Lita Ford’s long awaited and highly anticipated autobiography, Living Like A Runaway: A Memoir, was released on February 23rd via Dey Street Books, and can be ordered via the Amazon widget below.

In an alternate history, Led Zeppelin would have fired John Paul Jones in 1975 and replaced him with Ford, reports ConsequenceOfSound.net.

In Living Like A Runaway, Ford reveals that Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant offered her the gig after attending a Runaways concert in Los Angeles.

“[He] asked me if I could play bass,” she recounts. “‘For who?’ I asked. ‘Led Zep.’ He might have been drinking or pulling my leg, but he seemed to be dead serious in the ­moment.”

Read more at ConsequenceOfSound.net.

In support of the book, Lita is taking part in a cross-country book tour, including readings, Q&A sessions, book signings and more. Video footage from her February 22nd appearance at St. Vitus in Brooklyn, New York can be seen below:  

Information regarding the book tour events can be found below.

Lita Ford is set to release her latest album Time Capsule via SPV/Steamhammer on April 15th. The very special and unusual recording turns back the clock to a time when honest, down-to-earth rock music was still handmade and recorded without digital tricks and contraptions. Time Capsule is a "throwback" record that boasts identifiable voices and brilliant players jamming without any planning or pressure. Some of the album`s highlights: Billy Sheehan (bass), Rodger Carter (drums), Dave Navarro (mandolin), Jeff Scott Soto (vocals), Rick Nielsen and Robin Zander (backing vocals) and Gene Simmons (bass). The first single, "Rotten To The Core" is streaming below and features KISS' Gene Simmons on bass, former KISS axeman Bruce Kulick on guitar and Rodger Carter on drums.

Time Capsule contains ten songs plus an intro and will be available as a digipak as well as an LP version and download. It's Ford's gift to fans who love the ´80s, when thrilling vocal performances, raunchy riffs, and loud, growling guitars were as essential as oxygen. Time Capsule is available for pre-order via the Amazon widget below.

Time Capsule tracklisting:

“Intro”
“Where Will I Find My Heart Tonight”
“Killing Kind”
“War Of The Angels”
“Black Leather Heart”
“Rotten to the Core”
“Little Wing”
“On The Fast Track”
“King Of The Wild Wind”
“Mr. Corruption”
“Anything For The Thrill”

In support of Time Capsule, Lita Ford has taken to the road with her all-star band for a string of headline dates and special shows. Following those dates, Lita will join up with Halestorm providing direct support on their North America tour. A complete list of dates can be found below.

Lita on the new album and tour: "Time Capsule is some of the best work I've ever produced and written with some of the best of the best musicians and engineers of the '80s, this package is only missing one thing... a tour. But now we have it. It is with great honor and respect that I will be providing direct support to Halestorm with up and comers Dorothy opening the shows. We can all rock out together as this will surely be a tour of the titans. So grab yourself the book and rock out to this buried treasure. Then get ready for this one of a kind tour!"

Lita Ford live:

March
5 - Beverly Hills, CA - Saban Theatre (with Ace Frehley)
6 - Las Vegas, NV - Brooklyn Bowl (with Ace Frehley)
19 - Toledo, OH - Savage Arena (with Bret Michaels, Ratt, Warrant, Firehouse, LA Guns, Trixter)
 
Lita Ford with Halestorm:

April
1 - Reading, PA - Reading Eagle Theatre in the Santander Arena
2 - Hampton Beach, NH - Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom
5 - Huntington, WV - Big Sandy Superstore Arena
6 - Lexington, KY - Singletary Center
7 - Raleigh, NC - The Ritz
9 - Biloxi, MS - Hard Rock Live
11 - Springfield, MO - Gillioz Theatre
12 - Tulsa, OK - Brady Theater
13 - Wichita, KS - Cotillion Ballroom
15 - Fargo, ND - Fargo Civic Center
16 - Sioux City, IA - Hard Rock Hotel & Casino
19 - Huntsville, AL - Mark C. Smith Concert Hall
20 - Spartanburg, SC - Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium
21 - Johnson City, TN - Freedom Hall Civic Center
24 - Ladson, SC - 98 Rock Fest



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Bobby Blotzer's new RATT has parted ways with bassist Scotty Griffin (ex-L.A. GUNS) and has replaced him with Robbie Crane. Griffin will play two more shows with RATT — March 5 at Deerfoot Inn & Casino in Calgary, Alberta, Canada and March 19 at Rock The Arena in Toledo, Ohio — before stepping down from the group.

Crane previously played bass for RATT from 1996 to 2012 and appeared on the band's 1999 self-titled album and 2010's "Infestation".

Blotzer announced last September that he was taking control of the RATT name and hitting the road with a new version of the group, which played shows earlier in the year under the name BOBBY BLOTZER'S RATT EXPERIENCE.

RATT guitarist Warren DeMartini later filed a lawsuit against Blotzer, claiming that the drummer was falsely advertising his "tribute band" as the real thing.

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

WBS, Inc., the company which manages the business and operations related to RATT, was originally formed by Blotzer, DeMartini and singer Stephen Pearcy. Pearcy lost his share of the name in court after splitting with the group in 2000. He returned to the band in 2006 but exited again in 2014. Blotzer has since expressed his desire to keep RATT alive with a new singer, but explained that DeMartini did not want to tour as RATT without Pearcy.

Roadhouse Interactive, 50cc Games and metal legends IRON MAIDEN have announced that "Iron Maiden: Legacy Of The Beast", an action-packed, free-to-play RPG steeped in IRON MAIDEN mythology, will launch worldwide this summer on iOS and Android platforms.

A trailer for "Iron Maiden: Legacy Of The Beast" is available below.

Following a series of hit action sports titles for Red Bull Media House, "Warhammer 40,000: Carnage", a games workshop ARPG, and "Food Battle: The Game" for YouTube sensations SMOSH, Roadhouse Interactive's development and publishing divisions have been working hand in hand with IRON MAIDEN and their Phantom Music Management team, who have granted unparalleled access to the vaults in order to create a truly authentic IRON MAIDEN game.

Developed in close collaboration with IRON MAIDEN's management, players take on the role of the band's iconic mascot, Eddie, in his many forms — each with unique abilities. Players explore new worlds, travel through time, and battle a cast of dramatic and engaging characters drawn from the expansive catalogue of MAIDEN's albums and art. Gameplay is enhanced with a soundtrack using songs spanning the band's entire career, including previously unheard live recordings of IRON MAIDEN classics adapted for the game by engineer Tony Newton under the close scrutiny of bassist and founding member Steve Harris.

"We always thought MAIDEN's music and imagery with Eddie could be perfect for gaming and it's something we have been looking at doing again since 'Ed Hunter' in 1999. Now in 2016 it can all be done on a smartphone which makes it even more accessible for all our fans and also all the gamers out there," comments Harris.

IRON MAIDEN's latest album, "The Book Of Souls", was released in September 2015 to popular and critical acclaim, hitting the No. 1 spot in over 40 countries and reinforcing their position as one of the most relevant and influential bands in music today. They have just embarked on the "The Book Of Souls" world tour, and with fan excitement at fever pitch, it's the perfect time to expand IRON MAIDEN's legend into gaming.

"Iron Maiden: Legacy Of The Beast" will be available later this year on iOS and Android platforms. See IronMaidenLegacy.com for ongoing releases about the game.

Professionally filmed video footage of DEATH ANGEL's August 2015 performance at the Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany can be seen below.

