Roadrunner Records has announced the signing of Norwegian adrenaline-pushers of heavy rock and roll, KVELERTAK. Produced by CONVERGE's Kurt Ballou, KVELERTAK will release their highly anticipated sophomore album entitled "Meir" (which means "more" in English) on March 26. Their first single, "Bruane Brenn" has early critical acclaim from several tastemaker outlets including Stereogum who raves, "It's a total blast of riffs, adrenaline, football chants, and guitar solos, and in its four minutes, you get five decades of rock ‘n' roll, compressed into one massive speedball hit." The single will be available on iTunes beginning February 5 and will be available as an instant download when you pre-order the album, an exclusive CD/T-shirt bundle will also be available that day at the Roadrunner Records webstore. Unlike the majority of heavier bands, they sing in their native language, adding even more character to their already unique sound.

About the signing, Dave Rath, Senior Vice President of A&R at Roadrunner Records said, "Every decade or so, hard rock and heavy metal gets a well-deserved kick in the ass. KVELERTAK is the band to do just that. These guys remind us that rock music should truly affect us. Roadrunner is proud to deliver KVELERTAK to a world waiting for a musical awakening. If this band doesn't get your heart racing, then you don't have one."

KVELERTAK's euphorically-received self-titled 2011 debut was iTunes 2011's U.S. Metal Breakthrough Artist of The Year. Pitchfork described their sound as having "monolithic walls of adrenal-gland-strangling sound" while LA Weekly named frontman Erland Hjelvik #2 on their list of top ten metal frontmen (and women) under 30.

Overseas the band has racked up numerous accolades. KVELERTAK was called "the best Norwegian debut of all time" by Norwegian rock authority Asbjørn Slettemark, named "Best Debut Album" by Metal Hammer Germany, "Best New Artist" and "Best Rock Album" at the Spellemannprisen (Norway's Grammy equivalent) and has received countless additional critical acclaim from Metal Hammer U.K. and Kerrang! who called them "the most exciting new band on the planet."

From storming 2011's SXSW festival to being personally invited by MASTODON to support them in Bergen, Norway, to Dave Grohl presenting them with their first gold discs at a sold-out show at Telenor Arena, Norway's largest indoor venue, KVELERTAK, or "chokehold" in English, are only getting started.

With the explosive first single "Bruane Brenn" to the slowed down guitar crunching of "Evig Vandrar" to the brutally chaotic "Nekrokosmos", "Meir" is an album that certainly lives up to the hype of giving the listener "more." Tight rhythms, inventive guitar hooks and melodies that seep into your consciousness, this is an album that constantly surprises.

"It is both catchy and heavy; we're pushing our limits in both ends of that spectre. It's very varied and there are a lot of surprises in store. I mean, it's unlike anything I myself have heard before, so we even managed to surprise ourselves," said lead singer Erlend Hjelvik.

Look for KVELERTAK North American tour dates to be announced soon.

KVELERTAK is Erlend Hjelvik (vocals), Vidar Landa (guitars), Bjarte Lund Rolland (guitars), Maciek Ofstad (guitars), Marvin Nygaard (bass) and Kjetil Gjermundrød (drums).

"Meir" track listing:

01. Åpenbaring
02. Spring Fra Livet
03. Trepan
04. Bruane Brenn
05. Evig Vandrar
06. Snilepisk
07. Månelyst
08. Nekrokosmos
09. Undertro
10. Tordenbrak
11. Kvelertak

WINGER's Kip Winger and guitarist Reb Beach (also WHITESNAKE) took part in the Colorado Symphony Orchestra's Shuffle program for dates in Denver (January 18th at the Boettcher Concert Hall) and Parker (January 20th at Boettcher Concert Hall). The event featured performances of the Winger hit 'Headed For A Heartbreak' and THE BEATLES classic 'Eleanor Rigby' among others.

Reb Beach comments about the show: "Just got home. Playing with that orchestra was one of the top five experiences of my life. I felt like Jeff Beck!! Big thanks to the amazing Kip Winger, who charted everything out for like 70 musicians. He also wrote the new middle section. I'm honored to have a genius for a friend, who includes me in his bold endeavours. Now it is off to beautiful Italy, where I get to rock out with some other friends!"

Check out fan-filmed footage below:

EXES FOR EYES guitarist/ex-ANNIHILATOR bassist Dave Sheldon - who appears on the Live At Masters Of Rock DVD - has checked in with the following update:

"The majority of the new Exes For Eyes material is now in the hands of James Arsenian Beard (ENDAST). Time to write some lyrics to what is shaping up to be a fucking crusher of an album!"
As previously reported, Elegy Guitarworks is a new Toronto-based guitar company launched by Sheldon and SOILWORK frontman Björn "Speed" Strid, specializing in 6, 7 and 8 string guitars and 4,5, 6 and 7 string basses.

"Conceived the day the world as we knew it was supposed to end, Elegy Guitarworks was founded December 21, 2012. Born in the light of a new friendship, Elegy Guitarworks focuses on bringing professional quality instruments to the cost-conscious player. The Mayans were wrong...and this is their Elegy."

BW&BK's Carl Begai spoke briefly with Sheldon about the new venture:

Sheldon: "We should have everything sorted out for the guitars late spring early summer. We're doing small batches of prototypes with several different builders, going to pick our favourite ones, then put them into production. Ideally, get some Canadian distribution and sell 100 - 200 units annually."

