The Who legend, Pete Townshend, has released his first solo single in 29 years, "Can’t Outrun The Truth". Watch the video, directed by Michael Nunn and William Trevitt, below.





"Can’t Outrun The Truth" was composed and produced by Rachel Fuller under her nom de plume Charlie Pepper, and all proceeds from vinyl sales plus at least 10p from every download will go to the Teenage Cancer Trust.




The song was inspired by the difficulties everyone had encountered emotionally due to the lack of human interaction caused by the pandemic. It also occurred to Rachel that young people undergoing cancer treatment may identify with these feelings of isolation.


Rachel Fuller, on the genesis of the song “We’d just moved house and Pete was as happy as Larry up in his studio, working every day, and I put my back out, I was just climbing the walls, I couldn’t do any creative work and obviously, we couldn’t go anywhere. And I really started to think about how unbelievably difficult this period of time was going to be for so many people. I wrote lyrics and then I sat at the piano and wrote the music, and then I thought, Oh, I really would like to record it, because it’s really not a bad song at all – and my singing days are long over. So, I asked Pete to record the demo.”


Pete Townshend: “I’ve helped Rachel make the demos for several of her theatrical projects. She’s a really a fast worker, it’s not that you say to me, let’s go into the studio for two weeks and work on this project. We do it two hours later, or an hour later, it’s done – so it’s easy to work with her."


"Can’t Outrun The Truth" was recorded in Pete’s home studio in September of 2021, with Pete playing lap steel guitar and violin and singing. Once it was recorded the pair decided to release the track and raise funds for the Teenage Cancer Trust.


Pete Townshend: “The pandemic years were terrible for charities; the Teenage Cancer Trust was created in order to take the money from a series of concerts at the Albert Hall every year and various other things and that had all dropped out. So, the idea of doing this, which is it’s something that has sprung out of Lockdown about mental illness, but also for this particular charity. If you’ve got a scenario in which somebody in your family or a teenager has got cancer, they’re being treated, Lockdown hits, and you’re not allowed to go and visit them. There’s a poignancy to the whole thing about the song.”





Rachel and Pete reached out to renowned British artist Damien Hirst to create an artwork for the track. The result is a unique one-off spin painting of Townshend, which adorns the sleeve of 200 12” singles of "Can’t Outrun The Truth" (which also features Pete’s solo classic "Let My Love Open The Door" on the B side). Pete has also signed each of the singles which are destined to become instant collector’s pieces. The 12” singles will be available exclusively to fans in attendance at the Teenage Cancer Trust shows at the Royal Albert Hall from March 21st to March 26th.


Not only is "Can’t Outrun The Truth" Pete Townshend’s first solo single in 29 years, but his first solo video in 40 years accompanies it. The video was shot in a series of one-take performances by the creative team of directors, Michael Nunn and William Trevitt.


Summing up the song Rachel says, “I think one of the things about the song is that it felt like we drew a line, and it was, okay, back to normal. Nobody’s really talking about COVID anymore. There aren’t stories in the papers, and no one wants to talk about those two years. And I think for so many people, there is a long tail, people really, really struggled and just because people are saying let’s move on. I think a lot of people are still finding it really hard.”


Townshend agrees, “Rachel is absolutely right; this is something that deserves to be carried in our daily life."


Order here.

Swiss hard rock act Shakra has finally revealed more details about their upcoming new album. Invincible will be released this summer, on June 9th via AFM Records. The album pre-sale is now available at this location.


In new single, "Tell Her That I'm Sorry", Shakra explore the emotional rollercoaster ride of a failed relationship and reflect on missed opportunities and unrequited love. Mark's powerful guitar sound and haunting voice perfectly capture heartache and the burden of responsibility. 


The band comments: "The song is not only a call for reconciliation, but also a powerful testimony to the universal experience of love and loss. 'Tell Her That I'm Sorry' is a must for all fans of straight rock and for anyone who wants to experience the depths of the human heart and the power of music."







Tracklist: 


"The Way It Is"
"The Matrix Unfolds" 
"Invincible"
"Devil Left Hell" 
"On the Wild Side" 
"Old Irish Song" 
"Tell Her That I'm Sorry" 
"As I Lay Down To Sleep" 
"House Of Rock" 
"Walls Of Hate" 
"Between The Lines" 
"As Long As I’m Alive"

Ferocious four-piece, Saint Agnes, return with new album Bloodsuckers, set for release on July 21 via Spinefarm. Pre-save the album here. Today, they have unveiled the video for the album's raw title track. Check it out below.


Hailing from the UK, Saint Agnes are all about honest lyrics and intense vocal performances, plus rage-fueled music intended to give a voice to those closer to the fringe than the center. With its violent riffs, venomous vocals, and punk attitude, the title track single serves as a no-holds-barred introduction to the Bloodsuckers album.


Vocalist Kitty A. Austen comments on the single and video, saying, "I wrote 'Bloodsuckers' when I couldn't take it anymore — when I decided to stop allowing people to crush me, to diminish me. I took my rage and my pain and used it as fuel and I burned. We are not defined by what has been done to us. We decide who we are. We choose who we want to be. We are whole. We are worthy. The video is an introduction to Team Bloodsuckers. Join us."




As much gang as band, Saint Agnes seek to empower those who've been battered and bruised yet refuse to lie down, and it's a thread that runs deep within Bloodsuckers — SA's first album for Spinefarm and the follow-up to 2019's Welcome To Silvertown, issued on the band's own label.


From the title track onwards, Bloodsuckers is a genre-jumping body of work, taking in elements of metal, punk, industrial, and grunge, without being bound by any specific style; the 11 tracks here come straight from the source, largely self-produced and mixed (NIN collaborator Sean Bevan lends his mixing and production skills to "Follow You"), and this self-contained approach provides an extra emotional weight throughout, with doom trap provocateur Mimi Barks further fuelling the chaos on the short, sharp shock that is "Body Bag."


Created in the months following the unexpected and untimely death of Kitty's mother, Bloodsuckers explores a number of themes, including mental illness, pent-up rage, undying love and, of course, grief; from the trash-metal howl into the night that is "Bloodsuckers" right through to broken ballad, "This Is Not The End," a poignant reflection of Kitty’s still-raw emotions, this is a call to outsiders everywhere...


Concludes Kitty, "Creating this album gave me a reason to get to my feet at a time when I really wasn't sure if I could. I've tried to put everything I've been feeling into it, all the pain, the rage, the grief, even the unexpected moments of beauty and belief. I hope it makes you feel less alone. I hope it makes you feel bigger, badder, and stronger. We might be damaged but that doesn't mean we're worthless. This is a record for the defeated, the crushed. We might be broken but that doesn't mean we're not whole. Bloodsuckers forever, Saint Agnes forever."





Tracklisting:


"Bloodsuckers"
"Animal"
"I Mean Nothing To You"
"Outsider"
"This Is Not The End"
"Follow You"
"I Am"
"At War With Myself"
"Middle Finger"
"Body Bag" (Feat. Mimi Barks)
"Forever And Ever"


"Bloodsuckers" video:





Lineup:


Kitty A. Austen — Vocals, Guitar, Bass
Jon James Tufnell — Guitar, Vox, Bass
Andrew Head — Drums
Ryan Brown — Bass


(Photo - Scott Chalmers)

One of the most iconic and influential albums ever, Pink Floyd’s The Dark Side Of The Moon, continues to find new audiences globally. This year, to celebrate its 50th Anniversary, a new deluxe box set will be released on Friday, March 24. Pre-order here.


In support of the upcoming release, the band launched the new video series, 50 Years In A Heartbeat: The Story Of The Dark Side Of The Moon. Episode 3 is released today, and you can watch all three episodes below:


Part 1:







Part 2:





Part 3:





The Dark Side Of The Moon deluxe box set includes CD and gatefold vinyl of the new 2023 remastered studio album and Blu-Ray + DVD audio featuring the original 5.1 mix and remastered stereo versions.  The set also includes additional new Blu-ray disc of Atmos mix, plus CD and LP of ‘The Dark Side Of The Moon – Live At Wembley Empire Pool, London, 1974’, a 160-page hardback photo book, a music book, replica 7” singles and memorabilia.  For full details see full listing via the pre-order link above.





The box set includes CD and gatefold vinyl of the new 2023 remastered studio album, and Blu-Ray + DVD audio featuring the original 5.1 mix and remastered stereo versions. The set also includes an additional new Blu-ray disc of a Dolby Atmos mix plus a CD and LP of The Dark Side Of The Moon - Live At Wembley Empire Pool, London, 1974. There's also a 76-page music book, replicas of two 7" singles, posters, stickers, a replica invite to the press preview of the album at London Planetarium in February 1973, and Thames & Hudson's 160-page hardback book with rare and previously unseen photographs from the 1972-1975 tours taken by Jill Furmanovsky, Peter Christopherson, Aubrey Powell, and Storm Thorgerson.





Simultaneously, on March 24, the CD and first ever vinyl issue of The Dark Side Of The Moon - Live At Wembley Empire Pool, London, 1974 will be released independently of the box set. It was originally recorded in November 1974 as part of the band's winter tour and this is the first time it will be available as a stand-alone album, with artwork featuring an original 1973 line-drawn cover by George Hardie.





Thames & Hudson's book Pink Floyd - The Dark Side Of The Moon: 50th Anniversary will also be published separately from the box set on the same day - March 24. Curated by photographer Jill Furmanovsky and art directed by Hipgnosis co-founder Aubrey Powell, this LP-sized book was created with the involvement of the band members.


The 50th Anniversary release will also be celebrated as Pink Floyd invite a new generation of animators to enter a competition to create music videos for any of the album's 10 songs. Pink Floyd has a rich history of collaborating with animators from the beginnings of the band (Ian Emes, Gerald Scarfe etc.), and in some cases the visuals that accompany the songs have become synonymous with the music itself. The 50th Anniversary will be no exception. The band would like to give all animators an opportunity to present a fresh take on these timeless aural works. Animators can enter up to 10 videos, one per song on the album. A winner will be selected from a panel of experts which will include Pink Floyd’s Nick Mason, Aubrey 'Po' Powell (Pink Floyd's creative director) and the BFI (British Film Institute). The deadline for submissions is November 30th 2023. Please see the separate post with Nick Mason talking about the competition.


On February 27 1973, EMI Records held a press conference for the debut presentation of Pink Floyd’s new album The Dark Side Of The Moon at the London Planetarium. 50 years on, in recognition of the iconic album and with the help of huge strides in technology, an official full dome experience with stunning visuals of the solar system and beyond and played out to 42 minutes of The Dark Side Of The Moon, will be released in Planetariums around the world in March. Contact your local Planetarium for any screening details.


For further information, head to PinkFloyd.com.