DEATH ANGEL has set "The Evil Divide" as the title of its new album, due on May 27 via Nuclear Blast. The CD was once again recorded at AudioHammer studios in Sanford, Florida with producer Jason Suecof, who previously worked on 2010's "Relentless Retribution" and 2013's "The Dream Calls For Blood". Mastering duties were handled by Ted Jensen at Sterling Sound in New York City. Songtitles set to appear on the effort include "Father Of Lies" and "Lost"

DEATH ANGEL vocalist Mark Osegueda told SFWeekly.com about working with Suecof again: "It's the third time we've used him, and we couldn't really be happier."

He continued: "This time, all the music was written and lyrics were written with the exception of one song, which I purposely saved to write on the spot.

"Sometimes you can get a great vibe from a studio and draw inspiration from that. That song came out great.

Mark added: "It's got the aggressiveness of the last two records, but our songwriting has improved dramatically. Really, it sounds like DEATH ANGEL should."

Osegueda told Rock Hard magazine about DEATH ANGEL's mindset going into the songwriting process for the upcoming CD: "When we started working with Jason Suecof for the last two records, 'Relentless Retribution' and 'The Dream Calls For Blood', we thought we were gonna do two records intense like that and kind of go back [to the more] melodic [direction of 1990's] 'Act III', but the last two records, we've been loving so much writing that style, and the crowds have been enjoying them so much.

"In our minds, even if we think we're being more brutal than we've ever been, it's inevitable that we are obsessed with melody, so there's always gonna be melody that separates us from, say, different thrash bands or extreme bands, because we always veer to a melody and catchy hooks. No matter how brutal we think we're being, we like to throw in hooks, so we're just gonna carry on how we're doing now and try to pick as many of the young punters there and keep our stronghold on the old punters."

"By The Blood", the new video from Texas heavy rockers DROWNING POOL, can be seen below. The song is taken from the band's latest album, "Hellelujuah", which came out on February 5 via eOne Music. The follow-up to 2013's "Resilience" was recorded with renowned producer Jason Suecof (AUGUST BURNS RED, DEICIDE, DEATH ANGEL).

DROWNING POOL singer Jasen Moreno recently told I'm Music Magazine about "Hellelujuah": "Me and the rest of the guys definitely share [the] opinion [that it is the heaviest DROWNING POOL album since 2001's 'Sinner'] and it was intentional; we went into the studio with that mind set and frame of mind to make the heaviest album that we could and still be within the identity of DROWNING POOL. Obviously, we did not want to alienate any of the fan base by going full out crazy, but we tried to make it the most aggressive and heavy thing that DROWNING POOL has ever done. I hope everyone else feels that way too because that was the goal of this record."

Moreno also spoke about DROWNING POOL's collaboration with Suecof. He said: "It's the first time that any of us have worked with him. We had an early conference call with him and we just vibed; he really spoke the language. It really came across in the conversation that he was going to be able to help us capture what we were going for. We didn't have to try and bring him around to our way of thinking because he was already there. He's worked with a lot of heavy bands and he knew exactly what we were looking for and he knew how to get us where we wanted to be. So it was a no-brainer to work with him, and I think the proof is in the CD. We got pretty damn close with what we wanted to capture and he had a lot to do with that, so thank you, Mr. Suecof. At times, I wanted to strangle the dude and it wasn't because he's a jerk or anything like that. He's a very passionate guy and he was fighting for the record just as much as we were fighting for it. I think you can hear that passion in this record from everyone, not just us but from Suecof as well. He really gave it his all and we’re really grateful to have worked with him on this."

Regarding the "Hellelujuah" album title, Moreno said: "That came from our drummer, Mike [Luce], and he is notorious for his coffee rants, whether it's when we're writing or rehearsing or whatever. He gets on these rants and says all this really wild stuff. One day, we were tracking drums and he was all jacked out on coffee and he started throwing out all of these names. 'Hellelujah' happened to be one of them and we all pounced on it. It's a celebration and obviously a play on the word 'hallelujah' with a DROWNING POOL twist. It has that heavy metal bitterness, if you will; we're not trying to champion any über-positive messages on this record, so 'hellelujah' seem to sum it all up. It summed up all of that bitterness, anger and venom. It's been a rough ride for DROWNING POOL, you know?"

Las Vegas-based metallers FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH have released the official music video for their new single "My Nemesis". The video concept was conceived by the band and realized by renowned director Nick Peterson who previously helmed the group's award-winning videos for "Coming Down" (2012) and "Wrong Side Of Heaven" (2014).

"My Nemesis" is the third single from FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH's current album, "Got Your Six", and has already climbed to Top 20 on the Active Rock radio chart.

The clip's multi-faceted storyline explores the hard and painful choices everyone has to face one time or another in life. The video is focused around the pain and grief involved in overcoming and moving on from emotionally entangled difficult situations — following various scenarios from teenage runaways to drug abuse and domestic violence. Peterson powerfully depicts this impactful message on film, similar to the band's "Wrong Side Of Heaven" video in 2014. That clip was intended to increase knowledge about the plight of veterans suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the crowd-funding campaign to support the cause raised over $ 225,000 at the time.

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH guitarist Zoltan Bathory states: "In life, everyone has a nemesis… it can be anything… a self-defeating thinking pattern, a bad habit, an addiction, an adversary… something or someone that puts you in an impossible scenario, where you are presented with a fork in the road. Sometimes there is no other choice but making a hard choice. You can give up and just suffer the situation, or you can use your pain to overcome it, as pain is truly the wind in the sails of change.

"We wanted to present a story about moving on, a story that probes and questions compassion and loyalty. Those are beautiful notions, but remember you have to be loyal and fair to yourself as well, so will you sacrifice yourself for another or will you live with the guilt that you didn't."

In support of the video and the song;s message of overcoming our struggles, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH is encouraging fans to share their own "Nemesis" on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram by completing the phrase — "#MyNemesis is ________ and I will #OVERCOME". Search the hashtag, comment and support your fellow FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH fans.

Fans can visit fivefingerdeathpunch.com/mynemesis to see all of the fan responses and are encouraged to send a positive message to those that resonate with them personally.

Speaking about "My Nemesis", FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH guitarist Jason Hook said: "'My Nemesis', that was the second riff-type guitar lick that I set out to make — some sort of signature, identifiable guitar part. And I like it; it's kind of got a wacky little sound and it's instantly identifiable. I thought it was one of our strong tracks of the bunch at the time."

Added FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH drummer Jeremy Spencer: "It was strong vocally, but we thought… [Singer Ivan Moody] was nailing it, nailing it, nailing it, and then when it came to the tagline of the song, he kind of took a left turn lyrically and it kind of threw us. I think it was called 'Dark Genesis' or something like that, initially. And we were, like, 'Dude, you're talking about relationship stuff all the way up to this point, and then you take this drastic left turn lyrically.' It kind of confused us. So we kind of ended up meeting in the middle and ended up with 'My Nemesis'."

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH will team up with SHINEDOWN for a series of co-headlining shows this May, in conjunction with all of their performances at the biggest U.S. festivals of the year (see below for complete touring schedule).

"Got Your Six" entered the Billboard 200 album chart at No. 2, selling 119,000 copies in its first week of release. This was the band's third straight No. 2 debut, following both volumes of "The Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side Of Hell" in 2013. "Got Your Six", however, did rack up the band's best single sales week ever, surpassing the 112,000 copies sold of "The Wrong Side Of Heaven And The Righteous Side Of Hell, Volume 1", in its first week.

Each of FIVE FINGER's previous albums has been certified gold in the U.S. for sales of 500,000 copies or more.

"The Four Wise Ones", the brand new video from Finnish masters of melancholic metal AMORPHIS, can be seen below. The clip was filmed in late 2015 in Amsterdam, The Netherlands during the band's European tour with NIGHTWISH and ARCH ENEMY.

