Keyboardist Jonah Weingarten of Danish/American metallers PYRAMAZE has issued the following update:

"The band is still very much alive and kicking. We are currently working on material for our new record, but progress has taken a little bit more time than we had expected. This is due to several of the band members having expanding families and various other work-related obligations. I, for one, will be welcoming my daughter into the world this November."

"You can all look forward to [vocalist] Urban Breed (TAD MOROSE, BLOODBOUND) kicking some serious ass on his debut with us!"

PYRAMAZE is also currently searching for a new label home.

TESLA guitarist Frank Hannon has told Noisecreep that the band is planning a pair of CDs to celebrate live performances throughout Europe last summer and the U.S. this fall. "We're doing two live albums," he said. "The first one is strictly for Europe; it may be available as an import [to America]. We are going to do a second one. It's going to be for America next year."

"Our record company's [Frontiers] in Italy," Hannon added. "They're really good to us, and we're going to give them the first crack at it. It'll eventually be available over here."

"We're working on mixing the live album," Hannon said. "We just got done touring in Europe for five weeks this summer. We recorded every show and we just got done sorting through it. Now we're mixing it to make a live album in Europe. We have to divide our time. I'm kind of learning that as I get older. You have to set aside time for certain things in order to stay focused. You go, 'OK, this time I'm only doing this.' 'This time I'm only doing that.' Right now, this one time, we're not writing songs as a group but we are mixing some live material.

"We're gonna do the same thing in October. We're going to record the Michigan show [at Clarkston's DTE Energy Music Theatre on Sept. 5]. We're pretty much going to record every show on the tour. We have a recorder set up in our mixing console."

Frontiers Records has set an October 16 release date for the tenth JADED HEART studio album entitled "Perfect Insanity".

Formed in 1990 by singer and songwriter Michael Bormann (ex-BONFIRE) and his brother Dirk Bormann (guitar), JADED HEART's lineup was completed the following year when Michael Müller (bass, ex-THE SYGNET) and former MAD MAX drummer Axel Kruse joined the band.

JADED HEART's breakthrough album, "Slaves And Masters", was their second and was released in 1997. This record stayed in the Japanese Top Ten import charts for four months and in their home country of Germany the band was featured on several national TV shows on RTL, PRO 7 and many more. After that, JADED HEART went out on a big tour with AXXIS and HEAVEN'S GATE that staged more than 40 concerts throughout Europe.

After the release of "Trust", JADED HEART's fifth album, in 2003, the band and frontman Michael Bormann decided to part ways and the new Swedish frontman Johan Fahlberg (ex-SCUDIERO) joined, giving the following album, "Helluva Time" (2005), a fresher approach.

The band showed that they could stand on their legs after Bormann's departure and after "Helluva Time"'s release, the group toured as support for German metalheads HELLOWEEN in the south of Europe (Italy, Spain, France) and did a successful headlining tour all over Germany, Switzerland and Belgium. Peter Ostros, a longtime friend of the guys, joined JADED HEART on guitar, adding new influences to the band's music.

Following the 2007 release of "Sinister Mind", JADED HEART headed back to the studio in 2009 for the new album, which they christened "Perfect Insanity". "The concept has to do with all the things happening in this world right now, a 'perfect insanity,'" explains drummer Axel Kruse. "Everyone is just thinking about himself, and not about how to change all this shit that's going on right now (wars/economic crisis etc.)." The CD was once again produced by Michael Voss (MAD MAX, VOICES OF ROCK), with Chris Lausmann handling the mixing/editing and Dennis Ward doing the mastering. "Musically the style we're gonna do right now is a so-called mix of traditional hard rock and melodic metal, played with faith and heart!! Great production and sound!!" says Axel.

"Perfect Insanity" track listing:

01. Intro
02. Love is a Killer
03. Fly Away
04. Blood Stained Lies
05. Tonight
06. Freedom Call
07. One Life One Death
08. Rising
09. Hell Just Arrived
10. Psycho Kiss
11. Come to the Feast
12. Exterminated

"Phosphorous Redeemer", a brand new song from Swedish black metallers MARDUK, is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. The track comes off the group's eleventh album, "Wormwood", which will be released in the U.S. on October 13 via Regain Records (September 24 in Europe). The CD was recorded at Endarker Studios in Norrköping, Sweden with engineer/producer Magnus Devo Andersson.

"Wormwood" track listing:

01. Nowhere, No-One, Nothing
02. Funeral Dawn
03. This Fleshly Void
04. Unclosing The Curse
05. Into Utter Madness
06. Phosphorous Redeemer
07. To Redirect Perdition
08. Whorecrown
09. Chorus Of Cracking Necks
10. As A Garment

U.K.-based singer Doogie White (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, RAINBOW, CORNERSTONE, TANK) is currently laying down the final vocals for his solo album with producer Pontus Norgren (guitarist for HAMMERFALL, THE POODLES, TALISMAN, GREAT KING RAT) at Pontus' Damage Done Studio in Stockholm, Sweden.

Doogie previously stated about his upcoming solo CD, "This will be an album that covers many aspects of music that I have enjoyed over the years and then some."

