STRYPER guitarist Oz Fox is recovering "very well" five months after undergoing the first of his brain surgeries to treat one of the tumors that were found in his head three years ago.

The 60-year-old musician offered an update on his condition in a social media post earlier today. He wrote: "Hey there folks! I wanted to make a quick announcement letting you all know that my recovery is going very well from my first surgery.

"Thankfully, after about 3 months of recovery I was able to record with the band in June. The circumstances for that project were well conditioned for my limited abilities at the time and I'm happy to say it was a successful mission but not without it's challenges for me. With that in mind, after my next surgery to remove my acoustic neuroma behind the left ear my wife Annie and I feel it would be best for me to take the rest of the year off for some solid recovery time. Another big project is coming for STRYPER in January and I really would like to be in my best shape for the task. With all of that in mind, I have strongly encouraged my brothers in the band to continue with booked shows coming up in the next few months with our dear friend Howie Simon [JEFF SCOTT SOTO, GRAHAM BONNET] covering my duties. Howie is an amazing guitar player and vocalist and I trust him to fully 'out-shred' me for those up and coming dates! So I am trusting you all to welcome him with open arms so the band can continue to work in my absence.

"I will be updating everyone on my health status as things come up. And I thank you for your prayers and encouragement as I face another risky procedure. I know God will be with me like he was for the last one. I am thankful for everything he has pulled me through! Of course I will continue to be a part of our social media platforms including our patreon page where we all have our weekly hour Q& A sessions. So I hope to see you all there! Take care and we'll see you soon!"

Fox's tumors — one by his ear and the other in the back of his brain — were discovered when he suffered his first seizure in August 2018 while performing with SIN CITY SINNERS at Harrah's in Las Vegas. Over the past two and a half years, both tumors had grown and were posing a serious health risk to the guitarist, who turned 60 in June. Specifically, the tumor behind the ear, if it continued to grow, could have caused hearing loss, balance, vision and spinal problems, while the tumor in the back of Oz's brain was in the area where left side of his arms, hands and body operate. Removing it could have affected the upper left motor function and potential ability to recognize faces and objects.

Fox discussed his health during a January 2021 interview with SIN CITY SINNERS manager Jason Green. Speaking about his procedure, Oz said: "I've got a great team of people, great team of doctors that are very specialized. They do hundreds of these procedures a year. They're gonna open up the skull. The good thing is the [first] tumor [they will operate on] is towards the outside of the head, towards the outside of the brain, which it's easy access — they don't have to go too deep to get to it. And they did all testing on me to make sure that wherever they go in there, they won't damage any of my functions. They did some really extensive testing — something called an fMRI, Functional [Magnetic Resonance Imaging], and they had me think about things, they had me actually act like I was playing guitar, and I had to hum backgrounds while I was playing, 'cause I couldn't move my head or my jaw. I had 'em play a STRYPER song, and I just kind of played to it and acted like I was playing guitar and tried to imagine what I was playing. And then they would see where the brain functions were while I was doing all that. And after they checked everything and went through it, they figured out that all of my activity for playing and singing and all that was nowhere near the tumor. So there's a good chance I'll retain all of that. But there's still always a risk. You never know with the brain. They seem to think I'm gonna be okay after the procedure, but it'll take time to recover, 'cause you may have some bleeding, some brain swelling — all that kind of stuff."

Asked if the surgeons would only work on one of his tumors during the initial procedure, Fox said: "They have to work on the right-brain low-grade tumor — they're gonna work on that first — and if all goes well with that, [there will be a] six-week recovery time, and then I can start working on the left one [behind the ear]. For the other side, it will be a bit different. They have to go into a different part of my skull here. They'll have to cut a portion of my skull out to get into that area, and then, of course, replace it again. I'll have steel titanium plates in my head and all that crazy stuff. The only thing about this one is it's so close to the audio nerves that I could lose my hearing. They say it affects nerves on the side of my face here, so that could be a problem. I'm already feeling numbness around my mouth."

Oz went on to say that his medical team initially tried "doing some other things that were non-invasive" without the desired results. "We were trying to get the tumors to shrink by using different methods that they say are proven to help do that," he explained. "But that didn't work — they still grew. And so now we're, like, we'd better go in and take some action — get working on cutting them out. Otherwise, if [the tumors] get too big, they won't be able to help me. Again, the left ear, when they work on this tumor, there's a good chance I could lose my hearing, or the nerves going to my balance part of the ear, the cochlea. If that happens, then I will have to really recuperate in a way where my right ear would take over for my balance, which it's amazing that the brain can do that."

Fox said that he is realistic about the risks involved with the operation and the likelihood of any complication, including death.

"The worst thing that could happen is something could go wrong and I could pass," he said. "Well, if that ever happened, in whatever situation — I could die driving a car, getting in a wreck somewhere or somebody running into me. But because of my [Christian] faith, I know where I'm going, and I have a belief in eternity with my soul. And because I've followed Christ for so long now, and I have a full-on relationship — I've surrendered my entire life to him — the promises that he gives in his words are that I have a better place to go to after this. I'll basically be changing addresses with my soul. That's the mindset I have.

"Nobody wants to ever leave their family or things that they invested in years, but when it's your time, it's your time," he reasoned. "So that doesn't scare me. I mean, we could go down in a plane. [Laughs] So, you never know. And I'm certainly not afraid of that — I'm not afraid of death. The only thing I think I'd be… Well, I don't even wanna say it… There's not fun ways to die, let's put it that way. [Laughs] If it's quick, it's better. [Laughs]"

Last October, Fox was briefly hospitalized after suffering another massive seizure.

Within weeks of Fox's original August 2018 seizure, STRYPER toured Australia and Japan as a three-piece, and later recruited Simon to fill in while Fox was unable to go on the road.

“Catch Me If You Can” is the explosive new single from Sweden’s finest export of street metal, Hardcore Superstar, and is scheduled to be released on all digital platforms on August 20. Preorder/presave here .

“Catch Me If You Can” picks up the pace and builds on the momentum created by the band's highly successful 2018 release You Can’t Kill My Rock N’ Roll. This saw the band travel across the globe from America to Australia, playing to some of the largest audiences of their career and including an unforgettable night, where they broke attendance record for a headline act on the opening night of the world famous Sweden Rock Festival.

Loud, aggressive and totally unrelenting, “Catch Me If You Can” bursts out the speakers with an onslaught of attitude, combined with a pounding backbeat and a chorus that hits like a freight train. This single sets the tone perfectly for the band's upcoming album Abrakadabra, which is scheduled for release in March 2022.

Recorded at both Osterlycken and Bombastik in Musikhens Hus in Gothenburg, the band returned to their roots to work with acclaimed producer Johan Reiven, who they previously collaborated with on their 2005 Black Album. The result is an intense and hard-hitting collection of songs that drummer Adde Moon describes as a “natural follow up to the Black album” and definitely “an album for the fans that is best shared with good friends, cold beer and very loud speakers."




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The TeamHappy Benefit show will take place in Rockwoods, MN on August 22 and will feature all day music, a silent auction, and food and drinks. Slave Raider will be making their return to the stage for the first time in 20 years at the show. The four remaining members will jam classic Slave Raider.

Michael Schneider, known by most as Happy, the stunt guitarist for the rock institution, Hairball, was diagnosed in 2018 with Stage 3 Esophageal Cancer. Happy hit the ground running to fight for his life. He underwent six chemo therapy treatments and 28 radiation treatments. This was followed up by an esophagostomy surgery and another six rounds of chemo. Happy was considered in remission for almost 2 years before the cancer returned. In October 2020, scans revealed the cancer returned in the same spot and in another area near the diaphragm. 

At this time, surgery is not an option and doctors feel there is no cure. However, with the daily advancements in medicine, along with Happy's unwavering will to fight for his life, his family; wife Mandy, sons Chace and Hunter, his cherished friends and for rock & roll, everyone involved is as optimistic as ever!




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The Outfit has announced singer/songwriter Mike Leslie to the band as the new lead singer/guitar player. Leslie previously played guitar and toured with the multi-platinum band Candlebox.

The Outfit states, “We had a great four years with lead singer Andy Mitchell, but due to personal reasons Andy has decided to leave the band. We wish him the best. We are excited to welcome Mike Leslie to The Outfit. Mike is extremely talented, and we look forward to adding his dynamic vocal ability and guitar playing to the band.”

Leslie says, “It’s an honor to join such a talented group, and I’m looking forward to creating and bringing some great music to the stage!”

Former lead singer Mitchell says, “It wasn’t an easy decision. It’s been a great run over the last four years, and I love these guys dearly. I know they will continue to kick ass and do what they do, and I look forward to watching their success.”  

The Outfit formed in 2018 in Chicago, Illinois. The band is made up of veteran musicians with a forward-thinking attitude. With their experience, they will make an impact with a fresh new sound in today's music scene. The band's 2018 single "Soldier Boy" secured the #34 spot on Billboard‘s Mainstream Rock chart. Their sophomore album Viking also has created a buzz in the rock world. The single “Come Alive” has over 174,000 plays on Spotify. The Outfit has done several shows spanning the Midwest to the West Coast and has the following shows scheduled this year.

The Outfit live:

August
26 - Griffith, IN – Avenue 912

September
1 – West Chicago, IL – WC Social Club
19 – Chicago, IL – House Of Blues

October
8 – St. Charles, IL – Arcada Theater

November
20 – Green Bay, WI – Epic Events Center 




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King Kobra has released a deluxe edition of their first ever live album, Sweden Rock Live, through Deko Entertainment. Now you can get the show in its entirety fully remastered for digital, including “Iron Eagle (Never Say Die)”. Download here .

