German power metallers GRAVE DIGGER have entered Principal Studios (KREATOR, IN EXTREMO, GRAVE DIGGER) in Senden, Germany to begin recording their new album for a July 11 release via Napalm Records.

The first clip from the studio can be seen below.

GRAVE DIGGER's latest album, "Clash Of The Gods", was released on August 31 , 2012 in Europe and September 4, 2012 in North America via Napalm Records. A six-song mini-CD, "Home At Last", preceded the full-length effort on July 27, 2012 in Europe and August 7, 2012 in North America.

"The Clans Are Still Marching", the latest DVD from GRAVE DIGGER, entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 56 (German chart rules allow music DVDs to enter album charts).

HELLYEAH has parted ways with guitarist Greg Tribbett (MUDVAYNE) and bassist Bob "Zilla" Kakaha (DAMAGEPLAN). A replacement bassist in the shape of Kyle Sanders (BLOODSIMPLE) has been secured.

In the comments section on Facebook, HELLYEAH stated about the split with Tribbett and Kakaha: "Things happen for necessary reasons.

"It's so easy for people to assume or makeup reasons for things.

"Don't ASSUME anything!

"The reasons for this parting of ways was for the better good. When you hear the new record, you'll understand."

HELLYEAH's fourth studio album, "Blood For Blood", will be released on June 10 via Eleven Seven Music. The CD 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.

According to a press release, "Blood For Blood" is "a welcome return to form. It leaves a mark, thanks to songs like the angular, vengeful 'DMF', a song birthed by the sort of anger that can't be faked; it will leave you wondering who pissed these guys off. 'Gift' is dirty, rowdy rock with equal parts groove and swagger, but also possessed of the sort of punk rock energy that would make MOTÖRHEAD fans turns their heads. Then there is moodier, more contemplative fare like 'Moth' or 'Hush', which connect on an emotional, cellular level, proving that you can be incredibly heavy in ways other than loud and fast. The album sounds like a recharged HELLYEAH, taken up many notches." "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 The first single off "Blood For Blood", "Sangre Per Sangre (Blood For Blood)" will hit rock radio in April and will be available for sale, along with the metal radio track "Cross To Bier (Cradle of Bones)" on March 25 on all digital music platforms. The band will hit the road in the USA this spring.

In a recent interview, drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott (formerly of PANTERA and DAMAGEPLAN) stated about HELLYEAH's plans for the next CD: "Everything [Kevin has] ever done is great. I feel like he really made Ozzy sound fresh again, [on 2007's] 'Black Rain' especially. Sonically, [Kevin's] records are unbeatable, and he gets the best out of every band.

"We produced our last three albums ourselves, and we really feel like we did a good job on all that. But we feel it's time to have an outside ear, somebody to give us an extra opinion; to be the sixth member of the band, so to speak. That extra dude that drags everything out of you."

Vinnie also revealed that the new record's overall sound would "continue in the direction" of 2012's "Band Of Brothers", which represented the first time that the members of the band fully embraced their musical roots.

"The first two records were pretty experimental for us," Vinnie explained. "We really stepped outside of the box and did a lot of things that we couldn't do in PANTERA or MUDVAYNE or NOTHINGFACE; songs like 'Alcohaulin' Ass' just wouldn't fly in those bands. It was really liberating to be able to do that, and touch on some rock and roll, some blues, almost country southern rock, stuff like that. But with 'Band Of Brothers', we really wanted to get back to our roots and felt like it was time for all of us to bring the different things we brought to our previous bands into HELLYEAH, and not be afraid of it."

HELLYEAH's first three albums were laid down in Dallas, Texas at Vinnie Paul Abbott's home studio, VP's Upstairs Studio.

HELLYEAH took part in last year's edition of Gigantour, the critically acclaimed package festival founded in 2005 by MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine. Also appearing on the bill were headliners MEGADETH, along with BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, DEVICE, NEWSTED and DEATH DIVISION.

"Band Of Brothers" sold 19,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 19 on The Billboard 200 chart.

ROB ZOMBIE frontman and namesake has posted "a few moments" from the band's upcoming concert DVD. He writes on his Instagram account: "Yes, I know the quality is bad. The DVD will look sweet!"

ROB ZOMBIE's DVD will feature footage that was filmed at the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Mayhem Festival performances in Houston and Dallas, Texas on August 3, 2013 and August 4, 2013, respectively.

In an interview with the Albany, New York radio station Q103, Rob stated about capturing the band's live show for a concert DVD: "[Doing a concert DVD] always seemed like a huge nuisance, truthfully. We had a live record and that took a million years to do. And a live DVD, for some reason to me, always seems like a nuisance, because after the show is done, I don't care. I don't want to relive it. I mean, a certain member of the band films every show and wants to watch it immediately after the show. And it aggravates the fuck out of me. Who gives a shit? The show is over, I don't care. I never wanna har about it again, I never wanna see it again. Like, I never watch anything — a TV show I've been on; I don't care. Once it's done, it's done. But I figured at least once we should film it."

He continued: "We've had so many big crazy stage shows over the last many, many years. And we never filmed anything with [Rob's former band] WHITE ZOMBIE back then. I mean, there's little clips here and there, like [footage from] Brazilian television or something…"

Zombie's fifth solo album, "Venomous Rat Regeneration Vendor", was released in April 2013 and entered the Billboard album chart at No. 7 with first-week sales of 34,000 copies.

The fourth PERSUADER album, "The Fiction Maze", was released in Europe on January 17 and in North America on January 21 through Inner Wound Recordings. Avalon/Marquee released the album in Japan on December 25.

"The Fiction Maze" is another step forward for PERSUADER as they constantly continue to develop their sound, songwriting skills and performance. PERSUADER describes the CD: "A lot of hard work was put into creating the perfect mix of everything we've done so far. We've expanded on the PERSUADER sound while keeping true to the core that is the band; heavy riffing, strong melodies, pounding rhythms and soaring vocals."

The mixing and mastering was handled by Ronnie Björnström (AEON, APOSTASY, BONE GNAWER) and the production fits the album really well, giving lots of space to the more aggressive side of the PERSUADER sound, but without losing the melodic parts in the process.

"The Fiction Maze" track listing:

01. One Lifetime02. War03. The Fiction Maze04. Deep In The Dark05. InSect06. Son Of Sodom07. Sent To The Grave08. Heathen09. Dagon Rising10. Worlds Collide11. Falling Faster

The "The Fiction Maze" title track can be streamed below.

"The Fiction Maze" can be ordered at the Inner Wound Recordings store (CD, vinyl, t-shirt bundle available) at innerwound.bigcartel.com.

A limited 12-inch double gatefold edition of "The Fiction Maze" was released on February 7.

