Rome, Italy-based tech/industrial-influenced death metal outfit, Deceptionist, has inked a pact with Unique Leader Records. As the label now prepares to release the band's Initializing Irreversible Process debut album late this spring, this week a video trailer and more info on the record has been issued.
 
Comments the band: "We're really proud and excited to be part of the Unique Leader family. This label played a huge part in the death metal scene during the years and it's absolutely the best label nowadays when it comes to brutal and technical death metal, that's why we have no doubt Unique Leader is what fits best our sound!"
 
The intense cover art for Initializing Irreversible Process was created by Pär Olofsson (Abysmal Dawn, Cult Of Luna, Deeds Of Flesh, Exodus):

Tracklisting:

“It’s Just Begun”
“Through The Veil”
“Quest For Identity”
“When Humans Began To Be Machines”
“Final Innovation – Automatic Time”
“The Confession”
“Irreversible Process”
“Sunshine”
“Industrivolutionaction”
“Operator Nr 3”

Album teaser:

Unique Leader will release Initializing Irreversible Process on CD, LP, and digital formats worldwide on June 17th. Stand by for preorder info and further samples of the album preceding its incursion.



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South Carolina progressive black metal unit Enthean will release their debut album Priest Of Annihilation on May 20th. Preorder the album on Bandcamp.

Priests Of Annihilation will unquestionably appeal to fans of Dissection, Emperor, Origin, and Immortal. Yet the album more broadly represents the band's musical take on experiences past and present. Indeed, it is an ode to their many influences, musical or otherwise.  Put simply, Enthean has created a fierce and dynamic album that will excite a wide range of metal fans.

Tracklisting:

“1054”
“Tones Of Desecration”
“Before You, I Am”
“Dysthanasia”
“Ekpyrosis”
“Behold The Primordial”
“Bring Forth The Raven”
“Invalesc De Profundis”

“Dysthanasia”:

Priests of Annihilation by Enthean



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Croatian groove-metal masters Cold Snap pay homage to Nancy Sinatra with this cover version of “These Boots are Made for Walkin”. The song (originally written by Lee Hazlewood) was produced by the iconic Danish metal producer, Tue Madsen (Suicide Silence, The Haunted, Sick of it All, Mnemic, Dir En Grey) at Antfarm Studios, Denmark.

When Cold Snap was invited to perform at Wacken Open Air in 2012, they rehearsed this song for their live set at the infamous metal festival, and also recorded it for future release. “We wanted to do something special for the festival’s twenty-fifth anniversary that year” states vocalist Jan Kerekes. “So we performed the song at the end of our set, however we sung it as These Boots Are Made for Wacken.  Since the song wasn’t written by us, we weren’t sure how to go about getting the clearance to release it, so it sat on a shelf for the past couple of years, unreleased.”  Bassist Zoran Ernoic continues “One day we had a meeting with our A&R guy at Eclipse Records and we played the unreleased song, and he immediately wanted to release it. They were able to get the necessary license in place, and now, after four years, we’re thrilled to release our version of this song for everyone to enjoy.”

The single is available for download at digital outlets like iTunes, Amazon, and Google Play. 

(Photo by: Bambii)



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Former Dio guitarist Tracy G has completed work with his band The Tracy G Group on a new 13 song CD Tramp. It is now available via his official online store. Patrick Johansson, the hard hitting former drummer for Yngwie Malmsteen has joined the project and is featured on seven tracks. Korn drummer Ray Luzier plays on four tracks and local SoCal drummer Adrian Aguilar on one song. Michael Beatty is on vocals along with Randy Oviedo on bass.

Tracklisting:

“The Revolution”
“The Erector”
“Leech”
“Brokenness”
“Arrogant Prick”
“The California Country Jamboree Funkfest”
“Bleed”
“Evil Is Good”
“Fireball”
“P.C.H.”
“Sea Of Pain”
“Liar”
“Me, Myself, & The Rain”

“The Revolution” video:



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SEPULTURA guitarist Andreas Kisser joined ANTHRAX on stage last night (Saturday, March 26) at Allianz Parque in São Paulo, Brazil to perform the ANTHRAX song "Indians" and a snippet of the SEPULTURA classic "Refuse/Resist". Fan-filmed video footage of his appearance can be seen below.

Kisser toured with ANTHRAX in 2011 as the fill-in for ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian while Ian spent time with his family following the birth of his first child. He later told Shredload about the experience: "[It was] one of the best moments of my life, really, as a musician, to be respected that way by them. To have Scott calling me and thinking about my name, giving me six months to prepare and stuff. And everybody… I felt home, really. It was a great to jam with them and spend two weeks with ANTHRAX, [playing] five 'Big Four' shows plus other shows and festivals. It was great. Everything went smoothly, and I think I was prepared to do the job. And I enjoyed it a lot. I was really there with them. You know, it's something that you never dream about. You dream so many things. But reality is much better. [Laughs]"

Kisser made his live debut with ANTHRAX on July 2, 2011 at Veltins Arena in Gelsenkirchen, Germany as part of a "Big Four" show with METALLICA, SLAYER and MEGADETH.

After Kisser completed his stint with ANTHRAX, the band posted a letter addressed to the guitarist on ANTHRAX's official Facebook page, in which they wrote, "Words cannot express the feeling of love we have for you. From the first day, you were a part of the family. You were the only choice to fill in for Scott and that decision proved to be the right one. Thank you for being you."

Regarding how Kisser came to fill the temporary-guitarist slot in ANTHRAX, Ian said in an early 2011 statement: "We chose Andreas because we feel he can do the gig better than anyone. He has the fire, the attitude, and the crushing right hand to do the gig."

He continued: "I've played with Andreas at the Roadrunner 25th-anniversary show, and I've gotten up and played with SEPULTURA and we are kindred spirits. We both play every show like we're going to jail the next day, like it's the last show we'll ever play. He has what it takes and he has the experience and history to fucking bring it and make these ANTHRAX shows something special."


Brazilian brother for life. #ForAllKingsWorldTour @andreaskisser @sepultura

Posted by Scott Ian on Friday, March 25, 2016

Flemming Rasumussen, who co-produced Metallica’s …And Justice For All record with the group, praised bassist Jason Newsted's work for the release in an interview with Rolling Stone. Fans have long bemoaned the apparent absence of bass guitar on the band's 1988 album.

"Jason is one hell of a bass player," the producer says. "I'm probably one of the only people in the world, including Jason and Toby Wright, the assistant engineer, who heard the bass tracks on …And Justice For All, and they are fucking brilliant."

Rasmussen went on to say he still doesn't know why the tracks were "nixed in the mix”, as the mixing duo Steve Thompson and Michael Barbiero had been attached to the project prior to his arrival. "It's not on them, that's for sure," the producer says. "It was Lars and James who said to turn the bass down. I know that for a fact because I asked them."

Read the full story at RollingStone.com.

Metallica has announced that they will reissue their first two albums Kill 'Em All and Ride The Lightning on April 15th.  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.

“Motorhead” and a cover of Diamond Head’s “Am I Evil?”, recorded on March 15th, 1985 at the Kabuki Theatre in San Francisco is streaming below. The tracks are a part of the Ride The Lightning reissue in a CD containing a previously unreleased concert at the Kabuki Theatre.

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 preorder 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 15th, just in time for Record Store Day.

