Fan-filmed video footage of MERAUDER's June 20 performance at Amnesia Rockfest in Montebello, Quebec, Canada can be seen below.

MERAUDER's latest album, "God Is I", was released in June 2009 via Sweden's Regain Records. Singer Jorge Rosado stated, "This is one of the most important and brutal records we've ever worked on and it's all worth it!!!"

According to a press release, "God Is I" is MERAUDER's "most focused recording since [1995's] 'Master Killer'. Melding the band's roots with modern bite, the intent becomes immediately clear within seconds of the album's suckerpunch opening riff; 'Until' hones in on its listener and the chase begins. Runaway freight train grooves, mid-pace stomps, seething gang vocals and death metal-drenched riffs all find themselves vying for supremacy amidst their patented NYHC delivery."

Fan-filmed video footage of DEATH TO ALL's June 20 performance at this year's Hellfest in Clisson, France can be seen below.

DEATH TO ALL features former members of DEATH celebrating the life and music of Chuck Schuldiner.

The band's current touring lineup includes the three surviving members of DEATH's "Human" lineup (guitarist Paul Masvidal, bassist Steve DiGiorgio and drummer Sean Reinert), along with with special guest vocalist/guitarist Max Phelps of CYNIC/EXIST, performing material from the group's first four albums.

In an interview with Metal-Rules.com, Masvidal stated about DEATH TO ALL's current lineup: "[Because] it's just the 'Human' lineup, it's a tighter show. We're focusing on the best of leading to 'Human' and then a bunch of 'Human' material. So it's more the early DEATH catalog, and it just feels really good, 'cause Sean and I have a lot of chemistry from playing together a long time from CYNIC and everything. And Steve, who is just kind of one of us too, so it feels like really cohesive, it feels tight and we've been able to make it the kind of show that feels like a band show versus the last one. Which I think was a little bit more fragmented 'cause there was a lot of different musicians and it was kind of all over the place. So this feels tighter."

He added: "This [lineup] is as close as you'll get [to reproducing the 'Human' era] and Max bears a slight resemblance [to Chuck] if you squint your eyes. It's kind of interesting. And he sounds like him, too. It's pretty crazy but yeah, it works, it works well."

Chuck died on December 13, 2001 after a battle with pontine glioma, a rare type of brain tumor.

Fan-filmed video footage of SOUNDGARDEN's June 22 performance at Hellfest in Clisson, France can be seen below.

As previously reported, the 20th-anniversary reissue of SOUNDGARDEN's breakthrough 1994 album, "Superunknown", sold 5,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 51 on The Billboard 200 chart.

The 20th-anniversary reissue of "Superunknown" was made available in two deluxe versions. The Deluxe Edition is a 2-CD package featuring the remastered album along with disc two consisting of demos, rehearsals, B-sides and more. The Super Deluxe Edition is a 5-CD package featuring the remastered album, additional demos, rehearsals and B-sides and the fifth disc is the album mixed in Blu-ray Audio 5.1 Surround Sound. The Super Deluxe Edition is incredibly packaged in a hardbound book with a lenticular cover, liner notes by David Fricke and newly reimagined album artwork designed by Josh Graham. It also features never-before-seen band photography by Kevin Westerberg. A 2-LP gatefold of the original 16 vinyl tracks remastered on 200-gram vinyl in a gatefold jacket was also made available. In addition, the "Superunknown" singles and associated b-sides with newly interpreted artwork sleeves by Josh Graham was reissued on Record Store Day, April 19, as a set of five limited-edition 10-inch vinyl records.

In a recent interview with Loudwire Nights" host Full Metal Jackie, Chris Cornell stated about "Superunknown": "I think the main thing is, it's sort of unquestionably SOUNDGARDEN in every way. I don't think there are songs on it that could have or would have been written by anyone else, arranged that way, performed that way, whether it's the music, lyrics, the sounds. I think we had already come into our own and had our own sound, but 'Superunknown' cemented it as living in its own world. It created an autonomy for us that we could make albums that were strictly SOUNDGARDEN albums that no one else was going to sound like and no one else could write. We kind of lived in our own world. I think that was important for us. I think we started out as a band that way, and I think during the early '90s, we then sort of lost the autonomy being lumped into other Seattle bands. That wasn't bad; that was a good thing. It was great that it was us and our friends kind of conquering the world. But it took away some of that autonomy for all of us. And 'Superunknown' for us, in one fell swoop, immediately got that back. There are songs on it that just, if you look at the history of rock, they're just nothing like anything else. And that was the beginning of it. I think that was the seed that led to 'Down On The Upside' and 'King Animal' in terms of our process and in terms of us owning who we are. So it was a good period for us. I couldn't say that we knew that we were doing that when we were making it. We were making that album just like any album. One song at a time. Just writing songs, but it became that."

SOUNDGARDEN's North American tour with NINE INCH NAILS will kick off of July 19 in Las Vegas.

