THE HALO EFFECT, the new project featuring five former members of the Swedish metal band IN FLAMES — Jesper Strömblad (guitar), Daniel Svensson (drums), Peter Iwers (bass), Niclas Engelin (guitar) and Mikael Stanne (vocals) — will release its debut album, "Days Of The Lost", on August 12 via Nuclear Blast. Asked in a new interview with Jorge Fretes from Spain's GoetiaMedia.com if THE HALO EFFECT members see their history with IN FLAMES as a "stigma" of some sort, Niclas said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "No. It isn't. I don't think that way. We don't think that way. Because this band is like a collective of friends. We've been doing this for so long. We were there in the formative years back in '89, '90. I mean, me and Mikael met up in '89, doing our first show. It was when they were called SEPTIC BROILER and I was in a band called SARCAZM; we did our first show together. And from there on, we've been doing our thing, so to speak. We just go with the flow and just do what we thought felt right for us at the moment. He continued doing DARK TRANQUILLITY and I was in GARDENIAN, PASSENGER and ENGEL and stuff like that.

"IN FLAMES is an important band within the genre, of course, but we helped build this genre as well," Niclas continued. "So we just stick to what we know best — playing this kind of music — because we love it. There's no master scheme behind this or anything like that. It was like in the beginning, when we met up. 'Well, what kind of music should we go for? Should we go progressive, RUSH kind of thing? Let's make a song. Let's make some cool stuff. Let's just start with some parts, bits here and there. And the first song we actually wrote together is a song called 'Gateways'. And it's kind of mellow but creepy with a haunting vibe. The intro, the verse thing is like a horror movie kind of thing that blends out in this big, thick chorus, which unmistakably is that kind of genre. So we thought, 'All right. This is the way we should go. And the main topic should be don't overthink too much and just have fun with it.' And that's what we did with the whole album. This is a lot of love and a lot of fun — and no overthinking."

Last month, Stanne was asked in an interview with Tomar Uma if "Reroute To Remain", IN FLAMES' sixth album, which came out in 2002 and featured Jesper, Peter and Daniel, was an influence on the way THE HALO EFFECT approached the songwriting process. He responded: "I don't think so. I love that album — I think it's fantastic — but no, I don't think so. But, obviously, the other guys were a big part of it, so maybe that's something… They had that experience, so that will color and will somehow affect them. But I don't think it ever came up, so I don't think that was a particular influence. But, of course, everything is a part of what you do, right?!"

In June, Iwers was asked in an interview with Australia's "Scars And Guitars" podcast if he would agree that "Days Of The Lost" is, in some ways, a "spiritual successor" to "Reroute To Remain". Peter said: "Ooh, interesting. I haven't really thought about it. When you make music, like we do, you tend not to overthink stuff — you just go in and you write music and kind of know that what comes out will sound a certain way because of the style that we are playing and how we are playing and performing our music. So I haven't really thought about it, but maybe — maybe. It was definitely nothing intentional. We just went in. We had a bunch of ideas and we came out with a bunch of songs that happen to sound a certain way. But none of us really overthought it and it was never meant to 'it's gonna sound like this' or 'it's gonna sound like that.' We just [went], 'Let's write this music and see what happens.' And because of, like I said, how we're playing, it will sound a certain way."

Added Daniel: "A lot of people like to analyze music, and, of course, it sounds Gothenburg metal-ish because we all are from that genre and we are some of the people that kind of created it. So, of course, it will sound Gothenburg metal-ish, IN FLAMES-ish. And then which era, I don't know. And as Peter said, we don't really think about how it should sound. This is how we sound today, and with our legacy this is inevitable, that we sound as we do."

Continued Peter: "Obviously, people like to do a lot of comparing between us… It's a difficult topic to discuss because none of us have — even though we've all been in IN FLAMES at some point, none of us have really thought about this as what you're saying. But then a lot of people that we speak to say it. So it's a little hard to take in, as we've been very thorough in just writing music. But I'd say it's a little flattering to hear it."

Svensson, who joined IN FLAMES in 1998, announced in 2015 that he was leaving the group to focus on his family life.

A member of IN FLAMES since 1997, Iwers issued a statement in November 2016 saying that he was exiting the band "to pursue other endeavors."

A founding member of IN FLAMES, Strömblad quit the band in February 2010 in order to continue receiving treatment for his alcohol addiction.

Engelin has been sitting out IN FLAMES' tour dates for the past three and a half years but has never officially confirmed his departure from the band. Engelin's replacement for IN FLAMES' live shows since then has been former MEGADETH and current ACT OF DEFIANCE guitarist Chris Broderick.

THE HALO EFFECT's first-ever tour will be as the support act for Swedish death metal giants AMON AMARTH and U.S. metallers MACHINE HEAD on 31 dates throughout Europe in the summer and fall of 2022.

Photo credit: Markus Esselmark

In a new interview with Ned of the Waterloo, Iowa radio station Rock 108, guitarist Ben Wells of Kentucky rockers BLACK STONE CHERRY spoke about the decline of the music industry as consumers value access over ownership and experiences over assets.

"It's one of those things, it's kind of a polarized topic with some bands," Ben said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "We're, like, if people stream our music, if that's how they find out about us, cool. Because we look at it as, look, CDs just aren't selling. I mean, we still put 'em out and people are trying to get creative and figure out new ways to put out music. It's an ever-evolving system; it's a thing. You have to kind of grow with it; you can't go against it.

"I think albums — vinyl albums — people love," he continued. "I think that has made a huge comeback now. That's funny, though, because it takes more of an effort for most of us to play the vinyl than it does the CD. It's a whole deal, but it's an experience — people love to sit in their rooms and drop that needle on the record and listen to it that way.

"We found that vinyl has become super popular," Ben added. "And the streaming stuff, we've had people say, 'Hey, I'm at this show tonight because I was listening to something on Spotify and you all came up.' So if that turns into somebody coming to a show or buying a shirt, then, hey, it's all for the better good of growing the band. So we just kind of have to go with it and learn to live with it and be smart about it and, obviously, be open for new changes. The old, 'What's next? What's gonna be the new way?' Next year there'll be something else out there. TikTok will be old news and there'll be something else. You've gotta keep up."

BLACK STONE CHERRY's seventh studio album, "The Human Condition", was made available in 2020.

In June 2021, BLACK STONE CHERRY announced the departure of bassist Jon Lawhon. He has since been replaced on the road by Steve Jewell Jr., the guitarist from the Glasgow, Kentucky band OTIS.

The digital-only release of an expanded edition of "The Human Condition" was made available in August 2021.

