MÖTLEY CRÜE fans shouldn't expect any changes to the setlist for the band's upcoming U.S. shows.

CRÜE's "The World Tour" with DEF LEPPARD will return to America for six dates starting on August 5 in Syracuse, New York.

On Wednesday (July 26),Sixx shared a post about CRÜE's upcoming concerts with LEPPARD, and encouraged everyone to buy tickets.

One of the fans who commented on Sixx's post wrote, "Hopefully an adjustment in the set list, would love to hear some of the other killer songs you have to", to which Nikki replied: "The show is all worked out for this tour. Next time we go into rehearsals in 2024 for the next tour we do all the set list and video content changes."

MÖTLEY CRÜE's setlist for the 2023 "The World Tour" has remained very similar to the one from last year's "The Stadium Tour", with "Wild Side" opening the show before Sixx and his bandmates run through a 15-song set that includes other classics like "Shout At The Devil", "Home Sweet Home", "Dr. Feelgood" and the closing number "Kickstart My Heart".

CRÜE's setlist for the 2023 "The World Tour":

01. Wild Side
02. Shout Out At The Devil
03. Too Fast For Love
04. Don't Go Away Mad (Just Go Away)
05. Saints of Los Angeles
06. Live Wire
07. Looks That Kill
08. The Dirt (Est. 1981)
09. Guitar Solo
10. Rock And Roll / Smokin' In The Boys' Room / Helter Skelter / Anarchy In The U.K. / Blitzkrieg Bop
11. Home Sweet Home
12. Dr. Feelgood
13. Same Ol' Situation (S.O.S.)
14. Girls Girls Girls
15. Primal Scream
16. Kickstart My Heart

Last month, MÖTLEY CRÜE singer Vince Neil confirmed to The Music Universe that the band will embark on another stadium tour in 2024. "We're not sure who's gonna be on it, but there'll be another tour," he said.

MÖTLEY CRÜE recently went into the studio with longtime producer Bob Rock and recorded three new songs, including "Dogs Of War" and a cover of BEASTIE BOYS' "(You Gotta) Fight For Your Right (To Party!)".

Asked what inspired him and his CRÜE bandmates to head back to the studio, Vince told The Music Universe: "Well, we've written the songs, and then we had Bob Rock, our producer, come in and take a listen to 'em too. We got some studio time and went in and recorded. I didn't record with the band, 'cause I'm in Nashville, and they're in L.A. They recorded the tracks in Nashville, and then I did like a Zoom call with the producer for three days. And I did all the songs. And they turned out really well. One of them is the BEASTIE BOYS song 'Fight For Your Right'… That turned out really cool."

Pressed about whether the three new songs might be a precursor to a new full-length album, Neil said: "I don't know if we're gonna do a whole album or not. We'll see how these songs go first."

CRÜE and LEPPARD kicked off the European leg of their "The World Tour" on May 22 in Sheffield. The European leg concluded on July 6 in Glasgow.

LEPPARD and CRÜE will team up with Alice Cooper for a U.S. mini-tour this summer. The trek will kick off on August 5 in Syracuse, New York and include stops in the Midwest before concluding in El Paso, Texas on August 18. Shows in Japan and Australia will follow in the fall.

In April, MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx said that he and his bandmates had completed recording several new songs with Rock.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's new guitarist John 5 told Sirius XM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" about recording the group's new music with Rock: "Bob would come in and [say], 'Okay, let's try this here, and that here and this here. It was one of the most incredible experiences ever… I'm thinking, 'We've got so much great technology today'… but we got in that room and it was like being in a garage working on a song when you were in high school… It was incredible, and we documented a lot of it too."

Regarding the musical direction of the tracks he and the rest of MÖTLEY CRÜE have recorded so far, John 5 said: "The songs are fucking heavy. I sound like a little excited kid right now, but they're heavy and they're mean. I can't wait for them to come out. I'm just so excited."

When host Eddie Trunk asked John 5 whether the new MÖTLEY CRÜE music can be compared to the band's breakthrough second album, 1983's "Shout At The Devil", the guitarist said that some of the new riffs are "heavier than anything" on that LP. "All I can tell you is that it's heavy and it's aggressive, and I think people are going to dig it because, talking as a fan, it's fucking badass," he said.

John 5 joined MÖTLEY CRÜE last fall as the replacement for the band's co-founding guitarist Mick Mars. Mick announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE last October as a result of worsening health issues.

Mars suffers from Ankylosing Spondylitis (AS),a chronic and inflammatory form of arthritis that mainly affects the spine and pelvis. After years of performing through the pain, he informed the other members of MÖTLEY CRÜE last summer that he could no longer tour with them but would still be open to recording new music or performing at residencies that did not require much travel.

When Mars announced his retirement from touring with MÖTLEY CRÜE, he maintained that he would remain a member of the band, with John 5 taking his place on the road. However, in early April the 71-year-old musician filed a lawsuit against CRÜE in Los Angeles County's Superior Court claiming that, after his announcement, the rest of CRÜE tried to remove him as a significant stakeholder in the group's corporation and business holdings via a shareholders' meeting.

🤟🏽-Repost from @motleycrue
•
Gear up now for Tour - US Shows begin next week!
LINK IN BIO

🇺🇸 MÖTLEY CRÜE are back in...

Posted by Nikki Sixx on Wednesday, July 26, 2023

Influenced by thrash metal royaly Slayer, Kreator, Destruction and Exodus' earlier works, Eternal Evil was formed in Stockholm, Sweden in 2019. The band intends to carry on the legacy of early high energy classic thrash insanity.


Their quickly sold out Rise Of Death self-released demo recorded in band leader Adrian Tobar's garage was later reissued by Iron Fist and Redefining Darkness records. Shortly after the demo release, the world was hit by a pandemic and during those restrictive years, the band worked on in silence and brought in Norrland guitarist Tobias Lindström.


Recorded at Studio Humbucker by Robert Pehrsson, the band’s full length debut, The Warriors Awakening... Brings The Unholy Slaughter, was released in November 2021.




Now with two new members, the band is ready with its follow-up album, The Gates Beyond Mortality,  to be released in October. With lyrical themes from Occult Practice to the violent nature of warfare the band has crafted an album that has broken all the rules and standards from previous times, which makes this album sound darker than anything they have released prior.


Having kickstarted with an indestructible enthusiasm conjuring malicious old school metal powers, Eternal Evil are destined to make that head bang forever.


The first single, "Funeral Prayers", is out today. Get the song here, and listen below.





The Gates Beyond Mortality tracklisting:


"Depths A Of A New Eternity"
"Guerilla Warfare"
"The Gates Beyond Mortality"
"Funeral Prayers"
"Signs Of Ancient Sin"
"Desecration Of Light"
"The Astral Below"
"Immolation"
"The Cursed Trilogy"


"Funeral Prayers":





Eternal Evil lineup:


Adrian Tobar - Vocals and Lead Guitar
Tobias Lindström - Lead Guitar
Niklas Saari  - Bass Guitar
Adam Schmidt  - Drums

Vandenberg and Mascot Records / Mascot Label Group have released a lyric video for "Light It Up", the new single from the band's upcoming studio album, to be released on August 25. Watch the clip below, and pre-order the album here.


Adrian Vandenberg shares, “Amigos! It’s D-Day and high time for some bonafide stadium rock. You deserve to treat your good selves to some huge, Oprah ass sized ROCK to launch yourself into the upcoming weekend in style!”







Every album paints a picture. Instead of utilizing a brush and canvas, Vandenberg paints with towering vocals, earthquaking rhythms, and the iconic and instantly recognizable fretwork of guitarist and namesake, Adrian Vandenberg. Joined by vocalist Mats Levén, drummer Koen Herfst, and bassist Randy van der Elsen, the influential axe-slinger delivers a vibrant, visceral, and vital vision on the group’s fifth full-length offering, Sin, brought to life in broad strokes of anthemic hard rock and airtight metal and produced by Bob Marlette (Ozzy Osbourne, Alice Cooper, Rob Zombie).


“For me, music is very much like a painting,” affirms Adrian. “You have your ups, downs, lights, and shades. One song might make you want to jump on the table and party your brains out. Another song will inspire you to think. Either way, you’re thrown into a landscape, which my favorite albums still do to me. You could be in your car or at home with your headphones plugged into a soundsystem, and you’re in a different world.”


Exploding out of The Netherlands and onto the global scene with 1982’s self-titled Vandenberg, the Dutch phenomenon notched an international hit in the form of “Burning Heart,” paving the way for seminal releases such as Heading For A Storm [1983] and Alibi [1985]. The band canvased the United States, Europe, and Japan alongside Ozzy Osbourne, KISS, Rush, Scorpions, Michael Schenker, and many others. Sought out to join Whitesnake, Adrian famously ripped the legendary lead on the 1987 recording of the #1 smash “Here I Go Again,” which adorned the 8x-platinum Whitesnake and ended up touring the world’s largest arenas for a year-and-a-half when the 1987 album went through the roof in terms of sales. He co-wrote the entirety of 1989’s platinum Slip of the Tongue and spent the ensuing tour sharing axe duties with none other than Steve Vai. In addition to playing guitar on and cowriting Restless Heart from David Coverdale & Whitesnake, he performed hundreds of shows as part of the band for some twelve years. Speaking to the breadth of his output, he notably penned and recorded “A Number One” as the theme for his hometown Dutch football team FC Twente. 2013 saw him launch the acclaimed Vandenberg’s MoonKings, releasing MoonKings [2014], MK II [2017], and Rugged and Unplugged [2018].


Vandenberg as a band roared back to life with the comeback LP, 2020. Among many highlights, “Freight Train” gathered 1.6 million Spotify streams, while the record attracted praise. In its wake, Vandenberg welcomed Mats [Trans-Siberian Orchestra, Yngwie Malmsteen] to the fold.


“He’s an amazing singer,” notes Adrian. “I’d heard him online, and we got in touch. It’s funny because his mom brought the first two Vandenberg records back to Scandinavia from England when he was in his early twenties—and he was a fan. He’s a workaholic like me. We picked up after COVID and put the new album together. The spark is definitely there. On top of that, Koen and Randy lay down the most solid concrete, grooving foundation that I could ever wish for. I’d say it’s one notch heavier than 2020,” he smiles.


Recorded in Holland and Los Angeles with Marlette, Sin represents a natural evolution for Vandenberg. Scorching pinch harmonics light up the first single “House On Fire” as the groove underlines a chantable chorus from Mats.  “In one way, it’s a party song, because it keeps you tapping your foot,” Adrian exclaims. “Mats added a different darker twist with his lyrics. It also envisions a person who’s frustrated about the things other people have. This person can’t control their anger and sets the place on fire.”





Tracklisting:


"Thunder And Lightning"
"House On Fire"
"Sin"
"Light It Up"
"Walking On Water"
"Burning Skies"
"Hit The Ground Running"
"Baby You’ve Changed"
"Out Of The Shadows"


"Sin" lyric video:





"House On Fire" lyric video:





(Photo - HP van Velthoven)

It’s been five years since their last offering, Civilisation, made such a big impression on the music press and fans alike and now the boys of Southern Empire have put together their follow-up album, Another World, due out on September 4 on GEP Records. The first single from the album, "Reaching Out", is available now. Watch the video below.





Featuring their unique mixture of prog, classic rock and jazz, the addition of impressive new vocalist Shaun Holton takes it to the next level.




Sean Timms: “I am incredibly excited to have Shaun on board for the next phase of Southern Empire music. His range, tonal colour and song writing are impeccable and have a modern sensibility that will take the band further than I’d ever thought possible.”


