COAL CHAMBER with special guests Fear Factory

It’s been almost three decades since Coal Chamber, the Californian metal quartet, came screaming out of the dead zone of Hollywood in the early Nineties. When singer Bradley ‘Dez’ Fafara and Miguel ‘Meegs’ Rascón first met in 1992, these two hot-headed misfits first wrote songs under the name She’s In Pain, recruiting bassist Rayna Foss and drummer Mikey Cox. After renaming themselves Coal Chamber and honing a unique sound and art direction, the band broke through
to public awareness with their gold-selling, self-titled debut album in 1997. A slot at the first Ozzfest and a management deal with Sharon Osbourne helped to propel the quartet to national level.

Over the next six years, Coal Chamber experienced several lifetimes’ worth of excess, making their trajectory both unpredictable and stressful. Tours with Danzig, Type O Negative, Megadeth, Pantera and many other artists built their reputation, but substance abuse nearly derailed the musicians and intra-band tensions almost destroyed them. Two more albums, Chamber Music (1999) and Dark Days (2002), came before their differing personalities finally drove them apart. Foss quit after Dark Days and was replaced by Nadja Peulen, and after 2003’s compilation, Giving The Devil His Due, no-one expected to hear from Coal Chamber again, especially after Fafara embarked on a second career with the successful
DevilDriver.

This made the 2015 comeback album Rivals all the more unexpected, reasserting Coal Chamber’s authority for a new generation of metal fans. International tours followed before the musicians went their separate ways, but eight years later still, Coal Chamber is returning for live dates in 2023.

You literally could not make this story up, and yet the 30 years of angst and adrenaline that make up this band of survivors can be heard in every note on the albums in this collection. There’s a reason why the word ‘Loco’ is so closely associated with Coal Chamber — and the madness isn’t over yet.

One can’t overstate the size of the Fear Factory boot print on the neck of heavy metal. Unleashing influential albums with devastating anthems for over 30 years, Fear Factory is widely recognized as both crucial and innovative in extreme metal circles. Fear Factory manufactured, demanufactured, and remanufactured a sound that reverberates across several subgenres. They perfected an explosive blend of staccato paint-stripping riffs, industrial-tinged drums, electronic flourishes, and a scream/sing dichotomy, all of which became staples in heavy music, ever since the group first emerged in L.A.

Fear Factory headline major festivals; earned several awards from the international sales charts; toured with legends like Black Sabbath, Slayer, Iron Maiden, and Metallica; performed at three Ozzfests; and influenced generations of bands who achieved multiplatinum success. But it’s the group’s commitment to unrelenting extremity and creative authenticity which ensured its place in heavy metal history, from the touchstone masterpiece Demanufacture to the similarly dominating Genexus.

Fear Factory records are cinematic in scope; sonic landscapes, echoing the dystopian post-apocalyptic futures found in classic sci-fi literature and films, from Ray Bradbury to Blade Runner. Aggression Continuum, the tenth studio album, is the culmination of three decades of unforgettable songs, performances, and forward-thinking storytelling concepts, while simultaneously rebooting Fear Factory onto a brilliant and excitingly unpredictable new path. Like the liquid metal T-1000 in the Terminator franchise or the Academy-Award winning reboot of Mad Max, Aggression Continuum is a turning point where what “was” transforms into what will be. It’s Fear Factory’s own Fury Road.

Aggression Continuum features guitarist, songwriter, and cofounder Dino Cazares; drummer Mike Heller; and vocalist, lyricist, and cofounder Burton C. Bell. It was produced and engineered by Damien Rainaud (DragonForce, Once Human), with keyboards by Igor Khoroshev (ex-Yes), and programming on two songs from longtime collaborator Rhys Fulber (Front Line Assembly). Aggression Continuum was mixed by A-list rock and metal producer Andy Sneap (Megadeth, Killswitch Engage, Trivium), who also mixed the album’s critically-acclaimed predecessor, Genexus.

The TWIZTID tale is gritty and fascinating folklore, built on self-determination, fearless creativity, and the elimination of the boundaries between artist and audience. The dedicated supporters who stand with co-conspirators Jamie Madrox and Monoxide are more than fans: they are family.

There’s a rogue’s gallery of hooks, rhythms, and riffs in the TWIZTID bag of tricks. For 25 years, they’ve concocted artistic anarchy rooted in the streetwise storytelling sophistication of hip-hop, trance-inducing hypnotic beats, and the seething bite of hard rock rage. Merging horror movies, comics, and a level of depravity and violence rivaling the grimiest of pulp fiction in the annals of Americana, TWIZTID is the reflection of a tightly knit subculture and the sound of unbridled id.

