Brooklyn, New York's TOMBS have confirmed Savage Gold as the title of the band's third album on Relapse Records. The album is set for a June 10th release (North America), June 9th (UK/World), and June 6th (Germany/Benelux/Finland). A trailer for the release can be found below.

Savage Gold is available for pre-order now. The album will be available in the following formats: Limited Edition Deluxe Gold Vinyl 2XLP (with expanded 12 page booklet featuring the graphic art of acclaimed artist and tattoo artist Thomas Hooper), Standard Black Vinyl 2XLP, CD and digital formats.
Tracklisting:

'Thanatos'
'Portraits'
'Seance'
'Echoes'
'Deathtripper'
'Edge Of Darkness'
'Ashes'
'Legacy'
'Severed Lives'
'Spiral'

Trailer:
In support of Savage Gold, Tombs will hit the road for a West Coast run supporting PELICAN. The shows kick off June 12th in San Diego, CA and run through June 19th in Seattle, WA. A complete list of dates can be found below. In addition to their US dates, Tombs will be taking part in the Temples Festival at Motion in Bristol, UK on May 3rd. They will play alongside NEUROSIS, CONAN and MOSS.

Tour dates:

May
3 - Bristol, UK - Motion (Temples Festival)

June (with Pelican)
12 - San Diego, CA - The Casbah
13 - Los Angeles, CA - El Rey Theater
15 - San Francisco, CA - Slims
17 - Portland, OR - Branx
18 - Vancouver, BC - Rickshaw
19 - Seattle, WA - Neumos

Finnish funeral doom metal band TYRANNY have signed with Dark Descent Records for the release of the band's follow-up to 2005's Tides Of Awakening. The as-of-yet-untitled album is scheduled for release later this year.
The band comments: "Stirrings in the xenobathyal abyss, a star has shifted in the black gulfs of space, tectonic grinding releases another upheaval to foreshadow the third emanation of Tyranny - last performances before the release will be witnessed at Roadburn 2014"

Tyranny will make an appearance at Roadburn Festival 2014, taking place this week (April 10th - 13th) in Tilburg, The Netherlands. The band is scheduled to perform on Friday, April 11th at Het Patronaat. For more details, visit this location.

(Photo - Peter Troest, troest.nu)

Denmark's PET THE PREACHER will release their sophomore album, The Cave & The Sunlight, with a special album release show at DesertFest Berlin, Germany on April 25th and on May 1st at BETA in Copenhagen, Denmark. The band's new video for the album track 'Remains' is available below.

The Cave & The Sunlight will be released on the following dates:

April
25 - Germany/Austria/Switzerland
28 - Denmark
30 - Spain/Sweden/Norway

May
2 - Finland/Benelux
5 - UK/rest of Europe
6 - North America
Tracklisting:

'The Cave'
'Let Your Dragon Fly'
'Kamikaze Knight'
'Remains'
'Fire Baby'
'Marching Earth Pt.1'
'Marching Earth Pt.2'
'The Pig & The Haunted'
'What Now'
'I'm Not Gonna'
'The Web' (bonus track, digipack and vinyl editions)

'Remains' video:
Preview:
As a bonus, the band's outstanding 2012 debut album, The Banjo, will be made available for the first time on CD/re-released on vinyl through the Napalm Records Webstore, in Germany/Austria/Switzerland (April 25th) and Denmark (April 28th) only. Pre-ordering will start in the next couple days.

The Banjo tracklisting:

'Hell'
'The Devils Door'
'Fear And Steps'
'Cancer, You Fucking Bitch'
'When Im Around'
'Below Your Feet'
'The Banjo'
'Listen'
'Dont You Leave Me Alone'
'Bottle Emotions'

Los Angeles power metallers OMEN (Pure Steel Records) have announced the addition of new lead vocalist Kevin Goocher (PHANTOM-X).

