Guitar legend STEVE VAI will be touring and performing his new orchestral and rock compositions with THE EVOLUTION TEMPO ORCHESTRA throughout Europe.
An update reads: "First, in celebration of the 100th Anniversary of the first performance of Stravinsky's 'The Rite of Spring', The North Nederlands Orkest has commissioned Steve's new composition called 'The Still Small Voice' - the second part of Vai's The Middle Of Everywhere which debuted last year. We can't say too much but the ENTIRE Fire Garden Suite will be performed with a full orchestra and Vai himself. After the Stravinsky Festival, Steve will tour for 2 1/2 weeks with the orchestra and rock ensemble on a String Theories Tour throughout Russia, Ukraine, Italy and Spain, with very special Alien Guitar Secret Masterclasses interspersed."
Visit this location for info and ticket links.

Atlanta, GA-based metal act TRIPHON have announced the start of their sophomore album. The follow-up to the album Distance is scheduled for release in late 2013. The 16-track effort is twice the length of their debut album and will include one bonus track and one cover song.
Since the release of their debut album a mere 8 months ago, Triphon has been smashing their way into the modern metal scene. Distance peaked at #3 on Amazon upon it's release with two singles, 'Open The Gates' and 'Fall Of The Tyrant', making the Top 50 as well. Triphon has also ranked among the top 1% of all metal bands, worldwide on Reverbnation in 2012.

The forthcoming album, which is yet-untitled, continues to showcase the band's eclectic chemistry; further infusing melodic death, power and thrash metal. "It's heavy as hell and we haven't slowed down one bit." comments frontman Kyle Morrison. "This is an amazing leap forward for us as a band and as songwriters. We've found our groove in working with each other and have been incredibly prolific over the past few months."

The band has confirmed a number of special guests appearing on the album but will remain unnamed at this time. Triphon will be documenting their journey from pre-production to album release on their YouTube channel and Facebook page.
Triphon lineup:

Kyle Morrison - Lead Singer & Screamer, Keyboards
Justin Rogers - Lead & Rhythm Guitars
Stephen Gladney - Lead & Rhythm Guitars
Brian Dawley - 4, 5 & 6 String Bass
Morten Løwe Sørensen - Drums

More on Triphon at this location.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE guitarist Adam Dutkiewicz recently spoke to Decibel magazine about his much-buzzed-about project with former THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER drummer Shannon Lucas and CANNIBAL CORPSE vocalist George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher.

"It was supposed to be a big hush-hush, but I think people are starting to catch wind of it," Adam said.

"When [KILLSWITCH] toured with CANNIBAL CORPSE and BLACK DAHLIA on the [Rockstar Energy Drink] Mayhem [Festival], I was just hanging out with George one night, and I was like, 'Dude, if I wrote you a bunch of songs to sing over, would you do it?' And he was like, 'Fuck yeah, man!' So, I've written about eight songs. I've played them for George and Shannon, and they're both down. So, we're just looking for a time get into the studio."

Asked if this was material he had sitting around that he thought George would be good for, or if these were songs that were written specifically for George to sing, Adam said: "They were written specifically for him. He's one of my favorite singers of all time, and I thought there wouldn't be any harm in at least asking him. Once he said yes, it was like, 'Alright — let's go!'"

Regarding the musical direction of the new project, Adam said: "It's not straight death metal — there's some melodic elements in there — but it's much faster and more aggressive than KILLSWITCH is. And the drums are blazing, so Shannon is probably one of the only guys on the face of the earth who could pull this off."

Last night's (Friday, April 5) VISION DIVINE concert in Guatemala was reportedly canceled after violence broke out between the police and unruly fans, resulting in the shooting of a local heavy metal musician. Details are sketchy at the moment, but it appears that police were called after several drunken fans started trouble outside the venue. Two shots were reportedly fired, with one of them hitting Cristian Arevalo, a guitarist for the Guatemalan band NOVA EPICA, who was apparently not involved in the dispute.

A statement on the NOVA EPICA Facebook page reads as follows: "It is unfortunate that musicians can fall victims to violence in this country. Yesterday at the concert of VISION DIVINE, unknown people were firing outside the event, and, unfortunately, those bullets were able to penetrate the gate and injure our brother and guitarist, Cristian, who is in a very delicate state. We are praying that he will be able to it get through this. Cristian is an excellent person, and we are all comforted by the knowledge that he is a fighter and that he will succeed. We also hope that the authorities of this country will not let the responislbe parties go unpunished."

VISION DIVINE said in a statement: "We just arrived in Mexico, after having left Guatemala.

"As some of you have probably already heard, we stopped the show in Guatemala 'cause a fan got shot during the concert (still we're not 100% sure about the facts).

"We have no words to comment what just happened... All we can say is that we're close to the family of the guy and that we feel sorry for all the people of Guatemala and the producers of Hominis Nocturna. There's nothing else we feel like commenting, for the moment.

"Thank you for understanding."