The official lyric video for the HELLYEAH song "Moth" can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's fourth studio album, "Blood For Blood", which sold around 17,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 18 on The Billboard 200 chart. The record arrived in stores on June 10 via Eleven Seven.

HELLYEAH's third studio album, "Band Of Brothers", opened with 19,000 units back in July 2012 to debut at position No. 19 on The Billboard 200 chart.

The band's sophomore CD, "Stampede", registered a first-week tally of 28,000 copies back in July 2010 to enter the chart at No. 8.

HELLYEAH's self-titled debut CD premiered with 45,000 units in April 2007 to land at No. 9.

"Blood For Blood" was helmed by producer Kevin Churko at his The Hideout Recording Studio in Las Vegas, Nevada. Churko is the Canadian musician, sound engineer, songwriter and record producer who has previously worked with OZZY OSBOURNE, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH and IN THIS MOMENT, among other acts.

On the cover artwork for "Blood For Blood", HELLYEAH vocalist Chad Gray collaborated with renowned tattoo artist Paul Booth. Booth has been tattooing for over twenty years, and in that time he has worked on many celebrities and rock bands, including SLAYER, SLIPKNOT, SEPULTURA, SOULFLY and LAMB OF GOD. Paul says of the "Blood For Blood" artwork: "The last project that Chad and I worked on together was the MUDVAYNE blacklight design. I had such a great time working on that art, when Chad called on me to design HELLYEAH's 'Blood For Blood', I jumped right into it as I knew it, too, would likely be a fun one. Chad always gives me the freedom to explore and interpret his ideas. It always makes for great collaboration. I look forward to seeing it all in print!"

"Blood For Blood" track listing:

01. Sangre Por Sangre (Blood For Blood)02. Demons In The Dirt03. Soul Killer04. Moth05. Cross To Bier (Cradle Of Bones)06. DMF07. Gift08. Hush09. Say When10. Black December

HELLYEAH parted ways with guitarist Greg Tribbett and bassist Bob "Zilla" Kahaha before making the new album, with drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott saying that the split became necessary after HELLYEAH finished its last tour.

He explained, "We felt like we had really got some momentum and the fans were really into where we were going and what we were doing musically and we got into the studio about three weeks after that tour was over and it just really became obvious to us that Greg and Zilla, they weren't really in the same head space as us."

HELLYEAH has recruited new bassist Kyle Sanders, a former member of BLOODSIMPLE and the brother of MASTODON's Troy Sanders. Also in the current lineup is touring guitarist Christian Brady. who has previously played with MAGNA-FI and FRANKY PEREZ & THE TRUTH.

A press release describes "Blood For Blood" as a "welcome return to form" for the band, adding that it "sounds like a recharged HELLYEAH, taken up many notches."

Swiss folk metallers ELUVEITIE will release their new album, "Origins", on August 5 via Nuclear Blast Records. The cover artwork for the CD was created by ELUVEITIE frontman Chrigel Glanzmann and can be seen below. The effort was once again recorded at New Sound Studio in Pfäffikon, a municipality in the canton of Zurich in Switzerland, with producer Tommy Vetterli (a.k.a. Tommy T. Baron; CORONER/ex-KREATOR guitarist).

The second trailer for "Origins" can be seen below.

"Origins" track listing:

01. Origins02. The Nameless03. From Darkness04. Celtos05. Virunus06. Nothing07. The Call Of The Mountains08. Sucellos09. Inception10. Vianna11. The Silver Sister12. King13. The Day Of Strife14. Ogmios15. Carry The Torch16. Eternity

Says Chrigel: "'Origins' deals in depth with Celtic mythology, or, to be more precise, with aetiological tales from Gaul in particular. Hence we're facing strongly mythical as well as spiritual subjects on this album, topics which we have approached very scientifically and in cooperation with several scientists and diverse universities.

"Many aspects of Gaulish mythology and spirituality remain in the dark nonetheless, while others run through the theme like a golden thread — like this eminent, yet innominate god, for instance, of which the Gauls claimed to be direct descendants and which was compared to the Roman chtonic deity Dis Pater.

"Today we cannot say which Gaulish god this was exactly. But according to all we know, it's likely that we're dealing with Sucellos here. Throughout space and time he appears over and over again — from very old spiritual customs of ancient Gaulish tribes in today's northern Spain all the way to later statues in today's Switzerland, France and elsewhere.Perhaps he is this mysterious nameless one.

"The album cover of 'Origins' is designed after the hammer/club-shaped 'halo' of Sucellos, as seen on a statue, that was found in a shrine of a gallo-roman household in today's France. It was created under the scientific supervision of experts from the university of Zürich." ELUVEITIE recently announced the addition of violinist Nicole Ansperger to the group's ranks.

ELUVEITIE's last album, "Helvetios", sold 4,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 143 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD landed at position No. 3 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.

