Austin, Texas metal luminaries THE SWORD will release their new album, "High Country", on August 21 via Razor & Tie. Recorded in Austin, the CD was produced by Adrian Quesada and mixed by J. Robbins.

"High Country" features 15 new compositions and will be released simultaneously in CD and double vinyl formats.

In conjunction with the release of "High Country", THE SWORD will embark on a 25-show European tour. The trek begins on release day, August 21, at the Pstereo Festival in Trondheim, Norway and ends in Bristol, U.K. on September 19. The band will be touring throughout the remainder of 2015 and 2016. Dates for the first international leg of the "High Country" tour are:

Aug. 21 - Trondheim, Norway - Pstereo FestivalAug. 22 - Oslo, Norway - ParkteatretAug. 23 - Goteborg, Sweden - Sticky FingersAug. 25 - Helsinki, Finland -TavastiaAug. 27 - Stockholm, Sweden - Debaser StrandAug. 28 - Malmo, Sweden - KBAug. 29 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Lille VegaAug. 30 - Hamburg, Germany - Rock Café St PauliAug. 31 - Berlin, Germany - MagnetSep. 02 - Wien, Austria - ArenaSep. 03 - Munich, Germany - MagnetSep. 04 - Milan, Italy - LegendSep. 05 - Salzburg, Austria - RockhouseSep. 06 - Winterthur, Switzerland - SalzhausSep. 07 - Stuttgart, Germany - UniversumSep. 09 - Antwerp, Belgium - Trix ClubSep. 10 - Tilburg, Netherlands - ExtaseSep. 11 - Cologne, Germany - LuxorSep. 12 - Paris, France - La Boule NoireSep. 14 - Nottingham, United Kingdom - BasementSep. 15 - Glasgow, United Kingdom - King TutsSep. 16 - Manchester, United Kingdom - Academy 3Sep. 17 - Wolverhampton, United Kingdom - Slade RoomsSep. 18 - London, United Kingdom - UnderworldSep. 19 - Bristol, United Kingdom - The Thekla

THE SWORD's fourth album, "Apocryphon", sold nearly 17,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 17 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was produced and engineered by J. Robbins (CLUTCH, JAWBOX) at Magpie Cage Studios and features cover art by famed comic book artist J.H. Williams III (Batwoman, Promethea).

Asked by Radio Cannon in a 2014 interview how he feels the metal scene has evolved since THE SWORD started, the band's guitarist, Kyle Shutt, said: "It's funny, because I think when we started people reacted differently to us because the metal scene was dominated by these macho, wrestler-looking types, screaming at you, etc… And bands like that are dying out. It's becoming a lot more rock 'n' roll. And I also notice that heavy metal journalism in the last ten years is so much more positive compared to when we started. It was so negative back then. And you gotta have haters, you know what I'm saying? It's just that there used to besome serious debates about us on message boards where people would try to figure out what we did and have these crazy theories that we were like, this pre-packaged band. It was so hateful for no reason, and nowadays people are so much more accepting. I think music just got so terrible for a while and so many shitty bands got shoved down people's throats by record labels throwing money at record stations and I think people just started looking past the bullshit and are much more open-minded now, with awesome bands like GRAVEYARD and BOMBUS. Or AMERICAN SHARKS, from Austin. Just cool heavy bands getting exposure."

California heavy rockers HIGH ON FIRE will release their new album, "Luminiferous", on June 16via eOne Music. Recorded at Salem, Massachusetts' GodCity Studios with producer Kurt Ballou, the CD is the follow-up to the group's 2012 release, "De Vermis Mysteriis", an album hailed as "not for the faint of heart " by The New Yorker and "a fantastically constructed bloodbath" by Entertainment Weekly.

Another song from "Luminiferous", titled "The Sunless Years", can be streamed using the SoundCloud widget below.

Universally recognized as one of the most potent acts in music today, HIGH ON FIRE creates molten heavy metal that merges primal fury and aggression, blackened bombast and hall of fame heaviness. The group's seventh studio album, "Luminiferous" is a supersonic exercise in conquest by volume, delivering calculated catharsis as a volcano of revolving riffs and hailstorm of thundering drums combine to beam a blazing spotlight towards the future of modern metal music.

"We're doing our part to expose The Elite and the fingers they have in religion, media, governments and financial world downfall and their relationship to all of our extraterrestrial connections in the race to control this world," comments HIGH ON FIRE vocalist/guitarist Matt Pike. "Wake up, it's happening. All while we stare at a socially engineered lie we think of as normalcy. Unless we wake from the dream, there will come true doom."

"I'm really happy HIGH ON FIRE decided to come back to GodCity to do another album," states producer and CONVERGE guitarist Kurt Ballou. "Having been a fan of theirs since 'The Art Of Self Defense', the opportunity to collaborate with one of my favorite bands has truly been an honor."

"Luminiferous" track listing:

01. The Black Plot02. Carcosa 03. The Sunless Years04. Slave the Hive05. The Falconist06. Dark Side of the Compass07. The Cave08. Luminiferous09. The Lethal Chamber

HIGH ON FIRE will embark on the North American "Luminiferous" tour in late July, with support from PALLBEARER, LUCIFER and VENOMOUS MAXIMUS. Dates can be found on the poster below.

HIGH ON FIRE is Matt Pike (guitar, vocals), Des Kensel (drums) and Jeff Matz (bass).

The official lyric video for the song "Armata Strigoi" from multinational metallers POWERWOLF can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's sixth album, "Blessed & Possessed", which will be released on July 17 via Napalm. The CD was mixed at Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Sweden with Fredrik Nordström and Henrik Udd and was mastered by Jens Bogren at Fascination Street. The album's cover artwork was once again created by POWERWOLF guitarist Matthew Greywolf.

Comments POWERWOLF guitarist Matthew Greywolf: "'Armata Strigoi' is one of the songs on 'Blessed & Possessed' that have this forceful ahead approach while maintaining that very unique POWERWOLF atmosphere, to me. Lyrically, the song is about the creature referred to as 'Strigoi' in eastern European mythology, a creature that might be considered the prototype of what became the vampire, though originally rather conneted to spiritual roots."

