Italian power metallers Frozen Crown have unveiled the cover artwork and tracklist for their fourth album, Call Of The North. They have checked in with the following update:


"Here we are! Our fourth album, Call Of The North, will be out March 10th! Which song title inspires you the most? Let us know. First single and videoclip out in December! Grab your signed copy right now here.







Tracklist:


"Call Of The North"
"Fire In The Sky"
"Black Heart"
"Victorious"
"In A Moment"
"Legion"
"Until The End"
"Now Or Never"
"One For All"
"Far Away"


This fourth album is going to sound 100% Frozen Crown, melding together elements from our previous three albums, and purposely featuring no guest appearances, to consolidate the band sound while bringing at the same time unseen features (like acoustic ballads and epic choirs) on the table.


Be ready for memorable refrains, heavy downtuned guitar riffs, intricate symphonic parts, and a tense and epic battlefield atmosphere.


Once again produced by Andrea Fusini at Fusix Studio, Call Of The North will be out on Scarlet Records (EU/US) and Marquee Avalon (Japan) and released in digipak CD and in limited edition turquoise and purple vinyl (and, of course, in digital version on all streaming platforms)."

In a new interview with Greg Prato of Songfacts, MEGADETH leader Dave Mustaine was asked to elaborate on his recent comment that he would like to collaborate again with METALLICA frontman James Hetfield. Asked if he actually discussed that with James, Dave said: "The last time we talked it didn't end very well because we have some memory of a couple of things that took place when I was in the band. I remember it one way and he is saying that it happened another. But it's about somebody else — it's not even him. He's talking to me on behalf of 'you know who'," apparently referring to METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich. "They wanted to release 'No Life 'Til Leather' [the early METALLICA demo Mustaine was on] — 27 songs, posters, flyers, pictures, everything. I said I would love to do this thing, and James said, 'Look, we fucked up. The last three things we've done failed abysmally.' He said it was 'Lulu' [METALLICA's collaboration with Lou Reed, released in 2011], something called Orion [a festival called Orion Music + More that took place in 2012 and 2013], and there was one other thing... I think it was a film about a fan or something [the 2013 film 'Metallica: Through The Never']. I don't know. I don't see them as a failure. But I had said, 'Yeah, I'd be interested.' And he said, 'We'd like to get everything right with all the history, the publishing and stuff.' And I said, 'Good.' Because part of the reason why we haven't been able to really reconcile is because I had songs that when I left I didn't want them to record, and they went ahead and recorded them but they didn't pay me what my share of the songs were.

"James and I wrote 'Metal Militia' and 'Phantom Lord' — every note," Dave continued. "And somehow, on the record ['Kill 'Em All'] it says Lars gets 10%. And on 'Metal Militia' that Kirk [Hammett, METALLICA's current guitarist] gets some of it, and he wasn't even in the band.

"So I've come to terms with it, and when he said, 'We'd like to get this right,' I said, 'Great. Let's do it. I have no problem.' And when I said, 'This is what it is,' he said, 'No. It's kind of what it was, and that's how it is.' And I thought to myself, you know what? When you guys did that to me before, it was not cool. I said, 'Don't use my stuff' and you did it, and then didn't give me my fair share. So why would I want to willingly enter into something like that? I wouldn't. So that's where we stand right now.

"I would love to work with James. I'd like to work with Lars again, too, but I think the real talent in METALLICA has always been around the guitar — everybody makes fun of the drums.

"Lars is a really great song arranger. And believe it or not, I watched him on a piece-of-shit acoustic guitar write the opening riff to 'Master Of Puppets'. You know what that was? It was a guy with a guitar that doesn't know how to play, and he's going [mimics playing a chromatic run] on the neck. It wasn't anything really mind-blowing by any means. The way James played it made it mind-blowing."

Nearly three years ago, Mustaine said that he didn't want to "perpetuate false information" by giving Ulrich songwriting credit on the previously announced expanded version of "No Life 'Til Leather".

"No Life 'Til Leather" was released as a limited-edition cassette for Record Store Day in April 2015, available exclusively in independent record stores. It featured artwork copies from drummer Ulrich's own personal copy of the original demo, as well as his handwriting. At the time, the band also promised that expanded editions of the demo, which had never before been commercially available, would arrive on CD, vinyl and in a collector's set.

The seven-song tape was recorded with the first lineup of the band that appeared live as METALLICA, including Ulrich, Hetfield, lead guitarist Mustaine and bassist Ron McGovney. The original recordings were paid for by High Velocity record label owner Kenny Kane, with a view of making them available as an EP in 1982.

Mustaine discussed the proposed expanded edition of "No Life 'Til Leather" during a June 2018 interview with U.K.'s Kerrang! magazine. Saying that the last time he spoke to Hetfield was when the METALLICA guitarist/vocalist called him to talk about the "No Life 'Til Leather" re-release, Mustaine recalled: "He was trying to get me to give publishing over to Lars, despite James and I being the sole songwriters. Lars wanted a percentage and I just said no. I love James, he's a terrific guitar player, but yeah, I can't do that. The songs are already out there. I'm not going to release something just to have a product to sell — especially if they are perpetuating false information. Lars did not write the songs. It was just me and James. Period."