PAPA ROACH guitarist Jerry Horton spoke to the Q105.1 Rocks radio station about how he and his bandmates have managed to stay together for nearly 30 years. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Like any sort of long-term relationship, a.k.a. marriage, there's ups and downs, there's fights, there's arguments, there's whatever. But I think over the years we've figured out how to give each other space. We don't really hang out when we're not on tour, only because we're usually on tour more than we're at home. We have families and we wanna give them the time too. So I think the time apart is healthy. And then once we kind of gear up for things, we'll go into it a hundred percent. We still love making music, we still love that creative outlet and we still love playing shows. So we're just doing our best to keep it fresh, keep it all together and ride this wave."

Asked if he feels like "rock is on its way up again," Jerry said: "Absolutely. We've seen it happen multiple times over the years where the guitar becomes not cool. And then somebody picks it up and puts it in a pop song and then it's cool again. That's only on sort of like a superficial surface. Rock fans are always rock fans. We have a very loyal rock fanbase. And when we talk about rock being cool, rock's always cool but it's sort of, like, okay, it's recognized by people who are mostly into pop music.

"We do what we do, and we do take influence from different types of music, and sometimes we do take influence from pop music, whether it be chord progressions or sounds or whatever," he explained. "[But] rock is our first love, and that's our anchor, and that's what we anchor things around."

Last month, PAPA ROACH and FALLING IN REVERSE kicked off a co-headlining U.S. tour. Dubbed the "Rockzilla Summer Tour", the bill also includes HOLLYWOOD UNDEAD and BAD WOLVES. The trek launched on July 27 in East Providence, Rhode Island, with dates booked in 24 cities across the U.S. before a final show on August 31 in Nashville, Tennessee.

After two years of work and nearly 10 months of building up excitement with fans, PAPA ROACH recently celebrated the release of its 11th studio album, "Ego Trip". An album that sprouted almost by mistake in the throes of a global lockdown, its seeds were planted when the quartet entered a COVID-secure mansion in Temecula, California, in the summer of 2020.

"Ego Trip" came out in April via New Noize Records in partnership with ADA Worldwide (WMG's independent label and artist services arm).

PAPA ROACH are two-time Grammy-nominated, platinum-selling leaders in alternative hard rock music, who in 2020 celebrated the 20th anniversary of their iconic album "Infest".

PAPA ROACH is completed by bassist Tobin Esperance, singer Jacoby Shaddix and drummer Tony Palermo.

"Ego Trip" is the follow-up to "Who Do You Trust?", which came out in January 2019.

Fan-filmed video of EXODUS's entire August 6 concert at Razzmatazz in Barcelona, Spain can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. The Beatings Will Continue (Until Morale Improves)
02. A Lesson In Violence
03. Blood In, Blood Out
04. The Years Of Death And Dying
05. Deathamphetamine
06. Blacklist
07. Piranha
08. Prescribing Horror
09. Bonded By Blood
10. The Toxic Waltz
11. Strike Of The Beast

In June, it was announced that EXODUS guitarist Lee Altus would be unable to join his bandmates on their European tour this summer due to "family concerns." Filling in for him is Brandon Ellis of THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER.

EXODUS singer Steve "Zetro" Souza touched upon Altus's absence from the trek in a video update on his Zetro's Toxic Vault YouTube channel. He said: "Our guitar player Lee Altus won't be making this leg of the tour. It's gonna be Brandon from THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER. He's going to be filling in on guitar. For Lee, there's some family issues that Lee needs to take care of for himself, so he's going to be staying back [home]. He isn't going anywhere. Sometimes these things happen. Family things happen. You can't always put [the band] first."

Souza went on to say that he and his EXODUS bandmates are "looking forward to playing with Brandon."

"We knew that [Brandon] would nail it, and it's kind of been something that has been in the works for a little while so he's actually had time to learn the music and really get into it," the vocalist explained. "So it's gonna be really good.

"We're not gonna cancel. We're gonna keep going. It's gonna be EXODUS.

"For everybody in Europe, you are going to get an awesome EXODUS show," Souza added. "That's all I can say. It's gonna be heavy."

When Altus's absence was first announced on June 22, EXODUS released a statement via social media in which the band said: "EXODUS regretfully announce that Lee Altus will not be joining us on our upcoming European tour. Family concerns dictate he remain close to home and being so far away from home is not possible. EXODUS stand strong with Lee and will destroy in his behalf, and he will rejoin us for the upcoming tours such as the fall leg of 'The Bay Strikes Back'. We stand behind our brother in everything and he will be back! Joining us on this trek is none other than Brandon Ellis of THE BLACK DAHLIA MURDER so let’s welcome him like one of the EXODUS family! Brandon is one of the sickest guitarists alive and he is going to kill it for certain! See you soon in Europe and the UK!"

Brandon added: "I am beyond grateful for the opportunity to get on stage with the legendary dudes of EXODUS and crush some open air fests and clubs this July and August. I wish Lee the best and will cover his stage right post with honor and respect!"

EXODUS is continuing to tour in support of its latest album, "Persona Non Grata", which came out last November via Nuclear Blast Records.

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

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

In July 2021, EXODUS drummer Tom Hunting underwent a successful total gastrectomy in his battle with squamous cell carcinoma (SCC) of the stomach. He rejoined his bandmates on stage in October at the Aftershock festival in Sacramento, California.

EXODUS tapped John Tempesta to play drums for the band at Psycho Las Vegas in Las Vegas, Nevada in August and at Full Terror Assault in Cave In Rock, Illinois in September while Hunting was recovering from surgery. Tempesta was a member of EXODUS from 1989 until 1993 and played on the band's albums "Impact Is Imminent" (1990) and "Force Of Habit" (1992).

A GoFundMe campaign to help Hunting with medical expenses had previously raised more than $114,000 — including $5,000 from Tom's former EXODUS bandmate, current METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett, and $1,500 from FOZZY singer and wrestling superstar Chris Jericho.

NECA will release the AC/DC Bon Scott and Angus Young "Highway To Hell" 8-inch clothed action figures in November.

Bon Scott "Highway To Hell" clothed figure product description ($44.99 MSRP): "If rock singers were judged on a scale of 1 to 10, Bon Scott turns the dial to 11. One of the most influential frontmen of all time, Bon Scott's high-voltage vocals and rock 'n roll lifestyle set the bar for a generation of aspiring musicians. This fully articulated and extremely tattooed action figure is based on Bon Scott's appearance in AC/DC's 'Highway To Hell' music video and stands 8 inches tall."

Product Features

* 8 inches (20.32cm)
* Made of plastic and fabric
* Based on the famous musician
* Fully articulated
* Real fabric clothing

Box Contents

* Bon Scott figure
* 2 Head sculpts
* Microphone

Angus Young "Highway To Hell" clothed figure product description ($44.99 MSRP): "It's hard to find a rock fan alive who hasn't heard of Angus Young. This king of hard rock is the core of Aussie band AC/DC. His electrifying guitar work and unforgettable songs have driven them to superstardom around the world. This fully articulated action figure is based on Angus's appearance in the 'Highway To Hell' music video and stands 8 inches tall."

