The Beat
By Monica Ortwein, Associate Editor
40 Oz. of Genius
What’s better than actually being a redneck? Acting like one. Just ask Naskar Nazarene, before they beat your ass.
They’re lean, mean, whiskey chugging machines, and no, they’re not your stepdads. We’re actually talking about the three men of Naskar Nazarene,... [+] Read More

Yes No

1 out of 1 people agree

Spoonfork is a wannabe trash-rock duo, with their roots in both classical rock as well as all the other definitions of rock and music in general.


Their debut album All Is Well was released on their own label Gourmé! Records in early 2008 and got rave reviews all across... [+] Read More

Yes No

1 out of 1 people agree

The self-described "power ambient" duo Sunn 0))) (also known as Sunn) formed in the mid-'90s and is headed up by guitarists Stephen O'Malley and Greg Anderson. These two are both experienced players in the doom metal underground, having been involved in numerous bands in addition to running the noted doom label Southern Lord. Anderson's credits... [+] Read More

Yes No

1 out of 1 people agree

Massachusetts metalcore enthusiasts Unearth formed in 1998 and immediately started rocking, both in around Boston and on the road. They quickly built up a strong following, booking tours with such like-minded acts as the Black Dahlia Murder and Killswitch Engage and supporting big names like Lamb of God and Slipknot. After issuing Above the Fall... [+] Read More

Yes No

0 out of 1 people agree

San Francisco's stoner rock band Acid King formed in 1993. Singer/guitarist Lori Crover, bassist Peter Lucas and drummer Joey Osbourne started playing local shows that year with likeminded bands such as the Melvins, Hawkwind and the Obsessed. The group released their self-titled debut EP the following year on Sympathy For the Record Industry,... [+] Read More

Yes No

Formed in Wales in 1991, Acrimony included vocalist Dorian Walters, guitarists Stuart O'Hara and Lee Davies, bassist Paul 'Mead' Bidmead, and drummer Darren Ivey. Exponents of typical mid-'90s stoner rock, they combined Black Sabbath's heavy metal riffery, Hawkwind's space rock excursions, and Blue Cheer's fuzzed-out psychedelic feedback with... [+] Read More

Yes No

As the world plunges into chaos, in this: the final days of the wretched human race, there is only one antidote to the misery... The ELECTRIC WIZARD.
Born in Dorset, England in 1993, in a quiet country town, ELECTRIC WIZARD were initially the product of frustration, unemployment and excessive drug abuse. But through hallucinogenic... [+] Read More

Yes No

Southern California's Fu Manchu began crafting heavy, psychedelic tinged rock in 1990 with their debut single "Kept Between Trees." Throughout the early '90s the group honed their sound on similarly intense singles, and released their debut album No One Rides For Free in 1994 on Bong Load Records. Daredevil, also on Bong Load, followed in 1995.... [+] Read More

Yes No

Retro-rock visionaries Monster Magnet spent much of the 1990s struggling against the prejudices imposed upon image and sound by alternative rock fashion nazis. In fact, it wasn't until that movement's late-'90s decline that the band's dogged persistence finally paid off, when their fourth album, Powertrip, catapulted to gold sales status on the... [+] Read More

Yes No

Doom metal rockers Penance got their start in 1990, when the freshly formed group released their first underground demo. It floated around tape-trading circles until the members of Cathedral finally heard it. They were so impressed that they asked Mike Smail, the only permanent member of the group, to play the drums on their first album. Penance... [+] Read More

Yes No

One of the most enduring and influential underground bands in heavy metal history, Pentagram's career was almost 15 years old by the time they finally managed to record their first album. Though invariably led by mysterious frontman Bobby Liebling, the band's volatile membership made it difficult to maintain any kind of momentum and kept them... [+] Read More

Yes No

One of the most enduring and influential underground bands in heavy metal history, Pentagram's career was almost 15 years old by the time they finally managed to record their first album. Though invariably led by mysterious frontman Bobby Liebling, the band's volatile membership made it difficult to maintain any kind of momentum and kept them... [+] Read More

Yes No

Founder, guitar and vocalist Eric Crowe [ex Social Infestation & Big Yellow Mama] knew that he could no longer live his life for the sake of this world and could no longer play music that didn't glorify Jesus Christ. With a burning passion and desire to spread the Gospel, Sons of God was born. Over the course of years there have been numerous... [+] Read More

Yes No

Formed in 1992 in Toronto, Canada, by Detroit expatriate Ken Bluke, Sons of Otis have pounded out some of the lowest, slowest space rock on record. The band originally consisted of just Bluke and was called Otis (after a character in the film Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer). Otis self-released a debut EP, Paid to Suffer, under that one-word... [+] Read More

Yes No

Soundgarden made a place for heavy metal in alternative rock. Their fellow Seattle rockers Green River may have spearheaded the grunge sound, but they relied on noise rock in the vein of the Stooges. Similarly, Jane's Addiction were too fascinated with prog rock and performance art to appeal to a wide array of metal fans. Soundgarden, however,... [+] Read More

Yes No

Guitarist Michael Amott is best known for his groove-heavy work in the death metal arena (late-period Carcass, Arch Enemy), but the Spiritual Beggars provided an outlet for his retro hard rock impulses, and in the process became one of the stoner metal movement's best-kept secrets. Amott formed the Beggars in Halmstad, Sweden, and employed a... [+] Read More

Yes No

Upon leaving Saint Vitus -- whose unabashed worship of Black Sabbath helped lay the groundwork for the sludge, stoner, and doom metal mini-movements of the '90s -- vocalist/guitarist Scott "Wino" Weinrich re-formed the Obsessed, a band he'd founded in Washington, D.C., in the early '80s prior to joining Saint Vitus. Initially including a rhythm... [+] Read More

Yes No

Massachusetts metalcore enthusiasts Unearth formed in 1998 and immediately started rocking, both in around Boston and on the road. They quickly built up a strong following, booking tours with such like-minded acts as the Black Dahlia Murder and Killswitch Engage and supporting big names like Lamb of God and Slipknot. After issuing Above the Fall... [+] Read More

Yes No