He added: "We love to research how mythology evolves and develops; stuff like that is our fuel for lyrics."

"Blessed & Possessed" track listing:

01. Blessed & Possessed02. Dead Until Dark03. Army Of The Night04. Armata Strigoi05. We Are The Wild06. Higher Than Heaven07. Christ & Combat08. Sanctus Dominus09. Sacramental Sister10. All You Can Bleed11. Let There Be Night

Catch POWERWOLF live on their very special "Wolfsnächte" tour. The wolves will be accompanied by ORDEN OGAN, CIVIL WAR and XANDRIA.

Three webisodes featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the making of "Blessed & Possessed" can be seen below. Also available is the song "Army Of The Night".

The band said about "Army Of The Night": "'Army Of The Night' is one of the many songs of 'Blessed & Possessed' we can't wait to perform live. Already the very first time we played that song during the songwriting, the energy and dynamics literally blew us away and we felt like this is going to be a must-play. While many of the songs on 'Blessed & Possessed' are very detailed and elaborated, this one is probably one of straightest and most compact POWERWOLF songs to date."

POWERWOLF's fifth album, "Preachers Of The Night", entered the official chart in Germany at position No. 1. The CD was released in July 2013 via Napalm Records.

POWERWOLF's first live album, "Alive In The Night", was recorded exclusively for Metal Hammer, Germany's leading metal magazine. The CD was only available with the April 2012 issue of Metal Hammer.

Music legends KISS performed at the Rockavaria festival in Munich, Germany on May 29th, kicking off their European tour. Fan-filmed video from the night can be viewed below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

"Detroit Rock City"
"Deuce" 
"Psycho Circus" 
"Creatures of the Night" 
"I Love It Loud" 
"War Machine"
"Do You Love Me" 
"Hell or Hallelujah" 
"Calling Dr. Love" 
"Lick It Up"
- bass solo - 
"God of Thunder" 
"Parasite" 
"Love Gun" 
"Black Diamond"

Encore:
"Shout It Out Loud" 
"I Was Made for Lovin' You" 
"Rock and Roll All Nite"

The band's spring tour schedule is as follows:

June
2 - O2 Arena - Hamburg, Germany
3 - O2 Arena - Berlin, Germany
4 - Leipzig Arena - Leipzig, Germany
6 - Rock In Vienna Festival - Vienna, Austria
8 - O2 Arena - Prague, Czech Republic
10 - Hallenstadion - Zürich, Switzerland
11 - Arena di Verona - Verona, Italy
14 - Download Festival - Castle Donington, UK
16 - Le Zenith - Paris, France
18 - Ziggo Dome - Amsterdam, The Netherlands
21 - Saint Jordi - Barcelona, Spain
22 - Barclay Card Arena - Madrid, Spain

Click here for ticket links and more details.

Deiphago - one of the most violent bands on the planet - are set to release their fourth album, Into The Eye Of Satan, on August 7th via Hells Headbangers. Each Deiphago album has seen the Filipino power-trio push the furthest reaches of musical extremity, marking a place in time in their demonic development whilst creating a monument for all perpetuity. Into The Eye Of Satan is no different in this respect: founding demons Voltaire 666 (bass bulldozers and black vomits) and Sidapa (crasheraxe and leads) are once again joined by Savnok on deathhammers, picking up where they left off with Satan Alpha Omega in 2012.

With this lineup now solidified, Deiphago sought to create a new, defiling standard and went in search of esteemed producer Colin Marston (Gorguts) to man the recording console. And with the perfect amount of clarity and chaos, grit and gleam, Marston was able to capture Deiphago at their most defiant sonically, rendering Into The Eye Of Satan in pulverizing detail. But recording is nothing if not built upon a foundation of fiery creativity, and indeed do Deiphago distance themselves from the feeble black/death metal scene of today. In essence owing more to avant-garde composition than rote "extreme metal," Into The Eye Of Satan explodes with an angularity that's truly extreme, even for them. Sidapa's mind-melting solos, in particular, play a huge part in guiding the listener toward literally insane ends.

As ever, the combined crush 'n' sulfurous surge Deiphago so effortlessly harness is characteristically ultra-violent beyond compare. And in this case, in 2015, it is Into The Eye Of Satan that Deiphago lead us... Hear where it leads next with the newly revealed track, "Red Dragon Of Chaos," via the audio player below. The tracklisting and cover art are as follows.

Into the Eye of Satan by DEIPHAGO

"Intro: Abomination"
"Evil and Adverse"
"Bloodbath Of Genocide"
"(6 x 6 x 6) / 3"
"Serpentine Anti-World"
"Calculated Acts Of Cruelty"
"Red Dragon Of Chaos"
"Ritual Death Of The Enemy"
"Into The Eye Of Satan"

 

 

 

With their new album Dirty Fun - available today, June 1st - The Compulsions have delivered a refreshingly infectious platter of rock 'n roll. Featuring the talents of vocalist and rhythm guitarist Rob Carlyle, lead guitarist Richard Fortus (Guns N' Roses), drummer Frank Ferrer (Guns N' Roses) and bassist Sami Yaffa (Hanoi Rocks, New York Dolls), The Compulsions have unveiled a new long-form trailer for Dirty Fun, enjoy:

Recently, the group dropped by the Nights With Alice Cooper internationally syndicated radio show for an interview and performance of their new single "Lucky" which will air on Thursday, June 11th. The album version of "Lucky" can be heard via the SoundCloud audio player below.

 

 

  

The Crown has announced that drummer Henrik Axelsson "is a new permanent member of The Crown. Some of you might know him from Implode and some might know him from the bonus tracks he did on Death Is Not Dead. Both he and us feel really good about this and we're very confident that we will work great together from this moment and beyond."

