STONE TEMPLE PILOTS singer Scott Weiland has revealed to ABC News Radio that he has reunited with VELVET REVOLVER and is back making new music with the band. "We've all grown a lot," explains Weiland. "We're able to put egos and differences and old… conflicts aside and so that's really cool."

He added, "They gave me a couple of [new] songs and myself and [guitarist] Dave [Kushner] and [bassist] Duff [McKagan] are gonna be getting together for a songwriting session next week."

According to Weiland, VELVET REVOLVER will hit the road for a short tour before the end of the year. "[VELVET REVOLVER guitarist] Slash's solo album gets released [on May 22] and so he's gonna do some touring on that and then we're gonna go and do some [VELVET REVOLVER] shows in the later part of summer into early fall," the singer said.

During an appearance on this morning's (Monday, May 14) edition of the "Half-Assed Morning Show" on the Minneapolis, Minnesota radio station 93X, Slash shot down Weiland's reunion comments, explaining, "I have absolutely no intention of going back to that. . . I'm on tour all year. I'll call Duff, but I seriously doubt [there is any truth to Weiland's comments]. We have no intention of going backwards."

Audio of Slash shooting down Weiland's comments:

Southern California's IN THIS MOMENT will release its fouth album, "Blood", on August 14 via longtime label Century Media Records. The CD was once again produced by Kevin Churko, who has previously worked with OZZY OSBOURNE and FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, among others.

IN THIS MOMENT began work on the new album just a few months following the departures of drummer Jeff Fabb and guitarist Blake Bunzel, who left the band late last year in order to join the backing group of "American Idol" finalist James Durbin. Fabb and Bunzel have since been replaced by Tom Hane (THYATEIRA) and Randy Weitzel (FLATLINE, 3/13, AMERICAN MASSACRE), respectively.

Commented IN THIS MOMENT frontwoman Maria Brink: "There are no words to describe how excited we are... We are on fire with this record. It's by far the most powerful material we have ever written.

"IN THIS MOMENT has gone through some big changes. I admit sometimes change is scary, especially when facing the unknown, but in this case everything has been perfectly meant to be. It's a brave, dark, hard-hitting album that will make you feel dirty inside, but still wanting more."

Added guitarist Chris Howorth: "Over the last [few] months, we have undergone some interesting changes within the band. As a result, Maria and I were brought closer together united in our mutual determination to top everything we have previously done with IN THIS MOMENT. It's our fourth album and we definitely have something to prove this time. During the writing process, Maria, Kevin and I are pushing ourselves to make sure every song is something unique and special. I honestly feel this is the most focused and powerful music we have ever created and I am beyond psyched to get it out there for people to hear."

In a recent interview with Australia's Loud magazine, Maria stated about IN THIS MOMENT's new material, "We brought some stuff to the table that we've never done before and it really sounds like something special, something new. I can't explain it; I mean, if you know our old music, when you hear the new stuff you're going to go, 'Holy shit, okay, I totally get it.' But I don't want to give away anything either, it's just unique; it's something new we've brought to the table. We found something special within us; we found this certain thing, so I'm excited for it."

Regarding IN THIS MOMENT's split with Fabb and Bunzel, Brink said, "You know how sometimes, you don't realize sometimes something happening (that's) traumatic, that it can be the most beautiful thing that could have happened to you? It's like one of those situations. It got really stripped back down to me and Chris [Howorth, guitar], and me and Chris started this band together, just me and him, and then it was like everybody came to the table, everybody brings their own influence. I believe it was all meant to be, all of those albums with them. I love them, I wish them the best. But it was almost like this new, with just me and Chris, this new fire, this new strength within me that I just… magical things started happening between what we started creating. And it's just so meant to be; it's meant to be that they moved on and some other things in my life, it's so cool 'cause it's just like this brand new everything and it feels really awesome. And you're going to be able to hear it."

Fan-filmed video footage of IN THIS MOMENT performing the title track of the band's upcoming album, "Blood", on March 2 at the Soundwave Festival in Melbourne, Australia can be seen below.

"Blood" (song) performance:

Stockholm, Sweden-based label Threeman Recordings, which is owned and run by members of ENTOMBED, recently launched a new collaboration with Ninetone Records. The first release under this arrangement will be a single for the re-recorded version of the song "Amok" from ENTOMBED's 2007 album, "Serpent Saints - The Ten Amendments", produced by Patrik Frisk (CORRODED). A May 23 release is expected.

The cover artwork for the "Amok" single can be seen below.

"Serpent Saints - The Ten Amendments" was released in the U.S. on July 31, 2007 via Candlelight/Threeman Recordings. The 10-song effort marked the group's first release with drummer Olle Dahlstedt (ALPHA SAFARI, ex-MISERY LOVES CO.), who replaced Peter Stjärnvind in 2006. Mastering duties were handled by Soren Elofsson at Cosmos Mastering in Stockholm, Sweden.

"Serpent Saints - The Ten Amendments" entered the Swedish national chart at position No. 3. This was the highest chart position in the band's career.

The current lineup of ENTOMBED features Victor Brandt (TOTALT JÄVLA MÖRKER, AEON, SATYRICON) and second guitarist Nico Elgstrand (who previously played bass for the group).

In a May 2011 interview with the Stormbringer.at webzine, ENTOMBED guitarist Alex Hellid stated about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the long-awaited follow-up to "Serpent Saints", "We're just taking our time getting the pieces together properly this time. We just wanna make sure that it's a really good album. Now we have a complete lineup again also, and a lot of fresh, new blood as well. So it's gonna be fun to create something new now. . . We wanna get the group together and get a strong foundation to create something good; that's the goal here. . . We'll just concentrate on [creating] something great."

He added, "I [try not] to focus on too much at the same time. [My attitude] is 'Let's just make one great song to start with,' and then we'll take it from there. . . We have a pretty broad palette of things we can do, and we'll try and find a place for anything. 'Cause we enjoy everything from the fastest death/black metal stuff to whatever, so the songs that we come up with, we'll just have to find a space for them — some stuff might be [releases as] an album, some stuff might be a single…"

He continued, "I think it's kind of boring, in a way, to just think in terms of a full-length] 'album,' especially when nobody seems to really create classic albums anymore, and a lot of people don't even buy them anymore. If wanna record our favorite cover songs, there should be a place for that as well.

"It's been four years [since the last album came out] and I feel that we have so much creativity in the band and so many things that we can all put under this roof of things that we like collectively. And what I wanna do is for us to find a way to channel all our creativity and also make it the best and the greatest it can be."

According to The Pulse Of Radio, LINKIN PARK has posted a new behind-the-scenes clip online showing how the band achieved the fiery special effects seen in its current lyric video for "Burn It Down", the first single from its upcoming album "Living Things". Each of the group's members went through a full 360-degree body scan process back in late February at a studio in Los Angeles, with cameras capturing every inch of their bodies. Singer Mike Shinoda said about the final images, "That's so crazy. I didn't expect them to look so much like us."

Although the lyric video features just singer Chester Bennington looking "volcanic," we'll probably see more of the body scan effects in the full official video for "Burn It Down".

"Living Things" is due out on June 26 and follows up LINKIN PARK's 2010 release, "A Thousand Suns".

Mike Shinoda told The Pulse Of Radio that the new disc mixes the electronic sounds of that last effort with the more rock-oriented style of the band's earlier records like "Hybrid Theory". "Coming into this record, what we were excited about is using all of the tools in the toolbox to just of kind of like not ignore the fact that we're capable of making all these different sounds," he said. "And it made us kind of get back to, not literally 'Hybrid Theory' the album, but the hybrid theory as a philosophy, of what our band started off as — just taking all the different sounds and the things that we like and fusing them together into one thing."

LINKIN PARK will join INCUBUS on the Honda Civic Tour this summer, launching on August 11 in Bristow, Virginia.

The band is also performing an exclusive benefit show this Friday (May 18) for fan club members at Los Angeles' House of Blues. Proceeds from the show will aid Music For Relief's "Power The World" initiative.

Noisecreep got an exclusive first listen of "Living Things", calling it "a take-no-prisoners, 37-minute blast and blitz of everything that has come to define this powerful band . . . a never-ending assault of thick grooves, sinewy guitars, ethereal soundscapes, and looping rhythms." The site added, "Powerful, hypnotic and thoroughly true to form, this is a brilliant, definitive collection that represents an important band at its peak yet again."

Guitarist John Petrucci of progressive metal giants DREAM THEATER has contributed a guest guitar solo to the forthcoming sophomore full-length album from the Maryland-based experimental, progressive metallers PERIPHERY. According to an advertisement in the latest issue of Revolver magazine (see below), the CD is scheduled for a July 3 release via Sumerian Records.

PERIPHERY supported DREAM THEATER for two U.S. shows last October and a full-length European tour in January and February.

In a September 2011 interview with Metal Assault, PERIPHERY guitarist Misha Mansoor stated about Petrucci, "John Petrucci is the reason why I have a seven-string. John Petrucci is who I wanted to be when I started taking guitar seriously. I learned all the songs off [1999's] 'Metropolis Pt. 2: Scenes From A Memory' and played them horribly. But it really challenged me and showed me… I wanted to be him… I wanted to be John Petrucci so badly. I didn't even wanna be like him; I just wanted to be him. And I figured if I learned every song and solo, I'd get in his head and figure out how he wrote the amazing parts that he did and I'd understand how to be a better musician. I kind of got over that eventually when I realized I just didn't have the technical prowess to pull that off. But it definitely made a very big mark on me in many ways — in his approach to lead playing and arrangements and songwriting, in riff writing… everything. He's just such a balanced player and such a huge influence to me."

Bassist Tom Murphy last year announced his departure from PERIPHERY "to pursue something new." Adam "Nolly" Getgood of RED SEAS FIRE has been filling in on bass while Mark Holcomb took up his position as the full-time guitarist on the band's most recent tour.

MEGADETH singer/guitarist Dave Mustaine has apologized to METALLICA's James Hetfield for publicly discussing the fact that Dave wanted to assemble a "supergroup" combining Mustaine and MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson with Hetfield and METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich.

Hetfield laughed off talk of a possible collaboration between members of his band and members of MEGADETH in a new interview, calling it "crazy" talk on the part of Mustaine. An original member of METALLICA before being kicked out in early 1983, Mustaine has jammed with his ex-bandmates on several occasions over the past couple of years during "Big Four" shows and at METALLICA's 30th anniversary concerts last December.

Hetfield told So What!, METALLICA's fan club magazine, "I see [Mustaine] healthier now. I see him as less of a bitter guy. But I do see a lot of stuff in the press with him talking about jamming with us and making an album. All this other crazy stuff. I read it and say to myself, 'Hold on. This is the Dave that we kind of wanted to forget about. You know, the big-mouth that wants to just go-go-go."

Hetfield added, "But there is an authenticity about him when he speaks. He doesn't think too much before he does. He just goes off the cuff. Plus, when he says stuff like that, it's well-intended."

In an interview with Artisan News conducted on Friday, May 11 (see video below), Mustaine was asked about Hetfield's comments. "I already sent [James] a text message and said I apologized to him for saying that and that I won't ever mention it again," Mustaine said. "I like James and I thought what he said was flattering, and then it kind of went the opposite way, and then it kind of came back again. And you know, that's OK. I guess my whole thing was I just wanted them to know that I loved them and that I missed them and I enjoyed playing with them. If that's not mutual, then I understand. I still respect him, and I still care about the guy. If he doesn't wanna play [with me] anymore, that's cool. If he doesn't like the idea of what I said, that's OK, too. It wasn't like I said it was gonna happen, it was something that I kind of wished would happen. But you know, it's OK now, since it doesn't seem like it's gonna happen. And you know what?! It's off my bucket list."

He added, "The thing is that I probably shouldn't have said stuff like that, 'cause, I guess, to some people, they may think that I'm trying to use that as a way to get publicity, so I can see where there would be some feelings about it, and that wasn't my intention."

Mustaine feuded with the members of METALLICA for more than two decades before finally patching things up over the last couple of years.

METALLICA is currently on a European tour, during which it is playing its self-titled 1991 fifth album, also known as the "black album," every night in its entirety — but in reverse order.

METALLICA will play both the complete "black album" and, for the first time, its entire 1984 effort, "Ride The Lightning", at its own Orion Music + More festival, scheduled for June 23 and June 24 in Atlantic City, New Jersey.

Today (Sunday, May 13) is Mother's Day, and Roadrunner Records thought it would be nice to let some of the label's artists represent for their moms, who supported their kids' musical ambitions early on. Roadrunner asked two simple questions: "Does your mom like/support your band?" and "What's your mom's favorite song by your band?" Here are the answers they got.

Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu (KORN): "Happy Mother's Day, Mom! My mom is a very big supporter of KORN — so big that she wants T-shirts, stickers, key chains, hats, bracelets… Everything that we ever make. I brought her out on tour with us in Europe — she had the best time of her life, on stage every night. Her favorite song is 'Got The Life', because she seemed to be dancing on the side of the stage the most for that one."

John Petrucci (DREAM THEATER): "My mom loves DREAM THEATER and has been a fan since the beginning. Her new favorite song is 'This Is The Life' from our latest, 'A Dramatic Turn Of Events'."

Max Cavalera (SOULFLY, CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, SEPULTURA): "Yes, my mom was our first big supporter. She let everybody camp in our house. Our house was always full of metal kids. Her favorite song is 'Inner Self' [from SEPULTURA's 'Beneath The Remains']. I think she likes the lyrics, because it was about when I was living in Brazil and she remembers that period of our life."

Phil Demmel (MACHINE HEAD): "My mom, being a musician, was supportive of my interest in music from the word go. Her and my father cultivated my 'hobby,' doing everything from matching me dollar for dollar on my first guitar, videotaping my earliest gigs at the seediest Bay Area bars/clubs, to standing on stage with me in front of 60,000 people in her native Portugal when we opened for METALLICA. She loves our acoustic material. Our songs 'Descend The Shades Of Night' and 'Darkness Within' are favorites."

Joe and Mario Duplantier (GOJIRA): "Since we started playing music, my brother and I, our mother was supporting us, encouraging us. She always had faith in us, even if the first notes we played were out of tune. She also wrote the lyrics of our first song ever, 'Victim'. She understands our music very well, even though she is not a metalhead, she feels the music in her guts! I could never thank her enough for such amazing support. Her favorite song is 'Indians' from our second album 'The Link'."

Italian power metallers SECRET SPHERE have announced the addition of former VISION DIVINE and current THAUROROD vocalist Michele Luppi to the group's ranks.

Commented SECRET SPHERE: "As previously stated by band the vocalist replacement is a new beginning, especially after more than 10 years of a career. There are risks to make, mistakes and lost years of work, otherwise you can bring the band to the next level and find the missing link to give the right dimension to the project... And definitively for SECRET SPHERE we are talking about the second option, no doubt that they will bring their career to the next level with the addition of extraordinary singer Michele Luppi. He doesn't need any kind of introduction; with his music he widely demonstrates his talent and in a very short time Michele contributed to the new album writing lyrics and melodies, delivering one his best works to date."

Added guitarist Aldo Lonobile: "We're extremely happy to welcome Michele to our family. Everybody knows what Michele can do with his voice, so I prefer to spend few words saying that I found a great person to work with and a great new friend and for sure you will catch the great atmosphere we have inside the band listening to the new album!"

Stated Luppi: "I'm very proud to be the new singer of this fantastic group! All the guys in the band made me feel part of the family ever since we met for the first time. Our forthcoming album, 'Portrait Of A Dying Heart', is by far one of the best album I've done, though I'm still recording my vocals. I wanna thank them for their trust and belief, and I'm willing to share all my experience and passion in order to write and perform our music the best way we can... For us and, most of all, for you."

SECRET SPHERE's seventh album, "Portrait Of A Dying Heart", will be released later in the year through Warner Music (Japan) and Scarlet Records (rest of the world).

After 12 years, six albums, and tours around the world, Roberto "Ramon" Messina decided to leave SECRET SPHERE due to musical differences.

SECRET SPHERE's sixth album, "Archetype", was released in Europe in September 2010 via Scarlet Records. The CD was recorded at Authoma Studios and was produced by guitarist Aldo Lonobile and Federico Pennazzato. The album was mastered at Massive Arts Studio, while the cover artwork was handled by Gustavo Sazes.

Vocalist Marc-André Grenier has announced his departure from the Montreal, Quebec, Canada-based band VENGEFUL. His official statement on the matter reads as follows:

"After a seven years journey, I have decided to quit VENGEFUL. For a while and for many reasons, my motivation had decline. A change of career and the realization of many personal projects pushed me to take that decision.

"I am extremely proud of everything that we have accomplished with VENGEFUL and with our third release, I consider that my mission is completed.

"I’d like to thank Jean-Marie for his trust in me and for creating such a musical masterpiece. I also want to thank all the former and present members for putting their guts in the this project. Thanks to everyone that supported us throughout the years. Many unforgettable moments will remain in my memory forever.

"I wish the best of luck to the band and the new lineup in the future."

Added the remaining members of VENGEFUL: "Even though the remaining members of the band are disappointed by [Marc-André] departure, we remain in good terms. The vocalist position his now handled by Emmanuel Pronovost who's been playing the guitar with VENGEFUL since 2008. His guitarist slot is now occupied by Phil Tougas (FIRST FRAGMENT, CHTHE'ILIST). This new configuration of VENGEFUL is featured on our rendition of MORBID ANGEL's 'Blood On My Hands'.

Grenier's final release with VENGEFUL will be a collection of re-recorded ("more brutal and better-sounding") versions of all the songs from the band's debut album, "Karma" (released in 2007 via Disconcert Music) and the 2005 EP "Tragedy Lies Ahead". A 2013 release is expected.

VENGEFUL 2012 is:

Vocals: Emmanuel Pronovost
Guitar: Jean-Marie Leblanc
Guitar: Phil Tougas
Bass: Olivier Pinard
Drums: Philip Truesdell

VENGEFUL's third album, "Vengeful", came out last November. The CD was recorded with producer Chris Donaldson (CRYPTOPSY, THE LAST FELONY, NEURAXIS) and is comprised of two parts, Face A being "Towards Obliteration" and Face B bearing the name "Leaping Through The Void". The group states, "The first one features our high-speed/face-melting side and the latter leans on the slower/moodier approach heard on older songs such as 'Counterfeit Deity' or 'Transcending'."

The cover artwork for "Vengeful" was created by the band's longtime illustrator Martin Lacroix (HUMANOID, AUGURY, SPASME, CRYPTOPSY) and is described by the group as "a continuation of our previous album sleeves."

I AM I, the new band led by former DRAGONFORCE singer ZP Theart, will release its debut album, "Event Horizon", independently on May 26. Written and produced by Theart and Jacob Ziemba and mixed and mastered by Roland Grapow (HELLOWEEN, MASTERPLAN), the CD is described in a press release as "an absolutely blistering slice of heavy rock liberally infused with Theart's passion, energy and soaring vocals."

"Event Horizon" will be the first-ever heavy metal album to be released solely on USB. The stick will be packaged in a CD case and will include full artwork and all the usual content you would expect on a disc and more. The effort is available to pre-order from the official I AM I web site.

"Event Horizon" track listing:

01. This is My Life
02. Silent Genocide
03. Stay A While
04. Cross The Line
05. In The Air Tonight
06. King In Ruins
07. Kiss Of Judas
08. Dust 2 Dust
09. Wasted Wonders
10. Pave The Way

The "Silent Genocide" video can be seen below.

The group, whose lineup is completed by Paul Clark Jr. on drums, Jacob Ziemba on guitar and Neil Salmon on bass, will make its live debut on Sunday, May 27 at Birmingham, England's O2 Academy 2.

Commented ZP: "['Event Horizon' is] an album of message. It's about past meeting future and everything in between. It's about warnings for the current generation not to go down the same road in the future as we are doing now as that will surely secure our demise. To see and not to perceive, to hear and not to listen, is the downfall of all... It's a new age of enlightenment and there's a lot of messages in the songs that will hopefully kickstart a few people who are slow on the uptake.

"My whole career has been leading up to this point and I've never been more proud of anything in my life and this album will definitely live up to its name."

Added Paul: "'Event Horizon' totally encapsulates my style of playing. Every song is different and that made me me push myself that much further in the studio. This is a great album with something for everyone."

Stated Ziemba: "It's refreshing to know we're in a team where everyone holds the same cards. Let the music speak for itself."

Said Salmon: "This is an album to suit many tastes. I'm sure variation will be one of its ultimate strengths."

DRAGONFORCE parted ways with Theart in March 2010 "due to insurmountable differences of musical opinion," according to a statement released by the British extreme epic power metal band.

After entries from thousands of hopefuls across the globe, DRAGONFORCE in March 2011 welcomed then-23-year-old Marc Hudson to the group.

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)

Check out audio samples 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."

In a brand new interview with Maxim.com, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich was asked if there is anything in the 2004 documentary "Some Kind Of Monster" that he wishes had been left out. "I'm definitely guilty of poking sometimes," he replied. "I'm Danish, and Danish people sometimes like to stick their finger in somebody else's shoulder and push them a bit. I sometimes think that the metal community is just so fucking serious and up its own ass. Once in a while it needs a little poke, and I don't mind being that guy. Nobody else seems to do it. Sometimes I read, 'Oh, Lars Ulrich, what an asshole,' or, 'Lars Ulrich can't play drums.' I laugh at all of that. People sit there and say these awful things in the chat forums. I think it's really funny when someone sits there and says something that he's typed with his dick, or some 12-year-old who hasn't figured out how to jerk off yet is sitting there typing insults about somebody he's never met. The whole thing's hilarious."

As previously reported, Ulrich has shown up in a new trailer for the upcoming HBO film "Hemingway & Gellhorn". After appearing as himself in the 2004 documentary "Metallica: Some Kind Of Monster" and the 2010 comedy "Get Him To The Greek", Ulrich plays an actual character in this film, which is a fictionalized account of the relationship between author Ernest Hemingway and war correspondent Martha Gellhorn. The couple are played by Clive Owen and Nicole Kidman, while Ulrich portrays Dutch documentarian Joris Ivens.

The original HBO Films production is scheduled to premiere on May 28.

Ulrich told The Pulse Of Radio that while he enjoys appearing in movies, he's not interested in pursuing a full-fledged acting career. "The acting thing is not something that I'm chasing," he said. "The couple, three, four things I've done are all people that have come to me and asked me if I wanted to partake. I'm certainly interested in film, I'm passionate about film, but I can't tell you that it's something that I'm chasing, and I don't have any sort of aspirations about being some next-level actor or anything like that."

METALLICA is also getting into the movie business on its own, producing its own 3D film to be directed by Nimród Antal, best known for the movie "Predators".

The movie, which will be some sort of combination of concert footage and storyline, will begin shooting this August and is tentatively scheduled to arrive in theatres in the summer of 2013.

UNISONIC — the band featuring former HELLOWEEN vocalist Michael Kiske, guitarist Kai Hansen (GAMMA RAY, ex-HELLOWEEN) alongside guitarist Mandy Meyer (ASIA, GOTTHARD and KROKUS), bassist Dennis Ward and drummer Kosta Zafiriou (both of Germany's PINK CREAM 69) — kicked off its South American tour last night (Saturday, May 12) at Teatro Flores in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Intro: The Ride Of The Valkyries
02. Unisonic
03. Never Too Late
04. Renegade
05. King For A Day
06. I've Tried
07. My Sanctuary
08. March Of Time
09. Over The Rainbow
10. Star Rider (guitar solos)
12. Souls Alive
13. We Rise
14. Never Change Me

Encore

15. Future World
16. I Want Out

A report on the concert can be found on the Souls Alive web site of the official UNISONIC fan club.

Fan-filmed video footage is available below.

UNISONIC's self-titled debut studio album will be released in North America on May 22 via Eagle Rock imprint Armoury Records.

"Unisonic" was recorded at ICP Studios in Brussels, Belgium. The CD — which features 11 tracks, plus a bonus live version of HELLOWEEN classic "I Want Out", only available on the domestic edition, and cover art by Martin Häusler (MEAT LOAF, GOTTHARD, HELLOWEEN, MOTÖRHEAD) — marks the first full-length musical union between Kiske and Hansen in 23 years!

UNISONIC released its debut EP, "Ignition" on January 27 via earMUSIC/Edel. The effort includes the track "Unisonic" plus one demo song and a cover version of the HELLOWEEN classic "I Want Out", recorded live on October 15 at last year's edition of the Loud Park festival at Saitama Super Arena, a multi-purpose indoor arena located in Saitama City, Japan.

UNISONIC's music is very versatile and shows a broad approach to heavy rock without sacrificing the power and strong, catchy melodies that characterized the bandmembers' previous projects.

Kai Hansen's position in GAMMA RAY will be unaffected by his involvement with UNISONIC.

UNISONIC is:

Michael Kiske (vocals)
Mandy Meyer (guitar)
Kai Hansen (guitar)
Dennis Ward (bass)
Kosta Zafiriou (drums)

Fan-filmed video footage of Montreal, Quebec, Canada-based melodic death metallers THE AGONIST performing a brand new song, "Panophobia", can be seen below. The track comes off the band's long-awaited third studio album, "Prisoners", which will be released on June 4 in Europe and June 5 in North America via Century Media Records. Produced by Christian Donaldson (CRYPTOPSY) and mixed by Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, DARK TRANQUILLITY, SUICIDE SILENCE), the CD "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 "Ideomotor" can be streamed using the SoundCloud player below (courtesy of GuitarWorld.com ).

THE AGONIST is selling digital download cards throughout their tour with KITTIE. The brand new track "Ideomotor" and the previously limited-edition EP-only track "The Escape" is available for immediate download, with the remainder of the album available on release date.

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."

LOVE.MIGHT.KILL, the German/Italian melodic metal band led by drummer Michael Ehré (FIREWIND, ULI JON ROTH, METALIUM), has set "2 Big 2 Fail" as the title of its second album, due in October via Massacre Records (Europe) and Hydrant Music (Japan). The follow-up to last year's "Brace For Impact" was once again be produced by Ehré and mixed and mastered by Markus Teske at his Bazement Studios. Songtitles set to appear on the CD include "XTC", "Burn The Night", "The One", "Pleasure And Pain", "The Great Escape", "The Perfect Mistake", "We Fall", "Restless Heart" and the title track.

The first in a series of webisodes featuring behind-the-scenes footage from the studio can be seen below.

While "Brace For Impact" was composed by Michael and Jan, LOVE.MIGHT.KILL now has three more "fantastic" songwriters in its ranks, having been joined by Christian Stöver (guitar), Stefan Ellerhorst (guitar) and Sascha Onnen (keyboards).

LOVE.MIGHT.KILL is:

Jan Manenti - Vocals
Michael Ehré - Drums
Stefan Ellerhorst - Guitar
Christian Stöver - Guitar
Jogi Sweers - Bass
Sascha Onnen - Keyboards

For more information, visit www.lovemightkill.com.

Original RATT bassist Juan Croucier rejoined the Californian rockers for their show at the M3 Rock Festival on Saturday, May 12 at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. Professionally filmed video footage of the entire concert can be seen below.

In an October 2011 interview with Legendary Rock Interviews, Croucier stated about the possibility of him returning to RATT, "I never say never, because I can't predict the future but there have been some very nasty things said and done to me by my former bandmates in RATT. It has destroyed the trust, bond and respect we once had among each other."

He added, "I have had many offers to go back to RATT (ironically, sometimes while they were deriding me in the press at the same time) and the main reason I have not gone back to the band is because we had a very problematic situation in the first place, and nothing had (or has) changed — we don't get along, it's not fun and things that should be easy are hard. . . Some people like being in tumultuous relationships; I don't. I have been fortunate enough to be able to work in my recording studio, still play in bands and be a father that is present in my children's lives at the same time. It's not 'all about Juan.'"

Bassist Robbie Crane, who had played with RATT since 1997, quit the band last month to focus on LYNCH MOB. During an appearance on the March 22 edition of the "Headbangers At 11" show on the 93.3 KDKB radio station with host Mike Gaube, Crane stated about his decision to leave RATT, "I've been playing in LYNCH MOB since October of 2010. It's a thing that I've always loved doing, and I love playing with the band. . I'd been with RATT for 15 years and it was time to move on. I love being in LYNCH MOB and this is where my heart's at."

"Infestation", the first studio record in 11 years from RATT, sold around 14,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 30 on the Billboard 200 chart. The CD was released on April 20, 2010 via Loud & Proud.

"Infestation" was produced by Michael "Elvis" Baskette (CHEVELLE, ALTER BRIDGE) at his Virginia studio, marking the first time the band has recorded outside of Los Angeles. The album is full of attitude and of reflection, cycling through a range of emotions. There are party anthems that RATT are known for alongside more contemplative, thoughtful tunes.

Professionally filmed video footage of QUEENSRŸCHE's entire May 12 performance at the M3 Rock Festival at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Get Started
02. Damaged
03. I Don't Believe In Love
04. Hit The Black
05. I'm American
06. NM 156
07. Screaming In Digital
08. The Lady Wore Black
09. Walk In The Shadows
10. Silent Lucidity
11. Jet City Woman
12. Empire
13. Eyes Of A Stranger

QUEENSRŸCHE singer Geoff Tate was interviewed on a recent edition of the weekly two-hour classic hard rock and metal show "Noize In The Attic" (web site).

When asked if he would be receptive to the idea of former QUEENSRŸCHE guitarist Chris DeGarmo rejoining the band if Chris expressed his desire to return to the group, Tate said, "I think it would be great! For me at least, he and I were very close working together. It was a good team... I'd definitely work with Chris again. We made plans to work together over the years at various times and sometimes we've gotten together and sometimes we haven't. He's just… I hate speaking for the man — he should speak for himself — but I think he's just into a different part of his life [working as a professional charter pilot] and happy with that."

Regarding whether he would ever consider performing the 1986 QUEENSRŸCHE "Rage For Order" in its entirety on a full tour, Tate said, "Probably not. We played the 'Rage For Order' album [as a one-off] in New York [last year], and that was really, really… How should I put it? It wasn't very satisfying. I'll put it that way. It's not a record that has a lot of passion in it; it's kind of cold and clinical. It was a record of its time. It's not an album that has songs on it that resonate with me anymore as a person. So it's not something that I would work very hard to put together. [Same thing with 1990's] 'Empire'. Honestly, that's just not who I am. I'm more of an in-the-now person. I'm interested in what's happening with life at the moment. I'm not at that stage in life where I'm interested in looking back."

QUEENSRŸCHE's latest album, "Dedicated To Chaos", sold 8,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 70 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous CD, the epic concept album "American Soldier", opened with 21,000 units back in April 2009 to enter the chart at No. 25. This was roughly half the first-week tally registered by QUEENSRŸCHE's "Operation: Mindcrime II" album, which shifted 44,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release back in April 2006 to debut at No. 14 on The Billboard 200 chart.

QUEENSRŸCHE's 2003 effort, "Tribe", sold 20,000 copies in the first week while 1999's "Q2K", opened with sales of 28,000.

QUEENSRŸCHE's top-selling album by far is 1990's "Empire", which was certified triple-platinum in October 1994 for sales in excess of three million copies in the United States. The original "Operation: Mindcrime" release (1988) attained platinum status in August 1991, while 1994's "Promised Land" reached the same plateau in December 1994.

L.A. GUNS — featuring Phil Lewis, Steve Riley, Stacey Blades and Scotty Griffin — performed at the M3 Rock Festival on Saturday, May 12 at the Merriweather Post Pavilion in Columbia, Maryland. Professionally filmed video footage of the entire concert can be seen below.

L.A. GUNS' new album, "Hollywood Forever", is scheduled for release on June 5 via via Cleopatra Records. The CD was recorded with legendary producer, and old friend, Andy Johns, who has previously worked with LED ZEPPELIN, THE ROLLING STONES, CINDERELLA and VAN HALEN, and who collaborated with L.A. GUNS on their last three albums. A CD and vinyl release, as well as bonus tracks available only on iTunes, is planned. A nine-month world tour following the release is also in the works.

L.A. GUNS spent a few days in Los Angeles shooting three videos to support the record, and will make the track "You Better Not Love Me" available online soon. Videos for "Requiem (Hollywood Forever)" and "Aranga Nigre" were also filmed. Videographer Jack Foster was behind the lens for the shoot at the legendary Circus Disco in Hollywood. With an LED logo in the background, the band meshed theatrics with its expected rock energy on the big stage. Later, additional scenes were filmed in L.A.'s colorful Little Mexico and the landmark Hollywood Forever cemetery. Stacey Blades said, "It was a blast hammin' it up in a big venue and stage for the cameras." He added, "We are so excited about the new album coming out and videos to boot. 2012 is the year of L.A.GUNS!"

"Hollywood Forever" track listing:

01. Hollywood Forever
02. You Better Not Love Me
03. Sweet Mystery
04. Eel Pie
05. Burn
06. Requiem (Hollywood Forever)
07. I Won't Play
08. Vine St. Shimmy
09. Arana Negra (originally recorded by THE BICICLETAS)
10. Gonna Take You Down
11. Queenie
12. Underneath The Sun
13. Venus Bomb
14. Dirty Black Night
15. Rattlesnake

Phil Lewis' L.A. GUNS is not to be confused with the Tracii Guns-led version of the group, which is also continuing to record and perform under the L.A. GUNS moniker.

AC/DC guitarist Malcolm Young has confirmed to Classic Rock magazine that the band is working on the follow-up to 2008's "Black Ice". But he said fans will likely have to wait longer than expected, after singer Brian Johnson suggested there would be new material next year.

"You know what Brian's like. He just says things and then walks away," Malcolm said. "It'll be a little while — a year or two anyway.

He added, "I've been doing some jamming on some song ideas but I do that all the time, as do the rest of the band. We are still working. But we had a long rest between 'Stiff Upper Lip' and 'Black Ice', so I think we need a couple of years to recuperate and work on it a bit more."

During a January 2012 appearance on "The Cowhead Show", the American radio program hosted by Mike "Cowhead" Calta, Johnson revealed that health issues were affecting one of his bandmates, which may have put new album plans temporarily on hold. "One of the boys is a little sick and I can't say anything, but he's getting better," Brian said. "He's doing wonderful. Full recovery fully expected."

The singer added, "It's a wonderful thing when we get in a room. Whenever the boys get back together, I get all excited. The boys, after a while, pick the guitars up, Phil [Rudd] will make his way to the drums, Cliff [Williams] will pull his bass out and then all of a sudden this noise comes out and I sit there with just this big old grin on my face."

Aniruddh "Andrew" Bansal of Metal Assault recently conducted an interview with guitarist Dave Chandler of doom metal legends SAINT VITUS. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow below.

Metal Assault: Your new album ["Lillie: F-65"] is your first studio release after a 17-year gap. That's a really long time. First of all, it must be a great feeling to have this album ready for release now.

Chandler: Yeah, it's really cool. It has been a long time, but we are excited about it and we like the way it came out. We're real happy with it, so we hope the fans like it too. It seems to be a pretty cool record.

Metal Assault: You did some shows in the last couple of years leading up to the release of this album. So, that must have made it easier for you guys to get back into the groove and write this album.

Chandler: Yeah, because we actually wrote the song "Blessed Night" on the road, and when we started playing it, people started asking us if it was a song from a new album, which actually gave us the idea to try to put out a new album. It was purely because the fans were asking for it.

Metal Assault: Well, this album is 33 minutes long, and honestly, leaves me hungry for more. So do you think it could have been longer, or did you want it to be as long as it is?

Chandler: It actually worked itself out to that time, because it's sort of like a weird concept thing. I thought about may be trying to rush a song, but then I was like, no, because it's going to sound rushed and it's not going to sound the way the rest of the songs did, as they were all written at the same time and they all flowed together. So when I started checking time, I saw that it's actually the same length as all of our albums. I think there are only two releases we have, "C.O.D." and "Die Healing", that are longer. All the other ones are right around the same length of time. So for this new album I was like, "That's a regular VITUS album!"

Metal Assault: I was checking out another interview that you did a short while ago and you said, whether or not you make the next album will depend on how this one is received. It has been received really well so far. Will that inspire you to write more material now?

Chandler: Well, you know, once we get going out on the road and start doing the shows and stuff, it'll get our creative juices flowing, so to speak. We'll see. We want to take things one step at a time, and we don't want to jump the gun and say we're doing to this and do that, and then not do it for some reason. The record's still on a tentative release date over here in the U.S., which is going to be in a couple of weeks. So we want to see how the people take it and see how they react to the new songs when we play them live, and we'll see what happens. If everybody's into it, we'll probably do something because we'll be thinking of it.

Read the entire interview from Metal Assault.

Swiss hard rockers GOTTHARD made their official live debut with new singer Nic Maeder last night (Saturday, May 12) at Teatro Flores in Buenos Aires, Argentina as the support act for UNISONIC.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Dream On
02. Starlight
03. Top of the World
04. Give Me Real
05. Need To Believe
06. Sister Moon
07. Master Of Illusion
08. Remember It's Me
09. One Life, One Soul
10. Mountain Mama
11. Right On
12. Hush (BILLY JOE ROYAL cover)
13. Lift U Up
14. Anytime Anywhere
15. The Mighty Quinn (Quinn the Eskimo) (BOB DYLAN cover)

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

GOTTHARD's new album, "Firebirth", will be released on June 1 via Nuclear Blast/Warner Music. The CD was produced at the band's own Yellow House Studios in Lugano, Switzerland, with guitarist/songwriter Leo Leoni and Paul Lani (who has previously worked with GOTTHARD on several of their earlier albums, including "G-Spot" and "Homerun") at the helm.

"Firebirth" marks GOTTHARD's first release with Maeder, who was born in Lausanne, Switzerland, lived in Melbourne, Australia and grew up between Switzerland and "Down Under."

GOTTHARD vocalist Steve Lee was killed on October 5, 2010 in what has been described as a freak road accident in Nevada.

The "Firebirth" album cover depicts the firebird Phoenix, which symbolically rises "from the ashes to the sky" — this line expresses what each GOTTHARD fan feels and underlines the turbulent time that GOTTHARD has gone through in the past months.

DEVIL, the Norwegian heavy doom rock band featuring members of VESEN, RIKETS CRUST, CEASE.AND.DESIST, FUCK YOU ALL and FAUSTCOVEN, has issued the following update:
"We're glad to announce that we survived this and last year's festivals and gigs, and even though it was a blast all the way, we have now decided to focus on our next album which we've called, 'Gather The Sinners'. It will be released once again on the fine Soulseller Records, hopefully this year. We are from now on concentrating fully on the album, and will therefore not be seen much on stage until late this year. However, we know that fans of DEVIL and 'Time To Repent' also will love 'Gather The Sinners', as it will be another trip down heavy metal memory lane, and the authenticity and evil cheerfulness is still very much represented. To show you just what we're aiming at, we're proud to present a sneak preview filmed live at Roadburn of the song 'They Pale' [see video below], which will be featured on 'Gather The Sinners'. We hope you enjoy this, and look forward to the album just as we do."

DEVIL's debut album, "Time To Repent", came out last year via the Dutch label Soulseller Records.

DEVIL is:

Stian Fossum - Guitar
Ronny Østli - Drums
Thomas Ljosaak - Bass
Kai Wanderås - Guitar
Joakim Trangsrud - Vocals

For more information, go to this location.

Tonight's (Sunday, May 13) Michael Schenker concert at O13 in Tilburg, Holland will be filmed for DVD release.

Schenker's "Temple Of Rock" European tour marks the first time Schenker's band features two fellow ex-SCORPIONS members — Herman Rarebell (drums) and Francis Buchholz (bass). Vocalist Doogie White (ex-RAINBOW and YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) and keyboardist Wayne Findlay complete the lineup.

The European concerts feature a plethora of hits spanning Michael Schenker's colorful career. Songs that are being performed by the "Temple Of Rock" lineup include UFO's "Rock Bottom" and "Doctor Doctor", MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP's "Armed and Ready" and "Into The Arena", SCORPIONS classics "Another Piece Of Meat" and "Rock You Like A Hurricane", plus new songs from the recently released "Temple Of Rock" album "Miss Claustrophobia" and "Before The Devil Knows You're Dead".

Fan-filmed video footage of Schenker's May 5 concert at Sala Totem in Pamplona, Spain can be seen below.

Audio samples of the songs that will appear on "Daybreaker", the new album from British metallers ARCHITECTS, can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. The CD will be released on May 28 in Europe and June 5 in North America via Century Media Records. The follow-up to "The Here And Now" was produced by the band with John Mitchell and Ben Humphreys at Outhouse Studios (ENTER SHIKARI, YOU ME AT SIX, THE BLACKOUT, FUNERAL FOR A FRIEND, EXIT TEN, YOUR DEMISE, LOWER THAN ATLANTIS, KIDS IN GLASS HOUSES) in Reading, the same team that previously worked on ARCHITECTS' "Hollow Crown" CD. The stunning artwork was created by Paul Jackson (Tank.Axe.Love).

"Daybreaker" track listing:

01. The Bitter End
02. Alpha Omega
03. These Colours Don't Run
04. Daybreak
05. Truth, Be Told
06. Even If You Win, You're Still A Rat
07. Outsider Heart
08. Behind The Throne
09. Devil's Island
10. Father Of Lead
11. Unbeliever

ARCHITECTS recently released the "The Here And Now 2012 Special Edition" including "Devil's Island" and "Untitled" as well as all video clips ("Day In Day Out", "Learn To Live", "Heartburn", "Delete, Rewind" and "An Open Letter To Myself"), making-of footage for "Learn To Live" and "Heartburn" plus several previously released online clips.

ARCHITECTS' last album, "The Here And Now", sold around 900 copies in the United States in its first week of release. The CD landed at position No. 47 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.

"The Here And Now" was produced by Steve Evetts, who has previously worked with THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN and SEPULTURA, among many others.

"The Here And Now" debuted at position No. 57 on the official U.K. chart.

"Daybreaker" preview clips:

Stockholm, Sweden-based metal band FRANTIC AMBER — which features members from Sweden, Norway, Denmark and Japan — has won the Swedish Wacken Metal Battle 2012. The event was held on May 10 at Göta Källare in Stockholm. Five bands competed for an opportunity to play at the world's biggest metal festival, Wacken Open Air, in Wacken, Germany in August and FRANTIC AMBER won the Swedish slot. The jury consisted of music industry professionals and was headed by president Ida Evileye (CRUCIFIED BARBARA). They also won a backdrop from the Band Shop.

Commented Ida Evileye: "Extremely convincing, inspiring, energetic and with a awesome matter of course, this band completely ran over us in the jury! I myself have been a bit of a fan since a year back when I heard this band for the first time. Now a year later, I hear a very different band that is very much more tight and persuasive! The winner of this year's Wacken Metal Battle [Sweden] is FRANTIC AMBER."

FRANTIC AMBER will perform on the WET Stage at Wacken Open Air.

The "Metal Battle", which was started in 2004 by the founders of the Wacken Open Air as a contest to support up-and-coming bands from all over the world, is currently in its ninth round, with Nuclear Blast Records and ICS Festival Service GmbH, which organizes Wacken Open Air, joining forces.

What initially started out as a small contest with six German bands and five bands from other countries grew and grew over the years — so much so that there was a total of 29 international bands performing during the festival in 2011 and striving to win the competition after having won the preliminary decisions in their respective countries. In the past, the first prize was a record deal with Wacken Records. For 2012, Nuclear Blast and ICS Festival Service have announced their participation, meaning that the winning band of "Metal Battle" 2012 will be given a record deal with Nuclear Blast — the biggest independent heavy metal label worldwide!

FRANTIC AMBER recently scrapped its previously announced plans to release a second EP and has begun work on a full-length album instead.

FRANTIC AMBER last year recruited a new drummer — and its first male member — Erik Röjås. Erik has been performing with the band since the 2011 edition of the Sweden Rock Festival and accompanied the group on its second tour of Russia in September.

For more information, visit www.franticamber.com.