Shaun Holton: “Making my previous albums pushed me to find the very limits of my potential as a producer and multi-instrumentalist... and whilst I’m incredibly proud of that work and the positive reception it received, I knew that I wanted something more. Southern Empire is definitely the welcome opportunity I’ve waited a lifetime for. This is musicality at a level I have only previously dreamt about, but I have never been more ready!”


Available on CD and double marbled vinyl. Pre-orders will begin on August 7.





Tracklisting:


"Reaching Out"
"Face The Dawn"
"Hold On To Me"
"When You Return"
"Moving Through Tomorrow"
"White Shadows"
"Butterfly"


"Reaching Out" video:





Lineup:


Shaun Holton - Lead and Backing Vocals
Cam Blokland - Electric and Acoustic Guitars, Lead and Backing Vocals
Jez Martin - Fretted and Fretless Bass
Brody Green - Drums, Hand Percussion, Backing Vocals
Sean Timms - Keyboards, Programming, Lap Steel Guitar, Backing Vocals

Quadvium recently issued an update, after a couple of years of radio silence, about the bass duo’s commencement on the debut album. Now the bassists, Steve Di Giorgio (Testament, Death) and Jeroen Paul Thesseling (Obscura, Pestilence), bring to light the other musicians that will complete the quartet. 


Launching a band with two predominantly fretless bass players is no common occurrence, and the duo felt they needed to take very special and deliberate time to get the right alignment with who’s participating and what will be the end result – meaning the right sound & composition to represent this rare vision.


Staying the course, and some will notice from those long-ago press releases from Quadvium, the recognizable friendly face of Yuma van Eekelen (Our Oceans, Pestilence). The drummer has in fact been a major presence the whole time, Yuma’s agreeable dedication in helping find the final member and contributing with massive effort to the arrangements of the songs is no understatement. On chops alone, the band is lucky to cooperate with such a masterful drummer, but Yuma’s vision and chemistry is invaluably equal to the foundation towards this undertaking.







And with immense pleasure, we’d like to introduce, the final member… Jennings Smith (Myth Of I, Kaathe).


The guitarist/composer has taken the little seed of an idea and cultivated it into a sprawling kickass garden. The technical prowess of Jennings can be seen in his many videos on Instagram for Myth Of I and his solo material – we suggest you go and have a look! He has brought to this band a level of musicality and compositional energy and vision we only dreamed of. And the result of hours/days/weeks/and pretty much one year since the discovery and ingression to the band, is a presentation of just what we imagined we were looking for! Jennings understood the concept of writing for a dual-bass driving effort in this unique quartet format. With his song writing mastery and very impressive bass chops (also check his playthrough videos on bass), we can safely say this time that we have a solid lineup and a varied offering of songs we are excited to show you.





The composing phase is coming to a close with the last couple of ideas that will round-out the content for the first album. The band enters the preproduction phase with some final arranging and preliminary tracking in Amsterdam during the end of August. Final tracking and fine tuning will be ongoing through the rest of this year, as we also navigate and organize around many busy touring schedules. Plans, at this point, for the album release, foreseeable in the first half of 2024!


Quadvium lineup:


Jennings Smith – guitar
Steve Di Giorgio – bass
Jeroen Paul Thesseling – bass
Yuma van Eekelen – drums


Quick progress updates and exclusive video peeks into the workings will be posted up on the band’s official Facebook page.

Legendary SoCal punk rock band THE OFFSPRING has shared the second episode of its podcast "Time To Relax With The Offspring", featuring special guest Joe Escalante of THE VANDALS. Joe sits down with the gang and tells them about what it's like to be a real radio show host, touring Japan, and a 20 year-long LIMP BIZKIT-fueled beef with Jason "Blackball" McLean. Dexter climbs Mt. Fuji; Noodles forgets to bring his vacation photos to the studio.

Watch the new episode of "Time To Relax With The Offspring" below. Audio downloads are available on Spotify, Apple Music, iHeart Radio and Audible.

"Time To Relax With The Offspring" features guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman and singer Bryan "Dexter" Holland alongside their longtime friend McLean (from THE OFFSPRING's "You've Gotta Keep 'Em Separated"). The open format video podcast brings friends into their studio to chat music, touring, life and everything in between. Kick off your shoes, lean back and just enjoy the nonsense. It's time to relax with THE OFFSPRING.

The first episode of the podcast, released last month, features special guest, Fletcher Dragge (of PENNYWISE). The guys share some of their fondest memories together over the past 30 years, punk rock hacks and debauchery.

Frequently regarded as one of the best rock bands of all time, THE OFFSPRING have garnered a reputation for its unmistakable sound and social comment. The multi-platinum band first achieved worldwide success in the 1990s with the release of their album "Smash", which sold over 11 million copies. Following "Smash", they continued to release hit after hit, popularizing rock at a mainstream level. Throughout their career, they've sold over 40 million albums, toured arenas, and built a massive fan base globally. The group is also currently working on new music.

THE OFFSPRING is an American band from Garden Grove, California, formed in 1984. Throughout their 38-year career, they have released ten studio albums. THE OFFSPRING is often credited — alongside fellow California bands GREEN DAY and RANCID — for reviving mainstream interest in rock in the 1990s. They have sold over 40 million records worldwide, making them one of the best-selling rock bands in history.

ASINHELL, the new death metal band led by VOLBEAT frontman Michael Poulsen, has released the official music video for the song "Fall Of The Loyal Warrior". The track is taken from ASINHELL's debut album, "Impii Hora" (Latin for "Ungodly Hour"),which will arrive on September 29 via Metal Blade.

For more than 20 years, vocalist/guitarist Poulsen has been spearheading Danish rock and roll machine VOLBEAT, releasing eight full-lengths, selling millions of albums, and filling stadiums worldwide. Before fronting VOLBEAT, however, Poulsen formed death metal band DOMINUS, which recorded four fast, brutal albums in the mid-'90s.

When Poulsen was putting together songs for VOLBEAT's 2021 album "Servant Of The Mind", he wrote a bunch of death metal riffs and saved them on his phone. Then, when he was done with the VOLBEAT record, he reopened the rusty gates to Armageddon and started putting together songs for "Impii Hora", which is a tribute to Poulsen's favorite old-school groups. The songs are rooted in crushing riffs yet injected with strong guitar hooks and shout-along refrains.

While Poulsen sings in VOLBEAT and sang for DOMINUS, he didn't want to front ASINHELL. So, in March 2022, he called his old friend, ex-MORGOTH singer Marc Grewe (also of INSIDIOUS DISEASE) and invited him to join the party.

"I had known Michael quite a long time and he always mentioned that we should do a death metal project one day, but I never took him too seriously because he was so busy with VOLBEAT," Grewe says. "Then he called for real and said, 'Yeah, I want to do it now. Are you up for it?' Immediately, I was 'Yes, of course!'"

After considering drummer friends from established bands, Poulsen asked Morten Toft Hansen from Danish group RAUNCHY to join. Not only does Morten play like a fiend possessed, his and Poulsen's six-year-old daughters are good friends… and, it takes just 10 minutes to drive to Morten's place.

The two veteran musicians started practicing and completed a full song almost every time they got together. Grewe was tied up at home in Germany when it came time to write the vocals, so Poulsen sent the singer phone recordings from rehearsals to start the process. Through Poulsen and Toft Hansen's years of experience and renewed hunger to destroy, they captured a firestorm in a bottle.

"We're very excited to share the first taste of ASINHELL with 'Fall Of The Loyal Warrior','" said Poulsen. "The song is kind of a tribute to bands I love, like BOLT THROWER, ENTOMBED, AUTOPSY, GRAVE and DARKTHRONE. They're the reason why we can do this in the first place, and we're proud to wear our influences on our sleeve. The album was inspired by late '80s and early '90s old school death metal, and one of our brightest points of inspiration was the mighty DEATH, fronted by the legendary Chuck Schuldiner. There's a lot of DEATH in there. Schuldiner is one of my favorite death metal vocalists, the other being our vocalist Marc [Grewe]. So to me, this song is the combination of two of my favorites. 'Let the metal flow,' as Chuck would have said!"

ASINHELL went from being a mere idea to recording the piledriving full-length "Impii Hora" in about a year. Poulsen asked VOLBEAT's management to help find a home for ASINHELL and was thrilled when they mentioned that Metal Blade founder Brian Slagel would love the band. As soon as he heard "Impii Hora", Slagel made ASINHELL a top priority.

"It's such a dream come true for me to get to be on fucking Metal Blade Records," Poulsen exclaims. "When they said they wanted to put out the album, I felt like I was 17 years old again. I was like, 'Oh my God, I'm making a deal with Metal Blade! How cool is that?' It was like I was finally getting the record deal I dreamed of when I was a teenager."

"Impii Hora" track listing:

01. Fall Of The Loyal Warrior
02. Inner Sancticide
03. Island Of Dead Men
04. Trophies
05. The Ultimate Sin
06. Wolfpack Laws
07. Desert Of Doom
08. Pyromantic Scryer
09. Impii Hora
10. Foj For Helvede

ASINHELL is:

Michael Poulsen - Guitar
Marc Grewe - Vocals
Morten Toft Hansen - Drums

Photo credit: Brittany Bowman

The Steve's Concert Corner YouTube channel has uploaded video of STAIND's July 26 concert at Xfinity Center in Mansfield, Massachusetts. Check out the series of clips in the playlist below.

Earlier this month, STAIND landed a No. 1 active rock single with "Lowest In Me", the first single from the band's upcoming album, "Confessions Of The Fallen". The veteran rock group's first full-length album of original material since 2011 is scheduled for release on September 15 via Alchemy Recordings/BMG.

Alchemy Recordings is a record label created in partnership between Dino Paredes, former American Recordings vice president of A&R, and Danny Wimmer, the founder of Danny Wimmer Presents, the premier production company for rock music festivals in the United States.

"We are extremely proud that 'Lowest In Me' is our first No. 1 single at rock radio," says Joe Guzik, general manager of Alchemy Recordings. "We'd like to thank all of our partners at radio and DSPs, Vector Management and Rise/BMG for helping us get to No. 1. We also want to congratulate STAIND for delivering such a great song and putting their trust in us as we grow this partnership. They've turned in an incredible record, and we know this is the first of many number-one songs to come."

STAIND performed "Lowest In Me" live for the first time at the trio of Florida shows the band played earlier in the month leading up to STAIND's U.S. tour with GODSMACK.

"Confessions Of The Fallen" was produced by Erik Ron (GODSMACK, PANIC! AT THE DISCO, BLACK VEIL BRIDES).

Asked in a recent interview with Cutter's Rockcast if "Lowest In Me" is a good representation of the entire LP, STAIND guitarist Mike Mushok said: "Listen, there's a couple of songs that kind of go to, I think, what we're actually really known for — that 'It's Been Awhile', 'Outside' type of thing. But a lot of it has the heavy [edge to it]. And there's something — there's an electronic element that there wasn't in any of our stuff before; it's in this. There's a couple of songs that have a little bit more [of it than others]. And that was something that Aaron [Lewis, STAIND frontman] spoke of for a long time, that he wanted to do. And I really think that Erik, the producer, was really helpful in bringing that element to what we do. 'Cause I remember, in our preliminary talks of it, I was, like, 'I don't know how to write a record like that, 'cause that's not what I do.' And it was something as simple as taking a guitar riff that I wrote and playing it on a synthesizer or breaking it up and making some cool sounds out of it."

Mushok went on to say that he is "real happy with the way that it turned out. It was definitely a little — I just wasn't sure," he explained. "But as I heard it, I was, like, 'Oh.' Actually, I really liked it… I can't wait for people to hear it, 'cause I really feel like it worked. I feel like it's STAIND 2023, I guess. It's kind of… It's a little more modern version, I think, of what we've always done."

