Lionheart look to be calling it quits, or at the very least going on hiatus. The band posted the following statement today:

“Toured with some good bands, toured with some bad ones. Met some great people, and some complete idiots. Started this band in a living room in San Francisco and ended up getting to see the world.

Seen a million bands, scenes, trends, and people come and go- now it’s our time. Everyone has jobs or careers that make doing this (even part time) next to impossible. One more EP, a split with one of our favorite bands, and some final US shows will be announced soon. The current Canadian & European dates will be our last shows in those territories.

Thank you for everything- this was one hell of a ride. -LHHC”

Night Verses will release their Ross Robinson (Korn, Slipknot) produced album “Into The Vanishing Light” on July 08th. The album will arrive through producer/musician Will Putney‘s Equal Vision Records imprint, Graphic Nature Records. A stream of the track “A Dialogue In Cataplexy” from it has debuted online below. Speaking of the album sessions, vocalist Douglas Robinson shared:

“Ross brought more to the table than I could have ever really imagined. He taught us how to elevate ourselves from what we were, while still being exactly who we are. He didn’t make us anything we didn’t want to be. He brought out what he saw in us and heightened it all as we learned even more about ourselves on our own. I personally felt so much more mentally aware and open with everything I was doing during the making of this record.

That – mixed with us just simply taking a chance on going against the grain of modern approaches to recordings and stepping out of our comfort zones – was a way for us (separately and as a whole) to surrender our old ways and give everything we had to the new process.”

Nikki Sixx has commented further on his war of words with KISS members Paul Stanley and Gene Simmons over Simmons's admittedly callous remarks regarding Prince's death, saying that "we just kind of look like a bunch of old women fighting at this point."

On Sixx's radio show, the MÖTLEY CRÜE and SIXX:A.M. bassist slammed Simmons — who's since apologized — saying: "His heartless and uneducated remarks about Prince's death shows why he's not my hero anymore or anybody's. I think that he is an overrated, lucky guy that dresses like a clown. He wrote some good songs, but hasn't in a long time, and loves to brag about himself."

Stanley responded on his Facebook page, knocking Sixx, by saying, "Jesus Christ, Nikki Sixx! Would you please shut up, find another way to be in the news and get off your self-inflated pedestal? Regardless of some things Gene Simmons has said that I may take issue with, his influence on musicians (you included) is undeniable and will continue. More importantly, his work, generosity and monetary contributions to numerous causes and charities for those less fortunate makes your ongoing rant, in the scheme of things, the unimportant but annoying squeak it truly is. Move on."

Well, "Loudwire Nights" host Toni Gonzalez caught up with Sixx before SIXX:A.M.'s gig at Rock On The Range this past weekend, she asked the bassist about the feud. He responded: "To be honest with you, I only really said one thing about Gene. The problem with having a five-hour radio show five days a week, and then we do three 'Countdown' shows on the weekend, is I talk. And the problem is that sometimes you will say something, you have an opinion about something, and [the media] will take just that fifteen seconds, and that gets magnified."

He continued: "I have a lot of opinions, just like you do, and anybody watching this interview, or listening to this interview, has, and if you only take those things and amplify 'em, it can get blown out of proportion. And what happened in this situation is I did have an opinion, and it got blown out of proportion, and then Paul said I was beating a dead horse. I actually wasn't; the press was beating a dead horse."

Sixx added: "You know, I'll just be honest with you. [When] I [was growing] up, I loved KISS. They influenced me as a songwriter. KISS gave MÖTLEY CRÜE one of their very first tours. They've done a lot of great stuff for me in my life. I've co-headlined tours with those guys, I've known 'em forever. Gene's a very opinionated man, and so am I.

"I'll be honest with you, I think we just kind of look like a bunch of old women fighting at this point. I love you guys. Like, whatever… it's all good. We're not getting in the ring and fighting over this.

"And I will say: great for Paul for standing up, not only against Gene but against me. I think that we need to be strong. It's cool."

Stanley, who was the first to slam Gene for calling Prince's alleged death from prescription drugs "pathetic," told The Pulse Of Radio that he thought Sixx was feigning outrage to keep the story alive in an effort to score ratings at KISS's and Simmons's expense. "Look, I think what Gene said was questionable, and I certainly took offense to some of it," he said. "But, y'know, I think he sometimes speaks without giving, y'know, full thought to what he's saying and then comes to regret it afterwards. But, y'know, that being said, for other people to just harp on it is just not something that I want to sit by and listen to. Y'know, when someone starts to denigrate or take pot shots at your contributions, or your band, or, y'know, anything else — if you consider the source, it gets a bit ludicrous."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, the lawyer for Robert Plant and Jimmy Page in the alleged "Stairway To Heaven" copyright case is snapping back at the plaintiff's legal team. Page and Plant are defending themselves in a U.S. Federal court jury trial after being sued by Michael Skidmore, the trustee of the Randy Craig Wolfe Trust, on behalf of the late SPIRIT guitarist who wrote "Taurus" and performed under the name Randy California. The trust is hoping to not only win a monetary judgment, but also secure a writing credit for California on "Stairway To Heaven", which the trust claims Page and Plant lifted key portions of for "Stairway To Heaven".