Product Features

* 8 inches (20.32cm)
* Made of plastic and fabric
* Based on the famous musician
* Fully articulated
* Real fabric clothing

Box Contents

* Angus Young figure
* 2 Head sculpts
* 2 Pairs of hands
* 2 Hats
* Guitar

Few rock singers were as unforgettable — and have proved as enduring — as Bon Scott. As the frontman of AC/DC from 1974 until his tragic passing in 1980 (at the age of 33),his "rock 'n' roll pirate persona," street poet lyrics, and striking image (one of the first rockers to proudly sport multiple tattoos) have made him an absolute legend. Additionally, Bon's vocals were featured in several pre-AC/DC bands, including FRATERNITY, THE VALENTINES and THE SPEKTORS.

But really, it is the quality of the songs of the "Bon era" of AC/DC that serve as his greatest legacy — "Highway To Hell", "Sin City", "Whole Lotta Rosie", "Let There Be Rock", "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap", "TNT" and "It's A Long Way To The Top (If You Wanna Rock 'N' Roll)"… the list is seemingly endless.

How does Bon measure up to rock's all-time great frontmen? Classic Rock magazine declared him "the greatest rock n' roll frontman of all time" in 2004, beating out the lofty likes of Freddie Mercury, Robert Plant and Axl Rose in the process.

Scott was invited to join AC/DC by Malcolm and Angus Young in 1974, and achieved international stardom before his death at the age of 33 from alcohol poisoning.

He sang on AC/DC's first six studio albums, including "High Voltage", "Dirty Deeds Done Dirt Cheap", "Let There Be Rock" and "Highway To Hell".

Scott died of acute alcohol poisoning after a night of heavy drinking at a club in London, just days after attending a session with Malcolm and Angus Young where they began working on music for what became the "Back In Black" album.

According to the AC/DC FAQ web site, Bon and the friend, a musician named Alisdair Kinnear, had been drinking the evening of February 19, 1980 and Bon apparently fell asleep during the ride home. Kinnear could not wake Bon, so he left him in the car to sleep. Kinnear awoke early in the evening on February 20, checked on Bon, and found him unconscious in the car. Bon could not be revived, and was pronounced dead.

Certainly feel like I'm on the Highway to Hell sometimes, and here are the NECA ACDC 'Highway to Hell' 8" Angus and Bon...

Posted by Collectors Den on Thursday, July 28, 2022

ANNOUNCEMENT!!
➖
Bon Scott 8” Clothed Action Figure
➖
If rock singers were judged on a scale of 1 to 10, Bon Scott turns...

Posted by NECA - N.E.C.A on Saturday, July 23, 2022

ANNOUNCEMENT!!
➖
AC/DC – 8” Clothed Action Figure – Angus Young (Highway to Hell)
➖
It’s hard to find a rock fan alive...

Posted by NECA - N.E.C.A on Saturday, July 23, 2022

In a new interview with the "White Line Fever" podcast, JOURNEY guitarist Neal Schon was asked how he manages to continue having a working relationship with keyboardist Jonathan Cain despite their apparently drastically different political views. "The answer to that question is to leave it alone," he responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I mean, honestly. I think that everybody is entitled to their opinion or what they think is correct for themselves. None of us ever agree — not just Jon, but many other people that I know. So I keep my political views to myself.

"I obviously have made it very clear, even years back, that I don't agee with mixing politics with music, or [mixing music with] religion. I think music is for everyone — of every religion; if you're a Democrat, Republican, whatever. It's music — it's for the world. So you have to leave it alone. Your views and your views. And I do nothing but write music with Jon. That's it."

Back in 2017, Schon and Cain feuded publicly on social media after Cain, singer Arnel Pineda and then-bassist Ross Valory were photographed at the White House with then-U.S. president Donald Trump. Cain is a devout born-again Christian whose minister wife Paula White-Cain delivered the invocation at Trump's inauguration.

In early 2018, Cain told Rolling Stone magazine that his visit to the White House "was a historical chance to go and it wasn't political. I'm a history buff and was dying to see where all this history took place," he insisted. "I know Arnel wanted to meet the Filipino lady [Cristeta Comerford] that has worked as a chef there for 20-something years. And Neal and I weren't on speaking terms during that time. He was bashing me about my faith, so I didn't think he would want to come. That's all."

Cain added that the White House visit "wasn't really a band sort of thing. We're friends with Sarah Huckabee from before the presidential thing," he said. "It was just an offer to take a tour. It wasn't an endorsement. Not at all. And Ross decided to come and see the building that Eisenhower bowled in. I was like, 'A bowling alley? How cool!' We got to see the loft where they make the cookies. The kitchen was so tiny. We saw all the little nooks and crannies and were like, 'Oh, my gosh, this is amazing.'"

Cain went on to say: "Historically, it felt good to visit. But come to me. Don't go to the fans about it. If you had a problem with it, talk to me. I never heard from [Neal]."

Schon is the only remaining original member of JOURNEY who has appeared on all the band's albums.

Jonathan embraced faith-based music with 2016's "What God Wants To Hear" solo album and released a Christmas LP, "Unsung Noel", the following year.

STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet recently underwent his third eye surgery after being diagnosed with a detached retina last November. In a new interview with Myglobalmind, he stated about the experience (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "When you think of eye surgery, it certainly doesn't seem like anything major. And it certainly won't get the attention of other surgeries — open heart, bypass surgery, brain surgery, all this kind of stuff, which is all terrible. But I'm gonna tell you right now that the eye surgeries that I've been through — this is my third one — gosh, either I'm a big baby or they were terrible. I have really sensitive eyes anyway, and that would be the last thing I would ever wanna have to deal with in my life, is eye issues, regarding surgery.

"What I had to have done this third time — this was my third surgery — was they put oil in my eye for six months to hold my retina in place," he explained. "And when they put that oil in six months ago, in January, they had to remove my lens 'cause I developed a cataract. So they took my lens out. So I was dealing with that for six months, and I got used to that. Then I had to have the oil removed because if you leave it in too long, you develop glaucoma which can lead to blindness, blah blah blah. So it's very complicated. And they removed the oil, flushed the oil out; that was one incision. And then they put a new lens in; that was another incision in my iris. And my eye is pretty beat up right now."

Michael's medical emergency came months after STRYPER guitarist Oz Fox underwent the first of his brain surgeries to treat one of the tumors that were found in his head four years ago. As a result, Oz sat out some of the band's 2021 tour dates and was temporarily replaced by Howie Simon (JEFF SCOTT SOTO, GRAHAM BONNET).

Fox's tumors — one by his ear and the other in the back of his brain — were discovered when he suffered his first seizure in August 2018 while performing with SIN CITY SINNERS at Harrah's in Las Vegas.

In October 2020, Fox was briefly hospitalized after suffering another massive seizure.

Within weeks of Fox's original August 2018 seizure, STRYPER toured Australia and Japan as a three-piece, and later recruited Simon to fill in while Fox was unable to go on the road.

