This new SNAKEPIT issue definitely came unexpected to me, especially since the grumpy old man from France seems even more pissed off than ever lately! But I can totally understand that. Bands that agreed on an interview shouldn’t back out when a lot of work already went into the preparation. It’s all just a total waste of time and energy then! I know that myself too well and it just sucks big time! But in Laurent’s case this seems to happen much more often, which is why he let off some steam in the editorial and at some other places throughout this issue. Apart from that, SNAKEPIT # 24 is again the usual feast for all true Metalheads, who still prefer old cult acts and obscure underground gems from the ’80s Metal scene over all the bullshit that gets promoted as Heavy Metal nowadays. The fact that this new edition only contains 11 reviews in total, not all of which are even positive, should easily speak for itself. But SNAKEPIT has always been more of a zine for in-depth interviews than for kissing record companies asses anyway. So, the interviews in this latest edition are luckily no exception. ANGEL DUST, ARTILLERY (also on the cover), AXE WITCH, BEYON DÉVON, BLITZKRIEG, BUFFALO, DRAGONFLY, FREEWAYS, JAGUAR, KERIA, KRAZE, LAZER, MESSIAH (S.F.), POLERGEIST (no spelling error here), POWERLORD, REINCARNATE, SANTERS, SATAN, TAURUS, THE WRATH, TITAN, TRAGEDY DIVINE and TRANCE are all featured in more or less in-depth interviews (depending on how motivated they were), all in the typical SNAKEPIT style. The overall layout and high quality printing quality luckily hasn’t changed, which is great, so my only minor criticism is the use of strange fonts for some of the interview introductions, which should be avoided for better readability. But that’s just a little bit of nitpicking from my side, because I notice that very often in other zines as well. But at the end of the day it doesn’t really matter anyway, because the zine first and foremost lives of Laurent’s incredible knowledge about the Metal underground and his brutal honesty, which makes SNAKEPIT stand out from all other zines. If something sucks, you’ll definitely get to read it here! So, as always: highly recommended! And if you’re a vinyl collector, make sure to order a copy with the free 2-track vinyl 7″ EP from BEYON DÉVON, because there’s also some issues available without that. More info you will find at www.facebook.com/snakepitmagazinefans. You can order a copy here: www.sonicagerecords.com