U.D.O. — the German metal band led by former ACCEPT frontman Udo Dirkschneider — has recruited a new guitarist to replace Stefan Kaufmann, recently left the group for health reasons.

A message on the U.D.O. web site reads: "U.D.O. are very happy to announce that the band line up is complete again. We found a new guitarist and he fits to all requests, especially that he loves cats (as Stefan and the rest are doing as well)."

Stefan will continue to work with U.D.O. behind the scenes and produce other bands at his Roxx studio.

Kaufmann was the drummer for ACCEPT on nine albums but was forced to give up drumming towards the end of the band's initial run due to health problems.

Stefan joined U.D.O. as a guitar player in 1996, following ACCEPT's second breakup, and has recorded nine albums with them.

"Live In Sofia", the new DVD+CD and Blu-ray+CD from U.D.O., entered the Music DVD chart in Finland at position No. 1 and in Germany at No. 4.

"Live In Sofia" contains footage of U.D.O.'s November 16, 2011 concert at Hristo Botev Hall in Sofia, Bulgaria.

U.D.O. 's latest album, "Rev-Raptor", was released on May 20, 2011 via AFM Records.

Swedish death metallers HYPOCRISY are putting the finishing touches on their new album, "End Of Disclosure", for a late March release via Nuclear Blast Records.

Commented HYPOCRISY leader Peter Tägtgren: "We're still in the studio working hard to finalize the album. Horgh just layed down the drums, and let me tell you, it sounds awesome!!! Thundering and brutal!

"We can't wait to put out the new tracks and play them live! Hope to meet you all soon on road and wish you guys a great X-mas and happy new year!"

HYPOCRISY guitarist Mikael Hedlund told Metal Shock Finland late last year about the material for the band's next CD, "It's too early to say what it's going to sounds like, but all I can say is that it's not gonna be any change of style. It will be a classic HYPOCRISY album without [any] compromises.'

HYPOCRISY's latest DVD/CD, "Hell Over Sofia - 20 Years Of Chaos And Confusion", was released in October 2011 via Nuclear Blast. The disc contains footage of the band's February 27, 2010 concert at the Blue Box club in Sofia, Bulgaria.

HYPOCRISY's latest album, "A Taste Of Extreme Divinity", sold 1,400 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 23 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.

An audio sample of the song "Graveyard City" from the third VOODOO CIRCLE album, "More Than One Way Home", can be streamed in the YouTube clip below.

"More Than One Way Home" will be released on February 22, 2013 via AFM Records.

VOODOO CIRCLE is the German/British band featuring members of PRIMAL FEAR and PINK CREAM 69.

VOODOO CIRCLE's sophomore CD, "Broken Heart Syndrome", entered the German Media Control chart at position No. 64. The effort was once again mixed and mastered by Dennis Ward (PINK CREAM 69, KROKUS), and was described in a press release as "a huge step forward and shows the band's boundless musical possibilities."

Alex is well known throughout the rock and metal scene as the mastermind of SILENT FORCE, former guitarist of SINNER and touring guitarist of PRIMAL FEAR. His exceptional compositions and instrumental skills secured him highest respect from other musicians and a strong worldwide fan base. In Japan, where quality is still the most important aspect when it comes to music, he is hailed as a "guitar hero" and fills the venues.

According to a press release, "Alex chose to walk in huge footsteps with VOODOO CIRCLE, because the immense impact and influence that bands like RAINBOW and DEEP PURPLE had are undeniable. But if there is just one German musician who can fill this big boots and arouse with new energy, we definitely talk about Alex Beyrodt."

VOODOO CIRCLE is:

Alex Beyrodt (PRIMAL FEAR, SILENT FORCE, SINNER) - Guitar
David Readman (PINK CREAM 69) - Vocals
Mat Sinner (SINNER, PRIMAL FEAR) - Bass
Markus Kullmann (DEZPERADOZ) - Drums
Zlatko "Jimmy" Kresic (LIQUID HOME) - Keyboards

VOODOO CIRCLE's self-titled debut album was released in 2008.

Charly Steinhauer, guitarist/vocalist of long-running German metallers PARADOX, is scheduled to undergo open-heart surgery this Christmas Eve. He says, "I'm very sorry that I have to tell you that I'm in the hospital right now, and I will have a difficult heart surgery on Monday (December 24). Please keep your fingers crossed for me. I will survive and carry on making some good music for you. PARADOX will never die! I don't know if I will be able to go on stage again... Right now, I don't think so."

The official lyric video for the song "Brutalized" from PARADOX can be seen below. The track comes off the band's new album, "Tales Of The Weird", which was released on December 14 via AFM Records. The CD was produced by Steinhauer and was mixed and mastered by Victor Bullok (a.k.a. V. Santura; TRIPTYKON, DARK FORTRESS) at Woodshed Studio in Landshut, Germany. The cover art was created by Claudio Bergamin.

"Tales Of The Weird" features guest appearances by Bob Katsionis (FIREWIND) and Gus Drax (SUNBURST).

"Tales Of The Weird" track listing:

01. Tales Of The Weird
02. Day Of Judgement
03. Brutalized
04. Fragile Alliance
05. Slashdead
06. Drowning In Lies
07. Zeitgeist
08. Escalation
09. Brainwashed
10. The Downward Spiral
11. A Light In The Black (RAINBOW cover) (Japanese bonus track)

The new PARADOX lineup is as follows:

Charly Steinhauer (vocals, guitar)
Christian Muenzner (guitar)
Olly Keller (bass)
Daniel "Evil Ewald" Buld (drums)

"Brutalized" lyric video:

BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi has posted the following year-end message on his official web site:

"What a year! Certainly not the one I was expecting.

