"At The Bottom", the new video from Walkerton, Ontario, Canada-based metallers ODIUM, can be viewed here. The clip was directed by Chad Archibald of Black Fawn Films at and old abandoned farmhouse in Guelph, Ontario. The track is taken from the group's recently released Year of the Sun debut album of the same name, which was produced by Greg Dawson (THE END, MONEEN, STARRING JANET LEIGH).

Commetned ODIUM's Dale Burrows: "The video looks phenomenal. Chad Archibald did an amazing job executing the vision he had for the song and that's why he is one of the best video directors in the scene right now. The abandoned house looked like it was straight out of 'The Blair Witch Project', with all kinds of graffiti on walls and all the windows had been smashed out. Everything for the video turned out incredible and we're excited for people to finally see it."

According to a press release, ODIUM's brand of melodic metal collides with anthemic choruses that creates dark soundscapes that have begun creating a buzz around the group's debut album. Inside Pulse proclaimed "ODIUM has taken the blueprint of melodic metal from Sweden's IN FLAMES and tempered the attack with a hint of KILLSWITCH ENGAGE to create a sort of Canadian leviathan."

ODIUM developed a following by playing packed shows throughout Ontario with the likes of ARISE AND RUIN, FUCK THE FACTS and STARRING JANET LEIGH. The group's "sound of molten metal collides with anthemic choruses to create dark and creepy soundscapes," according to a press release.

The cover art for "Sing-Along Songs For the Damned and Delirious", the upcoming album from the Swedish avant-garde rock band DIABLO SWING ORCHESTRA, can be viewed here. Due in Europe on September 21 via Ascendance Records, the CD's cover art was made by the acclaimed Swedish illustrator Peter Bergting, most notable for his work with the graphic novel "Gängkrig", which is a #1 bestseller in Sweden right now.

Recorded at In Flames studio in Gothenburg with producer Roberto Laghi (IN FLAMES, SONIC SYNDICATE, MUSTASCH, HARDCORE SUPERSTAR), "Sing-Along Songs For the Damned and Delirious" will come in two editions for the stores. The "normal" edition will be a four-panel digipack containing the CD and a 12-page booklet, while the "special" edition, limited to just 2000 copies, will come in a gorgeous eight-panel digipack containing the CD, a 12-page booklet and a bonus DVD featuring all sorts of goodies, like live footage, behind-thescenes material, photo albums and whatever else can be crammed in!

A "very special" edition will be available directly from Ascendance by mailorder only, with an individually numbered band logo Dog Tag pendant, a set of postcards and a vinyl sticker included with the CD/DVD version. This will be stricly limited to 300 copies.

According to DIABLO SWING ORCHESTRA, fans of the band's 2006 self-released debut, "The Butcher's Ballroom" (later licensed to Candlelight Records in Europe and Sonic Cathedral in the U.S.), will recognize the DSO sound but it has developed into something even more playful and at times far more aggressive than before.

DIABLO SWING ORCHESTRA will play a launch party show in London on October 2 at the Purple Turtle, Camden. The venue has a limited capacity and tickets are selling fast.

The unique genre-hopping Swedish sextet has already garnered an ever-growing army of fans on the strength of "The Butcher's Ballroom" and its European festival perfomances, including Metal Female Voices Fest and Summer Breeze.

German melodic death/thrash metallers BURDEN OF GRIEF are currently working on material for their new album, tentatively due in early 2010. The follow-up to 2007's "Death End Road" will contain 10 songs, seven of which have already been completed, and will be mixed and mastered by Swedish producer/multi-instrumentalist Dan Swanö (EDGE OF SANITY, BLOODBATH). The limited-edition version of the album will include a bonus CD featuring cover versions of the following eight metal classics:

* IRON MAIDEN - "Aces High"
* METALLICA - "The Four Horsemen"
* PANTERA - "Mouth For War"
* SEPULTURA - "Refuse/ Resist"
* WHITESNAKE - "Fool For Your Loving"
* BLIND GUARDIAN - "Valhalla"
* AC/DC - "Hell Ain't A Bad Place To Be"
* THE DOORS - "Break On Through"

On July 13, BURDEN OF GRIEF's debut album, "Haunting Requiems", will be re-released by the Polish label Metal Mind Productions. This remastered re-release comes in a limited, hand-numbered digipack with a new 16-page booklet and four previously unreleased bonus tracks from the band's 1996 demo tape, "My Blood".