Kill ‘Em All tracklisting:

CD/Vinyl
“Hit The Lights”
“The Four Horsemen”
“Motorbreath”
“Jump In The Fire”
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”
“Whiplash”
“Phantom Lord”
“No Remorse”
“Seek & Destroy”
“Metal Militia”

Vinyl – Live At Espace Balard, Paris, France – February 9th, 1984 (2LP) – Previously Unreleased
“The Ecstasy Of Gold”
“Hit The Lights”
“The Four Horsemen”
“Jump In The Fire”
“Phantom Lord”
“No Remorse”
“Ride The Lightning”
“Motorbreath”
“(Anaesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”
“Whiplash”
“Seek & Destroy”
“Metal Militia”

“Phantom Lord”:

Vinyl – Jump In The Fire (Picture Disc)
“Jump In The Fire”
“Seek & Destroy” (“Live” at The Automatt)
“Phantom Lord” (“Live” at The Automatt)

CD – Interview & Radio IDs
Metal Forces Interview with Lars, January 1984
Radio IDs with Lars, James, and Cliff from 1984

CD – Rough Mixes From Lars’ Vault, Bootleg Tracks and Whiplash Remix EP
“Motorbreath” (Rough Mix)
“Hit The Lights” (Rough Mix)
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth” (Rough Mix)
“Seek & Destroy” (Rough Mix)
“Whiplash” (Rough Mix)
“The Four Horsemen” (Rough Mix)
“Seek & Destroy” (NOT Live from The Automatt)
“Phantom Lord” (NOT Live from The Automatt)
“Jump In The Fire”
“Whiplash” (Special Neckbrace Remix)
“Seek & Destroy” (“Live” at The Automatt)
“Phantom Lord” (“Live” at The Automatt)

CD – Live At J Bees Rock III, Middletown, NY – January 20th, 1984 – Previously Unreleased
“The Four Horsemen”
“Jump In The Fire”
“Fight Fire With Fire”
“Ride The Lightning”
“Phantom Lord”
“Seek & Destroy”
“Whiplash”

CD – Live At The Keystone, Palo Alto, CA – October 31st, 1983 – Previously Unreleased
“Hit The Lights”
“The Four Horsemen”
“Jump In The Fire”
“Fight Fire With Fire”
“Ride The Lightning”
“Phantom Lord”
“When Hell Freezes Over (The Call Of Ktulu)”
“Seek & Destroy”
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”
“Whiplash”
“Creeping Death”
Guitar Solo
“Metal Militia”

DVD – Metallica Live At The Metro In Chicago On August 12th, 1983 – Previously Unreleased Except “No Remorse” and “Metal Milita”
“Hit The Lights” (Video Only/No Audio)
“The Four Horsemen” (Video Only/No Audio)
“Jump In The Fire” (Video Only/Partial Audio)
“Phantom Lord”
“No Remorse”
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”
“Whiplash”
“Seek & Destroy”
Guitar Solo
“Metal Militia”

Ride The Lightning tracklisting:

CD/Vinyl
“Fight Fire With Fire”
“Ride The Lightning”
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“Fade To Black”
“Trapped Under Ice”
“Escape”
“Creeping Death”
“The Call Of Ktulu”

Vinyl – Live At The Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, CA – March 10th, 1985 (2LP) – Previously Unreleased
“The Ecstasy Of Gold”
“Fight Fire With Fire”
“Ride The Lightning”
“Phantom Lord”
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“No Remorse”
“Fade To Black”
“Seek & Destroy”
“Creeping Death”
“Am I Evil?”
“Motorbreath”

Vinyl – Creeping Death (Picture Disc)
“Creeping Death”
“Am I Evil?”
“Blitzkrieg”

CD – Metallica Interviews
Metal Forces Interview with Lars, November 1984
WUSC Cleveland Radio Interview with Cliff and Kirk – February 1985
Metal Madness Interview with Lars, March 1985

CD – Demos And Rough Mixes From Lars’ Vault – Previously Unreleased
“Ride The Lightning” (Studio Demo)
“When Hell Freezes Over (The Call Of Ktulu)” (Studio Demo)
“Creeping Death” (Studio Demo)
“Fight Fire With Fire” (Studio Demo)
“Ride The Lightning” (Garage Demo)
“When Hell Freezes Over (The Call Of Ktulu)” (Garage Demo)
“Fight Fire With Fire” (Garage Demo)
“Ride The Lightning” (Boom Box Demo)
“Blitzkrieg” (Rhythm Track Rough Mix)
“Am I Evil?” (Rhythm Track Rough Mix)

“Ride The Lightning” (Garage Demo):

CD – Live At Kabuki Theatre, San Francisco, CA – March 15th, 1985 – Previously Unreleased
“Fight Fire With Fire”
“Ride The Lightning”
“Phantom Lord”
“The Four Horsemen”
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”)
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“No Remorse”
“Fade To Black”
“Creeping Death”
Guitar Solo
“Am I Evil?”
“Motorbreath”

CD – Live At The Lyceum Theatre, London, UK – December 20th, 1984
“Phantom Lord”
“The Four Horsemen”
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“No Remorse”
“The Call Of Ktulu”
“Seek & Destroy”
“Whiplash”
“Creeping Death”
Guitar Solo
“Metal Militia”

CD – Live At Castle Donington, UK – August 17th, 1985 – Previously Unreleased
“Creeping Death”
“Ride The Lightning”
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“The Four Horsemen”
“Fade To Black”
“Seek & Destroy”
“Whiplash”
“Motorbreath”

DVD – Live At The Metal Hammer Festival In St. Goarshausen, Germany – September 14th, 1985
“Creeping Death”
“Ride The Lightning”
“Disposable Heroes”
“No Remorse”
“(Anesthesia) – Pulling Teeth”
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
“The Four Horsemen”
“Fade To Black”
“Seek & Destroy”
“Whiplash”
“Fight Fire With Fire”
Guitar Solo
“Am I Evil?”
“Motorbreath”

Live At MTV’s Day On The Green At Oakland Stadium, Oakland, CA – August 31st, 1985
“Creeping Death”
“Ride The Lightning”
“For Whom The Bell Tolls”
MTV Day On The Green Interview with Lars and James

Danish TV – Previously Unreleased
Lars Ulrich When He Was Young (Lars’ first television interview)
SPOT – Lars Ulrich



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METALLICA's song "Fuel" is featured in a new commercial for Dodge's powerful performance cars. Check it out below.

While everyone is inside sleeping, the roads become a wide open playground. The 30-second spot, which was filmed in Miami, opens on dark roads and empty streets as the voiceover says, "We don't have to worry about predators like our ancestors did. No sabre-tooth tigers stalking from the brush… no dire wolves circulating the camp." Set to the music of "Fuel", the sinister quality of the city bleeds into a visually arresting landscape as we see the Dodge Charger SRT Hellcat, Challenger SRT Hellcat and Viper GTS racing through the landscape at night, when they have the freedom to drive as the vehicles were meant to be driven.

The voiceover continues, "There are no more monsters to fear, so we have to build our own." Viewers see a "707 Horsepower" super over images of the Charger and Challenger and "Top Track Speed of 206 MPH" over the Dodge Viper. The spot closes with Hellcat, Dodge and Viper logos.

"Predators" is about how these three cars are modern beasts that trigger a deep, visceral feeling.

"Fuel" was written by James Hetfield, Lars Ulrich and Kirk Hammett about the people's desire to drive their car or even their life too fast (for example by taking drugs).

