Danish power metallers SEVEN THORNS have entered Media Sound Studios in Copenhagen with Peter Brander (ROYAL HUNT, CORNERSTONE, BIG FAT SNAKE) to begin recording their sophomore album. According to guitarist Gabriel Tuxen, "The new album will be a continuance of the first one — with a little more variation. We have put a little more tempo and technicalities into the songs."

Regarding the SEVEN THORNS vocalist situation, drummer and founding member Lars Borup said, "For the first album ('Return To The Past') we hired the fantastic Swedish singer Erik 'EZ' Blomkvist (formerly of PLATITUDE). His voice was not as high pitched as the 'common' power metal vocalists, but it really fitted our music fantastically. Erik was never a full member of SEVEN THORNS — by own choice, and it has been a wish in the band for some time to get a singer to work with full-time — and we have found that now in another young Swede named Gustav Blide. Erik has been a one of the main reasons for the success we've had for the first album and without him we wouldn't have been where we are today. Gustav is a different kind of singer — more classic power metal vocalist — only 19 years old, but with a huge potential."

For the new album, however, Gustav will "only" be doing backing vocals. The lead vocals on the new CD will be handled by David Henriksson from the Swedish power metal bands INSANIA and HEEL.

"Getting David to do the vocals on the new album is simply amazing," says composer and backing vocalist Mik Holm. "His voice is so fantastic. It will be a change in the vocal style, but for the songs on the new album David's voice will be perfect."

Canada's Digital Media Records will release "District Destruction" from German thrashers MORTAL INFINITY on June 15.

MORTAL INFINITY offers an album's worth of surgically precise, immediately memorable, and frighteningly ferocious thrash metal. The album was recorded at Sound Lodge Studios from Jörg Uken (GOD DETHRONED, DEW-SCENTED), ensuring maximum riff crunch and laceration potential. Taking influence from the likes not only the Bay Area (EXODUS, TESTAMENT) and German (DESTRUCTION, KREATOR) scenes, but also acts like SLAYER and LAMB OF GOD, MORTAL INFINITY's "District Destruction" is one debut album that plays like it was made by 20-year veterans.

"District Destruction" track listing:

01. Intro
02. Thrill To Kill
03. At Dawn Of Death
04. Wake Of Devastation
05. Retribution
06. District Destruction
07. Condemned Rising
08. Radical Response
09. Sound Of Brutality

MORTAL INFNITY is:

Marc Doblinger - Vocals
Thomas Harlander - Rhythm Guitar
Sebastian Unrath - Lead Guitar
Daniel Hofer - Bass
Mathias Erber - Drums

Under official license from Kaotoxin Records, Tanquam Aegri Somnia, a new label from Belgium founded by Corvus of CULT OF ERINYES, will release DEHUMAN's debut full-length, "Black Throne Of All Creation", on vinyl. The album is being offered as a standard LP and limited-edition (100 copies) red LP and is scheduled for release on July 2. Both versions of the LP are now available for pre-order at shop.kaotoxin.com. The CD version of "Black Throne Of All Creation" will be out on May 28 via Kaotoxin Records.

For a limited time, Apochs.net is offering an exclusive full album stream of "Black Throne Of All Creation". The tracks will be online from now until Friday, June 1 at this location.

In October, DEHUMAN will take part in the "The New Elite European Tour 2012" with the legendary MASTER as headliner The tour will start on October 6 in Germany and end on October 14 in the Czech Republic.

Recorded at the Blackout studio (ENTHRONED, RESISTANCE, EMPTINESS, SOL INVICTUS, DIAPSIQUIR) and featuring artwork by W. H. Otto Dix, layout by ENTHRONED's Oliver Lomer, and logo by Christophe Szpajdel, "Black Throne Of All Creation" is sounds great and looks fantastic. It's also an addictive release sure to hook the listener upon the very first listen with such instant classics as "Black Mamba" or "Cast Of Assassination".

"Black Throne Of All Creation" track listing:

01. Apocalypse And Perdition
02. Monstrosity In The Hands Of God
03. Eyes Of A Thousand
04. Spiral Of Loss
05. Down With The World
06. Harvest The Sun
07. Cast Of Assassination
08. Black Mamba
09. Path To Oblivion

Professionally filmed video footage of MASTODON's entire performance at this year's edition of the Rock In Rio Lisbon festival — shot yesterday (Friday, May 25) in Lisbon, Portugal — can be seen below.

MASTODON is touring in support of its latest album "The Hunter", which was released by Reprise Records in September. The band's latest trek kicked off on April 4 in Portland, Maine, and visited more than 30 cities in the U.S. and Canada before wrapping up with a hometown show at Atlanta's Masquerade Music Park on May 12. These shows featured Swedish metal band OPETH as co-headliners, with special guest GHOST providing support on all dates.

MASTODON last month released a split seven-inch single with Canadian singer-songwriter Feist to celebrate Record Store Day. This very exclusive and highly anticipated pressing features MASTODON covering the Feist song "A Commotion", while Feist covers MASTODON's "Black Tongue".

MASTODON was among the nominees for the 54th annual Grammy Awards, which was held on February 12 at Staples Center in Los Angeles. The band's Grammy nomination was for "Curl Of The Burl", the first single from MASTODON's new album, "The Hunter".

MASTODON received its first Grammy nomination in 2006 for the single "Colony Of Birchmen", from the band's Reprise Records debut album, "Blood Mountain".

The cover artwork for "Antithetical", the third full-length album from Portuguese extreme progressive metallers MALEVOLENCE, can be seen below. The very striking illustrative piece was produced by the design bureau Kkstructures. "By portraying the central album conceptual theme fueled by the art of conflict, Kkstructures, in straight involvement with the band, twisted an eye-catching visual parallelism dissecting the antithetical contrasts between the positive and negative extremes," according to a press release. "Transcending the opposites by mode of individual revelation (summon insurgence) whilst erecting a differing perspective throughout exorcising thesis, the visual mind bending design brings forth in the process the social global context trivialization invoking an upheaval synthesis. The fire combustion epitomizes the universal purification (in need) as an unrelenting way of forward critical thinking."

The follow-up to 1999's "Martyrialized", "Antithetical" was written and produced by Carlos Cariano, recorded by Paulo Pereira at 20m2sea Studio (Portugal), and mixed and mastered at Woodshed Studio (Germany) by V. Santura (TRIPTYKON, OBSCURA, PESTILENCE).

"Antithetical" features the lineup that recorded "Martyrialized", including core members Carlos Cariano (vocals, guitar), Aires Pereira (bass), Fred Noel (guitar), Paulo Pereira (keyboards) alongside session drummer extraordinaire Dirk Verbeuren (SOILWORK, THE DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT, JEFF LOOMIS).

The main theme of "Antithetical" illustrates a razor-sharp concept inspired from Ancient Greek Etymology (1580s, from Gk. Antithetikos) that reflects the diametrical opposition to a number of propositions consisting in the revelation of a divergent thought. Pertaining to "Antithetical", the Anti (against) + Thesis (position), as a figure of speech (mainly used by the authors of the Baroque period; style of the epoch known as the art of conflict) acknowledge opposition towards the relative thesis expressed.

Commented MALEVOLENCE singer/guitarist/songwriter Carlos Cariano: "'Antithetical' is loaded with intoxicatingly corrosive contrasts whilst the album represents pure rebellion, a pure nonconformist extension towards the current situation of the globe, an upheaval towards the current language that has no force of expression and no meaning, due to the predictability of words and counterfeit actions that have become commonplace worldwide. Inner strength and living values nowadays are negatively base underneath relative truths and we are expressing ourselves precisely antithetically whilst insisting on critical thinking."

A press release states: "Music and lyrics are far beyond the average practice and 'Antithetical' is a very unnatural progressive slab of extreme sonic amalgamation creating parallelisms to simplify extremes whilst apprehending both the positive and the negative perspectives of existence, in order to erect with the synthesis that transcends both.

"As hope is antithetical to despair, the contrasts established within the album serve in effect to give tension to the broad-spectrum body of work consisting of seven songs.

"'Antithetical' includes the most epic material (longest song clocking at 9:27), plus the heaviest proportional songwriting ever accomplished on the eighteenth year of existence of the collective.

"Exploring experimental yet instrumental mind bending extreme metal structures, the album is a pure heavy mammoth demonstration on extreme progressive metal territory."

Swedish dark rockers KATATONIA have issued the following update:

"We are currently on our way to Russia, but we have some bad news. Unfortunately Anders [Nyström, guitar] is very sick and unable to travel with us, so we send our regards and wish him a speedy recovery. The show must go on and we didn't want our fans to miss out so we have decided to carry on and play the concerts without him. We look forward to seeing you all over the next couple of days!"

Affected dates:

May 27 - Arctica Club - St. Petersburg, Russia
May 28 - Milk Club - Moscow, Russia

Professionally filmed video footage of METALLICA's performance at this year's edition of the Rock In Rio Lisbon festival — shot earlier today (Friday, May 25) in Lisbon, Portugal — can be seen below.

METALLICA performed its top-selling 1991 LP, "Metallica", a.k.a. "the black album," in its entirety at the Lisbon 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. Fuel
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. Fight Fire With Fire
19. One
20. Seek & Destroy

Asked whose idea it was for METALLICA to play the "black" album in reverse on the current tour, the band's drummer, Lars Ulrich, told Rolling Stone magazine, "If you like the idea, it was mine. If you don't, it was James' [Hetfield, guitar/vocals]. For better or worse, I'm the setlist guy. This is all subject to change if it doesn't work. But the idea of starting off with the lesser-known songs buried down there and ending up with 'Sad But True' and 'Enter Sandman' seems like a winner. You finish with the money shot, which is the first song."

On the topic of the "black" album's shift away from sped metal to shorter, simpler songs, which set the tone for the rest of METALLICA's career, Lars said, "I'm a big believer that the records all thread together. That straighter, four-on-the-floor thing was present on earlier records, in 'Harvester Of Sorrow' and 'Ride The Lightning'. But we went all-out because there was nowhere else to go. Where do you go after 'Dyer's Eve'? You can't get faster. You can't get more pissed off than Hetfield barking at his parents. That was the end of the Eighties for us."

He continued, "We played a show with AEROSMITH in the summer of 1990, right at the time we started writing the 'black' album. I remember sitting under the grandstand with [co-manager] Cliff Burnstein. He said, 'The MISFITS are a huge part of your influence — 'Last Caress' is a minute and a half long, [THE ROLLING STONES'] 'Jumpin' Jack Flash' is part of who you are. You just haven't released it yet.'

"I went back to San Francisco and there was a riff on Kirk's [Hammett, guitar] on tape [hums the 'Enter Sandman' lick]. The whole thing is just that riff. 'Enter Sandman' was the blueprint. The rest of the record appeared over two months."

METALLICA will play the complete "black album" at its own Orion Music + More festival, scheduled for June 23-24 in Atlantic City, New Jersey. METALLICA is headlining both days and will perform its entire 1984 album "Ride The Lightning" for the first time ever on the other day of the festival.

"Metallica" in 2009 surpassed SHANIA TWAIN's 1997 record, "Come On Over", as the best-selling CD of the SoundScan era. To date, the black album has sold 15,776,000 copies in the United States.

Although METALLICA had scored their first radio and video airplay with their previous effort, 1988's "...And Justice For All", the black album was the band's biggest commercial breakthrough, producing five singles and making them into one of the most popular rock bands in the world.

Original BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi, singer Ozzy Osbourne and bassist Geezer Butler performed live together for the first time in seven years on May 19, playing an intimate show at the 3,800-person O2 Academy in SABBATH's hometown of Birmingham, England. The show, which served as a warm-up for the group's headlining appearance next month at the Download festival, was laced with emotion and drama: it was the first live appearance for Iommi since being diagnosed with cancer, and it was the first with stand-in drummer Tommy Clufetos, making the split official between founding drummer Bill Ward and the rest of SABBATH.

According to The Pulse Of Radio, Iommi was visibly moved when the audience began chanting his name after opening number "Into The Void", and continued chanting it intermittently throughout the show.

Multi-camera fan-filmed video footage of the entire performance can be seen below.

BLACK SABBATH's setlist for the show was as follows:

01. Into The Void
02. Under The Sun
03. Snowblind
04. War Pigs
05. Wheels Of Confusion
06. Electric Funeral
07. Black Sabbath
08. The Wizard
09. Behind The Wall Of Sleep
10. N.I.B.
11. Fairies Wear Boots
12. Tomorrow's Dream
13. Sweet Leaf
14. Symptom Of The Universe (intro only)
15. Drum Solo
16. Iron Man
17. Dirty Women
18. Children Of The Grave

Encore:

19. Sabbath Bloody Sabbath (intro only)
20. Paranoid

Reviews of Saturday night's concert:

* Kerrang!
* Rolling Stone
* The Midlands Rocks
* Counteract Magazine
* ThrashHits.com
* Classic Rock
* Terrorizer
* Metal Hammer
* Noise11
* Birmingham Mail

Ward, meanwhile, announced again that he was declining to join his former bandmates for its scheduled 2012 dates, as well as the recording of a new album, due to a contractual dispute.

He also allegedly had his lawyers direct SABBATH to remove him from photos of the band posted at the official BLACK SABBATH web site "so as to not give the public the wrong impression about his involvement in the current BLACK SABBATH lineup," according to a statement issued by the band's publicist.

Geezer Butler issued a lengthy retort at his own web site, writing that Ward "hadn't told any one of us he was having contractual problems, and frankly those things are worked out between our representatives, and never between the four of us let alone in public."

Butler added that the band did not expect to make a lot of money from its Download appearance and planned to donate the proceeds from the Birmingham gig, saying, "Apparently, this wasn't acceptable to Bill's representatives, they wanted an amount that was so unrealistic that it seemed to have been a joke."

Until now, Iommi told The Pulse Of Radio a while back that the members of SABBATH stayed friendly even when there were legal or other issues going on. "We've always been talking. We've always been in touch with each other," he said. "There might be a lawsuit in the thing between us, but we still talk to each other like nothing's happened, you know."

In addition to Download, the members of SABBATH will play at Lollapalooza this August in Chicago, their only scheduled U.S. gig. The rest of the scheduled SABBATH tour dates will be played by Ozzy and billed as "Ozzy & Friends."

Ozzy, Iommi and Butler are working on their first new album together in 33 years. Clufetos is a member of Ozzy's solo touring band.

The original lineup of BLACK SABBATH — who late last year confirmed the recording of their first new album in more than 33 years and a worldwide headlining tour — had to put some plans on hold due to guitarist Tony Iommi's battle with lymphoma. At this time, BLACK SABBATH will perform only one show of this summer's previously scheduled European tour. It will take place Sunday, June 10 at the U.K.'s Download festival.

So as not to let the promoters and fans down, SABBATH singer Ozzy Osbourne is now performing the majority of the previously scheduled BLACK SABBATH European dates (both festival performances and the headlining shows) billed as OZZY OSBOURNE & FRIENDS. These "first-ever" OZZY OSBOURNE & FRIENDS shows are featuring appearances by "special guest" musicians, including Geezer Butler (who is joining Ozzy for a special BLACK SABBATH set as a show of respect and support to their friend, Tony Iommi) and longtime former Ozzy bandmember Zakk Wylde. In addition, Ozzy is being accompanied by longtime collaborator and friend Slash at select shows, with other "special guests" set to join the tour at various stops along the way (full list of dates, appearances below).

The second OZZY OSBOURNE & FRIENDS concert took place earlier tonight (Friday, May 25) at the Stadium in Stockholm, Sweden.

The setlist for the show was as follows:

Ozzy Osbourne (vocals)
Gus G. (guitar)
Rob "Blasko" Nicholson (bass)
Tommy Clufetos (drums)

01. Bark At The Moon
02. Mr. Crowley
03. Suicide Solution
04. I Don't Know
05. Killer Of Giants
06. Shot In The Dark
07. Rat Salad

Blasko goes off stage, Geezer Butler comes on

08. Iron Man (BLACK SABBATH)
09. War Pigs (BLACK SABBATH)

Gus G. goes off stage, Zakk Wylde comes on

10. Into The Void (BLACK SABBATH)
11. N.I.B. (BLACK SABBATH)
12. Fairies Wear Boots (BLACK SABBATH)

Geezer Butler goes off stage, Blasko comes back on

13. I Don't Wanna Change The World
14. Crazy Train

Encore:

15. Mama I'm Coming Home

Geezer Butler and Gus G. come back on stage

16. Paranoid (BLACK SABBATH)

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

In a recent interview with The Nervous Breakdown, Zakk Wylde stated about the setlist for the upcoming OZZY OSBOURNE & FRIENDS shows, "[Current Ozzy bandmembers] Gus G., Blasko and Tommy [Clufetos] are coming out and doing a bunch of tunes, then I come out with Blasko and Tommy and we end up doing a bunch of stuff from the era when I was with The Boss, from 'No Rest For The Wicked' all the way through everything I've ever done with him. Then Geezer [Butler, BLACK SABBATH bassist] comes out and we do a bunch of SABBATH stuff and at the end, Slash and everybody — Geezer, Slash, Gus — and we all play 'Paranoid'."

Professionally filmed video footage of SEPULTURA's entire performance at this year's edition of the Rock In Rio Lisbon festival — shot earlier today (Friday, May 25) in Lisbon, Portugal — can be seen below. The band was joined on stage by Les Tambours Du Bronx, featuring sixteen drummers from France.

Founded in 1987, Les Tambours Du Bronx beat 225-liter barrels with beech wood bats or even axe handles. In more than 1000 concerts they've smashed about 16,000 barrels and more than 110,000 broken "drum sticks!"

SEPULTURA played its first show with new drummer Eloy Casagrande (GLÓRIA, ANDRÉ MATOS) on November 25, 2011 in Lichtenfels, Germany.

Casagrande joined SEPULTURA as the replacement for Jean Dolabella, who left the band because he could no longer handle being away from home for long periods of time.

Eloy is a 21-year-old drum prodigy from São Paulo, Brazil who won the Modern Drummer "Undiscovered Drummer" contest as a teenager in 2006.

Dolabella left SEPULTURA after a five-year run of relentless touring and two studio albums. He joined SEPULTURA in 2006 following the departure of the band's original drummer, Igor Cavalera.

SEPULTURA is touring in support of its 12th studio album, and Nuclear Blast Records debut, "Kairos", which hit stores in July 2011.

Legendary guitarist Slash (VELVET REVOLVER, GUNS N' ROSES) and the singer of his solo band, Myles Kennedy (also of ALTER BRIDGE), took part in an acoustic performance on the studios of SiriusXM satellite radio earlier this week in front of 20 lucky listeners. Video footage of their appearance can be seen below.

The full interview and performance can be heard on SiriusXM Octane on the following dates:

May 26 at 9 a.m. ET
May 27 at 6 p.m. ET
May 28 at 9 p.m. ET

Slash's second solo album, "Apocalyptic Love", is likely to sell between 30,000 and 35,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to industry web site Hits Daily Double. The estimate was based on one-day sales reports compiled after the record arrived in stores on May 22 via Slash's own label Dik Hayd International distributed through EMI.

Slash's self-titled debut album scored the highest new entry on The Billboard 200 chart in April 2010, with first-week U.S. sales of around 60,000 copies.

American melodic metallers KAMELOT have inked a new deal with Steamhammer/SPV. The agreement covers the entire world except Japan, where KAMELOT will remain with King Records.

KAMELOT is currently recording the drums for its new album at Morrisound Studios in Tampa, Florida with renowned engineer Jim Morris before travelling to Wolfsburg, Germany's Gate studios to complete the CD under the direction of producer Sascha Paeth (EDGUY, AVANTASIA, RHAPSODY).

The title of KAMELOT's new album will be revealed at the end of June, along with the name of the band's new vocalist. However, according to guitarist Thomas Youngblood, one thing is certain: "Our fans can really look forward to our new record, because it represents KAMELOT in every way!"

Youngblood on the style and content of the concept album: "The new songs sound more symphonic and melodic than our last two studio recordings. The material brings to mind albums such as 'Karma' (2001) and 'The Black Halo' (2005). In addition, this will be the best production that KAMELOT have ever delivered. Because while other acts tend to opt for low-budget productions due to the difficult market situation, we have gone the opposite way: the new album will be a real statement, in terms of our compositions as well as in terms of our sound."

"Our new album marks another step and a new chapter for KAMELOT and our amazing fans!

"We are very pleased to be working again with the entire SPV team on this very exciting release."

"We are more than proud to welcome back one of the best metal bands around here at SPV," says SPV/Steamhammer A&R representative Olly Hahn. "From 2005 to 2009 we had already the pleasure to work very successfully with Thomas Youngblood and Co., which we will continue and increase with the new masterpiece coming in September 2012."

Andreas Rennmann of Brinkmann & Partner adds: "I'm absolutely proud to welcome KAMELOT back at SPV. We all believe in the fantastic history of the band and are absolutely sure that this upcoming release will be one of the most successful albums!"

KAMELOT's new album will be released on September 25 (one day earlier internationally).

KAMELOT will support Finnish/Swedish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH on a North American tour in September and October.

For more information, visit EnterTheVault.com.

KAMELOT's recently completed North American, South American and European tours featured guest singer Fabio Lione of RHAPSODY OF FIRE following the departure of KAMELOT's longtime frontman, Roy Khan.

Jon Oliva (SAVATAGE, JON OLIVA'S PAIN) will be the featured guest on "Play The Pawn", the new single from Syrian metallers THE HOURGLASS. In addition, THE HOURGLASS will open for JON OLIVA'S PAIN on June 26 in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

Commented THE HOURGLASS guitarist Rawad Abdel Massih: "We are extremely honored to announce that the Mountain King, Jon Oliva, the mastermind and the voice of the legendary SAVATAGE, will appear as a very special guest in our new single, 'Play The Pawn', that will be released in nearly 3-4 weeks, And on the 26th of June, we will be opening the show for JON OLIVA'S PAIN in Dubai, celebrating the 25th anniversary of the release of metal masterpiece 'Hall Of The Mountain King'. This is a huge news for us and we can't thank enough Jon Oliva for accepting to work with us. This is the biggest step in our life."

Added THE HOURGLASS manager Sharbel Kanoun: "The band wanted to record a new song with guest vocal and the idea came with the show opening for JON OLIVA'S PAIN in Dubai. Christopher Kinder [JON OLIVA'S PAIN drummer] was very helpful and he is putting everything together. We are now in the process of recording the instrumental and the song will be ready soon. This is the first time in the Middle East and Syrian history that a legend such as Jon Oliva appears on a song for a Syrian band, so we are extremely proud of this project. We are very grateful to Jon and Chris to give us this opportunity."

Eclipse Records has announced the signing of SAINT DIABLO. The band, which blends together elements of metal, hardcore, and Latino influence so well that the end result far exceeds the sum of its individual parts, has just completed work on its self-titled debut album for a summer release.

SAINT DIABLO is currently working on a video for the album's first single, "Watch Me Kill", with director David Brodsky of MyGoodEye (IN THIS MOMENT, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, BLEEDING THROUGH).

In the beginning, SAINT DIABLO was compared to bands like ILL NINO and SOULFLY (mostly due to their Latino roots). However, since their recent string of support slots opening for bands such as SLAYER, DEVILDRIVER, MUSHROOMHEAD, FEAR FACTORY and GWAR… It's easy to see that there's much more to this central Virginia quartet than meets the eye.

Consisting of Tito Quinones (vocals), Justin Adams (guitar), Trent Priest (drums), and Justin "Lefty" Randal (bass); SAINT DIABLO is poised to spearhead the front lines of hardcore metal, thanks in part to the band's Latin heritage. Their use of unpredictable melodies and interesting time signatures add a whole new dimension to their legacy, making this their strongest album yet, and with the release of this album, SAINT DIABLO prove that they are much more than "just another heavy band".

SAINT DIABLO prides itself by performing on stage, and bringing a raw energetic live show to the fans every night! "It could be a venue with just the door guy and the bartender or an arena that's slam-packed with people… we will rock it the same" says Justin Adams (guitar). Touring is the band's lifeblood, and being known as "tour dogs" is what this band is all about… Sharing their life's work with a devoted fan base that stretches all over the country, they think of their fans as friends and family.

SAINT DIABLO is:

Tito Quinones - Vocals
Justin Adams - Guitar
Trent Priest - Drums
Justin "Lefty" Randal - Bass

Italian symphonic metallers SINHERESY have commenced the songwriting process for their full-length debut, tentatively due in early 2013. Davide Sportiello, the band's bassist and mastermind, says: "We are very satisfied of the new material we're working on. After the excellent results gained with the EP 'The Spiders And The Butterfly', we are paying attention to every detail. The new CD will includea collaboration of several guests, among them a polyphonic choir."

SINHERESY's "Temptation Flame" video can be seen below. Filmed by Marco Tessarolo and Mario Orman, the "gloomy" and "gothic" clip "puts an end to the lyric-based story, giving the protagonist the chance to take her revenge for being betrayed," according to SINHERESY singer Cecilia Petrini.

"Temptation Flame" comes off SINHERESY's debut EP, "The Spiders And The Butterfly", which came out last December via Revalve Records. The CD was recorded in June 2011 at Studio 73 in Ravenna., Italy with producer Riccardo Pasini, who has previously worked with EXTREMA and EPHEL DUATH, among other acts.

"The Spiders And The Butterfly" track listing:

01. Temptation Flame
02. The Spiders And The Butterfly
03. Merciless Game
04. Forever Us
05. When Darkness Falls

SINHERESY is:

Cecilia Petrini - Vocals
Stefano Sain - Vocals
Davide Sportiello - Bass
Lorenzo Pasutto - Guitar
Alex Vescovi - Drums
Daniele Girardelli - Keyboards

Audio samples of all 10 songs that will appear on "Dermal Harvest", the debut album from Swedish death metallers SKINEATER, can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. The CD will be released later this year via Pulverised Records.

SKINEATER last year announced the addition of drummer Matte Modin (DARK FUNERAL, RAISED FIST, DEFLESHED, SPORTLOV) to the group's ranks.

Formed in late 2008, SKINEATER features scene veterans Håkan Stuvemark (ex-WOMBBATH, ex-IN THY DREAMS), Stefan Westerberg (ex-CARNAL FORGE, ex-IN THY DREAMS) and Jörgen Ström (THE MARY MAJOR).
Regarding the band's deal with Pulverised, Stuvemark said, "All we've heard about [Pulverised] — and through our own experience during negotiating with the label — has been good! We are ready to cause some damage, so keep yer eyes and ears open!"

Added Pulverised Records A&R manager Calvin Chiang: "After we heard about SKINEATER, it was obviously a no-brainer that their brand of crushing death metal fitted the Pulverised roster perfectly. With their downright devastating and ruthless vibe combined with a slight tinge of melodic elements; we knew there was something remarkable about SKINEATER!"

SKINEATER is:

Jörgen Ström - Vocals
Håkan Stuvemark - Guitars
Stefan Westerberg - Bass
Matte Modin - Drums

For more information, go to this location.

"Prisoners", the long-awaited third studio album from Montreal, Quebec, Canada-based melodic death metallers THE AGONIST, will be released on June 4 in Europe and June 5 in North America via Century Media Records. The CD was produced by Christian Donaldson (CRYPTOPSY) and mixed by Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, DARK TRANQUILLITY, SUICIDE SILENCE) and it "picks right up where 2009's 'Lullabies For The Dormant Mind' left off, with soaring melodies over complex metal passages that fans of thinking-man's metal can appreciate," according to a press release.

In regards to the album artwork, THE AGONIST frontwoman Alissa White-Gluz states: "We wanted to really include a chaotic visual to reflect the chaotic sound of the band, but we also wanted to show that the lyrics on this album are a lot more introverted…The human face was left non-descript on purpose — it doesn't belong to any particular person, but we could call him the Lonely Solipsist."

"Prisoners" track listing:

01. You're Coming With Me
02. The Escape
03. Predator & Prayer
04. Anxious Darwinians
05. Panophobia
06. Ideomotor
07. Lonely Solipsist
08. Dead Ocean
09. The Mass Of The Earth
10. Everybody Wants You (Dead)
11. Revenge Of The Dadaists

THE AGONIST's new song "Predator & Prayer" can be streamed using the SoundCloud player below (courtesy of RevolverMag.com ).

In a recent interview with MetalConcerts.net, Alissa White-Gluz stated about the musical direction of the follow-up to 2009's "Lullabies For A Dormant Mind", "I wouldn't say it's heavier or more melodic. I think it sounds more mature. It has the same sort of schizophrenic side that 'Lullabies' has, but it also has some other I guess what you would call classic influences. Like, there's some PANTERA influence, there's some RADIOHEAD influence. I mean, there's a lot of influences that we didn't really have before."

For the first time ever, TESLA is going to give its fans the opportunity to take home the show they just heard, in the form of limited-edition, individually numbered CD sets available immediately after each show! The band has partnered with DiscLive Network, the global leader in producing instant content, and as of today, fans may pre-order the CDs online at DiscLiveNetwork.com, where they may opt to either pick up the CD at the show they are attending, or to have it conveniently shipped home to them. The CD sets are available to ALL TESLA fans, whether you are attending the shows or not!

This is the ultimate collectible — a high-quality audio recording of the show you just heard packaged in a heavyweight digipak — and a second disc containing extra TESLA bonus material! These are strictly limited edition in nature — only 500 per show will EVER be produced — so make sure and pre-order your copy now so you don't miss this amazing chance!

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

TESLA received the key to the city from Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson last December at the Sacramento Rock And Radio Museum.

Known as the originators of the "unplugged" craze of the '90s, California rockers TESLA launched the 20th-anniversary tour last year of their legendary "Five Man Acoustical Jam" in full acoustic fashion in support of "Twisted Wires And The Acoustic Sessions".

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

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

Italian metallers DEIMOS will release their new EP, "TerminUs", on June 6. The album features guest appearances by Chris Caffery (TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, SAVATAGE) contributing a killer guitar solo to "Gates Of Babylon"; Raffo Albanese (FROM THE DEPTH, 5TH ELEMENT, E.X.S.) providing lead vocals on "Stonetears"; Antonio Pecere (BETOKEN, RAPID, FIRE) leanding his voice to all the other tracks; Paola Gemma (LISA MEETS JACK, BEGGARS FARM) contributing lead vocals to "Locked Heart" in a dramatic duet with Antonio.

"TerminUs" track listing:

01. Wargreed
02. Gates Of Babylon
03. Vultures Lead Our Way
04. Locked Heart
05. Stonetears

"Stonetears" is available for streaming using the ReverbNation widget below.

DEIMOS is:

Federico Lanterna - Guitar, Vocals
Luca Gabrieli - Guitar
Santo Clemenzi - Bass, Vocals
Massimo Goletti - Drums

When BLACKMORE'S NIGHT rolled in to York, England, on September 30, 2011, the heat scorched the medieval streets and the sunlight bathed the old city walls. Inside the Grand Opera House, Ritchie Blackmore, Candice Night and their band of minstrels were generating their own heat as they took their devoted audience on a musical journey through the ages with songs from their two new albums, "Secret Voyage" and "Autumn Sky", such as "Locked Within The Crystal Ball", "Darkness" plus a new interpretation of "First Of May" — a rarely played ballad, originally done by the BEE GEES, and an additional smattering of songs from earlier albums, most notably the classic "Fires At Midnight".

The third BLACKMORE'S NIGHT DVD release, "A Knight In York", captures all the magic of this stunning BLACKMORE'S NIGHT show.

The Band:

* Candice Night: Lead vocals, Renaissance wood winds, pennywhistles and tambourine
* Ritchie Blackmore: Electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin, mandola, hurdy - gurdy
* Earl Grey of Chimay: Bass, rhythm guitar
* Bard David of Larchmont: Keyboards and vocals
* Squire Malcolm of Lumley: drums and percussion
* Gypsy Rose: Violin and harmony vocals
* Minstrel Albert: Various medieval woodwinds
* Autumn: Special Guest

Formats:

* DVD + CD Digipack (CD rack size) - UDR0200 DVD+CD
* DVD (Amaray) - UDR 0203DVD
* CD (Jewel Case) - UDR 0204CD
* Double Vinyl LP 12“ (Gatefold) - UDR 0205LP
* Blu-Ray - UDR 0206BR
* Digital (audio) - UDR 0207
* Digital (video) - UDR 0208
* D2C - UDR 0209BOX

"A Knight In York" track listing:

01. Locked Within The Crystal Ball
02. Gilded Cage
03. The Circle
04. Journeyman
05. World Of Stone
06. The Peasant‘s Promise
07. Toast To Tomorrow
08. Fires At Midnight
09. Barbara Allen
10. Darkness
11. Dance Of The Darkness
12. Dandelion Wine
13. All The Fun Of The Fayre
14. First Of May

BLACKMORE'S NIGHT's latest album, "Autumn Sky", came out in 2010.

In addition to being known for its unique sound combining traditional instruments, guitars and Candice's enchanting lyrics and vocals, BLACKMORE'S NIGHT is also known for its fabulous live shows, many of which have been performed at castles and other exceptional venues that add to the mystique and warmth of its performance.

Recorded during Candice's pregnancy, Candice and Ritchie dedicated the "Autumn Sky" album to their daughter Autumn Esmerelda Blackmore.

Ritchie, 67, and Candice, 41, were married on October 5, 2008 at a small gathering of friends and family at Castle on the Hudson in Tarrytown, New York.

Montreal's progressive death metallers AUGURY have released the following statement:

"It is with great pleasure that we announce the return of [bassist] Dominic 'Forest' Lapointe and [drummer] Étienne Gallo to AUGURY. The writing process has begun with all the original members, and the band is focused 100% on the new album.

"We wish to thank Antoine Baril, Christian Pacaud, and Sébastien Pittet, for their loyal services and for the incredible help they've been to the band, as well as live musicians Tommy McKinnon and Robin Stone.

"The time has come for AUGURY to birth a new interplanetary opus, faithful to the original spirit of the group, which made its reputation with its two first albums, 'Concealed' and 'Fragmentary Evidence'."

Formed in Montreal, Quebec at the end of 2001, AUGURY immediately made an impact in the Canadian death metal scene with its technical/classically inspired progressive death metal attack. The unit entered the studio with Yannick St-Amand (MARTYR, UNEXPECT) in 2004 to record their "Concealed" debut. The record was mixed by Jean-Francois Dagenais (KATAKLYSM, MISERY INDEX) and then set loose upon the anxious public. After the release of "Concealed", AUGURY signed with Nuclear Blast Records, who in 2009 unveiled the band's critically acclaimed 2009 album "Fragmentary Evidence", further cementing the band's name into the upper ranks of the progressive death scene.

AUGURY 2012 is:

Patrick Loisel - Guitar, Vocals
Mathieu Marcotte - Guitar
Dominic "Forest" Lapointe - Bass
Étienne Gallo - Drums

Photo credit: Anthony Dubois

German thrashers DUST BOLT will release their debut album, "Violent Demolition", at the end of July via Napalm Records.

Commented DUST BOLT vocalist and guitarist Lenny: "The record deal for our debut album is an important step in our career. We are more than happy to cooperate with such a well-respected and established label. It was hard work to find a suitable label for our debut, 'Violent Demolition', but now it’s gonna be unleashed! 'Violent Demolition' will bring you a serious whiplash! Come to our shows and get a dose of Toxic Thrash! Prepare for toxic attack!"

DUST BOLT's "Chaos Possession" EP was released in 2010.

According to the Swedish-language newspaper Dalarnas Tidningar (DT), former SABATON members Rikard Sundén (guitar), Daniel Mullback (drums), Daniel Mÿhr (keyboards) and Oskar Montelius (guitar) have formed a new band, CIVIL WAR, with singer Patrik Johansson (ASTRAL DOORS, LION'S SHARE) and bassist Stefan "Pizza" Eriksson (VOLTURYON). The group is currently writing songs for its debut album.

"It came pretty naturally," Mullback stated about CIVIL WAR's formation. "We always thought Patrik had a good voice and he accepted our offer when we asked him to join the band."

"I had no hesitation about getting involved," Patrik said. "ASTRAL DOORS certainly has a solid fan base, but we are a little more underground. I see this as an opportunity to reach a wider audience."

The four ex members of SABATON were never involved in the songwriting process with their former band since those duties were usually handled by vocalist Joakim Brodén. But in the new band, everyone is contributing ideas.

"This has been a reawakening of sorts," Mÿhr said. "I have never been in a situation where there has been so much creativity. We became a full band a week and a half ago and we already have 6-7 songs in the works."

CIVIL WAR will continue writing songs during the summer with the hopes of releasing an EP this fall. A full-length album is tentatively due early next year.

When asked how the new band will sound, Johansson said, "The one thing we all agree on is that we want to have good melodies. We can rock as hard as ever, but the melodies are important."

On the topic of whether CIVIL WAR will continue SABATON's tradition of focusing on war-related themes in its lyrics, Mÿhr said, "No, we won't. Now the lyrics can be about anything. [CIVIL WAR was just] a good name that sounded good."

Although the details behind SABATON's split with Sundén, Mullback, Mÿhr and Montelius have not been fully revealed, the group's former members make it clear that they have not spoken with Brodén and SABATON bassist Pär Sundström since they went their separate ways.

"There have been rumors that we did not want to continue playing together anymore but that is simply not the case," said Mullback. There are also many people who believe that we are not playing on the new SABATON album, ['Carolus Rex'], that it's the new band that recorded the tracks. But that's not true either. It is us."

Photo credit: Lars Dafgård

The video for GODSMACK's cover of JOE WALSH's "Rocky Mountain Way" can be seen at RevolverMag.com. The song comes off GODSMACK's first-ever live album, "Live & Inspired", which sold around 16,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 19 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Released on May 15 via Universal Republic Records, "Live & Inspired" features fierce and furious live renditions of numerous hits from the Massachusetts rockers' five studio albums. Their incendiary and infectious shows have become legendary in modern rock, and they continue to impress both critics and audiences alike every time they hit the stage. The group sounds unchained on rousing performances of "Awake", "Keep Away", "Straight Out of Line", "Whatever", "Voodoo", and "I Stand Alone".

This is the first time that's been captured on CD, and bonus tracks of covers that have "inspired" GODSMACK is also going to be included along with it. The four tracks are quite close to the band's collective heart. The band started ripping through local Massachusetts haunts with their renditions of some of these songs, and these recordings bring everything full circle.

"Live & Inspired" track listing is as follows:

CD 1 (Live):

01. Straight Outta Line
02. Realign
03. Awake
04. Moon Baby
05. Changes
06. The Enemy
07. Keep Away
08. Speak
09. Voodoo
10. Batalla De Los Tambores
11. Whatever
12. Serenity
13. I Stand Alone

CD 2 (Inspired):

01. Rocky Mountain Way (JOE WALSH cover)
02. Come Together (THE BEATLES cover)
03. Time (PINK FLOYD cover)
04. Nothing Else Matters (METALLICA cover)

About the collection, frontman Sully Erna reveals, "'Live & Inspired' is our way of saying 'Thank you' to all of our fans for believing in us throughout the years, and helping us to become a great live band! Along with this ass-whooping set live from Detroit Rock City, we've also included four cover songs of our favorite hits in the past to show you that, we too, are simply just fans that appreciate nothing more than good old fashion ass-kicking rock 'n' roll! Enjoy!"

Erna told Loudwire in a recent interview, "We were going to do a compilation with this song from Vegas, this song is from Chicago, this one is from Dallas, but I don't know, the more we listened to the Detroit show, the more we kind of figured out that it was a really good show for us."

Erna also said that GODSMACK has nothing but love for the Motor City, explaining, "It's always a great audience, as any rock band will tell you. Playing there is a special kind of fanbase that they have there, they live up to their reputation. They're a great rock audience."

In addition, the quartet encouraged its legion of supporters to be a part of the release. The collection's packaging actually showcases a variety of fan photos. Fans may submit live snapshots of the group on stage, pictures of themselves rocking out at GODSMACK concerts, or photos of their tattoos of the group's iconic logo on the band's official Facebook. Now, the winning photos adorn the album's booklet and packaging.

The first single from "Live & Inspired", GODSMACK's cover of JOE WALSH's "Rocky Mountain Way", can be streamed using the audio player below.

GODSMACK's fifth studio album, "The Oracle", opened with 117,000 copies back in May 2010 to land at No. 1.

South Carolina-based extreme technical death metallers NILE will release their seventh full-length album, "At The Gate Of Sethu", in Europe on June 29 and in the U.S. on July 3 via Nuclear Blast Records. The follow-up to 2009's "Those Whom The Gods Detest" was once again produced and mixed by Neil Kernon, who has previously worked with NEVERMORE, CANNIBAL CORPSE, QUEENSRŸCHE and DEICIDE, among many others. The CD artwork was handled by a true genius of darkened visuals, Seth Siro Anton (SOILWORK, PARADISE LOST, SEPTICFLESH).

Commented NILE mastermind Karl Sanders: "Seth Siro Anton has designed the cover. I have been a fan of SEPTICFLESH a long time, and as Seth expressed interest, I knew that he would deliver a great job. I would say his work is easily the best we've ever had. He has captured the darker side of the sound of NILE and reflected the music and ideas, the heart and soul of NILE are forming. Seth is a very talented man and understands exactly who we are."

Added Seth Siro Anton: "It is no secret that I admire the powerful stylistic lines of the magical symbols that still transmit the aura of ancient Egypt, preserving in time the ancient mysteries. Also, I am fascinated from the final frozen moment of the flesh captured in an eternal sleeping stasis, at the completion of the mummification process. So, with a great pleasure I accepted the challenge, to visualize the new masterpiece of NILE, 'At The Gate Of Sethu'."

In a recent interview with CobraMetal.net, Sanders stated about "At The Gate Of Sethu", "Well, we started [working on it] in May of last year (2011) after we finished our European tour. We worked on that fucking record for 10 months straight, to the exclusion of all else. (Laughs) Long hours, every day."

Regarding the new album's concept, Karl said, "It's in similar territory to other NILE records in that a lot of it stems from Ancient Egyptology and sort of has underlying modern themes tied in. We haven't abandoned our identity and I don't believe you should fuck over your fans. If your fans like what you do, and you change too much of what you do, fans don't like it. What matters to me is when I'm out on tour and I meet the actual fans and they share their thoughts…those are the people that I listen to. There's a lot of new ideas within the realm of what we do that we tried to incorporate. We studied real hard on the guitar and have lots of new riffs and musical ideas. There are a lot of surprises on the record."

