Former GUNS N' ROSES and current SONS OF APOLLO guitarist Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal has released the official music video for his acoustic cover version of SOUNDGARDEN's "The Day I Tried To Live". The song is taken from Bumblefoot's latest acoustic EP of cover songs, "Barefoot 3", which was made available on June 5 exclusively via Bandcamp.

"Barefoot 3" takes the "Barefoot" series up a notch, with intricate guitar arrangements, big backing vocals, and drummer Kyle Hughes.

Track listing:

01. Sleepwalking (BUMBLEFOOT acoustic cover)

02. Tiny Dancer (ELTON JOHN acoustic cover)

03. The Day I Tried To Live (SOUNDGARDEN acoustic cover)

04. Only Time Will Tell (ASIA acoustic cover)

05. Come On Eileen (DEXYS MIDNIGHT RUNNERS acoustic cover)

06. Tell Me Something Good (RUFUS & CHAKA KHAN acoustic cover)

Check out audio samples in the YouTube clip below.

In May, Bumblefoot released "Barefoot 2", featuring acoustic covers of songs by IRON MAIDEN, BILLY JOEL, THE POLICE, THE YOUNG RASCALS and PAUL MCCARTNEY.

In April, Thal released a new instrumental song called "Planetary Lockdown" which he said was "inspired by [the] feeling of urgency" during the early stages of the COVID-19 outbreak.

Thal joined GUNS N' ROSES in 2006, replacing Buckethead. He played with the band for eight years and performed on "Chinese Democracy". He has also released nine full-length solo albums over the past 23 years, most recently 2015's "Little Brother Is Watching", which was reissued on CD and vinyl in August 2017 by MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson's EMP Label Group.

Three years ago, Thal said that he agonized over his decision to leave GUNS N' ROSES, explaining that he "wanted it to be something that [he] knew it wasn't ever gonna be."

Thal never officially announced his departure from the GN'R, but a source confirmed to Detroit music writer Gary Graff back in 2015 that the guitarist had been out since the end of the band's second Las Vegas residency in 2014.

SONS OF APOLLO, which also features drummer Mike Portnoy, keyboardist Derek Sherinian and bassist Billy Sheehan), released its second studio album, "MMXX" (pronounced: 20/20), in January via InsideOut Music/Sony.

Photo courtesy of SONS OF APOLLO's web site

Legendary rockers DEEP PURPLE will release their new album, "Whoosh!", on August 7 via earMUSIC. The LP was once again helmed by Canadian producer Bob Ezrin (KISS, PINK FLOYD, ALICE COOPER), who also worked on the band's last two studio albums, 2017's "Infinite" and 2013's "Now What?!" Together they created the most versatile album in their collaboration. DEEP PURPLE "stretched out in all directions" without any limitation, letting their creativity go.

"Whoosh!" will be available as limited CD+DVD mediabook (including the one-hour feature "Roger Glover And Bob Ezrin In Conversation" and, for the first time, the full live performance at Hellfest 2017 as video), 2LP+DVD edition, limited box set and digital.

Audio samples of all the songs that are set to appear on "Whoosh!" are available in the YouTube clip below.

Singer Ian Gillan told Fox News about what it feels like to be releasing a new album at this point in PURPLE's career: "It's nice, to be honest. I feel like we're back in the '70s. There's this energy that’s quite fascinating to me. How does it feel? It feels good because we had a lot of fun making this record. We spent five or six days in Germany earlier this year. Then we went to Nashville for two and a half weeks where we did the writing and arrangements. It was remarkably quick. Then I rented a cottage on the banks of the Cumberland River, overlooking the Grand Ole Opry. So I can hear the music floating from across the river until the early hours of the morning. And then I would sit up all through the night and write in this magical atmosphere. How do I feel? Pretty good. It's nice when you finish a project and you're happy with the result."

Asked what is was about Nashville that became a place of inspiration for him, Gillan said: "I have to be quite honest with you, but I just think the circumstances were good. Our producer, who's Canadian, lives in Nashville. And he has a place in Nashville where you have everything you need. It was a fantastic, relaxing environment to make a record. It was more from a practical point of view than an inspirational one."

