During an appearance on a recent episode of "The Joe Pags Show", Ted Nugent was asked if there is a newer band that came out in the 1990s or early 2000s, such as maybe the FOO FIGHTERS, that he really loves. He responded in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The FOO FIGHTERS are not really a new band, but when they came on the scene, they were delivering the same dedication and work ethic. You can tell that [Dave] Grohl and his bandmates really put their heart and soul into delivering a monster every night. Now, as much as I love and adore and admire the FOO FIGHTERS, and Dave Grohl is one of the masters of crescendos, but you were mentioning [John] Coltrane and these great saxophone players, that sax solo, that guitar solo in all the best music in the world, that's the crescendo. And with all due respect to the FOO FIGHTERS, and I love you, Dave — I love all you guys; you guys are awesome — but there's not that fire-breathing crescendo guitar solo that elevates the entire musical moment to a higher place. And I've gotta tell ya… I don't know nothing about Auto-Tune. I let my ears and my spirit and my balls dictate the delivery of my music… The point being is that I want a killer guitar solo or a sax solo or even a Jimmy Smith keyboard monster. Andy Solomon with the AMBOY DUKES would deliver a Hammond B3 solo that was just so elevating."

Ted continued: "So I'm afraid to say in this world that's gone down the toilet in all aspects, I'm afraid the success of Taylor Swift, and God bless her work ethic, God bless her musical dreams, but that's cartoon music. I mean, it doesn't have any piss and vinegar. There's no fire, there's no sensuality in that. It's all poppy nonsense as far as I'm concerned, and it's the most popular stuff in the world, which is an indictment to the music industry and music fans. They're not looking for that fire from a ZZ TOP or from a MITCH RYDER AND THE DETROIT WHEELS or from a BROWNSVILLE STATION or an AMBOY DUKES. And I miss that. Thank God I'm still around. We still deliver the fire that THE BEATLES did [at clubs] in Germany."

Nugent previously expressed his dislike for Swift's songs this past June during an episode of "The Nightly Nuge". Offering his opinion on the "current state of music in America", he said in part: "Well, thank God I was born in 1948 because Chuck Berry and Bo Diddley and Little Richard and James Brown and Wilson Pickett and the Motown Funk Brothers and all those great soulful musical authorities inspired all the best music that we still love today. So I'm spoiled to a fault, because I lived in a whirlwind, the energy vortex of the most intense work ethic-driven music.

"The reason we love AEROSMITH and AC/DC and ZZ TOP and HEART and JOURNEY and CHEAP TRICK and FOREIGNER and so many bands I could name… I cannot overstate the incredible animal work ethic that we put forth to practice and practice and practice, because the music makes us do it," he continued. "And as young kids, all we wanted to do was be as tight as James Brown, as energized as Chuck Berry, as soulful as the Motown Funk Brothers and Wilson Pickett and Howlin' Wolf and Muddy Waters and Mose Allison and Lightnin' Hopkins. We wanted to get that black soulfulness, so the work ethic was unbelievable.

"Now, we've still got some bands that are doing it, like GRETA VAN FLEET out of Grand Rapids, Michigan here. There are some bands out there — certainly the FOO FIGHTERS with the great Dave Grohl; they still play fire-breathing real soulful tight music. But I'm afraid it'll never be like it was with THE [ROLLING] STONES and THE BEATLES and THE WHO and THE KINKS and LED ZEPPELIN and what VAN HALEN created and what the Ted Nugent band and Ronnie Montrose and what Sammy Hagar still does — so many people out there still doing it. But I'm afraid that most of the successful music today — some of it is mind-boggling."

Ted added: "I don't know this gal's name with the long legs, but she gets a thousand bucks a ticket or whatever it is." When "The Nightly Nuge" co-host Keith Mark threw out Taylor Swift's name, Nugent said: "Yeah, Taylor Swift. But that music, to me, sounds like cartoon music. It sounds like if I bumped into a child's cartoon show on a Saturday morning, I would probably hear the No. 1 country song or I would hear the No. 1 pop song, because it's all formulated to give a certain vocal delivery and a certain chord change and a certain tempo that they examine so closely that it's not organic and instinctive and sexy and unleashed and genuine and believable.

"I liked it when we were in the experimental stage of trying to duplicate what Chuck Berry had invented, what Little Richard had invented," Nugent said. "And again, there's some great artists. I got to play some of my songs with the Big & Rich band, with the Toby Keith band, and these bands are unbelievable. There's a Tim Montana; I got to play 'Cat Scratch Fever' with the Tim Montana band. Ira Dean, who co-wrote that amazing Aaron Lewis song 'Am I The Only One'. There's some great, great musical moments still happening — but not the unlimited flurry of incredible music in the late '50s and the '60s and into the '70s. And even the POISONs and the WARRANT and — I can't think of all those… RATT and some of the big hair bands, they played really good — they were great musicians. But there will never be a 1966 ever again, because it was so raw and primal. Now it's predictable, and I'm afraid it's mostly cookie-cutter stuff. Now, only the guilty need to feel guilty, 'cause there's some great artists out there that are making some wonderful music. But it's just not as raw and primal as my original inspirations, and I cling to that."

