While conquering the world's stages on their current Crank It Up! tour, French metal phenomenon Rise Of The Northstar send a massive musical statement into the universe today. 


The group, who have perseveringly paved their way to become a leading force in the genre since the release of their first EP in 2010, will do all but NEVER forget where they come from: the underground! Therefore ROTNS have launched a brand new digital single entitled “Underrated,” a powerhouse collaboration with no less than Hyro The Hero. The track infects fans with its unbridled energy, deep aggression and lyrical depth, heralding a dream union of genre defining talents, and adds another shiny chapter to the hit arsenal of the Frenchmen. 


Hearing Hyro The Hero on “Underrated,” which was produced by ROTNS lead guitarist Eva-B and mixed/mastered by Johann Meyer (Gojira) at Silvercord Studio (New York), may also not come as a suprise as the US rapper has previously collaborated with Disturbed's David Draiman among others. But enough said: now it's the world's turn to Crank It Up.







Hyro The Hero enthuses about the joint work, "This track is full of energy and power. Working with Rise Of The Northstar is a dream come true for me and our styles blend effortlessly. From start to finish, you are in for pure chaos with a lyrical message to motivate the everyone who ever felt 'Underrated.'"


Rise Of The Northstar comment, "We met Hyro at one of our shows in Nantes, we were already familiar with his flow. He had a blast, and we invited him to open for us at the Elysée Montmartre in Paris. From there, the idea of a making a song together came naturally. We knowingly made it aggressive and close to our early material, it's rap meets metal meets hardcore with a good old thrash solo. No half-measures, it was made by and for the underground...forever underrated!"


Find tickets and tour dates here.





(Photo - Berzerker)

Influential Los Angeles rock band 96 Bitter Beings has announced their Return To Hellview with a new record featuring a collection of fan-favorite, re-recorded CKY tracks spanning founding guitarist, vocalist and primary songwriter Deron Miller’s time with the band. Set for release digitally on June 14th from Nuclear Blast, Return To Hellview gives nod in the title to the hostile town of Hellview Miller first sang about on CKY’s debut track ‘96 Bitter Beings,’ which the band takes their name from.


On the upcoming release Miller says:


“Revisiting these songs was a blast. I hadn’t heard the original versions in so long but I was able to get a lot of the re-recordings done just from memory. When the recording process got down to covering specific details of all the tracks, that’s when I went back and listened to the original versions. 




“I love all the songs but there’s always been issues that bothered me about the originals. A lot of my problems with them were arbitrary and not that important…things that I just wanted to fix that most listeners wouldn’t even notice. But there were some things I wanted to add to these songs and some things I wanted to take out. The goal was to challenge myself to redo these classic tracks in a way that they could be heard as remixes instead of re-recordings. I think we succeeded. 


“I hope a lot of fans will hear this album as remixes of the originals. Not many bands have access to the original masters that are owned by record companies and therefore don’t have the option to remix anything. We’re excited to see the response.”


96 Bitter Beings has revealed the first re-recorded single, “Flesh Into Gear,” that’s accompanied by a visualizer.


Miller adds about re-recording the beloved single:


“‘Flesh Into Gear’ was a sizeable hit for me and because of that I tended to always put it under a microscope. I was never fully happy with the original’s mix. I’m finally 100% happy with it. This whole process is the result of a nutty perfectionist trying to chase that feeling of total satisfaction. I achieved it. Basically, I’m saying I won’t be doing this again 20 years from now.”


Presave Return To Hellview here.





Tracklisting:


“Flesh Into Gear”
“Sink Into The Underground”
“Shock And Terror”
“Inhuman Creation Station”
“Suddenly Tragic”
“The Way You Lived”
“Dressed In Decay”
“Tripled Manic State”
“Shippensburg”


“Flesh Into Gear”:

Finnish doom/death metal act Grain Of Pain has officially inked a record deal with Noble Demon and is set to unleash the band's debut album, entitled The Moon Lights The Way, on May 31. Led by the prolific Timo Solonen, the band's music is a potent fusion of dark, emotional melodies and powerful, guttural vocals.


Grain Of Pain's lineup features a stellar cast of musicians, with Timo Solonen at the helm, showcasing his skills not only as a composer but also contributing growls and guitars. Joining him are Juho Räihä on guitars, Lars Eikind on bass and clean vocals, Juuso Raatikainen on drums, and Sini Pajunen lending her captivating vocals to the mix. Taka Eliel adds backing growls to enrich the band’s gloomy sound.


Grain Of Pain's sound is characterized by its intense emotional depth and draws inspiration from a variety of influences to create a unique blend of dark atmospheres and powerful melodies. The band's commitment to their craft has already attracted attention: Lars Eikind won the prestigious Spellemannsprisen in Norway and both Juho Räihä and Juuso Raatikainen were nominated for a Finnish Grammy with Swallow the Sun.




Patrick Walch, founder, A&R and digital marketer of Noble Demon, about the latest addition to the label roster: "It's apparently no secret that we at Noble Demon have a soft spot for solid, heavy, melodic and doomy Metal from Finland. So, after hearing the first highly addictive songs by Grain Of Pain we didn't hesitate but plan the debut album together with the super talented Timo to show the world once more why the rumors persist that the Finns are fed metal via mother's milk from day one!"


To get a taste of what's to come, listen to the album's title track and first single "The Moon Lights The Way", which is accompanied by a visually stunning lyric video.


Mastermind Timo Solonen about the track: "When you try to reach something which looks promising. Or if you try to get something back from your past life and it backfires badly. All the emotions run through your mind. Or is this really something else? Listeners will hear and experience this based on their life. I don't want to take that experience away."


The Moon Lights The Way will be released digitally on May 31s via Noble Demon. The album is now available to pre-save at this location.





Tracklisting:


“Beneath”
“Sun For Thee”
“The Moon Lights The Way”
“As Suffering Ends”
“The Witch”
“Can’t Be Fallen”
“Last Morning”
“The Path” (bonus track)
“Black Dust” (bonus track)


“The Moon Lights The Way” video:





(Photo – Jaakko Manninen)

"We live in a world of illusion these days. The world at times doesn't even seem real. If you don't want to play the game everyone looks at you like you're crazy," says alt-metal group Fire From The Gods vocalist Aj Channer.


Fire From The Gods thought-provoking track “Double Edged Sword” tackles modern day society’s self-righteousness and insincere leanings. The Austin,TX-based band has collaborated with vocalist Jayden Panesso of NYC metalcore outfit Sylar to add further vigor to “Double Edged Sword” and have today (May 3) shared a lyric video for the collaborative track which is included on their forthcoming digital deluxe version of 2022’s Soul Revolution, Soul Revolution Deluxe – The Collabs. Stream across digital platforms here.


"We are viewing our world through a very narrow scope,” says Channer. “We are out of touch with reality or what real life looks like. Some don't understand it nor want any part of it. When you don't want to join the proverbial party you get treated like a pariah. Then everyone comes up with a cheeky buzzword to describe you which causes further division. Double Edged sword."




Due May 31 via Better Noise Music, Soul Revolution Deluxe – The Collabs version will include five new tracks: a cover of Rage Against The Machine’s “Guerilla Radio” and four refreshed fan-favorite tracks with featured guests including Nate Vickers, Corey Glover (Living Colour), Yung Mo$h, and the above-mentioned Jayden Panesso (Sylar). 


Soul Revolution’s songs explored themes of self-realization and discovery amidst personal revolution, motherhood, and resilience. It was co-produced by Erik Ron (Godsmack, Motionless In White, Panic! At The Disco) and Fire From The Gods drummer Richard Wicander. Preorder here.


Fire From The Gods have relentlessly toured the nation with acts such as Sevendust, Of Mice & Men, Five Finger Death Punch, Megadeth and Norma Jean, as well as appearing on festival stages including Vans Warped Tour, Rock On The Range and Shiprocked. Catch them live this month at Welcome To Rockville (May 11) and Sonic Temple (May 16).





Tracklisting:


“Soul Revolution” (feat. Yung Mos$h)
“SOS” (feat. Nate Vickers)
“Thousand Lifetimes” (feat. Living Colour’s Corey Glover)
“Double Edged Sword” (feat. Sylar’s Jayden Panesso)
“| N |
“Be Free”
“The Message”
“World So Cold”
“Rapture (Fool Dem)”
“Collapse”
“8 Billion Rats”
“Love Is Dangerous”
“Guerrilla Radio” (Rage Against The Machine cover)


“Double Edged Sword” visualizer:





(Photo – Wombat)

A Killer's Confession, newly signed to MNRK Heavy, have shared their second single. Today, they drop the video for "Martyr".


