Professionally filmed video footage of Swedish doom metal veterans CANDLEMASS performing their classic song "Solitude" at this year's edition of the Sweden Rock Festival — which is being held June 5-8 in Sölvesborg, Sweden — can be seen below.

CANDLEMASS played its first show with singer Mats Levén on June 5, 2012 at Debaser Slussen in Stockholm, Sweden.

Levén is a former member of YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, THERION and TREAT, who also plays with CANDLEMASS bassist/mainman Leif Edling in KRUX.

Also joining the group for CANDLEMASS' recent live performances was keyboard player Per Wiberg (OPETH, SPIRITUAL BEGGARS).

CANDLEMASS in June 2012 parted ways singer Robert Lowe. The band stated at the time that this was "a very difficult decision" to make and had "mainly to do with the quality of the live performances."

Lowe — who is still a member of SOLITUDE AETERNUS — joined CANDLEMASS in January 2007 and sang on the band's last three studio albums: "King Of The Grey Islands" (2007), "Death Magic Doom" (2009) and "Psalms For The Dead" (2012).

CANDLEMASS released its 11th and final album, "Psalms For The Dead", on June 8, 2012 via Napalm Records. A limited-edition seven-inch vinyl single contaning two album tracks —"Dancing In The Temple Of The Mad Queen Bee" and "The Killing Of The Sun" — preceded the full-length effort on April 13, 2012.

Quality fan-filmed video footage of BLACK STAR RIDERS' June 2 performance at the HiRock Festival in Loreley Freilichtbühne, Germany can be seen below.

"All Hell Breaks Loose", the debut album from BLACK STAR RIDERS, the new band formed by THIN LIZZY alumni Ricky Warwick (guitar, vocals), Damon Johnson (guitar), Scott Gorham (guitar), Marco Mendoza (bass) with new addition Jimmy DeGrasso (ALICE COOPER, MEGADETH, DAVID LEE ROTH, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES) on drums, has registered the following first-week chart positions:

Sweden: #15
UK: #25
Germany: #29
Finland: #38
Switzerland: #63
Ireland: #64
Wallonia: #107
France: #122
Belgium: #163

"All Hell Breaks Loose" sold around 2,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 5 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.

The "All Hell Breaks Loose" artwork features a painting by Gil Elvgren (March 15, 1914 - February 29, 1980), the legendary U.S. painter best known for his work on pin-up girls, advertising and illustration.

"All Hell Breaks Loose" was recorded and mixed by producer Kevin Shirley (LED ZEPPELIN, IRON MAIDEN, AEROSMITH, RUSH) at his The Cave studios in Malibu, California. Mastering duties were handled by Bob Ludwig (JIMI HENDRIX, RUSH, KISS, LED ZEPPELIN) at Gateway Mastering Studios in Portland, Maine.

The album was released as a standard CD and also as a special-edition digipak featuring a bonus track, "Right To Be Wrong", and a "making-of" DVD.

BLACK STAR RIDERS made its live debut on May 30 at The Marshall Theatre in Milton Keynes, United Kingdom. The set featured a mix of music from "All Hell Breaks Loose" along with classic THIN LIZZY tracks.

A two-minute trailer for the forthcoming RUSH "Clockwork Angels" concert film from Fadoo Productions can be seen below. The set will likely arrive sometime in the fall.

RUSH captured the "Clockwork Angels" tour by filming in Phoenix and Dallas on November 25, 2012 and November 28, 2012, respectively. Reports at the time indicated that the Dallas show would be the primary source for the film, with the Phoenix footage used mainly as a backup.

The official Billboard Boxscore attendance and sales figures for the Phoenix and Dallas shows are as follows:

* Show Date: November 25
* Show Venue: US Airways Center
* City/State: Phoenix, AZ
* Attendance: 8,858
* Capacity: 10,121
* Gross Ticket Sales: $604,667

* Show Date: November 28
* Show Venue: American Airlines Center
* City/State: Dallas, TX
* Attendance: 10,509
* Capacity: 10,509
* Gross Ticket Sales: $764,483

The North American leg of the "Clockwork Angels" tour kicked off on September 7, 2012 at the Verizon Wireless Arena in Manchester, New Hampshire and wrapped on December 2, 2012 in Houston, Texas.

In addition to adding a lot of rarely played songs to their opening set, RUSH brought a string ensemble out on tour with the band for the first time ever in its career. Orchestrations provided by well-known arranger David Campbell were used on several tracks from the band's new album, "Clockwork Angels", and RUSH recreated that sound during the tour.

"Clockwork Angels" debuted at No. 2 on the Billboard album chart, selling 103,000 copies in its first week of release. The disc marked RUSH 's highest chart debut since 1993's "Counterparts", which also entered at No. 2.

Paul Lester of The Guardian recently conducted an inter view with BLACK SABBATH members Tony Iommi (guitar), Ozzy Osbourne (vocals) and Terry "Geezer" Butler (bass). A few excerpts from the chat follow below.

