On August 18, 2021, Heart vocalist Ann Wilson played a solo show at the Hampton Beach Casino Ballroom in New Hampshire. She's since uploaded video of her performing Led Zeppelin's "Going To California", during the encore of that concert.  





Catch Ann Wilson live at Rockfest in Los Cabos, Mexico on May 13, 2022. 







 

In a new interview with Robert Cavuoto of Metal Rules, SAXON frontman Biff Byford was asked at which point he and his bandmates started to reap the finical benefits of their success. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't think we ever did, to tell you the truth. I don't think I can remember having a big, fat check. You have to remember that in '83, around the 'Power & The Glory' time, is when we really started to break America. And I think something happened with the record company at that point. We were touring with [IRON] MAIDEN — a pretty big tour — and then halfway through, it sort of stopped. So I don't really know what happened. Maybe because you had to buy on the tours back then. I don't know. Something happened and we were taken off and I think FASTWAY was moved up the bill and someone else on before them. I don't know. Maybe there was a lot of political talking going on behind our backs. There's people who said that [IRON MAIDEN singer] Bruce [Dickinson] didn't like the way we were going down. I don't know if that is true or not, but it has been said.

"At that point, [around] 'Power & The Glory', we could have broken America quite big," he continued. "We should have broken America on 'Wheels Of Steel', but it was a French [record] company [we were on], so they really didn't know what the fuck they were doing. 'Crusader' was the first headline tour we did of America, and that was with ACCEPT, which was very, very successful. I just think that, for some reason, 'Wheels Of Steel', 'Strong Arm Of The Law' and 'Denim And Leather' didn't really have enough momentum in America as MAIDEN's albums did, for some reason. I think it's down to management and record company. I think 'Denim And Leather' and 'Strong Arm Of The Law' are just as good as 'The Number Of The Beast'…

"A lot of American people, ['Power & The Glory'] is their favorite [SAXON] album," Biff added. "It was the first time we ever saw some of them, and it was the first time we got airplay — MTV. And I think we were on the Billboard charts at some point with 'Power & The Glory', and the tour was absolutely massively successful. So it was a great tour to be on. I just think that whether it was our manager that decided we could do it on our own, or something happened, and it just didn't quite take us far enough, if you know what I mean. In some states in America, we were massive, and in other states we couldn't [draw any crowds]. And that's the problem — I don't think we had the record sales in America that anybody else had. So I don't think we had that big check. 'Power & The Glory' didn't sell a million albums in America when we were there. I think if it had, then that would have given us the power to go on and to get quite a lot of money. The way it was then, I don't think it was set up for the band to make any money. At that point there, we could have broken America. 'Power & The Glory' could have been a platinum album — definitely."

SAXON will release its 23rd studio album, "Carpe Diem", on February 4, 2022 via Silver Lining Music. The LP was produced by Andy Sneap (JUDAS PRIEST, EXODUS, ACCEPT) at Backstage Recording Studios in Derbyshire with Byford and Sneap mixing and mastering.

Former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson is parting ways with several signed pieces of the band's gear.

Ellefson's official merchandise site has listed five signed MEGADETH-related items, including an album-used Hamer 12-string bass guitar (price: $1,500), a tour-played black Jackson CBXM IV David Ellefson X Series signature bass ($1,500), a tour-used Jackson X Series David Ellefson signature series concert bass CBX five-string bass guitar ($2,500), MEGADETH tour-used Hartke Hydrive 8x10" cabinets in flight cases ($4,000) and a MEGADETH tour-used flight case with five Hartke LH1000 Heads ($6,500).

Ellefson was fired from MEGADETH earlier this year after sexually tinged messages and explicit video footage involving the bassist were posted on Twitter. At the time, Ellefson was accused of grooming an underage girl through videos and online messages. David has denied the allegation and has repeatedly said the woman in question had been a willing, consenting adult at the time of their virtual sexual encounter. Ellefson accompanied his denial with an alleged screenshot of a statement from the woman with whom he was supposedly involved at the time. In it, the woman admitted to recording the alleged intimate communications she had with Ellefson and called herself "naïve" for sharing them with a friend without the musician's permission.

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 frontman 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.

David, a Christian who launched the Mega Life Ministries worship group in 2007, studied for a year at Concordia Lutheran Seminary in St. Louis nearly a decade

On August 14th, German thrash legends Kreator perfornmed at the Bloodstock Open Air at Catton Hall and Gardens in Walton-on-Trent, England. Pro-shot video of "Extreme Aggression" can be viewed below.


The setlist on the night was as follows:


"Violent Revolution"
"Extreme Aggression"
"Phobia"
"Terrible Certainty"
"Satan Is Real"
"Hordes of Chaos (A Necrologue for the Elite)"
"Hail to the Hordes"
"666 - World Divided"
"Enemy of God"
"People of the Lie"
"Endless Pain"
"Phantom Antichrist"
"Fallen Brother"
"Flag of Hate"
"Betrayer" (with Dani Filth)
"Pleasure to Kill"







Kreator have released a recap video for their performance at Bloodstock. Watch below.


Says the band: "Hordes of Bloodstock Open Air! Thank you for joining us for an evening of chaos and unleashing the demon on Catton Park... we'll be back soon."

STAIND frontman Aaron Lewis has once again accused the U.S. Democratic Party of being responsible for the "systemic racism" that exists in the country.

The outspoken conservative rocker, who reinvented himself as a solo country artist in the last decade, voiced his views before performing his new single called "Am I The Only One" during his December 9 concert at Martin Woldson Theater at the Fox in Spokane, Washington.

He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I'm gonna be 50 in April. So I've been around the block a couple of times and I know what's truth and I know what's bullshit. And really what the Democrats are asking me to do right now is to forget the last 45 years of my life and only remember the last five. And I'm sorry — I can't do that. I know the truth. And something tells me that everybody in this room knows the truth too."

Lewis paused before continuing: "Well, that was pretty good. I got through that one with a 'G' rating. I might not be in trouble tomorrow for that one. That was pretty gentle." He then quickly changed his tone, adding: "Fuck that! The Democrats did it all. They did. Go find an old history book — an old one, before they got a hold of it. 'Cause I remember history. I liked history class. I paid close attention. I know who owned the slaves. I know who started the KKK. I know who voted in all the Jim Crow laws. And I now know that the same fucking people are trying to teach our children to hate each other for the color of their skin. Same folks. Same folks.

"There's your systemic racism throughout history of the United States Of America — it's the Democratic party," Aaron said. "And that's the truth. And they'll fact-check me and crucify me tomorrow for it. But that's okay. Because the truth shall set you free, motherfuckers."

In recent months, Lewis has repeatedly accused the Democratic Party of fighting against every major civil rights initiative and of having a long history of discrimination.

According to a "fact-check" article that was published by USA Today in June 2020, historians agree that although factions of the Democratic Party did majorly contribute to the Civil War's start and the KKK's founding, it is inaccurate to say the party is responsible for either.

As the Democrats introduced policies to support voting rights, it became the favored party for most black voters and has remained so since. With that realignment, many racist voters who opposed the Civil Rights Act of 1964 left the Democratic Party to become Republicans.

Lewis, who is widely considered to be one of the most politically conservative musicians in rock, made headlines in 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.

Cradle Of Filth have checked in with the following update:


"Who’s proudly repping their 'Hail Santa' sweater for Save The Children UK Christmas Jumper Day today? Tag us in your photos! ⁣


Our fully knitted 'Hail Santa'  holiday sweater is available to ship now. Head on over to Probity Worldwide and Night Shift Merch for yours!"







Cradle Of Filth released their new album, Existence Is Futile, on October 22nd via Nuclear Blast. The album consists of 12 new tracks with a total playing time of 54 minutes.





