AEROSMITH drummer Joey Kramer's wife has died.

Linda Gail Kramer, 55, passed away on June 22. No cause of death has been revealed.

Just one day before her death, Linda wished her husband a happy 72nd birthday on Twitter. She wrote: "Happy Birthday to the Love Of My LIFE !! You are the most amazing man with the biggest heart I know I Love U my sweet boy".

According to her obituary, Linda was born in Decatur, Georgia, on February 27, 1967. She moved to Houston, Texas in 1971. Linda was a graduate of Klein Oak High School in Spring, Texas, class of 1985.

Linda worked in the high-tech industry most recently as a contract administrator for Hewitt Packard.

Joey and Linda were married in October 2009, with the musician calling her "the love of his life." "He once described meeting Linda as "the biggest rush you ever had in your life." Friends and family have always noted that Joey and Linda were simply "inseparable."

There are no services planned at this time. Services will be held by the family at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the St. Jude's Children’s Research Center, 262 Danny Thomas Place, Memphis, TN 38105, and/or K-9 Angels Rescue, 9415 Winsome Lane, Houston, Texas 77063.

Linda is survived by her husband, her parents, her three sisters, her stepsiblings, her stepson Jesse, and many nieces and nephews, among others.

This past March, Joey announced that he would sit out AEROSMITH's concerts in 2022 so he can "focus his full attention on his family during these uncertain times," according to a statement from the legendary rockers. While Kramer "takes a temporary leave of absence" from AEROSMITH, he will once again be replaced by his drum tech, John Douglas. "[Kramer] and the band look forward to his future performances with AEROSMITH," the statement added.

Two years ago, Kramer rejoined his AEROSMITH bandmates on stage during the group's residency in Las Vegas. A month earlier, he sued the rest of AEROSMITH in a bid to perform with them at two Grammy-related events. But a Massachusetts judge eventually ruled against him and the group played without Kramer.

After Kramer injured his shoulder in 2019, Douglas filled in for a few gigs during AEROSMITH's residency. Kramer did, however, perform with the rest of AEROSMITH in July of that year at the Twin Cities Summer Jam in Shakopee.

In his January 2020 16-page complaint filed in Massachusetts state court, Kramer said the disability he suffered three years ago was minor, and insisted he was ready to return to the group's "lucrative" Las Vegas residency at the MGM Resorts a few months later, as well as its slate of "50th anniversary activities."

Steven Tyler, Joe Perry, Tom Hamilton and Brad Whitford later responded to Kramer's suit in a statement to People, saying Joey "has not been emotionally and physically able to perform with the band, by his own admission, for the last 6 months. We have missed him and have encouraged him to rejoin us to play many times but apparently he has not felt ready to do so. Joey has now waited until the last moment to accept our invitation, when we unfortunately have no time for necessary rehearsals during Grammys week. We would be doing a disservice to him, to ourselves and to our fans to have him play without adequate time to prepare and rehearse."

In a statement at the time, Kramer said he was "extremely disappointed" with the judge's ruling.

"I knew filing a lawsuit was a bit of an uphill battle," the drummer said. "I can hold my head high knowing that I did the right thing — to fight for my right to celebrate the band's success that I have dedicated the better part of my life to helping build."
Happy Birthday to the Love Of My LIFE !! You are the most amazing man with the biggest heart I know I Love U my sweet boy ❤️💕🥰

— Linda (@MrsKramedog) June 21, 2022


Joey Kramer's Wife Linda Has Died 3 Months After Drummer Takes Leave of Absence from Aerosmith https://t.co/jSG22Sq3X4

— People (@people) July 1, 2022

SEPULTURA guitarist Andreas Kisser is mourning the death of his wife.

Patricia Perissinoto Kisser passed away Sunday morning (July 3) after a battle with colon cancer. She had just turned 52 years old one day earlier.

Andreas and the couple's three children, Giulia, Yohan and Enzo, announced Patricia's death in a social media post earlier today. They wrote: "It is with deep sadness that we have to share that Patricia Perissinoto Kisser passed away this morning. She will remain in are memories forever.

"We want to thank all our friends and family for all the support and messages of love.

"We ask for privacy during this difficult time."

In a separate Portuguese-language post on his personal Instagram, Andreas called Patricia his "best friend and "inspiration" and praised her for facing her illness "head on, with strength and determination." He added: "My admiration for you is eternal. I'm sure we'll cross paths again in some dimension beyond this earth."

Andreas and Patricia had been together for 32 years after first getting together in 1990. They married in 1994.

Late last month, Andreas left SEPULTURA's European tour due to what was described at the time as a "family emergency." He is being temporarily replaced on the road by Jean Patton of fellow São Paulo, Brazil-based heavy metal act PROJECT46.

Last September, Andreas revealed during an appearance on TRIVIUM frontman Matt Heafy's "GLHF" podcast that his wife had been diagnosed with cancer in February 2021. He said at the time: "She's going through chemo, like surgeries and stuff. She's doing great; she's doing well; the treatment is fantastic. But it's an atomic bomb one after another — pandemic, cancer and stuff. And regardless of that, we're strong. We're very united, we are growing as a band and as a family, and myself as a human being."

In July 2021, Kisser told A&P Reacts that he quit drinking alcohol right before the pandemic hit. At the time, he said that getting sober "was one of the best decisions I made in my life" and added that it improved his relationships with everyone around him, including his family.

"The stuff that I have with my wife and my kids, that I'm never home [when SEPULTURA is in the middle of an album cycle], I'm always here now," he said. "It was a difficult time, but we recreated ourselves kind of. We are a better family now — a much better family now. And that's very special. And I have to be thankful for that somehow, that I was able really to make the best out of something so terrible."

Kisser joined SEPULTURA in 1987 as the replacement for Jairo Guedz. Kisser's first studio outing with SEPULTURA was the same year's "Schizophrenia", an album that demonstrated a marked improvement from the band's 1986 "Morbid Visions" debut, not only in the lead-guitar department but in songwriting and production. Kisser's lead playing would go on to figure more prominently on ensuing SEPULTURA releases, particularly 1989's "Beneath The Remains" and 1991's "Arise", serving as the ideal complement to Max Cavalera's rhythm guitar work. Kisser has since assumed virtually all guitar duties since Cavalera's acrimonious 1996 split from SEPULTURA and now serves as the band's main songwriter. Today, Kisser and bassist Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. are the only holdovers from SEPULTURA's classic lineup.

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In April 2022, Autograph announced that founding member and bassist Randy Rand had died at the age of 71. 


The band, best known for their hit single, "Turn Up The Radio", recently revealed via social media that Metal Church bassist Steve Unger would temporarily be taking the stage alongside vocalist / rhythm guitarist Simon Daniels, lead guitarist Jimi Bell, and drummer Marc Wieland. Their statement reads:


"Minnesota! This Sunday, July 3rd, we rock the Greenbush 4th of July Weekend Celebration in Greenbush, MN with Quiet Riot! We are dedicating all our future shows and our new album (which of course includes him) to the memory and legacy of Randy Rand who will always be with us in spirit, anywhere, any time. We look forward to seeing you all on the road this summer. Steve Unger from the band Metal Church will be filling in on bass."