On whether they believe in God:

Butler: "I do when I'm on a plane — the first thing I do is say my prayers."

Ozzy: "I've done a good job of trying to kill myself for 64 years. But something's kept me alive. I don't know if it's God, fate or whatever. I'm open-minded. But I don't believe in organized religion at all."

On the few myths surrounding BLACK SABBATH, including the one about Ozzy biting off the head of a live bat, which he had presumed was rubber, in 1982:

Ozzy: "We were never really into the occult. It was a hobby, until we started getting invites to black-magic rites in cemeteries. Then I got accused of doing this and biting that and there would be people picketing the arena with banners. But if you listen to the lyrics, there's nothing that's pro-black magic or pro-satanic worship. It's like God Is Dead? — at the end it says: 'I don't believe that God is dead,' but they only hear the words 'God is dead.'"

On Ozzy not being focused in the studio during the band's early years:

Butler: "You can't write or play songs if you're out of your brains . But because [Osbourne] didn't have to play an instrument, while we were writing he'd be in the bar getting legless or doing all kinds of things." The latter included relentless pleasure-seeking, leading to blackouts."

Ozzy: "I didn't believe it when they said I had blackouts. I'd look at my watch and it would say four o'clock. Then I'd look again and it would say 9:30. I'd totally forget where I'd been or what I'd done. But then you don't think about that before you start drinking. You don't think: 'I wonder what jail I'll wake up in tomorrow?' Because that's not your intention."

On BLACK SABBATH's "13" being the most important record of Ozzy's career:

Ozzy: "Yes, we've had our disagreements. We all said bad things and did our different trips, but it's great to be with the guys. The last time [2001] it didn't gel. But this time it worked out better than our wildest expectations. For Tony to come up with riffs like these is unbelievable. He deserves a medal because if I'd been diagnosed with lymphoma I'd have gone 'Fuck this,' and gone back to bed with a bottle of morphine. But we kept on going because we knew this was probably our last hurrah."

Read the entire interview from The Guardian.

"Breaking Point", the new video from Welsh metallers BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, can be seen below. The song comes off the band's fourth album, "Temper Temper", which sold 44,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 13 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD arrived in stores on February 12 via RCA.

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE's previous effort, 2010's "Fever", opened with 71,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at No. 3. It was also a Top 10 release in the U.K., Japan, Australia, Austria, Canada, Germany and Switzerland.

The Welsh quartet changed the way they approached making an album this time around, with guitarist/vocalist Matt Tuck and drummer Michael "Moose" Thomas traveling to Thailand to do the initial writing and recording for the album. Tuck told The Pulse Of Radio why they made the trip. "It was just nice being in a studio 24/7, really, you know, with no distractions from home and stuff," he said. "So that was kind of the main reason why we went there and it just worked out well, you know, because we didn't have any pressures from having to travel, having to cook your own food — just all the stuff that is an everyday process obviously takes a lot of time out of the day to be creative. So just being there, being able to write 24/7, was a huge advantage."

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE recently headlined the fifth edition of the "HardDrive Live" tour, which kicked off on April 12 in Denver. Joining them were main support HALESTORM, plus special guests YOUNG GUNS and openers STARS IN STEREO. The trek was sponsored by "HardDrive".

BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE will release a brand new single, "P.O.W.", on June 17.

Having completed sold-out tours of the Australia, Europe and America, the band will return to the U.K. in June where they will be second headliners on the main stage at Download festival on Friday, June 14. The band will also make a special announcement that afternoon at Download.

Quality fan-filmed video footage of MEGADETH's June 6 headling concert at O2 Academy Brixton in London, England can be seen below.

MEGADETH's new album, "Super Collider", is likely to sell between 28,000 and 32,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to industry web site Hits Daily Double. The estimate was based on one-day sales reports compiled after the record arrived in stores on June 4 via MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine's new label, Tradecraft, distributed by Universal Music Enterprises (UMe). The disc follows up "TH1RT3EN", which opened with 42,000 units back in November 2011 to land at position No. 11 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's 2009 CD, "Endgame", premiered with 45,000 copies to debut at No. 9. This was slightly less than the 54,000 first-week tally registered by 2007's "United Abominations", which entered the chart at No. 8. 2004's "The System Has Failed" premiered with 46,000 copies (No. 18) while 2001's "The World Needs A Hero" moved 61,000 units in its first week (No. 16).

The album is available as a limited-edition CD with 3-D cover and bonus tracks, regular CD, regular LP, limited LP plus a bonus colored seven-inch single with two bonus tracks, and a download voucher.

The track "Super Collider", which was premiered on Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio metal show on April 20, was released digitally on April 23 via iTunes.