Stay tuned for more updates. Go to the Elegy Guitarworks official Facebook page here.

Mexican merauders THELL BARRIO have signed with Sliptrick Records.
The band is currently completing work on their new album and working on a new video following the previously released ‘Mi verdadera Familia’ which can be seen below:
The Thell Barrio lineup features:
Gallero – vocalist
El Patron – lead guitar
El Charro – rhythm guitar
El Chicano – bass
Solin – percussions
Chemo – drummer

SAIGON KICK guitarist Jason Bieler has recorded a cover of the OASIS hit 'Wonderwall' for his OWL STRETCHING side project, which he told BW&BK first-hand is "a constantly morphing project with different guests that I use as a vehicle to release new music." Check it out via the audio player below.
The reunited Saigon Kick - Matt Kramer (vocals), Phil Varone (drums), Jason Bieler (guitar) and Tom Defile (bass) - have announced their first reunion show, on Saturday, March 30th at the Viper Room in West Hollywood, CA. More dates to be announced.
Saigon Kick earlier issued the following update: "For those of you who are interested, we set up an email list so you can now get all the latest Kick news directly in your inbox. We will not spam or send tons of emails...just the big important stuff. You can sign up for the email list at SaigonKick.com."
Frontman Matt Kramer recently checked in with the following update:

"To a lot of people Saigon Kick was a one hit wonder. And since I left the band months after our first hit, that is a fact. The upside is there were two sides; we were also a very cool band with absolute belief from Atlantic Records, and a one hit wonder. That after all this time is, in a weird way, a plus.

Maybe Saigon Kick has finally come of age? Looking forward to jamming hard with the lads."

More on Saigon Kick at this location.

Norway's TNT have checked in with the following update:

"TNT is selling this new song 'Hidden Treasures' (Tekrø/Mills) at auction! You can have a taste from the unmixed version below.

Starting Bid is NOK 60.000 and will give the buyer the mechanical rights to the song for 15 years. That means income of all downloads through iTunes, etc. and sale of CDs, single or tracks on collection CDs, and records. More info at TNTtheband.com."
'Hidden Treasures'

As previously reported, TNT/ex-SHY singer TONY MILLS is currently recording a new solo album, a follow-up to 2008's Vital Designs.

Tony is working with a number of known artists, including Tommy Denander, Bruce Gaitsch, Gregg Bissonette (DAVID LEE ROTH, RINGO STARR), Tony Franklin (THE FIRM), Erik Engerbretsen, Mike Garson, Simon Harrison, Terje Eide, Neil Hibbs, and Roger Gilton.

Updates to follow. For more on Tony Mills visit his new website here, or check out his Facebook page at this location.

Audio Fidelity have delayed the release of the SACD (Super Audio CD) version of RUSH's Counterparts album until February 19th. According to a press release, the limited edition of this 1993 album was the 15th studio album by Rush and highest charting album in the US, peaking at #2 on the Billboard 200 (only behind PEARL JAM's Vs.). The lyrics of Counterparts continue the trend of Roll The Bones with dark and emotional themes being the primary focus. Some songs are "heavy" sounding tracks like 'Animate' and 'Stick it Out', which topped the Mainstream Rock Tracks for four weeks in late 1993, becoming the band's fifth single to do so. 'Leave That Thing Alone' earned a Grammy nomination for Best Instrumental.
Counterparts features the following tracklisting:
'Animate'
'Stick It Out'
'Cut To The Chase'
'Nobody's Hero'
'Between Sun & Moon'
'Alien Shore'
'The Speed Of Love'
'Double Agent'
'Leave That Thing Alone' (instrumental)
'Cold Fire'
'Everyday Glory'

Olesnica, Poland's ENTROPIA will release their debut album, entitled Vesper, in late February. The album is composed of six tracks, almost fifty minutes in length. Check out the album artwork, created by Marcin Gadomski from Upgrade Design Studio, below:
With Vesper, Entropia is detaching itself from its post-metal origins to explore the depths of black metal blasts accompanied with post-rock sensitivity and etherealness of shoegaze. Jakub Mankowski, a Fryderyk prize nominee and producer of BEHEMOTH, BLINDEAD and OBSCURE SPHINX was the sound engineer responsible for Vesper's sound.

Vesper will be released as a limited digi-pack, manufactured by 8merch in a number of 200 and will be available for sale at this location.

You can hear the album track, 'Gauss', below:
Entropia lineup:

Michal Dziedzic - guitars, vocals, samples
Marek Cenkar - bass, vocals
Damian Dudek - keys, synth
Patryk Budzowski - drums
Michal Duda - guitars
More on Entropia at this location.

Six Weeks Records announce that they’ll be releasing Devious Persecution And Wholesale Slaughter, the new LP from Houston, TX grindcore commandos PLF.

The album is due out on February 8th, and was recorded/mixed in spring/summer 2012 by Garry Brents at GAB Recordings and Mike BBQ at Big Door Studios, and mastered by Jack Control at Enormous Door in Summer 2012. The album artwork comes courtesy of Daniel Shaw. Check it out below:
The album features Bryan Fajardo (PHOBIA, NOISEAR, KILL THE CLIENT, GRIDLINK) on drums, and is poised to be the most vicious, neck-snappingly infectious grind record of 2013. You’ve been warned!

