Mike Ness has one of those voices that I’d like hear even in a terribly mundane setting, like him talking to himself in front of an ATM machine, or maybe on the phone with tech support trying to troubleshoot a computer hardware issue. Few communicate the posture of being perpetually badass like Ness. In the [...]

The latest chapter in Deep Elm’s legendary Emo Diaries series is out now and features another batch of exclusive songs from 12 up-and-coming indie artists. Chapter 12 is titled “I Love You But In The End I Will Destroy You“. You can stream the whole thing here on Deep Elm’s site. Some of the band’s featured are SUMMER HOURS, LATE NIGHT CONDITION, ARMS AROUND THE STEREO, COLLAPSE UNDER THE EMPIRE, and GOONIES NEVER SAY DIE.

Metalsucks.net is streaming the new full-length from Bridge Nine’s MOTHER OF MERCY. The metallic hardcore release is titled IV: Symptoms of Existence and reminds me of bands like 108, STRIFE, and UNDERTOW. You can check out the stream here. The outing hits stores on January 25th.

1. It’s New Release Tuesday and a slew of new singles are hitting the internets as well. A brief round-up:

- RISE AGAINST – “Help Is On The Way”

- YELLOWCARD – “For You and Your Denial”

- THURSDAY – “Generator” (BAD RELIGION cover)

2. Artistdirect (I had no idea this company still existed… ) is streaming the brand new debut full-length from TIMES OF GRACE, featuring KILLSWITCH ENGAGE’s Adam D, and former KSE vocalist Jesse Leach. The album hit stores today via Roadrunner.

3. A couple of days ago I tweeted about the top sales charts on eMusic, and how as predicted by many, they have largely turned over to major label releases, particularly as Sony, Warner and Universal have dropped substantial amounts of their catalogs on the site. When a number of notable indie labels (Merge, Domino, Beggars Group), jumped ship this fall right before tens of thousands of major label titles were added, the labels cryptically hinted that they were upset with eMusic’s direction and new pricing structure. After a couple of months, it’s not hard to see why indie labels might be upset. Generally, a finite number of downloads exist per month among the eMusic user base due to the subscription nature of the service. As the number of customers on eMusic has either stayed static or decreased, indies face an increasingly compromised status as competition from hugely popular recordings adds pressure where there was none before. While the money generated per song download might increase for all labels under the new pricing structure, that doesn’t help much when consumer choice simply explodes. If any label is willing to illuminate their experience with eMusic since the addition of major label catalogs, please get in touch. And for what it’s worth, the three Pastepunk titles on eMusic earned a total $14.51 on eMusic in 2010 (we have yet been paid for any sales in December).

4. BALANCE AND COMPOSURE are currently in the studio with Brian McTernan, recording their debut full-length for No Sleep Records. Gotta be one of the most anticipated full-lengths of 2011. A spring release is expected.

5. New PJ BOND EP on Bandcamp… acoustic, and charming…

It’s only two weeks or so into 2011, but already there’s a tremendous EP out there that’s going to be talked about for the rest of the year, and now it is available for stream/purchase ($4) via Bandcamp. It’s the debut formal release from Long Island’s DAYTRADER, who feature former members of LATTERMAN, BRIDGE AND TUNNEL and CRIME IN STEREO. The band’s aggressive older emo/post-hardcore sound is highly melodic and its earnestness is laid out thick. RIYL: TEXAS IS THE REASON, ON THE MIGHT OF PRINCES…

Gothenburg psychedelic rockers GRAVEYARD have inked a deal with Nuclear Blast Records. The band is streaming “Hisingen Blues,” the title track of their upcoming full-length, via Soundcloud. An early Spring release is planned.

A growing meme that has recently taken hold on YouTube is 8-bit covers of some of your favorite metal songs. Selections from CONVERGE, IN FLAMES, and MASTODON are all floating out there, and being the somewhat dutiful metal editor (emeritus) that I am, I have collected some of my favorites. Check them out below the jump.

From the inbox:

COMEBACK KID has released a video for “G.M. Vincent & I” off their latest release Symptoms & Cures. This live collage captures the intensity and emotion portrayed in vocalist Andrew Neufeld’s lyrics as the song tells the story of the van accident he and long-time friends/labelmates GRAVE MAKER suffered.

The video will exclusively be on the band’s Facebook page for the next week. You can view the video by “liking” their page.