In addition to Norgren, White's solo album is expected to include contributions from Rudy Sarzo (QUIET RIOT, DIO, OZZY OSBOURNE), Neil Murray (BLACK SABBATH, WHITESNAKE), Patrik Johansson (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN), Derek Sherinian (DREAM THEATER, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) and Walter Giardino (RATA BLANCA).

Swedish masters of melancholy KATATONIA have begun mixing their eighth studio album, "Night Is The New Day", for a November 2 European release (November 10 in North America) via Peaceville Records. Vocalist Jonas P. Renkse states, "We've currently nailed five songs out of 12 and we're continuing to nail one song per day, so on September 1, the album is going to be completed."

Regarding his vocal performance on the CD, Renkse says, "Even though I had done much of the vocal parts/ideas already on the demos, I couldn't imagine the extent of what was about to come. Starting out, I was feeling better than I thought, since I had problems with my throat earlier during the recording. It wasn't a cold as I first expected; I have no idea what it was/is, but it has affected me in some ways.

"More tracks nailed and listening back, I realize that I've never sung this MUCH on an album before. Not that I'm singing ALL THE TIME (don't worry), but the vocals are much more demanding. I hope it is because the singing is better, and not because my throat is worse."

The artwork for "Night Is The New Day" (see here) was once again designed by Travis Smith and closes the visual concept for "The Great Cold Distance" phase.

The new material was previously described by the band as "our most varied, diverse and possibly strongest shit all together on one and the same album."

"The Great Cold Distance" was released in 2006 via Peaceville. The follow-up to 2003's "Viva Emptiness" was recorded at Fascination Street studios in the outskirts of Örebro, Sweden and was mastered at the Cutting Room in Stockholm.

KATATONIA's live performance from 2006's Summer Breeze open-air festival in Germany was released as a double-disc live album/DVD, entitled "Live Consternation".

On September 10, Angelic Recordings will release the live album "In Parallel" (cover) from the two outstanding artists Anneke van Giersbergen (AGUA DE ANNIQUE, ex-THE GATHERING) and Danny Cavanagh (ANATHEMA, LEAFBLADE).

The CD, recorded in March 2009 at the Little Devil in Tilburg, Holland, features some stunning moments from the musicians' collaborations on stage, including songs from both their careers.

The track listing is as follows:

01. Teardrop
02. You Learn About It
03. Temporary Peace
04. Yalin
05. Songbird
06. Big Love
07. The Blower's Daughter
08. One Last Goodbye
09. Are You There?
10. Day After Yesterday
11. A Natural Disaster
12. Lost and Found
13. Flying
14. Jolene

"Teardrop" and the ANATHEMA song "A Natural Disaster" are now available for streaming at this location.

TRANSATLANTIC — the progressive rock supergroup featuring DREAM THEATER's Mike Portnoy, MARILLION's Pete Trewavas, THE FLOWER KINGS' Roine Stolt and Neal Morse (ex-SPOCK'S BEARD) — will release its long-awaited third album in October 2009.

"The Whirlwind" (cover) is described in a press release as "a 77-minute piece of music that is sure to satisfy the band's legions of fans that have patiently waited almost the entire decade for the reunion of these four musicians."

"The Whirlwind" will be available in two formats:

* A regular-edition single CD of the entire 77-minute epic as well as a 2-CD special edition containing a bonus disc with eight newly recorded studio tracks (four new TRANSATLANTIC compositions and four cover songs)

The track listing for the special edition is as follows:

Disc One:

The Whirlwind

Disc Two:

01. Spinning
02. Lenny Johnson
03. For Such A Time
04. Lending A Hand
05. The Return Of The Giant Hogweed (GENESIS)
06. A Salty Dog (PROCOL HARUM)
07. I Need You (AMERICA / THE BEATLES)
08. Soul Sacrifice (SANTANA)

TRANSATLANTIC's "The Whirlwind" is currently scheduled for the following release dates:

October 23: Germany, Austria, Switzerland
October 26: Rest Of Europe
October 27: North America

Epic Norwegian black metallers KEEP OF KALESSIN are currently working on the follow-up to their 2008 release "Kolossus". After several successful tours in North America with such bands as DIMMU BORGIR, BEHEMOTH, KATAKLYSM and DYING FETUS, the members are eager to write an album which, according to them, is "stronger, heavier, more brutal and yet more beautiful at the same time." During the pre-production and recording stages of their yet-to-be-titled release, the band will upload footage from the sessions on their official YouTube channel.

Commented guitarist Obsidian C.: "Right now we're in the pre-production stage of the new album and we're finally home long enough to only focus on getting all the material to the level it should be. We'll work in our studio in Trondheim with test-recording and making new songs all until October, when we head to Sweden and Dug Out Productions with Daniel Bergstrand (IN FLAMES, BEHEMOTH, MESHUGGAH) to record the drums. Then we'll head back to our own studio, where we recorded both 'Armada' and 'Kolossus', to record all the other instruments and vocals before we ship it over to Daniel again for the mix."

