Nikki Sixx says that he "understands" why David Lee Roth turned down an offer to take part in that MÖTLEY CRÜE's "The Stadium Tour".

In an article previewing Sixx's just-released book, "The First 21: How I Became Nikki Sixx", the Los Angeles Times revealed that when CRÜE invited Diamond Dave to share the bill with them on their highly anticipated reunion tour, the VAN HALEN singer responded, "I don't open for bands that I influenced."

Nikki discussed Roth's decision to decline CRÜE's invitation in a new interview with Forbes. He said: "Yeah, well, he probably influenced everybody. That band [VAN HALEN] is a monster. But, you know, understandably. We all get to make our choices and stuff. I just thought with the body of work that he has with a lot of people, it could be really exciting. I understand his position, too."

Sixx also once again took issue with how Roth's remarks were covered by the media, saying: "It's interesting for me now, when I do press, I'm really aware that a lot of press outlets are looking for clickbait. And what I like about 'The First 21' is I don't really feel like there's a lot of clickbait in there. Maybe that's a bad thing because, you know, you click on the link and someone gets five cents in advertising. I don't want to sell advertising. I want to sell an experience of what these first 21 years are about. So I tried to be very honest, and 'this is kind of how it is,' but no [cheap] shots."

Sixx previously blasted the press for sensationalizing his revelation that Roth turned down the CRÜE tour, writing on Twitter: "Media takes one sentence outta new book and makes it a headline. Clickbait. I've comes to despise bottom feeder press. Ripping off fans to sell advertisements.."

Back in October 2019, Roth reflected on the influence of VAN HALEN on bands that followed, telling KKLZ's "The Mike & Carla Morning Show": "Hair bands were the imitations of VAN HALEN. Yeah, it is true, and spandex was what they came up with as something visual. I started off in leather, with the same haircut that Bono and [Bruce] Springsteen and the guys in METALLICA had. A famous haircut — if I had that same haircut today, it'd have its own Instagram. But VAN HALEN was a '70s band — we started off in 1972, and our first two albums were in the '70s. We sold our first 10 million records before the '70s were over. We spawned a whole lot of imitators who resorted to gimmickry and trade crap. It's easier to imitate a haircut and a kind of pants and to exhibit bad behavior."

"The Stadium Tour", which also features POISON and JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS, was originally scheduled to take place last summer but ended up being pushed back to 2021, and then to 2022, due to the coronavirus crisis.

When it happens, "The Stadium Tour" will mark the CRÜE's first live dates since wrapping its 2014/2015 farewell tour. CRÜE toured with POISON back in 2011 and DEF LEPPARD teamed up with POISON for a string of road dates in 2017 — but the upcoming jaunt marks the first time all four acts have hit the road together for an extended tour.

Roth performed as the opening act for the February/March 2020 North American leg of KISS's farewell tour, but is not making any appearances on the rescheduled KISS shows which kicked off on August 18 in Mansfield, Massachusetts.

In March 2020, Roth postponed the final six shows of his Las Vegas residency due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Earlier this month, the legendary VAN HALEN singer announced that he was ending his career with his Vegas shows during the first weeks of January. "I am throwing in the shoes. I'm retiring," Roth told the Las Vegas Review-Journal. "These are my last five shows."




Media takes one sentence outta new book and makes it a headline.Clickbait. I’ve comes to despise bottom feeder press. Ripping off fans to sell advertisements..

— ? (@NikkiSixx) September 1, 2021

As part of her new album writing sessions and to hear what is in the making, Danish musician Myrkur offer in listening a new demo song called "Rivers Blessed".

Myrkur states: "Surprise! Here is a brand new demo called "Rivers Blessed". I am currently writing a new album and I want to share a song from the writing desk.

"Rivers Blessed" is written about my journey into motherhood, a path that by no means was easy but it changed my life and how I view the world forever. I wanted the song to have a strong feeling of winter, therefore the harp is the only instrument, because its sound reminds me of falling snowflakes. The chorus is from an old Danish poem called 'There is nothing in the world as silent as snow' and it talks of the silent, pure and gentle new world you find after the snow has fallen, which feels like nature’s magic.

"The harp is played by the incredibly talented Lindsay Schoolcraft and the choir is sung by amazing Maja Shining & Marie-Louise Zervides."

In a brand new interview with Pete Pardo of Sea Of Tranquility, former ACCEPT and current U.D.O. frontman Udo Dirkschneider was asked how he has managed to keep his singing voice in such good shape after more than 40 years of recording and touring. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't know. I think I'm really lucky with my voice. I go every year to check everything, and the doctor always says, 'Everything's perfect. No problems.' And this is crazy.

