According to KILLSWITCH ENGAGE bassist Mike D'Antonio, the band has completed demoing material for its next studio album and is scheduled to begin laying down drums for the effort this week.

Adds KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer Jesse Leach on Instagram: "I got my work cut out for me! [I am] stoked and kind of amazed how quick these dudes write killer songs! Proud to say once again everyone pitched in and every guy has their own style! This record will be a monster!"

As previously reported, a KILLSWITCH ENGAGE concert film shot on October 31, 2014 at The Palladium in Worcester, Massachusetts will be included on the band's next DVD release, tentatively due before the end of the year. The performance footage was filmed by the direction team of Ian McFarland and Mike Pecci (FEAR FACTORY, MESHUGGAH) using five Canon C300 cameras outfitted with Zeiss Prime Super Speed Lenses.

According to Leach, the DVD will include The Palladium show along with "some other cool stuff."

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE recently finished recording a new song, "Loyalty", that is featured on the mixtape for HBO's hit fantasy series "Game Of Thrones".

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's fifth studio album, "Disarm The Descent", sold around 48,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 7 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD arrived in stores on April 2, 2013 via Roadrunner Records.

"Disarm The Descent" was KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's first album with Leach at the vocal helm since 2002's now-classic, genre-defining "Alive or Just Breathing".

London, UK-based symphonic death/doom trio, Spectral Darkwave, release their debut album, Last First Contact, today (March 30th) via Occidental Records. A full album stream can be found below.

 

 

Tracklisting:

“A Distant Dawn”
“Retake Mars!”
“The Occident”
“Under Ebon Lash”
“My Hand The Gavel”
“At Midnight... Alchemy”
“Compound Vengeance”
“I Am Shadow”
“Mors Technica”
“To Feast On Milk And Oil”

Album stream:

Last First Contact by Spectral Darkwave

Last First Contact documentary Part 1:

Last First Contact documentary Part 2:

(Photo: Fabiola Santini Photography)

ATKINS MAY PROJECT, the band featuring original JUDAS PRIEST singer Al Atkins and Christian guitarist and music artist Paul May, returns with a compilation, "Anthology", available now through Gonzo MultiMedia.

For the last four years, the rock world has been buzzing about Atkins and May's music. Together they have created three records available on Gonzo Multimedia. There are enough doses of melody and metal madness to entice all fans of the genre, and while it is solid, honest, working-class heavy metal, it also has its roots in contemporary metal with some fine axe-work and killer choruses.

This marriage of metal mayhem has earned them stunning reviews from the world's press and has seen them gain a steady momentum of fans globally since their initial release back in 2011. After the worldwide success of "Serpents Kiss", "Valley Of Shadows" and "Empire Of Destruction" once again coming straight from the "home of metal," out of the heart of the U.K.'s "Black Country," "Anthology" is yet another "collection of classic rock and British metal [that] is an essential addition to all who love this genre that's no afraid to merge metal moments with progressive thought," according to a press release.

"Anthology" also features a previously unreleased bonus track — a cover of PHIL COLLINS' "In The Air Tonight".

Paul says: "It was quite a task to choose which songs would make it onto this compilation as there's such a diversity in the styles of tracks, but I hope this reflects the wider view of the rock and metal we love doing."

Al adds: "The reviews from the first three albums were great and said it all, so it was difficult to select the songs for the album, but I think you'll agree that we made the right choices, and 'Anthology' for me ticks all the right boxes!"

"Anthology" track listing:

01. Here Comes The Rain 02. Bitter Waters03. A World At War04. Dream Maker05. Whisper To The Wind06. Harder They Fall07. The Shallowing08. Enslaved To Love09. Theatre Of Fools10. Valley Of Shadows11. In the Air Tonight (PHIL COLLINS cover; previously unreleased bonus track)

Atkins is the co-writer of several PRIEST songs which are included on the band's first two albums, "Rocka Rolla" and "Sad Wings of Destiny", both of which eventually went gold. Atkins co-penned the heavy metal classic "Victim of Changes", which was a combination of Rob Halford's song "Red Light Lady" and Atkins' own "Whiskey Woman". He also co-wrote "Winter", "Never Satisfied", "Dreamer Deceiver" and "Caviar and Meths".

In 1989 Atkins released his debut solo album, "Judgement Day", to great acclaim. But it was "Heavy Thoughts" and "Victim of Changes" (the latter being his collaborative album with ex-JUDAS PRIEST drummer Dave Holland) that brought him strong sales and critical acclaim around the world.

JUDAS PRIEST bassist Ian Hill penned the foreword to Al Atkins's autobiography, titled "Dawn of the Metal Gods: My Life in Judas Priest and Heavy Metal". The book, which was written with Neil Daniels — a freelance rock writer and heavy metal fan who befriended Atkins during the writing of Neil's book "The Story Of Judas Priest: Defenders Of The Faith" (Omnibus Press) — was released in 2009 via Iron Pages.

As BLABBERMOUTH.NET exclusively reported on March 14, it has now been made official that MEGADETH has hired drummer Chris Adler (LAMB OF GOD) to play on the band's new album.

MEGADETH has released the following official statement announcing the collaboration:

"Dave Mustaine, the creative driving force behind original American metal and hard rock crossover giants MEGADETH, and Chris Adler, drummer for the leaders of modern American heavy metal LAMB OF GOD, will join original bassist David Ellefson in the creation of MEGADETH's anticipated forthcoming album. Adler will be appearing as a guest on the album and contributing his thundering, hard-hitting, and technically precise style and skill, adding new blood and drive into the mix while staying true to MEGADETH's roots."