STRYPER's new studio album is due later this year via Frontiers Music Srl. The follow-up to 2020's "Even The Devil Believes" was produced by Sweet and was once again recorded at SpiritHouse Recording Studios in Northampton, Massachusetts.

Michael is joined in STRYPER by his brother Robert Sweet (drums),Fox (guitar) and Perry Richardson (bass).

Long day…..

Surgery was originally supposed to be at 10:30 so we got picked up at 6:30 to beat Boston traffic. Surgery...

Posted by Michael Sweet on Tuesday, July 26, 2022

On September 23, Niji Entertainment and BMG will re-release two legendary live performances from DIO at the Castle Donington festival in the United Kingdom. "Donington '83" captures the original DIO lineup on the "Holy Diver" tour and captures a young, hungry band three months after the release of their debut album. The set features classic tracks from Ronnie James Dio's already-amazing career as vocalist for RAINBOW and BLACK SABBATH, alongside future classics like "Holy Diver", "Rainbow In The Dark" and "Stand Up And Shout".

Following three hugely successful studio albums and silver, gold and platinum certifications around the world, "Donington '87" captures the "Dream Evil" lineup and features such classics as "The Last In Line", "Rock 'N' Roll Children" and "All The Fools Sailed Away".

Additionally, the two discs contain killer renditions of both RAINBOW and BLACK SABBATH classics, including "Man On The Silver Mountain", "Neon Knights", "Stargazer" and "Heaven And Hell".

As the singer of RAINBOW, BLACK SABBATH, HEAVEN & HELL and his own band, Dio is often considered to be one of rock's all-time great vocalists. Although he sadly passed away in 2010 after battling stomach cancer, Dio's music continues to connect with the masses — the official Ronnie James Dio Facebook page has over 2.5 million followers, his music on Spotify receives over 3 million monthly listeners, and in the most recent season of the hit Netflix series "Stranger Things", the popular character Eddie Munson sports a large "DIO" patch on the back of his beloved denim jacket.

"Donington '83" and "Donington '87" is available in both limited-edition 2LP and CD configurations. Each features a 3D / lenticular art print of the cover. The LP sets feature an exclusive etching on Side D.

"Donington '83"

Personnel:

Ronnie James Dio - Vocals
Vivian Campbell - Guitar
Jimmy Bain - Bass
Vinny Appice - Drums
Claude Schnell - Keyboards

Track listing:

01. Stand Up and Shout
02. Straight Through The Heart
03. Children Of The Sea
04. Rainbow In The Dark
05. Holy Diver
06. Drum Solo
07. Stargazer
08. Guitar Solo
09. Heaven And Hell
10. Man On The Silver Mountain
11. Starstruck
12. Man On The Silver Mountain (Reprise)

"Donington '87"

Personnel:

Ronnie James Dio - Vocals
Craig Goldy - Guitar
Jimmy Bain - Bass
Vinny Appice - Drums
Claude Schnell - Keyboards

Track listing:

01. Dream Evil
02. Neon Knights
03. Naked In The Rain
04. Rock 'N' Roll Children
05. Long Live Rock 'N' Roll
06. The Last In Line
07. Children Of The Sea
08. Holy Diver
09. Heaven And Hell
10. Man On The Silver Mountain
11. All The Fools Sailed Away
12. The Last In Line (Reprise)
13. Rainbow In The Dark

Photo credit: PG Brunelli / BMG

Tommy Lee shocked fans earlier today by posting a full-frontal nude photo to social media.

The 59-year-old MÖTLEY CRÜE drummer shared a picture of his tattooed body sitting down on what appeared to be the edge of a bath on Thursday. Although the angle cut off the top half of Lee's face, the image shows Tommy wearing nothing but a chain necklace and nipple rings as he exposed his genitalia to his millions of followers on Instagram, Twitter and Facebook.

Lee captioned the NSFW image: "Ooooopppsss".

Tommy's wife Brittany Furlan was among the people who commented on his post, writing "OH MY GOD" next to the image on Instagram.

Tommy later followed up his original post with an image of an elephant staring at a naked male model, while swaying its trunk. It was captioned, "How do you breathe through that little thing??" apparently a reference to the size of Lee's manhood.

Lee's penis was featured in a sex tape he made with then-wife Pamela Anderson during their 1998 honeymoon. The video ended up finding its way online after being stolen from their home by an electrician. According to Marie Claire, Pamela later sued the distribution company, but ended up settling, and the tape continued to be available online as a result. The tape reportedly made $77 million in less than 12 months.

The scandal was the focus of Hulu's "Pam & Tommy" series, which was released in February. In an episode of the series, actor Sebastian Stan, who played Lee, has a pep talk with his animated penis.

Show creator Robert Siegel later explained to Variety that he adapted the conversation from Lee's 2005 memoir, "Tommyland", adding, "There was gentle pushback, because you've got to push back a little when a talking penis is presented to you. But Hulu was extremely supportive."

Lee's penis was ranked at number eight on Gawker's list of "20 Famous Big D**ks," behind Wilt Chamberlain's.

RUSH legends Geddy Lee and Alex Lifeson reunited on stage last night (Wednesday, August 10) to perform the band's classic song "Closer To The Heart".

The reunion took place at the Red Rocks Amphitheater in Denver as part of a celebration marking the 25th anniversary of animated comedy show "South Park". Lee and Lifeson were joined for the performance by their longtime friends PRIMUS, as well as "South Park" show creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone.

"South Park: The 25th Anniversary Concert" will air Saturday, August 13 on Comedy Central, and a day later on Paramount+.

Stone is a huge fan of RUSH, having told the Ottawa Citizen in 2012, "RUSH was the first band I ever loved."

According to Variety, there have been multiple RUSH references in "South Park" over the years, including in 2011's "Royal Pudding" episode when was RUSH is tapped to perform at a vigil after the princess of Canada was abducted before her wedding. The group is shown on stage playing a mock version of Elton John's "Candle In The Wind", sung as "Flower Breaking Wind", which results in Lifeson and some members of the audience committing suicide. The band also featured "South Park" characters in a video they showed live before they played "Tom Sawyer" during their last few tours. In 1999, Lee and Lifeson teamed up with Parker and Stone to record a rocking version of "O' Canada" for the film "South Park: Bigger, Longer And Uncut".

This past April, Lifeson said that it was "difficult to accept" that he would never play with RUSH again after the completion of the "R40" tour, which commemorated the 40th anniversary of drummer Neil Peart joining the band.

Peart died in January 2020 after a three-year battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. He was 67 years old.

Lifeson reflected on RUSH's final tour, which concluded on August 1, 2015 at the Forum in Los Angeles, during a June 2021 appearance on SiriuxXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". Peart indicated at the time that he wanted to retire while he was still able to play well, along with a desire to spend more time at home with his young daughter.