"'Martyr' is the second step into the lore of Victim 1," the band says. "This song is the embodiment of acceptance of who you are and what you have to do. Tossing aside what others might think of your actions knowing in the end, it really doesn't matter what anyone thinks."







Regarding the accompanying video, AKC say, "The video for 'Martyr' is the idea of how soldiers from The Crusades will go to church to ask for penance for their actions. The scenery of a simpler time and the camaraderie between the knights says it all. "What we do is for the greater good.'"





"Martyr' follows the band's previously released video for "Greed". Watch below:





Overall, A Killer's Confession explore the captivating repugnance of true crime, set to a soundtrack of melodic hard rock dosed with elements of metal and industrial, on their forthcoming album, the details of which will be announced in due course.


After three seminal albums with Mushroomhead, Reavis retreated from music, only for it to draw him back in 2016. He resurfaced at the helm of A Killer's Confession, delivering three cult favorite albums - Unbroken [2017], The Indifference of Good Men [2019], and Remember [2021]. Along the way, the band tallied tens of millions of streams in addition to collaborating with everyone from Brian "Head" Welch of Korn and Love And Death to Chad Gray of Mudvayne and Hellyeah. Joined by bassist JP Cross, guitarist James Skritch, and the duo drums of Will Spodnik and Kegan King, they also captivated crowds on tour.


During 2022, Waylon experienced an epiphany. "I had never thought about following a concept like this before," he said. "However, I decided to focus, live up to the name, and be A Killer's Confession."


(Photo - No Barricades Photography)

In a new interview with Australia's "Today" show, MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer Tommy Lee was asked if fans can expect to hear a full-length album at some point to follow the recently released single "Dogs Of War". He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, we recorded three songs [during the same sessions in early 2023], and 'Dogs Of War' is the first one [to be released]. [But] I don't know if [a full-length album is] in the near future. I'm not saying it isn't, but recording and writing some stuff that you're feeling right at the moment and releasing it is, for us, a lot more a lot more fun and sort of a time stamp of where we're at right now."

Days earlier, MÖTLEY CRÜE singer Vince Neil told "Loudwire Nights" that the band's fans shouldn't hold their breath for a new CRÜE LP. "I don't think you're gonna see a full-length album at any time," he said. "It's easier now just to do a few songs at a time and release 'em in the right ways. Albums don't exist anymore. With the MTV generation, you'd go to a record store and you'd find your favorite songs and your album and you'd buy the album, and you'd watch it on MTV and you can see your favorite bands. Now there's a billion ways [to consume music] — streaming services and all those things."

Asked if it's weird for him to say that albums just don't matter today the same way they used to, Vince responded: "Yeah, it just seems like a lot of work to put 10 songs together on an album when they all won't be heard by anybody. At least you know when somebody buys the album, they're gonna listen to it, they're gonna listen to those songs. Now we just write the songs to be listened to be heard, and that's what 'Dogs Of War' was. It's a song to be heard. And we're really proud of it."

Asked if "Dogs Of War" is pointing to more individual songs coming in the future from MÖTLEY CRÜE, Vince said: "Yeah, I'd say more individual songs. We've got one in the can right now, and we don't know when we'll put it out, but it might be at the end of the year. It might be early '25. But you'll definitely hear some new music from MÖTLEY in the future."

"Dogs Of War" was made available on April 26 via MÖTLEY CRÜE's new deal with Nashville's Big Machine Records.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's new deal with Big Machine Records sees the band working together again after making the 2014 project "Nashville Outlaws: A Tribute To Mötley Crüe", which featured CRÜE tracks covered by country stars RASCAL FLATTS, FLORIDA GEORGIA LINE, Darius Rucker and more. Big Machine also partnered with MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist John 5 for the release of his 2021 album "Sinner".

MÖTLEY CRÜE's last studio album was 2008's "Saints Of Los Angeles", which was followed by a 2009 "Greatest Hits" compilation.

In 2018, MÖTLEY CRÜE recorded four new songs for "The Dirt" movie, including the single "The Dirt (Est. 1981) (Feat. Machine Gun Kelly)", "Ride With The Devil", "Crash And Burn" and the band's own spin on Madonna's "Like A Virgin".

John 5 joined MÖTLEY CRÜE in the fall of 2022 as the replacement for the band's co-founding guitarist Mick Mars. Mick announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE in October 2022 as a result of worsening health issues.

Photo credit: Ross Halfin

Kerry King has revealed that SLAYER's upcoming festival shows will not "translate into recording and touring" for the legendary thrash metal act.

Five years after SLAYER played the last concert of what was being billed as the band's farewell tour and just weeks after the SLAYER guitarist unveiled the details of his solo project, Kerry and his longtime bandmates announced that they will play at the Aftershock, Riot Fest and Louder Than Life festivals in September and October.

King addressed the SLAYER reunion while speaking to U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine about his upcoming debut solo album, "From Hell I Rise", which will be released on May 17 via Reigning Phoenix Music. Admitting that the announcement of SLAYER's comeback "was not my favorite timing", Kerry said that the SLAYER reunion "is not going to translate into recording and it's not going to translate into touring. For me, it's three shows marking five years since our final shows, a fun, 'Hey, remember us from before the pandemic?' celebration."

Kerry went on to say that he still has not spoken to SLAYER bassist/vocalist Tom Araya since the news of the band's reunion was announced. "It's not like I'm angry with him or anything," King clarified. "We're very different people, and we evolved into business partners at the end of the day. He has very different interests from me, and very different outlooks. Does that make me hate him? No. But I don't need to talk to him every day… We just don't have much in common. When it comes time to rehearse, I'll have no problem showing up. We're professionals, and that's what we do."

When Kerry's solo project was first announced, King told Rolling Stone that he was almost positive he and Tom would never resurrect the band. "I can pretty much a hundred percent say no because I have a new outlet, and it's not SLAYER, but it sounds like SLAYER," King said of a potential SLAYER reunion.

The lineup for SLAYER's comeback will be the same as the one which last toured in 2019: Araya and King, along with guitarist Gary Holt (also of EXODUS) and longtime drummer Paul Bostaph.

Days after SLAYER's reunion was announced, Tom Araya's wife wrote on social media that she "harassed him for over a year" before he "agreed finally" to play more shows with the band. "We shared that news with SLAYER's awesome managers and they did the rest!" she explained. "So yes without Tom it wouldn't have happened.. without me BUGGING HIM it wouldn't have happened."

Both Gary and his wife Lisa Holt were among the hundreds of people who "liked" Sandra's Instagram post, with Lisa sharing three heart emojis in response to Sandra's message.

In a statement confirming SLAYER's return, Tom said: "Nothing compares to the 90 minutes when we're on stage playing live, sharing that intense energy with our fans, and to be honest, we have missed that." King added: "Have I missed playing live? Absolutely. SLAYER means a lot to our fans; they mean a lot to us. It will be five years since we have seen them."

The same day that SLAYER's comeback was announced, Holt's wife Lisa Holt took to her social media to write: "Yes, it's true..and an exciting adventure for the band and fans !

"To all the people saying 'they are liars' 'they must have ran out of money' 'its not SLAYER without so and so' ..I have an idea for you all...DON'T GO.. and for all the people who did go to the final tour dates and enjoyed it...awesome!!

"This isn't a 'TOUR' it's some dates..and GREAT NEWS!!!" she added. "And everyone that thinks they know all the inside info..you can't possibly know. so just enjoy the fact that this amazing band will play some amazing shows this year...go or don't..nobody cares!!!!!"

Three weeks before SLAYER's reunion was announced, Kerry told Rolling Stone that he didn't foresee SLAYER coming back together for the foreseeable future.

"Will SLAYER tour again? I'm pretty sure that's not going to happen. Could SLAYER play a show again? I'm sure there's a scenario," King said, adding that he hadn't spoken to Araya since that final show. "Am I looking for it? No, I'm just getting ready to start my [solo] career. So if that happens, it happens. But I'm going to be doing this for the next 10 years at least."

SLAYER played the final show of its farewell tour in November 2019 at the Forum in Los Angeles. One day later, Kerry's wife Ayesha said that there is "not a chance in hell" that the thrash metal icons will reunite for more live appearances.

SLAYER's final world tour began on May 10, 2018 with the band's intention to play as many places as possible, to make it easy for the fans to see one last SLAYER show and say goodbye. By the time the 18-month trek wrapped at the Forum, the band had completed seven tour legs plus a series of one-off major summer festivals, performing more than 140 shows in 30 countries and 40 U.S. states.

