German metallers WOLFCHANT will release their third studio album, "Determined Damnation", on April 24 via Massacre Records. The CD, which was engineered by Uwe Lulies (REBELLION), features a guest appearance by Michael Seifert (REBELLION). A special limited digipak edition of the album will be available for purchase at the Ragnarök Festival, set to take place April 17-18, 2009 in Lichtenfels, Germany.
"Determined Damnation" track listing:

01. Determination Begins
02. World In Ice
03. Until The End
04. Determined Damnation
05. In War
06. Fate Of The Fighting Man
07. Kein Engel Hört Dich Flehen
08. A Raven's Flight
09. Never Too Drunk
10. Schwerter Der Erde
11. Auf Blut Gebaut
12. Under The Wolves Banner
13. Devour (digipack bonus)
14. Warcry (digipack bonus)

The artwork by Kris Verwimp can be viewed below.

A new AGATHODAIMON track entitled "Heliopolis" is available for streaming at this location. The song comes off the German black/death/gothic metallers' long-awaited new album, "Phoenix", which is scheduled for release on March 20 via Massacre Records. The follow-up to "Serpent's Embrace" will mark the debut of the band's new vocalist, Chris "Ashtrael" Bonner, who joined the group last fall. According to the label, "There'll be a limited first edition as digipack, featuring two bonus tracks. The regular CD will have a playing time of over 63 minutes, the limited edition even more than 72 minutes!"

A new PROFANE OMEN song entitled "Left To Disintegrate" is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. The track comes off the Finnish metal group's sophomore full-length album, "Inherit The Void", which is scheduled for release on March 4 through Playground Music Scandinavia. The CD was recorded with producer Ville Sorvali of MOONSORROW and Aleksanteri Kuosa.

"Inherit The Void" track listing:

01. Seconds (intro)
02. Base
03. Information
04. Superpowertrip
05. I Have Seen
06. Left To Disintegrate
07. In The Middle I Breathe
08. Right To Retaliate
09. Generation Doom (Count Me Out)
10. Dealers Of Guilt
11. Dodge

Commented the band: "'Inherit The Void' is recorded and mixed and we as a band and human beings have given everything we had in us. This album simply is the best piece of work we have been able to pull off so far.

"If you are willing to lay down and listen to this album in peace for the first time, I promise it will be a small 'trip.' The songs are all linked to each other, by the texts, but also by the feeling in the music. Using the words 'theme album' would sound a bit too much pseudo-artistic crap, so let's say that this album is a description of our time and the lives we live. It is made of somewhat incoherent thoughts interpreted and five dudes totally playing together.

"Oh, and don't you be expecting some over-compressed-everything-as-loud-as-possible concrete. We wanted this album to also breathe and have some real dynamics on it. The sound is somehow close to an old-school vinyl sound, with soft, but rich upper frequencies and a big bottom that still doesn't eat all the dynamics from the sound. Hope you will enjoy it this way, at least we do."

Based in Lahti, Finland, PROFANE OMEN was formed in 1999 and released its debut album, "Beaten into Submission", in 2006. An EP, "Disconnected", followed in 2007.

PROFANE OMEN is:

Jules Näveri (ENEMY OF THE SUN) - Vocals
Antti Kokkonen (Andy J. Bonfire) - Guitar
Williami Kurki - Guitar
Tuomas Saarenketo - Bass
Samuli Mikkonen - Drums

Andy La Rocque (KING DIAMOND), Juan Garcia and Bernie Versailles (AGENT STEEL), Joey Vera (ARMORED SAINT), and James Rivera (HELSTAR) make guest appearances on "Cult Of Sin", the new album from Belgian metallers AFTER ALL, due on March 23 via Dockyard 1 in Europe (Locomotive Records in the U.S.). The CD was mixed and mastered by Dan Swanö (BLOODBATH, HAIL OF BULLETS, NOVEMBERS DOOM) at Unisound in Örebro, Sweden and features the artwork of Gabriel Bueno (KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, LAMB OF GOD, UNEARTH).

"Cult Of Sin" track listing:

01. Another False Prophecy
02. My Own Sacrifice
03. Scars Of My Actions
04. Betrayed By The Gods (feat. Juan Garcia, Joey Vera, Bernie Versailles)
05. Devastation Done
06. End Of Your World
07. Land Of Sin (feat. Andy La Rocque)
08. Doomsday Elegy (2012)
09. Embracing Eternity (feat. James Rivera)
10. Hollow State
11. Release
Bonus Track:
12. Scars, Booze And A Bad Case Of Cabin Fever (video)

The song "My Own Sacrifice" is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page.