Ulrich told Metal Forces in 2016 that "some unexpected difficulties on the legal side… prevented the 'No Life 'Til Leather' box set and our vision for how we were going to kick this whole reissue series off. We spent some time doing that dance, but then James and I decided that it wasn't worth it getting bogged down in all the unpleasantries, because this was supposed to be a celebration and not end up being a tug of war, so we thought, 'You know what? Fuck it. We'll just move on to 'Kill 'Em All'," he said.

Ulrich did not want to get into the details of the exact issues that were preventing the demo tape from being released. "It's a little more complicated than that," he said. "There's no reason to go deeper into it. It was just something that we hadn't expected."

Back in November 2017, Mustaine tweeted that he was contacted by Hetfield two years earlier about "officially" releasing "No Life Till Leather" with "27 tracks, pics, the whole enchilada," but, he said, "the talks broke down because Lars wanted credit on two songs I wrote every note and word to. I have the texts. I passed."

When Ulrich spoke to Metal Forces in 2016, he made it clear that METALLICA was still hopeful that the expanded version "No Life 'Til Leather" would arrive at a later date. "As you know, I am the eternal optimist, and I am the eternal 'glass is well fucking half full,' so who knows?" he said. "I think some of those parties have circled back around now that they've seen that this is real and so we'll have to see. It would be great to share 'No Life 'Til Leather' in a year or two with our fans and with the people that care. We haven't shut the door on it."

"No Life 'Til Leather" was recorded on July 6, 1982 at Chateau East Studio in Tustin, California. All the songs on the tape later appeared on the band's 1983 debut album, "Kill 'Em All", including "Hit The Lights", "Motorbreath", "Jump In The Fire", "Seek And Destroy", "Metal Militia", "Phantom Lord" and "The Mechanix", which was renamed "The Four Horsemen" on the album.

"No Life 'Til Leather" track listing:

01. Hit The Lights
02. The Mechanix
03. Motorbreath
04. Seek & Destroy
05. Metal Militia
06. Jump In The Fire
07. Phantom Lord

"No Life 'Til Leather" recording lineup:

James Hetfield - lead vocals, rhythm guitar
Lars Ulrich - drums
Dave Mustaine - lead guitar
Ron McGovney - bass

Mustaine was a member of METALLICA for less than two years, from 1981 to 1983, before being dismissed and replaced by Kirk Hammett.

Mustaine was not inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame with METALLICA during the April 2009 ceremony at Cleveland, Ohio's Public Auditorium. Ulrich later explained to The Plain Dealer that 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 eleven months, predominantly in 1982... I'm not trying to play it down. I have nothing but respect and admiration for his accomplishments since."

DIAMOND HEAD influenced a slew of early '80s thrash metal bands, in particular METALLICA, which recorded "Am I Evil?" as a B-side to their 1984 "Creeping Death" single and again included on the band's multi-platinum 1998 covers album "Garage Inc." METALLICA would record three additional DIAMOND HEAD songs: "Helpless" ("Garage Days", 1987),"The Prince" ("One" single B-side, 1989) and "It's Electric" ("Garage Inc.", 1998).

In a new interview with Denim And Blether, DIAMOND HEAD guitarist Brian Tatler was asked what it's like for him to see METALLICA still performing his songs. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, it's been going on for a long time. At first, back in 1984, I didn't think it was gonna be such a big deal, because they were on a small label called Music For Nations. And they'd only been over to the U.K. to play the Marquee [club in London], and things like that. To me, they were still Lars's [Ulrich, METALLICA drummer] band. I knew Lars, but I'd never met the others. And they covered 'Am I Evil?', and we just thought it was very, very flattering; they'd done a great job. But I didn't expect them to become the biggest metal band of all time. And the income that sales of that song on their record would generate, I had no idea that it would help provide me with income for years and years to come. So it's been an incredible bonus, if you like, for DIAMOND HEAD, and especially for myself and Sean [Harris, original DIAMOND HEAD singer] as the writers."

He continued: "We still play 'Am I Evil?' live, and it still goes down. And I think people don't care if they got into DIAMOND HEAD through METALLICA as long as they got there in the end. A lot of people know that song through METALLICA, and it doesn't bother me in the slightest. It's just a good song, and it's incredible that it's lasted the test of time — over 40 years old, and people still seem to love it. So I'm lucky to have a song like that in the set. And we also do 'The Prince' and 'It's Electric' and 'Helpless'. So the four songs that METALLICA covered are a big part of our set, obviously."

