Maryann Cotton and Chrome Music Group has set an October 2nd release date for Maryann Cotton’s new album, titled Murder. It will be made available on all digital platforms and formats, CD, and limited-edition LP. The 9-track album has been recorded in USA, Denmark, and Sweden, and is written by Maryann Cotton and co-writer Hal Patino. It was produced by Maryann Cotton, and recorded by Hal Patino, Sebastian Sly, Joel Korpela and Cotton. Listen to new single "I'm The Devil" below.

With regards to the Murder album title, Cotton said: "I love that title! We wanted a title that sounded hard and mean, and it fits really well with the whole vibe of the album. It's old fashioned but modern at the same time, it’s the darkest album we’ve ever done but it’s not depressing at all, it's actually a very up-album!

It’s very experimental and the sound is dirty and dry, we have worked very hard on this album and I think that the whole thing has been taken to another level! Right now I just can’t wait for the fans to hear it! It’s pure rock 'n roll!''

The tracklist is as follows:

"Cursed"
"Bitch Bitching"
"Resurrection"
"Live It Up"
"I'm The Devil"
"Impales Your Empire"
"Cold Crazy Baby"
"Soldier Boy"
"For The Angels"

"I'm The Devil":

Just prior to taking a break from recording their as yet untitled seventh studio album - to go and see ZZ Top live at Carson Center in Paducah, KY - Nashville Pussy guitarist Ruyter Suys contacted Brave Words with the following exclusive update:

"We're in the studio in music central - Glasgow, KY. We got local hero Greg Martin from The Kentucky Headhunters playing fucking slide on our Nazareth song, 'Woke Up This Morning'. He let me play his '58 Les Paul he got from Hank Jr - and it used to be owned by Skynyrd's Ed King."

"Daniel Rey (Ramones, The Misfits) is producing. We're at David Barrick's studio - this county used to be dry - back when we did Say Something Nasty here (in 2002). Booze has been sold a total of four months here now."

Greg Martin also chimed in, saying, "Another fun day at the studio with Ruyter Suys, the Nashville Pussy cat gang, Daniel Rey and David Barrick. Of course, Mr. E was there to monitor things. Got to play slide on their COOL version of 'Woke Up This Morning' by Nazareth. Tuned ole' 'Hank' up to Open B, plugged into Ruyter's 1972 Marshall Super Lead 100, it was a fun time for all! Great seeing Blaine and Ruyter again, it's been a few years."

Nashville Pussy is aiming for an April 2018 release for their new album, via an as yet undisclosed label. Vocalist and rhythm guitarist Blaine Cartwright previously commented, "As far as what it's going to sound like, let's just say it'll sound like if The Sex Pistols did Physical Graffiti (by Led Zeppelin)." 

Until then, fans can rejoice in the fact that the SPV compilation Ten Years Of Pussy, highlighting the best songs from Up The Dosage, From Hell To Texas, and Get Some, will be available on double vinyl on October 13th. 

​In live news, Nashville Pussy return to the road in October and November with shows scheduled in: Iceland, France, The UK, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, Germany, Croatia, Netherlands, Belgium, and Spain. See their complete tour schedule at this location.

And, for your viewing pleasure, Nashville Pussy has put together the European Summer Tour 2017 Aftermovie - three weeks in three minutes; talk about a wild ride.

Nashville Pussy is:

Blaine Cartwright - vocals / guitar
Ruyter Suys - lead guitar
Bonnie Buitrago - bass
Ben Thomas - drums
 

 

October 13th 2017 will see prog rock giants Marillion playing the Royal Albert Hall for the very first time, performing their magnificent Top 5 chart album, F*** Everyone And Run (F E A R), but also celebrating a very special live version of their epic “Living In F E A R” - a powerful song about peace and reflection, a song with a more generalized look at fear that seems to characterize our times, and particularly the response it creates. An official video for the track can be found below.

“Living in F E A R strangely is a misleading title because that’s a song about ceasing to live in fear,” says singer Steve Hogarth. “It’s a kind of a hippie song about how you can choose to melt your guns as a show of strength, how you can choose to leave your doors unlocked as a show of strength and not weakness. And that we are mirrors: if you go around defensively and that becomes your outlook, you bring on that in the rest of the world. Whereas if you go around with love and the walls are down, people take the walls down, too.”

“Living In F E A R” will be released October 6th and comes in a limited CD Digipak as well as in a limited and numbered 12” vinyl edition, carrying three additional unreleased live songs: The fifth section of “The Leavers”, called “One Tonight”, a song about leaving lives and families behind to go on tour and being in a new country - a very personal song for Marillion. The epic “Neverland”, originally from Marbles, and “Dry Land”, originally from Holidays In Eden, complete this EP: two live versions released for the first time outside of the band's own Racket Records catalogue, serving a precursor of a strictly limited reissue series of the band's jewels, so far only sold or shared to through their wonderful web shop, starting January 2018.

Often referred to as the leaders of the neo-progressive movement of the early 80s, Marillion is way more than that. They are purveyors of soulful, powerful, and deeply-moving music, with a long-standing reputation of impressive live shows and an imposing, faithful and loyal global fan base. As the first of their peers, Marillion have started to embrace the potential of the internet for both their commercial approach and to interact with their audience. Throughout their over 35 years career and over 15 million records sold they have become the most outstanding representatives of their genre. With their latest studio album F*** Everyone And Run (F E A R), their second released by earMUSIC and the band’s highest charting album across the globe since Steve Hogarth joined in 1989, Marillion have shown that they are as brilliant and vital as ever.

Tracklisting:

“Living in F E A R” (edit)
“The Leavers : One Tonight” (Live)
“Neverland” (Live)
“Dry Land” (Live)

“Living in F E A R” video:

Trailer:

Marillion have announced seven new UK dates in April 2018 on the back of their October show at The Royal Albert Hall, which sold out within four minutes of going on sale, and The London Palladium in November, which also sold out in record time.

Tour dates:

April
11 - Gateshead, UK - The Sage
13 - Cambridge, UK - Corn Exchange
14 - Birmingham, UK - Symphony Hall
16 - Brighton, UK - Dome
17 - Bristol, UK - Colston Hall
19 - Reading, UK - Hexagon
20 - Liverpool, UK - Philharmonic Hall

Tickets are on sale from myticket.co.uk, seetickets.com and venue box offices.

Tomorrow, Friday, September 29th, Sweden’s Loch Vostok will release the first single, “Summer”, from their forthcoming, seventh album, Strife. A lyric video for the track can be found below.

Strife will be available on November 24th via ViciSolum Productions. The album deals with loss on every imaginable level, the loss of life, love, monetary assets, friends and so on, but also the rebuild afterwards. It was recorded at Frontporch Productions, mixed by David Castillo (Katatonia, Dark Tranquility, Sepultura) and mastered by Jens Bogren (no further introduction needed), both doing a splendid job with the awesome material, in Fascination Street.

The artwork was created by the talented Matt Chambers/Soft Viking Design, who also created the artwork for the previous Loch Vostok album.

Tracklisting:

“Babylonian Groove”
“Summer”
“The Apologists Are The Enablers”
“Cadence”
“Forever”
“Yurei”
“Purpose”
“Ventilate”
“Consumer, Formerly Known As Human”
“Expiry Date Of The Soul Of Man”

“Summer” lyric video:

Loch Vostok live:

October
14 - Aros Blast Fest - Uppsala, Sweden

Loch Vostok lineup:

Teddy Möller - Vocals, Guitars
Fredrik Klingwall - Keyboards
Niklas Kupper - Guitars
Lawrence Dinamarca - Drums
Jimmy Mattsson - Bass

(Photo - Mathias Blom a.k.a. The Happy Creative)

Pitch Black Records has announced the signing of US power metal act Niviane into its artist roster.
 
Niviane, is an American power metal band hailing from Sacramento California formed in the fall of 2014. The band’s core sound was created by melding together their collective influences of classic heavy metal along with modern European metal to produce what has been branded “A new breed of American Power Metal”.
 
Soon after forming, intensive writing began on many songs that would later appear on the band’s debut album. On May 15th, 2015 the band debuted their music live for the first time at The Knitting Factory in Reno, Nevada. Delivering a high-energy performance complete with duel lead guitar attacks and high-soaring vocals, the band began a run of successful show dates. Niviane continued to perform live while finalizing songs for their debut album through the end of 2015. The band’s debut album is now ready to be unleashed to the metal world.
 
The band’s debut album was recorded at Alien Production Studios in California, with JK Northrup at the helm – eleven tracks of pure heavy epic power metal with dual lead guitar attacks are combined with gritty soaring vocals for a result that is nothing short of majestic. Add to that song themes drawn from historic and mythological\fantasy, it will be hard for The Druid King not to please even the most demanding metal fan.
 
The Druid King is out on November 3rd on CD and Digital.

Tracklisting:

“The Berserker”
“Adrestia”
“Watch The Banners Fall”
“Into Twilight”
“Gladiator”
“Arise Samurai”
“Elegy”
“March Of The Jötunn”
“War Of Immortals”
“Heaven Overflow”
“The Druid King”

“The Berserker”:

Five years ago, New Hampshire-based groove-thrash band Death Rattle self-released their debut album, Man's Ruin, which served as a striking introduction to the fist-in-face outfit that channeled the musical styles of their favorite bands into sharp-taloned songs that sunk deep. Back, refreshed and heavier than ever, Death Rattle return with their sophomore full-length album, Volition, set for independent release on October 20th. The album is available for pre-order now via Big Cartel - more pre-order options are coming soon. A new video for “Love And War”, directed by Emvision Productions, is streaming below.

Death Rattle perform thrash with a purpose - music that emphasizes groove and lethal riffage over speed and interchangeable guitar parts. It's a sound bred from the attitude and angst of New England, a region that has faced economic and social strife and frustration time and again. Yet every time it lowers its head and pushes forward, obstacles be damned.
 
"Volition is the act of using free will to accomplish something," says guitarist and main songwriter Ryan VanderWolk. "It's taken a lot of work, but we've been able to overcome a lot of obstacles as a band, so the name has meaning that's very relevant to our experience."
 
With more time to work on and fine-tune the songs on their second album, Death Rattle were able to approach each cut from various musical directions to see what worked best. The band recorded the final tracks appearing on Volition at Brick Hithouse studio in Cape Cod, MA with engineer Sean Fitzpatrick over the course of several months.