German industrial metallers RAMMSTEIN have updated their official web site with the following message:

"After finishing the first part of their studio recordings [for the new RAMMSTEIN album] successfully, RAMMSTEIN have started to put the final touches to their new songs. For example, they're thinking about the usage of strings and choirs. Therefore, the band sat down with the orchestra arranger Sven Helbig last week. Aside from the last musical changes, the final lyrical changes are being made, too. We're highly awaiting the next steps of the album production: the mixing of the songs. It is supposed to start mid-March and will take about six up to eight weeks."

RAMMSTEIN recorded the initial tracks for the new album in Los Angeles with Jacob Hellner and the production team of Ulf Kruckenberg and Florian Ammon. A studio was rented near San Francisco for the bulk of the main recording work.

According to an online posting by vocalist Biff Byford of the legendary British heavy metal outfit SAXON, SPV Records will release "747 (Strangers In The Night)" as a commemorative single later this year to celebrate the band's 30th anniversary. Included in the package will be the video for the song "Battalions Of Steel" and 3D glasses.

"Battalions Of Steel" comes off SAXON's latest album, "Into The Labyrinth", which sold around 1,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release, according to Nielsen SoundScan. The CD debuted at No. 29 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. The album was recorded at the Twilight Hall in Krefeld, Germany, under the direction of Charlie Bauerfeind. SAXON laid down 13 new songs at BLIND GUARDIAN's studio, starting with monumental opener "Battalions Of Steel" through "Demon Sweeney Todd" and "Valley Of The Kings", which both cover historic events, to the final slide guitar blues track "Coming Home" (fans are already familiar with the electric version of this track from SAXON's "Killing Ground" album).

Montreal, Quebec, Canada-based black/death metallers NECRONOMICON have finished mixing their new album, 'The Return Of The Witch'. According to the band, "the mastering session as been started earlier last week and after some test and tweaking some really good result are showing. The band is happy to be working with renowned Maor Appelbaum at Maor Appelbaum Mastering studio in California (YNGWIE MALMSTEEN, HALFORD, F5, THERION, SIGH)."

Currently unsigned, NECRONOMICON last spring shot a video for the new song "The Time Is Now" from "Return of the Witch".

"Return of the Witch" will feature guest appearances by Arianne Fleury (ex-AUGURY) and Roxanne Constantin (NEGATIVA, QUO VADIS), among others.

The band previously stated that the follow-up to 2003's "The Sacred Medicines" would "probably be the fastest and most brutal" CD the group has released thus far.

Other songtitles set to appear on the album include "Into the Fire", "Alpha Omega", "The Awakening", and "Return of the Witch".

TARDY BROTHERS — the new project featuring OBITUARY founding members John (vocals) and Donald Tardy (drums) — will release its debut album, "Bloodline", on April 7 via Candlelight Records.

The track listing for the CD is as follows:

01. Bring You Down (3:52)
02. Bloodline (4:50)
03. I'm Alive (4:39)
04. Deep Down (5:17)
05. Wired (2:53)
06. Fates Call (3:42)
07. Eternal Lies (5:09)
08. Screan Descendent (3:59)
09. Fade Away (4:05)

Commented John Tardy: "'Bloodline' is the first of what we hope are several releases that we plan to invite some of the many friends/musicians we have meet over the years to record with us. For the first release, we have invited new OBITUARY guitarist Ralph Santolla [ex-DEICIDE, DEATH, ICED EARTH] and we are bringing back our original EXECUTIONER [pre-OBITUARY] guitarist Jerry Tidwell!!!! Please understand that this project is something Donald and I have talked about and planned for many years and we just never had the time to do it. With the addition of our new studio, it has finally given us the abilitity to get this music recorded. It is not going to affect anything that OBITUARY is doing nor is it supposed to sound like OBITUARY."

Montreal extreme metallers DESPISED ICON have issued the following update:

"The Montreal Assault Tour [with BENEATH THE MASSACRE, CARNIFEX, NEURAXIS and THE PLASMARIFLE] is almost halfway done already. Thanks to everyone that came out and supported our scene. The shows have been sick so far! It feels great to be back in the U.S. and share the stage with our hometown boys every night. We won't be back until next summer so come hang out!