Devious Persecution And Wholesale Slaughter is the veteran grindfreaks’ third full-length and fourteenth overall release since their 1999 inception. Their discography stretches to include two LPs (Pulverizing Lethal Force in 2007 and Crushing Fury Of Bastardization in 2008), a 7" ep (Swarming Industrial Cancer, 2003), two split LPs (with Germany’s Bizarre X in 2005, and California’s In Disgust in 2010), and nine split 7" eps with a dizzying array of international bands, including UNHOLY GRAVE, CYNESS, AND MASSGRAVE).

Since they came thrashing and howling into life, PLF have wrought havoc across the globe, sullying the stage at Maryland Death Fest (2009/2010), Bloodshed Festival in the Netherlands (2008/2011), Obscene Extreme in the Czech Republic (2006), UGZ Speed Trials (2008 /2010), Etengabeko Zarata Festival in Spain’s Basque Country (2008), Rites of Darkness (2011), and Short, Fast and Loud Zine’s 10 year Anniversary Festival (2011) amongst others, and playing many hundreds of shows in clubs, warehouses, squats, houses, basements, open air stadiums, 'metal clubs', bars, parking lots, fields, pool halls, and garages across North America and Europe.

Devious Persecution And Wholesale Slaughter will be available on CD and LP on February 8th. It can be purchased directly from Six Weeks Records or from Independent Label Distribution.

Emerging bold and grim upon the vast and barren fields of Canadian black metal, WILT have announced their self-titled debut will be released on vinyl by Canadian label War on Music Records.

According to a press release, "the album takes you on a visceral journey into your mind and into the crevices of the Earth. With influences rooting from AGALLOCH, WINTERFYLLETH, WOODS OF YPRES, WITTR, ALTAR OF PLAGUES, and many more, they hinder their own true and unique sound, moving beyond any regional comparison, and gnawing a distinct withered mark upon the genre of black metal."
The four track 12" runs just shy of 30 minutes.

Tracklisting:
'Autumn Veil'
'Cold Misfortune'
'Empyrean'
'Pale Consternation'

Artwork comes courtesy of Sam Nelson and the logo was done by The Lord of Logos, Christophe Szpajdel. Dan Lowndes handled mastering duties.

The vinyl will be released early spring 2013 as an exclusive limited run on Frost-white 180g color vinyl. One time pressing, 300 copies.

Joel Hoekstra (TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, NIGHT RANGER, Rock Of Ages) has joined Arjen Anthony Lucassen (AYREON), Lars Eric Mattsson (MATTSSON, BOOK OF REFLECTIONS), Dave Reffett (SHREDDING THE ENVELOPE), Scott Tipping (MAGIC BOX) and others to be confirmed soon as a special guest on the all star debut album from BORDONI, entitled Songs Of Future Past.
Bordoni features Andrew Bordoni on guitar, Scott Stevenson on keys, Shawn Sommer on bass, Bill Fornari on saxophone and Tom Hipskind on drums.

When asked to describe the all instrumental album, guitarist Andrew Bordoni said: "Think of it like TOTO on steroids with a mix of JOE SATRIANI, STEVE VAI, DEEP PURPLE and PINK FLOYD, but with its own personality, vibe and style. I really think we've created something really special and unique that can be enjoyed from anyone who enjoys rock, hard rock, progressive rock, metal and beyond.”
The profits from the sales of the first 500 copies of the album will help fund a soup kitchen, children’s programs and orphans in Lithuania.
In 2009 Andrew donated 11 guitars to the Taurage Orphanage in Lithuania and many of the kids have become passionate about music since.

"These kids need some hope in their lives and the power of music can provide that. Music saved my life when I was a kid, so this is a way for me to pay it forward and hope that I can pass on the hope that saved me to other kids that might need it.”

Songs of Future Past is available for pre-order at this location and will be released on April 28th.

Belfast, Ireland-based metallers 7 DAYS DEAD have announced details for their debut EP, Beyond Within. Expect “in your face metal with big heavy grooves, huge vocal melodies and seriously catchy hooks”, comments drummer Stephen Brown.

The self-released record drops on February 16th and the band have announced a launch show to celebrate the release at Limelight 2, Belfast. The band has welcomed local heavy metal veterans HONEY FOR CHRIST as main support to the event with SPITTIN' BONES and RED SIX opening proceedings.
Beyond Within was recorded at Manor Park Studios, Northern Ireland with producer Neal Calderwood (THE ANSWER, THE DANGERFIELDS, GENERAL FIASCO, MILLION DOLLAR RELOAD, THERAPY?). Artwork undertaken by Kieran Hill from Dog Day Design.

The tracks 'Haunted' and 'By Any Means' can be heard below:
7 Days Dead lineup:

Mark Johnston - Guitar
Stephen Brown - Drums
Chris ‘Kaxxx’ Cassidy - Bass
Ryan McManus - Vocals
More on 7 Days Dead at this location.

Serbian-based rock band DESTINY POTATO are currently in the studio working on their debut album, tentatively titled Lun, due out summer 2013 via Century Media Records. To give fans a preview of this forthcoming release, Destiny Potato mastermind David Maxim Micic has posted a guitar play-through of the new album track, 'Blue Sun', which can be viewed below:
Maxim comments: "As our final days in the studio are finally here, we thought it's about time to put some new music out. More updates, interviews, music, lessons and great news are on the way but for now you can enjoy this instrumental version of Destiny Potato's song 'Blue Sun'. Stay Awesome! Potate!"

