Legendary bassist/vocalist Glenn Hughes (DEEP PURPLE, BLACK SABBATH, BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION, CALIFORNIA BREED) spoke to Billboard.com about his first solo album in eight years, which was recently completed at a studio in Copenhagen, Denmark for a tentative November release. Joining him during the sessions for the follow-up to 2008's "First Underground Nuclear Kitchen" were Søren Andersen (guitar), Pontus Engborg (drums) and Lachlan "Lachy" Doley (keyboards).

"It's possibly the heaviest record I've ever made," said Hughes. "I don't want to confuse it with horns-up heavy; it's not metal. But it's definitely fucking heavy. It's dense. It's dark. There's some aggression on this record. Every bloody track is begging to be played live."

Songtitles set to appear on Hughes's new album include "Let It Shine", "God Of Money" and "Steady", with RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS drummer Chad Smith, a regular Hughes collaborator, making a guest appearance.

While he was in the studio recording his new album, Hughes talked to Denmark's Metalized magazine about the musical diversity that has been his trademark throughout his four-decade-plus career.

"I never make the same album twice," he said. "Go back to the first TRAPEZE album. The second was different and the third one was different. And then you go to 'Burn', and 'Stormbringer' was different from that, and then 'Come Taste The Band'. You got HUGHES/THRALL and that was different from DEEP PURPLE. And then you go to 'Seventh Star' with Tony Iommi. That was different from HUGHES/THRALL. And then the blues album and then the Glenn solo albums."

He continued: "Although some of [my albums] have been very, very soulful and very, very funky, the key for me — as I am an Englishman that grew up in the West Midlands — is rock. But when I moved to America in the early seventies, I started to listen to what came out of Detroit. And I met Stevie Wonder. He became a very, very close friend and still is. He became my mentor.

"I need people to know that my success has come from the foundation of rock music. As much as I love THE BEATLES, Otis Redding and Stevie Wonder, when you think of Glenn Hughes, you think of the guy who plays bass and sings in any register."

Hughes added: "I am friends with a lot of famous rock stars and they are one genre. I wouldn't say who, but they have a one-genre-dimensional sound. You know it's them. And you know it's me because of my voice.

"I have been cursed and blessed with the ability to switch very quickly from rock to soul to funk to acoustic and almost into jazz — without scaring people. When you mix those ingredients, that's Glenn Hughes.

"This will be an album that is entirely Glenn Hughes music. For that reason, it is an important album."

Hughes previously credited his involvement with the supergroup BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION as the catalyst leading to his return to rock music. "What I will do on the next Glenn album is portray the image of the Glenn Hughes on the BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION albums," he told IHeartGuitarBlog.com in 2011. "Because it's the same Glenn that was in DEEP PURPLE, really. The classic rock iconic Glenn that, let's be clear, the majority of the fans want. The 'F.U.N.K.' album was very well recorded and I love the songs, but that's for a cultured audience and a different kind of audience. It's more of a cult audience, if you will. But my audience now with BLACK COUNTRY COMMUNION and a lot of my fans are rockers, man, so it's time to rock. So the next album will be a rock record."

Bobby Blotzer has defended his decision to go out on tour as RATT without any other original members of the band, explaining that fans just want to hear the music performed the way it was recorded on the group's albums.

The drummer has been touring the U.S. for the last few months with his own version of RATT, featuring several new members alongside bassist Robbie Crane, who previously played bass for RATT from 1996 to 2012 and appeared on the band's 1999 self-titled album and "Infestation".

"No matter what, this band plays so good and does such great integrity to the music of RATT," Blotzer told ClassX Radio in a new interview (hear audio below). "That's why everybody's been hired. It's been uncanny. Especially for the age of some of these guys. The lead guitar player, he just turned 22 about, I don't know, a half year ago or something, and he's amazing. He cops Warren's [DeMartini's] stuff amazingly. The singer just blows Stephen Pearcy out of the water at this day and age. And frankly, [he sounds better than Stephen did] even when we started out."

Blotzer also addressed the legal battle that is playing out between him and DeMartini over the rights to the RATT name, with the guitarist filing a lawsuit last fall claiming that the drummer was falsely advertising his "tribute band" as the real thing. That dispute is still pending in California state court.

"God bless Stephen and my other RATT cohorts," Blotzer said. "I mean, we made history; I recognize that, I appreciate it. We all wrote it together, wrote the music, rode the waves. But now, it's, like, okay, guys. There's three rafts left here. You're in or you're out. And it's been going on for five years. And I wanna finish the race. So that's where I'm at."

He continued: "I do not wanna insult anybody in the old-school RATT camp — I call it the class of '84 — but, you know, these guys were our own worst enemies. They're on a five-year strike thing that was going on between Juan Croucier [bass], who came back in after twenty years gone, and got Stephen riled up. And here we sat… last year was five years [that we were away from the road], [and] this would have been number six, and I was not willing to sit, as one of the owners of the name; DeMartini and myself own the name. And I'm, like, 'I've got a great band, Warren. Do you wanna come out and play with this band?' It'll be our band, obviously, but these are great. And he just didn't wanna have any part of it. So I said, 'I'm going out. I'm taking it out.'"

According to Blotzer, it is not unusual for other rock bands with long histories to still be on the road in incarnations that bear little resemblance to the formations that recorded the original albums.

"In this day and age, there's so much of that going on," Bobby said. "We actually made a list at one point. There was thirty-three bands that have one or two [original] members that are still out touring."

He continued: "FOREIGNER, for me, they're friends of mine; Jeff Pilson is a good friend of mine and a neighbor of mine. FOREIGNER has one [original member] and they go out and they deliver a great show and they make the songs sound like the records. And people don't deal with the crap. They wanna hear the songs sounding like the record, they wanna drink their beer and get out of their house on the weekend or whatever, and that's what we do in RATT. And we deliver a great show. We do a lot more stuff than [the classic lineup of] RATT was willing to do. [They would] not move around and not change the songs up in any way. We go the extra distance."

For all his praise for his version of RATT, Blotzer hinted at some disagreements behind the scenes, apparently stemming from the problems RATT encountered while performing at the First Council Casino in Newkirk, Oklahoma last weekend.

"We are a great band, that's all I can say," he said. "I'm so proud of us, you know. But I also wanna see people having their act together on every level. That includes me, too. Nobody's immune from the… from what we've gotta do out there.

"I'm doing all the work behind the scenes, and these cats, all they've gotta do is show up and do their part," he added.

"They'd better grow up real quick here, because there's a lot of sailors out there that would give their leg to go out on this ship."

Despite the fact that he has not yet reached an agreement with DeMartini over his use of the RATT name, Blotzer predicted that the new version of the band would stay on the road for the foreseeable future. "I think this week we're gonna do four or five dates. That'll top the forty-show mark [for this lineup of the band]," he said. "And on we go. We're booked through December 30 at this point, and they're already booking next year. So RATT is gonna be out there, man. The cast could change; it could stay the same. I don't know. It's like a football team. You want the team to win? You root for the team, 'cause you like the team. And we have a good team, and we have great songs, and we will perform those excellently."

Blotzer's revamped RATT is rounded out by vocalist Josh Alan (ex-SIN CITY SINNERS) and guitarists Doc Ellis (Jizzy Pearl's LOVE/HATE) and Nicholas "Blaze" Baum.

Three members of RATT's classic lineup — Pearcy, Croucier and DeMartini — reunited last week at a Los Angeles birthday party, leading to speculation that they were planning to launch their own version of the band that would not include Blotzer.

ARCH ENEMY held a press conference earlier today (Friday, August 5) at the Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany. You can now watch the question-and-answer session below.

Asked about ARCH ENEMY's plans for the coming months, guitarist Michael Amott said: "We're gonna release a live release — you know, a live album, a live DVD, live Blu-ray, whatever… all that whole thing. That's gonna be a very elaborate package, with a lot of bonus material and kind of telling the story from our two-year-old 'War Eternal' story. So that's a very exciting project, of course. And then we're also working on new songs. A new album is sort of there, somehow. We have about seven or eight new songs."