PERSUADER is:

Jens Carlsson - VocalsFredrik Hedström - BassEmil Norberg - GuitarDaniel Sundbom - GuitarEfraim Juntunen - Drums

The official lyric video for the song "Scream For Silence" from Finnish metallers CHILDREN OF BODOM can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's eighth album, "Halo Of Blood", which sold 8,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD was made available on June 11 in North America via Nuclear Blast Records. The cover art was created by Sami Saramäki, who was responsible for the artwork on previous CHILDREN OF BODOM albums "Follow The Reaper", "Are You Dead Yet?" and "Hate Crew Deathroll".

CHILDREN OF BODOM's new album was recorded at Danger Johnny Studios in Helsinki. For the recording of the LP, CHILDREN OF BODOM has teamed up with recording engineer Mikko Karmila, who worked with the band on their fan-favorite albums "Hatebreeder", "Follow The Reaper" and "Hate Crew Deathroll", as well as Swedish producer Peter Tägtgren (MARDUK, AMON AMARTH), who oversaw production of both vocals and keyboards on the record. The album was mixed at Finnvox Studios in Helsinki.

CHILDREN OF BODOM will make its triumphant return to North America this February. The band has announced a six-week major market headlining tour that will kick off on February 14 in Quebec City, Quebec, Canada and hit 32 markets across the U.S. and Canada before wrapping with a two-night stand at New York City's Irving Plaza on March 28 and March 29. The tour will feature support from folk metal heroes TÝR and represents CHILDREN OF BODOM's first Stateside headlining run since the release of the band's new LP, "Halo Of Blood".

New York fans will have the opportunity to see two unique CHILDREN OF BODOM shows, a different set each night. In addition, 100 two-night packages are available for New York City which include one ticket for each evening, early entry to the venue both nights, an exclusive show poster and access to the VIP Balcony section.

PRONG has begun mixing its new studio album, "Ruining Lives", for a tentative mid-2014 release via Long Branch Records/SPV.

The cover artwork for the CD can be seen below.

PRONG's last album, "Carved Into Stone", sold around 1,700 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 13 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.

"Carved Into Stone" was released on April 24, 2012 in North America via Long Branch Records/SPV. The CD was recorded with producer Steve Evetts, who has previously worked with THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, SYMPHONY X, SEPULTURA and HATEBREED, among others. The cover artwork was created by Vance Kelly (DOWN, THE SWORD).

Fan-filmed video footage of former NIGHTWISH singer Tarja Turunen's February 13 performance at Melkweg in Amsterdam, The Netherlands can be seen below.

Tarja's latest album, "Colours In The Dark", came out in Europe on August 23, 2013 via earMUSIC. The CD was made available in North America on August 27, 2013 through Eagle Rock imprint Armoury Records.

The cover artwork for "Colours In The Dark" was created by Dirk Rudolph.

Despite her light and shiny personality, Tarja's music has always been dressed "in black" — the color of heavy rock, of mystery and elegance.

With Tarja's new album, fans will find out what happens when a splice of color is added to the mix. Or — better said — when the full-color spectrum enters the picture it does not cover the black but makes it shine through with many emotions and landscapes.

Mixed and mastered by Tim Palmer (PEARL JAM, U2) in Austin, Texas, the songs on "Colours In The Dark" do not shy away from taking a risk and surprising musical turns, introducing new sounds and new musical atmospheres. Still, they maintain a heaviness that will surely bring a big smile to the hardest of rockers. With its grand orchestra and choir arrangements, Tarja's next milestone emphasizes once again the impressive vocal range of the Finnish artist and shows her artistic growth.

Video footage of TESTAMENT's first rehearsal with returning bassist Steve DiGiorgio (SADUS, DEATH, ICED EARTH) can be seen below.

TESTAMENT last month announced the departure of bassist Greg Christian. DiGiorgio has rejoined TESTAMENT as Christian's replacement.

Steve was previously a member of TESTAMENT on "The Gathering" (1999) and "First Strike Still Deadly" (2001) albums.

Christian was forced to leave the band's North American tour with LAMB OF GOD and KILLSWITCH ENGAGE in November 2013 for "personal reasons." Filling in for him was EXODUS bassist Jack Gibson.

"Dark Roots Of Thrash", a DVD/2CD release documenting TESTAMENT's sold-out headlining performance at the Paramount in Huntington, New York this past February, was made available on October 18, 2013 (Europe) and October 29, 2013 (North America) via Nuclear Blast Records. "Dark Roots Of Thrash" was produced by Get Hammered Productions, directed by Tommy Jones (DEATH ANGEL, KATAKLYSM, SOILWORK) and mixed by Juan Urteaga (VILE, EXODUS, SADUS, MACHINE HEAD). It captures a total of 19 live tracks with countless cams onstage and high above the audience, plus a special moshpit cam that makes you feel like you're a part of the show.

The official lyric video for "Artificial Light", a brand new song from Seattle-based Christian metallers DEMON HUNTER, can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's upcoming album, "Extremist", which will be released on March 18 via Solid State.

DEMON HUNTER's sixth album, "True Defiance", sold 12,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 36 on The Billboard 200 chart. The record arrived in stores on April 10, 2011 via Solid State Records. The CD was produced by Aaron Sprinkle (ANBERLIN, EMERY) and mixed by Jason Suecof (ALL THAT REMAINS, TRIVIUM).

"True Defiance" was released on limited-edition vinyl on July 31, 2012 via Solid State. Limited to a one-time pressing of 1,000 copies, the double LP, double gatefold package features stunning large-scale versions of DEMON HUNTER frontman and graphic artist Ryan Clark's beautiful artwork — making this a must-have for DEMON HUNTER fans and vinyl collectors.

DEMON HUNTER made headlines last year for its purported association with the Navy SEAL who killed Osama Bin Laden. In an article in Esquire, the anonymous SEAL said: "I wore my DEMON HUNTER patch on every mission. I wore it when I blasted Bin Laden."

Following the excellent response to its "Via Obscura" EP and "The Holy Frail" full-length, HATEFX — the Fresno/Livermore, California-based metal band featuring guitarist Glen Alvelais (FORBIDDEN, TESTAMENT, LD/50) — unleashes its third offering, "Under Destruction", featuring its most powerful lineup to date. Boasting members from California, Europe and South America, bringing influences from around the world, HATEFX launches "Under Destruction" independently this week. The album is available now via iTunes, Amazon, Spotify, and other online music stores. Alvelais is one of the original guitarists of the Bay Area thrash band FORBIDDEN. Glen recorded on the band's debut album, "Forbidden Evil" and "Raw Evil: Live At The Dynamo". In 1992, Glen was recruited as the lead guitarist of TESTAMENT to replace Alex Skolnick. He recorded on "Return To The Apocalyptic City" and "Demonic".