All material for "From Hell I Rise" was written by King, who was accompanied during the recording sessions by Bostaph, guitarist Phil Demmel (MACHINE HEAD, VIO-LENCE),bassist Kyle Sanders (HELLYEAH) and vocalist Mark Osegueda (DEATH ANGEL). Helming the sessions at Henson Recording Studios in Los Angeles last year was producer Josh Wilbur, who has previously worked with KORN, LAMB OF GOD, AVENGED SEVENFOLD and BAD RELIGION, among others.

Photo credit: Andrew Stuart

The Slayer legend reveals the inside story of his new solo album

Posted by Metal Hammer on Tuesday, April 30, 2024

Ahead of the Brazilian leg of his "The Mandrake Project" solo tour, IRON MAIDEN singer Bruce Dickinson was asked by the Rádio Kiss FM radio station what fans can expect from the shows. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Oh, wow. Well, we are having so much fun on stage. It's amazing to play with musicians who are less than half my age. So the energy and the enthusiasm is just off the chart. I mean, we've been learning new songs, and we just throw them into the set and go, 'Yep, let's do this one tonight.' Whereas a lot of bands, because they have a big show and fireworks and monsters — like MAIDEN, for example, we don't change the set around every night. But with this project, we do. So, yeah, people who come to Curitiba to see the show, the people the next night in Porto Alegre are gonna get a different show. And it's interesting for us, and it keeps us on our toes musically. The first time in Brazil, I've got some stuff to put on screens, so I think we're gonna have screens behind us. And so I've developed a load of material, some of it quite out there for the back. Because we don't play to a time code or a click track, we don't use tapes, backing tapes and all that crap, we're actually musicians who play the real thing, so if we're excited, we play a little bit faster. So we look at each other, we go, 'Should we stop now?' 'Yeah. Okay. One, two, three, four,' boom. Or 'should we start now? One, two, three,' boom. Let's go. We look at each other, we play off each other — it's that old-school stuff. And the way the stage is, I designed it so it's deliberately different to the normal thing where it's all about having a massive drum kit right in the middle. Well, we've got a pretty big drum kit, but it can be heavy and it can be beautiful as well. We play 'Navigate The Seas Of The Sun', which shocked us when we first played it, because we've never played it — I've never played that song live. And we've done it three times now, and each time I've been shocked at the reaction. It's a real emotional reaction to that song. It's beautiful."

After playing two warm-up shows at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California, Dickinson officially kicked off his first solo tour in more than 20 years on April 15 at The Observatory in Santa Ana, California.

Joining the IRON MAIDEN singer on the trek is his current backing band, featuring Dave Moreno (drums),Mistheria (keyboards) and Tanya O'Callaghan (bass),alongside the group's latest additions, Swedish guitarist, songwriter and multi-platinum-credited producer Philip Näslund and Swiss session and touring guitarist Chris Declercq (who played on Dickinson's "Rain On The Graves" single). Bruce's longtime guitarist and collaborator Roy "Z" Ramirez is not part of the touring lineup.

Prior to the April 12 Whisky A Go Go show, Bruce last performed with his solo band on in August 2002 at the legendary Wacken Open Air festival in Germany.

During an appearance on the April 16 episode of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Bruce was asked if there are plans for him to stage a full U.S. tour in support of his recently released solo album "The Mandrake Project". He responded: "I brought the [booking] agents and the promoters, and everybody came down and saw the Whisky show [in West Hollywood, California over the weekend], and now they know what they've got to deal with in terms of doing a U.S. tour. So, we're looking at it, we're planning it.

"I absolutely wanna do a full U.S. tour with 'The Mandrake Project'," he added. "I obviously can't do one for the rest of this year [due to commitments in other parts of the world and MAIDEN's upcoming touring activities], but there's '25 and there's numerous opportunities that will crop up. So the answer to that is yes, of course, we wanna come and do the U.S."

Roy played guitar on Dickinson's 1994 album "Balls To Picasso" and went on to produce, co-write and perform multiple instruments on Bruce's subsequent three solo albums, "Accident At Birth" (1997),"The Chemical Wedding" (1998) and "Tyranny Of Souls" (2005).

O'Callaghan is an Irish musician who joined WHITESNAKE in 2021 and toured with the David Coverdale-fronted outfit the following year. She also hit the road with Dickinson last year as part of a performance of Jon Lord's "Concerto For Group And Orchestra" on nearly a dozen dates in Europe and South America.

Californian drummer Moreno previously played on "Tyranny Of Souls" and has worked with BODY COUNT, Jizzy Pearl, Dizzy Reed and Steve Stevens, among others.

Italian keyboard wizard Mistheria has collaborated with an array of artists live and in the studio, including Rob Rock, Mike Portnoy, Jeff Scott Soto and Joel Hoekstra.

"The Mandrake Project" arrived on March 1 via BMG.

Bruce and Roy recorded "The Mandrake Project" largely at Los Angeles's Doom Room, with Roy doubling up as both guitarist and bassist. The recording lineup for "The Mandrake Project" was rounded out by Mistheria and Moreno, both of whom also featured on Bruce's last solo studio album, "Tyranny Of Souls", in 2005.

Dickinson made his recording debut with IRON MAIDEN on the "Number Of The Beast" album in 1982. He quit the band in 1993 in order to pursue his solo career and was replaced by Blaze Bayley, who had previously been the lead singer of the metal band WOLFSBANE. After releasing two traditional metal albums with former MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith, Dickinson rejoined the band in 1999 along with Smith.

Massachusetts metal band, All That Remains, have released their new single, "Divine". Check out the official video below.





All That Remains and Mudvayne will support Megadeth when they bring their live show to North America with a 33-city, nationwide tour, Destroy All Enemies, produced by Live Nation, this fall. The tour begins in Rogers, Arkansas on August 2 and runs throughout the month before wrapping in Nashville, Tennessee on September 28.




For more information and to purchase tickets to the Destroy All Enemies Tour, visit Megadeth.com.





Destroy All Enemies US tour dates:


August
2 - Rogers, AR - Walmart AMP
3 - Houston, TX - 713 Music Hall
5 - Albuquerque, NM - Isleta Amphitheatre
6 - Denver, CO - Ball Arena
8 - Phoenix, AZ - Talking Stick Resort Amphitheatre
9 - Los Angeles, CA - YouTube Theater
10 - Concord, CA - Toyota Pavilion at Concord
12 - Auburn, WA - White River Amphitheatre
13 - Bend, OR - Hayden Homes Amphitheater
16 - Las Vegas, NV - Bakkt Theatre at Planet Hollywood
17 - Salt Lake City, UT - Maverick Arena*
20 - Irving, TX - The Pavilion at Toyota Music Factory
21 - Austin, TX - Germania Insurance Amphitheater
23 - Macon, GA - Atrium Health Macon Amphitheater*
24 - West Palm Beach, FL - IThink Financial Amphitheatre


September
3 - Tinley Park, IL - Credit Union 1 Amphitheatre
5 - Huntington, WV - Marshall Health Network Arena*
6 - Charlotte, NC - PNC Music Pavilion
7 - Raleigh, NC - Coastal Credit Union Music Park at Walnut Creek
9 - Reading, PA - Santander Arena*
10 - Albany, NY - MVP Arena*
11 - Boston, MA - Leader Bank
13 - Bethel, MY - Bethel Woods Center For The Arts
14 - Wantagh, NY - Northwell Health at Jones Beach Theater
15 - Richmond, VA - Virginia Credit Union Live!*
17 - Cincinnati, OH - Riverbend Music Center
18 - Pittsburgh, PA - Stage AE
20 - Noblesville, IN - Ruoff Music Center
21 - Clarkston, MI - Pine Knob Music Theatre
24 - Minneapolis, MN - The Armory
26 - St Louis, MO - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre STL
27 - Southaven, MS - Bankplus Amphitheater at Snowden Grove*
28 - Nashville, TN - Nashville Municipal Auditorium       


* non Live Nation dates

Black Country Communion - the celebrated rock supergroup featuring Glenn Hughes, Joe Bonamassa, Jason Bonham, and Derek Sherinian - have released a much video for "Enlighten", the opening song of their fifth studio album, V, out June 14. Watch below.





Now available on all major streaming platforms, "Enlighten" is a triumph of lyrical depth and musical innovation, penned by Hughes and Bonamassa. The production, helmed by long-time collaborator Kevin Shirley, captures the essence of the band's dynamic sound and evolving artistic expression.