VISION DIVINE is touring in support of its seventh studio album, "Destination Set To Nowhere", which was released on September 14, 2012 via Germany's earMUSIC, the Hamburg, Germany-based rock branch of Edel Group.

CHURCHBURN is the new musical collaboration between two of the undergrounds masters of misery: Dave Suzuki, best known for his mesmerizing guitar work and brutal drumming in VITAL REMAINS, and Ray McCaffrey, who carved out sonic drum patterns for SIN OF ANGELS and GRIEF.
They have checked in with the following update:

"Dave and I (Ray) are sorry to report that Shawn McCoy has decided to step away from the band. Shawn was faced with some very tough and real life decisions regarding his financial/employment situation. We wish Shawn well. He is an amazing talent and a great friend of the band!!

Going forward Kevin "Edwards" Curley will handle guitar duties alongside Dave. Also, we are very happy to announce the addition of Mike Cardoso ( I, DESTROYER, SUFFERING BASTARD, HAXEN) on bass. Mike brings a lot to the band in experience and overall knowledge of music. We can't wait to introduce our fans to this war machine that is Churchburn!"

their first live events for June 29th and June 30th.

June 29th will be in their hometown Providence, RI at club Fete with death metal legends INCANTATION and ACHERON.

June 30th Churchburn will make their national debut, along side some of the heaviest and darkest bands on the planet, at this years installment of Martyrdoom Fest at Public Assembly in Brooklyn, NY

This will mark the first time Dave Suzuki has taken the stage since his departure from Vital Remains in 2007.

"It will be great to get back in front of a live audience again and introduce this new body of work Ray and I have brought to life" Dave Suzuki.

The groups self tilted three song debut EP, witch is available via their official Bandcamp page.

"Churchburn is very different from Vital Remains," said Suzuki. "Ray and I wanted to do something slow and heavy...just something pummelling to the listener."

According to a press release, Suzuki and McCaffrey have set out to share with the world their love of the riff, not only the heaviest but also the most haunting. Each songs is crafted with the most sinister of intent. Churchburn wants the listener to feel a true sense of dread as the song progresses.

The tracklisting for the EP is as follows:
'Come Forth The Swarm'
'Crown Of Fallen Kings'
'Kneel Upon Charred Remnants'

The band is currently writing and demoing material for its debut album, tentatively due in late 2013 via an as-yet-undetermined record label.

For information and updates on Churchburn go to their official Facebook page here.

JON OLIVA of SAVATAGE and JON OLIVA'S PAIN fame is gearing up for the release of his very first official solo album. The record will be released via AFM Records on June 5th.
Jon Oliva's Pain drummer/producer Christopher Kinder recently checked in with the following update:

"The first (and probably last, ha-ha) Jon Oliva solo record is now complete. Oliva will be the first to admit that it took one hell of a challenge writing, performing 90% of all the tracks himself and vocals... he is exhausted for sure. It's a very interesting and powerful offering. Diverse, emotional, and varying styles of writing and music everywhere. A truly great accomplishment for the mountain king indeed.

Special thanks to Tom Morris and everyone at Morrisound once again for a job well done."

As previously reported, Oliva has assembled a collection of ideas from the past four-five years and recorded nearly all the instrument tracks and vocals himself and also playing drums on several tracks.

Ontario melodic death metallers ODIUM have issued the following update:

"It is with great regret that we must announce the departure of our vocalist, Tom Emmans. After much deliberation he decided it was time to leave the band. Unfortunately we have no explanation for his actions, which seems extremely unfair to all of our loyal fans - but we WILL say it was not a mutual decision.
Due to messy communication and poor management as of late, we are left uninformed and without a frontman - therefore ALL upcoming events have been cancelled.

We will continue to keep you guys updated and will be holding vocalist auditions in the near future.

Thanks for all the support, Odium loves you!"

Long-running UK rockers MAGNUM have issued the following update from bassist Al Barrow:

"We're at it again. We are back in the studio working on the new studio album. How many is it now? Over the past week Bob (Catley; vocals) and Tony (Clarkin; guitars) have been putting some guides down to get us underway. Bob will be off on a world tour with Avantasia for a short while. Tony and myself will be in the studio carrying on with the album ready for Bob's return. Before we know it we will be getting the rest of the boys down to come in to add drums and keys. It is always an exciting time for all the band, starting something new. We are aiming (provisionally) for a January 2014 release through SPV again and we hope to follow up with a European and UK tour possibly March 2014, visiting all the usual spots and may be a few more to boot. Lets hope so, we love to play as much as possible and every venue we can given the chance. Lets hope we get to see you all on the next tour. There is no working title for the new album just yet but I will be keeping everyone up to date with news as I get it."
Magnum live:

July
25 - Robin Hood - Bilston, UK
28 - Steelhouse Festival - Wales, UK

August
4 - Cambridge Rock Festival, UK
17 - LugnetvÄGen - Falun, Sweden

PAGAN founder Michael Bilinski, along with core members Jennifer Price (vocals) and Sam Mckee (drums), are currently in the studio putting the finishing touches on a new batch of songs which will be released this Summer via The Genepool/Universal. The set, titled ,The End Is Here, will be available in for download, streaming and as an elaborate box set that is being dubbed the Survival Kit.

