The first taste of the forthcoming debut album from SUNBOMB. the project featuring L.A. GUNS' Tracii Guns and STRYPER's Michael Sweet, is available below. The band recently recorded its debut album, to be released next year via Frontiers Music Srl.

This past May, Guns told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" about the musical direction of the SUNBOMB material: "The SUNBOMB record is really kind of like [L.A. GUNS' 2019 album] 'The Devil You Know' times three. It's more on the heavy side of 'The Devil You Know' album. And Michael Sweet, he's a really fantastic metal singer."

The guitarist went on to say that he and Michael are able to work together without butting heads about religion or politics. "You have the biggest non-believer and the biggest believer," he said. "But that's the kind of guys we are — I'm able to separate the beliefs from the music; they're not one and the same. And Michael and I have talked about it. I'm an open-minded person and I respect [other people's perspectives]."

When Tracii first broke the news of SUNBOMB's existence in a March 2019 tweet, he described the project's debut LP as "the metal record I would have made when I was 17 years old."

A short time later, Sweet responded to Tracii's tweet, writing: "I'm excited to be a part of it Tracii. Who would have thought when we were young that we'd be working together. Thank you for trusting me with the vocal duties SUNBOMB is gonna be Bomb."




A little taste of things to come - @sunbomb 2021?

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Gunnar Nelson says that he is strongly against celebrities using their popularity to speak out about politics, explaining that their job is to "take people away" from the hardship of their lives.

"Musicians — and actors, too — our job is to entertain," Gunnar said in a new interview with "Music Mania" podcast (see video below). "That's our job. Our job is to entertain and give people a place where they can forget about the pressures of the real world, about [how] their boss is a dick, or about what's going on politically in the world, or some phantom virus or all that stuff. Our job in moments like this is to take people away from that, not to immerse them back in it.

"When people start believing their own press releases… It's a dangerous thing when you surround yourself just with people who agree with you," he continued. "Look what happened to Elvis [Presley] and Michael Jackson — it's a dangerous thing to do.

"Our opinions are no more important than anyone else's, and I think there are a lot of artists out there that forget that. And I understand that they wanna make a difference. The problem is when they cross a line. No matter which side of the fence you're on — it doesn't matter. But their heads get big, they start believing their own press releases, and they think that they're some authority on people and have browbeat them, when, frankly, it's just kind of, like, shut up and do your job. Play the guitar, son. Write a great song. Make me happy. Remind me of the good old days, or introduce me to something that's brand new where I can forget all this crap that's going on. That's it.

"There'll be plenty of people who jostle for opinions on all topics," Gunnar added. "But I just personally… I'm one of those guys… I think my job right now is to deliver an amazing song to people, because that's what God put me on this earth to do. That's it."

Gunnar and his brother Nelson are the leaders of their band called NELSON which celebrated the 30th anniversary of the release of its double-platinum debut LP "After The Rain" this past June.

The Nelson are sons of rock royalty — their father was '50s and '60s rock and TV heartthrob Ricky Nelson — and grandsons of entertainers Ozzie and Harriet Nelson, and the nephews of celebrated actor Mark Harmon.

When Matthew and Gunnar hit No. 1 on the Billboard chart with NELSON's "(Can't Live Without Your) Love & Affection", it made the Nelsons the first family in history to have at least one No. 1 song across three generations.

NELSON had five Top 40 Billboard hits, four No. 1 MTV videos and has sold over 6.5 million albums worldwide.

POISON drummer Rikki Rockett has decried the divisive nature of today’s political scene in America after he was criticized for comments he made when it was announced the President-elect Joe Biden had won the White House.

On November 7, after it was reported that Biden was projected to defeat Donald Trump in the U.S. presidential election, Rockett posted on his social media: "Congratulations to Joe Biden and especially Kamala Harris for being the first woman to become Vice President. I wasn't sure I'd ever see that in my lifetime." His comments were quickly met with backlash from some Trump supporters, who are struggling to accept that their candidate had lost his bid for re-election.

Less than two hours later, Rockett returned to his Facebook and made a lengthy post in which he defended his right to speak out on political issues, saying that he is not going to hide who he is from his fans so that they don't have to see him as a real person.

He wrote: "So, I congratulate the first woman to be elected to the Whitehouse. I pretty much have said nothing more than, 'Dare to dream' and certain people want to never listen to POISON again over it! If this describes you, then you don't want to really know me in any way shape or form in the first place. You just want the circus monkey to perform. Fine. If you go over to the POISON page, there is no politics whatsoever over there. Just POISON stuff.

"I never speak of politics in interviews, onstage or at meet 'n greets. I keep it away from POISON. However, as an individual, I do have personal views and opinions. Don't want to know anything other than the man behind the drums? Fine, but this is MY page.

"I am a person who's job is playing drums, I am not going to hide who I am from you so that you don't have to see me as a real person. Read that again... I am not going to hide who I am from you so that you don't have to see me as a real person.

"If we were all sitting at a table having coffee, I doubt most of you would get up and walk away or if I was just a random friend, tell me to fuck off and would never deal with me again. If you did, you wouldn't be my friend or share my table in the first place and I wouldn't want to be at yours. Same goes here. If you don't like me as a person, I have no idea why you are here. I'll me and you do you. I am open minded, but I won't be bullied because you think since you bought a ticket or a record that I have to mute myself on my own social media pages so you don 't have to deal with a difference of opinion.

"I am not shoving my opinion down anyone's throat. This is my page and I have my views. I will not try and tweak my likes and dislikes to appeal to my possible 'demographic' so that I maximize my social media. Do you really want that from me? Do you want me to be that fake?

"I bust balls and I don't mind it back, but when you threaten to never like what my life's work has been over simply giving props to what I see as historic, well then that is just too damn bad. If she turns out to be a bad Vice President, then she does. Still, this is historic and that in and of itself is the point of my post. I am so sorry if you missed it."

Rockett's words were met with support from his social media followers, one of who said that she did not vote for Biden but that she thought it was "cool" that we will finally have a female vice president. Rikki replied: "I understand. It's why I voted for Trump in 2016. However, my taxes were worse! I am not a Democrat only because of taxes and Government interference too much. Socially... I am pretty liberal. I'm in a glam band for fucks sake! Lol".

POISON's "The Stadium Tour" with DEF LEPPARD, MÖTLEY CRÜE and JOAN JETT & THE BLACKHEARTS

" was originally scheduled to take place this summer but ended up being pushed back to 2021 due to the coronavirus pandemic which is sweeping the globe.


Congratulations to Joe Biden and especially Kamala Harris for being the first woman to become Vice President. I wasn’t...

Posted by Rikki Rockett on Saturday, November 7, 2020



Wow, so on my "Like" page I made post. Check it out. However, it always seems to get bent out of shape, so please read...

Posted by Rikki Rockett on Saturday, November 7, 2020

Stephen Pearcy's upcoming sixth solo album will include a few songs which were originally written "with RATT in mind."

Tentatively due in 2021, the follow-up to 2018's "View To A Thrill" will feature 13 tracks which were composed as a collaboration between Pearcy and his longtime guitarist Erik Ferentinos.

On Tuesday (October 20), Pearcy tweeted: "New Stephen Pearcy (his 6th) solo record due 2021 TBA with co-writer, lead guitarist Erik Ferentinos. With all (13) songs written by the pair, Pearcy is finishing working on lyrics. A few songs were written with @theRATTpack in mind."

This past July, Ferentinos, who has played with Pearcy for nearly two decades, told All Music/All Bands about the musical direction of Stephen's next album: "The new record will have the '80s rock sound that fans have come to expect from us with a few surprises thrown in for good measure. There are some heavy bangers on there that the RATT fans will love. I try to keep it edgy, but I want us to have a hit. I'm always trying to top what we've done so far, with catchier riffs and melodies to get more fans interested in our music."

