Aus der einstigen Veröffentlichungsflut der sogenannten Future-Pop-Bewegung waren wenige Projekte von Dauer. So wie ASSEMBLAGE 23. Der 1988 von Tom Shear gegründete Elektronik-Act aus Seattle beweist auf Album Nummer sieben, dass Meilensteine wie "Failure" (2001) oder "Defiance" (2002) keine Zufälle waren.

"Bruise" strotzt nur so vor Kreativität und Selbstbewusstsein und präsentiert mit seiner enormen musikalischen Bandbreite genau das, wofür Fans ASSEMBLAGE 23 so verehren: elektronische Musik auf höchstem Niveau, mit Texten, die unter die Haut gehen und dank Tom Shears einzigartiger Stimme eindrucksvoll zum Leben erweckt werden. Er hält stets fest an seinen Wurzeln, dennoch erfindet er sein elektronisches Universum immer wieder neu. Unverzichtbar jedenfalls für Elektronik-Junkies. "Bruise" wurde am 8. Juni 2012 veröffentlicht.

SUFFOKATE aus den Staaten haben folgendes über die Arbeiten an ihrem neuen Album und der Suche nach einem neuen Sänger veröffentlicht:

"Real quick update for everyone, first off thanks to everyone who messaged us about auditioning we are impressed with both the amount of people interested, and amazed with the talent we have seen. We will be contacting those of you who we will have come in for a live audition by the end of the month.

We are working on new material for our next album and will continue to keep you updated. Thanks for everyones support, I appreciate all of you who have supported us throughout the years and member changes. I can guarantee that our style, dedication, and music will never be affected, and we will continue to find great vocalist to work with.

In other words don't worry we won't have a keyboard player, wear girls clothing, or start singing over dubstep thats just not how we do."

Kerrang! magazine conducted an interview with SLIPKNOT/STONE SOUR frontman Corey Taylor at this year's edition of the Download festival, which is being held June 8-10 at Donington Park in Leicestershire, United Kingdom. You can now watch the chat below.

When asked about the progress of the recording sessions for the fourth STONE SOUR album, Taylor said, "It's nearly done. We have about a week left of recording. I have a handful of vocals that I need to finish up. And then it's just going in and finishing up some guitars, some ear candy here and there. But it's fantastic. It's so immense. It's probably the biggest thing that I've tried to do. There's a lot of multimedia involved. There's a whole story that's gonna go along with the albums. And it's all under wraps right now. There's gonna be a bunch of big announcements next week that I'm gonna unleash on Twitter, and I'm just gonna start giving people more information, including the titles. But we're actually working on getting a comic together for DC Comics. We're trying to figure out how we can do it. And they've never done anything like this before, so it's gonna take some time. But hopefully… We're definitely gonna have a digital version up online and then probably a couple of months later the hard-copy version. So as a comic fan, I'm kind of losing my shit right now."

As previously reported, SKID ROW's Rachel Bolan laid down the bass tracks for the new STONE SOUR CD, which will end up becoming a double effort. He has described the material on the record as "fucking fierce."

Taylor recently told Revolver magazine about STONE SOUR's forthcoming CD, "Picture [PINK FLOYD's] 'The Wall' crossed with ALICE IN CHAINS' 'Dirt' with some good heavy blasts in there," Corey said. "The heaviest song is a total ass-kicker that sounds as if SLAYER and ANTHRAX had a baby. Then, there's a darker bluesy dirge that has the vibe of LED ZEPPELIN's 'In My Time Of Dying'. There's even a little industrial vibe. It's definitely going to blow people's fucking minds.

Taylor added that he came up with a very ambitious concept for the disc.

"The album is a morality play about a man who's standing at the crossroads of his life trying to figure out what to do next," he said. "He's going, 'Do I move foward and evolve? Do I become more responsible or do I run backwards and pilfer the basket of youth?' Sometimes it's romantic to live in the mistakes that you made when you were 20, and condemn yourself to perpetual adolescence."

The album is being recorded at Sound Farm Studios, just outside STONE SOUR's home base of Des Moines, Iowa, with producer David Bottrill (TOOL, MUSE, STAIND).

Guitarist Josh Rand recently said that the CD will be "another progression for the band," adding. "Musically, we have always challenged one another to push things to our limits, and this record is no exception."