Official Metallica.com footage of METALLICA's June 6 performance at Rock Im Park festival in Nürnberg, Germany can be seen below. The 20-minute clip includes footage of bassist Robert Trujillo in the METALLICA fan club meet-and-greet, the band warming up in the tuning room and the songs "Creeping Death" and "The Day That Never Comes" from the show.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Battery02. Master of Puppets03. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)04. Ride The Lightning05. The Unforgiven06. Creeping Death07. Lords of Summer08. Sad But True09. Fade To Black10. ...And Justice For All11. One12. For Whom The Bell Tolls13. Whiskey In The Jar14. Nothing Else Matters15. Enter Sandman

Encore:

16. St. Anger17. The Day That Never Comes18. Seek & Destroy

As previously reported, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich told Metal Hammer in a new interview that the band's new song, "Lords Of Summer", is going over well with fans hearing it live on the band's current "By Request" tour. Ulrich explained, "It's fun to play. It seems like the kids are enjoying it. There was actually somebody in the 'Snake Pit' the other day with a homemade 'Lords Of Summer' T-shirt on, which was very endearing."

Ulrich added, "It's a good song. Hey, listen, who knows by the time the next record comes out whether it will be in its same shape or format. But it's fun to play. And I think it's going down well, from what I can tell, from my little spot."

Ulrich said that in the past when the band has played fresh material live, sometimes the songs have not even had finished lyrics or titles. But he remarked that "Lords Of Summer" is "a little further along in terms of it being, sort of, together, so we're quite comfortable playing it. It's kind of written for this tour."

The drummer recently told "Metal Zone" about the band's next record, "I'm pretty convinced that 90 percent of the record is actually written, it's just gotta be kind of assembled between all those riffs. It's just a matter of connecting this to this and sort of shaping it into a song."

Frontman James Hetfield said something very similar when The Pulse Of Radio asked him a while back about the status of the band's new material. "We've come up with enough material for a record, for sure," he said. "We've gone through maybe one-tenth of the material that's on our riff CDs, but we've got enough for an album. We just haven't had the time to really focus on it and dial in and start whittling at these masterpieces, hopefully."

The "Metallica By Request" tour is hitting Europe this summer, with a single North American date confirmed in Montreal. The tour features the band playing 17 songs requested online by fans in each city, with the final slot in the set list taken by "Lords Of Summer".

Keith Leroux of KissOnline.com has uploaded video footage of KISS performing the song "King Of The Night Time World" at the opening show of the band's tour with DEF LEPPARD on Monday, June 23 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Check it out below.

KISS and DEF LEPPARD announced their 42-date 2014 summer tour in March during a press conference at the House Of Blues in Los Angeles. The nearly 10-week trek will run through August 31 in Woodlands, TX at the Cynthia Woods Mitchell Pavilion, hitting both major cities and secondary markets. DEF LEPPARD will open each show — although the tour is billed as KISS and LEPPARD co-headlining. KISS frontman Paul Stanley explained that although DEF LEPPARD and KISS have no shared history — they've been equal admirers for decades. "We've run into each other at festivals and, y'know, it just seemed a natural fit," he said.

"At some point it really becomes important to go out there and give everybody bang for buck. Give everybody something more, perhaps, than other bands are.

"We have history of going out there and trying to do the greatest shows possible.

"Summer is a great time to go out, enjoy yourself, you can go out with your family, just go out on a date — but in any case, you want full night. And you're not going to hear more better songs than with the two of us. I wanna just hang around and listen to these guys."

Gene Simmons — along Joe Elliott and Paul Stanley — explained that this tour was created with the band's fans in mind. "Anybody that thinks this is just about ego — yeah, we love each other and all kind of stuff; this is for the fans, of the fans, by the fans — we are fans of DEF LEPPARD," he said. "And we hope the fans are going to get the most out of this, and that's what it's all about." Elliott added: "Hallelujah!" Stanley said: "So, it's by the fans -- buy the tickets."