Billboard reported that the ZEPPELIN members' attorney stated in an opposition brief filed on Tuesday (May 24): "Plaintiff's motion is a PR stunt in the hope of tainting the jury pool. Despite being told that Jimmy Page, Robert Plant and John Paul Jones fully intend to appear at the trial, plaintiff’s counsel misrepresented to the Court at the April 25, 2016 Pretrial Conference that Messrs. Page, Plant and Jones 'are refusing to appear in this court in the claims against them,' and plaintiff’s counsel repeated that misrepresentation to news cameras on the Courthouse steps, causing a flurry of press reports repeating plaintiff’s false accusation. When those reports died down, plaintiff triggered renewed reports of his misrepresentation by now filing a belated motion that is so devoid of merit it can only be seen as playing to the press."

Both Page and Plant have already sat for individual depositions in their defense and have never stated that they will not attend and participate in the ongoing trial.

Last month, Bloomberg.com posted that for a one dollar payment, the song's writers — Page and Plant — could bypass a high profile and possibly very damaging lawsuit, reporting, "Robert Plant and Jimmy Page would have to give dead rocker Randy California a writing credit on… 'Stairway To Heaven'. And that's probably worth a lot more than a buck. Such an agreement by Page and Plant, the band's guitarist and singer, respectively, would head off a much anticipated copyright infringement trial."

The performance and publishing worth of LED ZEPPELIN's "Stairway To Heaven" is estimated to be over $560 million.

Joe Schaeffer Photography has uploaded video footage of LAST IN LINE's May 25 performance at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California. Check it out below.

LAST IN LINE is the band featuring DEF LEPPARD guitarist Vivian Campbell alongside fellow founding DIO member Vinny Appice, plus singer Andrew Freeman, who has previously fronted HURRICANE and LYNCH MOB.

LAST IN LINE has recruited Phil Soussan (OZZY OSBOURNE, BEGGARS & THIEVES, Steve Lukather) to play bass for the group for its shows this spring. Also joining them at the dates is virtuoso keyboardist Erik Norlander (Lana Lane).

Soussan made his live debut with LAST IN LINE on April 14 at Count's Vamp'd Rock Bar & Grill in Las Vegas, Nevada.

Freeman previously played with Soussan in the acclaimed Las Vegas rock and roll production "Raiding The Rock Vault".

Appice and Soussan had done a number of shows together as members of the all-star jam band BIG NOIZE.

Original LAST IN LINE bassist Jimmy Bain passed away in late January at the age of 68. He was reportedly suffering from lung cancer at the time of his death.

LAST IN LINE's debut album, "Heavy Crown", was released on February 19, 2016 via Frontiers Music Srl. The CD was recorded at a Santa Clarita, California studio with producer Jeff Pilson, a veteran bassist who has played with DIO, FOREIGNER, DOKKEN and T&N, among others.

In a recent interview with Glide Magazine, Vivian stated about LAST IN LINE's future: "I honestly don't know. We're not in a position where we have to make that decision yet, fortunately, because we only have this opportunity to do these handful of shows. It would have been wrong to just go out on tour a month after Jimmy died with some guy playing bass. That would have been very disrespectful. So we're just trying to find the right balance now between doing nothing and giving up and doing something to help this record and consequently further Jimmy's memory, 'cause Jimmy really believed in this record and this band. In fact, so much so, last year Jimmy got a LAST IN LINE tattoo on his arm. When he died, it was the only tattoo on his body, the LAST IN LINE logo. He believed in this project so much and he was so involved creatively in this record, and it is a great record and a great bookend to his career.

"Like I said, we're fortunate we don't have to make that decision yet. We're just going to do these handful of shows and then I'm on tour with LEPPARD until mid-October. So if anything does happen further with LAST IN LINE, it wouldn't happen before the end of the year. So we have a lot of time to think about it and I guess, more than anything else, our decision on our future would be determined by what happens with the record. And so far it's very encouraging, the reviews and the responses have been tremendous. With that in mind, and if it continues that way, if there's enough of a desire for people to hear us play, then we probably would."

