In the editorial page of this new, 17th edition of SNAKEPIT, Laurent mentions that it was really tough for him this time around to finish the issue and that he often felt kinda burned out and uninspired while working on its content… Well, even though I know that type of feeling myself too well, it’s kinda amusing in his case, cause if you turn that particular page over you will discover a 12 (!!!!) pages long in-depth interview with original EXCITER members Dan Beehler (drums / vocals) and Allan Johnson (bass) about the entire history of the band up till recent BËEHLER activities. And if I say 12 pages, you gotta remember that the letter-size in SNAKEPIT is a lot smaller than in your average magazines. So 12 pages in SNAKEPIT are probably twice or three times as much as in every other zine!!! Several hours of reading are already necessary just to consume this incredible feature!! But it’s definitely worth the effort and already reason enough to purchase this issue! The remaining interviews may not be as lengthy, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they aren’t equally interesting. In that department VOICES readers should definitely check out the following in-depth chats: 1) LEVIATHAN (in case you don’t know it yet, this is NOT the Progressive Power Metal act of the same name, nor San Francisco’s Black Metallers, but the great Death / Thrashers from the New York area that former CANNIBAL CORPSE / SIX FEET UNDER vocalist Chris Barnes started his career with); 2) Erik Meade (this guy used to be the rather unknown bass player on DEATH’s "Back From The Dead" rehearsal demo in late 1985); 3) DEVASTATION (not the Chicago-, but also very cool Texas-version); 4) Lee "Rat Skates" Kundrat (OVERKILL’s original drummer talks about the early days) and 5) BACKWATER (does someone still remember this cool German MOTÖRHEAD-ish act?). Additionally to those you’ll find features on traditional / Power Metal acts such as ASSASSIN (not the German Thrashers, but the US Power Metallers), BURNER, COMMANDER, ENFORCER, EVIL (remember their incredible "Evil’s Message" EP on Rave On Records?), FATAL VIOLENCE (a highly recommended crushing act if you can stand crystal clear vocals), HAMMERON, KARION, MAYHEM (from Illinois, US), RAT ATTACK, RIOT, RUTHLESS, SLAYER (the Texas version, later better known as S.A.SLAYER), SORTILEGE, TRIAL, an in-depth KICK ASS MONTHLY (tribute) feature with Bob Muldowney’s longtime friend and partner Mike Hannon, a label special on Rainforest Records and a couple of reviews that will most certainly piss a lot of people off again due to Laurent’s harsh (yet in most cases justified) words. The whole layout / printing quality of SNAKEPIT luckily hasn’t changed a bit and is still of great quality… I personally even prefer the black & white cover over the full color version that a couple of issues came out with!). If all this should still not be enough for you, let me tell you that the first orders will go out with a limited vinyl 12" (250 copies) of ASSASSIN’s three song 1985 demo (later orders will receive a 7" version of that demo with only two songs on it). Single copies sell for $9 (with the 7" EP) or $15 (with the 12" EP) plus postage. As it is pretty expensive to send single copies out (especially to Europe), you could probably safe a few bucks by contacting High Roller Records, Metaleros Records and other distros in Europe… they all will have copies in stock soon as well. So, to sum it up: SNAKEPIT is and will always be THE ULTIMATE magazine in pure, old school Metal! Buy or die! Any additional info you may find at www.truemetal.org/snakepit or www.myspace.com/snakepitmagazine