A 10-minute video report from the pre-production sessions for the new KEEP OF KALESSIN CD can be viewed below

Swedish metallers SONIC SYNDICATE have tapped 23-year-old British singer Nathan James Biggs (formerly of THE HOLLOW EARTH THEORY) as the replacement for Roland Johansson.

"People from all over the world sent in demos when we announced that we were looking for a new vocalist and we narrowed them down to about 20 that we found particularly interesting," guitarist Roger Sjunnesson told Hallands Nyheter. "We then auditioned more than a dozen candidates in Falkenberg [Sweden] and we went out and partied together."

He added, "Personal chemistry was absolutely the most important factor in our decision. You have to be able to spend time with one another."

Commented the band: "The search is over and the band is complete once again! Nathan is probably the best thing that ever happened to SONIC SYNDICATE since the discovery of distorted guitars and the work we've done together is by far the best we've achieved to date! He's like the long-lost brother we never had and has also fused the rest of us together more closely than before. The rebellion has begun!"

Nathan added: "Something incredible and totally unpredictable has happened here! Not only have I managed to land myself in one the most promising bands in the world, I've gained a new family too. The energy between SONIC and I is electric and it's producing some breathtaking results. We're taking it to the next level. Don't blink or you'll be running to catch up with us!"

The new SONIC SYNDICATE lineup recently entered Abyss studios in Pärlby, outside Ludvika, Sweden to record two new songs — "Burn This City" and "Rebellion In Nightmare Land". "Burn This City" is said to be the more commercial track of the two that is suitable for the radio, while "Rebellion" has been described by Roger as a more uptempo song that the group's longtime fans can instantly identify with. Both tracks will appear on a new EP, "Rebellion", which will be released on November 6 as part of an all-in-one-package with the group's latest album, "Love And Other Disasters".

The cover artwork for "Rebellion" will be created by Gustavo Savez of Abstrata art.

A new SONIC SYNDICATE album is tentatively due in April/May 2010.

A one-minute teaser for "Live Equation", the forthcoming DVD from Norwegian melodic power metallers PAGAN'S MIND, can be viewed here.

"Live Equation" will be released by the band's own label and distributed by Indie Distribution. The DVD will be released in three different versions: an audio-CD and -DVD containing footage/recording of PAGAN'S MIND's November 1, 2008 show at Rockefeller Music Hall in Oslo; a double DVD with the Rockefeller show as well as a disc with bonus material; and a limited-to-1000-copies hand-numbered three-disc version with the audio CD, the two DVDs — including more bonus material — plus an autographed photo and a guitar pick.

PAGAN'S MIND has been confirmed as direct support for STRATOVARIUS on their North America tour in September and October.

The band's latest album, "God's Equation", in 2007 entered the Norwegian domestic chart (featuring only Norwegian artists) at position No. 14. It also landed on the international chart (featuring all artists) at No. 35. The CD, which was released in the U.S. in January 2008, was recorded by Espen Mjøen at his Mediamaker Studio in Skien, Norway, and mixed at Toy Town Studios in Stockholm by Stefan Glaumann (RAMMSTEIN).

Italian metallers SLOWMOTION APOCALYPSE will release their third album, "Mothra", this fall via Scarlet Records. The CD was recorded at Planet Red Studios in Richmond, Virginia with producer Andreas Magnusson (THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, THE AGONY SCENE, SCARLET, DUFRESNE, BECOMING THE ARCHETYPE, SPITFIRE, TWELVE TRIBES) and features a guest appearances by Myke Terry from BURY YOUR DEAD and Matthew Rudzinski from KILLWHITNEYDEAD. It was mastered by Alan Douches (CONVERGE, MISFITS, THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, HATEBREED, MASTODON) at West West Side Music in New Windsor, New York.

"Mothra" track listing:

01. Caterpillar
02. Forever, Works Just In Songs
03. In Full View of Heaven
04. Me, Kate and Other Bastard Sons of My Generation
05. Stash
06. What a Rockin' Heavy Metal Get-Up, Dude!
07. Dim Shape in a Black Hole Life
08. Gamera Part. 1: Death Worship Era
09. Gamera Part. 2: The So Called Northern Half
10. Haiku

The group says in a statement: "'Mothra' represents a new step in our life as a band, a new shape for both our sound and our songwriting and it's our most sick and experimental album so far. It will surprise you!"

All artwork for the CD was created by visionary artist Seldon Hunt (NEUROSIS, MELVINS, ISIS, KK NULL, EPHEL DUATH).

SLOWMOTION APOCALYPSE last fall parted ways with guitarist Ivan Odorico and replaced him with Manuel "Sean" Giannella (DAYSHINE RISING). According to SLOWMOTION APOCALYPSE, "he is a very talented guitar player and he is the perfect consolidating link between what we have recorded until today and the new stuff we're going to release in the future."

SLOWMOTION APOCALYPSE released its second album, "Obsidian", in April 2007 via Scarlet Records. Recorded by Riccardo Pasini (EPHEL DUATH, THE SECRET, REPRISAL) at Studio 73 and by Ettore Rigotti (DISARMONIA MUNDI) at dB Studio and mixed and produced by Ettore Rigotti, the CD features guest vocals by the mighty Tomas Lindberg (ex-AT THE GATES, THE GREAT DECEIVER), Gianluca "GL" Perotti (ex-EXTREMA) and Claudio Ravinale (DISARMONIA MUNDI).

