“If It Wasn’t For The Night” is the new release from Hollywood Rock Icons, The Hollywood Stars. “If It Wasn’t For The Night” is an upbeat song with a ‘70s vibe about a lover who is doing fine after a break-up. Everything looks rosy during the day, but when night comes, the mind goes back to the lost love. “If It Wasn’t For The Night” is available now on all digital platforms via Golden Robot Records.





After releasing their album Live On The Sunset Strip in late 2021,The Hollywood Stars returned in 2022 with two new singles “The Bottom” and “Will the Lights Go On Again?” and are gearing up for the release of a brand new EP.







Stream/buy “If It Wasn’t For The Night” here.

Progressive deathcore behemoths, Enterprise Earth, today unveil their brand new video for "You Couldn’t Save Me". The punishing track comes off the band’s The Chosen full-length, released early this year via MNRK Heavy. The accompanying video fully encapsulates the band’s unrelenting onstage dominance.


“If we could capture the live energy from one song off of The Chosen it would easily be You Couldn’t Save Me," comments guitarist Gabe Mangold. “This song is a blast to perform and always gets the crowd energy way up, especially at the end. Filmed on our winter 2022 US tour, Nick Chance captured some of the best 'YCSM' moments and compiled them into one live video. Enjoy!”







Enterprise Earth are out on their US headlining tour. The Chosen Tour runs through August 20 in Salt Lake City, Utah. Support is provided by Within Destruction, Sentinels, and labelmates Great American Ghost.





Tour dates:


July
26 - Chain Reaction - Anaheim, CA
27 - Nile Theater - Mesa, AZ
28 - Rockhouse - El Paso, TX
29 - Club Dada - Dallas, TX
30 - Come & Take It - Austin, TX
31 - The Secret Group - Houston, TX


August
2 - The Brass Mug - Tampa, FL
3 - Respectables - West Palm, FL
4 - The Haven - Orlando, FL
5 - Masquerade - Atlanta, GA
6 - Neighborhood Theater - Charlotte, NC
7 - The End - Nashville, TN
9 - Planet Trog - Allentown, PA
10 - Webster Underground - Hartford, CT
11 - Knitting Factory - Brooklyn, NY
12 - The Outpost - Kent, OH
13 - The Sanctuary - Detroit, MI
14 - WC Social Club - Chicago, IL
16 - Emerson Theater - Indianapolis, IN
17 - Skylark - Rock Island, IL
18 - The Marquee - Sioux City, IA
19 - HQ - Denver, CO
20 - Kilby Court - Salt Lake City, UT

STAIND frontman Aaron Lewis has once again railed against the government, saying that our representatives have failed to properly carry out the most basic and important tasks.

The 50-year-old Lewis, an outspoken conservative rocker who reinvented himself as a solo country artist in the last decade, voiced his views on the current political situation in the U.S. before performing his single called "Am I The Only One" during his July 23 concert at Dr Pepper Park At The Bridges in Roanoke, Virginia.

He told the crowd (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "We have all lost our connection with the Constitution. Because if we knew the Constitution and the Bill Of Rights, we would know that it clearly states that it's our responsibility as we the people to take back a country governed by tyrannical people. They have proven that they have business whatsoever as the representatives of us. All those people that sit in Washington, D.C., in the grand scheme of things not all that fucking far from here. I can almost smell them in the air. It smells like fucking treason, is what it smells like. It smells like they're blaming us for an insurrection that they committed.

"We the people. It's a very strong statement right there. No other country's documents that create that country starts with 'we the people'. It doesn't.

"Here's another thing: is it just me or have you noticed that we're the only country in the world that has a fentanyl problem?" he continued, referencing the cheap but potent synthetic opioid that has been behind a major increase in overdose deaths in the United States. "No, it's like for real. Have you noticed that? There isn't another country on the face of the earth that is losing thousands of people a week to fentanyl. It seems like a war is going on without us even knowing it, doesn't it? Go look. Go look. There isn't another country on the face of the earth with a fentanyl problem. Do you know where fentanyl comes from? The only place on the face of the earth that it comes from? China. That's where they make it. It's the only place on the face of the earth that they can make it. So all the fentanyl that's coming into this country, and only this country — it might be oozing over into Canada, but I can promise you Mexico, where it's all coming from, doesn't have a fentanyl problem.

"Start paying very close attention to what the fuck is going on," Lewis added. "'Cause, unfortunately, the reason why I get myself in trouble every time I step out on this stage if because I know what the fuck is going on. And I'm not gonna shut the fuck up until everybody else knows what the fuck is going on too. Because here's the difference: I sit up here right now and I run my mouth for everybody. Even the fucking idiots that choose to spout all their anti-America, anti-family, anti-everything bullshit. Because you know what? As much as I don't wanna hear it, they're free to say it. But I'll tell you what right now — freedom goes in all directions. Which means that you're free to be an asshole. You're free to be completely deranged and off in your own fucking universe. You're free to be a man and slice your fucking penis in half and fucking scrape all the seeds out like a cucumber and fold it all back up inside you. You know what? You're still a man that's just fucking self-mutilated himself. You can do all that, and I will stand up for you, because I believe in your freedom to be able to do that even though I don't agree with you at all.

"That's the difference. They wanna shut us up and shut us down. And I wanna fight for the same fucking freedoms that they love. The ability to be able to say shit like that and not have the government show up at your door the next fucking day.

"This is our country — not the government's. We have every right to remove them."

Last November, Lewis claimed that he beat COVID-19 by taking ivermectin, a drug with no evidence of being a safe or effective treatment for the novel coronavirus. He said he also used Z-Pak, an antibiotic used to treat bacterial infections by inhibiting the growth of bacteria in the body.

Lewis made headlines last September when he urged his fans to chant "Fuck Joe Biden" during a STAIND concert in Pennsylvania.

Aaron told the Anchorage Press in a January 2020 interview that he considered the first Donald Trump impeachment by the House Of Representatives as the clearest representation of what's wrong with America these days.

Lewis was a staunch critic of President Barack Obama, telling a crowd at one of his solo concerts in 2016: "Barack Obama should have been impeached a long fucking time ago. Every fucking decision he makes is against the Constitution, it's against what's good for our fucking country, and he is truly the worst fucking president that we have ever had in the history of this fucking country."

That same year, Lewis told Billboard that he would support Trump in the U.S. presidential race, even though he was "disappointed" by the real estate mogul "with the bickering and the name-calling." Lewis added that he voted for Senator Ted Cruz, Trump's closest competitor in the Republican nomination race, in the Massachusetts primary.

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY and ANTHRAX are set to kick off a joint North American tour, with support from HATEBREED. In advance of the outing, BLS frontman Zakk Wylde and ANTHRAX guitarist Scott Ian got together via Zoom to discuss life on tour for Consequence's "Two For The Road" series.

Wylde checked in from BLACK LABEL SOCIETY's tour in Europe, while Ian signed on from his home in Los Angeles, as the two discussed the upcoming tour, their favorite pizza places, their memories of touring together when ANTHRAX supported OZZY OSBOURNE in 1988, what it takes to grind it out in the music industry, and more.

Wylde said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "People go, 'Oh, Zakk, you got any advice to give my son or my daughter or whatever about being a musician?' And I'm, like, either get in a van and start building your mom-and-pop shop now, and build your ANTHRAX, build your BLACK LABEL, build your SOUNDGARDEN, build your LED ZEPPELIN, build your [BLACK] SABBATH, build your FLEETWOOD MAC — whatever it is you love.

"I was talking the other day. I was doing an interview and I go, 'Things are different now.' But I go, 'You cannot stop driven people,'" he continued. "What I'm saying is if Arnold Schwarzenegger never became Arnold Schwarzenegger, the body builder, Mr. Olympia, and all that stuff, and then became a movie star and did all the action movies, if that never happened, if he owned a donut coffee shop in Austria, it would be the most popular donut coffee shop. He would be successful and have nice things. What I'm saying is he would go, 'I refuse to be miserable.' … Jimmy Page looked at success… 'Cause he's the same age as THE [ROLLING] STONES and THE BEATLES. He was like a bird in a cage watching them flying around outside, looking and going, 'I definitely want… I can taste that from here. And I'm gonna have that.' And then he had to wait his turn. 'Cause they made it in '62, and he just bid his time until he got the right guys around him and then it was time for him to do it… After THE YARDBIRDS, he was, like, 'All right. What am I gonna go? 'Cause I want some of that. And I'm gonna figure it out. I'm in the middle of the ocean right now. I can't see land anywhere and I don't have a compass, but I will find land.' There was no quitting him. He was gonna figure out how to make this… 'I'm gonna will this thing to become successful.'"