"That song kind of came from that 'Symphony Of Destruction' corner of my mind," Mustaine told Guitar World magazine. "You can't always play aggressive, thrashy stuff. Sometimes those aren't even songs; they're like musical rams. But because I'm not a pop guy, I'm also not really comfortable playing sing-along songs. To me, 'Super Collider' made sense like a normal song — a verse-chorus-verse-chorus kind of thing. It's written the way a real songwriter would write the song, instead of just taking all these musical twists and turns."

"Super Collider" is MEGADETH's first release since the band's recent split with Roadrunner Records.

MEGADETH filmed a video for the "Super Collider" title track on May 10 in the Los Angeles area. California-based model, actress, singer and songwriter Hunter Elizabeth was cast in the lead role in the clip, which she says is "about a high-school couple still loving each other after all the years after graduation, and at the 10-year reunion, both characters find themselves successful (a model and a mathematician) and still very in love."

Fan-filmed video footage of FIREWIND's June 7 performance at this year's edition of the Sweden Rock Festival in Sölvesborg, Sweden can be seen below.

Vocalist Apollo Papathanasio left FIREWIND in January and has been temporarily replaced by American singer Kelly Sundown Carpenter (BEYOND TWILIGHT, OUTWORLD, DARKOLOGY, ADAGIO).

In a recent interview with Metal Assault, Gus G. stated about Apollo's departure: "People following the band for the past few years would know that we've had different session guys at the live shows even when Apollo was in the band because he just had to skip a few tours during the year. So whenever the schedule was getting too heavy for him and he would have to take care of stuff back home, we had to get other guys. So this time, he had to skip again and he was like, 'You know, instead of holding you guys back, I might as well just quit.' I think he did the right thing for him, for us as well, because we can only do that [getting session vocalists] so many times and we're better off trying to find a new permanent guy instead of getting replacements for a tour. So at least now we know that we have to find somebody new, and in a sense it's a bit sad, but at the same time it's some sort of relief."

Asked if Carpenter is going to be the permanent replacement for Papathanasio, Gus said: "We don't know yet. We're not going to rush that decision. We're really happy with what he's doing on stage; he's doing a really good job. But we have this tour and then we have a few festivals back home and then FIREWIND might be on hiatus for a while, so we're going to see what we're going to do."

FIREWIND will celebrate its 10th anniversary by releasing a live album on June 24 via Century Media Records in Europe. Entitled "Apotheosis - Live 2012", the CD will contain 17 songs recorded at special anniversary shows in Greece as well as all over Europe during the band's "Few Against Many" tour in 2012. With a playing time of 69 minutes, the effort is a great overview of the band's career so far, which consists of seven studio albums. It also marks FIREWIND's final release with singer Apollo Papathanasio.

Professionally filmed video footage of LIMP BIZKIT performing a cover version of the RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE classic "Killing In The Name" on June 7 at the Rock Am Ring festival in Nürburgring, Germany can be seen below.

LIMP BIZKIT recently released a new single, "Ready to Go", and is putting the finishing touches on its new studio album, "Stampede Of The Disco Elephants".

"We're really trying to get it hammered out here," LIMP BIZKIT guitarist Wes Borland told Billboard last month. "We're done with most of the music, pretty much all the music. The lyrics and vocals are probably 30 percent done, and [Fred Durst] is working as we speak, on tour."

Regarding the musical direction of LIMP BIZKIT's new CD, Borland said that the songs on "Stampede Of The Disco Elephants" have a "very live and sort of wild" feel. Moreover, fans shouldn't expect the same old LIMP BIZKIT on the album; instead, there will be quite a bit of experimentation on the effort. "I think it's a little bit more, sort of playful, taking chances, a little less pop, structured type of stuff," Borland said. "I don't want to say it [sounds] younger, but maybe a little more carefree, musically, to where we don't over-think what we’re doing."

LIMP BIZKIT and Lil Wayne's collaborative single, "Ready To Go", was released via the band's new label home, Cash Money, Lil Wayne's longtime record company.

LIMP BIZKIT in 2011 parted ways with Interscope, the label that released all of the band's records thus far through its subsidiaries Flip, Geffen and Suretone Records.

Helsinki, Finland-based, female-fronted symphonic metallers AMBERIAN DAWN will release a compilation album of songs released on their first four albums — "Circus Black" (2012), "End Of Eden" (2010), "The Clouds Of Northland Thunder" (2009) and "River Of Tuoni" (2008) — to showcase new singer Päivi "Capri" Virkkunen after the departure of Heidi Parviainen. "Re-Evolution" will be made available on June 14 in Finland, distributed by Suomen Musiikki.

A three-minute collection of audio samples of the tracks that are set to appear on "Re-Evolution" can be streamed in the YouTube clip below.

Comments AMBERIAN DAWN guitarist Tuomas Seppala: "We all thought that the best way to introduce our new singer Capri to our fans is by re-recording a compilation album of our best songs. It was very important for us to give you all a broad overview about Capri's great talent in all its facets and present her vocal sound and way of singing to you before we start recording a whole new studio album. We hope very much that you like the fresh sound created through Capri's voice and the re-recording of the music parts which was necessary due to some required key changes. I believe that this compilation album is an excellent 'visiting card' of the new AMBERIAN DAWN sound and style, all in all we all are really happy with the results we achieved."

