French masters of modern dissonant thrash SCARVE have posted a new song, entitled "Endangered", on their MySpace. The track comes off of the band's upcoming album, "The Undercurrent", which will be released this April through Listenable Records.

The follow-up to the group's critically acclaimed "Irradiant" album (2004), "The Undercurrent" was recorded in part at the Dug-Out facility in Uppsala, Sweden with renowned Swedish producer Daniel Bergstrand, whose previous credits include MESHUGGAH, IN FLAMES, STRAPPING YOUNG LAD and STUCK MOJO.

SCARVE has yet to announce a permanent replacement for singer Guillaume Bideau who left the group in May to join the Danish modern metallers MNEMIC. The vocals on "The Undercurrent" were handled by former DARKANE singer Lawrence Mackrory.

"The Undercurrent" track listing:

01. Endangered
02. Imperceptible Armageddon
03. Senseless
04. The Plundered
05. Assuming Self
06. Fathomless Descent
07. A Few Scraps Of Memories
08. Rebirth

Norwegian symphonic black metallers DIMMU BORGIR have pushed up the North American release date of their new album, "In Sorte Diaboli" (via Nuclear Blast Records), to April 24 from the previously announced May 8. The CD will now arrive in Europe on April 30 (April 27 in Germany).

In other news, Nuclear Blast Records has launched a special "In Sorte Diaboli" news page at this location.

"In Sorte Diaboli" was recorded and mixed at Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Sweden with producers Fredrik Nordström and Patrik J. Sten.

The cover artwork for PAIN CONFESSOR's third album, "Purgatory of the Second Sun", has been posted online at this location.

Due in Finland on March 14, "Purgatory of the Second Sun" was recorded at Fantom studio and is described by the band as "raw and furious. This album has [ten] songs from which 80% is pretty much all out war and the rest 20% is heavy, like walking to the gallows."

"Purgatory of the Second Sun" track listing:

01. Planetkiller
02. Without Redemption, Without Remorse
03. My Last Words
04. Mercenaries
05. The Harvest
06. Ne Plus Ultra
07. Second Sun
08. Last of Forever
09. Dreamcrusher
10. Coming Down a Storm

Swiss melodic metallers EMERALD will enter a studio in Aue, Germany on February 10 to begin recording their fourth album, entitled "Hymns to Steel". The following songs will be laid down during the sessions (in no particular order):

01. Preparing for Battle
02. Hymns to Steel
03. Revenge
04. Bastardo
05. My Way
06. Blind Mass
07. Will you ever return
08. We Shall Rise
09. Empire of Lies
10. Bard of the King
11. Warlord's Wrath (BLACK KNIGHT cover)
12. Azrael (CRIMSON GLORY cover)

The follow-up to 2004's "Forces of Doom", "Hymns to Steel" is expected to be released in May through Pure Steel Records.

Century Media Records will shortly release a SAMAEL anthology, entitled "Aeonics - An Anthology", to coincide with the band's 20th anniversary. A collection of 19 songs spanning SAMAEL's entire Century Media catalog, the CD comes in a black slipcase with a 24-page booklet, containing pictures and lyrics. SAMAEL supervised the entire project and frontman Vorph wrote liner notes to each song.

"Aeonics - An Anthology" track listing:

01. Exodus
02. Black Trip
03. Rebellion
04. Baphomet's Throne
05. Telepath
06. Together
07. Supra Karma
08. Jupiterian Vibe
09. Rain
10. The Cross
11. After The Sepulture
12. On Earth
13. Moonskine
14. Worship Him
15. Ceremony Of Opposites
16. Blood Ritual
17. Into The Pentagram
18. Koh-I-Noor
19. Reading Mind

SAMAEL recently finished recording its new album, tentatively due later in the year. The band completed a "rough mix" of three songs at the end of November and is currently using the recording to procure a new record deal.

HELLOWEEN and GAMMA RAY (who are fronted by former HELLOWEEN guitarist/vocalist Kai Hansen) are in talks about teaming up for a European tour in November. In an interview with the Spanish web site Rafabasa.com conducted yesterday (February 7), HELLOWEEN singer Andi Deris stated, "There is nothing definite yet, but it is actually something that is more than a mere posisibility. Last year we played two or three festivals together, such as Wacken, and that was a wonderful experience. When we shared the stage at those festivals, we always joined GAMMA RAY on stage to play the last song of their show, 'Future World' [HELLOWEEN cover] or whatever, and the crowd enoyed it very much — not only for the performance, but also because they could see that we didn't hate each other at all. We've always said in interviews, as has GAMMA RAY, that there is no bad blood between us, there is no trouble, and our rehearsal rooms are even located next to each other. We used to go out for coffee or drinks together, we talk with each other, we laugh together, and now we play concerts together — so far only at festivals, but why not give people a package tour? That way you will never know in which GAMA RAY song members of HELLOWEEN will appear, and which HELLOWEEN song wil feature members of GAMMA RAY as guests. I think that it is gonna be great for everybody."

German melodic metallers EVIDENCE ONE have signed a deal with AFM Records. The group's third album, entitled "The Sky is the Limit", is scheduled for release on June 22. The follow-up to 2004's "Tattooed Heart" (Nuclear Blast) was written and produced by songwriter Robby Böbel, who has quit his position as the group's guitarist but will continue to be involved with the band behind the scenes. A replacement axeman, Jörg "Warthy" Warthmann, has already been recruited and will join the rest of the group for the "The Sky is the Limit" video shoot with Holland's Lowlife Media (MASTERPLAN, PRIMAL FEAR, EXODUS).

"The Sky is the Limit" track listing:

01. Can't Fight The Past
02. Gallery Of Broken Glass
03. Into The Depths Of My Soul
04. Mindmines
05. Mr. Madness
06. Propaganda
07. Raging Winds
08. Rain Road
09. The Luxury Of Losing Hope
10. The Sky Is The Limit
11. Won't Sleep Alone

A brand new SIX FEET UNDER track, entitled "Doomsday", is available for download at this location. The song comes off the group's new album, "Commandment", due on April 17 via Metal Blade Records. The track listing is as follows:

01. Doomsday
02. Thou Shall Kill
03. Zombie Executioner
04. The Edge Of The Hatchet
05. Bled To Death
06. Resurrection Of The Rotten
07. As The Blade Turns
08. The Evil Eye
09. In A Vacant Grave
10. Ghosts Of The Undead

STRATOVARIUS guitarist Timo Tolkki has issued an update on his classic rock-opera project, "Saana - Warrior of Light", for which he recently signed a deal with Frontiers Records.

"Saana - Warrior of Light" will feature "seven characters and numerous musicians (including Tolkki himself) who will collaborate in this ambitious project," according to a press release. "The result is a unique sound, unlike anything ever heard before… from soaring majestic heights to soft and gentle moments and everything in between. It also tells a very dramatic tale."

"'Saana - Warrior of Light' is the story of a woman who makes an unforgettable journey that changes her life and view of the universe forever. On her journey, she will discover the biggest secret of mankind… and her own destiny."

"Warrior of Light" introduces 29-year-old Jennifer Sowle from the USA as Saana, the main character. She is a classically trained opera singer with a master's degree in music.

Commented Tolkki: "The last round of casting for the characters of 'Saana' is on its way. It means I have to do some travelling in the next weeks to come. Still writing the story too. All I can say that what I am doing has never been done before in music and in lyrics. I could easily write 20 STRATOVARIUS-styled songs and invite some known guests and call that 'rock opera.' But I don't wanna do anything like that. 'Saana' will be something totally different, both musically and lyrically. I call this a classic rock opera and you will know why. To me this is like a film turned to music. And maybe one day, someone makes a film about this. The story would fit....perfectly.

"I was in touch with ex-STRATOVARIUS, current MESS bass player Jari Kainulainen and asked him to play the bass on this one and he said 'Sure.' I am happy because he is one of the best bass players in the world. And somewhere in between all travelling, I'm gonna spend time in Venice, Italy in producing a new VISION DIVINE album, called '25th Hour'."

"Saana - Warrior of Light" will be released in the fall.

Dutch/Norwegian goth metal band IMPERIA has revealed the cover artwork for its sophomore album, "Queen of Light", due on March 23 via Massacre Records. The follow-up to 2004's "The Ancient Dance of Qetesh" will contain 13 tracks and will be "heavier and more varied" than its predecessor, according to a press release. "There are fast and powerful metal songs, slow ballads, heavy songs as well as a lot of serious guitar leads and oriental keyboards. It is a diverse album with crystal clear sound!" The album will be released in two versions: as a regular CD in a jewel-case and as a limited-edition digipak. The digipak version will feature a "making of 'Queen of Light'" video documentary as a bonus.

Greek black/death metallers ROTTING CHRIST have posted their video for the song "Keravnos Kivernitos" at YouTube. The clip was directed by Bob Katsionis and comes off the group's latest album, "Theogonia", which came out last month via Season of Mist.

"Theogonia" was recorded at SCA Studios in Greece with bandleader Sakis Tolis handling the production and mixing and mastering duties. According to a press release, "the 10 new tracks see the band going back to their darker, more savage and faster musical roots and attitude, adapting an ancient Greek as well as ethnic presentation by inclusion of a large choir singing in the ancient Greek language throughout the album as well as the use of bizarre oriental samples and walls of keyboards."

ROTTING CHRIST will embark on an extensive European tour this month beginning with the third edition of The Domination Tour. The band last year announced the addition of NIGHTFALL guitarist George Bokos as a full-time member of the group.

ROTTING CHRIST's "Passage To Arcturo" and "Non Serviam" albums were reissued in January 2006 with bonus audio and video tracks via Season of Mist.

British gothic metallers PARADISE LOST have set "In Requiem" as the title of their 11th album, tentatively due for release in May via Century Media Records. The artwork for the CD will be created by Seth Siro Anton, who was the artwork designer for the group's last album, "Paradise Lost".

According to a posting on PARADISE LOST's official web site, "The band recently returned from Canada following completion of recording the new CD, produced by Rhys Fulber. The album has been mixed by Mike Fraser — who is well known for his work with bands such as METALLICA, AC/DC, VAN HALEN etc."

In other news, PARADISE LOST's April 12 concert at the Koko Club in London will be filmed for an upcoming DVD. More information will be made available soon.

Finnish melodic metallers SONATA ARCTICA have seet "Unia" (Finnish for "Dreams") as the title of their new album, due on May 25 via Nuclear Blast Records. The CD is being mixed at Finnvox studio in Helsinki.

The latest single from SONATA ARCTICA, "Replica" — containing a new version of the title cut, which originally appeared on the band's 1999 debut, "Ecliptica", plus the songs "Draw Me" (instrumental) and "Respect the Wilderness" — entered the Finnish single chart in November at position No. 1.

The new version of "Replica" is included on SONATA ARCTICA's "best of" collection, entitled "The Collection 1999-2006", which entered the Finnish album chart at No. 16. In addition to material from the band's studio albums, the CD contains a new version of the song "My Land", which also originally appeared on "Ecliptica".

Swedish black metallers MARDUK have revealed the track listing for their new album, "Rom 5:12", tentatively due this spring. Check out the cover artwork at this location. The CD was recorded at Endarker studio and features guest appearances by ARDITI (the project formed by H. Moller from PUISSANCE and M. Bjorkman), Joakim Göthberg (who played drums on the first two MARDUK albums and sang on the group's second and the third LPs) on a track entitled "Cold Mouth Prayer", and Alan "Nemtheanga" Averill from Irish band PRIMORDIAL on the song "Accuser/Opposer". A total of 14 songs were recorded for the effort, of which the following ten will appear on the CD:

01. The Levelling Dust
02. Cold Mouth Prayer
03. Imago Mortis
04. Through The Belly Of Damnation
05. 1651
06. Limbs Of Worship
07. Accuser/Opposer
08. Vanity Of Vanities
09. Womb Of Perishableness
10. Voices From Avignon

The upcoming CD will be MARDUK's final effort to feature drummer Emil Dragutinovic. A source close to Emil told BLABBERMOUTH.NET that the drummer officially quit the group on November 1 but has agreed to perform on the new album as a session musician.

Dragutinovic is currently working with former MARDUK vocalist Legion (a.k.a. Erik Hagsted) on his ELIZIUM project (formerly REBELANGELS)

MANOWAR has revealed the complete trak listing for its tenth full-length album, "Gods of War", which is scheduled for release on February 23 in Germany (February 26 for the rest of Europe and April 3 for the USA/Canada). It is as follows:

01. Overture To The Hymn Of The Immortal Warriors
02. The Ascension
03. King Of Kings
04. Army Of The Dead, Part I
05. Sleipnir
06. Loki God Of Fire
07. Blood Brothers
08. Overture To Odin
09. The Blood Of Odin
10. The Sons Of Odin
11. Glory Majesty Unity
12. Gods Of War
13. Army Of The Dead, Part II
14. Odin
15. Hymn Of The Immortal Warriors
Bonus Track:
16. Die For Metal

Italian melodic power metallers VISION DIVINE, the brainchild of ex-LABYRINTH mastermind Olaf Thörsen, have issued the following update:

"'The 25th Hour' is ready to go! The band is completing the last parts and working really hard to realize an album capable of continuing the standard achieved with the last 'The Perfect Machine'. Olaf is ready to enter New Sin Studios on January 29 with Timo Tolkki [producer/STRATOVARIUS guitarist] and Alex Bissa to start the recordings of the drums, and then all the rest of the band will follow one by one, while Michele [Luppi] is completing his vocal lines. Everything's working fine so far… cross your fingers! More news to come in the next days when we will reveal you the track list and the bonus track song that VISION DIVINE chosen as cover this year (a BIG surprise!)."

VISION DIVINE's last album, "The Perfect Machine", was released in 2005 through Scarlet Records.

LAETHORA, the new band featuring members of DARK TRANQUILLITY and THE PROVENANCE, has inked a deal with Osmose Productions for the European territory. The group's debut album, "March of the Parasite", will be released in Europe on February 26.The album cover and the artwork for the entire album was created by LAETHORA guitarist Niklas Sundin (DARK TRANQUILLITY).

"March of the Parasite" track listing:

01. Parasite
02. Clothing for the Dead
03. Revolution at Hand
04. Imposters
05. Black Void Remembrance
06. Repulsive
07. The Scum of Us All
08. Y.M.B.
09. Warbitrary
10. Facing Earth

LAETHORA's lineup is completed by THE PROVENANCE members Joakim Rosen (guitar), Jonnie Tall (bass) and Joel Lindell (drums).

KOTIPELTO, the band led by STRATOVARIUS singer Timo Kotipelto, has inked a deal with AFM Records. The group's third album, "Serenity", is due in April. The CD was recorded at Sonic Pump Studios in Helsinki, Finland and was mixed by Mikko Karmila. The album's first single, "Sleep Well", entered the Finnish chart at No. 5. A video for the song has been posted online at YouTube.com. The track is also included in the new Finnish movie "Vares 2", which had its premiere on January 12. "The song is a main theme and can be heard when the credits are scrolling at the end of the movie," said Kotipelto. "The music video include[s] clips from the movie. Some of the actors who are playing the characters on these clips are my personal friends and are very well known in Finland."

Vocalist King Diamond is currently writing lyrics to his band's as-yet-untitled 12th studio record, which he expects to begin mixing on March 5 in Dallas, Texas. If everything goes according to plan, the CD will be completed by April 1 for a tentative late summer release.

Revolver magazine recently reported that KING DIAMOND's new album was inspired by a painting called "My Mother's Eyes" which the band's distributor in Denmark stumbled across while surfing the Net (and which Diamond has since bought for the new CD cover). The more Diamond looked at the image of a battered blond girl with blood covering her white dress, holding out palms affixed with protruding eyeballs, the more it captivated and inspired him. "I can feel the energy of the front cover in all the songs we wrote, and it will definitely affect my lyrics," he promised.

Diamond wrote the music for the new album from December 2005 through February 2006, then recorded the basic tracks in his basement. Now all that's left to add are the vocals, which he will complete in the upcoming weeks.

"It classes over anything I've ever done," Diamond beamed. "The arrangements are more intricate, the production is better, and for the parts where there are violins, it sounds like we hired the Royal Philharmonic. As long as I don't fuck up the vocals, this should be our best record."

KING DIAMOND's follow-up to 2003's "The Puppet Master" will contain 13 tracks (including an intro), five of which were written by the band's guitarist, Andy La Rocque.

SOULGRIND, the Finnish band featuring former LULLACRY frontwoman Tanja "Whisper Lilith" Kemppainen (a.k.a. Tanya), has uploaded its new single, "Pakana", at this location. The song is the title cut of the group's eighth album, due next month via Holy Records.

"Pakana", was recorded at D studio and is scheduled for a February 2007 release. "Pakana" is the follow-up to "The Origins of the Paganblood", which was issued in January 2005 via France's Holy Records.

"Pakana" track listing:

01. Through the Gates of Desperation
02. The Soul of the Battle
03. Pakana
04. The Second over Tuoni's Realm
05. As Bronze May Be Much Beautified
06. Lost Gardens beyond the Sunset
07. Against the Grain
08. Northbound Reverend
09. The Path of Screams
10. Wheel
11. Frost Shines Blue

SOULGRIND recently announced the addition of former FINNTROLL singer Tapio Wilska as its new bassist.

SOULGRIND's current lineup features:

Azhemin (THY SERPENT) - Vocals
Ms W Lilith (ex-LULLACRY) - Vocals
Lord Heikkinen (TWILIGHT OPHERA, GLOOMY GRIM, FIERCE) – Guitar
Tapio Wilska (ex-FINNTROLL) - Bass
Agathon The Beast (GLOOMY GRIM) - Drums
TByte (TWILIGHT OPHERA) - Guitar