During an appearance on the latest episode of the "Let There Be Talk" podcast with rock and roll comedian Dean Delray, bassist Mike Levine of legendary Canadian rockers TRIUMPH was asked about a possible reunion of the band's classic lineup. He responded: "I don't think we're physically able to do that. We did three songs for the ['Triumph: Rock & Roll Machine'] documentary, and it was rough tooling up, 'cause Gil [Moore, drums] and I hadn't played in a while. But Rik [Emmett, guitar/vocals] is always playing; he's on the road a lot. So he had good patience, while we were hacking around. I was trying to figure out, 'Where is my hand going there?' And Gil's going, 'What's a drum?' [Laughs] But Rik had good patience. And after three or four rehearsals, we started to find a groove. And then when we actually did the gig for the fans for the documentary, [after] three songs we were [exhausted]… So the idea of a whole show… I don't think so. Rik can't really hit those notes like before. Even when you drop the key a bit, it's still not easy… So it's really tough, as you're getting older."

A year ago, Levine was asked by San Antonio Current what would have to happen to get the three members of the band to reunite for a full tour. He responded: "We would need to have the best medical people around us. [Laughs] All the ails of 70-year-olds that have been on the road to rock 'n' roll — playing loud music, sucking in flash powder smoke and dry ice smoke for years — to try to get us well enough to do 30 shows.

"In 2008, we had 30 shows done in Canada. That were already booked. And there were like 40 shows booked in America at that point. And then the recession hit. And it lasted through 2008, 2009 and most of 2010. When 2011 came, Live Nation called and the individual promoters said, 'What do you think?' We went, 'Eh, probably not.' We're now three and a half years older. We've got whatever ailments we've got, and it was never about the money. It was always about the legacy more than anything. Could we have made a bunch of money? Yes. But it would've been embarrassing if we only did half houses with the recession, with the Rust Belt in the Midwest, even San Antonio. You name it, everyone was hurting. No one can afford to go to concerts when they've lost their jobs. It's horrible. So, we just went, 'Let's take if off the table.' And every year the offers would come in to go do some stadium shows. And it's way too much work to do that, to get a crew, rehearse, to go out and do four shows. And it wouldn't be our show. We'd just be part of a package. It would be like doing another US Festival or something. The fans would want to see us indoors, with the big show, and if we didn't do it that way, then there's no point."

Levine previously touched upon TRIUMPH's aborted reunion tour in 2021 in an interview with Rock History Music. At the time he said: "Well, we [reunited for] a couple of [shows] — in the 2000s. In 2008, we played over in Sweden — we did a festival there — and a show in Oklahoma, I think called Rocklahoma. And we were gonna go on the road, and then the recession came. There was plans, there was buildings on hold, everything was starting to fall into place. And then when the recession [came], we talked to the promoters, and everybody just said, 'For you guys, it would be embarrassing if you go out and do three quarters of a house instead of selling out.' It was horrible. Concerts were dying everywhere. You couldn't sell a ticket in the Midwest. It didn't matter who you were. THE BEATLES would have had trouble selling tickets. So we just [put it on hold]. And then the recession lasted a couple of years. And then we decide, you know what? We're a couple of years older. Maybe we can't do it — the idea of a big tour. 'Cause we were looking at maybe doing 60, 70 dates over the course of a year and a half or so. And the investment and the production and all that, to put it all together, and the time — just rehearsal time and everything else. So we decided, you know what? It's probably not in the best interest in all of us. It's not like everybody was going, 'Yeah, we've gotta do it.' We all just went, 'Not a good idea anymore.'"

Released a year ago, "Triumph: Rock & Roll Machine", produced by Emmy and Peabody award-winning Banger Films (ALICE COOPER, IRON MAIDEN, RUSH and ZZ TOP),covers TRIUMPH's humble beginnings as staples of the GTA circuit in the mid-'70s to their heyday as touring juggernauts, selling out arenas and stadiums all across North America with their legendary spectacular live shows — and way beyond.

Moore, Levine, and Emmett formed TRIUMPH in 1975, and their blend of heavy riff-rockers with progressive odysseys, peppered with thoughtful, inspiring lyrics and virtuosic guitar playing quickly made them a household name in Canada. Anthems like "Lay It On The Line", "Magic Power" and "Fight The Good Fight" broke them in the USA, and they amassed a legion of fiercely passionate fans. But, as a band that suddenly split at the zenith of their popularity, TRIUMPH missed out on an opportunity to say thank you to those loyal and devoted fans, a base that is still active today, three decades later.

Back in 2016, Moore and Levine reunited with Rik as special guests on the "RES 9" album from Emmett's band RESOLUTION9.

After 20 years apart, Emmett, Levine and Moore played at the 2008 editions of the Sweden Rock Festival and Rocklahoma. A DVD of the historic Sweden performance was made available four years later.

Swedish death metal pioneers, Dismember, have announced the upcoming release of the Historia Mortis 12LP box set, strictly limited to 1,000 copies.





Set for release on July 21, the pre-sale starts June 2 at midnight, CET, at dismember.merchants.se, and 11 AM, CEST nblast.de/DismemberShopInt.




In addition to the Historia Mortis box set, standalone physical re-issues of the Dismember catalog will be available on CD and vinyl throughout 2023 via Nuclear Blast Records.


Stay tuned for further details.

The second track to be revealed from the forthcoming Motörhead - Live At The Montreux Jazz Festival '07 release is "I Got Mine". Originally released as a single in June 1983, preceding the album, Another Perfect Day, it feels fitting that this powerful live rendition from 2007 is aired in celebration of it’s 40th anniversary.





Recorded during the band’s Kiss Of Death tour at the legendary Auditorium Stravinski on July 7 during the 2007 edition of the world renowned, Montreux Jazz Festival this show is such a tremendous statement of just how potent and perfect a trio Lemmy, Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee were, with not just one of the more diverse set-lists of their decades together, but individual performances which prove how top of the tree each was in their own class.







A special, previously unreleased concert - Motörhead - Live At The Montreux Jazz Festival ’07 will be issued on double LP, double CD and digital on June 16, 2023. Secure your copy here.





Tracklisting:


"Snaggletooth"
"Stay Clean"
"Be My Baby"
"Killers"
"Metropolis"
"Over The Top"
"One Night Stand"
"I Got Mine"
"In The Name Of Tragedy"
"Sword Of Glory"
"Rosalie"
"Sacrifice"
"Just ‘Cos You Got The Power"
"Going To Brazil"
"Killed By Death"
"Iron Fist"
"Whorehouse Blues"
"Ace Of Spades"
"Overkill"


"Rosalie" live video:





(Photo - Lionel Flusin)

Aortha, featuring members of the international metal scene, will be releasing the new album, Monolit, on September 1. A music video for the single, "Last Of Our Kind", can be viewed below.

The album was mixed by Fredrik Nordström at Studio Fredman, and mastered by Jens Bogren at Fascination Street.

Tracklisting:

"Symposium"
"Those That Should Not Exist"
"Last Of Our Kind"
"Forging The Locus"
"Keep The Dream"
"Maximus Metallus"
"Divine Future"
"When All Around You Is Madness"
"Timeless Soul Cure"
"She"


"Last Of Our Kind" video:





Aortha lineup:


Kyle Thomas - vocals (Exhorder)
Diego Valdez - vocals (Dream Child)
Denis "Snake" Belanger - vocals (Voivod)
Alessia Scolletti - vocals (Temperance, Era)
Netta Laurenne - vocals (Smackbound)
Christian Älvestam - vocals (Scar Symmetry)
Predrag Glogovac - lead & rhythm guitar (Monolit)
Igor Paspalj - lead guitar
Jacob Umansky - bass (Intervals)
Hannes Grossmann - drums (Triptykon, Alkaloid)

Finnish heavy metallers Oceanhoarse have checked in with the following message and new music:


"A little tip that we took from Metallica is to start the recording session for a new album with a cover song. It's less stressful than trying to immediately nail one of your originals, and it's a great, fun way to dial in the sounds while getting familiar with the room. This one was recorded during the session of our latest album, Heads Will Roll, and we think it turned out quite cool! We hope Het & the guys approve!"







Oceanhoarse recently released their highly anticipated sophomore studio album, Heads Will Roll, via Noble Demon. With eleven brand new tracks, the album seamlessly picks up where its predecessor, Dead Reckoning (2021), left off and even goes one step further.





Tracklisting:


“Fall Like Dominoes”
“Help Is On The Way”
“Pryopen”
“Brick”
“Smoke Signals”
"Waves"
“Dead Zone”
“Heads Will Roll”
“Adrift”
“Nail”
“Carved In Stone”


“Help Is On The Way” lyric video:





(Band Photo - Pete Inkinen / Guilty Visuals)

They started it all 34 years ago...


The Dreamspace lineup of Stratovarius has reformed, returning under the moniker Timo Tolkki's Strato. Featuring Timo Tolkki (vocals, guitar), Tuomo Lassila (drums), and Antti Ikonen (keyboards), these members recorded the classic Fright Night, Twilight Time, Dreamspace and Fourth Dimension albums. Released in 1994, Dreamspace was the last Stratovarius album to have Timo Tolkki on lead vocals and includes such fan favorites as "Chasing Shadows", "Hold On To Your Dream", "We Are The Future" and "Wings Of Tomorrow". Tolkki recorded his vocals for the Fourth Dimension album demos before deciding to focus on guitar only and recruited Timo Kotipelto as vocalist. Fourth Dimension included a number of standout tracks including "Against The Wind", "Distant Skies", "Galaxies" and "Twilight Symphony".
 
In the summer 2022, Timo Tolkki, Tuomo Lassila and Antti Ikonen met to discuss ideas to reform the original line up, deciding to call themselves Timo Tolkki’s Strato. In all secrecy, they have rehearsed in Tuomo’s garage (real back to the roots!) since January 2023.This reconstituted lineup has signed a deal with Warner Music Japan, and is currently recording their debut album titled Return To Dreamspace to be released on October 27th, 2023 preceded by the single “(Is This The) Brave New World?". 


A Japanese Tour is planned for spring 2024, and Timo Tolkki will visit Japan in November 2023 to promote the album -- his first time there since 2007. Tours of Latin America and Europe are also in the works. In concert the band will be performing songs from Return To Dreamspace, as well as from the Stratovarius albums, Fright Night,Twilight Time, and Dreamspace.




Eric Cerda, the manager of Timo Tolkki, describes the music as "sounding like the classic Dreamspace era, but updated for the 2020's. Fans of melodic power metal - a genre that these guys pretty much defined - will love the new songs of Timo Tolkki's Strato, with fans of early Stratovarius being especially pleased.”





Tuomo Lassila formed Stratovarius in Helsinki 1984, and is responsible together with the original guitar player Staffan Stråhlman for the band's name Stratovarius. One year later Timo Tolkki joined the band. Stratovarius released their debut album Fright Night through CBS Finland. From that started one of the biggest success stories in the history of melodic metal. They defined what is currently known as power metal with albums like Fright Night (1989), Twilight Time (1993), Dreamspace (1994) and Fourth Dimension (1995).


Timo Tolkki wrote more than 100 songs for the band before leaving the group to embark on a successful solo career back in 2008, and is responsible for writing such Power Metal anthems like “Black Diamond”, “Hunting High and Low”, “Speed of Light”, “Paradise”, “Forever” and “Destiny”. More than 4 million copies of Tolkki-era Stratovarius  albums have been sold.


Check out the original Dreamspace album below.





 

Eternal Death will release Black Sorcery's debut album, Deciphering Torment Through Malediction, on vinyl LP format.


