After battling the cancer that he was diagnosed with late last year, Ronald James Padavona (better known to his passionate fans as Ronnie James Dio) succumbed to his illness earlier today. He was 67 years old.

His self-deprecating nature, dark sarcastic/satirical humor, and brilliant wit lent to his lyrical genius and powerful onstage persona. He was fearlessly politically incorrect, and brutally honest. His bass playing and songwriting meshed the class of The Beatles with the bottom-heavy bombast of Black Sabbath. And of course his bass/baritone vocals were distinct, powerful and memorable. No one sounds like Type O Negative, and no one sounded like Peter Steele. And yet their influence upon heavy music is simply immeasurable.

The Endless Blockade took over with an electronic-noise enhanced set that was a bit more varied, and was arguably even more unrelenting. Their singer constantly confronted the crowd, moving as deep into the sweaty mass as he could. Keep in mind, there wasn’t much floor space to work with, and there was no stage. Just like a basement show, they were sandwiched next to the crowd who was standing on the same floor. Even this guy felt the need to constantly engage with me, running directly into me at least five times.

Why does everyone always pick on me?

Jay Gorania recaps his take on this year’s SXSW Music Festival. In this second entry, he reviews the Profound Lore Records/20 Buck Spin showcase as well as sets by The Atlas Moth, Rwake and Weedeater.

Austin’s 6th Street area is the performance location for much of the musical side of South by Southwest—a massive interactive, film and music conference and festival. Historically, unsigned bands came to get noticed by suit ’n tie record label reps; however as it has evolved, signed underground and mainstream bands have dominated showcases, and schmoozin’ and boozin’ is underway as backroom deals and negotiation unfolds. Hell, it’s gotten to the point that Metallica played last year.

Jay Gorania recaps his take on this year’s SXSW Music Festival. In this first entry, he reviews the Relapse Records showcase as well as sets by Torche, Goes Cube and Goatwhore.

Jay H. Gorania didn’t actually get into NAMM, one of the world’s largest music product trade shows in LA; however he did manage to soak up the event’s pretentious atmosphere, as well as some killer performances by The Devin Townsend Experience, Cynic, Scale The Summit, Suicide Silence and The Iron Maidens.

By Jay H Gorania
Images by Jay H. Gorania, Kevin Lerminiau, Isabelle Stricklesse, John Judkins, Joey Mack

June 1-7: Sweden, Germany, Poland, The Czech Republic, Slovakia
Getting out of the bathroom at a pit stop about an hour outside of Stockholm, I noticed the hell bus had left me. “How could they not notice I was gone,” I wondered. Normally, I’m an incredibly on-edge, high-strung kinda guy, but for some reason, I didn’t panic. The good-spirited beautiful twin teenaged girls who worked at the pit stop’s shop lent me their phone (guardian devils …

Supporting their Axis of Eden album last summer, the legendary experimental extreme metal/noise rock outfit Today Is The Day embarked on a successful, sonically violent multi-national European tour supported by the nomadic, dynamic duo Jucifer (they constantly tour and live in their RV), Pittsburgh’s grindcore outfit Complete Failure and Paris’ Four Question Marks.

Hellbound.ca contributor Jay H. Gorania was part of the contingent that criss-crossed Europe and has written a three part tour diary on the escapades that ensued. The first part of the diary is presented today, with the rest to follow next week.

Starkly contrasting the straight-to-business, wham-bam-thank-you-ma’am approach of the rest of the evening’s acts, with their short, quick and violent sets, headliners Hirax took the stage as though they were Judas Priest or Iron Maiden playing Madison Square Gardens. – by Jay H. Gorania