"We were in our early 60s when that tour ended," Alex said. "After the number of dates that we did do, which was about half of what we would normally do, we were all starting to feel the fatigue, as you normally would. And had it been a normal tour, we have gone out for probably another month and then taken a month off, or maybe a couple of months off, and then picked it up for another three or four months.

"I think personally, and I think the same for Ged [RUSH bassist/vocalist Geddy Lee], we were really excited about the show, the presentation of the show, the whole concept of going back through our history," he continued. "I thought we were all playing really, really well, and I probably could have continued to do another 30 shows, and I think Geddy felt the same way. But it was becoming really difficult for Neil to play at that level, and unless he could play a hundred percent at that level, he really didn't wanna do any more shows, and he didn't wanna be that person that should have taken it. And it was hard for him — a three-hour show playing the way he played. It's a miracle that he was even able to play. And he had some issues through that tour — he had an infection on his feet and he could barely walk, never mind playing the bass drum the way he did. And he never complained or anything like that. So, it was time. And in retrospect, it couldn't have been better, because we were playing great, and we finished on such a high note. The fans were so happy — I mean, with the performance. All things were right. That was the great way to ensure our legacy and be remembered for those guys, for being that band that played that way. I honestly would hate to be working now, for example, and not being able to play a song because my fingers are just killing me and not playing as well and making all these mistakes. I made enough mistakes — way too many. So, all in all, it really turned out to be the opportune time for us to end a long career. Not a lot of bands lasted 40 years of that regular touring and many, many, many albums and all of that stuff."

RUSH waited three days to announce Peart's passing, setting off shockwaves and an outpouring of grief from fans and musicians all over the world.

Peart joined RUSH in 1974. He was considered one of the best rock drummers of all time, alongside John Bonham of LED ZEPPELIN; Keith Moon of THE WHO; and Ginger Baker of CREAM. Peart was also RUSH's primary lyricist, drawing inspiration from everything from sci-fi to Ayn Rand.

Finnish five-piece, Sonata Arctica, have released a lyric video for "I Have A Right", featured on the band's upcoming release, Acoustic Adventures - Volume Two. Watch the clip below.


Sonata Arctica need no introduction: besides significantly influencing the power/melodic metal scene, they're a band that's not only famous for consistently delivering studio albums of high quality but also for experimenting and breaking out of their musical comfort zone. Foremost resulting in some aptly called Acoustic Adventures touring cycles, but also in the release of Volume One of their very first acoustic album which saw the light of day in early 2022.


Sonata Arctica recently announce that the continuation and second chapter of the aforementioned record is set to be unleashed on the world on September 30 via Atomic Fire - to complete this special saga and to finally celebrate the kick-off of their next, multiply postponed Acoustic Adventures trip in order to lift up the Corona-shaken Finnish and European mainland minds.




Like the first part, the new offering was recorded and produced by Mikko Tegelman alongside the band at Studio57, Finland while the cover artwork was designed by Janne Pitkänen.


Pre-order exclusive album + merch bundles here.





Acoustic Adventures - Volume Two tracklisting:


"I Have A Right"
"Black Sheep"
"Half A Marathon Man"
"Broken"
"Letter To Dana"
"FullMoon"
"Shamandalie"
"San Sebastian"
"Gravenimage"
"Flag In The Ground"
"My Land"
"Victoria's Secret"


"I Have A Right" lyric video:





For all Sonata Arctica tour dates, ticket links, and further information, head here.











Sonata Arctica are:


Tony Kakko - vocals & keyboards
Elias Viljanen - guitars
Pasi Kauppinen - bass
Henrik "Henkka" Klingenberg - keyboards
Tommy Portimo - drums


(Photo - Jarkko Piipari)

Richard Shaw, who played guitar with British extreme metallers CRADLE OF FILTH starting in 2014, and appeared on the albums "Hammer Of The Witches", "Cryptoriana: The Seductiveness of Decay" and "Existence Is Futile" before officially exiting the group in March (although his split wasn't announced until May), discussed his reasons for leaving during an appearance on the latest episode of the "2020'd" podcast. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "To be honest, it just got a point where I didn't wanna do it anymore. It was as simple as that.

"Touring and traveling was never a problem for me. Writing and recording — the actual music side of things — I loved and I still love. It was all the behind-the-scenes stuff [that] kind of got to me after a while," he explained. "It just got to a point where you find out things that you don't like the sound of that's been going on for a while. A lot of drama and B.S.

"I'm a dad now. My life's pretty hectic as it is without adding unnecessary drama to the bag," Richard added. "It just got to a point where I was, like, 'This isn't fun anymore.' Doing the shows is fun most of the time, but it's all the other stuff that was kind of getting to me. It's time to walk away. If it's not fun anymore, it's time to step aside."

Asked to elaborate on the "drama" that led to his departure from CRADLE OF FILTH, Shaw said: "Touring and writing and recording is the dream — it really is. But to me, it came at quite a high cost, and I wasn't willing to pay that cost. Me, the keyboard player [Anabelle Iratni] and all but one of the crew didn't wanna pay that cost. So they had to basically hire all new crew as well as a new keyboard player and a new guitar player… I don't know. There's a side of me that thinks if you just treat people better, it'd be less hassle. In a nutshell, just treat people better and show them the respect that they deserve and people kind of stick around.

"My B.S. tolerance seems to have lowered over the years," he continued. "There's a lot of stuff that I kind of let slide [in the past] that towards the end I was, like, 'I'm not letting that slide anymore.' It was as simple as that.

"I know this sounds super cryptic, but I still get on well with the band; I love everybody in the band. It's more all the people behind the scenes."

According to Shaw, he wasn't being compensated well enough for him to want to deal with the stress of playing with CRADLE OF FILTH.

"It became one of those things where financially it wasn't starting to make sense to stick around," he said. "I don't know how much to say, but you get talking to other bands and other session members — 'cause I was a session member but I also wrote for the band — and you start discussing stuff with other people who are in similar boats, who are session musicians but also write for the band, and you go, 'Hang on a minute. This doesn't sound as fair as what you've got.'"

Pressed about whether musicians in midsized metal bands can actually make money from playing music, Shaw said: "You can make money, but you've gotta be smart about it. I never made a living off of CRADLE OF FILTH — never. I had to do other things to supplement those earnings. When I was on tour, I was getting paid and it was okay. Again, to be perfectly honest, not what it should have been. But it was okay. And now that I've got a family and things, it's, like, okay, now I'm gonna be away from my family 24-7 for months on end, and I can kind of earn the same money back home and I see [my family] every day.

"I think every musician I've ever met says the same. It's, like, you don't make the living a lot of people think you do," he explained. "You need the multiple streams of income. Which I totally get, and I knew that was part of it going in. But lik I say, you talk to other musicians and you talk to other writers, and you start thinking, 'Hang on a minute. Something weird is going on. I've got a feeling some people aren't telling the whole story here.' And it just got to the point where I was, like, 'Okay, I've gotta weigh it up if it's worth me sticking around for.'