Tracklisting:


"The Fate Of The World On Our Shoulders"
"Existential Terror"
"Necromantic Fantasies"
"Crawling King Chaos"
"Here Comes A Candle… (Infernal Lullaby)"
"Black Smoke Curling From The Lips Of War"
"Discourse Between A Man And His Soul"
"The Dying Of The Embers"
"Ashen Mortality"
"How Many Tears To Nurture A Rose?"
"Suffer Our Dominion"
"Us, Dark, Invincible"
"Sisters Of The Mist" (Bonus track)
"Unleash The Hellion" (Bonus track)


Check out Aaron Small's Bravewords feature here.


"Crawling King Chaos" video:

On the occasion of the 15th anniversary of their album Deaf To Our Prayers, Heaven Shall Burn have announced the release of a vinyl re-issue of this timeless genre classic.


Remastered for vinyl by the band’s very own Alexander Dietz, this masterpiece, which was originally released in 2006, will be available on March 4, 2022, as Gatefold LP featuring special liner notes and comes with a new track running order for an ideal vinyl side split.


The band states, “After the international success of Antigone, for the first time we felt something like pressure from expectation while working on the new record. We all were very busy with our school and studies at that time. Yet Alex had already integrated himself very well into the band and immediately took on an important role in the pre-production and recording.




“Although the expectations of labels and fans were quite high, we were not aware of how important DTOP should be in retrospect.


“Songs from DTOP are an indispensable part of an HSB live show today and the opener ‘Counterweight’ is an example of the musical influences and the attitude of the band. We are still very proud of the record and hope you have as much fun with the great gatefold vinyl as we do!”


Find preorder options here.





The vinyl version will be available in the following colours:


-Black vinyl, unlimited
-White vinyl, limited to 300 copies worldwide, only available at EU onlineshop
-Transparent blue vinyl, limited to 500 copies worldwide, only available at CMDistro Wholesale EU & EU onlineshop
-Transparent green vinyl, limited to 300 copies worldwide, only available at EMP
-Orange vinyl, limited to 300 copies worldwide, only available at Nuclear Blast
-White-black haze vinyl, limited to 500 copies worldwide, only available at Impericon Bandshop
-Red vinyl, limited to 300 copies worldwide, only available at Impericon Bandshop
-Hot Pink vinyl, limited to 300 copies worldwide, only available at centurymedia.store US onlinehop

Following the surprise release of their 7" vinyl single titled “Last Christmas” a few weeks ago, Scandinavian all-star outfit At The Movies is back to present the world with the third single off their upcoming albums, The Soundtrack Of Your Life - Vol. 2 (featuring movie hits from the ‘90s) and The Soundtrack Of Your Life - Vol. 1 (reissue featuring movie hits from the ‘80s), both set for release on January 7 through Atomic Fire Records.





Guitarist Chris Laney recalls, "This is just one of those songs that got to me the second I heard it back then. It has that melancholic melody that I so love. When I heard Linnéa's and Björn's vocal takes on it, ‘I just died.’"




If there are two things that we ever-arguing humans can agree on, it’s movies and music. A close inspection of all those iconic, generation-defining, mind-blowing flicks of the ‘80s and ‘90s reveal that it’s the very amalgamation of the two that does the trick: There’s no blockbuster from that era that doesn’t have an equally legendary theme song or soundtrack.


Explosive all-star assembly At The Movies are fully aware of this. On their rocking cinematic spectaculars The Soundtrack Of Your Life – Vol. 1 & 2, the super group led by Chris Laney (Pretty Maids) turn some of the most memorable and quintessential film songs of the ‘80s and ‘90s into hard rocking, entertaining versions you most certainly haven’t heard before nor ever expected to. Grab your popcorn, take a seat: we’re At The Movies, the lights go down and the show is about to begin.


“I just love to disappear for a while. Shut out the real world and just think of something else for two hours – even more so last year,” Chris Laney says of his passion for movies, citing E.T. as his all-time favorite. “I was watching all these movies during lockdown because I had literally nothing better to do,” he remembers. “I confess that I am a sucker for rom-coms like Music And Lyrics with Hugh Grant. This film features this unbelievably cheesy song ‘Pop Goes My Heart’ and I just loved that song!,” the Swede laughs. “I instantly needed to make a demo of that song right away because I wanted to find out how it would sound as a rock version.”


Just for fun, he sent it to Danish drummer Allan Sørensen (Royal Hunt) who was equally excited about the prospect of interpreting famous theme songs. “And that’s what started it all,” Laney shrugs. “We were simply looking for something to have fun within these times so I called up a couple of friends and everybody was very eager to join.” Laney's musician "friends" -- namely Björn “Speed” Strid (Soilwork, The Night Flight Orchestra), Linnéa Vikström (Ronnie Atkins, Therion), Morten Sandager (ex-Pretty Maids), Pontus Egberg (King Diamond, Wolf), and Pontus Norgren (Hammerfall) -- would ultimately form the super group that is At The Movies. “I am blessed to be friends with all these talented people,” says Laney. “I played in bands with some of them, I worked with some others individually, played live or simply met them on the road. The interesting thing is that we still haven’t been in the same room. Yet.”


With Volume 1 focusing on the ‘80s, At The Movies offers their wildly entertaining and uplifting take on classics like “St. Elmo's Fire” (from St. Elmo’s Fire), “We Don't Need Another Hero” (from Mad Max: Beyond Thunderdome), “The Power Of Love” (from Back To The Future), and “The Neverending Story” (from The Neverending Story). “Picking songs was fairly easy,” the mastermind explains. “I knew that I wanted to focus on the non-rock songs. Of course, there are great ones like ‘Danger Zone’ or ‘Eye Of The Tiger’ but they already are rock songs. We wanted to see what happens when you take disco songs or these huge and dramatic pop ballads and turn them into rockers. In the end,” he laughs, “this meant replacing lots of saxophone with electric guitars.”


Volume 2 directly plunges into the ‘90s. “Waiting For A Star To Fall” (from Three Men And A Little Lady), “When You Say Nothing At All” (from Notting Hill), the riff-heavy rocker that once was Jennifer Paige’s teen pop soundtrack anthem “Crush,” or the furious glam rock extravaganza “Venus” make it pretty clear that their only agenda was fun. After all, why would a troupe of well-established heavy metallers take on a song like “I Want It That Way” by Backstreet Boys? “We were going for songs you wouldn’t normally take on as a rock band,” Laney tells us. “What we were asking ourselves all the time was: can we get away with this? And of course, we can because we have nothing to lose. We can do whatever we like.” He marvels, “We never actually thought anybody would care about that but then all of a sudden, the uploaded songs became quite popular. And there we were, doing song after song. Every Thursday at 7:00pm.”


With the parallel re-issue of Volume 1 (including a bonus track) and the brand-new Volume 2, At The Movies proves to be movie lovers with a heart of rock and a penchant for fun. Recorded remotely, brought together in Chris Laney’s home studio, both installments of The Soundtrack Of Your Life offer up some of the finest blockbuster entertainment on a Hollywood scale, paving the way for future cinematic endeavors. “We’ll figure something out soon,” Laney is sure. “I would love to do a Disney special but I’m not sure Disney will like it. Maybe we’re going back to the ‘60s. You never know.” What we do know, however, is the guarantee of success once this all-star vessel hits festival stages. Chris Laney concludes, “What could be better to open up a day at a big festival with songs like these?” What indeed.





The Soundtrack Of Your Life - Vol. 1 (Re-Release) tracklist:


"Intro"
"No Easy Way Out"
"Maniac"
"St. Elmo's Fire"
"A View To A Kill"
"(I've Had) The Time Of My Life"
"Wouldn't It Be Good"
"We Don't Need Another Hero (Thunderdome)"
"The Power Of Love"
"The Heat Is On"
"The Neverending Story"
"Far From Over"
"Last Christmas" (Bonus Track)


Pre-order here.





