The Fabio Vi channel on YouTube has uploaded video of SAVATAGE's entire June 24 concert at Alcatraz in Milan, Italy. Check it out below.

Featured songs:

01. Welcome
02. Jesus Saves 2:31
03. Sirens 6:45
04. Another Way 10:32
05. The Wake Of Magellan 15:06
06. This Is The Time 20:57
07. Strange Wings 26:14
08. The Storm 30:15
09. All That I Bleed 35:28
10. Handful Of Rain 40:02
11. Chance 45:39
12. Starlight / I Am / Mozart And Madness 53:45
13. Dead Winter Dead 1:04:23
14. The Hourglass 1:08:44
15. Believe 1:15:38
16. Gutter Ballet 1:21:35
17. Edge Of Thorns 1:28:16
18. Power Of The Night 1:34:01
19. Hall Of The Mountain King 1:38:42

In a new interview with MetalTalk, SAVATAGE guitarist Chris Caffery spoke about the reactivated band's recent shows in South America and current dates in Europe. Joining Chris in SAVATAGE's 2025 touring lineup are Johnny Lee Middleton on bass, Al Pitrelli on guitar, Jeff Plate on drums and Zak Stevens on lead vocals. Regarding what it has been like playing with SAVATAGE again, Caffery said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, those guys in the band are people that I see every year [as part of the annual tours with the progressive rock group TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA]. Zak and Jeff are people that I tour with, and Al, me and Johnny and Jeff toured together with TSO on the 'Beethoven's Last Night' tours and stuff like that. So I always see them and we always play. They're my closest friends. And when we played again, it didn't seem like it was 23 years; it seemed like it was three years. It was weird. It just seemed like we never stopped. It's so crazy. It just felt the same but different, 'cause we're a little bit older and a lot of time's gone by. We went up there, and it was just like we were back home. SAVATAGE's music is so powerful on those stages and so much fun to play live. And the music that Jon [Oliva, SAVATAGE mastermind] and his brother [Criss Oliva] and [TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA project founder and SAVATAGE producer] Paul [O'Neill] had assembled for this band's career, it's so magical when it's played in front of audiences. And I know the fans missed it as much as I did.

"Life goes through so many ups and downs, and as you get older, it seems to me like the downs tend to jump out a lot when you don't expect them," Caffery explained. "And now that comes from the health of your family members and things around you like that. But having SAVATAGE back in my life has really been like a good anchor in the middle, 'cause TSO is the greatest fricking musical gig on the planet— I love being a part of that band and going and doing that every year. It's so amazing to be part of what Paul created with TSO. It's the greatest rock show that I could possibly ever imagine being on inside of an arena. The production's amazing. The songs are amazing. The singers and musicians are amazing. The crew — the whole thing is just so, so great. It's that anchor there. Then you go all the way over to the other side of your life, and you've got all these things. And there's time between when you're out with TSO. And having SAVATAGE to balance that time, it's equally as strong as TSO, and it sits in the middle of that. So where you might have a rubber band kind of up and down with everything, SAVATAGE in the middle has kind of given me a nice calming knowing that my childhood band that I got into when I was 19 is back as an everyday part of my life now. I'm doing SAVATAGE press, and I see letters and posts, and we have shows booked and my next performances live are that. It's a great feeling to have that, that be back. And I know everybody in the band is so excited to be back on the stage again, and we're all just bouncing around like a bunch of little kids. It's so much fun."

Caffery also talked about the fact that Jon Oliva has mentioned in several interviews over the course of the last two years that he was working on a new SAVATAGE album that originally had the working title of "Curtain Call". Chris said: "Yeah. It's funny, because Jon mentioning that record [in a 2023 interview with Sakis Fragos of Greece's Rock Hard] is probably a lot of the reason why we're playing, because he did it in one interview around the COVID time, and the next day I got all these e-mails and messages and DMs: 'This is great. SAVATAGE is doing another record. I saw [the article on] Blabbermouth.' And I'm, like, 'We are?' But I think that got agents going to me and the band and the management, and through that, our management came up to us and said, 'Hey, we wanna have a conference call with you guys.' And then they did and they said, 'Well, there's a lot of good offers for you guys to play some shows.' And I think a lot spurred out of that.

"Jon wants to do this music and we're gonna get it done," Caffery confirmed. "I kind of am hoping that his idea of [calling it] 'Curtain Call' is not [a reference to] the curtain going down, but the curtain going up. I have two different versions of where I think that should go. I think that this version of curtain call should be the new chapter starting over again. And hopefully that's where it goes. For me, nothing would make me happier. I know we plan on playing, and I hear the guys talking, and we talk about a 10-year touring plan and this and that. So if we're gonna be out there, there might as well be some new music. And it'll be fun to add a few things into the crazy good fricking back catalog."