BURDEN OF GRIEF released its fourth full-length album, "Death End Road", in March 2007 via Remedy Records. The follow-up to 2004's "Fields of Salvation" was recorded at Krachgarten Tonstudio in Kassel, Germany and was mixed at Jailhouse Studios in Denmark with producer Tommy Hansen (HELLOWEEN, PRETTY MAIDS, HATESPHERE).

Finnish goth metallers THE 69 EYES have made their new track "Dead Girls Are Easy" available for free download at this location. The song comes off the band's new album, "Back In Blood", which is scheduled for release in Europe (excluding Finland) on August 28 via Nuclear Blast Records (September 15 in the U.S. through The End Records). The CD, which was tracked with the Grammy-winning producer Matt Hyde (SLAYER, MONSTER MAGNET, FU MANCHU), features a guest appearance by MONSTER MAGNET's Ed Mundell. The recording process took place both in Helsinki and Los Angeles.

"Dead Girls Are Easy" is described in a press release as "a nasty power anthem for sleazy pin-ups complete with a sing-a-long chorus aimed at those online chicks with the looks that kill!" The video for the song was directed by MTV superstar and close friend Bam Margera and the artwork was designed by Estevan Oriol, whose work has graced countless covers from such artists as CYPRESS HILL, THE TRANSPLANTS and SNOOP DOGG.

THE 69 EYES has scheduled a listening party for its new album, "Back In Blood". Fans will get a chance to meet and greet guitarist Pasi Moilanen and Jussi Heikki Tapio Vuori as well as rock out to the new tunes while having a beer or two with the guys on Sunday, June 28 at club Wild At Heart in Berlin, Germany beginning at 8:00 p.m. Guest tickets are limited to 50 and are available on a first-come, first-served basis.

"Back In Blood" track listing:

01. Back In Blood
02. We Own The Night
03. Dead N' Gone
04. The Good, The Bad & The Undead
05. Kiss Me Undead
06. Lips Of Blood
07. Dead Girls Are Easy
08. Night Watch
09. Some Kind Of Magick
10. Hunger
11. Suspiria Snow White
12. Eternal

Norway's THEATRE OF TRAGEDY has finalized the track listing for its seventh album, "Forever Is The World", due in Europe on September 18 via AFM Records. The CD 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.

"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

The first audio sample will be released on August 1.

Check out video footage from the studio here.

"Hurting Not Helping", the new video from the Boston, Massachusetts-based hardcore/metal band BURY YOUR DEAD, can be viewed here. The song comes off the group's latest album, "It's Nothing Personal", which sold around 3,250 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. (Note: Internet/digital sales **ARE** included in the SoundScan totals.) The CD landed at position No. 2 on the Top New Artist Albums (Heatseekers) chart, which lists the best-selling albums by new and developing artists, defined as those who have never appeared in the Top 100 of The Billboard 200.

"It's Nothing Personal" was released on May 26 via Victory Records.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Hurting Not Helping
02. Without You
03. Broken Body
04. The Great Demonizer
05. Dead End Lovesong
06. Swan Song
07. Lakota
08. The Forgotten
09. Lion's Den
10. Legacy of Ashes
11. Closed Eyes
12. Enough

CREED/ALTER BRIDGE guitarist Mark Tremonti — who has a sticker of late PANTERA/DAMAGEPLAN axeman "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott on the bottom of his guitar — has told AOL Music that he's always been a fan of much more aggressive music than he is allowed to play with the reunited kings of modern rock radio. "Yeah I grew up in Detroit so the heavier the music you listened to, the cooler you were, you know?" he said. "So at the time SLAYER was the heaviest band. They were one of my favorite bands of all time. METALLICA, you know, CELTIC FROST, or 'Keltic,' however you want to pronounce it, VENOM and MORBID ANGEL, all the heavy stuff you can get your hands on we were into."

"Counting Down The Days", the new video from Los Angeles-based technical progressive metallers THE HUMAN ABSTRACT, can be viewed here. (Note: Video stream may not be available to some non-U.S. residents.) THe song comes off the band's sophomore full-length album, "Midheaven", which was released in August 2008 via Hopeless Records. The CD "follows a full cycle of man while he makes his ascent and discoveries and is eventually brought down by his lust of conquest and greed," said vocalist Nathan Ells. "Basically we wanted to have this album be cohesive all the way through. We came up with themes for each song and then wrote the songs like we were doing a film score and try to capture the mood musically for what each theme represents."