"Thanks to you all for your massive help and support; it was very encouraging.

"I'm still working on the [new BLACK SABBATH studio] album and managed to play three shows. Not bad given the news a year ago.

"I'm looking forward to next year, seeing what you think of the record and touring as much as we're able.

"My best wishes to you all. I hope you have a great Christmas and New Year, most of all, stay positive."

Iommi underwent chemotherapy treatment earlier in the year after being diagnosed with lymphoma at the end of 2011.

The paperback version of Iommi's book. "Iron Man: My Journey Through Heaven And Hell With Black Sabbath", was released in the U.K. on November 8 through Simon & Schuster and in the U.S. on December 11 via Da Capo Press/Perseus Books. Iommi stated: "It's got new chapters bringing everything up to date, including my battle with lymphoma."

Released in hardback in November 2011, "Iron Man: My Journey Through Heaven And Hell With Black Sabbath", landed at position No. 35 on the New York Times "Hardcover Nonfiction" best sellers list.

MEGADETH has resumed work on its fourteenth studio album with producer Johnny K (full name: John Karkazis), who has previously worked with DISTURBED, SEVENDUST, MACHINE HEAD and STAIND. The CD is tentatively due in early 2013 via an as-yet-undisclosed label following MEGADETH's recent split with Roadrunner Records.

In a tweet earlier today, MEGADETH mainman Dave Mustaine wrote: "Shawn [Drover, drums] and David [Ellefson, bass] have finished tracking songs 1, 2, and 3 and now it’s my turn today. I feel a burning in my soul!!! Arrrrggghhh!"

A 40-second video clip of Mustaine at his studio, Vic's Garage in San Marcos, California, talking about the new MEGADETH album and playing a riff from one of the band's new songs can be seen at this location (Quicktime file, 43 MB).

Mustaine previously told NME about the direction of MEGADETH's new material, "Some of it's a little darker, some of it's a little faster. Being in this position right now, not knowing where we're gonna go or what we're gonna do, it's kind of like the world's ours to do what we want. Are we gonna go back to the speed and thrash metal roots that made us who we are? Are we gonna experiment and rely on the melody that we've discovered in MEGADETH songs?"

Mustaine also spoke about how he likes to keep MEGADETH's music more melodic than that of most thrash bands. "We've tried to do that in MEGADETH, have a little melody so that it's not just the same old grinding music like everybody else has," he said. "We're just happy to get going and get to the studio."

Johnny K produced MEGADETH's last album, 2011's "TH1RT3EN", which was recorded at Mustaine's Vic's Garage studio in San Marcos, California. Mustaine previously stated about the recording process for "TH1RT3EN", "We've got a great new partner with Johnny K. I mean, I was satisfied with our last co-producer, with Andy Sneap, and Andy really took us — and he even admits — as far as he could take us, and it was great because we wanted to go back to the big leagues where we were, and we feel that Johnny is, obviously, a big-league producer; not that Andy isn't — don't get me wrong. But we feel that this record is definitely one of our best. It's a great feeling, because, you know, finishing some of the last record, I can honestly say, in my heart I knew that it wouldn't contend with some of the great records in the past, just because of the timing, the label that we were on and stuff like that. Lineup changes and stuff… But I really think that everything just lined up for this record."

"TH1RT3EN", sold 42,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 11 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD marked the recorded return of bassist David Ellefson who was part of the band's classic lineup from 1983 to 2002. In a move that delighted the band's legion of diehards, Ellefson returned to performing live with MEGADETH in early 2010 and has remained a fixture on the stage ever since. This was the first time Ellefson has played on a MEGADETH record since 2002's "Rude Awakening".

According to TMZ.com, IRON BUTTERFLY bassist Lee Dorman was found dead at his home in Laguna Nigel, a coastal city in Southern California, earlier today (Friday, December 21). He was 70 years old.

Orange County sheriff's spokeswoman Gail Krause said that police arrived at Dorman's home at approximately 10 a.m. and found the musician sitting in his car. The bassist, who reportedly had a history of heart trouble, was unresponsive. Authorities don’t believe there is anything suspicious about his death.

Dorman joined IRON BUTTERFLY before the release of 1968's "In-A-Gadda-Da-Vida" album, which sold more than 30 million copies, according to the band's web site. He rejoined the group in 1977 and has been performing with them ever since.

Video footage of TANKARD's 30th-anniversary concert on December 8 at the 400-capacity Club Mixtape 5 in Sofia, Bulgaria can be seen below.

Check out photos by Nedko Ignatov at the Metal Hangar 18 web site.

TANKARD's 30th-anniversary album, "A Girl Called Cerveza", was released on July 27 via the band's new label home, Nuclear Blast Records. The CD was recorded at Studio 23 in Frankfurt with producer Michael Mainx (ONKELZ, DER W, DISBELIEF, D-A-D).

The official listening session for "A Girl Called Cerveza" was held in late April at Studio 23 in Frankfurt, Germany.

Swedish viking/black metallers THYRFING have completed work on their new album, "De Ödeslösa" (English translation: "The Fateless") at Fascination Street studios in Örebro, Sweden with producer Jens Bogren (OPETH, PARADISE LOST, WITCHCRAFT). The band's first CD since 2008's critically acclaimed "Hels Vite" will be released in the spring via NoiseArt Records.