"The Four Wise Ones" is taken from AMORPHIS's latest album, "Under The Red Cloud", which was released on September 4, 2015 via Nuclear Blast.

"Under The Red Cloud" track listing:

01. Under The Red Cloud02. The Four Wise Ones03. Bad Blood04. The Skull05. Death Of A King06. Sacrifice07. Dark Path08. Enemy At The Gates09. Tree Of Ages10. White Night

Bonus tracks (digipak & 2LP):

11. Come The Spring12. Winter’s Sleep

AMORPHIS guitarist Esa Holopainen previously stated about "Under The Red Cloud": "The artwork is done by Valnoir Mortasonge. Valnoir is well known from his works for LAIBACH, PARADISE LOST, WATAIN, BEHEMOTH and many more. It was a great pleasure to work with him as he [captured] the lyrical topics really well. Colors and details describe the music perfectly."

He continued: "'Under The Red Cloud' is produced by Jens Bogren, who did amazing job with the album. There's a lot's of elements in the songs but every note and element is in perfect harmony so that the result is fucking heavy and melodic. All I can say is that 'Under The Red Cloud' will be in my personal Top 3 AMORPHIS albums that we've ever done."

LED ZEPPELIN guitarist Jimmy Page says that he "never heard" the SPIRIT song which he has been accused of stealing for his band's iconic track "Stairway To Heaven" until two years ago.

According to The Hollywood Reporter, Page gave a declaration in court last week relating to lawsuit brought by the trust of the late SPIRIT guitarist Randy California which argues that the opening notes of "Stairway To Heaven" are too similar to a few notes from a 2-minute, 37-second instrumental titled "Taurus" from SPIRIT's 1968 album.

Page stated in the declaration: "Prior to hearing a recording of 'Taurus' in 2014 in connection with this matter, I have never heard 'Taurus' or even heard of it. I am very good at remembering music and am absolutely certain that I never heard 'Taurus' until 2014."

The guitarist went on to admit that ZEPPELIN shared the stage several times with SPIRIT. However, in the declaration, Jimmy stressed: "I do not recall ever seeing SPIRIT perform live. Again, though, I am absolutely certain I never heard them, or anyone else, perform 'Taurus'."

In his declaration, Page claimed that the beginning of "Stairway To Heaven" "includes a descending chromatic line chord progression and arpeggios, over which played an ascending line. I consider descending chromatic lines and arpeggiated chords basic skills learned by any student of the guitar. Certainly, as a guitarist, I was aware of descending chromatic lines and arpeggios long before 1968."

Page went on to say that he composed the music for "Stairway To Heaven" with "the intention to create a long work, with multiple different parts, that would unfold with increasing complexity and speed culminating in a guitar solo that was preceded by a distinct fanfare, followed by the last verse concluding a climax to the song."

Page also admitted to discovering a copy of SPIRIT's first album in his record collection but claimed he did "not know how or when it got there," suggesting it "may well have been left by a guest. I doubt it was there for long, since I never noticed it before. But, again, I know I did not hear 'Taurus' until 2014."

In 1997, California told Listener magazine that he thought the song "was a ripoff" of his composition. California died later that year.

"Stairway To Heaven" is said to be one of the most covered rock songs and its worth is estimated to be more than $560 million.

Dr. Charles Fairchild, an American author and senior lecturer in popular music who is part Sydney, Australia's Conservatorium of Music, explained to Fairfax Media that he heard a similarity between "Stairway To Heaven" and "Taurus" in "about 10 seconds" of music. But Fairchild added that he thought the claim was "unlikely to succeed."

"The obvious and only similarity between them is the finger-picked guitar passage that starts off the guitar playing in both songs," Fairchild said. "In the [SPIRIT] version, it starts at 0:43 and in LED ZEPPELIN's it starts off the track. It is that easy, slow descending figure that sounds like a few slow steps down to a nice resting point. This constitutes three measures of music in both songs, which in both cases takes up about 10 seconds or so. However, the two songs go off in completely different directions after this."

He continued: "It seems to me that anyone claiming to have been the first person to have ever written this passage is making quite an ambitious claim. This passage is little more than a stock standard chord progression whose origins would be very difficult to determine. It also happens to be a very easy and satisfying thing to play on any guitar in standard tuning. There are probably a lot of other versions of it out there that would be equally similar."

Page Declaration

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine was interviewed on a recent episode of "Talk Is Jericho", the podcast of Chris Jericho, the world champion pro wrestler, actor, New York Times best-selling author and lead vocalist of the metal band FOZZY. You can now listen to the chat in the YouTube clip below.

Speaking about the possibility of there being more shows featuring the so-called "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX — in the future, Mustaine said: "I think that the 'Big Four' thing that we did, it was really important. It was necessary for a lot of different reasons. You know, if it happens again, that would be great. If it doesn't, the people who got to see it got to see something really remarkable."

He added: "Am I supposed to doing it? You know, it would have to be the right thing. I think that, you know, MEGADETH is at a place right now where we're successful to a degree where we would be happy continuing to do what we do on our own. So if we're gonna do another 'Big Four' thing, I would want it to be something where we walk away as content as METALLICA does from something like that. It's not METALLICA and three other dudes."

METALLICA, SLAYER, MEGADETH and ANTHRAX played together for the first time in history on June 16, 2010 in front of 81,000 fans at the Sonisphere festival at Bemowo Airport in Warsaw, Poland. The night before the concert, METALLICA organized a dinner with members of all four bands, a get-together that MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson called "very relaxed and comfortable" and "a class way" to ease into the tour. Mustaine concurred, telling Jericho: "It was very laid back, and I thought it was very enjoyable. [METALLICA bassist Robert] Trujillo was out front greeting everybody when we walked in the door, which was really nice. And he hugged me, which was, you know… It wasn't startling by any means — it didn't shock me or anything like that — but it was just a great way to start things. And when the night kind of rolled around to about 'It's time for Dave to go home' time, I decided I should probably leave. And I guess those guys roared into the night — the rest of my band and a bunch of crew guys, and they just had a great time."

The "Big Four" played its last concert on September 14, 2011 at Yankee Stadium in New York City. Since then, METALLICA, SLAYER and ANTHRAX have played a number of shows together, including the 2013 Soundwave festival in Australia. They also performed at the 2014 Heavy MTL festival in Montreal, Quebec, Canada.

Two days prior to the "Big Four" event in New York, rumors spread that MEGADETH had pulled out of the concert so that Mustaine could undergo surgery for stenosis, a neck and spine condition that he said was caused by "years of headbanging." Mustaine eventually had a change of heart and decided to go through with the performance, but struggled through the set due to the pain. He later told NY Hard Rock Music Examiner: "It was very close, the day after that. I was supposed to not do that show. I'd been laying in the emergency room getting ready to have them put me to sleep, and I’d said we had to cancel the concert. And one of the people associated with the concert said I was a pussy, and I thought, 'I'm a pussy. I'm getting ready to have two major spinal surgeries done and I'm a pussy. Okay.' Obviously, you don't know what pussy is, because that's not pussy."

In a 2013 interview, SLAYER frontman Tom Araya said that the only thing that was standing in the way of further "Big Four" shows was "the politics of character in one particular band." He continued: "We had an issue that came up on the New York show, which really freaked everybody out, but the New York show happened. I think, in all honesty, that was the last time we did the 'Big Four.'"

He added: "Those shows, basically, even though it was called the 'Big Four,' it was done through METALLICA. It was with METALLICA's blessing that allowed those shows to happen.

"If they want to continue and do a couple more shows, I think that would be great… If we were to sit down with them and communicate with them, that's what I'd tell them."

