Swedish "death-rockers" HELLTRAIN — whose members have spent time playing with such acclaimed outfits as SCHEITAN, THE EVERDAWN, GATES OF ISHTAR, DEFLESHED, BATTLELUST, THE MOANING, and RAISED FIST — have pushed back the projected release date of their second album, "Rock 'n' Roll Devil", to September from the previously announced May (via Jimmy Franks Recording Company). A video for the title track was recently shot and is expected to receive its online premiere this weekend.

HELLTRAIN's debut album, "Route 666", was released in 2004 via Nuclear Blast Records.

The band's lineup includes Pierre Törnkvist (vocals, guitar), Oskar Karlsson (drums, guitars), and Patrik Törnkvist (guitars, organ, piano, bass)

Swedish hard rockers THE POODLES have recruited guitarist Henrik Bergqvist (SOUTHFORK, TIAMAT) to replace Pontus Norgren, who recently left the group to join HAMMERFALL. The new axeman made his live debut with THE POODLES on Friday (June 6) at the Sweden Rock Festival in Sölvesborg, Sweden.

Commented the band: "It has taken some time and effort to find a suitable replacement, a person that possesses all the qualities needed to fill the position at stage right in this great band. Many talented guitar players have applied and impressed. But in the end we found the linguist and guitar phenomenon Henrik among Mayan Indians in the rainforests of southern Mexico and the deal was sealed!"

Photo of the new THE POODLES lineup (Henrik Bergqvist is all the way on the right) here.

THE POODLES — whose lineup is rounded out by frontman Jakob Samuel (THE RING, ex-TALISMAN, JEKYLL & HYDE), bassist Pontus Egberg (ex-LION'S SHARE) and drummer Christian Lundqvist — released its latest album, "The Sweet Trade", in September2007 via AFM Records.

THE POODLES's "Seven Seas" video (featuring a guest appearance by Swedish actor Peter Stormare) can be viewed here.

A new MÖTLEY CRÜE track, "Mutherfucker Of The Year", is available for streaming on the band's MySpace page. The track comes off the group's new labum, "Saints of Los Angeles", which will be released in Japan on June 18 with the bonus tracks "Kickstart My Heart" (Live & Rare) and "Saints Of Los Angeles" (Live & Rare).

Short audio samples of all 13 tracks that are set to appear on the U.S. version of "Saints of Los Angeles" are available on Amazon.com.

Jeff Becerra of the reactivated California death metal pioneers POSSESSED has teamed up with filmmakers Shane and Amy Bugbee ("Club Satan") to launch a brand new "acoustic country/folkish" project called REPOSSESSED. The group, which has posted several early tracks on its MySpace page, is tentatively planning on releasing a CD and embarking on a short tour of Europe around mid-2009.

In other news, Jeff was recently interviewed for Shane and Amy's upcoming film documenting politics, religion, art and sex in America.

The Bugbees are on a year-long road trip taking in the state of the nation during the election year. They talk art, free speech, revolution and religion, and are posting regular updates at this location.

Leif Edling (CANDLEMASS, KRUX) and Mats Levén (KRUX, ex-THERION, YNGWIE MALMSTEEN) are among the guest musicians who appear on the new album from JUPITER SOCIETY, the brainchild of KRUX keyboardist Carl Westholm (also of CARPTREE). Entitled "First Contact - Last Warning", the epic concept album contains "the ambient but symphonic production known from CARPTREE and with a clear presence of heavier elements," according to a press release. "Big arrangements, small details, different vocalists and musicians specially chosen for each song make it diverse and intriguing. You are given one hour of music and exclusive 20-page booklet. This is an album about some important days in a distant future. Is this First contact or Last Warning? "

"First Contact - Last Warning" is being released in the U.S. via ProgRock Records. For more information, including audio samples, go to this location.

Frontman Chris Barnes from Tampa-based death metallers SIX FEET UNDER has issued the following update:

"Finished up vocal tracks [for the new SIX FEET UNDER album] yesterday at the Hit Factory Criteria in Miami. Many thanks to my friend and engineer, Chris Carroll, for an awesome session, special thanks to Trevor Fletcher for the use of the studio. Also want to thank our assistant Alex Graupera for all the help. Now on to the mix...."