After 17 years in the band, original member and bassist Kimmy Sjölund decided to leave THYRFING. Joakim Kristensson has since taken over the bass duties. The band also welcomed a new drummer, Dennis Ekdahl.

THYRFING 2012 is:

Jens Rydén - Vocals
Patrik Lindgren - Guitar
Fredrik Hernborg - Guitar
Joakim Kristensson - Bass
Peter Löf - Synthesizers
Dennis Ekdahl - Drums

"Hels Vite" was released in October 2008 via Regain Records. The CD was co-produced (with the band) by Jörgen Svensson of Tyroon Production and the cover artwork was created by the Swedish artist Mikael Schelén. The layout and the photos were handled by Jens Rydén.

THYRFING in 2007 announced the addition of Jens Rydén as the band's new vocalist. Jens is best known as founding member and ex-vocalist of NAGLFAR and for his one-man army PROFUNDI.

France's ETERNAL FLIGHT is working on their fourth album, set to be released in 2013. The band best known for mixing melodic power metal with prog elements is currently testing new songs and ideas in pre-production.
“The new stuff is more direct than our third album, D.r.e.a.m.s., which was released last year. But at the same time, we still want to sound fresh, so expect surprises and original chord progressions here and there," commented vocalist Gérard Fois. "This time there only will be two tracks exceeding six to seven minutes in length, including 'Nightmare King 2'! Previously 'Nightmare King' was a great artistic achievement and a fan favourite, so we developed a thrilling follow-up to please ourselves and the fans."

Critically acclaimed San Francisco Bay Area dark ambient collective AMBER ASYLUM have inked a deal with Prophecy Productions for the rerelease the band's entire back catalogue as well as three further albums. The follow-up to 2009's "Bitter River" is currently being recorded and will most likely be released in 2013, alongside the new editions of the earlier albums.

Commented AMBER ASYLUM's Kris Force: "I am very pleased to come aboard Prophecy with the entire back catalogue. It is AMBER ASYLUM's personal singularity and the end to a long journey home.

"I hope to devote more time to the craft of actual music making and production while trusting the amazing team at Prophecy Productions to bring it to the world.

"On behalf of the entire collective of AMBER ASYLUM, we move forward with enthusiasm and gratitude."

According to a press release, "AMBER ASYLUM have been forging a style which is hard to pinpoint, described by multi-instrumentalist Kris Force, the artistic leader of a shifting pool of studio and live-musicians, as a mixture between neoclassic and dark ambient with hints at neofolk, industrial and doom metal. Right from the beginning, sinister string-arrangements and female vocals in combination with dragging rhythms of the hypnotic kind have been the main characteristics of AMBER ASYLUM, which, according to the band, tackle the core of being and achieve a cathartic effect."

In the latest issue of U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine (order a copy at this location), METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich talks about the band's next album, their upcoming 3D film spectacular and the longterm future of the biggest metal band in the world. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Metal Hammer: Do you ever think there'll be a day when you wake up and go, "You know what? I'm bored of being in METALLICA"?

Lars: I don't think I'll ever be bored of being in METALLICA. I think that one of two things can happen. One, is the physicality of what we do — if we don't have the strength to do it physically anymore. We will always have the strength to do it mentally, so I'm not worried about that. But if there ever comes a time when we feel that it's not going on all 12 cylinders, then I hope that we have the guts to walk away from it. The other thing that could happen is that you decide you want to pursue something else: "I'm really interested in film" or "I'm really interested in painting." Is there a chance that when I'm 55, I'll want to write a movie? Or that James Hetfield will want to make a country record? Or that Kirk Hammett will want to go surfing for a year? But I don't think I'll ever wake up and go, "I'm bored of being in METALLICA," because of the nature of who we are as people, and the dynamics in our personalities. We always make it interesting for ourselves. That's why we do crazy shit like "Some Kind Of Monster" and the 3D movies. We throw ourselves these challenges. It's to make sure that boredom never sets in.

Metal Hammer: What do you think the 18-year-old Lars Ulrich would make of the 48-year-old version of himself?

Lars: I think he'd think that he's alright. He does a pretty good job of keeping it real and dealing with all the things he does. I realized that I say one phrase quite often: "I'm doing the best I can." I think the 18-year-old would look at the 48-year-old and go, "He's doing the best he can!"

The U.K. edition of the Sonisphere festival will take another year off in 2013.

A statement from the organizers reads as follows: "The three Sonisphere festivals to date at Knebworth in 2009/2010/2011 set a very high standard and indeed 2011 was voted the best festival line up by the UK Festival Awards. We think it is really important that the event only runs when it has a lineup that sets it apart from the competition whilst also carrying a ticket price that allows us to offer real value for money to the music fans. We were hoping to do that in 2013 but unfortunately it wasn't possible to fulfil both aims with the principle problem of there being a lack of available headliners of the calibre of previous festivals at Knebworth. We made offers to over a dozen major artists but for various reasons none of these offers lead to securing a strong bill. The good news is that the Sonispheres in Amneville, France and Milan, Italy are already on sale and UK fans who fancy jumping on a budget airline and seeing the mighty IRON MAIDEN at Sonisphere festivals in sunnier climates can buy tickets via SonisphereFestivals.com in pounds sterling."

Former ARCH ENEMY guitarist Christopher Amott, who currently resides in Lansdale, a suburb of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, after marrying an American woman, is writing material for a new album from his ARMAGEDDON project. He says: "I've got a brand new band together and some kick-ass material that I can't wait to unleash on the world.