Stephen's most recent release was the "All That I Want" solo single, He told Marci Wiser of the 95.5 KLOS radio station: "I didn't know where that song was gonna end up — a RATT song or solo — so I decided it's just gonna be put out there."

Asked if the track will appear on a full-length album at some point in the future, Pearcy said: "No. It's just a song. That's all I do is write with Erik Ferentinos, a co-writer friend of mine, been in my band forever, solo band. And it's all good. We just write and if we feel it fits to be heard, we put it out."

As for the lyrical inspiration for "All That I Want", Pearcy said: "It's a relationship song, and it just felt right for the times. Everybody's locked up, and what's really important to you? Your partner — somebody close to you, somebody to dig, love."

This past March, Pearcy released another new solo song called "Making Crazy".

Pearcy's fifth solo LP, "View To A Thrill", came out in November 2018 via Frontiers Music Srl. The follow-up to 2017's "Smash" was produced by Matt Thorne and Pearcy and was mixed and mastered by Thorne and Ferentinos.

Pearcy and bassist Juan Croucier are the sole remaining original members in RATT's current lineup, which made its live debut in July 2018 in Mulvane, Kansas. Joining them in the band are drummer Pete Holmes (BLACK 'N BLUE, RATT'S JUAN CROUCIER) and guitarist Jordan Ziff (RAZER).

Pearcy told Sleaze Roxx that Erik was briefly considered for a position in RATT before Ziff and now-former RATT guitarist Chris Sanders (BRITNY FOX, KNIGHT FURY) came along. "He's literally been in my band for years, in my solo band," he said. "He's a big part of my life, my solo records, the mixing, the engineering, just everything. I mean, we're like a team when I go in to do my solo records with Matt Thorne in the studio, and Erik and myself. We get in there and there is no stopping us, so I wanted to keep that a little separate, but he's always ready to go at any moment. He's a total professional."

RATT hasn't released any new music since 2010's "Infestation" album.




New Stephen Pearcy (his 6th) solo record due 2021 TBA with co-writer, lead guitarist Erik Ferentinos. With all (13) songs written by the pair, Pearcy is finishing working on lyrics. A few songs were written with @theRATTpack in mind. https://t.co/eYrBPUo57i pic.twitter.com/0CX3MIuaj0

— STEPHEN E PEARCY (@StephenEPearcy) October 21, 2020

Two Minutes To Late Night is back with a new video, featuring a cover of Oingo Boingo's "Dead Man's Party" in the style of Iron Maiden.

A message states: "It's the Halloween jam you never knew was you needed! We asked Nili to shred on this track before anyone knew she was Danny Elfman's new guitarist. Trick or Treat!

"This is our 27th 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 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 honorableswords.com."

Lineup:

* Rody Walker and Mike Ieradi both play in Protest The Hero and Mystery Weekend
* Both Nili Brosh and Pete Griffin have been in a million projects (almost too many to list) including the live version of Dethklok:
   - Nili Brosh: Cirque du Soleil, Tony MacAlpine, Paul Gilbert, and The Iron Maidens. Plus, she has her own solo albums
   - Pete Griffin: Giraffe Tongue Orchestra, Zappa Plays Zappa, Legend of the Seagullmen, Steve Vai, Dethklok, Dr. John, Zakk Wylde, and Hanson.
* Jordan Olds aka Gwarsenio Hall




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Bill Bruford was the original drummer in Yes and a long-term member of King Crimson. His band Bruford recorded Rock Goes To College on a BBC broadcast in 1979. 

The DVD in this package is the only officially released concert footage of the band that exists, and as such has achieved legendary status. 

The line-up on this album is: Bill Bruford (drums, percussion), Allan Holdsworth (guitar), Dave Stewart (keyboards), Jeff Berlin (bass) and Annette Peacock (voice). 

Bill says of the re-release: “This was a baptism by fire, our first gig in the first few days of the band’s existence. At the beginning of it I wasn’t sure. By the end, I knew we were on to something serious.”

This definitive re-release was overseen personally by Bill Bruford and is released on his own Winterfold Records via Cherry Red.

Purchase here.




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In a new interview with Joe Rock of Long Island's rock station 102.3 WBAB, WHITESNAKE frontman David Coverdale was asked about the apparent lack of humor in the band's lyrics. David responded: "Well, it's interesting, because particularly now, I'm very active on social media. I know, just from e-mails that we receive and positive messages, a lot of the stuff I post puts a much-needed smile or gives somebody a laugh or touches a nerve. I've always been a proponent of meditation. Although I don't preach it, I encourage people that it would be helpful to them during this very challenging time.

"And that's the other reason that Rhino and I said, 'Let's go ahead with our plan for the 'Red, White And Blue' trilogy.' Everybody's gonna need glasses, prescription lenses, after so much of Netflix, so let's give 'em some ear candy. But they're all true songs.

"One of the reasons, I think, WHITESNAKE has maintained a great deal of success is they're all human themes," Coverdale explained. "They're all physical and emotional themes, and, of course, ultimately search for direction, as you know, in 'Here I Go Again': 'I don't know where I'm going, but I sure know where I've been.' Once again, that song, the lyrics resonate deeply with many, many people. It's fantastic."

WHITESNAKE recently launched the "Red, White And Blue" trilogy, a series of fresh, new collections organized by musical themes that will include "Love Songs" (red), "The Rock Album" (white) and "The Blues Album" (blue).

A few weeks ago, Coverdale underwent surgery for bilateral inguinal hernia. The singer was forced to wait several months during the coronavirus pandemic before having the procedure done last month at the Renown facility in his hometown of Reno, Nevada.

Coverdale had both his knees replaced with titanium in 2017 after suffering from degenerative arthritis. He later explained that he was in so much pain with arthritis in his knees that it hampered his ability to perform live.

WHITESNAKE had been touring in support of its latest album, "Flesh & Blood", which was released in May 2019 via Frontiers Music Srl.

In a new interview with "The Dennis Miller Option" podcast, JUDAS PRIEST singer Rob Halford admitted to once having had a romantic infatuation with a famous actor. "I used to have a massive crush on Sean Connery as a child," Rob said, before correcting himself: "I wasn't a child; I was a teenager. I had a little cropped out color photograph of his hairy chest. And I used to pleasure myself looking at this picture of Sean Connery when I was in my early teens. [Laughs]"

Rob is continuing to promote his recently released autobiography, "Confess". In the book, Halford discusses in detail what it was like becoming the first metal icon to announce he is gay in 1998 during an MTV interview, despite knowing about his sexuality since he was 10. Although his bandmates and their management knew he was gay and were accepting, he was advised to be discreet given the macho hetero nature of the metal world. He also opens up about surviving sexual abuse, as well as his struggles with depression, substance abuse, sobriety, and the suicide of one of his former partners. He also talks about how his own suicide attempt in 1986 led him to the rehab program that saved his life.

"Confess" arrived on September 29 via Hachette Books. It was written with Ian Gittins, co-writer of "The Heroin Diaries" by Nikki Sixx.

Halford, who has been an outspoken advocate for gay rights, addressed the controversial issue of choice in sexuality during a recent interview with KNAC.COM. Asked what he has to say to people that say that being gay is a choice and not something that you are born with, Halford said: "Absolutely rubbish. You are born with it. Different people like me get murdered in front of buildings. Why would I choose to be that kind of a person? It's ridiculous.

"It's great to be gay," he continued. "It's wonderful to be gay because there are so many conflicting views about this particular thing that we have today. But I can say categorically that it's not a choice. It's a fact. It's in your DNA. It's something that you're born and blessed with, and I'll say God made me this way. Thank you."

