After two consecutive years playing at the renowned Alcatraz Open Air Festival, Powerstroke is about to embark on a tour with Evil Dead this summer. They will also release a new album with the intriguing title, Diamonds Made Of Scars. This album will be released on CD as well as on vinyl in September this year.


In anticipation of the tour and the new album Powerstroke released a new video for the track, "Show Me A Sign". The song was written as a reflection on a serious traffic accident, in which guitarist and founder of the band, Maarten Geeraerts, was involved at the age of 19; it almost cost him his life.







Newspaper article at the time of the accident: Oosteeklo - A serious traffic accident happened in the Ledestraat Friday evening around 11PM. 19-year-old Maarten Geeraerts collided in his passenger car with a tree and a concrete lamppost. The fire brigade immediately rushed to the rescue, but it took more than half an hour to free the injured driver from the car.


The song also reflects on the bond Maarten had and still has with his grandfather, who sadly passed away a few months before the accident. He was Maartens' hero, his biggest supporter and role model. Despite his passing, the bond remained so strong, that even after his death, Maarten is deeply convinced that his grandfather acted more or less as his guardian angel and gave him the strength to survive the accident and to undergo the very lengthy medical rehabilitation that followed.


None other than Jeroen Camerlynck from Fleddy Melculy makes a vocal contribution to this song.





Before the official release of the new album, Diamonds Made Of Scars, Powerstroke will perform live as support for Evil Dead, the band of Cuban-American guitarist Juan Garcia (Agent Steel, Abbatoir and Body Count).

In a new interview with Guitar World magazine, MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine, who was a member of METALLICA for less than two years, from 1981 to 1983, before being dismissed and replaced by Kirk Hammett, was asked if he has heard METALLICA's latest album, "72 Seasons". He responded: "No, I have not heard METALLICA's latest record. But there was a time around 20 years ago when we were not being friendly toward each other when I couldn't listen to their music when it came on the radio. But none of that bothers me anymore, and it's not why I haven't heard the record, especially after the Big Four thing that we did. I really think we should do that again."

Asked if he feels the recent flak that Kirk has taken for his solos is fair, Mustaine replied: "It depends on which solos you're talking about. [Laughs] Jokes aside, I've always kind of poked fun at Kirk. And unfairly so, as he never did anything to me. Whenever I felt singled out, picked on, or antagonized by James [Hetfield] or Lars [Ulrich], it was really easy to pick on Kirk. But the truth is Kirk did me an honor by trying to play my solos on those early songs the way he did… Well, I think that some people would have just started over again. So, I thought it was honorable that Kirk took my solos and did his best to play them as I did. That couldn't have been easy. But as far as his new solos on the new METALLICA album, I haven't heard them, so I can't comment. But I will say that I think it's sad how quickly some people can turn on people.

"There was a time when Kirk won every guitar contest in the world, and I don't think he's gotten any better or worse as a player. He's always been really good. Kirk was a good player when he was in EXODUS. And he's been steady the entire time he's been in METALLICA. But does that mean Kirk Hammett is Dave Mustaine? No. And is Dave MustaineKirk Hammett? Also, no."

Last August, Mustaine reflected on his 1983 dismissal from METALLICA and the formation of MEGADETH in an interview with podcaster Joe Rogan of "The Joe Rogan Experience". When asked if went "right into" MEGADETH after his exit from METALLICA or if it took him some time to plot his next move, Dave said: "I think in my mind I went right into MEGADETH, but at the time I was still kind of trying to digest everything that took place.

"The thing that bothered me the most was I had all my music, and I left it behind and I said, 'Don't use my music.' And of course they did. They used it on the first record [1983's 'Kill 'Em All'], on the second record [1984's 'Ride The Lightning']. There's parts of my music on a song on the third record [1986's 'Master Of Puppets']. All the solos on the first record are mine, except that they're just performed by Kirk. And [they're] close but not the same. And he's not a bad guitar player."

When asked if he got royalties for that, Mustaine said: "Well, most of 'em, yeah, but Kirk got my royalties for [the song] 'Metal Militia' [from 'Kill 'Em All'] for many, many years. And he has to see the check, so I know somebody saw that I wasn't getting paid.

After Rogan noted that Mustaine feels both "sadness and bitterness" over his departure from METALLICA, Dave said: "Not bitterness — I'm over it. It's just money. At the end of the day, my happiness and my family and my wife and my children are more important to me than anything in this world. I love our fans. I have so many things in this life that I'm happy about. But, man, it's my family. And obviously my relationship with God. I take that very, very personal. And I don't talk to people about it; I don't push it on 'em at all. It's my thing. And I just look at it like where I'm at right now… Yeah, [I was] 20 [years old] in METALLICA, and now, look at me, I'm 60 [years old] in MEGADETH. And I'm a Grammy winner. I'm a New York Times best-selling author — all these things."

In a 2009 interview with Norway's Lydverket, Mustaine said that he was "so hurt" by getting kicked out of METALLICA for allegedly drinking too much. "I said, 'What?! No second chance, no warning? C'mon, we all drink. C'mon.'" he recalled. "And [they were like], 'No, that's it. You're gone.' And I was like, 'All right.'"

Mustaine also went on to claim that an altercation with METALLICA frontman James Hetfield led to his being fired from the band.

"I was selling pot," Dave said. "When I would go play in concert, people knew that my pot was sitting in my apartment just saying, 'Go ahead and keep me company.' So I was broken in on. People stole everything that I had; all my stash. And I figured, screw this. I'm gonna get some dogs to stay in the apartment when I leave. So I got two dogs and I took one of them up to a rehearsal one time and she put her paws up on Ron's [McGovney, METALLICA's then-bassist] car. And James kicked it right in the side. And I was like, 'What did you do?' [And I was like] 'It's a dog, it's what they do. You don't kick animals.' So we went into the house, and we started arguing some more. And I ended up punching him in the face and I think that was the root of why I lost my job."

In a 2009 interview with the Dallas/Ft. Worth, Texas radio station 97.1 The Eagle Rocks, Hetfield said that it was "so odd" to hear Mustaine still talking about his exit from METALLICA. "It is very Dave, and that's him," James said. "And no matter what band he was in or whatever... I mean, Dave is not in this band for a reason, and this is the reason. It's super-simple. He was in the band for 11 months and it goes on and on and on and on and on. I don't know any other band on this planet that there was a member in the band for a short amount of time and they've still got this big chip on his shoulder. It's insane.... You know what?! He's in love, and that's fine, 'cause we love him back."

Back in 2016, Hammett told the "Word Of Wheeler" podcast that he understood Dave's continued resentment toward his former bandmates over the way he was dismissed from the group. "I've always seen Dave as someone who was just really, really sad, really angry, really frustrated about his situation with METALLICA, and he never could let that go," he said. "And, you know, I've always shown a lot of empathy for him, understanding that he was just pissed off. It's the equivalent of the woman of your life leaving you. I mean, really. When your band kicks you out… I've never been kicked out, but I can imagine it's a horrible experience, especially if it's a band that you feel really passionately about. So I can understand Dave's plight over all these years. But I will also say that when we did these 30th-anniversary shows at the Fillmore [in San Francisco], and we invited Dave to play on all those 'Kill 'Em All' songs, man, it felt so good to have him playing on stage. It felt perfectly fine for me to, while Dave was playing the guitar solos, for me to go over to James and play the rhythm parts with James, and it wasn't a big deal at all. And I could see from the look on Dave's face and just from his whole attitude that it was super-cathartic for him. And I could see how it was helping him. And so I just took it all in stride. And it's interesting, because since then, I think, Dave's relationship with us is a little bit better now. I'd like to think that that whole thing just kind of healed some scars that needed to be healed."

After Hammett's comments about Mustaine were reported by BLABBERMOUTH.NET and other music sites, Dave took to his Twitter to respond. He wrote: "I have tremendous respect for @KirkHammett and I appreciate his take on this. he is almost 100% accurate...almost. I wish him the best."

In a September 2011 interview with Artisan News, Mustaine appeared to concur that his onstage reunion with METALLICA went a long way toward healing the wounds from the way his tenure in the band ended. Dave said: "When we [played a cover of DIAMOND HEAD's] 'Helpless' [as part of a 'Big Four' jam] one night, I walked over to say hello to Kirk on the stage and he said, 'Do you wanna take the solo?" and I said, 'Yeah.' [Laughs] But we forgot to tell anybody on the stage or [running] the sound out front that I was gonna do the solo, so the song's playing along and Kirk's playing rhythm full blast, and I'm sitting there going you can't hear what I'm doing. At least we knew what had happened. It was kind of a symbolic passing of the torch back to me and it was a nice gesture. I think that that helped Kirk and my relationship improve a bit."

In a September 2004 interview, Mustaine famously stated, "I really don't care about Kirk — he stole my job, but at least I got to bang his girlfriend before he took my job. How do I taste, Kirk?"

Mustaine did not play on any METALLICA albums and did not attend their induction into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2009.

METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich later explained to The Plain Dealer that Mustaine was not included because "you've got to kind of cap it somewhere. Dave Mustaine never played on any METALLICA records. No disrespect to him. But there [were] half a dozen other people that were in the lineup in the early days. We thought . . . the fair thing to do would be to include anybody that played on a METALLICA record." He added: "Dave Mustaine was in the band for 11 months, predominantly in 1982... I'm not trying to play it down. I have nothing but respect and admiration for his accomplishments since."

Dave Mustaine photo courtesy of Gibson / Kirk Hammett photo credit: Ross Halfin

GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash joined RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE guitarist Tom Morello on stage this past Thursday (June 15) at the Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel, Belgium to perform the song "Interstate 80". Fan-filmed video of his appearance can be seen below.

The studio version of "Interstate 80", which also features Slash, originally appeared on Morello's "Comandante" EP, which came out in October 2020.

A couple of months after the EP's release, Slash and Morello discussed the making of the song, as well as the accompanying music video, which found the two guitar heroes revisiting their avatars from the Guitar Hero video game.

"I just thought it was the coolest and most original thing I've heard as an idea," Slash said about incorporating the cartoon avatars into the clip.

"This is the first time that Slash and I have dueled on record," Morello said. "But in the game Guitar Hero there were plenty of Morrell-ian, Slash-ian duels."

He continued: "I remember that game when it came out. It became my life and Slash's life because all of a sudden our fanbase went down to, like, five years old and we became these kind of cartoon avatars for a generation. So I wanted to bring that duel to life. A duel which you may have seen in your living room or your basement many times was made flesh."

Regarding his collaboration with Morello on "Interstate 80", Slash said: "He's just a blast to play with. He's got a great style and a great technique and a great sound. And I think our contrasting styles work really well together."

He continued: "On 'Interstate 80', I just did a bunch of solos throughout the song and then [Tom] did his solos and they cut them together and they just fit together great. It's like two completely different sides of the spectrum style-wise."

"Comandante" included a song called "Secretariat" which was said to be a tribute to the late Eddie Van Halen. Morello also offered up his take on Jimi Hendrix's "Voodoo Child".

Progressive metal titans DREAM THEATER kicked off their "Dreamsonic" tour this past Friday (June 16) at E-B Center At Cedar Park in Cedar Park, Texas. For the final song of their set, "The Spirit Carries On", they were joined by tourmates Devin Townsend and ANIMALS AS LEADERS. Check out fan-filmed video below.

The 29-city "Dreamsonic" trek will wrap up July 26 in Phoenix, Arizona. Along the way, the trek will make stops in Orlando, Florida (June 23); New York (June 28); Cleveland, Ohio (July 8); and Denver, Colorado (July 15),to name a few.

