An excellent short documentary about Iraqi metal band Acrassicauda struggling to play shows and survive amidst the turmoil of their war-torn nation has been posted in three sections, each consisting of five to seven five-minute long chapters.
Here's some of the promo copy about the program:

The Baghdad-based band Acrassicauda was formed in the last few years of Saddam Hussein's rule and aside from the typical problems every band has, they also had to deal with the stigma of playing dark western music in an Islamic state under Baath party rule, while coming out of a decade of war, sanctions, and poverty.

We found their story inspiring. When we interviewed the band they were excited to be living in a newly freed Iraq, and their future seemed limitless. They even talked of recording an album. Things took a turn for the worse, however. After a few months respite, the situation in free Iraq deteriorated quickly and by the end of the year, after a few key insurgent attacks -- the bombing at the UN building, the massive strike at the grand Shi'a mosque in Najaf -- Iraq started to unravel.

We stayed in touch with the band through this time and in the fall of 2006, with the insurgency reaching a fevered pitch, VICE Co-Founder Suroosh Alvi and VBS Producer Eddy Moretti decided to visit them. Here is some of what they discovered, and it's a true story of courage, tenacity and the universal right to rock.

This week, we introduce a new segment called, as you can plainly see in the headline, 'Bang of the Week." So, what is 'Bang of the Week?' No, it has nothing to do with nasty bedroom video tapes. 'Bang of the Week' is a way for you to get a glimpse at what music videos some of your favorite rockers are digging.

For the debut of 'Bang of the Week' we asked the guys in Heaven and Hell (Black Sabbath with Ronnie James Dio) to give some love to a new metal video and they chose a clip by their recent touring partners Megadeth, "A Tout Le Monde (Set Me Free)."

The song is a heavier, lusher remake of a track from Megadeth's 1994 album Youthanasia and it features guest vocals by Lacuna Coil's frontwoman Cristina Scabbia. The video was directed by Aggressive and shot March 8 and 9 in Los Angeles. Megadeth recently played Download and are currently in the middle of the European summer festival season.

Heaven and Hell are also in the middle of a European tour. The band will remain on the road through July 7 at the Montreux Jazz Festival, then they'll head back out on tour November 4 for a tour of the UK that runs through November 18 in Bournemouth, England.

Now, here's what Heaven and Hell have are singing high praise about -- Megadeth's video for "A Tour Le Monde (Set Me Free)":

After stopping off at the candy store and the Dungeons & Dragons festival, Massachusetts metalcore band All that Remains decided to film an upcoming show for inclusion on the band's new DVD.

The group have been shooting tour antics and other road activities since the release of its 2004 album This Darkened Heart, and have already filmed full concert in Philadelphia earlier this year, but weren't completely satisfied with the results. So, on July 12 they'll film another show at The Recher Theater in Towson, Maryland. The yet-untitled DVD is tentatively scheduled for release this fall.

"As everyone knows we shot footage for a DVD," frontman Phil Labonte said. "Unfortunately, some of the audio files were corrupted so we have to shoot again. I know, this is getting stupid, but we don't want to put out some sub-par, crappy DVD. Most of you guys 'n gals have been with us for a long time and waiting almost as long for the DVD. We are working hard to make sure if you plunk down 20 bucks, you get what you pay for: A full live show and enough extras to give you a sense of who we are."

All That Remains are still touring to support their last album The Fall of Ideals, which came out July 2006.

Now for your viewing pleasure, stick "This Calling" down your sweaty pants:

Even though they've been around for 26 years and are hardly underground anymore, whenever they take the stage Slayer still tear it up with twice the tightness and ferocity as most of the blackest black metal bands.

So, on Saturday 9 when Slayer plugged in on the main stage at the Download Festival in Donnington, England right before co-headliners Marilyn Manson and headliners Linkin Park (egad!), the thrash metal veterans stole the show with 60 minutes of ferocity that most groups only aspire to. And the audience reacted like a crowd as a public hanging (check out those circle pits!).