Although the initial sessions for "Midheaven" were helmed by veteran producer Toby Wright (METALLICA, SLAYER, ALICE IN CHAINS, SOULFLY, FEAR FACTORY), the CD was completed with a different producer and Wright's name was "wiped off all credits," according to Powell.

THE HUMAN ABSTRACT's Hopeless Records debut, "Nocturne", was released in August 2006.

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER has set "Deflorate" as the title of its new album, due on September 15 via Metal Blade Records.

"Majesty", the brand new DVD from THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER, sold 2,900 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 2 on the Top Music Videos chart.

Released on May 12 via Metal Blade, "Majesty" is a first-ever look into the group's relentless touring lifestyle and a "side-splitting peek into the hard-working band's humor-laced brand of daily life [that] will have you smelling the funk of the van from coast to coast and keep you coming back for more. Brimming with bone-crushing live performances and hilarious after show antics, 'Majesty' is your ticket to ride. Witness the real history as told by the band! Behold the ravenous legions of fans! Learn the secrets of the ape! What you hold in your hands is the ultimate BLACK DAHLIA experience… now shut up and get in the van!"

THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER's last album, "Nocturnal", was released on September 18, 2007 via Metal Blade Records. The follow-up to 2005's "Miasma" was recorded with Eric Rachel (who mixed "Miasma") and was mixed by Jason Suecof.

British heavy metal leegnds JUDAS PRIEST have chosen 10 songs not previously released in live album form for "A Touch of Evil: Live", which is due out July 14, in the midst of the band's U.S. summer tour. According to HMV.co.jp, the CD will be available in Japan on July 22 and will include two bonus tracks: "Worth Fighting For" and "Deal With The Devil".

"A Touch of Evil" includes live renderings of longtime fan favorites such as "Painkiller", "Dissident Aggressor", "Riding on the Wind", "Between the Hammer & the Anvil" and "Eat Me Alive", as well as "Hellrider" from "Angel of Retribution", the group's 2004 reunion album with frontman Rob Halford, and two tracks — "Death" and "Prophecy" — from last year's rock opera "Nostradamus".

"I love those songs," Halford told Billboard.com. "All of those songs just crush. Because they've never been recorded live in this way, it's just something fresh to put out. And when you listen to it and think this band has been around for three decades, with a combined age of 250-something years...I mean, how cool is that? It's a very fierce record and just captures the band's attitude and feeling in a very strong, determined way."

Recorded by Martin Walker and Brian Thorene during JUDAS PRIEST's mammoth 2005 and 2008 world tours, "A Touch Of Evil: Live" marks the first PRIEST album that producer Tom Allom has worked on since 1988 (co-producing along with the band). It was such Allom-produced albums as the aforementioned "Unleashed In The East", as well as "British Steel" and "Screaming For Vengeance" (among others) that made PRIEST not only one of the premier metal acts, but one of the leading global rock acts.

"A Touch Of Evil: Live" track listing:

01. Judas Rising
02. Hellrider
03. Between The Hammer & The Anvil
04. Riding On The Wind
05. Death
06. Beyond The Realms Of Death
07. Dissident Aggressor
08. A Touch Of Evil
09. Eat Me Alive
10. Prophecy
11. Painkiller

British heavy metal legends JUDAS PRIEST kicked off their "British Steel" 30th-anniversary tour last night (Monday, June 29) at the Murat Theatre in Indianapolis, Indiana.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Rapid Fire
02. Metal Gods
03. Breaking The Law
04. Grinder
05. United
06. You Don't Have To Be Old To Be Wise
07. Living After Midnight
08. The Rage
09. Steeler
10. The Ripper
11. Prophecy
12. Rock Hard Ride Free
13. Victim Of Changes

Encore:

14. Freewheel Burning
15. Diamonds And Rust
16. You've Got Another Thing Comin'

DIVINE HERESY, the California-based band featuring FEAR FACTORY guitarist Dino Cazares, will release its sophomore album, "Bringer of Plagues", in North America on July 28 via Century Media Records.