"When I first saw HATEFX play live, I was still a spectator," says Glen. "I was impressed by how huge they sounded as a three-piece band. Not only did I get hooked on the grooves, but by their overall show. Shortly after seeing them live, [HATEFX frontman Gabriel 'G' Almazán] contacted me about doing a solo on their upcoming CD and I jumped at the chance. The solo went so smoothly that in a matter of days we were talking about jamming together, which was a no-brainer to me. I've jammed with a lot of great players and bands and HATEFX has that top notch pro-level mentality that I can really appreciate." HATEFX's music video for the first single, "Play It By Fear", can be seen below. Directed by Juan Pablo Arriagada with cinematography and additional footage by Enik Sleastak, the clip includes stunning professional live footage spliced with a live action storyline depicting actual events that tie in with the lyrical content of the song, dealing with extortion, manipulation and blackmail. HATEFX portrays metal with a distinctive factorization of elements. A mix of solid grooves and versatile sonic textures with effective songwriting, the band is often labelled as experimental metal, but its sound also includes thrash, progressive and even industrial elements. HATEFX continues to build a solid following with growing social media numbers, strategically planning their live appearances, ready with renewed energy and will be storming a number of important events this year. HATEFX is:

Gabriel "G" Almazán (vocals/guitars)Glen Alvelais (guitars)Dan Sablan (drums)Aaron Richardson (bass)

AHOLA, the new "vital rock act" launched by Jarkko Ahola of the Finnish metal groups TERÄSBETONI and NORTHERN KINGS, will release its sophomore album, "Tug Of War", on March 21 via Playground Music. The CD's new single, "Still Metal", can be streamed in the YouTube clip below.

"Our first recording went well and we raised the bar high then, so there was some work to be done to make 'Tug Of War' even better, but with a good production and good songs we managed to record every rocker's and metalhead's wet dream, and a music lover's must-buy," says Ahola.

AHOLA's debut album, "Stoneface", entered the official chart in Finland at position No. 41. Released on April 25, 2012, the CD was recorded at Headline Studio in Tampere. AHOLA in August 2011 announced the addition of guitarist Antti Karhumaa to the group's ranks.

According to a press release, AHOLA "has a suitable mix of past and present — which is always an essential part of rock music. The band's musical core consists of hit tunes, feeling and of course the skill to write and play true and powerful rock music, wherein the authenticity and emotion are relevant, leaving the vain posing to others."

Commented Ahola: "AHOLA is something I've been working on for a long time.

"From the beginning I've written rock songs in English, but since being a musician, you find yourself doing something you did never expect like singing and playing in a huge act called TERÄSBETONI or participating a cool project called NORTHERN KINGS. I guess that's part of the fascination!

"Anyway, still riff-based rock being the heart of my musical world, I wanted to add some spice to the soup and do something that I wasn't so familiar with: super tightness, speed… a flavor of punk rock, you might say."

He continued, "The way I want to see AHOLA's music is: songs are, I dare say, approachable with catchy choruses but when giving the songs a deeper thought, loaded with layers you can dig into. You can hear echoes from classic rock of the '70s, alternative rock and metal of the '90s and last decade, pop music in general, that punk rock I mentioned and… well, listen to yourselves."

AHOLA is:

Jari "Jamo" Laitinen: BassJarkko Ahola: Vocals, GuitarAntti Mäkelä: DrumsAntti Karhumaa: Guitar

For more information, visit the AHOLA Facebook page.

SAVN, the Norwegian gothic/folk metal band featuring MIDNATTSOL singer Carmen Elise Espenaes (the younger sister of LEAVES' EYES singer Liv Kristine) and two members of THE SINS OF THY BELOVED, Stig Johansen and Anders Thue — will release its debut album later this year via CDR Records. The CD was recorded at Mastersound Studio in Germany and will feature a guest appearance by Liv Kristine. The cover artwork was created by designer Jan Yrlund (Darkgrove).

Songtitles set to appear on SAVN's debut album include

* "Hang On""Longing For Love"* "The Demons In Me"* "Now Or Never"* "Musical Silence"* "All I Want"* "'I Am Free"* "Sorrowful"* "Lengselens Hånd"* "Hang On (Growling Version)" * "The Demons In Me (Growling Version)"

Check out audio samples in the YouTube clip below.

The official lyric video for the song "Arcane Montane" from Austin, Texas metal luminaries THE SWORD can be seen below. The track is taken from the band's fourth album, "Apocryphon", which sold nearly 17,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 17 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was produced and engineered by J. Robbins (CLUTCH, JAWBOX) at Magpie Cage Studios and features cover art by famed comic book artist J.H. Williams III (Batwoman, Promethea).

Asked about the band's decision to work with J. Robbins on "Apocryphon" after self-producing two records and then working with Matt Bayles, guitarist Kyle Shutt told AltPress.com, "We're all huge CLUTCH fans, and we know those guys real well. [James] did two of their last three records, and those sound great, so we figured it was a no-brainer. We called him up and he was into it. He saw our live show at a club in Baltimore on the tour before we came here so he could get a feel of the kind of show we put on because we wanted to make an album that sounds like we do live in a club. And it was great. It was a real speedy process."

On the topic of the musical direction of the new album, Shutt said, "It is a reflection of everything that we [have gone] through and the lessons we learned. We then deal with these situations metaphorically in our lyrics. This record is just 10 banging hard rockers. There's no real 'stick-out' thrash song, or, like, this one is the ballad. I don't think there's going to be any instrumental songs on this record, either, so that'll be a first for us. It's just 10 kick-ass rock songs."

Regarding the subject matter covered in the new songs' lyrics, Shutt said, "There are lyrical themes that weave in and out of the songs, but there's no story or anything like that. With 'Warp Riders', J.D. [guitarist/vocalist John Cronise] had already written [the story] and now he [doesn't] have the time to sit down and write another book. We had the idea to make a comic book for 'Warp Riders', but we had some really poor management at the time, so nothing really came together with that and it was going to cost so much money that it never saw the light of day. It was just a nice thing we did. Now we're moving on to other things."

Death metal veterans CANNIBAL CORPSE will enter Audiohammer Studios in Sanford, Florida this coming weekend with producer Mark Lewis (ARSIS, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, WHITECHAPEL, DEVILDRIVER, DEICIDE, SIX FEET UNDER) to begin recording their new album for a tentative summer release via Metal Blade Records.

In a recent interview, CANNIBAL CORPSE bassist Alex Webster stated about the band's decision to work with Lewis on the new CD: "We really like a lot of stuff he's done.

"We did three great records [2006's 'Kill', 2009's 'Evisceration Plague' and 2012's 'Torture'] with my good friend Erik Rutan (HATE ETERNAL). He's one of the best. We felt like, 'Man, we've done three awesome records with him. Let's try doing something different.' Not because we are displeased with what he's done — he did a fantastic job — but we just felt like mixing it up.

"We've been working with Erik since 2005. We thought, 'that's a good eight years, let's give Mark a try for a little while and see how that goes."

CANNIBAL CORPSE's twelfth studio album, "Torture", sold 9,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 38 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous CD, "Evisceration Plague", also opened with 9,600 units to land at No. 66. That was more than 50 percent higher than the opening tally of CANNIBAL CORPSE's 2006 CD, "Kill", which entered the chart at No. 170 after shifting more than 6,000 copies.