"I wouldn't say this is a true concept album," Bilinski explains, "but their is a loose apocalyptic theme that runs throughout. That is what led to the idea of the "Survival Kit", which is going to bring an almost interactive element to the album by providing the listener with all the tools they need to immerse themselves in a world we have created a soundtrack for."
The first single off of The End Is Here will be a cover of 'House Of The Rising Sun'.

Bilinski adds: "Rising Sun was going to be a stand alone track, or part of an EP, but the recording methods and tools we were using inspired more songs and this project grew from there."

A video will be produced for 'House Of The Rising Sun' and the band will perform a live set on the recently launched Loud N' Loaded radio in the coming weeks.

India's extreme metal veterans DEMONIC RESURRECTION are celebrating 13 years together and have started work on their fourth full-length album. The band issued the following update as well as releasing a photo album of their studio drum tracking sessions here:
"On April 6th, 2000 we played our first show with NAKED EARTH, SCEPTRE and METAKIX. We complete 13 years as a band today. We have no special announcements, no special events planned, no special release or anything. The last two years have been very hard for us and none the less we've not given up, we may be down now but we're far from out. At this point, however, we're happy to say that we have hit the studios and begun recording our 4th full-length album. It will be released this year so stay tuned. A massive thanks to all our fans, well wishers and supporters who have kept us going over years and supported us. Cheers and Stay Demonic!"

The album is being recorded at Demonic Studios with frontman Demonstealer doubling up as producer.

Visit Demonic Resurrection's official Facebook page here.

In a new interview with Metalfan.ro, NEGURA BUNGET leader Negru (real name Gabriel Mafa) talks about working on new material as well as unveiling the band's new lineup.
Negru says: "At this point we already have a full line-up and in this formula we started working on new materials and prepare live gigs. At the very core there are some musicians who will be involved in all the projects of the band. To this we’ll add another layer of musicians who will join us just for special events and studio projects. This more flexible approach will allow us to increase the use of authentic traditional instruments adding new elements and to explore new musical territories, both live and in studio. The line-up looks like this:

Gabriel Mafa / Negru - drums / percussions / cimbalom / xylophone
Tibor Kati - vocals / guitar / keyboards / programming
Adrian Neagoe / Oq - guitar / vocals / keyboards
Petric? Ionu?escu - pipe / panpipe / traditional instruments
Ovidiu Corodan - bass
Vartan Garabedian - percussions / vocals
Mihai Neagoe / Mtz- sound design
Daniel Doroban?u – visual design

Read the entire interview at Metalfan.ro.

Quality video footage of HATE's March 31 performance at Effenaar in Eindhoven, The Netherlands can be seen below (courtesy of "letthedeathmetalflow").

As previously reported, HATE bassist Slawomir "Mortifer" Archangielskij was found the night of April 5-6 near the German town of Munchberg. The remaining members of the band said: "After the show in Stuttgart, he went to sleep and never woke up. We found him lifeless early in the morning and immediately called an ambulance. He was reanimated, but to no avail. Results of Slawek's autopsy should be known soon. In this situation, we decided to cancel the remaining shows and return home. We gave detailed testimonies to the German police. We are shocked and shattered by his sudden, unexpected death. We mourn together with Slawek's family and friends."

Archangielskij joined HATE in January 2007 and appeared on 2010's "Erebos" and 2013's "Solarflesh" albums.

HATE's "Solarflesh" CD was released in North America on February 5 via Napalm Records. The follow-up to 2010's "Erebos" was recorded at Sound Division Studio in Warsaw with Filip "Heinrich" Halucha (VESANIA, DECAPITATED) and Arek "Malta" Malczewski (BEHEMOTH's sound guy). The effort was mixed at Hertz Studio in Bialystok, Poland with producers Slawek and Wojtek Wieslawski (DECAPITATED, VADER).

Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star, the company which creates "beautiful lullaby versions of your favorite artists," will release "Lullaby Versions Of Guns N' Roses" on April 30 via Roma Music Group.

"Lullaby Versions Of Guns N' Roses" track listing:

01. Sweet Child O' Mine
02. Don't Cry
03. Welcome To The Jungle
04. November Rain
05. Patience
06. Civil War
07. Paradise City
08. Used To Love Her
09. Estranged
10. You Could Be Mine
11. Mr. Brownstone
12. Nightrain
13. Knockin' On Heaven's Door

A full-length version of "Sweet Child O' Mine" can be streamed below.

Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star is the premier pop music lullaby line, with 56 titles to choose from across soundtracks, pop, rock, metal, country, alternative and more.