"Enlighten" explores themes of self-awareness and spiritual awakening, conveyed through Hughes' emotive lyrics and the intricate guitar work of Bonamassa. Resonating with the band's signature fusion of hard rock and soul-stirring blues, the song stands as a testament to Black Country Communion's growth and mutual admiration, symbolizing their commitment to producing music that is authentic, heartfelt, and reflective of their shared experiences and vast musical expertise.
 
Formed by some of the most respected names in rock and blues and deeply rooted in both British and American classic hard-rock and blues-rock traditions, Black Country Communion has earned a formidable reputation over the past 15 years, not only as phenomenal songwriters but as a compelling live act, renowned for their commitment to musical excellence and innovation. Released on the heels of their first US concert in over 11 years, "Enlighten" serves as an exciting glimpse into the full spectrum of what the album promises, heralding a vibrant new chapter for the band and their fans globally.





The album V is available for pre-order now. For more details, exclusive content, and updates, head here.





Tracklisting:


"Enlighten"
"Stay Free"
"Red Sun"
"Restless"
"Letting Go"
"Skyway"
"You're Not Alone"
"Love And Faith"
"Too Far Gone"
"The Open Road"


"Red Sun" lyric video:





"Stay Free" lyric video:





Black Country Communion is a powerhouse supergroup fusing the incredible talents of Glenn Hughes (Deep Purple, Black Sabbath, Trapeze), Joe Bonamassa (Blues Rock Legend), Jason Bonham (Led Zeppelin, Sammy Hagar and the Circle, Foreigner) and Derek Sherinian (Dream Theater, Sons of Apollo). Their brand of earth-shattering rock is heavily influenced by both British and American classic hard-rock and blues-rock music. The reputation they’ve cultivated after 15 years since their inception, not only as amazing songwriters, but as a powerful live act, is only exceeded by their dedication to their craft and willingness to challenge each other to make the best music imaginable.


(Photo - Nathan Zucker)

Epic metal pioneers, Warlord, have released a lyric video for their new single, "Worms Of The Earth", featured on their new album, Free Spirit Soar, out May 10 via High Roller Records. Watch the clip below.


With Free Spirit Soar, a brand-new studio album by Warlord with all songs having been recorded between March and September 2023, singer Giles Lavery and drummer Mark Zonder honor their bandmate, Bill Tsamis, who passed away in 2021. They are joined by Jimmy Waldo on keyboards/synthesizer, Philip Bynoe on bass and Eric Juris on guitars.


“We wanted to finish these pieces of music that were started ‘for Bill’,” explains Lavery, “and the material we felt was certainly strong enough to inspire us to do so.”




Regarding the guitar parts he specifies: “Bill is there where we could pull his tracks off the demo recordings, in much the same way the Beatles were recently able to rescue John Lennon’s voice from an old demo tape. however be assured this album is not "a demo", nor does it sound like one, our new guitarist Eric does most of the heavy lifting as far the recording, but all of the music was written by Bill and we stayed very very faithful to what he wrote.”


Pre-order Free Spirit Soar at the High Roller Records webshop.





Tracklisting:


"Behold A Pale Horse"
"The Rider"
"Conquerors"
"Worms Of The Earth"
"The Watchman" (CD-exclusive track)
"Free Spirit Soar"
"The Bell Tolls"
"Alarm"
"Twin" (CD-exclusive track)
"Revelation XIX"


"Worms Of The Earth" lyric video:





"Conquerors" lyric video:





Lineup:


Mark Zonder - Drums           
Philip Bynoe - Bass
Eric Juris - Guitars
Jimmy Waldo - Keyboards
Giles Lavery - Vocals

Spirit of Unicorn Music are pleased to announce the forthcoming release of Focus 12, the brand new studio album from Focus.


Founded by Thijs van Leer, Focus have been at the forefront of the progressive music movement since 1969, yet they still continue to deliver engaging, innovative and skillfully crafted music. Focus 12 exemplifies this and proves why they are still a firm fan favourite, the world over.


For Thijs van Leer (75) and Pierre van der Linden (78), age is nothing more than a number. Both continue to contribute to Focus with a passion. Thijs, who has written the majority of the new album, rises at 4.30 am every day in order to work on his compositions. Whilst the album boasts some of Pierre’s greatest and most energetic drum sequences to date.




Allowing the younger guard to take the audio reins for the first time, Focus 12 is produced by band members Udo Pannekeet and Menno Gootjes, who also contribute two compositions on the album.


Thijs commented, “How beautiful life can be when a band plays so easily and so together.”


Focus 12 was recorded at the world-renowned Wisseloord Studios, in the band’s native country of the Netherlands. A first for Focus, the album features a completely improvised piece which was captured as it spontaneously took place in the studio, during the recording process. Thus, proving that more than 50 years on, the band are still excited by undertaking something new and different.


Van Leer continues, “Thanks Pierre, Udo and Menno for so much musical passion!”


The band continues their long association with legendary artist Roger Dean whose stunning artwork graces the front cover and packaging. The vinyl version features a stunning gatefold sleeve.


Focus continues to be one of the hardest working rock bands on the planet, regularly touring the globe playing live. This July, they undertake a string of live dates across the USA and Canada, as part of Asia’s Heat Of The Moment Tour.


Thijs van Leer concludes, “After all these years, Focus is in the here and now; the triumph of survival!”


Focus 12 by Focus can be pre-ordered here.





Tracklisting:


"Fjord Focus"
"Focus 13"
"Béla"
"Meta Indefinita"
"All Aboard"
"Born To Be You"
"Nura"
"Bowie"
"Positano"
"Gaia"





Heat Of The Moment 2024 Tour dates:


July
3 - Ridgefield Playhouse - Ridgefield, CT
4 - Fallsview Casino - Niagara Falls, ON
6 - Chevalier Theatre - Medford, MA
7 - The Paramount - Huntington, NY
9 - Bergen Performing Arts Center - Englewood, NJ
10 - Count Basie Center - Red Bank, NJ
12 - Tropicana Showroom - Atlantic City, NJ
13 - Wind Creek Event Center - Bethlehem, PA
14 - American Music Theatre - Lancaster, PA
16 - Spartanburg Memorial Auditorium - Spartanburg, SC
17 - Ryman Auditorium - Nashville, TN
18 - Columbia County Performing Arts Center - Evans, GA
20 - Hard Rock Live - Orlando, FL
21 - Pompano Beach Amphitheater - Pompano Beach, FL
22 - Seminole Hard Rock - Tampa, FL
24 - North Charleston PAC - North Charleston, SC
25 - Macon City Auditorium - Macon, GA
26 - Saenger Theatre - Mobile, AL
28 - VBC Mark Smith Concert Hall - Huntsville, AL
30 - The Arcada Theatre - St Charles, IL
31 - The Pabst Theater - Milwaukee, WI


Focus are:


Thijs van Leer: Flute, Organ, Piano, Synths
Menno Gootjes: Guitars, Piano, Synths
Pierre van der Linden: Drums
Udo Pannekeet: Bass, Synths, Programming

Former AC/DC drummer Chris Slade has once again praised Axl Rose's collaboration with the band, saying that the GUNS N' ROSES singer was "very professional" during AC/DC's 2016 tour.

AC/DC postponed the last ten dates of its North American tour eight years ago after doctors told singer Brian Johnson he faced a total loss of hearing if he did not stop touring immediately. AC/DC completed the tour in the summer of 2016, with Rose as a "guest vocalist."

"The thing with Axl, people went, like, 'Axl Rose. Do me a favor.' And I must admit, I was a little trepidatious, shall I say," Slade told the Appetite For Distortion podcast (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "But he said 'hello'. I shook his hand, and I thought, 'This guy's all right.' And he was telling jokes. And he was a great guy, actually. I know I've heard the horror stories, as we all have, but in my experience, he was great. Very professional. He was never late anywhere, anytime. And he used to warm up two hours before every show and warm down for two hours every show. I know that for a fact, because I was next to him [laughs]; I could hear him."

Chris went on to say that Axl treated the AC/DC gig with the utmost respect, since grew up loving the band. "He asked Angus [Young, AC/DC guitarist] to learn a few songs, like five or six songs that he would love to do 'cause he'd been a fan," Slade recalled. "And we learned them. Well, we knew 'em before, but he wanted to do — I think we did things like 'Riff Raff' and things like that. I can't remember properly, to be very honest. But it was great. And I didn't know he had that voice, honestly. I'd only ever heard him in GUNS N' ROSES with that GUNS N' ROSES voice. It wasn't that at all. It was a fantastic voice, as far as I'm concerned, with full range."