"The Alien", a track from DREAM THEATER's latest album, "A View From The Top Of The World", landed the band its first-ever Grammy in the "Best Metal Performance" category at the 64th annual Grammy Awards, which was held in April 2022 in Las Vegas. DREAM THEATER's previous Grammy nominations were for the song "On The Backs Of Angels", from 2011's "A Dramatic Turn Of Events" album, and the single "The Enemy Inside" from 2013's "Dream Theater".

"A View From The Top Of The World" was described in a press released as "DREAM THEATER at its musical finest, expanding on the sound they helped create while maintaining the elements that have garnered them devoted fans around the globe." The seven-song album also marked the second studio album with InsideOut Music/Sony Music. The artwork was created by longtime cover collaborator Hugh Syme (RUSH, IRON MAIDEN, STONE SOUR). "A View From The Top Of The World" was produced by Petrucci, engineered and additional production by James "Jimmy T" Meslin and mixed/mastered by Andy Sneap.

NIGHTWISH played its last concert in Finland before its upcoming break from touring on Saturday, June 17 at Lemonsoft Stadion in Vaasa. Fan-filmed video of the performance can be seen below.

NIGHTWISH has only one more live appearance on its schedule: Thursday, June 22 at the Tons Of Rock festival in Oslo, Norway.

This past April, NIGHTWISH surprised fans by announcing that the band was not going to be playing any live shows for the foreseeable future and would be not be touring in support of the group's next studio album, which is tentatively due in 2024.

NIGHTWISH's statement read as follows: "As the 'Human :ll: Nature - World Tour' is drawing to a close, we feel now is the time to tell you of our plans for the next phase in our journey.

"After the planned shows for June 2023 we will be 'hanging up our spurs' for an indeterminate time, as far as live concert performances go, and won't be touring the next album.

"The reasons for this decision are personal, but, we all agree, vital to the wellbeing and future of the band. Be assured that we still love working together, and this decision has nothing to do with Floor's [Jansen, NIGHTWISH singer] pregnancy or our other individual projects.

"However, an album of 12 new songs will see bright daylight in 2024, as will 3 music videos! The band is positively hyped beyond words over this new upcoming musical adventure.

"Stay tuned for updates from our legendary NIGHTWISH band camp & studio this summer!"

Last December, NIGHTWISH keyboardist and main songwriter Tuomas Holopainen said the band's upcoming follow-up to 2020's "Human. :II: Nature." will be the third part of a trilogy that began with 2015's "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" album. He told Metal Hammer: "I immediately knew after getting that album ['Endless Forms Most Beautiful'] done that, 'Okay, we have to do more songs about this, because there's so much more to explore and tell the world. We're not done with this.' And the same thing happened after 'Human. :II: Nature.'; we're still not done. So let's do one more. At least one more.

"In a way, [the next album] is the third part of a trilogy, which started with 'Endless Forms…' and then 'Human. :II: Nature.' There are some major surprises there again, but it feels like a natural continuation to 'Human. :II: Nature.'"

According to Tuomas, NIGHTWISH's next LP will cover previously uncharted ground while continuing in the more cinematic style that has characterized some of the band's recent efforts..

"The wonderful thing is that we have had the demo [of the album] done since last spring. So it's been done for six months now. We really have all the time in the world to go through it all, and we have had a such great time with the band, just listening to the demo in our hotel rooms — me singing the lyrics and the melodies to Floor [Jansen, vocals]. She's recording them and then she's seeing them and throwing ideas to each other."

Last September, Tuomas was asked if NIGHTWISH's upcoming LP will once again be an exploration of evolutionary science, as was the case with the previous two releases. Tuomas said: "Yes and no. It sails on the same waters, but there's some new surprises there as well."

Holopainen went on to say that NIGHTWISH fans will have to wait a while before hearing new music from the band. "We'll enter the studio next year and the album is gonna come out maybe early 2024," he said.

In August 2022, Tuomas told Rock Sverige that he spent "about a year" working on the music and lyrics for the next NIGHTWISH album.

Asked if he got any kind of inspiration from the pandemic, Tuomas said: "Yeah, lyrically there's a couple of things that reflects the pandemic, but not in the way you would expect."

"Human. :II: Nature." was released in April 2020. The follow-up to 2015's "Endless Forms Most Beautiful" was a double album containing nine tracks on the main CD and one long track, divided into eight chapters, on CD 2.

In August 2022, NIGHTWISH announced the addition of bassist Jukka Koskinen (WINTERSUN) as an official member of the band. Koskinen, who made his live debut with NIGHTWISH in May 2021 at the band's two interactive experiences, had spent the last year touring with NIGHTWISH as a session musician.

In November 2022, Floor revealed that she was "cancer free" after recently undergoing surgery to have a tumor removed following a breast cancer diagnosis.

Last month, Floor and SABATON drummer Hannes Van Dahl announced that they were expecting their second child. Jansen and Van Dahl already have a six-year-old daughter named Freja, who was born on March 15, 2017.

Jawbreaker Records, Sweden’s leading independent record label known for its dedication to authentic metal music, are thrilled to announce the release of Evil Madness’ latest album, The Irrelevance Of Existence on cassette format. This relentless onslaught of thrash metal mastery promises to leave listeners breathless with its ten tracks of insane velocity and unholy riffs, paying homage to the ghoulish acts of the 80s deathrash scene.





Since their formation in Santiago, Chile in 2003, Evil Madness has consistently crushed eardrums and unleashed their unrelenting fury upon the metal world. The Irrelevance Of Existence serves as a testament to their enduring spirit and relentless pursuit of sonic devastation. Drawing inspiration from the titans of thrash, this album summons the ancient spirits, channeling their power to decimate the minds of even the most tormented thrash metal enthusiasts.




Fans of Sadus, Morbid Saint, Num Skull, Assassin, and other legendary acts from the golden era of thrash metal will find solace in Evil Madness’ latest creation. With each track, the band transports listeners back to a time when raw aggression and uncompromising speed ruled the genre, delivering an authentic experience of thrashing madness.


To capture the essence of this monstrous release, Jawbreaker Records are issuing a limited edition of The Irrelevance Of Existence on cassette format. The release will be limited to 100 copies on black tape, in addition to a special version of 50 copies on purple tape housed in a special purple case.


Prepare yourself for an auditory assault like no other as The Irrelevance Of Existence pummels its way into your soul, leaving a trail of sonic destruction in its wake.


Limited to 100 copies on black tape and 50 copies on purple tape housed in a special purple case.





Tracklisting:


Side A:


"Phantom Slayer"
"Dawn Of The Death"
"Wretched Reality"
"Black Seeds Of Eternity"
"Chaotic Revelations"


Side B:


"Vicious Distributor"
"Cursed Irreversible Fate"
"Cold Chest"
"Ritual Of Fire"
"The Irrelevance )f Existence"


Lineup:


Cristian Contreras - Vocals & Guitar
Javier Buzeta - Drums
Matias Ubeda - Guitar
Diego Carrillo - Bass

The title of Black Magic Six’s upcoming album, Black Cloud Descending, really sums up the mood and thoughts of its creators during the album making process. It tells stories of constant escaping, accepting defeat, destinies of outcasts, failures, and drunks. Tales of the wiser, exaggerated lies, vague rumours, fuzzy states of mind and suspicious circumstances - even the thought in the back of your head about the possibility of redemption while standing on the edge of the cliff right before falling in; it’s all there.


Second single from the upcoming fifth album is the title track, "Black Cloud Descending". The name of the song was taken from a comment the Asheton brothers’ sister Katy said, when guitarist James Williamson joined The Stooges. Other than that, the new single has nothing to do with this.


The short movie written by the band and director Juho Karhu tells a story about the bad times ahead and how to prepare for overcoming them - no matter how much effort and resources it may take. It’s a story about friendship and that it’s the journey that matters, not the destination. Check out the video below.




Black Cloud Descending is out on September 1 on vinyl, CD and digital platforms. The album was produced, recorded, and mixed by Mitro Kylliäinen at Kung Fu Audio along with BM6 during 2022-2023. Original art used for the album cover was made by Greger Grönholm.





Tracklisting:


"Black Goat"
"Evil Eye Powder"
"Blood Of Babylon"
"Werewolf Of Istanbul"
"Aileen"
"Black Cloud Descending"
"Full House Blues"
"Forsaken Land"
"Landback Pond"
"I Am Drunk"


"Black Cloud Descending" video:





The band will play selected live shows to celebrate the new album in Finland, Germany, Denmark, and Spain.


Lineup:


Japa Motherfucker - Drums and percussions
Taskinen - Vocals, guitars, organ, and percussions


(Photo - Mikko Linsiö)

Metallica have released more video footage from their concert at Download Festival at Donington Park in Castle Donington, England, on June 8. "Whiskey In The Jar" joins the previously posted "Harvester Of Sorrow". Watch both clips below:










Last week, Metallica released a video for "If Darkness Had A Son", featured on The Amsterdam Sessions (Amazon Music Presents) out today. Watch the clip below.


The four-track release is available exclusively on Amazon Music.





The Amsterdam Sessions (Amazon Music Presents) ​​tracklisting:


"Master Of Puppets"
"Lux Æterna"
"If Darkness Had A Son"
"Nothing Else Matters"

Danish rock and rollers VOLBEAT played their second concert with their new touring guitarist Flemming C. Lund (THE ARCANE ORDER) on Friday (June 16) at the Ullevi stadium in Gothenburg, Sweden as the support act for METALLICA. Fan-filmed video of the performance can be seen below.

On June 5, VOLBEAT announced that it had officially parted ways with guitarist Rob Caggiano. No reason was given for the split, but the remaining bandmembers said that they wished their "brother Rob all the best with everything he does in the future." They went on to thank Rob "for ten amazing years."

A day later, Lund commented on his decision to accept the offer to play with VOLBEAT on the band's 2023 shows, saying in a statement: "The cat's out of the bag! Sometimes unexpected things happen in life and this must be said to be one of them: I can now finally reveal that I will be playing stand-in in VOLBEAT for Rob Caggiano on lead guitar on VOLBEAT's upcoming summer tour. This means I'm playing all upcoming European festival shows in Finland, Norway, Sweden (warming up for METALLICA),Switzerland, Germany and Austria as well as the US/Canada tour in July and August.

"When I was asked by Michael Poulsen not many weeks ago if I wanted to help them, I was honestly at first very overwhelmed by the request and found it very difficult to see myself in that role. But after a little time to think and talk with those closest to me, it dawned on me that it was something I could not possibly say no to.

"So this summer takes a somewhat unexpected, but obviously insanely cool turn. I will try to enjoy every moment and just take in the many experiences and impressions that will surely be an experience of a lifetime.

"A big thank you must go to my fantastic workplace MCB for the great flexibility so that it could be successful, and not least to my better half Julie who, as usual, supported and stood behind me!"

THE ARCANE ORDER is a Danish extreme metal quintet which released its fourth album, "Distortions From Cosmogony", on June 9 via Black Lion Records.

On June 12, Rob — who played on VOLBEAT's last four studio albums: 2013's "Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies", 2016's "Seal the Deal & Let's Boogie", 2019's "Rewind, Replay, Rebound" and 2021's "Servant Of The Mind" — issued a statement in which he said he was "extremely proud of everything" he and how now-former bandmates "accomplished together over the last 10 years."

As for why his time with VOLBEAT had come to an end, Rob said: "Sometimes relationships simply run their course. Sometimes certain obstacles, people or circumstances get in the way of the greater good. Sometimes people change and priorities shift. Sometimes it's unavoidable. We had a very special undeniable magic together as a band. It's not something that comes around too often in this life and it's not something to be taken lightly. I certainly do not. However, while this is really a very emotional time for me I'm also extremely excited about what lies ahead in the future. Lots of exciting things happening right now. I really couldn't be more fired up!!"