"To be honest, I haven't been this excited about working on an album in about ten-plus years.

"This one's gonna be 100% metal with loads of shred-guitar and intricate compositions.

"I am writing the music together with Matthew Wicklund (GOD FORBID, WARREL DANE, HIMSA), who is the second guitarist in the band. The hooks and melodies we have come up with are huge!! Very excited. On drums we have Van Williams (NEVERMORE). Bassist and vocalist I am not revealing yet, but I can say this much; it won't be me singing.

"I'm predicting a release for this album by summer 2013."

Amott moved to the U.S. in April 2012 and recently received his green card in the mail, enabling him to live and work in the country.

Christopher Amott played a solo concert at the Loud Park festival on October 27 at Saitama Super Arena, a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Saitama City, Japan. Backing him at the gig were Wicklund and Williams.

Amott's new solo album, "Impulses", can be purchased directly from his music store.

Amott in March issued a statement explaining that he left ARCH ENEMY to pursue his solo career. He said, "I'm gonna continue to be very active in music, working with all kinds of styles — this does not rule out metal."

ARCH ENEMY recruited American guitarist Nick Cordle (ARSIS) to replace Christopher.

Christopher Amott started his career in music in 1995 as a founding creative force and guitarist in ARCH ENEMY. In this context, he is known for his tastefully technical guitar work and memorably emotive playing style.

After garnering his early success, Christopher had the desire to express himself on a personal level in the same genre. At this time he began writing albums under the name ARMAGEDDON. Christopher wrote and recorded three albums over the next few years as ARCH ENEMY grew into an internationally recognized act, with his compositions featuring his own vocal stylings on the last album. This would be Christopher's first foray into singing and a spark of inspiration for his later musical ventures.

In 2008, Christopher began to consider his creative options as a mature musician. He began writing songs of an entirely different atmosphere, which saw his guitar playing focused less on technical ecstasy and more on a chord-based blues rock ambience as a foundation for more prominent vocal and lyrical ideas. These compositions developed into his next solo project; the album would be called "Follow Your Heart", released under his own name in 2010.

Pictured below (left to right): Van Williams, Christopher Amott and Matt Wicklund

In October 2012, THIN LIZZY announced that they would not be recording new material under the THIN LIZZY monicker. The last incarnation of the band — Scott Gorham, Brian Downey, Darren Wharton, Ricky Warwick, Damon Johnson and Marco Mendoza — would be looking to form a new project.

Step forward BLACK STAR RIDERS…

Today sees the announcement of the new band formed by THIN LIZZY alumni Ricky Warwick (vocals), Scott Gorham (guitar), Damon Johnson (guitar), Marco Mendoza (bass) with new addition Jimmy DeGrasso (ALICE COOPER, MEGADETH, DAVID LEE ROTH, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES) on drums. The change in personnel came about as Brian Downey didn't want to commit to the touring cycle a new album would entail and Darren Wharton wanted to concentrate on DARE and other music and film projects.

BLACK STAR RIDERS is set to enter the studio in Los Angeles in January 2013 to start recording their debut album with the legendary Kevin Shirley (LED ZEPPELIN, IRON MAIDEN, AEROSMITH, RUSH). The album will feature material the band wrote while touring as THIN LIZZY and the sound retains that classic feel but is very much its own as well. The BLACK STAR RIDERS record is the next step in the evolution of the THIN LIZZY story.

"We are all very excited about the music that we have created for BLACK STAR RIDERS. The synergy between the five of us has been phenomenal and I can't wait for the world to hear these songs," says Warwick.

The new, as-yet-untitled album will be released in May 2013 through Nuclear Blast — the label behind acts such as ANTHRAX, NIGHTWISH and MESHUGGAH. BLACK STAR RIDERS are one of the first bands signed by Monte Conner — the former Roadrunner A&R guru who has signed acts such as SLIPKNOT, MACHINE HEAD, SEPULTURA and RUSH. Conner recently joined Nuclear Blast as the president of Nuclear Blast Entertainment, a new U.S. partnership he co-founded with Nuclear Blast owner Markus Staiger.

Says Conner: "As a lifelong THIN LIZZY fan, I was floored by this line-up's new material. Not only do the new songs sound like THIN LIZZY but they sound like CLASSIC THIN LIZZY. BLACK STAR RIDERS totally captures the essence of what was great about the original band while at the same time adding something totally fresh and modern. Even when I heard the band decided to change their name, my interest in signing them did not waver for one second."

The band are looking to support their May album release with European festivals shows in the summer of 2013 and follow this up with worldwide touring. The set list will consist of material from the new album and classic THIN LIZZY material.

Classic Rock magazine has an exclusive interview with BLACK STAR RIDERS in their edition that hits the streets on January 3, 2013.

The official Richard "Rick-y" Frantzén-directed video for "Cocaine Cowboys", the new single from Swedish rockers CRASHDÏET, can be seen below. The song comes off the band's fourth album, "The Savage Playground", which will be released on January 25 in Europe (excluding Scandinavia) and January 22 in North America via Frontiers Records.

With "The Savage Playground" recorded during summer/autumn 2012 at Kingside Studios outside Stockholm with producer Otto Wellton, the band has their minds set to break through on a worldwide basis with a tour that will see the band going back to the U.S. as well as going to Japan for the first time.