Brace yourself for an ear-shattering, face-melting experience as Austrian heavy metal outfit, Roadwolf, announces their sophomore album, Midnight Lightning, set for release on May 19 via Napalm Records.


With their debut album, Unchain The Wolf (2020), Roadwolf firmly established themselves as purveyors of classic heavy metal, drawing inspiration from legendary acts such as Judas Priest, Saxon, UFO, Dio and Ozzy Osbourne. Since its release, the band has turned heads on stage, performing at renowned metal festivals such as Wacken and sharing the stage with notable acts such as Enforcer, Skull Fist, Bullet, Lizzy Borden, Vicious Rumors and Night Demon. Now, they bring the madness directly to you with their all killers no fillers album, Midnight Lightning.


To give a first taste of what to expect, the first single, “On The Run”, has been unleashed today. It’s a fierce exclamation point featuring electrifying guitar riffs, a pulsating bassline and driving drums forming a powerful heavy metal track, which makes it undoubtedly clear that Roadwolf are here to stay.




Roadwolf state on “On The Run”: “We are super excited to present the first single of our new album on Napalm Records. Get ready for a fast heavy metal neckbreaker and turn it up loud. Neighbours complaining? A real renegade cranks it up louder.”


Watch the video for “On The Run” below.


Roadwolf sold their souls to traditional heavy metal - showcased on title track “Midnight Lightning”, which brings out their power with soaring vocals and scorching guitar solos, reminiscent of Judas Priest. “Mark Of The Devil” presents the band’s songwriting abilities, with multiple Iron Maiden-inspired solos and dynamic changes throughout the track. “Supernatural” offers a softer side of the band with ballad-like verses, but then explodes into heavy metal power during the choruses. “High Under Pressure” races along with a blistering pace that is further enhanced with great dueling guitar and saxophone solos. “Sons Of The Golden Horde” showcases another powerful song with lyrics of historic wars, reminiscent of Iron Maiden’s great historical anthems. “Don’t Deliver Us From Evil” uplifts with pure energy and catchy choruses that will have the whole crowd singing along. Roadwolf keeps on rolling with another grooving track in “Running Out Of Time”. Bringing out their Motörhead influence on “Savage Child”, the song showcases the band’s speed metal skills, as well as catchy choruses with small alterations to keep it interesting with each repeat. Last but not least, the album concludes with the slow but beautiful ballad “Isolated Hearts”, featuring clean guitar reverb and soft piano underscoring powerful vocals singing of fading of hearts in the face of warfare. With Midnight Lightning, Roadwolf turns the intensity up to 11 and beyond, taking no time to rest and delivering a more explosive and dynamic sound than ever before.


Roadwolf state on Midnight Lightning: “Rock and roll maniacs, are you ready to unleash the beast within? We’re finally back from the dead and bringing the thunder with our new album, Midnight Lightning. So crank up the volume, grab a beer and smash your windows so everyone can join the listening party.”





Midnight Lightning will be available in the following formats:


- 1LP Gatefold Violet Transparent (limited to 300 worldwide)
- 1LP Gatefold BLACK (limited to 500 copies worldwide)
- CD Digipak
- Music Cassette Neon Orange Transparent (limited to 100 copies) - Napalm Records Shop exclusively
- Digital Album


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"On The Run"
"Midnight Lightning"
"Mark Of The Devil"
"Supernatural"
"High Under Pressure"
"Sons Of The Golden Horde"
"Don’t Deliver Us From Evil"
"Running Out Of Time"
"Savage Child"
"Isolated Hearts"


"On The Run" video:





Lineup:


Franz 'Franky' Bauer - Vocals
Valentin 'Vali' Strasser - Guitars
Christoph 'Aigy' Aigner - Bass
Emanoel 'Mano' Bruckmüller - Drums


(Photo - Izaquiel Tomé)

Arjen Lucassen’s Supersonic Revolution will release their debut album, Golden Age Of Music, on May 19 via Music Theories Recording/Mascot Label Group. A visualizer for the new single, "The Rise Of The Starman", can be viewed below.


Says Arjen: "Dear friends, here is the second single from Supersonic Revolution! My guess is that a lot of people will think this lyric is about David Bowie. But they would only be partly right.. it is actually about his fictional character Ziggy Stardust. Ziggy was an alien character that Bowie created back in the early 70s with his album The Rise And Fall Of Ziggy Stardust And The Spiders From Mars. I have to admit that I never really understood the deeper meaning behind this concept album, but I did my best to give it my own spin here! Alien creatures land on Earth with a mission to set the children free. The aliens only have 5 years to do this, but they fail hopelessly. Ziggy dies on stage. But… Bowie lived on, and how!Very curious to read what you think of this one... enjoy and thanks in advance!"







You think you know Arjen Lucassen? Towering Dutch prog rock polymath? The man behind the super successful prog rock conceptualists Ayreon? Not to mention his prog metal of Star One and Guilt Machine? Enormous overarching concept albums about space and time, packed to the hilt with special guests that read like a who’s who of modern day progressive rock? Arjen Lucassen? Well, think again…


Supersonic Revolution, the band behind Golden Age Of Music, are simply five men: Arjen on bass, long-standing keyboard player Joost van den Broek, guitarist Timo Somers, drummer Koen Herfst and singer Jaycee. Five men rocking out and having one hell of a time doing it.


The whole project grew from a request to provide a track for a cover CD for the German music magazine Eclipsed. “They asked if I had any cover versions lying around,” he recalls. “I said, ‘No but I’ll happily record one for you.’ So, they gave me a list of bands and I saw a ZZ Top song ‘I Heard It On The X’ that I really like. I said I could record it for them, but then they told me it had to be ready in one week...”


“I was like ‘Oh my god!’. I contacted my favorite musicians in Holland via WhatsApp and literally within 30 minutes I had assembled five people. A band basically. From there the seed was sown in Lucassen’s mind. ‘I want to form a band. And I want to simply have fun!’.


“I’m a perfectionist as you know, so I’m always sending musicians their parts back and asking them to change stuff,” he acknowledges. “But this was all brilliant. We were having fun, calling and WhatsApping all the time, and within a week we had a complete product.” He continues, “Also I wanted to have an up-beat, positive project.”


“I was like, let’s form a band and let’s write songs in the style of the 70s, and have the lyrics be a celebration of all the memorable things from that time, because those were my formative years,” he enthuses. “But I didn’t want it to sound like the 70s because that’s already been done, and I can’t do it any better than ‘Stargazer’ or ‘Kashmir’.”


“The guys are all younger than me - around 30 - so they weren’t even alive yet in the 70s. So, it was a great way for me to make 70s music with lots of Hammond and blistering guitars, but to update it to this time.”


The end result is 11 tracks of high energy, progressively inclined heavy rock that swings with the kind of groove Deep Purple rocked with in the early to mid-1970s. “This album is not a typical prog album. It’s not YES or Genesis. But it’s not a metal album either. There’s a track called ‘Burn it Down’,” Lucassen notes, “it’s totally based on ‘Smoke On The Water’ but written from the perspective of the ‘stupid with a flare gun’ mentioned in the original lyrics.


The album also features covers of some legendary songs given the Arjen Lucassen treatment as bonus tracks: T-Rex’s "Children Of The Revolution", ZZ Top’s "Heard It On The X", Earth Wind & Fire’s "Fantasy" and Roger Glover’s "Love Is All".


That, ladies and gentlemen, is the real Arjen Lucassen. Job done. Having fun.


Available formats:


- Artbook
- Transparent Blue 2LP
- Pink Marble 2LP
- Purple Marble 2LP
- Yellow Marble 2LP
- CD
- Digital


Pre-order here.





Golden Age Of Music tracklisting:


"SR Prelude"
"The Glamattack"
"Golden Age Of Music"
"The Rise Of The Starman"
" Burn It Down"
"Odyssey"
"They Took Us By Storm"
"Golden Boy"
"Holy Holy Ground"
"Fight Of The Century"
"Came To Mock, Stayed To Rock"
"Children Of The Revolution" (Bonus Track)
"Heard It On The X" (Bonus Track)
"Fantasy" (Bonus Track)
"Love Is All" (Bonus Track)


"The Glamattack" lyric video:

17x platinum, Grammy-nominated rock band, Skillet, have released the music video for "Psycho In My Head", their current Active Rock track and WWE's “Elimination Chamber" theme song. Check it out below:





Skillet will wrap the Rock Resurrection Tour this Sunday at the Wiltern in Los Angeles with co-headliner Theory Of A Deadman and special guest Saint Asonia. In high demand throughout its 25 city run, the tour was raising capacities weekly amidst a multitude of sold out shows including Milwaukee, Detroit, Cleveland, Green Bay, Reading and more.




Next the band will head oversees for their spring 2023 European Day of Destiny Tour. Embarking on a 21-city trek, the tour will kick off April 14 in Manchester, UK, and feature opening acts Like A Storm and Eva Under Fire, The tour will run through May 14 and hit major European markets including London, Brussels, Paris, Berlin, Copenhagen, Zurich, Milan and Prague.


Starting Friday, Skillet are offering limited VIP upgrades on their international tour that will include a M&G, photo with the band, early entry and a signed 8x10. VIP upgrades are available here.


(Photo - Jimmy Fontaine for Atlantic Records)

British gothic metal pioneers PARADISE LOST have welcomed Guido Zima Montanarini as their official new drummer — completing the band's lineup again.

PARADISE LOST guitarist Greg Mackintosh comments: "We welcome Guido as PARADISE LOST's new drummer. He cut his teeth with us on our European tour at the end of 2022. Guido did such a good job that we have decided to make him our new drummer and he will be playing on all upcoming PL shows and working on new material with us for our next album due out next year."

PARADISE LOST will play several festival shows this summer before returning to the studio to work on their next studio album.

Last September, Finnish drummer Waltteri Väyrynen left PARADISE LOST to join OPETH. At the time, he issued a statement saying that his decision involved "absolutely no bad blood or drama whatsoever."

PARADISE LOST's latest album, "Obsidian", was released in May 2020 via Nuclear Blast.

In a 2017 interview with The Rockpit, Mackintosh stated about PARADISE LOST's drummer changes: "Yeah, it's like a classic SPINAL TAP. The four of us are together the whole time, and if we haven't lost the first drummer, he would probably still be in the band, and then we just keep changing drummers. But it's all for natural reasons. It's all over a long period of time; it's not overnight."

He explained: "The first drummer left because the gigs were getting bigger and he wasn't handling the pressure too well. And the second drummer left because he went insane and turned to God. And then the next drummer left because he didn't have a family when he joined the band then he had loads of kids all close together and needed to go and be a family man."

Greg added: "It's all very natural reasons; none of it is contemptuous or anything like that or anything clandestine. It's just life gets in the way. You get to a certain age and you're a touring band, it's hard for people to just switch off life while on tour."