First off, as part of the metal media, Loudwire would like to apologize to Randy Blythe for reporting on him burning his private parts while driving his vehicle with a hot cup of coffee between his legs.
While that’s not necessarily “news,” the Lamb of God frontman’s initial post on his Instagram page was written with such clarity and conviction that we were compelled to write about the incident. Eh, who are we kidding, we just wanted to use the pun “As the Phalluses Burn.”
After seeing how extensively the incident was covered by the “metal ‘news’ sites,” Blythe offered an update on his condition along with a video of him wiping out on a surfboard. We’re happy to report that Blythe’s man unit is “100 percent recovered.” Read Blythe’s entire Instagram post below:
I never thought I would ever be writing something like this, but here is an update on the condition of my penis: HE IS 100% RECOVERED & FULLY FUNCTIONAL, COMPLETELY CAPABLE OF PERFORMING ANY OF HIS NORMAL DUTIES. No scarring, so scabbing, no PTSD. He’s good to go. I suppose it took a while (like a week) for the metal “news” sites to pick up this obviously very important story in the world of heavy metal, but they did (I guess they will run anything, or it must be a slow week- I wrote that story here just to give y’all a few laughs- damn, all I did was dump hot coffee on my unit- I’m sure it happens to someone everyday). Now I am getting texts from my friends saying things like “Ouch! Are you ok?” or “I’m really, really, sorry about The Captain, dude”- while the sudden outpouring of concern for the welfare of my penis is heartwarming indeed (it brings a tear to my eye, it really does), it’s not like someone tried to chop him off or he suddenly developed the ability to do calculus or something- now THAT would have been worthy of the news. Anyways, with penises, just as with all things in life, that which does not kill us only makes us stronger. This video is from just two days ago, well after the scalding incident in question- I ask you, my friends- is this the wipe out of a man not in full command of his penis? Would a man suffering the agony of penile distress have the presence of mind to wave goodbye to the camera so gracefully? NO, HE WOULD NOT. My dude was a little sore for two days- that’s it. Ok, that’s enough about my penis- I shall never mention him here again. (ps- I am VERY careful with coffee in the car now, always using the cup holder)
Glad to hear everything’s alright, Randy. We promise not to report on your private parts again, unless they form a side project or announce a tour.


Read More: Lamb of God's Randy Blythe Updates Condition of Private Parts | http://loudwire.com/lamb-of-god-randy-blythe-update-condition-private-parts/?trackback=tsmclip

Professionally filmed video footage of 1349 entire June 22 performance at Hellfest in Clisson, France can be viewed below.

1349 is finally back with a deadly vengeance. Four long years after the release of the masterpiece "Demonoir", the band will return with a new full-length album this fall. This CD will be released on Indie Recordings throughout the world except for North America, where Season Of Mist will be handling the effort.

To shorten the wait, the band has decided to bring a digital single, "Slaves", on the market, in addition to a special seven-inch single, limited to 666 copies. The single was made available on digital services from April 4, the same day as the band's U.S. tour started.

1349 toured the U.S. with BEHEMOTH and GOATWHORE in April and May, and a full European tour will follow later in the year.

Comments the band: "We entered the studio with an idea of putting everything that 1349 has ever been about into a cauldron, stir it well, and pour in some fresh ingredients — as well as some strange old ones — and come up with our most potent elixir ever. And we brought the spirit to match the ambitious attempt. Boil, boil, toil and trouble...Behold! We have made the most delightfully intoxicating and dangerous potion you can dream of. FEEL THE FIRE! And Hail Hell."

Regarding the new track "Slaves", vocalist Ravn commented: "We chose 'Slaves' because it showcases very well the spirit of the coming album.

"'Slaves' has already become a fan favorite live on the Metal Alliance tour and the tour-exclusive seven-inch stock is depleting fast. It is with great pride we see it unleashed upon the world!"

AVENGED SEVENFOLD has posted an audio preview of the soundtrack for its Hail To The King: Deathbat mobile video game. Check it out using the SoundCloud widget below.

A web site for Hail To The King: Deathbat can be found at this location.

AVENGED SEVENFOLD singer M. Shadows revealed to Revolver magazine that Hail To The King: Deathbat will include an avatar of late drummer, Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan. Shadows explained, "With the blessing of his parents, we put The Rev in the game. Once you unlock his character, you can use him as your comrade to help you through the levels."

Guitarist Synyster Gates told The Pulse Of Radio that the extended time needed to develop the long-awaited game will be worth it. "I mean, we've been spending the last two, two-and-a-half years developing this thing, and it's turning out outrageously, unbelievably perfect in every single way," he said. "But it's taken a long time. So we're really coming close with finishing, you know, everything on our end, and then it goes into testing and stuff like that. But yeah, it's definitely really impressive."

M. Shadows said that each band member has his own custom weapon or power, including a double-edged sword for drummer Arin Ilejay, a demon with magic powers for Synyster Gates, a "Hell Sword" which rains blood on people for bassist Johnny Christ and "Shadow Sight" for Shadows himself.

The game is expected to be available this summer, although a release date has yet to be announced.

AVENGED SEVENFOLD and KORN will co-headline this year's Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival, which kicks off its annual run on Saturday, July 5 in Devore, California.

Other acts on the bill include ASKING ALEXANDRIA, TRIVIUM, BODY COUNT, SUICIDE SILENCE, MISS MAY I, TEXAS HIPPIE COALITION, DARKEST HOUR, UPON A BURNING BODY and many others.

AVENGED SEVENFOLD is touring in support of its 2013 album, "Hail To The King", which debuted at No. 1 last year on the Billboard album chart.

***UPDATE** David Coverdale posted the following message earlier today (Sunday, June 22):

"We have had a new super guitarist in play for a while now, as I hinted some time ago, so, you can relax. Unfortunately, because of contractual commitments on his side, we cannot reveal his name, rank and serial number just yet.

