Hanover, Germany-based epic power metal band HUMAN FORTRESS has inked a deal with AFM Records. The group has just finished recording its new album for a late 2013 release.

After a five-year hiatus, HUMAN FORTRESS returns with new, Brazilian vocalist Gus Monsanto (ex-REVOLUTION RENAISSANCE, ADAGIO) and a clear mission ahead.

"With our upcoming album, we musically want to continue in the vein of our first two releases, 'Lord Of Earth And Heavens Heir' and 'Defenders Of The Crown'," says guitarist Torsten Wolf. "We are very happy to start this new endeavour with our fantastic new vocalist Gus Monsanto now."

Adds Monsanto: "I always wanted to do this kind of music but couldn't find a band like that in Brazil. These songs are epic, with huge hooklines and I was convinced straight away. I can't wait to play our songs on stage."

HUMAN FORTRESS 2013 is:

Gus Monsanto - Vocals
Torsten Wolf - Guitar
Volker Trost - Guitar
Dirk Liehm - Keyboard
Andre Hort - Bass
Apostolos Zaios - Drums

No Remorse Records will release the "Death Cult" demo from Swiss technical thrash metal masters CORONER on CD and limited vinyl. This will be the first official re-release of "Death Cult", a four-song demo which was originally recorded and issued in 1986 in a limited edition of 250 cassette tapes. Due in December, it will also include bonus material.

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."

CORONER last year released the first teaser for its forthcoming DVD. The career-spanning double DVD will contain a ton of material from the archives and a full-length concert from the band's reunion shows in 2011-2012. A 2013 release is expected.

Slash — the iconic, Grammy-winning guitarist — will release the soundtrack album for the first-ever motion picture he has co-produced, "Nothing Left To Fear", on October 4, the same day the film opens in select theaters. The "Nothing Left To Fear" original motion picture soundtrack was written and produced by Slash and Nick O'Toole. It includes the film score plus two original songs: "Nothing Left To Fear", which features vocalist Myles Kennedy and the instrumental "Welcome To Stull".

The official trailer for the "Nothing Left To Fear" movie can be seen below.

The album will be released exclusively at PledgeMusic.com, giving fans access to interviews, song streams, first looks at film art, clips and more. When fans pledge and pre-order the album, they will gain access to one-of-a-kind experiences with Slash, as well as merchandise for the film.

Due in select theaters Friday, October 4 and available on Blu-ray Combo-pack, DVD and On Demand starting Tuesday, October 8, "Nothing Left To Fear" is a harrowing tale in the spirit of the terrifying horror films of the 1970s. The movie is inspired by the legend of Stull, Kansas, which is surrounded by Internet folklore proclaiming the town to be one of the Seven Gateways to Hell. Wendy (Anne Heche), her husband Dan (James Tupper of "Revenge") and their kids have just moved to the small town of Stull, Kansas, where Dan is the new pastor. But in this sleepy community of friendly neighbors, a horrific series of occurrences awaits them: Their teenage daughter (Rebekah Brandes of "Bellflower") is being tormented by grisly visions. Her younger sister (Jennifer Stone of "Wizards Of Waverly Place") has been marked for a depraved ritual. And deep within the heartland darkness, one of The Seven Gates Of Hell demands the blood of the innocent to unleash the creatures of the damned. Ethan Peck ("10 Things I Hate About You") and Clancy Brown ("The Shawshank Redemption") co-star in this demonic shocker featuring original music by producer Slash and inspired by the real-life paranormal legacy of Stull.

"Nothing Left To Fear" is the first film from Rock And Roll Hall Of Famer Slash's production company Slasher Films, and was written by Jonathon W.C. Mills and directed by Anthony Leonardi III.

"As a longtime fan of the horror genre, I want to produce films that are in an older tradition of the genre," relates Slash. "That is to say, films that leave more to one's imagination, that are psychologically scary and character-driven, and what scares you is more cerebral than superficial. Slasher Films is my vehicle to realize that aim, and 'Nothing Left To Fear' is the first film with more to come."

Following is the full track listing for the soundtrack for the new film "Nothing Left To Fear":

01. The Road To Stull
02. Cold Welcome
03. Lamb's Blood
04. One Choice, Two Fates
05. A Prayer
06. Dark Dreams
07. Sermon
08. The Tooth
09. Retrieval
10. Silent Secrets
11. Pain And Premonition Part 1
12. Pain And Premonition Part 2
13. Observations
14. The Secret Tower
15. Do Your Part
16. Don't Forget
17. A Flash And A Feeling
18. Abduction
19. Bleeding In
20. Urgency
21. Have Faith
22. The Decline
23. Trauma
24. The Blood Lust
25. Our Broken Home
26. Revelations
27. No Safety In Numbers
28. Childhood's End
29. The Fear
30. The Perfect Circle
31. Nothing Left To Fear (featuring vocalist Myles Kennedy)
32. Welcome To Stull

RockNLive.org recently conducted an interview with vocalist Jacoby Shaddix of Californian rockers PAPA ROACH. You can now watch the chat below. Also available is professionally filmed video footage of PAPA ROACH's entire performance at this year's Hellfest, which was held June 21-23 in Clisson, France.

PAPA ROACH's latest album, "The Connection", was re-released in Europe as a special tour edition on May 6 via Eleven Seven Music. The effort contains a bonus DVD of a concert at Club Nokia in Los Angeles featuring performances of new songs as well as the band's biggest hits, including "Still Swingin'", "Give Me Back My Life", "Before I Die", "Last Resort" and "Between Angels & Insects".

"The Connection" was produced by rock veteran James Michael (SIXX: A.M., HALESTORM) and John Feldmann (PANIC AT THE DISCO, THE USED, BLACK VEIL BRIDES). The CD sold 22,000 copies in its first week of release to debut at No. 17 on the Billboard album chart.

"This record is a snapshot of me at my most desperate," Jacoby Shaddix told The Aquarian Weekly. "As I was writing this record, [my wife and I] were split, so there was a lot of pain and anger and frustration. As the dust settles in my life, I realize that I'm the orchestrator of all this chaos. I'm the one at fault. I'm the fucking problem. When you go through that stuff, sometimes it's hard to own your own shit, to step up to the plate and own it. I just had to because I wanted to do the right thing."

He added: "I was able to make this record, express myself and get my family back together and get my respect from my band. At the eleventh hour, I pulled it off. I don't know, man, this is a repeating cycle in my life. I don't know how many more times I can do this to myself."

Interview:

A new two-minute trailer for SOULFLY's ninth album, "Savages", can be seen below. Due in October via the band's new label home, Nuclear Blast Entertainment, the CD was produced by Terry Date, who is known for his work with such acts as PANTERA, DEFTONES and SOUNDGARDEN, among many others.

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

The drum tracks on the new SOULFLY CD were laid down by Max's 21-year-old son, Zyon Cavalera, who joined the band as its touring drummer for its recent rampage through North America.

Zyon previously played with SOULFLY during the band's tour of Brazil in February 2012.

It is Zyon's unborn heartbeat that can be heard during the intro of SEPULTURA's classic song "Refuse/Resist", which appeared on the band's RIAA-gold-certified "Chaos A.D." album, released three years before Max's departure from the group.

Drummer David Kinkade (BORKNAGAR, ARSIS, MALEVOLENT CREATION), who played on SOULFLY's eighth album, "Enslaved", left the band last October in order to focus on his personal life.

