ANTHRAX has canceled its previously announced shows in continental Europe this fall.

The band was scheduled to kick off a European tour on September 27 in Birmingham, United Kingdom and wrap it up on November 4 in Milan, Italy.

Earlier today (Wednesday, August 31),ANTHRAX released the following statement via social media: "Sadly due to ongoing logistical issues and 2022 costs that are out of our control, we have no other option but to cancel the European leg of our upcoming 2022 tour. We will however be coming to the UK as scheduled. Tickets can be refunded at point of purchase".

ANTHRAX has just completed a U.S. tour with BLACK LABEL SOCIETY. Both bands played headline sets. HATEBREED, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the "Perseverance" album, was the special guest.

ANTHRAX's setlist on the trek included the addition of the John Bush-era track "Only", which hadn't been performed live since 2011.

"Only" originally appeared on 1993's "Sound Of White Noise", one of four albums Bush recorded with ANTHRAX during his 13-year tenure with the band.

ANTHRAX's latest album, "For All Kings", which features current singer Joey Belladonna, came out in February 2016 via Nuclear Blast.

ANTHRAX celebrated its 40th anniversary in 2021 with a number of special activities and events. Formed by Ian and bassist Dan Lilker in Queens, New York on July 18, 1981, ANTHRAX was one of the first thrash metal bands to emerge from the East Coast and quickly became regarded as a leader in the genre alongside METALLICA, SLAYER and MEGADETH.

Active over the past five decades, ANTHRAX has released 11 studio albums, been awarded multiple gold and platinum certifications, received six Grammy nominations, toured the world since 1984 playing thousands of shows, including headlining Madison Square Garden and playing Yankee Stadium with the "Big Four".

"For All Kings" was called by some critics ANTHRAX's strongest album to date. Its arrival followed a five-year period during which the group experienced a rebirth of sorts, beginning with ANTHRAX's inclusion on the "Big Four" tour, and continuing with the release of comeback LP "Worship Music".

Sadly due to ongoing logistical issues and 2022 costs that are out of our control, we have no other option but to cancel...

Posted by Anthrax on Wednesday, August 31, 2022

DOPE leader Edsel Dope, who is widely believed to be Xer0, the masked frontman of STATIC-X, was asked in a new interview with Anne Erickson of Audio Ink Radio if he is in fact the person who has spent much of the last three years performing and touring alongside bassist Tony Campos, drummer Ken Jay and guitarist Koichi Fukuda. He responded: "This is a fun question, and I can answer it for you like this. I would say that I'm certainly involved with STATIC-X. I produced the record [2020's 'Project Regeneration Vol. 1'] and I'm in the process of producing another one for them right now. I kind of like to consider myself to be the creative director for STATIC-X, because there was a big void left by [late STATIC-X frontman] Wayne [Static], and somebody sort of needed to step in that has that sort of capability. But as far as who's singing for STATIC-X under the mask, I think that it's important for me or for us to say that the goal was that for there always to only ever be one living, breathing singer of STATIC-X, and that's Wayne Static. And as long as we don't put another face to STATIC-X, then Wayne will always be the face of STATIC-X, and I think that that is ultimately the goal."

He continued: "The idea was to create an entity, for lack of better words, a masked entity that could allow STATIC-X to live on and to go out and perform while keeping the focus on the three guys that helped start the band with Wayne and somebody there to represent Wayne as opposed to replace Wayne. So, I'm definitely involved with STATIC-X. They're my friends, and I'm here for them. But the last thing that I'm ever interested in seeing is Edsel Dope being the vocalist of STATIC-X. That's not something I'd be interested in being. So, Edsel Dope is not the singer of STATIC-X."

Back in October 2019, a photo was posted online clearly showing that Dope and Xer0 shared the same neck tattoo. However, Edsel later posted a lengthy statement on his band's Facebook page attempting to quash the rumors, implying Xer0's distinctive body ink was in fact a Photoshop job. Dope even provided a photograph of himself supposedly observing a STATIC-X performance sidestage to prove he and Xer0 were not the same person.

STATIC-X's recent tour celebrated the 20th anniversary of the band's platinum-certified "Wisconsin Death Trip" album and paid homage to Static, who died eight years ago.

Two years ago, Campos discussed STATIC-X's comeback during an appearance on "The SDR Show". Speaking about how the idea of Xer0 wearing a mask in the likeness of Static came about, Tony said: "When we were trying to figure out how we were gonna do this live, the first thing that came up was the hologram thing, and that got shot down pretty quick.

"The thing about the band for us was the energy and the vibe that we all got from the interaction the four of us had on stage, and you just don't get that with a hologram. So that got chucked out the window pretty quickly. So we figured out it had to be somebody. Once we found Xer0 and saw and heard that he could do the job, we were, like, 'Cool. How do we present this in a cool way that doesn't make it about…?' 'Cause we didn't wanna come out and, like, 'Hey, here's STATIC-X with their new singer.' That's not what we were trying to do. It was about remembering Wayne and remembering the good times we had back in the early days and remembering the fun we all had together 20 years ago touring on 'Wisconsin Death Trip'. And so we really wanted to keep the focus on that and not on the new singer. So the idea of a mask came."

Campos continued: "Initially, we came up with a helmet that looked like the robot from the 'Push It' video and even shot some video footage of Xer0 wearing that, and it looked great. Logistically, it wasn't gonna work, though, 'cause you're blind in the thing. And so, what are you gonna do? Have somebody walk him out to the front of the stage, make sure he doesn't fall off the stage? So we were, like, 'Okay, what else can we do?' And so we thought of all these different merchandise items that we had, with skulls, with Wayne's hair and beard, and thought, 'Well, let's try something like that.' So we gave the idea to a friend of ours who designs masks for the SLIPKNOT guys, John 5, various other people, and she came back with that Xer0 mask. And then once we put the hair up, we were, like, 'Oh, yeah. Dude, that's it.' And so we went with that."

Asked if STATIC-X was still keeping Xer0's identity a secret even though "everyone knows" who he is, Tony said: "Yeah, but I still like to keep that distinction, 'cause, again, I'm trying to keep the focus [on remembering Wayne]."

According to Campos, Xer0 wasn't the only singer who was in the mix for the STATIC-X frontman job. "I had a few ideas in my head, but he was the first to come up and actually demonstrate that he could do the job," Tony explained. "So I was, like, 'I don't think I need to look any further.' [Laughs]"

Campos went on to say that he "knew there would be some negativity" on the Internet once STATIC-X had announced its comeback. "It was definitely a talking point, for sure," he said. "But I think once people heard our story and heard that Wayne's family had given us their blessing to do what we were doing, and then once they actually saw it, I think that was the big turning point. Once people came out and experienced the show and saw what we were doing, I think it made most of those people turn around."

"Project Regeneration Vol. 1" came out in July 2020. The first of two volumes, "Project Regeneration Vol. 1" featured 12 brand new tracks, containing many of the final vocal performances and musical compositions of Static, along with Campos, Jay and Fukuda. Both volumes are being worked on by longtime STATIC-X producer Ulrich Wild.

Static died after mixing Xanax and other powerful prescription drugs with alcohol, according to the coroner's report. The 48-year-old, whose real name was Wayne Richard Wells, was found dead in his Landers, California home on November 1, 2014.

Static founded STATIC-X in 1994 and achieved commercial success with "Wisconsin Death Trip", which included the rock radio hit "Push It".

The group issued five more studio albums before disbanding permanently in June 2013. Static had been pursuing a solo career at the time of his death.

HALESTORM frontwoman Lzzy Hale was a guest on the latest video episode of the podcast "Side Jams With Bryan Reesman". During the chat, which can be seen below, Lzzy discussed her paintings and went through all seven of her major pieces. Several excerpts from the conversation follow.

On her painting being colorful:

Lzzy: "It's definitely a strange part of my psyche because if you look in my closet, there's a lot of black. I don't have a whole lot of color in my life. When I first started getting into doing art, I started with sketching and just a lot of abstract ways of doodling. I would stop and start because I hadn't quite found my medium and the place that feels like home to me, feels like you can actually do something. So when I got into acrylic painting, I ended up doing the layers of color. I'm not necessarily using a paint brush, I'm using some scraper tools in order to spread things around and make little indentations and a lot of texture. Then I will layer over that with acrylic pour over paint which is so much fun and so messy. I almost feel like I am this little kid again in first grade discovering different colors and how to combine things and what can be a little bit more radical. It's been this weird extension of this colorful side that I need to get out in some way. I just started doing it and got a bunch of drop cloths, and I've messed up a bunch of old Levis because now they've been dubbed my painting jeans."

On her creative process:

Lzzy: "I'm putting on music most times and just going with that. For this one actually, I put on some '80s hair metal stuff. I think this was WINGER. [Laughs] But there's just an eclectic mixture of different things that I enjoy listening to. There was some DIO stuff in there. It's a lot of flying by the seat of my pants.

"I leave a lot of things up to chance. I like to do that with free form doodling too where you throw yourself headfirst into the maze and then almost decide to reveal whatever it's going to be. Sometimes you feel, like, 'Did I take that too far? Maybe my last step before the final form is where it's at.' Then sometimes those happy accidents — there's little things that bleed through that you want to accentuate, and that's the point. That was the reason for me doing that."

