Carnival Of Flesh, the symphonic black metal outlet hailing from Belgrade, Serbia, just released the second music video from their Anthems Of Extinction album.


"The One" is a video essay and a love letter to the oppressive and divisive political regimes we see in power today. Compared to their award-winning debut video, "Tropical Plunder", this video is considerably faster-paced and narrative-driven (rather than atmospheric).


"The One" was filmed and produced by Graveyard Neighbour Photography, with drone shots done by Dušan Rančić.







While Serbian fans had the chance to hear "The One" live back on Festival of Serbian Underground VII, the better part of Anthems Of Extinction was never performed live, due to delays related to COVID limitations and personnel change. Carnival Of Flesh are now aiming to perform the new material in its entirety in the spring of this year.


Anthems Of Extinction artwork and tracklisting:





"Angst" 
"The One" 
"Tropical Plunder" 
"Can Of Sorrow" 
"Mask Of Humanity" 
"Rapacity" 
"The Great Escape" 
"Liberation" 
"Requiem For A World" 


"Tropical Plunder" video:





 

As part of Jonathan Montenegro's "My 3 Questions To" series, LACUNA COIL singer Cristina Scabbia was asked if she believes that women are being taken more seriously in the metal scene than they were nearly 30 years when her band was first formed. She responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Do I feel that things changed? Absolutely, yes. When I started, there were not so many bands with a female in the lineup. Metal was still a no-no for females, because it was a very male-dominated scene. Which it still is, but of course there are many more bands with a female in the lineup, which makes me happy even though we are still seen differently. I don't think that it will ever happen that we are going to be seen equally, and partially it is okay like this because we're different. I think that we are sort of a different world.

"What I don't like about being a female in a male-dominated world is the fact that very often we are judged by our looks, which I get it; many guys get the same," she continued. "But for women, it's kind of like… Let's say for the guys, if they have the look, it's a plus. For women, if they have the look, it's a plus in terms of media attention; it's a plus in terms of — I don't know — people drooling with you; but it doesn't necessarily add up to the potential you already have. And that is a shame, because people should not be judged by their looks. I understand that the look is first thing that you see, but it will cool if it will be possible to go beyond that, especially in music, where the instrument you play, the voice you're pushing out of your body and the feelings you're trying to convey with your music are the most important things."

LACUNA COIL is currently promoting "Comalies XX", the recently released "deconstructed" and "transported" version of the band's third album, "Comalies".

"Comalies XX" was made available on October 14 via Century Media Records.

LACUNA COIL celebrated the 20th anniversary of "Comalies", by performing it in its entirety at a one-night-only concert on October 15 at Fabrique in Milano.

"Comalies" was originally released on October 29, 2002 through Century Media Records. The LP, which featured the band's breakthrough single "Heaven's A Lie", has reportedly gone on to sell over 300,000 copies in the United States alone.

LACUNA COIL played its first show in front of an audience in more than two years on April 7, 2022 as the support act for APOCALYPTICA at the Masquerade in Atlanta, Georgia.

Prior to the Atlanta concert, the last time LACUNA COIL played together was at the group's special September 2020 livestream event where the bandmembers performed their latest album, "Black Anima", in its entirety with no audience in attendance at the Alcatraz Club in Milan, Italy. That show was released as a live album, "Live From The Apocalypse", via Century Media.

LACUNA COIL hadn't played in front of a crowd since the completion of the band's South American tour in February 2020.

Gus G. has released more footage filmed in Thessaloniki, Greece during Firewind’s 20th anniversary tour on October 1, 2022. Watch the band perform "I Am The Anger", from the 2003 album Burning Earth, below:





Gus previously released footage of Firewind performing “Head Up High”, from the 2008 album The Premonition, at the same concert:

Nameless Grave Records presents Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation, the debut LP from Seattle death metal horde, Plague Bearer, announcing the album for February release alongside the cover art, tracklisting, and a brief teaser.


Born on the wings of pestilence out of a thirty-year slumber, Plague Bearer rides into our diseased world with a vision of Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation. Primarily known as a primitive blackened Satanic brother to Seattle death metal legends Drawn And Quartered, Plague Bearer has produced a string of underground demos and EPs over the years but never committed to a definitive full-length until now. Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation delivers a devastating triple-pronged vocal assault supported by brutal melodic riffing and pummeling drums heralding the end of this pathetic existence. The purpose of the band? The master of sixty-hundred-sixty-six riffs has but one word: "Evil."


Plague Bearer in its most primordial form created death metal demos in 1993 and 1994, but lineup changes resulted in a rebranding to Drawn And Quartered in 1996. Nevertheless, guitarist K.S. Kuciemba (Drawn And Quartered, Draghkar, Serpent Rider) was determined to keep the Satanic flame alive, slowly amassing simpler, eviler blackened riffs with partner H (Drawn And Quartered, ex-Vetus Obscurum) and putting out a demo in 2001 and EP in 2006 with Nuclear Winter Records. In 2017, K and H reunited with longtime ally T on drums, along with vocalist Nihilist (ex-Abazagorath, ex-Lord Gore, ex-Thy Infernal), to infect the Pacific Northwest with live rituals.




From the first second, Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation explodes into an orgy of double bass and crawling tremolo riffs in celebration of Unholy Black Satanic War Metal. Although there is a clear lineage to be traced from the earliest days of extreme metal in Plague Bearer's sound, the music has slowly drifted through time untouched by modern trends. The sinister melodies of "Defiled By Sodomy" throb and groove in a hypnotic hymn to Lucifer, punctuated by stuttering double kick and cymbal flourishes. The members of Plague Bearer are all on the wrong side of 50, but there is an unmistakable youth and vigor driving the album, and album closer "Christbane" bets it all on the stomping Satanic energy of its Venom-esque main riff.


