In Revolver’s October issue, we interview Municipal Waste vocalist Tony Foresta about his band’s new album, Massive Aggressive (Earache). For those of you who didn't get enough (or are too cheap to buy the magazine), here's the best of the rest of our wide-ranging chat.

REVOLVER How long did it take you to write this album?
TONY FORESTA Well, we’re always writing. Even after the last record, we were knocking around ideas for the new record. So I would say two years, but we knew what we wanted to do once The Art of Partying was finished. We knew we had to take it in a different direction. Basically, it was after last summer’s touring. When it stated to get cold we kind of hunkered down and wrote most of the album.

Did you guys do any writing on the road?
Between tours we’d practice for the next tour and knock around a new song. Once we had a long period of time off between tours, we’d go and nitpick through each song. We were really picky with this album. We demoed every song and went through it and changed a lot of stuff.

Is that what the writing process is usually like for Municipal Waste? Do you guys get a few demos together and then flesh out the songs before recording?
For this album it was. It was different. For most of the albums we just kind of went for it and just go by memory when we go in the studio. But with this one we demoed everything. We were the most prepared than we ever were. We practiced so hard before recording.

Why change things up this time around?
We’re usually pretty tight in the studio but we just wanted to make sure there was no messing around. We knew exactly what we wanted to do when we went in there.

You worked with producer Zeuss again.
It’s kind of like he’s the fifth band member, because we’ve worked with him for such a long time. He cares a lot about what we do. He’s really into the band and he wanted to make sure that we were happy and that we came through with the album we wanted. What was different about this album was that we made Zeuss come down to Richmond and record with us because the last album we went and did with him. So, we made him stay in Richmond and hang out in our dirty studio and record the album.

How’d that work out?
It was good. He liked it. It was hard for him to record in a different environment. He’s a pro, so he knows how to do it. It was great for us because we could just go home and sleep in our beds. It took a lot of stress off of us for writing and getting our tracks done.

What’s the music scene like in Richmond? Is there a big metal scene there?
There’s a big everything scene. There’s so many different bands. There’s a lot of really good underground bands that aren’t signed coming up; tons of them, actually. There’s also punk bands, hardcore bands, indie-rock bands, I mean anything. It’s a really small town but it has such a huge, vibrant music scene.

Sounds like a good place to be writing and recording.
It’s kind of mixed, too. It isn’t just like the metalheads go to the metal shows, and the punks go to the punk shows. Everyone hangs out with each other. Nobody’s really snobby. Everyone’s open-minded there.

Do you have a guilty pleasure sort of band.
There’s this band that everyone keeps telling me I’d like—I haven’t seen them yet—but they’re a “yacht rock” cover band. While we were gone this past weekend my friends rented a boat and everyone dressed up as these ’70’s yacht rockers and they just played. It had an open bar. It added up to like a hundred people and I think it was like 30 bucks a person. It was pretty crazy from what I hear.

That sounds awesome and incredibly dangerous. I’d be terrified that someone would fall overboard.
It was on the James River in Richmond, so I mean it could be dangerous but you could probably swim to the shore if you have to. From the reports I got back, there were a lot of people falling down but no one falling overboard.

I love the album title, Massive Aggressive. What’s the story behind it?
I was explaining how someone I knew was being passive aggressive about something and I felt the exact opposite and I was like I just want to be massive aggressive. Then we were like oh that should be a song title and we were laughing about it, but it ended up being the album title. There is a song called “Massive Aggressive” on the album. That was it. I was really pissed off at somebody.

The cover art is pretty brutal. Who came up with the concept?
We wanted to go for something that both has a real metal look to it but also has a punk attitude to it, too. We wanted to have something that looks kind of like Napalm Death’s Scum meets Misfits’ Earth A.D. We’re punks playing metal, basically, and we wanted to get that across not only with our music but with the artwork. It’s actually the same guy who did our last album artwork, too, but it looks totally different.

Yeah, it does. It’s still cool but it looks completely different.
I like the fact that we kept the same people involved with recording the last record and doing the cover for the last record, but it sounds different, it looks different. Everyone kind of went out of their way to create something new.

You guys hosted a listening party in London in June. How did that go?
I’m pretty hungover [Laughs]. It was great. The Crobar is a metal bar here in Soho. The weather here is pretty nice right now so people were hanging out and drinking outside in front of the Crobar so that was pretty nice. We were dancing, too. Had a little dance party, pushing each other around to whatever killer metal song came on the jukebox.