Two months ago, Tatler admitted to Metal Pilgrim that he "may have looked elsewhere for employment" if METALLICA hadn't covered DIAMOND HEAD. "I think it would have been harder to keep DIAMOND HEAD going without that introduction to their fanbase," he said. "'Cause that record sold millions of copies — versions of 'Am I Evil?' have sold millions of copies through METALLICA — and so so many more people know DIAMOND HEAD thanks to Lars and Co. And it may be that a lot of the opportunities that we get now would not be there without that METALLICA connection. So I'm eternally grateful. Obviously, myself and Sean [Harris, original DIAMOND HEAD singer] still get writers' royalties, but even so, I just think it's helped DIAMOND HEAD as a name and a brand to get on more and more opportunities — get festivals and supports. Because they link it with METALLICA; they think, 'Okay, well, you're potentially tapping into a huge market.'"

Two years ago, Tatler said during an episode of "Tatler's Tales" about METALLICA's cover versions of his band's classic songs: "They're great. They're always more powerful and a little faster than the DIAMOND HEAD versions. I mean, they're a great band. They [have] their own sound. Of course, it was very flattering. The first song they covered was 'Am I Evil' They were the first band that ever covered a DIAMOND HEAD song. And it came out in 1984; it was on the 'Creeping Death' 12-inch single, which was on Music For Nations. And I was just really flattered that 'Lars's band' had covered one of our songs and done such a respectful job and worked out the guitar solo. Everything was really good — really close to our version, but a bit more modern, a bit tougher, [with] more attitude."

He added: "More power to them. Fantastic. It's done the band a huge favor."

According to Brian, the royalties that he receives from the DIAMOND HEAD back catalog, including the METALLICA recordings of his songs, are enough for him to live on. "It's my biggest source of income," he revealed in a 2019 interview. "It's great and I don't know what I would do without it. It gives me the freedom to do what I like. I'm very grateful."

A reimagined and re-recorded version of DIAMOND HEAD's "Lightning To The Nations" album was released in 2020 via Silver Lining Music. "Lightning To The Nations 2020" included four cover tracks, including METALLICA's "No Remorse".

"I wanted to cover a song from METALLICA's debut album, 'Kill 'Em All'," Tatler explained, "partly because METALLICA covered songs from DIAMOND HEAD's debut album 'Lightning To The Nations' and it felt like things have come full circle to me. None of the band members knew how to play any of the songs from 'Kill 'Em All', and I eventually decided we should all learn 'No Remorse'. Then when we got into the rehearsal room, we played 'No Remorse' and immediately it just sounded great; it was very 'DIAMOND HEAD' and it really suited us as a band. Of the four covers we ended up doing, 'No Remorse' sounded the best straight away. I've seen METALLICA live over twenty times and they don't play 'No Remorse' very often, but it's always great when they do!"

DIAMOND HEAD's latest collection of all-new material, "The Coffin Train", was released in May 2019 via Silver Lining Music. The album was recorded at Vigo Studios in Walsall, Circle Studios in Birmingham and Raw Sound Studio in London.

Axl Rose has expressed his dissatisfaction over people flying drones at GUNS N' ROSES shows.

The GUNS N' ROSES frontman took to his Twitter to blast the "drone pirates" who have been playing with their "toys" during the latest Australian leg of the GN'R tour.

After Rose and his bandmates played the 27,500-capacity Metricon Stadium on the Gold Coast in Queensland last night (Thursday, November 24),he wrote: "Had a few drones this leg. Last night (Gold Coast Australia) was probably the most intrusive. Was a bit of a distraction as obviously someone thought it was just ok to be doing that but also it coming that close in front of the stage and then actually over n' on stage.

"According to the police it happens more often than not lately especially with sporting events. It's not something we're all that used to. A lot of impulse reactions went thru everyone's minds that after thinking about it (which when ur live there's really no time to really sort things out like that) didn't make much sense.

"People were pissed. However much fun anyone's having ur still trying to stay focused n' do ur job n' give the fans the best show u can. Anyway_ we get it can b 'fun' to get ur drone bootleg vid but we'd appreciate it if anyone planning to b a drone pirate took the fans n' the band into consideration n' played w/ur toys somewhere else. Big thank you in advance!"

GUNS N' ROSES launched its long-rumored and long-awaited reunion tour with an April 2016 club show in Hollywood and appearances in Las Vegas and at California's Coachella festival.

GUNS N' ROSES' reunion tour features classic-lineup members Slash, bassist Duff McKagan and Rose backed by guitarist Richard Fortus, drummer Frank Ferrer, keyboardist Dizzy Reed and second keyboardist Melissa Reese.

GUNS N' ROSES released a new four-song EP, "Hard Skool", in February. The effort, which is exclusive to the GUNS N' ROSES' official store, contains the two new songs the band released last year — the title track and "Absurd" (stylized as "ABSUЯD") — as well as live versions of "Don't Cry" and "You're Crazy".

The band is now reportedly working on a new studio album — the first under the GUNS banner since 2008's "Chinese Democracy" and the first to feature Rose, Slash and McKagan since 1993.

