So 2013 is almost over and a lot has happened over the past 12 months, we’ve covered it all year and you don’t need another long list of what happened, you can look through the site yourselves. But we did want to honour those we lost this year and look forward to what you can expect next year. Here’s to 2014 and thanks to 2013, it’s been a good one!
Musicians we lost in 2013:
As 2013 draws to a close, we look back on the musicians we lost this year.
Claudio Leo (17/1/13) – Original guitarist of Lacuna Coil died aged 40 from an unnamed disease.
Rick Huxley (12/2/13) – Bassist for Dave Clark Five died aged 72.
Dan Toler (25/2/13) – Guitarist for the Allman Brothers Band died from amyotrophic later sclerosis, aged 64.
Peter Banks (7/3/13) – Original guitarist for the band Yes died from heart failure, aged 65.
Clive Burr (12/3/13) – Drummer of Iron Maiden died aged 56 of complications from MS.
Sławomir “Mortifer” Kusterka (5/4/13) – Bassist of Hate died aged 28 in his sleep from cardiac dysrhythmia.
Chi Cheng (13/4/13) – Bassist of Deftones died aged 42 of heart failure resulting from a car accident that had left him hospitalised and in a coma 5 years ago.
Jeff Hanneman (2/5/13) – Guitarist for and a founding member of Slayer died aged 49 of liver failure possibly related to a rare skin disease.
Ray Manzarek (20/5/13) – Founding member of The Doors died aged 77 after a long battle with bile duct cancer.
MickDeth (2/6/13) – Bassist for Eighteen Visions and a former bass player for Bleeding Through and prominent member of the Orange County, So Cal music scene died aged 35 from a pre-existing heart condition.
Pat Fear (24/9/13) – Singer and guitarist of punk band White Flag died aged 52.
Lou Reed (27/10/13) – A Founding member of The Velvet Underground and a solo musician in his own right, died aged 77 of liver disease.
Bands to look out for in 2014:
2013 has been an excellent year for some bands, but what about next year? We’ve picked a few bands that you should really keep an eye on over the following year.
Mötley Crüe – Yes, I know they’re not new and 2014 won’t be the year to make them huge. It’s all already happened. Although rumour has it that 2014 will the year of their last album and last ever tour, which means this could be the last chance you get to see them live.
The First – So I’ve been saying it since I first heard their album, but 2014 is gonna be the year to make this band huge. Hell 2013 has done a big portion of the work already, but 2014 is gonna be crazy as hell.
Rusty Shackle – You’re going to have to trust me when I say there are big and exciting things afoot in the Shackle camp at the moment and it goes without saying that 2014 is shaping up to be an absolutely humongous year for them. Watch this space because 2014 could well be the year that they become a household name in the UK.
New Releases to look out for in 2014:
If 2014 is anything like 2013, then you can be certain that there will be both incredible and downright atrocious albums released over the next 12 months. Here’s what we think you should look out for – and I bet it’s impossible to guess which bands Anneka chose and which ones Nat chose…right?
Behemoth – Following Nergal’s 2010 diagnosis and subsequent successful recovery from leukaemia, Behemoth are back with a vengeance to release their long-awaited tenth album The Satanist at the beginning of February. Excited? You should be!
Blink 182 – They’re supposed to be recording anything and the fact they’re headlining Reading Festival suggests to expect a new album around July.
Brother Firetribe – The band are currently in the studio working on their first album since 2008!!! If you like your cheesy old-school rock then you won’t want to miss the bus with these because they’ve got it nailed and I for one can’t wait!
Darkest Hour – Having announced that they were in the pre-production phase of their new album in February, it’s practically a given that we’ll be getting a new album from them at some time in 2014.
Dead By April – Their first release with new harsh vocalist Christoffer, Let The World Know is certainly going to be under a lot of scrutiny with hardcore fans of ex-vocalist Jimmie, but having seen them live with the new lineup, I think it’s fairly safe to say that this could well be their best album yet.
Evil Scarecrow – 2013 has already been a massive year for the band, with their critically acclaimed Bloodstock performance and subsequent pledge campaign to release a live DVD documenting it. The band will be back in 2014 with a new pledge campaign for their new album, so keep your eyes peeled!
Foo Fighters – It’s about the right amount of years since the last releases, so just what could Grohl and co. rock this year? Headliners for Glastonbury maybe? Or another Reading headliner?
The Gaslight Anthem – A new album? No way? No, this is good news, but not at all unexpected considering it’s a collection of B-Sides.
Guns N Roses – We waited years for the last album and surprisingly ‘Chinese Democracy’ did not disappoint, as usual the only disappointment is that this band is all Axel Rose regardless of who else is in it and frankly we’ll never be satisfied unless it’s the proper line up.
Helsott – They’re currently running an Indiegogo campaign to fund their debut album (although there aren’t many days left!) and the more donations they get, the more likely that they’ll be able to release the album in Spring 2014 like they hope to.
Infestum – I absolutely adored their unique blend of black metal and industrial that featured on their EP Renaissance and their album Monuments Of Exalted is set to be released in 2014 so it will be interesting to see if it carries on exactly where Renaissance left off.