Tracklisting:

“Internal Determination”
“Love And War”
“Sentenced To Hell”
“Snake In The Grass”
“Adrenalize”
“Sociopath”
“Order Within Chaos”
“Unfinished Business”
“Doomsday”
“From Blood To Black”

“Love And War” video:

In addition to featuring stronger, more original songs, Volition features a high-energy performance that effectively captures the frenzied excitement of the band's high-impact concerts. "We live for playing live and that's one thing that we spent a lot of time working at as a band," says VanderWolk. "We love bands that bring their albums to the stage and come alive. We've always tried to do that and now we finally have an album that's worthy of our live show."

Death Rattle will support the release of Volition on their upcoming tour supporting The Convalescence, Wings Denied and Shaping The Legacy. Death Rattle will appear on dates running from October 21 in Placerville, CA through November 18 in Englewood, OH. See below for a full list of tour dates featuring Death Rattle.

RSO, the new band featuring guitarists Richie Sambora (BON JOVI) and Orianthi (Michael Jackson, Alice Cooper), will release its new five-song EP, "Rise", on September 29.

It's not surprising that when Sambora and Orianthi first met four years ago they clicked immediately. Despite being from opposite ends of the world, the two have everything in common. Both are platinum-selling singer-songwriters and world-class guitarists with magnetic stage presence and who share influences that range from classic rock to blues to R&B to country. Both have written chart-busting singles, toured the globe, collaborated with superstar artists, and have released three solo albums (Sambora: 1991's "Stranger In This Town", 1998's "Undiscovered Soul" and 2012's "Aftermath Of The Lowdown"; Orianthi: 2007's "Violet Journey", 2009's "Believe" and 2013's "Heaven In This Hell").

But despite their myriad accomplishments, both Sambora and Orianthi are aware that they are best known as accompanists. Songwriters Hall Of Fame inductee Sambora is, of course, a founding member of multi-platinum, Grammy-winning band BON JOVI, with whom he has sold over a hundred and thirty million albums worldwide and co-written multiple hits. Australian-born Orianthi is a virtuoso rock guitarist who has shared stages with SANTANA, Prince, ZZ TOP, Steve Vai and Carrie Underwood, among others, and was enlisted by the late Michael Jackson for his "This Is It" concert tour. She was also the first female member of Alice Cooper's band.

"I feel like Ori and I are probably misunderstood," Sambora says. "I'm seen as the guitar player with BON JOVI and she's seen as the guitar player with Michael Jackson. That's what our legacy has permitted us. But we're like the best-kept secret that people haven't discovered yet."

The perception that both these multi-faceted artists shine most in a lead singer's shadow is about to be demolished with the release of "Rise", a five-song EP that the two have made together. Reflecting the musical versatility of its creators, "Rise" is the first taste of several genre-spanning bodies of work encompassing rock, blues, pop, R&B, and country, and creating a whole new lane for male-female vocal duets, thanks to the harmonious blend of Sambora and Orianthi's voices ("Like Sonny and Cher on steroids!" Sambora cracks).

It showcases the duo's knack for writing indelible melodies and uplifting lyrics, and, of course, their top-flight musicianship. And finally, RSO displays the combustible chemistry that Sambora and Orianthi have both onstage and off.

The two first met in Hawaii in 2013. Sambora was vacationing there and was asked by his old friend Alice Cooper to join him onstage at a charity show. Orianthi had been Cooper's guitarist since 2011. "Alice and I are sitting in the audience while the band is rehearsing and I said, 'Who's that?' And he said, 'That's Ori. She's played with Michael Jackson.'"

"We just hit it off straight away," Orianthi recalls. "We started jamming out and it was really great. Afterward Richie invited me to come hang out and we started writing and the chemistry was just there."

"From the first time we were onstage, it was so powerful," Sambora says. "It felt inevitable that something was going to happen. I, personally, knew in my heart, after that first time we played together that it wasn't going to be the end."

Two months later, Sambora invited Orianthi to join him on a festival tour of her native Australia and later Europe. The two traveled together, performing and feverishly writing songs. "There was an airstrike in France and we had to drive eight hours in a van," Sambora recalls. "We got out the guitars and wrote three songs in the van. Ours is a true Bonnie and Clyde rock and roll kind of story."

Sambora and Orianthi eventually became a couple and now share a home in Los Angeles where they have built a recording studio in their kitchen, complete with studio-size speakers, keyboards, computers, and mics. There are amps in the dining room, the living room overflows with racks of guitars, and the home theater has been converted into a drum room. Most of the songs were recorded there over the past two years with songwriter/producer Bob Rock (METALLICA, BON JOVI).

"It was Bob's idea to build a studio at the house," Sambora says. "You wake up in the morning and you're coming down the stairs, scratching your ass, and by the time 9:30 rolls around, you've got a song."

"Or I'm coming down the stairs and I'm handed a guitar to play a solo as soon as I wake up," Orianthi adds. "Richie's like, 'That sounds awesome!' and I haven't had any coffee, yet."

"I didn't let her drink coffee that day," Richie says with a laugh. "I wanted her to play slower. "It's great because we're always writing and can record anytime," Orianthi says.

"We have an open-door policy," Sambora says. "Most of our friends are musicians and they can come hang out whenever they want and maybe play on a song." (That's how THE DOORS' guitarist Robby Krieger wound up on one track.)

At home, the two have created an inviting world filled with love, friendship, laughter, and passion for music that seeps into the songs, many of which are uplifting stadium-fillers about bringing people together, empowering them, and making them feel good, like the roaring rock song "Rise". The powerful "Masterpiece" places RSO's vocal interplay front and center and slowly builds to an incendiary guitar riff. One of the pair's favorite tracks is "Truth" — a gorgeous piano-driven ballad about how when you find true love, nothing will stand in its way.

"I think these songs are about just being human," Sambora says. "People have more in common with each other than they think. Ori and I have had the chance to see that up close, in front of millions of people around the world, for many years. It's ingrained in us as songwriters, that desire to transcend language and genre, to play for people, entertain them, and write songs that can be the soundtrack to their lives."

Los Angeles rockers BLACK VEIL BRIDES will release their fifth album, "Vale", on January 12 via Lava/Universal Republic. The follow-up to BLACK VEIL BRIDES' 2014 self-titled effort, which was originally expected to arrive in September, was produced by John Feldmann at his Southern California studio.

BLACK VEIL BRIDES frontman Andy Biersack said: "We cannot wait for the BVB army to hear 'Vale' in its entirety!

"In my opinion, this record is the most complete and exciting album we have done to date.

"The opportunity to work with John Feldmann once again over the course of the past two years creating 'Vale' was an incredible experience and I am thrilled with the collection of songs we have put together as a band.

"The Latin translation of 'Vale' is 'be well, be strong!' and central to the message of this record.

"We hope to continue to inspire our fans and friends to embrace their own individuality and inner strength.

"The central narrative once again finds 'The Wild Ones' characters facing the challenge of moving on from the pain and anguish of their past and looking to a new chapter in their lives. This concept is one that is near to my heart and I believe will resonate with those that find themselves cast on the fringe of society.

"From our inception, BLACK VEIL BRIDES have stood up for the outcasts and disenfranchised. With this album, [we] hope to give you hope, fun and most importantly a kickass rock and roll record."

The songs from the disc, "The Outsider" and "My Vow", can be streamed below.

"Vale" track listing:

01. Incipiens Ad Finem02. The Last One03. Wake Up04. When They Call My Name05. The Outsider06. Dead Man Walking (Overture II)07. Our Destiny08. The King Of Pain09. My Cow10. Ballad Of The Lonely Hearts11. Throw The First Stone12. Vale (This Is Where It Ends)

During a recent interview with the Rock Sound Podcast, Biersack explained the delay in getting the new disc released. He said: "First of all, we took fifteen months to make the record, and so in that way, we really wanted everything to be as perfect as possible. And the original deadline that we gave ourselves while the record was completed and the mixing was completed, we weren't able to get the artwork and assets and all the stuff together exactly how we wanted it. And while listening to it, there were also elements and stuff I wanted to change.

"People don't necessarily understand that when you're on a major label that they determine when stuff is released," he continued. "And so they gave us the initial deadline that they would have preferred we released the record on the first time, and they were just unable to get the assets together, and also on our end, we just weren't quite done at the original time. So we had a discussion with the label and they were in agreement with us that it seemed like we should try to line it up with something big tour-wise."

Biersack delved deeper into BLACK VEIL BRIDES' reasons for wanting to take a bit longer to make an album they were all really happy with, explaining: "We've been doing this for a very long time, and it seemed like if we were gonna take time to make a record, it seemed like the right time to really try to sink our teeth into doing something that we really spent time cultivating. Before, it's not to say that we didn't spend time with it, but we were on deadlines and we were also a very young band that people were saying, 'We've gotta get this record out. We've gotta get you on tour.' And we've never really been afforded the opportunity to take our time with something.

"We wound up doing it in three different locations with Feldmann, because he wound up moving studios in the middle of the record," he added. "So it was kind of fun record in the sense that I sang the vocals for it in so many different places and I saw so many different rooms and the writing process took place in so many different places while I was on tour, and we were at Jake's [Pitts, guitar] personal home studio for a while. And it was a really fun and interesting way of doing the album over the course of over a year."

Asked about the overall sound of the new BLACK VEIL BRIDES album, Andy said: "We made 'Wretched And Divine [The Story Of The Wild Ones]' with John in 2013, and that was, at least commercially, our most successful record to date. A song like 'In The End' is probably our most successful song. And so a lot of times, people point to that record as the sound of the band. But what I think is interesting is that we have evolved significantly, I think, from record to record — from the first record to the fifth record. The previous record that we made with [producer] Bob Rock was a much more straight-ahead, hard rock, heavy metal record. I think that this album — and everybody says this, of course, because you want it to be true — but at least for me, I believe that it's a nice combination of many different eras of the band. I think that it represents all the different places that we've been while retaining that Feldmann thing, that thing about Feldy that I don't think anybody else can even touch or come close to; he just knows how to make things huge. And writing with Feldy is one of my favorite things, so to be able to come back into the world of doing heavy, darker rock music after doing a pop record together [with ANDY BLACK].