The Soundtrack Of Your Life - Vol. 2 tracklist:


"Waiting For A Star To Fall"
"King Of Wishful Thinking"
"The One And Only"
"When You Say Nothing At All"
"(I Just) Died In Your Arms"
"(You Drive Me) Crazy"
"Heaven Is A Place On Earth"
"Crush"
"I've Been Thinking About You"
"Venus"
"I Want It That Way"


Pre-order here.





(Photo - Christel Mentges)

Frontiers Music Srl has released The Inner Side, the debut album from Italian symphonic metal band, Agarthic. Check out a lyric video for the song "A Heaven Inside This Earth" below.


The Inner Side was recorded under the direction of producer Aldo Lonobile (Secret Sphere, Archon Angel, Timo Tolkki’s Avalon, etc.). Order/save The Inner Side here.


Based in Northern Italy, Agarthic was founded in 2019 by composer and bassist Mattia Gosetti and vocalist Valeriano De Zordo. The two musicians, tied by a strong friendship, had already worked together several times over the past years, but mostly just some shows and theatrical performances and never a proper band.




"As a big fan of rock and metal music, I've always followed with great enthusiasm the release of albums by labels. I remember reading album booklets when I was just a kid, dreaming to see my name printed on one of those one day... who would have ever imagined that happening with one of the most important labels of today?" says vocalist Valeriano De Zordo. "For several years, I've been really interested in knowing all the ancient legends and mysteries about the forgotten history of our planet, especially the theories about the hollow earth. I've always been fascinated by it. And when this chance to make an album was offered, the task was quite easy....all I had to do was to combine my two major passions and turn all these themes finally into music!" continues De Zordo.


Adds composer and bassist Mattia Gosetti, "My greatest passion is to write musical stories, to create soundtracks for romantic adventures and fascinating places. I am really proud to have been noticed by a successful label like Frontiers Music, in whose roster there are many of the most famous bands in the world. The enthusiasm for the signing of the contract and the collaboration with Aldo Lonobile, an artist that I have always esteemed and admired, has been fundamental for the realization of this symphonic metal concept. I am experiencing an artistic growth that I would have never hoped for and I will never be grateful enough for all this.”


Valeriano has been active in several bands in the area of Belluno, singing both covers and original music, which brought him recognition thanks to his melodic timbre and great ability as a performer.


Mattia is a symphonic rock composer, with his works mostly dedicated to the history of land located on the Alps, musical tales that he often presents in theater settings. His deep passion for symphonic rock has always been apparent, but in particular when he and his wife won the "Elan Cover Contest”, an international competition organized by Nightwish.


The band's line up is rounded out by two other talented Italian musicians, Jesai Fiabane on guitar and Denis Novello on drums.


Agarthic's music is strongly inspired by the nature that surrounds them, in particular by the Dolomites, a mountain range in Italy. Their compositions tell stories of fantasy and mysteries of humanity, a romantic and enveloping soundtrack that will take you on a thrilling journey with cinematic flavor.





Tracklisting:


"The Beginning Of All"
"The Ancient Secret Scroll"
"A Journey To The End Of The World"
"A Heaven Inside This Earth"
"Through The Mystical Forest"
"Message From The Gods"
"Back Home"
"Negotiations Failed"
"Escape To Antarctica"
"Last Journey"
"Illuminati's Reign"


"A Heaven Inside This Earth" lyric video:





"The Ancient Secret Scroll":





"A Journey To The End Of The World" video:





Lineup:


Valeriano De Zordo - Vocals
Mattia Gosetti - Bass, Orchestral Synth
Jesai Fiabane - Guitars
Denis Novello - Drums


Guest vocals on “Negotiations Failed” by Fabio Lione
Guitar solo on “Negotiations Failed” by Aldo Lonobile
Rhythm Guitars by Federico Maraucci
All choirs by Valeriano De Zordo, Mattia Gosetti, Marco Pastorino and Sonia Da Col

After releasing their digital EP We Are Nøt Okay in early 2021, rising German-Austrian nu-metal stars Oceans recently unveiled their new digital single "Sulfur" via Nuclear Blast.


Today, they return with yet another pummeling, driving, yet melodic and most of all melancholic anthem, titled "The Awakening". The single comes with a beautiful music video that can be seen below.







Timo Rotten comments: “’The Awakening’ is a love letter to the people who are here for us at our darkest. At that moment when you hit rock bottom and fall into the void of nothingness. No hope, no light, just emptiness. But then someone reaches out and pulls you out of this misery. We want to thank you. You know who you are!”





"The Awakening" is part of the digital EP Hell Is Where The Heart Is - Part I: Love, which will be released on January 14. Pre-save the EP here.


Previous single "Sulfur" is both harsh and emotional, driven by heavy guitars, brutal drums, desperate screams, and eventually uplifting clean vocals. The single comes with a haunting music video, that you can watch below. Get the single digitally, here.


Timo Rotten comments: “'Sulfur' is a love song but in a very unconventional way. You know the situation: you and your loved one get into a serious fight, doors slamming and all. And then sometimes, things are being thrown at each other that shouldn’t have been said… words that sting like knives. This is where love burns like sulfur.”


Get the official "Sulfur" merchandise, here.





Oceans is:


Timo Rotten - Vocals, Guitar
Patrick Zarske - Guitar
Thomas Winkelmann - Bass
J.F. Grill - Drums

Queensrÿche singer Todd La Torre recently joined The Metal Voice guys as they counted down their top 10 Metal albums of 2021.





During the chat La Torre revealed that he will be releasing a second studio album he said, "Craig Blackwell (guitarist) has already started writing ideas. Obviously, I am in the middle of Queensrÿche music and we will be recording in the beginning of January 2022. But once that is all done I will dig into my solo stuff and then I think I might also do an EP of melodic black metal. However, the next solo record I will do with Rat Pak Records will be in the same vein of my first solo record, more of that style."







La Torre’s solo debut, Rejoice In The Suffering, came in at #28 on our BravePicks 2021 countdown. Read more about it here.

Thomas Zwijsen has released the new video below, featuring an acoustic guitar cover of Iron Maiden's "The Prophecy", from the 1988 album, Seventh Son Of A Seventh Son. The extended acoustic outro features Wiki Violin and Thomas on acoustic guitars, bass and mandolin.





In a previous clip, Zwijsen performs an acoustic cover of Iron Maiden's "Darkest Hour". The song is featured on the band's new album, Senjutsu.

This past spring, DREAM THEATER singer James LaBrie joined forces with Canadian rockers FALSET, who feature in their ranks his son, drummer Chance LaBrie, to record a cover of the MÖTLEY CRÜE classic "Kickstart My Heart". Asked in a new interview with Kyle Meredith how the track came about, James said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "My son, he's in FALSET. They came up to me. Chance and the guitar player Zach [Copeland], who also is the singer in the band, they just said, 'Hey, would you be willing to sing on this track?' Because I used to be in a band back in the '80s called SHOCK CANDY and we used to cover a lot of MÖTLEY CRÜE. I've always thought Nikki Sixx [MÖTLEY CRÜE bassist] is a brilliant freakin' musician and writer and I did love MÖTLEY CRÜE. So, anyways, they knew about that and they said, 'You have a history. You sang this stuff.' I said, 'Yeah, for sure.' And they said, 'Well, would you be willing to do this track?' And I said, 'Absolutely. Let's go for it.' So I sang it in my studio here in my house and we had a great time. And Zach also sang on that as well and he should be credited."

He continued: "But here's the crazy thing: so my tour manager who's been our tour manager, DREAM THEATER's tour manager, for the last — oh my God — almost 20 years, Rikk Feulner, he e-mailed me and he said, 'Hey, man, I just got an e-mail from Mick Mars [MÖTLEY CRÜE guitarist], and he heard the track and he absolutely loves it. He thought you guys did a brilliant job.' So when I told my son and his bandmates that, they were flipping out. 'No way.' It was really cool."

