King Diamond has commented on guitarist Michael Denner's exclusion from MERCYFUL FATE's current "reunion."

When it was announced in 2019 that the influential Danish heavy metal act would reunite for an unspecified number of concerts throughout Europe during the summer of 2020, it was revealed that MERCYFUL FATE's lineup for the shows would consist of King on vocals, Hank Shermann on guitar, Bjarne T. Holm on drums, Mike Wead on guitar and Joey Vera (ARMORED SAINT, FATES WARNING) on bass.

Asked in a new interview with Creem magazine why Denner isn't involved in the MERCYFUL FATE reunion, King said: "There are reasons Michael Denner and [drummer] Kim Ruzz are simply not here. I know that Michael Denner did an interview recently, and I'm not going to get into it, but he said a lot of things that are absolutely not true. I could go into a lot of details about the reasons that this is not a lineup with him in it, or Kim Ruzz in it. I don't want to say anything bad about anybody, but you can't say, 'Hey, I should have played there.' Why? Should I throw out a band member that is absolutely perfect for the band, that goes all out for the band all the time, no matter what? And his skill is beyond anything I played with on that spot in the band? There's no way that he's going to get fired because someone else is suddenly interested in the band. That's completely wrong. There's no way I would ever treat anyone like that."

King went on to say that it has been "very cool and a lot of fun" to play with MERCYFUL FATE again, but he clarified: "People have misunderstood what we are doing now. This is not a reunion. We are just picking it up again because the stars are aligned correctly now. And that's been the thing all the time. Before when people asked, 'Do you think you're going to play with MERCY again?' I would never say never. But it's got to be completely right. I don't want to go out there and try to milk a cow and do a show with the backdrop and then collect and say, 'That was that.' That's not right. And Hank has the same philosophy. Either we do it 200 precent, or we don't do it."

Last month, Denner said that it was "heartbreaking" for him to be excluded from MERCYFUL FATE's current reunion. Denner, who was a member of MERCYFUL FATE's classic lineup, addressed his absence from the band's reunion in an interview with Finland's Chaoszine. The guitarist said: "I [feel like] this is not my band anymore. I'm not part of it, because they didn't tell me; they didn't invite me. We didn't even have a discussion about it. So, of course, it took some time for me to digest it. It was quite painful, because I miss my friends from the '80s — I miss them. But not the people who [are] in the band today. I wish them the best. I mean, the better they play, the more records we can sell and the more money I will get in the end. Of course it's heartbreaking. And also to see and hear — they play my signature stuff. Most of the songs they play now is things I've done — I mean, my signature solos, my themes, my arrangements, my stuff. And it's another guy who plays. But then again, Mike Wead is a great guitarist, and he's still a good friend of mine. So if anyone should do the job, I'm glad it's him who did it, really. He can do the shit. That's some sort of comfort in all this agony and disappointment — that it's Mike Wead who plays. And that makes me feel good."

Regarding his relationship with King, Michael said: "The thing is me and King, we had a discussion some years ago. It was about a cover of a DENNER/SHERMANN album. Because the artist who did the artwork for the cover is [Swedish artist] Thomas Holm who did [MERCYFUL FATE's] 'Melissa' and 'Don't Break The Oath'. And, of course, his way of painting and stuff, it was a bit more than a bit similar to 'Melissa' and 'Don't Break The Oath', and King got upset and tried to stop the album. He did manage to stop — as I recall it — the merchandise side; t-shirt design and so on. I'm not a hundred percent sure [about] that, but that could be the story.

"Me and King are quite alike," he explained. "We don't turn the other cheek. I mean, two old assholes who don't wanna stretch the hand out and say, 'Okay, let bygones be bygones. Let's try to do this.' So we keep the disagreements and the enemy side of it. That's just sad. But with Hank, it was a different story because it came out of nowhere. We had a good teamwork going with DENNER/SHERMANN. And one of the last things Hank told me was, 'If we do a MERCYFUL FATE reunion, it should be with you and me. No question about it.' But of course, King, he has some strong will and some power behind it — Metal Blade Records and money; big salaries. So Hank chose to go that way and just leave me out in the cold. And [Hank and I] haven't spoken since, more or less. And that's a few years now. But then again, we've been a guitar team since the late '70s — that's a long, long time — and the friendship. And it's like telepathy. You know exactly which guy should play what parts and we know each other like it's in the pocket. But he chose to go that way, and I couldn't live with that. So we don't talk anymore. But I wish him the best — I wish him just the best of luck in the future. But his future will be without me."

Asked if he thinks there is still a chance that he will one day reconnect with Hank, Michael said: "Not in a million years. That will never happen — never. It's just the end of it, because I could never trust this guy again. He broke my heart and he stabbed me in the back. But still, I miss my old friend; I miss my guitar partner. But I will never take a chance again, trusting this guy, when he could do the thing he did. I will never be safe. So I feel sorry for me and I feel sorry for him. It's a loss. That's the way life goes. You have to carry on."

MERCYFUL FATE's last studio album, "9", was released in 1999.

MERCYFUL FATE will be remembered for its unquestionable mark on the history of metal with its innovative sound, complex arrangements, memorable melody, and its influence on bands that later took the genre to new heights.

In 1998, METALLICA paid tribute to MERCYFUL FATE by recording a medley of classic MERCYFUL FATE songs on the album "Garage Inc." Titled "Mercyful Fate", the medley included parts from "Satan's Fall", "Curse Of The Pharaohs", "A Corpse Without Soul", "Into The Coven" and "Evil".

Lars Ulrich of METALLICA (a fellow Dane) played drums on a new version of MERCYFUL FATE's "Return Of The Vampire" on the "In The Shadows" album, which came out in 1993.

Original MERCYFUL FATE bassist Timi Hansen died in November 2019 after a battle with cancer.

SLIPKNOT has shared "Yen", a brand new single off the band's widely anticipated new album, "The End, So Far", which will be released September 30 on Roadrunner. Available today on all streaming platforms, "Yen" is a showcase of SLIPKNOT's exceptional range and sees one of the world's most popular and deeply enigmatic bands relentlessly charting new ground as they continue to redefine, revitalize, and reimagine the scope of rock music.

"Yen" follows the forthcoming album's lead single "The Dying Song (Time To Sing)" which arrived last month accompanied by an official music video directed by the band's own M. Shawn "Clown" Crahan. The track garnered widespread acclaim upon its arrival with The Fader declaring "It absolutely rips," and Rolling Stone praising it as a "punishing new elegy."

Produced by SLIPKNOT and Joe Barresi, "The End, So Far" is available for pre-order with several vinyl variants available at Slipknot1.com. "The End, So Far" includes the band’s 2021 surprise single "The Chapeltown Rag" and follows their widely celebrated 2019 album "We Are Not Your Kind", which marked SLIPKNOT's third consecutive No. 1 on the Billboard 200. The release made a massive global impact with No. 1 debuts in the official album charts of twelve countries around the world, including the U.K., Australia, Canada and Mexico, with Top 5 debuts in an additional twelve countries including Germany, France and Sweden.

In February, singer Corey Taylor told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" about the musical direction of the new SLIPKNOT material: "It's really killer, man. It's darker than 'We Are Not Your Kind', but there's a ton of melody. I've been telling everybody that it's like a heavier version of 'Vol. 3[: (The Subliminal Verses)]'. It's got so many textures and layers. The heavy stuff has attack but the melodic stuff you can just sink your teeth in; there's a lot of great melodies and hooks. I'm really, really excited for people to hear it."

In March, SLIPKNOT drummer Jay Weinberg told Wisconsin's WZOR (Razor 94.7/104.7) radio station about the musical direction of the band's next LP.: "I would say we kind of turned up the dials on experimentation. And there's some new things happening that are really exciting, really interesting, stuff that maybe I wouldn't have even expected us to pull out of our hat. We've got a song that's like the heaviest blues song on earth, and stuff like that that's super exciting to hear what the guys are doing. Then, once we're working on the instrumental for a while, then we get to hear what Corey brings to the table and how that elevates things and turns things into newer and better and whatever… It's very exciting to hear that kind of taking shape. But, man, there's so much in it that is trademark SLIPKNOT. We're not gonna get away from that; we can't escape that even if we wanted to. There are certain things that are just touchstones of what we are, and I think we're really happy with that. And the fact that we can try to find new ways of presenting those elements — the loud, the fast, the abrasive, the discordant, all that is there for sure. And that's really exciting. I think [last year's single] 'The Chapeltown Rag' is a great example of that. I think that's a song that's us kind of at peak energy and chaos. But what also really excites me is the way that we push things in experimental ways without questioning it. It's just kind of, like, 'This is what we wanna do. And people can take it or leave it. We don't really care.' Like on our last record, 'Spiders' was a great example of a song that is totally out of no playbook of SLIPKNOT's, but we make it SLIPKNOT. I think now that we're kind of in this final stage of mixing this album, I think I'm confident in saying that we just kind of turned up the dials on all that experimentation. And there's some really, really new stuff that's super exciting. And I hope it makes its way onto the stage soon. It's gonna be exciting to share."