Tonight's (Thursday, March 23) NIGHT RANGER performance in Anaheim, California, along with Friday's (March 24) show in Ivins, Utah and Saturday night's (March 25) concert in Stateline, Nevada, have been postponed. New dates are currently being scheduled for late October, Anaheim will be October 25, Ivins will be October 26 and Stateline will follow. More information will be sent to ticket holders as soon as possible.

Earlier today, NIGHT RANGER released the following statement via social media: "First and foremost, we want to apologize to the fans. You guys know better than anyone we don’t take this lightly, earlier this afternoon Jack [Blades, vocals/bass] was admitted to the hospital. He is in good hands, but on the advice of medical staff we will not be able to perform any of our next 3 shows which are tonight in Anaheim, CA, tomorrow night (3/24) in Ivins, UT, and Saturday night (3/25) in Stateline, NV.

"We have to prioritize Jack's health and safety, and we cannot thank you enough for your understanding. This is not the message we wanted to be sending and we cannot wait to rock with all of you again soon. We will keep you updated as we know more."

NIGHT RANGER released its 12th studio album, "ATBPO", in August 2021 via Frontiers Music Srl. "ATBPO" stands for "And The Band Played On", an ode to making music during the COVID-19 era.

NIGHT RANGER began writing the album in early 2020, amid the onset of the global pandemic. After narrowing down the song selection and tightening them up to their well-known rock and roll sound, the band hit the studio, although separately, due to the times we were in. Throughout "ATBPO", we hear NIGHT RANGER continuing their hot streak that kicked off with 2011's "Somewhere In California".

"With 'ATBPO', I really feel like we've gone back to our roots of who we are as a band," Blades told KATV in a 2021 interview. "Even though this album was a challenge to make, it was all us together. Every song is all our heart and soul and what's coming from us. These songs are directly who we are. That's why we're so stoked to get this album out to the fans so they can experience the whole picture and not just a few singles. They get to experience what NIGHT RANGER is all about."

Blades went on to say that he hopes to be writing songs and touring until the day he dies.

"I think the biggest focus for us right now is touring," he said. "It's much more important to put on a great show than to have hits at this stage of the game. We enjoy touring even more now than when we did back in the '80s. It is just fun now. We don't have to prove anything or make a name for ourselves. We are who we are, so that allows us to throw in songs that maybe we grew up listening to or tell a different story because we do have a lot of stories. And the audience really enjoys that too because we get a chance to get them really involved. I mean this is what I do. NIGHT RANGER is going to be around for a long time to come."

Having sold over 17 million albums worldwide, performed across more than 4,000 stages, and enjoyed a radio audience that exceeds one billion, NIGHT RANGER has both epitomized and transcended the arena rock sound and style well beyond that era.

NIGHT RANGER is Jack Blades (bass, vocals),Kelly Keagy (drums, vocals),Brad Gillis (lead and rhythm guitars),Eric Levy (keyboards),and Keri Kelli (lead and rhythm guitars).

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by NightRanger (@nightranger)

Hachette Books has acquired the upcoming memoir from legendary thrash metal guitarist Gary Holt (EXODUS, SLAYER). "A Fabulous Disaster: From The Garage To Madison Square Garden, The Hard Way" is described in a press release as "a no-holds-barred memoir from the preeminent thrasher's life in metal, from its humble (but not quiet) beginnings in the San Francisco Bay Area through today's current resurgence in worldwide popularity, as he lived big, played fast and crashed hard, written in collaboration with Adem Tepedelen."

Holt shared the news of his upcoming memoir on social media, writing: "Super stoked!!! The announcement in book circles has gone out today, so I'm sharing it in MY circle! The book about my life is under way, from the beginnings of EXODUS and thrash metal, to the drug fueled fall, to the unexpected and tragic circumstances that led me to @slayerbandofficial to the bounce back to Madison Square Garden with and @exodusbandofficial charting at number 20 on the MAIN Billboard charts, all will be told! No holds barred, all the lows and highs will be retold! Been a project very close to me, and I'm stoked to be working with @ademtepedelen_ @lauramazer @bschafer714 @hachettebooks and @wendysherman to make this a reality!"

Holt joined EXODUS in 1981, shortly after the band's formation, and has been the group's main songwriter ever since. Holt has performed on every EXODUS album, and is considered highly influential in the world of thrash metal.

Holt began filling in for SLAYER guitarist Jeff Hanneman at live shows in 2011, and became the band's full-time co-guitarist as of 2013, while remaining a member of EXODUS. Holt played on SLAYER's final album, "Repentless", which came out in 2015.

In a June 2012 interview with Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio show, SLAYER's Kerry King stated about Holt: "I always regard Gary as the Glenn Tipton of our era — really good, really polished and nobody talks about him. To this day, nobody really references [JUDAS] PRIEST and Tipton that much as guitar players and I feel the same way about Gary. EXODUS have a huge following but a little more overlooked than METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER, ANTHRAX — the 'Big Four,' so to speak, so [it is great] to be able to bring him to the forefront and shove him down people's throats and say, 'Hey, this motherfucker kicks ass. Pay attention.'"

EXODUS's latest album, "Persona Non Grata", came out in November 2021 via Nuclear Blast Records. The LP was recorded at a studio in Lake Almanor, California and was engineered by Steve Lagudi and EXODUS. It was produced by EXODUS and was mixed by Andy Sneap. For the third time in the band's history, they returned to Swedish artist Pär Olofsson to create the album artwork.

"Persona Non Grata" was the follow-up to 2014's "Blood In Blood Out", which was the San Francisco Bay Area thrashers' first release since the departure of the group's lead singer of nine years, Rob Dukes, and the return of Steve "Zetro" Souza, who previously fronted EXODUS from 1986 to 1993 and from 2002 to 2004.

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by Gary Holt (@garyholt_official)

L.A. GUNS, featuring singer Phil Lewis and guitarist Tracii Guns, has released the official music video for a new song called "Diamonds". The track is taken from the band's upcoming studio album, "Black Diamonds", which will arrive on April 14. This will be the fourth studio album since the much-welcome reunion of the band's core foundation of Lewis and Guns. It will follow the well-received studio albums "The Missing Peace", "The Devil You Know" and "Checkered Past", plus the live release "Made In Milan", and a covers EP "Another Xmas In Hell".

Written and recorded over the course of 2022, "Black Diamonds" sees Guns, Lewis and company continuing on the same successful and inspiring sonic journey that they've been taking on "The Missing Peace", "The Devil You Know" and "Checkered Past". The band doesn't shy away from flexing its hard rock influences as it always has, but also incorporates more introspective acoustic tracks reflective of its classic rock influences from the '70s.

Last October, Lewis took to his personal Facebook page to share the "Black Diamonds" title and track listing, and he included the following message: "Incredibly happy to announce the completion of our forth record (post reunion). Great songs, fantastic playing and some of the best singing of my career. It's heavy and dark in places and bright n breezy in others. It's all over the place as per our usual style. I think it's the best thing we've ever done but yeah I know I say that about all of them but I truly love this record and had fun recording parts on the tour wagon and then five intense days doing vocals with Mitch [Davis] in NYC. Of course the wait for it to drop will be excruciating but I'll do my best to contain the excitement. Seriously it's fantastic and you're all gonna love it."

"Black Diamonds" track listing:

01. You Betray
02. Wrong About You
03. Diamonds
04. Babylon
05. Shame
06. Shattered Glass
07. Gonna Lose
08. Got It Wrong
09. Lowlife
10. Crying
11. Like A Drug

"Checkered Past" was released in November 2021 via Frontiers Music Srl.

In April 2021, a settlement was reached between drummer Steve Riley and Guns and Lewis over the rights to the L.A. GUNS name. Under the terms of the settlement agreement, Guns and Lewis continue to operate under the L.A. GUNS trademark, while Riley and his bandmates from the other version of L.A. GUNS are now operating under the new name RILEY'S L.A. GUNS.

L.A. GUNS was formed in 1983 and have sold over six million records, including 1988's "L.A. Guns" and 1990's "Cocked And Loaded", both of which were certified gold. "Cocked And Loaded" contained the hit single "The Ballad Of Jayne" that went to No. 33 on Billboard's Hot 100 and No. 25 on the Mainstream Rock charts. From the mid-'90s to the mid 2000s, L.A. GUNS continued to tour and release new music. Following their successful performance at SiriusXM's Hair Nation festival in September 2016, L.A. GUNS went into the studio to record the critically acclaimed "The Missing Peace", which was the highest-selling release for Frontiers Music Srl in 2017. Their 12th album, "The Devil You Know", was released in 2019 to the same critical acclaim. Since reuniting, Tracii and Phil continue to tour around the world with L.A. GUNS, which currently includes Johnny Martin (bass) and Ace Von Johnson (guitar).

Lakeshore Records is set to release "John Wick: Chapter 4 - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" digitally March 24 with an original score by Tyler Bates ("John Wick", "Guardians Of The Galaxy"),and Joel J. Richard ("John Wick", "The Andromeda Strain"). Bates and Richard, their scores an integral part of the success of the first three installments of "John Wick", return with another masterclass in high-intensity compositions that feature an array of instruments — including treated piano, mandolin, acoustic and electric guitar, bass, harmonica orchestra, synths, and found object percussion. Bates also produced songs performed by Lola Colette with Nick and Sam Wilkerson of the punk band WHITE REAPER on drums and bass respectively, as well as tracks with IN THIS MOMENT and Manon Hollander. In addition, the track co-written and produced by Bates with vocals by avant pop phenomenon and cast member Rina Sawayama, "Eye For An Eye", is available digitally. The Lionsgate film directed by Chad Stahelski and starring Keanu Reeves, Donnie Yen, Bill Skarsgård, Laurence Fishburne, Hiroyuki Sanada, Shamier Anderson, Lance Reddick, Rina Sawayama, Scott Adkins and Ian McShane is in theaters and IMAX on March 24.

Bates told Entertainment Weekly about his collaboration with IN THIS MOMENT: "'I Would Die For You' is a song that I wrote with Maria Brink and Chris Howorth of IN THIS MOMENT and [also] produced. Chad, literally, out of the blue, called me up, and he's like, 'Yo, Tyler, do you know this singer, I love her, Maria-something, she's in this band, IN THIS…?' I'm like, 'IN THIS MOMENT?' He said, 'Yeah, that's it!' I said, 'I'm actually working on their new record right now. [Laughs] They are real fans of 'John Wick', which is really cool."