"Of course, you will be the first to know when we can draw back the Snakey curtains to show him in all his musical finery. He is not a former member of WHITESNAKE. It is a new one with as many bells and whistles as we could could possibly need."

WHITESNAKE mainman David Coverdale has asked the band's fans for a little bit of patience as he completes the process of selecting a replacement for WHITESNAKE's recently departed guitarist Doug Aldrich.

Aldrich left WHITESNAKE on May 7, explaining in a statement that he "had several recording and live commitments, so [he] needed a more flexible schedule to conclude these before going full force as normal." He added: "Unfortunately, my schedule was not workable."

In a message on WHITESNAKE's official web site, Coverdale writes: "I see there's all kinds of interesting posts and some 'demands' about whom I should work with.

"As always, I sincerely thank you all for your generosity, but, with all due respect, I'll be making the decision who the band and I are going to work with.

"It's a very simple process. I guarantee it will be a very gifted guitarist who plays great and sings great, works well in a team, someone who appreciates WHITESNAKE music and a player whom we feel will help us take WHITESNAKE to the next level in as many ways as possible... without unnecessary distractions.

"I hope you can appreciate this fact.

"We've had an amazing array of exceptionally gifted musicians who have applied for the gig. Once again, we are in such awe that so many talented people want to play WHITESNAKE music with us.

"We're very close to making our decision and we'll let you all know when the time is right and hopefully, whomever it is, you will give them the same chance, the same support as you've given our new musicians before."

Coverdale also revealed that WHITESNAKE is "deep into the pre-production of the new WHITESNAKE project, which is so exciting to me, it's beyond words."

Aldrich played on the last two WHITESNAKE studio albums, 2008's "Good To Be Bad" and 2011's "Forevermore", and appeared on several live releases, including last year's "Made In Japan" and "Made In Britain/The World Records".

Dutch guitarist Adrian Vandenberg, who was a member of WHITESNAKE during the band's successful late 1980s period, recently told the classic rock program "Radio Fireball" about the possibility of rejoining WHITESNAKE: "Never say never. David and I will always do something in the future, whether it's with the two of us acoustically or whether it's a blues album or a rock album or a tour. We are too good friends not to do it and we have too much fun working together. But it has to be next to [Adrian's current project] VANDENBERG'S MOONKINGS, not instead of."

Fan-filmed video footage of DEEP PURPLE's June 21 performance at Hellfest in Clisson, France can be seen below.

As previously reported, DEEP PURPLE is writing material for the band's 20th studio album, tentatively due in 2014.

The band's lead singer, Ian Gillan, told Zeitung earlier this month: "The whole band is [in Portugal]. We have a studio in the Algarve where we're working on new songs.

"In the evening we take a sip of good red wine and enjoy the tranquility. I'm woken up at dawn by a rooster in the neighborhood and I get up when it gets light. When it gets dark in the evening, I go to bed. It's a no frills life; but it's a good life down here."

The deluxe release of DEEP PURPLE's seminal live album "Made In Japan" was made available in multiple formats on May 19. Gillan admitted: "I don't like live albums especially. But I know the importance and significance of 'Made In Japan'. The tour, 42 years ago, blew me away. It was my first time in a country where I felt fundamental differences in mentality to Europe. It was a culture shock to me. But it's influenced me in a positive sense."

According to Gillan, he has no plans to retire from touring any time soon. "I can't imagine not being on stage," he said.

"When I was a teenager, I went to a Cliff Bennett concert and I released I wanted to be where he was. The interaction with the audience, and even more important for me, with the musicians — that's pure magic.

"With a DEEP PURPLE concert, you never know exactly what will happen. I don't want to miss those feelings."

"Now What?!", the 19th studio album from DEEP PURPLE, was released in April 2013 via earMUSIC, the Hamburg, Germany-based international rock label which is part of Edel Group.

Swedish hard rockers BULLET will release their new album, "Storm Of Blades", on September 5 in Europe and Sepember 9 in North America via Nuclear Blast. The band's fifth longplayer marks the first recording to feature BULLET's new guitar player Alexander Lyrbo, who replaced Erik Almström in 2012. "Storm Of Blades" track listing:

01. Uprising02. Storm Of Blades03. Riding High04. Tornado05. Hawk Eyes06. This One’s For You07. Hammer Down08. It's On09. Crossfire10. Run With The Hunted11. Coming In Loud (digipack bonus)

Check out the cover artwork below. "This is a fast and heavy back-to-the-roots album," the band comments. "A lot of the feeling, BULLET had in the beginning is there but with a up-to-date sound and craftsmanship.