"I never had any problems or had to cancel a concert [because of] my voice — never," he continued. "I'm really, really lucky with this. I know a lot of colleagues, they have problems with their voice.

"The only thing I can say is I do nothing really special. The only thing I did is 17 years ago I stopped smoking. And that's the only thing what I did. And the rest is, like, I do nothing. I never warm up when I go onstage. I never warm up in the studio. It's a miracle.

"My colleague Stefan Kaufmann [former ACCEPT drummer and U.D.O. guitarist], I'm working with this guy for a long, long time, and when we did the recording of [the new U.D.O. album] 'Game Over', he said to me, 'This voice is a miracle. Unbelievable.' He said to me, 'You are still on the same level like [ACCEPT's] 'Breaker' [album], with the high voices.' He said, 'This is unreal.' Normally, if you're getting older, you're losing all these high parts. No. He said, 'This is crazy — absolutely crazy.'

"I have to say to somebody, 'Thank you very much.' [Laughs]"

"Game Over" will be released on October 22 via AFM Records.

In June, Dirkschneider told Via Nocturna about the band's upcoming follow-up to 2018's "Steelfactory" LP: "It will be a really good U.D.O. album. This is also the first time we are composing together with the two new members of U.D.O.," referring to bassist Tilen Hudrap and guitarist Dee Dammers. "Very interesting. And there are a lot of things there that will be a little bit of a surprise. But no, we are not changing the style, but a lot of little things are a little bit different. But it will be very interesting."

Last year, U.D.O. collaborated with Das Musikkorps der Bundeswehr, the military band of the German federal armed forces, on an album called "We Are One", which was released in July 2020 via AFM Records/Soulfood Music.

U.D.O.'s current lineup includes Udo's son and drummer Sven Dirkschneider, Hudrap and guitarists Andrey Smirnov and Dammers.

Udo's DIRKSCHNEIDER & THE OLD GANG project, in which he is joined be fellow former ACCEPT members Peter Baltes (bass) and Stefan Kaufmann (guitar), recently released a new single and video, "Every Heart Is Burning".

DIRKSCHNEIDER & THE OLD GANG, which is rounded out by Udo's son Sven Dirkschneider (drums), Manuela Bibert (vocals) and Mathias Dieth (guitar), issued its debut single, "Where The Angels Fly", in September 2020. A second single, "Face Of A Stranger", followed in April. On August 27, all three songs were released as the "Arising" CD, a 12-inch vinyl and a download.

Last month, progressive metal giants DREAM THEATER announced that they were postponing their previously announced North American tour to early 2022 due to COVID-19 concerns. The trek was scheduled to kick off on October 28 in Mesa, Arizona and conclude on December 14 in St. Petersburg, Florida.

In a new interview with Robert Cavuoto of Sonic Perspectives, DREAM THEATER guitarist John Petrucci spoke about the band's decision to push back the tour, saying: "Well, it's an unfortunate decision. John [Myung, bass] and I really wanted to tour, and are dying to tour — dying to get out there and support the [new DREAM THEATER] record. And unfortunately, we couldn't convince the other guys that it was safe. So, it wasn't a unanimous decision, unfortunately.

"It's frustrating for me, because everything has opened up and concerts are going on, and theaters and arenas and clubs and everything is open," he continued. "Bands are out there, and a lot of my friends are touring successfully. And there are ways to do it safely, which we were very prepared to do. But, like I said, we couldn't convince the other guys it'd be safe, and so we had to push it off.

"I'm the type of person where I hate disappointing people, I hate disappointing our fans. So, it was definitely an unfortunate decision."

DREAM THEATER shared the news of the postponement in a statement posted on social media on September 27. The group wrote: "DREAM THEATER have made the difficult decision to move their October-December 2021 North American tour dates to early 2022. In light of current instabilities to touring that remain due to the COVID-19 pandemic, we feel confident that this is the right decision.

"Know that we are as disappointed as you are that we will have to wait a little longer to bring DREAM THEATER music to you live. We miss performing for you all and can't wait until we can be on stage bringing our new album and fan-favorites to you.

"This was an extraordinarily challenging decision to make but needed to be done after taking into consideration the varying local mandates across North America. In an effort to present the absolute most complete and engaging DREAM THEATER experience that our fans around the globe have come to expect, we feel we are all best served to postpone all touring activities to early 2022.

"At this time, we ask that everyone hold on to their tickets as we are working frantically to finalize the reschedule of all of these dates. All shows are currently being re-booked to begin in February 2022. Please keep an eye on our website, and we'll have a complete, updated itinerary shortly. All previously purchased tickets will be honored. Please consult your local point of purchase for any inquiries regarding refunds.