Northern Irish rockers THE ANSWER have completed work on their new album, "Solas", for an October 14 release. The CD was produced by Andy Bradfield and Avril Macintosh, who previously worked with THE ANSWER on their 2006 album "Rise". "Solas", which is the Gaelic (Irish language) word for "light," is also the title of the lead track on the new album.

Commented THE ANSWER lead singer Cormac Neeson: "All I will say about this record is that it's a journey and one we've never really taken before, so prepare yourselves for a few surprises. But don't worry, they are ridiculously good surprises... well, I think so anyway."

THE ANSWER's last album, "Raise A Little Hell", was released in North America in March 2015 via Napalm.

THE ANSWER consists of Cormac Neeson (vocals), Paul Mahon (guitar), Michael Waters (bass) and James Heatley (drums).

Sonic Shocks conducted an interview with vocalist/guitarist Jesper Binzer of Danish rockers D-A-D before the band's April 27 concert at London, England's Islington O2 Academy. You can now watch the chat below.

Speaking about D-A-D's plans for the follow-up to 2011's "DIC.NII.LAN.DAFT.ERD.ARK" album, Jesper said: "We are working very hard at the moment. We have recorded eleven songs on the demo level. At least six of those, we feel, are extremely good… very good songs. So we need to record some more demos. We'll do that in June, and then we will start recording the album for real in October. We promise."

Jesper also talked about how the D-A-D's songwriting process has evolved more than thirty years into the band's career. He said: "Unfortunately, it hasn't changed at all. It's still us fighting in the rehearsal space. No one really brings a full song; everybody works together on each song. And, of course, sometimes it's very tedious, sometimes it's very quick. Sometimes the creative juices are flowing so much that you [put together] two songs in one day. But sometimes, you know… 'No, I don't like the chorus,' and 'I don't like the verse. 'But yesterday you said the verse was…' 'Yeah, but I lied.' But, on the other hand, it's so nice that the four of us can put all our energy and all our love behind a new song, and that's going on with at least six of the new songs."

D-A-D made its first U.S. appearance in over 20 years in March 2013 at Revolution in Amityville, New York.

"DIC.NII.LAN.DAFT.ERD.ARK" was originally released in November 2011. The follow-up to 2008's "Monster Philosophy" was helmed by Nick Foss, who previously worked with D-A-D on such LPs as "No Fuel Left For The Pilgrims", "Sympatico", "Everything Glows" and "Soft Dogs". The album title is a play on D-A-D's original band name DISNEYLAND AFTER DARK, which had to be changed after a threat of a lawsuit from The Walt Disney Company.

Jackyl will release their brand new album, Rowyco, on August 5th via Mighty Loud Records. The cover art, tracklisting, and an Amazon pre-order widget can be found below.

"Disasterpiece"
"Rally"
"All Night Rodeo"
"Ahead of My Time" 
"Just Because I'm Drunk"  
"Everyone's A Winner"
"Crazy" 
"Hammer To The Head" 
"Limpdick" 
"Blast Off"

Catch Jackyl live at the following shows:

June
2 - Sandusky, OH - Bike Week at The Downtown Block Party  
3 - Chesterfield, MI - Diesel Concert Lounge
4 - Akron, NY - Braun's Concert Cove  
5 - Syracuse, NY - The Westcott Theater
8 - Sharon, PA - Quaker Steak & Lube
10 - Rothbury, MI - Sandy Corley Memorial Run at Double JJ Resort  
11 - Fond Du Lac, WI - Walleye Weekend at Lakeside Park  
17 - Stroudsburg, PA - Sherman Theater
18 - Loudon, NH - New Hampshire Motor Speedway
25 - Johnstown, PA - Thunder In The Valley at Peoples Natural Gas Park
26 - Baltimore, MD - Baltimore Soundstage   

July 
1 - Simpsonville, SC - Independence Slam at Charter Spectrum Am
13 - Erie, PA - Roar On The Shore  
15 - Mineral Wells, WV - Interstate Fair   
16 - Marion, IN - Brandt's I-69 Harley Davidson  
22 - Pompano Beach, FL - Pompano Beach Ampitheatre  
29 - Van Wert, OH - Wetzelland 30th Anniversary Motorcycle Rally  

August
19 - Milford, IA - Boji Bay Fun Pavillion  

September
6 - Minot, ND - The O'Riginal Bar & Nightclub
9 - Hinckley, MN - Grand Casino Hinckley Amphitheatre  

November
25 - Indianapolis, IN - 8 Second Saloon

 

Vocalist Chris VanDahl (L.A. Guns), guitarist Todd "Taz" Anthony, guitarist Stacey Blades (L.A. Guns), bassist Eric Stacy (Faster Pussycat), and drummer Troy Patrick Farrell (White Lion) have joined forces in a brand new band named Angels In Vein.