INSIDIOUS DISEASE (formerly INSIDIOUS), the international metal project featuring members of DIMMU BORGIR, NAPALM DEATH, OLD MAN'S CHILD and MORGOTH, has posted another new song, "The Desire", on the band's MySpace page.

INSIDIOUS DISEASE made its official live debut at this year's Wacken Open Air festival which was held July 30 - August 1, 2009 in Wacken, Germany. The band performed on the W.E.T. stage on Friday, July 31. A warm-up show also took place on July 30 at the Magnet club in Berlin, Germany as the support act for CALIBAN.

Photos of the Wacken Open Air performance are now available for viewing on the band's MySpace page (all pictures by Vanessa DeCampos).

Due to Tony Laureano's (ex-DIMMU BORGIR, NILE, ANGELCORPSE) touring commitments with ALL THAT REMAINS, he was unable to join INSIDIOUS DISEASE for their two German shows. His replacement for these performances was DIMMU BORGIR/ex-VADER drummer Dariusz "Daray" Brzozowski.

INSIDIOUS DISEASE's long-awaited debut album, tentatively titled "Shadowcast", was mixed with Russ Russell (NAPALM DEATH, DIMMU BORGIR) for a late 2009/early 2010 release via an as-yet-undetermined record label. In addition, the band has recorded a cover version of the DEATH classic "Leprosy" as a tribute to "one of the greatest metal bands ever," according to vocalist Marc "Groo" Grewe (ex-MORGOTH). He tells BLABBERMOUTH.NET, "The INSIDIOUS DISEASE version is not denying the original [since it] can't get any better."

INSIDIOUS DISEASE recorded 12 songs for its debut CD at a studio in Norway with producer Terje Andersen (a.k.a. Cyrus) of SUSPERIA.

NECROPHAGIA frontman Frank "Killjoy" Pucci has co-written and contributed guest vocals to a cut called "Rituals of Bloodshed" which is included on the album. Other songtitles set to appear on the CD include "Conceived through Hate", "Desire" and "Insomanic".

INSIDIOUS DISEASE is:

Marc "Groo" Grewe (ex-MORGOTH) - Vocals
Sven Atle Kopperud (a.k.a. Silenoz) (DIMMU BORGIR) - Guitar
Shane Embury (NAPALM DEATH) - Bass
Tony Laureano (ex-DIMMU BORGIR, NILE, ANGELCORPSE) - Drums
Jon Øyvind Andersen (a.k.a. Jardar) (OLD MAN'S CHILD) – Guitar

In an interview with U.K.'s Terrorizer magazine, Silenoz described INSIDIOUS DISEASE's material as "a good variation; a good mix of groovy, downtuned stuff, but it doesn't sound too modern, it's more back-to-basics. It's not really technical by any means, like some people might expect, it's more heavy riffing, attitude. It's hard to explain, but it's safe to say that the word 'extreme' would cover most of it. We have fast stuff, of course, but we also have slow stuff."

Regarding INSIDIOUS DISEASE's influences, Silenoz said, "Not anything specific, but me and most of the guys in the band, we grew up with the '80s extreme stuff and I think that shines through the music but I wouldn't say that we take any direct influence, it's more that feel of what was going on in that time in the late '80s. That quick and clean production on everything loses its charm so we tried to make it sound as analogue as humanly possible to digital recording."

LINKIN PARK singer Chester Bennington's side project, DEAD BY SUNRISE, will release its debut album, "Out Of Ashes", which is scheduled for release on October 13.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Fire
02. Crawl Back In
03. Too Late
04. Inside Of Me
05. Let Down
06. Give Me Your Name
07. My Suffering
08. Condemned
09. Into You
10. End Of The World
11. Walking In Circles
12. In The Darkness

Norway's THEATRE OF TRAGEDY will release is seventh album, "Forever Is The World", on the following dates:

Germany, Switzerland and Austria: September 18
Russia: October
Rest of Europe: September 21
Japan: October 21 (through Marquee/Avalon)
North America: October 27

The follow-up to 2006's "Storm", "Forever Is The World" was recorded at Room 13 studios in Oslo with producer Alexander Møklebust, who has previously worked with ZEROMANCER, SEIGMEN, GÅTE, MONOMEN and DELAWARE, among others. The mastering was handled by Bjørn Engelmann at the Cutting Room in Sweden.

"Forever Is The World" will be available in three different versions: a limited digipack with one bonus song, a very limited double vinyl version with two bonus tracks (one exclusive to the vinyl edition!) and a regular jewelcase.

The band says, "[The cover artwork] was once again made by the ingenious artwork wizard Thomas Ewerhard. Following up his excellent work on 'Assembly' and 'Storm', Thomas has once again managed to amaze us with his skills. The album artwork is also an challenge to the die-hard THEATRE OF TRAGEDY fan. Somewhere inside this cover there is incorporated elements from all six studio album covers for the band. See if you can find it."

