TV icon David Hasselhoff has recorded a metal song, "Through The Night", with the two-man metal project CUESTACK, and a Kickstarter campaign to finance the final steps of editing a video and "making-of" documentary on the project is now underway.

The collaboration between Hasselhoff and CUESTACK started in 2018 with many demos and meetings to make what seemed like an impossible idea slowly turn into a reality. As life-long "Hoff" fans, CUESTACK had the ultimate goal to create a metal project with the most-watched man on TV, showing the world his heavy side. Hasselhoff recorded the track with CUESTACK in 2019 in Vienna where they also shot an epic music video together.

The band's final mission: Finishing the editing process of the cinematic video that will accompany the song. With a limited budget and schedule, CUESTACK shot the entire video with Hasselhoff in just one day, using smaller versions of the sets than originally planned. To turn their retro sci-fi/cyberpunk vision into reality, a massive post-production effort is needed now to extend these basic sets into living worlds.

All Kickstarter contributions go directly into financing those final steps. Aside from providing digital downloads, Hasselhoff fans can pre-order the special "Through The Night" box sets, which include a digipak CD, eight-page booklet with liner notes, printed high-quality autograph card, poster, "Through The Night" baseball cap and custom leather bracelet.

CUESTACK is a collaboration between eccentric lighting/VFX designer Martin Kames and shred guitar content creator Bernth Brodträger. An unmistakable blend of metal and electronic music with well established sonic trademarks is the result, paired with an industrial, dystopian corporate identity that is ever-present in the band's cinematic music videos and artworks.

Hasselhoff's latest album, "Open Your Eyes", was released in September 2019, his first with L.A.-based label Cleopatra Records.

Photo credit: Maximilian Lottmann

According to Variety, QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE frontman Josh Homme and his estranged wife, THE DISTILLERS' Brody Dalle, have listed their Mediterranean-style Hollywood Hills home for $4.75 million. They bought the 4,554-square-foot, four-bedroom and 5.5-bath property in 2012 for $2.5 million.

Homme and Dalle also owned a home in Palm Desert, California that was recently sold for $976,000, a bit under the $990,000 they paid for the property a bit more than eleven years earlier.

In November 2019, Dalle filed for separation from Homme after 12 years of marriage.

The QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE rocker and Dalle got married in 2007 and have three children, 14-year-old daughter Camille, 9-year-old son Orrin, and 4-year-old son Wolf.

In a 2018 interview with The Sydney Morning Herald, Homme said that he first met Brody when she was 17 and he was 23. "It was her first day in the U.S. after relocating from Melbourne and I was playing guitar in the SCREAMING TREES," he recalled. "She came up to me backstage and asked if I was in KYUSS. We talked for an hour and a half and I never forgot her.

"I didn't like her ex, so I lied and said I had made out with her in the hope that he would find out. I didn't see her again until seven years later.

"Our bands played the Big Day Out in Australia in 2003. I was with someone in a casual way but had my eye out for Brody and saw her walking past. I pretended I didn't see her and tried to be cool. From that moment, we clicked and it was on. We've been together ever since. I never thought I would get married, but I found someone I couldn't live without."

Homme also described Dalle as his "punk-rock dream girl," adding, "I always thought if I could go out with a chick with a mohawk who also read philosophy, I'd be winning. Brody is the real deal. She does everything the boys can do and a whole slew of things no boy ever could."

Back in 2014, Dalle told The Guardian that she moved to America with money she got from the government of Australia for being sexually abused. "I'd gone through a couple of court cases when I was 14, 15 years old, and I'd been compensated for one of them," she explained. "When I turned 18, I got that money and got the fuck outta there."




Rockers Brody Dalle, Josh Homme List Hollywood Hills Home https://t.co/ZBHbgcWYFW pic.twitter.com/1LuqUoL165

— Variety_Music (@Variety_Music) October 27, 2020

In a new interview with "Talk Is Jericho", DREAM THEATER guitarist John Petrucci and singer James LaBrie reflected on the losses this year of two of greatest and most influential rock musicians of all time: Neil Peart, drummer and lyricist for the rock band RUSH; and Eddie Van Halen, the guitar virtuoso who propelled his band VAN HALEN into one of hard rock's biggest groups.

Petrucci said (hear audio below): "It was hard. For us, with Neil, we were on tour. We were actually in Europe.

"For me, RUSH is my favorite band. Growing up, RUSH was my favorite band; that was it," he continued. "And Neil, not only obviously as a drummer, what he's contributed to the drum world, but as a lyricist to me, he was a huge, huge, tremendous influence — probably my biggest influence as a lyricist. So as tragic as all the losses that we've had over the many years of musicians who were getting older, who were sick, whatever, may be the case, Neil hit me — that was, like, a blow. That was the first time where I felt, 'Wow, RUSH will never play again.' I guess they were already retired. But I'll never read a new Neil Peart lyric; I'll never be able to see him play again. I was very sad — a really, really sad loss in that case. And, yeah, we were on the road, so it just felt really surreal and bizarre."

Added LaBrie: "The way I got through it with Neil and with Eddie is when I was on the road, any time I had, I'd start watching old videos of RUSH and just kind of experienced it and that was kind of my spirit to Neil. Like, 'Okay, I'm doing this 'cause we already miss you.' And the same thing with Eddie. The last couple of weeks, as I'm having my coffee, I have my laptop in front of me and I'm just watching these videos. Just the other day, there was this video with Eddie, and he was walking through his house taking a guy from MTV. And I was just experiencing that whole thing. You see more who the guy was. Who was he? What was he into? What were his interests. I think that's my therapy — trying to come to terms with, 'Wow, man. We lost some of the greatest people in music.' So influential."

Continued Petrucci: "Eddie is a blow too, because electric guitar, in general, hasn't been around for that long, if you think about it, when it really started — like, '50s or whatever. And you could point to two or three guys along the way that just were one-of-a-kind guys that just changed the game — whether it's [Jimi] Hendrix or… Eddie is the guy. The guitar was never the same once he came out and 'Van Halen I' came out; it just changed forever. And I can't think of any guitar player that I know that wasn't either influenced by him or blown away by what he did. Just his creative spirit and his innovation — the sound that he had and the tone he had, everything like that. And the deepest impact is that you'll never get to see him do that again. It's a weird, sad feeling. He was relatively a young man. He could have had many years of playing ahead of him, and we'll never get to see that magic, and there'll never be anyone that's the same as him. I probably can't even name five guys that had that level of [influence]; it's crazy… And that's not taking away anything from the incredible guitar players that have come since that are unbelievably innovative and incredible and amazing and mind-blowing — everything from [Allan] Holdsworth and beyond — but as far as just the iconic guy…

"In our world, it's a little bit of a bubble, so if a musician happens to pass away who is incredible and very influential in our world, and you mention it to the average person, they might not know who that person is," John added. "But in the case of Eddie Van Halen, that's Michael Jackson level."

Peart died on January 7 in Santa Monica, California after a three-year battle with glioblastoma, an aggressive form of brain cancer. He was 67 years old.

RUSH announced Peart's passing on January 10, setting off shockwaves and an outpouring of grief from fans and musicians all over the world.

Eddie died on October 6 at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, California at the age of 65. His wife, Janie, was by his side, along with his son, Wolfgang, and Alex, Eddie's brother and VAN HALEN drummer.

The iconic VAN HALEN axeman died from complications due to cancer, his son confirmed.

DREAM THEATER has just released its ninth career live album, "Distant Memories - Live In London". Recorded at DREAM THEATER's sold-out show at the Apollo Theatre in London, the live release documents the band's popular world tour in support of its latest studio effort, "Distance Over Time", and the 20th anniversary of their seminal concept album "Metropolis Part 2 - Scenes From A Memory".

JOURNEY guitarist Neal Schon's long-awaited new solo album, "Universe", will finally arrive next month. The effort, which was produced by current JOURNEY drummer Narada Michael Walden, has been in the works for several years.

Earlier today, Schon tweeted out what appears to be the "Universe" LP cover, and he included the following caption: " Coming early December". He added in a separate tweet: "There are some interesting covers on here as well as originals written and produced by Narada Michael Walden Jimi /Prince / John McLaughlin / Stevie Wonder / Beatles / and Journey. There's some very healing music for this Christmas".

In a 2018 interview with Michael Cavacini, Schon stated about "Universe": "It's very melodic, powerful and majestic. There's also some fusion on it. We did some cover tunes, but most of it is written by Narada. He produced it and played the hell out of it, on drums. We got his bass player, Buddha, playing on it. It sounds really solid and it's probably one of the best-sounding records I ever made. Kudos to those guys. His drum sound is just phenomenal. And the guitar sounds great. Everything just came together. It was an easy project for me because I didn't have to worry about writing material. I just let him take me in a different direction."