In August 2022, Nugent blasted Swift for her "hypocrisy" after she topped a list of celebrities whose private jets had produced the highest amount of carbon dioxide in 2022.

Ted launched his last-ever tour, dubbed "Adios Mofo '23", this past July.

Nugent's self-titled debut album in 1975 was certified double platinum in the United States, while "Free-for-All", "Cat Scratch Fever", "Weekend Warriors" and "State Of Shock" all reached the Top 30 on the Billboard 200 chart.

Nugent has reportedly sold over 40 million albums and was named Detroit's greatest guitar player of all time by readers of MLive.

The conservative rocker, who been eligible for the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame as a solo artist since 2000, has enjoyed a remarkably successful and eventful musical career over the past five decades, but his music is increasingly overshadowed by his political outbursts.

Nugent's latest album, "Detroit Muscle", was released in April 2022 via Pavement Music. The follow-up to 2018's "The Music Made Me Do It" was recorded with Ted's most recent recording band, which included bassist Greg Smith and drummer Jason Hartless.

Although they're working on the launch of Mean Streets with full throttle, US icons Riot V need to take a redirection until unleashing their new album which is now set to be released on April 12 via Atomic Fire Records, followed by supporting live shows (to be announced next month).


But fans don't have to worry as the band have also - besides album pre-order options - kicked-off the pre-save campaign for second single, "Feel The Fire", which will be available digitally from January 26.


Mean Streets contains 12 tracks which were recorded by Bruno Ravel in New Jersey. Ravel also mixed the album while Bart Gabriel took care of its mastering.




Artwork was provided by Gyula Havancsák, who captured the galloping style of the new material skillfully - without missing the band's typical seal style, of course.


Mean Streets will be available in the following formats:


- CD-digipak (EU)
- jewelcase CD (US)
- coloured vinyl [black | "electric blue" (transparent/blue/red-transparent) | yellow/black splatter | "seal white" (white; US-excl.)]
- digital


Pre-order the album in the physical format of your choice, pre-save it on your favourite DSP or pre-order it digitally to receive "High Noon" instantly now, here.





Tracklisting:


"Hail To The Warriors"
"Feel The Fire"
"Love Beyond The Grave"
"High Noon"
"Before This Time"
"Higher"
"Mean Streets"
"Open Road"
"Mortal Eyes"
"Lost Dreams"
"Lean Into It"
"No More"


"High Noon" lyric video:





Riot V are:


Todd Michael Hall - vocals
Mike Flyntz - guitars
Nick Lee - guitars
Don Van Stavern - bass
Frank Gilchriest - drums


(Photo Collage Credit: Randy Caballero | Doug Julien | Anthony Lopardo)

UK bashers DragonForce performed at  First Avenue in Minneapolis, MN on November 11th. Fan-filmed video of the band's entire show can be viewed below.


Setlist:


"Revolution Deathsquad"
"Cry Thunder"
"Heroes of Our Time"
"Power of the Triforce"
"Soldiers of the Wasteland"
"The Last Dragonborn"
"Fury of the Storm"
"Black Fire" (stuffed chicken sacrifced to the mosh pit)
"Doomsday Party"
"Valley of the Damned"




Encore:
"Highway to Oblivion"
"Wildest Dreams" (Taylor Swift)
"My Heart Will Go On" (Céline Dion)
"Through the Fire and Flames"





DragonForce is featured on Beat Saber’s Original Soundtrack 6 with their new song, “Power Of The Saber Blade”, originally composed for the best-selling, award-winning VR game. DragonForce's “Power Of The Saber Blade” will be the fastest song ever introduced in Beat Saber at a mind-blowing 10.66 NPS (notes per second). The song comes alongside a gripping music video, drawing the listener into the exciting Beat Saber universe.


“Power Of The Saber Blade” is part of the sixth installation of the Original Soundtrack, affectionately known as OST, which is a free release for all players. OST 6 will feature four songs, including other high-profile artists such as Lindsey Stirling, Camellia, and Far Out. All songs were exclusively composed for Beat Saber and will be world-wide premieres. DragonForce has been a community request for a long time, so the Beat Games team is honored to have a completely original song by them in Beat Saber.