Track listing:

01. Throw My Bones

02. Drop The Weapon

03. We're All The Same In The Dark

04. Nothing At All

05. No Need To Shout

06. Step By Step

07. What The What

08. The Long Way Round

09. The Power Of The Moon

10. Remission Possible

11. Man Alive

12. And The Address

13. Dancing In My Sleep

DOWN will perform live for the first time in four years as part of a virtual concert later this month.

The news of the acclaimed supergroup's return to live activity was broken by DOWN's longtime manager, SKID ROW guitarist Dave "Snake" Sabo, who guested on this past Sunday's (August 2) episode of "Tribute Wars", the Internet show co-hosted by MEGADETH bassist David Ellefson.

Speaking about how he has been keeping busy on the managerial front, Sabo said (see video below): "I've been managing since 2006, which seems like a lifetime ago, and it kind of is. I've been managing the band DOWN since then — Philip Anselmo and Pepper Keenan and Kirk Windstein — and that, for a long time, took up a lot of our time. But they've taken a bit of a hiatus. They're actually gonna be doing one of those streaming live shows August 22nd. So we'll have more information out online as that progresses, as we get closer."

Last month, Windstein told Revolver that DOWN was planning "something really special in the next few months," but he offered no further details.

A founding member of DOWN, Windstein left the band in 2013 in order to focus on CROWBAR and his family life. He was replaced by Bobby Landgraf, DOWN's former guitar tech who was previously in GAHDZILLA MOTOR COMPANY, a 1990s outfit also featuring Jason McMaster (DANGEROUS TOYS, WATCHTOWER), and HONKY.

Windstein announced his return to DOWN last year, with the band confirming a number of festival appearances for 2020, all of which have since been canceled or postponed due to the coronavirus pandemic which is sweeping the globe.

Asked if DOWN has started work on new material, Kirk told Revolver: "There's actually been no talk of that. The main thing was trying to do the European festivals and Psycho Las Vegas [in Las Vegas]. Psycho Las Vegas was pushed back a year, and, obviously, the European festivals were all canceled. So I have no idea what's in the future. We're working on something really special here in the next few months that I'm excited about, and that's all I can really say. I'm super excited to get together with all the guys again."

DOWN was forced to cancel a number of shows in 2016 after singer Philip Anselmo was filmed giving a Nazi salute and shouting "white power" at a California concert.

Guitarist Keenan later offered his take on what transpired, telling Metal Wani that DOWN was "far from done" after the controversial incident. "You know, DOWN didn't do anything wrong," he said. "I mean, we were just guilty by association on that one. That was Phil's mistake. I've spoken to Phil and told him to get his shit together, and he is. He knows he made a mistake and was being stupid."

He continued: "I've known the guy [most of my life]. He's not what that whole thing framed him to be at all. But, yeah, there's definitely a future for DOWN. I wouldn't throw all the shit we've done, beautiful music we've done on one stupid moment that was caught on camera, and he apologized for. [So we are] far from done."

DOWN's last live appearance took place in August 2016 at the Psycho Las Vegas festival in Las Vegas.

DEF LEPPARD will celebrate the 33rd anniversary of its mega-selling album "Hysteria" with a week of special events.

Kicking things off will be a listening party and live chat with guitarist Phil Collen today (Monday, August 3) at 9 a.m. PST, as well as a 33% off discount store-wide for the whole week.

DEF LEPPARD says: "Follow along with the DEF LEPPARD social channels all week long as we celebrate the album anniversary with 'Hysteria' artifacts, commentary, music videos, merch, a contest giveaway, and more!"

Essential listening for fans across the board, "Hysteria" indisputably ranks as one of the most decorated and revered rock albums of all time. As the group's second consecutive RIAA Diamond-certified record (10 million sales in the U.S.), it would go on to sell over 30 million copies worldwide and 12 million in the U.S. Moreover, the record staked a spot in the U.S. Top 40 for 96 weeks matched only by "Born In The U.S.A." Rolling Stone touted it on the prestigious "500 Greatest Albums of All Time" list, and a poll in Q placed it among the "100 Greatest Albums of All Time". Dominating multiple charts, it captured No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 and U.K. album charts, bolstered by immortal Top-5 anthems such as "Pour Some Sugar On Me", "Animal", "Love Bites", "Hysteria", "Rocket" and "Armageddon It".