He continued: "We've just taken six months off the road, so we used some of that to write new material. I've been writing a lot, as I always have, and, of course, Alissa [White-Gluz, vocals] is still writing lyrics. And I've been writing with Jeff Loomis [guitar, ex-NEVERMORE] as well, our latest addition to the band. [I'm] very excited about that."

Amott also talked in more detail about the ARCH ENEMY songwriting process. He said: "We still do it the old-school way. We do some individual writing, but then it's not really an ARCH ENEMY song until everybody's jammed on it in our rehearsal room.

"We're in a fortunate position where we can still afford to hang out together and write music together in a room. And I think that's important for the true metal spirit. That's how I grew up playing, so I'm not really into only sending files on the Internet. I think we all much prefer to jam."

As previously reported, ARCH ENEMY will put on the biggest stage production of its career at the Wacken Open Air festival on Saturday, August 6 around midnight, making this the pinnacle of a highly successful album campaign. It all started in March 2014 when the band announced the new singer Alissa White-Gluz and the video for the album title track "War Eternal", which became the most successful video in the group's career and reached close to 20 million YouTube views.

The "War Eternal" album reached the highest U.S. and German chart positions in ARCH ENEMY's career and the band played over 200 shows in over 40 countries around the world. In late 2014, Jeff Loomis (ex-NEVERMORE) joined ARCH ENEMY during the world tour with KREATOR and in 2015 they played arenas as direct support of NIGHTWISH. Wacken Open Air won't be the last "War Eternal" show — dates are currently booked through the end of September, including a run of four U.K. headline shows this month — but it's going to be something very special.

In a recent interview with Roppongi Rocks, former ARCH ENEMY singer Angela Gossow, who is still involved in the band's management, ruled out a possible return to the group for some special appearances. She said: "For me personally — and the band — it's too early to consider. We've been asked a couple of times, but for the time being, it's a definite no."

ARCH ENEMY was rejoined by the band's original members Johan Liiva (vocals) and Christopher Amott (guitar) for their appearance at last year's edition of the Loud Park festival in October at Saitama Super Arena, Saitama, Japan.

Liiva and Christopher Amott along with current ARCH ENEMY members Michael Amott (guitar), Daniel Erlandsson (drums) and Sharlee D'Angelo (bass) toured Japan in May under the name BLACK EARTH.




Arch Enemy Wacken Press Conference

Posted by Arch Enemy on Friday, August 5, 2016

ARTE Concert conducted an interview with MINISTRY mainman Al Jourgensen at this year's Wacken Open Air festival, which is being held August 4-6 in Wacken, Germany. You can now watch the chat below.

Speaking about controversial Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, Jourgensen said: "Trump is not frightening; Trump is an idiot. What's scary is that three to four people out of ten people in America think that this would be a good idea to have him run our country and quite possibly the NATO alliance. This is not good. But I see the same pattern in Germany and France and Italy. The right wing makes this comeback because they play on people's fears and we saw this in the 1930s here, and this is history repeating, because people don't learn lessons, and Trump is a lesson that needs to be learned."

Jourgensen recently announced plans to record a new MINISTRY studio album to follow 2013's "From Beer To Eternity", despite previously saying there would be no further MINISTRY records after the death of longtime guitarist Mike Scaccia in 2012.

Jourgensen's new project, SURGICAL METH MACHINE, released its self-titled debut album on April 15 via Nuclear Blast. The CD was recorded primarily at Jourgensen's home studio in Burbank, California with his longtime engineer Sam D'Ambruoso.

Alan Dixon of The Metal Voice conducted an interview with vocalist Joakim Brodén and guitarist Chris Rörland of Swedish metallers SABATON at this year's Heavy Montreal festival, which is being held August 6-7 at Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. You can now watch the chat below.

Speaking about the recent announcement that guitarist Thobbe Englund will play his final gig with SABATON later this month in the band's hometown of Falun, at the group's Sabaton Open Air festival, as part of a release party for SABATON's new album, "The Last Stand", Joakim said: "We wear people out, I think. [Laughs] In a sense, it's part of the reason, actually.

"When we did the most intensive period we had in our career, it was 170 shows from April '14 to April '15 — twelve months there — of course, you don't play every day, so if you 170 shows, that probably means you were on the road, or away from home, for 270 days that year. So I totally understand why, even though most people get into doing this… I've seen it before, and it's gonna happen again, I guess, that people [are like], 'Yeah, of course, I don't wanna do anything else. And then, after a couple of years, [they're like], 'Oh, man. I thought I wanted this.' [Laughs]"

Thobbe stated about his decision to exit SABATON: "I have in recent years become more aware of what would make me feel real happiness and content, and that is to expand my own creativeness in combination with a somewhat stiller life, where I will not tour all year round at the speed of light."

"The Last Stand" will be released on August 19 via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2014's "Heroes" was once again produced by Peter Tägtgren (PAIN, LINDEMANN, HYPOCRISY) and it "marks a brand new chapter in SABATON history," according to a press release.

Alan Dixon of The Metal Voice conducted an interview with NIGHTWISH bassist/vocalist Marco Hietala at this year's Heavy Montreal festival, which is being held August 6-7 at Parc Jean-Drapeau in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. You can now watch the chat below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On whether some nights on tour are more challenging than others for NIGHTWISH singer Floor Jansen:

Marco: "I don't really know. I think she's a powerhouse. But, of course, some nights are more challenging, because, well, when you're touring, of course, you cannot be at your best every day; you might be lacking sleep, you might be a bit sick. For instance, what happened last time we were [touring North America] around February, that's not a good time to do touring in the northern states and Canada that much, because you get the flu season and all that and then you get three busloads of people who meet each other every day, and when they're drunk enough, they start kissing and cuddling each other, so everybody is catching it."

On what Floor Jansen brings to the band on the stage and in the recording studio:

Marco: "She brings a definite presence and charisma of totally her own. That is at least on the stage, and, of course, at the studios, at rehearsals, she's also very into knowing what's in the songs, knowing her lines, adjusting them to herself and all that. So she was probably already, when we started to do the album, she was way more into the rehearsals and all that, so then that you can hear also in the studio."

On NIGHTWISH's upcoming concert DVD, "Vehicle Of Spirit":

Marco: "[We are] still in the process [of putting it together]. We've doing editing and mixing and editing for quite a while; it's a big load of stuff to go through."

NIGHTWISH recently announced that it will take a year-long break in 2017 following the completion of the touring activities for the group's latest album, 2015's "Endless Forms Most Beautiful".

An unofficial 20th-anniversary show will be held on August 20 at Himos Park in Jämsä, Finland.

NIGHTWISH will release "Vehicle Of Spirit" on November 4. The DVD will feature the band's performance from London's Wembley Arena in the U.K., along with their show at Tampere, Finland's Ratina Stadion.

STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER, the revamped version of the cult '80s British metal act GRIM REAPER led by singer Steve Grimmett, will release its new album, "Walking In The Shadows", on September 23 via Dissonance Productions.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Wings Of Angels02. Walking In The Shadows03. Reach Out04. I'm Coming For You05. From Hell06. Call Me In The Morning07. Rock Will Never Die08. Temptation09. Thunder10. Now You See Me11. Blue Murder12. Come Hell Or High Water

"Walking In The Shadows" is GRIM REAPER's first new recording since 1987's "Rock You To Hell". Grimmett stated about the effort: "I am tremendously proud of the album. It has taken a long time because it has been fraught with problems, but we have ended up with the best thing I have done in decades. We're all looking forward to bring it to the fans and excited to be doing a world tour, starting straight after its release, and carrying on until 2017." Surrounding himself with an all-new band, Grimmett recently completed a 22-date North American tour. The trek included stops in New York, Philadelphia, Detroit, Chicago, Milwaukee, Seattle, Los Angeles, San Antonio, and Austin. Due to its success, the band recently announced a planned return in the autumn to support the new album after release. Original GRIM REAPER guitarist Nick Bowcott joined STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER on stage on March 25 at 4 D's Bar & Grill in Fort Wayne, Indiana to perform several of the band's classic songs. Check out fan-filmed video footage below.

Bowcott previously played with STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER in 2014, marking the first time Steve and Nick appeared on stage together in more than 25 years.

STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER is:

Steve Grimmett - VocalsIn Nash - GuitarChaz Grimaldi - BassPaul White - Drums

GRIM REAPER's debut album, "See You In Hell", was released in 1984 and was distributed worldwide through RCA. A successful world tour in support of the album included an appearance at Texxas Jam in front of over 20,000 people. The band's 1985 follow-up, "Fear No Evil", showed improvement on the production front and also enjoyed moderate success in both the United States and Europe.

Ebony Records delayed the release of the band's third album, "Rock You to Hell", by almost two years. The LP eventually arrived directly through RCA in 1987.

The back catalog from GRIM REAPER was reissued in Japan in October 2008 via RCA/BMG.

TRINITY FALLEN, the new band featuring former TESTAMENT bassist Greg Christian alongside members of SCORCHED-EARTH POLICY and NUCLEAR RABBIT, made its live debut this past Friday, August 5 at Slim's in San Francisco, California.

Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

TRINITY FALLEN is:

Judd Mason (SCORCHED-EARTH POLICY) - VocalsJason Branyan (NUCLEAR RABBIT) - GuitarGreg Christian (TESTAMENT) - BassTimothy Bailey (NUCLEAR RABBIT) - Drums

Christian recently stated about his acrimonious January 2014 exit from TESTAMENT: "It was all wrong. I lost control and spouted off like an idiot, which I regret, but the plain truth about the way I was treated by my bros and partners, after spending decades helping to build something — twice — is: it truly was cruel and unusual, there was never any reason for it, and no possible way to justify it. Period. The end. (And if anyone disagrees — I don't care.) It happened. It's done. I can't really say it's 'over,' because the imbalance hasn't been corrected, but it is behind me. I let it go."

He added: "Forgiveness can be tough for us human animals, but it is our only hope at ever finding inner peace. Right?? Despite everything — I really do wish them well."

Christian also said about his new band: "[I am] a little disappointed my new bandmates' histories have mostly been ignored [by the press] and every mention of TRINITY FALLEN seems to only focus on me.

"It wasn't my cup of tea, but NUCLEAR RABBIT has serious high-level (bad-ass) musicianship. (If you doubt that — listen to 'Intestinal Fortitude' and tell me how easy those songs would be to play, hahaha)

"TRINITY FALLEN is 'a band,' not 'my project,' and though all the songs (so far) started off as my arrangements, they've evolved past anything I could've came up with on my own. Tim, Jason and Judd have made huge contributions to all of it, and together we've crafted a sound that, in my opinion, is unique. Especially in this day and age.

"We're not a thrash band, more like a heavy metal / hard rock band.

"There are no stylistic 'rules' or preconceptions. We never sat down and said, 'Let's write 'this kind' of song.' We wrote what came out.

"And since this isn't straight thrash, I know I'll get some haters, but I think a lot lot more folks will be pleasantly surprised by the variety and depth of the TRINITY FALLEN material. It's all about the songs.

"And don't misunderstand, some of it is brutally heavy but some is really melodic, and it pretty much all grooves and bounces — and is full of hooks. More like a modern-day version of old BLACK SABBATH or LED ZEPPELIN than any contemporary bands I can think of.

"To me, a lot of today's heavy music (at least on recording) is cut, pasted, quantized and sound replaced into sterility. TRINITY FALLEN isn't that. It's modern-day / old-school rock 'n' roll."

Over 75,000 fans were rocked at the Wacken Open Air music festival in Germany this weekend as the late Ronnie James Dio reunited with his bandmates via hologram. The surprise performance took place at the end of DIO DISCIPLES' set to close the world's largest annual live heavy metal event. DIO DISCIPLES features members of the DIO band, which last performed with Ronnie in 2008 before he passed away two years later, leaving a void in the rock community. Eyellusion, a hologram entertainment company focused on the live music market, created the hologram and produced the groundbreaking performance. Almost one year in the making, Eyellusion's Ronnie James Dio production represents the world's first rock hologram performance and the first time a hologram has been accompanied by a live band in a traditional concert setting. The Wacken Open Air festival marked the debut of the Ronnie James Dio hologram, which features the singer's actual live vocals and will be toured globally in 2017, with further details to be announced. "When I first experienced the full production of Ronnie performing with his band as a hologram, I couldn't believe my eyes and ears," said Wendy Dio, who manages DIO DISCIPLES and is also a member of the Eyellusion team, supporting industry relations. "With Eyellusion, we have been able to get Ronnie back up on stage where he belongs, ensuring that his music and memory live on. I want Ronnie's fans around the world to share this experience." "We know how much the fans miss Ronnie and the special and unequaled element that he brought to his live performances," said Craig Goldy, lead guitarist for DIO DISCIPLES. "Being able to recreate that same kind of magic for his fans at Wacken was incredible. For so many years Ronnie always invested big in his live shows as his way to give back to the fans, and that is exactly what we aimed to do with this latest performance. We can't wait to bring this experience to even more of his fans and perhaps even a newer generation when we bring this incredible live experience on the road next year."

"At first I did not know what to think or to expect. But after I got over the initial surprise, it felt like Ronnie was still with us. It was wonderful, sad and emotional," stated David James of California, a fan present for the performance at Wacken Open Air.

"I have watched quite a few hologram clips online and nothing can compare to the performance here tonight at Wacken — this was the most realistic of all. Amazing! Ronnie James Dio and metal will live forever," added Anna Lorenz, a 25-year-old fan from Germany, also in attendance. "Eyellusion is creating the best hologram content and live music productions for a completely new concert experience," said Jeff Pezzuti, CEO of Eyellusion. "We're taking every step to capture the excitement and energy that comes from seeing your favorite band perform live. That means when the lights go down in the venue, the amps are loud, the band sounds great and the pyro is blinding. We are creating an entirely new way for fans to experience their favorite music." Touring remains a viable revenue stream for many artists as music industry business models continue to evolve. However, it is not always financially or physically feasible to get to every market where there is demand. Further, massive loyal fan bases still exist for artists that are no longer able to tour or that can only do a set number of dates within a year. Eyellusion is expanding touring opportunities for emerging and established acts alike. In addition to unique shows based around digital recreations of artists, Eyellusion can stream live holographic performances of one show to many locations, opening global possibilities to play new markets and venues. "The economics of making music are changing, with tours being more important than ever," said Wendy Dio. "For artists who have been blessed with legions of fans around the world, the question is how to continue meeting the demand for your music. At the same time, newer acts are thinking about how to build a following and reach more people. Today, all artists need to find new, modern ways to connect with fans and Eyellusion is supporting those efforts." Eyellusion's hologram and live production focus spans a range of genres, including rock, country, pop, EDM and more. Key team members include Wendy Dio, who supports industry relations, veteran rock manager Todd Singerman and Pat DiNizio of THE SMITHEREENS, who support artist relations, and Kenny Aronoff, world-renowned live and studio drummer, who supports business development and technical live production efforts. Chad Finnerty at Digital Frontier FX is Eyellusion's exclusive content creation partner, working directly with clients to help bring every project vision to the live stage. Legendary Hollywood digital effects executive Scott Ross advises Eyellusion on overall content production. "Holograms represent a major opportunity for live music and fan engagement, but they have to be done right," said Pezzuti. "We believe we've cracked the code on delivering the highest quality hologram-based events, creating the ultimate live music experience that keeps fans coming back. The Eyellusion team's unmatched production capabilities and deep music industry ties bring crucial industry knowledge to our collaboration with artists as we work toward a shared vision of creating unforgettable shows. We can't wait to see music fans everywhere on the road." Photo by PG Brunelli

All hail Ronnie James Dio. @OfficialRJDio #Wacken pic.twitter.com/bh6ZuMnZWM

— Wacken Open Air (@Wacken) August 7, 2016

Wow. Ronnie James Dio just made an appearance - as an hologram. Strange, but great. Feels good. @OfficialRJDio pic.twitter.com/PFO4g17q5U

— Wacken Open Air (@Wacken) August 7, 2016

Front-row fan-filmed video footage of GUNS N' ROSES' entire August 5 concert at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas can be seen below.