SIX FEET UNDER's as-yet-untitled new album is expected before the end of the year via Metal Blade Records.

The band's video for the song "Doomsday" made its "Headbanger's Ball" debut last November. The clip was shot in August 2007 and was directed by Mario D. Framingheddu, who also helmed the group's previous video, "Ghosts of the Undead". According to the band, "The concept of the clip is pure fucking insanity on all levels. We were fortunate enough to work with Grady Stiles, a.k.a. Lobsterboy, who plays our main character. This has to be the creepiest clip we've ever filmed, from location, to storyline, to cast. It's totally fucked up!"

"Doomsday" video credits:

* Director: Mario D. Framingheddu
* Director of Photography: Kyle Walling
* Producer: Rachel Murray
* Starring: Grady Stiles and Joe Paez
* PA's: Joe Mendez, Sarah Murray and Gian Framingheddu

"Commandment" entered the German chart at position No. 58 and the Austrian chart at No. 70 upon its release in April 2007.

Veteran San Francisco Bay Area metallers MACHINE HEAD performed a cover version of the IRON MAIDEN classic "Hallowed Be Thy Name" at the Rock in Rio festival on June 5, 2008 in Lisbon, Portugal. Video footage of the performance can be viewed here.

MACHINE HEAD recently recorded a studio version of "Hallowed Be Thy Name" for the upcoming "Maiden Heaven" tribute CD which will be given away with the UK magazine Kerrang! Also scheduled to appear on this CD is the progressive-metal band DREAM THEATER with its cover of the MAIDEN classic "To Tame a Land".

The complete track listing and details for this release are expected to be revelaed later this month.

Danish modern metallers RAUNCHY are streaming their entire new masterpiece, "Wasteland Discotheque", on their MySpace page.

Due on June 16 in Denmark, June 30 in the rest of Europe and July 7 in the U.S. via Lifeforce Records, "Wasteland Discotheque" features the following track listing:

01. This Blackout is Your Apocalypse (intro)
02. Somewhere Along the Road
03. The Bash
04. Warriors
05. Straight to Hell
06. Welcome the Storm
07. Wasteland Discotheque
08. Somebody's Watching Me (ROCKWELL cover)
09. A Heavy Burden
10. To the Lighthouse
11. Showdown Recovery
12. The Comfort in Leaving

Vocalist Kasper Thomsen previously described the new material as "dirty, melodic, thrashy, epic, melancholic and... drum roll... heavy. We are experimenting a lot this time around, with vocals, arrangements and musical expression, but we're not gonna change radically — don't worry! But as a wise man once said: there's no point in writing the same record twice, right?"


The band split with Nuclear Blast Records in January 2005 after releasing two albums through the label (2002's "Velvet Noise" and 2004's "Confusion Bay").

"Phantoms", the latest video from RAUNCHY, can be viewed here. The clip was filmed at the group's sold-out show on December 2, 2007 at Store Vega in Copenhagen Denmark.

"Phantoms" comes off RAUNCHY's last album, "Death Pop Romance", which was released in 2006 through Lifeforce Records.

Legendary rock band YES announced today that the group will unfortunately be canceling their 2008 40th Anniversary Tour. The 26-city tour was scheduled to kick off in Quebec next month and run through the summer.

YES frontman and founding member Jon Anderson was admitted to the hospital last month after suffering a severe asthma attack. He has now been diagnosed with acute respiratory failure and was told by doctors this weekend that he needs to rest and not work for a period of at least six months or suffer further health complications. Upon receiving this news the band has determined that their tour plans need to be put on hold.

Ticket refunds will be available at the point of purchase.

Said Jon Anderson, "In the wake of my recent respiratory attack, doctors have advised me to spend the coming months resting and recovering. Unfortunately, this means I won't be able to tour with YES this summer as originally planned. I'd like everyone know how deeply disappointed I am by this turn of events. I was looking forward to celebrating our music with the amazing family of YES fans once again; but as we all know, health must come before anything else. Wishing you all the very best..."