"Re-Evolution" was mixed by Mikko Mustonen and mastered by Henkka Niemisto at Chartmakers.

"Re-Evolution" track listing:

01. Valkyries
02. Incubus
03. Kokko - Eagle Of Fire
04. Lily Of The Moon
05. Come Now Follow
06. Crimson Flower
07. Circus Black
08. Lost Soul
09. Cold Kiss
10. River Of Tuoni
11. Charnel's Ball

A music video for the song "Kokko - Eagle Of Fire" can be seen below. The clip was produced by Routafilmi, which is the same company that made the AMBERIAN DAWN's "Arctica" video.

In other news, bassist Jukka Koskinen has left AMBERIAN DAWN. He says in a statement: "I can't dedicate [the time and attention to AMBERIAN DAWN that] it needs [due to my] busy schedule with WINTERSUN."

Capri previously released two solo albums: "Salaa Sinun" (1997) and "Kuun Morsian" (2001).

AMBERIAN DAWN parted ways with vocalist Heidi Parviainen in November 2012. Her final appearance with the band was at the Metal Female Voices Fest at the end of October in Belgium.

AMBERIAN DAWN's fourth studio album, "Circus Black", was released in Finland on February 29 via Spinefarm Records. The band's mainman, keyboardist and guitarist Tuomas Seppälä composed all ten songs for the CD and Parviainen penned the lyrics.

"Re-Evolution" audio samples:

Professionally filmed video footage of KORN's entire June 7 performance at the Rock Am Ring festival in Nürburgring, Germany can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Blind
02. Ball Tongue / It Takes Two / Lodi Dodi
03. Twist
04. Chi
05. Falling Away From Me
06. Narcissistic Cannibal
07. Coming Undone
08. Did My Time
09. Shoots And Ladders / Somebody Someone
10. Here To Stay
11. Helmet In The Bush
12. Need To
13. Lies

Encore:

14. Get Up!
15. Got The Life
16. Freak On A Leash

KORN recently completed work on its 11th studio album, the first to feature founding guitarist Brian "Head" Welch since 2003's "Take A Look In The Mirror". With singer Jonathan Davis saying not long ago that he thinks the new disc is the best the band's ever done, The Pulse Of Radio asked guitarist James "Munky" Shaffer for his assessment. "It's heavy metal with lots of melody," he said. "Jonathan's lyrics are — the way he elaborates and articulates on different subjects, his melodies are so killer. I can't wait for people to hear it."

The new KORN set is due out in late summer and will follow up 2011's "The Path Of Totality", which found the group experimenting with dubstep.

Welch left the band in 2005 to pursue a solo career and devote more of his life to Christianity, but rejoined them for one gig last year and several more in 2013, leading to plans to record together again.

KORN kicked off a world tour last month with a round of dates in the U.S. and is now on tour in Europe for a large chunk of this month and July This is Welch's first full run of dates with the band after playing one song with them last year at the Carolina Rebellion festival.

Fan-filmed video footage of the Todd La Torre-fronted version of QUEENSRŸCHE performing two new songs, "Fallout" and "Redemption", during their June 6 oncert at José Cuervo Salón in Mexico City, Mexico can be seen below. Both tracks come off the band's self-titled album, which will be released on June 25 via Century Media Records. The cover artwork was created by Craig Howell, who has previously worked on designs for "Star Wars", SLIPKNOT and "American Idol", to name a few.

"Queensrÿche" marks the debut release from the lineup comprised of La Torre (vocals; ex-CRIMSON GLORY), Michael Wilton (guitar), Parker Lundgren (guitar), Eddie Jackson (bass) and Scott Rockenfield (drums). The drums for the album were recorded at London Bridge Studios in Seattle, Washington with producer James "Jimbo" Barton — the man who engineered and mixed the band's classic 1988 LP, "Operation: Mindcrime", and its 1990 follow-up, "Empire", and co-produced 1994's "Promised Land". The rest of the music and vocals were laid down at several different facilities on the West Coast.

Asked which album in QUEENSRŸCHE's catalog would most closely compare to what the band is doing now, drummer Scott Rockenfield told "Noize In The Attic": "Our big goal was, once we kind of made our transition last year and moved on as a band, and Todd being in the band, and our focus of the live shows and everything, it's always kind of been about looking at what really made QUEENSRŸCHE special. And for the live show, it's the old stuff. And we've been focusing a lot, in the show, doing that, for the last year, and we're continue to focus on doing that. On the record, I think the vein of what the record is a combination of all that great old stuff that we're kind of known best for. I mean, for me, I kind of summarize it by saying, to me, it's everything from the [debut] EP up to 'Empire', or maybe even 'Promised Land' at that point, which is, to me, the most defining catalog that we've ever done. And I think for this record, it's visiting that and taking that into the future."