Chris added: "I'm just happy that we're playing again. I can't imagine time going by faster than that. But to see 23 years go by with the blink of your eye, it's just crazy, man. It's crazy. It really is."

Regarding the possibility of SAVATAGE playing shows in the U.S. and other territories, such as Asia, Caffery said: "Well, that's the plan. The plan is for us to go anywhere that wants to have us. I don't book the shows. I haven't seen dates, but whenever they show up, to me it'll kind of be like 'The Song Remains The Same'. If I'm in the backyard doing my garden, then that e-mail comes, I'm gonna pack the suitcase and go. That's the way it's gonna be."

SAVATAGE played four shows in South America in April and kicked off a 10-date European tour on June 13 at the Into The Grave festival in Leeuwarden, Netherlands.

SAVATAGE played its first non-festival headlining concert in more than 20 years on April 21 at the Espaço Unimed in São Paulo, Brazil. The show took place two days after SAVATAGE performed at the Monsters Of Rock festival at Allianz Parque in São Paulo.

Appearing with Middleton, Caffery, Pitrelli, Plate and Stevens are SAVATAGE's two new touring keyboardists, Paulo Cuevas and Shawn McNair.

In a recent interview with Scott Itter of Dr. Music, Caffery spoke about the fact that SAVATAGE's comeback doesn't include Jon Oliva, who in 2023 suffered a T7 vertebra fracture in three places, a severe injury that has left him relying on a wheelchair. Additionally, he was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and Ménière's disease, conditions that have further complicated his health. Chris said: "He's had a lot of punches. He's lost so many people that are close to him. So many people have passed away around Jon. [But] he's the mountain king, man. He had a fall, and then he's had some health stuff and he has his M.S. that he's dealing with and some other things. But I saw him go from being in a wheelchair, a motorized wheelchair, and being with walkers to watching him walking in and out of the studio when we were rehearsing for the [recent SAVATAGE] South American tour. And then I just saw videos of him and pictures online from a ceremony that happened [last week] for Morrisound Studios in Florida. He looked even better than he did when I saw him a month ago. So I think the SAVATAGE thing playing [again] is an inspiration to him. I think it's the best thing that could have happened to all of us in a lot of different ways. But I think Jon, he wants to be there. I want him to be there. I was, like, 'Dude, I've never done a SAVATAGE show without you.' He was, like, 'Just go play the fucking music.' And it's so important to me that he's around. And he had a big part to do with what we were doing [with the SAVATAGE comeback], and he recorded that piece for the video [that we are using in the live show during the performance of the song 'Believe']. But I know Jon — he wants to be there. And I think that seeing just how much people missed him and his music and the legacy of the band, it's inspiring him to get back out there and walk up on that stage and have people fricking say hi to him the way he deserves."

Zak joined SAVATAGE in 1992 as the replacement for Jon Oliva. Zak sang on four albums with the band — "Edge Of Thorns" (1993),"Handful Of Rain" (1994),"Dead Winter Dead" (1995) and "The Wake Of Magellan" (1997) — before departing in 2000, allowing Jon to return. Both Jon and Zak took part in SAVATAGE's 2015 performance at Wacken Open Air, which marked the band's first appearance on stage since they went on hiatus back in 2002.

SAVATAGE's last album release, "Poets And Madmen", in 2001 was highlighted by Jon's return as lead vocalist, replacing Zak, who left the band citing family reasons, and the departure of guitarist Al Pitrelli, who accepted an offer to join MEGADETH in 2000. Pitrelli did record solos for some songs prior to his departure. Another very limited U.S. tour followed, supported by FATES WARNING in the early shows, and then NEVERMORE for the remainder. Around this time, Jon chose Zak's replacement in the form of Damond Jiniya (DIET OF WORMS). Damond performed Zak's parts on tour, with Jon having an increased vocal role in proceedings.

In addition to his work with SAVATAGE, Jon Oliva is well known for co-creating the classical music-meets-prog rock and pyro act TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA alongside O'Neill. Oliva has reportedly remained involved in TSO's activities even after O'Neill's April 2017 death of an accidental drug overdose.

In a new interview with the That Metal Interview podcast, DARK ANGEL drummer Gene Hoglan once again discussed the supposed influence the title track of DARK ANGEL's 1986 album, "Darkness Descends", had on the METALLICA song "One", which was released two years later. Reflecting on when he first heard the METALLICA cut, Gene said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  "This was pre-YouTube, pre-streaming. If the album [wasn't] out yet, you had to listen to the radio to hear it. And at that time, KNAC in Los Angeles, they were the rock radio station across the U.S., arguably. And so that new [METALLICA] song was getting played all over KNAC. And I admit, I didn't… I had my cassettes in my car. I listen to cassettes of things. I wasn't listening to KNAC a lot, but I was getting phone calls and messages, answering machine messages from friends saying, 'Hey, man, have you checked out that new METALLICA? Man, check that thing out, man. Wait till you hear that thing.' And I'm just, like, 'Oh, okay. Well, whatever.' And when I heard it, I understood what everybody was talking about."