"Forever Is The World" track listing:

01. Hide and Seek
02. A Nine Days Wonder
03. Revolution
04. Transition
05. Hollow
06. Astray
07. Frozen
08. Illusions
09. Deadland
10. Forever is the World

THEATRE OF TRAGEDY's last album, "Storm", was released in March 2006 via AFM Records.

NINE INCH NAILS played its 1994 classic "The Downward Spiral" in its entirety for the first time ever Sunday night (August 23) at New York's tiny Webster Hall.

Watch quality fan-filmed video footage of the performance here and here.

According to Billboard.com, NIN is on a "Wave Goodbye" tour of small venues, and had squeezed in to New York's 550-capacity Bowery Ballroom the night before. At Webster Hall, the 1,000-strong crowd was drenched in sweat within minutes of the band taking the stage to the punishing rock of "Mr. Self Destruct".

It was soon clear that Trent Reznor and company were plowing through "Downward" in sequence. He later told the audience, "I've always wanted to play that whole record, and this seemed like the time to do it."

Meat Loaf has confirmed to Billboard.com that QUEEN's Brian May — who also guested on the legendary crooner's "Bat Out of Hell III: The Monster is Loose" — contributed "a little 12-bar solo" for one of the songs on Meat Loaf's next album.

The CD, which is expected in 2010, is being produced by Rob Cavallo (KID ROCK, GREEN DAY, GOO GOO DOLLS), whom Meat Loaf describes as "a real producer." He adds, "That's the real deal. His ego does not get in the way of an artist. He'll make a ton of suggestions and make it much better than it was. He lets my horses run, and (with) other producers the best I could get out of them was a gallop sometimes. But my horses are running on this record, and I'll stop my horses from time to time and go, 'Rob? I don't know what to do now,' and he'll come up with brilliant ideas."

ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO, the experimental band led by TESTAMENT/ex-SAVATAGE guitarist Alex Skolnick, has entered the studio to begin recording a new album. Skolnick states, "Day 1 was up against the wall! But we're kicking butt on Day 2. One more day to go..."

More information about the upcoming CD will be announced soon.

ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO will embark on a European tour in September.

Rock House, the leader in music instruction, announced in April that Alex Skolnick had joined its roster of master instructors.

Alex is a founding member of TESTAMENT, one of the most influential metal/thrash bands of all time. He is also a member of TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA, the popular rock opera whose musical style is described as symphonic rock meets classical music with a touch of metal. In 2002 he began work on the ALEX SKOLNICK TRIO, a traditional jazz band known for their inventive jazz renditions of rock and metal standards. Additionally, Alex is featured on the soundtrack for the hit Broadway musical "Jekyll & Hyde".

In May 2009, production began on the first products in which Alex will share his easy-to-understand method for learning how to play jazz music from a rock guitarist's perspective. Starting from blues, which is the pure roots of jazz, he will examine the commonality between blues, jazz and rock and show how to apply the principals. Students will learn his unique and ground breaking way of taking well known classic rock and metal songs and turning them into jazz compositions.

In June 2009, production began on an in-depth look at his legendary metal techniques and his unique scale and modal approach that allows him to cross genres.

Kotaku.com reports: Before rock legend Ozzy Osbourne took the stage at the closing ceremonies of BlizzCon 2009, he didn't know "what the fuck to expect" from an audience full of gamers, he told Kotaku.com in a private interview.

Ozzy Osbourne took the stage around 7:45 p.m. at the Anaheim Convention Center to help bring BlizzCon 2009 crashing to a close. Thousands of fans screamed along as he burned through classic songs like "Iron Man", "Paranoid", "War Pigs", and the song featured in Blizzard's World of Warcraft ad, "Crazy Train". Ozzy seemed to be having a great time on stage, bowing to the crowd when he wasn't spraying them with a fire hose, but he wasn't so sure about the BlizzCon gig going into it.

"Coming here (unintelligible) to the show tonight, I thought, 'They're all gonna be like scientists and fucking brain brain (unintelligible) fucking audience,'" he said. "Glasses-wearing spectacles and coke bottles. I didn't know what the fuck to expect. I kept saying to my wife Sharon, 'Sharon, do you think you'll like me? Do you think they'll understand what I'm about?' And it was even better than some [regular] gigs I've done. It's a gift that I've had a good life through music."

OZZY OSBOURNE played a 10-song set at the Anaheim Convention Center in Anaheim, California as part of the closing ceremonies at BlizzCon. His backing band for the concert consisted of guitarist Gus G. (FIREWIND), drummer Tommy Clufetos (ROB ZOMBIE, ALICE COOPER, TED NUGENT), bassist Rob "Blasko" Nicholson (ROB ZOMBIE) and keyboardist Adam Wakeman.

Nine-year-old guitar prodigy Yuto Miyazawa joined Ozzy and the rest of his group on stage to perform the Osbourne classic "Crazy Train".

