DEFTONES vocalist Chino Moreno tells RollingStone.com in a new interview that the band is taking a break for the remainder of 2014. "We just finished a tour, so we're gonna take the rest of the year off," he says. "We're gonna start writing some music early next year. I just moved to Oregon and Stephen [Carpenter, guitar] is down in L.A. and Abe [Cunningham, drums] and Frank [Delgado, keyboards] are in Sacramento, and Sergio [Vega, bass] is in Europe."

Moreno adds: "The idea is to just get together. The last couple records, we just threw ourselves into a small room and started playing. We just work organically, which I think works better than me writing a song and saying, 'Hey, guys, learn this.' Hopefully in February [2015], we'll spend a couple weeks together, and just kind of get together and write music."

Moreno also spoke about last year's passing of DEFTONES bassist Chi Cheng, more than four years after Chi was left in a semi-comatose state by a car accident in November 2008.

"[Chi will] always be thought about on a day-to-day basis," Moreno says. "It's not something that goes away, obviously. I think that when he did pass, it was very hard. It was five years where he was in a state where he couldn't speak. He was existing, but not existing. He was here, but not here."

Moreno continues: "I feel like with his passing, not to get back into the supernatural, he is more with us now then he was in the five years when he was stuck in that sort of in-between space. It's a little bit of a relief, because I know that he's not suffering. There's not a day that goes by that I don't think of him."

††† (CROSSES) — Moreno's project with FAR guitarist Shaun Lopez — will release its self-titled full-length debut on February 11 via Sumerian Records. The CD will include the songs from ††† (CROSSES)'s two previously released EPs — 2011's "†" and 2012's "††", along with five new tracks.

Legendary British band QUEEN has made chart history by becoming the first act ever to reach 6 million U.K. sales of an album.

QUEEN broke chart records after surpassing the 6 million sales milestone with its 1981 "Greatest Hits" album. Britain's best-selling album of all time, a staggering one in three British families (or one in four British households) now owns a copy of the iconic act's original best-of collection featuring such classic tracks as "We Will Rock You", "Another One Bites The Dust" and their top-selling hit "Bohemian Rhapsody".

In a video message via OfficialCharts.com, QUEEN's Brian May says: "Great news, AMAZING news from the Official Charts Company! Apparently, QUEEN's 'Greatest Hits' which was released in 1981 has passed the 6 million mark in sales, which is incredible. So I just want to say thanks to everyone who has supported us through the years, and we hope to continue to serve you.”

QUEEN's Roger Taylor adds: "Wonderful. Who would have thought it! And all due to the great British public. Thank you. A great honour!"

Martin Talbot, Chief Executive of the Official Charts Company comments: “Becoming the first album to pass 6 million sales is a quite incredible achievement by QUEEN and their iconic 'Greatest Hits' album. Ever since it was first released in 1981, this package of classic pop and rock tracks has been an indispensable item in every music fan's record collection — perhaps THE definitive greatest hits album!"

A true, enduring classic, the British public continue to buy QUEEN's "Greatest Hits" in their droves; some 33 years after its original release, the album regularly sells several thousand copies per week, particularly around the Christmas gifting period, a trusted stocking filler for British music fans.

Sales of the album digitally are also now racking up, having been downloaded 124,000 times in the U.K. to date, though QUEEN's "Greatest Hits" is evidently still very much an essential collectors' favorite that music lovers demand to own a coveted physical copy of.

Gennaro Castaldo of British recorded music industry body, the BPI comments: "QUEEN are a part of our music heritage now, with a timeless appeal that will ensure demand for their songs will continue as new generations of fans keep coming through."

QUEEN's "Greatest Hits" leads the way, some 900,000 copies ahead of ABBA "Gold" as the U.K.'s best-selling album of all time. ABBA last year overtook THE BEATLES "Sgt Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band" to take up second place in the list. And if 6 million sales isn't enough for Freddie, Brian and co, QUEEN's follow-up, "Greatest Hits II", which was released in October 1991 — a month before lead singer Freddie Mercury's untimely death — also rides high at No. 10 in the all-time Official Albums Chart, having notched up a further 3.9 million U.K. sales to date.