"We've been in a band together — Jake and Jinxx [guitar] and Ashley [Purdy, bass] and C.C. [Christian Coma, drums] and I — have been a band together for a decade, we know each other pretty well and the writing process is pretty simple in that way. So I think, all in all, it's a record that's very representative of where we are as a band at this point in our career. I'm not gonna tell you, 'Well, it's our heaviest and most melodic,' or, 'This is the best…' I think that it's just a record that we're really, really proud of and I think it's a great album and I think the fans are gonna like it, and it's a long time coming. At this point, it'll be four years since the last BLACK VEIL record, by the time it's out. So I think it's a long time coming, and I think people are gonna really enjoy it."

BLACK VEIL BRIDES will embark on a North American co-headline tour, dubbed "The Resurrection Tour", with ASKING ALEXANDRIA, kicking off January 10 at The Complex in Salt Lake City, Utah, rolling through major markets coast to coast, and concluding in Las Vegas, Nevada at House of Blues on March 2. CROWN THE EMPIRE will act as support on all dates.

Gene Simmons has dismissed criticism of his attempt to trademark the so-called "devil's horns" hand gesture as the usual griping from the online peanut gallery.

The KISS bassist/vocalist withdrew his application to trademark the symbol in late June — less than two weeks after filing with the federal copyright office.

Most music fans slammed Simmons for the trademark request, saying the symbol has become ubiquitous and means different things to different people.

Asked by Canada's Toronto Sun if he is bothered by the negative feedback he got for trying to trademark the "metal horns" or "rock on" hand sign, Simmons replied: "People got very upset — unqualified, no experience, no resume — those are the people in the peanut gallery. And so people get upset about something when they don't know the facts. Actually, you can trademark anything. And if nobody objects, I can own every breath of air you take."

In his original request, which was filed on June 9, Simmons described the sign as consisting "of a hand gesture with the index and small fingers extended upward and the thumb extended perpendicular." He paid $275, seeking to use the hand signal symbol for "Entertainment, namely, live performances by a musical artist; personal appearances by a musical artist."

Gene claimed the gesture was first used in commerce on November 14, 1974, which corresponded to KISS's "Hotter Than Hell" tour. He wrote in his signed declaration that he believed "no other person, firm, corporation or association has the right to use said mark in commerce, either in the identical form or in such near resemblance."

It's unclear why Simmons suddenly withdrew his application to trademark the gesture but it's unlikely he would have succeeded anyway.

Copyright lawyer Ronald Abrams told Forbes that such hand gestures can't be trademarked unless they are part of a logo. Trademark attorney Michael Cohen with Cohen IP Law Group in Beverly Hills, who deals with trademark, patent and copyright infringement cases, concurred, telling the Los Angeles Times that it would have been very difficult for Simmons's application to be approved because the gesture has become "genericized."

Simmons's version of the gesture is actually "I love you" in American Sign Language, with the thumb extended, rather than the thumb holding two middle fingers close to the palm.

Ronnie James Dio's widow Wendy also criticized Simmons for attempting to trademark the hand sign. She told TheWrap: "To try to make money off of something like this is disgusting. It belongs to everyone — it doesn't belong to anyone. It's a public domain, it shouldn't be trademarked."

Photo credit: Mark Weiss

Andreas Kisser has once again ruled out the possibility of a reunion of SEPULTURA's classic lineup, saying that he is not interested in trying "to recreate something that is not there anymore."

SEPULTURA's classic lineup fell apart in 1996 with the exit of frontman Max Cavalera after the rest of the band fired his wife Gloria as their manager. His brother, drummer Igor Cavalera, stuck around with the group for another ten years before leaving SEPULTURA and re-teaming with Max in CAVALERA CONSPIRACY.

Although SEPULTURA has maintained a diehard fanbase in all parts of the world throughout the band's three-decade-plus history, Max-era albums "Roots" and "Chaos A.D." were by far SEPULTURA's most commercially successful, having both been certified gold in the U.S. for sales in excess of five hundred thousand copies.

Asked in a recent interview with Spain's Resurrection Fest if he would be open to the idea of doing at least one more concert or tour with SEPULTURA's classic lineup, Andreas said (see video below), "Why?" After the interviewer responded with a "Why not?", the guitarist continued: "Because there's no meaning [in] anything; it's just trying to recreate a past that is not there anymore. We're in 2017. There's no reason to do that.

"It's a long time ago," he said. "I mean, there are still people that are falling into reality and are really knowing and feeling where we are at. We are in 2017, enjoying a great momentum. We have a great album. We play any SEPULTURA song from any type of any situation. And it's natural that people try to recreate something that is not there anymore. For me, it's kind of melancholic and stupid."

Kisser added: "There are so many reunions that really were fake — very fake and very… I don't know… bad. At least for myself, I see no sense. I respect my past so much. It's a beautiful story, it's a beautiful history, full of ups and downs and everything. But here we are — because of those ups and downs, and because of the changes, we are here. And that's it. Move on.

"It's something that happens in rock and roll so often. How many bands that still have the same lineup today? A few — very few."

The current SEPULTURA lineup — featuring

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS hope to announce the results of their singer search in the next few weeks, nearly two years after the passing of original vocalist Scott Weiland and more than two months following the death of Weiland's replacement, Chester Bennington.

"We've been working with someone — I don't want to name names yet — and we're making music," bassist Robert DeLeo told Rolling Stone in a new interview. "I don't know if he's well known or unknown; I don't look at him as 'well known.' But we're writing music and we're hopefully looking at finishing a record and putting it out soon."

Guitarist Dean DeLeo told Los Angeles radio station KLOS on Friday (September 22) that STP's search for a new singer was "looking good, man. Looking good. New music. And it won't be too long."

STP has been without a vocalist since November 2015, when Bennington — who joined the group in early 2013 — departed to spend more time with his main band LINKIN PARK.

Weiland, who reunited with the group in 2010 after an eight-year hiatus but was dismissed in 2013, died in December 2015 of a drug overdose while on a solo tour.

STP last performed live, with Bennington on vocals, for a one-off reunion performance in California in March 2016.

The band held an open call for singers last year, reportedly receiving thousands of submissions and narrowing that down to a handful of prospects with whom the group members got together to jam.

Two of the names that have been widely circulated among fans are one-time "X Factor" contestant Jeff Gutt and Filipino vocalist John Borja. Gutt reportedly rehearsed with the group last May, while Borja recently applied for a U.S. work visa and has hinted at joining the band.

The DeLeo brothers are currently promoting the twenty-fifth anniversary expanded reissue of STP's debut album, "Core", which arrives this Friday (September 29) — twenty-five years to the day of the LP's original release.

Austrian symphonic metal masters SERENITY will release a brand new full-length album, "Lionheart", on October 27 via Napalm. The disc was mixed and mastered by Jan Vacik at Dreamsound Studios. Gyula Havancsák at Hjules Design And Illustrations created the fantastic album artwork, which can be seen below.

The official music video for the "Lionheart" title track can be seen below.

The band states: "We are thrilled to present you our first official videoclip of our upcoming album 'Lionheart'!

"Filmed in the high mountains of Tyrol, we tried to give the video the same bombastic vibe like the song itself.

"Many people who saw us during the scenes in 2400m height asked us if we would be part of 'Game Of Thrones'. So we knew... we reached our goal!!"

With a full grasp of stunning emotions and superior dramatic compositions these Austrian musicians are world class, already winners of the prestigious Amadeus Austrian Music Award 2017. Their energy and joy of playing those fantastic power symphonic metal hymns can't be tamed. Heroic and heartfelt — it's almost impossible to not be carried away. Glorious melodies and the angelic voice of Georg Neuhauser join heavenly guitars and tremendous hooks! This is pure symphonic joy!

"Lionheart" track listing:

01. Deus Lo Vult02. United03. Lionheart04. Hero05. Rising High06. Heaven07. King's Landing08. Eternal Victory09. Stand And Fight10. The Fortress (Of Blood And Sand)11. Empire12. My Fantasy13. The Final Crusade

Norwegian progressive black avantgardists ENSLAVED will release their new album, "E", on October 13 via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2015's "In Times" was recorded at Duper & Solslottet Studios in Bergen and was once again mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren at Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden.

The fourth trailer for the disc, in which vocalist, bassist and lyricist Grutle Kjellson talks about the album artwork, can be seen below. Designed again by longtime collaborator Truls Espedal, the artwork was handpainted on canvas.

Grutle remembers: "Seventeen or eighteen years ago, I lived in Stavanger and was introduced to Truls at a pub on a late Saturday evening. We started to discuss album covers from bands like YES or GENESIS and I remember we were both drunk and seemed to disagree a lot on the definition of a cool album cover. So I said to him, 'If you're so clever, why don't you paint the next ENSLAVED cover,' and he said, 'Yeah, count me in.' So I did!"

ENSLAVED recently released the music video for the ten-minute-long single "Storm Son", which blends mesmerizing prog with jarring extreme metal and a folky atmosphere. The clip was designed by Josh Graham, who previously worked with SOUNDGARDEN and NEUROSIS, among others, and delivered a truly spectacular piece of animated art that you can watch below.

"'Storm Son' deals with the duality of man and nature, how important and basic that relationship is," explained ENSLAVED songwriter and guitarist Ivar Bjørnson. "Everything we do and create are imitations of nature; as we evolved from nature, that is how it must be — yet modern man thinks he and she is independent of nature, that we somehow are so superior that we do not have to take nature into consideration other than as a backdrop for shitty movies. Or festivals. Losing touch with nature is basically to lose touch with being human."

A press release states: "This fourteenth full-length masterpiece sets the musical mind-twisters free from genre boundaries and offers an unprecedented mix of prog, extreme metal and shoegaze on eight tracks with a play time of more than an hour.

"The album was once again written by the unholy alliance of Bjørnson and singer and bassist Grutle Kjellson and marks the introduction of their new keyboard master and clean vocalist Håkon Vinje.

"'E' heralds a new era for ENSLAVED. Its cover artwork was once again hand-painted by the Norwegian artist Truls Espedal.

"As support for their brave sound journey, the quintet brought several guest musicians on board for the songs 'Hiindsiight' and 'Feathers Of Eolh', including WARDRUNA's Einar Kvitrafn Selvik, flutist Daniel Mage and jazz saxophonist Kjetil Møster."