DragonForce guitarist Herman Li adds: "It's truly an honour for DragonForce to create an exclusive track for Beat Saber, a game we are wholeheartedly passionate about. We hope fans will discover the exhilaration of 'Power Of The Saber Blade,' finding it both enjoyable and challenging across all levels. We're eagerly anticipating the skillful attempts on Expert+"


All OST songs (including OST 6) are Content ID free. This means that influencers, streamers and regular players can stream the songs without limitations or fear of getting copyright claims or strikes on social media or platforms like YouTube, Twitch, etc. None of the OST 6 songs are limited by UMPG restrictions, so tracks can be posted to any platform without limitations.


Watch the official music video for “Power Of The Saber Blade”:





DragonForce recently released a new version of their single “Doomsday Party”, now unveiled as a duet with Elize Ryd (Amaranth). This version will be included as a bonus track on some editions of DragonForce's upcoming album Warp Speed Warriors





Warp Speed Warriors was produced, mixed and mastered by Damien Rainaud at Mix Unlimited in Los Angeles, California with Sam Totman and Herman Li. This album is a matchless, innovative listening experience that continues the band's legacy with songs that will, without a shadow of a doubt, become instant classics in and beyond the DragonForce canon.


Warp Speed Warriors will be available in the following formats:      


- 2CD Deluxe Box incl. Bonus Jewel Case CD with 5 bonus tracks, wristband (embroided), poster flag (100x70cm), gaming coin keyring/pendant (with leathercord), packed in a gym bag (Napalm Records Mailorder exclusive) - strictly limited to 300 copies worldwide
- 1LP Gatefold Turquoise marbled Vinyl incl. slipmat, record butler (Napalm Records Mailorder exclusive) - strictly limited to 200 copies worldwide   
- 1LP Gatefold Purple Vinyl (Napalm Records Mailorder exclusive) - strictly limited to 400 copies worldwide
- 1LP Gatefold Orange Vinyl (Retail UK exclusive) - strictly limited to 300 copies   
- 1LP Gatefold Black Vinyl     
- 1CD Digisleeve incl. 1 Bonus Track               
- Digital Album incl. 3 Bonus Tracks


Pre-Order your copy of Warp Speed Warriors here.





Warp Speed Warriors tracklisting:


"Astro Warrior Anthem"
"Power Of The Triforce"
"Kingdom of Steel"
"Burning Heart"
"Space Marine Corp"
"Doomsday Party"
"Prelude to Darkness"
"The Killer Queen"
"Pixel Prison"


"Power Of The Triforce" video:





DragonForce is preparing for their epic European co-headline tour with Amaranth and special guests Infected Rain. Kicking off in February 2024 in Hamburg, the tour is selling out fast with shows already sold out months in advance.





DragonForce is:


Herman Li - Guitar, Backing Vocals
Sam Totman - Guitar, Backing Vocals
Marc Hudson - Vocals
Alicia Vigil - Bass, Backing Vocals
Gee Anzalone - Drums, Backing Vocals


(Photo - Travis Shinn)

Game Over has released a video for “Path Of Pain”, fourth single taken from the new album Hellframes released in October through Scarlet Records. Video by Alex Visani / Empire Video:





Recorded at Raptor Recording Studio and spine-chillingly illustrated by the horror master Mario López, Hellframes is available in the following formats:




- jewel case CD
- vinyl (black/marbled red limited 100 copies/marbled blue limited 100 copies)
- digital


Order at the Scarlet Records webshop.


Hellframes is a neck-breaking album where Game Over keep delivering their rabid, insane brand of thrash metal and pushing the songwriting out of the comfort zone at the same time. A frantic mix of thrashing madness, punk attitude, infecting melodies and some creepy obscure atmospheres.


Lyrically-wise, a couple of tracks are intricately woven together, telling the tale of a 15th century priest who birthed an occult cult, re-discovered in modern times through technology and unleashing unspeakable evil from hell. Other songs delve into the depths of human existence and mind – exploring pain, fear, and the relentless struggles we face every day.


Artwork by Mario López:





"Synthetic Dreams" video:





Game Over:
Renato "Reno" Chiccoli - vocals, bass
Alessandro "Sanso" Sansone - guitar
Luca "Ziro" Zironi - guitar
Anthony "Vender" Dantone - drums


(Photo – Elisa Catozzi)

In a new interview with Germany's Rock Antenne, IRON MAIDEN frontman Bruce Dickinson was asked how he keeps his singing voice in shape after touring and recording for several decades. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Uh, I don't know. A certain amount of it is probably the way I'm made. And then a lot of it is trying to look after the bits that you've already got. And other than that… I think the voice, it does change as you get older. I mean, there's no doubting that, but I've been lucky that most of my highs are still there. And we do all the MAIDEN show in the original key, all the songs and everything. Which is not to say that one or two of the songs aren't quite challenging. But I have news for you: they were always challenging; when I was 25, they were challenging."

