Jesse James Dupree has announced details of his new studio album, titled Breathing Fire, planned for global release on November 10, 2023. Today, he presents the lead track, “Never Gets Old,” co-written with AC/DC’s Brian Johnson. The recording features Jesse, with his son Nigel on drums, and Jackyl bandmate Roman Glick on bass. Pre-save the album now in digital format at this location. Pre-orders for physical product, including CDs, t-shirts, and Vinyl can be made here. 


The song is a co-write between Dupree and old friend Brian Johnson. The two collaborated for several Jackyl records, dating back to Cut The Crap’s “Locked & Loaded” (1997) and “Kill The Sunshine” from Relentless’ (2002). Dupree shares, “Brian Johnson of AC/DC is ROCK! I camped out for two nights to get Back In Black concert tickets in 1980, and to be writing songs with him is a trip!”


The official video sees "Never Gets Old" as told via photo album history. Can you name all of the bad asses in this video?










Dupree offers, “This album is a convenient accident as I had no intention of recording one. It came about when I was listening to some old AC/DC records, and it reminded me how important rock ‘n roll is to me. The ideas started coming, and at the same time my son Nigel walked through the door from Nashville.  The next thing I knew Roman was there, and we were laying the tracks down. I had not spoken to Brian Johnson for about six months because he was preoccupied with his book tour. Coincidentally, he dialed me in the days after we had been recording. Some of the strongest songs I’ve ever been a part of are featured on this album. How cool is it to play with your son, your best friend (in Roman), and to write songs with Brian Johnson? Life doesn't get better than that.”


Check out a Behind The Song video for “Never Gets Old” featuring Jesse, Nigel, and Roman:





Breathing Fire artwork and tracklisting:





"Lay It On Me" 
"Never Gets Old" 
"Breathing Fire" 
"It's Not Love" 
"Stranded" 
"Born To Ride" 
"Kill The Sunshine" 
"Over My Dead Body"
"White Flag"
"Rappa De Pappa" 





 

Speed thrash death metallers Beltfed Weapon, featuring Frank Hetzel and his revolving band of legends, have released a lyric video for "Accept Your Insanity", from their Darkened Demise EP.  The track features Frank Hetzel (guitar), Tim Aymar (vocals), Jeff Loomis (lead guitar), JD DeServio (bass), and Bryan Newbury (drums).


Frank Hetzel says, "'Accept Your Insanity' for me is the highlight of the EP. The music was structured out in four days, which is rare for me. It just flowed once i got going on it, and the solo Jeff did on this had a lot of love put into it, as you will hear, being a minute long solo, he really took the time to create a story behind his solo definitely a well put together solo structure. It's my favorite part of Darkened Demise. All other solos on the EP are amazing, no doubt, but this one is seriously off the hook. The concept is about narcissism and what one can endure when dealing with or being involved with such personalities. Tim really did an amazing job in his lyrics and structure as well. JD and Bryan delivered exceptionally well also! I could not be happier with everyone and their contribution to this EP as a whole. I am exceptionally happy and honored to have this opportunity to have worked with everyone involved including the mix, art work and lyric videos, two new crushing songs are in the works and will be released in 2024 and I am looking forward to keeping the metal flowing."







Darkened Demise, mixed by Juan Urtega, features Steve Tucker (Morbid Angel), Jason Viebrooks (Exhorder/Grip Inc), JD DeServio (Black Label Society), Tim Aymar (Control Denied), Jeff Loomis (Arch Enemy), Kragen Lum (Heathen). Bryan Newbury (Into Eternity) and Dagna Silesia (Ghost Ship Octavius).


Combining four or more styles of metal into a single batch of songs is no small accomplishment. And Darkened Demise is packed with abrupt tempo shifts, staggered rhythms, extended middle-eights, and other musical hairpin turns that keep the music exciting and unpredictable.


Order Darkened Demise merch at beltfedweapon.net.





"Killing Machine" video:





"Eternal Fire" video:





"Head First Into Hell":

November 17, 2023 will see Israel-based thrash / death metal band Nail Within return with their comeback album, Sound Of Demise, via Massacre Records. Preorder here.


Following a previously-released, first single, "Bleeding Society" (feat. Tom Angelripper), today, Nail Within have unleashed a lyric video for the song "Eyes Of Evil".


“This song is about a relationship with a narcissist, not to say a person who lived a double life, cheating and ripping off their most dearest", frontman Yishai Sweartz reveals. "Going through a deep relationship with a narcissist is not an easy thing to go through, and it's very different from regular breakups. It tells a true story and it’s a subject hardly discussed in extreme music simply as a lot of musicians are on the thin line between ego trip and some level of narcissism themselves.




The idea behind this song is to say that it's okay to admit and talk about it. It can happen to everyone, even if you are super smart and mistrust people in general. Most of the people who fell in this kind of relationships are far from stupid, they are mostly super intelligent with a busy day life, and this song is our statement against the people who never have enough and are always trying to suck more and more from the other side until there is no "excitement" anymore, and then they leave and disappear.”


Nail Within was formed in 2001 by singer Yishai Swearts, guitarist Alex Shuster, bassist “Evil” Haim, and drummer Barak Miko Zait, rising from the ashes of two longtime collectives in Israel's underground music scene (Betrayer and Azazel), and featuring guitarist Matan Cohen and drummer Nir Nakav.


Following their self-titled debut album in early 2003 through Listenable Records, the band went on hiatus just a year later. Matan Cohen signed his other band Betzefer to Roadrunner Records and started a successful career touring with acts as Sepultura, Lamb Of God, Fear Factory and others, Alex Shuster moved to California and joined the legendary sludge band "-(16)-" (Relapse Records), Evil Haim toured the world with Israeli punk icons Useless ID, played in multiple local bands and opened a DIY punk record label (Taklitin Holim) while Yishai Sweartz became predominant metal promoter in Israel and formed Tomorrows Rain (A.O.P Records) where he joined forces with Nir Nakav (who continued to play in Salem).


Through the years, all the band members kept in touch and in 2022 Shuster and Sweartz started to talk about "hey this year it's 20 years to the debut.." kind of talk, a week later a couple of new songs were written and the band decided to continue their creative momentum. As a result a full album was written and recorded in Israel/U.S.A with 11 new songs. Picking up from where the band left with their debut 20 years ago but introducing new dimensions that make it more relevant for this day and age, Sound Of Demise sees Nail Within return angry, dynamic and full of intensity.


Produced by Alex Shuster and mastered by Maor Appelbaum, the album also features guest appearances from Tom Angleripper (Sodom), Eric Peterson (Testament) and Bobby Ferry -(16)-.





Tracklisting:


“Bleeding Society”
“Eyes Of Evil”
“Sound Of Demise”
“Regression…And The Price We Pay”
“Duplicate Our Lives”
“Years Of Madness”
“Everything We Know”
“Words As Weapons”
“Manipulated And Doomed”
“Severe Suffering”
“Isolate”


“Eyes Of Evil” lyric video:

During an appearance on the latest episode of the "Battleline" podcast, DOKKEN frontman Don Dokken reflected on the passing of SOUNDGARDEN singer Chris Cornell more than six years ago. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Chris Cornell was one of my favorite singers. I mean, God, he had some just amazing vocals, and he had a great sound. And when I saw that video where he played Detroit [the night before he died], and said, 'I'll see you on tour.' He's got a wife and kids. He goes back to his hotel room and hangs himself. I don't relate.