A recent poll showed that a quarter of Americans identify as something other than straight. In the U.K., meanwhile, one in five young people identify as somewhere between straight and gay.

In "Confess", Halford revealed that he knew he was gay during a time when gay men were "full-on persecuted" in his native United Kingdom. He came out to his parents three years later.

"God made me this way," he told People. "This was placed inside of me. This is who I am."

Angus Young has told Rock 105.5's "The Angi Taylor Show" that AC/DC's latest single, "Shot In The Dark", should immediately dispel any question about whether he and his bandmates have reinvented their sound. With ripping guitars, a pulsating backbeat and the guttural howls of singer Brian Johnson, the track comes across like it could fit right in with some of AC/DC's other classics.

"That's what we aim for," the guitarist said (hear audio below). "We always aim for to get tracks that are powerful. Then whoever hears it, we want them instantly to recognize it's AC/DC and no one else. So if you add all the elements together — especially also with the guitars; the guitars are very much upfront; we're very much a guitar band. Especially, also, if you're just a radio listener, that's the first thing you want it to do — you want an AC/DC track to cut right through and everyone can recognize straight away this is AC/DC… Even when we're writing, putting new songs together and creating, that was always the purpose — they had to immediately have that AC/DC sound that jumps out at you."

"Shot In The Dark" is the first single from AC/DC's long-awaited comeback album, "Power Up", which is due on November 13. The follow-up to 2014's "Rock Or Bust" features AC/DC's 2020 lineup of Angus, Brian Johnson (vocals), Phil Rudd (drums), Cliff Williams (bass) and Stevie Young (guitar).

"Power Up" 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" will be available in multiple configurations that will excite collectors and die-hard fans alike, 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 will be pressed on 180-gram vinyl and housed in a gatefold jacket. Limited-edition variants of the LP will be available at select retailers nationwide, as well as the band's online store. The album will be available on all digital platforms.

The legendary hard rockers postponed the last ten dates of their North American tour in 2016 after doctors told Johnson he faced a total loss of hearing if he did not stop touring immediately. He was eventually replaced on the road by GUNS N' ROSES vocalist Axl Rose.

Listen to "AC/DC Talks New Music, Surviving a Pandemic, and More!" on Spreaker.

Geezer Butler has called time on BLACK SABBATH, declaring "it's over." Dismissing long-discussed fan chatter about a possible final SABBATH gig at Birmingham's Villa Park, the bassist is the second member of the Birmingham quartet to apparently confirm the end of the band.

Butler made his comments while speaking to Eonmusic about the recent reissue of his solo catalog ("Plastic Planet", "Black Science" and "Ohmwork"), which is available now via BMG.

Geezer's revelation brings to a close five decades of the metal titans, whose "Paranoid" album recently received a 50th-anniversary "super deluxe" reissue. Formed in Birmingham in 1968 by Butler, guitarist Tony Iommi, frontman Ozzy Osbourne, and drummer Bill Ward, the outfit went on to sell over 70 million albums, and are regarded as true originators of the heavy metal genre. The band played its final tour in 2017.

In the chat with Eonmusic, when asked about the possibility of a final show at his beloved Villa Park, Butler was emphatic: "There will definitely be no more SABBATH. It's done."

Geezer's comments appear to be in line with those of Ozzy, who told Rolling Stone in September that, unlike Tony, he had no interest in playing any more BLACK SABBATH shows. "It's done," he said. "The only thing I do regret is not doing the last farewell show in Birmingham with Bill Ward. I felt really bad about that. It would have been so nice. I don't know what the circumstances behind it were, but it would have been nice.

"I've talked to [Tony] a few times, but I don't have any of the slightest interest in [doing another gig]," Ozzy continued. "Maybe Tony's getting bored now."

Speaking about the final SABBATH run of dates, which concluded with a show at Birmingham's Genting Arena on February 4, 2017, Geezer told Eonmusic: "I had a great time on the final tour, especially knowing it was the end. I seemed to put a lot of extra effort in, knowing that people wouldn't see us again."

He did add, however, that he would have been up for extending the run. "I would have liked to do more dates, but Tony's cancer treatment meant we had to shorten the tour," he said.

Read the full interview on Eonmusic.

This past May, Iommi told SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk" that he would open to the possibility of playing a one-off gig with SABBATH at some point in the not-too-distant future. "I think that it would be good, if we could do that," he said. "The hard thing is, certainly with SABBATH, because it's such a big thing, you can't just do an occasional show, because of the crew, and you have the whole setup. It would have to be a year or an 18-month tour… I'm not opposed to doing anything; I just would do it in a different way."

Back in June 2019, Butler told Classic Rock magazine that he wouldn't rule out a one-off SABBATH reunion. "If it came up, I wouldn't say never," the bassist said. "I can't imagine it ever happening, but then I said that about the SABBATH tour, and it happened, so who am I to know?"

SABBATH wrote and recorded its 2013 reunion album, "13", and toured it all over the world while Iommi was going through treatment for his illness, with the guitarist having to fly back to England every six weeks.

The original lineup of SABBATH came together in 1969 with Iommi, Osbourne, Butler and Ward. That lineup recorded and toured through 1978, and periodically reformed through the '90s and 2000s for live work.

They regrouped again in late 2011 for a new album and tour, although Ward dropped out after a few months over financial issues. SABBATH used Ozzy's regular touring drummer Tommy Clufetos since then for live work. RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE's Brad Wilk laid down the drum tracks on "13", which came out in June 2013.

DREAM THEATER singer James LaBrie is currently in the studio recording a new solo album for a 2021 release. Unlike previous LPs "Elements Of Persuasion" (2005), "Static Impulse" (2010) and "Impermanent Resonance" (2013), which were written and recorded as a collaboration with LaBrie's songwriting partner for over a dozen years, Matt Guillory, the new effort is being tracked with Scottish musician Paul Logue, bassist and founding member of the multinational melodic metal band EDEN'S CURSE.

In a new interview with "The Everyman Podcast", LaBrie explained how his collaboration with Logue came about. "[Paul is] from Scotland, and he used to be in a band called EDEN'S CURSE," he said (see video below). "Back in 2010, they released an album, and I sang on a song called 'No Holy Man'; I kind of guest with their lead vocalist — Michael Eden, I think the guy's name was.

"Anyway, Paul and I stayed in touch with one another, because what I loved about EDEN'S CURSE is it reminded me of classic rock — like the bands [I loved] growing up, like more of a DEEP PURPLE, LED ZEPPELIN approach. That's what I loved growing up. I also loved YES and PINK FLOYD and RUSH; RUSH I was spinning all the time. And he was the main writer [of EDEN'S CURSE].

"Unbeknownst to me, he came out to the last show that we [DREAM THEATER] did on the European tour — February 23rd," James continued. "After we shot the DVD in London, we did one more show in Glasgow, and he was there. And I guess he was reaching out to me, saying, 'Hey, James, I'm coming to the show tonight. Let's hook up.' But he was e-mailing my old [e-mail] address.

"So check this out. So, the next day, I'm at the Glasgow airport, getting ready to fly home via London. And he freakin' walks right by me. He goes, 'James!' I'm, like, 'What?' And then I found out he was at the show the previous night. He's, like, 'Oh my God. I was there. I couldn't get backstage.' I'm, like, 'Oh, shit!' I didn't know.

"Anyways, so we get to talking. We had a coffee together," LaBrie added. "And I said, 'We're going back out in April.' 'Cause at that time, we still thought we might be going out. Nobody knew. At the end of February, people were pretty sure that everything was gonna come down. We were scheduled to go to Asia in April and continue touring Asia, all through the Pacific Rim and Australia. And I said, 'But we're gonna take a few months off after that, and then we're gonna go out and do a North American tour, and then we're done in October. Why don't we get together and write?' And he said, 'Yeah, for sure.' Well, everything crashed in the middle of March. So he e-mailed me, and he goes, 'Hey, man, what are you doing?' And I said, 'I know what we should be doing. Let's write an album.' And so that's what we did. I had all these ideas, he was throwing me his ideas, and we put together nine songs."

