Europe have shared two live videos, filmed at Ireland's Arena Dublin on May 10, 2022 and Scotland's SSE Hydro Arena Glasgow on May 12, 2022. Watch below:










In late 2022, guitarist John Norum revealed that Europe are planning to enter the studio early this year to record the follow up to 2017’s Walk The Earth. He also revealed that the band hope to work with producer Dave Cobb once more, the producer who helmed both Walk The Earth and 2015’s War Of Kings. Norum made his comments in a brand new interview with eonmusic.


Talking about new music, and the follow up to Europe’s Walk The Earth, which was released in 2017, John said; “Has it been five years?! Oh wow! That seems like a very long time. Time just flies by, it’s crazy. Well, we’ve been talking about future plans and things like that, so we plan to go in the studio in around April / May [2023], something like that, but we are writing songs at the moment for the next Europe album, and we’re looking for producers."


He also revealed that the band plan to work with Dave Cobb once more, who produced the band’s last two releases, Norum said; “We hope can work with Dave Cobb again because he’s the greatest. He’s so good, he’s amazing, so hopefully we can do it with him if he's not busy, and hope that we can do it in his studio because that would be a lot of fun. He has a studio in Nashville, so that would be fun to go there and record the next album."


Stay tuned for updates.

The Rolling Stones will release GRRR Live!, the definitive live hits album from the band’s career, on February 10 via Mercury Studios/Universal Music. The album will be available in various formats; 3LP black, 3LP coloured white (Indies exclusive) 3LP red (d2c exclusive), 2CD, DVD + 2CD, BluRay+ 2CD. The Blu-ray and digital versions will include Dolby Atmos.


"Wild Horses" from the upcoming release is available for streaming here, and below:







The Rolling Stones also announced a new online concert event celebrating the release of GRRR Live!. The concert will take place February 2 at 8PM GMT / 8PM Eastern / 8PM Pacific / 8PM AWST (February 3).


Recorded on the band’s 50 & Counting Tour, the GRRR Live! concert featured guest appearances by The Black Keys ("Who Do You Love?"), Gary Clark Jr & John Mayer ("Going Down"), Lady Gaga ("Gimme Shelter"), Mick Taylor ("Midnight Rambler") and hometown hero Bruce Springsteen ("Tumbling Dice"), and proved to be one of the most memorable shows in the band’s history. It has not been available to fans since it originally aired on pay-per-view in 2012.


The GRRR Live! experience will bring this history-making concert to fans around the world on RollingStonesNewark.com via interactive video company Kiswe’s global live streaming technology. The concert features some of the greatest songs of all time including "It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I Like It)", "Honky Tonk Women", "Start Me Up", "Gimme Shelter", "Sympathy For The Devil" and "(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction". Unlike viewing performances on other platforms, Kiswe Live allows the fans to be part of the experience. Fans from all over the world will be able to upload short video selfies of themselves to celebrate the band, the performances, see themselves on the screen and be seen by others across the globe, alongside the performance.


Tickets are on sale at RollingStonesNewark.com.


The best live band in the world deserve the ultimate live greatest hits album and GRRR Live! is it, The Stones at their best! The album is available to pre-order here and features some of the greatest songs of all time including "It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I Like It)", "Honky Tonk Women", "Start Me Up", "Gimme Shelter", "Sympathy For The Devil" and "(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction".





The Rolling Stones celebrated their golden anniversary in 2012 & 2013 by embarking on the 50 & Counting Tour, a 30-show itinerary for North America and Europe. On December 15, 2012, the band took the stage at Newark, New Jersey’s Prudential Center for the final of four shows in the New York area.


Since its original airing on pay-per-view in 2012, this show has not been available to fans until now. The concert has been re-edited and the audio has been remixed. Three songs from the December 13 show (also in Newark) will be available as bonus features on the DVD and Blu-ray: "Respectable" (with John Mayer), "Around And Around", and "Gimme Shelter".





GRR Live! tracklisting:


CD1:


"Get Off Of My Cloud"
"The Last Time"
"It’s Only Rock ‘n’ Roll (But I Like It)"
"Paint It Black"
"Gimme Shelter" (with Lady Gaga)
"Wild Horses"
"Going Down" (with John Mayer and Gary Clark Jr)
"Dead Flowers"
"Who Do You Love?" (with The Black Keys)
"Doom And Gloom"
"One More Shot"
"Miss You"
"Honky Tonk Women"
Band Introductions


CD2:


"Before They Make Me Run"
"Happy"
"Midnight Rambler" (with Mick Taylor)
"Start Me Up"
"Tumbling Dice" (with Bruce Springsteen)
"Brown Sugar"
"Sympathy For the Devil"
"You Can’t Always Get What You Want"
"Jumpin’ Jack Flash"
"(I Can’t Get No) Satisfaction"











(Photo - Claude Gassian)

Drummer Thomen Stauch​​​​ (Mentalist, ex- Blind​​​​ Guardian) is back with a new video, this time performing an alternate drum cover of AC/DC's "Hells Bells". Watch below.


Says Thomen: Contact me by email, if you are interested in drum classes online or local and want to know more details about my fair prices, required equipment, a.s.o.! unterricht@thomen-drumchamber.com."







Thomen's previous drum cover videos are available below:

Cherry Red will issue Girlschool: The School Report 1978-2008 5CD box set on January 27. Limited exclusive signed postcards will be included with pre-orders while supplies last.


This in-depth box set delves right back to the band’s pub rock roots right up until the present. A celebration of Girlschool’s 40 plus years of rocking the globe, kicking off with their independently released 45 "Take It All Away" b/w "It Could Be Better".


Formed at school in the mid-70s, when friends Kim McAuliffe on guitar and bassist Enid Williams joined forces as Painted Lady, Girlschool formed in 1978, swept up as part of the New Wave Of British Heavy Metal movement that also gave us Iron Maiden, Def Leppard and Saxon, recruiting lead guitarist Kelly Johnson and drummer Denise Dufort in April 1978.




Debut LP Demolition made it into the UK Top 30 in 1980, and the girls even found time while recording their follow up album Hit And Run (1981) with producer Vic Maile, to record the St Valentines Day Massacre EP with label mates Motörhead as HeadGirl.1982’s Wildlife EP would be Enid’s last outing with Girlschool for a while, as she was replaced on bass by Gil Weston for Screaming Blue Murder (1982).


Their fourth album, Play Dirty (1983), was issued in the States on Mercury Records, who also picked up the option to release their fifth, Running Wild (1985). The first album to be released without Kelly Johnson, it saw founder members Kim McAulliffe and Denise Dufort joined by Gil Weston, Jackie Bodimead (lead vocals, keyboards) and Cris Bonacci (guitar).


A new deal with GWR saw albums Nightmare At Maple Cross (1986) and Take A Bite (1988), by which time the bass slot had been filled by former Rock Goddess Tracey Lamb. Their eighth studio album, the self-titled Girlschool came out in 1992 and 2002’s 21st Anniversary – Not That Innocent marked the beginning of a more prolific time for the band, as they would follow it up with Believe (2004), Legacy (2008).


CD 4 features many rare B-Sides and non-album cuts, as well as demos dating from 1978 up to 2002 and CD5 boasts an ultra rare live recording from the pre-Girlschool Painted Lady.


This five disc set comes with an extended essay from NWOBHM expert John Tucker, and features plenty of pages of rare photos and sought after memorabilia.