When FALSET's cover of "Kickstart My Heart" was first released in early June, James said: "To cover MÖTLEY CRÜE's 'Kickstart My Heart' with FALSET was both a blast and reminiscent of when I was in a band called SHOCK CANDY back in '86. SHOCK CANDY was a MÖTLEY CRÜE cover band and I had one hell of time touring with this band. Needless to say, when asked to be involved and sing this MÖTLEY classic with FALSET, I jumped at the opportunity."

He added: "The CRÜE was always to me that raw, down-to-earth, kick-ass rock band that many acts wish they could imitate and attain, but such heights were enjoyed by very few, and the CRÜE did it and played it like no other.

"Hope you all enjoy this cover by FALSET and myself and do yourself a huge favor and check out FALSET's originals. This band has it all going on — great structure, killer riffs and undeniable hooks. They are an undeniable emerging musical force to be reckoned with.

"Crank this tune up to maximum and see you all out on tour sometime soon."

Added Chance: "I remember as a kid I'd always look up to my dad. I thought being in a band and travelling around the world to play songs was the coolest job ever. I still think that. Flash-forward to now and we are now dropping a song together… it's absolutely crazy. We all had a lot of fun working on this one. We hope you enjoy this homage to the great MÖTLEY CRÜE."

FALSET released its debut album, "We Follow Or Lead The Way", in October 2020. Produced by Zach Copeland and mixed by Nolly Getgood (PERIPHERY, DEVIN TOWNSEND), the LP combines metalcore, modern rock, djent, and prog elements highlighted by heavy-hitting breakdowns, soaring melodic vocals, and virtuosic guitar solos for a collection of exciting and memorable material.

STRYPER frontman Michael Sweet says that he turned down an opportunity to produce an album from former QUEENSRŸCHE singer Geoff Tate because he "didn't want to cause any problems with the friendships" he has with members of the current QUEENSRŸCHE lineup.

Sweet shared the details of his proposed collaboration with Tate in a social media post on Wednesday (December 1). He wrote: "Interesting story: I had the opportunity to write and produce an album for Geoff Tate. I was contacted by Frontiers Music srl and asked to do so. Geoff was also on board (hopefully he won't threaten my well being by saying so). Although I thought long and hard about the opportunity, I didn't want to cause any problems with the friendships I have with the band. And there were a few other factors involved as well.

"Fast forward a few months later when I was in Brazil performing a solo acoustic set and guess who's sitting right in front of me, front and center? Geoff Tate and his wife Susan! Let's just say that I was sweating a little more than usual that night;-) Geoff and Susan were gracious, kind and sat through the entire set and were even singing along to a few tunes. I of course announced that Geoff was there as he raised his glass of wine to the crowd. It was a night to remember for sure.

"After the show I met with Geoff and Susan backstage and we discussed the possibilities. I wasn't definitively certain that I would not be working with him at that moment so we left it with 'let's talk soon' and that was it. When I returned home I decided that it wouldn't be in the best interest of either one of us to work together. At least at that time.

"Although I've never really gotten to know Geoff, he was gracious to me and treated me with respect. It was and is a moment in time that I will never forget."

Current QUEENSRŸCHE singer Todd La Torre was a featured guest on the song "Son Of Man" from Sweet's tenth solo album, "Ten", released in October 2019 via Rat Pak Records in North America and Frontiers Music Srl in Europe.

Back in 2014, Sweet told "The Shoe With Miles Schuman" radio show that the settlement between Tate and his former bandmates in QUEENSRŸCHE over the rights to the group's name "worked out for the best. Even though Geoff, obviously, is well respected and people know who he is — he's got such a name and [was] such an integral part of the QUEENSRŸCHE of the past — QUEENSRŸCHE is, in my opinion, the band," he explained. "The band, with Todd, that, to me, is QUEENSRŸCHE. It'd be like me continuing on by myself and saying that I'm STRYPER. That's not right, and that's not the way it is. So I think it worked out. The fact that they were able to work out their differences and move forward in a healthy way, I think it's awesome, and I have more respect for all of them."

He continued: "You know what? I love Todd, and I think they're an incredible band. Todd deserves to have and to get what he has, because he's such a great person and such an immense talent, and the world needs to see more of him, man, and the boys in QUEENSRŸCHE with Todd."

Regarding whether he understood why Tate initially wanted to continue using the name QUEENSRŸCHE for his new group even though none of Geoff's former bandmates wanted to work with Geoff again, Sweet said: "Sure, I do. Because you can't take the fact away that… and you can't change the story that Geoff isn't a talented guy. I think he was voted one of the best singers of all time, and he loves music and loves to perform, I'm sure, and that's his passion. So you don't wanna take that away from him. But at the same time, there's integrity and there's a way to do things, and there's a wrong way to do things. But then again, I wasn't in QUEENSRŸCHE, so I don't know every little detail and I'm not the authority on all things QUEENSRŸCHE. I just know what I believe, and I know Todd personally, and I know the guys personally. And I just have to say that I admire them as people. Eddie [Jackson], Scott [Rockenfield]… all of them… Michael [Wilton]… I mean, they're all just good guys, man, and they're such a great band, and they deserve what they're getting; they deserve to move forward with the name, I think."


Interesting story:

I had the opportunity to write and produce an album for Geoff Tate. I was contacted by Frontiers...

Posted by Michael Sweet on Wednesday, December 1, 2021

In a new interview with Kyle Meredith, SYSTEM OF A DOWN frontman Serj Tankian was asked if he has any plans to record and release more solo rock music following the arrival of his "Elasticity" EP this past March. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "'Elasticity' was really fun to put out, actually, because it was very full of life; it was very moving. Something like the song 'Your Mom', which people were just, like… it was blowing their minds, which was fucking awesome. And I enjoy doing the rock stuff, and I still have more rock songs, and they'll probably come to me at a particular time. But mostly I've been focusing on scoring, art, putting out a lot of releases. By the end of this year, I counted, I will have had a dozen releases of things. That includes two films, two soundtracks. We're putting out two live records in November and December with F.C.C. on tour, my backup band, from 2008 and 2009. And we're doing the NFT thing. We had a live gallery exhibit in July. We did 'Elasticity'. 'Truth To Power' and 'I Am Not Alone', both films came out, both soundtracks came out. Two cinematic records, a piano concerto called 'Disarming Time'. It's this 24-minute incredible modern piano concerto I did that I love. And also I put out my poetry collection — my poetry suite, which is a whole record of poetry with cinematic music that we released later this summer. So it's kind of wild, man. It's been a year of probably the most releases I've had. And it's just whatever comes. If rock comes, I do rock.

"Right now, I literally right now, right before we connected, I was working on… I just created a concept for a — I don't wanna say 'opera', but it's more of a very unique choral world with classical instruments," he revealed. "I'm thinking of calling it 'Invocations'. And this is the first time I'm even talking about it, 'cause I literally just figured this out.

"I have these incredible, incredible tracks that I've done over time, a couple of which I've released on cinematic stuff or soundtracks, but they are in that world where they just pull your spirit out of your body with the sounds and the instruments and the vocals. And so I'm thinking about operatic singers, death metal singers, everything in between, full choir, full orchestra, and just a really wild concept to do live. And maybe record it or maybe replicate it in different areas of the world.

"So that's where I am this week," Serj added. "But by the end of December, I might be writing more rock songs. So I don't know. The answer to your question is it all comes. And when it comes, it comes in a uniform. When it comes in a rock uniform, I fucking rock it. When comes in a classical uniform, I 'classic' it.' [Laughs]"

"Elasticity" was the SYSTEM OF A DOWN singer's first solo release since 2013's "Orca". Upon its arrival, "Elasticity" received widespread accolades, with New York Magazine saying the collection sees Tankian's "rock-and-roll impulses return in vibrant, mischievous form," Loudwire dubbing it "an exercise in eccentricity," and The Ringer praising the five-song EP, saying Tankian's "full range of … writing talents are on full display."

