Led by guitarist / vocalist Fabian "Fabs" Schwarz, German thrash machine Runamok recently broke 13 years of silence with a new single, "Creeping Beauty", the first taste of a brand new slab of shred and violence entitled The Clown Brigade.





Inspired by metal icons Annihilator, Megadeth and Testament, Runamok unleashed five albums between 2004 and 2009. With a little free time between projects, Fabs decided to pick up where Electric Shock ended in 2009, resulting in a record that shreds mercilessly from top to bottom and has more hooks than a fishing boat, remaining catchy and melodic. Simply put, from "Creeping Beauty" to the crushing "D.I.L.L.I G.A.F", from the shred n' roll of "The Hex" and "Nailgun Romance" to the high-speed bitchslap takedown of "Damn Your God", "Leech" and "In Regret", The Clown Parade at its core is good, loud, mean and unrelenting fun.




The way metal is supposed to be.


The Clown Brigade will be available for download on November 25th.


Check out the new single "The Hex" below. Pick it up here along with the first two singles, "Creeping Beauty" and "Damn Your God".


The Hex by RUNAMOK

Highly influenced by discomfort, there can be no compromise in the structure of what Ontario, Canada hardcore/metal quartet, Teeth, are producing because what flows from them is purely honest, and quite unlike anything that has been heard before. Their adherence to this artistic integrity is a huge part of what caught the eye of heavy metal foundry, Nuclear Blast Records.


Today, the band releases the music video for their new single, "EyesHornsMouth", which can be viewed below.


The band comments, "EyesHornsMouth is a song that encapsulates spiraling out of control - tapping into your darkest judgments and inhibitions. It takes you for a ride and drags you down the rabbit hole of questionable places in your mind. When I fucking die, don’t bury me take me home. Home is hell. EHM is the devil's advocate that resides on your shoulder, or in this case, both shoulders. It combines everything that is TEETH while leaning even further into our violent, uncomfortable, disgusting roots, so naturally we felt it'd be the perfect first single via Nuclear Blast.”




Purchase/stream the new single here.


"EyesHornsMouth" was produced and engineered by Davis Maxwell & Teeth on September 1st, 2020 with Lance Prenc handling the mixing and mastering. The cover artwork for the single was created by Heavy Sleeper Co.





Recently, the band released the 575 EP which contains four already-released songs. The EP was produced and engineered by Davis Maxwell & Teeth at Bell Tower Studios in September 2019. The cover artwork was created by Orupting (Madison Roger). Order here.





Tracklisting:


"Destroyer"
"Filth "
"Smother"
"Deathrace"


Teeth are of the philosophy that every subsequent part of the song needs to be more disgusting, uncomfortable, and nasty than the part before it. “It’s supposed to feel frantic; super visceral and aggressive,” explains Prince. “Pain is an adhesive, and in a time where there’s a lot of pent up emotion towards friends, family, everything around us... it gives people a nice vehicle to air their grievances.”


Only a couple of things remain to be seen with Teeth: when will their new album drop, and what bands can you look forward to seeing them grace the stage with? Keep your eyes on Nuclear Blast Records and Teeth socials for updates.


Teeth is:


Chris LeMasters - Guitarist
Blake Louis Prince - Vocals
Marc Quagliarini - Bass
Mat Stewart - Drums

Tallah will release their sophomore album, The Generation Of Danger, on November 18 via Earache Records. Listen to the album track, "Dicker's Done", below:





The Generation Of Danger, much like their debut album, Matriphagy, will revolve around an elaborate and horrific story dreamt up by the band, that continues to unfold in the build up to release. Pre-orders are available now at this location.




The Generation Of Danger is a concept album about a genius scientist who gets fed up with being swept under the rug. After the multi-billion-dollar corporation that employs him takes credit for his latest, award-winning invention, he snaps and retaliates against them by forcing them to take part in the greatest experiment the world of science has ever seen.


The record offers fans more than just an album of pioneering nu-core metal. Whilst it will most certainly be lauded for Justin Bonitz's acclaimed aptitude for embodying numerous characters and emotions in his outstanding vocal shape-shifting and ability to meld the ever-blossoming ingenuity of Tallah's intrepid musicians, The Generation Of Danger will reward those who delve deeper into the album and its supplementary content. The album was recorded once more with producer Josh Schroeder at Random Awesome Studio and continues to build the fascinatingly dark nu-core metal beast Tallah have created and set loose. 





Tracklisting:


"Mud_Castle"
"The Hard Reset"
"Stomping Grounds"
"The Impressionist"
"Shaken (Not Stirred)"
"For The Recognition"
"Of Nothing"
"Dicker's Done"
"Telescope"
"Wendrid"
"Headfirst"
"Thistle"
"How Long?"