The track listing for the CD (cover) is as follows:

01. Facebreaker
02. The Battle of J. Casey
03. Undivine Prophecies (Intro)
04. Bringer of Plagues
05. Redefine
06. Anarchaos
07. Monolithic Doomsday Devices
08. Letter to Mother
09. Enemy Kill
10. Darkness Embedded
11. The End Begins
12. Forever the Failure

The song "Face Breaker" is available for streaming on the group's MySpace page.

The creative force behind the genre-defying, legendary metal titans FEAR FACTORY, guitarist Dino Cazares, has returned with a mind-blowing, scathing new offering that shatters the boundaries of conventionality with unrelenting intensity, precision and speed. This new offering from Cazares' extreme metal juggernaut DIVINE HERESY also features one of the genre's most acclaimed drummers, Tim Yeung (ex-NILE, VITAL REMAINS), bassist Joe Payne (ex-NILE) and newcomer vocalist Travis Neal (ex-THE BEREAVED, PUSHED). This pummeling new offering, "Bringer Of Plagues", redefines the meaning of aggression and takes extreme to an all new level.

DIVINE HERESY teamed up once again with acclaimed producing team Dirty Icon (Logan Mader and Lucas Banker) who has recently produced CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, GOJIRA, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH.

"Bringer of Plagues" features the legendary machine-gun riffs that'll take your breath away, combined with some jaw-dropping double-bass drum insanity. This album undeniably upped the ante in brutality, precision and technicality as the group are more focused and tighter than ever before.

After a year and a half of touring with the likes of ALL THAT REMAINS, STATIC-X, ARCH ENEMY, SHADOWS FALL and CHIMAIRA, DIVINE HERESY have proven that they are a stellar live act and are a force to be reckoned with.

Cazares comments: "With Neal now having a few shows under his belt, his confidence is coming across through the new material. The songwriting process has been great and the ideas are constantly flowing. Collaborating with Tim Yeung, Joe Payne and Neal, all together hashing out ideas in the practice space has been very therapeutic and enjoyable. We all have a collective desire to take our performances to the next level with this release to undoubtedly prove that we are one of the most devastating bands in the scene today."

Cazares doesn't accept second best. As you'd expect from the man who co-founded both FEAR FACTORY and BRUJERIA, his new band isn't about to tread well-worn primrose paths. Meet DIVINE HERESY — not so much a metal band for the modern era as crimson innovators ready to transcend time and place. You see, when you've already made your mark with bands like those mentioned above, there are two things you can do. "I could have carried on being successful in Latin America with BRUJERIA, and my other band, ASESINO," admits the guitarist. "But that wasn't enough. I wanted to do something that would go beyond what I've achieved before. Something to take metal into the 21st century."

He continues, "I know that my fans expect something special from me. "And I would never let them down. With every project that I've done, what's been important is to ensure that I deliver music that doesn't just meet people's expectations, but goes beyond them. That's important to me. I know that I could coast along and do well on the back of my reputation, but that would be to cheat everyone — including myself. I really do believe that with DIVINE HERESY, I'm once again setting the highest standards."

METALLICA's July 7, 2009 concert in Nimes, France at Arènes de Nîmes will be professionally filmed for a forthcoming DVD release. The disc will be made available on October 19 through French music stores and online shops only, as well as via the band's official web site, Metallica.com.

METALLICA's French record company and WorMee are giving fans tickets and a chance to participate in the making of the DVD. Winners will film the show and record a report from there, two minutes of which will appear as an extra in the final release.

The contest is open to residents of France only and runs through July 2, ending at 11:59 p.m. There will be ten winners and you can check out all the details and enter at metallica.wormee.com.

WorMee will stream METALLICA's concert in Nimes from July 10 until July 13. You just need to register with the site to watch, and the stream is available to everyone around the world.

As previously reported, METALLICA's three concerts in Mexico City were also filmed for a separate DVD release. The band played Mexico City for the first time in a decade on June 4, June 6 and June 7, with the group keeping the shows on its schedule despite the recent outbreak of swine flu that originated in the area.

METALLICA has issued several DVDs in the past, including "Cliff 'Em All", "Cunning Stunts", "S&M With The San Francisco Symphony Orchestra" and "A Year And A Half".

The band, recently inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, continues to tour behind "Death Magnetic", which has sold 1.78 million copies in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan. They'll play Europe throughout the summer before returning to North America in the fall.

METALLICA's video for the song "Broken, Beat And Scarred" can be viewed below. The performance clip was shot by METALLICA's longtime friend and collaborator, famed video director Wayne Isham, on December 13, 2008 at the Save Mart Center in Fresno, California and December 12, 2008 at the Citizens Business Bank Arena in Ontario, California.

German power metal band ETERNAL REIGN has finished recording its third album, "The Dawn Of Reckoning", tentatively due in September/October via Limb Music Products. The CD was tracked at Sunday Music studios and and will be mixed and mastered by Achim Köhler (SINNER, PRIMAL FEAR). It will contain 10 "powerful, melodic [and] a bit progressive" songs, including the band's first-ever ballad, "Still Remains", and a cover version of BLACK SABBATH's "Devil and Daughter" (off the "Headless Cross" album).

ETERNAL REIGN is:

Dirk Stühmer - Vocals
Michael Sebastian - Guitar
Torsten Fünfhaus - Guitar
Jörg Hassel - Bass
Björn Meyer - Keys
Lennart Medebach - Drums

Gary Graff of Billboard.com recently conducted an interview with SLAYER guitarist Kerry King about the band's forthcoming album, "World Painted Blood", which is scheduled for release late summer via American Recordings/Columbia Records. Songtititles set to appear on the CD include "Psychopathy Red" (which was released as a limited-edition red vinyl seven-inch single in April for Record Store Day), "Beauty Through Order", "Unit 731", "Playing with Dolls", "Public Display of Dismemberment", "Americon" and the title track.

"I figured, and I'm sure the other guys figured, that if there was another five-year gap this would probably be our last record," King told Billboard.com. "If we're going in five-year gaps, that means two records in 10 years. I think we all didn't want to wait that long. Not that we didn't have ideas — we toured, put out DVDs and box sets and had a lot of other stuff going on."

13 songs were laid down for "World Painted Blood" with producer Greg Fidelman (METALLICA, SLIPKNOT) — six by King, seven by fellow guitarist Jeff Hanneman — 11 of which will appear on the album.

"I like when Jeff writes as much as he did for this record," King said. "When you have one guy doing most of the writing you only get one perspective. A lot of Jeff's stuff has a very punky vibe this time; the stuff I write sounds thrashy but with a hint of punk, and when Jeff writes the stuff is more punk with a hint of thrash. It works together well."

Swedish technical death metal outfit SPAWN OF POSSESSION has issued the following update:

"Two very talented and competent musicians has recently joined SPAWN OF POSSESSION. Matthew Chalk (ex-PSYCROPTIC) is going to handle the vocal and lyric writing. Christian Münzner (OBSCURA, ex-NECROPHAGIST) is going to do the lead guitar part and unleash his madness into the multicolored and distorted universe of SPAWN OF POSSESSION.

"The songwriting process has been going quite well these last few months
and five new songs are now complete. Seven other songs are in the works."

SPAWN OF POSSESSION's current lineup:

Vocals - Matthew Chalk (PSYCROPTIC)
Bass - Erlend Caspersen (VILE, BLOOD RED THRONE, DECREPIT BIRTH)
Drums - Richard Schill
Guitar - Christian Münzner (OBSCURA, NECROPHAGIST)
Guitar - Jonas Bryssling

SPAWN OF POSSESSION recently posted a two-minute pre-production teaser of a new song at this location.

SPAWN OF POSSESSION's sophomore album, "Noctambulant", was released in 2006 via Neurotic Records. The CD was recorded at Pama Studios in Kristianopel, Sweden with producer Magnus Sedenberg.

New York death metal veterans IMMOLATION have inked a worldwide, multi-album contract with Nuclear Blast Records. The band's eighth studio LP will be released in early 2010.

Commented the group: "We are looking forward to working with Nuclear Blast, a classic label that has become one of the largest driving forces in metal today. We intend to have a new album out for early next year. Expect the new one to have some of the most dark and intense music we've ever put together!"

Jaap Wagemaker, who works for the A&R department at Nuclear Blast's headquarters in Germany, stated: "Nuclear Blast is very proud to announce the signing of IMMOLATION! Few other bands have the ability to embody torment and suffering into their music in the way that IMMOLATION does. By fabricating the essence of agony within their sound, IMMOLATION immerses you into the depths of eternal damnation where you can actually hear them burning within the unquenchable flames. They are the type of band that really put the death back into death metal. We are so stoked to welcome IMMOLATION to the Nuclear family and look forward raising the fires of hell for you once again."

Gerardo Martinez, label manager and A&R representative for Nuclear Blast's USA office, added: "Without sounding nostalgic, 1991's 'Dawn Of Possession' was definitely the soundtrack of my high school years. Very few bands from that era still make great records and are relevant, and that's why IMMOLATION fit right in with our roster. We are very proud to have them on board!"

The upcoming album will be the third consecutive release featuring IMMOLATION's current lineup:

Ross Dolan - Bass, Vocals
Robert Vigna - Guitars
Bill Taylor - Guitars
Steve Shalaty - Drums

Quebec, Canada-based black/thrash metallers THESYRE have issued the following update:

"Our contractual obligations with France's Osmose Productions ended with the release of 'Résistance', our second and last album for them. We're now free agents and shall consider the options for the release of our next album, on which we're already working."

"Résistance" was released on April 14 via Osmose Productions. A song from the CD, "Matérialisme consumériste infectieux", is available for streaming via the ReverbNation widget below.

"Résistance" track listing:

01. Au présent
02. Hymne au mérite
03. Par une froide nuit d'octobre
04. Laïque et souverain
05. De réalisme et de nihilisme actif
06. L'égalitarisme freine l'excellence
07. Matérialisme consumériste infectieux
08. La grande noirceur
09. Pour en finir avec le jugement des dieux
10. Résistance

Vocalist/bassist Eric M. Syre previously stated about the CD: "'Résistance' [is] our first album featuring lyrics fully written in French (we used to have one song in French on past releases). The album also features some additions to our sound, including Theremin and vintage synth. I felt this album needed different layers and textures and we wanted to avoid working with samples and prefrabricated sounds. Both these instruments add an eerie and somewhat oldschool electronic touch to our material. The production is also a little rougher than the one on our previous album 'Exist!' We felt it was important to avoid over-producing our music and to give it a much more natural and real feel to it. We recorded and mixed the album in our home studio and avoided 'over-mastering' it, so to speak. It was out of question to try to get into this loudness war bands are into right now. Everything is kept dynamic and audible while the volume remains at a standard level. No 'deathmagnetism' here... If some of you need to hear it louder, just raise the volume knob on your player."

Swedish black metallers SHINING have issued the following update:

"SHINING has once again entered the Slaughterhouse [studios] to begin work on 'Shining VII'. The seventh album will take a different direction from that taken on the sixth (which incidentally we have been told will be released on the June 30th unless there are any other problems with the printers). Tracklist and samples from 'Shining VII' will follow as soon as we start mixing the album."

SHINING recently inked a deal with Norway's Indie Recordings for the release of two full-length albums and the first-ever DVD from the band.

Commented SHINING frontman and creator Niklas Kvarforth: "SHINING has reached a stage now where we have a considerable following that is growing rapidly all the time, and I believe we have reached a new maturity with our music, expanding beyond what people expect from us, and we expect to go even further. It was, therefore, time to notch things up in respect of labels. We liked what Indie have been doing for their other bands, and we felt that SHINING would be comfortable in a relationship with them."

More musicians have paid tribute to pop music legend Michael Jackson, who died yesterday (Thursday, June 25) at age 50.

CNN.com reports that Michael collapsed at his residence in the Holmby Hills section of Los Angeles, California, about noon Pacific time, suffering cardiac arrest, according to brother Randy Jackson. He died at UCLA Medical Center.

Lt. Fred Corral of the Los Angeles County Coroner's Office said an autopsy would probably be done on the singer later today, with results expected this afternoon.

Fred Durst (LIMP BIZKIT): "On this tour I have been paying tribute to [Michael Jackson] by wearing his 'Beat It' jacket and rhinestone glove [see photos below]. The irony and timing is shocking. I am very sad. He was truly brilliant and the reason why I love to dance."

Alice Cooper: "Michael Jackson was easily as influential as James Brown, and that's saying a lot. We had Vincent Price in common. I used him first on 'Welcome To My Nightmare' in 1975, and he later used him on 'Thriller'. Nobody moved like Michael, he was truly the King of Pop."

Chris Cornell (who recorded a cover version of "Billie Jean" on his 2007 solo album, "Carry On"): "I was on my way from Poland to Berlin following a show. At 1:00 a.m. I got the news and was immediately saddened. I remembered being 6 years old and seeing the JACKSON 5 on our black-and-white TV. His brothers were cool but he had a halo around him. Superstar at 12. What promise. He had magic! It was by chance that I recorded and rearranged his song 'Billie Jean' and have been amazed at the response it gets when I perform it every night. He was amazingly talented and largely misunderstood. I hope that the media will be kind and celebrate the genius instead of cashing in on the tabloid angles that made him a prisoner. I think he deserves that."

NICK HELLFORT, the solo project of DOMAIN singer Nicolaj Ruhnow, has announced the addition of drummer Simon Mengs to the group's ranks. One of the youngest metal drummers around, Simon joins NICK HELLFORT — which was formed in 2007 — after a long audition process.

Commented Nicolaj: "This guy is 17 years old and plays way better than the most of the so-called professionals in the scene. Just imagine how this guy is gonna kick ass in the next 10 or 20 years! Unbelieveable!" He continued, "We had a very great response from many drummers, also overseas, but our decision [is final]... he blew them all away!"

NICK HELLFORT is:

Nicolaj Ruhnow (DOMAIN, ex-IRONY) - Vocals
Achim Rauscher (ex-IRONY) - Guitar
Jörg Klein (AETERNOM) - Guitar
Arne Lakenmacher - Bass
Simon Mengs - Drums

NICK HELLFORT is currently in pre-production for the band's debut EP, tentatively due before the end of teh year.

"Beneath The Veiled Embrace", the debut album from U.K. gothic power metallers PYTHIA, is scheduled for release in October 2009 on Golden Axe Records. The CD features 10 original tracks by PYTHIA and 10 images by Hayley Madden. It also includes a guest appearance by "the living legend" Brian Blessed. A single, "Sarah (Bury Her)", will precede the full-length CD on August 10. It will incude the title cut plus two bonus tracks and a video.

"Beneath The Veiled Embrace" was mixed and mastered by Danish producer Jacob Hansen, who has previously worked with MERCENARY, VOLBEAT, RAUNCHY and INVOCATOR, among many others.

PYTHIA features the classically trained soprano Emily Alice Ovenden (MEDIEVAL BAEBES, CELTIC LEGEND) alongside current and/or former members of U.K. death thrash band DESCENT, southern-fried metallers HEAD-ON and black metallers ABGOTT.

Vocalist Jape Peratalo of defunct Finnish gothic metallers TO/DIE/FOR has issued the following update:

"I have been talking about things with TO/DIE/FOR original drummer Tonmi Lillman, and also with TO/DIE/FOR bassist Josey [a.k.a. Jarkko Strandman], and it seems like there would be possibility to continue with TO/DIE/FOR and record a sixth album. But it will take some time. If it happens it will happen in 2010 or 2011.

"But it will happen only if Tonmi is with me and Josey. We need him to create unique TO/DIE/FOR sound. We do not know about guitarists yet. First we will create songs together with (just the three of us), and let's see then who's gonna be with us!

"I wrote this to just give some hope for the hardcore TO/DIE/FOR fans. And of course I will continue with SUNDOWN SINDROME [the new project featuring Perätalo and members of the German band DAS SCHEIT] also!"

TO/DIE/FOR's fifth album, "Wounds Wide Open", was released in Finland in October 2006. The follow-up to 2005's "IV" was recorded by Samu Oittinen at Fantom Studios and by Jari-Jukka Nippala at Sonic Image, and was mixed at Sweden's Abyss Studios by Peter Tägtgren (DIMMU BORGIR, CELTIC FROST).

Finland's GHOST BRIGADE will release its sophomore album, "Isolation Songs", on August 3 in Europe (August 25 in the U.S.) via Season Of Mist Records.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Suffocated
02. My Heart Is a Tomb
03. Into the Black Light
04. Lost in a Loop
05. 22:22 - Nihil
06. Architect of New Beginnings
07. Birth
08. Concealed Revulsions
09. Secrets of the Earth
10. A Storm Inside
11. Liar (first edition bonus track)

Check out the cover artwork below.