Asked how songs come together during the SLIPKNOT writing process, Jay said: "In a myriad of ways. There's really no one set formula for anything that happens. I think the one thing that we can all expect when we embark on making a new album — 'cause it takes so much, it takes so much time and energy and thought — the one thing, I think, that we try to maintain is that each process is pretty different. We wanna push ourselves, and the only way you're gonna push yourself is to change it up, make yourself uncomfortable in situations so you can become comfortable in those situations. And so I think pushing what we do to the extreme — you wanna kind of level up, for lack of a better term, each time you kind of go back to the drawing table."

He continued: "Now, after [making] three records [with SLIPKNOT], I know there are certain patterns of the way that we work together and our musical chemistry and the trust that's there. 'Cause we're all kind of trusting each other to make the greatest thing possible. So that could start with a lyric, it could start with a guitar riff, it could start with a drum beat, it could start with something that Sid [Wilson, turntablist] pulls from outer space. There's a million different ways to go about it.

"My first record with the band, '[.5:] The Gray Chapter' [2014], was very much like… I'm very proud of it, but I can tell in it, it was a lot of getting up to speed and really feeling out my new bandmates. 'Cause I joined the band and literally the next day we were working on demos for that record. Then so much of it is informed by our live show. I find that when we went in to make 'We Are Not Your Kind', so much of what we were doing was informed by how our natural musical chemistry is and how we are on stage, really, I feel, made it into that record. And then making this record, I think, was kind of just following more down that wormhole. And working with new people. This time around, we were able to work with [producer] Joe Barresi, which was an exciting time. I loved working with Greg Fidelman, who did our last two records, but working with Joe this time was different and a lot of fun. And yeah, the creation is just so thorough and it takes so much of all of us. It's so much more than I could have ever expected, being an outsider of the band and now having made three records. It's a gnarly experience that tests everybody, but I think the music, at the end of the day, kind of speaks for itself. And we're very happy with it."

"The End, So Far" track listing:

01. Adderall
02. The Dying Song (Time To Sing)
03. The Chapeltown Rag
04. Yen
05. Hivemind
06. Warranty
07. Medicine For The Dead
08. Acidic
09. Heirloom
10. H377
11. De Sade
12. Finale

Photo credit: Jonathan Weiner

Former SEPULTURA and current SOULFLY frontman Max Cavalera has once again weighed in on the upcoming PANTERA reunion tour, saying "fans deserve to hear those songs."

The 52-year-old Brazilian-born musician made his latest comments less than a month after Billboard reported that singer Philip Anselmo and bassist Rex Brown, along with ANTHRAX drummer Charlie Benante and guitarist Zakk Wylde, will tour as PANTERA, headlining a number of major festivals across North America and Europe and staging some of their own headline concerts.

According to Billboard, Wylde and Benante's involvement in the project has been approved by the estates of PANTERA's late co-founders, Vinnie Paul Abbott and "Dimebag" Darrell Abbott.

Max, who has spent the last few years playing SEPULTURA-centric shows with his brother, former SEPULTURA drummer Igor "Iggor" Cavalera, told Metal Hammer magazine about the prospect of Anselmo and Brown reuniting for a PANTERA tour in 2023: "It's a delicate issue, man. On one hand, yes. But then sometimes I think if it was like me and Igor had died and somebody else would carry on without us, I don't know how I feel about that. I'm not sure I would really like it. It's a tough one. At the same time, you know, people want to hear those songs. The fans deserve to hear those songs."

Asked if the PANTERA comeback has made him rethink the possibility of doing a SEPULTURA reunion, Max said: "No. I'm good with what we did and so pleased with the reaction. It's a different thing with us and PANTERA; I'm not sure who founded PANTERA and stuff like that, but SEPULTURA was me and Igor. But if they do it the way we did, as a tribute, well, all right, you know? I think we gave the songs justice, we played them as good as they can be played and people were completely satisfied when they came to see us. At this point in my life, I'm satisfied having one foot in the past playing those old records and another in the future doing stuff like [SOULFLY's new album] 'Totem' and KILLER BE KILLED. I want to experience both sides."

Last month, Max told the "Talk Toomey" podcast that it would be "totally cool" if Anselmo and Brown reunited for a PANTERA tour as a tribute to the original albums. Referencing the criticism that has already been leveled at Philip and Rex for touring as PANTERA without the Abbott brothers, Max said: "You kind of can say similar things about our stuff because it's not all the four original guys, but it's as close as you get to that, and it's done really well.

"But, yeah, I'm excited," Max added. "Those [PANTERA] records are so good, they have so many fans, and they should be heard. And rest in peace, Vinnie and Dime, but if it's done right with the right heart on it, hell yeah — I'm totally on board. I think it would be great.

"This new generation, they embrace that stuff. So this music doesn't get outdated. It's not like some stuff that with time just kind of fades out; it's out of fashion. It doesn't happen with this music. So I think all of those records are like that. And, of course, PANTERA is the same vein with 'Far Beyond Driven', 'Cowboys From Hell' — those are some great fucking records, man. People want to hear it. I think it's cool. It should be fun."

While he was alive, Vinnie Paul had repeatedly dismissed talks of a PANTERA reunion, telling Germany's EMP Rock Invasion in 2014: "People are selfish, man. They want what they want; they don't care what you want. And it's unfortunate that people go, 'Oh, wow, man, they can get Zakk Wylde to jump up there on stage and it's PANTERA again.' No, it's not, you know. It's not that simple. If Eddie Van Halen was to get shot in the head four times next week, would everybody be going, 'Hey, man, Zakk, go play for VAN HALEN. Just call it VAN HALEN.' You see what I'm saying? I mean, it's really selfish for people to think that, and it's stupid. It's not right at all."

He continued: "They call it a reunion for a reason. It's called bringing the original members back to what it was. So there's a lot of these things that they call reunions that aren't really reunions. They've got one dude from the band floating around in them, you know. That's not a true reunion. With PANTERA, it'll never be possible."

He repeated those same sentiments a few months later, telling PlanetMosh in a separate interview: "Without Dimebag Darrell, there is no [PANTERA] reunion. And that's all there is to it. We were a very influential band, and we touched millions and millions of people with that band, but it's over. People really have to come to grips with that, and that's all there is to it. If all of us were still here, then the possibility would truly be there, but since it's not, you know… It's selfish of the fans to want something that they can't have. And they don't ever understand that, and I get it. There's things I want in this world too. You know, people in fucking hell want ice water, but they're not gonna get it. So… Anyways, I'm glad that the people who have decided to follow me in HELLYEAH do, and hopefully more of them will. And the ones that wanna live in the past are gonna live in the past."

Up until his passing in June 2018, Vinnie remained on non-speaking terms with Anselmo, whom the drummer indirectly blamed for Dimebag's death.

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

Dimebag's longtime girlfriend Rita Haney in 2011 called on Vinnie and Philip to settle their differences in honor of Dimebag.

Vinnie, who is Dimebag's brother, and Anselmo had not spoken since PANTERA split in 2003. But the relationship got even more acrimonious when Vinnie suggested that some remarks the vocalist had made about Dimebag in print just weeks earlier might have incited Dimebag's killer.

Haney told the producers of "Behind The Music Remastered: Pantera" that she forgave the singer after they found themselves unexpectedly face to face at a concert in California.

In a new interview with Listen Next!, Phil Collen was asked which artist or artists DEF LEPPARD will "pass the baton to" once he and his bandmates decide to retire. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't know. I'm still waiting, actually. You hear a lot of stuff out there, but it's few and far between.

"There's a problem, I think, and I think it's the TikTok and YouTube crowd.

"When bands or artists would write before, it would be because they wanted to an artist and wanted to express themselves and write songs and share them and go, 'Wow. Check this out', as opposed to, 'Wow. Look at me. Please love me,'" he continued. "I don't wanna sound like an old dude, but that's what I noticed. And I'm still waiting for someone like Prince or [LED] ZEPPELIN or something that has a bit more something to it. There's very little stuff.

"METALLICA's great; when you see 'em, there's a big difference," Phil said. "GUNS N' ROSES are awesome. I don't see that anymore; I don't see that star power. I don't see that kind of thing. So that's what I'm waiting for. There hasn't been any of that. NIRVANA was… Obviously, FOO FIGHTERS is an offshoot of NIRVANA. And I love the FOO FIGHTERS; I think they're great. But when NIRVANA came out, I was, like, 'Woah, this is amazing.' The SEX PISTOLS — amazing. But I'm just waiting — still waiting."

When the interviewer noted that the rock scene is lacking the future festival headliners, Phil said: "That question comes up quite a bit. People go, 'What about this?' And I don't hear anything. I hear derivative stuff and stuff that's not inspired. You wanna get inspired. So, yeah, I'm still waiting. It's like in every genre of music. In hip-hop, it's the same deal. You're waiting to hear… Or R&B. You listen to the old R&B — you listen to Stevie Wonder, you listen to Marvin Gaye and stuff like that — nothing is like that anymore and that kind of soul and vibe and everything. I think we've kind of comfortably got into something else that doesn't really demand that kind of excellence. It's rare that that kind of talent comes along."