Rooted in two decades of Rhode Island black metal lineage - with members hailing from past bands Bog Of The Infidel, Sangus, Nefarious, and Sorcery - America's Black Sorcery emerged out of the plague days of early 2020. Fittingly for such origins, the quartet play a consciously regressive style of music that rejects the bloated aesthetics of most modern American black metal and embraces the arcane forms of the past. Whether it's the paradigmatic early days of Gorgoroth or the contemporaneous turn-of-the-millennium work of Behexen and Satanic Warmaster serving as the aesthetic foundation, Black Sorcery truly sound like they do not belong to this decade nor this country.


Crude and rude but not without a sense of regal refinement, the band's Deciphering Torment Through Malediction debut album storms right out of the gate and leaves little to the imagination: this is all-caps Black Metal forged in the fires of old and tempered with the patience of longtime zealots. Each song of this 40-minute work combines cold, somber melodies with raw, visceral aggression in an unapologetic homage to the early waves of black metal. No matter the tempo - rippingly fast, folklorish downshift, hypnotic pulse - Black Sorcery keep proceedings orkish and medieval, such as they were back in the glorious times of Sombre, A.M.S.G., and Drakkar Productions. Form meeting content, their lyrical expression revolves around the themes of torment and mutually-assured destruction in the form of curses wrung from a severe disdain towards all human life, and butchered rituals performed in the heat of pure resentment, resulting in one's own self-destruction: the ouroboros of esoteric failure and abysmal ruin. And all these ripped-raw tones are rendered all the more powerful with mastering courtesy of Enormous Door.




No more but definitely no less, Black Sorcery's Deciphering Torment Through Malediction is pure black metal for pure black metal people. Preorder on Bandcamp.





Tracklisting:


“Intro”
“Gasping For Light Under A Petrine Cross”
“Final Meditations On Despair”
“Erinyes Slough”
“Gomorran Virtue”
“Sordid Rote”
“Heinous Rites”
“(Endgame Thought Process)”
“Seven Veils” 


“Erinyes Slough”:


Deciphering Torment Through Malediction by Black Sorcery

Tegmentum is a cosmic progressive metal project with Michael Ball producing the music and playing guitar, Chelsea Murphy (Dawn Of Ouroboros, Cailleach Calling) on vocals, Kenji Tsunami (Ontogeny, Narcotic Wasteland) on bass, and Andrew Baird (Fallujah) on drums. This project is formed with the intent of crossing over progressive metal styles with more extreme elements typically found in technical death metal bands.


"Tegmentum is humbled to be accepted into the M-Theory Audio family. The recognition they've given our unique sound means a lot, and we're immensely grateful for the chance to be featured among their roster of killer bands,” states Michael Ball.


“I was immediately struck by the names involved in Tegmentum,” explains M-Theory founder Marco Barbieri. “I already have a huge respect for the talents of Chelsea and Kenji, who I both know personally, and obviously recognize the popularity of Andrew’s work with Fallujah, but was sold after speaking to Michael and discovering the vision, professionalism and attention to detail given this new band. We’re excited to help Tegmentum present their music to the world.”




Today marks the debut of the awaited first sample of the band’s intense and progressive sound – check out “Accolades” (featuring guest Yvette Young (Covet) on violin) on all streaming/download platforms, and ensure you watch the beautiful and captivating music video created by bassist Kenji Tsunami below.


Additionally, preorders launch for the jewelcase CD and limited-edition (300 copies) golden grimace purple splatter colored vinyl (w/ insert and digital download code). Head here to preorder.


“The cosmic theme of our concept album Evolvement is an allegory for self-discovery that boldly explores an emotional spectrum of euphoric highs and very deep lows,” notes Michael Ball. “It represents a struggle with seemingly unknowable cosmic forces to create an emotional balance where light and dark elements can coexist.
 
We hope to create a captivating sound that pushes the progressive metal genre in a meaningful way. The extreme musical overtones give this project a unique edge while containing the hallmarks of top-tier progressive metal acts."





Tracklisting:


“Innocuous”
“Moments Ago”
“Accolades”
“Amygdala”
“Emergent Propeerties”
“Genetic Assimilation”
“I Remain”
“Gospel Of Sand”


“Accolades” video:





(Photo – Wyman Choy)

Award-winning documentary filmmaker Drew Stone of Stone Films NYC has shared professionally filmed video of the first reunion show of original lineup of BIOHAZARD — guitarist/vocalist Billy Gradziadei, guitarist Bobby Hambel, drummer Danny Schuler and bassist/vocalist Evan Seinfeld — which took place on Friday, May 26 at the Milwaukee Metal Fest at The Rave/Eagles Ballroom in Milwaukee, Wisconsin.

Featured tracks:

* Urban Discipline
* Down For Life
* Tales From The Hardside
* Wrong Side Of The Tracks
* Hold My Own

The band's full setlist was as follows:

01. Urban Discipline
02. Down For Life
03. Tales From The Hard Side
04. Black And White And Red All Over
05. Wrong Side Of The Tracks
06. Shades Of Grey
07. Five Blocks To The Subway
08. Howard Beach
09. How It Is
10. Tears Of Blood
11. Scarred For Life
12. Love Denied
13. We're Only Gonna Die (BAD RELIGION cover)
14. Punishment
15. Hold My Own

BIOHAZARD has announced a number of other appearances throughout 2023, including multiple international festivals in the summer, as well as select appearances in America.

This past January, Schuler told Dan Shinder of Drum Talk TV, Schuler about how BIOHAZARD came back together: "We haven't toured in about seven years, almost eight years. In about 2015, [that] was the last year of touring. We wrapped it up after that. We went in the studio to go do a record and things just kind of imploded; everybody's a bunch of crazy personalities. In the ensuing years, we didn't do anything as BIOHAZARD. And then about a year and a half ago, my brother, who lives in Torrance, California, was flying back home to New York to come see everybody. And he gets to the airport here, and he says to me, 'You won't believe who I saw at the airport.' And I said, 'Who was that?' And he goes, 'I saw Evan,' the bass player from BIOHAZARD, Evan Seinfeld, who I hadn't spoken to in 10 years. And they had a good conversation, and it was cordial. And he basically sent a message through my brother, 'Tell Danny I said hi.' So a week later, I'm going on vacation. I'm feeling good. I'm going down to the beach house here in [New] Jersey with my wife and my kids, and I said to my wife, 'Maybe I should call him' — you know, just bury the hatchet. Who cares anymore? Like everybody, COVID and all these people dying and all this stuff, it's, like, who the hell cares about all that old stuff that made you mad. So my wife was, like, 'Yeah, why don't you give him a call? Don't be an asshole. Call him.'

"Anyway, long story short, I did call him and we spoke," he continued. "And we just kind of buried the hatchet. And the other guys in the band, Bobby and Billy, had been speaking, and we've been speaking, and everybody just kind of started talking a little bit. And unfortunately, our former manager, Scott Koenig, who was out in Los Angeles, he passed away. And that was a real moment where it was, like, 'Wow.' Scott was with us from the beginning, and he was like a fifth member of the band. … That was in October of '21. … I got that call. And the same week, Ir friend of ours from a band called DOG EAT DOG, our friend Sean Kilkenny passed away the same day as Scott. So it was two phone calls, two brothers, two great, close friends, like family, both passed at the same time. And for me, that was kind of one of those things where it's just, like, who cares about all the negative bullshit in the past? Who cares? We're still here. We did great stuff together. We created something cool. We should all be friends. And that was my thinking. And everyone kind of felt the same way. And that kind of was the beginning of how it started, getting the band together."

As for the possibility of a new BIOHAZARD album, Schuler said: "Making new music wasn't really something I was really thinking about too much, but it's come up so much in the last few months since we've been talking about all this stuff. So we'll see how it goes. There's definitely interest there for us to do it. I just hope we can do it. I wanna be able to do it at the level we always did it at.

"I write a lot of music on my own, of course, but I'm very much into collaboration," he explained. "I've always needed a partner, or partners, to really bring the best out of me, to challenge myself. And I always loved getting in a room with these guys. We've always come up with great stuff when we're in the right mindset to do it. So I'm excited to get in a room with them and just let shit fly. I have the energy for it, I'm ready and I'm excited to do it, and I think they are too. So I'm hopeful that we're gonna make something really cool and different and innovative."

In addition to touring, BIOHAZARD has a 35th-anniversary documentary in the works containing previously unreleased footage spanning four decades.

"BIOHAZARD is an iconic band that ripped it up on the streets of New York when I lived there in the late '80s and early '90s, so I'm excited to be working with them to bring their pioneering hardcore sound to a new generation," said Andy Gould (ROB ZOMBIE, PANTERA, TYPE O NEGATIVE). The band is managed by Gould and Paul Gargano and booked by Jim Morewood at the K2 Agency internationally, and Steve Sokol at Pinnacle in North America.

Stated Graziadei: "Over the years, we made some great music together and had so many incredible shows on some pretty amazing tours. After spending so much time and focus on POWERFLO and my solo project BILLYBIO, things just fell in place at the right time and I decided it was the time to recapture that energy and go kick ass again with the original lineup of BIOHAZARD with DannyBobby, and Evan!"

Added Hambel: "I'm honored to perform with the band again. I can't wait to get onstage with the guys and do what we do! I'm looking forward to traveling and playing live. See you out there!"

Stated Seinfeld: "It's been ten years since we all played together, and I'm in a huge place of gratitude for the opportunity to get back to the roots of BIOHAZARD and not only reconnect with the other guys, but also the fans. We've been through decades of madness, and it feels like the fantastic four are back together."

Last year, Graziadei said in an interview that there had been "talk" about putting BIOHAZARD back together.

The group, which is acknowledged as one of the earliest outfits to fuse hardcore punk and heavy metal with elements of hip-hop, had been out of the public eye since Scott Roberts left the band seven years ago.

Roberts, who played guitar on BIOHAZARD's 2005 album "Means To An End", rejoined the group in June 2011 as the replacement for Seinfeld. Scott fronted BIOHAZARD for nearly five years before exiting the band in February 2016.

In an August 2020 interview with the "Aftershocks" podcast, Roberts said that he left BIOHAZARD because he "wasn't happy" anymore. "There was one guy that I wasn't getting along with very well, and it made touring not fun anymore for me," he said. "My reason to stick around was to make a new record that was great and I'd be proud of and all that stuff, and then it became kind of clear that wasn't gonna happen, so I was, like, 'What am I doing it for?' So I quit."

Seinfeld made his last recorded appearance with BIOHAZARD on 2012's "Reborn In Defiance" album, which marked the first LP featuring the band's original lineup in 18 years.

Graziadei is currently a member of POWERFLO, which also features former FEAR FACTORY bassist/guitarist Christian Olde Wolbers, Sen Dog from CYPRESS HILL, and Rogelio Lozano from DOWNSET.

Billy's solo project, BILLYBIO, released a new album, "Leaders And Liars", in March 2022 via AFM Records.

Image/video credit: Drew Stone of Stone Films NYC

Northeastern US melodic metal band, Severed Angel, has released their new music video for the song "A New Beginning", from their self-titled debut album, which was self-released by the band on CD and digital formats on May 2.





Severed Angel comments: “'A New Beginning' is the third single and video (directed by drummer Wayne Noon) from Severed Angel’s self-titled debut release. The song makes up the second part of the “Severed Angel Suite,” which includes the title-track (part 1) and 'With Wings Anew' (part 3)."