What were people’s reactions to the album?
People were stoked. Listening parties are pretty uptight from what I’ve been told. I heard it’s a lot of people not really talking and just standing around, looking at each other, looking at the band. Nobody wants to get up because they’re scared that the band’s gonna think they don’t like it. But it was real relaxed and everyone was laid back. People were banging their heads. I thought that was pretty funny. They were like this whole thing sounds amazing and were congratulating us a lot.

So you’re doing a club tour and doing some festivals in Europe right now. How’s the tour going?
We just did Metaltown in Sweden. That was the first festival. That was really cool. We haven’t been to Sweden that much, so just to see kids singing along was cool. We played a new song and that was probably the best reaction of any of the songs we played. We played “Acid Sentence,” and when we played the slow part the entire place was fist-pumping to the song. The album isn’t even out yet and people are freaking out that much to a new song I think we’re sitting on something good.

Interview by Valerie McQueen

Didn't get enough of this month's Hottest Chick in Metal, Otep Shamaya of Otep? Neither did we. Which is why we've posted these bonus pics of her, as well as a few more of her grossest stories. Enjoy. And check out Otep’s pinup in the new issue of Revolver.

PHOTO BY ROBIN LAANANEN

“The ‘filthiest’ show we ever played was during a rainstorm on Ozzfest and the mixing of sweat, beer, puke, blood, and god knows what else was pretty overwhelming. Especially when the crowd decided it would be fun to start a mosh-mud-pit, which naturally led to a mud-ball fight, which led to everything and everyone getting plastered in the reeking muck.”

As a proud owner of a vagina, and daughter of a gynecologist, I feel more than qualified to offer up honest, raw, and unadulterated advice regarding all things related to sex, the human body, and relationships. So, all you metalhead freaks out there, please email me your most dire, dirty, sick, and twisted questions about women and the way we work, from our emotional hearts to our even more complicated parts. Email me at RevolvHer@gmail.com. Also follow RevolvHER on Twitter @revolvher666.

Heeeey RevolvHER,
I have a problem. I have been with this girl for a little over 6 months now and we both love each other, I think. I know she loves me like crazy and I thought I loved her, but now I’m not so sure. I recently enlisted in the Marine Corps, and I leave in November. Now there are three other girls who want to have sex with me. I know all of these girls well, and I know that even if we didn't get together I could still smash all of them. It probably sounds weird but I made a mental goal sheet of about six chicks I want to fuck before I leave. The problem is, I haven't “completely cheated” on my girlfriend and I don't really want to. Temptation is telling me to just to say, “fuck it” though, because I won't be getting any sex for a while. I know it would be best to just to tell my girl how I feel before I hurt her, but I can’t. Call me a pussy or whatever, but I just can't. I just don’t know what to do.
Asshole

Hey Asshole,
I mean, Pussy. I mean, Asshole. You aren’t alone in your plight. I think all people go through the “cake and eat it, too” phase of life, and somehow they get through it. This is not a huge problem in the grand scheme of your whole life. But since you asked, I will confirm that, yes, you are pulling some pussy-esque moves here. You have a girlfriend, you dig her, and you don’t want to hurt her. But, you also want to slide your cock into a few more vaginas before you roll out into the Marine Corps to be surrounded by a bunch of dicks. Perhaps your desire to get with other ladies signifies that you don’t really love your girlfriend, or perhaps it just signifies that you are a young man who isn’t ready to settle down yet. Since the relationship is still relatively new, you owe it to yourself and to your girlfriend to let her know how you feel and what you want right now. The downside to this honesty might be the pain you will cause her momentarily (she’ll get over you), and the loss of the relationship you have built. The gain will be the sexual conquests you will have before hitting the Marine Corps, as well as not leading on a woman you care about. Before you make you make any moves, you need to think about how much “smashing” the new pussy is worth to you. If you do end up choosing to just bang away without telling your girlfriend, you might end up causing more grief to all parties involved. If your girl finds out after the fact, she will be gutted by your deceit. Also, you may find that fucking girls with guilt hanging over your head isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. Or maybe you’re the kind of asshole that gets off on the drama of the illicit affair and sneaking around? What I am telling you is the very sad truth that there is no way to get everything you want. Either you keep the girlfriend while you fuck the other girls behind her back—and then live every day in fear of her finding out. Or you tell her how much you want to “smash” other chicks and hurt her—and then get your rocks off before hitting the corps. One way or the other someone is getting fucked. Good luck out there, and thank you for serving our country!!
xxx
RevolvHER

In anticipation of Revolver's Black Dahlia Murder issue, which hits newsstands everywhere on August 18, we've got another exclusive preview from the bonus DVD for their new album, Deflorate (Metal Blade). In this clip the boys hit Saint Petersburg, Russia, and as usual, hilarious hijinks ensue. Watch the shit below (and watch our first BDM DVD clip here. And check back often at RevolverMag.com for more exclusive BDM music and videos.