An acclaimed musician, songwriter and producer, Caggiano joined ANTHRAX as lead guitarist in 2001, appearing on 2003 album "We've Come For You All" and 2004's "The Greater Of Two Evils". He was onstage with the band during the famous 2010-2011 "Big Four" tour alongside SLAYER, MEGADETH and METALLICA, and he played on and produced ANTHRAX's 2011 critically acclaimed album "Worship Music".

An acclaimed musician, songwriter and producer, Caggiano joined ANTHRAX as lead guitarist in 2001, appearing on 2003 album "We've Come For You All" and 2004's "The Greater Of Two Evils". He was onstage with the band during the famous 2010-2011 "Big Four" tour alongside SLAYER, MEGADETH and METALLICA, and he played on and produced ANTHRAX's 2011 critically acclaimed album "Worship Music".

Over the years, Caggiano has also garnered five Grammy nominations as a record producer/guitarist and has worked with a very wide range of artists including CRADLE OF FILTH, ANTHRAX, VOLBEAT, THE DAMNED THINGS, H20, Jesse Malin and even Bruce Springsteen.

When Caggiano was enlisted as producer for Danish heavy rock quartet VOLBEAT in early 2013, the collaboration was so phenomenally successful that he was quickly invited to join the band as well. The resulting album, "Outlaw Gentlemen & Shady Ladies", achieved major chart success on both sides of the Atlantic, as did "Seal The Deal & Let's Boogie".

In a new interview with Heavy New York, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE bassist Mike D'Antonio was asked about the possibility of him and his bandmates embarking on a special tour next year to celebrate the 20th anniversary of their breakthrough third album, 2004's "The End Of Heartache". He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It really hasn't been brought up. It'll probably be brought up now. The unfortunate and weird thing is you've just gotta take into account that that's not [current KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer] Jesse's [Leach] record. He likes that record a lot, but it's not him singing on it. So do we wanna force him into a situation where he's doing stuff that maybe he's a little less than excited about or just not as invested in. We play a lot of the hits from different records that [former KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer] Howard [Jones] did, but we want Jesse to be happy too. So that would be a discussion to see how we could go about doing something like that."

Back in 2019, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE guitarist and producer Adam Dutkiewicz told Kerrang! magazine that he wasn't interested in doing anything to celebrate the 15th anniversary of "The End Of Heartache". "It's kind of just a flash in the band, and then we move on for the next thing," Adam said. "We're in the middle of trying to set up the new record. It's funny, our bassist, Mike, was, like, 'Hey, should we be thinking about doing a 15th-anniversary tour for this record?' and I was, like, 'No. We should be thinking about this new record.' We shouldn't live in the past, y'know? I feel like there's been too much of that recently. Maybe more people should focus on writing more material, and not just trying to rehash stuff, y'know? There's just too much of that.

"I'm happy that everyone agreed with me that it wasn't a good idea," he continued, "especially because we literally just finished our new record. So we have things to worry about."

"The End Of Heartache" was the band's first release to feature Jones and drummer Justin Foley.

The disc's title track was nominated in the "Best Metal Performance" category at the 47th annual Grammy Awards.

The album was certified gold by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association Of America) in December 2007 for sales in excess of a half million copies in the United States.

Leach appeared on KILLSWITCH's self-titled debut and sophomore album, "Alive Or Just Breathing", before exiting the band. Jones took over on vocals for "The End Of Heartache", "As Daylight Dies" and the 2009 self-titled set before being dismissed from the group 11 years ago.

On June 9, KILLSWITCH ENGAGE was joined by ANTHRAX singer Joey Belladonna and Jones during KILLSWITCH's concert at the Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom in Hampton, New Hampshire. Belladonna came up on stage to perform a cover of DIO's "Holy Diver", while Jones shared lead vocals with Leach on the song "The Signal Fire", which originally appeared on KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's latest album, 2019's "Atonement".

When the music video for the studio version of "The Signal Fire" was first released in August 2019, Leach said that he wrote the song's lyrics "with Howard in mind and our connection through our similar mental illnesses." He explained: "I mean, now that I've hung with this guy a few times, it's 'crazy' (pun intended) how similar we are. We are brothers in metal, anxiety, hardcore music, love of medicinal marijuana and fighting depression.

"We may be very different-sounding voices, but, in truth, we are similar in many ways in our minds," he added.

Jesse went on to say that the song's lyrics are "about keeping hope in dark times and helping out those in need."

Leach, who has previously blamed his exit from KILLSWITCH in 2002 on his battle with depression, said that he planned "on using this song to help continue to raise awareness for mental health and suicide prevention. Both Howard and I have a very strong outspoken stance on the subject and I will use this to help with the cause," he said.

British epic doom metallers Godthrymm - featuring members once involved in such luminaries as My Dying Bride, Anathema, Vallenfyre, and Solstice - return with their new album, Distortions, set for release on August 18 via Profound Lore Records.


The follow-up to 2020’s widely lauded Reflections shows the Halifax-based quartet of Hamish Glencross (guitars, vocals), Catherine Glencross (keyboards, vocals), “Sasquatch” Bob Crolla (bass), and Shaun “Winter” Taylor-Steels (drums) elegantly expanding upon their sound and vision. With tracks like “Follow Me,” featuring former My Dying Bride compatriot Aaron Stainthorpe, “Echoes,” and “Devils,” Distortions advances Godthrymm into the hallowed halls of the genre they adore to death.


“I absolutely wanted to create a much more layered and complex arrangement in the sound,” notes Glencross. “Totally amping up the contrasts to the extreme - the light shines brighter, and the darker depths are vast trenches. There is a lot more harmony and melancholy for much of it, but also some slab-heavy riffing, too. We wanted a total progression in the production and more class and clarity in the sound, as opposed to Reflections, which could get quite dense in tone.”




Distortions is the second part of Glencross’ Visions trilogy - the third part, Projections, is already in the works. Throughout its seven-track, hour-long expanse, Godthrymm’s sophomore effort delves deeper into the despondent march of post-pandemic singles “Chasm” and “In Perpetuum,” the latter released exclusively on Decibel Magazine’s Decibel Flexi Series in 2022. Glencross’ emotionally-charged vocals pair perfectly with his towering riffs and thoughtful, crestfallen harmonies. The rhythmic foundation of Crolla and Taylor-Steels is absolutely critical to Glencross’ woebegone éclat. With Catherine Glencross’ angelic vocals and atmospheric keyboards stitched into the monumental “As Titans,” the granite-hard “Obsess And Regress,” and the stirring “Pictures Remain,” Distortions has it all.


“The songwriting for Distortions began during the first lockdown,” Glencross says. “That inspired me to start writing and recording at home, and that structure helped define how we would ultimately write the album. It was very much isolated for the most part, though. I would write and record the first arrangement of a song and then send it through to the others, who would record their parts and send them back. Then, it would be a case of refining and rewriting as inspired by the contributions of everyone. Only one song, ‘Devils,’ was written in the rehearsal room before the rest of the album.”


For an album centered lyrically on grief, loss, regret, resolve, love, and determination, it’s hard to imagine something inexplicably heavy yet remarkably beautiful. Producer Andy Hawkins (Hark, Grave Lines) was the perfect man for the job. Spread across The Nave Studio in Leeds and Sasquatch Music Studio in Huddersfield, he captured Godthrymm at their most menacing (“Unseen Unheard”) and vulnerable (“Follow Me”). The tones he extracted from Glencross, Crolla, and Taylor-Steels absolutely crush, while the brighter moments (like Catherine Glencross’ spell-binding vocals on “Obsess and Regress”) splinter Godthrymm’s disheartened darkness in two. Distortions was mastered by Mark Midgley (Doom, Hellkrusher) for Northern Mastering Co.


In advance of the record’s release, today the band unveils first single, “Echoes”. Notes Glencross, “This last couple of years brought challenge and heartache to too many of us. ‘Echoes’ is our ode to loss and grief. We lost people very dear to us, and this song came from that. Love and loss is universal, and I hope we may share and connect through our music.”


Hear the single below.


Distortions will be released on CD, LP, cassette, and digital formats. Find pre-orders here.





Distortions tracklisting:


"As Titans"
"Devils"
"Echoes"
"Obsess And Regress"
"Unseen Unheard"
"Follow Me"
"Pictures Remain"


"Echoes":





For a band that formed in 2017, Godthrymm are on an impressive run. Not only have they proven to be a formidable live act - invites to Bloodstock Open Air, In Flammen Open Air, and Tomorrow’s Ghost Festival are but the beginning - but the group’s prolific output of three EPs, two singles, and two full-length albums have also repositioned England as the epicenter of high-quality, epic-sounding doom metal. The cover art by Andy Green (My Dying Bride) is simply a force multiplier. All eyes are on Godthrymm with Distortions.


“I hope we continue to evolve and progress,” Glencross says. “The sound is decidedly more complete [on Distortions] than the previous incarnations, which are quite primitive. I hope people connect with the passion and love we have put in. The themes are universal and eternal. I’m very grateful and touched any time anyone appreciates our work.”


(Photo - Frank Ralph)

AEROSMITH will release a new compilation, "Greatest Hits", on August 18 in multiple sweeping configurations, including merchandise fan packs, new apparel, and accessory collections.

The career-spanning collection will be available on CD, 3-CD deluxe, lenticular CD, vinyl, double vinyl, limited edition double vinyl, 4-LP deluxe vinyl box set, and 4-LP super deluxe box set. The super deluxe limited edition boasts 44 tracks spanning AEROSMITH's five-decade career — including "Dream On", "Walk This Way", "Sweet Emotion", "Crazy", "Cryin'", "I Don't Want To Miss A Thing" — on 180g custom color vinyl, along with stunning live photography and band photos across their entire career in premium book-style sleeves, plus four black-and-white lithographs.

All variations are available for pre-order now at Aerosmith.com.

Less than two months ago, AEROSMITH announced the "Peace Out" tour with special guest THE BLACK CROWES. Produced by Live Nation, the 40-date North American trek will kick off in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on September 2, with stops in iconic arenas across the U.S. and Canada, including Los Angeles's Kia Forum, New York's Madison Square Garden, Dallas's Moody Center, Seattle's Climate Pledge Arena, Chicago's United Center, Toronto's Scotiabank Arena, and more before wrapping in Montreal, Quebec at Bell Centre on January 26 (their last visit at the Bell Centre was in April 2004). A highlight of the tour will be a stop in Boston for a special hometown show on New Year's Eve 2023.

The band also shared news of drummer Joey Kramer's absence from this touring run, saying: "While Joey Kramer remains a beloved founding member of AEROSMITH, he has regrettably made the decision to sit out the currently scheduled touring dates to focus his full attention on his family and health. Joey's unmistakable and legendary presence behind the drum kit will be sorely missed."

Most recently, AEROSMITH wrapped their critically acclaimed Las Vegas residency, "Aerosmith: Deuces Are Wild", at Dolby Live at Park MGM. The 90-minute live performance took fans deep diving into AEROSMITH's groundbreaking career with exclusive, unreleased audio and never-before-seen visuals from the band's archives produced by Oscar and Emmy-winning global visual effects studio Pixomondo.

Ahead of the residency, AEROSMITH returned to their hometown in Boston to perform a record-breaking one-off show at Fenway Park as part of the legendary band's 50th anniversary celebrations. With over 38,700 people in attendance, it was the most tickets sold to date for a show at the iconic venue.

For more than a year, AEROSMITH's longtime drum tech John Douglas has been filling in on drums for Kramer, whose wife, Linda Gail Kramer, died in June 2022 at the age of 55. No cause of death has been revealed.

AEROSMITH played its first concert in more than two and a half years on September 4, 2022 in Bangor, Maine.

Prior to the show at Maine Savings Amphitheater, the band's last live performance took place in February 2020 in Las Vegas as part of AEROSMITH's "Deuces Are Wild" residency.

In May 2022, AEROSMITH announced that singer Steven Tyler had entered a treatment program following a relapse, prompting the band to put their Las Vegas residency on a temporary hold.

Tyler had been struggling with drug and alcohol addiction since the mid-1980s. Over the course of the last four decades, he had relapsed several times, including in the early 2000s and 2009.

Joey has had his own health difficulties in recent years. Kramer suffered a health scare back in 2014, which was initially reported to be "heart-related complications".

Photo credit: Zack Whitford
Today, Aerosmith announces their ultimate Greatest Hits, landing August 18th in multiple sweeping configurations including merchandise fan packs, new apparel, and accessory collections:

- Super Deluxe 4LP on color vinyl*
- Numbered 2LP on 180g black vinyl with alternate… pic.twitter.com/bnGRChjGTh

— Aerosmith (@Aerosmith) June 20, 2023

In a new interview with Shawn Ratches of Laughingmonkeymusic, HAMMERFALL guitarist Oscar Dronjak spoke about the band's plans for the coming months. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The summer festivals, that's what we're doing. This weekend is off. We've been home for a week now. It's gonna be two weeks between shows, more or less. Then the festival season starts for us. So we do those European outdoor festivals, a lot of them, this summer. And then we actually do have four shows with HELLOWEEN left over from the European tour. 'Cause they had to split the European tour up in 10 different sessions or whatever it is. So we do have Scandinavia and Spain left to do in September. And those are the last things we do. After that, we're gonna take a break and record the new album. So that's what we're gonna do."

Last December, HAMMERFALL, which started its career in 1997 on Nuclear Blast with its debut album "Glory To The Brave", returned to the long-running German label.

HAMMERFALL's entire Nuclear Blast catalog, from "Glory To The Brave" to the 2014 album "(r)Evolution" was recently certified with a diamond award for over 1.5 million worldwide sales.

And there's even more to celebrate: following on from "Renegade" (2000),"Crimson Thunder" (2002) and "No Sacrifice, No Victory" (2009),HAMMERFALL's fifth studio album, "Chapter V: Unbent, Unbowed, Unbroken" from 2005, is now the band's fourth album that has gone gold in Sweden, while "Crimson Thunder" even went platinum, surpassing 60,000 sales in the group's home country.

This past April, HAMMERFALL released a special platinum edition of "Crimson Thunder" with tons of bonus material.

HAMMERFALL's latest studio album, "Hammer Of Dawn", was released in February 2022 via Napalm Records. The LP was produced by longtime collaborator Fredrik Nordström (IN FLAMES, OPETH),who handled mixing, mastering, drum recording, and shared the duty of recording guitars and bass with guitarists Pontus Norgren and Oscar Dronjak. Jacob Hansen (VOLBEAT) produced the lead vocals.

In a new interview with Loud TV conducted at this past weekend's Hellfest in Clisson, France, TESTAMENT guitarist Eric Peterson spoke about the progress of the songwriting sessions for the band's follow-up to 2020's "Titans Of Creation" album. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "There was a big gap because of COVID. But now we're getting ready — probably after this [European] tour to go start working on new material. So, yeah, I'm looking forward to that. We have about five, six songs written already, and [I'll] probably try to finish it up when I get home. And then hopefully record right after we go on tour to Japan. So '24 should look like a release for TESTAMENT."

Peterson went on to say that the new TESTAMENT material is shaping up to be "fucking killer." He added: "I'm a fan. For me, I wouldn't release anything unless I'm a fan of what I'm doing. I have to get goosebumps. When I hear it, I'm, like, 'Yeah.' And then, of course, I play it for friends. A few of them go, 'Ehh.' But most of them go, 'Fuuuck!' Except Chuck [Billy, TESTAMENT singer] — Chuck goes, 'Eh.' And then four years later, [he goes], 'That's the best song ever. Write more shit like that.' I'm, like, 'Yeah, but four years ago you said that sucked.'"

As for when TESTAMENT will record the new album, Eric said: "Hopefully maybe October, November. If not, probably January, February. But we're shooting for this year — at the end of the year. I think I'll be done writing in September. So we just have to wait for vocals. Which can take a while. But we'll see what happens."

Peterson was also full of praise for TESTAMENT's new drummer Chris Dovas (SEVEN SPIRES),who officially joined the band earlier this year as the replacement for Dave Lombardo.

This past April, Lombardo revealed in an interview with BLABBERMOUTH.NET that he would sit out the remainder of TESTAMENT's 2023 shows, with no guarantee that he will return to the band.

Lombardo, who was the guest drummer on TESTAMENT's 1999 studio album "The Gathering", formally joined the long-running San Francisco Bay Area act last year. The former SLAYER drummer is currently a member of the MISFITS, MR. BUNGLE, EMPIRE STATE BASTARD and SATANIC PLANET, among others. He also played with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES from 2016 up until 2020.

Prior to joining TESTAMENT as a full-time member, Dovas previously filled in for Lombardo on the first six dates of TESTAMENT's summer/fall 2022 leg of "The Bay Strikes Back Tour". Lombardo was unable to make those gigs due to a scheduling conflict with the MISFITS.

Peterson told Loud TV about Dovas: "When we were auditioning for new drummers, his video tape was the number one for me. And then, of course, Dave Lombardo called us, so we just kind of pushed everything aside; we said, 'Okay, we'll try Dave.' And when Dave was, like, 'Oh, I've got this show coming up. I've got this show coming up,' I went back to my [videos], [and I said], 'Oh, yeah, this guy.' I remember the other guys going, 'Let's call Paul Bostaph.' 'Let's call John Tempesta.' And, of course, they would probably do it, but with the stipulation of, like, 'I can only do this date,' 'I can only do this date.' I called Chris. He was, like, 'I'm in. I'll do everything.' And so we tried him, and were just, like, 'What?!' Perfect tempo. Everything correct — bam, bam. Very polite. Really nice guy. I can't say enough good things about him. He's just a really good drummer. He's 24; he's my son's age. Young blood back in TESTAMENT. For me, too, he loves black metal, so he was, like, [into] blast beats. But he also graduated from a school called Berklee. So jazz… He's very fluent. He's not, like, 'Oh, I only know blast beats.' He knows blues… TESTAMENT's really diverse — we have ballads, we have rock songs, we have blast beats. That's just it — when he came to visit me before this tour, we were rehearsing for the tour but we would go back to my house at night, do some Jager really late at night and just start jamming at my house. And the next morning we were, like, 'Woah!' Really cool shit. So I'm excited for the next record. It's gonna be killer."

TESTAMENT guitarist Alex Skolnick sat out some of the band's spring/summer 2023 European tour dates in order to tend to a family emergency. He was replaced at the shows by former MACHINE HEAD and current VIO-LENCE guitarist Phil Demmel.

San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal pioneers EXODUS have signed a worldwide contract with the Austrian record label Napalm Records.

EXODUS guitarist Gary Holt comments: "EXODUS are extremely excited to announce that we are joining the family at Napalm Records!

"It's time for a new chapter for the band, and we are stoked to be joining the label and are starting to put our foot on the gas and get ourselves prepared for the next record! They convinced us with their passion and love for the band, and where we will be going in the future, we couldn't say no.

"It's time to push even further and not only continue to run right over people with our brand of thrash, it's time to increase the body count! Here's to new beginnings with Napalm Records!"

Thomas Caser, CEO, Napalm Records, adds: "We are proud to announce this signing of one of the most influential metal bands in the world — one that has proven to always deliver the highest quality throughout the decades of their career. We cannot wait to start the work and on the road together! Welcome to the Napalm family — EXODUS!"

Last month, EXODUS canceled its previously announced summer 2023 European tour so that Holt could "tend to his family" after his brother was recently hospitalized in Italy.

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

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

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

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

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

Photo credit: Tayva Martinez

In a new interview with Graspop Metal Meeting, DEF LEPPARD guitarist Phil Collen, who turned 65 last December, was asked if he has ever contemplated retirement from touring. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Not when I feel like this. That's the thing. If it was a struggle… It's not for me. I work out every day. I'm a vegan. I haven't drunk for 36 years. So all of those things really help. And you look at, like, Mick Jagger — he has a physio, he has a treadmill in his room. And we have our trainer out with us. We have our chef out with us. So if you keep doing that and you're serious about it… We do vocal warmups. We really sing [live]; it's actually us really doing it. But we actually practice and we train and do this stuff all the time. So as long as we can do all of that and still get better, then, yeah, great."

A little over three years ago, Collen's DEF LEPPARD bandmate Vivian Campbell made similar comments in an interview with Scott Rusk of the 98.9 KKZX radio station in Spokane, Washington, saying he will never retire. "When I'm dead, when I stop breathing, that's when I'll stop working," he said. "I have no plans to retire; I have no interest in it."

He continued: "To me, playing is is all I've ever wanted to do and I've been fortunate this is all I've ever done. I see no reason to stop working. I don't know what I would do. I think, in my case, if I stopped playing guitar, I'd be just waiting to die. Even when I was doing my cancer treatments, even at the worst of it, when was doing chemo and stem cell and stuff — well, not when I was stem cell, 'cause I couldn't leave the hospital…. I've been on tour when I've been doing hardcore chemo, and I didn't have any hair on my head, I didn't even have eyebrows, but I think it was a big part of helping me deal with it — the fact that I continued to be able to do my work. And on that subject, I'd just like to say I'm very grateful to my band mates in DEF LEPPARD that they took a chance on me and afforded me that opportunity, to work when I was in that state. But I think it helped me through it."

Campbell added: "We realize that there's a lot of hard work, and we know, 'cause we've put in the hard work over the years. But when you're out there on stage, and especially, like I say, when we see our audience growing — we're in our late 50s and a couple of us are in our 60s now — and to go out there and to see people young enough to be your children just really, really, really enjoying the show and the energy that that gives, it's wonderful. We realize how blessed we are to be able to do this."

Campbell — who before joining DEF LEPPARD in 1992 was well known for his work with DIO and WHITESNAKE — went public with his Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis in June 2013.

DEF LEPPARD and MÖTLEY CRÜE will team up with Alice Cooper for a U.S. mini-tour this summer. The trek will kick off on August 5 in Syracuse, New York and include stops in the Midwest before concluding in El Paso, Texas on August 18. Before that, LEPPARD and CRÜE are touring Europe, having launched the trek on May 22 in Sheffield.

Nita Strauss played the fourth show of her "Summer Storm" tour this past Saturday night (June 17) at Meadows in Brooklyn, New York. Fan-filmed video of the concert can be found below (courtesy of the James Cruz YouTube channel).

As previously reported, Nita recruited a vocalist named Kasey Karlsen to join her onstage during "Summer Storm".

In a Twitter message introducing Kasey, Nita wrote: "We needed someone fearless and versatile for this tour who could handle tons of different vocal styles, and if you've seen Kasey's videos you already know she can do it all. She is going to destroy these stages and we are beyond excited to have her with us!!"

Karlsen has a half a million followers on TikTok where she posts vocal covers of such acts as SLIPKNOT, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, BRING ME THE HORIZON and ICE NINE KILLS.

The "Summer Storm" trek will wrap up on July 14 in New Orleans. Support on the tour is coming from LIONS AT THE GATE, the new band featuring former ILL NIÑO members Cristian Machado (vocals),Ahrue "Luster" Ilustre (guitar) and Diego Verduzco (guitar),alongside bassist Stephen Brewer (WESTFIELD MASSACRE) and drummer Fern Lemus.