Dave Mustaine comments: "Chris is a tremendous talent, and an amazing person. He is going to bring a new level of excitement and energy to MEGADETH that the fans are going to lose their minds over. I have nothing but respect for my previous drummers, but this is going to absolutely KILL!

"Back in 1989, MEGADETH originally worked as a three piece — guitar, bass and drums — when we laid down the framework to our Grammy-nominated platinum album 'Rust In Peace'.

"I want to thank the other members of LAMB OF GOD for allowing this opportunity to take place for all of us in the metal community."

David Ellefson adds: "Chris has been an endearing friend to us in MEGADETH for many years now, and he truly appreciates our music and its legacy. His drumming has forged such an innovative and ferocious path for metal music and I'm very proud that he is anchoring our rhythm section with us on this new album. I can clearly see a new dawn of 'utmost heaviness' unfolding in MEGADETH's next chapter."

Chris Adler offers: "MEGADETH was the game changer for me. Growing up, there was no other band that meant as much to my musical interest and direction. There is no doubt I would not be doing what I have been doing for the past three decades had I not stumbled across 'Killing Is My Business' and the bible of all metal, 'Peace Sells', in my formative years."

He continues: "About 10 years ago, LAMB OF GOD toured with MEGADETH and I was able to share that story with Dave and David, and we have kept in touch ever since.

"When Dave called me a while ago and asked if I was interested in making a thrash metal album with him, I felt like I must've been on a hidden-camera show. I was trying to play it cool, but I was speechless other than YES! Once I called my wife and my band guys to let everyone know, I had some time to really think about it and how I can best fit into this situation.

"I'm coming into this on fire. There is an incredible amount of respect, but the goal here is to make the very best thrash album we can — not just throw names in the CD booklet or be a yes man. Together, I believe we can do something very special!

"Get ready for a very exciting chapter in the MEGADETH legacy."

In a 2006 interview with Xplosive Metal, Adler confirmed that MEGADETH was the band that made him want to start drumming to begin with. He said: "Definitely. For me and my brother [LAMB OF GOD guitarist Willie Adler], that's the band that made us wake up to heavy metal and made us become who we are today. And now to be able to sit down and have lunch with Dave Mustaine and tell him that story and have him talk about what he likes about LAMB OF GOD, it's pretty big for me."

Speaking to Wondering Sound about the influence Dave Lombardo (SLAYER) and Gar Samuelson (MEGADETH) have had on his drumming style, Adler said: "Dave's the guy that made me want to go fast. There's so much power in what he does — both him and Gar Samuelson, who was the original drummer from MEGADETH. I think Gar was a little more jazzy, which I really liked, and I probably spent more time trying to emulate Gar than Dave, but both those guys were the guys who made me want to get faster. Now I realize that's kind of a fickle goal, but [Dave] was obviously one of the innovators, one of the first to do what metal is kind of known for now, with double kicks, and he's still absolutely one of the best."

In addition to Mustaine, Adler and bassist David Ellefson, the recording lineup for MEGADETH's new album is rumored to include Brazilian guitarist Kiko Loureiro, best known for his work with ANGRA.

MEGADETH has yet to announce permanent replacements for drummer Shawn Drover and guitarist Chris Broderick, who quit the group last year.

The band was still finalizing the recording lineup for its new album earlier in the month, with Mustaine tweeting on March 10 that he was "excited to be auditioning one of my final picks for my new guitarist today."

Drover quit MEGADETH on November 25, 2014 "to pursue [his] own musical interests." His statement can be found at this location. Guitarist Chris Broderick announced his departure from MEGADETH a few hours later, saying that he was exiting the group "due to artistic and musical differences."

U.K. rockers PURSON have signed a worldwide deal with Spinefarm Records. The band's second studio album, "Desire's Magic Theatre", will be released this autumn. The quintet, whose music touches a variety of realms, including folk, prog, psychedelic, gothic and classic rock, blending otherworldly romance with shadowy foreboding, is currently in the studio putting the finishing touches on "Desire's Magic Theatre", which will be made available via Spinefarm/Machine Elf. Says singer/guitarist/songwriter Rosalie Cunningham: "As I sit here in the control room at Gizzard Studios, the pride of East London, I'm excitedly realizing that our second album has turned out to be everything I'd imagined and more! My world has been so consumed by it that I've barely been able to reflect on what it has become: a Technicolor variety show, a playful display of the musical whims only briefly hinted at in our previous work; a psychedelic rock opera dedicated to our good friends Sarge Pepper and Zig Stardust." She continues: "The twists in the tale have been carved out by the path we've taken over the last 12 months. It's been constantly shape-shifting and developing with all the wonderful experiences we've had. On behalf of the band, I give thanks to everyone who has bought a PURSON record and been to our shows. Your continued support means everything... and you have our promise that the best is yet to come..." Says Spinefarm general manager in the U.K., Dante Bonutto: "I've been following PURSON since the early days of their career, and I've always considered the band something special; I like their vision, their theatricality, and their refusal to be corralled by a single musical genre. PURSON really do have an expansive approach to their craft, and as a songwriter, Rosalie is a unique talent on the rise. In all ways, their future is bright, and I'm delighted that Spinefarm and PURSON have now forged this fresh alliance..." PURSON is also thrilled to confirm an appearance at this year's Download festival, playing live on the hallowed ground of Donington Park for the first time. The band — Cunningham, George Hudson (guitars), Justin Smith (bass), and Sam Shove (keyboards) — will once again meet up with KISS at Download, having opened for them on last year's Kiss Kruise. PURSON also rounded off 2014 with a nomination in the "Limelight" category for new and emerging talent at the Classic Prog Awards. They also released the four-track "In the Meantime" EP, mastered by John Davis from Metropolis (LED ZEPPELIN, U2, LANA DEL REY), in November. The EP, along with their acclaimed debut album, 2013's "The Circle And The Blue Door", saw their color-saturated tapestries of BLACK SABBATH and THE BEATLES-tinged tales, evoking the sinister folkish English horror of the early '70s.