(Photo - Clip Hall)


 

El Paso, TX's Scattered Storm etched their way into the metal scene last year with their debut, Oblivion, and now they have returned with a darker, more proggy offering with In This Dying Sun, out Friday, November 11 via Blood Blast Distribution (powered by Nuclear Blast and Believe Digital).


Showing a certain evolution from the previous effort, they still implement a lot of their core elements which are ambiance, groove, and melodies, but with this new record, they felt the need to explore faster tempos with machine gun-like riffs.


They explain the EP further: “We never lost track of the bigness, especially with Tue Madsen mixing and mastering this record. In our talks, we really emphasized that to him, even though songs are faster, we still want them to sound huge. And boy did he deliver. Sonically this record has been the best one. Madsen was even kind enough to feature the title track for his drum sample pack through Drum Forge because he really dug the song.”




Part of their evolution can be attributed to bringing in their new bass player Brian Fausnaugh full fold. He had recorded previously with them on some songs, so it was a no-brainer. Lyrically, they still draw from books, movies, series, and whatever piques their interests. This EP is intended to be a journey, discussing evolution, putting yourself back together, and the teachings of Yoda.


Today, in celebration of the release of In This Dying Sun, Scattered Storm is sharing their new music video for the EP's closer, "Seen", a musical and lyrical homage to Star Wars.


"This was a very complex song to write vocals to. Because it has many changes. Many ups and downs. Overall it is a very dark song. Its slow riffs and rhythms make it feel like you are in Darth Vader's home. We used a lot of Star Wars references in this song. Yoda’s teachings. The evolution of being good but then going to a dark place. Fear is the path we yell. As Fear leads to anger, anger leads to pain, and pain leads to suffering. All indications that you are pretty much heading to a dark place." adds drummer Jay Arriaga.





Heavy and futuristic, Scattered Storm is recommended for a wide variety of metalheads as they encompass s good blend of the sludge from Meshuggah, the ambiance of Tesseract, and the epicness of Devin Townsend, and are influenced by bands like Fear Factory and Mnemic





Tracklisting:


“Bloody Love”
“The Process”
“Hollow”
“In This Dying Sun”
“Seen”


“In This Dying Sun” video:

Deep Purple performed at Atlas Arena in Łódź, Poland on October 12. Metal Mind Productions has released an official aftermovie, which can be viewed below:





Following the news in July that Steve Morse will be stepping back from the band after more than a quarter of a century, Deep Purple announced that, following an abundant summer of touring, Simon McBride will join the band permanently.




Collectively, the band stated: “We are thrilled that Simon has agreed to join. Simon’s playing is up there with the greats. Of course, Steve can’t be replaced, the same as Ritchie, and Steve has a long legacy with Deep Purple. In Simon we have not found a replacement, but an extraordinarily talented and exciting guitarist in his own right. The reception from audiences over the Summer has already been great and we are looking forward to the forthcoming dates in the UK and Europe across the rest of the year. It is clear that Simon also holds great respect for those before him. We are all excited for what the years to come hold for the band.”


Simon stated: “I'm very happy to be asked to join the band, at the start of the pandemic if someone would have said to me that I was going to be the new guitarist in Deep Purple I would have just laughed, but here we are and it's happening. Deep Purple has a history of great guitarists so I’m very honoured to be asked to be part of that. They are all amazing musicians and more importantly, I have become very good friends with the guys so I can't wait to continue touring and even perhaps some writing and recording.”

Swedish heavy metal band, Lion’s Share, has made a new song, "Run For Your Life", available on streaming services and digital service providers. Watch a lyric video below.





Guitarist Lars Chriss commented: "These heavy and doomy riffs are what's closest to my heart and what comes out most natural when I pick up a guitar and play. I love how this song came out and how the different parts are like a reaction to the previous one. Like an epic journey through different moods."







In late 2018, Lion's Share released a new five-track EP, plus its complete catalog - remastered with new artwork - on streaming services and digital service providers for the first time. The band have since released a few more digital singles, some of which will and some of which won't end up on the forthcoming full-length album.


Singer Nils Patrik Johansson: "Since both Lars and I are huge fans of the Stranger Things TV series, we wanted to write something to show our love. Stranger Things is truly a show for eighties metal nerds like us. We also hired awarded video maker Niklas Nieminen to make a lyric video that captures the style of the show."


Both Johansson and Chriss remark that they have always worked very well together, and at this point it feels the most natural to keep Lion's Share as a duo, with friends helping out wherever needed.


