HIM mastermind Ville Valo (VV) will release his debut solo album, "Neon Noir", on January 13 via Heartagram Records, distributed by UMG/Spinefarm. The LP's latest single, "The Foreverlost", can be streamed below.

"'The Foreverlost' is yet another loud love song depicting the burlesque butoh between two world-weary souls," Ville said. "All my Carmina Buranas and 'could've should've would'ves' rolled into a neat little Gordian knot of the gothic variety."

Two months ago, Ville released "Echolocate Your Love", the second single from "Neon Noir". "Echolocate Your Love" came five months after the arrival of "Loveletting", which marked Ville's first new music in over two years, following the release of the three-track "Gothica Fennica Vol. 1" EP, also released under the VV banner, in March 2020.

Like "Echolocate Your Love" and "Loveletting", "Gothica Fennica Vol. 1" bore a strong musical resemblance to HIM and featured the tracks "Salute The Sanguine", "Run Away From The Sun" and "Saturnine Saturnalia".

Regarding the lyrical inspiration for "Neon Noir", Ville told Kerrang! magazine: "I wouldn't call it 'suicidal', but most of the stuff was written during the pandemic, and there weren't many rays of sun hitting me. Everybody was in the mental gutter. Times were tough. This album was the kind of like the lifebuoy for me. It gave me a reason to wake up every morning and work on something else and try to shut the world outside. When I was working on the music, maybe it was selfish to a certain extent, but also it was a matter of survival."

He added: "It seems that mankind needs a bit of a breather from all this shit, myself included. So I tried to put all that frustration onto paper. And if it's love and darkness, and all sorts of things like that, that's probably because it's my vocabulary. Hopefully, the words have been rearranged in a fresh order this time around. But me trying to do something completely different, just because, that doesn't make any sense to me at all."

"Neon Noir" track listing:

01. Echolocate Your Love
02. Run Away From The Sun
03. Neon Noir
04. Loveletting
05. The Foreverlost
06. Baby Lacrimarium
07. Salute The Sanguine
08. In Trenodia
09. Heartful Of Ghosts
10. Saturnine Saturnalia
11. Zener Solitaire
12. Vertigo Eyes

Back in April, Ville told Metal Hammer that "Loveletting" was one of the more mellow songs on "Neon Noir". Ville said: "I've always been shit with picking singles — I'm always wrong, so I let the label choose that and everybody was smiling when they heard it the first time, so they suggested it. I'm hoping the next one will be a lot more rock 'n' roll, harder hitting."

Regarding the musical direction of "Neon Noir", Ville told Metal Hammer: "The new stuff definitely does sound like HIM. But I did write most of the songs, so… I'm to blame for that. It's a continuous journey from HIM for me. A lot of people when they move on to solo projects want to distance themselves from the past, burn bridges and start their solo career. It's different for me. VV is me building a bridge between HIM and the future. That's what 'Neon Noir' is."

Ville spoke to Spotify about why it has taken him so long to complete "Neon Noir". "Since the pandemic hit, I started working on the album," he explained. "I actually learned how to record — I learned how to record drums and bass and guitar because I wasn't able to get any musicians; I had to do it solo — literally solo. So I'm really sorry but it did take me two and a half years to get the album done. 'Loveletting' is the first single. It's kind of what I normally do — it's a loud love song; it's a very sad and melancholy wistful one, but sort of maybe light at the end of the tunnel which is hopefully not the oncoming train.

"So there's not much new under the sun of VV, but I love it. [Laughs]"

VV's headline tour dates will take place next year across Europe and North America. Naturally starting in Helsinki, Finland, the 2023 extensive run reaches the U.K. in March before heading to America come April.

HIM completed a farewell tour in 2017, closing the final chapter on the band's 26-year career. At the time, Ville explained to Kerrang! magazine why the band decided to call it a day. "We were tired of the same shit," he said. "When you've done it for a long time, at some point it doesn't taste good anymore. We started working on some stuff, it didn't sound good enough, and we didn't get the teenage buzz you're supposed get."

He also discussed the future of his artistic and musical endeavors.

"I'll be figuring out the emotions I'll be going through after the HIM period is done," he said. "That's how I experience life. I experience it through music, I'll pick up the guitar and start writing and I'm sure some of the emotions that come out of this wild ride will come through. My life is not done yet. The HIM part is done, as it is now, the chapter is closed, but the book is still unfinished…"

Formed in 1991 by Valo, guitarist Mikko "Linde" Lindström and bassist Mikko "Migé" Paananen, HIM offered the world a new take on the metal genre, which became known as "love metal" (also the title of their fourth album).

HIM in 2015 parted ways with its longtime drummer, Mika Kristian Karppinen (a.k.a. Gas Lipstick),and replaced him with Jukka "Kosmo" Kröger (formerly of HERRA YLPPÖ & IHMISET).

Three years ago, Valo teamed up with guitar legend Esa Pulliainen to record an album based on songs by the late, legendary Finnish singer Rauli "Badding" Somerjoki. The self-titled album by VILLE VALO & AGENTS was released in February 2019 and was followed by a short tour.

Photo credit: Juha Mustonen

Mad Max have released a video for “The Stage Is For You”, taken from their new album, Wings Of Time, out now. The video was made by Dethy Borchardt.





The video celebrates the vinyl release of Wings Of Time. Wings Of Time was issued on September 2 as digipack CD and digital streaming/download format and today, November 4, as Gold vinyl as well as Blue/Gold Splatter vinyl. Both vinyl editions are limited to 300 copies worldwide. Order at rockworld24.com.




It all began in the year 1982 when the "New Wave Of British Heavy Metal" stormed in from Great Britain all over Europe. This was the starting point for Mad Max founder and guitar player Juergen Breforth to make his musical dreams come true. Mad Max was born and now 2022, after 15 albums and concerts all around the world, Mad Max are celebrating their 40th anniversary. Wings Of Time is Juergen’s vision of Mad Max.


