U.K. doom metal legends MY DYING BRIDE will release their new EP, "Bring Me Victory", on October 26 via Peaceville Records. The CD was recorded at Futureworks studio in Manchester.

The track listing is as follows:

01. Bring Me Victory
02. Scarborough Fair
03. Failure (THE SWANS cover)
04. Vast Choirs (live at Graspop Metal Meeting 2008)

Finnish metallers KALMAH have completed work on their sixth album for an early 2010 release via Spinefarm Records. The CD, which previously had a working title of "12 Gauge", was recorded between June and August 2009 at Tico Tico studio in Kemi, Finland and was mastered at the Cutting Room in Sweden. Nine new songs and one cover version were laid down during the sessions which "went pretty smoothly," the band says. "We had everything pretty much ready before the studio and it was easy to just concentrate on the sound and perfection of the performance. The sound, well, of course the sound is great. We managed to dig out more depression and aggression overall."

KALMAH adds, "From now on, we are concentrating on the cover art, booklet and stuff.

"We have some upcoming shows at Russia in the beginning of November and we are planning for Finnish shows at the beginning of 2010."

A performance clip of "Final Resistance", taken from DARK TRANQUILLITY's forthcoming "Where Death Is Most Alive" CD/DVD, is available for viewing below. The footage was filmed on October 31, 2008 in Milan, Italy — a concert which makes up the upcoming DVD's main feature. Disc 1 contains 20 tracks recorded at the Milan show while disc 2 offers the "Out Of Nothing" DARK TRANQUILLITY documentary, another 21 rare live videos and all of the band's previously released promotional clips.

In other news, DARK TRANQUILLITY has announced a special 20th-anniversary party in its hometown of Gothenburg, Sweden.

Commented vocalist Mikael Stanne: "The day is drawing near. The day when we celebrate our 20th anniversary by releasing this DVD that we've been working our asses off on. The result is something that we feel is pretty spectacular and we felt like sharing it with some our friends and fans. So we figured what better way to do so than to have a special screening right here in Gothenburg. Right in the heart of the city in one of our most classic movie theaters.

"So, on the 30th of October, at Bio Roy, the 'Where Death Is Most Alive' DVD will screen for the first and only time. And not only will we have the most awesome opening act ever in the form of SLAUGHTER OF THE BLUEGRASS doing their first-ever gig, all attendees will also receive a 'The Dying Fragments' special CD with ultra-rare live material featuring never-recorded songs. This will only be given out on this day and is limited to 333 copies. So log in to www.bioroy.se now and book your tickets for 60 SEK. This will be a night to remember!"

After the DVD premier at the Bio Roy movie theater, the party will move to the metal bar Henriksberg, with Stanne and others handling DJ duties.

"The Dying Fragments" CD track listing:

01. Only Time Can Tell * (Rehearsal, Billdal 1991)
02. The Dying Fragment Of An Elderly Dream ** (Valvet, Gothenburg 1991)
03. Soulbreed ** (Ljungskile 1991)
04. Yesterworld (Musikens Hus, Gothenburg 1992)
05. Alone (Fågeln, Gothenburg 1992)
06. My Faeryland Forgotten (Fågeln, Gothenburg 1992)
07. Nightfall By The Shore Of Time (Fågeln, Gothenburg 1992)
08. Skywards (Gamlestaden, Gothenburg 1992)
09. Shadow Duet (Karlstad 1994)
10. Crimson Winds (Karlstad 1994)
11. Razorfever (Rotterdam, Holland 1997)
12. Constant (Rotterdam, Holland 1997)
13. Tongues (Rotterdam, Holland 1997)

* This song originally appeared on the "Septic Broiler" demo in 1990
** You won't find these two tracks anywhere else

A three-minute audio sample of the new EPICA track "Martyr of the Free Word" can be streamed using the audio player below. The song comes off the Dutch female-fronted symphonic metallers' new album, "Design Your Universe", which is due in Europe on October 16 . The follow-up to 2007's "The Divine Conspiracy" was recorded at Gate Studio in Wolfsburg, Germany with producer Sascha Paeth.