On being inspired by other artists:

Lzzy: "I love going to any type of local pop-up little art displays. That happens a lot. Like over the summer we'll be in some random place in Michigan and you'll see it advertised that somebody will be renting out just a space or a house. There's all these local artists that get to display some of their works. It's fun to immerse yourself. You get to look at life in a little bit of a different way and see it through their eyes, through their art. There's a friend of mine out of Cleveland, Ohio. Her name is Eileen Dorsey, and she's an amazing painter. She works with acrylics as well, but she does a lot of nature. It's a lot of wooded areas, like if you're standing right in the middle of it. She does a lot of murals, and her art is amazing. She has been doing it for years and actually got the opportunity to do a couple different things for some artists. She's coming up in the scene. She's one of my favorites. I've been nerding out with her — 'Hey, I finally started doing it.' She's, like, 'Awesome! If you need any advice, I'm here.' It's like a call to arms."

On how painting and fishing help her recharge with music:

Lzzy: "[They're] another way to turn your brain off, and I think that's important. I could say the same thing about cooking. It's important for people like us who are banking on the arts to keep things moving. You can get burnt out if you have all of your eggs in one basket. You can be like, I've been plugging away at this for a long time. I need a sidestep, I need something to take me away from this so that I can come back to it with fresh eyes, fresh ears. I used to feel guilty about it. 'I just spent four hours painting when I could be practicing guitar.' Or, 'I could be doing something else that would be forward movement for the band.' And then I realized that you shouldn't be feeling guilty for doing those things. Because it's all connected, and they all help each other."

On whether she would put her art on a guitar:

Lzzy: "I have a couple of guitars that I probably would be brave enough to do that with. I could screw them up a little bit. I might have to strip it down a little bit, but that would be an interesting project. Just to do something like this and I'd have to end up putting a lacquer on top of it. That'd be fun."

HALESTORM is continuing to tour in support of its fifth studio album album, "Back From The Dead", which was released in May via Atlantic. The follow-up to 2018's "Vicious" was produced by Nick Raskulinecz (FOO FIGHTERS, MASTODON, ALICE IN CHAINS) with co-production by Scott Stevens (SHINEDOWN, DAUGHTRY, NEW YEARS DAY).

Lzzy and her brother Arejay (drums) formed the band in 1998 while in middle school. Guitarist Joe Hottinger joined the group in 2003, followed by bassist Josh Smith in 2004.

In December 2018, HALESTORM was nominated for a "Best Rock Performance" Grammy Award for its song "Uncomfortable". Six years earlier, the band won its first Grammy in the category of "Best Hard Rock/ Metal Performance" for "Love Bites (So Do I)".

New York City post-hardcore band QUICKSAND has released a mesmerizing new single, "Giving The Past Away", ahead of a tour with CLUTCH and HELMET, in support of their 2021 album "Distant Populations". A continuation of the critically acclaimed album, the track is driven by a thunderous bassline and growling guitar riff for a raw rock and roll swagger.

"The working title for this song was 'Greatest Quicksand Song Ever' so you can imagine it was a very tough call leaving this song off 'Distant Populations'," the band comments. "The only reason we could agree on to leave it off was that we wanted to have some really strong material in reserve for later in the year. Ultimately the title came from the most prominent line in the song which is an embrace of the present which is very in line with our thinking with 'Distant Populations'. We're super proud of this one and are very psyched to share it with the world."

Recorded at Studio 4 Recording in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, "Distant Populations" was produced and engineered by Will Yip (THE MENZINGERS, CODE ORANGE, DEFEATER) and mixed by Josh Wilbur (LAMB OF GOD, MEGADETH, AVENGED SEVENFOLD). The album is the follow-up to the critically lauded 2017 release "Interiors". Sonically it has a punchier, more up-tempo sound than its predecessor, with its 11 songs being concise, carved sonic jewels boasting not a single wasted note. Its gripping lyricism and raw power leap out from the very first listening.

Formed in 1990, QUICKSAND made its full-length debut with "Slip" — a 1993 release praised by The A.V. Club as "a nearly flawless record that combines the irony and heaviness of HELMET with FUGAZI's penchant to dismantle sound in the most energetic ways." Arriving in 1995, their sophomore album "Manic Compression" appeared at No. 1 on the Top Five Best Post-Hardcore Records list from LA Weekly (who noted that "if there were any justice in the world, QUICKSAND would have been the biggest underground band of the '90s").

Throughout the early '90s, QUICKSAND toured with bands like HELMET, FUGAZI, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE and ANTHRAX. After disbanding in late 1995, they reunited for a one-night performance in June 2012. They've since appeared at festivals like FYF Fest and Pukkelpop, and in 2013 embarked on their first North American tour in 15 years. In 2017, the band released their long-awaited third-studio album "Interiors" which saw Consequence Of Sound praise the band for their sound "that nobody else has been able to replicate in all the time they've been gone."

QUICKSAND is frontman/guitarist Walter Schreifels, bassist Sergio Vega and drummer Alan Cage. They will be heading out on a North American tour with HELMET and CLUTCH starting September 13 in Toronto and ending October 23rd in New York.

Motörhead's classic "Ace of Spades" has been given the 1920's jazz treatment by Postmodern Jukebox vocalist  Robyn Adele Anderson and her band. Check out this new rendition of the song below.


The video performance was shot in one take.







Amderson and her band previously tackled Metallica’s 1986 thrash metal classic “Master Of Puppets”, which entered the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the first time ever after gaining new life being featured Netflix’s hit series, Stranger Things.

Skid Row vocalist Erik Grönwall has shared another cover video. This time he takes on the Europe classic, "Let The Good Times Rock", taken from the 1988 album, Out Of This World.


Grönwall: "One of the most successful rock bands of all time, rock n' roll the Swedish way! Featuring one of my favourite guitarists and former bandmate Erik Hammarbäck (a.k.a Eric Rivers) ex H.E.A.T."







Next week's episode of the In The Trenches With Ryan Roxie podcast features Grönwall as the special guest. Don't miss the live premiere on Ryan Roxie's official YouTube channel on Friday, September 2nd at at 12 pm EST.





In The Trenches With Ryan Roxie is a podcast hosted by Alice Cooper guitarist Ryan Roxie. The show features in-depth conversations with the world's hardest working musicians and entertainers... the ones that grind, the ones that commit, the ones who make their dreams come true... in the trenches.


Earlier this summer, Skid Row released a new song and video from their upcoming Nick Raskulinecz-produced album, The Gang's All Here, available everywhere October 14 via earMUSIC. "Tear It Down" is everything fans ever loved about Skid Row all in one - swaggering vocals, a signature guitar riff, groove to burn, and a call to action.


"'Tear It Down' is about breaking down barriers. Because coexisting isn't about building walls; it's about getting rid of them," says bassist Rachel Bolan.


The video, which was produced by Take 2 Productions/Rosey Media, was filmed in the band's home state of New Jersey, and perfectly captures the raw and gritty nature of Skid Row's music.


It's cliché to say that a band has all their lives to write a first album. The truth is that they spend the rest of their lives trying to understand how they did it. The Gang's All Here is the octane of an attitude that's been festering since the band formed in 1986. Producer Nick Raskulinecz lit a creative wildfire by challenging them to deconstruct good ideas and rebuild them into something even better, something timeless. He became the arbiter of their legacy, daring them to revert to instinct and be the same rambunctious kids who made their first two albums.


There is no time for waiting around - "Tear it Down!"





The Gang's All Here - you, the band, and the attitude of being forever wild and young at heart. The song will rekindle everything you felt that first time you heard the band. It's like the first time you heard Skid Row - all over again. Better work up the money because someone is getting busted.


The Gang's All Here album can be pre-ordered here.





The Gang's All Here tracklisting:


"Hell Or High Water"
"The Gang's All Here"
"Not Dead Yet"
"Time Bomb"
"Resurrected"
"Nowhere Fast"
"When The Lights Come On"
"Tear It Down"
"October's Song"
"World's On Fire"


"The Gang's All Here: (Official Fan Video):





"The Gang’s All Here" visualizer:





Catch Skid Row on tour across America:


September
9 - Robinsonville, MS - Horseshoe Casino
15 - Lynn, MA - Lynn Auditorium
17 - Salamaca, NY - Senica Casino
23 - Reno, NV - Silver Legacy


October
7 - Ilani Casino - Ridgefield, WA
8 - Shelton, WA - Little Creed Casino
11 - Perry, GA - Georgia National Fair
14 - Bethlehem, PA - Wild Creek Casino
15 - Uncasville, CT - Mohegan Sun Casino

Five years following their debut album Erosion, Montreal progressive metal group Cydemind announces its return in 2022 with the release of their second installment The Descent, available on all platforms on November 4.


“With Erosion, we were young and were still trying to define our own sound,” remembers drummer Alexander Dagenais, “which is why we previously chose producer Chris Donaldson (Cryptopsy, The Agonist, Beyond Creation), who had considerable experience under his belt. This time around, the band has made a decision to lean towards self-production. Although we’ve encountered obstacles along the way, as well as significant delays, we couldn’t be prouder of the final product.”


Cydemind will showcase seven new tracks on an album lasting just under 60 minutes. "With The Descent, we delved into the concept of obsessions and the abysses into which they can plunge the human mind," says Olivier Allard, violinist.