"Hysteria" left an indelible mark on rock 'n' roll. Powered by stadium-filling drums, rapturous guitars, and unshakable choruses, the record saw DEF LEPPARD rightfully claim their place among rock's divinities forever. As a result, its influence now reverberates through three generations of artists to follow. It also historically marked their third straight collaboration with producer Robert John "Mutt" Lange.

Regarding what he thinks it was about that album that continues to attract fans today, Collen told Vegas.com: "Mutt Lange is a genius. He said we can do an ultimate rock album or we can do a rock version of 'Thriller', where we have seven hit singles. But to do that, you have to put the extra effort in. The attitude when the album came out, a lot of people didn't like it. They thought, oh this is too pop or they didn't understand the crossover because it's a perfect hybrid between rock and pop. If you look at Mutt Lange's track record, his biggest successes are, for example, Shania Twain. He definitely brought country to the masses. He successfully fused rock, pop music with country, and I never thought I'd see the day. I remember being in Japan and hearing Shana Twain when I was going up and down in an elevator. That, for us, like I said, it was the perfect hybrid of pop and rock that was actually acceptable. A lot of rock fans didn't like it at first, but by the end of that year, everyone had the record. You couldn't really escape the whole thing. It was pop music, but done rock. We kicked our ass on it. It was very different from anything that had come before it, actually."

Three years ago, DEF LEPPARD celebrated the 30th anniversary of "Hysteria" with the release of "Hysteria (Remastered 2017)". The remastered anniversary edition was released in various formats via Bludgeon Riffola/Mercury/Ume — Super Deluxe Edition, Deluxe Version, 1 CD Vanilla Version, 2-LP Black Vinyl Version, and limited-edition 2-LP Colored Vinyl Version. The reissue boasted B-sides and live tracks, plus the audio for "In The Round In Your Face (Live)" on CD for the first time.


Can you feel it? Do you believe it? Celebrating 33 Years of Hysteria all week long! ?

Kick off the week’s Hysteria...

Posted by Def Leppard on Sunday, August 2, 2020

PSYCHOSEXUAL, the new rock band fronted by former FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH drummer Jeremy Spencer, played its first concert this past Friday night (July 31) as part of a Kilpop-presented event which was livestreamed via the group's Facebook page and YouTube channel from Structure's Virtual Venue.

On Saturday, Spencer took to his Instagram to write: "Thanks to everyone who watched the Live Show presented by @wearekilpop last night! Never thought the first show would be on TV lol. Thx to to everyone involved. We had a blast! Can't wait to tour!"

You can now watch PSYCHOSEXUAL's entire performance below.

PSYCHOSEXUAL is promoting its debut album, "Torch The Faith", which was released on Friday through Spencer's own independent label 6ex Records. The effort was co-produced by Spencer with DROWNING POOL producer Shawn McGhee.

"This year has been uniquely challenging, to say the least — for all of us — but releasing 'Torch The Faith' is an actual dream come true," said Spencer, who sports a Mephistophelian mask as singer/frontman Devil Daddy alongside guitarist Crucifier, bassist Astaroth and drummer Volac.

The platinum-selling drummer's loyal fan support has been overwhelming, with PSYCHOSEXUAL's eye-popping music videos for "Baby On Fire", "Lady Killer" and "Let The Sin Begin" amassing over 340,000 views on YouTube.com/Psychosexual.

"To be able to write, create, produce, shoot videos and release your first album on your own label during these uncertain days under months of lockdown and fear is an incredible accomplishment," Spencer added. "I can't wait to finally share my new music with fans."