Added guitarist Michael Wilton: "I also think that when you hear this record, each song is gonna be unique in its own. For people that have heard the single that's on YouTube called 'Redemption'. Everybody's asking, 'Is the album gonna sound just like that?' And I can say, 'No.' What's great about this record is that every individual here was in the creative process and the writing — there was no outside writers, like [there were] on the last few albums. And it really shows, and it's a real great blend of everybody's strength and their creative elements, and the songs are definitely reflective of the personalities of this band right now."

Continued Scott: "I think that's important. Especially what Michael was saying. I think the focus of that earlier stuff, there was a massive chemistry between all of us that really worked, and we wanted to find that chemistry again, 'cause we've, unfortunately, had to struggle with that the last few years. But we always knew that that's what we wanted to do, so now that we're able to do that, finding that chemistry and that energy that got us to make those records is what that energy now is in this record. And Michael's right: the songs, there's a great variety of things in it, but they're all QUEENSRŸCHE, they're all us doing it, it's our chemistry of working together."

Said Michael: "If you listen to all the other albums, like from 'Promised Land' back to the EP, you're gonna hear all these dynamics, from song after another song — you're gonna hear those dynamics, and that's the same sort of approach we wanted to take on this new one."

Video footage of the limited-edition collectible Loki bust (appoximately 10 inches tall) which will be included in the deluxe version of "Deceiver Of The Gods", the ninth studio album from Swedish melodic death metallers AMON AMARTH, can be seen below.

Recorded at Backstage Studios in Derbyshire, United Kingdom, and produced, mixed and mastered by Andy Sneap (OPETH, MEGADETH, EXODUS, ARCH ENEMY, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE), the follow-up to the band's critically acclaimed 2011 "Surtur Rising" full-length delivers ten fiery battle hymns made of buzzsaw riffs and epic harmonies all driven by vocalist Johan Hegg's commanding Viking roar and absorbing accounts of Norse crusades and treachery.

"Deceiver Of The Gods" comes adorned with another outstanding Tom Thiel-created cover portraying a mythical battle between the Norse Gods Loki and Thor. As an added bonus, Messiah Marcolin (CANDLEMASS) makes an appearance as guest vocalist on eighth track, "Hel".

"Deceiver Of The Gods" will be released in North America via Metal Blade Records on June 25, in Europe June 24 and Japan on June 26.

"Deceiver Of The Gods" deluxe-edition track listing:

CD 1 - "Deceiver Of The Gods"

01. Deceiver Of The Gods
02. As Loke Falls
03. Father Of The Wolf
04. Shape Shifter
05. Under Siege
06. Blood Eagle
07. We Shall Destroy
08. Hel
09. Coming Of The Tide
10. Warriors Of The North

CD 2 - "Under The Influence" Bonus EP

01. Burning Anvil Of Steel
02. Satan Rising
03. Snake Eyes
04. Stand Up To Go Down

* Limited-edition collectible Loki bust (appoximately 10 inches tall)
* Multi-Panel digipak with 16-page full-color booklet
* "Under The Influence" mini poster
* Limited-edition fliptop keep case

Following a run of European festival dates, AMON AMARTH will open the main stage of this year's edition of the Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival, set to commence June 29 in San Bernardino.

Will C. Franklin of FairfaxTimes.com recently conducted an interview with QUEENSRŸCHE vocalist Geoff Tate. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

FairfaxTimes.com: I don't know how much you can talk about it, but can you talk a little from your perspective about the band breakup and how damaging it may be having two QUEENSRŸCHEs out there?

Tate: Well, I think that it's definitely challenging, yeah, definitely. In a business sense, you know? We're basically competing against each other right now, which is no fun. I mean, it's hard enough out there, you know, touring and competing against other bands and that kind of thing for the touring dollar. It's hard enough doing that without competing against yourselves, basically. Yeah, very difficult. But November is the date for the reconciliation, we hope, of the lawsuit. So hopefully it'll all be over by then.

FairfaxTimes.com: I don't know what your plans are with how long you plan on doing this, but is there something for you after QUEENSRŸCHE? At some point, do you say, "I've had enough. I want to do something else now"?

Tate: [laughs] I've had enough and I want out? [laughs] You know, I don't know. I enjoy it. I like making music. I write all the time. I have tons and tons of songs and projects I'm working on — I'm already working on a new QUEENSRŸCHE record. I started about a month ago. It's in the works. It's what I do, you know? I write and I make songs and I make records and I perform live. I don't know how else to define myself. [laughs] Maybe I'll get to a point, you know, where I'm interested in something else as much, but I have a passion for it. For me, it's important to follow my passions.

FairfaxTimes.com: Is there any chance whatsoever of the core group getting back together?