Goocher (pictured below) takes over from Omen's former vocalist Matt Story.
Omen lineup:

Kevin Goocher - vocals
Kenny Powell - guitars
Andy Haas - bass
Steve Wittig - drums

DESTRUCTION hit the stage at San Francisco's DNA Lounge on April 1st. Capital Chaos TV were on hand, and have posted the following clips of the band performing 'Total Desaster' and Bestial Invasion:
Check out BraveWords scribe Mark Gromen's Destruction Live In New York City! feature at this location.

Destruction tour dates:

April
10 - Chicago, IL - Reggies Rock Club
11 - Rochester, NY - Montage Music Hall
12 - Toronto, ON - Mod Club
13 - Quebec, QC - Complexe Meduse
14 - Montreal, QC - Foufounes Electriques

Italian hardrock/heavy metal newcomers FAKE IDOLS (featuring former members of RAINTIME and SLOWMOTION APOCALYPSE) have released their new video, for the track 'One Way Trip', featured on their upcoming self-titled Lifeforce Records debut.
Fake Idols will be released on the following dates:

April
25th (digital worldwide)
29th (North America)

May
2nd (Germany, Austria, Switzerland)
5th (Rest of Europe)

According to a press release, the quintet’s self titled debut album consists of twelve hymns which are based on great songwriting with focus on killer riffs and intoxicating hooks.
Fake Idols believe in their unerring songwriting abilities and the quality of their dynamic and catchy tracks. And they are absolutely right! The selected cover-song on the debut album can be interpreted programmatically: 'My Favourite Game' (THE CARDIGANS).

The second album from THE COMPULSIONS — the New York City band formed by Rob Carlyle (vocals, guitar) and GUNS N' ROSES members Richard Fortus (guitar) and Frank Ferrer (drums) along with former HANOI ROCKS and NEW YORK DOLLS member Sami Yaffa (bass) — is currently being mixed for a fall 2014 release. Song titles set to appear on the CD include 'House Of Rock', 'The Feel', 'Hellbound Babies' and 'Silly Li'l Woman'.
Carlyle states, "The title of our next release is 'Dirty Fun.' We've been mixing it for a while now but I think we're finally in the homestretch. This thing is gonna kill. There seems to be a growing number of cool kids out there who are dying to hear some real deal rock 'n' roll, like old AEROSMITH and AC/DC and HUMPLE PIE and GN'R, and I guarantee we're not gonna let 'em down."

Last week, Clifton, New Jersey-based melodic metal outfit JULIUS SEIZURE released their new single ‘Sixth And Falling’ along with a B-side, ‘Second Coming’. The tracks are cut from their August 2013 release, Trials. Now the band has released the official music video for ‘Sixth And Falling’, directed by Patrick Canavan.
“Julius Seizure is one of those bands with unlimited energy, which is why I like working with them,” states direct Patrick Canavan. “They got out of a five hour car ride with five guys crammed into one Jeep, and blew the crew and I away on the first take. You don't see guys with this level of intensity often.”

“The concept of this video revolves around a demon character named ‘Rage’. We see his awakening, and follow him through the night as he begins his hunt for human prey,” adds Patrick Canavan. “During this we will be flashing to another character I’ve been calling ‘The Painter’. His sanity level is dropping rapidly as he tries to finish his painting. I don't want to give anything away just yet, but I will say that Rage and The Painter will converge at the end for an intense closing scene.”
The band has a packed schedule for 2014 with a constant outpour of new music, videos, and shows, including a stop at this year’s New England Metal and Hardcore Festival on Thursday, April 17th.

Julius Seizure dates:

April
17 – Worcester, MA – The Palladium
30 – Clifton, NJ – Dingbatz

May
10 – Trenton, NJ – Championship Bar

For more info visit JuliusSeizureBand.com.