He continued: "The tone of my voice has changed a little bit, and in many ways I like it more now than I did when I was 23. 23, I was like shiny and squeaky. Your voice becomes more lived in. You can express more emotion, you can carry more emotion. So, for example, there's a song on [my upcoming solo] album ['The Mandrake Project'] called 'Rain On The Graves'. I couldn't have sung that song when I was 22 years old in the same way. So it's interesting to see how the kind of emotional life of the voice develops over the years. So that's the kind of the realm that I'm trying. I'm trying to extend the range, the emotional range of my voice, as much as preserve the physical range at the same time."

Dickinson also talked about his diet and exercise routine and how it affects his singing voice. He said: "I maybe changed a couple of minor things on my diet. I don't eat as much bread, but mainly that's because my wife is French, so I'm completely indoctrinated into the ways of French bread. And I'd rather not eat bread at all than eat rubbish, like industrial bread. So I'm sold on that idea. So I actually eat a lot less bread and I try and eat a bit more protein than I used to. And I do sometimes go down the gym and throw a few bits of iron around. And I still train fencing, and I don't think people realize how physical that sport is, 'cause you're covered in white and you're wearing a mask. So it's like people say, 'Grand Prix drivers, they don't they don't do much hard work, do they?' Because they're all covered in the suit and they've got a helmet on, but they're losing god knows how many kilos of water. They work physically incredibly hard. And the same thing on stage. I mean, on stage with MAIDEN, I'm losing about three liters of water during a show. I probably drink a liter and a half or two liters during the show. And so when I go back to my hotel room, I'm still a liter short of where I should be, so that I just gradually make that up. As a singer, 'cause I sing from my diaphragm and all the good things you should do, it's not happy if you chuck an entire liter of water into your belly."

Bruce previously discussed his singing technique during the question-and-answer session at his January 2023 spoken-word appearance at Slagthuset in Malmö, Sweden. Asked how he takes care of his voice, he responded: "Well, it's not that I take care of it — I kind of do — but I just try not to abuse it, if that makes sense. 'Cause the voice will kind of take care of itself, as long as you don't abuse it. So, yeah, common-sense things: drink plenty of water, don't smoke loads and loads of cigarettes or gargle with razor blades before a show, and anything else like that. And preferably don't go out to a football match the night before a gig and [yell at the players and the referee], 'cause afterwards [you will have no voice left]. So, obvious things like that. Warm up a little bit and everything else. Oh, and the other thing is, learn how to sing. It helps."

In a 2017 interview with the Scandinavian talk show "Skavlan", Bruce said about how he preserves his vocal cords: "Your voice is a muscle, like anything else, and as long as you don't abuse it and you use it correctly, then it will last.

"I'm not a great believer that a voice is just about singing," he continued. "A voice is a tool for communication. And as a singer, all you are, really, is a storyteller, and it just so happens that, obviously, with my voice I tell stories a particular way, but if you're Leonard Cohen, you have a different voice and you still tell great stories.

"When I got diagnosed with throat cancer [in 2014], the thought occurred to me I might not be able to sing again," Bruce said. "Thankfully, that was not the case. But I did think about it, and I thought, 'You know what? Even if my voice changed completely, it still doesn't mean I can't tell stories.' Maybe I'd have to tell them a different way. Maybe I couldn't do them with IRON MAIDEN. But it still doesn't stop you… If what you want to do is tell stories, then you find a way to do it."

According to Bruce, "talking is disaster for the voice. Because when you sing, all the muscles in the voice are used in completely the opposite way to when you talk," he explained. "So I'm talking to you now and I'm using everything from here [points to his throat] down. Well, when I'm singing, I'm using everything from here up. So all it is is… Think of it like an organ pipe — basically, lots of rest, sleep, plenty of water, keep it hydrated. Don't go out yelling in pubs after the show."

In early 2015, Dickinson underwent a seven-week course of chemotherapy and radiology to treat a small cancerous tumor at the back of his tongue. A couple of months later, he was given "the all-clear" by his specialists following an MRI scan.

Also in 2017, Dickinson spoke to the Swedish TV show "Malou Efter Tio" about how his singing voice has changed following his cancer diagnosis. He said: "[It's] a little bit different. Two things are slightly different. One is my saliva, which obviously lubricates your throat a little bit, is a bit less than it used to be. Although, back ten years ago, if I had the same cancer, I wouldn't be making any saliva. But now, I'm probably 70 percent, which is great. Thanks very much, everybody upstairs. [Laughs] And the other things is that I think that the shape of possibly the back of my tongue, which forms vowel sounds and things like that, might have changed shape slightly, because, obviously, it had a big lump in it, and the lump's gone. So maybe the surface has changed shape. So I notice a few differences. Funnily enough, the top end of my voice is maybe even a little bit better than it was before. [Laughs]"

