netherlands. They are:
Alex Schenkels: vocals, bluesharp Sjoerd Albers: guitar Peter Taverne: bass Joep Schmitz: drums
And finally, released three weeks ago today, (and it's been in my car playlist shuffle ever since), is this masterpiece from a band that keeps getting better with each release:
THE DEATH WHEELERS: THE ECSTASY OF MOLD
The Death Wheelers add to their bag of tricks with each and every record. Easily one of the best stoner rock/heavy psych/doom instrumental bands of all time, these tunes never drag or get stale. The Death Wheelers are masterful songwriters and musicians, and take no prisoners. Even though it's early, I am confident this will remain one of my favorite albums of 2025 when December rolls around. Here is one of 10 tracks that each rate a 10 out of 10:
The Death Wheelers are from Quebec, Canada. They are:
Max ‘the axe’ Tremblay
Hugo ‘red beard’ Bertacchi
Richard ‘the bastard’ Turcotte
Ed ‘back from the dead’ Desaulniers
If you want more Stoner Rock, check out my Stoner Rock #29 Playlist here.
Mutant are comprised of Christopher Albertsen, Chris Torre and Anthony Gonzalez. They hail from NYC and are quickly mutating the heavy metal scene in 2025. Supporting bands the likes of Nunslaughter and Pungent Stench is no easy feat but these dudes are equipped with "heavy barrels" of metal. A combination of Thrash and Death that's as tasty as a Dave's Hot Chicken Sandwich. I've known Christopher and Chris for several years and they've always impressed me with their musicianship. I'm always happy to support the band with promoting or even designing a few tees like when they first formed the band. Support these dudes and check out their latest release "Heavy Barrel" on their bandcamp. They also are on social media platforms and spotify. Look for them live in the NYC area keeping the scene evil!