Nita will release her sophomore solo album, "The Call Of The Void", on July 7 via Sumerian Records. The LP features guest appearances by IN FLAMES vocalist Anders Fridén, former MEGADETH guitarist Marty Friedman, HALESTORM frontwoman Lzzy Hale, Alice Cooper, DISTURBED's David Draiman, Dorothy, Alissa White-Gluz of ARCH ENEMY and Chris Motionless of MOTIONLESS IN WHITE.

Regarding the album's title, Strauss shared: "Have you ever been at the top of a high building and had the fleeting thought, '… I could jump right now?' This feeling is sometimes called 'The Call Of The Void,' also known as 'high place phenomenon.' It's not a suicidal impulse, rather the exact opposite — a subconscious decision to live your life, to step back from the ledge, and take control. As researcher April Smith aptly put it: 'An urge to jump affirms the urge to live.'

"I wanted the follow-up to 'Controlled Chaos' to be exciting, new, and fresh, to take listeners to a new place and take myself somewhere new as an artist too. We have some amazing collaborations on this album with incredible musicians, as well as the instrumental guitar music that first inspired me to play.

"Some pieces of music come into the world gracefully and easily. This album is not one of them! 'The Call Of The Void' was born kicking and screaming, a labor of love for sure, but also of blood, sweat and plenty of tears. I couldn't be more proud of the end result. Making this album helped me learn and grow so much as a musician and songwriter and I'm excited to finally unleash it on the world."

In early December 2022, Nita told "The Mistress Carrie Podcast" about her decision to make the upcoming LP half vocal songs and half instrumental: "I did feel, and the label and everybody agreed, it's still important for me to keep my identity as a guitar player and not just branch off too much and go, 'Okay, well, now it's just guests.' Let me still have a little of what makes me me, which is the instrumental shred stuff. And the instrumental pieces that I've written on this record are, I think, better than anything I did on the first one — definitely more… I don't know if it could be more emotional but they're very emotional pieces of music and I think a little better crafted this time around. So I think all the songs in general are more well thought out, better put together this time around. And I do have some of my absolute favorite [singers guesting on it]."

Nita released 2018's "Controlled Chaos" to mass acclaim from fans and media alike, with Metal Injection calling it "a great debut that — as its creator intended — leaves no doubt", and Guitar World stating "'Controlled Chaos' is a panoramic view of Nita Strauss's many strengths".

In March, it was announced that Nita would return to Alice's band for his 2023 tour.

The Alice Cooper North American tour, with an all-new show dubbed "Too Close For Comfort", kicked off in late April in Michigan and will continue through late September, including a handful of August stadium shows with DEF LEPPARD and MÖTLEY CRÜE, followed by a co-headlining late summer "Freaks On Parade" tour with Rob Zombie.

Nita spent eight years playing with Alice before joining Demi Lovato's band last summer,

Strauss played her first full live show with Demi in August 2022 at the Grandstand at the Illinois State Fair in Springfield, Illinois.

Nita made her live debut with Demi in July 2022 with a performance of "Substance" on ABC's Emmy Award-winning late-night show "Jimmy Kimmel Live!".

Strauss had been playing with Cooper since 2014 when she replaced Australian musician and former Michael Jackson player Orianthi. She joined Alice in time for a mammoth MÖTLEY CRÜE tour. She was recommended to Cooper by the legendary rocker's former bass player and WINGER frontman Kip Winger.

ELEGANT WEAPONS, the new project featuring guitarist Richie Faulkner (JUDAS PRIEST) and singer Ronnie Romero (RAINBOW, MSG),made its first two festival appearances over the weekend: on Friday, June 16 at Hellfest in Clisson, France and on Sunday, June 18 at Graspop Metal Meeting in Dessel, Belgium. Fan-filmed video of both shows can be seen below.

ELEGANT WEAPONS' debut album, "Horns For A Halo", was released on May 26 via Nuclear Blast. The LP was recorded with bassist Rex Brown (PANTERA, DOWN) and drummer Scott Travis (JUDAS PRIEST) and was helmed by acclaimed British producer Andy Sneap, who has previously worked with JUDAS PRIEST, ACCEPT, EXODUS and MEGADETH, among many others.

ELEGANT WEAPONS, which is rounded out by Dave Rimmer (URIAH HEEP) on bass and Christopher Williams (ACCEPT) on drums, will play shows in Europe through July. The trek will include additional performances with PANTERA, festival appearances and headlining shows.

Richie said: "We are very much looking forward to touring and our first tour dates are taking place in Europe starting in June 2023. Fans can expect heavy songs with catchy melodies, great vocals and lots of riffs! We all live to play live, and can't wait to take the ELEGANT WEAPONS out onto the live stage."

In a recent interview with Pete Pardo of Sea Of Tranquility, Romero stated about ELEGANT WEAPONS: "That's something Richie [brought] to the table a couple of years ago. He call[ed] me and said, 'Listen…' If I remember correctly, he had the album recorded already, but he told me [at the time], 'We feel that doesn't work with the singer we have. So we're gonna try with another singer.' So I recorded a song, and then they loved it. And we ended up working together… And then we're gonna make some summer festivals around Europe. Then probably we'll go properly on tour, if everybody's okay. And probably we're gonna record a second album, and then we will see."

Romero went on to say that ELEGANT WEAPONS is "a very solid project," adding that "it's not something we will do once, and that's it. And also we're not doing it because of a contract that we need to fulfill. It's because we really want to do it together," he explained. "Richie is a cool guy; we are friends. And the rest of the guys also. Andy Sneap, [who did] the production, is a cool guy also. And we really want to see what happens with the band because we think people are gonna be very surprised about what they're gonna listen on the music side. It's not the typical thing Richie and I were doing for the last few years. It's a different thing. And I think the people are gonna like it. So we will see what happens. And we're gonna build the house from that point."

Regarding the ELEGANT WEAPONS band name, Faulkner said: "In almost any endeavor, the craftsman needs the right tools for the job. For a musician, those tools are things like their instruments, their voices and the emotions that the right combination of all those can bring to the surface. You can also consider it a reference to the instruments we play, because they're almost antiquities now. So yes, it references our instruments and also this kind of music, where we're carrying on the tradition of the greats like SABBATH and DIO but also bands the guys are connected to, like RAINBOW, PANTERA and PRIEST."

Richie and Rex have been friends for years, so when Richie was recording "Horns For A Halo" during the pandemic, he called on his friend to record the bass for the album.

"Well, Rex brings a sound, first of all, that is like no other bass sound," explained Richie. "The way he plays bass is instantly recognizable. But I got involved with Rex, you know, as with a lot of things that we do, as humans, really — we got involved as friends first. But Rex has got a great way of hearing the way the bass parts and the drums interact together. I mean, Rex's parts just breathe grit and life and dynamic into the songs. So it's a pleasure to have him on the record and it's a pleasure, obviously, to know him and have him as a friend — he's a legend."

As for Travis's involvement with the LP, Faulkner said: "I always wanted to make a record with Scott playing on it outside of PRIEST. His technique and style are legendary but also his groove."

When it comes to the live show, there was no other bass player even considered other than Rimmer. Davey and Richie go back over 20 years and they played the bars and pubs of London and England together, night in, night out for many years. Their musical relationship is almost telepathic in the way they communicate, from that early hard graft together on the circuit.

"Davey is an untouchable player," Richie said. "In sound, style and presence. A killer writer too, contributing great songs with URIAH HEEP. A great friend and a great musician."

When it came to choosing the drummer for the touring band, it was a no-brainer for Richie to enlist fellow Nashville resident and good friend Williams. Christopher had played and recorded the initial demos for the "Horns For A Halo" album, and was the obvious choice for the drum position. A phenomenal player, a great personality and a consummate professional.

And finally there's the new hotshot on the scene, Romero, Chilean-born, now living in Eastern Europe.

"Ronnie's got that heritage," says Richie, "and he nailed his parts in a week, which was a testament, really, to how good the guy is and how perfect he was for it. And he's just such a lovely guy, and, I think, one of a dying breed. There's not many people like him. There's good singers, like [Rob] Halford and [Ronnie James] Dio, but there's not many of them. He's really something special. When he sings with RAINBOW, he sounds obviously like Dio, but when he sings this stuff, there's something in there that comes out of him — he's his own monster, with his own trademark quality, which is an important thing to have."

Producing is PRIEST's touring guitarist of the past five years Sneap, who has been respectful of Richie's vision concerning a certain classic sound he wanted across the expanse of the record's 11 songs (ten originals plus a cover of UFO's "Lights Out"),and that is a signature Flying V through a Marshall Plexi amp.

"With the Marshall Plexi I've kind of gone back to the ‘70s, really," figured Faulkner. "And, you know, it's just one channel. And I've been using a prototype Flying V by Gibson, a blue Flying V with signature pickups, which I had been using on the PRIEST tour. I used it on the whole record, every track. So it's pretty straightforward technology-wise — the Flying V through a Marshall on 11."

As for the music, Richie described it as "a mix of Jimi Hendrix, PRIEST, SABBATH, solo Ozzy and BLACK LABEL SOCIETY, but with a lot of melody, sort of old school and modern at once if that makes any sense, and actually down-tuned a whole step. The Marshall Plexi basically does one thing, but you've got to crank it to 11 for it to have that distorted sound. It hasn't got a lot of bells and whistles on it or different channels and effects. It basically does one thing and does it very well. But again down-tuning creates more of a modern sound, and by using the classic sound of the Marshall Plexi, you get that juxtaposition, that contrast. All told, there are a lot of guitar solos and the songs are on the heavier side. And even though there's a lot of melody, it's still going to shake your bones."

Specific to the songs, Richie explained that, "Me and acoustic don't really get along, so there's only one mellow song on it, a sort of smoky, haunted, New Orleans kind of tune called 'Ghost Of You', with de-tuned 1920s piano on it. That one is about a memory, or ghost of a lost love. But that's about as acoustic as it gets. I'm not really attracted to acoustic guitar in general. It's mainly kind of heavy and full-on, really. There's a song called 'White Horse', plus 'Horns For A Halo', which is like Tony Iommi crossed with ALICE IN CHAINS. That's about the way we justify the bad things we do. When we turn up on Judgement Day, will the angels kind of confuse our horns for halos, if you know what I mean. Then there's 'Rose Girl', which has a bit of a psychedelic '60s hippie vibe. It's about the rose girl who sells roses to the patrons at a strip club, and reflecting on what her life is all about."

Besides having these stories told, another mandate of the band is for Richie to propose more fully than he can across a PRIEST record, his own voice or style as it pertains to the guitar.

"Yes, everything that you do, without sounding pretentious, is trying to find your own voice and extension of your voice," he said. "I've been in cover bands all my life. Then you find yourself replacing K.K. Downing and it's, like, 'Now what am I gonna say?' I can't sound like K.K. Downing. I can't sound like Eddie Van Halen. I can't sound like Zakk Wylde. So it's refining and honing what your voice is, constantly fine-tuning what that voice is. And hopefully when people listen to it, they'll think, 'Oh, that's Richie.' In every song and every solo hopefully there's that sound, that narrative, that voice, and hopefully it stands the test of time."

But really, the over-arching mandate with ELEGANT WEAPONS is to perpetuate the rich legacy of the traditional proto-power metal invented by the heavy metal titans of the '70s and '80s, most pertinently JUDAS PRIEST.

"All four of us have got that original DNA in us, as does the new breed of traditional heavy metal fans," Richie said. "And so maybe a band like ELEGANT WEAPONS, hopefully we've got the credibility to make those original bands proud, because we were accepted by the members of those bands and by their fans. That's really the idea behind ELEGANT WEAPONS — to keep flying the flag for this style of timeless heavy metal."

