The official documentary about German thrash metal veterans KREATOR, "Kreator - Hate & Hope", premiered on July 2 at the 42nd Munich International Film Festival and will receive a theatrical premiere on September 4. The 110-minute film was directed by Cordula Kablitz-Post, who previously helmed the 2019 documentary about the German punk rock group DIE TOTEN HOSEN.

At the August 23 premiere of "Kreator - Hate & Hope" in Berlin, Germany, Kablitz-Post and the four members of KREATOR spoke to Kati Rausch of Music Interview Corner about the making of the documentary, which uses private archive material to tell the story of one of the longest-running and biggest bands of the German thrash metal scene.

Asked how he balanced the need to tell KREATOR's story while also retaining his privacy, KREATOR frontman Mille Petrozza said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I think we found a very nice compromise of showing a little bit of personal stuff without getting too private. But I think the movie really benefits from the fact that there is more personal stuff and then there's the audience, and then there's stuff in the studio, then there's behind-the-scenes and backstage stuff. So it's a nice variety of — it shows all the facets. And it's the whole band… This is also like a certain… How do I put this? There's almost like a relationship with four people, plus the crew and plus the audience. So Cordula really managed to give the viewer a nice insight of how it is to be in a band. And it's not just the glory of the concerts, but also the waiting around and the stuff at the airport and there's so much more to it than just what people see on stage. And if you're interested in that, the movie is really, really good. And it's interesting. We take you kind of behind the scenes and also to some more personal stuff."

Petrozza also talked about the upcoming official German-language version of his autobiography, which he wrote with journalist, author and presenter Torsten Groß, "Your Heaven, My Hell - Mein Leben, Heavy Metal Und Wie Das Alles Passieren Konnte" ("Your Heaven, My Hell - My Life, Heavy Metal, And How It All Could Happen") will be published on August 28 via Ullstein Verlag. The book is available for pre-order now.

Regarding how opening up for his book compared to telling KREATOR's story in the documentary, Mille said: "The book is different, because this is present, and Cordula was on tour with us and the book was stopped at '93, I think, or '94, or maybe even '92. And so to me that didn't seem so private, because it almost seems like another life; it is long time ago. And it's probably more private… I decided both — I mean, I was making my peace with both the book and Cordula. So it was a decision to make, to open myself up and do this documentary and do this book. So it's all good. It's all good. I think the book is entertaining, and the movie is amazing. So I think it was about time to share some stuff. And, yeah, I never thought about it, but yeah. It wasn't hard. It was a decision."

A trailer for "Kreator - Hate & Hope", is available below.

Official "Kreator - Hate & Hope" description: "To their fans worldwide, they are gods, but their music seems possessed by the devil — more aggressive, faster, and more uncompromising than others. The German band KREATOR has long since reached the pinnacle of the thrash metal scene. The film 'Kreator - Hate & Hope' tells the forty-year history of the celebrated metal band for the first time, from their founding as a school band in 1982 in the Ruhr area to the grand international stages of their current world tour. Then as now, they stand against the hatred and the abysses of our society. Shrill tones, virtuosic guitar riffs, and energetic drumbeats process the turmoil in our civilization with tremendous willpower and creativity. Between Hannah Arendt quotes and headless corpses, emerges a well-crafted poetry of chaos full of symbols of horror — a musical Molotov cocktail against evil with a cathartic effect.

"For her new documentary, director Cordula Kablitz-Post ('Die Toten Hosen - You Only Live Once') goes on tour with the legendary thrash metal band from the Ruhrpott for a year: Wacken Open Air, Tokyo, Osaka, Bangalore, Los Angeles and finally 'Klash Of The Ruhrpott' in Gelsenkirchen, where Germany's metal greats gather. With private archive recordings and exciting interviews (Scott Ian / ANTHRAX, Chuck Billy / TESTAMENT, Bela B. / DIE ÄRZTE, guitarist Phil Demmel / formerly MACHINE HEAD, Maik Weichert / HEAVEN SHALL BURN, Nergal / BEHEMOTH, Lars Eidinger, Andy Sneap) they embark on a very honest and humorous journey into the wildly beating heart of German music history."

Last fall, Petrozza told Oran O'Beirne of Fistful Of Metal magazine about the KREATOR documentary: "I have to be honest with you, this documentary was not our idea, and in fact, we are not involved in the production side of it. The whole concept came from Cordula, who approached us with this proposition and she has full creative control. She is a very well-respected director who has produced some incredible cinematic documentaries in the past, so I'm very excited to see the finished film."

He continued: "I'm usually a control freak when it comes to things like this, so it's a very surreal experience not being in the driving seat when it comes to creative decision making, but I have total faith and trust in Cordula."

Regarding his upcoming book, Mille said at the time: "Well, I can tell you that the book is done. A friend of mine and I have been co-writing a book together looking specifically at the early years of the band, specifically up to 1992. The thing is, we have a German publisher and they're, hopefully, going to be making this book available in English. But as of now, we are looking to release the book in 2025."

He continued: "I can also tell you the working title of the book is 'Your Heaven, My Hell', and we go very deep into the struggles of starting the band, the impact of the tape-trading community back then, and loads of stores and interesting moments that led to the band being where we are today."

In 2001, Cordula founded Avanti Media Fiction, through which she primarily produces feature films and high-quality television and theatrical documentaries.

KREATOR recently entered Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden with producer Jens Bogren to begin recording its sixteenth studio album, tentatively due in early 2026. Bogren previously helmed KREATOR's "Phantom Antichrist" (2012) and "Gods Of Violence" (2017) LPs.

KREATOR's upcoming effort will be the follow-up to 2022's "Hate Über Alles", which was recorded at Hansa Tonstudio in Berlin, Germany. Helming the sessions for that LP was Arthur Rizk, who has previously worked with CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, CODE ORANGE, POWER TRIP and SOULFLY, among others.

"Hate Über Alles" marked KREATOR's first album with bassist Frédéric Leclercq, who joined the group in 2019.

KREATOR played its first show with Leclercq in October 2019 in Santiago, Chile.

Before joining KREATOR, Leclercq rose to fame with U.K.-based extreme power metallers DRAGONFORCE for whom he handled bass duties from 2005 until August 2019.

Some Impressions from last nights German premiere of HATE AND HOPE @lichtburgessen It was simply overwhelming to feel...

Posted by Kreator on Friday, August 22, 2025

CRADLE OF FILTH played its first concert following the departure of guitarist Marek "Ashok" Šmerda on Tuesday, August 26, just hours after the Czech-born musician revealed he was planning to leave the band at the end of the band's ongoing Latin American tour. Fan-filmed video of the show at Montevideo Music Box in Montevideo, Uruguay can be seen below.

Šmerda, who had played with the veteran extreme metal veterans for more than a decade, was fired by CRADLE OF FILTH frontman Dani Filth after the guitarist shared a post on social media in which he described his time in the group as "a lot of work for relatively low pay, the stress is quite high, and we haven't felt for a while like this band actually prioritizing/caring about members". He also said that he asked to have his contributions "removed" from all of CRADLE OF FILTH's "upcoming releases", including the band's long-delayed collaborative track with pop superstar Ed Sheeran, explaining that it "this song feels like foolish clown antics for me at this point anyways — first it was charity single for kids, then for profit single, then on next album, and now who knows and I just do not want to be involved anymore, no disrespect to Ed Sheeran."

Ashok's announcement that he would depart CRADLE OF FILTH came just two days after his wife, Zoë M. Federoff, left the group mid-tour after serving as CRADLE OF FILTH's female vocalist and keyboardist for the past three years.

Federoff, who joined CRADLE in 2022, said on Sunday that she was leaving the band effective immediately, citing "personal reasons". She also shot down rumors that she was exiting the group due to problems in her marriage.

Šmerda and Federoff later issued a joint statement, calling CRADLE's management "dishonest" and "manipulative" and warning future members of the band to "read the contract".

The couple got engaged in 2024 and married in January.

A short time after Ashok shared his statement on social media, Dani announced Šmerda's immediate dismissal from CRADLE OF FITH, insisting that "despite all attempts to illegally defame and derail the band, CRADLE OF FILTH WILL NOT cancel any of our South American shows, though fans will have to bear with us being a band with only one guitarist live, that is of course until Ashok's temporary replacement is flown out to join the tour in a few days' time."