"Right after this tour, we'll finally hit the studio to record our fourth album. We're almost done writing and the new shit is packed with brutality. Can't wait to play these songs live! As always, our long time buddy Yannick St-Amand will produce the whole thing and we got Zeuss and Alan Douches to take care of the mixing and mastering so the result should sound monstrous! Our boy Felix Rancourt, the evil mastermind behind all our imagery, promised us his sickest album artwork to date. The recording starts March 7; get stoked! We'll post a few video blogs while we're in the studio to keep you guys updated.

"In the meantime, you'll soon be able to check out our live DVD ['Montreal Assault Live']. It's been ready for months and we're all extremely happy with how it turned out. Unfortunately, there was a major manufacturing problem that forced our label to push back the release date to March 24. This was completely out of our control, sorry guys! I can assure you though, the DVD rules! Aside from our live sold-out show in Montreal, it also features an hour long documentary, interviews, all our music videos, footage from us hanging out and rocking out on the road during the past seven years and a few other surprises!"

EMBRAZE, a well-known metal band from Kiiminki, has decided to hang up its instruments and end its 15-year-long career. The group's farewell gig will be held at Club Teatria on May Day — Friday, May 1. The night will also feature two other local bands — SEITH and REFLEXION — whom EMBRAZE have specifically wanted to accompany them on their last night on stage.

EMBRAZE was founded in 1994 by lead-singer and guitarist Lauri Tuohimaa, drummer Ilkka Leskelä, bassist Petri Henell and guitarist Mikko Aaltonen, of which the first two are still with the band. The current keyboardist, Heidi Määttä, has also been with the group since the early days. Other current members of EMBRAZE are bassist Olli-Pekka Karvonen and guitarist Sami Siekkinen, who joined the band in the summer of 2000.

While EMBRAZE as a band has come to the end of its road, the members will remain active in their careers: Tuohimaa joined CHARON, a metal band from Raahe, in 2004, Leskelä and Siekkinen play in MAPLE CROSS and Karvonen in PERFECT CHAOS. Heidi Määttä also has some new band plans underway.

In the 1990s, EMBRAZE won the Rock Finnish Championship competition. Their first album, "Laeh", was released in 1998, and in 2003, the band's hometown Kiiminki awarded the band with the "Kiiminkian of the Year" nomination. "The Last Embrace", the band's latest album (released in 2006), is clearly the band's most mature and uniform piece of work.

Stylistically, EMBRAZE is best known for emotional Finnish, and especially Northern, melancholy and catchy melodical elements, not a million miles removed from those of AMORPHIS and SENTENCED.

In their career, EMBRAZE toured with Finland's AFTERWORLD and BEFORE THE DAWN, Canada's STAIN ON SOCIETY, Portugal's MOONSPELL, and Sweden's SPARZANZA.

Lauri Tuohimaa comments on EMBRAZE's decision to disband: "We've been thinking about this round and round for about a year, and we simply don't have enough time together to keep the band moving forward intensively enough. Other bands and our civilian lives take their toll, too. 'The Last Embrace' was not meant to be our last album, but we don't have enough spark as a band to take this great career any further. If it feels contrived and forced, there's no point to go on. Musically, we are probably in the best shape ever, and we're still good friends with one another. Our most recent shows at the end of last year were, in my opinion, our best, and we want to reward our fans and friends with one more show."

EYES OF NOCTUM, the California-based black metal band fronted by Weston "Arcane" Coppola Cage (son of actor Nicolas Cage), has issued the following update:

"Just wanted to let you know that we had a lineup change last week. We have parted ways with Asmodeus. His departure was strictly professional and there is no bad blood between us. We all wish him best of luck in his future endeavors and we will always remain friends. Also we want to thank him for being very business-minded and understanding throughout the entire time we have been together. We'd also like everyone to welcome our new lead guitarist Nebron. We are all really looking forward to working together with him in light of the fact that he is a brilliant musician and an amazing person."

Canadian progressive death metal band AUGURY has announced the addition of drummer Antoine Baril to the group's ranks. The group says, "Originating from Quebec City area, Antoine got known with the excellent tribute to DEATH, SYMBOLIC, as well as MAG project, SIGNS OF FATE and many others. An accomplished mutli-instrumentalist and producer of several local recordings, his professionalism and enthusiasm are such a boost for the team!"

A new band photo can be viewed below.

AUGURY recently signed a worldwide deal with Nuclear Blast Records. The group was described in a Nuclear Blast press release as "a band for all the fans out there who like their music really progressive! Think NECROPHAGIST meets DREAM THEATER meets OPETH, but with lots of other influences as well! What you should do is to check out the amazingly cool bass playing by Forest!! Their new album was produced by Jean-Francois Dagenais of KATAKLYSM and contains some of the most versatile musicianship you will ever hear! Canada has always delivered some cool technical and progressive bands and AUGURY is a prime example for this! Their new songs that we heard on MySpace blew us away and there was only one logical thing for us to do — sign them!"