Tate: I don't think so. I think we've completed our chapter as a group. It's moved on and probably went too long as it was. It's a good thing that it's done and we're all moving on. I wish that we could have settled this whole thing in a much more gentlemanly way and not have it plastered all over the Internet every day. [laughs] That's something I really wish would have happened. But it is what it is, and we work with what we have and we'll get through it and get to the other side. Which is what I'm doing. I'm just waiting for November to come and in the meantime continuing to make records and tour and having a good time doing it.

Read the entire interview from FairfaxTimes.com.

Jason Roche of LA Weekly recently conducted an interview with legendary LED ZEPPELIN singer Robert Plant. An excerpt from from the chat follows below.

LA Weekly: What are your reflections on LED ZEPPELIN being honored at last year's Kennedy Center Honors?

Plant: I knew we did a lot of damage to people's brains and ear drums, and I knew we wrote some great songs, but it was a very humbling experience. When I saw HEART perform "Stairway To Heaven", I just couldn't believe that song had anything to do with this 64-year old man that was sitting next to John Paul Jones. I thought to myself, "This is me... How did this happen?" The charm of the people involved in the project, from the president and across the board...it was mind-altering. I've been thrust in front of royalty all over the world, kings and queens and princes...but these guys were actually having a good time! The three of us were amazed that that sort of thing happened. That wouldn't happen with Prince Charles!

LA Weekly: What still motivates you to keep pursuing musical endeavors in 2013?

Plant: The sound of a new project. The sound of music developing. For the last year or so, I've been writing quite a lot, and I like the way my voice sounds now. It's not the same as it was years ago. I'm not a castrato anymore, but I've learned to get down into that pocket and have it sound good. So here I go again... Over the years, I've seen all of these artists that I respect that are able to create all of these amalgamations with other artists. I've watched the way John Paul Jones has worked throughout his life as a musician. I have great respect for him. He's right in the middle of writing an opera right now and people are taking him seriously as a writer in the classical mode. But he can also play in THEM CROOKED VULTURES and play mandolin with Seasick Steve. I've learned that it's good to keep moving and keep smiling!

Read the entire interview from LA Weekly.

TRIPTYKON — the group formed by former HELLHAMMER/CELTIC FROST singer, guitarist, and main songwriter Tom Gabriel Fischer (a.k.a. Tom Gabriel Warrior) — is working on material for its sophomore full-length CD, tentatively due in early 2014.

In a series of online messages, Fischer states: "I am writing much music for the new album, however. As of right now, it is very dark and very varied.

"The title of the album, the artwork, and the general design have all been chosen. I do hope to see it finished approximately by the end of the year."

Regarding the approach to his guitar playing on the new TRIPTYKON material, Fischer said: "My guitar tone/sound will likely continue to evolve, albeit within the limits of a certain direction.

"My current guitar tone is the result of a continuous effort to achieve a tone which represents me, i.e., my emotional landscape, perfectly. I have never been able to identify more with my guitar tone than in recent years (on 'Monotheist' and, particularly, 'Eparistera Daimones' and the associated tours). I have spent some three decades pursuing this a tone/sound, and I feel etremely comfortable with it now, and I see little impetus to change it at this time. Above all, it yields the heaviness and darkness I seek. To me, this type of a continuous mutation within a certain frame of mind can best be explained when one looks at the three consecutive versions of the song 'Triumph Of Death'… The simple reason is that I am not 'youthful' anymore at this point in my life, and it is logical that my music and approach is thus different. I will turn 50 this year, and it would be utterly naive to expect that my sound is exactly the same 31 years after I started HELLHAMMER as a teenager. If it was, it would be an act, i.e., a lie… My 'aggression' is [still] there. It has changed, though. It is of a very different kind nowadays. If anything, it is far more profound."

In other news, Fischer has revealed that he is also working on "another musical project" which he promises is "equally dark and heavy on various levels."

He added: "There are only a handful of people who know of this project at this time.

"The new TRIPTYKON album is my priority. It is very likely that any other project will be completed only after it is finished."

"Shatter", the latest five-track EP from TRIPTYKON, sold around 500 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 90 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.

"Shatter" was released on October 25, 2010 (Europe) and October 26, 2010 (North America).

At a playing time of approximately 28 minutes, "Shatter" consists almost entirely of previously unreleased music.

TRIPTYKON consists of V. Santura (guitar, vocals), Norman Lonhard (drums, percussion), Vanja Slajh (bass), and Tom Gabriel Fischer (voice, guitars). The group has unambiguously stated that it pursues the continuation and further development of the path Warrior began in HELLHAMMER and CELTIC FROST.

MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine used a homophobic slur and had a fan ejected from the band's concert last night (Wednesday, June 5) in Manchester, England in an incident that was captured on video.

According to online reports, MEGADETH was dealing with technical and lighting issues during the early part of its set at the Academy and was forced to go off stage for about 10 minutes after the sixth song, "Architecture Of Aggression", while the problems were being fixed. When the band returned, a angry fan was apparently booing Mustaine and flipping off the MEGADETH leader for having made everyone wait. This promoted Mustaine to launch into a minute-long tirade during whch he said: "You look like Eminem, you stupid cunt."