The brand new lyric video for the track ‘Vegan Homicide’ of MONUMENT OF MISANTHROPY's album Anger Mismanagement is now available.
States vocalist George “Misanthrope" Wilfinger (RAISING THE VEIL, DISFIGURED DIVINITY, ex-MIASMA): "This video was very important to the band, as animal rights and protection of nature issues take on an important role within the whole band. We thought brutal scenes taken from the meat-industry would fit well to the story of the song in which a fictional character is taking bloody revenge on animal abusers. Some footage may be almost unbearable to watch but on the other hand it's day-to-day routine and sad reality in the world we live in. Joris and I are convinced veggies, Romain and Jean-Pierre huge animal lovers. It can also be seen as a statement telling veganism and vegetarianism is not just for pussies or sentimental hippies but also widespread among the metal-crowd. For me just another proof that metalheads are not the bunch of dickheads some media would like us to be seen, but people who are definitely not mainstream. CARCASS have been pioneers in the eighties and the list of veggie metal musicians is pretty long: KREATOR's Mille, ex-CELTIC FROST / TRYPTICON frontman Tom G. Warrior, ex-ARCH ENEMY singer Angela Gossow, NAPALM DEATH's Barney, CATTLE DECAPITATION just to name but a few. "

In order to finance the album, Romain Goulon and Monument Of Misanthropy launched a crowdfunding campaign on Indiegogo.com December last year and surpassed the EUR 4,000 goal quickly.

Anger Mismanagement was mixed by Stefan Kaschel (AudioRiot studios) mastered at Iguana Studios (Necrophagist, DEADBORN, MALADIE) with producer Christoph Brandes.
The CD also includes an ultra-fast cover version of KREATOR'S ‘Flag Of Hate’.
Anger Mismanagement tracklisting:

‘Intro / Foreboding Of Evil’
‘Entering A New State’
‘Malformation’
‘Vegan Homicide’
‘Monument Of Misanthropy’
‘Bring Me The Head Of LGG’
‘Carnal Offering’
‘Retarded Phrase Mongers’
‘Flag Of Hate’ (Kreator cover)

Portuguese grinders HOLOCAUSTO CANIBAL have released a lyric video for 'Corrosão Uretral', the lead track from their Larvas EP, due in May via Bizarre Leprous Production. The new opus includes four new songs, six live tracks (recorded at the Obscene Extreme Festival 2013 in Czech Republic) and three remixes of songs taken from the band's previous album, Gorefilia.
Larvas EP tracklisting:

'Corrosão Uretral'
'Proxenetismo Necrófilo'
'Nosolagnia Predatória'
'Imundo Bizarro'
'Trucidada Na Paragem' (live) *
'Empalada Via Espinal Dorsal - Empalamento II' (live) *
'Euthanastic Inclination' (BLOOD cover) (live) *
'Death By The Master Key' (DEAD INFECTION cover) (live) *
'Fetofilia - Incestuosa Sodomia Fetal' (live) *
'Necro-Felação' (live) *
'Obsessiva Lactação Paranormal' (MAD MAGUS remix)
'Dilacerante Pungência Subvertida' (Ermo remix)
'Preeminência Carnaz' (Epitome Criminal remix)

* Recorded at the Obscene Extreme Festival 2013 in Trutnov, Czech Republic.

'Corrosão Uretral' lyric video:
Trailer:

Modern thrash act SAWTHIS has released a new video for the song ‘The Crowded Room’.
The band comments: “The human mind is a huge universe where anything can be created and everything can be destroyed. There are cases where in one mind, one personality is not enough. ‘The Crowded Room’ is our tribute to Billy Milligan through which it was possible to discover the multiple personality disorder.”
The video was directed by Underroom Studios. The song is included in the new album Youniverse (Bakerteam Records), available in physical and digital version worldwide.

More on Sawthis at Facebook.