In its mission statement, Twinkle Twinkle Little Rock Star says, "We feel our lullaby line fills a vacant musical niche. There are other lines of pop music lullabies but we decided to take the approach of being high end musically rather than simply doing these as a novelty. After all, just because the music is for a baby it doesn’t have to sound unsophisticated. We feel we owe it to the artists that we are covering to do their music justice and our standard of quality transcends the lullaby genre. In fact, in addition to soothing babies our fans use our music for yoga, massage and sleep therapy or just general relaxation. We like to call them 'lullabies for all ages' and the diversity of use is testament to that."

For more information, visit www.ttlrs.com.

Following on from the recent success of Inheritance, the latest release from Italian progressive metal outfit ASHENT, Lion Music are offering up a timely reissue of the bands long out of print 2006 debut album, Flaws Of Elation, due on April 19th. In addition this new print comes with all new artwork and the additional bonus of the bands very first ultra rare 2003 4-track demo.
Flaws Of Elation is a prog-power experience with some modern techno-thrash influences which are reflected in the way Ashent arrange and play guitars and drums. There are also some death metal references, in the mode the band use growling as backing vocals that have their importance in the economy of Ashent’s sound, wisely mixed with a modern prog attitude that uses avant-garde and gothic elements in order to create intense and dramatic music. The atmosphere is very dark, but the vocals of American vocalist Steve Braun are extremely melodic, supported by some beautiful orchestrations.
Tracklisting:

'Flaws Of Men'
'Mhysteric'
'Awakened’s Transitions'
'Fallen Angel'
'Illusory'
'Silent Remedy'
'Anaemic Ardency'
'Persistence Of Frailty'
'A Puzzled Sentiment'
'Eden'
'Awakened’s Transitions' (demo 2003)
'Fallen Angel' (demo 2003)
'Anaemic Ardency' (demo 2003)
'Eden' (demo 2003)

'Mhysteric' is streaming here. A video presentation with music and interview footage from the band can be seen below:

Veteran noise grinders INTESTINAL DISGORGE return with their ninth full length album The Shadows That Stride From World To World. Released independently on Bandcamp, the new album features a brand new metamorphosis of the Intestinal Disgorge sound. Wildly chaotic, jarring, and unpredictable, The Shadows That Stride From World To World features 17 tracks of mind-melting Lovecraftian GlitchGrind, according to a press release.
Take Noisegrind, power electronics, mash up, cut up, glitch, goregrind, and harsh noise and run them through a meatgrinder. What you get is the new Intestinal Disgorge album.

For more details and audio samples visit Bandcamp.

Portland, OR riff worshippers LORD DYING has completed work on their full-length debut album. The band recorded their forthcoming full-length debut this past September with Sanford Parker (NACHTMYSTIUM, YOB, RWAKE). The album is currently being mixed and mastered and will see its release via Relapse Records this summer.

The band has also announced four US west coast dates starting April 6th in Seattle, WA and finishing in May 23rd.

Lord Dying dates:

April
6 – Seattle, WA – Sunset Tavern
20 – Portland, OR – Mississippi Studios

May
2 – Olympia, WA – McCoy’s Tavern
23 – Seattle, WA – Chop Suey

Formed in 2010, Lord Dying (E. Olson-guitar/vocals, D. Capuano-bass, J. Reid-drums/vocals & C. Evans-guitar) are veterans of the heavy music scene, having played in bands such as BLACK ELK, PORTALS, LE FORCE, and CREMAINS. The band has so far released a sold out 7” and a sold self-titled tour EP.

For more info visit Facebook.

Finland’s dynamic death metal outfit PSYCHOPARALYSIS has announced their debut album Human Disposition will be released on April 25th by BWK Records. The album was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Tommi Otsavaara (ARCHITORTURE, FREEDOMINATION, GOREPHILIA).

A press release describes the band’s sound: “The band's music, dynamic death metal, is a unique mixture of crushing riffs, enchanting melodies and pure death metal groove. The music derives from personal feelings and inspirations while bands like DEATH and BOLT THROWER echo in the depths of the mind. The outcome has been often compared to such bands as early AMORPHIS and EDGE OF SANITY.”

About the group’s name: “The moniker (Psychoparalysis) is a portrayal of people’s lack of ability to think for themselves. This paralysis of the mind seems to be so very common among people on planet Earth, unfortunately. By using the parentheses we want to emphasize this emptiness inside the human head. It is unsettling to see most of the people here on settling for the half-truths and even lies fed by mainstream media. Think for yourself and be free from psychoparalysis.”