The 35th Annual Wisconsin Area Music Industry Awards will take place at Turner Hall Ballroom in Milwaukee, WI on April 19th.

The volunteer organization, devoted to promoting musicians in the state, will also for the first time recognize a band from outside Wisconsin, by proclaiming British metal band Judas Priest as the first-ever recipient of the Global Honorary WAMI Hall of Fame Award, reports Piet Levy of the Journal Sentinel.

"Wisconsin has frequently been included on Judas Priest's seemingly relentless performance itinerary; fans recall the iconic concerts at Alpine Valley in the 1980s, as well as their historic 30th Anniversary British Steel performance at Milwaukee's Summerfest on the Harley-Davidson stage in 2009," WAMI president Zoy Begos said in a statement. "When I contacted the band several months ago, their reaction was enthusiastic." Unfortunately, Judas Priest will not be at the WAMI Awards.

Further details can be found here.

 

 

TREMONTI, the band led by CREED and ALTER BRIDGE guitarist Mark Tremonti, will release its second album, "Cauterize", on June 9. But Mark Tremonti told The Pulse Of Radio that "Cauterize" is not the only disc he has coming out in the near future. "We put together two albums," he said. "We have this album that's [coming] out, but in the same recording session we recorded another album called 'Dust'. That's gonna be coming out who knows when, but probably within a year. So I want people to know that that record is part two of this record. It's not necessarily record three, it's just the second disc of this album. So there's two 10-song albums."

The follow-up to 2012's "All I Was", TREMONTI's new CD was helmed by producer Michael "Elvis" Baskette, who previously worked with ALTER BRIDGE and SLASH.

VAN HALEN bassist Wolfgang Van Halen joined Tremonti's solo band for touring purposes after ALTER BRIDGE bassist Brian Marshall dropped off the project.

Tremonti recorded "All I Was" using ideas rejected by his ALTER BRIDGE bandmates, who felt some of the material was too "speed metal" for their sound. Tremonti revealed, "I tried it with them about 10 times and it would never stick. I didn't want those ideas to go to waste . . . Now it's a living, breathing band so we gotta keep it going."

Tremonti's other act, ALTER BRIDGE, released its fourth album, called "Fortress", in 2013.

U.K. glam metal veterans TIGERTAILZ have announced the departure of singer Jules Millis "due to personal reasons." The band states: "We are really sad to see him go, but respect his decision as the band's priority is always that family, life and people’s well-being come first.

"We've had some amazing times and played some incredible shows. So we wish Jules all the very best for the future.

"We are currently in the studio working on the new TIGERTAILZ record ('Daggerz') and making great progress — so our plans are still on track and do not change.

"We will complete the new record, but obviously now with a different singer. An announcement as to who this will be will be made at a later date, but for now we continue as normal and all future TIGERTAILZ live shows will go ahead as planned."

Added Millis in a separate statement: "It's been an honor to have been a part of the TIGERTAILZ legacy and to have had the opportunity to be in a band that I have loved since I was a teenager, so I look back on my time fondly. To the 'TAILZ fans — thank you for your acceptance and support over the past three years. It was a pleasure to share the stage with Jay, Rob, Matt, Ace and Jason, I wish you all nothing but the very best for the future."

TIGERTAILZ's latest EP, "Knives", was released on October 15, 2013 via Scarlet Records. The CD was recorded at Red Rock Studios in South Wales.

Drummer Matt Blakout in 2013 rejoined the 'TAILZ lineup after a three-year absence.

"Punched In The Gutz" video:


"One Life" video:

The official fanclub for German rockers Bonfire has made a video for the new song "Nothin' At All", featured on the band's latest album, Glörious, due to be released on April 24th. Check it out below:

Glörious will include twelve new songs and new recordings of Bonfire classics “Sweet Obsession” and “American Nights”. The new album will be the first to feature new vocalist David Reece (Bangalore Choir, Tango Down).

Glörious tracklisting:

“21 Guns Salute (Goes Boom)”
“Nothin’ At All”
“Can’t Break Away”
“Remember”
“Fallin’ Outta Love”
“Glorious”
“Supernatural Disguise”
“Shooting Star”
“Lies”
“Put Out The Flames”
“Free Wind Desperado”
“Sweet Obsessio”*
“American Nights”*
“With A Little Help From My Friends”*
*re-recordings

Album trailer:

Bonfire is:

Hans Ziller- guitars/backing vocals
David Reece- lead vocals
Harry Reischmann- drums
Ronnie Parkes- bass/backing vocals
Frank Pane´- guitars/backing vocals

UK rockers Ten have checked in with the following update:

"We are delighted to announce that our 12th studio album entitled Isla De Muerta will be released on May 20th through Rocktopia Records. The album is named after the mythical Island Of The Dead from pirate legend. It opens with the instrumental track 'Buccaneers' and segues into the cinematic 'Dead Men Tell No Tales'. The album cover was illustrated by Gaetano Di Falco. 