King Kobra was founded by drummer Carmine Appice, the band consisted of four relatively unknown musicians: vocalist Mark Free, guitarist David Michael-Philips, guitarist Mick Sweda, and bassist Johnny Rod. After two albums on Capitol Records, Ready to Strike (1985), Thrill of a Lifetime (1986), and the independent release King Kobra III in 1988 they disbanded until returning in 2010 with Paul Shortino (Rough Cut) taking over vocal duties.

Recorded in 2016 at the Sweden Rock Festival this album features original members Appice, Johnny Rod, David Michael Phillips (David Henzerling) and vocalist Paul Shortino filling in for Mick Sweda was Jordan Ziff (Ratt) on lead guitar. This new “deluxe edition” digital release has been fully re-mastered and now captures the bands entire electrifying set including the new bonus tracks “Monsters and Heroes”, Iron Eagle (Never Say Die)” and “Runnin Wild”.

Carmine Appice had this to say about the new re-mastered and expanded release, “Playing Sweden Rock Festival with King Kobra was a great experience. The band was excellent that night. Jordon our new member was extraordinary that night. Audience reaction was magic. Paul Shortino killed it. It’s great to hear the show in its entirety, it was a great night of KK rock!!”

Also coming up from this new partnership will be the “deluxe edition” of the 2010 self-titled King Kobra release due out digitally on August 13.  This will include two bonus tracks, the original studio version of “Monster And Heroes” and the Japanese only bonus track “Red Flags”.

Tracklisting:

“Ready To Strike”
“Tear Down The Walls”
“Knock ‘Em Dead”
“Shadow Rider”
“Live Forever”
“Ballad Of Johnny Rod”
“Wild Child”
“Hunger”
“Highway Star”
“Heaven And Hell”
“Monsters And Heroes” (Bonus)
“Iron Eagle (Never Say Die)” (Bonus)
“Drum Solo”
“Raise Your Hands”
“Turn Up The Good Time”
“Runnin Wild” (Bonus)

“Hunger”:




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According to Variety, Director Bernard MacMahon has revealed the title of his long-awaited and recently completed Led Zeppelin feature documentary: Becoming Led Zeppelin.

The project, which was first announced in 2019, has unprecedented access to Robert Plant, Jimmy Page and John Paul Jones, marking the first and only time the group has participated in a documentary in 50 years. 

“Becoming Led Zeppelin is a film that no one thought could be made,” said MacMahon. “The band’s meteoric rise to stardom was swift and virtually undocumented. Through an intense search across the globe and years of restoration of the visual and audio archive found, this story is finally able to be told.”

Altitude Film Sales and Submarine Entertainment will be announcing a release date soon. 

Read more at Variety.




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Frontiers Music Srl has announced the upcoming release of The Grandmaster's debut album, Skywards on October 15, 2021. The Grandmaster sees the pairing of legendary metal guitarist Jens Ludwig (Edguy) together with renowned metal vocalist Nando Fernandes (Sinistra, Brother Against Brother) for the creation of a stunning melodic metal masterpiece. Today, fans can get their first listen to the band with the release of the debut single and music video, “Someday Somehow”. Preorder/save Skywards here .

Of what inspired his performances on the album, Jens Ludwig says, "The songs were all the inspiration I needed. 'True North' and 'Lunar Waters' were the first songs I heard and they made me wanna participate immediately! In the end, I really felt like I had a great connection with everyone involved, especially with Alessandro [Del Vecchio]. Didn’t need much more. Right time, right place, right songs, right team… it just felt ‘right’ to be a part of it. And it‘s been about time for me…" 

"My inspiration came from the compositions themselves, especially the vocal melodies, where from the first listen I could see that my voice would fit perfectly in all the songs. And this inspiration only grew with each song recorded. I was really moved during this process. Some lyrics also touched me a lot and helped to make my performance really real. Another strong point was the quality of the musicians involved, it really made my job a lot easier," adds vocalist Nando Fernandes.

Continues Fernandes, "I believe that there are variations within the same work, from hard rock to traditional metal, from progressive to melodic metal. The repertoire is not stuck within a single aspect and this is what makes it very interesting for listeners. The variation brings different emotions for each track. I would love to hear this CD myself, if I wasn't part of it. For those who like to listen to songs with strong interpretations, emotional solos, and an aggressive feel, this is a full plate!"

"I guess I would call it melodic metal with all elements this genre has to offer. Diverse and powerful songs featuring an outstanding vocalist," adds Ludwig.

The Grandmaster is another exciting musical project put together by Frontiers President and A&R director, Serafino Perugino. Taking center stage this time is a musical alliance between the outstanding Brazilian singer Nando Fernandes, a vocalist whose style follows in the tradition of the great metal singers of the '80s and '90s (think Ronnie James Dio, Jorn Lande, Russell Allen, etc.) with one of the power metal genre's truly gifted, talented, and stellar guitarists, Edguy's Jens Ludwig. 

The end result of this powerful combination is a muscular, melodic metal album which offers a great take on traditional German power metal with strong elements of melody incorporated into the musical mix.

With superb production courtesy of the multi-talented Alessandro Del Vecchio, The Grandmaster's debut album, Skywards is sure to be one of the most talked about melodic metal releases of the year.

Tracklisting:

“Lunar Water”
“The Tempest”
“Someday Somehow”
“Dead Bond”
“Cannot Find The Way”
“Song Of Hope”
“Skywards – Earthwards”
“True North”
“Surrender”
“Turn The Page”
“The Source”

“Someday Somehow” video:




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MikeLadano.com is reporting that Don Simmons, the original founding keyboard player for Helix, had passed away. He was 64.

Simmons played in the original Helix band featuring singer Brian Vollmer, drummer Bruce Arnold, guitarist Ron Watson, and bassist Keith “Burt” Zurbrigg. Simmons gigged with Helix from 1974 - 1976 and was still in the group for a short time when Brent “The Doctor” Doerner joined, beginning the transformation into the modern band.

In 2004, Helix staged a massive reunion that included many of their former surviving members. The original band, including Simmons on keyboards, got up on stage for the first time in 30 years and played "Buff’s Bar Blues", a mainstay of their early sets. The show was released as the 30th Anniversary Concert.

Don never stopped loving music and continued to play keyboard and guitar. 

Helix frontman Brian Vollmer paid tribute to Simmons via a Facebook post, which can be read below.

Vollmer: "Yesterday I found out through my cousin Elaine Schiestel that original Helix keyboardist Don Simmons had passed away suddenly. That makes two of the original Helix members who have died over the past couple of years; the other being guitarist Ron Watson.

Don was from Listowel and we both went to school at L.D.S.S. We had both been in a high school band called Homegrown. The drummer was Kevin Webster on drums, Larry Schneider on guitar, and Bill Bailey on bass guitar. We weren’t very good but it was a start, and  it got us playing a couple of high school dances.  Kevin decided to enter us in a contest in Kitchener, which was about 30 miles away.  The contest in question was The Battle of the Bands at the Central Ontario Exhibition. We went the night before to check out the competition, and after seeing what we were up against we wanted to crawl away and hide under a rock. These bands from Kitchener made us look & sound like rank beginners.  We were now frightened. But we played the next night anyway.  Needless to say we weren’t the high light of the competition, but we did catch the eye of some Kitchener musicians, Bruce Arnold & Rob Watson. 

The first incarnation of Helix was Don Simmons/keyboards, Bruce Arnold/drums, Rick Trembly/guitar, Ron Watson/guitar, Keith Zurbrigg/bass, and myself. Rick was quickly ousted from the band by Bruce & Ron. We practiced the same 5 songs or so every night at the practice hall on Margaret Street in Kitchener above an old garage.  The main house, which was once owned by J.M. Schneider ironically enough, was rented by a band called Cerebrum. Eventually we stretched that into a couple of sets and started to get gigs through DRAM Agency. We bombed all of them, but in retrospect, we were just out of the basement. Rock and roll babies…

When William Seip entered the scene things suddenly got very serious. Our first 'road' gig was in Deep River, Ontario by Petawawa. We also played The Kap Inn in Kapuskasing, the Travelhost in Timmins, and a few other bars I’d rather forget.  Life on the road was especially tough and decidedly unglamourous.
    
One of our top places to play was The Sebringvilla in Sebringville. The main attraction that drew the people in for us was Donny on his keyboards playing 'Frankenstein' by Edgar Winter, 'Roundabout' by Yes, and 'Funeral For A Friend' by Elton John. Don was all in his glory and was a chick magnet. Add to that he had a hot car in his Chevy Nova, and  voila!—'rock n’ roll lifestyle!'

However, as I said, life on the road was a lot less glamorous than everyone made it out to be. Pay was shit, the rooms up north were third world, and the life itself lonely. Bruce was the first to leave the band to marry his wife Bonnie. They are still together today. Unlike Bruce, who I kept in constant contact with however, Donny went his way and I went mine. This wasn’t a conscious effort; I just didn’t know where he was or what he was doing.  Occasionally he’d surface or I’d accidentally run into him when I was visiting my parents in Listowel.

All that changed when we celebrated the 30th Anniversary concert at The Sanderson Center and the original band kicked off the show with 'The Buff’s Bar Blues'. The practices rolling up to the actual playing date were full of fuzzy warm feelings, cool vibes, and re-connecting. I could tell all the old line-up loved being in the spotlight again, even if it was only for one song on one night. I enjoyed being there with them for it. It was a special moment in my life-one I’ll never forget.