Last month, Mushok spoke to the Z93 radio station in Saginaw, Michigan about why it took STAIND so long to make a new studio album. He said: "I always hoped that [we would get around to working on new music]. Aaron wanted to pursue his country career and kind of felt like doing STAIND was something that would be detrimental to what that would be. He had to show the country people, 'I'm a country guy.' And I was able to go off and do a few other things, which was great — play with some really great people, musicians. Thankfully I was able to do that. That being said, I'm very thankful that we're back together and doing this. Because this is really kind of what I started with Aaron — over 28 years ago, whatever, or 27 years ago; whatever it was. So it's great to be able to be back making music again. And I'm looking forward to going out and doing these shows."

Asked if it was the initial plan to write new material when STAIND reunited for its first full live show in five years in September 2019 at the Louder Than Life music festival in Louisville, Kentucky, Mike said: "There was always talk of doing music. Even when we were off, it was funny — I remember Aaron would call me randomly, and I would always be at the same place, this indoor soccer place at my son's soccer game. And I would be, like, 'Oh, it's Aaron.' And we would kind of talk about ultimately [writing new music]. We knew it was in the future. We never had any plans. Then it finally started to come together. I wanna say 2018, I think, we started talking about it. And, honestly, that KORN tour [in 2021] was really where a lot of the record got put together, was on that. I was working every day, and I was able to demo a lot of the songs on that tour and able to get Aaron in a room and say, 'Listen to some of the music,' and get some direction from him of where he wanted it to go and some changes that he wanted to make and what he liked and what he didn't like. So a lot was done on that, and it really gave me the foundation and kind of a roadmap of where things should go. So it was actually really productive and a really good time."

STAIND recently released the DJay Brawner-directed music video for "Lowest In Me".

In May, Mushok told Lou Brutus of HardDrive Radio about the songwriting process for "Confessions Of The Fallen": "I had a lot of songs, and they were all demoed. So it was basically just instrumental songs. I would take something that I liked, and I would just play it for him. Aaron would listen. And [he would say], 'Oh, I like that verse. Maybe we could try this. Maybe change the chorus a little.' So it was just really kind of getting ideas of where he was at, what music that I had that he was wanting to sing over and really kind of taking those notes, going back and reconstructing the songs, if need be, changing parts, rewriting stuff. And finally when we decided we were gonna do it, and I kind of had a pretty good group of what I thought would make up the record, and Erik ended up being the producer, Erik and I kind of went back and did the same process through the music. Kind of refining the songs, demoing them. And he'd take it to Aaron and they would work on the melody and the lyrics."

In an interview with Billboard, Lewis said that it took him "a long time to be ready to do another STAIND record. I got really burnt out on digging into the dark corners of my psyche every night to deliver those very deep, dark songs in a manner that was believable and authentic," he explained. "I needed to step away from it for awhile and do something different. It just came back together naturally."

Regarding the lyrical inspiration for "Lowest In Me", Aaron told Billboard: "Everybody has got people in their lives that don't bring out the good in somebody. Just with what's going on in the world right now, there's so many things, so many people that are like, 'You bring out the lowest in me.' There's a lot of factors out there that could fall under the 'you' category."

When "Confessions Of The Fallen" was announced in April, Lewis stated about the LP's musical direction: "I did want to modernize the sound and bring us up to date. You can certainly recognize the band but at the same time you can hear that we've been paying attention and understand what kind of sounds and approaches we can use that maybe weren't around the last time we did this."

STAIND has released seven albums since 1995, the latest being 2011's self-titled effort. The band has had a number of hit songs during its first two decades, including the Top 10 smash "It's Been Awhile" from the No. 1 album "Break The Cycle". Follow-up LPs "14 Shades Of Grey" and "Chapter V" also topped the Billboard chart.

STAIND released its first album in nine years, "Live: It's Been Awhile", in May 2021 via Yap'em/Alchemy Recordings. The "Live: It's Been Awhile" album was accompanied by "The Return Of Staind", a two-part global streaming series in partnership with Danny Wimmer Presents.

STAIND and GODSMACK's 25-city co-headlining 2023 tour, produced by Live Nation, kicked off on July 18 at Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre in St. Louis, Missouri, with stops across the U.S. before wrapping up in Austin, Texas at Germania Insurance Amphitheatre on August 31.

Former CHILDREN OF BODOM frontman Alexi Laiho passed away in December 2020 due to alcohol-induced degeneration of the liver and pancreas connective tissue. Furthermore, Laiho had a cocktail of painkillers, opioids and insomnia medication in his system. He had suffered from long-term health issues leading up to his death.

In a brand-new interview with BLABBERMOUTH.NET promoting "Here For None", the upcoming album from his band WARMEN, former BODOM keyboardist Janne "Warman" Wirman opened up about the string of events that led to the band's 2019 demise and the deterioration of Laiho's health.

"Alexi's downfall started in 2016," Janne said. "I don't know what caused him to do that. He told me but didn't tell anyone else in the band — he made sure no one else was in the room — and told me, 'Dude, from now on, I'm going to drink until I die.' I said, 'Fuck, man. You can't say that to me.' He said it another time in 2018. I knew that was what he was doing — he said he wouldn't take any help for his medical issues. He was going to keep drinking. That's what he did, which is fucking crazy."

Janne continied: "A lot of people who haven't had a family friend or work buddy or someone who is sick with alcoholism, a lot of people don't understand you cannot help the person who doesn't want help. He had decided he didn't want help and would keep drinking until he died. That's what he did."

Wirmen then detailed BODOM's final years, beset by infighting largely stemming from Laiho's substance abuse issues. "The last years were pretty bad," he said. "There was a lot of bullshit. It's so crazy because he was in such a good place a couple of years before. He was happy about being sober and on tour, and the shows were good. I don't know what happened to him. Something pushed him over the edge where he decided, 'Fuck it. I'm going to keep drinking.'"

Alexi's ashes were buried in December 2021 — nearly a year after his tragic passing. He was laid to rest at the Malmi Cemetery, a large cemetery located in the Malmi district in Helsinki, Finland.

Alexi and drummer Jaska Raatikainen founded CHILDREN OF BODOM in 1993, and the band was one of the most internationally acclaimed metal acts in Finland up until their very last farewell concert in December of 2019. In 2020, Alexi put together BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT, which recorded three songs and shot one music video, all of which were released posthumously.

Besides CHILDREN OF BODOM, Laiho had played in such acts as WARMEN, SINERGY, KYLÄHULLUT and THE LOCAL BAND. Awarded with a Metal Hammer Golden God and several other international prizes, the guitarist was also the main star, leading a group of one hundred guitar players at the Helsinki Festival in 2015 in "100 Guitars From Hel" — a massive concert piece he composed.

Last, Wirman and fellow former CHILDREN OF BODOM members Raatikainen and Henri "Henkka T. Blacksmith" Seppälä discussed publicly for the first time the circumstances that led to the band's split and ultimately Laiho's death. In an interview with Finland's Helsingin Sanomat, the three surviving members of CHILDREN OF BODOM said the real reason for the band's breakup was not that they wanted to stop touring in order to spend more time with their families, which is how Laiho explained it to Helsingin Sanomat in November 2019. Instead, what caused the group to split was Laiho's substance abuse, and that is also what eventually killed him a year after they went their separate ways.

Laiho's addiction began to take a serious toll on CHIDLREN OF BODOM in 2008, when the band was the support act on a SLIPKNOT tour. In the ensuing years, Laiho promised his bandmates that he would not drink on the road anymore. Although he kept his word for a few years, Alexi "went into a tailspin again in 2016," according to Wirman. Laiho, who had a substantial income as COB's main songwriter (all other income, from gigs to merchandise, was split equally),repeatedly complained that his income was declining and threatened to pull himself out of the limited liability company, AA & Sewira Consulting Oy, he and the other members formed in 2003.

After CHILDREN OF BODOM's manager brought up Laiho's substance abuse at a business meeting in New York in early 2019, Alexi refused to go into rehabilitation but did agree to see a doctor. He was diagnosed with diabetes, and he began taking medication to treat the condition.

In the summer of 2019, Laiho filed an application with the Finnish Patent And Registration Office to register the CHILDREN OF BODOM name to Laiho. This infuriated his bandmates who saw this as an attempt to hijack the name and brand that was controlled by the group's LLC.

During CHILDREN OF BODOM's tour of Russia in October 2019, Laiho "was hitting the bottle like back in 2008," his bandmates told Helsingin Sanomat.

"I told Alexi that you don't usually drink starting at breakfast before a gig, and now you don't even warm up with the guitar before going on stage like you always do," Raatikainen recalled.

Laiho later apologized and stopped drinking for the last concerts of the tour.

"His hands were shaking for two days, but the gigs in Moscow and St Petersburg went pretty well," Raatikainen said.

Raatikainen, Seppälä and Wirman decided to go with Alexi's wish from a few years back and buy him out of the LLC. Laiho retained the rights to his music and was paid royalties on performances and record sales as before, but sold his part of the LLC that owns the name of the band and the merchandising rights.

According to the trio, Alexi was sober for CHILDREN OF BODOM's entire final tour of Finland in December 2019 and he "exchanged cordial messages" with them even after the start of the pandemic.

Alexi's sister Anna Laiho told Helsingin Sanomat that the three surviving members of CHILDREN OF BODOM "have the full support of our family."

Anna, Alexi's Australian wife Kelli Wright-Laiho and a few close friends attempted to get him professional help in the fall of 2020, but he refused.

"At heart, he was a warm and caring person, always ready to help others. But he had his demons, and he wanted to fight those alone", Alexi's sister said. "He wanted to make his own choices. For better or worse."

"Here For None" is due on August 18 via Reaper Entertainment.

Janne Wirman photo by Marek Sabogal (for WARMEN) / Alexi Laiho photo courtesy of Nuclear Blast

Ozzy, the mechanical bull named after legendary heavy metal singer Ozzy Osbourne, has been unveiled at its permanent home, Birmingham New Street station in Birmingham, England.

According to BBC News, Ozzy's wife and manager Sharon saw the bull's first performance this morning (Wednesday, July 26),which involved him moving his head and swishing his tail.

"It's like breathtaking, this is mammoth, huge, but it's just brilliant isn't it," Sharon said.

"For Ozzy to be born and bred here and having spent so much time in this station, because of course he didn't have a car, so he was everywhere from New Street," she explained.

"He would never, ever, ever have thought that at this time in his life, this would happen."

The naming of the 33-foot-tall (10-meter) sculpture, which made an appearance at last year's Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, came after a public vote and was revealed on "BBC Breakfast".

More than 28,000 votes were cast to name the sculpture, previously known informally as Raging Bull. The other shortlisted names were Bostin, Brummie or Boulton.

Osbourne performed at the closing of the Commonwealth Games in his original hometown of Birmingham on August 8, 2022. The BLACK SABBATH icon made a surprise appearance at the Games, declaring "Birmingham forever" as fireworks erupted. Ozzy performed "Paranoid", with BLACK SABBATH guitarist Tony Iommi and two musicians from the band's final tour, Adam Wakeman, who played bass and keyboards, and drummer Tommy Clufetos, also on stage.

"When I was asked last year to close the Commonwealth Games in Birmingham, they didn't have to ask me twice," Ozzy said in a statement. "I jumped on the next plane and flew back to England. I was honored to close the games, and this year I've just been told they've chosen my name to name the bull, which is going to be in the station. I can't believe it, I'm absolutely blown away. I don't know what to say anymore, I'm just absolutely thrilled to bits. God bless you all."