Check out the track ‘Relinquish’ below:

Human Condition tracklisting:

‘Throne Of Mammon’
‘The Numbers Become My Enemies’
‘Fail To See’
‘Relinquish’
‘Looking Back To Tomorrow’
‘Human Disposition’
‘Truth Altered’
‘Beyond Iris’
‘Loss Of Time’
‘The End Results In Violence’

(Psychoparalysis) tour dates:

April
10 – Toulca, Mexico – Billar Friends
11 – San Juan del Rio, Mexico – Terraza Rock Bar
12 – Celaya, Mexico – Bar El Estribo
13 – Leon, Mexico – La Cadena Del Rock
14 – San Luis Potosi, Mexico – Tio Mich Fundadores Carranaza #333
17 – Izcalli – Mexico – La Massacre Bar
18 – Puebla, Mexico – TBA
19 – Ecatepec, Mexico – El Clandestino
20 – Mexico City, Mexico – Infernal Bar
21 – Texcoco, Mexico – Doppler Rock Bar
25 – Tampere, Finland – Vastavirta-klubi
26 – Helsinki, Finland – Club Liberte

May
18 – St. Petersburg, Russia – Club Stoker



Psychoparalysis are:

Anssi Kantola - vocals, guitar
Jani Partanen - guitar
Otto Trygg - bass
Mika Sallamaa - drums

For more info visit Facebook.

Montreal extreme metal veterans CRYPTOPSY have released the official lyric video for the song ‘The Golden Square Mile’. The track comes off the band’s self-titled release, which was released last fall.

Check out the video below:

Next week, Cryptopsy will join forces with CATTLE DECAPITATION and DECREPIT BIRTH for a 24-date trek across Europe. The tour will kick off on April 12th at Helvete in Oberhausen, Germany and conclude with an appearance at the Neurotic Deathfest in Tilburg, Holland on May 5th.

April
12 - Oberhausen, Germany - Helvete
13 - Aarhus, Denmark - Metal Royal Fest
14 - Rostock, Germany - Alte Zuckerfabrik
15 - Berlin, Germany - K17
16 - Darmstadt, Germany - Steinbruch Theatre
17 - Vienna, Austria - Escape Metalcorner
18 - Zurich, Switzerland - Dynamo
19 - Pistoia, Italy - Pianeta Melos
20 - Romagnano Sesia, Italy - Rock & Roll Arena
21 - Luynes/Aix, France - Le Korigan
22 - Barcelona, Spain - Apolo 2
23 - Almeria, Spain - Sala Jala Jala
24 - Madrid, Spain - Caracol
25 - Barosselas, Portugal - SWR Fest
26 - Bilbao, Spain - Sonora
27 - Toulouse, France - Le Saint Des Seins
28 - Lyon, France - tba
29 - Nancy, France - tba
30 - Paris, France - tba

May
1 - Cardiff, UK - Bogiez
2 - Glasgow, UK - Audio
3 - Dublin, Ireland - the Pint
4 - London, UK - Underworld
5 - Tilburg, Holland Neurotic Death Fest

Norwegian three piece HIGH PRIEST OF SATURN has released a new video for the song 'Kraken Mare', taken from their recently-released self-titled album. Check out the clip below:
According to a press a release,"The entire High Priest of Saturn opus is drenched with swirling, menacing vintage organ sounds, played on the album by Ole Kristian Malmedal. Groovy yet epic (none of the four tracks presented here are below the nine-minutes mark!), High Priest Of Saturn's debut full-length is a trip. Not only does it fulfill the many promises offered by their 2011 demo (whose two songs have been re-recorded here in even heavier and more mesmerizing versions), but it also propels this trio towards the same league as SLEEP and ACID KING, towards the sky and beyond."
Tracklisting:

'Protean Towers'
'Kraken Mare'
'Crawling King Snake'
'On Mayda Insula'

More on High Priest Of Saturn at this location.

Canadian hard rockers FAMOUS UNDERGROUND - the new project of Nick Walsh, formerly frontman of SLIK TOXIK, together with his long-time bassist/musical partner Laurie-Anne Green at his side - recently inked a world-wide two album deal with German label Dust On The Tracks Records (DOTT).

The group's self-titled debut album, which is slated for release on June 7th, will be released through Sony (Europe), MVD (USA), RSK (UK) and Universal (Canada).
Folks that remember life before grunge may recall the Canadian hard rock outfit kicking up a proverbial storm in the early '90s. Slik Toxik achieved Gold status in Canada with their full length Doin' The Nasty, and took home the 1993 Juno Award (Canada's version of the Grammy) for Best Album Of The Year. Sadly, in spite of their success, Slik Toxik called it quits in 1995 as grunge tightened its hold on the music scene. Nick Walsh and lead guitarist Rob Bruce formed the modern rock/hardrock band RAISED ON MARS, and together they released a self-titled debut. Walsh went on to form the hardrock band REVOLVER with CRASH KELLY's guitarist Sean Kelly. Revolver have produced two albums, one being a CD/DVD set. In 2011 the band changed its name to FAMOUS UNDERGROUND.
Tracklisting:

'Wasteland'
'Overdrive'
'Dead Weight'
'Love Stands Still'
'Forever And A Day'
'Necropolis'
'Wheel Of Misfortune'
'Mommy Is A Junkie'
'On Broken Wings'
'Bullet Train'
'Hell To Pay'

Bonus tracks:
'Dead Weight' (raw and unplugged)
'On Broken Wings' (alternative)

The CD comes in a digi including an eight-page-booklet.

