SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS will celebrate the release of their new album, "4", by performing it its entirety on Friday, February 11. The "Live At Studios 60" concert event will stream live and free on the Slash YouTube and Facebook at 11 a.m. Pacific / 2 p.m. Eastern / 7 p.m. GMT. The concert will be immediately followed by a live question-and-answer afterparty with Slash exclusively on YouTube Premium.

To join the afterparty and live Q&A, fans can sign up for a free, YouTube Premium one-month trial at this location.

A trailer for "Live At Studios 60" can be found below.

As previously reported, SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY & THE CONSPIRATORS will perform their new single, "The River Is Rising", this Wednesday, February 2 on "Jimmy Kimmel Live!" Tune in at 11:35 p.m. ET/PT / 10:35 p.m. CT on ABC TV and Hulu to watch Slash sit down with host Jimmy Kimmel for an interview and catch the band hit the stage to perform "The River Is Rising" on live TV for the first time.

"4" will be released on February 11 via Gibson Records in partnership with BMG. "4" is Slash's fifth solo album and fourth overall with his band featuring Myles Kennedy (vocals), Brent Fitz (drums), Todd Kerns (bass, vocals) and Frank Sidoris (guitar, vocals).

In October, SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY AND THE CONSPIRATORS released the official music video for the LP's first single, "The River Is Rising", shot on location in downtown Los Angeles with Gibson TV director Todd Harapiak.

For "4", Slash and the band traveled across the country together to Nashville, Tennessee and recorded the new album at the historic RCA Studio A with producer Dave Cobb (Chris Stapleton, John Prine, Jason Isbell, Brandi Carlile), revealing a stunning new sound and style all captured live in the studio. Cobb shared the band's desire to lay down the tracks live, in the studio including guitar solos and vocals — a first for the group.

The band's previous albums over the last decade — "Apocalyptic Love", "World On Fire" and "Living The Dream" — have continued on an upward trajectory, all achieving Top 5 Billboard charting debuts in the U.S. and reaching the Top 10 on 12 major charts across the globe. To date, the three SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY AND THE CONSPIRATORS albums have now garnered 10 consecutive Top 5 Radio singles, spawned sold-out world tours, and have earned Slash and the band the best critical acclaim of their career with their latest album "Living The Dream" (2018) singled out by the Los Angeles Times, Classic Rock, Guitar World, Loudwire, LA Weekly, and more, as their best songs to date.

The new album "4" has the added history-making distinction of being the first-ever album to be released on the new Gibson Records label, which is headquartered in the iconic American instrument brand Gibson's hometown of Music City, Nashville. In light of the 30-year partnership between Gibson and the Grammy Award-winning Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame inductee Slash, it makes sense the new SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY AND THE CONSPIRATORS' album "4" will be released via Gibson Records.

SLASH FEATURING MYLES KENNEDY AND THE CONSPIRATORS will kick off a North American headlining tour on February 8, in Portland, Oregon and hit 28 major cities, including Los Angeles, New York, Boston, Philadelphia, Chicago, Denver, Nashville, Dallas, Austin, Houston, and more, before wrapping up March 26 in Orlando, Florida.

"Wild In The Streets", the scorching 1982 sophomore album by the pathfinding Southern California hardcore punk band the CIRCLE JERKS, will receive a remastered, augmented LP reissue on February 18 by Trust Records.

Succeeding Trust's 2020 re-release of the band's 1980 debut "Group Sex", the package will include remastered audio by Pete Lyman and rare April 1982 live performances of material from the band's first two albums, captured at the Elite Club in San Francisco. A lavish 20-page, full-color 12-by-12-inch booklet created for this release assembles historic photographs, club flyers, and an 8,200-word essay by veteran Los Angeles journalist Chris Morris, including new interviews with founding band members Keith Morris, Greg Heston and Lucky Lehrer.

Today you can preview the remastered version of the album's title track "Wild In The Streets" with a new music video directed by storied photographer and skateboarder Atiba Jefferson. The video features a live CIRCLE JERKS performance from 1982 and skaters Tony Hawk, Lance Mountain, Christian Hosoi, Eric Koston, Kevin "Spanky" Long, Steve Olson, Victoria Ruesga, Sal Barbier, Rowan Zorilla, Sean Malto, Anaiah Lei, Lizzie Armanto, Dashawn Jordan, Max Perlich and more.