Hungary's ANGERTEA have released a new video, for the Nr. 4: Songs Exhaled album cut, 'A For Afrodita'. The band released Nr. 4: Songs Exhaled, their fourth full-length album, in September 2012 via Smash Fabric Records. The album was recorded at Black Hole Sound studio in Szeged with producer Gábor Vári.
Nr. 4: Songs Exhaled tracklisting:

'No Computation' (featuring Bill Gould)
'Demons Surfaced'
'V.'
'In Light Air'
'Decay'
'Lions' Region'
'A For Afrodita'
'Akråm'
'Meeting Satan On The Way To Personal Desertification' (featuring Tibor Rákos)
'Distance Of You'

'A For Afrodita' video:
'V.' video:
'Decay' video:
' Lions’ Region' video:
'Meeting Satan On The Way To Personal Desertification' video:
'Demons Surfaced' video:
'No Computation' lyric video:
More on Angertea at this location.

Bulgarian death metallers ENTHRALLMENT have released a lyric video for the track 'Tool Of Suicide' featured on their new album, The Voice Of Human Perversity, available via Rebirth The Metal Productions and Grindhead Records, the official distribution of Sevared Records
The Voice Of Human Perversity was completed at Murder Sound Studio in Bulgaria and mastered by James Murphy (DEATH, OBITUARY, TESTAMENT, CANCER, DISINCARNATE).
Tracklisting:

‘Screams Etched Within The Crags’
‘Rats Before The Worms’
‘Mummified Ante Mortem’
‘Rove In Hell’
‘Stench Of Burnt Down Sanctuary’
‘Madness Coloured In Light’
‘Tones Of Gladness’
‘Tool Of Suicide’

'Tool Of Suicide' lyric video:
‘Mummified Ante Mortem’:
For more details visit Enthrallment.eu.

Brazil-based black metallers PATRIA have released a video trailer for their upcoming release, Individualism, out via Indie Recordings on April 21st (24th in G/A).
Individualism tracklisting:

'Individualism'
'Blood Storm Prophecy'
'Uncrowned God Of Light'
'Outrage'
'Orphan Of Emptiness'
'Far Beyond The Scorn'
'Catharsis'
'Epiphany'
'Your Rotten Heart Dies Now'
'God’s Entombment'
'Requiem For The Ego'

Trailer:
'Orphan Of Emptiness' lyric video:
'Blood Storm Prophecy':

Legendary US metal band HELSTAR will release their new studio album, This Wicked Nest, on April 25th on CD and vinyl via AFM Records. Check out an official trailer below:
Tracklisting:

'Fall Of Dominion'
'Eternal Black'
'This Wicked Nest'
'Souls Cry'
'Isla De Las Munecas'
'Cursed'
'It Has Risen'
'Defy The Swarm'
'Magormissabib'

'Fall Of Dominion':
Helstar lineup:

James Rivera - voice
Larry Barragan - guitars
Rob Trevino - guitars
Jerry Abarca - bass
Mikey Lewis - drums

Harder Than Steel - The Official Keep It True Festival Tribute Album - unique compilation album, that includes cover songs of bands that played at the Keep It True festival, performed by other bands that also played at the festival - will be available exclusively at this year's edition of the Keep It True, that takes place on April 25 and 26, 2014. Its front cover artwork, painted by the longtime festival partner Dimitar Nikolov, can be seen below. The CD will be released by Skol Records, will be limited to only 500 copies and has been produced by Bart Gabriel & Oliver Weinsheimer.

Check out ATTACKER's version of the RIOT classic 'Fire Down Under' below:
"Keep It True is not only a festival, it's a community," says festival organizer and co-founder, Oliver Weinsheimer. "Not only among the fans, but also among the bands. It's now eleven years after we started the festival, and with most of the bands we still share a great friendship. Now last year Bart Gabriel came up with this brilliant idea for this Tribute Sampler, and we were really flattered by that, and how fast the bands agreed to do this special thing for us. That’s something unique and we are very proud of that!"