DEF LEPPARD's "The Stadium Tour" kicked off on June 16 in Atlanta, Georgia. The veteran British rockers are co-headlining the trek with MÖTLEY CRÜE, with support from POISON and JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS.

DEF LEPPARD's set on the tour includes some of the band's biggest hits, such as "Pour Some Sugar On Me", "Photograph" and "Rock Of Ages" — as well as songs from the group's latest album, "Diamond Star Halos", among them "Kick" and "Fire It Up".

DEF LEPPARD's long-delayed North American trek was originally planned for 2020 and later moved to 2021 and then to 2022. "The Stadium Tour" will conclude on September 9 in Las Vegas, Nevada.

On Sunday, July 31, legendary German guitarist Michael Schenker was interviewed by TotalRock's Dawn Osborne at this year's Steelhouse festival in Wales. You can now watch the chat below.

Asked how he would like to be remembered, Schenker said: "I am a spirit on a mission spreading the joy of music from a place of pure self-expression. That's what I want to be remembered as."

Saying that he doesn't "look back at all," Michael explained that he doesn't even listen to his music — "only the stuff I need to learn, if I want to play it live on stage.

"The past is done. I don't need to relive it," he said. "I like the present. I like the now."

Schenker added that doesn't know where his live-in-the-present attitude comes from. "But somehow it feels natural to me," he said. "I understand the concept of tomorrow is not here yet and I don't know if I'm gonna be alive tomorrow. And yesterday is gone — it's done — so there's only one place left.

"I'm not a standard," Michael continued. "Everybody experiences new ideas at different times. We all have a different journey, so there's no right or wrong. And there is not a particular time when we need to have realizations. They come when they come — for each person at different times for different reasons."

There are few rock guitarists on this planet who have had such a lasting influence on so many renowned musicians as Schenker. With his outstandingly fluid style, inexhaustible wealth of ideas and instinctive feel for hooks and melodies, Schenker is a living legend who, despite his longstanding and distinguished history, still impresses with his unflagging energy and drive. The blond stringsman from Sarstedt, Germany began his international career in the early 1970s with the SCORPIONS, achieved worldwide fame after joining British rock group UFO and then seamlessly continued his exceptional global success story under his own name, as well as with acts such as MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP, TEMPLE OF ROCK and MICHAEL SCHENKER FEST. Schenker and his career, which has spanned more than 50 years, are absolute exceptions in the otherwise short-lived music industry.

Michael Schenker first appeared on SCORPIONS' 1972 album "Lonesome Crow", earned acclaim in the 1970s on classic UFO albums such as "Phenomenon" and "Lights Out" before rejoining SCORPIONS for 1979's "Lovedrive". He departed soon thereafter to launch MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP. And while his sometimes-erratic behavior have derailed parts of his career, Schenker remains one of hard rock and metal's most influential axemen.

"Universal", the new studio album from Schenker's MICHAEL SCHENKER GROUP, was released in May via Atomic Fire Records.

SOULFLY will release its twelfth album, "Totem", on August 5 via Nuclear Blast. The follow-up to 2018's "Ritual" was recorded at Platinum Underground in Mesa, Arizona by John Aquilino and Arthur Rizk with assistance from John Powers. Produced by frontman Max Cavalera alongside Arthur Rizk (KREATOR, MUNICIPAL WASTE, CODE ORANGE),the LP boasts guest appearances from John Powers (ETERNAL CHAMPION),Chris Ulsh (POWER TRIP) and John Tardy (OBITUARY). Rizk was also responsible for playing lead guitar on the record. The artwork for the album was created by James Bousema.

Speaking to Joshua Toomey of the "Talk Toomey" podcast about what it was like to make a SOULFLY album without guitarist Marc Rizzo, who was in the band for 17 years before exiting the group in August 2021 due to personal differences, Max said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Whenever [anything] like that happens, it's an opportunity to do something different, bring in new blood. Especially [with] SOULFLY, there's always been that kind of motto of changing people from time to time.

"I love that the record had a little bit of struggle related [to it]. Those are some of my best records — the ones that are not easy sailing; they've got drama in it," he continued. "And 'Totem' is full of drama. The whole Rizzo thing was its own soap opera. It's, like, c'mon, man.

"So I saw this as an opportunity to do a couple of things. And we took the opportunity, as much as we could, by having Dino [Cazares, FEAR FACTORY guitarist] playing live [with SOULFLY]," he explained. "It was incredible. We're still jamming with him right now. And then on the record itself, I had the opportunity to work with the ETERNAL CHAMPION guys, which I'm a big fan. And they kind bring that old-school heavy metal vibe to the solos — Arthur [Rizk] and John Powers. And I love it; I was totally on board with it. It sounded different, fresh and new and exciting. The stuff with Rizzo kind of was always the same — a lot of the stuff was sounding a lot the same — and this is new and different and exciting. And I felt fucking great when I was working on the songs and I would hear the solos coming in, and it was different and exciting. We just did whatever we could for the record.

"So there was a bit of a struggle because of the whole Rizzo thing, and that's kind of worked in the favor of the record, I think," Max added. "'Cause you don't wanna fuck with me, man. You don't. You fuck with me, yeah, there's payback. I just kind of go in that fucking warrior mode and get angry and pissed off and good shit comes out of it, musically talking. So the record has that little bit of anger, a little bit of fire."

Rizzo addressed his split with SOULFLY in a 2021 interview with Aftershocks TV. He said: "I haven't been happy in SOULFLY for a long time. The fans know what's up, man. It's all over the message boards.

"I always had a lot of love and respect for Max, but these last couple of years have just been very difficult. It's no secret that he's not really playing guitar up there on stage, at least to the level that he should be. The fans are talking about this. They've been talking about this stuff for years. It's all over the message boards, how people just aren't happy. And I also was not happy, as a fan and also playing in the band. So it was a long time coming. And then this whole COVID situation, the lack of support this year, it really just opened up my eyes that, 'You know, man, now is the time.' It's just not worth my time anymore. I'm not getting out what I'm putting in. And, again, it's all documented. You go on YouTube and you pull up any video, you can see it right there with your own two eyes.

"Whatever Max is saying in the press, listen, he can say whatever he wants to," Marc continued. "He's been doing that kind of stuff for years — against [his former bandmates in] SEPULTURA and old members [of SOULFLY]. And the fans know who I am. I hang out with all the fans. I'm very, very accessible after all my shows. No big deal. It's water under the bridge for me."

Asked if it was going to be difficult for him financially to rely completely on his solo projects in order to get by going forward, Rizzo said: "I've been doing my solo project since 2005 [or] 2006, and that's what got me by in between all the SOULFLY and CAVALERA CONSPIRACY tours. I was never on a retainer — SOULFLY never did retainers, which is kind of an industry standard for bigger bands. There was never a retainer, so for me, it was never an option to get a retainer. So I went out and just started doing my solo gigs, and that's how I got by all these years when SOULFLY would decide to just randomly say, 'Hey, we're taking seven months off,' and you wouldn't get any notice. That would happen all the time. And so then I would go out and book my solo stuff. It would be on a smaller level, but I still was able to get by and do my thing. Which I'm very grateful — I'm very grateful to the fans that they've always supported me and came out to my solo gigs. It's obviously not as big as the concerts that I've played with SOULFLY, but I'm fine with playing in front of, like, 20 people at a small bar… But I'm not gonna sit here and tell you that this last year during COVID that the band I was in for 18 years was supportive, 'cause it's not true. It's just facts. There's a lot of things that are leaking now online that showcase that. It is what it is, man. But I plan on just moving ahead and staying positive and try to keep it all positive for me."

Rizzo joined SOULFLY in 2004, and has since appeared on all of the band's subsequent records, including "Prophecy" (2004),"Dark Ages" (2005),"Conquer" (2008),"Omen" (2010),"Enslaved" (2012),"Savages" (2013),"Archangel" (2015) and "Ritual" (2018). In 2007, Rizzo became a member of CAVALERA CONSPIRACY, the side project of SEPULTURA co-founders, brothers Max and Igor Cavalera, and has performed on all CAVALERA CONSPIRACY releases including "Inflikted", "Blunt Force Trauma", "Pandemonium" and the critically acclaimed 2017 LP "Psychosis".

Rizzo was originally a member of New Jersey Latin metal favorites ILL NIÑO, appearing on their classic 2001 Roadrunner release "Revolution Revolucion" and the 2003 follow-up "Confession". He has since rejoined ILL NIÑO.

Former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson has launched "The Killing Chronicles", a series of online recollections about the band's early days, including MEGADETH's first gigs and the making of the group's classic debut album, "Killing Is My Business… And Business Is Good!".

The online series comes a week after it was announced that Ellefson and former MEGADETH guitarist Jeff Young will embark the KINGS OF THRASH "The MEGA Years" tour. They will be joined at the dates by another former MEGADETH member, Chris Poland (guitar).