Speaking about the musical direction of his new solo album, LaBrie said: "It's all acoustically driven. A lot of people are, like, 'Hey, I'm excited about your new solo album,' and I'm sure everyone's thinking what I do with Matt Guillory all the time. This has nothing to do with that. That's a completely other different band, so to speak.

"I told [Paul] from the beginning I want it to be, first and foremost, what I'm feeding him musically or melodically is all gonna stem from the acoustic guitar, and then vice versa, what he was doing with me," he explained. "Now we have keyboards coming in. He plays bass and guitar. And I had to call my other favorite guitar player in the world. Well, John's [Petrucci] my favorite, and then my other favorite guitar player is Marco Sfogli. So Marco's gonna be playing on this as well. And already I can tell you guys, the solos this guy is doing acoustically are gonna blow your mind. This guy's just so freakin' talented."

LaBrie added: "As much as I was saying it's acoustically driven, as we keep going on, we go, 'Let's add this. Let's add this.' But the fundamental equation, it started with acoustic, and I think that still will be, to a certain extent, the predominant element."

According to James, the drums on his new solo album are being laid down by his son Chance, who also plays with the Canadian rock group FALSET.

"We're just in the process of recording everything right now," LaBrie said. "And when it's done, I'll let everybody know."

Released in August 2013 via InsideOut Music, "Impermanent Resonance" sold around 2,200 copies in the United States in its first week of release to land at position No. 198 on The Billboard 200 chart. The follow-up to "Static Impulse" saw Guillory not only taking the leading role in composing the material, but also handling all of the keyboards and background vocals. The album's lineup was intact from the previous recording, featuring Marco Sfogli from Italy on guitar, Ray Riendeau (HALFORD, MACHINES OF LOVING GRACE) on bass and Swedish drummer Peter Wildoer (DARKANE, MAJESTIC), who was a finalist in the DREAM THEATER drum auditions. Additionally, former SOILWORK guitarist Peter Wichers came into the fold to contribute songwriting and studio guitars.

In 2014, LaBrie released a digital EP, "I Will Not Break", via InsideOut Music. While the opening title track was the album version taken from the "Impermanent Resonance" release, two other songs were previously only released physically as digipak bonus tracks, one tune was an alternate mix version, and two other songs were special demo versions, all previously only released physically as bonus tracks on the digipak and the Japanese edition for the "Static Impulse" album in 2010. The last three tracks were special dub step / electronica remixes of "Static Impulse" songs, previously unreleased. The remixes were done by U.S.-based DJs Jason Miller, Mutrix and NeonGenesis. The cover artwork for the EP was once again designed by Gustavo Sazes of Abstrata.net (ARCH ENEMY, KAMELOT).

Outspoken conservative rocker Ted Nugent has blasted governors and mayors across the U.S. for ratcheting up COVID-19 restrictions amid the record-shattering resurgence of the virus. Governors in several states, including New York, New Jersey, Massachusetts, and North Carolina have placed a 10-person limit on the number of people Americans can invite into their homes for the holiday.

Nugent addressed the controversial issue several days after it was reported that many law enforcement officials are refusing to enforce New York Gov. Andrew Cuomo's executive order limiting the number of people at Thanksgiving gatherings.

During Thursday's (November 19) episode of his "Ted Nugent Spirit Campfire" Internet show, Ted said: "There are dirty, rotten, soulless bastards in positions of power that are trying to tell us how we can celebrate Thanksgiving with our families. We need to escape that ugliness — not turn our back on it, because we need to raise hell and let our mayors and our governors and our senators and congressmen know: you can't tell me how many people I have at Thanksgiving. Just shut the [expletive]. You're not in charge of my Thanksgiving. We are in charge of our Thanksgiving. You've got to express that to those people.

"If everybody out there in America wants to be the ultimate 'we the people' and experiment the ultimate self-government, express yourself firmly," he continued. "You don't scream; you don't swear at 'em. I'm tempted to, but I don't. But I make sure they answer my questions. And if they don't, I tell 'em I'll call 'em back later. 'It's two o'clock on Monday. You can't answer this question now. How about if I call you on Wednesday at two o'clock? Because I'm not gonna let you off the hook. You're gonna answer these questions or I'm gonna spread the word that you're a power abuser and we're gonna fire you.'

"When I say stuff like that, people think I'm radical," Ted added. "That is standard operating procedure in an experiment in self-government. So I hope this vitality and this adamancy and this demand of independence — not just declaration of independence; demanding of independence — I hope it's contagious on the 'Spirit Campfire', and I hope people are running this up their individual family flagpoles like their mean it."

Governors of several other states across the country have issued severe coronavirus restrictions, including Oregon, which banned indoor gatherings larger than six people from more than two households and Michigan limited gatherings, including Thanksgiving, to just two households. Kentucky, Minnesota and Kansas also issued new restrictions, some of which would also severely alter many families' Thanksgiving traditions. In Minnesota, Gov. Tim Walz urged people not to celebrate Thanksgiving together or to have friends or family come to their homes.

A board member of the National Rifle Association, Nugent has drawn intense criticism for his controversial past remarks, including telling then-president Barack Obama to "suck on my machine gun." He also made inflammatory remarks about Hillary Clinton, calling her a "devilbitch" who "hates everything good about America."

In a lengthy Facebook post in 2016, Nugent said Obama and Clinton should be tried for treason and hanged over their handling of the terrorist attack in Benghazi, Libya.

Last year, Nugent defended Donald Trump after the U.S. president was accused of making racist remarks about Democratic congresswomen from black and minority ethnic backgrounds.

VIXEN singer Lorraine Lewis has confirmed to Metal-Net that the band has been hard at work on material for its new studio album. "Britt [Lightning, a.k.a. Brittany Denaro; guitar] and I write together through Zoom as often as possible — a few times a week," she said (see video below). "We've got some really good stuff going on. We've all been in the studio together when we were on tour last year; we did a lot of writing together. And so we have lots of songs that we're putting lyrics to. And we're working with Fred Coury from CINDERELLA.

"I put a lead vocal on 'You Oughta Know [By Now]', the VIXEN [cover of Ray Kennedy's] song, and I went in the studio with him and Britt, [and I] did that. I put my vocal on 'Edge Of A Broken Heart' and 'Rev It Up'. And so we've got three songs that my voice is on the original recordings of that," she continued.

"Yeah, Britt and I have been writing. Share [Ross, bass] has been writing with us. Roxy's [Petrucci, drums] been sending in songs. So we're all just kind of amped up. Everybody's so busy and crazy, but the album is a priority for sure. We're really excited. We can't wait to have new music as a band. This is gonna be amazing for all of us.

"I feel so grateful and fortunate that I'm in a legacy band now and we're doing a flipping record," Lorraine added. "I mean, I couldn't be more stoked. Britt is an amazing guitar player. She's a blast to work with. We get our cocktails and we get on Zoom and we work on stuff together. And we've got some really great stuff."

As for the musical and lyrical direction of the new VIXEN material, Lorraine said: "It's always going to sound like VIXEN as far as harmonies — [which is] really important to us — but really fresh. Lots of messages, lots of what our journey has been as individual women. And we're all just kind of putting our horses together, and I'm really excited. I'm just stoked to be in the studio again.