Openers, Turisas, Hellyeah!, Shadows Fall, Aiden, 30 Seconds to Mars, Bowling For Soup and Machine Could only watch in awe as thrash's finest plowed through a set that featured: "South of Heaven," "War Ensemble," "Jihad," "Cult," "God Hates Us All," "Bloodline," "Mandatory Suicide," "Seasons in the Abyss," "Supremist," "Eyes of the Insane," "Dead Skin Mask" and "Raining Blood."

In case you missed, it here it is in its entirety.

Not since Mayhem started mounting pig's heads on sticks and Gorgoroth crucified blood-soaked models onstage has a black metal band courted as much controversy and attracted as much attention as Uppsala, Sweden's Watain.

With press photos that look like shots from a Lucio Fulci Zombie movie and blood-splashed concerts that leave venues looking like slaughterhouses, Watain are living up to the hype -- especially because their music is heavy, dynamic and well-constructed.

The band formed in1998 and has released three albums that meld the heretical styles of Mayhem, Emperor and Immortal -- 2000's Rabid Death Curse, 2003's Casus Luciferi and Sworn to the Dark, which came out in April.

From the early days, Watain have maintained a steady lineup, featuring singer and bassist Erik Danielsson (Cold Seed Creations), who also edits the fanzine "Hellish Massacre," guitarist P Forsberg bassist Tore Stjerna (who owns Necromorbus Studio) and drummer H. Jonsson.

On Sunday in Campinas, Brazil, Watain will complete their three month F--- the World Tour, which included 11 U.S. dates. Additional shows are expected to be announced shortly.

Recently, MTVnews.com's Chris Harris conducted an excellent interview with Danielsson about the bloody exploits of Watain.

Now check out this shaky recent hand-held home footage from Mexico.
FUCK THE WORLD TOUR MEXICO 2007

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The correct answer is b:) Lurker of Chalice.

The solo project of Wrest, the frontman for San Francisco-based black metal band Leviathan, Lurker of Chalice offers a far different sort of assault than Wrest's main band.

Lurker of Chalice are bleak, gothic (in the true sense) and harrowing, reminiscent of Elizium-era Fields of the Nephilim, Bauhaus, Mono, Sun O))) and Boris as well as purveyors of the black, like Blur Aus Nord and Striborg.

Lurker of Chalice's creepy self-titled 2005 debut came out on Southern Lord Records, and Wrest reportedly has four completed but unreleased Lurker albums lurking about.

Sadly, there are reports that Wrest killed the project in 2004 because he didn't have enough time to keep it breathing. The good news? Battle Command Records and Ajna Offensive have announced that they will release a new Lurker of Chalice album, Perverse Calculus, some time this year.

Ex-Nine Inch Nails guiarist Danny Lohner has remixed Daath's "Dead on the Dance Floor" for release July 10 as part of a yet-untitled digital EP. The track integrates the band's feral riffs with Lohner's electronic beats and samples. "At some point in our lives, each member of Daath has spent their time with Nine Inch Nails music," guitarist Eyal Levi said, according to MTVnews.com's Metal File. "They are a huge part of our musical upbringing and collaborating with one of their main minds is an honor that we are very excited about."

Apocalyptica have gotta be pissed. Two classically trained female harp players, who go by the name Harptallica, have released their self-produced debut of Metallica covers, Harptallica - A Tribute, on iTunes. The musicians, Ashley Toman and Patricia Kline, both have Masters of Music degrees from Rochester, New York's Eastman School of Music. A tour is forthcoming.

Through the Eyes of the Dead will release their new album, Malice, August 21. The follow-up to 2005's Bloodlust will mark the debut of singer Nate Johnson (ex-Premonitions of War, Deadwater Drowning), who replaced Anthony Gunnels in March after Gunnels lost interest in the band. The disc was produced by Erik Rutan (Goatwhore, Cannibal Corpse) and includes "Failure in the Flesh," which is currently streaming on the band's MySpace page.

Seattle band Himsa have finished recording their yet-untitled fourth album, which they've been hammering away at in the studio with producer Steve Carter (Cradle of Filth, Aiden) since mid-April. Vocals were later produced by Devin Townsend (Lamb of God, Darkest Hour), and Tue Madsen (Kataklysm, Mnemic) is currently mixing the album.