Upcoming Autograph concerts include:


July
8 - New Bedford, MA - The Vault at Greasy Luck Brewpub  
9 - Enfield, CT - Town Green (with Slaughter and Vixen)
26 - York, PA - State Fair (with Vixen)
30 - Philadelphia, PA - Masquerade at 2300 Arena (with Killer Dwarfs, Tora Tora)


August
19 - Gatlinburg, TN - Monsters On The Mountain (with Tom Keifer, Extreme)
20 - Indianapolis, IN - State Fair (with Vixen)


September
10 - Des Plaines, IL - Des Plaines Theatre (with Quiet Riot, Stephen Pearcy)
16 - Wisconsin Dells, WI - Crystal Grand Music Theatre (with Stryper)


October
15 - Oroville, CA - Feather Falls Casino (with Quiet Riot)





 

The clip below features Trivium frontman Matt Heafy performing a guitar playthrough for the band's song, "The Deceived". The track is taken from Trivium's 2005 album, Ascendancy.





Heafy recently covered the Johnny Cash rendition of "Hurt". The song was originally recorded by Nine Inch Nails 1994, and it became a hit for Cash when he covered the track in 2002 for his American IV: The Man Comes Around album.

JUDAS PRIEST was rejoined by guitarist Glenn Tipton on stage during the band's concert Saturday night (July 2) at the Barcelona Rock Fest at the Parc de Can Zam in Santa Coloma de Gramenet, just twenty minutes from the center of Barcelona, Spain.

As he has done a number of other times over the course of the last four years, Tipton appeared with PRIEST for the encore, performing "Metal Gods", "Breaking The Law" and "Living After Midnight".

Fan-filmed video of the performance can be seen below.

Tipton was diagnosed with Parkinson's eight years ago — after being stricken by the condition at least half a decade earlier — but announced in early 2018 he was going to sit out touring activities in support of JUDAS PRIEST's latest studio album, "Firepower". He was replaced by "Firepower" album producer Andy Sneap, who is also known for his work in NWOBHM revivalists HELL and cult thrash outfit SABBAT.

PRIEST singer Rob Halford recently told Metal Pilgrim that Glenn is "still actively involved with JUDAS PRIEST, a hundred percent. Andy is still standing in that spot for Glenn with Glenn's blessing… And my gratitude to Andy. It couldn't have happened in a better way, if you wanna try and make something good out of it. It was a really important day when Glenn said, 'I think it's probably best if I step to the side and maybe we should let Andy come in.' That was just a really beautiful act of selflessness. That's Glenn treasuring PRIEST and PRIEST's reputation, particularly in live concert more than anything else. So bless Glenn for that. And as a result, Andy stepped in and did amazing work on the 'Firepower' tour, and we're looking forward to doing the same thing with him on this 50th-anniversary [tour]. And don't discount the fact that Glenncan show up. He plays the guitar differently, but there's no reason why Glenn can't show up and do some work. I mean, I've said to Glenn, 'Just walk out on stage and do that to everybody [flashes devil horns], and the people will just go fucking crazy, 'cause you are loved so much.' But I've got a feeling that Glenn's gonna be making the occasional appearance on this 50th-anniversary [tour]."

PRIEST kicked off its spring/summer 2022 European tour with an intimate concert on May 31 in Berlin, Germany. For the gig, which was held at the 1,600-capacity Huxleys Neue Welt venue, Halford and his bandmates ditched their traditional leather-and-studs look in favor of a more stripped-down appearance.

PRIEST will celebrate their 50th anniversary again at the end of this year with the launch of a new North American tour. Support on the "50 Heavy Metal Years" fall 2022 trek will once again come from QUEENSRŸCHE.

Bassist Ian Hill is the sole remaining original member of PRIEST, which formed in 1969. Halford joined the group in 1973 and Tipton signed on in 1974. Rob left PRIEST in the early 1990s to form his own band, then came back to PRIEST in 2003. Founding guitarist K.K. Downing parted ways with the band in 2011, and was replaced by Richie Faulkner.

JUDAS PRIEST was forced to postpone around two dozen North American shows on its rescheduled 50th-anniversary tour last September after Faulkner suffered an acute cardiac aortic dissection during a performance at the Louder Than Life festival. He ended up undergoing a 10-hour life-saving surgery a short distance away at Rudd Heart and Lung Center at UofL Health - Jewish Hospital in Louisville, Kentucky.

JUDAS PRIEST will receive the Musical Excellence Award at this year's Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, which will honor Eminem, Dolly Parton, DURAN DURAN, Lionel Richie, Pat Benatar, EURYTHMICS and Carly Simon in the Performers category.

The induction ceremony will be held on November 5, 2022 at the Microsoft Theater in Los Angeles. It will air at a later date on HBO and stream on HBO Max. There will also be a radio simulcast on SiriusXM's Rock & Roll Hall Of Fame Radio channel 310.

According to the Hall Of Fame, the JUDAS PRIEST members that will get inducted include current members Halford, Hill, Tipton and Scott Travis (drums),along with former members Downing, Les Binks (drums) and late drummer Dave Holland.

The clip below features Nightwish vocalist Floor Jansen performing the  song "Let It Go" at her solo show at AFAS Live in Amsterdam, Netherlands on September 1st, 2021.


Floor: "What started as a song I used to sing for my daughter, to an internet sensation as my first ever online cover on YouTube. And now live during my show at AFAS Live in front of a sold out crowd. What a pleasure! Performing as Metal Elsa of Frozen was a lot of fun!" 


The original version of the song is performed by Idina Menzel.







The setlist was as follows:


Set 1:


"Ever Dream" (Nightwish)
"Storm In A Glass" (Northward) 
"Nemo" (Nightwish) 
"Mama" (Samantha Steenwijk cover) 
"Sweet Curse" (ReVamp song - with Henk Poort) 
"Dangerous Game" (from Jekyll & Hyde - with Henk Poort) 
"Euphoria" (Loreen)
"Face Your Demons" (After Forever)
"Winner" (Tim Akkerman cover)


Set 2:


"Slow, Love, Slow" (Nightwish)
"Shallow" (Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper cover)
"Strong" (After Forever) 
"Élan" (Nightwish) 
"Energize Me" (After Forever) 
"Qué Se Siente" (Rolf Sanchez)
"Bridle Passion" (Northward) 
"Our Decades In The Sun" (Nightwish)
"Wolf And Dog" (ReVamp) 
"The Phantom Of The Opera" (Andrew Lloyd Webber cover - with Henk Poort)


"Energize Me"





"Storm In A Glass"





"Sweet Curse"

Sabaton guitarist / Majestica frontman Tommy Johansson has shared his solo performance of "Training Montage" from the Rocky IV soundtrack.


Johansson: "The official video for Montage' - a huge and epic medley containing the soundtrack from Rocky IV composed by Vince DiCola! 'Training Montage', 'Up The Mountain' and 'War' all put together to a massive power metal mashup.


A project that I’ve been working on for a very long time and I’m very proud to finally present this epic monster medley to you all!"

Swiss-Italian cinematic/progressive metal outfit Virtual Symmetry has just issued an official video and audio single for “Come Alive,” the lead track to be issued ahead of their eponymous fourth album, confirmed for early September release through Sensory Records.