The new album sees CRASHDÏET going in a heavier and direction. "'The Savage Playground' is our playground, it's the beginning and the end, it's the place where we eat and breed," says guitarist Martin Sweet. "We thought the time was right for us to do a edgier and not-so-polished-sounding album, kinda like what we sound like live. It's more organic and rough-sounding. And, of course, we're always evolving as musicians and like to try new ways of expressing ourselves, and that can most definitely be heard this album."

"The Savage Playground" track listing:

01. Change The World
02. Cocaine Cowboys
03. Anarchy
04. California
05. Lickin' Dog
06. Circus
07. Sin City
08. Got A Reason
09. Drinkin' Without You
10. Snakes In Paradise
11. Damaged Kid
12. Excited
13. Garden Of Babylon

CRASHDÏET released a new DVD entitled "Shattered Glass And Broken Bones – Three Years Of Generation Wild" on December 4. The disc features three hours of live and behind-the-scenes footage complied by the band with Bear Productions.

According to The Pulse Of Radio, AVENGED SEVENFOLD has confirmed that it will enter the studio in January to begin recording its sixth album. The new disc will follow up 2010's "Nightmare", which reached No. 1 on the Billboard album chart. Singer M. Shadows gave NME.com a hint of what the upcoming set would sound like, saying, "This album's a little more groove orientated. There's a little bit more groove to it, a little bit more focused on bigger riffs. So that's where it's headed — every song has gotta have a huge riff and every song has to have a groove to it."

A summer 2013 release is planned for the album.

Meanwhile, with Christmas just around the corner, Shadows told The Pulse Of Radio about a valuable lesson he learned in his childhood during the holidays. "One of my first Christmases when I was a little guy, I was obsessed with Batman, and my parents bought me all these Batman clothes — like Batman hat, Batman shirt, Batman shorts, Batman skateboard," he said. "I remember I actually wore the same clothes every single day after Christmas for like four months straight until all the kids in the neighborhood were making fun of me. So my lesson to everyone would be: be careful what you wish for — you're not as cool as you think you are."

AVENGED SEVENFOLD recently contributed a new song called "Carry On" to the new video game Call Of Duty: Black Ops II.

In addition to contributing "Carry On" to the new Call Of Duty game, AVENGED SEVENFOLD also appears in the game's closing credits.

Canadian metallic hard rockers FAMOUS UNDERGROUND have inked a worldwide, two-album deal with German label Dust On The Tracks Records (DOTT). The band's debut album, which is slated for April 2013, will be released through Sony (Europe), MVD (USA), RSK (UK) and Universal (Canada).

Commented FAMOUS UNDERGROUND guitarist/vocalist Nicholas Walsh: "It's great to know that our music can reach many people. We had multiple labels interested in the band, and ultimately went with DOTT due to their understanding of our music and how and where it needs to be exposed."

Added bassist Laurie-Anne Green : "Under the stable of Rock 'n' Growl Management and DOTT Records, we feel that we have a great team to propel us forward into the New Year."

FAMOUS UNDERGROUND is:

Nicholas Walsh - Vocals/Guitars
Laurie-Anne Green - Bass/backing Vocals
Rick Corvese - Guitar
Darren Boyd - Guitar
Desche Sparboom - Drums

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.

FAMOUS UNDERGROUND's self-titled studio release was produced by Nick Walsh, and mixed by Darius Szczepaniak (SUM 41, BLACK CROWES, BIG SUGAR, 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.

Finnish symphonic metallers AMBERIAN DAWN have announced the addition of 40-year-old singer Päivi "Capri" Virkkunen to the group's ranks. The band's new lineup is re-recording the "best" songs from its first four albums — "Circus Black" (2012), "End Of Eden" (2010), "The Clouds Of Northland Thunder" (2009) and "River Of Tuoni" (2008) — for a compilation album, to be released in 2013.

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

Commented AMBERIAN DAWN: "As announced recently we have spent quite some time with the search for a new singer. A pretty hard task, but we think we managed to find an extraordinarily talented singer.

"We are very proud to present you Capri! She is from Finland and a professional vocalist with a strong background: she has worked for a vast amount of different kinds of studio and live projects (musicals, lead and backing vocal recordings, live shows etc).

"Capri has a classical training but is still 100 percent a rock singer. We are sure she will bring AMBERIAN DAWN to a new level by interpreting AMBERIAN DAWN songs with a different kind of style and emotion.

"And since we all thought that Capri can sing those 'classic' AMBERIAN DAWN songs with new and refreshing style and sound, we decided to re-record a selection of our best songs again with her. Also 75% of the music stems are going to be re-recorded. Mikko P. Mustonen, who did orchestral arrangements for our previous album ('Circus Black'), will add some more color to those songs with awesome orchestral additions. He's also going to mix this album. Release dates, track listing and cover art are to be announced later."

Added AMBERIAN DAWN songwriter Tuomas Seppälä: "Finding Capri and getting her join AMBERIAN DAWN is like a big dream coming true to me. Capri shares the same taste in music as I and that's why is obvious that our new partnership is like 'match made in heaven.' She really makes my compositions to shine like never before and I'm so impressed about her every way. I'm as excited as back then when I found our original singer Heidi. Now my main focus is to make the whole world to hear about Capri and start composing new songs for her. But first, we're all concentrating on recording this compilation album with Capri and then I'll start working with new material for new studio album."

