Swiss avant-garde extreme metal titans, Schammasch, have released a new track, "Metanoia”, from their upcoming triple-album, Triangle, which is set for worldwide release on April 29th via Prosthetic Records. Watch the new video for "Metanoia" below.

Marking the third album in their discography, Schammasch's newest epic, Triangle encompasses 100 minutes in its entirety, with three distinct 33-minute movements differing in atmosphere and style and each representing the three stages of the album's strong concept – Part I: The Process Of Dying, Part II: Metaflesh and Part III: The Supernal Clear Light Of The Void.

This unique concept is visually represented through a series of four inventive photographs packaged as a bold triple-gatefold, limited-edition 3LP set and a 3CD set with imagery realized by acclaimed photographer Ester Segarra (Watain, Behemoth) and graphic designer Valnoir (Alcest, The Black Dahlia Murder). Rarely is such a grand musical and aesthetic feat accomplished within the bounds of extreme metal.

Pre-order's are now available which include a 3CD set (limited to 2,000 copies worldwide) as well as a triple gatefold vinyl 3LP set (limited to 666 pressings worldwide), reserve your copy in North America or UK / EU.

“Metanoia” video:



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Guitarist Martin Henriksson has left Swedish melodic death metallers DARK TRANQUILLITY. He said in a statement: "I recently quit the band. I feel I have lost the passion for playing music, and DARK TRANQUILLITY deserves to have members that are 100% committed to the art. Therefore I decided it's in everyone's best interest to step aside and leave the band with the best possible ability to grow and get even stronger.

"I've had 26 years filled with wonderful memories and we made a lot of great music together, and for that I'm forever grateful.

"Thanks to all the fans, crew and other people involved that supported DARK TRANQUILLITY through the years!"

DARK TRANQUILLITY is putting the finishing touches on the material for its next studio album, tentatively due later in the year.

DARK TRANQUILLITY's tenth studio album, "Construct", was released on May 27, 2013 via Century Media Records. The CD was mixed by Jens Bogren (PARADISE LOST, OPETH, KATATONIA) at his Fascination Street studios in Örebro, Sweden.

DARK TRANQUILLITY vocalist Mikael Stanne last year stated about the musical direction of the band's next CD: "Normally, you move on to a new album, and whatever happens is kind of a reaction to your last work. You're thinking, 'What did we do right, and what did we do wrong?' And it's, like, 'Perhaps this needs to change,' or, 'This needs to get better,' or something like that. So it's always, like, you look at whatever went wrong, or whatever you feel, like, 'Ah, this could be better.' Because you constantly try to improve, and you have to learn from your mistakes. So whatever mistakes we did, we will fix and make sure we get better. So we'll see what happens with that."

In this rare video, Metallica perform “No Remorse”, from their 1983 debut studio album Kill ‘Em All, live at Metal Hammer Festival at Freilichtbuhne Loreley in St. Goarshausen, Germany on September 14th, 1985:

On April 15th, Metallica will release deluxe reissues of their classic albums Kill ‘Em All and Ride The Lightning.

In a lengthy interview posted via Metallica’s official website, frontman James Hetfield speaks with Steffan Chirazi about the upcoming Record Store Day release and about the reissues. A couple of excerpts follows:

Steffan Chirazi: So, back to more of the things from the Kill ‘Em All era that you’ve stumbled upon while putting this release together. Has it all been wine and roses? Has there been some comfortable stuff, or have there been some moments and memories where you’re thinking that maybe you don’t want to put them in there?”

James Hetfield: “No. No, there hasn’t at all. At least for me. Letters from people that we know that lived it and were there, great. I think the idea of having people writing their memories of the time is great too, because everyone’s got a different reality of how it was for them, and it’s great to share those because I forgot lots of stuff. So we have all got our own memories, and it’s been piecing this puzzle of how it was back then. So the more people you have involved in it, the better. Obviously, because this Master Of Puppets book is happening along with this, it’s kinda easy to get into that mode, digging up memories, interviewing people, and all of that stuff. It’s kinda all happening at the same time, which is great, and God, the sound quality of the vinyl remastering is unbelievable. You know, Greg [Fidelman] was blown away by the test pressing and how much better it sounds, and this isn’t just me blowing smoke here.”

SC: Oh, I’m excited to hear it.

JH: “And all the old stuff, some of the outtakes. We have the equivalent of the FBI working on this stuff trying to find things from back then. You know, “somebody’s gotta have this,” and after the years and years of not thinking about it, you go “wait a minute, there’s gotta be a different version of this when we recorded it. Did we only record it once and that was that? What happened to all this other stuff?” So little things are showing up from the old studio. For example, “here’s the microphone you sang Kill ‘Em All on.” Are you kidding me? So I now have that here at the studio.”

SC: Let me ask you sonically, of the Kill ‘Em All and Ride The Lightning, of all the songs you were listening back to as things were being remastered, what were the ones that you wished you could sneak in and maybe redo or remix?

JH: “That stuff used to bug me a lot more, say 20 years ago listening to "Seek And Destroy”. Like they’re playing "Seek And Destroy" from the album at the Shark Tank as the [San Jose] Sharks come out. And there’s the guitar sound. And I'm thinking “oh, no, wish that it could be fatter and heavier,” but that’s how it was. Why would I change that? Why? That was where our heads were, that’s where we were sonically. That’s as good as we got it, and could have got it. So there you go, why would you change that? It’s the sound that is a part of the feel, is a part of the history, a part of the time.”

SC: One of the things I always loved about that Kill 'Em All, especially when I first heard it, was it was supper toppy and it was super punky. It wasn’t about speed, it was about attitude.

JH: “Right. Yeah, it was definitely not over-produced. You could say that.”

SC: So that was down to not being over-produced more than looking for a vibe, then.

JH: “God, we didn’t think about it. We might have said, “hey, we like how this sounds,” put on Discharge or something and they go “OK, we can do that.” I’m sure there were greater, more experienced minds in there that thought we knew what we were talking about but we didn’t. By Ride The Lightning and for sure by Master Of Puppets we had more of an idea what our sound should be and could be. You know, Ride The Lightning, it was night and day after Kill ‘Em All, learning that “wow we can do this?” and sonically making a huge leap.”

Read more at this location.

Metallica are streaming "Creeping Death" from the remastered edition of Ride The Lightning. Remastered by Howie Weinberg At Howie Weinberg Mastering in Los Angeles, CA.

Check out complete details of the Kill 'Em All - Deluxe Remastered Box Set here. All details of the Ride The Lightning - Deluxe Remastered Box set can be found here.

Metallica's recently announced headlining concert at Minneapolis' brand new US Bank Stadium on August 20th has completely SOLD OUT. Presale fan club tickets were made available earlier this week, followed by this morning's public on-sale, which sold out in less than 10 minutes.

Metallica's show in Minneapolis will be the first rock concert at US Bank Stadium, the new home of the Minnesota Vikings, as part of the opening weekend festivities.

Avenged Sevenfold will provide direct support, marking one of only a few shows the hard rock band will play in the country this year. Volbeat will open the show with their unique blend of rock, metal, and rockabilly.

In celebration of this year’s Record Store Day, on April 16th Metallica will be releasing a special exclusive CD titled Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité, Metallica! The artwork for the upcoming release can be seen below.

The nine-song set was recorded live at Le Bataclan in Paris, France on June 11th, 2003 and Metallica are donating all profits to victims of the attacks in Paris in 2015.

Tracklisting:

"The Four Horsemen”
"Leper Messiah”
"No Remorse”
"Fade To Black”
"Frantic”
"Ride The Lightning”
“Blackened"
"Seek & Destroy"
"Damage, Inc.”