Santa Barbara, California's DEVILDRIVER, the group fronted by former COAL CHAMBER singer Dez Fafara, has completed recording its fourth album, "Pray For Villains", due this summer via Roadrunner Records. The CD was recorded at Edge of the Earth studios in Los Angeles with producer Logan Mader (FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, GOJIRA, DIVINE HERESY)

Commented drummer John Boecklin: "This album certainly has a more serious and focused vibe that we may have missed in previous efforts. One song in particular is the craziest double bass patterns I've ever done, guitar work you would not expect from us, mixed in with a really fresh vocal approach completely new from Dez. Its vibe is very new for us, but still totally brutal. I guess talking about it won't do much; I'm just trying to state that you won't be disappointed with us if you are DEVILDRIVER fan. Yet there will be some surprises in 'Pray For Villains' that are refreshing. I'm very proud of every member for stepping it up!"

DEVILDRIVER recently re-signed with Roadrunner Records after previously issuing three full-length albums through the label. In addition, the band has secured a new management company in the shape of Davis Entertainment Group.

German epic/melodic metallers ROUGH SILK will release their new album, "A New Beginning" on March 20 via Dockyard 1 Records.

Mastermind Ferdy Doernberg teamed up with André Hort (bass), Mike Mandel (guitars) and Alex Wenn (drums), who are young and hungry musicians from the Hanover area to bring fresh blood and enthusiasm into the band and most important to bring back more metal into ROUGH SILK's sound again.

The CD was produced by Ferdy Doernberg at the Droehnwerk Studios in Bad Nenndorf, Germany, with the exception of the track "A Song For Hilmer", which was written and recorded in Los Angeles one day after Doernberg received news that original ROUGH SILK guitarist, Hilmer Staacke, passed away.

"A New Beginning" track listing:

01. Temple Of Evil
02. Home Is Where The Pain Is
03. Reborn To Wait
04. The Roll Of The Dice
05. When The Circus Is Coming To Town
06. Sierra Madre
07. A New Beginning
08. Warpaint
09. Black Leather
10. We've Got A File On You (feat. SUBCULTURE SQUAD)
11. Deadline
12. We All Need Something To Hold On To In This Life
13. A Song For Hilmer

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

"We're in Tampere, Finland right now and things are just hunky dory! Played Helsinki last night and it was a blast. Felt good to come back and play a nice show there since we had to cancel the last time due to me losing my voice. Cheers, guys! We love ya! Finland is THE metal country in the world, no question about it!

"On top of everything else, we have ENTOMBED out with us for this Finn shows! I have loved them ever since the demo days of NIHILIST, so it's nothing short of amazing to have them with us here. Cool people, but we knew that already.

"Our touring schedule is insane! We just semi-confirmed another Euro tour for later this year which will be real nice. We've got South America, Russia, Dubai and all sorts of gigs coming up. Not to mention the North American tour with ENSLAVED, of course. I guess we'll all be drooling freaks by the end of this run....

"Got the final mix of the OSI track 'Stockholm' [featuring a guest appearance by Mikael — Ed.], which sounded real nice. Love it actually!!

"Anyways, [bassist Martin] Mendez just farted here so I can't stay, 'cause I'll die if I do..."

AFP reports that AC/DC's "Black Ice", METALLICA's "Death Magnetic" and GUNS N' ROSES' "Chinese Democracy" were among the top-selling albums of 2008 globally, according to new figures from the London-based International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI), which represents the recording industry worldwide.

Top 20 best-selling albums of 2008 globally, according to IFPI:

01. COLDPLAY - "Viva La Vida Or Death And All His Friends"
02. AC/DC - "Black Ice"
03. Various Artists - "Mamma Mia! The Movie Soundtrack Featuring The Songs Of ABBA"
04. DUFFY - "Rockferry"
05. METALLICA - "Death Magnetic"
06. LEONA LEWIS - "Spirit "
07. AMY WINEHOUSE - "Back To Black"
08. Various Artists - "High School Musical 3: Senior Year"
09. LIL WAYNE - "Tha Carter III"
10. RIHANNA - "Good Girl Gone Bad"
11. MADONNA - "Hard Candy"
12. BEYONCE - "I Am... Sasha Fierce"
13. PINK - "Funhouse"
14. GUNS N' ROSES - "Chinese Democracy"
15. BRITNEY SPEARS - "Circus"
16. JACK JOHNSON - "Sleep Through The Static"
17. IL DIVO - "The Promise"
18. TAYLOR SWIFT - "Fearless"
19. JONAS BROTHERS - "A Little Bit Longer"
20. Various Artists - "Camp Rock"

"Songs of Torment - Songs of Joy", the first solo album from CANDLEMASS and KRUX mastermind Leif Edling, is scheduled for release on March 10 via Candlelight Records.