The production of Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation is clear without being sterile, allowing every instrument to freely breath and speak. Guitars, bass, and vocals were self-engineered at K.S. Kuciemba's home studio The Plague Pit, while drums were recorded with Jon Schluckebier at Radioactive Recording. Mixing duties were handled by Andrew Lee (Ripped To Shreds) who contributed a guest solo on “Rise Of The Goat,” the album was mastered by Loic Fontaine of Krucyator Productions, and the record was completed with cover art by Thomas Westphal/Necromaniac and layout by Obscure Visions.


While Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation is laden with the legacies of its storied members, it never loses its individuality. Existing beyond the stylistic trappings of death and black metal, Plague Bearer raises a middle finger to the modern scene. Evil is the only way! The album is a must-hear for fans of Drawn And Quartered, Imprecation, Thy Infernal, and Fallen Christ.


A brief teaser for Plague Bearer’s Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation is playing here


Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation will be released on LP, CD, and digital formats through Nameless Grave Records on March 3. Stand by for audio previews, pre-orders, and more to be issued in the days ahead.





Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation tracklisting:


"Unholy Black Satanic War Metal"
"Summoning Apocalyptic Devastation"
"Defiled By Sodomy"
"Decapitated Angels"
"Antichristian Inquisition"
"Under One Sign"
"Rise Of The Goat"
"Churches Are In Flames"
"In Satan's Name"
"Christbane"


(Photo - Brandon Corsair)

Drummer Jon Dette (TESTAMENT, SLAYER, ANTHRAX) has uploaded the latest in his "Big Four" drum-cover series: METALLICA's "Damage, Inc.". The clip, which can be seen below, follows his previously released videos for SLAYER's "Killing Fields", METALLICA's "Blackened", ANTHRAX's "A.I.R." and MEGADETH's "Wake Up Dead".

Says Jon: "1986! What a great year!! A lot of people will hate on '80's music. No way! The 80's produced some of the greatest metal bands on the planet! When 'Master Of Puppets' dropped in March '86, the world was treated to one of the greatest metal records of all time! 'Master Of Puppets' changed my life! I'm so fortunate I got to see them perform live in the Summer of '86 (opening for Ozzy) with the late great Cliff Burton. One of the greatest pieces of METALLICA's music in my opinion is the intro to 'Damage'. So it was only appropriate that I pay tribute to the man who was such a huge contribution and large part of METALLICA's sound. RIP Cliff. Never forgotten..."

The 52-year-old Dette played as a full-time member of SLAYER from 1996 to 1997 and as a touring member in 2013.

In a 2013 interview with Metal Rules, Dette revealed that he collaborated with SLAYER guitarist Kerry King on some of the early ideas for what became the band's final studio album, 2015's "Repentless", before he was replaced by a returning Paul Bostaph. "I actually started working with SLAYER after we had gotten back from Australia [in early 2013]," he said. "We started working for demo and music for their new record. And then obviously what happened with Jeff [Hanneman, guitar] passing away, that changed some things. But it was definitely moving in that direction for me to be working with SLAYER [again]. But as I said there are just some things that changed with that once Jeff passed away, and I think, ultimately, they felt more comfortable with ‎Paul Bostaph, just because Paul had been in the band for longer. I think it was not going to be as much of a shock to their fans, because first Dave is gone, and now Jeff is gone, the band, it's now down to two original members. So if Paul makes them feel more comfortable and at home, then more respect to him and I wish them the best with that."

King confirmed that he worked with Dette early on in the songwriting process for "Repentless" before deciding to re-hire Bostaph instead. "We pursued it," Kerry said in a 2015 interview. "We got back from Australia. I did demos with Jon Dette, I did demos with Paul — the same two songs, under the same circumstances; they each had, like, 24 to 36 hours to learn 'em — and just see where it went. And Tom [Araya, SLAYER bassist/vocalist] and Jeff [Hanneman, SLAYER guitarist] both decided Paul, and in hindsight, that was the right choice."

Dette originally joined SLAYER in 1996 when Paul Bostaph left to work on his side project THE TRUTH ABOUT SEAFOOD. Dette performed with SLAYER at the 1996 Ozzfest to promote the band's covers album, "Undisputed Attitude".

Prior to joining SLAYER, Dette appeared on TESTAMENT's "Live At The Fillmore" album, which came out in 1995.

In recent years, Dette had played sporadic shows with ANTHRAX as a temporary replacement for Charlie Benante, who had been undergoing physical therapy in his battle with carpal tunnel syndrome.

In a new interview with Louder Sound, ZZ Top's Billy F Gibbons discusses touring with Jimi Hendrix, playing Hendrix covers, and his favourite Hendrix songs. An excerpt follows...


Meeting Hendrix:


When the Jimi Hendrix Experience’s tour reached Texas in February 1968, Gibbons’ teenaged group the Moving Sidewalks opened the show. They didn’t have enough songs of their own to fill their 40-minute slot, and included covers of two Hendrix classics before he came on.




“To try and wrap your head around those compositions, it was something so new you didn’t quite know where to begin," says Gibbons. "We were fortunate to be able to interpret our versions of 'Foxy Lady' and 'Purple Haze'. They were Texas interpretations. On leaving the stage I was grabbed by the shoulders and there was Hendrix smiling. He said: ‘I got to meet you. You got a lot of nerve! I like it.’"


Read the full interview at Louder Sound.

QUEEN's Brian May has been appointed a Knight Bachelor in the King's 2023 New Year Honours List, an annual tradition celebrating the achievements and service of exceptional individuals from across the United Kingdom.

The 75-year-old guitarist, who famously played "God Save The Queen" on the roof of Buckingham Palace during the Golden Jubilee, before performing again at the Platinum Jubilee two decades later, told Sky News he's "pretty happy" his royal journey will "end up with a sword on my shoulder".

He described the knighthood as a "kind of challenge", saying: "I think that's the way I regard it, to do good in the world and do better than I've done before."

The musician, astrophysicist and animal welfare advocate said of all his achievements, he was "probably most proud of the tiny things that we have achieved for animals. It's an ongoing thing, and I'm hoping the knighthood will help."