"Now with the young blood Alex on the guitar, always thirsty for metal, the songs ended up just like that: Heavier, faster and more raw than on previous albums. We can now at last truthfully say; this is our best album this far and most likely the rawest since the 'Heavy Metal Highway' recording in 2002”

BULLET came up with the "Storm Of Blades" album title during a soundcheck before a show last year. "We wanted to make the toughest BULLET song ever and this riff popped up," says the band. "The first impression was the image of knifes falling from the sky and the title 'Storm Of Blades' was born. To make this song the title track of our new album became a must as it is a tale about destruction, apocalypse and horror!" "Storm Of Blades" was recorded during December/January 2014 and April/May 2014 at the Pama Studio in Torsås, Sweden. It was produced by BULLET and Magnus "Mankan" Sedenberg.

Immediately after making several summer festival appearances and the album release, BULLET will hit the road again, with two well-chosen support bands. "STALLION and STRIKER will be our fellow hellraisers on the first leg, and this tour should not let a fan of heavy metal music down," says BULLET. "We will raise hell, we will drink beer, we will bang our heads together and kill grunge... again! Prepare for the storm of blades!"

Reactivated Massachusetts hard rockers EXTREME took part in a press conference on Saturday, June 21 prior to their performance at Hellfest in Clisson, France. You can now watch the question-and-answer session below.

Asked if EXTREME will follow the lead of other artists by releasing singles or EPs in the future instead of full-length albums, EXTREME guitarist Nuno Bettencourt said: "This is the first time we've ever gone on the road without new music [to promote], and I'm kind of embarrassed about that, to be honest.

"You know, it's doing that [we were performing] the [entire 1990] 'Pornograffitti' album [on some of the record tour dates], so it gives you a bit of an excuse to not have [a new] album [to tour behind]. But we're definitely working on [new] stuff, and by the end of the year, we should have a new album in. It won't be a little one; it'll be a regular size."

EXTREME's first studio album in thirteen years, "Saudades de Rock" (pronounced "sow-dodge") was released in the U.S. on August 12, 2008 on Open E Records and distributed by Fontana. The European version of the CD, which came out on August 1, 2008, included a bonus track, the "Americocaine" demo from 1985, the very first studio recording of EXTREME.

The iconic rock foursome — vocalist Gary Cherone, guitarist Nuno Bettencourt, bassist Pat Badger and new drummer Kevin Figueiredo — recorded their fifth studio offering at NRG Studios in Los Angeles with Bettencourt at the helm as producer and mixer. "Saudades de Rock" boasted 13 tracks, including the infectious roar of "Star", the groove-laden, swagger of "King Of The Ladies", a raw funk rock anthem called "Learn To Love", and the expressive ballad "Ghost".

EXTREME's "Take Us Alive" live CD and DVD came out on May 4, 2010 in the U.S. via Frontiers Records. This performance was recorded on the last night of their tour at the House of Blues on August 8, 2009 in EXTREME's hometown of Boston.

Fan-filmed highlights of AEROSMITH's June 1 performance at Tele2 Arena in Stockholm, Sweden can be seen below.

AEROSMITH kicked off its European tour on May 17 at at Stadium Lokomotiv in Sofia, Bulgaria.

AEROSMITH was foced to cancel the May 14 concert at the İstanbul Technical University (İTÜ) Stadium in İstanbul after Turkey declared a three-day mourning for the victims of the coal mine disaster in Soma.

As previously reported, tickets for AEROSMITH and Slash's upcoming summer trek, dubbed the "Let Rock Rule" tour, are among the most expensive of the season. According to The Street, the average ticket price for the road trip is a whopping $275.85. The most expensive show on the trek comes in Las Vegas at the MGM Grand Garden Arena, with an average price of $385.24 — nearly 40 percent above the tour average. The "Let Rock Rule" tour kicks off on Thursday, July 10 at Nikon at Jones Beach Theatre in Wantagh, New York.

The bill will also stop in cities like Los Angeles, Boston, San Francisco, Denver, Dallas, Atlanta, Las Vegas and others before coming to a close on September 12 in Canada.

AEROSMITH released its first set of all-original material in 11 years, "Music From Another Dimension!", in 2012, and toured for much of the year after its release.

Legendary LED ZEPPELIN singer Robert Plant's new album, "Lullaby And… The Ceaseless Roar", will be released September 9 on Nonesuch/Warner Bros. Records. Produced by Plant, the album is his label debut and features 11 new recordings, nine of which are original songs written by Plant with his band, THE SENSATIONAL SPACE SHIFTERS — Justin Adams: bendirs, djembe, guitars, tehardant, background vocals; John Baggott: keyboards, loops, moog bass, piano, tabal, background vocals; Juldeh Camara: kologo, ritti, Fulani vocals; Billy Fuller: bass, drum programming, omnichord, upright bass; Dave Smith: drum set; and Liam "Skin" Tyson: banjo, guitar, background vocals. Pre-orders are available now at RobertPlant.com and include a limited-edition print and an instant download of an album track.