In a new interview with Australia's Heavy, COAL CHAMBER frontman Dez Fafara was asked to elaborate on his comment that the band's 2015 album "Rivals" was released nearly a decade "too early". He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "True story. Nu metal wasn't in the place it was ten, twelve years ago. If we would have released 'Rivals' today, and I'm telling you, anybody watching this that gives a shit about COAL CHAMBER, go after this and listen to 'Rivals'. I mean, it's got Al Jourgensen from MINISTRY on it. It's a fucking great record. And I just think we released it at a time in our lives when we didn't have our shit straight, so the band wasn't cohesive, but the music was. And obviously the whole nu metal thing or whatever hadn't really swung around. I mean, some bands had remained large — KORN, et cetera — but it hadn't really swung around. Now we do meet-and-greets and it's all 20-year-old kids that were born when we fucking broke up. So there's something happening right now that's extremely special. Because a lot of these bands that came out at that time, the bands that I forementioned with, along with COAL CHAMBER, were doing something extremely authentic and from our hearts, and we didn't know what the fuck we were doing. I mean, it's literally like picking up a paintbrush that you've never used before and just, 'Let's see what this will do.' The next thing you know, you're looking at something that no one's ever done, and you're, like, 'I don't know. Let's put it out. Oh shit, people like it? Weird. Cool. We like it too. And if we like it and they like it, there's something fucking authentic to it.' There's no big mystery. And if it's not authentic, people will feel it."

He continued: "I believe there's a lot of bands that came out on that third wave of nu metal that, for me, were way too radio pop-driven, not authentic, in my opinion. But COAL CHAMBER reserves the right to say, yeah, we were coming from our heart. And 'Rivals' especially, because when we wrote that, we were in another kind of tumultuous time in between us as writers, and I think that push and pull really made for that record, 'cause it's fantastic, that record."

Asked if there is any new music in the works from COAL CHAMBER, Dez said: "I'm not a guy who sits around and watches TV, so there's always music in the works. That's what I gotta say. There's always music in the works, man, and after what I survived in my past year, I'm gonna make as much music as I possibly can. If something happened to me today, my wife has hard drives and hard drives of music from me, making it with different people and different circumstances. But it's all I do. I woke up this morning and we were having coffee, and after 15 minutes, she looked at me, she's, like, 'Good morning,' actually saying to me, like, 'What are you doing?' And I was writing a song. I was on my phone writing notes, and I wrote something I think is fantastic. So this is kind of what I do. I can't stop. I think there's a drive there. So we'll see."

COAL CHAMBER recently completed a U.S. tour as the support act for MUDVAYNE. Additional support on the 26-city "The Psychotherapy Sessions" trek, which was produced by Live Nation, came from GWAR, NONPOINT and BUTCHER BABIES.

COAL CHAMBER played its first two shows in eight years at the Sick New World festival in Las Vegas in May and at the Inkcarceration Music And Tattoo Festival in Mansfield, Ohio in July.

COAL CHAMBER existed for ten years before disbanding in 2003 to pursue other musical projects. They reunited in 2011 for touring purposes but it wasn't until 2014 that the band began work on a new studio album of original material, 2015's "Rivals". Several months of touring activity followed before Dez returned to DEVILDRIVER to make a new record, 2016's "Trust No One".

Image credit: IFM RAW

"Ride", the new single produced by Joey Zampella and video off Killcode's latest album Life, Death, Rock N' Roll directed by David Swajeski is being premiered exclusively by BraveWords! Watch below and listen to the single here.





"With one last shot at redemption, a man returns to the scene of happier times, to turn back the years, and reclaim his winning ways. Haunted by opportunities lost, and memories of a past life, will one spin of the roulette wheel bring back all that he lost? Life is a journey full of choices and sometimes you make the wrong ones. You play the hand you’re dealt, no matter what the odds. Quitting is not an option. We never know what twist and turns will happen next. But in a city that never sleeps there is a fine line between dreams and reality. Sometimes the only option is to spin the wheel and let it ride. And just maybe lady luck will push things your way."




Killcode is a five-piece American based rock band that hails from New York City. Their unique sound and style has been described as Southern infused Rock/ Metal with melodic, hard edged vocals. The songs are hooky super charged anthems with big guitars and driving rhythms that pump a shot of adrenaline into your system the moment you hear them.





Life, Death, Rock N’ Roll is an album made up of songs about life's ups and downs, the hang and the hangover and how we deal with it all. The joys, struggles and loss that we all live through and that the band personally dealt with while writing and recording this album. The songs range from high energy rockers and brooding hard rock, to introspective personal songs. Most of the songs were recorded during a time when most people in the world were scrambling to find a sense of normalcy and the album reflects how we all can overcome this and come back stronger than ever.


(Photo – Keith Celentano)

AniMaze X is a project started by the members of best selling D-Metal Stars / AniMetal USA, featuring Michael Vescera (vocals / Obsession, ex-Loudness), John Bruno (guitars / Obsession), Rudy Sarzo (bass / The Guess Who, ex.Ozzy Osbourne, ex-Quiet Riot) and BJ Zampa (drums / House Of Lords). The project focuses on a wider variety of music themes such as superheros,  popular cartoons, Broadway musicals, movie soundtracks, and more.


