Metal Blade Records history by Dan Slessor:
Founded upon owner Brian Slagel's enduring drive to find great bands and get their music out to as many people as possible, since 1982 Metal Blade has brought wave after wave of powerful, innovative, and often genre-defining music to the ever-hungry metal masses. It is this ethos that has seen Metal Blade build up a stunning and diverse catalogue, weather the various storms facing any independent label, and in an age of declining record sales boast the most successful years of its existence as it strides into its fourth decade.

What perhaps makes this achievement all the more notable is the fact that Slagel never even intended to start a label. Working in an LA record store and writing for various publications, Slagel was acutely aware that many great bands in the local metal scene were being ignored, and he decided to release a compilation of tracks drawn from these ranks. "There were a lot of really good bands and I was just bummed out that nobody could hear them. It just seemed like I could help them out and have some fun at the same time, and that compilation was the first Metal Massacre," he states. Collating tracks from then unknown bands including Ratt, Bitch, Cirith Ungol, and Metallica amongst others, the compilation sold out immediately. "How important is Metal Blade to our career? They're only the reason we are enjoying the worldwide success we have today," states Metallica's James Hetfield. "Without Brian's openness to some raunchy teens with a crap sounding cassette tape we would be who knows where, and playing who knows what!" With the popularity of the tape spurring Slagel on, the first seeds of Metal Blade were sown. "After the success of those compilations I just started putting out records of bands that I was friends with, but without ever really intending it to be a label at all," he explains. "After I put out four or five releases I started to feel like something was happening, and I decided to quit the record store and quit college and see where it went."

Battling through the first few lean years, when the label consisted solely of Slagel working out of his mom's poorly ventilated garage in the San Fernando Valley, it gradually grew in both revenue and stature. Within a few years Metal Blade would go on to release the debuts of Slayer, Armored Saint, Trouble, and Corrosion Of Conformity amongst others, fanning the flames of the burgeoning metal scene and launching careers of bands that would go onto reap global success. "Without Metal Blade, there is a damn good chance we never would've made it out of L.A," says Slayer's Kerry King. "That was the one bit of luck we needed. You can be the most awesome band on the scene, and if no one notices you, you don't catch on. And Brian Slagel is still one of the biggest metalheads I know!" This genuine love and devotion to metal is central to the relationship many of the artists have with Metal Blade, and King Diamond credits much of its relevance and strength to this passion. "I refer to it as having 'boots on the ground'," the mighty Dane states. "It's not like a major label where some people might be into what you're doing but a lot of them just see it as a job – there's a genuine love for metal there. Through staying true to that and doing their own thing they've carved out a very specific niche that they control, and as an artist it's wonderful to be a part of that."over the years. Clearly without those people we couldn't do what we do, and to everyone out there who has helped us along by being a fan we are so very grateful to you."

Read more: http://www.metalblade.com/us/about-us/

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Music is fascinating and eternal subject which contains the universal language of drums and percussions. It is the only thing that can hope the most beautiful creations deliberating a sound message that cause in us feelings, thoughts, visions and actions.  
Universal language....music is the answer...
If today, the styles vary from coast to coast, music has become in the space of a single click or with the traditional merchant, accessible to global and growing audience. Between classical and electronic music, there are styles and genres for all of us and for each level of consciousness and evolution.
If the consumer is petted in ease and variety of ways to get music, the producers, musicians and artists cannot say the same. However, with the intelligence, unity and desire to work in a team, everyone should have the opportunity and the chance to hope, to be heard and guided by the local and international music industry.
“The hopes and dreams are in reality the doors of all the infinite possibilities to accomplish our journey and our own destiny.”
The first goal of Umeda Records is to help with humanism, professionalism and artistic approach many artists as possible respecting their work in look of distinctive and mutual respect. My mission consists to offer to everyone the chance to make music, their own music, believing and knowing that it is possible to make more positive than the simple “Game”

Album "Götterstrasse" out now: iTunes http://bit.ly/17foZlv 
Limited Deluxe Edition amzn.to/W0iroq
Standard Edition: amzn.to/15HoNe2
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"You need the drugs"-Video: http://bitly.com/15JHz4D
 

'This Is How You Do It' album out now on 2LP / CD / DIG


Bandleader Lance Ferguson and his nine piece Melbourne outfit The Bamboos have come a long way since forming in 2001. Initially inspired by the instrumental raw funk of the late ‘60s and early ‘70s, they made waves internationally and were quickly labelled as one of the greatest funk and soul bands of our time. But while many would be happy to simply soak up the praise and keep on keeping on, The Bamboos have proven that they are more than meets the eye; over five acclaimed albums, their evolution in sound and style has consistently confounded and exceeded expectations, pulling the rug from under the feet of those who like to pigeonhole. 

The band signed to respected Brighton (UK) indie label Tru Thoughts in 2005, where they remain a cornerstone of the roster. Across their five studio albums to date - ‘Step It Up’ (2006), ‘Rawville’ (2007), ‘Side-Stepper’ (2008), ‘4’ (2010) and 'Medicine Man' (2012) – the metamorphosis of The Bamboos has been full of twists and turns, and it continues apace. A seasoned DJ, solo producer (aka Lanu) and all-round insatiable music obsessive, Ferguson's myriad influences and passion for pushing things forward ensure that each new release is a discovery for devout fans and newcomers alike.

Their fifth long-player ‘Medicine Man’, released in June 2012 was a watershed - a forward-looking record brimming with fresh ideas, stellar turns, classic songwriting and a brand of multi–layered pop they can truly call their own. Guest vocalists Aloe Blacc, Tim Rogers (You Am I), Megan Washington, Daniel Merriweather, Bobby Flynn, alongside resident singers Kylie Auldist and then newcomer Ella Thompson helped make the album their biggest at home to date. Lead single "I Got Burned" feat. Rogers was a sizeable radio hit, made it to #54 on radio station Triple J's Hottest 100 listeners poll (the biggest publicly voted song poll in the world) of the top songs of that year.

Like its predecessor, the band's sixth album 'Fever In The Road' was co-produced by ARIA- nominated, multi-instrumentalist studio wizard John Castle – whose work with the likes of Washington, Josh Pyke, Gossling, Pez and Kate Miller-Heidke has ranked him amongst the first-call producers in Australia. The new record (the first on Ferguson's own Pacific Theatre label) sees Castle and Ferguson venturing into sonic landscapes The Bamboos have previously touched on but never fully inhabited. There is a sense that the music is leaner and more muscular, yet upon closer inspection the tracks reveal themselves to be densely multi-layered in a 'Wall Of Sound' style. And it's this aural complexity and depth that allows darker moods to roam through the album, taking their sound to a new place. The songs career from the wondrously anthemic ('Avenger', The Truth', 'Rats', 'Jump My Train'), to the dreamy and psychedelic ('Looking West', 'Harbinger') and the darkly fragile ('Killing Jar', 'Before I Go'). Choosing this album to reflect the band as it is on stage, the vocals are split between Kylie Auldist and Ella Thompson. And each bring contrasting styles that complement each other magically, but show The Bamboos to be utterly unique.

Their songs have been regularly on playlists of national radio stations in Australia, the UK, France, the US, Japan and beyond. The unshakable charm of their songs has also seen them licensed to hit movies including Crazy Stupid Love, the soon to be released  Adore - Naomi Watts & Robin Wright. and TV shows such as Grey’s Anatomy, CSI New York, One Tree Hill, Ugly Betty and Australian shows such as Underbelly, House Husbands, Offspring, Packed To The Rafters.

Jérémi Boies Bob is following