In live news, The Crown has two upcoming shows: June 21st at Hellfest in Clisson, France, and July 4th at Vicious Rock Festival in Trollhattan, Sweden.

(Photos courtesy of Patrik Skoglöw)

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow (Tuesday, June 2nd), reanimated New York death metal miscreants, Skinless, will lacerate ears with the sadistic grooves of Only The Ruthless Remain. Boasting their classic late '90s lineup of founding guitarist Noah Carpenter, vocalist Sherwood Webber, bassist Joe Keyser and drummer Bob Beaulac, with the recent addition of second guitarist, Dave Matthews, Only The Ruthless Remain marks the band's first proper full-length offering in nearly a decade. A full album stream can be found below.

Only The Ruthless Remain was captured by Tom Case at Edie Road Studio and Doomsday Bunker Studio, both in upstate New York, with vocals tracked by Dave Otero (Cephalic Carnage, Primitive Man) at Flatline Audio in Denver, Colorado, and the entire slab of audio violence mastered by Brad Boatright (Obituary, Nails, Integrity) at Audiosiege in Portland, Oregon.

 

 

Only The Ruthless Remain tracklisting:

“Serpenticide”
“Only The Ruthless Remain”
“Skinless”
“Flamethrower”
“The Beast Smells Blood”
“Funeral Curse”
“Barbaric Proclivity”

Album stream:

Additionally, you can get up close and personal with Skinless in the studio with the first part of the "Making Of" Only The Ruthless Remain video series.

(Band Photo - Shaun MacMahon)

 

 

Polish death metal act, Embrional, have released an official music video for the song “Madman’s Curse”, taken from their new full-length, The Devil Inside, available the unholy triumvirate of Hellthrasher Productions (LP), Old Temple (CD), and Third Eye Temple/Godz ov War (MC).

The Devil Inside comprises of 12 monstrous death metal tracks, crafted with technical sohpistication, where devastating blastbeats mix with hypnotizing slowdowns and nonroutine rhythms, roaring screams with whispering and moaning of the damned souls and sick harmonies with steady pillar of death metal tradition.

 

 

The album was recorded, mixed and mastered between August 2013 and June 2014 at Warsaw's Sound Division Studio, once again with the help of the sound engineer Arek 'Malta' Malczewski.

 

 

Tracklisting:

"The Devil Inside"
"Evil's Mucus"
"Funeral March"
"The Abyss"
"Sadness"
"In Darkness"
"Behind The Mask Of Sanity"
"910"
"Madman's Curse"
"Callousness"
"Venom"
"Whores, Drugs And Brain Dead"

"Funeral March":

"In Darkness":

Sacramento, California-based thrashers, Salythia, have released a lyric video for their song "Dementia”, featured on the band’s debut album, Death D’core. Death D’core was engineered at Sound Heart Collective in Sacramento, CA by Connor Rodenbaugh and is available via Dead Inside Records.

 

 

Death D’Core tracklisting:

“Bloodlust”
“Interlude I: Of Great Disdain”
“Affliction”
“Shattered (A New Beginning)”
“Interlude II: An Evil Within”
“Dementia”
“Chaos By Design”
“Epilogue”

“Dementia” lyric video:

“Affliction” video

The latest full-length studio installation from experimental outfit, Locrian, has been completed, as the longstanding trio prepares to release Infinite Dissolution through Relapse Records in late July.

One of the most determined tracks on Infinite Dissolution, the nearly eight-minute-long "An Index Of Air" is subdivided into three movements - i. Divinations, ii. Air Structures, iii. and Watcher Of The Clouds - the track encompassing the apex of the record. The track delivers a permeating vision of our planet in environmental peril, as does the rest of the album, which is inspired by the book, The Sixth Extinction, a futurist look at the current mass extinction of Earth which our generation attempts to thrive within every day. Locrian is here joined by Dana Schechter of Insect Ark on slide guitar and Erica Burgner-Hannum of The Holy Circle on vocals, whose contributions help shape the segments of the song.

Issues Locrian on the intense track, “”An Index Of Air” was written as a three part suite with the first part, Divinations, being the calling forth of the atmosphere and trying to read the future from it. Air Structures takes its name from a Brian Eno/Robert Fripp live bootleg but is a narrative about the realization that the air being called forth will kill us and that we have brought this on ourselves. And Watcher Of The Clouds is a play on the Genesis song “Watcher Of The Skies”, but is also the shift in narrative voice where we predict a new atmosphere must be formed after humanity is extinct."

The soundtrack to the planet's ongoing collapse comes by way of "An Index Of Air" playing below:

2015 marks ten years since the formation of Chicago/Baltimore-based Locrian, who over the past decade has left a smoldering mass of well over twenty recordings in their wake, many of them self-released, many others through labels including Utech, Fan Death, Bloodlust!, Small Doses, At War With False Noise, and the group's private label Land of Decay before signing with Relapse Records in 2012 for the release of their The Clearing/The Final Epoch 2xCD. The band's experimental/avant approach unifies post-industrial and black metal persuasions in a crushing alloy of organic and mechanical elements, having earned them widespread media praise from countless underground and mainstream media outlets and journalist worldwide.

Locrian now return with Infinite Dissolution, another dark and cinematic work of exceptional aural artistry. More epic and foreboding than anything in the prolific trio's catalog, Infinite Dissolution was recorded at Steve Albini-owned/operated Electric Audio, produced by Greg Norman (Pelican, Russian Circles), and mastered by Brad Boatright at Audiosiege, and is a multi-part concept album dealing with the struggle of human extinction. A seamless and harrowing blend of dark ambience, drone, black metal, post-rock, and experimental electronics, Infinite Dissolution is the perfect manifestation of modern, forward-thinking experimental music.

Having now been set for North American release on July 24th on CD, LP and digital formats, preorders for Infinite Dissolution have been released - including colored vinyl, merch bundles and more - alongside a visual trailer including the record's track listing and cover artwork, created from photos of a massive physical installation by sculptor David Altmejd.