May was previously appointed a CBE in 2005, while QUEEN drummer Roger Taylor was made an OBE in the 2020 New Year Honours.

Brian told BBC News: "This is a kind of license, a kind of commission to carry on doing what I'm doing, and it gives me a bit more power to my elbow. So I'm very happy about that."

Becoming a knight or a dame is one of the highest-ranking awards in the British honours system. Both of these ranks entitle their members to use the title of Sir for men and Dame for women before their forename. This honor is awarded to those who have made major contributions to any activity, usually at a national level. Knighthoods and damehoods are traditionally presented with a touch of a sword by the King.

Drummer Donald Tardy of Florida death metal veterans OBITUARY spoke to Metal Wani about the band's upcoming studio album, "Dying Of Everything", which will arrive on January 13 via Relapse Records. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Somehow magically all the stars lined up for us. We took a long time writing this record. We don't ever force ourselves into songs; we let the songs find us. But once we really got down to it and started writing and putting the songs together, we were excited right from the beginning. We were, like, 'Holy shit, man. We've got something going on here.' And then, of course, when we were done with the recording, the actual tracking of the songs, we sent it to our boy Joe Cincotta, and he's been our live engineer for 15 years, but he's also done the last three albums with OBITUARY at his studio up there in New York City, Full Force Studios. So, just perfect chemistry we've got going on right now. The band's on fire. I think we played our instruments well. We played clean on this record, which makes engineers' lives very easy. It was very easy, from what Joe said, to produce this album 'cause we handed him product that was heavy but clean and well performed. So [I'm] super, super stoked on this album."

In February 2022, Donald told Finland's Chaoszine about the musical direction of the follow-up to OBITUARY's 2017 self-titled effort: "It is fucking awesome. It is OBITUARY, absolutely 100 percent, meat and potatoes, but with Ken's [Andrews, lead guitar] influence and him being able to write a few songs with me on this one, he brings a much more old-school thrash metal feel. So it's fresh, it's killer, it's exciting on some of those songs, but then also the meat and potatoes, there are some songs that are so heavy on this record, man. I'm so proud of it. I can't wait for people to hear it. And the production — we recorded it at our studio and then we sent it off to Joe Cincotta, my boy who's done the last four albums with us. He did an amazing job; the sound of this record is fantastic. I can't wait for everybody to hear it."

In March 2021, John Tardy told France's United Rock Nations about what fans can expect from OBITUARY's new LP: "I think it's just gonna sound like OBITUARY. [Laughs] You know us — we're kind of cavemen; we don't like to evolve too much. We like to change it up and do a little here and there, but we're getting too old to change too much, I think. So as long as it's heavy and pounding, then that's what you can expect."

Last year, Decibel Books released "Turned Inside Out: The Official Story Of Obituary", the fully authorized biography of OBITUARY. In the book, David E. Gehlke — author of "Damn The Machine: The Story Of Noise Records" and "No Celebration: The Official Story Of Paradise Lost" — provides an unprecedented look at the death metal legends through all-new, in-depth interviews with bandmembers past and present, recording engineers, scene contemporaries and music industry veterans who've worked directly with the band throughout OBITUARY's nearly four-decade career. Packed with hundreds of rare and never-before-seen photos, as well as a foreword from Max Cavalera (SOULFLY, SEPULTURA),the 328-page hardcover "Turned Inside Out: The Official Story Of Obituary" is exclusively available for order via decibelmagazine.com.

Photo credit: Tim Hubbard

Vocalist Lee Small (Lionheart, ex-Shy) has released a new single, "The Big Unknown". A video for the song can be found below.





Says Lee: "I released a Christmas single on 16th Cecember called 'The Big Unknown'. It is a dark ballad originally released by Sade. It is available digitally from iTunes and Amazon Music for just 99p and now streaming on Spotify. Check out the brand new video below."




Lee Small is expected to release his new studio album in spring 2023 via Metalville Records. Stay tuned for details.

SiriusXM has released more video from Bret Michaels' recent appearance. In the clip below, Michaels performs Poison's "Something To Believe In", from the Flesh & Blood album, released in 1990.





Previously released footage of Bret performing "Your Mama Don't Dance", originally by Loggins & Messina, and featured on Poison's Open Up And Say... Ahh! album released in 1988, can be viewed below:







Hot off the heels of a massive stadium tour with Poison, for the first time ever, Bret Michaels is hitting the road 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, MI; known for its epic concerts and parties, going on to make stops across the US including at The Pavilion at Star Lake, in his birthplace of Pittsburgh (PA), Holmdel (NJ), Tinley Park (IL), Tampa (FL), and more before wrapping up in Charlotte (NC) 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.


“After seeing Bret bring the party in every market of The Stadium Tour, this past year, we are looking forward to more of his ‘nothing, but a good vibe, high-energy performing’ on The Parti-Gras Tour next summer,” said Rick Franks, Global Touring Live Nation.


Michaels states, “I created Parti-Gras as a sincere and grateful thank you to the fans, friends, and family who have rocked with me over the years.  I promise to deliver positive energy, live, raw, real music, and all the bands will deliver sing-a-long hit after hit songs. Your voice will be hoarse after an epic, big, fun stage show.“


Tickets for the tour are on sale now at LiveNation.com. VIP Meet & Greet Tickets are available for Parti-Gras at BretMichaels.com.