"I'll be a hundred percent honest: there was also another side of me. We started writing what would have been my fourth album with the band and I put, like, seven or eight songs forward for it," he added. "And I found myself going on autopilot a little bit. And I was, like, 'I'm doing this because I've been told I have to, not because I necessarily really feel the need to write this style of music anymore.' So there was a lot of things going on."

When CRADLE OF FILTH frontman Dani Filth announced Shaw's departure in May, he said that Richard was leaving "due to other commitments." Richard has since been replaced by Donny Burbage while Zoe Marie Federoff has stepped in for Anabelle.

Regarding what led to Shaw and Iratni's departures, Filth said: "Unfortunately, it just is what it is. If someone feels that their tenure with the band has ended, then who am I to argue with that? We have to respect that people have personal commitments and/or sometimes find the career choice of being in a band like CRADLE a tad overwhelming."

CRADLE OF FILTH's latest album, "Existence Is Futile", was released last October.

In May 2021, CRADLE OF FILTH announced the addition of Iratni to the band's ranks.

Iratni, who previously played alongside Filth in DEVILMENT, as well as her own group VEILE, made her live debut with CRADLE OF FILTH on May 12, 2021 during the band's livestreamed concert.

Anabelle joined CRADLE OF FILTH as the replacement for Lindsay Schoolcraft, who announced her departure from the group in February 2020 after a seven-year run.

Following the release of their highly successful and critically acclaimed album Hate Über Alles, metal titans Kreator are proud to share a new live video of their 1989 classic, "Betrayer", which was recorded at Bloodstock Festival 2021 and features none other than Dani Filth (Cradle Of Filth) on guest vocals. 


The song is featured on the limited 2LP Live At Bloodstock 2021, a monumental live recording of Kreator's breathtaking headline performance at one of the UKs most renowned metal festivals, which is being released today (August 12th).


The vinyl run is limited to 2,000 units world-wide, split into 4 colours. 







Tracklist:


Side A
"The Patriarch" 
"Violent Revolution" 
"Extreme Aggression" 
"Phobia" 


Side B
"Satan Is Real" 
"Hordes Of Chaos" 
"Hail To The Hordes" 
"666 World Divided" 


Side C
"Awakening Of The Gods"
"Enemy Of God"
"Mars Mantra" 
"Phantom Antichrist"
"Fallen Brother" 


Side D
"Flag Of Hate"
"Betrayer" 
"Pleasure To Kill" 
"Apocalypticon" 

Swedish symphonic metal quintet Hexed has released a new lyric video for “Resurrection”. This is the second single release, taken from their upcoming album Pagans Rising, set for release on September 30th via ViciSolum Productions.










Check out the previously released lyric video for  "Repentance", the first single taken from the forthcoming album, Pagans Rising.








For further details, visit Hexed on Facebook.


 

Frontiers Music Srl present the sophomore release from Sweden's Fans Of The Dark, Suburbia, on September 16. These Swedish upstarts are coming off a well-received debut album, which saw them seamlessly melding melodic rock with their '80s hard rock and metal influences. Suburbia sees them further perfecting that most agreeable formula with stunning results.


Listen to the single "Fans Of The Dark" below, and pre-order/save Suburbia here.


Suburbia is a sequel of sorts to the band's self-titled debut, following similar themes, both musically and lyrically and even with the theme of the artwork, while seeing the band continuing to evolve. Drummer Freddie Allen's vision for the band is to do as the great hard rock and metal bands of the '70s and '80s did, which was to constantly work on their craft and release new music with regularity. In keeping with that vision, the band set to work on their second album quickly after the release of their self-titled debut. Suburbia follows more or less exactly one year after said debut, which was released in the fall of 2021.




"It is pretty much a sibling to the first album, with similar themes and ideas, only this time going deeper into the world where most of us grew up, and where we first got in touch with hard rock music, horror films on VHS, 80's teen culture, and all else that shaped us - the suburbs," says Freddie Allen, main songwriter and founder of the band, of Suburbia.


For this new album, Allen and vocalist Alex Falk are once again joined by guitarist Oscar Bromvall and new bassist Rickard Gramfors. The album spans eight tracks (another reference back to those glory days of the '70s and '80s), including two epic songs, "The Pirates Of Maine" and "Restless Soul", around the eight minute mark. Fans of the band's debut will be enthralled with the band's second offering. Melodic hard rock fans looking for genre innovation and a break from 'the norm' will certainly be wise to check out this striking breath of fresh air in the scene.


Suburbia was produced and mixed by multi-talented musician and producer Lars Fredrik Swahn (Dungen, The Amazing) and co-produced by Allen.


Fans of the Dark, is an exciting new band formed in the summer of 2020 by Freddie Allen, drummer and main songwriter, and lead vocalist Alex Falk. The pair went to high school together in Stockholm and after a few years reconnected recently with a vision to create a band which would mix the melodies and approach of classic and melodic rock with elements of the great metal music of the '80s. Their musical output over the course of their first two albums is one of the most exciting things you'll hear emerging from the fruitful melodic rock in Sweden, showcasing a tight, inventive musical approach with outstanding vocals.





Suburbia tracklisting:


"Night Of The Living Dead"
"The Pirates Of Maine"
"Fantasia"
"Sick! Sick Sick!"
"Fright Night"
"Fans Of The Dark"
"The Goblin King"
"Restless Soul"


"Fans Of The Dark":





"Night Of The Living Dead" video:





Lineup:


Alex Falk - vocals
Oscar Bromvall - guitars
Rickard Gramfors - bass
Freddie Allen - drums

Since the release of the band's debut album, The Unholy Grail, Chicago death thrashers Crusadist have been touring right across the US alongside acts such as Inhuman Condition and Micawber, and supporting icons such as Nile, Kalmah and Vital Remains.


To promote the release of the bands crushing new single, "Pulverized By Warhammers", Crusadist are heading out with New Hampshire blackened tech death machine Begat The Nephilim for the ‘Unholy Procession Tour,’ with selected shows alongside Malignancy, Mortal Decay, Torn The Fuck Apart, Atoll and more.







Check out a lyric video for "Pulverized By Warhammers" below. Mixed and mastered by Cryptopsy guitarist Christian Donaldson (Ingested, The Agonist, Beyond Creation) with artwork by Giannis Nakos from Remedy Designs (Suffocation, Evergrey) the song delivers a crushing groove that commands a brutal pit frenzy.