As previously reported, the production manager for the current GUNS N' ROSES reunion tour shed some light on the trek's future and inner workings in a new interview with local Atlanta TV station WXIA. Speaking one day before the group's July 27 concert there, Dale "Opie" Skjerseth said that the "Not In This Lifetime" tour has "no end date," and that shows are already booked "far into next year."

Skjerseth said that all members of the band are "getting along just fine" and shot down speculation that they have separate dressing rooms due to tension within the ranks, Skjerseth said, "Just because everybody's older, they carry their families with them. They all have to have their space. Everybody meets before we go on stage. It's a meeting point and that's where the chemistry happens."

The tour features classic lineup members Axl Rose, Slash and Duff McKagan on stage together for the first time in more than 20 years.

Asked if it was money or music that brought the core members back together, Skjerseth said: "I believe it starts with the love of the band. And then of course we all want money."

Regarding the future of the tour, Skjerseth said, "I've been told there's no end date, and I've seen plenty of dates going into next year, far into next year. Everybody's working together to keep a common goal and common direction: keep the machine going."

Skjerseth also discussed how Axl Rose is managing to get onstage on time, as opposed to previous tours when he was notorious for starting shows sometimes hours behind schedule. Skjerseth said, "We're all older and want to get to bed now. It's his maturity and business and how it should be. Everybody feels good about it."

The "Not In This Lifetime" tour will play AT&T Park in San Francisco, California on Tuesday, August 9.

Casey Grillo of KAMELOT has started recording drums for the second metal album from female vocalist Pamela Moore — who is best known for her performance as Sister Mary on QUEENSRŸCHE's 1988 epic release "Operation: Mindcrime" and 2006's sequel "Operation: Mindcrime II".

Grillo states: "I've always wanted to work with Pamela. I have been a huge fan. 'Operation: Mindcrime' was, and still is, one of my favorite recordings of all time. Her most recent release, 'Resurrect Me', made big waves in the metal industry too. So I'm super excited and very humbled to be asked to play, especially by one of my favorite singers."

A collaboration between Moore and Michael Posch, one of Chicago's favorite power metal guitar players who made noise as a founding member of Century Media artists RADAKKA, "Resurrect Me" was released in May 2013 via Rat Pak Records. The effort was described in a press release as "an album written in timeless fashion that explores a creative landscape missed by the music industry."

Regarding how she first became involved with Posch, Moore told RockRevolt: "I approached him to ask him if he would write a few songs with me, mainly because he put together this great musical piece. I really loved what he did and I thought we should try doing this. Everything that he was sending me was great, and there were very few that I didn't end up using. I think we were just feeding off each other, and everything that we came up with was what the other was imagining."

She continued: "['Resurrect Me'] is the album that I have always wanted to do. I've always wanted it to be on the heavier side and show off my vocal range. There's also a lot of room for me to be very creative with melody."

Photos: Tim Tronckoe / Ronnie Yonker (courtesy of Casey Grillo)

"Clap Like Ozzy", a brand new song from Venice, California crossover thrash/hardcore punk legends SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, can be streamed below. The trak is taken from the band's new album, "World Gone Mad", which will be released on September 30. The follow-up to 2013's "13" disc will be the band's first to feature former SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo and guitarist Jeff Pogan, who replaced Nico Santora in May.

"World Gone Mad" track listing:

01. Clap Like Ozzy02. The New Degeneration03. Living For Life04. Get Your Fight On!05. World Gone Mad06. Happy Never After07. One Finger Salute08. Damage Control09. The Struggle Is Real10. Still Dying To Live11. This World

Lombardo recently told Metal Wani about ST's forthcoming CD: "I think it's very typical and very traditional SUICIDAL TENDENCIES. It's that style. It's [SUICIDAL TENDENCIES frontman] Mike Muir and he was a very special style in which he writes his music and his lyrics and his structures. And I love it; I love it. It takes me back to how it all started, which was that punk attitude. I'm very happy to be a part of his organization. I feel very welcomed. I feel very much appreciated, and there's a lot of respect amongst the musicians, and camaraderie. We have a really good time together. We hang out as a band, which is important; I feel it's very important."

In an interview with Jump Metal, Muir stated about Lombardo's musical contribution to the upcoming SUICIDAL TENDENCIES album: "It's interesting, because a lot of people, obviously, associate [Dave] with the SLAYER sound. On some of the SUICIDAL songs, it's different musically, and you can see how really a tremendously diverse drummer that he is. I think some of the songs, obviously, people that love his drumming, they're gonna hear it and they're gonna really, really, I think, enjoy it. He's really excited about it. He's getting to play some different kind of things, and it just brings a whole different intensity and rhythmic feel to the band. And he's definitely got the Cuban thing going on, that Latin flavor, where he gets to do a little bit more in SUICIDAL than he did in SLAYER. I think you hear it and you definitely know it's Dave, but it definitely takes us to another level."

SUICIDAL TENDENCIES' last album, "13", came out in March 2013. The band's first studio CD in 13 years sold around 3,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 187 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Seattle, WA progressive doom metal band Lesbian will release its new album, Hallucinogenesis, on August 26th via Translation Loss Records. Produced, recorded and mixed by Randall Dunn (Sunn O))), Wolves in the Throne Room, Boris) at Seattle's Avast! Recording Company (Earth, High On Fire), the record features four towering tracks of the group's "Pre-Historic Phantasy Thrash" and is the follow-up to Lesbian's 2013 LP, Forestelevision, a one song, 44-minute release. Hallucinogenesis also marks the recording debut of new Lesbian vocalist B.R.A.D Mowen (Asva, Master Musicians of Bukkake, Accused), who joined the band in 2015. Album track, "Pyramidal Existinctualism" is streaming below.

"'Hallucinogenesis tells a fantastical story of a spore-filled asteroid that collides with earth and forever alters its history and the course of consciousness," said the band of the album's concept. "The impact of this fungal explosion signals a new dawn of creation called 'Pyramidal Existinctualism'. As meteorites are pulled towards the sun, they collide, levitate, circulate, then populate. One of the few survivors of this catastrophe is the Kosmoceratops. It’s time to bow to the new lord of this world."

In keeping with the record's surreal storyline, its cover artwork was designed by distinguished heavy metal artist Dan Seagrave (Morbid Angel, Entombed).

In addition to Mowen, Lesbian features Daniel Joseph La Rochelle (guitar), Dorando Peter Hodous (bass, vocals), Arran Emory McInnis (guitar, keyboards) and Benjamin Paul Thomas-Kennedy (drums, percussion).

Tracklisting:

“Pyramidal Existinctualism”
“Labrea Borealis”
“Kosmoceratops”
“Aqualibrium” 

"Pyramidal Existinctualism":

 

Preorders are being taken at this location.

Only three weeks are left until Swedish adventure metallers, Twilight Force, will release their label debut entitled Heroes Of Mighty Magic, on August 26th through Nuclear Blast. After launching several trailers with details about the record during the last weeks, the time has come to reveal another chapter of this upcoming musical journey. Lyric video “To The Stars” is streaming below.

The band commented:

"'To The Stars’ is our fastest song to date, and something rather different from our previous works. It is a song that intriguingly strays slightly from the tonal path of Heroes Of Mighty Magic, and brings a rejuvenating and swift gust of wind to the overall experience. With guitar work faster than the speed of might, soaring starlit vocals and a soundscape filled with cosmic powermagic, 'To The Stars' is a song about a perilous journey through arcane planes and distant firmaments to restore light and magic, and to transcend time. The stars are calling you for the eternal destiny of fate!"

Heroes Of Mighty Magic tracklisting:

“Battle Of Arcane Might”
“Powerwind”
“Guardian Of The Seas”
“Flight Of The Sapphire Dragon”
“There And Back Again”
“Riders Of The Dawn”
“Keepers Of Fate”
“Rise Of A Hero”
“To The Stars”
“Heroes Of Mighty Magic”
“Epilogue”
“Knights Of Twilight's Might”

"To The Stars" lyric video:

“Battle Of Arcane Might” lyric video:

Trailer #1:

Trailer #2:

Trailer #3:

Trailer #4:

"This next opus of Twilight Force will be a journey unlike any you have ever experienced. While we are still staying true to the essence of power metal, the songs, sounds and magic adventures have all evolved from the once drake hatchling into a colossal arcane arch-dragon. The time, effort and primordial wisdom that we have invested into this album is truly immeasurable, and we profoundly hope that this will shine through upon our venerated audience."