View the trailer for Infinite Dissolution below. Find physical pre-order options here, and pre-order digitally via BandCamp here or iTunes.

Infinite Dissolution tracklisting:

“Arc Of Extinction”
“Dark Shales”
“KXL I”
“The Future Of Death”
“An Index Of Air”
i. Divinations”
ii. Air Structures”
iii. Watcher Of The Clouds”
“KXL II”
“The Great Dying”
“Heavy Water”
“KXL II”

Trailer:

Locrian lineup:

André Foisy - Guitars, Electronics, Piano
Terence Hannum - Vocals, Moog Little Phatty, Moog Minitaur, Moog Source, MicroKorg, Arp Avatar, EDP Wasp, Mellotron M400, Samples
Steven Hess - Drums, Percussion, Electronics

(Photo - Jimmy Hubbard)

 

Greek/Swedish melodic death metal band, Nightrage, has launched a new digital single, "Foul Vile Life," from its recently released sixth studio album, The Puritan, out now via Despotz Records. "Foul Vile Life" can be purchased on iTunes, and can be streamed along with the rest of the album below.

"This song is pure Nightrage style with thrashy riffs and ethereal melodies," commented guitarist/founder, Marios Iliopoulos. "I like the straightforward metal driving vibe of the song, and I remember this one was really easy for us to compose. Great vocal hooks here on the chorus from Ronnie, choir like, strong and powerful. The song has the signature Nightrage harmonies and tight signature riffs. The lyrics speak about this endless fight to get over your inner demons and break away from all the negativity and fear from the fake promises and lies. It's a journey trying to find your inner self from all the dark past."

The Puritan - an uncompromising, eerie, dramatic and melodic death metal journey in its purest essence - welcomes new Nightrage vocalist, Ronnie Nyman, to the mix. Nyman joins founding member, guitarist Marios Iliopoulos, and bassist, Anders Hammer, after performing with the band last year on its Japanese and Russian tours.

Album number six was produced by Daniel Bergstrand (Meshuggah, Devin Townsend, Soilwork) and George Nerantzis at Dugout Productions in Uppsala, Sweden.

 

 

The Puritan tracklisting:

“The Puritan”
“With A Blade Of A Knife”
“Endless Vows”
“Foul Vile Life”
“Stare Into Infinity”
“Lone Lake”
“Son Of Sorrow”
“When Gold Turns To Rust”
“Fathomless”
“Kiss Of A Sycophant”

Album stream:

“The Puritan” lyric video:
 

“Stare Into Infinity” video:

“Kiss Of A Sycophant” video:

 

METALLICA played the song "The Unforgiven II" live for the second time ever this past Friday night (May 29) at the Rock Im Revier festival in Gelsenkirchen, Germany. The band has just released an official audio recording of the performance, and it can be streamed using the SoundCloud widget below.

"The Unforgiven II" was first aired during METALLICA's December 1997 performance at the Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas, Nevada. The track, which appeared on METALLICA's 1997 album "Reload", is the sequel to the band's 1991 song "The Unforgiven", from METALLICA's mega-selling self-titled LP. A second sequel, titled "The Unforgiven III", was included on the group's last CD, 2008's "Death Magnetic".

Despite insisting that work has been proceeding on a new album, METALLICA has spent a lot of time outside the studio in the last year, with activities that included a string of European all-request shows last summer, a week-long residency on "The Late Show With Craig Ferguson", and this month's Rock In Rio USA stint.

More festival dates are on the schedule for this summer, including two shows in Montreal and a headlining slot at Lollapalooza in Chicago at the end of July.

Frontiers Music Srl will release of the new studio album from good-time rock 'n' rollers TRIXTER, titled "Human Era", on June 5 in Europe and June 9 in North America.

The song "Every Second Counts" can be streamed below.

Following on the heels of the successful comeback album "New Audio Machine", TRIXTER is returning stronger than ever.

"After the success of our last album, 'New Audio Machine', we felt more confident than ever in making another top-notch album," says TRIXTER lead guitarist Steve Brown. "I'm so proud to say that after more than 25 years of making records, TRIXTER is getting better and better. 'Human Era' will show the world this band at its finest."

The new CD sees TRIXTER sticking to their guns and delivering 11 new choice cuts, with a sound reminiscent of their earlier work which they were well known for in the '90s. For fans new to TRIXTER, their sound fits in nicely to an album collection next to BON JOVI, DEF LEPPARD, VAN HALEN, AC/DC and even '70s classic rock mainstays.

"Almost 30 years together and the band is tighter than ever!" adds Brown. "We are family and that makes everything we do more and more special. The title track, 'Human Era', really sheds insight into our story."

The first video for the album's opening song, "Rockin' to the Edge of the Night", can be seen below.

"Human Era" track listing:

01. Rockin' To The Edge Of The Night02. Crash That Party03. Not Like All The Rest04. For You05. Every Second Counts06. Beats Me Up07. Good Times Now08. Midnight In Your Eyes09. All Night Long10. Soul Of A Lovin' Man11. Human Era12. Always A Victim (acoustic version - bonus track iTunes)13. Road Of A Thousand Dreams (re-recorded version - bonus track iTunes)

TRIXTER is Pete Loran (lead vocals/rhythm guitar), Steve Brown (lead guitar/harmonica/backing vocals), P.J. Farley (bass/backing vocals) and Gus Scott (drums/percussion/backing vocals).

Fan-filmed video footage of ANVIL's May 30 performance at the Muskelrock festival at Tyrolen in Alvesta, Sweden can be seen below.

ANVIL's latest album, "Hope In Hell", sold a little under 800 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The disc followed up "Juggernaut Of Justice", which opened with around 1,600 units back in May 2011. The 2009 re-release of the band's 2007 CD, "This is Thirteen", registered a first-week tally of 1,400 to enter the Top New Artist Albums chart at No. 19.