Mascot Label Group recently announced the signing of VANDENBERG'S MOONKINGS. The Dutch rock group will join, amongst others, Joe Bonamassa, VOLBEAT, GOV'T MULE, Beth Hart, Zakk Wylde/BLACK LABEL SOCIETY and Kenny Wayne Shepherd on the Rotterdam, Holland-based record company's roster.

VANDENBERG'S MOONKINGS' self-titled debut album will be released on February 24. An extensive European tour will follow.

"Vandenberg's Moonkings" track listing:

01. Lust And Lies02. Close To You03. Good Thing04. Breathing05. Steal Away06. Line Of Fire07. Out Of Reach08. Feel It09. Leave This Town10. One Step Behind11. Leeches12. Nothing Touches13. Sailing Ships

A new teaser for "Vandenberg's Moonkings" can be seen below.

The eagerly awaited record is a sensational mix of blistering rock songs and powerful ballads from the Dutch guitar hero, and includes a newly recorded version of VANDENBERG's ex-band WHITESNAKE's classic "Sailing Ships". Special guest David Coverdale adds his unique vocals to the equation, to complement Vandenberg's powerful riffs for a welcome moment of nostalgia. Multi-talented Vandenberg — who has designed all of his album sleeves since his very first record with Teaser at the age of 22 — took care of the artwork for this much-awaited record. "We are proud to have joined the Mascot family," says Adrian. "It's a great company with fantastic people that love the music they work with. The band is raring to go and prove itself to the world, so we're anxious to finish the album and get it out there and I'm very happy that Ed van Zijl is giving us the opportunity to do so."

Mascot Label Group CEO Ed van Zijl is over the moon with signing Adrian Vandenberg's brand new band.

"Adrian is one of the most outstanding rock guitarists in the world," Ed said. "I have always followed his career and needless to say we are thrilled to finally be working with him. VANDENBERG'S MOONKINGS are a fresh and hard rocking new band that will surely make an impact on the scene." Adrian Vandenberg rose to worldwide prominence with VANDENBERG, the melodic rock band that hit internationally with the powerful ballad "Burning Heart". Adrian solidified his status as one of the most talented rock guitarists around when he joined David Coverdale in the hard rock supergroup WHITESNAKE, co-writing many of its Billboard Hot 100-hits, like "The Deeper The Love" and "Now You're Gone", and supplying the legendary guitar solo to "Here I Go Again". After leaving WHITESNAKE, Adrian concentrated on his successful career as an artist, exhibiting his paintings in prestigious galleries all over Europe. Music however was always prevalent on his mind, so as soon as he had the opportunity to work with some incredibly talented young musicians, he started creating new music.

VANDENBERG'S MOONKINGS is:

Adrian Vandenberg (guitar)Jan Hoving (vocals)Sem Christoffel (bass)Mart Nijen Es (drums)

For more information, visit www.moonkingsband.com.

As one of the cornerstones of British rock, RAINBOW, led by the never-predictable-but-ever-astonishing guitarist Ritchie Blackmore, became synonymous with some of the most well regarded and popular charting rock songs of the Seventies and Eighties. From the mystic and quasi-religious "Man On A Silver Mountain" to the solid gold anthems of "All Night Long", "Long Live Rock 'N' Roll" and "Since You Been Gone", each year in the decade of RAINBOW was marked by some of the best songs and performances captured both on record and in concert.

Due on February 11, "The Singles Box Set 1975-1986" gathers all of the band's classic singles from the era in replicas of the original release, alongside a 32-page book featuring details on each of the titles.