"We don't have it a hundred percent mapped out," Lorraine admitted. "Right now, we're still in writing process, we're still working on stuff — lots of lyrics and just kind of sharing them with all of us. Sharing choruses with Fred. He says, 'Yes, this is a great chorus. Let's work on this.' So we're really, really happy and proud to be working with him. He believes in us, and he believes in me, which I really, really love. We've had a really great couple of talks in the studio and otherwise, like with Britt there, and him just saying, 'You guys have everything going for you. You have an amazing band. You're a legacy band. And you've got Lorraine doing vocals for you.' And I'm so appreciative that he believes in me and he thinks I can sing anything. When Fred tells you that you can do anything, you believe it. So I'm really excited to go into the studio and work with him. And I'm really honored that he has said some of the things that he said to me. So the sky's the limit here.'

Lewis added: "I wanna release a really powerful, amazing record. And let's get a couple of singles out there, and let's revise the VIXEN legacy and keep on rocking."

In January 2019, VIXEN recruited Lewis as its new lead singer following the departure of Janet Gardner.

Lewis had already performed with VIXEN in March 2018 in Durant, Oklahoma while Gardner was recovering from surgery.

Prior to Lewis's addition to VIXEN, Petrucci, Ross and Denaro vowed to "expand upon the VIXEN legacy while remaining true to our musical roots."

Gardner, who released her debut self-titled solo album in 2017, broke the news of her exit from the group on January 16, 2019.

Gardner, Petrucci and Ross are considered to be part of VIXEN's classic lineup, along with founding guitarist Jan Kuehnemund, who died of cancer in October 2013.

Gardner contributed lead vocals to VIXEN's most commercially successful studio albums — "Vixen" (1988), "Rev It Up" (1990) and "Tangerine" (1998) — as well as the group's latest release, 2018's live album "Live Fire".

SYSTEM OF A DOWN is planning to film a music video for "Genocidal Humanoidz", the second of two new songs the band released earlier this month.

"I've written out the storyline, and I've got a couple of surprises that I'm gonna be putting [in there]," SYSTEM OF A DOWN bassist Shavo Odadjian told geopolitical analyst Richard Èlmoyan in a new interview (see video below). "So in the next couple of weeks, hopefully we'll be shooting that."

SYSTEM OF A DOWN's first new songs in 15 years, "Genocidal Humanoidz" and "Protect The Land" were motivated by the recently erupted conflict between Artsakh and Azerbaijan, the latter aided by Turkey and accountable for the greatest violence the region has endured in 26 years. Produced by guitarist/vocalist Daron Malakian, who also wrote the music and lyrics, both songs are streaming now on all DSPs and are available for purchase on Bandcamp with band royalties earmarked for the Armenia Fund.

The music video for "Protect The Land" incorporates recent footage of the protests and on-the-ground fighting in Artsakh, but in a very personal and aesthetic way. As he did for all previous SYSTEM OF A DOWN releases, Odadjian executive-produced the music video and curated the cover and brand art for the project. "I wanted to show the unification of our people around the world for one common cause, illustrating the power in numbers," he said, "so we brought together people from all ages and professions who believe in and are fighting for that same cause. It's one thing to come up with an idea, but to see it come alive as happened with this video, has been just incredible."

On the recording of "Protect The Land" and "Genocidal Humanoidz", Odadjian added: "It was such a pleasure for us to be together in the studio again, very comforting and natural, like no time had passed at all."

"Protect The Land" a was originally written by Malakian for the next album by his other group, SCARS ON BROADWAY, while "Genocidal Humanoidz" was penned three or four years ago when Odadjian, Malakian and drummer John Dolmayan and bassist Shavo Odadjian convened for a jam session that produced several songs, only to abandon them when singer Serj Tankian wouldn't commit to an album.

In a new interview with Guitar World magazine, Malakian was asked about the chances of more new music from SYSTEM OF A DOWN in the near future. He responded: "Look, I never say never. We didn't even know this was going to happen. I was on my way to releasing these songs with my other band SCARS ON BROADWAY. Then the situation in Armenia happened and put our differences aside. And our differences are only within the band.

"Personally and outside of the band, everybody gets along reasonably well. There is no hate for each other in SYSTEM OF A DOWN. We're like a family. A lot of people think, 'Oh, Serj and Daron don't get along!' and no, that's not true. Serj and Daron get along just fine. But Serj and Daron, or Shavo and Serj, different people in the band will have a different idea of how they want the band to move forward. That's kinda where our disagreements are at."

Pressed about whether there's a chance new music from SYSTEM OF A DOWN could happen, Daron said: "I never say never, but at the same time, I'm not expecting to do any more with SYSTEM OF A DOWN right away or immediately after this. It really does seem like our fans like these new songs. That's important to me.

"We've added two new songs to the SYSTEM catalog that are on the level with everything else that we've put out and our fans have accepted it that way, which means a lot to me. That's kinda where we're gonna leave it for now. If more happens later on, then we'll talk about that, but for now I will continue doing what I'm doing and everyone else will just continue what they're doing. It's all cool though, I'm really pleased with the response we got."

Photo credit: Clemente Ruiz
























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League Of Lights, comprising married couple Farrah and Richard West (Threshold), announce their forthcoming third album, Dreamers Don’t Come Down. The follow up to their 2019 album, In The In Between, is due out in March 2021 on the Eightspace label and will be available for pre-order from December 2, here.

With the exception of the first single "Twenty Twenty One" and "Modern Living", all the songs were written and recorded during the spring/summer 2020 lockdown in the UK. You can see the teaser for "Twenty Twenty One" below.

"The album is about the past, the present and the future - about taking the best from all that you have been through, the pressures of modern life and keeping your dreams alive in dark times,” Farrah West explains.

“When lockdown started we really felt compelled to do a new album,” Richard West continues. “We had just finished recording a new song called Modern Living and that helped to define how our new material would sound - more open than before with less synths and more space for Farrah's vocals to really lift off. The songs just started flowing and from that moment we had a new track written, recorded and mixed every 3-4 weeks, starting with Dreamers and Twenty Twenty One and ending with the closing track Echoes of a Dream, a montage of all the other songs on the album.”

Tracklisting:

"Modern Living"
"Twenty Twenty One"
"Ghosts"
"I Still Remember"
"Persephone"
"Dreamers"
"With You"
"Lines In The Sand"
"The Collector"
"North Of The Sun"
"Echoes Of A Dream"

"Twenty Twenty One" trailer:

About League Of Lights:

After marrying in 1998, Farrah and Richard West relocated to the Czech Republic in 2002 to start a new life together and record new music before later returning to the UK to record their debut album as League Of Lights. In tandem with this activity, Richard had joined progressive metal band Threshold, initially as a session player but later becoming co-writer and co-producer. To date Threshold has released 11 studio albums, charted across Europe and Scandinavia and toured around the globe. Richard has also worked with numerous other bands and was recently awarded an RIAA Certified Gold Disc for his vocal and keyboard production work on the DragonForce album Inhuman Rampage, which sold over 500,000 copies.

League Of Lights released their eponymous debut album in 2011, which featured guitarist Ruud Jolie (Within Temptation), bassist Jerry Meehan (Robbie Williams) and drummer Mark Zonder (Fates Warning). In 2012, the duo recorded the single Forever with Threshold vocalist Glynn Morgan as a guest and performed live with a 40 voice choir.

League Of Lights’ acclaimed second album In The In Between was released in late 2019 and contains 14 original songs with a sound that makes room for electronic rock, organic pop, piano, cinematic soundscapes and everything in between, including the singles Kings & Queens and On A Night Like This. Extended versions of three songs from In The In Between were released on the EP Extended Light in March 2020.

The band have performed at various live and online events during Summer 2020 including Artrock Festival in Germany (with Ruud Jolie playing guitar), and more live shows are planned for 2021, including an appearance at Winter’s End Festival.