"We know that we all have eagerly awaited a return to normalcy, and the opportunity to enjoy live DREAM THEATER music together again. We apologize profusely but hope that everyone can understand the logic behind this decision.

"Playing music for our fans is all we ever want to do. We look forward to seeing each and every one of our fans as soon as possible. We wish it could have been sooner, but we are counting the days until we can see you all again."

DREAM THEATER's 15th studio album, "A View From The Top Of The World", is due on October 22. The seven-song LP marks the band's second studio album with InsideOut Music/Sony Music. The artwork was created by longtime cover collaborator Hugh Syme (RUSH, IRON MAIDEN, STONE SOUR). "A View From The Top Of The World" was produced by Petrucci, engineered and additional production by James "Jimmy T" Meslin and mixed/mastered by Andy Sneap.

Professionally filmed video footage of METALLICA performing the song "The God That Failed" on October 10 at the Aftershock festival in Sacramento, California can be seen below.

Around 40,000 people attended each day over the course of the four-day event starting on October 7 at Sacramento's Discovery Park.

A number of COVID protocols were in place for this year's Aftershock, with Sacramento County Public Health issuing a statement saying they provided the festival organizers "information regarding the current California Department of Public Health guidance for mega-events which include requiring proof of vaccination or a negative COVID test."

Chamie McCurry, chief marketing officer with production company Danny Wimmer Presents, said: "From the beginning of the year, as long as we were going to be allowed by the local authorities, we were going to be bringing this event back and we were going to be doing it safely."

McCurry said that METALLICA was the biggest draw this year, performing two nights of the festival.

"It's a truly unique experience for METALLICA fans to be able to see them two nights, never repeat a song. Two completely different sets," McCurry told KCRA. "This is something that's part of history."

Mike Testa, president and CEO of Visit Sacramento, said that this year's Aftershock was expected to generate an economic impact of close to $30 million.

In August, Danny Wimmer Presents announced that the sold-out Aftershock would require attendees, staff, crew and artists to provide proof they have been vaccinated against COVID-19 or a negative test within 72 hours of their first day at the festival. The festival also added a section to its web site about virus safety guidelines.

In a statement posted on social media, Danny Wimmer Presents founder Danny Wimmer said: "We are at an unprecedented crossroads with uncertainty about whether or not our festivals will happen this Fall. It is not my nature to idly sit back and let others decide our fate. Instead, I am going to do everything in my power to ensure that our festivals happen, even if that means enacting policies that some people may not agree with. But before you react negatively to our policy, please consider this. What I see is that the fans feel the world needs music festivals now more than ever. We need to bring people back together to heal from the past 18 months. We need to get the people and artists whose livelihoods depend on live events back to work. I am confident that these requirements are what is needed to guarantee that we have fun and safe festivals this Fall."

ANTHRAX bassist Frank Bello spoke to Drew Stone of The New York Hardcore Chronicles Live! about the status of ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE, his collaboration with former MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson. Asked if fans can expect to hear a new ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE album in the near future, Bello said: "Not in the near future. I'll probably put out [some solo] stuff first somewhere. But if you like ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE, to be really honest, people that have heard [my solo stuff], they said it sounds like a continuation of ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE, which I'm very happy with.

"David is my friend, just so you guys know," Frank added. "I love David. I just talked to him two days ago; we texted back and forth. He's got another band called LUCID that I wanna give a shoutout to. It's a good record. I hope he does well with it. So I'm pushing for him… He's a good dude, very knowledgeable, and he's my friend, and I love him."

ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE's latest album, "Get Out", was released in January 2019 via Megaforce. The follow-up to ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE's 2014 self-titled EP was once again produced by Jay Ruston (ANTHRAX, STEEL PANTHER, STONE SOUR), with Jeff Friedl (A PERFECT CIRCLE, ASHES DIVIDE) returning behind the kit.

The ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE story began in 2010, when Bello and Ellefson started touring together to lead bass clinics for the amp manufacturer Hartke. In need of backing tracks to support their demonstrations, they embarked upon some writing sessions and discovered their chemistry.

Bello and Ellefson debuted ALTITUDES & ATTITUDE in early 2014, with a self-titled three-song EP that earned the duo airplay on SiriusXM and an appearance on VH1 Classic's "That Metal Show". Those tracks — "Booze and Cigarettes", "Tell the World", "Here Again" — are included on "Get It Out" as bonus cuts, in remixed and remastered form.