(Photo - Twilight Force Facebook)

After a small hiatus and lineup change, Candada’s Chariots Of The Gods return in 2016 full force with an new album, Ages Unsung, set for release on September 16th. Creating a Kickstarter / pre-order campaign (thank you video below), COTG surpassed their goal of $3,000 and recorded the album at The Grid with legendary Montreal producer Chris Donaldson (Cryptopsy, The Agonist, Beyond Creation, Neuraxis).

The band has posted a teaser video with studio and music clips for fans to check out:

COTG are also streaming the first single, “Into Oblivion”, which features a guitar solo from Pascal Jobin of The Agonist. Check it out below.

Ages Unsung tracklisting:

“Primordial Dawn”
“Tusk”
“Of Prometheus And The Sacred Flame”
“War of The Gods”
“As The Sky Falls”
“Resurrection”
“Through Darkness And Decay”
“Into Oblivion”
“New World”
“Ages Unsung”

“Into Oblivion”:

Multi-national rock act, Blues Pills, today released their new album, Lady In Gold, via Nuclear Blast. A new video trailer can be found below. Just as its successful predecessor, Lady In Gold, was once again produced by Don Alsterberg (Graveyard, Division Of Laura Lee, José González, Jerry Williams).

Tracklisting:

“Lady In Gold”
“Little Boy Preacher”
“Burned Out”
“I Felt A Change
“Gone So Long”
“Bad Talkers”
“You Gotta Try”
“Won’t Go Back”
“Rejection”
“Elements And Things”

"Little Boy Preacher" lyric video:

“Lady In Gold” video:

Trailer #1:

Trailer #2:

Trailer #3:

Trailer #4:

Trailer #5:

Blues Pills recently shot a music video for the song “I Felt A Change”. A few photos from the set of the music video, which is expected to be released soon, can be seen below:

With a penchant for horror and classic rock, Arizona quartet Take Over And Destroy have propelled the boundaries with the 10 tracks featured on their debut Prosthetic Records self-titled release due October 7th. Merging their eerie post-punk atmospherics with a blackened rock'n'roll twist, the band's signature sound is completed by heavy deathrock, classic rock, doom and black metal influences scattered throughout each track.

Take Over And Destroy commented, "Our idea behind this album is that each song is crafted as a single and curated into a collection. From early Beatles singles collections, to Misfits & Black Flag collections. Each song is its own entity, but is part of a unified design. To accompany the album we wanted the visual elements to portray the same concept. A collage of individual images converge together to form a whole". The band continue to reveal, "The album includes a double sided cover, with collages on both sides of the packaging. Another dimension presents itself by turning the covers upside down; a new image emerges."

Honing in on their cinematic inspirations, the quartet have showcased the album's debut single, "By Knife", with an unnerving, found footage shot music video.

"The video tells a story of a young couple in love", the band states, "They are at their usual spot along the river having a romantic picnic date. What they don't know is that they're not alone. Those familiar with famous murders of the 60's and 70's may notice correlations with a certain unidentified astrological killer in both the video and music.Although the video takes place in a nonspecific time era, we do know that there's someone out there who is quite handy with a VHS camcorder. Just remember... life's not always a picnic."

The video can be seen below.

Tracklisting:

“By Knife”
“Leave The Door”
“Let Me Grieve”
“Separate From The Shadows”
“Out Of Frame”
“Red Ink”
“Job Coffins”
“Love Among The Ruins”
“Bring Me The Rope”
“Night Work Begins”

“By Knife” video:

Produced by Bob Hoag (The Bled, Hour Of The Wolf) at Flying Blanket Studios, Take Over And Destroy will be offered in limited quantities on vinyl (black and purple/green swirl variants) and on CD. Pre-orders are currently available for US/CAN, and UK/EU.

Take Over And Destroy is:

Andrew Leemont- Vocals
Alex Bank Rollins - Guitar / Vocals
Pete Porter - Bass
Jason Tomaszewski - Drums

Excellion will release their Unsean EP tomorrow, Saturday, August 6th. A full stream of the EP can be found below.

“For Unsean we took a different approach totally; it is our first work since we established ourselves in Mexico City. We’re all sharing the same home right now, so it was a new interesting way to write music for Excellion,” commented backing vocalist and bassist Adrian Vilbel. “We were all involved in the moment when someone had an idea and he just called the rest of the group, and just like that, suddenly we were working on a whole song right there. It didn’t matter if it was late at night or too early in the morning, it has been a fun ride and we’re really proud of the results we’ve gotten.”

The title of the EP, Unsean, is not a typo but rather a wordplay. As singer and guitarist Frozen Chava explains: “There seems to be a lot of people that believe it’s a typo and well, it’s definitely not, but we expected that too when we decided to name our new work like that. It’s actually a word play where we used “Unseen” and at the same time “Sea” because that’s exactly the concept behind this new music. We humans actually know more about the space than the sea, it’s shocking that we only know about five percent of this vast amount of water on the Earth’s surface and that’s something to reflect about. There is a lot of mystery and things to discover down there, so yeah, that’s what UnSEAn is really about.”

Speaking about the creative process that informed Unsean, guitarist Frank Markz said: “We’ve always wanted to express the way we feel at the time when we focus on writing something new, so this was no exception. Actually it has a lot to do with the changes that were happening with our lives. We were moving to a new city, we were adapting ourselves to this new life, there were a lot of things we didn’t know at the moment and had to learn the hard way. The list can go on but I think you got the point by now, so we focused on looking for something to reflect those feelings and that’s how the “UnSEAn” project was born. That’s why you can see a Lion with horns under the water for the cover art — there’s some strange life form learning to adapt itself to a completely different environment, one that he or she isn’t used to.”

Drummer Omar Avley added: “To tell the truth, it has been an interesting concept to work on and we believe there will be a lot of people out there who will identify themselves with the same story. We really hope you guys enjoy these songs.”

Tracklisting:

“Unsean Pt. 1 – In Search Of Infinity”
“Unlucky Charms”
“The Courier”
“Diablo Jr”
“Unsean Pt. II – The Heart Of The Sapphire”

EP stream:

Video teaser:

"Unlucky Charms" video:

Valient Thorr released their Napalm Records debut and seventh full-length release, Old Salt, on July 29th. Now the band have released a music video for the track “Looking Glass”, which can be found below.

They came from Venus to destroy the cities. Valient Thorr is a wild ass rock ’n roll band said to hail from inside of the planet Venus. Since crash landing on Earth in the year 2000, they've played well over 1,500 shows all over the world. They've toured with visionaries from Motörhead and Joan Jett to contemporary heroes like Mastodon, Gogol Bordello, and Clutch. Since 2005 they have put out six full-length records and two seven inches! And just so you don't think we're blowing smoke, look them up! This is only the cusp of the feats of greatness this hard working, sweat drenched band has accomplished!

Valient Himself commented on the new album: "Old Salt wouldn't have happened if it wasn't for Eidan Thorr. He helmed this beast & put the wheels in motion. What is it about? If you ask me it's about stepping into the future as an artist while trying to anticipate what comes next using that old man logic that comes with age- that no one ever tells you about until it's time to say "if I'd known then what I know now". All the best old storytellers aren't just weaving you yarns. They are recounting from experiences. And believe me, we've had plenty of those in the last few years."

Order your copy of Old Salt in exclusive bundle packages here.

Old Salt tracklisting:

“Mirakuru”
“Lil Knife”
“Cut And Run”
“No Count Blues”
“The Trudge”
“Worm Up”
“Spellbroke”
“Linen Maker”
“The Shroud”
“Looking Glass”
“Jealous Gods”

“Looking Glass” video:

Album preview:

“Mirakuru” video:

“No Count Blues” lyric video:

Makes Me Think Of Home, the sixth solo studio album from former Stiltskin and Genesis frontman, Ray Wilson, will be released on October 7th. This release comes hot on the heels of Song For A Friend, an acoustic album released earlier this year and which garnered great reviews.