“Fade To Black”:

 



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The official lyric video for "Stick To Your Guns", a brand new song from SICK PUPPIES, can be seen below. The track features the band's latest addition, Houston-based singer-guitarist Bryan Scott. Scott previously played with GLASS INTREPID and DEV ELECTRIC and briefly toured as vocalist for EMPHATIC in 2011.

SICK PUPPIES bassist Emma Anzai said about "Stick To Your Guns": "You have to push regardless of what anyone tells you. This was a big thing for us. You can pray, hope, or wish for something to happen, but at the end of the day, you have to 'stick to your guns,' go out there, and believe. The song is meant to empower."

SICK PUPPIES has stayed relatively low-key since splitting with singer and guitarist Shim Moore in 2014, but is now finally ready to resurface.

Scott told Loudwire: "As soon as I found out about the lineup change, my gut feeling told me to reach out to Emma and [drummer] Mark [Goodwin], and we clicked right away. I knew this was a shot that could change the course of my life so I flew out to L.A. to audition the next morning."

Added Anzai and Goodwin: "Before we met Bryan in person, we knew he’d be a great fit. His audition of 'Odd One' and 'You're Going Down' was on point and from there the music progressed naturally."

SICK PUPPIES has booked several festival dates for this year, including Welcome To Rockville on May 1, Carolina Rebellion on May 6 and Rock On The Range on the weekend of May 20. They will also headline the "HardDrive Live" tour later this month.

Desaster's eighth studio album, The Oath Of An Iron Ritual, will be released on April 8th via Metal Blade. Pre-orders at this location.

For a preview of the album, the band has launched a new live video for the track "Damnatio Ad Bestias", which was filmed by Visions In Fear and directed by Oliver "Bomber" Barth at the Desaster show in Bamberg, Germany a few weeks ago.

On the new album, fans can expect a barrage of uncompromising metal that's been perfected by the German quartet over the last 27 years. Recorded together with Patrick W. Engel in their own rehearsal space, The Oath Of An Iron Ritual features 10 tracks with cutting riffs, pummelling drums, growling bass, and hellish screams.

Tracklisting:

“Intro (The Oath)”
“Proclamation In Shadows”
“End Of Tyranny”
“The Cleric's Arcanum”
“Haunting Siren”
“Damnatio Ad Bestias”
“Conquer & Contaminate”
“The Denial”
“The Oath Of An Iron Ritual”
“At The Eclipse Of Blades”

“End Of Tyranny”:

The history of Desaster goes back as far as 1988 when two young metal maniacs from Koblenz, Germany decided to follow the path once paved by bands such as Hellhammer and Destruction. The band played their first and now legendary live concert in 1989 - which also marked the official birth of Desaster. After making several line-up changes between 1990 and 1992, original member/guitarist Infernal soldiered on with vocalist Okkulto and bassist Odin.

Upon hearing the group's first two demos, The Fog Of Avalon (1993) and Lost In The Ages (1994), Merciless Records released a Desaster / Ungod split 7" in 1995, before Desaster's debut album, A Touch Of Medieval Darkness, was unleashed in 1996. Garnering respect in underground circles worldwide, the band then released their Stormbringer EP (1997) and welcomed new drummer, Tormentor, to complete their lineup.

Hellfire's Dominion - Desaster's second full-length - was released in 1998, containing the speed metal, fan favorite track, "Metalized Blood", which featured guest vocals from Pentacle's Wannes Gubbels, Violent Force's Lemmy, and Living Death's Toto. The follow-up to this highly successful album, Tyrants Of The Netherworld, arrived in 2000, and soon after, the band introduced new vocalist Sataniac, from German black-thrashers Divine Genocide.

After their fourth album, Divine Blasphemies (2002), Desaster joined Metal Blade Records, which released 2005's Angelwhore and 2007's Satan's Soldiers Syndicate - the latter offering an array of riff-heavy neck-breakers that proved that the band was more aggressive and murderous than ever. Even having reached their 20-year anniversary mark in 2009, Desaster showed no signs of slowing down and went on to release 2012's The Arts of Destruction to rave reviews.



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"Let All The World Believe", the new video from the Minneapolis, Minnesota hard rock/industrial metal outfit AMERICAN HEAD CHARGE, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's fourth album, "Tango Umbrella", which was released on March 25 via Napalm Records. The cover artwork was created by Sam Shearon. Comments AMERICAN HEAD CHARGE's Chad Hanks: "'Tango Umbrella', sonically, feels like a combination of 'The War Of Art' and 'The Feeding'. It's a logical progression for us, as we continue experimenting with different feels, sounds, vocal styles, etc. It's heavy in every way possible, and I really think our fans are going to love it. We made the record we wanted to hear, and I feel like we definitely achieved that."

AMERICAN HEAD CHARGE's sound remains firmly rooted in catchy alternative metal, the NWOAHM, with industrial influences and groovy heaviness. "Tango Umbrella" track listing:

01. Let All The World Believe02. Drowning Under Everything03. Perfectionist04. Sacred05. I Will Have My Day06. A King Among Men07. Suffer Elegantly08. Antidote09. Prolific Catastrophe10. Down And Depraved

AMERICAN HEAD CHARGE released the "Shoot" EP in July 2013. The disc was recorded by Don Debiase at Studio D Productions in Cleveland, Ohio and was mixed by Dave Fortman at Balance Productions in New Orleans, Louisiana.

AMERICAN HEAD CHARGE split in August 2009 and reformed two years later.

Northern Germany's infernal extreme metal duo, Mantar, have released an official track video for “Praise The Plague”, a song featured on their forthcoming album, Ode To The Flame, out on April 15th via Nuclear Blast. Check it out below:

About the album artwork, the band states: "Actually we discussed the possibility of having no cover at all. We kinda liked the idea of boycotting the need of any so called "art" which bands try to get people's attention with. The theme of the record is so one-dimensional and obvious that we decided to skip artwork and just put the title on the record to make it look more like an old book. A manifest, a challenge. We don't want people to speculate about any meaning. The meaning is clear: kill, destroy, fuck shit up."

Regarding the album title: "The title Ode To The Flame is chosen in tradition of the debut record, Death By Burning to maintain the cleansing power of fire as the key theme. Fire is able to reset anything and will erase this planet one day from any plague that's been around. Furthermore it's obviously an ode to passion and iron will. Ode To The Flame isn't dramatic, it's drastic. By all means."

Tracklisting:

“Carnal Rising”
“Praise The Plague”
“Era Borealis”
“The Hint”
“Born Reversed”
“Oz”
“I, Omen”
“Cross The Cross”
“Schwanenstein”
“Sundowning”

Audio snippets:

“Schwanenstein”:

In-studio video teaser:

Ever since their inception in 2013 and the release of their first album in 2014 the band has been recognized as one of the hardest working in the German extreme metal underground. Melding the most sinister elements of styles like black metal, doom and punk, representing unfiltered pure primal rage, Mantar have proven to be one of a kind. Their extremely intense live shows have been seen all over the world and have blown away unaware audiences with their unconditionally tight and brutal performances. Mantar is a pure evil elemental force captured by only two uber passionate artists that strife for ultimate raw sonic power.

Mantar is:

Hanno - vocals, guitars
Erinc - drums, vocals



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Fan-filmed video footage of DELTA DEEP's March 29 performance at Ortlieb's in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania can be seen below.