The Los Angeles- and New Zealand-based musician previously stated about how the idea for "Elasticity" came about: "When I conceived possibly doing another record with the guys from SYSTEM OF A DOWN a few years back, I started working on a set of songs that I arranged in rock format for that purpose. As we weren't able to see eye to eye on the vision going forward with an SOAD album, I decided to release these songs under my moniker."

SYSTEM OF A DOWN hasn't released a full-length album since the "Mezmerize" and "Hypnotize" LPs, which came out in 2005.

Led Zeppelin have released Episode 6 of the new video series, The History Of Led Zeppelin IV.


A message states: "'Four Sticks' was released as the B-Side to the US single, 'Rock and Roll' in March 1972.  Learn more in the History of Led Zeppelin IV Episode 6."







Watch Episodes 1 - 5 below:

Swedish black/death metal pioneers, Necrophobic, announce that their highly acclaimed album, Hrimthursum, which was originally released in 2006, is digitally available again on all streaming and download platforms as of now. A Ltd. CD Jewelcase in slipcase and a Gatefold LP version with double-sided poster will be released through Century Media Records on February 11.





Here are the vinyl variants available for Hrimthursum:




- Gatefold Black LP & Poster – Unlimited
- Gatefold White LP & Poster – 1000x copies via CM Webshop / CM Distro Europe & all USA outlets
- Gatefold Blue LP & Poster – 300x copies via CM Webshop Europe
- Gatefold Silver LP & Poster – 300x via EMP & Nuclear Blast


Click here to listen to Hrimthursum or to pre-order your physical copy of the album.


The official video for “Blinded By Light, Enlightened By Darkness from 2006, directed by Magnus Göthlund, can be viewed below.


This new edition of Hrimthursum marks the start of a series of long overdue digital and physical re-releases of the band’s entire back-catalogue. Each of the nine releases will be available as Digital Album, of course on vinyl and as CD Jewelcase in slipcase, so watch out for more to come soon!


The band states: “We are pleased to announce the beginning of a comprehensive re-release campaign for the entire Necrophobic catalogue via our label Century Media Records. We will be re-issuing the best possible editions of all our previous releases throughout the next year, starting with the long awaited Hrimthursum and then Death To All. All reissues will come true to the original versions but optimized for the LP/CD/Digital formats and are fully endorsed by the band (unlike some of the previous versions…) as well as assembled by us. We can’t wait to get these records available again. Thank you for the support!”

Robert Plant and Alison Krauss recently released their first new album in fourteen years, Raise The Roof, via Rounder Records. In celebration, the've released the video below, featuring "Can't Let Go", performed live from Nashville’s Sound Emporium Studios.





Watch "Trouble With My Lover" and "Searching For My Love" from the same performance:










Like its platinum-selling 2007 predecessor, Raising Sand - which won six Grammys, including Album and Record of the Year - Raise The Roof delivers new takes on songs from legends and unsung heroes of folk, blues, country and soul music.


Recorded at Nashville’s Sound Emporium Studios, sessions for Raise The Roof began in late 2019 and wrapped just weeks before the world went into lockdown. “One of my favorite parts of this is the songs and songwriters that I had never heard of,” says Alison Krauss. “Working with Robert, and with T Bone, is always a great education in music history.”


Raise The Roof includes deep cuts by Merle Haggard, Allen Toussaint, The Everly Brothers, Anne Briggs, Geeshie Wiley, Bert Jansch, Calexico and more. “It’s such a far cry from everything I’ve done before,” says Robert Plant. “I love the whole kaleidoscope of music that I’ve explored, but this is a place where you can think within the song, you can decide how to bring home an emotion. It’s another blend that we’ve got, and long may we have more of them.”


Order Raise The Roof here.





Raise The Roof tracklisting:


"Quattro (World Drifts In)"
"The Price Of Love"
"Go Your Way"
"Trouble With My Lover"
"Searching For My Love"
"Can’t Let Go"
"It Don’t Bother Me"
"You Led Me To The Wrong"
"Last Kind Words Blues"
"High And Lonesome"
"Going Where The Lonely Go"
"Somebody Was Watching Over Me"


"Somebody Was Watching Over Me":





"It Don't Bother Me":





"Can't Let Go" lyric video:





"High And Lonesome":

Today (December 10), Swedish doom lords Sorcerer release their new cover single and music video, "Waiting for Darkness", to all major digital platforms via Metal Blade Records.


Before gearing back up to write on their new studio album for Metal Blade Records, and to have some fun during the pandemic vacuum, Sorcerer shows reverence to their musical heroes and influencers. On this list of respect there is of course no escaping rock 'n' roll rebel, Ozzy Osbourne. Sorcerer chose the final track of Ozzy's 1983 solo album Bark At The Moon, "Waiting for Darkness", to be the fourth single and powerful finale of their 4-track digital (only) EP, Reverence.


The full cover EP Reverence is available now on all digital platforms. Order here.







Tracklisting:


"Gates of Babylon" (Rainbow)
"When Death Calls" (Black Sabbath)
"Crusader" (Saxon)
"Waiting For Darkness" (Ozzy Osbourne)














Sorcerer lineup:


Anders Engberg: Vocals
Kristian Niemann: Guitar
Peter Hallgren: Guitar
Justin Biggs: Bass
Richard Evensand: Drums

Edge Of Paradise have released a cover of The Who classic, "Love, Reign O'er Me". Add the song to your music library here, and watch a music video below.





Says the band: "Thank you so much for being a part of our world! Thank you Howard and Neil for recreating the story of this song with us!"

After announcing the ascent of their earliest demons, the reissues The Last Supper (1995) and Blutsabbath (1997) on January 14, European death metal veterans, Belphegor, release a new digital single.





Today, the newly recorded and mixed track, "Blackest Sabbath 1997", sees the light of day - a medley of two songs from the Blutsabbath album. Turn the speakers to the max and check out the full track here.




Of course, Belphegor do not serve that fresh piece of extreme metal without any appealing visuals. Find your audiovisual Antichristmass below.


Belphegor mainman Helmuth comments: "We've rearranged and re-recorded a medley of two songs off the Blutsabbath album [1997] as a promotional single for the re-release of our first two full-length LPs due 14th January 2022 in double CD and single LP formats. Florian Klein, aka Torturer, tracked the drums, and the 'Blackest Sabbath 1997' was mixed & mastered at Jens Bogren's Fascination Street Studios in Örebro, Sweden. It was a thrilling experiment to re-record this song I wrote in 1996 with a new sound wall, our current skills and recording capabilities 25 years later. We hail you demons, enjoy this special offering from us!"





Video:
Sukkubus: Kristy Von Kashyyyk
Death Monk: Barth
Film and edit: Thomas Keplinger/ Framepunk Guerilla


As mentioned above, Belphegor will release their first two albums, The Last Supper (1995) and Blutsabbath (1997), next year on vinyl and together as 2 CDs. The records will be out on January 14 and you can pre-order your little piece of extreme metal history right here.





Helmuth states: "While we are finishing up the last couple of dates of the The Black Rituals tour, we’re proud to announce that we will unleash our earliest offerings upon the masses again! Both albums have been remastered by Andy Classen and will be available in a variety of versions featuring uncensored artwork. Enjoy the first chapters of Belphegor’s diabolical death metal signature sound!“





Belphegor was founded in 1993 and spread like a virus within the underground. Meanwhile, their Bloodbath In Paradise demo has become legendary and paved the baleful path into the souls of thousands of listeners. Anti-religious with nihilistic tendencies as well as provocative topics, Belphegor moved on. The debut album The Last Supper (1995) let the community of followers and opponents grow. Inexorably, the band pushes their destructive ways forward in the following years. Belphegor become louder, more obsessed, and more dynamic, and their albums now have cult status. To think about the scene doesn't work without thinking of Belphegor. In 2008, the band sent their followers to the edge of hell with Bondage Goat Zombie and sparked an all-consuming death metal fire with blasting black metal influences. This masterpiece, inspired by the Marquis de Sade, is one of the most demanding works the genre has offered to this day. Belphegor showed themselves equally brutal and baleful on the successors Walpurgis Rites - Hexenwahn (2009) and Blood Magick Necromance (2011). The band received a lot of great feedback for their intense live performances as well and reached out to a big and loyal fan base.  Their obscure rituals full of diabolical magick have haunted the world several times – next to extensive tours through Asia and Europe, Belphegor has also completed eleven tours through North America and hundreds of open airs.