"John Wick: Chapter 4 - Original Motion Picture Soundtrack" track listing:

01. Big Wick Energy
02. Nowhere To Run (Lola Colette)
03. Sand Wick
04. Change Your Nature
05. Continental Breakfast
06. Wick In Osaka
07. High Table In Osaka
08. A Grave Accusation
09. Grief On A Train
10. I Would Die For You (IN THIS MOMENT)
11. Of Mincing & Men
12. A Grave Situation
13. To Get Back In
14. Killa's Teeth
15. Ambition And Worth
16. Dog Lover
17. JW, Loving Husband
18. Stairs Arrival
19. Marie Douceur, Marie Colère (Manon Hollander)
20. John Wick Rises
21. Paris Radio Intro
22. Chess Club
23. Urban Cowgirl
24. Quite The Mess You've Made
25. The Ex Ex
26. The Ex Ex Chapter 3
27. Arc De Triomphe
28. Wrong Train
29. Sacré-Coeur Sunrise
30. Pistol Procession
31. Ten Paces
32. Twenty Paces
33. Helen A Handbasket
34. Eye For An Eye (Rina Sawayama)
35. Cry Mia River

Bates regularly transitions from scoring some of the world’s biggest film and television franchises, such as "Guardians Of The Galaxy" and "John Wick", to rocking massive audiences in the world of rock music, and back to the studio again writing and producing records with artists like HEALTH, BUSH, IN THIS MOMENT and STARCRAWLER, to name a few. In 2004, he created the menacing audio backdrop for the popular Zack Snyder reboot of "Dawn Of The Dead", beginning a string of nearly a dozen box office number ones that have contributed to well over five billion dollars cumulative worldwide box office gross for his projects. Bates then teamed up with Snyder again for the films "300", "Watchmen" and "Sucker Punch". His oeuvre expanded to include films like "Atomic Blonde", "The Devil's Rejects", "The Day The Earth Stood Still", "William Friedkin's Killer Joe", and TV shows like "Californication", "Punisher", "The Purge", "Kingdom", "Salem", "The Exorcist" and more. More recently, Bates scored the blockbuster "Fast & Furious Presents: Hobbs And Shaw", "Deadpool 2", "Jamie Foxx's Dayshift", Ti West's 2022 releases "X" and "Pearl", "The Spy Who Dumped Me", plus Genndy Tartakovsky's acclaimed animated series "Samurai Jack" and "Primal" on Adult Swim. After scoring Cirque Du Soleil's "R.U.N.", Bates embarked on the 2022 world tour in support of Jerry Cantrell's latest album "Brighten", which he also co-produced. With more new projects on the horizon including "Agent Elvis", Tyler Bates will undoubtedly continue to redefine what a composer is as a shapeshifting artist who's architected one of the most kaleidoscopic resumes in music.

Last October, IN THIS MOMENT released an EP called "Blood 1983". The effort commemorated the tenth anniversary of IN THIS MOMENT's gold-certified album "Blood" (2012) and was made available digitally across all digital service providers as well as CD via BMG.

"Blood 1983" was co-produced by Bates and Dan Haigh, and mixed by Zakk Cervini.

Since coming to life in 2005, IN THIS MOMENT has presided over a diehard fan base under the watch of "mother" figure and frontwoman Brink — joined by co-founder and lead guitarist Howorth, bassist Travis Johnson, guitarist Randy Weitzel and drummer Kent Dimmel. As millions convened upon the group's otherworldly and unforgettable concerts, they quietly emerged as one of the most influential and impactful bands of the 21st century.

To date, in addition to the gold-selling album "Blood", the quintet has garnered two gold singles — "Blood" and "Whore" — followed by Top 25 entries on the Billboard Top 200 with "Black Widow" (2014) and "Ritual" (2017). Bringing their total stream tally well past 200 million as of 2020, "Ritual" elevated them to new creative and critical peaks as well. Between selling out headline tours coast-to-coast, the group performed in arenas everywhere alongside DISTURBED and appeared at countless festivals from Welcome To Rockville to Sonic Temple. Along the way, they assembled their seventh full-length, the aptly titled "Mother" (Roadrunner) with longtime collaborator Kevin Churko (OZZY OSBOURNE, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH).

IN THIS MOMENT is Maria Brink (lead vocals),Chris Howorth (guitars),Travis Johnson (bass),Randy Weitzel (rhythm guitar),Kent Dimmel (drums).

In a new interview with Heavy New York, BUTCHER BABIES vocalist Heidi Shepherd was asked if songwriting gets easier or harder as she and her bandmates get more albums under their belts. She responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I definitely would not say it gets easier. I think that there's something to be said about evolving. [BUTCHER BABIES' debut album] 'Goliath' was 10 years ago; I'm a totally different human than I was 10 years ago. I've experienced, I feel, a whole lifetime of stuff, touring the world multiple times over with my friends. I'm just kind of deciding what to even touch on. And especially whereas… in the industry, people say, 'Oh, you need to be doing this now.' 'Oh, you need to do this. This is gonna make you successful. You need to transition into this way, that way, this way, this way, that way.' So kind of maintaining the integrity of what you want to create, I think, is a lot harder album to album to album.

"In this band, I'm super grateful for having the bandmembers that we have because we love to experiment and try different things," she continued. "And on this [upcoming fourth BUTCHER BABIES] album you'll hear some of the softest stuff we've ever done… A lot of these songs have been released, like 'Bottom Of The Bottle', which is a total radio song, and that was a song that I went in with the intention and totally [said], 'This is the kind of song that I wanna write for this.' And then you'll hear songs like 'Beaver Cage', where it's wild and chaotic. So I'm excited that we have bandmembers that let us experiment in that way. But when it came to deciding what kind of album we really, really wanted to do, we ended up with a double album because we kind of had two different directions that we really wanted to showcase."

Asked if BUTCHER BABIES' recently released single "Beaver Cage" is a good representation of what fans can expect to hear on the upcoming LP, Heidi said: "It is a great representation, actually. It's quirky, it's silly, it's fun, and I think the whole album really reflects that. But the album has a dark side as well. And something that we're very excited about is showing these different sides of BUTCHER BABIES.

"When [2017's] 'Lilith' came out, I actually had quit smoking immediately after that album, so my voice changed so much between then and now. So you get to really hear the fun ranges I was able to discover in my voice after quitting smoking."

BUTCHER BABIES fourth studio album was recently completed with producer Josh Schroeder (LORNA SHORE, KING 810).

Last October, BUTCHER BABIES shared the official music video for their cover version of rapper Saweetie's chart-topping single "Best Friend". The clip was directed by Dale "Rage" Resteghini and was filmed at the Bare Den adult entertainment club in Newton, New Jersey.

BUTCHER BABIES have been performing their cover of "Best Friend" at their recent live shows.

"Lilith" was produced by Steve Evetts (THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, SEPULTURA, SUICIDE SILENCE) and marked the band's recording debut with drummer Chase Brickenden, who replaced Chris Warner in 2016.

In July 2019, longtime BUTCHER BABIES bassist Jason Klein announced his departure from the band. He has since been replaced by Ricky Bonazza.

In 2021, BUTCHER BABIES embarked on a headlining tour, "Butcher Babies Vs. Goliath", which saw the band performing "Goliath" — released in 2013 via Century Media Records — in its entirety along with recent hit singles and new material.

Since 2020, BUTCHER BABIES have independently released a handful of newly energized singles, some of which were produced and co-written by Matt Good (FROM FIRST TO LAST),including "Bottom Of A Bottle", "Sleeping With The Enemy", "Yorktown", "Last Dance" and "It's Killin' Time, Baby!" The latter was inspired by the DC Comics character Lobo, a heavy metal bounty hunter.

MÖTLEY CRÜE's Nikki Sixx will apparently appear on the upcoming rock album from country legend Dolly Parton.

The CRÜE bassist shared the news of his participation in a tweet earlier today (Thursday, March 23). Outlining some of his recent activities, he wrote: "Played bass on a song for Dolly Parton yesterday.

"Been back in the gym again to beat the jet-lag from the tour and enjoying family time.

"Had a great interview with Sweden Rock magazine and they might even feature some of my street photography."

Parton recently said that she was making a rock album in order to celebrate her induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

"I'm making an album, too, because I have to live up to all of that hype," she said last December on "The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon".

"I'm very honored and very proud, and I'm good about timing, so I always thought I might want to do a rock record, because my husband is a rock and roll freak. So, anyway, I thought, 'Well, if I'm ever gonna do it, now's the time," she added.

Tentatively titled "Rock Star", Dolly's LP will include covers of classic rock tunes like "Purple Rain" by Prince, "Can't Get No Satisfaction" by THE ROLLING STONES, "Stairway To Heaven" by LED ZEPPELIN and "Freebird" by LYNYRD SKYNYRD.

During an appearance on "The View", Parton also shared that she collaborated with a number of fellow iconic artists on the album, including Paul McCartney, Steven Tyler, Stevie Nicks, Steve Perry, John Fogerty, P!nk and Brandie Carlile.

"If I'm gonna be in the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, I'm gonna have to do something to earn it. So I'm doing a rock and roll album, and I'm having a lot of the rock stars that I met that night be on the album with me," Parton explained.

Another heavy metal musician who said he was approached about contributing to Dolly's album is JUDAS PRIEST singer Rob Halford, who joined Parton on stage at the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame induction ceremony to perform her classic song "Jolene". Also appearing with them as part of a "super jam" performance were some of the other Rock Hall inductees, including Pat Benatar, Annie Lennox and DURAN DURAN's Simon Le Bon.

Speaking to TotalRock, Rob said: "After the show, her manager came up to me, Danny [Nozell], and he goes, 'She's doing a project, like a rock album. Would you be interested?' I said, 'Yeah. Here's my number.' And then, out of the blue, like four weeks later, and suddenly [there's] ideas for some more work."
Played bass on a song for Dolly Parton yesterday. Been back in the gym again to beat the jet-lag from the tour and enjoying family time.Had a great interview with Sweden Rock magazine and they might even feature some of my street photography. 👍🏽

— 📷 (@NikkiSixx) March 23, 2023

According to The Republic, an attorney for ICED EARTH's Jon Schaffer has asked a federal judge to dismiss a lawsuit filed against the guitarist by District of Columbia Attorney General Karl Racine in an effort to recover the millions of dollars the city spent to defend the U.S. Capitol during the January 6, 2021 attack.

In a motion filed March 10 in U.S. District Court in Washington, D.C., the attorney representing Schaffer asked to join a series of motions to dismiss the lawsuit and some responses from other defendants, stating that the arguments made in those filings "similarly apply" to Schaffer. Those motions argue that the District of Columbia does not have standing to bring civil action against the defendants because the civil rights statutes cited in the District's lawsuit limit "standing to injured federal officials or officers, not a governmental entity."