After that I seldom ran into Don. The exception was one day at a restaurant in Listowel. Don was sitting at the next table and I went over and we had a nice conversation for about 20 minutes.  I was with my mother, so I couldn’t talk any longer. That was the last time I saw him, although I tried to reach out through Bruce Arnold a couple of times, but even Bruce didn’t really know where he was or how to contact him.

I talked with Bruce yesterday and he told me that he and Donny had made many jam tapes that he hopes to do something with. He last saw Don a couple of weeks ago when he unexpectedly showed up at his house. The two of them had a nice conversation; Don looked to be in good health, and then he left.  

So raise a glass to Don Simmons! He was there at the beginning, and part of the Helix story and my life. Thank you for those memories, Don. 

Much love and peace on the other side."




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PAPA ROACH has released a new single called "Swerve". The track, which is a collaboration with FEVER 333 frontman Jason Aalon Butler and Los Angeles rapper Sueco, is expected to appear on PAPA ROACH's upcoming eleventh studio album, due next year via the band's own record company, New Noize Records, Inc., under exclusive license to ADA.

This past May, PAPA ROACH frontman Jacoby Shaddix spoke to the FM99 WNOR radio station about the band's decision to release its next LP through its own label. Asked how the move came about, Jacoby said: "Way back in the day when we were with DreamWorks Records — this was right after we released our album 'Infest' — we had this pact with this band ALIEN ANT FARM. We were, like, 'Whoever gets signed first, let's try to get an imprint, which is a subsidiary of the record company, where we can release music.' And we had made good on our promise and we had a record company called New Noise Records. And this was in, like, 2001. So fast forward so many years and a few record companies later, we just released out greatest hits with Better Noise Music, and that was the last record company we were with. And we were kind of in negotiation of going, 'All right. Are we gonna stick with this company?' which we've had a lot of great success and learned a lot of great things from, and I have nothing but great things to say about them. But we were, like, 'All right. Let's take the temperature and go see if we have what it takes to do this on our own, do it independent.' And so we took meetings, and we ended up with Warner/ADA, which we have our record label now of our own and we use their in-house staff to do the promo and all that kind of stuff. But we are the record company. So we're using our knowledge over the years that we've accumulated with our team and ourselves to take the reins and run with this one ourselves. And it's very exciting. It's kind of scary. 'Cause you don't know. But guess what? I just feel like we can't fail."

He continued: "You know when your gut tells you something? I just go, we've been doing this; we know a lot; we know what our fans want; we know what we want; we know that we are inspired; we know that we are passionate; and we know we've got a fanbase that loves us. Let's do this. And we have a great relationship with radio too. I mean, we just had another No. 1 on rock radio — after 20-plus years of being in the format. And I go, 'You know what? I think we can do this.' And so we made the jump. And so P-ROACH, we've got New Noise Records back up and running."

Regarding what's involved in releasing album without the participation of an outside record company, Jacoby said: "After this call with you, I get on with the band and we're wrapping on creative calls to finish up the artwork for the album and getting ready for the photos shoots and all that kind of stuff. It's been cool, man. It's a different — I guess — creative progression of making an album. You get the music, but then we talk about marketing, we're talking about music videos, imaging, photo shoots, different ways of packaging the album — all that kind of fun stuff, that's what we're in the middle of now. And I really enjoy that; it's a fun process. And it's cool to just dream some stuff up, and we then we build it and we make it and it happens, and I really love that process."

In January, a snippet of a brand new PAPA ROACH song called "Stand Up" was included in commercial for Ultimate Fighting Championship's (UFC) partnership with ESPN.

PAPA ROACH's second greatest-hits collection, "Greatest Hits Vol. 2: The Better Noise Years", was released on March 19 on Better Noise Music.

"Greatest Hits Vol. 2 - The Better Noise Years" includes 12 of the band's top 10 hits released between 2010 to 2019 as well as three previously unreleased remixes and two unreleased acoustic recordings recorded live at the YouTube Studios in New York City.

PAPA ROACH's latest album, "Who Do You Trust?", was released in January 2019. The disc was produced by Nick "RAS" Furlong and Colin Cunningham except for the song "Top Of The World", which is helmed by Jason Evigan.

In December, PAPA ROACH released a five-song EP, "20/20", featuring "new takes on old jams," including "Last Resort" and "Scars".

Fan-filmed video footage of ZZ TOP's July 30 performance in Tuscaloosa, Alabama can be seen below. The concert at the Tuscaloosa Amphitheater marked the band's first since the death of Dusty Hill, bass player, singer and songwriter for a trio that has stayed together for more than 50 years. Filling in for Hill at the Tuscaloosa show was ZZ TOP's longtime guitar tech Elwood Francis, who has worked with the band for more than two decades. According to the band, Francis will continue to play bass for ZZ TOP for the foreseeable future.

ZZ TOP canceled a show this past Wednesday (July 28) in South Carolina after learning that the 72-year-old Hill had died in his sleep at his Houston, Texas home.

Asked by Variety how he felt about continuing on with Francis filling in, ZZ TOP frontman Billy Gibbons: "Well, it was a direct directive from Mr. Dusty Hill. When he grabbed my arm and said, 'I think I'm due to go visit the physician to see if I can bounce back,' he said, 'In the meantime, I want you to grab our guitar technician, Mr. Elwood' — Elwood Francis — 'and take him out of that tech station and strap him up with my guitar and make him carry on with every single note.' And I said, 'Well, if that's your wishes, I'll respect that.' And sure enough, we've been very, very fortunate to have a stalwart standby to fill in.

"What's really got everybody on the ropes is that Elwood had been holding down the guitar technician post for 30 years as a clean-shaven young fellow. And when the lockdown was imminent, we all gathered for a band meeting, before things got too fierce. And I said, 'Dusty, it looks like we're not going to be able to go do much or go anywhere. What do you plan to do?' And he said, 'Well, I'll tell you what I'm not going to do. And that's cut the lawn. I'm not going to cut the grass.' And I smiled and said, 'Well, I'll join you on that.' And Elwood piped up and said, 'Well, if you guys aren't going to cut the grass, I'm not going to cut my whiskers.' And when we regathered to commence rehearsals just a week and a half ago, here came Elwood, and I said, 'My gosh, you've got chin whiskers as long as me and Dusty!'

"So when he took the stage the other night, I was looking over the front row and everybody was kind of giving each other the elbow, and they were pointing up and said, 'Look, the ZZ TOP circus still rolls on. There's another freak up there.' In fact, I had to stroll over and grab him by the chin to give him a yank, just to show the audience — I said, 'Folks, this is the real deal here.' [Laughs] But he's honoring Dusty's wishes, and I know that, wherever Dusty may be, he's probably smiling, just knowing that all the notes are in place and that the fierceness rolls on."

Francis made his live debut with ZZ TOP on July 23 at the Village Commons in New Lenox, Illinois after Hill was forced to return to Texas to address a hip issue.

On July 21, ZZ TOP canceled its concert in Evansville, Indiana because of a "health issue within the band," according to local news outlet Evansville Courier & Press.

ZZ TOP kicked off its latest tour two weeks ago in Manchester, Iowa. The trek, dubbed "A Celebration With ZZ Top", will continue in August with dates in the South, Midwest and Far West.

When ZZ TOP announced the tour, Hill — who joined the band a year after its formation in 1969 — commented: "They shut the door right after our 50th-anniversary tour and now it's back open. We're excited to get out there and play our music for everybody."

Funeral arrangements for Hill have not yet been publicly announced.

FOO FIGHTERS paid musical tribute to late ZZ TOP bassist Dusty Hill during the during concert Thursday night (July 29) in Cincinnati. The Dave Grohl-fronted outfit played snippets of "Beer Drinkers And Hellraisers" and "La Grange" at the Andrew J. Brady ICON Music Center, with drummer Taylor Hawkins sporting a sleeveless T-shirt with the words "Dusty RIP" written on it.

Hill died in his sleep at home in Houston, Texas, according to ZZ TOP's official web site. He was 72.

Funeral arrangements for Hill have not yet been publicly announced.

ZZ TOP played without Hill last Friday night (July 23) at the Village Commons in New Lenox, Illinois after he was forced to return to Texas to address a hip issue. Filling in for him at the gig was longtime guitar tech Elwood Francis.

On July 21, ZZ TOP canceled its concert in Evansville, Indiana because of a "health issue within the band," according to local news outlet Evansville Courier & Press.

ZZ TOP kicked off its latest tour two weeks ago in Manchester, Iowa. The trek, dubbed "A Celebration With ZZ Top", will continue in August with dates in the South, Midwest and Far West.

When ZZ TOP announced the tour, Hill — who joined the band a year after its formation in 1969 — commented: "They shut the door right after our 50th-anniversary tour and now it's back open. We're excited to get out there and play our music for everybody."

Fan-filmed video footage of JOURNEY's July 31 performance at Lollapalooza at Grant Park in Chicago can be seen below.

The band's setlist was as follows:

01. Separate Ways (Worlds Apart)
02. Only The Young
03. Stone In Love
04. Be Good To Yourself
05. Just The Same Way
06. Lights
07. Still They Ride
08. Escape
09. Positive Touch
10. La Do Da
11. Jonathan Cain Piano Solo
12. Who's Crying Now
13. Wheel In The Sky
14. Ask The Lonely
15. Open Arms
16. Lovin', Touchin', Squeezin'
17. Faithfully
18. Any Way You Want It
19. Don't Stop Believin'

JOURNEY made its return to the live stage last Thursday night (July 29) during a special "aftershow" at Chicago's Aragon Ballroom. The concert took place just two days before JOURNEY's appearance at Lollapalooza on the Bud Light Seltzer stage at Grant Park.

