“Eulogies” is a sharp, vibrant record that, like the band’s 2019 release “Eclipse”, was self-produced by Stephen Cobucci (clean vocals, songwriting, rhythm guitar) and Joey Alarcon (lead guitar). The album’s big, enveloping sound emphasizes just how fun, energetic and emotionally satisfying it is. While Wolves At The Gate embrace rather formulaic song structure — nearly every song’s bridge occurs about three quarters of the way through like clockwork — the melodic metalcore band’s dynamism and execution lends excitement to each track.

From the charging opener “Shadows” to the inspiring title track to the epic closer “Silent Anthem”, WATG’s multi-faceted approach and deftness at building momentum keeps the listener entertained. Both clean and unclean vocals (Nick Detty) explore the full range of pitches, giving “Eulogies” a level of vocal dimension that eludes other bands of the genre. They interweave and support each other beautifully, creating an aggressive yet melodically infectious experience. The guitars more than keep up, providing adrenaline with racing leads (“Stop The Bleeding”) and exhilarating guitar solos (“No Tomorrow”). All the while, Abishai Collingsworth’s hard-hitting drumming keeps the record marching forward relentlessly.

As it journeys through faith-driven ballads (“Embracing Accusations”), radio rock vibes (“Kiss The Wave”) and even nü metal tendencies (“Peace That Starts The War”), the band’s fifth full-length chronicles the struggle of trying to emerge from a place of darkness into a brighter future. Cobucci’s clean vocals inject songs like “Lights & Fire” and “Out of Sight” with an uplifting, triumphant sound balanced by a noticeable twinge of desperation, still very much carrying the weight of the past. The band’s Christian rock roots come through in the lyrics, as Cobucci looks to a higher power for deliverance and redemption. “Silent Anthem” concludes the record with a monumental build culminating in what sounds like the heavens finally opening up. And while it doesn’t necessarily reinvent the genre, “Eulogies” is a solid metalcore album that is an absolute joy to listen to again and again.

WARRIOR SOUL frontman Kory Clarke spoke to TotalRock Radio ‘s “Neil Jones Rock Show” about the recent passing of the band’s original bassist Pete McClanahan. After confirming that he had no further information regarding the circumstances surrounding Pete’s death, he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): “I just hope it’s not anything stupid like what happened to [former WARRIOR SOUL drummer] Mark [Evans, who was killed in 2005]. But I don’t know. No one’s told me anything. It’s devastating, obviously. I don’t know what to say. I wish it would have been George Bush or someone like that. [Laughs]”

Asked when the last time was that he spoke to Pete, Kory said: “I think I asked him to go out on the road with me a few years ago. Yeah, that was the last time I spoke with him.

“He’s kind of a mysterious character,” Kory added. “You never know where he is. I heard that he had a kid and he was playing with some other guys. I don’t know exactly. But he’s a pretty quiet guy; he’s not a Facebook/Instagram guy.”

Pressed about whether he had good memories of playing with Pete, Kory said: “Yeah. He was great, man. He was a real clutch player in the studio, writing-wise. Those big riffs for ‘Hero’ and ‘The Losers’, those came out of him.”

Asked if the passing of Pete and Mark makes him think more about his own mortality, Kory said: “Yeah, of course you do. I always find it interesting that when somebody dies, no matter who it is, you’re, like, ‘How did it happen?’ Because you wanna make sure that you’re not doing what they were doing. [Laughs] But, yeah, you ponder it all the time. And you just hope that you stay out of the crossfire and get through.”

As a member of WARRIOR SOUL, McClanahan was a driving force behind the band’s music until the mid-1990s. After being out of the group for several years, he agreed to rejoin WARRIOR SOUL in 2013 for a European tour.

McClanahan’s most recent band THE WORRIED released its debut album in 2017.

Pete’s death marks the second passing of a WARRIOR SOUL member in less than two decades. Back in 2005, Evans’s burnt body was found in a wheelie bin in an east London car park. The 48-year-old was strangled and transported in a wheelie bin to Electric Parade, Ilford. A member of the public discovered the burning body after finding his garden fence on fire.

Evans appeared on the following WARRIOR SOUL albums: “Drugs, God & The New Republic” (1991), “Salutations From The Ghetto Nation” (1992) and “Chill Pill” (1993).