AMBERIAN DAWN 2013 is:

Päivi "Capri" Virkkunen - Vocals
Tuomas Seppälä - Guitar, Keyboards
Emil Pohjalainen - Guitar
Kimmo Korhonen - Guitar
Jukka Koskinen - Bass
Joonas Pykälä-aho - Drums

AMBERIAN DAWN parted ways with vocalist Heidi Parviainen in November. 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.

The "photobiography" book celebrating the 20th anniversary of Portuguese metallers MOONSPELL, titled "XX", is now available to order by e-mailing geral@saidadeemergencia.com.

"XX" is available in both Portugese and English. It's priced at 17.01 euros for the paperback, and 21.51 euros for the hardcover, plus shipping and handling.

MOONSPELL and Swedish black metallers MARDUK will join forces for the "Voices From The Dark" North American co-headlining tour in February/March 2013. Support on the trek will come from Colombian/American black metal rising demons INQUISITION, Italy's gothic melodic sensation THE FORESHADOWING, and Sweden's dark rock/metal band DEATH WOLF (featuring MARDUK members).

MOONSPELL's new album, "Alpha Noir", was released on April 27 via the band's new label home, Napalm Records. The cover artwork for the CD is an intricate, marvellous and symbolic creation by Seth Siro Anton, the Greek artist who collaborated with the band on "Night Eternal".

Mike Portnoy says that it's highly improbably that he will ever rejoin DREAM THEATER because his former bandmates have "done some irrefutable damage behind the scenes."

The drummer, who co-founded DREAM THEATER more than 20 years ago, abruptly quit the band in September 2010 while on tour with AVENGED SEVENFOLD. He has since been replaced by Mike Mangini (ANNIHILATOR, EXTREME, JAMES LABRIE, STEVE VAI).

Portnoy played on AVENGED SEVENFOLD's latest album, "Nightmare", following the death of that band's drummer, Jimmy "The Rev" Sullivan, and toured with them for the entire second half of 2010.

Asked by a fan during a Twitter question-and-answer session earlier today (Thursday, December 20) if he is thinking about a possible return to DREAM THEATER, Portnoy replied, "[It's] not looking likely... They have done some irrefutable damage behind the scenes."

In a March 2012 interview with the Babylon, New York rock radio station WBAB, Portnoy stated about the dramatic way in which his split from DREAM THEATER played out in the media: "The reality is we live in an age where everything is on the Internet in real time … Back in the day — in the '70s, '80s and '90s — a lot of this stuff would have been behind closed doors. We live in an age when Twitter and Blabbermouth and everything is out there in real time. So, unfortumately, a lot of the [details behind the split] probably, really, should have not been up for public discussion and dissection, but, unfortunately, it was. . . The difference is back [in the '70s, '80s and early '90s], only the journalists and the record DJs and people like that were able to really comment on the bands and the music. Now every 12-year-old kid with a computer has an open forum to get involved. [laughs] So when you have something like a band split or a breakup, then you have thousands of comments feeding it and fueling it and commenting on it, it's much different than it was back in the '80s and '90s for us. . . Anytime I tried to defend myself, it would get ripped apart and overanalyzed and misinterpreted, so I've learned the hard way over the past year that the best reponse is no response. And it's sad, because I've always valued being very, very open honest with the fans. You see people like Lars Ulrich [METALLICA] and Dave Mustaine [MEGADETH] and usually the people that have the honesty and the open mouths to talk about things are the ones that get shut down and made examples of. So… live and learn."

Regarding the circumstances that led to his departure from DREAM THEATER, Portnoy said: "Basically, we were together for 25 years, at least 15 to 20 of which were very, very active — you know, write-record-tour, write-record-tour… an endless cycle. And to be honest with you, within those cycles, I was always overseeing everything — from the production to the DVDs to the web sites to the merchandise to the fan clubs — so I never got a rest whereas the other guys would get to go home and have time off with their families. So I was getting burnt out. And granted, I like doing other things with other projects and things like that, and I think that, sometimes, a break from the family — meaning, the full-time band — it was sometimes good. But anyway, towards the end, I was just feeling burnt out. On the surface, the band was making new strides — we had just done a tour with IRON MAIDEN, we played Madison Square Garden for the first time. So the band was still building and growing and developing. But after 25 years, I mean, I just felt we needed a break. I just felt like backstage, there was no camaraderie and everyone was in separate dressing rooms. I was out there, I did a run [as the touring drummer] with AVENGED SEVENFOLD, and I was seeing this brotherhood and this camaraderie that was exciting and inspiring to me, and I wasn't seeing that with DREAM THEATER, so I just suggested, 'Hey, guys, let's take a little break, a little hiatus. It might do the band some good. It might internally respark the fire and rekindle the relationship. The fans could be, maybe, a little hungry after a year or two.' So I suggested that, and obviously, they didn't wanna stop, they didn't wanna take a break, and I desperately needed one — not from working, but from those guys and that endless cycle."

DREAM THEATER's first album with Mangini, "A Dramatic Turn Of Events", sold 36,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to enter The Billboard 200 chart at position No. 8.

The band was among the nominees in the "Best Hard Rock/Metal Performance" category at the 54th annual Grammy Awards, which was held on February 12 at Staples Center in Los Angeles.

PAGAN's Michael Bilinski and Jennifer Renee Price will be joined by SHADOWS IN THE CRYPT guitarist Lawrence Wallace on upcoming performances and events. He will also be lending himself to some new recordings.