"Design Your Universe" track listing:

01. Samadhi (prelude)
02. Resign to Surrender (A New Age Dawns - Part IV)
03. Unleashed
04. Martyr of the Free Word
05. Our Destiny
06. Kingdom of Heaven (A New Age Dawns - Part V)
07. The Price of Freedom (interlude)
08. Burn to a Cinder
09. Tides of Time
10. Deconstruct
11. Semblance of Liberty
12. White Waters
13. Design Your Universe (A New Age Dawns - Part VI)

Veteran Los Angeles metallers ARMORED SAINT will enter Tranzformer Studios in Burbank, California on October 12 to begin recording their sixth full-length album. The SAINT will be working with Bryan Carlstrom, who will once again handle engineering duties, with the band's very own Joey Vera (bass) in the producer's chair. Joey and Bryan will mix the record, which is scheduled for release in early 2010 via Metal Blade Records.

The as-yet-untitled CD will feature the following songs, among others:

* Black Feet
* Chilled
* Loose Cannon
* Blues
* La Raza
* Head On
* Get Off The Fence
* Left Hook From Right Field

"All Shall Fall", the new album from reunited Norwegian black metallers IMMORTAL, will be released in North America on October 6 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD, which was issued in Europe on September 25, was recorded at Grieghallen and Abyss studios in Norway and Sweden, respectively.

The "Blashyrkh Limited Edition Bag" version of "All Shall Fall" includes:

* Digipak version of "All Shall Fall"
* Logo t-shirt (size of your choice)
* Abbath's replica battle axe in the form of a stainless steel pendant
* Four buttons
* Double-sided poster
* Special black IMMORTAL plastic bag

Reactivated NWOBHM legends TOKYO BLADE will release the "Live In Germany" CD and DVD on October 27 through Razar Ice Records. The effort was recorded last November at the Keep It True festival in Würzburg, Germany during the band's "Die By The Sword" tour.

"Live In Germany" was mixed and mastered by Sid Garcia at Sight 16 Studios in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

The DVD will contain bonus material, including tour rehearsal, candid footage with the band and additional live songs from throughout the 2008 tour.

"Live In Germany" track listing:

01. Intro - The Killer
02. Lovestruck
03. Lightning Strikes
04. Midnight Rendezvous
05. Death On Main St.
06. Dead Of The Night
07. Attack, Attack
08. Monkeys Blood
09. Long Live Rock and Roll
10. If Heaven Is Hell
11. Night Of The Blade

Bonus tracks:

12. Someone To Love *
13. Blackhearts and Jaded Spades *
14. Unleash The Beast *

Frontiers Records has set a November 6 European release date for CINDERELLA's "Live at the Mohegan Sun" album.

Featuring the all-original line-up of Tom Keifer (vocals, guitar), Eric Brittingham (bass), Jeff LaBar (guitar) and Fred Coury (drums), the CD features a recording of the band's July 21, 2005 concert in Uncasville, Connecticut on the VH1-sponsored "Rock Never Stops" package tour, which included support from RATT, QUIET RIOT and FIREHOUSE. The LP is being released in Europe as an appetizer to the ultimate live return of the band on the European soil, which is planned for the year 2010!

"Live at the Mohegan Sun" track listing:

01. Intro
02. Night Songs
03. The Last Mile
04. Somebody Save Me
05. Heartbreak Station
06. Coming Home
07. Shelter Me
08. Nobody's Fool
09. Gypsy Road
10. Don't Know What You Got ('Till It's Gone)
11. Shake Me
12. Fallin' Apart At The Seams *
13. Push Push *
14. Still Climbing *

* Bonus tracks available on the first pressing in digipack

Yngwie Malmsteen's Rising Force Records will soon begin releasing rare archival concert footage that many Malmsteen collectors will want to have. The first is Yngwie in Korea, which will be officially released October 13, 2009. This is the raw footage that was shot by the Korean media, and it features no bells and whistles.