Spencer left FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH at the end of 2018, but in his mind the persona of Devil Daddy had occupied part of his creative consciousness for several years. Never one to rest on his laurels creatively, he released a series of '80s-like new wave originals in early 2019 as a precursor to the band — including some arresting and entertaining videos such as a remake of TYPE O NEGATIVE's "Love You To Death".

Spencer said: "I've been such a fan of so many types of music from Bowie to DEVO to black metal bands, PSYCHOSEXUAL really is the outlet I've needed to bring all these things together in one big Evil Stew."

Jeremy, who co-founded FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH with guitarist Zoltan Bathory, left the band so that he could undergo back surgery in the fall of 2018 that required a significant recovery period.

Spencer's replacement in FIVE FINGER DEATH PUNCH is Charlie "The Engine" Engen. Engen made his recording debut with the band on the "F8" album, which came out in February.

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS performed their iconic album, "Core", in its entirety for a livestream event on Friday, July 31 on Nugs.tv.

Video footage of the first song of the set, "Dead & Bloated", can be seen below.

A short time after the perormance, STP posted on social media: "Thanks to everyone who tuned into our Core PPV event tonight! ICYMI you can still buy a pass and watch the show on nugs.net through the end of the weekend."

"Core", STP's breakout debut album features smash hits "Sex Type Thing", "Wicked Garden" and "Plush", which won the Grammy Award in 1994 for "Best Hard Rock Performance."

STONE TEMPLE PILOTS guitarist Dean DeLeo told The Pulse Of Radio that the idea for the event came from his brother and bandmate, bassist Robert DeLeo. "I think it was just a matter of sheer boredom and thinking of what to do," Dean said. "[Robert] said, 'Hey, man, maybe we should get in a small room and play this first record and if all goes well we should just do each record,' and we all loved the idea.

"Look, we're all itchin' to just get out and play," Dean continued. "You know we had over a hundred shows pulled out from under us this year. Everything. Not rescheduled — canceled — and there's nothing on the books for 2021, so it's just, like, 'Let's do something! Let's play!'"

Dean went on to say a couple of the "Core" songs hadn't been performed live in a very long time. "There's two songs that haven't been played in forever," he said. "One of them is 'Naked Sunday'. I think the last time we played that was on 'Saturday Night Live', maybe 1993? So that one is one that's been locked away, and also 'Where The River Goes'. We haven't played that in many, many, many years — a couple decades."

In addition to the "Core" livestream event, STP released live audio from past shows beginning with August 3, 2011 at Hampton Beach Ballroom in Hampton Beach, New Hampshire with Scott Weiland, and June 13, 2019 in London, UK at O2 Forum Kentish Town with lead vocalist Jeff Gutt.

Gutt joined STONE TEMPLE PILOTS three years ago. His recording debut with the group was on its self-titled seventh LP, which arrived in March 2018.

Gutt, a 44-year-old Michigan native who spent time in the early-2000s nu-metal act DRY CELL, among other bands, and was a contestant on "The X Factor", joined STONE TEMPLE PILOTS in 2017 after beating out roughly 15,000 hopefuls during an extended search that began more than a year earlier.

Original STONE TEMPLE PILTOS singer Scott Weiland, who reunited with the group in 2010 after an eight-year hiatus but was dismissed in 2013, died in December 2015 of a drug overdose.

Chester Bennington, who joined STP in early 2013, departed nearly three years later to spend more time with his main band LINKIN PARK. Bennington committed suicide in July 2017.




Let us know in the comments if you watched our live Core PPV event yesterday! If you missed it, don’t worry, you can...

Posted by Stone Temple Pilots on Saturday, August 1, 2020



Thanks to everyone who tuned into our Core PPV event tonight!

ICYMI you can still buy a pass and watch the show on nugs.net through the end of the weekend. Purchase here: www.nugs.net/live-stp/

Posted by Stone Temple Pilots on Friday, July 31, 2020

Wymer Publishing has set an October 30 publication date for "ELP Together And Apart", a photographic book on the English progressive rock supergroup EMERSON LAKE & PALMER.