Regarding how the music business has changed over the last few decades, Wylde said: "Yeah, it's definitely changed, and it always is evolving. From when Ozzy [Osbourne] started, from watching Elvis [Presley] to THE BEATLES to when SABBATH [was around] to when he had to start with Randy [Rhoads] again to where it's at now.

"When BON JOVI was the biggest thing on the planet when 'Slippery When Wet' hit, and being from [New] Jersey, if you didn't make it by the time you were 30 years old and had a record deal, the dream was over, bro. It really was," he said. "You might as well get a real job — as in something you're miserable [doing] and can't stand. It's over; the dream's over. But nowadays, you can literally put our… We can put our stuff up on YouTube and start our own mom-and-pop shop and start building the empire — each day put another brick on and another brick and another brick and another brick and just keep building it. Which I think is great for all bands, especially the younger bands or anybody that… if you're not getting signed."

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY and ANTHRAX's month-long trek kicks off Tuesday (July 26) in Phoenix, Arizona, and runs through an August 28 show in Philadelphia.

BLACK LABEL SOCIETY is continuing to tour in support of its 11th studio album, "Doom Crew Inc.", which was released last November via MNRK Heavy (formerly eOne Music).

Richmond, Virginia metallers LAMB OF GOD have shared the official music video for their latest single, the title track of their upcoming album, "Omens".

LAMB OF GOD frontman D. Randall Blythe stated about the track: "I think a lot of the messes human beings find ourselves in could be very easily prevented simply by paying attention to obvious repeating patterns, both in our personal lives and in a broader sociohistorical context. What some call 'omens' are really just manifestations of the fact that there is nothing new under the sun. It's foolish to ignore this, but we all do it."

The "Omens" album will be released on October 7 via Epic Records.

Densely muscular, soaked in unnerving spite, with a pessimistic eye toward inner struggles and global affairs alike, "Omens" is a furious entry in the LAMB OF GOD catalog, perhaps the band's angriest album yet.

"The world is crazy and keeps changing. 'Omens' is a reaction to the state of the world," explains Blythe. "It's a very pissed-off record." He pauses for emphasis. "It is extremely pissed off."

"Omens" is also LAMB OF GOD's most diverse affair. The band tracked with longtime collaborator Josh Wilbur (KORN, MEGADETH) live in the room together at Henson Recording Studios (formerly A&M Studios) in Los Angeles, California, a location that birthed classics from THE DOORS, PINK FLOYD, RAMONES and SOUNDGARDEN, among others.

"The inner workings of the band have never been better," explains guitarist Mark Morton. "You can hear it in 'Omens'. You can see it in our performances, and if you're around us for five minutes, you can feel it."

The "Omens" album pre-order is live now at Lamb-Of-God.com, boasting several exclusive items, including a signed colored vinyl variant, shirt, hoodie, and signed CDs with an alternate color cover. All physical CD and vinyl releases will include a free access code to watch the livestream viewing of "The Making Of Omens" documentary, which will premiere the week of album release.

"Omens" track listing:

01. Nevermore
02. Vanishing
03. To The Grave
04. Ditch
05. Omens
06. Gomorrah
07. Ill Designs
08. Grayscale
09. Denial Mechanism
10. September Song

LAMB OF GOD will support the new album with a massive Live Nation-produced U.S. headlining tour featuring special guests KILLSWITCH ENGAGE on all dates. Different legs will also see support from BARONESS, MOTIONLESS IN WHITE, SPIRITBOX, ANIMALS AS LEADERS as well as SUICIDE SILENCE and FIT FOR AN AUTOPSY. The tour kicks off September 9 in Brooklyn and runs through October 20.

Morton said: "Two decades ago, LAMB OF GOD, along with KILLSWITCH ENGAGE, were a part of a new wave of American heavy metal music. Our scene grew from a small, loosely connected network of underground shows in basements and warehouses, into a global phenomenon that helped define an entire generation of modern heavy metal. We are thrilled to announce the 'Omens' tour, which celebrates not only the perseverance and impact of that original movement, but also the creativity and originality of the bands that it influenced. Heavy metal is alive and well. The 'Omens' tour proudly showcases the depth and diversity of our scene. This is not a tour to miss."

"Omens" will be the follow-up to LAMB OF GOD's self-titled album, which was released in June 2020 via Epic Records in the U.S. and Nuclear Blast Records in Europe. That LP marked LAMB OF GOD's first recordings with Art Cruz, who joined the band in July 2019 as the replacement for the group's founding drummer, Chris Adler.

"Lamb Of God" was recorded with Wilbur and included special guest appearances by Jamey Jasta (HATEBREED) and Chuck Billy (TESTAMENT).

Two years ago, LAMB OF GOD bassist John Campbell told Media Mikes about the band's continuing working relationship with Josh: "I would have to look on the Internet to see how long we have been working with him. [Laughs] I want to say that he first started working with us on 'Sacrament'. That was in 2006 and we have been working with him ever since."

He added: "Josh Wilbur is an amazing person professionally and as a human. He is incredibly creative and very aware of things like this. He goes in to an album to try and create the best possible piece of art he can. Josh is great with suggestions and helping us along in the process. He understands the band and all of our personalities very well and that's a godsend."

Photo credit: Travis Shinn

Dutch vocalist/composer Charlotte Wessels continues her successful solo journey by releasing another new single, the bittersweet “Human To Ruin”, cut from her upcoming second full-length album, Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II, out October 7 via Napalm Records.


Within this lavish realm of rock, pop, metal and beyond, instruments and vocals were performed/programmed/produced by Wessels herself, also featuring delicate guitar work by Timo Somers (also ex-Delain). The second single, “Human To Ruin”, starts with a sweet melody that breaks into a propelling metal track, in which calmer parts alter with powerful break outs. Her inimitable and charismatic voice creates an intimate and mystical atmosphere and underlines Charlotte Wessels’ versatility. The song is underlined by an atmospheric visualizer to set the perfect mood for this auditive experience.


Charlotte Wessels on “Human To Ruin”: “With 'Human To Ruin' I wanted to make a song that has an old school symphonic feel to it, but at the same time doesn’t get too polished or “pretty” to reflect the theme of the track. The vocal processing on the choruses is inspired by 90’s grunge and the instrumental middle part gives off something psychedelic, all in all it’s quite eclectic. Thematically, the words in 'Human To Ruin' are the things you say to yourself when you feel undeserving of love, or when you feel like you want love just for selfish reasons. I felt compelled to indulge in this feeling without nuancing it, because when you exaggerate a feeling like that, or make it larger than life in a song, it allows you to shout out the frustration on the one hand but it also reminds you that it is probably not all THAT bad in reality.”




Watch the official lyric video for “Human To Ruin”:





On the exciting new offering, Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II, Wessels’ styles range from melancholic alt-pop to synth-infused rock and connect atmospheric elements with harder sounds, crossing genre boundaries with ease.


Charlotte Wessels states: “Since May 2020, I’ve been writing and recording a new song every month down in my basement “Six Feet Under Studio”, fueled by - and released to - my tight-knit Patreon community. This album wouldn’t be there without them. I’m excited to team up with Napalm Records again to release a new collection of these tracks with a wider audience.


With Tales From Six Feet Under, I released my favorite tracks of the first year of this endeavor onto the world in 2021, and Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II is its counterpart, with my favorite tracks from the second year. There are definitely differences between the two, with the second leaning more towards the heavier side, but they do belong together.


Together they represent a time of introspection and solitary songwriting in the basement. A time that has taught me a lot and has been very meaningful to me, but also a time that, as I started this project in the middle of Covid quarantine, has already - thankfully - started changing. Not because I won’t be writing and recording Six Feet Under anymore, but because as the world is opening up again, I too will come out of the basement and out of my shell again with live concerts, and collaborations are on the horizon.”


Starting with captivating synth-flavored track “Venus Rising”, Charlotte Wessels’ lures the listener into her multifaceted world of sound to be spellbound within the blink of an eye. Following “Human To Ruin” mesmerizes with a sweet melody that breaks into a propelling metal track, where calmer parts alter with powerful break outs. Wessels releases her power on other commanding tracks like “The Phantom Touch” and “Good Dog”, while on “The Final Roadtrip”, she presents the full range of her vocal prowess atop carefully balanced electronic beats and indie soundscapes. “Toxic” comes with an obscure, captivating whispering sound that turns into a strong sonic wall, as the album then fades out with the honest atmospheric gems “I Forget” featuring a cello performance by Elianne Anemaat, and “Utopia”.