JOURNEY's lineup for both shows included the return of drummer Deen Castronovo, who shared the drum duties in the band with Narada Michael Walden. Walden, bassist Randy Jackson and keyboardist/backing singer Jason Derlatka all joined JOURNEY last year following the band's acrimonious split with drummer Steve Smith and bassist Ross Valory. Jackson — who previously played with JOURNEY during the mid-1980s — was forced to miss the Aragon gig because he is scheduled to undergo back surgery. Filling in for him was Marco Mendoza, who previously played several shows in 2019 with Castronovo and JOURNEY guitarist Neal Schon under the "Neal Schon's Journey Through Time" banner.

Schon first hinted at Castronovo's return on Monday (July 26) when he tweeted a photo from the rehearsal sessions for the Aragon show. "Ok … Double trouble Chicago @NaradaMWalden @DeenTheDrummer Narada Michael Walden and the return of Deen Castronovo on Drums @AragonBallroom @lollapalooza," Schon wrote.

Two days later, Schon answered a few questions about Deen's JOURNEY status below a San Francisco Chronicle story that he shared on Facebook. When fan asked, "So is Deen Castronovo back in the band full time now?" Schon responded, "Yes." After another fan who told Schon to "bring back Deen again," Schon wrote, "Deen is back. We are double (2) drummers now with Narada." He added: "They are BOTH PLAYING !!! JOURNEY AS YOU'VE NEVER HEARD US BEFORE !!!!"

Castronovo's 17-year tenure with JOURNEY ended in 2015 when the group fired him after his arrest for a variety of charges involving his now-wife (including physical abuse, coercion, and unlawful use of a weapon).

Last month, JOURNEY shared a new single, "The Way We Used To Be". The song is the multi-platinum band's first new music since 2011's album "Eclipse", and the first song released by the band's revamped lineup. "The Way We Used To Be" marks Walden and Derlatka's first studio recordings with the band, and Jackson's first since 1986's "Raised On Radio". The song was produced by Narada Michael Walden at his Tarpan Studios, with co-production by Schon and Cain.

GUNS N' ROSES kicked off its summer 2021 tour last night (Saturday, July 31) at Hersheypark Stadium in Hershey, Pennsylvania. Dubbed "We're F'N Back!", this trek comes on the heels of the "Not In This Lifetime" run that began in April 2016 and became the No. 3 highest-grossing tour in the history of Billboard Boxscore.

As was the case with "Not In This Lifetime", the current GUNS N' ROSES tour features classic-lineup members Slash (guitar), Duff McKagan (bass) and Axl Rose (vocals) backed by guitarist Richard Fortus, drummer Frank Ferrer, keyboardist Dizzy Reed and second keyboardist Melissa Reese.

The massive touring production will make stops in Detroit, Los Angeles, Dallas, Chicago, and more before wrapping up with two shows in Hollywood, Florida, at the Hard Rock Live Arena on October 2 and 3, 2021.

The setlist for the Hersheypark concert was as follows:

01. It's So Easy
02. Mr. Brownstone
03. Chinese Democracy
04. Welcome To The Jungle
05. Double Talkin' Jive
06. Slither (VELVET REVOLVER cover)
07. Better
08. Estranged
09. Live And Let Die (WINGS cover)
10. You're Crazy
11. Rocket Queen
12. You Could Be Mine
13. I Wanna Be Your Dog (THE STOOGES cover)
14. Civil War
15. Dead Horse
16. Slash Guitar Solo
17. Sweet Child O' Mine
18. November Rain
19. Knockin' On Heaven's Door (BOB DYLAN cover)
20. Nightrain

Encore:

21. Paradise City

GUNS launched its long-rumored and long-awaited reunion tour with an April 2016 club show in Hollywood and appearances in Las Vegas and at California's Coachella festival.

In a recent interview with Guitar Player's "No Guitar Is Safe" podcast, Slash spoke about what it felt like for him to step back out on stage with GUNS N' ROSES for the first time in over two decades at the band's concert at the Troubadour in West Hollywood, California.

"That was our first gig back," the guitarist said. "I think probably the last time that we ever played there was in 1985. I don't think we even played there in 1986. Probably '85 was the last time we played there. "[The April 2016 concert was] our first show together after 20 years. We obviously had more gear and more crew than we did back in the day, I'll tell you that much. And it was loud. But it was a lot of fun. It was an almost poignant moment to fucking stand there and look at that crowd in that sort of room and have that kind of nostalgic feeling."

In 2019, Slash told Guitar.com that his first concert back with GUNS N' ROSES was an "overwhelming" experience. "It was so cool," he said. "Because it was a long time — we're talking more than 20 years from the last show in 1994… it was 22 years since the last time we'd played together. And obviously I'd played with [bassist] Duff [McKagan] [since then] but there's a certain dynamic in the three of us together. It was awesome, and it's a really great experience."

The band is now reportedly working on a new studio album — the first under the GUNS banner since 2008's "Chinese Democracy" and the first to feature Rose, Slash and McKagan since 1993.

AURI, the project featuring NIGHTWISH mainman/keyboardist Tuomas Holopainen and his wife, popular Finnish singer Johanna Kurkela, will release its second album, "II - Those We Don't Speak Of", on September 3 via Nuclear Blast. The effort will be the follow-up to AURI's self-titled debut LP, which came out in March 2018 via Nuclear Blast.

The "II - Those We Don't Speak Of" cover artwork comes once again from Janne "ToxicAngel" Pitkänen and bestows in its simplicity and depth.

The official lyric video for the disc's second single, "The Valley", can be seen below.

Holopainen comments on the track: "'The Valley' is an ode to homecoming. It's about things worth a long wait, and about all the wondrous waypoints on the road. And while you're wandering on that road, why not write a little tune to keep you company. A tune most delicate and hard to catch, but willing to reveal itself once you've made your journey, and have almost reached home."

AURI began its life with three people, united through their shared need to hear a kind of a music which can't be described by words alone. The first song born of this mindset, "Aphrodite Rising", appeared in 2011.

Kurkela lent her unique voice, while Holopainen and English composer and multi-instrumentalist Troy Donockley (also of NIGHTWISH) cast their spells with various other instruments. Now complemented by the dynamic percussive talents of Kai Hahto (NIGHTWISH), the threesome carves fantastical worlds entirely their own.

With a total running time of 50 minutes, "II - Those We Don't Speak Of" consists of 10 captivating tracks:

01. Those We Don't Speak Of
02. The Valley
03. The Duty Of Dust
04. Pearl Diving
05. Kiss The Mountain
06. Light And Flood
07. It Takes Me Places
08. The Long Walk
09. Scattered To The Four Winds
10. Fireside Bard

In a 2018 interview with Dead Rhetoric, Donockley stated about AURI's formation: "It was always there for us, since 2010. We decided back then that the three of us wanted to do something together. Tuomas and I are huge fans of Johanna's voice. I had been involved in one of her albums as a guest musician, and Tuomas had written a song for her on a solo album. So the three of us realized pretty early on that we wanted to do something together, musically. It was obvious that it couldn't be like NIGHTWISH. But it was something we felt really strongly about, that we had to release this atmosphere we all felt, and were tuned into. I know that sounds fairly vague, but that's truly what it was. It was a kind of music that we wanted to get out of ourselves. We are close friends and have very similar tastes and attitudes towards life so we made our plans, but NIGHTWISH is a behemoth. We have our commitments there and we did 'Imaginaerum' and 'Endless Forms Most Beautiful' after our decision to work together on some music. As it turned out, fortune smiled on us with a sabbatical year. We decided to dive in and work on it."

Asked how he would compare the spirit/essence of AURI with that of NIGHTWISH, Donockley said: "We don't see it as very different from NIGHTWISH at all. Sonically it is, for sure. We were struggling to find a label for it, as it usually happens, so I just tossed out 'celestial metal.' So this Polish journalist said to me, 'I know what you mean about celestial metal. It's kind of heavenly music. It has the metal attitude, but without all of the electric guitars and bass.' Metal is an attitude. The metal scene — the metal fans are open-minded, as I said before. The Italian [NIGHTWISH] fan club, I did an interview with them, and this was brought up and she told me that she was a fan of DIMMU BORGIR as well as Ed Sheeran. That's it right there! So I think the NIGHTWISH connection is inevitable because of Tuomas and I are in it, so there are those elements. But I think the spirit is the same as NIGHTWISH. It does cover a lot of the same themes, it's just not obviously NIGHTWISH. It's down to the sonic side, honestly."

AURI is:

Johanna Kurkela: Voices, viola
Tuomas Holopainen: Keys, backing voices
Troy Donockley: Acoustic and electric guitars, bouzouki, uilleann pipes, low whistles, aerophone, bodhran, keys, voices

Holopainen and Kurkela have been married since October 2015.

Photo credit: Mikko Linnavuori

EMG TV has shared a new clip along with the following message:

"This week, EMG Generation Next artist Charlie Parra (ex-Kobra And The Lotus) takes us through an awesome EVH tribute medley. Throwing down on his custom Kramer Nite V loaded with the EMG 57/66 set."

Parra runs through Van Halen's "Dance The Night Away", "Panama", "Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love" and "Eruption" below on the fitting V-style Frankenstrat.




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All-star modern metal band Imonolith return with a bass-heavy, self-released cover of Björk's "Army Of Me". Watch the lyric video below. Stream or purchase the single here.