DELTA DEEP is the critically acclaimed blues-based band featuring Phil Collen (lead guitarist of DEF LEPPARD) and Robert DeLeo (bassist for STONE TEMPLE PILOTS), in addition to Debbi Blackwell-Cook (back-up vocalist for such artists as Michael Buble and Gregory Hines) and Forrest Robinson (drummer for India.Arie, Joe Sample & THE CRUSADERS, TLC).

DELTA DEEP is touring in support of its live album, featuring songs recorded during the inaugural January "Sugar Shack" West Coast run. The January trek featured sold-out shows, with fans and critics alike raving about the band's live show.

DELTA DEEP's self-titled debut album, a mix of original and hand-picked cover tracks, was released in June 2015 on Mailboat Records and also features special guest appearances by DEF LEPPARD vocalist Joe Elliott, WHITESNAKE's David Coverdale, SEX PISTOLS/MANRAZE drummer Paul Cook, and GIRL/MANRAZE bassist Simon Laffy.

Collen initially started DELTA DEEP in 2012 after jamming at home over the course of a year with friend and relative Debbi Blackwell-Cook (Blackwell-Cook is the godmother of Collen's wife, Helen). What started as a casual pairing singing Motown and classic blues staples while Debbi frequently visited Collen's home quickly turned into much more. Collen, Helen, and Debbi began writing original music which Collen and Debbi recorded in Collen's home studio. Later that year, a chance meeting re-acquainted Collen with Memphis native and enigmatic heavy metal, jazz, and R&B drummer Forrest Robinson. A friend suggested giving STP bassist Robert DeLeo a call. Sharing a loving affinity for soul, funk and the blues, DeLeo was the perfect fit. According to Collen: "We really wanted Robert in this band. He had the added firepower of being the premiere pioneer and most 'badass bass player' to come out of the alternative rock explosion."

The best description of DELTA DEEP, a multi-racial band, has been "Aretha and Tina in their prime singing over early ZEPPELIN." Original song and lead-off single "Bang The Lid" introduces the musical synchronicity of Collen, Blackwell-Cook, DeLeo and Robinson. Blackwell-Cook also duets with Collen on the album tracks as well as with featured vocalists Joe Elliott ("Mistreated") and WHITESNAKE's David Coverdale ("Private Number"). Legendary SEX PISTOLS drummer Paul Cook and Collen's former bandmate from GIRL, bass player Simon Laffy, guest on the classic cover "Black Coffee". Guesting on the DELTA DEEP original song "Burnt Sally" is keyboardist CJ Vanston (Tina Turner, TOTO, Joe Cocker, Carol King) adding to the soulful tune on the Hammond 3 Organ. DELTA DEEP in November released an original Christmas song, "Take Me Home For Christmas".

Fan-filmed video footage of IRON MAIDEN's March 30 concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City can be seen below.

IRON MAIDEN's world tour, in support of the band's latest album, "The Book Of Souls", kicked off on February 24 in Sunrise, Florida (a suburb of Fort Lauderdale).

IRON MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris recently told Argentina's Vorterix radio about whether singer Bruce Dickinson's cancer battle made him think about a possible end to MAIDEN: "Yeah, I mean, I think at this stage of our career, I really don't think we would have looked to another singer, that's for sure. We didn't even consider it. I mean, there's no point. We can't really replace Bruce anyway, so we wouldn't try at this stage in our career, I don't think so. But, thank God, we didn't need to, and he's fine. The main thing is that he's okay, and he is okay. But the second thing is, obviously, now we can tour and we can make albums, and I'm sure he's gonna be fine in the future. So, you know, he seems really well, and he's singing well, so… Thank God that we are still together."

Asked whether he has ever imagined his life without IRON MAIDEN, Steve said: "Well, you know, you have to… I think you have to kind of get your head used to the fact that some day it's gonna happen. I mean, it took me a long while to realize that I wasn't gonna play football on a regular basis anymore. I still play once in a while, but that took me a long while to adjust. And I think, obviously, with the band, it's gonna be even worse, so I'm not looking forward to that. But, you know, you just have and try and focus and do other things, so you have your mind on something else."

Regarding what the key is to keeping the band together seventeen years after Bruce Dickinson and Adrian Smith rejoined IRON MAIDEN, Steve said: "I think everybody's grown up. I think everyone's matured and we don't argue about stupid things anymore. Not that we used to argue that much anyway — we didn't really argue that much — but I think when you're younger, sometimes trivial things, you know, they just get to you. And I think, as you get older, you get more experience and [become] hopefully a bit wiser, and you don't really make a big deal out of silly things."

Canada’s Mortillery have released a lyric video (see below) for “Radiation Sickness”, the lead track from their upcoming third album, Shapeshifter, a ferocious beast drunk on speed, venomous guitar solos and the rabid vocals of Cara McCutchen. Shapeshifter is set to be released on May 27th via Napalm Records.

Mortillery are on a mission to deliver true thrash metal. They stand out with their smashing riffage, raw energy and dynamic female vocals.

Tracklisting:

“Radiation Sickness”
“Age Of Stone”
“Bullet”
“Mantis”
“Black Friday”
“Wendigo”
“At The Gates”
“Torture”
“Shapeshifter”
“Patient Zero” (bonus track)
“Neckbreaker” (bonus track)
“Shine” (cover) (bonus track)

“Radiation Sickness” lyric video:



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Decapitated played an exclusive session for Last.fm when they were in the UK recently, and you can watch “The Blasphemous Psalm To The Dummy God Creation” from that session below. More to follow next week.

Decapitated’s European tour with Heart Of A Coward kicked off yesterday, March 29th, in Berlin, Germany. Dates on the tour poster below:

In support of the tour, Decapitated released an official video for their track “Veins”. The unique animated video was created by Polish based animator / concept artist Łukasz Rusinek and depicts an apocalyptic universe featuring droids and feuding superpowers. Watch the video below.

Łukasz commented on the video: "Animation is an area extremely time-consuming and the fact that I work alone only adds to the sad fact that, especially during complex productions such as the video for the song 'Veins' by Decapitated, my little ones await their father to come back home in the evenings in vain and my newlywed wife withers at the window longing to see me. Despite these minor inconveniences, I do not complain because I love to combine sound with vision.  On most occasions I prepare scripts myself.  And so it was this time. I came up with a short story with the apocalypse in the background, set in a slightly imaginary universe in which droids fight on battlefields instead of humans, intelligence cells of feuding superpowers plot their rise to power, and the relics of the Cold War keep waiting for someone to finally press that 'damn button'. Enjoy."



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Soto, featuring vocalist Jeff Scott Soto, will release their second studio album, Divak, on April 1st via earMUSIC. A snippet of the new song, “Awakened”, is streaming below:

Divak (pronounced "dee-vock") comes shortly after the band's debut release, Inside The Vertigo. It's a mere 15 months later, partly due to singer Jeff Scott Soto's insistence on continuing to create and build a true brand for his new venture.

Once again, the album is produced by Jeff Scott Soto and drummer Edu Cominato. It was mixed by long time JSS engineer/associate John Ellis, as well. The band features Soto on vocals, Cominato on drums, lead guitarist Jorge Salan, bassist David Z, and keyboardist/guitarist BJ. They are heavily featured on Divak, with their writing contributions together.
 
The first single "FreakShow" was co-produced/written by Tony Dickinson, who also co-wrote "The Fall”, which was the first single from Inside The Vertigo. The track is an extension of the Soto sound created especially for this new band.
 
Soto will debut live this month with a string of East Coast US dates, leading into the annual Monsters of Rock Cruise (East), alongside Steve Vai, Extreme, Queensryche, and countless headliners.
 