Theorizing how METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich might have heard "Darkness Descends" in time to "borrow" Gene's drum pattern, Hoglan continued: "I thought back to — 'cause I always love trying to figure out the genealogy or the lineage of riffs and ideas and concepts and what came here, what came first, and I remember having a conversation with [future METALLICA bassist] Jason Newsted when he was in FLOTSAM AND JETSAM, and 'Darkness Descends' was just coming out. [FLOTSAM AND JETSAM's] 'Doomsday For The Deceiver' was out. We were backstage at the Country Club [in Reseda, California]. We were out in the parking lot just shooting the breeze and talking about metal and stuff. And he was talking about what a DARK ANGEL fan he was. And that's where I was kind of, like, he talked about what a fan that he was, and I just kind of wondered… I wonder how this… At first, it's, like, okay, it's a coincidence. It's a drumbeat. But when the opening lyric [of 'One'] is 'Darkness imprisoning me,' that's why I was kind of, like…"

Gene clarified that he was "never offended" by Lars apparently lifting one of his drum licks. "I was grateful," he said. "I was, like, thank you. You made this riff, this thing that I wrote, we wrote, whatever, you just made it become legendary. Thank you, Lars. You are the godfather of all that we do. Please, if I've got anything you wanna borrow, you are welcome to it. Absolutely."

Hoglan went on to say that there was another DARK ANGEL riff that made it into an earlier METALLICA song. "I remember hearing 'Battery' by METALLICA," he recalled. "The first time I heard it, I was, like, 'Hey, Jim [Durkin, then-DARK ANGEL guitarist]. That's the riff from 'Welcome To The Slaughterhouse' off [DARK ANGEL's] 'We Have Arrived' [album].' I was, like, 'Yeah, that's the same riff.'"

Gene added: "I'm the riff police. I'm the O.G. riff police. I could tell you where this riff sounds just like this riff. And [I heard it] admittedly from people where they're, like, 'We totally stole that from you. The other guy in my band, he writes and he's writing some classic metallic tunes that are gonna go down in the annals of history. He's borrowing drastically from your band,' kind of thing. And I'm just, like, 'Wow. That's crazy how that works out.'

"But, yeah, that's where I just wondered," Hoglan said. "And I wonder if that's where it comes from. But METALLICA are the fathers. Lars Ulrich is the godfather of what we do, Bill Ward [BLACK SABBATH] being the godfather of what we all do. So, Lars will always get much respect from me, and we appreciate you doing that.

"And you know who plays that ['One'] drum beat better than just about anybody, even myself? [METALLICA frontman] James Hetfield. You never heard him when they do their little drum thing on stage? James Hetfield gets on the drums and he plays it, and he plays that beat, and it is so rock solid. I'm, like, 'God, he plays that better than me. And I wrote that darn thing.'

"So, there you go. But we are very appreciative to METALLICA for how they've helped us in that little annals of history."

Back in 2019, Gene said that he once joked about suing the members of METALLICA for allegedly "ripping off" "Darkness Descends" for "One". The DARK ANGEL drummer revealed his band's musical connection to METALLICA while discussing the evolution of double-bass drumming during an appearance on Dean Delray's "Let There Be Talk" podcast.

When Delray brought up METALLICA's 1988 cut as an example of how the use of unison sextuplets between a wall of guitars and Lars Ulrich's aggressively EQ'd kick drums redefined the use of double-bass drums in metal, Hoglan said: "I'll flat out tell you, that comes from a DARK ANGEL song. That comes from 'Darkness Descends'. And it's well known in the scene that as soon as [METALLICA] put out 'One', I got so many phone calls going, 'You know those guys are ripping you off.'"

Gene continued: "We had [METALLICA's longtime] soundman, 'Big' Mick [Hughes], we had him on a tour, and METALLICA was up for the Grammy at the time, but it hadn't been announced or anything yet. And I was joking that, 'If they win the Grammy, I'm gonna sue.' [I was] totally joking. And Mick was, like, 'You should. They'll probably give you a hundred grand to shut you up.' And I was, like, 'I'm not gonna become the pariah of the metal scene by suing METALLICA.' Everybody's stolen METALLICA riffs."

Asked by Delray if he believes "One" was inspired by "Darkness Descends" in the drumming only or in "the musical part" as well, Hoglan responded: "The whole everything. The drum part, definitely. And that's why I just thought it was kind of funny. The first line in the whole thing is, 'Darkness…' And it comes right from 'Darkness Descends', opening track on the second [DARK ANGEL] record. So, as soon as you hear it, you'd catch it."