In his autobiography, "Mustaine: A Heavy Metal Memoir", Mustaine addressed the issue of where his band fit in the "Big Four" order. According to The New York Times, he assured the reader that he was not offended by being put behind SLAYER. But he added an interior monologue: "O.K., we'll play ahead of you guys on this trip, and God willing we'll do it again sometime in the near future and we can flip things around."

On February 26th, KISS frontman Paul Stanley performed with his new R&B/soul band, Soul Station, at The Coach House in San Juan Capistrano, CA. Fan-filmed video from the show can be viewed below.

Paul Stanley performed the first-ever Soul Station concert at The Roxy in West Hollywood last September 11th. He recently spoke with Rockcellar Magazine about the project, which draws from R&B/soul music hits of the ’60s and ’70s. An excerpt from the interview is available below.

Rockcellar: I saw that show at the Roxy and you were beaming with happiness. This project is truly a labor of love, more emphasis on the love and passion than labor. Joyous seems the right word to describe your immersion into this music.

Paul Stanley: "Yeah, that is the right word (laughing). Somebody said they haven’t seen me that happy. To be immersed in that music and to be part of making it and creating it is an incredible joy. I beam but so does everybody else on stage. We’re just having a ball. To hear this music played reverently and respectfully and accurately is great. These aren’t new interpretations; these aren’t new versions. We’re playing those songs with the intensity and intent that they had. And in many cases the people that originally made them can’t do that anymore."

Rockcellar: What are the greatest challenges you face in delivering this material in a live setting?

Paul Stanley: "There’s a big weight on my shoulders because I’m singing songs by some legends and if I can’t deliver them I shouldn’t be doing them. So if I’m gonna sing Smokey or if I’m gonna sing Al Green or David Ruffin or Eddie Kendricks, you better be on-point or you shouldn’t be doing it plus the rest of the band is so damn good.

They have played with Smokey, they’ve played with Stevie Wonder, with Natalie Cole, they’ve played with Whitney Houston and John Mayer and with Carlos Santana; I mean, the list goes on and on. For us all to be together as peers and be creating something this exciting, everybody on stage is smiling. We’re all just caught up in the moment."

Go to this location for the complete interview.

Check out the Soul Station performance of the Smokey Robinson & The Miracles classic “Tracks Of My Tears”, below:

Soul Station is a ten piece coalition of some of today’s leading musicians paying tribute to an era of great soul music.

“When I was a boy, before I ever saw The Who or Led Zeppelin, I saw Solomon Burke and Otis Redding. I saw the Temptations. It’s tragic to think that so many people are missing out on experiencing the power of so many great bands, artists and that incredible music,” said Stanley. “That music is part of the foundation of all the music I’ve made and Soul Station is my chance to celebrate it for a night that’s real and live.”

To clarify further he adds, “I don’t play guitar in the band and we don’t do a single KISS song. That’s not what this is about,” Stanley continues. “It’s magical to hear those songs played right and we’re making magic.”



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Avantasia guitarist Oliver Hartmann has checked in with the following update:

"After reaching #3 at the Eurovision Song Contest, a great aftershow party with all participants, and a well deserved day off to retire I want to thank again all the rock, hard rock and metal fans out there for watching, voting, mailing wishes and crossing their fingers. Me and everybody else at Avantasia is now looking forward to a long, long tour with (luckily) many already sold out shows!

And at this point I have to admit that I'm really proud to be part of Avantasia as singer and guitar player since the first world tour in 2008, the first album and hymns such as 'Sign Of The Cross' sixteen (!!!) years ago. Full stop.

News about the first shows will be coming soon!"

On February 25th, Tobias Sammet's metal opera band Avantasia performed in the preliminary round of the Eurovision Song Contest for their native Germany. The goal was to be chosen to represent their country later this year in Stockholm, Sweden for the main Eurovision event. Avantasia placed 3rd out of the 10 acts on the bill. Check out Avantasia's performance below.

This week Avantasia are going to set off on the Ghostlights World Tour 2016 in Berlin. Eight shows are sold out already, and many more will sell out shortly. If you want to see the show and don't have a ticket yet, you shouldn't wait any longer.

Following is a message from Sammet regarding recent events: 

"Hey folks, thank you for voting for us in the preliminary round for the ESC. It simply wasn't meant to happen, and I guess we achieved as much as you can when you're playing this type of music in Germany these days. It was great fun. But honestly - I am happy to be back in my world now! After all I just received the great news that the album just hit the Greek charts as well and is still climbing there, so the new album has been reaching great chart positions in 18 countries! In Germany we're #11 in the fourth week, this is amazing! And this is because of you! Thank you and see you on the road, you rock!"



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According to Germany's Spiegel Online (as translated by BraveWords), metal legends won't be landing their new Ed Force One 747-400 in Dortmund as many fans expected when they headline the Rock im Revier festival on May 27th. According to a Twitter entry posted by the Dortmund Airport, the plane is too heavy to land at their facility now that the band has upgraded from previous 757 incarnation of Ed Force One. 

Express.de has confirmed that Iron Maiden will land instead on May 26th in Düsseldorf, Germany at approximately 12:00 noon CET and make the trip to the festival using a traditional tour bus.

Iron Maiden’s The Book Of Souls tour landed in Tulsa, Oklahoma on February 26th. Good quality fan-filmed footage from the BOK Centre can be seen below.

Iron Maiden's setlist on the night was as follows:

“If Eternity Should Fail”
“Speed Of Light”
“Children Of The Damned”
“Tears Of A Clown”
“The Red And The Black”
“The Trooper”
“Powerslave”
“Death Or Glory”
“The Book Of Souls”
“Hallowed Be Thy Name”
“Fear Of The Dark”
“Iron Maiden”

Encore:
“The Number Of The Beast”
“Blood Brothers”
“Wasted Years”

Dates for The Book Of Souls World Tour can be found here (with ticket links).

Check out video from the Merchandise Booth below:



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Former Iron Maiden vocalist, Blaze Bayley will release his eighth solo album, Infinite Entanglement, on March 1st. Greece's Rockpages conducted an interview with Blaze in support of upcoming album. He talks the concept of the album, his relationship with fans, his days in Iron Maiden and more.

Asked if he thinks that the two albums he recorded with Iron Maiden have stood the test of time, Blaze states: “Yes, I think they have aged very well and lots of fans come to my concerts that never saw me live with Iron Maiden after they listened to those albums at the time. There is lots of great music on those albums and I still enjoy playing those songs live.”

Read the interview at Rockpages.gr.

Blaze has released a music video for the new track “Human”, to be featured on Infinite Entanglement. Album details and the video are below.

Infinite Entanglement tracklisting:

“Infinite Entanglement”
“A Thousand Years”
“Human”
“What Will Come”
“Stars Are Burning”
“Solar Wind”
“The Dreams Of William Black”
“Calling You Home”
“Dark Energy 256”
“Independence”
“A Work Of Anger”

“Human” video:

Blaze recently commented on the new album: “I've always had a strong interest in science and cosmology and A.I. and those subjects have featured in a lot of my songs on past albums. Now I’m taking this to the next level by having a complete concept album set 100 years into the future. This is a story that follows on from the ideas and songs I had on my first two solo albums, Silicon Messiah and Tenth Dimension. I'm really excited about being able to have some of my fans involved so much at this stage of the process. There are always struggles, great moments, little bits of magic and some kind of crisis that happens during the process of making every one of my albums so far. I’m sure this one will be no different. I can’t wait to share these moments with the fans. I want to say a massive thank you to all my fans. Your support has made it possible for me to be independent and to continue making music. Now I will attempt make the best record I have ever made."

Bayley has announced the first 50 dates in support of Infinite Entanglement. Check out the dates below. More to be added soon.