Swedish death metallers DEMONICAL will release their fourth full-length album, "Darkness Unbound", on September 20 via Cyclone Empire. The CD, which will be available as a limited first-pressing digipack and LP, was once again recorded at Necromorbus Studios in Stockholm.

Comments the band: "We are confident that 'Darkness Unbound' will be an important milestone not only for us as a band but also an album that will have a certain impact on the current death metal scene and especially the Swedish old-school wave.

"The artwork and visual concept of the album follows the same somber path as the music, making it a solid entity of perpetual death metal darkness."

"Darkness Unbound" track listing:

01. Darkness Unbound
02. The Order
03. An Endless Celebration
04. Contempt and Conquest
05. King of All
06. The Healing Control
07. Hellfire Empire
08. Words Are Death
09. Deathcrown
10. The Great Praise
11. World Beyond (KREATOR cover) *
12. Burned Alive (re-recording) **

* bonus track on the limited digi-CD and LP
** bonus track on the limited digi-CD

DEMONICAL will embark on an extensive European tour in October to support "Darkness Unbound". The crusade will tentatively hit Germany, Netherlands, Belgium, France, Austria, Italy, Slovenia, Croatia, Hungary, Romania, Slovakia, Poland and Czech Republic. Support on the first part of the trek will come from DAEMONICUS and Austrian black reapers GROTESKH, while on part II, DEMONICAL will be joined by their Swedish comrades SPASMODIC and German melo-masters HAILSTONE.

DEMONICAL recently parted ways with drummer Fredrik Widigs and guitarist Johan Jansson due to "personal and priority-related matters."

The band last year announced the addition of guitarist Daniel Gustavsson to the group's ranks.

DEMONICAL's third album, "Death Infernal", was released in April 2011 via Cyclone Empire.

Fan-filmed video footage of California thrash metal veterans HIRAX performing a brand new song, "Black Smoke", on July 12 at the Rising Festival in Asuncion, Paraguay can be seen below. The track will appear on the band's new full-length album, "Immortal Legacy", which will be released in Germany on September 20, in the rest of Europe on September 23 and in the U.S./Canada on September 24 as CD, gatefold colored LP and download via SPV/Steamhammer. The effort was recorded at a North Hollywood studio with producer Bill Metoyer (ARMORED SAINT, FATES WARNING, W.A.S.P., SLAYER). The album art will be created by Philip Lawvere.

Commented HIRAX singer Katon W. De Pena says: "This is our most epic-sounding record to date, sonically powerful and over the top. 14 new raging thrash metal songs that will make you bang your head!!!"

HIRAX last year released a new single, "La Boca De La Bestia (The Mouth Of The Beast)", through iTunes. A very special limited-edition 12-inch vinyl version of the single with bonus tracks was also made available on Black Devil Records.

"La Boca De La Bestia (The Mouth Of The Beast)" will be included on HIRAX's forthcoming CD. The song was recorded, produced and mastered by Bill Metoyer at Skull Seven Productions.

HIRAX is:

Katon W. De Pena (vocals)
Lance Harrison (lead guitar)
Steve Harrison (bass guitar)
Jorge Iacobellis (drums)
Mike Guerrero (lead guitar)

"Tocino", the first-ever video from VOLTO!, the project featuring Danny Carey, the drummer of Grammy Award-winning, multi-platinum-selling band TOOL, can be seen below.

From the very get-go, VOLTO! was an oddity. Here is a band comprised of some of the most accomplished musicians in Los Angeles who were down right excited about playing cover tunes in a tiny jazz club in the Valley. This at a time when dyed-in-the-wool rockers were paying Hollywood club owners to play their originals in hope of inking a record deal and being catapulted to fame.

Then there were the fusion numbers — staggeringly complex arrangements by WEATHER REPORT, Jeff Beck and Tony Williams that, more so than the hard rock favorites, gave carte blanche for spirited improvisation. And if you have a drummer of the notoriety of TOOL's Danny Carey, fans with purple Sharpies in their pockets (hoping to get an autograph) might just get a drum solo or two delivered with calm intensity and lightning fast accuracy by the native Kansan wearing a Jayhawks basketball jersey.

VOLTO! also features one hell of a bass guitarist and the pride of Corpus Christi named Lance Morrison (session and tour bassist for Don Henley). During each show, the quiet, steady fixture wearing a golf cap would get a chance to "show off" his technical expertise with a solo or two dedicated (sarcastically) to all the ladies in the club.

Applauding these solos as much as anyone in the packed room was PIGMY LOVE CIRCUS guitarist John "Volto" Ziegler (another Texas transplant) who would once again take the reins, cueing his band mates to intros, outros, imminent changes or take blistering leads, dexterous arpeggios with delicate, effects-laden phrasing.

When it came time for last call and the band played their final cover tune, the party would continue either at TOOL's rehearsal loft or at Danny's Hollywood manse. Over Shiner Bocks, vodka and tequila, eventually the conversation would turn to VOLTO! writing and performing original music. Hell, maybe even doing a record.

Rather than book time in one of the countless studios in L.A., it was decided that they would track the songs "live" — onto tape! — utilizing the recording equipment at the loft's modest studio. When he had a small window of time between projects, veteran recording engineer "Evil" Joe Barresi (TOOL, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, BAD RELIGION) was summoned to sit at Danny's API 2448 console. To get the performance and overdubs onto tape, they dusted off an old Studer A827 gold 24-track machine. It might have taken nearly a decade to get to this point, but once the ball was rolling (and custom Neve faders set), things proceeded at a rather quick pace. Much to everyone's delight, songs with names like "Grillz", "BHP" and "Grip It" were even given a boost in intensity by keyboard wizard Jeff Babko ("Jimmy Kimmel Live!" house band, Butch Walker, Larry Carlton).

Once the recording and mixing process was completed, "Incitare" was delivered to Gateway Mastering and left to the very capable ears of Bob Ludwig. For the artwork, Danny had the idea to use a piece in his collection by the famous underground psychedelic artist Rick Griffin. Originally, this was to be used as cover art for a STEPPENWOLF record, but for whatever reasons, didn't happen. With the other members equally enthusiastic by the piece, together with art contributions by TOOL guitarist Adam Jones, the packaging was complete. With management in place and a record deal with Concord struck, a release date was set — July 23.

"Incitare" track listing:

01. Grip It
02. Grillz
03. Whopner
04. Drumbeaux
05. Quirk
06. BHP
07. Meltdown
08. Tocino
09. I'm Calm Now

In the meantime, you can get the VOLTO! experience when they next perform live. And while you shouldn't expect to hear a 20-minute rendition of "Whipping Post", and can't say with absolute certainty what keyboardist will be sitting in to augment the music, but the sheer precision with which VOLTO! plays will leave you stunned.

In addition to making its first-ever visit this week to San Diego for the massive geek culture event known as Comic-Con, METALLICA also played a surprise show last night (Friday, July 19) at the Spreckels Theatre.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Creeping Death
02. For Whom The Bell Tolls
03. Fuel
04. Ride The Lightning
05. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
06. Sad But True
07. One
08. Master Of Puppets
09. Blackened
10. Nothing Else Matters
11. Enter Sandman

Encore:

12. Last Caress
13. Seek & Destroy

METALLICA appeared yesterday at the San Diego Convention Center for a panel and preview of their upcoming IMAX 3D movie, "Metallica Through The Never", which arrives in theaters this fall. The group was in Hall H at the San Diego Convention Center at 6 p.m. PT, joined by the movie's director, Nimród Antal; the star of the film, Dane DeHaan; and producer Charlotte Huggins.