Gene went on to say he never brought up the similarity to Ulrich despite the fact that he had toured with METALLICA many years later when he was a member of FEAR FACTORY.

"One" was featured on METALLICA's fourth album, "...And Justice For All", which was the band's last LP to be engineered and co-produced by Flemming Rasmussen, who also worked on "Ride The Lightning" (1984) and "Master Of Puppets" (1986). According to Rasmussen, Ulrich blasted out the double-bass machine gun section in one take. "He just flew straight through that," he told Songfacts.

Eight years ago, Hoglan told LA Weekly that the "Darkness Descends" title track was the first metal song inspired by Judge Dredd, right before ANTHRAX did its own tribute to Dredd with "I Am The Law" on the 1987 album "Among The Living".

A short YouTube clip pointing out the musical similarity between "One" and "Darkness Descends" can be found below.

In a new interview with The Mistress Carrie Podcast, IN THIS MOMENT singer Maria Brink and guitarist Chris Howorth spoke about the progress of the songwriting and recording sessions for the follow-up to the band's 2023 album "Godmode". Maria said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We're working on the [new] album. It's just about done. We only probably have, like, two songs left. We thought we were done, and then we kind of had to step away and look back, and it just feels like it needs a little bit more. But we're still gonna actually be releasing a new song soon."

Brink continued: "We wanna get new music out. When you tour for a living and you're out there and you're doing things, you wanna play new music, you wanna bring new energy to the crowds and to everybody. So we will be dropping a new song very soon with a guest vocalist that we can't announce yet, but it's somebody I love and have been inspired by recently. So we're excited for everyone to hear something coming very soon. And yeah, the album is pretty much done. We only have about two more songs left. So we're trying to get it all dialed in. And we don't wanna rush it. We wanna make it the best it can be. And we'll just release songs until the album's ready, 'cause we want it to really be something we're proud of."

Added Chris: "Yeah, we're excited too, because we're on Better Noise [Music] now and they're kind of doing all of our songs and all of our planning and how we roll things out. So we will be releasing songs until the album is ready, which is something kind of new for us, just kind of releasing standalone songs like that."

Howorth went on to call the upcoming IN THIS MOMENT single "a face melter", with Brink saying: "We feel really good and strong about the first [track that we will be putting out]. And so that's what we wanted to lead with. It's really heavy. We wanted to come out with a lot of electricity and make it insane. And then we'll figure out what comes next."

Earlier this week, IN THIS MOMENT announced the 2025 "Black Mass Tour" featuring special guests DAYSEEKER on select dates, THE FUNERAL PORTRAIT and DED. The 23-city trek kicks off on Thursday, September 18 at 1st Summit Arena in Johnstown, Pennsylvania, making stops across the U.S. before wrapping up in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania at Wind Creek Events Center on Friday, October 24. IN THIS MOMENT is also gearing up to release new music via Better Noise Music this summer.

Formed in 2005, IN THIS MOMENT's current lineup includes Brink, Howorth, bassist Travis Johnson, guitarist Randy Weitzel and drummer Kent Diimmel.

To date, in addition to the gold-selling album "Blood" (2012),the quintet has garnered six gold and platinum singles, followed by a trifecta of Top 25 entries on the Billboard 200 with "Black Widow" (2014) and "Ritual" (2017). With a total stream tally well past 200 million as of 2020, "Ritual" elevated them to new creative and critical peaks as well. Between selling out headline tours coast to coast, the group performed in arenas everywhere alongside DISTURBED and appeared at countless festivals from Lollapalooza to Sonic Temple. Along the way, they assembled their seventh full-length, the aptly titled "Mother" (Roadrunner Records) with longtime trusted collaborator Kevin Churko (OZZY OSBOURNE, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH). Whereas "Ritual" hinted at a bluesy sonic sorcery, "Mother" breathes the activating mantra of an unbreakable spell, commenced on first single "The In-Between".

In 2022, the band released "Blood 1983" (BMG),a reimagined EP commemorating the tenth anniversary of "Blood". Then in 2023, the longtime staples of heavy music released their eighth studio album "Godmode" (BMG),a 10-song record featuring the powerful lead single "The Purge", the band's stunning cover of Björk's "Army Of Me", the collaborative track "Damaged" which features Spencer Charnas of ICE NINE KILLS, and "I Would Die For You", which appears on the soundtrack for "John Wick: Chapter 4".

Photo credit: Joe Cotela

Behold Amorphis Whiskey – A Tribute to Finnish Metal and Craft Whisky

Together with Finland’s internationally awarded craft distillery, The Helsinki Distilling Company, we have created a whisky that merges Finnish mythology, the power of grain, and musical depth. Launching in July, Amorphis Whiskey pays homage to Finnish craftsmanship – in the studio, on stage, and at the distillery. The limited-edition release will be previewed at Tuska Festival.