He continued: "Thank you for your understanding in this horrible matter, we are all in a state of shock over proceedings and will share our side to these unfortunate events in due course. Please, respect our decision to part with Ashok now rather than at the end of the tour and avoid speculation as more clarity on the situation will be provided.

"The rest of the band are cool, even if taken aback, and accusations toward management, who work very closely with me and the band are completely unjust and unfounded."

CRADLE OF FILTH's concert in Uruguay saw Dani joined by Martin "Marthus" Škaroupka on drums, Daniel Firth on bass, Donny Burbage on guitar and Kelsey Peters on keyboards and backing vocals.

It is not presently unclear who will temporarily replace Šmerda on some of the remaining shows on CRADLE OF FILTH's Latin American tour.

Born in Brno, Czech Republic, Šmerda had been the guitarist for CRADLE OF FILTH since early 2014 when he received the invitation to embark on a European tour with the band. Since then, he had become a full-time member, having toured all around the world with the group while simultaneously having contributed to the CRADLE OF FILTH releases "Hammer Of The Witches", "Cryptoriana - The Seductiveness Of Decay", "Existence Is Futile" and "The Screaming Of The Valkyries".

Se viene Ceadle of Cradle of Filth & Uada en MMBOX - 26/8
🗓 26 de agosto
📍 Montevideo Music Box
🎟 entradas en redtickets.uy
Junto a Uada y Souther Rising

Posted by Metalshows Uruguay on Monday, August 4, 2025

BON JOVI will release "Forever (Legendary Edition)", a new version of last year's "Forever" album, on October 24 via Island Records. "Forever (Legendary Edition)" will include guest appearances on vocals by Bruce Springsteen, Jelly Roll, James Bay, Robbie Williams, Jason Isbell, Ryan Tedder, THE WAR AND TREATY, DEF LEPPARD's Joe Elliott, Lainey Wilson, Avril Lavigne and Marcus King, among others. Also included will be a new opening track, "Red, White & Jersey", which will be released on Friday, August 29, along with a new version of "Hollow Man", featuring Springsteen.

"This album is more than just a collection of collaborations, it is an album borne out of necessity," BON JOVI frontman Jon Bon Jovi says in a statement. "My vocal cord rehab was a well-documented journey that played out while releasing 'Forever' in 2024. I was singing well in the studio for recording, but the vocal demands and rigors of touring were still slightly out of reach for me. Without an ability to tour at that time, I continued working in the studio and called on some friends, great singers, artists, musicians and also just great people."

He continues: "The result is an album with a new viewpoint and new spirit — a collaboration album that proves we all get by in this world with a little help from our friends. I feel tremendous joy and gratitude releasing this album and I think it shows in the music. I can say with certainty that there is always something bigger than ME, and that's WE."

"Forever (Legendary Edition)" track listing:

01. Red, White & Jersey
02. Legendary (feat. James Bay)
03. We Made It Look Easy (feat. Robbie Williams)
04. Living Proof (feat. Jelly Roll)
05. Waves (feat. Jason Isbell)
06. Seeds (feat. Ryan Tedder)
07. Kiss The Bride (feat. Billy Falcon)
08. The People's House (feat. The War & Treaty)
09. Walls Of Jericho (feat. Joe Elliott)
10. I Wrote You A Song (feat. Lainey Wilson)
11. Living In Paradise (feat. Avril Lavigne)
12. My First Guitar (feat. Marcus King)
13. Hollow Man (feat. Bruce Springsteen)
14. We Made It Look Easy / Hicimos Que Pareciera Fácil (feat. Carin León)

In a cover story for the March 2025 issue of Sound On Sound magazine, Jon Bon Jovi confirmed that BON JOVI would release a new version of its 2024 album "Forever" as a collaboration with other artists. He told writer Joe Matera: "This is an album that we're very proud of, and I think it's the best BON JOVI record since 'Lost Highway' or at least 'Have A Nice Day'. We love every song on it and it was a joy to make this album, but I just wasn't ready to go and book shows post-surgery recovery. So, I reached out to a number of friends and I said, 'If you guys would sing a verse here and there, it'll give this great album another life.'"

He added: "My focus moving forward is on the re-release of 'Forever', and God willing, getting back out on the road and running that project through its life."

Produced by Jon with John Shanks, "Forever" featured Jon Bon Jovi once again alongside fellow founding BON JOVI members, keyboardist David Bryan and drummer Tico Torres. They were joined by bassist Hugh McDonald and guitarist Phil X.

"Forever" contained 12 new songs, including the hit lead single "Legendary".

In August 2024, a duet version of the "Forever" song "The People's House" featuring THE WAR AND TREATY was released, accompanied by a lyric video. In October, the official music video for "The People's House" featuring THE WAR AND TREATY was released, accompanied by a statement from Jon Bon Jovi endorsing Kamala Harris in the 2024 United States presidential election.

"Forever" marked Jon Bon Jovi's return to the recording studio after surgery to repair his damaged vocal cords.

In June 2024, Jon told The Guardian that his damaged vocal cord is still not healed enough for him to resume touring. "It's a work in progress," he said. "There's no miracle. I just wish there was a fucking light switch. I'm more than capable of singing again. The bar is now: can I do two and a half hours a night, four nights a week? The answer is no."

Bon Jovi went on to say that making music will always be part of his life, regardless of whether he is able to return to full-scale touring. "It lights you up when you're out there. As long as I have the ability, I will write songs and make records."

Photo credit: Mark Seliger

In a new interview with U.K.'s Planet Rock, Rob Halford spoke about JUDAS PRIEST's upcoming appearance at the 2026 edition of the Bloodstock Open Air festival, which will return to Catton Park, Walton-on-Trent, United Kingdom in August 2026 to celebrate its 25th anniversary. PRIEST's performance at the event will coincide with the 40th anniversary of the group's controversial "Turbo" album and the 50th anniversary of PRIEST's second LP, "Sad Wings Of Destiny". Asked how he and his PRIEST bandmates will choose which songs to play at Bloodstock Open Air, Rob said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "So difficult, mate. It's so difficult. This thing [my voice] that I'm using to talk to you with, I can belt it out for about an hour and 30, if I'm lucky. And it's a joy to be able to do this kind of singing with this beautiful band. But, yeah, you look at the songs, the hundreds of songs and the albums, and your head starts swiveling around like Linda Blair in 'The Exorcist'. And you just [think], 'Where are we gonna start? Where are we gonna start?'"

Referencing the fact that "Turbo" saw PRIEST using synthesizers for the first time, Halford continued: "You've got 30,000 metal maniacs singing 'I'm your turbo lover' [at PRIEST shows now], but when that album came out, everybody wanted to throw it in the bin," he said. "'What is this? This ain't metal.'

"You know how a lot of bands — we go through different moods, different textures, different feelings as you progress. And what I love about PRIEST is we can be a 'Painkiller', be a 'Turbo Lover', be your 'Invincible Shield'. So, the fact that PRIEST is able to kind of create all this kind of music, but still put the heavy metal label on to it is important.

"But I am happy that 'Turbo' is embraced," Halford added. "I listened to it for the first time in years just a few days ago, and I look at the videos that we made, and we all had hair. My hair went south; it went into the Gandalf region. But it's a good album. It was really well made. Yours truly was going through some difficult moments in life, but here I am by the grace of God and so on and so forth. But it's a good album. So we're gonna see what's on that record that we can bring to Bloodstock, besides 'Turbo Lover'. We'll see if maybe [we can add] a couple of other tracks. And then you've got all of the others to look at. So it is gonna be special, this particular Bloodstock, in more ways than one."

Back in 2017, Halford told "The Rock Brigade" podcast about "Turbo"'s more experimental sound at the time of its release: "Much like everything that we've done, we've kind of reflected on where we've been and what we are trying to aim for next. The big thing about this record is that for the first time in a long time, we were able to take our time.

"There was a period in the early '80s when PRIEST was literally banging out a record every year and a world tour every year. How did we do that, I don't know. It was just that we were running on fire, we were having the times of our lives, we had deadlines to meet, we had an incredible thing going with the label."

He continued: "So here's the deal. 'Turbo', the middle of the 1980s, right? We had a little bit of time to kind of pull back and take our time to make this record. So we were in a different place. I mean, I was in a different place, because I had so much coke up my nose, I don't know how I got through every day of the week, because I was raging at that point, personally. What I'm trying to say is, America in 1986 and the mid-'80s was… wherever you went, there was incredible things happening in rock and metal. I always kind of reflect as the '80s, particularly in America, as being one of the greatest decades for our kind of music. So we were wrapped up in all that, we were wrapped up in all that excitement and good times and party-party-party. And I think that we were just… we were making the record. The bulk of the record was made in America. Going down to Whisky, hanging out on the [Sunset] Strip, in Miami… Man, it was an absolute blast. And I think we were just… We were loving that moment, you know. The band was having a great time, and there was a lot of that in the music on 'Turbo'."