When asked if fans can expect any guest appearances on the new NILE CD, Karl said, "Jon Vesano is all over this record. (Our former singer and bass guitarist who we're still good friends with.) Jon did some guest vocals on "Those Whom The Gods Detest" and it made us realize all over again all the things we really liked about Jon's vocals. We wanted to incorporate some of his insanity. [laughs] He's wicked, man. He knows how to channel that inner possession. He finds a way to summon it. It's great stuff."

"At The Gate Of Sethu" track listing (North American/European digipack):

01. Enduring The Eternal Molestation Of Flame
02. The Fiends Who Come To Steal The Magick Of The Deceased
03. The Inevitable Degradation Of Flesh
04. When My Wrath Is Done
05. Slaves Of Xul
06. The Gods Who Light Up The Sky At The Gate Of Sethu
07. Natural Liberation Of Fear Through The Ritual Deception Of Death
08. Ethno-Musicological Cannibalisms
09. Tribunal Of The Dead
10. Supreme Humanism Of Megalomania
11. The Chaining Of The Iniquitous

Bonus:

12. Enduring The Eternal Molestation Of Flame (instrumental)
13. The Inevitable Degradation Of Flesh (instrumental)

"At The Gate Of Sethu" track listing (European jewel case):

01. Enduring The Eternal Molestation Of Flame
02. The Fiends Who Come To Steal The Magick Of The Deceased
03. The Inevitable Degradation Of Flesh
04. When My Wrath Is Done
05. Slaves Of Xul
06. The Gods Who Light Up The Sky At The Gate Of Sethu
07. Natural Liberation Of Fear Through The Ritual Deception Of Death
08. Ethno-Musicological Cannibalisms
09. Tribunal Of The Dead
10. Supreme Humanism Of Megalomania
11. The Chaining Of The Iniquitous

The song "The Fiends Who Come To Steal The Magick Of The Deceased" can be streamed below (courtesy of AOL's Noisecreep).

"We All Fall Down", the new video from Danish rockers D-A-D, can be seen below. The clip was filmed in one take before the band went on stage to the sold-out Falconer Salen in Copenhagen, Denmark in April.

"We All Fall Down" comes off D-A-D's 11th studio album, "DIC.NII.LAN.DAFT.ERD.ARK", which was released last November. The follow-up to 2008's "Monster Philosophy" was helmed by Nick Foss, who previously worked with D-A-D on such LPs as "No Fuel Left For The Pilgrims", "Sympatico", "Everything Glows" and "Soft Dogs". The album title is a play on D-A-D's original band name DISNEYLAND AFTER DARK, which had to be changed after a threat of a lawsuit from The Walt Disney Company.

"DIC.NII.LAN.DAFT.ERD.ARK" track listing:

01. I Can't Explain
02. I Want What She's Got
03. The Last Time In Neverland
04. New Age Moving In
05. The End
06. Wild Things In The Woods
07. Breaking Them Heart By Heart
08. Fast On Wheels
09. My Lips Are Sealed
10. The Place Of The Heart
11. I Won't Find Out
12. We All Fall Down

Tonight's (Friday, May 25) TRIVIUM concert at Exit/In in Nashville, Tennessee will be streamed live at Livestream.com. This event is scheduled to start at 9 p.m. EDT.

To get notified via email or SMS when this event starts, simply log in or sign up and follow the account.

TRIVIUM's latest album, "In Waves", sold 22,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 13 on The Billboard 200 chart — the highest U.S. chart entry of the band's career. The group's previous CD, "Shogun", opened with just under 24,000 units back in October 2008 to debut at No. 23. The effort followed up "The Crusade", which registered a first-week tally of 31,000 copies in October 2006 to enter the chart at No. 25.

"In Waves" was recorded primarily at Paint It Black Studios in Orlando, Florida (with only the drums having been tracked at Audiohammer Studios in Sanford, Florida) with the production/mixing team of Colin Richardson (MACHINE HEAD, BULLET FOR MY VALENTINE, SLIPKNOT, FEAR FACTORY) and Martin "Ginge" Ford, along with engineer Carl Bown. A two-disc special edition is also available. It features five bonus tracks, plus a DVD with a 40-minute, behind-the-scenes documentary, as well as an exclusive concert filmed in a warehouse located in Orlando, Florida, which is the band's stomping grounds. This concert features the first performances of tracks from "In Waves", along with TRIVIUM classics.

THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA — the new classic-rock band featuring Björn Strid (SOILWORK) and Sharlee D' Angelo (ARCH ENEMY, SPIRITUAL BEGGARS) — will release its debut album, "Internal Affairs", on June 18 via Coroner Records.

"Internal Affairs" track listing:

01. Siberian Queen
02. California Morning
03. Glowing City Madness
04. West Ruth Ave
05. Transatlantic Blues
06. Miami 5:02
07. Internal Affairs
08. 1998
09. Stella Ain't No Dove
10. Montreal Midnight Supply
11. Green Hills Of Glumslöv
12. American High (digipak bonus track)

The song "Montreal Midnight Supply" is available for streaming at the Coroner Records Facebook page.

Check out audio samples of the entire CD at Amazon.com.

THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA started like so many others as an innocent yet serious drunken idea when Strid and David Andersson (MEAN STREAK, session musician for SOILWORK) were on the road together somewhere in North America in 2007. Björn and David were bonding over what they considered "classic" or not, from rock and roll conspiracies to being arrested in a lobby with nothing but leather pants on. All those scenarios, fictional or real, needed a soundtrack. They also came to think that whether you're on a metal tour or not, a lot of classic rock songs say it all and can really lend you a helping hand and make you forget about everything, especially when in motion or travelling. The classic escape. The never-ending road trip. The transatlantic night flight. It may sound simple and naive, but what it all comes down to is that we all need that soundtrack to feel extra special, whether you have been arrested in a lobby or not.

It didn't take long before bass player D' Angelo joined forces as well as keyboard player Richard Larsson (VON BENZO) and drummer Jonas Källsbäck (MEAN STREAK). The goal was to reclaim the '70s/early '80s sense for classic melody, the forgotten recipe to a timeless song, preferably a song mentioning a city, street name or an exhilarating alcoholic beverage. Anything that will have you spitting out the word "classic." From "Tarot Woman" to "Badlands", from "Rhiannon" to "Running on Empty", from "Blind Man" to "Night Moves", from "Deuce" to "Separate Ways", from "Elected" to "Set me Free". The list goes on. It's all about reclaiming the "classic."