Commenting on the new song, vocalist Shaun Albro states: “We wrote ‘Pulverized By Warhammers’ during the pandemic lockdowns. It was a very dark and uncertain time. A time when we were bombarded by restrictions, uncertainty and confined by these walls of separation that seemed to arise at every turn. It really began to feel like a prison that we desperately needed to escape from. Pulverized By Warhammers is a 4 and a half minute bludgeoning auditory onslaught where Old School Death Metal meets the New Wave. Thick and pounding with groove, brutal and memorable. PBW tells the tale of a tenacious rebellion with intentions to destroy anything and everything in its path”





Crusadist:


Shaun Albro – Vocals
Luke Sever – Lead Guitar
Aaron Nobles – Rhythm Guitar
Kevin Ariel – Bass Guitar
Jason Rak – Drums

Voraath, from North and South Carolina USA, features members from ex-Nile (Brad Parris), Xael (Joshua Ward), Rapheumets Well, Implosive Disgorgence, and Sweet Blood. They are an otherworldly and experimental death metal band that brings together emotional yet brutal music and science fantasy appealing to both metal enthusiasts as well as those who appreciate the lore of the music.


They have their next and third stand-alone single out, entitled “Amon The Judge”, and today they present their next sci-fi lore with the music video for the track.


Drummer and the video's director Joshua Ward explains the track in further detail: "We have been crafting depth to the lore of our music. Every song we write has two meanings. We have the personal meaning and then molded into the lore. We developed this planet in which 80% of the population disappears after the arrival of three extraterrestrial beings which people revere as gods. The story focuses on a group of hunters that are contracted by EOS corporation to retrieve certain artifacts. We are 100 years into the future so a lot has changed and corporations have taken over. While preparing for the next mission, the hunters of Harrow’s Gorge entrusted Edgar, a village elder, to keep the village safe by keeping the retrieved relic hidden. Betraying his oath, Edgar informed the militant Ostromek Corp of the relics' location for status and financial gain. The soldiers of Ostromek Corp ravaged the village, murdering and plundering its resources. The song 'Amon the Judge' follows the hunters' return, their trauma of loss, the brutal reprisal upon the remaining soldiers, and the final judgment of Edgar. This song explored the mental complexity of trauma and under what circumstances do good people commit vicious acts."







Voraath began as a vessel for the quintet to continue touring and writing. They wanted to explore even further integrating science fantasy, soundscapes, and metal. They hope that the first three tracks tantalize audiences and leave them anticipating their debut album, which is currently in the works.


Looking to hit the stage, they promise an onslaught of theatrics, bringing the story of the music to life. Atmospheric and driving, the medley of blast beats, chugging bass, and heavily distorted solos will be both intense and immersive. Voraath is recommended for fans of Septicflesh, Cattle Decapitation, and Fleshgod Apocalypse.


Lineup:


Brad Parris – Vocalist, Guitarist
Joshua Nassaru Ward – Drummer/Vocals/ Keys
Tylor Kohl – Guitarist
Daniel Presnell – Guitarist, accompany instruments
Paul McBride – Bassist

BUTCHER BABIES have recorded a cover version of rapper Saweetie's chart-topping single "Best Friend" for inclusion on their upcoming fourth full-length album, to be released in 2023.

BUTCHER BABIES have been playing their version of "Best Friend" live for the first time on their recently launched European tour, including at their August 5 concert in Amsterdam, Netherlands. Fan-filmed video of the "Best Friend" performance from that show can be seen below.

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

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

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

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

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

ARCH ENEMY vocalist Alissa White-Gluz spoke to Montreal Rocks about how she ended up flying to Germany from her native Canada in 2021 to work on her band's 11th album, "Deceivers". She ended up staying in Germany for a year due to the stiff pandemic-related restrictions in her hometown of Montreal and the rest of the Great White North.

"I kind of split the two years on both sides of the Atlantic," she said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "2020 I was west of it; 2021 I was east of it. Canada had extremely strict restrictions — so strict that at one point the police refused to enforce it because even they thought it was ridiculous.

"In general, I'm a pretty chill person and I don't really judge people on decisions that they make in times of stress because obviously nobody knows how to handle this; this is a brand new situation for everyone," she continued. "I definitely don't think that it was handled very well, but at the same time I don't know what the right way to do it would have been.

"So I definitely enjoyed 2021 more than 2020. But we were all kind of stuck in the same boat."

This past spring, White-Gluz told Metal Hammer that because of the pandemic, "Deceivers" took "a lot of travel, uncertainty and risk" to make. She explained: "2021 was a very interesting year. I had to get over to Michael [Amott, guitar] to finish vocal arrangements, then get to Denmark and record in [producer] Jacob Hansen's studios, but Canadians were banned from flying to Germany. I flew to Germany, but didn't know if I would be allowed in. There were many attempts to go somewhere else or get bandmembers to us, but they didn’t work for Covid reasons. What I ended up doing was staying in Europe for an entire year. I didn't want to risk being far away from our hub, which is basically in Sweden and Germany, and not being able to get back to it. I rented a car and found a little home for myself in southern Germany; I stayed there for a whole year. I set up a studio down there and continued working on a lot of solo material."

"Deceivers" will arrive on August 12 via Century Media Records.

In May, ARCH ENEMY released a new seven-inch single, "Sunset Over The Empire", with the title track also appearing on "Deceivers". The official music video for "Sunset Over The Empire", directed by Grupa13, was made available the same day.

ARCH ENEMY played the first show of "The North American Siege 2022" tour with BEHEMOTH and NAPALM DEATH on April 16 at The Marquee in Tempe, Arizona.

ARCH ENEMY is appearing at select summer festivals before embarking on the rescheduled "European Siege 2022" trek (with BEHEMOTH, CARCASS, UNTO OTHERS) in the fall.

Fan-filmed video of SICK OF IT ALL's August 3 performance at Debaser in Stockholm, Sweden can be seen below.

Late last month, SICK OF IT ALL announced that guitarist Pete Koller would sit out the band's summer 2022 European tour in order to undergo surgery for a hernia. His temporary replacement is Craig Silverman (AGNOSTIC FRONT, ONLY LIVING WITNESS, BLOOD FOR BLOOD, RAMALLAH, SLAPSHOT).

On July 24, SICK OF IT ALL released the following statement via social media: "We have some unfortunate news. Pete can not make the up coming tour which starts next week. He was trying to see if he could get his surgery for a hernia after the tour but the doctors said it would worsen his condition. So with a heavy heart he has to cancel but he didn't want us to disappoint all the people that were counting and relying on us to suffer especially the fans. So he suggested we go on the tour with the help from Craig Silverman @craig_aint_like_you. From AGNOSTIC FRONT.

"This was not an easy decision. This is the first time we will ever be playing with out Pete. But he didn’t want us to let down all our fans who have brought tickets already. Thanks to Craig Silverman for stepping up and helping us out. Ans please let's all wish Pete a speedy recovery. We hope you all come out and get loud with us!!"

SICK OF IT ALL's twelfth studio album, "Wake The Sleeping Dragon!", was released in November 2018 via Century Media. The follow-up to 2014's "The Last Act Of Defiance" was produced by Jerry Farley (EVERY TIME I DIE, DEMON HUNTER) over a two-and-a-half-week period at Nova Studios in Staten Island, New York and was mixed and mastered by Tue Madsen (MESHUGGAH, THE HAUNTED, MADBALL). The cover artwork was created by Ernie Parada.