In 2017, PRIEST reissued "Turbo". The album was remastered and was made available via Sony Music on three CDs (the original album and two bonus discs) as well as one-LP 150-gram vinyl. Included on disc 2 and 3 of the CD reissue was, previously unreleased, "Live in Kansas City", a live recording from the band's 1986 "Fuel For Life" tour in support of "Turbo".

Living Dead Girl has released the official music video for “We’ll All Be Dead”, the second single from their new album, Conspiracy, due October 10th. Pre-orders can be placed here.





Regarding the album, vocalist Molly Rennick stated, “I am beyond thrilled to finally unveil Living Dead Girl’s second full-length album, Conspiracy. It feels like the perfect follow-up album to our debut Exorcism, staying true to the sound the band created back in 2021 but also showcasing both my personal and artistic growth over that time. Conspiracy is darker, heavier, more vulnerable, and more intense, but still has the sing-along choruses you’d expect from Living Dead Girl. I hope both new listeners and repeat fans alike fall in love with this album as much as I did creating it.”

The album was produced by Mitchell Marlow and demonstrates a sonic evolution for the band, highlighting its artistic and personal growth over the past four years, while staying true to the unique sound that has drawn so many fans to its lair. The distinct blend of heavy, drop-tuned riffs, hellbound screams, and catchier-than-a-cold choruses grabs you by the nape of the neck and refuses to let go.

Conspiracy artwork and tracklisting:



“Conspiracy”
“Poison Me”
“We’ll All Be Dead”
“Ugly”
“Succubus”
“The Disease”
“Eighteen”
“Brainwashed”
“Wild and Free”
“Unstoppable”
“Survival Mode”

Swedish melodic death/black metal band, Sacramentum, have announced the passing of founding member, Nisse Karlén, at 50 years of age following a battle with mental health.

The band shared the following message via social media on behalf of current and former members:

“With deep sorrow, we share the heartbreaking news that our dear friend, band member, and one of the founders of Sacramentum, Nisse Karlén, has passed away. He chose to leave this world due to struggles with mental health.

At this time, we kindly ask for privacy for his family, friends, and bandmates as we come to terms with this loss.

Thank you for everything, Nisse. You will always be with us.

Suicide is never to be glorified.

Suicide crisis helpline:
EU 116 123
US 988

Sacramentum.”

In a new interview with Hakos Pervanidis of the Metal Hammer Greece TV program TV War, NIGHTWISH's Floor Jansen discussed her decision to go public with her breast cancer diagnosis back in October 2022. Asked why she felt the need to share her diagnosis with her fans and not keep it private, the 44-year-old Dutch-born vocalist, who resides in Sweden with her husband, SABATON drummer Hannes Van Dahl, said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's a good question because, of course, at first I did not want to tell it to anyone. It's sort of your own thing until you share it with your family, share it with the people close to you, and it, all of a sudden, becomes a thing. But the thing that I found the scariest of everything, and which I'm sure many other people that have been sick, cancer or not, can relate to, you think that you're healthy and then you're not. And hopefully in Greece, surely the Netherlands where I'm from, Sweden, where I live, there are many tests that make sure that whenever there is something that grew in the time that in between the previous tests and then to see what's going on in your body, there is enough knowhow. So, had I not gone to a standard mammogram, I would've not seen it. And I think a lot of people take these tests either for granted or they don't fit them into their schedule. You don't think about getting sick until you do. And I wanted to warn everybody, women and men, do these checkups because they're there for a reason and it's lifesaving. It's not a cliché. And, yeah, in that sense, I found that even if I can convince one woman to take the mammogram or one man to go and check up the prostate when it's their time, do it. So that was my choice."

Jansen also talked about NIGHTWISH's surprise April 2023 announcement that the band was not going to be playing any live shows for the foreseeable future and would be not be touring in support of the group's latest studio album, "Yesterwynde", which arrived in September 2024 via Nuclear Blast. She said: "We have always toured with a hundred percent energy, a hundred percent of us. We give everything we have. You have to be able to keep that up, I think. If it starts to feel like you cannot, hard as it might be, you have to take the decision to not do it. But letting it all go felt way too hard, and we love making music. So that's when the decision came, 'Okay, if we can't guarantee this a hundred percent, then we do not. There is an album in the making. Let's make the album, let's release the album, and then we see when the battery is charged.' I hope tomorrow. I hope next year. That's not something for anyone to predict, unfortunately… And also, it's always the same thing. I think for many of us, it's very nice to also make this step away from the thing that we've been doing so intensely. I already notice now about coming back, in a metal festival in a different setting, that I look upon the whole thing differently. And it kind of helps. It brings light to situations. And I think it was a very smart move, and I think we're all dearly gonna miss it. But it's exactly that we will need to recharge the batteries."

Regarding her future plans when it comes to her music career, Floor said: "I'm working on a new album as we speak. So this summer I will do a couple of metal festivals throughout Europe and continue writing. In the fall, I will do a theater tour in the Netherlands, making my show into something really small and theatrical, without actors or something. It's still a pop show — not 'theater theater' but my music in that form. So I think it's gonna be a very nice challenge. I'll keep writing, and then the next year a new album will appear that as it starts to feel clearly is gonna be a whole lot heavier than the first. So, that's coming up."

On November 18, 2022, Floor revealed that she was "cancer free" after undergoing surgery to have a tumor removed following a breast cancer diagnosis. At the time, she wrote on social media that "the surgery took everything cancerous out and it hasn't spread!"

When Jansen went public with her diagnosis less than three years ago, she wrote on her social media: "The word cancer is a shocker. All that you found important in life before this diagnosis changes radically within minutes. Now I just want to be healthy again. I want to see my daughter grow into a woman; I want to live! And the scariest part of this diagnosis is that I thought I was healthy! I didn't feel the cancer, I didn't know it was there until I, as a 40+ woman, went to a standard mammogram checkup. Something many countries offer, for free even for the lucky ones. Had I not gone there, the tumor would have gone undetected. In a year from now this could have grown much bigger. The thought of that makes me share this story with you. A mammogram is lifesaving! It's uncomfortable and you might think that you won't have something in your breasts anyway but GO! And for the men reading this: remind your wife, girlfriend, mother, sister to go and get checked. Even without the luxury I as a western woman experience with free mammogram checkups: GO! Luckily, there are many organizations that offer information about self-detection if you do not have access or funds for a mammogram. If I might inspire you to take good care of yourself, then something good will come out of this cancer diagnosis."

Floor's debut solo album, "Paragon", arrived in March 2023.

As part of NIGHTWISH, Jansen has landed two No. 1 albums in Finland, and Top Five albums in Austria, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and Switzerland.

Born in the Netherlands, Jansen joined her first band, one of the world's first symphonic metal bands, AFTER FOREVER, when she was only 16 years old. The group went on to release five albums from 2000 to 2007, before they broke up in 2009.

Jansen's next band, REVAMP, released two albums in 2010 and 2013, before she joined NIGHTWISH as a full-time member.

NIGHTWISH's first album with Jansen as the lead singer was 2015's "Endless Forms Most Beautiful", which landed in Top 10s around the world. This was followed by 2020's "Human. :II: Nature.", which was also an international success.

Jansen has toured extensively with the band and appeared on three of NIGHTWISH's live albums "Showtime, Storytime", "Vehicle Of Spirit" and "Decades: Live In Buenos Aires".

In October 2023, Jansen and Van Dahl welcomed their second child, Lucy. Jansen and Van Dahl also have an eight-year-old daughter named Freja, who was born on March 15, 2017.

Paul Stanley has revealed that "I Was Made For Lovin' You" is the "biggest" KISS song of all time.

Earlier today (Tuesday, August 26),the 73-year-old KISS guitarist/vocalist, who co-wrote "I Was Made For Lovin' You" with Desmond Child and Vini Poncia, took to X to write: "THE BIGGEST KISS SONG OF ALL TIME IS… 'I Was Made for Lovin' You' with 1.3 BILLION total streams on Spotify as of late August and approximately 850 THOUSAND daily streams!! Amazing and THANK YOU!"