Rounding out the lineup is SHADOW OF SILENCE bassist Sam Mckee. A photo of Mckee can be seen below:
Pagan will be joined by a number of special guests when they enter the studio in the coming weeks to record a cover of the classic ‘House Of The Rising Sun’. The track will be released as a digital single/EP on The Genepool/Universal in the first quarter of 2013. A remix contest will be held, with the winning tracks being included on the release.

Updates to follow.

The official lyric video for "As Grace Descends", a brand new song from New York death metal veterans SUFFOCATION, can be seen below. The track comes off the band's new album, "Pinnacle Of Bedlam", which will be released on February 15, 2013 via Nuclear Blast Records. The artwork was handled this time around by Raymond Swanland and can be found below.

Commented SUFFOCATION bassist Derek Boyer: "This artwork is a perfect portrayal of our music. The cover depicts lyrical content like 'scales tip in degradation' and 'hooded messenger of death is now set forth, punishment for all.' Raymond is an absolute BEAST of an artist!"

Added SUFFOCATION guitarist Guy Marchais: "The artwork for 'Pinnacle' brings another element to an already brutal album. Raymond knew exactly what we were looking for and delivered!"

"Pinnacle Of Bedlam" was produced by the band at Full Force Studios in New York with longtime collaborator Joe Cincotta. The mixing and mastering of the effort was handled by Chris "Zeuss" Harris (HATEBREED, ARSIS, SUICIDE SILENCE).

"Pinnacle Of Bedlam" features 10 genre-defining-bone-crushing tracks and also marks the return of drummer Dave Culross, who previously played on the "Despise The Sun" EP. Founding member and former drummer Mike Smith also makes a special guest appearance on the re-recorded "Breeding The Spawn" track "Beginning Of Sorrow".

"Pinnacle Of Bedlam" track listing:

01. Cycles Of Suffering
02. Purgatorial Punishment
03. Eminent Wrath
04. As Grace Descends
05. Sullen Days
06. Pinnacle Of Bedlam
07. My Demise
08. Inversion
09. Rapture Of Revocation
10. Beginning Of Sorrow

Stated guitarist Terrance Hobbs: "The meaning of the album title 'Pinnacle Of Bedlam', is the tipping point or most elevated moment as we approach the chaotic climax of this existence. The cosmic scale teeters and the fate of humanity hangs in the balance.

"People should expect nothing less than sheer brutality, as we perform together with this incredible lineup! We feel this CD will be the best SUFFOCATION album ever to have been released and are confident the fans will love it."

SUFFOCATION was among the inductees for this year's class of the Long Island Music Hall Of Fame. TWISTED SISTER frontman Dee Snider received the Harry Chapin Award at the event, which was held on October 18 at The Paramount in Huntington, New York.

The autobiography of David Ellefson, co-founder and bassist of 11-time Grammy-nominated heavy metal titans MEGADETH, will be made available next year via Howard Books. Ellefson's memoir, "My Life With Deth", chronicles the story of Ellefson's fall into addiction during the band's early years, followed by his subsequent recovery and the return to faith which championed the band's rise to fame over the past several decades. The book is being written with Joel McIver, the bestselling author of 21 books on rock music, and features a foreword by Alice Cooper. World rights to "My Life With Deth" were sold to Philis Boultinghouse at Howard Books by agent Lisa Gallagher at Sanford J. Greenburger Associates.

Ellefson says: "My autobiography is not the usual tale of rock 'n' roll woe, but rather something I hope will truly inspire people. I have dedicated my life to my craft, and I wanted to share the story of how a kid with a bass guitar and the dream of rock stardom literally risked it all to move from the farm in Minnesota to Los Angeles, and with a lot of hard work, sacrifice and a little luck along the way, made the dream come true. I think the readers will enjoy the stories, as well as the hardships, of this way of life as a musician and artist. I've been very open about my life's obstacles and the means by which I overcame them. Now, my hope is that this story will inspire others to follow their dreams and really live out the purpose for their lives, too.”

The book features contributions from Kerry King (SLAYER), Scott Ian (ANTHRAX), Ellefson's current bandmate in MEGADETH Shawn Drover and also former colleagues Chris Poland and Marty Friedman. A publication date will be announced early in 2013.

In addition to numerous gold and platinum records, David is the author of the book "Making Music Your Business" and has two metal bass guitar instructional DVDs through Rock House Method entitled "Metal Bass Vol. 1" and "Vol. 2". He is also a featured bass clinician, keynote speaker and panelist on the subject of music and the music industry.

Photo credit: Sharon Toxic

Napalm Records has set a February 5, 2013 North American release date for "Solarflesh", the new album from Polish extreme metallers HATE. 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 CD was mixed at Hertz Studio in Bialystok, Poland with producers Slawek and Wojtek Wieslawski (DECAPITATED, VADER).

"Solarflesh" track listing:

01. Watchful Eye Of Doom
02. Eternal Might
03. Alchemy Of Blood
04. Timeless Kingdom
05. Festival Of Slaves
06. Sadness Will Last Forever
07. Solarflesh
08. Endless Purity
09. Mesmerized
10. Hatehammer (limited-edition bonus track)
11. Venom (limited-edition bonus track)
12. Fall Of All Icons (limited-edition bonus track)

Two teaser for the CD can be seen below.

Commented HATE guitarist/vocalist Adam "ATF Sinner" Buszko: "I believe 'Solarflesh' is the most insane and haunting record we've done thus far. It's nothing but pure darkness… We're extremely satisfied with this 61-minute monster (12 songs) that we've put to life. Now we're working on a documentary about creation of 'Solarflesh', its ideological sides, the band's history, touring etc. It's going to be much more than just a studio report. We want it to be an in-depth interview revealing some unknown facts, hidden meanings etc. I'm sure people will find it interesting."