Tour dates:


July
13 - Clarkston, MI - Pine Knob Music Theatre
15 - Burgettstown, PA - The Pavilion at Star Lake
16 - Holmdel, NJ - PNC Bank Arts Center
21 - Mansfield, MA - Xfinity Center
22 - Gilford, NH - Bank of New Hampshire Pavilion
23 - Camden, NJ - Freedom Mortgage Pavilion
28 - Maryland Heights, MO - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
29 - Tinley Park, IL - Hollywood Casino Amphitheatre
30 - Noblesville, IN - Ruoff Music Center


August
4 - Tampa, FL - MidFlorida Credit Union Amphitheatre at the FL State Fairgrounds
5 - Alpharetta, GA - Ameris Bank Amphitheatre
6 - Charlotte, NC - PNC Music Pavilion

In a new interview with Heavy New York, former JUDAS PRIEST and ICED EARTH singer Tim "Ripper" Owens reflected on his vocal performance on the debut album from WINTERS BANE, "Heart Of A Killer", which was released in 1993, three years before he joined PRIEST as the replacement for Rob Halford. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, it's funny, 'cause vocally, I would love to re-record 'Heart Of A Killer' now. Everybody's, like, 'That's one of your best vocal performances.' I'm, like, 'It's really not.' It has high notes and it's a good vocal album, but it doesn't have the character that I have now — it doesn't have the rasp, the heaviness. I still have the same highs. My highs right now — which I finally got 'em back — my highs right now are as good as ever. But I have a heavier tone to my voice, and I would love to do it with all the characters.

"The funny thing about that record is we recorded it on Massacre Records in Germany," he continued. "We had a week or so to record it. I had a day, a day and a half to record all my vocals. So whether I was sick or not, they waited till the end. So the day came for me to sing, and I'm thinking, 'Man, I hope I'm not gonna be sick, because I've got one day or two days to record the whole record.' So that was busted out like craziness."

According to Owens, "Heart Of A Killer" "showed what I sang like back then. It's not like I joined JUDAS PRIEST and I started singing that style," he explained. "And it took me a while to find the style when I was a singer. When I first started, I sounded like Brian Johnson — everything I sang. Whether it was SCORPIONS, it sounded like AC/DC. 'Cause I didn't know how to sing yet. I didn't know. And then I think listening to all my heroes — DIO and ANTHRAX; I was a big ANTHRAX fan — and then I realized, 'This is my voice. I've got this voice.' But it didn't have as much character back then; it was still straightforward, like on [the] WINTERS BANE [album]. But it started showing then, really, what I was like, what I was gonna sing like. And every day I tried to get better. I'm influenced by Chris Cornell, I'm influenced by Jon Oliva, so I kind of go on. But right now, it's funny, 'cause like I said, it molded me into sounded just like Tim 'Ripper' Owens. I don't think I sound like anybody; I don't think anybody sounds like me. And it's probably because I still try to get better and sound different as I go on."

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 Halford.

In 2019, Owens told Ultimate Guitar that he believes his era of JUDAS PRIEST is largely overlooked. "Yeah, I think it definitely deserves more [attention]," he said. "I mean, they don't do anything. [Laughs] It's kind of amazing that they just totally erased it that they won't play... I mean, 'Burn In Hell' [off 'Jugulator'], the crowd would like to hear 'Burn In Hell'.

"They don't have to give me a tribute or anything, but it would be nice to play a song from... You know, that was a pretty big thing, I did two studio records, two live records, and a DVD, starting from '96 to 2004. So it's kind of crazy that it's just been erased and they won't even play a song from it live, because it is JUDAS PRIEST."

"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.

Salem, Massachusetts-based The Freqs will release their caustic and infectious Poachers EP in early February.


Delivering fuzzed-out, psych-punk, stoner rock, and sledgehammering noise at a crushing decibel, The Freqs formed on the north shore of Massachusetts in 2019 by guitarist/vocalist Seth Crowell and bassist/vocalist Ian Mandly, with the lineup solidifying in 2020 after the addition of drummer Zack Fierman. Together, the trio crafts a distinctive sound at the intersection of genres.


Released at the end of 2022, The Freqs’ newest single "Witch" is a thundering voyage inspired by the past and present of their hometown, Salem, Massachusetts. The song is the first single off the band’s fourth EP, Poachers, which was recorded by, mixed, and mastered by Alex Allinson at Bridge Sound And Stage in Cambridge, Massachusetts, and completed with cover art photography by Colby Todisco. The tracks “Powertrippin’” and “Witch” feature additional backing vocals by Nicholas Pentabona (Bedtimemagic).




“Witch” was written by the band’s Seth Crowell who is a descendant of Rebecca Nurse, one of the witches hanged during the Salem Witch Trials. The song is his attempt at dissecting that too often glossed over tragedy in the context of today.


Crowell writes, “‘Witch’ aims to serve as a condemnation of the male gaze and the greater patriarchy at large. The lyrics are sung from the perspective of the crazed accuser who demands violence for the accused Witch for denying his advances. The lyrics are delivered as deliberately aggressive to illustrate that the accuser is the true danger to his community.”


Poachers will see digital release on February 3. Find pre-orders here and watch for additional previews of the record to post over the days ahead.





Tracklisting:


"Poacher Gets The Tusk"
"Powertrippin’"
"Asphalt Rivers"
"Sludge Rats"
"Chase Fire, Caught Smoke"
"Witch"


"Witch":





The Freqs:


Seth Crowell – guitar, vox
Ian Mandly – bass, synth, piano, backing vox
Zack Fierman – drums, auxiliary percussion, backing vox


(Photo - Zack Fierman)

Florida-based progressive death metal band, Haxprocess, will independently release their new album, The Caverns Of Duat (CD, streaming) on January 13.


Haxprocess were formed as a progressive metal band in the middle of the Covid-19 pandemic, when the venues were closed, and friends couldn’t even go out to a coffee shop. The origins of the band can be traced back when Lothar Mallea, then 15 years of age, moved back to Jacksonville. Lothar started playing music under the wing of Motown Studios multi-instrumentalist Cornelius Johnson, it did not take too long for him to be on stage playing the saxophone with other young jazz musicians. One day visiting a friend he took a guitar to explore the instrument and he ended up taking it home, from that moment on, it is hard to find a day when Lothar did not play the guitar. Songs by Led Zeppelin, Jimi Hendrix, Diamond Head, were the amongst the first that Lothar learned to play.


As soon as he arrived in Jacksonville, he started searching for other serious and like-minded musicians willing to start a band. Adam Robinson, a drummer from Alabama coincidentally had moved to Jacksonville only a few months earlier.