Says drummer Ryan Van Poederooyen: "Imonolith are excited to release our version of the classic Björk hit, 'Army Of Me'. I had an idea of how to cover the song back in 2011 and demoed it with a past project but never released it. I brought up this version to everyone in Imonolith, they dug it, so we re-recorded it with a few new twists. It’s basically a heavier version of the original song with some big modern day production. Jon did an incredible job paying respect to Björk’s vocal melodies. Musically, the chorus and a few other parts of the song get injected with some new energised patterns. We’re stoked on how it turned out and can’t wait for everyone to hear what we did with this classic song."

Imonolith features drummer Ryan Van Poederooyen (Devin Townsend Project), guitarist Brian ‘Beav’ Wadell (Devin Townsend Project), Jon Howard (Threat Signal), guitarist Kai Huppunen (Methods of Mayhem, Noise Therapy) and Scott Whalen (Econoline Crush). 




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Los Angeles-based band, Edge Of Paradise, have announced the upcoming release of their new studio album, The Unknown, on September 17. A video for the title track is streaming below. Watch the video below, and pre-order/save The Unknown on CD/Color Vinyl/Digital here.

"This is a dynamic, cinematic song interlaced with meaningful and intimate lyrics, coming from the depths of the band's soul. The centerpiece of the album for us. Fragility, intertwined with unbelievable strength, to deliver an empowering message: find strength within yourself and choose hope over fear," says vocalist Margarita Monet of the title track to Edge Of Paradise's upcoming album.

The Unknown is Edge Of Paradise's fourth studio album, coming on the heels of their well-received third album, and Frontiers Music Srl debut, Universe. The band teamed up with renowned producer Howard Benson (Halestorm, My Chemical Romance, Seether, etc.) who, together with Mike Plotnikoff (Halestorm, Three Days Grace), and Neil Sanderson (Three Days Grace) helped the band craft their biggest sounding album yet. Add in mixing and mastering by Jacob Hansen (Amaranthe, Volbeat, Pretty Maids) and you have a fool proof recipe for a sonically stunning album. The Unknown builds upon where Universe left off, developing Edge Of Paradise's overall symphonic and metallic sound while bringing it to the next level. Gigantic hooks paired with monolithic guitar riffs in a spacious sea of symphonic sounds will immediately grab listeners and whisk them away on the band's sonic, and lyrical, journey.

"After hearing the first few tracks Mike Plotnikoff had produced for the album, Neil [Sanderson] and I were drawn to them because of their hooky, progressive metal chops and Margarita's soaring intense vocals! We decided to see if they were interested in a partnership with our new company, J&J Records, so we partnered with the band and Frontiers. We completed the record along with Mike and produced a modern metal classic," says producer Howard Benson.

Edge Of Paradise's founding members, singer Margarita Monet and guitarist Dave Bates, have found their perfect partners in crime with the addition of drummer Jamie Moreno and bassist Ricky Bonazza. The band, tighter than ever, is ready to blow everyone away once they are back on the road with this stunning new music in tow. Current plans are for the band to tour extensively through 2022 in support of The Unknown as well, with touring announcements coming up soon.

Tracklisting:

"Digital Paradise"
"My Method Your Madness"
"Tidal Wave"
"The Unknown"
"Believe"
"False Idols"
"You Touch You Die"
"One Last Time"
"Leaving Earth"
"Bound To The Rhythm"
"My Method Your Madness" (Industrial Remix) Bonus Track

"The Unknown" video:

"My Method Your Madness" video:

"Digital Paradise" video:




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South Florida post-metal outfit Ether Coven have surprised fans with a new EP. Language Is The Instrument Of The Empire is a three-song behemoth released via the band’s own label Horned & Blind. The offering was engineered by Daniel Colombo (Gouge Away, Orthodox, XBishopX) and features musical contributions by Eva Hall (Power Alone, ex Gather,) Brian Hillhouse (Seraphim, Seraph/The Light, The Animal’s Comfort,) and David Paul (Fero Lux, Ljesus.) the material was originally written before their 2020 LP effort for Century Media, Everything is Temporary Except Suffering.

The band were able to fully flesh out and record the EP during the pandemic. Speaking on the EP’s title and theme, Peter Kowalsky (guitar/vocals) said “it’s a quote that the Spanish colonialists lived by when they wanted to fully conquer a people. This EP is a harsh critique of normalization and the culture it protects. We never question much about our culture which is harmful to our health and happiness.”

Physical editions will also be available including a color 12” vinyl edition (order link below) as well as a cassette version (link below). In addition Ether Coven is teaming up with vegan company XVX Soap Co for a limited edition soap and artwork collaboration (available via link below). All proceeds from that item will benefit Shelter Farm Sanctuary. Order here .




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During our upcoming Streaming For Vengeance conversation with At The Gates singer Tomas Lindberg, he spoke about his 35-year friendship with legendary Entombed/Entombed A.D. singer, Lars-Göran “L-G” Petrov, who tragically passed away on Sunday, March 7th at the age of 49 after a battle with incurable bile duct cancer.

“It was horrible,” Lindberg remarks, clearly still in pain. “His death affected me so much. I mean, I’ve had close friends/musicians die before on me - Jon (Nödtveidt) from Dissection, Jesse (Pentad) from Napalm, Mieszko (Talarczyk) from Nasum, Henke (Frykman) from Disfear (my bandmate); their passings are all sad. The thing with L.G. is that I knew him since 1986, and he was exactly as old as I am, came from the same background, there are so many similarities that it makes it feel like this was the first one of my people, so-to-speak, and to pass in such a tragic way. And the fact that he was also in contact with people up to the very last minute. He was calling and texting right up until the very end. trying to reach everybody. A great person has left us and one of the best front-men in metal for sure. In metal in general.”

Tomas Lindberg will guest on BraveWords' Streaming For Vengeance tomorrow (Saturday, July 31st) at 3:33 PM EST. He also talks about the band's world-wide chart-crashing new album, The Nightmare Of Being. You can watch/listen Streaming For Vengeance on our Facebook page or our YouTube channel. For more information about Streaming For Vengeance, visit this location.

The Nightmare Of Being has achieved the following chart positions worldwide:

Chart Entries:

Germany: #8
Austria: #18
Switzerland: #12
Sweden: #20
Sweden (Physical): #1
Sweden (Vinyl): #1
Sweden (Hardrock/Metal): #2
The Netherlands: #77
Belgium: #84
Finland: #21
Finland (Physical): #5
UK (Rock): #3
US (Current Hard Music Albums): #1
US (Current Rock Albums): #4
US (Current Album Sales): #14
US (Album Sales) - #28

Vocalist Tomas Lindberg Redant commented about the initial reaction to the release as follows: "Hey everyone! We’re so happy and humbled by the fantastic response to our new album The Nightmare Of Being! We have never experienced anything like this before... the reviews have been amazing and also the fantastic response from all of you. It is amazing to have such a genuinely curious and interested listener base! And, last but not least, we have gotten amazing chart position reports this last week, so thank you all very much for your amazing support. It means the world to us, especially in these days of isolation and no shows. It is also especially rewarding with this level of response, considering that The Nightmare Of Being is our most adventurous and challenging album to date. Thank you all again."

Order The Nightmare Of Being here.

The Nightmare Of Being tracklisting:

"Spectre Of Extinction"
"The Paradox"
"The Nightmare Of Being"
"Garden Of Cyrus"
"Touched By The White Hands Of Death"
"The Fall Into Time"
"Cult Of Salvation"
"The Abstract Enthroned"
"Cosmic Pessimism"
"Eternal Winter Of Reason"

The tracklisting for the live bonus:

"Red" (King Crimson cover, Live at Roadburn)
"The Scar" (Live at Roadburn)
"Koyaanisqatsi" (Philip Glass cover, Live at Roadburn)
"The Burning Darkness" (Live at Roadburn)
"Daggers Of Black Haze" (Live in Stockholm)
"Death and the Labyrinth" (Live in San Francisco)
"A Stare Bound In Stone" (Live in San Francisco)
"Heroes and Tombs" (Live in San Francisco)
"The Night Eternal" (Live in San Francisco)

“The Nightmare Of Being” video:

“The Fall Into Time” video:

“The Paradox” video:

"Spectre Of Extinction" video:

At The Gates lineup:

Tomas Lindberg Redant - Vocals
Jonas Björler - Bass
Martin Larsson - Guitar
Jonas Stålhammar - Guitar
Adrian Erlandsson - Drums

(Photo - Ester Segarra)




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While the world waits for Academy Award-winning filmmaker Peter Jackson’s highly anticipated documentary on The Beatles, the return of Beatlemania is getting kick started with a brand new collection of Beatle cover tunes recorded by an incredible host of rock, pop and folk icons and superstars.

Legends Play The Beatles showcases the extraordinary influence the Fab Four had across a broadly diverse array of artists from ‘60s folk icon Judy Collins to former Deep Purple vocalist Glenn Hughes to ‘80s sensation Howard Jones. Each of these artists bring their unique talents to bear on such timeless Beatles’ classics as “Here Comes The Sun,” “Eleanor Rigby,” “Let It Be,” “Across The Universe,” “Tomorrow Never Knows” and many more.

Legends Play The Beatles is available both on CD in a fantastic looking digipak, and on limited-edition coloured vinyl in your choice of either yellow of blue. Order here.