(Photo - Patric Ullaeus)




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BLACK VEIL BRIDES guitarist Jeremy "Jinxx" Ferguson has tested positive for COVID-19.

Jinxx confirmed his diagnosis in a social media post earlier today. He wrote: "Last Saturday, I woke up feeling extremely rundown, feverish and had a nasty cough. I didn't hesitate to take my family down to get tested right away. We got our results back late Sunday night. @moggycatz and @mommajinxx came back negative, mine positive. Immediately we began quarantining in separate rooms. So far, Alice and Lennon are showing no symptoms, waiting on a second test results for my mom. Monday night the fever lifted, but I had lost my sense of taste and smell. The cough had moved into my lungs and last night noticed tightness in my chest, did some breathing exercises and it eased up. Today I'm just really tired and dizzy. Hoping the worst of it has passed."

He continued: "I just wanted to say to everyone to continue to stay safe and PLEASE wear a mask! No matter how annoying it is. And take this seriously. This is no hoax, and cases are spiking everywhere, and no one is immune. And just because you got a negative result doesn't make you immune or mean you may not have just contracted it, so be cautious and maybe think twice about travel and gathering plans over the holiday.

"@moggycatz you are WONDER WOMAN M ta, I love you, Happy Anniversary 4A 'a #staysafe #wearamask #covid #covid 19 #coronavirus".

Coronavirus cases have increased in all 50 states over the past 14 days, the latest NBC News data showed Tuesday.

Currently, the U.S. leads the world with 11.3 million confirmed coronavirus cases and more than 248,000 fatalities, NBC News figures show.

President Donald Trump, who is still refusing to concede his election loss to Joe Biden, has not yet begun to work with the Biden transition team to share all critical information related to COVID-19.

Last week, BLACK VEIL BRIDES released a new single and video for the track "Scarlet Cross". The song comes from their upcoming 2021 concept album "The Phantom Tomorrow" — the band's sixth full-length effort. The LP tells the story of the antihero character "The Blackbird" and a group of societal outcasts known as simply as "The Phantom Tomorrow".




pic.twitter.com/RN3zb8hgXj

— Jinxx (@JinxxBVB) November 18, 2020

During a recent appearance on "Vox&Hops", the podcast hosted by Matt McGachy, frontman of extreme metal band CRYPTOPSY, DIMMU BORGIR guitarist Sven Atle Kopperud (a.k.a. Silenoz) was asked if his band has changed the way it approaches touring. He responded (see video below): "We obviously have gotten older. Most of us have kids now. It's not like it was in the early days when we could go on tour seemingly on short notice and plug in and play. We've never really been a plug-in-and-play band anyway, but now a lot of planning [goes] into it. And we have set the limit for two or three weeks at a time and concentrate on doing quality shows. Especially when we tour South America, have a day between each show, because you travel and you get offstage at two in the morning, and then lobby call at five in the morning is not gonna work — not unless we're gonna do a proper show. And I think that's what the fans deserve. We deserve to be at our best, and you need to be rested.'

He continued: "Flying a lot during a short period of time can really wear you out. It's not the playing on stage that wears you out; it's all the waiting and all the stuff around it… There's a financial aspect to it as well, which is something that we, when you do touring like that, you know that, okay, you can come home with a better paycheck if you do things in a row and you don't have days off. But at the same time, it's important to keep the health as well, especially in this day and age. It didn't use to be like that. And we learned from the past — I hope."

Last month, Silenoz confirmed to Australia's "Everblack" podcast that DIMMU BORGIR is hard at work on material for the follow-up to 2018's "Eonian" LP. Speaking about the musical direction of the new DIMMU songs, he said: "It's obviously always strange to talk about it that early in the songwriting process, but I feel like it might be a little more stripped down. And that's probably not saying too much, because we have so much of everything. But I feel like we're looking at maybe toning it down a little bit, especially on the orchestral side. So people shouldn't be too surprised if they get a bit more stripped-down version of DIMMU on the next album."

This past January, Silenoz told Extreme Metal Festival News that DIMMU BORGIR will likely "take a more aggressive turn" with the upcoming effort. "Now with [bassist] Victor [Brandt] in the band, with him also being a guitarist, there will be four of us writing guitar riffs," he said. "It would surprise me if the album will be more guitar-orientated, which I don't mind."

"Eonian" was released right in time for the band's 25th anniversary in 2018, about eight years after its predecessor, "Abrahadabra". Since then, the infernal core trio consisting of Shagrath, Silenoz and Galder has played various tours all around the world, including shows at leading metal festivals such as Wacken Open Air and Hellfest.

Infinite Visions, the new band of ex-Stratovarius guitarist and songwriter Timo Tolkki, have started a crowdfunding campaign to help finance the cost of creating their debut album, Union Magnetica.

To launch the campaign the band is releasing a playthrough video for the song "You Rock My World", a track from their recently completed 4-song demo, which was mixed by Dani G (Rage, Firewind). "You Rock My World" was specifically chosen as the song to kick off the crowdfunding as it is a song for the fans and about the fans.

The video features all five members of the band: Timo Tolkki (guitars), Erik Kraemer (vocals, Simulacrum), Pawel Jaroszewicz (drums, ex-Hate/Vader), Jimmy Pitts (keyboards, Eternity's End/NorthTale), and Pierre-Emmanuel Pélisson (bass, Civilization One/ex-Heavenly).

The crowdfunding campaign can be found here. The song can also be streamed on the band's official website, here.

The band states: "Infinite Visions are ready to record their debut album and need your help to make this happen! They require a minimum of 10.000 euro to complete the album and pay for related costs, such as:

• Recording
• Mixing
• Mastering
• Album Artwork & graphic design of layout
• Band Photos

"Although a large number of fans have been waiting for some classic metal songs from Timo, record sales aren’t what they used to be & the music industry has changed considerably. This change has resulted in bands getting smaller advances from labels and a limited budget for recording. With a desire to release only the best possible album — and not wanting to disappoint their fans — Timo and Infinite Visions turn to crowdfunding."

Infinite Visions are also taking this opportunity to announce Pierre-Emmanuel Pélisson as the new bassist. Pierre has over 20 years experience in both the studio and stage, having recorded and performed with several artists including Heavenly (Sign Of The Winner and Dust To Dust albums) and Civilization One (Revolution Rising and Calling The Gods). Pierre takes over bass duties from Jari Kainulainen, who left the band earlier this month for personal reasons.




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Joe Satriani has released the new video below, along with the following message:

"Herman Li (Dragonforce) joins my mythical party in the desert with 'Ali Farka Toure, Dick Dale, An Alien And Me'. You can always count on Herman to push sonic boundaries while he executes exciting, weird, and crazy sounds, blended with high energy metal guitar playing."

"At the heart of it is my love for composing unique and moving music for the electric guitar. I love the journey as much as the end result. With this compilation of backing tracks you get to peak behind the curtain a bit and experience that journey as I built the songs in the studio. And, of course, you can play along!" - Joe Satriani

Stripped x Three features full backing tracks from the complete Shapeshifting, Black Swans And Wormhole Wizards and Is There Love in Space? albums, a special digital compilation booklet with original liner notes and credits and it is all packaged within a replica Joe Satriani Ibanez signature guitar USB stick and custom case. Order here.

Satriani on Stripped x Three: "This collection represents three albums of backing tracks released years apart from each other spanning 16 years: Is There Love In Space? from 2004, Black Swans And Wormhole Wizards from 2010, and 2020's Shapeshifting. Three remarkably different albums recorded and mixed in remarkably different locations. At the heart of it is my love for composing unique and moving music for the electric guitar. Each album project I undertake pushes me to discover new ways to write , play, produce and record. I love the journey as much as the end result. With this compilation of backing tracks you get to peak behind the curtain a bit and experience that journey as I built the songs in the studio. And, of course, you can play along!"