This eclectic wealth of songs proves Wessels’ exceptional ability to express the most sincere feelings and emotions within her art and her distinct intuition for the combination of seemingly different genres. Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II is an enchanting portent of Charlotte Wessels’ further multifaceted endeavors.





Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II will be available as 1LP Vinyl Gold, 1LP Vinyl Recycled Black, 1LP Vinyl Recycled Color (Patreon exclusive) as well as on all digital platforms. Moreover, fans will get a combined 2CD Digisleeve that also includes Wessel's exciting first solo offering Tales From Six Feet Under Vol I, which will be released on CD for the first time now.


Pre-order the new album here.





Tales From Six Feet Under Vol II tracklisting:


"Venus Rising"
"Human To Ruin"
"The Phantom Touch"
"Against All Odds"
"A Million Lives"
"The Final Roadtrip"
"Good Dog"
"Toxic"
"I Forget"
"Utopia"


"Against All Odds" video:





Charlotte Wessels will bring her work to the stage on October 23 at TivoliVredenburg - Ronda, in Utrecht, NL, for her first and only live show so far: Tales From Six Feet Under - Live in Concert. Get tickets here.





(Photo - Sandra Ludewig)

Purpendicular's forthcoming third album, Human Mechanic, is set for international release on September 23 via Metalville Records. Featuring Ian Paice of Deep Purple, Purpendicular create Godly rootsy hard rock, understandably steeped in a 'Purple tradition: hearing is believing, and then you're hooked for good.


Purpendicular was founded in October 2007 by Irish singer Robby Thomas Walsh. With over 25 years of experience, he played in several semi-pro bands before becoming a full professional with Purpendicular.


Purpendicular's success story is astonishing. In their first year on tour, the band already completed a short European tour with Deep Purple drummer Ian Paice.




"This band is one of the top bands I work with. You will love them; these guys are so good, I only have myself to worry about." - Ian Paice 2012


Ian had grown fond of Purpendicular due to their great musicianship and his friendship with singer Robby Walsh, who were introduced to each other by chance before their first show in Vienna in 2004. In the first two years, the band did shows in Austria and Germany, focusing mainly on the Steve Morse lineup era of Deep Purple. In 2012, the band embarked on the official 40th anniversary tour of Machine Head, supported by Ian Paice. Also in 2012, Purpendicular was the most booked Deep Purple tribute show in the world. This was repeated in 2013 and 2014.


In August 2015, Purpendicular released their debut album, tHis is the tHing#1. 2016 saw another collaboration with Ian Paice for Purpendicular. This tour was by far the most successful and earned rave reviews from the media. Ian Paice himself said, "I have to seriously thank my friends in Purpendicular. They are a fine band of very talented musicians who give me the chance to play when I'm not with Purple. We always have a great time." The band's second studio album, Venus To Volcanus, was released in May 2017.


Over the years, Purpendicular worked with such great musicians as Roger Glover, Tony Carey, Paul Morris, and also Neil Murray.


In 2020, the band began work on the third studio album, Human Mechanic. Robby Walsh and Ian Paice made important decisions regarding the lineup to move forward. Unfortunately, the album itself was delayed by almost two years because of Covid.


Musically, Human Mechanic offers the typical Ian Paice grooves and funky bass lines, but without neglecting the heavy hard rock sound. You won't find a copy of Deep Purple here, but many influences. But Hammonds and guitars are still strongly in the foreground.





Human Mechanic tracklisting:


"The Nothing Box"
"Ghost"
"No One's Getting Out Alive"
"Something Magical"
"Human Mechanic"
"TV Stars & Internet Freaks"
"Made Of Steel"
"Soul To Soul"
"Four Stone Walls"
"Passing Through"


"Ghost":





Purpendicular lineup:


Ian Paice - drums
Nick Fyffe - bass
Robby Thomas Walsh - vocals
Christoph Kogler - Hammond keyboards
Herbert Bucher - guitars


(Photo - Valeria Dimitrova)

Former MÖTLEY CRÜE frontman John Corabi, who joined the band in 1992 as the replacement for original singer Vince Neil, has shot down the perception that he was financially set for life following his departure from the group. "That's one of the things everybody assumes, because I did the MÖTLEY thing, that I was a multimillionaire," John told Logical Logistics in a new interview (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "And it was funny — I made money when I first joined MÖTLEY; I got bonuses and publishing and all these advances and stuff. But at the same time, I joined MÖTLEY in 1992 and I left the band in '97, and in that five years my son was diagnosed with diabetes, my mom had been diagnosed with cancer. So fortunately/unfortunately, I wound up taking care of them financially. And then there's the normal shit — you've gotta pay your taxes. I remember, fuck, there was two tax checks that I wrote. My first one was $139,000 and then the following year I had to spend $219,000 in taxes. Like, wow. So by the time the five years had passed, I lived off that money and beyond, but it was starting to get dangerously low. The music industry was changing; a lot of the '80s bands weren't selling any records. So it was a weird time."

Corabi also talked about his brief stint driving a truck for a living a few years after his exit from the CRÜE and during his tenure as the rhythm guitarist for RATT.

"The whole reason why I did it… I mean, I wasn't in dire straits financially," he explained. "RATT was taking a year off. At that point, I think I was paying child support and alimony — I was paying $2,500 a month — but I was going through a second divorce, and it was this push-and-pull thing where the girl would come back, and she would disappear, then she would come back. And I'm, like, oh my God. I just needed and wanted a little bit of a change. So I was, like, 'All right. I can get a trucking license in three weeks. And I'm gonna learn how to do this.'

"I was telling a friend of mine not that long ago. I said you know what's weird. I spent most of my life traveling in a tour bus, but you're usually traveling at night, and you see shit in a tour bus," John continued. "And I could not believe some of the places that I saw driving that truck and just moving goods around the United States. I'm, like, wow. There's parts of the United States... I've been literally touring my whole life and there was things that I'd never seen before until I started driving a truck. And I had a fucking blast. I did it for almost a year. And then RATT called and said, 'Hey, we're getting ready to go back out on tour again.' And I called my boss and I just said, 'Hey, man. I'm going back to touring.' And it was funny. 'Cause a lot of people didn't know who I was, or they didn't know anything about my history. When I told my boss, I said, 'Hey, I'm gonna go back to touring again,' he was, like, 'What are you talking about?' And I said, 'Well, I'm actually a musician.' And I told him who I was and all that stuff. And I just handed him the keys back and I said, 'I thank you. I had a great time. It's been awesome. I'm going back on tour again.' So I did it for almost a year. It was cool. Mentally, it cleared my head, 'cause I was just driving and thinking and mapping things out in my head. And then I made a really decent living, and I had health insurance for me and my son. It was cool, man. I had a great time. It was awesome."

With Corabi on vocals, MÖTLEY CRÜE released one critically acclaimed full-length CD, which ended up being a commercial failure in the wake of grunge despite a Top 10 placing on the album chart. When Neil returned to the fold in 1997, Corabi was left on his own and formed UNION with Bruce Kulick.

Last month, Corabi released his autobiography via Rare Bird Books. Titled "Horseshoes And Hand Grenades", it was written with the help of MÖTLEY CRÜE historian/author Paul Miles.

In February 2018, Corabi released a live album of his performance of MÖTLEY CRÜE's entire 1994 self-titled album, recorded on October 27, 2015 in Nashville, Tennessee. "Live '94: One Night In Nashville" documents the album in its entirety along with the bonus track "10,000 Miles", which was originally released as a bonus track on the Japanese version of the "Quaternary" EP.

In a new interview with the "BREWtally Speaking" podcast, POP EVIL drummer Hayley Cramer spoke about how she dealt with not being able to play music with her bandmates during the first year and a half of the coronavirus pandemic. She said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "It's a really scary thing. I sat there and I was, like, 'I don't have a Plan B. I don't know who I am without being on the road.' It's a really scary place to be in. I continued to pay my bills, but it [was] not through doing what I do best. And I'm all about… When I do what I do best, I project really good energy out to people. When you follow your passion and you're doing something that you love, you can give that good energy to people. And if you're not doing what you love, it's harder to do that. And I found myself becoming sad or angry or lost. And I just had to navigate through it. And there were a lot of people that have gone through the same thing. Everything you've worked your whole life for and you've trained for…"

She continued: "There was an advert in England with this ballet dancer on it going, 'Oh, just retrain to be a computer geek.' Well, she or he trained to be a ballet dancer. That's what they do best. Support that. They're gonna give good to the world by doing that. They're not gonna give good to the world by sitting behind a computer. It was just ridiculous.