ANVIL guitarist/vocalist Steve "Lips" Kudlow told Horns Up Rocks! in a recent interview that the band will spend most of 2015 on the road, but will return to the studio at the end of the year to record the follow-up to 2013's "Hope In Hell". He said: "We have a new album pretty much all written, but we're gonna be busy probably 'till next September. So that's when we plan to go in and record again."

ANVIL last year parted ways with bassist Sal Italiano and replaced him with Chris Robertson. Lips told M.E.A.T.'s Drew Masters that Chris has actually been part of the ANVIL camp for some time now, having been both their rehearsal bassist as well as a member of their road crew. Lips also stated that he's glad the band is, once again, "all Canadian — that is the heart and soul of ANVIL."

Each episode of Digital Tour Bus's "Bus Invaders" takes you inside the touring vehicle of one of today's top touring acts. In the latest episode, which was filmed on Apri6 in Chicago, Illinois, Tomas Lindberg, vocalist for the Swedish melodic death metal band AT THE GATES, gives you a tour of his band's bus during the "Decibel Magazine Tour 2015" with CONVERGE, PALLBEARER and VALLENFYRE.

On April 6, AT THE GATES released a very special split seven-inch EP (together with VOIVOD) to accompany the band's latest tour. The EP featured the AT THE GATES bonus track "Language Of The Dead" from the "At War With Reality" sessions — previously unreleased on vinyl! — while VOIVOD contributed a new track, "We Are Connected". The EP was "double A-sided" (meaning, each band has their own, reversible front-cover side!) and came with artwork created for both bands by VOIVOD's Michel "Away" Langevin.

"At War With Reality" was released on October 28, 2014 (one day earlier internationally) via Century Media. The CD, which sold 7,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 53 on The Billboard 200 chart, was recorded at Studio Fredman in Gothenburg and was mixed at Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden with Jens Bogren (OPETH, KATATONIA, SOILWORK, PARADISE LOST, KREATOR).

Vocalist Mark Osegueda of San Francisco Bay Area metal veterans DEATH ANGEL has posted a new video message from the songwriting sessions for the band's next studio album. Check it out below.

As previously reported, DEATH ANGEL will enter the studio on October 1 to begin recording its new CD for an April 2016 release via Nuclear Blast.

Asked by Groovey of Groovey.TV what fans can expect from the follow-up to 2013's "The Dream Calls For Blood", DEATH ANGEL guitarist Ted Aguilar said: "It's gonna be DEATH ANGEL. In my personal opinion, I don't think we're gonna try to top ['The Dream Calls For Blood']. You can't recreate that moment in time. 'The Dream Calls For Blood' is 'The Dream Calls For Blood'. This next album we're writing… I mean, we've got some songs; [we're] four songs in. No lyrics yet, but… It's always gonna be heavy. The foundation of DEATH ANGEL is still there, but it's kind of hard to describe what direction we're going in until it's recorded, mixed and mastered. 'Cause the way DEATH ANGEL writes, we write a song, but it's always evolving — up until the point of recording. Even when it comes down to the mixing. It's just, like, 'Ah, let's change that up.'"

He continued: "'The Dream Calls For Blood', it's a great record. We're proud of it. And the next album, it's just gonna be DEATH ANGEL in our mindset today. I'm not gonna say, 'It's gonna be this,' and it ends up being a little different. Who knows what this album is gonna sound like? [But] it's gonna be good."

Asked if DEATH ANGEL has been writing any new material on the road, Ted said: "We've written some stuff on the road, and when we get back [home from the current tour], we're gonna write some more. Then we've got Europe in July and August, and we're gonna continue writing in Europe, on downtime and whatnot. 'Cause there's a lot of time on the road; plenty of hours go by, like right now. And then when we get home after Europe, in August, we're gonna spend a couple of weeks off, then all of September is honing in and doing pre-production, writing a little more and just fixing the loose ends."

DEATH ANGEL will release "A Thrashumentary" on July 24 via Nuclear Blast. The DVD was directed, shot and edited by Tommy Jones (KATAKLYSM, SOILWORK, LAMB OF GOD, CARCASS, TESTAMENT) of Videohammer Studios. The release will also include a full live album entitled "The Bay Calls For Blood". DEATH ANGEL's seventh album, "The Dream Calls For Blood", sold 5,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 72 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Due to his commitments with AT THE GATES and THE HAUNTED, drummer Adrian Erlandsson (pictured) will not be able to participate in the PARADISE LOST European tour or upcoming festival dates this year. However, British gothic metal pionners are "pleased to announce" that drumming duties have been left in the young capable hands of Finnish sticksman Waltteri Väyrynen, who is kindly stepping in to cover.

Says Waltteri: "No words can explain how excited, grateful and honoured I am to do all these shows with PARADISE LOST this year. The band has been one of my first and biggest influences ever since I was a little kid. Really looking forward to see all of you on the road! It's gonna be one hell of a year!"

PARADISE LOST's new album, "The Plague Within", will be released on June 2 (one day earlier internationally) via Century Media. The CD was recorded at Orgone Studios (GHOST, ULVER, CATHEDRAL, ANGEL WITCH) in London with producer Jaime Gomez Arellano.

The official lyric video for the PARADISE LOST track "No Hope In Sight", taken from "The Plague Within", can be seen below. The band comments: "'No Hope In Sight' was one of the first tracks we wrote and it reflects a blend of styles. From death metal to gothic to classic rock. It's like all eras of PARADISE LOST wrapped up into one track. We hope you all like it!"

Regarding the musical direction of "The Plague Within", PARADISE LOST guitarist Greg Mackintosh told U.K.'s Total Guitar magazine: "It could be a bit of a Marmite album. Sometimes it's nice to do albums that are expected, in a way, but for a career like ours, it's important to do certain records and songs where you try something else.

"A certain track, like 'Flesh From Bone', is probably the fastest song we've done tempo-wise," he revealed, "while 'Beneath Broken Earth' is quite possibly the slowest.

"We weren't shying away from any period," he continued. "But it also had to be cohesive."

Greg added: "As it came together, the death metal elements became more prevalent, so the album ended up with more of those elements than we'd first anticipated. But it's got a good ebb and flow to it.