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


Disc One: Demolition Girls (1979-1983)
"Take It All Away" (A-side)
"It Could Be Better" (B-side)
"Emergency"
"Nothing To Lose"
"Demolition Boys"
"Not For Sale"
"Take It All Away"
"Breakdown"
"Race With The Devil"
"Yeah Right"
"Please Don’t Touch" (with Motörhead)
"Hit And Run"
"The Hunter"
"(I’m Your) Victim"
"Watch Your Step"
"C’mon Let’s Go"
"Tush"
"Don’t Call It Love" (Wildlife EP)
"Screaming Blue Murder"
"It Turns Your Head Around"
"You Got Me"
"Take It From Me"
"1-2-3-4 Rock And Roll"


Disc Two: Playing Dirty (1983-1988)
"20th Century Boy"
"Play Dirty"
"Running For Cover"
"High & Dry"
"Going Under"
"Burning In The Heat"
"Nowhere To Run"
"Are You Ready?"
"Let Me Go"
"Running Wild"
"Love Is A Lie"
"Nasty Nasty"
"Back For More"
"All Day All Night"
"You’ve Got Me (Under Your Spell)"
"Let’s Go Crazy"
"Play With Fire"
"Head Over Heels"
"Action"
"Love At First Bite"
"Too Hot To Handle"


Disc Three: Still Not That Innocent (1992-2015)
"My Ambition"
"Can’t Say No"
"Can’t Do That"
"Take Me I’m Yours"
"Innocent"
"Knife"
"Coming Your Way"
"Mad Mad Sister"
"Let’s Get Hard"
"Secret"
"You Say"
"Passion"
"Other Side"
"I Spy" (Dio/Iommi Mix)
"Legend"
"Metropolis"


Disc Four: I Told You So – Singles, B-Sides (1980-1983)
"Furniture Fire" (B-side)
"Nothing To Lose" (7″ edit)
"Bomber" (St Valentine’s Day)
"Emergency" (St Valentine’s Day)
"Tonight" (B-side)
"Demolition Boys" (Live B-side)
"Tonight" (Live B-side)
"Wildlife"
"Don’t Stop"
"Tush"
"Don’t Call It Love"
"1-2-3-4 Rock And Roll" (ext ver)
"Like It Like That" (B-side)


Demos (1978-2002)
"Let’s Spend The Night Together"
"Just Don’t Care"
"Nothing To Lose"
"Baby Doll"
"Not For Sale"
"Running Wild"
"Love Is A Lie"
"I Told You So"
"Have A Nice Day"
"London"


Disc Five: The Pre-School Years – Painted Lady Live (1978)
"I Wanted To Boogie"
"Be My Lover"
"Smoke On The Water"
"King of The Blues"
"Sometime World"
"Rub It In"
"I Saw You Standing There"
"All Along The Watchtower"
"Paper Plane"
"Johnny B. Goode"
"Shoot Shoot"
"How Can I Tell You"
"Can’t Get Enough"
"All Right Now"
"Knocking On Heaven’s Door"
"Gimme Some Loving"
"Honky Tonk Women"
"Change’s Coming"
"Hey Joe"
"You Keep Me Hanging On"

An official 9-tape box set featuring Destruction's complete works from 1984-1990 is now available via Darkness Shall Rise Productions.





Housed in a heavy luxurious matte black case-wrapped box with silver hot foil stamped printing, this piece of German thrash metal history is strictly limited to 1,000 hand-numbered copies. Order here.




The set includes:


Tape 1: Bestial Invasion Of Hell
Tape 2: Sentence Of Death
Tape 3: Infernal Overkill
Tape 4: Eternal Devastation
Tape 5: Mad Butcher
Tape 6: Release From Agony
Tape 7: Live Ruins (Dynamo '87)
Tape 8: Live Without Sense
Tape 9: Cracked Brain





Next to the 9 tapes, the box includes:


- massive hardcover-book (with many unseen pictures and tons of new liner notes and interviews (exclusive long interviews with Schmier, Mike, Tommy and Oli were specially conducted for this box)
- metal pin
- 2 regular patches
- shaped backpatch
- flag
- 4 double sided posters
- hand-numbered certificate


The "Die Hard" version (1-99) also includes an exclusive massive Destruction belt buckle which is only available with this box-set and only in the DSR shop and a numbered and signed (by Schmier, Mike, Tommy and Oli) certificate.

In a recent interview with Pod Scum, drummer Paul Mazurkiewicz of Florida death metal veterans CANNIBAL CORPSE reflected on the band's 1995 decision to part ways with vocalist Chris Barnes and replace him with George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher. Barnes reportedly left CANNIBAL CORPSE in part over disagreements regarding the band's more technical direction.

"It's crazy to think that we did that," Paul said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "And here we are bigger than ever. It's a tough to pull off. The early era, the 'Barnes era', what I guess everyone calls it, that's the beginning of the band; that's what obviously started us out and how we got going and all. And we were doing fairly well. We're up the ladder here. We're moving. We're a force to be reckoned with now. So to change a singer in the middle of that seems a little crazy, but it had to happen. You look back now, and we all obviously feel we've bettered the band; George is just a better vocalist overall. And we've moved forward. And here we are — Jeez, Barnes has been out of the band how long now? 25 years or so. But both eras, they mean something, of course. That's the beginning of the band, so you're gonna get those purists that are gonna go, 'I love that era more because…' Okay — whatever. I've got no problem with that. It is what it is. He was a part of the band and we did do well; it wasn't like he was nothing or nothing was happening with that time… It was a big thing to deal with, and luckily we were able to persevere and get through that and to be bigger than ever.

"It's always gonna be debated, I guess; there's gonna be people talking about it. But that's the history of the band. Whether you like it or not, or whether we like it or not, it doesn't matter. He's a part of the history of CANNIBAL, and any member that was in the band is. If it wasn't for him, I guess, the five original members, well, then the band would have never maybe existed. So it was an important era and it can't be overlooked and the significance of the original band and the beginnings of CANNIBAL CORPSE. It's cool to be able to talk about it — a cool story that maybe a lot of bands wouldn't be able to survive. And luckily we have been able to survive and, like I said, do better than we ever thought we would have, I guess, by having George in the band."

Six years ago, Barnes spoke about the possibility of his current band SIX FEET UNDER and CANNIBAL CORPSE one day touring together, telling "The Chainsaw Symphony" radio program: "That would be a tough one to put together, my friend. [Laughs] You wouldn't have any problems from my side of things, but I don't think other people would be agreeable to that."

He continued: "I don't think there's animosity [between us]. I think there's just protecting other people's feelings. I think that everyone knows certain things about everything and they'd like to see things a certain way, and that wouldn't portray things a certain way that they would wanna portray them. So… I'm being very general and trying to be diplomatic about it."

Barnes also talked about the circumstances behind his departure from CANNIBAL CORPSE. He said: "I just didn't like being around them, because I was being ridiculed, and I just didn't feel comfortable being in the same room with people that weren't very nice to me personally. And I was part of that too, so we had all of our own type of differences, personally, and I don't think it was gonna be able to be worked out. You know, mutual respect goes a far way when it comes to being in close quarters with people."

He continued: "I'm sure we'd do things differently [today] — I mean, I know we would. It's just the way things worked out. And I don't have any animosity towards those guys at all, and I don't think they do towards me. It's just that… It would be too confusing for things [if we were to tour together], I think, from their perspective."

Barnes added: "I'd do anything. I just like to see a lot of people out there with smiles on their faces; that's the only thing that's important to me, man. Like, seriously, if I see a big crowd of people that everyone's smiling, like, 'Oh, yeah! This is what we've been waiting for,' I'm ready then, man. If I see a small room of people that are just fired up to go, man, it just gets me going on stage, you know. And that's all I'm there for — that feeling, that sharing of energy, man. And I'll go for it any which way to get that any way I can with any person I can get it with. And if it gets to that means to an end, that's all that's important, man — that transference. And some people just don't see it that way, man, and it's cool.

"I'm not gonna be mean to anybody, and I never wanted to be. I'm my own person, and sometimes I'm put at fault for that, and I think we all are in our own way. And that's just life; those are the things we deal with as people."

Drone video of PANTERA's performance of the song "A New Level" at Knotfest Brasil at Sambódromo Do Anhembi in São Paulo, Brazil can be seen below (courtesy of Osvaldo Antelo Retamoso). The concert was the reformed band's fourth without bassist Rex Brown, who was forced to leave PANTERA's Latin American tour after testing positive for COVID-19. Filling in for him at Knotfest Brasil gig — and other recent shows — was CATTLE DECAPITATION bassist Derek Engemann, who also plays with PANTERA singer Philip Anselmo in both PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS and SCOUR.

Joining surviving members Brown and Anselmo in PANTERA's reformed lineup are guitarist Zakk Wylde (OZZY OSBOURNE, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY) and drummer Charlie Benante (ANTHRAX).