March
1 - Newcastle, England - Trillians
2 - Glasgow, Scotland - Ivory Blacks
3 - Kendal, England - Bootleggers
4 - Grimsby, England - Yardbirds
5 - Manchester, England - Sound Control
6 - Wakefield, England - Snooty Fox
16 - Cardiff, Wales - Fuel
17 - Hastings, England - The Carlisle
18 - Verviers, Belgium - Spirit of 66
19 - Lotenhulle, Belgium - Wizzfest
20 - Deinze, Belgium - Cafe Elpee (acoustic)
24 - Erica, Netherlands - The Spot
25 - Leiden, Netherlands - Gebr De Nobel
26 - Grossefehn, Germany - Schlappohr Rockkneipe
27 - Geleen, Netherlands - De Meister
31 - Arras, France - Blue Devils Bar

April
1 - Fismes, France - La Spirale
2 - Notre Dame De Gravenchon, France - L'Arcade
3 - Roeselare, De Verlichte Geest
8 - Grenoble, France - L'Amperage
9 - Luynes, France - Le Korigan
10 - Barcelona, Spain - Venue TBA
14 - Versoix, Switzerland - Le Caves De Bon-Sejour
15 - St-Maurice, Switzerland - Manoir Pub
16 - Pagney-Derriere-Barine, France - Chez Paulette
17 - Renchen, Germany - Come Inn
21 - Hamburg, Germany - Bambi Galore
22 - Herdorf, Germany - Rattenloch
23 - Balingen, Germany - Sonnenkeller
24 - Konstanz, Germany - Rockbar
28 - Tychy, Poland - Underground
29 - Stalowa Wola, Poland - Labirynt Club
30 - Olsztyn, Poland - Andergrant

May
4 - Helsinki, Finland - PRKL Club
5 - Kuopio, Finland - Henry's Pub
6 - Lappeenranta, Finland - Totem
7 - Mantyharju, Finland - Bar Krouvi (full metal)
8 - Mantyharju, Finland - Bar Krouvi (acoustic)
11 - Sandviken, Sweden - Folkets Hus
12 - Stockholm, Sweden - Harry B James
13 - Fosser, Norway - Oak Metal Bar
14 - Falkenberg, Sweden - Downtown Rockbar
15 - Flensburg, Germany - Roxy Concerts
19 - Brno, Czech Republic - Melodka
20 - Dolni Cermna, Czech Republic - Under Dark Moon Festival
21 - Klatovy, Czech Republic - Music Club U Kosile
26 - Merthyr Tydfil, Wales - New Crown Inn
27 - Winchester, England - The Railway
28 - London, England - Underworld
29 - Bromsgrove, England - Breaking Bands Festiv



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CANDLEMASS bassist and songwriter Leif Edling has launched a new solo project called THE DOOMSDAY KINGDOM. He says in the latest video message about the project: "THE DOOMSDAY KINGDOM was created two years ago. I was in pretty bad shape. I couldn't go out, I couldn't work, I wasn't allowed to read, I couldn't watch telly and I wasn't allowed to work in front of the computer, so all I had was the music. And I created THE DOOMSDAY KINGDOM, metal from the catacombs."

Edling previously said about how THE DOOMSDAY KINGDOM came about: "As you perhaps know, I won't be playing live with CANDLEMASS this year. I'm still burnt out. But hopefully I can do it next year. And in the meantime, I would like to introduce some solo stuff I've been working on for some time now, and I call it THE DOOMSDAY KINGDOM. And it's a low-key thing I'm doing without any label involved. And it's metal the way it's supposed to be, and it's for all of you that love this kind of music as much as I do."

An audio snippet of THE DOOMSDAY KINGDOM song "The Sceptre" is available in the YouTube clip below.

CANDLEMASS will release a special 30th-anniversary EP titled "Death Thy Lover" on June 3 via Napalm. The four-track effort — which features Mats Levén on vocals — was recorded during September/October and will be made available as a four-page digipack, one-LP gatefold edition and one-LP gatefold webstore edition and old-school "skull-and-cross" slipmat. The cover artwork for the EP was created by Erik Rovanperä.

Edling's AVATARIUM project released its second album, "The Girl With The Raven Mask", in October 2015 via Nuclear Blast. The CD was released in North America as part of a joint licensing venture between Nuclear Blast and Metalville.

As a tribute to legendary rock icon Lemmy Kilmister (RIP), Hungarian neo thrash masters, Ektomorf have unleashed a cover version of the Motörhead song “Brotherhood Of Man”. Lemmy Kilmister died on December 28th, 2015 at the age of 70 following a brief battle with an aggressive cancer.

“Brotherhood Of Man” is available now as Free Download, and for streaming on Spotify and below.

Ektomorf will embark on a US tour in March thru April with Hemlock. Ektomorf never disappoint their fans and stand true to what they are: a powerful, unstoppable groove machine. The tour will support their late-2015 release, Aggressor, out via AFM Records.

Tour dates:

March
10 - Merriam, KS (KC,MO) - Aftershock
11 - Junction City, KS - Devil's Tail
12 - Hutchinson, KS - The Rusty Needle
13 - Springfield, MO - The Outland
15 - Austin, TX - The Blue Moon
16 - Austin, TX - RockFest
17 - Wichita Falls, TX - Scoot's Bar
18 - Dallas, TX - Wit's End
19 - Houston, TX - Acadia
22 - Lubbock, TX - The O Bar
23 - El Paso, TX - The Mesa Music Hall
24 - Tucson, AZ - The Rock
25 - Phoenix, AZ - Joe's Grotto
26 - Gallup, NM - Juggernaut Music
27 - Window Rock, AZ - TBA
28 - Farmington, NM - Top Deck
31 - Flagstaff, AZ - The Green Room

April
1 - Grand Junction, CO - The Mesa Theater
2 - Salt Lake City, UT - The Royal
3 - Idaho Falls, ID - The Falls Venue
4 - Butte, MT - The Times
5 - Bozeman, MT - The Eagle's Ballroom
6 - Billings, MT - The Railyard
7 - Missoula, MT - The Darkhorse
8 - Great Falls, MT - The Hideout
9 - Sheridan, WY - My Buddy's Place Bar
10 - Casper, WY - Black Gold Grille
11 - Riverton, WY - Odd Fellows Hall
14 - Denver, CO - The Roxy Theater
15 - Colorado Springs, CO - Sunshine Studios
16 - Scottsbluff, NE - Oregon Trail Lounge
17 - Piedmont, SD - Elk Creek Steakhouse
18 - Sioux Falls, SD - Big's Bar
19 - Fargo, ND - Nestor Tavern
21 - Sioux City, IA - The Chesterfield
22 - Omaha, NE - The Lookout Lounge
23 - Des Moines, IA - Lefty's

Aggressor tracklisting:

“Intro”
“I”
“Aggressor”
“Holocaust”
“Move On”
“Evil By Nature” (feat. George “Corpsegrinder” Fisher)
“You Can’t Get More”
“Emotionless World”
“Eastside”
“Scars”
“Damned Nation”
“You Lost”
“You’re Not For Me”
“Memento"



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The Pete Flesh Deathtrip (formerly Flesh), featuring vocalist/guitarist/bassist Pete Flesh (ex-Maze Of Torment, Deceiver, Thrown), have released a music video for “The Sun Will Fail’. The track will be included on the group’s upcoming album, Svartnad, due for release on May 16th via Critical Mass Recordings.

The album cover for Svartnad will be released in April. Check out the tracklisting, as well as the new video, below.