"We deliberately went down a different route, where we want it to sound like no one else in metal. Whether we've achieved that, I have no idea until everyone hears it."

The cover for "The Plague Within" was created by Polish artist, illustrator and architect Zbigniew M. Bielak, best known in the musical realm for his record cover illustrations, which, among others, include meticulously handcrafted artworks of WATAIN, GHOST and ENTOMBED A.D. albums.

"Fallen", the new album from STRYPER, will be released worldwide on Friday, October 23. The CD was tracked at SpiritHouse Recording Studios in Northampton, Massachusetts and will include a cover version of the BLACK SABBATH classic "After Forever".

STRYPER guitarist/vocalist Michael Sweet recently stated about the musical direction of "Fallen": "It's gonna be… I don't wanna scare any fans away or anything, but it's gonna be the heaviest album we've done. Not in the sense that it's gonna be thrash metal or anything like that. It's definitely got a little bit of a darker vibe to it lyrically and musically. Some of the songs are tuned down — not like the modern Drop B stuff; I'm talking like the E dropped to D, 'Unchained' VAN HALEN kind of stuff. And it's just got a heavy sound to it. And I think when people hear it, in a good way, they're gonna go, 'That's STRYPER? What?' I think they're gonna be shocked."

Songtitles set to appear on "Fallen" include "Let There Be Light", 'Big Screen Lies" and the title track.

The new STRYPER CD will include a song that was co-written by SEVENDUST guitarist Clint Lowery.

All-female metal sextet CONQUER DIVIDE will release their self-titled debut on July 24 via Artery Recordings. The CD was produced by Joey Sturgis (ASKING ALEXANDRIA, THE DEVIL WEARS PRADA, WE CAME AS ROMANS) and will feature the song "At War", which was made available last November.

"This record is the culmination of many years of hard work. It's a representation of where we've been and where we are headed musically. It's something we are all proud of," said CONQUER DIVIDE guitarist Kristen.

"Conquer Divide" track listing:

01. Sink Your Teeth Into This02. Self Destruct03. Eyes Wide Shut04. Nightmares05. Lost06. What's Left Inside 07. At War 08. Despicable You 09. Heavy Lies The Crown10. Broken

Since its formation in late 2012, CONQUER DIVIDE has managed to create a unique, modern and ever-apparent dichotomy of beautiful elegance and intense aggression that intertwines seamlessly with one another. The music certainly doesn't spare any dynamics, with the album taking the listener on a roller coaster ride of divergent stylistic qualities representing each of their musical tastes.

It's not exactly a secret that the group is comprised of all girls, but you wouldn't know simply by listening to one of their songs. However, don't let their image fool you. "We are all girls, and you cant hide that, but we want people to focus more on the quality of the music," drummer Tamara reveals.

"It wasn't an easy thing finding girls who not only were passionate about this type of music, but could play it well." So after years of looking in the States, they were forced to look all over the world, auditioning over 200 girls. They are subsequently based in two countries, the United States and England, but this hasn't slowed them down any.

"Well, these girls have been spending time, you know, a year, maybe two years writing some of these songs, and when you have that much time invested into a project, it's definitely passionate," says Sturgis. "So I knew I had to be involved in some way, because I really like to work with passionate musicians who really care about what they're doing

"Joey has really helped bring our songs to life," says vocalist Kiarely. "He has pushed us to the limit and made us think outside the box. He is an amazing producer and we are lucky to have the opportunity to work with him. He definitely brought out the best in all of us."

"I'm heavily influenced by bands such as PARKWAY DRIVE and AUGUST BURNS RED," Izzy says, "so melodies and heaviness were essential when I was looking to join a band."

"We wanted to stay true to our roots," explains guitarist Kristen. "Everything we've written comes from a real life experience. Music, like any art medium, has always been a form of catharsis for us, it's all about trying to take something negative that happened in your life and turn it into something positive. And we've had a lot of pent up anger to get out on this record. But we did our best to move past those issues and turn them into something for the greater good, because, I think, the whole idea is, if I can't heal from my art, how can you heal from it?" "Yeah, we've poured our hearts into this record and we really hope people can connect with it on some level," Sarah adds.

Continues Kristen: "We really wanted to take our time on our first album, and because of that, we've grown tremendously as songwriters. So this album really reflects where we've been, where we are and where we are headed."

In the second part of a recent interview with the "White Line Fever" podcast (hear audio below), MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson spoke about the musical direction of the band's forthcoming studio album, which is tentatively due in late 2015 or early 2016.

"Well, I'd like to think it's not gonna be a stinker, that's for sure," he said. "I'd like to think it's gonna be a pretty kick-ass record. Yeah, I'll tell you, there's a couple of things on there that are certainly heavy, but they're very forward-thinking for MEGADETH — in a good way; not some pop right turn or anything like that. So I'd like to think when the record says 'MEGADETH' on it, you're gonna get MEGADETH inside of it."

In a recent interview with RollingStone.com, MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine stated about the progress of the recording sessions for the band's next CD: "We have 15 tracks — 13 originals and two cover songs. We did 'Melt The Ice Away' by BUDGIE and 'Foreign Policy' by FEAR… There's a song called 'The Emperor Has No Clothes', and another called 'Tyranocide'. Several have working titles but I don't want to say what they are. After we write the lyrics, they'll come."

Regarding the sound of the new MEGADETH material, Mustaine said: "Over the years we've always said, 'We're going back to our roots.' But the naysayers, they just want 'Rust In Peace' 20 times, which is never gonna happen. Because I've never written the same song twice. Unlike a lot of other rock and metal bands that, you know, they rely on a set formula, I try and make the songs all different. The funny thing, though, was that when Ellefson was doing the bass tracks, I was telling him, 'This is the 'Tornado' ['Tornado Of Souls'] part,' 'This is the 'Bad Omen' part,' 'This is the 'Black Friday' part,' 'This is the 'Holy Wars' part.' Because a lot of the things were in that kind of vein. Now, is it going back in time? Hell, I don't know. But I like what I'm hearing."