"Fuel" was used as the official theme song for NASCAR on NBC and TNT from the mid-2001 to the 2003 seasons. It also appeared as the lead track on the soundtrack to the PlayStation 2 game "Test Drive Off-Road Wide Open" by Infogrames.

METALLICA's recently announced headlining concert at Minneapolis's brand new U.S. Bank Stadium on August 20 has completely sold out. Pre-sale fan club tickets were made available earlier this week, followed by this morning's public on-sale, which sold out in less than ten minutes. METALLICA's show in Minneapolis will be the first rock concert at U.S. 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.

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich said, "We had such an amazing time playing in our hometown stadium the night before the Super Bowl that when asked we couldn't say 'no' to another chance to be part of a very special weekend."

AVENGED SEVENFOLD singer M. Shadows said, "Opening the new U.S. Bank Stadium would be an honor all on its own but having the opportunity to play with the mighty METALLICA makes this a must see event. We've been cooped up in the studio for over a year and can't think of a better way to bust out than with all of you in Minneapolis."

The members of METALLICA have often joked that they'll play anywhere, but frontman James Hetfield told The Pulse Of Radio a while back about the one venue he won't play — a cruise ship. "That's a whole other level," he said. "Trapped on the ocean somewhere? [Laughs] There's already enough craziness that happens on cruise ships already. I'm not going on a cruise anytime soon, with or without the band!"

METALLICA continues to work on its tenth studio album, which may or may not be out by the time the band opens the stadium in Minneapolis.

METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett told Alternative Press earlier this month that the band had "pretty much" hired "Death Magnetic" engineer Greg Fidelman to produce its new album, saying, "We have not brought in any (other) producer and it looks extremely (unlikely) we'd bring one in this late into the project."

For longtime STUCK MOJO fans, the wait is over. After a seven-year hiatus from touring, and almost nine years since the band's last release, a new album, "Here Come The Infidels", will be available for pre-orders beginning Friday, March 25 at 11 a.m. EST, through Pledge Music. To say thank you, everyone who pre-orders the album will immediately receive a digital download of the track "Verbal Combat", the lyric video for which can be seen below.

Says STUCK MOJO guitarist Rich Ward: "Pledge Music is a perfect fit for us. This time we're not just putting out a record like bands have done since the dawn of the record industry, we're offering it directly to YOU. Pledge Music has become our virtual merch booth, where you can buy a CD, a limited-edition LP in red vinyl and a t-shirt directly from us, just like you would at one of our shows. And unlike traditional retail chain stores, Pledge Music also allows us to offer signed CDs, LPs and posters, in addition to all kinds of one of a kind items, right from our Pledge store."

STUCK MOJO has never been part of a genre, and with Andy Sneap (MEGADETH, EXODUS, TESTAMENT, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, ACCEPT) back in the studio as the band's producer, "Here Come The Infidels" will have many declaring this the comeback album of the decade.

Continues Ward: "Let me get this out of the way: I love Andy Sneap. He is arguably the best metal producer in the world, and his leadership in the making of this record has elevated it to a standard that few albums achieve. Plus, we had a great time seeing how loud we could turn up a guitar amplifier for an extended period of time."

"Here Come The Infidels" contains eleven tracks of unmistakeable Ward riffing, working like a sledgehammer in partnership with long time drummer and groove partner Frank Fontsere. Twenty-five years of chemistry make Ward and Fontsere one of the best in the pocket rhythm sections in heavy music. These big STUCK MOJO riffs lay the foundation for the spit-soaked lyrics of counterculture fury, delivered by new vocalist Robby J. Ward discovered Robby J through — how else? — a YouTube video, and in that moment instantly realized that he had found the new voice and face of the band.

Says Ward: "Robby J is a fucking ninja, the total package vocalist/frontman. Mark my words, this guy is going to set a new standard for what a band with a rapper looks like."

Batting cleanup is the newest addition to the band, bassist Len Sonnier. Hailing from the Texas-Louisiana border, Len is a veteran bass player, best known for his time spent as the touring bassist in KING'S X frontman Doug Pinnick's POUNDHOUND project.

Due on June 24, "Here Come The Infidels" is described in a press release as "an album for this moment in history, as it escalates STUCK MOJO's rich history of desecrating the remains of Che' Guevara and causing your Prius to emit plumes of black smoke. Its overwhelming lyrical rebuke against leftist, authoritarian, fascist dogma makes 'Here Come The Infidels' a 41-minute-and-18-second pushback against the social justice movement."

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS reunited with singer Chester Bennington for a one-off performance last night (Saturday, March 26) at "From Classic To Rock", a star-studded event to benefit Palos Verdes Peninsula public schools at the Norris Theater and Pavilion in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Video footage of the performance can be seen below.

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS and Bennington officially announced that they were parting ways in November. Bennington, who also sings in LINKIN PARK, said in a statement: "The last few years have been an amazing experience. I got to create and perform with one of the greatest rock bands of our generation, that had so much influence on me growing up. With the amount of time STP deserves, in addition to being in LINKIN PARK, and with the needs of my family, one of them always seems to fall short."

Bennington continued: "The four of us... Robert [DeLeo, bass], Eric [Kretz, drums], Dean [DeLeo, guitar] and myself knew what we were up against. We decided in due fairness to friends, fans and the legacy of STP that it needs more than time was allowing me. And in all fairness to my bandmates in LINKIN PARK, as well as to myself and to my family, I'm going to focus solely on LINKIN PARK so I can contribute 100 percent."

The DeLeos and Kretz said: "What an amazing and beautiful few years we've all had together. We have thoroughly enjoyed our time together with Chester not only professionally, but even more so on a personal level. Sadly, it was evident that scheduling and time was working against us. Within this, there is a new beginning. There is an abundance of new music written, some of which is already recorded."

The bandmembers added: "We have had the fortune of playing with some very talented singers over the last few months and will continue to do so until each of us feels and knows when the right person arrives."

Bennington joined STONE TEMPLE PILOTS in 2013, shortly after they fired Scott Weiland. He recorded one EP with the band, "High Rise", and did a handful of tours. Dean DeLeo said at the time that Bennington was their first and only choice to replace Weiland. "We simply did not have a list of guys we were thinking of, we didn't hold auditions, we thought of Chester and that was it," he said. "It's very interesting, honestly, because Chester told me a story that when he was dating his wife about nine years ago, he told her that one day he was gonna get a call from us to be the singer of this band."

Prior to last night's concert, Bennington last performed with STONE TEMPLE PILOTS on October 25, 2015 at the Aftershock festival in California.

Ex-SMASHING PUMPKINS guitarist James Iha rejoined his former bandmates on stage last night (Saturday, March 26) at the Ace Hotel in Los Angeles, California. Iha, who celebrated his 48th birthday Saturday, surprised the audience by walking out on stage with guitar in hand and sitting in with the group for alongside PUMPKINS leader Billy Corgan and drummer Jimmy Chamberlin, who is touring with the band for the second time in less than a year. Chamberlin also played on a summer co-headlining run with MARILYN MANSON in 2015.

Iha joined Corgan, Chamberlin, guitarist Jeff Schroeder and touring members Katie Cole and Sierra Swan in performing songs off SMASHING PUMPKINS' landmark 1993 LP "Siamese Dream", including "Mayonaise", "Soma", "Rocket", "Today", "Disarm" and "Spaceboy".

Prior to last night's concert, Iha last played with SMASHING PUMPKINS on December 2, 2000 in Chicago.