Soto, formed in 2014, are the dream band created when Jeff Scott Soto realized how much he missed the "heavier side" of his career after fronting artists like Yngwie Malmsteen, Talisman, and Journey, and even his own solo albums. The band hopes to continue its role as a driving force in today's current hard rock and metal scene.

Tracklisting:
 
“Divak” (Intro)
“Weight Of The World”
“FreakShow”
“Paranoia”
“Unblame ”
“Cyber Masquerade”
“In My Darkest Hour”
“Forgotten”
“SuckerPunch”
“Time”
“Misfired”
“The Fall From Grace”
“Awakened”
 
Bonus Tracks (All Digital Retailers):
“Final Say” (live)
“The Fall” (live)
“Break” (live)
“When I'm Older” (live)
“Stand Up” (live)

Additional Bonus Tracks (iTunes/Apple Music):
“My Life”
“Cracking the Stone”

“Fall From Grace” snippet:

“Misfired” snippet:

“Unblame” snippet:

“Paranoia” snippet:

“Weight Of The World” video:

“FreakShow” lyric video:

(Photo - Natalia Britt)



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Inner Wound Recordings will release symphonic/film score metal band Ravenia’s debut album, Beyond The Walls Of Death, on April 29th in Europe and North America. A video for the album track “We All Died For Honor”, directed by Markus Nieminen, can be found below.

The sound of Ravenia is characterized by the massive orchestrations and the beautiful and emotional vocals from Armi and can be described as a mix between composers like Two Steps From Hell and Hans Zimmer, and metal bands like Nightwish and Epica.

Beyond The Walls Of Death was mixed by Nino Laurenne (Wintersun, Battle Beast, Ensiferum) at Sonic Pump Studios and mastered by Svante Forsbäck (Volbeat, Sonata Arctica, Apocalyptica) at Chartmakers. The album artwork was created by Jan Yrlund (Korpiklaani, Apocalyptica, Leah).

Beyond The Walls Of Death tracklisting:

“For Those We Forsakened”
“Into Oblivion”
“We All Died For Honor”
“There Is But One Path”
“In Silence”
“When Darkness Reigns”
“The Fallen”
“We Stand As One”

“We All Died For Honor” video:

Ravenia is:

Armi Päivinen - Vocals
Samuli Reinikainen - Guitars
Veikko Ringvall - Drums
Toni Hintikka - Bass
Ville Koponen - Violin
Erkki Lasonpalo - Violin
Janne Ahvenainen - Viola
Juuli Ilmonen - Cello
Tommi Laitinen - Contrabass



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Denmark’s Helhorse will release their new self-titled album on May 13th via Spinefarm Records. The band have released a music video for the album track “Hell Of A Ride”, streaming below.

Since 2011, Helhorse have purveyed their instantly identifiable brand of sludgy yet rocking metal, leaving a firm footprint in the Danish metal scene. Now, with the backing of multi-national metal powerhouse Spinefarm Records, these Danes are poised to go places.

On stage channeling the subtlety and restraint of a rhinoceros with a PMS, Helhorse are a live act not to be missed. Steadily gaining ground and taking over stages ever bigger since the days of their debut album For Wolves And Vultures (2011) Helhorse have not lost a step over the years. They’re a veritable asphalt paver running over you, halting, backing up and running all over you again, with a sound that’s both true to its chemically induced influences and refreshing in its groove.

A sweat-drenched symbiosis of Alice In Chains and grungy High On Fire intense enough to burst at the seams, Helhorse the album is the apex of the Copenhageners’ careers this far and its eponymous name par for the course for the group’s no-nonsense image – an album that defies naming, pigeonholing and further explanation.

Tracklisting:

“Carry Your Own”
“Among The Wolves”
“Fortune Favours The Bold”
“I”
“The Blood Boiler”
“Hell Of A Ride”
“II”
“Raise The Black Flag”
“III”
“My Haven / Your Hell”
“No Fucks Given”

“Hell Of A Ride” video:

Says the band: “May 13th  is going to be a huge day for Helhorse and a day we have longed for. The creation of our third album has by far been our most challenging yet, truly a product of blood, sweat and tears. But it also marks our greatest artistic triumph so far. We are extremely proud of this album, the songs are deeply personal, honest and the sound of Helhorse firing on all cylinders. So strap in kids – it’s gonna be a hell of a ride.”

Helhorse are:

Mikkel Wad Larsen – Vocals
Aske Kristiansen – Vocals
Stephan C. Krabsen – Guitars
Jakob Møgelvang – Guitars
Theis Roed Thorgersen – Bass
Jesper Bergstedt – Drums



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METALLICA will reissue its first two albums, 1983's "Kill 'Em All" and 1984's "Ride The Lightning", on April 15. Both albums have been remastered for the most advanced sound quality and will be available in three formats — CD, vinyl, and deluxe box set. Both deluxe box sets include original source material from the band's personal collection with many never-before- heard-or-seen recordings, along with a book including rare photos and essays from those who were there.

METALLICA frontman James Hetfield sat down for an interview published on the band's official web site and discussed a variety of topics, including how he felt seeing some of that old material again.

"I'm not the guy that will like hang onto something like it's dear to my heart, like, 'Oh my God, if I ever lost this, I would die,'" he said. "I got a bunch of stuff in storage, you know? And the thing with me is, like when I grew up, I kinda got moved around so it became a case of, 'Where did my stuff go?' I moved in with my brother, then I moved in with Ron [McGovney, former METALLICA bassist], and then this and that and my stuff just kinda… It's like, 'I don't need that, I don't want that,' and so stuff did get left behind. And I kind of just have been like that. I would quickly shred something that Lars [Ulrich, METALLICA drummer] would probably cut his finger off to get, you know? So the fact that in my storage space there was some stuff… Look, it's one of those things. Back in the day, it was, 'Here's a box. Just throw it all in that.' And you close the box, and you throw it in storage. So there was some pretty cool stuff, pictures that people have given me over the years, that I'd thrown in my suitcase or bag or something, and not thought too much about later."

Asked if he was surprised when he was digging through the archives just to see some of the stuff that he unearthed, Hetfield said: "Oh, it's so cool. It's so cool. And it's amazing how a piece of paper, celluloid, something even like a ticket stub, a pass, it brings back a memory. It brings back just this nostalgic feeling, like, 'Oh my God, I really miss that time.' You know, 'Gosh, it was so simple and easy and la la la, and look how complicated it is now.' What it does for me is it makes me relax more now and not worry so much."

He continued: "I had some pictures of like trips that Lars and I have taken together. Not so much touring, but, you know, oh, God, we went up to Seattle with METAL CHURCH and just hung out, you know, with Skitchy [Rich 'Bang That Head That Does Not Bang' Burch, an early friend of the guys]. There's pictures of me at a beach in Holland, Lars and I hanging out and it was a case of 'I don't remember that and there's these other people around. Who are these people? I don't even know, where are they now?'… And the obvious stuff too... things with Cliff [Burton, late METALLICA bassist]... like, 'Oh my God, that gig, that stage, we have the amps underneath the thing,' and just lots of cool memories, you know? And it just, it makes me grateful that somehow that picture came back into my life. Because I do miss those times. I miss Cliff a lot. I think about him quite often. But it also makes me realize that you know, he's here in spirit. He's not here physically, but there are people that are here physically, and let's have some good times now."