A petition to keep the sculpture in the city received more than 15,000 signatures.



OZZY THE BULL LIVE: Watch as raging beast comes alive at Birmingham New Street

Posted by Birmingham Live on Wednesday, July 26, 2023

Ozzy the bull

🐂 Ozzy has officially been revealed at Birmingham New Street station.

👉 https://www.networkrailmediacentre.co.uk/news/ozzy-the-bull-roars-back-into-birmingham-new-street-station

#OzzyNewStreet

Posted by Network Rail on Wednesday, July 26, 2023

Ozzy The Bull has arrived at New Street Station 🐂 Officially unveiled by none other than Sharon Osbourne this morning 🤩👏

📸@breadbirmingham

Posted by Secret Birmingham on Wednesday, July 26, 2023

The major workforce education initiative that METALLICA's All Within My Hands (AWMH) foundation launched in 2019 in partnership with the American Association of Community Colleges (AACC) is marking its fifth year with the addition of 11 new colleges to its existing 31-college roster, and an ambitious expansion into new programs. Metallica Scholars Initiative (MSI) now directly supports 42 community colleges across 33 states in the US to enhance their career and technical education programs. To date, METALLICA and their foundation have invested over $6 million in the American workforce.

Reaffirming a commitment to career and technical education at the local level, each new school brings incredible opportunities to a thriving and growing community, says All Within My Hands executive director Peter Delgrosso.

"With the launch of the fifth year of the program, we will now have supported well over 5,000 Metallica Scholars across workforce education," Delgrosso says. "The Metallica Scholars Initiative is a strong and cooperative community of the nation's best community colleges creating a supportive climate for participants to communicate directly and share best practices. As a result, our Metallica Scholars leave the program well-trained and confident. Ultimately the impact is felt in their local communities, and on the national scale, as Metallica Scholars enter the workforce and fill, or create, much needed workforce and technical positions."

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich said: "The Metallica Scholars Initiative is so important to us because we are seeing results. Five years in, with the help of community colleges across the country, we are helping people fill these essential jobs which require skills and training. We are so proud and grateful that we can facilitate this program."

The new schools will each receive $100,000 to enhance the student experience as they receive career training for economic development. The 11 schools joining MSI this year are:

* Aiken Technical College - Aiken, South Carolina
* Central Wyoming College – Riverton, Wyoming
* Columbia State Community College – Columbia, Tennessee
* Front Range Community College – Westminster, Colorado
* Itawamba Community College – Fulton, Mississippi
* Northeast Wisconsin Technical College - Green Bay, Wisconsin
* Oxnard College (Ventura County Community College District) – Oxnard, California
* South Central College - North Mankato, Minnesota
* South Louisiana Community College – Lafayette, Louisiana
* Texas State Technical College – Waco, Texas
* Western Dakota Technical College - Rapid City, South Dakota

The newly added schools are joining the veteran 31 schools invited to continue. Each year the returning colleges play an integral part in helping guide the success of the new schools.

The returning schools are:

* Clark State Community College - Springfield, Ohio
* Central Community College - Grand Island, Nebraska
* Central Piedmont Community College - Charlotte, North Carolina
* Clackamas Community College - Oregon City, Oregon
* Clinton Community College - Clinton, Iowa
* College of Lake County - Grayslake, Illinois
* Columbia Gorge Community College - The Dalles, Oregon
* Community College of Baltimore County - Baltimore, Maryland
* East Central College - Union, Missouri
* Elizabethtown Community & Technical College - Elizabethtown, Kentucky
* Gateway Technical College - Kenosha, Wisconsin
* Grand Rapids Community College - Grand Rapids, Michigan
* Guilford Technical Community College - Jamestown, North Carolina
* Hudson County Community College - Jersey City, New Jersey
* Lone Star College - The Woodlands, Texas
* Middlesex Community College - Lowell, Massachusetts
* Milwaukee Area Technical College - Milwaukee, Wisconsin
* Mississippi Gulf Coast Community College - Perkinston, Mississippi
* Northern Virginia Community College - Annandale, Virginia
* Northwest-Shoals Community College - Muscle Shoals, Alabama
* Pima Community College - Tuscon, Arizona
* Polk State College - Winter Haven, Florida
* Rockland Community College - Suffern, New York
* Salt Lake Community College - Salt Lake City, Utah
* San Juan College – Farmington, New Mexico
* Spokane Community College - Spokane, Washington
* Valencia College - Orlando, Florida
* Victor Valley College - Victorville, California
* West Virginia University Parkersburg - Parkersburg, Wes Virginia
* Westchester Community College - Valhalla, New York
* WSU-Tech - Wichita, Kansas

What began with ten colleges and mostly manufacturing programs in its first round in 2019 has developed into a diverse list of workforce opportunities for students who are interested in gaining the skills and training necessary to find meaningful and well-paying careers in fields and positions including:

* Agriculture
* Automation and Robotics
* Automotive Technology
* Aviation, Computer-Aided Drafting & Design
* Carpentry
* Computerized Manufacturing (CNC)
* Construction Technology
* Criminal Justice
* Culinary Arts
* Cybersecurity
* Diesel Technology
* Dental Hygiene
* Electrical Engineering
* EMT
* Fire Technology
* Healthcare
* Heating & Ventilation (HVAC)
* Heavy Equipment Operator
* Hospitality
* Industrial Maintenance Technology
* Lineworker
* Manufacturing & Machining
* Mechanical Design
* Mechatronics Engineering
* Process Technology
* Trucking (CDL)
* Welding
* Wind Energy

As the voice of the nation's community colleges, the American Association of Community Colleges delivers educational and economic opportunities for 12 million diverse students searching for the American Dream. Uniquely dedicated to access and success for all students, AACC's nearly 1,100 member colleges provide an on-ramp to degree attainment, skilled careers, and family-supporting wages. Located in Washington, D.C., AACC advocates for these not-for-profit, public-serving institutions to ensure they have the resources and support to increase economic mobility for all.

All Within My Hands was established in 2017 by METALLICA to invest in the people and places that have supported the band. It also allows METALLICA's fans to engage in philanthropy and volunteerism. The Foundation is dedicated to creating sustainable communities through workforce education, the fight against hunger, and other critical local services. All expenses of the Foundation are covered by the band, the board, and a few special friends so that 100% of donations go to the organizations it supports. AWMH is a registered 501(c)3 non-profit organization.

After more than four decades in the music business, legendary German heavy metal figurehead and distinctive voice of Grave Digger, Chris Boltendahl, will release his first-ever solo album, Reborn In Flames, under the flag of Chris Boltendahl's Steelhammer, this Friday, July 28, via ROAR! Rock Of Angels Records.


Today, the band release a lyric video for the fourth single, a cover of Midnight Oil's "Beds Are Burning".


Chris comments on the song ..."Midnight Oil's 'Beds Are Burning' is more relevant today than ever before. Mankind is digging its own grave. Climate change can hardly be stopped. It's such a great song with acute time criticism... this lyrics should wake up and lead us again and again in mind: We only have this one world... after that nothing more comes!"







With Tobias Kersting (guitar, ex-Orden Ogan), Lars Schneider (bass, ex-Orden Ogan) and Patrick Klose (drums, Iron Savior), Chris has brought a truly illustrious crew of outstanding musicians onto the steel boat, who actively support him with his intension, also to act as a "real" live band.


The inclined metal fan can expect a fiery mixture of classic heavy metal paired with the influences of early US power metal, best described as "Grave Digger meets Metal Church", with hard-hitting bangers, fast-paced anthems, real groove monsters, brute killer riffs and filigree world-class solos... everything any metalhead's heart and ears could ever wish for.


Pre-order Reborn In Flames here.





Tracklisting:


"Reborn In Flames"
"Fire Angel"
"Beyond The Black Souls"
"Gods Of Steel"
"Die For Your Sins"
"Let The Evil Rise"
"Out Of The Ruins"
"I Am Metal"
"The Hammer That Kills"
"Iron Christ"
"Beds Are Burning"


"Fire Angel" lyric video:





"Beyond The Black Souls" video:





"Reborn In Flames" video:





- Produced by Chris Boltendahl
- Mixed and mastered by Chris Boltendahl @ Graveyard Studio in Cologne/Germany
- All songs written, composed and arranged by Chris Boltendahl & Tobias Kersting (except "Beds Are Burning", written by Peter Garrett, Rob Hirst & Jim Moginie)
- Cover artwork and paintings by Uwe Jarling
- Cover concept by Chris Boltendahl
- Photos by Jens Howorka @ Blendfabrik in Düsseldorf/Germany
- Booklet layout by Wanderley Perna

Continuing with the series of monthly singles ahead of the release of new album EndEx in September, 3Teeth is sharing the brand-new track, "Drift". The single showcases a rare, stripped-back vibe for the modern industrial act, focussing on a more emotive, electro sound.


It’s paired with a music video that provides an intimate look at the five members in the studio. There’s slithering reptiles, plumes of fire, an arsenal of artillery, loads of tech wizardry and desolate desert landscapes, all shot out in California’s Joshua Tree where the band holed up to work on EndEx.


Mincolla explains the track: "Resignation is a testament to a life well-lived, a life unrestrained by fear or regret. It's the final triumphant flicker in the lantern, the last traces of a wild, fiery spirit burning brilliantly against the encroaching darkness as we drift from the mundane reality of flesh and bone, to the spectral void where consciousness floats freely, unencumbered by the constraints of our physical existence."




Watch the video for "Drift" below:





EndEx will be released by Century Media Records on September 22, showcasing the modern industrial act at their most raucous yet, unveiling bold revelations of humanity’s technosocial disintegration behind a brutal soundtrack that sounds all the alarms.


EndEx features the handiwork of a solid extended team including the accomplished sound designer Mick Gordon (best known for his work on the gaming phenomenon DOOM) who produced several of the tracks, along with producer Nick Rowe and mixer Sean Beavan (NIN), bringing in another dimension to the band’s unmistakable sound.


Ahead of the release of EndEx in late September, 3Teeth will release two more singles.


EndEx will be available in CD, Gatefold LP, and digital album formats. Special formats include:


- Red LP (available at all EU outlets)
- Red Smoke LP (available at all US outlets)
- Utra-Clear / Red Splatter LP (available from 3TEETH)
- Utra-Clear / Red Splatter LP (available from Revolver)


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


“Xenogenesis”
“Acme Death Machine”
“Slum Planet”
“What’s Left”
“Merchant Of The Void”
“Higher Than Death”
“ALI3N”
“Plutonomicon”
“Paralyze” (feat. Ho99o9)
“Scorpion”
“Drift”
“Everybody Wants To Rule The World”


“Scorpion” video:





"Slum Planet" video:





"Merchant Of The Void" video:





Lineup:


Alexis Mincolla – vocals
Chase Brawner – guitars
Xavier Swafford – keyboards and synthesizer
Andrew Means – bass
Nick Rossi – drums


(Photo - Jim Louvau)

Geezer Butler recently spoke to Mark Jeeves of Planet Rock's "My Planet Rocks" about BLACK SABBATH's decision to part ways with the malfunctioning Ozzy Osbourne in 1979 and replace him with Ronnie James Dio. Asked if the band's revamped lineup felt like a "rebirth" for SABBATH at the time, the bassist said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, 'cause we all knew that the end had come for the original lineup of the band. Ozzy really wasn't into it anymore; I don't think any of us were, really. And we tried to write another album together and it just wasn't happening. Ozzy was in a bad physical and mental shape, and he needed to just go away and get himself together. And he'd already left once the year before. Tony [Iommi, SABBATH guitarist] had met Ronnie, and he came in one day and he says, 'Well, I'm gonna work with Ronnie, this great singer that I just met the other night. He's really enthusiastic about what he wants to do. He's got some great ideas.' And I just thought it was gonna be Tony and Ronnie getting together and doing an album on their own. And then the whole Ozzy thing happened — Ozzy left; well, he was pushed out, for his own good, to go and get help. And Tony said, 'What about listening to this guy that I met, Ronnie?' So Ronnie came over. And we'd been working on 'Children Of The Sea' at the time, but [there were] no vocals on it. And Ronnie came in and just put these vocals to 'Children Of The Sea'. We [just went], 'Wow. This is brilliant.' He got exactly what we were trying to do."