Bello's comments about Ellefson come five months after David was fired from MEGADETH following the online leak of sexually explicit photos and video of the bassist along with allegations that he had been grooming a fan, which he vehemently denied. A short time after after the messages and video footage involving him were posted on Twitter, Ellefson filed a report with the police department in Scottsdale, Arizona alleging unlawful distribution of sexually explicit images of him by unknown offenders. In the report, Ellefson admitted that he had been exchanging sexual text messages with a Dutch teenager, who captured a video of several of their virtual "masturbating encounters" without his consent and shared them with friends. (According to Ellefson, the woman was 19 at the time of their first virtual sexual encounter.) Ellefson, who lives in Scottsdale, first became aware of the video on May 9, when the claim "David Ellefson of MEGADETH is a pedophile" appeared on Instagram. Ellefson told police he was notified on May 14 by MEGADETH that the band would be parting ways with him. Three days later, he was fired.

Powerwolf have premiered a lyric video for "Sermon Of Swords', featured on their recently released new studio album, Call Of The Wild. Find the clip below.





Tracklisting:


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LP 1


"Faster Than The Flame"
"Beast Of Gévaudan"
"Dancing With The Dead"
"Varcolac"
"Alive Or Undead"
"Blood For Blood (Faoladh)"
"Glaubenskraft"
"Call Of The Wild"
"Sermon Of Swords"
"Undress To Confess"
"Reverent Of Rats"





LP 2 (Bonus Album): Missa Cantorem


"Sanctified With Dynamite" feat. Ralf Scheepers (Primal Fear)
"Demons Are A Girl‘s Best Friend" feat. Alissa White-Gluz (Arch Enemy)
"Nightside Of Siberia" feat. Johan Hegg (Amon Amarth)
"Where The Wild Wolves Have Gone" feat. Doro Pesch
"Fist By Fist (Sacralize Or Strike)" feat. Matthew Kiichi Heafy (Trivium)
"Killers With The Cross" feat. Björn "Speed" Strid (Soilwork)
"Kiss Of The Cobra King" feat. Chris Harms (Lord Of The Lost)
"We Drink Your Blood" feat. Johannes Eckerström (Avatar)
"Resurrection By Erection" feat. Christopher Bowes (Alestorm)
"Saturday Satan" feat. Jari Mäenpää (Wintersun)


LP 3 (Bonus Album): Symphony Of The Wild - Orchestral Versions


"Faster Than The Flame"
"Beast Of Gévaudan"
"Dancing With The Dead"
"Varcolac"
"Alive Or Undead"
"Blood For Blood (Faoladh)"
"Glaubenskraft"
"Call Of The Wild"
"Sermon Of Swords"
"Undress To Confess"
"Reverent Of Rats"


"Sermon Of Swords" lyric video:





"Faster Than The Flame" lyric video:





"Blood For Blood (Faoladh)" lyric video:





“Fist By Fist (Sacralize Or Strike)” lyric video:





"Dancing With The Dead" video:





"Beast

Since returning to active duty in 2018, Brazilian thrash metal band, ChaosFear, have released several singles, EPs and especially Be The Light In Dark Day", an album that clearly showed a significant evolution of their old thrash metal sound into something more dense, melancholic and modern, bringing more technical layers, somber and cadence to the compositions while keeping both feet firmly planted in the purest heaviness of the genre.


Now, following the premise of not being stuck in any comfort zone and breaking all the rules, standards and paradigms within the band's sound, Fernando Boccomino (vocals/guitar), Eduardo Boccomino (guitar), Marco Nunes (bass) and Fabio Moyses (drums) will return with new material in their latest, emotionally charged conceptual EP, titled Aeternum.


Aeternum, scheduled for release in November 2, All Souls’ Day, will be a giant leap in ChaosFear's growing career over more than 20 years, bringing conceptual lyrical content based on the grief, pain and anguish that everyone went through over the last year, especially the Boccomino brothers who lost very close and dear ones, incorporating symphonic, dense and even more melancholic sounds never heard before in a band's work, such as guitars, keyboards and cellos.


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Aeternum tracklisting:


"Until Your Last Breath"
"Eternally"
"A Pit Of Sadness"


"Until Your Last Breath"  features Jose Cardillo (Holy Sagga/Eye Of The King) on ​​keyboards.


"We are a band that is not afraid of taking risks! Our art is fed through new challenges and this new work is another new beginning for the band", commented Fernando Boccomino. Recorded at Tori Studios, in Sao Paulo, "Aeternum" was produced, mixed and mastered by the band's bassist and producer, Marco Nunes, co-produced by the four musicians and with cover art by Jean Santiago (Santart). "Amidst the writing process, our mother died. We even thought about taking a break from reco

In a new interview with Knotfest.com, MASTODON's Brann Dailor once again paid tribute to his longtime friend Joey Jordison, saying the late SLIPKNOT drummer was "one of the pillars of metal drumming. He will always be that, you know," he added. "He's up there with Vinnie [Paul Abbott, PANTERA] and [Dave] Lombardo [SLAYER] and all those guys. It's huge, his contribution. I mean, there's a whole genre of music that kind of sprung up around what SLIPKNOT put forth. And he's the heartbeat of it all — he was the driving force. The drums are really fucking loud on SLIPKNOT records for a reason."