KINGS OF THRASH, which also includes drummer Fred Aching as well as guitarist/vocalist Chaz Leon, will perform MEGADETH's classic albums "Killing Is My Business… And Business Is Good!" and "So Far, So Good… So What!" in their entirety.

In episode three of "The Killing Chronicles", Ellefson writes: "It's widely known that the KIMB album is one of the fastest Thrash albums ever to descend upon mankind. However, rapid fire tempos in the band was not always the case. When we formed the group and first batch of songs were being composed in mid to late 1983, the tempos were much, much slower. In fact, almost at a BLACK SABBATH tempo. I recall 'The Skull Beneath the Skin' being almost half the tempo as it was finally recorded, which gave it this monstrous groove and weight. The same was true with 'Chosen Ones' which allowed me to play the bass lines with my fingers in a more Geezer-esque manner.

"However, one day a fan letter showed up to our mailbox addressed to Dave [Mustaine] which pleaded, 'I hope your new band is faster than METALLICA' and BOOM that was it…game over! That night at rehearsal, all the tempos were increased dramatically (20-40 beats per minute minimum!) and thus the KIMB LP represents a true turning point in the trajectory of speed being the primary calling card of cool factor with the founding fathers of the Thrash genre. EXODUS was already fast as hell and once Kerry King had seen them live, SLAYER would follow suit.

"On the Kings of Thrash tour we're excited to highlight these finer details of the songs without losing any of the 'teeth' which made the album a staple in Thrash metal all these years later."

KINGS OF THRASH tour dates:

Oct. 12 - San Diego, CA - Brick By Brick
Oct. 13 - Phoenix, AZ - Crescent Ballroom
Oct. 14 - Las Vegas, NV - The Space
Oct. 15 - West Hollywood, CA - Whisky A Go Go

VIP packages will be available for all shows.

As previously reported, Ellefson and Young reunited on stage on May 10 at Ultimate Jam Night, the long-running community-oriented show in residency at the famed Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California, as part of a special tribute to the so-called "Big Four" of 1980s thrash metal — METALLICA, MEGADETH, SLAYER and ANTHRAX. The event marked the first time David and Jeff had played MEGADETH songs together on stage since the U.K.'s Monsters Of Rock festival on August 20, 1988.

The Whisky A Go Go concert came four months after Ellefson and Young reunited in Los Angeles for interviews to be included in the upcoming feature-length documentary "This Was My Life: The Story Of Nick Menza". Ellefson has signed on as a co-producer of the film, and also will provide narration to guide the viewer through the exploration of the late MEGADETH drummer's life.

In June, Ellefson told The Neurotic Guitarist that he and Young "have been working on a couple of new songs."

Ellefson was fired from MEGADETH more than a year ago after sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving the bassist were posted on Twitter.

David was in MEGADETH from the band's inception in 1983 to 2002, and again from 2010 until his latest exit.

In 2004, Ellefson filed an $18.5-million lawsuit against Dave Mustaine, alleging the MEGADETH leader shortchanged him on profits and backed out of a deal to turn Megadeth Inc. over to him when the band broke up in 2002. The lawsuit was eventually dismissed and Ellefson rejoined MEGADETH in 2010.

Young's entire career with MEGADETH was spent recording and touring in support of the band's 1988 platinum-selling album "So Far, So Good...So What!"

Jeff made headlines in December 2009 for accusing Mustaine of, among other things, "dissing, exaggerating and just plain lying on some level about nearly every talented musician that has passed through his dysfunctional little ensemble." He also disputed Mustaine's claim in an interview that Young's drug problem led to MEGADETH's 1988 Australian tour being called off and the group being "banned" from performing in the country.

Poland was a member of MEGADETH from 1984 to 1987, during which time he performed on the band's classic albums "Killing Is My Business... And Business Is Good!" and "Peace Sells... But Who's Buying?" He is also a featured soloist on the group's 2004 album, "The System Has Failed".

Back in 2004, Poland and/or his management and attorney filed a lawsuit against Mustaine regarding the use of the three "Rust In Peace" demos on the album's reissue without Chris's permission. Chris eventually settled for $9,500 and thereby ended a professional relationship with Dave and MEGADETH.

For the past couple of decades, Poland's main musical focus has been the fusion band OHM:, which has released several full-length studio albums to date.

THE KILLING CHRONICLES

Episode Three:

It's widely known that the KIMB album is one of the fastest Thrash albums ever...

Posted by David Ellefson on Wednesday, August 3, 2022

BRITISH LION, the side project of IRON MAIDEN bassist and founder Steve Harris, has shared a video recap of the band's recently completed summer 2022 European tour. You can now watch the five-minute clip below.

Last fall, BRITISH LION completed a U.K. headlining tour with support from AIRFORCE.

In October, BRITISH LION withdrew from a U.K. tour with THE DARKNESS, citing "completely unacceptable" tour "protocols."

BRITISH LION's second album, "The Burning", came out in January 2020 in digipack CD, double gatefold vinyl and digital download formats via Explorer1 Music (E1). The LP was recorded, engineered and mixed at Barnyard Studios by Tony Newton and produced by Steve Harris.

BRITISH LION's first U.S. tour took place in January and February 2020.

BRITISH LION comprises singer Richard Taylor, guitarists David Hawkins and Grahame Leslie, Harris on bass and keyboards, and drummer Simon Dawson.

Asked by the Tampa Bay Times what the itch is that BRITISH LION scratches that he doesn't get in his job with MAIDEN, Harris said: "I suppose playing small clubs and being close and personal with the audience. I love playing big places as well. I enjoy them all, and I'm very lucky that I can do them all. But also, it's clubs that I never played with MAIDEN, even in Europe. There's a famous club called the Milky Way in Amsterdam, which I managed to play with BRITISH LION, but I never did that with MAIDEN. There's places that I'm playing on [the U.S.] tour that I've never played before. So it's all new ground. It's a challenge. It's nice. I like a challenge."

In a 2020 interview with Bass Player magazine, Harris said that he loves playing small clubs. "I'm very lucky that I can play all types of gigs; massive gigs and small ones as well," he said. "It's a change. I'm not trying to conquer the world with this band; there's not enough years left in me to do that anyway."

Asked if the different venues present a different set of challenges, Steve said: "I actually think it should be the same, whether you're playing for 200 or 200,000 people, you know. To me, there's no difference. You still give 110 percent wherever you're playing. We had one gig where the promoter just didn't do [anything]. I think we had, like, 95 people in there, but it was still a great gig, one of the best of the tour. It doesn't matter. We're still going for it, and I was proud that we went out there. It was fantastic."

DISTURBED guitarist Dan Donegan recently spoke to Janna of the WGRD radio station about the band's upcoming eighth studio album, which was recently mixed for a tentative fall 2022 release. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We started writing a little bit last fall, in 2021. We got together a couple of times in the studio in person, down in Nashville and down in Fort Myers, Florida just on a couple of days off in between shows. And then we were just hungry to get back in the studio and attack it in February of earlier this year. We went down to Nashville [and] worked with a great producer, Drew Fulk, who is based out of California. But I asked him if he would mind coming to Nashville, just [for] a change of environment, go down there. And for me, coming from Chicago, it's a nice, easy flight to come in and out when I needed to. And we recorded February and March. [We were] in there for just under two months of tracking some great ideas."

Donegan went on to describe the recording process as a "a great collaboration. And I just think the hunger within the band of having that time off between the previous album, 'Evolution', and that break we had during the pandemic, we were just excited to get back in the studio and have some new material," he said.

Asked if he would agree with DISTURBED singer David Draiman's recent comment that the band's new LP is "about 90 percent heavy as fuck," Dan said: "I normally don't like to say too much… David likes to give away a lot more than I do; there's no secrets with him. And I appreciate his enthusiasm and excitement. But a lot of times I'm a little bit more quiet of, like, 'Let's put it out there and let the fans…' the anticipation of them hearing it.

"[There is] some heavier stuff, definitely — some bigger riffs and heaviness to the album," Dan acknowledged. "There's definitely some of those moments to where there's some good old-school DISTURBED in there, some of the earlier days in the heavier-ness to some of the riffs and a little bit more of the aggression with David vocally. But there's also those big melodic moments as well.

"We do have a semi-ballad on the album too that I can't give away too much on that other than it was a great in-the-moment kind of in-the-studio [idea]," he revealed. "I switched gears. We had a song that we were working on that I just didn't feel like it was good enough at the moment, so I switched gears and started fresh with a new idea. And it was probably a great idea to do that because we got a really great one out of it. But I think the fans will be pretty pleasantly surprised with some of the direction on this and very happy with where we're going with it."

Last month, Donegan told WMMR's Brent Porche about the writing process for the new DISTURBED album: "I've always had a lot of ideas archived and just kept in the vault. But then I think when we ran out and did those handful of shows back in November, we went down to Fort Myers on a couple of days off to work with a friend of ours, another producer, Dave Fortman, who did EVANESCENCE, GODSMACK, SLIPKNOT; he used to play in UGLY KID JOE back in the day. So we went out and we did a couple of days with him, just to kind of improvise and track some ideas, just on a couple of days off, and that got the ball rolling. So we just went with all-new, fresh material — nothing from the vault. I just started pulling out new ideas. And it just progressed from there."