According to Billboard.com, Antal jokingly said he "had the most compromising photos of the band" in response to a question about how he got involved with the film, then added, "I was approached by Charlotte and she wanted to bring in a narrative element [to a concert film] and was looking for a collaborative partner. It seemed like a challenge."

He continued, "When fucking METALLICA calls you, you go."

Huggins added, "I sat down with [the band] and they immediately presented an idea, which included this amazing stage, so I thought it was really interesting. The idea was to do a narrative movie where a concert takes place."

DeHaan said: "I started listening to [the band] when I was working on 'The Place Beyond the Pines'. This was months before he saw the script to "Through The Never", which he says "was 15 pages of nothing but paragraphs and paragraphs of story, I didn't have any lines at all."

"Nimrod let me know what the film means to him," he added. "I go on this journey for a bag in the movie. And [the film] is about what you would go through for someone you love. And I got to hang out with METALLICA for three weeks!"

"Metallica Through The Never" will open on IMAX screens in the U.S. on September 27, with a wider release following on October 4.

MEGADETH was joined by a number of musicians, including Slash (GUNS N' ROSES, VELVET REVOLVER), Zakk Wylde (BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, OZZY OSBOURNE), Jason Newsted (NEWSTED, METALLICA, VOIVOD), David Draiman (DISTURBED, DEVICE) and Vinnie Paul Abbott (HELLYEAH, PANTERA) on stage at last Friday night's (July 12) 97.1 The Eagle Presents BFD 2013 concert at Gexa Energy Pavilion in Dallas, Texas to perform a cover version of the THIN LIZZY classic "Cold Sweat". More fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below.

The 97.1 The Eagle Presents BFD 2013 concert included all the bands that are taking part in this year's edition of Gigantour, the critically acclaimed package festival founded in 2005 by MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine: headliners MEGADETH, along with BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, DEVICE, the new band fronted by DISTURBED singer David Draiman; HELLYEAH, featuring Vinnie Paul Abbott (PANTERA, DAMAGEPLAN), Chad Gray and Greg Tribbett (MUDVAYNE), Tom Maxwell (NOTHINGFACE) and Bob "Zilla" Kakaha (DAMAGEPLAN); NEWSTED, the new band led by former METALLICA, VOIVOD and FLOTSAM AND JETSAM bassist Jason Newsted; and DEATH DIVISION, the heavy, technically aggressive and melodic band founded by bassist Jerry Montano (HELLYEAH, DANZIG, NOTHINGFACE), drummer Tim Yeung (MORBID ANGEL, DIVINE HERESY, HATE ETERNAL, NILE), vocalist/guitarist Sean De La Tour and lead guitarist Rick Di Marco.

Gigantour billing:

MEGADETH
BLACK LABEL SOCIETY
DEVICE
HELLYEAH
NEWSTED
DEATH DIVISION

Revolution Harmony, the brainchild of British music lecturer/journalist Ray Holroyd, has set a July 18 release date for its debut all-star charity single, "We Are". The official video for the song, which features vocals from Serj Tankian (SYSTEM OF A DOWN) and Ihsahn (EMPEROR), as well as guitar solos by Devin Townsend, can be seen below.

Composed, arranged, programmed and produced by Ray Holroyd in Vancouver, the complex international studio project was recorded in North America, England, Norway and New Zealand, then mixed by Rohan Onraet (SLIPKNOT, MACHINE HEAD) in London, and mastered by Ted Jensen (GREEN DAY, MUSE) in New York. The single also features Stefan Loh (WE CLAIMED SENTIENCE ONCE) on guitar, and additional vocals from the young up-and-coming U.K. singer Abbie Johnson.

Vancouver-based non-profit record label Revolution Harmony was launched in 2011 by Holroyd. After founding the non-profit Grade 9 Records in 2008 and growing the label over three successful years, Holroyd decided to expand upon what he had originally established as a means for his students to sell their music and donate the profits to charity, and Revolution Harmony was born. Revolution Harmony acts as a two-way channel, providing an outlet for artists to release their music worldwide and earn money from it, and providing an inlet for the label profits from that music to be redirected to charities that restore harmony between all people, animals and the environment.

The lyrical theme in "We Are" is based on the concept behind Revolution Harmony, which is essentially the belief that musical harmony has the power to inspire a revolution towards societal harmony. The single is dedicated to Nelson Mandela and the memory of Lucky Dube, regarded as South Africa's Bob Marley, and will be released worldwide on Mandela Day (July 18), with all proceeds donated to Buskaid, a charity that provides free music lessons and instruments to children in the townships of South Africa.

For more information on Revolution Harmony, visit RevolutionHarmony.org.

One of the U.K.'s finest exponents of traditional metal, PRIMITAI will release their new studio album, "Rise Again", on October 14.

The debut single from the album, entitled "Fortune Favours The Brave", will be made available on July 31. The track is described in a press release as "a fist-in-the-air, intense slice of no-holds-barred heavy metal."

Check out a teaser clip below.

Comments PRIMITAI drummer Chris Chilcott: "Mixed and mastered by Fredrik Nordström (DREAM EVIL, ARCH ENEMY, SABATON, IN FLAMES, HAMMERFALL, FIREWIND) at Studio Fredman, Gothenburg, Sweden, and recorded by Tom Keech at Stakeout Studios, London, this album represents a year's worth of blood, sweat and tears. We're very proud of what we've achieved with our latest creation and can't wait for you guys to hear it."

PRIMITAI recently announced the addition of guitarist Tom Draper to the group's ranks. He replaces founding member Nick Saxby, who left the band earlier this year. Tom's arrival has added a fresh impetus to proceedings as well as, alongside Srdjan Bilic, some inspired guitar work.

PRIMITAI is:

Guy Miller (vocals)
Tom Draper (guitar)
Srdjan Bilic (guitar)
Jamie Lordcastle (bass)
Chris Chilcott (drums)

Maryland doomsters IRON MAN have completed work on their fifth full-length album, "South Of The Earth", for a September 30 release via Rise Above.

Recording and mixing took place at Hudson Street Sound in Annapolis, Maryland with producer/engineer Frank Marchand III.

"Every time IRON MAN goes into the studio, we treat it like a blank canvas. As things progress, the art form takes shape," says Al Morris on the band's creative process.

"We wrote this album in about 2 months. Then we practiced our asses off to perfect the performance of the songs.

"This CD was done with Frank Marchand, an engineer/producer with a head full of ideas! He enhanced every element of this CD.

"We have great trust in Frank and followed his ideas. This is what came out!"

Rising out of the same Maryland/Washington D.C. mean streets as fellow U.S. doom pioneers PENTAGRAM and THE OBSESSED, IRON MAN formed in 1988 as a BLACK SABBATH tribute band by guitarist Alfred Morris III, whose musical career began in 1977 with mysterious proto-doom cult FORCE. Al's legendarily heavy, unearthly guitar tone was already much in evidence on FORCE's ultra-rare 1981 debut EP — and it has only deepened, hardened, improved and refined in the ensuing 32 years.