Makes Me Think Of Home is a mix of pop, rock and prog which showcases Ray’s remarkable voice. The title track sees Ray looking back to his days living in Scotland, a country he left after finding love with a Polish dancer. He moved to Poznan eight years ago, and in this ambitious and very moving track he reflects on his years trying to find peace and happiness in Edinburgh.

The album also contains subtle humour; particularly in the first single “Amen To That”. The track is accompanied by a multi-layered video production in which Ray showcases his acting skills as he takes on multiple characters in a range of unusual professions. The intense 7-day shoot produced what is undoubtedly the best video of Ray’s career and which takes the instantly memorable “Amen To That” to another level, throwing in some unexpected twists along the way.

The album also touches on complex contemporary Scottish issues such as The Scottish Referendum with "They Never Should Have Sent You Roses”, exploring how it divided families and a nation. Also, widespread alcoholism, which affected one of Ray's close family members, is challenged in "The Next Life”, and having to fight these demons alone in "Anyone Out There". He also has time to pay homage to one of the world’s best-loved cartoon strips with “Calvin And Hobbes”.

Reflecting on his latest work, Ray says, “Makes Me Think of Home encompasses the joy of freedom we have all come to enjoy and perhaps take for granted as well as the fear of solitude. It highlights the many imperfections that make us special and reminds us not to fear them, but to embrace them. In the words of Leonard Cohen. "There is a crack in everything. That's how the light gets in”.”

Tracklisting:

“Never Should Have Sent You Roses”
“The Next Life”
“Tennessee Mountain”
“Worship The Sun”
“Makes Me Think Of Home”
“Amen To That”
“Anyone Out There”
“Don't Wait For”
“Calvin And Hobbes”
“The Spirit”

“Amen To That” video:

 

 

Alpha Omega Management has announced the addition of Funeral Nation to its roster.

Chicago, Illinois' thrash/black metal act Funeral Nation - formed in 1989 by former members of the bands Funeral Bitch and Abomination - has released two full-length albums, two EPs, a live album, a compilation album, and various demos. The band's latest effort Open Wide The Gates Of Hell (remastered version of Second Coming) came out worldwide in May 2015. Funeral Nation has been busy working on their newest full length CD/LP Before The Dawn, set to be released on Halloween, including all new material, recorded in 2016.

Comments the band:

"Funeral Nation is proud to be joining the Alpha Omega family, and to be added to its impressive roster of bands. We believe we can accomplish many things with such a talented team to work with. We are planning a US tour in fall 2016 to support the new release, and are hoping to make it back to Europe in 2016/2017. We have already shows booked well into 2017 and are looking forward to playing many new places."

Alpha Omega Management adds:

"We are pleased to welcome these legendary black metal thrashers in Funeral Nation to our family! This trio has been around since 1989 and the upcoming album has all the right ingredients to confirm the fact that these guys have still a lot to offer to their audience! Stay tuned!"

Swedish heavy metal heroes Sabaton will release their new album, The Last Stand, on August 19th via Nuclear Blast. To give their fans a taste of what to expect from the bonus DVD, which is included with the Digibook and Earbook formats, the live clip for "The Art Of War" (live at Stereolux in Nantes, France) has been released.

A fourth video trailer for the new album, once again produced by Peter Tägtgren (Pain, Hypocrisy), was recently released. All four trailers can be seen below:

Trailer #1

Trailer #2:

Trailer #3:

Trailer #4:

The album can be pre-ordered in various formats here, or digitally here.

CD+DVD tracklisting:

CD
“Sparta”
“Last Dying Breath”
“Blood Of Bannockburn”
“Diary Of An Unknown Soldier”
“The Lost Battalion”
“Rorke’s Drift”
“The Last Stand”
“Hill 3234”
“Shiroyama”
“Winged Hussars”
“The Last Battle”

Bonus:
“Camouflage”
“All Guns Blazing”

DVD - Live @ Stereolux, Nantes (France)
“Intro (The March To War)”
“Ghost Division”
“Far From The Fame”
“Uprising”
“Midway”
“Gott Mit Uns”
“Resist And Bite”
“Wolfpack”
“Dominium Maris Baltici”
“Carolus Rex”
“Swedish Pagans”
“Soldier Of 3 Armies”
“Attero Dominatus”
“The Art Of War”
“Wind Of Change”
“To Hell And Back”
“Night Witches”
“Primo Victoria”
“Metal Crüe”

CD tracklisting:

“Sparta”
“Last Dying Breath”
“Blood Of Bannockburn”
“Diary Of An Unknown Soldier”
“The Lost Battalion”
“Rorke’s Drift”
“The Last Stand”
“Hill 3234”
“Shiroyama”
“Winged Hussars”
“The Last Battle”

Earbook tracklisting:

CD
“Sparta”
“Last Dying Breath”
“Blood Of Bannockburn”
“Diary Of An Unknown Soldier”
“The Lost Battalion”
“Rorke’s Drift”
“The Last Stand”
“Hill 3234”
“Shiroyama”
“Winged Hussars”
“The Last Battle”

Bonus:
“Camouflage”
“All Guns Blazing”
“Afraid To Shoot Strangers”

DVD - Live @ Stereolux, Nantes (France)
“Intro (The March To War)”
“Ghost Division”
“Far From The Fame”
“Uprising”
“Midway”
“Gott Mit Uns”
“Resist And Bite”
“Wolfpack”
“Dominium Maris Baltici”
“Carolus Rex”
“Swedish Pagans”
“Soldier Of 3 Armies”
“Attero Dominatus”
“The Art Of War”
“Wind Of Change”
“To Hell And Back”
“Night Witches”
“Primo Victoria”
“Metal Crüe”

Live CD - Live @ Stereolux, Nantes (France)
“Intro (The March To War)”
“Ghost Division”
“Far From The Fame”
“Uprising”
“Midway”
“Gott Mit Uns”
“Resist And Bite”
“Wolfpack”
“Dominium Maris Baltici”
“Carolus Rex”
“Swedish Pagans”
“Soldier Of 3 Armies”
“Attero Dominatus”
“The Art Of War”
“Wind Of Change”
“To Hell And Back”
“Night Witches”
“Primo Victoria”
“Metal Crüe”

2LP - 45 RPM tracklisting

Side A
“Sparta”
“Last Dying Breath”
“Blood Of Bannockburn”
“Diary Of An Unknown Soldier”
“The Lost Battalion”

Side B
“Rorke’s Drift”
“The Last Stand”
“Hill 3234”
“Shiroyama”

Side C
“Winged Hussars”
“The Last Battle”

Side D (Bonus)
“Camouflage”
“All Guns Blazing”

"Blood Of Bannockburn" lyric video:

“The Lost Battalion” lyric video:

Sabaton are parting ways with guitarist Thobbe Englund.

Says the band: Our colleague and brother Thobbe Englund has decided to part ways with Sabaton. We wish him nothing but success and good luck in the future, and we salute him for all the good years and the fantastic moments we shared both on and off the stage!”

Thobbe Englund states: “ Today I have decided to announce my leave from Sabaton. Why? …many may ask. There is this thing that I truly believe in, and that is that one should always follow the heart.

“I have in recent years become more aware of what would make me feel real happiness and content, and that is to expand my own creativeness in combination with a somewhat stiller life, where I will not tour all year round at the speed of light. Unfortunately as a consequence I will not be able to meet all of you wonderful people out there, which is sad, and I'm really gonna miss you all. But I will still be making music, of course, and as I am writing this I am making plans for the future.

“During the many years of touring with Sabaton we have become like brothers. Together with the best crew in the world we've had a true blast and there is a bond between all of us that cannot be broken. Therefore I find no reason to be sentimental, because brothers and sisters are friends for life, and the future is bright! Always yours truly.”

Sabaton continues: “Thobbe will do some more shows during the summer and play his final gig with Sabaton in our hometown Falun, on our own festival Sabaton Open Air, for the release party of our new album, The Last Stand. After that a new guitar player will carry on. Do not fear friends, the show will go on!”

The Last Tour is the biggest tour of Sabaton yet and is scheduled to kick off January 7th at König Pilsener Arena in Oberhausen, Germany. Very special guests are none other than heavy metal legends Accept. Find Sabaton’s complete tour itinerary at this location.