Australia surf-thrash band Alchemist have finished recording their new full-length, Tripsis, which is scheduled for U.S. release in September. In a statement, singer/guitarist Adam Agius called the disc, "The most consistently heavy album since Spiritech, with all the Alchemist trademarks — psychedelic, atmospheric, packed with crushing riffs, intertwined guitar, melodies and groove. Tripsis is also the fastest album delivered by Alchemist, with a few songs taking the surf-thrash sound to new heights." Tracks include "Wrapped in Guilt," "Degenerative Breeding" and "Grasp the Air."

Grindcore band Leng Tch'e have replaced guitarist Geert Devenster with ex-Aborted axeman Peter Goemaere. Devenster quit the group last month because his "priorities in life" changed and he "wasn't having fun anymore."

Bay Area thrash band Dekapitator will release their debut, The Storm Before the Calm, July 24. Two tracks, "Toxic Sanctuary" and "Run With the Pack," can be previewed on the band's MySpace page. ... We'd love to hear the story behind this band's name: Arsonists Get the Girls. They'll release their second disc, The Game of Life, August 14. Produced by Zach Ohren of Castle Ultimate, the disc features 12 dizzying tracks, including "Shoeshine for Neptune."

The new album by Swedish metal legends Entombed, Serpent Saints - The Ten Amendments, is scheduled to drop July 31. It will be the band's first studio album since 2004's Inferno. Expect a U.S. tour in late fall or early winter 2008.

For a full interview with Despised Icon, check out this week's Metal File.

Stone Sour and Slipknot singer Corey Taylor may be going for the trifecta. He's already in one of the most popular hard rock bands and the biggest nu-metal/death metal outfits and now Taylor seems interested in singing for Anthrax, one of the biggest thrash outfits of the '80s.

"It kind of started as a joke," he told Germany's Rock Hard magazine. "And then the more we talked about it, the more serious it got. I'm gonna at least help them out. It's kind of a dream come true. Anthrax is one of my favorite bands."

So far, Taylor has written lyrics for "eight or nine" new songs, one of which he also wrote hte music for. But as far as Taylor entering the studio and touring with Anthrax, that's far from definite.

"We're just gonna kind of play it by ear and just see what happens,"Taylor Says. "It's something that we're talking about. It's something that we kind of wanna do. But I'm in two huge bands right now. So I barely get enough time to sleep, let alone do another band."

Even if Taylor doesn't wind up roaming the stage singing "Caught in a Mosh," "Madhouse" and "Only" with his former idols, he's thrilled that they would consider him.

"These are people that I grew up listening to, these are guys that I had the privilege of getting to know on a real basis. To have them look at me and go, 'You know what? We would love to work with you,' it's such a huge compliment. It kind of makes me feel like I've come a long way in my life."

Following a reunion with their '80s singer Joey Belladonna in 2005, he and Anthrax parted ways again. Belladonna's '90s replacement John Bush has recently said that he is not interested in being back in the band right now. Guitarist Scott Ian has said Anthrax will announce their new singer at the end of June.

Yup, there's a band name hidden in this snarl of curves and angles. And there seems to be an axe hidden right there in the middle of it all. It's like we're playing a gave of "I Spy!" Want a hint? Nah, this one's too easy. Good luck, metal warriors!

Your choices are:

a) Winter of Undoing b) Lurker of Chalice c) Harlot's Uprise d) Night Ranger

Even in an age of digital technology, metal bands still sometimes have to suffer for their art. Last month, Despised Icon braved the frozen peaks of Quebec City to shoot their new video for "In the Arms of Perdition," which debuts this weekend on Headbangers Ball.

"We spent the entire weekend shooting in -40F weather on a secluded icy mountain," said singer Alex Erian. "Our buddy [Director] Jean-Philippe Bernier and his team at DBMFILMS worked their asses off."

The performance-based video gives a good idea of what the Montreal-based hardcore metal sextet are like in concert. The band's most recent album, The Ills of Modern Man, came out lat month and was recorded with producer and ex-guitarist Yannick St. Amand and mixed by Andy Sneap.

Despised Icon are currently on the road with The Red Chord, Through the Eyes of the Dead and All Shall Perish.

For now, enjoy the band's video for "The Sunset Will Never Charm Us":