Metal Blade Records last year released picture discs from the band's expansive catalog of releases ("Eaten Back To Life", "Butchered At Birth", "Tomb Of The Mutilated", "The Bleeding", "Vile", "Gallery Of Suicide", "Bloodthirst", "Gore Obsessed", "The Wretched Spawn", "Kill", "Evisceration Plague", "Torture"). A total of 12 pictures discs were released, covering all of the band's full-length studio albums, some of which had never been released on picture disc.

CANNIBAL CORPSE was selected for induction in the Buffalo Music Hall Of Fame as a member of the Class of 2013. CANNIBAL CORPSE was the latest addition to the Hall Of Fame, which also includes Buffalo natives the GOO GOO DOLLS, Billy Sheehan, 10,000 MANIACS, and many more. The Class Of 2013 was inducted into the Buffalo Music Hall Of Fame at its 30th-anniversary induction gala, which was held October 3, 2013 at the Tralf Music Hall in Buffalo.

TRIVIUM's February 2 concert at O2 Academy Brixton in London, England was professionally filmed for possible DVD release.

Speaking to Dave "Chippy" Chipchase of "The Metal Gods" rock show the day after the London gig, TRIVIUM guitarist Corey Beaulieu stated (see video below): "[The London gig] was amazing. Sold out. The crowd was amazing. We filmed it. [Co-headliners] KILLSWITCH [ENGAGE] and us, the same company filmed both our shows, so hopefully, possibly we might put it out as a live DVD at some point. We got the footage and the cool stage production and all that stuff, so hopefully everything turns out really well that we can out it out, 'cause fans seem to really want live DVD stuff."

TRIVIUM's new album, "Vengeance Falls", made Top 10 chart debuts in Japan, Australia, Germany and Austria as well as a Top 15 debut in Canada and a Top 25 debut in the United Kingdom. This marks the acclaimed metallers second consecutive Top 15 debut in the U.S. and highest-career debuts around the globe — including a No. 2 debut in Japan.

"Vengeance Falls" sold 17,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The record — which was produced by David Draiman (DISTURBED, DEVICE) — arrived in stores on October 15, 2013 via Roadrunner.

TRIVIUM's previous CD, "In Waves", opened with 22,000 units to land at No. 13 — the highest U.S. chart entry of the band's career. The group's 2008 effort, "Shogun", premiered with just under 24,000 copies to debut at No. 23. The effort followed up "The Crusade", which registered a first-week tally of 31,000 copies in October 2006 to enter the chart at No. 25.

TRIVIUM's "Strife" video was filmed in July 2013 at Studio One in Orlando and was directed by Ramon Boutviseth, who has previously worked with NONPOINT, DARKEST HOUR, INCUBUS and ALL THAT REMAINS, among others.

TRIVIUM recently finished touring North America with DEVILDRIVER.

"The Wolves Die Young", the new video from Finnish melodic metallers SONATA ARCTICA, can be seen below. The clip was filmed in January at Sibelius House in Lahti, Finland and was produced by Patric Ullaeus of Revolver Film Company, who has previously worked with DIMMU BORGIR, LACUNA COIL, IN FLAMES, SONIC SYNDICATE and KAMELOT, among others.

Commented SONATA ARCTICA frontman Tony Kakko: "'The Wolves Die Young' was pretty much born to be a single. And it is. It also paved the road for the rest of the album. Set a mood in a way. It just felt real good to start with. 2014 is a year of a wolf." "The Wolves Die Young" is taken from SONATA ARCTICA's eighth studio album, "Pariah's Child", which will be released on March 28 via Nuclear Blast. The cover artwork for the CD can be seen below.

"The Wolves Die Young" was released as a single on February 7. It is available digitally and on CD.

"Pariah's Child" track listing:

01. The Wolves Die Young02. Running Lights03. Take One Breath04. Cloud Factory05. Blood06. What Did You Do In The War, Dad?07. Half A Marathon Man08. X Marks The Spot09. Love10. Larger Than Life

Commented Tony Kakko: "There are some instant SONATA 'greatest-hits' songs there, which feels good.

"I think we reached the result we had in mind, each of us in our own field.

"We went on to create the next SONATA ARCTICA power metalesque album and I think we achieved it adequately.

"I have to say that I had drifted pretty far away from those 'days of thunder,' that speedy, happy-go-lucky attitude.

"I was happy to notice this style can still make me smile. It's good. Music has to do that to me. It also shows the other older songs in a totally new light for me.

"I can now understand and appreciate why the fans enjoy what we did in the early days."

Regarding the new CD title and cover artwork, Kakko said: "As always, it's pretty hard coming up with a name for the new baby. I tried to approach it from many angles; how this is our eighth album and how easy it would be to abuse that fact. All the symbolism of figure eight, eternity and so on. But that just did not feel right, as it's been done so many times. Then I started to think how we'd in ways abandoned our 'totem animal,' the wolf and all what comes with the territory.

"As the music on the album is bowing more towards the 'old' SONATA, meaning more power metal-style elements and wolves in many of the songs in one form or another, it was clear we need a wolf on the cover. An abandoned wolf. A pariah. Or pariah's child, actually. The new generation to bring the old logo back."

SONATA ARCTICA last August parted ways with bassist Marko Paasikoski and replaced him with Pasi Kauppinen (SILENT VOICES, ex-REQUIEM, WINTERBORN).

The band will launch a European headlining tour in support of "Pariah's Child" on April 10 in Eindhoven, The Netherlands.

SONATA ARTICA's latest album, "Stones Grow Her Name", was released in Europe on May 18, 2012 and in North America on May 22, 2012 via Nuclear Blast Records.

"Stones Grow Her Name" sold around 2,100 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 9 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.

"Rise Of The Elder Ones", the video for the title track of the new album from the Canadian extreme blackened death metal horde NECRONOMICON, can be seen below. The CD was released on June 10, 2013 (three days earlier in Europe) via Season Of Mist.

"Rise Of The Elder Ones" track listing:

01. Resurrected02. The End Of Times03. The Living God (Pharaoh Of Gods Part II)04. The Nuclear Chaos05. From Beyond06. Rise Of The Elder Ones07. The Valley Of The Lost Souls08. Celestial Being09. Dark Corners Of The Earth10. The Fallen

In a recent interview with Ghost Cult Magazine, NECRONOMICON guitarist/vocalist Rob "The Witch" Tremblay was asked if "Rise Of The Elder Ones" was a progression from the previous album. "It's not really a progression, but more the conclusion," he replied. "Where 'The Return Of The Witch' was the call, this one is the answer. 'Return' was built around the concept of femininity — or creation, if you prefer — the realization of the power in your own body and the opening of that power to create yourself first, and then to create changes all around afterwards; to influence and change your own destiny and beyond. 'Rise' is the awakening of that power, like a rebirth to see the world in a different way, and see what was hidden to the mortal eyes. Things start to happen on a different level, and not really on the rational side or the way everyone would have expected."