If any band deserves to have homage paid to them with a lavish, limited-edition hardback A4 224-page photographic book, look no further than EMERSON LAKE & PALMER. With their origins going back to the late sixties, these three highly talented individuals portrayed the very essence of musical excesses.

Drawing on countless images and items of memorabilia this large format 224-page book is a treasure trove for the ELP devotees. Crammed full of live and off stage shots "ELP Together And Apart" is exactly that — in words and visuals it portrays Keith Emerson, Greg Lake and Carl Palmer from their days with THE NICE, KING CRIMSON, ARTHUR BROWN'S CRAZY WORLD and ATOMIC ROOSTER, through the ELP years, as well as documenting their solo work and other outside projects. It also includes loads of super-cool memorabilia, including backstage passes, gig posters, media adverts and much more, all reproduced on high-quality art paper.

This is one future collector's item that every self-respecting ELP fan will want to own. Rounding it off, "ELP Together And Apart" is topped and tailed with 15,000 words by musicologist and author Laura Shenton.

"ELP Together And Apart" will prove to be the perfect companion and a valuable addition to any fan's collection.

For more information, go to this location.

The French band Stinky has released a music video for “Rough Diamond (Unplugged),” the closing track on the group's recently-released third album (and M-Theory Audio debut) Of Lost Things. 

The original version of “Rough Diamond” appears on the group's acclaimed 2017 release “From Dead-End Street,” which the group supported with extensive touring throughout Europe alongside the likes of Terror, Walls of Jericho and Millencolin. According to the band, “This is our first acoustic piece that we've ever recorded, and it's a real achievement for us. We've wanted to record one of our songs as an acoustic version for years, and this time, we found a way to do it. After working on the acoustic arrangement, we wanted to give it more substance, so we invited our good friend Eddy Kaiser, who leads a dark/folk solo project, to collaborate with us on the song.”

While Stinky's plans to tour in support of “Of Lost Things” have been postponed indefinitely, the group recently returned to the stage as part of noted French metal festival Hellfest's “Hellfest From Home” livestream.

Says the band, “We were really happy to be invited to perform on an event of this scale, even though playing a show in front of video cameras with basically no audience is kind of a strange experience. We're thrilled about the amount of positive feedback we've received, and we'd like to thank every single person who watched the event and who are still watching it right now. A big shout-out to Arte Concert and Hellfest for putting their trust in us."

Of Lost Things was recorded in part by Fabien Guilloteau (Hacride, The Necromancers) and features cover artwork by Emy Rojas (Clutch, Ministry, Queens of the Stone Age). 

Tracklisting:

“Revival Fire”
“Lame Heart”
“Distance”
“Strangers With Familiar Faces”
“Mind Trapped”
“Unloving”
“Nosedive”
“Struggle”
“Made It Home”
“Spring Letter”
“Rough Diamond” (unplugged)

“Strangers With Familiar Faces” video:

(Photo by: Insane Motion)




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Dual-violin folk metal band Isenmor is offering fans a taste of their upcoming full-length debut, Shieldbrother, today in the form of a lyric video for the record’s “Battle Scarred.”

“‘Battle Scarred’ is the song that almost wasn’t,” bassist/vocalist Mike Wilson says. “Written fairly early on in the album’s life cycle, it went through dozens of iterations before settling into its current form. Originally intended to be a ‘fast, simple Isenmor song,’ over time it grew into something more. The frantic pace of the verses and the catharsis of the choruses compliment the lyrical concept of a traumatized, battle-worn warrior trying to come to grips with his shattered psyche. It’s one of my favorites, and I think it’s a great introductory statement for the album: fast, brutal, intricate, and epic.”

Last week, Isenmor launched a Kickstarter campaign as epic as the band itself, offering numerous levels of contributions with amazing rewards, from a download of the album and exclusive band t-shirt to an Isenmor engraved drinking horn tankard and even a full-size shield, handmade by lead violinist/vocalist Nicholas Schneider, who is active in historical fencing and reenactment. In just one short week, the band has already far surpassed its original goal and is now looking into additional rewards for contributors. Join the campaign here.