"Live In Korea" DVD track listing:

01. Rising Force
02. Catch 22
03. Crucify
04. The Wizard
05. Adagio
06. Far Beyond The Sun
07. Wild One
08. Miracle Of Life
09. Bad Reputation
10. Trilogy Suite - Guitar Solo
11. Masquerade
12. Seventh Sign
13. Acoustic Solo - Black Star
14. I'll See The Light

Liechtenstein-based gothic metallers ELIS will release their new album, "Catharsis", via Napalm Records on the following dates:

Nov. 25 - Finland & Spain
Nov. 27 - Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Benelux & Italy
Nov. 30 - Rest of Europe
Dec. 15 - USA
Jan. 12 - Canada

The follow-up to 2006's "Griefshire", "Catharsis" was recorded at Mastersound Studio in Germany with producer Alex Krull (ATROCITY, LEAVES' EYES) and marks the band's first full-length recording with Sandra Schleret, who joined ELIS in December 2006.

"Catharsis" will be released with two different designs — jewel case and the digipack — both of which were created by Stefan "Heile" Heilemann and which can be viewed below.

"Catharsis" track listing:

01. Core Of Live
02. Twinkling Shadow
03. Warrior's Tale
04. Des Lebens Traum, des Traumes Leben
05. I Come Undone
06. Firefly
07. Morning Star
08. Das Kleine Ungeheuer
09. Mother's Fire
10. Rainbow
11. The Dark Bridge
12. Ghost Of The Past (bonus on digipack)
13. No Hero (bonus on digipack)

The digipack version of "Catharsis" will include a bonus DVD featuring a recording of the band's performance at the Metal Female Voices Fest in 2007 in Wieze, Belgium.

Bonus DVD track listing:

01. Intro
02. Tales From Heaven Or Hell
03. Die Zeit
04. Show Me The Way
05. Phoenix From The Ashes
06. Der Letzte Tag
07. Lost Soul
08. A New Decade
09. Heaven And Hell

"Sending Signals", the new video from Jacksonville, Florida's EVERGREEN TERRACE, can be viewed here. The song comes off the group's new full-length album, "Almost Home", which was released on September 29 via Metal Blade Records.

Continuing its blistering combination of melodic hardcore and metal, EVERGREEN TERRACE has gone back to its roots on "Almost Home". "I think this record will surprise the new listeners as well as have the old ones stoked," stated guitarist Josh James. " I'd say its best described as a good mixture of 'Burned Alive by Time' [2002] and 'Wolfbiker' [2007]."

Splitting the recording process of the album in half, the band tracked all the music at Martell Studios and all of the vocals at AudioHammer (AUGUST BURNS RED, BURY YOUR DEAD, TRIVIUM, etc.).

"We've always had a lot of pop culture references in our song titles and this record is no exception," said James. "Before we even started writing new songs, we already have a list of titles from books, movies, and comedians. Half of the song titles on this record are pulled from the lyrics. The others are pop culture references that relate to the lyrical content."

"Almost Home" track listing:

01. Enemy Sex
02. Almost Home (III)
03. God Rocky is This Your Face?
04. We're Always Losing Blood
05. Sending Signals
06. Mario Speedwagon
07. Failure to Operate
08. Hopelessly Hopeless
09. The Letdown
10. I'm a Bulletproof Tiger
11. Not Good Enough

Norwegian extreme metallers THE KOVENANT have been confirmed for next year's installment of the Inferno festival, set to take place March 31 - April 3, 2010 in Oslo, Norway. The band will play the entire "Nexus Polaris" album live with original members Nagash, Psy Coma, Hellhammer, Sverd and Jezebel Deva.

THE KOVENANT was formed in 1992 by two black metal artists known as Nagash (Stian Arnesen) and Blackheart (Amund Svensson), who released the band's debut-album, "In Times Before the Light", in 1997. The band signed with the German record company Nuclear Blast in 1998 and recruited four other members to form an actual band: Astennu (of DIMMU BORGIR, CARPE TENEBRUM), Sverd (of ARCTURUS), Sarah Jezebel Deva (of CRADLE OF FILTH and others), and Hellhammer (of MAYHEM and others). With these new recruits, they released their second album, "Nexus Polaris", which was hugely successful and is largely considered their best album to date by fans. The album also resulted in the band getting a Norwegian Grammy-equivalent for "Best Hard Rock Band" in 1998.