"Strung Up From The Sky", a brand new song from Chicago's PELICAN, is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. The track comes off the group's fourth studio album, "What We All Come To Need", which is due on October 27 via Southern Lord Recordings. Described by guitarist Laurent Lebec as "the most perfect synthesis of everything we've done to date, sonically," the CD is "a giant step forward within the complex, intricate, beautiful and crushing sound PELICAN is famous for," according to a press release. The album features more guests than have ever appeared on a PELICAN album before: Greg Anderson of SUNN O))), Aaron Turner of ISIS, Ben Verellen of HARKONEN and Helms Alee and Allen Epley from THE LIFE AND TIMES and SHINER. Content-wise, Lebec says "there is a current of inspiration that feels particular to each album's music and titles. Though we lack a singer, the song names are often conceptual. This new album speaks to a rapidly decaying world, the fulfillment we find in each other, as well as the resolve to move beyond disillusionment."

"What We All Come To Need" (cover) track listing:

01. Glimmer
02. The Creeper
03. Ephemeral
04. Specks Of Light
05. Strung Up From The Sky
06. An Inch Above Sand
07. What We All Come To Need
08. Final Breath

Italian gothic/dark metal band RESONANCE ROOM (formerly known as FRAGMENT) will release its debut album, "Unspoken", on September 7 via My Kingdom Music. According to a press release, the group "succeeds in mixing a heavy prog vein with dark gothic atmospheres and haunting melodies. 'Unspoken' [is] a concept that will make you taste the protagonists' sorrow, rage and desperation through an involving journey in searching of truth. KATATONIA, PAIN OF SALVATION, ANATHEMA, PORCUPINE TREE, RIVERSIDE are just some of the many influences you'll hear in 'Unspoken', an album that will satisfy both progressive metal and gothic fans."

"Unspoken" was recorded, mixed and mastered by Riccardo Failla at Resonance Home Studio. The artwork was created by Sandro Galati.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Unreason
02. Escape
03. Far From Grace
04. Maybe You Are...
05. The Warmth Of Life
06. Frost And Emptiness
07. Bloodred
08. A Prayer
09. Instants Of Madness
10. While I'll Burn
11. Unspoken

RESONANCE ROOM is:

Fabio Monaco - Guitar
Alessandro Consoli - Vocals
Riccardo Failla - Guitar
Alfio Timoniere - Bass
Sandro Galati - Drums
Gabriele Litrico - Keyboards

Former STRATOVARIUS leader and current REVOLUTION RENAISSANCE mainman Timo Tolkki recently teamed up with fellow ex-STRATOVARIUS members Tuomo Lassila (drums), Anti Ikonen (keyboards) and Jari Kainulainen (current member of EVERGREY) to record a new album, titled "Return To Dreamspace", for a fall 2009 release on Scarlet Records. This means that the project's lineup is exactly the same as the one that recorded STRATOVARIUS' "Dreamspace" LP, originally released in 1994.

"Return To Dreamspace" will see Timo Tolkki handling the vocals again and the fans of the "Twilight Time"/"Dreamspace" era will surely not be disappointed.

Regarding the musical direction of the CD, Tolkki previously said, "It has been 15 years from [STRATOVARIUS' 'Dreamspace'] album, so it will be interesting, for sure... It's not a 'remake,' but a brand new album. A closure for [what] I consider to be the end of STRATOVARIUS. It completes the cycle and returns to the beginning."

In 1982, Tuomo Lassila (drums) formed STRATOVARIUS and came up with the band's name. Timo Tolkki (guitar) and Antti Ikonen (keyboards) joined the band in 1984 — that is some 25 years ago, and as a result the group recorded such classic albums as "Twilight Time", "Dreamspace" and "Fourth Dimension". After the departure of Lassila and Ikonen in 1995, STRATOVARIUS went to more neo-classical sound and style exploring Timo Tolkki's songwriting and producing skills earning the band a Finnish Grammy and sales exceeding over two million records.

Tolkki drew up and signed an official waiver on May 20, 2008 giving up all rights to the STRATOVARIUS name. The remaining STRATOVARIUS members — Timo Kotipelto (vocals), Jens Johansson (keyboards) and Lauri Porra (bass) — have since recorded and released a new STRATOVARIUS album with new guitarist Matias Kupiainen.

"The Miskolc Experience", the new 2CD+DVD from Swedish progressive/experimental metallers THERION, is being released today in the U.S. and Canada. View a preview trailer of the DVD footage here.

Recorded and filmed at the remarkable and renowned International Opera Festival in Miskolc, Hungary on June 16, 2007, the evening featured THERION with the Miskolc Bartók Choir, the Choir of the Miskolc National Theater, and the Miskolc Symphony Orchestra conducted by Markus Stollenwerk.

"The Miskolc Experience" showcases the talent of Christofer Johnsson on guitar, brothers Kristian and Johan Niemann on guitar and bass (who joined THERION in 2000), and drummer Petter Karlsson ("Gothic Kaballah" and "Live Gothic"), and features guest vocalists Lori Lewis, Judit V. Molnar, Andras Molnar, Gergely Boncser, and Mats Levén. The DVD contains a documentary and "Therion Goes Classic" bonus material.

"It would have been an easy choice just to take a bunch of THERION songs, stand on a stage with an orchestra, and just play…. But THERION isn’t a band that settles for what is 'good enough,'" states THERION mastermind Christofer Johnsson. "We want to do more than that. So much of what you will hear and see are exclusively arranged for this event and one previous one we did in Romania. We wish to offer you a musical journey where the band both enters the classical world as humble guests as well as invite the classical players and singers into our world."

"There are several ways to incorporate opera and classical music with metal and rock music," continues Johnsson. "Most rock musicians would do it in a rather chauvinistic way: looking upon themselves as the stars and the orchestra, choir, soloists and conductor as a bunch of people just helping them to realize some spectacular event they would do at some point in their career. And as they are the big stars, they would play over the compositions like a bulldozer, adding guitar chords in every inch of even the classical pieces. Here, THERION tries to show a great diversity by knowing what style and which rock instruments to play in each place, and (very important) when to be quiet and let the orchestra do their thing undisturbed, in which some dynamics between the two worlds can grow."

"The Miskolc Experience" track listing:

Part 1 - Classical Adventures: (44 min.)

01. Clavicula Nox
02. Dvorak: Excerpt from Symphony no. 9
03. Verdi: Vedi! le fosche notturne spotigle from Il Trovatore
04. Mozart: "Dies Irae" from Reqiuem
05. Saint-Saens: Excerpt from Symphony No. 3
06. Wagner: "Notung! Notung! Niedliches Schwert!" from The Ring
07. Wagner: Excerpt from the Overture from Rienzi
08. Wagner: Second part of "Der Tag ist da" from Rienzzi
09. Wagner: First part of "Herbei! Herbei!" from Rienzi

Part 2 - Therion Songs: (66 min.)

01. Blood Of Kingu
02. Sirius B
03. Lemuria
04. Eternal Return
05. Draconian Trilogy
06. Schwartsalbenheim
07. Via Nocturna
08. The Rise Of Sodom And Gomorrah
09. Grand Finale

Bonus Features (DVD only):

* Documentary (20 min.)
* Therion Goes Classic – Bucharest (16 min.)

Short audio samples of several tracks that are set to appear on "Anomaly", the fifth solo album from legendary KISS guitarist Ace Frehley, have been posted on YouTube and are available for streaming at this location.

Frehley has inked a licensing deal with Riot! Entertainment for the Australian release of "Anomaly". Due on September 15 via Ace's own Bronx Born Records, with Rocket Science providing a full label service platform in the U.S., the CD was produced and recorded in Westchester County, New York between 2007 and 2009 and was mixed in Los Angeles.

"Anomaly" official track listing:

01. Foxy & Free
02. Outer Space
03. Pain In The Neck
04. Fox On The Run
05. Genghis Khan
06. Too Many Faces
07. Change The World
08. Space Bear
09. A Little Below The Angels
10. Sister
11. It's A Great Life
12. Fractured Quantum
13. The Return of Space Bear (Dedicated to Tom Snyder) (iTunes exclusive)

"Walpurgis Rites", a brand new song from the Austrian blackened death metal outfit BELPHEGOR, is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. The track comes off the group'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 frontman 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."

The reunited original lineup of MR. BIG will release "Budokan - Reunion Tour 2009" in Japan on CD/DVD and Blu-ray on September 9. The set features footage of the band's June 20, 2009 performance at Budokan in Tokyo, Japan.

A four-and-a-half-minute snippet of the "Budokan" DVD can be viewed here.

For more information, visit CDJapan.

MR. BIG released a new "best-of" album titled "Next Time Around" on April 29 through WHD Entertaiment. The collection includes songs that were voted on by fans and contains two previously unreleased songs, "Next Time Around" (2009 remastered version) and "Hold Your Head Up" (2009 remastered version). It was made available as a limited deluxe edition with a bonus DVD.

In an interview with BigMusicGeek.com, MR. BIG bassist Billy Sheehan stated about the band's decision to reunite, "One of the beginnings of that was when (guitarist) Paul (Gilbert) played on (my solo record) 'Holy Cow' on the song 'Dynamic Exhilarator'. It was the first time we had worked in a studio together since we had been in MR. BIG together. We jammed a zillion times and we hang out together a lot because we're both here in L.A., but we never actually thought about working together. When he came in to do the solo on 'Dynamic Exhilarator', we had a blast. It was awesome. He did a great, great solo. The first one is amazing and the second one somehow tops it (laughs). So after that, we had a little more organized jam here in L.A. when he played with his band. Richie Kotzen was there and Pat Torpey was there and we played a couple of MR. BIG songs. The crowd went out of their minds and we were like, 'The only thing that could top this is if (vocalist) Eric (Martin) was here.' So a couple of e-mails started floating back and forth and the next thing you know, we said, 'Well, let's get together and have dinner just to hang,' and right at that point, we just said, 'Yeah, let's just do it.. The good thing about it is that nobody dangled cash in front of us. It didn't come from outside of us. It wasn't where someone had an idea and said, 'Yeah, let's put your band back together. Let's put you on a bus somewhere for six months before you break up again.' So it actually came from us, from our desire to really want to play together again and how much we loved the band. It was self-generated and organic in that respect, so now it's going to happen again."