Svartnad tracklisting:

“In Ruinam Iniquitas”
“Burial Shore”
“All the Serpents”
“The Sun Will Fail”
“Melting The Frost From Your Eyes”
“The Winter Of The Wolves”
“She Dwells Into The Dark”
“Svartnad”

“The Sun Will Fail” video:

Pete Flesh started the solo project Flesh in December, 2001. He released three albums under the Flesh moniker before he took one step further and decided to just focus only on this project. Due to this change and because of adding a more wider spectrum of influences he also decided to change the name to a more personal moniker, The Pete Flesh Deathtrip. This is a solo project with the purpose of adding different guest and session members with every new release. No live shows have been made yet, but there are plans to bring this to a stage in the near future.



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Reading, UK-based quartet Sylosis are streaming their new single, “Different Masks On The Same Face”. Pre-orders for the new track will be launched soon. Listen to the track below:

Sylosis perform next on March 2nd at The Marble Factory in Bristol, UK. Find the band’s live itinerary here.
 
Sylosis released their Dormant Heart album last year via Nuclear Blast. Whilst on the road in support of the release, the band documented their travel and performances, which they compiled into a riff filled, fist pumping live video for the track “Servitude”. Check it out below:



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Dutch progressive metallers, Cirrha Niva, will release their new album, Out Of The Freakshow, on April 14th via Parnassus Records.

On Out Of The Freakshow, Cirrha Niva welcomes some very talented guest musicians. Drummer and interim band member Nathanael Taekema (Thomas Zwijsen) did the band a huge favour by creating and playing all drum tracks on the album. Psychotic Waltz frontman Devon Graves adds depth to “Just Another Legacy” with his poignant vocals and flute, and singer Lisette van den Berg (Scarlet Stories) takes “Afraid To Bleed” to a breathtaking climax. Under supervision of Joost van den Broek (ex-After Forever), keyboardist Erik van Ittersum (Theater Equation) adds spheric elements to the album using piano, Hammond organ, strings and soundscapes. And finally, the mysterious Mr. Gold, speaks as The Ringmaster in the opening song, “I Guess”.

Visualy, Cirrha Niva is surrounded by a team of creative and devoted freaks! The stunning artwork is made by Blacklake Design (Damien Wilson, Maiden United) and the band pictures are shot by Tim Tronckoe Photography. The band outfits are exclusively created by Ingeborg Steenhorst from I Style Stars (Lacuna Coil, Epica, Karmaflow).

Vocalist Legrand: “Like the saying goes: ‘out of the furnace, into the fire’. After escaping your worst nightmare you find yourself in one that’s even worse. That’s what Out Of The Freakshow is all about: getting out of whatever you want to get out of, but beware of the alternative. For we all have a freak inside of us that’s waiting for the right opportunity to get out, maybe the dirty lies of the “Silver Tongues”, or the seconds, minutes and hours that “Time” hits. Ah, you don’t have a freak hiding in the shadows? You only do good, and jealousy and envy are just words you know by looking at things ‘From Ego’s point of view? Well my friend, you are “Just Another Legacy” waiting to happen and with your dying breath you will wish you’d have gotten Out Of The Freakshow.”

Pre-order in various formats at this location.

Cirrha Niva lineup:

Legrand (vocals)
Rob Willemse (guitars)
Carlo Heefer (guitars)
Michel Steenbekkers (bass)
Robert van Kooij (drums)



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First Citizens Bank and Republic Records have teamed up with non-profit Teen Cancer America to release an exclusive recording of Roger Daltrey performing the 1980 classic “Let My Love Open The Door”.
 
Proceeds will benefit Teen Cancer America and its work to increase targeted care and specialized treatment facilities for teens and young adults with cancer. The single is available exclusively on iTunes. Download Roger Daltrey’s “Let My Love Open The Door” here.

 
In November, North Carolina-headquartered First Citizens announced a major sponsorship of Teen Cancer America. As part of this effort, the bank asked Roger Daltrey last year to record this new version of the classic Pete Townshend song to serve as the centrepiece of its initiative.
 
“An important part of First Citizens’ commitment to Teen Cancer America is raising awareness of the organization and its mission; We saw an opportunity to help people understand not only that Teen Cancer America exists but also why Teen Cancer America is needed,” said Frank Holding, chairman and CEO of First Citizens Bank. “That theme — open the door — became the focus of our sponsorship with Teen Cancer America and a way of explaining what the effort is about. It also serves as a rallying cry to inspire involvement by First Citizens’ associates, customers and communities. We’re thrilled that this version of the song is now available for this great cause.”
 
Daltrey’s version of “Let My Love Open The Door” is featured in television and radio commercials encouraging support of Teen Cancer America. The commercials, produced by First Citizens, began airing during the holidays in the bank’s North Carolina and South Carolina markets. Both the song and television ad can be found at LetMyLoveOpenTheDoor.com.
 
“Whether by downloading this track or by other means, we hope people will open their hearts and open the door to assist Teen Cancer America,” Daltrey said. “The mission isn’t just to fight teen cancer, but to create facilities where teens and young adults can feel like they belong — to create spaces different from the spaces children and adults have. Together, with First Citizens’ help, we can bridge this gap.”
 
Roger Daltrey is a spokesman for and a driving force behind Teen Cancer America, which he and Pete Townshend helped found after more than a decade of working with the Teenage Cancer Trust in the United Kingdom. Every year, almost 11,000 young people in the United States between the ages of 13 and 25 are diagnosed with the disease. Most of them receive their care at units designed for and populated by either young children or much older people.
 
“Since the launch of the “Let My Love Open The Door” initiative in November, we’ve had many requests for a download of the song that is featured in the First Citizens commercial,” said Simon Davies, executive director of Teen Cancer America. “We’re pleased that it’s now available to the public and delighted that proceeds will help open the door to even better care and futures for young people with cancer. Thanks go to First Citizens for their extraordinary efforts to support and develop the concept for using this song and, of course, Roger Daltrey and his tremendous enthusiasm for this project as a champion for our cause.”
 
Teen Cancer America is talking with major medical centers in North Carolina and South Carolina about establishing teen-focused cancer units or programs.



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Montreal's Episcopal Holocaust (which was founded in 1994 as APVTH) has just released it's first music video for the song "Fuck Your God" (taken from last year's album by the same name). The video was directed by the band's founding (and only remaining) member, Kosta Bayss.

Purchase or stream the entire Fuck Your God album at this location.

Tracklisting:

“The Great Heresy”
“The Subjugation Of Christian Scum”
“Carving Out The Eyes Of A Priest”
“The Immaculate Deception”
“Fuck Your God”
“The Hierophant And The Heretic”

 



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Italian technical death metallers Node, who recently signed with Alpha Omega Management and furthermore with Punishment 18 Records, are set to release their brand new sixth studio effort titled Cowards Empire. During March/September 2015 band recorded the album with producer Larsen Premoli (Destrage) at Reclab Studios in Milan.

Guest musicians set to appear on the effort include important names such as Daniele Orlandi (Blackstarr & The New Black), Gianluca Ferro (Time Machine), Tommy Massara (Extrema), Lisy Stefanoni (Evenoire), Luca Di Fato (Wake Arkane), Oinos (Will ‘o’ wisp, Australwave), Andrea Caniato, Steve Minelli.

New details will be revealed soon. Stay tuned.

Node lineup:

Gary D’Eramo - guitar, vocals
CN Sid - vocals
Pietro Battanta - drums
Rudy Gonella Diaza - guitar
Davide (Dero) De Robertis - bass

(Photo - Giulia Thinkgreen Carbonero)



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German power metallers Gamma Ray have returned to the studio to work on a new album. It will be the Gamma Ray debut for new lead singer, Frank Beck. Photos from the recording sessions have been posted on Facebook; check them out here.