With over a dozen entries on the Billboard charts, TWIZTID built themselves into an institution, without the help of mainstream gatekeepers at MTV, traditional radio, or major press. They’ve brought their adrenaline-soaked, unbound artistic mania on the road, with metalcore acts like Motionless In White and on the Vans Warped Tour, all without forsaking the worldwide family. TWIZTID built the connection they maintain with their fiercely dedicated legion of supporters to last and to evolve. Everything Majik Ninja does harken back to that original impulse shared by Monoxide and Jamie Madrox: to make art that swings a big ax at the boundary between audience and artist.

Wednesday 13 is the stage name of American singer, musician, and horror enthusiast Joseph Poole. Best known as the frontman for Hollywood horror-punk/heavy metal group Murderdolls, Poole has ties to other bands, including Maniac Spider Trash, Frankenstein Drag Queens from Planet 13, Bourbon Crow, and Gunfire 76. He has released several albums under the Wednesday 13 moniker, including notable efforts like 2011's Calling All Corpses, 2015's Monsters of the Universe: Come Out and Plague, 2019's Necrophaze, and 2022's Horrifier.

North Carolina native Joseph Poole embarked on his career in music in 1992 with Mizery, which later became Psycho Opera. From 1992 to 1996 he fronted Maniac Spider Trash. He left the group in 1996 and formed Frankenstein Drag Queens from Planet 13 with fellow "Spider Trashers" Abby Normal and Sicko Zero. The band managed to release five full-length albums and six EPs over the span of five years before calling it quits in 2003 as a result of Poole's rising success with his Murderdolls side project.

In 2004, Poole began recording under the name Wednesday 13, releasing the EP 6 Years, 6 Feet Under the Influence. It was followed in 2005 by the full-length Transylvania 90210: Songs of Death, Dying, and the Dead. In May 2006, Wednesday 13 put out a massive box set called Little Box of Horrors, followed by Fang Bang later that September. The significantly heavier and darker Skeletons dropped in 2008, followed by the equally brooding Calling All Corpses in 2011. The Dixie Dead, the project's fifth studio long-player, arrived in 2013, followed by Monsters of the Universe: Come Out and Plague (2015) and Condolences (2017), the latter of which was the group's first outing for Nuclear Blast.

For their eighth album, Poole and co. teamed up with DevilDriver's Michael Spreitzer to produce and engineer the recording sessions. 2019's Necrophaze also saw the group featuring guest spots for the first time, with Alice Cooper, Stone Sour's Roy Mayorga, and Lacuna Coil's Cristina Scabbia along for the horror-filled ride. The LP became the group's highest charting effort to date, reaching number 2 on the Billboard Heatseekers chart. 2022's Horrifier saw Poole and company deliver a raucous set of groove-laden horror rock inspired by iconic '80s slasher movies like Halloween and Christine.

- From Allmusic.com

Hailing from NYC, Black Satellite, comprised of Larissa Vale and Kyle Hawken, is creating waves in the rock scene with a sound that’s dark, edgy, and distinctly their own. Fusing industrial and metal influences, their music transcends conventional boundaries solidifying their place in the genre. The band continues to break new ground through ceaseless hard work and non-stop touring, showcasing their dedication both on and off stage.

Shortly after launching their first single Valkyrie from their debut album Endless, Black Satellite garnished attention from press outlets such as Billboard, Huffington Post, Revolver, Loudwire, Knotfest, and Alternative Press. Black Satellite was also named one of Alternative Press’ “12 Bands You Need To Know” in a print issue of the magazine.

Black Satellite subsequently released two cover songs paying tribute to Type O Negative, which charted on metal radio.

The band recently concluded writing and recording their sophomore record, Aftermath, mixed by veteran producer Ben Grosse (Marilyn Manson, Breaking Benjamin, Filter) with tracks produced by Kane Churko (Papa Roach, In This Moment). Their single Void is the first taste of the brand new album. Knotfest commenting on the track: “the first single offers a glimpse into the bold, stylishly dark sound that has made the duo of Larissa Vale and Kyle Hawken such a promising prospect.” 

 In 2021, they released a cover of Rammstein’s “Sonne” to critical acclaim with Revolver Magazine describing the track as “a masterclass in metal covers.” This was followed by the release of their latest single Broken. 

Black Satellite has since completed back-to-back tours as direct support for John 5, Fozzy, and Nita Strauss in Fall/Winter 2021/2022, with additional appearances at Metal In The Mountains Fest and Blue Ridge Rock Fest. Black Satellite also toured supporting Cold and Sumo Cyco in Spring 2022, as well as Drowning Pool in Fall 2022. The band joined the Double Trouble Live Tour with co-headliners Cradle of Filth and Devil Driver as direct support in March, 2023. They will be continuing with the second leg of the tour in October 2023 directly followed by a massive Fall tour with Wednesday 13.