THESE ARE THEY — the Chicago-based death metal band featuring vocalist Paul Kuhr (NOVEMBERS DOOM), guitarist Steve Nicholson (ex-NOVEMBERS DOOM), bassist Wiley Wells (EARTHEN) and drummer Sasha Horn (TRIALS) — has announced the addition of guitarist Justin Jurgevich (HURTLOCKER) to the group's ranks. After many months of auditions, "Justin brings with him the perfect combination of his love for old school death metal, dedication to his instrument, and chemistry with the band which makes him the perfect addition," according to a press release.

THESE ARE THEY will release its full-length debut, "Who Linger" (cover), on November 10 via Unruly Sounds/The End Records.

The track listing is as follows:

01. Ascension
02. the Voices Sound Deadly
03. Upon the Doors of Oblivion
04. In the Halls of Waverly
05. Blood Vengeance
06. Eclipse Abysmal
07. The Indweller
08. The Midnight Hour
09. Resurrection in White
10. 4th of July (SOUNDGARDEN cover)

Their "4th of July" SOUNDGARDEN cover is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page.

THESE ARE THEY's debut EP, "Who Manifest", came out on May 12 exclusively via The End Records' online mail order service, The Omega Order. It was recorded, mixed, and mastered by Chris Wisco at Belle City Sound in Racine, Wisconsin.

Thirteen years after departing NOVEMBERS DOOM, Nicholson reunited with Kuhr in 2008 in order to create something new and fresh. With the help of Wells, along with good friends Mike LeGros (DISINTER, EARTHEN) and drummer Evan Berry, a musical style was chosen, material was written, and THESE ARE THEY recorded its debut EP.

Guitar-driven, downtuned and powerful, the material is old-school Chicago death metal with flashes of BOLT THROWER, OBITUARY, and ENTOMBED and contains more headbanging hook than you can shake a fist at.

Paying tribute to the bands that have paved the way with their greatness, THESE ARE THEY will follow with their own take on a style of death metal that to this day has no equal in hook, power, and brutality.

THESE ARE THEY is:

Paul Kuhr (vocals)
Steve Nicholson (guitar)
Justin Jurgevich (guitar)
Wiley Wells (bass)
Sasha Horn (drums)

Ryan "Legs" Leger, former drummer for the Burlington, Ontario, Canada metalcore band DEAD AND DIVINE, has been tapped by Buffalo bruisers EVERY TIME I DIE for their upcoming tour, which is scheduled to kick off on September 8 in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Leger made his live debut with EVERY TIME I DIE on Saturday, August 22 in Saginaw, Michigan According to the band, "'Legs' absolutely killed it."

EVERY TIME I DIE filmed a video for the track "Wanderlust" last month with director Chris Sims (PAPA ROACH, LAMB OF GOD, POISON THE WELL). The song comes off the band's new album, "New Junk Aesthetic", which is scheduled for release on September 15 via Epitaph Records.

"'New Junk Aesthetic' is not the next logical step in the progression of EVERY TIME I DIE," explained frontman Keith Buckley. "It is an evolutionary leap. It's as if we have morphed from a single-celled bacteria straight to the guy with the dirt bike that will let you watch his older sister suntan if you steal him a smoke from your parents. Certainly you may acknowledge similarities, but on a grand scale, they stand light years apart."

"New Junk Aesthetic" track listing:

01. Roman Holiday
02. The Marvelous Slut (feat. Greg Puciato)
03. Who Invited The Russian Soldier?
04. Wanderlust
05. For The Record
06. White Smoke
07. Turtles All The Way Down
08. Organ Grinder
09. Host Disorder
10. After One Quarter Of A Revolution
11. The Sweet Life (feat. Matt Caughthran)

Former Metal Edge editor-in-chief Phil Freeman has written the first track-by-track review of the new SLAYER album, "World Painted Blood" for MSN Music's Heavy Metal Superfan site. After describing each of the album's 11 tracks in detail, he concludes: "A lot of people say SLAYER hasn't really been great since 'Seasons in the Abyss'. Those people are wrong. The Paul Bostaph years had a lot to recommend them ('Diabolus in Musica' is a seriously underrated album), and 'Christ Illusion' showed that SLAYER could experiment with dissonance and melody, and kick their own playing and songwriting up a notch when they wanted to. The bandmembers have given a lot of interviews talking about how a lot of this album was written in the studio. Listening to it, you can't tell. That's really impressive. Much the way METALLICA's 'Death Magnetic' combined the thrash of their early years with the hard-rock grooves of their 1990s work, 'World Painted Blood' builds on the success of every SLAYER album before it. It's not a legacy-polishing effort; it's the next step in a still-ongoing journey. Highly recommended."

Tentatively due in early October via American Recordings/Columbia Records, "World Painted Blood" will feature the following track listing:

01. World Painted Blood
02. Unit 731
03. Snuff
04. Beauty Through Order
05. Hate Worldwide
06. Public Display Of Dismemberment
07. Human Strain
08. Americon
09. Psychopathy Red
10. Playing With Dolls
11. Not Of This God