Regarding how the project came together, Schon said: "I went to [Narada] and I said, 'Write me a record, man.' He had enough free time and he said to me, 'You want me to?' I said, 'Yeah.' I figured he'd come back to me in a couple months and play me a couple tunes. Instead, he called me four days later and he had seven tunes written and I was, like, 'What?' [Laughs] I thought for sure that maybe some of these songs had been sitting around for somebody else and they got shelved and he goes, 'No, man. I just wrote all these right now.' He's very prolific, fast and on-the-spot like that. It's very cool."

On the topic of the "Universe" recording process, Schon said: "For my particular record, [Narada] sung the guitar melodies in certain places where he wanted the melody played. It was funny because I didn't know that's what he wanted. When he played it all for me, I was blown away. I thought it was outrageously cool. I said, 'Let me go wrap my head around it.' I went back to my house and got comfortable with all the arrangements. I thought the melodies he sang were just a guide for me to mess around with. The first day of recording, I start playing and he's, like, 'What are you doing?' [Laughs] And I go, 'I'm playing, man.' He said, 'No, man. You've got to play that melody.' And I responded, 'Oh, you want me to play that exact melody?' It was a learning process for me in that sense. It turned out really great, so I didn't mind being the student. There's always way more to be learned."

Schon founded JOURNEY in 1972 and has been the only consistent member, having participated in every album and tour to date. He is a Grammy-nominated guitarist, songwriter and vocalist who was also a member of SANTANA and has performed with a variety of other acts, including BAD ENGLISH, JAN HAMMER and HSAS. He has released 10 solo albums, including his latest, "Vortex". His guitar style has been described as soulful and melodic, admired by such fellow legends as Eric Clapton and Prince, who reportedly asked for Schon's blessing to release "Purple Rain", which echoed a similar sound to JOURNEY's "Faithfully".




Coming early December https://t.co/lubz0AVnRZ

— NEAL SCHON MUSIC (@NealSchonMusic) November 29, 2020








There are some interesting covers on here as well as originals written and produced by Narada Michael Walden Jimi /Prince / John McLaughlin / Stevie Wonder / Beatles / and Journey. There’s some very healing music for this Christmas ? https://t.co/hferz9cOhx

— NEAL SCHON MUSIC (@NealSchonMusic) November 29, 2020

After eight long years in hiding, New York-based metal outfit Gizmachi have finally set a release date for their sophomore album. The record comes 16 years after the band's 2005 debut LP, The Imbuing, which was produced by Shawn Crahan (Slipknot), mixed by Josh Wilbur (Lamb Of God, Gojira), and would ultimately land Gizmachi a slot on the 2005 Ozzfest.

Gizmachi will release their new album, titled Omega Kaleid, on March 12 via CEN/The Orchard (a division of Sony Music). The record was produced and engineered by Jay Hannon (Byzantine, Gods Below Us), mixed by Mark Lewis (Devildriver, Whitechapel, The Black Dahlia Murder), and vocal duties were handled by none other than Björn “Speed” Strid of Soilwork.

Speaking about his role on the upcoming record, Björn shares, “Being a part of the new Gizmachi record was one of the most challenging adventures I’ve experienced. I can honestly say that I’ve grown as a metal singer since recording these vocals.”

Fans eager for their first taste of Omega Kaleid can check out the record's new single, "Broken Ends", which is available now on all digital and streaming platforms via the link found here. You can also hear the song below.

Omega Kaleid tracklisting:

"Winter"
"Paradox"
"Broken Ends"
"Turned To Dust"
"Sky"
"Inner Visions"
"Shattered Dream"
"Look What I’ve Become"
"Trick My Soul"
"New Day (Everything To Lose)"
"Omega Kaleid"

"Broken Ends":




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On January 29, Demon Head will release their new album, Viscera, via Metal Blade Records. For a first preview of the record, a video for the new single, "The Triumphal Chariot Of Antimony" (created by Justine Morrow aka lathe.of.heaven), can be viewed below.

Viscera can be pre-ordered here in the following formats:

- hardcover digisleeve-CD
- 180g clear deluxe edition vinyl w/ o-card, backpatch, and poster (Kings Road exclusive - limited to 300 copies)
- 180g black vinyl (EU exclusive)
- clear ash grey marbled vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 250 copies)
- dark red / black marbled vinyl (EU exclusive - limited to 250 copies)
- clear / black dust vinyl (Kings Road exclusive - limited to 100 copies)
- clear brown marbled vinyl (US exclusive)

Demon Head is comprised of five internationally based and widely acclaimed musicians; Mikkel Sander Fuglsang, Birk Gjerlufsen Nielsen, Marcus Ferreira Larsen, Thor Gjerlufsen Nielsen and Jeppe Wittus. Though hesitant to compromise the description of the music they perform through generalizing terms of genre, they've coined the term "diabolic rock" as an appropriate presentation.

Their fourth full-length - Viscera - is a new beginning for Demon Head. Recorded during the first months of 2020 between the legendary Sweet Silence Studios by Flemming Rasmussen (Metallica, Morbid Angel, Rainbow) and a remote country house in Sweden, the album was mixed by Martin 'Konie' Ehrencrona (In Solitude, Tribulation, Nifelheim). The production shows the impeccable qualities of joined forces, where old techniques meet new aesthetics, and major label possibilities meet underground, uncompromising DIY dedication. The resulting 10 songs showcase acoustic instruments, flourishing mellotron strings, brass instruments, tape manipulation and church organ - displayed in equal measure to the sound of the crushing drums of J.W, cryptic guitars of brothers B.G.N and T.G.N, pounding bass lines of M.S.F, and the vocals of M.F.L combined with the eerily captivating falsetto and baryton of B.G.N.

Demon Head comments: "We are now ready to offer You 'Viscera'. It contains more of us than any album we have made before, and we hope that You will welcome it as sincerely as it will welcome You."

Viscera tracklisting:

"Tooth And Nail"
"The Feline Smile"
"Arrows"
"Magical Death"
"The Lupine Choir"
"A Long, Groaning Descent"
"In Adamantine Chains"
"Black Torches"
"Wreath"
"The Triumphal Chariot Of Antimony"

"The Triumphal Chariot Of Antimony" video:

Demon Head will play a release show on January 30 at Pumpehuset in Copenhagen. "A release ceremony will take place in Copenhagen when this year is newly dead. Tokens for the passage are available here."

Demon Head lineup:

Mikkel Sander Fuglsang - bass
Birk Gjerlufsen Nielsen - guitars
Marcus Ferreira Larsen - vocals
Thor Gjerlufsen Nielsen - guitars
Jeppe Wittus - drums




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Modern progressive metal band, Ivory Tower, has released an official live video for "Loser", a track from the band's latest album, Stronger, available via Massacre Records. Watch below:

Stronger features 12 powerful progressive metal gems, custom written for new vocalist Dirk Meyer. The songs cover the spectrum from traditional to modern, and from ballad as well instrumental to in-your-face metal, thus leaving nothing to be desired!

Order the album here.

Tracklisting:

"The Offer"
"Loser"
"End Transmission"
"Money"
"In Me"
"Slave"
"Strong"
"Flight Of The Dragon"
"Life Will Fade"
"Passing"
"The Wolves You've Let In"
"One Day"

"End Transmission" video:

(Photo - Sebastian Kramer)




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Christmas is a time to say I love you and what better way than through a song! Classic metalheads, Corners Of Sanctuary (COS), are staying true to their annual holiday tradition and are dropping another brand new, all original single, “Wonderful Time Of Year".

“A holiday track has definitely become a tradition with Corners Of Sanctuary,” said COS guitarist Mick Michaels in a recent interview. “It's something we hope to continue to do each year... the fans seem to really enjoy it.”

The single is bundled together with several previous COS original holiday releases as part of their “Merry Metal Xmas VII” package for 2020 and made available digitally through Exquisite Noise Records (US).

“More now than ever, we need as much positive energy in the world as we can muster up,” added Michaels. “And if that means writing a holly, jolly holiday song then so be it... we're on board 100%!”

In October, Corners Of Sanctuary released their latest full length album, Heroes Never Die, on RFL Records (US). The album was mastered by Bill Metoyer (Slayer, Armored Saint, W.A.S.P.) and produced by Michaels. Heroes Never Die is available worldwide and can be purchased here.

The band will be part of several online events including Metal Heroes Online II on December 5 and Wrecking Ball Metal Fest on December 12 as part of their “Metal Never Dies: The Online Barrage of Shows” tour. In addition, COS has already begun recording a follow up EP for 2021 as well as working on new material for their next album.




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Austrian hard rock sextet, Sergeant Steel, is releasing Truck Tales on January 22. The studio album contains 10 new songs and is available worldwide as a CD digipak and stream/download.