Photo credit: Katarina Benzova
pic.twitter.com/JUCRIPzFe7

— Axl Rose (@axlrose) November 25, 2022

The heavy metal 'n' roll, dark, madcap visionaries collectively known as Avatar - vocalist Johannes Eckerström (vocals), guitarists Jonas Jarlsby and Tim Öhrström, bassist Henrik Sandelin, and drummer John Alfredsson - have emerged from deep within the Swedish forest to announce Dance Devil Dance, their ninth album.


It arrives on February 17 via Black Waltz Records, distributed by Thirty Tigers. The epic masterwork is available for pre-order here.


The album will be released in multiple vinyl configurations:




- Clouds Dipped in Chrome Super Deluxe Vinyl: Includes: Metal O-Card with embossed Avatar emblem. 2 pocket silver board gatefold vinyl with platinum Dance Devil Dance vinyl. 24 page photo book. Autographed 5x7 Postcard.





- Hazmat Suit Deluxe Vinyl: Includes: Embossed Gatefold with 3 color A Side / B Side Dance Devil Dance vinyl, Five 11x11 Photo Prints of each band member w/lyrics, Autographed 5x7 Postcard.





- Dance Devil Dance Standard Vinyl: Includes: Embossed gatefold jacket with red opaque Dance Devil Dance vinyl, Five 11x11 Photo Prints of each band member.





Additionally, the band has shared the album tracklisting, including the powerhouse track "Violence No Matter What", featuring a duet with Lzzy Hale of Halestorm.





Tracklisting:


"Dance Devil Dance"
"Chimp Mosh Pit"
"Valley Of Disease"
"On The Beach"
"Do You Feel In Control"
"Gotta Wanna Riot"
"The Dirt I'm Buried In"
"Clouds Dipped In Chrome"
"Hazmat Suit"
"Train"
"Violence No Matter What" (Duet with Lzzy Hale)


"Dance Devil Dance" video:





Avatar enjoyed quite a productive summer, traipsing North America on a successful headline tour. They next embarked on some of the biggest shows of their career - a trek with Iron Maiden, supporting the band in stadiums in Brazil. Avatar also played arenas supporting Sabaton. They secured slots at major festivals globally - Inkcarceration, Cadott Fest, Summer Breeze, and Bloodstock along the way.


Avatar added Veil of Maya in the UK and Europe this February and March 2023 on the Dance Devil Dance Tour. All dates are in the graphic below. More US touring will be announced in due time.





As for Avatar's mission? They will save heavy metal.


There are no weapons on this planet that can challenge the might of the electric guitar. For decades metal has been the most powerful force known to man. Its sonic teeth have gnawed through the status quo over and over, pushing the boundaries for what can be created in the marriage between blood and machine. If a Mount Rushmore were to be carved for all the titans of the genre, it would span the entire globe many times over. It's a burning beacon, the misfits and rebels.


As time has passed, much of the scene has become divided in two equally stale camps. The first is forever stuck in the past, no longer seeking to lead. The second are those who have forgotten the most important ingredients to what made metal what it was and must remain. They've lost touch with the devil. They've forgotten how to move. In a genre best experienced with your whole body, they've lost the lust.


We grew up together. John and Jonas started the band when they were just 15 and 14 years old. Johannes joined at the age of 16, as did Henrik and finally Simon, who left to be replaced by Tim, a longtime friend of ours, in 2012. While constantly redefining what we do and why we do it, we are among a select few who have remained a true band of brothers. Metal has been our key to the kingdom, our way to see the world. Self-financing our debut when we were between 18 and 19, we have never waited for anyone’s approval or permission. With Dance Devil Dance we are adamant to give something back for all we've received.


Dance Devil Dance was recorded in the Swedish wilderness, far away from all the perceived glamour of the big city and modern studios. Jay Ruston (Anthrax, Mr. Bungle, Crobot, Stone Sour, Amon Amarth, Uriah Heep etc.) returned as producer. He first worked with us when he mixed Hail the Apocalypse, a role he reprised on Feathers & Flesh before taking the wheel as producer on Avatar Country and Hunter Gatherer. No extra personnel were wanted nor needed. We stayed together for a month, eating, sleeping and breathing Dance Devil Dance, just the six of us.


"You always hear bands say, 'This is our best album yet.' This is our best album yet. It is Avatar at our most laser focused, at our most razor sharp. There's no BS, no extra fat. Every track is a weapon and has a purpose. It's all in the title, as this album is our angriest, horniest and most spiritual release, all at once. It's a must-hear," the band says.


With grit and sheer force of will, we made the music the only way metal ever should be done. Modern metal too often becomes homogenized by everyone using the same drum samples and pre-sets for guitars. Dance Devil Dance is the sound of our bodies in motion, and nothing else. It sounds hard because we play hard. It's loud because we are loud. Every band knows the challenge of capturing the rage of a stage performance on tape. This time we succeeded. This album bleeds black blood, bludgeoned by the road.