Buszko previously stated about "Solarflesh": "On this album we definitely explore new territories and push the boundaries of this beautiful and sick genre to its absolute limits! The material contains 12 collages. Most of them are insanely fast (270 bpm). Others are groovy, trance-like mantras that seem to haunt you forever. They all have rich background of samples and other elements that make them sound multidimensional. We also have several dark, ambient compositions that seem like complete avantgarde. I've been working on them with Michal Staczkun, the guy who did excellent job on our previous album, 'Erebos'. We are also working on a few songs with Androniki Skoula, a singer from Greece, known for her involvement in the band CHAOSTAR, as well as collaboration with SEPTICFLESH and ROTTING CHRIST. She's adding some 'Hellenic' flair to the songs that makes them even more elaborate."

Check out photos from the studio at this location.

Mexico's SPLIT HEAVEN recently parted ways with singer Eli Valenzuela. The band have now announced the addition of Gian Carlo Farjat as their new singer.

Says the band: "We think Gian Carlo's voice is perfect for the new things we are doing; he has an amazing vocal range so he doesn't have problems with the songs we did with Eli and for the new stuff of Split Heaven he is doing those agressive heavy metal vocals we were looking for. Although we have only played a bunch of times with him, we are very excited with the sound we are getting in the rehearsal room. Thanks to everybody who supported us in this time of change and wait for our new album. It's coming soon, we promise."

The band have started working on the follow-up to their 2011 album, Street Law, with the new album due to be released in 2013.
Split Heaven lineup 2013:

Gian Carlo Farjat - Vocals
Carlo "Taii" Hernández - Bass
Pedro Zelbohr - Guitar
Armand "Hank" Ramos - Guitar
Tommy Roitman - Drums

Updates to follow. More on Split Heaven here.

MACHINE HEAD guitarist Phil Demmel joined Los Angeles glam-metal jokesters STEEL PANTHER on stage on September 28 at the House Of Blues in Las Vegas, Nevada to perform a cover version of OZZY OSBOURNE's "Crazy Train" and PANTHER's own "Tomorrow Night". Video footage of his appearance can be seen below.

STEEL PANTHER's first-ever DVD, "British Invasion", sold 3,300 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 2 on Billboard's Top Music Videos chart. Recorded with 16 cameras in pristine HD over a two-year period, the disc chronicles STEEL PANTHER's legendary live show that the band has come to be known for. Beginning in March 2010 at the band's sold-out concert at Brixton Academy in London during their highly successful "Feel The Steel" tour, the DVD feaures some of the group's most memorable hits, including "Asian Hooker", "Community Property", "The Shocker" and "Stripper Girl", in a way never seen before. Included in the package is a laugh-out-loud documentary that follows the band backstage and on their tour that is not to be missed. The deluxe box set includes two DVDs — one with the full show and one with the documentary — deleted scenes and five songs from Download Festival 2012. The packaging also includes a 16-page color book.

"Machine Fucking Head Live", the new live album from MACHINE HEAD, sold 3,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release. It's the band's second live effort; "Hellalive" came out in 2003.

"Machine Fucking Head Live" was recorded at various tour stops across the globe last year. It features songs from throughout the band's expansive catalog, including crowd favorites like "Imperium", "Aesthetics of Hate", "Locust", "Ten Ton Hammer", "This is the End" and "Halo".

Sweden Rock Magazine, Scandinavia's biggest hard rock magazine and Sweden's top-selling music magazine, celebrate issue #100 by naming the 100 greatest Swedish bands of all time.

"Over the past couple of decades, it's hard to think of another country with a population equivalent to that of New York that's had such an impact on hard rock and metal as Sweden has," says editor-in-chief Martin Carlsson. "When Sweden Rock Magazine turns 100, it's only fitting that we pay tribute to the many great talents this country has produced."

In Sweden Rock Magazine #100, the doom masters CANDLEMASS are named the greatest Swedish band of all time.

"To get such an acknowledgement from Sweden Rock Magazine for what we've achieved over almost 30 years is just fantastic. Today, the phenomenon CANDLEMASS is much greater than its individual parts," says CANDLEMASS mainman Leif Edling.

Number two on the list are the legendary death metallers ENTOMBED.

For a CD single sent exclusively to the magazine's subscribers with #100, CANDLEMASS have recorded a heavy version of ENTOMBED's classic death'n'roll song "To Ride, Shoot Straight And Speak The Truth" and ENTOMBED have covered CANDLEMASS uptempo song "Black Dwarf".

"In sports, being number two means you've lost, but since CANDLEMASS are doing a cover of ENTOMBED we see this as a victory," says ENTOMBED vocalist L-G Petrov.

EUROPE, one of Sweden's biggest music exports of all time, are number three on the list.

"We took the long road back and now we've arrived. We used to say that one day this band is going to amount to something. I'm so proud of our crew and my friends in EUROPE," says EUROPE vocalist Joey Tempest.

CANDLEMASS and ENTOMBED both take the stage for two special concerts at Sweden Rock Magazine's 100th-issue party at Debaser Medis in Stockholm, Sweden on January 26, 2013. Tickets are on sale and cost SEK 220. Ticket information: www.debaser.se

For information on how to subscribe to Sweden Rock Magazine, go to www.swedenrockmagazine.com.