Destiny Potato was formed in the spring of 2011 by Maxim and singer Aleksandra Djelmas, who had been writing and recording songs together since they were 16. Maxim and Djelmas attended the same high school and both of their fathers played in one of Serbia’s most popular progressive rock bands, YU GRUPA. When deciding on band name, Maxim and Djelma wanted to come up with something light-hearted to fit their personalities, yet something that everyone would remember - Destiny Potato seemed a fitting choice, and it has stuck with them ever since.

A rough mix of the previously released album track, 'Dark Side Of You', can be heard below:
Destiny Potato lineup:

Aleksandra Djelmas - vocals, piano
Ana Little Fog Maglica - vocals, violin
David Maxim Micic - guitar, keyboards and production
Milan Jejina Yeqy – drums
Bojan Kvocka – bass
Dusan Vanja Andrijasevic – guitar
More on Destiny Potato at this location.

Black metal/punk desecrators THE BEYOND are set to release their new full length album, entitled Frostbitepanzerfuck, on CD format on February 19th via Horror Pain Gore Death Productions.

Expanding on their classic sound of early 90's Norwegian black metal, Frostbitpanzerfuck also incorporates elements of blasting d-beat and sleazy punk rock. Prepare yourself for total degradation as the The Beyond spew forth an all out crossover assult of perversion, filth and mayhem! This CD is pressed on a unique vinyl style CD that is compatible with all standard CD players.
Tracklisting:

'Roto-Cunt'
'Goat Sodomizer'
'Cunt Sucking Cannibal' (GG ALLIN cover)
'Frostbitepanzerfuck'
'Attack Of The Zombie Brigade'
'The Splatterhouse Maniacs'
'Necro Overload'
'Exterminate Humanity'

Listen to the track 'Goat Sodomizer' below:
Pre-order at this location.

The Beyond lineup:

Danny Starkiller - vocals, guitar
Andy Craven - lead guitar
R.W - bass
Lucas Sweger - drums
More on The Beyond here.

Santa Cruz metallers ARSONISTS GET ALL THE GIRLS are in the studio with Zach Ohren (ANIMOSITY, ALL SHALL PERISH, DECREPIT BIRTH, LIGHT THIS CITY) working on their fifth full-length album for a tentative late spring release. The band has welcomed original vocalist Remi Rodberg back into the band full time. Remi's vocals can be heard on early ARSONISTS GET ALL THE GIRLS releases like "Hits From The Bow" and "The Game Of Life", which were defining albums for the band and the genre itself. With the new material, look out for a faster, heavier, crazier, yet extremely focused ARSONISTS GET ALL THE GIRLS as the band looks to return to its roots, with Rodberg adding a key piece.

In other news, ARSONISTS GET ALL THE GIRLS will play the annual NSN Festival in Mission, Texas on Wednesday, March 13. The band will perform alongside ESCAPE THE FATE, ATTACK ATTACK!, CHIODOS, JONNY CRAIG, UPON A BURNING BODY, HANDS LIKE HOUSES, FOREVER THE SICKEST KIDS, THE MAINE, and many more.

"Motherland", the fourth album from ARSONISTS GET ALL THE GIRLS, was released in May 2011 via Century Media Records. The CD was recorded at Castle Ultimate studios in Fremont, California with producer Zack Ohren (AS BLOOD RUNS BLACK, ALL SHALL PERISH)

According to Metalfan.nl, Norwegian black metal staples SATYRICON are currently finishing off the songwriting for the eighth studio album. The recordings begin in February and will last until the summer. The release of the album is scheduled for September.
According to leader Satyr, the music will greatly differ from what the group has released in the two previous decades.

Satyricon will premier new material at Oslo, Norway's Inferno Festival, which is being held at the venues Rockefeller, John Dee, Rock In, Blå, Unholy, Victoria and Revolver from March 27-30th.

Polish death metallers VADER are currently touring in Europe on Back To The Black Tour 2013. Quality video footage shot on their Netherlands show on January 22nd can be viewed below:
Vader’s tour setlist includes the both their classic albums Black To The Blind and Sothis being played in their entirety.
Second part of the tour will take place in May and will cover for the most part Eastern Europe, Italy, Spain, Portugal and several festivals.

Current dates are below:

January
27 - Travagliato, Italy - Circolo Colony
29 - Ljubljana, Slovenia - Gala Hala
30 - Vienna, Austria - Escape Metalcorner
31 - Ingolstadt, Germany - Eventhalle Wespark

February
1 - Lausanne, Switzerland - Les Docks
2 - Paris, France - Le Forum
3 - Plymouth, UK - White Rabbit
4 - Bristol, UK - The Fleece
5 - Glasgow, UK - Ivory Blacks
6 - Dublin, Ireland - Button Factory
7 - Manchester, UK - NQ Live
8 - London, UK - Underworld
9 - Rotterdam, Netherlands - Baroeg
10 - Alkmaar, Netherlands - Victorie

Check out a tour trailer below:
(Thanks Metalshockfinland.com)

Switzerland's CORTEZ release their new album, Phoebus, on January 31st. The new video, for the album track 'Arrogants Que Nous Sommes', directed by Sml Vny, can be seen below:
Recorded between the band's own studio and Rec Studios with Serge Morattel, Phoebus is available on deluxe gatefold 2xLP via Throatruiner Records, Basement Apes and Get A Life! The album is also available on CD via Basement Apes and Lost Pilgrims.