“Our ‘Shieldbrother’ Kickstarter allows us to have some really unique rewards that we wouldn't otherwise be able to provide, while also letting us engage with our fans during this time where we can't play shows,” says violinist Mark Williams. “On the digital side, we've got exclusive instrumental bonus tracks and my personal favorite reward, the entire album re-imagined in 16-bit styling.”

The Maryland-based Isenmor sings tales of harrowing battlescapes and historic foes in their “gewyrdelic folk metal” style: a blend of metal, orchestral, and folk music, combining intricate violin leads and rich vocal harmonies with a strong guitar-driven folk metal base inspired by the stalwarts of the genre including Týr, Ensiferum, and Eluveitie. “Gewyrdelic” is an Old English word that roughly translates to “historical.” The meaning of the term, as well as its etymology, describe Isenmor’s lyrical and thematic focus on the history and legends of the Anglo-Saxon and Germanic peoples. 

Shieldbrother delivers tales of glory with the triumphant title track “Shieldbrother” and the furious “Furor Teutonicus,” sorrowful tales of woe such as the mournful “Battle Scarred” and the dirge-like “Mount Badon,” a 17-minute epic entitled “Sigurd’s Song,” the obligatory folk metal drinking song (with an Isenmor twist), “Drink To Glory,” and more tales steeped in the myth and history of the dark ages.

Shieldbrother was self-recorded and mixed, then mastered by the legendary Dan Swanö of Unisound. The album is scheduled for release on October 9.

Isenmor previously released the 2015 Land of the Setting Sun EP and 2016 “Saxon Shore” single. Together since 2014, the band has shared the stage with numerous international metal acts, and has had repeat performances at the Maryland Folk Metal Festival and Pocono Folk, Pagan and Viking Metal Fest.




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Thrash metal brigade Mindwars will release their most promising and heaviest album to date through Dissonance Productions.

The album will include ten skull-crushing new original songs and a tribute to Slayer with a cover of the Reign In Blood classic “Criminally Insane”. With lyrics covering topics of war, civil unrest, disease, and authoritarian governments, this album is truly the soundtrack of 2020.

Mindwars’ last album, Do Unto Others, was released in 2018 via Dissonance Productions.




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Déjà Hard by AraPacis  is a 4-track old school hard rock EP and features the keyboards of former Rainbow and Max Webster keyboardist David Stone, the versatile guitar playing of leader Jerry Fielden and the original voice of frontwoman Michelle Macpherson and will be released on Blackhouse Records in the fall of 2020. The album is available digitally now on Bandcamp.

AraPacis (Ara-Patches) is a female-fronted metal band hailing from Montreal, Canada. Formed in 2003 by guitarist Jerry Fielden, and fronted by Scots singer Michelle Macpherson, their main goal is to re-create some of the original aspects of 1970's hard rock and progressive rock and fuse it together with 21st Century prog metal, doom metal, and metalcore to make an interesting metal hybrid. AraPacis have shared the stage with acts such as Blaze Bayley, Uli Jon Roth, Anvil, Raven, the Agonist, Doro, etc. They have now released seven albums and three EPs. They have had noted guests on their albums such as Guy LeBlanc (RIP) of Camel, Steph Honde of Di'Anno and Hollywood Monsters, Don Airey of Deep Purple, Rainbow, Jethro Tull, etc., Vinny Appice of Black Sabbath and Dio, David Stone of Rainbow and Max Webster, Kayla Dixon of Witch Mountain, and John Gallagher of Raven, amongst others. Their latest full-length CD, Paradox Of Denial was released in August 2019.

Band members:
Michelle Macpherson- Lead Vocals;
Jerry Fielden - Lead Guitar, Synthesizers, Back Vocals, Mandolin, Studio Drums;
Jean Audet - Bass
Gwendolyne Krasnicki - Viola, violin
David Stone - Keyboards




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Chart-breaking, cult-followed German band Subway To Sally, featuring remarkable singer Eric Fish and exceptional violinist Ally Storch, have now signed a worldwide record deal with Austrian metal institution Napalm Records. 