Said Chris Squire, "We were all looking forward to performing for our fans after a prolonged leave of absence from touring. I am especially regretful of the fact that I know many of our fans and friends have probably laid out non-refundable airfares and hotels, etc. in order to enjoy the YES shows this summer. Please join me in wishing Jon a speedy return to health, which at this point in time is our main concern."

David Fricke of RollingStone.com recently conducted an interview with METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett. A couple of excerpts from the chat follow.

RollingStone.com: You have been working on the new METALLICA album for almost three years. How do you know which riffs and solos to keep and which to throw out?

Kirk: I know whether I'm cutting it or not. And I always try to make a solo the best it can be. I recorded over 100 solos for one track on this album — and the solo is only 25 seconds long [laughs]. But it's apparent when the solo works that it's all there. It's either "Wow!" — or it's not good enough. It's that black-and-white.

RollingStone.com: How would you describe your role in METALLICA's two-guitar sound?

Kirk: James [Hetfield] and I have always been complementary. We've never gotten into guitar squabbles, like a lot of bands with two guitar players do. His approach is primal — rhythmic and percussive. Mine is more technical and fluid. I see the guitar as a bunch of scales and tones. I write riffs and arrange chords to make sure they fit tight harmonically. On a lot of the albums we did in the Nineties, I was doing orchestration, looking for something that fit over a certain part to make it more exciting — a texture, a chord, a little lick here, a chug there. We've strayed from that. We've gotten back to the one-voice guitar thing we did in the Eighties. The album we're working on now is about METALLICA as a single thing — a locomotive coming to mow you down.

RollingStone.com: Is there a solo on the early albums that was a breakthrough in your playing?

Kirk: When the other guys heard the solos on "Creeping Death" and "Ride the Lightning" [both on 1984's "Ride the Lightning"], it was a different aspect of soloing than they were used to. [Original lead guitarist] Dave Mustaine played fast all the time. I play melodically. And I play parts, different sections that make the solo as hooky as possible. Although I've always been very flashy. I admit it.

RollingStone.com: How did you write the riff in "Enter Sandman" [on 1991's "Metallica"]? It's up there in instant recognition with "Smoke on the Water" and "Whole Lotta Love".

Kirk: My friend has a guitar store, and there is a big sign in there that says "No Enter Sandman" [laughs]. SOUNDGARDEN had just put out "Louder Than Love". I was trying to capture their attitude toward big, heavy riffs. It was two o'clock in the morning. I put it on tape and didn't think about it. When [drummer] Lars [Ulrich] heard the riff, he said, "That's really great. But repeat the first part four times." It was that suggestion that made it even more hooky.

Read the entire interview at RollingStone.com.

According to Hits Daily Double (the companion web site of music industry tip sheet HITS), DISTURBED's new album, "Indestructible", is poised to sell between 230,000 and 250,000 copies in the United States during its first week of release for a likely No. 1 debut on next week's The Billboard 200 chart.

The band's previous two albums, 2005's double-platinum "Ten Thousand Fists" (first-week sales: 238,000) and 2002's platinum "Believe" (first-week sales: 284,000), both debuted at No. 1.

DISTURBED's best-selling release to date is its 2000 debut, "The Sickness", which has shifted 3.89 million copies in the U.S. alone, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

Belgian grind band AGATHOCLES is putting the finishing on its new full-length album, "Grind is Protest", for a fall release via Displeased Records. According to a press release, the new CD "will be even more brutal and in your face" than its predecessor, 2006's "Mincer".

AGATHOCLES is:

Jan Frederick - Bass, Vocals
Dirk Cuyks - Guitar, Vocals
Roel Tulleneers - Drums

The 2008 edition of the Castle Festival, which was slated to take place July 1-5 at Smederevo Fortress in Serbia, has been cancelled. According to a posting on HELLOWEEN's web site, the festival was called off due to "the political situation and local incidents in the country."