Of the video, Atiba reveals: "I grew up on 'Wild In The Streets', so to be asked to direct this video was a huge honor. I wanted to capture and preserve 40 years of history but also celebrate 40 years of punk rock and skateboarding history."

The release of "Wild In The Streets" coincides with the February kickoff of the CIRCLE JERKS' 40th-anniversary tour with support from NEGATIVE APPROACH, ADOLESCENTS and 7SECONDS (who will be reuniting for the first time in over five years). CIRCLE JERKS' current live lineup is vocalist Keith Morris, guitarist Greg Hetson (BAD RELIGION, REDD KROSS), bassist Zander Schloss (THE WEIRDOS, JOE STRUMMER) and drummer Joey Castillo (THE BRONX, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE, DANZIG, BL'AST!, WASTED YOUTH).

"Wild In The Streets" deluxe reissue track listing:

Side A

01. Wild In The Streets

02. Leave Me Alone

03. Stars And Stripes

04. 86'd (Good As Gone)

05. Meet The Press

06. Trapped

07. Murder The Disturbed

Side B

01. Letterbomb

02. Question Authority

03. Defamation Innuendo

04. Moral Majority

05. Forced Labor

06. Political Stu

07. Just Like Me

08. Put A Little Love In Your Heart

Bonus tracks:

01. Letter Bomb (Live '82)

02. Wild In The Streets (Live '82)

03. Stars And Stripes (Live '82)

Photo by Atiba Jefferson

Corey Taylor says that SLIPKNOT's new studio album will arrive within the next three months. The follow-up to 2019's "We Are Not Your Kind" was recorded in 2021 with producer Joe Barresi, who has previously worked with AVENGED SEVENFOLD, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE and CHEVELLE, among many others.

The 48-year-old singer offered a possible timetable for the new SLIPKNOT album release during an appearance earlier today (Wednesday, February 2) on SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk". He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The record is actually in the process of being mixed right now. Everything is finished, so it's just being mixed right now, which is rad news. So it's probably gonna take… I think it's probably gonna be another three months [before it is released]. The artwork's done. We just came up with the title. I'm not gonna tell you it right now. But we're really stoked. So hopefully three months from now — well, less than that — we'll get the single out, and then three months from now we'll get the album out."

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

Last November, SLIPKNOT released a new single called "The Chapeltown Rag". Taylor described the song to Knotfest.com as "a punisher," saying it documents what happens when the distortions of mass media circulate within the echo chambers of social media.

"It's classic SLIPKNOT," said Corey about the track, which is inspired by a Netflix documentary he watched about the Yorkshire Ripper serial killer who murdered multiple women in the West Yorkshire, United Kingdom suburb Chapeltown in the late 1970s. "And it's frenetic. But lyrically, it's coming from a point of talking about the various manipulations that can happen when social media meets media itself. And the different ways that these manipulations can try to pull us in different directions, in the fact that we're all becoming addicts to it, which is very, very dangerous."

"We Are Not Your Kind" was released in August 2019. The LP sold 118,000 equivalent album units in the U.S. in its first week of release to land at position No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. Furthermore, the album made an impact worldwide with No. 1 debuts in the United Kingdom, Mexico, Australia, Canada, Japan, Ireland, Belgium, Portugal and Finland, as well as Top 5 debuts in Germany, France, Norway, Italy, Austria, Sweden, Switzerland, The Netherlands, Poland, Spain and New Zealand.

Last month, SLIPKNOT announced the 2022 iteration of its infamous "Knotfest Roadshow" tour. The trek will take place over two legs, both headlined by SLIPKNOT. The first leg will feature special guests IN THIS MOMENT and JINJER. The second leg will feature special guests CYPRESS HILL and HO99O9.

The first leg of the 38-date tour, produced by Live Nation, kicks off in Fargo, North Dakota on Wednesday, March 16 and hits a further 17 cities before wrapping up in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada on Sunday, April 17. The second leg kicks off on Wednesday, May 18 in University Park, Pennsylvania and hits a further 17 cites before culminating on Sunday, June 18 in Chula Vista, California.

2021 marked a banner year for SLIPKNOT. Making a triumphant return to the road, their "Knotfest Roadshow 2021" tour sold out amphitheaters across the country, bookended with the record-breaking Knotfest Iowa and the biggest headline show of their career, Knotfest Los Angeles at Banc of California Stadium, where they debuted "The Chapeltown Rag". In addition, they topped the bills of multiple internationally renowned festivals, including Riot Fest, Rocklahoma, Inkcarceration and Welcome To Rockville.

"Knotfest Roadshow" 2022 will be part of Live Nation's Live Stubs initiative which provides digital collectible NFT ticket stubs to ticket holders. Live Stubs will automatically be included with tickets purchased for the tour. Fans will also be able to view, share, gift, trade, and resell their live stubs on LiveNation.

British heavy metal legends SAXON have released the third single, "The Pilgrimage", from their upcoming album, "Carpe Diem", due on February 4 via Silver Lining Music.

"Pilgrimage is a fantastic word," says SAXON singer Biff Byford. "People go on pilgrimages all the time, not just in a historical or religious sense, but it's about going and visiting either a place that you feel is special in your life or somebody that's meant something in your life. You can go on a pilgrimage to go see your great grandfather who died in the first world war, for instance. They're journeys of great weight and importance."

Produced by Andy Sneap (JUDAS PRIEST, EXODUS, ACCEPT) at Backstage Recording Studios in Derbyshire with Byford and Sneap mixing and mastering, "Carpe Diem" strikes the ear as one of the most essential British metal statements of the last few years and not lacking in pace or bite, an album which will ignite the joy in stalwart supporters and attract a whole new legion to the SAXON fold.

Sneap, himself a guitarist and producer of some metal repute, ensures that "Carpe Diem" does not lack one ounce of grit or sharpness. "Andy's obviously a very good guitarist," says Biff, "but he's not a blues-based guitarist like our guys are; he's more of a modern-style player. And that means the boys (Paul Quinn and Doug Scarratt) love working with him because, again, it's all about the intensity. Andy's always pushing the envelope; he doesn't let them get away with anything. They have to play it for real, full speed. He gets great sound, and we want that Gibson/Marshall '80s sound even if they’re not Gibsons and Marshalls. We try and retain that British metal guitar sound that we created for SAXON, and he's definitely an '80s child."

Despite a career which has spanned 44 years with over 15 million albums sold, including four top 10 U.K. albums, and having played to hundreds of thousands of fans worldwide, SAXON are revving up for one of their busiest eras yet.

"We're gonna be quite busy this year," says Biff. "There are festivals which have been rescheduled from two years ago, we're looking to go to America, we're also going to tour U.K. and Europe later in the year and like everyone really, we're just keeping our fingers crossed that everything works out and we can do it all. We're also recording the second 'Inspirations' album, and as we do that, you never know, we might write a few songs for the next SAXON album…"

The genesis of "Carpe Diem"'s fierce intensity lies in two extremely significant life events.

"It's been a difficult two years," offers Biff with considerable understatement, "because I had the heart attack back in September 2019, so things went a bit pear-shaped for the band. And then COVID hit two or three months later, but luckily, we started writing and recording this album before COVID. We did the drums in Germany and we did the guitars in various places. I was doing a lot of writing while I was in the hospital bed, and we spent quite a long time writing and arranging the ideas that we all had. I do think it's a very intense album, and maybe some of that intensity comes from the frustration of not being able to do anything in the COVID period."

"Carpe Diem" track listing:

01. Carpe Diem (Seize The Day)

02. Age Of Steam

03. The Pilgrimage

04. Dambusters

05. Remember The Fallen

06. Super Nova

07. Lady In Gray

08. All For One

09. Black Is The Night

10. Living On The Limit

"We want every album we make to go platinum," says Biff defiantly. "We never make an album that we don't expect to be fantastic because there are no laurels around here, and as a band, we're always trying to do something a little bit new, a little bit daring. I love fast metal like 'Princess Of The Night' and '20,000 Feet', and I try and bring that style of SAXON into the music now, but in a more modern style. We don't sound like an old band on records because we're not sitting back on our past success, we're always trying to make a great album."

Produced by Andy Sneap and Biff Byford

Album mixed and mastered by Andy Sneap

Guitars recorded by Andy Sneap at Backstage Recording Studios, Derbyshire (U.K.); vocals recorded by Seb Byford at Big Silver Barn, York (U.K.); drums recorded by Jacky Lehmann (Audiosound) at Velbyproductions, Grünenplan (Germany).

All lyrics by Biff Byford. Backing vocals by Seb Byford

Sweden's classic death metal unit, Centinex, are sharing a new track and music video, "Armageddon". The song is taken from the band's upcoming EP, The Pestilence, due out April 1 via Agonia Records. Find the clip below.


The Pestilence adds five raging compositions to the deathly metallic annals of Centinex, which hold a wealth of reputable installments since 1990. The songs serve as a bridge between the band's latest offering from last year, Death In Pieces, and the next, yet unannounced full-length album. As the older sibling of the lauded underground group Demonical, Centinex operates within a familiar sonic sphere, yet is more inclined to a less melodic and more conventional death metal approach, that accentuates austereness, brutality and distinctive riffing. The two bands are linked by bassist and founder Martin Shulman, key songwriter for Centinex, who had this to say about The Pestilence:


"Our new MLP - yes we prefer to label it as an MLP, as everyone did in the '80s, instead of calling it an EP - represents the band's current direction and can be seen as a beginning of something new. Drawing influences and inspiration from the old thrash scene, especially the German one, this release does also bring us closer to our past and the early days of Centinex. The whole recording process was also like a blast from the past, with the whole band together in the studio catching the vibe, both when the rec-button was on and off. Production wise, we aimed to get an old-school sound, organic and breathing, a production which is pretty much in strict contrast to what is standard in today’s scene. We even wanted the album layout to remind us of the glory days, of a time when the tracks were the main thing and what defined if something is good or bad instead of production, musical accuracy, or glossy packaging. As stated, this MLP represent something new for us and a direction we most likely will explore even more in the future. We will dwell in the past and crawl even deeper into the history (of extreme metal) as in our opinion the past was brighter than the future."




The Pestilence EP was recorded, mixed and mastered by Jonas Arnberg between June and July 2021 at Sellnoise Studios in Sweden. The photo which graces the cover artwork was taken by Susan Wicher. The artwork was created by Dwi Nugraha.





It will be available in the following formats:


- MCD
- Tape
- Black MLP
- Green MLP
- German Pilsner MLP
- Picture MLP





Tracklisting:


"Armageddon"
"Evil Is Evil"
"Tremble In Fear"
"Torture"
"Afraid Of The Light" (CD bonus)


"Armageddon" video:





Lineup:


Henka Andersson - vocals
Jorgen Kristensen - guitars & backing vocals
Martin Schulman - bass
Florian Rehn - drums


(Photo - Susan Wicher)

Norwegian black metal outift Old Man's Child, led by Dimmu Borgir guitarist Galder, have uploaded the following video to social media, simply titled "Some New Riffs":





Old Man's Child have been dormant for more than a decade, releasing their last album, Slaves Of The World, in 2009 via Century Media. The official video trailer for Slaves Of The World can be seen below. In total, Old Man's Child has released seven studio albums. Is there a new album on the way? Only time will tell.




 

Damon Johnson & The Get Ready have released their new video for the third single from Battle Lessons, “Can’t Clap Any Louder”. The clip was directed by Damon's friend Rob Arthur (who is also the keyboardist for Peter Frampton). 










Videos for the previous two singles from Battle Lessons, "Talk Yourself Into Anything" and "Battle Lessons", can be seen below. Order your copy of the album now at this location.








 

The Nightwish virtual live show from the Islanders Arms, which took place on May 28th and 29th, 2021, will be released on DVD and is now available for pre-order. It is available only at Finland's RecordShop X and the official Nightwish webstore.


The RecordShop X version includes a 24-page booklet with unreleased Making Of photos. The bundle includes a special A2 sized poster. Limited edition. Street date is March 11th.







The tracklist is as follows:


"Noise"
"Planet Hell"
"Alpenglow"
"Élan"
"Storytime"
"How’s the Heart?"
"Harvest"
"Dark Chest of Wonders"
"I Want My Tears Back"
"Ever Dream"
"Nemo"
"Sleeping Sun"
"Pan"
"Last Ride of the Day"
"Ghost Love Score"
"The Greatest Show on Earth"
"All the Works of Nature Which Adorn the World: VIII. Ad Astra"

Death metal legends, Nile, have announced the addition of Vital Remains frontman, Scott Eames, on guitar/vocals.


A message from Nile states: "Congratulations to Brian Kingsland on the arrival of his newborn son! While Brian takes time for family, veteran metal guitarist Scott Eames will be joining us on guitar and vocals. Scott is an exceptionally talented motherfucker who has worked his ass off and earned his spot on stage with Nile. The band is as strong as ever and we are primed and ready to bring metal to the fans on our upcoming tour starting in Nashville, TN on February 3rd! See you on the road!" \m/


Scott Eames adds: "NEWS IS OUT! I'm doing guitar & vocals for the legendary Nile! Tour starts Thursday! Get your tickets now!!!" 🤘🏻





Tour dates:


February
3 - Nashville, TN - Basement East
4 - Atlanta, GA - The Masquerade (Heaven)
5 - Orlando, FL - The Haven
6 - Tampa, FL - The Orpheum
8 - Houston, TX - Scout Bar
9 - Dallas, TX - GMB&G
10 - San Antonio, TX - Vibes Event Center
12 - Phoenix, AZ - Nile Theater
13 - San Diego, CA - Brick by Brick
15 - Los Angeles, CA - 1720
16 - Berkeley, CA - Cornerstone
18 - Portland, OR - Hawthorne Theater
19 - Seattle, WA - El Corazon
21 - Salt Lake City, UT - Metro Music Hall
22 - Denver, CO - Oriental Theater
23 - Lincoln, NE - Royal Grove
24 - Iowa City, IA - Wildwood
25 - Minneapolis, MN - Cabooze
26 - Joliet, IL - The Forge
27 - Sauget, IL - Pop's


March
1 - Fort Wayne, IN - Piere's
2 - Detroit, MI - El Club
3 - Cleveland, OH - Beachland Ballroom
4 - Pittsburgh, PA - Crafthouse
5 - Reading, PA - Reverb
6 - Worcester, MA - Palladium (Upstairs)
8 - New York, NY - Gramercy Theater
9 - Baltimore, MD - Baltimore Soundstage
10 - Richmond, VA - Canal Club
11 - Greensboro, NC - Blind Tiger
12 - Spartanburg, SC - Ground Zero

Dawn Of Solace, the solo-project by Wolfheart's Tuomas Saukkonen, have released their anticipated third studio album, Flames of Perdition, via Noble Demon. With eight brand new tracks and two bonus songs, the album delivers exactly what you would expect to get from the death and goth metal icon: beautiful melodies and a breathtaking atmosphere of incomparable class. Together with Mikko Heikkilä of Kaunis Kuolematon as vocalist, the two once again invite you to a dark journey through the spheres of melodic doom.


To celebrate Flames of Perdition finally being available worldwide, Dawn Of Solace have released a brand new lyric video for the album’s title track.


Tuomas Saukkonen comments: "The title track is definitely the most beautiful song on the album carrying the bleakest message. Lullaby to the world in the cradle of ashes."







Tracklist:


"White Noise"
"Erase"
"Flames Of Perdition"
"Dying Light"
"Event Horizon"
"Black Shores"
"Skyline"
"Serenity"
"Lead Wings" (bonus track)
"Dead Air" (bonus track)

Ex-Meliah Rage guitarist Anthony Nichols and co-conspirators Jon Hardy (vocals, bass), Steve Fry (drums), and Dan Dykes (lead guitar) have released Burn Pit, a sumptuously menacing four-song EP. Listen to the song, "Snakehead", below, and find the EP on Spotify.





Burn Pit is Mexican Ape-Lord’s third release on Unable Records, following the acclaimed albums The Late Heavy Bombardment and Survival Cannibalism. Audio-savant producer Peter Rutcho is once again at the controls.







The tried-and-true Mexican Ape-Lord themes are all represented here: apex predators, ritualistic bloodshed, dangerous work, and inner demons. Through it all, the boys hammer out non-stop riffs, diabolical drum work, and insanely catchy leads. “We operate like an expeditionary force,” says Hardy. “Every member is a specialist.”


A lyric video for the song “Keep Hammering”, produced by Brandon Maxham, can be viewed below:




"Horrible Folktale":



Nichols, a prime mover of metal for over three decades, says, “We’re not about to stop making loud music just because the world is coming to an end.”


The band is currently working on its third full length album, Blunt Instrument, to be released in early 2023.

EVANESCENCE's music video for the group's breakthrough 2003 hit "Bring Me To Life" has surpassed one billion views on YouTube. The Philipp Stölzl-directed clip, which was uploaded to YouTube in December of 2009, was filmed in Romania in January 2003. It features singer Amy Lee in a night gown and barefoot, in her room, inside a tall building in the city at night. The rest of the band is playing on a higher floor of the building.

The album version of "Bring Me to Life" — which featured guest vocals from Paul McCoy of 12 STONES — was included on the soundtrack of superhero film "Daredevil".

Stölzl previously stated about the video: "On the one hand, it brings out the most catchy part of the song, the bridge, the duet with the male and female vocals. On the other hand, it reflects the ['Daredevil'] soundtrack background of the song. I did not know if I would have to use a stunt double for most of the angles, which would have restricted me a lot, but then it turned out that Amy did everything herself, hanging on Paul's arm for hours without getting tired. In the end, she is the one who made that shot strong."

Last year, Amy spoke to Germany's Sonic Seducer about the lyrical inspiration for "Bring Me To Life". The song reached No. 5 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 and was EVANESCENCE's first U.K. No. 1 single.

"I remember what I wrote 'Bring Me To Life' about, because I wrote it about my current husband before we were married," she said. "There was this moment — I was in a tough place and in a bad relationship. And my husband now, Josh, at the time was just a friend and a person that I barely knew; it was maybe the third or fourth time we'd ever met. And we went in to go grab a seat at a restaurant while our friends parked the car. And we sat across from each other, and he looked at me and he just said, 'So, are you happy?' And it took me so off guard, and I just felt like it pierced my heart, because I felt like I had been pretending really well, and it was, like, somebody could see through me. And then that whole first verse came out of it: 'How can you see into my eyes, like open doors.' It really made me feel and recognize the sense of yearning that I had to get to a better place. And it really kind of set me out on a journey. And it's amazing that that became the song, the first song that broke us on to the scene and made everyone hear of us, because it was about something — I don't know — something so personal that I was recognizing in my life."

Last March, Lee told Alternative Press that EVANESCENCE's original record label Wind Up threatened not to release the group's debut album, "Fallen", if she and her bandmates didn't add a male voice to lead single "Bring Me To Life" to make it more palatable for radio.

"Fallen" sold 17 million copies and won two Grammys, including "Best Rock Performance" for "Bring Me To Life".

EVANESCENCE joins other hard rock and heavy metal artists who have made it to the Billion Views Club: AC/DC (""Thunderstruck"), METALLICA ("Nothing Else Matters"), GUNS N' ROSES ("Sweet Child O' Mine" and "November Rain"), LINKIN PARK ("Numb") and QUEEN ("Bohemian Rhapsody").

EVANESCENCE's latest album, "The Bitter Truth", arrived in March 2021 via BMG. It was EVANESCENCE's first album of original music in ten years.

Kissin’ Dynamite has entered the official German album charts at #2 with their new album Not The End Of The Road. This marks the highest chart entry in the career of the Germans and continues the unique success story they started about 20 years ago as a school band in their hometown.





For some time now, Kissin’ Dynamite have fought against childhood cancer through the power of their music. They donated their full income for the song “Good Life” plus the proceeds of the sale of a charity t-shirt to the Förderverein für krebskranke Kinder Tübingen e.V., a charity organization that supports children with cancer in their hometown. The engagement was supported by German company Intense AG, and resulted in a 6000€ donation.







Founded in 2007, German heavy metal formation Kissin' Dynamite have made more than just a name for themselves in the scene: With six studio albums and various chart entries, the band established their trademark style - characterized by modern sound, massive anthems and catchy hooks paired with an 80s stadium rock attitude and eccentric look. Now, the five piece is ready to release their Napalm Records debut, Not The End Of The Road, and usher in heavy metal in 2022.


The new studio album was produced, recorded and mixed by vocalist Hannes Braun (Südland Music) himself, who has also worked with bands like Santiano, The Kelly Family and Beyond The Black. Mastering was completed by Grammy Award winning producer Jacob Hansen at Hansen Studios, known for his work with bands like Volbeat and many more.


Ande Braun on the new album: "Not The End Of The Road is an album, which accurately describes our experiences as a band since Ecstasy 2018. First and foremost, we highlight with songs like “Not The End Of The Road”, “What Goes Up”, “Yoko Ono” and “Only The Dead”: We're up for it, we're pulling together and we want to reach the rock Olympus! Titles like “Coming Home”, “Gone For Good” and “Scars”, on the other hand, deal with real feelings like loneliness, homesickness and sadness, which are also part of life."


Hannes Braun adds: "With Ecstasy we already didn't make any compromises and just wanted to compose music that speaks from us. Not The End Of The Road seamlessly picks up exactly here."


With Not The End Of The Road, Kissin' Dynamite set another milestone in their successful discography: In guitar-driven power metal fashion, the tune of the intro and title track “Not The End Of The Road” prepares the listener for a thrilling road trip and new anthems straight from the heart of the Kissin' Dynamite universe. Crusher “What Goes Up” takes its listener into the truly spectacular soundscapes that make stadiums shake and convinces with Aerosmith-like guitar attacks and an anthemic hook. But Kissin' Dynamite are also not afraid to show their mellower side, as heard on delightfully tranquil tracks like “Good Life” and “Gone For Good” - not only showcasing the almost calm touches pervading the melodies, but also presenting the softer side of Braun’s vocal repertoire. While tracks like “No One Dies A Virgin” and “Yoko Ono” symbolize catchy party hymns, standouts “Coming Home” and “Defeat It” underline their origins of stadium rock without being pigeonholed. “Voodoo Spell” manifests the variety of the band and their different influences - starting with strong dark rock elements, the song becomes an opus that easily competes with the biggest stadium giants. The album’s closer, “Scars”, proves once again that Kissin' Dynamite can reach the depths and showcase lyrical vulnerability - an impressive ending that screams to be played live.


Order the new album here.





Not The End Of The Road tracklisting:


"Not The End Of The Road"
"What Goes Up"
"Only The Dead"
"Good Life"
"Yoko Ono"
"Coming Home"
"All For A Halleluja"
"No One Dies A Virgin"
"Gone For Good"
"Defeat It"
"Voodoo Spell"
"Scars"


“Coming Home” video:





“Yoko Ono” video:





"Good Life" video:





“What Goes Up” video:





"Not The End Of The Road" video:





Lineup:


Hannes Braun - vocals
Ande Braun - guitar
Jim Müller - guitar
Steffen Haile - bass
Sebastian Berg - drums


(Photo - Holger Fichtner & Patrick Schneiderwind)

The second single from Outlanders (Tarja Turunen and Torsten Stenzel), "The Cruellest Goodbye" featuring Al Di Meola, is out now. Order/listen here, and below.





A message from Tarja states: "The song was written together with Harry Sommerdahl, co-writer of 'I Walk Alone', in 2008. Nevertheless, I didn’t quite feel that the song was having the character nor spirit for one of my rock album releases, but since I loved the song very much, I kept it always present for a later use. 'The Cruellest Goodbye' is a sad story about a forbidden love.




"Even though it was originally composed and arranged as a piano song, I always imagined it with acoustic guitars. Friday Night In San Francisco is a live album by three of the best acoustic guitar players in the world: Al Di Meola, John McLaughlin and Paco de Lucía and it was the main reference and source of inspiration for the sound I was hoping for.


"I was living in Buenos Aires, Argentina back in 2013 when I got the news that Al Di Meola was having a concert in October the 2nd at the Gran Rex Theater. I took a chance to meet him and talk about my song. I visited him at his superb concert, and we had a glass of wine at the backstage after the show was over. Al was very kind and showed immediate interest to take part in our project. It was early stages for the whole idea, so I still didn´t have many references to give him, but one: to be himself.


"It’s amazing how openminded he was about the recordings and the outcome shows you the great effort he put on to the song. He is outstanding, virtuoso musician and made the song feel like there has always been a guitar involved since the birth of it.


"Not only he played several tracks with his acoustic trademark guitar sound, but also delighted us with an additional synthetized guitar that blends totally in synch with the programmed background.


"I am so grateful for Al to trust his talent with us.


"'The Cruellest Goodbye' went through few difficulties during the production process. Torsten’s computer hard drive really crashed several times, so I ended up recording vocals for the song 4 times spread though 13 years! Anyway, every time I did, it felt refreshing and new to me, so I didn’t mind about it and definitely enjoyed the process.


"I am very happy that 'The Cruellest Goodbye' finally find its home with Outlanders.





Outlanders was created by Finnish soprano legend Tarja Turunen and EDM pioneer Torsten Stenzel. Both were able to recruit some of the most influential guitar players of our time to feature as guests on their songs.


They previously released the official visualizer for, "Closer To The Sky" featuring guitarist Trevor Rabin, best known as guitarist of prog rock icons YES, as well as a top Hollywood blockbuster movies score composer.





To learn more, visit Outlanders on Facebook, or their official website, tarja-outlanders.com.