Frontman Nicholas Walsh recently checked in with the following update: "Just letting you all know that we've been prepping for our official debut release. We have done a photo shoot with renowned photographer Darko and have been finishing up the artwork as well as the mixes on our bonus tracks. Though we have been in the studio tracking some 'new, new' songs, those will only see the light of day for our upcoming live performances, and will not be a part of our debut release. They will be reserved for F.U. #2. Thanks goes out to all of our Canadian fans for all of your support since the beginning. It's time to share your homeboys and girl with the rest of the world."

The Famous Underground line-up is:

Nicholas Walsh – vocals/guitars
Laurie-Anne Green – bass/vocals
Rick Corvese – guitars
Darren Boyd – guitars
Desche Sparboom – drums
According to a press release, Famous Underground’s sound and music is edgy, melodic and hooky bringing a paradigm shift to the arena of rock. It’s been said, that they have created something fresh and exciting in an otherwise stagnated genre. With the conclusion that no-one has definitive comparisons, Carl Begai writer with elite hard rock/metal magazine BW&BK describes the new recording as “it’s a darker if-METALLICA-were-GUNS N' ROSES direction with this brand new album.”

Famous Underground’s self-titled studio release produced by Nick Walsh, and mixed by Darius Szczepaniak (THE BLACK CROWES, SACRIFICE) at Rouge Valley Studio in Toronto. The new recording takes Walsh’s writing to a more defined state where the lyrics delve more into the complexities of the real world.

These musicians have independently garnered critical acclaim supporting such acts as MÖTLEY CRÜE, DEF LEPPARD, KID ROCK, BLACK SABBATH, BILLY TALENT, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, APRIL WINE and many other international acts.

More information about Famous Underground can be found on Facebook.

THE ORGANIZATION's self-titled debut - featuring DEATH ANGEL's Rob Cavestany, Andy Galeon, Dennis Pepa and Gus Pepa - has been re-issued via Nighht Of The Vinyl Dead on double beige vinyl in a gatefold cover. It is out now and limited to 350 copies. Go to this location to order.

Fans should note that the four tracks on Side D were only previously available on the digipack CD version of the album.
The tracklist is as follows:

Side A
'Free Burning'
'Policy'
'Lift'
'Bringer'

Side B
'Brainstorm'
'Bottom Dog'
'Wonder'

Side C
'Withdrawal'
'The Past'
'Been Nice'

Side D
'Wonder' (acoustic)
'Lift' (live)
'Free Burning' (live)
'I Need To Know' (live - TOM PETTY AND THE HEARTBREAKERS cover)

The album was released in 1993 following the break-up of Death Angel in 1991.

Norwegian hard rock sextet DUNDERBEIST have released their new single, 'Four Of The Seven', taken from the new album Songs Of the Buried. The single is now available on iTunes, Spotify, Wimp and all other digital music services.
The band recently debuted the new official music video 'Father Serpent', taken from Songs Of The Buried. The clip was filmed in Hamar, Norway by Jens Haugen, with whom the band also recently worked with on their latest photo shoot. The video features "awesome scenery, snakes, cockroaches, a black stallion and the band doing what they do best - looking good!"

Check it out below:
This month Dunderbeist will head out on a string of live dates in support of Songs Of The Buried.
The itinerary is as follows:

April
25 - Köln, Germany - E-Werk
27 - Würzburg, Germany - Posthalle
28 - Neu Isenburg, Germany - Hugenottenhalle
29 - Hamburg, Germany - Große Freiheit
30 - Hamburg, Germany - Große Freiheit

May
02 - Göttingen, Germany - Stadthalle
03 - Nürnberg, Germany - Löwensaal
04 - Stuttgart, Germany - LKA Longhorn
05 - Oberhausen, Germany - Turbinenhalle
07 - Bremen, Germany - Pier 2
More on Dunderbeist at this location.

UK tech-metallers MONUMENTS have started a search for a new singer following the departure of vocalist Matt Rose.
The band posted a new instrumental track, entitled 'The Indulger' (see below), and created a download link for that track and 'Doxa' (taken from their current album, Gnosis), here. Interested candidates can add in their vocals and email the tracks to auditions@thisismonuments.com.



The band lists a few guidelines:

- Preferably over 21.
- Preferably UK based (but if you think you got what it takes then by all means we're open to anyone, even if you live on Mars).
- MUST have touring experience/at least gig experience.
- All auditions must have ZERO autotune or editing, we want to hear your tuning and your groove.
- We'd also like to ask for you to not post links to your audition online, let’s keep this between us and yourselves... for now.
- Please send all auditions to our email address auditions@thisismonuments.com and not to our inbox or band members inboxes, just to make sure we don't miss you out.

Says Monuments: "Thanks, looking forward to hearing everyone's audition! And remember: THERE IS NO TIME LIMIT, take your time, Rome wasn't built in a day.”

More on Monuments at this location.