Featuring eight sprawling and immersive songs, Virtual Symmetry was recorded by the band then mixed and mastered at Domination Studio by Simone Mularoni (DGM, Michael Romeo, Turilli Lione Rhapsody) and completed with artwork and photography by Kyrhian Balmelli.







Vocalist Marco Pastorino reveals, "With our new album, we managed to combine our best qualities and selected the best Virtual Symmetry songs so far. The classical prog metal trademarks with some very cool addictions, a couple of choruses sung in our native language, Italian, a very long suite as the opening track of the album, and even more. We really can't wait to meet all of you during the upcoming European tour with the metal masters Evergrey!"


The official video for the lead Virtual Symmetry single "Come Alive" was directed by Giampiero Zappa.





Sensory Records will issue Virtual Symmetry on CD and digital platforms on September 16. Preorders are available at the label webshop.


Watch for additional previews of Virtual Symmetry to be issued ahead of the album’s release.





Virtual Symmetry has been confirmed alongside Fractal Universe as support for Evergrey for five weeks on their 2022 European tour, which runs from September 16 – the day of Virtual Symmetry’s release – through October 23. See all confirmed tour dates and more at the Virtual Symmetry official website.


(Photo – Kyrhian Balmelli)

Scorpions has uploaded classic footage performing the Lovedrive track “Always Somewhere” at Old Grey Whistle Test in May 1979. Watch below:





On June 23, the Scorpions performed at Hellfest in Clisson, France. During their set, Motörhead guitarist Phil Campbell joined the band - which features Motörhead drummer Mikkey Dee behind the kit - for "Rock You Like A Hurricane". Check out the footage below.










The legendary Ian ‘Lemmy’ Kilmister, founder of Motörhead and Grammy Award winning cultural icon, has had a portion of his ashes enshrined at this year’s Hellfest Festival in Clisson, France within a new, giant statue of the man. The official ceremony to recognize this unique memorialization took place on June 23rd.


With bandmates Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee present, it was the perfect moment to honor Lemmy’s life. After the Scorpions closed the show, bandmates Phil Campbell and Mikkey Dee said a few words, a tribute video to Lemmy played, and Phil and Mikkey raised a toast to the immortal and eternally popular Kilmister at the monument itself.


The ceremony formally recognized Lemmy’s love of both the road and the fans, which is where he always felt most comfortable.





Hellfest was one of Lemmy's favorite festivals (Motörhead played the first ever Hellfest and were staples of the festival ever since), and the band have always had a tremendous bond with their French rock’n’roll family. It is therefore fitting that Lemmy will forever be present at the site, with fans able to congregate and pay their respects to him at every Hellfest from here on out. This ceremony will also give fans an opportunity to participate in their own memorialization of Lemmy and see a miniature replica of the custom urn that houses Lemmy’s ashes at Forest Lawn Cemetery in Hollywood California.


For fans that wish to share their own tributes, memories, experiences or pay their respects, can post using the hashtag #LemmyLivesAtHellfest.


All Hail (the immortal legend) Lemmy!

In a new interview with THE HAUNTED guitarist Ola Englund's YouTube channel, KORN guitarists James "Munky" Shaffer and Brian "Head" Welch were asked how they keep themselves "angry" enough to be able to come up with consistently aggressive music. Munky responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We don't have to be. You don't have to be. We can draw inspiration from, whether it's the news, friends, whether it's family. We all, at different points, go through challenging moments."

Added Head: "How about frustration at home, and you get in a studio and take it all out."

Munky concurred, saying: "It's true. Every day there's something to draw inspiration on, whether it's your own personal stuff or something from the past. Or just create a vibe and an atmosphere and let Jonathan's [Davis, vocals] lyrics kind of… set the stage for him."

Head said: "We did a thing in London the other night, and Jonathan was, like, 'I'm finally happy in life,' 'cause he just got into a place of peace. And I go, 'So does that mean KORN records are gonnna suck now?' But that's not how it is.

"We're drawn to the dark things in life — all of us," he continued. "Movies, TV shows… So it's always gonna come out. Even if we're happy, it's gonna come out."

Added Munky: "And you know what? Now that we're older, we can learn how to balance the light and the dark in our lives. Before, it was just, like, there's this whole darkness, and we didn't know how to control it. But now we have clarity. And with age and having children and kids and having different things in our life balances the light and the dark. And we like to jump in the dark with the art we create. But we don't live there. We know how to go there, to play music and whatever, and then we know how to put that aside and then joke and be happy in the afternoon. No walking around gloomy all day. Most of the time we're joking around and clowning around all day on tour."

KORN's latest album, "Requiem", was released on February 4 via Loma Vista Recordings. The band celebrated the LP's arrival with a special record-release event on February 3 at the Hollywood United Methodist Church in Los Angeles, California. "Requiem Mass" saw the Southern California heavy music pioneers perform an intimate set in front of a 300 attendees.

"Requiem", which was produced by Chris Collier and KORN, entered Billboard's Hard Rock Albums chart at No. 1. The band sold 23,000 equivalent album units in the February 4-10 tracking week, according to Billboard. Of that sum, 20,000 units were from album sales. "Requiem" also landed at No. 2 on the Top Rock Albums and Top Alternative Albums charts. On the all-format Billboard 200, it arrived at No. 14.

KORN recently announced a summer tour with fellow rock culture icons EVANESCENCE, produced by Live Nation. Accompanied by special guests varying across select dates, the 18-city tour kicks off on August 16 at Ball Arena in Denver, Colorado, making stops across the U.S. in Boston, Chicago, Houston and more before wrapping up in Ridgefield, Washington on September 16.

KORN bassist Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu announced in June 2021 that he would sit out the band's touring activities in order to "heal" after "falling back" on some of his "bad habits."

Despite the fact that he hasn't performed with his KORN bandmates for more than a year, Fieldy did play on "Requiem".

In a brand new interview with Australia's Heavy, KILLSWITH ENGAGE frontman Jesse Leach spoke about the band's plans for the coming months. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Well, as of right now, I think the big thing that was looming over us was it's been a long time since we sat and wrote a record. So getting back on the road and touring — we did a tour with SLIPKNOT here in the States, and we did our own headlining tour with LIGHT THE TORCH and AUGUST BURNS RED — that sort of fulfilled, like, 'Oh, we're back. We're doing this again. We're playing shows. We're in front of an audience.' We weren't able to interact as much as we would have wanted to [because of the pandemic], but we were still doing it. But I think the conversation kept coming up of, like, 'What should we do?' Internationally traveling kind of fell to the wayside for not just the pandemic but the conflict in the Ukraine. So once all that touring went away overseas, we had a bunch of time. So we've started to work on demos on for a new record. And we just confirmed a tour here in the States with LAMB OF GOD and a plethora of other bands as support. So we'll be doing that in the fall. But predominantly between now and then, and then after then, we're really gonna be working on the record, trying to get that wrapped up and done quickly too, because we want it to be a record that's not gonna take a lot of time to create. We want that raw, fresh feeling, so a lot of these demos I'm trying to [get] through quickly just to get the energy and then we'll sort of dissect them as new get into the studio. So I think there's a real spirit within us to put out new material and then tour on that new record come next year, hopefully. So that's kind of what we're all thinking."