The new line-up featuring Vescera, Bruno, drummer Yanni Sofianos and bassist Mike Nunno have released their metal rendition of the Christmas classic "Sleigh Ride". Check it out below.


 




In 2020, AniMaze X released the Amazing Christmas album, which can be streamed on Spotify. Check it out via the player / link below.

Legendary progressive power metallers CRIMSON GLORY are returning with new lead vocalist, new guitarist and immediate plans to release two new singles.

Founding CRIMSON GLORY members Ben Jackson (guitar), Jeff Lords (bass) and Dana Burnell (drums) are being joined by new lead vocalist Travis Wills of the Dallas, Texas progressive power metal band INFIDEL RISING and guitarist Mark "Borgy" Borgmeyer of the Sarasota/Bradenton, Florida hard rock act THE LOST BOYS.

Two new singles, titled "Triskaideka" and "Indelible Ashes", are slated for release. The first song, "Triskaideka", is available now on the band's official web site, theofficialcrimsonglory.com

CRIMSON GLORY will premiere the lyric video for "Triskaideka" on January 20, 2024.

The band will play some select European live concert dates in October 2024. More details will be announced soon.

CRIMSON GLORY has been largely inactive since singer Todd La Torre officially quit the band in February 2013.

La Torre, who joined Seattle-based progressive metal icons QUEENSRŸCHE in June 2012 as the replacement for Geoff Tate, became an official member of CRIMSON GLORY in April 2010 and played a number of shows with the Florida metal act during the two-and-a-half-year period prior to his exit.

A "raw" version of a new CRIMSON GLORY demo track titled "Garden Of Shadows", featuring La Torre on vocals, was released in September 2012 and was supposed to appear on the band's new concept record, which was expected sometime in 2013.

In announcing his departure from CRIMSON GLORY, La Torre said that his involvement with QUEENSRŸCHE "had nothing to do" with his decision to leave CRIMSON GLORY, adding that the "main reason" for his "resignation" was "primarily" due to the latter band's "inertia status."

La Torre made his first public appearance with CRIMSON GLORY at ProgPower USA X as one of 17 guest performers paying tribute to Midnight, the band's original singer.

Midnight passed away in 2009 due to long-term health complications.

Wade Black sang on CRIMSON GLORY's 1999 album "Astronomica" and took part in a subsequent European tour.

David Van Landing replaced Midnight briefly for the U.S. tour in support of CRIMSON GLORY's third album, 1991's "Strange And Beautiful".

Travis Wills photo courtesy of INFIDEL RISING

Want to see how "Best Of The Best Of The Best" shreds guitar with speed and headbanging finesse... Then check out Canadian heavy metal champs Striker's new playthrough with Tim Brown and John Simon Fallon ripping it up for this single off their forthcoming album, ULTRAPOWER, out February 2.


“If you’re not simultaneously leaping into the bed of a truck while it’s doing a burnout as you rip through a killer riff, are you even shredding?," says guitarist John Simon Fallon.







ULTRAPOWER follows Striker's Juno Award-winning self-released full-length Play To Win (2018) released on their label Record Breaking Records and features the band's latest lineup addition of long-time friend and guitarist John Simon Fallon (The Order of Chaos). For the band's seventh full-length, they teamed up with producer Josh Schroeder (Lorna Shore, Tallah, King 810), entering the studio this past March. With the band writing material since 2018, ULTRAPOWER is a collection of Striker tinkering and exploring new avenues.


"ULTRAPOWER is the amalgamation of 5 years of writing and exploring music. With influences from AOR to Speed Metal, Hardcore to Hair Metal, Steely Dan to Deathcore, you name it, it made its way into the album. In the end with the help of Josh Schroeder’s guiding hand, we melted it all together to present something uniquely Striker. Lyrically we’ve stuck to the Striker tradition of writing montage songs for movies that don’t exist, songs about our spiraling serfdom, and lyrics about the evils that lurk in the shadows," adds the band.


The album artwork created by Al Perez / Ramone Sketch (@ramonesketch) and the tracklisting for ULTRAPOWER can be seen below. ULTRAPOWER is available for pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"Circle Of Evil"
"Best Of The Best Of The Best"
"Give it All"
"Blood Magic"
"Sucks To Suck"
"Ready For Anything"
"City Calling"
"Turn The Lights Out"
"Thunderdome"
"Live To Fight Another Day"
"Brawl At The Pub"


"Circle Of Evil" video:





"Best Of The Best Of The Best" video:





In additional news, Striker have announced they will be joining the Legions Of Metal 2024 lineup being hosted in Chicago, IL on May 3 and 4 at Reggie's. Details here. They will be performing alongside Unleash The Archers, WatchTower, Hirax, Mourn The Light, and Ice Howl among more to be announced at a later date.