The following bands were scheduled to perform at the event:

ADAGIO
AGONIZE
ALISTER
AMON AMARTH
APOCALYPSE
AT THE GATES
AVANTASIA
BOMBARDER
BONEYARD
BRUTAL TRUTH
CASKET GARDEN
CAVALERA CONSPIRACY
CONSECRATION
CRADLE OF FILTH
DECONTROLLED
DEDICATED FOR LIFE
DISMEMBER
DOWNSTROY
DRACONIC
ENSIFERUM
EVERGREY
EXPEDITION DELTA
FOREVER STORM
GORGOROTH
HELLOWEEN
HETERA
INNERWISH
JUDAS PRIEST
LORDI
MANTICORA
MORBID ANGEL
NEGURA BUNGET
NEVERGREEN
NIGHTFALL
NUCLEAR ASSAULT
RAPID FORCE
RISING DREAM
SATURNUS
SECRET SPHERE
SILENT KINGDOM
SODOM
SOILWORK
SYBREED
SYMPHONY X
SYSTEM ERROR
THE 69 EYES
THE STONE
TOXICDEATH
TRIUMFALL
TYR
USUD
VICTIM YIELD

Bob Mulhouse of The Quietus was one of a number of UK-based heavy rock writers who were given a preview of six tracks from the upcoming METALLICA album. The listening session took place on Wednesday (June 4) in London, with representatives from Rock Sound, Kerrang! and Metal Hammer also present. Mulhouse wrote, "It was with some trepidation . . . that I attended the playback of METALLICA's new album at the HQ of Universal, their UK record company. We were permitted to hear six of the 10 tracks which will ultimately appear on the album — which, a rep from the Q-Prime management company informed us, is referred to colloquially by METALLICA as 'nine epics and one song'. The sense of occasion was reinforced by the presence of almost the entire editorial teams of the UK's two biggest metal magazines, glaring at each other over the tea urn.

"Right from the off, it's a relief to hear that the utterly awful production of 'St. Anger' is no more. [Lars] Ulrich has replaced the old dustbin lid from that album with an actual snare drum, and the sound is fresh, clean and resonant (even though the songs are still only rough mixes at this stage). The first song, like the rest of the 'epics,' is between six and eight minutes long and begins with a bass intro from low-ender extraordinaire Robert Trujillo. Moving rapidly from riff to riff, the song bursts with energy and ideas: singer and rhythm guitarist James Hetfield barks 'Luck runs out!' repeatedly and throws in some twisty, semi-progressive riffs which could have been lifted directly from, their last truly good album, 1988's '…And Justice For All'. Guitarist Kirk Hammett, who was banned from soloing on 'St. Anguish' for no adequately explored reason, is on fire, whipping out the melodic, rapid-fire shreds for which he is famous over an extended solo section — almost as if he's making up for lost time. This is METALLICA's best song in ages, perhaps since the 1980s.

"The next song has a working title of 'Flamingo' and is going to be the first single. Now, METALLICA's lead singles have been breathtakingly crap since 1995, so it was a relief to hear that 'Flamingo' (as it almost definitely will not be called) is a modernised take on their amazing 1988 song 'One', all balladry at its front end before a speeded-up metalstorm at the back. Hetfield delivers a clean-picked intro which reminded me of the BEACH BOYS (I know… but I only got to hear it once, all right?) before the body of the song, which is basically like 'The Unforgiven' from 1991's 'Black Album'. If you're familiar with the chord progression behind the solo in 'Am I Evil?', the ancient DIAMOND HEAD song which METALLICA made their own, you'll be able to picture the under-solo riffage in this song — all simple, effective major-interval jumps.

"However, let us not forget that this is modern METALLICA — and the next two songs are much less fun. The first, which may be called 'We Die Hard' judging by the frequency with which Hetfield barks the phrase, starts boringly but accelerates halfway through and enters slightly proggy territory, all stop-start riff stabs and a clever time signature. The next song is very '…And Justice', a lengthy, unhurried workout which revolves around the line 'Bow down / Sell your soul to me / I will set you free,' itself a 1988 line if I ever heard one. Apart from dexterous soloing from Hammett, it's not great.