"Life is short, man," he continued. "We're not born with a certificate that says, 'You have now been born and we promise you'll have a wonderful life.' It doesn't work that way, man. You've gotta fight for success, you've gotta fight for what you wanna do, you've gotta fight to be a musician, you've gotta fight to keep going. But a lot of these guys just get depression. It's genetic, and they commit suicide. It broke my heart when Chris did that. And Layne [Staley] and ALICE IN CHAINS and all those other bands, I just didn't get it.

"I have depression," Dokken added. "I'm bipolar. I'm up; I'm down. Some days I wanna write a rock song — uptempo, kickin' ass, just rockin'. That's the mood I'm in. Then the next day, I'm feelin' mopey, and I might write a song like 'Heaven Sent'. It just depends on whatever the universe gives me. But I would never kill myself. I've got children, and I've got my family, and I just don't relate to that. But that's another story."

DOKKEN will release its 13th studio album, "Heaven Comes Down", on October 27 via Silver Lining Music. The LP was produced by Bill Palmer and Don Dokken and was mixed by Kevin Shirley (AEROSMITH, IRON MAIDEN).

Entheos have dropped a new single - the Drumcorps remix of song The Interior Wilderness, which was originally released on the band's recent album Time Will Take Us All.


Cover art by Poisondust:







"The Interior Wilderness is a song about inner turmoil and choosing whether to overcome or succumb to a period of darkness in your life. Drumcorps' style of remixing metal songs is one that provokes a feeling of existential dread and we thought that it would be the perfect way to emphasize what the lyrical content of the song conveys," comments the band.





The remix comes after the release of the band's 2023 full-length, Time Will Take Us All, which Entheos is currently touring in support of alongside Unearth and labelmates Revocation.





Dates:


October
10 - Hangar 18 - Greensboro, NC
11 - Canal Club - Richmond, VA
12 - Soundstage - Baltimore, MD
13 - Preserving Upstairs - Pittsburgh, PA
14 - The Pit At The L - Horsehead, NE
15 - Wally's - Hampton Beach, NH
16 - La Source De la Martiner - Quebec City, QC
17 - Fairmount Theatre - Montreal, ON
18 - The Queen Barrie - Barrie, ON
19 - Velvet Underground - Toronto, ON
20 - The Brass Monkey - Ottawa, ON

In an interview with Oxygène Radio's "Métal Zone" at last month's Muscadeath festival in Vallet, France, guitarist Bill Steer and drummer Dan Wilding of British extreme metal pioneers CARCASS were asked about the band's songwriting process. Wilding responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Normally, well, almost always, Bill starts with riffs or a collection of riffs and we kind of… It usually starts with me and Bill. We'll get into a rehearsal room and we just try and make a song, try and piece the puzzle together, try and add things. And then eventually we get to a point where Jeff [Walker, bass/vocals] comes in and he normally rips it apart [laughs] and changes it even more. He thinks about vocals, which we normally don't think about vocals. So that's one of the reasons why he does it, I think. But, yeah, it's quite organic, natural. That kind of in a room, figuring out in front of each other, with each other how we can move on to the next thing. It's very limited technology, which I think is quite a nice thing."

Added Steer: "Yeah, that's the one common thread throughout everything we've ever done. It's based on guys in a rehearsal room. There's no other way of doing it for us. 'Cause I think our music would sound so different if we started doing it electronically. I've just got no interest in that. I hate sending an e-mail or receiving an e-mail. Never mind the other stuff. So yeah, let's just carry on like this if we could."

CARCASS played its first pandemic-era concert in November 2021 at the Damnation Festival in Leeds, U.K.

CARCASS's latest album, "Torn Arteries", was released in September 2021 via Nuclear Blast Records. Wilding did session work in Sweden at Studio Gröndahl with David Castillo while guitars were recorded at The Stationhouse with James Atkinson in Leeds, England. Eventually needing some form of residential location to finalize vocals, bass, and other guitarwork, the band headed back to Studio Gröndahl in Sweden to continue work in a very relaxed atmosphere with Castillo.

Photo credit: Ester Segarra

A professionally filmed video of DISTURBED performing the song "Perfect Insanity" live during this past summer's "Take Back Your Life" tour can be seen below. The clip was filmed and edited by Brittany Bowman, while the audio was mixed by Ashton Parsons.

According to Billboard.com, the "Take Back Your Life" summer 2023 tour grossed $17.4 million and sold 336,000 tickets.

DISTURBED averaged 11,573 tickets sold per show, up from 6,901 in 2019 and 4,404 in 2016. The average ticket price for the "Take Back Your Life" tour was $51.07.

DISTURBED's biggest headlining concert ever happened on September 2 at Ruoff Home Mortgage Music Center in Noblesville, Indiana, where the band drew more than 20,000 fans.

Based on Billboard's reported archives going back to September 2000, DISTURBED has grossed $71.2 million and sold 1.8 million tickets across 365 shows.

DISTURBED kicked off the summer 2023 leg of its "Take Back Your Life" North American tour on July 11 at the Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado. Support on the trek came from BREAKING BENJAMIN and JINJER.

In a February 2023 interview with Beef Vegan, DISTURBED frontman David Draiman was asked why he and his bandmates chose to embark on a U.S. headlining tour this spring and summer as opposed to making festival appearances, like they had done in the past. He responded: "We love both, but truth be told is that when you finally decide to headline, you can bring out all your toys, and you don't have to share it with anybody. [Laughs] When you're in a festival environment, you have a whole bunch of really high-caliber bands who are performing at the top of their game, and they're trying to bring as much as they can all collectively fit on that deck. And it gets challenging. So when you're doing your thing and that's the primary focus, it really opens up the possibilities."

DISTURBED's latest album, "Divisive", came out in November 2022. The LP was recorded early last year with producer Drew Fulk (MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, LIL PEEP, HIGHLY SUSPECT) in Nashville, Tennessee.

Guitarist Dan Donegan's divorce inspired the "Divisive" song "Don't Tell Me", which is a duet with HEART's Ann Wilson. In two decades, it breaks ground as the first-ever guest collaboration on a DISTURBED record.

According to Billboard, "Divisive" sold 26,000 equivalent album units in its first week of release, with 22,000 units via album sales.

On the all-format Billboard 200 chart, "Divisive" debuted at No. 13.

DISTURBED has had five No. 1s on the all-genre chart, beginning with "Believe" in 2002.

Chile heavy metallers Tornado have released new song “Piedra Contra Espada” – a thunderous cry for justice that will be part of their full-length debut Extirpe, due out at the end of 2023.


“This musical piece talks about a rebellion against the conquest of the Spanish armies and the injustice that the indigenous peoples in Chile and Latin America experience - until today. It was written in 1994 and now we felt that it was time to bring it to light, as a testimony of the incessant struggle of the Chilean natives against the states that have wanted to silence them,” says Danny Lobos, the band's guitarist.


The video clip for “Piedra Contra Espada” portrays the harshness of the Spanish conquest in the period between the years 1,500 to 1,800 in Chile, impacting the current suffering through repression and foreign colonization. Meanwhile, the audiovisual production was in charge of Álvaro González from RockFilms and was recorded in the historic Barrio Yungay, where the current President of Chile, Gabriel Boric, lives.