Asked if he thinks it's fair to say that he is possibly now relaxing into, and allowing himself, to finally grieve openly for Burton after maybe having locked it away for 20 or 25 years, Hetfield said: "Oh, there's no doubt about it. No doubt. We drank a lot. And then when Cliff passed away, it was doubled, you know? Took twice as much to stuff it down. And [I] never, ever really grieved. Obviously, we've talked about this, where we just went back out, started touring again, and that was supposedly the remedy to shake it off and to get back on the horse, all the clichés. But you know, when I was in rehab in 2001, they said, 'You gotta hang out a couple more weeks because of the grieving. There's your mom and Cliff, the two people that you have never been able to grieve around. You gotta do some work on it.' So we did. And I think just by [opening up to the] memories, just by thinking about him, feeling his presence, that's how grieving is happening for me over a longer period of time."

He continued: "I miss him more as a person than as a musician, and that's different for me. You know, back in the day, he and I were pretty alike as far as things that we liked and things that we liked to do. I think I learned a lot from him, and I learned a lot after he passed. You know, 'What would Cliff do?' But I think I'm able to be more myself, and he taught me that, you know? He helped teach me that it's okay to be different and to stand up for what you believe in. You don't have to have all the ammo in the world to fight the war, just be you. That's enough."

The deluxe numbered box set of "Kill 'Em All" includes four vinyl records, five CDs, one DVD, a deluxe book including rare photos and a patch while the deluxe numbered box set of "Ride The Lightning" includes four vinyl records, six CDs, one DVD, a deluxe book including more of those unseen photos, a mini-book of lyrics handwritten by James Hetfield and a set of three posters. The deluxe box sets are limited-edition collectors' items.

Fans can pre-order both deluxe box sets at the Met Store now and all six new items will, of course, also be available at your local record store on Friday, April 15, just in time for Record Store Day.

KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons has weighed in on the 2016 presidential election, saying that controversial Republican candidate Donald Trump "is the truest political animal I've ever seen onstage."

Simmons, a former contestant on Trump's "The Celebrity Apprentice" show, told RollingStone.com: "[Trump] has no speechwriters, no editing, no nothing. He's actually on tape going 'motherfucker.' You cannot turn away."

He added: "[Trump] has said some very vile, unkind things. But don't kid yourself. He speaks off the cuff, and what you see is what you get. And he'll double down. If you ask him about building a wall [between the U.S. and Mexico] he'll say, 'Fuck you, I'm going to make it 10 feet higher, just because you asked me.' He's not there to be your friend."

Simmons also appeared to agree with voters left behind by the American political system who are hoping Trump will finally bring change. "The middle, the centrists, they can say, 'What do you think of this?' because everybody is sick and tired of being politically correct," Gene said. "Secretly, tens of millions, perhaps a hundred million people may actually have some positive feelings about a wall.

"Macedonia is building a wall between Greece and Macedonia," he continued. "There's a wall between Israel and a neighboring country. There was a Berlin Wall. There was the Great Wall of China. So whether they're good or bad for people, walls actually work. It's unkind, but in terms of pragmatics, it actually works ... The Pope has said the wall is unkind, but it's interesting that at the Vatican there's a wall. They don't want people on the outside coming into the Vatican."

Simmons went on to praise what he perceives to be Trump's radical honesty.

"Trump is not a politician," he said. "He does not need your money, and he will speak his mind, God damn it, whether you like it or not. And he has no problem saying 'Fuck off.' I like that. Even if I disagree."

During an interview with the "Karlson & McKenzie" show on Boston's WZLX 100.7 FM radio station, former KISS guitarist Ace Frehley was asked about the possibility of the band one day carrying on without any original members, including main songwriter Paul Stanley.

"That's the most ridiculous statement I've ever heard [Stanley and KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons] make," Ace said (hear audio below). "I think the only reason they make those statements at this juncture is to try to validate the fact that they have two other guys in the band that aren't the original members. So they're trying to rationalize to the fans, 'Well, you know, we replaced Peter [Criss, original KISS drummer] and we replaced Ace, and eventually we're gonna replace ourselves. That's like [THE ROLLING STONES singer] Mick Jagger saying, 'Yeah, after me and Keith [Richards, THE ROLLINGS STONES guitarist] die, THE STONES will continue on with two other guys.' I mean, it's a joke."

It was back in 2005 that KISS manager manager Doc McGhee first told the New York Times that the group had "been toying with the idea of recruiting an entire band to... don the band's famous makeup." McGhee said, "KISS is more like Doritos or Pepsi, as far as a brand name is concerned. They're more characters than the individual person. I think (new members) have a legitimate chance to carry the franchise."

Simmons didn't necessarily disagree with that idea. He told Launch that the concept of original members isn't widely held by fans, and it isn't really accurate anyway. "There's no question that there's a core of fans — five-10 percent, my sense is — who believe in original members," he said. "And yet, when you look at original members, THE BEATLES are not original members — Ringo is not an original member; THE [ROLLING] STONES — barely. You know, they've had so many members come and go, but it's the STONES; and AC/DC's aren't original members; and VAN HALEN; and JOURNEY...you go down the list of every — almost every band you can think of."

In a 2012 interview with The San Diego Union-Tribute, Stanley reaffirmed KISS' intention to continue after he and Gene Simmons depart.

"The band is bigger than its members," said Stanley. "And it only takes, in this case, four like-minded people with a similar outlook and talent to further the cause and continue KISS. It makes perfect sense to me. It may not make sense to other bands, but we're not other bands. We don't live by those rules. We never have."

New York skate label Supreme has collaborated with heavy metal legends BLACK SABBATH on a spring clothing line. The collection includes a denim trucker jacket adorned with the cover of SABBATH's 1970 self-titled debut, a hooded parka, a hooded sweatshirt, a crewneck sweatshirt, a long-sleeve t-shirt, four t-shirt options, baseball caps, a rug by Japan's Gallery1950, and a hockey jersey featuring typography taken from the band's fourth album, "Vol. 4".

Watch for the Supreme x Black Sabbath collection to drop Thursday, March 31 in New York, London, Paris, Los Angeles and online, while Japanese fans will receive the range on April 2.

For more information and pictures of the entire collection, visit SupremeNewYork.com.

BLACK SABBATH isn't new to fashion collaborations, having previously partnered with Converse.

Swedish metallers SABATON will enter the studio in April to begin recording their new album for a tentative fall release. Asked if the songwriting process has changed since the addition of SABATON members Thobbe Englund (guitar), Chris Rörland (guitar) and Hannes van Dahl (drums), vocalist Joakim Brodén told Bucketlist Music Reviews: "Not that much. To be honest, though, at this point, I'd say there's more involvement from the other bandmembers. Not only are they excellent musicians. but at least two of them have experience as songwriters from earlier bands. That being said, some people don't like to admit it, but just because you play an instrument very well doesn't automatically make you a songwriter. It's like saying you can build a house because you have a hammer and some nails. There's much more to writing a song than just playing your instrument. In this case, we've very lucky because, by the time this album is released, everyone in the band will have been involved in the songwriting process in one way or another."

Brodén made it clear, however, that the lyrics to SABATON's upcoming album will once again be written by him and the band's bassist, Pär Sundström. He said: "[Pär and I are] the history nerds in the band. The other guys appreciate singing about history more than dungeons and dragons for sure, but I wouldn't send them to do a history quiz. [Laughs]"

As for the musical direction of the new SABATON material, Joakim told Metal Wani: "It's a mix of [the familiar SABATON style and some new elements]. It's the hardest line to walk there is, because if you take too big of a step, you are disappointing yourself and the fans, I guess, and if you do not have the guts to take any step at all, you're also gonna disappoint yourself and the fans."