In July, DISTURBED released "Hey You", the first single off the upcoming album. The official music video for the song was directed by Josiahx. Draiman called the track "a wake-up call. We've become our own worst enemies," he said. "Civil discourse has become the exception instead of the norm. People have lost themselves in outrage addiction."

In June, Draiman said that DISTURBED's upcoming album will contain a "surprise track" that will "blow [fans'] minds."

In May, Draiman told the audience at DISTURBED's concert in Camden, New Jersey that the band's new LP is "about 90 percent heavy as fuck. Now there's still 10 percent of caring, loving goodness [laughs] — 10 percent. Hey, for everybody that fell in love with 'The Sound Of Silence' [SIMON & GARFUNKEL] cover, I figured, you know… But the rest of it? 'Sickness'-, 'Ten Thousand Fists'-era DISTURBED, for sure. You excited about that? 'Cause I'll tell you we're really fucking excited about it."

DISTURBED performed live for the first time in nearly two years last September as one of the headliners of the Louder Than Life festival in Louisville, Kentucky.

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

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

UK-based Season Of Ghosts have released their new single, "The Great Unknown". It is now available via digital platforms found here.


Check out the official lyric video below.







Season Of Ghosts have returned after a long break, having released their second album, Leap Of Faith, in October 2018. The band will release a new full length album in 2023.

Australian tech-death titans Xenobiotic have announced their new EP, Hate Monolith, will be released September 2nd via Unique Leader Records. Pre-orders can be placed now at this location.


Xenobiotic have also streamed their new single, "Autophagia", which can be heard below. 


Speaking about their new EP, Xenobiotic commented: "Hate Monolith is about my discontentment for the state of humanity. When writing for the EP I was going through a lot of anger directed at myself through things I should have changed, but I wanted to lash out at someone other than myself. In my eyes I see humanity as born to kill itself, and it makes me disgusted to be a part of a race I loathe so much." 







Tracklisting:


"Autophagia"
"The Wretched Strive"
"Nether"
"Pathos"
"Sever The Ties" 


Hate Monolith was mixed and mastered by renowned Cryptopsy guitarist and producer, Christian Donaldson (Ingested, Beyond Creation, The Agonist) with art by Giannis Nakos at Remedy Design (Suffocation, Evergrey, The Agonist). The EP sees Xenobiotic tear open ears with maniacal, emotive and progressive death metal brutality and expansive, darkened soundscapes. 





 

On August 1st, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts appeared on both Good Morning America and GMA3: What You Need To Know. Footage of Joan talking about her acoustic album, Changeup, as well as performing the songs "Cherry Bomb" and "(I'm Gonna) Run Away" can be seen below.













Joan Jett & The Blackhearts released their first-ever acoustic album, Changeup, in March 2022 via Joan’s longtime independent label, Blackheart. 


Featuring chart-toppers like “Bad Reputation” and “Crimson And Clover”, it is at once intimate while capturing all the ferocity and menace for which Joan Jett is known. These 25 new, stripped-down recordings match the current moment in both sound and sentiment.


Changeup showcases Joan’s signature, blistering presence with an immediacy that allows listeners to delve into the lyrics with an entirely new slant. Changeup is available on all digital streaming platforms, as well as in immersive audio including Sony 360 RA and Dolby Atmos. The vinyl release will follow later in 2022.





Changeup tracklisting:


"(I’m Gonna) Run Away"
"You’re Too Possessive"
"Long Time"
"Victim Of Circumstance"
"Coney Island Whitefish"
"Love Is Pain"
"Oh Woe Is Me"
"You Drive Me Wild"
"Frustrated"
"Bad Reputation"
"Fake Friends"
"Fresh Start"
"Soulmates To Strangers"
"Make It Back"
"Fragile"
"I Love Playin’ With Fire"
"Cherry Bomb"
"I Want You"
"Crimson And Clover"
"A Hundred Feet Away"
"Androgynous"
"You Don’t Know What You’ve Got"
"School Days "
"Good Music"
"Light Of Day"


"(I’m Gonna) Run Away" lyric video:





Catch Joan Jett & The Blackhearts live on The Stadium Tour alongside Def Leppard, Mötley Crüe, Poison, and Classless Act. Remaining dates are as listed:


August
5 - Fenway Park - Boston, MA
6 - Fenway Park - Boston, MA
8 - Rogers Centre - Toronto, ON
10 - The Stadium Tour - Orchard Park, NY
12 - PNC Park - Pittsburgh, PA
14 - US Bank Stadium - Minneapolis, MN
16 - Lucas Oil Stadium - Indianapolis, IN
19 - Minute Made Park - Houston, TX
21 - Alamodome - San Antonio, TX
22 - Globe Life Park in Arlington - Arlington, TX
25 - State Farm Stadium - Phoenix, AZ
27 - SoFi Stadium - Inglewood, CA
28 - Petco Park - San Diego, CA
31 - T-Mobile Park - Seattle, WA


September
2 - BC Place - Vancouver, BC
4 - Commonwealth Stadium - Edmonton, AB
7 - Oracle Park - San Francisco, CA
9 - Allegiant Stadium - Las Vegas, NV





 

Canadian rockers Lucky Monkey have just released their debut full-length album, Evolve, whch can be streamed at this location, and also enjoyed in the video below.


Formed in 2016, Lucky Monkey quickly found footing in the local music scene of Kelowna, BC and soon upgraded from bar stages to supporting big name acts such as Danko Jones and Royal Tusk. Spreading their reach, they survived their first cross-Canada tour in 2019, promoting their aptly named Nothing To Lose EP. In the following years of the pandemic, Lucky Monkey, like countless other musicians, was restricted from performing live shows. In response to this, the boys turned inside and started writing.


By the summer of 2021, Lucky Monkey had made well over an album’s worth of demos, and these caught the interest of Hot Rhino Records. The band signed to their first label and began recording. Now one year later, they have released their debut full-length album, Evolve, available on all major streaming platforms. After this huge milestone, their passion for creating music is stronger than ever. More is promised to come from this band as they are back on stage and planning their followup album.




The name Lucky Monkey was chosen, as a description for the incredible advancements gifted to the human species through evolution.


Evolve artwork and tracklisting:





"Home" 
"Fireball And Jameson" 
"See You Again" 
"Hope" 
"I’m Leading" 
"Pussy Murders" 
"Measure Of A Man" 
"No Love For Me" 
"I Can Feel It" 
"Born That Man" 
"Neverstrong"





Lucky Monkey is:


Ryan Zeleznik - guitar
Cassidy Hritzuk - vocals
Josh Evans - drums
Dylan Losell - bass





For further details, visit LuckyMonkeyMusic.com.


 

METALLICA guitarist Kirk Hammett has once again defended "Lulu", the band's controversial collaborative disc with Lou Reed, calling it "a real accomplishment."

"Lulu" polarized fans around the world and earned METALLICA some of the most scathing reviews of its career. The effort featured the late THE VELVET UNDERGROUND frontman's spoken-word poetry and lyrics combined with METALLICA's musical assault for a jarring experience that didn't sound like anything METALLICA had ever attempted before.

Speaking to Marin Independent Journal, Kirk said about "Lulu": "I have always been a big supporter of that album, even when all my friends are shaking their heads and looking at me going, 'Bro, what were you thinking?'

"It was a real accomplishment as far I was concerned," he continued. "We were there to help Lou Reed fulfill his vision, and I think we did that 100 percent. This was not a METALLICA album and it was not a Lou Reed album. It was Lou Reed and METALLICA together, doing something completely different.

"It's not for everyone. But 'Junior Dad', I think, is one of the best things we've ever been associated with, in terms of real art and literature and music coming together. That, to me, is a real accomplishment, just as much as 'Ride The Lightning' is."

Asked what it was like playing guitar with Lou, Kirk said: "He's a really, really good rhythm guitar player. He had a good, solid rhythm pulse to his playing. He was really not into lead guitar playing, and he was really, really not into wah-wah. In fact, one time during a rehearsal, I set the wah pedal and he just walked up to the microphone and said, 'Noooooo. No guitar solos. No wah-wah.' And I was blown away. [Laughs]

"He had his musical preferences. He had his musical boundaries. And he was not shy in letting us know what those preferences and boundaries were."

In a 2012 interview with Spin, METALLICA drummer Lars Ulrich admitted that the band was caught off guard by the vehement reaction to "Lulu", saying, "It was more spiteful than anyone was prepared for. Especially against Lou. He is such a sweet man. But when METALLICA do impulsive riffing and Lou Reed is reciting abstract poetry about German bohemians from 150 years ago, it can be difficult to embrace."