Guitarist Lou Mavs explains that the songwriting process for this song was like nothing he experienced before. “I had this riff that I had written about 20 years ago that I was never able to do anything with until I modified it and brought it to the band. Wayne made the suggestion to base the song around the riff. Sometimes, the easiest solution is the best solution, and he was right. The music then started to write itself. For me, writing this album was a process - I had to work through grief, and this song was the culmination of taking those feelings and transferring it into something positive. It meant a lot that George (Dimitri, bassist), Marc (Muchnik, keyboardist), and Alex (Repetti, vocalist / guitarist) were on board from the get-go, and their performances give the song added gravitas.”


“In a way, the Severed Angel Suite is really an exploration of the “Hero’s Journey” through the 5 stages of grief - denial, anger, bargaining, depression, and acceptance. It’s very easy to get bogged down in the negativity of life if you are surrounded by it. All it takes is one thing to help get you out of it, and it could be anything, including an artistic endeavor, a friend, a family member, etc. I do believe that there are muses or angels to help guide us in life to give us hope.”


Guest vocalist Gail Bourque adds gorgeous harmonies to Alex’s vocal melody. Equal parts ballad and anthem, “A New Beginning” is Severed Angel’s statement to the world.





Severed Angel band lineup:


Alex Repetti - Vocals, Guitar (Infinite Spectrum / Tension Rising)
Lou Mavs - Guitar, Vocals
George Dimitri - Bass (Timeless Haunt)
Marc Muchnik - Keyboards (The Nightmare Stage)
Wayne Noon - Drums (Project Resurrect / ex-Phoenix Reign)

Back on April 28, UMe/Mercury and Anthem Records continued the comprehensive Rush 40th anniversary album series with new and expanded editions of the band’s decade-defining 1982 release, Signals, an album that signified how the band was in no way detached and subdivided from the ever-shifting 1980s musical landscape.


Today, AXS TV released the video below, stating: "We surprised one of our favorite rockers, Sebastian Bach, with Rush's Signals (40th Anniversary) vinyl boxset! Watch as he unwraps iconic exclusives from Geddy Lee, Alex Lifeson, and Neil Peart and reflects on their incredible chemistry. If you love vinyl as much as we do, check out Vinyl Obsession, airing Sundays at 8:30/7:30c on AXS TV."







Signals-40th Anniversary is available to fans in three distinct configurations, including the (1) Super Deluxe Edition, (2) one-LP Picture Disc Edition, and (3) Dolby Atmos Digital Edition. There is also be a limited edition Super Deluxe box featuring eight lithographs of Neil Peart’s original hand-drawn lyrics for each song on Signals only available through the official Rush online store.


All configurations can be ordered and saved, here.





Signals, Rush’s ninth studio album, was originally released in September 1982, and its technology-embracing riffs and rhythms, continued the forward-thinking trajectory of the acclaimed Canadian trio as it continued to chart the demands of a new decade. The album’s eight songs built upon Rush’s penchant for adapting to the flow of the times without compromising its flair for melding long-established progressive roots with radio-friendly song arrangements. Signals, co-produced by Rush with longtime band confidant Terry Brown and engineered by Paul Northfield, was the third of numerous Rush recording sessions held at Le Studio in Morin-Heights, Quebec. The band’s synergistic recording process at Le Studio had been well-established during sessions for the aforementioned Moving Pictures, as well as the sessions for that album’s predecessor, January 1980’s Permanent Waves.

When Queen took a break for the first part of 1983, Brian May put his time to good use. Waking up one morning in Los Angeles, he decided to phone a few friends and invite them to collaborate on some tracks in California’s famous Record Plant studios. The resulting collaboration was a great success, and Brian would later mould the recordings into a unique mini-album, Brian May + Friends: Star Fleet Project.


Pre-order Star Fleet Project here, and listen to "Star Fleet" (Edited Single Version / 2023 Mix) here and below.







This third release in the “Brian May Gold Series” offers an extensively revisited and expanded box set edition of these now legendary sessions. The set is a complete document of the two days, April 21 and 22, 1983 that May spent in the Record Plant, Los Angeles accompanied by top rock music luminaries Edward Van Halen (guitar), Alan Gratzer (drums), Phil Chen (bass) and Fred Mandel (keyboards). The box set includes a spectacular 23-track CD filled with previously unreleased material.


Containing 2 CDs, 1 vinyl LP, and a vinyl single, as well as other collectors items, Brian May + Friends: Star Fleet Sessions will be launched as a Deluxe Edition box set, worldwide on July 14.  


A separate exclusive 7” double A side single, also available on CD comes same day, July 14, featuring newly mixed single versions of “Star Fleet” and “Let Me Out”. A special red vinyl version will be available exclusively through the official Queen Online store and is available to pre-order here.


The July 14 box set release is ushered in with a special stand alone digital single, “Star Fleet" (Edited Single Version) which becomes available to coincide with today’s, June 1, box set announcement. The single digital track is available immediately for digital download and streaming.  


As May writes in his introductory sleeve notes in the box set: “We are going to give you everything. Every take of every song. The things that went wrong, the laughing, the finding new things to do. But it won’t be just a remaster – we’ve rescued everything from the original multitracks, every detail magnificently remixed, and more! You’ll hear every take from the historic 1983 sessions plus fragments of conversations, out-takes and musical experimentation.”


The original 3-track mini album, released October 31,1983, featured a full-length take of “Star Fleet”, May’s hard rock re-imagining of the signature tune from the Japanese-made kids science fiction series of the same name. The programme was compulsive regular viewing for Brian and his 4-year-old son Jimmy on Saturday morning TV, inspiring Brian’s attachment to its title song, written by English musician Paul Bliss. The album also featured "Let Me Out", including extensive opportunities for May and Van Halen to solo, and "Blues Breaker" a 13-minute piece of completely spontaneous improvisation from all members of this  ‘supergroup’ of musicians.


May says: “If Paul hadn’t written a very catchy song as the theme tune for that kid’s TV science fiction drama series, things would have been different. The signature tune began to stick in my head, and I could hear my own arrangement of the tune developing in my mind. But how to record it?”


“So, one morning, I woke up in Los Angeles, on a break from activities with Queen, and made some phone calls. I’ve told the story of what happened next in the material you will find in this box. The outcome was something I will forever treasure.”


“We did a little preparation, on the phone and at home with tiny Rockman amps and earphones. Then we went in. The tapes rolled. My LA neighbour Alan Gratzer beat the Hell out of his kit with the fattest, heaviest drum sticks I had ever seen. Phil Chen, a friend I had met when he played with Rod Stewart, brought his unusual style of funk-orientated rock playing to the party, along with his sunny Caribbean energy and humour. And Fred Mandel, one of the classiest keyboard players I have ever met, tickled both the ivories and some very technical synth patches to bring the spacey riffs to life.  Ed (I can still never call him “Eddie Van Halen” because he more than once told me he found it annoying!) played the guitar as if it were a piano … tapping and snapping, and sliding and skipping around the fingerboard like an electric sprite - always with a cheeky smile. If anything he did was difficult for him, he never showed it.  A total original. Pure joy. What an everlasting privilege to play with him.”


A superlative show of back-to-basics passion and purpose, Star Fleet brims with the freedom of an off-the-cuff break from the day jobs for all involved.


The record emerged on October 20, 1983 as a set of blistering guitar work, rock’n’roll spontaneity and vibrant melody, infused with a palpable chemistry and respect between the players. Spawning a single in the title-track, the mini-album reached No 1 in the British ‘Kerrang’ rock charts.


Now, of course, the record stands in part as a celebration of those we’ve lost: a chance to reconvene with great, much-missed talents. As Brian puts it, “It’s been very exciting to open up the vault to find these tapes where, in the blink of an eye, I’m trading licks with my friends, including the fantastic Ed Van Halen. It’s highly emotional, especially since Ed is sadly no longer around. We have since also lost Phil - so the rest of us cherish these fleeting moments together.”


The troupe also worked on an earlier May song, the bluesy “Let Me Out”, while the set closes with the titanic “Blues Breaker”, almost 13 minutes of scorching guitar interplay between Brian and Edward: not so much duelling as sharing ideas and passions. As Brian explains, “It was inspired by John Mayall’s Blues Breakers, the album with Eric Clapton reading The Beano on the front cover. Edward said, ‘This is great for me, I haven’t played like this in years.  This is where I come from! I didn’t come up doing tapping and all the fireworks. I grew up doing blues, wanting to be like Eric Clapton and do something melodic.”


If that sense of liberation rings out, so does a spirit of shared adventure. “There was a lot of ebullience, a lot of exploration, discovery and astonishment,” says Brian. “And some truly magical moments when everything gelled together - a fusion of energies!”


Across two CDs, a 12” vinyl LP, a 7” vinyl single, the ‘Star Fleet Sessions’ box set houses the proof. Presented in 180g transparent red vinyl, the original LP issue has been treated to a full new mix, executed by Queen sound engineers Justin Shirley-Smith and Kris Fredriksson under Brian’s direction at his Surrey studio from the original multitrack tapes and, says Brian, “cut at half-speed for maximum fidelity”. The single features two tracks. The A-side is an edited version of “Star Fleet”, with brand-new intro guitar harmonies from Brian. The B-side mirrors the original B-side “Son of Star Fleet” which Brian explains “was a way of including the rest of the original long version of the recording on a 7” record; effectively the whole recording is split between the two sides.”


CD1 Star Fleet Project + Beyond features the single version of the title track alongside full-length album versions of “Let Me Out” and “Blues Breaker”. Also included is an interview with Cynthia Fox conducted on Los Angeles radio station KMET in October 1983, on the day of the single release, and a Rockline interview with Bob Coburn. A live version of “Let Me Out” from the Palace Theatre in LA follows, segueing into “We Will Rock You” and a reworking of the same song’s adored fast rendition. The line-up of May, powerhouse drummer Cozy Powell, bassist Neil Murray, guitarist Jamie Moses, keyboardist Spike Edney and backing singers Cathy Porter & Shelley Preston finds The Brian May Band on fire. Finally, CD1 closes with the full LP version of “Star Fleet”, “just as the day it happened,” says Brian, “as if we were in the room.”


CD2 Star Fleet - The Complete Sessions features 23 tracks that go deeper into that room. The disc boasts a newly-created mix from the entire original analogue session tapes, featuring songs in the process of evolution (some with guide vocals) plus discussion, banter, laughs and, says Brian, “some ‘mistakes’, if there are such things”. Amps blow, mics break, strings snap – the results take you as close as it is possible to get to the Record Plant in April 1983.





And Van Halen fans, take note: the “Star Fleet” takes feature eight Edward guitar solos, “never quite treading the same path twice,” says Brian. “Ed was a wonderful soul. Listening to him and me, I feel completely outclassed by him in the studio. But in a very pleasant way – what a joy for me to be around a guy who could do all that. Such a privilege."


“So, you’ll hear us in the studio trading licks,” adds May. “We’ve cleaned up the mix and now EVH’s sound is larger than life. You’ll hear the development of his solo, which I always thought was one of the greatest things he did… a real immortal classic of Ed Van Halen pieces.”


A badge and a booklet featuring extensive liner notes complete the box set. A poster will be exclusive to box set orders placed via QueenOnline.com, where 180g black vinyl, cassette and picture-disc vinyl albums will also be available.


Complete with a digital recreation of the original 1983 source material’s artwork, Star Fleet Sessions doesn’t just gleam anew. Across 136 minutes of audio, the box set takes you behind the curtain, highlighting the electricity that made the project such a special chapter in Brian’s life and career.


“It’s all here. ALL of it ! Every note we played on those two unforgettable, exhilarating days is right here, on show for the first time. Hearing these sessions, especially through the new restoration and mixes we’ve now produced, still sends shivers up my spine,” he says. A time capsule of an unrepeatable moment, this much-anticipated, lovingly curated box set proves why.