Adam, a self-taught drummer has been passionate all his life about learning the complexity and versatility of the likes of Mike Portnoy and Neil Peart. Unfortunately, he had been unlucky to find the right band mates for years as well as finding neighbors that could tolerate having a drummer next door. Adam and Lothar started jamming on Saturdays, eventually they invited other local musicians who joined the band during a period of experimentation with Progressive Thrash Metal. The early jamming sessions covered Dream Theater, Opeth, Megadeth which made presence in early attempts to create original material based on thrashy riffs and complex song structure of Progressive rock.


These experimental compositions allowed the band to play in small local venues during the restrictions of the Covid-19 pandemic. Soon, the band attempted to record and release studio music but decided to change course in the fall of 2021.


Shane Williamson, a reputable local guitarist who plays for other bands (Saturnine, Dead Centre) joined Haxprocess during this period. Shane brought a level of versatility and talent with his guitar playing that allowed this new direction Lothar and Adam were heading in to be possible.


During this time, Haxprocess transitioned to progressive death metal, building from the legacy of Timeghoul, Nile and Death.





Tracklisting:


"God Complex"
"At One With Time"
"The Infinity Paradox"
"Phantasm"
"The Caverns Of Duat"


Album credits:


- Music and Lyrics by Lothar Mallea
- Rhythm/ lead guitar, bass and vocals by Lothar Mallea
- Rhythm/ lead guitar by Shane Williamson
- Drums by Adam Robinson
- Mixed and mastered by Pete DeBoer at World Famous Studios in Denver, CO. USA
- Art by Mark Cooper

Finnish hard rock monsters LORDI have shared the title of their upcoming album. "Screem Writers Guild", a wordplay and a LORDI-fied version of Screen Writers Guild, an organization of Hollywood screenplay authors, will arrive this spring via Atomic Fire Records.

Earlier today (Sunday, January 1),LORDI posted a teaser for the "Screem Writers Guild" artwork on social media and included the following message: "The year has turned to 2023 and it's time to fix our beady little eyes on the new era and the - soon to be released - new album: SCREEM WRITERS GUILD! Some juicy appetizers of it are coming up sooner than you might expext... stay tuned!"

In 2021, LORDI released no less than seven new studio albums. The LPs marked the first new music from LORDI since the arrival of 2020's "Killection", a fictional compilation album which contained songs that LORDI would have written had the band existed between the early 1970s and the mid-1990s. Each album in the "Lordiversity" box featured a different genre approach: hard rock, disco, progressive rock, heavy metal, AOR, thrash/speed metal and industrial metal.

Last June, LORDI recruited Kone as the replacement for its departed founding guitarist Amen-Ra (a.k.a. Amen). Kone made his live debut with LORDI at the Rock In The City festival in Kuopio, Finland.

LORDI caused a sensation by winning the 2006 Eurovision with "Hard Rock Hallelujah", which in turn made the band's third release, "The Arockalypse", a hit throughout Europe. On the back of their Eurovision win, they scored a lucrative series of promotions including LORDI-branded cola, boiled sweets and credit cards; and played live at the MTV European Music Awards. A square was renamed in LORDI's honor in the Lapland city of Rovaniemi; a LORDI-themed postage stamp was issued in Finland and the group starred in its first film, called "Dark Floors".

With their monster-movie stage persona, LORDI seemed a most unlikely choice to represent their country in the Eurovision Song Contest. So you can imagine how many people were shocked when the group not only claimed top honors, but also earned the most points in the venerable event's history.

In a 2017 interview with MariskalRock, LORDI leader Mr. Lordi stated about the band's connection to Eurovision: "There was a time a couple of years ago — well, more than a couple — when I really, really, really hated that everybody's always asking about the goddamn Eurovision; there was a time. Nowadays I have come to terms with it. It's, like, okay, I'm actually proud that we are part of Eurovision history and I am proud that Eurovision is part of this band's history. I mean, it is a big part of our awareness. Because the awareness of the band would be so different, it would be so much smaller, without that one TV show ten years ago."

He continued: "I absolutely don't regret that — absolutely not. Because I have nothing bad to say about Eurovision itself, but the problem that we have had in the years is the people who actually don't know anything else except for the fact that we were on Eurovision. And that is a big stamp to get out of — it's like a fucking tattoo, you have a fucking tattoo on your forehead that says 'Eurovision.' And that is something that really, really, really drove me nuts some years ago; I was really struggling with that.

"I have come to terms with it — it's all right; I mean, it's cool," he said. "I am proud of it. And every May, when there's a new Eurovision, I know that my phone will start ringing and people will ask my opinions and then we get requests: 'Do you wanna come to this country's semifinals? Do you wanna come here?' And for years we said, 'No, we don't wanna. We don't want to.' But now, we're, like, 'Fuck it! Let's do it. What the hell?' I mean, c'mon, it's all fun, and it's part of our history, and the Eurovision, they really want us to come there, because, let's face it, we are one of those winners that people still remember."
The year has turned to 2023 and it's time to fix our beady little eyes on the new era and the - soon to be released - new album: SCREEM WRITERS GUILD 🔥🦇! Some juicy appetizers of it are coming up sooner than you might expext... stay tuned!
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#lordi@atomicfirerecpic.twitter.com/U6QH1JdIBJ

— Lordi (@LORDIOFFICIAL) January 1, 2023

ROAR! has announced their signing of legendary German heavy metal figurehead and unmistakable voice of Grave Digger, Chris Boltendahl, to release - after more than four decades in the metal business - his first ever solo album under the Chris Boltendahl's Steelhammer flag in 2023. 


With guitarist Tobias Kersting Orden Ogan), bassist Lars Schneider (Orden Ogan) and drummer Patrick Klose (Iron Savior), Chris has brought an illustrious guild of outstanding musicians on board who will actively support him in his endeavor to act as a real band. What can be expected? A glowing classic heavy / power metal mixture, best described as "Grave Digger meets Metal Church" with banging steamers, speedy hymns, grooving monsters, filigree riffings and world-class solos... everything a real metalhead's heart and ear desires!