Harder Than Steel - The Official Keep It True Festival Tribute Album tracklisting:

ATTACKER - 'Fire Down Under' (RIOT)
PARADOX - 'March Of The Saint' (ARMORED SAINT)
CRYSTAL VIPER - 'Night Of The Demon' (DEMON)
WITCH CROSS - 'Angel Witch' (ANGEL WITCH)
OSTROGOTH - 'Plan Of Peace' (LETHAL)
JACK STARR'S BURNING STARR - 'Children Of The Storm' (VIRGIN STEELE)
SACRED STEEL - 'All For One' (RAVEN)
NIGHT DEMON - 'Axe Crazy' (JAGUAR)
WIZARD - 'Mind Body Spirit' (VIRGIN STEELE)
BORROWED TIME - 'Bound To Be Free' (SAVAGE GRACE)
SATAN'S HOST - 'See You In Hell' (GRIM REAPER)
DEADLY BLESSING - 'Notorious' (LIZZY BORDEN)

STONE SOUR's Dead Generation fanclub members are now able to hear demo tracks of the songs 'The Travelers Pt. 1', 'Tired' and 'A Rumor Of Skin' on the Exclusive Content page of the band's official website. Go to this location to launch a fanclub account and to access the material.

Check out the original version of 'Tired' below:
On their recent run of North America, Stone Sour treated fans to a different cover song every night of the tour. On February 15th they covered METALLICA's 'Creeping Death' in San Antonio, TX at Backstage:
Check out the band's covers of KISS and JUDAS PRIEST from the same tour below:

Swedish death metal warriors DIABOLICAL have just released a new video for their song ‘Oracle’. The song is taken from the band's most recent album, Neogenesis, a record that's packed with deliciously dark and twisted death metal and comes with a lavishly presented book written by guitarist Carl Stjärnlöv, with each chapter of the book represented by a song on the album.

Regarding the relevance of 'Oracle' to the album's overall concept, Carl comments: "The concept of the 'Oracle' song and the Oracle chapter of the Book of Neogenesis is very special. It has a deep meaning to the concept of Neogenesis and it represents a turning point in the story of the protagonist. The chapter and the song take place in a mystical place full of symbolism and we wanted to stay true to the arcane nature of the song in its visual representation. We filmed in several countries and have put a lot of effort into making this a very pleasant visual experience which we hope you will appreciate.”

Diabolical will also be heading out on a European tour in a week.
Dates below:

April
10 – Gdansk, Poland – Wydzia Remontowy
11 – Zielona Gora, Poland – 4 Roze Dla Lucienne
12 – Wroclaw, Poland – Easy Rider Club
13 – Chorzow, Poland – Lesniczowka
14 – Trinec, Czech Republic – Barrocko
15 – Bratislava, Slovakia – U Ocka
16 – Maribor, Slovenia – Gustaf Hall
17 – Prague, Czech Republic – Exit-US
18 – WR Neustadt, Austria – Trebwerk

Neogenesis Tour – Third Chapter with FACEBREAKER, BUTWETRYIT, and NEMOST

April
19 – Plzen, Czech Republic – Parlament Club
20 – Aalen, Germany – Rock It
21 – Nancy, France – T.O.T.E.M.
22 – Deinze, Belgium – Elpee
23 – Aachen, Germany - AZ
24 – Darmstadt, Germany – Steinbruch Theater
25 – Karlsruhe, Germany – AKK
26 – Zwolle, The Netherlands – Hedon
27 – Hamburg, Germany – Bambi Galore

For more details visit Diabolical.se.

Horror Pain Gore Death Productions has released the debut EP from Italian death/doom wizards PENTOTHAL SODIUM entitled Upon A Pile Of Bones on CD and digital formats. The entire EP is streaming now for free at Bandcamp.