On July 2010, it was announced that Gary Hughes and the rest of the band had been working on a new Ten album named 'Stormwarning', due to be released in early 2011 marking the band's return after 4 years of silence. The album featured members Hughes, John Halliwell, Paul Hodson, Neil Fraser and Mark Zonder (Fates Warning) and was produced by Dennis Ward. A month later, an unreleased song from the Babylon sessions named "Dawn Star" appeared, as part of the AhORa Rock podcast of the Rocktopia music site. Originally, "Dawn Star" was meant to be the eleventh song on the Babylon album, but was removed from it three weeks prior to its final release.

On 21 January 2011, it was announced that the band would also be filming a video for the new album, with Devin Dehaven as the director. "Endless Symphony" was the highest budget video to date for the band and it was released just a month after. 'Stormwarning' on the other hand, was released in January and once again, proved to be a successful comeback for the band and its frontman Hughes after four years of absence from the music scene.
 
On September 2011, Paul Hodson announced his departure from the band through a Ten group on Facebook. Soon after, guitarist Neil Fraser and bassist Mark Sumner followed. On 5 November 2011, on their Fleetwoodstock charity gig, their very first live appearance since the band's return, the band featured for the first time on a live setting, new lead guitarist Dan Mitchell and keyboardist Darrel Treece-Birch, alongside bassist Steve Mckenna, who, since August of the same year, had returned to the band.
 
In May 2012, the band did a UK tour, supported by the bands Serpentine and White Widdow, for the first time after their re-emergence. The band also appeared for the first time, on Firefest on 19 October of the same year.
The band's latest studio album, entitled 'Heresy And Creed', was released on 26 September 2012 in Japan, 19 October in Europe and the 22nd in North America. The leading single off the album was the song "Gunrunning", the video clip of which was again directed by Devin Dehaven. The album's success culminated into its entry to the UK rock album charts on the 30th position for October 2012.
 
In March 2013, the band performed in Athens, Greece for the first time, while in August of the same year, a day after the band's appearance on Vasby Rock Festival (on which Serpentine lead guitarist Chris Gould filled in for him), the band announced that lead guitarist Dan Mitchell left the band due to health problems related to his wrist and arm.

For years Gary Hughes has toyed with the idea of bringing even more power and width into the Ten live sound. To this end, Ten are proud to announce the arrival of two new members in the shape of guitar players Dann Rosingana and Steve Grocott.

They are two highly skilled individuals and the aim is to bring twin lead guitar back into play whilst not detracting from the solid and powerful backdrop which is trademark Ten.

Gary commented "The arrival of Dann and Steve will enable the band to play more of the layers in Ten's studio sound live on stage."
 
Go to this location for Ten's complete history.

Another rare live album from the vaults of LA’s most notorious and lethal hard rock band, L.A. Guns, Live In Toronto 1990 has been released.

Riding high on the success of their 1989 gold album, Cocked & Loaded, Phil Lewis, Tracii Guns, Mick Cripps, Kelly Nickels and Steve Riley leave it all on the stage for this triumphant performance featuring “Electric Gypsy”, “Never Enough”, “The Ballad Of Jayne” and more.

Live In Toronto 1990 tracklisting:

“Slap In The Face”
“Electric Gypsy”
“Rip And Tear”
“Never Enough”
“Malaria”
“Sex Action”
“The Ballad Of Jayne”
“Magdalaine”
“Blues”
“I Wanna Be Your Man”
“Nothing To Lose”
“Shoot For Thrills”
“One More Reason”

Rome, Italy-based metallers Physical Noise have announced that will be back very soon with their second album and new singer, “a name that is already known in the heavy metal environment,” says the band.

 

 

All will be officially revealed next month, but in the meantime you can listen to a track from their new album below:

Finntroll's 10th Anniversary tour for the Nattfödd album continues in Europe through 2015, with more dates just announced for their native Finland. The updated schedule can be viewed below:

March
28 - Gueulard Plus - Metz, France

April
1 - 45 Special - Oulu, Finland
2 - Rytmikorjaamo - Seinajoki, Finland
3 - Klubi Tampere - Tampere, Finland
4 - Klubi - Turku, Finland
5 - Finlandia-klubi - Lahti, Finland
8 - Re:public Club - Minsk, Belarus
10 - Kerubi - Joensuu, Finland
11 - Mari's Coffee - Kouvola, Finland
17 - Lutakko - Jyvaskyla, Finland
18 - Hullu Pullo    - Vaasa, Finland    
25 - Tavastia - Helsinki, Finland    

Video from the band's March 24th show in Toulouse, France can be viewed below:

Melbourne, Australia-based rockers, Mammoth Mammoth, have released an album preview Volume IV - Hammered Again, due for release via Napalm Records on the following dates:

Germany/Austria/Switzerland/Europe/Australia - March 27th
UK/Norway/France/Denmark/Italy - March 30th
Sweden/Spain - April 1st
North America - April 7th

Tracklisting:

"Life’s A Bitch"
"Lookin´ Down The Barrel"
"Electric Sunshine"
"Fuel Injected"
"Black Dog"
"Promised Land"
"Reign Supreme"
"Sick (Of Being Sick)"
"Hammered Again"
"High As A Kite"
"Alcohol" (Bonus Track)

Album preview:

"Lookin' Down The Barrel" video:

"Life's A Bitch" lyric video:

 

Sterbhaus of Stockholm, Sweden, who recently signed with Black Lodge, will release their follow up to the successful album Angels For Breakfast …And God for Lunch on May 29th. The album is entitled New Level Of Malevolence and will be preceded by a digital single release for the song “Necrostabbing The Corpsefinder”, released today. The song is available on all major streaming/downloading platforms worldwide.