He continued: "Listen, you guys pay a lot of money to see us play, and I don't wanna stand here in the dark. I mean, part of the whole MEGADETH show is us smiling and making that connection with you."

He then once again addressed the fan directly, telling him: "Get the fuck out of here! Get this guy out of here! You blonde bitch. C'mon up here. I've got a big cock for your face. [Making kissing sounds.] Here it comes… Stick that finger right up your ass, you little f****t."

Fan-filmed video footage of Mustaine's rant can be seen below.

MEGADETH is touring in support of its new album, "Super Collider", which is likely to sell between 28,000 and 32,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to industry web site Hits Daily Double. The estimate was based on one-day sales reports compiled after the record arrived in stores on June 4 via Mustaine's new label, Tradecraft, distributed by Universal Music Enterprises (UMe).

Berlin-based classic/psychedelic rockers KADAVAR have parted ways with bassist Mammut. The group comments: "After almost three years of band history, Mammut left the band due to musical and personal reasons. We believe that this decision was for the good of us all and wish him only the best for his future."

Mammut sat out KADAVAR's recent tour dates and was replaced by a stand-in musician who also happens to be an old friend of the band and has now officially been named as KADAVAR's new bassist: Simon Bouteloup.

"For us, Simon Bouteloup was the only replacement imaginable all along," the band says. "We've toured with his ex-band AQUA NEBULA OSCILLATOR in the past and recorded a split record with them. Afterwards, he accompanied our tours on a regular basis. In autumn of 2012 he moved from Paris to Berlin and joined THE OATH. We're happy to have him on board as a permanent member now!"

KADAVAR's new lineup:

Christoph "Lupus" Lindemann - Vocals, Guitar
Christoph "Tiger" Bartelt - Drums
Simon "Dragon" Bouteloup - Bass

KADAVAR's second full-length album, "Abra Kadavar", entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 42. The CD was released in Europe on April 12 via Nuclear Blast Records.

"Abra Kadavar" was made available as a limited digi version, including a bonus track, as well on different vinyl versions.

Photo by Matias Corral

California rockers TESLA spent the last two days (June 5-6) tracking a new song titled "Taste My Pain" at J Street Recorders in Sacramento, with plans to digitally release it sometime this summer and include it on a forthcoming album. The tune has all the bandmembers excited to keep working on the new album during breaks in touring and have the full album released in 2014. According to the group, "It's a heavier song with a hard -driving beat and TESLA trademark blazing guitars."

A photo from the studio can be seen below.

TESLA's latest album, "Twisted Wires And The Acoustic Sessions", was released in July 2011 via Scarlet Records. The CD featured six songs that were recorded back in 2005 at bassist Brian Wheat's J Street Recorders studio — which also serve as the last recordings with original member Tommy Skeoch — and six newly recorded tracks, including acoustic remakes of songs from TESLA's entire catalog and two brand new songs, "Second Street" and "Better Off Without You".

TESLA released a live album, "Alive In Europe!", in Europe on April 23, 2010 via Frontiers Records.

TESLA's latest studio album, "Forever More", sold more than 16,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 33 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD was released on October 7, 2008 on Tesla Electric Company Recordings. The European version of the album, which was made available on November 7 via Frontiers Records, contains two bonus tracks not found on the American version.

Guitarist Adrian Belew (pictured below) has announced his departure from the new touring lineup of Trent Reznor's NINE INCH NAILS.

Belew wrote on Facebook: "Hey, folks, before this goes too far, let me say this: I greatly respect [NINE INCH NAILS mainman] Trent [Reznor] and the music he makes. No one is at fault. We both agreed it just was not working. I'm sorry to disappoint anyone. That really hurts. But NIN will do an amazing show and I am back where I belong: creating FLUX."

Bassist Eric Avery quit NINE INCH NAILS last month, writing on Facebook that he was "overwhelmed" at the thought of going out again with NIN after spending the last year on tour with GARBAGE.

NINE INCH NAILS will release its first new album in four years, titled "Hesitation Marks", on September 3 through Columbia Records. The disc was recorded in secret over the past 12 months and features "Came Back Haunted", the first single, which is available at iTunes on Thursday (June 6). In addition, the band has confirmed a lengthy North American tour called "Nine Inch Nails: Tension 2013" for the fall, beginning on September 28 in St. Paul, Minnesota. Tickets for the arena outing will go on sale to the public beginning Friday, June 14 at LiveNation.com.

Reznor said about the tour, "'Tension' picks up where (2009 outing) 'Lights In The Sky' left off. This is the full-on NIN live experience realized as we never could before."

Fans who pre-order "Hesitation Marks" on iTunes will instantly receive a download of "Came Back Haunted". The single is also streaming at the official NIN web site.