Next year's Inferno festival will feature performances by the following artists:

MAYHEM
FINNTROLL
TAAKE
THE KOVENANT

Dutch death metallers TOXOCARA have issued the following update:

"As some might have noticed, some serious lineup changes have been going around in TOXOCARA lately. Former drummer Michiel van der Plicht joined the forces of GOD DETHRONED what will take all his time as a full-time musician. Guitarist Vince Zwarts is disarmed and has at this moment other musical interests and goals.

"TOXOCARA welcomes Romeo Gerrits (VICTIMIZER) as the replacement for Michiel van der Plicht and Petra Guijt (DEADCELL, SOULREAVER, THE 11TH HOUR) as the replacement for Vince Zwarts. The bass guitar will be abused by Barry Geerligs (DEATH SQUAD).

"As for now, the writing process of the third TOXOCARA album is almost finished. The album will again be released through Twilight-Vertrieb Records.

"From December 12, TOXOCARA will be performing live again, headlining the To Hellfest festival in Groesbeek, Holland."

TOXOCARA's second full-length album, "The Great Rebellious", was released in January 2008 via Twilight-Vertrieb.

St. Louis, Missouri's LYE BY MISTAKE will release its second album, "Fea Jur" (cover), on October 13 via Black Market Activities. A track from the CD, "Invincible Badass", is now available for streaming at this location.

According to a press release, "Invincible Badass" "showcases LYE BY MISTAKE's blazing prog-metal fusion (formerly with vocals, now instrumental) that has made fans out of members of BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME, among others." In an interview on MetalSucks.net in 2007, BTBAM bassist Dan Briggs was quoted as saying, "My buddies from St. Louis, LYE BY MISTAKE, I've just been listening to them so much lately. I can't get enough of them. They're honestly out of control... It's this balance of absolute insanity and really awesome, awesome brutality."
LYE BY MISTAKE have toured and played with the likes of BETWEEN THE BURIED AND ME, INTRONAUT, PSYOPUS, and BEHOLD... THE ARCTOPUS. Look for them on tour soon in support of "Fea Jur".

LYE BY MISTAKE's debut album, "Arrangements For Fulminating Vective", was released in 2006 via Lambgoat Records.

Epic doom metallers WHILE HEAVEN WEPT will release their long-awaited new album, "Vast Oceans Lachrymose", on November 3 in North America and November 6 in Europe via Cruz Del Sur Music.

Commented the band: "After five tumultuous years, approximately 14 years after it was first discussed (albeit with a different tracklist), anyway, the bottom line it is done. There's no doubt we could've continued working on it, but perhaps the details and minutia that would be affected are ultimately irrelevant to anyone outside of the band and our engineer Chris Salamone. Further, we literally worked up to the very last possible minute given the time necessary to manufacture and ship in time for the release dates. We will also be making the album and various tracks available electronically via all the existing options, and more details will be made available regarding that soon. Additionally, a 180gm audiophile LP version (in a stellar gatefold sleeve) will be released via Maniacal Records in a limited edition of 500 copies. The actual release date of this will be determined after we've had the chance to listen to the test pressings and insure all is well. Expect it before the end of the year, however."

"The Curse Of The Antichrist - Live In Agony", the new double live album from German thrash metal veterans DESTRUCTION, will be released in North America on October 13. The CD was issued in Europe on September 25 via AFM Records.

The song "Curse The Gods" from "The Curse Of The Antichrist - Live In Agony" is now available for streaming on the band's MySpace page.

The limited digipack edition of the album will feature the following track listing:

01. The Butcher Strikes Back
02. Curse The Gods
03. Mad Butcher
04. The Alliance Of Hellhoundz
05. D.E.V.O.L.U.T.I.O.N.
06. Eternal Ban
07. Urge The Greed Of Gain
08. Thrash Till Death
09. Metal Discharge
10. The Damned
11. Cracked Brain
12. Soulcollector
13. Death Trap
14. Unconscious Ruins
15. Life Without Sense
16. The 7 Deadly Sins
17. The Antichrist
18. Thrash Till Death
19. Reject Emotions (three drumkits Wacken Inferno version)
20. Total Desaster
21. Bestial Invasion

"Der Geistertreiber", the new video from Austrian blackened death metal outfit BELPHEGOR, can be viewed here. The clip was shot in Abtenau, Austria with director Walter Fanninger.