Angels In Vein is a classic rock band with mainstream elements seamlessly woven into both its musical tapestry and cutting edge production, making its unique sound immediately identifiable yet virtually timeless.

AIVs freshman offering is the culmination of a band who's independent and collective abilities have generated six gold albums, numerous billboard singles and millions in record sales worldwide. This is Angels In Vein.

Check out a brief video teaser, featuring the band's first single "1973". Visit Angels In Vein on Facebook for further details.

 

43 years after his contribution to one of the most successful records of all time and 40 years after the release of The Alan Parsons Project’s debut album in 1976, Alan Parsons returns with all his greatest hits in a superb symphonic show.

On the evening of August 31st, 2013, a large crowd gathered at Parque Pies Descalzos in Medellín, Colombia. When Alan Parsons appeared on stage, along with the Medellín Philharmonic Orchestra and his band the audience went wild. This is an audio visual document of that incredible evening.

The Alan Parsons Symphonic Project - Live In Colombia is to be released on May 27th on earMUSIC as a DVD, Blu-ray, 2-CD digipak, 3xVinyl, and download. Watch an official video trailer for the upcoming release below:

Alan Parsons was 19 years old when he landed a job at the world famous Abbey Road Studios, an important first step on his journey to becoming a world class engineer, producer and artist. Following his beginnings with George Martin and The Beatles, his contribution to Pink Floyd’s classic The Dark Side Of The Moon earned him worldwide attention. As a producer he had many hits with Pilot, John Miles, Ambrosia and Al Stewart. Together with his manager and creative partner at the time, Eric Woolfson, he developed the Alan Parsons Project.

Following their debut album Tales Of Mystery And Imagination (1976), they released a series of hit albums; namely I Robot (1977), Pyramid (1978), The Turn Of A Friendly Card (1980), Eye In The Sky (1982), Ammonia Avenue (1984), Vulture Culture (1985), Stereotomy (1986) and Gaudi (1987).

Then Parsons and Woolfson called it a day, but Parsons had ambitions to perform the amazing music live. Now to the great delight of his fans, for the first time on a live video and audio recording, The Alan Parsons Symphonic Project combines the talents of his amazing band with the lush sound of a 70-piece symphony orchestra, creating a very special show with unmatched quality. Together, they revitalize hits such as “Eye In The Sky“, “Don’t Answer Me“ and “Sirius“.

The lineup consists of Alan Parsons on acoustic guitar, keys, and vocals, P.J. Olsson (lead vocals), Alastair Greene (guitar, vocals), Guy Erez (bass, vocals), Danny Thompson (drums, vocals), Tom Brooks (keyboards, vocals) und Todd Cooper (saxophone, guitar, percussion, vocals). Alejandro Posada conducts the Medellin Philharmonic Orchestra.

Tracklisting:

“I Robot”
“Damned If I Do”
“Don’t Answer Me”
“Breakdown”
“The Raven”
“Time”
“I Wouldn’t Want To Be Like You”
“La Sagrada Familia”
“The Turn Of A Friendly Card (Part One)”
“Snake Eyes”
“The Ace Of Swords”
“Nothing Left To Lose”
“The Turn Of A Friendly Card (Part Two)”
“What Goes Up”
“Luciferama”
“Silence And I”
“Prime Time”
“Sirius”
“Eye In The Sky”
“Old And Wise”
“Games People Play”

“Don’t Answer Me”:

“Eye In The Sky”:

 

 

 

 

Guitar legend Paul Gilbert will release his newest record, I Can Destroy, on May 27th via earMUSIC on CD Jewel and digital. A snippet of the new song “Knocking On A Locked Door" is streaming below.

From platinum album sales and number one chart success as a founding member of Mr. Big, to frightening the guitar community with new levels of ferocious picking technique with shred-pioneers Racer X, to exploring punk, pop, classical, blues, jazz, and progressive instrumental styles in his solo career, Paul Gilbert has recorded a massive amount of stunning guitar music, all while circling the globe to play sold-out arenas from Japan to Jakarta.

Gilbert’s style stands out for its rare combination of accuracy, creativity, and power – all which are balanced with Paul’s sense of humour and pure love of music.

Although Paul is best known for his work with Mr. Big and Racer X, he has also toured with Joe Satriani’s G3, played in a host of tribute concerts with legendary drummer Mike Portnoy, and been integral in the design of his signature Ibanez PGM and Fireman guitars.

Paul’s legacy as a guitar instructor began when he was eighteen, when he was hired to teach at Hollywood’s Guitar Institute of Technology. His groundbreaking “Intense Rock” videos and DVDs have inspired legions of guitarists to improve their accuracy, speed, and phrasing. Years as a columnist for Guitar Player magazine, and most recently, Premier Guitar magazine, along with giving countless clinics, private lessons, and serving for five years as the dean of MI Japan, have given Paul Gilbert deep experience in the art of communicating music to all levels of guitarists.