Tracklisting:

"Here Comes The Sun" - Richard Page & Steve Morse
"Across The Universe" - Ann Wilson
"Penny Lane" - John Wetton
"Back In The USSR" - Molly Hatchet
"Norwegian Wood" - Andrew Gold
"The Long And Winding Road" - Air Supply
"Tomorrow Never Knows" - Electric Moon
"Rain" - Sugar Candy Mountain
"Eleanor Rigby" - Jack Bruce
"And I Love Her" - Howard Jones
"Yesterday" - Judy Collins
"Let It Be" - Glenn Hughes




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As bassist of prog legends Opeth, Martin Mendez has gained world-wide popularity and now he returns with another virtuous death metal crusher that captures the fear, loss of control and despair of lockdown in eight new tracks. For Dancing Into Oblivion, his project White Stones goes further down the path of progressive extreme metal with haunting growls, jazz induced intermezzi and an incredible level of technical perfection.

Today, White Stones have revealed their second single including a lyric video clip for the song "New Age Of Dark." Dominated by a threatening atmosphere of fear and isolation, "New Age Of Dark" was written during lockdown and captures all the despair and feeling of suffocation that we all know way too well since Covid started.

Dancing Into Oblivion" will be released on CD, Vinyl (clear & black/red marbled) as well as digital. Pre-order the album here.

Tracklisting:

"La Menace"
"New Age Of Dark"
"Chain Of Command"
"Iron Titans"
"Woven Dream"
"To Lie or to Die"
"Freedom in Captivity"
"Acacia"

"New Age Of Dark":

"Chain Of Command" video:

After the release of Kuarahy concurred with the blast of the worldwide pandemic and all the consequences it has generated, White Stones - Martín Mendez’s project (Opeth’s bass player) - are ready to launch their second record.

When White Stones released Kuarahy they became the first Spanish band signed to Nuclear Blast Records, cementing their first album as an unprecedented milestone. Now, with Dancing Into Oblivion, the band returns with a more compact sound, having been hard at work ensuring the utmost attention to every detail for a result that is even better than the first record.

The topics covered on this second album draw on the feelings that Martín himself affirms he has lived through during the lockdown imposed by the covid-19 pandemic. “I started it very calmed in March when Kuarahy was released and the lockdown started. I wrote the new record and it just flowed so well. It’s my point of view, of the feelings I had during the lockdown period, in this weird year. I took advantage of the moment and I feel excited about it”, reveals the musician.

The emotional ups and downs that a situation like this generates are reflected on this record. As Méndez says “it’s a mix of feelings during the lockdown, feelings that go from fear to uncertainty as well as going through the confusion when you don’t know about the future and you feel almost as if time has stopped. Musicians might be the last who will be back to work and we don’t have any signs of a sooner return, which makes for a huge uncertainty. I have a family and I have to take care of them. This situation creates a feeling of discomfort which you can feel on the album”, he confesses, also adding that “otherwise it’s been nice having so much time at home with the family and those small and peaceful moments are also in the music. I’ve chosen to include some interludes between the songs so there is a higher contrast and it makes it easier to appreciate the different feelings throughout”.

The most outstanding musical elements on this new record are the disparate genres that manage to co-exist. There is an element of aggression, that can be seen rearing its head in an instrumental frenzy, as well as soft and delicate intricacies that develop an atmosphere which surrounds the listener. There are distinct dynamics among the songs, with interludes allowing the listening to take a breath and appreciate what they’re hearing.

Describing the type of music, Martín says “it’s difficult to define the style of this album. I don’t like to tag the music. This is metal for me. It has elements of my interpretation of death metal but it has other, conscious influences from other genres too. It shows me as musician and displays my music taste within the restlessness of trying to do something different”. Whilst explaining this, Méndez recalls the writing process for this record “The first one I wrote was ‘Chain Of Command’, where I had the idea of writing more daring songs than on the previous record where I restricted myself and didn’t want to play anything too technical, I just wanted to create something that was easier on the ear. In this one I wanted to do something slightly more elaborate and technical, musically, to add some colour.

The first influence I had for ‘Chain Of Command’ was from a John Coltrane & Wilbur Harden album, while in ‘New Age Of Dark’ the influence came listening to Deicide, so the influences are really quite varied across this record”. Something the band were deliberately aiming for on this album was brevity. Vocalist Eloi Boucherie states how he and Méndez think “it’s better an album you want to listen to again, than a record you desire to finish before it ends” then “it leaves you wanting for more”.

The writing process of Dancing Into Oblivion has been pretty similar to the previous Kuarahy but with some clear changes. Martín composed all of the instrumentals for the album but, as he says, “I’ve left sections open to the interpretation of each of the other musicians, both in the drums and in the vocals. Eloi wrote the lyrics this time and we then workshopped them together whilst working out the vocal parts to get the final result in the studio”.

White Stones once again recorded at Farm Of Sounds Studios (Barcelona), owned by their singer Eloi. They were satisfied with the sound of Kuarahy and the experience of the recording of that album and the comfort of making everything with their own tools made it all easier. “Everything has been ‘homemade’ because it’s a way of working and a philosophy I like. You have more control and you can better enforce your ideas”, Méndez explains -who also created the cover for Dancing Into Oblivion together with Sandra, his partner for many years.

The final mix and mastering of this second album was done by Jaime Gómez Arellano at Orgone Studios (UK) because the band were more than satisfied with the work he did on Kuarahy and they wanted to repeat that great experience. Eloi, as the singer and also the guy who recorded the music sent to Orgone Studios, acknowledges “the recording had more experience and a better sound quality because we made better decisions during the pre-production thanks to a higher level of self-awareness of ourselves as a band. Jaime knew us better too, so that simplified the process and in turn helped to make "Dancing Into Oblivion" as good as it can be”.

The lineup has been enhanced with the participation of the multifaceted Joan Carles Marí Tur on drums (who also plays in other bands like Face The Maybe). The guitar solos were the job of Joao Sassetti (who was already a member of the touring line-up of White Stones). Sassetti lives in Portugal and he couldn’t be in the studio in Barcelona, so he recorded his solos and digitally sent them over for integration into the final songs. The recording of the instruments has been more organic and as Boucherie says. “The original sound has been retained as much as posible in each and every element” and it has brought a natural/raw touch for Dancing Into Oblivion just as the band had hoped and expected.

Lineup:

Martín Méndez | Bass & Guitars
Joao Sasseti | Guitar solos
Eloi Boucherie | Vocals
Joan Carles Marí Tur | Drums

(Photo - Sandra Artigas)




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Sony Music Canada announces the release of Bachman Cummings The Collection, a special edition box set from Guess Who bandmates Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings. The illustrious box set from two of Canada’s most celebrated musicians and songwriters includes five albums from The Guess Who from their 1969 - 1971 period alongside material from both Bachman-Turner Overdrive and Burton Cummings. This 7CD or 7LP set will include and expanded booklet of rare and unpublished publicity, studio and master tape photography and detailed liner notes. Both LP and CD boxes are available for pre-order now.

Bachman and Cummings rose to international fame as members of supergroup The Guess Who. Bachman broke with the band in 1970, forming Bachman-Turner Overdrive. Cummings departed in 1975 for a solo career. The Guess Who laid the groundwork for Canada's breakthrough songwriting partnership in Randy Bachman and Burton Cummings, as the first three albums of the Bachman Cummings Collection - Wheatfield Soul and Canned Wheat, both released in 1969 - and 1970's American Woman - attest. The Guess Who's trailblazing run of U.S. chart and sales successes continued with the albums Share The Land and So Long, Bannatyne. With Toronto-born Jack Richardson working his magic in producing Bachman-Cummings' hook-filled gems for instant radio appeal, The Guess Who became Canada's first rock star collective.

As songwriters, there was chemistry: from the moment Burton Cummings sat down at the piano with Randy Bachman “Burton and I would get together every Saturday morning at 10 or 11 a.m. and I would play him ideas I had for songs,” Bachman recalls. “We wrote very quickly. No song was a labour. If it didn’t work, we threw it away.”

Often using Beatles or Chuck Berry songs as starting points, the duo employed a healthy rivalry. “The competition between us made us a pretty good songwriting team. We were force-fed many musical styles and that crept into our work,” adds Cummings.

Whether collaborating or through the individual endeavours Randy Bachman like Bachman-Turner Overdrive or Burton Cummings’ collected work, the body of songwriting is arguably among the best of rock n’ roll history.

Of the legacy, Cummings says, “I’ve lived a pretty full life. I’ve been all over the world. And I’ve realized, better than ever, every year that I go out and sing those songs again, it’s more special to the audience, besides being more special to me”.
Bachman adds, “These songs are bigger than us or any differences that we might have had in the past. Getting together to celebrate the songs is a real triumph for us”.

Bachman Cummings The Collection will be released internationally on October 29 and is available for pre-order here.