"So, yeah, anybody who's kind of gone through that and is coming through the other side, props," Hayley added. "Because it's weird. It's hard."

Back in April 2021, POP EVIL frontman Leigh Kakaty told "The Liquid Conversations" podcast that he and his bandmates "needed that rest" during the early months of the pandemic. "As much as we didn't necessarily want it at the beginning, it was important for us to rest our minds [and] bodies," he said. "I know my ears, for me personally — each bandmember was probably different. But my body was broken down. I was going through some huge [bouts] of vertigo before the lockdown. I was extremely dizzy. I don't even know how I was gonna do that tour in May [2020] just 'cause I couldn't really stand up; I had to be laying down. So it was a rough year for me physically… It's almost like my body felt, 'Okay, you're stopping?' Then it all caught up to me — everything caught up to me, the whirlwind of all the travel.

"Being in a rock band, you have to tour so much," he continued. "There's no MTV or no TV exposure that breaks you overnight. You literally have to put the years in and just play for as many people as you can. So I think for a lot of us in the band, we really took that time to kind of just take a deep breath and go, 'Okay. Wow. We don't have to tour.' And obviously, the first few months of COVID, we were really hoping that, 'Okay, we'll be back by spring.' 'We'll be back by summer.' So right around summertime, we were finally, like, 'Okay, this is gonna be a whole year off.' And then once you got [over] the terror and the shock that we're not gonna make any money… Our touring monthly keeps the lights on, so the fact that we weren't gonna tour was devastating. And for our band, the other bandmembers had to get jobs. There wasn't no writing and creativity; they had to make money to live. So we weren't able to write.

"I don't think I was in the right frame of mind to write during COVID, 'cause it was just nerve racking," Leigh added. "None of us had been through something like that before, so there were so many more bigger issues than playing in a band, really, to be honest, that we were thinking about. I was thinking about my family, my friends, my loved ones who are older with underlying health conditions. I mean, I could care less about being in a band at that point. So once that kind of subsided, it was, like, bandmembers had to get jobs. Full time for me is POP EVIL; otherwise, if I take a job, it's over. I was trying to clean up the floor and make sure it's all dialed in. Obviously, I've gotta do all the press and all the speaking for the band; I'm that guy in this project. But in the meantime, all the other bandmembers — Hayley, our drummer, is in the U.K., she was doing what she could to work over there and make money; obviously, [she was] dealing with COVID in another country. I know the rest of us guys, in Michigan, trying to deal with that — Michigan was one of the hardest states hit. So these guys were trying to take care of their families, make any kind of extra money. And what I think it did in the long run was it really kind of instilled a confidence. Lately, when I've been talking to the bandmembers, there's such a respect that we have for each other differently now. I don't think anyone's afraid now to come home, if we have months off. Everyone knows now they can go to that mom-and-pop store and work for a few weeks and then go back on the bus. I think before that, it was terrifying. It was, like, 'If we don't play a show, we're screwed. What are we gonna do?' So I'm hoping that it's built a lot of confidence with our bandmembers to be, like, 'Okay, look, if we don't play for a few months, that's fine.' We can take of ourselves now. We're here, and we don't need to oversaturate the markets with POP EVIL."

Last month, Cramer married her girlfriend, fellow drummer Siân Monaghan.

Session drummer Siân is best known as the driving force behind psyche-pop artist SHE DREW THE GUN, though her career has seen her drumming with a range of artists, including CHINA CRISIS, THE WANDERING HEARTS, Derek Forbes (SIMPLE MINDS) and FINK.

POP EVIL celebrated its seventh career No. 1 single on Billboard's Mainstream Rock chart in late 2021 with "Survivor" marking a historic milestone. "Survivor" joined the previous Top 10 single "Work" and No. 1 single "Breathe Again" from POP EVIL's latest album "Versatile", out now via MNRK Heavy. Over the course of its career, POP EVIL has achieved four gold singles with "Torn To Pieces" and "Trenches" from "Onyx", "Footsteps" from "Up" and "100 In A 55" from the band's debut studio album, "Lipstick On The Mirror".

Extreme metal veterans GOATWHORE will release their new album, "Angels Hung From The Arches Of Heaven", on October 7 via Metal Blade Records.

Unquestionably GOATWHORE's strongest, most accomplished album to date in sound, concept, and execution, "Angels Hung From The Arches Of Heaven" emits 47 desolating minutes of the band's trademark fusion of death, black, thrash, and classic metal. Delivered with breathless intensity and an unapologetic bloodlust, the twelve-track offering stands among the most thrilling records to come out of 2022.

"I would describe this record as being very raw, but clarity is shaped within the chaos," reflects vocalist Louis Ben Falgoust II. "It's a journey of everything we've done and some new approaches as we advance forward. When we write, we mainly focus on the music and what we enjoy about playing it. We don't write just to appease others. We want to enjoy playing it in a live setting as well, especially night after night on the road."

Featuring ferocious beasts like the maniacally thrashing "Born Of Satan's Flesh", the old-school, crossover-flavored "Death From Above" with its guttural chorus, and a monolithic title track that is as haunting as it is heavy, the band — Falgoust, guitarist/vocalist Sammy Duet, drummer Zack Simmons, and bassist Robert "TA" Coleman (his first recorded output with the band) — covers a great deal of sonic terrain while retaining that signature nefarious GOATWHORE aura. With an overall tone described by Duet as "dark and evil" and a perpetual sentiment of "impending dread," the record allows little light to cling to.

Lyrically, Falgoust draws from a wide array of influences. "Death From Above" is loosely based on the "Nachthexen", or Night Witches, a group of female Soviet aviators in a bomber division deployed in 1942, a period during which women were in fact barred from combat. Then there's the multifaceted title track, on which Falgoust ventured into an idea of emotional despondency within older texts and writings, feeling like several of these writings missed an element of human nature/emotion. The title of the record — like all of the band's releases — is both deep and direct.

"It's a basis of human despondency, the arc of life, and its relationship with the personal abyss of overwhelming emotion and thought," elaborates Falgoust. "It's a mixture of esoteric ideas and biblical scripts and the journey to the places some people care not to venture on mental paths… The rise and fall of the self and how the abyss can be a turning point for some and a passageway to oblivion for others. It's blunt and to the point, just like countless aspects of life."

Teaming up with producer Jarrett Pritchard (EXHUMED, 1349) for a second time and tracking primarily at Studio In The Country in Bogalusa, Louisiana under pandemic restrictions, GOATWHORE knew they were in good hands. Praising Pritchard as a great person to work with both in the studio and the live setting, Falgoust notes: "He has a good vision of what we are doing and trying to present. He tests you and forces the best performances out of you. Not in a bad way, just that he knows what each person could do prior to us entering the studio, so he has a level of expectation to push each one of us to our own individual performance levels."

Additionally, the band recruited acclaimed producer Kurt Ballou (CONVERGE, HIGH ON FIRE, GATECREEPER, CODE ORANGE) to mix the record, a decision that truly enhances "Angels Hung From The Arches Of Heaven"'s auditory superiority.

"Kurt actually brought a lot to the table," says Duet. "He had some opinions on a few of the song structures, which was a first for us because we never had an outside ear giving ideas. The sound of the record speaks for itself." Final mastering duties were handled by Grammy Award-winning engineer Ted Jensen (GHOST, GOJIRA, CULT OF LUNA).

GOATWHORE also invested greater meaning in the visual components of the album through the use of sigils created by longtime collaborator Jordan Barlow.

"We give him an idea and then he just goes with it," says Falgoust. "We used sigils in the past with our name and other small details, but wanted to make this album more rooted in it. It adds a deeper aspect to our visual presentation. It creates interest and with that inspires questions. We want the listener to delve into this musical journey with us both by sound and vision."

In advance of "Angels Hung From The Arches Of Heaven"'s official unveiling this fall, GOATWHORE has unleashed a video for first single "Born Of Satan's Flesh", directed by David Brodsky.

Declares Duet: "Prepare yourself for an unabashed violent onslaught of Satanic unsoundness of mind! All hail his Luciferian force and might!"

Adds Falgoust: "Welcome to the manifested curse of our latest offering. During the past five years since our 'Vengeful Ascension' release, entwined with a state of isolation within that period, we have been communing with our inner abyss for inspiration. Idle time is truly the Devil's workshop. Feast your eyes (and ears) on this latest display of chaos, which is but a fragment of our impending full-length release out in October!"

"Angels Hung From The Arches Of Heaven" track listing:

01. Invocation 3
02. Born Of Satan's Flesh
03. The Bestowal Of Abomination
04. Angels Hung From The Arches Of Heaven
05. Death From Above
06. Ruinous Liturgy
07. Victory Is The Lightning Of Destruction
08. Voracious Blood Fixation
09. The Devil's Warlords
10. Weight Of A Soulless Heart
11. Nihil
12. And I Was Delivered From The Wound Of Perdition

GOATWHORE will begin its co-headlining run with INCANTATION next week. The "Vile Ascension" tour commences on August 1 in Orlando, Florida and runs through August 27 in the band's home city of New Orleans, Louisiana. Support will come from BEWITCHER and CAVEMAN CULT on select dates.

Photo by Stephanie Cabral

Portuguese dark metal masters MOONSPELL have announced a very special Blu-ray/DVD and album release. On September 23, they will unleash a live performance of their latest studio album, "Hermitage" (2021),with "From Down Below - Live 80 Meters Deep" via Napalm Records.

Recorded live at Grutas de Mira D'Aire, one of Portugal's seven natural wonders, "From Down Below - Live 80 Meters Deep" invites you on a memorable adventure worthy of a Guinness Book record. The recording boasts a one of kind sound and visual sensation, with its heavy dose of cinematic flavor, unreal atmosphere and the encircling, resounding nature in its raw form. Tracks such as "Entitlement", "Hermitage" and "Apoptheghmata" perfectly settle in with the album's unique environment.

"From Down Below - Live 80 Meters Deep" is not only an epic live momentum of "Hermitage" — one of the deepest, heaviest and most sincerely heart-breaking records the band has ever written — but a truly revolutionary experience, as MOONSPELL brought along a select number of fans and a production team (literally) underground. Brilliantly directed by Guilherme Henrique, "From Down Below – Live 80 Meters Deep" is something truly special that you have never, ever seen or heard before.

Watch the haunting new video for "Entitlement" below.

"While the world agonized at home, we went deep down below, to a cave to record a DVD with some of our bravest fans watching it," vocalist Fernando Ribeiro comments. "'Entitlement' is the first advance of an unreal show, a performance like you’ve never watched, in the peace and quiet of a wet and dark natural gallery. From deep down below, our new live album and DVD is something never tried before and we hope it darkly entertains you until our next album comes in 2023."

"From Down Below - Live 80 Meters Deep" track listing:

01. The Greater Good
02. Common Prayers
03. All or Nothing
04. Hermitage
05. Entitlement
06. Solitarian
07. The Hermit Saints
08. Apophthegmata
09. Without Rule
10. The Great Leap Forward

MOONSPELL's 13th studio album, "Hermitage", was released in February 2021 via Napalm Records. The LP was recorded, mixed and mastered by Jaime Gomez Arellano (PARADISE LOST, PRIMORDIAL, GHOST, SÓLSTAFIR) at the Orgone Studios in the U.K.

In 2020, MOONSPELL parted ways with original drummer Miguel "Mike" Gaspar and replaced him with Hugo Ribeiro (no relation to Fernando Ribeiro).

MOONSPELL will embark on a North American tour next month. Support on the trek, which will kick off on August 25 in New York and end on September 18 in Boston, will come from SWALLOW THE SUN and WITHERFALL.

Internationally renowned rock guitarist Orianthi will release her new studio album, "Rock Candy", on October 14 via Frontiers Music Srl. The LP follows 2020's "O" which was Orianthi's first new studio album in seven years and her first new music as a solo artist in six years. Sonically, "Rock Candy" is a hard-rockin', blues-tinged, display of Orianthi's dazzling guitar playing and her soulful vocals.

The first single and music video from "Rock Candy", a song called "Light It Up", is available below.

Joining Orianthi on this release is the multi-talented Jacob Bunton, who produced the album. Additionally, he provides guitar, bass, keyboard, piano and violin playing through the course of the album. Bunton is known in the rock world for his work with Steven Adler, among others, but he is also an Emmy Award-winning composer, songwriter, producer, and multi-instrumentalist whose credits include Mariah Carey, Steven Tyler, Smokey Robinson, Akon, POP EVIL and many more. Drummer Kyle Cunningham rounds out the recording lineup for "Rock Candy".

"Rock Candy" track listing:

01. Illuminate (Part I)
02. Light It Up
03. Fire Together
04. Where Did Your Heart Go
05. Red Light
06. Void
07. Burning
08. Living Is Like Dying Without You
09. Witches & The Devil
10. Getting To Me
11. Illuminate (Part II)

Recording lineup:

Orianthi - Vocals, Guitars
Jacob Bunton - Bass, Guitar, Keyboards, Piano, Violin, Backing Vocals
Kyle Cunningham - Drums

Produced, engineered and mixed by Jacob Bunton

Orianthi's first major solo artist success, as a singer-songwriter and guitarist, was with the Geffen Records release of "According To You", which is now RIAA-certified platinum and has over 29 million streams on Spotify. Her music's ability to transcend time and remain relevant cannot be more clear than its recent resurgence on TikTok. There are over 110 million views on the "According To You" hashtag, making it a viral trend that is introducing Gen Z to Orianthi for the first time in a big way. Career-long fans are used to seeing their favorite world-class guitarist playing arenas with rock royalty and global superstars like Michael Jackson, Carlos Santana, Carrie Underwood, Alice Cooper and more. The juxtaposition of her newly arrived online popularity and her lifelong pursuit of artistic credibility is the nebulous of this shining star.

Photo credit: Jim Donally

THE OFFSPRING played an intimate hometown concert Tuesday afternoon (July 26) at Bolsa Chica State Beach in Huntington Beach, California as part of a private event sponsored by the KROQ radio station. Video and photos of the show can be seen below.

THE OFFSPRING is currently on tour in support of its most recent album, "Let The Bad Times Roll".

Frequently regarded as one of the best rock bands of all time, THE OFFSPRING have garnered a reputation for their unmistakable sound and social comment. The multi-platinum band first achieved worldwide success in the 1990s with the release of their album "Smash", which sold over 11 million copies. Following "Smash", they continued to release hit after hit, popularizing rock at a mainstream level.

Throughout THE OFFSPRING's career, they've sold over a staggering 40 million albums, and toured arenas, and built a global fan base. "Let The Bad Times Roll" marks the band's tenth studio album and third album produced by the legendary Bob Rock. True to the irreverence at the core of their rock music, the band and lyricist Dexter Holland took a view to today's cultural moments and didn't shy away from creating topical material in this album.

"This album is probably the most cathartic thing we've done," says Holland. "The messages might be dark, but at the end, what's left is that communication is important, working through feelings is important and most of all, hope is important."

"Let The Bad Times Roll" has been a huge global success, hitting career-high chart debuts with seven top 5 and ten top 10 international debuts and nine top ten debuts in the U.S. The album peaked at No. 3 on the U.K. chart and hit No. 1 on the Alternative Albums chart in the U.S.

Originally formed under the name MANIC SUBSIDAL, THE OFFSPRING's lineup consists of Holland, guitarist Kevin "Noodles" Wasserman and bassist Todd Morse. THE OFFSPRING is often credited — alongside fellow California bands GREEN DAY and RANCID — for reviving mainstream interest in rock in the 1990s.
Huntington Beach punk band @offspring perform for an intimate crowd of @kroq fans at Bolsa Chica State Beach on Tuesday afternoon. pic.twitter.com/SFAWdQnuJt

— kelliskye (@kelliskye) July 27, 2022


Happy Tuesday! @offspring have taken over Seasalt at Bolsa Chica State Beach in Huntington Beach with the @kroq crew. The band also plays @pacamp@ocfair on Thursday. pic.twitter.com/dbqtbx0TG3

— kelliskye (@kelliskye) July 27, 2022


Out on the beach with @offspring hitting @kroq fans with classics: "Bad Habit" and "Staring at the Sun." And new songs: "The Opioid Diaries" and "Behind Your Walls." pic.twitter.com/dyyVVYZcgT

— kelliskye (@kelliskye) July 27, 2022

KING'S X, comprised of Doug "Dug" Pinnick, Ty Tabor and Jerry Gaskill, will release its 13th studio album, "Three Sides Of One", on September 2. The LP's second single, "Give It Up", can be streamed below.

Pinnick comments: "After I turned 71, death was on my mind every day. Chris Cornell killed himself, and I was thinking of that.

"Lyrically, [this song is] about not giving up until you naturally die. I want to ride it out until it's over. I'm laughing about how I haven't gotten a will yet, but I should have one. Musically, I wanted it to be really simple, so you can dance to it."

"Three Sides Of One" will be available as a limited CD digipak, gatefold 180g 2LP+CD+LP-booklet and as a digital album. There will also be a limited deluxe 180g orange/red marble 2LP+CD+LP booklet that also includes a poster and a hand-numbered print, as well as an exclusive variant of the front cover artwork.

During 2019, the members of KING'S X congregated at Black Sound Studio in Pasadena, California with Emmy Award-winning producer Michael Parnin to bring "Three Sides Of One" to life. Despite consistent touring, they hadn't cut a new LP since 2008. Nevertheless, the guys picked up where they left off. Creative confidant and collaborator Wally Farkas rolled through, and they channeled their incredible chemistry on tape.

Pinnick previously stated about "Three Sides Of One": 'When I think of it, KING'S X feels like a couple of old best friends coming together, shooting the shit, and having a good time, it's instinctual.

"When I would listen to demo tapes of Jerry and Ty for the record, it gave me a great perspective on how blessed I am to be in KING'S X. What they did on 'Three Sides Of One' sounded so good. For as familiar as it is, it's like I'm in a new band."

Ty added: "This time we sat around, listened to each other's ideas and would collectively say, 'Let's work on that.' It was the most enjoyable album I've personally ever recorded in my entire life, period."

Jerry stated: "I'll cherish what we did in my heart forever. Everything lined up perfectly."

"Three Sides Of One" track listing:

01. Let It Rain (04:28)
02. Flood Pt. 1 (03:03)
03. Nothing But The Truth (06:03)
04. Give It Up (02:59)
05. All God's Children (05:32)
06. Take The Time (03:45)
07. Festival (03:30)
08. Swipe Up (03:46)
09. Holidays (03:22)
10. Watcher (03:43)
11. She Called Me Home (03:57)
12. Every Everywhere (02:40)

Last October, Pinnick told Talking Metal about the musical direction of the new KING'S X material: "Every song is completely different than the other — mixed and sonically; everything. We took every song and tried to do like THE BEATLES 'White' album and just sit down with a song and go, 'Let's give it what it needs.' I don't have to have my Doug Pinnick gravelly tone if I need a Paul McCartney-type sound. Ty, he would fix his guitars to make… 'This is like a whatever song. Let's make it what it is but still be KING'S X.' So I think that it sounds like KING'S X but hopefully everyone will feel that we took another step forward. The whole point is just to try to push forward [while] still looking back. There's a lot of things on this record that are reminiscent of KING'S X totally, but then there's this new KING'S X, I think. Sonically, we're really excited because it's a complete analog record except with Pro Tools. It was laid down with analog — everything — and it was mastered on analog tape and even EQed with analog tube EQs to saturate the tape to get compression instead of digits. So there's no digits on this record. So when you hear it, it's gonna take you back a little bit. It sounds like you put a real record on in the '70s, sonically. It's, like, things jump out at you, and then they don't. It's, like, you go, 'Wow, the bass is huge, but I can hear everything else,' 'cause you can put your hands in it, almost. Michael Parnin just did an amazing job — a painstaking job — to get it to sound like a record that you can put on and play forever."

The new KING'S X LP was mastered in June 2021 at the Bernie Grundman Mastering facility in Hollywood, California,

In April 2021, Pinnick told Shawn Ratches of Laughingmonkeymusic about the new KING'S X material: "I had some pretty crazy songs, time-change-wise, 'cause I've been listening to a lot of MESHUGGAH and shit like that. It's not KING'S X, but that flavor comes in. Imagine John Bonham playing with MESHUGGAH… But Ty and Jerry are singing a lot too. I tell people, it's like from [THE BEATLES' classic song] 'Penny Lane' to the heaviest MESHUGGAH — it's a blend of something in between there. And one song to another almost sounds different, almost to the point where they're individual pieces themselves, like PINK FLOYD used to do. We've got violins and other things in it. I've got some keyboards and all kinds of things to enhance things — piano. Nothing overboard, but just like [Jimi] Hendrix did and people like that — big things coming in and out that gives it that longevity, I would say. Things that you hear and go, 'Oh, wow. That's cool.' That little thing over there. So it's taken Michael a long time to mix it, 'cause he's got a lot of tracks."

KING'S X was sidelined by several health scares in recent years, including Pinnick's two hernia operations and two near-fatal heart attacks suffered by Gaskill.

In October 2019, KING'S X canceled all of its previously announced tour dates for the year so that Gaskill could undergo undisclosed heart "procedures."

"XV" was KING'S X's highest-charting album since 1996's "Ear Candy".

In 2005, VH1 included KING'S X in its list of "100 Greatest Artists In Hard Rock."

Photo credit: Derek Soto

Former MEGADETH members David Ellefson (bass) and Jeff Young (guitar) have announced the first four shows of 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.

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.

Tickets for all dates go on sale Friday, July 29.

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.

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

Ellefson was fired from MEGADETH more 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.

ANTHRAX kicked off its North American tour with BLACK LABEL SOCIETY last night (Tuesday, July 26) at Van Buren in Phoenix, Arizona. ANTHRAX's 12-song setlist included the surprising addition of the John Bush-era track "Only", which hadn't been performed live since 2011.

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

Current ANTHRAX singer Joey Belladonna, whose most recent return to the band was officially announced in May 2010, was originally the lead singer of ANTHRAX from 1984 to 1992, and was considered part of the group's classic lineup (alongside Dan Spitz, Scott Ian, Frank Bello and Charlie Benante),which reunited and toured during 2005 and 2006. His voice was featured on over 10 albums, which reportedly sold eight million copies worldwide.

In a 2016 interview with Kazagastão, Belladonna said about his exit from ANTHRAX in 1992 before officially rejoining the band in 2010: "It's sucky that I was gone for that long, you know what I mean? I never understand that. It does bother me [that I was fired], even today, 'cause… We didn't miss a beat and I think we would have done… I can't imagine what we could have done along the way. No offense to anything else, but I just didn't see any reason for it."

Asked if he had heard any material ANTHRAX recorded with Bush during the time Belladonna was away from the band, Joey said: "I don't listen to it. I have no interest in it. I don't know… Something about it. It doesn't really appeal to me, for some reason. I mean, I enjoy that they play the way they do and everything, I just never… I never was interested in it. It wasn't anything against [Bush] at all."

Although Joey did perform "Only" live with ANTHRAX on a couple of occasions in the past, the track had been absent from the band's set for more than a decade before being played last night in Phoenix. "We've got enough songs [that were originally recorded with me on vocals]," Joey explained in the Kazagastão interview. "We don't even do [all the songs] we should… We've got all these other songs we could play. But now we've got new stuff, so now we've gotta try to fit in four or five brand new songs."

He continued: "I always like to look at it like… I remember when [Sammy] Hagar came in [after joining VAN HALEN], he had to do the old stuff. But when [David Lee] Roth came back, he wasn't gonna touch anything, even though he probably would have a hard time doing it. So we've got enough material; I don't need to go back. I'd just as soon leave that alone. I mean, once in a while I get people complaining, and then after a while, it got really old too. I hate that whole thing, 'cause we're not even the same… We happened to be in the same band, but it's a completely different thing. And who's judging? What's the deal with that? To think that what he was doing, that he could have done what I did in the beginning, I don't believe that."

Joey went on to say that he dislikes being compared to any other other ANTHRAX singers. "That's what I hate about the whole thing," he said. "I hate that there was even anybody else in there that I have to… But now I just don't care about it — I really don't — 'cause I can't. To me, it's just a bunch of hype. It sucked in the beginning; it really did."

In a 2017 interview with Metal On Loud, Joey was asked how he feels about the music ANTHRAX recorded while he was out of the band. He said: "It seemed good. I don't know. If I was to compare it, I didn't hear anything that we were doing that wasn't as good [as what they ended up doing with Bush]. I didn't hear anything that blew me away. I thought the music end of it was good, John's decent, but just the overall thing… I think we had something cool there, and I didn't hear that [in the music they made with John]. But that wasn't meaning it wasn't good; it just wasn't my idea of better, being better about it. It was just different, you know? I enjoyed the style that they were trying to dig into. I think they kind of straightened it all out a little bit, but it wasn't as thrashy in some ways sometimes too. I don't know. It gets crazy after a while when you're trying to explain it all. It's, like, it was what it was, you know?"

In one of the video testimonials to coincide with ANTHRAX's 40th anniversary in 2021, current and former members of the band reflected on Belladonna's original departure and Bush's addition as his replacement.

Regarding the decision to part ways with Belladonna, Ian said: "By the time we finished the year-and-a-half touring cycle — 20, 21 months of touring cycle, and then '[Attack Of The] Killer B's' comes out. I think the last thing we did together as a band with Joey was [our appearance] on [the] 'Married With Children' [TV show]. And then it wasn't long after that when we made the change. But it wasn't a quick decision. We were very much a united front, the four of us. Because otherwise it wouldn't have happened.

"There's never an easy way to talk about this stuff," he continued. "Certainly when you're in the thick of it, when it's happening, it's horrible when you're having to make a decision like this. But it just really came down to, creatively, we all just felt like there was just no way for the band to move forward. We had just hit a wall. It was the heaviest decision in the history of the band, certainly. And even that I feel like doesn't give it the weight that it needs. And there was never anything personal with Joey — it was never personal with him. It just really came down to the creative ability for the band, honestly, to move forward. And I hate that it's something that happened.

"Obviously, things are meant to be," Scott added. "I am somewhat of a spiritual person. I've seen and done enough in my life to know that sometimes shit doesn't just happen randomly. The way everything worked out in the end, with Joey coming back in 2010, and the band, for the last 11 years, being creatively better than we've ever been and in a better place than we've ever been, I have to say that I really believe that it all worked out for some reason. That doesn't make it any easier on Joey certainly; there's nothing I can say that ever would."

Bello said about Belladonna's exit from the group: "It's so strange for me to even talk about this now, because Joey's back in the band now, and it's like he's never been gone.

"It was a hard thing when Joey was out," he admitted. "It was a change, but I think it was best for the band 'cause of where we were going. It was a hard decision. I think we were going in a different way musically, and you could hear it."

Added Benante: "The 1991 me was more arrogant than I am now. Because the problem is I love Joey so much, and at the time we were different people doing it, and we felt this was the only thing for us to take us into the next level or the next chapter of the band. Yeah, it was tough."

Ian previously opened up about the decision to fire Belladonna three decades ago during a 2016 appearance on the "WTF With Marc Maron" podcast. He stated at the time: "I just truly didn't have the patience anymore. I think my biggest problem was I was writing the words, and I couldn't deal with the fact anymore that someone else was singing my lyrics, but I couldn't sing; there was no way I could be the singer of ANTHRAX. I think it really, really did come down to that — that I couldn't stand it anymore. These are my words, these are my feelings, it's my emotions, and you're not me. And even learning the songs and hearing them back, that's not how I hear it in my head. 'No, no. Like this. Like this. Like this. Like this.'"

He continued: "My solution at the time was turning around to the rest of the band and saying, 'It's either [Joey] or me.' I pulled the same shit Neil Turbin [former ANTHRAX singer] pulled years before that. I said, 'I can't do this again. We need to make a change.' And it wasn't just me holding the gun. Everyone was on the same page. Everyone felt like what we had done as ANTHRAX in the '80s into the early '90s, we had already moved past that. The sound was changing.

"If you listen to 'Persistence Of Time' [1990], musically, that record has more to do with 'Sound Of White Noise', the first John Bush record, than it has to do with 'State Of Euphoria' [1988], the previous ANTHRAX album. Musically, we were already going somewhere else, but Joey, for us, I guess at the time, felt like, 'He's not representing us anymore.'"

Ian went on to say that he has since come to see Joey's unique vocal contributions in a different light than he did more than twenty years ago. "Of course, I spent a year of my life writing a book ['I'm The Man: The Story Of That Guy From Anthrax'] and looking back on that time and really kind of getting back into those shoes, and… we should have given the guy a shot," he said. "Why we didn't give him the shot, I really don't know why we weren't able to… Because I even remember, I remember Jonny Z, our manager, he was, 'Are you sure? Are you sure this is the decision you wanna make?' 'Yes, yes, yes.'"

The guitarist added that at least part of the reason ANTHRAX made a singer change was to take the sound in a heavier direction, something that they didn't think was possible with Belladonna at the helm.

"I wanted it to be harder," Ian said. "I couldn't do it, but I wanted someone who could almost… I wanted it to be harder. I didn't want Lemmy — I didn't want it to sound like that — I just wanted it to be harder. And John [Bush] brought it, for sure."

Bush told Metal Talk about the task of replacing Joey Belladonna in ANTHRAX back in 1992: "I respect Joey Belladonna; he did great for ANTHRAX in his heyday and in the years that he made records and they were popular. You know, I think I just went out and did it from my heart and just said, 'Hey, I'm gonna go out and kick ass and sing to the best of my ability.' And I think we made some great records. I just think they were different records than what ANTHRAX did in the '80s."

He continued: "The funny thing is, sometimes there was this, 'Oh, we're the same band. Oh, we're the same band,' and looking back, well, we kind of were a little different band. I think we were. But at that time, we kept trying to convince people, 'Oh, it's the same band. It's the same band.' But when you make a singer change, the sound will change a little bit, which, that was what the intention was at the time."

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

ANTHRAX's setlist for the July 22, 2022 concert at Van Buren in Phoenix, Arizona:

01. Among The Living
02. Caught In A Mosh
03. Madhouse
04. Metal Thrashing Mad
05. Breathing Lightning
06. Keep It In The Family
07. Antisocial (TRUST cover)
08. I Am The Law
09. In The End
10. Only
11. Bring The Noise (PUBLIC ENEMY cover)
12. Indians

ANTHRAX's tour with BLACK LABEL SOCIETY will wrap up in Philadelphia at the Fillmore on Sunday, August 28. Both bands are playing headline sets. HATEBREED, celebrating the 20th anniversary of the "Perseverance" album, is the special guest.

Experimental metal outfit, Imperial Triumphant, have released a visualizer video for their new track, “Metrovertigo”. Check out the video, which is off the band’s newest full-length album, Spirit Of Ecstasy, below.


"Plutocratic myths exist in the shadows of the divine. Placed upon the middle sector as shackles of the unknown.  A giant wave pool claims the livelihoods of many, while still many willfully hand it to the Plutocratic gods as unrealized gains. Bow down and eat dirt. Welcome to a new era. Welcome home," states Imperial Triumphant about “Metrovertigo”.







Spirit of Ecstasy follows the band’s previous LPs 2020’s Alphaville, 2018’s Vile Luxury and most recently their 2021 live record, An Evening With Imperial Triumphant, which was was recorded at the infamous Slipper Room in New York City. Just like its predecessors, the album features a handful of special guests including Kenny G on soprano saxophone, Max Gorelick on lead guitar, Snake on vocals, Alex Skolnick on lead guitar, Trey Spruance on lead guitar, Andromeda Anarchia with choirs, Sarai Woods with choirs, Yoshiko Ohara on vocals, J. Walter Hawkes on the  trombone, Ben Hankle on the trumpet, Percy Jones on bass, Seven Suns on strings, Colin Marston on Simmons drums and Youtube, and Jonas Rolef on vocals.


Spirit Of Ecstasy can be ordered here.





Spirit of Ecstasy tracklisting:


"Chump Change"
"Metrovertigo"
"Tower Of Glory, City Of Shame"
"Merkurius Gilded"
"Death On A Highway"
"In The Pleasure Of Their Company"
"Bezumnaya"
"Maximalist Scream"


"Tower Of Glory, City Of Shame":





"Merkurius Gilded" video:





"Maximalist Scream" video:





(Photo - Alex Krauss)

Polish extreme metallers BEHEMOTH will release their 12th studio album, "Opvs Contra Natvram", on September 16 via Nuclear Blast. The official music video for the LP's third single, "The Deathless Sun", directed by Blazej Jankowiak of 9LITER FILMY, can be seen below.

The song cements BEHEMOTH's reputation as one of the most innovative and ground-breaking extreme bands on the planet. The track comes with not one, but two accompanying visuals; an explicit and macabre narrative video, featuring the incredible high aesthetic that BEHEMOTH are renowned for, and a performance clip of equal grand magnitude.

BEHEMOTH frontman Adam "Nergal" Darski comments: "BEHEMOTH has been hating Christ in different ways since 1991, and we still manage to reinvent the wheel.

"We're very proud to present our latest offering to that cause, 'The Deathless Sun', from our upcoming new record. This track showcases aspects that many BEHEMOTH fans love about our music, plenty of aggression and melody. That contrast is the reason we decided to release TWO amazing videos to accompany this single release. One is very shocking…so shocking that we had to create a whole new video to release alongside it! Choose carefully! As always, I look forward to seeing your reaction, Legions. Enjoy the ride!"

The ten chapters of fury that make up "Opvs Contra Natvram" were written and recorded over the course of a very strange year for the globe — a situation which only heightened the level of craft seen in these 43 minutes and 15 seconds of searing wrath. As with previous studio outings, "Opvs…" was produced by BEHEMOTH, with mixing handled by acclaimed studio legend Joe Barresi (NINE INCH NAILS, TOOL, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, ALICE IN CHAINS).

Renowned for his meticulous attention to detail and absolute creative control of BEHEMOTH's world, frontman and band visionary Adam "Nergal" Darski reveled in the depressurized environment afforded by the pandemic. It meant that for nearly the first time since the band's inception over 30 years ago there was no deadline to observe, allowing for a nearly unprecedented level of attention to the process of writing and recording.

Beyond any confines of genre, BEHEMOTH have grown to become nothing less than the personification of rebellion, individuality, and unflinching self-expression informed by a literate worldview and worldliness that's resulted in a locking of horns with everything from the mainstream press to the Polish Catholic church — most notably manifesting in Nergal's trial for blasphemy in 2010 that only served to expose the deep-seated hypocrisies that his music seeks to challenge.

"The album title means going against the current," Nergal states. "It's the negative of the values and morals and ethics that I stand against. I've seriously been wrestling with destructive tendencies in pop culture — cancel culture, social media, and tools which I feel are very dangerous weapons in the hands of people who are not competent to judge others. That's something which I find very destructive and disturbing — and extremely limiting coming from an artists' perspective. This is my middle finger to that. There's a song on the record called 'Neo-Spartacvs'. Spartacus was one of the most iconic rebels in history who went against the most powerful empire of all time. In the end, it's me screaming, 'I Am Spartacus, and so are you!' I want to spark that flame of rebellion. If something seems wrong then stand up to it!"

"Opvs Contra Natvram" features twin cover art available in both black and white and will be released in an array of physical formats designed by Bartek Rogalewicz (Lodge.Black),certain to thrill collectors of limited editions.

"Opvs Contra Natvram" track listing:

01. Post-God Nirvana
02. Malaria Vvlgata
03. The Deathless Sun
04. Ov My Herculean Exile
05. Neo-Spartacvs
06. Disinheritance
07. Off To War!
08. Once Upon A Pale Horse
09. Thy Becoming Eternal
10. Versvs Christvs

BEHEMOTH is:

Adam "Nergal" Darski – Lead vocals, Guitar
Zbigniew "Inferno" Promiński - Drums, Percussion
Tomasz "Orion" Wróblewski - Bass, Backing vocals
Patryk "Seth" Sztyber - Guitar, Backing Vocals

Photo credit: Oskar Szramka

METALLICA has released a new animated lyric video for the title track of its third album, 1986's "Master Of Puppets". The animated clip was made by U.K. design agency ILOVEDUST, which previously worked with Ozzy Osbourne on the artwork for his upcoming studio album "Patient Number 9", and with FOO FIGHTERS on promotional activity for their "Studio 666" movie.

Earlier this month, the "Master Of Puppets" title track saw new life 36 years following its original release after its inclusion in season four of Netflix's hit series "Stranger Things". The popularity of the 1986 song brought it to the Billboard Hot 100 chart for the first time ever in the band's lengthy career.

In the season four finale of "Stranger Things", the Eddie Munson character performs what he calls "the most metal concert ever" — including shredding "Master Of Puppets" on his beloved Warlock guitar — in "Stranger Things"' "Upside Down" alternate universe during an attempt to help his friends vanquish the Big Bad of the season, a demon named Vecna.

On July 5, METALLICA released a statement regarding "Stranger Things" creators Matt and Ross Duffer's decision to use the group's music in the show. The band said: "The way The Duffer Brothers have incorporated music into 'Stranger Things' has always been next level, so we were beyond psyched for them to not only include 'Master Of Puppets' in the show but to have such a pivotal scene built around it.

"We were all stoked to see the final result and when we did we were totally blown away... it's so extremely well done, so much so, that some folks were able to guess the song just by seeing a few seconds of Joseph Quinn's hands in the trailer!! How crazy cool is that?

"It's an incredible honor to be such a big part of Eddie's journey and to once again be keeping company with all of the other amazing artists featured in the show."

Around the same time, METALLICA bassist Robert Trujillo revealed that his 17-year-old son Tye contributed "additional guitar tracks" to the version of "Master Of Puppets" which appears in "Stranger Things".

"Master Of Puppets" was released on February 24, 1986 and was the first album METALLICA recorded after signing a major label deal with Elektra Records.

The set only reached No. 29 on the Billboard album chart but has sold over six million copies in the U.S. since.

It is the last record to feature bassist Cliff Burton, who was killed later that year in a tour bus crash.

Several songs from the album are still staples of METALLICA's live set, including "Battery", "Welcome Home (Sanitarium)" and the title track.

Many fans consider it METALLICA's finest album, a fact that the band acknowledged by playing it in its entirety on a European tour in 2006.

"Master Of Puppets" continues to sell several thousand copies a week in the United States, according to Nielsen SoundScan.

In 2016, "Master Of Puppets" was among the albums that were selected for induction into the Library of Congress' National Recording Registry.

Several years ago, METALLICA collaborated with an author named Matt Taylor on a book about the making of "Master Of Puppets".

Swedish occult rockers GHOST have released a phantasmagorical music video for "Spillways", rendering the irresistible earworm of the band's latest single in majestic visual form courtesy of director Amir Chamdin.

GHOST mastermind Tobias Forge told Metal Hammer magazine about "Spillways": "This is an elegy for the darkness that most people have inside. When you have a dam, spillways are the run-offs so the dam won't overflow. That darkness inside us needs to find its way out."

"Spillways" is taken from GHOST's fifth album, "Impera", which sold 70,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 2 on the Billboard 200 chart. It marked the third top 10 album — and fifth top 40-charting set — for the Swedish act.

"Impera" landed at position No. 1 in Germany and Sweden, No. 2 in the U.K., Netherlands, Belgium and Norway, No. 3 in Australia, No. 5 in France and Ireland, and No. 20 in Italy.

"Impera" was released on March 11. The 12-song effort was produced by Klas Åhlund and mixed by Andy Wallace.

Forge worked on the follow-up to 2018's "Prequelle" with Åhlund and Swedish co-writers Salem Al Fakir and Vincent Pontare, whose credits include Madonna and Lady Gaga.

Regarding his collaboration with Åhlund, Al Fakir and Pontare, as well as OPETH's Fredrik Åkesson who was brought in to sharpen the album's guitar attack, Forge recently told St. Louis Post-Dispatch: "I found that I can work really well with someone I respect, who is always pushing for the best. They make me want to write better, to get my game up a little."

In March 2020, at final show of GHOST's "Prequelle" tour in Mexico City, Mexico, the band officially introduced Papa Emeritus IV, the new character who is fronting the act for its "Impera" album phase.

Forge performed as a "new" Papa Emeritus on each of the band's first three LPs, with each version of Papa replacing the one that came before it. Papa Emeritus III was retired in favor of Cardinal Copia before the release of "Prequelle".

GHOST will embark on the next North American leg of "Imperatour" next month. The trek will see the Grammy Award-winning Swedish theatrical rock band headlining 19 arenas across the U.S. and Canada (plus an appearance at Virginia's Blue Ridge Rock Fest),kicking off August 26 at San Diego's Pechanga Arena and running through September 23 at the Resch Center in Green Bay. Support on all dates (with the exception of Green Bay which will feature support from CARCASS, and the Blue Ridge Rock Fest) will come from Grammy Award-winning band MASTODON and SPIRITBOX.

Photo credit: Ryan Chang