The artwork for the album was created by Dehn Sora (BLUT AUS NORD, ULVER, OMEGA MASSIF).
Tracklisting is as follows:

‘Temps-mort’
‘Transhumance’
‘Au delà des flots’
‘Arrogants que nous sommes’
‘Un lendemain sans chaine...’
‘L'autre estime’
‘Sulfure’
‘Nos souvenirs errants’
‘Idylle’
‘Borrelia’

An album teaser can be heard below:

Romanian deathcore/death metallers CAP DE CRANIU are currently streaming their album I'll Kill If I Live in its entirety. Check it out below:



I’ll Kill If I Live was released on February 9th 2012 via Metalfan Records Division.

The artwork for the album was designed by frontwoman Calin Raduta.



Tracklisting is as follows:
‘The Autumn Bodycount’
‘All That Glitters Is Sold’
‘Don't Wake Up Memories When They Aren't There’
‘Time Made Me Hate Eternity’
‘Old Habits Die Hard’
‘You Made Your Bed, Now Sleep In It! Forever!’
‘Reason Is Dead’
‘Tales Of Dead Men’
‘Death And Taxes’
‘Every Bird Lives By It's Own Song’
‘The Stone Thrower’
‘I'll Break You Again Tomorrow’
‘I'll Kill If I Live’

Italy's Southern hard rock act TOMBSTONE HIGHWAY is set to release their debut studio album entitled Ruralizer on February 26th in Europe and March 19th in the US on Agonia Records.

The new song entitled 'Bite the Dust (And Bleed)' - featuring guest appearance by electric guitar virtuoso Mario Percudani (HUNGRYHEART, MITCH MALLOY) - can be streamed below:
According to a press release, "Tombstone Highway is a classic blend of feisty stoner/southern rock and doom metal, with catchy guitar solos and old-school heavy metal parts that may remind of LYNYRD SKYNYRD, CORRISON OF CONFORMITY, PRIDE AND GLORY, DOWN, BLACK SABBATH, or even ZZ TOP riffage. The band even uses also a banjo and Hammond organs."
Ruralizer consists of eight original songs and a cover of MOUNTAIN's 'Mississippi Queen' with a playing time of almost 50 minutes and will be made available on Digipack CD and digital download. It was recorded at Elfo Studios by Daniele Mandelli who is also in charge of mix and mastering.

The band commented: "We're very proud of how the album came out and we strongly believe it's the perfect way to begin our legacy. People into heavy, ballsy southern-tinged Hard Rock should take note!"

Three songs from Ruralizer can be heard Tombstone Highway's Reverb Nation profile here.

Ruralizer tracklist:
'Old Blood'
'Acid Overlord'
'Graveyard Blues'
'Hellfire Rodeo'
'Ruralizer'
'Bite The Dust (And Bleed)'
'At The Bitter End'
'Mississippi Queen'
'Hangman's Friend'

For more details on Tombstone Highway visit Facebook .

NEROARGENTO's forthcoming album entitled Underworld will be released worldwide on March 12 via Coroner Records.

The album has been mastered by Ettore Rigotti at The Metal House Studio (DISARMONIA MUNDI, BLOOD STAIN CHILD, SLOWMOTION APOCALYPSE, DESTRAGE, STIGMA).
Underworld tracklist:
'Out Of Control'
'The Silent Man'
'Underworld'
'We Must Decide'
'Something New'
'Like A Stone'
'Edwank's Drunk Story'
'What I have To Do
'Never Back Down'
'Show Your Kindness Too'
'Another Try'

The video of 'Underworld' can be seen below:
The Underworld album trailer can be seen below:
You can listen to a full preview of the song 'The Silent Man' taken from the forthcoming Underworld by clicking here.

German death metallers LIFELESS have completed work on their long-awaited second album, "Godconstruct", for a March 1 release via FDA Rekotz. According to a press release, the follow-up to 2008's "Beyond The Threshold Of Death" "contains 11 new stunning and catchy pure classic Death Metal hymns deep from the crypts of Germany, which will crawl into your rotten ears and devour you from the inside out."

"Godconstruct" will be offered in CD, vinyl and digital formats. The vinyl version will come in two different editions, the Die Hard Edition, which is limited to 100 copies on blue vinyl and comes with poster, inlay, sticker and an embroidered patch, and the Obscure Edition on black vinyl with inlay.

01. Praeludium: Endzeit
02. Godconstruct
03. Towards Damnation
04. Moribund
05. Blood For The Gods
06. The Truth Concealed
07. Interludium: Zeitenwende
08. Seething With Rage
09. Sworn To Death
10. Reconquering The Soul
11. Blindead
12. Perdition Of The Whore

The song "Moribund" is now available for streaming using the SoundCloud player below.

"Beyond The Threshold Of Death" was re-released in the U.S. in June 2010 through Ibex Moon Records, the label founded by INCANTATION mastermind John McEntee. The U.S. version of the album featured new artwork and a cover version of DISMEMBER's classic "Casket Garden" as a bonus track.

Stockholm, Sweden-based rock band 5TH SONIC BRIGADE will release a brand new single titled "Teacher" on February 20 via OMM/SPD. The group has also begun writing material for its next full-length album, to be released in the fall.

The cover artwork for the "Teacher" single was created by Carlos Del Olmo Holmberg (ex-SOILWORK) and can be seen below.