With Julian Rolinger on lead vocals Mad Max capture perfectly the style and vibe of their ‘80s roots but also take the Mad Max sound way further. The first single "Too Hot To Handle" is a heavy melodic rocker with a magic groove. Radio DJs that already heard the song couldn't believe that this band is from Germany. They thought it must be a newcomer from the USA and not a band from Germany with a history of 40 years. Check out "Best Part Of Me" which was inspired by the wonderful spirit of Jimi Jamison from Survivor and you know exactly what the radio DJs are talking about. With Wings Of Time you will discover the new Mad Max but there are also lots of classic guitar riffs and melodies for all the true and loyal fans who kept the Mad Max spirit alive for 40 years.





Tracklisting:


“Too Hot To Handle”
“Days Of Passion”
“A Woman Like That”
“Best Part Of Me”
“Rock Solid”
“The Stage Is For You”
“When It Stops”
“Stormchild Rising”
“Heroes Never Die”
“Miss Sacrifice”
“Freedom”


"Days Of Passion" lyric video:





“Too Hot To Handle” lyric video:





Mad Max are:


Julian Rolinger – Lead & Backing Vocals
Juergen Breforth – Guitars, Backing Vocals
Axel Kruse – Drums, still no vocals
Fabian "Fabs" Ranft – Bass, Backing Vocals


 

On the heels of the release of fourth album, One 4 The Road, Palace has announced the release of a special covers EP, Retrospection, on November 11.


This special EP sees Palace mastermind Mike Palace covering songs by Mr. Mister, Night Ranger, Easy Action, and Aviator. See below for the full tracklisting. Today, Palace has released a single & lyric video for "Kyrie", a Mr. Mister cover. Watch the video below, and pre-save the Retrospection EP, a digital only release, here.


Fans of Palace’s previous releases will surely get a kick out of hearing Michael's take on these classic '80s numbers.







Retrospection EP tracklisting:


"Kyrie" (Mr. Mister cover)
"Code To Your Heart" (Easy Action cover)
"Can't Stop" (Aviator cover)
"Sister Christian" (Night Ranger cover)


"Kyrie" video:

Frontiers Music Srl announces the release of the second album, 2 Make U Cry & Dance, from rock n’ roll juggernauts Electric Mob, on January 27. A new single and music video, "By The Name (nanana)" is out today. Watch the clip below.


These talented Brazilians stormed on the scene in 2020 with the release of their electrifying (no pun intended) debut album Discharge, wowing listeners with their modern take on classic bluesy hard rock executed with heartfelt, soulful musicianship and absolutely monstrous vocals.


The follow-up sees the band’s songwriting and musicianship taking a HUGE leap forward. Truly, an all killer, no filler affair, 2 Make U Cry & Dance is proof positive that high quality rock 'n roll does not adhere to any geographical borders.




And for those wondering, the album title is a reference to certain lyrics on the album being reflections on the hard times we go through in life while the music is simultaneously high energy and meant to raise the spirits and make you.... well, dance.


Formed in Curitiba, Brazil by Renan Zonta (vocals), Ben Hur Auwarter (guitar), Yuri Elero (bass), and André Leister (drums), Electric Mob caught the attention of Frontiers with their tremendous hard rock songs that show the influence of contemporary hard rock giants while also showing a knowledge of the hard rock pillars of the '70s and '80s.


Electric Mob is comprised of four young, hungry and extremely talented musicians, with the rock 'n roll attitude to deliver their explosive performances. Like a sonic punch to the face, their songs are a mixture of powerful vocals, mean guitar riffs, and heavy groove with influences from the ‘70s, ‘80s, and ‘90s. There is no doubt that Electric Mob is leading the charge to put Brazil on the rock ‘n roll map.





2 Make U Cry & Dance tracklisting:


"Sun Is Falling Down"
"Will Shine"
"It's Gonna Hurt"
"By The Name (nanana)"
"Soul Stealer"
"4 letters"
"Locked n Loaded"
"Saddest Funk Ever"
"Thy Kingdom Come"
"Love Cage"
"Watch Me (I’m Today’s News)"


"By The Name (nanana)" video:





"Sun Is Falling" video:





Lineup:


Renan Zonta - Vocals
Ben Hur Auwarter - Guitar
Yuri Elero - Bass
André Leister - Drums

Ingested have released their new album, Ashes Lie Still, via Metal Blade. To mark this momentous occasion, the band has shared the video for "All I've Lost". The song and video feature Trivium's Matthew K. Heafy. Watch below.


"We are very happy to unleash upon you our next single 'All I've Lost,' featuring the mighty Matt Heafy," says singer Jason Evans. "This is a song about my personal struggles with addiction, my fall into darkness, and my subsequent battle to claw my way back out. I hope you all enjoy this song, blast it loud, and remember, even when the world seems at its bleakest, you do have value, you do have worth, and there is always hope. Big love."







Ingested are the flagbearers of modern UK death metal. They have been churning out bilious anti-anthems for more than a decade-and-a-half, dropping a string of releases that have helped shape the genre. They return with Ashes Lie Still, their most dynamic, inventive, and daring release to date, holding nothing back. The band describes it as "a modern essential. It still has the core Ingested elements of groovy slamming riffs, quick drumming, and guttural vocals but there's also atmosphere, ethereal moments, and some raw old school aggression."


Over the course of 10 tracks, Ingested hack, slash, and steamroll through everything in their path, and Ashes Lie Still easily stands as the highpoint of an already impressive career.


Founded in 2006 in Manchester, England, Ingested have since toured extensively with Cannibal Corpse, The Black Dahlia Murder, Nile, Carnifex, and Revocation, and have been seen on European festival stages including Summer Breeze Open Air. Slimmed down to a three-piece, the band feels it is in the best place it ever has been, enabling the members to work at the top of their game.