One of the nice things about designing guitars for a company like Taylor is that you’re less burdened by tradition. Even though the builder is now nearly a 50-year-old institution—not to mention one of the biggest guitar makers in the world—to many acoustic traditionalists they are still very much the new kid on the block. While such fresh-faced “newness” may mean flattop classicists look askance at your every move, it also means you can introduce a design departure like the company’s V-Class bracing without risk of rebellion from your consumer constituency—or, for that matter, build a dreadnought with a top fashioned from big leaf maple.A maple top is one of those things that, according to traditional acoustic design think, shouldn’t work very well. Yet the AD27e Flametop proudly makes its maple top both a centerpiece of its sound signature and its visual identity. The results, in both respects, are unique and, in typical Taylor style, prove that acoustic guitar design still has room for imaginative deviations from the norm.V Lets Maple BeIn spite of the simplicity and musical purity it projects, an acoustic guitar is a complex organism. Small changes in design or materials can be transformative. V-Class bracing is no small change, however. Certainly not when compared to the X-bracing that has been the standard for flattops for generations. Fundamentally speaking, V-Class bracing situates the most substantial braces in a V shape that tapers gently along the body’s center from a point just forward of the endpin. While it can be hard to say definitively what V-Class bracing does and doesn’t do to a flattop’s sound, an increasing sample size suggests that it tends to improve sustain, and even intonation, by leaving larger sections of the top to vibrate freely and aligning the biggest braces with the strings. In the case of the AD27e, V-Class bracing didn’t just improve the sound. According to designer Andy Powers, V-Class bracing is, in fact, what made the use of a big maple top feasible.If we assume that V-Class bracing definitively improves sustain (and certainly our colleague Joe Gore heard as much in his review of the K14ce), then Powers’ assertion makes sense. Maple is generally less lively and works better as a reflective surface for backs and sides. Few if any large-scale production flattops have used maple as a top wood, and those that have, like Gibson’s acoustic/electric Starburst, employed a maple top because its less resonant properties reduced feedback in amplified situations. But the maple top on the AD27e resonates beautifully. And though the appeal of its sound won’t be universal, it occupies a very cool niche.Unlike a lot of dreadnoughts, the AD27e also responds dynamically to a gentle touch.Big Body Makes the Maple Go BoomTaylor’s American Dream dreadnought is a beautiful shape. Its curvaceous lines project hints of J-45 influence and big Taylors like the 855. It’s a lovely reconfiguration of the classic dreadnought profile. But it also likely serves a very practical purpose in the AD27e, in the sense that the big body does much to compensate for the maple top’s less lively characteristics. The tones that result have a beautiful and interesting sense of balance. You won’t find the thumping grand-piano-like low-end resonance of a D-28 in the AD27e, yet it projects volume as a dreadnought should and gets loud without sounding brash or overdriven—probably because there is less low-end woof to obscure the pretty midrange and clear, chiming top end. Unlike a lot of dreadnoughts, the AD27e also responds dynamically to a gentle touch. And I found its sensitivity in these settings more reminiscent of a 00- or 000-sized instrument.Shaped To CradleThe AD dreadnought shape isn’t just pretty to look at. It’s also an ergonomic delight. The aft end of the body is considerably slimmer than a Martin D. That, and its slightly more pinched waist and sloped shoulder, make the whole body feel more compact and easier to hold for extended periods. But, as with so many higher-end Taylors, the foundation of its inviting personality is its playability up and down the neck. The action feels exceptionally low and fast, yet there isn’t a trace of string buzz or a dead spot anywhere—even when you strum vigorously. The low action also has the effect of making fingerstyle chord melodies feel extra fluid and lyrical—a quality well suited to the AD27e’s more subdued but ringing tonality. And while our review Taylors have almost always shown up with impeccable intonation, the AD27e’s spot-on intonation—even after two-cross country journeys in the dead of winter—makes us wonder if there isn’t something to Taylor’s claim of V-Class bracing improving intonation.The VerdictYes, $2,199 is a lot of money for a guitar that, by design, presents a player with many unknown variables. The AD27e sounds different enough from a spruce-topped dread that many players will need to spend time to understand how it works within their style and relates to their musical objectives. Others will find its concise tonality immediately appealing. Given that, one should take our value score with a grain of salt and adjust according to personal experience.But just because the AD27e’s design, materials, and tonality are unusual and specific doesn’t mean its appeal or musical potential is limited. It’s easy to hear how the AD27e would be a recording superstar. It rings sweetly without overpowering a mix and provides beautiful counterpoint in arrangements and mixes where the low-end is occupied by other instruments—no small consideration in modern effects-laden mix styles. But while its voice is focused, the AD27e can still sound big, and it most certainly sounds sweet. Any curious flattop aficionado should check out the AD27e to hear what it does differently. Just don’t be surprised if its sweet tonality and ace playability put their hooks in you.Taylor AD27e Demo | First Look

Former SEPULTURA members Max Cavalera and Igor “Iggor” Cavalera will perform select tracks from the band’s seminal “Beneath The Remains” and “Arise” albums on a U.S. tour this spring/summer. The trek will include an appearance at this year’s Maryland Deathfest, set to take place May 26-29 at several venues, including Rams Head Live, Soundstage and the Edison Lot.