Commented frontman Helmuth: "The song is about the celebration on the 30th of April, better known as the Walpurgis Nacht, the occult celebrations on the broken mountain. It's the first time that we hired a professional camera team for a BELPHEGOR video, so the result is beyond amazing. We rented a cottage three days high in the mountains in middle of nowhere in the woods. There was nothing around. Just a lot of excess, alcohol, substances etc. Was a great intense time!"

"Der Geistertreiber" comes off BELPHEGOR's eighth full-length studio album, "Walpurgis Rites - Hexenwahn", which is scheduled for release on October 9 in Europe and October 20 in North American via Nuclear Blast Records. The follow-up to 2008's "Bondage Goat Zombie" was recorded at Andy Classen's (LEGION OF THE DAMNED, DEW-SCENTED, NEAERA, ASPHYX) Stage One Studios in Kassel, Germany.

"Walpurgis Rites Hexenwahn" track listing:

01. Walpurgis Rites
02. Veneratio Diaboli - I Am Sin
03. Hail The New Flesh
04. Reichswehr In Blood
05. The Crosses Made Of Bone
06. Der Geistertreiber
07. Destroyer Hekate
08. Enthralled Toxic Sabbath
09. Hexenwahn - Totenkult

Check out the cover artwork here.

The digipack version will include the video for the track "Der Geistertreiber" as well as making-of material.

Commented Helmuth: "With these nine compositions/arrangements, we continue to piss on the damn mainstream. It's BELPHEGOR to the highest; the hymns are extremely varied, more intense and epic than ever, [and] there are new elements and structures added. Also, we used some haunting samples here and there, to give the album a cold and ritualistic feel."

He continued, "On 'Walpurgis Rites - Hexenwahn', you will hear my most fucked up vocals to date; also the lyrical content is offensive and insane. The witch/devil concept is amazing to work with and we used alot of original chants/ incantations from archaic scripts."

BELPHEGOR has tapped Brazilian artist Marcelo Hvc to handle the graphics for the new album.

Added Serpenth: "The idea is to capture the okkultic orgiastic processions from the Broken Mountain, the Walpurgis night in the images."

CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED, the new project led by acclaimed metal drummer Richard Christy (ICED EARTH, DEATH, LEASH LAW, CONTROL DENIED, BURNING INSIDE), is putting the final touches on its debut album for an early 2010 release via Metal Blade Records. "I'm so pumped with how everything is sounding!" Richard says. "I'm so proud of this album and I cannot wait for everyone to hear it." He adds, "We're also in talks right now to play some live shows sometime next year which I'm also extremely psyched about! We also filmed tons of video in the studio which we're planning on doing something really cool with."

The recording sessions for the CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED CD took place at Audiohammer Studios in Sanford, Florida with producer Jason Suecof, who has previously worked with TRIVIUM, ALL THAT REMAINS, BURY YOUR DEAD, AUGUST BURNS RED, THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, DAATH, CHIMAIRA, DEVILDRIVER and GOD FORBID, among others.

In the spring of 2009, Christy, former drummer for DEATH and ICED EARTH, finished writing the music for a new project. The music for album began to take shape roughly two years ago, after several years of Richard being on a musical hiatus. And though Richard is mostly known for his drumming prowess, he has also actively played guitar since 1992. The project would come to be named CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED.

Upon completing the music for the album in 2009, Richard began to put together his dream band of musicians whom he considers to be some of the best in the world. Included in this musical collective is Suecof. Richard and Jason have been friends for over ten years and wrote music together for years while Richard resided in Florida. On vocals for CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED is none other than legendary metal vocalist, Tim "Ripper" Owens. Richard and Tim played together in ICED EARTH from 2003 to 2004. Tim "Ripper" Owens' first and most well-known gig was with metal legends JUDAS PRIEST. He currently performs with BEYOND FEAR and YNGWIE MALMSTEEN'S RISING FORCE. On bass guitar for CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED is one of metal's most heralded bassists, Steve DiGiorgio. Richard and Steve played together in the bands CONTROL DENIED and ICED EARTH. DiGiorgio has also performed with DEATH, AUTOPSY, CONTROL DENIED, TESTAMENT, VINTERSORG, ICED EARTH, and is a founding member of technical thrash pioneers SADUS. He is widely renowned for his technical skills, and is one of the very few bass players in the metal scene who plays fretless bass.