Dailor went on to say that Jordison's recent passing has given him the impetus to "give that little bit extra" when performing live in his memory.

"I bet he wants to be there and he can't, and so I'm like… I don't know… There's this feeling that I'm having when I'm playing that I want to do better and play better for him somehow," he explained. "I don't know. It's kind of weird. But yeah, that's how I feel about it. Because I really do. I just feel terrible that things ended up the way that they did. But then, you know, there was nothing anybody could do."

Dailor previously discussed Jordison's passing two months ago during a appearance on "The Jasta Show", hosted by HATEBREED frontman Jamey Jasta. After Jasta noted that Joey "lived more in 46 years than a lot of people live in a hundred," Brann said: "It was grandiose. That's for sure. Everything he did was big, and his personality was huge, even though he was just a little guy. The kid was hilarious, and it was always so fun to hang with him, just 'cause he was just a little crazy ball of energy. And his mind was just going constantly — ideas, ideas. [He was] a funny dude. I got along with him right off the bat.

"I think the first time I ever met him was on tour with you guys [HATEBREED] and our first time ever doing any kind of arena anything over in the U.K. with you guys and SLAYER and SLIPKNOT," he continued. "And we got there the day before for the production day, and I saw him checking out our soundcheck or whatever. And I went over and talked to him when we were done. We were pretty close friends ever since then — just on that tour. I rode on their tour bus a bunch of times and just had some nights. It was pretty wild. But it was really fun.

"Joey and I, I don't think we ever talked about drums or drumming or other drummers. Maybe very occasionally. He was a lot like me in that regard where he loved playing drums, loved doing that thing and loved being on tour and being in a band and doing the whole thing but rarely talking about gear.

"He was a total sweetheart guy — amazing with the fans," Dailor added. "He'd be out there forever talking to 'em and just telling 'em how grateful he was. It never looked like he got bored or disinterested in what this 13-year-old kid is telling him about playing drums. It almost makes you forget how phenomenal of a player he was. And then you sit and watch him and you're, like, 'Jesus Christ! The stuff that this guy is pulling off is just insane.' What a monster player he was. And so influential — not just staying in his own lane, but his influence is felt in many different genres, I think, of people sort of emulating the different things that he would do."

Jordison's family confirmed that he passed away "peacefully in his sleep" on July 26 of an unspecified cause. He was 46 years old.

SLIPKNOT announced its split with Jordison in December 2013 but did not disclose the reasons for his exit. The drummer subsequently issued a statement saying that he did not quit the group.

The same year that he exited SLIPKNOT, Jordison launched the band SCAR THE MARTYR and later, VIMIC. He also collaborated with former DRAGONFORCE and current KREATOR bassist Frédéric Leclercq in SINSAENUM.

Photo courtesy of MASTODON
























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NAPALM DEATH frontman Mark "Barney" Greenway spoke to That Drummer Guy about the band's upcoming fall 2021 U.S. tour with GWAR, which is scheduled to kick off on October 28 in Norfolk, Virginia. The trek will mark NAPALM DEATH's first appearance in America since taking part in last month's Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest in Philadelphia, where Greenway and his bandmates performed a special one-time-only set of songs exclusively from their "Harmony Corruption" and "Utopia Banished" records.

"We've done two gigs since we were able to do two gigs — since the gigs we were planning on doing weren't getting canceled," Greenway said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "So we've done two gigs. Speaking for myself, it felt really good. I just felt like I was kind of — not to overdramatize it — but I felt like I was reborn again a little bit. So, yeah, it just felt really good.

"The touring life cycle is not hard to adjust to in and of itself," he continued. "But, obviously, I think people would understand that with this GWAR tour being 39 dates in 50 days, it's not like doing a festival [like Decibel Magazine Metal & Beer Fest] where it's one gig and therefore the persistent risks of COVID — well, percentage-wise, probability-wise, nothing's gonna happen in one or two days that you spend in Philadelphia. But, of course, if you're out on a tour for 50 days, the chances of anything happening in terms of COVID stuff is significantly higher. So there is some very rigid protocols that we've gotta follow on this tour. But that's not a bad thing.