Tracklisting:

The Guess Who - Wheatfield Soul

Side A
"These Eyes"
"Pink Wine Sparkles In The Glass"
"I Found Her In A Star"
"Friends Of Mine"
 
Side B
"When You Touch Me"
"A Wednesday In Your Garden"
"Lightfoot"
"Love And A Yellow Rose"
"Maple Fudge"
"We’re Coming To Dinner"

The Guess Who - Canned Wheat

Side A
"No Time"
"Minstrel Boy"
"Laughing"
"Undun"
"6 A.M. or Nearer"
 
Side B
"Old Joe"
"Of a Dropping Pin"
"Key"
"Fairing Warning"

The Guess Who - American Woman

Side A
"American Woman"
"No Time"
"Talisman"
"No Sugar Tonight/New Mother Nature"

Side B
"969 (The Oldest Man)"
"When Friends Fall Out"
"8:15"
"Proper Stranger"
"Humpty’s Blues" / "American Woman" (Epilogue)

The Guess Who - Share The Land

Side A
"Bus Rider"
Do You Miss Me Darlin’"
"Hand Me Down World"
"Moan for You Joe"
"Share The Land"

Side B
"Hang On to Your Life"
"Coming Down Off the Money Bag"
"Three More Days"
 
The Guess Who - So Long, Bannatyne

Side A
"Rain Dance"
"She Might Have Been a Nice Girl"
"Goin’ a Little Crazy"
"Fiddlin’"
"Pain Train"
"One Divided"

Side B
"Grey Day"
"Life In the Bloodstream"
"One Man Army"
"Sour Suite"
"So Long, Bannatyne"
 
Bachman-Turner Overdrive - Collected

Side A
"Hold Back The Water"
"Stayed Awake All Night "
"Let It Ride"
"Takin’ Care Of Business"
"Rock Is My Life, And This Is My Song"

Side B
"You Ain’t Seen Nothing Yet"
"Four Wheel Drive"
"Hey You"
"Lookin’ Out For #1"
"Down, Down"

Burton Cummings – Collected

Side A
I"’m Scared"
"Your Back Yard"
"Is It Really Right"
"Stand Tall"
"My Own Way To Rock"

Side B
"Timeless Love
"Break It To Them Gently"
"I Will Play A Rhapsody"
"Dream Of A Child"
"Heavenly Blue"
"Fine State Of Affairs"




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Brian May has re-released of his classic single and video, "Too Much Love Will Kill You", ahead of remastered Back To The Light album, out August 6.

With its vulnerable vocal, tender keys, understated acoustic guitar solo and indelible melody, “Too Much Love Will Kill You” is a standout from Brian May’s 1992 solo album, Back To The Light. May refers to it as, “in a way, the most important song I ever wrote.”

Originally emerging as a single on August 24, 1992, it earned Brian a solo hit when it reached #5 in the UK Singles Chart. Ahead of that release, a visibly moved and note-perfect May previewed it before some 72,000 fans at Wembley Stadium’s Freddie Mercury Tribute Concert in April 1992, perhaps cementing a misunderstanding about its origins.

“My excuse for singing it is, I think, it’s just the best thing I have to offer,” said May, by way of his on-stage introduction to the song. His reason for singing it was not, as was often thought, that he wrote the song about the legendary Queen singer, who had died in 1991. The song itself stretches back to 1986-7, when Brian wrote it with two friends, songwriters Elizabeth Lamers and Frank Musker. May was in Los Angeles at the time, “far away from home” and in a “tangled state of mind”, trying to find some release from a period of profound personal upheaval.

As Brian explains: “'Too Much Love Will Kill You' is a big, long story and the version that you hear on Back To The Light is the original. It has the original keyboard that I played when we were writing the song. Me and Frank Musker, and his lady friend at the time, were in a room and it was like a therapy session for me. I was just pouring out all these words because I felt like I was trapped. I was in a place that I could never, ever get out of. All I could do is write about it. This is the only song I wrote in that probably nine months or a year period.”

In writing about it, Brian laid everything on the line. “The pain will make you crazy”, he sings. And although his lyrics stem from a period in his life, it is that very specific honesty that lends them a universal power. Certainly, for Brian, the words hold their resonance years on. “The things that I struggle with are still there. ‘Too Much Love Will Kill You’ is a chronicle of what’s actually buried deepest inside me. Every word on it, as I listen to it now, every word counts for me. Every word I would still stand by. It’s exactly how I am inside. I say ‘am’ in the present tense because I’ve come to the realisation that I haven’t changed that much. It’s the one opportunity I had in my life to tell it as I saw it.  In a way, it’s the most important song I ever wrote because it does sum up life’s journey for me.”

The personal power of the song stems to a great extent from Brian’s restraint in the arrangement. As he recognized, a song so entrenched in personal suffering needed to be true to its maker’s voice, with no undue embellishments. “The version I did is anchored to the source. There’s nothing in there which doesn’t just speak about the emotion of the original writing. There’s no point in the original where the drums kick in and it becomes big. It never gets there. It’s all tentative and all quite delicate. And the raw emotion of the way I sing it is the way I feel. I wrote it, I feel it.”

And yet Brian knew and understood that listeners felt it too. Many Queen fans took it to heart as a song connected to Freddie. Meanwhile, Queen themselves took it to heart. A bigger version was recorded in 1989 with Freddie’s vocal, which would later surface on Made In Heaven, the Queen album completed after Freddie’s death and released in 1995. Released as a single the following year, Queen’s recording earned May’s tender confessional an Ivor Novello Award for Best Song Musically and Lyrically, a testimony to the abiding power of a song strong enough to grow beyond its origins and stand on its own legs.

“I loved working with Freddie to do that vocal. We were aware that the song was becoming something different, and it meant something different. We were all aware of it. We obviously knew Freddie’s days were probably limited barring a miracle. So the song started to feel like something different. And we didn’t shy away from making it very big, very Queen-like. And I like it.

“But if you want to hear what the song originally had poured into it, with the blood, sweat and tears of my life, then that’s this version.”

“Too Much Love Will Kill You” is available to download and stream now.

Back To The Light will be available in a Collector’s Edition box set featuring an exclusive white-vinyl LP, two CDs, a 32-page book, a 12” art print, a download card and an enamel badge all presented in a lift-lid box. A limited-edition (x1,000) of the same box-set is available exclusively on Queen Online Store with a signed 12” art print.

The album will also be released on 1LP black 180g vinyl, 1CD, Deluxe 2CD, Cassette and digital formats, with Out Of The Light available in the box set, on the 2CD and digital formats. A limited-edition 1LP Picture Disc will also be available exclusively on Queen Online Store.

Pre-order here.

Tracklistings:

Back To The Light

"The Dark"
"Back To The Light"
"Love Token"
"Resurrection"
"Too Much Love Will Kill You"
"Driven By You"
"Nothin’ But Blue"
"I’m Scared"
"Last Horizon"
"Let Your Heart Rule Your Head"
"Just One Life"
"Rollin’ Over"

- Produced by Brian May.
- Co-produced and engineered by Justin Shirley-Smith.
- All vocals, backing vocals, guitars, keyboards and anything else around – by Brian May unless otherwise stated.

Out Of The Light

"Nothin’ But Blue" - Guitar Version
"Too Much Love Will Kill You" – Guitar Version
"Just One Life" – Guitar Version
"Driven By You Two"
"Driven By You" – Ford Ad Version
"Tie Your Mother Down" (Featuring Slash) - Live on the Tonight Show with Jay Leno, 5th April 1993
"Too Much Love Will Kill You" - Live at the Palace Theatre, Los Angeles, 6th April 1993
"’39 / Let Your Heart Rule Your Head" - Live at the Brixton Academy, 15th June 1993
"Last Horizon" - Live at the Brixton Academy, 15th June 1993
"We Will Rock You" - Live at the Brixton Academy 15 June 1993
"Driven By You" - Cozy and Neil Version ’93

- The Live tracks are played by The Brian May Band from the ‘Back To The Light’ Tour 1993.
- Brian May: Vocals/Guitar, Cozy Powell: Drums. Neil Murray: Bass, Spike Edney: Keyboards, Jamie Moses: Guitar/Vocals, Cathy Porter: Vocals, Shelley Preston: Vocals.
- “And a special thank you to Slash”.

- Audio Supervised by Justin Shirley-Smith and Kris Fredriksson.
- Mastered by Bob Ludwig & Adam Ayan, Gateway Mastering Studios, Portland, ME.
- Audio Restoration Kris Fredriksson.
- Half Speed vinyl mastering Miles Showell at Abbey Road Studios.




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Derrick Green, who has been singing for SEPULTURA since 1997, spoke to "The Brooklyn Blast Furnace" podcast about the band's musical progression, including during the period when they were fronted by his predecessor, Max Cavalera.

"I got into SEPULTURA on 'Arise' [1991], and it was amazing, but by the time I got into them, they were already [on] 'Chaos A.D.' [1993]," he said (hear audio below). "I was, like, 'Oh, this is badass. This is really, really hardcore…' I don't know — it had more of those elements.

"'Roots' [1996], I thought it was cool. When I joined the band, I thought 'Roots' was the biggest album they had, and touring with them for 20 years and traveling, I love the album, but there are a good amount of fans that are just, like, 'I don't like that shit.' And I was shocked. I was, like, 'Wow! You really don't like [it]?' And they're, like, 'Yeah.' There are some fans that are, like, 'That was it for me.' And then there's people that are just, like, 'I love the old stuff, like 'Bestial Devastation' [1985].' And I'm, like, 'You're serious?' [Laughs] And they're, like, 'That [record] changed my life.'

"So there's all different fans, depending on how they were introduced to the band. So I love hearing people's stories, 'cause it's all diverse."

Green went to explain that part of the reason he was drawn to SEPULTURA's sound was the fact that the band was evolving at a rapid pace, as was evidenced on each successive recording.

"I always felt that what made me really gravitate to 'Arise' and then beyond is the fact that they had grown up, their personalities started to develop, they started to realize the shape of the band and where they wanted to go," he said. "Before, they were copying a lot of stuff from bands that they admire, and they were developing their style but they hadn't really reached that point yet. But I felt on 'Arise', it was really that tipping point, because their English was better, I thought. They started to actually learn English better, so the actual songwriting… Because they had a friend before that would translate the words from Portuguese to English — like, way before. And it's fascinating… And once they had the ability to write everything themselves, as far as lyrically and things like that, it became a lot more interesting. And you can hear that — each album is different, because they are growing. And it still continues that way — there's always change and growth. And that was something that I really admired about the band."