Regarding the songwriting process for"Rise Of The Elder Ones", Tremblay said: "The process is simple: I build the songs on my computer at home, like the guitar, bass and drum tracks plus a basic version of the orchestration, and then I give it to the rest of the guys and they work on it and add their touch. There was no real aim besides doing the continuation of 'Return', but better produced this time. Just doing what we're here to do; dark music for the ones who dare to be something other than a follower of the false system and god. Don't get me wrong, our music is really positive and I don't have time to waste on bashing the church and so on, because a lot of people already do it really well. We love to play live and tour and just go around seeing that people love our stuff. We don't do it for the critics, only for the fans. So we could say that's what we are aiming for."

On February 28, a THERION three-DVD package (limited edition including bonus DVD) called "Adulruna Redivia And Beyond" will be made available. The package will include two shows that were recorded live in Atlanta in 2011 and in Budapest 2007 as well as bonus material.

Commented the band: "The concert recorded in Hungary was a concert on the 'Adulruna Rediviva' 20th anniversary tour in December. The idea of the tour was to play the entire 'Theli' album plus a set consisting of songs that the fans had voted for on the band web page. Piotr Wawrzeniuk and our old friend Messiah Marcolin joined in to make this evening extra special. The concert in Atlanta was the band's only show in the USA since 2007 and was shot during the band's headline performance at the ProgPower USA festival 2011."

"Adulruna Redivia And Beyond" track listing:

DVD 1

01. The Rise Of Sodom And Gomorrah02. Son Of The Sun03. Midgård04. Asgård05. The Wine Of Aluqah06. Wisdom And The Cage07. Kali Yuga I08. Kali Yuga II09. Kali Yuga III10. Lemuria11. Via Nocturna12. An Arrow From The Sun13. Typhon14. Ginnungagap15. Preludium16. To Mega Therion17. Cults Of The Shadows18. In The Desert Of Set19. Interludium20. Nightside Of Eden21. Opus Eclipse22. Invocation Of Naamah23. The Siren Of The Woods24. Grand Finale / Postludium25. Adulruna Rediviva26. Black Funeral DVD 2 01. Sitra Ahra02. The Wine Of Aluqah03. Typhon04. Perennial Sophia05. Hellequin06. Nifelheim07. Clavicula Nox08. Voyage Of Gurdjieff09. Ljusalfheim10. Dies Irae11. Ginnungagap12. Kali Yuga III13. Call Of Dagon14. Siren Of the Woods15. The Wild Hunt16. Blood Of Kingu17. Lemuria18. Abraxas19. The Rise Of Sodom And Gomorrah20. To Mega Therion21. Quetzalcoatl Bonus DVD 3

01. 011 - An Adventure with Therion02. 011 - Documentary And Behind The Scenes03. Amazing Voice

Adds THERION: "011 is the name of a board game made by the italian game manufacturer Scribabs. In a very ambitious way to market the game, they made this fantastic short film, starring the band members as actors, playing their roles in the game. The main man behind the game and the film, Paolo Vallerga, is currently writing a novel on the story behind the game and there are even some plans for a movie."

"'Amazing Voice' is a Japanese TV program about great singers. This episode had Thomas Vikström as main focus and the TV team flew to Sweden to interview Thomas and record some live singing exclusively for the program."

Check out the "Kali Yuga Part I" performance clip from "Adulruna Redivia And Beyond" below. A new THERION studio album is scheduled for late 2014.

According to The Pulse Of Radio, all signs are pointing to QUEEN hitting the road with "American Idol" finalist Adam Lambert once again fronting the band. Co-founding guitarist Brian May, who leads QUEEN with drummer Roger Taylor, stopped short of announcing the tour, telling NME, "We've been talking to Adam Lambert. You know, we've already done some gigs with Adam, who is amazing. We are ongoing, we can't help it. I think we all protested too much in the sense when Freddie [Mercury] went and we didn't want to talk about it and didn't want to be QUEEN for a while. But after a while, you realize that people wanna hear the songs and see us do things. So, no matter what you call it, Roger and I do do stuff, and I think we'll be doing some more stuff this summer in fact, probably in the States."

He touched very briefly on the ongoing work completing some of Mercury's unfinished studio demos. "Some QUEEN magic is happening," he said. "I feel it in my bones. It's annoying to have to be so secretive, but I guess I have to, for now."

The Pulse Of Radio asked Roger Taylor if co-founding bassist John Deacon — who last played during the band's 1992 tribute to Freddie Mercury — will ever perform as part of QUEEN again. "John really has opted out of the whole music business thing," he said. "He was done, like, being around people. He wrote us a letter saying 'I totally approve of everything you do and, um, can I have my share?' I mean, he's still a partner, so, y'know, he's there in that sense."

QUEEN's 1981 "Greatest Hits" collection has made British chart history by becoming the first U.K. album to sell six million copies. ABBA's 1982 compilation "ABBA: Gold" trails behind QUEEN's comp, selling about 900,000 copies under "Greatest Hits".

MÖTLEY CRÜE held a press conference on January 28 at Hotel Roosevelt in Los Angeles where they announced that the band will launch its "Final Tour" later this year, with the group planning to play 72 shows in North America in 2014 and more overseas in 2015. Making it official, the four members of the band had their lawyer draw up a formal "cessation of touring" agreement that goes into effect at the end of 2015 and prohibits the members of the group from going on the road again under the MÖTLEY CRÜE banner.

No mention was made of whether the CRÜE will record a new album to go along with the tour, although the group hinted at the possibility.

Asked by Classic Rock magazine if there will be a new studio CD to coincide with the upcoming trek, which is scheduled to kick off in early July, MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx said: "We've written some songs. But this is difficult to say and probably harder to hear: when you spend nine months working on an album, all the work that goes into it and recording it, mixing it, mastering it, then you release it and it falls on deaf ears.

"Radio is so fuckin' formatted, if you don't have a banjo and a beard, they're not playing you over here. If you're this kind of band at this stage of your career, you can't be played on Active Rock; if you've been around for more than fifteen years, you're classic rock, but classic rock radio doesn't play new music. You just think, 'Fuck, man, this sucks.'

"I have the belief that I would rather have less music reach more people through different opportunities, whether it be through movies, through sponsorships or co-sponsorships through integrated marketing with other types of companies that want to use your song specifically to reach tens of millions of people. I'd rather work on two songs under that plan than do eleven songs that only reach 100,000 people."

MÖTLEY CRÜE in 2012 released a brand new song called "Sex" to coincide with the launch of the band's North American co-headlining tour with KISS.

Written when the group was together during their residency in Las Vegas in February 2012, "Sex" was the first studio track from the CRÜE since their June 2008 release of "Saints Of Los Angeles". The song was recorded at MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer Tommy Lee's studio called The Atrium in Calabasas, California.

Drummer Marky Edelmann (a.k.a. Marquis Marky) of the reunited Swiss technical thrash metal masters CORONER has released the following statement:

"Dear friends,

"Three years ago we started rehearsing together for our reunion tour after a break of 15 years. We thought it was going to be a matter of a few shows. Now, after three years, we have performed 27 shows all over the world! I cannot find the words to describe how much i enjoyed every single gig.