Their last album Totenritual, internationally lauded by fans and press, dropped on September 15th, 2017, and marks the eleventh hailing from Belphegor.

In a brand new interview with Liz Barnes of Planet Rock's "My Planet Rocks", legendary guitarist Tony Iommi was asked if "that's really it" for BLACK SABBATH. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "You can never say never, can you? We've known in this band you can never say, 'That's never gonna happen again,' because every time we said that, it has. We never thought we'd get back with Ozzy [Osbourne after] the early years. We never thought we'd get back with [Ronnie James] Dio again; we did. We never thought we'd have Ian Gillan in the band, but we did. So you just can't say it's never gonna happen."

Iommi also talked about SABBATH's final tour, "The End", which concluded in February 2017 in Birmingham, closing out the quartet's groundbreaking 49-year career. "The End" was SABBATH's last tour because Iommi can no longer travel for extended amounts of time.

"It was emotional, the last year, because we'd done it so long together, and it just felt pretty weird, really," he said. It was basically my fault to end it because of the touring.

"The problem is in a band of this size, you can't just go and go a week of gigs; you've gotta do a world tour of 18 months," he explained. "And when you do that, you have to take that on. When you first mention it, about going out on tour, 'Yeah. Brilliant. 18-month tour. Fantastic.' But when you get into a year of it, you get tired. But you have to take it on that long 'cause you've got all the crew to keep alive. Everybody's got a job, so you can't do one week and then have a month off and do another week, 'cause you won't get the crew; they wanna have a job. So we've done it for that long — we've done a world tour and a world tour again. And then it was getting sort of tiring. Even though we had our own plane and we [stayed] in the best hotels — everything was perfect — but you still get tired. We'd have a base in New York when we play in that area, so we'd have the plane there fly in. So you get in at three o'clock in the morning and then try to get to bed and sleep. So it was a regular thing like this. We tried to make it as comfortable as possible. It couldn't get any easier or [more] comfortable, but it still was tiring. And the late nights and stuff. So, when I was talking to my doctors, they said, 'You shouldn't really be doing it to that extent, flying,' 'cause I've got blood cancer. It wasn't good for me to be doing that much flying. I talked to the guys and I said, 'It's probably the time to call it a day now, sort of thing, for now' of that extensive touring. So that's really what we did. But the stipulation was we had to end up in Birmingham 'cause that's where we started."

According to Iommi, SABBATH has never ruled out performing again. "We haven't stopped it," he said. "It's just the major touring that has come to a stop; I wouldn't wanna do 18-month tours again. But that doesn't say we wouldn't do any one-off stuff."

Iommi revealed his cancer diagnosis in early 2012, shortly after SABBATH announced a reunion tour and album. He underwent treatment throughout the recording of the disc, titled "13", and the subsequent tour to promote it.

Iommi said in 2016 interview that "the lowest moment" for him was being diagnosed. He explained: "You automatically wind yourself up saying, 'That's it then,' but that is not always the case. When they tell you, you think, 'Oh God.' That was a low time. I have had a few low times in my life like everybody has, but that was one that stuck in the head."

Osbourne told The Pulse Of Radio in 2014 that Iommi never let his condition slow him down. "My hat goes off to him 'cause he really is Iron Man," he said. "I mean, that chemotherapy knocks you sideways, you know. I mean, when my wife had cancer a few years back, she was having three chemo things a month and it would knock the life out of — literally every time she'd have a treatment, she'd have a seizure. It's scary stuff. But he came down, plugged in and carried on. He's my hero, I swear to God he is."

The BLACK SABBATH guitarist successfully underwent an operation in January 2017 to remove a noncancerous lump from his throat.

"13" was the first album in 35 years to feature Osbourne, Iommi and bassist Geezer Butler all playing together.

Drummer Bill Ward was on board for the SABBATH reunion when it was first announced 10 years ago, but backed out soon after. The drummer later claimed that he sat out the recording and touring sessions because of unfair contractual terms, although the members of SABBATH have hinted in other interviews that he wasn't physically up to the t

Christian rockers SKILLET will release their new studio album, "Dominion", on January 14, 2022 via Atlantic. The official lyric video for the LP's third single, "Refuge", can be seen below.

"Dominion", produced by Kevin Churko (PAPA ROACH, DISTURBED, FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH) with songs written by John Cooper, Korey Cooper, Kevin Churko and Kane Churko, was created 100% remotely between the band's tour dates, home studio in Wisconsin, and the Churkos' studio in Las Vegas.

"'Dominion' is about the celebration of freedom, a liberation from fear — to be who we want to be, say what we want to say, believe what we want to believe," SKILLET frontma nJohn Cooper says. "In some ways, it's a reminder of the God-given rights that we were born with. It's time to regain some sort of control over our lives and not be a slave to fear. I hope this record is going to make people feel empowered, inspired, uplifted and want to rock their faces off."

"Dominion" track listing:

01. Surviving The Game

02. Standing In The Storm

03. Dominion

04. Valley Of Death

05. Beyond Incredible

06. Destiny

07. Refuge

08. Shout Your Freedom

09. Destroyer

10. Forever Or The End

11. Ignite

12. White Horse

SKILLET recently saw it RIAA certifications multiply yet again. Their latest milestones include the new triple-platinum status of their landmark album "Awake", with three of its hit tracks also accumulating more certs as "Awake & Alive" goes double-platinum, "Hero" triple-platinum, and "Monster", already one of the most-streamed rock songs in history with over four billion global audio streams, hits quadruple platinum status.

By 2019, SKILLET not only garnered a pair of Grammy nods and sold over 12 million albums worldwide, but they also took home a Billboard Music Award for the double-platinum "Awake". Its breakout single, "Monster", remains one of the most streamed rock songs of all time, with over three billion global audio streams.

2016's "Unleashed" bowed at No. 3 on the Billboard Top 200. Hitting No. 1 on rock radio, the lead single, "Feel Invincible", cracked 643 million global audio streams and went platinum. Meanwhile, the gold-certified "Unleashed" became their fourth consecutive album to receive either a gold, platinum, or double-platinum status.

Their 2019 release, "Victorious", included the Top 10 rock radio hit "Legendary", which lived up to its name with over 108 million streams. To date, nine original tunes earned RIAA recognition in tandem with high-profile syncs by everyone from WWE and Marvel to ESPN and NFL.

Photo by Jimmy Fontaine

Guitarist Gus G. (Firewind, Ozzy Osbourne) recently got together with his friends Strutter (bass) and Achilles (drums) to rehearse some of the tracks off his new album, Quantum Leap.


"We set up a few cameras and pushed the 'record' button," says Gus G. "We approached this as if it was a livestream. The video edit is done on the spot and the audio is raw with no overdubs. Engineered, recorded and mixed by Strutter at Valve Studio in Thessaloniki, Greece. Camera edit operation by Jimmy Tott."