We are a metal circus. The road is our home. Dance Devil Dance mirrors all the madness of this world and worlds beyond. It’s celebration of the ugly and a challenge in the face of all things deemed beautiful. Metal should make you move. Metal is music for the body. We don’t know when it happened but it seems that at some point recently, most of the world decided that this music was best enjoyed sitting down. This is a great tragedy and it must be rectified. Why have drums, why have bass, if people don’t move their feet?
And feet will move indeed.


Our music was always made for the stage first, as anyone can attest to, whether it's as an opening band for greats such as Iron Maiden or Slipknot, or playing the major stages on Wacken, Hellfest, Download, Rock on the Range, Poland Rock, and many more, or bringing the entire freakshow with us, headlining night after night. From coast to coast across the United States of America and Canada. From Mexico down all the way to Brazil; all over Europe, north, south, east and west. The whole world is our stage and you better get ready, because when we begin you will all be the Devil's playthings.


Lineup:


Johannes Eckerström - Vocals
John Alfredsson - Drums
Jonas Jarlsby - Guitar
Henrik Sandelin - Bass
Tim Öhrström - Guitar


(Photo - Johan Carlèn)

In a new interview with Eric Dahl of Fox17's "Rock & Review", STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet spoke about the fact that his band still features three of the four members who got together as the pre-STRYPER group ROXX REGIME in 1983. "It's amazing," he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "We're very blessed to have that. A lot of bands have one original member, if any. FOREIGNER, for example, there are times when they don't have one original member [performing at their live shows], and they're still carrying the torch; people wanna hear those songs. I think that's what it's all about — people wanna relive those great memories that they have, the nostalgia. They wanna have fun and listen to the songs. Not to undermine the bandmembers…

"I don't think STRYPER is a faceless band, but I think you can pretty much put anyone that can hit the notes or play the parts up there in a yellow-and-black costume and they'd probably get away with it," Sweet continued. "Certain bands are faceless. I was in one — the band BOSTON. I don't think any people can say, 'Oh, that's so-and-so,' and necessarily know who it is and recognize them. I could be wrong. I don't know."

Original STRYPER bassist Tim Gaines left the band for the seemingly final time in August 2017 and was replaced by Perry Richardson (ex-FIREHOUSE). The musician's exit from the group had been rumored for months, ever since STRYPER guitarist Oz Fox revealed that Tim was going through a divorce, forcing the band to take a hiatus and possibly consider a future without the bassist.

More than a year before Gaines's departure from STRYPER was made official, Sweet said in an interview that "it's important that the four of us stay together, or it's not STRYPER." Asked how he reconciled his previous comments about original lineups remaining intact and STRYPER's decision to move forward without Tim, Sweet told WSOU: "I still feel that way. It is important [for original members to stay together]. But, sadly, sometimes things happen that keep that from happening. People make decisions and choices, and, unfortunately, it does affect other people many times, and then you have to re-evaluate things. But that is the ideal situation, for it to be the original lineup. But, you know, sometimes things get in the way of that, and that's sad."

Formed 39 years ago, STRYPER's name comes from Isaiah 53:5, which states: "But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was upon him; and with his stripes we are healed."

STRYPER's albums include "To Hell With The Devil", "Second Coming", "No More Hell To Pay", "Fallen", "God Damn Evil", "Even The Devil Believes" and the band's latest effort, "The Final Battle".

Former Alice Cooper and current Demi Lovato guitarist Nita Strauss will undergo surgery for a torn meniscus in late December. The procedure will take place seven months after she first sustained the injury while on the road with Cooper.

Earlier today, Strauss, who has been the in-house guitarist for Los Angeles Rams football games since the team moved to SoFi Stadium in 2020, took to her Instagram to share a video update on her injury. She said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I have a little knee update, for those who've been wondering. I did have my pre-op last week, and, unfortunately, it didn't go exactly as I hoped it would. According to my doctor, eight months of performing on a torn meniscus did not do my any favors. The injury has not improved; unfortunately, it's gotten worse. So surgery has had to be pushed to the end of the year — after Christmas, after the last Rams game — and then it'll be a full month before I can do anything at all again. So no shows, no performing, no nothing. I'm super disappointed at that; I was hoping to already be on the mend by now. But it is what it is."

Nita previously discussed her torn meniscus in October in an interview with Meltdown of Detroit's WRIF radio station. At the time she said: "I'm babying myself right now because I've been touring with a torn meniscus since May. So I'm actually not as injury prone as I usually would be, because I'm taking it a little easier. I have surgery scheduled at the end of this tour, between Rams games and everything else I have going on. So right now I've been playing through the most serious injury I've ever had and really just trying to take care of that, make sure it doesn't get worse before it gets better."

Asked if she has had to take cortisone shots in order to deal with the pain while performing on stage in recent months, Nita said: "I've had two. I now can't have any more because it's too close to my surgery date. It's getting tough now, but we're making it through.

"All I can really do is keep it under control," she explained. "It's just the realities of running around on stage for 20 years; every once in a while you're gonna get hurt."