Over 25 years in the music business have only increased Paul’s passion to explore the possibilities of music and the art of playing the guitar. Whether he’s playing to 10,000 fans or jamming one-on-one with a student, Paul Gilbert is living his childhood dream of taking the sounds in his head and bringing them into reality – on the electric guitar.

I Can Destroy is Paul’s next solo-masterpiece and will be his 18th solo album. The album features 13 very diverse rock-tunes. With Kevin Shirley producing, and an amazing band of Freddie Nelson and Tony Spinner on guitars and vocals, Kevin Chown on bass, and Thomas Lang on drums, Paul rocks with more power and emotion than ever before.

Tracklisting:

“Everybody Use Your Goddamn Turn Signal”
“I Can Destroy”
“Knocking On A Locked Door”
“One Woman Too Many”
“Woman Stop"
“Gonna Make You Love Me”
“I Am Not The One (Who Wants To Be With You)”
“Blues Just Saving My Life”
“Make It (If We Try)”
“Love We Had”
“I Will Be Remembered”
“Adventure And Trouble”
“Great White Buffalo” (Bonus Track)

Pre-roll video:

“One Woman Too Many" snippet:

"Blues Just Saving My Life" snippet:

"I Will Be Remembered" snippet:

“Gonna Make You Love Me” snippet:

“Make It (If We Try)” snippet:

"Everybody Use Your Goddamn Turn Signal" video:

“I Can Destroy”:

Southern Welsh rockers Buffalo Summer have released a lyric video for “Make You Mine”, a track from their brand new album, Second Sun, a bubbling-fresh selection of songs produced by Barrett Martin (Screaming Trees, REM, Queens of The Stone Age, Walking Papers), out now via UDR Music.

Buffalo Summer are the latest 'future legends' to sign with the home of legends, UDR Music. Proudly proclaiming that they 'bring the soul from the coal', Buffalo Summer bristle with the warm, rich old-school tones of groups such as Led Zeppelin, The Black Crowes, Jack White and Deep Purple, and their reputation as one of the most electric new live rock bands in Europe has seen them share gigs with the likes of Duff McKagan, Ugly Kid Joe, Soundgarden and Black Sabbath.

Tracklisting:

“Money”
“Heartbreakin' Floorshakin'”
“Make You Mine”
“Neverend”
“As High As The Pines”
“Light Of The Sun”
“Levitate”
“Into Your Head”
“Little Charles”
“Priscilla”
“Bird On A Wire”
“Water To Wine”

EPK:

Buffalo Summer is:

Andrew Hunt: Vocals
Johnny Williams: Guitar
Darren King: Bass
Gareth Hunt: Drums

(Photo - Buffalo Summer Facebook)

Ben Shepherd returned to his garage rock roots and assembled a group of musicians that became Hater, in Seattle, playing guitar alongside Soundgarden band mate, drummer Matt Cameron, as well as ex-Monster Magnet guitarist John McBain, Devilhead vocalist Brian Wood, brother of the late pre-grunge outfit Mother Love Bone singer Andrew Wood, and fellow Devilhead bassist John Waterman. Their self-titled debut album was recorded in between Soundgarden's Badmotorfinger,1991, and, their Grammy Award winning album Superunknown,1994. Hater was released on A&M Records on September 21st, 1993, and is now being reissued on CD, and for the first time digitally and on vinyl, by UMe on July 15th.

Two singles, “Who Do I Kill?” and “Circles,” were released from the album, which also included a cover of Cat Stevens’ “Mona Bona Jakon”. Shepherd, McBain and Wood wrote the majority of the songs, with Cameron co-writing “Sad McBain” with Waterman. The album also features country songwriter Billy “Edd” Wheeler’s 1963 single, “Blistered”. Wheeler was most known for penning “Jackson”, a Grammy Award winner for Johnny Cash and June Carter.

The band contributed a song to the 1995 compilation album, Hempilation: Freedom Is NORML, to support marijuana legalization, with bassist Alan Davis joining Shepherd, Cameron and McBain. Hater recorded their second album, The 2nd, that same year following Soundgarden’s tour for Superunknown, but its release was delayed until 2005.

Hater disbanded in 1997, with Shepherd and McBain going on to play in the Desert Sessions with Queens Of The Stone Age’s Josh Homme, and Cameron becoming Pearl Jam’s drummer.