"The album takes us along one’s descent into hell,'' explains guitarist Kevin Paquet. “The first track, Obsessions, acts as an opening. The song contains rhythmic and melodic motifs from each of the tracks on the album. The opening melody acts a bit like the leitmotif of the obsession (whichever it is), returning several times throughout the course of the album. We follow this up with Hoax, a song that incorporates several elements of funk. As hinted by the name of the track, you should not expect the album to respect that tone; on the contrary, the music gradually shifts into something much more sinister and complex."


The band’s lineup remains the same for this second release: Olivier Allard (violin), Nico Damoulianos (bass guitar), Alexander Dagenais (drums), Camille Delage (piano and keyboards), and Kevin Paquet (guitars)


The album was mixed by Simon L’Espérance (Karcius) and mastered by Tony Lindgren (Fascination Street Studios). The cover art for the album was created by Alexander Dagenais.


The first single and album pre-order will be unveiled during September.





Tracklisting:


“Obsessions”
“Hoax”
“Breach”
“Call Of The Void”
“Hemlock”
“Slumber”
“The Last Stone”

After an intense summer, with many major European Festivals (Hellfest, Pol’and’Rock, Reload), Romania's Dirty Shirt are offering up a sizzling new music video “Hot for Summer”.





The video was produced by Vlad Bornuz (Dirty Shirt – Dope-a-Min, E-an-na – Toropeala), and the song was composed by Mihai Tivadar, with lyrics by Mathieu "Boots" di Pilla & Mihai Tivadar, along with audio production by Adrian "Bila" Uritescu (Low5Bass Studio, Deva).




“‘Hot For Summer’ is probably the craziest song of the album, a very short song that changes the ambiance constantly. After a very soft and cliché intro, we enter the first chorus in English, kind of a Eurovision style of music with some ‘80s influences. Then it changes completely, with a Balkan part, followed by a very aggressive metal drop. After that, we go back to the chorus, but this time in Italian to reinforce the Eurovision feeling. Moving along to a marching section, which develops into a Tango part, sang in Italian, that resumes the Balkan melodic line. The song ends in symmetry, recalling the soft intro. Thematically, the song criticizes the mainstream music industry, with how boring these pop summer hits can sound, and with a generally very simplistic and repetitive recipe, which revolves around a financial objective," adds vocalist Mihai Tivadar.


Dirty Shirt's sixth album Get Your Dose Now! is a shorter nine-track album, with a little more than 30 minutes, but Dirty Shirt maintains that the listening experience will be very intense, as they combine many influences, and the songs change constantly with complex orchestrations. It was produced by Mihai Tivadar, mixed and mastered by Adrian Bila Uritescu and the album artwork was done by Lia Cucuianu.





Dirty Shirt brings a truly unique live experience, huge energy, huge emotions, and fun, with a scaling lineup based on the performance, which adds a lot of authenticity and a great live sound. The band will continue their European tour in support of Get Your Dose Now! with shows in Romania, France, Belgium, and Poland (dates to be announced soon).


Recommended for anyone looking for something interesting and lively, Dirty Shirt is for fans of Twelve Foot Ninja, Dubioza Kolektiv, and Eluveitie. Get Your Dose Now! is available on all digital platforms.


(Photo - Vladut Ciprian)

Bittersweet news from German old school thrashers Daily Insanity. In a statement on their website and social media channels the trio announced the end of the band:


"All things must come to an end. As hard as it is to write these words, we are announcing the end of Daily Insanity! A decision that has not been made lightly, but we feel it's the right move to end the band on a high note. We just started our The Final Crusade Farewell Tour which will bring the band to as many places as possible. We know that this tour doesn’t reach all of you, but we have done our best to fit what we can into this window of time. The full list of 2022 dates is announced and the tour is expected to continue in 2023. It’s going to be one hell of a farewell party at these concerts! Do not miss this chance, because there will be no next time!"


Daily Insanity put out what would be their final album Chronicles Of War in 2021, followed by a single called "Doomed" in June 2022.




For the people who liked the music of Daily Insanity, main songwriter Gene has some good news:


"Daily Insanity was an absolutely incredible chapter of our lives. But over time perspectives and people change. It's time to embark to a new chapter. And as many already know, since 2021 Felix and me are working on our new heavy metal project Veil Of The Serpent, with which we will release A LOT of great music in the future. So keep an eye on that!"





The band started their The Final Crusade Tour in June with which the band offers one last chance for fans to experience their crushing live performances. The tour is expected to continue in 2023.

White Skull has announced the release of their new album Metal Never Rusts via ROAR! Rock Of Angels Records.


White Skull is a well-known Italian power metal band that has been delivering superlative metal songs since the ‘90s. Sharp voice, screaming guitars, hammering rhythms, a stunning mixture of power and melody: the result is an enthralling and gripping sound, coming from the true metal hearts of energetic and inspired musicians. Fast thundering rhythmic section powered by a new ignition spark and hyper charged by melodies and harmonies produced by bewitching vocals and magnetic keyboard arrangements. 


The new album is blessed by renewed and powerful energy that bounces from song to song with a level of intensity and magnitude superior to all previous albums because, when forged with passion, true Metal Never Rusts!




Metal Never Rusts will be released on October 21, 2022 as digipack CD and digital streaming/download format and on December 16, 2022 as Curacao Vinyl edition that is limited to 500 copies worldwide.


Cover by Uwe Jarling:





Tracklisting:


“Hammer On Thin Ice”
“Metal Never Rusts”
“Skull In The Closet”
“Black Ship”
“Heavily Mental”
“Scary Quiet”
“Ad Maiora Semper”
“Jingle Hell”
“Pay To Play”
“Weathering The Storm” 


White Skull are:
Federica Sister De Boni – Vocals
Tony Mad Fontò – Rhythm Guitar
Valentino Francavilla – Lead Guitar
Alexandros Muscio – Keyboards
Jo Raddi – Bass
Alex Mantiero – Drums


Guests on the album:
Chris Boltendahl (Grave Digger) – Special Guest vocal in “Scary Quiet”
Marzia Fontana, Francesca Battistini, Irene Trinca, Fabio Simonato, Rossano “Ross” Casarin, Dario Cisotto, Edoardo “Dodo” Fusaro, as background vocals

Portland-based dark power metal group Silver Talon has released a special 2-song exclusive EP. Bloodflow, available for streaming or download at all digital platforms. Stream/purchase on Bandcamp.


“Since we’re busy working on our follow-up to Decadence And Decay, we figured injecting at least a little blood-flow into our discography would help tide folks over until that’s ready,” explains guitarist Bryce VanHoosen. “Here’s our tribute to two bands that get us consistently pumped and have inspired us to do what we do today – Cro-Mags and Alice In Chains. We really enjoyed recording these, and hope that you enjoy listening to them as well.”







Silver Talon recently completed a west coast tour supporting neoclassical death thrashers Exmortus and the next generation of Bay Area Thrash Hatriot, as well as several fest appearances such as Vancouver’s Hyperspace and Chicago’s Legions of Metal Fest. Next on the list Silver Talon will perform as part of Tijuana’s Dragon Rojo Metalfest in mid-November alongside Dying Fetus, Hirax, Blood Feast, Riot V, Tim ‘Ripper’ Owens, and labelmates Cemican.


Silver Talon is:
Wyatt Howell – Vocals
Bryce R. VanHoosen – Guitar
Devon Miller – Guitar
Walter Hartzell – Bass
Michael Thompson – Drums

Connecticut metalcore innovators Currents have shared the video for the new song "The Death We Seek."





"'The Death We Seek' is about the weight of our choices and our responsibility for their outcomes," singer Brian Wille offers. "The video follows two individuals attempting to stop a looming apocalypse, only to be sabotaged by forces beyond their control or understanding. This song was written shortly after the completion and release of [2020 full-length] The Way It Ends, and felt like the perfect way to build on and continue the story behind the music and reintroduce ourselves to the world."




No stranger to turning a critical eye toward both the external commotion and internal battles that rage deep within the confines of one's own mind, Currents don't pretend that life is a bed of well-placed roses. Rather, it has been by way of exploring the realms of our collective tortured psyches and ferociously searching for meaning amidst uncertain chaos that the band has won the hearts of metal fans across the globe; a feat evidenced by 80+ million catalog streams and packed tours supporting the likes of Ice Nine Kills, Thy Art is Murder, August Burns Red, As I Lay Dying, We Came As Romans, Fit For A King, and more. 


Keen on backing up impactful themes such as heartache, abandonment, personal growth, and responsibility, with technical riffage and emotive atmospherics, Currents' second full-length album The Way It Ends (2020) saw them connect with their largest audience to date, selling over 6,000 vinyl despite the global touring shutdown, rocketing to No. 2 on the Top New Artist and Current Hard Rock Billboard Charts, and earning glowing praise from prominent outlets such as Kerrang!, Revolver, Rock Sound, and Metal Hammer.





The band is back with the first new materials since The Way It Ends with "The Death We Seek."


Recorded in December 2021 at guitarist Chris Wiseman's studio in Beacon, New York, Currents once again called upon The Way it Ends/I Let the Devil In producer Ryan Leitru (In Search Of Solace, Like Moths To Flames, WCAR), and seasoned mix/mastering engineer Jeff Dunne (Wage War, Silent Planet, Make Them Suffer) to help guide the sonic direction of their new track. Together, the team churned out a seething blend of progressive metalcore-laced elements and moody post-hardcore to fuel the fire of Currents' narrative message.  


Biding their time for the right moment to strike, Currents — much like the apocalyptic collapse foretold in their latest single — plow ahead like an unstoppable force, expressing their vision through anguished eyes, pounding riffs, and the powerful desire to lay the groundwork for the plotlines of a larger story still to come.


Currents are:
Brian Wille — Vocals 
Chris Wiseman — Guitar 
Ryan Castaldi — Guitar 
Christian Pulgarin — Bass 
Matt Young — Drums

Rising Steel's new album, Beyond The Gates Of Hell, will be released on November 18 via Frontiers Music Srl. Their third full-length album overall sees the French metallers playing as ferociously as ever and evolving forward from their last release, the well received Fight Them All.


Get your first look at the new album with the single and video, "Run For Your Life". Watch the video below, and pre-order/save Beyond The Gates Of Hell here.


Rising Steel is a heavy metal band from Grenoble, France. The quintet delivers a “not so” classical heavy metal sound with their influences coming mainly from the 80’s NWOBHM, hard rock, and thrash metal scenes. Solid and powerful metal music, the band is inspired by the legacies of legends like Judas Priest and Iron Maiden and is recommended for fans with diverse metal palates who like bands ranging from early Metallica, Accept, Saxon, Grand Magus, Nevermore, Slayer, and beyond.







Tracklisting:


"Beyond The Gates Of Hell"
"From Darkness"
"Life Awaits"
"Death Of A Vampire"
"Run For Your Life"
"Infinite Pain"
"Skullcrusher"
"My Burning Time"   
"Beast"
"We Are Free"


"Run For Your Life" video:





Lineup:


Emmanuelson - Vocals
Tony Steel - Guitars
Steff Leadmaster - Guitars
Stone Warrior - Bass
Steel Zard - Drums

Australian extreme metal group, Psycroptic, have released a video for "The Prophet's Council", taken from the band's eighth studio album, Divine Council, out now via Prosthetic Records. Watch NJV Media-directed clip below:





Divine Council is an album that oozes confidence, maturity and a relaxed self-assurance befitting of a band with a rich legacy behind them, and an unconstrained future ahead of them. Order/save Divine Council at this location.







Divine Council tracklisting:


"Rend Asunder"
"A Fool's Errand"
"This Shadowed World"
"Enslavement"
"Ashes Of Our Empire"
"The Prophet's Council"
"Awakening"
"A Fragile Existence"
"Exitus"


"A Fool's Errand" video:





"Rend Asunder" video:





Lineup:


Jason Peppiatt - Vocals (studio and live)
Jason Keyser - Vocals (studio only)
Joe Haley - Guitar
Todd Stern - Bass
Dave Haley - Drums


(Photo - Michael Rankine)

International progressive metal quintet Philosophobia, formed by current and former members of Kamelot, Pain Of Salvation, Wastefall, and more, released their eponymous debut album through Sensory Records in June. Continuing to promote the album, a video for the track “I Am” can be viewed below.


“I Am” features guest vocals by Damian Wilson (Headspace, Threshold). With the premiere of the song’s new video, guitarist Andreas Ballnus reveals, “Lyrically, ‘I Am’ is about all situations going wrong at the moment… wars, natural disasters, diseases, and so forth. Whatever virus comes up, whatever natural disaster happens, there is quite a big chance that we, the human species, are the source for it with all our greed for success and money. With only ourselves in mind we forget that we cannot live without the help of this planet. Yet we exploit it to the maximum and destroy ourselves. And still, we think that we are the crown of creation and call ourselves saviors. And maybe that is true. With all the wars, diseases, and disasters that we have created, we might become the saviors for this planet by decimating our own population and finally become extinct. ‘I am the core of all your wrongs...I am the virus in your lungs...I am you!’"







Philosophobia unites vocalist Domenik Papaemmanouil, bassist Kristoffer Gildenlöw, drummer Alex Landenburg, keyboardist Tobias Weißgerber, and guitarist Andreas Ballnus. The band is now preparing to issue their eponymous debut album via Sensory Records, the band’s top choice for its release, in conjunction with Kristoffer Gildenlöw‘s return to prog metal on stages worldwide since his departure from Pain Of Salvation.


Together with recording engineer and producer Phil Hillen (Powerwolf, Kamelot, Alyssa White Gluz), Philosophobia recorded an hour-long experience covering a wide range of textures; somber tunes to heavy prog metal tracks to instrumentally artistic roller coaster rides. Philosophobia was mastered by Alan Douches (Fates Warning, Redemption, Mastodon) at West West Side Music in New York, and completed with cover artwork conceived by Ballnus and created by Björn Gooßes/Killustrations.





Tracklisting:


"Thorn In Your Pride"
"I Am"
"Time To Breathe"
"Between The Pines"
"As Light Ceased To Exist"
"Thirteen Years Of Silence"
"Voices Unheard"
"Within My Open Eyes"


"Voices Unheard":





"Time To Breathe" video:





Lineup:


Kristoffer Gildenlöw - bass
Alex Landenburg - drums
Domenik Papaemmanouil - vocals
Andreas Ballnus - guitars
Tobias Weißgerber - keys

Plane Groovy and Rocking Horse Music announce the 2022 release of Rocking Horse Music Club’s genre-defying new concept album/rock opera, Circus Of Wire Dolls. The album will be released on double CD on September 16, with double vinyl to follow on October 21.


“On the surface, the record tells the story of a man who creates a miniature circus out of wire, string, and cloth,” explains producer/songwriter Brian Coombes, “but it’s really about a man looking back at his life, his work, the people who entered and exited his world, his successes, his failures, his regrets.”


Circus Of Wire Dolls is the follow-up to the band’s Anthony Phillips tribute album, Which Way The Wind Blows (2019). “After the Ant Phillips tribute, which was a true labor of love for me, I wanted the band to get back to doing what we do best,” states Coombes. “We’re primarily songwriters, so I wanted the band to get back to showcasing our own material.”




With its theatrical presentation, Circus Of Wire Dolls required a number of singers to voice the characters in the story. In addition to the band’s three singers/songwriters Justin Cohn, Patrik Gochez, and Brian Coombes, the characters are brought to life by: Ms Amy Birks, Tim Bowness, Caroline Carter (Miss New Hampshire 2017), Evelyn Cormier (American Idol), Chris Difford (Squeeze), Noel McCalla (the voice of Mike Rutherford’s Smallcreep’s Day), and Sing Gospel Choir of London.


In addition to the in-house instrumental talent of the Music Club, the project also features special guest musicians, including: David Cross (ex-King Crimson) on violin, Kenwood Dennard (ex-Brand X) on additional drums, Melvin Duffy (Squeeze) on pedal steel, John Hackett on flute, Greg Hawkes (The Cars) on alto saxophone, Rob Townsend (Steve Hackett) on soprano saxophone, Kate St John (Dream Academy) on oboe, cor anglais, and accordion.


While progressive rock was the album’s primary influence, the band also drew inspiration from 1960’s baroque/symphonic pop (The Beatles, The Zombies, and Pet Sounds-era Beach Boys), art rock/glam (Roxy Music, David Bowie, Queen), 1980’s new wave (Tears For Fears, The Cars, Squeeze), and touches of gospel, jazz fusion, folk/americana, and modern musical theatre.


The album’s sound is warm and lush, with orchestral instrumentation and backing vocal arrangements augmenting the band’s sound. Vintage keyboards, including mellotron, optigan, celeste, and the famous Mrs Mills and Challen pianos from Abbey Road, also contribute to the album’s sonic identity.


The album was recorded at Rocking Horse Studio in New Hampshire USA, with additional recording at Abbey Road in London.


Rocking Horse Music Club will be performing the album on March 17 & 18, 2023 at Trading Boundaries, Sheffield Green, Fletching UK.

Chicago, Illinois’ “sons of sleaze”, Bones, return with their most in-your-face release to date with their aptly titled fourth album, Vomit, preparing to release the demoralizing record through Disorder Recordings in October.


Bones unites drummer/vocalist Joe Warlord (Usurper), guitarist Carcass Chris (ex-Usurper), and bassist/lead vocalist Jon Necromancer (Contrition, High Spirits, ex-Usurper). Vomit sees The Windy City's filthiest trio continue their signature blend of death, thrash, and black metal on cuts like “Beware Of Ghouls” and “Noose,” while also venturing into sludgier elements on the title track and ripper “Tower Of Skulls.” Drummer Joe Warlord even treads in early Neurosis territory on the tribal drum heavy instrumental, “Retch.” While these elements are truly new territory for Bones, overall, the band relentlessly sticks to the roots of their tainted peers in Autopsy, Coffins, Nunslaughter, and the like.


Vomit was tracked over two days at Steve Albini's Electrical Audio by Jon San Paulo (Shellac, Pelican, Neurosis) and one day at Hypercube Studio with Sanford Parker (Voivod, Darkthrone, Leviathan). The album was then mastered by Collin Jordan at The Boiler Room (Macabre, Eyehategod, Ministry) and completed with gruesome artwork by XNA Casperson (Dawnbringer, Zuul) and design by Eva Flora. Nick Hernandez (Dysphoria, ex-Kommandant) provides guest vocals on the closing song - a cover of Van Halen’s “She's The Woman” - which was recorded just days before Eddie Van Halen’s death and will be a CD/Bandcamp exclusive track.




Prepare to defile your eyes and ears... Vomit is the grossest album of 2022. Check out a brief teaser below.


Disorder Recordings will release Vomit on CD and digitally on October 28. Find pre-orders here, and stand by for audio previews and more to post over the bleak weeks ahead.





Tracklisting:


"Beware Of Ghouls"
"Death Sentence"
"Noose"
"Tower Of Skulls"
"Brazen Bull"
"Retch"
"Vomit"
"Bloodlust"
"She’s The Woman" (Van Halen cover)


Teaser:





The day after the release of Vomit, Bones will celebrate the record with a hometown release show October 29 supporting Autopsy with additional support from Cardiac Arrest and comedian Dave Hill. Watch for additional shows and tour dates to be posted over the months ahead.





Lineup:


Joe Warlord - drums, percussion, vocals
Carcass Chris - guitar
Jon Necromancer - bass, lead vocals


(Photo - Ampere Images)

The duchess and dukes of darkness, Defacing God, have returned to unleash their wrath with their new album, The ResurrectionOof Lilith, out this Friday via Napalm Records. Casting new spells, the band is ready to meet their nemesis and raise hellfire by summoning Lilith, the mother of Darkness.


Rooted in occultism and witchcraft, Defacing God strives on ancient stories and grandiose soundscapes conjuring their worthy representation of opulent Scandinavian metal traditions. Echoing styles of artists such as Dimmu Borgir and Cradle Of Filth. The band continues the legacy of unconventional extreme metal, taking their rightful place in the garden of Eden and ready to deface God.


But first, Defacing God complete the unholy trinity with their third offering, just before the album drops. Their new single “The Resurrection” summons the sacred sovereignty Lilith and showcases the band’s potential lying within extreme melodies with a twist of haunting riffs and indelible drums that immerse astoundingly with the gory growls of vocalist Sandie The Lilith. Stirring with powerful feminine rage, Defacing God encapsulates symphonic sounds with extreme power, creating anthems for the banished.




Defacing God on “The Resurrection”: “'The Resurrection' - the title track of the beast we are about to release! This song is dedicated to Lilith and her resurrection. A song of rebellion and an all-consuming need for revenge. Revenge over those who banished her to a cursed fate and revenge in the name of all her fellow witches - her blood sisters - strong women throughout history who never got a voice!’”


Join the cult and watch the lyric video for “The Resurrection”:





Through their storytelling, music and aesthetic, the band pulls their listeners into a dark universe of obscure myths, folklore and ancient stories, all the while weaving in often subtle lyrical inspirations from modern societal oppressions and personal demons. Sonically, Defacing God balance massive extreme melodies with a twist of grandiose orchestration by Lars Vinther, echoing the styles of artists such as Cradle of Filth, Carach Angren and Dimmu Borgir. But rather than blend it with a conventional dose of black metal, the band proudly merges these auras with infernal death metal. Additionally, The Resurrection Of Lilith was produced by Jacob Hansen – known for his work with Fleshgod Apocalypse, Volbeat, Evergrey, Epica and countless others.


Defacing God state: “A lot of mixed emotions and passion has been held over and inside this album and to support those emotions our sound is both eerie and dramatic, filled with symphonic details to set the mood and atmosphere. We have created a lot of details so that the listener is challenged, which is why it is important to mention that we chose to work with Lars Vinther on the tracks.


Lars did the orchestration parts and he is that ´´extra´´ we needed to complete our sound with the classical components and to make our sound more grandiose and dramatic. The use of classical instruments/symphonics is something that is more seen in the modern black metal genre (Cradle, Dimmu Borgir etc.) But we play melodic death metal and because of our love for classical music and our dark and massive sound, we thought it would be interesting to experiment with the orchestrations and more layers in our music.


Melodic death metal has been made a million times before, but I think we managed to make this piece very personal with all the experimenting.


The album arises with a cinematic, chanting introduction, leading the listener into the demonic world of Defacing God. Building up tension to release into an uncompromising melodic, orchestral death metal assault on “The Invocation Part I “Lilith””, the track emerges as the first of three songs introducing female forces of legend as a trinity to be reckoned with – the first being Lilith, Adam’s first wife, who refused to obey and now reigns as a symbol of feminine rage and independency, but also for the darkness found within oneself. Bookending the undeniably strong “The Resurrection” are parts two and three – “The Invocation Part II “Jezebel”” and “The Invocation Part III “Abyzou”” – which lead into “Rise Of The Trinity”. The remainder of The Resurrection Of Lilith proves to be an auditory onslaught of epic proportions, seeing Defacing God unleash their supreme power and full songwriting dynamics with varying yet unrelentingly hard-hitting tracks like “The End of Times”, “Echoes From Fulda”, “Death Followed Like a Plague” and “Enslaved”. Penultimate track “In the Land of Rain and Sorrow” blasts with a blackened, dense wall of sound before the album closes with encapsulating, symphonic “Into the Mist of Memories” – featuring a neo-classically inspired guitar solo."





The Resurrection Of Lilith will be available in the following formats:


- Digisleeve
- 1LP Gatefold Red Vinyl
- Digital Album


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"Black Moon"
"The Invocation Part I "Lilith"
"The Resurrection"
"The Invocation Part II "Jezebel"
"The Invocation Part III "Abyzou"
"Rise Of The Trinity"
"The End Of Times"
"Echoes From Fulda"
"Death Followed Like A Plague"
"Enslaved"
"In The Land Of Rain And Sorrow"
"Into The Mist Of Memories"


"The End Of Times” video:





"Rise Of The Trinity" video:





Lineup:


Sandie Gjørtz - Vocals
Signar Petersen - Lead Guitar
Christian Snapholt Nielsen - Rhythm Guitar
Michael Olsson - Drums
Rasmus "Kalke" Nielsen - Bass


(Photo - Nikolaj Bransholm/Bransholm Photography)

Former Suicide Silence guitarist Rick Ash and drummer Josh Goddard are releaseing new music for the first time since writing Suicide Silence's "Bludgeoned To Death", and their self-titled 2005 EP.


Released under the name Torn Within, "Crypsis" is the second single from their debut album, scheduled for release this winter. "Crypsis" is available now on all streaming platforms, and for download at Bandcamp.







Torn Within originated in 2003. Hailing from the Inland Empire in Southern California, the group was formed by guitarist Rick Ash and vocalist/guitarist Justin Smith. Still fronted by Smith, now a Marine Corps drill instructor, the band is recording its full-length album remotely, with members in Arizona, California, and Colorado.

California deathcore act SUICIDE SILENCE has released a new song called "You Must Die" via Century Media Records. The track, which is taken from the band's upcoming album "Remember… You Must Die", is available on all digital platforms. The music video for the song will premiere today at 7 p.m CET / 1 p.m. EST / 10 a.m. PST.

SUICIDE SILENCE stated about "You Must Die": "'You Must Die' reminds us that time is merciless. Every second the clock ticks we grow closer to death and what happens after our short bout with time is a total mystery. 'You Must Die' was written as a reminder to remember death and to not let time be our master."

SUICIDE SILENCE's seventh studio album, "Remember… You Must Die", was produced and mixed by Taylor Young (NAILS, XIBALBA, VITRIOL) and will be released the first quarter of 2023. For the artwork, the band enlisted renowned necrosurrealist artist David Van Gough to visualize the concept.

Before the album release, SUICIDE SILENCE will hit the road with LAMB OF GOD and KILLSWITCH ENGAGE for the "Omens" fall 2022 U.S. tour. Then, this November SUICIDE SILENCE will join AFTER THE BURIAL in Europe for the "Impericon Never Say Die! Tour 2022".

This past May, SUICIDE SILENCE released a new song, "Thinking In Tongues". The track marked SUICIDE SILENCE's final recording with longtime drummer Alex Lopez who exited the band in April. Ernie Iniguez, who recorded drums on SUICIDE SILENCE's "Become The Hunter" album, drummed for the group on the "Chaos & Carnage" tour and European festival run.

Lopez joined SUICIDE SILENCE in 2006 as the replacement for the band's original drummer Josh Goddard. He has appeared on all six of SUICIDE SILENCE's studio albums, including the group's latest, the aforementioned "Become The Hunter".

SUICIDE SILENCE's debut album, 2007's "The Cleansing", received an expanded 15th-anniversary re-release in June. "The Cleansing (Ultimate Edition)" includes liner notes by the band as well as extensive bonus material.

With nearly two decades of non-stop touring around the globe, hundreds of thousands of records sold, and cementing themselves as a linchpin band in modern extreme metal, the Riverside, California quintet recently returned to Century Media, the label that released the highly acclaimed albums "The Cleansing", "No Time To Bleed" (2009) and "The Black Crown" (2011).

"Remember… You Must Die" will be SUICIDE SILENCE's fourth LP with vocalist Hernan "Eddie" Hermida (ex-ALL SHALL PERISH),who joined the band following the passing of frontman Mitch Lucker.

SUICIDE SILENCE is (left to right in photo): Chris Garza (guitar),Mark Heylmun (guitar),Eddie Hermida (vocals),Ernie Iniguez (drums) and Dan Kenny (bass).

Photo by Travis Shinn

MEGADETH frontman Dave Mustaine, who was diagnosed with throat cancer in May 2019, spoke to The Irish Times about how his battle with the disease has affected the way he approaches his life, both on and off the stage. He said: "I think I'm 100 percent. I got my all-clear from the doctor in October of [2019]. I should be coming up on my three-year anniversary. That's pretty cool stuff.

"We worked really hard on all of the treatment and on the nutrition and all the personal stuff that I had to do outside the hospital. The doctors set up this really brutal program to address the cancer. They wanted to kill it without having to do any surgery.

"I told the doctors that I was a little concerned that Eddie Van Halen had part of his tongue cut out. Bruce Dickinson — the IRON MAIDEN lead singer — and [actor] Michael Douglas had got it too, and I was part of the club. We had a great program.

"My doctors are really great. Whenever anybody goes to see a doctor and gives you the all-clear for your health, you are usually really, really grateful.

"It doesn't have any power over me anymore. I want to make sure that people don't get discouraged when they hear news like that. I went to two doctors in Tennessee, and they knew how important it was for me to continue singing."

Mustaine previously discussed his life after his cancer battle during an appearance this past May on Full Metal Jackie's nationally syndicated radio show. He said: "Well, obviously, there's a diet, there's the food sources and liquids and how they affect my blood, my sugar in my blood, the dairy stuff in my blood. But I've never really worried too much about that 'cause I kind of have just gone out there and screamed my point across. So I think that that's one thing that as I try and live a cleaner life because of the cancer…

"I'm cancer-free now, thank God," he continued. "I just went and saw my radiologist and he told me October [2019] was the month that they had said that I was cancer-free. So I'm coming up on, I think it's three years now.

"I don't even think about it anymore. But it was something that made me take into consideration life in general, not so much what I do when I get onstage but just how much do I really appreciate the people around me? How much do I have a capacity in my heart to tolerate people that get on my nerves? Am I gonna send somebody away mad at each other and never see 'em again?

"It's been a real eye-opening experience," Mustaine explained. "And I just noticed on TV, too, that they're starting to do commercials about this type of cancer. And I'd never seen this before in my life and now I'm seeing it on TV. And I'm thinking, 'Wow, this is crazy.' They used to never have these kind of massive sicknesses like this where you have television commercials about throat cancer. It used to be just cancer, cancer, cancer — not into specifics like this. Now you know something really weird's happening. And it happens to a lot of people, I'm told. So I would just encourage people to be healthy, kick ass, take down names. And if you're an adult male and you have any respect for yourself and the people around you that love you, go get yourself checked up."

When Jackie pointed out that guys generally do not like going to the doctor to get themselves checked out, Mustaine said: "I think that's the whole tough-guy attitude. There's a stigmatism that if you go to a doctor, they're gonna stick something up your butt, and I think that's one of the worst things that people misconstrue. It's not always, 'Hey, turn your head and cough.' I suggest if you go in for a sore throat and he checks your ass, you're in the wrong place, dude."

The 60-year-old MEGADETH guitarist/vocalist revealed his cancer battle in June 2019 on social media, saying the doctors had given him a 90 percent chance of beating the illness.

Mustaine addressed his cancer battle during MEGADETH's concert in January 2020 at The SSE Arena in London, England. Speaking to the crowd before launching into the title track of MEGADETH's latest album, "Dystopia", he said: "About a year ago, we were working on our new album back in Franklin, Tennessee, and I started to feel some pain over here [points to his throat]. So I went to the doctor and he said, 'Dave, you have cancer.' And I went, 'Fuck! I have cancer.' And I was so shocked."

He continued: "At first, I thought, 'Am I afraid?' And then I said, 'No. I'm fucking pissed.' And we stopped the record; we stopped everything. I went into treatment for cancer. It was 51 radiation treatments and nine chemo treatments. And when it was all said and done, every day I would think, 'I can't face not playing again. I can't face not playing again.' So I would pray. I know a lot of you guys know that I pray. I say that in [the MEGADETH song] 'Peace Sells'. I pray every day. I say that in the song. I've said it since the second record. But I thought about you guys every day too. And I thought about my family. And I got this power from you guys. And I just kept thinking about it. And on October 16th [2019], I went to go see the doctor, and he said, 'You're 100 percent free of cancer.'"

In an interview with Rolling Stone, Mustaine credited the support he received from fans and friends with getting him through the treatment. He said: "A lot came from people that I knew but I didn't know cared. Most notably, I got a text message back from my old brother, James Hetfield [METALLICA], and I was so, so happy to hear from him. Contrary to what anybody says and contrary to any of the act that we put on, I love James and I know that James loves me and cares about me. You can see that when the moment of truth is here and I'm telling the world that I've got a life-threatening disease. Who comes to stand next to me? James. And I got a text message from Ozzy [Osbourne], and one from Paul Stanley [KISS]. It was great to get one from Ozzy; I didn't expect it from Paul Stanley. That was super bitchin' because in the beginning, when KISS first came out, I was just a kid and I loved them.

"I'm really grateful for everybody. Even the people who have a hard time with my behavior and my big mouth, I'm just so grateful for them showing care for me. Like they say, at the end of the day, all we've got is each other here in this crazy metal community."

MEGADETH's new album, "The Sick, The Dying… And The Dead!", will arrive on September 2 via UMe.

In a new interview with Australia's Heavy, former AC/DC drummer Simon Wright, who replaced Phil Rudd when the latter bowed out of the band in 1983 and was with them until 1989, playing on the albums "Fly On The Wall", "Who Made Who" and "Blow Up Your Video", reflected in his time with the legendary Australian hard rock outfit. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I was in it for, like, seven and a half years or so, and there were a lot of big shows — like we did the Rock In Rio in '85 and stuff, and some of the Monsters Of Rock shows in England, at Castle Donington. You never cease to be overwhelmed by some of the stuff. You look out and there's four hundred, five hundred thousand people in Rio, and you're just, like, 'Wow. Keep your head down. Keep playing.'"

Asked which is his favorite of the albums he recorded with AC/DC, Simon said: "I don't know if I have one. I think there's good moments on each of 'em in a different way. It was all great recording all three albums, and it was really cool. A lot of people I meet — it's been a while since I did those albums, but I do meet people who tell me that they love this album, they love that and stuff, and some of them even say it's their favorite album. So it's all good. It's nice. I love meeting people and listening to what they think of albums like that, and the DIO albums as well I did. So it's all good."

A year and a half ago, Wright said that he was never approached about playing drums for AC/DC after Rudd was arrested for drug possession and threatening to kill an employee. "The phone didn't ring at all," Simon told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". "I get asked that quite a lot. No, it didn't ring. I wasn't looking for it. I don't know. I wasn't expecting a call — put it that way — and I didn't pursue it, I must admit. I did hear some things about what was going on, but to have put my foot in it wouldn't have been cool. So, that's it. That's the way it goes. They didn't call. That's no problem for me. I've got lots of stuff to do."

Chris Slade ended up playing drums for AC/DC on the legendary hard rock band's "Rock Or Bust" world tour. Since then, AC/DC has recorded and released a new album, "Power Up", with Rudd sitting behind the kit in the studio.

Wright, who played drums for AC/DC in the 1980s, went on to say that he has no contact with his former bandmates anymore. "No, I haven't been in touch for years," he told "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". "I did text [AC/DC bassist] Cliff Williams four or five months ago. I don't know why. I just congratulated him on his retirement and wished him well. And he texted me back and said, "Thanks. It's good to hear from you. I hope you're well.' But no, I don't really keep in touch with them. They've got their lives, and I've had my life for quite some time now. But if I ran into 'em, I'm sure we'd say hello."

According to Wright, fans shouldn't be surprised to know that he is no longer in regular communication with the AC/DC camp. "There's people that I've played with that I haven't kept in touch with," he explained. "And it's not a problem. You just move on. They've got their lives, and I've got mine. And I'm busy trying to figure stuff out and keep moving forward and all the usual stuff. I don't think it's unusual."

Wright, also known for his work in DIO, RHINO BUCKET and UFO, lasted in AC/DC for six years. Wright, a then-unknown drummer whose first credits included Manchester, England metal outfit A II Z, joined AC/DC in time for the touring cycle for "Flick Of The Switch" and played with the Australian rockers throughout the '80s before leaving to join DIO in 1989.

Slade originally followed Wright in AC/DC's lineup, joining in time to play on 1990's "The Razor's Edge" album. When Rudd returned in 1995, Slade was shown the door and harbored some bad feelings about that for a while.
Listen to "Paying Respect To The METAL GODS With SIMON WRIGHT" on Spreaker.

Red Hot Chili Peppers performed "Black Summer" and "Can't Stop" at the 2022 MTV Video Music Awards, which aired Sunday, August 28 from Newark, New Jersey's Prudential Center. Watch below:





Red Hot Chili Peppers have shared the first single from their new album, Return Of The Dream Canteen, out on October 14 via Warner Records. The Malia James-directed music video for "Tippa My Tongue" can be viewed below.







The news of Return Of The Dream Canteen's imminent release marks the band’s second album release of 2022, hot on the heels of the platinum-selling Unlimited Love which was released in April. It will also be the band's second Rick Rubin produced album of 2022 and reinforces their reputation as a band at their absolute peak, riding the crest of an undeniable creative wave.


The album can be pre-ordered in various formats, here.





Red Hot Chili Peppers' Chad Smith joins Hanuman Welch on ALT CTRL Radio on Apple Music 1 to discuss "Tippa My Tongue”. He tells Apple Music about the origin of the song, the decision to release a second double album this year, reuniting with longtime producer Rick Rubin, doing their first stadium tour, the band’s unique chemistry, and more.


The following is an excerpt, courtesy of ALT CTRL Radio on Apple Music 1. Listen to full episode anytime on-demand on Apple Music, here.


"We're just so happy to be making music again," says Smith. "Like most people, and creative people, and artists, to be able to have that opportunity to go out and play concerts and play new music. We wrote a lot of songs during the pandemic time and we recorded them all. We just wanted this next record to be an extension of 'Unlimited Love'. It stands on its own. We felt like we had so many songs that we love that we just need to have them all come out, and we don't want to put them all out at once. Here's the second batch and it's just as important. And just as effervescent to use your word, and joyful and happy. The cool thing about our band is one of the things I think is kind of whatever we do, it sounds like the Chili Peppers. You got Anthony's voice, is so identifiable. And then you got the band, which has a unique sound. Of course, having John Frusciante back in our band again, we've got that chemistry going and we just want to share it with everybody. I told Anthony, I said, often you try to figure out which song is the first one to come out off the record. I just said this one's got more hooks than a fishing tackle box. It's got some Hendrixy riffs, and it's got some P-Funk and it's got Chili Peppers. I love it. I just think it's a great song."


SiriusXM recently announced that Red Hot Chili Peppers will perform at the historic Apollo Theater, in a special invitation-only concert as part of SiriusXM’s Small Stage Series. The concert on Tuesday, September 13 marks the first time that the band has performed at the iconic theater.


The special one-night-only performance at the Apollo Theater will celebrate the launch of Red Hot Chili Peppers’ exclusive SiriusXM music channel. The show will feature the band performing their hits, fan favorites from their decades-long career, as well as music from their current chart-topping album Unlimited Love.


“During our long-standing relationship with the Apollo Theater, SiriusXM has brought many of music’s most significant artists to their historic stage for the very first time, and the Red Hot Chili Peppers are no exception,” said Scott Greenstein, SiriusXM’s President and Chief Content Officer. “The Red Hot Chili Peppers are one of the most definitive bands in rock music that continue to innovate the genre with their musical craftsmanship and we are honored to present them as they make their debut at the Apollo Theater. This is shaping up to be a September to remember for SiriusXM subscribers."


Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Small Stage Series show will air live nationwide on the band’s exclusive SiriusXM channel, Whole Lotta Red Hot (ch. 315) with multiple rebroadcasts throughout the week. Whole Lotta Red Hot will also be available on SiriusXM channel 105 on Thursday, September 1 through Friday, September 30.

Canadian melodic power thrashers, Triskelyon, announce the release of their debut album, Downfall, for October 28 via Washington state-based extreme metal label, Moribund Records.


Founded by Geoff Waye, guitarist for Artach and Category VI, Triskelyon was conceived in late 2021 as a studio-only project. By January 2022, the band featuring contributions from vocalists Pete Healey and Marlee Ryley (Hyperia), along with drum programming by Raul Marques (Burning Torment) made their introduction to the metal world with a 3-track self-titled EP.


Composed and written mostly by Geoff Waye, with drum programming provided by Raul Marques, Downfall sees the band's next evolution as their first full length and it utilizes a myriad of both male and female guest vocalists from Oberon, Hyperia, Catagory VI and Incidium. Downfall has a range and depth of sound unique in today’s modern thrash metal scene, setting the band ahead and apart from the hordes of young new acts. Triskelyon also features guest bass appearances from members of Afterforever and Category VI, making Triskelyon a veritable super group of the Canadian metal scene.




Depicting a nature taking over post-apocalyptic view on our ever-screwed-up world, Triskelyon keeps with 80’s thrash tradition employing world-ending yet self-empowering socially conscious lyrical themes. From straight-up 80’s thrashers like “Odyssey (Blessed by Steel)”, to the power metal laced “Find A Way”, and more anthemic thrash tracks such as “Hunger” and “Willful Ignorance”, “Downfall” is sure to satiate even the most discriminating old-school and modern thrash metal fan alike! The album even features a unique and thrashing rendition of the Billy Idol song “Nobody’s Business”.


Album was mixed/mastered by Michael Small with the post-apocalyptic cover art by IvaanMR11.


With Downfall, Triskelyon deliver an amazing headbanging album that harkens back to the old-school days of such luminaries as Forbidden, Agent Steel, Sentinel Beast, Détente, Overkill, and Testament.


Pre-orders for Downfall are available at the following links:


- CD
- Digital





Tracklisting:


"Hunger"
"Find A Way"
"Odyssey (Blessed By Steel)"
"Willful Ignorance"
"A Time Of War"
"Balance Of Terror"
"Apex Predator"
"Indifference"
"Nobody's Business" (Billy Idol cover)


Album Credits:


Tracks 1-3 are originally from self-titled demo/EP, the new versions have all been re-recorded bass and have been remixed and remastered.
All songs and lyrics written by Geoff Waye.
All guitars by Geoff Waye.
All drum programming by Raul Marques.
Additional guests:
Dwayne Pike – Bass (tracks 1, 2, 3, 5, 6, 8, 9)
Pete Healey - Vocals (tracks 1, 2, 5, 9)
Marlee Ryley – Vocals (tracks 3, 7)
Amanda Jackman – Vocals (tracks 4, 6)
Des Mason – Vocals (track 4)
Keith Jackman – Bass (track 7)
Darrin Pope – Bass (track 4)
Ellim – Vocals (track 8)

Belgian death metal stalwarts, Carnation, performed their latest song, "Stench Of Death", during Hellfest 2022. Watch professionally-filmed footage below:





"Stench Of Death" is the title track of the band's new EP, released on on all digital platforms back in June. The EP also includes a cover of Entombed's "Supposed To Rot".







Add/save the EP here. A red vinyl edition of EP can be pre-ordered here.





Carnation is:


Simon Duson – Vocals
Jonathan Verstrepen – Guitars
Bert Vervoort – Guitars
Yarne Heylen – Bass
Vincent Verstrepen – Drums

Beyond The Labyrinth (BTL) have released a video for "Invisible Battle Scars", from their latest album, xxV.


"Invisible Battle Scars" is about how good people can develop bad reflexes due to PTSD. The song has now been turned into a dark, moving, touching, slightly claustrophobic video clip. Watch below.


Lyrics:




Beneath the surface a battle is raging
The images keep coming back when you least expect them
When all is quiet your mind starts racing
There's no escape as you relive the painful past
No one sees it when you're hurting - you feel deserted
It's a case of do or die


Invisible Battle Scars
Define the way you act, not who you are
Invisible Battle Scars
The pain you feel is all too real
The wounds run deep inside


A scent, a sound, a simple trigger
The trauma that is lingering resurfaces
And you try to keep pretending you're feeling fine
Your secret safely locked inside …(or so you think)


Invisible Battle Scars
Define the way you act, not who you are
Invisible Battle Scars
The pain you feel is all too real
The wounds run deep inside

Canadian rockers, Headstones, will release their new full-length album, Flight Risk, on October 14th via Known Accomplice. Today, the band led by vocalist Hugh Dillon, has announced details of The Flight Risk Tour, coming to you this fall. Pre-sales start tomorrow, August 30th, at 10am local time; the required code is RISK. Get your tickets here. Confirmed dates are as listed:


November 
22 - Thunder Bay, ON - Thunder Bay Community Auditorium
24 - Winnipeg, MB - Burton Cummings Theatre
25 - Regina, SK - Casino Regina
26 - Saskatoon, SK - Coors Event Centre
27 - Red Deer, AB - Bo’s Bar
29 - Calgary, AB - The Palace Theatre
30 - Grande Prairie, AB - Better Than Fred’s


December
1 - Edmonton, AB - Midway
3 - Vancouver, BC - Commodore Ballroom
8 - Waterloo, ON - Maxwell’s
10 - Buffalo, NY - Town Ballroom
14 - London, ON - London Music Hall
15 - Oshawa, ON - Oshawa Music Hall
16 - Ottawa, ON - Bronson Centre
22 - Toronto, ON - Phoenix Concert Theatre




Flight Risk is pre-apocalyptic rock and roll at its finest, following up Headstones' 2019 release PeopleSkills, which garnered two Top 10 radio hits with “Leave It All Behind” and “Horses”.


This is one of the most subversive Headstones rock and roll records to date. Flight Risk is the result of years of relentless work ethic and dedication, a testament to the long-standing relationships within the band and their team. The album features a surprise co-write on the track "Ashes", between Hugh Dillon and long-time friend and collaborator Taylor Sheridan; one of the most prolific, premier storytellers of his time, and architect of hit series’ Yellowstone and 1883, Oscar-nominated films Sicario and Hell Or High Water.


The first track, “Tangled”, is a monstrously uncompromising ode to the 21st century, with elements of Link Wray, The Deadboys, and a hint of Dylan-esque disregard. 


The title track, “Flight Risk”, is a defiant yet intricate juxtaposition of lyric and music, showcasing the band’s incredible songwriting talent, alongside Dillon’s rapid-fire vocals. 


The album is available to pre-order / pre-save here.





Tracklisting:


"Headlight Holds A Deer"
"Everything Or Nothing At All"
"Flight Risk"
"When It Goes Badly"
"Tangled"
"Hotel Room"
"Neon Rome"
"Ashes"
"Psychotropic"
"Pilot Light"
"Rink"


"Flight Risk" video:





"Tangled" video:





Headstones lineup:


Hugh Dillon – vocals, harmonica
Trent Carr – guitar, vocals
Tim White – bass, vocals
Steve Carr – keys
Jesse Labovitz – drums


 

Legendary grindcore death metal band, Lock Up, are streaming their latest album, The Dregs Of Hades, out in various formats via Listenable Records. Order here, and listen below.


Recorded in various parts of the world and mixed by Seba Puente at Audiocustom Studio in Santiago, Chile, the album features the dual vomit storms of Kevin Sharp (Brutal Truth) and the returning Tomas Lindberg (At The Gates, Disfear). Joining the band on skin battery is Adam Jarvis (Misery Index, Pig Destroyer), with grind mammoth Shane Embury (Napalm Death) handling the low-end terror and Anton Reisenegger (Brujeria, Pentagram Chile) providing the rusted six-string riff assault. The visual insanity is the work of Chariot of Black Moth.







Tracklisting:


"Death Itself, Brother Of Sleep" (Intro)
"Hell Will Plague The Ruins"
"The Dregs Of Hades"
"Black Illumination"
"Dark Force Of Conviction"
"Misdirection Thief"
"Dead Legions"
"Triumph Of The Grotesque"
"Nameless Death"
"A Sinful Life Of Power"
"Ashes"
"The Blind Beast"
"Reign On In Hell"
"Crucifixion Of Distorted Existence"


Album stream:





"Hell Will Plague The Ruins" video:





"Dark Force Of Conviction" video:





Lineup:


Kevin Sharp ( vocals)
Tomas Lindberg (vocals)
Adam Jarvis ( drums)
Anton Reisenegger (guitars)
Shane Embury (bass)

Live Rock Music by Scott Perry has shared video Of Mastodon's full August 26th show in San Diego, CA at Pechanga Arena. The setlist on the night was as follows:


Setlist:


"Pain With An Anchor"
"Crystal Skull"
"Megalodon"
"The Crux"
"Teardrinker"
"Bladecatcher"
"Black Tongue"
"The Czar"
"Pushing The Tides"
"More Than I Could Chew"
"Mother Puncher"







Mastodon recently released a video for "More Than I Could Chew", featured on their double album Hushed And Grim, released in October 2021 via Reprise Records. Watch the clip below:





Ghost is haunting North America this summer on the ImperaTour with special guests, Mastodon & Spiritbox. Tour dates below.





August
30 - Austin, TX - Moody Center
31 - Corpus Christi, TX - American Bank Center Arena


September
2 - Huntsville, AL - Von Braun Center’s Propst Arena
3 - Duluth, GA - Gas South Arena
4 - Asheville, NC - ExploreAsheville.com Arena
6 - Tampa, FL - Yuengling Arena
8 - Danville, VA - Blue Ridge Rock Fest*
9 - Trenton, NJ - CURE Insurance Arena
10 - Belmont Park, NY - UBS Arena
12 - Providence, RI - Dunkin Donuts Center
13 - Bangor, ME - Cross Insurance Center
15 - Quebec City, QC - Videotron Centre
16 - Laval, QC - Place Bell
17 - Toronto, ON - Coca Cola Coliseum
19 - Saginaw, MI - Dow Event Center
20 - Youngstown, OH - Covelli Centre
21 - Peoria, IL - Peoria Civic Center Arena
23 - Green Bay, WI - Resch Center**


* Ghost and Spiritbox only
** Ghost, Spiritbox and special guest Carcass

QUEENSRŸCHE will release its sixteenth studio album, "Digital Noise Alliance", on October 7 via Century Media. The record was once again helmed by Chris "Zeuss" Harris, who previously worked with QUEENSRŸCHE on 2015's "Condition Hüman" and "The Verdict" LPs. The LP's third single, "Behind The Walls", can be streamed below.

The band stated about "Behind The Walls": "It is a story about those in crisis dealing with various forms of abuse. The protagonist is faced with the dichotomy of reconciling a lifetime of devout faith, while suffering immense abuse with no intervention."

QUEENSRŸCHE guitarist Michael Wilton told Metal Edge magazine about "Digital Noise Alliance": "It's an album that kind of stretches and encompasses the whole music genre of QUEENSRŸCHE. It's got some very melodic moments, it's progressive, it's heavy metal and it's very album-oriented visual music that is going to be just a good all-around QUEENSRŸCHE album."

Regarding the songwriting process for "Digital Noise Alliance", Wilton said: "I was living in Seattle at the time, and when you're isolated like that, it does weird things to your head space. I talked to Todd [La Torre, vocals] and mentioned that in all that time I had been writing lots of little riffs on the guitar. So, I went and visited Todd in Florida in late January of 2021. I had no idea he had also invited producer Zeuss to come down from Massachusetts, as I hadn't brought along any guitars with me. I was just going to go hang out with Todd in Florida. But we then made a conscious decision between all of us that this album's process would not be songs being e-mailed to each, waiting for their approval back. This was going to a process where on-the-spot riffage, experimentation, improvisation and seeing what sticks was the way we wanted it made. So, I'd come up with a riff and Zeuss would record it and Casey [Grillo, drums] would get on the electronic drums and put a drum beat to it, and we'd file it and move onto the next riff and so on. Then we would sit back and listen and if everybody was vibing on what we did during that day, we'd listen to all the parts and imagine where they would sit within a song structure and then kind of put them together from there. Eventually we had about 22 song ideas, and we had to wither that down to about 11 or 12 tunes."

As for the lyrical themes covered on "Digital Noise Alliance", Michael said: "A lot of the songs are our perspective on the current unrest in the world, especially in the United States, and whatever the music dictated to us for the lyrics. Todd writes great lyrics, as does Eddie [Jackson, bass], and I wrote some lyrics, too. I think as I said earlier, it's a full, all-encompassing QUEENSRŸCHE record that I think everyone is going to really enjoy."

This past March, La Torre told FOX17 Rock & Review about QUEENSRŸCHE's upcoming LP: "Each song might have a little different attitude and we wanted to just use real amps and all the vintage, real stuff that was used throughout the history of QUEENSRŸCHE.

"We did all the drums at a place in Clearwater [Florida] — a huge home with the most amazing ceiling for a drum room," La Torre continued. "So we did all the drums there. And then, really, at my place [in St. Petersburg, Florida], we're able to track all the guitars, bass and vocals.

"Those days of renting thousand-dollar-a-day studios, we don't really need that anymore. And our producer Zeuss, who did the last two QUEENSRŸCHE albums — he does all Rob Zombie's stuff; he's a very seasoned producer, [and] he does mixing and mastering, so he's a one-stop shop — he's down here from Massachusetts. So he's handling all those duties. And things are going really well. We're having a great time."

Last November, La Torre told Canada's The Metal Voice about the musical direction of the new QUEENSRŸCHE material: "It doesn't sound like 'The Verdict'. It's its own new kind of thing. We really kind of just focused more on melodic hooks. I don't think we went in thinking, like, 'Oh, we need to sound old school or new or this.'"

He continued: "You know what we did on this record… Every other time, each guy would kind of submit their own song ideas and then we would kind of work on that. But what we did on this record was, other than Eddie — Eddie has a couple of songs that are really cool that he wrote and then showed us kind of when they were pretty much done. And then Michael kind of wrote some interesting chords — still staying within the keys and everything. But we all got in a room with our here [in Florida], and we literally started from scratch. Like, 'Michael, what do you got?' [And he would] come up with a riff. And Casey would sit on the drums, or I would sit on the drums. We were all actually in a room and just tried it like the good old days. So this record was totally like that — the whole thing pretty much, minus one or two songs. And even that changed a little bit."

In October, Wilton confirmed that returning guitarist Mike Stone would contribute guitar solos to the band's next studio album.

Since late May 2021, Stone has been handling second-guitar duties in QUEENSRŸCHE, which announced in July that longtime guitarist Parker Lundgren was exiting the group to focus on "other business ventures."

Stone originally joined QUEENSRŸCHE for the 2003 album "Tribe" and stayed with the band for six years before leaving the group.

For the past five and a half years, Grillo has been filling in for QUEENSRŸCHE's original drummer Scott Rockenfield, who stepped away from the band's touring activities in early 2017 to spend time with his young son.

Last October, Rockenfield filed a lawsuit against the band's fellow original members Wilton and Jackson, alleging, among other things, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty and wrongful discharge.

Photo by Silly Robot Studios