Ivar explains the "E" title: "The concept of the album lies in both its meaning as a letter in the latin alphabet and its runic reference: the rune 'Ehwaz', that is depicted as an 'M' when drawn as rune (just to make sure it gets really confusing) — the runes are drawn to look like what they literally mean. Ehwaz (pronounced and used as what's known as E, but drawn as an 'M') looks like and means 'horse.' Which is closely linked to its esoteric meaning; which is 'trust' and 'co-operation.' One of mankind's oldest and deepest pairings/collaborations with any 'outside' entities is with the horse. When they were first tamed and utilized, there must have arisen the notion of some esoteric link between the two; now we could move swiftly, escape faster and even eat and drink from the animal (both horse milk and horse blood), and of course show off and brag before our enemies and peers with the most spectacular horses.

"So, no, it is not about horses! It is about the symbioses that surrounds us; which are vital to our existence, to our development — on all scales: man and vessel (for instance horse, yes), a person and its significant other, child and parent, musician and instrument, chaos and order, subconscious and conscious, Oden and Sleipnir — wisdom and communication. There are many levels and variations of this concept on the album; the duality of man and nature, present and past personalities within one self, the conscious fear and the subconscious drive. And other symbiosis."

"E" is now available for pre-order through Nuclear Blast's online store in a variety of packages, including green and brown vinyl.

"E" track listing

01. Storm Son02. The River's Mouth03. Sacred Horse04. Axis Of The Worlds05. Feathers Of Eolh06. Hiindsiight07. Djupet (bonus track)08. What Else Is There? (RÖYKSOPP cover; bonus track)

"I'm always psyched and proud when we have finished an album recording, and this is no exception!" stated Kjellson. "It was a really exciting process this time, with the lineup change and everything, so although it wasn't a dramatic change, the band dynamics were suddenly different. But, it was like a little re-boot, a fresh start so to speak. The studio sessions were great, and we all feel that we have done something truly amazing. We hope you'll enjoy it. Ugh!"

Bjørnson recently stated about ENSLAVED's new album: "I have never worked this hard to put together music for an album before. We are a tighter unit than ever before, which is obvious sonically. The concept conjured by myself and old war-brother Grutle is the strongest we have worked with. Finally, I am proud that we have taken more risks than ever before, and one in particular — and it is yielding awesome results."

San Francisco-based band LIGHT THIS CITY has reunited to record its first new album in a decade. The group will enter Castle Ultimate Studios with Zack Ohren in December to record its fifth full-length LP. Vocalist Laura Nichol states: "Performing and writing with LIGHT THIS CITY has never stopped being fun. Now that I have the perspective from a guitarist/vocalist standpoint, I love to be able to switch it up and engage an audience with the freedom of only my voice, words, and a microphone in my hand.

"The personality that LIGHT THIS CITY's music and influences draw out of me is something that I really enjoy exploring and embodying. While HEARTSOUNDS feels like an exhilarating challenge every time I step onstage, when I'm in front of an audience with LIGHT THIS CITY, I always feel at home. I don't know if I could have both of those feelings with one band, but luckily, I have two to round it out!" Drummer Ben Murray explains: "I think I can speak for all five of us when I say that we couldn't me more excited to resurrect LIGHT THIS CITY, finish this upcoming fifth album of ours, and get back out there to shred some new and old songs for all ya' headbangers out there! We are eight tracks into this record and it tops anything we've ever released, by far. Thank you for waiting ten years; we'll see you all soon!" Murray's own Creator-Destructor Records will release the album in March 2018. LIGHT THIS CITY began in 2002 when best friends, Laura Nichol and Ben Murray, decided to start a melodic death metal project in the vein of AT THE GATES, CARCASS, IN FLAMES, and the other Scandinavian bands that inspired them to play fast, melodic, crushing music, largely untouched by the American population of metalcore, deathcore, and numerous other subgenres of heavy metal that were ignoring the monstrous influences of the '90s. After the sparks were lit, the two soon wrote their debut 2003 full-length, "The Hero Cycle", which quickly landed them a deal with Prosthetic Records, who would go on to release the band's following three albums. As Murray and Nichol neared the end of high-school, LIGHT THIS CITY released 2005's "Remains Of The Gods", which sparked the rest of LIGHT THIS CITY's trajectory on Prosthetic, and saw the band touring heavily in support of their Bay Area brand of melodic-death metal infused thrash. "Remains Of The Gods" gained favorable reviews and it seemed as if the metal press knew what was in store for the band. LIGHT THIS CITY released its 2006 follow-up, "Facing The Thousand", undeniably their most popular album. By 2006, Nichol and Murray were out of high school, on the road full-time, with a full band in tow, with Steve Hoffman on guitar, Ryan "Hollywood" Hansen on lead guitar, and Jon Frost on bass. "Facing The Thousand" saw the band on the road in support of a multitude of metal acts such as DEATH ANGEL, VADER, MALEVOLENT CREATION, EDGUY, INTO ETERNITY, ALL THAT REMAINS, CHIMAIRA, SOILENT GREEN, DARKEST HOUR, SUICIDE SILENCE, MISERY SIGNALS, and many more, gaining the band a rapid exposure into the metal mainstream. After a three-year touring cycle on "Facing The Thousand", the band retreated to Oakland to record its fourth album, "Stormchaser", which saw a guest vocal appearance by Chuck Billy of TESTAMENT. Before the official release of the album, LIGHT THIS CITY disbanded before even having the chance to tour on their fourth and final effort. In 2010, LIGHT THIS CITY played five final shows, the short tour titled "The Final Thrash Attack", in which the band could celebrate the songs of "Stormchaser", and give the fans a bit of closure that they never received with the band's sudden disappearance. In September of 2015, DARKEST HOUR requested that LIGHT THIS CITY play the San Francisco date of their twentieth-anniversary tour. The band quickly reunited within a few months to rehearse one final set that would celebrate the band's four-album career. The show was absolutely one for the books, sparking the flame which lead the band to reunite. LIGHT THIS CITY 2017 is:

Laura Nichol - VocalsBen Murray - DrumsRyan Hansen - Lead GuitarSteve Hoffman - Rhythm GuitarJon Frost - Bass Photo credit: Kyle Camarillo

With 2006's "Dimevision Vol. 1: That's The Fun I Have", fans of "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott and his work with PANTERA and DAMAGEPLAN were afforded the chance to see into the world of the legendary guitarist. Compiled from the many, many hours of video footage captured between the mid-'80s and his later years, it was a funny, touching and poignant memorial.

Metal Blade Records has now announced the release of "Dimevision Vol. 2: Roll With It Or Get Rolled Over" — another true celebration of the man and how he lived his life — on November 24. Pre-orders are available at this location. The DVD/CD set — which will include more raw footage, true gems and classic Dimebag moments — will also include five previously unreleased demos, picked from a vast catalog Dimebag accrued since longtime girlfriend Rita Haney gave him his first four-track in 1984.

Beginning today at 3:33 p.m. Texas Central "Dime Time", a PledgeMusic campaign has also been launched to support the release of the set. There, you can also view an official "Dimevision Vol. 2: Roll With It Or Get Rolled Over" trailer. In addition to acting as a pre-order for the set, the PledgeMusic campaign includes an assortment of rare items to buy, including props and costumes that belonged to Dimebag and that you can see in his home videos/"Dimevision" volumes, rare stage clothing, and other merchandise.

Going into making "Dimevision Vol. 2: Roll With It Or Get Rolled Over", Haney worked in collaboration with Daryl "Bobby Tongs" Arnberger, who was not only one of Dimebag's closest friends both on and off the road, but also worked as an official videographer for PANTERA, DAMAGEPLAN and a plethora of A-list musicians, from SLIPKNOT to Dolly Parton, along with film editor Rob Fenn. After cataloguing hundreds of tapes, they chose 43 segments to create "Dimevision Vol. 2".

Arnberger explains: "As we all watched, we envisioned certain segments and ideas coming to life in my head, and rather than it serving as a memorial, this second DVD is more about the vision Dime had in his head for this footage, what he actually wanted it to become. This one is more uplifting, funny, and it stays 100% true to his idea for 'Dimevision'."

Fans of the original know that this way of life involved a lot of whiskey, an insane amount of fireworks and a contagious desire to have fun — and like its predecessor, the title is also drawn from the words of the man himself. Having a habit of latching onto a saying or a phrase, this soon became part of his particular dialect, affectionately dubbed "Dime-bonics." "It comes from something he was saying a lot in 2003 and 2004," Haney recalls. "He'd call from the road and he'd say 'man, I'm beat up out here, but that's the highs and lows of rock and roll. You gotta roll with it or get rolled over.'"

"He had a unique way of seeing things, and he always lived with a video camera," adds Haney. "No matter where we went he was always capturing what was going on, and myself and others around him were filming a lot too. In putting out these videos I just want people to see the way he was, 24/7. What you saw on stage and backstage, that was how he lived."

Unsuspecting visitors to the couple's home were regularly drawn in — memorable segments involve girl scouts selling cookies and Dimebag experiencing an "interesting" CPAP machine fitting — and events as mundane as taking a friend to get a pedicure become hilarious, thanks to his particular way of seeing the world. As endlessly entertaining as Dimebag was, there were of course other, deeper sides to his personality, which are also reflected in both volumes. Haney adds: "There were some really touching, deep, heavy and emotional moments in the first one, where he's talking about himself to the camera while in the shower. Filming himself like that was something he did a lot, and you'd have no clue until you're looking through the tapes and come across them, and when you do the goosebumps crawl all over you. People that love and know Darrell are going to be touched by what he has to say, because it's him telling you for the first time."

As for his included demos, Dimebag not only wrote down the lyrics and dates of everything he recorded but also his thoughts on it at the time, which Haney will also be sharing with fans. However, she's quick to point out that no one should expect high production standards ("It's called a four-track for a reason!") and that these are not "lost" PANTERA tracks. "These songs come from his 'off' time; it was entertainment to him. One of them was even inspired by a George Michael solo record coming out back in the '80s!" she laughs. "But he loved making music and he appreciated all kinds of music, whether he was making a joke of it or not, it still caught his ear, and I hope people can enjoy these songs for what they are and the spirit they were made in."