Six years ago, Child said he was hurt when KISS publicly badmouthed "I Was Made For Lovin' You".

Although "I Was Made For Lovin' You" was a huge chart success for KISS 40 years ago, it was maligned by many of the group's fans who didn't appreciate the track's disco beat.

During an appearance on the "Talk Is Jericho" podcast, Child said that he wrote "I Was Made For Lovin' You" with Stanley after befriending the KISS frontman in the late '70s.

"I was experimenting then with a drum machine, and the idea of having dance beats with rock had occurred to me," Desmond recalled. "So I kind of hoodwinked him into this idea of four-on-the-floor dance beat with these heavy guitars. Gene [Simmons, KISS bassist/vocalist] never bought it — he never liked it, [and] he [still] doesn't.

"I remember when they made a record — I think it was [1981's] '[Music From] 'The Elder'' — and they started doing hundreds of interviews saying, 'Well, this time, we're putting guards in front of the door to keep Desmond Child out,'" he continued. "And I was so hurt. I called Paul and I said, 'Paul, why don't you criticize your enemies, not the friends that put money in your pocket?' And he says, 'Well, you know, that's Gene — it's not me.' So, the next day I came home and there was a message on my answering machine. And it was, like, 'Hi. It's Gene. Sorry.' And he hangs up. [Laughs] That was his apology."

According to Child, he and Simmons eventually reconciled. "After all these years, he's been an amazing friend and supporter and, actually, mentor," Desmond said.

"I Was Made for Lovin' You" originally appeared on KISS's 1979 album "Dynasty". It was released as the A-side of their first single from the album. It was the band's second gold single, selling over 1 million copies. The single reached No. 11 on the U.S. Billboard singles chart. The song also became a Top 10 hit in Australia, reaching No. 6 on the ARIA charts in 1979. The song fared the best in Western Europe (Where it became a Top 20 hit in Sweden, a Top 10 hit in Norway, made it to the No. 2 position in France, Germany, Switzerland, and Austria, and in Holland it became a No. 1 smash).

In 2018, Simmons said that he hated performing "I Was Made For Lovin' You" because he is forced to sing like his grandmother. Asked in an interview with OK! magazine to name a song that he wasn't initially crazy about that ended up becoming a hit, Gene said: "Well, Paul Stanley comes in and he says, 'Did you write any songs?' I go, 'Oh, yeah. I've got one called 'Almost Human'.' 'Yeah? How does it go?' 'I'm almost human. I can't help feelin' strange.' 'Yeah, that's cool. That's a Gene song.' 'How about you, Paul?' He goes, 'I've got one. [It goes] 'Tonight.'' "Ooooh. That's cool. What's the next line?' 'I'm gonna give it all to you.' 'Oh, yeah. I know what 'it' means — I know exactly what you mean.' 'In the darkness.' [Claps] 'Love that!' 'There something I wanna do.' 'Yeah, I know what that 'something' is. Wow! That's a cool song. Okay, what's my part?' [Sings] 'Do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do.' 'You're killing me. Really? I'm gonna sing like my grandmother?' [Sings] 'Do, do, do…' I hate playing that song to [this] day. Stadiums full of people jump up and down like biblical locusts — they go nuts — with tattoos and grills on… 'Ahhhh!' They're all jumping up and down, and I'm going, 'Do, do, do, do, do, do… Kill me now.' Still — still to this day I hate that song."

After the female interviewer pressed him on whether the song ever grew on him after performing it for the last four decades, Gene said: "Well, how about you sing that song? You're a girl. I wanna sing guy stuff."

Stanley admitted in 2017 that the success of "I Was Made For Lovin' You" was "a double-edged sword, because it became such a massive hit but it was also so contrary and contradictory to what we had done before." He added: "The funniest thing is when we do festivals sometimes in Europe where it's very much… the bands are quite heavy, well, when we do an encore of 'I Was Made For Lovin' You', you suddenly have all these people with spikes in their eyeballs or bones through their noses singing along. So it's a song that seems to transcend everything — although it went through a period, certainly, of a big backlash against it."
THE BIGGEST KISS SONG OF ALL TIME IS… "I Was Made for Lovin' You" with 1.3 BILLION total streams on Spotify as of late August and approximately 850 THOUSAND daily streams!! Amazing and THANK YOU! pic.twitter.com/nluHqcT1sw

— Paul Stanley (@PaulStanleyLive) August 26, 2025

In an interview with PipemanRadio at this year's Bloodstock Open Air festival in the United Kingdom, STATIC-X bassist Tony Campos spoke about legendary BLACK SABBATH singer Ozzy Osbourne who died late last month at the age of 76. Tony said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "One of the coolest things that I can scratch off the list of shit I never thought would happen — we got to do a photo shoot with Ozzy back before our first Ozzfest in '99. And we're hanging out in our dressing room waiting for [legendary rock photographer] Ross Halfin to set up the photo shoot. And Ozzy just comes in and he just sits down and hangs out with us and starts telling us stories about BLACK SABBATH days, how he'd shoot heroin in his neck behind Tony Iommi's Marshall stacks. And we're all just like little kids listening to their grandpa tell stories. We were, like, 'Whoa, cool.' And it's just, like, he didn't have to do that. He was just such a cool dude, and he was awesome to us. And just getting to do Ozzfest that year was such a life-changing event for us. And I'm eternally grateful to him and Sharon for giving us that opportunity."

Ozzy and his wife and manager Sharon started their annual tour — Ozzfest — in 1996 after he was rejected from the lineup of what at the time was the top touring music festival, Lollapalooza. The first traveling version of Ozzfest in 1997 included MARILYN MANSON and PANTERA as part of the lineup.

Ozzy died on July 22 of a heart attack, his death certificate revealed. The certificate filed in London also said Osbourne suffered from coronary artery disease and Parkinson's disease.

A private funeral service for Ozzy was held on July 31 on the 250-acre grounds of the house the legendary BLACK SABBATH singer and his wife bought in 1993 in Buckinghamshire, England. Only 110 of the singer's friends and family members attended the service, including his SABBATH bandmates, Robert Trujillo (METALLICA),Rob Zombie, Zakk Wylde, Marilyn Manson and Corey Taylor (SLIPKNOT).

The day before the private funeral, thousands of fans gathered in the streets of Birmingham to pay tribute to Ozzy. Sharon, along with their children Aimée, Kelly and Jack, joined mourners for the emotional tribute.

Ozzy's death came a little more than two weeks after he took the stage for his final performance with BLACK SABBATH at Villa Park in the band's original hometown of Birmingham, United Kingdom. They performed four songs for more than 40,000 people in the stadium and 5.8 million more on a livestream. Ozzy also played a five-song solo set while seated in a bat-adorned throne.

In a new interview with Australia's Heavy, ADEMA guitarist/vocalist Tim Fluckey confirmed that he and his bandmates are working on new music at the moment. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET):  "We're trying to finish up our record right now. All the songs were written. We recorded drums and bass and some guitars, and so I'm gonna record some more guitars tomorrow and then do some vocals and then we'll probably get it done when we get back from [touring] Australia [in September]."

Tim also addressed the fact that he is now handling vocals for ADEMA after the 2024 departure of Ryan Shuck, who joined the group in 2019. Asked if he always wanted to be the singer in ADEMA or if that's just how it worked out, Fluckey said: " No. I did not always wanna do that. I didn't mind doing backup vocals. That was cool. I liked just being over in my guitar world, and doing that and being able to jump around and move around and interact with the crowd that way. And then it just came by necessity. One tour, our singer, we had already… we couldn't find him for days. We already missed a couple of shows and we were, like, 'Are are we gonna get sued?' And so they were, like, 'Can you do it?' I go, 'I'll try.' So literally on the way out to the first show — we never rehearsed with me singing. I was just sitting there playing my guitar and trying to sing along to this stuff. And we went out there… We were, like, 'Let's play three songs without saying a word and see what happens. We'll see how the crowd reacts.' And the first song people were like confused. And the second song they were kind of, like, 'Eh, it's okay.' And then the third song, they were, like, 'Oh, this is fine. This works.' And so never once did anybody say they wanted their money back or said it sucked it our faces. And so it just kind of grew from that. And then Marky [Chavez, ADEMA's original singer] did come back for a little while, but then he kind of essentially retired. And then we got offered a tour in 2019 and I was, like, 'Well, let's bring somebody in from our genre.' And then Ryan came in from ORGY and JULIEN-K. But he had another band, so it was always gonna be temporary. So then when it came down to making a decision about moving on, and we were getting offered record deals at the time, so they were, like, 'Do you wanna sing again?' I go, 'Yeah, let's do it. We don't need to bring anybody else in here.'"