"We are aware our fans want a new album and the plan was to release one in 2020, but we all know what happened then. We had just started playing live again with a couple of headline shows in Germany in March and were gearing up towards a new album and tour. Since we think it's very important to tour behind a new album, we just have to wait until things go back to “normal” again". Until then, we plan to release a new single every 2-3 months and keep building our fan base."


The Lion’s Share catalog features appearances by members and ex-members of KISS, Megadeth, King Diamond, Hammerfall, Symphony X, Chimaira, Therion, Yngwie Malmsteen, and Candlemass. Mixers include top engineers such as Jens Bogren (Arch Enemy, Opeth, Symphony X, Amon Amarth) - Niklas Flyckt (one-time Grammy Award winner and four-time nominee) and Ronny Lahti (Roxette, Europe, Glenn Hughes).


Lion’s Share has toured with bands like Motörhead, Manowar, Dio, Saxon, Iced Earth, Nevermore, U.D.O. (ex-Accept), Dee Snider (Twisted Sister) and has played many of the major rock and metal festivals.

The Dead Daisies announce their new single, "Born To Fly", with the following message:


"Leading into our UK Winter Tour in December we’re taking flight with ‘Born To Fly’!


The inspiration for this track was David (Lowy)’s love of flying. From playing with a little balsa wood glider at the age of five to flying in a BAE Hawk, he was motivated to get his pilot’s licence and to one day own a jet fighter. He spent his holidays learning to fly and after seeing the Sydney Aerobatic Club, he set his sights on becoming an Australian Aerobatic Champion and achieved that goal in 1998.




David would later acquire and learn to fly Spitfires and Vietnam War-era A37B Dragonfly light attack jets, which would lead to a host of other Warbird aircraft acquisitions. In 1999 he established the Temora Aviation Museum in New South Wales, Australia. David’s passion for flying has stayed with him ever since."


Adds Lowy: “Doug & I got together in New York earlier in the year and worked on a riff that I had written previously. Doug had a chorus that just fitted, we messed around with the melody and came up with the name ‘Born To Fly’. This is a straight-up rock song. For me it’s literal, I was born to fly. However we’re all born to fly in our own way.”





The single will be available at 12 midnight your time on November 11. Watch the video below:

You can now pre-order the limited edition Metal Church - The Best Of Mike Howe (2016-2021) vinyl record picture disc bundle, which includes memorial guitar pick, 4x4 sticker and 8x10 insert. Only 300 are available.


This is the first, last and only pressing, once they are gone they are gone, so grab yours while supplies last.







There is also a CD jewel-case version which includes an unreleased bonus/demo track, “Never Grow Old”. Pre-orders will ship on or before December 16. Reserve your copy here.





Mike Howe was found dead at his home in Eureka, California on Monday, July 26, 2021. TMZ reported that that Howe took his own life, according to police who found his body, and the Humboldt County Sheriff's Dept. said that Mike's official cause of death was determined to be asphyxia due to hanging, with authorities officially calling it a suicide.

Former ROB ZOMBIE and MARILYN MANSON guitarist John 5 has uploaded a video of him playing along to "Too Fast For Love", the title track of MÖTLEY CRÜE's debut album, which celebrated its 41st birthday on Thursday (November 10). John 5 also included the following message: "Yesterday was the 41st anniversary of the amazing debut @MotleyCrue album #TooFastForLove (https://motley.com/music/too-fast-for-love) Happy Birthday! #MotleyCrue @MrTommyLand @NikkiSixx @thevinceneil @mrmickmars".

Last month, 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.

HAWKWIND's Nik Turner has died at age 82. Turner's passing was confirmed by a post on his Facebook page. The statement reads: "We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of Nik Turner - The Might Thunder Rider, who passed away peacefully at home on Thursday evening. He has moved onto the next phase of his Cosmic Journey, guided by the love of his family, friends and fans. Watch this space for his arrangements."

Turner, the inexhaustible saxophone and flute-playing co-founder of space rock legends HAWKWIND, was a major creative force during that group's most critically acclaimed and successful period, 1969-1976. His outlandish costumes, improvised sax and flute playing, and general wild man persona became iconic representations of the band, and he would go on to pen some of their most popular songs, including "Brainstorm" and "Master Of The Universe". After leaving HAWKWIND, Turner used his newfound freedom to travel to Egypt, where he soaked up the history and culture, and also made a recording of his flute music in the King's Chamber of the Great Pyramid of Cheops. In 1985, Turner relocated to the western side of Wales, where he set up a new age community in a fairly rural, isolated area. He had continued to release new music including 2013's "Space Gypsy" and 2015's "Space Fusion Odyssey".

Independent of his work with HAWKWIND, Turner has an extensive performance history with his own bands such as SPHYNX, INNER CITY UNIT and SPACE RITUAL, and has performed and recorded with such artists as FARFLUNG, THE STRANGLERS and Sting.

In a 2016 interview with Psychedelic Baby magazine, Turner stated about what it has been like for him to see his old friends like Lemmy, Kevin Ayers, Daevid Allen, Mick Farren and Keith Emerson passing on: "Well, it's all very sad, but we all have to go some time, so I just try to make my life as full as possible, spread lots of love, heal people as much as possible, and give what I can."

We are deeply saddened to announce the passing of Nik Turner - The Might Thunder Rider, who passed away peacefully at...

Posted by Nik Turner on Friday, November 11, 2022

Having performed a first live show with returning founding member and guitarist Anders Björler this past weekend at UK's Damnation Festival, Swedish melodic death metal pioneers At The Gates will continue to promote their latest studio album, The Nightmare Of Being, with a comprehensive tour across Europe alongside In Flames, Imminence and Orbit Culture starting later this week.


In order to accentuate the beginning of this massive tour, At The Gates are launching two very special video clips. Originally featured on the bonus disc edition of The Nightmare Of Being, these two deep cuts from the early At The Gates years were performed live in Tilburg, The Netherlands at Roadburn Festival in 2019, and the band's longtime videography partner Costin Chioreanu / Twilight 13 Media created both an atmospheric performance clip for "The Burning Darkness (Live at Roadburn)" as well as an outstanding abstract clip for "The Scar (Live at Roadburn)".


At The Gates vocalist Tomas Lindberg Redant checked in with the following comment about the upcoming tour and the videos: "We are super excited to finally be able to go on a European tour supporting our latest album, 'The Nightmare Of Being'. Adding to the excitement is of course the fact that founding guitar player Anders Björler is back in the fold. With the fantastic reception we got at Damnation Festival last weekend, it feels like a really great time to be in At The Gates.  




These two videos were recorded live during our Roadburn Festival performance, as part of my curation, a couple of years back. 'The Burning Darkness' is one of the cornerstones in our career for me personally. And having Costin's great video art as a backdrop for that song was just amazing...Very happy with how this came out! For 'The Scar', also a personal favourite from our early career, Costin has shot a captivating video that really catches the vibe of the track. Here you can also hear the fantastic Yo Quail Quartet playing together with us!"








See below for all At The Gates dates with In Flames, Imminence and Orbit Culture, starting November 12 in Tallinn, Estonia and wrapping up on December 17 with a large hometown show in Gothenburg, Sweden.





Tour dates:


November (with In Flames, Imminence, Orbit Culture)
12 - Tallinn, Estonia - Noblesser Foundry
13 - Riga Latvia - Palladium
15 - Katowice, Poland - MCK
16 - Prague, Czech Republic - Mala Sportovni Hala
18 - Ludwigsburg, Germany - MHP Arena
20 - London, UK - O2 Academy Brixton
21 - Esch-Sur-Alzette, Luxembourg - Rockhal
22 - Strasbourg, France - La Laiterie
23 - Paris, France - Bataclan
25 - Bilbao, Spain - Santana 27
26 - Madrid, Spain - Riviera
27 - Barcelona, Spain - Razzmatazz
28 - Lyon, France - Le Transbordeur
30 - Zurich, Switzerland - Samsung Hall


November (with In Flames, Imminence, Orbit Culture)
1 - Milan, Italy - Alcatraz
2 - Vienna, Austria - Gasometer
3 - Leipzig, Germany - Haus Auensee
4 - Cologne, Germany - Palladium
6 - Tilburg, The Netherlands - 013
7 - Brussels, Belgium - AB
8 - Wiesbaden, Germany - Schlachthof
9 - Hamburg, Germany - Edel Optics Arena
10 - Copenhagen, Denmark - Store Vega
11 - Oslo, Norway - Spektrum
14 - Helsinki, Finland - Ice Hall
16 - Stockholm, Sweden - Hovet
17 - Gothenburg, Sweden - Scandinavium


At The Gates lineup:


Adrian Erlandsson - Drums
Jonas Björler - Bass
Anders Björler - Guitars
Tomas Lindberg Redant - Vocals
Martin Larsson - Guitars


(Photo - Ester Segarra)

Lee Aaron will release her new album, Elevate, on December 9 in North America via Metalville Records. Today, she releases the official video for "Trouble Maker", the second single from the upcoming album. Watch below:





Elevate: transitive verb




1: To lift up or make higher
2: to raise in rank or status
3: to improve morally, intellectually or culturally 4: to raise the spirits of


Lee Aaron is on a roll. The award-winning, songwriter, producer, and Canadian vocalist blazed back onto the rock scene in 2016 (after a ten-year hiatus to raise her family) with a wealth of original material and more firecracker energy than artists half her age. She’s since produced six new releases, including a live CD/DVD, with Elevate being the latest and possibly coolest addition to this renewed chapter in her illustrious career.


Elevate was written during the Covid lockdown, but rather than allowing that isolation to push the band into a negative place, Lee booked a studio lockout for the fall of 2021.


Elevate contains ten original tracks steeped in what has become Aaron’s signature sound: big guitar hooks, powerful, bluesy vocals, rich melodies and harmonies, and just enough sassy attitude to tip the scales. Aaron has always been known for digging a little deeper with her lyric content, and Elevate is no exception.


Elevate was recorded in Aaron’s traditional fashion: live off the floor with her crack band - Sean Kelly (guitar), Dave Reimer (bass), and John Cody (drums) - at the Armoury Studios in Vancouver with the finishing touches recorded at the band’s home studios. After forging a strong friendship and working relationship with Mike Fraser (AC/DC, Aerosmith, Bon Jovi, Bryan Adams) on the last album, he once again teams up with Lee and the band for Elevate as recording and mix engineer.


About Elevate, Aaron explains, "I think it’s a shame how social media can divide good people. Analytics guarantee everyone has their own special ‘feed’ and you’re never hearing a different perspective – it polarizes people. Elevate is about not buying into that trap; it’s about choosing to lift each other up."


As the title track inspires, "It’s not too late to re-create, let’s celebrate, let’s Elevate - LET’S ELEVATE!"





Tracklisting:


"Rock Bottom Revolution"
"Trouble Maker"
"The Devil U Know"
"Freak Show"
"Heaven's Where We Are"
"Still Alive"
"Highway Rome"
"Red Dress"
"Spitfire Woman"
"Elevate"


"Rock Bottom Revolution" video:





Lineup:


Lee Aaron - lead vocals
Sean Kelly - guitars
Dave Reimer - bass
John Cody - drums





(Photos - Theresa Mitchell)

In a new interview with Germany's Sonic Seducer magazine, former TYPE O NEGATIVE drummer Johnny Kelly was asked if there has ever been any talk of staging a tour in honor of the band's late frontman Peter Steele. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't know if I would ever wanna do something like take it on the road or… It could never be a reunion; Peter's not there, so it's impossible to call it a reunion.

"I think that Peter's work deserves some kind of celebration," he continued. "And how that can happen, I really have no idea. But we've never seriously considered doing any kind of reunion or putting something out there as TYPE O NEGATIVE without Peter. Peter, his musicianship, his character — without him there, you can't call it TYPE O NEGATIVE."

This past February, Kelly confirmed to the "Loaded Radio" podcast that there has been "coffee talk" about a possible Peter Steele tribute concert. But, he clarified, "There was never any serious consideration, like, should we do something? Is there even a point of doing it? Or also, is it just a blatant cash grab? So all these things go through your head.

"People celebrate [Peter] all the time," he continued. "They do it daily. I see it online all the time and the impact that he had.

"Maybe somewhere down the road there may be something that's… I don't know. But I know that for me, it would have to include Kenny [Hickey, guitar] and Josh [Silver, keyboards] as well. Anything that we do, it would have to be the three of us. And there's no way you're getting Josh to do anything like that. [Laughs]"

Asked who would handle Peter's vocal parts if they ever did end up doing a tribute concert, Johnny said: "I don't know. I'd want a girl to do it. I'd want a female vocalist — like Ann Wilson [HEART] or something like that. [Laughs] But even so, that's the first thing. When you think about doing some kind of tribute show, you're just gonna get all these people… Yes, Peter was very highly regarded by our peers and stuff like that, and you'll just get a bunch of dudes up there just trying to sound like Peter. And you can't do that. And it's, like, all right, so what's the most remote thing from Peter? You'd have to do something completely abstract. And I would say get a female vocalist. I think Peter would get a kick out of… He would get off on seeing a girl sing his songs, seeing a female sing them. And it would really stress the point of doing something as a tribute instead of trying to recreate something."

Steele passed away in April 2010 from heart failure at the age of 48. Born Petrus T. Ratajczyk on January 4, 1962 in Brooklyn, New York, he stood 6' 7" (201 cm) tall, and had a low, bass-heavy voice, which was one of the most recognizable features in TYPE O NEGATIVE's music.

Before forming TYPE O NEGATIVE, Steele played for the metal group FALLOUT and the thrash band CARNIVORE.

"Going through a midlife crisis and having many things change very quickly made me realize my mortality," Steele told Decibel magazine in 2007. "And when you start to think about death, you start to think about what's after it. And then you start hoping there is a God. For me, it's a frightening thought to go nowhere. I also can't believe that people like Stalin and Hitler are gonna go to the same place as Mother Teresa."

In a 2020 interview with Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station, Kelly said about Steele: "Peter, for the most part, he was a clown. He was always joking around — sarcastic, very self-deprecating humor. Just the opposite of what the music portrayed. When we were working on music and stuff, the end result, he was very serious about what he wanted, how he wanted something to sound. Other times, he was a clown.

"I always said that he wanted to be a normal person, but because he was Peter, that was just not in the cards for him; it was completely impossible," he continued. "I bet he would love to just be able to hang out, go to the bar, have a few drinks. And we would try to do that, and the minute he would come out to the bar, everybody gravitated towards him. He couldn't go to the store by his house without something happening to him."

Asked if that was because of Peter's size, Johnny said: "I think so. He just had this very striking look. He didn't look normal. And he had fangs. [Laughs] He was six and a half feet tall, [had] long black hair and fangs. You're not gonna get the normal response when you're going grocery shopping."

Yoshiki, Hyde, Sugizo and Miyavi, four major forces from Japan's rock scene, have announced their new star-studded band THE LAST ROCKSTARS.

Two song teaser videos have been released, one for "The Last Rockstars" (lyrics by Yoshiki, composed by Yoshiki) and the other for "Psycho Love" (lyrics by Yoshiki/Hyde, composed by Hyde). It was announced that these two songs are slated to be made available very soon.

THE LAST ROCKSTARS will unleash their debut live performances on January 26 and January 27 at Ariake Arena and January 29 and January 30 at Tokyo Garden Theatre. U.S. shows on February 4 at Hammerstein Ballroom in New York and February 10 at Hollywood Palladium in Los Angeles go on sale today at 7 a.m. PST/10 a.m. EST.

"We've come together to start this challenge for the world out of Japan," Yoshiki told reporters.

"This may be our last chance at this challenge," Sugizo said. "We want to put what's left of our lives on the line to make the world rock with our music."

Yoshiki has several monumental accomplishments under his belt both as the leader of X JAPAN and as an accomplished solo artist. He has been named "one of the most influential musicians and composers in Japanese history" by Consequence Of Sound and has composed Hollywood film soundtracks, a concerto for the Emperor of Japan, and the official theme song for the Golden Globe Awards. He has performed at the world's greatest stages, including Madison Square Garden, Wembley Arena, Coachella music festival, and Carnegie Hall. In addition to his music, Yoshiki has been internationally recognized for his philanthropy, and was awarded a Medal Of Honor by the Japanese government.

Hyde is internationally recognized as the vocalist for L'ARC-EN-CIEL, VAMPS and as a successful solo artist. L'ARC-EN-CIEL has sold over 40 million albums worldwide, headlined Madison Square Garden, and were also the first rock band to headline Japan National Stadium. Hyde has also had great success touring internationally as a solo artist.

Sugizo has worked and performed globally as a member of LUNA SEA, X JAPAN, and U.K.'s JUNO REACTOR, a group credited with creating psychedelic trance. As a solo artist he has been pursuing his unique style of electronic music while creating for multiple movie and theater soundtracks.

Miyavi "The Samurai Guitarist" has enthralled the world with his transcendent unconventional "slap style" of playing his guitar, which has taken him around the world nine times to tour in over 30 countries. In 2014 he made his debut as a Hollywood actor in "Unbroken". He was the first Japanese public figure to be featured in Gucci's global campaign, and has been appointed as a Goodwill Ambassador for UNCHR, providing support for refugees.

With their illustrious experience in Japan's most influential rock bands, remarkable sales records individually, and hit collaborations with global artists, these four musicians coming together is a monumental occurrence. THE LAST ROCKSTARS are here to usher in a new legendary era of rock.

Upcoming shows:

January 26 - Ariake Arena, Tokyo, Japan
January 27 - Ariake Arena, Tokyo, Japan
January 29 - Tokyo Garden Theater, Tokyo, Japan
January 30 - Tokyo Garden Theater, Tokyo, Japan
February 04 - Hammerstein Ballroom, New York, United States
February 10 - Hollywood Palladium, Los Angeles, United States
#YOSHIKI#HYDE#SUGIZO & #MIYAVI are #THELASTROCKSTARS!

Japan tour dates on sale now!
NYC & LA on sale Friday 11/11 10AM EST

Fan-filmed video of JUDAS PRIEST's November 8 performance at the Tucson Convention Center in Tucson, Arizona can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows, according to Setlist.fm:

01. Electric Eye
02. Riding On The Wind
03. You've Got Another Thing Comin'
04. Jawbreaker
05. Firepower
06. Never The Heroes
07. Beyond The Realms Of Death
08. Judas Rising
09. Devil's Child
10. Genocide
11. Steeler
12. Between The Hammer And The Anvil
13. Halls Of Valhalla
14. The Green Manalishi (With The Two Pronged Crown) (FLEETWOOD MAC cover)
15. Screaming For Vengeance

Encore:

16. Hell Bent For Leather
17. Breaking The Law

Encore 2:

18. Living After Midnight

In a recent interview with the 96.1 KLPX radio station, JUDAS PRIEST guitarist Richie Faulkner stated about the setlist for the band's fall 2022 U.S. tour: "Well, I can say it's around the 40th anniversary of [the] 'Screaming For Vengeance' [album], if I'm not mistaken. I'm sure the Internet will say it's not the right month yet, or not the right week, or I'm a week late or whatever. But, yeah, so we're gonna hit some moments from that record as like a tip of the cap to the album 'Screaming For Vengeance'. I know some people like to wait and see what the setlist's gonna be. I won't spoil anything, but we will reference 'Screaming For Vengeance' in a few places.

"There's a couple of things that I haven't played with the band [that we will play on this tour]," he continued. "I've been with the band for almost 12 years now, and we're playing a couple of songs that I haven't played with the band yet, which is exciting. We're digging out a few which we haven't played for a while, and then, as I said, there's a few that I haven't played with the band. So it's a refreshing setlist from our point of view as well, to be able to do some things that we haven't done, and then hopefully that kind of reflects with the fans as well, to hear something new."

Asked how JUDAS PRIEST comes up with a setlist, Richie said: "Well, it can be difficult. There's certain things we have to hit. We have a classic part of the set that we kind of have to acknowledge. PRIEST have had huge radio hits — 'Breaking The Law', '[You've Got] Another Thing Comin''; that kind of elements of the show — that we have to kind of acknowledge, as I said. If there's any moments like anniversaries of albums, we can kind of hit those moments. If there's anything we haven't done for a while that might be interesting to do… We don't wanna repeat too much from the last tour or if there's a new album, we're gonna hit a few [songs] from [that]. This being an anniversary tour, we kind of have free rein. And sometimes what we do is literally me and Rob [Halford, vocals], we'll write down songs that we think would be interesting on paper — literally cut them out, lay them all out on the table or whatever and position them and put them in the setlist, like old school. And we try to get a dynamic flow, so there's a start, like an impact, and then it kind of tapers a little bit, and there's a little bit of an ebb and flow. So we try and create a dynamic through the set, like I think the band have always done. But we literally do it with a pen and paper, cut them out into little rectangles. It sounds a bit 'Spinal Tap', but it works. We've been doing that for a little while. And then we kind of hone it as we go through [a tour]. So we might have a starting point — 16 songs — and we rehearse it, and if something doesn't feel right or it doesn't have that dynamic, we'll put another one in just to get that dynamic right."

PRIEST kicked off its spring/summer 2022 European tour with an intimate concert on May 31 in Berlin, Germany. For the gig, which was held at the 1,600-capacity Huxleys Neue Welt venue, Halford and his bandmates ditched their traditional leather-and-studs look in favor of a more stripped-down appearance.

Bassist Ian Hill is the sole remaining original member of PRIEST, which formed in 1969. Halford joined the group in 1973 and guitarist Glenn Tipton signed on in 1974. Rob left PRIEST in the early 1990s to form his own band, then came back to PRIEST in 2003. Founding guitarist K.K. Downing parted ways with the band in 2011, and was replaced by Richie Faulkner.

Tipton was diagnosed with Parkinson's disease eight years ago after being stricken by the condition at least half a decade earlier. Tipton announced in early 2018 he was going to sit out touring activities in support of "Firepower". He was replaced by Sneap, who is also known for his work in NWOBHM revivalists HELL and cult thrash outfit SABBAT.

JUDAS PRIEST received the Musical Excellence Award at this year's Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, which honored Eminem, Dolly Parton, DURAN DURAN, Lionel Richie, Pat Benatar, EURYTHMICS and Carly Simon in the Performers category.

The induction ceremony was held on November 5 at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. It will air at a later date on HBO and stream on HBO Max.

The JUDAS PRIEST members that got inducted include current members Halford, Hill, Tipton and Scott Travis (drums),along with former members Downing, Les Binks (drums) and late drummer Dave Holland.

Steve Vai and Favored Nations/Mascot Label Group have announced the release of "Vai/Gash" digitally and on CD January 27, 2023. The vinyl album release will follow on February 24. Today, they present "In The Wind" which can be previewed below.

Vai comments: "This record was written and recorded in somewhat of a stream of consciousness in 1991 within perhaps a two-week period as an answer to my desire to have a particular kind of music to listen to when I was riding my Harley-Davidson motorcycle with my friends. It's reminiscent of a certain type of rock music I enjoyed as a teenager in the 1970s. These recordings sat on the shelf for over 30 years and are being released now in 2023."

An abbreviated synopsis of the anecdotal history and fond remembrances as articulated by Vai in the liner notes offer detail on singer Gash and his deep connection to Vai. From his teenage years on Long Island, to today, he has openly shared his love of motorcycles. Gash shared that passion.

Vai reflects, "Around 1990, I was overcome with a desire to rip out what I thought would be a straight-ahead type of rock record that contained the kind of music I wish I had to listen to when I was that teenager ensconced in the biker culture. And then I met Johnny 'Gash' Sombrotto."

John was born in Queens, New York and as a youth was an avid motorcycle enthusiast. In 1977 at the age of 21, he endured a serious accident that caused his body to catch fire while plunging 30 feet onto a barbed wire fence. Vai wrote in the liner notes: "The doctors told his family that he had third degree burns over 60% of his body, and that if he even survived, there was a strong possibility that he would lose his right arm and left leg. While in the burn unit, he endured excruciating pain, especially when given the intense daily cycle of hot baths for his burns. He soldiered on, and after a month he was finally discharged from the hospital. Luckily, no limbs were amputated. He was, however, left with a partial left ear and layers of skin grafts over his neck, arms, legs, and entire chest. The stories he told about his recovery and the excruciating pain involved were crushingly gut wrenching. But he survived, and eventually thrived again. He made his way out to Los Angeles in 1982 and got right back up on his motorcycle."

Vai met John through a mutual friend, Mark Cimino. They bonded over biker culture, and he choose the name "Gash" as a nickname. Vai wrote: "I've observed many people interacting with him on our numerous motorcycle road trips and other adventures. At first sight, many people could be taken by his bald head, scarred neck and burnt-off ear. Looking as he did and riding a Harley it was easy to assume he was perhaps a tough, menacing biker with a nefarious attitude, but after engaging with him for even a minute, his charm and magnetic charisma had them laughing in their shoes and completely enjoying his uplifting presence. He endeared people with his wit, warmth, and sparkle. John hit it off instantly with the most unlikely of people of every age, color, size, political or sexual persuasions. He was non superficial and never judged people. This allowed his engaging personality and intoxicating charm to draw you in. Under all those scars was a bold and fearlessly warm heart that can be seen in his disarming and big soft blue eyes."

He continues: "Something in me wanted to get him in the studio and see how he would belt over these biker-type songs I had demoed, but nothing could have prepared me for the voice that came out of his mouth. I had to think, of course, he sounds like that because that's him — confident, authentic, fearless but with a lighthearted intention. This was the voice I wanted to hear wailing over these slamming rock tracks. I was stunned. Around that timeframe I was also starting to launch work on 'Sex And Religion' and was hoping to eventually record more than the eight songs I had laid down with John for an alternative project, but that was proven impossible. On September 7th, 1998, two days after my father had passed away, the phone rang, and it was John's beloved girlfriend Nancy. Her voice was quaking, and I somehow knew what she was going to tell me. 'John was in a bike accident and was killed.'"

After three decades, Steve has finally shared this master with the world. In his opinion, "He would have absolutely been the greatest rock lead singer you would ever want to know. All the elements were in place, but he was gone. Disheartened, I put the entire project on the shelf, and would listen to it at least once a year for the past 30 years, especially around the anniversary of his passing. Then recently something compelled me to want to put it out now. I wish you would have had a chance to get to know John. I believe you would have loved him just as we all did. For now, he is 'in the wind'."

Regarding the LP's first single, Vai says: "'In The Wind' was the first track that was recorded for this record. It captures the spirit of the open road freedom we felt while riding our Harleys on bike rallies and interstate road trips. The track has the exhilaration of having that kind of power under you while kissing the wind."

Vai is a virtuoso guitarist, composer and producer, considered by many as one of the greatest guitarists of all time. In over 40 years in the industry, Vai has sold over 15 million records, received three Grammy Awards, and recorded with music legends like Frank Zappa, David Lee Roth, WHITESNAKE and many more. Vai has also toured extensively and recorded live projects with "G3" (collaborating with different touring lineups including Joe Satriani, John Petrucci, Eric Johnson, Yngwie Malmsteen and Steve Lukather) and "Generation Axe", a touring project Vai formed with Zakk Wylde, Yngwie Malmsteen, Nuno Bettencourt and Tosin Abasi. Vai is the author of "Vaideology: Basic Music Theory For Guitar Players" (Hal Leonard),his inaugural music theory book designed to help both beginners and veteran guitar players. He is currently touring North America supporting his most recent studio album "Inviolate".