"So far, we've had two good songs and two dull ones — not a bad track record for new 'TALLICA, believe me. However, track five is tedious, a combination of the aimless riffery of 'St. Anger' and the pointless rock chorusing of 'Load', the album which almost finished METALLICA in 1996. 'Crying, weeping, shedding strife!' sings Hetfield in that slick 'Enter Sandman' manner, over an unthreatening clean midsection which would (and no doubt will) suit VH1 down to the ground.

"At this point the Q-Prime geezer asks us if we want to hear more, and fortunately we say yes — because the final song (and indeed, it is 'The Song', the little guy among the nine epics) is great, a genuine slice of thrash metal that starts fast and stays that way. Like a slower, less precise 'Battery' (the opening track of 1986's flawless 'Master Of Puppets' album), the song nips in and out, not outstaying its welcome and proving that on some level, METALLICA still have the necessary vitriol to impress their older fans. OK, it reminded me a bit of 'Dyer's Eve', the last song on 'Justice', which had a kind of 'I suppose we'd better do a fast one for the fans' feel about it — but in 2008, Hetfield and Ulrich delivering any form of thrash metal is not to be sneered at.

"We file out of the listening room, not saying much. This album could be good, or it could be mediocre — too much depends on the other four songs to make a call at this point. I try not to agonize about it, but this matters, damn it. It really does."

MESHUGGAH's Tomas Haake has been named the #1 drummer in the "Metal" category in Modern Drummer magazine's 2008 Readers' Poll. The Readers' Poll results appear in the July 2008 issue of the magazine, available on newsstands now.

2008 Modern Drummer magazine readers' poll results in the "Metal" category:

01. Tomas Haake (MESHUGGAH)
02. Jason Bittner (SHADOWS FALL)
03. Chris Adler (LAMB OF GOD)
04. Derek Roddy (ex-HATE ETERNAL)
05. Joey Jordison (SLIPKNOT)

The Pulse of Radio reports: An unconfirmed item at Idolator.com suggests that VELVET REVOLVER may be in talks with an unnamed Australian singer to replace vocalist Scott Weiland, who was dismissed from the band two months ago. The anonymous source wrote, "I have some new information coming from fans/family close to the hard rock Australian band ROSE TATTOO... that Duff (McKagan, VELVET REVOLVER bassist) has been in communications with an Australian singer currently living in the USA. This guy can apparently sing up a storm and of course is a bloody Aussie, so that in itself along with the great voice will be a good choice for the band from all marketing angles."

The writer mentions that McKagan and VELVET REVOLVER guitarist Slash are "huge" fans of ROSE TATTOO, but does not suggest that ROSE TATTOO frontman Angry Anderson is the singer mentioned.

Drummer Matt Sorum told The Pulse of Radio last month at a Los Angeles benefit that VELVET REVOLVER was auditioning new singers via email. "It's going through, like, different phases, you know," he said. "It goes to these guys, they listen to it, 'Oh, he's pretty good, okay, listen to that,' that kind of thing. And then we're sending back tracks that we've recorded, and then they're singing on them and sending them back. And then now with the beauty of Internet, is you can send an mp3, open up your email and listen to it, and just go, 'Oh. No.'"

Sorum also recently said that the band had rejected offers to find a new singer through a "Rock Star"-like reality show. He said, "As many years as we've tried to keep our integrity intact, we felt that wasn't the right forum for us to do it."

"Cliffs of Gallipoli", the new video from Swedish metallers SABATON, can be viewed below. The song comes off the group's new album, "The Art of War", which was released on May 30 via Black Lodge Records. The follow-up to 2006's "Attero Dominatus" was recorded at Abyss Studios with producer Peter Tägtgren and was made available in three formats: normal CD, gatefold LP and a limited-editon CD that comes in a DVD package that also will include the exclusive book "The Art of War".

"The Art of War" track listing:

01. Sun Tzu Says
02. Ghost Division
03. The Art Of War
04. 40:1
05. Unbreakable
06. The nature of Warfare
07. Cliffs of Gallipoli
08. Talvisota
09. Panzerkampf
10. Union (Slopes of St. Benedict)
11. The Price of a Mile
12. Firestorm
13. A Secret

Finnish metallers ADASTRA will enter the studio in July to begin recording their sophomore album, "Death Or Domination", for a December 2008 release via Violent Journey Records.