Tim continued: "The four of us have been around each other for 25 years, so we can deal with each other. I'm sure it's hard for somebody new to come into that situation. We're not normal dudes. Our band would be boring if it was. I know it's probably hard for people to come in and join that and just be around guys who've been around each other for 25 years."

Asked if he is "fully settled into" the ADEMA frontman role by now, Tim said: "I think so. I think the difference between me back then and me doing it now is I'm a little more confident with the crowd. I just pretty much went to the James Hetfield school of the crowd, and not copying him, but just being like… Some singers get the tendency of saying the same thing in the same spots every night and then kind of maybe homogenizing it a little bit, but I one day just said, 'I'm just gonna say whatever the hell comes to my mind. Who cares what the repercussions are.' I feel a lot more comfortable on stage doing that, and I think people react to that. I think when you're just who you are, people react to that. They don't have to agree with what you're saying, and I'm not political, but I'm just saying that they don't have to like or agree with it, but they can appreciate that you're being yourself."

Fluckey also talked in more detail about the new ADEMA music, saying: "This new stuff, it sounds like ADEMA. It's the original band. It's everybody from the band. And so just through kind of, I'm sure, osmosis, there's gonna be parts where I sound like Marky, our original singer, and then I have my own thing too. But it just sounds like ADEMA now. And so I'm excited about it. The songs are cool, and, like I said, I have a little more confidence probably with what my sound is and what kind of singer I wanna be."

Asked if the new ADEMA material is musically what the band's fans expect at this point or if it's going off in new directions, Tim said: "Yeah. I think it is [what the fans expect]. Obviously it's gonna evolve a little bit, but it's not far from our first two or three records. So, I think ADEMA fans will be into it. Everybody kind of brings their own kind of special thing to the band that made it sound like ADEMA back then, and I think that's back in the band now. I had to change the way I kind of wrote music when Mikey [Ransom, ADEMA guitarist] was out of the band. And so now to go back to how I originally wanted to do it and how I'm doing it now, knowing that when I write a part, I can think about, 'Okay, what's he gonna do over it?' 'What's Dave [DeRoo] gonna do on bass?' That stuff. 'What's Kris [Kohls] gonna do on drums?' So, that's exciting for us, and hopefully it's exciting for our fans."

Fluckey previously revealed that the next ADEMA album will be released via the band's new label home, Cleopatra Records.

In June 2024, Fluckey was asked by Radioactive MikeZ, host of the 96.7 KCAL-FM program "Wired In The Empire", what happened to cause the "divorce" between ADEMA and Shuck. Tim said: "I don't know if I would characterize it as a divorce. And Ryan — I'll start by saying we wish Ryan and Amir [Derakh, Ryan's bandmate in JULIEN-K] the best, for sure. It's nothing like that. And there's maybe a kind of a divergence of —and he can say what he wants to say — just kind of things like… We knew from the beginning, let's say, that he was in another band and that he was helping us out, and that we needed somebody in the band, including Amir, to be around. And for people don't know Amir was in ORGY with Ryan and they've been partners for years. And they don't just do music together; it's kind of definitely a package thing. But it just came to a point where, and even in his own words, he knew that it was somehow temporary. We just didn't know how temporary. And so it just came down to our band was heading in one direction as far as how we wanted to do what we're gonna do — like massive amounts of touring, get these new songs out and take advantage of what our band's about. And then his band was doing his thing. And it really was one of those things, we just [went], 'Do we do this now or do we do it six months from now? Do we do it two years from now? And so it was just pretty much, 'We're doing it now.'"

In February 2024, ADEMA "abruptly" parted ways with Shuck. A short time later, the remaining members of ADEMA — Fluckey, DeRoo, Kohls and Ransom — posted a message on social media in which they said: "ADEMA has made the decision to move forward without Ryan Shuck. Our plan is to continue on indefinitely as a four-piece, and we sincerely wish Ryan all the best in the future."

In June 2022, ADEMA released a new song, "Violent Principles". It was the follow-up to ADEMA's first single in nearly a decade, "Ready To Die", which came out in August 2021. Both tracks were planned for inclusion on ADEMA's upcoming album, which was tentatively titled "360 Degrees Of Separation".

Original ADEMA frontman Marky Chavez first
left ADEMA in 2004 due to "creative differences" after two successful albums, "Adema" and "Unstable". The singer — who is the half brother of KORN frontman Jonathan Davis — quit ADEMA again in January 2011 in order to pursue his "solo project." He rejoined the group again six years later and played his first comeback show with ADEMA in May 2017 at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California.

After Chavez's original exit from ADEMA, the other members of the band found their way with new lead singers Luke Caraccioli and later Bobby Reeves, while Mark founded MIDNIGHT PANIC with his cousin Peter Shubert. He also produced fellow artists.

ADEMA's last official release was 2013's "Topple The Giants" EP. The group's first CD since 2007's "Kill The Headlights" contained brand new tracks plus re-worked versions of ADEMA's chart-topping hits "Giving In" and "Unstable". A three-song EP, "The Cerberus", was sold exclusively on ADEMA's 2023 "Nu Metal Madness 2" tour.

Photo courtesy of ADEMA

Former HANOI ROCKS frontman Michael Monroe has canceled his participation in this fall's U.S. tour as the support act for BUCKCHERRY.

Earlier today (Tuesday, August 26),Michael's social media was updated with the following message: "Unfortunately, Michael Monroe will be unable to join BUCKCHERRY on tour next month as planned.

"Michael is recovering from a ruptured meniscus and, on medical advice, has been instructed to refrain from touring for the next three months to ensure proper healing and to avoid long-term damage.

"We had an amazing time on our American tour in April and we are truly disappointed that we won't be able to come back as planned.

"Anyone who purchased VIP experiences will be refunded.

"We look forward to returning to the USA in 2026."

BUCKCHERRY added in a separate statement: "Due to an unexpected immediate knee surgery, Michael Monroe will be unable to perform as the direct support act on the BUCKCHERRY fall tour of the U.S from September 21 through October 25. Replacing Michael will be Atlanta based rockers NASHVILLE PUSSY! DREW CAGLE & THE REPUTATION open all shows EXCEPT at The Whisky A Go Go where THE VIOLENT HOUR featuring ex BUTCHER BABIES vocalist Carla Harvey will open. The shows from October 26 through November 7 will feature EVA UNDER FIRE as direct support. Get your tickets + VIP Upgrades at buckcherry.com. Wishing Michael the best during his recovery and look forward to seeing YOU at the Rock Show!"

The Monroe band's all-star lineup features former HANOI ROCKS and NEW YORK DOLLS bass player Sami Yaffa, who has played with Michael since the '80s. On guitar duties are Rich Jones (formerly of the Ginger Wildheart band) and Steve Conte (best known as the guitarist who filled the void left by Johnny Thunders in the NEW YORK DOLLS, as well as playing guitar with many other name acts such as Suzi Quatro, Eric Burden and many more) and drummer Karl Rockfist (who has played with notable acts such as DANZIG).

Monroe's latest solo album, "I Live Too Fast To Die Young", came out in 2022 via Silver Lining Music.

Monroe celebrated his 60th birthday in September 2022 at the Helsinki Ice Hall (Helsingin Jäähalli) in Finland. As the grand finale of the concert, the original lineup of HANOI ROCKS, one of Finland's most significant rock bands of all time, took the stage: Monroe, Andy McCoy, Sami Yaffa, Nasty Suicide and Gyp Casino. The "support band" for the show was the reunited DEMOLITION 23. Led by Monroe, the band rose to great cult fame, although they only released one album ("Demolition 23") in 1994 and broke up shortly afterwards. This was DEMOLITION 23's first performance since the band's breakup in 1995.

Monroe and McCoy founded HANOI ROCKS in the late 1970s and the band's original lineup was established in 1980. HANOI ROCKS, the first Finnish rock band to make an international breakthrough, recorded their first three albums with the original lineup: "Bangkok Shocks, Saigon Shakes, Hanoi Rocks" (1981),"Oriental Beat" (1982) and "Self Destruction Blues" (1982). Casino was replaced in 1982 by Nicholas "Razzle" Dingley who became an integral member of HANOI ROCKS. Razzle died in a tragic accident in 1984. Unfortunately, this led to the band's untimely demise in early 1985.

HANOI ROCKS did reform once before in 2002, albeit with only Monroe and McCoy from the band's classic lineup, and released a comeback album, "Twelve Shots On The Rocks". The reunion lasted until 2009.

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Due to an unexpected immediate knee surgery, Michael Monroe will be unable to perform as the direct support act on the...

Posted by Buckcherry on Tuesday, August 26, 2025

Bruce Dickinson played the third show of his first extensive North American solo tour in almost 30 years in support of his current studio album, "The Mandrake Project", Monday night (August 25) at the Marquee Theatre in Tempe, Arizona. Fan-filmed video of the entire concert can be seen below.

Joining the IRON MAIDEN singer on "The Mandrake Project Live 2025" North American tour is once again his 2024 backing band, featuring Dave Moreno (drums),Mistheria (keyboards) and Tanya O'Callaghan (bass),alongside the group's latest additions, Swedish guitarist, songwriter and multi-platinum-credited producer Philip Näslund and Swiss session and touring guitarist Chris Declercq (who played on Dickinson's "Rain On The Graves" single). Bruce's longtime guitarist and collaborator Roy "Z" Ramirez is not part of the touring lineup.

The setlist for the Tempe show was as follows:

01. Accident Of Birth
02. Abduction
03. Laughing In The Hiding Bush
04. Shadow Of The Gods
05. Chemical Wedding
06. Flash Of The Blade (IRON MAIDEN song)
07. Resurrection Men
08. Rain On The Graves
09. Drum Solo
10. Frankenstein (THE EDGAR WINTER GROUP cover)
11. The Alchemist
12. Book Of Thel
13. Road To Hell

Encore:

14. Tears Of The Dragon
15. Gods Of War
16. The Tower

Dickinson kicked off "The Mandrake Project Live 2025" North American tour Friday night (August 22) at the House Of Blues in Anaheim, California.

Dickinson's 16-song setlist at the House Of Blues included the live debut of "The Mandrake Project" track "Shadow Of The Gods" as well as the first-ever performance of the IRON MAIDEN song "Flash Of The Blade", from the band's 1984 album "Powerslave".

Prior to launching into "Flash Of The Blade", Dickinson told the crowd:  "Nobody has ever played this song, apart from on the record, of course, but nobody has ever played this song. And it's a song that I wrote. So I don't know whether any of you have got any clue what song it might be. But like usual, it's a conundrum. I shall not tell you. You will just have to figure it out. It probably won't take long… You'll die as you lived in a flash of the blade."

Bruce talked about the setlist for "The Mandrake Project Live 2025" North American tour during an interview last week with Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station. He said: "We are doing a mixture of songs from 'Accident Of Birth', from 'Chemical Wedding', from 'More Balls To Picasso', obviously from 'Mandrake', and that's, frankly, more than enough for a full show. And in actual fact, I've got seven solo albums to pick from, so if I end up doing — as I will do, in probably in '27 — end up doing another tour with another album, then I'll still have plenty of songs to pick from, from those albums. 'Cause there's songs that people go, 'Why haven't you played that song?' I said, 'Well, I can't play every single song. You have to wait. We'll do it next time.' But 'Shadow Of The Gods', for example, off 'Mandrake', has never been played live until now. So we're gonna play that song every night, because it's a really cool track and it's the most requested track off 'Mandrake'. We've not played it, so we're gonna do that one every night."

Regarding the addition of "Flash Of The Blade" to the setlist, Bruce said: "We've actually dropped a MAIDEN song in there. We haven't done that, like, ever. And so I said we're not a MAIDEN covers band, but I'm gonna do one song, and it'll be a song that I wrote. We're not covering [a song] that [MAIDEN guitarist] Adrian [Smith] wrote with me or [MAIDEN bassist] Steve [Harris] or something. And my wife said, 'You should do this song,' song X. I went, 'Oh, why?' She said, 'Well, nobody's ever played it. You've never played it. Why have you never played that song?' I said, 'Well, I don't know.' She goes, "Everybody wants you to play that song.' I said, 'Who's everybody?' And she's on social media, so she does all this stuff. I don't do social media. So I have no clue. And so I mentioned it to the band. I said we should do it. What do you think if we tried to learn this?' And they dogpiled me, like, 'Oh my God, that would be amazing.' So anyway, next day they'd learned it and they played it to me instrumentally. I was just, like, 'Holy crap. Now let me see if I can still remember how to sing it.' So we're gonna do that."

Dickinson also confirmed that some of the shows on "The Mandrake Project Live 2025" North American tour will see him play another MAIDEN song, "Revelations". He explained: "Now, I've gotta learn another MAIDEN one as well, because we're doing a festival in São Paulo in the middle of the tour. We dip down to Brazil [to play] this huge festival. And it's actually 40 years since I set foot in Brazil [for the first time] with Rock In Rio. So I thought, well, for the anniversary, I'm gonna go down there. I really do have to do a kind of a MAIDEN track in celebration of the fact that, 'Yeah, look, it's been 40 years.' And there was a famous incident where I'd split my head open with the edge of a guitar, blood pouring down my face. That was the image that that still played on national TV now when they talk about Rock In Rio; they use that moment. And that moment was during a song called 'Revelations', which happened to be a song that I wrote. So I thought, 'Hey, we'll get the band to learn 'Revelations'.' And then my wife came in and said, ['You've gotta play 'Flash Of The Blade']. I went, 'Okay, okay, okay.' Well, now I just love it. I'm just, like, 'Yes, absolutely.' So we're gonna play ['Flash Of The Blade' Friday] night and then the secret will be out and social media will be, like, 'Oh my God, they played that song.' So if you wanna hear that song, whatever the hell it is, or you might not give a stuff — I don't know. So we'll be dropping that in and out here and there, teasing people a little bit. But it's such a blast on the tour. Such a great fun playing with these guys."

Asked what it is like going from playing stadiums with IRON MAIDEN to performing mostly in theaters with his solo band, Bruce told WRIF: "There's no comparison. One is one type of thing, one is the other type of thing. So I don't go into a theater going, 'Oh my God. I wish I was playing a stadium.' No, I relish the idea of going into a theater. It's great. And the same thing — if I go into a stadium, I don't go, 'Oh, I wish I was playing a theater.' No, I'm playing a stadium. That's what you're doing and that's what's in front of you."

He continued: "I love performing and I love wherever I am, whether it's three people, 300 or 300,000. Things change a little bit, techniques change a little bit from one to the other to the other, but it's still a performance and you're still trying to do the best thing by everybody there. So, yeah, I love it."

Dickinson also talked in more detail about "The Mandrake Project Live 2025" North American tour, which will take his solo band across North America, including shows in New York, Los Angeles, Texas, Florida and Canada, with festival appearances at Rocklahoma (Oklahoma) and Louder Than Life (Kentucky). The tour also includes a quick return to Brazil for the prestigious The Town festival at the City Of Light in São Paulo.

"It's the same band that did the tour last year," Bruce said. "We did 55 shows together. So, we're a crew now. This is not me standing on the spot and saying, 'Oh, nobody else come within 10 feet of me. Your aura is disturbing my vibe.' No. I mean, we are a band — we sweat together, we get messy, and eye contact. It's a great rock and roll band. And we have fun. We're heavy emotional creatures on stage. So we can play to make you wanna jump up and down in pogo. We can play to make you cry and we can play to put a smile on your face. And hopefully all of those things. So when you leave the show at the end of the evening, we hope we've made your life better."

He continued: "We're a great crew. It's a great show live. We've got a video wall. We've got MAIDEN's sound engineer, MAIDEN's monitor engineer, MAIDEN's lighting engineer as well. And they all love doing it because they love getting their hands dirty in theaters. [MAIDEN's lighting designer] Rob Coleman, on the lights, gets to play and go, 'Hey, yeah, that's weird. Look at that structure on stage. If I put a lamp there' and blah, blah, blah, 'I can get a really great effect.' So we can kind of do things on the fly in theaters or work with what we've got. It's fantastic. You can improv a little bit there. And it's not the same show every night. With MAIDEN, it is. I mean, sure, there are variations in the way that this song is better one night than it was last night and things like that. But with this band, we're so flexible, we can go, 'What's the setlist today? Well, let's shift things around a bit. Let's do that. Oh, we haven't done that song for a while. Let's drop that one in there.' And [if] we're playing Boston and New York back to back, [we can go], 'Oh, yeah. We should definitely play two different songs so people don't go, 'Ah, I went to both shows and they did the same stuff.' [We want them to go], 'Ah, they did something different.'"

Prior to the April 12, 2024 Whisky A Go Go show, Bruce last performed with his solo band on in August 2002 at the legendary Wacken Open Air festival in Germany.

Roy played guitar on Dickinson's 1994 album "Balls To Picasso" and went on to produce, co-write and perform multiple instruments on Bruce's subsequent three solo albums, "Accident At Birth" (1997),"The Chemical Wedding" (1998) and "Tyranny Of Souls" (2005).

O'Callaghan is an Irish musician who joined WHITESNAKE in 2021 and toured with the David Coverdale-fronted outfit the following year. She also hit the road with Dickinson in 2023 as part of a performance of Jon Lord's "Concerto For Group And Orchestra" on nearly a dozen dates in Europe and South America.

Californian drummer Moreno previously played on "Tyranny Of Souls" and has worked with BODY COUNT, Jizzy Pearl, Dizzy Reed and Steve Stevens, among others.

Italian keyboard wizard Mistheria has collaborated with an array of artists live and in the studio, including Rob Rock, Mike Portnoy, Jeff Scott Soto and Joel Hoekstra.

"The Mandrake Project" arrived on March 1, 2024 via BMG.

Bruce and Roy recorded "The Mandrake Project" largely at Los Angeles's Doom Room, with Roy doubling up as both guitarist and bassist. The recording lineup for "The Mandrake Project" was rounded out by Mistheria and Moreno, both of whom also featured on Bruce's previous solo studio album, "Tyranny Of Souls", in 2005.

Dickinson's reworked version of his classic 1994 album "Balls To Picasso", now titled "More Balls To Picasso", arrived on July 25.

Dickinson made his recording debut with IRON MAIDEN on the "Number Of The Beast" album in 1982. He quit the band in 1993 in order to pursue his solo career and was replaced by Blaze Bayley, who had previously been the lead singer of the metal band WOLFSBANE. After releasing two traditional metal albums with former MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith, Dickinson rejoined the band in 1999 along with Smith.

Former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson and acclaimed metal vocalist Jeff Scott Soto have once again joined forces and released their second album, "Unbreakable", on August 15 via Rat Pak Records. The duo ELLEFSON-SOTO is joined by Italian guitarist Andy Martongelli and Paolo Caridi on drums and features 11 studio tracks with guest appearances from Tim "Ripper" Owens (KK'S PRIEST, ex-JUDAS PRIEST, ICED EARTH) and BURNING WITCHES frontwoman Laura Guldemond.

The official Elia Turra-directed music video for the album's third single, "Vengeance", featuring Owens, can be seen below.

Ellefson says: "One of the darker tracks from our new album. We are honored to have Tim 'Ripper' Owens with us on this one as he and Jeff tell the savory story of sweet revenge."

Soto adds: "I loved this song when I was the only singer on it, but I loved it even more when we got our friend Tim 'Ripper' Owens to duet with me on it. It's heavy, tons of attitude and full metal assault!"

During a recent appearance on Rock Camp: The Podcast, Ellefson stated about ELLEFSON-SOTO:  "We started writing [the material for the first album], I think, [a few] years ago up in Wembley. The guitar player of the group, Andy Martongelli, is out of Italy. So we started composing. We had a record, and he said, he goes, 'Dude, just call Jeff Scott Soto to sing.' And this was back in 2021 during COVID. So I hit Jeff. We sent some stuff back and forth. It sounded great. We just kept sending stuff. And finally [Jeff] just said, 'Rather than me just sort of being the hired singer here, I'd really like to just be a part of this.' It was music to our ears. I'd rather do that too. I could pay you to sing on every song, but I think we've got something pretty cool here."

Ellefson continued: "So the first record, of course, is always about kind of finding each other, so really it's me and Jeff and Andy Martongelli — and our drummer Paolo as well; he's also from Italy. So half the band's Italian, half the band's American, I guess. As that first record came out, it really had a great response to it, and so Andy and I started writing the second one. And we got it finished up back… I wanted to get everything done before Jeff went on tour with TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA back in November [of 2024]. So that was kind of our goal and our deadline, which we did. We mixed the record in the New Year and got it all teed up and ready to go and shot the videos and everything."

Regarding how "Unbreakable" compares to 2022's "Vacation In The Underworld", David said: "The second record, you feel a little more comfortable with each other, 'cause you're just musically more comfortable, personally you're more comfortable. And we didn't know if there's ever gonna be a second record."

Ellefson went on to say that he loves the "Unbreakable" album title. "I think it speaks to a lot of my life for sure, and I think it speaks to all of us," he added. "I hope our audience relates to it, that together we're stronger. And no matter what kind of stuff we go through, we all go through stuff. It's called life. It's called being human. And I think as long as you just kind of keep moving forward…

"I remember watching a yoga DVD one time and the instructor said, he goes, 'As humans, we're wired to think forward, and forward is where hope is.' That's why when you think it's over, that's when your hope's gone and dreams die and it's over," David explained. "So I think as humans, at least in my life, it's, like, just always say yes, always keep moving forward because that keeps the hope alive. It keeps the fire burning and the target is always ahead of you, not behind you and lamenting and wishing that it would've been different. And it's always about moving forward. So I think 'Unbreakable' is very much a representation of us just keep moving and keep making music."

Recorded at Rogue Studios in Wembley, U.K. by Alessio Garavello and produced by Chris Collier (MICK MARS, KORN, FLAT BLACK),"Unbreakable" is a sonic assault packed with catchy riffs, melodic vocals, and thoughtful lyrics that blends their classic metal roots with modern rock intensity.

"This album digs even deeper," Ellefson said in a press release. "It's heavier, more personal, and shaped by everything we've experienced on and off the stage." Soto added: "The energy we poured into this one — it's the sound of two lifetimes colliding in riffs, rage, and redemption."

Ellefson further commented: "One of the things I like most is I feel like you can hear a real sense of brotherhood on our records, that we're really in the creative process together as a band. The consistency of our sound has remained intact while allowing us to further build upon each other's strengths from our debut album. It's an honest, organic approach that blends well and lets us explore new sounds and musical paths. At the end of the day, I don't think there is anything that an artist desires more than that!"

"Unbreakable" is available on all major streaming platforms, with limited edition autographed vinyl, CD and cassette bundles exclusively through Rat Pak Records.

Track listing:

01. Unbreakable
02. SOAB
03. Shout
04. Hate You, Hate Me
05. Poison Tears (featuring Laura Guldemond of BURNING WITCHES)
06. Ghosts
07. Vengeance (feat. Tim "Ripper" Owens of KK'S PRIEST)
08. Snakes And Bastards
09. It's Over When I Say It's Over
10. The Day We Built Rome
11. Death On Two Legs (bonus track) (CD and vinyl)

In a March 2025 interview with Scott Itter of Dr. Music, Soto spoke about the status of the second album from ELLEFSON-SOTO. He said at the time: "The record's in the can.

"The way Erik Martensson, he's the ringleader, the overseer [of Soto's W.E.T. project], David is that with ELLEFSON-SOTO," Jeff explained. "He pulls the songs together, he gets the timing together, he gets the label side, all the industry-side stuff together. I just have to relax and sit back while I'm doing all the million of other things that I'm doing, and I come in and then I dive in and I put my input.

"I love working with David and Andy [Martongelli], who's our guitar player and also co-writer in the band. And I love the fact that they allow me to be me.

"I've proven myself as an artist, producer, writer, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, blah, but there are still times where I'll do something and they'll go, 'Hmm, [it's] not really what I thought you were gonna do. Can you try more of this? Try more of that?' I don't mind that at all, because whatever is good for the song, the best thing for the song, of course. But when it comes to ELLEFSON-SOTO, I'm really, really headstrong on the ideas I come up with, and when I send it to David, [I'm] like, 'Oh, God, I hope he doesn't say, 'Oh, I don't know, man.'' And every time, him and Andy say, 'Home run. You knocked that one out of the park. That's awesome.' And that's what motivates me to wanna do more and to give my all into that, even that situation, because I know if I'm making them happy with what I'm turning in, I know in the end, it's gonna be a cohesive sound and project."

Regarding the songwriting approach on the second ELLEFSON-SOTO album, Jeff said: "It's weird because the first album, when we did it, it wasn't supposed to be an album. I was doing songs with David and Andy. We were just writing songs and recording songs during the pandemic. And it turned into, 'Hey, we're on to something here. We can't give these songs to someone else or just use 'em as catalog music. We have something here.' And that's what made us put that out as an album. This time around, we actually went in to record and write an album. We didn't say, 'Let's just write songs and see where it goes.' We actually went in and said, 'This is the sound. This is what we created on the first album. Now let's expand on it.'"

He added: "It's really, really good. I don't listen to my own stuff that often unless I have to learn songs for a tour or a show, but I actually find myself listening to this record just to listen to it."

ELLEFSON-SOTO's debut album, "Vacation In The Underworld", was released in October 2022 via Rat Pak Records. The duo was joined by Martongelli on guitar and keyboards and Paulo Caridi on drums. Giada Jade Etro from the Italian power metal band FROZEN CROWN made a guest appearance on the song "The Day Before Tomorrow". Steve Conley and Ken Mary from FLOTSAM AND JETSAM performed on the title track, "Vacation In The Underworld".

"Vacation In The Underworld" was produced by Chris Collier and featured eleven tracks and three bonus recordings.

To officially launch the project, Ellefson and Soto played concerts in September 2022 in Italy where they performed some of the music as well as ran through various catalog highlights, including selections from MEGADETH and Yngwie Malmsteen. They were joined by Martongelli as the musical director, as well as Caridi on drums and Valerio De Rosa on rhythm guitar.

In March 2021 — two months before David was fired from MEGADETH — Ellefson and Soto announced that they had been collaborating on some new material under the moniker ELLEFSON-SOTO. The ELLEFSON-SOTO version of the RIOT classic "Swords & Tequila" was simultaneously released across all digital streaming outlets via Ellefson's Combat Records.

When Ellefson's collaboration with Soto was first announced, David said in a statement: "Jeff and I have been friends for so many years that it's great to finally collaborate on some material together. He has such a distinctive voice and perfect style for some new ideas my guitarist Andy Martongelli and I have been composing. We are excited about the progress of it all and thought this would be a perfect time to give a little sneak preview."

At the time, Jeff added: "As COVID-19 became a big negative around the globe, it actually offered many artists a chance to finally collaborate with one another that might have never happened otherwise… As I have known David for many years, I knew from our other efforts outside of our day jobs that we could come up with some badass jams…and here we are, letting you in on our cool little secret."

David was in MEGADETH from the band's inception in 1983 to 2002, and again from 2010 until his latest exit.

During a new appearance on "Whiplash", the KLOS radio show hosted by Full Metal Jackie, FILTER frontman Richard Patrick — who has been very vocal with his political views in recent years as an outspoken opponent of the Republican Party's hard-line stance on social issues — was asked if he feels there are enough artists asking the hard questions in music these days. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't think there's enough artists asking the hard questions, but I also understand that people don't necessarily wanna be force fed information from their rock stars. So I like to say what I like to say. I've never had a problem talking about politics and music. My first song, 'Hey Man, Nice Shot' [about the public suicide of Pennsylvania state treasurer R. Budd Dwyer on January 22, 1987] was about a politician that supposedly embezzled money and he pulls out a gun and shot himself. [It was] a true story [about] R. Budd Dwyer. And so I'm always talking about weird political subjects at some point in time.

"Yeah, I hope that the good in this country and in in this world isn't being killed or assassinated, taken out," he continued. "I hope that when all is said and done that we realize that we're given a chance to live on this earth, and if we can make a difference and help people and bring each other together, I think that we'd be better off as a species.

"I think that we should — it's like Rodney King [motorist who was severely beaten by Los Angeles police officers in 1991 after a high-speed chase and later became a reluctant symbol of racial tension in America] said, we should all try and just get along," Richard added. "And I think as poignant as that was, it really is, treat thy neighbor as you treat yourself, treat your people with the same respect and dignity that you wanna be treated. And I think we should get back to that.

"I certainly have said some things online that I'm not necessarily proud of to this day, but at the same time, I get people's anger and I just hope that ultimately we see the better side of our nature and aim towards that."

Back in March 2019, FILTER's concert in El Paso, Texas was canceled after Richard posted an anti-Donald Trump video on Facebook. At the time, Patrick said the venue informed FILTER that it "didn't like" the Facebook comments and said it had received threatening phone calls over the anti-Trump post. The venue also claimed that it was "illegal" to display the American flag upside down, which the band had planned to do during the show.

In a statement to Billboard, the venue confirmed what it told Patrick about the threatening phone calls in response to FILTER's Facebook video about Trump. The venue's general manager also noted that his staff was uncomfortable with FILTER's plan to display the American flag upside down and turn the concert into what he called a "political rally."

In October 2020, FILTER released the official music video for its then-new single, "Murica", featuring a character that Patrick told Alternative Press was "a Trump-supporting, gun-loving, unmedicated, super-freak 'merican unhinged and at his wits' end. And he's trying to take control of something that is not out of control." He said. "And he's afraid. He's the super-afraid white male. The Trump-supporting nutbag that I hope I can reach. These guys that are so far right that they think CNN, NBC, ABC, MSNBC [and] BBC are all out to get 'our President Trump.' Like they're all in a conspiracy to be super-left-wing, crazy liars. I'm trying to make an attempt to show them what they look like. These are the guys that can only listen to Fox News and Breitbart and that type of news outlet. They believe every fucking thing that the Rush Limbaughs, the Alex Joneses [say] and listen to only the right wing, 'the truth, man.' They do their 'own research' and believe 9/11 was an inside job, President Obama wasn't a real citizen and the lunar landings were faked. Hillary Clinton personally went out and killed people in Benghazi and it's her fault, she's [a] criminal and 'lock her up.' It's those people that I'm portraying in the video."

On August 8, FILTER released "The Algorithm: Ultra Edition" via the band's No Pulse Records. The album features re-imagined cuts from FILTER's latest album, "The Algorithm", with nine additional tracks.

Photo credit: Chapman Baehler

BON JOVI drummer Tico Torres has shot down rumors that he has retired from the band.

Earlier today (Monday, August 25),Torres shared a short video message via the BON JOVI social media in which he said:  "Hi, everybody. Tico Torres from BON JOVI here. I'm here to dispel a lot of rumors that I've read, people calling me up, saying, 'Did you retire from music, from the band?' Well, no. I have no idea how this stuff starts. Musicians don't retire, especially me.

"Me and the boys, Jon [Bon Jovi] and everybody, we're still making music. I mean, the best we've ever been.

"All I can tell you is don't listen to what you read. It's most likely bullshit. [Laughs]

"See you later."

The rumors of Tico retiring from BON JOVI gained traction earlier in the month when the hosts of the "Bon Jovi Talk" podcast hinted at a possible lineup change. The podcast took to X to write: "Wait.... Has Tico retired???? Apparently David [Bryan] said in the latest podcast with Jon that he and Jon started when they were 16 and now they're the only two remaining in the band...... If Tico is done, that's the band done. Tico is the heart and soul of the band. This isn't a thing to start a rumour or gossip either. I am genuinely asking..."

This past June, BON JOVI played its first full concert since 2022, and the band's first since Jon revealed his vocal cord issues. The show took place in Nashville at Marathon Music Works as part of a weekend travel package organized by Runaway Tours.

Tico is a founding member of BON JOVI, which developed an ingratiatingly melodic and professional variation of hard rock — one that appealed as much to teenagers as to adults. Their videos helped propel 1986's "Slippery When Wet" and 1988's "New Jersey" into multi-platinum status around the world. The New Jersey-based quintet managed to subtly change its image in the early '90s, moving away from metal and concentrating on straightforward arena-rock and ballads.

As a young jazz fan, studying with Joe Morello, Tico never could have imagined the success that would come his way. Even before he joined with Jon Bon Jovi in 1983, Tico had a successful career as a drummer. His studio and live experience with FRANKIE AND THE KNOCKOUTS, Pat Benatar, Chuck Berry, Cher, Alice Cooper and Stevie Nicks helped to establish him as a first-call player.

Torres was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame with BON JOVI in 2018.

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Wait....

Has Tico retired????

Apparently David said in the latest podcast with Jon that he and Jon started when they were 16 and now they're the only two remaining in the band......

If Tico is done, that's the band done. Tico is the heart and soul of the band.

This isn't a…

— BonJoviTalk (@BonJoviTalk) August 7, 2025