“For us, a high-quality whisky is not about intoxication, but about creating atmosphere, inspiring conversation, and fostering calm. Amorphis Whiskey is not merchandise – it’s an extension of our brand and an artistic statement, like a new composition,” says Keyboardist Santeri Kallio.

Amorphis Whiskey:
🥃100% Finnish rye and barley malt, aged in bourbon, sherry and Islay casks.
🥃Flavour: Sherry sweetness, light smokiness, rye spice, dried fruit and dark chocolate notes.
🥃Finish: Long, smooth, spicy rye.
🥃Age: 6 years.
🥃Bottle size: 50 cl. Alcohol: 47.5%.
🥃Limited edition of 2,000 individually numbered bottles.
🥃Availability: Select restaurants in Finland, The Helsinki Distilling Company’s Tislaamo-Distillery Bar, Alko’s order selection, Amorphis online store (GER), and in Germany, France and Japan.
🥃First preview: Tuska Festival, June 27–29. International release date: July 15.

In a new interview with The Jesea Lee Show, FILTER frontman Richard Patrick spoke about the band's alt-rock hit "Hey Man, Nice Shot", which recently celebrated its 30th anniversary. Regarding the song's enduring popularity, Richard said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "God, I remember [when the song was first released] just being, like, 'Boy, I hope this makes it.' And the song was already taking off from the 'Demon Knight' soundtrack. And then it just kept building and building and building. And, yeah, it's a staple of the set. We play it last every night usually. And it's awesome."

Asked if he knew the song was special when he first wrote it, Patrick said: "I played it for some friends of mine, and they were, like, 'Rich, this is great.' And some other things I had played for them, they were, like, 'I don't know, bro. 'Cause I have really picky friends.' And I played 'em 'Hey Man, Nice Shot', and they were, like, 'Dude, undeniably this is a great song.' And so I felt proud of it. And then every person I played it for until sitting in [the offices of] Warner Brothers and playing it for them, and they were just, like, 'This is awesome. We wanna sign you because of this.' It was a fantastic feeling."

Richard went on to confirm that "Hey Man, Nice Shot" was written about the public suicide of Pennsylvania state treasurer R. Budd Dwyer on January 22, 1987, in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. Dwyer had been convicted of bribery charges in December 1986, and was expected to receive a lengthy sentence. Professing his innocence and decrying the legal system, Dwyer shot and killed himself with a .357 Magnum revolver during a live televised press conference.

"I never wanted to say that it was inspired by R. Budd Dwyer, but people were mistakenly saying it was about [NIRVANA frontman] Kurt Cobain, because he had killed himself," Richard told The Jesea Lee Show. "But I wrote the song in '91 [which was three years before Kurt's death]. So the record company kind of just leaked it and said it's about R. Budd Dwyer. It was inspired by R. Budd Dwyer's public suicide. And I just was, like, 'Well, the cat's out of the bag.' And so I never wanted it to be out what the song was about, but it's out. And he did what he did. He made the point he wanted to make. And I saw it as a young man and wrote lyrics about it and it just resonated with me and I just found it to be shocking and I tried to understand it. And so that's what the song is about, trying to wrap my head around, like, why would someone do this? And [it's] interesting fodder for lyrics, in my opinion. 'Cause I was so over — and a lot of people were too — I was just so over songs about like hot rods and chicks and all that crap that they had spoonfed us in the '80s."

Elaborating on the fact that some people still mistakenly believe that "Hey Man, Nice Shot" was written about Cobain, Patrick said: "Urban legend is that it's about Kurt. But the great thing is, is I went up to [NIRVANA's] Dave Grohl and I explained that the song was written way before Kurt killed himself. And I was already signed because of it. And then Kurt killed himself, and the record came out like a little bit later. And I explained it to Dave Grohl and I explained it to [NIRVANA's] Krist [Novoselic]. And those are the only two people I care about. They acknowledged that they understood, like, 'We know you didn't do it.' So, once I made it clear to them that it was written in '91 and that it wasn't about Kurt, and they reassured me that, like, 'Hey, it's okay. Don't feel the weight of this.'"

Richard added: "No one wants to profit on someone's demise, but at the same time, it is about suicide and it is about someone killing themselves. It's wild."

Circling back to how "Hey Man, Nice Shot" was conceived, Richard said: "I was writing this song for me and my stoner buddies that were hanging out when I was a kid. I wasn't even writing it to leave NINE INCH NAILS, which I ended up leaving NINE INCH NAILSbecause of it. I was, like, 'Shit, if I can write 'Hey Man, Nice Shot' and get a record contract with Warner Brothers, I can make a living in this business.' And that's exactly what I did."