"Defendant Jon Ryan Schaffer respectfully moves to join in the five motions to dismiss the amended complaint," Schaffer's motion, which was obtained by BLABBERMOUTH.NET, reads in part. "Defendant Schaffer asks to join these filed motions to the extent they pertain to allegations against him. The arguments set forth in the motions to dismiss similarly apply to Defendant Schaffer. Joinder to the motions to dismiss and their replies serve the interests to expedite and consolidate this matter and to avoid the repetition of filing a separate motion that would assert the same arguments as set forth in those motions and replies."

In December 2021, Racine filed a lawsuit against more than two dozen members of the Oath Keepers and the Proud Boys, including Schaffer, over their role in the U.S. Capitol attack.

According to CNN, the lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, D.C., accused 31 members of the extremist groups of "conspiring to terrorize the District" on January 6, 2021, calling their actions "a coordinated act of domestic terrorism." The lawsuit cited the Ku Klux Klan Act of 1871, a federal law created after the Civil War to protect civil rights and, as Racine noted, "to protect against vigilantes and insurrectionists."

"I think the damages are substantial," Racine told The Washington Post at the time the lawsuit was filed. "If it so happens that it bankrupts or puts these individuals and entities in financial peril, so be it."

The 84-page complaint, which can be found at this location, described Schaffer as "a founding, lifetime member of the Oath Keepers." It went on to say: "Schaffer was criminally charged and indicted for his role in perpetrating the January 6th Attack. In connection with a promise to cooperate with investigators and potentially testify in criminal cases related to the conspiracy to commit the January 6th Attack, Schaffer pleaded guilty to the entire Statement of Offense in the criminal action brought against him, which included two felony offenses: (1) trespass of the Capitol while armed with a deadly or dangerous weapon and (2) obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress. The Criminal Complaint filed against Schaffer—as well as Schaffer's Plea Agreement and the accompanying Statement of Offense describing his conduct—are publicly available documents that are hereby incorporated into the Complaint by reference."

"No one bore the brunt of this gutless attack more than the courageous law enforcement officers including the men and women of the DC Metropolitan Police Department who went into the fire and violence with one objective in mind: remove the violent mob and restore our country's fragile democracy," Racine said at a news conference.

"The defendants, as you know, were not tourists, nor were they acting patriotically," he added. "They were vigilantes, members of a mob, insurrectionists who sought to crush our country's freedoms."

As part of his April 2021 plea deal, Jon entered into a cooperation agreement with the government.

Although Schaffer was initially charged with six crimes, including engaging in an act of physical violence and targeting police with bear spray, he pleaded guilty to only two charges: obstruction of an official proceeding of Congress; and trespassing on restricted grounds of the Capitol while armed with a deadly or dangerous weapon. The first charge is punishable by up to 20 years in prison, while the second carries up to a 10-year prison term.

In his plea agreement, Schaffer acknowledged that on January 6, 2021 he was in Washington to attend the "Stop The Steal" rally at the Ellipse in Washington, D.C. to protest the results of the presidential election, which he believed were fraudulent. Schaffer wore a tactical vest and carried bear spray, a dangerous weapon and chemical irritant used to ward off bears. When the rally finished, Schaffer joined a large crowd that marched from the Ellipse to the Capitol, where a joint session of Congress, presided over by Vice President Michael Pence, was in session to certify the electoral college vote results. Shortly after 2:00 p.m., members of the mob forced entry into the Capitol building, disrupting the joint session and causing members of Congress and the Vice President to be evacuated from the House and Senate chambers.

In his plea agreement, Schaffer admitted that after arriving on Capitol grounds, he walked past barriers intended to restrict access to the public and to a set of locked doors on the Capitol's west side. At approximately 2:40 p.m., Schaffer positioned himself at the front of a crowd that broke open a set of doors being guarded by four U.S. Capitol Police (USCP) officers wearing riot gear. Schaffer admitted to being among the first individuals to push past the damaged doors and into the Capitol building, forcing officers to retreat. Schaffer and others advanced toward five or six backpedaling USCP officers while members of the mob swelled inside of the Capitol and overwhelmed the officers. The officers ultimately deployed a chemical irritant to disperse the mob. Schaffer was among the people who were sprayed in the face, after which he exited while holding his own bear spray in his hands.

As part of the plea deal, Schaffer agreed to cooperate with investigators and potentially testify in related criminal cases, according to CNN. In return for Schaffer's assistance, the Justice Department might later urge the judge to show leniency during his sentencing.

As part of the agreement, the Justice Department has offered to sponsor Schaffer for the witness protection program.

The now-54-year-old musician was the first Capitol riot defendant to reach a plea deal.

The Indiana chapter of the Oath Keepers distanced itself from Schaffer after his arrest, claiming he was not a member of the local group. But the national organization, which sells lifetime memberships for $1,200, has not commented on his alleged affiliation with the group.

At a November 2020 Donald Trump rally in Washington, D.C., Schaffer was videotaped walking behind a Florida couple, Kelly Meggs and Connie Meggs, who were accused of being among 10 members of the Oath Keepers to have played a leading role in the Capitol assault. According to federal authorities, Kelly and Connie Meggs plotted for weeks ahead of the attack, attended training sessions and recruited others. Kelly Meggs was the head of the Oath Keepers' chapter in Florida.

Following the initial reports that Schaffer was involved in the riot, his ICED EARTH bandmates distanced themselves from his actions. Singer Stu Block and bassist Luke Appleton later posted separate statements on social media announcing their resignations. BLIND GUARDIAN frontman Hansi Kürsch also quit DEMONS & WIZARDS, his long-running project with Schaffer. The allegations also apparently affected Schaffer's relationship with his longtime record label Century Media, which had released albums from both ICED EARTH and DEMONS & WIZARDS. As of mid-January 2021, the Century Media artist roster page did not list either band.

SOIL bassist Tim King spoke to the "Everblack" podcast about the recent announcement that SOIL singer Ryan McCombs had rejoined DROWNING POOL.

McCombs originally hooked up with DROWNING POOL in 2005 and appeared on two of the band's studio albums, "Full Circle" (2007) and "Drowning Pool" (2010),as well as a live album, 2009's "Loudest Common Denominator". He rejoined SOIL after exiting DROWNING POOL in 2011.

McCombs is planning to continue to front SOIL and perform with both bands moving forward.

Asked by "Everblack" how Ryan will split his time between the two groups, Tim said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Let me just first start by saying there's absolutely no weirdness about it whatsoever. When we found out about it… It literally came together really fast; it wasn't some conspiracy in the works or anything like that. Their latest singer, Jasen [Moreno], had run his course, and they wanted to separate. And they were literally gonna either become a three-piece or figure out what to do. And then they were, like, 'Well, what if we asked Ryan to come back?' Because, actually, Dave's [late DROWNING POOL vocalist Dave Williams] gone; their second singer [Jason 'Gong' Jones] they didn't get along with. Ryan and them had their issues, but they patched them up over the years; it's been 12 years. So Ryan came to me and Adam [Zadel, SOIL guitarist] and said, 'Hey, SOIL doesn't tour a ton, and DROWNING POOL doesn't tour a ton, but I still wanna stay on tour. I wanna tour a lot.'"

Tim continued: "I have my record label with my business partner. I have Pavement Entertainment. I have a management company. Adam owns his own office furniture installation company. Ryan — God bless his soul — is just a hundred percent musician. So, SOIL, we still do [tour], but we don't do it like we used to; it's not a constant 'go, go, go'-type thing. So, Ryan has bills to pay, things to do. And the thing is DROWNING POOL is basically doing the same thing as SOIL; they all have other interests that they do. So between the two bands, we basically equal one full-time touring band. So for Ryan, who just wants to go out there and work and sing and stay active, it seemed like an okay thing. He had already been in that band for two records. He's with us. Nobody was trying to steal anybody from anybody. So we were, like, 'Okay.' As long as we can keep our schedules in tow and keep a good line of communication between the two bands, and Ryan wants to stay active and stay on the road all the time, well, then power be. Let's do it.

"Initially, the first time Ryan left, there was a little tension and some bad blood between us and DROWNING POOL — I mean, that's no secret — but as you get older and you live and you learn… I mean, we patched up our problems with them years and years ago," King revealed.

"I just was in New Orleans on a vacation, and DROWNING POOL was in town playing, and I went to the show and hung out with the guys and had a few beers and talked and laughed over old times and stuff. So it's all good.

"If it was a different situation, like our guitar player Adam or something wanted to tour in two bands or whatever, then we'd tell him to do it too," Tim added. "SOIL doesn't work a ton, and DROWNING POOL doesn't work a ton, so it worked out to where he will be able to do both with very little conflict between the two bands. And if there is any — we're adults now. We've been going for 26 years. As Nikki Sixx once said, instead of throwing a bottle of Jack Daniel's at each other's heads, we sit down and talk about things now. [Laughs] We're mature adults. And we'll figure it out. It's all good. We talked to the DROWNING POOL guys about it. We talked to Ryan. We talked to everybody involved about it. And all good vibes. It's gonna be a decent thing. I'm not worried about it. And if something does happen, we'll talk about it and we'll figure it out. Who knows? It's life. Anything can happen. But for now, all the vibes are good. Everything's great. Nothing's gonna change with either band. And SOIL is gonna still do what SOIL does and keep on doing it. And Ryan's gonna be right there with us in tow."

McCombs, who has lived in Swindon, England since 2018, played his first shows back with DROWNING POOL last Friday (March 17) at Club L.A. in Destin, Florida and Saturday, March 18, headlining the inaugural Throwdown At The Campground festival in Fruitland Park, Florida.

DROWNING POOL's first new record since 2016, "Strike A Nerve", came out last September via T-Boy/UMe. It marked the band's third album with Moreno, who joined DROWNING POOL in 2012.

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

Fan-filmed video of Yngwie Malmsteen's March 9 guitar masterclass at Foufounes Électriques in Montreal, Quebec, Canada can be seen below.

In an interview with Tigman of WPDH Radio 101.5 FM in Poughkeepsie, New York, Yngwie was asked to name the best of the three singers he worked with early on in his career: Jeff Scott Soto, Mark Boals and Joe Lynn Turner. The legendary Swedish guitarist responded: "Here's the way I look at this. So I came to America in 1982 and I joined a band called STEELER. And then I formed a band called ALCATRAZZ. In January 1984, I signed a record deal as a solo artist. So from the point of January 1984, it was never a band — never. There was never a band called RISING FORCE. My first solo album was called 'Rising Force'. I had a band called RISING FORCE in Sweden in '79. And when I hired people for my solo stuff, I would write the bass parts, the drum parts, the guitar parts — obviously — the keyboard parts, the vocal parts and the lyrics. So like an ensemble, like an orchestra or whatever, or even for a performance on Broadway, there's a written piece and the performer is hired to perform the piece. If they, for some reason, don't work out, you put someone else in there.