According to the Mayo Clinic, a torn meniscus is one of the most common knee injuries. Any activity that causes you to forcefully twist or rotate your knee, especially when putting your full weight on it, can lead to a torn meniscus.

Nita made her live debut with Demi on July 14 with a performance of Lovato's single "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.

Last month, Nita released a new solo single and accompanying music video, "The Wolf You Feed". The track features a guest appearance by Alissa White-Gluz of ARCH ENEMY.

"The Wolf You Feed" was the second song Nita has released featuring a star guest vocalist, the first being the "Dead Inside" which featured guest vocals from DISTURBED's David Draiman and saw Nita become the first ever solo female to have a No. 1 hit at Active Rock radio. She also returned to her instrumental roots earlier this year with the release of single "Summer Storm", a fast-paced, emotive shred-fest.

As well as performing with Cooper, Nita has also played with R&B star Jermaine Jackson, early MTV darlings FEMME FATALE, video game supergroup CRITICAL HIT and popular tribute band THE IRON MAIDENS.

In April 2020, Nita launched "Rock Guitar Fundamentals" — a three-module online guitar teaching program suitable for learners of all levels. The course is available at www.iwanttoplayguitar.com.

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Sweden's Ablaze My Sorrow has been sharpening their melodic death metal for 30 years now. The Loss Of All Hope is a brand-new four-track EP where melodies, heavy riffs, and sheer aggression are combined with expressions of despair, dystopian nightmares, and misanthropic hopelessness.


The Loss Of All Hope will be released on January 27, 2023 via Black Lion Records. The cover art and tracklisting can be seen below. Pre-orders are available now at this location.







"Transfiguration (The Way Of The Strong)" 
"Boundless" 
"Rotten To The Core" 
"Enclosed In Crystals Of Ice"


For further details, visit Ablaze My Sorrow on Facebook.


 

Greek technical/progressive death metal band, Acid Death, have announced the upcoming release of their new album. A message from the band follows...


"Here is some good news from Acid Death's camp! It's been three years since the release of the successful Primal Energies studio album and now Acid Death is more than happy to announce that the processes for new material has begun.


"The band already has almost 12 new songs at hand and are working on them at full speed. The plan is for Acid Death to enter the studio in late summer/2023 to record the new, 7th, yet untitled, new album.




"Many updates will follow in the next months, so stay tuned!"

German thrash metal band, Final Depravity, have issued the following update, announcing their new lineup and upcoming single.


"Here is some big news! Final Depravity developed a new band lineup. We welcome Yannick Argast (ex-Outrage) as our new talented drummer. Dennis "Blaze" Baron gave up his position as a singer to concentrate on playing the guitar like in the very beginning from FD. We welcome Benjamin Krzis as the new strong voice for FD. Dennis and Oliver support with backing vocals.


"On the 21.12.2022 the band celebrates their 15th anniversary. A perfect date to release new music! We are going to re-release the song 'As The Crow Flies' from our debut album, Nightmare 13.




"Meanwhile we continue to work on our new album... so stay tuned! FD is back and big things will happen."





The band continues: "We are very excited to present the new artwork for our upcoming single 'As The Crow Flies'. Produced and mixed by Tobias Barthel / Roadkill Music Production. Mastered by Jens Bogren / Fascination Street Studios. Artwork by Matthias Vatter. FD logo by Wappenschmied."


"As The Crow Flies" will be out on December 21, and will be available on all streaming and download platforms.


Lineup:


Benjamin Krzis - Vocals
Dennis "Blaze" Baron - Guitars, Vocals
Oliver Hey - Guitars, Vocals
Matthias Vatter - Bass
Yannick Argast - Drums


(Photo - Kaherdin)

BUTCHER BABIES co-vocalist Heidi Shepherd spoke to "The Chuck Shute Podcast" about the band's upcoming fourth studio album which was recently completed with producer Josh Schroeder (LORNA SHORE, KING 810). She said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We have an album that… well, it's gonna be a double album, really. That'll be coming out early next year. And we have a bunch of singles leading up to it. In fact, right before we jumped on with you, we were chitchatting about edits for a new music video. So we have a lot of stuff planned, a lot of really fun… For us, it's really fun and exciting, because we get to be so creative. We're gonna go do more music videos at the beginning of the year. And it's all exciting — it's all very exciting. I can't wait for other people to hear what we've created."

She continued: "This album that we're releasing, we went to Michigan in the dead of winter, in the middle of nowhere, and recorded this album. And you can really hear that it was recorded in the dead of winter [laughs] in it. There's weird emotions on there that people are gonna hear."

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

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

Speaking to Spain's EMP about BUTCHER BABIES decision to cover "Best Friend", Shepherd said: "It's basically a song about [me and fellow BUTCHER BABIES singer Carla Harvey]. 'Cause we've been best friends for so long. We were a band together prior to BUTCHER BABIES. It's a cover, and we figured we can't think of two better people to cover this song besides us. So it's fun."