Richard recently wrote a song called "The Gunslingers Of Redemption" and composed all the music for writer-director Brian Skiba's western "Gunslingers".

Richard Patrick had previously composed soundtracks for several films, including "Dark Crimes" (2016) and "Last Rampage" (2017). He also contributed to the soundtrack for "The Last Rampage" with his brother, Robert Patrick. In addition, he has composed music for TV series like "Comedy Kitchen".

FILTER's latest album, "The Algorithm", came out in August 2023 via Golden Robot Records.

In a new interview with Jeff Gaudiosi of MisplacedStraws.com, VIXEN guitarist Brittany Denaro (a.k.a. Britt Lightning) spoke about the possibility of new music from the band. VIXEN's most recent release was the 2023 single "Red". It marked the group's sole studio recording with singer Lorraine Lewis, who was fired from VIXEN in May 2024 and replaced with Rosa Laricchiuta (TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, HEADPINS).

Asked about the likelihood of new music from VIXEN, Britt told MisplacedStraws.com: "Yes, we have a couple things in the works. An album, I don't see that right now. I think it's more of a singles game in the moment, from everybody's perspective in the band. So, I think that we're gonna hopefully release a single here and there coming up soon. Like I said, I know for sure we've been working on one. That'll be coming out."

Britt also touched upon Laricchiuta's addition to VIXEN, saying: "Rosa's voice is amazing. She really, really fits great. It was just such a seamless transition with her. So I think the band's stronger than ever. And so, yeah, we are ready to rock and make new music."

Laricchiuta is a singer, songwriter, and performer from Montreal, Quebec. After several years cutting her teeth with live shows, she auditioned for the third season (2015) of "La Voix", Quebec's version of the popular TV show "The Voice". Rosa had an instant connection with the legendary francophone rocker Éric Lapointe and chose him as her coach. Rosa showed a solid stage presence, with remarkable intensity and a voice so powerful it sent her straight to the Grand Finale where she shared the stage with DEF LEPPARD, Kelly Clarkson, Jean Leloup and her idol, Melissa Etheridge. She left a lasting impression as she won over millions of viewers who named her the new "it" female rocker of Quebec. She then released one album in the Quebec market before beginning work on her first English language album in 2016. That album, "Free", was released the following year and at the end of the year, she joined the popular American band TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA for their annual mega tour of the United States.

Laricchiuta's hard rock project BLACK ROSE MAZE released its self-titled debut album in August 2020 via Frontiers Music Srl.

In a September 2024 interview with Waste Some Time With Jason Green, Laricchiuta spoke about how she landed the gig with VIXEN. She said: "So in fact, I planted the seed because… You know about the Monsters Of Rock cruise, right? I've heard so much about it, but I wanted to get on it. And I was just, like, 'You know what? For the first time in my life, I'm gonna use my contacts.' So I asked as many musicians as I could. I e-mailed and texted brothers and friends from TSO [TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA] and other musicians, and I'm, like, 'How can I get on the Monsters Of Rock cruise?' 'Here's a contact.' I wrote to my contact and I was, like, 'Hey, my name is Rosa.' I dropped all the names. 'I'm a singer with TSO. I know this guy. I've been praised by this guy and that guy,' and I dropped them all. And I've never done that before… So long story short, I heard back from my contact, which is the manager of VIXEN, and he's, like, 'Hey, Rosa. I know who you are.' And he's, like, 'Be patient. The lineup is already set. However, maybe we can figure something out.' Then I saw his number. So I'm, like, 'You know what? I'm just gonna call.' And I called up, left a message: 'Hey, it's Rosa. I wanna talk about the Monsters Of Rock cruise, how we can make this happen.' I hung up. He wrote back to me, like, 'I received your call, but just hang tight.' [He was], like, super cool and professional. It was, like, 'Okay, great.' Good vibes. And I left it at that. And I was okay with that. And then about — I don't know, I would say like a week later, I get the call and I'm, like, 'Hello?' He's, like, 'What a coincidence.' I'm, like, 'What are you talking about?' So he's, like, I'm a manager of VIXEN and I just spoke to…' So he spoke with another… You know how agents talk to each other, managers and all that. And somebody from Quebec had referred me to him, and he's, like, 'You come highly recommended.' I'm, like, 'What? From who?' I'm, like, 'What's going on? I don't follow.' And he's, like, 'I'm the manager of VIXEN and we're looking for a female singer. Would you be interested?' And while he's telling me this, I'm Googling VIXEN because I have no clue who they are. [Laughs] I wasn't like a rocker [growing up], per se. I love all music, and I sing all styles. So, I didn't know. And then I was, like, 'Oh.' So the first thing I said was, 'Holy shit, these girls are badass.' It's been my dream to be in an all-girls band. I have a brother. I've always wanted a sister, and now I feel like I have three sisters. I'm in another hockey team. Okay, a lot smaller. I love everything about VIXEN — everything. So that's how it happened. I planted the seed because of this Monsters Of Rock cruise."