Taking the dark, obscure atmospheres of classic death/doom like ASPHYX and DISEMBOWELMENT, Pentothal Sodium seamlessly weave influences of old school Swedish death metal into their mix which results in a crushing concoction of oppressive annihilation. "pon A Pile Of Bones consists of three powerful tracks clocking in at nearly 32 minutes, full of brutal chainsaw guitars, sudden tempo changes, haunting vocals and blasting drums.
Upon A Pile Of Bones tracklisting:

‘They Lie’
‘Praise Your Will’
‘Until Death’

A sample of the track ‘They Lie’:

CAPTAIN BLACK BEARD has released their first video/song from their upcoming album with ‘Somebody’.
On May 23rd, the band is releasing their sophomore album, Before Plastic, on Dead End Exit Records (a division of Roasting House) and Sound Pollution Distribution. The album contains 11 melodic kick ass-rock tracks and also features guest appearances by Bruce Kulick (KISS, GRAND FUNK RAILROAD) and Mats Karlsson (220 VOLT, THE SUMMIT).
Before Plastic tracklisting:

‘Please Come Home’
‘Somebody’
‘New York City’
‘Bad Gorl’
‘Music Man’
‘Aiming For Love’
‘Keep On Drivin’
‘Shout’
‘Life’s What You Make It’
‘Takin You Out’
‘Listen Up’

Before Plastic can be preordered at this location.

Drummer Stefan Svantesson has left CRYSTAL EYES after 12 years behind the kit. He made his decision right after the recording of the band's new album, Killer, was complete. The reason behind his departure "is that he couldn't take part in any upcoming gigs." The remaining members "thank Stefan for a great time together and wish him all the best in the future."
And they are "proud to welcome back Martin Tilander as our new drummer. Since 2001 Martin has played with Mikael (Dahl - vocalist, guitarist) and Niclas (Karlsson - guitarist) in the JUDAS PRIEST tribute band DEFENDERS OF THE FAITH and there was no doubt that he was the right man for the job. We knew he had been waiting for this opportunity for years and after the first rehearsal everything fell into place."
"Martin (pictured above) was also a part of Crystal Eyes between 1994-1995 and recorded the drums on our first official demo-tape in 1994. We've spent the last 3-4 months rehearsing and the new lineup is now ready to destroy the stages all over the world."

In the video below, Crystal Eyes' new drummer Martin Tilander performs 'Battlefield' from Dead City Dreaming.

Italian thrash metallers MADMAZE have parted ways with vocalist Danny Schiavina.
Says the band: "After a year and half spent together, now we sadly communicate that Danny has left the band. Time we spent together plus the passion that he put in the band will never be forgotten. Sharing the stage and loving the music was fantastic with this extraordinary guy, really! Thank you Danny and good luck for your future!

With a goodbye to our Danny, we say 'Welcome!' to Marco Spagnuolo (PENTHAGON), on board in a record time directly from Brescia!

And now... on work! See you on stage!"

Check out a new band photo below:

Veteran American metallers VICIOUS RUMORS will release a new live album, "Live You To Death 2 - American Punishment", via SPV/Steamhammer on June 11 in Scandinavia, June 13 in Germany, June 16 in the rest of Europe and June 24 in USA/Canada. The CD features 13 live tracks recorded on the "American Punishment Tour" in fall of 2013 in New York, Chicago, Atlanta and Oakland and was produced by Geoff Thorpe and mixed and mastered by Juan Urteaga (MACHINE HEAD. TESTAMENT) The album features VICIOUS RUMORS' new lineup performing classic songs never recorded live, like "Towns On Fire", "Mastermind" and "Worlds And Machines", along with new songs like "I Am The Gun" and "Electric Punishment".

"Live You To Death 2 - American Punishment" marks VICIOUS RUMORS' third live album — each one of them recorded on a different continent — and is the fourth album release in four years from the band.

In support of the new live album, VICIOUS RUMORS is back on tour from June 4 to June 28 in Europe. The "Live You To Death Tour: 35 Years Of Metal 1979 – 2014" will include festival stopsin Croatia, Belgium, Holland, Slovenia, Italy and the Czech Republic, sharing stages with such bands as ANNIHILATOR, NAPALM DEATH, METAL CHURCH, TRIVIUM, MASTERPLAN, TYGERS OF PAN TANG and many more, while other tour highlights will be concerts with amazing bands like NILE in the U.K. and ICED EARTH in Germany, as well as headline shows all over Europe.