Tornado is composed of Danny Lobos (guitar and compositions), Boris Cid (vocals and musical production), Sebastián Pontigo (session drummer) and Gustavo Ramos (session bass player).
Tracklisting:


“Piedra Contra Espada”
“Olor Del Dinero”
“Voz Del Interior”
“Sobrevives”
“La Furia De Tornado”
“El Encargo”


“Piedra Contra Espada” video:

Marjana Semkina (Iamthemorning) and Anna Murphy (Cellar Darling, ex-Eluveitie) have released the second track of their new project and embark on their first tour.


Introducing "Poisoned Waters," the second release from Maer. Accompanying Maer’s new single is a beautiful lyric video created by Jerkka Perälä.







Anna shares her thoughts on this captivating song:


“This is the first time I’ve ever collaborated on lyrics, which might sound daunting, but turned out to be an incredibly smooth and rewarding process. Marjana and I found a rare synchronicity in our creative spheres. 'Poisoned Waters' delves deep into the pursuit of freedom and the depths of love, casting a dreamy yet haunting spell - the quintessential essence of Maer. As always, we prefer to let the music to speak for itself, and we are eagerly awaiting the interpretations that our listeners will weave around it. The lyric video, a work of art crafted by Jerkka Perälä, adds another layer to the narrative. Our collaboration with Guy Vincent, who not only contributed the wall of strings, but also co-produced the song with us, was truly invaluable. We can’t wait to perform our songs live and want to express our heartfelt gratitude to all those who have supported us so far.”


Marjana adds: 


“‘Poisoned Waters’ is a special song for me. It’s the first time the lyrics were co-written in such close collaboration with someone. I usually work alone so this felt incredibly special and very empowering. The video was made by the Finnish artist Jerkka Perälä and it’s been a very gratifying collaboration too, which I hope will lead to many more. Once you find someone you like working with, hold on to those people.”


Maer are currently on tour in Europe as part of a series of “Evening With” shows alongside Cellar Darling and Iamthemorning.


Dates:


October
11 – Nijmegen, Netherlands – Doornroosje
12 – Leiden, Netherlands – Gebr De Nobel
14 – Bremen, Germany – Tower
15 – Koln, Germany – MTC
16 – Frankfurt, Germany – Nachtleben
17 – Praha, Czech Republic – Kasarna Karlin
19 – Poznan, Poland – 2Progi
20 – Krakow, Poland – Kamienna12
22 – Wien, Austria – Viper Room
23 – Stuttgart, Germany – Im Wizemann Studio
24 – Paris, France – Backstage 


"Sister":





(Photo – Corinne Coch and Maria Yureva)

In the new video below, Corey Taylor (Slipknot, Stone Sour) performs the Stone Sour hit "Through Glass" during an exclusive live acoustic session at Guitar World Studios in New York City.





Watch Taylor's performance of "Breath Of Fresh Smoke" and "Silverfish" from the same session:










CMF2, out now, is Taylor's first album for BMG and the first on his own label imprint, Decibel Cooper Recordings. the album was produced by Jay Ruston (Anthrax, Steel Panther, Amon Amarth), who also produced Stone Sour’s 2017 Hydrograd as well as Taylor’s solo debut release, CMFT.


The 13-track opus packs the energy, experimentation, and forthrightness that’s defined a career which has seen him sell more than 12 million albums with his Grammy Award-winning band Slipknot and several million with chart-toppers Stone Sour. Throughout CMF2, Taylor sings and plays lead and rhythm guitar, piano, and mandolin.


Order/save/add CMF2 here.





CMF2 tracklisting:


"The Box"
"Post Traumatic Blues"
"Talk Sick"
"Breath Of Fresh Smoke"
"Beyond"
"We Are The Rest"
"Midnight"
"Starmate"
"Sorry Me"
"Punchline"
"Someday I’ll Change Your Mind"
"All I Want Is Hate"
"Dead Flies"


"Sorry Me" video:





"Talk Sick" video:





"Post Traumatic Blues" lyric video:





"Beyond" video:





"We Are The Rest" video

Power Trip, the historic three-day event took place last weekend - October 6th, 7th and 8th - at Empire Polo Fields in Indio, CA, bringing together six iconic bands that define loud and powerful music. 


Metallica capped off the festival on October 8th. Check out fan-filmed video of their show below.


Setlist:




"Whiplash"
"Creeping Death"
"For Whom The Bell Tolls"
"Enter Sandman"
"Lux Æterna"
"Too Far Gone"
"Fade To Black"
"Fuel"
"Orion"
"Nothing Else Matters"
"Sad But True"
"The Day That Never Comes"
"Hardwired"
"Seek & Destroy"
"One"
"Master Of Puppets"

GHOST leader Tobias Forge has confirmed that footage from the band's recent two shows at the Forum in Inglewood, California will be used as part of a future film project.

"When I first started putting it together, I was, like, 'Oh my god, I'm going to faint because there's so much to think about,'" Forge told Metal Hammer magazine in an interview which will be available to read in full from this Thursday. "Then it was, like, 'No, no, just don't think about it at all.'"

Both GHOST shows at the Forum were device-free experiences. Use of phones and smart watches was not permitted in the performance space. Upon arrival at the venue, devices were secured in individual Yondr pouches that were opened at the end of the event.

"I have never seen a crowd interact the way that they did since I was in a club band," Forge said. "They were the best shows I've ever done with GHOST, just because I didn't have to see those fucking mobile phones."

Tobias went on to say that GHOST was "essentially shooting a film. And we used two nights of crowds as extras," he explained. "It's going to be a film with a concert element. So a lot of what you experienced [at the two L.A. shows] is going to be part of this project."

Tobias was also asked if the GHOST film will be similar to METALLICA's "Through The Never", which starred members of the iconic rock band and Dane DeHaan ("Chronicle", "The Amazing Spider-Man 2"). DeHaan played a young band crew member who is sent out on an urgent mission while the band is playing a rousing live set in front of a sold-out crowd and unexpectedly finds his world turned completely upside down. Forge replied: "In the sense that it's a concert with something else combined."

At the Forum shows, GHOST performed the song "Twenties" live for the very first time live. They also played their cover of Roky Erikson's "If You Have Ghosts", which was originally reimagined by GHOST for their 2013 EP "If You Have Ghost". The band's version of the track at the Forum featured two cellists with a piano playing, and it was performed on a separate stage from the rest of the set.

Back in 2019, Forge told Revolver that there was a GHOST feature film in the works. He added, however, that this wouldn't be your typical "rockumentary" or even a concert film, but something else entirely.

"Most films about bands are biographical, and I see no reason to tell our story yet," Forge said. "It's a little bit like premature ejaculation. You have to have a career first and then you can tell the real story, so that was never an option. And when you yank away that, what do you have? Well, that would be a fictional story."

When Forge spoke to Revolver about the GHOST film four years ago, he explained that it would be a while before the project came to fruition.

"The cog wheels are turning on that one," he said. "We're just trying to figure out a lot of the practicalities. Making a film is a big endeavor. Another problem that I have had over the course of my career is that I don't have a shit-ton of time. I've learned over the years that it's really important not to do everything at once."

Six Foot Six – the brainchild of former Falconer's frontman Kristoffer Göbel – will release the new album Beggar's Hill on December 8 via Scarlet Records. Preorder here. First single and video “Raise The Dead” featuring Snowy Shaw (King Diamond, Mercyful Fate) is streaming below.


Produced by Kristoffer Göbel and Christoffer Borg; mixed by Christoffer Borg; featuring Snowy Shaw as special guest on drums on all tracks; illustrated by Frode Hovde; Beggar's Hill will be released in the following formats:


-digipack CD
-gatefold LP (splatter red & black; black)
-digital




Pure anthemic heavy metal at its best: Beggar's Hill is the third Six Foot Six record and the most coherent of their works until this date.


Influenced by classic bands such as Iron Maiden, Judas Priest and Metallica, it's a guitar and vocal melody-driven album, but still with a powerful up-to-date sound.


The catchy songs take you on a melancholic journey through salt-beaten winding seaside cliffs, medieval battles, decrepitude and abandonment, cinematic glimpses and the general state of the world – a planet of war, love, pollution and wonders.





Tracklisting:


“Raise The Dead”
“Tears”
“Voices Inside”
“Beggar’s Hill”
“Analog Man”
“Riding The Tide”
“Fire Will Burn (The Riders Of The Apocalypse)”
“The Prodigy (A Templar’s Tale Pt. 1)”
“The Siege (A Templar’s Tale Pt. 2)”
“The Homecoming (A Templar’s Tale Pt. 3)”
“Pete McOats” (digital only bonus track)
“Equinox” (digital only bonus track)


“Raise The Dead” video:





(Photo – Jörgen Hinder)

On November 2 the debut album of the German melodic doom / post-black / death metal band Sarlic Bliss will be released. A first taste of Brægn Hæft is now available with "Departed Grace".


The song is almost exemplary for the musical versatility of the band and contains besides quiet, melancholic and doomy sounds also a look at the harsh and aggressive side of the quintet. By the way, with a stately 7:38min "Departed Grace" is not even the longest track of the album, but stands out a bit due to the breathtaking guest appearance of singer Gogo Melone. The video was realized by Justin Morina and creatively blends the boundaries between story and lyric video.







Tracklisting:


"Darkest Desire"
"Lust"
"The Truth Within"
"Floatin Swefn"
"Invidia"
"Departed Grace" (feat. Gogo Melone)


"Departed Grace" lyric video:





Pre-orders are available on MDD Shop.

In a new interview with "The Logan Show", DROWNING POOL guitarist C.J. Pierce discussed the departure of the band's longtime singer Jasen Moreno. Jasen, who joined DROWNING POOL in 2012, exited the group earlier this year, making way for the return of Ryan McCombs.

"Yeah, [Jasen] was in [DROWNING POOL] for 10 years and we did three amazing records with him," Pierce said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "And a lot of great times and great songs with Jasen. He's like a higher-register stuff, where he sings. It's still us in DROWNING POOL doing our thing. Yeah, man, especially the last record, [2022's] 'Strike A Nerve', I'm really proud of that record. That's just the way of the earth, man — music business, managers and all that fun stuff. But here we are now in 2023 with Ryan, so I guess all things are meant to be, for whatever reasons."

Asked if Moreno's departure is something that C.J. and his bandmates saw coming for a while or if it was a sudden development, Pierce said: "Yeah, we felt it coming for a while. I'll let Jasen speak for himself. It's a lot of different factors involved in it, but just to sum up real quick, I think part of it, him being home — a lot of people were home during COVID with the family — he does have a big family, and I think a big part of it [was that he felt] that's where he needs to be, with family right now. So I totally understand that. And also, he got pretty — all of us got pretty burned by the music business constantly, beyond burned, and it's frustrating as well. So I think with those two factors, he was, like, 'All right. I'm not gonna do this right now.' And understandably so. But here we are, like I said, with Ryan McCombs back in the fold."

McCombs played his first shows back with DROWNING POOL on March 17 at Club L.A. in Destin, Florida and on March 18, headlining the inaugural Throwdown At The Campground festival in Fruitland Park, Florida.

The longtime SOIL frontman, who has lived in Swindon, England since 2018, originally joined DROWNING POOL in 2005 and appeared on two of the band's studio albums, "Full Circle" (2007) and "Drowning Pool" (2010),as well as a live album, 2009's "Loudest Common Denominator". He rejoined SOIL after exiting DROWNING POOL in 2011.

McCombs is continuing to front SOIL and will carry on recording and performing with both bands.

DROWNING POOL's first new record since 2016, "Strike A Nerve", came out via T-Boy/UMe. It marked the band's third album with Moreno.

DROWNING POOL addressed Moreno's departure in a social media post on March 16, writing: "We appreciate everyone asking about Jasen. We can't speak for him but we believe he was just ready to move on to other things in life. Maybe he will make a statement. Maybe he won't. Regardless, we wish him the best."

DROWNING POOL's U.S. tour with SALIVA kicked off on September 10 in Norfolk, Virginia and is scheduled to run through the end of October.

DROWNING POOL's debut album, "Sinner", was certified platinum within six weeks of its release in 2001, while the CD's first single, "Bodies", was one of the most frequently aired videos on MTV by a new band. DROWNING POOL reached out to an ever-greater audience with dynamic performances at Wrestlemania XVIII and Ozzfest during the summers of 2001 and 2002. Unfortunately, their streak of success was not to last. Shortly after rousing the crowd at Ozzfest in Indianapolis, Indiana, on August 3, 2002, vocalist Dave "Stage" Williams was found dead of natural causes on the tour bus.

Debuting at this weekend's Palefest in Chillicothe, Ohio will be three of SLIPKNOT drummer Jay Weinberg's "The End, So Far" masks — made from his original mask mold — which have been tattooed by renowned tattoo artist Paul Booth.

These one-of-a-kind macabre variants of Jay's mask will be on display throughout his in-person signing at Palefest at the Elks Lodge in Chillicothe this Friday, October 13. Attendants can see these unique pieces in the flesh — alongside Jay's personal collection of stage-worn SLIPKNOT masks and coveralls.

Visit eBay to place your bid to own one of these collaborative masks, signed by both Weinberg and Booth. Shipping worldwide; auction net proceeds to benefit MusicCares.

Weinberg says: "Paul's artwork and tattooing speaks for itself, and his presence within our community of music, art, and creativity is that of a true icon. It's an honor to collaborate together with The House Of Masks to bring these tattooed masks to life."

Booth states: "I had a lot of fun working on this project. Tattooing silicone has its challenges, but the end results really made it worth it! I look forward to seeing them in action."

AJ Good of The House Of Masks says: "Working with a hero is one thing, but working with two heroes on a single project that combines so many of your passions is a completely different level. I'm honored to have been a part of these two worlds colliding, Paul being my favorite tattooer for the entirety of my life, and Jay being my favorite drummer. Seeing these two mediums clash just feels right, and the outcome speaks for itself!"

Jay discovered SLIPKNOT when he was a pre-teen, through his father Max, of Bruce Springsteen's E STREET BAND, and leader of the house band on Conan O'Brien's talk show. He was hooked immediately and was a huge fan of SLIPKNOT by the time he was invited to Los Angeles to try out as replacement for Joey Jordison in 2013.

For the first few months after the release of 2014's ".5: The Gray Chapter", the members of SLIPKNOT had declined to name the musicians who were playing drums and bass on their tour, despite the fact that their identities were revealed as Weinberg and bassist Alessandro "Vman" Venturella by a disgruntled former drumtech for SLIPKNOT who posted a picture of a backstage call sheet on Instagram.

SLIPKNOT announced its split with Jordison in December 2013 but did not disclose the reasons for his exit. The drummer subsequently issued a statement saying that he did not quit the group.

Jordison passed away "peacefully in his sleep" in July 2021 of an unspecified cause. He was 46 years old.

Prior to joining SLIPKNOT, Weinberg was a member of AGAINST ME!, having played with the Florida-based act from November 2010 until December 2012.

Weinberg joined AGAINST ME! shortly after he was ousted from MADBALL and following the departure of AGAINST ME!'s previous sticksman, George Rebelo.

In May 2013, Weinberg filled in for KVELERTAK drummer Kjetil Gjermundrod during the band's North American tour because Gjermundrod had to bow out of the run after experiencing significant pain in his arm.

Joshua Toomey of Knotfest.com's "Nu Pod" podcast spoke to Morgan Lander and Mercedes Lander of Canadian metallers KITTIE at last month's Louder Than Life festival in Louisville, Kentucky. Asked about the resurgence in the band's popularity in the recent years, Morgan said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We are as surprised as yourself and as many. There have been a number of years in the past 10 years, I guess, that KITTIE was not an active band. We never broke up, but it was just nothing happening. And we were resolved that the world didn't really care too much. And it's been a really cool couple of years to see people respond to the music and rediscover the band and to be invited to cool stuff like this."

Added Mercedes: "I think the big thing is the rediscovery. We started to notice around when we released the documentary that, you know, we started to notice music going viral on TikTok and we were just kind of, like, 'What's going on here?' And then we started getting offers, which is fantastic."

Two months ago, Mercedes spoke to The New York Times about the band's decision to reunite, initially for a couple of festival appearances before beginning work on new music. She said bookers started calling again in the fall of 2021 because of renewed interest, with KITTIE taking the stage for the first time in five years at the Blue Ridge Rock Festival in September 2022 in Alton, Virginia.

"It did take a little bit of talking into," Mercedes said of the offer to reunite. "When we stepped onstage, I was, like, 'Oh, yeah, this is how it's supposed to be. This is what I'm supposed to be doing.' This is a fantastic feeling."

Mercedes went on to say that it makes sense that the songs she wrote with her older sister, Morgan, when they were teenagers still resonates with people. "It just kind of proves that teenage angst is timeless," she said.

Morgan shared the sentiment, saying: "That's not to say there isn't still a fire and anger in us now — yeah, we're still pissed."

KITTIE's May 13 performance at the Sick New World festival in Las Vegas, Nevada included the live debut of a new track called "Vultures".

Joining Morgan and Mercedes at the band's recent gigs were guitarist Tara McLeod and bassist Ivana "Ivy" Vujic.

Prior to Blue Ridge, KITTIE had not performed since its reunion show at London Music Hall in the band's native London, Ontario in 2017, celebrating the group's documentary "Kittie: Origins/Evolutions".

Vujic joined KITTIE in 2008 and appeared on the band's fifth studio CD, 2009's "In The Black". She also wrote and recorded bass for KITTIE's sixth album, 2011's "I've Failed You".

In January 2022, the original lineup of KITTIE — Morgan, Mercedes, Fallon Bowman (guitar) and Tanya Candler (bass) — reunited for an online chat to celebrate the 22nd anniversary of its gold-certified 2000 debut album, "Spit".

Candler left KITTIE after the release of "Spit" in order to finish high school and was replaced by Talena Atfield.

Bowman exited KITTIE in 2001 and started her own industrial/electronic project, AMPHIBIOUS ASSAULT.

After KITTIE completed the touring cycle for 2011's "I've Failed You" album, the band entered a long period of inactivity during which Morgan focused on a marketing job for a chain of fitness clubs while Mercedes worked in real estate and more recently at a software company. The group also began work on a career-spanning documentary, "Origins/Evolutions", which finally saw the light of day in 2018 via Lightyear Entertainment in North America.

"I've Failed You" sold 3,000 copies in the United States in its first week of release to debut at position No. 178 on The Billboard 200 chart.

Mark Tornillo's pre-ACCEPT band T.T. QUICK will reunite for a special performance on Saturday, November 11 at Manville-Hillsborough Elks in Hillsborough, New Jersey. The concert will be a memorial event for T.T. QUICK drummer Erik Ferro, who died in June. No cause of death was revealed.

The news of Ferro's passing was broken by Tornillo via his Facebook page on June 25. Mark wrote: "It's with great sorrow that I post this …. T.T. QUICK drummer, my brother Erik (Erock) Ferro passed away last night. We are all devastated. I really can't say much more than that at the moment. I'm heartbroken. I'll post more info when it's available."

T.T. QUICK was a popular club band during the 1980s in the New York and New Jersey area and was known for the guitar work of David DiPietro and the powerful vocals of Tornillo. DiPietro's skills were especially singled out as he had given lessons to both Zakk Wylde of the OZZY OSBOURNE band and SKID ROW's Dave Sabo.

T.T. QUICK disbanded and later reunited sporadically and released a few more albums, including a live CD from one of their reunion gigs ("Thrown Together Live") and a studio effort, "Ink", which came out in 2000.

Regarding how T.T. QUICK got the attention of Jon "Jonny Z" Zazula and landed a deal with Megaforce Records, Mark told VWMusic in a 2021 interview: "Well, Johnny Z still had his Rock N' Roll Heaven store at the flea market here in New Jersey. Glenn Evans was the drummer at the time, and he was a frequenter of Jonny's store. He was there all the time buying records; that was the only place you could go to get underground stuff. So, Jon was looking for bands to sign, and Glenn had told him about T.T. QUICK. He knew about T.T. QUICK and said, 'Well, get me a demo tape,' so Glenn comes back and says, 'We need a demo tape.' Dave and I had been making demos all along; we just weren't telling anybody. I met David in Connecticut — he saw T.T. QUICK at the Agora Ballroom and wanted to work with me. He reached out to me, and I made a few trips up to Connecticut, and he and I wrote some stuff together and had a demo going. Lo and behold, he wound up joining T.T. QUICK because we needed a guitar player. When the time came that we needed a demo, we had it. It was almost everything that's on the EP, except for 'Go For The Throat' and a couple of other things that didn't make it. That's really what got us signed. Jonny listened to it and said, 'This is pretty fuckin' good.' Next thing you know, we had a record deal and were recording in Ithaca."

On the topic of T.T. QUICK's breakup, Mark said: "We were beating a dead horse. If you're not going to make money doing this, there's really no point to do it. I joined the electricians' union. Walter [Fortune, bass] had always been a businessman and had his own business. David went into construction. We didn't want to play that kind of music at that point either. We weren't going to change our tune, let's say. We made a lot of money for a lot of years, and it just wasn't happening anymore. It was that way for a lot of musicians, especially on the club circuit. They were becoming wedding singers and shit like that. I'm, like, 'There's no fucking way I'm doing this.'"

Memorial concert for Erock...Saturday, November 11th. The link for tickets will be posted tonight.

Posted by TT Quick on Tuesday, October 10, 2023

It’s with great sorrow that I post this …. TTQuick drummer , my brother Erik ( Erock) Ferro passed away last night. We...

Posted by Mark Tornillo on Sunday, June 25, 2023

T.T. Quick Megaforce Records promo pic -For all your Rock News (and more),"like" Marshall of Rock...

Posted by Marshall of Rock on Friday, May 29, 2015

Ulver has announced that their classic 1993 promo-tape will be reissued on Peaceville Records. 2023 marks thirty years since its recording and the record shows Ulver’s black metal rooted background before the band began to evolve outside of the genres confines.


Widely known for high-calibre soundscapes and exquisite experimental and electronic art as part of their continual and ever-shifting evolution, Ulver’s beginnings amalgamated ethereal black metal with delicate folk-inspired passages. Despite the rough edges, the band’s material stands out with its highly unconventional compositions when compared to the more primitive and raw offerings from other fast rising acts in the Norwegian scene at the time.







Vargnatt was Ulver’s first foray into the wilds, and an exceptional debut demo, utilising what was to become a staple on/of their legendary trilogy (Bergtatt, Kveldssanger, and Nattens Madrigal) with acoustic guitar implementation amid melodic and often complex and obtuse arrangements, conjured and delivered with an already advanced degree of musicianship, with eerie vocals of longstanding frontman Kristoffer “Garm” Rygg. This early incarnation of Ulver also notably featured Carl-Michael Eide of Aura Noir / Ved Buens Ende fame on drums, as well as Robin “Mean” Malmberg (from fellow Norwegian pioneers Mysticum) on bass guitar.


The audio included on this record consists of original material sourced from the original DAT. The release also includes a bonus track “Vargnatt” captured live at Bootleg TV in Oslo during 1993 and sourced from the National Library of Norway.


Kristoffer “Garm” Rygg had the following to say regarding the reissue:


“This is the first thing ever recorded as Ulver. Wikipedia says it’s our second demo, but it’s our first and only one. Stovner, Oslo, 1993, two–three days, wham, bam, thank you mam, with very little or no experience. We were kids, 17–19 years old, testing the waters. Vocals and some strange musical choices aside, I have to say I’m way less ashamed of this now than I probably was in the nineties, and I have to smile at the fact that this recording is still a thing 30 years on. It fills me with joy (and some sadness) to listen back to the crazy whims and things we had going on, preserved relatively pristinely. Peaceville, prime purveyor of many of our favourite records back then, is doing a stellar job reissuing some of these old underground tapes. So, after a few limited editions, ‘why the hell not’, right?”


The album will be available on Oxblood vinyl, LP and CD. Preorder here.

During an appearance on "The Vinyl Guide" podcast, TOOL bassist Justin Chancellor was asked if he and his bandmates have begun writing material for the follow-up to their 2019 album "Fear Inoculum". He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We've got many ideas cooking. We haven't recorded anything yet. But we're quite busy until — I guess until after the spring of next year touring. So once that's done, we're gonna get back in the studio and knuckle down and put some of it together. We've already had a few pretty decent sessions of writing. So we've got the ingredients in place. We've just gotta really bang it out and spend that time when we're not touring."

Asked if there are any ideas that were recorded during songwriting sessions for previous albums that haven't been released yet, Justin said: "Yeah, tons from the last album. We have tons of ideas, but not recorded to the standard we'd put on an album. Just kind of, I'd say, lots of demoed stuff. And then just tons of ideas just kind of stored away."

This past weekend, TOOL headlined Aftershock festival in Sacramento, California and played the historic Power Trip festival in Indio, California.

Earlier this week,TOOLTOOL is currently on the road, with a string of dates that include their first Canadian performances since 2019. STEEL BEANS opens on all of the remaining 2023 shows.

Quite possibly the era's most highly anticipated album, TOOL's latest LP, "Fear Inoculum", arrived in August of 2019. Debuting at No. 1 on Billboard's Top 200, the album earned heaps of critical praise with NPR saying, "'Fear Inoculum' was worth the 13-year wait," Revolver proclaiming the album "a masterpiece to be dissected for years to come" and Consequence saying the release finds "TOOL in peak performance."

Last year, TOOL released "Opiate2", a re-imagined and extended version of the 1992 EP's title track and an accompanying short film, marking the band's first new video in 15 years. The band also unveiled the first incarnation of "Fear Inoculum" vinyl, dubbed the Ultra Deluxe edition, the limited offering included five 180-gram vinyl discs emblazoned with a unique etching and accompanied by an elaborate pictorial booklet including never-before-seen artwork.

TOOL formed in 1990, releasing five studio albums: "Undertow" (1993),"Ænima" (1996),"Lateralus" (2001),"10,000 Days" (2006) and "Fear Inoculum" (2019); two EPs: "72826" (1991) and "Opiate" (1992),and the limited-edition boxset "Salival" (2000). The band has won four Grammy Awards: "Best Metal Performance" (1998, "Ænima"),"Best Metal Performance" (2002, "Schism"),"Best Recording Package" (2007, "10,000 Days") and "Best Metal Performance" (2020, "7empest").

TOOL is Danny Carey (drums),Justin Chancellor (bass),Adam Jones (guitar) and Maynard James Keenan (vocals).

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

CREED singer Scott Stapp will release his fourth solo album, "Higher Power", on March 15, 2024 via Napalm Records. The LP will arrive just a month before the iconic frontman returns to the stage with CREED for the first time in ten years.

Stapp's upcoming ten-track triumph turns the rockers experiences on the razors edge into an acknowledgement of grace. The album is available for pre-order now as title track "Higher Power" ships to radio and emotive new single "What I Deserve" debuts today on all DSPs.

When hard-hitting single "Higher Power" debuted in August, Loudwire stated that Stapp is "primed for a big decade, sounding just as powerful as he did at half his age with a sense of newfound heaviness resting beneath his iconic voice." Now, mid-tempo anthem "What I Deserve" addresses the inherent duality within relationships and smolders with the blistering yet delicate guitar work of multi-award-winning guitar great Yiannis Papadopoulos.

Stapp says: "We all want back what we give. 'What I Deserve' is about two people understanding who they are individually and coming to a place where they can express exactly what they each want, need, and deserve. The duality in the song is that both sides are expressing the same thing and coming to an understanding of the faults of the other. This song pleads both guilty and innocent with Yiannis guitar solo being the voice that articulates a chaotic search for deliverance and the epic release of passionate closure."

"Higher Power" follows 2019's "The Space Between The Shadows", which debuted at No. 3 on the U.S. Current Rock Albums chart, the U.S. Current Hard Music Albums chart, and the U.K. Rock and Metal Chart, among countless other top chart positions.

On an album that traverses themes of loss, frustration, betrayal and near defeat, "Higher Power" features standout performances by hard rock queen Dorothy on a deeply raw duet and, throughout the album, Papadopoulos guitar leads and solos are such invaluable contributions that he is credited as a featured artist on three tracks. There is also a co-writing appearance by multi-Grammy Award-winning songwriter and musician Steve McEwan on "Higher Power", which was produced by Marti Frederiksen and Scott Stevens, with co-production by Stapp.

Stapp explains: "'Higher Power' was born out of never-ending consequences with triggered, yet naive defiance. It's the realities and realizations of being human in this experiment we call life — holding on to hope in the dark waiting for the light."

"Higher Power" track listing:

01. Higher Power
02. Deadman's Trigger
03. When Love Is Not Enough
04. What I Deserve (feat. Yiannis Papadopoulos)
05. If These Walls Could Talk (feat. Dorothy)
06. Black Butterfly
07. Quicksand (feat. Yiannis Papadopoulos)
08. Youre Not Alone
09. Dancing In The Rain (feat. Yiannis Papadopoulos)
10. Weight Of The World

One of the most iconic voices in rock, Stapp first emerged as the high-energy, post-grunge frontman of CREED. With anthems like "Higher", "My Own Prison", "My Sacrifice" and "With Arms Wide Open", the band sold over 50 million albums, including a diamond certification. Throughout the early 2000s, CREED broke airplay records, sold out arenas, earned countless Billboard Music Awards and American Music Awards, and a Grammy for "Best Rock Performance By A Duo Or Group". As a solo artist, Stapp has released the platinum-certified "The Great Divide" (2005),"Proof Of Life" (2013) which featured his first solo No. 1, "Slow Suicide", and 2019's "The Space Between The Shadows". In April 2024, Stapp will reunite with his CREED bandmates for the first time in a decade, as he returns in fighting form and stands as an inspiration to others who are struggling.

Stapp went through a highly publicized, drug-inflamed meltdown in 2014, after which he entered into an intensive rehab program. Stapp also lost custody of his three children during this period, while also missing a court hearing and allegedly threatening to kill then-president Obama.

After completing rehab, Scott spent the following year in intensive therapy. Although he was initially diagnosed with bipolar disorder, it was later determined that it was severe depression that led to addiction. Now nine years sober, Stapp spoke to Men's Health about health and fitness in 2019 when his comeback album was released, saying, "I hate to use the word, but I guess it has become my new addiction."

Photo credit: Sebastian Smith

Icelandic prog rock trio, The Vintage Caravan, have released one of their classics, “On The Run”, in live form. The band’s upcoming live album, The Monuments Tour (Live), is out this Friday, October 13 via Napalm Records, and its second single lures with an acoustic intro that builds up to a catchy melody in the chorus that drives deep inside the listener’s head.


After hitting stages at world famous festivals such as Roadburn, Wacken and Hellfest, touring with Opeth, and headlining across Europe and South America, The Vintage Caravan are now gearing up for the release of their very first live album. Next week the retro rockers will also kick off the second leg of their The Monuments Tour, giving Europe-based fans another opportunity to see their explosive live performance.


Listen to the live version of “On The Run” below:







With 13 diverse tracks taken from all throughout their discography, these youngbloods from Reykjavik take their fans on a psychedelic journey of bewitching, guitar-driven classic and blues rock influences. Starting off with the opener of their latest studio album, "Whispers" clearly showcases the band’s musical progression without sacrificing their tried-and-true sonic trademark. “Crystallized'' convinces with light blues influences, encircling the listener in enchanting guitar lines and quickly rising to the full extent of its power while evoking anecdotes of retro nostalgia. “On The Run” lures with an acoustic intro building up a catchy melody in the chorus that drives itself deep into the listener's head. Tracks like “Psychedelic Mushroom Man”, taken from their self-titled debut album released in 2011, represent a stunning blueprint in The Vintage Caravan’s musical universe with unconventional, skillfully created melodies and Óskar’s gripping, tranquil vocal power. In contrast, bold drumming merges with fast-paced riffs, enveloping an impressive galloping vortex like on the top-notch rock piece “Cocaine Sally” from their second album, while “Expand Your Mind” takes the listener on a splendid journey. The Icelanders close The Monuments Tour with the soft plugging, atmospheric sound of “Clarity” symbolizing the crowning culmination that showcases the full scope of their capabilities - delivering refreshing 70’s-inspired rock with a modern twist.





The Monuments Tour (Live) will be available in the following formats:


- 2LP Gatefold marbled vinyl Red
- Digital Album


Pre-order here.





The Monuments Tour (Live) tracklisting:


"Whispers"
"Crystallized"
"Reflections"
"Innerverse"
"Forgotten"
"Can’t Get You Off My Mind"
"Psychedelic Mushroom Man"
"Cocaine Sally"
"Hell"
"Babylon"
"On The Run"
"Expand Your Mind"
"Clarity"


"Can’t Get You Off My Mind" live video:





Lineup:


Óskar Logi Ágústsson - Vocals, Guitar
Alexander Örn Númason - Bass
Stefán Ari Stefánsson - Drums, Percussion


(Photo - Tjeerd Derkink)

In a new interview with Greg Prato of Consequence, former JUDAS PRIEST guitarist K.K. Downing touched upon his autobiography, "Heavy Duty: Days And Nights In Judas Priest", which was released in September 2018 via Hachette Audio as a digital download, and in print and ebook from Da Capo Press. The book was co-written by the Scottish author and journalist Mark Eglinton, whose previous collaborations include "Official Truth, 101 Proof" with Rex Brown of PANTERA and "Confessions Of A Heretic" with BEHEMOTH's Adam "Nergal" Darski.

Asked what he thinks of the book five years after its release and whether he would ever consider writing a follow-up, Downing said: "Yeah, I think I would consider a follow-up maybe, potentially. Because lots of things went unsaid. I suppose at the time I considered that there would still be an opportunity for me to step back into the band. Which I thought when Glenn [Tipton] retired that that would obviously be that opportunity. But I never got the phone call. Glenn gave his guitar straight away to Andy [Sneap], without any consideration for me. But that is all writing on the wall now, I guess. Obviously, I asked the guys to consider having me stepping back in the role before I started this project," he added, referring to his new band KK'S PRIEST. "They knew I was going to do something if that didn't happen. But they said no. And the door's permanently closed. So, here I am."

Downing left PRIEST in 2011 amid claims of band conflict, shoddy management and declining quality of performance. He was replaced by Richie Faulkner, nearly three decades his junior.

In 2019, Downing said that he reached out to JUDAS PRIEST about taking part in the band's 50th-anniversary tour but that their response was that they were not interested in including him in the celebrations.

In 2018, Downing revealed that he sent two resignation letters to his bandmates when he decided to quit JUDAS PRIEST. The first was described as "a graceful exit note, implying a smooth retirement from music," while the second was "angrier, laying out all of his frustrations with specific parties."

Downing later said that he believed the second letter was "a key reason" he wasn't invited to rejoin PRIEST after Tipton's decision to retire from touring.

During a 2021 appearance on "The High Way With Kyle Shutt", the podcast hosted by THE SWORD guitarist Kyle Shutt, Downing said about the process of writing "Heavy Duty: Days And Nights In Judas Priest": "It was something different, really. It was definitely interesting. It was quite time consuming. But I'm glad I did it because I just wanted fans to get to know me a little bit better, really. Because fans knew of me, but [they didn't] necessarily have an insight to me and my life and my personality."

Five years ago, Downing told VintageRock.com that writing his autobiography provided him with a sense of closure concerning his time in JUDAS PRIEST. "I guess it's the same with any long-term relationship — whether it's a husband or wife, or father or son or whatever — you spend enough time together, and idiosyncrasies show up. I guess there was no particular right or wrong — some people have more tolerance than others, and it takes a bloody miracle really to stay together for 40 years," he said. "Someone has to give. And it has to be give-and-take. But inevitably, it becomes a bit of an imbalance, and I like to think that democracy is always the best policy. And there wasn't enough of it there, I don't think. But it kind of happened — Rob [Halford, vocals] and Glenn went off and did their lengthy solo careers, and that became a bit disruptive. I didn't even mention that in the book. But Rob actually released two albums and did his own tour in the exact year before I left. And then when they said, 'K.K., we want you to start writing for a five-track EP,' I went, 'Fucking no way in hell! Rob has just released two albums in the last year, and we are only releasing an EP? Something is not right.' Enough was enough, really, and I bailed out there. And, like I said in the book, I tried to put it as diplomatically as I could. But, in a nutshell, enough was enough, really. And that was it."

Photo credit: Mind Art Visual

Canadian bashers, Sven Gali, have released a new video trailer for their upcoming Bombs And Battlescars album, available in Canada this Friday (October 13), and internationally from February 2.


Watch the clip below, and order the album here.







Tracklisting:


"One Gun"
"Coming Home"
"Spellbound"
"Life Inside"
"Monster"
"Hang Me Out"
"Hogs"
"All"
"Nothing New"


Trailer:





"One Gun" video:





"Monster" video:





Sven Gali lineup:


Dave Wanless – Vocals
Andy Frank – Guitars
Shawn Minden – Bass
Sean Williamson – Guitars
Dan Fila – Drums

Three titans of progressive rock, Nick D’Virgilio (Big Big Train), Neal Morse (Transatlantic, NMB) & Ross Jennings (Haken, Novena) joined forces in 2021 for their Troika album, a record that saw them exploring their love of more acoustic-led music and three-part vocal harmonies. Recently, the band revealed that the follow-up, aptly titled Sophomore, will be released November 10.


Today, they have released the second track taken from the album, the Ross Jennings-penned "Tiny Little Fires". Watch the video below.


Ross comments: “The melody for 'Tiny Little Fires' came about as a result of messing around with my son's toy Xylophone. You never know when or where inspiration strikes but when it does, you just gotta harvest and harness it. And so with that Xylophone hook, along with the alternating time signatures, an entire song began unravelling and building in my head and at the first opportunity I demoed a full band version of the track. It came together extremely fast and the final recording with our three voices, along with Nick's live drums and Neal's additional Wakeman-esque keys, didn't differ too much from what I visualised that morning goofing around with my toddler!"







Sophomore will be available on Limited CD Edition (incl. 2 bonus tracks), Ltd Gatefold Transparent Red LP, Ltd Gatefold Transparent Blue LP & as Digital Album. Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"Hard To Be Easy"
"Linger At The Edge Of My Memory"
"Tiny Little Fires"
"Right Where You Should Be"
"The Weary One"
"Mama"
"I’m Not Afraid"
"Weighs Me Down"
"Walking On Water"
"Anywhere The Wind Blows"
"Right Where You Should Be" (Alternative Version)*
"The Weary One" (Alternative Version)*


* CD bonus tracks


"Anywhere The Wind Blows" video:





The three musicians began trading song ideas in late 2022, before choosing 10 of those to record in January 2023. “I think there was always a plan in the back of everybody's minds about doing a second one. We just got the conversation started and then started checking out some tunes. There were a lot of songs that were a little less fleshed out than with the first album, but once we got the ball rolling, it kind of went really fast”, says Nick D’Virgilio.


For the three members, this group serves as something different for all of them. Morse explains, “I've never been part of a group that was like this one. Most people know I'm a big CSN fan and I love Yes’s three-part harmonies and The Beatles as well. My dad was a choir director, so harmonies are in my blood! DMJ is a special group that is its own unique cup of tea and has such a nice flavor. Great blend. The main thing for me is to be working on good songs; it doesn't matter to me who writes them or necessarily that much about styles. If the songs are good, then I'm all about it.”


Jennings agrees, “I'm a huge fan of country and folk music, I love the three-part harmony style. As a vocalist known for progressive metal releases, prior to forming the band I could never have predicted that I'd be considered to be part of a group making music like this. It's still mind-blowing to me since I'd never officially recorded and released any music of this genre to prove that I can do it. Making these records with Nick and Neal has been such a pleasant and rewarding experience. It's funny how things work out sometimes!”


(Photo - Chad Hoerner)

Legendary American rockers KISS have canceled their concert in Dubai, United Arab Emirates this week.

All Things Live Middle East, the presenter behind the concert, issued the following statement: "KISS has today confirmed that they have cancelled their show due to unforeseen circumstances and will be releasing more information imminently.

"We share the Kiss Army and regional rock fans' disappointment and wish the band members all the best."

All Things Live added that all tickets will automatically be refunded to the same card that was used for the transaction, although it may take up to 21 working days.

Thomas Ovesen, chief executive of promoters All Things Live Middle East, told The National that he is as disappointed as the fans.

"We were so excited to welcome KISS to the Coca-Cola Arena on Friday," he said. "We know they are a band that loves to play for their fans and would never not do a show if there was a possible way to perform. So we wish them very well and we are as disappointed as the entire Kiss Army and the rock 'n' roll fans in the region."

KISS previously played in Dubai at a New Year's Eve concert in December 2020 at Atlantis The Palm. That gig broke Guinness world records for highest flame projection in a music concert and for most flame projections launched simultaneously in a music concert.

Landmarks Live Presents produced the $10 million spectacular, which was filmed with more than 50 4K cameras and 360-degree views and was held on a massive 250-foot stage at The Royal Beach at Atlantis. The show included "a million dollars' worth of pyro," according to frontman Paul Stanley.

KISS's final runs of shows will wrap up in early December with a massive concert in at New York City's famed Madison Square Garden.

KISS launched its farewell trek in January 2019 but was forced to put it on hold in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

"End Of The Road" was originally scheduled to conclude on July 17, 2021 in New York City but has since been extended to late 2023. The trek was announced in September 2018 following a KISS performance of the band's classic song "Detroit Rock City" on "America's Got Talent".

KISS's current lineup consists of original members Stanley (guitar, vocals) and Gene Simmons (bass, vocals),alongside later band additions, guitarist Tommy Thayer (since 2002) and drummer Eric Singer (on and off since 1991).

Formed in 1973 by Stanley, Simmons, Peter Criss and Ace Frehley, KISS staged its first "farewell" tour in 2000, the last to feature the group's original lineup.

DISTURBED's David Draiman denounced Hamas's attack on Israel, which killed over 900 Israelis and wounded over 2,400 others.

In response to Palestinian militants in Gaza firing a deadly barrage of rockets and sending gunmen into Israeli territory, Israel launched strikes on what it called Hamas targets in Gaza.

The 50-year-old Draiman, who is of Jewish descent, took to his Instagram today (Tuesday, October 10) to share a video message in which he said: "David Draiman from DISTURBED here. It's taken me a little bit of time to process the events of the past 72 hours. I'm still in a state of shock and grief.

"There's no justification for the barbarity and the inhumanity that was on display over the course of the past few days against Jews in Israel, and there's no justification for the support of the acts, the inhumane acts perpetrated against Jews all over the world.

"My heart is broken." The teary-eyed singer then added, "Am Yisrael Chai," which means "The Jewish nation lives."

On Tuesday, U.S. president Joe Biden called the Hamas assault "an act of sheer evil" and said more than 1,000 civilians were "slaughtered" in Israel, including at least 14 Americans who were killed.

At least 765 people have been killed in the Gaza Strip by Israel's retaliatory airstrikes, according to the Gaza Health Ministry.

In addition to the Hebrew-speaking Draiman, who once trained to be a cantor and contemplated becoming a rabbi, DISTURBED includes guitarist/keyboardist Dan Donegan, bassist John Moyer and drummer Mike Wengren.

Draiman's father and grandfather served in the Israel Defense Forces and both of the singer's maternal grandparents were Holocaust survivors. His grandfather was also a cantor in Israel.

In December 2021, Draiman said that he had lost thousands of social media followers since publicizing his trip to Israel in November of that year.

On November 30, 2021, Draiman lit a candle at the Western Wall in Jerusalem, Israel at the Old City site of the terror attack that killed South African immigrant Eli Kay. He later claimed that he lost 4,000 followers after sharing photos of his "demonstration" at the Western Wall.

Draiman spent much of 2014 and early 2015 linking to articles by conservative and pro-Israel blogs and has often used his fame to speak out against anti-Semitism.

DISTURBED's song "Never Again", from 2010's "Asylum" album, was written about the Holocaust and calls out people who deny it.

The United States Holocaust Museum has featured Draiman in its "Voices On Anti-Semitism" podcasts.

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