Elaborating on the time table for the completion of the next KILLSWITCH ENGAGE LP, Leach said: "We've got a couple of sessions [scheduled]. We haven't really put deadlines or anything. But I'm personally setting goals for me to create quick, very emotional, raw stuff for the demos and then probably taking a little more time, once we get to the studio, to polish that up and make it sound really good. Some of these demos I'm getting ready to send to the guys, if you would listen to them, most people would probably laugh 'cause they're just me going nuts, just trying to get the idea out quick and then we'll worry about re-recording it and polishing it and sort of making it sound KILLSWITCH-y.

"I've always been really hard on myself — a perfectionist, if you will — and I think it's hindered me in the demo-making process," he explained. "So my approach to this record is I wake up in the morning and I write lyrics out of the sleep. I listen to the music. It's moving very quickly for me, and it just feels fresh; it feels new. And then us getting into a room and jamming on that shit together, which we haven't done in years, that's the vibe we're going for. We kind of wanna bring that live feeling, that live sound to this next record… I want that energy to be there.

"Live music shouldn't be perfect," Leach added. "I don't like the studio fixes, I don't like the tuning — I hate all that shit. So the less that can happen, I'm into it. I'd rather keep it raw. It's rock and roll, man — it shouldn't be perfect. I think metal, over the years, has become very compressed and very manufactured. To me, I'm all about pushing away from that. So I think this next record will be a push-and-pull, 'cause [KILLSWITCH ENGAGE guitarist and producer] Adam [Dutkiewicz] is very much a perfectionist with the way he likes things to sound. So it should be interesting. He's on board of that too — sort of getting more of a live feel to what we're doing. I think it comes across. When you come see a band live like us, it is a little different than a record. But it should be."

As for the lyrical content of the next KILLSWITCH ENGAGE album, Jesse said: "I've purposefully been extremely spiritually minded and positive and trying to write uplifting things that are gonna help people process what we've been through.

"I think there's two ways you can go — you can get angry and write hyper-political stuff and anti-government or whatever, which I've done in the past, and I still stand by that, but I think, for me, where my gift lies, after what we've been through, is more of a comfort, more of an uplifting thing," he noted. "So I'm leaning hard on that — a little more existential, more looking forward, if you will, lyrically. It's probably gonna be some of the most positive stuff that I've ever written, and I'm doing that on purpose — for myself, but also for the listener. I think it's just time for us to put out a record that's just beaming with positivity and hope. And that's what I'm going to do."

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's fourth album, "As Daylight Dies", released by Roadrunner Records on November 21, 2006, was recently certified platinum by the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America). The record produced fan favorites such as "My Curse" and "The Arms Of Sorrow". The band also received a platinum certification for the single "My Curse", as well as gold certifications for 2004's "The End Of Heartache" and the "Set This World Ablaze" DVD. The single "The End Of Heartache" and KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's cover of DIO's "Holy Diver" are also certified gold.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE's latest album, "Atonement", was released in August 2019 via Metal Blade Records in the U.S. and Sony Music Entertainment in the rest of the world. The disc featured guest appearances by former KILLSWITCH ENGAGE singer Howard Jones and TESTAMENT frontman Chuck Billy. It marked the band's third full-length release since the return of Leach, who rejoined the group in 2012.

In July 2021, Leach and Dutkiewicz released the second album from their TIMES OF GRACE project, "Songs Of Loss And Separation", via the band's own imprint label, Wicked Good Records, distributed by ADA Worldwide.

KILLSWITCH ENGAGE is:

Jesse Leach - Vocals
Adam Dutkiewicz - Guitar
Joel Stroetzel - Guitar
Mike D'Antonio - Bass
Justin Foley - Drums
Listen to "The Time is Now with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE" on Spreaker.

MEGADETH's Dave Mustaine has blasted "lazy" bands who rely on pre-recorded tracks during their live performances.

In recent years, more and more bands have been given a pass for using backing tracks, drum triggers and other assorted technology that makes concerts more synthetic but also more consistent.

Speaking to Kerrang! Radio at this month's Download festival in the U.K., Mustaine addressed the use of pre-recorded tapes at live shows, saying: "I've always done the background singing on the records until — maybe about 10 years ago, we started having another person come in and help supplement the vocals because it's just not my bag to be singing stuff that I'm not gonna sing live. I sing when I sing live on the records as much as I can.

"I don't think there's anything wrong with using supplements for songs and other sounds and stuff like that if you can't play 'em live," he continued. "If you can play it live and you're being fucking lazy and you're seeing whatever just happened a couple of days ago with one of those big bands, and the singer… the tape started and the drummer wasn't playing or something. You probably heard about that. I can't remember who it was," Mustaine said, apparently referencing a rare "mistake" by KISS drummer Eric Singer during the band's concert in Antwerp, Belgium earlier this month which revealed what some fans are saying is proof that KISS is using pre-recorded tracks during its performances.

Dave added: "We don't have vocals that are canned. Usually what we have is a MIDI click track that runs all of our lights and switches all of our solos and stuff."

Ever since KISS's "End Of The Road" trek launched in late January 2019, there has been persistent online chatter about Paul allegedly singing to a backing tape. The speculation stemmed from the fact that Paul Stanley had been struggling to hit the high notes in many of the band's classic songs for a number of years.

Three years ago, former SKID ROW singer Sebastian Bach defended KISS against claims that the band is using pre-recorded tracks during its farewell tour, saying that Stanley sang "his ass off LIVE" during a concert in California. "I have seen way more obvious use of backing tracks than with KISS," Sebastian wrote on Twitter.

FOZZY frontman Chris Jericho also defended Stanley's vocal performance on "End Of The Road" tour, saying that the "Star Child" "has nothing to prove to anybody." Jericho explained: "He's one of the greatest rock and roll singers of all time. I think that's something that anybody would say. I would much rather have him use the technology that's available to not sound like he's hurting himself, which then makes me not enjoy the show as much."

Bach's comments came just hours after MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist Nikki Sixx called out another band for using taped vocals during its live performances after it previously derided other groups for doing the same thing.

Sixx wrote on Twitter: "Certain band out on the road right now putting other bands DOWN and saying that they are a REAL rock band, no background singers,and other old people cranky comments except his lead vocals are on tape.People in glass houses shouldn't throw rocks. #GetOffMyLawn #WizardOfOz"

Most fans assumed that Sixx was referring to KISS, especially since Gene Simmons has previously slammed bands who used backing tapes for not being honest enough to include that fact on their concert tickets.

After KISS played on NBC's "America's Got Talent" in September 2018, Stanley was asked by Rolling Stone if that was actually a live performance or if he and his bandmates tracked it earlier. "What you tend to do is record it live and that way you know that everything is as it should be," he responded. "It's not like going into the studio or anything like that. It's…with all its imperfections, it's live."

Sixx has been open about his band's used of taped vocals during live concerts, saying, "We've used technology since '87." He added the group employed "sequencers, sub tones, background vox tracks, plus background singers and us. [MÖTLEY CRÜE also taped] stuff we can't tour with, like cello parts in ballads, etc.... We love it and don't hide it. It's a great tool to fill out the sound."