Laricchiuta made her live debut with VIXEN on June 21 at the Honda Center in Anaheim, California alongside GREAT WHITE, SLAUGHTER and QUIET RIOT. Asked in a July 2024 interview with the "All Bets Are Off" podcast with Robby Vegas what was going through her head at that first show, Rosa said: "Well, I was really excited because I'm all over the place because I'm so overwhelmed and it's all so surreal. But growing up, I always wanted sisters, so now I feel blessed to have three sisters. And I feel — this is funny, but I feel like I'm a part of an incredible hockey team doing what I love. [Laughs]"

As for the vibe on stage, Rosa said: "My heart was beating so fast and I was really grateful that the first show was only six songs. [Laughs] Oh my goodness. Of course it was adrenaline and the good stress. But, like I said, the girls really welcomed me from the start. And immediately, when we were on stage, I felt the energy. Britt's [Lightning, a.k.a. Brittany Denaro, VIXEN guitarist] infectious vibe, Julia's [Lage, VIXEN bassist] energy is just wow. And sometimes I had to tell myself, 'Rosa, focus on the crowd,' because I was so — I forgot. I was so lost in the energy that I forgot there's a good crowd in front of us. And then Roxy [Petrucci] on the drums, it's so fun. I just wanted to jump on her riser, but I couldn't because the riser was so incredibly high. And then the second and the third show, I had a moment. I like to look everyone in the eye. And I'm telling you, it's intense, it's amazing, but most of all, I'm having a blast."

Asked if she was aware of VIXEN's legacy prior to being asked to join the band, she said: "Sadly, no… The first thing, the first thing I said was, 'Oh my God. It's an all-female band. Is this really happening?' Because, again, growing up, I never had a sister, and I always dreamed of being in an all-girl, all-female band, always. And then the second thing that came out of my mouth was, 'This is so badass.'"

In January 2019, VIXEN recruited Lewis as its new lead singer following the departure of Janet Gardner.

Lewis had already performed with VIXEN in March 2018 in Durant, Oklahoma while Gardner was recovering from surgery.

Prior to Lewis's addition to VIXEN, Petrucci, bassist Share Ross and Lightning vowed to "expand upon the VIXEN legacy while remaining true to our musical roots."

Gardner, Petrucci and Ross are considered to be part of VIXEN's classic lineup, along with founding guitarist Jan Kuehnemund, who died of cancer in October 2013.

Gardner contributed lead vocals to VIXEN's most commercially successful studio albums — "Vixen" (1988),"Rev It Up" (1990) and "Tangerine" (1998) — as well as the group's latest full-length release, 2018's live album "Live Fire".

More than three years ago, Ross announced that she was "taking a hiatus" from VIXEN. Her replacement is Julia Lage, formerly of the Latin Grammy-nominated Brazilian rock group BARRA DE SAIA and wife of Richie Kotzen. Lage made her live debut with VIXEN on February 8, 2022 at the pre-Monsters Of Rock cruise concert at Magic City Casino in Miami, Florida.

Image and video credit: Tom deBlonk

Former OZZY OSBOURNE and DAVID LEE ROTH guitarist Joe Holmes has shared a new single called "Ocin". The track, which was made available under the Joe Holmes name, once again features a recording lineup that is similar to the one that tracked the debut album from Joe's FARMIKOS project, with Holmes on guitar, Robert Locke on vocals, and Holmes's former OZZY OSBOURNE bandmates, bassist Robert Trujillo (now in METALLICA) and drummer Mike Bordin (also of FAITH NO MORE) on drums. Also contributing melodies and lyrics to the song was Brent Hoffort.

In April, Holmes released another new song called "Speak Into The Sea" featuring Locke, Trujillo and Bordin. Three months earlier, he issued "The Deadfall", and a month before that, he released "Cross Eyed Stare" with the same recording lineup.

FARMIKOS's self-titled debut album was released in 2015 to critical acclaim. The disc contained ten original songs written by Holmes and Locke, with writing contributions on eight songs by Hoffort. Some of "Farmikos" featured Brooks Wackerman (AVENGED SEVENFOLD, ex-BAD RELIGION) on drums.

FARMIKOS was Holmes's first venture under his own flag since first attaining local notoriety with TERRIFF, an L.A. band he formed after taking guitar lessons as a teenager from none other than original Ozzy axeman Randy Rhoads. Holmes eventually went on to replace ALS-stricken Jason Becker on the 1991 David Lee Roth "A Lil' Ain't Enough" world tour.