Gamma Ray recently recruited Frank Beck as lead singer. Beck and Gamma Ray leader Kai Hansen (ex-Helloween) split all lead vocals on the band's recent Best Of The Best Party Tour, which celebrated the 25th anniversary of the release of Gamma Ray debut album, Heading For Tomorrow. Back also stepped in during the band's European tour in 2014 as a temporary / part time replacement when Hansen lost his voice at the very beginning of the jaunt.

Speaking to Spark TV (check out the interview below), which is part of the Czech monthly magazine Spark, Hansen stated about Gamma Ray's decision to recruit Beck: "I'm gonna step back a bit and enjoy guitar playing a little bit more instead of being stuck to the microphone all the time on stage."

Regarding when Gamma Ray decided to hire Beck as a full-time member, Hansen said: "It was a pretty short time before the start of the tour, actually, that we finally said, 'Okay, we do it.' One of the reasons was that we were not sure if it was a good idea to do it for this tour, because it's (celebration of our) 25 years and people are very much used to my voice and so on. But due to some necessity, because shortly before, we've been in South America and toured Japan, I found myself being completely damaged with the voice from air conditions and all that. So it was a kind of necessity to do something, and it made the decision kind of grow on us quickly. And so we just went, 'Okay, let's go for it now and just take the risk and hope that people accept it.' And so far the acceptance has been brilliant, absolutely great."

Hansen explained that adding a new lead singer to a band that has been around for a quarter of a century is a risky move, but one that will enable Gamma Ray to grow and survive. "The band is very much recognized by me, but on the other hand, there's always space for something new," he said. "And I think we wouldn't have done it if we weren't sure about it."

Asked if Beck will contribute to the songwriting process on future Gamma Ray albums, Hansen said: "Definitely! Sure. Of course. I mean, everybody has his influences, and they all are coming together while doing an album, so definitely Frank will add up to the Gamma Ray sound. I mean, he grew up on the same roots that we did and likes the same kind of music. But still, there's always something that a new member brings in and that makes the music grow."

Check out Beck in action below.



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French black metal/noise outfit, Plebeian Grandstand, have unveiled a short teaser for their upcoming third album, False Highs, True Lows, which is due for release on April 29th via Throatruiner Records (LP, CD) and Basement Apes Industries (CD).

This follow-up to 2013's Lowgazers was recorded and mixed earlier this year by Amaury Sauvé at The Apiary Studio (Birds In Row, The Rodeo Idiot Engine, Calvaiire), then mastered at New Alliance East (Converge, Gaza, Cave In).

Tracklisting:

“Mal Du Siècle”
“Low Empire”
“Tributes And Oblivions”
“Volition”
“Mineral Tears”
“Oculi Lac”
“Tame The Shapes”
“Eros Culture”

Teaser:



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Fan-filmed video footage of BLACK SABBATH's last-ever concert at Madison Square Garden in New York City on February 27 can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Black Sabbath02. Fairies Wear Boots03. After Forever04. Into The Void05. Snowblind06. War Pigs07. Behind The Wall Of Sleep08. N.I.B.09. Hand Of Doom10. Rat Salad11. Iron Man12. Dirty Women13. Children Of The Grave

Encore:

14. Paranoid

BLACK SABBATH resumed its "The End" tour on February 6 in Tacoma, Washington after canceling three shows because singer Ozzy Osbourne was battling severe sinusitis.

The scrapped concerts in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada; Edmonton, Alberta, Canada; and Calgary, Alberta, Canada have now been rescheduled for early March.

After completing the first U.S. leg of "The End" tour, SABBATH will play dates in Australia and New Zealand in April, with European festival shows taking place during the summer.

BLACK SABBATH recently revealed that it is selling a new limited-edition CD titled "The End" at the shows on its farewell tour. The disc features four previously unheard studio tracks left off the band's 2013 reunion album, "13", as well as live versions of four songs from the world tour the band did in support of that disc.

The four studio cuts are "Season Of The Dead", "Cry All Night", "Take Me Home" and "Isolated Man". They feature drums by Brad Wilk.

The live tracks, with drumming from Tommy Clufetos, are "God Is Dead?", "Under The Sun", "End Of The Beginning" and "Age Of Reason". The live cuts were recorded in Sydney, Australia, Auckland, New Zealand and Hamilton, Ontario.

Wilk and Clufetos had to get involved after founding SABBATH drummer Bill Ward withdrew from the reunion after initially agreeing to participate in it.

"13", the first SABBATH full-length studio album in 35 years to feature original members Geezer Butler (bass), Tony Iommi (guitar) and Osbourne, also became SABBATH's first No. 1 album in the U.S. when it was released in June 2013. The band abandoned plans for a follow-up after deciding that the current trek would be its last.

Turbo Tape Games and DREAM THEATER have announced the production of "The Astonishing" game, based on the band's concept album by the same name. The game will be released on PC, Mac, iOS and Android in April.

"The Astonishing" game is based on the album's story, setting, and characters, giving players an opportunity to further experience the world of Ravenskill and the G.N.E.A. while battling Empirical forces and securing man-made artistry's place in the futuristic world set forth in the universe of "The Astonishing". Tactical gameplay and a storyline that progresses with the player make this a can't-miss experience for gamers and music fans alike. The game will share core gameplay mechanics with Turbo Tape Games' critically acclaimed "UHR: Warlords", with several enhancements for this new project.

"The Astonishing" game will be available as a free download for iOS, Android, PC and Mac with a one-time fee to continue playing past the first two missions. The game features both single-player and multi-player pass-and-play same-device functionality.

"The Astonishing" was released on January 29 via Roadrunner. The CD was made available in a wide range of distinctive versions, including standard 2-CD set, 4-LP vinyl box set and a limited-edition deluxe box set.

Recorded at Cove City Sound Studios in Glen Cove, New York, with John Petrucci producing, studio luminary Richard Chycki (AEROSMITH, RUSH) engineering/mixing and legendary arranger, composer and conductor David Campbell orchestrating, "The Astonishing" paints a tale of a retro-futurist post-apocalyptic dystopia ruled by medieval style feudalism. It's a place aching for a Chosen One to rise above the noise and defeat an Empire defined by the endless drone of noise machines and the illusion of safety in bland conformity.

In a recent interview with La Grosse Radio, DREAM THEATER keyboardist Jordan Rudess stated about "The Astonishing": "Well, the story is really about hope and it's about the power of music for healing and bringing good energy and good spirit to people. It was a story that was written by John Petrucci [DREAM THEATER guitarist]. He originally thought of it, the seed of the idea, about two and a half years ago. And a little over a year ago, he presented it to the band as an idea to do our concept album, and we were all very excited about it; it seemed really great. So after he presented it to us, then we started to work on all the music for it."

Regarding the inspiration for "The Astonishing" story, Rudess said: "Well, I think the inspiration comes from things like 'Star Wars' and 'The Lord Of The Rings' and 'Game Of Thrones' and all these kind of fantasy, sci-fi stories. And it's something that certainly John, who wrote the story, is into and all of us could really relate to. Especially from a musical point of view, to create the music for it, for me it was like doing a score for a film. So I was very comfortable with all the different genres of music that had to be composed, 'cause it was everything from electronic sounds and music — not so much, but there's definitely electronics throughout the album — and also some more classical type of musical ideas to our usual prog kind of metal mixture."

Fan-filmed video footage of original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley performing on February 27 at Fitzgerald's Bar & Live Music in San Antonio, Texas can be seen below.