In a 2014 interview, MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist Mick Mars admitted that he wasn't comfortable with the fact that his band used pre-recorded backing vocals in its live shows, claiming that he preferred to watch groups whose performances are delivered entirely live. "I don't like it," he said. "I think a band like ours… I have to say '60s bands were my favorite — '60s and '70s bands — because they were real, like, three-piece bands or four-piece bands, and they just got up there and kicked it up. Made a mistake? So what? Sounded a little bit empty here or there? So what? It's the bigness and the rawness and the people that developed and wrote the songs and made them and presented them. To me, that's what I really like. I mean, I could put on a MÖTLEY CD and play with it all day long. I don't wanna do that."

Back in 2015, Simmons slammed bands who used backing tapes, saying: "I have a problem when you charge $100 to see a live show and the artist uses backing tracks. It's like the ingredients in food. If the first ingredient on the label is sugar, that's at least honest. It should be on every ticket — you're paying $100, 30 to 50 percent of the show is [on] backing tracks and they'll sing sometimes, sometimes they'll lip sync. At least be honest. It's not about backing tracks, it's about dishonesty.

"There's nobody with a synthesizer on our stage, there's no samples on the drums, there's nothing," Gene continued. "There's very few bands who do that now — AC/DC, METALLICA, us. I can't even say that about U2 or THE [ROLLING] STONES. There's very few bands who don't use [backing] tracks."

SEPULTURA played its fifth show with fill-in guitarist Jean Patton (PROJECT46) Tuesday night (June 28) at Espace Julien in Marseille, France. Fan-filmed video of the performance can be found below.

On June 22, SEPULTURA announced that guitarist Andreas Kisser was forced to leave the band's current European tour due to a "family emergency." In a statement on social media, the group said: "Unfortunately, @andreaskisser has returned home due to a family emergency. However, the show must go on, so we've tapped fellow Brazilian @jeanpatt6n (of @project46_oficial) to riff with until Andreas' return. Huge thanks to him for jumping in on short notice (practice is sounding great already!). Please join us in welcoming Jean and wishing Andreas the best."

This is not the first time Kisser has sat out SEPULTURA shows since he joined the band three and a half decades ago. Back in December 1991, Kisser was unable to perform due to an arm injury and was temporarily replaced on a European tour by KORZUS guitarist Silvio Golfetti.

Last September, Kisser revealed during an appearance on TRIVIUM frontman Matt Heafy's "GLHF" podcast that his wife had been diagnosed with cancer in February 2021. He said at the time: "She's going through chemo, like surgeries and stuff. She's doing great; she's doing well; the treatment is fantastic. But it's an atomic bomb one after another — pandemic, cancer and stuff. And regardless of that, we're strong. We're very united, we are growing as a band and as a family, and myself as a human being."

Last July, Kisser told A&P Reacts that he quit drinking alcohol right before the pandemic hit. "It was one of the best decisions I made in my life," he said. "Not that I was a fucking out-of-control alcoholic, but alcohol was a part of my life, of everything I did. In certain degrees less and more, but it was there. It was taking control of my life, of my choices, of how I dealt with people or with a special occasion or something. Alcohol was involved in everything. And I don't need that. And I proved now that I don't, because I'm having a better life. I'm doing exercises. I have the routine I never had touring."

He continued: "[When you are on the road], every time you're in a different place, in a different time period. Or you go to a bathroom and you don't shower and you have to travel, et cetera. That was our life. And with the pandemic, I had finally a routine. I kind of complained before because I couldn't do exercises, I couldn't have my diet, I couldn't study classical guitar. Now I have all that, and I appreciate that a lot.

"The stuff that I have with my wife and my kids, that I'm never home [when SEPULTURA is in the middle of an album cycle], I'm always here now. It was a difficult time, but we recreated ourselves kind of. We are a better family now — a much better family now. And that's very special. And I have to be thankful for that somehow, that I was able really to make the best out of something so terrible."

According to Kisser, "it was very easy" for him to give up the bottle. "Once you have a clear idea in your mind, there's no discussion," he explained. "I didn't put the responsibility on a saint or, let's say, in a church, or 'I will stop for a year' or 'I promise you, my wife, I don't drink anymore.' No. It's not for them. It's a very personal attitude. It's me with me — not more. I don't have to put the responsibility away from myself, in a time period or in a certain religious belief or my family. They don't deserve that. This is my problem, and I resolve it with myself. So I'm in peace with myself with that. It's not something that bothers me. I can be around alcohol, I can be around parties, I can be around backstage, as I did with my KISSER CLAN band here and stuff. People drink around [me], [and] I don't care. I don't even feel the wish to drink, which is great. So I don't have a battle, let's put it that way. I'm not running away from anything. I just decided to stop. That's it."

SEPULTURA comprises Kisser, vocalist Derrick Green, bassist Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr. and drummer Eloy Casagrande.

SEPULTURA was formed in Belo Horizonte by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera, who are no longer with the band.

John Cooper, the frontman and bassist for the Grammy-nominated Christian rock band SKILLET, has expressed his joy as he celebrated the June 24 decision of the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn Roe v. Wade, which legalized abortion throughout the United States 49 years ago.

Cooper described the ruling as a "miracle" and as a moral victory that will save countless future lives.

While he rejoiced that years of pro-life advocacy had paid off, he also hinted the decision did not go far enough and expressed his belief that there will eventually be a national ban on abortions.

During a recent episode of his "Cooper Stuff" podcast, the Memphis, Tennessee-born Cooper, who lives in Kenosha, Wisconsin, weighed in on the overturning of Roe v. Wade, saying (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I have actually believed that one day Roe was gonna be overturned. I actually believe that abortion is going to become illegal altogether in every state in America. I've believed that for a long time; I just didn't, like, 'believe it' believe it [laughs] — apparently — because when it actually happened, I'm freaking out and I'm texting everybody: 'Can you believe this?' The incredible grace and mercy of God on this nation.

"I don't even know what to say," he continued. "This is unbelievable. We do not deserve this. We do not deserve this, because we so greatly deserve the judgment of God on our nation.

"I just wanna give a sincere — this isn't mockery; this is a sincere… For those of you who have been in this fight for years, decades — we're talking about decades — those of you who have been in this fight. You have given money, you have given time, you have been praying, you have been counseling women before and after abortions. And I say that because it's a complete lie that Christians don't care about women and stuff like that. A lot of you people watching this, you've given your time to counsel women who did have abortions. They need to be counseled. They need to understand that there is a God that will forgive them because his mercy… as I said, and I do every single morning, he is a God of grace. There are those of you people who have been faithfully praying and believing for this. And I wanna give it up for you. I wanna say thank you. I mean it with all of my heart.

"My church has been praying every single Monday for seven years — pro-life prayer, we call it," Cooper added. "Guess how many times that I've gone in and faithfully prayed. Zero. Why? 'Cause I'm pathetic. A lot of times I'm not here, but I'm not making excuses — I will not make excuses for this. So I'm being honest with you. I have not prayed into this as I should have. I've not gone to the prayer meetings for this. I haven't gone to the clinics and given my time. I've given money — a little bit, let's just be honest. Have I sacrificed for this movement? Not that much. I've said things on my podcast. It's cost me some business; it's cost me some friends. I haven't sacrificed; you have, and I want to give it up to all of you faithful people.