Passing through the band were some of the best the genre had to offer. Vocalists Ronnie James Dio and Graham Bonnet, bass player and producer Roger Glover and drummer Cozy Powell, each brought their individual talent to the table to record some of rock's best loved hard rock on those timeless singles. CD One

01. Man On The Silver Mountain (7" Edit) 02. Snake Charmer

CD Two

01. Still I'm Sad02. Temple Of The King

CD Three

01. Man On The Silver Mountain02. Snake Charmer03. If You Don't Like Rock 'N' Roll04. Sixteenth Century Greensleeves

CD Four

01. Starstruck02. Run With The Wolf

CD Five

01. Kill The King (Live / Edit - "On Stage")02. Man On The Silver Mountain (Live - "On Stage") 03. Mistreated (Live / 7" Edit - "On Stage") CD Six

01. Long Live Rock 'N' Roll02. Sensitive To Light

CD Seven

01. LA Connection (7" Edit)02. Lady of the Lake

CD Eight

01. Since You Been Gone02. Bad Girl

CD Nine

01. Since You Been Gone02. No Time To Lose

CD Ten

01. All Night Long02. Weiss Heim CD Eleven

01. I Surrender02. Vielleicht Das Nächster Zeit (Maybe Next Time) CD Twelve

01. Difficult To Cure02. Can't Happen Here (7" Edit)03. Jealous Lover CD Thirteen

01. Magic02. Freedom Fighter

CD Fourteen

01. Can't Happen Here (7" Edit)02. Jealous Lover

CD Fifteen

01. Stone Cold02. Rock Fever CD Sixteen

01. Death Alley Driver02. Tite Squeeze CD Seventeen

01. Street Of Dreams02. Anybody There03. Power (Live at the Convention Center, San Antonio)

CD Eighteen

01. Can't Let You Go (7" Edit)02. All Night Long (Live at David's Hall, Cardiff)03. Stranded (Live at David's Hall, Cardiff)

CD Nineteen

01. Bad Girl02. Spotlight Kid (Live at Budokan, Tokyo)03. Man On The Silver Mountain (Live)

TESTAMENT and ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO guitarist Alex Skolnick is "immersed in global rhythms," working on his first acoustic album with PLANETARY COALITION for a spring 2014 release. The entire process is being documented via Artist Share, a platform that connects creative artists with fans in order to share the creative process and fund the creation of new artistic works.

Skolnick played a set of PLANETARY COALITION tracks 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. Video footage of the performance can be seen below (courtesy of Capital Chaos TV).

An ethnically flavored collective of diverse musicians from all over the world, PLANETARY COALITION is driven by the acoustic guitar of Skolnick, whose work spans jazz (ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO), metal (TESTAMENT), and world music (RODRIGO Y GABRIELA). Its mission is to tie together the virtuosity of jazz, the power of metal and the passion of the musical styles of Gypsy, Middle Eastern, Mediterranean, Indian, Asian, African, Latin and other indegenous lands. Through the universal language of music, PLANETARY COALITION intends to bridge the gap between different cultures, increase ecological awareness and explore the threads that connect musical expression with regional identity.

PLANETARY COALITION is more than a band; it is a collective of people from many different walks of life and various regions of the globe.

In an interview with Chris McGovern, Skolnick stated about PLANETARY COALITION: "It's a bit of an ambitious project, and it's going to be my first crowd-funded project, but basically it's going to be my first acoustic album, my first world music album, and it'll have some electric as well. But that's just the musical side of it. I've already written some music for it and recorded it with some great local musicians, including Max Z.T. and violinist Rachel Golub. Depending on how things go, the goal will be to involve musicians from all over the world, from different cultures and regions, and to write music around them, collaborate with them, and eventually have a social component too, where we actually tell the story of some of these regions — the untold story from their perspective, including slide shows, video, etc. It's a vision I've had for a while now, and the few times I've performed the music, the response has been very good. Even on this metal web site, BLABBERMOUTH.NET, where they hate everything, they actually seemed to really like this music. Even though it's not metal music, it has an intensity."