Sterbhaus, who spent 2013 touring as support for Vader, Melechesh and Shining went on to use most of last year finalizing the preproduction as well and recording the album during the autumn. Ronnie Björnström (Aeon) did the mixing and once again Gyula Havancak (Annihilator, Destruction, Sirenia) is responsible for the artwork.

New Level Of Malevolence tracklisting:

“Grudgeholder + Hatemonger”
“El Giftus Satanus”
“Necrostabbing The Corpsefinder”
“Bloodbarf”
“Crossed And Pissed And Devoured”
“New Level Of Malevolence”
“Baby Jee And The 3 Stalkers”
“The King Of The Red”
“It Came From The Brain”
“The Grand Theology”

"Necrostabbing The Corpsefinder":

Sterbhaus are also confirmed as main support for Anaal Nathrakh and Benighted for the second leg of the Serpens of Anima tour from October 23rd-31st.

Swedish experimental post-rock/metal mavericks, The Moth Gatherer, have a new album on the way, and today they have released a short teaser of the release. The follow-up to their debut instalment A Bright Celestial Light will be entitled The Earth Is The Sky, and will see its release later this year via Agonia Records.

At the moment, The Moth Gatherer is on the final lap of the recording process of The Earth Is The Sky - all songs have already been written and finished. Karl Daniel Lidén (Terra Tenebrosa, Grammy nominated Switchblade album) will take care of the mixing and mastering duties in the near future.

Sentinel Apocalypse is the impending new full-length from New England-based progressive death metal engineers, Eschaton. Set to detonate this May via Unique Leader Records, Sentinel Apocalypse was captured at drummer Darren Cesca's House Of Grind Studios in southern Connecticut and brandishes eleven tracks rife with surgically precise guitar sweeps, incapacitating drum work and enough vocal acrimony to crumble a nation. A surefire win for devotees of the twisted compositions of Carnifex, The Faceless, Necrophagist, The Black Dahlia Murder and Beneath The Massacre.

As a precursor to the album, the band has released a video for the third track “Immortal Mutilation”. Elaborates the Eschaton collective, "'Immortal Mutilation' was the chosen track for our first single off Sentinel Apocalypse because it takes many of the core themes that you will be seeing from Eschaton, puts them in a spiked-chain-mail sack, and uses it to beat the listeners within a breath of their lives. The track is particularly aggressive, technical, dynamic, and innovative with chaotic riffing and blasting. Lyrically, the song tells the harsh truth that one must mutilate their innocence in order to survive one's enemies, transforming into a beast, but then comes to the realization that existence is codependent with the very thing that one once despised."

A theological term that refers to the world during the post historic era of God's overt apocalyptic reign, immediately preceding the end of the world, Eschaton was founded in 2007 near Providence, Rhode Island and manifests a uniquely belligerent, stand-alone sound that's at once harsh and procedural yet wholly-enthralling.

Album teaser:

Sentinel Apocalypse tracklisting:

"Obligatory Conviction"
"Behold The Nexus"
"Immortal Mutilation"
"Achromatic Reign"
"Animus"
"Falsified Existence"
"Intergalactic Annihilation"
"The Beast Is Embedded"
"The Beast Is Awakened"
"Cognitive Hatred"
"Sentinel Apocalypse"

Sentinel Apocalypse will be released via Unique Leader Records on May 19th. Preorder bundles are available at this location.
 

 

 

 

Swiss hard rock/heavy metal band, Crystal Ball, will release their new album, LifeRider, on May 22nd via Massacre Records as limited edition digipak with exclusive bonus tracks. The album tracklisting can now be seen below.

LifeRider was once again produced, mixed and mastered by Stefan Kaufmann (Accept, U.D.O.). Thomas Ewerhard created the cover artwork. The album will feature a duet with Battle Beast's Noora Louhimo as well as guest musician Stefan Kaufmann on acoustic guitar.

 

 

Tracklisting:

“Mayday!”
“Eye To Eye”
“Paradise”
“Balls Of Steel”
“Hold Your Flag”
“Gods Of Rock”
“Take It All”
“Bleeding”
“Rock Of Life”
“Antidote”
“LifeRider”
“Memory Run”
 
Digipak bonus tracks:

“Sacred Heart”
“Sign Of The Southern Cross”
“Not Like You”

"Eye To Eye" video featuring Battle Beast singer Noora Louhimo:

 Crystal Ball’s Scott Leach commented: "LifeRider will feature 12 fresh and modern songs that deal with the journey through life in form of (musical) snapshots of various stations, similar to a train ride.”

Another new track "Paradise" is streaming below:

 

Swedish heavy metal quintet, Lancer, have released a music video for the new track, “Iwo Jimia”, taken from the band's upcoming sophomore release, Second Storm, due out April 10th on Despotz Records. Second Storm can be pre-ordered online at this location.

“”Iwo Jima” is a dramatic metal song reflecting the horrors of war," commented the band. "The song combines the elements of both British and German heavy metal with steady guitar riffing and soaring vocal melodies."  

The band's Despotz Records debut was recorded at Leon Music Studios with producer Gustav Ydenius (Steelwing, Mustasch, Enforcer). Artwork comes courtesy of Dimitar Nikolov (who has previously made artwork for Steelwing and Katana).