Hater’s second album, The 2nd, was released in April, 2005, through indie label Burn Burn Burn. Shepherd recruited Broadcast Oblivion/Droo Church bassist Andrew Church, Void guitarist Bubba Dupree and Zen Guerilla drummer Andy Duvall to play shows supporting the album.

Tracklisting:

“Mona Bona Jakon”
“Who Do I Kill?”
“Tot Finder”
“Lion And Lamb”
“Roadside”
“Down Undershoe”
“Circles”
“Putrid”
“Blistered”
“Sad McBain”

 

 

Last year, A&M Records sued Rajan Parashar, co-founder of London Bridge Studios, claiming he wouldn't return the master tapes of the self-titled 1991 TEMPLE OF THE DOG album, which SOUNDGARDEN frontman Chris Cornell and drummer Matt Cameron recorded with members of PEARL JAM in 1990. Cornell sided with A&M Records, which said it bought the tapes in 1993, against Rajan Parashar, whose brother Rick produced the disc.

A&M and Rajan Parashar have finally come to an agreement, with Cornell tweeting a picture of the master tapes today along with the caption: "TEMPLE OF THE DOG masters returned today. History made a whole 25 years later!"

A&M reportedly intends to remaster the record for a 25th-anniversary deluxe reissue later this year.

The TEMPLE OF THE DOG album was recorded in 15 days as a tribute to late MOTHER LOVE BONE singer Andrew Wood. Cornell and Wood were roommates, while surviving MOTHER LOVE BONE members Jeff Ament and Stone Gossard formed the nucleus of PEARL JAM.

When A&M's lawsuit against Rajan Parashar was first filed, Cornell told the Associated Press, "A&M Records paid for the recordings and the use of the studio," and added that for Parashar "to pretend he has a right to keep the recordings makes no more sense than the owner of a laundromat claiming he owns the clothes you washed in his washing machine."

The former studio owner's attorney insisted the tapes belonged to Rajan, who said he was not a participant in the 1993 deal between his brother and the label. Rick Parashar died in 2014.

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS will release their eleventh studio album, "The Getaway", on June 17 via Warner Bros. Records. The CD's title track can now be streamed below.

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS frontman Anthony Kiedis said that the band scrapped at least two albums worth of songs and wrote new ones when it began working with producer Brian "Danger Mouse" Burton on "The Getaway". Speaking with Los Angeles radio station KROQ, Kiedis explained: "We had an unusually difficult experience making this record where we wrote 20 to 30 songs and it was all ready to go and we thought it was happening, and then Flea went snowboarding and broke his arm real bad."

Kiedis continued: "So we rethought everything and then we didn't have a producer and we were just sort of lost in space with all these songs… When all the dust settled, Brian Burton, a.k.a. Danger Mouse, emerged and said, 'Let's go make a record.' We were, like, 'Great! We have all these songs,' and he was, like, 'Leave those there. Let's go write new songs in the studio.' So the process began over again."

Kiedis said that although Burton had listened to all the songs the band had already prepped, "He just wanted to see what would happen when we went into the studio and started something fresh." The singer admitted that there was "pushback" at the first to the idea, but added, "The only way we saw this working was to have trust in him and get rid of our old ideas and our old way of doing things."

"The Getaway" track listing:

01. The Getaway02. Dark Necessities03. We Turn Red04. The Longest Wave05. Goodbye Angels06. Sick Love07. Go Robot08. Feasting On The Flowers09. Detroit10. This Ticonderoga11. Encore12. The Hunter13. Dreams Of A Samurai

RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS will perform at a variety of music festivals around the world this summer, including headlining Lollapalooza in Chicago on July 30.

Fan-filmed video footage of LACUNA COIL's May 25 performance at Saint Vitus in Brooklyn, New York can be seen below.

LACUNA COIL's new album, "Delirium", will be released on May 27 through Century Media. The CD was recorded at BRX Studio in Milan between December 2015 and February 2016. The effort was produced by LACUNA COIL bassist and main songwriter Marco "Maki" Coti-Zelati, with engineering by Marco Barusso and additional assistance from Dario Valentini. Coti-Zelati also created the artwork for "Delirium", which is based on an atmospheric session captured by Italian photographer Alessandro Olgiati.

Speaking about the heavier musical direction of"Delirium" compared to some of the recent LACUNA COIL records, vocalist Cristina Scabbia told Planetmosh: "We already had the feeling that this would be a much heavier record, just because we… You see it, when you start to write music, to put down the new compositions, you kind of see the general direction. Of course, everything can change, but at the very beginning, we started to work on something more heavy. And plus, we just realized that even during the live shows, we were enjoying much more to perform the most energetic songs out of the LACUNA COIL catalog. So we definitely wanted to do something different, not only compared to the previous records we did — at least the last ones — but we wanted to do something pretty different from the bands that, in our genre, were doing, in a way, because maybe fans and press, whatever, people were expecting us to go softer and maybe more into a rock direction while we went the other way around and made it heavy. I'm happy that this record is surprising a lot of people — really happy — 'cause that's kind of the reaction that we were hoping for."