Watch "Fierce" from the session below:







"Quantum Leap", "Force Majeure" and "Into The Unknown" from the same session can be seen below:











Quantum Leap artwork and tracklisting:





"Into The Unknown"
"Exosphere"
"Quantum Leap"
"Chronesthesia"
"Enigma Of Life"
"Judgement Day"
"Fierce"
"Demon Stomp"
"Night Driver"
"Not Forgotten"
"Force Majeure" (feat. Vinnie Moore)


"Chronesthesia" video:





"Into The Unknown" video:





"Enigma Of Life" video:





"Fierce" video:





"Exosphere" video:

ANTHRAX bassist Frank Bello spoke to the "Battleline" podcast about the various lineup changes the band has undergone over the years, particularly the departure of John Bush, who fronted ANTHRAX between 1992 and 2005 but was sidelined when the group reunited with Joey Belladonna for a 20th-anniversary tour. When that collapsed, and relationships disintegrated with next frontman Dan Nelson, Bush returned for a time before Belladonna took the job back in 2010.

Speaking about personnel shuffles in general, Bello said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET), "Stuff like that needs to happen in a band when things aren't working anymore." He then added: "John, I don't think he wanted to do it a lot; he didn't wanna tour a lot anymore.

"Look, I love John Bush; you have to understand that," he explained. "And we're all good friends. Sometimes in bands, this is what happens. This is what I've learned as a fan in a band. This shit happens, and you've gotta roll with the punches and see where it goes. And that's what we did. So when Joey came back, it was great. It made sense — it made sense what we were doing. And the good thing about it is nobody's hurt — nobody hurts from this stuff. John's good. The last ARMORED SAINT record rocks — it's great; great stuff. Joey's singing great with us. So it's good all around.

"I know people and the trolls are gonna try and dig into the negative stuff," Frank said. "I'm not into it. I don't care. I don't care. At the end of the day, what makes me happy is this band rocking and really putting out a great record and playing great shows. It's been a great ride, and I just don't look back — I honestly don't."

Asked if he and his ANTHRAX bandmates still get along after four decades of recording and touring together, Frank said: "Yeah. Look, we're no angels — we do argue; songwriting [and] stuff like that, that happens. But you've gotta realize that 40 years together, we've been together longer than with our families. I grew up in the same house as Charlie [Benante, ANTHRAX drummer]. But we grew up together on the road. There were times we weren't home for months at a time — months. We were on tour. So I spent a lot more time with Scott [Ian, ANTHRAX guitarist] and Charlie and Joey than with a lot of people in my life. So, yeah, we're tight.

"Again, peaks and valleys, right?" he continued. "You have disagreements like every family member would. The truth of the matter is you're not gonna get through that. That's why bands break up — 'cause you don't talk about it. If you don't talk about it and get shit out, it doesn't work. But we found a way to do it. We know this works, and that's the most important part. This band works, and we know when we get together onstage, there's a magic there that can't be touched for us. So, it's that important."

Formed by Ian and bassist Dan Lilker in Queens, New York on July 18, 1981, ANTHRAX was one of the first thrash metal bands to emerge from the East Coast and quickly became regarded as a leader in the genre alongside METALLICA, SLAYER and MEGADETH.

Active over the past five decades, ANTHRAX has released 11 studio albums, been awarded multiple gold and platinum certifications, received six Grammy nominations, toured the world since 1984 playing thousands of shows, including headlining Madison Square Garden and playing Yankee Stadium with the "Big Four".

The arrival of ANTHRAX's latest album, 2016's "For All Kings", followed a five-year period during which the group experienced a rebirth of sorts, beginning with ANTHRAX's inclusion on the "Big Four" tour, and continuing with the 2011 release of comeback LP "Worship Music".

Bello is currently promoting his memoir, "Fathers, Brothers, And Sons: Surviving Anguish, Abandonment, And Anthrax", which was released on November 2 via Rare Bird. The foreword was written by KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons.

Tom Gabriel Fischer (a.k.a. Tom Gabriel Warrior) says that he is open to the idea of resurrecting CELTIC FROST for "one of two shows" in memory of bassist Martin Eric Ain who died in October 2017 after suffering a heart attack at the age of 50.

The former HELLHAMMER/CELTIC FROST and current TRIPTYKON singer, guitarist, and main songwriter discussed the prospect of a CELTIC FROST comeback in a new interview with Heavy Culture. He said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I have talked to the original drummer of CELTIC FROST, Reed St. Mark, who lives in America. He's still one of my best friends. And we've talked about maybe doing one or two CELTIC FROST tribute shows in memory [of] Martin Ain. We haven't really finalized these plans, but maybe we'll do that one day, that we'll play with just ex-CELTIC FROST members who were in CELTIC FROST at the time and maybe play a full CELTIC FROST set that incudes all the eras of CELTIC FROST and maybe play one or two festivals and also record it as a memorial to Martin Eric Ain."

Fischer, who played with Ain in both HELLHAMMER and CELTIC FROST, added: "We all think you cannot reform CELTIC FROST ever without Martin but we could maybe do one or two memorial shows for him."

CELTIC FROST reformed in 2001 and released its comeback album "Monotheist" via Century Media/Prowling Death in 2006. The band broke up in 2008, with Fischer going on to form TRIPTYKON.

In a 2015 interview with DCHeavyMetal.com, Fischer stated about CELTIC FROST: "If I had my way, CELTIC FROST would have existed for many more albums. Unfortunately, certain people's grand designs on their own fame and certain egotistical stunts interfered with that. And, eventually, the band became so unworkable that I personally said the only option that was left was leaving it." At the time, Tom said that a CELTIC FROST reunion was "impossible." He explained: "I mean, there's no more animosity between me and Martin — we just met, actually, a few weeks ago, as we do from time to time — but I think that window has closed. Even though Martin once said, 'Yeah, we'll play music together again,' but after that gargantuan disappointment, I don't think I wanna set myself up for yet another one. CELTIC FROST was my life, and losing that twice wasn't very easy. And I don't trust these people anymore. I invested so much time and so much of my personal money and effort and my songs and my production and everything into the 'Monotheist' album, and I did this because I believed the band could exist for many years. Then I felt betrayed and stabbed in the back. And I really… If I would ever get involved with that again, it would probably end the same, and I don't wanna do that."

In a 2011 interview with BigMusicGeek.com, Tom was asked at what point he realized that his tenure with CELTIC FROST was once again coming to an end. "To be quite honest, I had sensed it for some time," he replied. "I just didn't want to admit it.

"CELTIC FROST was much more than just a band to me," he continued. "It was my life, my ideology and pretty much represented my entire being. Of course, I didn't want to see it destroyed again, so despite having all the inside information, I tried to disrupt its destruction and probably stayed too long even though it was fairly obvious that I couldn't face the band. Actually, I blame the final drummer of CELTIC FROST for the destruction of the band. If Martin has any part of this, it's his inactivity that opened the door to this. He simply did not want to involve himself in anything negative, which, on one hand, is commendable, but on the other hand, it's simply not realistic in this world or within a band that works under pressure 24 hours a day. You simply have to be a man and be involved, especially if certain personal conflicts threaten the whole band. Martin was initially reluctant to become involved and that basically opened the door for one person to let his ego run freely until there was really nothing left of the band."

Drummer Joel Maitoza (24-7 Spyz, Seventrain, Shockhead) has officially announced the release date of the debut album from his new project, The Frequency Conspiracy. The nine song album titled Quarantine Covers will be released worldwide on January 1, 2022 through Alliance Entertainment. It will be available on CD as well as all digital platforms.


Maitoza states in a recent interview, “The album features a handful of amazing musicians that I’ve wanted to work with over the years. I feel blessed that everyone I reached out to made my dream become a reality and I’m excited for everyone to finally check out these tunes.”