Korpiklaani – Considering they’ve practically been throwing out albums on an almost yearly basis since they formed, and 2013 was one of the years that didn’t see a release from them, it’s a fair assumption to think they’ll release something in 2014. Personally I’d rather them take their time for a change and come back with a really strong album, but since Korpiklaani are very much a “quantity over quality” band, who knows?
Limp Bizkit – Their new album has a title albeit a dumb one (Stampede of the Disco Elephants). Don’t expect anything ground-breaking, but it LB are your thing, you’ll probably love this.
Linkin Park – You’d think they’ll have a new album out considering they decided to headline Download Fest before the organisers has decided to persuade them to rock Hybrid Theory in full. You just gotta wonder if plenty of practise of HT will influence this back to the ways of nu metal some more, or whether LP will go for the more standard rock all over again.
Magenta Harvest – I’ve already heard and reviewed this album on the site, and boy, what can I say other than the fact that you guys in for a treat when it gets released in January? If you like your metal noisy, tight and face-meltingly awesome, you’re going to LOVE this.
Mastodon – C’mon guys you’ve been talking about it since 2012, so is it going to arrive this year? Preferably just in time for Download on the Friday, help add to that already awesome line up.
Metallica – The biggest metal band on the planet are supposed to release a new album this year… or a DVD… or both, or nothing. We never really truly know until it physically appears. But here’s hoping.
No Doubt – They’re back! No they’re not! Yes they are! When Gwen decides that her clothing line will go along just fine whilst she pursues other avenues to, they we’ll see them back. Hopefully it’s 2014 and we’ll finally get the best lady of rock back where she belongs.
PAIN – It was announced in September that Peter Tägtgren, was working on material for the new album with two songs already completed, so I’ll definitely be keeping my fingers crossed for a 2014 release but it’ll probably be closer to the end of the year than the start.
Persuader – Do you like power metal? Yes? No? I don’t care because either way, you’re going to want their new album The Friction Maze (which is due out at the start of the year) in your lives. It’s a fresh take on a tired old genre that’s been done countless times over.
Slipknot – The first Slipknot album without Joey Jordison. It’ll certainly be interesting to see who they get in for the album and then for playing it live. I’ve certainly got an idea of who I think it’ll be, but either way, well worth the investigation.
Sonata Arctica – Although untitled for the moment, Sonata Arctica have completely finished their brand new album, which is set to be released in early 2014. It will be the first release with their massively capable and talented new bassist Pasi and I have a feeling that this album is going to blow us all away.
Steel Panther – Their third album All You Can Eat has a release date for early 2014 pencilled in, so I think we can expect more of the same humour that made their first two albums so great.
Svartby – They’ve just released an excellent two-track EP to serve as a teaser for their upcoming album, and although they haven’t formally announced anything yet, I think it’s fairly safe to assume that we’ll be getting a full release in 2014 from them.
Svartsot – Not only will 2014 see their first ever UK show, the band have also recently returned to the studio so it’s looking good for us getting some new material from them next year.
Swashbuckle – The best pirate metal band in the business is hopefully releasing a new album in 2014 (they’ve been writing and demoing songs since about February) and I for one am awaiting it with interest – especially to see if they include a suitably amusing/insulting response to a certain other pirate band’s song that was written about them!
Taking Back Sunday – With shoes already geared up for 2014, it would not at all surprise me to see Taking Back Sunday release a new record in 2014 too. Just hope it hits before festival season and is around in time to be called the album of the summer.
Through Colour – They already blew me away with their EP Somnium, which is the first in a two-part EP series, so I’m expecting big things with the second part which is hopefully going to be released in the early part of 2014.
TrollfesT – The pioneers of True Norwegian Balkan Metal are currently hard at work in the studio making more weird and wonderful music for our listening pleasure. They’re one of those rare bands that haven’t released a single bad album in their ten-year career so hopefully 2014 will see them remain on form with another strong offering.
The Used – No surprises if they finally get an album out next year as 2013 just offered a filler EP, which was all well and good but we want a full album and a UK tour guys. Bring The Used back to the UK and bring some rad new tunes with it.
Van Canto – It’s always fun to listen to Van Canto because how many other bands are there that perform completely a cappella with only a drum kit to accompany them? Their fifth album Dawn Of The Brave is set to be released in February and even includes a Bonnie Tyler cover so that’s reason alone to be excited!
Wintersun – Yes, okay, I know it wound up being a running joke about how long it took to release Time (recording started in 2006 but wasn’t completed until 2012, and subsequently wound up being split into two parts!) so maybe I shouldn’t hold my breath about Time: Part 2 seeing the light of day in 2014 but apparently the album is in the mixing stages with a release date pencilled in for early 2014, so hopefully I’ll wind up eating my words!!!
Within Temptation – They’ve already teased us with two fantastic tracks from the album, namely the songs with Tarja Turunen (ex-Nightwish) and Howard Jones (ex-Killswitch Engage), so it’ll be interesting to see how the rest of the album measures up to these two – especially the track featuring none other than X-Zibit!!!
Woland – This Finnish black metal band has been making waves for the past few years and 2014 will see the release of their debut album – and not only that, it will feature performances from Geir Bratland (Dimmu Borgir), Mathias ‘Vreth’ Lillmåns (Finntroll) and Janica Lönn (Black Sun Aeon)! Make sure you keep an eye out for this one.