"Wake The Sleeping Dragon!" featured guest appearances by RISE AGAINST vocalist/guitarist Tim McIlrath and HOT WATER MUSIC frontman Chuck Ragan.

New Yorks hardcore-ikoner "Sick of it all"återvänder äntligen till Sverige! Bandet som klassas som ett av klotets bästa...

Posted by Debaser on Friday, June 3, 2022

Professionally filmed video of VENOM performing its classic song "Black Metal" on August 5 at this year's Wacken Open Air festival in Wacken, Germany can be seen below.

VENOM frontman Conrad "Cronos" Lant recently confirmed that the band is putting the finishing touches on a new studio album. Speaking at last weekend's Wacken Open Air, he said: "We had a bit of a hassle because of the pandemic; we couldn't meet in the studio and all that sort of shit. So that knocked everything all to hell. If that hadn't happened, the album would be out by now. But we're just doing the fine tuning, really, and working on individual shows for now.

"VENOM have never been a big touring type of band," he explained. "We like to just pop up and blow the place to hell."

VENOM formed in 1979 in Newcastle Upon Tyne. Coming to prominence towards the end of the new wave of British heavy metal, VENOM's first two albums — "Welcome To Hell" (1981) and "Black Metal" (1982) — are considered a major influence on thrash metal and extreme metal in general. VENOM's second album proved influential enough that its title was used as the name of the extreme metal sub-genre of black metal. The band classic lineup trio of Cronos, Jeff "Mantas" Dunn and Anthony "Abaddon" Bray recorded two further studio albums, "At War With Satan" (1984) and "Possessed" (1985),and live album "Eine Kleine Nachtmusik" (1986). Often cited by bands such as METALLICA, BEHEMOTH, CELTIC FROST and MAYHEM as major influences, they are one of the most revered bands of their generation. VENOM are still fronted by original singer/bassist Cronos and headline festivals all over the globe and continue to release new music.

In a 2018 interview with Consequence Of Sound, Cronos stated about his band's influence on subsequent extreme metal groups: "I really like to think of VENOM as a catalyst rather than inventors. Influence would probably be more like it. I've always been — from being young — a fan of what you'd call 'rock music.' From THE BEATLES to THE [ROLLING] STONES to THE WHO, through [LED] ZEPPELIN and [DEEP] PURPLE and everybody. So, I've always liked the idea of drums, guitar, this, that, and the other. My mum's brother used to play guitar in a country-western band, so I've always been around instruments and music. I've never really gotten into any of the electronic stuff when it came along in the '80s. I didn't really see how that was working for me in any way — I just like a drum kit and a guitar."

He continued: "When people used to ask back in the day, 'How do you describe VENOM?' I would say, 'It's all the best bits of the bands that I love.' So, if JUDAS PRIEST wear leather jackets, then I'm going to wear a leather jacket and a pair of leather pants! And if KISS have three flashpots on the front of the stage, I'm going to have ten! And if Ozzy Osbourne is going to sing about the devil walking down the street, then I'm going to be the devil walking down the street! It was taking all of the great things that I loved, and all the crazy frontmen, like Gene Simmons, Ian Anderson, Rob Halford, and encompassing all of these ideas into a new thing. And then, adding that dash of punk. That's why I always used to wear the big Doc Martens — that was my punk heritage.

"And just putting some aggression back into the music," Cronos added. "I mean, heavy metal has always been 'the devil's music.' They always say the devil has the best tunes, and I was bit frustrated at leaving school and being told that rock music was dead, and it had its day and everybody was finished with it. I had to absolutely disagree. So, when the New Wave of British Heavy Metal started in England — which became IRON MAIDEN, SAXON, SAMSON, and all these bands — I wanted to create something different from that. I appreciated that they were very heavily influenced by the ZEPPELINs, the PURPLEs, and the [BLACK] SABBATHs, and were trying to keep a hold of this '70s vibe. I get all of that, but I wanted something that was kind of a cross between SABBATH and MOTÖRHEAD. Something more aggressive — with a bit of SEX PISTOLS in there, to get nasty."

VENOM's 15th full-length studio album, "Storm The Gates", was released in December 2018 through Spinefarm Records.

VENOM is not to be confused with VENOM INC., the band featuring Mantas alongside ex-VENOM bassist/vocalist Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan.

Sunstorm have released a lyric video for "Hold The Night", featured on the new album, Brothers In Arms, the second to feature lead vocalist Ronnie Romero (Michael Schenker, Lords Of Black). Watch the clip below.


Romero’s debut album with Sunstorm, Afterlife, was released in early 2021 and showcased a rejuvenation of Sunstorm's previous musical formula, mixing melodic rock/AOR with more '70s oriented hard rock, ala Rainbow (for which Romero performed as singer). That recipe is perfected on Brothers In Arms with new guitarist Luca Princiotta (Doro, Blaze) joining the lineup of Romero, bassist Nik Mazzucconi, drummer Michele Sanna, and keyboardist Alessandro Del Vecchio.


Order the album here.







Tracklisting:


"Brothers In Arms"
"Games We Play"
"I’ll Keep Holding On"
"I Will Remember"
"No Turning Back"
"Back My Dreams"
"Taste Of Heaven"
"Lost In The Shadows Of Love"
"Hold The Night"
"Miracle"
"Living Out Of Fear"


"Hold The Night" lyric video:





"Brothers In Arms" video:





Lineup:


Ronnie Romero - Vocals
Luca Princiotta - Guitars
Alessandro Del Vecchio - Keyboards, backing vocals
Nik Mazzucconi - Bass
Michele Sanna - Drums

Saliva are in the Top 30 at radio with their latest single, "Crows". This is the highest charting song from Saliva since 2011. In addition, the band released the official music video for the single. Watch the clip below, and stream/download the song here.





"'Crows' is about being in a relationship with a person so who is unwilling to recognize the shadow side of their personality, which ultimately leads to destruction of their relationships. We wanted to do something different for the music video. As a band we all love The Halloween season, and horror flicks. Given the title and dark subject matter of the song this was the perfect opportunity to incorporate some of that creepiness into a video. The imagery in the video represents the duality that resides within each of us. Like the makeup and colors in the video, we all have light and darkness within. Our darkness, or shadow sides are the repressed ideas, desires, weaknesses, insecurities, and short comings that we all have, but find hard to accept. The man in this video has struggled to come to terms with his own light and dark side and has now recognized he cannot continue to be dragged down by a partner who is unwilling to do the same. Ultimately It is only in recognizing our shadows that we can take away their power over us," says Bobby Amaru, vocalist of the band.''




Saliva will continue to release tracks and ultimately a full album. The new music has a contemporary feel but sticks to the blue collar roots that their fans love.