Frehley will release "Origins Vol. 1", a collection of twelve newly recorded classics from Ace's formative years featuring some of the biggest names in rock and roll, on April 15. Most notably, KISS frontman Paul Stanley joins Ace on FREE's hit "Fire And Water". This collaboration marks the first time that Ace and Paul appear on the same studio recording since KISS's 1998 reunion album "Psycho Circus". Other guests are none other than Slash trading leads on THIN LIZZY's classic "Emerald", Lita Ford singing and playing lead on THE TROGGS staple "Wild Thing", ROB ZOMBIE guitarist John 5 playing guitar alongside Ace as he sings his classic KISS composition "Parasite" for the very first time, as well as Jimi Hendrix's "Spanish Castle Magic", and PEARL JAM's Mike McCready also plays guitar with Ace as he finally sings his KISS "Alive!" mainstay "Cold Gin". "White Room" is also an iTunes instant gratification track, meaning fans who pre order the LP on iTunes will receive the CREAM cover song instantly.

Ace spoke with Rolling Stone about the new record, his guest players and recording with Paul after all these years. Regarding his reunion with Stanley, Frehley shrugged off any residual tension between the two of them. "We've always been friends," he told Rolling Stone. "The press seems to amplify negativity. I guess it makes good copy."

Frehley also commented on Stanley's appearance on "Fire And Water". "I thought Paul did a fabulous vocal on it," he said. "He jumped at the chance to do this because it's something that’s outside of KISS and his character in KISS, and it gave him a chance to, you know, sing. With Paul, you usually think of him singing in a slightly higher register and on 'Fire And Water', he's singing deep from his diaphragm, and it's a real cool vocal. Everyone who's heard it just thinks it's the shit."

"Origins Vol. 1" track listing:

01. White Room (CREAM)02. Street Fighting Man (ROLLING STONES)03. Spanish Castle Magic (JIMI HENDRIX) (feat. John 5)04. Fire And Water (FREE) (feat. Paul Stanley)05. Emerald (THIN LIZZY) (feat. Slash)06. Bring It On Home (LED ZEPPELIN)07. Wild Thing (THE TROGGS) (feat. Lita Ford)08. Parasite (KISS) (feat. John 5)09. Magic Carpet Ride (STEPPENWOLF) 10. Cold Gin (KISS) (feat. Mike McCready)11. Till The End Of The Day (THE KINKS)12. Rock And Roll Hell (KISS)

Former SEPULTURA drummer Igor Cavalera joined SOULFLY, the band led by his brother, and fellow CAVALERA CONSPIRACY and ex-SEPULTURA member, Max Cavalera, on stage on January 30 at O2 Academy Islington in London, England to perform the SEPULTURA classic "Roots Bloody Roots". Fan-filmed video footage of Igor's appearance can be seen below.

In 1996, Max exited SEPULTURA after the rest of the band fired Max's wife Gloria as their manager.

Igor left SEPULTURA in June 2006 due to "artistic differences." His departure from the band came five months after he announced that he was taking a break from SEPULTURA's touring activities to spend time with his second wife and their new son (who was born in January 2006).

After Max exited SEPULTURA, there was a rift between him and Igor, one that was eventually repaired through the redemptive power of music. Some time had passed and Max and Igor were unable to resist the musical pull in their magnetic fields and their musical collaboration was renewed. The duo are back for round two with CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, which released its debut album, "Inflikted", in March 2008 and follow-up effort, Blunt Force Trauma", in March 2011.

CAVALERA CONSPIRACY's third album, "Pandemonium", was released in November 2014 via Napalm Records. The CD was produced by John Gray, who has previously worked with SOULFLY.

Max and Igor played together for the first time in 10 years at the 10th annual D-Low Memorial Festival on August 17, 2006 at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, Arizona.

Max and Igorwill celebrate the twentieth anniversary of SEPULTURA's classic album, "Roots", by performing the LP in its entirety on an American tour later this year.

"Roots" was certified gold in 2005 by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America) for U.S. shipments in excess of 500,000 copies.

Former VAN HALEN bassist Michael Anthony was joined by several musicians, including WARRANT singer Robert Mason, to perform three VAN HALEN classics — "Panama", "I'm The One" and "You Really Got Me" (originally by THE KINKS) — during the "Mark In The Morning" first-anniversary show on February 26 at the Saban Theatre in Beverly Hills, California. Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

Anthony, singer Sammy Hagar, Eddie and Alex Van Halen last teamed up in 2004 for a U.S. summer tour. In exchange for taking part in the tour, Anthony reportedly had to agree to take a pay cut and sign away his rights to the band name and logo.

In 2007, the Van Halen brothers, Wolfgang Van Halen and singer David Lee Roth announced they would be hitting the road for a reunion tour. Anthony later told Music Radar that he "found out about that tour like everybody else did — in the press."

Anthony's new band THE CIRCLE, which also features Hagar, Jason Bonham and Vic Johnson, plays hits from Sammy's four decades of rock (MONTROSE, solo, VAN HALEN, THE WABORITAS, CHICKENFOOT) as well as classic tracks from the LED ZEPPELIN catalog.

British heavy metal legends IRON MAIDEN played the second show of their "The Book Of Souls" world tour last night (Friday, February 26) at the BOK Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. If Eternity Should Fail02. Speed Of Light03. Children Of The Damned04. Tears Of A Clown05. The Red And The Black06. The Trooper07. Powerslave08. Death Or Glory09. The Book Of Souls10. Hallowed Be Thy Name11. Fear Of The Dark12. Iron Maiden

Encore:

13. The Number Of The Beast14. Blood Brothers15. Wasted Years

Check out fan-filmed video footage below.

In his review of the show, Steven Reckinger of TulsaWorld.com writes: "The set design was a beautiful piece of craftsmanship. Inspired by the Mayan theme to 'The Book Of Souls', the artistic backdrops would rotate after each song, displaying a new piece of art that featured the band's mascot Eddie in some fashion. Before the encore when the members played their self-titled song that has remained the lineup since the beginning, a giant figure of a Mayan Eddie towered over the band. Some pyrotechnics and a dose of theatrics added to the finished product."

IRON MAIDEN new-and-improved branded private tour plane 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.

The Boeing 747 jumbo is being piloted on the band's world tour by MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson.

The 747 is the world's most recognizable airliner on account of its distinctive hump. With its impressive dimensions of 70.7m (232ft) length, 19.4m (63.6ft) height and a jaw-dropping wing span of 64.4m (211ft) this double-decker aircraft has a range of 13,450km (7,262nm).

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.

"What's special about this tour is that a year ago I didn't even know if I could sing," Dickinson told reporters last week. "We've had an amazing turnaround in fortune after, obviously being ill a year ago, getting rid of that, and getting out and looking forward to doing the tour."

Regarding the fan reception to the new CD and the current tour, Dickinson said: "The album was a massive success, and we were about that far [finger and thumb barely separated] off from getting the No. 1 slot [in its debut week on The Billboard 200 chart]. So now, we get to bring it out to the people, and, I mean, there's a few tickets left but not many. Pretty much the whole of the U.S. is sold out. It's amazing."

Guitarist/vocalist Adam "Nergal" Darski of Polish extreme metallers BEHEMOTH is putting the finishing touches on the debut album from his new "blues, country and folk" project for a tentative September release.

A couple of video clips from the recording sessions for the CD can be seen below.

Nergal recently told Spark TV that he "needed to get [the music] out of [his] system" and described the album's lyrical direction as "a different approach" but still "very dark."

BEHEMOTH has announced its return to North America this spring with a special tour, featuring MYRKUR as support. BEHEMOTH will play its latest album, "The Satanist", in its entirety. In addition to the concert, fans will also have the chance to view "The Congregation" exhibition at each venue. Dubbed "a symbiosis of BEHEMOTH and Toxic Vision," the display showcases the collaboration between the two parties.