With so much footage left over, fans can rest assured that as fulfilling as "Dimevision Vol. 2: Roll With It Or Get Rolled Over" is, there's still a lot to look forward to. Haney says, "We hope to make ['Dimevision'] an annual thing. It will all depend on if the fans want it and support it!"

Frontiers Music Srl has announced the signing of legendary U.S. metallers WARLORD for the release of a new studio album in 2018.

Long admirers of the band and having gotten to know drummer Mark Zonder through his work with GRAHAM BONNET BAND and the upcoming group SPIRITS OF FIRE (which also features Tim "Ripper" Owens, Chris Caffery and Steve DiGiorgio), Frontiers approached Zonder about the prospect of doing a new WARLORD disc. Luckily for the label, Zonder and co-founder/guitarist William J. Tsamis were very much open to the idea.

Says Zonder: "After all of these years, WARLORD is with a 'real label.'

"It will be great to have WARLORD music shared with a worldwide audience, which is something that has been missing for many years.

"With my prior working experiences with Frontiers, I know WARLORD is in the right place and I am very appreciative of this great opportunity.

"We thank everyone at the label for their belief in WARLORD!"

In September 2013, Tsamis and Zonder announced that they had tapped vocalist Nicholas Leptos of ARRAYAN PATH and ASTRONOMIKON to be the new WARLORD singer. This lineup, along with bassist Philip Bynoe, will be featured on the upcoming album.

Zonder says: "This WARLORD release will be like all of the previous ones — 100% WARLORD. No changing of direction to keep up with the current fad, just good ol'-school WARLORD music. Maybe leaning back a touch to the early days and we promise a high-energy album that features the classic Bill Tsamis compositions and his classic guitar melody lines.

"As I always try to do, I'll give it my all in tandem with my favorite bass player Philip Bynoe, working together to create a solid foundation.

"This will be the first studio recording with Nicholas Leptos on vocals. We have performed live with him several times and are eagerly awaiting to capture his dynamic performances on tape. A classic WARLORD album in the making…"

Founded in 1980 by guitarist/composer William J. Tsamis and drummer/percussionist Mark Zonder, WARLORD is considered a pioneer in power metal thanks to their now classic 1983 six-song EP, "Deliver Us". Kerrang!, Sounds, Burrn! and Music Connection all featured the band and praised the release thanks to their outside the norm, semi-progressive style that was inspired by such diverse acts as RAINBOW, SCORPIONS and JETHRO TULL. Adding further intrigue to the WARLORD mystique was the band members' use of pseudonyms such as Destroyer (Tsamis), Thunderchild (Zonder), Damien King (vocalist Jack Rucker) and Sentinel (keyboardist Diane Kornarens). The band also refused to become just another L.A. club act and opted to present themselves on a grander scale. They famously rented The Raymond Theater out to stage what would turn out to be the only WARLORD live performance in the USA, prior to August 2013. It was filmed and recorded for the group's first full-length release, "And The Cannons Of Destruction Have Begun..." , issued in October 1984, accompanied by a home video release of the same name.

While the band disbanded in 1986, they amassed a cult-like following in Europe despite their inactivity. This was largely due to rave reviews in metal the press, continuous airplay, and the circulation of many demos via "tape trading," as well as positive word-of-mouth promotion among metal fans. With the onset of the Internet, the music of WARLORD spread worldwide and thus helped secure WARLORD a place in the history of heavy metal as one of the great metal forefathers of the ‘80s.

After the band dissolved, Zonder joined prog metal pioneers FATES WARNING and went on to release numerous albums with them as well as others thanks to his skills then and now being in high demand. It was during one of FATES WARNING's European tours that Zonder realized that WARLORD's following had grown considerably with multiple fans asking him to sign WARLORD albums and demanding new music from the band. Zonder contacted Tsamis and, as soon as schedules permitted, WARLORD was once again an active band. Vocal duties were assigned to HAMMERFALL vocalist (and massive WARLORD fan) Joacim Cans. Thus, in 2002, a new album, "Rising Out Of The Ashes", was recorded and released worldwide to rave reviews. This was followed by the first ever WARLORD live performance in Europe at the prestigious Wacken Open Air festival in Germany.

A string of mishaps and serious family health issues plagued WARLORD after these performances and the band was once again put on a hiatus, which lasted for almost nine years. WARLORD returned to active status formally in March 2012. Vocal duties would be handled by one of the original '80s WARLORD singers, Rick Anderson, and Philip Bynoe (Steve Vai, RING OF FIRE) joined the band on bass. That lineup released "The Holy Empire" to much critical and fan acclaim. In the meantime, mounting pressure by promoters and fans bore fruit and WARLORD announced that they would headline the April 2013 German Keep It True XVI festival. This announcement was followed by two headlining dates in Greece — Thessaloniki and Athens — which sold out, thus leading to a second headlining show in Athens which sold out as well.

U.K. cult legends ELECTRIC WIZARD will release their new album, "Wizard Bloody Wizard", on November 10 via Spinefarm. The LP is described in a press release as "forty-three minutes of cranium-crushing bludgeon rock, a relentless aural brain rape and, like the band's beloved vintage horror/exploitation movies, definitely not for those of a nervous disposition."

The official video for the album's opening track, "See You In Hell", can be seen below. Finally rising above convention and genre, the band have constructed their own vision of classic heavy rock, a sound harking back to the dreaded days when "heavy" meant GRAND FUNK and BLACK SABBATH and "rock" meant drugs, groupies and mountains of amplification. "Right away we knew this was it… the new direction we should go in," says ELECTRIC WIZARD guitarist/vocalist Jus Oborn. "Real heavy music… really basic heavy rock, blues-based but brutal.

"I think a lot of modern heavy music has disappeared up its own arse… it's too pretentious and technical. We wanted to get back to that primal sound… over-amplified blues… Hendrix, BLUE CHEER, ZEPPELIN. They took that music and then turned it up… so we thought let's do the blues in our style. Heavy, heavy super-fuckin' blues, total snail-paced funeral boogie for this twenty-first-century hell. I guess it's meant to be hopeless but it's also defiant and unbroken." Even though the LP promises "hymns to death, drugs, sex and violence," the overall vibe is a band that is revitalized and ready to kill. The sound is aggressive, stripped back and savage, as if the new line-up has mainlined a new level of attitude and ability. "Y'know, a lot of bad shit has happened to us, but through it all was the music," Oborn says. "We still dig loud heavy music and the album is not really depressed or angry, it's arrogant and rebellious. I still believe in rock and roll and I still believe in killing it on stage and mentally destroying an audience." And the band sounds together — really together. The last three years of touring, writing and rehearsing have honed and moulded a new sound that has truly distilled the ELECTRIC WIZARD brew. In forty-three brain-damaging minutes, the band delivers a varied, challenging and breath-taking LP, from crushing blues stomp through savage Detroit sleaze rock, paranoiac passages of droning drug rock and creepy funereal proto-metal/acidrock. "We've been worn out by the modern scene — it's all about styles and genre," Oborn says. "We just wanna make solid heavy music… no rules. We didn't set out to record a style or product. We set out to record what we wanted to hear.

"I want people to know it's ELECTRIC WIZARD from the first second, but also to know we are gonna take them on a trip.

"Heavy doesn't just mean tone and bottom end… I think people have become too obsessed by FX and boutique amps. It's more about playing style, attitude and songwriting…

"Y'know, a lot of our songs have been interpreted as acoustic numbers by various people and they are still heavy and ominous sounding… You can't dilute true darkness." The LP's stunning all analog recording has been produced by Oborn and Liz Buckingham (guitar) in their own Satyr IX Recording Studio. "It's an anti-studio really," Oborn explains. "We wanted to put as little between the band and the tape as possible. We needed to take stuff away and use less equipment, 'cause I think the raw sound of the band is killer.

"Studios have progressively made the recording situation more difficult and convoluted. I always think the best recordings are the simplest and most basic ones. So, yeah, we built the studio that we wanted… mics, mixing desk, tape machine… that's it. No bullshit." The LP sleeve and art has also been conceived by the band and echoes, again, their love of the macabre, evil and sleazy. A sick and twisted bad taste eye-assault that aims to titillate, excite and repulse you. "Sex and violence are our basest instincts," Oborn says. "I guess we think that engaging the brain and guts on this most basic, primal level is the fastest way to grab people's emotions… It's 'shock' tactics, but the world is so fuckin' brainwashed or bored that they need to be 'woken up'. The 'man' is slowly neutering and killing us with technology and lies… It's time to fight back."

Upon album preorders, fans will receive an instant download of new track "See You In Hell".

"Wizard Bloody Wizard" track listing:

01. See You In Hell02. Necromania03. Hear The Sirens Scream04. The Reaper05. Wicked Caresses06. Mourning Of The Magicians

In a brand new interview with Metal Talk, Glenn Hughes was asked about his former DEEP PURPLE bandmate Ritchie Blackmore, who recently played a series of European shows to mark his return to the rock stage.

Acknowledging that he has seen some YouTube clips of the revamped RAINBOW, Hughes said: "All I have to say about Ritchie is that he's seventy-two now. If I'm lucky, I'll get to be seventy-two.

"Ritchie is an oddball, in all the respect," he continued. "I only wanna wish him a happy life.

"He talks about not being happy, he wants to be angry or whatever he wants to do… Whatever he does in his life, he's a strange dude, but I just wanna wish him only the very, very best," Glenn added. "I had a great time working with him, and I hope he continues forever."

In 2016, Blackmore resurrected RAINBOW for the first time in twenty years, featuring a brand new lineup that includes the Chilean-born, Spanish-based singer Ronnie Romero.

Hughes said earlier in the year that he thought Romero was doing well recreating the classic songs from RAINBOW's and DEEP PURPLE's catalogs. "Singing Ronnie's [James Dio] songs needs a special kind of singer and I think the young chap did a reasonably good job and I think Ritchie may well have found the guy for him. He was certainly a good fit for RAINBOW."

Hughes told Hardrock Haven last year that Blackmore originally asked him to be part of the RAINBOW comeback but that he declined. "I said no because [Ritchie] wanted to, funny enough, he wanted to use an unknown singer, and I said, 'It's not me. It's not me to do that,'" he explained. "I very eloquently said, 'No, thank you. I really would like to see you, but I can't do this at the point where I am right now.'"