The new PANTERA lineup made its live debut on December 2 at Mexico's Hell & Heaven Metal Fest and also performed on December 6 at Monterrey Metal Fest in Monterrey, Mexico.

It was first reported in July that Anselmo and Brown would unite with Wylde and Benante for a world tour under the PANTERA banner.

The band will headline a number of major festivals across North America and Europe and stage some of their own headline concerts. They will also support METALLICA on a massive North American stadium tour in 2023 and 2024.

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

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

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

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



Nunca pense estar vivo para ver a Pantera al vivo, lo mejor de lo mejor. #panteraband #knotfest2022 #knotfestbrasil #anewlevel #zakkwylde #CharlieBenante #philanselmo
Pantera - A New Level (Live @ Knotfest 2022) [By CafeinaGasolina]

Posted by Oso Retamoso on Saturday, December 24, 2022

Drummer Fred Estby of Swedish death metal pioneers DISMEMBER has confirmed to Bandcamp that he and his bandmates are planning to work on their first material since 2008's self-titled album. "We're talking about making new music," he said. "The question is when. As of right now, because of the pandemic and all that, this year was only honoring all the shows that were booked in 2019 and 2020. So, we got those done, and of course, the way metal festivals, especially in Europe, work now is as soon as they're done, they're already selling tickets for next year's edition. So we have a couple coming up, which is gonna be really fun. But we're also thinking about recording more."

Last July, it was announced that DISMEMBER had once again partnered with Nuclear Blast Records, the label that released the band's 1990 demo, "Reborn In Blasphemy", their 1991 debut album, "Like An Everflowing Stream", as well as the four records that would follow. In celebration of this announcement, a fully remastered version of "Like An Everflowing Stream" was made available on streaming services worldwide after it had been absent for quite some time.

"Like An Everflowing Stream" — hailed by many as one of the best death metal albums of all time — was the first entry in a reissue campaign of the entire DISMEMBER back catalog, which as recently remastered from the original albums.

Between 1988 and 2011, DISMEMBER earned a notorious reputation as the "MOTÖRHEAD of death metal", through eight classic albums and furious live shows around the globe. The band was formed by Robert Sennebäck, David Blomqvist and Fred Estby in Stockholm, Sweden, in 1988 and has long since been regarded as one of the originators of the trademark Swedish death metal sound, next to other pioneering bands such as ENTOMBED, GRAVE and UNLEASHED. DISMEMBER recorded a couple of independently released demos before their 1990 demo cassette, "Reborn In Blasphemy", with Matti Kärki on vocals and ENTOMBED's Nicke Andersson taking over most lead guitar parts, got picked up for a wider release by Nuclear Blast Records. In 1991, "Like An Everflowing Stream" saw the light of day, which was recorded by Tomas Skogsberg at the now-legendary Sunlight Studios, and featured Richard Cabeza (UNANIMATED) on bass. DISMEMBER released its acclaimed sophomore album, "Indecent & Obscene", in 1993, which to this day remains their most successful output. Three more albums would follow on Nuclear Blast, "Massive Kiling Capacity" (1995),"Death Metal" (1997) and "Hate Campaign" (2000),until the band decided to switch labels. They released two more albums, "Where Ironcrosses Grow" (2004, Karmageddon Records) and "The God That Never Was" (2005, Regain) before Estby announced his departure for family reasons in 2007. Their last album, "Dismember", followed in 2008 and the band officially broke up in 2011. After an eight-year hiatus, the band's original lineup reunited for a 30th-anniversary gig at Scandinavia Death Fest in October 2019, performing together for the first time in over 20 years.

DISMEMBER is:

Fred Estby (Drums)
David Blomqvist (Guitars)
Robert Sennebäck (Guitars)
Matti Karki (Vocals)
Richard Cabeza (Bass)

Photo credit: Nathaniel Shannon

Rock icon Billy Idol was honored with the 2,743rd star on the Hollywood Walk Of Fame earlier today (Friday, January 6). The star, the first of the new year, was dedicated at 6201 Hollywood Boulevard in front of Amoeba Music. Idol, who was joined by emcee Lupita Sanchez Cornejo, artist Shepard Fairey and rocker Henry Rollins at the ceremony, was awarded his star in the category of Recording.

Video of the ceremony, courtesy of Variety, can be seen below.

An emotional Idol thanked his fans who gathered for the star unveiling.

"You are the best. Quite simply, I'm here today because of you, because of your love," he said. "You supported me all this time. Forty-seven years now I've been doing this."

He added: "It really is crazy to find myself getting an award like this, or being honored in this way. I mean, 47 years of doing this after I started in GENERATION X, and 35 years after coming here, I just really could never have imagined anything like this.

"Initially we did the music back in the mid-'70s during the punk-rock time. There wasn't much hope or anything. We decided if there's nothing, there's no future, we're going to do what we love. And that's what I did. I did the music because I loved it. It wasn't for any other reason, really. Anyway, I didn't really think doing this would last very long. We thought maybe six months, maybe a year, maybe two years. I could never have imagined something like this. It's just incredible."

The star is the 2,743rd since the completion of the Hollywood Walk Of Fame in 1961 with the initial 1,558 stars and the first to be unveiled in 2023.

The ceremony was originally scheduled for Thursday (January 5) but delayed by one day following a forecast of torrential rains.

Idol was an early architect of the sound, style, and fury of punk rock. His lip- curling sneer and fist-pumping persona vaulted him into the mainstream as one of MTV's first megastars, making him one of the most recognizable faces in pop music, He has sold 40 million albums while scoring numerous platinum albums worldwide, nine top forty singles in the U.S. and 10 in the U.K. including "Dancing With Myself", "White Wedding", "Rebel Yell", "Mony Mony", "Eyes Without A Face", "Flesh For Fantasy" and "Cradle Of Love". Billy was responsible for some of punk rock's most memorable, literate, and evocative moments and created a pioneering new sound by bringing the spirit of '77 to the dance floor, going on to fashion an immediately identifiable musical blueprint that integrates club-land throb, rockabilly desperation, and rock'n'roll decadence.

Forty-five years after releasing his first 45, Billy Idol still makes gliding, thumping, cinematic songs about sin, redemption and the love of rock 'n' roll… and that's what you will find on "The Roadside" and "The Cage", Idol's latest two four-song EPs released in 2021 and 2022, respectively. Both EPs will be instantly familiar to lovers of classic Idol, while announcing a firm step into the future full of color, power, atmosphere, attitude, and mystery. And on both new releases Billy is joined by his friend and collaborator since 1981, guitarist and songwriter Steve Stevens. For 41 years — 41 years! — Steve has been Billy Idol's sonic assassin and master blender of tones and textures, the thinking man's shredder and the shredding man's Picasso.

Idol, together with his band featuring Stevens, have consistently toured the world for the past two decades, headlining theatres and arenas and performing at major festivals all over the world.

Idol has always found time to support various causes in need, including Teenage Cancer Trust, Teen Cancer America, Goldberg Kids Fund, World Wildlife Funds, Rural Aid Australia, Animals Australia, March of Dimes, Autism Speaks and the Boston Children's Hospital.

The Hollywood Walk Of Fame is a celebration of art, entertainment, and all things Hollywood. Star ceremonies are broadcast worldwide, connecting fans with their favorite artists. The Hollywood Chamber Of Commerce administers the Walk Of Fame on behalf of the City Of Los Angeles. Honorees are selected by a committee of their peers. Sponsors fund the star, the ceremony and the maintenance of the legendary attraction. The Walk Of Fame is free to all.

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Former MACHINE HEAD and current VIO-LENCE guitarist Phil Demmel joined STEEL PANTHER on stage last night (Thursday, January 5) at The Fillmore in San Francisco, California to perform the STEEL PANTHER song "Asian Hooker". Video of his appearance, courtesy of Capital Chaos TV, can be seen below.