According to Seattle news station KIRO 7, a local woman has been charged for allegedly tweeting death threats to SOUNDGARDEN frontman Chris Cornell. The woman reportedly sent over 100 messages to Cornell from a total of nine different Twitter accounts. The postings also alluded to a rape of Cornell's 13-year-old daughter.

Prosecutors say those tweets constituted cyber-stalking and they filed criminal charges against the woman last week.

Back in 2006, Cornell and his wife, Vicky received death threats in which a man described how he planned to kill Vicky and her children, Christopher, and Toni. The private investigators Cornell hired to look into who was sending the letters said the stalker was British.

In December 2007, TMZ.com reported that Cornell sought a restraining order against a man who was allegedly hired to do the "dirty work" of the woman to whom the singer was once married.

Cornell claimed his ex-wife, Susan Silver — the one-time manager of ALICE IN CHAINS and SOUNDGARDEN — sent his family "numerous threatening and terrifying death threats." Chris claimed in court documents that Silver even threatened to harm the rocker's son.

Finnish melodic metallers SONATA ARCTICA will release their eighth studio album, "Pariah's Child", on March 28 via Nuclear Blast. The cover artwork for the CD can be seen below.

"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

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

The fourth trailer for the album is available below.

Comments SONATA ARCTICA vocalist 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.

Swedish death metal act VAMPIRE will release its self-titled debut album in Europe on March 3 and in North America on March 18 via Century Media Records. Featuring ten tracks of relentless death metal with haunting melodies and a deadly horror vibe, "Vampire" promises to not disappoint. The eerie cover artwork was created by Mattias Frisk, who is known for his work with bands such as GHOST, VANHELGD and MAIM. The song "Under The Grudge" from "Vampire" can be streamed using the SoundCloud widget below. "Vampire" will be available as a CD, LP and digital download. A very limited colored vinyl version will be available at CMdistro.com.

VAMPIRE was founded in 2011 by Hand Of Doom (vocals), Black String (guitars) and Command (bass). The band’s self-titled debut demo, released in September of the following year in different print runs, had a massive impact on the worldwide underground metal scene. Word-of-mouth promotion as well as excellent reviews gained the band a great reputation as being one of the most promising acts from the Swedish death metal scene. A seven-inch version of the demo tape (including one extra track) was released in January 2013 by To The Death Records and sold out in no time. By now, both the demo and the seven-inch have become highly sought after collector's items despite their total print run of 1,400 copies.

Following the success of the demo and seven-inch, VAMPIRE has built a steady live reputation by supporting some of the most renowned bands in today’s metal scene and by acclaimed performances at the Live Evil and Muskelrock festivals in 2013.

While VAMPIRE's roots reach deep into metal’s most vicious origins, the eleven raw slices contained on the debut album will immediately catch your attention with their refreshingly morbid approach and should be hailed soon as some of the most poisonous metal of the decade.

VAMPIRE is:

Hand Of Doom: VocalsBlack String: GuitarCommand: Electric BassRatwing: Battery

SECRET ILLUSION haben sich einem Sammelsurium aus Power Metal, Prog und Melodic Rock verschrieben. Dadurch können sie einerseits ihrem Faible für große epische Melodik frönen (höre z.B. die gern mehrstimmigen Gesangsarrangments), aber auch zeigen, was sie handwerklich draufhaben (höre z.B. die leidenschaftlichen Soli). An oberster Stelle steht bei SECRET ILLUSION ganz klar der Spaß an der Musik.

Das neue Album wird den Titel "Change Of Time" tragen und am 17. März in den Handel kommen.

"Change Of Time" Track List:

01. Northern Lights
02. Born Once Again
03. Point Of No Return
04. Perfect Fantasy
05. Beauty Queen
06. Winter Poem
07. Change Of Time
08. Love Lies
09. Words Left Forgotten