In 1995, Holmes was brought to the attention of Ozzy Osbourne who was looking for a new guitarist to take over Zakk Wylde's spot for the "Ozzmosis" album touring cycle. Holmes would go on to co-write three songs, "Facing Hell", "Junkie" and "That I Never Had", which appeared on Ozzy's 2001 album, "Down To Earth".

Holmes began collaborating and creating material with Hoffort and then joined forces with vocalist and Arkansas native Locke in 2011 to put together ideas for what would become FARMIKOS.

In a new interview with Loaded Radio, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer Jesse Leach spoke about the possibility of a third album from TIMES OF GRACE, his collaborative project with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE guitarist and producer Adam Dutkiewicz. TIMES OF GRACE released its second album, "Songs Of Loss And Separation", in July 2021 via the band's own imprint label, Wicked Good Records, distributed by ADA Worldwide. It arrived a decade after the release of TIMES OF GRACE's debut album, "The Hymn Of A Broken Man". The first music from TIMES OF GRACE materialized during Dutkiewicz's arduous recovery from near-crippling back surgery and was a collection of songs the multi-instrumentalist and producer knew would suit his once and future bandmate.

Asked about the likelihood of new music from TIMES OF GRACE, Leach told Loaded Radio (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "There are B-sides from the last record that never got released. But, yeah, the last conversation I had with Adam, his head is in such a different place right now, between us touring full time with KILLSWITCH, his project with [former KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer] Howard [Jones], BURN ETERNAL, and then he's also working on probably another SERPENTINE DOMINION record [with CANNIBAL CORPSE frontman George 'Corpsegrinder' Fisher], which I wrote on the lyrics for that [first] record too [2016's 'Serpentine Dominion']. [I was] honored to be able to pen lyrics for Corpsegrinder — one of the highlights of my career.

"But as far as the third TIMES OF GRACE, I would love that, but I don't foresee that happening anytime soon," Jesse admitted. "I think in Adam's eyes — and I get it — the last record sort of just came and went, 'cause we released it during the pandemic. We weren't able to tour on it. It didn't feel like it had the success of the [first] record, but obviously we weren't able to tour on it. So you kind of can't gauge success based on that. That being said, I will say that I think for me personally there's a few songs on that record, 'Songs Of Loss And Separation', that I believe are the best vocal performances in both of our careers — hands down. I think Adam shines as not only a vocalist but a lyricist because he took a lot of the lyrics on himself. For the songs that he takes main vocals on, minus one, he wrote the lyrics, so he really sort of came into his own. TIMES OF GRACE starting out as a project where he asked me to be a part of it 'cause he didn't know how to do X, Y, and Z, on that record he did what he set out to do. There are songs that he's owning it, and he could have easily done an EP on his own without me."

Leach added: "So I think over time, I'm hoping I can convince him that it was a success and that we could do more. And I would love nothing more than to do some live shows with a lineup that we choose. But we'll see. I have hope that it will eventually continue on, but we'll see what happens."

When "Songs Of Loss And Separation" was first released, it was described in a press release as a mixture of "stark confessions of struggle with narrative storytelling." The music was said to be "just as expansive, with Adam handling lead vocals on several songs and Jesse experimenting with a lower vocal range reminiscent of post-punk and goth."

Four years ago, Adam told Australia's Heavy about the musical direction of "Songs Of Loss And Separation": "It's probably not what KILLSWITCH fans are expecting. It's a different sound than anything we've ever done before. So, it's not metal all the way through. Sorry, everybody. This is a labor of love, truly. Obviously, it's our side project, me and Jesse, and we can only work on it when we have free time to do so. And now that Jesse's the singer for both bands, we decided to take it into a different direction a little bit. There's a lot of more rock and roll-vibe jams, so don't expect blazing death metal all over the place."

Asked if there were specific goals that he and Jesse were aiming to achieve with "Songs Of Loss And Separation", Adam said: "There weren't really any set goals except just try to create something that we liked. We wanted to something different, obviously, like I was saying. We didn't want it to feel like KILLSWITCH. We wanted to show maybe even a more personal, darker side to who we are. We wanted to create some songs more so from painful things in our lives — almost like a cathartic thing to make for us. So, yeah, it's definitely much different. Whereas KILLSWITCH is a lot on the more positive, hopeful light, this is a lot of darkness and just tough things to go through."

"The Hymn Of A Broken Man" arrived in 2011, nearly a decade after Leach's exit from KILLSWITCH ENGAGE and a year before his return to the pivotal New Wave Of American Heavy Metal band the duo co-founded with friends in 1999. The first album earned acclaim from BBC Music, The Aquarian and Rock Sound. It willfully upended expectations, with flourishes of shoegaze and ambiance in its songs.