"Death Or Domination" track listing:

01. Locked On To You
02. One Chance
03. Death Or Domination
04. Man Mk. II
05. Helsinki 1939
06. Who Threw The First Stone
07. Devil Knows You're Dead
08. Lost
09. Wasted Life
10. The Longing

ADASTRA played a new track, entitled "One Chance", during their January 29, 2008 concert at On The Rocks in Helsinki, Finland. Watch footage of the performance below.

Swedish metal band CLOUDSCAPE will release its third album, entitled "Global Drama", on the following dates:

Aug. 18 (Europe) through Goldencore/Roastinghouse Records
Aug. 19 (U.S. and Canada) through Nightmare Records

A promotional video is also in the works and will be released closer to the album release. Director Rainer Holmgren (PAIN OF SALVATION, ARSIS) will helm the clip, which will be shot in Lofoten, Norway and in the southern parts of Sweden.

As previously reported, 12 songs were recorded for "Global Drama", which will be "the most varied and interesting album by CLOUDSCAPE so far," according to the band. "It contains a few really hard and raw metal songs and there will also be a few more atmospheric and dynamic songs progressively spiced."

The CD was produced by Pontus Lindmark and recorded at RoastingHouse Studios in Malmö, Sweden.

An eight-minute audio sample containing parts of all of the songs from "Global Drama" can be heard on the band's MySpace page.

CLOUDSCAPE's sophomore CD, "Crimson Skies", was released in the U.S. in July 2006 via Nightmare Records. Artwork for the album was created by Mattias Norén.

CLOUDSCAPE has been confirmed for this year's Bloodstock Open Air festival, set to take place August 15-17, 2008 at Catton Hall in Derbyshire, England.

Night Of The Vinyl Dead has released JAG PANZER's "Chain Of Command" album on limited-edition (350 hand-numbered copies) "yellow explosion" vinyl.

The LP, which was originally released on CD in 2004 via Century Media Records, features the following track listing:

Side A:

01. Prelude - Chain Of Command
02. Shadow Thief
03. She Waits
04. Ride Through The Storm
05. In A Gadda Da Vida

Side B:

01. Never Surrender
02. Burning Heart
03. Sworn to Silence
04. Dream Theme
05. Gavotte In D
06. When The Walls Come Down

Legendary underground Cleveland metal band BREAKER will release its new CD, "Peace Love Death" (Auburn Records), in Europe to coincide with the group's appearance at the Bang Your Head!!! festival (June 26-28 in Germany) and in North America on July 8. The collection features twelve tracks — four brand new studio originals, four studio cover songs and four live tracks. A full-length studio album will follow later this year.

"Peace Love Death" track listing:

01. Black Light Ark
02. Satellite Dog
03. Luck And Gasoline
04. One Thin Line
05. Too Much Of Nothing (featuring UFO's Pete Way)
06. To Hell And Back Again (SAXON cover)
07. Pictured Life (SCORPIONS cover)
08. Breaker (ACCEPT cover)
09. Black Light Ark (live in Cleveland)
10. Action (live in Cleveland)
11. Standing In The Light (live in Cleveland)
12. Still Life (live at Headbangers Open Air festival)

"Peace Love Death" was produced by BREAKER guitarist Don Depew and drummer Mark Klein. The artwork was created by Alex Yarborough. The cover of UFO's "Too Much Of Nothing", originally recorded on their classic "Force It" album, features a special guest appearance by UFO bass player Pete Way. The covers of the SCORPIONS' "Pictured Life" and ACCEPT's "Breaker" feature original BREAKER lead vocalist Jim Hamar. "Still Life" was recorded live at BREAKER's infamous headlining appearance at Germany's Headbangers Open Air festival in 2004, capturing the band destroying their equipment on stage for the set closing finale.

BREAKER's current lineup consists of: Michael Klein (guitar), Don Depew (guitar), Nick Giannakos (guitar), Greg Wagner (vocals), Brook Hodges (bass) and Mark Klein (drums).