The last studio long player, Riders Of The Worm, was made in 2015. After half a decade there is finally new music. Most of it was completed by Michael Wagener (Metallica, Ozzy Osbourne, Skid Row, and many more) in Nashville, Tennessee. The advance single "Fight Fire With Fire" was released digitally on October 9 this year.

Main songwriter/lyricist Jack Power explains the album title: "Truck driver clichés have always fascinated us. Freedom "on the road", modern street cowboys, and, last but not least, the frivolous atmosphere among good buddies on highway picnic areas - is what we, as rock musicians, do identify ourselves very strongly."

Tracklisting:

"Fight Fire With Fire"
"Backseat Lover"
"Dance Into The Light"
"Brotherhood"
"Voodoo Queen"
"Body Language"
"Pain In My Ass"
"Hunter"
"The Time Will Come"
"Nightmare"

"Fight Fire With Fire" video:

(Photo - Jakob Aumayer)




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MindWars have released another video from their recent album, The Fourth Turning. Watch drummer Roby Vitari perform the song "Blood Red" below:

The Fourth Turning artwork and tracklisting:

“The Awakening”
“Fall In Line”
“MindWars”
“(Who’ll Stop The) Aryan Race”
“The System”
“Digital Dictatorship”
“Marching Off To War”
“Black Death”
“Blood Red”
“Holy Terror”
“Criminally Insane” (Slayer cover, bonus track)

"The System" video:

“MindWars”:

For further details, visit MindWars on Facebook.




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"Our first ‘official biography’ is due out September 22nd via the good people at Jawbone Press and has been written by renowned rock writer Simon Young," states Irish rock band Therapy?.

"Simon has been a friend of the band for many years and it was a very enjoyable and at times rigorous process working with him. He interviewed us multiple times, leaving no stone unturned so we’re all delighted how comprehensive this ‘oral history’ of the band is - he managed to unearth info/memories we’d all forgotten! There’s also a 24-page photo spread with some never before seen images in there as well."

"So if you fancy a copy we have exclusive (not available anywhere else!) SIGNED copies for pre-order up now at our website."

"Before we recorded Infernal Love, I didn’t know if I was coming or going. I developed quite a healthy drug habit and was drinking a bottle of Absolut Vodka every day. I thought that if I gave up drinking, I’d spend the next two weeks lying in bed and feeling sick. I decided to keep going and see if inspiration would hit …" — Andy Cairns, Therapy?

So Much For The 30 Year Plan is the first ever book to detail the life of Therapy?, one of rock’s boldest and most idiosyncratic acts. Written with the full co-operation of the band’s current members—frontman Andy Cairns, bassist Michael McKeegan, and drummer Neil Cooper—this official biography explores the dizzying highs and crushing lows they have experienced while navigating a three-decade-long career.

Featuring extensive interviews with the band and key figures from throughout their history, So Much For The 30 Year Plan offers insights into the band’s origins in Northern Ireland during the Troubles, the backlash they received from the underground scene after signing to a major label, the birth of their million-selling 1994 album Troublegum, the full story behind their split with original drummer Fyfe Ewing, and much more.

Published to coincide with the band’s 30th anniversary, this is essential reading for all Therapy? fans.

Staying socially distant due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Irish rockers Therapy? filmed themselves playing "Nowhere" from their 1994 album Troublegum, while in quarantine.

Previous lockdown videos from Therapy? include "Kakistocracy" and "Isolation".

(Photo - Tom Hoad)

 




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In a recent interview with "Entertainment Tonight", Wolfgang Van Halen was asked what he thinks his father Eddie Van Valen's legacy will be. He responded (see video below): "I think he's the Mozart of our generation. I think the way we look back at people like Mozart and Beethoven, from how far we are removed from them, you put that amount of time ahead of us, and I think people will still be looking back at him."

Wolfgang also commented on the outpouring of love for Eddie in the weeks following his death, saying: "It's incredible. It's been such a monumental amount of positivity that I haven't really seen on the Internet before."

Last month, a City Council meeting was held in Pasadena, California where a memorial honoring Eddie was discussed.

City manager Steve Mermell was directed to come up with ideas for how to best honor the musician, who died on October 6 at the age of 65.

Wolfgang addressed a possible Eddie Van Halen memorial during a November 20 appearance on Fox 11's "Good Day LA".

"I think it's incredible that the support is there to wanna honor him," the 29-year-old said. "Whatever it ends up being, it has my full support. If I could suggest something, I think something as simple as a street name would be amazing."

Among suggestions for the memorial are for alleyway Electric Drive to be renamed for Eddie; erecting a monument somewhere in the city; renaming a park; a life-size statue; and turning his childhood home into a historic landmark.

Councilmember Victor Gordo suggested that Mermell bring together a public group to figure out for the most appropriate way to remember Van Halen, who attended school in Pasadena with his drummer brother Alex, and played backyard parties in the area with VAN HALEN in the early 1970s before signing a record deal and achieving worldwide fame.

According to Pasadena Now, there may be other remembrance of Eddie Van Halen in the works. Pasadena City College will also consider a memorial at its next Board of Trustees meeting, and the Pasadena Center Operating Company has received an inquiry for a virtual concert to raise funds to build a statue.

In the first three weeks after Eddie's death, the city was bombarded with requests to pay tribute to the guitarist "to recognize both his local connection to Pasadena, as well as the impact that his artistry had on music," Mermell wrote in a report.

"Recognizing Van Halen the band and/or individual members should be considered," according to the report. "With his passing, Eddie Van Halen's international recognition as a musical artist is noted for the significant impact he had on the Rock & Roll genre and his legacy is a source of hometown pride for the city."

Following Eddie's death after a long battle with cancer, fans left flowers at his childhood home on Las Lunas Street in Pasadena. Additional flowers, candles and fan mementos were placed on Allen Avenue where Eddie and Alex scratched their band's name into the wet cement of a sidewalk when they were teenagers.

VAN HALEN was inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame in 2007.

Rolling Stone magazine ranked Eddie Van Halen No. 8 in its list of the 100 greatest guitarists.

Earlier this year, CRO-MAGS released their first album in twenty years with the critically acclaimed "In The Beginning". To close out this year of international turmoil and disease, the band has announced the six-song EP "2020", available worldwide digitally on December 11. CRO-MAGS also released the EP's title track, venting all the frustration and rage, CRO-MAGS style, at the unprecedented chaos of this year.

The record itself is unintentionally 20 minutes and 20 seconds, and plays out more like a time-capsule look into the dumpster fire known as the year 2020.

CRO-MAGS founder Harley Flanagan explains: "Just by coincidence we recorded 20 minutes and 16 seconds of music, so we simply added a few seconds of real-world chaos.

"The album cover is meant to look like a calendar — seven squares across, with one picture from 2020 per day. Inside the booklet there are 12 pictures, one for each month of 2020; and the back is a shot of something I have never seen before in my life — a totally empty New York City.

"Coronavirus, quarantine, empty streets, brutality, burning buildings, violence and destruction: 2020 is a year none of us will ever forget.”

"2020" track listing:

01. Age Of Quarantine

02. 2020

03. Life On Earth

04. Violence and Destruction

05. Chaos In The Streets

06. Cro-Fusion

CRO-MAGS feature Flanagan pulling double duty with bass and lead vocals, guitarists Gabby Abularach, Rocky George (SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, FISHBONE), and drummer Garry "G-Man" Sullivan.

The history of the CRO-MAGS is integral to the history of hardcore, its evolution from punk and the development of alternative music genres such as hardcore, cross-over, thrash metal, post punk and grunge, to name a few. Numerous iconic bands from METALLICA to GREEN DAY, and individuals such as Dave Grohl have credited CRO-MAGS with having had a primal influence on their development.

Born out of the violence and depravity of the Lower East Side of New York in the late '70s and early '80s, the CRO-MAGS was the brainchild of a very young Flanagan (at the time 14 years old) when still playing with THE STIMULATORS. By 1982/83 he wrote and recorded the very first CRO-MAGS demos consisting of four songs that would become the blueprint for the seminal 1986 "Age Of Quarrel". He wrote all of the music, played each instrument and sang. Before long, he connected with Parris Mayhew and the two started writing music and auditioning band members.

Last year, Flanagan reached a settlement with singer John Joseph and drummer Mackie Jayson regarding ownership of the CRO-MAGS name. Flanagan is now performing under the name CRO-MAGS while Joseph and Jayson are performing as CRO-MAGS "JM".

Veteran metallers, Tourniquet, release The Slow Cosmic Voyage To Wisdom - a 77 minute collection of crushing doom featuring Chris Poland (OHM, ex-Megadeth), Eric Wagner (The Skull, ex-Trouble), Tim "Ripper" Owens (ex-Judas Priest), Bruce Franklin (Trouble), Doug Pinnick (King’s X).