"Look at what God can do. The prayer of a righteous person is powerful and effective, the Bible says. Phew! Come on now. This is what God does. God does miracles when you don't expect it.

"What I know is this: the power of prayer cannot be exaggerated, and this should prove it to people.

"I wanna thank all of you people who have been out there praying against this great evil. We're all gonna be able now to experience this mercy of God on our nation," John said.

"If you wanna have justice in a nation, can you think of a better place to start than, 'Hey, we don't legalize the murder of people.'"

The conservative-leaning Supreme Court's ruling came in a case involving Mississippi's request to overturn Roe v. Wade — the court's 1973 decision that legalized abortion in the United States — and uphold a state law that bars the procedure 15 weeks after conception.

Roe v. Wade affirmed the right to receive an abortion under the 14th Amendment, ruling that abortions were constitutionally protected up until about 23 weeks when a fetus can typically live outside the womb.

Friday's decision overturned what was previously a federal legalization of abortion and has returned the issue to individual states to decide the matter for themselves.

As a result of the Supreme Court's decision, terminating a pregnancy is expected to be banned or significantly curtailed in roughly half of all states in the nation — including nearly every state in the Midwest.

According to Bloomberg, at least 22 U.S. states have laws on the books that will now outlaw abortion in all or most cases, and four others have indicated they will likely move in a similar direction. People living in those places will have to travel an average of 276 miles each way to access the procedure in parts of the country where abortion remains legal, according to Bloomberg News calculations based on data from the Guttmacher Institute, a reproductive health researcher.

According to a CBS News/YouGov poll, a 59% majority of U.S. adults disapprove of the Supreme Court's decision to overturn Roe vs. Wade, with 41% approving. About half (52%) call the decision a step backward for America, with 31% calling it a step forward and 17% saying it's neither. Among women, two-thirds (67%) disapprove of the ruling, with just 33% approving. A 56% majority of women say that the decision will make the lives of most American women worse.

According to a Forbes, Americans largely oppose harsh abortion laws, with 75% against policies that make it a criminal offense to perform an abortion, 69% opposing policies that ban abortion six to eight weeks into a pregnancy, 80% opposing laws that allow private citizens to sue anyone who aids or abets an abortion and 63% supporting "safe haven laws" in Democratic-led states that would protect people who travel in from other states to get an abortion.

In various interviews over the years, John has said that he "always had faith in God" and that his mother was a "Jesus fanatic." He also claimed that he was willing to put his career on the line to take a stand for Christ.

Another Christian rocker who apparently agrees with Cooper is STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet. Two years ago, Sweet publicly revealed his views on abortion while discussing how he decides which presidential candidate he gets behind. He told Slabber.net in an interview: "It's not anything new for people to hear from a Christian that they support pro-life. We want to see children that are unborn, live. The other side of that argument, for example, if the woman is raped and she loses her right to have an abortion, that's a terrible thing as well, and I agree with that. You would think in this case a woman should have the choice to keep that baby or not keep that baby. It's a tough argument. There are pros and cons to both sides of this argument. For me, as a believer, as a Christian, the pro-life pros outweigh the cons. Therefore, I'm a guy who typically gets behind whoever is the candidate that is pro-life as well."

George Lynch has recruited Ray West (SPREAD EAGLE) to sing for his GEORGE LYNCH AND THE ELECTRIC FREEDOM project. Also joining the legendary DOKKEN axeman in the band are Jimmy D'Anda (BULLETBOYS) on drums and Rob DeLuca (Sebastian Bach, UFO, SPREAD EAGLE) on bass.

Earlier today, Lynch shared a photo of West via his Instagram, and he wrote in an accompanying message: "I'm proud and excited to welcome vocalist and frontman extrordinare #raywest to the #electricfreedom fold. Ray best known for his work with @spreadeaglenyc along with @rob_deluca_bass who's also playing bass in EF. Maybe I should rename the band electric eagle or spread freedom ? :) @raywestvocals @jimmydanda".

It was only six months ago that Lynch introduced the previous GEORGE LYNCH AND THE ELECTRIC FREEDOM lineup at a concert at Count's Vamp'd in Las Vegas, Nevada. Lynch, D'Anda and DeLuca were joined at that gig by Andrew Freeman (LAST IN LINE). At the time, Lynch wrote on social media that he "finally put together" his "perfect band."

In August 2021, Lynch spoke to Anne Erickson of Audio Ink Radio about what it has been like to play select shows around the country with his newly christened touring entity GEORGE LYNCH AND THE ELECTRIC FREEDOM. He said: "It's liberating, actually, to be quite honest with you. To have a new band and a new name and a name that — I mean, just the power of the name, 'cause with the new name, which is GEORGE LYNCH'S ELECTRIC FREEDOM, it really is electric freedom. I didn't even think of it that way, but [then-ELECTRIC FREEDOM bassist] Michael Devin and I were were talking the other day on the way home, and we were, like, 'This really defines the band.' And it really does. Because we're plugged in, we do a lot of kind of just off-the-cuff improvisation during our show, which you don't see very much in rock and roll anymore — not since the '70s. And we're big fans of that; that's what we were raised on. So it's, I think, more alive and vital than your kind of average thing where you go see a band and they're playing songs they wrote 35 years ago. And sure, it's great — you wanna hear the songs, and that's all good. But these guys have been flogging these songs for decades. I've been doing that too. And that's not what I'm about. I mean, I can do it. But I like to bring the audience another perspective and another dimension to what can happen onstage, and that is the creative moment in real time — experiencing that and witnessing that, and for me to play that and the band to play that... And I think the crowd appreciates that. And not just at the moment, but more in retrospect, when they think about it. They think, 'Wow, actually, that was pretty cool.' Every time you come see my band, it's gonna be different. It's gonna be different members [and] we're gonna play different material."

Asked if there are plans to work on new music with GEORGE LYNCH AND THE ELECTRIC FREEDOM, George said: "It's not on the way in the sense that's we're working on it, but we have discussed the idea of doing an EP. We wanna go a little more old school and do something that's pretty easy for us to make instead of taking on a whole album project with a new band. Let's just do four songs, and let's hand one out to the fans for free and just get people into it and put a lot of work into those four songs and make it easy, so it's not this big giant burden for us. And if the EP blows up, which I think it will, then we'll do — when we've been together a little longer, we'll do a real record. But I definitely believe we need to document what this band is, 'cause it's very, very cool."

In early 2021, Lynch offered a lengthy explanation for why he was ending LYNCH MOB during an interview with George Dionne of Metal Express Radio. Addressing questions about why it took him three decades to call it quits with LYNCH MOB, George said: "When we first formed the band in '89, the name had sort of already been around. While I was in DOKKEN, it's what I called our little group of guitar fans — I had picks made; it was kind of a little subculture within DOKKEN. When we started working on developing and building the band after DOKKEN broke up, that was just the name that we always thought we'd use, 'cause it was a perfect fit — it's my name, and it describes it pretty well. And, of course, the negative connotations were always there, and I was aware of 'em, but not as aware as I probably should have been. [Laughs]

"I had made numerous attempts over the decades to kind of let that name go and had walked that back for multiple reasons — usually because of business considerations," he continued. "For instance, if you try to go out on a tour and not use the name, promoters aren't gonna be happy with you changing it. People aren't gonna know who you are. They're not gonna show up, because what's THE GEORGE LYNCH EXPERIENCE, or whatever you call it. Or record labels are not interested, because it's a brand that they can count on and sell a certain many albums or whatever.