5TH SONIC BRIGADE's latest album, "5th Sonic Brigade", received overwhelmingly positive reviews when it was released in 2009.

5TH SONIC BRIGADE has parted ways with Ryan Roxie (ALICE COOPER), Henry Ranta (ex-SOILWORK) and Richard Evenlind (ex-NOICE) and has replaced them with guitarist and skateboard legend Rodrigo Valdebenito (touring bassist for the 5TH SONIC SUMMER 2009 tour) and drummer Johan Östling (ex-SEXYDEATH).

5TH SONIC BRIGADE is:

Marcus Öhrn - Vocals
Rodrigo Valdebenito - Guitar
Peter Samuelsson - Bass
Mikael Axelius - Keyboards
Johan Östling - Drums

Belgium's Metal To Infinity recently conducted an interview with former EXODUS and current HATRIOT singer Steve "Zetro" Souza. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Metal To Infinity: You left LEGACY (which became TESTAMENT later on), to join EXODUS. How was it to replace Paul Baloff, who was dearly beloved by the fans? Did you have a hard time to get your own spot in EXODUS?

Zetro: Honestly, it was a big set of shoes to fill. I didn't win over the diehard EXODUS fans until a couple years after I joined. Paul had such a charisma to him. He was the ultimate definition of what a true metalhead was. I wasn't fully accepted in the eyes of the fans until we started touring for "Fabulous Disaster". At that point I was the voice of EXODUS.

Metal To Infinity: You recorded your last EXODUS album, "Tempo Of The Damned", in 2004. What happened afterwards? Why were you replaced by Rob Dukes?

Zetro: Life happened. I had been out of music, at least full-time, for ten years when I rejoined EXODUS for the "Tempo" record. At that point I had a family to support and a good-paying job back at home. It was too hard to let all that go and tour for a year at a time, so I had to make a choice, and my choice was be a family man. It's that simple. The situation could have been better. I could have done things differently. I dropped the ball on the band and they were pissed off at me for a while. I understand that and I actually agree with that. My head wasn't in the right place. I couldn't do music 100% and I let them down. Family was more important. The ironic thing is now my sons are both in HATRIOT, so I have my music and my family. Things have come full circle and I am back stronger than ever!

Metal To Infinity: Altogether you [were in] EXODUS for about eight years (1986-1992 and 2002-2004), how do you look back to those years?

Zetro: I look back on those years as being the best times of my life. What an amazing ride that was! We had no idea at the time that we were making history. We were just guys playing fast music and living in the moment. There are so many good stories. One good one happened back in 1987 in the state of Florida. We were playing an ice hockey arena and the lineup was CELTIC FROST, EXODUS and ANTHRAX. The promoter had no idea that the fans were as insane as they were. There were no seats at this venue. It was all general admission and everyone was standing. They had built a wimpy barricade to try and contain people but the crowd destroyed that thing in our first song. There was one security guard in between us and the crowd and he got smashed. His legs were broken. I had to stop the show and make the crowd back up so they could get him out of there! They hauled him to the hospital wearing an EXODUS shirt…

Metal To Infinity: What is important when you join a band? Is craftsmanship prior to personal friendship and comradeship?

Zetro: Honestly, it is a bit of both. Obviously, you have to have a certain degree of musicianship and have your chops in shape to be able to pull of the material. Friendship and comradeship is big too, because you have to be able to get along with the people in the band. Being crammed in a van with a bunch of smelly dudes is bad enough without adding a personality conflict or a bad attitude to the mix. So I need both for it to work and fortunately we have that with HATRIOT right now.

Metal To Infinity: The biggest difference between now and the EXODUS years is Internet. For some a curse, for others a blessing. What's your opinion about the Internet. Is it a handful tool for a band like HATRIOT or an open gate for downloading and ripping off new bands?

Zetro: Yes, the Internet is the big gamechanger. It has totally leveled the playing field of the music business and crippled the big record companies. They are no longer the big gate keepers. The Internet, to me, is a double-edged sword. It is a great tool for getting direct contact with your fan base and I love that aspect. The downside is there are so many bands now that the market can't handle it. I don't think there is a platform for a band to become huge anymore… not for the long term anyway. The sales are not there like in the old days and that keeps bands from being able to do a band full time. It is what it is, I guess.

Metal To Infinity: Thanks to the Internet, we were able to get in touch with the band, so it has positive sides as well. For example: spreading your music and videos is really simple and there aren't any boundaries left…

Zetro: It definitely has a positive side. There's no doubt about it. The key is to be open-minded and be willing to change your marketing and promotion strategy to fit the times. I'm fine with that. There are bands and labels out there that were big back in the day and still have it stuck in their head that you can only do things one way, and these are the people that don't last. I am good with the changes in the business. We just have to adapt and do smart business where we can. Obviously, records don't sell and pay the bills. What we can do is offset the costs in other places… make a great record for ten grand instead of half a million, tour in a van instead of a bus, etc.

Read the entire interview from Metal To Infinity.

"Blood Stained Wings" video:

Guitarist JOE STUMP (HOLYHELL, RAVEN LORD) has issued the following update:
"My apologies for not updating the site, as I’ve been posting most of the more recent activity on the Facebook sites. First, thanks a ton for all the great comments and emails from fans and friends that I’ve gotten about the new record. I really appreciate it. This year I’ll be continuing to play shows in support of Revenge Of The Shredlord, so all live dates will be posted as soon as they’re confirmed.