Asked if there was any talk of Axl continuing with AC/DC beyond the 2016 tour, Chris said: "That was it, really. [I was told], 'This will be the tour.' And I didn't expect it to carry on after. I didn't know what Brian was doing. He didn't tell anybody. I think he just left at the time, or whatever the word is. And that was all I knew. I was told, 'Brian's not here.' 'Oh. Okay. Well, what are we doing?' 'Well, we're gonna get a replacement.' 'Oh. All right.' So we tried out quite a few people, six or seven people, I think. Some were unknowns, completely unknowns, and some weren't, but I'm not gonna say who."

Slade, who played drums for AC/DC's "Rock Or Bust" world tour after Phil Rudd was arrested for drug possession and threatening to kill an employee, told Eonmusic in a 2018 interview that Axl fronting AC/DC definitely re-energized the band. "Yes, absolutely," he said. "Angus was running around like a schoolboy, you know?! It did reinvigorate the band. Brian is great, as we all know; he's a great personality and a great guy. Axl brought his voice to it. Like, I couldn't believe the notes he hit; it was staggering. And I actually had no hope at all. When I heard that Axl was going to be in the band, I thought, 'Oh, what?!' Because I'd only ever heard that GUNS N' ROSES voice, but all great singers, they can change the timbre of their voice, and wow, he hit notes that dogs can only hear. It was unbelievable. I thought he did an amazing job. I could hear him very clearly because I use in-ear monitors, and it's the best I've ever heard the band."

Slade had previously served as AC/DC's drummer between 1989 and 1994, playing on the album "The Razor's Edge".

Slade originally followed Simon Wright in AC/DC's lineup. When Rudd returned in 1995, Slade was shown the door and harbored some bad feelings about that for a while.

AC/DC recruited Matt Laug to play drums with the Brian Johnson-fronted outfit at the Power Trip festival last October and for the upcoming summer 2024 European tour.

Mongolian rock sensation, The HU, have engaged audiences worldwide with their unique brand of “hunnu rock’ since their formation in 2016. The unparalleled group combine traditional Mongolian throat singing and ancient native instrumentation with contemporary western hard rock. The HU have dominated the charts, including two #1 spots on Billboard’s World Album and Top New Artist Albums charts, sold-out headlining tours across the globe (including U.S., Europe and U.K), and appearances at some of the world’s biggest music festivals such as Download, Coachella, Lollapalooza, and Glastonbury.


The HU have announced the digital and CD release of their live album, The HU Live At Glastonbury, recorded from their groundbreaking performance at the legendary Glastonbury festival in Somerset, UK in 2023. Due June 7 via Better Noise Music, The HU Live At Glastonbury features 11 songs, including the band’s RIAA Gold-certified hit “Wolf Totem,” which to date has received 98 million video views, as well as popular tracks from their 2019 breakthrough debut The Gereg and its follow-up album Rumble Of Thunder (2022). It also includes the track “Eseerin Vasahina,” which The HU wrote for EA’s Star Wars Jedi: Survivor game.


A limited-edition vinyl release of The HU Live At Glastonbury was released exclusively via Record Store Day (April 20) which included seven songs from the upcoming full-length live album.




Pre-order/save The HU Live At Glastonbury on CD and digitally here. Watch a live video for "TATAR Warrior" below.





The HU Live At Glastonbury tracklisting:


"Shihi Hutu" (Live At Glastonbury)
"The Gereg" (Live At Glastonbury)
"Shoog Shoog" (Live At Glastonbury)
"Eseerin Vasahina" (Live At Glastonbury)
"TATAR Warrior" (Live At Glastonbury)
"Upright Destined Mongol" (Live At Glastonbury)
"Black Thunder" (Live At Glastonbury)
"Through The Never" (Live At Glastonbury)
"Yuve Yuve Yu" (Live At Glastonbury)
"Wolf Totem" (Live At Glastonbury)
"This Is Mongol" (Live At Glastonbury)


"TATAR Warrior" live video:

earMUSIC recently announce the June 21 release of Marillion's An Hour Before It’s Dark: Live In Port Zélande 2023, an audio-visual masterpiece showcasing the band's 2022 studio album, An Hour Before It's Dark, in its entirety.


"The Crow And The Nightingale" is the second single taken from Marillion's upcoming live release. The song captivates with its powerful lyrics combined with a melacholic orchestra that carries you away.


Stream the single here, and watch the official video below:







Since 2002, Marillion has welcomed their dedicated fans to very special weekends every two years: the Marillion weekend. On three consecutive nights, Marillion performs different shows with different setlists - each night, a full album is played from start to finish, including fan favorites and rarities. Fans travel from all over the world to be part of these truly amazing nights.


From Friday, March 17 to Sunday, March 19, 2023, the Marillion weekend took place at Center Parcs, Port Zélande, The Netherlands.


On Saturday night, Marillion performed their latest album An Hour Before It’s Dark in its entirety. Their impressive live shows, with stunning projections and laser effects, add to Marillion's reputation as being one of the leading musicians of today.


An Hour Before It's Dark: Live In Port Zélande 2023 will be released physically on 2CD Digipak, Blu-ray Digipak , DVD Digipak and, for the first time, 3LP Heavyweight Vinyl. Pre-order it here.


Founded in 1979, British rock band Marillion have, over the course of 20 studio albums, become one of the most commercially successful progressive rock bands of the 1980s and are still one of the most outstanding representatives of their genre. Marillion embraced the potential of the internet for both their commercial approach and to interact with their audience, long before most of their peers. They are purveyors of soulful, powerful, and deeply-moving music, with a long-standing reputation of impressive live shows and an imposing, faithful and loyal global fan base.





Tracklisting:


"Be Hard On Yourself"
"Reprogram The Gene"
"Only A Kiss" (Instrumental)
"Murder Machines"
"The Crow And The Nightingale"
"Sierra Leone"
"Care"


Encores:


"Estonia"
"Afraid Of Sunlight"
"Go!"
"The Space"
"Zeparated Out"


"Reprogram The Gene" (Live in Port Zélande 2023) video:

LAST IN LINE bassist Phil Soussan has confirmed to the "Iron City Rocks" podcast that he and his bandmates — frontman Andrew Freeman, bassist Phil Soussan (ex-OZZY OSBOURNE),and original DIO members Vivian Campbell (DEF LEPPARD) and Vinny Appice (ex-BLACK SABBATH) — have commenced work on material for their fourth studio album. "We got together recently and started banging around new ideas," he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "And there's a whole bunch of them. There's about 22 or 23 possible little cool snippets of things that we need to work on, and about three or four which are in very fairly advanced stages of completion. So, yeah, we're not wasting any time."

Phil went on to say that the plan is to work on new music "over the summer. Now that we know we can do a lot of this stuff very remote," he said. "There's a book I have here, which is — I think it's called 'Two Rooms', but it was the story and all of the lyrics that were written by Elton John and Bernie Taupin. And they wrote everything — they never wrote anything together in the same room. And so you can do that. It worked for them. And we can certainly do that. I know that Vinny and myself, we can always get together. We don't live too far from each other. We can get in [the studio] and start working. Even if Viv doesn't happen to be around, we can always work that way. And with a goal late autumn or towards the end of the year of going back out on the road and starting to play live shows again during that time. So that's the plan; what's the master plan."

LAST IN LINE's third album, "Jericho", came out in March 2023 via earMUSIC. The LP was helmed by Chris Collier, who has previously worked with KORN and WHITESNAKE, among other bands. LAST IN LINE's first two albums were produced by former DOKKEN and current FOREIGNER bassist Jeff Pilson.

Last year, Vivian told Classic Rock magazine about the "Jericho" songwriting process: "One thing we insist on in LAST IN LINE is that we have to be in the room together when we cut the tracks, old school, because that's how we did the early DIO records with Ronnie [James Dio]. We started this record in January 2020 in L.A., intending to finish it that April, and then obviously COVID happened and things got… discombobulated. It wasn't until February 2022 that we were able to get back into the studio, but that break only made the record stronger."

In 2022, LAST IN LINE surprised fans by releasing a unique version of THE BEATLES classic "A Day In The Life", which was made available on the limited 12-inch silver collector's EP with the same name.

Formed in 2012 by Appice, Campbell and bassist Jimmy Bain — Ronnie James Dio's co-conspirators and co-writers on the "Holy Diver", "Last In Line" and "Sacred Heart" albums — LAST IN LINE's initial intent was to celebrate Ronnie James Dio's early work by reuniting the members of the original DIO lineup. After playing shows that featured a setlist composed exclusively of material from the first three DIO albums, the band decided to move forward and create new music in a similar vein.