When Jeeves noted that the positive response to Dio's addition to SABBATH must have been "gratifying", Butler said: "Exactly. We were told that there was no way you can go out and not have Ozzy as your singer. So we weren't expecting that much. And then the album came out and it did incredibly well — [it sold] millions. And the gigs sold out straight away. It was like being revived again — it was like from the ashes, the phoenix rises. It was incredible."

Dio joined SABBATH for the first time in 1979 and quickly found kindred spirits in Iommi, Butler and drummer Bill Ward.

With Ronnie at the mic, SABBATH released two consecutive classic metal albums, "Heaven And Hell" and "Mob Rules". Meanwhile, Ozzy had a string of solo hits and became force to be reckoned with in his own right.

When "Heaven And Hell" came out in April 1980, the album was met with effusive reviews for SABBATH's return to form on metal masterpieces like "Neon Knights" and the title track. The album reached No. 9 in the U.K. and No. 28 in the U.S., where it was also certified platinum.

In an interview with Songfacts, Iommi was asked how the songwriting compared to when Dio was the singer in SABBATH as opposed to Osbourne. He responded: "It was different. With Ozz, we tend to jam usually, and then Ozzy would sometimes be in the room, sometimes he wouldn't. And sometimes he'd hear something and go, 'Oh yeah,' and start singing something to it. It depends on what periods. We'd play and come up with a format for a song, and then he'd listen to it and start coming up with a melody. With Dio, he was a little bit more involved because he played an instrument [bass] and was more musical. And that's not knocking Ozzy, because Ozzy was great at what he did, but Dio was a little more involved. I could sit down quietly and play something to Ronnie, and he'd say, 'Yeah, I like that.' He'd start singing, and then go, 'Can I go through a change now? What about that note there? Oh yeah, that's good.' We'd work together and bounce back with each other."

Butler is promoting his autobiography, "Into The Void: From Birth To Black Sabbath – And Beyond", which was released on June 6 in North America via HarperCollins imprint Dey Street Books and on June 8 in the United Kingdom.

A founding member of BLACK SABBATH, Butler is also the lyricist of such SABBATH classics as "War Pigs", "Iron Man", "Paranoid" and others.

Butler, Osbourne and Iommi reunited in late 2011 and released a comeback album, "13", in June 2013.

In February 2017, SABBATH finished "The End" tour in Birmingham, closing out the quartet's groundbreaking 49-year career.

"The End" was SABBATH's last tour because Iommi, who was diagnosed with cancer in 2012 and is currently in remission, can no longer travel for extended amounts of time.

Geezer is the third member of the original SABBATH lineup to release an autobiography.

DragonForce frontman, Marc Hudson, reveals his second solo single, entitled "The Siren", together with an official music video. Napalm Records will release Marc Hudson’s innovative first solo full-length, Starbound Stories, on August 25. Starbound Stories is an uplifting journey through Marc Hudson’s universe of power metal, anime influences, Japanese music and video game soundtracks.


Energetic “The Siren” is led by a tingling, uplifting melody and ballad-like vocals. The anime-influences that have heavily inspired Starbound Stories are clearly present in the soundscapes of this track, and the story-like lyrics enchant the listener. The accompanying official music video takes the magical atmosphere of the song to the next level.


Marc Hudson on “The Siren”: “With soaring melodies, an electronic pulse and a chorus bursting to life with J-pop sensibilities, ‘The Siren’ serves as a love letter to the nightlife of Japan, lighting up the sky with endless colours and possibilities.”







Instrumental album opener “As The Twilight Met The Sea” acts as an introduction to the soundscapes of the album and features samurai metal master Ryoji Shinomoto (RYUJIN, previously known as Gyze) on traditional Japanese instruments. Shinomoto also lends his vocals on the following track, “Freedom Heart”, which also features a solo by guitar virtuoso Syu (Galneryus). Explosive power metal anthem “Dracula X” features a guitar solo by Jacky Vincent (ex-Falling in Reverse, ex-Cry Venom) and guest vocals by Adrienne Cowan (Seven Spires). Beautifully emotional successor “Stars” features classically trained violinist Mia Asano on electric violin. Energetic “The Siren” is led by a tingling melody and ballad-like vocals. “Swansong” starts off with a beautiful keyboard intro that could be pulled from a movie soundtrack. Sentimental vocals approach before the song progresses into a full-blown power metal ballad, with high screams and plenty of effects that further enhance the magical atmosphere while backing up the guitars and drums. Steve Terreberry, known on YouTube as Stevie T. (3.32M subscribers), performs a guitar solo on “Call Of The Martyrs” and is joined by prog guitarist Galen Stapley (Azure). Stapley also provides a solo on the following title track, “Starbound Stories”. “One More Sight Of The Sun With You” is sung in Japanese, staying true to the main themes of the album and closing the entire offering on an uplifting note.


Marc Hudson’s debut solo album is an outstanding musical adventure balanced between power metal, video game soundtracks, Japanese music and even pop influences, showcasing virtuosity throughout all of its grand instrumentation.





Starbound Stories will be available in the following formats:  


- 1 LP Gatefold translucent Blue (incl. 24 page booklet + recordbutler)
- 1 LP Gatefold Black (incl. lyric sheet)
- 1 CD Digipak + T-shirt
- Digital Album  


Pre-order here.





Starbound Stories tracklisting:


"As The Twilight Met The Sea"
"Freedom Heart"
"Dracula X!"
"Stars"
"The Siren"
"Astralive"
"Swansong"
"Call Of The Martyrs"
"Starbound Stories"
"One More Sight Of The Sun With You"


"Astralive" video:





Lineup:


Marc Hudson - Vocals, Guitar, Backing vocals
Shaz D - Keyboards
Frédéric Leclercq - Guitars, Bass
Rich Smith - Drums


(Photo - Oliver Lloyd Design)

Forty-five years young, British hard rock royalty, Girlschool, today release their hair-raising new single, “Cold Dark Heart”. The song is found on the band’s upcoming album, WTFortyfive?, out this Friday via Silver Lining Music.


Musically, “Cold Dark Heart” unveils a more sombre and dark side to Girlschool. The tracks kicks off with a chugging, boot-stomping guitar riff, entangled with hypnotic vocals, eerie lyrics, and accompanied by a mesmerizing video with scenes of an otherworldly fantasia, created by Instagood Promotion.


Co-founding frontwoman and guitarist Kim McAuliffe explains of the song, “It includes our heaviest riff ever… so heavy it will eat your very soul. Celebrating our dark side!”




Adds guitarist and backing vocalist Jackie Chambers, “Musically, it’s Killing Joke meets Rammstein and then some!”





WTFortyfive? is Girlschool’s fourteenth studio album and is a deliciously dirty declaration that age is a number that shows how much real raw attitude you have when it really counts. With WTFortyfive?, Kim McAuliffe (guitar/vocals), Denise Dufort (drums), Jackie Chambers (guitar/backing vocals) and Tracey Lamb (bass) leave the grit under their finger nails and the muck on their crusty leather boots as they riff and stomp their way through twelve statements of intent showing major attitude, some great melodies, and a consistent crunch to every guitar.


There’s the addictive mototörcharged scuzz of “It Is What It Is,” the Wandsworth via Sunset Strip sway of “Bump In The Night,” the youthful, punky romp of “Up To No Good” and the smart, sassy, rock ‘n’ roll hooks of “Believing In You,” with McAuliffe’s vocals sounding as sharp and raucous as ever. Lead single “Are You Ready?” sets the pace, a racy, raunchy, fun-saturated shapeshifter co-written with Alcatrazz’s Joe Stump that shows Girlschool’s leathers may still carry the well-baked battle scars of decades gone by, but their songs and attitude are as fresh, fun, heavy and catchy as ever before. And if that isn’t enough, their raunch roars and rolls alongside Biff Byford (Saxon), Phil Campbell (Motörhead) and Duff McKagan (Guns N’ Roses) on a cracking cover of “Born To Raise Hell!” So, throw away your inhibitions and join these spectacularly wild women on the most glorious of rock ‘n’ roll rides. Lemmy knew, so should YOU!


WTFortyfive? will be released on 12” Vinyl, CD Digipak, Digital Download and Streaming and Special D2C bundles. Pre-order here





Head over to girlschool.tmstor.es for a chance to win a Girlschool WTFortyfive? custom made real leather jacket. T&Cs apply.





Tracklisting:


"It Is What It Is"
"Cold Dark Heart"
"Bump In The Night"
"Barmy Army"
"Invisible Killer"
"Believing In You"
"It’s A Mess"
"Into The Night"
"Are You Ready?" (feat. Joe Stump)
"Up To No Good"
"Party"
"Born To Raise Hell" (feat. Biff Byford, Phil Campbell & Duff McKagan)


"It Is What It Is" video:





"Are You Ready?" video:





Girlschool are:


Kim McAuliffe - guitar/vocals
Denise Dufort - drums
Jackie Chambers - guitar/backing vocals
Tracey Lamb - bass


(Photo - Adam Kennedy)

In a new interview with Metal Blast, Canadian singer, songwriter and producer Devin Townsend elaborated on his recent comment that he will "come off the road for a couple of years" after his next round of touring in order to work on his long-talked-about "The Moth" project. Asked why he feels he needs to stop touring while he is putting together this wildly "over-the-top" symphony, Devin said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Because I've changed, as we all probably have, on a fundamental level over the past few years with the pandemic and everything. And in order for all these disparate pieces of experiences to coagulate into an identity that I can draw from accurately, I need silence and space. It's as simple as that. We can keep grinding at the wheel and putting out material without any sort of reflection, and I've been doing that for years because there hasn't been these dramatic shifts. There's been shifts, of course, throughout the past 10 years — kids getting older or whatever — but there hasn't been a fundamental shift in the ways that the pandemic has clearly brought about in society and personally. And I feel maybe it's a failing on the part of my ability to perceive my environment, or maybe it's just what it is. But if I don't have time and space to let that coagulate into an identity that I can very clearly articulate creatively, it's not gonna be right and it's just gonna be awkward."

He continued: "I've always wanted to make a symphony and I've always wanted to make an opera. And just the costs of doing it are so prohibitive that if I choose to do it, which I believe I have, which I know I have, I've gotta be damn sure that the perspective that I'm coming at it from is in line with my truth, my realizations. And all of these things just — it takes time. And I haven't had any time for many years by my own hand — just like record, tour, record, tour, record, tour, record, tour. You know what I mean? It's just like endless. And so when I finally did get a chance to stop, two things came to the front. One — I don't wanna stop making music. I love it. There's some people I know that [are] just like, 'Oh, I realized that I don't wanna make music anymore.' I saw GODSMACK say that — 'We don't wanna write music anymore.' And that's maybe what their realization was during it. But for me, it's not an option. It's not like I can turn it off. It's what I do. It's my thing."