STONE SOUR parted ways with bassist Shawn Economaki earlier in the year. The band's guitarist Jim Root stated about the split, "A lot has happened in the past year… We need to move forward and [there will] be more detail when the time is right. He's still a great friend and we're in touch."

Economaki left STONE SOUR in April 2011 in the middle of the "Avalanche Tour" to deal with "personal issues." He was temporarily replaced by Jason Christopher, who has since joined Sebastian Bach's touring band.

ANATHEMA’s 1995 album The Silent Enigma has now been released on 180gm double vinyl in a gatefold package via Peaceville. The album was the first release on which guitarist Vincent Cavanagh took over the vocal duties of recently departed Darren White.

Tracklisting is as follows:

Side A
‘Restless Oblivion’
‘Shroud Of Frost’

Side B
‘...Alone’
‘Sunset Of Age’
‘Nocturnal Emission’

Side C
‘Cerulean Twilight’
‘The Silent Enigma’
‘A Dying Wish’

Side D
‘Black Orchid’
‘The Silent Enigma (Orchestral)’
‘Sleepless 96’

Portugal-based THE9THCELL have announced they will release their first new album in six years, entitled Galga de Zebra Ilesa, on September 9th via Infektion Records.

This new album will have nine original songs, some of which will be sung in Portuguese. Recordings for the album began on May, 28th.

According to a press release: “Gloomy, risky, melancholical and furious, this new work has the presence of some guest musicians and is the first to only be commercially available.”

A studio report can be heard at this location.

St. Catharines, Ontario-based FRAZE GANG - featuring BRIGHTON ROCK members Greg Fraser and Stevie Skreebs, drummer Phil Epp, and new guitarist Derek McGowan - have issued the following update:

"The new Fraze Gang CD entitled Fraze Gang 2 is finally here and available for purchase. The new Fraze Gang album will be available in stores at the end of June for Canada and at the end of July in the rest of the world, but you can order it now directly from Bongo Beat Records for a physical CD copy. To order Fraze Gang 2 click here."

The track listing for the new album is as follows:

'Saint Or Sinner'
'In Your Face'
'Juggernaut'
'Never Want To Say Goodbye'
'White Lightning'
'Tough Enough'
'I Just Want To Make Love To You'
'Don't Call Us We'll Call You'
'This Is It'
'Rampage'

The album will be available for purchase via Amazon.com soon.

KING DIAMOND held a press conference yesterday (Friday, June 8) at the Sweden Rock Festival in Sölvesborg, Sweden. You can now watch the entire 24-minute question-and-answer session below.

As previously reported, KING DIAMOND will play only two shows in Europe this summer:

June 09 - Sweden Rock Festival – Sölvesborg, SWE
June 15 - Hellfest - Clisson, France

Legendary Danish heavy metal singer King Diamond (KING DIAMOND, MERCYFUL FATE) (real name: Kim Bendix Petersen), 55, underwent open-heart triple-bypass surgery in November 2010. He has since completed his cardiac rehabilitation program and has stopped smoking entirely, changed his diet and is getting regular exercise, according to his wife Livia Zita.

King Diamond made his long-anticipated return to the stage with his MERCYFUL FATE bandmates Hank Shermann, Timi Hansen and Michael Denner on December 7, 2011 at the second of four intimate shows at the Fillmore in San Francisco as part of METALLICA's week-long celebration of its 30th anniversary as a band for fan club members only.

King Diamond played a surprise three-song set on January 27 at Tree's in Dallas, Texas during the "5th Annual Nomad Recording Studio Throwdown". King, who appeared without his trademark makeup, was joined for the performance by Michael Harris on guitar, Neil Brincks on bass, J.T. Longoria on guitar and Matt Thompson (KING DIAMOND, SHAOLIN DEATH SQUAD) on drums. King also presented awards at the event, which featured additional performances by BORN & RAISED, SHAOLIN DEATH SQUAD, LOVE STRICKEN DEMISE and RIVETHEAD.

German thrash metal veterans DESTRUCTION have resumed work on their 30th-anniversary album for a November release via Nuclear Blast Records.

DESTRUCTION recently completed the North American "30th Year Anniversary Tour" with support from WARBRINGER, VITAL REMAINS (who were alternating each night) and PATHOLOGY.