LAST IN LINE's debut album, "Heavy Crown", was released in February 2016 via Frontiers Music Srl, landing at No. 1 on Billboard's Heatseekers chart. Initially, the release had been preceded by tragedy when Bain unexpectedly died at the age of 68 on January 23, 2016. LAST IN LINE, honoring what they knew would be Bain's wish to keep the band moving, brought in Soussan and committed to sustained touring in support of the album before beginning work on the follow-up release, 2019's "II", which was also made available through Frontiers Music Srl.

Photo credit: Jim Wright

Arch Enemy's Deceivers Asia Tour 2024 is well underway, and fan-filmed video of their entire April 28th show in Shanghai, China at Phase Live House can be viewed below.


Setlist:


"Deceiver, Deceiver"
"Blood on Your Hands"
"War Eternal"
"In the Eye of the Storm"
"House of Mirrors"
"My Apocalypse"
"The Watcher"
"The Eagle Flies Alone"
"Handshake With Hell"
"As the Pages Burn"
"No Gods, No Masters"
"Dead Bury Their Dead"
"We Will Rise"




Encore:
"Enemy Within"
"Burning Angel"
"Snow Bound"
"Nemesis"





Remaining tour dates are as follows:


May
5 - Chengdu, China⁠ 
7 - Nanjing, China
9 - Shenzhen, China⁠ 
11 - Taipei, Taiwan
12 - Taichung, Taiwan⁠ 
15 - Manila, Philippines
17 - Singapore 
19 - Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
21 - Bangkok, Thailand
23 - Jakarta, Indonesia⁠


Tickets are available via the officia Arch Enemy website here.

Italian goth metal veterans LACUNA COIL were joined by Ash Costello (NEW YEARS DAY) for their performance of their new single, "In The Mean Time", last night (Saturday, May 4) at Reverb in Reading, Pennsylvania. Fan-filmed video of her appearance can be seen below.

The studio version of "In The Mean Time", featuring Costello, was made available on April 19. The song's title is a reference to the mean times the world is living in, as well as a reference to the state the band itself is in, between cycles.

LACUNA COIL stated: "'In The Mean Time' is a reflection on how much our society has generally 'lost the plot'. We are living in really mean times filled with unhappy people: lonely, anxious, depressed, destructive. The pressure that crushes from the outside doesn't allow us to see things with the right clarity.

"This song is like group therapy: not a lamentation, but acceptance that once broken, it's hard to put oneself back together again.

"We need to take our minds off all the inescapable toxicity and find that there's so much more to this life… and know that in the meantime, everything cannot be aligned.

"We invited Ash Costello from NEW YEARS DAY to feature on the track and we're thrilled she came on board adding exactly what we needed for this song with her warm voice and charisma."

Costello said: "I am deeply honored to join LACUNA COIL on tour for the first time, to have the incredible opportunity to lend my guest vocals to a new track and appear in the music video. Working alongside the powerhouse vocalist Cristina has been a privilege, and I may be biased in saying that 'In The Mean Time' has quickly become my favorite by LACUNA COIL. Its message about embracing individuality and not conforming deeply resonates with me."

Earlier this month, LACUNA COIL embarked on the "Ignite The Fire" U.S. tour with support from NEW YEARS DAY and OCEANS OF SLUMBER.

Last July, LACUNA COIL released the official lyric video for the band's single "Never Dawn". For the track, LACUNA COIL partnered with CMON, the renowned board game publisher behind the popular game "Zombicide".

LACUNA COIL has spent some of the last couple of years promoting "Comalies XX", the "deconstructed" and "transported" version of the band's third album, "Comalies".

"Comalies XX" was made available on October 14, 2022 via Century Media Records.

LACUNA COIL celebrated the 20th anniversary of "Comalies", by performing it in its entirety at a one-night-only concert on October 15, 2022 at Fabrique in Milano.

"Comalies" was originally released on October 29, 2002 through Century Media Records. The LP, which featured the band's breakthrough single "Heaven's A Lie", has reportedly gone on to sell over 300,000 copies in the United States alone.

Saturday with Lacuna Coil!! Tickets below 👇🏼👇🏼

🎟️ bit.ly/LacunaReverb

Posted by Reverb on Thursday, May 2, 2024

Fan-filmed video of TNT's May 3, 2024 performance at the Union Scene in Drammen, Norway can be seen below. The show was part of the band's "Celebrating 40 Years Of Thunder" tour.

The Norwegian hard rockers played their first concert with returning American singer Tony Harnell on June 2, 2023 at Jærnåttå in Bryne, Norway.

The 61-year-old Harnell, who was born in San Diego, grew up in California and moved to New York when he was 16, announced his return to TNT in November 2022, saying that he would reteam with guitarist Ronni LeTekrø and drummer Morten "Diesel" Dahl on stage in 2023 and beyond for select live appearances. The trio is joined in the current TNT lineup by returning bassist Sid Ringsby, who played with TNT for the first time on the "All The Way To The Sun" album in 2005 and has appeared with TNT at various concerts over the years.

In a March 2023 interview with Scott Itter of Dr. Music, LeTekrø was asked if he and his bandmates have commenced work on new music. He responded: "I'm supposed to not say anything, but I can say yes, gradually we're starting to create stuff. I can't say how far we've come or anything, but there's definitely a good vibe in the band. And I think we all look forward to creating new stuff and also performing, of course, the old songs, the classic songs."

He continued: "It's been hard being a European band with an American singer. It's been hard for both parts, especially for Tony; he had to travel a lot. But we also had to do that to promote [the band] in the United States in the '80s and '90s. It's like FOREIGNER — a British band with an American singer. TNT, a Norwegian band with an American singer."

In February 2023, TNT shared several photos from Studio Studio Nyhagen in Norway and included the following caption: "First basic tracks session for new TNT music taking place."

In January 2023, Harnell said in an online post that he and his TNT bandmates were hoping to "get some new songs out there for you all" in 2023.

In March 2022, Le Tekrø confirmed to the "Paltrocast With Darren Paltrowitz" that he had been in touch with Harnell about a renewed collaboration. Speaking about the group's status, Ronni said: "I've started writing new material, and I'm currently having good talks with Tony and the whole band. We have very much communication. And it's been 40 years [since TNT's formation]. But we're trying to bring the band back together and hopefully make one last tour of Europe and maybe America… I think we might wanna end the TNT chapter with dignity and do one last tour."

In April 2021, Harnell, who has been in and out of TNT several times throughout its four-decade existence, told "The Chuck Shute Podcast" that he didn't rule out returning to the band. "Ronni and I, contrary to popular belief, we talk often," he said. "Ronni's not a big technology guy, but he really loves FaceTime video. And it's kind of annoying, because I love him, but he'll call me early in the morning, 'cause he's overseas, so he'll call me early in the morning [for a] video chat, and I'm, like, in bed. But I love the guy. Whatever happens, we'll be on a beach someplace when we're in our 70s, laughing and hanging out. Most of the things that pushed us apart — again, contrary to popular belief — are business related," he continued. "I'll just leave it at that. 'Never say never' is a good way to put it [regarding a possible new TNT album]. And there might be a time and a place."

Harnell's most recent split with TNT took place in October 2017, less than a year and a half after he rejoined the group. He later described his relationship with TNT in an "Unphiltered" interview as "a very long marriage. I'm here [in New York], they're there [in Norway] — they're across the pond really far away. It's a very difficult situation to be in without having a very unified business organization, and no matter what I did, I could not get the thing unified. We were just on two totally separate not only continents physically, but mentally, psychologically, we were on two different continents as well."

Harnell said that he "really, really wanted" his last collaboration with TNT to work out. "In my opinion, this was gonna be it — we were gonna stay together until I didn't feel like singing anymore," he said. 'I was gonna do other things and do other projects and so forth, but my goal was that TNT would be my band for at least another five years, maybe 10 years or whatever, until it ran its course. So this was kind of an unexpected thing."

In a 2019 interview with "80's Glam Metalcast", Le Tekrø said that he was still on good terms with Harnell. "Definitely," he said. "We talk regularly and we're even discussing making a kind of Page/Plant album, a Harnell/Le Tekrø album, which could maybe lead into something in the future. But I think me and Tony Harnell — I'm speaking not on behalf of him, but on behalf of myself — we need a different playground to do more extensive hard rock with other ideas, whereas TNT is more limited to a [specific] sound. You see what I mean? So, we're definitely buddies, and that will last forever. We don't hate each other, and we never did. That was never the [case]."