According to a recent report by DW News, allegations of sexual misconduct have been levelled against Rammstein frontman Till Lindemann. Following the claims by one Shelby Lynn that were made public, an investigation by German reporters shows that the case could by part of a systematic process to satisfy Lindemann's sexual requests. German police have opened an investigation into sexual assault allegations against Lindemann, as a number of women have now alleged they were recruited for sex at concerts. Shelby Lynn, from Northern Ireland, recently told the BBC she believed her drink had been spiked and she had been "groomed for sex."


Lindemann has denied the allegations, with his lawyers calling the claims "without exception untrue".


Rammstein drummer Christoph Schneider has issued a statement via Instagramreflecting his "personal thoughts and emotions" with regards to the situation. The translation from German can be read below.




"Dear people,


I would like to share my personal emotions and thoughts with you.


The accusations of the last few weeks have deeply shaken us as a band and me as a person. You fans certainly too. I feel as if in shock by the things that have been shared on social media and in the press and in print about our singer. This is an ebb and flow of emotions for us band members and crew.


No, I don't think anything criminally relevant (such as the use of knockout drops) happened. No. I don't think anything illegal was going on, I've never seen anything like it, nor heard anything like it from any of our crew of 100 people. All I heard from Till's parties were adults celebrating together. And yet things seem to have happened that, although legally ok, I personally don't think are ok. Certain structures have grown that went beyond the limits and values of the other band members. It is also important to us that Till's parties are not confused with our official after-show parties.


Till has distanced himself from us in recent years and created his own bubble.


With their own people, their own parties, their own projects. That made me sad, definitely. I believe Till when he tells us that he always wanted and still wants to give his private guests a good time. How exactly these guests had imagined this, however, seems to differ in some cases from his own ideas. The wishes and expectations of the women who have now come forward were probably not fulfilled. According to their statements, they felt uncomfortable, on the edge of a situation that they could no longer control.


I feel sorry for her and I feel compassion. However, it is important for me to emphasize something objective: every guest in the backstage area is free to leave (they may have to wait a moment for security to lead them safely to the exit). All bottles are sealed and in full view of the guests freshly opened or they open them themselves.


Water and snacks are available just like Security personnel and medical care available at any time. We want all of our guests to feel comfortable and safe with us!


This is our standard. So I'm sorry to hear that some didn't feel that way.


We have the greatest fans in the world and they all deserve to be treated with respect! I'm sorry for anyone who wasn't treated kindly or felt unsafe backstage with us.


Also for Shelby, she deserved a great concert and a wonderful evening.


But I don't want this whole public dispute about our band to feed the extremes: neither the beast social media, which has not yet been tamed by our society, nor paternalistic tendencies to deny women in their mid-20s the ability to make self-determined decisions about their sexuality and also by no means victim blaming, so that people continue to date to talk about it if something happened to them. I wish for a calm, level-headed reflection and processing, also in our band.


And all together, six of us. We stand together.


Your Christoph Schneider."




 

 
 

 


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Rammstein's record label, Universal Music, recently revealed they have "suspended marketing and promotional activities for the band's recordings."


Prosecutors opened the investigation on their own initiative as well as "on the basis of several criminal complaints filed by third parties," referring to people not directly involved in the alleged incidents, according to the AFP news agency.


Read the complete report here. Check out the initial DW news report below.





Rammstein recently issued a statement regarding the allegations via Instagram. It reads as follows (translated from German):


"The reports over the last few days have caused irritation and raised questions among the public and especially among our fans. The allegations hit us all very hard and we take them extremely seriously.


We say to our fans: It is important to us that you feel comfortable and safe at our shows - in front of and behind the stage.


We condemn any kind of abuse and ask you: do not engage in public prejudice of any kind against those who have made allegations. You have a right to your point of view.


But we, the band, also have a right – namely not to be prejudiced either."




 

 
 

 


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Legendary rock vocalist Graham Bonnet (RAINBOW, MSG, ALCATRAZZ, GRAHAM BONNET BAND) has weighed in on singers and bands who rely heavily on pre-recorded tracks during their live performances.

In recent years, more and more artists have been given a pass for relying on pre-recorded tracks, drum triggers and other assorted technology that makes concerts more synthetic but also more consistent. For better or worse, pre-recorded tracks are becoming increasingly common for touring artists of all levels and genres and they're not just used in pop music — many rock artists utilize playback tracks to varying degrees.

Speaking to the "Rock Of Nations With Dave Kinchen And Shane McEachern" podcast about some rock acts' reliance on pre-recorded tracks, the 75-year-old Graham said in part (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "A lot of guys my age in this so-called heavy rock thing have lost their voices, singers. And they are out there pre-recording and lip syncing… They've gotta keep up their image. Their music has gotta be good every time they go on; it's gotta be as good as possible. And they can't let the audience down. So I understand when people do lip sync… It's just the way it is.

"I couldn't believe it," he continued. "Years ago I went to a concert in Japan, and I was watching [laughs]… I'm not trying to kill DURAN DURAN. DURAN DURAN were playing. One of the guys said to me, 'Do you want to come below the stage and you'll see what really goes on?' I couldn't believe the equipment that was under the stage that got DURAN DURAN to play good. There was a whole machine. This is years ago; I'm not saying they do it now. But it was… I couldn't believe it; I just couldn't believe it. And [this guy said to me], 'Well, don't you do it, Graham?' I said, 'No. How can you?' You lose the feel. Sometimes you pull a track back; if he's bluesy, you pull it back a bit and the drummer goes with you. If you're playing to a click all the time, you can't do that.

"So, it happened. I did see it happen, and I don't think they do that anymore, because people are getting found out now. And I don't think people really care, to be honest with you.

"I remember my brother," Graham added. "He went to see ELO, his favorite band. And he said, 'They're just as good live as they are on record.' … Everything is fake. But Jeff Lynne's fucking great at what he does. Can you imagine QUEEN, for instance, going on stage without the harmony?"

KISS frontman Paul Stanley, who has been struggling to hit the high notes in many of the band's classic songs for a number of years, has been accused of singing to a backing tape on KISS's ongoing "End Of The Road" tour.

Back in 2015, KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons slammed bands who used backing tapes for not being honest enough to include that fact on their concert tickets.

"I have a problem when you charge $100 to see a live show and the artist uses backing tracks," Simmons said. "It's like the ingredients in food. If the first ingredient on the label is sugar, that's at least honest. It should be on every ticket — you're paying $100, 30 to 50 percent of the show is [on] backing tracks and they'll sing sometimes, sometimes they'll lip sync. At least be honest. It's not about backing tracks, it's about dishonesty.

"There's nobody with a synthesizer on our stage, there's no samples on the drums, there's nothing," Gene continued. "There's very few bands who do that now — AC/DC, METALLICA, us. I can't even say that about U2 or THE [ROLLING] STONES. There's very few bands who don't use [backing] tracks."

This past March, KISS's longtime manager Doc McGhee defended Stanley's vocal performance on "End Of The Road", explaining that the "Star Child" "fully sings to every song" at every concert. He explained: It's enhanced. It's just part of the process to make sure that everybody hears the songs the way they should be sang to begin with. Nobody wants to hear people do stuff that's not real, that's not what they came to hear."

When McGhee was asked to clarify if he was "actually saying there are backing tracks that [Paul is] singing to," Doc said: "He'll sing to tracks. It's all part of a process. Because everybody wants to hear everybody sing. But he fully sings to every song."

In March 2020, SHINEDOWN guitarist Zach Myers said that "90 percent" of rock artists use at least some pre-recorded tracks during their live performances. He told Rock Feed: "It bothers me that it bothers people. I'm, like, 'Why does this bother you?' It's the way it is. People have been doing this since the '80s. And we want the sound to be the best it can be. Could we go up there, just the four of us, and put on the best rock show ever? Of course. But that's not how we wanna do it."

Former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach has previously said that he is "one of the last people" who are still not using pre-recorded tracks at their live shows. "I don't know how much longer I can say to you that I don't use tapes onstage, because I don't, and I never have," he told Consequence Of Sound. "And I still don't. When I have opening bands, and they're using tapes, and then I come out and I don't use tapes… sometimes, it makes me feel stupid, because I'm like, 'What am I doing, when all these kids half my age can come onstage and do all of my moves, but they don't have to warm up for an hour before the show, or weeks, before the first show?' Sometimes, I'm like, 'Why do I even bother, if the public is so used to this other way?' It's becoming very rare to come see a good band that's actually a real band — that's not miming or doing silly moves while a tape is running. It just becomes more rare as the years go on."

In 2019, IRON MAIDEN guitarist Adrian Smith said that he doesn't "agree" with certain rock artists relying on pre-recorded tracks during their live performances. "I tell you what, I see it with a lot of younger bands, and I don't think it's a good thing at all," he told the New York Post. "I mean, the music is getting too technical now. You have computerized recording systems, which we use, but I think we use them more for convenience than because we need to. We've toured with a couple bands that use tapes — it's not real. You're supposed to play live; it should be live. I don't agree with using tapes … I think it's a real shame."

One musician who has been open about his band's use of taped vocals during live performances is MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx, who said: "We've used technology since '87." He added the group employed "sequencers, sub tones, background vox tracks, plus background singers and us. [MÖTLEY CRÜE also taped] stuff we can't tour with, like cello parts in ballads, etc.... We love it and don't hide it. It's a great tool to fill out the sound."

In a 2014 interview, MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist Mick Mars admitted that he wasn't comfortable with the fact that his band used pre-recorded backing vocals in its live shows, claiming that he preferred to watch groups whose performances are delivered entirely live. "I don't like it," he said. "I think a band like ours… I have to say '60s bands were my favorite — '60s and '70s bands — because they were real, like, three-piece bands or four-piece bands, and they just got up there and kicked it up. Made a mistake? So what? Sounded a little bit empty here or there? So what? It's the bigness and the rawness and the people that developed and wrote the songs and made them and presented them. To me, that's what I really like. I mean, I could put on a MÖTLEY CD and play with it all day long. I don't wanna do that."

During a press conference earlier today (Saturday, June 17) at Hellfest in Clisson, France, Steven Wilson was asked about PORCUPINE TREE's future after it plays its currently scheduled shows this spring and summer at a handful of European festivals. He replied (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The simple answer is we don't know. And it's kind of reflected in the title of the album ['Closure / Continuation'] that we made last year. So this whole idea of closure-slash-continuation. We're kind of leaving our options open.

"We never officially said the band had stopped back in 2010; we just went off and did other things," he explained. "Personally, I've never seen the need for that kind of dramatic gesture: 'It's done.'

"So, I think we leave the door open. I personally would love to think we will record again. Whether we tour again, I don't know, 'cause we're all getting a bit old for that — at least I feel that way anyway."

Added keyboardist Richard Barbieri: "That's right. It would be silly to say that we are never gonna make another album, because you don't know. We don't know what's gonna happen in two years' time, three years' time. We do have a live album that's coming out at the end of this year. And that sounds really good. So it's quite exciting."

Last year, PORCUPINE TREE — Wilson, Barbieri and drummer Gavin Harrison — embarked on a wide-ranging world tour, the band's first since October 2010. The group was touring in support of its eleventh studio album, the aforementioned "Closure / Continuation", which came out in June 2022 via Music For Nations/Megaforce Records.