Last year, SEPULTURA launched "SepulQuarta", a weekly event where the band gave insight into its colorful history, took part in question-and-answer sessions with fans and performed music while in quarantine. Some of the musical collaborations, including those with members of MEGADETH, TESTAMENT, ANTHRAX, SYSTEM OF A DOWN, TRIVIUM and SACRED REICH, will be released as a full-length album later this year.

SEPULTURA's latest LP, "Quadra", was released in February 2020 via Nuclear Blast Records. It is a concept effort created at Sweden's Fascination Street Studios with renowned producer Jens Bogren.

SEPULTURA comprises Green, guitarist Andreas Kisser, bassist Paulo Xisto Pinto Jr., and drummer Eloy Casagrande.

SEPULTURA was formed in Belo Horizonte by brothers Max and Igor Cavalera, who are no longer with the band.

"Quadra" is the follow-up to "Machine Messiah", which was SEPULTURA's fourteenth studio album and the eighth since Green joined the ranks.

In a new interview with Sofa King Cool, POWERMAN 5000 frontman Spider One was asked how it feels to have been part of the wave of rock bands that were responsible for creating the "nu metal" genre back in the late 1990s. He responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "I don't think anybody who was part of that thought of it that way. I definitely didn't. Where that term came from, who knows? I don't know who made that up. And we didn't really even feel like we were a part of it. We felt like we were just doing our thing, and we didn't particularly feel like a part of a scene. But now when I look back on it, it was a pretty cool time. The variety of bands from that era, it's pretty impressive.

"People like to say everything's nu metal, but when I think back, everyone was kind of doing their own thing," he continued. "It was a scene, but everybody was very different. You had us doing this weird electronic metal, sci-fi-influenced, and you had guys like [Marilyn] Manson and Rob [Zombie] doing this sort of darker, horror-esque [brand of rock], and you had LIMP BIZKIT doing party-rap music, and KORN doing this… Everybody was really doing interesting things, but somehow it all fit together.

"It was a really exciting time because it was also one of the last times where rock music was the biggest thing. It was a massive movement, and we were all playing huge shows.

"It's interesting. Rock music has kind of been pushed to the side — it isn't really part of the mainstream — but back then, we'd get played on MTV," Spider One recalled. "You'd be watching MTV and there'd be a Britney Spears video and then a POWERMAN video and a KORN video, then a Christina Aguilera [video]… It was one of the last times where rock music was actually treated the same as everything else. I feel like now if you're in a rock band, you're, like, it's tough.

"It was a great time. And there were so many of those big tours happening. Ozzfest was sort of at its peak. It was exciting — it was definitely an exciting time to have that kind of success.

"It's funny. I think for a while nu metal was frowned upon, like anything that gets really popular, but I feel like its influence, you're starting to hear it more in a lot of younger bands now," he added. "I think those bands are now discovering the '90s, like, 'Woah,' the early 2000s, and finding all these bands. I definitely hear the influence in some of the newer bands."

Essentially a fusion of rap and alternative rock (arguably born out of RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE), nu metal inexplicably swept the airwaves and peaked for a brief period in the late nineties and early noughties, with Gregory Heaney of AllMusic describing the genre as "one of metal's more unfortunate pushes into the mainstream." Along the way, several bands associated with nu metal, including KORN, DEFTONES and SLIPKNOT, took a somewhat defensive stance against being labeled as such. Even those less apologetic nu metal groups eventually changed their sound, effectively disowning the genre that they helped pioneer.

POWERMAN 5000's latest album, "The Noble Rot", came out last year.

Heidi Shepherd and Carla Harvey have once again said that they have no regrets about the period in BUTCHER BABIES' history when they used to perform topless with tape over their nipples, explaining that it was meant as an ode to PLASMATICS frontwoman Wendy O. Williams, who had a song called "Butcher Baby".

While Shepherd and Harvey's look earned them plenty of attention, they were labeled a gimmick by some metal fans, with purists accusing the women of oversexualizing themselves in order to gain popularity.

Asked in a new interview with Rocking With Jam Man if they regret the nipple-tape look, Carla responded (as transcribed by BLABBERMOUTH.NET): "No. It had a meaning, and it was a snapshot in time. When we started playing music together, we were just two friends. We used to be in a cover band together. And let me tell you, the early shows that we played together were so crazy and so incredible — real punk rock. We would be covered in blood and feathers and have the tape on our nipples. Honestly, we wanted to tour and all that, but we didn't know that we would be an internationally touring band with young kids coming to shows. So we didn't think about stuff like that. Our intentions were very pure — we just wanted to go out there and have a great time with our friends and put on an amazing show… It's a snapshot in time, like I said. I don't regret a thing about it."

Added Heidi: "I don't know if you're familiar with Wendy O. Williams, but she's the first female in rock and metal who really went out there and she told everyone, 'Hey, you know what? You can't tell me what to look like. You can't tell me what to sound like. You can't tell me the music I'm supposed to make. I'm gonna go out there and I'm gonna do it for myself.' She went out there with a full-on intention of fucking shit up. That's what she did. One of her singles that we used to cover was called 'Butcher Baby', so that's where the name comes from. She also used to wear that attire. So that's where the look came from, the attitude — everything. And it's not lost on me that people didn't get that correlation, but that's okay, 'cause we did. And to us, we lived in that memory of Wendy O. She basically crawled so we could run. So we don't regret that at all. I wouldn't do it now. I'm old. [Laughs]"

Heidi previously addressed the nipple-tape issue in a 2018 interview with the "Talk Toomey" podcast. At the time, she said that BUTCHER BABIES' early image wasn't meant as a clever marketing ploy designed to ensure maximum exposure. "That was not ever anything that ever went through my mind: 'Oh, this will help us get attention.' Because I was in a band for a year prior to that, that I did that," she explained. "I didn't think that it would ever end up here. I didn't think that it would ever amount to anything. I just thought we were gonna have some fun playing some original music with our friends along the Sunset Strip, 'cause that's what we did before. The only difference was, before, it was five girls and [we were playing] covers. And that's the reason we created BUTCHER BABIES — to do original stuff."

Heidi's comments echoed those made by Carla, who told Metal Underground in a 2016 interview that the band's nipple-tape look "was completely blown out of proportion. When we first started this band, we didn't do it to go out there and strut around on stage like Playboy models; we did it as kind of a 'fuck you' to the cookie-cutter music industry," she explained. "We were paying tribute to a woman in metal that we respected, Wendy O. Williams. And that was it. And the show has never been sexual — ever."

Hailing from the City of Angels, BUTCHER BABIES have released two EPs and three albums to date, with their latest 2017 LP, "Lilith", debuting at #1 on iTunes Metal chart and #7 on iTunes Rock chart. The band kicked off 2021 by independently releasing a handful of newly energized singles produced and co-written by Matt Good (FROM FIRST TO LAST), including the most recent track "Last Dance" in April. Along with previously released singles "Yorktown", "Sleeping With The Enemy" and "Bottom Of A Bottle", all are to be featured on their upcoming self-released EP. Stay tuned for details in the coming months.

In a new interview with U.K.'s Kerrang! magazine, CANNIBAL CORPSE frontman George "Corpsegrinder" Fisher was asked if he thinks the Internet has an unhealthy interest in his neck. He responded: "Yes, a hundred percent. Everyone's always asking about my neck, and any person doing any neck exercises, I get tagged in it all the time. It's crazy. There was a meme, 'No Valentine this year, maybe necks year', which I thought was brilliant."

Fisher also talked about how SLAYER's Tom Araya ended up with a metal plate in his neck through constant headbanging. Asked if he ever worries about potential damage from windmilling, George said: "I've had pulled muscles in my shoulder but, knock on wood, I've never had a problem in my actual neck. My neck has gotten bigger over the years, and there's no doubt it's because of the headbanging. I must have been building muscle somehow with the way I do it, but it's just become second nature to me when we play shows. It's funny you mention Tom Araya because when we toured with SLAYER, that was a lifelong dream. I cornered Tom one night when I was drunk. He'd said in an interview that not being able to headbang kinda took the fun out of it for him, and that touched me. I had to tell him he was the main reason I headbang the way I do. His style is that side-to-side infinity shape, but it made me see headbanging like an artform."

Back in 2021, Fisher told U.K.'s Metal Hammer magazine that his neck got so big through "headbanging and lifting weights when I was younger. My dad had a business where he did painting, roofing and everything, so I'd work with him all day long," he said. "After that, we'd go to fishing spots to catch and eat all these fish. Then I'd jog over to my friend's house, who lived about a mile away, and we'd lift weights. If you compare old pictures from when I was on [CANNIBAL CORPSE's 1996 album] 'Vile' to now, it's obviously grown, and the only thing I've really done since is headbanging, which must be fairly similar to weightlifting."

Asked if he has ever had his neck measured, like if he had to get a tuxedo to go to a wedding or something, Fisher said: "Maybe when I got married in '98, but I don't remember and it's bigger now. If you really look at it, it's bigger than the base of my head or where my ears are. A friend of mine once said, 'You don't have a head. You're a neck with lips.' A lot of security guys will come up to me and complain about working out, but having skinny necks, and ask how I do it. I tell them to listen to [SLAYER's] 'Reign In Blood' and headbang the whole way through after working out."

CANNIBAL CORPSE's 15th studio album, "Violence Unimagined", was released on April 16 via Metal Blade Records