Before the tour, NINE INCH NAILS will appear this summer at events like Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, Leeds, Reading, Made In America and the Voodoo Festival.

Quality fan-filmed video footage of WHITESNAKE's June 2 performance at the HiRock Festival in Loreley Freilichtbühne, Germany can be seen below.

Regarding WHITESNAKE's upcoming touring plans, the band's mainman and lead singer David Coverdale recently told the Coventry Telegraph, "I absolutely love being at home with my family, so it has to be something exciting to get me out of my house. I enjoy performing, but the travelling sucks on ice. I am treated very nicely when I'm on the road these days, but if you could beam me to Birmingham or wherever, I would love it."

On the topic of WHITESNAKE's co-headlining tour with JOURNEY, whose hits include "Don't Stop Believin'", "Any Way You Want It" and "Faithfully", with the added attraction of English hard rockers THUNDER, Coverdale said: "JOURNEY I have known for decades. The difficulty of having a co-headliner is to find someone with an equal number of familiar songs, so that you give audiences more bang for their buck. In these difficult times, the more you can offer for the price of a ticket the better, I feel. And JOURNEY have a lot of great songs. As for my dear friends THUNDER, (guitarist and songwriter) Luke Morley has put the band back together specially for this tour."

Frontiers Records will release WHITESNAKE's "Made In Britain/The World Record" in Europe on July 5 and in North America on July 9. The album will be released in Japan on June 19 via Ward Records.

GUNS N' ROSES played an intimate show last night (Thursday, June 6) at Brooklyn Bowl in Williamsburg, Brooklyn.

Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

GUNS N' ROSES is set to headline Governors Ball this Saturday, June 8.

Although the current version of GUNS N' ROSES has a few more shows coming up, the band's guitarist, Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal told Rolling Stone that there is music ready to go for a follow-up to 2008's "Chinese Democracy". He explained, "There's a lot of stuff, it's just a question of all of us organizing. We're still doing shows, and I think once we clear our schedule and focus more on new music, it'll happen. We just have little things on the back burner, just waiting for the right time for us to organize and make something new out of it. Hopefully we can make more music — that's what it's about."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, Thal believes that the group's fans want to hear something new from GUNS too, saying, "They want new music, and we can do it. It's not that we're done. I'm not ready for that. We need to keep making music. We have a great band that's ready to do it and can do it well."

Any chances of a new album, of course, depend on frontman Axl Rose. It took Rose 13 years to finish "Chinese Democracy", burning through hundreds of thousands of dollars, multiple producers, every last remaining original member of the group and a few replacements before he was done.

The finished product got mixed reviews and was a relative flop, moving less than one million copies in the U.S.

But Rose remains an enigma. He has not spoken about making a new album in any of his rare interviews, still insists on going onstage late, and skipped out on GUNS' induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2012.

SLAYER played its second show yesterday (Thursday, June 6) since the passing of guitarist Jeff Hanneman and return of drummer Paul Bostaph at Muziektheater in Enschede, The Netherlands.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. World Painted Blood
02. Hallowed Point
03. War Ensemble
04. Hate Worldwide
05. At Dawn They Sleep
06. Stain Of Mind
07. Disciple
08. Bloodline
09. Mandatory Suicide
10. Chemical Warfare
11. Payback
12. Seasons In The Abyss
13. The Antichrist
14. Dead Skin Mask
15. Hell Awaits
16. Raining Blood

Encore:

17. South Of Heaven
18. Angel Of Death

Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

It was announced on May 30 by SLAYER's Tom Araya (bass, vocals) and Kerry King (guitar) that Bostaph would be behind the drum kit for the first leg of the band's 2013 international tour. EXODUS' Gary Holt is continuing to fill in for fallen guitarist Jeff Hanneman, who died on May 2 from alcohol-related cirrhosis of the liver.

Bostaph was SLAYER's drummer from 1992 until 2001 and recorded four albums with the band — the gold-certified "Divine Intervention" (1994), the 1996 punk covers album "Undisputed Attitude", "Diabolus In Musica" (1998), "God Hates Us All" (2001) that received a Grammy nomination for "Best Metal Performance", as well as the DVD "War At The Warfield" (2001), also certified gold. In addition to SLAYER, Bostaph has been a member of FORBIDDEN, EXODUS, SYSTEMATIC and TESTAMENT.

SLAYER's 2013 itinerary will have the band playing 35 dates that will include headline shows as well as a number of major summer festivals in Europe, Eastern Europe and South America between June and October.

"Paul's a great drummer and a good friend, and we're very happy that he's decided to rejoin the band," said Araya. "We're still pretty numb from the loss of Jeff, but we don't want to disappoint our European and South American fans, and we need to begin moving forward... Having Paul back in the band makes that a whole lot easier."

Original SLAYER drummer Dave Lombardo sat out the band's recent Australian tour due to a contract dispute with the other members of the group. Filling in for him was Jon Dette (TESTAMENT, ANTHRAX).