CHARRED WALLS OF THE DAMNED is:

* Richard Christy - Drums
* Jason Suecof - Guitar, Producer
* Tim "Ripper" Owens (JUDAS PRIEST, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, ICED EARTH) - Vocals
* Steve DiGiorgio (SADUS, TESTAMENT) - Bass

Legendary rocker Alice Cooper's brand-new Halloween single, "Keepin' Halloween Alive", is available for streaming on his MySpace page.

Shout! Factory and Cooper have announced an exclusive alliance to bring "Keepin' Halloween Alive" to the digital music entertainment marketplace. The announcement was made by Shout! Factory founding partner and COO Bob Emmer.

Under its agreement with Cooper, Shout! Factory will be the exclusive digital media distributor for "Keepin' Halloween Alive", as well as the track's bonus karaoke (a.k.a. "Cooperoke") version for digital music downloads.

Alice delivers the song with the garage-punk snarl he is best known for, ensuring that it will soon be a Halloween classic.

"At home my family all gathers around an old spooky tree decorated with skulls and bones in the living room, and we exchange gifts," says Cooper. "It's our holiday. We even all have matching black-and-orange Halloween sweaters! I wanted a theme song for people like me, and for us Halloween never ends. In the chorus I say, 'I'm keepin' Halloween alive, baby, 3–6–5'... and I mean it!"

"Keepin' Halloween Alive" was co-written and co-produced by Cooper with Piggy D. (a member of ROB ZOMBIE's band), who played rhythm guitar/backup vocals. Dave Pino (POWERMAN 5000) is featured on lead guitar, and David Spreng (BOB DYLAN, THE BRAVERY) on drums.

Of the recording, Cooper says, "We played it live as a band to capture the vibe. It was the easiest work I think any of us have ever done, not to mention a blast!"

"We are thrilled to be working closely again with the legendary Alice Cooper on his new Halloween-themed single and adding to Shout! Factory's expansive digital audio library," said Bob Emmer, Shout! Factory founding partner and COO. "Throughout his long and storied career, Cooper has always been a master entertainer and a consummate showman. His connection to the dark and spooky holiday is definitive. It's great to be working with him as he is crowned the King of Halloween."

In addition to releasing the new single, Cooper is busy hosting his "Nights With Alice Cooper" radio program, now syndicated on more than 100 stations worldwide and staying on the road with his "Theatre of Death" world tour.

Guitarist/vocalist Mikael Åkerfeldt of Swedish progressive metallers OPETH has issued the following update:

"We're holed up in a sterile 'dressing room' somewhere in Poland. Five shows into the Progressive Nation 2009 tour with DREAM THEATER, us, BIGELF and UNEXPECT.

"Things are going well; we've played well, I think, pretty much every night. The first days of chaos has settled down and now everyone is in the regular touring mode.

"The band's rejuvinated, after some rough times. We're more on fire than in quite some time, I think. We've pulled out a bunch of songs we've never played and/or haven't played in a long time. 'Harlequin Forest' is going down well, as is 'Hex Omega'. Tonight we'll pull out 'April Ethereal' for the first time in years. Do I remember the lyrics? Yes! Why? How is it possible?

"[Mikael's daughters] Melinda, Mirjam and my wife came out to the Stockholm show together with my mum and my sister with her kids. Was lovely to see them, and they liked the show, although Mirjam passed out in the middle of our set. She'd gone insane trying to rush the stage and she also tried to pull a few cords on stage.

"There's really not that much for us to do on this tour apart from the show. We've spent the days watching films and having a few beers.