"For instance, the LYNCH MOB record 'Smoke This' that came out, I think, in '99 or 2000, that was not supposed to be a LYNCH MOB record; that really wasn't anything to do with LYNCH MOB. At the end of the day, after the record was done and we were delivering it to the label, they insisted on using that name as insurance. And if I hadn't agreed to that, we wouldn't have had a record. That's the kind of pressure I'm talking about.

"But then, with the onset of everything that's happened in the last year, I didn't have that kind of pressure anymore," George added. "I could take it or leave it at this point. And I didn't really feel comfortable with it; I didn't feel comfortable with the name. 'Cause I'm a very progressive person politically, and it just so flies in the face of everything I believe in, and it makes it hard. It makes it hard to have relationships with people and explain yourself, and I got tired of rationalizing it. I think the music is bigger than that, and it's had a great run.

"Another reason, too, is the band fell apart again. The band has fallen apart so many times, I can't even count. And it was just, like, 'No more Oni [Logan, vocals], no more Brian Tichy [drums], no more this guy, no more that guy. Oh, great. Now what do I do?' It's, like, 'Okay, build another band from scratch, call it LYNCH MOB?' No. How about just build something new? It gives me a lot more freedom to basically play anything I want live… I can go out and play everything from my catalog — new, old, covers, jams, you name it, and go deep and have fun and change it up every night."

Oni first hooked up with LYNCH MOB in 1990, but exited the group after the release of its first album, only to rejoin the outfit in the late 2000s.

Logan is featured on five of LYNCH MOB's eight albums, including 1990's "Wicked Sensation", as well as 2009's "Smoke And Mirrors", 2014's "Sun Red Sun", 2015's "Rebel" and 2017's "The Brotherhood".

In August 2020, LYNCH MOB celebrated the 30th anniversary of "Wicked Sensation" with a special limited print/deluxe edition of the album. "Wicked Sensation Reimagined" features re-worked and re-recorded versions of the LP's classic songs, and was made available via Rat Pak Records.

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Ron Keel Band has released their new single “When This Is Over,” from the forthcoming album KEELWORLD, via RFK Media and Amplified Distribution. The track is available on all digital and streaming platforms, and also as a limited edition CD single accompanied by a world class music video premiering here at BraveWords.





“I received a very nice email from a fan overseas during the pandemic,” Ron said, explaining the song’s inspiration. “This guy said he loves what we do and can’t wait to see us on tour…when this is over. The song was born in that moment…and the lyrics quickly evolved as an echo of that fan’s hope. In the song, I don’t define what ‘this’ is – it could be World War III or just a bad day at work – but we gotta believe that when this is over, everything’s going to be okay.




“Now just this morning, I got a message from another fan, who had her legs crushed when she was struck by a car. She says this song is now ‘her jam’ and it’s helping her through rehab after one of those legs was amputated. She said when this is over, she’s going to walk again.”


He insists the message behind the song is both timely and timeless and guarantees “When This Is Over” will be on the set list with the Keel classics for all the Ron Keel Band summer shows. RKB joins Cinderella’s Tom Keifer, Jackyl, Winger and many others at the RockTember Music Festival in Minnesota this September, and the band will return for their residency at the Full Throttle Saloon during the 82nd annual Sturgis Motorcycle Rally.





Other big summer headline concerts include July 16 at Logan’s Wild Hog Run in Cando, North Dakota, September 16 at the King Of Clubs in Columbus, Ohio, and the Field Of Screams Festival in Wabash, Indiana September 17. The tour will come full circle with their only hometown show of 2022, on New Year's Eve in Sioux Falls, South Dakota at the El Riad Shrine.


“Along with anthems like ‘The Right To Rock’ and ‘Wild Forever,’ ‘When This Is Over’ is one of the defining songs of my career,” Keel insists. The album KEELWORLD is set for release in 2023 and includes all new music from Ron Keel Band, KEEL, Steeler, IronHorse, Fair Game, and more.


The “When This Is Over” Limited Edition CD Single contains the master mix (explicit lyrics), an instrumental mix, and the radio mix. Fans can order that disc while supplies last at rfkmedia.com.


Find more about Ron and his band on ronkeel.com.

Sabaton guitarist / Majestica frontman Tommy Johansson has shared a new one-man recording via his offcial YouTube channel. Check it out below.


Johansson: "To celebrate that ReinXeed (now Majestica) celebrates 20 years there will be a couple of videos on YouTube to celebrate this! Some re-recordings of some old ReinXeed songs that deserves more time in the spotlight - in my opinion.


So let's start with the first one - 'The Light' from the album The Light. The original song was recorded when I was 18 years old, released two years later on Rivel Records and have been performed live several times with ReinXeed."







Majestica (formnerly ReinXeed) were formed in 2000 by vocalist / guitarist Tommy Johansson. The band's sound is influenced by soundtrack focused films such as Lord Of The Rings and bands like Helloween with Michael Kiske, and Rhapsody of Fire. Reinxeed was originally Johansson's solo project and on the debut album, The Light, he played every instrument.  It was released on 12 March 2008 in Japan, 6 June in Europe, via Rivel Records and allowed Johansson to recruit a band: two guitarists, Kerry Lundberg and Mattias Johansson, keyboardist Henrik Fellermark, drummer Erik Forsgren and bassist Ace Thunder to record and release the second album, Higher.


ReinXeed released six albums in total before the name change to Majestica: The Light (2008), Higher (2009), Majestic (2010), 1912 (2011), Welcome to the Theater (2012)and A New World (2013). Majestica has release two albums: Above The Sky (2019) and A Christmas Carol (2020).

Toronto-based Famous Underground, featuring former Slik Toxik frontman Nick Walsh, have released a new single "Sludge Garden". Check out the official lyric video below.





Walsh acknowledges the public’s tolerance for inauthenticity has kept him singularly focused on ensuring he projects his true musical identity in every note of the band#s recently released five-song EP, In My Reflection. “Fans, critics and most people can smell through bullshit. As an artist, my job is to make sure I’m comfortable creating it and presenting it,” he says.




While the musical relationship between Walsh and bassist Laurie-Anne Green Green dates back more than two decades, the former’s history in music is even more extensive, having fronted the Juno Award winning Canadian hard-rock band Slik Toxik. Following the group’s demise, Walsh immersed himself in a myriad of projects, running the gamut from owning a recording studio, working in film and television, and touring North America with Classic Albums Live.


Walsh and Green had worked on projects together in the past, and in 2011 decided to form Famous Underground. They released their debut album independently that same year, which was subsequently licensed for world-wide release in 2013. Leaning upon a veritable number of classic influences from the world of hard rock and heavy metal, Famous Underground’s take no prisoners approach to music reaffirms guitar-driven rock music is far from dead.


“Famous Underground is my passion project. It’s music that comes from my soul,” Walsh explains. “I am grateful that the band share my vision and end up owning it themselves - that's what I call real.”