I’m also working on a shred/metal guitar instructional book for Berklee Press that should be released later this year. The book will cover scales/scale fingerings, alternate picking, diatonic scale patterns, soloing ideas, neo-classical linear playing, open string techniques, string skipping, tremolo/double picking, sweep and economy picking, and many other things. There will be technique building etudes along with various metal pieces with backing tracks included. It’ll be a cool instructional tool for players on all levels.

Also, posted below, is some live footage from last November’s tour in Mexico. There are some great guitar and metal fans there and, as always, it was a fun trip."
Stump's new album, Revenge Of The Shredlord, is out now via Lion Music.

"Revenge Of The Shredlord is quite heavy and classically influenced," Stump remarked recently. "This one’s all metal from start to finish, very dark and focused with gratuitous amounts of shredding throughout. Also, thanks to the great work of engineer Ducky Carlise and mastering engineer Maor Appelbaum, it’s my best sounding record to date as well."

Revenge Of The Shredlord contains the following 12 songs:

'The Ritual Begins'
'Man Your Battlestations'
'Pistoleros'
'Shredlord's Sonata'
'Master's Prelude'
'In The Master's House'
'The Black Knight's Castle'
'Enter The Coven'
'Evil Beasts Below'
'Strat Outa Hell'
'White Knuckle Mayhem'
'The End Approaches'
>

ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian says that when he stated in a recent interview that "nothing would make [him] happier" than to see the entire music industry collapsing, he wasn't referring to some of the longest-running independent labels who have supported underground metal music for the past three decades.

Speaking to Australia's Loud magazine, Ian was asked for his take on the future of the music industry. "I don't even know — I don't care; I have no idea," he replied. "I really don't give a shit about the industry. If anything, nothing would make me happier than… other than some of the good people who actually have jobs that would be hurting if they lost their gigs. But as far as I'm concerned, I can only hope that the whole industry collapses and has to start over, or figure out something else, because I really have nothing good to say about the record industry."

He continued: "When you think about the billions and billions of dollars that labels ripped off from bands from the 1940s all the way through to the 1990s, and now they complain about nobody buys records anymore. Well, whose fault is that, you know? These companies, corporations and individuals literally stole billions of dollars and you've got artists, bands who no longer exist and are literally like, a step away from being homeless, or living in assisted-living places, whatever it is. But you don't see most musicians retiring and living out the rest of their lives because they got some millions and millions of dollars' cash settlement, just to leave a record label. The whole fucking thing is insanity, the way record labels were run. Especially in the '40s, '50s, '60s and '70s when bands were really getting ripped off."

In series of tweets last night (Friday, January 25), Ian elaborated on his comments, writing: "Just to clarify what I said about the music industry collapsing in an interview recently… I'm not talking about independent labels like Megaforce, Nuclear Blast, Metal Blade, etc. etc. These labels have changed the business and have found models that work and they are not only fair to the bands they sign, they actually will work at developing a band the way it used to be done when we first started. The majors are no place for rock/metal anymore and if you're a huge band, you're better off doing it yourself. That's the point I was making."

Swedish rockers PSYCHOPUNCH will release their new album Smakk Valley on February 25th in Europe via SPV/Steamhammer.
Tracklisting is as follows:

‘Back Of My Car’
‘So Jaded’
‘Last Night’
‘Kick In The Head’
‘Sitting By The Railroad’
‘My Empty Head’
‘All I Wanna Say’
‘I Will Never Ever’
‘Dead By Dawn’
‘Smakk Valley Train’
‘Emelie’
‘Down On My Dreams’
‘Everybody Wants An Answer’
‘You’re Totally Mistaken’
The band has also announced that guitarist Joey has left the group. Bass player Lindell will be filling in for him. The band has also welcomed Walle to the band. He will be playing second guitar and bass.

The new lineup can be seen below:
Psychopunch will be heading out on tour this April with THE NEW BLACK, MOTORJESUS, '77 and SUPERCHARGER on the Rock N' Roll Overdose tour through Germany.

Dates can be seen below:

April
12 – Losheim, Germany - Eisenbahnhalle
13 – Bochum, Germany - Matrix
17 – Berlin, Germany - C-Club
18 – Hamburg, Germany - Markthalle
20 – Nürnberg, Germany - Rockfabrik
26 – Memmingen, Germany - Kaminwerk
27 - Halle (Saale), Germany - Steintor-Varietè

Austria's longest-running death metal band DARKSIDE will be at Shaark Studio in Czech Republic between February 15 and February 28 recording bass, guitar and vocals for their upcoming sixth full-length album, "Inferno". Since the lenghth of the effort exceeds the playing time of a regular CD, "Inferno" will be released as a double album.

Comments DARKSIDE vocalist Wolf: "We have quite a retro vibe on this album, without explicitly going for it from the start, the same like a lot of things for this album came together on coincidences. So having our recording roots in Czech Republic, we thought it would be a cool thing to record parts of our album back there where everything started over 20 years ago. It was in Bzenec, where the studio is situated, where DARKSIDE played four times the Attack Of Fire festival, more often than any other band without being a Czech band. It was in this part of Czech Republic that KRABATHOR came from, the band we played well over 70 shows together in the first years of DARKSIDE's existence. We know the guys from the Shaark Studio, them being part of the band SHAARK, a classic thrash outfit from this area, part of them playing in MASTER these days. Putting all these things together with the fact, that we have this retro feeling on some songs of the new album, which means that there are songs that reflect the first albums of DARKSIDE a bit, it was a logical step to go back to where it all started.