Added singer Andrea Ferro: "That's also one of the reasons why we opened the record with a song like 'The House Of Shame', which is one of the heaviest songs of the record. We really wanted people to say, 'What is this? Is it LACUNA COIL really?' That's exactly the effect that we wanted. We wanted this record to be just another record, just because we have to put it out. We wanted it to be something that said, 'Okay, this is LACUNA COIL in 2016, opening a new chapter in their career and just showing that they're still interested in experimenting with their music,' and going places we haven't been so far."

On the topic of the "Delirium" album title, Cristina said: "The title came from… It actually came out while we were working on the 'Delirium' song; there's a song on the record that has the same title. And while we were working on music and lyrics at the same time, this word popped out and came out and opened a lot of doors, and we started to think about the whole Universe. We thought about the overall idea, we thought about the location, we imagined this asylum, this fictional asylum based on a real abandoned asylum that we visited. So it really came out during the songwriting. It's something that came out in such a weird way, because it really, really let it all start."

Added Andrea: "Basically, once we found the word, we thought about connecting the concept of the record, the concept of the mental illness with the smaller topic of everyday craziness — the craziness you experience personally every day in real life. Some of us went through some depression, some other people had some family problem that forced them to experience a different moment in their life. And so we played with the symptoms and we did a bit of research about the characteristics of each mental illness and then drag it into this concept, which is we imagined a sanitorium, a LACUNA COIL sanitorium, like the record, basically, and every song is like a room of the sanitorium where a patient is facing a different kind of illness. So, for example, in the song 'You Love Me 'Cause I Hate You', we took inspiration from the Stockholm Syndrome, which is when you fall in love with a person that is keeping you prisoner. But, of course, we've never been kept prisoners, so the real story is about a love story, a relationship where you are imprisoned, and even if you know it's very toxic for you, you can't get out of it, because you think it's the right thing, so you try everything possible to save it, to make it work, although you know it's not gonna happen. So this is the kind of metaphors we've been using once we found the concept, basically."

LACUNA COIL has recruited Diego Cavallotti as a fill-in guitarist for the band following the recent departure of Marco "Maus" Biazzi.

Biazzi left LACUNA COIL in January, explaining in a statement: "I felt I couldn't add more in this project any longer so I decided to leave my second family, LACUNA COIL, to take a different path for a new challenge in my life.

Fan-filmed video footage of DEVILDRIVER's May 25 performance at Warehouse Live in Houston, Texas can be seen below.

DEVILDRIVER's seventh studio album, "Trust No One", entered The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 43 with first-week sales of just over 12,000 units — nearly all from pure album sales. The set follows the No. 32-peaking "Winter Kills", which was released in August 2013 and opened with 11,000 copies.

"Trust No One" was released on May 13 via Napalm Records. The CD was once again produced by Mark Lewis (ARSIS, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, WHITECHAPEL, DEVILDRIVER, DEICIDE, SIX FEET UNDER) with assistance from Jason Suecof (AUGUST BURNS RED, DEICIDE, DEATH ANGEL). The new effort marks the group's first release since the departures of guitarist Jeff Kendrick and drummer John Boecklin and addition of axeman Neal Tiemann and former CHIMAIRA sticksman Austin D'Amond. Said frontman Dez Fafara: "'Trust No One' is a vicious record filled with huge grooves and big hooks, guitar bass assery and thundering drums! Lyrically it goes to a realistic space exploring a ton of different emotion and headspaces regarding being human and what it means to exist. The band worked long hours writing as well as in the studio along with our producer to forge 'Trust No One'! I hope you turn it the fuck up and enjoy this record from start to finish!"

Added Spreitzer: "'Trust No One' is the record that I’ve been wanting to write for twelve years."

DEVILDRIVER has tapped former WAYNE STATIC guitarist Diego Ibarra (a.k.a. Ashes) to play bass on its tour in support of "Trust No One".

Ibarra joined DEVILDRIVER as the replacement for former BURY YOUR DEAD guitarist Chris Towning, who appeared on "Winter Kills".

Boecklin and Kendrick played their last show with DEVILDRIVER as part of the 2014 Knotfest in Devore, California.

Finnish cult black metal outfit Baptism are streaming "The Sacrament Of Blood and Ash", the first track taken from their forthcoming full-length, V: The Devil's Fire.

