Fans of heavy music are no doubt aware of Seattle's Good to Die Records, which has been putting out plenty of great albums from hard rock and metal acts from Seattle. (For more info about Good to Die, check out this article on label head Nik Christofferson, AKA Seattle Rock Guy, from our sister paper The Stranger.) Now Good to Die has turned its gleaming eye to Portland, with two new releases from heavy Portland bands on the way.

There's the new Gaytheist record, called Stealth Beats, which comes out next Tuesday; it's a brawling, get-kicked-down-the-stairs platter displaying the Portland trio's fearsome energy, favoring a lean, athletic sound over bottom-heavy sludge. And there's a new Rabbits record coming too: The nine-track Bites Rites comes out on September 18 and it's basically like running headfirst into a wall until you see stars. (The good kind!) Both these records kick all of your ass, and it's great that Good to Die has been paying attention to what's going on down here. To hear tunes from both these records and to get a free Good to Die sampler, head over to the label's Bandcamp page.

Gaytheist and Rabbits are both playing an early show on September 8 at the Peoples' Sandwich of Portland; Gaytheist also plays this Sunday, August 19, at the Alleyway on NE Alberta. Gaytheist's record release show for Stealth Beats is Friday, September 14 at Kenton Club. Meanwhile, Rabbits have quite a few local shows lined up: Thursday, August 23 at the Know; the Sizzlefest benefit with YOB on Sunday, September 2 at Plan B; and the Bites Rites release show is Friday, September 28 at Slabtown.