 

 

Tracklisting:

“Running From The Tyrant”
“Iwo Jima”
“Masters And Crowns”
“Behind The Walls”
“Aton”
“Children Of The Storm”
“Steelbreaker”
“Eyes Of The Liar”
“Fools Marches On”

“Behind The Walls” lyric video:

Masters And Crowns” video:
 

Lancer invaded the heavy metal scene with its first EP, Purple Sky, in 2012, and went on to release its debut self-titled album the following year. Since its inception, Lancer has played festivals and live dates with bands like Steelwing, Wolf, Bullet and Katana, and was soon hailed to be the new rising star in Swedish heavy/power metal. With its energetic and technically brilliant live shows, these young musicians deliver the full package. Lancer's sophomore effort, Second Storm, is a lesson in melodic metal, drawing inspiration from classic acts like Iron Maiden, Helloween and Gamma Ray. The group joins a long tradition of outstanding Swedish metal bands like Hammerfall, Sabaton and many more.

"We are very happy signing with Despotz Records," the band commented on its new label home. "This collaboration will be killer! Despotz is an innovative, hardworking label with a holistic approach to the business, making us confident they are perfect for Lancer."

Ömer Akay, Despotz co-founder, added: "We welcome Lancer to the Despotz family. Expect great things this year from these Heavy Metal Gods!"

 

 

Lancer lineup:

Isak Stenvall - Vocals
Fredrik Kelemen - Guitar
Per-Owe "Ewo" Solvelius - Guitar
Emil Öberg - Bass
Sebastian Pedernera - Drums

Finnish progressive death metal outfit, Barren Earth, now reinforced by Faroese native lead singer Jón Aldará, will release their new album, On Lonely Towers, via Century Media Records on March 30th in Europe and March 24th in North America. The album will be available as Ltd. Digipak Edition, Ltd. 2LP, Standard Jewel Case Edition and as digital download.

 

 

Check out the band’s new video for “Set Alight”, shot and produced by Owe Lingvall:

On Lonely Towers was mixed by Petri Majuri and mastered by Tony Lindgren at Fascination Street Studios. The artwork was created by no other than Travis Smith.

 

 

Tracklisting:

“From The Depths Of Spring”
“Howl”
“Frozen Processions”
“A Shapeless Derelict”
“Set Alight”
“On Lonely Towers”
“Chaos, The Songs Within”
“Sirens Of Oblivion”
“The Vault”

“A Shapeless Derelict” lyric video:

“On Lonely Towers”:

Barren Earth managed to build up an excellent reputation with only two albums: Their debut Curse Of The Red River (2010) and its follow-up The Devil’s Resolve (2012) have already solidified the band as one of the most promising upcoming acts of the genre and now they are at the ready to release another milestone in their career, taking the experimentation and heaviness to even further heights.  

 

 

Barren Earth is:

Marko Tarvonen - Drums
Olli-Pekka Laine - Bass
Kasper Mårtenson - Keyboards
Jón Aldárá - Vocals
Yli-Sirniö - Lead guitars
Janne Perttilä - Rhythm guitars

Belgian metallers, Killer, will release their new album, Monsters Of Rock, on May 21st via Mausoleum Records. The album’s title track can be heard below.

 

 

Celebrating 35 years of “we-take-no-prisoners”, Killer returns with their seventh album. Produced by Shorty and drummer Vanne, the album packs a powerful wallop, carrying on in the classic tradition of Ready For Hell, Wall Of Sound and Shock Waves.

 

 

Tracklisting:

“Monsters Of Rock”
“No Exception To The Rule”
“Shotgun Symphony”
“Back To The Roots”
“No Way Out”
“Danger Zone”
“Firestorm”
“Deaf, Blind And Dumb”
“Forever Metal”
“Children Of Desperation”
“Hold Your Head Up High”
“Making Magic”
“The Reactor”
“Rock City”
“Fake”

Killer are:

Shorty – Lead Vocals, Lead Guitars
Jakke – Lead Vocals, Bass
Vanne – Drums, Backing Vocals

LIMP BIZKIT frontman Fred Durst has posted a photo of him wearing a hooded sweatshirt with the words "Not Robert" written on the front. The picture apparently pokes fun at the fact that the venerable news organization the Associated Press recently confused the rap-rocker with Robert Durst, the wealthy real estate heir who is accused of murdering his friend Susan Berman in 2000 and who is the subject of the just-completed HBO documentary series, "The Jinx: The Life And Deaths Of Robert Durst".

On March 17, following the final episode of the series, in which Robert is overheard making a seeming confession to the murder of Berman and perhaps others, he was arrested in New Orleans for Berman's killing as well as weapons charges. The initial AP report read, "A Louisiana State Police trooper says millionaire Robert Durst has been booked on weapons charges in that state — on top of a first-degree murder charge lodged by Los Angeles authorities. Trooper Melissa Matey told the Associated Press that an arrest warrant was issued for the former LIMP BIZKIT frontman and he was rebooked in the Orleans Parish Jail on Monday under two new charges."

The AP corrected itself later in the day, issuing a statement which read, "The Associated Press reported erroneously that Robert Durst is a member of a band. He is a real estate heir; Fred Durst is the former frontman of LIMP BIZKIT."

They still got it wrong because Fred Durst is still the lead singer of LIMP BIZKIT, who performed at California's Epicenter festival earlier in the month.

In addition to the murder of Berman, Robert Durst has been long suspected of being behind his wife Kathleen's disappearance in 1982.

Berman, who may have had knowledge of Kathleen's disappearance, was found murdered execution-style on December 24, 2000.

Robert Durst was also tried in 2003 for the murder of Morris Black, a neighbor of his in Galveston, Texas. He was acquitted on grounds of self-defense.

MEGADETH's official Facebook page has been updated with a photo of what is unmistakably LAMB OF GOD drummer Chris Adler wearing a MEGADETH shirt accompanied by the hashtag #‎Megadeth15‬, indirectly confirming rumors — as exclusively reported by BLABBERMOUTH.NET on March 14 — that Adler is laying down drums for MEGADETH's new album.