"Certainly what NAPALM DEATH doesn't need, as an overseas band kind of stuck in America, what we don't want is for one of us to catch it, and then you have to quarantine in a place for 10 days," Barney added. "And the tour is gonna move on — of course it is. It's not gonna wait behind for one member from a band that's not headlining; it's gonna move on. So, obviously, we're gonna try our best to observe protocols — distancing stuff, caution over going places that are crowded where we don't need to, as individuals. So, yeah, that's the way it'll be.

"It's not a problem. It's definitely not like a normal U.S. tour where you're footloose and fancy-free and you run around all over the place. No, you can't necessarily do that. But that's the way it is for now."

This past spring, NAPALM DEATH signed a new deal with Century Media Records, extending the long-running co-operation between the parties once more.

NAPALM DEATH released its latest studio album, "Throes Of Joy In The Jaws Of Defeatism", in September 2020 via Century Media Records. The follow-up to 2015's "Apex Predator - Easy Meat" was again recorded with longtime producer Russ Russell and features artwork by Frode Sylthe.

Sweden's Seventh Crystal released their debut album, Delirium, via Frontiers Music Srl. In the new video below, the band perform the song "When We Were Young" live at Nordic Sound Lab in Skara, Sweden.





Order the Delirium album here.


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Tracklisting:


"Say What You Need To Say"
"When We Were Young"
"Broken Mirror"
"Delirium"
"When I'm Gone"
"Should've Known Better"
"So Beautiful"
"Time To Let It Go"
"Déjà Vu"
"Bright And Clear"
"Hope It Will Be Alright"


"Time To Let It Go" video:





"Broken Mirror" video:

Before releasing their new full-length album And Then There Were None this Friday, October 22 via Napalm Records, Danish death metallers, Livløs, reveal their third and final bone-crushing single, “Seize The Night”.


On “Seize The Night”, Livløs prove themselves to be one of the most exciting up-and-coming acts in melodic death metal, especially for fans of bands like Carcass, Death and At The Gates. This excellently produced, dynamic and hard-hitting rager from the five-piece displays their undeniable confidence and skill – some of the many reasons why Livløs has been making waves in the metal scene with appearances at Copenhell, Eurosonic and Spot Festival already under their belts.


Watch the music video below:


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On their new album, And Then There Were None, Livløs are audibly on top of their game: scrupulously ripping through nine tight, hard-lined tracks, the band takes no shortcuts while still maintaining a dynamic songwriting style that keeps listeners on their toes throughout the album’s runtime. Album opener and title track “And Then There Were None” sets the pace with punishing vocals and raging death metal riffs, leading into dramatic choruses and guitar solos that display Livløs‘ incredibly multi-faceted talent right off the bat. Only very rarely will the band give listeners time to breathe, like on acoustic intermission “Kistefjael” or the slowed-down, stomping “The Purest Black”, which ends the album experience of And Then There Were None in a triumphant, epic manner. Songs like “Seize The Night” are impressive depictions of singer Niklas Lykke’s broad vocal range, reaching from deep and guttural to high-pitched and ear-piercing sections.


Excellently mixed by Jacob Bredahl (ex-Hatesphere) and mastered by Brad Boatright (known for his work with Obituary, Nails and Torche among others), And Then There Were None is an exceptional display of Livløs‘ confident, modern approach to melodic death metal, meticulously executed from start to finish - revealing more of what it has to offer with every listen. Livløs prove that they are here to stay with And Then There Were None.





And Then There Were None will be available as a digipak CD and digital album, as well as 1LP gatefold black vinyl and an exclusive transparent red 1LP gatefold (limited to 200).


Pre-order here.





Tracklisting:


"And Then There Were None"
"Serpentine Supremacy"
"Mortal Severance"
"Pallbearer"
"Kistefjael"
"Drenched in Turmoil"
"S

Fast cars and even faster guitars are what you get on Obscura's new music video off their upcoming studio album, A Valediction. Only one more month to go before the band's sixth studio album will see the light of day, on November 19, and virtuosic frontman Steffen Kummerer and his renowned bandmates unveil yet another new song from their upcoming chef-d'euvre. As one of the more melodic tracks on the album, "When Stars Collide" even features a striking clean vocal guest performance by their label mate Björn "Speed" Strid besides the band's unpreceded polyrhythms and solos.


The music video was once again produced by director Mirko Witzki and does not only offer the possibility to witness the outstanding talent of the musicians during the performance, but also some visual pleasure for car nerds.


Steffen Kummerer comments: "One of the highlights and contested compositions of 'A Valediction' features Björn Strid of our label mates Soilwork. 'When Stars Collide' recombines an uplifting pace with a rather dark and bitter narrative that leads into to a story for reflection. A sense of delight and feeling of relief covers all mournful misery."


