@LinerNotes

It's hard to believe that 25 years have come and gone since the fateful day we lost one of the most talented bass players in popular music. Cliff Burton played a major part in forging Metallica's sound with his signature bass playing style, which sounded like no bassist before him. Or since.

When first hearing today's news about R.E.M. disbanding after 31 years together, I initially felt the way one feels after the sudden passing of a favorite performer. But truly, we as fans should not be epitaphing today as "R.E.M. 1980 to 2011", because nothing could be further from the truth.

Yes, you read that right. Anime Metal. Animetal-USA. Metal versions of anime music. Just take that in for a moment and bask in the awesome simplicity of the idea. Much music from the anime world is rooted in metal riffage, so it makes utter, perfect sense. But this is no mere group of kids in a garage, thrashing out bad metal covers. The four members of Animetal-USA combined share a pedigree of history and talent which will likely blow your mind as much as it did mine.

If there is one thing which doesn't happen nearly enough in this world, it's discovering a new song which you fall madly in love with after the first listen. So hard in fact that you play it over and over immediately. Today a friend shared a song with me by The Jim Jones Revue and I went utterly, utterly mad for it. A full tilt, foot through the floor piece of literal Rock 'n' Roll. Come listen, but turn your speakers up to 11 first.

31 days. 31 never-heard-before albums/EP's. Album August was all about discovering new or unheard music and sharing thoughts about each release with you. We heard music dating back to the 60's all the way up to a brand new release on August 30th. Indulge me and come in for some fun facts about these 31 listens and my pick for the best from the list.