Adler's involvement with MEGADETH will apparently be limited to studio work only, and he is not be expected to join the band on the road to promote the effort, which is currently being recorded in Nashville, Tennessee.

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine and Adler were photographed last week having a discussion at what appeared to be a fast-food restaurant or a coffee shop in Tennessee.

In addition to Mustaine, Adler and bassist David Ellefson, the recording lineup for MEGADETH's new album is rumored to include Brazilian guitarist Kiko Loureiro, best known for his work with ANGRA.

MEGADETH has yet to officially announce replacements for drummer Shawn Drover and guitarist Chris Broderick, who quit the group last year.

The band was still finalizing the recording lineup for its new album earlier in the month, with Mustaine tweeting on March 10 that he was "excited to be auditioning one of my final picks for my new guitarist today."



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#Megadeth15

Posted by Megadeth on Saturday, March 28, 2015



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#Megadeth15

Posted by Megadeth on Friday, March 27, 2015



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#Megadeth15

Posted by Megadeth on Thursday, March 26, 2015

Currently on the road in Europe supporting their new album Decadent, U.D.O. - featuring former Accept frontman Udo Dirkschneider - performed at Batschkapp in Frankfurt, Germany on March 10th. High quality fan-filmed video from the night can be viewed below:

After the split with former U.D.O. drummer Francesco Jovino and numerous auditions with possible new band members, the decision has been made – the new drummer and band member of U.D.O. will be Sven Dirkschneider!

"His drumming has simply convinced us most“, the band says. "His style of playing drums is fresh and really grooves heavily. It simply is exactly what we need for U.D.O. We also know that Sven fits perfectly into the band family. He has been working as a drum tec for us for more than four years and we know from several world tours that everyone likes him and gets along with him perfectly."

Sven Dirkschneider is 21 years old and is now the youngest member of U.D.O.. From the beginning Sven was in touch with his father's job and ran around backstage at his shows. His father's world, consisting of tour busses, lots of event techniques and travelling has been normal to him since he can think. And he felt at a very early stage that this could be his world as well. After his high school diploma he started studying media design and event techniques.

Now Sven is a permanent member of U.D.O. His debut show for U.D.O. will be on March 6th in Wuerzburg/Germany.

"It is a very special feeling to be a part of my father’s band“, he says. "I somehow have always been around with the band since I can remember. But I have never dreamed of being a real band member one day.“

U.D.O.'s new studio album, Decadent, was released on January 23rd in Europe via AFM Records. It entered the German Media Control album charts at #16. That’s the highest chart entry for U.D.O. ever! The album also charted in Finland at #35 and in Sweden at #66. Decadent is now available in North America.

Confirmed tour dates (with opening act Sister Sin) are as listed:

March
27 - Hellraiser - Leipzig, Germany   
28 - Airport - Obertraubling, Germany   
30 - Z7 - Pratteln, Switzerland    

April      
1 - De Kreun - Kortrijk, Belgium
2 - 02 Academy - Sheffield, United Kingdom  
3 - Queens Hall - Nuneaton, United Kingdom    
4 - O2 Academy - London, United Kingdom  
5 - Le Forum - Vaureal, France  
9 - Sala Caracol - Madrid, Spain    
10 - Polideportivo - Valladolid, Spain    
11 - Sala Totem - Pamplona, Spain    
12 - Sala Salamandra - Barcelona, Spain    
16 - Sala Rock City - Valencia, Spain    
17 - CC Delicias - Zaragoza, Spain   
19 - Conrad Sohm - Dornbirn, Austria    
23 - Klubben - Stockholm, Sweden  
24 - Liljan - Borlänge, Sweden  
25 - Trädgårn - Goteborg, Sweden 
26 - KB - Malmö, Sweden  
30 - Vulkan Arena - Oslo, Norway    

May      
1 - Karmoygeddon Festival - Haugesund, Norway
2 - Byscenen - Trondheim, Norway    
7 - Nosturi - Helsinki, Finland    
8 - Leipeatehdas - Vaasa, Finland   
9 - Finlandia Klubi - Lahti, Finland   
30 - Beast Of Rock - Brunflo, Sweden    

Previously only available on DVD, Metal Blade has teamed up with Pentagram to release When The Screams Come on April 17th for the first time ever on vinyl. The album features the amazing live show captured during Maryland Deathfest 2010, plus five additional exclusive bonus tracks recorded in 2014.

When The Screams Come will be released on gatefold double vinyl in three versions (180g black - clear/blue splatter - red). A free poster comes with all three versions.

 

 

Tracklisting:

Side A:
“Day Of Reckoning”
“Forever My Queen”
“Ask No More”
“Run My Course”
“You're Lost, I'm Free”
“Review Your Choices”

Side B:
“Petrified”
“Relentless”
“All Your Sins”

Side C:
“20 Buck Spin”
“Sign Of The Wolf”
“When The Screams Come”

Side D (bonus tracks recorded October 31st, 2014 at the Heavy Halloween Show at Arts Riot, Burlington, VT):
“Death Row”
“Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood” (cover)
“Vampyre Love”
“Nothing Left”
“Relentless Reprise”

 

 

Peaceville Records recently announced the re-signing of Pentagram for its forthcoming studio album, set to be released summer 2015. The highly influential American heavy metal/doom act, fronted by the mysterious Bobby Liebling, formed in the early 1970s, though its debut album - now known as Relentless - didn't see a release until 1985. Through four decades of adversity and triumph, Pentagram has become a legendary international act and has firmly stamped its name in the heavy metal history books.