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Watch "When Stars Collide"





Thematically dealing with final farewells, the new album will be a very personal record, as Steffen Kummerer reveals: A Valediction unfolds Obscura in its purest form and showcases the band at new heights and offers immediacy with a rather personal touch. We cannot wait to perform this album on stage and celebrate each and every song live with our loyal fans around the globe. This record goes to eleven, so watch out for the first single dropping in July and worldwide tour dates to be announced soon."





The album, graced by a cover artwork painted by internationally renowned artist Eliran Kantor, will consist of 11 new studio tracks. Pre-order various formats here.

Just in time for the impending holiday season, Swedish heavy metal icons, In Flames, will reissue their classic albums from 1994-2008 that were previously unavailable and out-of-print on CD on November 26 via Nuclear Blast.





The catalog reissues on CD include:

For the iconic cover of their upcoming album, Erebos, UK’s Venom Prison have teamed up with renowned artist Eliran Kantor again. Erebos will be out worldwide on February 4. A new song will be released soon.


The band comments: “Being able to work with our dear friend Eliran on another piece of art for Venom Prison has been exciting as always. Kantor knows the band perfectly well to capture our music and poetry into a visual masterpiece every single time. Erebos was a personal one for both Eliran Kantor and ourselves. This artwork captures the moment a young person dies inside as they are surrounded by horror. In the moment their innocence is lost and desensitization will from now on fuel the repetition of the cycle of violence in their life. This is Erebos the one born from chaos.”





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In a new interview with Radio Forrest, legendary drummer Carmine Appice was asked what he thinks John Bonham picked up from him in terms of his sound and playing style when VANILLA FUDGE and LED ZEPPELIN played together in the late 1960s. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "According to the [John Bonham] book 'A Thunder Of Drums', I was one of his influences. So that means that he picked up a lot of the power that I use. 'Cause, basically, when you look back at the drummers who were influential and who were around inspiring people, it was Mitch Mitchell, Ginger Baker, Keith Moon and me and Dino Danelli. All the other four guys, they played light. I played really loud with a lot of power and showmanship. And when John saw me live, he loved it, and he loved my big drums. So he asked me if I could help him get a Ludwig endorsement.

"I mean, think about it — nobody knew him," Carmine explained. "It's hard to believe now. People say when I talk about it like I'm egoing out. I'm not really egoing out; I'm just telling the truth. Nobody knew John Bonham. And I called Ludwig and said, 'I think this guy's gonna be big. He wants a kit just like mine. It would be great if you give him an endorsement.' And on my word they did. And we sent them the first album, and on that they gave him an endorsement. He wasn't known yet. And then on the next tour, we did a lot of shows together, and he had the same exact drum set as me. And he was playing like me, he was doing the twirls like me, grabbing the cymbals like me. And he'd look at me when he did it, and we'd laugh. I'd give him a thumbs-up. We were friends. Me and [VANILLA FUDGE bassist] Tim [Bogert], on that tour, jammed with ZEPPELIN on one of the songs."

Back in 2014, Carmine said that he would love to play with a reunited LED ZEPPELIN, claiming that he is a better fit to replace Bonham than John's son Jason.

"Everybody in that band there is legendary… They're old school and legendary. Jason isn't legendary, and he's not old school," Appice explained to the "Totally Driven Radio" podcast. "He's John Bonham's son, but he don't play like John Bonham. He plays more… He plays like him. He's not John. He's got that name, but he's not John Bonham. I'm not John Bonham either, but I think my style might be close, 'cause I came first, and John listened to stuff I did and did it his own way. And we took 'em on their first tour. It's very close-sounding stuff in feel."

Carmine previously said that Bonham took the bass drum triplets from the VANILLA FUDGE song "Ticket To Ride", telling Classic Rock Revisited in a 2006 interview: "When I first heard John Bonham do that triplet thing on the bass drum, I went up to him and said, 'John, that is amazing. I have to admit that I took that from you.' He looked at me and said, 'What are you talking about? I took that from you!' I replied, 'I don't do that. You couldn't have taken it from me.' He proceeded to tell me where I did actually do that on the first VANILLA FUDGE record and he was right. I only did it for a moment on that album and he took it and made something bigger and better out of it."

Last year, VANILLA FUDGE released a remastered version of its cover of LED ZEPPELIN's "Immigrant Song" via Golden Robot Records.