Edling has always been unique in his songwriting, and "Songs of Torment - Songs of Joy" is, of course, no exception. The CD consists of eight monumental tracks, something Leif Edling calls minimalistic organ doom. It's slow and beautiful, but also black and epic like the album opener The Scar", and the colossal "It Is Not There". "Nautilus" is inspired by the Jules Verne classic "20,000 Leagues Under The Sea". And "On The Edge Of Time" is a poetic reflection over some old but fantastic HAWKWIND album cover art.

"Songs of Torment - Songs of Joy" was created in periods during the last year. Edling has nursed his moments of inspiration, which has lead to recording sessions in several different studios. Leif's vocals were laid down in mixer Stefan Fandén's bedroom, keyboard among colourful exotic fish in KRUX keyboardist Carl Westholm's studio, and bass and drums (by TIAMAT's Lars Sköld) in a more traditional studio environment. The guitars on the CD were tracked by Björn Eriksson and Chris Laney.

"You don't need an expensive studio to make cool music. Some friends and a creative perspective is enough," says Leif.

"Songs of Torment - Songs of Joy" track listing:

01. The Scar (05:55)
02. It Is Not There (04:26)
03. Angelic 'Til I Die (04:54)
04. On the Edge of Time (06:17)
05. Butterfly (00:57)
06. My Black Birthday (05:39)
07. Space Killer (05:40)
08. Nautilus (09:33)

MANNHAI, the Finnish group whose lineup includes singer Pasi Koskinen (ex-AMORPHIS, AJATTARA), has issued the following update:

"Maybe it's time to tell you what is going on in the MANNHAI camp... We've been quite passive for a long time, and right now it seems that we will remain that way for some time. How long this will be is impossible to say, but the fact that we haven't composed new music together as a band since 2007, might give a picture of the current situation.

"We've done four albums in nine years, which would be enough for an average band career. Also, we've played gigs in various kinds of circumstances — and always enjoyed it. But now it's time to jump off the wagon for a while and take a look at what we've done from another perspective. Whenever it's time to activate again, we'll let people know about it."

MANNHAI's latest CD, "Hellroad Caravan", was released in continental Europe in June 2006 via Dockyard 1. The CD, which was issued in Finland on February 15, 2006, was recorded at Jive Studios in Helsinki and was described by the band as "heavier and more guitar-driven" than the group's previous album, 2004's "The Exploder".

On March 13, Nuclear Blast Records will release "Made In Hong Kong (And In Various Other Places)", the new CD/DVD from Finnish/Swedish symphonic metallers NIGHTWISH. The set will contain a DVD documentary (with a running time of approximately 45 minutes) of NIGHTWISH's world tour in support of the band's latest album, "Dark Passion Play", as well as a CD featuring live recordings from the trek. The documentary footage was reportedly directed by Ville Lipiäinen.

"Made In Hong Kong (And In Various Other Places)" track listing:

CD (running time - 66:13):

01. Bye Bye Beautiful (live)
02. Whoever Brings The Night (live)
03. Amaranth (live)
04. The Poet And The Pendulum (live)
05. Sahara (live)
06. The Islander (live)
07. Last Of The Wilds (live)
08. 7 Days To The Wolves (live)
09. Escapist
10. While Your Lips Are Still Red
11. Cadence Of Her Last Breath (demo version)

DVD (running time - 49:52)

* Documentary (Dark Passion Play World Tour)
* Video Clips:
01. Amaranth
02. Bye Bye Beautiful
03. The Islander

16:9 PAL / 2.0 Stereo / DVD-5 / region free

Watch a two-minute video trailer for "Made In Hong Kong (And In Various Other Places)" below.