"We are collectively very proud of this record," stated guitarist Wille. "It was a lot of work to get this album done, it took almost two years to write these songs, but now that it's 100% ready I can only say that I feel privileged to be a member of GHOST BRIGADE. I have a strong feeling we have created something very special with 'Isolation Songs' and it is by far my personal favorite of all recordings I've ever been a part of. I hope people will enjoy these songs as much as we do once they get the chance to hear them."

GHOST BRIGADE's debut album, "Guided by Fire", was released on September 17, 2007 via Season of Mist. The CD was recorded with the group's "house engineer" Mikko Poikolainen.

Regarding the band's musical direction, GHOST BRIGADE previously stated, "There are so many bands and artists that have influenced us throughout the years that I couldn't just pick a few and say we're a mixture of those. That wouldn't do the listener nor us any justice. We are influenced by anything that sounds good, be it older death metal, melancholic pop music or anything in between. So I guess we just collect little pieces along the way, put it all into a blender and the result is GHOST BRIGADE. To anyone who hasn't heard us, I'd say it's heavy, dynamic and metallic music filled with beautiful melodies and a fine dose of anxiety."

Fan-filmed video footage of former NIGHTWISH singer Tarja Turunen performing a new song, "If You Believe", on June 22, 2009 in Bucharest, Romania can be viewed here.

Tarja Turunen's band for her Summer Storm 2009 Tour consists of the following musicians:

* Tarja Turunen - Vocals
* Mike Terrana (MASTERPLAN, SAVAGE CIRCUS, ex-RAGE, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) - Drums
* Maria Ilmoniemi - Keyboards
* Doug Wimbish (LIVING COLOUR, MADONNA, JEFF BECK, THE ROLLING STONES) - Bass
* Kiko Loureiro (ANGRA) - Guitar
* Max Lilja (HEVEIN, ex-APOCALYPTICA) - Cello

According to a posting on Tarja's web site, "all the shows on Summer Storm 2009 Tour were declared 'camera-friendly,' which means that you are welcome to bring your photo camera and take as many pictures as you wish. This is with the exception of gigs in festivals, where you will have to ask to the organization of the festival about their camera policy for we can not exceed the regulations established by them."

Swedish hard rockers EUROPE will release a special mini-album, "Last Look At Eden", on August 10 via Edel Entertainment's rock music record label earMUSIC. The CD will feature five tracks and a promotional video for the song "Last Look At Eden".

The mini-album coincides with EUROPE's headlining appearance at this year's Bloodstock Open Air festival on August 16 at Catton Hall in Derbyshire, England and will precede the band's long-awaited studio album, "Last Look At Eden", which will arrive on September 14.

Conceived as a gift to the fans and a way to introduce the new studio album of the same name, the "Last Look At Eden" mini-album will be available as a CD deluxe digipack and digital download.

The "Last Look At Eden" mini-album features two new songs from the forthcoming full-length CD — the title track and first single, "Last Look At Eden", plus "U Devil U" — as well as three never-before-released live tracks, including a cover of LED ZEPPELIN's "Since I've Been Loving You". The mini-album also includes the promo video for "Last Look At Eden" and is available to pre-order from Townsend-Records.co.uk and Amazon.co.uk.

"Last Look At Eden" mini-album (cover) track listing:

01. Last Look At Eden (new song)
02. U Devil U (new song)
03. Superstitious (live; first time on CD)
04. Start From The Dark (live; first time on CD)
05. Since I've Been Loving You (live; LED ZEPPELIN cover)
06. Last Look At Eden (video clip)

Welsh metallers ANTERIOR have issued the following update:

"We are still writing for the forthcoming album. We will be releasing updates regarding the new album's title, tracklisting etc over the coming months and we are hoping to record in September/October time with the beastly metal producer extroardinaire Mr. Scott Atkins (SYLOSIS, ROMEO MUST DIE, MADMAN IS ABSOLUTE)."

ANTERIOR recently announced the addition of drummer Andrew Cairns to the group's ranks. "Andrew did a great job on our recent U.K. jaunt with ALL THAT REMAINS and THE HAUNTED and has now become a full-time member of ANTERIOR," the band said in a statement. "We are very pleased to have him in the fold and we feel that he is a great addition to the band."

ANTERIOR's Metal Blade debut, "The Age Of Silence", came out in 2007.