Plant and the band perform at Glastonbury this Saturday and will tour the U.K. in November (tickets on sale this Friday) and the U.S. this fall, including two nights at the Brooklyn Academy of Music, September 27 and 28, as part of Nonesuch Records at BAM: Celebrating 50 Years of the Label without Labels; further U.S. dates will be announced soon.

"Lullaby And… The Ceaseless Roar" is Plant's first record since 2010's "Band Of Joy", which followed 2007's six-time Grammy Award–winning collaboration with Alison Krauss, "Raising Sand". Justin Adams and John Baggott of THE SENSATIONAL SPACE SHIFTERS appeared on Plant's 2002 release "Dreamland", while all but Camara and Smith appeared on 2005's "Mighty Rearranger". The new-album lineup recently toured the world before recording "Lullaby And… The Ceaseless Roar" at Helium Studios in Wiltshire and Real World Studios in Bath, U.K. The track "Rainbow" was recorded in Contino Rooms in London. Tchad Blake mixed all but three tracks on the album.

"It's really a celebratory record, powerful, gritty, African, trance meets ZEP," Plant says.

"The whole impetus of my life as a singer has to be driven by a good brotherhood.

"I am very lucky to work with THE SENSATIONAL SPACE SHIFTERS. They come from exciting areas of contemporary music…

"I have been around awhile and I ask myself, do I have anything to say? Is there a song still inside me? In my heart?

"I see life and what's happening to me. Along the trail, there are expectations, disappointments, happiness, questions and strong relationships, and now I'm able to express my feelings through melody, power and trance; together in a kaleidescope of sound, colour, and friendship."

The song "Just Breathe" from Chicago death/doom metallers NOVEMBERS DOOM can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. The track is taken from the band's ninth studio album, titled "Bled White", which will be released on July 15 via The End Records. The follow-up to 2011's "Apothic" was recorded at Belle City Sound with engineer Chris Wisco (JUNGLE ROT, NACHTMYSTIUM) handling recording and co-production duties, and Dan Swanö (BLOODBATH, NIGHTINGALE) spearheading the mixing.

Comments NOVEMBERS DOOM frontman Paul Kuhr: "'Just Breathe' breaks new ground for NOVEMBERS DOOM. We incorporate a softer element in the vocal, making it a bit more personal sounding, while attempting to keep things heavy and moving. Also, listen closely… Is that actually a hint of something positive in the lyrics? Darkness mixed with light? Hey, they can't all be miserable!"

Ever since its humble beginnings in 1989, NOVEMBERS DOOM has striven to create its own unique brand of dark, brooding and melancholic metal music. Constantly evolving and pushing the restrictions of minor genre tags, the band has created a unique and identifiable sound, making its mark in the metal world.

Consisting of founder/vocalist/lyricist Paul Kuhr, Larry Roberts (guitar), Vito Marchese (guitar), Mike Feldman (bass) and Garry Naples (drums), NOVEMBERS DOOM has garnered international success by performing with such bands as AGALLOCH, SATURNUS, AJATTARA and NIGHTINGALE, as well as making high-profile festival appearances at Brutal Assault, Graspop Metal Meeting and Caos Emergente.

"Bled White" track listing:

01. Bled White02. Heartfelt03. Just Breathe04. Scorpius05. Unrest06. The Memory Room07. The Brave Pawn08. Clear09. The Grand Circle10. Animus11. The Silent Dark

"Every time a band writes and records a new album, they always say things like, 'This is our best yet!' and it usually isn't," says Kuhr.

"Is this our best yet? I'll let you decide that, since opinions are all objective. What I will say is this... We approached 'Bled White' differently than the past. We put a lot more focus on vocal melodies and harmonies this time around, creating a new soundscape for NOVEMBERS DOOM. The music is punishing at times with my heaviest growls to date, and others will take you to a new place entirely for us exploring new ground. It's very different at times, but it remains NOVEMBERS DOOM.

"I won't say it's our best, but I'll tell you it's the one I'm most proud of... OK. It's our best yet."

The band plans to tour the U.S. and Europe in 2014 in support of the new studio release.


Making of "Bled White":

Fan-filmed video footage of BLACK SABBATH's entire June 13 performance at Königsplatz in Munich, Germany can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

* War Pigs* Into The Void (08:02)* Under The Sun (15:22)* Snowblind (20:11)* Age Of Reason (26:52)* Black Sabbath (34:12)* Behind The Wall Of Sleep (42:23)* N.I.B. (46:15)* End Of The Beginning (52:36) * Faries Wear Boots (1:00:40)* Tommy Clufetos' Drum Solo Into "Iron Man" (1:07:56)* God Is Dead? (1:22:39)* Dirty Women (1:31:59)* Children Of The Grave (1:39:33)* Paranoid (1:45:36)

As previously reported, BLACK SABBATH singer Ozzy Osbourne and bassist Geezer Butler seem to have slightly different takes on whether the reunited band will record a follow-up to "13". Asked about guitarist Tony Iommi's recent remark that their upcoming concert in London's Hyde Park could be their last, Ozzy told Guitar World, "If it's goodbye, we're ending it on a high note… But I'm up for another BLACK SABBATH album and tour. If we can, great. If not, I'll just carry on doing my own thing." According to The Pulse Of Radio, Butler, meanwhile, thinks that the threesome already have a head start on a new record, explaining, "We've still got four tracks left over from ['13']. So maybe we'll fill in the other four or five tracks and put out another album — if it's right. We wouldn't do it just for the sake of it, or the money or whatever. But yeah, maybe."