ARCH ENEMY singer Alissa White-Gluz joined former NIGHTWISH frontwoman Tarja Turunen on stage earlier tonight (Friday, August 5) at the Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany to perform the song "Demons In You". Pro-shot video footage of her appearance can be seen below.

Alissa appears on the studio recording of "Demons In You", which is featured on Tarja's new heavy rock album, "The Shadow Self", available now via earMUSIC.

Regarding the inspiration for "The Shadow Self" album title, Tarja said: "I [came across] an Annie Lennox interview some time ago on the Internet, and I was reading about her telling about 'shadow self,' about a darker side of us all.

"Everybody, every one of us, we have a darker side, [and] we should probably just appreciate that it exists, but especially we artists, we get a lot of inspiration from our darker side. Many writers or artists in general, they write darker songs or they use it somehow. We don't probably even understand where all the darkness comes from."

She continued: "Since many years, I realized that I have a darker side in me, even though I still believe I'm a very positive person. But still, there is still darkness that makes me write music and create in general, and it affects everything that I do. I believe it's a beautiful darkness.

"And so, I found this interview of Annie, and it was very inspiring. She was just telling about our dark side, calling it as a 'shadow self,' and I said, 'Hmmmm… What a great title for an album!' I really felt like, 'That's it. That's my album title.' That is where everything comes from."

Sully Erna — founder, vocalist, guitarist and songwriter for the multi-platinum rock band GODSMACK — will release a new solo album, "Hometown Life", on Friday, September 30 via BMG.

Composed by Sully on piano and acoustic guitar and produced in his New Hampshire studio, "Hometown Life" offers a departure from the tribal, world music feel and experimentation on 2010's "Avalon"; the new album's ten songs are more accessible, sonically and musically precise.

Listen to the new song and title track "Hometown Life" below and watch behind-the-scenes footage of the making of Sully's new album.

"When I do a solo album, I write for myself," says Sully. "It's not for critics, radio or even fans. I like to explore different kinds of music that work together. A good song is a good song. I stopped categorizing a long time ago."

A personal, confessional, raw work which takes yet another stylistic left-hand turn from the music he has created as frontman for the multi-platinum rock band GODSMACK, "Hometown Life" offers a wide-ranging glimpse of Erna's eclectic musical tastes — from the singer-songwriter Billy Joel/Bruce Springsteen narratives of the title track and the bossa nova touch of "Take All of Me" to the breezy island feel of "Your Own Drum", the finger-snapping Motown bass lines of the bluesy "Turn It Up", the country flavors of "Different Kind Of Tears" and the wide-screen canvas of mini-symphonies "Blue Skies" and "Forever My Infinity". All of them are tied together with Sully's unflinching view of the emotional roller-coaster of his life, drawing us into an intimate space. "Hometown Life" explores Sully's diverse musical touchstones from James Bay, new country favorites like Chris Stapleton and Brantley Gilbert to soul legends Ray Charles, Etta James and Amy Winehouse.

For "Hometown Life", Sully worked with thesame musicians from "Avalon" with the exception of percussionist Niall Gregory. On two of the songs — "Different Kind Of Tears" and "Your Own Drum" — Sully collaborated with Nashville-based tunesmith Zac Malloy, who has also written for Carrie Underwood, Tim McGraw, Jake Owen, Skillet and Daughtry. "It was cool to see the same exact players sound completely different on this album," Sully says. "It just goes to show their musicianship and versatility. They can really pull off anything I ask of them."

With Sully on piano, acoustic guitar and the stray bongo, "Hometown Life" was also a family affair, with his 71-year-old father Salvatore — who helped nurture his son's own musical interest early on — playing trumpet on "Turn It Up". It's a song Erna describes as a tribute to the power of music, a blueprint for how a song "makes you get off your seat, tap your feet, feel the energy and let it pass through you."

"It was a proud moment," says Sully, who also channeled his great-uncle, a famed composer from Sicily, in several of the songs which feature symphonic strings, like "Blue Skies", "Forever My Infinity", "Father Of Time" and "Falling to Black".

"Hometown Life" allows an inside glimpse at Sully's vulnerability on a personal level, and he attributes much of his honesty and inspiration for this album to the love of his life, Sarah.

"We've definitely gone through some complicated times and fought for what we have," he says. "And I'm really grateful to have her in my life. We have a very special and unique kind of relationship that most people can only dream of having. And I wouldn't put that second to anything!

"These songs are about exposing my inner thoughts, laying myself bare, being honest and expressing genuine emotions... about dark times and positive ones."

Some songs offer fatherly advice, like the percussion-heavy "Your Own Drum", an admonition to his teenage daughter to follow her own muse and not be afraid to be different, or trying to deal with life's hurried pace, as in the rhythmic tick-tock of "Father Of Time". On the soaring "Blue Skies", Sully reaches out to his loved ones and asks them to acknowledge the man and father he has become from the immature boy he once was.

As for how his solo career fits in with his "other band," Sully is circumspect. "GODSMACK is a very energetic, aggressive, powerhouse rock band," he says. "It's for those moments when you want to scream and stomp your feet. My solo stuff is a lot more vulnerable, the grown-up version of who I am and how I process. It's about finding acceptance for the things that don't go right in your life, being appreciative for all the memories, good or bad. Sometimes these experiences can be very painful, but I do get some beautiful songs out of it. I'm just happy to be blessed with a gift that enables me to channel this stuff and vent it through my music."

"Hometown Life" does just that, revealing sides of Sully Erna only hinted at in GODSMACK, "That's the whole point," he explains. "The people who have followed me and can appreciate it, I encourage them to explore. All my albums — including the ones with GODSMACK — are like musical journals, diaries of what I've gone through in my life at the time. I'd love to reach a whole new audience with this. Music has helped me get through some tough times. That's when I write, when something affects me emotionally, happy or sad."

"For all those things we've ever done/Give us our chance to prove our love," sings Sully on the album's closing track "Falling To Black". He describes it as "a beautifully sad song," which offers a glimpse of light at the end of the tunnel. The same could be said of "Hometown Life". As Sully himself puts it in "Your Own Drum": "There's no shadows/If you don't have light."

"Hometown Life" track listing:

01. Hometown Life02. Your Own Drum03. Different Kind Of Tears04. Take All Of Me05. Don't Comfort Me06. Turn It Up!07. Blue Skies08. Forever My Infinity09. Father Of Time10. Falling To Black

Fan-filmed video footage of TESTAMENT's August 4 performance at Lucky in Rijssen, The Netherlands can be seen below.

TESTAMENT's twelfth album, "The Brotherhood Of The Snake", will be released on October 28 via Nuclear Blast.

The cover artwork was once again created by Eliran Kantor, who has previously worked with ATHEIST, SIGH, ANACRUSIS and GWAR, among others.

"The Brotherhood Of The Snake" was recorded under the watchful eyes of producer Juan Urteaga (EXODUS, HEATHEN, MACHINE HEAD), guitarist Eric Peterson and singer Chuck Billy and was mixed and mastered by British metal producer Andy Sneap (ACCEPT, ARCH ENEMY, CRADLE OF FILTH, KREATOR, MACHINE HEAD, MEGADETH).

Peterson told Kaaos TV about "The Brotherhood Of The Snake": "The only difference on this one is we're trying to be a little bit more organic, and getting away from Andy's perfection sound, and get more of a looser… you know, still keeping the slickness of it, but trying to get a little bit more raw. So it's kind of a hard way to describe it. But we don't want it too perfect. And I didn't record four guitars; I did two this time. So there's a lot more air going on with the rhythms and stuff like that."

Asked whether the musical direction of TESTAMENT's new material is a throwback to the band's early albums or if it's more similar to the recent TESTAMENT records, Eric said: "More like the modern [TESTAMENT sound], but, you know, like I was saying earlier, having that more raw feeling. Of course, our influences have changed a lot. For me, I always get accused of listening to older stuff [and I am told that] I need to listen to more new stuff. But I always like to go back and listen to records from the '70s and the '80s. And I won't name the bands I listen to, but I listen to a lot of different stuff that has nothing to do with metal, because I hear things differently. I don't hear it, like… You know, like if I listen to [American blues rock guitarist] Joe Bonamassa or something, I'm not, like, 'Wow, I wanna sound like that.' I just kind of get ideas of key changes and the way he hits certain notes or whatever and apply it to what we're doing. And that's the same thing with anything."