Back in 2008, Corgan posted a lengthy message online at his blog in which he wrote that the original lineup of the SMASHING PUMPKINS will never play together again. When Corgan reformed the PUMPKINS in 2007, it was without Iha and bassist D'Arcy Wretzky. Although fans had speculated about whether the pair would ever return, Corgan wrote: "I can now say definitively that they aren't ever coming back. Period. There is no maybe. If the door was once open to at least have the conversation and consider the possibility, it is now closed. For good. We have moved on. We love them, and we wish them well. The SMASHING PUMPKINS are now whoever is standing on that stage, on any given day, with a willingness to play those songs."

Jeff + Billy + James + Jimmy 3/26/2016 @SmashingPumpkin pic.twitter.com/gC7v6I1VHr

— Smashing Pumpkins (@SmashingPumpkin) March 27, 2016

During a brand new interview with Argentina's Vorterix radio station, ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian spoke about his recent comment that, if he could, he would "make all of the Internet go away," because it would be "much better for the music business." Asked if he thinks that would really help the music industry get back on its feet, Ian said: "I don't know. That's not my job. It's just my personal opinion."

He continued: "I choose to live my life as someone who prefers to go outside. I choose to live my life as someone who doesn't spend every minute of his day staring at my phone or staring at a computer screen. If I'm in a car traveling around a city on tour, I prefer to look out the window than to have my head down, staring at my phone. I prefer to shop in a store rather than shop online. I prefer to go to the movies than sitting and watching something on my laptop. I prefer to read a book than look at a Kindle. This is just my personal opinion."

Ian went on to say: "If you go to any public place anywhere on the planet now, all you do is see hundreds of people staring at their phones. So it's not a music-business problem; this is a humanity problem. I think the Internet and technology is just turning us into a very antisocial species where human connection is being lost. People don't talk to each other anymore; they fucking text. That's what our world has become. And what's next? What comes next after texting? 'Cause I'm sure technology will advance in the next hundred years and there'll be even less interaction between human beings. So I just find it to be a very scary thing. As a reader of a lot of science-fiction, the planet is a much different place than it was before the Internet. And it's just the way I choose to live my life. I know other people have the way they choose to live their lives, and I'm not gonna tell anybody else how to live their lives."

Ian also talked about the important strategy he and his wife, Pearl Aday (daughter of actor/musician Meat Loaf), have sought to implement while raising their four-year-old son, Revel Young Ian, in an age of technology.

"Look, [learning how to use technology effectively and to its fullest potential is] just a necessity in society," he said. "You can't shield your children from this, because then they're gonna grow up, they're gonna go to school, and they're gonna try to get a job. And you can't live in this world and be a functioning adult without learning how to use hip technology at this point. So you can't shield them from it completely, but you can certainly limit their exposure and limit the experience and make sure that your child is spending his time outside playing with a fucking stick. I mean, that, to me, is more important than him being on a fucking phone looking at pictures of LEGO Iron Man, let's put it that way."

He continued: "I would much rather be outside with my son hiking, like we do all the time, or playing soccer… You know, anything. Any time outside, to me, is more important, where he's learning and he's using his imagination; he's not just ingesting crap that's being fed to him. I think, as parents, it's our responsibility to make sure our children… just limiting the exposure to that, and making sure they're able to develop their own imaginations."

ANTHRAX's latest album, "For All Kings", sold 34,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 9 on The Billboard 200 chart.

"For All Kings" is ANTHRAX's first studio album since 2011's "Worship Music" (No. 12 peak with 28,000 sold in its first week) and follows the 2013 covers set "Anthems" (No. 52; 8,000 sold in its debut frame).

ANTHRAX's U.S. tour with LAMB OF GOD came to a close on February 12 in Los Angeles, California.

In a brand new interview with Ultimate Classic Rock, TWISTED SISTER singer Dee Snider was asked if he feels the band has finally gotten its due and the respect it deserves, more than forty years after its inception. He responded: "I've often taken personal responsibility for wherever I went in my head, making the wrong decisions. All of the right decisions that I made to get us there, I started to make wrong decisions to crash and burn too early. And the band is dismissed as being a flash in the pan, one-hit wonders — actually, two hits. That's troublesome.'

He continued: "The thing that bothers me more than anything is that TWISTED SISTER is one of the best live bands. We really didn't tour in the scheme of things on an international scale for that long of a time. There was a couple of years where we were out there in the thick of things. A few years, but we aren't known as that and it's a shock to people when we do these festivals and we annihilate everybody. And we do and people are going, 'Holy shit! I didn't know!' So, it's still one of the best-kept secrets."

Snider added: "You know, out of all of the things that I do personally — and I do a lot of things, you know, I act and I do radio and I write screenplays , all of that stuff — the thing that I do best, I front a band and I front it like few front a band. But I'm not [part of that conversation]. I see a list of the greatest frontmen of all time and I'm like 46 and I'm going, '46?' I'm looking at the people in front of me going, 'Seriously, Tom Araya?' I mean, nothing against SLAYER, but, I mean, he's a bass player; he's not even a frontman! But that just speaks to the fact that, hey — and I think if Tom saw that list, he would go, 'Holy shit, I really shouldn't be in front of Dee.'

"I remember that we played some huge festival and I'm going to the stage — oh, it was Heavy Montreal and it was METALLICA, ANTHRAX, SLAYER and TWISTED SISTER's on the bill. Seventy-five thousand people are going, 'What the fuck is TWISTED SISTER doing here?' We're walking to the stage and I see Kerry King and the band up there and I go, 'What are you doing up here, Kerry?' He goes, 'I told the guys, you've got to go up and watch Dee.' And we took that fucking place apart. You go look online at Heavy Montreal, it was like, holy shit! TWISTED SISTER, a bunch of old men, came up there and just melted every fucking bit and destroyed every band, and nobody saw it coming. So, that's frustrating to me and so no, I don't feel like really the band has gotten its due."

TWISTED SISTER's movie, "We Are Twisted F***ing Sister!", was released on February23 on DVD, Blu-ray, VOD, and digital formats, with an included two hours of bonus material and director commentary.

"We Are Twisted F***ing Sister!" is a 134-minute documentary film by Andrew Horn. The film follows the band from their beginnings as a cross-dressing glam band playing four shows a night, six nights a week in New Jersey bowling alleys and Long Island beach bars, to the suburban mega-clubs of the late '70s and early '80s, to their bust-out appearance on the U.K. rock TV show "The Tube".

DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen was recently interviewed by the Corpus Christi, Texas radio station C101. You can now listen to the chat below. A couple of excerpts follow (transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET).

On how DEF LEPPARD frontman Joe Elliott is doing, less than two months after the band was forced to postpone the last ten dates of its tour with STYX and TESLA due to Elliott suffering from vocal issues:

Phil: "He's great. We toured nine months last year and Joe was actually touring with walking pneumonia for most of the time. And when he got better… He actually got a nasty cough just after Christmas, after pneumonia had gone, [he got] this awful hacking cough. So that's really what kind of messed him up. You know, when we'd done these dates in Florida… We'd only done one show and, all of a sudden, his voice just kind of went out. And the doctor said, 'Look, you've gotta stop singing for a month.' So he's doing great now. He's actually all back to normal."

On the setlist for DEF LEPPARD's upcoming tour with REO SPEEDWAGON and TESLA:

Phil: "It just keeps updating, upgrading, getting more muscular — the whole thing — every time we go out. We're obviously gonna be promoting the new album, 'Def Leppard', so we're gonna try and put newer songs in as well. I mean, that's always a tough one — you know, when you put a new album out, you'd love to play everything, but the fans obviously wanna hear classics as well. So we're kind of [doing our best to] dance across that line, where you play new stuff, but not too many."