He continued: "We never set out to change in a specific direction. I mean, we always have some odd songs on some albums — let's say 'Cliffs Of Gallipoli', which is our SAVATAGE-meets-MEAT LOAF-meets SABATON piano thing. And I think it's cool, as long as it's within the realm of rock music. Some songs are a bit harder than normal; some songs are a bit softer than normal. We said, 'Instead of focusing on go harder or slower, let's focus on be better.' And better sometimes means harder. Better sometimes means softer."

SABATON released a special, three-disc limited-edition deluxe version of "Heroes" in the U.S. and Canada in April 2015 via Nuclear Blast. Limited to 5,000 copies, this deluxe edition includes two discs of live audio recorded on the 2014 Sabaton Cruise in addition to the original ten "Heroes" album tracks.

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH has been forced to cancel its participation in the Australian tour as the support act for BLACK SABBATH after singer Ivan Moody was hospitalized in Denver. FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH's headlining shows in Sydney and Melbourne have also been scrapped.

A statement from promoter Live Nation reads as follows: "Last Thursday, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH singer Ivan Moody was hospitalized in his hometown of Denver. He is expected to make a full recovery but it is with deep regret that FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH will be forced to cancel their appearances in Australia, both with BLACK SABBATH and as headliners in Sydney and in Melbourne.

"It is especially disappointing to FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH that they will not be able to play before BLACK SABBATH, a band FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH has deep reverence for, on BLACK SABBATH's last-ever shows in Australia.

"Ivan and FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH express their sincere apologies to both their fans and to the fans of BLACK SABBATH."

Ticket holders for FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH's headline shows in Melbourne (April 20 at The Forum) and Sydney (April 22 at Big Top, Luna Park) will be contacted by the relevant ticketing outlet to advise of the process for obtaining a refund.

MOTÖRHEAD's November 20 and November 21, 2015 concerts at the Zenith in Munich, Germany were professionally filmed and recorded for release this May via UDR.

Titled "Clean Your Clock", the set will be made available in the following formats:

* Colored double vinyl in gatefold with pop-up art* Standalone audio CD* DVD of the show with audio CD* Blu-ray of the show with audio CD* Boxset which contains the colored double vinyl in gatefold with pop-up art, DVD of the show with audio CD and the MOTÖRHEAD metal medal* A limited-edition boxset will be available through the UDR shop and will contain the MOTÖRHEAD medal in silver or gold* Also available as a digital download

"Clean Your Clock" track listing:

01. Start - 00:00:0002. Live Intro - 00:01:0603. Bomber - 00:02:4404. Stay Clean - 00:06:0605. Metropolis - 00:09:4106. When The Sky Comes Looking For You - 00:14:3307. Over The Top - 00:18:1608. Guitar Solo - 00:21:1009. The Chase Is Better Than The Catch - 00:23:0810. Lost Woman Blues - 00:28:3911. Rock It - 00:34:0712. Orgasmatron - 00:36:5213. Doctor Rock Pt 1 - 00:43:2814. Drum Solo - 00:45:1815. Doctor Rock Pt 2 - 00:49:5416. Just 'Cos You Got The Power - 00:52:1117. No Class - 00:58:0818. Ace Of Spades - 01:01:0719. Whorehouse Blues - 01:08:0120. Overkill - 01:14:05

"Clean Your Clock" will be made available on May 27.

MOTÖRHEAD's final concert took place on December 11, 2015 in Berlin, Germany. Despite suffering from an "extremely aggressive" form of cancer, the band's frontman, Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister battled his way through to the end of the group's European tour.

"He was terribly gaunt," MOTÖRHEAD drummer Mikkey Dee< /b> told Sweden's Expressen. "He spent all his energy on stage and afterwards he was very, very tired. It's incredible that he could even play, that he could finish the Europe tour. It was only [three weeks before he died]. Unbelievable."

MOTÖRHEAD's Berlin concert was originally scheduled to take place on November 27, but was postponed after the group's guitarist, Phil Campbell, was taken ill.

Lemmy, who celebrated his 70th birthday on Christmas Eve (December 24), learned two days later, on December 26, that he was afflicted with an aggressive form of cancer. He died two days later, on December 28, at his home in Los Angeles.

Lemmy had been dealing with serious health issues for the past two years, including getting a pacemaker in 2013 and suffering from a hematoma last year. But despite 40 years of hard living and drinking, he continued to tour and record at a feverish pace.

The band was forced to cancel or postpone a number of shows this year due to Lemmy's poor health, which also forced him to cut back on his drinking and give up smoking.

While MOTÖRHEAD itself was revered by metal and punk fans, Lemmy himself became a rock and roll icon and elder statesman, the embodiment of a musician who lived the rock lifestyle to the fullest and never stopped.

Lemmy told Classic Rock: "I'm pretty happy with the way things have turned out. I like to think I've brought a lot of joy to a lot of people all over the world. I'm true to myself and I'm straight with people."

Asked whether he thought about death in the wake of his recent illnesses, Lemmy replied: "Death is an inevitability, isn't it? You become more aware of that when you get to my age. I don't worry about it. I'm ready for it. When I go, I want to go doing what I do best. If I died tomorrow, I couldn't complain. It's been good."



(Thanks: NJthrasher)

MOTÖRHEAD guitarist Phil Campbell will release his first single as a solo artist this Friday, April 1.

Campbell's forthcoming solo album is expected to feature guest appearances by Chris Fehn of SLIPKNOT, JUDAS PRIEST frontman Rob Halford and UGLY KID JOE vocalist Whitfield Crane.

Asked in a 2012 interview if he has ever considered making a solo CD, Phil responded: "Yes, I have thought about it a lot. But I shelved it a couple years ago, because I've decided that I want to write a book about all the insane things that happen on tour. So, I'm trying to compile all of those stories and funny situations. So, at this point, I'm working on that. But, I'm a bit lazy, so it's taken a while. But as far as a solo record, I do have a studio at home, it's just hard finding the time. With MOTÖRHEAD, we've been working so hard, for so long."

Asked by Headbangers Lifestyle's Lilo at the end of last year if there are any plans for him to write and an autobiography or have a film made about his life, Campbell responded: "I don't want a film about my life; no way. I'm working on a book of the funny stuff. I don't want a life story; I just want the funny stuff. [It's] gotta be documented, 'cause some of it's pretty bizarre and unbelievable. It's totally funny, though. [It's a book about] my experiences. It's what would normally not happen if you weren't in this band."

Regarding when fans can expect to see his book released, Campbell said: "I'm seriously working on it now in January. It'll be a year or two [before it comes out], but it'll be worth it."

MOTÖRHEAD was forced to cancel three shows last November after Campbell became ill and required hospitalization.

MOTÖRHEAD frontman Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister, who celebrated his 70th birthday on Christmas Eve (December 24), learned two days later that he was afflicted with an aggressive form of cancer. He died two days later, on December 28, at his home in Los Angeles.

Swedish casino games developer NetEnt has announced that the third game in its "Rocks" series will be based on MOTÖRHEAD.

"The MOTÖRHEAD brand is synonymous with high-octane music and has one of the last real iconic logos in music," says Gabbi Langdorf, senior licensing manager at Global Merchandising Services. "'Ace Of Spades', which will be included as a soundtrack, couldn't be a better theme song to this style of gaming and we hope not only fans, but the gaming public will appreciate the fantastic game mechanics that NetEnt are producing."

The new MOTÖRHEAD online slot, which will feature a soundtrack with the band's most popular songs, along with plenty of bonus features that reference the group's work, will be available at online casinos in September.

NetEnt's "Rocks" series includes the GUNS N' ROSES online slot, which came out in January, and the Jimi Hendrix slot, which will be launched next month.

MOTÖRHEAD leader Lemmy developed a slot-machine addiction while still a boy. Indeed, the name the world came to know him is said to have come about due to his habit of asking friends to "lemme [let me] borrow a quid until Friday."

Prior to his death last December, Lemmy's proclivity for pulling down the lever on one-armed bandits has long been documented and celebrated.

Italian extreme metallers Darkend will release their new and third album entitled The Canticle Of Shadows on April 25th via Non Serviam Records.

Darkend stands for Extreme Ritual Art: a combination of ancient ceremonial chants mixed with arcane symphonies, nocturnal ambiences and Sulphur riffs engraved on black metal patterns.

Featuring guest appearances of Attila Csihar (Mayhem), Niklas Kvarforth (Shining), Sakis Tolis (Rotting Christ) and Labes C. Necrothytus (Abysmal Grief), the band’s new album is a further step towards the abyss, taking every element to the extreme: a darker, heavier and far more intense monument than ever before.

Tracklisting:

“Clavicula Salomonis”
“Of The Defunct”
“A Precipice Towards Abyssal Caves (Inmost Chasm, I)”
“II Velo Delle Ombre”
“A Passage Through Abysmal Caverns (Inmost Chasm, II)”
“Sealed In Black Moon And Saturn”
“Congressus Cum Dćmone”

“Clavicula Salomonis”:



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Revell GmbH, a leading kit model manufacturer, has teamed up with Global Merchandising Services for the IRON MAIDEN limited-edition model plane, Ed Force One.

MAIDEN's actual Boeing 747 jumbo is named Ed Force One after the band's mascot, Eddie, who has appeared on all of their album covers, and graces the plane's tail.

Ed Force One is being piloted on the band's world tour by MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson.

"As soon as we knew that Bruce would be piloting the plane for IRON MAIDEN's world tour, we knew that we had to do something special to celebrate the occasion, and Revell are an obvious partner for this fantastic collaboration," said Global Merchandising Services' licensing manager Jens Drinkwater.

"Their model kits have been a synonym for plastic modelling for over 60 years, and this detailed model of Ed Force One will appeal to both traditional builders and hobbyists as well as the dedicated IRON MAIDEN fanbase."

Thomas Randrup from Revell GmbH added: "Our 1:144 scale model of Ed Force One will bring something new, as well as fun to civil aviation model kit genre and we are looking forward to a successful co-operation with Global Merchandising and IRON MAIDEN on this 2016 new product release."

IRON MAIDEN's world tour, in support of the band's latest album, "The Book Of Souls", kicked off on February 24 in Sunrise, Florida (a suburb of Fort Lauderdale).

Support on the trek is coming from THE RAVEN AGE, the band led by IRON MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris's son George Harris.

MAIDEN's sixteenth — and first-ever double — studio album, "The Book Of Souls", was released worldwide on September 4, 2015 through Parlophone Records (BMG in the U.S.A). The CD was recorded in Paris, France with producer Kevin "Caveman" Shirley in late 2014, with the finishing touches added last year.

IRON MAIDEN announced in May 2015 that touring plans to support the album wouldn't happen until this year to allow Dickinson time to fully recuperate after his successful cancer treatment.

Eclipse Records has announced the signing of Gothenburg, Sweden’s Despite to an exclusive, worldwide deal. The band features three eight-stringed guitar players. 

In late 2014, the band released their single “Chaos Trigger” and quickly got the attention of VH1.com where the band was listed as one of “fifteen more metal bands you should be listening to”. Despite released another single “Praedonum” in mid-2015, and later that year Eclipse Records reached out to the band about signing a deal for 2016 and beyond.
 
Vocalist Peter Tuthill said of the signing, “I’m really stoked about Despite now being a part of the Eclipse family. I know that Eclipse, with Chris Poland at the rudder, has what it takes to bring Despite to the next level.” Bassist Anthony Cui elaborates, "this is a huge step in Despite’s career, and I’m sure it’ll be a game changer.”
 
Despite recently wrapped up recording a new full-length album entitled Synergi, which is currently scheduled for release on July 22nd. More details soon.



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My Ramones - Danny Fields is a unique document of the band’s early career that will be published on April 27th as a hardback limited edition. Preorders can be placed at First Third Books.

The photobook collects rare and never before-seen photographs of the Ramones compiled in collaboration with Danny, the band’s first manager. Chosen from his extensive personal archive, all the images of the four founding members of the Ramones were taken between 1975 – 1977 when Fields co-managed them with Linda Stein and had unique access to the band. The photos are accompanied with commentary and captions by Fields adding new perspective and insight to one of the best-known bands in recent music history.

Fields first saw the Ramones play at CBGBs in New York; after a 17 minute set, he met with the four founding members and told them that he wanted to be their manager. “I had to bribe them with $3000 which they said they needed for a new set of drums. I went to Florida, asked my mother to lend me the money, came back with her cheque, and got the job. I photographed the band on tour, backstage, in the studio, walking around, meeting fans, seeing the sights and just checking things out,” says Fields.

Fields and his partner Linda Stein brought the band to London in July 1976, where their appearances at The Roundhouse and Dingwall’s had an indelible influence on the emerging punk scene in the UK.



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Australian Music Network recently caught up with Cradle of Filth's Canadian backing vocalist / keyboardist Lindsay Schoolcraft, who also works as a solo artist under the Schoolcraft name. Following is an excerpt from the interview.

Lindsay: "There are things I can talk about because I’m allowed to talk about them. Of course, Cradle of Filth: we haven’t started yet, but we’ve discussed doing the next album together. So I’ve been given a grace period; I have until June, and then in June I’m going to start composing for Cradle of Filth again, which I’m looking forward to, because it’s going to be the same collaborative effort of the band as we had last time, but this time we’re actually going to meet for a week in Europe and sit down together and do it the way what we feel were the greatest Cradle albums were done—where all six of us are in a room, we’re focussed and we’re making these big songs happen. So that I’m looking forward to. 

When it comes to Schoolcraft, before starting, I have to say I’m really, really passionate about organic instruments and about the string sections and having everything authentic. I feel that in today’s world, production is so polished and too clean, and all my favourite music was—not to say terribly produced—but it had some raw authentic qualities to it. And with Schoolcraft, I am redoing some of my old works, and I’m working on new works, and I want the real, live strings. And I’ve found a way to do it within a budget that works, because let’s be honest, this isn’t exactly something that is super affordable. But I believe you have to do your art right, or don’t do it at all. 

I’m working on an EP right now with a local band here in Canada. They’re called Darkstone Crows. They’ve got more of a very raw kind of Alice in Chains-vibe, but the singer sounds like Stevie Nicks, and they’re fantastic at what they do. We found a way to make our two styles work together, so I’m doing one EP with them at the moment. We’re still trying to get it together, and we’re taking our time with it. Usually I’d be like, rush, rush, rush, get out a Schoolcraft song right now, but I want to do it right. I’m not going to make people wait years and years and years, but I am going to make sure that I’m happy with it before I put it out there. Because if you rush things, then you’ll look back that them later and think, I could’ve done this a little bit differently. I don’t want to live like that anymore, especially as an artist."

Click here for the complete interview. For information on Darkstone Crows go to this location.

Cradle Of Filth will be returning to Belarus and Russia in May with support from Xandria. Dates are posted below, tickets went on sale March 2nd.

Check out fan-filmed video of the band's complete Orlando show on February 2nd below.

Cradle Of Filth have released a music video for the track "Blackest Magick In Practice" (streaming below). The clip was directed by Sam Scott-Hunter and the song is taken from the groups latest tome of horror and romance, Hammer Of The Witches.

Comments the director: "There’s dark madness in this video. “Blackest Magick In Practice” is a deeply tragic tale of lost love. It’s the grief stricken insanity of trying to bring back that loved one from the dead; desperately trying to hold onto that person who’s gone, even if that leads down a dark and gruesome path. I don’t want to give it all away, but I will say that the hardest part of the production was getting hold of a human ear.

"I wanted to convey the power of the band too, in amongst the romance, madness and magick. Behind the imagery of the lyrics is a great and powerful metal band of amazing musicians, and I hope people can feel the intensity of the band when they watch this. It is intense viewing. There should be a bit of madness in the video, because there’s madness in this song."

Cradle Of Filth's latest album, Hammer Of The Witches, was brought to fruition in Britain's Witch County, in darkest rural Suffolk at the reputedly haunted Grindstone Studios. The album's title is named after the Malleus Maleficarum, a medieval document of guidelines regarding the persecution and torture of witches - but Cradle Of Filth’s title version is more retributory: It's the Hammer Of The Witches; the hammer is in the witches' hands and it's payback time.

Unquestionably one of the greatest and most influential British metal bands of all time, Cradle Of Filth have cast a commanding and macabre shadow across the metal scene for nearly a quarter of a century. Armed with their trademark, cross-pollinated assault that taps into myriad strands of sonic extremity and morbid opulence they have steadily conquered the entire world, unleashing a malevolent slew of classic albums along the way. From the raw and rambunctious savagery of their 1994 debut The Principle Of Evil Made Flesh to the wickedly monstrous, technicolor bombast of 2012's The Manticore & Other Horrors, the Cradle ethos and aesthetic has had a huge impact on the evolution of metal, the band's insatiable appetite for performing live and frontman Dani Filth's unerring charisma and sense of occasion ensuring that they have established a powerful and enduring connection with Hell-bound acolytes everywhere.

Photo by Melissa Matheson Photography



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UNLOCKING THE TRUTH — the heavy metal band from Flatbush, Brooklyn made up of three African-American boys, guitarist/vocalist Malcolm Brickhouse, bassist Alec Atkins and drummer Jarad Dawkins — will release its full-length debut album, "Chaos", on June 17 via premier independent music distributor Tunecore. The set was produced by Johnny K (MEGADETH, POP EVIL, DISTURBED) and captures the young band's explosive live energy, resulting in a tight, powerfully heavy yet melodic full-length offering.

Of "Chaos", Brickhouse commented: "We can't wait for everyone to hear our album. We've worked very hard to give the fans something they'll love and never forget. We hope they are able to relate to the songs the way that we do and have the time of their lives listening to them. We know that this album will blow you guys away."

UNLOCKING THE TRUTH last year spoke to The Daily Beast about their decision to sever ties with Sony, less than a year after signing with the major label.

"It was pretty difficult at times with [our] meetings [with Sony] — especially with this one particular lady at the label, who had a meeting with us once where she was just talking at us for six hours," Alec said. "We were pretty young at the time so we were pretty restless and wanted to get up and do something else, but she just had us in this meeting for six hours."

As part of its guaranteed two-album deal with Sony, UNLOCKING THE TRUTH was reportedly due to receive $60,000 to record the first disc and possibly as much as $325,000 for the second CD. Sony reportedly had an option to release a total of five albums from UNLOCKING THE TRUTH that could have pushed the label's financial investment to around $1.8 million ($325,000 for the second album, $400,000 for the third, $450,000 for the fourth and $550,000 for the fifth). It should be noted, however, that the band was only supposed to see the real money after an initial $60,000 advance if their debut album sold more than 250,000 copies, a prospect that seemed highly unlikely in an age of diminishing record sales.

Luke Meyer, the director of "Breaking A Monster", a documentary about the band's rise to success, told The Daily Beast: "The $1.8 million is what happens if you add up all their advances for five records, and it increases in amount with each successive album.

"That's what everyone says about the music industry — it's got all this glitter on it, but it's always less flashy than it looks."

The members of UNLOCKING THE TRUTH famously got permission from a New York judge in July 2014 to sign the Sony deal. The musicians needed the judge's approval because they were minors.

UNLOCKING THE TRUTH has already played the Coachella festival and has supported GUNS N' ROSES. In addition, the band has appeared in a national ad campaign for Verizon Wireless.

UNLOCKING THE TRUTH credits bands such as METALLICA, SLIPKNOT, DISTURBED, CHELSEA GRIN, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE and ESCAPE THE FATE as its influences.

Photo credit: Clay Patrick McBride

Carl Palmer, among rock's most renowned drummers and a founding member of both EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER and ASIA, is returning to the United States and Canada for a tour he has decided to name "Remembering Keith And The Music Of Emerson Lake & Palmer". Originally designed to be a celebration of Palmer's 50th year in music, the focus and name of the tour was changed in light of the tragic death of Keith Emerson on March 11. Shows will begin in New York City on June 2 and finish in Dallas, Texas on July 12.

"I will deeply miss Keith and I want you all to know I will carry on flying the ELP banner and playing the great music with my band for many years to come," said Palmer in a statement.

To honor his late friend and former bandmate, Palmer, in association with Audio One, will present a special show, "Pictures At An Exhibition- A Tribute To Keith Emerson", which will feature music by Carl Palmer's ELP LEGACY band with special guests, cinematic images, and performances by The Center For Contemporary Dance, who will interpret the music of EMERSON, LAKE & PALMER in contemporary dance segments combined with backing from Palmer and his band. The tribute show, which will also include other guest musicians yet to be announced, will be staged one night only, Friday, June 24 at Miami, Florida's historic and intimate Olympia Theater.

Added Palmer: "I hope this is something all fans of ELP and Keith Emerson will all want to come along and see to help celebrate his music. I had wanted to marry the music of ELP with a contemporary dance interpretation for quite a while. I had invited Keith to come and participate in this, but sadly, fate intercepted these plans."

The "Remembering Keith" tour features Palmer's popular ELP LEGACY band and will also highlight his collection of fine art, recently done in conjunction with California's SceneFour art studios.

ELP LEGACY is a red-hot power trio that features Palmer on drums and percussion, guitarist Paul Bielatowicz and bassist Simon Fitzpatrick.

Tour dates:

Jun. 02 - New York, NY - BB King Blues Club & GrillJun. 03 - Sellersville, PA - Sellersville Theatre 1894Jun. 05 - Londonderry, NH - Tupelo Music HallJun. 06 - Wilmington, DE - World CaféJun. 07 - Arlington, MA - Regent TheatreJun. 08 - Hamilton, ON - Studio Jun. 09 - Jim Thorpe, PA - Penns PeakJun. 10 - Bay Shore, NY - YMCA Boulton Performing Arts CenterJun. 11 - Syracuse, NY - Benefit for Crouse Health Foundation - Palace TheaterJun. 12 - Ferndale, MN - The Magic BagJun. 15 - Ridgefield, CT - Ridgefield PlayhouseJun. 16 - Peekskill, NY - Paramount Hudson Valley TheaterJun. 17 - Lexington, MI - Lexington Village TheaterJun. 24 - Miami, FL - Olympia Theater (a tribute to Keith Emerson)Jul. 08 - Agoura Hills, CA - Canyon ClubJul. 09 - Indio, CA - The Rock Yard CasionJul. 12 - Dallas, TX - Poor David's

Tickets for all shows and more to come available at this location.