Ashes Lie Still was co-produced by the band and previous collaborator Nico Beninato, with drummer Lyn Jeffs living close to Beninato's studio in Mallorca and recording his drums there, while Sean Hynes recorded his guitars at home in the UK with the producer assisting remotely. Vocal tracking was interrupted by Jason Evans falling seriously ill when finally making it to Mallorca and was ultimately tracked back in Manchester. Bass was again supplied by Dominic Grimard (Ion Dissonance/The Last Felony).


Ingested succinctly encapsulate their existence, saying, "We've always been the underdogs, always fighting for scraps. Well it's time to get out of the fucking way, because now it's our turn to eat at the table."





The album comes in several vinyl variants, all listed below:


* Clear with Black Smoke (US exclusive)
* Sunset Peach Marble (US exclusive)
* Violet purple marbled (EU exclusive ltd to 1000)
* Natural clear w/ white splatter (EU exclusive ltd to 250)
* White/orange color in color (EU exclusive ltd to 250)
* Natural clear w/ blue-purple, orange & black splatter (EU exclusive ltd to 250)


Order here.





Tracklisting:


"Ashes Lie Still" (Feat. Julia Frau)
"Shadows In Time"
"You'll Never Learn"
"Tides Of Glass"
"From Hollow Words" (Feat. Sven de Caluwé)
"Sea Of Stone"
"All I've Lost" (Feat. Matthew K. Heafy)
"With Broken Wings"
"Echoes Of Hate"
"Scratch The Vein"
"Rebirth" (Digital version only; new mix by Christian Donaldson)


"From Hollow Words" video:





"Tides Of Glass" video:





"Ashes Lie Still" video:





"Shadows In Time" video:





Lineup:


Jason Evans - Vocals
Sean Hynes - Guitars + Backing Vocals
Lyn Jeffs - Drums

Texas hard rock stalwarts, Drowning Pool, have released a lyric video for the heavy, hard-hitting track, “Mind Right”, from their new album Strike A Nerve, an 11-song tour-de-force through the torn and battered psyche of a band. Watch below:





Strike A Nerve was released in September via T-BOY/UMe and is available for order here.







Tracklisting:


"Doing Time In Hell"
"Hate Against Hate"
"Stay And Bleed "
"Strike A Nerve"
"Racing To A Red Light"
"Choke"
"Everything But You"
"Down In The Dirt"
"Rope"
"A Devil More Damned"
"Mind Right"


"Choke":





Drowning Pool is:


Jasen Moreno (Vocals)
CJ Pierce (Guitar)
Stevie Benton (Bass)
Mike Luce (Drums)

Queen recently announced the November 18 release of The Miracle Collector's Edition. 33 years later Queen deliver the long lost original LP cut of the classic 1989 album. The 8-Disc Box Set: Vinyl LP/5CD/DVD/Blu-ray is available for pre-order here.


Watch Brian May unbox the collector's edition below:







Widely recognized as Queen’s strongest album of the 80’s and one of their most inspired, the 1989 released The Miracle was a global success reaching No. 1 in the UK and several major European markets, even re-establishing the band in the US where it delivered a gold album. Brian May has often cited the title track as his favourite Queen song of all time.


The hugely prolific sessions for The Miracle began in December 1987 and stretched out to March 1989. It was to be one of the most consequential periods in Queen’s history. Fifteen months previously, on August 9, 1986, Queen’s mighty Europe Magic Tour had ended on a high, before an estimated audience of more than 160,000 at Knebworth Park in Britain. As the band left the stage that night – toasting the flagship show of their biggest tour to date – they could hardly have foreseen that Knebworth marked a line in the sand. This would be Queen’s final live show with Freddie and the first in a chain of pivotal moments that would lead towards a lengthy separation for the band.   


It would take 15 months and a radical restructuring of internal band dynamics before Queen regrouped in London’s Townhouse Studios on December 3rd, 1987, to start work on their thirteenth studio album. For the first time, Queen would share songwriting credits equally, regardless of who conceived each song, a consensus of opinion that was to have fertile results. “Splitting the credits was a very important decision for us. We left our egos outside the studio door,” says Brian, “and worked together as a real band – something that wasn’t always the case. I wish we’d done it 15 years before.”


Said Roger: “Decisions are made on artistic merit, so ‘Everybody wrote everything’ is the line, rather than ego or anything else getting in the way. We seem to work together better now than we did before. We’re fairly up-and-down characters. We have different tastes in many ways. We used to have lots of arguments in the studio, but this time we decided to share all the songwriting, which I think was very democratic and a good idea.”


This show of unity was elegantly conveyed by band art director Richard Gray’s cover for The Miracle, which depicts Queen’s four faces merged into one. “The cover art represents the unity of the group at the time: a seamless merging of four people becoming one,” May has said. “We were also dealing with Freddie’s deteriorating health and pulling together to support him.”


While Freddie could no longer tour, Queen remained a band of staggering creative resourcefulness. As John Deacon implied, they instead channelled their live chemistry into the studio: “In the first few weeks of recording we did a lot of live material, a lot of songs, some jamming, and ideas came up.”


‘Party’ and raw rock ‘Khashoggi’s Ship’ “evolved naturally, straight away,” said Freddie. Inspired by something Anita Dobson would say, and later adopted for anti-apartheid protests, the massive ‘I Want It All’ was – though written before the band went into the studio – a forceful expression of Queen’s concert-honed heavy-rock powers. “We were never able to perform this song live with Freddie,” said May. “It would have become something of a staple core of the Queen show, I’m sure, because it was very participative – designed for the audience to sing along to – very anthemic.”


Says Roger: “Lots of the [Miracle] tracks have first-take stuff in them; we tried to preserve that freshness. We tried to capture all the enthusiasm that we had from playing together as a band.”


Queen’s writing also reflected their personal circumstances. The torn-from-the-headlines drama of ‘Scandal’ was May’s personal swipe at the press intrusion into the bandmembers’ respective personal affairs. Singled out by Deacon for praise, Freddie’s soaring album closer, ‘Was It All Worth It’, has in retrospect been interpreted as a reflection on the singer’s health.


One further ingredient in the mix was David Richards, who had worked with Queen since his billing as assistant engineer on Live Killers. After further credits on A Kind of Magic and Live Magic, Richards stepped up to co-produce The Miracle, praised by May for his “whizz kid” technical prowess.


The months in the studio birthed 30-plus songs, more than Queen could possibly need for one album. Ten tracks were selected to form the release, with others later appearing as B-sides or solo tracks, or carried over to the Innuendo and Made in Heaven albums. Five hit singles supported the album.


Says Brian: “We had all these bits and pieces of tracks, and some of them were half-finished, some of them were just an idea, and some of them were nearly finished, and it sort of happened on its own really. There are some tracks which you always want to get out and work on, and so they get finished, and there are some tracks which you think, ‘Oh that’s great, but I don’t really know what to do with it at this moment’, so they naturally get left by the wayside.”


Most of these left-over session tracks remained undisturbed in the Queen archives for the past 33 years.





For the Queen hardcore, meanwhile, one of the most highly anticipated elements of the new box set is The Miracle Sessions CD featuring original takes, demos, and rough takes of the full album plus six additional previously never before heard tracks including two featuring Brian on vocals.


Tantalizing enough that this hour-plus disc offers the first official airing of such near-mythical songs as "Dog With A Bone", "I Guess We’re Falling Out", "You Know You Belong To Me", and the poignant "Face It Alone". Add to that, the trove of sunken treasure spanning from original takes and demos to rough cuts that signpost the album The Miracle would become.


But perhaps the real gemstones of The Miracle Sessions CD are the spoken segments that bookend the musical takes. As the studio tape keeps rolling in London and Montreux, the four members are caught at their most candid, giving listeners the uncanny fly-on-the wall experience of standing amongst Freddie, Brian, John and Roger as they banter, debate, swap jokes and show both joy and occasional frustration.


With the band arriving at the studio with scarce mapped-out material these sessions found Queen at their most inspired and impulsive, and that atmosphere is mirrored in not just the music but the familial exchanges that punctuate it. As Freddie said: “I think it’s the closest we’ve ever been in terms of actually writing together.”


Find complete details here.





Queen recently released the rediscovered track, "Face It Alone", featuring the band's late and legendary frontman, Freddie Mercury. The digital/streaming single is available now, with a 7” single set for release on November 18.


Listen / pre-order here, and watch an official music video below:





Watch a lyric video for "Face It Alone":

EVERCLEAR, one of the leading alternative rock bands to emerge from the '90s led by vocalist, guitarist and founder Art Alexakis, has released a new single "Year Of The Tiger". The politically charged offering marks the first new song from the band since the release of their 2015 album, "Black Is The New Black".

"After all of the events of the last almost three years with Covid, worldwide shutdowns, the political debacle of 2020…emanating from in and outside of MAGA world, I felt I needed to write a song that not just explained my anger and frustration, but a song that served as a mission statement," shares Alexakis, who was also born in a Year Of The Tiger in 1962. "I feel like the tiger should be the new symbol of the new Democratic party. We will not back down, we will not forget, we hit back, we challenge lies, and we refuse to be intimidated by ignorance or loud voices. To quote the song's lyrics, 'Here we are in the Year Of The Tiger, we are where we are because of all the big lies.' Tigers are everywhere."

EVERCLEAR is celebrating 30 years as a band in 2022. In its honor, the four-piece — Art Alexakis (vocals, guitar),Davey French (guitar),Freddy Herrera (bass),Brian Nolan (drums) — has been on the road all across the U.S. on their headlining 30th-anniversary tour, which featured special guests FASTBALL and THE NIXONS in the summer and SPONGE this fall. The band also released a special remastered reissue of their 1993 debut album, "World Of Noise", in June, making the currently out-of-print album available for the first time on digital streaming platforms. "World Of Noise - 30th Anniversary Deluxe Edition" features all 12 original tracks plus six bonus songs including the previously unreleased "Drunk Again" and "Nervous & Weird 2001 Remix". The reissue will be available on vinyl soon.

Up next, EVERCLEAR heads overseas to the U.K. for a run of co-headlining tour dates throughout November with fellow '90s rockers SOUL ASYLUM. The band will then wrap the year with a handful of headlining Southern California shows with SPONGE supporting. For these shows, which includes a stop on the Sunset Strip at the famed Whisky A Go Go on December 1, EVERCLEAR has teamed up with Border Kindness, a 501c3 nonprofit humanitarian-aid organization, for a toy drive, encouraging those in attendance to bring a new, unwrapped toy with them.

Since forming in 1992, EVERCLEAR has enjoyed a lengthy career by any measure, spanning 11 studio releases, including four that have been certified gold or platinum, selling over six million records, and achieving 12 Top 40 Hit Singles on Mainstream Rock, Alternative, and Adult Top 40 radio, including "Santa Monica", "Father Of Mine", "I Will Buy You A New Life", "Wonderful" and "Everything To Everyone", as well as numerous videos, thousands of shows, and various other accolades, including a 1998 Grammy nomination. The original 1993 release of "World Of Noise" on the Portland independent label Tim/Kerr Records, paired with the band's significant efforts to break into college radio and the buzz they'd created within the Portland music scene, attracted the attention of major labels, including Capitol Records, which signed the group soon after. Beginning with their major-label debut, 1995's platinum-selling album "Sparkle And Fade", and its massive chart-topping hit "Santa Monica", EVERCLEAR was soon a household name and catapulted into the masses, thus allowing their impressive three-decade career to prosper and endure. In recent years, Alexakis created and runs the annual "Summerland" tour, which features a package of popular '90s alt rock bands, and also released his first solo album, "Sun Songs", in 2019.