MEGADETH's next album will be the band's first to feature LAMB OF GOD drummer Chris Adler and Brazilian guitarist Kiko Loureiro, best known for his work with ANGRA.

Rikard Zander, the keyboard player of the Swedish metal band EVERGREY, has released his solo debut under the name RIKARD Z. First up is the single "The World Makes Sure You'll Die", where Rikard Z also introduces himself as a singer.

"After doing backing vocals for over ten years, I guess I've gathered courage to take over the lead and tell the others to shut up," Rikard says with a laugh.

RIKARD Z's solo album features guest appearances by members of both EVERGREY and AVATARIUM and is far cry, musically, from the metal Rikard usually plays. "It's obviously more keys and less guitars, but I guess people who are familiar with my work will recognize it," Rikard says.

According to Rikard, his solo project will not interfere with EVERGREY, whose latest album, "Hymns For The Broken", has been praised by fans and critics worldwide.

"EVERGREY is my home, but sometimes you have to take a chance and do something different, and this was too good to keep for myself," Rikard explains.

"The World Makes Sure You'll Die" was released as a digital single on May 27 via Spinnup.

Photo by Patric Ullaeus of Revolver.se

Italian horror metallers, Cadaveria, have a new bassist. The band introduce their new member with the following message:

“We are very pleased to announce Peter Dayton as Cadaveria’s new bass player. Peter‘s musical tastes and artistic roots come from Swedish death metal and symphonic black metal. He has a long experience in the extreme music panorama as bassist of Enough To Kill and Necrodeath, where he is known as GL.

Besides his talent and his maturity as musician, the main reason that led us to let him join our group is the fact he is really into Cadaveria mood and he is truly motivated to enter our shadows’ realm as a steady member of the band.

As Cadaveria tradition wants, the band members names deal with the characters of David Lynch’s filmography. Peter Dayton comes from the Lost Highways to join Cadaveria’s path. Welcome Peter!”

In other news, Cadaveria are working on a music video for "Strangled Idols”, from their latest album Silence. Stay tuned for updates.

Cadaveria released Silence on November 18th, 2014 via Scarlet Records.

 

 

Tracklisting:

"Velo (The Other Side Of Hate)"
"Carnival Of Doom"
"Free Spirit"
"The Soul That Doesn't Sleep"
"Existence"
"Out Loud"
"Death, Again"
"Exercise1"
"Almost Ghostly"
"Loneliness"
"Strangled Idols"

Trailer:

Upon returning from their successful European Tour which consumed the past several weeks, Poison Idea has returned home and announced that the band is going on hiatus for an undetermined amount of time. The band has issued that they need to address some health issues and personal matters, and all upcoming shows for the undeterminable future have been cancelled or postponed. Additional details on the band's future plans will be announced at a later date.

Portland, Oregon's kings of punk, Poison Idea released their Confuse & Conquer LP through Southern Lord Recordings in April of this year. Setting everything in its path ablaze with the energetic pummeling assault the band has assaulted the planet with for three-and-a-half decades, and by incorporating the use of epic piano segues, the album is an instant classic for all Poison Idea fans. The band's first new album since 2006's Latest Will And Testament, and first since the passing of their great friend and guitarist, the iconic Tom "Pig Champion" Roberts, Confuse & Conquer boasts 35 minutes of thundering, infectious rage recorded in the band's hometown by Joel Grind (Toxic Holocaust) and mastered by Brad Boatright (From Ashes Rise) at Audiosiege.

(Photo by Jason Charles)

 

 

According to The Pulse Of Radio, SAINT ASONIA, the new act featuring ex-THREE DAYS GRACE frontman Adam Gontier and STAIND guitarist Mike Mushok, started out as just Gontier and Mushok writing music together with no plans beyond that. But Gontier told The Pulse Of Radio that the moment arrived when they knew SAINT ASONIA could be a band. "When we got into the studio to record a couple of songs, we recorded three songs, and when they were done, I think that was probably the moment where we were like, 'Okay, so we've just recorded three songs, they turned out really good, we have another 10, let's do this,'" he said. "Obviously, Mike being basically on hiatus from STAIND for who knows how long, it just seemed to make sense."

SAINT ASONIA also includes STUCK MOJO and DARK NEW DAY bassist Corey Lowery and FINGER ELEVEN drummer Rich Beddoe. The band recently released its first single, "Better Place", and will issue its debut album this summer.

Asked about calling the band a "supergroup," Gontier said, "We're more like refugees that just really hit it off creatively."

The group played its first live show at Rock On The Range in Columbus, Ohio two weeks ago.

Mushok told the Boise, Idaho radio station 100.3 The X Rocks about SAINT ASONIA's forthcoming debut album: "I'm super proud of the way the record came out. I think it definitely exceeded what we were trying to accomplish; we definitely did it. I mean, the record kind of runs the gamut — there's some pretty heavy stuff, and there's a couple of songs on there that are just beautiful songs."

SAINT ASONIA's CD was helmed by acclaimed rock producer Johnny K, who has previously worked with DISTURBED, MEGADETH, STAIND and SEVENDUST, among others.

Gontier has kept a low profile since leaving THREE DAYS GRACE in December 2012. The band replaced him with Matt Walst and recently released a new album called "Human".

Mushok's band, STAIND, has not released new music since 2011 and as of last December had no plans to return to the studio. Mushok played briefly in 2013 with ex-METALLICA bassist Jason Newsted in his self-named band.

Beddoe exited FINGER ELEVEN in late 2013. The Canadian act recorded a new album late last year but release details are yet to be announced.

Lowery's resume includes stints with STUCK MOJO, SWITCHED, STEREOMUD, DARK NEW DAY and most recently EYE EMPIRE.