Asked by Metalshop why it's better to release singles than a full-length album in 2022, Carla said: "I think we live in a time where people want things right now; they want new stuff all the time. And I also think that when you release a single, people have a chance to digest that song, fall in love with that song before they skip to the next one and the next one and the next one. We really like developing a song on its own, making a video for that song, telling the story of that song, because every song is special to us."

Added Heidi: "We put our heart and soul into every single song that goes on the album. We don't just half-ass any of the songs, and so we want to make sure that it gets the life and the attention it deserves. And so I think we're just gonna continue this way and just leak it a little bit at a time and keep it going."

In a separate interview with Bloodstock TV, Carla stated about the recording process for the new BUTCHER BABIES LP: "It was a really cool experience. We got to sit together for about six weeks in the middle of nowhere — a very, very small town in Michigan — and just create together. And we had an Airbnb with animal skulls all over the place. And we just sat there in the snow and created probably our best album to date. So it was a great bonding experience."

When Oran O'Beirne of Bloodstock TV suggested that some BUTCHER BABIES fans might object to such a diverse combination of musical styles, Carla said: "We haven't changed at all, because some of our earliest songs were similar. We've always run the gamut throughout our music; we've never stayed with one style. Most people love about BUTCHER BABIES that we have a death metal song and a thrash metal song and then a poppy radio song, and whatever mood they're in, we've got a song for them."

Added Heidi: "What I love about being in a band like this and being around musicians that we all see eye to eye is that we can do different things; we're not pigeonholed to one certain sound. Sometimes we wanna get up and we wanna scream and we wanna be angry bitches, and then sometimes we wanna sing and we want people to hear what we feel from our hearts. And I think that that's important as an artist, to be able to do both."

Carla continued: "And judging by the audience reaction when we go from one very, very heavy song to one lighter song, they love it. They have literally the same energy for both kinds of music. They want it too. People want the freedom to be able to like different types of music."

BUTCHER BABIES' latest album, 2017's "Lilith", was produced by Steve Evetts (THE DILLINGER ESCAPE PLAN, SEPULTURA, SUICIDE SILENCE) and marked the band's recording debut with drummer Chase Brickenden, who replaced Chris Warner in 2016.

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

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

Hailing from the City of Angels, BUTCHER BABIES have released two Eps and three albums to date, with "Lilith", debuting at #1 on iTunes Metal chart and #7 on iTunes Rock chart. The band kicked off 2021 by independently releasing a handful of newly energized singles produced and co-written by Matt Good (FROM FIRST TO LAST),including "Bottom Of A Bottle", "Sleeping With The Enemy", "Yorktown", "Last Dance" and "It's Killin' Time, Baby!" The latter was inspired by the DC Comics character Lobo, a heavy metal bounty hunter.

In a new interview with "Cutter's Rockcast", DISTURBED guitarist Dan Donegan spoke about how it feels to always be associated with the signature "ooh-wah-ah-ah-ah" staccato noise from singer David Draiman in the band's song "Down With The Sickness". He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's a blessing and a curse. I'll never complain about the signature 'Oooo-Wakakaka' thing. That's the thing that put us on the map, so we know that that's gonna be there. It's like Jani Lane from WARRANT saying, 'I'm always gonna be that 'Cherry Pie' guy.' It's a blessing and a curse. But ultimately, it's that thing that put you on the map that people identify you with. I embrace it. I'll take it. It's the thing that kind of opened people up to becoming fans and listening to material throughout our career."

A while back, Draiman told MTV about his rhythmic vocal sounds in "Down With The Sickness": "That noise just kind of came one day. The song originally was written and it just had a pause. Mike [Wengren, drums], his beat is just so tribal, and it just kind of made me feel like an animal."

Back in 2014, a comedian named Brandon Muller posted a two-and-a-half minute parody of DISTURBED. Titled "The Greatest Hit Of Disturbed", the clip took the form of an infomercial and poked fun at the band's "limited creativity" and Draiman's "repetitive vocal phrasing," even suggesting that the band's material sounds like "one never-ending song." The clip satirized several of the band's hits, like "Down With The Sickness" and "Liberate", while taking apart Draiman's vocals by boiling them all down to "yuh-nuh-muh-yuh." Muller starred as Draiman in the video, right down to the chin rings, although the vocals are handled by Archie Wilson.

DISTURBED's eighth studio album "Divisive", arrived on November 18 via Reprise. The LP was recorded earlier this year with producer Drew Fulk (MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, LIL PEEP, HIGHLY SUSPECT) in Nashville, Tennessee. The follow-up to 2018's "Evolution" includes the three recently released singles "Hey You", "Unstoppable" and "Divisive". Donegan's divorce inspired the "Divisive" song "Don't Tell Me", which is a duet with HEART's Ann Wilson. In two decades, it breaks ground as the first-ever guest collaboration on a DISTURBED record.

In March 2021, DISTURBED's "The Sickness 20th Anniversary Tour" was officially canceled. The amphitheater tour, with very special guest STAIND and BAD WOLVES, was originally slated to take place in the summer of 2020 but was rescheduled to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic. It was eventually scrapped altogether.