In June 2022, Wilson told Under The Radar that PORCUPINE TREE's most recent comeback is "not a reunion". He added: "I mean, firstly, we never broke up. And secondly, we've made a new record. For me, a reunion tour is when you get together having broken up and you basically go out and just play your greatest hits, for which is what THE POLICE did, for an audience that are basically nostalgic for what you used to be 30, 40 years before. We never broke up and we've been making this record for the last 10 years. In fact, pretty much since we were in the slipstream of the finishing of the previous tour. So is that a reunion? I don't think so. It's no different to TOOL coming back after 15 years with their next record. We've been quicker than that. [Laughs] We've been working on this record for a very long time in — this would be an understatement to say it — a fairly low-profile way, because nobody knew we were making the record at all. Everyone else assumed that the band didn't exist. I'd be the first to admit I added fuel to that because I would often tell people to forget PORCUPINE TREE and it's not coming back. Because I wanted people to focus on what I was doing at that given moment. But those were white lies because, actually, I knew we were working on this record and I knew eventually it would come out."

Asked if it's fair to say the "Closure / Continuation" album and tour is "probably a one-off", Wilson said: I suspect it will be the last time we'll tour. I think it's quite possible we might make another record. In fact, I was speaking with Richard about it. We were in Germany a couple of weeks ago doing promo in Berlin, and somebody asked me that question. I thought, Well, you know what? I think there's a way forward. A track like 'Walk The Plank' — which is one of the last tracks we did — which doesn't have any guitars on it at all, and kind of reflects the fact that I've moved more and more towards electronic music. I wondered about making a PORCUPINE TREE record where we just focused on keyboards, rather than guitars. It would have to be something different to justify doing it. But I suspect we probably wouldn't tour again. I think in my heart, I think this is probably the last round for sure."

One of the most forward-thinking, genre-defying rock bands of any era, PORCUPINE TREE was founded in 1987 by Wilson as an outlet for the experimental recordings he was making outside of his acclaimed post-rock duo NO-MAN. With the addition of Barbieri and Harrison, PORCUPINE TREE soon evolved into a proper band, releasing 10 studio albums between 1992 and 2009. Each new release saw PORCUPINE TREE exploring new musical ideas, their expansive music shifting from pastoral psychedelic rock and ambient electronic soundscapes to experimental pop and propulsive metal. Later releases like 2007's Grammy Award-nominated "Fear Of A Blank Planet" and 2009's "The Incident" — the band's biggest seller thus far, reaching the top 25 in both the U.S. and the U.K. — saw PORCUPINE TREE effortlessly melding distinctive genres to create a groundbreaking musical universe all their own.

As relentlessly creative on stage as they are in the studio, PORCUPINE TREE proved innovative live performers known for sonic innovation and inventive visual productions. In October 2010, the band entered a period of hiatus following a spectacular concert at London's Royal Albert Hall.

In a new interview with Yahoo! Entertainment 's Lyndsey Parker, Al Jourgensen revealed that he is close to putting MINISTRY to bed, more than 40 years after he launched the band in his former hometown of Chicago.

"My career is winding down with MINISTRY," Jourgensen said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I'm gonna stop MINISTRY in an album or two. I have to. I have other things I wanna do."

He continued: "My public and my band are all in agreement that we are being shackled by… We are taking our genre to the farthest limits it can go, and we're happy with that. And we'll stop when it's time instead of keep going and trying to just recreate the same stuff. We keep trying to push further. So, I figure there's only maybe one more MINISTRY album to go. Maybe two, but probably one."

Jourgensen added: "I have other things to do. I have projects that I'm working on with various people. I have film scores. And MINISTRY, now we're being held to the standard of this new MINISTRY of, okay, either push further or do the most popular stuff over and over and over and over, which we have with 'Psalm 69' or something like that. I'm tired of that. We're all tired of that. Well, we are. The fans aren't. So I think this next year or two is gonna be really transformative in the sense that I'm wrapping a bow on my entire career and saying, 'Drop mic. Thank you. Thank you for buying our t-shirts… Good night. And now I hope you follow me on my next journey."

Al revealed that one of MINISTRY's final recordings might be a 'remake" of the band's first album, "With Sympathy", which he claims he had little control over, with the record company at the time dictating its direction. According to Jourgensen, a new version of "With Sympathy" would "tie a bow on the whole thing, and just say, 'Drop mic. Good night. I'm outta here.'"

The MINISTRY mastermind said that he and his bandmates are heading into the studio to commence work on a new recording of "Revenge", one of three singles from "With Sympathy", with the possibility that they will re-record three of the album's other cuts: "Effigy", "Work For Love" and "Here We Go". As for when fans might hear these new versions, Al said: "I think it's going to be sooner than you think."

This is not the first time Jourgensen has vowed to make a "final" MINISTRY album. 2007's "The Last Sucker" was supposed to be the band's last-ever LP. Then, while working on other projects, inspiring riffs were born that would eventually become 2012's "Relapse". Later that year, Jourgensen began work on yet another MINISTRY album with longtime guitarist and collaborator Mike Scaccia. Three days after leaving the MINISTRY sessions in El Paso, in the early hours of December 23, 2012, Scaccia suffered heart failure onstage while performing with his other band, RIGOR MORTIS, and was pronounced dead on arrival at the hospital. Scaccia's death both devastated and motivated Jourgensen to return the studio to put the final touches on what they had started in memory of his best friend. The result was 2013's "From Beer To Eternity". Two more albums followed, 2018's "AmeriKKKant" and 2021's "Moral Hygiene", with another new LP, "Hopium For The Masses", tentatively due in August.

MINISTRY played a new song from "Hopium For The Masses" called "Goddamn White Trash" on the band's recent tour. A fan-filmed video of one of the performances can be seen below.

Photo credit: Derick Smith / Nuclear Blast

During a pre-show press conference at this weekend's Hellfest festival in Clisson, France, PAPA ROACH frontman Jacoby Shaddix was asked how he feels about the supposed nu-metal resurgence in recent years, partly thanks to a whole new wave of exciting revivalists. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Nostalgia is such a powerful thing, and it's so cool to see that that era is making its way back around. And part of it is because, you know, time. And the other part of it is this new generation of bands that were little kids that were listening to bands like PAPA ROACH or KORN or DEFTONES or LIMP BIZKIT or LINKIN PARK, those were the bands that they were listening to, so this music kind of influenced them. And now bands like OF MICE & MEN or BRING ME THE HORIZON, you can hear elements of nu metal in that music. And that's frickin' sick."

As for PAPA ROACH's own "departure" from the nu metal sound, Shaddix said: "It was necessary. It's always about evolution. And for a while I really despised the title of nu metal because everybody was trying to compare us to LIMP BIZKIT or compare us to LINKIN PARK, and we were, like, 'No, we're our own thing.' And we've proved that we are our own thing, throughout the years. And now, as we look back, as older men, I look back proud on being part of that movement. It's just dope that it's finally kind of getting some respect in pop culture. I think that in the time, people just kind of looked down upon the genre. And now, as the years have gone on, there's some respect upon it, which is… it's dope."

Back in 2019, Jacoby said that "it was always a weird thing" for him and his bandmates to be lumped in with all the "nu metal" groups around the time of the release of PAPA ROACH's full-length debut, 2000's "Infest". "With the nu metal kingpins, the top dogs were LIMP BIZKIT at the time, and I wasn't on the same page as Fred [Durst]," he told the KUPD radio station. "I considered myself more of a punk rocker at that time. But we weren't a punk band — we knew that we weren't a punk band. But all the bands that we played with from 1993 up to 1999, they were all the local punk groups and the emo bands, and we were the odd man out all the time. But now, I look back on it, and I'm, like, yeah, we were a nu metal band for a few years — we were definitely a nu metal band. But for us, we kind of outlived the tag of nu-metal and just became more of a rock band."

Asked how PAPA ROACH managed to survive the nu metal phase when so many other bands fell by the wayside, Shaddix said: "For us, it's a trip, 'cause there's a lot of bands — we've seen waves of bands come and go. In the nu metal era, a lot of bands just dissipated or fell apart. And there was the garage rock revolution — THE HIVES, THE STROKES, THE VINES — that kind of sound came and had its time and then it kind of went away. And then screamo came in. And then after that, it was, like… I get lost. We just keep seeing people come and go. And we're, like, all right, cool. We're still here doing our thing. We said it from the beginning — we're the cockroaches; we're gonna be around for a while."

Pressed about whether it was hard for PAPA ROACH not to try to change its sound with the times over the years, Jacoby said: "Oh, yeah. For us, even from the beginning, from where we started, we were more like a funk-punk band when we first started — more like [RED HOT] CHILI PEPPERS meets… I don't even know; just some oddball shit. CHILI PEPPERS meets MR. BUNGLE — that was kind of where we sat in the beginning. And then we got into heavier, more metal style. And that's kind of when I got into rapping, and that's when we started doing that — we became a nu metal band. And then for us, after that, we discovered classic rock, and that was a big evolution for us. I was listening to QUEEN. I've always been a LED ZEPPELIN fan. THE WHO, SUPERTRAMP — all these classic groups. THE CLASH as well. And we were discovering the old stuff, and then it influenced our band again. So then we had guitar solos in our music and our guitar player grew his hair out, and we were just like a rocker band. And we toured with MÖTLEY CRÜE… And then I fell in love with hip-hop music again, and, really, we broke all the walls down again and kind of brought it full circle in a sense. Some of the modern music we're doing now has elements of the old school, but elements of the new school. We love a wide range of music. And so, for us now, I just don't give a fuck anymore. I just wanna make music that gets me off and is inspiring to me and makes me wanna walk into the studio and get on the mic and throw down. And sometimes we hit the mark, and sometimes we don't hit the mark. But for any career band, that's gonna be the story."

Nu metal thrived during the remarkable decade from 1994 to 2004 when mainstream charts, magazines, radio and TV were all taken over by a host of diverse artists performing their own brands of hard rock, hip-hop and heavy metal.

Essentially a fusion of rap and alternative rock (arguably born out of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE),nu metal inexplicably swept the airwaves and peaked for a brief period, with Gregory Heaney of AllMusic describing the genre as "one of metal's more unfortunate pushes into the mainstream." Along the way, several bands associated with nu metal, including KORN, DEFTONES and SLIPKNOT, took a somewhat defensive stance against being labeled as such. Even those less apologetic nu metal groups eventually changed their sound, effectively disowning the genre that they helped pioneer.

In a new interview with Robert Cavuoto of Sonic Perspectives, TESLA frontman Jeff Keith confirmed that his band doesn't use any backing tracks in its live shows these days. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "When we play live, we don't roll no tape; we don't roll no Pro Tools or nothing. When you see us live, we either sound good and we're doing it or we have an off night and we're doing it. We've never rolled tape. And now they say, 'Well, it's not really tape anymore, Jeff. It's a computer.' I go, well, either way, we don't do none of that. Like we say on all our records: 'No machines.' … We like to keep it real."

Back in 2021, when TESLA announced its first post-pandemic tour, TESLA guitarist Frank Hannon said in a statement: "We are so excited and anxious to get back to performing 'real' live concerts again. There's nothing like the energy of being in the same spontaneous moment with an audience of people. TESLA has always taken pride in being a high energy live band relying on performances without any backing tracks or pre-recorded help."

In recent years, more and more artists have been given a pass for relying on pre-recorded tracks, drum triggers and other assorted technology that makes concerts more synthetic but also more consistent. For better or worse, pre-recorded tracks are becoming increasingly common for touring artists of all levels and genres and they're not just used in pop music — many rock artists utilize playback tracks to varying degrees.

TESLA released a new live album, "Full Throttle Live", on May 26. The LP includes the band's latest single, "Time To Rock!", plus other songs, all recorded last August at Full Throttle Saloon in Sturgis, South Dakota.

Independently recorded, mixed and produced by guitarist Frank Hannon and bassist Brian Wheat, this new live album truly captures TESLA in pure honest form, and even dives deeper into their roots by recording a live version of the 1974 AEROSMITH classic "S.O.S. (Too Bad)" as a bonus track. The heavier song choices range from "Miles Away" to more recent hard releases like the aforementioned "Time To Rock!" and "Cold Blue Steel". But don't worry, there are old TESLA classics captured too, like "Changes" and "Lazy Days, Crazy Nights", all recorded as TESLA is best — 100% full-throttle live.