Listen to a first inviting sound snippet below. More details and unveilings soon, stay tuned.







For further details, follow Chris Boltendahl's Steelhammer on Facebook.


(Photo credit: Jens Howorka)


 

Manowar have released a short 2002 video of their performance of the Hail To England album track, "Kill With Power", filmed at Ringfest Germany.


Says the band: "From our vaults to the greatest fans in the world. Clip from Ringfest, Germany 2002... 'Kill With Power'!"







Last week, Manowar shared the video below, in which shred legend Michael Angelo Batio reveals how he invented his one-of-a-kind four-neck guitar, and talks about his unique performance style.

Former ROB ZOMBIE and MARILYN MANSON guitarist John 5 has uploaded a video of him playing along to "Louder Than Hell", a song from MÖTLEY CRÜE's third album, "Theatre Of Pain", which was originally released in 1985. The 52-year-old rocker captioned the clip: "Happy Crue year everyone here is one of my favorite @motleycrue songs for this weeks Motley Monday louder then hell."

The latest video share comes a month after John 5 posted a video of him playing along to "Looks That Kill", a song from MÖTLEY CRÜE's second album, "Shout At The Devil", which was originally released in 1983. Prior to that, he shared play-along videos for "Wild Side", the "Girls, Girls, Girls" title track and "Too Fast For Love", the title track of MÖTLEY CRÜE's debut album, which celebrated its 41st birthday on November 10.

In October, MÖTLEY CRÜE's Nikki Sixx praised John 5, saying he "checks all the boxes" as Mick Mars's replacement following the latter's decision to no longer tour with the legendary rock act.

Sixx commented on John 5's addition to CRÜE while answering fan questions on Twitter. Asked why the band chose John 5, who is one of the credited co-writers on the three original songs on CRÜE's "The Dirt" soundtrack, Sixx said: "He checks all the boxes. He's a insane player. Has respect for our music, is funny as fuck and has history with us and we've written some pretty big hits together."

Sixx also addressed Mars's announcement that he was retiring from touring because of his long struggles with degenerative disease ankylosing spondylitis. Ankylosing spondylitis is a type of arthritis that causes inflammation in the spine joints and ligaments and can lead to stiffness over time, according to the National Institute Of Arthritis And Musculoskeletal And Skin Diseases.

"He's been a soldier along with us for 4 decades," Nikki said about his longtime bandmate. "We will continue to carrying our legacy to Generations of fans and honor Micks request for us to keep touring as Motley Crue."

In addition to co-writing the three songs on "The Dirt", John 5 collaborated with Sixx and Desmond Child on Meat Loaf's "The Monster Is Loose". Last year, Sixx and John 5 launched the L.A. RATS supergroup in which they were joied by Rob Zombie and drummer Tommy Clufetos.

The 71-year-old Mars — whose real name is Robert Alan Deal — served as MÖTLEY CRÜE's lead guitarist since the band's inception in 1981.

A day after Mick announced his retirement from touring, remaining members Sixx, singer Vince Neil and drummer Tommy Lee vowed to "continue the legacy." In a statement, they said: "While change is never easy, we accept Mick's decision to retire from the band due to the challenges with his health. We have watched Mick manage his Ankylosing Spondylitis for decades and he has always managed it with utmost courage and grace. To say 'enough is enough' is the ultimate act of courage. Mick's sound helped define MÖTLEY CRÜE from the minute he plugged in his guitar at our very first rehearsal together. The rest, as they say, is history. We'll continue to honor his musical legacy."

The statement continued: "We will carry out Mick's wish and continue to tour the world as planned in 2023. No doubt will it take an absolutely outstanding musician to fill Mick's shoes so we are grateful that our good friend, John 5 has agreed to come on board and join us moving forward. We'll see all you Crueheads out on the road!”

John 5, whose real name is John William Lowery, said: "I'm honored to carry on Mick's legacy and am looking forward to playing these songs."

In his statement, Mick said that he had decided to step back from live shows due to his "ongoing painful struggle" with ankylosing spondylitis and while he will continue to be a member of the band, he cannot "handle the rigors" of touring life.

The statement read: "Mick Mars, co-founder and lead guitarist of the heavy metal band MÖTLEY CRÜE for the past 41 years, has announced today that due to his ongoing painful struggle with Ankylosing Spondylitis, he will no longer be able to tour with the band. Mick will continue as a member of the band, but can no longer handle the rigors of the road. A.S. is an extremely painful and crippling degenerative disease, which affects the spine."

John 5's involvement with MÖTLEY CRÜE as the band's new guitarist was first reported as a rumor by the Metal Sludge web site on October 7.

Speculation about John 5 replacing Mars gained strength after the longtime ROB ZOMBIE guitarist failed to appear with the shock rocker at this year's Aftershock festival in Sacramento. Rob was instead joined on stage by returning guitarist Mike Riggs for the first time since 2006.

John 5 has performed MÖTLEY CRÜE songs a number of times in the past. Back in 2018, John 5 was joined by Sixx along with ANTHRAX's Scott Ian and his wife Pearl Aday at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California to play a cover of "Shout At The Devil". Earlier this year, the guitarist ran through renditions of both "Home Sweet Home" and "Kickstart My Heart" at various shows on his U.S. tour.

SLIPKNOT percussionist Shawn "Clown" Crahan has once again said that plans are still afoot to put out a set of 11 previously unreleased songs recorded by four members of the band during the sessions for its 2008 LP "All Hope Is Gone".

Crahan revealed the existence of the music in 2018, saying that he, singer Corey Taylor, guitarist Jim Root and DJ Sid Wilson wrote and laid down the more psychedelic-flavored tunes at a separate studio during an impasse in the recording of "All Hope Is Gone".

While speaking to Upset magazine, Crahan stated about plans to issue the unreleased material, tentatively titled "Look Outside Your Window": "It's an amazing body of work. You will never hear another Corey Taylor like this. The music and the words… it's one of the best things I've ever done in my life."

Crahan went on to say that he wants to make sure the project gets its own time to shine rather than being a half-hearted release.

"We wouldn't want SLIPKNOT to hurt 'Look Outside Your Window', and we wouldn't want 'Look Outside Your Window' to be a little irritation to SLIPKNOT. Why? Because it's beautiful God art and people deserve it. The good news is that six months from now, April Fool's Day 2023, we're off the label. There are no plans to immediately release something, and we haven't talked about it, but I would imagine it'll probably come very soon afterwards. There's nothing else to do, and it's ready to go. It'll be worth the wait."

Crahan previously spoke about "Look Outside Your Window" in an April 2021 interview with Knotfest.com. He said: "The reason why we never can commit to a date or anything is because — don't make it confusing. Don't make it something it's not. Don't call it something it's not. Accept it. It's music. It's art. It doesn't carry the SLIPKNOT name. Joey [Jordison, then-SLIPKNOT drummer] wasn't up the hill playing drums. He doesn't know anything about the songs. I think he's only been to the house once or twice. It's a completely different project. It was never held to piss people off. It was never held to prove a point.

"It's been mixed. It's been mastered. It's ready to go," he revealed. "We wanna put it out. But it's only gonna be put out when the priority is created correctly. It's up to everyone to sort of shut their mouths and not make it confusing. Don't let it affect SLIPKNOT. That's the priority — SLIPKNOT, SLIPKNOT, SLIPKNOT, SLIPKNOT. Everything else is just beautiful things that branch off of it. Everyone, quit confusing it. Accept it. We are an anomaly. We're too much. We're everything and anything at the same time and no time at all."

Regarding when the project might finally see the light of day, Crahan said: "It was created because we wanted to create art, and we did, and it ended up being something that everybody's gonna want, and they're gonna get it when it's right. Like we should think about having babies — only do it when we know we can be good mothers and fathers, when we know we're not gonna walk away from each other, when we know we're gonna be there for a reward for the child and give all of ourselves. That's the way we tried to do it, and we did — we tried to get it out.

"The reason why I'm holding out is because it's absolutely beautiful — I'm very proud of it; I'm so proud of everybody in it — and it just needs to be represented correctly," he added. "It needs not affect anybody negative. Nobody should be affected by it in any negative way; I won't allow it. And if it means people are going to, it will never see the light of day. 'Cause people make things confusing, and I won't allow it. Because when you grow older, you become wiser."

One of the songs from "Look Outside Your Window", "'Til We Die", surfaced on the digipak of "All Hope Is Gone", but the rest have not been made available anywhere.

In 2019, Taylor described the material on "Look Outside Your Window" to SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" as "experimental," "super vibey" and "super melodic." He added: "There's something about those songs. They're very solemn, very energetic, very artistic. For people who are used to a certain way of SLIPKNOT sounding, this doesn't sound anything like that. It's much more of a rock vibe. Honestly, it's much more of a RADIOHEAD vibe, to be honest."

According to Taylor, the music that was recorded for "Look Outside Your Window" was originally supposed to be released simultaneously with the "All Hope Is Gone" tracks, but the plan never quite came together.

"Man, I tried like hell to make those two worlds come together — 'All Hope Is Gone' and 'Look Outside Your Window' — to the point where I was taking songs from both and kind of putting them together, like arrangement, sequencing," Corey told "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". "I had two different versions of 'All Hope Is Gone' that I had put together with songs from that. And just honestly, because of the emotional rifts that were in the band, the turmoil that was going on, nobody wanted to try and make that work. So what we ended up with was 'All Hope Is Gone' and then this unreleased album, which we've been trying to find a way to release this for a really long time."

SLIPKNOT's latest album, "The End, So Far", arrived in September.

After many years of being a DIY artist I've finally found a place with Black Lion Records in Sweden for the release of my new album. The burden (pun intended) of releasing music independently made me skip releasing physical copies and always being limited to what I can do on my own. Now thanks to BLR we are going to have great worldwide distribution and we'll be able to release physical formats for the album as well.

"Come 2nd week Jan 2023 we will start making announcements and I think you'll be happy to see both CD and vinyl available for the new record along with some cool merchandise. Cheers & Stay Metal!"

Tony Iommi has confirmed that the albums BLACK SABBATH recorded with singer Tony Martin will be reissued in 2023.

The legendary SABBATH guitarist touched upon the group's re-release plans while celebrating what would have been drummer Cozy Powell's 75th birthday on Thursday, December 29.

Iommi took to his social media to share a photo of Powell and he included the following message: "Cozy Powell would have been 75 today. Looking forward to the release of the IRS albums in 2023, a tribute to his great playing."

Martin most recently spoke about previously announced plans to reissue the albums he recorded with SABBATH last month in an interview with Canada's The Metal Voice. At the time he said: "Honestly, I have no idea what's happening with it. I know it's gonna be next year, but that's all I know."

This past summer, Martin told "The Rock And Metal Profs: The History And Philosophy Of Rock And Metal" podcast that "two record labels" were going to re-release the albums he recorded with SABBATH. "I don't know when, and I don't know what it's gonna look like," he said. "There was some suggestion a while back that we might be able to put extra tracks and stuff on it. I did offer, and I went to see [BLACK SABBATH guitarist] Tony Iommi and offered some things. And then he said we can't use anything new 'cause nothing new can be released under the BLACK SABBATH name. It can only be stuff that's got the original four members on it.

"I'm expecting it to be a remixed version of whatever the original was; that's what I'm expecting," Tony added. "So I await as you do to find out. Let me know if you hear it first."