Tracklistings:


Star Fleet Sessions Box Set | Format: 2CD + LP (Red Vinyl) + 7” (Black Vinyl)


CD1: Star Fleet Project + Beyond:
"Star Fleet" (Edited Single Version / 2023 Mix)
"Let Me Out" (2023 Mix)
"Blues Breaker" (2023 Mix)
Cynthia Fox Release Day Interview 1983
Bob Coburn Rockline Interview 1984
"Let Me Out" (Live at The Palace Theater, LA / 1993)
"We Will Rock You" (Live at The Palace Theater, LA / 1993)
"We Will Rock You" - Fast (Live at The Palace Theater, LA / 1993)
"Star Fleet" (Complete Version / 2023 Mix)


CD2: Star Fleet The Complete Sessions:
"Star Fleet" (Take 1)
"Star Fleet" (Take 2)
"Star Fleet" (Take 3)
"Star Fleet" (Take 4)
"Star Fleet" (Take 5)
Solo Jam
"Star Fleet" (Take 7)
"Star Fleet" (Take 8)
"Star Fleet" (Take 10)
"Star Fleet" (Take 11)
"Star Fleet" (Alternative Overdub EVH Solo)
Jam
"Let Me Out" (Rehearsal 1)
"Let Me Out" (Rehearsal 2)
Boogie Woogie Jam
"Let Me Out" (Take 1)
"Jazz Police"
"Let Me Out" (Take 3)
"Let Me Out" (Take 4)
Jam (Let's Do The Show Right Here)
"Let Me Out" (Take 6)
Funky Jam
"Let Me Out" (Take 7 False Start)


LP: Star Fleet Project (180g Red Vinyl):
"Star Fleet" (2023 Mix)
"Let Me Out" (2023 Mix)
"Blues Breaker" (2023 Mix)


7” Single "Star Fleet":
"Star Fleet" (Edited Single Version / 2023 Mix)
"Son Of Star Fleet" (2023 Mix) – Exclusive to the box set 7”


Star Fleet Project + Beyond CD:
"Star Fleet" (Edited Single Version / 2023 Mix)
"Let Me Out" (2023 Mix)
"Blues Breaker" (2023 Mix)
Cynthia Fox Release Day Interview 1983
Bob Coburn Rockline Interview 1984
"Let Me Out" (Live at The Palace Theater, LA / 1993)
"We Will Rock You" (Live at The Palace Theater, LA / 1993)
"We Will Rock You" - Fast (Live at The Palace Theater, LA / 1993)
"Star Fleet" (Complete Version / 2023 Mix)


Star Fleet Project / LP 180g black vinyl / LP picture disc / Cassette:
"Star Fleet" (2023 Mix)
"Let Me Out" (2023 Mix)
"Blues Breaker" (2023 Mix)





"Star Fleet" / "Let Me Out" - Double A Side Single (7” Vinyl (Red) / CD Single):
"Star Fleet" (Edited Single Version / 2023 Mix)
"Let Me Out" (Single Edit / 2023 Mix) – Only available physically on this 7” Vinyl & CD single





Credits:


- Content supervised by Kris Fredriksson.
- Mixed by Justin Shirley-Smith and Kris Fredriksson, Allerton Hill Studio.
- Mastered by Adam Ayan, Gateway Mastering Studios, Portland, Maine.
- Half Speed vinyl mastering by Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios.
- Artwork by Richard Gray and Brian May.
- Photography by Phil Chen, James “Motor” Merritt, Elizabeth “Lizard” Frye, Brian May, Ron Galella / Getty Images.

During an appearance on the "Beer Rum & Rock N Roll" podcast with host Randy Legault, drummer Gil Moore of legendary Canadian rockers TRIUMPH weighed in on a debate about people using AI (artificial intelligence) to create fake tracks and artist voices. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I love technology. That's why I'm involved with a software company now, but it's music based. And so everybody in the music space is kind of up in arms about AI, and I get why. And here's my take on it.

"First of all, AI is inevitable," he continued. "Even though Woz [Apple co-founder and US Festival organizer Steve Wozniak] is part of the group that said we should hold back development for six months, and I applaud him; I wish that was possible. Maybe I'm more cynical than he is, but I don't think you can hold it back, because the bad actors will not participate in any kind of holdback. So all you'd be doing is holding back the people that are responsible versus the ones that are irresponsible.

"Number two, I think AI could be a creative tool for musicians to harness in the same way that mathematicians use calculators, but when you get into creating fake tracks and when you get into criminal activity, it's a set of burglar keys for a smart producer, or even not a smart producer but a smart crook who understands a little tiny bit about music, to try to scam streaming royalties, which is what's going on with fake tracks. And not just using AI; there's other ways to do it. People will cheat, unfortunately. So I think it's terrible."

Moore added: "Last week, I know I was talking with my buddy Noel, and he was talking about the fact that there was, I guess, a fake Drake track out there, or more than one, and a fake track from The Weeknd. It's horrible. Why would they shrug it off and go, 'oh, I don't care'? It's offensive. You wouldn't wanna see that happen with art in our world. Imagine if you had AI doing all the paintings and there were no more great artists in any area.

"I'm just saying I think there's two sides to the argument," Gil explained. "We're not gonna be able to hold back technology, so we might as well go, 'Okay, whether we like it or not, it's here to stay.' What we really can hope is that companies that are ethnical… So, ChatGPT, which is the big gun right now, is developed by Microsoft. I believe Microsoft to be an ethical company. I believe that they will do their best to try and see that the uses are for good. We've gotta try to keep it out of the hands of the bad actors and being used for purposes for which it's not intended."

This past April, Universal Music had a song called "Heart On My Sleeve", which used deep-faked vocals from their artists Drake and The Weeknd, removed from the streaming services, claiming in a statement that "the training of generative AI using our artists' music" was "a violation of copyright law".

Last month, AVENGED SEVENFOLD's M. Shadows said that he "would love to" have his voice cloned using artificial intelligence in order to create new songs. The singer, whose real name is Matt Sanders, was also enthused about the possibilities, saying that "AI can be incredibly useful" for songwriters. M. Shadows went on to say that AI gives fans the opportunity to use the work of their favorite acts as a machine learning library to create their own songs.

Pop singer Grimes, whose real name is Claire Boucher, recently said she would "split 50% royalties on any successful AI-generated song that uses my voice".

"Same deal as I would with any artist I collab[orate] with. Feel free to use my voice without penalty," she tweeted.

Fresh off their US tour with Megadeth and Bullet For My Valentine, Canadian progressive metal luminaries, Oni, have returned with a ferocious new single, "Silence In A Room Of Lies", featuring Jared Dines. The track is a volatile, metallic anthem with a torrential onslaught of groove-laden riffs, threaded with infectious melody.





Commenting on the new single, Jake Oni states: "I’m super stoked to share my new song 'Silence In A Room Of Lies'! This track is the first step in a new direction for Oni musically. This is just a taste of what’s to come and I hope my fans enjoy it as much as I enjoyed making it. Writing with Jared Dines was an absolute pleasure and his contributions brought this song to a whole new level."




Jared Dines is equally thrilled, commenting: "I am very proud of the song we were able to write together, and I'm excited that the world can finally hear it! Jake is the coolest dude and working with him was an absolute pleasure!"


Watch the video for "Silence In A Room Of Lies" below. Stream the track here.





Formed in 2014 by vocalist Jake Oni, Oni quickly became one of Canada's most promising new bands with their distinct amalgam of experimental progressive songwriting, brute metalcore savagery and cathartic melody. The five-piece roared to life with the release of their 2016 debut album, Ironshore (Metal Blade Records), which was produced by Josh Wilbur (Avenged Sevenfold, Korn, Dillinger Escape Plan) and featured guest vocals by Lamb Of God frontman Randy Blythe on the song, "The Only Cure".


Oni followed up with the monstrous Alone EP in 2019, and returned with their critically lauded second full-length, Loathing Light in 2022, which boasted guests Iggy Pop and Blythe on the song, "Secrets".


Alongside their rise in the metal scene, the band has shared the stage with the likes of Gojira, Children Of Bodom, Rob Zombie, Death Angel and The Devin Townsend Project.


(Photo - Travis Shinn)

As the assault on the world keeps coming, so does ripe new material from 3Teeth. Today, the modern industrial act provides another taste of their hotly anticipated new album via the release of "Slum Planet," featuring production from DOOM composer Mick Gordon. It’s featured alongside a gripping new video from one of Hollywood’s leading video directors, Matteo Santoro (who grew up with 3Teeth frontman Alexis Mincolla).


Repeating the anthemically charged chorus, “I don’t care if you live or you die, as long as you’re willing to buy,” the song takes aim at the ills of a sick planet obsessed with over-consumption at all costs, further admonished in an attention-grabbing mid-track diatribe from frontman and creative lead, Alexis Mincolla. 







Mincolla explains the track,


“An ecosystem? More like an ego-system. ‘Slum Planet’ is a monument to the hubris of mankind, to the ruthless exploitation of nature in the name of progress, to the willful blindness of those who chose profits over preservation.”


'Slum Planet' continues 3Teeth’s series of monthly teases leading up to their hotly anticipated fourth album coming late summer via Century Media Records (more details to be announced soon). 





It follows the May 3 release of their explosive return with “Merchant Of The Void”.


To lay the foundation for the new material, 3Teeth migrated to the deserted quiet of Joshua Tree, escaping from the palpable anxiety of their hometown of Los Angeles for fresh new perspective. The material is currently being wrapped up with 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.


Says Gordon, “3Teeth are one of my favorite acts. They proudly fly their own unique flag. The new album charts a course through the next stage of our vanity-led evolution as a species, and by that I mean the album is a world unto itself. I’m just stoked that these guys have allowed me along for the ride.”


Stay tuned for more 3Teeth news soon.

Professionally filmed video of METALLICA performing the song "If Darkness Had A Son" at the fourth show of the band's "M72" world tour on May 19 at Stade De France in Paris, France can be seen below.

The trek, which launched in late April in Amsterdam, sees the band playing two nights in every city it visits — with each "No Repeat Weekend" featuring two completely different setlists and support lineups. The "M72" tour features a bold new in-the-round stage design that relocates the famed METALLICA Snake Pit to center stage, as well as the "I Disappear" full-tour pass and the debut of discounted tickets for fans under 16 years of age.

METALLICA launched the second Paris show with "Creeping Death". The group's 16-song set also included three new songs from the "72 Seasons" album: the title track, the aforementioned "If Darkness Had A Son" and "You Must Burn!".

The setlist was as follows:

01. Creeping Death
02. Harvester Of Sorrow
03. Cyanide (tour debut)
04. King Nothing
05. 72 Seasons
06. If Darkness Had A Son
07. Welcome Home (Sanitarium)
08. You Must Burn!
09. The Call Of Ktulu
10. The Unforgiven
11. Wherever I May Roam
12. Moth Into Flame
13. Battery
14. Whiskey In The Jar
15. One
16. Enter Sandman

Opening acts include Floor Jansen, EPICA, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, ICE NINE KILLS, MAMMOTH WVH, PANTERA, ARCHITECTS, GRETA VAN FLEET and VOLBEAT.

METALLICA promises fans who purchase a two-day ticket that they won't see the same song twice for a total of over 30 songs spanning the band's 40-plus-year career.

Each weekend offers a variety of "Enhanced Experiences", ranging from access to a meet-and-greet, production and stage tour, food and beverage in the "Black Box" lounge to early entry into the venue and the Snake Pit. The very popular "Black Laminate" is back, now known as the "I Disappear Ticket", and is the ultimate pass for the fan who wants to run away with METALLICA for multiple weekends.