Since their foundation in the early 1990s, Subway To Sally have established themselves as an integral part of the scene and convince with their unerring symbiosis of folk, heavy metal and rock.  The band's earlier full-lengths were mainly characterized by bagpipes, flutes and harmonizing acoustic guitar lines. Throughout their successful career, they have increasingly added harsh metal fragments to their music – thus Subway To Sally have shaped their expressive trademark sound and have taken the charts by storm. With 13 successful studio albums (DE #4, AT #17 and many more), eight explosive live records and countless impressive live gigs – Subway To Sally are now ready to enter a new chapter with Napalm Records. 

Subway To Sally on the signing: "We are very much looking forward to working with Napalm Records and especially to our new album, which will be released in 2021. Especially in the current times it is important to have a reliable partner at your side. That's why we deliberately chose Napalm and signed our first, classic record deal after almost ten years of independence!”

Thomas Caser, Managing Director Napalm Records, states: "We are very happy to welcome Subway To Sally - one of the most influential German bands and pioneers of a whole genre - to the Napalm Records family! With the full extent of our Napalm Records-power we will do everything to continue the band's story of success.”




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Infinite Visions drummer Pawel "Pavulon" Jaroszewicz (ex-Hate/Vader) has recorded playthrough videos for five songs on the upcoming Infinite Visions demo, which will be finalized this month. The tracks include "Sonata Black", "Infinite Visions", "You Rock My World", "Dangerous", and "Voice Of Tomorrow". The full drum playthrough videos (with the final versions of the songs) will be released periodically starting at the end of August. Here is a 30-second preview from "Sonata Black" with the backing guitar track, not the final, finished version: Check out the clip here.

Infinite Visions is the new band formed by ex-Stratovarius guitarist/songwriter Timo Tolkki (guitars), and includes in its lineup ex-Stratovarius bandmate Jari Kainulainen on bass, and keyboardist Jimmy Pitts (Eternity's End / NorthTale). Pawel first came to the recent attention of Infinite Visions through the Stratovarius drum audition videos he made several years ago (video links below). The band were very impressed with his performance, and thereafter asked Pawel if he would like to join Infinite Visions.

Pawel states: "I am happy to announce that I will be a part of Timo Tolkki’s Infinite Visions. Although not many associate me with this style of music, it always had it’s place in my life alongside the more extreme genres. It will definitely be an interesting experience to see what I can bring to the table and hopefully create some new quality music with a distinct sound."

"Father Time"

"Coming Home"

Infinite Visions' lineup includes Timo (guitars), Jari Kainulainen (bass), Jorge Segersbol (vocals), and Jimmy Pitts (keyboards). The debut album will be titled Union Magnetica, and will feature 10 songs, including "Voice Of Tomorrow", "You Rock My World", "Sonata Black", "Dangerous", and "Infinite Visions". The band is scheduled to record their debut album at the end of 2020, with plans to tour for the album when it is released next year, and to perform at festivals as well in 2021.

Their upcoming debut album, Union Magnetica, will be produced and mixed by Timo Tolkki, whose producer credits include the Stratovarius classics Episode, Visions, Destiny and Elements Pts.1& 2. Additionally, he has produced/mixed albums by Vision Divine, The 69 Eyes, Allen/Lande, Amorphis, Ring Of Fire, Avalon, Symfonia, and Revolution Renaissance, among many others. Timo is currently available to work on select projects as a producer and/or mixer and can be contacted via email at Timo@timotolkki.net
  
For more information about Infinite Visions visit the band's official Facebook page here.




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Following the incredible success of their sophomore release "Save Me From Myself", Shotgun Mistress are back with another all-out rapturous sonic assault, "Glorious Machine". 

This latest slice of pure contemporary rock doubles down on the band’s indomitable style. It’s incisive and dynamic with smouldering guitars over an explosive rhythmic undertow crowned by Glenn Patrick’s aeronautic vocals. The melodies utilize a haunting narrative of infatuation and obsession to hurtle through your headspace in a truly dizzying and dazzling hard rock experience. Melbourne’s Shotgun Mistress' third single "Glorious Machine" is yet another tantalising taste of their forthcoming album due for release late in 2020.