DEF LEPPARD's latest, self-titled album entered The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 10 with first-week sales of just over 30,000 units — nearly all from pure album sales.

The album is the band's first studio effort since "Songs From the Sparkle Lounge" in 2008.

Sammy Hagar has told RollingStone.com in a new interview that he would be open to rekindling his friendship with the Van Halen brothers, but has made it clear that he will not be the first one to reach out.

"It would be misinterpreted," Hagar said. "I know the way those guys think. 'Oh, he wants something! He wants back in the band. He must be broke.' I'm sorry, but unless they've changed drastically, which when I've talked to people that do know them it sounds like they haven't changed at all, it would be misinterpreted. I also don't want to provoke that. That's not what I'm looking for in my life now.'"

Hagar added that he would be receptive to meeting with his former bandmates if they got in contact. "I'd say, 'Fuck yeah, let's get some coffee,'" he said. "If I did it myself, I'd be way too vulnerable. I'd be in a room with the guys like, 'No, no. You don't understand. That's not what I'm talking about. I just want to be friends. And once we're friends, we can do anything. Until that is proven, I can't be in a band with you guys, or whatever.'"

Hagar also insisted that he would never even consider a reunion with VAN HALEN unless Eddie and Alex Van Halen also agreed to bring back original bassist Michael Anthony. "There's no scenario I'd do it without Mikey," Hagar said. "Absolutely not. I would do a solo album with Ed. We can call it the SAM AND ED SHOW or the ED AND SAM SHOW. But there's no such thing as a VAN HALEN reunion without Mikey. I think they just proved that."

Rumors that VAN HALEN's original singer David Lee Roth could possibly once again be succeeded by Hagar have become more persistent during the band's current hiatus.

Hagar sent a tweet to Eddie Van Halen in January wishing him a happy birthday — and got a cordial response — despite the bad blood that has existed between the two of them since 2004. Hagar later said that part of the reason he did it was because of the recent deaths of rock legends Glenn Frey and David Bowie.

VAN HALEN has been quiet since completing a North American tour last fall and putting out a concert set called "Tokyo Dome: Live In Concert".

The official music video for "The One", a brand new song from the Japanese teenage girl pop metal band BABYMETAL, can be seen below. The clip was filmed on December 13, 2015 at Yokohama Arena in Japan.

"The One" is taken from BABYMETAL's second album, "Metal Resistance", which will be released on April 1 via RAL/Sony Music Entertainment in the U.S. and earMUSIC in Europe.

"Metal Resistance" features songs that have already been performed live, as well as many never-been-heard-before new songs. Following their previous album, "Metal Resistance" features both songs performed as solo songs, and as a group. "Amore -Aoboshi-" and "No Rain, No Rainbow" is performed by Suzuka Nakamoto (a.k.a. Su-Metal), and "GJ!" and "Sis. Anger" are performed by Yui Mizuno (a.k.a. Yuimetal) and Moa Kikuchi (a.k.a. Moametal). BABYMETAL will kick off the 2016 world tour with a headline show at the world-famous Wembley Arena, U.K. on Saturday, April 2, making history by becoming the first Japanese artist to headline the legendary venue.

The track listing for each "Metal Resistance" format is as follows: CD and limited box set including CD + exclusive T-shirt:

01. Road Of Resistance02. Karate03. Awadama Fever04. YAVA!05. Amore06. Meta Taro07. From Dusk Till Dawn08. GJ!09. Sis. Anger10. No Rain, No Rainbow11. Tales Of The Destinies12. The One (English version) 2LP: Side 1

01. Road Of Resistance02. Karate03. Awadama Fever Side 2

01. Yava!02. Amore03. Meta Taro Side 3

01. From Dusk Till Dawn02. GJ!03. Sis. Anger Side 4

01. No Rain, No Rainbow02. Tales Of The Destinies03. The One (English version) Of the new album, BABYMETAL mastermind Kobametal stated: "As prophesied by the Fox God, a new album will be released on April 1st, 2016, also known as the Fox Day.

"Since the release of BABYMETAL's debut album in 2014, we have been racing across the globe non-stop on our world tour. Through the last tour, I have come across people from all over the world and have had the chance to feel that miraculous moment when everyone came together via BABYMETAL.

"Our new song 'The One' contains lyrics that speak of uniting the world, or a crowd favorite at concerts, 'Road Of Resistance', that never fails to bring our fans together. Every BABYMETAL song makes up this extraordinary story.

"I continue to believe that the songs of BABYMETAL continue to push them forward to discover new possibilities.

"All I can say right now is for all of you to wait patiently for the coming of the Fox Day."

Established in 2010, BABYMETAL is the offshoot of the Japanese pop idol group SAKURA GAKUIN that performs a distinctly Japanese mix of schoolgirl J-pop and heavy metal.

BABYMETAL's members admit that they had never listened to metal before joining the group. The girls wear gothy schoolgirl costumes, do choreographed dance routines and bang their heads violently.

Many heavy metal fans have been reluctant to embrace BABYMETAL — which also includes producer Kobametal and a backing band of corpse-painted virtuosos — with some Internet forums calling them "the definition of a gimmick", "awful" and "metal for hipsters."

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine was asked by Vanyaland if he thinks someone like controversial Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump actually has a chance at becoming president. He responded: "Of course — anybody does." He added: "I'm not going to go on record and say that I support anybody, because I don't, but first off, I think it's sad that whatever choice you make that you're gonna be ostracized and perhaps even worse. But even if I did pick somebody, it shouldn't matter; it should matter what a person decides. They should have their own truth."

He continued: "I think personally, make all politicians work for free, and then you'll really see who loves America. Because these dudes get paid for the rest of their lives, who's not gonna say whatever the hell they have to say to get a job there? And the sad thing is there's these beautiful young minds that are out there doing caucusing and rallying for these guys, and they don't understand the whole delegate thing yet. I remember when I was young and dumb and I thought that it was really, really gonna be down to the popular vote. Then somebody explained to me about the delegates and it was, like, 'What are you talking about?'"

Mustaine made headlines in early 2012 when he voiced his support for ultraconservative Republican presidential candidate Rick Santorum. He explained at the time that the Pennsylvania politician looked "like he could be a really cool president… kind of like a JFK kind of guy." That same year, he drew ire on social media when he suggested onstage at a concert in Singapore that President Obama was behind the mass shootings in Aurora and at a Sikh temple in Wisconsin.

Mustaine later blamed media outlets for taking his statements out of context, explaining that never said he officially "endorsed" Santorum. As for the Singapore concert, he claimed to have been repeating the theories of Larry Pratt, a pro-gun activist who runs the organization Gun Owners Of America.

Also in 2012, Mustaine revealed his "birther" opinions on a talk show, saying he doubted President Obama was born in the United States. He told radio host Alex Jones: "With all of the proof about his birth certificate being fake… And you see the signs in Kenya that say 'the birthplace of Barack Obama.' Hello?! C'mon, guys. How stupid are we right now?"

Mustaine has consistently denied that he is a Republican, telling Artisan News in a 2012 interview: "I'm an independent, not a Republican — I've never been a Republican. I've always said that. I don't belong to any party — I'm non-partisan. And for me, the sad thing is, instead of voting for the best man, I have to vote for the lesser of two evils."