"Inferno" will feature 14 songs and five instrumentals. All drum tracks on the new CD were laid down by Alessandro Vagnoni, a renowned Italian musician who has previously played with INFERNAL POETRY, DARK LUNACY and RESURRECTURIS. Alessandro recorded the drum tracks in Italy during December 2012. DARKSIDE has also announced the addition of Jaroslav Lukac, guitarist for bands as XXXX, RECODE THE SUBLIMINAL and FAUSTINUS. Jaro will provide leads for most of the songs.

Said Wolf: "I know Alessandro for quite some years now and I knew he was the right man to give this album the extra push it needed in terms of groove, skills and rhythm. I am very glad he took this responsibility and I must say he did an excellent job, Alessandro, you rock!

"Jaro was actually a suggestion from our graphics designer, Kewin Miceli. We were talking about a few things with Kewin and he suggested to ask Jaro about that, who agreed on stepping in and being a part of this project."

Otto Jezek, classical guitar player and teacher, will provide classical guitars to a song called "Madeleine", an instrumental track, which describes the main character of the album, but there is, of course, more to it.

Comments Wolf: "Otto was actually the guitarist of my very first metal band called METAL DAZE back in 1983. I think we didn't speak with each other for eons when I had the idea for that instrumental track that should describe the character of Madeleine, her passion, her belief, but also her doubts and fears and the impact the abuse was leaving on her. I contacted Otto and he agreed and judging by the first demos he sent me I can only say, it was the right choice!"

"Madeleine" is also going to feature a second guitarist from DARKSIDE's hometown, Wiener Neustadt, namely Alexander Kodnar, guitarist for Austria's uprising new force in metal DEVASTATING ENEMY.

Said Wolf: "I always wanted to have this kind of shred guitar wizzardish solo on some DARKSIDE album and so my mind was swaying around, who to choose for this endaevour and often, you don't need to search far away, 'cause the good stuff is right at hand, haha… I contacted Alex and asked him to join us on that track and he agreed, which I feel pretty lucky about. Funny enough, I went to kindergarten with his father back in the days, haha. Alex has sent me some demos of what he conceived for 'Madeleine' and it blew me away in the way he figured out exactly what I was looking for."

DARKSIDE can confirm one more prestigious collaboration. On "Sacrificial Blessings", a member of one of the most influential European death metal bands, PESTILENCE, has provided a lead guitar track. Patrick Mameli has laid down a solo that sounds very "pestilent" but being a perfect part of the song itself fitting in perfectly in terms of mood and composition.

Said Wolf: "This is something very special to us indeed. When we started out with DARKSIDE in 1991, we were influenced by bands such as VOIVOD, SLAYER, PARADISE LOST and PESTILENCE as well as ASPHYX, NOCTURNUS and MORBID ANGEL. Listening to 'Sacrificial Blessings' for some days, I had the impression that it had some PESTILENCE-sounding chords and melodies in it, so I gave it a try and asked Patrick if he would go for it, and luckily enough for us, he agreed. He recorded his lead during the last days of December last year and I just say — this really kills!!!"

Rotterdam, The Netherlands avant-garde metallers ADEIA has announced that they have signed with Layered Reality Productions.

The band’s 2012 debut album entitled Hourglass, will be re-released through Layered Reality Productions sometime in the coming months.

According to a press release: “This album can be described as an intense musical ride that takes the listener from quiet classical moments to intense metallic workouts and back again.

Prominent features on this album are of course the violin and cello which offer both the serenity and insanity to this music. However it is the interplay of these instruments with the guitars, bass, drums and keys that makes Adeia a unique experience. Added to this are the multiple vocal styles on offer such as clean vocals, harmonies and grunts that flesh out the already intricately arranged musical pieces.”
Adeia is currently searching for a new vocalist as the former vocalist left the band last year.

Extreme metal veterans SIX FEET UNDER are tentatively scheduled to release their new full-length album, "Unborn", on March 19 via Metal Blade Records. The follow-to to 2012's "Undead" was mixed by Chris "Zeuss" Harris, who has previously worked with SUICIDE SILENCE, ALL THAT REMAINS, SHADOWS FALL and SOULFLY, among others. The cover artwork for the CD can be found below.

A two-camera mix of SIX FEET UNDER's June 23, 2012 performance at Metro Operahouse in Oakland, California can be seen below.

SIX FEET UNDER in May 2012 announced the addition of Swedish rhythm guitarist Ola Englund (FEARED, SCARPOINT) to the group's ranks. Englund, who made his first official appearance with the band on the "18 Nights Of Blood Tour", took the place of Rob Arnold (CHIMAIRA).

"Undead" was released on May 22, 2012 through Metal Blade Records. The 12-track CD was produced by Mark Lewis (DEICIDE, DEVILDRIVER) and mixed by Jason Suecof (WHITECHAPEL, JOB FOR A COWBOY), at AudioHammer Studios in Sanford, Florida.

SIX FEET UNDER last year parted ways with bassist Matt DeVries and replaced him with Jeff Hughell, formerly of the Santa Cruz, California technical death metal band BRAIN DRILL and Concord, California death metal group VILE, and currently of RECIPROCAL.