"The Sickness 20th Anniversary Tour" was supposed to celebrate the 20th anniversary of DISTURBED's seminal album "The Sickness". On this tour, the band was expected to perform songs off the album, as well as tracks from "Evolution" and DISTURBED's extensive catalog.

SEPULTURA bassist Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. has joined long-running South American metallers CULTURA TRES.

The band, led by brothers Alejandro and Juanma Montoya, will release a new album, "Camino De Brujos", on April 7, 2023 via Universal Music in the Americas and Bloodblast in the rest of the world.

Alejandro commented: "Something we've learnt while listening to Andy Wallace's albums (he is God in our little world) is that if you can't imagine the band performing while you listen to a recording then you are just listening to a computer. And we are not interested in letting fans hear a computer... We'd rather invite them to hear four people playing their hearts out on a record. This record."

Added Paulo: "In 2019 after hearing about the plans for a new CULTURA TRES, I offered Ale and Juanma to join the band.

"The music is very organic. There are a lot of influence from the '90s and a little bit of hardcore as well. Personally [for this album], I got inspired by the bass players who I' loved the most back in the '70s."

To celebrate the band's comeback, CULTURA TRES has unveiled the first single from the upcoming full-length. Sounding like a train on fire — filled with ammunition — heading towards you, "The World And Its Lies" is the opener of the album and is about making an "easy to follow" statement about most of the things this world has to offer… only to the privileged people.

In the studio, CULTURA TRES explored new ideas and found a musical common ground. The resulting style retained elements of the psychedelic-sludgy past, but incorporated the groove of a more metal oriented vibe that Paulo brought in with his SEPULTURA influence.

Alejandro said: "The album title 'Camino De Brujos' can be roughly translated as 'Trail Of Witches'. Do you remember the little story about letting your subconscious make artistic choices? Well, this is one of the best examples. 'Camino De Brujos' is the main line sang on top of a nasty slow riff. The song is filled with tribal ritual percussion, typical from South America's black magic practices. The phrase didn't only end up being the only lyrics sang on the song but it also gave the name and identity to the album."

"Camino De Brujos" will be released as vinyl, CD and digital.

The track listing is as follows:

01. The World And Its Lies
02. Time Is Up
03. Signs
04. The Land
05. Proxy War
06. 19 Horas
07. Zombies
08. De Maracay
09. The Smell Of Death
10. Camino De Brujos

"Camino De Brujos" was recorded by Juan M. De Ferrari Montoya and Alonso Milano Mendoza at AJM Sound Studios, Amsterdam (NL) and at Reborn Studios, Artesa de Segre (SP). Alejandro Londono Montoya took care of the missing and the mastering at AJM Sound Studios in Amsterdam. The artwork was created by Damian Michaels.

CULTURA TRES is:

Alejandro Londono Montoya - guitar, vocals
Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. - bass
Juan M de Ferrari Montoya - guitar
Jerry Vergara Cevallos - drums

STEEL PANTHER's Russ "Satchel" Parrish says that Yngwie Malmsteen is "one of the most emotional guitar players of all time."

In a new interview with Music Radar, Satchel — who previously played guitar for Jeff Pilson's post-DOKKEN band WAR & PEACE before leaving to join Rob Halford's FIGHT — picked Yngwie as one of the 10 guitarists who blew his mind.

"He remains one of the most emotional guitar players of all time," Satchel said. "He had so much feel that people often dismissed because he was so fast. His note choices were amazing too… in my eyes, that made up for the fact his songwriting wasn't quite up there with VAN HALEN or AC/DC.

"I loved Yngwie when he first came out, but as time went on, I realized I only listened to him when I wanted to be inspired by awesome lead playing," he continued. "If I'm in my car just driving around, I'll probably to listen to something else. What I will say about Yngwie early on, when he was in ALCATRAZZ and made that first RISING FORCE record, is that he played in a way that nobody has been able to touch."

Satchel isn't the only high-profile rock musician who has offered his views on the legendary Swedish axeman in recent months. OPETH frontman/guitarist Mikael Åkerfeldt told Music Radar that Yngwie is a "fantastic" player but that his "records have been pretty fuckin' shit for a long time."

"I hate him as much as I love him," Mikael said. "I just want to shake him around, kick him in the ass and make him wake up to something.

"His records have been pretty fuckin' shit for a long time, but the guitar playing has always been great. The last one I loved was 'Odyssey'. After that, he went a bit cheesy and got really bad.

“I feel like he should take care of his career better and maybe calm down a bit, focus on writing great songs. He's not giving himself the credit he is due; he just wants to carry on playing neoclassical at full distortion. But I still love him."

Yngwie released a new album, "Blue Lightning", in March via Mascot Label Group. On the disc, Yngwie pays homage to those from the blues world who have fueled his artistic spirit for so long.

STEEL PANTHER's fifth studio album, "Heavy Metal Rules", will be released on September 27.