Finland's Kaaos TV conducted an interview with drummer Tom Hunting of San Francisco Bay Area thrashers EXODUS prior to the band's March 18 performance at Rytmikorjaamo in Seinäjoki, Finland. You can now watch the chat below.

Asked if there are any plans for EXODUS to work on material for the follow-up to 2014's "Blood In Blood Out" album, Hunting said: "Gary [Holt, EXODUS guitarist and main songwriter] and I are gonna start sitting down… He's gonna write some riffs and we're gonna start jamming in April. We're not under any hurry or any kind of time constraints to come up with a new record, but we want to. Everybody's motivated, and we have a little free time in April. 'Cause we've been touring constantly for this album, and Gary's got commitments to SLAYER too, so we've gotta work around that. He's a big part of this thing."

Holt has been the touring guitarist for SLAYER since January 2011 when Jeff Hanneman contracted necrotizing fasciitis, also known as flesh-eating disease, from a spider bite in his backyard. Hanneman eventually died in May 2013 from alcohol-related cirrhosis of the liver.

Holt is unable to take part in EXODUS's current European trek due to his commitments with SLAYER. Filling in for him once again is HEATHEN guitarist Kragen Lum.

"Blood In Blood Out" sold around 8,800 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 38 on The Billboard 200 chart. Released in North America on October 14, 2014 via Nuclear Blast, the CD art was illustrated by Swedish artist Pär Olofsson, known worldwide for his incredible renderings that have graced the covers of countless heavy metal albums, including EXODUS' "Let There Be Blood".

"Blood In Blood Out" was EXODUS' first album since the departure of the band's lead singer of nine years, Rob Dukes, and the return of Steve "Zetro" Souza, who previously fronted EXODUS from 1986 to 1993 and from 2002 to 2004.

EXODUS last fall completed a tour of North America as the support act for KING DIAMOND.

On March 13, former IRON MAIDEN singer Paul Di'Anno performed at a special NWOBHM symposium in Tokai, Japan. Video footage of his performance — during which he was backed by members of the classic Japanese metal bands OUTRAGE and UNITED — can be seen below.

Di'Anno told Argentina's CM TV last August that "injuries" to his knee have forced him to sit down while performing. He added: "But it's worked in Wacken [at the Wacken Open Air festival], and everywhere in Brazil. I think the fans don't give a shit to see me; they just wanna hear me sing. So maybe six months I have to do this before the [knee] operation. I still wanna play, so I sit down and sing."

A year ago, Di'Anno spoke in more detail about the condition of his knee which is making it impossible for him to stand up and perform. He said: "I don't wanna swear… [Laughs] but it's fucked. It's actually fucked. Because this has been [going on for] seven years. I should have done this seven years ago. And now all the ligament is gone and all it basically is is bone rubbing against bone. And, oh my God, it's so painful some days, it's unbelievable. And through my mother, I caught osteoporosis [a progressive bone disease in which the bone density reduces over years] as well. When you get to a certain age. And [I can't be] buggered with that. [I'm like], sod this; I can't be dealing with it. So [fixing] the knee will make it a lot better."

Di'Anno added: "I can't take it anymore. And it will be so nice to be pain-free [after] seven years."

Di'Anno recorded two classic albums with IRON MAIDEN before being replaced by Bruce Dickinson. He went on to front a number of other bands, including KILLERS and BATTLEZONE, and released several solo records.

ARCHITECTS OF CHAOZ, the new band featuring Di'Anno alongside members of Paul's longtime German touring backing group THE PHANTOMZ, released its debut album, "The League Of Shadows", in North America last July via Metalville Records.

Video footage of OPERATION: MINDCRIME, the new band led by former QUEENSRŸCHE singer Geoff Tate, performing on February 28 at Sellersville Theater in Sellersville, Pennsylvania can be seen below.

Joining Tate in OPERATION: MINDCRIME's current touring lineup are guitarists Kelly Gray (QUEENSRŸCHE) and Scott Moughton, drummer Scott Mercado (CANDLEBOX), bassist Tim Fernley (THE VOODOOS) and keyboardist Randy Gane (MYTH).

"I love touring and I love playing live, performing with like-minded people in front of like-minded audiences and being there in the moment together when all of our passions collide," Tate told Digital First Media. "Typically I play a few songs off the new album, but really I focus on playing songs from my catalog of albums. I typically try to pull out different things that people haven't heard before or that I haven’t played in years or ever. I like doing that surprise thing during the show."

Asked if touring is something that he will be doing indefinitely or if he has a timetable as to when he will cease touring altogether, Tate told Oregon Music News: "I will always tour. I can't see myself stopping. I love performing live and I'm a believer that music is always best when experienced live. You're seeing it, you're experiencing it and you're witnessing the moment. It's incredibly special. I think a lot of us lose track of that in the 20th century digital age. There's nothing that compares to a live performance. I don't think there ever will be anything that will come close to it."

He continued: "I'm still relatively old school in the sense that I buy music on release date and whether you buy it online and have it shipped and it arrives on release date or if you go out and track down a hard copy. Nothing compares to tearing off the cellophane, popping the CD in and looking through the liners. It's sad that those rituals are essential a thing of the past, don't you think?"

Tate added: "In the United States, music has become a disposable commodity for people. It's not part of their lives like it once was. That's due to our cultural shift. I saw something similar happen in Japan in the early '90s; people grew out of music that was dear to their hearts. That's how the music industry treated music as if it were a passing thing. It was like this is what you liked in your youth and then you grew up to be an adult and then you didn't have anything or want anything to do with that music anymore. [Laughs] Music is art and music is essential to the human environment and essential to the human story. We need art. It's one of the most essential things to human existence."

"The Key", the first album of an ambitious trilogy from OPERATION: MINDCRIME, sold around 2,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD was made available on September 18, 2015 via Frontiers Music Srl.

Former SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo is sitting behind the kit for SUICIDAL TENDENCIES during the band's North American tour as the support act for MEGADETH.

Fan-filmed video footage of SUICIDAL TENDENCIES' March 19 performance at the Sands Bethlehem Event Center in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania can be seen below.

SUICIDAL TENDENCIES frontman Mike Muir told The Bulletin about Lombardo's addition to the band: "Dave's a legend, you know. It's a little bit different than other things — people call him the godfather of the double-kick and bass and stuff. He just has an amazing intensity, but besides intensity, he just has a musical mindset that — he totally understands what we're doing and where we came from when we started, different, but at the same time and stuff. We've always kind of done shows together, this and that, been kind of close. He knows where he's coming from is the right place."

Lombardo made his live debut with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES on February 26 at Pearl Concert Theater at Palms Casino Resort in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Muir recently hinted at not one, but two follow-ups to the group's 2013 album "13" — an EP and a full-length — inspired by the current political climate and upcoming election. He did not reveal any information about these new releases, but implied that these may be the band's final recordings. However, he pointed out: "I thought the first one would probably be the last we would do, too."

"13" 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. The first studio album in 13 years from SUICIDAL TENDENCIES was produced by vocalist Mike Muir and Grammy-nominated engineer/mixer Paul Northfield (DREAM THEATER, HOLE, RUSH).

Swedish metallers AVATAR will release their new concept album, "Feathers & Flesh", on Friday, May 13 via Another Century in Europe and Entertainment One (eOne) in North America and Canada.

The first official radio single from the CD, "The Eagle Has Landed", can be streamed below.