Asked whether the band had second thoughts over some of Reed's lyrics, like "I swallow your sharpest cutter / Like a colored man's dick," Ulrich said, "I understand that to some 13-year-old in Cape Girardeau, Missouri, it can all seem a little cringe-worthy, but to someone raised in an art community in Copenhagen in the late '60s, that was expected."

The collaboration between METALLICA and Reed was sparked by their performance together of Reed's "Sweet Jane" and "White Light/White Heat" at the 25th anniversary of the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame at Madison Square Garden in October of 2009.

The songs were all written by Reed with extensive arrangement contributions by METALLICA.

Only two songs on the album are under five minutes in length, while two are more than 11 minutes long and the closing cut, "Junior Dad", clocks in at 19 minutes.

Reed died in October 2013 at the age of 71, five months after he had a life-saving liver transplant, according to his wife, Laurie Anderson.

BUSH frontman Gavin Rossdale spoke to Pablo of the Minneapolis, Minnesota radio station 93X about the lyrical inspiration for the band's new single, "More Than Machines". The song, which alludes to the Supreme Court's overturning of Roe v. Wade, along with two other "really big topics", will appear on BUSH's upcoming studio album, "The Art Of Survival", wich is scheduled to arrive on October 7.

"It's very difficult to find that balance between what you read about and how to put it into words in a song, what's important," Gavin said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "And I've always found personalizing things makes it the easiest way; you're not sort of standing up pointing the finger at someone, not standing up taking sides."

Referring directly to the U.S. Supreme Court decision overturning Roe v. Wade, ending the constitutional right to an abortion, Rossdale said: "To me, it's an obvious thing. It seems [like] a medieval step in the wrong direction and it doesn't make sense — to me. And so I just put it in a song. And it just sparks conversation. And my job as a lyricist is to just kind of capture the time, to capture the zeitgeist or the feeling or the emotion. That's what [my] songs are, from the beginning to now. They're sort of commentaries on what's going on around me that other people relate to.

"Once I've written a song, I don't even like saying what the song is necessarily about," Gavin explained. "'Girls are in control, not the government' seems pretty straight-forward. But just 'girls are in control' is a powerful statement. I love that. And it would be a better world if women were in power.

"I think there's a lack of erosion of the evil that we're seeing. There's not many Russian women involved in the invasion of Ukraine, as far as I can tell. A lot of guys think it's a good idea. A lot of dudes. I haven't seen any women saying, 'This is great.'

"My point is that I'm not better than anybody; I don't know more than anybody," Rossdale added. "These things I read about every day and it sort of filters into my job. That's where I do my work, and I think it provides substance for people to sing about their broken hearts or broken lives and other things that are going on outside.

"We are destroying the planet, destroying it, and nobody seems to care. So all the time you've gotta keep doing these songs to just keep the conversation going."

BUSH wrote and recorded what would become "The Art Of Survival" during 2022, reteaming with Erik Ron (PANIC! AT THE DISCO, GODSMACK) who produced "Flowers On A Grave" and the title track for 2020's "The Kingdom", and collaborating once again on two tracks with film composer, musician, and producer Tyler Bates ("300", "Guardian Of The Galaxy"). The central theme speaks to both the human spirit's resiliency in the face of trials and tribulations as well as the band's own enduring place as rock outliers.

Rossdale previously stated about the upcoming LP: "Instead of being mournful or self-piteous, this is about the success stories of humanity's survival against the odds. People just find a way to push through. We've all obviously suffered in varying degrees. I think the nature of life is the art of survival. Everyone is being tested all of the time, but we find a way. In recent memory, we've made major strides and shown great resilience in the face of war, endless instances of racism, gender politics, a pandemic, and a melting pot of what we've experienced. For me, 'The Art Of Survival' encompasses all of this."

Rossdale told Germany's Radio Bob! about the musical direction of "The Art Of Survival": "I think I had so much fun to make it heavy that I just stayed heavy and stayed with heavy tuning and strong riffs — stuff [that will go over well at] festivals. I just like it to be exciting and really driving. So it's similar to the last one. If you liked the last one, that level of heavy, then it's like that."

Four months ago, Rossdale told Australia's May The Rock Be With You that he had written 18 songs for BUSH's next album. He also said that he tried to keep the musical direction of the new BUSH music similar to that of "The Kingdom". "It's all like that," he said. "I like that. So I've kept it in that vein. That was the launchpad. That was it. I was, like, 'I'm off.' I've got maybe two ballady, two softer songs, slower songs, but they're weird."

He continued: "I've got a studio in my house now and it's been such an amazing time. You have the tools at your fingertips now to make songs and make music. It's just staggering. It's so much fun."

Hitting the road on one of the hottest rock tours of the summer, BUSH will join ALICE IN CHAINS and BREAKING BENJAMIN for a massive North American jaunt, rolling through amphitheaters and sheds coast to coast for eight weeks. The tour kicks off on August 10 in Burgettstown, Pennsylvania at The Pavilion at Star Lake, visits major markets everywhere, and concludes on October 8 in Mansfield, Massachusetts at Xfinity Center.

There is no “box” for Leaving Eden’s music. Fronted by the empress of rock, “Eve”, Leaving Eden is currently on tour in support of their forthcoming album, As Above So Below, which will be released on Friday, August 5 via Dark Star Records/Sony/Universal.


Hailing from Boston, MA, the group also includes Eric Gynan (Guitar/Vocals), Alyssa Bailey White (Keys/Vocals), Rich Chouinard (Bass/Vocals), and Jake Gynan (Drums), and have already toured the US, UK & Canada - sharing the stage with hundreds of the biggest national bands in the world.


Pre-order As Above So Below here.







“I look at Leaving Eden as an eclectic rock band,” says Eric. “We also have some acoustic/pop material and our new album As Above So Below, and is just as heavy as the previous 11 albums. There’s lots of melody, harmony and some cool licks and tricks throughout.”


And the guitarist has some specific tracks off the album that have already become favorites. “I love the John Lennon song, ‘Working Class Hero,’ (which can be heard below) that we recorded thanks to Dark Star Records. Pretty deep. I just felt like he’d want to have a band, a full band behind this beautiful song because the only version I know, it’s just him and his acoustic. So we put a pretty melodic, heavy twist on the tune and I really enjoyed recording it.”


“Our team kind of all agreed that the song ‘Green’ would be our single. I gotta say a lot of times when I write, I really try and connect to the universe to listen. When I wrote ‘Green,’ one of the lines is ‘and the sky turned green in the distance of a dream.’ I didn’t really know why I was writing that, but I knew I should. Recently I saw the sky completely green in one of our states, and it kind of blew my mind. Sometimes I don’t know why I’m writing certain lyrics and sometimes I do. Again, ‘Green’ is another heavy song with some awesome harmony.”


With its members also playing in the Fleetwood Mac tribute band Silver Springs, Leaving Eden is already an established live act (having shared the stage with the likes of Lynyrd Skynyrd, Alice Cooper, Rob Zombie, Korn, and Lacuna Coil, among countless others), Leaving Eden plans on touring heavily behind As Above So Below.


“I always say you really got to see Leaving Eden live to get the best experience. In my humble opinion I feel that Eve is second to none when it comes to entertaining the crowd. The way we connect with the universe is the same way we try and connect with our friends that come to see us play. It’s like we’re all in this together having a great time together, and we really try and make it personal. There’s lots of energy on stage so it’s a really fun time, ain’t nothing but a party!”

Former NIGHTWISH bassist/vocalist Marko "Marco" Hietala says that it took him a "long" time to finally make the decision to leave the band.

The bassist/vocalist announced his departure from NIGHTWISH in January 2021, explaining in a statement that he hadn't "been able to feel validated by this life for a quite a few years now." He has since been replaced by session bassist Jukka Koskinen (WINTERSUN),who made his live debut with NIGHTWISH in May 2021 at the band's two interactive experiences.

In a new interview with Finland's Chaoszine, Hietala revealed that he went through a dark period in his life, which included depression, insomnia, anxiety and an eventual attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) diagnosis. Speaking about how he eventually came to the realization that exiting NIGHTWISH was the right thing to do, Marko said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It was a long process. Of course, the COVID year that was there, where I had a lot of time for soul searching, it obviously gave me the last incentive that I need something else, that if I just continue with this I'm just gonna get sicker and sicker. But, of course, it's a process.

"I've been chronic depressive since 2010 [or] 2011, so I've been on a permanent medication ever since," he revealed. "Sometimes you get used to the meds [and] you will need more. We did raise [the dosage] during the years also, but it just didn't work. And now that I started to do… I had psychotherapy for over four years now, and then I also talked to psychiatrists and some doctors and did that also in Spain. Then my psychiatrist here in Finland said that I should do these ADHD neuropsychological tests, which I then did in Spain. And, okay, I got it."