Inspired by IRON MAIDEN, MERCYFUL FATE, MOTÖRHEAD and VENOM, DESTRUCTION was formed as KNIGHT OF DEMON in 1982. The band's original lineup included vocalist and bassist Marcel "Schmier" Schirmer, drummer Tommy Sandmann, and guitarist Mike Sifringer. They soon changed their name to DESTRUCTION and released a demo titled "Bestial Invasion Of Hell" in 1984.

"Day Of Reckoning", the latest album from DESTRUCTION, sold around 800 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 58 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.

"Day Of Reckoning" was the first album to feature DESTRUCTION's new drummer Vaaver (INDUKTI, ex-UNSUN).

Rocker-turned-filmmaker Rob Zombie has confirmed that he has yet to complete work on his much-anticipated new film, "The Lords Of Salem". He writes on Facebook, "For those of you wondering if 'The Lords Of Salem' is finished, the answer is no. I had to take a break due to the MEGADETH tour and a few other things. I will be returning to work on the film in July to finish it up."

The first trailer for "The Lords Of Salem" was beingshown before the last song of Zombie's's set during his recent tour with MEGADETH.

Shaky fan-filmed video footage of the trailer from the concert in Scranton, Pennsylvania can be seen below.

Zombie recently told The Aquarian Weekly that "The Lords Of Salem" is "a different movie for me. I hate calling it a horror movie because it's more than that. It's very much like a psychological terror film, and it's a very different style. The other films were very in-your-face violent. This is more like a total mindfuck movie, and it's just very different, but I'm very excited about it because the fans of what I've done will love it, but it's a very different trip than I've tried before because I didn't want to just go and do the same thing again — and after doing two 'Halloween' films in a row, I wanted to break the mold of anything like that — but very, very different."

The film stars Sheri Moon Zombie, Meg Foster, Ernest Thomas, Jeff Daniel Phillips, Torsten Voges, Bruce Davison, Billy Drago, Richard Lynch, Lisa Marie, Maria Conchita Alonso, Ken Foree, Barbara Crampton, Michael Berryman, Sid Haig, Judy Geeson, and Patricia Quinn.

Filmsynopsis: "A mysterious wooden box containing a vinyl record arrives for Heidi, a gift of the Lords. She assumes it's a rock band on a mission to spread to spread their word. As Heidi and Whitey play the Lord's record, it starts to play backwards, and Heidi experiences a flashback to a past trauma. Later, Whitey plays the Lord's record, dubbing them the Lords of Salem, and to his surprise, the record plays normally and is a massive hit with his listeners. The arrival of another wooden box from the Lords presents the Big H team with free tickets, posters and records to host a gig in Salem. Soon, Heidi and her cohorts are far from the rock spectacle they're expecting. The original Lords or Salem are returning and they're out for blood."

"The Lords Of Salem" is due for theatrical release later this year.

Zombie previously said he's had the idea for the movie for years, even before he recorded the song of the same name.

Zombie, who directed all his own music videos, made his debut as a feature film writer and director with 2003's "House Of 1000 Corpses".

TWISTED SISTER held a press conference yesterday (Friday, June 8) prior to their performance at the Sweden Rock Festival in Sölvesborg, Sweden. You can now watch the entire question-and-answer session in two parts below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. What You Don't Know (Sure Can Hurt You)
02. The Kids Are Back
03. Stay Hungry
04. Wake Up (The Sleeping Giant)
05. I Believe In Rock 'N' Roll
06. You Can't Stop Rock 'N' Roll
07. Sin After Sin
08. The Fire Still Burns
09. We're Not Gonna Take It
10. The Price
11. Burn In Hell
12. Drum Solo
13. I Wanna Rock

Encore:

14. It's Only Rock 'N' Roll (But I Like It) (THE ROLLING STONES cover)

Encore 2:

15. Come Out And Play

Encore 3:

16. S.M.F.

TWISTED SISTER's "From The Bars To The Stars" five-disc DVD box set from the band, featuring three decades of live performances, was released on November 8, 2011 via Eagle Vision. It comes with instant fan collectibles for the crazed SMF TWISTED SISTER fan. Includes the exclusive "Twisted Xmas: Live in Las Vegas" DVD, along with four other TWISTED SISTER DVDs ("Live At Wacken", "Live At Reading", and "Double Live", which includes "North Stage '82", as well as "NY Steel '01"), this box set also includes souvenirs including a TWISTED SISTER Christmas ornament, official NY Steel backstage pass, classic 2 ½-inch TWISTED SISTER pin, and a reproduction of the first ever SMF fan club letter.

TWISTED SISTER stormed the stage at London's famed Marquee Club in March of 1983 for two intense shows that cemented the band's live legacy in the U.K. Recordings from those legendary nights reveal the Long Island quintet raw, hungry and catching fire just a few months before it achieved breakout success on radio and MTV.

Rhino Handmade taps into that power with "Live At The Marquee Club", a concert album that collects rare and unreleased recordings from both nights on a single disc. The music comes in a glammed-up gatefold made from heavy-duty cardstock and die-cut into the shape of the iconic TWISTED SISTER logo.

Mirroring the setlists from both shows, the collection's 13 blistering performances feature singer Dee Snider, guitarists Jay Jay French and Eddie "Fingers" Ojeda, bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza and drummer A.J. Pero. Until last year, the only way to hear some of this historic two-night stand was through a series of seven-inch and 12-inch records released in 1983 exclusively in the U.K.

Released on September 20, 2011, "Live At The Marquee Club" combines those hard-to-find cuts with five previously unreleased songs, including the title track from the band's hard-rocking debut, "Under The Blade", and covers of the SHANGRI-LAS' "Leader Of The Pack" and the SLADE version of the R&B staple "Let The Good Times Roll". The album also includes the first-ever public performance of "You Can't Stop Rock 'n' Roll", which would surface just three months later on the band's second album. Bits of Snider's legendary stage banter — also unreleased — can be heard interspersed between a few songs.

Press conference - part 1:

RISING WEST, the new band featuring Michael Wilton, Eddie Jackson, Scott Rockenfield and Parker Lundgren of QUEENSRŸCHE, along with powerhouse vocalist Todd La Torre of CRIMSON GLORY, made its live debut last night (Friday, June 8) at the Hard Rock Café in Seattle, Washington. The band performed rare and classic hits from the first five QUEENSRŸCHE albums — from the 1983 EP through 1990's "Empire" — as well as a cover version of the IRON MAIDEN staple "Wrathchild".

RISING WEST's setlist was as follows:

01. Queen Of The Reich
02. Speak
03. Walk In The Shadows
04. En Force
05. Child Of Fire
06. The Whisper
07. Warning
08. The Needle Lies
09. Take Hold Of The Flame
10. Prophecy
11. My Empty Room
12. Eyes Of A Stranger

Encore:

13. Wrathchild (IRON MAIDEN cover)
14. Roads To Madness

RISING WEST, will play another show at Seattle's Hard Rock Café tonight (Saturday, June 9).

Speaking to "The Men's Room" radio show, which airs on the Seattle station KISW 99.9 FM, Wilton stated about the formation of RISING WEST and the status of QUEENSRŸCHE, "We have some time off this year, so we put a project and this kind of turned into this monumental, epic band. And we're doing that as kind of a side thing away from QUEENSRŸCHE." He added, "We still very much are QUEENSRŸCHE, and QUEENSRŸCHE will be continuing on. We want to just have some fun, play some old 'RŸCHE, bring back some memories and just kick it."

Regarding his involvement with RISING WEST, Todd said, "For me to be able to come in and be asked to perform these songs is an honor. It's a lot of fun. I have personal attachment to some of these songs. When my grandmother passed away, I remember riding in my car and listening to the [QUEENSRŸCHE] song 'Roads To Madness'. I mean, these songs resonate with me in a different way. So when I sing it, it comes from my heart."

He added, "We're playing all the old [QUEENSRŸCHE] classics and I can belt it out just like the record."

Fan-filmed video footage of QUEENSRŸCHE singer Geoff Tate's June 7 solo performance at Canyon Club in Agoura Hills, California can be seen below.

A number of high-quality photos of the concert — courtesy of Stephanie Cabral — are available at this location.

Geoff entered the studio on February 29 to begin recording his second solo album.

Tate released his first solo CD in 2002 on Sanctuary Records. Self-titled, the LP was a huge departure from the work he had previously done with QUEENSRŸCHE.

When asked about the sound of his new solo album, Tate told AnthologySD.com, "Well, it's very different from my last one, for sure. It's a new bunch of people I've been working with to write and record it, so that changes things. When you're working with different people, it really changes the record. This one is really hard rock. The last one was really all over the place with different styles of music and everything, but this one really keeps with the hard rock style. It does it in kind of a different way — more of my way or what I would envision. I guess it's experimental in some ways, while in others it's very traditional. What I tried to do was take traditional rock instrumentation and apply it in kind of a different song structure. That's what I would best describe it as. [laughs]"

Regarding his current solo tour, Tate told the Lincoln Journal Star, "QUEENSRŸCHE is not doing much together this year. I wanted to keep touring and I wanted to move in a different direction. It's kind of a singer's dream, really. You're not competing with the other instruments, especially the drum kit. The whole idea was hatched after a dinner party at my house one night."

U.S. power metallers VIRGIN STEELE are recording their new album for a tentatively late 2012 release. According to vocalist David DeFeis, the band is also recording the various bonus tracks that will be made available with the upcoming reissues of the group's catalog. David says, "We are really working on what will be the next three albums, because there are quite a lot of songs. We are trying to capture everything as the inspiration comes. As regards what the new album will be all about, I prefer to wait a bit to give you more information, as I am still writing, and I am waiting to see how the latest music develops. Once I know exactly what tracks it will contain, I will then be in a better position to describe it to you. But I can tell you that at the moment there are three different… let's call them 'song cycles' or song collections. Two of them could be conceived as conceptual, while the third consists of separate unrelated material. We are essentially trying to record everything before committing completely to what we will release first. It will all come out… it's just a question of what will be first."

SPV/Steamhammer will re-release VIRGIN STEELE's "Life Among The Ruins" on June 18 in Europe and July 17 in North America. This two-CD digipak reissue comes with massive bonus tracks and a huge booklet with new liner notes and previously unseen photos by the band's lead singer, David DeFeis.

VIRGIN STEELE's fifth full-length studio album, "Life Among The Ruins" was originally released in 1993 and was the band's first album to feature bassist Rob DeMartino, who replaced Joe O'Reilly, retired from the scene.

Commented DeFeis: "This 2012 version will be in digipak form and contain not one but two discs with a large amount of extra ingredients. On the first disc, we include five rare and unvarnished acoustic recordings, plus a full band bonus track. On disc 2, we have included 20 tracks. These tracks consist of a large amount of newly recorded material completed just this week, as well as alternate mixes of some of the album's original tracks. And, in addition, we have also included a never-released track from somewhere around that period of time. All the material has been remastered, and the package will feature copious liner notes, photos and unique packaging."

Down Boys Records, the record label that was created in 2001 by WARRANT members Erik Turner (guitar) and Jerry Dixon (bass), has officially released the ADLER'S APPETITE "Alive" EP. There is a digital as well as a limited-edition physical release.

"Alive" EP track listing:

01. Alive
02. Stardog
03. Fading
04. Alive (bonus track instrumental)

"Alive" EP recording lineup:

Steven Adler - Drums
Chip Z'Nuff - Bass
Rick Stitch - Vocals
Alex Grossi - Guitars
Michael Thomas - Guitars

A promo clip for the release can be viewed below.

ADLER'S APPETITE in April 2011 recruited singer Patrick Stone (ACES 'N' EIGHTS) and guitarist Lonnie Paul following the departures of Rick Stitch and Alex Grossi.

Attitude Clothing has uploaded video footage from the "black carpet" of this year's The Kerrang! Awards 2012 Fuelled By Relentless Energy Drink, which took place last night (Thursday, June 7) in London, England. Check it out below.

Rock stars galore, including BLACK SABBATH, Slash, TENACIOUS D and BLACK VEIL BRIDES were out in force at the Kerrang! Awards 2012. Big winners included BLACK SABBATH, YOU ME AT SIX, BLACK VEIL BRIDES, MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE and ENTER SHIKARI, with over a million votes cast making this the biggest Awards yet.

Renowned as one of the most legendary awards events in the rock music calendar, The Kerrang! Awards 2012 Fuelled By Relentless Energy Drink did not disappoint, with a rock royalty theme to mark the Queen's Jubilee. Hosted by Corey Taylor (SLIPKNOT, STONE SOUR) and Scott Ian (ANTHRAX), some of the biggest names in international rock and metal took to the Awards "black carpet" to celebrate the past year in music.

On the eve of what will be a triumphant return to Donington Park, with their headlining appearance at the Download festival on Sunday, June 10, BLACK SABBATH were honored with the Kerrang! Inspiration Award. Accompanied on the night by their families, Ozzy Osbourne, Tony Iommi and Geezer Butler collected this trophy in honor of BLACK SABBATH's immeasurable impact on heavy rock. Put bluntly, without BLACK SABBATH, there would be no METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER, LAMB OF GOD, MACHINE HEAD…the list goes on, with Lars Ulrich once saying, "BLACK SABBATH is and always will be synonymous with heavy metal."

The world's most famous rock guitarist Slash was presented with the Kerrang! Icon award, putting him in the company of previous K! Icons Ronnie James Dio, ALICE IN CHAINS, MARILYN MANSON, NINE INCH NAILS and MC5, with Kerrang! saying, "Slash should be credited and forever rewarded for defining the sound of modern rock music…"

Atlanta prog metallers MASTODON were awarded with Best Album (for their critically acclaimed 2011 release "The Hunter" which went to No. 19 in the U.K. album chart — a huge achievement for a record whose song titles include "Curl Of The Burl", "Octopus Has No Friends" and "Bedazzled Fingernails".

Best Single was awarded to glam metal group BLACK VEIL BRIDES for "Rebel Love Song", with MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE honoured with Best International Band for the third time in their career, having won the trophy in 2006 and 2007.

Inducted into the Kerrang! Hall of Fame, joining alumni such as MÖTLEY CRÜE, JUDAS PRIEST, SLAYER and IRON MAIDEN were Californian heavy metallers MACHINE HEAD, in tribute to a career that has spanned over two decades.

The Kerrang! Awards 2012 Fuelled By Relentless Energy Drink — full list of winners:

* Best British Newcomer: WHILE SHE SLEEPS
* Kerrang! Service To Rock: TENACIOUS D
* Best Single: BLACK VEIL BRIDES - Rebel Love Song
* Best Album: MASTODON - The Hunter
* The Devotion Award: THE BLACKOUT
* Kerrang! Service To Metal: Download Festival
* Best Video: BRING ME THE HORIZON - Alligator Blood
* Best Live Band: ENTER SHIKARI
* Best International Band: MY CHEMICAL ROMANCE
* Best British Band: YOU ME AT SIX
* Kerrang! Hall Of Fame: MACHINE HEAD
* Kerrang! Icon: Slash
* Kerrang! Inspiration Award: BLACK SABBATH

Los Angeles, California-based traditional power metallers AXEHAMMER have inked a worldwide deal with Pure Steel Records. The band's new album, "Marching On", will be released in September.

AXEHAMMER has been around since the early Eighties, writing all original material.

Jerry Watt and Joe Aghassi are the original members of AXEHAMMER who have shared the stage with some of today's top metal bands, including SLAYER, MALICE, and AGENT STEEL. Bill Ramp was the original singer of AXEHAMMER that gave the band that distinctive sound. Unfortunately, Bill stepped aside due to personal health complications. Mark Stewart was his temporary replacement until Kleber Freitas became AXEHAMMER's new lead vocalist.

AXEHAMMER is:

Vocals - Kleber Mandrake
Guitar - Jerry Watt
Drums - Joe Aghassi
Bass - Horacio Colmenares

Legendary actor Christopher Lee, who has appeared in such cinematic milestones as "Lord Of The Rings", "Star Wars", "The Man With The Golden Gun" and "Dracula", has celebrated his 90th birthday by releasing a second heavy metal album.

The singer-actor's first creation, "Charlemagne: By The Sword And The Cross", which won critical acclaim, was more symphonic than the upcoming "Charlemagne: The Omens Of Death".

He told BBC Radio 5 "Up All Night"'s Jamie Stangroom how he got involved in the genre.

"I was first introduced to metal when I sang with a [band] called RHAPSODY," he said. "But what I sang was not heavy metal; I sang with a tenor. Then I worked with MANOWAR as a narrator, I think it was in Germany, and again, that was not me singing metal. I became rather fascinated by this, 'cause in terms of history of music, it's fairly recent, really. And if it's properly done and you can understand the story and you can understand what the people are singing and you have the right bands and the right singers, I think it's rather exciting.

"When I was approached to do the first 'Charlemagne' album, 'By The Sword And The Cross', it is heavy metal, of course, but what I sang was more symphonic. Now on the second one, 'The Omens Of Death', it is 100 percent heavy metal. I've done my bits and pieces, and they are heavy metal. I'm not screaming or anything like that, but it is definitely 100 percent heavy metal."

Lee also spoke about being presented with the "Spirit Of Hammer" prize by BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi at Metal Hammer magazine's Golden Gods awards in London in June 2010, Lee said, "It was a most amazing occasion for me — very exciting — and something I'd never had happen to me my whole career, my whole life, in terms of awards," he said. "I have received quite a few. But I was interviewed, actually in this room, by Tony Iommi, who founded BLACK SABBATH. And I hadn't heard them, but I made it a point [to do so]. [And] I thought it was extraordinary. And then I went to O2 [in London] in front of a fairly large crowd, I would say, all, of course, very young. And I got a greeting, which was really quite amazing. The decibel level was very high. Very high, very high."

You can listen to Lee's interview with BBC Radio 5 "Up All Night"'s Jamie Stangroom at BBC.co.uk.

On November 18, 2011, members from high-profile Norwegian metal bands, including DARKTHRONE, SATYRICON and TAAKE, took part in a live show called "Algir - Støttekonsert For Jonas R. Christiansen", at Bergen's prime rock venue, Garage.

Originally arranged in order to raise funds and send cancer-stricken vocalist Jonas Christiansen (SLAVIA, ex-DISIPLIN) to a private treatment facility in Denmark, the event, which also featured Christiansen's solo project, SLAVIA (with Niklas Kvarforth from SHINING on vocals), turned into a memorial concert when the 31-year-old unexpectedly passed away the day before.

"To hear about his situation was really serious," SATYRICON's vocalist Satyr reflects. "And of course, when we were asked to be a part of something like this, you don't really hesitate 'cause it's not about how well you know someone but it's about showing solidarity with another artist within this very small black metal community."

Produced by Patrizia Mazzuoccolo and directed by Espen Storsve for Norwegian independent channel Killer Bunny TV, the mini-documentary witnesses the evolution of the Norwegian black metal scene from its original "every man for himself" ethos and features interviews with a variety of exponents from the genre as well as an exclusive live performance of DARKTHRONE's track "In The Shadow Of The Horns", taken from their legendary second album, "A Blaze In The Northern Sky".

"Certain people have a view that it's all about being cold on a very egoistical level perhaps," continues SATYRICON drummer Frost. "That's not how it functions. Not only is there room for solidarity, but I think that it's something that should be shown at certain times."

Watch the documentary below.

Portland rock band EMBERGHOST has announced the addition of keyboardist and backing vocalist Kristen Randall (ABIGAIL WILLIAMS, WINDS OF PLAGUE) to the group's ranks.

EMBERGHOST lost its female keyboardist and co-vocalist Sarah Jennings to cancer in 2010. And while Sarah can never be replaced, Kristen's passion, style, talent, and dedication make her a worthy addition to the band, and Randall understands fully the large shoes she is filling.

Kristen is already collaborating with EMBERGHOST on their current project, "Not Long For This Earth", which is an acoustic retrospective celebrating their work with Sarah. Upon completion of the project, for which the band is currently raising money on Kickstarter, Kristen will join the new lineup (some new members are yet to be announced) as they write, record, and perform brand new material.

For more information, visit www.facebook.com/emberghost.

Screaming Records is issuing new, old and borrowed material from none other than the legendary death 'n' rollers from Sweden — ENTOMBED.

While putting final touches to their next full-length album, which is slated for a spring 2013 release, the band has chosen to issue two singles; one is a digital release of a reworked version of the song "Amok", and the other is a limited seven-inch deluxe vinyl single entitled "When In Sodom Revisited". Due on June 25, the three-track, 70-gram release includes a remixed and remastered version of the original "When In Sodom" track as well as an alternate version composed, performed and recorded by Danish artist and sound designer Klaus "Q" Hedegaard Nielsen (BETA SATAN, THE MALPRACTICE). To round out the seven-inch, ENTOMBED entered the studio to record an honorable version of the KING DIAMOND signature song "Welcome Home". As a result, this will actually become the first release by ENTOMBED in the current lineup — with Victor Brandt (TOTALT JÄVLA MÖRKER, AEON, SATYRICON) and second guitarist Nico Elgstrand (who previously played bass for the group).

"When In Sodom Revisited" comes as a one-off print of 475 hand-numbered copies on heavyweight silver colored vinyl. The sleeve has been cut extra thick and comes with a 3-mm spine. It will not come with a dropcard and there will not be a digital release.

Official Metallica.com footage of METALLICA's meet-and-greet, pre-show tuning-room jam and "The Unforgiven" performance at the Werchter Boutique Festivalpark on May 28 in Werchter, Belgium can be viewed below.

METALLICA performed its top-selling 1991 LP, "Metallica", a.k.a. "the black album," in its entirety at the Madrid concert. As they have done on all the shows on their current European tour, the band played the LP backwards, starting with closing number "The Struggle Within" and ending with "Enter Sandman".

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Hit The Lights
02. Master Of Puppets
03. Ride The Lightning
04. For Whom The Bell Tolls
05. Hell And Back
06. The Struggle Within
07. My Friend Of Misery
08. The God That Failed
09. Of Wolf & Man
10. Nothing Else Matters
11. Through The Never
12. Don't Tread On Me
13. Wherever I May Roam
14. The Unforgiven
15. Holier Than Thou
16. Sad But True
17. Enter Sandman

Encore:

18. Battery
19. One
20. Seek & Destroy

One of the most intriguing and mysterious projects on METALLICA's upcoming schedule is the band's 3D movie, which begins filming later this summer and will mix concert footage with a storyline. Drummer Lars Ulrich spoke with Rolling Stone about the project for the magazine's METALLICA cover story, saying, "This has been circling for two years. It's time to life-size it, get it out of our minds and on the screen. And if it's done right, it can be sensational. You're not watching METALLICA onstage. You're onstage with METALLICA. In IMAX, James Hetfield is 38 feet tall, snotting on you, spitting on you. It's 2,000 decibels. If there is an earthquake outside, you wouldn't notice."

Ulrich explained that the sheer power of presenting a METALLICA concert that way forced the group to add more to the movie, saying, "You can't do that for 100 minutes. It loses its appeal. There is another element in there — intimate, small, a story that takes place over the same trajectory as the concert. The question is, 'Where do they weave in and out of each other?'"

METALLICA is financing the project itself and has hired "Predators" director Nimród Antal to get behind the camera. Antal will film the band's August 24 concert in Vancouver, Canada for use in the movie.

The show will feature a brand new 140-foot-by-50-foot stage that will include what a post at the band's web site called "colossal components and striking visual elements spanning METALLICA's entire 30-year career."

The first-ever METALLICA-curated Orion Music + More festival will take place on June 23-24 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. The group is headlining both days and will perform its entire 1984 album "Ride The Lightning" for the first time ever on one day, and its entire 1991 "black album" on the other.

THE SKULL, the new band formed by the original member of Chicago doom legends TROUBLE — vocalist Eric Wagner (also of BLACKFINGER) — alongside the band's longtime bassist Ron Holzner (also of EARTHEN GRAVE), and guitarists Lothar Keller and Michael Carpenter of the Chicago, Illinois-based progressive power metal band SACRED DAWN, has recruited drummer Brad "Sabbath" Sabathne (ex-SACRED DAWN, DAVID SHANKLE GROUP) to sit behind the kit for the following shows:

June 15 - Dark Star 15th Anniversary - Elgin, IL (@ Tilted Kilt)
June 16 - Days of The Doomed Festival - Cudahy, WI (@ The Blue Pig Bar & Venue)
July 14 - Alehorn Of Power Fest - Chicago, IL (@ Reggies Rock Club)
July 21 - Hells Pleasure Festival - Pößneck, Germany (@ Motocross Area)

Drummer Jeff "Oly" Olson recently quit THE SKULL, explaining in a statement, "Upon much thought, and effective immediately, I will not be participating with THE SKULL. I've decided to wait for a real TROUBLE reunion with original members or not play TROUBLE's music at all. I can not comment further at this time. My apologies to those who have been disappointed."

Wagner, Olson and original TROUBLE bassist Sean McAllister shared the stage for the first time since 1986 during Olson's RETRO GRAVE set on June 18, 2011 at the Days Of The Doomed Fest in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

TROUBLE formed in 1979 and released several classic albums like "Trouble", "Manic Frustration" and "Plastic Green Head".

Eric was one of the guest singers on Dave Grohl's (NIRVANA, FOO FIGHTERS) heavy metal side project PROBOT, whose 2004 album featured heavy metal vocalists from the '80s and '90s. Wagner also makes a guest appearance in the forthcoming horror film "Jezebeth" (written and directed by Damien Dante of Satania 6 Films), to be released on Blu-ray in early 2012.

Eric Wagner left TROUBLE in April 2008, citing his disdain for the touring life as the main reason for his departure.