"You've heard Owl's hunting hymn. Now it's time for Eagle's mission statement," says AVATAR lead vocalist Johannes Eckerström. "Just as he crashes into the world of his adversary, we will come crashing into your lives, screaming at the top of our lungs.

"We're still very early in the story and without giving away too much, I can say that things are about to change rapidly.

"The riff is a towel, the melody is water and y'all are about to get boarded. Have fun!"

The aim is set higher, further and deeper than ever before for AVATAR. Not only is this concept album their most extensive work to date, showing the widest range of any of their albums, it also contains a story too extensive for any booklet, so they made a book. A fully illustrated 60-page, 109-verse poem hardcover book. The physical album pre order, book, and exclusive merchandise is available now. AVATAR's music video for the new song "For The Swarm" can be seen below. Directed by longtime collaborator Johan Carlén, the clip pegs itself firmly into the upper echelon of stunning visual masterpieces the band has grown accustomed to producing. "For The Swarm" is also available as an iTunes instant gratification track, meaning fans who pre order the album will get the track as an instant download. "Feathers & Flesh" was recorded in Germany, Finland and Sweden in December 2015 with producer extraordinaire Sylvia Massy (SYSTEM OF A DOWN, TOOL, RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS).

"AVATAR is an amazing band," said Massy, adding, "The singer has the wild energy and charisma I love, and the players are relentless. The album we're making is an epic. Each song powerfully stands on its own, but is only a piece of a larger story. This album is the project I've been dreaming about for years!" The music is as always, rooted in the extreme, with plenty of melodic sensibility and a lust for experimentation. There is a love for intense double bass drumming, riffing and shredding of timeless dimensions alongside rough edges, slow grooves and epic storytelling for the ages. The idea is that as the band digs deeper, the fists will be held up higher. The end result is a modern metal album with all the ruthlessness and power one could ask for handled with a loving songwriter’s hand, inspired by THE BEATLES and QUEEN. "Feathers & Flesh" track listing:

01. Regret02. House Of Eternal Hunt03. The Eagle Has Landed04. New Land05. Tooth, Beak & Claw06. For The Swarm07. Fiddler's Farewell08. One More Hill09. Black Waters10. Night Never Ending11. Pray The Sun Away12. When The Snow Lies Red13. Raven Wine14. Sky Burial

British heavy metal vocalist Blaze Bayley (IRON MAIDEN, WOLFSBANE) took part in an interview and acoustic performance on the February 22 edition of the Kate Justice show on BBC Radio Hereford & Worcester. You can now watch it below.

Blaze Bayley's eighth solo album, "Infinite Entanglement", was released on March 1. The official video for the album's first single, a song called "Human", is also available.

In a recent interview with Jimmy Kay and Alan Dixon from Canada's The Metal Voice, Blaze stated about his new album: "I had this idea to write my own book. I had a story that… kind of coming from the character from 'Tenth Dimension' [Blaze's 2002 album] that I really wanted to do. And we started work on it, and we had too many songs for one album. And I thought, you know what? When I did 'Tenth Dimension', I had to keep that down to a certain amount of time because I was working with a record company; I had deadlines to meet. I thought this time… I think this is a really big story. And so, I started thinking about it like 'Dune' and 'The Lord Of The Rings' and something like that. I thought if I was gonna do exactly what I wanted to do, then I would do it in three albums. Well, I am my record company, so I can do what I want to do. So I'm doing it in three albums. And this is my first studio album — full metal studio album — for four years, and it's part one of a trilogy. And the story is told across the three albums. And so far, it's turned out really, really well. And the first few people now have got their pre-orders delivered, and they're really enjoying it. The feedback I've had is great."

Blaze also spoke in more detail about the story that is covered on the trilogy. He said: "It's about a man who does not know if he is human. It's his personal journey, and he is on a mission to discover one of the new Kepler planets. You know, Kepler discovered all these new planets. It's set a hundred years in the future, and he's on a spaceship and it's how he deals with the fact that he will be one of the first people ever to live for a thousand years because of advances in technology, and how he deals with that. And the question is: is he human or not? And that's it in a nutshell. And the story expands from there. And we discover a lot of different things — first, his emotions and how he feels, but also why he's there and how he is reacting to the circumstances. And everything is not what it seems. He's been chosen for the mission, and we find out why. And that's part of the overall story. So it's a kind of mystery horror, in a way, set in space, and this is part one of it. So I'm hoping that you'll like the rest as well."

According to Blaze, he intentionally made "Infinite Entanglement" so that fans of his music can listen to the album and enjoy it without having to be familiar with the entire story. He said: "That is how I started with the whole idea. I had to do something that I would enjoy. So I really wanted to do something more in the 'War Of The Worlds' style and in the 'Operation: Mindcrime'. I wanted it so, as a listener, you can enjoy each song without knowing the story. But if you want to look at the sleeve notes, if you want to get deeper in it, then you'll see the connections. You don't have to listen to all the songs to know the connections. And the order of the songs isn't in a way that you have to play it from start to finish either. And you won't really know where all of the songs fit until that third album comes out and it explains to you the whole story and all of the details."

Asked if he already has a timetable in mind for the release of the second and third albums in the trilogy, Blaze said: "We have half of album two, we have half of the songs ready for that, and we have some of the music and one of the songs for album three. So we kind of have the ending and a bit of the middle. So, as we're going along on tour, and I'm writing the rest of the story, then we'll come up with the rest of the songs."

He continued: "What I've enjoyed with this one is having the liberation of not having to connect everything to reality or directly to me, to be able to use somebody else's emotions and somebody else's thoughts, and have more than one set of eyes to look at the world through. That's been really liberating, and I've enjoyed it very much."

The 52-year-old Bayley, who was born in Birmingham, was the original frontman in WOLFSBANE, but left in 1994 to join MAIDEN, with whom he recorded two studio albums — 1995's "The X Factor" 1998's and "Virtual XI" — before Bruce Dickinson returned to the group.

Bayley released a career-spanning double-disc collection, "Soundtracks Of My Life", on October 31, 2013.

"World Of Confusion", the new video from Swedish sleaze rockers TOXICROSE, can be seen below. The clip was directed by Owe Lingvall of Village Road Film. The song is taken from the band's debut album, "Total Tranquility", which will be released on May 16 via City Of Lights/Rock It Up. The cover artwork for the CD was created by Juanjo Castellano and can be seen below.

"Total Tranquility" track listing:

01. World Of Confusion02. Silent End Of Me03. Killing The Romance04. Sinner05. We Own The Night06. Reckless Society07. Clarity08. Because Of You09. We All Fall Down10. Total Tranquility

Formed in 2010 in Stockholm, Sweden, TOXICROSE consists of Tom Wouda (GEMINI FIVE), Andy and Michael Sweet (both ex-LIPSTIXX 'N' BULLETZ) and Goran Imperator (ex-SEXYDEATH). The band's debut five-track EP was released in late 2012. The CD was co-produced by Michael's brother, Martin Sweet of CRASHDÏËT.

Says a press release: "There is no compromising or limits in the world of TOXICROSE. Powerful vocals combined with aggressive guitars , grand melodic synthesizers and dark, emotional lyrics. With their catchy, melodic, epic metal anthems and shocking look, they are unstoppable!"

Fan-filmed video footage of vocalist Noora Louhimo of Finnish metallers BATTLE BEAST performing AC/DC and BON JOVI covers as part of her NOORA LOUHIMO EXPERIENCE solo concert at the Aulanko Punk 'N Heavy festival in January can be seen below.

BATTLE BEAST in February 2015 parted ways with lead guitarist and main songwriter Anton Kabanen due to "insurmountable disagreements" with the other members of the band. A substitute guitarist was enlisted for BATTLE BEAST's recent shows.

BATTLE BEAST's third studio album, "Unholy Savior", entered the Finnish chart at position No. 1. The CD was released in January 2015 via Nuclear Blast.

Louhimo joined BATTLE BEAST in 2012 as the replacement for Nitte Vänskä.

In an interview with RockRevoltMagazine.com, Noora stated about "Unholy Savior": "'Unholy Savior' includes various kind of songs: the BATTLE BEAST kind of hard, balls-to-the-wall power metal, soft and sexy pop-ish song, and a couple ballads. And, of course, a couple of bonus tracks that are influenced by '80s music. I think this album is showing different aspects of BATTLE BEAST and give more versatility in heavy metal genre."

Asked how she has been received by the old BATTLE BEAST fans, Noora said: "At first, I was crucified, so to speak. On the other hand, some fans thought I was improvement for the band, but some didn't believe in me at all. It's been very growing experience and made me believe more in myself as a singer than ever before. If you can take bad comments as your fuel to practice more and develop yourself into better, then you are on the right path. Of course, you have to know when take the critic seriously and when it is just someone trying to hurt you. But I really want to thank people who've been supporting me since the beginning but also the people who didn't. What doesn't kill makes stronger and better."

GUNS N' ROSES will embark on a 21-city North American tour to follow the previously announced run of six comeback shows, the band has confirmed.

Shows will take place this summer in the following cities:

* Atlanta* Boston* Chicago* Cincinnati* Dallas* Detroit* Houston* Kansas City* Nashville* New Orleans* New York* Orlando* Philadelphia* Phoenix* Pittsburgh* San Diego* San Francisco* Seattle* St. Louis* Toronto* Washington, D.C.

Exact dates and venue details have not yet been announced.

The confirmation of a full tour follows reports that GUNS N' ROSES billboards spring up around the country earlier today, fueling speculation that an announcement was imminent.

GUNS N' ROSES has six concerts scheduled so far, all in April: two at the Coachella Music And Arts Festival, two in Las Vegas and two in Mexico City.

The exact band lineup has yet to be confirmed beyond singer Axl Rose, guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan, although it is almost certain that keyboardist Dizzy Reed, guitarist Richard Fortus and drummer Frank Ferrer are on board as well.

Original members Izzy Stradlin and Steven Adler don't appear to be involved in the gigs, but Adler's solo band abruptly canceled a show at the Whiskey A Go Go in Los Angeles on April 1, with the venue tweeting, "Stay tuned for a big announcement! #GunsNRoses." There is now speculation about a guest appearance by Adler with GUNS.

The last show Axl and Slash played together was on July 17, 1993 at River Plate Stadium in Buenos Aires. The latest incarnation of GUNS N' ROSES, which only included Axl from the original lineup, played a residency in Las Vegas in 2014 but has remained silent since.

According to Billboard, the GUNS reunion — which sources say has been in the works for two years — is asking for anywhere from $3 million to $5 million a show.

Cult New York thrash metal act DEMOLITION HAMMER has reformed and is scheduled to perform on Friday, June 17 at St. Vitus Bar in Brooklyn, New York.

The band's 2016 lineup consists of original members Steve Reynolds (vocals, bass) and James Reilly (guitar) alongside longtime guitarist Derek Sykes and the group's latest addition, drummer Angel Cotte (EYES LIKE CYANIDE).

Sykes told BLABBERMOUTH.NET about DEMOLITION HAMMER's future plans: "We'll do some limited touring and festivals. We haven't discussed new music yet, but we'll see where all this goes."

DEMOLITION HAMMER was active between 1986 and 1994 and released three full-length albums — "Tortured Existence" (1990), "Epidemic Of Violence" (1992) and "Time Bomb" (1994) — all through Century Media.

A DEMOLITION HAMMER compilation, "Necrology: A Complete Anthology", was issued in 2008, also through Century Media. The set contained the band's entire three-album discography across two discs.

Shortly before the compilation's release, Sykes released a statement taking issue with "the allegations" included in the liner notes which suggested that the band "didn't have time to contribute" to the anthology. He explained: "In fact, DEMOLITION HAMMER was quite involved in the initial realization of the project. But ultimately, due to qualitative differences, we decided to let our past work with Century Media speak for itself."

In March 2015, Century Media reissued "Tortured Existence" and "Epidemic Of Violence" on vinyl.

Trailight bassist and mastermind Omer Cordell has checked in with the following:

"This song has been on my favourite list since the release of Persistence of Time by Anthrax in 1990. I was and still am blown away by their bassist Frank Bello. This is my tribute to him and to this great album and band."

To which Bello responded via Twitter:

Cordell: "Well, holy shit! I've always wondered if any of the covers I do are seen / heard by the ones who write them. This is nice indeed! Thanks Frank!"

Trailight, featuring vocalist Dave Padden (ex-Annihilator), has completed work on a single release cover of the Nick Cave And The Bad Seeds classic "The Weeping Song". It features Padden and Fear Factory frontman Burton C. Bell on vocals. It was released on February 22nd. Check it out below.

Cordell: "I can only think of a handful of people alive today who I consider to be the most prolific and inspiring artists who have influenced and inspired countless of people all over the world yet, in some way are considered to be unpopular. Who instead of following trends, the trends seem to follow them. Who continue to create their art without having to compromise their artistic vision and by doing so, they are able to create their own fusion and magic in music, words and visuals.And so, I wish to pay tribute to one of those people; one who I consider to be the most important artists of our time; the great Nick Cave. This is our version of 'The Weeping Song'

My endless gratitude to Dave Padden, Burton C. Bell, Cory McBain and Adrian Windsor for their great talent and hard work!"

Cordell recently spoke with BraveWords scribe Carl Begai about Trailight. Following is an excerpt from the interview.

“When I was first starting to think about doing this project, considering the vibe and riffs I was coming up with – ‘A Thousand Years’ was the first song I wrote – I knew who I wanted to play drums on it. Ryan has known me as a photographer for years, so when I called him up it was like ‘This may come as a surprise, but I’m making music now…’ (laughs). I asked if he’d be interested in playing on it and he wanted to hear the demos, but he had a bunch of touring to finish with Devin and then record the DVP double album. After that he had time to do my stuff.”

“Ryan came back from Devin’s album recording, learned my songs in about a week or 10 days, we had one day of pre-production where I had a chance to hear what he would be doing in the studio. Three days later we were in the studio and 10 hours later he was done recording. When we were finished I knew why I’d gotten Ryan to do it. He not only fits stylistically, he was also such an immense help with the whole process. I was basically flying blind. I’d been to the studios lots of times back when Strapping was around to take photos, but I’d never actually recorded in one before, so Ryan was helpful in guiding me.”

Cordell also took on outside help to produce The Primitive Mountain, a long and drawn out process that slowly deteriorated as the songs were being mixed. He eventually opted to take on the task of mixing and mastering himself; a daunting task on one hand, but the only option left if the album was going to live up to his expectations. Rather than a play-by-play of events, Cordell channels Metallica to sum up the situation.

“As far as the mix of the album, the first batch of songs that I sent you sound like St. Anger, and the final mixes sound like the Black album.”

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