(Photo - Dana Zuk)

On a recent episode of the "Talk Louder" podcast, hosted by veteran music journalist "Metal Dave" Glessner and lifelong hard rock/metal vocalist Jason McMaster (DANGEROUS TOYS),METAL CHURCH singer Marc Lopes spoke about the band's plans for the coming months. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "December 8th, we are playing in Santa Ana. We're doing a warmup show, and then we're going to Australia. And then we're taking January and February off, and then in March, we're gonna start the whole next year of things."

He continued: "As far as the next record, we've been talking a lot about it. I've got about a list this long of idea ideas. We might be doing something to release before the March tour for fun that's really fricking cool that we came up with on the bus a couple of weeks ago by accident. I'm, like, 'Dude.' And Kurdt's [Vanderhoof, METAL CHURCH guitarist], like, 'Dude.' And I'm, like, 'Let's do it.' [Laughs] So we might do this one fun thing. I'm gonna say, yeah, we're gonna make it happen. It's too easy not to do and it'd be a lot of fun and it'd be cool."

Asked if the 2024 tour will cover the U.S., Marc said: "It's gonna be all over. The March stuff is looking like it's gonna be a U.S., and then we'll go to Europe. And there's talk of Canada or Mexico. We're just gonna go wild. We're gonna do as much, as much, as much as possible. And probably looking like we'll go into the end of the year, go and start to do another record. The fires are hot and we're just gonna keep it burning."

METAL CHURCH made its live debut with Lopes on June 3 at the Legions Of Metal festival at Reggies in Chicago, Illinois.

Lopes joined METAL CHURCH in the summer of 2022 as the replacement for Mike Howe, who tragically passed away in July of 2021. The band's current lineup is rounded out by founding guitarist Kurdt Vanderhoof, guitarist Rick Van Zandt, bassist Steve Unger and drummer Stet Howland.

Lopes's first studio album with METAL CHURCH, "Congregation Of Annihilation" came out on May 26 via Rat Pak Records (America) and Reaper Entertainment (Europe). The LP was produced by Vanderhoof.

When Lopes's addition to METAL CHURCH was first announced in early February, Vanderhoof wrote in a social media post: "We auditioned a handful of vocalists and while they were all great, Marc quickly became the clear choice.

"Both David Wayne and Mike Howe had a very unique, irreplaceable quality to their voices, so we were not looking for a clone of either. We wanted someone new, who could embrace the past, and also bring something fresh and exciting to the mix.

"Marc brings a very classic yet modern feel to the songs."

Image credit: Hadesmetal

Earlier this year, German power metallers, Sculforge, released their debut album, Intergalactic Battle Tunes via MDD Records.


The high speed power metallers are giving their fans a special pre-Christmas present. After the release of Intergalactic Battle Tunes, a new, previously unreleased track, "Far Away From Home", is out now as a single on all streaming platforms. A video can be viewed below.


The band comments on the track: "The song hit it really hard on the head and not singing along is no longer possible after the first chorus at the latest. The gas pedal to the floor and all holes well sealed! The next ride goes backwards! Cheers! The song is about how Sculforge celebrates Christmas. They enter your place, drink all your beer and the pile you find in your litter box the next morning.... Might be a bit too big for a cat."







Experience the epic saga of intergalactic warfare like never before with Sculforge's debut album, Intergalactic Battle Tunes. This groundbreaking high-speed power metal journey takes you from the dark side of the moon, through the Milky Way, and beyond!


Intergalactic Battle Tunes packs an epic punch with 26 riveting tracks. Each song is an intricate tapestry of power and thrash metal, punctuated by radio-play-like interludes that progress the thrilling narrative. Standouts include "Into The Never", "For The Omnisavior" and "The Sculforge Inn Incident." This album isn't just a collection of songs—it's a high-octane journey through time and space.


The band's unique line-up includes Polly McSculwood (Vocals & Guitar), Fabz McBlackscul (Guitar), Ariz Guinto (Bass), and Chris Merzinsky (Drums & Piano), all contributing to a virtuoso and fresh musical experience that fans of Helloween, Rhapsody, and Blind Guardian will adore.


Capturing the frenetic energy of their concept, the album was meticulously recorded at Hell’s Kitchen Studio Berlin and produced, mixed, and mastered by Fabian Pospiech & Sculforge. The cover by Aleh_z, and artwork by Oliver Göler & Fabian Pospiech, complement the saga's vast, mysterious universe.