Hughes was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame last year along with fellow DEEP PURPLE members Blackmore, David Coverdale, Jon Lord, Rod Evans, Ian Gillan, Roger Glover and Ian Paice.

Australian hard rockers AIRBOURNE will release "Diamond Cuts" on September 29 via Nettwerk. The box set will be made available in limited-edition vinyl and CD formats, containing the band's first three discs — "Runnin Wild", "No Guts. No Glory." and "Black Dog Barking" — along with the brand new "Diamond Cuts - The B-Sides" collection featuring two previously unavailable tracks ("Money" and "Heavy Weight Lover") plus a bonus DVD of the brand new band documentary, "It's All For Rock 'N' Roll", housed in a slipcase box including original "Diamond Cuts" artwork.

The "It's All For Rock 'N' Roll" documentary can now be seen in its entirety below.

"'Money' was found covered in piles of dust and reel to reel tape," said AIRBOURNE. "It was part of the recording sessions for 'No Guts. No Glory.', and, for some reason, it just didn't make the album, but hearing it again today we're pumped to get it out there."

AIRBOURNE in April parted ways with guitarist David Roads and replaced him with Harri Harrison (PALACE OF THE KING).

The band's latest album, "Breakin' Outta Hell", landed in the Top 10 in both the U.K. and Australia after its September 2016 release.

A newly released video for the classic WHITESNAKE song "Here I Go Again", which will appear on the upcoming thirtieth-anniversary reissue of the band's self-titled album, can be seen below. The track is part of a complete bonus disc full of demos and rehearsals from the period leading up to the "Whitesnake" LP, also known in some countries as "1987".

"Whitesnake: Super Deluxe Edition" will be available on October 6 for $49.98. The 4-CD/DVD collection includes the original album with newly remastered sound, unreleased live and studio recordings, classic music videos, concert footage, a thirty-minute documentary, featuring a new interview with David Coverdale, WHITESNAKE's founder and lead singer. The music comes with a sixty-page hardbound book that's filled with rare and unseen photos from the era, an extended essay based on new interviews with Coverdale, plus a booklet of the album's lyrics, handwritten by Coverdale. The audio will also be available via digital download and streaming services.

Three other versions of "Whitesnake" will also be available the same day. A Deluxe Edition will be available in both 2-CD ($19.98) and 2-LP ($29.98) versions, each including the newly remastered album expanded with a selection of unreleased bonus recordings. A single-disc version of the newly remastered album will also be available.

This also marks the first release under a newly signed catalog deal with WHITESNAKE and Rhino Entertainment, the catalog division of Warner Music Group. This new deal includes both the North American and Japanese rights, marking the first time a substantial amount of the WHITESNAKE catalog will reside under Warner Music Group worldwide.

"It gives me great joy to finally have so much of my WHITESNAKE catalog all under the same roof with the Warner family and I'm thrilled to be now working with this tremendous team on a worldwide basis," says Coverdale. "I have great memories of being with Warner back in my days with DEEP PURPLE. Then when I was with Geffen, they were distributed by Warner, so it feels like coming home to now have WHITESNAKE there. This elaborate reissue is the perfect project to kick off the new relationship."

"WHITESNAKE is one of the all-time great rock n' roll bands, with David being an absolute icon as a vocalist and front man," says Rhino president Mark Pinkus. "We are absolutely thrilled to now have so much of the WHITESNAKE catalog with Warner on a global basis and are excited for the fans to see what great releases we have planned for the coming years."

Soon after its release in April 1987, "Whitesnake" became a huge success around the world, selling multi million copies. It peaked at #2 on the Billboard album chart and spawned four popular singles: "Still Of The Night", "Give Me All Your Love", "Is This Love" (which reached #2) and the #1 hit "Here I Go Again".

"Whitesnake: Super Deluxe Edition" comes with an entire disc of unreleased live performances featuring Adrian Vandenberg, Vivian Campbell and Tommy Aldridge, recorded during the band's 1987-88 tour. The music includes live versions of several tracks from "1987", plus WHITESNAKE classics "Slide It In", "Love Ain't No Stranger" and "Slow An' Easy".

An additional disc spotlights the creative process behind "Whitesnake" with a selection of elevent unreleased demo and rehearsal recordings, including early versions of nearly every song on the album called "87 Evolutions". The final disc introduces newly remixed versions the album's four singles, and includes rare radio mixes, as well as songs from "87 Versions", an EP released exclusively in Japan.

The DVD from "Whitesnake: Super Deluxe Edition" includes music videos for the four singles, all of which have been carefully restored and remixed in 5.1 Surround Sound for the first time ever. In addition, the DVD also features a new thirty-minute documentary about the making of "Whitesnake", a new promo video made especially for this set of the 1988 version of "Here I Go Again" and unreleased live footage from the 1987-88 tour.

According to Billboard, a WHITESNAKE home video will follow on Record Store Black Friday (November 24) as well as a coffee table book chronicling "The Purple Album" cycle from 2015. An all-new WHITESNAKE studio album is planned for 2018, along with a world tour.

"It was a lot of fun to do," Coverdale told Billboard of the "Whitesnake" reissue, "because I don't go back a lot. I kind of learn from the past to apply those lessons to the future and the present. But my gratitude for (the album) is beyond words. I've only ever gone into a studio to try to improve on the last record...There was no, 'Right, I'm gonna sell thirty-odd million fucking records!' It was amazing, just amazing, so it's great to revisit all of this."

Coverdale also revealed that he has been getting together with WHITESNAKE guitarists Reb Beach and Joel Hoekstra for regular writing sessions for a new album that will lively arrive late spring of 2018. "I'm actually very excited about it because it's the first opportunity both Reb and Joel and I have actually had to sit down and write together," Coverdale said of what will be WHITESNAKE's first set of original material since 2011's "Forevermore". "There's a lot of what one would refer to as arena rock; Reb and I were talking the other night over dinner and he said, 'Man, there's so many songs here that no matter where we play — Portugal or Brazil or Tokyo — they're gonna get this hook. They're gonna be punching the fuckin' air and have a great night.' And I went, 'Oh, absolutely — and more than usual,' which is great. I can't do throwaway shit. The only reason I'm doing this record are the songs are gonna be a great WHITESNAKE album for WHITESNAKE fans — and the band. It's very exciting."

"Whitesnake: Super Deluxe Edition" 4CD/DVD Track Listing:

Disc One: Original Album 2017 Remaster:

01. Still Of The Night02. Give Me All Your Love03. Bad Boys04. Is This Love05. Here I Go Again '8706. Straight For The Heart07. Looking For Love08. Children Of The Night09. You're Gonna Break My Heart Again10. Crying In The Rain11. Don't Turn Away

Disc Two: Snakeskin Boots [Live On Tour 1987-88]:

01. Bad Boys/Children Of The Night*02. Slide It In*03. Slow An' Easy*04. Here I Go Again*05. Guilty Of Love*06. Is This Love*07. Love Ain't No Stranger*08. Guitar Solo – Adrian and Vivian*09. Crying In The Rain*10. Still Of The Night*11. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City*12. Give Me All Your Love*

Disc Three: 87 Evolutions [Demos and Rehearsals]:

01. Still Of The Night*02. Give Me All Your Love*03. Bad Boys*04. Is This Love*05. Straight For The Heart*06. Looking For Love*07. Children Of The Night*08. You're Gonna Break My Heart Again*09. Crying In The Rain*10. Don't Turn Away*11. Crying In The Rain (Lil' Mountain Alternate Take Ruff Mix) *

Disc Four: 87 Versions [2017 Remixes]"

01. Still Of The Night - Remix*02. Is This Love - Remix*03. Give Me All Your Love - Remix*04. Here I Go Again 87 - Remix*05. Standing In The Shadows - 1987 Versions, Japanese Mini-Album06. Looking For Love - 1987 Versions, Japanese Mini-Album07. You're Gonna Break My Heart Again - 1987 Versions, Japanese Mini-Album08. Need Your Love So Bad - 1987 Versions, Japanese Mini-Album09. Here I Go Again - Radio Mix10. Give Me All Your Love - Single Version

DVD:

01. Still Of The Night - Music Video, Restored and Remixed in 5.102. Here I Go Again 87 - Music Video, Restored and Remixed in 5.103. Is This Love - Music Video, Restored and Remixed in 5.104. Give Me All Your Love - Music Video, Restored and Remixed in 5.105. Documentary about the making of 1987 Album*06. Here I Go Again - Purplesnake Video Jam*07. Crying In The Rain - 1987 Tour Video Bootleg*08. Band Intros - 1987 Tour Video Bootleg*09. Still Of The Night - 1987 Tour Video Bootleg*

"Whitesnake: 30th Anniversary Edition" 2LP Track Listing:

Side One:

01. Still Of The Night02. Bad Boys03. You're Gonna Break My Heart Again04. Straight For The Heart05. Here I Go Again 87

Side Two:

01. Give Me All Your Love02. Is This Love03. Children Of The Night04. Crying In The Rain05. Don't Turn Away

Side Three:

01. Still Of The Night - 2017 Remix *02. Is This Love - 2017 Remix *03. Give Me All Your Love - 2017 Remix *04. Here I Go Again 87 - 2017 Remix *05. Looking For Love

Side Four:

01. Bad Boys/Children of the Night - Live*02. Here I Go Again - Live*03. Is This Love - Live*04. Give Me All Your Love - Live*05. Still of the Night - Live*

"Whitesnake: 30th Anniversary Edition" 2CD Track Listing:

Disc One: Original Album 2017 Remaster

01. Still Of The Night02. Give Me All Your Love03. Bad Boys04. Is This Love05. Here I Go Again 8706. Straight For The Heart07. Looking For Love08. Children Of The Night09. You're Gonna Break My Heart Again10. Crying In The Rain11. Don't Turn Away

Disc Two: Snakeskin Boots [Live On Tour 1987-88]:

01. Bad Boys/Children Of The Night*02. Slide It In*03. Slow An' Easy*04. Here I Go Again*05. Guilty Of Love*06. Is This Love*07. Love Ain't No Stranger*08. Guitar Solo – Adrian and Vivian*09. Crying In The Rain*10. Still Of The Night*11. Ain't No Love In The Heart Of The City*12. Give Me All Your Love*

* Previously unreleased

Fan-filmed video footage of DELAIN's September 23 performance at the Female Metal Event - Femme at Effenaar in Eindhoven, The Netherlands can be seen below.