Originally released in 2012, L.A. GUNS' Hollywood Forever has received a makeover courtesy of Collectors Dream Records. Renamed Tango On Sunset Strip (Hollywood Forever), the same 14 songs have been cloaked in new artwork:
Tracklisting:

'Hollywood Forever'
'You Better Not Love Me'
'Eel Pie'
'Sweet Mystery'
'Burn'
'Vine Street Shimmy'
'Dirty Black Night'
'Underneath The Sun'
'Queenie'
'Crazy Tango'
'Venus Bomb'
'I Won t Play'
'Requiem (Hollywood Forever)'
'Araña Negra (Black Spider)'

The track 'You Better Not Love Me' is streaming below:
Although guitarist Stacey Blades appears on the album, he is no longer in the band, having been replaced by Michael Grant.

Catch L.A. Guns live:

April
19 - Count's Vamp'd - Las Vegas, NV
20 - Pima County Fair - Tucson, AZ

May
4 - Palace Theater - Stafford Springs, CT
5 - Emporium - Patchogue, NY
7 - The Bowery Electric - New York, NY
31 - Penn's Peak - im Thorpe, PA

Cleveland, Ohio-based metallers ETERNAL LEGACY will release its third album, Seeking No Peace, on April 23 via Auburn Records. The album was produced by Eternal Legacy vocalist/guitarist Jason Vanek and recorded at Mercinary Studios in Avon, Ohio. Mastering was done by Mark Klein at Noise Floor Studio in Bedford, Ohio. The cover art was created by Larry Weber. The layout and design was handled by Alex Yarborough.
Seeking No Peace tracklisting:

'Intro'
'Cauterize'
'Dielectric'
'Eyes Without A Soul'
'Greed'
'Seeking No Peace'
'First Murder'
'Lie'
'While You Bleed'

Check out 'Cauterize' live at Wacken 2010 below:
Seeking No Peace will be distributed in North America by Century Media, The End, Sentinel Steel, Amazon, CD Baby and iTunes.

"At last, the new Eternal Legacy album is complete," says Jason Vanek. "Here's a culmination of all our past efforts and influences. We love the new tunes and can't wait to pound the metal live down your throats! We hope our fans enjoy it as much as we do."
Eternal Legacy will perform a special CD release show tonight (April 5) at Peabody's Concert Club in Cleveland. Admission is free. DEADIRON, WRETCH and EGO will support. The show will be professionally filmed and recorded. Fans attending will have an opportunity to purchase the new CD before the official release date.

"We've been looking forward to this show for a while now," adds Vanek. "We had to make sure the venue had a very good insurance policy for this night. Four killer bands, four heavy shots of metal, fire, explosives and mass destruction of all kinds. Evil, evil, evil and Satan will be there too. Bring a fucking body suit!"

"I decided to make this a free show and am covering all of the expenses in appreciation to the fans of Cleveland for their support to my label over the years", says Auburn Records president Bill Peters. "It's been too long since I've hosted one of these events. I've been working behind-the-scenes on several projects the past year or so, encountering many roadblocks along the way but never giving up, and am now ready to present some of them to the fans. The label has always been a labor of love for me."

"We have new album releases from Eternal Legacy and SOULLESS finished and completed. VENOMIN JAMES, DESTRUCTOR and AFTERSHOK will be coming next, along with a reissue from my past 80s Auburn catalog everyone has so patiently been waiting for. SHOK PARIS will be entering the studio soon to record their first new album in 24 years. BREAKER are writing new material with original vocalist Jim Hamar. We have some other major announcements on the way soon too. These are exciting times!"
Eternal Legacy is:

Jason Vanek - vocals/guitar
Shaun Vanek - guitar
Steve Dukuslow - drums
Tim Frederick - bass

For more details visit Legacymetal.com.

Italian deathsters LUNARSEA will release their new album, Hundred Light Years, in May by Punishment18Records. Check out the artwork and tracklisting below:
Hundred Light Years tracklist:

'Phostumous'
'3 Pieces Of Mosaic'
'Next And Future'
'Ianus'
'Sonic Deep Finder'
'As Seaweed'
'Pro Nebula Nova'
'Aphelion Point'
'Palindrome Orbit'
'Ephemeris 1679'

Check out the new track 'Ianus' below:
Special guests on Hundred Light Years:
Tim Charles (Voice and violin from the Australian band NE OBLIVISCARIS)
Tom Nitfield (German producer)
Emanuele Casali (DGM-Astra)
Martin Minor (German pianist)
Michael Shulmann (American violinist)

Recorded: Outer Sound Studio by Giuseppe Orlando (Italy)
Mastered: Mika Jussila at Finnvox Studio (Finland)

For more details visit Facebook.

DEF LEPPARD kicked off its eleven-show residency on March 22 at The Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel And Casino in Las Vegas. Produced exclusively by AEG Live, the shows are seeing the band play their 1987 album, "Hysteria", in its entirety as well as a selection of their greatest hits, highlighting classic material from throughout their career. Viva Hysteria! features an elaborate set design created only for DEF LEPPARD's Las Vegas residency.