In a brand new interview with Pierre Gutiérrez of Rock Talks, Tim "Ripper" Owens spoke about the fact that JUDAS PRIEST is not performing any songs from the two albums he recorded with the band — 1997's "Jugulator" and 2001's "Demolition" — during the group's recently launched 50th-anniversary tour. "I actually don't think it makes sense that they don't play songs from my era," he said (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET). "I mean, it was JUDAS PRIEST. Listen, you're celebrating 50 years of JUDAS PRIEST, but you're leaving out 10 years of it. The thing is Rob [Halford] would sound so awesome… Could you imagine Rob singing 'Burn In Hell'? Holy crap, it would sound fantastic. So, there's nothing wrong with sticking 'Burn In Hell' in a setlist. It was right in the middle there, so… I don't know. But they have a great setlist to play right now, so it's pretty awesome to see it.

"It's amazing JUDAS PRIEST has never done it," Owens continued. "They don't always have to do it, but it's amazing that they've never done it. I mean, Rob supposedly has never heard my era of JUDAS PRIEST, and it's kind of all right because I've never actually listened to his solo stuff except FIGHT, so we're kind of even on it. After FIGHT, I've not really listened to his stuff either, so it's kind of all right.

"When I was in JUDAS PRIEST, I didn't listen to a lot of stuff so I really didn't listen to the HALFORD stuff — unless somebody had it on somewhere," Tim explained.

"I love Rob — Rob is a friend and a mentor and an idol. Rob Halford and Ronnie James Dio are the two guys that really inspired me. So it's nothing against anything, really. It's not that I didn't want to [listen to his solo stuff]; I just never did. It was kind of, like, 'I'm in JUDAS PRIEST. There's no need.' But after I left, I listened to the JUDAS PRIEST records. Whether I liked them or not, I listened to 'em."

Last month, Rob was asked by Classic Rock magazine if he has listened to "Demolition" and "Jugulator". "No. I still haven't," he said. "This might sound selfish, but because it's not me singing, I'm not attracted to it. I sound like a twat, but I'm really just not interested. And that's no disrespect to Ripper, 'cause he's a friend of mine."

Halford went on to say that he first met Owens "when the band went through Ohio, [and Tim] came to the show. Was it awkward? Not in the least," he said. "We gave each other a hug. He's a massive PRIEST fan, and when the opportunity came for me to go back, he was, like, 'Thumbs up, it's great. I'm happy for the band, I'm happy for Rob.' I respect his chops; he's a great singer."

Owens joined PRIEST in 1996 after being discovered when the band's drummer, Scott Travis, was given a videotape of him performing with the PRIEST cover act BRITISH STEEL. JUDAS PRIEST at the time was seeking a replacement for Halford.

In a 2000 interview, Halford explained why he was reluctant to hear "Jugulator". "It's just too difficult for me to listen to the band when I'm not in it, and that's nothing to do with taking a shot at Ripper," he said. "I just can't listen to it. It's just psychological. I should just put it on and listen to the fucking thing, but then if I do, [interviewers] will say, 'Well have you heard it?', and I'll go, 'Yeah', and then you'll go, 'What do you think?', and I don't want to do that. I don't want to be put in that situation. I just love all the things that I've done with the band and I'm happy to be a part of that great legacy and that's all. You want to treat it with respect because that's what it deserves."

In October 2020, Halford told "The SDR Show" that he would "absolutely" be open to performing material from "Demolition" and "Jugulator" with PRIEST. "Those two albums are just as valid as everything else in the PRIEST catalog," he explained. "So who knows? That day may yet come."

In 2019, Owens told Ultimate Guitar that he believes his era of JUDAS PRIEST is largely overlooked. "Yeah, I think it definitely deserves more [attention]," he said. "I mean, they don't do anything. [Laughs] It's kind of amazing that they just totally erased it that they won't play... I mean, 'Burn In Hell' [off 'Jugulator'], the crowd would like to hear 'Burn In Hell'.

"They don't have to give me a tribute or anything, but it would be nice to play a song from... You know, that was a pretty big thing, I did two studio records, two live records, and a DVD, starting from '96 to 2004. So it's kind of crazy that it's just been erased and they won't even play a song from it live, because it is JUDAS PRIEST."

In October 2019, JUDAS PRIEST guitarist Richie Faulkner said that "Hell Is Home" is one of his favorite songs from the Owens era. The PRIEST guitarist, who joined the band in 2011 as the replacement for K.K. Downing, offered his opinion during a live video chat. He said: "I was listening to the Ripper albums the other day, and 'Hell Is Home' is such a great track. It's really heavy and the vocal melody is really great. I think Ripper sings it really well. It's probably one of my favorite PRIEST songs of the Ripper era. 'Hell Is Home' — I really like that."

"Demolition" and "Jugulator" are included on "50 Heavy Metal Years Of Music", JUDAS PRIEST's upcoming limited-edition box set which will contain every official live and studio album to date plus 13 unreleased discs. Released on October 15, it is the most extensive release of previously unreleased music the band has made from its vast archives.