"I want to thank every single one of you for coming to the shows and giving us such a fantastic time. It was a great pleasure to perform for you, shake your hands and sometimes have a drink and a chat after the show.

"Many thanks to all the promoters that booked us; without you, we would still be sitting in our bunker rehearsing.

"I'm very sorry the shows we had hoped to do in Mexico, South America, Japan and Australia never happened. I was looking forward to those very much...

"The following is not easy to say, and believe me, I have given it a lot of thought.

"I will leave CORONER at the end of February this year.

"I think we have played more than enough reunion shows and now it's time to either stop doing reunion shows or to move on with a new album. For me, it was clear from the start that I didn't want to record another album. I love the sound of CORONER, but for me, it's the moment to explore new sounds without the weight of the past on my shoulders.

"Ron [Broder, a.k.a. Ron Royce, bass/vocals], Tommy [Vetterli, a.k.a. Tommy T. Baron, guitar] and I agreed that CORONER should continue with another drummer. They will announce who it's going to be on the CORONER reunion page.

"With all my heart, I wish 'em all the best for the future. We will be brothers forever.

"I will continue with a new band that you will hear about in the near future.

"So thank you all once more and I hope we are gonna see you very soon!"

Filmmakers Bruno Amstutz and Lukas Ruettimann last year released a teaser for the upcoming documentary about CORONER. Due later this year, the film will feature interviews with Tom G. Warrior and Martin Ain (CELTIC FROST), Max Cavalera (SEPULTURA, SOULFLY), Franz Treichler (YOUNG GODS), Chris von Rohr (KROKUS), Chris Glanzmann (ELUVEITIE), Stephan Eicher and more.

Originally part of the road crew for fellow countrymen CELTIC FROST, CORONER went on to become one of the most progressive extreme metal acts of the Eighties. The connection between the Zurich band and CELTIC FROST was so strong, in fact, that CELTIC FROST frontman Tom G. Warrior offered to handle vocals for the emerging band's demo. Warrior and CORONER entered Switzerland's Magnetix studio on October 10, 1985, and nine days later they walked out with the impressive four-song 1986 release, "Death Cult". While subsequent bootlegged CDs included the bonus tracks of "Arrogance in Uniform" and "Hate, Fire, Blood", the original four-track demo consisted of the following tracks: "Spectators of Sin", "Spiral Dream", "Aerial Combat" and "The Invincible". (Only "Spiral Dream" would make it onto CORONER's 1987 debut LP, "R.I.P.")

According to The BNR Metal Pages, CORONER "progressed from the raw speed of 'R.I.P.' to the more laidback style of 'Grin', releasing five albums (not counting the semi-compilation 'Coroner' album) that are all different and yet all are undeniably related, and undeniably CORONER. The band called it a day in 1994, actually before the release of 'Coroner', with Marky Edelmann joining APOLLYON SUN and Tommy T. Baron going to KREATOR, though neither is still with those bands."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE frontman Jesse Leach has opened up in a new interview with Metal Hammer about the reasons why he originally left the band in 2002 after recording two albums. Leach, who reunited with the group in 2012, explained, "When I left KILLSWITCH, there was definitely something wrong with my head. I was dealing with a depression. At that time it was a pretty lowdown feeling of being alienated, just sort of not being prepared mentally for a life on the road." Leach told The Pulse Of Radio recently that since rejoining the band, touring has been much easier for him. "It isn't hard," he said. "It's fun. It's great. I'm excited to do it. And even the days when we're stuck, you know, in a parking lot somewhere with nothing to do, like, I'm still amused by being on a tour bus with these guys and, you know, we just have fun together. It's great. The vibe on the bus is great. It's family style, like, all around it's good stuff. Everything's sort of in its right place right now, so no complaints."

Leach also revealed that during his first stint with the group he did not know how to properly care for his voice on tour, saying, "I was struggling to maintain it. I wasn’t hanging out with the band because I was just so worried about conserving the voice I had. I wasn’t drinking, I just wasn’t participating in any of the fun aspects of being out on tour."

The vocalist added that he "just ended up driving my head into some really dark places to the point where I was apathetic to what I was doing . . . it's laughable to me now when I look at myself then and consider the person I've become."

Leach's replacement in the group, Howard Jones, sang with them for nine years and three albums before leaving in 2012 with his own health issues.

Leach's comeback album and the band's sixth studio effort, "Disarm The Descent", sold around 48,000 copies in its first week of release to debut at No. 7 on the Billboard album chart last April.

The group earned a "Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance" nomination at the Grammy Awards for the song "In Due Time".

The current single from the album, "Always", is in the Top 20 at rock radio.

In honor of her 30 years stage jubilee, internationally successful Rock singer DORO PESCH will celebrate with fans from all over the world and two separate yet unique shows on May 02, 2014 and May 03, 2014 at CCD Stadthalle of her hometown Düsseldorf. In addition DORO has given a press conference at Relexa Hotel, Düsseldorf/Ratingen.



DORO on this: „We came up with something very special for our 30 years stage anniversary, with two totally different shows, that cover the entire creative spectrum of my band and me – from emotional and soft, to hard, raw and heavy.”

The first anniversary show on May 02, 2014 will be dedicated to DORO and the Classic Night Orchestra. Accompanied by brass, strings and her band, DORO will perform her most beautiful, emotional ballads like ‘Für Immer‘, ‘1000x Gelebt‘ or ‘Let Love Rain On Me‘ in the stylish surroundings of CCD Stadthalle. At this night big hits like ‘All We Are‘, ‘Metal Tango‘, or ‘Burn It Up‘ can’t be missing, that shine even brighter as they now receive a classical overdo by the orchestra. Fans have been waiting for this to happen for the past ten years, since DORO’s last performance with the Classic Night Orchestra was in 2004, after her album »Classic Diamonds« has been praised by fans and critics alike.

At the second anniversary show on May 03, 2014 DORO will let out the rock lady in her. On this night the blonde superstar will travel through all of her 30 years of an incredibly successful carrier, delivering a three hours high voltage set with all things Rock’n’Roll she has to offer. Fans can look forward to all hits, hymns and many surprises. On both days DORO will welcome several fantastic guests that will give their honors to the Metal-Queen on this big event. Amongst them of course Biff Byford, vocalist of legendary band SAXON as well as Chris Caffrey (TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA), Udo Dirkschneider (U.D.O; ex-ACCEPT) and BLIND GUARDIAN’s Hansi Kürsch.

Commented DORO: „You all know how important my fans are to me. That’s why I really want to have a fan choir with me on stage at one song. Best song for this is our Wacken Anthem ‘We Are The Metalheads‘, that will be accompanied by a dozen of fans on May 03.
I’m specially looking forward to this.“

Just in time for the celebration Nuclear Blast will release a DORO boxet.
The singer on this: “This is a 30 years special edition containing two CDS and a whole of fan memorabilia, I’ve chosen just for this purpose. CD 1 will be cover album with a collection of my very favorite songs of all times like ‘Touch Too Much‘ from AC/DC, ‘Egypt‘ from DIO or ‘Babe, I´m Gonna Leave You‘ from LED ZEPPELIN.“

DORO continues: „CD 2 is a re-issue of my most current record »Raise Your Fist«, which is very important to me, because, in my opinion, it includes some of the strongest tracks I’ve ever done. For instance ‘It Still Hurts’, my ballad with MOTÖRHEAD’s Lemmy. There is a second, still unreleased version of that song, that will also be part of the cover album.”