When the interviewer suggested to Devin that he read George Orwell's 1946 essay titled "Why I Write" in which George described his early compulsion to be creative, Townsend said: "But in the same breath, you have to honor that, and part of honoring that is doing the legwork to understand your connection to it. And this is my opinion, of course. But it's, like, if you're — as I have in the past — blindly cruising through a creative process, where you're high all the time or you're drunk all the time or you're engaged with a lot of things that that allow you to sort of unconsciously participate in your creative muse, then I think that's a different process, and I don't think there's anything necessarily right or wrong about that; it's just it's different. But if you've got to the point where you're a lot more clear about who you are and what your objectives may or may not be, to honor that requires the time and space. And the compulsion that you spoke of with Orwell's essay is clearly within me. I've tried on several occasions to stop, and it's, like it's hubris, man. The assumption of me thinking, 'Oh, I can just stop,' is that it's a hobby rather than a personality. I just — I think music; that's how I interpret my environment. And in the past I spent a lot of emotional energy trying to rationalize that, whether or not it was trying to identify what the compulsion was or to try and maybe retroactively fix what I maybe viewed as a dysfunction within myself that manifested as a need to create something. Maybe it was because I needed it for validation. Maybe I needed it for this or that or the other thing, but I feel now that that's also a lot of hubris, just to try and get to the root of something that is intangible. And what I feel is now the most important thing is to not think about it, but also make the channel that allows it to actualize as clear as it can be, whether or not that's through balance on a psychological level or maintaining your personal, physical, mental health, whatever. At that point, when the music begins to come out, it's a direct reflection of a path that you've chosen that is one that you can back. And again, I feel that it's really childish of me to try and rationalize the process. It's like beyond me. It's beyond you. It's beyond all of us. It's beyond Orwell. It's beyond anybody. It's like the collective unconscious is the wellspring of artistic motivation, and to participate in it is a joy ultimately. So that's where I'm at."

Devin released his latest album, "Lightwork", last October. Assembled from a barrage of material written during the pandemic, the LP — and its companion album of B-sides and demos, "Nightwork" — represented Devin at this stage of his life, post pandemic, and his reflections on what he (and many of us) all gone through. For "Lightwork", Devin decided to see what would happen if he included a producer (an experiment he has been excited to attempt for some time) to help guide this selection of material. He chose longtime friend Garth "GGGarth" Richardson to help bring this idea to fruition.

Devin began his professional career straight out of high school when he was discovered by a record label and asked to provide lead vocals on Steve Vai's album "Sex & Religion". After touring and recording with Vai, Townsend became discouraged by what he found in the music industry and went on to produce several solo albums under the pseudonym STRAPPING YOUNG LAD. Since then, Devin has recorded many more successful albums and performed all over the world.

FOREIGNER singer Kelly Hansen has weighed in on the troubling behavior trends in younger audiences at live music shows, including throwing things at artists to catch their attention.

"When you're standing on stage and you have a spotlight on you, what it does is it blinds you," Hansen told Fox News in a new interview. "You can't see the audience. So you can't see anything that's coming at you. It's very, very dangerous. And over the course of time I've had many things thrown up on stage, including full, unopened cans of beer. And it's tough, because at the best I can see something right at the last minute when it crosses the spotlight."

Several high-profile performers, including Bebe Rexha and Kelsea Ballerini, have been hit by items thrown at them while they have been performing over the summer, in some cases harming the performer in acts that could be deemed assault and may lead to criminal charges or other legal consequences for offenders.

"Just like everything else, someone sees that and they go, 'Oh, that's a thing, a bandwagon to get on," Kelly told Fox News. "Let me do that. It'll be funny and I'll get some kind of TikTok out of it.' But they're not thinking that they're hurting somebody and supposedly somebody that they like, that they're there to see."

Earlier in the month, pop superstar Adele said it was time to stop throwing objects at performers during concerts.

"Have you noticed how people are forgetting fucking show etiquette at the moment," she said during one of her "Weekends With Adele" shows at The Colosseum in Las Vegas. "People are throwing shit on stage. Have you seen that?" asked Adele, 35, according to a fan-filmed video, before joking: "I fucking dare you — I dare you throw something at me. I'll fucking kill you."

Back in 1989, MOTÖRHEAD leader Ian "Lemmy" Kilmister reportedly received a significant wound after a person who had attended the band's concert in Yugoslavia threw a razor blade, glued between two coins, at the stage, striking the bassist/vocalist. Lemmy then showed his left fist, which was bleeding, to the audience and shouted, "What idiot thinks this is funny? If you're so brave, come onstage and I'll kill you, you bastard!"

Lemmy recounted the incident during an appearance on the Bailey Brothers TV show, saying: "I nearly lost my hand, you understand me? If I lose my hand, my life is over. You realize that? I'd have to shoot myself because I can't stand it.

"I'm not going to put up with people throwing things out of the audience any more… This is never going to happen to me again."

MOTÖRHEAD reportedly cut its 1991 show in Brisbane, Australia short after an incident where cans were thrown on to the stage.

In late June, country singer Kelsea Ballerini was performing her song "If You Go Down (I'm Goin' Down Too)" at Outlaw Field at the Idaho Botanical Garden in Boise, Idaho, when she was hit by an object lobbed from the crowd.

The incident involving Ballerini came after Rexha was struck in the face and injured by a cell phone while performing in New York City. The phone hit the singer on the forehead in the middle of a song, splitting her eyebrow and requiring stitches. The suspect who threw the phone was quickly identified and arrested. The 27-year-old man was charged with assault, aggravated harassment, attempted assault and harassment. He allegedly tossed the phone at Rexha for his own amusement, prosecutors said at his arraignment.
Watch the latest video at foxnews.com

In a new interview with "The Chuck Shute Podcast", RATT bassist Juan Croucier reflected on how he and his bandmates managed to break through as part of the 1980s Sunset Strip scene at a time when the glam metal movement spawned dozens of MTV bands. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, interesting chemistry and dynamic that occurred in RATT. I'm familiar with band dynamic extensively because I've produced and engineered a lot of bands from my studio. So when you see how other bands work in the studio, you start understanding what I consider to be band psychology.

"Every band has some form of band psychology that it operates by or it's subjected to, depending on if you're on the giving or receiving end. So RATT had a chain of events that occurred that brought forth a lineup that made it a very formidable opponent for other bands. We were hungry, young, on a mission and had absolutely nothing to lose. So we had everything to gain. So, it's interesting because the record companies had such a grip on the industry and concert promoters were like the second tier of that. There was no way around that. So fast forward to today and it's a vastly different industry. You have many more categories and subcategories of styles of bands and music. Back in the day, you had hard rock, metal, pop, and then you had like the DeFranco Family — you know, kiddie rock. So there weren't that many genres, although, of course, that's taking into account punk rock and new wave. But these things were evolving. So it was a really interesting time, and basically the recording end of it… If you were to get into a studio, that was a huge accomplishment in and of itself."

Asked about the importance of all the musicians within a band possessing an unbridled passion for their craft, driven by a singular focus to create and share their art with the world, Juan said: "Yeah, look, it's a collective. So, as they say often, you're only as strong as your weakest link. So there's also a vision involved — where does the band wanna go and how does the band plan on getting there? And then there are extracurricular issues. Is everybody of sound mind? Does somebody have a dependency issue? Or should somebody have a dependency issue? [Laughs] So there's a lot of factors that enter into it and basically equate how effective a band can be working as a unit. Oftentimes in groups there are certain people that will be sort of the catalyst of the ideas that come forth and are… you know, become the band's output, if you will — in other words, songwriters. And depending on how smoothly that goes and what the understanding is and the type of communication you have within that structure determines how effective you can be. Of course that's all predicated upon how talented you are. You can have all the communication in the world, if you can't write a hit song or you can't effectively communicate or cooperate, if you're not willing to cooperate, you're sabotaging the potential of the group to run at its maximum. So, a lot of times, you don't wanna let the outside world know every single detail. It's just not necessary. There's a certain amount of privacy that's required. And it's art. That's the other factor. In art, you can look at something and go, 'Oh, that's a horrible painting.' But another person might look at it and go, 'That's a Picasso, right?' So a lot of it is subjective. So it takes a lot to really create a band that's effective."

Croucier added: "Interestingly enough, isn't it interesting how certain bands have sustained their success at this point that started out with humble beginnings, but the unit has managed to move forward and deal with adversity and move on and sustain a long and happy career. So you never know — it's a big gamble. The average life of a band isn't that long. It seems like nowadays bands last a little longer. But a lot of bands just never really reach their full potential, and it's difficult. And the band psychology part of that is an interesting aspect that I don't think it's often talked about."

Earlier in the month, Juan told Bass Musician Magazine that he will relaunch his solo band in the fall. Joining Croucier, who plays bass and sings in the group, are Toni Aleman on lead guitar, Mike Moore on guitar, and Pete Holmes on drums.

RATT — featuring Croucier, singer Stephen Pearcy and guitarist Warren DeMartini — played a number of shows in 2017 after reforming a year earlier in the midst of a highly publicized legal battle with drummer Bobby Blotzer over the rights to the RATT name. They were joined at the gigs by guitarist Carlos Cavazo, who played on 2010's "Infestation" album, and drummer Jimmy DeGrasso, who previously played with Y&T, WHITE LION and MEGADETH, among others.

RATT hasn't released any new music since "Infestation".

August 18 sees Poland / South Africa-based death metal act, Unblessed Divine - the band featuring former members of legendary metal bands Malevolent Creation, Sinister and Decapitated - release their much awaited debut album, Portal To Darkness, via Massacre Records. The album pre-sale is available here.


Following a previously-released, first album single, the blistering album opening track "Book Of Lies", Unblessed Divine have just shared a new music video for the brutal banger, "I Feed". A straight in your face song with influences dating back to 90's best death metal bands, with Unblessed Divine's soft, but disturbing touch of electronics.


The band comments:  "This track is about letting go of all worldly beliefs and go into a primal world view of being honest with one's self, instead of going through life indoctrinated by the bastard Christ's teachings. Children are fed this their whole lives and find it hard to even question their religion. "I Feed" is a yearning to mindfully feed on all things from darkness. All things that are questions, are now answered and letting go of god and having his death as a victory."







Unblessed Divine combines 90's classic death metal with electronics in a way no other band has used in extreme metal before, and this summer, they will unleash a unique album that brings darkness to our world. The eight tracks on Portal To Darkness include both fast and uncompromising songs as well as more epic ones, all giving the listeners something they won't forget.


But don't be fooled, this is death metal in its rawest and most bestial way, along with a bit of a disturbing end-of-the-universe feel to it. Portal To Darkness was mixed and mastered by Tomasz "Zed" Zalewski at Zed Studio, with a cover artwork created by Unblessed Divine.


Portal To Darkness will open on August 18, make sure to pre-order your copy of this must-have death metal manifesto, here.





Portal To Darkness tracklisting:


"Book Of Lies"
"Replace The Light"
"The Dark Supremacy"
"Blacken The Soul"
"God Of Darkness"
"The Exalted One"
"I Feed"
"The Glorious Flames"


"Book Of Lies" video:





Unblessed Divine is:


Lee Wollenschlaeger - Vocals, Guitars, Bass
Michał Grall - Guitars, Clean Vocals, Keyboard, FX
Michał Łysejko - Session Drums

Nuno Bettencourt, who has performed with pop superstar Rihanna for more than a decade, has clarified his recent comments in which he seemingly took a swipe at one of his colleagues, GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash.

In a recent interview with Planet Rock, the EXTREME guitarist opined that many of the guitar players he looks up to, including Slash, would not be able handle the musical diversity of a Rihanna concert.