IRON MAN 2013 is:

Al Morris III - Guitar
"Screaming Mad" Dee Calhoun - Vocals
Louis Strachan - Bass
Jason 'Mot' Waldmann – Drums

"South Of The Earth" track listing:

01. South Of The Earth
02. Hail To The Haze
03. The Whore In Confession
04. The Worst And Longest Day
05. Aerial Changed The Sky
06. IISOEO (The Day Of The Beast)
07. Half-Face/Thy Brother's Keeper (Dunwich Pt 2)
08. In The Velvet Darkness
09. The Ballad Of Ray Garraty

BURZUM mastermind Varg Vikernes (a.k.a. Count Grishnackh), who was released from French police custody this past Thursday (July 18) — just two days after he and his wife were arrested on suspicion of planning a "massacre" — has written about the experience on his official blog. You can read his account of his past week's events in three parts:

* Terrorism in France, part I
* Terrorism in France, part II
* Terrorism in France, part III

An excerpt follows below:

"Having found nothing whatsoever in our rental house or on our property suggesting in any way that my wife and I had any criminal plans, the police officers were left with trying to make us talk ourselves into trouble, to put it that way. Only they didn't actually seem to be too interested in 'getting' us. Instead they tried to get clarity. I was shocked! Having experience with the band of thugs known as the Norwegian criminal police, who never seemed to care for anything but getting me and everybody else they arrested, no matter what, I was talking to policemen who were instead doing their job, like common people expect them to do and like they are supposed to do. No false testimonies. No fabricated evidence. No planting of illegal items on our property. No desperate attempts to make everything I said sound as if I was rotten to the core. No obviously deliberate misunderstandings of what I actually said. No attempts to put Marie and me up against each other. Nothing, save some confusion regarding what had been confiscated where and who had been present when this had been done. At the same time the local policemen in Brive behaved exemplary too, all of them and all the time. They were polite and professional. No screaming of vulgarities to the incarcerated. No threatening behaviour. No disparaging laughing or exposure of us to ridicule or other unpleasantries. No misuse of power. Wow! France was really different. At that time I felt a bit ashamed for being Norwegian. Maybe civilisation had not yet reached Norway after all.

"They brought clarity and very quickly found out that my wife and I had no terrorist plans. However, the DCRI police officers [Direction Centrale du Renseignement Intérieur (Central Directorate of Interior Intelligence), a French intelligence agency which reports directly to the Ministry of the Interior] were working under orders 'from the top,' as they put it, so they had to find some way to justify the arrestation of us, obviously ordered from 'the top,' so they started to prepare other accusations against us. Like were we suitable parents? I was asked questions about my sons' camo clothes, archery and my daughter's use of a sword on one of the photos on my blog."

Vikernes reportedly still faces charges that he violated French law against provoking racism.

A French prosecutor said Vikernes was charged with racist provocation of Jews and Muslims on the Internet and will be tried in a French court.

THE WINERY DOGS, the power trio featuring drummer Mike Portnoy (DREAM THEATER, AVENGED SEVENFOLD, ADRENALINE MOB), legendary bassist Billy Sheehan (MR. BIG, TALAS, DAVID LEE ROTH) and Richie Kotzen (MR. BIG, POISON), took part in a live interview and acoustic performance earlier today (Saturday, July 20) on Masa Ito's "Power Rock Today" radio show. You can now listen to the program in the YouTube clip below.

Featured acoustic songs:

11:27 - 15:25 "I'm No Angel"
15:40 - 21:23 "The Dying"
22:30 - 26:00 "One More Time"

THE WINERY DOGS' self-titled debut album will be released in North America on July 23 via Loud & Proud Records. Issued in Japan on May 15 via Victor Entertainment, the CD was mixed by Jay Ruston, who has previously worked with ANTHRAX, ADRENALINE MOB, STONE SOUR and STEEL PANTHER. Sheehan previously stated about the effort: "I'm really pleased with it. Richie sang his ass off and played amazingly unique stuff, and, of course Mike annihilated on drums. [It's a] really cool, unique record."

"In all of my years in this business, I've always been part of either a progressive band or a metal band," said Portnoy. "This is the first time I've been in an all-original band that's just a rock band in the vein of LED ZEPPELIN or VAN HALEN."

He added: "It's so refreshing to just play straight-ahead music with lots of twists. Obviously, the musicianship is great in this band, but it's very song-oriented."

Regarding how THE WINERY DOGS got its name, Portnoy said: "It was Richie's name. We had a list of about 50 names. I had about 10 that I preferred over THE WINERY DOGS, but you know, when you're in a band, you have to give and take and choose your battles, and Richie really, really loved this band name. So, you know, it was, like, 'OK.' A name is a name. If you feel that strongly about it, then go for it. So that's who we are."

"The Winery Dogs" track listing:

CD:

01. Elevate
02. Desire
03. We Are One
04. I'm No Angel
05. The Other Side
06. You Saved Me
07. Not Hopeless
08. One More Time
09. Damaged
10. Six Feet Deeper
11. Criminal
12. The Dying
13. Regret

DVD (limited edition, only available in Japan):

01. Elevate
02. Desire
03. I'm No Angel

THE WINERY DOGS will guest on the nationally syndicated radio show "Rockline" with host Bob Coburn on Wednesday, August 14 at 8:30 p.m. PT / 11:30 p.m. ET. Fans are encouraged to speak with THE WINERY DOGS by calling 1-800-344-ROCK (7625). The show will be streamed on the "Rockline" web site for two weeks beginning the afternoon after the live broadcast.

THE WINERY DOGS will take part in a in-store performance and signing session on Tuesday, August 6 at Vintage Vinyl in Fords, New Jersey.

For more information, visit www.vvinyl.com.

Quality fan-filmed video footage of BIOHAZARD's July 19 performance at Luxor Live in Arnhem, The Netherlands can be seen below.

BIOHAZARD recently began writing and demoing material for the follow-up to last year's "Reborn In Defiance".

"Reborn In Defiance" was released in Europe on January 20, 2012 via Nuclear Blast Records.

Not only was "Reborn In Defiance" BIOHAZARD's first original lineup album in 18 years, it also marked the last LP recorded by the band before the departure of bassist and co-vocalist Evan Seinfeld. The effort remains a testament to the four founding members (Billy Graziadei, Bobby Hambel, Evan Seinfeld and Danny Schuler) and their unique chemistry.

Seinfeld left the band in June 2011 after the band's new CD was completed and was replaced by Scott Roberts, who played on the band's 2005 "Means To An End" album and has been part of the BIOHAZARD extended family since.

Legendary drummer Vinny Appice (DIO, BLACK SABBATH, HEAVEN & HELL) played his first show with DIO DISCIPLES this past Thursday, July 18 at The Rockpile in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

Vinny is filling in for DIO DISCIPLES' regular drummer, Simon Wright (DIO, AC/DC, UFO), who was unable to make several of the band's gigs this month due to scheduling conflicts.

DIO DISCIPLES, which pays tribute to legendary heavy metal singer Ronnie James Dio (BLACK SABBATH, RAINBOW, DIO, HEAVEN & HELL) and is fully supported by Dio's widow/manager, Wendy, currently consists of the following musicians:

* Tim "Ripper" Owens (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH) - Vocals
* Oni Logan (LYNCH MOB) - Vocals
* Craig Goldy (DIO) - Guitar
* Bjorn Englen (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) - Bass
* Scott Warren (DIO,HEAVEN & HELL) - Keyboards
* Simon Wright (DIO, AC/DC, UFO) – Drums

During an April 2011 appearance on the "All Hail Hair" show on Fightin' Words Radio, Vinny Appice was asked what he thought of DIO DISCIPLES going out on the road and paying tribute to Ronnie James Dio. "I think it's disgusting," he said. "I mean, why are they even doing it? Plus, [Ronnie has] not even been passed away for a year. And, you know… It's kind of… I don't know. It's kind of weird, man. It's weird."

Vinny last year teamed up with fellow original DIO members Vivian Campbell (guitar), Jimmy Bain (bass) and Claude Schnell (keyboards), along with singer Andrew Freeman, in a brand new DIO tribute band called LAST IN LINE.

In a recent interview with BackstageAxxess.com, Vinny stated about his involvement with DIO DISCIPLES: "Just because I said it was disgusting at one point, now it's all over Blabbermouth. 'To Vinny Appice, it's not disgusting anymore.' The problem was they did it a couple of months after Ronnie passed, and then I thought it was awful; it wasn't the right time. Now they can do whatever they want; it's cool. I mean, we're playing DIO songs [with the 'Drum Wars' project] tonight, so I was a big part of it. It was just that, at the moment, it didn't seem like the best time to do it. I'm just doing a few dates with them because they needed a drummer."

The full theatrical trailer for "Metallica Through The Never", filmmaker Nimród Antal's captivating 3D movie featuring one of music's most enduring and iconic bands, can be seen below. Also available is the official posted for the film.

IMAX Corporation and Picturehouse have announced that "Metallica Through The Never" will be digitally remastered into the immersive IMAX 3D format and released wide in North America exclusively into IMAX theatres for a one-week engagement starting Friday, September 27. The film will expand into additional theatres on October 4.

Starring METALLICA, a cast of thousands of their fans and breakout star Dane DeHaan ("Chronicle", "The Amazing Spider-Man 2"), "Metallica Through The Never" is written and directed by award-winning filmmaker Nimród Antal ("Predators", "Kontroll") and produced by former IMAX film producer Charlotte Huggins ("Journey To The Center Of The Earth"). The film marries groundbreaking footage and editing techniques with a compelling narrative, in which a band crew member (played by DeHaan) is sent out on a mission during METALLICA's roaring live set in front of a sold-out arena. While on this mission, he unexpectedly has his life turned completely upside down.

The IMAX 3D release of "Metallica Through The Never" will be digitally remastered into the image and sound quality of The IMAX Experience with proprietary IMAX DMR (Digital Re-mastering) technology. The crystal-clear images, coupled with IMAX's customized theatre geometry and powerful digital audio, create a unique environment that will make audiences feel as if they are in the movie.

Speaking to Collider.com, DeHaan stated about "Metallica Through The Never": "It's, in a way, like a 3D concert movie but there's also this narrative that ties together all the footage. It's gonna be, first of all, really rock and roll and really 'METALLICA,' for lack of a better word; they don't hold back at all. But during the concert, I basically go on this trip as a roadie for the band and I pretty much literally have to go through hell and back to take it back to them, and all of this is going on during the concert, so it all ties together really kind of beautifully and uniquely. It's unlike anything that I've ever seen before; it's almost like a concert movie meets 'The Wall' meets METALLICA."

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich cited the 1976 LED ZEPPELIN movie "The Song Remains The Same" as a major influence on "Metallica Through The Never", explaining to Classic Rock, "There are four members in LED ZEPPELIN, four members in METALLICA, it's a full-length movie, and there's a lot in this film that does not take place onstage. The major difference is that the stuff that takes place offstage in the METALLICA movie does not feature any members of METALLICA. It's two separate worlds — a METALLICA show and a story that unfolds in a parallel universe — and at some point they intertwine."
The ZEPPELIN film interspersed concert footage with fantasy sequences starring each member of the group.

The concert sequences for METALLICA's movie were shot last August at two shows in Vancouver, Canada.

Ulrich told The Pulse Of Radio a while back that making a movie has been one of the most daunting challenges METALLICA has ever taken on. "It's sort of fun, it's intimidating, it's a little overwhelming, to be honest, because it's a whole different league," he said. "You know, when we go down to [the METALLICA headquarters in San Rafael, California] and record and make a record, it's kind of — you know, we can manage the size of that. [laughs] When you're talking about doing, like, a 3D movie that you're gonna, like, play all over the world, that's a little bit of a bigger undertaking, so obviously we're treading a little more carefully."

"There Will Be Blood", the new video from Brisbane, Australia's powercore band A BREACH OF SILENCE, can be seen below. The clip was directed by Caleb Graham, produced by David Wayland (PARKWAY DRIVE) and filmed near Byron Bay and Lennox Heads in NWS, Australia.

The "There Will Be Blood" video begins as a bank robbery in progress by the band wearing masks portraying U.S. presidents, Saddam Hussein and Pope Benedict. A high-speed chase ensues on a deserted road throughout Byron Bay, where the thieves start disagreeing over how the "loot" should be divided amongst them. Chaos ensues on the cliffs of Lennox Heads (captured by some amazing helicopter fly-by footage), as the band begins fighting on the edge of the cliffs, risking their lives over the stolen money in the briefcase.

"In life, you are faced with tough issues and you need to face them head-on if you want to succeed," states A BREACH OF SILENCE guitarist Mat Cosgrove. "The lyrics — there will be blood (meaning there will be pain) but no remorse (push through to achieve and get on with it) — essentially reflect what the song is about." Bassist Blair Layt adds: "The video basically shows that we have robbed a bank. We all start to get greedy and fight. In that moment, we are on top of the world achieving crazy big things, but it can fall down so easily over just one little thing."

"There Will Be Blood" comes off A BREACH OF SILENCE's new full-length CD entitled "Dead Or Alive", which will be released October 1 by Eclipse Records. The effort was produced by Fredrik Nordström and Henrik Udd (BRING ME THE HORIZON, OPETH, IN FLAMES, ARCH ENEMY) and recorded at HK Studios in Brisbane, Australia.

A BREACH OF SILENCE is:

Mat Cosgrove (guitar)
Blair Layt (bass, vocals)
Andrew Cotterell (drums)
Rhys Flannery (vocals)
Kerrod Dablestein (guitar)

HELL'S DOMAIN — the Danish thrash metal band featuring former members of HATESPHERE, KOLDBORN, EXMORTEM and ARTILLERY — will release its self-titled debut album in late September via Punishment 18 Records. The CD's cover artwork was created by Ed Repka, best known for his work with such bands as MEGADETH, DEATH, MASSACRE, ATHEIST, DEFIANCE and VIO-LENCE.

"Hell's Domain" was recorded at Antfarm Studios in Aarhus, Denmark. Mixing and mastering duties were handled by renowned producer Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, KATAKLYSM, HATESPHERE, SICK OF IT ALL). Songtitles set to appear on the 11-track effort include "Hangman's
Fracture", "Order #227", "The Walls Come Tumblin' Down", "In The Trenches..." , "100 Days in Hell" and "The Needle And The Vein".

HELL'S DOMAIN was formed by guitarist Bjørn Bihlet (ex-KOLDBORN, BOIL) and bassist Lars Knudsen (ex-CRIONIC) in 2007 with the intention of churning out some catchy Bay Area-inspired thrash metal. Soon joined by Anders Gyldenøhr (ex-HATESPHERE, ARTILLERY) on drums and Alex Clausen (MONSTAH) on vocals, the band completed its lineup in 2011 with the addition of former EXMORTEM axeman Andreas Schubert.

HELL'S DOMAIN 2013 is:

* Alex Clausen (ex-GROPE, MONSTAH) - Vocals
* Bjørn Bihlet (ex-KOLDBORN, HORNED ALMIGHTY) - Guitar
* Andreas Schubert (ex-EXMORTEM) - Guitar
* Lars Knudsen (ex-CRIONIC) - Bass
* Anders Gyldenøhr (ex-HATESPHERE, ARTILLERY, GROPE) - Drums

Official MetOnTour video footage of METALLICA performing the song "Master Of Puppets" at the band's sophomore Orion Music + More festival, which took place June 8-9 in Detroit, Michigan, can be seen below.

According to The Pulse Of Radio, METALLICA bassist Robert Trujillo said on the ground at the festival that he was eager to bring the show back to Detroit in 2014. "We've got to come back here, you know," he said. "This is a great place. This city needs it. The weekend has been a blast and I can't wait 'til next year. I've already got ideas for next year, so we're looking forward to it."

As previously reported, METALLICA played a surprise set on June 8 under the name DEHAAN, playing their entire 1983 debut disc "Kill 'Em All" from front to back.

The band's headlining set the following night, which closed out the festival, featured rarities like "Carpe Diem, Baby", "I Disappear" and "Disposable Heroes" alongside the band's more traditional hits and live favorites.

The members of METALLICA were also spotted hanging out at their personal lifestyle exhibits, with James Hetfield seen at his custom car display, Trujillo overseeing the skateboarding at the Vans Vert Ramp, and drummer Lars Ulrich premiering a clip from the upcoming movie "Metallica Through The Never" alongside director Nimród Antal.

The Metallica Museum displayed the bass that Cliff Burton played at his final concert before his 1986 death in a Swedish bus crash, as well as other instruments, stage props and vintage concert flyers.

Robert Trujillo played two other sets during the course of the weekend, first with a reunion of funk-rockers INFECTIOUS GROOVES and then with his own TRUJILLO TRIO.

Spokesperson Charlie Walker of promoter C3 Presents said that around 20,000 attended the first day, with possibly more showing up on Sunday. As for whether Orion will return to Detroit next year, he replied, "We'll go through this one, wrap it up, see what the feedback is . . . Then we'll sit down and try to get a grip on what to do next."

A total of 37 groups, including the RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS, DEFTONES, SILVERSUN PICKUPS, RISE AGAINST and BASSNECTAR, performed on Orion's five stages.

THE JOY FORMIDABLE was unable to perform their show after arriving late in Detroit due to travel issues.

James Hetfield personally introduced the SILVERSUN PICKUPS and watched their set from the side of the stage.

Cliff Burton's father Ray was in attendance for METALLICA's surprise "Kill 'Em All" performance on Saturday.

Detroit native Bob Seger was rumored to be showing up to sing his classic "Turn The Page" with METALLICA. Although the band played the song, Seger was a no-show.

An eight-minute YouTube clip containing audio samples of all the tracks that will appear on "Through Our Darkest Days", the seventh album from Danish melodic death metallers MERCENARY, can be seen below. Due on July 26 via NoiseArt Records, the CD was recorded at Hansen Studios in Ribe, Denmark with longtime producer Jacob Hansen (RAUNCHY, VOLBEAT, NIGHTRAGE, HATESPHERE, PYRAMAZE). The cover art was created by Mircea Eftemie (guitarist of MNEMIC), who has previously worked with SOILWORK, ILLDISPOSED and others.

"Through Our Darkest Days" track listing:

01. A New Dawn
02. Welcome The Sickness
03. Through Our Darkest Days
04. Dreamstate Machine
05. A Moment Of Clarity
06. Beyond This Night
07. Starving Eyes
08. Generation Hate
09. Forever The Unknown
10. Holding On To Serenity (bonus track)

MERCENARY comments on the cover: "Last year when we were busy with pre-productions, we considered reaching out to Mircea to ask if he'd like to give our new cover a shot, because we liked his recent stuff and wanted to try someone with a fresh approach. Against all odds, however, he actually beat us to it and contacted us first with the exact same offer, so it very much seemed as a collaboration that was meant to be.

"After a few sketches, we quickly locked on to the main motive of the cover, which we felt was both iconic, mysterious, and not least, oddly disturbing. Most importantly perhaps, we also felt that Mircea's artwork had managed in a natural way to combine something fresh with the style of our older album covers and their dark and atmospheric vibes.

"As our new album is very much a combination our latest material with a lot of the more traditional melodic and melancholic elements of previous MERCENARY albums, we felt that this was a perfect visual expression of MERCENARY's sound and identity in 2013.

"The cover symbolizes a darkness that we have gone through as a band, which we feel that we have finally been able to put behind us.

"The title of the album is meant very positively and thematizes both the journey through existential darkness as a general theme and the ability to break through it.

"The lyrical universe is very much about making the most of life and not getting caught up in negativity."

Adds Eftemie: "I wanted to make something that had a direct visual relation to the album title, but also follow the design patterns of the older MERCENARY album covers, to keep their identity and brand intact. After swapping ideas back and forth, we ended with a piece not too abstract, but dark and disturbing enough to portray the concept of the new album. It was absolutely a pleasure working on this piece!"

MERCENARY 2013 is:

Jakob Mølbjerg - Guitar
René Pedersen - Bass, Vocals
Martin Buus - Lead Guitar
Peter Mathiesen - Drums

Renowned multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, producer and now ringleader Devin Townsend played a special concert October 27, 2012 at the Roundhouse venue in London, England as part of a one-night-only event, dubbed "The Retinal Circus", that was recorded for both DVD and Blu-ray, to be released later this year via InsideOut Music.

The official promo video for the song "Grace", taken from the forthcoming DVD, can be seen below. The clip was produced, directed and edited by Paul M. Green for Cybertech Productions.

"The Retinal Circus" will be released on several formats, including a lavish and bonkers limited edition befitting of the man himself, and which took months of hard work to put together. The complete list of formats is below:

* Standard 2-disc DVD
* Standard 1-disc Blu-ray
* Standard 2-CD audio
* Special edition (2 DVDs/1 Blu-ray/2 CDs) box set
* Diehard deluxe fan box including 2 DVDs, 1 Blu-ray, 2 CDs (full details of contents to be revealed soon)

Says Devin: "So closing in on eight months of work, we're almost finished with 'The Retinal Circus'!

"It's been a huge amount of work for everyone, from the show, down to DVD and Blu-ray authoring, artwork, logistics (not to mention the show itself!), but we're almost there, and when watched in its entirety, it's really a heck of an experience!

"To tie you over until it's out, here's a clip of the song 'Grace'. t's out of context, obviously, but hopefully gives you a vague idea of what's about to come out.

"It's been a ton of work for everybody and we're really quite proud of it... When the final products have been produced, we'll let you know!"

Devin previously described "The Retinal Circus" as "a retrospective of my career in music to date, with the central theme being a metaphor of how life and the adventures therein are a 'circus' of sorts. The show involves a cast of characters and guests that support this theme through carnival type performances. A story about how a troubled young man dreams of fantastic scenarios, (illustrated through the music of my back catalogue), which ultimately crests in the characters realization that life is all about the relationships we have with each other. This is the first opportunity I have been given to make theatrical representations of my music."

This three-hour performance included:

* A retrospective of Devin Townsend's entire career
* Full choir and theatrical cast
* Visual and aural enhancements unlike any show Devin has done to date
* Several special guests
* Circus and carnival performances and cast
* Art exhibit of Devin's albums, including explanations of each album

In an interview with Metal Insider, Townsend stated about "The Retinal Circus": "It's like such a clusterfuck on stage. Whether or not people who're new to it understand what I'm trying to do, I like the idea that it's like… When I watch it, I'm, like, 'That's pretty much how I feel it should look like.' For better or for worse, it's like this crazy chaos."

Regarding what inspired the setlist for "The Retinal Circus", Townsend said: "I tried to get a bit of everything, but at the end of it, it was most important to include the songs that we could illustrate the best. The show itself had this peculiar story and so that story arc required me to choose songs that would contribute to that, rather than just elbow it in there. So we missed some stuff. 'Terria' wasn't in there, and whatever, but it leaves room for the next thing."

AVENGED SEVENFOLD played its new single and the title track of its sixth studio album, "Hail To The King", live for the first time last night (Wednesday, July 17) at the Rock USA festival in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. Fan-filmed video footage of the performance can be seen below.

"Hail To The King" will be released on August 27. The long-awaited follow-up to 2010's "Nightmare" was once again produced by Mike Elizondo and is the first to be wholly written without drummer and key songwriter James "The Rev" Sullivan, who died in December 2009. Sullivan has since been replaced by Arin Ilejay, a former member of CONFIDE.

AVENGED SEVENFOLD has announced the "Hail To The King" tour — a massive headlining U.S. arena tour to take place this October and the band's first full scale American tour since 2011. The run of dates will kick off in Chicago, Illinois on Thursday, October 3 and wrap up on October 26 in Las Vegas, Nevada. Supporting the band on all dates will be special guests DEFTONES and GHOST B.C.

Additionally, fans of AVENGED SEVENFOLD can pre-order a special, limited-edition box set of "Hail To The King". The antique gold colored embossed foil wrapped "treasure box" will feature exclusive "Hail To The King" artwork and include a deluxe version of the album on CD with a download card to an extra bonus track, an exclusive Canvas Print, a 20-page photo book featuring photos of the band through out the years, a Death Bat Challenge Coin, Death Bat Skeleton Key, an instant download of the new single, and a download of the album on street date. Fans that purchase the box set will also receive pre-sale access to the upcoming U.S. tour. The box is available for purchase here and once they sell out no more will be made.

"Hail To The King" track listing:

01. Shepherd Of Fire
02. Hail To The King
03. Doing Time
04. This Means War
05. Requiem
06. Crimson Day
07. Heretic
08. Coming Home
09. Planets
10. Acid Rain

AVENGED SEVENFOLD will celebrate the album release by playing a free show at the Hollywood Palladium on August 26.

Performance:

"Barcelonian", a brand new song from VISTA CHINO, the group comprised of two founding members of the legendary rock band KYUSS — Brant Bjork and John Garcia — and guitarist Bruno Fevery, can be streamed using the SoundCloud widget below. The track comes off VISTA CHINO's debut album, "Peace", on September 3 (one day earlier internationally) via Napalm Records. The cover artwork for the CD was created by the renowned California art collective The Date Farmers.

Commented Bjork: "The Date Farmers are native to the desert where we are from. It is an honor to work together with such prolific artists!"

"Peace" track listing:

01. Good Morning Wasteland
02. Dargona Dragona
03. Sweet Remain
04. As You Wish
05. Planets 1 & 2
06. Adara
07. Mas Vino
08. Dark and Lovely
09. Barcelonian
10. Acidize - The Gambling Moose

VISTA CHINO has tapped Mike Dean (CORROSION OF CONFORMITY) to play bass on the band's European tour.

Dean handled bass duties for VISTA CHINO at their first North American performance, which took place at this year's Orion Music + More festival — curated by METALLICA — in Detroit, Michigan.

The final live appearances of KYUSS LIVES! — featuring the same lineup as VISTA CHINO — took place in early 2013 as part of Australia's Soundwave Festival.

KYUSS LIVES! decided to change its name after a lawsuit launched by former KYUSS members Josh Homme and Scott Reeder prevented KYUSS LIVES! from recording and releasing any new material.

Commented Garcia: "KYUSS LIVES! is now VISTA CHINO!...it feels great just to write that....and to say it out loud, feels even better. Now that our relationship with Napalm Records is official; it's time to forget about the past year, move forward, and execute our original plan, which was to make kick-ass music and tour the world!"

Speaking to Music Feeds, Brant was asked whether there was a slight sense of relief that the legal dispute over the KYUSS name is over. "Absolutely," he replied. "There's always relief when conflict is resolved and people can just let go and move forward. That's where we're at and we feel great. It's always unfortunate to experience differences with specific people, but we feel great as a band. We're really, really excited to move forward into the future and focus on what it is that we do, which is play music."

Regarding whether the change of band's name to VISTA CHINO would have happened had it not been for the lawsuit, Brant said: "That's a good question. The answer to that question is: I don't know. Possibly. We didn't really think about it. We were really just looking at what was in front of us and making our decisions based on what our present situation was. But now we just came to a point where we felt that changing the name was appropriate and was the fastest way for us to get back to playing music."

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's Zakk Wylde (guitar, vocals) and Nick Catanese (guitar) recently joined the "At: Guitar Center With Nic Harcourt" podcast in the vintage room at the Hollywood Guitar Center to create what is the "loudest" "Guitar Center" podcast so far.

Video footage of Wylde and Catanese performing "Machine Gun Man" for their "At: Guitar Center with Nic Harcourt" podcast can be seen below.

The full BLACK LABEL SOCIETY episode, featuring three songs plus an interview with host Nic Harcourt, is available for free at GuitarCenter.com or on iTunes.

At: Guitar Center With Nic Harcourt" is an ongoing podcast series created by Guitar Center that delivers unique music, and the stories behind it as told to host, Nic Harcourt, in the highest quality possible. The series features both exclusive performance videos and audio podcasts of these interviews that aim to tell the stories of the artists, their background, their music and more.

The goal of the "Guitar Center" podcasts is to create great, inspiring content for emerging artists, utilizing the web to amplify access, enabling consumers and music fans to access it at any time, and to allow Guitar Center to focus on less mainstream topics more pertinent to customers’ needs such as the art of creation, how an artist crafts a specific tone, their studio techniques and how to successfully navigate an uncertain music business.

Fan-filmed video footage of COAL CHAMBER's June 28 performance at this year's Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel, Belgium can be seen below.

COAL CHAMBER and SEVENDUST earlier in the year took part in a U.S. co-headlining tour. Also appearing on the bill was LACUNA COIL.

In a recent interview with the WGRD 97.9 FM radio station in Grand Rapids, Michigan, COAL CHAMBER frontman Dez Fafara (also of DEVILDRIVER) stated about theband's current status: "COAL CHAMBER, for me right now, is like a really fine woman, man. I've gotta re-date her — she's back in my life, I've gotta see how she is, and we've gotta take our time with each other. And that's what we're doing. And I think that's the important thing — we're doing it for the love of the music as well. There's a lot of people that never got to either see COAL CHAMBER live or haven't seen us in a long time due to the breakup.

"It's good to see [the other guys in the band] off hard drugs, man, and you can see their guys are crystal clear, and it makes me wanna do music with them again.