TNT's latest studio album, "XIII", came out in June 2018 via Frontiers Music Srl. The band's thirteenth LP was TNT's first to feature vocalist Baol Bardot Bulsara, who replaced Harnell. Baol is a Spanish singer whose debut with TNT happened in front of 8,000 fans in November 2017 when the band opened for German hard rock legends the SCORPIONS in Oslo, Norway.

In celebration of their 40th Anniversary (1984-2024), legendary British AOR rock band, FM, have released their fourteenth studio album, Old Habits Die Hard. In celebration, the band share a visualizer for the song, "Whatever It Takes". Watch below:





Following 2022’s Thirteen album, Old Habits Die Hard was delayed slightly by keyboard player Jem Davis’ cancer diagnosis (thankfully he’s now received the all-clear) and then by the sudden passing of FM’s founding guitarist Chris Overland (Steve’s brother), which hit the band hard.




Over the past 12 months, during their extensive touring schedule, FM produced the album themselves and recorded the bulk of it at their own Dale View and Electric Pepperland recording studios.


Opening track and first single “Out Of The Blue” was a song that originated from keyboard player Jem Davis. Says Jem, “The band love the music of Toto and Foreigner and so I tried to put those influences into one track. ‘Once Steve got involved and started singing it, I knew that we were onto something special.”


“'Out Of The Blue' is a song that old school FM fans will really latch on to,” says Steve. “So far, the reaction to the track has been amazing.”


“Whatever It Takes” and “No Easy Way Out” are typical FM melodic tracks and could fit seamlessly on to one of the bands earlier classic albums. Bass player and founder member Merv Goldsworthy explains, “No Easy way Out has the big typical FM chorus. It’s a massive hook. The kind of thing that we’ve become known for. It’s one of my favourites on the album.”


The heavier side of the album is represented by “Lost,” “Another Day in My World,” and “Leap of Faith.” Whilst more hard hitting, these songs embody the catchy melodic choruses that FM are known for.


“Cut Me Loose,” “California,” and “Blue Sky Mind” are poppier, more feelgood tracks. “Blue Sky Mind” was conceived again by keyboard player Jem Davis who originally wrote the song about his experience with his cancer diagnosis. ‘That song really was therapy for me. It was important that I got it out of my system and into music,” says Jem.


“Black Water” is a brooding, bluesy track that grows and grows. ‘This is a real favourite of mine,” says FM guitarist, Jim Kirkpatrick. “I could hear Brian May playing the guitar solo, so I pulled out my Brian May signature guitar and tried to do my best impersonation of him. Hopefully, I got somewhere close.”


Signed CDs can be ordered here. All other streaming and physical orders can be found here.





Tracklisting:


"Out Of The Blue"
"Don't Need Another Heartache"
"No Easy Way Out"
"Lost"
"Whatever It Takes"
"Black Water"
"Cut Me Loose"
"Leap of Faith"
"California"
"Another Day On My World"
"Blue Sky Mind"


Japan bonus track:


"Whatever It Takes" (Acoustic)


“Don’t Need Another Heartache” video:





"Out Of The Blue" video:





FM previously announced their “Old Habits Die Hard” 40th Anniversary Tour. Find the complete tour itinerary and ticket links at fmofficial.com.





Band lineup:


Steve Overland – Vocals, Guitar
Merv Goldsworthy – Bass Guitar
Pete Jupp – Drums
Jem Davis – Keyboards
Jim Kirkpatrick – Guitar


(Photo - Paul Stuart Hollingsworth)

Nightrage is back with their third single, "Persevere Through Adversity", from their upcoming 10th album, Remains Of A Dead World.


With the great help of their past bandmate and now producer, sound engineer, Fotis Benardo (Rotting Christ, Septicflesh, Sakis Tolis, Nightfall, On Thorns I lay, Suicidal Angels) at his Devasoundz studio in Athens Greece, and with his great producing skills, Remains Of A Dead World is a mixture of all the things that makes Nightrage a beast of integrity, they prove to be one of the last remaining true masters of the melodic death metal genre, fully unstoppable riffing, and great hooks with bigger than life guitar melodies with brutal vocals that represents the honesty and pure musical delivery, that comes straight from the heart.


The album has been mastered by a great friend of the band George Nerantzis (Abbath, Dark Funeral, Pain Of Salvation, Sakis Tolis) and his great skills gave the album a huge sound with clarity, power and analog flavor.




About the new single they had this to say:


Magnus; "When we write songs for an album, we want to have variation in tempo and dynamics but also in keys so that it is not only songs that go in E, or in our case C that we tune down to. Persevere is in Bb, so we dropped two steps down from C, which means that the song has a slightly different feel to how Nightrage usually sounds. I think it turned out very well. Heavy as hell!"


George; "Persevere Through Adversity' is one of my favorite songs in the album. It's a really diverse song with many dark, brutal, aggressive, and at the same time melodic elements. It's new and fresh, but always with the Nightrage signature sound. This is not one of our typical songs, and I am sure that it will be a great surprise. The song talks about the fact that we never stop learning and becoming better. Learning from our life experiences, fixing mistakes that we have done in the past and have harmed us. This life is a great journey to always improving, and never ever letting down yourself. Being always an eternal student, having your eyes open and listening. Enjoy!"





The new album will be released on May 31 via Despotz Records worldwide as CD, LP and digital.





Tracklisting:


"Euphoria Within Chaos"
"Persevere Through Adversity"
"Nocturnal Thorns"
"A Throne Of Melancholy"
"Dark Light"
"Echoes Of Broken Words"
"Deadliest Sin"
"Pierce The Soul"
"Obey The Hand"
"Remains Of A Dead World"


"A Throne Of Melancholy" video;





"Euphoria Within Chaos" video:

In a new interview with "Coffee With Ola", the YouTube program hosted by Ola Englund, the Swedish guitarist, record producer and owner of Solar guitars, GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash was asked what he is listening to nowadays. The 58-year-old musician, who is promoting his upcoming blues covers album "Orgy Of The Damned", responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  "Oh, shit. All kinds of shit. I obviously have been listening to a lot of blues as of lately, but mostly old blues. But there's a lot of great new stuff that's out there. I mean, Derek Trucks isn't new anymore, but still really brilliant. There's a guy I always mention, 'cause he's really good, named Chris Buck who I'm friends with. He puts stuff on Instagram, and it's really awesome. There's a lot of players all around. A lot of 'em, I don't even know their names, but they're fucking mindblowing. Social media has opened up a whole new world of players out there."

He continued: "But as far as bands are concerned, mostly the stuff that I've been listening to are older bands with new records. AC/DC had a new record. That was really good. QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE's got a new record. I love GOJIRA; it's great. The new METALLICA is fucking amazing. So there's a lot of new stuff in that vein. And then as far as new bands are concerned, I think DIRTY HONEY was pretty cool. I think that was a really good new rock band that sort of has that old school style that's actually pretty genuine. I'm trying to think if there's anything else that I'm forgetting that's come across my thing."

Asked if there are any metal bands in particular, other than GOJIRA, that he has been listening to, Slash said: "Not new ones, no." As for which old ones he still listens to, he said: "Yeah, well, GOJIRA's one, METALLICA's one. The last MEGADETH record was cool. I think that's about it for me at the moment."

Slash previously described GOJIRA as "pretty incredible."

"Orgy Of The Damned" will be released on May 17 on Gibson Records. The LP features guest appearances by AC/DC's Brian Johnson, AEROSMITH's Steven Tyler, Iggy Pop, Chris Stapleton, THE BLACK CROWES' Chris Robinson, ZZ TOP's Billy F. Gibbons, BAD COMPANY's Paul Rodgers, Demi Lovato and Gary Clark Jr.Slash is backed on the album by prior collaborators Johnny Griparic (bass) and Teddy Andreadis (keyboards),as well as drummer Michael Jerome and singer/guitarist Tash Neal.

This summer, Slash will bring his brand-new "S.E.R.P.E.N.T." festival to cities across the U.S. throughout 2024. S.E.R.P.E.N.T. is an anagram and stands for Solidarity, Engagement, Restore, Peace, Equality N' Tolerance. The festival is a celebration of the blues, featuring an all-star line-up that will vary. On all dates, Slash will perform alongside his blues band featuring bassist Johnny Griparic, keyboardist Teddy "ZigZag" Andreadis, drummer Michael Jerome and singer/guitarist Tash Neal.