STEEL PANTHER's sixth studio album, "On The Prowl", will be released on February 24. Drummer Stix Zadinia told Australia's Metal Roos about the LP: "It is killer. Every band, normally you go, 'Yeah, dude, it's killer. It's our best record,' but you know — I think bandmembers know — it's a good record and you believe in it, but you know when you did something… This record has a spirit about it; it has a vibe about it where it's, like… I don't know. It feels different than the last few records. It just feels like there's a lot of joy in this record and fun and rocking and… It's killer, man.

"We actually did it differently than we've done any other record," he continued. "We did it at our houses, except for the drums. And then we had [longtime producer] Jay Ruston mix it. But we engineered this thing — we produced it, engineered it, all just us. Wrote, recorded, engineered, produced. The only thing we didn't do is mix it or master it."

According to Stix, he and his bandmates "were as productive as you could pretty much be as a band" during the pandemic. "We did socially distanced shows, pod shows, drive-in shows, livestreams. I say, 'We didn't do anything,' because… STEEL PANTHER, the way we've come up, we work — we're grinders and we play live. We are producers — we make things, we do things. And sitting on our ass is not comfortable for STEEL PANTHER. So this record is, I think, a reflection of our excitement. And it's gonna be killer."

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

"Spyder has filled in for Lexxi [Foxx, former STEEL PANTHER bassist] many times," STEEL PANTHER singer Michael Starr told the "Everblack" podcast. "He's a super-close friend of the band. We've known him for years. As a matter of fact, [STEEL PANTHER guitarist] Satchel and I were in a VAN HALEN tribute band for a while, and Spyder was the bass player in that. We have a rich history with him… He did all of Europe with us and he did a great job."

Formed in 2000, STEEL PANTHER specializes in imitating and exaggerating the less flattering aspects of 1980s hair metal, with unrepentantly crude, non-PC sexual content as a favorite lyrical theme.

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."

Fourteen 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.

POISON frontman Bret Michaels will release his new solo single, "Back In The Day", on Wednesday, January 18. That same day will see the exclusive world premiere of a brand new video for the song.

In a recent interview with Guy "Favazz" Favazza of the St. Louis, Missouri radio station KSHE 95, Michaels spoke about "Back In The Day". Calling it "a throwback road-trip anthem," Bret stated about how the song came together: "I was driving in the car, and I'm driving along the beach, and as I'm writing this down… I do this crazy TikTok thing, and I show people how I write music. I said, 'Don't fear it.' I'm laying a beat, I'm playing the guitar. And I'm, like, [sings] 'Back in the day, radio played our favorite songs the DJs'd say.' And crank it up. And it all hit me, and the song just fell together. It's just a good-vibe song."

Bret, who toured with POISON as part of "The Stadium Tour" last summer, will hit the road in July for a limited run of live dates for his 2023 "Parti-Gras" tour. Michaels has created this tour with a Mardi Gras feel in celebration of his great fans and hit music. The renowned rockstar will bring a few of his rocker friends along for a mashup of all-killer, no-filler hits featuring special guests NIGHT RANGER and JEFFERSON STARSHIP with special appearances from Steve Augeri (former lead singer of JOURNEY) and Mark McGrath (SUGAR RAY), plus a nightly surprise guest to rock your world.

Presented by Live Nation, the 12-city limited date run kicks off on Thursday, July 13 at the one and only Pine Knob Music Theatre in Clarkston, Michigan; known for its epic concerts and parties, going on to make stops across the U.S. including at The Pavilion at Star Lake, in his birthplace of Pittsburgh (Pennsylvania),Holmdel (New Jersey),Tinley Park (Illinois),Tampa (Florida),and more before wrapping up in Charlotte (North Carolina) at PNC Music Pavilion on August 6. The tour promises to be a modern-day throwback to epic tailgate parties, positive energy, and a much needed nothing but a good vibe.

JUDAS PRIESTs' Rob Halford is celebrating the 37th anniversary of his getting sober. The 71-year-old singer posted a video of him with his AA sobriety medallion, which has the words "to thine own self be true" and "unity, service and recovery" engraved around the roman numeral for 37. He said in the clip: "Hello, everyone. Today marks my 37th year of my sober life, one day at a time. When I look at this commemorative coin, I'm full of love for my higher power and grateful to you because having you in my life helps me maintain my focus making the best I can in all areas of metal as well as trying to be a better person by taking a daily inventory.

"I believe we never stop growing and searching to find ways to do anything that improves not only our lives but also for all those we love. None of this is easy and it wasn't meant to be. We constantly have to work and dig deep into every aspect of ourselves to stay clean and sober.

"To those of you on this same journey, I send my unconditional love. And to those of you who are about to begin, please take that first step into your new life. I love you."

Last year, Halford spoke to Spain's Mariskal Rock about how he has managed and avoided the urge to relapse since 1986. "I think about it all the time," he said about drinking alcohol. "It's an addiction. When I'm watching the Phoenix Cardinals play on TV the other day, there's constantly adverts for beer and for alcohol and stuff. And I know it's there. And it's a temptation. So you have to have all of the mental tools ready to get you through that instance. 'Cause it's all about instances. And I live one day at a time. I've lived one day at a time for 35 years now. And that's all that matters. It's the moment. You live in the moment — not yesterday, not tomorrow; it's now. And you have to be ready for when that little beer devil comes on your shoulder and goes, 'Come on, Rob. Have a little drink of beer.' 'Fuck off.' [Laughs] Because I don't wanna feel that way again, man. I don't want to be that person. I was miserable. I wasn't happy. I was bad to people. I don't wanna go through that again. So that's also part of my finding a balance in my day-to-day life."

Rob previously spoke about how he manages to stay clean on the road in a 2020 interview with the "Across The Board" podcast. "It's not easy," he said at the time. "It's very much a day at a time. You're given all the tools and resources from your rehab experience. I use 'em every day. A lot of it is just like mental notes — talking things through. Sometimes I speak 'em out; a lot of it is internal. So that's really vital on a day-to-day level of sobriety.

"When I was in rehab [in 1986], there's anonymity in rehab, but at the same time, you have to tell everybody your life story, so everybody knew what I did. And I remember we talked about the fact that I'm gonna go back to this world of sex and drugs and rock and roll and booze. I don't know how I'm gonna be able to cope, because it won't be a gradual reimmersion into society, so to speak. I won't be able to go tiny steps; I'm just gonna go straight into the deep end. I cannot go to work and say to my bandmates, 'You can't drink. You can't do this. You can't do that,' because it's control. Accept your powerlessness.

"I don't think we ever in the band had a sit-down conversation about this, but I think that there was caring and understanding — as there still is," Halford continued. "But I'd be the last person to say that I have to set a set of rules, because then this whole business of living my life on my terms [turns into something] you push on to other people: 'Well, now, you can't do this,' 'You can't do that.' That's just hypocrisy on the highest level.

"Even now, when we're flying after a show, and the guys are having a beer or a cocktail or whatever, man, I would love that cold beer. I would love a slug of Jack and Coke. I can smell it, 'cause we're in a plane together. It's like this little angel on one side and the devil on the other side. My instant thought is I never wanna be sick again. I never, ever wanna feel that bad ever again. I never want to be in that terrible, dark, lonely place ever again. So it's fleeting. But, again, it's always there.

"When I'm home, especially [during] this COVID thing, [my longtime partner] Thomas doesn't drink. When I first met Thomas, he quit drinking. So that's a support to me. I'm never really around alcohol that much, or drugs, when I'm not working. But, yeah, when my fans, or when PRIEST fans come to see us, yeah, they're gonna have some drinks; they might have a couple of spliffs [and] do whatever else recreationally. They're entitled to. And they are living their lives and they are partying and they are having the time of their lives, as they should. They don't have an alcohol problem; they don't have a drug addiction. There are people that can enjoy these things in life and it [has] no effect on them, in a physical sense and in a mental sense.

"So, it's an absolute miracle," Halford added. "I can only say it's a miracle that I've got that far from January the 6th, 1986 to December the 1st, 2020 without slipping once. And I'm not boasting, because it's all the past — that's the past; it's gone. I live in the moment. I don't think about yesterday or tomorrow; I'm living now. But I'm grateful that I've been able to get this far without failing. Not failing — that's the wrong word. Without a slip off the wagon — whatever the term is. I'm grateful that I've been able to get this far and stay clean and sober. Because if I didn't, who knows where I would have gone and where I would have ended up?"