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

Atlanta progressive metallers MASTODON were featured on the latest episode of HBO's smash TV phenomenon "Game Of Thrones". Band members Brann Dailor, Bill Kelliher and Brent Hinds portrayed wildlings in the episode "Hardhome" that premiered Sunday, May 31 at 9 p.m. with multiple repeat showings during the week. The band was personally invited to participate the show's creator and executive producer, Dan Weiss, as well as the other executive producers, who are all fans of the band. The scenes were filmed on location in Belfast, Northern Ireland, and the band also got to visit the sets at Titanic Studios.

Dailor describes MASTODON's time Beyond The Wall: "It was such an incredible experience to be on set as extras for our collective favorite show, 'Game Of Thrones', and to be wildlings murdered and then brought back to life by White Walkers was beyond amazing. I watched my best friends Brent and Bill murdered right in front of me as I myself was stabbed in the stomach and had my throat slit multiple times, and I didn't mind at all. It made me love being in MASTODON even more.

"We are more than privileged and honored to have been a part of one of the greatest stories ever told on film, and the catering wasn't bad either."

MASTODON is featured on the "Game Of Thrones" mixtape "Catch the Throne: The Mixtape Vol. 2" with a new original song, "White Walker".

The band will spend its summer overseas, performing at all the major European and South American festivals, including Belgium's Pukkelpop, the prestigious Reading and Leeds in England, as well as the massive Rock In Rio festival in Brazil. They will also support METALLICA for two shows in Russia.

Photo credit: Helen Sloan/HBO

According to The Pulse Of Radio, STONE TEMPLE PILOTS vocalist Chester Bennington revealed in a new interview with A-Sides that the band considered changing its name after it dismissed original singer Scott Weiland and began working with Bennington in early 2013. Bennington explained (see video below): "We did talk about maybe changing the name of the band, and just doing something new. Honestly, my thing was like, why give up what you guys have worked so hard on? This is your legacy, you don't have to give it up just because one person didn't do things the way that everybody wanted them to go, didn't do things everybody planned. We should be able to move forward."

Bennington continued, "I mean, where is the music coming from in the first place? There's no question when you hear the new music that it's STONE TEMPLE PILOTS. Why? Because it's coming from the guys who write the music. It's coming from the source. So, when the source is there, then it's still pure."

Bassist Robert DeLeo told The Pulse Of Radio not long ago that keeping STP going after changing frontmen was never in question. "From the beginning, it wasn't 'Hey, let's together and write a song' or 'Hey, let's get together and do this show.' It was 'Hey, let's get together and continue STONE TEMPLE PILOTS with a lot of integrity,'" he said. "That's really what the intent was. It's something that Eric [Kretz, drummer] and Dean [DeLeo, guitar] and myself have worked at for a long time, and we've been trying to hold up the whole integrity of this band for a long time."

STP dismissed Weiland in February 2013, claiming that his erratic behavior held back the band's career. The two parties exchanged lawsuits which have since been settled.

STP recruited Bennington that spring and have so far cut one EP, "High Rise", with the LINKIN PARK singer. A new album is due out later this year.

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS' next round of tour dates will begin on September 15 in Cleveland.

SLAYER guitarist Kerry King was interviewed on a recent episode of "In The Van" by skateboarding punk rockers the LOUD ONES as they motored through the country and temporarily kidnapped interesting characters in their renovated touring machine while sedating them with beers and questions. You can now watch the chat below.

Asked what the best thing is about being in a band, Kerry responded: "It's probably the best and the worst thing: the travel. 'Cause I get paid to go all over the world — places I would never in a million years go on my own — and that's really cool, but the travel part of it is what sucks. I mean, it sounds great. It sounds like, 'Oh, you get to go business class, you get to go first class.' And, yeah, I do. And I still get delayed and I still get thrown into lounges. And it's the waiting game. And the waiting game is what sucks."

SLAYER has set "Repentless" as the title of its new album, due worldwide on Friday, September 11 via Nuclear Blast. The long-awaited follow-up to 2009's "World Painted Blood" marks the first time SLAYER has worked with producer Terry Date (PANTERA, SOUNDGARDEN, DEFTONES). It is also SLAYER's first CD since drummer Paul Bostaph's return to the band in 2013 and guitarist Gary Holt's addition to the SLAYER touring lineup in 2011.

SLAYER will tour extensively to support the new album, headlining this summer's Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival as well as playing other major outdoor festivals and several "An Evening With..." SLAYER-only concerts.

Philadelphia black metallers I Am The Trireme have released the official video for new track "Thy Sombering Light" The song comes from upcoming album Gnosis: Never Follow the Light, scheduled for release on June 30th via Horror Pain Gore Death Productions. Watch below:

Few bands can match the ferocity and sheer brutal combination of melodic death and vile symphonic black metal that I Am The Trireme (pronounced "tri' reem") has conjured. IATT bring forth a relentless, fast paced, crushing wall of blackened brutality and haunting melodies. Listeners can expect to hear a searing, dark, aggressive blend of brutality and purely sinister blackened metal that is sure to leave them foaming at the mouth.

Gnosis: Never Follow The Light is a poignant passage through the stages of Enlightenment and Ascension. Each song has its own symbol and is comparable to the metamorphic phases of a Butterfly, or in a more morbid sense the five stages of grief. The album leaves room for the listener to use perception as a tool while reaching a common result. Sonically, Gnosis: Never Follow The Light cannot just be lumped into a generic collective genre, attesting to I Am The Trireme's struggle to avoid blending into a scene or live line-up. For IATT the album holds the symbol of constant suffocation and deprivation of carrying out a normal life. Indeed, the band has been completely consumed for two years in the creation of this masterpiece.

 

 

Tracklisting:

“Mettre Fin A Cette”
“Trusty Noose”
“Basking In The Essence Of My Sorrow”
“Grey Fields Of Ash”
“Thy Sombering Light”
“Ascending Into Oblivion”
“A Sullen Reflection Of Purity”
“Tamerlane (Chapter 1)”
“Tamerlane (Chapter 2)”

"A Sullen Reflection Of Purity”:

“Tamerlane (Chapter 1)”: