TARJA TURUNEN (ex-NIGHTWISH) will wrap up her What Lies Beneath tour cycle in 2012 with the following shows:

January
13 - Euronics - Zlin, Czech Republic
14 - ?EZ Arena - Pardubice, Czech Republic
16 - Stodola - Warsaw, Poland
17 - Forum Palace, Club Galaxy - Vilnius, Lithuania
19 - Gasometer - Vienna, Austria
20 - Majestic Music Club - Bratislava, Slovakia
22 - Kino Siska Club - Ljubjana, Slovenia
23 - Boogaloo Club - Zagreb, Croatia
25 - Sala Palatului - Bucharest, Romania
26 - Arena Armeec - Sofia, Bulgaria
28 - Principal Club - Thessaloniki, Greece
29 - Fuzz Club - Athens, Greece
31 - Rock Cafe - Tallin, Estonia

February
2 - Cca Nau - Kiev, Ukraine
15 - Aula Magna, Alameda da Universidade - Lisbon, Portugal
16 - Sala Capitol - Santiago de Compostela, Spain
18 - Sala Heineken - Madrid, Spain
19 - Salamandra 1 - Barcelona, Spain
21 - Bikini - Toulouse, France
22 - Transbordeur - Lyon, France
24 - Laiterie - Strasbourg, France
25 - Effenaar - Eindhoven, Netherlands
27 - Ancienne Belgique - Brussels, Belgium
28 - Bataclan - Paris, France

March
1 - Komplex - Zurich, Switzerland
2 - Teatro della Luna - Milano, Italy
4 - Sport Palace - Minsk, Belarus
6 - MILK - Moscow, Russia
7 - Nizhny Novgorod Opera Theatre - Nijny Novgorod, Russia
9 - Tele-Club - Ekaterinbourg, Russia
10 - Kosmonavt - St. Petersburg, Russia
12 - Palace of Arts Premiera - Krasnodar, Russia

"Asphyxia", the second album from Serbian melodic death metallers SANGRE ETERNA, will receive a worldwide release on February 17, 2012 via the Canadian label Maple Metal Records. The CD features guest appearances by Aleksi Sihvonen (NORTHER), Tapio Wilska (ex-FINNTROLL, NIGHTWISH), Juha Kylmänen (FOR MY PAIN), Jarmo Kylmänen (ETERNAL TEARS OF SORROW) and Jovana Karajanov (TALES OF THE DARK…). The 11-track effort was recorded in late 2010 and was mastered in Germany by Stephan Fimmers (NECROPHAGIST).

"Asphyxia" track listing:

01. The End Of Beauty
02. The Masquerade
03. Confession And Death
04. Illusions Of Fate
05. Seventh Angel
06. The Echoes Of My Loss
07. Shattered Sun (Prologue)
08. Lut Gholein
09. Alessa's Dream
10. Asphyxia
11. Seventh Angel (radio edit)

The first Serbian band to tour Sweden, SANGRE ETERNA performed at the 2009 edition of the Exit Festival in Novi Sad, Serbia alongside such bands as KATAKLYSM, SABATON, DEATH ANGEL and KEEP OF KALESSIN.

SANGRE ETERNA is:

Ilija Stevanovic - Keyboards, Vocals
Bora Jovanovic - Guitar
Milos Armus - Drums
Zoltan Kovacs – Guitar
Davor Menzildzic – Bass

The video for the song "The End Of Beauty", which will appear on "Asphyxia", can be seen below.

SANGRE ETERNA's debut album, "Amor Vincit Omnia", was released in 2008 through Sleaszy Rider Records.

"Dead And Dying", a brand new song from Finnish dark metallers SOULFALLEN, can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. The track comes off the band's third album, "The Promise Of Hell", which will be released on January 18, 2012 via the band's own label, Grave New Music, with distribution from Inverse Records/Supersounds (Finland), Plastic Head (U.K.), Bertus (Holland), Sound Pollution (Sweden), Disk Union (Japan), The End Records (USA), Rebeat (Austria), Non Stop (Switzerland), and LSP/MetalZone (Belgium). The cover artwork was created by Maija Ranka and can be seen below.

Commented SOULFALLEN frontman Kai Leikola: "The new album will be the final part of a trilogy, the closing of a chapter. It will bear the trademark sound of SOULFALLEN with some new flavors directly from the ever-burning kitchens of Hell. The story will continue where 'Grave New World' left off: at the burial of the world. Something has gone terribly wrong and life has united with death in a way never seen before. Humanity is not allowed rest but trapped in a Hell where even death cannot save those already dead."

A video for the song "Scars Aligned" was filmed this past fall and will make its online debut next month to coincide with the album's release. The clip features a guest vocal appearance by Annika Jalkanen.

In other news, SOULFALLEN has parted ways with longtime guitarist Simo Rahikainen and drummer Matti Auerkallio " due to personal reasons." The band states, "There was no drama involved, but merely they felt they could not give the band 100 percent and decided it was their time to move on. These changes will not affect the release of the album nor our upcoming live shows in 2012 that will be played with a renewed lineup."

SOULFALLEN's second album, "Grave New World", was released in March 2009 via Off Records, distributed by Firebox.

Professionally filmed video footage of GUNS N' ROSES performing the songs "Chinese Democracy" and "Welcome To The Jungle" live last night (Wednesday, December 21) at the Forum in Los Angeles, California can be seen below. The entire concert was streamed online via iClips as a pay-per-view event.

GUNS N' ROSES lead singer Axl Rose said that the last thing he wants to do is ruin the band's Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction for anyone — but that doesn't mean he's willing to perform with his former bandmates. In a rare new interview with the Los Angeles Times, Rose said about the group's upcoming induction into the Hall, "I've got mixed emotions about what the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame actually really is, but at the same time, there's a lot of people — the fans — that it just means something to them, and they're happy. It's like you won the Heisman or something."

He added that he doesn't want to see the induction turn into a scenario like what happened at the Oscars decades ago, when actor Marlon Brando sent a Native American to refuse his "Best Actor" prize for "The Godfather" and make a protest speech. Rose explained, "People don't want that associated with their awards shows, even if you have a big audience. In one way it might be right, but it usually backfires on whoever does it. So I really don't want to spoil it for everybody else — or take the beating."

As for whether there have been discussions of what will happen on the night the band is inducted, Rose said, "There is no plan yet. There really is no plan."

The eccentric singer says that the current lineup of the group, of which he is the sole original member, will be "busy all next year" and will put out new music "as soon as we can figure out what our deal is with labels, blah blah blah."

Rose has fired two managers in the past year and explained why he's had a hard time dealing with them, explaining, "All these managers, they all believe in one thing: sell a reunion tour and get their commission. It's just a phone call. It's a half a day's . . . work, or however long they want to keep the bidding war going. They get their commission and they don't care if it falls on its face."

Later in the interview, Rose made the odd statement that a reunion tour would only work if guitarist Slash and bassist Duff McKagan were involved, hinting that original guitarist Izzy Stradlin and drummer Steven Adler need not be there. He said, "The only thing that would make it would be Duff and Slash, really. It's nothing against Izzy and it's nothing against Steven, or anything like that . . . I've toured with the other guys and I've also seen what they've done since, and I just know the difficulties."
GUNS N' ROSES will be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame on April 14, 2012 along with the BEASTIE BOYS, the RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS and others.

ALTER BRIDGE played one of the biggest headline shows of its career on November 29 at Wembley Arena in London, England and all of it was captured for the band's forthcoming DVD, "Live At Wembley". The 2D version (complete with a live CD) will be released everywhere in late March whiule the 3D version will come out in the summer of 2012. The 2D version will also air on TV all over the world in February. Longtime ALTER BRIDGE director Daniel E Catullo III ("Live From Amsterdam", "One By One", "Isolation", webisodes, etc.) was brought in to direct "Live At Wembley" by The Dude Films, a new production and distribution company with offices in Laguna Beach, California and Maui, Hawaii headed up by "One By One" executive producer Stuart Margolis and executive producer Chris LaBabera. Lionel Pasamonte, who produced the band's last DVD, "Live From Amsterdam", is producing with Catullo.

ALTER BRIDGE's setlist for the Wembley show was as follows:

01. Slip To The Void
02. Find The Real
03. Ghost Of Days Gone By
04. Before Tomorrow Comes
05. Come To Life
06. All Hope Is Gone
07. White Knuckles
08. Brand New Start
09. Metalingus
10. Broken Wings
11. I Know It Hurts
12. One Day Remains
13. Coeur D'Alene
14. Buried Alive
15. Blackbird
16. Wonderful Life (Acoustic Version)
17. Watch Over You (Acoustic Version)
18. Ties That Bind
19. Isolation

Encore:

20. Open Your Eyes
21. Dueling Guitar Solos - Mark and Myles
22. Rise Today

ALTER BRIDGE drummer Scott Phillips told Stereoboard that it's unlikely fans will hear from the band again until 2013, but that they shouldn't take that as a bad sign. Phillips explained, "We'll certainly be visible next year, but it'll be on various projects and then probably 2013 will be the reunion there of ALTER BRIDGE and we'll diligently get to work on a new record and tour as soon as we can."

ALTER BRIDGE spent much of 2011 on the road behind its last album, "AB III", but 2012 will see singer Myles Kennedy return to work as the lead singer in Slash's band, while the other three members of the group will reunite with vocalist Scott Stapp for a new CREED tour and album.

Phillips said, "Each of us have our own thing. I think we've got a lot of different paths we're heading on in 2012," adding that in addition to working with CREED, guitarist Mark Tremonti is prepping his first solo album for release.

Earlier this fall, ALTER BRIDGE released a special edition of "AB III" featuring three previously unheard songs and an hour-long documentary on the group's career.

New Orleans' GOATWHORE has set "Blood For The Master" as the title of its new album, due on February 14 in North America via Metal Blade Records. The follow-up to 2009's "Carving Out The Eyes Of God" was recorded at Mana Recording Studios in St. Petersburg, Florida with producer with Erik Rutan.

In a recent interview with Decibel magazine, GOATWHORE guitarist Sammy Duet stated that the band's forthcoming CD will feature "the same exact [guitar] sound I used on 'Carving Out The Eyes Of God'. We're just trying to improve on that sound — make it bigger and fatter. That 'Carving' guitar sound was fucking incredible, and that's why me and Rutan spent half the week trying to get it to sound even better, which I believe we achieved. It's gonna have that growly, sub-nuclear kind of sound, but I think it's gonna be almost more refined in a way — but still very nasty."

He added, "The drums are a lot more natural-sounding. A lot of producers today, I don't know; they make the drums sound fake. They sound good, but almost too good. We're just trying to make it sound real and not like a drum machine.

"There's the same amount of solos on 'Carving'; maybe a few more. But there's gonna be a lot of other… I wouldn't exactly call them guitar solos that are gonna be going on underneath the music, but there's gonna be certain things there that will be very different. There's definitely some shit I've never really done before ever that I've just been experimenting with. You have to hear it. It's hard to explain. It's like a solo and not a solo."

"I think a lot of people are expecting us to repeat ourselves, but it's not gonna be like that. We could have easily gone and written 'Carving Out The Eyes Of God Part II' because that album is such a natural feeling for us musically. But we didn't want to do that."

Drum-cam footage of GOATWHORE's Zack Simmons performing a new song, "Collapse In Eternal Worth", on November 12, 2011 in Baltimore, Maryland can be seen below.

Washington D.C. metallers DARKEST HOUR have parted ways with drummer Ryan Parrish and have temporarily replaced him with Timothy Java (DEAD TO FALL). The band states, "Tim did an amazing job on our recent European tour with MACHINE HEAD. As for the future, that's open for discussion — no permanent decisions have been made in any way."

Parrish is currently working with ex-DARKEST HOUR guitarist Kris Norris in a new band called A CANCEROUS AFFAIR.

DARKEST HOUR's sixth album, "The Human Romance", sold around 3,600 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 185 on The Billboard 200 chart. The CD landed at position No. 3 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.

DARKEST HOUR's previous album, "The Eternal Return", opened with 4,700 units back in July 2009 to enter the chart at No. 104.

"The Human Romance" was released in Europe on March 7 via Century Media Records. The CD was recorded at a North Carolina studio with producer (and SOILWORK guitarist) Peter Wichers.

Wichers previously helmed such acclaimed albums as ALL THAT REMAINS' "The Fall of Ideals" and SOILWORK's latest effort, "The Panic Broadcast".

An audio sample of the song "Daemons" from "White Ink", the forthcoming full-length album from Swedish melodic death metallers SATARIEL, can be streamed in the YouTube clip below. The band previously stated that the new CD would "continue in the sound of [the band's mini-CD] 'Chifra', which was released [in 2007], but probably will have a little more aggressivity and 'evil' added to it this time, as the lyrics pretty much demand that this time around."

"Chifra" was mixed by Daniel Bergstrand (IN FLAMES, MESSHUGGAH, STRAPPING YOUNG LAD) and Magnus Alakangas at Dug-Out Studios in Uppsala, Sweden and featured artwork and layout by Pär Johansson.

SATARIEL is:

Pär Johansson - Vocals
Magnus Alakangas - Guitar
Robert Sundelin - Drums
Mikael Granbacke - Bass

AVENGED SEVENFOLD frontman M. Shadows revealed to Kerrang! magazine that he underwent surgery earlier this year to correct a joint problem that left him in agony during the band's live performances. He said, "I had knee surgery because I was in pain all the time; I was wearing knee braces onstage. But finally it's fixed."

AVENGED SEVENFOLD's headlining "Buried Alive" tour launched in Ft. Meyers, Florida on November 23 and concluded this past weeked in California. HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD, ASKING ALEXANDRIA, and BLACK VEIL BRIDES were also on the bill, offering fans an incredible value with four of the hottest bands in rock today.

The tour took its name from "Buried Alive", the fourth single from the Huntington Beach, California rock band's gold album "Nightmare". All three previous singles from "Nightmare" — the title track, "Welcome to the Family" and "So Far Away" — have peaked at No. 1 on the Active Rock chart. Released worldwide in July 2010, "Nightmare" earned AVENGED SEVENFOLD its highest-ever debut on the Billboard album chart when it bowed at No. 1 and topped Billboard's Rock, Hard Rock, and Digital charts. The title track was the most played song at Media Base Active Rock for 2010.

Finnish/Swedish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH recently spent time not only putting finishing touches to their new album, "Imaginaerum", but also planning a movie of the same name.

"Imaginaerum" is one of the projects which recently received grants from the Finnish government institution called the Finnish Film Foundation. The movie, directed by Stobe Harju, about an old man on his deathbed who glimpses a childhood dream in which he refuses to grow old, and fights aging with his imagination, reportedly got $575,000 toward its $3.7 million budget.

During a September interview with Petri Silas of Finland's Soundi magazine, NIGHTWISH mainman/keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen revealed that all the filming for the "Imaginaerum" movie was done in Canada with mostly Canadian actors/actresses. Post-production is taking place in Canada and Finland. He aso revealed the names of the actors who have two of the main roles in the film: Marianne Farley and Quinn Lord.

Stobe Harju has now issued the following update on the "Imaginaerum" film:

"As most of you may know, we finished the director's cut for the film. Everyone involved in the screening sessions were very happy and gave precious feedback that made the director's cut.

"I can say this now, we are very, very, very happy with the cut.

"There are many people who deserve our appreciation, they are fellow directors, co-writers, actors and producers.

"There is still editing required for the visual effects to make us stay in the budget. This phase eventually makes the film and is crucial to the success of the final movie. Again, we are living exciting times.

"Now, filmmaking is mostly about letting go. Besides the editing, I had to say farewell to my very good friend and the editor of the film, Mathieu BГ©langer, and his fantastic family who joined me in Finland for couple months. The heart and soul Mathieu put into this film cannot be described by words and I'm sure, our paths will cross in the future and in another project.

"Now, the film is in the good hands of another friend of mine Joshua Sherrett, his Workshop and the great team of Vision Global in Montreal. Their visual effects and their early concept sketches have blown us away several times already, and finally, they get to show us the meaning of the word 'magic.' Believe me when I say we've seen some pretty exciting stuff so far.

"As my work continues with them, it also continues with Petri Alanko and the soundtrack he's producing with Tuomas. It's miraculous how these guys can pull off something completely different but at the same time similar with the 'Imaginaerum' album songs. Well, it must be the 350 tracks per song on the album that give that possibility for the variations. Those crazy bastards.

"It's just a matter of time when we have got something new and special to show you. We hope it's quick because we can't wait either."

"Imaginaerum" film cast:

* Francis X. McCarthy
* Quinn Lord
* Marianne Farley
* Joanna Noyes
* Ilkka Villi
* Keyanna Fielding
* Ron Lea
* Victoria Jung
* HГ©lГЁne Robitaille
* Stefan Demers
* Anette Olzon
* Marco Hietala
* Tuomas Holopainen
* Emppu Vuorinen
* Jukka Nevalainen

Several photos from the "Imaginaerum" movie shoot can be found at this location. A couple of the pictures are also available below.

The "Imaginaerum" album will be released in the U.S. on Tuesday, January 10, 2012 via Roadrunner Records.

NIGHTWISH will kick off the "Imaginaerum" world tour in Los Angeles. The very first show of the trek will take place at the Gibson Amphitheatre in Universal City, California on Saturday, January 21. This will be the biggest NIGHTWISH show production ever on North American soil and strictly a one-off — there will be no U.S. tour until later in 2012.

Frontiers Records has set a February 28 North American release date (four days earlier in Europe) for MR. BIG's new acoustic live album, "Live From The Living Room".

At the end of January 2011, during a week-long promotion trip to promote for its latest reunion album, "What If", and tour, MR. BIG was invited to the WOWOW TV studios in Tokyo to perform a special show in an intimate setting.

When the talk of a broadcast first came up, the band wanted to present something different from what they've ever done before. Thus the idea of an acoustic show came about and a string quintet was brought in to enhance the project even more, with arrangements provided by Takashi Miyazaki. Although Paul Gilbert and Billy Sheehan hooked up electric on a few songs, the show was still very much acoustic in nature throughout. Pat Torpey played various acoustic percussion instruments during the gig.

Commented Eric Martin: "The idea for the show came out of a quick conversation the four of us had after a day of interviews promoting the new 'What If' CD.

"We did an acoustic show at the Hard Rock CafГ© in Singapore in 1996 that, to this day, is one of my favorite live recordings. It had a stripped down, up-close and personal feel to it.

"If we were going to do something like that again it would have to be extra special.

"We were talking about the old days when musicians used to live together in a band house and practice day and night. Our favorite rock band posters and tapestries adorning the walls, family hand-me-down furniture, amps that doubled as lamp stands, friends hanging out and the usual cluttered mess on the floor, lyric sheets, guitar cases and chords, music stands, beer cans, pizza boxes, wine bottles etc. 'Live From The Living Room' was born out of that.

"We wanted to recreate a harmonious atmosphere and treat our fans to an informal jam session of songs from the past and present while throwing in a few surprises from our wish lists (strings, Japanese taiko drums)."

The result from that magic night in Tokyo is now here: 10 MR. BIG classics in a completely new and fresh dress and a portrait from the very first ever acoustic show from the band.

"Live From The Living Room" will be exclusively released in a glossy digipak and will include the following songs:

01. Undertow
02. Still Ain't Enough For Me
03. As Far As I Can See
04. Voodoo Kiss
05. Take Cover
06. Around The World
07. Stranger In My Life
08. All The Way Up
09. To Be With You
10. Nobody Left To Blame

"What If…" was released in Europe on January 21 via Frontiers Records. The North American release, also on Frontiers Records, followed on February 8.

"What If…" is MR. BIG's first "all-original" album since the reunion of the four original members, Eric Martin, Paul Gilbert, Billy Sheehan and Pat Torpey, back in early 2009. Sixteen years after the release of "Hey Man", the new recording is set to bring back MR. BIG on the height of the current hard rock scene. The CD was produced by Kevin Shirley (AEROSMITH, RUSH, IRON MAIDEN).

Formed in 1988, MR. BIG forged its place in hard rock history by combining trademark "shredding" musicianship with awesome vocal harmonies. The original lineup produced numerous hit songs that ranged across a wide array of rock genres, be it ballads, heavy metal, or blues rock. Their hits included "To Be With You" (Billboard Hot 100 number one single in 15 countries for weeks, in 1991, propelling the band the band to huge international success and record sales in the multi-millions), "Wild World", "Green-Tinted Sixties Mind", "Just Take My Heart", and a host of heavy metal songs that were played mostly during their live performances: "Daddy, Brother, Lover, Little Boy", "Addicted to that Rush", "Colorado Bulldog", and "Take Cover".

A six-minute video clip in which ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian takes fans deep inside his set of Jackson guitars can be seen below.

Ian is a veritable thrash godfather who has made a living out of pummeling audiences worldwide for decades with his huge sound and formidable chops.

Jackson honored the longtime ANTHRAX axeman with the Jackson Select Series Scott Ian T-1000 Soloist model.

Designed by Ian himself and acclaimed master builder Mike Shannon, the neck-through-body guitar is based on Ian's '87 Soloist (the one with the New York Yankees logo on it). It has a super-sized mahogany Soloist body with 1/8-inch maple top and Quicksilver finish, and it comes in single and double humbucking pickup configurations.

Features include an oil-finished maple neck, compound radius ebony fingerboard (12- to 16-inch) with 24 jumbo frets and "High Boltage" lightning bolt inlays designed by Shepard Fairey, Ivoroid neck and headstock binding, Seymour Duncan Scott Ian El Diablo bridge pickup and Seymour Duncan '59 neck pickup (two-pickup model only), original Floyd Rose bridge (two-pickup model only) or TonePros Tunamatic bridge (single-pickup model only), black hardware, Schaller strap locks and G&G case.

ANTHRAX last month completed a U.S. tour with TESTAMENT and DEATH ANGEL. The trek kicked off on October 14 in Grand Rapids, Michigan and concluded on November 19 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

ANTHRAX's new album, "Worship Music", sold 28,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 12 on The Billboard 200 chart. The band's previous studio CD, 2003's "We've Come For You All", opened with just under 10,000 units to debut at No. 122.

Joel Peresman, president and CEO of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame Foundation, was interviewed by "That Metal Show" co-host Eddie Trunk on yesterday's (Monday, December 19) edition of "Eddie Trunk Live" on SiriusXM satellite radio.

After Trunk tweeted that Peresman indicated during the interview that "all [members of GUNS N' ROSES] have RSVP'd that they will show" at their upcoming Rock Hall induction in April, former GN'R guitarist Slash responded with the following message: "For the record, I didn't RSVP, or in any way commit to attending the RRHF. I don't appreciate people putting words in my mouth."

GUNS N' ROSES will be inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame next April in Cleveland, prompting speculation about whether the event could lead to a reunion of the band's original lineup.

Former GN'R bassist Duff McKagan admitted last month in an interview that he had a hard time imaging such a possibility, saying, "I can't. I can't picture it. Your guess is as good as mine. There is no picture."

In his latest SeattleWeekly.com column, McKagan addressed the upcoming induction, writing, "Music to me has never been a competitive sport. We do what we do, and if you connect with an audience and write the songs that feel good to you in the process, that is reward enough. Getting a Grammy or an American Music Award seems a little bit weird in this whole context. I mean, are you BETTER than all those other bands? No. You are just doing YOUR thing, and they theirs. It's not a competition.

"But it became very apparent to me that fans of GN'R felt very motivated for our band to 'get into the Hall.' All of those fans ARE very important to me, and thus getting this Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame nod was a victory for them. And so I am deeply honored and feel very good about this whole deal. Thank you all.

"I spent a lot of time revisiting my past in the book I just wrote. Living in the past, or just revisiting it, is something I hadn't done until I was in the process of writing that book. The process became personally poignant in how much I appreciated and loved most of the characters in my past, especially the guys in that little band from Hollywood that we formed just after I moved there in 1984.

"I've done my best to avoid doing any interviews that pertain to our induction, and maybe this column will serve as all I really need to say for now. I am a grown-up now, and hope that we can achieve some grace and class when that ceremony comes. But in the end, I am only responsible for myself."

Singer Al Rose was ambivalent in a recent interview about the Hall Of Fame, and told Billboard.com in 2009 that he could never see himself playing with original GUNS guitarist Slash again, saying, "One of the two of us will die before a reunion. However sad, ugly or unfortunate anyone views it, it is how it is."

MANOWAR bassist Joey DeMaio spoke to the Swedish TV channel SVT about the organizational difficulties encountered by the promoters of the 2012 edition of the Getaway Rock Festival, which MANOWAR is scheduled to headline.

Joey was alerted to problems with the festival last month and flew to Sweden to sort them out.

This year's Getaway Rock festival is set to take place July 5-7, 2012 in Gävle, Sweden.

DeMaio appeared onstage at this past summer's Getaway Rock festival to announce MANOWAR's appearance at the event as next year's headliners.

This will be the fulfillment of MANOWAR's promise to return in triumph to the Swedish festival scene after 12 years.

"The Swedish fans have won; their belief, shown by their non-acceptance of false metal is the reason we will finally return," said DeMaio after the announcement. "There was no compromise in their voices, nor in our resolve; we promised each other that it's all or nothing.

"It is no secret that there was a war between promoters as to who would bring MANOWAR back to Sweden and finally give the fans what they want and Getaway won.

“We played our last festival in Sweden in 1999 and we promised we would not return until we could give our fans what they deserve and next year that promise will be fulfilled. We vow to crack the earth with power and might.

"This will be a show which no true metal warrior will want to miss. We are calling all Manowarriors not only from Scandinavia, but from all over the world to join us for earth-shattering, face-melting metal..

"The voice of the fans in Sweden has been heard, many other countries will also take heed and their voice, too, will be the reason MANOWAR will appear in their country next."

Added Getaway Rock festival organizer Tomas Gernberg: "This is a major step for us and naturally we are honored that we could secure MANOWAR as headliners for Getaway Rock festival 2012. MANOWAR have a strong and loyal following in Sweden, Scandinavia and all over the world. We are proud to be the ones to bring the band back to Sweden."

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH frontman Ivan Moody frankly admits that his family was about as poor as possible when he was growing up. But he told The Pulse Of Radio that didn't stop someone — either his parents or a mystery person — from making sure that Moody and his siblings had a memorable Christmas one year. "I knew that my mom and dad didn't have the money to go out and get me and my brother and sister anything," he said. "That night, I woke up about three o'clock in the morning to go to the bathroom. I was like 12 or 13 and at that point, you really don't believe in Santa anymore. But I swear to you, when I walked down to that living room, there were three bicycles and like three or four boxes around each one of them, and my mom refuses to admit that she put 'em there. So I actually don't know if it was, quote, Santa, or if it was a neighbor, or somebody like that, but somebody definitely hooked me and my siblings up."

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH released its third album, "American Capitalist", earlier this fall.

"American Capitalist" debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 album chart, selling 91,000 copies in its first week of release. Both the chart and sales numbers were career highs for the group.

The band's previous two albums, 2007's "The Way Of The Fist" and 2009's "War Is The Answer", are both certified gold for sales of more than 500,000 copies.

FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH just finished the "Share The Welt" tour, with ALL THAT REMAINS, HATEBREED and REV THEORY, last Sunday (December 18) in Chicago. The group has yet to announce its 2012 plans.

The first trailer for "The Inherited Repression", the fifth studio album from Australian technical death metallers PSYCROPTIC, can be seen below. The CD will be released on February 7 in North America and February 10 in Europe via Nuclear Blast Records.

Commented PSYCROPTIC guitarist Joe Haley: "'The Inherited Repression' is far and away my favorite PSYCROPTIC record thus far — all of us in the band think this.

"It's the age-old clichГ© from bands when they talk about their new album as being the best of their career, blah, blah, but I have to say it because it's true. We wouldn't think there is a point of going on if we couldn't outdo each record prior. We are certainly not playing music for anything else than the love of creating it and performing it.

"'The Inherited Repression' is quite different from anything we have done in terms of songwriting and structure, and we spent a lot longer writing and demoing the songs before we recorded it, which you can tell. It's a very dynamic album — the fast elements faster, the slow elements slower, and a lot of light and dark binding it together. It's a very catchy album as well — you can tap your foot, bang your head or anything else you want. Basically, it has a lot of groove on it from start to finish."

"The Inherited Repression" was produced, engineered and mixed by Haley, while Alan Douches will handle mastering duties.

"We had the luxury of recording in my home studio without deadlines, so we spent a long time on getting it how we wanted," said Haley. "We can't wait for people to hear it, and get out and play the songs live!"

"The Inherited Repression" track listing:

01. Carriers Of The Plague
02. Forward To Submission
03. Euphorinasia
04. The Throne Of Kings
05. Unmasking The Traitors
06. Become The Cult
07. From Scribe To Ashes
08. Deprivation
09. The Sleepers Have Awoken

PSYCROPTIC is:

Jason Peppiatt - Vocals
Cameron Grant - Bass
Joe Haley - Guitars
Dave Haley - Drums

"The Inherited Repression" trailer #1:

METALLICA has posted a 33-minute video recap of the second of four intimate shows at the Fillmore in San Francisco as part of the week-long celebration of its 30th anniversary as a band for fan club members only. Check it out below.

Lou Reed, King Diamond (MERCYFUL FATE), Hank Shermann (MERCYFUL FATE), Timi Hansen (MERCYFUL FATE), Michael Denner (MERCYFUL FATE) , Marianne Faithfull, Ray Haller (SWEET SAVAGE), Kid Rock and John Bush (ARMORED SAINT) joined METALLICA on stage on December 7 for the second Fillmore concert.

After opening sets from THE SOUL REBELS brass band and ARMORED SAINT, as well as an appearance by ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian — who took to the stage with METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett to tell stories of hanging out with late METALLICA bassist Cliff Burton — METALLICA rocked the capacity crowd with a 20-song set which featured selections from all periods of the band's career, including a previously unreleased track from the "Death Magnetic" sessions called "Just A Bullet Away".

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. To Live Is To Die (premiere)
02. Enter Sandman
03. Holier Than Thou
04. Disposable Heroes
05. Bleeding Me
06. Wasting My Hate
07. My Apocalypse
08. Just A Bullet Away (previously unreleased song from "Death Magnetic" sessions; premiere)
09. Breadfan (BUDGIE cover) (with METALLICA fan Andrew Dowis)
10. The Memory Remains (with Marianne Faithful)
11. Killing Time (SWEET SAVAGE cover) (with Ray Haller)
12. Turn The Page (with Kid Rock)
13. The Four Horsemen (with John Bush)
14. Iced Honey (with Lou Reed)
15. The View (with Lou Reed)
16. White Light/White Heat (with Lou Reed)
17. Creeping Death (with Jason Newsted)
18. Battery (with Jason Newsted)
19. Mercyful Fate Medley (MERCYFUL FATE cover) (with Hank Shermann, Michael Denner, Timi Hansen and King Diamond)
20. Seek & Destroy (with Jason Newsted, Scott Ian, Ray Haller, John Bush, Joey Vera, Gonzo Sandoval, and THE SOUL REBELS)

Frontman James Hetfield told The Pulse Of Radio that METALLICA hoped to make the shows special for the people attending. "It is a fan celebration — everyone who's come along the METALLICA ride for 30 years — and we're constantly wanting to give to the fans what they don't normally get from some other band or some other connection," he said. "So these four shows at the Fillmore are something like that."

The other three shows took place on December 5, December 9, and December 10, with special guests and events, rare songs, varied set lists and more.

METALLICA plans to begin work on its next studio album early in 2012. The group recently released its collaborative album with Lou Reed, called "Lulu", which flopped saleswise and earned the quartet the worst reviews of its career.

The band has booked several European shows next summer, including one at a venue in Denmark that used to be a prison, at which it will perform its self-titled 1991 effort, a.k.a. "the black album," in its entirety.

METALLICA was formed when Ulrich, who had moved to Los Angeles from Denmark, placed an ad in a local paper called The Recycler looking for other musicians to play with. The ad was answered by guitarists James Hetfield and Hugh Tanner of the band LEATHER CHARM.

METALLICA officially formed in October 1981 and the band's first recording was "Hit The Lights" for the compilation "Metal Massacre".

Bay Area DJ Ron Quintana came up with the group's name: he was debating between using "Metallica" and "Metal Mania" for the name of his radio show and Ulrich encouraged him to use "Metal Mania" so that he could use "Metallica" for his new band.

METALLICA's first full lineup — featuring Hetfield, Ulrich, guitarist Dave Mustaine and bassist Ron McGovney — played its first gig on March 14, 1982 at Radio City in Anaheim, California.

On November 29, DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT released "Contain Us", a special tribute box set for its epic quadrology ("Ki", "Addicted", "Deconstruction" and "Ghost"). "Contain Us" was designed and created by Man Alive's Tom Bejgrowicz (who also conceived the classic and must-have MISFITS "Coffin" box-set) and is available from CM Distro.

Bejgrowicz has posted a new stop-motion video of "Contain Us" where you can see inside the box set. Check it out below.

"Contain Us" track-listing:

DVDs

DVD 1

* Tuska Open Air Metal Festival, 2010
* "Coast" promo video
* "Bend It Like Bender" promo video
* "Supercrush" promo video
* "Juular" promo video
* NAMM 2011 show

DVD 2 (Data disc with audio/video files)

* NAMM 2011 show (audio files)
* Audio commentary for all four albums
* Live in the USA, 2010 (audio files)

01. Supercrush
02. Kingdom
03. Truth
04. Om
05. By Your Command

* "Bend It Like Bender" song stems for remixing
* "Juular" song stems for remixing
* Poopynuggeteer's YouTube video clips
* Deep Thoughts videos

CDs

"Ki:

01. A Monday
02. Coast
03. Disruptr
04. Gato
05. Terminal
06. Heaven Send
07. Ain't Never Gonna Win...
08. Winter
09. Trainfire
10. Lady Helen
11. Ki
12. Quiet Riot
13. Demon League

"Addicted"

01. Addicted
02. Universe in a Ball
03. Bend It Like Bender
04. Supercrush!
05. Hyperdrive!
06. Resolve!
07. Ih-Ah!
08. The Way Home!
09. Numbered
10. Awake!!

"Deconstruction" (remastered)

01. Praise The Lowered
02. Stand
03. Juular
04. Planet Of The Apes
05. Sumeria
06. The Might Masturbator
07. Pandemic
08. Deconstruction
09. Poltergeist

"Ghost" (remastered)

01. Fly
02. Heart Baby
03. Feather
04. Kawaii
05. Ghost
06. Blackberry
07. Monsoon
08. Dark Matters
09. Texada
10. Seams
11. Infinite Ocean
12. As You Were

Official bonus tracks from all four albums:

01. Synchronicity Freaks
02. Om-2011
03. Catwalk (Fucker rework)
04. Juno
05. Ho Krll
06. Radial Highway
07. Watch You
08. Traestorz
09. Sticks And Stones

Demos from each album plus various unused/unreleased songs:

01. Coast (demo)
02. Disruptr (demo)
03. Gato Negro (demo)
04. Addicted (demo)
05. Numbered (demo)
06. Timmy (Awake! Demo)
07. Stand (demo)
08. Juular (demo)
09. Brown Man (demo)
10. Pandemic (demo)
11. Madd At My Dadd (demo)
12. Flies (Fly demo)
13. Call Management (demo)
14. Freedom (Kawaii demo)
15. Two Turntables And A Mike St-Jean (Kitchen Aid mix)

Limited-Edition 10" (500 made, available in deluxe-set only)

A. Dinosaurs
B. A Ziltoidian Rapture

"Contain Us" official specs:

* A 12" x 12", 64-page, perfect bound book featuring a charcoal linen hardcover with ink-less debossing of the DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT logo on the front and applicable titling on the spine.

* Housed in an uncoated, charcoal linen, hardcover slipcase — presented with a photographic portrait of Devin inset on the front and ink-less embossing of applicable titling on the spine.

* Contains the following: the DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT albums: "Ki", "Addicted", "Ghost" and "Deconstruction" plus two bonus DVDs and CDs. The DVDs have one featuring live performances and all the DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT promotional videos while the other has audio commentary for all four albums, live audio tracks, song stems for remixing and more. One of the audio CDs features all the bonus tracks from the DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT sessions with the other having the DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT session demos. "Ghost" and "Deconstruction" were both remastered just for this set.

* The four DEVIN TOWNSEND PROJECT albums will be housed within the front cover's pastedown while the four unreleased discs will be in the back's.

* The interior features acid free, linen-embossed charcoal end papers and museum-quality, dull text and cover stock throughout.

* The center of the book will feature a double gatefold printed on cover stock and comprised of the four album covers.

* A clean, crisp, classic-yet-modern design featuring color and black-and-white imagery throughout. Materials include Devin and the band's personal archives, photography from around the world, and any InsideOut/Devin-related photoshoots from the period.

* A permanently attached, purple fabric linen bookmark.

* This edition is limited to 5000 copies worldwide

* 500 individually-numbered, limited edition copies that include two exclusive items: A. An autographed lithographic print featuring original artwork by Devin drawn exclusively for this edition, and B. A 10" piece of vinyl featuring two exclusive tracks, "Rapture" and "Dinosaurs". Note: 250 copies of the record will be pressed on black vinyl while the other 250 are on white.

"The Origin Of Disease", a brand new song from Belgian death metalers ABORTED, can be streamed using the SoundCloud player below. The track comes off the band's seventh studio album, "Global Flatline", which will be released on January 24, 2012 (one day earlier internationally) via Century Media Records. The CD was recorded, mixed, and mastered by the Jacob Hansen (VOLBEAT, PESTILENCE, HATESPHERE) at Hansen Studios in Ribe, Denmark. The artwork was once again created by Justin Osbourn from Slasher Design.

"Global Flatline" track listing:

01. Omega Mortis
02. Global Flatline
03. The Origin Of Disease
04. Coronary Reconstruction
05. Fecal Forgery
06. Of Scabs And Boils
07. Vermicular, Obscene, Obese
08. Expurgation Euphoria
09. From A Tepid Whiff
10. The Kallinger Theory
11. Our Father, Who Art Of Feces
12. Grime
13. Endstille

The regular jewel-case edition of "Global Flatline" will include 12 tracks while the limited-edition digipack will have 14 tracks.

"Global Flatline" features several guest vocalists, such as Trevor Strnad (THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER), Julien Truchan (BENIGHTED), Jason Netherton (MISERY INDEX), and Keiijo Niinima (ROTTEN SOUND). Their comments follow below.

Trevor Strnad: "It's a pleasure to offer my vocals to Sven and the guys... The new material is fucking sick and I'm glad they would let me be a small part of it. Cheers to the masters of gore, ABORTED!"

Julien Truchan: "I'm so honored to be a part of ABORTED's new baby! So far, what I heard sounds absolutely devastating, sick and furious. Their best album for sure!"

Jason Netherton: "When I got the track for the guest vocals, we loaded the files up and immediately our ears melted! A face-ripping, next-level entry for a new decade of death metal-it was a sheer pleasure to contribute some screams, and I am completely stoked to hear the entire album as soon as it drops!"

A video for "The Origin Of Disease" was shot in the U.K. this summer with director Phil Berridge (CEREBRAL BORE).

"The Origin Of Disease" audio stream:

Swedish heavy rockers MUSTASCH have parted ways with drummer Danne McKenzie due to personal differences. A replacement drummer has not yet been announced.

MUSTASCH has just released a new single, "The Challenger". The track comes off the band's recently completed album, "Sounds Like Hell, Looks Like Heaven", which is due on February 1, 2012 via Gain Music Entertainment. The CD was produced by guitarist/vocalist Ralf Gyllenhammar and was mixed by Stefan Glaumann (RAMMSTEIN, PARADISE LOST, WITHIN TEMPTATION). The cover artwork was created by Martin Westerstrand (LILLASYSTER singer).

"Sounds Like Hell, Looks Like Heaven" track listing:

01. Speed Metal
02. The Challenger
03. It's Never Too Late
04. Cold Heart Mother Son
05. Morning Star
06. Dead Again
07. Your Father Must Be Proud Of You
08. Destroyed By Destruction
09. I Don't Hate You
10. Northern Link

25 years after the release of the legendary Night Of Passion album, German hard rock band MAD MAX return with the original line-up and will release their new studio album Another Night Of Passion on March 23rd in Germany, 26th (rest of Europe) via SPV/Steamhammer. A North American street date is expected in late March.

“The new record could have been a direct successor to Night Of Passion in terms of its stylistic direction – no ballads, no keyboards, just purebred rock songs – naturally in a contemporary sonic guise,” explains guitarist Jürgen Breforth, who recorded this haunting release together with vocalist Michael Voss, bassist Roland Bergmann and drummer Axel Kruse.

Another Night Of Passion will be available in a jewel case edition featuring eleven songs, and in a limited-edition digipak, including the additional bonus CD Official Bootleg – Live In Berlin.

Digipak:

CD1
'Rocklahoma'
'40 Rock'
'Metal Edge'
'You Decide'
'Welcome To Rock Bottom'
'Fallen From Grace'
'Black Swan'
'Back And Alive'
'The Chant'
'Fever Of Love'
'True Blue'

CD2 (Bonus: Official Bootleg – Live In Berlin)
'Where The Wind Blows'
'Here We Are'
'Night Of Passion'
'Family Of Rock'
'Little Princess'
'Say Goodbye To Hollywood'
'Open The Eyes'
'Don`t Talk It All Over'
'Homeless'
'Hope To See You'
'Fox On The Run'

Jewel Case:

'Rocklahoma'
'40 Rock'
'Metal Edge'
'You Decide'
'Welcome To Rock Bottom'
'Fallen From Grace'
'Black Swan'
'Back And Alive'
'The Chant'
'Fever Of Love'
'True Blue'

Guitar maker and luthier Ed Roman — who has worked with a number of influential artists during his career, including Ted Nugent, George Lynch, Billy Gibbons, Keith Urban and Rick Derringer — has passed away. A posting on Ed's web site reads, "We understand that many people have questions regarding the circumstances surrounding his passing. His death, however, is still very recent, and is a heartbreaking shock to the family. We ask that you please be respectful of the sensitive nature involved with losing a loved one, and the mourning process that follows."