Progressive metalcore group Protest the Hero snagged the Revolver Golden Gods “Most Viral Video” award this past April for the hilarious YouTube of them dancing to disco music on the back of a flatbed truck. Check out a preview of their upcoming DVD and live CD, Gallop Meets the Earth (Vagrant) below:

Check out exclusive behind-the-scenes footage from our ultra-bloody cover shoot with deathcore upstarts Suicide Silence. And check out the cameo from Natasha Komis of Paris Hilton's My New BFF!!! WTF!

As a proud owner of a vagina and daughter of a gynecologist, I feel more than qualified to offer up honest, raw, and unadulterated advice regarding all things related to sex, the human body, and relationships. So, all you metalhead freaks out there, please email me your most dire, dirty, sick, and twisted questions about women and the way we work, from our emotional hearts to our even more complicated parts. Email me at RevolvHer@gmail.com.

Dear RevolvHER,
I've been dating my girlfriend for about six months. I’m a metalhead, and she’s more of a goth chick, which I think is a very good combination. Our sex life has been very good up until now...at least I thought so. But then recently she has been hinting about introducing toys—dildos, vibrators, and such—into the bedroom. I just can’t help but feel a little insecure because of this. I’ve never used toys with any of my previous girlfriends (well, I’ve only really had one other) and I mean, shouldn’t I be enough? Does this mean that I haven’t been satisfying her? I’m not opposed to using toys, I guess, but what if she ends up liking them more than actual sex with me? And if I agree to bring toys into the bedroom, how should I use them so that they don’t become a substitute for well, you know, my cock?
Please help,
-Dude in Toyland

Dear Dude,
First off, you should feel very blessed to be in a relationship with a woman who feels comfortable enough to tell you what she wants sexually. It takes courage to ask for something that some might construe as kinky. Your girlfriend’s desire to incorporate toys into your sex play doesn’t necessarily have anything to do with your abilities as a lover. It might have more to do with how she pleases herself when she’s alone, or it might just be something that really tickles her fancy, errr, clit. If you can try to separate your ego from the situation you might find that bringing toys into the bedroom can be kinky and fun. But, I can understand why you might be taking her desire to use a dildo or vibrator personally. You want to feel as though your cock, fingers, and tongue are the end all and be all of sexual power over her clit. They very well could be, but maybe she just wants to mix shit up a little in the sack. My take on all things sexual is that it doesn’t hurt to try it once, unless you know that you don’t want to do something. If you try it, and you find that you absolutely hate using toys in the bedroom, then let her know how it makes you feel. I doubt that your girlfriend would want to do anything that bruises your ego, or makes you feel uncomfortable. Where would the fun be in that?

My suggestion for using toys in a way to enhance sex, and not replace your cock, is to start off small. Go online to www.babeland.com and buy a pocket rocket. They are these little, yet really powerful vibrators. The next time you are playing around with your lady, whip out the little guy and put it on, or near her clit. It will get her pretty excited. You can tease her with it by getting her worked up and then taking it away. When she’s good and ready, start to fuck her. While fucking her, either let her hold the vibrator on her clit, or you hold the vibrator on her clit (some women like to control the pressure). She will probably get off this way while you are inside her, and it will probably be pretty erotic for both of you.

Toys will probably never be able to take the place of your cock. Even when the sex toy companies try, that latex stuff never really feels quite like flesh. Plus, toys can’t whisper sweet nothings in your ear when you fuck them, at least I don’t think they can?
xxx
RevolvHER

You know the band sucks. Everyone has told you that they suck, and that this album sucks harder than any of its predecessors. But look at that cover! You’ve never seen an album cover this badass before! It’s hard to describe exactly what it is—sort of a dissected human body being used to wipe the Devil’s ass while he raises the Worm Chalice aloft—but it immediately makes you want to buy a bullet belt and brand a huge inverted cross into your sternum. Buy the album and love the cover, or save your money for an In Flames reissue? What do you do, hotshot? What do you do?!