Artist appearances include:


John Gallagher (Raven) – Bass, Vocals
David Pastorius (Pat Travers, Tech N9ne) - Bass
Jaimie Scott (Tyketto) – Bass
Joshua Jones (Poster Child) – Guitars
Christophe Godin (Morgibl, Metal Kartoon, The Prize) - Guitars
Andrew Freeman (Last in Line, Lynch Mob, Offspring) - Vocals
Craig Soderberg (-itis, Shockhead) – Guitars, Vocals, Keyboards
Jason (JMR) Richardson (Year of the Dragon, Patrick Gibson) – Guitars, Vocals
Miguelon Rodriguez (Paul Di'anno, The Worshyp) – Bass
Joey McCaw (Brick Bath, Shockhead) - Vocals
Rick Skatore (24-7 Spyz) – Bass
Joel Maitoza (24-7 Spyz, Shockhead, Elysian, Gangland, Seventrain) - Drums


The album was recorded at Exum Studios by Scott Exum (Stabbing Westward, Unwritten Law), Room 9 Studios by Jerry Whiting, DML Studios by Don Lithgow (RIP) and AJP Studios by Alex Pappas (Finch).

Nita Strauss, the Los Angeles-based guitar shredder for the ALICE COOPER band, to Terrie Carr of the Morristown, New Jersey radio station 105.5 WDHA about the progress of the writing and recording sessions for her follow-up to 2018's "Controlled Chaos" solo debut. She said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "The album is almost finished being recorded. We are just waiting on a couple of singers. Guitars are done, drums, bass — everything is finished.

"This is my first time collaborating with vocalists on anything, so it's a bit of a waiting game — it's testing my patience a little bit — but it's all worth it in the end," she continued.

"We're gonna do half and half — so six instrumental tracks and six tracks with guest vocalists."

Earlier this month, Nita told "The Mistress Carrie Podcast" about her decision to make the upcoming LP "half vocal songs and half instrumental: "I did feel, and the label and everybody agreed, it's still important for me to keep my identity as a guitar player and not just branch off too much and go, 'Okay, well, now it's just guests.' Let me still have a little of what makes me me, which is the instrumental shred stuff. And the instrumental pieces that I've written on this record are, I think, better than anything I did on the first one — definitely more… I don't know if it could be more emotional but they're very emotional pieces of music and I think a little better crafted this time around. So I think all the songs in general are more well thought out, better put together this time around. And I do have some of my absolute favorite [singers guesting on it]. I have three amazing powerhouse female vocalists on this album so far. And there are still a couple of things T.B.D. [to be determined]. And then we should be ready to release next spring."

In October, Nita shared "Dead Inside", her first new music since the release of her critically acclaimed debut solo album "Controlled Chaos" in 2018. The track is her first-ever solo collaboration with a vocalist, David Draiman, frontman of Grammy-nominated rock icons DISTURBED.

Strauss has been playing with 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 released "Controlled Chaos" to mass acclaim from fans and media alike, with Metal Injection calling it "a great debut that — as its creator intended — leaves no doubt", and Guitar World stating "'Controlled Chaos' is a panoramic view of Nita Strauss's many strengths". To date the album has clocked up 6.7 million streams worldwide, with music videos for singles "Our Most Desperate Hour", "Pandemonium", "Alegria" and "Mariana Trench" generating over 3 million YouTube views.

As well as performing with Cooper, Nita has also played with R&B star Jermaine Jackson, early MTV darlings FEMME FATALE, video game supergroup CRITICAL HIT and popular tribute band THE IRON MAIDENS.

In April 2020, Nita launched "Rock Guitar Fundamentals" — a three-module online guitar teaching program suitable for learners of all levels. The course is available at www.iwanttoplayguitar.com.

Nita's live show is mostly instrumental in nature, combining originals with covers.

KISS bassist/vocalist Gene Simmons has dropped $1.5 million from the asking price of his Southern Nevada estate.

Simmons put the home on the market in October for $14.95 million, but that price came down on November 17 to $13.5 million. Gene paid a combined $10.8 million for the home and a lot adjacent to it back in May. Among the improvements Simmons made to the Las Vegas house is installing all new floors and ripping up wall-to-wall carpeting in some of the rooms.

Speaking to TMZ about his decision to sell the home only five months after buying it, Gene said: "First I bought it because Mr. Biden [U.S. president Joe Biden] and Mr. Newsom [California governor Gavin Newsom] are looking to raise taxes to the point where if I work really hard to earn a legal dollar, I may get to keep 35 cents. So, California has become untenable. So I'd rather leave the money to my family and to charity and so on, so I wanted to move to Las Vegas. No income tax, no state tax, no local tax, no inheritance tax, beautiful place, great. Except for one thing — my family doesn't wanna go there. They're not gonna put up with the heat, and down the street, there's strippers and stuff like that. They don't wanna deal with any of that."

He continued: "I bought [the house] for 8.6 [million], then I bought the property next door for 2.4 [million] and planted 137 trees. So, guys, I can this for 25 or 30 million, but I'm blessed. I'd like to meet the person that's gonna wind up buying the place because I don't wanna just hand it over to some knucklehead. I want you to enjoy it and have a good life."

According to Gene, his wife and their two adult children prefer to stay at the family's other homes, an extensive portfolio which includes a modern lake house in Whistler, British Columbia, a home in Malibu and two houses in L.A. that Gene bought for the Simmons kids, Nick and Sophie.

"They're not fans of 115-degree weather," Simmons told The Wall Street Journal.

Because of KISS's touring schedule and his business travel, Gene said he never spent more than a few weeks total in Las Vegas. He went on to say that he had no regrets about selling the property so soon after the purchase, adding: "How many houses do you need anyway?"

According to TMZ, Simmons purchased a mansion in Beverly Hills, California in October for $10.5 million. The home occupies more than 7,000 square feet of living apace and an additional 1800 square feet of "sleek deck space." The sophisticated design allows for scenic views from the expansive kitchen, dining, living room, four bedrooms and five bathrooms, upstairs library/gallery space and a sliver of glass in the home theater. The home is one half solar powered, using roof panels to heat the pool and radiant heated floors.

In September, Simmons sold his Los Angeles mansion for $16 million, almost a year after he first put it on the market for $22 million. He later relisted it for $25 million after it never sold and he reportedly invested a lot of money in making improvements.

Gene bought the Los Angeles property back in October 1986 for $1,337,500.

Simmons has been very vocal about his desire to leave California for some time due to wanting a quieter lifestyle and to get away from being listed on celebrity maps or having to deal with Beverly Hills tour buses. He also said that part of the reason he and his wife listed the two-acre property in Benedict Canyon because the home had become too big for the both of them since their children had grown up.

"It's a big property, and the kids were literally raised here," he said about the Beverly Hills house. "Now they've moved on, and they both have their own homes next to each other in the Hollywood Hills. They borrow a cup of sugar and all that. They love each other and support each other like the best kids you could imagine."

"They've got their own lives, and now we've got this big house. And if I want to talk to [my wife] Shannon, I've got to hit an intercom because she's at the other end of the house," he continued. "It's happy and it's also sad. When you're a kid and you live at home, you love your mom and dad, but at some point you've got to move out. It's sad because you're moving from home, but you're also looking forward to the future, and we really hope the next family that lives here is going to get as much joy as we have from this place."

Gene and Shannon were married in 2011 after dating since 1975.

Gene, Shannon and their kids all appeared on the reality TV series "Gene Simmons Family Jewels" from 2006 until 2012.

Photo credit: courtesy of Stetson Ybarra Photography

In anticipation of things to come in 2022, Conjurer are drawing the curtain over yet another frustrating year for live music by releasing a video for the monumental and devastating track "Thankless", from their full-length, Mire.


The clip features a collage of frenetic live footage recorded at different festival and club shows, as well as some backstage impressions, and gives you a hint of what you can expect from Conjurer's eagerly-awaited return to European stages in 2022, which will include a couple of bigger festivals as well as a tour with France's Celeste.


"‘We are so thankful to have 'Thankless' back online - this video catalogs a band starting to come into their own, our first time playing festivals without being the ‘unknown up and comers’. Captured as always by our main man Joe Guppy." - Conjurer







Lineup:


Brady Deeprose - Guitars, Vocals
Dan Nightingale - Guitars, Vocals
Conor Marshall - Bass
Jan Krause - Drums