DELAIN spent the last year celebrating its tenth anniversary — from the release of its fifth full-length album, "Moonbathers", and an anniversary edition of its debut disc, "Lucidity", to extensive headline tours across Europe and North America to gracing some of the world's biggest festival stages — and is about to cap it off with the release of its first-ever live DVD/Blu-ray package. Due on October 27, "A Decade Of Delain: Live At Paradiso" was filmed at a sold-out gig at Amsterdam's legendary Paradiso on December 10, 2016. DELAIN was joined on stage throughout the evening by Alissa White-Gluz (ARCH ENEMY), Liv Kristine, Burton C. Bell (FEAR FACTORY), and many other special guests and collaborators.

The setlist for the evening showcased songs spanning DELAIN's entire decade-long existence, including everything from the sing-along singles to cuts from the band's vault that are rarely played live. On top of the full live concert, the package includes an exclusive documentary about the band, titled "We Are The Others - A Decade of Delain", a bonus live performance of "We Are the Others" from Masters Of Rock 2015, and the "Suckerpunch" music video. "A Decade Of Delain" is available for pre-order in a 2-CD/DVD/Blu-ray combination package or on silver vinyl via PledgeMusic.

In late October, DELAIN will embark on the "Danse Macabre" tour, featuring special guest and frequent collaborator Marco Hietala from NIGHTWISH on all dates. SERENITY and CELLAR DARLING will provide support. DELAIN will follow the "Danse Macabre" tour with a string of dates in South America in late 2017 and a full North American tour with KAMELOT and BATTLE BEAST in the spring of 2018.

Vancouver’s Aviator Shades have just released their new single/video "Freedom Lies Bleeding", the follow-up to the debut single "Burn It Down" from their brand new EP This Is What We Do (co-produced by Mike Fraser (AC/DC / Aerosmith) and Danny Craig (One Bad Son / Default).

Physical copies of This Is What We Do are available here and digital outlets like iTunes, Spotify, and Google Play.

Aviator Shades are currently on a 23 city cross-Canada tour that started in Kamloops, BC September 14th and takes them as far east as Montreal, QC October 3rd and wraps up in Nanaimo, BC November 4th. Full list of dates on attached tour banner.

“Burn It Down” video:

An excerpt of David Gilmour’s performance of the Pink Floyd song “Comfortably Numb”, from the upcoming Live At Pompeii release, is available for streaming below. “Comfortably Numb” was originally featured on the legendary Pink Floyd album, The Wall, released in late 1979.

45 years after Pink Floyd’s David Gilmour filmed Live At Pompeii in the legendary Roman Amphitheatre there, he returned for two spectacular shows that took place on July 7th and 8th, 2016, part of his year-long tour in support of his #1 album, Rattle That Lock. The performances were the first-ever rock concerts for an audience in the stone Roman amphitheatre, and, for two nights only, the 2,600 strong crowd stood exactly where gladiators would have fought in the first century AD.

David Gilmour Live At Pompeii is an audio experience on its own, while the audio-visual spectacle features lasers, pyrotechnics and a huge circular screen on which specially-created films complement selected songs. Paramount, however, is the incredible music: the show includes songs from throughout David's career, as well as many Pink Floyd classics, including “One Of These Days”, the only song that was also performed at the band’s 1971 show.

Both concerts also saw very special performances of “The Great Gig In The Sky” from The Dark Side Of The Moon, which David rarely plays as a solo artist. The 2-disc concert CD was produced by David Gilmour, and mixed by Andy Jackson and David Gilmour. The 148-minute concert film includes highlights from both shows, filmed in 4k by director Gavin Elder. DVD and Blu-ray versions contain an extra 7-minute documentary by Gavin Elder ‘Pompeii Then And Now’, while the Deluxe Blu-ray 4-disc box contains the 2xCD version, the 1xBlu-ray version, and a full 207 minutes of extra footage: 11 live performances and 5 documentaries, plus bonus collectables. Vinyl lovers can enjoy a deluxe 4xLP version in gatefold sleeves and a hardback slipcase, plus a 24-page photo booklet.

David Gilmour Live At Pompeii shows an artist at the top of his artistic game, performing incredible material with his world-class band, in a unique setting on one very special occasion. The release is set for this Friday, September 29th.

Tracklisting:

“5 A.M.”
“Rattle That Lock”
“Faces Of Stone”
“What Do You Want From Me”
“The Blue”
“The Great Gig In The Sky”
“A Boat Lies Waiting”
“Wish You Were Here”
“Money”
“In Any Tongue”
“High Hopes”
“One Of These Days”
“Shine On You Crazy Diamond (Pts. 1 - 5)”
“Fat Old Sun”
“Coming Back To Life”
“On An Island”
“Today”
“Sorrow”
“Run Like Hell”
“Time” / “Breathe (In The Air)” (reprise)
“Comfortably Numb”

“The Great Gig In The Sky” excerpt:

“Wish You Were Here” excerpt:

“One Of These Days” video:

“Time” / “Breathe (In The Air)” excerpt:

“Today” excerpt:

“A Boat Lies Waiting” excerpt:

Deluxe Box Set unboxing video:

“Rattle That Lock”:

EPK Part 1:

EPK Part 2:

EPK Part 3:

Metal Blade Records announces the signing of up-and-coming doomsters Hamferð from the Faroe Islands.

Hamferð comments: "We're thrilled and proud to announce that we have signed a recording agreement with Metal Blade Records! Since we started out back in 2008 we have worked closely with our local label TUTL. The cooperation has been rewarding and our ties will not be severed completely. However, for the upcoming album and in the future we felt it was time to work with an internationally renowned metal label to hopefully help take Hamferð to the next level as a band. We feel positive and confident about Metal Blade's setup and their commitment towards quality as the label houses many of our favorite artists and has released a ton of groundbreaking releases. Their legacy and dedication to metal music is vital. Our new record has been a long time coming. Needless to say, we are extremely excited to finally set it up for release!"

Hamferð will release their new album in early 2018. Stay tuned for more news coming soon.

About Hamferð:

Hamferð refers to an apparition: the image of a person facing death, appearing before his or her loved ones as an omen.

"Faroese doom metal" is a powerful sound. Exclusive to this self-styled tag is Hamferð. For a near decade, the funeral dressed sextet has been casting a unique expression rooted in conceptual tragedy and intense, narrative doom metal.

"Hamferð is heavily inspired by our natural surroundings and our cultural heritage. Those aspects combine into unique feelings and atmospheres which we attempt to describe through our music", comments guitarist Theodor Kapnas.

Faroese history and folklore are mixed together with grand atmospheres, a trademark that has earned worldwide attention. Stages at festivals such as Inferno, Midgardsblot, Tuska, Summer Breeze, Wacken and many more have been turned into funerary ceremonies. Touring with bands like Amorphis and Moonsorrow has further garnered the band a respected reputation due to strong yet solemn live performances.

The lyrical and conceptual approach is ambitious in scope. People are drawn to it, even though the band sings in their native tongue, Faroese. With a highly engaging idea concerning lyrics and songwriting, the hour has arrived to close a conceptual trilogy which commenced with the 2010 EP Vilst er siðsta fet, continued with the internationally acclaimed 2013 full-length album Evst, and is now concluded with the new album, soon to be announced.

Check out a live video of Hamferð performing "Vrain" in the cathedral of Torshavn:

Hamferð lineup:

Jon Aldara - Vocals
John Egholm - Guitar
Theodor Kapnas - Guitar
Isak Petersen - Bass
Esmar Joensen - Keyboards
Remi Johannesen - Drums

(Photo - Beinta a Torkilsheyggi)

Atlanta rock 'n' roll tearaways, Biters, are streaming “Gunning For You”, an unreleased track from their album The Future Ain't What It Used To Be, available on CD and vinyl via the Earache Records shop, and digitally via iTunes.

“Gunning For You” is co-written and performed by Biters and KISS guitarist Tommy Thayer. Listen below:

See Biters on tour with HIM:

November
28 - Warsaw, Poland - Stodola
29 - Hamburg, Germany - Docks
30 - Hamburg, Germany - Docks

December
1 - Berlin, Germany - Columbiahalle
2 - Prague, Czech Republic - Forum Karlin
4 - Leipzig, Germany - Haus Auensee
5 - Munich, Germany - Tonhalle
6 - Zurich, Switzerland - X-tra
7 - Milan, Italy - Alcatraz
8 - Cologne, Germany - Palladium
10 - Esch-sur-Alzette, Luxembourg - Rockhal
11 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Paradiso
12 - Tilburg, Netherlands - 013
14 - Glasgow, UK - Barrowland
15 - Nottingham, UK - Rock City
16 - Manchester, UK - Academy
17 - London, UK - Roundhouse

Nestled within the looming embrace of seven mountains, the rugged, rain-swept coastline of Bjoergvin has spawned many extreme bands and musicians over the years, but none quite as iconic as Taake and its formidable founder Hoest, who is now back with a seventh full-length album.

Titled Kong Vinter (King Winter), the album is set for release via Dark Essence Records on November 24th in digipak CD, digital and vinyl formats, with the vinyl available in black, transparent and white versions. All are double, 180 gram LPs in a gatefold cover. Transparent and white are limited to 1000 each.

Kong Vinter is available for pre-order via the links below:

- Bandcamp
- EU Webshop
- US Webshop

Over the years Hoest has steered his creation with unerring accuracy through the mire of black metal. He has avoided the pitfalls of either stagnation or over-experimentation, and remained true to the spirit of the traditional Black Metal genre, whilst at the same time breathing fresh life into it.

True to form Hoest has spent three years working on Kong Vinter, ensuring that the album is imbued with the unique Taake sound, whilst at the same time taking it even further. It is deceptively familiar to the ear, yet it is unpredictable as it winds its way sinuously through a soundscape that only a mother could love. A soundscape underscored by a nasty groove, that at times can seem devilishly playful.

The result is an album that is both progressive and straight forward, with a touch of the devil's own music - rock’n’roll, making it unmistakably Taake. It is, in fact, an illustration as to why, for over two decades, Hoest has succeeded in remaining relevant and at the forefront of the genre.

Kong Vinter, on which Hoest plays all the instruments himself, was recorded and produced by Bjornar Nilsen (Vulture Industries) at his Conclave and Earshot Studios in Bergen. The album artwork was created by Tom Korsvold of Coverart.