In between writing for their next full length release - tentatively scheduled for late 2021 - Tourniquet drummer, songwriter, and mastermind Ted Kirkpatrick has assembled and released an epic collection of doom - featuring songs from the Tourniquet catalog, two Black Sabbath covers, and a 25-minute ultra-heavy drone track unlike anything the band has ever done before.

“Mission to MACS J1149+2223 Lensed Star 1” is an ethereal journey through the cosmos to reach a star. The title comes from a blue supergiant star - named "MACS J1149+2223 Lensed Star 1" - discovered in 2016 by astronomer Patrick Kelly through a gravitational lens on the Hubble Space Telescope. At 9.4 billion cosmic light years from earth, it's the most distant individual star to ever discovered, at least a hundred times more distant than the next-farthest non-supernova star.

The entire release has been remastered for maximum effect, and features the dramatic psychedelic cover art by Derek Sheyer.

Tracklisting:

"Electric Funeral"
"Memento Mori"
"Lions"
"Going, Going…Gone"
"Gethsemane"
"No Soul"
"In Death We Rise"
"Officium Defunctorum"
"Lord of This World"
"Mission to MACS J1149+2223 Lensed Star 1"
I - Navigating The Distant Spiral Galaxy Cluster
II - The Nothingness Of The Primordial Black Holes
III - Arrival: 9 Billion Light-Years From Earth

Available from Pathogenic Records on CD at tourniquet.net and streaming/download everywhere.




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BUDGIE guitarist Tony Bourge's biography, "Rocking Man - With An Axe To Grind", will be released in mid-November. This book tells the story of Bourge, focusing on both the musical and life journeys of this highly respected, much-loved — and forever-humble — guitarist and man.

Bourge teamed up with bass-playing partner in crime Burke Shelley to arm seven BUDGIE albums, which flew the coop from 1971–78, with an astonishing arsenal of heavy riffage — creating an unstoppable juggernaut that threatened to steamroll anything straying in its path.

Bourge and Shelley helped to invent and shape a new musical genre and forge the way for heavyweight bands to come. VAN HALEN, IRON MAIDEN, METALLICA, SOUNDGARDEN and MEGADETH would all cover riff-charged BUDGIE numbers that Bourge helped to forge. And countless doom and stoner bands from the States were influenced by material on BUDGIE's first two albums.

Riff-master Bourge's body of work stands tall in any company, including that of another Tony of Italian descent — a certain Mr. Iommi. And to top it off, Bourge drew on his love of the blues and classical music to embellish the aforementioned vault of grinding single-note and chord riffs with magical lead playing infused with a rare combination of power, feel, finesse and melody.

Cardiff born and raised, Bourge joined BUDGIE in 1968, a year after taking up guitar. He had started out as a singer and harmonica player, and still espouses the view that "if you can sing it, you can play it." Unusually, Bourge learned to play lead guitar before he learned to play chords — blues instrumentals "The Stumble" and "Hide Away" being two of the first numbers that he mastered.

After leaving BUDGIE in mid-1978, Bourge teamed up with former BUDGIE drummer Ray Phillips, eventually forming TREDEGAR and releasing an accomplished, self-titled album in 1986. Bourge then became a French polisher and he made guitars — always having one or two on the go. And he continued his musical education — writing, arranging and recording material in his home studio.

In 2013, 27 years after the TREDEGAR album, Bourge released not one, but two digital albums — the 20-track "Crank It Up" and 10-track "Chilling Out". A two-track Double A single followed in 2014. The albums contain a wide variety of styles, from riff-based rockers reminiscent of the heavy rock Bourge forged with BUDGIE, to songs and instrumentals steeped in the blues, to ethereal pop numbers.

Bourge's new CD, "Rocking Man - With An Axe To Grind", will also be released in mid-November. The CD has 10 tracks written and recorded by Bourge: six from his 2013/14 digital releases (remastered for the CD by Bourge's son Kingsley) and four that are previously unreleased, including two recently recorded bluesy heavy rockers. The CD ends with two tracks that are tributes to Bourge (and Burke Shelley) — one, an instrumental, was recorded by Janne Stark (guitars and bass), who masterminded the "Bandolier Kings" BUDGIE tribute album, and Peter Svensson (drums), who plays in bands with Stark and in FAITH and HEARTWIND; the second track was recorded by Stark (guitars), Svensson (drums) and RAVEN's John Gallagher (bass and vocals). Gallagher rattles the cage, as Shelley often did, by unleashing his mighty upper-register squawk. Both tribute tracks were mixed and mastered by Stark. Album lead track "The Preacher" kicks off with some single-note riffs and chords that quickly build into a mid-paced, primordial shuffle driven by Bourge's searing guitars, and by his impassioned, preachy singing about the basic elements of nature.

"I have taken a little step back into my early love of heavy rock," Bourge says. "'The Preacher' is about the wonders of life and the five elements."

The new video for "The Preacher" features some recently uncovered May 1978 silent footage of BUDGIE playing live in Chicago. This was Bourge's second-last show with BUDGIE.

The book and CD can be pre-ordered online, for shipping by mid-November.

Former GUNS N' ROSES guitarist Gilby Clarke has just released a new single, "Tightwad". The track, which features MÖTLEY CRÜE's Nikki Sixx on bass and JANE'S ADDICTION's Stephen Perkins on drums, is taken from Clarke's upcoming album, "The Gospel Truth".

"This song was written around a guitar riff I discovered while trying out a new fuzz pedal," Gilby said. "Lyrically I was inspired by deceit, treachery and the creative extremes people will go through to get ahead. I tried to get my message through with humor, but if it hits to close to home, maybe we all should take a closer look at ourselves and make improvements.

"I was lucky to have some wonderful musician friends contribute to the recording of this track, Nikki Sixx and Stephen Perkins. Stephen, as always, came through with a beat that drives the song and Nikki found a cool bass groove that accentuates the feel I was looking for. I tried to get my message through with humor, but sometimes the truth hurts."

"The Gospel Truth" will be released via Golden Robot Records. The disc was produced and written by Gilby at his Los Angeles recording studio, Redrum Recording, where he's also helmed records for such artists as L.A. GUNS, THE BRONX, BEAT ANGELS, BULLETS AND OCTANE and many more. The album was mixed by Grammy Award winner Chris Lord-Alge and mastered by Maor Appelbaum. Joining Gilby on the LP are Muddy Stardust on bass, Kenny Aronoff (JOHN MELLENCAMP, JOHN FOGERTY, CHICKENFOOT) on drums, along with Matt Starr (ACE FREHLEY, MR. BIG) and Chad Stewart (FASTER PUSSYCAT, L.A. GUNS) on backing vocals.

When asked how his new music may be different to his previous material, Gilby said: "I don't think it's very different at all. I'm not trying to reinvent the wheel. I have found the music that I like as an artist and a musician. It's important that I get better at it and try new things, but I like rock and roll, and loud guitars are good for the soul."

Clarke also discussed his songwriting process, saying: "I always start with a good guitar riff, then add the devil's drumbeat. It's good when you can put some interesting lyrics to it, too. I always try to find a new way of saying something simple. I don't like to complicate my lyrics, but I never duplicate them either."

At last year's NAMM show in in Anaheim, California, Clarke stated about the long delay in getting his new solo album completed: "For me, I can't do a record unless I feel good about the songs. I wanna make a record that I wanna listen to. So, these songs I'm really excited about. They're new songs. It really is classic rock. There's really nothing new on it — it's just a new version of what I like to do, which is loud guitars, man. So, I went in there. I used guys like Kenny Aronoff on drums, Steve Perkins — some really great players. I played all the guitars and did all the singing on it. But I think it's good — I think it's a good fresh approach on classic rock, really."

Clarke replaced founding guitarist Izzy Stradlin in the GUNS lineup in 1991, during the "Use Your Illusion" tour, and stayed with the band for three years. After exiting GUNS N' ROSES, Clarke continued as a producer and solo artist, while also playing in SLASH'S SNAKEPIT, ROCK STAR SUPERNOVA, HEART and other acts.

Clarke released his solo debut, "Pawnshop Guitars", in 1994.

BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT, the new band launched by ex-CHILDREN OF BODOM guitarist/vocalist Alexi Laiho, played its second concert ever Saturday night (October 24) at Tavastia in Helsinki, Finland. Fan-filmed video footage of the 17-song show, which consisted entirely of CHILDREN OF BODOM material, can be seen below.

Joining Alexi in the group are drummer Waltteri Väyrynen, guitarist Daniel Freyberg (ex-CHILDREN OF BODOM), bassist Mitja Toivonen (ex-SANTA CRUZ) and touring keyboardist Lauri Salomaa.