A single "I Disappear" ticket purchase gives you access to as many of METALLICA's 46 headlining tour dates across Europe and North America in 2023 and 2024 as you choose. You decide how many shows you'd like to attend around the world, and for how long, and METALLICA will make it as easy as possible.

According to Billboard, "72 Seasons" sold 146,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marks the band's 12th Top 10-charting album, of which eight have reached the top two.

"72 Seasons" had the biggest week for any rock or hard rock album since TOOL's "Fear Inoculum" arrived in September 2019 with 270,000 equivalent album units.

"72 Seasons" was released on April 14 via METALLICA's own Blackened Recordings. Produced by Greg Fidelman with guitarist/vocalist James Hetfield and drummer Lars Ulrich, it is METALLICA's first full-length collection of new material since "Hardwired…To Self-Destruct".

Speaking of the album-making process, Ulrich explained: "It's one of the only things that hasn't changed in 40 years. There'll be a whole slew of riffs and jams and sound checks, then it falls into my lap to go through them and identify, 'That one's great, that one's good, maybe there's a song over here.'"

Regarding the fact that guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo were given writing credits on more than half of "72 Seasons", Hetfield told the Associated Press: "All four guys were on the floor when we were writing, which is new for us. Usually it's just Lars and I sitting out there hashing it out. It felt really great to have the energy of all four. There's a lot more democracy on this album. Lars and I gave up the steering wheel a little more than usual."

Hammett agreed, saying: "It was much more collaborative. The attitude was just more open. There is less limitations on everyone's creativity and I think that shows."

In the seven years since the arrival of "Hardwired… To Self-Destruct", METALLICA has reissued some of its classic albums, released a second live album with the San Francisco Symphony, commissioned a covers album featuring the likes of GHOST, VOLBEAT, WEEZER, Corey Taylor and THE HU, and landed on the Billboard songs chart with "Master Of Puppets" after a prominent placement in the hit Netflix show "Stranger Things".
🇫🇷 TONIGHT IN PARIS 🇫🇷

The second & final night of the #M72 World Tour “No Repeat Weekend” in Paris!

Remember! No songs from Wednesday will be repeated.

Both show posters, created by @Munk_One, are only available for purchase at the venue.#Metallica#M72Paris#MetOnTourpic.twitter.com/mtUG8qjUAp

— Metallica (@Metallica) May 19, 2023

U.S. heavy metal giants Armored Saint will be Inducted into the Metal Hall of Fame during the Metal Hall of Fame Summer Showcase, at the Whisky A Go Go, July 13, 2023.  The ceremony will feature 95.5 KLOS DJ Marci Wiser as host. Performances also include top local artists Sergio Michel, Deconstruct, surprise guest appearances, and an All-Star Jam. The event is sponsored by Rocavaka, The Vaka That Rocks!!


"Armored Saint have been delivering great metal for decades and we look forwarding to giving them a proper salute this summer, on their home turf of Southern California, at the Whisky A Go Go,” said Metal Hall of Fame Founder/CEO Pat Gesualdo."  Marci Wiser commented, “Once they unleashed the crushing riff and vocals of ‘Can U Deliver’ in the ‘80s, I instantly knew they’d be hall of famers.  I’m honored to host the event and I’ll have my horns way up.”


"We were honored and excited to be notified about the Armored Saint Metal Hall of Fame Induction. They have been rocking and kicking ass for 40 years. Cheers to all of their success," says J. Buttermark of FM Music Management.







As one of the leaders of the Los Angeles heavy metal scene, Armored Saint have amassed a worldwide audience and achieved success and critical acclaim through several albums, including March Of The Saint, Delirious Nomad, and Raising Fear. To date, the band has released eight studio albums, one EP, two live albums and one compilation album.


The Metal Hall of Fame is dedicated to forever enshrining the iconic musicians and music industry executives responsible for making Hard Rock and Heavy Metal music what it is today. Their contribution to the genre is invaluable, and they continue to inspire fans throughout the world, from generation to generation.


The Annual Metal Hall of Fame Celebrity Gala is held every January in C.A. As a 501(C)(3) Non-Profit organization, all proceeds from Metal Hall of Fame and D.A.D. events bring free music programs to help special needs children and wounded veterans.


The Metal Hall of Fame Voting Process is derived by fans of all genres of Hard Rock and Heavy Metal, along with the Metal Hall of Fame voting committee. Fans can cast their vote all year round for their favorite artists, bands, producers, and music industry executives via the Metal Hall of Fame website.


For more information, please contact info@themetalhalloffame.org, or call 973-263-0420.


Armored Saint are:


John Bush - vocals
Jeff Duncan - guitars
Phil Sandoval - guitars
Joey Vera - bass
Gonzo Sandoval - drums


(Photo - Travis Shinn)

WARMEN, the brainchild of former CHILDREN OF BODOM keyboardist Janne "Warman" Wirman, will release a new album, "Here For None", on August 18 via Reaper Entertainment.

Comments Wirman: "Whether you know of WARMEN or are new to our music, you are in for a treat! We have put a lot of thought and energy into this release and the new album really represents what we are musically. A lot of melodic stuff and crazy soloing with brutal riffing and drumming."

"Here For None" heralds a new era. True to the motto "The king is dead, long live the king," WARMEN is not only headed towards heavier shores musically due to the band's updated lineup, but it can also be said with justification that WARMEN is taking on the musical legacy of Wirman's former band in a spectacular way.

"I will always be Janne from BODOM," Wirman says. "That's okay with me. I'm happy about it and I don't have to hide my past. I also see that as a positive thing for WARMEN."

Janne and his brother Antti Wirman and longtime friend Jyri Helko have recruited Seppo Tarvainen on drums as well as Petri Lindroos (ENSIFERUM) on vocals to make "Here For None" a true masterpiece of melodic death metal.

WARMEN will present this legacy live at select events, including a release show at this year's Summer Breeze festival. Stand by for further info on "Here For None", including preorders, to be unveiled in the coming weeks.

"Here For None" track listing:

01. Warmen Are Here For None
02. The Driving Force
03. A World Of Pain
04. Too Much, Too Late
05. Night Terrors
06. Hell On Four Wheels
07. The End Of The Line
08. Death's On Its Way
09. The Cold Unknown
10. Dancing With Tears In My Eyes

WARMEN 2023 is:

Janne Wirman - keyboards
Petri Lindroos - vocals
Antti Wirman - guitar
Jyri Helko - bass
Seppo Tarvainen - drums

WARMEN started as a solo project of Wirman, and when the keyboardist wasn't traveling the world with CHILDREN OF BODOM, he was regularly recording albums with his brother, Helko (bass) and Mirka Rantanen (drums; KOTIPELTO, ex-HEVISAURUS). After the much-too-early end of CHILDREN OF BODOM and the tragic death of Alexi Laiho, Janne, together with Antti, found his way back to music through WARMEN.

Janne comments: "After the abrupt ending of CHILDREN OF BODOM, I wasn't sure if I'll ever make music again. We did a couple of song writing sessions last year with my brother and Jyri and I realized that I still have a lot of desire for music and together we wrote an album of exciting new stuff. We teamed up with Flori and Greg from the Reaper Entertainment, as I had worked with them before with great results, and knew they understood my past with BODOM and where we wanted to go next with WARMEN."

Flori from Reaper Entertainment adds: "After all, it's an open secret that our company name was a reference or tribute to CHILDREN OF BODOM. Greg and I were big fans and attended many of the band's concerts together. In the process, we developed a great friendship with the band — but especially with Janne. When we saw on Facebook that Janne and Antti were working on new WARMEN songs, we just had to offer them our help. It's a great honor for us that Janne accepted immediately and now we can eagerly wait for the new album."

WARMEN's last official album, "First Of The Five Elements", was initially released in 2014 via the crowdfunding platform PledgeMusic, which however ceased operations shortly thereafter. Since very few copies of the album hit the market, Reaper Entertainment re-released the album to shorten the wait for the new album. The direction of the material is classically inspired power metal, but, similar to CHILDREN OF BODOM, the focus of WARMEN is on the interplay of guitar and keyboard perfected by the Wirman brothers. In addition to ten original songs, cover versions of Madonna and Alice Cooper provide surprises, and for the vocals on "First Of The Five Elements", the quartet was able to secure Pasi Rantanen (THUNDERSTONE),Jonna Kosonen and Laiho as guest musicians.

Photo by Marek Sabogal

The N.Dakota Rocks by TRH YouTube channel has uploaded video of FOREIGNER's May 6 performance at at Prairie Knights Casino & Resort in Fort Yates, North Dakota. Check out the clips below.

In a recent interview with "Real Music With Gary Stuckey", FOREIGNER bassist Jeff Pilson addressed the fact that he and his bandmates are often dismissed as a glorified cover band, particularly since founding guitarist Mick Jones no longer regularly tours with the act.

The only remaining original member of FOREIGNER, Jones suffered from some health issues beginning in 2011, eventually resulting in heart surgery in 2012. Ever since, it is never announced whether he will be appearing with the band for specific shows — it just depends how he is feeling.

Asked about criticism from some fans that FOREIGNER without any original members is nothing more than a "cover band," Pilson said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):"You know what's funny? You see some of that on the Internet, but it's not as pervasive as you think. And I'm actually amazed, because when we play, we get no negative feedback. So, sure, people are gonna say stuff like that online. It only takes one or two people to make it sound like there's a bunch.

"What I tell people is anytime anybody has a problem with the no-original-members thing, I just say, 'You know what? I get it. But come and see the band. And then you tell me whether we do FOREIGNER justice or not.' And I'll stand by what we do a thousand percent."

Joining Jones and Pilson in FOREIGNER's current lineup are Kelly Hansen on vocals, Michael Bluestein on keyboards, Bruce Watson on guitar, Chris Frazier on drums and Luis Maldonado on guitar.

After singer Lou Gramm left FOREIGNER in 2003, Jones took some time off before regrouping a couple years later with an entirely new lineup, featuring Hansen and Pilson, among others.

In 2018, Gramm revealed that he was retiring from touring as a solo artist. The vocalist made the announcement just months after he participated in FOREIGNER's "Double Vision: Then And Now" concerts, which featured current and original members of the band, including Jones, drummer Dennis Elliott, keyboardist Al Greenwood, bassist Rick Wills and guitarist/saxophonist Ian McDonald.

Gramm was the voice on FOREIGNER's biggest hits, including "Feels Like The First Time" and "Cold As Ice" from the band's eponymous debut in 1977, and later songs like "Hot Blooded" and "I Want To Know What Love Is".

FOREIGNER's farewell tour is set to launch on July 6 at Atlanta's Ameris Bank Amphitheatre. For the first leg of the U.S. Live Nation-produced tour, FOREIGNER will be joined by LOVERBOY.

In an interview aboard The 80s Cruise, Gramm was asked for his opinion on FOREIGNER's announcement that the band was embarking on its farewell tour. He said: "I think it's a good thing. At this point of the FOREIGNER career, epic career, I think it's run its course. And it's been good years for all involved, especially the band that was FOREIGNER's inception. There were changes in personnel after that while I was still in, and that was a damn good band too. And Mick's choice to keep it going after there were no original members other than himself, that's his option. I can't quite get… I know his health, he's had his ups and downs. And I don't understand how they can be touring with no original members and still calling themselves FOREIGNER and going on for years like that. I guess it's not my business, and maybe it is a business decision for them, but it just doesn't feel right to me."

He added: "Honestly, for years [Mick has] been showing up for half the show or he'd come in the last four or five songs of the set. And apparently lately he's come in for the last song and the encore, and that was it. And then I know there's been many, many shows lately where he's not there at all."