Tracklisting:

“Sverdets Vei”
“Inntrenger”
“Huset i Havet”
“Havet i Huset”
“Jernhaand”
“Maanebrent”
“Fra Bjoergegrend mot Glemselen”
“On Top” (De Press cover, bonus track on the vinyl edition)

Portugal’s Lyzzärd have released their debut album, Savage, via Xtreem Music. The album is available for purchase here, and a full audio stream is available via the Bandcamp widget below.

Lyzzärd plays a fresh and powerful heavy metal rooted in traditional 80's bands combined with a modern approach in the vein of bands like Enforcer, Ambush, Skull Fist, White Wizzard, and Striker.

Tracklisting:

“Nightwatcher”
“Heavier Than Life”
“Savage”
“Yakuza”
“Fire”
“Living In The Dawn”
“Queen Of Vengeance”
“Survivor”
“Metalzone”
“Maniac” (Michael Sembello cover)

Album stream:

Savage by LYZZÄRD

“Yakuza” video:

For more on Lyzzärd, visit the band’s Facebook page.

(Photo - Rui Freitas)

Italy’s Psychedelic Witchcraft have released a lyric video for “Lords Of The War”, from their upcoming Sound Of The Wind album, out on November 3rd via Listenable Records. The clip can be found below. Order the new album here.

Reminiscent of the obscure side of the Italian music scene long ago led by Goblin and the world of haunting soundscapes of Ennio Morricone, Psychedelic Witchcraft formed in 2015 led by Italian singer Virginia Monti as a the main songwriter. The band has been honing their instruments on the ancient gods of doom and blues such as Black Sabbath, Led Zeppelin, Jefferson Airplane, Free among others, musically mixing blues/hard rock with an in depth occult lyrical imagery.

Tracklisting:

“Maat”
“Lords Of The War”
“Wild We Go”
“Sound Of The Wind”
“Turn Me On”
“Rising On The Edge”
“The Warrens”
“Sin Of Mine”
“Let Me Be Myself”
“Horizons”

“Lords Of The War” lyric video:

Sully Erna has confirmed that GODSMACK will enter the studio this winter to begin recording its follow-up to 2014's "1000hp" album. The group's seventh studio disc will be produced by Erik Ron (PANIC! AT THE DISCO, SAOSIN) and will arrive in 2018 to coincide with the twentieth anniversary of GODSMACK's debut album.

Speaking to FaceCulture before his September 15 solo concert at the Melkweg Max in Amsterdam, The Netherlands, Erna stated about GODSMACK's upcoming effort (see video below): "We're almost done writing it. We're gonna record it this winter. We're hoping to have the first single on the radio by January and we hope to have the record in everyone's hands across the world by hopefully April. And that'll be followed by a world tour. And we're gonna come back and I know we'll hit Europe at least a couple of times and the States and Japan and Australia and everywhere else we have to go."

Regarding the musical direction of the new GODSMACK songs, Erna said: "They have a lot more of a commercial aspect to 'em — so far. There's some stuff in there that definitely will service the core fanbase of GODSMACK. But we also felt that it's time to expand a little bit.

"We can continue to write the same record, but we're gonna have the same results," he explained. "And the way I see it is we're taking the first twenty years and we're logging that into our catalog. That was one chapter of our career, and that's the more nostalgic, vintage GODSMACK. And from this point forward, we're gonna try to reinvent a little bit more of our sound, our look, our stage show, and come out with a brand new GODSMACK. Because we've realized that since we came out twenty years ago, there's a whole new generation that's grown up that are now just starting to discover GODSMACK. And we wanna be smart about this and we also want to try to expand our fanbase without alienating the core audience."

Erna admitted that it's "a little challenging" trying to change up the formula more than two decades into GODSMACK's career. "We may lose some [fans] along the way, but hopefully we lose one, we gain twenty, and you can do the math at the end," he said.

Sully also talked about the significance of the twentieth anniversary of "Godmack", which went four times platinum in the U.S. and produced four Top 10 Mainstream Rock hits.

"The band's been together for twenty-three years, so coming up on our twentieth-year anniversary of our first record is a pretty big milestone to accomplish," he said. "I mean, when we started this, we would have never thought it was gonna be twenty years later and we're still going pretty strong. The band's getting along better than ever now, we've really come over a lot of mountains that were very challenging for us, and we're very proud of this brand. We built something that's really special to us and special to a lot of people, and so it's definitely something we're proud of. And I don't know how anybody couldn't be happy about that." Erna's latest comments echo those he made in July in an interview with "Whiplash", the KLOS radio show hosted by Full Metal Jackie. Speaking about how his songwriting is evolving, Erna remarked: "I'm not that young, angry kid that I used to be once. I'm a lot older now, I have a daughter of my own, I'm in a good place in my life. I don't have a whole lot to really be stressed out about or mad. And so the music has to evolve with that."

He continued: "So now where things are a little bit brighter and a little bit better, we're not gonna write about flowers and ice cream, but I certainly think that it's gonna have a little bit more positive of a message and I definitely think it's even gonna have a little bit more of a commercial edge to it. Because we're older now, and we wanna kind of continue to write and play music that we also enjoy and not always have to be in 'screamo' mode and chugging away."

Erna said that he wants to focus on composing "really well-written songs," adding, "I listen to a lot of great songwriters — Elton John, Michael Jackson, whoever it is that has been legendary and iconic. And I try once again to absorb and learn from them so we can put out the best record we can due to the year and the day and age that we're in."

GODSMACK's last release was a song called "Inside Yourself", which was made available in October 2015 as a free download at the band's official web site.

The new GODSMACK CD will be its first effort for BMG, following a split with the band's label home since 1998, Republic/Universal.

Heavy New York recently conducted an interview with legendary drummer brothers Carmine and Vinny Appice about their upcoming collaborative album, "Sinister", which is due on October 27 via SPV/Steamhammer. You can now watch the chat below.

Asked if there are any new drummers that they take inspiration from, Carmine said: "There's not a lot of new drummers that we know. The younger generation, they sit on the Internet and they find new bands. We don't do that. I mean, I don't have time to sit on the Internet and find new bands.

"We used to be able to turn the radio on and find new bands," he continued. "So a lot of these bands that make it, some of the drummers may be fantastic. Like I heard a drummer. Vinny, these guys opened up for you, BLACK STONE CHERRY. I found out that they just, on their latest album, did one of our CACTUS songs called 'Evil', and that song has a lot of drum fills, and the guy was great. I don't know his name, but he sounded great. But that's what I'm saying — there's a lot of bands that have great drummers and stuff, but because you're not getting albums no more, there's no drum heroes, no new drum heroes. It's unfortunate, because we used to, growing up, I was doing VANILLA FUDGE and all that stuff in '73, '74, and then Stewart Copeland came out in '78, which is eleven years after I made it, but he was awesome, and here you have a new drum hero. But now that don't happen anymore."

Carmine added: "It takes these bands years and years to make it. They're not on the radio. If you listen to classic rock radio, all you hear is the same stuff. There's no new radio in New York, there's no new radio in L.A. It's terrible. I mean, listen even to Sirius radio. How do you hear new stuff?"

Vinny also weighed in on the topic, telling Heavy New York: "I think at my age, I'm inspired out. I'm done with [being] inspired. There's just too many things out there. I was inspired totally by all the great drummers from the past. And, yeah, there's some great drummers out now, but that doesn't inspire me anymore. And even the thing, I can't do that [kind of stuff]; I don't play that. I've just got so much music in my life, I just concentrate on that, and I'm already inspired. [Laughs]"

Carmine continued: "We were both inspired by the greatest drummer of all time, Buddy Rich. He was the greatest. He did amazing things for the drum world. And there's nobody else like him. Because even these new players that are great, it's very clinical. Buddy played from the heart. He never even took a lesson. He was just unbelievable."

"Sinister" consists of a total of thirteen tracks, recorded by Carmine and Vinny together with distinguished colleagues. "Killing Floor" and "Future Past" feature the wonderful Craig Goldy (together with bassist Tony Franklin), Franklin resurfacing, together with Paul Shortino, on "Suddenly" and on "You Got Me Running". Shortino also lends his awesome vocals to "War Cry" and the programmatic "Monsters And Heroes", the latter also featuring BULLETBOYS guitarist Mick Sweda, while Shortino teams up with WHITESNAKE stringsman Joel Hoekstra on "War Cry". Talking of vocals: "Sinister", "Danger" (bass: Phil Soussan), "In The Night" (guitar: Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal) and "Sabbath Mash" (guitar: Erik Turner, keyboards: Erik Norlander) are all sung by Jim Crean, while Chas West recorded the vocal parts for "Killing Floor", Scotty Bruce featuring on "Future Past" and Robin McAuley on "Riot". The biggest surprise of all: Carmine himself doubles as vocalist on "You Got Me Running". Vinny says: "Carmine has been singing lead and background for years. He's a very good singer and I"m glad he sang one number on this record." "Sinister" will be released as CD digipack, double gatefold vinyl, download and stream.

Track listing:

01. Sinister02. Monsters And Heroes03. Killing Floor04. Danger05. Drum Wars06. Riot07. Suddenly08. In The Night09. Future Past10. You Got Me Running11. Bros In Drums12. War Cry13. Sabbath Mash

Lineup and guests

Carmine Appice (drums, vocals)Vinny Appice (drums)

Jim Crean (vocals)Paul Shortino (vocals) (ROUGH CUTT, ex-QUIET RIOT)Robin McAuley (vocals) (MSG)Chas West (vocals) (ex-LYNCH MOB)Scotty Bruce (vocals)

Craig Goldy (guitar) (ex-DIO, ex-GIUFFRIA)Bumblefoot (guitar) (ex-GUNS N' ROSES)Joel Hoekstra (guitar) (WHITESNAKE)Mike Sweda (guitar) (BULLETBOYS)Erik Turner (guitar) (WARRANT)David Michael Phillips (guitar) (KING KOBRA)

Tony Franklin (bass) (ex-BLUE MURDER, ex-THE FIRM)Phil Soussan (bass) (ex-OZZY OSBOURNE)Johnny Rod (bass) (KING KOBRA, ex-W.A.S.P.)Jorgen Carlson (bass) (GOV'T MULE)