"Right now, with COAL CHAMBER, that's what we're doing — we're taking it slow. [Last September], they sent me some new tunes and said, 'Hey, would you ever think about doing a new record? Here's some new tunes.' And they were absolutely killer. They were moving forward with their sound, but yet you could tell it was COAL CHAMBER, but it wasn't so linear. So who knows what's gonna happen in the future, man? We're just playing it by ear at this point. I've got a lot going on right now, so we just have to really see."

Regarding why neither of the two former COAL CHAMBER bassists — Nadja Peulen or Rayna Foss — is involved in the band's reunion, Dez told Full Metal Jackie in a separate interview, "Rayna was not [asked to be a part of it]. Rayna has been out of the band for a very long time. We did speak to Nadja. She has other things going and it wasn't really in the headspace where we were at as a band. We found Chela; she's Canadian and she's a bad-ass player. She's been playing for nearly [15] years. She plays five-string and it's good to have her on bass. She grew up with COAL CHAMBER. Where Meegs and Mikey and I am right now, we're really excited so we needed someone that filled that excitement drawer and she did for sure; she's stoked."

"A Life By Design?", the debut album from FIGHT OR FLIGHT, the new band featuring DISTURBED guitarist Dan Donegan and drummer Mike Wengren, along with EVANS BLUE singer Dan Chandler, Sean Corcoran of RA on bass and Jeremy Jayson on guitar, is available for streaming in its entirety using the SoundCloud widget below (courtesy of RevolverMag.com). The CD will be released on July 23.

Donegan began writing songs on his own last year and approached Chandler about a possible collaboration. The two began emailing music to each other and getting together to write whenever Chandler was in Chicago, where Donegan lives, until they had enough material to record a full album.

In a posting on the DISTURBED Facebook page, Donegan writes: "[I] just wanted to thank you all for taking the time to check out mine and Mike's new side-project FIGHT OR FLIGHT! No, this does NOT mean the end of DISTURBED, as David [Draiman, DISTURBED singer] has also made that clear.

"We love you the fans that have given us this life and the outlet to express ourselves for many years now. This has just become another extension of us.

"I get it, I understand why some of you may be mad that we are all doing other things right now, but let me assure you that all of us are looking forward to the day we return as DISTURBED to show you how much you mean to us. But in the meantime, we are all focused and giving 110% to our individual projects.

"Whether you love it or hate it, we all pour our blood, sweat and tears into making music for us and the satisfaction we get from it. We hope you find a connection with it as well …

"Music has always been therapeutic for everyone. That’s why we do it. It makes me feel good and any worries go away. It brings me peace in my life and I cannot live without it.

"I look forward to hopefully seeing some familiar faces once we hit the road with FIGHT OR FLIGHT and then again with DISTURBED someday!"

Donegan told The Pulse Of Radio not long ago that he liked the idea of playing with other musicians. "This whole career with DISTURBED, I've always been jamming with the same people, which has been amazing. But I want to feel that I can actually, you know, just continue to expand and explore, you know, different paths as we progress, hopefully, in the future, maybe if there is another album from us."

Donegan said in a statement about the FIGHT OR FLIGHT album, "This is more hard rock. It's got edgy moments, but there's more melody across the board. We had the chance to experiment as well. There are acoustic guitars and some electronics even. It's different all around."

Dan Chandler has been the vocalist for EVANS BLUE since 2009, when he replaced original singer Kevin Matisyn. The band's most recent offering was 2012's "Graveyard Of Empires".

FIGHT OR FLIGHT's first-ever video, "First Of The Last", can be seen below. The track arrived at radio on May 21.

"Olemisen Pelko", the new video from Finnish hardcore heroes UNKIND, can be seen below. The song comes off the band's new album, "Pelon Juuret", which was released on CD/LP/digital via Relapse Records on July 9 in North America, July 8 in the U.K., and July 5 in Germany, Benelux, and Finland. According to a press release, the effort continues in the direction of the group's previous work, offering up a furious fusion of d-beat hardcore crossed with a highly creative touch of atmospherics —as if MOGWAI made a record of TRAGEDY covers or FROM ASHES RISE were influenced by EXPLOSIONS IN THE SKY.

"Pelon Juuret" was recorded at the end of 2012 with producer Kari Nieminen at Noisecamp studios in Turku, Finland.

UNKIND previously issued five full-length albums and a handful of vinyl-only releases.

Brazilian/American thrashers SEPULTURA have set "The Mediator Between The Head And Hands Must Be The Heart" as the title of their new album, due in October via Nuclear Blast Records.

Although it was inspired by Fritz Lang's classic 1927 movie "Metropolis", the CD is not a concept album or a soundtrack like its precedessors "Dante XXI" (based on "The Divine Comedy") and "A-Lex" (based on "A Clockwork Orange").

"The Mediator Between The Head And Hands Must Be The Heart" was tracked over a 40-day period at producer Ross Robinson's (KORN, LIMP BIZKIT, SLIPKNOT) studio in Venice, California and will be mixed and mastered by co-producer Steve Evetts, who previously worked with SEPULTURA on the "Nation" (2001), "Revolusongs" (2002) and "Roorback" (2003) albums, in addition to having collaborated with Ross on a number of other projects in the past.

The follow-up to 2011's "Kairos" will contain nine songs, including "The Age Of The Atheist", "Tsunami", "The Vatican" and "Trauma Of War", and two bonus tracks (covers of DEATH's "Zombie Ritual" and a song from the Brazilian group CHICO SCIENCE E NAÇÃO ZUMBI). The CD will also feature a guest appearance by former SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo.

Commented guitarist Andreas Kisser: "I was inspired by a phrase which is the main message of the story: 'The mediator between the head and hands must be the heart' to express what we are saying on the lyrics.

"In the movie, a crazy millionaire wants to transform a robot into a real person. That's kind of the opposite of what we live today. More than ever we are robotized, through the worldwide web, Google glasses, chips under our skins and the globalized slavery our society suffers nowadays. The phrase points to the heart as being the human factor who keeps a man, a man, not a robot. The heart beats with freedom of choice, we have to think by ourselves to create a real world, not a matrix. ?

"Being a novel written in the early 1920s, it's almost prophetical. It helped us to put the ideas together for the lyrics to express what we see today.

"I live in São Paulo, Brasil, one of the big metropolis in the world with more than 20,000,000 people living and working in it. I know how it is to live in daily chaos, our music reflects a lot of that feeling.

"The album is brutal, fast and straight to the point, I feel this is the best SEPULTURA ever, no bullshit.

"To work with Ross Robinson again was a privilege, one of the best producers out there. He has a strong connection with nature, the human heart, with life in general.

"We did an album that is alive, no fake studio tricks, we were jamming together in the room exploding in an energy so strong you could grab it.

"The heart will never stop beating for mankind. We are no robots, we are pure natural energy and that's worth fighting for. We're not slaves; I have a pulsing heart!"

SEPULTURA's upcoming CD will mark the first time the band will have recorded an album outside Brazil since "Against".

The reunion between SEPULTURA and Robinson was first suggested by Monte Conner, the former Roadrunner Records A&R chief who is now the head of Nuclear Blast Entertainment, a U.S. partnership with Nuclear Blast owner Markus Staiger.

Robinson produced SEPULTURA's classic "Roots" album in 1995. Released in February 1996 by Roadrunner, it was the band's last studio album to feature founding member and vocalist Max Cavalera.