Asked if he would be interested in making a special guest appearance at any of the shows on FOREIGNER's farewell tour, Lou said: "I'm not sure. I'm so at peace with where it is now and how it's ended. And we had our 40th[-anniversary] reunion of one of the albums — the first album or FOREIGNER '4' or 'Double Vision' — we had those. We played some shows with the new band and the old band, and those have been a lot of fun. But just for me to come in and sit in with a band that emotionally doesn't mean that much to me and just play for the memories of it… If there were other members of the original band onstage, I might be inclined to seriously think about it. But to come and guest with the new FOREIGNER, that doesn't appeal to me."

When Goodman noted that Gramm had previously performed with FOREIGNER's current lineup, Lou said: "Yes, when they had the reunion tours. I have not gone to any of the shows and guested myself on stage with the new band — just me. I haven't done that. It's always been with members of the original band with me."

Last October, Gramm was asked during an appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk"what he thinks of Hansen, who has been in the group for nearly two decades. "I think he's a good singer," Lou said. "And he sings those songs okay; he sings them good. But he mimics my style right down to the ad-libs, and I'm offended by that… I just think that if he's gonna sing the songs, he could sing the melodies that are familiar, but when it comes to the ad-libs and all the little things that set me aside as a vocalist when I sing them, he should make his own up. He should have his own ad-libs that are his own; he doesn't have to mimic me."

Gramm's comments echoed those he made a little over two months earlier when he told John Beaudin of RockHistoryMusic.com about Hansen: "Kelly is all right. He's a good singer. But I think Mick [Jones, FOREIGNER's founding guitarist and leader] really told Kelly, when he first got in the band, that he had to study me, because he sings those songs with the same musical innuendos and vocal licks and ad-libs as I have. He's mimicking me. His voice doesn't sound like me, but he's singing the songs the way I would sing them.

"Some people say, 'Well, take it as a compliment, Lou.' I don't take it as a compliment," Gramm continued. "You're a singer with a big band like that — use your voice and your style. Don't hang your coat on my hook.

"I don't think he should sing the songs verbatim like me," Lou added. "Maybe sing a couple of parts. But let his own influences show — show the fans that he's the new singer now, not me."

Asked what it was like to share the stage with Hansen and other members of the current and original FOREIGNER lineup in 2017 and 2018 to celebrate the band's 40th anniversary, Lou told RockHistoryMusic.com: "It was okay. [Kelly] was bouncing off the walls. He couldn't stand still or sit still. After a song ended, I couldn't even get a word to thank the audience or tell 'em that I was happy to be part of the reunion. At the end of the song, the last song hit, and there wasn't a quarter of a second of space before he was yapping away to the audience… It was, like, 'Jeez, will you quiet down for a minute?'"

Pressed about whether it is "over now" for him and FOREIGNER, Lou said: "I think so, yeah. I don't wanna be a part of it. Well, Ian [McDonald, guitar] has passed away and Ed Gagliardi [bass] passed away, even though he wasn't part of the reunions. Two original members of the six are now gone. And Mick is in very poor health. I think when the new FOREIGNER plays, I've heard that he comes on for one song and then waves and goes offstage. [In the recent past] he would play the whole last half of the set. But then he was in the hospital again for weeks. He had some heart problems and his recovery time was very long and tedious. And I heard that he comes out for one song now — when he comes on. Most of the time FOREIGNER has no original FOREIGNER members in it."

The 73-year-old Gramm has battled health issues in recent years, including the removal of a non-cancerous tumor. He told the Democrat & Chronicle in 2018 that he was planning to retire, but still reunited with FOREIGNER for several shows that year.

Gramm and Jones's June 2013 performance of "I Want To Know What Love Is" and "Juke Box Hero" at the Songwriters Hall Of Fame in New York City marked the first time the pair performed together in a decade after Gramm left FOREIGNER for a second time. Hansen has fronted the group for the past 18 years.

On Tuesday, May 30, Attila Csihar, frontman of Norwegian black metal pioneers MAYHEM, joined PANTERA on stage for a performance of the song "Walk" during the Philip Anselmo-fronted act's sold-out show at Barba Negra in Budapest, Hungary. Fan-filmed video of Attila's appearance can be viewed below.

PANTERA's Budapest show marked the band's third live concert in Europe in 23 years — since May 2000, when the band last toured the continent in support of what would be their final album, "Reinventing The Steel".

PANTERA's current lineup includes two surviving members from the band's classic formation, Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass),along with guitarist Zakk Wylde (OZZY OSBOURNE, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY) and drummer Charlie Benante (ANTHRAX).

Anselmo and Brown, along with Wylde and Benante, are headlining a number of major festivals across South America, Asia, North America and Europe and staging some of their own headline concerts. They will also support METALLICA on a massive North American stadium tour in 2023 and 2024.

According to Billboard, the lineup has been given a green light by the estates of the band's founders, drummer Vincent "Vinnie Paul" Abbott and guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott, as well as Brown, who in 2021 said Wylde wouldn't tour with PANTERA if a reunion were to happen. It's unclear what changed his mind.

This past March, PANTERA headlined the 2023 "comeback" edition of Japan's Loud Park festival. The two-day "limited" event took place on March 25 at Intex Osaka in Osaka and March 26 at Makuhari Messe in Chiba City near Tokyo.

In December, PANTERA played seven shows in Mexico and South America.

Brown was forced to leave PANTERA's Latin American tour after testing positive for COVID-19. Filling in for him at some of the shows was CATTLE DECAPITATION bassist Derek Engemann, who also plays with Anselmo in both PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS and SCOUR.

Up until his passing, Vinnie remained on non-speaking terms with Anselmo, whom the drummer indirectly blamed for Dimebag's death.

Vinnie Paul and Dimebag co-founded PANTERA. When PANTERA broke up in 2003, they formed DAMAGEPLAN. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by a troubled schizophrenic who believed that the members of PANTERA were stealing his thoughts.

Vinnie passed away on June 22, 2018 at his other home in Las Vegas at the age of 54. He died of dilated cardiomyopathy, an enlarged heart, as well as severe coronary artery disease. His death was the result of chronic weakening of the heart muscle — basically meaning his heart couldn't pump blood as well as a healthy heart.

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Los Angeles's Grammy-nominated and genre-bending rock outfit FEVER 333 has returned with "$wing", its first studio single in three years, now available on all streaming platforms.

"$wing" expands upon FEVER 333's signature blend of rapid-fire rap cadences and visceral punk expression, coupled with frontman Jason Aalon Butler's socially conscious lyrics — this time taking aim at the sports industry's historical exploitation of people of color and the fight for agency and autonomy. Butler paints an articulate, focused picture without sacrificing venomous reproach and unbridled aggression.

"In a system that exploits the aforementioned instruments of power (the people) for financial and political advancement, we must collectively understand and redirect the dynamic once we realize that we are not powerless against it," Butler asserts before adding, "'$wing' is a sonic reminder that you are the power that they seek and you are the resource they need."

The new music comes on the heels of the debut of FEVER 333's powerful new lineup and a host of high-octane live performances. The new lineup features Butler alongside Thomas Pridgen (THE MARS VOLTA, THUNDERCAT, TRASH TALK) on drums, viral bass virtuoso April Kae and guitarist Brandon Davis.

"This new era of FEVER 333 is beyond even what I could have imagined", Butler says. "The talent, the funk, the passion, and the respect for this project April, Thomas and Brandon have already delivered have shown me, once again, that this project is something more than a band on stage".

Ushering a return to their ceremonial-like "functions" with a house party in Butler's hometown of South Central Los Angeles recently, FEVER 333 have since indoctrinated festival crowds at the highly-publicized Las Vegas festival Sick New World and are now gearing up for a string of European dates and festival appearances — including Germany's Rock Am Ring and Rock Im Park, Hellfest in France and the U.K.'s lauded Download festival.

With the release of "$wing", FEVER 333 has also announced a worldwide collaboration between their label 333 Wreckords Crew and Century Media Records to release FEVER 333 music for the foreseeable future exclusively.

"I feel very lucky to have entered this partnership with 333 Wreckords Crew and the folks at Century Media for this upcoming album", Butler reveals. "I'm calling it right now — we're going to shift a paradigm, or two, regarding how this game gets played and how it tries to play us."

Tour dates:

Jun. 2 - Nürburgring, Germany @ Rock Am Ring Festival
Jun. 4 - Nürnberg, Germany @ Rock Im Park Festival
Jun. 6 - Wroclaw, Poland @ Zaklęte Rewiry
Jun. 7 - Bratislava, Slovakia @ Majestic
Jun. 8 - Nickelsdorf, Austria @ Nova Rock Festival
Jun. 10 - Donnington, UK @ Download Festival
Jun. 15 - Copenhagen, Denmark @ Copenhell Festival
Jun. 16 - Dessel, Belgium @ Graspop Festival
Jun. 17 - Clisson, France @ Hell Fest
Jun. 19 - Malmo, Sweden @ Plan B
Jun. 20 - Stockholm, Sweden @ Debaser
Jun. 22 - Oslo, Norway @ Tons of Rock Festival
Jun. 23 - Ysselsteyn, Netherlands @ Jera On Air Festival
Jun. 24 - Munster, Germany @ Vainstream Festival
Jun. 25 - Spalence Porcini, Czech Republic @ Basinfire Festival
Jun. 27 - Toulouse, France @ Le Bikini
Jun. 29 - Lisbon, Portugal @ Evil Live Festival
Jun. 30 - Lugo, Spain @ Resurrection Fest
Jul. 2 - Arras, France @ Main Square Festival
Jul. 28 - Niigata, Japan @ Fuji Rock Festival
Sep. 22 - Louisville, Kentucky @ Louder Than Life Festival
Oct. 7 - Sacramento, California @ Aftershock Festival

Photo credit: Djay Brawner

Multi-platinum hard rock icons EXTREME have released "Other Side Of The Rainbow", the fourth single from their much-anticipated new album "Six", due June 9 via earMUSIC. "Other Side Of The Rainbow" shows off EXTREME's more intimate side in the vein of previous singles such as the RIAA gold-certified, Billboard Hot 100 No. 1 hit "More Than Words", "Hole Hearted" and "Seven Sundays". "Other Side Of The Rainbow" is one of EXTREME's most soulful journeys, taking listeners into the depths of the human heart.

"Every once in a while, we'll harness some kind of magic, and I think we did on this one," says frontman Gary Cherone. "It's a universal theme. It's about restoring someone's faith in love...we feel that it's the perfect marriage of lyrics and melody."

Citing Brian May, Eddie Van Halen and Neil Schon as particular influences, EXTREME co-founder and guitarist Nuno Bettencourt asks, "How do you play a blistering solo, making it feel like a rainbow?" He goes on to share, "It's a groove we've never done acoustically. It's got my favorite guitar solo it's an up-tempo, moving song."

EXTREME is currently gearing up to perform for audiences across the globe on its headlining "Thicker Than Blood" world tour. It stretches from August 2 to December 16 and will see the band appear across the U.S., Australia, Japan and Europe, including special guests LIVING COLOUR (U.S., Australia and U.K. only) and THE LAST INTERNATIONALE (Europe only). The tour has already sold-out dates in Hampton Beach, London, Melbourne, Tokyo, Amsterdam and more.

"Whatever you think an EXTREME album is after two or even three songs, it's not," states Bettencourt. "That goes for every record we've ever done. True EXTREME fans know to 'expect the unexpected.' I feel like we need a good old-school rock album. 'Six' is definitely modern, but you can put on headphones and go on a journey from top-to-bottom. It's like 'EXTREME 2.0'."

On "Six", EXTREME swing between unapologetic fits of fret-burning hard rock and intimately introspective balladry. For the recording of the Bettencourt-produced 12-track album, the members — Cherone (vocals),Bettencourt (guitar),Pat Badger (bass) and Kevin Figueiredo (drums) — buckled down at Bettencourt's home studio in Los Angeles to channel the electrifying eclecticism that defined their seminal output with a 21st century twist.

This dynamic affirms the iconic Boston quartet as one of rock's most unpredictable, undeniable, and unbreakable groups whose songs course through the very fabric of popular culture. They're the rare band whose music has appeared in an actual cult series a la "Bill & Ted" as well as the Netflix juggernaut "Stranger Things". They've sold 10 million records, topped the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 1, packed major venues on multiple continents, memorably performed at the Freddie Mercury tribute concert in London, and regularly average over five million monthly listeners on Spotify. However, their dynamic approach hits harder than ever on "Six".

Photo credit: Jesse Lirola

STAIND has released the DJay Brawner-directed music video for the band's new single, "Lowest In Me". The track is taken from the band's upcoming album, "Confessions Of The Fallen", which will arrive in September via Alchemy Recordings/BMG. STAIND's first new LP album since 2011 was produced by Erik Ron (GODSMACK, PANIC! AT THE DISCO, BLACK VEIL BRIDES).

Asked why now was "the right time" to release a new STAIND album, guitarist Mike Mushok told Lou Brutus of HardDrive Radio: "We've talked about it, and it just seemed right. Aaron [Lewis, STAIND frontman] has been doing his country career for a while now. And we got back together in 2019 and were able to do some shows, which was great. And then we had a whole 2020 planned, but as with a lot of people, that kind of went away. In the meantime, we did that tour with KORN in 2021. And that's where a lot of the stuff for this record kind of came up; I was kind of writing every day on that and was actually able to get together with Aaron and play him some ideas. That's kind of where this all started, really, for this record. I kind of got some direction of what he wanted, what he liked, and that's how we moved forward with it."

Regarding the songwriting process for "Confessions Of The Fallen", Mike said: "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 last month, 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." Added Mushok, "It's undeniably Aaron's voice, and same for the songs. We got together and spent a lot of time focusing on direction, and we really like how it turned out."

Last December, Mushok told the Loaded Radio podcast about the musical direction of STAIND's new material: "It's a little bit more modernized, I think. I think that was something we kind of wanted to do. There's a little bit more of an electronic element on there, which is something new for us, but I feel like everybody is kind of doing that. But I think it's cool. It's not overused. I think the songs are really good. I'm really happy with it. I can't wait for people to hear it."

Mushok also talked about his working relationship with Lewis, saying: "We've been doing it for a long time. It's great to be back and doing that… I think that we definitely respect each other. It's kind of always been that. I think that STAIND's really kind of been… For the most part, I bring some music in and he decides what he likes and what he wants to write to, and we kind of take it from there. That being said, he's come in, obviously, with some amazing songs as well. So it's been a really good writing partnership, I feel."

Last September, Mushok told Atlantic City Weekly that both he and Lewis will continue to pursue other projects — Mushok with SAINT ASONIA, the band he co-founded in 2015 with former THREE DAYS GRACE singer Adam Gontier, and Lewis with his country solo career — alongside their long-running outfit.

In 2021, STAIND supported KORN on a U.S. run of dates.

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. The series launched with STAIND's "Live: It's Been Awhile (From Foxwoods)" concert, which streamed globally on May 1, 2021. The "Live: It's Been Awhile" album and concert were recorded at the band's comeback show at Foxwoods Resort Casino in Mashantucket, Connecticut in October 2019. The never-before-seen concert celebrated the band's reunion after a five-year hiatus. STAIND also performed its iconic multi-platinum 2001 album "Break The Cycle" in its entirety for a May 8, 2021 streaming event, exactly 20 years after the album's release. The "20th Anniversary Of Break The Cycle, Performed In Its Entirety" took place at Mill 1 in Open Square in Holyoke, Massachusetts, bringing the band back to their Western Mass roots.

STAIND played its first full live show in five years in September 2019 at the Louder Than Life music festival in Louisville, Kentucky.

STAIND and GODSMACK recently announced a 25-city co-headlining 2023 tour, produced by Live Nation. The trek kicks 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.

EMPIRE STATE BASTARD, the extreme metal band founded by Simon Neil (BIFFY CLYRO) and Mike Vennart (BIFFY CLYRO live guitarist and solo artist, ex-OCEANSIZE),will release its debut album, "Rivers Of Heresy", on September 1 via Roadrunner. The LP will feature EMPIRE STATE BASTARD's debut single "Harvest", which was released this past March ahead of the band's sold-out U.K. headline tour.

EMPIRE STATE BASTARD also features the legendary Dave Lombardo (SLAYER, TESTAMENT, MR. BUNGLE) on drums, with Naomi Macleod (BITCH FALCON) rounding out the live lineup on bass.

As Mike candidly admits, "I set about making the most fucking poisonous vile music I possibly could, just unabridged hatred in musical form."

Simon adds, "Lyrically, it's as misanthropic and nihilistic as I've ever written."

In addition to its digital release, "Rivers Of Heresy" will be made available on the following limited-edition physical formats: CD with an exclusive 24-page fanzine; poison green vinyl and red / black marble vinyl; and cassette. The deluxe vinyl bundle adds a seven-inch single featuring "Harvest" and a non-album B-side to either album vinyl.

Up next, EMPIRE STATE BASTARD will play select international festival dates this summer, including U.K. sets at Download, Glastonbury and ArcTanGent before heading to the States for an appearance at Riot Fest this September.

The concept for EMPIRE STATE BASTARD emerged when Neil and Vennart would spend downtime on tour sitting at the back of their bus sharing the heaviest, most avant-garde and confrontational music they could find. Now, a decade on from its conception, the project is finally coming to fruition, with Vennart writing the songs and recording all the guitars, and Neil focusing on vocals and lyrics.

The two have emerged with a collection of songs which adventurously probes slamming hardcore in the vein of SIEGE; the frenetic, visceral thrash of SLAYER; the claustrophobic sludge of MELVINS; the freeform vocal dexterity of Mike Patton; and the gargantuan stoner riffs of SLEEP. It's a band that's rooted in the tradition of metal's forefathers but informed by more recent waves of leftfield aggression.

"Rivers Of Heresy" track listing:

01. Harvest
02. Blusher
03. Moi?
04. Tired, Aye?
05. Sons And Daughters
06. Stutter
07. Palms Of Hands
08. Dusty
09. Sold!
10. The Looming

During a recent appearance on "The Jasta Show", Lombardo spoke about his involvement with EMPIRE STATE BASTARD. Dave said: "Simon Neil and Mike Vennart [are] from a very popular band in the U.K. called BIFFY CLYRO. [A lot of people in the U.S.] don't know who BIFFY CLYRO is, but they're massive in the U.K. They headline Download and Glastonbury [festivals]; they headline Download the next day after IRON MAIDEN. So there guys are massive. But Simon Neil, the vocalist for that band, and Mike Vennart have a love and an affinity for hardcore music. And for the past 10 years they've been talking about this. And they hit me up during the pandemic and took a shot in the dark and said, 'Well, why not? Let's ask him. He might not wanna do it.' But they asked. At first, I fell in love with the music. I was, like, 'Wow. This is pretty fucking cool.' Odd time changes. It's a little thrashy. It has a little bit of grindcore in it. It's hard to describe. It's its own entity and it has a personality of its own. So to give it a description is really difficult. But it is in the hard music vein. And when I heard the music, I was blown away. And I agreed. And they sent me the files [for the album]. And I recorded the drums in my home studio, and I sent it back. And they were pleased. And it's gonna be out — I hope — sometime in September."

Neil previously told NME that working on other projects, including EMPIRE STATE BASTARD, got him "through not touring — just knowing I can spend the year making new music."

He added: "I like putting myself in these positions where I'm like, 'I should never be doing this, so this is what I'm going to do.' I don't just want to do the same shit. Every time between records, I want to do something that's fucked up and off the wall. It brings me back to BIFFY, and I'm more in love with it now than I've ever been."

Lombardo, who has spent most of the recent years between crossover pioneers SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, horror-punk icons MISFITS, hardcore supergroup DEAD CROSS and MR. BUNGLE, was effectively fired from SLAYER after sitting out the group's Australian tour in February/March 2013 due to a contract dispute with the other bandmembers. He was later replaced by Paul Bostaph, who was previously SLAYER's drummer from 1992 until 2001.

Lombardo rejoined TESTAMENT last year but has since stopped touring with that band.

Photo credit: Gavin Smart

During a May 25 appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", W.A.S.P. frontman Blackie Lawless was once again asked about complaints from some of the band's fans about the use of backing tracks during the group's live performances. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "About 10, 12 years ago, we did 'The Crimson Idol' the first time in its entirety with orchestration. Now, prior to that, we had just done — I call it the 'Live At Leeds' version… Because if you look at what THE WHO did with the 'Live At Leeds', which we all thought was live at the time, and we now realize there are overdubs on those as well, like most live records. We would take the bare-bones approach to doing it. Well, we decided to take an approach where we tried to make it sound exactly like the record. And we had never used orchestration or anything like that. So we went in the studio, we took all the tracks off the record as far as the orchestration, we took the background vocal tracks, we took doubles on leads — we did everything. And we took it and we tried to make it sound as much like the record as we could. I stood in the middle of the room that first night in rehearsal, and I swear to you it was like an out-of-body experience. I had never heard anything sound like that before. I had never played with a live orchestra before. And so this was the closest thing you would get to doing something like that.

"Listen, I understand both sides of the argument on it," he continued. "For me personally, when I'm up there, I'm singing my ass off. But what's wrong with having enhancement to make something sound exactly like the record? Because you're not gonna get a band like QUEEN or any other band that does big productions like that… Four guys cannot go out there and reproduce that record. It's impossible. It won't happen. So do you want it to sound like the record or do you want it to be just a general live performance? And that's a question of taste.

"If you're gonna start making records where you have a lot of orchestration and things like that going, it is impossible to make it sound like that record unless you have that," Lawless added. "And you can also make the argument, which has been going on Broadway for the last 20 years, the musicians' union has been fighting this fiercely but technology rolls on and it's not gonna stop, where they no longer have live music in Broadway productions. And the musicians' union has had a fit over that. Well, even before that happened, when you had keyboards introduced that had entire orchestras in them, you've got one guy now replacing a hundred and twenty different people. So where do you draw the line?

"Like I said, I understand if somebody wants a true, organic experience, but from my perspective, I looked at it and I said… Once I heard it sound exactly like the record, I thought, 'I cannot go back to this again.' I mentioned THE WHO a second ago, the 'Live At Leeds' approach. THE WHO used tapes for years until they started hiring all these other guys to go out with them. But even still, a lot of the keyboard stuff — 'Won't Get Fooled Again', things like that — that's all on tape."

"When I go out on that stage, I take a lot of pride in this gift that God's given me," Blackie added. "And I like to show it off; I'll just be flat-out honest with you. But I think people wanna see that or they wanna hear it. So I don't think there's anything wrong with it. If you've got a guitar player that is really, really good, people are going there to see that. But again, when I went into rehearsals that one night and I heard what it sounded like when it sounded like the record, I thought, 'I can never go back.' Like I said, it was a flat-out out-of-body experience."