"Live You To Death 2 - American Punishment" track listing: 01. Digital Dictator02. Minute To Kill03. Towns On Fire04. Lady Took A Chance05. Worls And Machines06. I Am The Gun07. Electric Punishment08. You Only Live Twice09. Mastermind10. Don't Wait For Me11. World Church12. Hellraiser13. Soldiers Of The Night

VICIOUS RUMORS is already working on material for a new studio album, to be released in 2015. In addition, the band will celebrate the 30th anniversary of the cult album "Soldiers Of The Night" with a massive world tour in 2015.

VICIOUS RUMORS in January announced the addition of singer Nick Holleman and bassist Tilen Hudrap to the group's ranks. They also welcomed back Bob Capka on guitar.

Nick, a native of Holland, has a powerful melodic voice with great range and tone. A natural talent with a high-octane stage presence and endless sustain. Nick's performance stunned VICIOUS RUMORS fans old and new during the band's last tour in the USA.

Nick was hired on the spot after VICIOUS RUMORS leader Geoff Thorpe saw a video on YouTube. "I just imagined him singing our songs and it works perfectly," Geoff said. "Once we met and the chemistry was right, I realized I found the right guy for the job."

Tilen is a native of Slovenia. After a series of auditions, Tilen was hired last summer to fill in on tour. The band liked his aggressive playing and monster stage presence so much that he was invited to join the band as a full-time member after his first show in July. Tilen already played two world tours with the band (Europe and USA, 50 shows) and appears in the newest video for the title track off the current album "Electric Punishment".

VICIOUS RUMORS is:

Geoff Thorpe - GuitarLarry Howe - DrumsNick Holleman - VocalsBob Capka - GuitarTilen Hudrap - Bass

Fan-filmed footage of VICIOUS RUMORS' October 1, 2013 performance at the Webster Hall in New York City can be seen below.

Swedish metal band PORTRAIT has recorded a cover version of a JUDAS PRIEST song that has never been released by the legendary British heavy metal band. The track "Mother Sun" appears on PORTRAIT's CD single "We Were Not Alone", which is being sent out exclusively to subscribers with the May issue of Sweden Rock Magazine.

"When first deciding to record a cover song for a bonus track for this exclusive release, the choice of band was obvious as JUDAS PRIEST is to blame for the birth of PORTRAIT in the first place," says PORTRAIT guitarist Christian Lindell.

"Instead of doing something completely unnecessary, like recording a song that they themselves have already perfected on some of their own album releases, we chose to record 'Mother Sun' as that song for obscure reasons has remained unreleased.

"This JUDAS PRIEST song is only available on two bootleg recordings of poor sound quality, even though it was frequently played live in the mid-'70s.

"The song itself is a fantastic, QUEEN-like epic, with Rob Halford doing one of his most impressive vocal performances ever.

"Even if the style of the song is somewhat different from what we do ourselves, it isn't too far-fetched to believe that a PORTRAIT ballad would sound something along those lines, would we ever write one."

An audio sample of PORTRAIT's version of "Mother Sun" can be streamed using the SoundCloud widget below.

For more information, visit www.swedenrockmagazine.com.

PORTRAIT will release its new album, "Crossroads", on April 25 in Europe and April 29 in North America via Metal Blade Records.

The relentless, Swedish heavy metal monster known as PORTRAIT was born in the year 2006 with the intention to exterminate the entire world. After the release of a demo, two singles and their self-titled full-length debut, PORTRAIT released its Metal Blade debut, "Crimen Laesae Majestatis Divinae", in 2011. After numerous tours and festival appearances, the band began to focus on its third album, entitled "Crossroads". The writing and recording process took about a year, and Tore Stjerna of Necromorbus Studio handled the production together with the band.

Actor, comedian and acclaimed heavy metal drummer Richard Christy (CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED, ICED EARTH, DEATH, LEASH LAW, CONTROL DENIED, BURNING INSIDE) — who currently works for "The Howard Stern Show" — joined Christian hard rockers STRYPER on stage this past Saturday, April 12 at Stage 48 in New York City to perform the track "Sing Along Song". Fan-filmed video footage of his appearance can be seen below.