"When somebody like Rihanna reaches out to you to perform everybody thinks 'oh, that's cute. It's a pop artist, whatever,'" Bettencourt said. "Let me tell you something, what I had to do night after night… put on a reggae hat [for one song] with a reggae feel, and go into R&B, then go into some punk rock and pop rock that she did, and then club tracks. All sorts of [things], all those different feels.

"I'm sorry, most of the guitar players who I admire could not in their lifetime play that gig," he added. "I mean that in the most complimentary way possible.

"Slash is one of the greatest rock guitar players of all time but I guarantee — and he'd be the first to tell you — that if he jumps up and he's got to play a clean intro to 'Rude Boy' from Rihanna, it ain't happening."

Bettencourt continued: "I believe that if I wasn't that diverse musically and accept everything I grew up on, there's no way that I would have been in these rooms. And also being open, being an open musician in the sense of 'up for anything.'"

A couple of days after Nuno's comments made the rounds in music media, Slash's GUNS N' ROSES bandmate Richard Fortus took to Instagram to share a headline from a Guitar.com article reporting on Bettencourt's words, and he included the following message: "I have to respectfully disagree. @nunobettencourtofficial is one of the greats, for sure. However, there is very little @slash couldn't do on guitar (if he wanted to). I toured with Rihanna prior to Nuno and I've spent a lot of time playing with Slash. This gig wouldn't be a struggle for him."

Late Saturday night (July 22),Nuno took to his social media to clarify his original comments as well as to respond to Richard, who played with Rihanna on her "Good Girl Gone Bad Tour" in 2008 and 2009. Bettencourt wrote: "Welp… I new this was eventually coming.

"You can't be blessed and be on multiple guitar magazine covers at a shocking 56 years old, get this much attention for your playing and new album as a rock guitarist without another guitarist stirring up some shit.

"Im responding to this not cause I give a shit about what this guitarist thinks about me but, instead, because I'd hate to think my few words offended a hero of mine, @slash and possibly fuck up my relationship with him.

"@4tus I've 'respectively' never heard you play one note in my 56 years of being alive and only know your name from the Rihanna camp and as a replacement player in GUNS.

"I'm sure you're a decent player, but did you really need to repost a headline that made me look like I am badmouthing a fellow player, Slash.

"As if I'd ever think Slash isn't capable of playing any Rihanna song in his sleep.

"Let's get something fucking straight. To me, Slash is one of the greatest rock guitarists of my generation and of all time. PERIOD. And @4tus if you knew me at all and where my heart is you'd know that what I meant in this statement was not about Slash or his capability, It was about Rock guitarists like myself or Slash switching genres and the awkwardness of playing these feels.

"No SHIT Slash can play these songs, thank you so much for pointing that out as if we didn't already know that. But for me as a predominant ROCK guitarist, Im obviously not as talented as you and found it a challenge to nail all the different pockets and guitar tones of genres like Reggae, R&B, Electronic Dance, Trap and pop.

"As far as you shining a light on my ridiculous statement that Slash would 'struggle', yes a poor word choice on my part, I personally would hope that Slash who is a peer and influence would be more mature enough to understand what I truly meant as a guitarist by that comment.

"In mentioning Slash as an iconic Rock example, I meant in general a rock guitarist would find it, NOT A STRUGGLE, but feel like a fish out of water as a player. THATS ALL I MEANT.

"I've had NOTHING but respect and admiration for @gunsnroses and @slash.

"Apologies if I've unintentionally offended anyone."

Nuno most recently shared the stage with Rihanna when the Grammy Award-winning R&B artist took the stage in Phoenix on February 12 for her 2023 Super Bowl halftime performance.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Nuno (@nunobettencourtofficial)

Einar Solberg - frontman of Norwegian rock mavericks Leprous - released his debut solo album, 16, back in June. Wildly diverse, but spiritually rooted in Einar’s well-established musical world, 16 is an album that brims with surprises and spinning curveballs and features a collection of intimate but extravagant collaborations.


Einar also recently launched his new YouTube channel, and you can watch a brand new sing-through video for the track, "Over The Top", below:







His previously released sing-through video for the album’s second single, "A Beautiful Life", can be viewed below:





In April, Einar performed his first ever live shows for this project at Prognosis in the Netherlands and UK, and has just been confirmed to play this year’s edition of Euroblast in Germany. His band for these shows is Hrafnkell Örn Guðjónsson (Agent Fresco), Ben Levin (ex-Bent Knee), Chris Baum (Bent Knee), Ari Karason (Mezzoforte) and Ruben Aksnes (Maraton).


Einar Solberg is as renowned for the tender honesty of his lyrics as he is for the eccentric majesty of Leprous’ music. But even by his usual standards, 16 is an extremely emotional and dynamic piece of work. Einar describes the record as “the closest I’ve ever come to writing a concept album” and explains that the new songs are about a very specific and transformational period in the musician’s life. This is the sound of a restless spirit in his absolute element.


“It’s called 16 because that’s when the first really, really bad things started happening to me in life. From 16 to 19, there were a lot of very life-defining moments that happened to me, and that changed me,” he says. “That’s when I kind of lost my innocence and I started realising that life is serious and bad shit can happen. A lot of pretty drastic things happened within those three years. But this album is not only about the bad things. It’s also about some of the career-defining moments, like the moment I started playing with the band and began to find a community to belong to. Emotionally, I’m a bit of everything, so it covers the entire emotional spectrum!”


16 finds Einar collaborating with everyone from modern prog contemporaries like Bent Knee’s Ben Levin and Agent Fresco’s Toti Gudnason, to experimental cellist (and regular Leprous live musician) Raphael Weinroth-Browne and Magnus Børmark, best known as a member of Norwegian alt-folk troupe Gåte. He also once again collaborates with Ihsahn and Star Of Ash amongst many others. The record was mixed by mixed by Adam Noble (Placebo, Biffy Clyro, Nothing But Thieves) and mastered by Robin Schmidt (The 1975, Placebo, The Gaslight Anthem, etc.).


16 is available on Ltd CD Digipak, Gatefold 180g 2LP + LP-booklet & Digitally. Order here.





Tracklisting:


"16" (feat. Raphael Weinroth-Browne)
"Remember Me"
"A Beautiful Life"
"Where All The Twigs Broke" (feat. Star Of Ash)
"Metacognitive" (feat. Raphael Weinroth-Browne)
"Home" (feat. Ben Levin)
"Blue Light" (feat. Asger Mygind)
"Grotto" (feat. Magnus Børmark)
"Splitting The Soul" (feat. Ihsahn)
"Over The Top"
"The Glass Is Empty" (feat. Tóti Guðnason)


"Home" video:





"A Beautiful Life" video:





"Grotto" video:

Downes Braide Association (DBA) announce the release of their long-awaited new album, Celestial Songs, on September 8. Following their previous studio albums, Celestial Songs will be the fifth DBA studio collaboration for Geoff Downes (keyboards) and multi award-winning songwriter Chris Braide (vocals). The album will be released in three formats: CD, 2LP and Box Set.


DBA also launched the first single from the album “Clear Light”. Watch a lyric video below.


Celestial Songs marks another musical leap forward for DBA. “As we were writing the songs for the album, they started to become thematic in emotion and feeling,” says Chris Braide, “more classic rock than the predecessor ‘Halcyon Hymns’. The songs were about life and death, time, love, nostalgia, spirituality. Very DBA in fact.”




“I know that Chris really likes the depth of chord sequences that I put together,” Geoff Downes explains. “This particular collection just really grabbed him and he got it up and running very, very quickly, so I was really pleased about that. There’s a lot of variety on the album, too. We were aiming to get quite a bit more dynamics into this album because there were some very quiet pastoral moments. I think it makes it a more interesting listen for people to get their heads around and enjoy. I hope people will appreciate it and get behind it, not just the songwriting and vocals but the overall instrumentation and musicianship is very high on this album.”


The high quality of musicianship is because of the exceptional core of musicians with which DBA have surrounded themselves including Andy Hodge (bass), Dave Bainbridge (former Iona guitarist and keyboardist), and Marc Almond who adds a brief vocal appearance.


“It’s very useful having this core of musicians that are ready to enhance our music,” agrees Geoff Downes. “Andy Hodge is very much an integral part of this unit. When we send him stuff to play, he has incredible feeling and creates a more interesting bass part than we could have thought of ourselves. Having Dave Bainbridge with us has added another dimension to the DBA-sound and I’m very happy with that. Dave’s got his own stamp and that’s something that we appreciate having on board. Marc Almond makes a cameo appearance on ‘The Darker Side Of Fame’ and Marc and Chris’s voices blend really well. It tells a story, a theme that a lot of people, and a lot of musicians, can relate to – certainly musicians that have had any kind of success. The lyric is very poignant, whilst you have all the glory, the accolades and the adulation, it can go away and you’re left with nothing. It reflects life in general, I think, as people go through all kinds of ups and downs throughout their careers and throughout their lives.”


The closing track cements DBA’s prog credentials as Chris Braide explains, “What happens to love when we die? ‘Beyond The Stars’ was a tune that began in 2015 and really shaped the way the artwork was to develop. Something bigger than us, something astral and heavenly, it grew from a 3-minute ditty to an 11-minute epic. That’s what the song ‘Beyond The Stars’ is really asking. ‘Celestial Songs’ was a title we came up with in 2020 and Roger (Dean) made it manifest in his wonderful sleeve painting. A beautiful, heavenly, rainbow sky full of stars. DBA’s music has always been about the big questions, the beauty of love and the tragedy of loss, but always with hope, I suppose. ‘Celestial Songs’ is the latest chapter in that series. I hope people enjoy listening to the album as much as we enjoyed writing it and making it.”


You can pre-order all formats of Celestial Songs via the links below:


- CD
- 2LP
- Box Set





Celestial Songs tracklisting:


"Look What You Do"
"Clear Light"
"Keep On Moving"
"Darker Side Of Fame"
"Hey Kid"
"Will To Power"
"Heart Shaped Hole"
"Dear Petra"
"On The Run"
"Goodbye To You (Sister Shame)"
"Beyond The Stars"


"Clear Light" lyric video:





-  All tracks written by Chris Braide and Geoff Downes except “Keep On Moving” (Chris Braide/Francis Dunnery/ Geoff Downes) and “Goodbye To You (Sister Shame)” (Chris Braide/Andy Partridge/Geoff Downes)


- Produced by Chris Braide and Geoff Downes


About Downes Braide Association:


Downes Braide Association was formed as a studio-based project by Geoff Downes and Chris Braide and has previously produced four studio albums: Pictures Of You (2012), Suburban Ghosts (2015), Skyscraper Souls (2017) and Halcyon Hymns (2021) and a live album Live In England (2019). The project draws on Downes’ and Braide’s rich musical heritage to create a delightfully accessible brand of progressive rock.


Keyboard wizard Geoff Downes was thrust into the limelight with the worldwide success of Video Killed The Radio Star in 1979. The single topped the charts in 16 countries for The Buggles duo of Geoff and Trevor Horn (vocals, bass guitar). They briefly joined prog legends YES before Downes became a founder member of the supergroup Asia with YES guitarist Steve Howe, ELP drummer Carl Palmer and the late John Wetton (vocals, bass guitar).


The Wetton-Downes composition “Heat Of The Moment” became a world-wide hit in 1982 heralding many years of success for Asia with their FM radio-friendly brand of rock. Downes later rejoined YES in 2011 and remains with the band alongside Steve Howe.


British singer-songwriter-pianist Chris Braide has recently returned to UK shores after many years based in California. He enjoys enormous success writing and producing music for film scores, advertising campaigns and working closely with artists including Sia, Lana Del Rey, Christina Aguilera, Beyonce, Paloma Faith, Britney Spears and Marc Almond.