TESTAMENT will promote "The Brotherhood Of The Snake" by teaming up with AMON AMARTH for a European tour this fall.

Swedish metallers IN FLAMES will release their new concert DVD, "Sounds From The Heart Of Gothenburg", on September 23 via Nuclear Blast.

The first trailer for the effort is available below.

Nostalgia or a return to their roots has never been an option for the progressive IN FLAMES, but the setlist of this bombastic DVD tears through the band's entire history. With 20 tracks, the show that was recorded on November 7, 2014 at Scandinavium in Gothenburg, Sweden reaches a length of one and a half hours, and achieves in capturing the band at their very best, celebrating current hits such as "Through Oblivion", "With Eyes Wide Open" and "Rusted Nail" to a packed arena. But, of course, old-school classics like "Trigger", "Cloud Connected" and the hypnotic closer "Take This Life" are not left out. Prepare for an intense and visually explosive performance in front of ten thousand fans, featuring pyros, circle pits, flying crowdsurfers and IN FLAMES' incomparable riffs. "This DVD is for everyone who was been following our career; we have songs from the early years, the middle years and the new era," states IN FLAMES guitarist Björn Gelotte. "It has to be fun for us to play but also fun for the audience to watch and we try to get a good flow with nice dynamics and different songs."

IN FLAMES recently signed with Nuclear Blast for all territories excluding North America and Scandinavia.

Formed in 1990, the band is considered one of the forefathers of melodic death metal and the purveyors of the "Gothenburg sound." With eleven studio albums released, countless successful tours around the globe, millions of records sold and a massive fanbase worldwide, IN FLAMES has proven to be an unstoppable force in heavy music. From their 1994 debut, "Lunar Strain", to the most recent CD, "Siren Charms" (2014), the band's intricate twin-guitar attack, melodic vocals and superb arrangements have given them a signature sound that has evolved throughout the years.

"In a way, IN FLAMES and Nuclear Blast share a similar story," said IN FLAMES vocalist Anders Fridén. "Both started in a garage in Europe, both love metal and both have grown a lot bigger over the years. For these reasons, it seemed a natural fit to come back to the place it all started."

"We're enormously happy that IN FLAMES decided to return and trust in us for the second time — Nuclear Blast is their home again from now on. I remember well how their debut album, 'Lunar Strain', inspired me back in the days. I was totally fascinated by their great and absolutely unique blend of death metal with delicate melodies," commented Nuclear Blast CEO Markus Staiger. "One year later, IN FLAMES signed with us and released eight splendid records over the years, including groundbreaking classics such as 'Whoracle', 'Clayman' and 'Reroute To Remain'. IN FLAMES developed all the time, reinvented themselves again and again and enthused fans of various genres with their always innovative sound. We're looking forward to the common future with Anders, Björn, Peter and Niclas."

IN FLAMES has been working on a new studio album, the details of which have not yet been announced.

IN FLAMES last year inked a new management deal with Tenth Street Entertainment, which also looks after MÖTLEY CRÜE and FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, among others.

"Siren Charms" sold around 9,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 26 on The Billboard 200 chart.

IN FLAMES drummer Daniel Svensson announced last fall that he was leaving the band to focus on his family life. He said in a statement: "It's hard to leave what have become my second family, but now it's time for me to take care and spend more time with the most important people in my life — my wife and my three daughters."

IN FLAMES has not yet named a replacement for Svensson.

IN FLAMES is:

Anders Fridén - VocalsBjörn Gelotte - GuitarPeter Iwers - BassNiclas Engelin - Guitar

DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT, the band led by Canadian musician/producer Devin Townsend, will release its new album, "Transcendence", on September 9. The first single from the CD, "Failure", can be streamed below.

The follow-up to 2014's "Z2" double album (half of which was made up of the DTP full-length "Sky Blue"), sees the award-winning Townsend exploring a relatively new way of working, collaborating with the entire DTP band during the writing stages of the record. "The result of this process is a record that I truly think the intention of is special," he says of the album. "I 'found' gas to put into the tank and am glad I did. I think the intention, the theme, and the participation of everyone involved allows this album to act like a fulcrum between the past few years and what I intend to do next with the symphony. I am very proud of it and everyone involved."

"Transcendence" will be available as a limited 2CD digipak (featuring an extra disc of eleven additional new tracks), standard CD jewelcase and gatefold heavyweight 2LP + CD with etching (on various colours), as well as digital download.

The"Transcendence" artwork was once again created by Anthony Clarkson, whom Devin has been working with for several years now. Townsend commented on the cover: "[Anthony] presented me the main image of the girl as a painted version, and I was intrigued and asked him to redo it with a girl he knew with photos. I liked the idea that it seemed like a mashup of religious and spiritual imagery, in a sense, representing the idea (to me) that these types of connections to the infinite are often more like identities we can cling to rather than what lies behind. In a sense, the character on the front almost seems like the ideologies she's representing are more 'brand names' than anything else." "Z2" was a double album where the first CD was a DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT album called "Sky Blue", and the second disc was a ZILTOID album called "Dark Matters".

DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT will team up with BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME for the "Transcending The Coma Tour" this fall. Support on the trek will come from FALLUJAH.

Frontiers Music Srl will releaseof SECRET SPHERE's first live album, titled "One Night In Tokyo", on October 14. SECRET SPHERE are without a doubt one of the most well-known metal bands in Japan, with a solid fan base there since their inception in 1997. All their albums have been released in Japan and in fact, it is the only country where you can find SECRET SPHERE's very rare, original debut demo tape, officially released as a special edition item there. That says a lot about the respect and affection that the fans in the Land Of The Rising Sun have for Aldo LoNobile's band. During the band's last Japanese tour, in support of the special anniversary edition of the band's "A Time Never Come" album, SECRET SPHERE had the chance to record their show in Tokyo in its entirety, which included all the band's major hits: "Legend", "Under The Flag Of Mary Read", plus the melodic metal gems taken from the latest album "Portrait Of A Dying Heart". Featuring vocalist extraordinaire Michele Luppi (now also keyboard player with WHITESNAKE), the show was one for the ages. The result is a genuine performance in a very warm atmosphere, a night to remember, where the band played all their classic songs with true passion. The same passion that you can expect from the band's next release, currently in the writing stages. Aldo Lonobile says: "Since I started the band, the idea of recording our first live album in Japan, was the ultimate goal! All my musical heroes described their experiences in Japan with a happiness and a warmth that you could almost feel. That was the truth, among the most loyal fans in the world, and I am 100% happy that Frontiers liked the idea to release our first live album!" To enhance the celebration, the band agreed to the label's suggestion to release a brand new version of "Lie To Me", featuring an outstanding duet between Michele Luppi and former NIGHTWISH singer Anette Olzon. Released originally on "Portrait of A Dying Heart", the video reached almost one million views and this new version shows a depth and a reach that makes it even better compared to the original!

"One Night In Tokyo" track listing:

CD1

01. Intro: A Journey Through Time02. X03. Healing04. Union05. The Fall06. Lie To Me07. Wish And Steadiness08. Legend09. Under The Flag Of Mary Read10. The Scars That You Can't See11. Eternity

CD2

01. Mr. Sin02. Leonardo Da Vinci03. Lady Of Silence04. Dance With The Devil05. Lie To Me (studio bonus track; duet with Anette Olzon)DVD:

01. Intro: A Journey Through Time02. X03. Healing04. Union05. The Fall06. Lie To Me07. Wish And Steadiness08. Legend09. Under The Flag Of Mary Read10. The Scars That You Can't See11. Eternity12. Mr. Sin13. Leonardo Da Vinci14. Lady Of Silence15. Dance With The Devil SECRET SPHERE is:

Michele Luppi: VocalsAldo Lonobile: All Lead and Rhythm GuitarsAndrea Buratto: BassMarco Pastorino: Rhythm Guitars and Backing VocalsGabriele Ciaccia: Keyboards & PianoMarco Lazzarini: Drums