Setlist:

01. Needled 24/7

02. Silent Night, Bodom Night

03. Bodom After Midnight

04. Sixpounder

05. Platitudes And Barren Words

06. Living Dead Beat

07. Knuckleduster

08. Angels Don't Kill

09. Hate Me!

10. Deadnight Warrior

11. Hatebreeder

12. Everytime I Die

13. Warheart

14. Downfall

15. Hate Crew Deathroll

Encore:

16. Are You Dead Yet?

17. In Your Face

BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT is working on material for its debut album, tentatively due in 2021.

Laiho recently said that he will not shy away from performing his former band's songs when he hits the road with BODOM AFTER MIDNIGHT. He told Kaaos TV (translated from Finnish): "We will be playing CHILDREN OF BODOM songs as that is what most of the audience want to hear. Those songs are written by me anyway, so I dont see any reason why not to play them. There will be so-called 'basic' songs, but there are also plans to play one or two songs live which CHILDREN OF BODOM has never played so far and some songs which we haven't played live in ages, so the setlist will be a good mix. We try to play as diverse setlist as possible on each show."

Jaska Raatikainen (drums), Henri "Henkka T. Blacksmith" Seppälä (bass) and Janne Wirman (keyboards) announced their departures from CHILDREN OF BODOM last October. Two months later, they confirmed that they were the rightful owners of the CHILDREN OF BODOM brand.

CHILDREN OF BODOM played its final show on December 15, 2019 at the Black Box in Helsinki Ice Hall. A short time later, Finnish music magazine Soundi reported that the rights to the CHILDREN OF BODOM name are held by AA & Sewira Consulting Oy, the company owned by Raatikainen, Seppälä and Wirman. In June 2019, the trio filed an application with the National Board of Patents and Registration of Finland, and their application was subsequently granted for a five-year period starting on October 1, 2019. As a result, Laiho, who was CHILDREN OF BODOM's singer, guitarist and main songwriter, isn't authorized to use the band's name without permission from Wirman, Raatikainen and Seppälä.

Last November, Laiho admitted to Helsingin Sanomat that there had been tensions in the BODOM camp for quite some time.

"The original decision [to end the band in its current form] came when the other guys said they just couldn't do it anymore," he said. "There were family reasons for it. I respect their decision. I myself have a wife and stepdaughter in Australia, and my wife understands my lifestyle. I'm pretty much gone [most of the time], but always I come back and I give them my all. Nothing is more important to me."

According to Laiho, things came to a head when CHILDREN OF BODOM performed in Russia in October.

"We fought a lot within the band, and I can honestly admit that those fights were mainly my fault," he said. "They always started with some misunderstanding."

Relations within the band apparently got so bad during the Russian tour that it looked as if CHILDREN OF BODOM would break up right there and then. But cooler heads prevailed, and the group decided that the shows in Finland would be their last with the most recent formation.

CHILDREN OF BODOM's last album, "Hexed", came out in March 2019 via Nuclear Blast Records.

As the race for the White House enters its final frenetic stage, Harry Shearer, one of the creators of the iconic mockumentary film "This is Spinal Tap", has released "He Lies", the latest track from his forthcoming album, "The Many Moods Of Donald Trump". "He Lies" is the twelfth song from the thirteen-track collection that chronicles the predictable unpredictability of Trump's behavior during his time in office.

Habit? Compulsion? Or just easier than checking? "He Lies" is a "list song" in the style of the late Leonard Cohen's non-existent brother, Jim, detailing the litany of falsehoods propagated by the president since he stood on Capitol Hill in January 2017 in front of "the biggest audience in the history of inaugural speeches."

The full album of "The Many Moods Of Donald Trump" is due out on October 30. Shearer says of it: "America has never had a President so demanding of our continued attention. I decided to give him too much of mine."

"He Lies" is the only song on the album in which Shearer performs as himself. In the other twelve tracks he performs as Trump, having vocally portrayed every U.S. president of his lifetime.

With music and lyrics by Shearer, "He Lies" features Shearer on lead vocal with Sharlotte Gibson and CJ Vanston on backing vocals. Toss Panos is on drums and CJ Vanston on keyboards, flamenco guitar and all other instruments.

"The Many Moods Of Donald Trump" album track listing is as follows:

01. I Can't Believe I'm Me

Song description: "As the medicated president huffs and puffs his way towards the final lap of the race to the White House, in 'I Can't Believe I'm Me', Shearer has the incumbent blasting out a 'brassy, craggy worst-of-Broadway anthem' in praise of his not so private passion… himself.

"When Donald Trump first rode down that escalator, all most of us saw was his unabashed delight in himself. The rest came later."

02. I Can't Drive Anymore

03. Son-In-Law

Song description: "Shearer Trump performing an old-style New Orleans number in praise his senior advisor, Jared Kushner. Always mentioned as one of Trump's top aides, Jared Kushner has been given a portfolio that ranges from Middle East peace to the pandemic. His success rate speaks for itself."

04. Stormy Daniels

Song description: "A lush string filled ode to passion, power and pay-off. What good is hush money when it buys so little hush?"

05. Bill Of Love

06. Executive Time

Song description: "A languorous love of leisure ballad in which Shearer as Trump sings wistfully of those long periods of contemplation and nothingness between unnecessary briefings from so-called 'experts.'

"When does the President get the time to watch all the TV news? It's a big section of his daily schedule."

07. I Never Knew Him

Song description: "An eclectic musical mix in which Trump demonstrates that he might not have 'one of the greatest memories of all time' as he purges his contact book and airbrushes his history of those who may be an impediment to his ratings.

"A very famous guy has so many people claiming to be his friends or family. It's always important to clear the air."

08. Very Stable Genius

Song description: "A power ballad in which Trump vaunts his own intellectual prowess combined with his calm and balanced disposition.

"When a person refers to himself with that phrase once, it's newsworthy. When he does it repeatedly, it's songworthy."

09. Number One Son

Song description: "An electric chop suey, listing all Donald Jr.'s qualities and Trump's newfound love for the boy who serves him well. The apple doesn't fall far from the refrigerator."

10. Alabama

Song description: "A southern rock tribute to the state that holds a special place in the President's 'heart.'

"The trouble with official hurricane forecast maps is that they don't often include Sharpie additions. When it's the state that gave your Presidential campaign its kickoff, a Sharpie warning is the least you can do."

11. COVID-180

Song description: "Alternating stanzas of pumped-up disco and plaintive folk rock to represent the alternating 'up' and 'down' approaches taken to the pandemic by the President.

"Emerson once said 'Petty consistency is the hobgoblin of small minds.' Trump agrees, though he may not quite understand it."

12. Acquittal

Song description: "A 'prog rock revenge anthem', the president basks in the sheer vitriolic joy on offer when its time to settle scores.

"When you're impeached, and survive, the natural human impulse is balls-out revenge."

13. He Lies

Modern metal band, Dreamshade, have announced their fourth album, A Pale Blue Dot. The record arrives on March 5. Pre-orders are live here.

To celebrate the release of the album, the band has shared the new track, "Lightbringers". Watch the animated visualizer below.

"We're all living a unique historical period in 2020 in which we move away from each other, keep our distances, and lose touch," explains frontman Kevin Calì. "Everyone feels that need to return to the light and get out of this moment that makes us feel imprisoned. That's why we released 'Lightbringers' as the first song."

He continues, "It was written and recorded during lockdown. We knew we wanted to come back to our fans with a track that could hit them hard, bringing back our very own sound from The Gift of Life record and modernizing it. The result is a positive, deep, and energetic song with tight, fast riffs but also some atmospheric and reflective moments in full Dreamshade style. It's an emotional charge that hits you straight to the heart from the very first listen."

Calì finishes, "The title speaks for itself. What better way to restore hope and strength in our listeners than a song with this vibe? The lyrics urge today's generations to take care of one another and the beauty that surrounds us. It's also an invitation for young people to reflect on the future. I believe we have a commitment to find a balance in life, to always try to improve ourselves, and take care of this Pale Blue Dot."

The album's title is inspired by Carl Sagan's book Pale Blue Dot.

"We were looking for something that could hold the meaning of both the importance and the futility of certain values as we know them," the band shares. "A distant look at humanity and our planet as a whole, as everything that's important for us on Earth seems just so insignificant in the great scheme of things, compared to the universe. Selfishness and individualism have no place in the bigger picture, and this makes more and more sense to us as we wrote the record just before the beginning of the COVID-19 pandemic. Most of it was recorded and produced during lockdown, with a very different approach and experience than what we're used to."

The record was mixed and mastered by Grammy-nominated producer Jacob Hansen in Denmark, who also worked on 2013's The Gift Of Life.

The album includes two features - New York-based Italian pop singer Rose Villain and Darkest Hour's John Henry.

The closing song, "Save This", boasts a very special collaboration the band included gang vocals from 517 Dreamshade fans from 70 different countries, all shared through WhatsApp. Because #technology.

Tracklisting:

"Safe Harbour"
"Lightbringers"
"Question Everything"
"Step Back"
"Stone Cold Digital" (Feat. Rose Villain)
"Impulse"
"toD-eulB-elaP-(A)"
"Shanghai Nights"
"Elephant"
"Somewhere Else"
"On My Own"
"Nothing But The Truth" (Feat. John Henry of Darkest Hour)
"A Place We Called Home"
"Save This"

"Lightbringers" visualizer:

Dreamshade are:

Kevin Calì - Vocals
Fernando 'Fella' Di Cicco - Guitars, Vocals
Gian-Andrea Costa - Bass, programming
Luca Magri - Guitars, programming
Francesco "Fry" Ferrini - Drums




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German tech death metal titans, Obscura, have finished the songwriting for their upcoming album and will soon enter the studio to record the follow-up to 2018's Diluvium.

The sixth album from Obscura is scheduled for a 2021 worldwide release via Nuclear Blast. The band tapped famous award-winning producer Fredrik Nordström for the upcoming full-length album and booked famous Studio Fredman, located in Gothenburg, Sweden.

Steffen Kummerer states: "As of now, songwriting duties for the new, yet untitled album have been finished. We picked the most promising compositions out of more than twenty pieces written during the last months and we can’t wait to record our sixth studio effort starting in December. While the new album contains more guitar solos than any of our records before, all compositions are eagerly waiting to be performed live on stage and celebrated worldwide with our fans. As a collective, we are enthusiastic about the diverse, progressive and heavy songs to be released in 2021 through Nuclear Blast Records.”

Obscura was formed by Steffen Kummerer in 2002 and established its reputation by releasing five studio albums that have been highly acclaimed by fans and press alike. Putting great emphasis on hooks and songwriting, Obscura became one of the modern age elites within the genre. Their latest album Diluvium is a stunning achievement for the illustrious quartet and a landmark release for progressive metal as a whole. Complete with all the band's signature elements plus groundbreaking polyrhythms, dramatic songwriting, and jaw-dropping virtuosity, Obscura raised the bar with an album that will go down in the annals of metal history as one of the most astonishing performances the genre has to offer.




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SCOUR, the extreme metal supergroup featuring Philip H. Anselmo (PANTERA, DOWN, EN MINOR), John Jarvis (AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED), Derek Engemann (PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS), Mark Kloeppel (MISERY INDEX) and Adam Jarvis (PIG DESTROYER, LOCK UP) has just released its long-anticipated record "The Black EP". The official music video for the EP's latest single, "Flames", can be seen below.

Forged in 2015, SCOUR made its debut with the ferocious single "Dispatched". "The Grey EP", released via Anselmo's Housecore label, dropped in 2016, followed by "The Red EP" in 2017. Faster and tighter than ever, this year's "The Black EP" serves as the final release of the EP trilogy and is inarguably the band's most ferocious effort to date. Mixed and mastered by Ryan Vincent at Apollo Audio Alternative with vocals and drums engineered by Stephen "Big Fella" Berrigan (DOWN, PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS, EYEHATEGOD), "The Black EP" includes guest appearances from Erik Rutan of HATE ETERNAL, Pat O'Brien of CANNIBAL CORPSE, and actor Jason Momoa ("Dune", "Game Of Thrones", "Aquaman").

"The latest SCOUR is the best SCOUR," proclaims Anselmo. Engemann adds: "This is our most fierce and ripping album to date. Completing the EP trilogy, 'The Black EP' brings a more mature musical approach without compromising the utter relentless brutality. We've got a few special gems as well that I'm stoked for people to hear."

"The Black EP" was released via CD, LP and digital formats via Housecore Records (North America) and Nuclear Blast (internationally).

"The Black EP" track listing:

01. Doom

02. Nail

03. Propaganda

04. Flames

05. Microbes

06. Subprime

The sound of SCOUR can best be described as a modern reimagining of what primarily became known as black metal mixed with elements of grindcore and bits of punk and thrash. Without getting too caught up in genre classification, the result is a brand of ominously-hued, punishing minimalism that pays proper homage the the originators, without the trappings of being a "throwback," reimagining the lineage from primitive punk darkness into modernity. This nuanced approach was, perhaps, made crystal clear with the 2019 release of their cover of BATHORY's "Massacre".

In its short existence, the band has graced the stages of many of the major players in both the mainstream and metal-oriented music festival circuits including Roskilde, Hellfest, Tecate Metal Festival, Maryland Deathfest, and more. As the lineage of its membership suggests, SCOUR continues to be a proverbial force with which to be reckoned both on the stage and in the studio.

SCOUR is:

Philip H. Anselmo - vocals

Derek Engemann - guitar, backing vocals

John Jarvis - bass, backing vocals

Mark Kloeppel - guitar, backing vocals

Adam Jarvis - drums

Two of Europe's most revered metal bands are set to combine forces to bring their "European Siege 2021" tour in the fall of 2021. Poland's BEHEMOTH and Sweden's ARCH ENEMY are joining together for these special dates, bringing their longtime friends and metal legends CARCASS in the special guest slot. Opening the evening's thunderous proceedings will be hotly tipped gothic metal newcomers UNTO OTHERS (formerly known as IDLE HANDS).

BEHEMOTH's frontman and creative visionary Nergal states: "After more than a year's break from live music, we can think of no better homecoming to our beloved Legions than delivering to you a performance of new music and an event for the ages: 'The European Siege' — a crushing combination of CARCASS, ARCH ENEMY and BEHEMOTH. We also proudly present the uniquely brilliant, UNTO OTHERS who will warmly welcome you to this night of metal magic!"

BEHEMOTH has a reputation for upping the ante with its live show on every outing — as most recently witnessed at its hugely successful "In Absentia Dei" livestream event — so expect a new production nothing short of spectacular. These dates will be their first shows since their special guest appearance on SLIPKNOT's sold-out arena tour earlier this year.

ARCH ENEMY's founder and guitarist Michael Amott, who is also a former member of CARCASS, states: "As we've been going through these troubled and challenging times lately, I think we all need something to look forward to. A reason to believe, right? Well....this is it!! 'The European Siege' tour, featuring ARCH ENEMY, BEHEMOTH, CARCASS and UNTO OTHERS is undoubtedly the ultimate metal tour of 2021. See you there!"

Tour dates:

Sep. 28 - IE - Dublin, Olympia Theatre

Sep. 30 - UK - Glasgow, O2 Academy Glasgow

Oct. 01 - UK - Manchester, O2 Academy Manchester

Oct. 02 - UK - Birmingham, O2 Academy Birmingham

Oct. 03 - UK - London, O2 Academy Brixton

Oct. 05 - FR - Paris, Le Zénith

Oct. 06 - FR - Toulouse, Le Bikini

Oct. 08 - PT - Lisbon, Sala Tejo

Oct. 09 - ES - Madrid, Palacio Vistalegre

Oct. 10 - ES - Barcelona, Palau Sant Jordi

Oct. 12 - FR - Lyon, Le Radiant

Oct. 13 - IT - Milano, Alcatraz

Oct. 15 - DE - Berlin, Columbiahalle

Oct. 16 - CZ - Prague, Tipsport Arena

Oct. 17 - PL - Katowice, MCK

Oct. 19 - HU - Budapest, Barba Negra

Oct. 20 - AT - Vienna, Gasometer

Oct. 22 - DE - Ludwigsburg, MHP Arena

Oct. 23 - NL - Den Bosch, Mainstage Brabanthallen

Oct. 24 - BE - Brussels, Forest National

Oct. 26 - CH - Zurich, Samsung Hall

Oct. 27 - DE - Frankfurt, Jahrhunderthalle

Oct. 29 - DE - Munich, Zenith

Oct. 30 - DE - Düsseldorf, Mitsubishi Electric Halle

Oct. 31 - DE - Hamburg, edel-optics.de Arena

Nov. 01 - SE - Gothenburg, Partille Arena

Nov. 03 - FI - Helsinki, Ice Hall

Nov. 05 - SE - Stockholm, Annexet

Nov. 06 - DK - Copenhagen, Forum

BEHEMOTH's latest EP, "A Forest", was released in May via Metal Blade. The EP's title track is a cover of THE CURE classic, and it features a guest appearance by SHINING frontman Niklas Kvarforth. The "A Forest" EP also includes a live version of the title track as well as the two aforementioned songs from the "I Loved You At Your Darkest" sessions.

In January 2019, ARCH ENEMY released a compilation, "Covered In Blood", of all cover songs the band has recorded throughout its career.

In the fall of 2018, Amott revealed that he had commenced the songwriting process for the follow-up to the "Will To Power" album. Released in 2017, that disc marked the second ARCH ENEMY album since the departure of longtime singer Angela Gossow and addition of Alissa White-Gluz. It was also the first ARCH ENEMY disc to feature former NEVERMORE guitarist Jeff Loomis, who joined the band in late 2014.

CARCASS released a new EP, "Despicable", on October 30 via Nuclear Blast.

The band's next album, "Torn Arteries", was originally scheduled for release in August but was postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic which is sweeping the globe.

According to Billboard, AC/DC's "Power Up" has topped the Australian ARIA Albums Chart for the second week in a row.

The legendary hard rockers previously spent two weeks at Australia's No. 1 with the 1992 album "Live".

"Power Up" hit the No. 1 spot in 18 countries, including in the U.S., where it sold over 117,000 copies in the first week. The LP marked AC/DC's sixth No. 1 album in Australia where the band is the only Australian group in history to have had a No. 1 album across five decades: "Back In Black" (1980s), "Ballbreaker Live" (1990s), "Black Ice" (2000s), "Rock Or Bust" (2010s) and "Power Up" (2020s). The album also holds Germany's biggest first week of 2020 and the biggest first week for an international act in four years, as well as being the U.K.'s fastest-selling album of 2020 and the biggest first week of the year.

"Power Up" is the fastest-selling album of 2020 in at least three of its biggest markets — U.S., Australia and the U.K. In the U.K., it opened with first-week sales of 62,000. 52,955 units of these were on a physical format (CD, vinyl, cassette).

"Power Up" features AC/DC's 2020 lineup of Brian Johnson (vocals), Phil Rudd (drums), Cliff Williams (bass), Angus Young (guitar) and Stevie Young (guitar). The LP was recorded over a six-week period in August and September 2018 at Warehouse Studios in Vancouver with producer Brendan O'Brien, who also worked 2008's "Black Ice" and 2014's "Rock Or Bust".

"Power Up" is a tribute to Angus's brother Malcolm Young, who died in 2017 from effects of dementia at age 64. Malcolm is credited as a writer on all 12 tracks on "Power Up", along with Angus.

"Power Up" is available in multiple configurations, including digital, CD, and deluxe versions. The limited edition, one-of-a-kind deluxe "Power Up" box is the ultimate fan package. Hit the button on the side of the box and watch the flashing neon AC/DC logo light up while the opening bars of "Shot In The Dark" blast out of the built-in speaker. Inside the box is the full CD package in a soft-pack with a 20-page booklet that features exclusive photos and USB charging cable allowing the box to remain powered up and on display. The vinyl LP was pressed on 180-gram vinyl and housed in a gatefold jacket. Limited-edition variants of the LP are available at select retailers nationwide, as well as the band's online st

SEVENDUST drummer Morgan Rose released his debut solo EP, "Controlled Chaos", on November 27 via Rise Records. Morgan co-wrote the EP with SEVENDUST bandmate Clint Lowery. With Clint on guitar and Jason Christopher (COREY TAYLOR, PRONG) on bass, Morgan tracked six songs in less than ten days at The Lair in Culver City, California.

The first music video from "Controlled Chaos", for the haunting track "Exhale", can be seen below. The clip follows Morgan as he prepares to head out and face all the challenges the world presents him while inspiring others to follow his path.

Rose discussed how the idea for the EP came about during a recent interview with Alicia Atout. He said: "I came to California in the very beginning of March, and I was supposed to be here for, like, two or three days. I had just started dating a girl, and she lived out here. So I was, like, 'Okay, cool. We'll take that step and we'll spend some time in somebody's house.' So I was supposed to be here three days and go into New York on the 9th [of March] to do interviews and get ready for the SEVENDUST world. So then this [pandemic] hit. And all my interviews were, like, 'Well, maybe you should hold on for a few days and let's see what's going on, 'cause something's getting ready to happen here.' So that two or three days turned into two months. So I basically just moved into my girlfriend's house. It's, like, 'Oh, we just started dating. Oh, we live together.' It was wild."

He continued: "The funny thing is that she's an engineer that works on records, so she had access to this studio, and I was, like, I wanna do something. So I called Clint, and he said, 'I'm gonna send you some guitar riffs, and [you] play drums and sing on it, and see what happens.' So I ended up doing a solo record, like it was a joke. I was just, like, 'I'll just go in and record a little bit. I'm not a singer; I'm a screamer.' So I ended up doing this solo record, and Rise picked it up. And I was, like, 'Oh my God. I have a record deal as a solo artist now all of a sudden.' It was a trip."

Fans of Morgan's main gig will be pleasantly surprised at the different shades presented on "Controlled Chaos", as the EP presents a varied musical blueprint on the legendary drummer. Morgan sounds equally at home singing with a keyboard and orchestral accompaniment as he does belting out his trademark primal screams in a full band setting. The EP's first single, "The Answer", is a bombastic introduction to the EP, taking a page from SEVENDUST's penchant for thick guitars, up-tempo rhythms, and gritty yet melodious vocals.

"Controlled Chaos" track listing:

01. Intro

02. The Answer

03. Faster Man

04. Clarity

05. Come Alive

06. Exhale

Rose began his career over 25 years ago as a founding member of the Atlanta-based metal band SEVENDUST. Morgan's stickwork with the band has been nationally recognized, being named the number one metal drummer by Modern Drummer magazine, as well as one of the top 100 drummers of all time by Drum magazine, Hit Parader and Drummerworld. Rose, in addition to his work with SEVENDUST, is known for his contributions to projects CALL ME NO ONE with Clint Lowery of SEVENDUST and METHODS OF MAYHEM with Tommy Lee of MÖTLEY CRÜE. With an impressive three million albums sold, Rose has proved a powerhouse alongside SEVENDUST, helping the band earn four RIAA gold-certified albums.

SEVENDUST's 13th studio album, "Blood & Stone", was released on October 23 via Rise Records. The follow-up to 2018's "All I See Is War" was once again tracked at Studio Barbarosa in Gotha, Florida with producer Michael "Elvis" Baskette, who has previously worked with ALTER BRIDGE and SLASH, among others.

Video of DREAM THEATER singer James LaBrie belting out an a cappella version of "Pull Me Under", the first single from the band's breakthrough album "Images And Words", can be seen below.

LaBrie sang a couple of lines from the track while filming a new video message on Cameo, which lets users hire celebrities to record brief, personalized video messages about virtually any topic.

Cameo reportedly features more than 20,000 celebrities — from musicians and actors to drag queens and from YouTubers to Olympic gold medallists — who, for fees from $1 to $2,500, will offer video messages that mention another person by name. Happy birthday messages are common, as are baby announcements, but some celebrities have also recorded messages for Cameo users looking to quit their jobs or ask a potential date to a prom. The price for a video is determined by the celebrity.

LaBrie charges $55 for each of his Cameo videos.

Upon its release in 1992, "Pull Me Under" and its accompanying video received airtime on radio and MTV and expanded DREAM THEATER's audience.

"'Pull Me Under' was a surprise to everyone, 'cause 'Pull Me Under' is… it's over eight minutes long, never meant to be a single," DREAM THEATER guitarist John Petrucci told Gitarre & Bass in 2017. "The songs being played on the radio were nothing like DREAM THEATER, but, for some reason, it must have stuck out to where people were calling the radio stations: 'What is that band? Oh my God! I wanna hear that song again.' And that kind of snowballed and grew, and 'Pull Me Under' became a rock radio hit. And I remember at the time I was living in New Jersey, on the East Coast of the U.S., and I'd turn on the radio and I'd hear it all the time. It was a cool feeling."

Asked if "Pull Me Under" is the most important song of DREAM THEATER's career, John said: "Yeah. Probably. Yeah. If you think about what it did for us as far as the future is concerned, it really put up on the map. It enabled us to go from local guys driving around in a van, playing to a few people in clubs to an international touring band with this whole long and very busy and productive career. And who knows? Without that kind of initial spark, we may never have been able to be as successful as we have. I mean, who knows? Maybe we would have. I don't know. But it certainly, certainly helped. Big time."

Earlier this month, Petrucci confirmed that DREAM THEATER is using the coronavirus downtime to commence the songwriting sessions for the follow-up to last year's "Distance Over Time" album.

"Distance Over Time" marked DREAM THEATER's first album for for Sony Music's progressive imprint InsideOut Music. The group spent the past 25 years recording under various labels in the Warner Music Group system, most recently Roadrunner Records, which released five albums by the band between 2007 and 2016.

DREAM THEATER has just released its ninth career live album, "Distant Memories - Live In London". Recorded at DREAM THEATER's sold-out show at the Apollo Theatre in London, the live release documents the band's popular world tour in support of "Distance Over Time" and the 20th anniversary of their seminal concept album "Metropolis Part 2 - Scenes From A Memory".

Legendary Australian rockers, Taste, will be releasing three EPs and an album in 2021. The first EP being announced today is Brothers Vol. 1 and will be available worldwide on December 23. Brothers Vol. 1 is an EP for our times but steeped in the wide-screen colours of a more progressive era. Real strings. Layers of percussion. Walls of harmony. Crafted segues, dramatic timing shifts and a vast, unified vision that befits the grandeur of its title. The band is a potpourri of Queen, Muse and 10cc. Harmonies, guitars and souring vocals abound!

No one could expect the events of Covid in 2020 so Taste are celebrating its demise with their new single “2020’s Gone” co-written with fellow musician Les Brazil with its uplifting message lyrically and anthemic sing a long chorus. A joyous anthem for our freedom. Dealing with the anxieties and worries that has effected all of us, the song resolves with an uplifting positive message embedded in each chorus.

“We need a song that we can all singalong to, at one minute past twelve, to say good riddance to what has turned out to be basically a shit year.” - Michael Tortoni

Ken Murdoch, Michael Tortoni and Joey Amenta are hoping to create a universal response at 12:01AM on the 1st January 2021 by encouraging all media and musicians to join them in playing "2020's Gone" through whatever outlet is available to you. Imagine the euphoria if we  collectively gave 2020 the send off it deserves. Good Riddance!! Join us  for all the fun of singing along to this anthem.

"Taste has a long history in the Australian Music Scene with Many hits in the late 70’s then rising again in the 2000’s and still going strong today and MR Records is excited & proud to be involved in what we believe will be one of the Best EP’s in 2020/21. With 3 amazing new tunes including the incredible '2020’s Gone' which is sure to be a world-wide anthem to say good bye to this incredibly difficult year and move into 2021 with new hope and opportunities. Taste are simply one of the great bands Australia has produced. World here they come." - Peter Hoffmann / Director / MR Records

Taste started to realize how much of a toll COVID-19 was taking on musicians, artists and the general public at large and adapted the lyrics to reflect this.

"Not only are musicians and road-crews affected financially, but the mental strain is enormous, and with calls to Beyond Blue’s 24/7 Support Service having increased during the pandemic by 48 per cent compared to the same time last year (March through August),this is why we felt we needed to take some form off action.We are donating 20% of our EP sales Profits to Beyond Blue to try and help as much as we can," said bassist Michael Tortoni.

"We're hoping to extend a call of arms, of sorts, to fellow musicians to singalong with us to show solidarity and support for those in need," Joey Amenta, guitarist commented.

Ken Murdoch singer and songwriter said, "It's been a truly horrible year and we hope everyone will join in and say good riddance. Its a great anthem - '2020's Gone'. One that says from here on things can only get better! We are extremely proud to be working & supporting such an important cause and along with our record label MR Records we are happy to donate monies from the sales of the upcoming EP Brothers Vol 1 which has the Song '2020's Gone' as the first single."

For donations visit fundraise.beyondblue.org.au.

CEO Georgie Harman said Beyond Blue is very grateful to the generous people who dedicate their time and energy to host events to support Beyond Blue’s work.

Pre-order Brothers Vol. 1 here.

Brothers Vol. 1 tracklisting:

"2020's Gone"
"Hello Hello"
"(We All) Stand Up"
"Rock Is Dead" (Live)
"I Don't Wanna Be Like You" (Live)

The story of Taste is a legend from the lost back pages of Australian rock 'n' roll: the meteoric rise and fall of a mid '70s glam-rock quartet with a fiery reputation among such lofty peers as AC/DC, Queen, Suzi Quatro and the Sweet. But history can wait.

Fast forward 40 years and Life On Earth is a document of rare craft and experience from a band split by circumstance all those years ago, now reunited with newfound passion and decades of combined expertise from the realms of hard, progressive rock to the frontiers of jazz.

Ken, Joey, Michael and drummer Virgil Donati were teenaged rock idols (Aged 15, 16, 17 and 18) back in the Countdown dreamtime of the mid 1970s. Tickle Your Fancy and Knights Of Love were two classic albums (recently remastered for iTunes) that spawned a run of hits including 'Tickle Your Fancy', 'A Little Romance' and their signature tune, 'Boys Will Be Boys'.

The latter was famously adopted by Queen as the pre-gig fanfare on their A Night At The Opera tour of 1976. Taste was preparing to tour America with Freddie Mercury and Co. on the back of an imminent deal with Sire Records in the USA when the wheels fell off in 1977.

It was a tragic tale of mismanagement and parental control that any member of the band will philosophically recall - along with other classic yarns about kidnapping AC/DC's Malcolm Young, touring with Suzi Quatro, Sweet and Status Quo and any amount of affiliated youthful hi-jinx.

Taste is:

Ken Murdoch
Joey Amenta
Michael Tortoni




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The Two Minutes To Late Night team are back with a cover of Samhain’s “Mother Of Mercy”

A message states: "We all want to dine in hell. It's a cover of a Samhain song, Danzig's underrated middle band after the Misfits! Nate is on a toilet - you love to see it!

"This is our 32nd bedroom cover made with the support of Patreon. With so many musicians stuck at home with no outlets, we're going to keep producing these style videos and use the Patreon to give some money to everyone who has a part in them. Please support our friends by donating to our newly redone Patreon at here."

This cover features: Nate Newton (Converge, Old Man Gloom), Andy Granelli (The Distillers, Darker My Love), Brooks Harlan (War On Women), Brian McClelland (Fucked And Bound) and Jordan Olds aka Gwarsenio Hall.




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X Japan drummer / leader Yoshiki has uploaded high-quality footage from 1993 featuring their live perormance of the song "Art Of Life", the title track of the album. He also posted the following message:

"I wrote this song when I was in my early twenties. And we only played the full version twice. I wish Hide were still here, miss you everyday.. RIP."

The footage is taken from the VHS and DVD, Art of Life 1993.12.31 Tokyo Dome, released in 2003.

Art of Life is X Japan's fourth studio album, released on August 25, 1993 via Atlantic Records. It consists solely of the 29-minute-long orchestrated title track, which was written and composed by Yoshiki entirely in English and recorded with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra. The album is the band's first after changing their name from simply X, and the first to feature bassist Heath.

On October 29th, Yoshiki uploaded pro-shot video of the band performing their classic single "Week End" live without an audience. This was part of a live broadcast. Check it out below, watch for more footage in the near future.




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September 25th marked 25 years since Rammstein emerged from Berlin with its debut album, Herzeleid. To celebrate the anniversary, the RammWiki page on YouTube continues to roll out rare audio and video material from the band's career. The latest installment is the original English "Pussy" demo featuring re-used instrumentation found in the song "Gib Mir Deine Augen" and some of the final lyrics used in "Pussy". The demo is called "Panterra Pussy" due to the original filename: Panterra+Pussy.

"Pussy" appears on Rammstein's 2009 album, Liebe Ist Für Alle Da.

To celebrate Rammstein's first indelible impact on global hard rock history, the band and Vertigo/UMe will release limited, remastered editions of the band’s groundbreaking debut on December 4. They have released an official trailer for Herzeleid (XXV Anniversary Edition - Remastered) featuring the CD and vinyl LP versions of the album.

Herzeleid (XXV Anniversary Edition - Remastered) will feature the album’s original tracklist on a single CD, housed in a lavish, cross-shaped digipak with deluxe slipcase, and, for the first time ever, the remastered album with HD sound will be available digitally.

In addition, there will be a 2LP version with a slipcase containing two 180 gram heavyweight black vinyl discs with blue splatter effect. The creator of the original artwork, Dirk Rudolph, is also responsible for the Anniversary Edition packaging. The booklets also contain the original band portraits shot by Praler. Both the CD and vinyl editions are strictly limited.

The limited editions can be pre-ordered here.

Tracklisting:

"Wollt Ihr Das Bett in Flammen Sehen"
"Der Meister"
"Weisses Fleisch"
"Asche zu Asche"
"Seemann"
"Du Riechst So Gut"
"Das Alte Leid"
"Heirate Mich"
"Herzeleid"
"Laichzeit"
"Rammstein"




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German speed metallers Stallion are offering the Christmatized EP box set, Santa's Sack. It contains the following:

- limited vinyl EP (red vinyl lim. 175 copies, gold vinyl lim. 100 copies)
- knitted Christmas sweater (thick quality, S - XXL)
- two Christmas ornament balls 
- patch (golden border, green glitter detail)
- cookie cutter (horse shaped)
- autograph card (signed by hand)

All the items are limited and only available in this special box set. Go to this location for more details and to order.

The band has also issued the following message:

"Here's our little Christmatized video, we needed to get a little creative due to the current restrictions, but we hope you'll enjoy it nonetheless. Have a great start into the Christmas season and happy 1st Advent!"




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