A more formal announcement from Lindsey Star Roman is forthcoming.

According to KissFAQ.com, Roman worked with original KISS guitarist Ace Frehley as far back as 1989, performing some modifications to one of Ace's Les Pauls. He also built a replica of Ace Frehley's Washburn AF 40 guitar. Roman once described Frehley as "probably the most influential guitarist in the history of the world."

Joe Lynn Turner's popular AOR side project with German/American producer Dennis Ward, SUNSTORM, will release its third album, entitled "Emotional Fire", on February 24, 2012 in Europe (February 28 in North America) via Frontiers Records.

Born after Turner met with Frontiers Records' president Serafino Perugino, the SUNSTORM project was a way to dig up some old gems, written by the former RAINBOW, DEEP PURPLE and YNGWIE MALMSTEEN singer during the mid-'80s. The task was to create an ultimate Joe Lynn Turner melodic rock "dream collection." This brought on the release of the first SUNSTORM album in 2006 — which was met with much critical acclaim — and the follow-up, "House Of Dreams", three years later.

While the first two albums' basic inspiration came from the melodic rock catalogue of songs that Turner penned for himself or other artists of the genre, for this third album, Frontiers and Joe Lynn Turner decided to look at Turner's numerous vocal sessions he did in the '80s as a background vocalist for other artists. This brought on a resurrection of some of Michael Bolton's melodic rock gems such as "Gina", (originally included on "The Hunger" album, where Turner contributed background vocals), "You Wouldn't Know Love" and "Emotional Fire", which Bolton penned for the "Heart Of Stone" album by Cher (in which Turner also appeared as background vocalist).

"I sang background on the original 'Gina'," says Joe, "Michael and I did all of the parts but I tried to rock it up a bit more than the original… not so pop! Good song though! It's funny…I heard 'Emotional Fire' from Desmond Child during a writing session and then he asked me to sing background vocals on it! Crazy! It's like one big circle!"

With production and mixing once again under the expert hands of Dennis Ward (PINK CREAM 69, PLACE VENDOME, ANGRA) and a track listing rounded out by some amazing songs written by the likes of Soren Kronkvist (CRASH THE SYSTEM, ISSA), Tom and James Martin (VEGA, SUNSTORM, KHYMERA) and Daniel Palmqvist (XORIGIN, THE MURDER OF MY SWEET), the third SUNSTORM album, "Emotional Fire", is destined to reignite the melodic rock passion in every fan.

"I think this record has a good mix of songs," concludes Joe, "Just what SUNSTORM is supposed to be! Dennis Ward is a great producer and the players are amazing. I have to say I am pleased with the work we did and hope that everyone else will be pleased as well… Enjoy!"

"Emotional Fire" track listing:

01. Never Give Up
02. Emotional Fire
03. Lay Down Your Arms
04. You Wouldn't Know Love
05. Wish You Were Here
06. Torn In Half
07. Gina
08. The Higher You Rise
09. Emily
10. Follow Your Heart
11. All I Am

"Never Give Up" audio sample:

DARK DAY SUNDAY, the old-school thrash band featuring FATES WARNING guitarist Frank Aresti and SHADOWS FALL drummer Jason Bittner, has released the first four songs from its forthcoming debut album. You can now check out the tracks "Halfway To Gods", "Conversation With The Dead", "Halo Of Decay" and "One Bullet Away" below.

Inspired by Bay Area thrash bands like METALLICA, EXODUS, and MEGADETH, DARK DAY SUNDAY brings together old and new elements to create a brand new sound. The result: pure, raw energy.

DARK DAY SUNDAY is composed of four guys with a common love for headbanging fury, wailing guitar solos, melodic vocals that simply won't quit, and a rhythm section so in tune with one another you'd swear they were born of the same insanity.

Frank Aresti started his career with seminal prog-metal band FATES WARNING. As inspiration to many later bands, from DREAM THEATER to SLIPKNOT, Frank's guitar playing helped propel the band to commercial success and critical acclaim.

"I love playing with FATES," comments Frank, "but DARK DAY SUNDAY has a special place in my heart. I grew up listening to late '70s British punk and hardcore, then to early American thrash. I absolutely love this music."

In the drummer's seat is one of the most highly regarded metal drummers today, Jason Bittner of SHADOWS FALL. A Berklee College Of Music alum, "Jason brings a great energy to this band," says Aresti. "He lends an aggressive approach, pushing the beat while completely locking up with the rhythm section. It's a powerful feeling when you hear us live."

Rounding out the rhythm section on bass is Ed Lanouette. Ed earned his bachelor's degree at Berklee College Of Music and graduated with a master's degree in jazz performance from the Boston Conservatory. He cites his main influences as Jaco Pastorius and BLACK SABBATH's Geezer Butler.

Soaring above the ferocious riffs and pounding rhythm section is vocalist Marc Lopes. Marc cites his main influence as Bruce Dickinson of IRON MAIDEN. "Bruce has the ability to be melodic and aggressive at the same time," says Marc. "I love that, and that's what I go for in my singing."

When asked about the future of DARK DAY SUNDAY, Frank replies, "I want to take this band on the road, across the world. I want to continue making and recording music as long as we can. And judging how all four of us love doing this, that's going to be a long time."

DARK DAY SUNDAY is:

Marc Lopes - Vocals
Frank Aresti (FATES WARNING) - Guitar
Ed Lanouette - Bass
Jason Bittner (SHADOWS FALL) - Drums

MГ–TLEY CRГњE singer Vince Neil tells Robin Leach of the Las Vegas Sun that he is seriously contemplating a split from the band after their run of concerts at the Joint in the Hard Rock Hotel from February 3 to February 19, 2012. "It's not definite, but I am thinking seriously about it," he says.

He adds, "This is all about me thinking about the second half of my life, thinking about my future, and that future might not include MГ–TLEY CRГњE after Vegas. There are so many opportunities that are in front of me that I'm really excited about. I just don't want to look back later in life and regret that I didn't pursue them.

"I'm just not sure I can give these opportunities the time and effort I'll need to and continue with the band. It's been a great ride, and I've enjoyed every second of it, but being out here relaxing in this beautiful place has given me the chance to reflect on what direction I want the rest of my life to take. I'm really giving it a lot of thought."

Neil previously exited the CRГњE in 1992 and was replaced by John Corabi. However, by 1997, the original bandmembers were back together.

Read more from the Las Vegas Sun.