Ozzy added, "I never say never. I never thought after 35 years I'd [be back with BLACK SABBATH], have a No. 1 record and a sold-out tour."

"13", the first SABBATH album since 1978 to feature Ozzy, Butler and Iommi, was No. 1 in the U.S., the U.K. and nearly a dozen other countries.

Iommi, who has battled cancer since 2012, said recently that the massive July 4 gig at London's Hyde Park could be the band's last because the touring can be tough on him.

Iommi, who is in remission, admitted, "To be honest I don't want to be touring to this extent too much longer, because it makes me feel so bad."

The Hyde Park show will feature SOUNDGARDEN and others in addition to the headliners.

Fan-filmed video footage of STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER, the revamped version of the cult '80s British metal act GRIM REAPER led by singer Steve Grimmett, performing on June 10 at Saint Vitus in Brooklyn, New York can be seen below.

STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER played in the USA for the first time since 1987 on April 5 at the Ragnarökkr Metal Apocalypse festival at Reggies bar in Chicago, Illinois. The band's set consisted of many of the classic GRIM REAPER tunes but also included new tracks from STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER's upcoming studio album, tentatively titled "From Hell", due out before the end of the year. Original GRIM REAPER guitarist Nick Bowcott joined STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER on stage for several songs, marking the first time Steve and Nick have performed together in more than 25 years.

STEVE GRIMMETT'S GRIM REAPER is:

Steve Grimmett - VocalsIan Nash - GuitarChaz Grimaldi - BassPaul White - Drums

The back catalog from GRIM REAPER was reissued in Japan in October 2008 via RCA/BMG. "See You in Hell" (1984), "Fear No Evil" (1985) and "Rock You to Hell" (1987) feature JVC K2 24-bit remastering and are available for order at this location.

Professionally filmed video footage of WATAIN's entire June 20 performance at Hellfest in Clisson, France can be seen below.

WATAIN played its only U.S. show of the summer on June 15 at the Brooklyn Bazaar in New York.

The band's fifth full-length, "The Wild Hunt", sold around 2,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD was released on August 19, 2013 in Europe and August 20, 2013 in USA via the group's own label His Master's Noise through Century Media Records.

Produced once again by Tore Stjerna at his Necromorbus studio in Alvik, Sweden, "The Wild Hunt" is a sonic and lyrical tour-de-force that explores WATAIN's roots, such as BATHORY and DISSECTION, while also remaining truly unique. Having lost none of their integrity, WATAIN continues to push the boundaries of the scene with their fifth full-length, refusing to compromise their sound and vision. Amid the tracks teeming with the band's classic sound, "The Wild Hunt" also features clean vocals (a first for the trio!) which, as Erik Danielsson puts it, "is just us being brutally personal and honest. It shows another important facet of the WATAIN world."

Executed in oil and mixed materials, the cover of "The Wild Hunt" was created by Zbigniew M Bielak, the very same artist who was responsible for the "Lawless Darkness" artwork. The piece depicts one of the inmost shrines of WATAIN's temple. As on every classic still life, each object has a significant meaning, while each song of the album is also connected to an object.

Professionally filmed video footage of SOULFLY's entire June 21 performance at Hellfest in Clisson, France can be seen below.

SOULFLY's ninth album, "Savages", sold 4,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 84 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous CD, "Enslaved", opened with 5,900 units in March 2012 to land at No. 82.

"Savages" was released on October 1, 2013 via SOULFLY's new label home, Nuclear Blast Entertainment. The CD was produced by Terry Date, who is known for his work with such acts as PANTERA, DEFTONES and SOUNDGARDEN, among many others. Guest vocal appearances on "Savages" include SOULFLY bass player Tony Campos, CLUTCH's Neil Fallon, NAPALM DEATH's Mitch Harris, Jamie Hanks of I DECLARE WAR and SOULFLY mainman Max Cavalera's son Igor Cavalera (of LODY KONG).

The cover artwork for "Savages" was created by renowned artist Paul Stottler, who is best known for his work on SACRED REICH's legendary "Surf Nicaragua" cover.

Date previously mixed SOULFLY's "3" (2002), "Prophecy" (2004) and "Dark Ages" (2005) albums, but had never produced any of the group's CDs.