Regarding the track, Lord Sargofagian comments on behalf of Baptism: "Simply put, in order to rise above we must overcome our lesser and mundane self. If we succeed in this act, time and time again, the blood of this offering will water the roots of the tree which is known as our spiritual development. The lyrics for this song were written based on my ideas by Gorath Moonthorn. Three more long-time friends are featured on this album as well and we are joined for this first preview by our brother Mikko Kotamäki from Swallow The Sun, whose voice fits the chorus perfectly."

Baptism have also revealed the artwork and tracklisting for V: The Devil's Fire. The details can be found below:

"Natus Ex Ignis"
"Satananda"
"The Sacrament Of Blood And Ash"
"Devil’s Fire"
"Abyss"
"Cold Eternity"
"Malignant Shadows"
"Buried With Him"

Norwegian extreme metal titans Ancient will blast the mainstage of UTBS (Under The Black Sun) Festival in Börnicke, Germany, on July 2nd. Due to touring commitments with Brujeria, the band's drummer, Nick Barker, is unable to play the festival. Ancient has announced that he will be replaced by drummer Jonathan Garofoli (pictured below), known from his performances with Melechesh, Naer Mataron and many others.

Ancient frontman Zel comments: "We are very lucky to have found Jonathan to play with us, not many can dare to try filling in the shoes of Nick Barker, but this guy kicks some serious ass!"

Jonathan comments: "Sometimes life is sweetly tricky, one day you're listening to an album of a band you like and after years you're playing with that band! Should sound kinda crazy but it's not, actually is what happened to me right now since I got the proposal from Ancient to get the role to step behind the kit to play at Under The Black Sun Festival 2016! To me it's a true honor to have been recruited by such a respectful and historical ensemble like Ancient, I'm pretty sure our collaboration will create and establish some real musical magic!"

 

 

Sliptrick Records has announced the signing of death/thrash metallers, Chugan.

Chugun was forged in Tel Aviv, Israel in 2010. The word "Chugun" means Cast Iron in Russian, which describes exactly the blunt aggression of their music, combining the speed of old school thrash/death metal with the grooves of modern metal.

The band released their debut album, entitled Virus, in 2015 and it got a warm reception and positive reviews from bloggers and webzines worldwide.

Current lineup:

Denise Jani Sizov (Vocals)
Timur Sizov (Guitar)
Yahel Goldshtein (Drums)
Alexey “Hobbit” Saprikin (Bass)

Blistering anarchist black metal unit, Iskra, has teamed up with Southern Lord for the CD release of their latest LP, Ruins. Approaching the most fearsome of all genres from a foundation in filthy metallic crust, Iskra has skillfully created an old school orthodox epic that their extensive back catalog has always been working towards, and in Ruins is executed in sublime, scathing style.

The Canadian collective, almost two decades into their journey as Iskra, stands out as staunch advocates of anarchism, and reject all forms of oppressive mainstream ideologies such as communism, fascism and democracy. To underline this, they coined their unification of extreme punk anger and black metal sonics "anarchist metal," separating themselves from other acts deemed as "extreme" or "radical" but lacking conviction or real menace. It is certainly evident in their vitriolic offensives that they mean business, but most impressive is the sharp, refined songcraft that makes Ruins a compelling black metal record regardless of your political (dis)orientation. The constantly shifting tremolo riffs and blasting drums are some of the most devastating and aggressive you will hear, and fans of Absu and early Immortal will find plenty to enjoy - Iskra exerts overwhelming levels of energy and brutality in Ruins, outpacing and outwitting the vast majority.

Iskra have toured across scores of countries with countless acts operating in various subsects of underground punk and metal, and have built up a fearsome international reputation, demonstrated by their heavy patch presence on the battle jackets of the true. A wealth of DIY and independent label releases trails behind them, with numerous albums, splits and demos all available to download for free from their website in accordance with their principles.

Southern Lord will issue Iskra's Ruins on digipak CD including a twenty-page booklet with lyrics and liner notes on July 1st.

Ruins tracklisting:

“Lawless”
“Ruins”
“Predator Drone MQ-1”
“Traume”
“Nihil”
“Illegal”
“Aegis Of The Victor”
“Der Einzige”
“Lebensraum”
“Battle Of One Hundred Slain”
“Masqueraders Of Fraud”
“Thieves Of Life”
“Privileged Morality”

Iskra also proudly announces the Anarchy Attack... Canadian Destruction (Storming The Atlantic) Summer Tour of Canada, their first major tour of Canada since 2004. This tour will mark the band's first coast to coast tour of the country and includes five days in the maritime provinces. The tour also features appearances at the legendary Spider Fest (formerly Spider Acres) in Meyersburg, Ontario and Evil Fest in Sainte-Angele-de-Merici, Quebec. The band's full live itinerary will be announced in the days ahead.