In September 2021, TESLA drummer Troy Luccketta announced that he would "take a little time from the road" to spend with family and friends. He has since been replaced at TESLA's gigs by Steve Brown, the younger brother of former DOKKEN drummer Mick Brown.

Due to overwhelming demand, TESLA recently added five shows to its residency at House Of Blues at Mandalay Bay Resort And Casino in Las Vegas, Nevada. The new dates will begin on Friday, September 29.

In a new interview with Into The Pit, guitarist Bobby Gustafson once again opened up about his fall 2022 exit from San Francisco Bay Area thrash metal veterans VIO-LENCE. The 57-year-old musician, who is based in Florida, said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "[The split happened] for the same reason all these bands are canceling tours. It's just gotten so expensive to do. Even within that three-short-year span, the price of plane tickets really shot up after the pandemic. They're not playing all the time — they're doing sporadic shows here and there — and to spend that much money to bring me out there, it's understandable."

Gustafson went on to say: "I thought it was pretty much a solid band when I had started. But I know Phil [Demmel, VIO-LENCE's founding guitarist] has his eyes on something bigger. So if other projects come along, he wanted to really be with something at the level he was used to, which is understandable. You get used to that level, and it's hard to go back. I wish them well. Whatever happens, happens."

Gustafson previously talked about his departure from VIO-LENCE this past March in an interview with the "Metal Mayhem ROC" podcast. At the time, he said: "Yeah, [the cross-country commute] was hard. And with the economy, the way it was, everything started to get more expensive. I mean, the flights had doubled since I first started going out there in 2020. And to go back and forth, it was a strain on me, but it was a strain on the band as well, to try and keep themselves going. You can't be selfish and be the only one they're wasting money on like that. But they [originally] wanted somebody with a name [to be in their band], and they asked me to do it, and I was, like, 'Yeah. This'll be great.' So it just got to be where it's so expensive, and it's affecting every band, basically. Between diesel for the bus, hotel rooms, flying to Europe. I'm hearing now that they're taking a lot in Europe — they're taking money from your t-shirts.; they are taxing those bands that leave Europe to try and come here to play. Everyone's got their hands in your pockets. It's so hard to make anything… It's not cost effective anymore. It's, like, are you doing it [just to be] doing it, or are you doing it to make a living? 'Cause you still have bills to pay at home, so you've gotta make something. And, yeah, the worst part of it is really the gas and those buses, and everything over there is diesel, and that just went through the roof.

"So, it is what it is," Gustafson added. "There's no hard feelings or nothing. And it's just… move on."

A former member of OVERKILL, Gustafson joined VIO-LENCE in January 2020 as the replacement for Ray Vegas.

When Gustafson's departure from VIO-LENCE was first announced last October, the band cited "logistical difficulties that weigh too heavy to function in a productive manner" as the reason for the split.

VIO-LENCE's current touring lineup consists of vocalist Sean Killian, drummer Adrian Aguilar (EXMORTUS),guitarist Miles Dimitri Baker (VOIDBRINGER, INTERLOPER, ex-RINGS OF SATURN),bassist Christian Olde Wolbers and guitarist Ira Black (VICIOUS RUMORS, HEATHEN, METAL CHURCH).

VIO-LENCE played its first show with Aguilar in February at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California. Aguilar joined VIO-LENCE following the departure of Perry Strickland.

When Demmel is unable to make some of the VIO-LENCE dates, he is being replaced by Baker.

Notably, VIO-LENCE's recent shows in Asia, Australia and New Zealand featured only Killian from the lineup that played its first comeback gig in April 2019 at the Oakland Metro in Oakland, California. The VIO-LENCE lineup that appeared at the Metro consisted of Killian, Demmel, Strickland, bassist Deen Dell and Vegas.

Strickland announced his departure from VIO-LENCE in February by sharing a video of him performing with the band and captioning it: "I'll Miss playing these songs !" After one fan asked Perry in the comments to clarify whether he has in fact exited the group, Strickland responded: "yes about a month ago".

Among the people reacting to Strickland's announcement was Gustafson, who wrote: "Good luck with what ever you do in the future. We had some good times finally."

The Loknath 007 YouTube channel has uploaded 4K video of PANTERA's June 13 concert at the Verti Music Hall in Berlin, Germany. Check out the clips below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. A New Level
02. Mouth For War
03. Strength Beyond Strength
04. Becoming
05. I'm Broken
06. Suicide Note Pt. II
07. 5 Minutes Alone
08. This Love
09. Yesterday Don't Mean Shit
10. Fucking Hostile
11. Planet Caravan (BLACK SABBATH cover)
12. Walk
13. Domination / Hollow
14. Cowboys From Hell
15. Use My Third Arm

PANTERA's current lineup includes two surviving members from the band's classic formation, Philip Anselmo (vocals) and Rex Brown (bass),along with guitarist Zakk Wylde (OZZY OSBOURNE, BLACK LABEL SOCIETY) and drummer Charlie Benante (ANTHRAX).

Anselmo and Brown, along with Wylde and Benante, are headlining a number of major festivals across South America, Asia, North America and Europe and staging some of their own headline concerts. They will also support METALLICA on a massive North American stadium tour in 2023 and 2024.

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

This past March, PANTERA headlined the 2023 "comeback" edition of Japan's Loud Park festival. The two-day "limited" event took place on March 25 at Intex Osaka in Osaka and March 26 at Makuhari Messe in Chiba City near Tokyo.

In December, PANTERA played seven shows in Mexico and South America.

Brown was forced to leave PANTERA's Latin American tour after testing positive for COVID-19. Filling in for him at some of the shows was CATTLE DECAPITATION bassist Derek Engemann, who also plays with Anselmo in both PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS and SCOUR.

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

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

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

On June 18th, US rockers performed at the Hellfest in Clisson, France. Pro-shot video of the entire show courtesy of ARTE Concert can be viewed below.


The setlist was as follows:


"Raise Your Horns" (intro)
"I Miss The Misery"
"Love Bites (So Do I)"
"I Get Off"
"Crazy On You" (Heart)
"Wicked Ways"
"Familiar Taste Of Poison"
"Takes My Life"
- drum solo -
"Back From The Dead"
"The Steeple"







Halestorm recently announced their return to Europe this winter for their biggest headline shows to date.


The first and only UK date announced for their winter 2023 trek will take place at London's OVO Arena Wembley on Saturday, December 9th.


Special guests will be none other than charismatic rock act Black Veil Brides. An additional support is still to be announced.


Frontwoman Lzzy Hale comments: "We are so excited to be back across the pond where the rock n roll lifers are! We are celebrating so many milestones this year including having the honour of headlining Wembley at the end of the year! To kick it up a notch we’ve invited our friends in Black Veil Brides to join us for a run as well. We can’t wait to see all of your passionate faces!"


Tickets for the London show will go on general sale at 10am BST on June 1st. To buy tickets, click here.


Further European shows will be revealed soon.

Rap metal sensation Sicksense - featuring vocalists Vicky Psarakis (ex-The Agonist) and Robby J. Fonts (Stuck Mojo) - have shared a one-take vocal performance of the song "Run And Hide". The track is taken from their new Fools Tomorrow EP.





Hard-hitting and melodic; pissed off and groovy; energetic and catchy: upon first listen, it is clear that Sicksense is all of these things. The band - comprised of vocalists Killer V (Vicky Psarakis) and Rob The Ripper (Robby J. Fonts), guitarist Breakdown Bran (Bran Panic), drummer The True Cody Taylor (Cody Taylor) and bassist Spot-On Sam/SOS (Samuel Bedard) – have released their new EP, Fools Tomorrow. It is now available here.







Fools Tomorrow tracklisting:


"Feed Them To The Wolves"
"Fools Tomorrow" (ft. Billy Grey)
"Invitation"
"Run And Hide"
"Erase, Rewind"


"Feed Them To The Wolves"





"Fools Tomorow"





Having both performed a range of styles in numerous heavy bands, Killer V and Rob The Ripper (who are married) wanted to return to a genre that’s close to their hearts, but also make music that is specifically written for two vocalists. Written with dual vocal interplay from a male / female perspective, their performance reflects a personal and fun side of them as people, but also tackles social and societal issues in the world today. Backed by guitarist Breakdown Bran (Bran Panic), drummer The Trve Cody Taylor (Cody Taylor) and bassist Spot-On Sam/SOS (Samuel Bedard), Sicksense would be born out of the band’s desire to share their upbeat and fun message with the world. Sicksense chooses musical inspiration from various bands and those influences shine through in their debut EP, Kings Today.   


Sicksense is:


Killer V – Vocals/Keys
Rob The Ripper – Vocals
Breakdown Bran – Guitars
Spot-On Sam/SOS – Bass
The Trve Cody Taylor – Drums

On June 17th, German power metallers Powerwolf performed at the Hellfest in Clisson, France. Pro-shot video of the entire show courtesy of ARTE Concert can be viewed below.


The setlist was as follows:


"Faster Than the Flame"
"Incense & Iron"
"Amen & Attack"
"Dancing With the Dead"
"Armata Strigoi"
"Bête du Gévaudan"
"Demons Are a Girl's Best Friend"
"Fire and Forgive"
"Blood for Blood (Faoladh)"
"Agnus Dei" (Intro)
"Sanctified With Dynamite"
"We Drink Your Blood"
"Werewolves of Armenia"







There is no way around the most successful German band in modern heavy metal. Only a few days before the release of the special album Interludium on April 7, and shortly after the overwhelming first North American tour in the band's history, Powerwolf announced four shows in Germany from October 31 to November 5.


The holy heavy metal mass will be brought to Düsseldorf, Ravensburg, Bamberg and Leipzig. The wolves will get support from special guests Lord Of The Lost, Beyond The Black And Serenity.





Dates:


October
31 - Düsseldorf, Germany - Mitsubishi Electric Halle (with Lord Of The Lost, Serenity)


November
2 - Ravensburg, Germany - Oberschwabenhalle (with Lord Of The Lost, Serenity)
3 - Bamberg, Germany - Brose Arena (with Lord Of The Lost, Serenity)
5 - Leipzig, Germany - Quarterback Immobilien Arena (with Beyond The Black, Serenity)


More Powerwolf tour dates, as well as tickets and more information, can be found at Powerwolf.net/tickets.


Powerwolf are:


Attila Dorn - vocals
Falk Maria Schlegel - organ
Charles Greywolf - guitar
Matthew Greywolf - guitar
Roel van Helden - drums

European metal powerhouse Last Temptation have checked in with the following message:


"Please give a warm welcome to Loup Malevil (Sabotage) and Fabio Alessandrini (Bonfire / TL Rhapsody / Annihilator)! A familiar face from our 2022 tour, Franz OA Wise is also officially joining the band, completing the new line-up. 


We can't wait for you to get a taste of the music we created together. A new album will be released by Fall 2023 and more dates being announced soon.




See you June 25th at Zénith de Paris!" 


Last Temptation returned last year with a new album, Fuel for My Soul, which is out now via Crusader Records.


Fuel for My Soul is a great step forward for Last Temptation. Recorded in a week, the band took their time to rehearse the new songs and had over 40 demos before eventually narrowing it down to 11 hard-hitting tracks. 


Fuel for My Soul has an entirely different production style compared to the last album. All the rhythm tracks, bass, drums and guitars were recorded live, and the songs are far more eclectic than previous releases. While Last Temptation still maintain their Ozzy/Black Sabbathinfluences, they add a grungy twist, along with big choruses that gives an ‘80s vibe.


"Fuel For My Soul"