"Yesterday we saw the amazing Klaus Kinski documentary 'My Best Fiend' that Werner Herzog made about him. Warmly recommended. Makes 'rock star' behaviour look like fuzzy bunny behaviour. What a psycho genius he was. Afterwards, I went to bed, but Axe [OPETH drummer Martin Axenrot] and Per [Wiberg, OPETH keyboardist] sat up drinking a few. Axe fell asleep in the bus toilet with his feet in the sink. I didn't think it was possible....

"The DREAM THEATER guys are cool as always. [John] Myung [DREAM THEATER bassist] came up and said that he thinks [OPETH's] 'Watershed' is a 'masterpiece' and that he listens to it pretty much every day! Nice chap. [Mike] Portnoy [DREAM THEATER drummer], as always, is running around being the perfect host. The other guys are practicing most of the time, but they're all ace peeps! BIGELF too, great nice, down-to-earth people and a fantastic band. I've loved them ever since the 'Closer To Doom' CD and they do not disappoint. Damon Fox looks a bit like Paul McCartney around 'Let It Be' but with longer hair. The UNEXPECT people seem nice too although I haven't talked much to them yet."

"Riptide", a brand new song from long-running German metallers PARADOX, is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. The track comes off the group's fifth album, "Riot Squad", which is scheduled for release on October 16 via AFM Records. The cover artwork was once again created by Claudio Bergamin and can be viewed here.

"Riot Squad" was produced by Charly Steinhauer and it was mixed and mastered by Achim Köhler. It contains "10 crystal-clear and powerful sounding thrashers full of energy, speed, melody and originality," according to a press release.

"Riot Squad" track listing:

01. Suburban Riot Squad (5:07)
02. Hollow Peace (5:33)
03. Riptide (4:03)
04. Rise In Rank (4:26)
05. Evolution Reset (5:31)
06. Nothingness (5:24)
07. No Place To Survive (2:55)
08. Dream Hero (5:08)
09. Planet Terror (6:43)
10. Psychofficial (3:37)

PARADOX is:

Charly Steinhauer (vocals, guitar)
Kai Pasemann (guit)
Olly Keller (bass)
Roland Jahoda (drums)

Audio samples of three tracks from "El Rostro de la Muerte" ("The Face of Death"), the long-awaited new studio album from California metallers HIRAX, can be downloading here: "El Rostro de la Muerte", "Broken Neck", "Eradicate Mankind".

"El Rostro de la Muerte" is scheduled for release on October 6. It is the veteran thrash band's first full-length since 2004's "The New Age Of Terror".

"El Rostro de la Muerte" is a dual-studio effort, combining the skills of two HIRAX producers which the band has worked with on their past three releases. The ten new tracks were recorded and engineered by John Haddad at Trench Studio in Corona, California, and mixed by Michael Rosen at Speed Semen Clove Factory in North Hollywood. The new CD will also contain one bonus track from the "Chaos and Brutality" EP, which was previously unavailable in the U.S.

"The combination of Haddad and Rosen's recording and production are perfect for the vision that we had for the sound of this album," said Katon W. De Pena. "We worked with Haddad on the last two HIRAX EPs, 'Assassins of War' and 'Chaos and Brutality'. He has a great understanding of the power and speed of HIRAX, and he knows how to bring the best of our talents to the surface. We have a lot of respect for him. HIRAX first worked with Michael Rosen back in 2004 on 'The New Age of Terror' album and it's great to be working with him again. His experience in mixing and production are what we need to complete the mega-epic sound that we are striving for. It's the first time HIRAX has ever brought two of our producers together, but it seemed like the logical thing to do since they both have an ear for detail and a certain work ethic which brings out the best in the band. Musically, it combines everything that HIRAX is known for and much, much more! TRUE THRASH METAL!!"

"El Rostro de la Muerte" will be released on Black Devil Records and Deep Six Records and will be distributed through CMDistro.com. It will be pressed in CD and vinyl formats as well as a limited-edition picture disc.

The HIRAX title "Not Dead Yet" (the band's two classic thrash metal albums "Raging Violence" and "Hate Fear And Power" together) is now available digitally through iTunes, along with "Thrash and Destroy", "Assassins of War", "The New Age of Terror", and "Barrage of Noise". The band plans to release make more of their extensive back catalog digitally by the end of the year.