"For some strange reason, somebody seemed to think that a) it was a band, and b) the guy that was supposed to be the singer at the time was Elvis Presley or something," he continued. "No. So I therefore, [in] 2012, decided I'm not gonna hire singers anymore and I sing myself. I said, 'Good luck to you, guys. See you. Bye.'"

When Tigman noted that none of the singers Yngwie hired over the years "worked out" in the long run, Malmsteen said: "Well, they seem to think because they're the singer and not the keyboard player they're Elvis Presley. And they will soon find out, in my outfit they're notElvis Presley and they will have to move on.

"It's an Yngwie Malmsteensolo career," he explained. "And even now, for the last album I even played all the instruments as well.

"Listen, it's not like, oh, yeah, I minimize these guys — they're all great; whatever — but the thing is that I'm like an artist like a painter or something. Leonardo Da Vinci didn't call someone, like, 'Hey, dude, can you come over and finish half of my painting?' And that's how I work — I paint the whole painting. That's how I work."

Malmsteen previously floated the Elvis Presley comparison in reference to his former singers during a 2018 press conference in Malaysia. Asked why he chose to handle lead vocals himself on his then-latest album, 2016's "World On Fire", he said: "When I started out when I was a kid in Sweden, I had a band called RISING FORCE, I was the singer. Then I came to America and I was playing with STEELER and ALCATRAZZ, they [had their own] singers.

"I always thought that singers have the Elvis Presley syndrome — they think they're Elvis Presley," he continued. "They're not Elvis Presley. Because I write the music, I write the lyrics, I write the vocal melody lines — I write everything. Just because I let somebody sing something doesn't mean they're more important than the bass player or the keyboard player or the drummer. Because I write all the parts — I write the drum parts, the bass parts, the keyboard parts, the guitar parts and the vocal parts — like a classical composer. And I really kind of got tired of dealing with their bullshit, really. So I decided to sing myself."

In 2017, Malmsteen gave an interview to Metal Wani in which the iconic axeman said that he had no interest in collaborating with vocalists like Jeff Scott Soto, Joe Lynn Turner and Tim "Ripper" Owens ever again. "I'm very comfortable singing myself, first of all," Yngwie said. "Secondly, there's a certain disconnect when you write the song and you have someone else sing it for you. And it's kind of like a fakeness about it. I always wrote everything — I wrote all the lyrics, I wrote all the melodies, everything; it's just somebody else sung it. And to me, the singer is nothing else than a different… like a bass player or a keyboard player — they're not more important than any other musician. And they, unfortunately, seem to think that they are. And I've kind of had it with their sort of… self-absorbed sort of way, and I'm very much against it. No. I don't like that. I don't like any of those people, and I don't like to do anything with them ever again."

In the days after Yngwie's original interview with Metal Wani was published on BLABBERMOUTH.NET, several of the guitarist's former singers — including Soto, Turner and Owens — responded on social media, with Turner describing Malmsteen's statements as "the rantings of a megalomaniac desperately trying to justify his own insecurity." This was followed by a retort from a member of Yngwie's management team, who wrote on Malmsteen's Facebook page that the three vocalists "came out enraged, spitting insults and profanities" at the guitarist because "Yngwie said something that they didn't like." The management representative added: "It's very unfortunate that these past hired vocalists must resort to mudslinging and insults to elicit any kind of media attention towards them. Such classless, puerile words are ungentlemanly at best and absolutely disgraceful at worst."

Malmsteen's latest album, "Parabellum", was released in July 2021 via Music Theories Recordings/Mascot Label Group. Only four of the songs on the LP feature vocals. The album title is Latin, translating as "Prepare For War".

After working with some of the top hard singers of the past four decades, Yngwie now handles much of the lead vocals himself in his own band, backed by a lineup that includes keyboardist Nick Marino, bassist Emilio Martinez and drummer Brian Wilson.

KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons has sold his Southern Nevada estate for $11 million.

Simmons put the home on the market in October 2021 for $14.95 million, but that price came down on November 17, 2021 to $13.5 million, on May 19, 2022 to $11 million and again on November 17, 2022 to $10 million. Gene paid a combined $10.8 million for the home and a lot adjacent to it back in May 2021. Among the improvements Simmons made to the Las Vegas house is installing all new floors and ripping up wall-to-wall carpeting in some of the rooms.

Speaking to TMZ about his decision to sell the home only five months after buying it, Gene said: "First I bought it because Mr. Biden [U.S. president Joe Biden] and Mr. Newsom [California governor Gavin Newsom] are looking to raise taxes to the point where if I work really hard to earn a legal dollar, I may get to keep 35 cents. So, California has become untenable. So I'd rather leave the money to my family and to charity and so on, so I wanted to move to Las Vegas. No income tax, no state tax, no local tax, no inheritance tax, beautiful place, great. Except for one thing — my family doesn't wanna go there. They're not gonna put up with the heat, and down the street, there's strippers and stuff like that. They don't wanna deal with any of that."

He continued: "I bought [the house] for 8.6 [million], then I bought the property next door for 2.4 [million] and planted 137 trees. So, guys, I can this for 25 or 30 million, but I'm blessed. I'd like to meet the person that's gonna wind up buying the place because I don't wanna just hand it over to some knucklehead. I want you to enjoy it and have a good life."

According to Gene, his wife and their two adult children prefer to stay at the family's other homes, an extensive portfolio which includes a modern lake house in Whistler, British Columbia, a home in Malibu and two houses in L.A. that Gene bought for the Simmons kids, Nick and Sophie.

"They're not fans of 115-degree weather," Simmons told The Wall Street Journal.

Because of KISS's touring schedule and his business travel, Gene said he never spent more than a few weeks total in Las Vegas. He went on to say that he had no regrets about selling the property so soon after the purchase, adding: "How many houses do you need anyway?"

According to TMZ, Simmons purchased a mansion in Beverly Hills, California in October 2021 for $10.5 million. The home occupies more than 7,000 square feet of living apace and an additional 1800 square feet of "sleek deck space." The sophisticated design allows for scenic views from the expansive kitchen, dining, living room, four bedrooms and five bathrooms, upstairs library/gallery space and a sliver of glass in the home theater. The home is one half solar powered, using roof panels to heat the pool and radiant heated floors.

In September 2021, Simmons sold his Los Angeles mansion for $16 million, almost a year after he first put it on the market for $22 million. He later relisted it for $25 million after it never sold and he reportedly invested a lot of money in making improvements.

Gene bought the Los Angeles property back in October 1986 for $1,337,500.

Simmons had been very vocal about his desire to leave California for some time due to wanting a quieter lifestyle and to get away from being listed on celebrity maps or having to deal with Beverly Hills tour buses. He also said that part of the reason he and his wife listed the two-acre property in Benedict Canyon because the home had become too big for the both of them since their children had grown up.

"It's a big property, and the kids were literally raised here," he said about the Beverly Hills house. "Now they've moved on, and they both have their own homes next to each other in the Hollywood Hills. They borrow a cup of sugar and all that. They love each other and support each other like the best kids you could imagine."

"They've got their own lives, and now we've got this big house. And if I want to talk to [my wife] Shannon, I've got to hit an intercom because she's at the other end of the house," he continued. "It's happy and it's also sad. When you're a kid and you live at home, you love your mom and dad, but at some point you've got to move out. It's sad because you're moving from home, but you're also looking forward to the future, and we really hope the next family that lives here is going to get as much joy as we have from this place."

Gene and Shannon were married in 2011 after dating since 1975.

Gene, Shannon and their kids all appeared on the reality TV series "Gene Simmons Family Jewels" from 2006 until 2012.

Photo credit: courtesy of Stetson Ybarra Photography

Fan-filmed video of former JUDAS PRIEST singer Tim "Ripper" Owens's February 25 performance in Tuxtla Gutiérrez, Chiapas, México can be seen below.

Owens recently released a solo EP, "Return To Death Row". The effort was produced by Jamey Jasta (HATEBREED) and Nick Bellmore (JASTA, DEE SNIDER). Players on the EP, which contain Owens's "heaviest songs yet," include Nick Bellmore, Charlie Bellmore (DEE SNIDER, ex-TOXIC HOLOCAUST) on guitar, and Chris Beaudette (JASTA, ENTEIRRO) on bass.

Owens is currently the frontman of KK'S PRIEST, featuring fellow former JUDAS PRIEST member K.K. Downing.

Owens joined PRIEST after being discovered when the band's drummer, Scott Travis, was given a videotape of him performing with the PRIEST cover act BRITISH STEEL. JUDAS PRIEST at the time was seeking a replacement for Rob Halford.

Owens recorded two studio albums with JUDAS PRIEST — 1997's "Jugulator" and 2001's "Demolition" — before the band reunited with Halford in 2003.

"Demolition" and "Jugulator" are included on "50 Heavy Metal Years Of Music", JUDAS PRIEST's 2021 limited-edition box set which contains every official live and studio album to date plus 13 unreleased discs.

In a recent interview with the "Heavy Metal Mayhem" radio show, Owens addressed the fact that he is a often a magnet for controversy with some of the things he says or posts on social media. He said: "I think the problem is I use a lot of humor [when I do interviews or post things on social media]. It's funny, you say something 10 years ago or five years ago, and people still talk about it.

"Nobody knows me. They don't really know me politically," Tim continued. "They don't know me personally. They don't know what I do [or] who I am. They just know the Tim 'Ripper' Owens who does these interviews.

"What gets me in trouble is I kind of like to use a lot of humor, so I'm always saying something funny, and the next thing you know it's taken out of context.

"It is what it is. And that's what you have to deal with," Owens added. "You post something — even if it's a positive thing… Listen, I've lost a lot of weight [and I posted something about it on social media]. It's a positive thing, and I'm really healthy and taking care of myself. And then people even knock that. You read headlines… And it was a nice, positive thing. Blabbermouth took it off my Instagram and posted it and said I lost 50 pounds and blah, blah, blah. And it was nice; it wasn't like they took it and made something bad out of it. I don't ever read comments — ever — but this one I thought I would, to see how people can actually make this a bad thing. And, of course, they did. And that's just what they do. And you deal with that."

Tim went on to say that he is "definitely" more careful about what he says publicly nowadays. "I've watched what I've said now for probably the past three or four years," he said. "I still get in trouble; I still say something [that gets people riled up].

"Contrary to popular belief, I'm not a guy that talks [publicly] about politics," Owens clarified. "I used to like posts or say a few things in the past, but I don't talk [publicly] about politics, just because it doesn't matter if you're left or right or middle, whatever you say, the left, the right or the middle is gonna attack you. So it's kind of a silly thing. But whatever you say, that's just the way it is nowadays. People, they like to hate; they're never positive. But with that being said, that's five to 10 percent of the people. I mean, it depends on the headline on social media, because that might be more, but a lot of times, what happens is you happen to gravitate toward the negative stuff that people say about you more than the positive stuff, and I think that's the bad thing.

"When people say to me, 'I don't like you. You suck. You can't sing. You have a bad stage presence,' this and that. But that's not true. That's not true," Tim said. "If you just said, 'I don't like it. I don't like his singing,' okay, I can live with that. That's fine — I can live with that. You don't like me. That's fine. There's a lot of singers I don't like either. But I wouldn't say that, though. The difference is I don't go on somebody's page and go, 'Jesus, look at you.' Or, 'Man, that's a terrible record.' I don't do that. I'm not that stupid. But when people say I can't sing, they need to open their fucking ears, because I can sing just about anything."

Hoy Salón SUTERM frente a plaza del sol

Posted by Zona Zero Tuxtla on Saturday, February 25, 2023

Ahead of BABYMETAL's forthcoming concept album "The Other One", due March 24, the Japanese pop-metal group has released the LP's fifth single, "Mirror Mirror". The official lyric video for the song can be seen below.

Last year BABYMETAL was "sealed" from the world after a successful 10-year journey. In April 2022, "The Other One" restoration project began to recover the BABYMETAL we never knew existed within a virtual world called the Metalverse. A total of 10 songs have been discovered within "The Other One" restoration project, with each song representing a unique theme based on 10 separate parallel worlds that they have discovered.

"Mirror Mirror" follows previous singles "Light And Darkness", "Metal Kingdom", "Divine Attack - Shingeki -" and "Monochrome".

BABYMETAL is preparing for its next performance on April 1 and April 2 at Pia Arena MM. Their first day is named "Black Night" and their second day is named "Clear Night". At their previous show, they conveyed that together with the departure into a new world, a new metal will be born. We will continue to see what the future will unfold for BABYMETAL.

BABYMETAL will make a return to the live scene alongside SABATON and LORDI on their European tour in April and May.

"The Other One" track listing:

01. Metal Kingdom
02. Divine Attack - Shingeki -
03. Mirror Mirror
04. Maya
05. Time Wave
06. Believing
07. Metalizm
08. Monochrome
09. Light And Darkness
10. The Legend

BABYMETAL was formed in 2010. Their mission was to unify the world through heavy metal by creating a fusion of heavy metal and the Japanese pop genre. Their music contains a stunning mix of electronic pop, a pinch of alternative and industrial rock, and is leveled up by fast-driven heavy metal. Their live shows are ground-breaking and epic visual as well as sound performances. BABYMETAL continued to travel the path of metal with the international release of their three albums, telling the story of the mighty Fox God and his brave metal warriors.

A book about the first ten years of BABYMETAL, "Bessatsu Kadokawa Souryoku Tokushuu", was released in Japan in October 2020. It contains a long interview with Su-metal and Moametal as well as never-before-heard stories from band producer Kobametal from BABYMETAL's decade-long history, photos taken from live shows, a discussion between Demon Kakka and Kobametal, and much more.

BABYMETAL's third studio album, "Metal Galaxy", came out in October 2019 via earMUSIC/Edel. The follow-up to 2016's "Metal Resistance" was based on the concept of "The Odyssey Of Metal Galaxy".

In 2018, BABYMETAL announced the departure of Yuimetal, who was formerly one of the members of the Japanese group's core trio. She exited the band, explaining in a statement that she would go on to pursue a solo career as Mizuno Yu.

In a new interview with Robert Cavuoto of Myglobalmind, Biff Byford spoke about SAXON guitarist Paul Quinn's recent decision to "step back from touring". The SAXON frontman said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah, it's gonna be a change. The thing is it wasn't a surprise. It was talked about for a few years now that he might retire. And the thing is the band are getting bigger, and we're busy and we're doing longer tours and bigger venues. I just think he wants to rest now. So it wasn't really a shock. We talked about it a few times, the fact that he gets very tired quite quickly. There's a lot of pressure on you when you're touring in a band. So, he's gonna be around. He's gonna be doing show till the end of the year with us, and he's gonna doing the new album with us. So pretty much he will be there, but not there, if you know what I mean."

Asked if SAXON is "actively auditioning" guitarists to replace Quinn on the road, Byford responded: "No, not at the moment. We're gonna put somebody in who's been around for a long time and can play great guitar. We want somebody who's from that same era — the '80s era — so I'm gonna let people guess on that."

As a result of Quinn's decision, SAXON canceled its April 2023 South American tour as well as the appearance at the Monsters Of Rock cruise.

When Paul's departure was first announced on March 10, SAXON said in a statement: "After much soul searching our great friend and fellow warrior Paul Quinn has decided to step back from touring with SAXON. After many years on the road, with the subsequent stress and tiredness that accompany long tour schedules, Paul doesn't want his performance to suffer and let his fellow band mates and fans down. Paul will continue to record with the band and may play select special shows in the future.

"SAXON stand by Paul's decision and will keep you all informed regarding our next journey.

"The current run of March shows in Europe will continue as is but the band will be cancelling their April dates in South America and the MOR Cruise to give time to re-group. These territories will be re-booked as soon as time permits. All summer festivals will continue as booked."

Quinn alluded to his decision on March 9 in a since-deleted Facebook post. He wrote: "You need to know I will miss you & my SAXON co-workers for the great times on and off stage, so with regret I will leave while I can still hold my head high and not worry about my fingers or brain forgetting riffs, keys or stumbling over licks, as they do occasionally. I am not taking this lightly, and I want to do SAXON proud, whilst continuing to love and play music with THE CARDS and other projects."

THE CARDS is a classic rock trio which Quinn founded in 2016 with DORO/U.D.O. alumnus Harrison Young, and VANDENBERG drummer Koen Herfst. They are currently poised to release their second album this year.

Four years ago, the now-71-year-old Quinn reflected on over four decades of being in the group in an interview with HeadBangers LifeStyle. He said: "Lots of road miles and air miles. It feels great to be relevant still. We always have a blast and I think the audience know that we are one of them. We are one of those party bands that they like. That always helped to get the message across, and Biff shouting at them occasionally. We've always had good members and good songwriters. The present band is included, and we’ve made some good stuff together, I think."

SAXON's new album, "More Inspirations", will arrive on March 24 via Silver Lining Music. Following the release of "Inspirations" in 2021, "More Inspirations" is the second "deep dish" serving of the influences which have fed SAXON's immensely successful 40-plus-year career.

Produced by Biff, with Seb Byford helping record the music alongside mixing engineer Jacky Lehmann, "More Inspirations" includes takes on RAINBOW, ZZ TOP and CREAM, as well as "Razamanaz" by NAZARETH, THE WHO's "Substitute", and URIAH HEEP's "Gypsy".

Byford and Quinn are the sole remaining original members in SAXON's current lineup.

Originally from South Yorkshire, England, SAXON has gone on to sell about 23 million albums and has produced such classic songs as "Denim And Leather", "Princess Of The Night", "Wheels Of Steel" and "Power And Glory".

*NSYNC singer Joey Fatone and STEEL PANTHER's Michael Starr engaged in a sing-off during the latter band's concert on March 10 at Plaza Live in Orlando, Florida. Fan-filmed video of Fatone's appearance can be seen below.

Fatone had joined STEEL PANTHER on stage a number of times in the past, including in December 2020 at Ace Café in Orlando when he performed the song "Girl From Oklahoma".

STEEL PANTHER's sixth studio album, "On The Prowl", was released on February 24.

The band's "On The Prowl" world tour 2023 kicked off in February and will run throughout North America through April. CROBOT and TRAGEDY are joining the band on the trek. STEEL PANTHER will take a short break before bringing the party to the United Kingdom and Ireland in May.

In September, STEEL PANTHER announced the addition of Spyder as the band's new bassist.

The group's music has been described as "VAN HALEN meets MÖTLEY CRÜE meets RATT meets 'Wayne's World', complete with operatic shrieks, misogyny, shredding guitar solos and libidinal overdrive."

Fifteen years ago, STEEL PANTHER changed its name from METAL SKOOL to its current moniker and shifted the focus of its act from '80s metal covers to originals.

In a recent interview with Germany's Rock Antenne, Starr was asked if he ever gets "bored of being a parody of rock bands." He responded: "I love playing heavy metal. It's the most exciting job in the world for me. I've always dreamed about doing this — being on stage and being able to go all over the world with my buddies and play for people that like our music. It's really cool.

"Before we got signed by Universal, we were writing songs, and they were going, 'No. No. No.' They never signed us," he continued. "And then finally we were, like, 'You know what? Fuck it! We're gonna sing about what we wanna sing about. We're gonna sing about what we're thinking.' And once we did that, we got signed right away and we put out 'Death To All But Metal', and the rest is history.

"So, I don't care if people think it's a joke or a parody or whatever — who fucking cares?" he added. "It's STEEL PANTHER at the end of the day.

"No, I'm not bored. I love it."

On March 21, SKID ROW stopped by Gator 98.7 FM's Gator Garage at iHeartRadio Performance Studio in West Palm Beach, Florida for a VIP performance and question-and-answer session. Video is now available below.

During an appearance on a recent episode of "The BlackSheep Podcast", SKID ROW guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo spoke about how the introduction of the band's latest addition, Swedish-born singer Erik Grönwall, brought about a rejuvenated energy and a burst of creativity that had been previously missing for quite some time.

"One of the great things about the way the band is now is that we've already started writing for the next record," Snake said. "I mean, there's four potential songs for the next record already. And who knows whether they'll make it or not. We've never done that before. So that's kind of where everybody's head is at. We're really staying in the moment, but we're also utilizing this newfound energy, shall I say, to be really creative and productive.

"We always kind of went by write the record, record the record, tour, get off tour and get done with touring, write the record, record the record, tour. That's been kind of the way that we've worked," he explained. "But not this time. We're actively writing. Erik is a very creative guy. He's a really good guitar player. So it really helps. We're exchanging ideas back and forth again and writing during soundchecks and things like that. So it's been nothing but positive."

Grönwall famously went from auditioning for the competition show "Swedish Idol" back in 2009 by singing a cover of SKID ROW's "18 And Life" to now fronting the band.

Grönwall joined SKID ROW as the replacement for ZP Theart, who had been in the group for more than six years.

In March 2022, SKID ROW released its first single with Grönwall, "The Gang's All Here". The song is the title track of the band's latest album, which arrived in October via earMUSIC.

SKID ROW recorded most of "The Gang's All Here" in Nashville, Tennessee with producer Nick Raskulinecz, who has previously worked with FOO FIGHTERS, STONE SOUR, HALESTORM, EVANESCENCE, RUSH and ALICE IN CHAINS, among many others.

Grönwall, who was diagnosed with acute lymphoblastic leukemia in March 2021 and was declared cancer free six months later after receiving a bone marrow transplant, released his cover version of "18 And Life" that same month via all streaming platforms.

Last May, Snake was asked by The Aquarian Weekly if it helped that Erik was a huge SKID ROW fan and knew all the songs coming into the band. He said: "Oh, he knew the songs. He did his homework. That's another thing — he has this incredible work ethic. His story is incredible. He's the one that deserves to tell his own personal path, but he has such an amazing appreciation for music and for singing. It shows. He's not just up there singing and doing a job. He's living it. He's living those lyrics and owning all of that stuff. That's one of the things that we noticed with the songs on the new record is that he owned it. He owned it. We finished the vocals while we were in Las Vegas [opening for the SCORPIONS in March and April 2022] because we had such great success with him doing it remotely from Sweden with our producer Nick Raskulinecz that we said we can do it on our days off to finish the record. We did a bunch of different vocal tracks and did some comping and stuff, but it wasn't a lot of takes. That's for sure. Rachel [Bolan, SKID ROW bassist] and I were in the studio and were, like, 'Man, we don't even need to be here.' That's how much he owned these new songs. You can see the live performances too. He owns our whole catalog as well."
It's a Gator Ticket to Rock Weekend with your chance to win access for two to our private performance with #SkidRow live from the Gator Garage! Listen all weekend long for the hidden contest page. LISTEN: https://t.co/eQ2GVtKcvDpic.twitter.com/f1q97Zm9ub

— 98.7 The Gator (@gator987fm) March 18, 2023

THE GEMS, the new Swedish rock band featuring former THUNDERMOTHER members Guernica Mancini (vocals),Emlee Johansson (drums) and Mona Lindgren (bass),made its live debut last night (Wednesday, March 22) at Pustervik in Gothenburg, Sweden as the support act for THE NIGHT FLIGHT ORCHESTRA. Fan-filmed video of the concert can be seen below.

THE GEMS sees Lindgren returning to her original instrument, the guitar. Playing bass at last night's show was THE GEMS' friend and collaborator Johan Randén.

Earlier today, Mancini shared a photo of the Pustervik show and she wrote in an accompanying message: "Last night was amazing! After all that has happened and we so quickly got on our feet and just regrouped and kept pushing, I'm so extremly proud of us @trumemlee and @demonaofficial! This is just the begining & I know the future is bright because I get to make and play music with you two.

"A million thanks to @voxbybjorn and @nightflightorchestra for giving us this opportunity and believing in us! I'm Forever grateful.

"Thanks to @jranden who not only has written amazing music with us but also helped us out on bass last night. And last but absolutely not least I'm beyond happy about this new found friendship with @donnacannoneofficial you guys rock!

"Thank you Gothenburg".

THE GEMS are planning to release their debut single, "Phoenix", in April.

Regarding the "Phoenix" single title and how it relates to the trio's sudden and unexpected exit from THUNDERMOTHER, Guernica recently told Germany's Metal Hammer magazine (translated from German): "We wanted a hopeful and positive first single. There's a light at the end of the tunnel. This is how we felt as we struggled through this dark period of our career."

Mancini and Lindgren also noted that THE GEMS' live performances will include material from THUNDERMOTHER's last two albums, 2020's "Heat Wave" and 2022's "Black And Gold", both of which featured songwriting contributions from Guernica and Emlee.

Last month, it was announced that Mancini, Johansson and Lindgren were exiting THUNDERMOTHER and would form a new band together. At the same time, guitarist Filippa Nässil revealed that she would continue with a new THUNDERMOTHER lineup featuring singer Linnéa Vikström (THERION, AT THE MOVIES) and returning bassist Majsan Lindberg. Filippa has also since recruited Joan Massing (HONEY CREEK) as THUNDERMOTHER's new drummer.

Mancini, who joined THUNDERMOTHER in 2017, reflected on her split with the band in an interview with Canada's The Metal Voice. Asked when she first had a feeling that things were not as they should be within THUNDERMOTHER, Guernica said: "It's a tough question to answer. I would say like this, that it's never been great for me. And it's been six tough years. But regardless of that, I don't regret anything. I still had amazing experiences with the band. And I wouldn't take anything back, 'cause I've grown and I've become the singer that I am. And there are so many positives to that. So even though it has been a very bumpy ride, I still think that it's been a beautiful ride. Because it does teach you a lot about yourself, and you grow as a human."

She added: "When you go through something that's tough and hard for you, you can either choose to learn from it and try to do something positive with it. And that's kind of what I'm aiming to do for myself."

When asked by host Jimmy Kay if she is saying that she was unhappy for six years, Mancini replied: "Not a hundred percent unhappy. It's been [up and down]. Definitely I've questioned how my dream of doing music and everything that I love so much and hold so dear had to be so tough. But in my mind I've always thought that it's probably the price you pay for getting these experiences or whatever. But I think that it doesn't necessarily have to be that. But like anything in life, nothing is gonna be happy and roses all the time. You go through things. It's normal."

Guernica also addressed the fact that Emlee and Mona both voluntarily left THUNDERMOTHER, once they found out Mancini was being kicked out of the group.

"It does make me feel [good], but I also felt really guilty… I felt guilty because I knew the opportunities that they were giving up because of this, but they had their own reasons," she said. "They did this completely on their own. And the problems that we've had in the band, they're not just something that is between [Filippa] and I; it's something that's been brewing and been there always. So when this happened, they also felt that it was very disrespectful towards them, being that they believed that we were a democracy and that we had a say in these things. She more or less [told] them, 'I wanna do this, and I've already found a new singer.' And that's when Emlee just said, 'I don't wanna play with another singer. And if you're gonna go ahead and do this, I'm gonna leave the band.' And that's what she did. And Mona felt the same way."

Guernica added: "I love [Emlee and Mona], and I'm forever grateful. I wouldn't have expected anything, but I also feel like I'm so blessed. Honestly, I'm so incredibly grateful that they are my new band. And they are the two that I enjoyed working with. And I have so much fun with them. And we already had two songwriting days, and we had just so much fun. And it was drama free. It was just a dream. And it's just, like, this is what a band is supposed to be."

Mancini then clarified: "We've had our differences. If you don't fight with your family and friends, that's kind of weird in itself. And we have. But we always… we say 'sorry', and we move past it. And our relationships always grow stronger and stronger and stronger. And that's, I think, the testament of a real, solid, healthy relationship. And that's how it is with them. So I'm really grateful that we have something and we get to continue playing together."

Guernica previously discussed her departure from THUNDERMOTHER last month in an interview with the "Rock And Roll Geek Show". Regarding how she found out she was being fired from THUNDERMOTHER, Guernica said: "I was blindsided. It's almost like I'm in an episode of fucking 'Survivor'. [Laughs]

"I got an e-mail [letting me know that I was no longer in the band]. I had a feeling it was coming because the week prior, [Filippa] had taken me off all our social media accounts. And I thought we had gotten hacked. I wrote to the group; I was, like, 'Girls, I think we're getting hacked. I can't get into our e-mail or Instagram — none of the accounts.'"

Asked if Filippa had any issues with Guernica's live performance or what she was doing on stage, Mancini said: "No, that's not something that I've… no information that I've received. I think that there's nothing you can complain about my performance or my singing, 'cause I've always brought my 'A game.' And if you have problems with that, I think that's strange, considering that's something that people really enjoy and respect the band for. So I think that would be weird."

Clarifying that the reasons for the split were "a hundred percent personal", Guernica revealed that "a lot of things happened behind my back, and I was the last one to know… Like there were meetings behind my back, trying to convince my fellow bandmates that I'm an awful person, I'm all these things that I'm not."

When interviewer Michael Butler noted that all the girls in THUNDERMOTHER looked like they were getting "along really well" when they were supporting the SCORPIONS on a tour of North America last fall, Guernica said: "I deserve an Oscar nomination for my acting. [Laughs]"

According to Mancini, she is still "really close" to Emlee and Mona. "We're actually really good friends, and that's the best part of my time in THUNDERMOTHER," she said. "Me and Emlee, she's legitimately one of my best friends. And Mona has become a really good friend as well. And we have a mutual respect and similar work ethic and we want the same things. We just work together. I just feel like, if anything, it's really lovely and positive that we have each other and that we all feel the same way and we all have had the same experiences and the reasoning behind not feeling great in the band as it was."

Asked how Emlee and Mona found out Guernica was being fired from THUNDERMOTHER, Mancini said: "[Filippa] had a secret meeting behind my back. She just told the girls, 'I wanna fire Guernica, and I already have a new singer.' And the girls were, like, 'Woah. Hold up. Wait a second. We did not sign up for that. And we thought we were a democracy in this band,' because that's something that we'd been told and that's how we've done everything.' So they were shocked."

Earlier this month, Nässil shared a six-minute video in which she addressed some of the questions surrounding the departures of Mancini, Johansson and Lindgren as well as her decision to carry on with a new lineup. She said in part: "Some stuff you read online and even now in some magazines is true and some stuff has more to it," she explained. "I mean, there's a depth to what happened and it's impossible to read in a few lines or a quote from someone. And I wanna assure you and tell you guys that I did my absolute best to work everything out between the old members. I think we should be conscious in what we're saying and trust that I have done my absolute best for peace, love and rock and roll and I did everything in my power to work it out with the previous bandmembers.

"I would never throw anybody under the bridge. I think that's another private matter. What happened has been behind the curtain, so to speak, so it's not everything that people need to know about or should know about because it's just unnecessary to throw stuff at each other, I think."

"I'm thrilled to have Majsan back, who's done hundreds of shows with me in THUNDERMOTHER. She's the THUNDERMOTHER bass player. And I'm thrilled to have Linnéa Vikström, my friend since many, many years, on vocals. And we have a great new drummer we will announce soon. She likes great bands like CLUTCH, FOO FIGHTERS, BLACK CROWES and stuff like that, so a really groovy drummer. And I can't wait for the future."

Nässil went on to say that all the previously announced THUNDERMOTHER concerts "will happen. Not a single canceled show. Everyone has faith in THUNDERMOTHER and so should you.

"We are super stoked to tour with the SCORPIONS in Europe again and doing our own shows," she added. "So that's something we're doing right now — rehearsing."

According to Filippa, she and her new bandmates are "hoping to release a new song before" they hit the road, but she acknowledged that this may be hard to pull off as "it's crazy hectic right now."

View this post on Instagram

A post shared by 𝕲𝔲𝔢𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔠𝔞 𝕸𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔦𝔫𝔦 (@guernicamancini)



View this post on Instagram

A post shared by 𝕲𝔲𝔢𝔯𝔫𝔦𝔠𝔞 𝕸𝔞𝔫𝔠𝔦𝔫𝔦 (@guernicamancini)