An Ivor Novello award-winner and Grammy-nominated, Braide has recently won a BMI Pop Award in Los Angeles for co-writing Sia’s Unstoppable, her eighth US Top 40 hit after making a surprise, and long, rise to the top having been released in 2016, becoming the biggest selling single in the USA.

In a new interview with Scott Penfold of Loaded Radio, SEVENDUST guitarist John Connolly was asked if he and his bandmates have given any thought to eventually retiring from the road. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I mean, here's the thing: I don't know if we ever really wanna retire, but we also sort of want people to, you know… Don't expect us to show up in the year 2025 and play 250 shows. The only way something like that would happen is if, for some freak reason METALLICA just, nobody likes METALLICA anymore and all of a sudden SEVENDUST is playing stadiums. We'd probably show up to play a few more of those gigs [laughs], 'cause I'm sure the way METALLICA is rolling is pretty sweet."

He continued: "But yeah, I think for us, it's just finding that balance and just being able to spend — I don't wanna say spend less time on tour, but I think the goal is to spend more time with our families, whether that be at home or on tour or wherever. I mean, a lot of our kids are going off to school; some of our kids are going off to school out of the country. So the family time has to have a big part in all of our lives. And when we started SEVENDUST, you don't have families, you don't have mortgages, you don't have kids, you don't have any of that stuff, there's no responsibility. So it's super easy to just go 100 percent and figure out what is SEVENDUST? We didn't know what we were when we first started. I mean, it took us four or five records and we were still scratching our head going, 'Well, you know…' [Laughs]"

Earlier this month, SEVENDUST singer Lajon Witherspoon was asked by Metal Hammer magazine if the end of the band is coming soon. He responded: "There definitely will be an end, but I don't see it any time right now. I just turned 50 and I feel healthier than I did when I was 30. John Connolly [guitar] just ran the Boston Marathon. We have a lot of energy, especially with our new record deal. The pandemic slowed things down, so there's a lot for us to do to catch back up again. We got to get to the U.K. and build our relationship back over there. So this is definitely not the end — not yet, at least."

Back in June 2022, BLABBERMOUTH.NET published an interview SEVENDUST drummer Morgan Rose gave to "The Jasta Show" in which he revealed that there wouldn't be many SEVENDUST tours left. "I'm gonna be the one to let all the cats out of the bag, but I can just tell you that we're not gonna be around, full-fledged, forever, that's for sure," he added cryptically. Just a couple of weeks later, Witherspoon told 99 Rock WKSM that he was taken aback by reports of SEVENDUST's impending retirement. "I got a phone call early in the morning about, 'What's going on?' My kids are crying. They're, like, 'Daddy, you didn't tell us.' I'm, like, 'What are you talking about?'" Witherspoon recalled.

"I love Blabbermouth, but, yeah, that was kind of taken out of context. We're still here. We're kicking, man."

In Rose's interview with "The Jasta Show", host Jamey Jasta urged the drummer to stage a "four-year farewell" tour "like SLAYER" did, to which Morgan said: "There probably will be something like that. The funny thing is SLAYER is a legendary… They're SLAYER, you know. But regardless, relatively speaking, we have such close relationships. I started thinking about it. I mean, we did discuss this — the band has discussed, like, when's the end date? 'Cause it'd be nice to do it on our own terms and it'd be nice to be able to say goodbye to everybody properly. And I got emotional when we were talking about it, 'cause I was, like, there are so many people that we're friends and really consider very close that I don't hang out with. You have these, for sure — people that you've met on the road that you see 'em wherever it might be and you've seen 'em so many times that you know them absolutely by name and maybe you even have a drink or food or something when you go through town, but you don't hang with them other than that. And we've been [touring for] 26 years, and there's a lot of those people. And it's, like, shit, dude — that's gonna be, like, 'Bye.' We don't talk. We only talk when I come here. And we've been talking, for some of these people, for 25 years. And it's, like, damn. There's a lot of those people. And it fucked me up a little bit. I was, like, that's gonna be interesting to wave the stage that night and be, like, 'Damn,' and fuck off forever. 'Cause it obviously has been a gigantic part of our lives — more than half of it has been spent out on the road building those relationships. So it'll be a trip."

After Jasta told Rose not to sign a contract with his bandmates saying that they are not allowed to come back for a reunion tour a few years after their first farewell run of shows, Morgan said: "We're pretty fucking old to begin with. Somehow or another we've kept it together enough to be able to still do it at a respectable level. But it's gonna happen. I would be lying to you if I told you I didn't know when. It is gonna happen. But we're not saying anything."

Morgan went on to clarify: "It never means that we'll never play again. Anybody that says that, it's, like, you're insulting the intelligence of the public. I mean, look, MÖTLEY CRÜE is getting ready to go out [after previously saying they wouldn't]. They said they burned the book… I don't ever [say], 'Never, never, never. I swear to God.' ... The plan is that we've done it long enough. The body has taken a fucking beating. I've personally been to the doctor six straight days. I'm going for am MRI tomorrow. It's breaking down. I was in the gym, actually, right before we did this [podcast] just trying to do something to help [with my pain]. Twenty-six years of car accidents — that's how you've gotta look at it. I asked my doctor, 'Why is happening now? I'm in better shape now — way better than I was back then.' I was a fucking mess back then. And he goes, 'You're a hundred years old, dude.' [Laughs] I'm, like, 'Fuck!' Could I have done anything? He goes, 'You could have avoided some car accidents.' It's 26 years of beatin' the fuck out of yourself. It's all good until it's not. That was what he told me. He goes, 'The body is all good until it's not.' … I'm going tomorrow to see what this deal is, 'cause it's fucking debilitating."

In July 2022, Connolly addressed Rose's comments in an interview with George Dionne of KNAC.COM. Connolly said: "It's funny. Any time that we talk about this stuff, people are, like, 'Oh, that's it. They're quittin'. It's the end.' It's really not that at all. I mean, we're realists. We ask ourselves, are we gonna be jumping off trampolines and drum risers and stuff when we're 80? Are we gonna wanna do 300 shows a year when we're 80? Probably not. But I look a band like THE [ROLLING] STONES and I go, but you can still go out and do something whenever you wanna do it. So that's sort of what we've… I think what we're doing is we're looking at making records — at some point in time making records and doing a big tour to support the record. I don't think it's gonna be something that we're gonna wanna do like we're doing it now. I think we'll always make music in some way, shape or form or another, even if it's small doses, and I think we'll always tour — in small doses," he explained. "Pick and choose those moments, not grind it out. Do it enough to where it keeps you wantin' to do it.

"As you get older, the family time starts to weight down on the scale, as it should. And we've all got families and we've all got kids of different ages, going through different points — some are in elementary school; some are getting ready to go to college; some [are] drivin', which is crazy. There's more to life, and I think we've all appreciated the fact that we wanna nurture SEVENDUST to the point where we could perpetually do it forever. But you're not gonna see us three times coming through New York City on a tour. If we come through once, okay.

"But, yeah, you've gotta look at the age thing; you've gotta look at the motivation; you've gotta look at the family thing — you've gotta look at all of it and weigh it out," John added. "And instead of saying, 'That's it. We're wrapping it up,' we're just saying, I think we're gonna move into something different; we're just gonna move into a different model.

"It's funny, 'cause it's, like, okay, how many bands have said that they're gonna retire from touring and then all of a sudden [they are back]? That'll be us," Connolly admitted. "We could come in and say, 'There's not a chance that we're gonna play another show. We hate each other.' Two years later, we're gonna be out back out there going, 'You know what, man? We really didn't mean it. We probably shouldn't have reacted so quickly. We're down. We're gonna do it again.'

"MÖTLEY [CRÜE], they had contracts, and they're out doing a stadium tour. I'm, like, they should. You know what I mean? If you wanna play, play. And that's sort of what we're gonna do. I think we're just gonna move from the point of having to do it and having that be something that people have expectations on.

"The thing about it is to make a full-length record these days, I know people are into it, but people just want music," Connolly said. "They don't really care whether they get 10 songs every two years or whether they get a song or two every month, two months, which I think would be a more interesting model to go down anyways, because you can just — as you create, you'll know your moments. There's always gonna be those two or three songs that are, like, 'Oh, wow. I can't wait to play this for the guys.' And then you go, 'Let's go hop in the studio for two days. Let's go sit with Elvis [producer Michael Baskette] for two days, punch two or three songs out, stick 'em in a can, and then do that two or three times. And then if you wanna release a record, release a record. If not, EPs are super popular right now… Those kind of moves are the moves that, I think, are gonna keep the business… I think it's gonna keep fans engaged because you're not giving them the playbook, going, 'Okay, on this day here, here's the EPK. Here's the bio.' We've done it the traditional way. Sometimes that whole, 'Let's just drop it. Let's go record it and just drop it — drop the video, drop whatever.' So that, I think, is more interesting to all of us as we get a little older. Just any way that we can kind of keep it fresh.

"We're in a really good headspace in the SEVENDUST world… So that's why we're not saying 'never,' but we are saying at some point it's gonna get different. So you all don't be thinking you're gonna take a three-week vacation and follow SEVENDUST around on tour. You might take a week and follow us on tour, but I don't know if three weeks is gonna be necessary anymore."

SEVENDUST will release its fourteenth studio album, "Truth Killer", on July 28 via the band's new label home, Napalm Records. The follow-up to 2020's "Blood & Stone" was once again tracked at Studio Barbarosa in Gotha, Florida with producer Michael "Elvis" Baskette, who has previously worked with ALTER BRIDGE and SLASH, among others.

A GoFundMe page has been started for legendary extreme metal drummer Nick Barker (LOCK UP, BRUJERIA, DIMMU BORGIR, CRADLE OF FILTH) who is battling kidney failure.

Brandi Campanile, who launched the fundraising campaign on June 4, wrote on the GoFundMe page: "Nicholas Barker…. If asked to write anything, it would be a list of phenomenal statements, but I will just state the most obvious and this is definitely not the way in which one wants to state them: Amazing drummer… duh. Loving father…. Oh goodness does this man love his daughters! Amazing friend… absofuckinglutely… Man would give you the shirt off his back if you needed it. Always there to uplift, provide a kind word and make sure you know you are amazing. Even if its something you don't want to hear, he will tell you with love, cause that's just who he is. Always doing things to make us laugh with his antics.

"He has given us his entire life with music, on stage or in the studio. Giving us music that has us raging. His achievements are definitely awe inspiring!!!!

"Maybe I am biased, but it is what it is.

"But writing this statement, is not something he planned for.

"As many noticed, back in 2022, Nick was hospitalized several times… a couple of these times while on tour. During these visits, it was discovered that he was losing kidney function. With determination, he tried to continue caring for himself while maintaining the tours and his musical career. His life has been dedicated to it along with his daughters. Both of which are his life blood. Unfortunately, it has all taken its toll and the kidneys are in full failure. With all things, he has been going through this the best he can, on his own. After giving so much of himself to his music, to us, his friends and fans….. He now needs us as he cannot currently work due to the dialysis schedule and focusing on his health."

Barker started playing drums at the age of 13 years old, but his professional career began back in 1993 at age 20 when he joined U.K. black metal icons CRADLE OF FILTH. After four albums and numerous world tours that followed, Nick went on to join the ranks of Norwegian black metal rivals DIMMU BORGIR in 1999 and went on to enjoy even greater commercial success with them up until 2004.

Nick has also been a busy session player in both live and studio environments, lending his skills to the likes of such heavyweight metal acts as TESTAMENT, OLD MAN'S CHILD, EXODUS, BRUJERIA, GORGOROTH, GOD SEED, ANAAL NATHRAKH and BENEDICTION, to name a few.