Photo credit: Ashley Osborn

"Hammer Teeth", the new music video from SEMI-ROTTED, the Las Vegas, Nevada-based "death metal" band fronted by former FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH drummer Jeremy Spencer, can be seen below. The track is taken from SEMI-ROTTED's debut EP, "Deader Than Dead", which was made available in August.

Forged in flames and baptized in blood and blast beats, SEMI-ROTTED — which is rounded out by Shawn McGhee (guitar),Alessandro "AP" Paveri (bass) and Steve Carey (drums) — embodies the blackened heart of tried-and-true old-school death metal yet kickstarted for another generation with a guttural groove of its own.

SEMI-ROTTED's debut single, "Torture Congregation", featured a guest appearance by LORNA SHORE vocalist Will Ramos.

"I kept hearing LORNA SHORE on [SiriusXM's] Liquid Metal and on playlists," Spencer recalled. "Will does really unique things with his voice. It's amazing. When they were in Las Vegas, I went to the show and I was blown away. We reached out, and Will sent back his vocal in like two days. He's at the top of genre. It's a killer collaboration."

Spencer first embraced the genre back in high school. He graduated from SLAYER to the likes of DEATH and OBITUARY. After catching the latter on tour with SACRED REICH, he recalled, "I'd never seen anything like it, but it was fucking awesome." Of course, Spencer went on to showcase his prowess behind the kit on a series of platinum releases and sold-out arenas tours with chart-topping juggernaut FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH, but he arrived full circle with extreme music in 2022.

At the top of the year, he embraced the genre wholeheartedly once more. He feverishly collected vinyl from the likes of MORTICIAN, CEMETERY LUST and many others. Every morning, he would blare death metal favorites as he drank coffee and poured over the lyrics. "I became a fan all over again," he goes on. "I decided, 'I'm going to do a record like this.'"

He joined forces with frequent collaborator and longtime cohort Shawn McGhee on guitar. Spencer also returned to his seat behind the kit and recorded the drums on the record as well. Meanwhile, GEMINI SYNDROME's AP contributed bass. Together, they cut what would become "Deader Than Dead" in Las Vegas. They maintained the hallmarks of the classics but with a twist.

In the end, SEMI-ROTTED is everything death metal should sound like in 2022 — and bloody more. "When you listen to this, I hope you have a fun and solid listening experience," he left off. "It's meant to listen to from start to finish. Enjoy each moment. It kicks your ass, grabs you, and doesn't let you go."

"Deader Than Dead" track listing:

01. Shotgun Symphony
02. Torture Congregation (feat. Will Ramos)
03. Hammer Teeth
04. Deader Than Dead

King Crimson founder Robert Fripp and his wife, Toyah Willcox, are back in the kitchen together for another Sunday Lunch, and there are absolutely no words for this adaptation of The Cramps’ song, "Can Your Pussy Do The Dog?". 





A selection of Robert & Toyah's previous Sunday Lunch videos can be seen below:

Described by Variety magazine as “really about as good as rock documentaries get,” the long-awaited, official King Crimson documentary by Toby Amies will be released in physical form on November 18 as a 2 Disc Blu-Ray/DVD set. An 8 Disc boxed set containing 2 Blu-Rays, 2 DVDs and 4 CDs will follow on December 2.


The 8 Disc boxed set includes the full King Crimson film, an early edited version of the film, a live concert from the 50th anniversary tour and a unique camera-only performance, plus a plethora of additional footage. 8 discs packaged in 4 miniature gatefold sleeves, with a 48-page booklet housed in a rigid outer case. Booklet includes notes from film director Toby Amies, David Singleton and Robert Fripp. Also includes the music from the original soundtrack and more, over 4 CDs, many tracks previously unreleased and/or new to CD.


The 2 Disc Blu-Ray/DVD set includes the full documentary film, an early edited version of the film, the final performance of the classic “Starless” from the band’s final ever concert in Tokyo, Japan in December 2021 and four trailers/shorts.







King Crimson has been described as popular but never populist. Just as King Crimson has been, for more than half a century, an atypical rock band, this film is a refreshingly atypical music documentary.


Toby Amies’ film about one of rock music’s most enduring, but simultaneously elusive, bands, “In The Court of the Crimson King – King Crimson at 50” provides a unique insight into the working process of a complex touring band, interspersed with contributions from previous band members to provide a contextual backdrop to the band’s past, as the most recent (2014-2021) line-up tours the world just before and during its 50th anniversary.


As King Crimson producer and band manager, David Singleton observed of the film: “All of life is here, not just music, and certainly not just rock. It has rightly been described as going beyond King Crimson into a ‘universal, inspirational study of what it is to work or dream to work as an artist.’”


While director Toby Amies writes of the experience: “In The Court Of The Crimson King is not a film that wants to tell the audience what to think, rather it presents several different points of view about the creative process and what it means to be in this most unusual band; leaving the audience with a sense of both how complicated it all is, but also just how incredibly rewarding the King Crimson experience is both for the musicians and its fans.”


Robert Fripp announced that King Crimson had “moved from sound to silence” on social media after their final date in Japan in December 2021, making this release all the more poignant as a unique record of the band’s longest lasting line-up with tantalizing glimpses of the band’s history.  


Preorder at shop.schizoidshop.com.

In a new interview with MetalSucks, LACUNA COIL's Andrea Ferro, who is currently promoting "Comalies XX", the recently released "deconstructed" and "transported" version of the band's third album, "Comalies", was asked about the band's plans for a new studio LP. He said: "We've been working on it a little bit, and we plan to go after it fully in early 2023. We have some very early versions and rough concepts of these songs that we're working on. We've looked at some ideas for album art and are kicking around titles, but it's still early, and nothing is final yet. And we've just had a meeting with the label recently, and we talked about it, but it's too early for us to put a release on it yet. We don't want to rush anything and want it to be a quality album. I can say that we plan to have tighter arrangements and that we don't want to make it overly long. So, in early 2023, we'll meet up, listen to everything we've collected, and see where we are. We'll work hard on the material and flesh it out to fully realized songs. But no hard release date, but maybe by the end of 2023, we'll see a new album from LACUNA COIL. It depends on how these sessions go; we'll see."

Two months ago, LACUNA COIL singer Cristina Scabbia told KNAC.COM that she and her bandmates "wrote a few songs" during the pandemic. "We have, like five [or] six songs that we're working on, but it was not time yet to release a full record," she said. "Also because we really base our inspiration on life, on experiences, and, to be honest, we didn't want to write a record about the pandemic. We wanted to go out again, meet people, live experiences, live life and get ready to bring everything in our music again. So we collected a ton of material."

Added Andrea: "But definitely going back to work on 'Comalies' sometimes brings you also some memories of how your feelings were when you brought that album. So that could be inspiration also for an eventual next album when we're gonna go work on it. Maybe some of the atmosphere stays with you, because you've been rethinking it and reworking it. So it can give you some inspiration also for a future record."

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

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

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

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

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

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

Photo credit: Cunene

NONPOINT has released the official lyric video for its latest single, "Paper Tigers". The song, which was originally made available in September via the band's independent label 361 Degrees Records, was helmed by Chris Collier, the producer, engineer, mixer, and multi-instrumentalist who has worked with KORN, WHITESNAKE, LYNCH MOB, Mick Mars and many more.

NONPOINT vocalist Elias Soriano said: "In 10 records, 20 years and over 150 published songs, I can confidently say this is the heaviest track NONPOINT has ever released."

NONPOINT launched 361 Degrees Records LLC in January 2021. They filmed the process of starting the label and making new music in a docu-series titled "A Path To Independence" that can be seen on the band's YouTube and official web site.

In December 2021, NONPOINT released its latest EP, "Ruthless". This followed their independent label plan of delivering music to their fans through more frequent releases and videos from the band.

Asked in a recent interview with "Making Waves: The ShipRocked Podcast" if putting out EPs rather than full-length albums is "the way forward" for him and his bandmates, Soriano said: "For us, I think, like we talked about in our documentary during the pandemic, before we dropped 'Ruthless' and this next one coming up, it was a test on what everyone told us in the last 20 years we could or couldn't do with our music. Because I've worked with a lot of big teams — we started with MCA, went to Lava, went to Geffen, went to Rocket Science, then we went to Razor & Tie and then Concord; a lot of big, big, big names and big, big, big teams. And they have their systems in place. So when you go and you say, 'Hey, I feel like my fans would really gravitate to this kind of song,' there's a lot of doors you've gotta go through to finally feel like you have an answer to whether or not that feeling is right. When it's just completely up to you and the risk is yours and you've been asking that question for as long as we have, at this point it's just, like, 'Fuck it. I'm just gonna do it. And I'm not even gonna ask.'

"What we did with 'Ruthless', because we were flipping into the independent world, is we wanted to make sure that our base was taken care of," he explained. "For the last 20 years, I've dropping shit at radio and doing well at radio; I don't wanna pretend like I don't have radio songs. But I flash back to Hans Haedelt, our first A&R guy, when he signed us, and he was, like, 'You guys are gonna be the Latin PANTERA.' And it was because he saw our live shows with music that we had written that was completely untouched — by producers, by anyone. So when we went independent and I sat down with Robb [Rivera, drums] and I sat down with the guys, it was about answering that question. And we needed to bankroll that, to make sure that… And we did that — the 'Ruthless' EP, the streams, everything did so well for us that we are able to now… Our record label, in the first year, is now in the black and so is our independence. So everything is moving in such a positive way that we don't have to worry about things like budgets anymore, where it was constantly an issue before. Well, we worry about them, but it's dollars versus risk. And it's, like, 'Well, we never got to do this, so let's fucking do it.'

"With the next EP… 'Ruthless' was, like, 'Yes, they can write songs the way NONPOINT writes songs independent. Now watch what they do when the cuffs are off and the gloves are off and we're ready to throw down,'" Elias added. "Like, the next song that we drop on this EP is definitely going to turn some heads."

Earlier this year, Elias told "HRH Metal With Dan Chan" that the group's decision to go it alone with NONPOINT's own record label has resulted in "less anxiety and more anxiety," adding that he has "a team" of "people that are professionals in place" to run the business for him and his bandmates.

"I'm not a neophyte when it comes to the overall scope and understanding of the music industry, but I know when to get the hell out of the way and let someone else steer the ship," he said.

Asked what he misses about having a bigger label behind his band, Soriano said: "The relationships and the friendships. It's fun working with a team that you know everyone around the corner is a professional. That definitely gives less anxiety. But you see, even the staff, they feel the same kind of restriction. They wanna go harder; they wanna spend more money — you know they want to — but they have people to answer to."

As for how he balances the business and the creative side of being in a band, Elias said: "It's not easy but we're doing it, and that's what matters. And the product that's coming out is better than ever. It's a lot of fun. It really is. I'm having fun doing this."

In 2021 alone, NONPOINT's song "Ruthless" reached No. 16 on Billboard's Rock chart and was featured on the New Metal Tracks and Kickass Metal Playlist on Spotify, SiriusXM Octane's Big Uns Countdown, LA Lloyd Top 30 and Loudwire Nights. "Ruthless" was also the featured track on AEW's nationally televised event "Blood And Guts" on TNT in May 2021.

NONPOINT's songs "Bullet With A Name", "Alive And Kicking", "In The Air Tonight", "Circles", "Your Signs", "Everybody Down" and many others have been featured in trailers, hit movies, television, iconic video games, as well as broadcasts from NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, WWF.

NONPOINT has toured with major acts like DISTURBED, PAPA ROACH, MUDVAYNE and SEVENDUST, to name a few. They have also been featured on the main stages and support stages of iconic festivals like Soundwave, Rock Am Park, Rock Am Ring, Ozzfest, Rock On The Range, Welcome To Rockville and many more.

Photo credit: Francesca Ludikar

Isafjørd, meaning literally fjord of ice, is a shining new ethereal post-rock band from Iceland. Named after the town that both of their fathers came from, Ísafjörður, Aðalbjörn Addi Tryggvason (Sólstafir) and Ragnar Zolberg (Sign/ex-Pain Of Salvation) sculpt beautiful and desolate pop, as bright and dark as the sub-arctic seasons.


Isafjørd’s new album, Hjartastjak, is an infectious rush of euphoric melancholy, quiet-loud dynamism, lush instrumentation and unforgettable atmospheric landscapes of song.


Meeting on the road, night creatures of the same renowned Reykjavik music scene, Ragnar playing live session bass for Sólstafir, Addi and Ragnar’s musical paths finally intersect in Isafjørd with a sound that reaches like a stalactite from the past into a gleaming future. Holed up in the middle of winter, in an old house with a broken piano in the freezing cold, Hjartastjaki is an album of songs that were written straight from the heart, sometimes in a single day.




Watch the video for the new single "Mín Svarta Hlið":





Their chemistry as immediate as the climate they survive in, Isafjørd is a real meeting of spirits, with Ragnar’s sleek and cherubim voice a brilliant counterpoint to Addi’s dusty and aching cries, over orchestrated build-ups of soaring piano and sliding guitars. The catchy and haunting music that Addi and Ragnar create in Isafjørd is at once familiar in that lived-in, well-worn way a great song can touch your soul. Having both lived in Norway and speaking Norwegian, Addi and Ragnar speak the same language of the heart, as their Nordic melancholy makes for deep and mountainous music. Isafjørd’s songs are sincere icebergs of tundra-anthems that bring to mind Fields Of The Nephilim and Duran Duran jamming in a frozen valley, where the creative 80s New Wave meets GodSpeed You Black Emperor. With influences that range from Cardigans, Beatles, early Judas Priest and Neil Young, Addi and Ragnar have struck a vein of gold that crystallizes their own heritage of wide-screen Metal gloom into something new.


Now coming of age, matured into a shimmering diamond of Icelandic pop at its finest, Isafjørd is on another plain from Addi’s own Sólstafir, where their cinematic metal roots have been re-traced into sweeping glacial song-craft. A country known for their honest and heart–wrenching emotional take on pop music with Björk and Sigur Rós, Isafjørd gives a new definition of “landscape music”. When an album feels like a place you want to inhabit and experience, “Hjartastjaki” is a journey that you’re going to want to take.


Pre-save Hjartastjaki here. Pre-order on CD and 2LP here.





Tracklisting:


"Falin Skemmd"
"Mín Svarta Hlið"
"Hjartastjaki"
"Heiðin"
"Kuldaró"
"Fjord Of Hope"
"Njálssaga"
"Andvök"


"Falin Skemmd":





(Photo - Ásgeir Helgi Þrastarson)

Baltimore-based death metal savants, Misery Index, recently released their new record, Complete Control. In continued support of the album, the band have released a new video for the track "Rites Of Cruelty", created by Chris Joao / Iron Elephant Studio.


Misery Index bassist/vocalist Jason Netherton checked in with the following comment about the "Rites of Cruelty" clip: "This video is a sincere shout-out to all the Misery Index fans who made the effort to come and rage with us this past summer on the various 'Complete Control' tours - from festival stages to dive bars, we've hit them all, and this video is a tribute to the good times of summer past as we enter the darker months of autumn. We chose the track 'Rites of Cruelty' as we feel it embodies all the pissed-off energy of our new album in one bombastic faceripper, from blast beats to tank-like breakdowns, it's become a staple of our live set, and hope you all dig it as well."







Complete Control was mixed by Will Putney, mastered by Jens Bogren / Fascination Street studios and features artwork by Matt Lombard, which can be seen below.





Complete Control tracklisting:


"Administer The Dagger"
"The Eaters And The Eaten"
"Complete Control"
"Necessary Suffering"
"Rites Of Cruelty"
"Conspiracy Of None"
"Infiltrators"
"Reciprocal Repulsion"
"Now Defied!"


“Complete Control” video:





"Infiltrators" video:





"The Eaters And The Eaten" video:





Misery Index lineup:


Darin Morris: guitar
Mark Kloeppel: guitar, vocals
Adam Jarvis: drums
Jason Netherton: bass, vocals

Hear ye, all mortals of the Twilight Kingdoms! Hear ye!!


During the past few years, Swedish adventure metallers Twilight Force have been crafting their new opusm At The Heart Of Wintervale, which will be released on January 20 via Nuclear Blast. Three years after the release of the last album Dawn Of The Dragonstar, it is time to tell new stories and continue the incredible epos of Twilight Force.


Twilight Force comments: "After what feels like aeons, we can finally proudly unveil the details of our fourth opus: At The Heart Of Wintervale. At The Heart Of Wintervale is set to be unleashed on January 20th. While the dwarven forges are busy assembling the physical manifestations of the album, we can all use some time to brush up on old incantations, polish dusty daggers, and re-stir murky potions - for this glorious quest will be upon us before we know it, and for that we must be prepared! The breathtaking and dramatic cover artwork is once again created by the brilliantly skilled Kerem Beyit. It depicts the tale told in the title track of the album - where an evil curse is broken, and an ancient dragon may finally roam the realms again, free and unfettered!"







To celebrate this delightful day of the album announcement, pre-save the first single "Twilight Force" here.


At The Heart Of Wintervale will consist of 8 captivating tales from far and wide, and will have a running time of approximately 45 minutes. The songs are all stories and legends from the Twilight Kingdoms, gathered over years of meticulous research, and will further explore and delve into the vast and magical world of its realms.


At The Heart Of Wintervale will be released on CD, Digibook, and Vinyl. The limited Digibook edition will also include three bonus tracks. The first one is a song that many of Twilight Force's loyal knights may somewhat recognize; it is an acoustic blend of some of the older works, featuring an entrancing vocal performance and guitar work byTwilight Force's very own wood elf Aerendir. The second and third bonus tracks are orchestral versions of two songs from the album, where fans will have the opportunity to experience a different soundscape, and perhaps discover new exciting elements and intricacies never discerned before.





At The Heart Of Wintervale tracklisting:


"Twilight Force"
"At The Heart Of Wintervale"
"Dragonborn"
"Highlands Of The Elder Dragon"
"Skyknights Of Aldaria"
"A Familiar Memory"
"Sunlight Knight"
"The Last Crystal Bearer"





At The Heart Of Wintervale digibook tracklisting:


"Twilight Force"
"At The Heart Of Wintervale"
"Dragonborn"
"Highlands Of The Elder Dragon"
"Skyknights Of Aldaria"
"A Familiar Memory"
"Sunlight Knight"
"The Last Crystal Bearer"
"The Sapphire Dragon Of Arcane Might Is Back Again"
"Skyknights Of Aldaria" (orchestral version)
"The Last Crystal Bearer" (orchestral version)


January 20, 2023 is not only a special day due to the album release, but also because of the start of Twilight Force's Winter Wonder Tour, which will bring the Swedes to 19 different cities in Europe. After the tour had to be postponed before, in January 2023 Twilight Force will kick off their long awaited tour in Copenhagen, Denmark.


Dates, tickets, and more info here.


Twilight Force is:


Allyon - lead and backing vocals
Lynd - lead and rhythm guitars
Born - bass
Blackwald - keyboards and narration
De'Azsh - drums
Aerendir - rhythm and acoustic guitars


(Photo - Fotograf Heléne)

Rising psych-occultists, Green Lung, have announced their signing to Nuclear Blast Records. The band's rich blend of proto-metal and doom laden hard rock, steeped in distinctly British folklore has proven a monumental hit across their debut EP Free The Witch (2018) and two critically acclaimed albums Woodland Rites (2019) and Black Harvest (2021). Watch the re-released video for "Let The Devil In" below.


Vocalist, Tom Templar comments on the signing: "We're incredibly excited to partner with the team at Nuclear Blast to usher in the next era of Green Lung. Over the past five years we've gone from playing DIY basement shows and selling our music on home-taped cassettes to playing international festivals and working with the world's biggest metal label, and that's entirely down to the support and enthusiasm of our endearingly cult-like fanbase. We can't thank you all enough for your faith and support in getting us to this point, and rest assured we're only just  getting started. We've spent the past few months hoping to repay the debt by writing our most ambitious album yet, and look forward to getting back into the studio to record it. But before then, we'll be embarking on our biggest tour to date, supporting Clutch across the UK and Europe this November and December. Come, join our rites!"


Senior A&R, Nathan Barley Phillips states: "I was lucky enough to catch Green Lung play at London's infamous Black Heart venue right before the covid lockdown kicked in during early 2020... I then spent two long years desperately waiting for another opportunity, thanking the blesséd wheat-weaving gods when Desertfest rolled around again in early 2022 and the stars of the goatwizard finally aligned. This band has riffs for days and I am so proud and excited to welcome them to Nuclear Blast. A special thanks to AMF Music Publishing for helping to make this happen - I can't wait to see what we can all achieve together!"







2022 has seen Green Lung excel on the live circuit, at both their own headline shows and performances at the likes of Roadburn, Mystic Festival, Desertfest and Freak Valley Festival. They will be rounding out their most successful year to date with a set at Damnation Festival in November, and an extensive tour across Europe and the UK alongside Clutch this winter.


Green Lung is:


Tom Templar - Vocals
Scott Black - Guitar
Joseph Ghast - Bass
John Wright - Organ
Matt Wiseman - Drums


(Photo - Andy Ford)

On December 2, BMG will release a deluxe edition of Gary Moore’s A Different Beat album.


A Different Beat, was Moore’s 12th solo album, where he explored new areas of blues and rock. This album has never previously been released on vinyl, and contains new liner notes written by Dave Everley. This double vinyl release will be pressed onto transparent orange vinyl and includes bonus track, "Can’t Help Myself" (E-Z Rollers Remix). A Different Beat will also be released on CD.


Gary Moore rocked the world of blues and rock with his virtuoso guitar playing and soulful voice. Best known for his evocative solo hits, Parisienne Walkways and Still Got The Blues, and his on/off membership of Thin Lizzy, Gary Moore’s solo career comprises over twenty albums. Throughout the 1980s, Gary moved up the rock hierarchy, but turned his back on what he regarded as the empty flash of metal and reverted to his heart music – the blues – where ironically he scored his biggest commercial success through his 1990s and 2000s blues albums.




A Different Beat saw Moore exploring a new direction, in this case combining his signature guitar work with contemporary dance beats. Fusing blues and dance music, A Different Beat stands as the boldest thing Moore ever did.


Moore is regarded as one of the most influential Irish musicians of all time. Having been honoured by both Gibson and Fender with signature guitars, the Northern Irish star is still seen as one of the best guitar players of all time.


To pre-order / stream A Different Beat, head here.





A Different Beat LP/CD tracklisting:


"Go On Home"
"Lost In Your Love"
"Worry No More"
"Fire"
"Surrender"
"House Full Of Blues "
"Bring My Baby Back"
"Can’t Help Myself"
"Fatboy"
"We Want Love"
"Can’t Help Myself" (E-Z Rollers Remix)