Slash formed the "S.E.R.P.E.N.T." festival to bring fans together to celebrate the spirit of the blues, and to perform with other blues artists he admires who share his love of the genre. Slash also has a strong desire to give back to charities that he has supported over the years, as well as to help lift marginalized communities that share his restorative focus of elevating lives for the benefit of all. A portion of the proceeds from each VIP package and "S.E.R.P.E.N.T." festival ticket sold will directly benefit the following charities that Slash has selected: The Equal Justice Initiative, Know Your Rights Camp, The Greenlining Institute and War Child. "S.E.R.P.E.N.T." festival has partnered with Plus1.org to support these charitable endeavors.

Joining Slash at various stops on the tour will be WARREN HAYNES BAND, Keb' Mo', Larkin Poe, Christone "Kingfish" Ingram, Samantha Fish, ZZ Ward, Robert Randolph, Eric Gales and Jackie Venson.

The trek will kick off on July 5 in Bonner, Montana and wrap up on August 17 in Grand Prairie, Texas.

Although Slash's upcoming LP will be his second under the "Slash" banner, he has released a handful of albums with his long-running band SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS, in which he is joined by ALTER BRIDGE frontman Myles Kennedy.

In February, Slash resumed touring with SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS.

SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS' latest album, "4", was released in February 2022 via Gibson Records in partnership with BMG.

Vince Neil took a spill as he lost his balance on stage during MÖTLEY CRÜE's show in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

The incident occurred during the third song of MÖTLEY CRÜE's set Friday night (May 3) at the Hard Rock Hotel & Casino. As Neil's bandmates launched into the opening chords of the CRÜE classic "Wild Side" — which originally appeared on the 1987 album "Girls, Girls, Girls" — Vince began hopping over to the right side of the stage before apparently losing his footing and falling to the floor.

Four separate fan-filmed videos of Neil's tumble can be seen below.

This is not the first time Neil has fallen on stage. Back in October 2021, he reportedly broke his ribs after walking to the front of the stage while performing with his solo band at the Monsters On The Mountain festival at LeConte Center in Pigeon Forge, Tennessee. With his guitar strapped around him, Neil was encouraging the crowd to clap along while playing the 1989 MÖTLEY CRÜE hit "Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)" when he suddenly fell and dropped out of the camera's view almost instantly. TMZ later reported that there was a small gap between the speaker and the stage that Neil didn't notice. His roadie and a security guy helped him get to his feet, and Vince "limped away."

During a 2014 interview with SouthFlorida.com, Neil was asked if he has a daily regimen to stay in shape while on the road. "You're running for two hours on stage every night. That pretty much keeps you in shape," he replied. "It is a regimen. Usually on the day of the concert, I'll get to the [venue] around 4 p.m. We always have a meet-and-greet at 5:30 p.m. Then I go relax on my bus until 8 p.m. I get dressed and I'm onstage at 9. That's the way it is every day."

In a 2011 interview with the San Antonio Metal Music Examiner, Vince talked about the differences between singing for two hours on stage every night and athletes and ordinary people running 26.2 miles for two hours. "Yeah, it's two different kind of marathons," he said. "I use a pedometer, and I run just about 10-12 miles a night. It's different, though. One thing that's different is you're singing. And you do stop and talk to the crowd. But what these athletes do, it's amazing."

MÖTLEY CRÜE currently has more than a dozen North American shows scheduled for the rest of 2024, including stadium, arena and festival dates. The band is also expected to play a "secret" club show at New York's Bowery Ballroom on Monday (May 6) under the name "1981."

MÖTLEY CRÜE's new single, "Dogs Of War", was made available on April 26 via the band's new deal with Nashville's Big Machine Records.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's last studio album was 2008's "Saints Of Los Angeles", which was followed by a 2009 "Greatest Hits" compilation.

In 2018, MÖTLEY CRÜE recorded four new songs for "The Dirt" movie, including the single "The Dirt (Est. 1981) (Feat. Machine Gun Kelly)", "Ride With The Devil", "Crash And Burn" and the band's own spin on Madonna's "Like A Virgin".

John 5 joined MÖTLEY CRÜE in the fall of 2022 as the replacement for the band's co-founding guitarist Mick Mars. Mick announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE in October 2022 as a result of worsening health issues.



Motley Crue - Wild Side - Hard Rock - Atlantic City NJ

Posted by Joseph Lock on Saturday, May 4, 2024



Motley Crue at Hard Rock Live
Wild Side
Featuring John 5 on guitar

Posted by Norman Tierney on Saturday, May 4, 2024

SONIC UNIVERSE, the new project featuring LIVING COLOUR vocalist Corey Glover and ADRENALINE MOB guitarist Mike Orlando, performed an acoustic set earlier today (Friday, May 3) at the WDHA Parking Lot Party in Cedar Knolls, New Jersey. Video of the band's appearance can be seen below.

SONIC UNIVERSE, whose lineup is completed by bassist Booker King and drummer Taykwuan Jackson, will release its debut album, "It Is What It Is", on May 10 via earMUSIC. The 10-song effort was produced, engineered, and mixed by Orlando at his Sonic Stomp Studios.

Complemented by the rhythm section of King and Jackson, Glover and Orlando soar over what the singer called "a tight, tight, tight groove."

Glover continued: "The whole idea is that in order to make something new, you have to destroy the old. We do everything we can to change things, but the only way that you can change things is to believe."

"Right now / Right here/ Is all that it is / We lie / We try / It's all we can give."

"It Is What It Is" is Glover and SONIC UNIVERSE giving their all to make a break with the past and create something new and honest.

"The band is killing it on this," Glover concluded. "It's a real gut-punch kind of sound."

"It Is What It Is" track listing:

01. I Am
02. It Is What It Is
03. Turn A Blind Eye
04. My Desire
05. Whisper To A Scream
06. Higher
07. Life
08. Come What May
09. I Want It All
10. Beautiful Disunity

When the collaboration between Glover and Orlando was first announced in 2019, Orlando described the project's musical direction in an interview with "Talking Metal" as "just straight-up rock. It's heavy rock. Of course, it's just one hundred percent chock-full of Corey Glover and my guitar styles. [It's] bluesy [and] funky. There's a little RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE in there. There's a little bit of soul in there. All the stuff that I love kind of just melded into one melting pot. It's just a conglomeration of styles all melded into one. There's no one particular thing that it screams. It's just heavy, hard rock kick in you know what. [Laughs]"

Describing the upcoming album as "one of the best things I have ever done," Mike said that Corey "is not only the coolest cat going, but he is one of the greatest singers on this earth. It's such an amazing experience to play with Corey and to be doing an album with him."

He added: "It's everything you would imagine from Corey, and I add my element to it, which is different than I've ever done. It's not ADRENALINE MOB, it's not SONIC STOMP — this is something really cool and different for me, so it's even that much more special for me."

Orlando and Glover played their first show together in September 2019 at the Iridium in New York City.

Back in 2016, Mike was injured in an ADRENALINE MOB road accident that resulted in the death of the band's bassist, David Zablidowsky.

At the time of the accident, ADRENALINE MOB was touring in support of its third studio album, "We The People", which was released in June 2017 via Century Media.



How do we top this?! Our First Parking Lot Party of the season! Corey Glover, Sonic Universe!

Posted by 105.5 WDHA on Friday, May 3, 2024

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Kobra And The Lotus vocalist Kobra Paige has released a new single, "HOTT.". Check out the official video below.


Kobra: "I’ve been waiting to light a fire under some asses w/ this song for two years.
'HOTT.' is about navigating our sense of self-worth in an extraordinarily convoluted era of social media domination.


Crippling anxiety, increasing levels of low self-esteem, next level bullying, body dysmorphia, compare and despair culture, amplified narcissistic behaviours, competition for validation. These are all parts of human nature but not the parts that were ever meant to be the loudest.




I am personally still working on figuring out how to engage in social media in a healthy way and not let it disempower me or challenge my sense of self. Time for change, time to shake this shit up, and time to have more conversations about it. Let’s re-anchor in our own authentic truth. I invite you to come with me, in my new music video for 'HOTT., as I check myself into Dr. Worthlove’s Center for Self-Confidence, a medical clinic that is truly one of a kind. Enjoy!!"


"HOTT." is available via digital platforms found here.





"HOTT." is featured on Kobra Paige’s forthcoming debut solo album, Like No Other. It was produced by Grammy Award winner Brian Howes (Skillet, Linkin Park, Simple Plan). It is mixed by Grammy Award winner Neal Avron (Machine Gun Kelly, Twenty One Pilots, Yungblud) and mastered by Grammy nominated Chris Gehringer at Sterling Sound (Miley Cyrus, Muse, Drake).