A good album cover makes all the difference in metal. Sure, a great album can have a bad cover and still rock, as many if not all of W.A.S.P.’s releases have proven, but a good album cover, a good image representing an album, can greatly influence that record’s power on the musical landscape. How well a cover transfers onto a shirt is an important issue, too; hell, I fucking worship Ace Of Spades, but my Motörhead T-shirts feature the MotörDog, not a murky shot of three dudes dressed like leather cowboys in the desert. And so, because this one has been a long time coming, I bring you the Six Coolest and Lamest Metal Album Covers.

The Six Coolest Metal Album Covers

1) Iron Maiden, Killers A big-haired rotting zombie leers over his desperate victim, bloody hatchet in hand. A dystopian apartment complex glows in the background. Maiden singer Paul Di’Anno quit the band after this album and was soon replaced by Bruce Dickinson. The zombie went on to conquer the whole fucking world.

2) Slayer, South Of Heaven A giant skull with a cross jammed through it sinks into a lake of blood in Hieronymus Bosch’s Vatican. Artist Larry Carrol took Slayer’s slow, riffy album and perfectly translated it into this, the ultimate Hellscape.

3) Celtic Frost, To Mega Therion Satan aims his Jesus-slingshot at you while phallic skull-faced demons (one of them is in a top hat) shriek and gibber. H.R. Giger’s “Satan I” adorns the cover of the album that every black-metal band has wanted to make, ever.








4) Dissection, Storm Of The Light’s Bane Eight-year-old Ezra Lux described this album cover as “doom man on a doom horse in doom land,” and damn, the kid’s astute. Images rarely capture a record’s atmosphere as perfectly as Kristian “Necrolord” Wahlin’s icy and morose reaper.








5) Cannibal Corpse, Vile The name says it all. I could describe what’s going on here, to you, but it wouldn’t do the cover justice. Jesus, CC artist Vince Locke went above and beyond with this one. You see the penis? It has a penis.









6) Mastodon, Remission AAAAAAH! PUT IT OUT PUT IT OUT PUT IT OUT! GET SOME WATER! HOW DID THIS HAPPEN?! WHAT THE FUCK?!

The Six Lamest Metal Album Covers

1) Judas Priest, Turbo This cover sums up pretty much everything I hate about the ’80s. It’s gaudy, it’s super-femme, and it has some topical bullshit video-game theme. Honestly, is there anything good about this album?









2) Evanescence, Fallen I respect female rock vocalists, but it’s beyond lame when their glamour takes the spotlight over their band. So when the cover of your debut album is a DeviantArt-level Photoshop of your female singer’s face? Knock knock. Who’s there? Hugo. Hugo who? HUGO FUCK YOURSELF.







3) Annihilator, Carnival Diablos I have a soft spot for this album—it was introduction to the mighty Annihilator—but man, how many couch cushions did Jeff Waters & Co. overturn to pay for this cover? I can honestly say I have no clue what’s going on here.








4) Soilwork, Figure Number Five Come on, guys—the Natural Born Chaos cover is so awesome! Whatever. I think this is a pile of driftwood—or rocks? Are they rocks?—in the middle of a compass. Or something. Who cares?









5) Limp Bizkit, Chocolate Starefish and the Hot Dog Flavored Water Look, I’ll always take the time to hate on Limp Bizkit, but the covers of the two albums previous to this one were pretty fucking cool. This one, however, is lazy, juvenile, actually repellent to me (and honestly, did you see the previous six? VILE, dude! It has a penis.).







6) Scorpions, Lovedrive “Don’t you hate it when you feel up a girl…and her nipples turn into hot bubble gum! Oh my God, you guys, too?!”

By amateur spelunker Chris Krovatin

Revolver is proud to present the exclusive premiere of Divine Heresy's new music video, for the track, "Facebreaker" off their new, sophomore album, Bringer of Plagues (Century Media). Watch the vision of the apocalypse below:

In anticipation of Revolver's Black Dahlia Murder issue, which hits newsstands everywhere on August 18, we've got an exclusive preview from the bonus DVD for their new album, Deflorate (Metal Blade). In this clip the boys hit Oslo, Norway, and as usual, hilarious hijinks ensue. Watch the shit below. And check back often at RevolverMag.com for more exclusive BDM music and videos.