A suitable temporary home for musicians, crew and fans during the big DORO celebration is also available: DORO and her entourage will stay at Relexa Hotel, Düsseldorf/Ratingen on May 02 and May 03. Hotel director Tim Zerr explains: „It is a huge honor for us to be offering a home to DORO Pesch, a living legend. We’re looking forward to her band, guest musicians and fans from all over the welt staying at our house. They will feel right at home.”

As a special service for all fans, Relexa Hotel will offer a shuttle service from hotel to CCD-Halle (and back). Additionally DORO fans will have special conditions. Rooms can be booked at +49 (0)2102 4580.
Tickets for both shows are available separately or combined with a discount at all known pre-sale shops and at www.metaltix.com from € 49,00.

Singer/bassist Mike Dean and singer/drummer Reed Mullin of hardcore punk veterans CORROSION OF CONFORMITY recently joined forces with a number of well-known musicians from the metal and hardcore scenes to create the new project TEENAGE TIME KILLER.

The instrumental parts for the upcoming debut release from TEENAGE TIME KILLER, which is named after a RUDIMENTARY PENI song, were recorded at Dave Grohl's (FOO FIGHTERS, NIRVANA) Studio 606 in Northridge, California on the famous Sound City mixing board, which was the central focus of Grohl's acclaimed "Sound City: Real To Reel" documentary.

In a brand new interview with "The Goddamn Dave Hill Show", Mullin revealed some of the names that are going to be involved with the project:

* Randy Blythe (LAMB OF GOD)* Dave Grohl (FOO FIGHTERS)* Corey Taylor (SLIPKNOT, STONE SOUR)* Neil Fallon (CLUTCH)* Jello Biafra (DEAD KENNEDYS)* Lee Ving (FEAR)* Tommy Victor (PRONG)* Nick Oliveri (MONDO GENERATOR, ex-QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, KYUSS)* Aaron Beam (RED FANG)* Pete Stahl (SCREAM, GOATSNAKE)* Greg Anderson (SUNN O)))), GOATSNAKE)* Karl Agell (ex-CORROSION OF CONFORMITY)* Tairrie B. Murphy (MY RUIN)* Mick Murphy (MY RUIN)* Vic Bondi (ARTICLES OF FAITH)* Clifford Dinsmore (BL'AST!)* Pat Hoed (BRUJERIA)

Other guest musicians that were previously announced as taking part in the project:

* Max Cavalera (SOULFLY)* Tony Foresta (MUNICIPAL WASTE, IRON REAGAN)* Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein (MISFITS)* Keith Morris (BLACK FLAG)* Phil Rind (SACRED REICH)

Back in May 2013, Blythe posted an Instagram photo of him with Dean and Mullin in the studio and described his contribution to TEENAGE TIME KILLER, a track called "Hung Out To Dry", as "old-school C.O.C.-style thrash punk."

Multi-camera video footage of THE IRON MAIDENS, the world's only female tribute to the legendary band IRON MAIDEN, performing the MAIDEN classic "The Trooper" on the Peavey main stage at this year's NAMM (National Association Of Music Merchants) show, which took place January 23-26 at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California, can be seen below.

Formed in 2001, these five women comprise excellent musicianship with an elaborate stage show with effects and appearances from IRON MAIDEN mascot, "Eddie", and other theatrical characters that have gained the band national and international recognition. This female musical force has the energy and chemistry reminiscent of IRON MAIDEN itself.

Asked in a 2012 interview with Live4Guitar if being a girl has opened more doors for her as a heavy metal musician than would otherwise have been the case, THE IRON MAIDENS guitarist Nita Strauss said: "The opposite! Less! A girl has to work twice as hard, especially playing heavy metal, to find a band that's willing to have her. Outside the metal world, it's a challenge to be taken seriously as a 24-year-old girl when you're going up against seasoned guitar players, all men, that have been in the music business for 30-40-plus years. You have to be on point all the time. You have to put aside a lot of your natural feelings and reactions. It's not easy. The trick is to make it look like it is."

Regarding what her favorite MAIDEN song to play with THE IRON MAIDENS is and why, Nita told Revolver magazine: "My favorite songs to play live with any band are the ones that get the big crowd reactions. I think 'Fear Of The Dark' is one of the most fun MAIDEN songs. It's really exciting to play, and I get that really catchy Dave Murray solo, plus it has that awesome part in the intro that gets the whole crowd singing along. When we were in South America, I saw some of the guys in the crowd actually tear up when we started that riff! It was seriously amazing."

THE IRON MAIDENS is:

* Kirsten Rosenberg (a.k.a. Bruce Chickinson) - Lead Vocals* Linda McDonald (a.k.a. Nikki McBurrain) - Drums* Wanda Ortiz (a.k.a. Steph Harris) - Bass* Courtney Cox (a.k.a. Adriana Smith) - Guitar* Nita Strauss (a.k.a. Mega Murray) - Guitar

For more information, visit www.theironmaidens.com.

RATED X (formerly LEGACY X), the new band featuring legendary vocalist Joe Lynn Turner (RAINBOW, DEEP PURPLE, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) alongside drummer Carmine Appice (VANILLA FUDGE, CACTUS, MOTHER'S ARMY), bassist Tony Franklin (THE FIRM, BLUE MURDER) and guitarist Jeff Watson (NIGHT RANGER, MOTHER'S ARMY), is putting the finishing touches on its debut album for a May release via Frontiers Records.

Watson joined RATED X as the replacement for Bruce Kulick (KISS, GRAND FUNK RAILROAD), who was unable to commit to the new project due to his heavy touring schedule with GRAND FUNK RAILROAD.

Joe Lynn Turner, Carmine Appice and Jeff Watson previously played together in MOTHER'S ARMY, the 1990s hard rock "supergroup" which released three albums before splitting up in 1998.

MOTHER'S ARMY's full-length CDs — "Mother's Army" (1993), "Planet Earth" (1997) and "Fire On The Moon" (1998) — were re-released as a special 3CD digipak set, "The Complete Discography", in May 2011.

Fan-filmed video footage of RIOT V, the new band featuring nearly all the surviving members of the most recent lineup of U.S. metal pioneers RIOT, performing on February 9 in Athens, Greece can be seen below. The group's set includes a brand new song, "Metal Warriors".

RIOT V is continuing on in honor of the late great founding RIOT guitarist Mark Reale, who died from complications from Crohn's Disease in early 2012. The musicians decided to continue on with the blessings from the estate of Reale to keep the music and spirit of RIOT alive.