The tour dates are as follows:

May 22 – Albuquerque, NM @ Sunshine Theater
May 23 – Lubbock, TX @ Jake’s
May 24 – Dallas, TX @ Amplified Live
May 25 – Little Rock, AR @ Little Rock Music Hall
May 26 – Nashville, TN @ Brooklyn Bowl
May 27 – Huntington, WV @ The Loud
May 28 – Baltimore, MD @ Maryland Deathfest
May 31 – New York, NY @ Gramercy Theatre
Jun. 01 – New Haven, CT @ Toad’s Place
Jun. 02 – Harrisburg, PA @ XL Live
Jun. 03 – Columbus, OH @ The King of Clubs
Jun. 04 – Joliet, IL @ The Forge
Jun. 05 – Ft. Wayne, IN @ Piere’s Event Center
Jun. 06 – Indianapolis, IN @ The Vogue
Jun. 08 – Lincoln, NE @ Royal Grove
Jun. 10 – Denver, CO @ The Oriental Theater
Jun. 11 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Metro Music Hall
Jun. 13 – Tacoma, WA @ Elks Temple at Spanish Ballroom
Jun. 14 – Portland, OR @ Hawthorne Theater
Jun. 16 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
Jun. 17 – San Francisco, CA @ Great American Music Hall
Jun. 18 – Los Angeles, CA @ The Belasco
Jun. 21 – Austin, TX @ Come And Take It Live
Jun. 22 – Houston, TX @ Scout Bar
Jun. 23 – San Antonio, TX @ The Rock Box
Jun. 24 – El Paso, TX @ Rockhouse Outside
Jun. 25 – Tempe, AZ @ The Marquee

Max and Igor kicked off a tour celebrating “Beneath The Remains” and “Arise” back in 2018. In early 2020, Max revealed plans to bring the trek to the U.S., but no dates had been announced prior to the pandemic.

In a 2018 interview with Wall Of Sound, Max stated about revisiting the “Beneath The Remains” and “Arise” material on the most recent run of shows: “I had to learn those riffs again for the tour, and I had to rediscover the albums again. It was a really fun process, learning the lyrics again. I kind of fell in love with the albums again. I don’t have a favorite — I like both together, and I think they’re meant to be together. For some reason, they just feel right when you play them together. I was very young when I made them, so it made me very aware of my state of mind at the time. I feel like I’m pretty much the same guy. I’m [52] now, but I’m still a metalhead in the heart. I still have the teenage spirit. I’m a huge metal fan, [a] huge supporter of metal. That’s just how it was when those albums were done. It’s a blessing that I get to do that with my brother, especially after all we went through together and we didn’t speak for 10 years. Now, it’s good — we are in a good place, and our brotherhood is really good, and we’re just having fun with this music… There’s an energy and a real anger and real passion in those songs that translates into people losing their minds when they hear it. I don’t even have to tell them, ‘Circle pit’ — they will do it themselves. It’s just the power of music.”

In 1996, Max exited SEPULTURA after the rest of the band split with Max’s wife Gloria as their manager.

Igor left SEPULTURA in June 2006 due to “artistic differences.” His departure from the band came five months after he announced that he was taking a break from SEPULTURA’s touring activities to spend time with his second wife and their son (who was born in January 2006).

The current SEPULTURA lineup — featuring guitarist Andreas Kisser and bassist Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. alongside Derrick Green on vocals and Eloy Casagrande on drums — released its latest studio album, “Quadra”, in February 2020 via Nuclear Blast.

In a new interview with Australia’s Rockpit, STONE TEMPLE PILOTS singer Jeff Gutt said that he is “humbled” to be singing songs first made famous by the band’s original frontman Scott Weiland and that in later years had been interpreted by Weiland’s replacement, LINKIN PARK’s Chester Bennington.

“I looked up to those guys personally,” Gutt said about STONE TEMPLE PILOTS’ previous singers. “I never met Scott, but I love Scott — he was a big influence on me when I was learning how to sing and what it meant to be a frontman and his fearlessness and all those things that made him who he was. So I learned a lot from him and to be able to go up there and sing those songs and carry on his legacy like that is definitely something I’m very proud of and humbled by.”

He continued: “I try not to think about it too much as a me-versus-them kind of thing; I just try and go out there, because I love those songs too like the fans do, so I just really want to go out there and represent it honorably.”

Beating out 20,000 other hopefuls to become the new voice of STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, Gutt won the title after a global search to find someone with whom the band could not only perform their hits, but collaborate on new material. As STP drummer Eric Kretz explained: “Jeff beat everybody out in every area, especially the [song]writing process; Jeff, just hands down, won that one.” Less than a year after assuming the lead role within the band, Gutt and STP released “Stone Temple Pilots” (2018), the band’s first record in eight years, on which Gutt co-wrote every track. Jeff’s second release with STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, the band’s first all-acoustic album titled “Perdida”, came out in February 2020.

Building upon 20 years as a songwriter and performer in bands including DRY CELL, DRAGONFLY, ACRYLIC, BAND WITH NO NAME and INNERFAITH, Gutt appeared as a contestant in Season Two of the American reality series “The X Factor” in 2012. He was invited back for Season Three and quickly became a fan favorite, finishing in second place and racking up more than 50 million views during his time on the show.

In addition to his current gig with STONE TEMPLE PILOTS, Gutt is a founding member of another alt-rock band RIVAL CITY. RIVAL CITY toured the globe, performing for mass audiences in the Middle East, Europe, India and the U.S.

Listen to a new song from dark USBM outfit Black Fucking Cancer.
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