Following the release of a digital 45 in 2017, the band, which also includes guitarist Darren Boyd and drummer Desche Sparboom, amassed 14 songs for a full-length album that was originally due out in 2020. Not surprisingly, the pandemic disrupted those plans, sending Walsh and Green back to the drawing board in some respects. After all, the dynamic vocalist has a unique perspective on the music business, having cut his musical teeth on the “old” model of record companies being the gatekeepers to success, through disruptors like Napster and file-sharing, up to the present day of music on demand.


“It’s remarkable to watch how technology shifts the industry so quickly,” says Walsh. “It’s so important to stay on top of how the landscape is evolving. We wanted to ensure we were going about the release of this new music in the right way, rather than dropping all 14 songs with no fanfare.”





In My Reflection tracklisting:


"The Dark One Of Two"
"Corrupted"
"Until The End"
"Ultra Mega"
"Like An Animal"


"The Dark One Of Two"





"Like An Animal"





One of the most notable facets that time has brought to Famous Underground is a sense of maturity and life experience. Although those facets of life might have been missing during his tenure in Slik Toxik - through no one’s fault - Walsh embraces the opportunity to have gained valuable insights and observations over the last 30 years. It has given him a world view that could not be artificially manifested. There is a polished, intense rawness to the songs featured on In My Reflection that is both similar and dissimilar to anything Walsh has done in the past. However, he might not have arrived at this critical junction in his career without the benefit of the experiences he’s lived through.


“Back in the early days of Slik Toxik, we were singing about reaching for the brass ring, women and partying; all pretty typical stuff for guys in their late teens and early 20s,” Walsh says. “I couldn’t get away with writing about that shit now. I’m more interested in writing about the world around me and the human condition; the struggles within; duality; and the world around us. I’m a big believer in the whole yin/yang thing and how important it is to find balance in the world.”


Famous Underground is:


Nick Walsh - Lead Vocals, Guitars, Keyboards, Programming
Laurie-Anne Green - Bass Guitar
Darren Boyd - Lead Guitar
Desche Sparboom – Drums


Touring Musicians:


Michael Wolfgang Verbeke – Guitar
Ange M – Guitar


(Photo - Pete Dove)

Israeli symphonic metallers, StormbounD, are set to release their new album, December, on August 5, and ahead of this have released a video for the single, "Flying High".


When asked about the theme behind the song, they stated, "'Flying High' is an optimistic love song, where the protagonist is trying to help a loved one overcome her suffering caused by a mental illness." Watch the clip below.


The band was formed in 2018 in Tel-Aviv by bassist Pavel Kleiman and guitarist and vocalist Ofer Friedman. Next to join were Ofer's wife Shani Friedman on guitar, Yuval Partush on drums, Rotem Sadia on the keyboard, and Yael Horwitz as lead singer. All members of the band are well-established professional musicians. The outfit were predominantly influenced by symphonic metal, but an attentive listener will be able to pick up elements from power, prog and death metal, and a bit of rock. They are recommended listening for fans of Nightwish, Evanescence, and Epica.




Shortly after its formation the group began writing and performing and made a unique mark in the local heavy music scene. During the last year, the band took part in all major metal events and festivals in Israel.
 
Channelling the vibes of bands such as Delain and Amaranthe with powerful, clean vocals from frontwoman Yael Horwitz, alongside the harsher lyrics sang by vocalist/guitarist Ofer Friedman who is backed up by a formidable, symphonic sound driven by bassist Pavel Kleiman, keyboardist Rotem Sadia, drummer Yuval Partush and guitarist Shani Friedman.





Tracklisting:


"Desert's Roar"
"Altar Of Innocence"
"Sacred Lies"
"Away From Here"
"December"
"Shadows"
"Flying High"
"Fragments"
"Child's Play"


"Flying High" video:

Global debt and climate protesters this week decided to use the famous BLACK SABBATH "heavy metal" bench in Birmingham, England to highlight their campaign.

The activists placed placards around the necks of the metallic images of Geezer Butler and Bill Ward, with the latter reading "G7: TURN DEBT INTO CLIMATE ACTION".

The placards were quickly removed by alert Westside BID staff, but the peaceful protest was acknowledged as "democratic" and thanked for not causing any damage to the bench.

The campaigners, who regularly uses the hashtag #debtforclimate on social media, want developed nations in the west to cancel the debts of so-called third world countries.

Their approach considers "climate debt" to be a debt owed to developing countries for the global damage caused by developed countries’ disproportionately large contribution to climate change.

The protests came as this year's G7 summit of world leaders met at Schloss Elmau, an historic building near Garmisch-Partenkirchen in the Bavarian Alps in Germany.

Mike Olley, general manager of Westside BID, said: "We fully appreciate that the nature of the protest was careful not to cause any damage. However, as custodians of the BLACK SABBATH bench, we had to remove the protest placards. The irony is that BLACK SABBATH themselves were initially a protest band … As a group of proud, working-class blokes, they got annoyed by the 'hippie' culture of peace and love and felt they had to project a more raw and realistic aspect of life — hence heavy metal. But seriously, if you look carefully at some of BLACK SABBATH's song lyrics, you can see that they were deeply mistrustful of world leaders, for instance in their 'War Pigs' song."

Olley added: "Here on Westside we want people to take care of the BLACK SABBATH bench, but, at the same time, we will always welcome democratic, peaceful protests."

The distinctive bench, which sits above the canal off Broad Street, was officially opened by Geezer and Tony Iommi in June 2019. It has since attracted thousands of BLACK SABBATH fans, and media, from all over the world.

The handmade, stainless steel bench was forged in the city by Gateway Steel Fabrications and features images of Ozzy Osbourne, Iommi, Butler and Ward with the words "Geezer. Ozzy. Tony. Bill. Made in Birmingham 1968" etched on it.

BLACK SABBATH super-fan Mohammed Osama came up with the idea and worked closely with Westside BID on the project.

Photo courtesy of Westside BID

Bullet For My Valentine performed at the 2022 edition of Hellfest in Clisson, France on June 26. You can watch professionally-filmed footage of the band's full set below.


Setlist:


"Your Betrayal"
"Waking The Demon"
"Piece Of Me"
"Knives"
"The Last Fight"
"All These Things I Hate (Revolve Around Me)"
"4 Words (To Choke Upon)"
"Shatter"
"Over It"
"Tears Don't Fall"
"Scream Aim Fire"







Bullet For My Valentine will release a deluxe version of their current, self-titled album on July 8 via Spinefarm/Search and Destroy. This extended release features four brand new tracks, plus "Stitches", a song previously only available as a Japanese exclusive. Get it here and pre-save it here. Following the CD and digital releases, a vinyl pressing will launch on November 11.


Listen to the above mentioned "Stitches" here, and watch a visualizer video below.


Bullet For My Valentine's seventh studio record sees the band at their heaviest and most visceral, and these additional tracks are no different, offering another round of signature blistering Bullet.





Bullet For My Valentine (Deluxe Edition) tracklisting:


"Parasite"
"Knives"
"My Reverie"
"No Happy Ever After"
"Can't Escape The Waves"
"Bastards"
"Rainbow Veins"
"Shatter"
"Paralysed"
"Death By a Thousand Cuts "
"Omen"
"Stitches"
"No More Tears"
"Step Out From the Inside"
"This Means War"


"Stitches" visualizer:





"Omen" lyric video: