TOOL drummer Danny Carey is slated to appear in court on January 12 in connection arrest for an alleged assault at the Kansas City airport.

Law enforcement sources say Carey allegedly assaulted an employee working security at the airport on Sunday, December 12. A police report states that Carey allegedly "did intentionally cause and unlawful, offensive contact upon [the worker] by yelling at the complaintant 'you're a fucking f****t' repeatedly and jabbed the complainant in the chest repeatedly."

Earlier in the week, TMZ posted video of Carey's arrest after police responded to a report of a "disturbance between two males at an airport terminal." In the clip, which was filmed around 7:00 p.m. on Sunday, Carey can be heard berating the officers and telling the person filming him to "videotape all of this." The musician, who can be seen wearing a Kansas City Chiefs jersey, keeps asking one of the officers, "Who did I assault?" and exclaiming, "I just want to get the fuck out of here." At the end of the video, two officers can be seen pushing Carey against a glass wall outside the airport, with one officer ordering Carey not to get too close to them. The officers then slap cuffs around Carey's wrists, with one of them telling the drummer to "quit resisting now."

The 60-year-old musician was booked for misdemeanor assault and was released on bond. The police report is being forwarded to prosecutors for review, and potential charges will follow. He could be hit with a fine for the incident up to $13,900.

A spokesperson for the Kansas City Aviation Department told Rolling Stone: "Regarding the request for body and dash cam video, our police force does not have this technology. The police report has been forwarded to the prosecutor's office for review."

Carey's arrest came one day after he performed the Jimi Hendrix song "Fire" at the University of Kansas vs. the University of Missouri men's basketball game in Lawrence, Kansas.

TOOL formed in 1990 and has released five studio albums thus far: "Undertow" (1993), "Ænima" (1996), "Lateralus" (2001), "10,000 Days" (2006) and "Fear Inoculum" (2019); two EPs: "72826" (1991) and "Opiate" (1992); and the limited-edition boxset, "Salival" (2000). The band has won four Grammy Awards: Best Metal Performance (1998, "Ænima"), "Best Metal Performance" (2002, "Schism"), "Best Recording Package" (2007, "10,000 Days") and "Best Metal Performance" (2020, "7empest").

During an appearance on "Talking Bollocks", the monthly metal podcast hosted by ACID REIGN frontman-turned-stand-up-comedian Howard H. Smith, EXODUS's Gary Holt once again opened up about his decision to quit drinking alcohol. The 57-year-old musician, who resides in Northern California, said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "Like millions of people worldwide, I was a victim of the pandemic. On tour, I always maintained and never hit the hangover stage. Maybe once in a five-week tour I'd wake up with a little bit of a headache, and that's one night when we decided to have a disco party and started cranking some funk music and drink a few extra beers. But then I'd come home and I'd only drink when I was watching some sports or having some people over — a couple of beers. I'd go out to a show and have two beers. And then I found myself with nothing but idle time. I live kind of in the woods now, and I'd sit outside — it's beautiful, it's summer, I'm surrounded by oak trees, and I'd just start drinking. [I was] drinking, like, 12, 13 beers, and I was drinking these double, triple IPAs [with] 10, 11 percent alcohol. 'Cause I was always a beer snob; I'd get out my proper glass for whatever beer I was drinking. And it just got to the point where I was getting depressed when I got drink; I wasn't happy anymore. 'Cause my whole livelihood had been taken away from me. I'm feeling the same stress and strain as everybody else. So I figured, man, I quit smoking, I quit doing drugs years ago — almost 20 years ago — [so] I could live without the alcohol. It's no big deal. I mean, I still drink non-alcohol beers, and there are some really good ones out there. It's the taste of beer that I would miss; I don't miss the buzz. And it also has a strong placebo effect."

Asked if he thinks it will be harder for him to stay sober once he gets back on tour, Holt said: "No, not at all. It doesn't mean I have a more solid willpower than anyone else, but I don't crave or feel any desire for alcohol. I'm a guy, when he quits something, he just quits it and he's just done with it. I'm hanging out with the other bandmates, I had dinner twice over the weekend, and Lee [Altus, EXODUS guitarist] is having real beers and I'm having Heineken 0.0s. I never [think], 'Hmm, I want what he's got.' It doesn't appeal to me anymore."

Holt's announcement that he had given up alcohol came seven months after his wife Lisa revealed that she had quit drinking in 2012 after using alcohol since she was 13 years old. She also thanked her husband and credited him for making her "want to be a better person. I definitely wouldn't have him or anything kick-ass in my life today if I hadn't made this choice [to quit drinking] 8 years ago," she wrote.

In Wiederhorn's book "Raising Hell (Backstage Tales From The Lives Of Metal Legends)", Holt reminisced about the lengths he and his onetime EXODUS bandmate Kirk Hammett (now in METALLICA) would go to nearly 40 years ago in order to get free alcohol.

"Near where we lived, we had a local liquor store called the Wagon Wheel that burned down," Holt recalled. "We had nothing to do with that, but we waded through the burnt rubble of this condemned building, risking life and limb to get to the alcohol. The bottles with plastic caps were all melted. Kirk had this old Buick Skylark. We called it the Skymobile. And we filled his trunk with gallons of whiskey bottles with these black melted caps on them. We were scavengers. It's part of what made EXODUS great, that hunger and ambition."

EXODUS's new studio album, "Persona Non Grata", was released on November 19 via Nuclear Blast Records. It is the follow-up to 2014's "Blood In Blood Out", which was the San Francisco Bay Area thrashers' first release since the departure of the group's lead singer of nine years, Rob Dukes, and the return of Steve "Zetro" Souza, who previously fronted EXODUS from 1986 to 1993 and from 2002 to 2004.

"Persona Non Grata" was recorded at a studio in Lake Almanor, California and was engineered by Steve Lagudi and EXODUS. It was produced by EXODUS and was mixed by Andy Sneap.

During appearance on "Guitar Autopsy", the video podcast hosted by Rusty Cooley, ALICE COOPER guitarist Nita Strauss spoke about how she managed to lose 50 pounds and get sober while on tour back in 2015.

"My whole approach to sobriety and health and fitness is to educate but not ever force," she said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I wouldn't ever want it to be, like, 'You have to stop drinking. You have to do cardio every day,' or whatever. All I can share is really what worked for me, and that was alcohol was extremely, extremely detrimental in my personal life.

"I got sober in 2015 and I basically just decided to make the most of it and said, 'If I'm gonna do this, I'm gonna do it right,'" she continued. "And I switched from going to the bar after the show to going to the Barbell in the morning, for lack of a better term. [Laughs] I hooked up with great bodybuilding coaches that [helped] me [with] my diet and my workout while I'm on the road. I use the right supplements, I eat the right food. I have dieticians at RP Strength, I have a workout coach, I take all the right supplements, I drink my green drinks, I take all my vitamins and I stay on track. And the more I did it, people in our community — the rock and metal community — were starting to ask how I did it. And I was writing these long captions on my phone: 'First things first, you drink a lot of water…' da da da. And so I thought why not inspire people to do more. So I created 'Body Shred'. And 'Body Shred' is the first fitness challenge that I know of that is aimed at the music community."

Nita celebrated the sixth anniversary of her getting sober this past September.

A year ago, Strauss credited her longtime boyfriend and manager Josh Villalta with helping her live her life without alcohol. At the time, she wrote: "I thought I needed a drink for just about everything. To be confident on stage. To be social after shows. To celebrate. To mourn. To take the edge off frustration or the sting out of a bad day. To relax and laugh at lunch with girlfriends, or watch football with the guys on Sundays. I was terrified that my life was going to change, that without alcohol I wouldn't be ME anymore, that I would lose my circle of friends, and my onstage charisma, and become someone else. ALL those things happened... but not in the way I thought they would.

"Change came first in my relationship, in the form of less fighting and drama, and more productivity, peace and love. Thank you @thejoshv for being the catalyst to the best thing I ever did for myself. I love you.

"The ME that I was before would have stayed up until 6 am at the bar or in the bus front lounge. The ME that I became would rather get up at 6 and get to the gym before starting the day.

"My busy circle of friends was almost immediately reduced to a core 3. I've learned that when it comes to friendships, quality is ALWAYS better than quantity. If your friends have no interest in spending time with you after you make a change for the better, they weren't your real friends.

"My first show without alcohol was in front of 15,000 people. I felt like a scarecrow someone had propped up on stage to scare birds. Nothing felt natural. I was going through the motions, with this absurd idea running through my head 'everyone is looking at me. Everyone knows.'

"I went out by the bus to talk to fans afterward, and do you know what they said? 'Wow you were so great! Where do you get all that energy? You add so much to Alice's band!'

"ALL of that insecurity, ALL the fears, ALL the doubt was in my head. Those are your demons that make you think you need them.

"I'm content to sit at the bar, order a soda water with lime and watch the game now. I wouldn't trade back to my old life for anything."

Back in 2018, Nita spoke openly about how she got finally sober in September 2015, saying that her boyfriend has always been "a tough-love type" in the way she approached her sobriety. "He's, like, 'Look, you're on this path, and I support you, but I'm not changing the way I do things at all," she explained in an interview with "Chasing Glory With Lilian Garcia". "And I'm kind of glad, in retrospect, that he did that, because it threw me into the fire and showed me, like, 'Hey, you can be [around people who are drinking] and not drink.' He has continued to drink throughout [this entire period], but he didn't want me to drink, because when I would drink, I would start fights and I would get emotional and I would overreact to stupid things, like you do when you drink — it's part of drinking; it heightens all your emotions and everything." Nita also revealed that she has never participated in Alcoholics Anonymous (AA) to help her stay sober.

Strauss has been playing with Alice Cooper since 2014 when she replaced Australian musician and former Michael Jackson player Orianthi. She joined Alice in time for a mammoth MÖTLEY CRÜE tour. She was recommended to Cooper by the legendary rocker's former bass player and WINGER frontman Kip Winger.

Nita's debut solo album, "Controlled Chaos", was released in 2018 via Sumerian Records. A follow-up effort will arrive next year.

Bassist Kenny Kweens (Beautiful Creatures, L.A. Guns) has announced the release of new Villains Of Vaudeville music.


The new VOV four-song EP titled Sex, Drugs & The Devil's Music, was produced by Lonny Paul & mastered by Anthony Focx. These recordings will be released world wide on New Year's Eve December 31, 2021 on all digital platforms. A teaser video was issued earlier today:







For further details, follow Villains Of Vaudeville on Facebook.


 

"Everything starts somewhere, though many physicists disagree. But people have always been dimly aware of the problem with the start of things. They wonder how the snowplow driver gets to work, or how the makers of dictionaries look up the spelling of words." - Terry Pratchett


Dissolution Wave is a universe created by Cloakroom guitarist/vocalist Doyle Martin as a way of processing the last few years. “We lost a couple of close friends over the course of writing this record,” he says. “Dreaming up another world felt easier to digest than the real nitty-gritty we’re immersed in every day.”


Within Cloakroom’s space western, an act of theoretical physics - the dissolution wave - wipes out all of humanity’s existing art and abstract thought. In order to keep the world spinning on its axis, songsmiths must fill the ether with their compositions. Meanwhile, the Spire and Ward of Song act as a filter for human imagination: Only the best material can pass through the filter and keep the world turning.




Dissolution Wave’s grandiose opener, “Lost Meaning”, is “the beginning of our traveler's expedition” Doyle explains. “It's the first step out of your comfort zone into unfamiliar territory. When you cross that threshold what do you take with you to maintain some sense of the Self? If anything, leaving for a ‘land of silver gilt’ is referring to a gilded age, an egocentric near-future our protagonist is tasked to meander around which of course mirrors our own. Our humble songsmith is singing to the Spire and the Ward of Song, the great filter, the barometer of creative thought in this universe. With any luck, they'll be acknowledged and their voice won't get lost in the discordance of meaningless creativity for the wrong reasons.”


With lyrics based on an imagined cosmology, Dissolution Wave also marks a grand expansion of Cloakroom’s dynamic space-rock palette and lands for Cloakroom’s tenth anniversary as a band. It’s their third studio album, and first with drummer Tim Remis who joined Doyle and bassist Bobby Markos in 2019. Recorded at Earth Analog in Tolono, IL, the album features loops and piano on “Doubts'' by Matt Talbott (HUM), exterior percussion on “Lost Meaning” by Jason Gagovski (Sweet Cobra) and was engineered and mixed by Cloakroom’s longtime soundman (and childhood friend), Zac Montez.


Listen/share/add “Lost Meaning” on digital stores here. A lyric video for the song can be found below.


Cloakroom’s Dissolution Wave is out January 28 on Relapse Records. Pre-order / pre-save here.





Tracklisting:


“Lost Meaning”
“Dissolution Wave”
“A Force At Play”
“Dottie Back Thrash”
“Fear Of Being Fixed”
“Lambspring”
“Doubts”
“Dissembler”


“Lost Meaning” lyric video:





“A Force At Play” video:





(Photo – Vin Romero)

Canada's thrash metal machine Wreck-Defy, featuring guitarist Matt Hanchuck alongside former Archetype singer Greg "Wags" Wagner, former Testament bass player Greg Christian and drummer Dave O'Neal, have released a lyric video for their new single, "I'd Share Your Grave".


The track is is featured on the new album, The World Enslaved, available at all digital retailers and providers. Watch the video below.


Order the new album in digital format at the SubLevel Bandcamp site or anywhere digital music is sold.







Tracklisting:


"Bring It All Down"
"Fashionably Offended"
"Obey"
"Crushing The Coward"
"Tow The Line"
"I'd Share Your Grave"
"Death By War"
"Moment Of Clarity"
"Form Of Release"
"Kill The Pain"


"I'd Share Your Grave" lyric video:





"Fashionably Offended" lyric video:





Wreck-Defy is:


Greg “Wags” Wagner - Vocals
Matt Hanchuck - Guitar
Greg Christian - Bass
Dave O’Neal - Drums

In a new interview with Germany's Rock Antenne, SABATON singer Joakim Brodén spoke about what it has been like for him and his bandmates to play their first pandemic-era shows. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "One thing we've learned here is all countries handle this differently — very differently. In America [where we toured with JUDAS PRIEST], it worked fine, both from the audience perspective, I would say, and the touring-side perspective. JUDAS PRIEST did usually two shows after each other and then we had a day off; that was the normal thing. And every first show after a day off, we'd get tested — everyone in the touring party — before entering the venue. The people who came to the shows had to be vaccinated or have a test that's less than 24 hours or something like that. And pretty much it was very relaxed. We didn't go everywhere, but we were in, like, six or seven or eight states walking around, and it was a pretty relaxed situation. As soon as you go inside, mask up — regular mask — and then everything else was sort of normal and open."

Asked if he is afraid that SABATON's upcoming European tour, which is scheduled to kick off in March, might get canceled, Joakim said: "Nah, I don't think so. I'm not that worried at all. I mean, it might — I can't make any promises. You'll have to ask people higher up in the German government than I am. [Laughs] Unfortunately, I have not managed to become chancellor yet.

"It's a different situation for every country as well," he continued. "That's what's worrying more, I think. Because if we're touring America, it's one nation. Okay, different states, different rules, in a sense. But we're having a tour in Sweden in January, and I'm not worried at all, because that's one country — one government gets a say. The trick for bands today, and this is a real problem, especially now in these times, is that planning a tour, booking a tour, there is no centralized agreement. I'm not saying the European Union should do anything like that; I'm not here to talk politics at all. But the worry for any promoter or band or booking agent is, like, yeah, we can book a whole tour and then, let's say, France and Germany decide to lock down. That makes the whole tour impossible to do, because then the band would be losing money, and everybody would be losing money. And at this time, trust me, not many booking agents, promoters and bands can afford to lose any money. So that's the worry about doing… Those who've done tours now and sometimes had to cancel the whole tour — actually, technically, they could have gone to one country but they couldn't put on the tour because of other stuff."

SABATON's tenth studio album, "The War To End All Wars", will be released on March 4, 2022 via Nuclear Blast Records. Written and recorded during the COVID-19 global pandemic, the concept album of 11 brand-new songs once again dives deep into the atrocities, miracles, and events tied to the early 20th century’s World War I. The tenth album of the Falun, Sweden-based five-piece will be available in an impressive variety of exclusive formats, including CD, vinyl, and cassette, with most available in limited editions.

SABATON is considered to be one the most important bands to emerge from the Swedish modern metal scene, having been honored with five Metal Hammer Golden Gods Awards (including "Best Live Band" three different years) and nominated several times for the Swedish equivalent of the Grammy Awards, the Grammis. In 2016, SABATON's "The Last Stand" album debuted at No. 1 in three different European countries and cracked the Top 3 in four others. Joakim Brodén (vocals), Pär Sundström (bass), Chris Rörland (guitar), Hannes Van Dahl (drums) and Tommy Johansson (guitar) curate a festival of their own, Sabaton Open Air, that started back in 2008, as well as their own forward-thinking Sabaton Cruise which has been held since 2009.

THE ROLLING STONES had the highest-grossing tour in the world this year, according to Pollstar, the trade publication dedicated to covering the worldwide concert industry. The "No Filter" trek generated a total of $115.5 million from just 12 concerts. Other artists whose tours landed in the top 100 include GUNS N' ROSES, KISS, SLIPKNOT and MEGADETH / LAMB OF GOD.

The touring industry was one of the first sectors hit by the coronavirus pandemic in early 2020, and it may be one of the last to recover. One problem has been the inability to get foreign artists into the United States because of a long backlog of visa applications at American embassies and consulates.

Returning to the road after the touring industry shut down due to COVID has proven to be particularly gratifying for someone like GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Slash, who is notorious for spending most of his time playing live shows.

"GUNS just did a U.S. tour, which was a lot of fun," he told Germany's Radio Bob! in October. "It was great because you had all these crowds that were super hungry for live gigs. And so it was a very energetic tour. At the same time, [we] also had a lot of intense restrictions. We didn't have any kind of aftershow guests — no guests whatsoever — and we never left the hotel pretty much the entire time. And everybody just had to really keep it together so that we didn't have somebody get sick and have to postpone the tour and all that kind of stuff. But we made it through unscathed. So it was good."

These are some of the rock/metal artists who have made Pollstar's "2021 Year-End Top 100 Worldwide Tours" list:

01. THE ROLLING STONES ($115.5 million)

03. GREEN DAY, WEEZER, FALL OUT BOY ($67.3 million)

07. GUNS N' ROSES ($47.3 million)

30. KISS ($16.9 million)

42. SLIPKNOT's "Knotfest Roadshow" ($12.3 million)

48. KORN ($10.3 million)

53. ZZ TOP ($9.4 million)

61. MEGADETH, LAMB OF GOD ($7.9 million)

63. SHINEDOWN ($7.5 million)

64. THE BLACK CROWES ($7.4 million)

69. PRIMUS ($7.0 million)

76. FOREIGNER ($6 million)

85. FOO FIGHTERS ($4.5 million)

See the complete list at Pollstar

Cleveland masked metallers MUSHROOMHEAD have returned with a holiday gift for fans in the form of an eerie, cinematic and brutally blasphemous new music video for the "A Wonderful Life" favorite "A Requiem For Tomorrow", featuring the haunting contributions of the Cleveland Chamber Choir. Their hair-raising vocal backdrop combined with the band's trademark gruesome aesthetic, punishing sound, intricate costumes and detailed SFX makeup make for a chilling surprise to cap 2021.

MUSHROOMHEAD mastermind and drummer/percussionist Steve "Skinny" Felton states about the video: "Dr. F (Ryan Farrell) and the Cleveland Chamber Choir did such an amazing job that I felt compelled to bring it to life a little further.

"Some of the elements and characters in the video are roughly based on a short story that I've been working on for Sk1industries.

"Working under Covid conditions and restrictions certainly has put limitations on things, so I would personally like to thank the band, all of the crew and extras that believed and busted their asses to help me make this happen. Music and art is a privilege after all, and I don't take any of this for granted…"

MUSHROOMHEAD's eighth album, "A Wonderful Life", was released in June 2020 via Napalm Records. The follow-up to 2014's "The Righteous & The Butterfly" is accented by the sharp production of Felton, as well as the standout mixing prowess of Matt Wallace (FAITH NO MORE, 3 DOORS DOWN), also recognized for his work on the band's classic offering "XIII".

"A Wonderful Life" was MUSHROOMHEAD's first album since the March 2018 departures of longtime vocalist Jeff "Jeffrey Nothing" Hatrix and guitarist Tommy Church.

MUSHROOMHEAD is:

Mr. Rauckhorst - Vocals

J Mann - Vocals

Ms. Jackie - Vocals

Dr. F - Keyboards & Bass guitar

Tankx - Guitar

Stitch - Keyboards & Samples

Diablo - Drums/Percussion

Skinny - Drums/Percussion

Tye Trujillo, the 17-year-old son of METALLICA bassist Robert Trujillo, played bass with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES this past Saturday (December 11) at Amplified Live in Dallas, Texas. He was filling in for regular SUICIDAL TENDENCIES bassist Roberto "Ra" Díaz, who spent the last few months playing bass for KORN on the Jonathan Davis-fronted band's U.S. tour.

Tye shared a short video of the Dallas concert on his social media and wrote in an accompanying message: "Dallas was dope last weekend!".

This is not the first time Tye has played bass for SUICIDAL TENDENCIES. He previously joined the group in September at the Blue Ridge Rock Festival in Danville, Virginia and in October 2019 at the SoCal Hoedown in San Pedro, California.

When the younger Trujillo first performed with Mike Muir and his bandmates two years ago, SUICIDAL TENDENCIES praised the musician for "showing what a badass he already is on bass. His youthful enthusiasm was contagious, his bass skills undeniable," the group wrote on social media.

When he was just 12 years old, Tye Trujillo filled in for bassist Reginald "Fieldy" Arvizu for KORN's South American tour after Fieldy was unable to make the shows due to "unforeseen circumstances."

Robert Trujillo was first invited to join SUICIDAL TENDENCIES for a European tour in 1989 supporting East Coast thrashers ANTHRAX. While with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, Robert appeared on some of the band's most successful albums: "Lights, Camera, Action" (1990), "The Art Of Rebellion" (1992) and "Still Cyco After All These Years" (1993). During Trujillo's years with SUICIDAL, Muir heard some of Robert's homemade demos and they collaborated on a funkier, more progressive sound under the name INFECTIOUS GROOVES. They produced a number of albums such as "The Plague That Makes Your Booty Move..." (1991), "Sarsippius' Ark" (1993) and "Groove Family Cyco" (1994).






























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Uprising! Records announce that the French progressive metal unit, Spheric Universe Experience, is now a part of its roster. The quintet from Cote d'Azur will release a new studio album, titled Back Home, in May 2022.


The band comments about the signing: "As a band, we are extremely excited about joining the impressive roster of talented acts at Uprising!. A true honour. After years of hard work to deliver our best possible effort, Uprising! was definitely the best home for our long-awaited new studio release. The five of us are looking forward to 2022!"


The early beginning of Spheric Universe Experience (S.U.E.) dates back to 1999, when guitarist Vince Benaim decided to create a progressive metal band. After a couple of years of composing own material, the band recorded their first official album demo in April 2003, entitled The Burning Box. The demo was sent to Intromental Management, who immediately fell in love with the band's sound, and decided to offer them a management-deal. In the summer of 2004 S.U.E. signed a worldwide record deal with French label Replica Records. An American license was also inked with Nightmare Records. Four albums were released in the next few years, on labels such as Replica Records, Nightmare Records and Sensory Records.




Having toured extensively over the last few years; from France to Denmark, from Holland to Poland and from Italy to the USA, this band has explored the boundaries of the musical life within the genre, and have now spent the last five years, composing what is to be the absolute pinnacle of their career so far, namely the space-concept album, Back Home.


Soaring riffs, stunning solos, pounding rhythms and vocals that just nails, supreme. With a superb production from the talented producer Damien Rainaud, the Symphony X, Dream Theater and Queen inspired music is a statement, carved in stone.


“Back home” does not only mean back home to Earth for the space-travellers in the story of the concept, but it also means back home for the band, as they have returned to their original roots: to compose and create true, progressive masterpieces, for every album they make. In space, no one hears you scream, but S.U.E. are definitely set to make themselves heard here on Earth with Back Home.

Darian And Friends is a charity musical project created by Dario Beretta, guitarist of Drakkar and Crimson Dawn. With the help of an array of metal and rock musicians from around the world, Dario is working on a full-length album, which will be released in 2022.


Here you have the first single, "Lost Horizons", where Dario is joined by Ty Christian (Lords Of The Trident), Kristian Niemann (Sorcerer), Simone Pesenti Gritti (Drakkar) and Michele Sanna (Sunstorm). The song has been mixed and mastered by Mattia Stancioiu at Elnor Studio.







All profits from the album will be donated to research against Leukemia. Leukemia is an aggressive blood cancer that causes more than 300,000 deaths per year and is very common among children.


Dario said: "I always wanted to do something to help research finally find a cure against this terrible disease that, among others, also claimed a close friend of mine when we were just 19 years old. This project is my dedication to him and his strength of character, and a chance to try and do some good in a world which is looking worse and worse every day. I was lucky to have made quite a few friends over the 26 years I've been active in the metal underground, and they answered the call, which makes me proud. However, we also need support from you - the fans! So please share this as much as possible! Details about the release of the album and the ways to support our chosen charity will follow later. Keep in touch and help us fight for a better chance for the millions of people who struggle with this disease every day - and enjoy some cool music in doing so!"


Follow Darian’s artist page on Facebook for updates on the project.

Australian progressive metal band, Teramaze, fronted by guitarist and band founder Dean Wells, along side Chris Zoupa, Andrew Cameron and Nick Ross, have released a brand new song, "Battle". A video can be found below.


Says Dean Wells: “The song ’Battle’ was written during the extensive lockdowns that happened in Australia in 2021. Our lockdowns were especially harsh and drawn out in Melbourne where we live. The song was birthed from watching all of the protests, and people fighting for their basic human rights and freedoms. This whole event made me realize, more than ever before, the sheer power of the media and its utter manipulation of the public. It's so much greater than I ever thought it could be. ‘Battle’ is an anthem written to give hope and inspire people to stand and fight for what they truly believe in, even against all odds."







Teramaze released their new album, And The Beauty They Perceive, via the band’s own label Wells Music back in October.


Says Dean Wells about the album: "This is our third album released in under 12 months, and our ninth studio album as a band, I truly believe it's one of our greatest yet."


Chris Zoupa adds: "When writing ATBTP, we wanted the album to be 9 killer tracks that combined all the elements of technicality, emotion, orchestration and catchiness that can be found across every Teramaze album through the years. I think we comfortably achieved that, and all Teramaze fans are really going to dig this album!"





Tracklisting:


"And The Beauty They Perceive"
"Jackie Seth"
"Untide"
"Modern Living Space"
"Blood Of Fools"
"Waves"
"Son Rise"
"Search For The Unimaginable"
"Head Of The King"


"Untide" lyric video:





"And The Beauty They Perceive" video:





"Modern Living Space" video:





"Jackie Seth" video:





(Photo - Karina @ RadioHalo)

Bruck Kulick recently announced: "Each week I will be sharing a video of the second set at the Stardust Theater, filmed by my wife Lisa from the balcony. It's a great way to 'be there.' Enjoy!"


Today he releases "Tears Are Falling" from the show, which can be viewed below. A message states: "Another great song from Asylum LP, and never played live by KISS. It's a fan favorite."







Kulick and his band have performed on the last three KISS Kruises: KKXIII, KKIX, and KKX. His band plays songs from the '80s and '90s that aren't usually performed by KISS. Joining guitarist Bruce Kulick in his band are: Todd Kerns - lead vocals / guitar, Zach Throne - vocals / bass, and Brent Fitz - drums / vocals.


Watch previous videos from the Kruise:














"December 30th, I will be live at Vamp'd in Las Vegas with my amazing KKX band," states a recent message from Bruce. "Todd Kerns, Brent Fitz and Zach Throne will join me for an exciting set of music. Tickets are on sale, and VIP packages are limited, so visit the links on my site. It will be a special Bruce Kulick set of great music!"

On January 28, BMG will release Uriah Heep’s first two albums as limited edition vinyl picture discs. These beautifully presented albums begin a series of collector picture disc releases from the Uriah Heep catalogue. The artwork for each picture disc has been meticulously worked on, retouching the original art and creating a true visual feast.


Originally released in 1970 Uriah Heep’s pioneering debut album, …Very ‘Eavy …Very ‘Umble, features their first ever single, the classic "Gypsy", written by Mick Box and David Byron. While the striking  artwork features original frontman David Byron on the front, almost unrecognizable beneath cobwebs.


In 1971 Uriah Heep released their second album, Salisbury, which contains the hits "High Priestess" and "Lady In Black" with the 16-minute title track, featuring a 24-piece orchestra and is the first album to feature the song writing of Ken Hensley.




Both albums contain the original audio recorded in Landsdowne studios.


Uriah Heep are one of the “big four” rock bands, along with Led Zeppelin, Deep Purple and Black Sabbath, and certainly one of the most intriguing bands both musically and lyrically, to emerge from heavy rock.


Evoking an era when prog, hard rock and heavy metal co-existed in an era of glorious, boundary-breaking music, Uriah Heep rose from inexperienced studio musicians with everything to prove to bona fide limo inhabiting rock stars.


After selling over 40 million albums worldwide, over the years Uriah Heep have influenced many different metal bands around the globe, among the most popular being Dio. Bands including A-ha, King Diamond, Krokus, Demons & Wizards, Fifth Angel and Axel Rudi Pell have all cited Uriah Heep as a band of personal influence, while W.A.S.P, Tesla and Blackmore’s Night have all covered the band’s songs.


Pre-order …Very ‘Eavy Very ‘Umble… here. Pre-order Salisbury here.





Very ‘Eavy, Very ‘Umble  tracklisting:


A Side:
"Gypsy"
"Walking In Your Shadow"
"Come Away Melinda"
"Lucy Blues"


B Side:
"Dreammare"
"Real Turned On"
"I’ll Keep On Trying"
"Wake Up (Set Your Sights)"





Salisbury tracklist:


A Side:
"Bird Of Prey"
"The Park"
"Time To Live"
"Lady In Black"


B Side:
"High Priestess"
"Salisbury"


(Photo - Richard Stow)

Canada’s Caveat has a new album coming out early next year, the first since Consummation which came out in 2016. The Calgary-based band has been around for close to two decades and prides itself on being an experimental band that would essentially operate on having no genre restrictions when it came to songwriting. That philosophy is present to this day, especially in the new album Alchemy when comparing songs such as the first single “Infinite” to “Until Dawn”, which sound like two completely different bands and genres.


“Infinite” was the first song written for this album and is by far the heaviest song with an almost Gojira feel at times. The lyrics explore peeling away and coming to terms with our own fears and how fear motivates so much of our human lives, with lines like “We feed upon the will of what grows in shadows”. The band explains in further detail:


“The first and heaviest song written for the new album, it is a full-on ripper from start to finish showcasing frantic vocal trade-offs between Amanda and Greg throughout the song, blistering guitar, and bass work, with Casey’s relentless drumming giving the listener a fist-pumping, hand banging hell of a good time. This song promises to inspire mosh pits and sore necks alike when we bring it to the live stage with a frenzy of top-notch heavy fucking metal at its finest”




Having worked together for so long, the music comes organically to Caveat, according to them they write music until they feel like we have a cohesive collection of songs that work well together and then assemble that into a cohesive listening experience. Even after all this time together, they still enjoy writing and playing together, so new music is always on the horizon.


Caveat is both experimental and engaging and recommended for fans of Meshuggah, Opeth, and Cynic.


The music video for their first single “Infinite” can be seen and heard via its premiere on BraveWords; watch below:





Alchemy will be available on February 11, 2022.





Tracklisting:


“Silver”
“Alchemy”
“Infinite”
“Black Mirror”
“Ghost”
“Until Dawn”
“Zero Hour”


(Photo: Monika Deviat)

Progressive rock trio Time Dwellers, the brainchild of former Graviators guitarist Martin Fairbanks and multi-instrumentalist and singer Kristofer Stjernquist, has inked a worldwide record deal with Argonauta Records, who will release the band’s first full-length album in 2022!


Formed in 2017, the Time Dwellers blend anything from rock to prog, funk, and jazz to compose a potpourri of songs that are still coherent and cohesive. Their upcoming debut, entitled Novum Aurora, showcases a musical landscape filled with mellotron, 12-string guitar, synthesizers, grooving rhythms, thrilling guitar solos and imaginative existential lyrics delivered from a whisper to a lion’s roar. 


In a world that's growing more cynical by the minute, where popular music, at the same rate, is getting saturated and bland, the Time Dwellers set out to put a blanket around you and soothe your aching soul, while not fearing any musical limits and borders. Give ear, as today the trio hailing from the South of Sweden premiered a first track taken from Novum Aurora! Listen to "Tabular Balls" below




"Novum Aurora is an album with a lyrical theme about the apocalypse, the direction we are headed, but also of hope and beauty, that there will be a new dawn, perhaps a spiritual awakening,“ the band explains. "We are all Time Dwellers in the sense that we live here and now in the present.There is no future, there is no past, there is only now. Transform and transcend along with your fellow Time Dwellers! You are the sun, it’s time to rise and shine."


Novum Aurora is slated for a 2022 release through Argonauta Records, with many more details and singles to follow soon.





Time Dwellers are: 


Kristofer Stjernquist - lead vocals, mellotron, synthesizers, pedal bass, electric bass, 12-string guitar, rhythm guitar
Martin Fairbanks - lead guitar, rhythm guitar, backing vocals
Henrik Bergman - drums, percussion, backing vocals


Find the Time Dwellers online here.

The fury of Italy's The Human Tornado will be unleashing the new album Love Is Démodé on March 11, 2022 via Rockshots Records.


The band is sharing their first single "Dreamland" with an epic music video.







"Each one of us has an inner dark side, and we often have to control it to be able to do the best we can in everyday life. Dreamland is our invitation to fight and win our private monster accompanying us throughout life. So we chose this song as the first single because it represents our desire to fight and do our best on stage. The sound impact is strong, the drumming is powerful, the guitar riff is defined from the beginning to the end so that our message remains well impressed in our audience’s mind," adds the band.





The Human Tornado's sophomore follow-up Love Is Démodé was self-produced by the band with mixing and mastering done by Marco Paradisi at Boat Studio. The album will feature ten hurricane tour de force tracks that will leave fans breathless and eager to set the track listing on repeat from beginning to end.


"Every song is played with heart and soul and we wanted to explore new sounds, but without forgetting our heavy rock imprint, so we produced an intense groovy album with more melodic openings," adds the band.


The lyrical concept behind the album is love, one of the strongest feelings of deep affection. It has different aspects and it can be addressed to another person, an animal, or a passion. But, if it’s pure, this doesn’t matter.


The band explains further: "For some years this feeling of love has been declining, going out of fashion. In fact, in our society finding people loving what they do is increasingly difficult and often image, power, success are the most important aspects of life. Moreover, these goals are more and more often achieved by means of questionable actions and negative feelings. In this album we want to express our idea of love in particular towards music, showing in every single song even the dark and negative sides coming from love in our life."


The Human Tornado will be revealing tracklisting, album artwork, singles and videos in lead up to the release of Love Is Démodé.

Swedish heavy metal newcomers Perpetual Etude released their debut album, Now Is The Time, earlier this autumn. The group has now released a new music video for the track "Sail Away" from the record, which features guest vocals from Göran Edman (Headless, Yngwie J. Malmsteen, Karmakanic).





Perpetual Etude was formed in 2019 by Magnus Mild with the sole goal of bringing back the best heavy metal of the ’80s. Influenced by the genre when growing up, Magnus teamed up with members from NorthTale, ex-members from Dionysys, Nation, and Shadowquest, as well as Göran Edman on “Sail Away” to complete the vision. The result is the best of a whole decade in the forthcoming debut, Now Is The Time, an album filled with catchy choruses. Now Is The Time will see an October 15th release via Black Lodge.







"Show Me" lyric video: 





 

NONPOINT will release its new EP, "Ruthless", on December 27. The official music video for single "Back In The Game" will arrive on the same day.

With the roar of one word "independence", NONPOINT has transcended the underground and taken its rightful place in metal history. Even now they continue to change the rules with their newest song "Back In The Game", which keeps the NONPOINT tradition of inviting you in close, kicking you in the chest, then imprisoning an infectious lyric like "'cause you're looking at a one-man death squad" into your mind knowing it will never escape. This song and official video go live across all streaming platforms December 27 at midnight along with the remaining songs from the "Ruthless" EP. This follows NONPOINT's independent label plan of delivering music to its fans through more frequent releases and videos from the band.

NONPOINT singer Elias Soriano stated: "This song sums up our view on how we approached independence from the very beginning. We will be small but mighty. Like the song says, 'I may be one man, but I'm a death squad.' We give everything we've got with ultimate absolution."

Now with the success of NONPOINT's new independent label 361 Degrees Records, the band continues to add to its story as it partners with Amuse Music distribution, an independent music distribution company which helps independent artists stay independent with an unbelievable team that helps them grow beyond their reach.

In 2021 alone, NONPOINT's song "Ruthless" reached #16 on Billboard's Rock chart and was featured on the New Metal Tracks and Kickass Metal Playlist on Spotify with over 1.6 million combined subscribers, SiriusXM Octane's Big Uns Countdown, LA Lloyd Top 30 and Loudwire Nights. "Ruthless" was also the featured track on AEW's nationally televised event "Blood And Guts" on TNT in May 2021. "Ruthless" has reached over 3.5 million streams. Now NONPOINT's fan-voted cover of Prince's "When Doves Cry", at over 1 million streams, has quickly become a fan favorite, from the crowd applause at shows to their support and momentum online.

NONPOINT's touring in 2022 continues with January dates throughout the country, along with an appearance on the ShipRocked cruise.

"Ruthless" EP track listing:

01. Back In The Game

02. Get Better

03. I Don't Care

04. Ruthless

05. When Doves Cry

NONPOINT launched its independent record label 361 Degrees Records LLC in January of this year. They filmed the process of starting the label and making new music in a docu-series titled "A Path To Independence" that can be seen on the band's YouTube and official web site.

NONPOINT's songs "Bullet With A Name", "Alive And Kicking", "In The Air Tonight", "Circles", "Your Signs", "Everybody Down" and many others have been featured in trailers, hit movies, television, iconic video games, as well as broadcasts from NFL, NBA, MLB, NHL, WWF.

NONPOINT has toured with major acts like DISTURBED, PAPA ROACH, MUDVAYNE and SEVENDUST, to name a few. They have also been featured on the main stages and support stages of iconic festivals like Soundwave, Rock Am Park, Rock Am Ring, Ozzfest, Rock On The Range, Welcome To Rockville and many more.

Photo credit: Francesca Ludikar