Halford credited his belief in a higher power for helping him in his recovery. "When I got clean and sober, that was a major change in my life," he said during an appearance on HATEBREED frontman Jamey Jasta's official podcast, "The Jasta Show". "And part of my recovery is just having this higher-power belief. And it works. It works, man. It really, really is important."

Halford added: "There probably will be people listening to [this] podcast who don't have anything like that in their life, and that's great; it's all about acceptance. But I always say to people, if you're thinking about it, the simplest thing I do is I pray. I pray quite a bit, actually. And even if you don't believe in prayer, just have a go. Pray for a good day, or just pray for your friend, or whatever it might be. And it's amazing, man, 'cause it absolutely works. I guarantee, it genuinely does work. And now I'm sounding like [American evangelical Christian evangelist] Billy Graham, but I'm just trying to express some of the things that are important to me on a day-to-day basis that make me able to walk out on that stage each night and do my work."

In an interview with Classic Rock Revisited, Halford said that he quit using substances because he "was sick and tired of feeling sick and tired. I will always remember the first show I did clean and sober… It was in New Mexico, in Albuquerque," he recalled. "I literally felt elevated, as everything was coming with such clarity. I was able to really… enjoy the performance of JUDAS PRIEST without having all of the other things in front of it. Since that day, it has been a miracle."

Halford added, "Everybody has to face things in their lives at some point. It [doesn't have to] be booze and drugs. You can eat too much, or you can not exercise, or whatever… It is not easy staying clean and sober in rock and roll. There are temptations galore from the moment you wake up to the moment you go to sleep, especially when you're on the road. [But] I think we're some of the strongest people, my friends and my sober brothers in metal."

Rob's autobiography, "Confess", in which he discusses his journey to sobriety, arrived in September 2020 via Hachette Books. It was written with Ian Gittins, co-writer of "The Heroin Diaries" by Nikki Sixx.

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In a new interview with Metal Hammer magazine, GHOST leader Tobias Forge spoke about the band's plans for the coming months. He said: "We're doing a lot of touring again. On previous album cycles we've done four legs in America and two or three in Europe and repeated.

"We're going to go into every territory next year, but there's going to be one European tour, one American tour," he continued. "We are going to do a little bit of everywhere. There'll be a little bit of something up in upper Asia, on the far end there – a very well-established country with a lot of pop cultural fascination, and the home of videogames. And there's going to be something in the Oceania world, and there might be something south of Panama, and there might be something slightly north of Panama. It feels pretty solid."

He cryptically added: "We're going to come out with a little bit of change before that — good change. We're not going to go silent. Some things are public, other things not in public view, but there are a lot of things brewing."

Forge's latest comments come less than two months after he told Rolling Stone's Twitch channel that "there are a lot of things in my head that I feel like I wanna explore writing" on GHOST's upcoming follow-up to 2022's "Impera" album.

"I think I've never really ended an album production, or left an album production, without feeling like there are things that I would wanna do different next time," he explained. "Kind of [the way I feel] about [GHOST's onstage] costumes — you try to… slowly and steadily you try to perfect, but for every process end up doing some of experiment that might have been a miracle, or the next time you're, like, 'Oh, let's never do that again.' Because recording and writing and just making a record is also… it's a boring thing, but there's a lot of practical factors that will play into the result of making a record. Historically, if we don't talk about my band, but just historic records, there's a big difference between recording in your hometown and recording a record on a tropical island someplace. And none of it is better than the other; it just means two different things. And people that you work with, and what state of mind you are in when you are doing it. And if you work nights or if you do work in the daytime. There are so many things like that.

"So right now I'm more about vibing — I'm trying to build a new vibe for writing this record now, just to sort of see to it that I don't end up repeating myself, and do something else," Forge added. "Evoke a few good things from the past and try to eradicate some of the things I didn't like. And once more, you try to do it perfectly. It's like being that sort of person that gets married for the sixth time: 'This time is gonna be great. It's gonna be perfect this time.'"

Last November, GHOST won its first-ever American Music Award in the newly debuted "Favorite Rock Album" category. The critically acclaimed, chart-topping "Impera" edged out formidable competition from COLDPLAY, IMAGINE DRAGONS, Machine Gun Kelly and the RED HOT CHILI PEPPERS to win the vote.

Featuring the Rock Radio No. 1s "Call Me Little Sunshine" — recently nominated for a "Best Metal Performance" Grammy — and "Hunter's Moon" (the end credits song from 2021's No. 1 R-rated film "Halloween Kills") as well as the currently climbing "Spillways", "Impera" was released March 11, 2022 via Loma Vista Recordings. Hailed by Rolling Stone as "an escapist rock and roll album," "Impera" "conquered rock, metal and the charts" (as reported by the Los Angeles Times),debuting at No. 1 in a sweep of the U.S. album charts, and entering the Billboard 200 at No. 2. Produced by Klas Åhlund and mixed by Andy Wallace, "Impera" sets the most current and topical GHOST subject matter to date against a hypnotic and darkly colorful melodic backdrop, resulting in a listen like no other — yet unmistakably, quintessentially GHOST. "Impera"'s release was supported by the "euphoric spectacle" (Rolling Stone) of the 70-plus-date "Imperatour" arena tour, during which the Wall Street Journal christened GHOST "the next generation of arena stars."

"Impera" sold 70,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marked the third top 10 album — and fifth top 40-charting set — for the Swedish act.

"Impera" landed at position No. 1 in Germany and Sweden, No. 2 in the U.K., Netherlands, Belgium and Norway, No. 3 in Australia, No. 5 in France and Ireland, and No. 20 in Italy.

Six of GHOST's albums have charted on the Billboard 200: "Infestissumam" (No. 28, 2013); "If You Have Ghost" EP (No. 87, 2013); "Meliora" (No. 8, 2015); "Popestar" EP (No. 16, 2016); "Prequelle" (No. 3, 2018); and "Impera" (No. 2, 2022). Nine GHOST songs have charted on the Mainstream Rock Airplay chart, with five reaching No. 1: "Square Hammer" in 2017; "Rats" in 2018; "Dance Macabre" in 2019; and "Hunter's Moon" and "Call Me Little Sunshine" in 2022.

In a new interview with Pod Scum, EYEHATEGOD guitarist Jimmy Bower was asked if he was "excited" that PANTERA was "back together". He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Yeah. I think it's more of a tribute than anything. I'm absolutely excited for them. Being somebody that… We toured with PANTERA — EYEHATEGOD did — for, like, two months. I saw 'em multiple times and toured with them with other bands. My point being that they were one of the most ferocious live bands on the planet. So there's a lot of kids nowadays that never had the opportunity to see PANTERA. I mean, [PANTERA drummer] Charlie Benante is killing it, and [PANTERA guitarist] Zakk Wylde's a no-brainer. So it's, to me, the closest thing you're gonna get."

Bower and EYEHATEGOD frontman Mike IX Williams previously discussed their views on the PANTERA comeback in an interview at last summer's Bloodstock Open Air festival. Speaking to Hayley Leggs of TotalRock, Jimmy, who plays drums for PANTERA singer Philip Anselmo's DOWN project, said: "I think it's fucking awesome. I think it's beautiful. I think there's a lot of fans that have never had a chance to see it, and I think it's a great way to tribute the band. A hundred percent blessing from me, man."

Added Williams: "Phil's a friend, so, yeah, I'm happy to see it happen… It's great. I think it's great. Everybody's saying it's gonna be a little strange without the Abbott brothers, but it is what it is."

Bower concurred, saying: "Of course it will [be strange without the Abbott brothers]. [But] I think the Abbott brothers would a hundred percent have blessed it."

In July, it was reported that Wylde and Benante, along with PANTERA's surviving members, Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown, would tour as PANTERA.

According to a report by Billboard, Wylde and Benante's involvement in the project has been approved by the estates of PANTERA's late co-founders, guitarist "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott and drummer Vincent "Vinnie Paul" Abbott.

PANTERA recently played seven shows in Mexico and South America and will next headline a number of major festivals across North America, Europe and Asia, and stage some of their own headline concerts. They will also support METALLICA on a massive North American stadium tour in 2023 and 2024.

On the second single from their upcoming debut album, Danish power / thrash metal unit Exelerate may take it slower, but “Release” is nothing short of epic and harsh. Taking inspiration from the classic days - and bands - the song is a short and intense hymn, reaching out for all the true heavy metal fans out there.

Exelerate is a power thrash metal band from Denmark. They play fast and aggressive riffs combined virtuose guitar solos and high-pitched vocals to create a new, yet familiar brand of metal. They quickly found strength in combining their individual music influences to create a mix of thrash, power and prog metal. It set the stage for the aggressive, but still approachable sound and the complexity of the compositions that all of their songs are made of. 




They are inspired by bands like Megadeth, Anthrax, Dio and Dream Theater and make heavy use of both the traditional and the new in metal. They have a great focus on how their music is perceived in a live situation. “It’s in a live environment you get the chance to grab new listeners by the collar and show them how it’s done”, lead singer Jensen comments. “They need to be enticed, inspired and spoiled until they can’t get enough. It is therefore important for us to give them something to latch on to, like a catchy melody, a fantastic solo or just a massive breakdown. It’s all a part of capturing the audience’s attention and keeping it”. 


Exelerate is now in full swing and ready to release their debut album under the Danish label From The Vaults. The record consists of new and original material, designed to showcase just how metal should sound in 2023. It’s a concept work where every track tells a story about humankind’s tendencies towards both dominance and submission. The themes go from old religions to contemporary ideology worship and even further into the ultimate submission to our own mortality. 


“To date, these are the most ambitious compositions I have ever been a part of writing, and I am incredibly proud of the end result”, Jensen says. “It has taken up many hours, days, weeks, years in the rehearsing studio, and the entire effort is realized in full on the album, I think”. 


Exelerate was recorded with the help of, among others, Casper Augustenborg as the drum recording engineer and Io Brix Klarstrup, who pulls double duty as both the band’s bass player and recording engineer. The skilled hands of Marco Angioni (Angioni Studios) have made sure that Exelerate sounds better than ever, with a new massive sound that the listener easily can let their face melt away to. 


The album's artwork was made by the danish artist Steen Jensen who, with his airbrush and proclivities towards the dark and strange, has made a surreal visual universe inspired by the opening track on the album “Arrival”.


Exelerate will be released on LP (black vinyl, limited to 300), CD and digital formats via From The Vaults on March 10, 2023.    





Tracklisting:


"Arrival"
"No Escape"
"Spawn Of Satan"
"Release"
"Children Of The Sun"
"God Of Man"
"Lethal Assault"
"In Between Sanity"
"Epilogue"





(Photo by Jakob Muxoll)


 

The Frequency Conspiracy, the new project from former 24-7 SPYZ drummer Joel Maitoza, has just released a new video for their latest single, "Words Get In The Way". The amped-up cover version of the Gloria Estefan / Miami Sound Machine ballad from 1985 features Craig Soderberg from –itis on guitars / keyboards / vocals, Jaimie Scott from Tyketto on bass, and Joel Maitoza on drums. The latest single is from the nine song debut album titled Quarantine Covers on So Cal Records, which is available now on CD through Amazon, as well as all digital and streaming platforms.

Tracklisting:


“Carry On Wayward Son” - Featuring Christophe Godin – Guitars / Jaimie Scott – Bass / Andrew Freeman – Vocals / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Hell Bent for Leather” - Featuring John Gallagher – Vocals, Bass / Joshua Jones – Guitars / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Locked Out Of Heaven” - Featuring Jason (JMR) Richardson – Vocals, Guitars / David Pastorius – Bass / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Words Get In The Way” - Featuring Craig Soderberg - Guitars, Vocals, Keys / Jaimie Scott – Bass / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Rock Candy” - Featuring Joshua Jones – Guitars / Andrew Freeman – Vocals / Rick Skatore – Bass / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Turning Japanese” - Featuring Craig Soderberg - Guitars, Vocals, Keys / Jaimie Scott – Bass / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Shapes Of Things” - Featuring Jason (JMR) Richardson – Vocals / Joshua Jones – Guitars / Miguelon Rodriguez – Bass / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Sailing” - Featuring Craig Soderberg – Guitars, Vocals, Keys / Jaimie Scott – Bass / Joel Maitoza – Drums
“Life In The Fast Lane” - Featuring Craig Soderberg – Guitars / Miguelon Rodriguez – Bass / Joey McCaw – Vocals / Joel Maitoza – Drums


Other artist appearances on the album include:


John Gallagher (Raven) – Bass, Vocals
David Pastorius (Pat Travers, Tech N9ne) - Bass
Jaimie Scott (Tyketto) – Bass
Joshua Jones (Poster Child) – Guitars
Christophe Godin (Morgibl, Metal Kartoon, The Prize) - Guitars
Andrew Freeman (Last in Line, Lynch Mob, Offspring) - Vocals
Craig Soderberg (-itis, Shockhead) – Guitars, Vocals, Keyboards
Jason (JMR) Richardson (Year of the Dragon, Patrick Gibson) – Guitars, Vocals
Miguelon Rodriguez (Paul Di'anno, The Worshyp) – Bass
Joey McCaw (Brick Bath, Shockhead) - Vocals
Rick Skatore (24-7 Spyz) – Bass
Joel Maitoza (24-7 Spyz, Shockhead, Elysian, Gangland, Seventrain) – Drums

Mike Portnoy (DREAM THEATER, THE WINERY DOGS),Frank Bello (ANTHRAX),Jason Bittner (SHADOWS FALL, OVERKILL),Jon Dinklage ("Clockwork Angels" string ensemble),Joe Bergamini (drum instructor, author),John Wesley (PORCUPINE TREE) and Seven Antonopoulos (OPIATE FOR THE MASSES) are among the guests who performed with YYNOT, considered one of the premier RUSH tribute bands, at this year's "Bubba Bash 2023", a charity concert in celebration of RUSH's late drummer Neil Peart" on the third anniversary of his passing. Proceeds from the show, which was held last night (Saturday, January 7) at the Keswick Theatre in Glenside, Pennsylvania, will go to benefit Cedars Sinai Hospital in memory of Neil.

The progressive rock band YYNOT was the coming together of award-winning guitarist/songwriter/producer Billy Alexander and Florida-based virtuoso bassist Tim Starace. In 2015, after seeing Tim post videos of his mind-blowing and accurate RUSH bass covers, Alexander approached him about forming an online collaboration. With the addition of drummer Mike Hetzel and vocalist Patty PerShayla, YYNOT delivers a well-deserved "throat punch" in both their live shows and recorded material with their original progressive rock and "note-for-note" vintage RUSH covers while adding their own swagger to the mix. Their debut album and latest release, "Resonance", have garnered praise from the rock world including Prog magazine and Classic Rock. The records have continued to sell in the U.S., Canada, U.K., Brazil and more. YYNOT has accumulated devoted fans all over the U.S. and abroad.

Two and a half years ago, Portnoy spoke to World Prog-Nation about how Peart influenced him on a musical and personal level. He said: "I spent 20, 30 years idolizing him and being his biggest fan. And all those years, it was mainly the drum kit — the drum kit was such a fascination for me. He always built such amazing kits and put so much thought into it. I'd always get the tour programs where he'd write about the kit and what the new things were on it, and I would just look at those photos. Most other kids were looking at Playboy centerfolds; I was looking at Neil Peart drum kits. And then, obviously, his playing — it goes without saying. I learned how to really develop parts and orchestrate drum parts to build and change and develop within the song. So that was the biggest stuff for me as a fan. And then later on, once I got to know him, I was so inspired by what a gracious person he was."

Mike added: "He had this reputation that he was sort of quiet and isolated and private, and he was, and it was very important for him to guard that. But once you were somehow allowed into that inner cicle, he was always so sweet and kind and generous. He'd always send me holiday e-mails and he would always send me his new books and stuff like that. It was a relationship that I'll always cherish and I was honored to have."

During an October 2021 interview with TWISTED SISTER bassist Mark "The Animal" Mendoza's Internet show "22 Now", Portnoy once again spoke about a hypothetical scenario in which he would be chosen to tour with Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson as the replacement for Peart. Asked if he would be interested in taking that gig, Portnoy said: "Of course. That would be a dream to play with those guys. But I don't wanna see the Blabbermouth headline right now, me thinking that I deserve the gig. I'm not saying that. You're asking me a question. Hypothetically, of course, it would be a dream come true. Neil was my hero, and always will be, and Geddy and Alex are as well.

"I don't think in a million years they'll play [as RUSH] without him; I really don't," he continued. "But in a hypothetical dream scenario, I mean, come on — of course. But I don't think in a zillion years it will happen. But it's a nice dream to hypothetically wonder about. But I honestly don't think it would ever happen. But who knows? You never know.

"As much as hypothetically it would be fun, it would be amazing, it would also be an impossible role to fill," Portnoy added. "It's a no-win situation. Really, it would be impossible, 'cause his fans are as obsessive as they get — and count me amongst them. So, yeah, that would be a tough one."

Mike also talked about RUSH's final tour which concluded at the Forum in Los Angeles on August 1, 2015. Peart indicated at the time that he wanted to retire while he was still able to play well, along with a desire to spend more time at home with his young daughter.

"They went out on such a high," Portnoy said. "Their last tour was a farewell tour. I don't think anybody expected Neil to pass, but they wanted to stop touring, so they really went out with such an amazing tour. That tour was just so well done, so perfectly executed, and they went out with all three of them still at the top of their game. So I give them all the credit in the world for that. It's just sad that Neil didn't get many years to enjoy the retirement before he got sick. That saddens me."

In February 2020, Bello commented on Peart's passing, telling the "Come To Where I'm From" podcast: "I didn't expect that. I didn't see this coming at all. That's one of my guys. And as a bass player, too, I'll say that. That's the guy I try to lock in bass with… Just think about these crazy things that he did outside the box and experiment and made it look easy. I mean, think about it.

"I'm so sorry I didn't see that last [RUSH] tour. I wasn't home. That last tour, I was never home when they were [near my hometown], and I regret that.

"Man, talk about a loss," he added. "It just breaks my heart. You just want more. 'Cause I don't think there are people like that around. There's never gonna be another RUSH. That came organically.

"Growing up in the Bronx, I'd come home from school, [go over] to my Uncle Joe's deli, worked till eight o'clock. Eight o'clock, eight thirty, I'd grab something to eat, go right to my room and learn a RUSH song."

RUSH announced Peart's passing on January 10, 2020, setting off shockwaves and an outpouring of grief from fans and musicians all over the world.

Thanks to everyone who came out in support of our first annual Bubba Bash tonight at The Keswick Theatre! We had a blast...

Posted by YYNOT on Saturday, January 7, 2023

Happening right now! The signing of the #BubbaBash2023 Evan’s Drumhead! Up for auction!! We’re backstage at @...

Posted by YYNOT on Saturday, January 7, 2023
It’s going to be an evening of Rush music and all proceeds will be going to Cedars-Sinai in Neil’s name 🙏 #BubbaBash2023 Jan 7th at the Keswick Theater in Glenside PA…Some tickets are still available, so get em while you can: https://t.co/DofiRlQDK4pic.twitter.com/Ge4YAGIiBU

— Mike Portnoy 🤘 (@MikePortnoy) December 28, 2022

In a recent interview with Heavy New York, LAMB OF GOD bassist John Campbell was asked if there are any plans for him and his bandmates to celebrate the twentieth anniversary of their third album, "As The Palaces Burn", which came out in May 2003 via Prosthetic Records. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "As far as the anniversary of that, these are just mile markers that, more often than, the marketing department and the record labels wanna celebrate. It's crazy for me to look back: holy shit; that was how long ago? Fuck! So, yes, we'll certainly take a moment to applaud that as the date comes around. If we play a show, maybe we'll do something special."

Campbell also talked about how LAMB OF GOD's songwriting has evolved since "As The Palaces Burn", saying: "I would say it was a lot more collaborative at that point in that we would have a part — someone would bring in a part — and we would all learn the part and then we would sit there and play the part over and over again; it was just drilled into everybody's head. And then add parts to that, or however that's gonna go. And that was also before it was easy to have a home recording studio where you could just have your laptop and plug your guitar in and start tracking. So that has definitely changed our approach in writing. We can definitely send stuff around and be able to listen to it in our own time to kind of work out extra stuff that we're gonna do or whatever we might wanna do. But as far as the goal of the writing, that's remained the same. From the beginning, we just wanted to be a metal band that would show up, you would watch, your jaw would hit the floor, and all the songs we played blazingly fast and tight. And that's kind of still been the focus."

The follow-up to 2000's "New American Gospel", "As The Palaces Burn" was produced by Canadian musician and producer Devin Townsend.

Regarding how Townsend came to be involved with the project, LAMB OF GOD's then-drummer Chris Adler told Revolver magazine: "I've been a big fan of Devin's production style for a really long time. He'd heard the last record, he saw us when we played Vancouver, and he was into what we were trying to do, which was really exciting for us. He came down to Richmond, we brought him to the studio straight off the plane, and we started working that night. The first thing we did was set up all the instruments and play the entire album, from first song to last. We were like, 'This is the album, these are the songs — this is the way they're staying. We need your help in getting great performances out of us, great sounds, and gluing them together.' And he came through like a champ."

In 2013, LAMB OF GOD released a tenth-anniversary edition of "As The Palaces Burn", with all songs on the album remixed and remastered, alongside three bonus demo tracks,

LAMB OF GOD's latest album, "Omens", was released in October. The LP is the follow-up to LAMB OF GOD's self-titled album, which arrived in June 2020. That effort marked LAMB OF GOD's first recordings with drummer Art Cruz, who joined the band in July 2019 as the replacement for Chris Adler.

German rockers Kissin' Dynamite performed on the Harder Stage at the 2022 edition of Germany's Wacken Open Air festival. Professionally-filmed footage of the band performing "I've Got The Fire", "Not The End Of The Road" and "You're Not Alone" is available below.





After charting on #2 on the German album charts with their seventh studio album, Not The End Of The Road, in January, Kissin’ Dynamite will finally embark to a German tour to celebrate their new album the way it was meant to be experienced – presented live on stage.




In conjunction with this announcement, the five-piece have released a new single taken from Not The End Of The Road, entitled “Only The Dead” – a smashing hymn luring with the addictive vocal textures of singer Hannes Braun accenting their high-voltage stadium rock sound. The song gets you in the perfect mood for big stages and chanting crowds. With “Only The Dead”, the band picks up where they left off at the #3 spot on the German Rock Radio Airplay Charts, achieved with their previous single “Not The End Of The Road”, which stayed in the top 10 for weeks.


Kissin’ Dynamite on the single: "'Only The Dead can be free from sorrow' is a sarcastic truth: No matter how much you care about your mental health, in the end we're only humans and literally can´t beat off ANY shit that comes our way. So the message to the people is quite simple: Don't take everything so seriously all the time and don't let it get too close to you. Just grin (like skeletons do) and you'll feel better, no matter what is bothering you. Life is too short to be anxious and worried all the time. Start giving a shit!"





Founded in 2007, German heavy metal formation Kissin' Dynamite have made more than just a name for themselves in the scene: With six studio albums and various chart entries, the band established their trademark style - characterized by modern sound, massive anthems and catchy hooks paired with an 80s stadium rock attitude and eccentric look. Now, the five piece is ready to release their Napalm Records debut, Not The End Of The Road, and usher in heavy metal in 2022.


The new studio album was produced, recorded and mixed by vocalist Hannes Braun (Südland Music) himself, who has also worked with bands like Santiano, The Kelly Family and Beyond The Black. Mastering was completed by Grammy Award winning producer Jacob Hansen at Hansen Studios, known for his work with bands like Volbeat and many more.


Ande Braun on the new album: "Not The End Of The Road is an album, which accurately describes our experiences as a band since Ecstasy 2018. First and foremost, we highlight with songs like “Not The End Of The Road”, “What Goes Up”, “Yoko Ono” and “Only The Dead”: We're up for it, we're pulling together and we want to reach the rock Olympus! Titles like “Coming Home”, “Gone For Good” and “Scars”, on the other hand, deal with real feelings like loneliness, homesickness and sadness, which are also part of life."


Hannes Braun adds: "With Ecstasy we already didn't make any compromises and just wanted to compose music that speaks from us. Not The End Of The Road seamlessly picks up exactly here."


With Not The End Of The Road, Kissin' Dynamite set another milestone in their successful discography: In guitar-driven power metal fashion, the tune of the intro and title track “Not The End Of The Road” prepares the listener for a thrilling road trip and new anthems straight from the heart of the Kissin' Dynamite universe. Crusher “What Goes Up” takes its listener into the truly spectacular soundscapes that make stadiums shake and convinces with Aerosmith-like guitar attacks and an anthemic hook. But Kissin' Dynamite are also not afraid to show their mellower side, as heard on delightfully tranquil tracks like “Good Life” and “Gone For Good” - not only showcasing the almost calm touches pervading the melodies, but also presenting the softer side of Braun’s vocal repertoire. While tracks like “No One Dies A Virgin” and “Yoko Ono” symbolize catchy party hymns, standouts “Coming Home” and “Defeat It” underline their origins of stadium rock without being pigeonholed. “Voodoo Spell” manifests the variety of the band and their different influences - starting with strong dark rock elements, the song becomes an opus that easily competes with the biggest stadium giants. The album’s closer, “Scars”, proves once again that Kissin' Dynamite can reach the depths and showcase lyrical vulnerability - an impressive ending that screams to be played live.


Order the new album here.





Not The End Of The Road tracklisting:


"Not The End Of The Road"
"What Goes Up"
"Only The Dead"
"Good Life"
"Yoko Ono"
"Coming Home"
"All For A Halleluja"
"No One Dies A Virgin"
"Gone For Good"
"Defeat It"
"Voodoo Spell"
"Scars"


“Coming Home” video:





“Yoko Ono” video:





"Good Life" video:





“What Goes Up” video:





"Not The End Of The Road" video:





Lineup:


Hannes Braun - vocals
Ande Braun - guitar
Jim Müller - guitar
Steffen Haile - bass
Sebastian Berg - drums

Sabaton guitarist / Majestica frontman Tommy Johansson has shared his solo power metal cover of Bonnie Tyler's 1983 hit, "Total Eclipse Of The Heart". Check it out below.


Johansson: "New year - new videos! First one up is an epic power metal version of 'Total Eclipse Of The Heart' by Bonnie Tyler. I wish you a great 2023 and thanks for your support."







Johansson previously shared his solo symphonic power metal cover of the 1984 Chicago classic "You're The Inspiration".

Rexoria have released their new single "Light Up The Sky," today. The song is taken from the band's third album Imperial Dawn, due for release on February 3, 2023.





Rexoria on the new single:




"'Light Up the Sky' is a power metal-song with a chorus that sticks in your head - after only the first listen! It's mix with a great song melody, heavy and rough guitars, distinct drums and topped with a shimmer from the keyboards."


With strong melodies, heavy riffs and exciting keyboards 'Imperial Dawn' is an album impossible to sit still to. Containing a wide spectrum of songs ranging from new electronic hard rock to emotional folk inspired songs, there is something for everyone here.


Mixed by Stefan Hellblad from Within Temptation and mastered by Thomas “Plec” Johansson, Imperial Dawn is of top quality sound. 


Rexoria has previously done several European tours and has played with bands such as Battle Beast, Bloodbound, Dynazty, Hardcore Superstar and Raubtier to name a few.


Preorder Imperial Dawn here.

Scorpions have shared professionally-filmed footage of their performance of the Crazy World album cut, "Hit Between The Eyes", from the 2012 edition of Germany's Wacken Open Air festival. Check it out below.





Scorpions' Rock Believer landed at #27 on our BravePicks 2022 list. 




Watch the previously uploaded video of "Tease Me, Please Me":

Japanese metal band Bridear release their first-ever live album on February 17, via Setsuzoku Records. Recorded in front of a capacity crowd on September 10, 2022 at Boston Music Room in London on the band’s Decide To Survive tour, it’s the first Bridear album to feature new guitarist Moe and is available to pre-order at orionlive.co.uk.


The album has been mixed and mastered by legendary metal producer / engineer Fredrik Nordström (In Flames, At The Gates, Opeth, Dream Evil) at the famous Studio Fredman in Gothenburg, Sweden and features 13 tracks from across the band’s decade-long career.


It perfectly demonstrates Bridear’s blending of traditional heavy metal with progressive arrangements, stunning technical prowess and addictive pop-rock hooks. Brimming with big riffs Aegis Of London… Live! showcases the band’s irresistible melodic sensibilities alongside the kind of furious thrash passages that only the most talented metal bands can achieve.




The first taste of the live album is the high-octane “Ghoul”, a tantalising representation of the band’s masterful live musicianship alongside sounds of the rabid fanbase which they command effortlessly at the show.


Lead singer Kimi comments, "We are so excited to release our first live album! All of the fire and energy from London can be shared with everyone."


Bassist Haru continues, “London is an important city for us, and the UK has such an important metal tradition! This is where we knew we could capture the true excitement of a Bridear show."





Tracklisting:


“Side Of A Bullet”
“Daybreak”
“The Moment”
“Ray Of Chaos”
“Brave New World Revisited”
“Helix”
“Dimensions”
“Ignite”
“Light In The Dark”
“Determination”
“Ghoul”
“Bloody Bride”
“Again”


“Ghoul”:

The Top 20 Global Concert Tours ranks artists by average box office gross per city and includes the average ticket price for shows Worldwide. The list is based on data provided to the trade publication Pollstar by concert promoters and venue managers. For the Week of 1/9/2023 – Guns N’ Roses appears at #3, Pink Floyd legend Roger Waters hits at #10 while Iron Maiden sneaks in at #20.


Complete list below:


1. Bad Bunny
2. Coldplay
3. Guns N’ Roses
4. Harry Styles
5. Daddy Yankee
6. Karol G
7. My Chemical Romance
8. Grupo Firme
9. Roger Waters
10. Post Malone
11. Dua Lipa
12. Lizzo
13. Mary J. Blige
14. Chris Stapleton
15. Andrea Bocelli
16. Marc Anthony
17. Dave Matthews Band
18. Backstreet Boys
19. The Judds
20. Iron Maiden




Head to www.pollstar.com for free upcoming tour information.

Seven Spires have announced the upcoming audio release of their 2022 performance at the legendary ProgPower USA Festival, Live At Prog Power USA XXI, on March 17.


Captured in Atlanta, GA at ProgPower USA XXI, which took place in June 2022, Live At ProgPower USA XXI sees Seven Spires delivering a potent performance of a selection of tracks from their three studio albums. A truly spectacular live entity, the band's riveting musicianship is on display across the board in this epic and enchanting performance.


There is also a very special appearance from Roy Khan of Conception on the performance of "This God Is Dead", bringing to life his guest appearance on the studio version of the same song.




You can hear the band's performance of "Ghost Of Yesterday" on all streaming services now. A visualizer can be found below. Pre-order / save Live At ProgPower USA XXI on CD/Digital here.





Tracklisting:


"Wanderer’s Prayer"
"Gods Of Debauchery"
"Ghost Of Yesterday"
"The Cabaret Of Dreams"
"Succumb"
"In Sickness, In Health"
"Bury You"
Drum Solo
"Oceans Of Time"
"Shadow On An Endless Sea"
"Dare To Live"
"This God Is Dead" (Feat. Roy Khan)
"Through Lifetimes (End)"


"Ghost Of Yesterday":





Seven Spires are:


Adrienne Cowan - Vocals and Orchestration
Jack Kosto - Guitars
Peter de Reyna – Bass
Chris Dovas - Drums
Roy Khan - Guest Vocals on "This God Is Dead"