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Australian progressive metal band, Teramaze, have released a new single, entitled "Take Your Shot". Get it here, and listen below.

Says guitarist/vocalist Dean Wells: "We literally wrote, recorded and mixed 'Take Your Shot' in one day and we were so excited how it came out that we wanted to share it with the world 24 hours after it was finished. Its a song about taking your shot and standing your ground and never backing down, even if it feels like everyone around you is against you, and overcoming self doubt and just kicking life in its face."

Lineup:

Dean Wells - Guitars, Vocals
Andrew Cameron - Bass
Nick Ross - Drums
Chris Zoupa - Guitar

(Photo - Karina Wells)




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Italian modern death metal force, Hideous Divinity, have released a drum playthrough video for the track “Anamorphia Atto III”, taken off of their current album Simulacrum, which was released in 2019. Check out the video below.

With a strong passion for drums since the early childhood, Giulio Galati started taking drum lessons at the age of 10 with Armando Bertozzi, Stefano Rossini, Daniele Pomo (St. Louis College of Music), Lucrezio De Seta, Ettore Fioravanti (Santa Cecilia Conservatory of Music) and Giampaolo Rao.

The educational path led him through different music styles like jazz, Latin, fusion, and rock. Thanks to the influence of all these styles and the variety of music listened to, he evolved to metal drumming and to the use of the double pedal by developing a personal language that attempts to melt together everything he has been and continues to be exposed to.

Huge inspirations were and still are Dave Weckl, Vinnie Colaiuta, Kiko Freitas, Gavin Harrison, Mike Portnoy, George Kollias, Derek Roddy, and Thomas Haake.

The band recently released a video for the song, “Actaeon”, taken from Simulacrum. Watch below, and order/stream Simulacrum here

(Photo - Dema Novakova)




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Metal Blade Records welcomes Brooklyn's Sanhedrin to its worldwide roster.

Formed in 2015, Sanhedrin have released two albums to-date: A Funeral For The World (2017) and The Poisoner (2019). The trio (which consists of former Amber Asylum/Lost Goat bassist/vocalist Erica Stoltz, Black Anvil guitarist Jeremy Sosville and drummer Nathan Honor) blends doom and classic metal into gripping, instantaneously memorable songs with lyrics that delve into the darker elements of humanity and the cyclical nature of destructive ideas. Thought-provoking and inherently catchy at the same time, Sanhedrin is unafraid to venture into uncharted territory.

The band will enter the studio to record their third full-length - and Metal Blade Records debut - in spring 2021.

Sanhedrin comments: "We are excited and humbled to join Metal Blade Records! Their legacy spans four decades and countless amazing artists, many of whom have inspired us over the years. We are proud to be part of its future, and look forward to what this new partnership will bring for Sanhedrin."

Stay tuned for more news about Sanhedrin coming soon.

Sanhedrin lineup:

Jeremy Sosville - Guitar
Erica Stoltz - Bass, Vocals
Nathan Honor - Drums

(Photo - Marc Braner)




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Irish doom metal band, The Grief, have released their new full-length digipak CD, Horizon’s Fall. The CD is available for purchase directly from the band via their Bandcamp page, here.

The album features all nine songs from the band’s first two digital-only releases (Ascent & Descent), which were released during 2020. The CD will soon be available on Spotify, Apple Music & all other common streaming platforms & the physical copy comes in a 6-panel digipak with 4-panel lyric sheet and a sticker.

All nine tracks on Horizon’s Fall were recorded & mixed by Murphy & mastered by Dan Swano at Unisound. Artwork for the CD once again comes from Slava Gerj, who’s stunning artwork was featured on the band’s previous releases.

Tracklisting:

Part I - Ascent
"To A New Dawn"
"In Defiance"
"Call Of The Void"
"Departed"

Part II - Descent
"Scourge" (Instrumental)
"Sunder"
"The Ascent"
"Den Of Thieves"
"To Hew in Wrath"

Formed in Cork, ireland early 2016, The Grief features members of Corr Mhóna, For Ruin and Soothsayer some of whose members had originally played together in a Katatonia tribute band (Katatonik). The Grief plays a mixture of doom-tinged metal with influences from many of the classic British doom metal bands & made their initial live appearances in 2017 before recording an initial unreleased demo with the initial line up of the band: Robert Farrow - Drums, Kieran O'Leary - Bass, Paul Quinn - Guitars, Stephen Quinn - Vocals, John Murphy – Guitars. When the drum position was vacated by Farrow (who moved abroad), the band decided to focus on recording their first nine songs during 2019 at Murphy’s home studio in North Cork. Recordings were completed in late 2019 with Murphy performing the drum parts until new drummer Con Doyle joined the band in March 2020.

"Sunder" lyric video:

"The Ascent" lyric video:

"Den Of Thieves" lyric video:

"To Hew In Wrath" lyric video:




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Kansas have released an official video for the title track of their new album, The Absence Of Presence, out now via InsideOut Music. Watch the clip below.

The Absence Of Presence features nine all new tracks written by the band, produced by Zak Rizvi, and co-produced by Phil Ehart and Richard Williams. Kansas's signature sound is unmistakable throughout. The album showcases Ronnie Platt’s towering vocals, David Ragsdale’s searing violin, Tom Brislin’s dazzling keyboards, Williams and Rizvi’s electrifying guitar riffs, Ehart’s powerful drums, and Billy Greer’s rocking bass.

The Absence Of Presence is available on CD, Double LP 180 Gram Vinyl, Limited Edition Deluxe CD + 5.1 Blu-Ray Artbook, and digitally on iTunes, Google Play, Spotify, Apple Music, Amazon Music, and all other streaming services. Order the album here.

The Absence Of Presence tracklsting:

"The Absence Of Presence"
"Throwing Mountains"
"Jets Overhead"
"Propulsion 1"
"Memories Down The Line"
"Circus Of Illusion"
"Animals On The Roof"
"Never"
"The Song The River Sang"

"Jets Overhead" video:

"Memories Down The Line" video:

"Throwing Mountains" video:

Sampler:

(Photo - Emily Butler Photography)




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Platinum-selling recording artist and world class guitarist, Orianthi, recently released of her new album, O, via Frontiers Music Srl. Order the album here, and watch a video for the track "Sorry" below.

"The album O is a very inspired album... kept things pretty raw and didn't overthink it. Marti [Frederiksen, producer, mixer, songwriter] and I wanted to create a unique sound and vibe with every track and we experimented a lot with synths and different guitar tones. Lyrically, a lot of this record comes from life experience and other people’s stories. It’s going to be so fun to play these songs live!," says Orianthi.

Tracklisting:

"Contagious"
"Sinners Hymn"
"Rescue Me"
"Blow"
"Sorry"
"Crawling Out Of The Dark"
"Impulsive"
"Streams Of Consciousness"
"Company"
"Moonwalker"

"Sorry" video:

"Impulsive" video:

"Sinners Hymn" lyric video:




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Napalm Records welcomes a promising and uprising symphonic metal star to its growing roster. Dive into impressive soundscapes and join the thrilling adventure: German firestarters Elvellon have just inked a worldwide record deal with the premier rock and metal label.

Since Elvellon came to life in 2010, the four-piece played its way straight into the heart of a steadily growing fan base with a captivating symbiosis of orchestral arrangements, heavy riffs and the striking voice of Nele Messerschmidt on vocal duties. After releasing their self-recorded 5-track EP, Spellbound (2015), the band presented its critically acclaimed debut album, Until Dawn, three years later in 2018. Sharing the stage with scene leading Visions Of Atlantis and entering festival grounds like Rock Harz, Metal Hammer Paradise, M'era Luna, Rock Fest Barcelona, Metalfest Open Air and Rage Against Racism Festival, to name just a few, Elvellon are now up to lift their inimitable output to the next level.

Enter a dreamlike world of cinematic magic, wandering between childish wonders and hard-hearted bitterness! More to be announced soon...

Elvellon on the signing: “Since we began our musical journey, it was our dream to sign with a legendary label such as Napalm Records. Now this dream became reality and we can barely put into words what we are feeling at this very moment. We feel honored to find ourselves among so many awesome bands. It's going to be a bright future."

For a vision of what lies ahead, check out the official music video for the bewitching track “Born From Hope”, which has already hit over 1.2 million views on YouTube, cut from the outstanding first full-length, Until Dawn.

Elvellon is:

Nele Messerschmidt - vocals
Gilbert Gelsdorf - guitars
Maddin Klüners - drums
Pascal Pannen - keyboards

(Photo - Angst-Im-Wald)




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This past summer FnA Records released Come Hell Or Hollywood 1981-1982 by Steeler. The compilation is a collection of pre-Yngwie Malmsteen demos recorded by the band while they were hungry for a record deal. Metal Express Radio’s George Dionne talks in-depth with frontman Ron Keel about the album, as well as the hardships Steeler faced in the beginning, making the transition to the band Keel, and his various projects since Keel’s last album.

Keel: "I remember a lot of times we would go into the studio ('81, '82): we were so green, we didn't know what we were doing. Sometimes you got it and sometimes you didn't. Some of these recordings were done pretty much live in reherasal, so we would record demos at home because we couldn't afford to go into the studio."

Before Mötley Crüe, Quiet Riot and Ratt were platinum… Steeler was “American Metal”.

FnA Records adds to their classic catalog with the release of Steeler: Come Hell Or Hollywood, a collection of remastered rare recordings from 1981-1982. Many of these pre-Yngwie tracks have never been made public, and the album features a “lost” version of the Steeler anthem “Cold Day In Hell” as well as unheard versions of the Rolling Stones’ “Let’s Spend The Night Together” (the only cover song Steeler ever played) and fan favorite “Backseat Driver”.

While the release is the brainchild of original Steeler guitarist Michael Dunigan, Ron Keel and the FnA Records staff worked closely together on this project to present these recordings in their proper context. “It’s like walking the streets of a heavy metal ghost town,” Ron Keel explains. “There’s historical value here, and this magical moment in time needs to be properly preserved and shared. There are those that lived the Hollywood heyday with us, and those this missed it – this album is dedicated to all of them.”

“Many of these tracks are medium rare, and others are absolutely raw – but thanks to FnA, the project is well done. We were helping give birth to a cultural revolution, and childbirth is ugly, messy and painful; it’s also one of the most beautiful things you’ll ever experience. I was just learning how to sing and write songs in 1981-82.”

In addition to releasing this album on CD, FnA Records has also unleashed an exclusive limited-edition 7” vinyl single (in both Black and Blue vinyl pressings) featuring the song “American Metal” (the first song ever recorded by Steeler, in Nashville in 1981). The CD and vinyl single are offered with merchandise bundles that include collector’s guitar picks, bumper stickers, Steeler patches and autographed photos. The CD packaging features a massive 28-page scrapbook-style booklet packed with rare photos, flyers, personal liner notes written by Keel and guitarist Michael Dunigan, magazine clippings and other memories. FnA is releasing a series of promotional videos to accompany Come Hell Or Hollywood and mark the 40th anniversary of Steeler, one of the '80s seminal bands.

“This is a huge victory for FnA Records to bring this project to the fans,” acknowledged FnA’s Steve Lockett. “We’ve been working hard on this release for two years now, and I’ve enjoyed working with Michael Dunigan and Ron Keel to create a very special time capsule of their early 80’s music and experiences.”

Order your copy of Steeler: Come Hell Or Hollywood now at this location. Check out the new Steeler video for “American Metal” below.




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SHINEDOWN frontman Brent Smith has revealed that he and his bandmates are currently building a new recording studio in Charleston, South Carolina. The new facility, which is being spearheaded by the group's bassist and producer Eric Bass, will be used to record the follow-up to SHINEDOWN's 2018 album "Attention Attention".

In a November 19 Instagram video, Smith stated about the musical and lyrical direction of the new SHINEDOWN material: "I think that it is definitely — there are parts of it that are gonna be a product of what we are all going through this year. But there's also a lot of soul searching on this record. [We're] really, really focusing super, super hard on the lyrical content, and the way that it sounds.

"For us to look at everything that's going on right now and to listen to some of the new-school artists and seeing what they're doing with production and what have you, you can always learn from different people," he continued. "It's interesting the state of kind of where music is right now, 'cause there's a lot of it."

Brent went on to clarify that SHINEDOWN is "not done" writing the songs for the next LP. "I'd say we're, like, 40 percent there in regards to the writing process," he said. "We'll see by the end of the year where we're at, and then the timeline for getting everything together."

Two months ago, Smith told the KLOS radio show "Whiplash" that he and Bass were looking to make a more organic-sounding album this time around.

"We've kind of proven that we can make these very large records, these very cinematic, orchestrated records with this wall of sound," he said. "What we wanna try to do with this album is we do want to hone it back down to drums, bass, guitar and vocals and the best songs that we can write and the freshest songs we can write with the most tenacity and the most ferociousness that we can express. So I don't think this time around we're going to necessarily look at the handbook of, 'Let's layer this record like we've layered other records, and let's keep adding to it so that it grows.' I think more the idea of big mono on this album, it's more about stereo and putting all of the sonics down the middle. But you don't have a hundred tracks on a song; you don't take a 22-piece orchestra and bring it in there. We've done that, and we've done those kinds of records, and we love those records, and we love that sound, but I think what we wanna do with this next record is we really want to focus on being a four-piece band, and let's see if we can peel the paint off of the walls with just the fury of the four of us in a room."

This past August, SHINEDOWN broke the record for the most No. 1s ever in the 39-year history of the Billboard Mainstream Rock Songs chart, scoring its 16th No. 1 hit with "Atlas Falls". This also marked the band's 17th No. 1 on the Mediabase Active Rock chart and its sixth consecutive No. 1, following "How Did You Love", "Devil", "Get Up", "Monsters" and "Attention Attention".

Originally written in 2013, "Atlas Falls" was first made available from SHINEDOWN's vault in March as part of an exclusive song and T-shirt bundle for the band's COVID-19 fundraising effort.

SHINEDOWN also recently released its "Live In London" full concert video on YouTube.
























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Testament bassist Steve DiGiorgio, Megadeth drummer Dirk Verbeuren, Carcass guitarist Tom Draper, and Abysmal Dawn vocalist Charles Elliot came together online to cover “Living Dead” by Entombed.

“Living Dead” is the opening track to Entombed's second studio album, Clandestine, released in 1991 in Europe, and in 1992 in North America.

 




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Osmose Productions has set November 27th as the international release date for Ondskapt's fourth album, Grimoire Ordo Devus, on CD and vinyl LP formats.

Grimoire Ordo Devus is a very deep and profound dream state. This release and its content are not meant to be an occult manuscript but an audial and spiritual essence of evil. This music is of dreams; follow the band into their nightmares and be one with death. Embrace this dreamland into the psychosphere of Ondskapt.

Let the trinity of Grimoire Ordo Devus be your guide. Begin the path with the brand-new track "Animam Malam Daemonium". Pre-order info can be found here. Cover art and tracklisting are as follows:

"Prelude" 
"Semita Sinistram" 
"Ascension" 
"Devotum In Legione" 
"Animam Malum Daemonium" 
"Opposites" 
"Paragon Belial" 
"Possession"
"Old And Hideous" 
"Excision" 

 




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