Pentagram recently completed pre-production with Swedish producer, Mattias Nilsson, at studios in Baltimore, Md., D.C. and Va., with additional vocal and guitar production in Knoxville, Tenn. with Travis Wyrick. Wyrick is a Grammy Award-winning producer who produced the band's previous album, Last Rites.

The band comments on the signing: "Pentagram is happy to return to the label that helped relaunch interest in our debut album and introduce us to a new metal audience in the 1990s. Peaceville Records has been an ally to us throughout the past 20 years. We are happy to have them by our side once again as we record our fourth album under their banner. Never properly recorded songs written by Bobby in the 70s will be heard on the album as fresh as they were when they were written over 40 years ago. Brand new numbers by the core of Griffin, Turley and Liebling that were written this fall will appear along the old songs, and will produce an album that encompasses the true spirit of Pentagram. Doom is often mistaken as exclusively slow music. If you listen to our classic 'doom' album Relentless, many of those doomed classics are quite fast. One of the magics of doom metal is to have a faster song seem much slower because of the sheer heaviness of the number. That's what we are going for. The band will sound like they are as much from the street as they are from the Sabbath, because, well, we are."

It has also been announced that Sean Saley has decided to step down from the drum throne. "Minnesota" Pete Campbell will step in to complete recording and touring duties throughout 2015. Campbell is best known for his drumming with Victor Griffin's In-Graved, Place Of Skulls and stoners Sixty Watt Shaman.  

Preceding the still-to-be-titled opus is an extensive DVD release, All Your Sins, due out March 31st in North America. This first-ever official Pentagram video collection recovers, repairs and resurrects the earliest known footage of this doomed metal pioneer and more. Featuring two DVDs packed with priceless archive footage, as well as recent shows, All Your Sins - Video Vault unearths the rumoured lost visual evidence pent up in the Ram Family vault for decades. This definitive collection contains over seven hours of footage from nine venues and numerous historical shows, including a charged performance at the legendary CBGB's club in 1985 - a mass of classic renditions from the band's catalogue finally gathered together for a live journey spanning over 30 years.

 

 

Disc 1:

Death Row Live at the Silver Fox - 1983
CBGBs - 1985
The Seagull Inn - 1985
The Hung Jury Pub - 1987
930 Club - 1993

Disc 2:

The Paragon - 1993
The End - 2010
John Dee, Oslo - 2012
The DNA Lounge - 2014

Trailer:

 

FEARED, the Swedish death-metal foursome led by THE HAUNTED guitarist Ola Englund, will release its fifth album, "Synder" ("sins" in Swedish), on May 25. The effort, which once again features the stunning artwork by Sylvain Lucchina of Razorimages, will be made available on digipack CD and as a digital download. The official video for the first single from "Synder", a track called "My Grief, My Sorrow", was directed by Englund and can be seen below. Said Englund about the clip: "'My Grief, My Sorrow' is about a person with mental problems who takes his life, only to wake up and relive the same day over and over. The endless circle drives him more into madness and the story never ends. Or it could be a tale about an honest man who has a special fondness of knives and old televisions."

"Synder" track listing:

01. Synder02. Your Demise03. Of Iron And Ashes04. Caligula05. My Grief, My Sorrow06. Dygder07. By Silent Screaming08. Wolf At The End Of The World09. My Own Redemption10. Dying Day11. War Feeding War12. The Narcissist13. Godless Devotion

The surviving members of TWISTED SISTER will reveal their future plans next week — less than fourteen days since the passing of the band's drummer, Anthony Jude "A.J." Pero.

The band posted a new message to its Facebook page along with the above photo of singer Dee Snider, guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie Ojeda and bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza.

"After two very emotional days with the amazing Pero family and close friends to honor of our brother, A.J. Pero, we met to plan our future," the group wrote. "Those plans will be made official next week.

"The band and the Pero family thank our fans from around the world for their love and support during this very tough time."

Pero died on March 20 at the age of 55. He was on tour with the band ADRENALINE MOB at the time. After members of that group failed to rouse him on their tour bus, he was taken to a Poughkeepsie, New York hospital and pronounced dead of an apparent heart attack.

A couple of days after Pero's death, Snider told a TMZ cameraman that TWISTED SISTER would "probably" would keep playing, "for [A.J.'s] family, because his family will benefit from us playing, financially."

French sounded less certain about the band's future when he told radio host Eddie Trunk on March 23 that "it may be time" for TWISTED SISTER to call its quits in 2016 to coincide with the 40th anniversary of French, Snider and Ojeda first playing together. He said: "We need to look at this and say to ourselves, as a live, breathing entity, on which our reputation totally rests on — being a great live act — how do we honor that history? And how do we honor A.J.? And how do we honor the fans' loyalty? And I think you know me and Dee and the band enough to know that we are totally realistic and genuine when it comes to our relationship with our fans."

Pero joined TWISTED SISTER in 1982, leaving the band in 1986 but returning in 1997. He remained a member of the group, which has toured on and off over the past 15 years, to this day. He played drums on six of the group's seven studio albums, except for 1987's "Love Is For Suckers".

TWISTED SISTER rose to prominence from the New York club scene in the early 1980s. Their biggest album, 1984's "Stay Hungry", contained the hits "We're Not Gonna Take It" and "I Wanna Rock".

In addition to touring with TWISTED SISTER and ADRENALINE MOB, Pero also recently played with former and current members of IRON MAIDEN and DISTURBED in a band called THE FOUNDRY. He also hosted drum clinics and seminars.