Hietala reiterated that he "had been thinking about" leaving NIGHTWISH "for a while" before making the final decision. "Because I had a lot of weight. And I tend to… With the attention disorder, it tells me that when there are lots of trouble, then the disorder makes it into a real chaos," he explained. "There's a shitload of stuff coming and going and no peace anywhere. And for a year or two, I was already waking up every night at three o'clock to bad dreams and anxiety. So I'd say that the whole process probably started already with my former divorce [in 2016]. That was a very sad time when you think about your kids and your broken homes and all that. And then, when I started to get clear from that, then there were, well, all kinds of things. I don't really wanna go any deeper to what kind of things I'd gone through, but I'd gone through enough."

Acknowledging that making NIGHTWISH's latest studio album, 2020's "Human. :II: Nature.", was a "difficult" experience for him, Marko denied that his mental state at the time resulted in a diminished role for him on the final LP. "I think the original idea was to have that… we'll do a couple of [solo vocal appearances], or one solo for me and Troy [Donockley], and the rest Floor [Jansen], and then the harmonies; that was the idea originally for that," he said. "So I don't know if it affected. I think it was sort of as planned. But at that time I already had serious trouble with concentrating and serious trouble with a constant black cloud over my head."

Last month, Hietala told Finland's Iltalehti that he has not kept in touch with NIGHTWISH since his departure or followed the activities of his former band.

In May 2021, NIGHTWISH keyboardist and main songwriter Tuomas Holopainen said that Hietala's decision to leave the band "came as a bit of a surprise." He told Finland's Kaaos TV: "Marko informed us in December [of 2020 that he was leaving the band]. And even though he has been very open about his state and problems during the past years, it still came as a bit of a surprise for us. So it was a really tough pill to swallow. And for a few days, I was actually quite confident that there's no coming back, that this is it. I remember talking to Emppu [Vuorinen], the guitar player, and we were, like, 'You think this is it?' 'Yeah, I think this is it.' I mean, enough is enough. So much has happened in the past. Something that broke the camel's back, as they say. Then, after some time had passed — a few days — we started to think that it's been such a ride of 25 years, with so many ups also, that this is not the way to end it."

Tuomas elaborated on NIGHTWISH's reasons for carrying on, saying: "I think we still have something to give, and that's the main point. The music is still there. We felt that there's still so much music that needs to come out from this band that, 'Okay, let's give it one more shot.' And then finding the new bass player was really easy."

He added: "It's not like we do this just because we need to do it and there's nothing else to do. On a personal level, I feel that there's still so many stories and melodies that I want to share with the world with one lineup or another, so that's why you want to continue and keep on going.

"I've said this a million times, that a lineup change is the ultimate energy vampire, and that's how it really felt and still feels."

In June 2021, Jansen spoke about Hietala's exit from the band in an episode of her "Storytime" YouTube video series. She said: "That was a very sudden surprise that, of course, was not fun at all. But we understand — I understand — it was a necessary thing for him to do. And from there, we had to think of how to continue without him, and that also, in preparations towards the virtual show, that was a huge challenge."

She continued: "I'm very happy we found Jukka to play with us. And it was wonderful to get together, even though miss Marko, in April to start rehearsing for these virtual shows. Fortunately, we had a lot of time together, and it was very nice to go through the process of really not just knowing how to sing or play the songs but actually really feeling them, really communicating them, as you do with a show. We did that together. And then, of course, came the relatively unnatural setting of standing in a green bathroom [laughs] called the green screens all around us and cameras and people going for coffee instead of a real live audience. But that was really great. We had so much time that we could rehearse all of that and had a lot of fun doing that in the process."

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

In December 2020, Hietala was crowned the winner of the fall 2020 season of "Masked Singer Suomi" — the Finnish edition of the popular masked singing contest. He was disguised as Tohtori — the Doctor.

Israeli technical death metal heroes Prey For Nothing have signed a deal with Wormholedeath for the reissue of Kivshan, their most conceptual and creative album yet.


The band formed in 2006 and released its debut album, Violence Divine, in 2008 through Rusty Cage Records. After its debut album, the band released two EPs and two more full-length studio albums. Their fourth studio album, entitled Kivshan will be re-released on September 9th, 2022.


Kivshan represents a new, more progressed sound that is the immediate result of a band aiming for and reaching new creative heights while staying true to their signature sound.




The album’s lyrics were written against the backdrop of an ongoing social crisis in Israel, in which the public is divided, torn, and systematically ignored by the government. Considering these circumstances, it's not surprising that Kivshan (“furnace” in Hebrew) turned out to be a protest album that combines stories about the Israeli ethos while criticizing that ethos at the same time.


"From ancient biblical times up until the days of Zionism - the attempt to paint our historical myth in flattering colors is, simply put, doomed to fail," says Prey For Nothing. "Those who will deem this self-hatred should realize that protest is meant to point out our flaws in order to try and correct them - definitely not to delegitimize them. Kivshan ends with 'The Pinnacle', an epic story in four separate parts that entails a deliberately distorted and darker version of the Jewish 'Pardes' legend, in which four rabbis are led into an orchard (some sort of paradise), with only one of them (Rabbi Akiva) managing to leave unharmed. In PFN’s version of the tale, Rabbi Akiva is the madman of the story. 'The Pinnacle' quadrilogy, as well as Kivshan as a complete album, shows a band at its creative peak, brewing a unique mix of H.P. Lovecraft & Maimonides, Metallica and At The Gates, and of the biblical period and the Jewish ethos, ultimately transporting it to the present day to expose its disintegration.





Tracklisting:


"Angels Of Atheism"
"The Sword Devours"
"Ocean Of Tar"
"Each Other's Throat"
"Kivshan"
"The Pinnacle, Pt.1: Peshat"
"The Pinnacle, Pt.2: Remez"
"The Pinnacle, Pt.3: Derash"
"The Pinnacle, Pt.4: Sod"





 

In a new interview with Australian Musician editor Greg Phillips, KISS guitarist Tommy Thayer was asked if he will continue to play music once the band completes its ongoing "End Of The Road" farewell tour. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Of course. I don't know if I'll ever be in another band and that sort of thing, because how can you stop being in KISS? But I'll probably still be involved in music or in the entertainment biz on some level — maybe even with KISS, 'cause KISS is not gonna go away; the touring thing is, but the entity of KISS and the brand and the music, that's not gonna stop. So maybe there's something for me to be involved with that."

He continued: "I've been doing some other things — I've been involved in developing some animation projects, children's animation projects, and maybe some of that will see the light of day. I've also been delving into the wine business a little bit now. I bought some vineyard property up in Oregon, and I've got some wines coming out through my brother's wine label. So there's a lot of things. I'm always pretty busy; I'm quite involved in a lot of things. But as far as bands and things like that, playing in bands, I think this will be it for me as far as that goes."

A month ago, KISS singer and bassist Gene Simmons told Finland's Chaoszine that "End Of The Road" will be extended to hit 100 more cities around the world before he and his bandmates exit the stage for good. Speaking about when he envisions the tour coming to an end, the 72-year-old rocker couldn't say for sure. "We don't know. We've never retired before. This is our first time," he said. "It's like painting a painting or writing a book. When somebody says, 'When is it gonna be finished?' You're in the middle of it; you don't know."

Simmons then spoke about the decision to extend the tour. "The crew is happy. Everybody's happy," he explained. "So we've decided to add another 100 cities before we stop. I don't know how long that's gonna take."

Four years ago, Thayer admitted to Argus Leader in an interview that his addition to KISS in 2003 as the replacement for Ace Frehley was met with some backlash from the band's fans. However, now that he has been in KISS even longer than Frehley's combined years, he said that he has become more comfortable in the lead guitar role.

"I have to be honest, when I first came into the band, there was some pressure," Thayer said. "It was kind of a no-win situation when you're replacing somebody like that. There's a lot of fans who are unhappy with this and I understand. They followed the band for a long time and it's hard to see things like that change sometimes. After a few years went by, I got more confident and more comfortable in the situation, as time goes on, it continues to be a growing experience and something that I get more used to."

Last December, Thayer told Guitar World about what he thinks his legacy with KISS will be: "I don't know if many people realize this, but I've been the lead guitarist in KISS longer than any other KISS guitar player. But I will always be known as 'the new guy' though — no matter what happens. I'm 'the Ronnie Wood' of KISS.

"My legacy will be a guy who came in, worked hard, and was the glue that kept the band together for a long period of time," he continued. "I think the kind of character and personality that I have is that of a team player and somebody who can bring people together and bind things together.

"And I think the reason that we've done so well and so consistently in the last 20 years is because of the personalities, the give and take, and the ability to keep everybody happy… and keep working together on a professional level.

"It works well. I'll probably be that guy that has been in the band longer than anybody else besides Gene and Paul [Stanley], that kept things together, and was the glue that made it work."

Pat Travers, the blues rock icon and guitar-slingin' wizard, is set to return to center stage with a masterful new studio album to be released worldwide on August 19. "The Art Of Time Travel" is a solid testament to the magic of Travers's unique brand of classic blues rock, which has that supernatural ability to transport listeners into the not-too-distant past when rock was king and guitars dominated the airwaves — all while still sounding as fresh and relevant as ever.