KRUX — the Swedish band featuring CANDLEMASS bassist Leif Edling, ex-YNGWIE MALMSTEEN singer Mats Levén, ex-ENTOMBED drummer Peter Stjärnvind, guitarist Jörgen Sandstrom (also in THE PROJECT HATE, ex-ENTOMBED/GRAVE) and OPETH/ex-ARCH ENEMY guitarist Fredrik Åkesson — played two shows with its latest adition, keyboardist Pär Wiberg from OPETH, in Stockholm at Harry B James on January 29 and in Gävle at O'Leary's on January 30. Levén says, "Since both Leif and Fredrik are really busy touring this year, we might not do any more shows until 2010 again. The plan is to write material this year and start recording the third album next winter. Hopefully we can release it by spring 2010 and then play some festivals in the summer. We might release some live stuff on DVD later this year; we have 3-4 shows recorded. If so, we'll sell them exclusively on our homepage."

KRUX's sophomore album, entitled "II", was released in October 2006 via GMR Music. The follow-up to the band's self-titled debut, "II" was recorded at Studioland studio in Upplands Väsby, Sweden.

"Krux" was released in 2002 via Holland's Mascot Records. A live DVD containing the band's entire performance from May 18, 2003 at Kägelbanan in Stockholm, Sweden, plus a promo video for the track "Black Room" and an interview, followed in 2003.

EVANESCENCE frontwoman Amy Lee will be featured on an upcoming episode of "Legends & Lyrics", a unique musical performance series showcasing the art of songwriting. Each show is a mixture of famous recording artists from all genres who write their own hit songs as well as the professional song poets they sometimes depend on to write hit songs for them.

Lee will be accompanied by EVANESCENCE guitarist Terry Balsamo during the performance, which will be taped on February 23 in Nashville, Tennessee.

"Legends & Lyrics" is distributed and presented by American Public Television and will appear on PBS stations nationwide starting April 2009 (check local listings).

Video footage of Amy Lee performing "Sally's Song", her contribution to the CD collection "Nightmare Revisited", on the October 13, 2008 episode of NBC-TV's "The Tonight Show with Jay Leno" can be viewed below.

Amy Lee, who is busy writing new material, told SPIN.com last October about her new songs, "I need to show that I'm more than a one-trick pony. I'm writing here at the house by myself and it's been really good. But I'd really like to do something different next. [The new songs] are definitely different. I feel like I'm going back to my really old roots. They have more of my folky and Celtic influence than ever before. And it's not all sad — it's nothing I would categorize as EVANESCENCE."

"Judas Must Die", a new song from Swedish melodic heavy metal masters LION'S SHARE, is available for free download at this location (MP3 file, 3.4 MB). The track is the first single from the band's new album, "Dark Hours", which is scheduled for release on March 25 via Blistering Records. The follow-up to 2007's "Emotional Coma" was mixed and mastered by Jens Bogren (OPETH, SYMPHONY X, PARADISE LOST, AMON AMARTH) and features guest appearances by SYMPHONY X guitarist Mike Romeo (guest solo on "Behind The Curtain"), and drummers Conny Pettersson (from Earache Records death metal act ANATA) and Richard Evensand (CHIMAIRA, SOILWORK).

"Dark Hours" track listing:

01. Judas Must Die
02. Phantom Rider
03. Demon In Your Mind
04. Heavy Cross To Bear
05. The Bottomless Pit
06. Full Metal Jacket
07. The Presidio 27
08. Barker Ranch
09. Napalm Nights
10. Space Scam
11. Behind The Curtain
12. King Of All The Kings (digipack bonus)
13. Judas Must Die (video) (digipack bonus)
14. Behind-The-Scenes Footage (video)(digipack bonus)

The band states: "The new songs are simply awesome and everybody that has heard it thinks it's our best album to date. The red thread lyric-wise on this album is that all songs are about things that happened in the late Sixties; a decade known for many good things. However, we're not describing the happy times of the Sixties: We give you the 'Dark Hours'. Musically, it's more straight-forward and faster than ever. The songs are filled with energy and great hooks."

Danish thrashers HATESPHERE have released the "censored" version of their "To The Nines" video (see below). The uncensored version of the clip will be made available prior to the late March release of the band's album of the same name.

The CD was recorded over a nine-day period Antfarm Studio in Aarhus, Denmark with producer Tue Madsen (THE HAUNTED, MOONSPELL, DARK TRANQUILLITY, GOREFEST).

The track listing for the album is as follows:

01. To The Nines
02. Backstabber
03. Cloaked In Shit
04. Clarity
05. Even If It Kills Me
06. Commencing A Campaign
07. The Writing's On The Wall
08. In The Trenches
09. Aurora
10. Oceans Of Blood