For his Bang of the Week, it might have been a good business decision for Hate Eternal frontman Erik Rutan to pick an artist whose album he produced, but Rutan ain't about nepotism (look it up), so he chose Nile's "Papyrus Containing the Spell to Preserve Its Possessor Against Attacks," which was produced by Neil Kernon. Read more...

Swords and gladiators go together like metal and headbanging -- which is why 3 Inches of Blood staged their video for "Trial of Champions" inside the ring of death. "The song is pretty much a classic underdog scenario where a downtrodden hero rises to overcome adversity," says 3IOB singer Cam Pipes. "The video shows what the hero must overcome to win his freedom."

The clip will debut on Thursday on Headbangers Ball Blog and will receive its on-air premiere on Saturday on Headbangers Ball on MTV2. (Click "read more" for more from Pipes and a video interview with the band and producer Joey Jordison). Read more...

The latest submission by horror artist Mike Hrubovcak reminds us of a classic scene in the film "This is Spinal Tap," in which the band's publicist. Bobbi Flekman, presents the group with the first pressings of their record "Smell the Glove." The artwork for the cover is completely black and the band react in horror. When they ask her what happened to their original design, she replies, "You put a greased, naked woman on all fours with a dog collar around her neck. You don't find that offensive? you don't find that sexist?"

We're not saying that XXX Maniak are the Spinal Tap of 2008 (we'll leave those honors to Dethklok). They're more like today's Cannibal Corpse (only, even more extreme), and in the '90s those guys had huge problems getting anyone to display their album art as well. Nightmare Visions columnist Mike Hrubovcak had the honors of crafting the new XXX Maniak/Coffins cover, and, while it's hardly as graphic as the last one he rendered or XXX Maniak, it's still waaaaay too graphic for our parent company's tender sensibilities. So, here's a detail from the full image along with a description from our resident artist. Read more...

Imhotep has published a gargantuan seven-part interview with past and present members of Gorgoroth.

So, why should North American metal fans care about a bunch of interviews with yet another face-painted Norwegian black metal band? Simple. Gorgorth are for real. They're ugly, evil, volatile and unquestionably dangerous. Think Burzum's Varg Vikernes times three (only none have committed murder -- yet). Gaahl has served time for beating up a 41-year-old man and drinking his blood, Infernus was accused of punching a woman in the face and then raping her (a claim he virulently denies) and the band landed in a cauldron of legal hassles in Poland when they staged a show that featured sheep heads on stakes, spillage of 80 liters of sheep's blood, satanic symbols, and four naked crucified models on stage. The concert was filmed for television broadcast and the police confiscated the tapes in an effort to prosecute the band for a "religious offense" (punishable under Polish law) and animal cruelty. Read more...

When it comes to paving the future for metal, DevilDriver singer Dez Fafara is on the right track. Instead of following trends, going for the quick fix or sticking with the tried and true, the heavy metal singer is always thinking about how to shake things up and present something in a different way.

He's also on top of the business side of metal, and is all too aware that illegal downloads, increasing conservatism and a shrinking economy are making it harder for iconoclasts to express themselves and be heard. But instead of encouraging him to create music that will be easy for suffering labels to market, he sticks both middle fingers into the sky and lashes out with challenging, complex and uncompromising songs that are too good for the corporate world to deny. (Click 'read more" to hear the MTV Headbangers Ball Blog DevilDriver podcast interview) Read more...