Indeed, "The Art Of Time Travel" harkens back to the muscular playing of Travers's late '70s heyday, when the artist was topping the charts with smokin' hot albums such as "Crash And Burn" and the live "Go For What You Know" album, yet still tackles current topics such as the COVID quarantine ("Breaking Up In Lockdown"). One of the standout songs is Travers's emotional and cathartic tribute to his friend and mentor, the late Ronnie Montrose. Montrose was one of the most gifted and influential guitarists of his time, whose profound impact on Travers can be heard on the single "Ronnie" and throughout "The Art Of Time Travel".

Travers had this to say about his relationship with Montrose: "I was hugely influenced by Ronnie Montrose as a guitar player and band leader. I first saw him playing guitar for Edgar Winter. I just loved his attitude as the lead guitar player. He always had this intense look in his eyes like he was ready to bust out a smoking guitar riff at any second. He became a good friend and it was always a blast to talk with him on the phone. I mentioned to him once about his intense gaze when I had seen him live and he told me that his brothers called him 'Captain Hi-beams' when they were kids. I thought that was funny. Ronnie was a very, very nice guy and I miss him."

"The Art Of Time Travel" track listing:

01. The Art Of Time Travel
02. Ronnie
03. No Worries At All
04. Over And Over
05. Push Yourself
06. Move On
07. Full Spectrum
08. Breaking Up In Lockdown
09. I Feel Good
10. Natalie

Toronto-born Travers is truly a swaggering hard-rock axeman. He picked up the guitar after a Jimi Hendrix performance in Ottawa. His debut album was released in 1976, and while his most successful releases like "Makin' Magic" and "Crash And Burn" are now more than 40 years old, he never consigned himself to the nostalgia circuit.

Image credit: George S Pogacich

STRYPER guitarist/vocalist Michael Sweet has weighed in on the never-ending debate about how the rise of grunge in the early 1990s forced most hard rock bands off the radio and MTV, with album and tour sales plummeting.

On Tuesday (August 2), the 59-year-old openly Christian rocker, who writes most of the music for his band, took to his Instagram to share a photo of late NIRVANA frontman Kurt Cobain, and he included the following message: "I don't believe that Grunge killed hair metal. I think that many hair metal bands stopped trying to some degree and because of that, they started releasing mediocre music. STRYPER included.

"When 'hair metal' exploded on the scene in the early 80's it was incredibly powerful, fresh and exciting. A movement that changed the times. As the 80's came to an end, 'hair metal' was for the most part cliche, some what redundant and for the most part, recycled. I want to be fair and say not all bands but certainly many. Also, this is my personal opinion.

"I think fans were looking for something new and exciting again. Enter grunge. If was a movement as well. It wasn't really as intricate musically speaking but it was raw and passionate and that's what makes music appealing. No matter what genre.

"Originality and passion builds the foundation of any great artist/band.

"I'll never forget when I first heard NIRVANA. I actually loved it and immediately went out and bought the record. I played it for the guys and they didn't seem quite as excited about it as I was but I thought to myself - times are definitely changing, and they did very quickly!

"Personally, the grunge movement helped me to work harder and try harder. I dug a lot deeper within myself from that time forward to be a better writer, performer, musician and producer. So, I say thank you to Grunge for turning things around".

Upon release in September 1991, NIRVANA's "Smells Like Teen Spirit" wreaked confusion upon the hair metal vanguard, putting an end to an era dominated by glamorous, androgynous and sparkly rock stars who absolutely saturated the radio waves and were almost exclusively what aired on MTV.

In recent years, several other prominent 1980s hard rock musicians have weighed in on grunge's impact on the glam-rock scene, including SKID ROW bassist Rachel Bolan. Rachel told Rodrigo Altaf of Sonic Perspectives: "When a musical genre becomes just a point of sale, that's kind of the beginning of the end for the genre, 'cause they'll sign a million bands that kind of sound like a band, and then it just dilutes everything. So that's what was kind of happening right around when grunge came out. And then when grunge came out, it was the next big thing, and then it happened to them too. Every band that kind of resembled NIRVANA got signed, and they were nowhere near as good as NIRVANA. So it dilutes the market and eventually just poisons it."

Back in 2014, Bolan admitted to the Dallas Observer that "grunge put a lot of bands like us out of business. You just have to wait it out. We came back because people wanted to have fun again. There were some grunge bands that I liked, but it was such a different vibe and a different scene. People started to miss bands from our era. There was a certain nostalgia involved."

In a 2016 interview with the Fox Business program "Kennedy", Bolan's onetime bandmate Sebastian Bach was asked when he realized that there was a "shift" taking place and how he felt about it. He responded: "I think I realized it when I saw the video for [NIRVANA's] 'Smells Like Teen Spirit'. And there was never any video or song like that before; it was a new sound, and people were responding to it. But what goes around comes around. I mean, now the biggest tour in town is GUNS N' ROSES or AC/DC, who have the same singer. [Laughs] So, you know, music is cyclical, and people will always love rock and roll, 'cause it gets passed down through the generations. IRON MAIDEN has never been bigger than right now. It's kind of crazy."

Earlier this year, TWISTED SISTER frontman Dee Snider told told Armchair MBA that "no one saw" the rise of grunge coming, but he admitted that he "was already dead and semi-buried before grunge hit. TWISTED arrived in the early '80s and then we hit our stride in the mid-'80s and by the late '80s, the band had broken up. I had a band called DESPERADO [with former IRON MAIDEN drummer Clive Burr and ex-GILLAN guitarist Bernie Tormé] that got shelved by Elektra Records; a lot of money we spent on that record. So I was sort of already removed as a featured artist by that point, and I was struggling trying to find my footing with DESPERADO and then WIDOWMAKER. And then I got the letter in the mail, certified letter, 'We have decided we're no longer doing what you do — look like you, sound like you, sing like you, write like you, perform like you. We actually don't want anything to do with anything you ever did. Sincerely, the music-buying public.' [Laughs] And that's when the bottom really fell out. I mean, imagine being a doctor who studied a form of medicine, and they found a cure for it. You're a cancer specialist — a specialist; it's what you dedicated your life to — and you get a pill that cures [cancer]. You're out of work. Grunge cured hair metal. So I was out of work."

Two years ago, Snider told Ultimate Guitar that he "loved" NIRVANA and other grunge bands when they emerged. "When they first came out, it wasn't even called grunge," he explained. "And this is the thing about titles — even heavy metal, punk, hair metal, those are not titles chosen by the artists; they're titles chosen by the writers. And usually as a negative connotation. Usually as a form of a putdown. And the artists that they called grunge, called punk, called heavy metal — they hated it. This is a fact, dude. I'm old. I know this, a fact: if you mentioned grunge to SOUNDGARDEN or PEARL JAM, they got physically violent with you. They were just a rock band. And if anything, SOUNDGARDEN, ALICE IN CHAINS, they were metal bands. They were touring with Ozzy [Osbourne]. It just became defined by some writers; they pigeonholed it and called it a new sound."

Dee continued: "When it first came out, I was, again, doing metal radio, and I was playing ALICE IN CHAINS, SOUNDGARDEN, NIRVANA on my show, and I was like, 'This is great, heavy new stuff.' So then it became defined as grunge, and then it was the hair metal killer, and that was awful. But I don't blame it on the music; hair metal did it to itself. It became too commercialized, and then it got unplugged and became nothing but power ballads and acoustic songs, and it wasn't metal anymore. It had to go; it had to change."

Snider's TWISTED SISTER bandmate Jay Jay French told Daniel Sarkissian of the "Rock Is Dead?" documentary about the death of hair metal and arrival of grunge: "The only band that leapfrogged and saved themselves was GUNS N' ROSES. And my theory is that GUNS N' ROSES was not perceived as a joke. They came out of L.A., but I think that Axl [Rose], first of all, had a great voice. I think that they were perceived as real, not fake. Like, they were real junkies, not pretend junkies. So there's an authenticity. It's all about authenticity, and grunge is all about authenticity. People wanted authenticity, so they got it with grunge. It wiped out the perceived frivolousness of hair metal, which is, 'Hey, man. Let's party. Let's get the girls and drink.' I think people just got sick of that, and they wanted [something more] authentic."

Former MÖTLEY CRÜE singer John Corabi told Newsday in a 2014 interview that the CRÜE album he sang on was a commercial disappointment because the music scene had changed, with hair metal brushed aside for grunge. "Everybody was listening to ALICE IN CHAINS and SOUNDGARDEN," Corabi said. "At that point, we were considered passé."

According to Corabi, CRÜE's ill-fated 1994 American tour " was a nightmare. We weren't selling tickets. It was just horrible," he said.

In 2019, former TNT singer Tony Harnell said that the rise of the grunge movement, which symbolized the working-class spirit and focused on music over image, was ultimately a positive thing for the rock genre because it "shined a really harsh light on how boring and repetitive" the '80s glam metal scene had become. He explained: "It was the same look, the same songwriters, the same producers, and it just started to be… Nobody was offering anything… Don't get me wrong, there were a few that got in there that were interesting and different, but, for the most part, they were all just sort of rehashes, slightly, of other bands."

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