When the interviewer expressed hope that the box set will include some live recordings from the Martin era of SABBATH, either in audio or video format, Tony said: "I recorded the writing session with… Eddie Van Halen came over and helped us write one of the tracks [for 1994's 'Cross Purposes' album]. And I had an eight-track recorder at the time in the 1980s, and I used to take it everywhere, this thing. I've got all of the writing sessions and rehearsals recorded. So I sent [Iommi] this, and he went, 'Wow! That's fucking great.' And I said, 'Well, you're welcome to use it, if you wanna put that on.' So, I don't know… Maybe you'll get that on there."

Martin added: "It's great to hear Eddie play."

BLACK SABBATH released six albums with Martin on vocals: "The Eternal Idol" (1987),"Headless Cross" (1989),"Tyr" (1990),"Cross Purposes" (1994),"Cross Purposes Live" (1995) and "Forbidden" (1995). Eventually, Martin and his "Forbidden"-era bandmates were ousted when Iommi reunited with SABBATH's fellow original members.

This past January, Martin reflected on his time with SABBATH during an appearance on "The Ron Keel Podcast", saying: "It doesn't haunt me. It's not a bad thing. I've got a lot to be grateful for. SABBATH is the reason why you, and the world, knows about my voice. So there are things to be grateful for. It was hard work for me. I'm 12 years younger than the rest of the guys, so even just circle of friends was different — they're hanging out with Ian Gillan and Brian May, and my best friend is Dave down the road. So that was a gap. And also the experience — they were way ahead of me in experience, at least 12 years further up the road from me, and I never could quite catch them up; they will always have that much more experience than me. So that was hard work."

He continued: "When I first got the gig, it was actually 1986 that I was put on standby when they were with Glenn Hughes on the 'Seventh Star' album. And I don't know what the issues were, but something went wrong with Glenn and they put me on standby. That scared me to death, 'cause it's Glenn Hughes. I can't sing like Glenn Hughes; nobody can sing like Glenn Hughes. Only Glenn Hughes can sing like Glenn Hughes. So that was really scary. Then they got Ray Gillen in. Then he left — he left to join BLUE MURDER with John Sykes, so they called me again and said, 'You'd better come down to the studio and try this out.' And they gave me one song, which was 'The Shining' off 'Eternal Idol', and then two days later said, 'Okay. You've got the job. You've got a week to finish the album.' So right from the start it was scary — it was huge; suddenly being the frontman of BLACK SABBATH was just ridiculous. And yeah, the whole association with me and my voice lasted 11 years."

Six years ago, Iommi told I Heart Guitar that "it's a shame" that "it took a lot for people to accept" Martin as SABBATH's vocalist. "It's taken all these years later for people to say, 'Oh blimey, that was a good band with good singing.' So it took a long time to get people to really realize how good it was."

In 2018, Iommi spent time in the studio remixing "Forbidden" for a future release. The LP, which features Martin, drummer Cozy Powell and bassist Neil Murray, is often regarded as SABBATH's worst studio recording.

In a 2012 interview with Über Röck, Martin said that he was "surprised" to see Iommi criticizing him in the guitarist's "Iron Man: My Journey Through Heaven And Hell With Black Sabbath" book (referring to the Martin period, especially the touring phase following the release of "Cross Purposes" in 1994, Iommi lambasted his former singer as "unprofessional" and having "no stage presence"). Martin said: "I mean, they never said anything to me. Surely, if you've got a problem, the first person you should say something to is the person that's in the band with you... It sounds like a really stupid thing to say, as they didn't say anything to my face — and, if that's the case, then more fool them for not saying anything, because, you know, we could have fixed it. I said to them, endlessly, that if there was anything they wanted changed, done differently, just to say and we could fix it, but clearly, they didn't, they hadn't got the guts to, obviously, and to write about it in a book afterwards seems a bit daft to me. I'm not bitter about it, but it is surprising... It seems a bit stupid to say that after the event."

Powell died on April 5, 1998 following a car crash, driving his Saab 9000 in bad weather on the M4 motorway near Bristol, while talking to his girlfriend on his mobile phone. He was living at Lambourn in Berkshire at the time and had returned to the studio shortly before his death to record with FLEETWOOD MAC co-founder Peter Green. By that time, he had been the drummer on at least 66 albums, with minor contributions on many other recordings. It was generally felt that Powell's death was a great loss to the world of popular music. Countless rock-based drummers have cited Cozy Powell as an influence.

Photo credit: I.R.S. Metal (promotional photo)
Cozy Powell would have been 75 today. Looking forward to the release of the IRS albums in 2023, a tribute to his great playing. pic.twitter.com/sKTQHx4YKB

— Tony Iommi (@tonyiommi) December 29, 2022

Iggy Pop claims he was once approaching about becoming AC/DC's leader singer.

The legendary rocker made the revelation while speaking to The New York Times about his new album, "Every Loser".

Pop said: "They had a manager many years ago, when I hadn't reformed THE STOOGES, I hadn't moved to England. And this guy said, 'Are you interested in joining AC/DC?' They were looking for a singer."

Pop went on to say that he didn't think he was the right man for the job. "I listened to their record. I thought, I can't fit that bill," he said. "I wasn't, like, 'Ugh, I don't like them.' It was quite well made. They do careful work, but I'm not what they needed."

It's not clear when Iggy was actually asked about joining AC/DC and if the offer came after the death of Bon Scott in February 1980.

According to Pop, he met Scott once in 1977 at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood. "I had some wonderful encounter with Bon somewhere, and we were both drunk and stoned," he explained. "I see pictures sometimes. I go, I don't remember, but that's me with Bon. I loved what he did."

Scott was invited to join AC/DC by Malcolm and Angus Young in 1974, and achieved international stardom before his death at the age of 33 from alcohol poisoning.

He sang on AC/DC's first six studio albums, including "High Voltage", "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap", "Let There Be Rock" and "Highway To Hell".

Scott died of acute alcohol poisoning after a night of heavy drinking at a club in London, just days after attending a session with Malcolm and Angus Young where they began working on music for what became the "Back In Black" album.

"Back In Black" was the first album AC/DC released after Brian Johnson replaced Scott, and it went on to become the third-biggest-selling LP of all time.