Fan-filmed video footage of DEF LEPPARD's April 5 concert at The Joint can be seen below.

"When Elton John started doing his residency stuff in Vegas, all of us poked our heads out like meerkats, 'Elton is doing a Vegas residency? Surely not!' It got us thinking," DEF LEPPARD singer Joe Elliott told AOL's Noisecreep. "Then I came out and sang some stuff when CHEAP TRICK did their 'Sgt. Pepper's' performances there in 2009. All of a sudden, we were in good company. The Blue Rich Brigade were over. [laughs]"

He continued: "It was just a matter of time before the people who grew up listening to KISS became rich enough and wanted to go and see a rock concert. Not just some old guy with a big blue tie. [laughs] Sooner or later, Vegas was going to catch up with itself and become cool, which it did. I think we're just riding our first wave here with this Vegas stuff. Who knows, in 5-10 years we might see SLIPKNOT and the FOO FIGHTERS doing one of these residencies."

Italian heavy rockers LACUNA COIL played a short acoustic set earlier today (Saturday, April 6) at the studios of the 95.1 WIIL Rock radio station in Kenosha, Wisconsin. You can now watch video footage of the "Trip The Darkness" and "Shallow Life" performances below.

In an interview with Unsung Melody, LACUNA COIL singer Cristina Scabbia stated about "Trip The Darkness": "We like to think that life is made of good and bad moments for everyone. Like Yin and Yang. So, of course everyone is happy when something good happens, as well as you feel bad and depressed when something bad happens. I think that a balance in between the two is needed. Sometimes you have to embrace your darkest moments, because they are a part of life itself. Without the darkest moments, we wouldn't be able to enjoy the happier moments the same way. So, 'Trip The Darkness' talks about that. The fact that you have to react to adversity. Just accepting that something may go wrong in your life."

Asked about LACUNA COIL's approach to having two lead singers — Scabbia and Andrea Ferro — Cristina told Metal Sucks: "I think having two singers — one male and one female — gives you the opportunity to do something different. My voice might be more dreamy and angelic and nice, and Andrea's is more aggressive than mine. Of course, we are a man and a woman singing together. We don't sit down and think about how to share the parts. It comes out really naturally. To our ears, it's really easy to pick out what sounds better. There are parts that are better if he sings it, and the other way around, just the opposite. Sometimes I can write parts for him that he will sing, and he writes parts that I will sing on the actual final recording. We don't think too much about that. We don't want to force anyone to eat two meals at the same time. [laughs] We just treat our voices like two instruments that we can add to the composition. It doesn't really matter who sings what."

LACUNA COIL's latest album, "Dark Adrenaline", sold around 20,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 15 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Colorado punk-sludge grinders CALL OF THE VOID have premiered their new video for 'Napalm Lungs'. The tune comes by way of the band’s blistering debut album, Dragged Down A Dead End Path. Shot in Boulder, Colorado by Erica Griffiths in guitarist Patrick Alberts’ basement, the video finds the band in their most punishing mode: performing live.
Dragged Down A Dead End Path was recorded at the Boar’s Nest in Salt Lake City, Utah by Andy Patterson and mastered by Chris Mcnaughton, with strikingly dismal cover art courtesy of Anthony Lucero.
Dragged Down A Dead End Path features the following ten tracks:

'Failure'
'Theory Of Mind'
'Bottom Feeder'
'Endless Ritual Abuse'
'Abomination'
'Breeding Grounds'
'Napalm Lungs'
'The Liar's Heart'
'I Hope You Two Fuck'
'Faith & Filth'

Check out the lyric video for 'Endless Ritual Abuse':
In live news, Call Of The Void was recently added to Scion Rock Fest 2013 set to take place in Memphis, Tennessee June 1st. The band will be performing alongside an illustrious lineup that includes: ARSIS, MUNICIPAL WASTE, MELVINS, PALLBEARER, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, WHITECHAPEL, SIX FEET UNDER, and TESTAMENT to name but a few. Complete festival details can be found at this location.

In a restoration personally overseen by vocalist and bassist Les Claypool, PRIMUS’ acclaimed Sailing The Seas Of Cheese has been newly mixed in stereo and Dolby 5.1 Surround for the first time since its 1991 debut for an expanded deluxe edition to be released May 21st by Universal Music Enterprises.
The deluxe edition will feature the album’s new stereo mix on CD and the new 5.1 surround mix on Blu-ray or DVD, plus three exclusive, previously unreleased bonus tracks, including two live recordings from Primus’ 2012 3D Tour and a Bassnectar Remix of 'Here Come The Bastards'. A 200-gram vinyl LP to be released on the same date also features Claypool’s new stereo mix of the album. In a Mystery Vinyl challenge for fans, 1000 unmarked, randomly selected copies will contain the new stereo mix on a yellow vinyl LP instead of black.