The continuing members decided to alter the name to RIOT V as the fifth chapter of the band's long history as well as Todd Michael Hall being the fifth singer following Guy Speranza (March 1956 - November 2003), Rhett Forrester (September 1956 – January 1994), Tony Moore and Mike Dimeo in the some 30-odd years of the band's existence.

RIOT V headed to Italy for a string of tribute dates starting in Brescia, ending in Thessaloniki, Greece on February 11, then returning home to start recording the new record slated for a summer 2014 release. The touring band for these tribute dates are longtime members Mike Flyntz (guitar), who has been Reale's guitar partner for over 25 years, and bassist/songwriter Don Van Stavern ("Thundersteel", "Privilege Of Power", "Immortal Soul"), new vocalist Todd Michael Hall (BURNING STARR, REVERENCE) and RIOT's "Army Of One" drummer Frank Gilchriest (VIRGIN STEELE, LIEGE LORD), who is stepping in as Bobby Jarzombek is fulfilling his duties with FATES WARNING and SEBASTIAN BACH.

Although Reale can never be replaced, RIOT V has recruited former student-turned-teacher at Mike Flyntz's guitar school in Long Island, New York, 26-year-old guitar virtuoso Nick Lee, to handle the lead-guitar duties on the current tour.

Said Flyntz: "The decision whether to add a guitarist or try it myself was very difficult. We did play some shows without Mark when he was sick. Although they went as well as could be expected given the circumstances, I felt it was better for the music to add a second guitarist, as Mark added me in 1989.

"It is very important to me that everyone knows that Nick is not Mark's replacement. Mark Reale can never be replaced. I [am] taking on Mark's parts and Nick [is] doing most of my parts.

"Nick studied with me weekly from ages 9 to 17.

"Nick has always been a perfectionist and has always poured his heart into his music. He is a great writer and performer. I am very proud of him. He lives and breathes music and is one with his guitar. He has met Mark and saw us play live.

"I know there is no one else better matched to come in and help us recreate the RIOT sound. After the first rehearsal, I was convinced that we are doing the right thing by carrying on Mark's music and legacy.

"At our first rehearsal playing our opener 'Narita', I actually shed a tear hearing the song that I had played so many years side by side with Mark, but know the band will shine on in his honor and not disappoint the diehard fans."

Doyle Wolfgang Von Frankenstein — the former guitarist of both the old and new MISFITS and current leader of his own horrorcore/metal band simply called DOYLE — says that he is intent on reuniting MISFITS' original lineup for a tour and possible new album.

The original MISFITS band broke up in 1983, and bassist Jerry Only brought forth a new version of the MISFITS in 1995. Various members have come and gone, but Only, along with BLACK FLAG's Dez Cadena, has kept some form of the MISFITS in the recording studio and on the road for most of the last two decades.

After the original MISFITS disbanded, vocalist Glenn Danzig went on to form SAMHAIN and then the eponymous DANZIG. Several albums of reissued and previously unreleased material were issued after the group's dissolution, and their music became influential to punk rock, heavy metal, and alternative rock music of the late 1990s and early 2000s.

"I'm the only one that's gonna get the original lineup back together," Doyle said in an "Idol Worship" interview Alternative Press arranged between him and BLACK VEIL BRIDES frontman Andy Biersack. "So I think I'm going to work on that, and hopefully I can pull the two bulls together and get them to fucking stop."

He continued: "You know what? I've just decided this week that I am going to make an attempt, and I wanna do it. I'll put what I'm doing right on the fucking side. I'll go do it tomorrow."

Doyle also spoke about previous meetings he, Danzig and Only had had in 2002 discussing a possible MISFITS reunion, plans for which were aborted when an unknown party leaked the news. "It didn't happen and it's a shame," Doyle said. "It's stupid that we're not doing it. It would be huge."

In a 2011 interview with RollingStone.com, Only stated about the prospect of reuniting with Danzig: "I would say that if Glenn went and got baptized again, maybe we could talk.

"The thing is, I know Glenn, and he's very much about what he's doing. I've seen that. And me, I'm very much about what I'm doing, and I wouldn't want to — I don't want to say the words 'watered down' — but I wouldn't want to take away from the enthusiasm that we're running on with these new projects. These new projects are, in my opinion, a pinpoint on a laser beam of MISFITS thought.

"Doing it with Glenn may work on a short-term basis. I could see us getting together and lining up a bunch of big festivals and a bunch of big shows. But then, when you think about it, where would it leave you when you're done? It wouldn't leave you in a position where your credibility would be half as good as it is. Sometimes it's better to be small and secure than it is to be extremely large and totally volatile. And I think our fans are owed the respect of one thought and one vision, and it's not a parade or a circus for the rest of the world to throw money at. I'd rather be touring happy than rich and miserable."

Speaking to Eric Blair of "The Blairing Out With Eric Blair Show" in November 2010, Only had the following to say about Glenn Danzig: "I like Glenn; I never really disliked Glenn as a person. But we do have a lot of influence on people and I won't — for profit or for fame — jeopardize the safety of my fans to make money and to promote something that I don't think is right for them. Glenn got into this whole Satanic outlook and I wouldn't throw that on my kids and I won't do that. If Glenn wants to go to church and repent, I guess we're good to go.

"I don't think Glenn is the devil, and I think he kind of promotes himself as the devil, and, to me, that seems absurd. It just seems to me that if kids are buying all this crap, it's like [he's] marketing something that shouldn't be marketed, in my opinion. I'm not about that. I was brought up totally Catholic with my grandmother. I see these kids at the show — they look up to me. We keep a clean program; we don't party, we don't drink, we don't have hookers in here and all that stupid shit. We're a family band, and we kind of keep the American dream nice and solid and real. And the kids like that . . . I'm not saying that Glenn is anti all that stuff, it's just that when you have albums [with titles like] 'Son Of Satan' and all this kind of stuff, it's a message that a lot of kids may take the wrong way and a lot of kids may get hurt because of it. And a lot of kids may argue with their parents over the subject matter that they're bringing into the house and have a bad relationship with their folks. Why? Is that something I would want to impose upon them? Make them have a bitter relationship with their parents over my music? No.

"The thing is you can go see a horror film — something really gory and bloody and all kinds of stuff — and have a good time with your friends. It doesn't mean you're gonna behave as such. And that's the difference between me and Glenn — Glenn is trying to impose the behavior aspect upon the people in real life. And thing is we're a sci-fi band — we've got subject matter from here to Kingdom Come — and we don't need that.

"Glenn's very talented. I don't think that musically we're in the same zone anymore. But look, I've got a lot of respect for Glenn. I always thought that Glenn had a lot of talent. And I just think that Glenn... I don't wanna say he's misguided, but I think that he's got a message that's not productive for the people who get it."

In a 2008 interview with Riverfront Times, Danzig stated about the possibility of a reunion of the original MISFITS lineup: "It's not gonna happen… People had talked about it. But nothing ever happened with it… It never even got beyond a talking thing, you know what I mean?"