IRON SAVIOR mainman Piet Sielck has left SAVAGE CIRCUS, the multinational project featuring Jens Karlsson (vocals; PERSUADER), Emil Norberg (lead guitar; PERSUADER), and Mike Terrana (drums; AXEL RUDI PELL, RAGE, YNGWIE J. MALMSTEEN, MASTERPLAN). He says in a statement, "After long and intensive thinking I came to the conclusion that I cannot uphold any further engagement for SAVAGE CIRCUS anymore and hereby officially quit.

"I am proud of what has been achieved, but I just cannot imagine myself doing songwriting and production more or less completely alone for a third time. This has drained too much energy in the past, which was needed in more important spots. I am not willing to make such a sacrifice again.

"Therefore, I put the fate of SAVAGE CIRCUS in the hands of Emil and Jens, whose decision it may also be to correct the band's completely fictional founding legend or not.

"SAVAGE CIRCUS has been absolutely challenging... but my heart beats for IRON SAVIOR. And music simply is a matter of the heart!"

SAVAGE CIRCUS's second album, "Of Doom And Death", was released in October 2009 via Dockyard 1 Records.

"Of Doom And Death" recording lineup:

Jens Carlsson (lead vocals)
Emil Norberg (guitar)
Piet Sielck (guitar, backing vocals)
Yenz Leonhardt (bass guitar, backing vocals)
Mike Terrana (drums, percussion)

SAVAGE CIRCUS fired drummer Thomen Stauch (ex-BLIND GUARDIAN) in August 2007 due to personal differences.

The band released a DVD, entitled "Live in Atlanta", through Dockyard 1. The live footage was filmed in 2006 at the ProgPower USA VII festival in Atlanta, GA.

SAVAGE CIRCUS issued its debut album, "Dreamland Manor", in North America in March 2006 via Century Media Records. The North American version of the CD, which was released in Europe in August 2005, includes the "Evil Eyes" video.

Tim "Ripper" Owens (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH, DIO DISCIPLES) has contributed guest vocals to the forthcoming debut album from TOOTH AND NAIL, the new project featuring current and former members of DOKKEN — George Lynch (guitar), Jeff Pilson (bass), and Mick Brown (drums). Tentatively due in March 2012, the CD will feature new original material as well as reworked versions of around five or six DOKKEN classics. Owens is said to have recorded a killer new version of DOKKEN's "Kiss Of Death" in what is described as a Ronnie James Dio-inspired performance. Additional lead vocal duties on the CD will be handled by former SKID ROW frontman Sebastian Bach (on DOKKEN's "Alone Again"), Doug Pinnick (KING'S X), Jeff Pilson and Mick Brown (on DOKKEN's "When Heaven Comes Down"). The drum tracks on the new, original compositions will be taken care of by Brian Tichy (WHITESNAKE, FOREIGNER).

Regarding how TOOTH AND NAIL came together, Pilson said in an August 2011 interview, "The DOKKEN [original lineup] reunion has been scrapped, and I take a lot of the initial responsibility for that because of my schedule and commitment to FOREIGNER. I was, however, upfront about that from Day One. We did talk, though, and I think we all thought it was going to happen somehow at some time. Then Don [Dokken, vocals] and George got in some nasty e-mail fights, which I'm not really in a position to evaluate but they did get ugly and seem to put an end to further reunion thoughts. The two of them had their own business outside of the pending reunion and something just went south. For whatever reason, it was time to move on. Then George asked me about working with him on the next LYNCH MOB record — and I jumped at the chance. He and I started writing, got into a groove and wrote an album's worth of stuff, all with the intention of Oni [Logan, LYNCH MOB singer] writing lyrics and it being their next record. Brian Tichy laid down some incredible drums at his studio (and co-wrote some music on one track) and we had an incredibly strong start. Then Oni just wasn't feeling the music as being LYNCH MOB, so it was shelved. We figured it'd be the start of another LYNCH/PILSON record some day. Then, actually, it was Brian who had the idea that Mick, George and I should do a band, similar to what HEAVEN & HELL was to BLACK SABBATH, and call it TOOTH AND NAIL. Because of everything else we have going, it'll be just a recording project at first, but sure sounds fun. We'd record the classics keeping true to the originals but make them fresh and organic. Then the idea of doing new songs came up, and it grew from there.

He added, "I have absolute belief that the music George and I make together (along with Brian Tichy in this case) is real and inspired, and that's what it's really all about. So out of a mess of a reunion attempt, I think we'll end up with a really fabulous record, and what could be better than that?"

When asked if TOOTH AND NAIL is basically DOKKEN without Don, Pilson said, "Don is, and will always be, the singer of DOKKEN and an invaluable part of the DOKKEN chemistry. No one ever wants to take that away or dispute it one iota. But the three of us do have time tested amazing chemistry, and because we were writers on these songs, I feel we have a lot to express. If anything I think this will be a show of respect for Don, not some kind of competition. I only hope people enjoy it in the spirit for which it's intended . . . Don't think of this as DOKKEN without Don... that's misleading. Think of it as a band with great chemistry coming up with new music that excites them, and also paying tribute to DOKKEN — music which the members all are heavily invested in emotionally."

TOOTH AND NAIL recently took part in a photo session with acclaimed photographer Alex Solca. Those pictures, along with an official press release announcing the project, are expected to be made available in the next couple of weeks.

For more information, visit TOOTH AND NAIL's official Facebook page.

Behind the scenes at TOOTH AND NAIL photo session with Alex Solca:

The second Kiss Kruise is setting sail October 31 - November 4, 2012 from Miami, Florida to Great Stirrup Cay, Bahamas onboard the Norwegian Pearl. Prices start at $750 per person for a double-occupancy cabin, $600 per person for a triple-occupancy cabin and $525 per person for a quadruple-occupancy cabin. Taxes and fees are an additional $200 per person. Only $149 per person is required to book your cabin. (*$298 per person for balconies & suites) Interior cabins range from $750 per person to $1000 per person plus $200 taxes and fees per person. Ocean-view cabins range from $1100 per person to $1250 per person plus $200 taxes and fees per person. Balcony cabins range from $1400 per person to $1600 per person plus $200 taxes and fees per person. Mini-suites are $1700 per person with suites starting at $2500 per person plus $200 taxes and fees per person.

For more information, visit www.thekisskruise.com.

In an interview with Wallace Immen of AvidCruiser.com, KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons stated about the first-ever Kiss Kruise (which was held in October), "The Kiss Kruise is a chance for all of us — the band and the fans — to have a ball. Just let your hair down and not worry about it at all. KISS has always been about breaking the rules. We've never liked that moat — the stage — separating the band from the fans. So whenever we do a show, we try to take the action right to your face. A cruise will let the fans get up close. We try to take it inside you, we want you to smell it and taste it and feel it."

When asked if the fans were going to get to interact with the band on the cruise, Gene said, "We're going to have a deck up top to ourselves and we will certainly want to bring up fans. It may to a little difficult to get down to the lower levels and hang out a lot, because you've got 3,000 people on board, who are basically going to shred you to pieces. It's all appreciated, of course, and I say all this with tongue in cheek — I don't mean my tongue in your cheek, but you know what I mean. The real idea of this cruise is to have fun. Everything about KISS is over the top. Everything about it is meant to really make every day we have above ground a fun day."