Tracklist:


"Into The Never"
"Lost In The Warp"
"Forbidden Knowledge"
"For The Omnisavior"
"For Honor"
"Spacehull"
"Lost And Found"
"Dark Ruins"
"The Sovereign Protects"
"Secrets Unlocked"
"Slave To The Machine"
"The Extraction"
"Extermination"
"A New Hope"
"Castilla Stands"
"Glorious"
"Schwanengesang"
"The Escape"
"Epitaph"
"Kings Of The Battlefield"
"Reign Of Chaos"
"Follow Me"
"Into The Depths"
"Heart Of Darkness"
"The Sculforge Inn Incident"
"Sculforge Inn"


"Kings Of The Battlefield" video:





"Glorious" video:

Professionally-filmed footage of symphonic metal titans Epica's full live set from from Pol'And'Rock Festival 2023, held between August 3-5 at the former Czaplinek-Broczyno Airfield, is available for streaming below.


Epica's setlist:


"Alpha"
"Abyss Of Time"
"The Essence Of Silence"
"Unchain Utopia"
"The Obsessive Devotion"
"The Skeleton Key"
"Code Of Life"
"Beyond The Matrix"
"Consign To Oblivion"







Recorded in early 2023 at the band’s biggest Dutch headline show to date, Live At The AFAS Live captures the electrifying stage energy of Epica with some of their biggest hits.





Recently released on all digital platforms, this will be the final sign of life before the band returns to the studio to write their new album. Stream the full EP on all platforms now, here.


You can watch the live video for "Code Of Life" (Live At The AFAS Live) below.


Guitarist Isaac Delahaye comments: “It’s always a pleasure to play this fan-favorite track, and to take the crowd with us while we build up to the massive groove and have a headbang party together. Enjoy listening & watching 'Code Of Life' as performed earlier this year in Amsterdam!”





Watch "Beyond The Matrix" from the same show, below:

The DeadMike.com YouTube channel has shared video of WARRANT's December 16 concert at the Smart Financial Centre in Sugar Land, Texas. You can check out the clips below.

Bassist Jerry Dixon did not perform with WARRANT in Sugar Land. Filling in for him at the gig was Robbie Crane, who has had stints with Vince Neil's band, RATT and LYNCH MOB, before joining BLACK STAR RIDERS as a full-time member.

In a recent interview with Robert Miguel of Uvalde Radio Rocks, WARRANT guitarist Erik Turner was asked if there has been any talk of a follow-up to 2017's "Louder Harder Faster" album. He responded: "We're not sure what we're gonna do as far as new music. It's just been a little bit — there's just been some stuff going on where we haven't really been doing any new music. We have some riffs [being thrown] around. We have some half-finished songs going on. Due to some personal stuff going on, we're just kind of on hold as far as the new record goes. Nothing horrible, but just band stuff."

This past March, WARRANT guitarist Joey Allen told Mankato, Minnesota's "The Five Count" radio show that he and his bandmates were "actually writing right now for a record. So people are sending riffs around. You can do it on the Internet nowadays," he explained. "We just have a cloud-based files system where we just upload ideas. And somebody will take an idea, a music idea, and put some lyrics to it, and we'll start to craft our songs. So maybe by this fall we'll dig into the studio again and [record] the follow-up to 'Louder Harder Faster', which came out, I think, six years ago this year. The recording process takes about four or five weeks, so maybe early next year we'll have something new out for everybody to listen to and back on the road we will go to support that."

More than two years ago, WARRANT singer Robert Mason told the "Thunder Underground" podcast that there wasn't "a defined schedule" for the group's next studio album, but he added that he and his bandmates are "always writing."

In 2020, Turner told the "Talking Metal" podcast that WARRANT was "throwing some ideas around" for a new LP. He said: "I've been sending Robert some riffs, and Robert's been working on songs. I've got a song going with Jerry. So it's a slow, long process for us, but the seed of a new record has been started. Now, that doesn't mean the seed will grow into a record. We've got a long way to go. We don't have one finished song. We've got a couple of things cooking, and we're actually sending ideas around back and forth to each other."

"Louder Harder Faster" was released in May 2017. The disc was recorded with producer Jeff Pilson — a veteran bassist who has played with DIO, FOREIGNER, DOKKEN and T&N, among others — and was mixed by Pat Regan, except for the song "I Think I'll Just Stay Here And Drink", which was mixed by Chris "The Wizard" Collier (FLOTSAM AND JETSAM, PRONG, LAST IN LINE).

Mason replaced original WARRANT frontman Jani Lane in 2008 and has brought a degree of stability to the band after Lane's unceremonious departure and subsequent 2011 death.

WARRANT is rounded out by original drummer Steven Sweet.

Tonight December 16, 2023
#WARRANT, #WINGER, #LITAFORD, #STEELHEART

Smart Financial Centre at Sugar Land
18111 Lexington Blvd
Sugar Land, TX

Tickets at: smartfinancialcentre.net

Posted by Marten Andersson on Saturday, December 16, 2023