STRYPER's new album, "No More Hell To Pay", sold around 9,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 35 on The Billboard 200 chart.

"Second Coming", a collection of re-recorded versions of STRYPER's classic songs, opened with around 4,400 units back in April to land at No. 117.

STRYPER's covers album, 2011's "The Covering", registered a first-week tally of around 4,600 copies to enter the chart at No. 175.

The band's previous collection of new material, 2009's "Murder By Pride", premiered with 5,900 copies to debut at No. 73.

"No More Hell To Pay" was released on November 5, 2013 in North America via Frontiers Records. The effort was made available in two formats — standard CD and deluxe digipak featuring exclusive video content. Produced by STRYPER guitarist/vocalist Michael Sweet himself, the set features some of STRYPER's strongest and heaviest material ever.

"No More Hell To Pay" includes STRYPER's cover version of "Jesus Is Just Alright", a gospel song written by Arthur Reid Reynolds.

FILTER has recorded a cover version of the AEROSMITH classic "Sweet Emotion" for an as-yet-undisclosed movie soundtrack. FILTER frontman Richard Patrick described his band's rendition as "all creepy and weird like [FILTER's previously released version of THE TURTLES' '60s pop classic] 'Happy Together' [which was recorded in 2009 for the movie 'The Stepfather'] but way more industrial."

FILTER's recently released "Surprise" video features Patrick and guitarist Jonny Radtke as well as Patrick's daughter Sloan and was directed by Gus Black (ATLAS GENIUS, DEFTONES). The song is taken from FILTER's sixth studio album, "The Sun Comes Out Tonight", which was released on June 4, 2013 via Wind-Up Records. The CD was recorded in Los Angeles at Blue Room studios with producer Bob Marlette (BLACK SABBATH, ATREYU, SALIVA). The follow-up to 2010's "The Trouble With Angels" was written and recorded by Patrick and Radtke, as well as collaborator Marlette. There are also performances from touring members Jeff Friedl and Elias Mallin (drums) and Phil Buckman (bass).

According to Billboard.com, AC/DC "insiders" have shot down as false the rumor that the band is on the verge of announcing its retirement due to one member's — presumably guitarist Malcolm Young's — serious illness.

The source of the original retirement rumor was an e-mail sent to Perth radio station 6PR from an anonymous tipster using the handle Thunderstruck. The station subsequently spread the word, setting off a flurry of reports first throughout Australia and then worldwide.

It should be noted, however, that the group's management and Columbia Records, its current label, have chosen not to comment on the matter, according to Billboard.com.

AC/DC singer Brian Johnson told a Florida radio station in February that the band was schedied to enter a studio in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada this May to begin recording its 16th studio album. The project was supposed to be the first set of new AC/DC material since 2008's "Black Ice" album. In addition, the band intended to celebrate its 40th anniversary this year by playing 40 shows in selected cities around the world. Asked about the group's plans, Johnson said, "We've been denying anything, 'cause we weren't sure. One of our boys was pretty ill, so we didn't like to say anything, and we're very private about things like this, so we didn't wanna say anything. But I think we'll be going in the studio in May in Vancouver. Which means, we should be getting ready."

Johnson added, "It's been 40 years of the band's existence, so I think we're gonna try to do 40 gigs, 40 shows, to thank the fans for their undying loyalty. I mean, honestly, our fans are just the best in the world, and we appreciate every one of them. So, like I said, we'll have to go out, even though we're getting a bit long in the tooth [Laughs]."

Johnson alluded to one of the members of the band being ill in a 2012 interview, adding that the unnamed member was "getting better" with a "full recovery fully expected."

Meanwhile, bassist Cliff Williams hinted in March 2013 that guitarists Angus and Malcolm Young were writing music for the band's next album.