Asked what percentage of the vocals during W.A.S.P.'s live concerts are on tape, Blackie said: "You mean from my lead vocals? For my lead vocals, I would encourage people to go… We did five shows where I was sitting. Go look at those last couple. You're gonna hear it loud and clear. 'Cause when we were in Sofia, I cracked a couple of times, which I normally don't do. But it was getting towards the end of the tour. I mean, it wasn't anything catastrophic, but for me, I don't normally crack. But it happens. It's part of the live experience. But when we start doing the choruses and things like that, myself and Mike Duda and Doug Blair, we're all out there singing, but we're using backups behind that too. Because when we did it in the studio, we were using three and four tracks at a time to create that. You cannot make those choruses sound huge like that with just individual vocals creating that, because when you're doing it in the studio, you double and triple tracks. I mentioned QUEEN a while ago — they were using 24 tracks of vocals to create those sounds. You cannot create those chorus sounds by two or three guys doing that. It is impossible… Unless there's 20 guys in that room doing that, it ain't gonna sound like that… If you're doing 24 tracks of vocals to create that chorus effect, a handful of guys cannot do that, even with electronic doublers. And then you can get into that argument — okay, you're using mechanical effects to enhance one guy out there. I mean, where do we draw the line with this now?"

W.A.S.P. has been criticized for the group's supposed use of backing tracks, including for Blackie's lead vocals, for at least several years, as Metal Sludge pointed out in 2019 after Lawless and his bandmates performed at the Helgeåfestivalen in Sweden.

In recent years, more and more artists have been given a pass for relying on pre-recorded tracks, drum triggers and other assorted technology that makes concerts more synthetic but also more consistent. For better or worse, pre-recorded tracks are becoming increasingly common for touring artists of all levels and genres and they're not just used in pop music — many rock artists utilize playback tracks to varying degrees.

KISS frontman Paul Stanley, who has been struggling to hit the high notes in many of the band's classic songs for a number of years, has been accused of singing to a backing tape on KISS's ongoing "End Of The Road" tour.

Back in 2015, KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons slammed bands who used backing tapes for not being honest enough to include that fact on their concert tickets.

"I have a problem when you charge $100 to see a live show and the artist uses backing tracks," Simmons said. "It's like the ingredients in food. If the first ingredient on the label is sugar, that's at least honest. It should be on every ticket — you're paying $100, 30 to 50 percent of the show is [on] backing tracks and they'll sing sometimes, sometimes they'll lip sync. At least be honest. It's not about backing tracks, it's about dishonesty.

"There's nobody with a synthesizer on our stage, there's no samples on the drums, there's nothing," Gene continued. "There's very few bands who do that now — AC/DC, METALLICA, us. I can't even say that about U2 or THE [ROLLING] STONES. There's very few bands who don't use [backing] tracks."

This past March, KISS's longtime manager Doc McGhee defended Stanley's vocal performance on "End Of The Road", explaining that the "Star Child" "fully sings to every song" at every concert. He explained: It's enhanced. It's just part of the process to make sure that everybody hears the songs the way they should be sang to begin with. Nobody wants to hear people do stuff that's not real, that's not what they came to hear."

When McGhee was asked to clarify if he was "actually saying there are backing tracks that [Paul is] singing to," Doc said: "He'll sing to tracks. It's all part of a process. Because everybody wants to hear everybody sing. But he fully sings to every song."

In March 2020, SHINEDOWN guitarist Zach Myers said that "90 percent" of rock artists use at least some pre-recorded tracks during their live performances. He told Rock Feed: "It bothers me that it bothers people. I'm, like, 'Why does this bother you?' It's the way it is. People have been doing this since the '80s. And we want the sound to be the best it can be. Could we go up there, just the four of us, and put on the best rock show ever? Of course. But that's not how we wanna do it."

Former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach has previously said that he is "one of the last people" who are still not using pre-recorded tracks at their live shows. "I don't know how much longer I can say to you that I don't use tapes onstage, because I don't, and I never have," he told Consequence Of Sound. "And I still don't. When I have opening bands, and they're using tapes, and then I come out and I don't use tapes… sometimes, it makes me feel stupid, because I'm like, 'What am I doing, when all these kids half my age can come onstage and do all of my moves, but they don't have to warm up for an hour before the show, or weeks, before the first show?' Sometimes, I'm like, 'Why do I even bother, if the public is so used to this other way?' It's becoming very rare to come see a good band that's actually a real band — that's not miming or doing silly moves while a tape is running. It just becomes more rare as the years go on."

In 2019, IRON MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith said that he doesn't "agree" with certain rock artists relying on pre-recorded tracks during their live performances. "I tell you what, I see it with a lot of younger bands, and I don't think it's a good thing at all," he told the New York Post. "I mean, the music is getting too technical now. You have computerized recording systems, which we use, but I think we use them more for convenience than because we need to. We've toured with a couple bands that use tapes — it's not real. You're supposed to play live; it should be live. I don't agree with using tapes … I think it's a real shame."

One musician who has been open about his band's use of taped vocals during live performances is MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx, who said: "We've used technology since '87." He added the group employed "sequencers, sub tones, background vox tracks, plus background singers and us. [MÖTLEY CRÜE also taped] stuff we can't tour with, like cello parts in ballads, etc.... We love it and don't hide it. It's a great tool to fill out the sound."

In a 2014 interview, MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist Mick Mars admitted that he wasn't comfortable with the fact that his band used pre-recorded backing vocals in its live shows, claiming that he preferred to watch groups whose performances are delivered entirely live. "I don't like it," he said. "I think a band like ours… I have to say '60s bands were my favorite — '60s and '70s bands — because they were real, like, three-piece bands or four-piece bands, and they just got up there and kicked it up. Made a mistake? So what? Sounded a little bit empty here or there? So what? It's the bigness and the rawness and the people that developed and wrote the songs and made them and presented them. To me, that's what I really like. I mean, I could put on a MÖTLEY CD and play with it all day long. I don't wanna do that."

In a new interview with Ronni Hunter of the 99.7 The Blitz radio station conducted at this past weekend's Sonic Temple festival in Columbus, Ohio, THE PRETTY RECKLESS frontwoman Taylor Momsen confirmed that she and her bandmates have commenced work on the follow-up to 2021's "Death By Rock And Roll" album.

"We're in a great headspace," she said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "We're just having fun with it, and wrapping up the tour cycle of 'Death By Rock And Roll', with the last few shows. We're going out with [the FOO FIGHTERS] in June, which I'm so stoked about. And then new record — and it's next chapter. We've already kind of started it… We've gotten into a studio; we've stepped foot into a studio. So that's saying something for us."

Regarding when fans can expect to hear new music from THE PRETTY RECKLESS, Taylor said: "I don't know how long it's gonna take. I have no dates for anyone or any more insight other than that. But we have walked into a studio and we are super, super excited."

Last November, THE PRETTY RECKLESS released a new collection of music, "Other Worlds", via Fearless Records. The effort saw the group delivering its first proper acoustic recordings, unexpected covers and other reimaginings.

"Death By Rock And Roll" was made available in February 2021 via Fearless Records in the U.S. and Century Media Records in the rest of the world.

Upon release, "Death By Rock And Roll" topped multiple sales charts — including Billboard's Top Albums, Rock, Hard Music, and Digital charts. The record also yielded three back-to-back No. 1 singles — "Death By Rock And Roll", "And So It Went" (featuring Tom Morello of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE) and "Only Love Can Save Me Now" (featuring Kim Thayil and Matt Cameron of SOUNDGARDEN). The band has tallied seven No. 1 singles at the rock format throughout its career.

"Death By Rock And Roll" was THE PRETTY RECKLESS's first album to be made without longtime producer Kato Khandwala, who died in April 2018 from injuries sustained in a motorcycle accident.

THE PRETTY RECKLESS formed in 2009 and consists of Momsen, guitarist Ben Phillips, bassist Mark Damon and drummer Jamie Perkins.

In 2021, Momsen — who rose to fame portraying the character of edgy little sister Jenny Humphrey on The CW's "Gossip Girl" — described "Death By Rock And Roll" in an interview with ABC Audio as a "battle cry for life and for hope."

"I think that that's something that we can all use a little bit more of, especially right now," she said. "We could always use a little more hope, and we could always use a little more rock and roll."

Image credit: concertsrock

During the second installment of his "QT With DC" video series, WHITESNAKE frontman David Coverdale was asked about a possible follow-up to his collaboration with Jimmy Page. The well-received COVERDALE PAGE set was recorded in several studios on both sides of the Atlantic over the winter of 1991-92 before it was finally released in March 1993.

"As Sean Connery said about James Bond: 'Never say never,'" Coverdale said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I have no idea. I treasure the time I worked with Jimmy. I think we got the best out of each other at that particular time in our lives. And that was the whole purpose of doing that. I'm there for Jimmy if he needs me for anything, as I hope he's there for me… But I'm not sure if that's gonna happen. But I'm wide open."

Back in November 2021, Coverdale discussed a possible reissue of COVERDALE PAGE's eponymously titled LP in an interview with 107.7 The Bone's "Lamont & Tonelli". He said: "I was very excited. Jimmy and I worked very well creatively, as you can hear, and we had another four or five songs which were unmixed. And I said, 'Jimmy, I've got all these other ideas. Let's just do a COVERDALE PAGE '2' or let's make a double album.' And sadly, his manager at the time talked him out of it, which was infuriating. However, some of those songs that I had to present to Jimmy are on [David Coverdale & WHITESNAKE's 1997] 'Restless Heart' record — two of 'em. It was 'Take Me Back Again' and 'Woman Trouble Blues'. Those were originally ideas for Jimmy and I, had we made a second album. But in 2023, it's the 30th anniversary, so look for something special. It's gonna be a lot of fun."

Coverdale previously spoke about his collaboration with Page during a February 2021 appearance on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". At the time, he said that he and Jimmy were planning a "very big, luxurious, complete box set [for] the [LP's] 30th anniversary in 2023."

As for what extra material might surface on the expanded "Coverdale Page" set, the WHITESNAKE singer said: "We've got four unreleased tracks, which just need to be mixed. But since we reconnected, I've been messing around, writing at home. And I have two ideas which could make really fun tracks — just to throw at him and 'see what you can do with this.' The way we did it before — we wrote really very potent music together.

"The other thing that I recommended to him was, 'Let's remaster the original, but I'd love you, in England, with a mixer of your choice, to do the Jimmy Page mix of the album, and I'll do the David Coverdale mix as bonus stuff,'" he continued. "And I think that'd be great. He trusts me, I trust him, and I think it would be great for the fans to get Jimmy's take on it, 'cause we did everything 50/50 on the project. It was an amazing three years together. I loved it. So, yeah, that's definitely in the pipeline."

Upon its release, "Coverdale Page" sold strongly, peaking at No. 4 on the U.K. album chart and No. 5 in the U.S. The album eventually went platinum in the U.S., despite the fact that the project as a whole was marred by the "LED ZEPPELIN clone" tag, including from ZEPPELIN frontman Robert Plant, who openly expressed his disdain for Coverdale, referring to him as "David Cover-version." Coverdale was equally vitriolic in his response, saying about the LED ZEPPELIN singer, "There's certainly no love lost between myself and Robert… I wouldn't send him cat food if he was starving."

Coverdale later apologized to Plant, saying in a 2013 interview with TeamRock Radio's "Classic Rock Magazine Show": "I hold [Plant] in the highest esteem as a human being, and as an artist, and I really would like to, you know, sit down, buy him a drink, shake hands and say: 'I'm really sorry," you know, "Can we be friends again?' I don't hold any animosity, just disappointment in myself that I took the bait and ran with some ugly things. Because it's not appropriate for somebody I respect so much."