"Glorious Machine" debuted at #1 on the Australian iTunes Rock charts today, and is out now globally via Crusader Records (part of the Golden Robot Global Entertainment Group). Stream and purchase the single here.

Shotgun Mistress was formed by Matt Wilcock (The Berzerker, Akercocke, Abramelin), internationally renowned death-metal demon guitarist best known for playing at light speeds. He hooked up with “Diamond” David Lee on drums to jam out LA Strip-era rock. Ben Curnow (Earth) joined on bass, along with vocalist Glenn Patrick (Collegians).

Shotgun Mistress is the first Australian band to join Golden Robot’s new metal label Crusader Records.




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Joe Stump's Tower Of Babel is very proud to announce the arrival of the new singer Jo Amore from the French band Kingcrown. The current line-up is Joe Stump, drummer Mark Cross, keyboard wizard Maestro Mistheria, and bassist Nicola Angileri. 
 
Joe Stump's Tower Of Babel is a product of a combination of several influences, the main and most obvious one is Ritchie Blackmore and his work with Rainbow and Deep Purple. Blackmore and Yngwie Malmsteen are Joe Stump's two biggest influences, and you can easily hear that on their first album Lake Of Fire, released by Lion Music.
 
The band is currently working on a new album. To stay up to date check out the band's official Facebook page here.

 
Back in February 2019, Joe Stump's Tower Of babel released the following statement regarding the band's line-up changes:

"For quite some time now our former singer Csaba Zvekan, claims the product of TOB to be his and has caused a series of trouble stealing the copyrights of music (all music written by Joe Stump and registered at BMI), album artwork and designs. All these remain in the legal property of the band and label Lion Music and further misleading activities of Mr. Z will be prosecuted.

Mr. Zvekan´s actions led to his departure in TOB, in other words...... he was fired and no questions asked. Anyone misled by the confusion of live bookings and live activities of Tower Of Babel, we inform you that this has nothing to do with the original lineup performing anywhere at this point. Furthermore, if anyone is familiar with the songwriting of Joe Stump, then there should be no questions asked who the writer of TOB is, and it is most definitely not Mr.Zvekan. His share and contribution was in writing the lyrics and singing.

Regarding our decision to change the name to Joe Stump's Tower Of Babel, it was simply an act of good will trying to calm things down, but apparently led to a huge misunderstanding. We never felt any guilt in doing so, neither intended to leave the original name at rest or to someone else as some people may think, that is most definitely not the case.

Tower Of Babel or Joe Stump´s Tower Of Babel has an active pause writing the second album while Joe is also busy with Graham Bonnet and Alcatrazz, Mark and Mistheria with the Vivaldi Metal Project, and Nic with Vanishing Signs Band. As professionals we also see this matter as an absolute priority and needs to be solved with Mr.Zvekan first, before going on the road and re-releasing the debut and a new album.

We apologise to the fans and promoters for the confusion, the misleading and unprofessional activities of Mr. Zvekan and his booking team trying to convince the world with a new lineup and rather unsuccessful and embarrassing outcome of new recordings and mixes using Mark Cross' drums, Mistheria's keyboards and Joe Stump's guitars without their consent and permission.

Most embarrassing..."




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Japanese avant-garde metallers Dir En Grey have released the radio edit of their new single, "Ochita Koto No Aru Sora" (translated. "The Sky That Has Fallen"). Check it out below.

The band revealed details of the release during a July 24th audio livestream.

According to JRockNews.com, the single was initially due to be exclusively released via all digital platforms. In more recent updates, however, the band specified that all three tracks will be available through purchase at download services (iTunes, Google Play Music, Amazon Music), while subscription services such as Spotify will only receive an edited version of the title track, leaving out the re-recording of "Clever Sleazoid" and the live take of "Followers" at Islington Assembly Hall on February 5th.

It was also announced that a special physical package with bonus content is available. This edition can only be obtained in exchange for a ticket to their canceled performance at Pia Arena MM on July 23rd and 24th, 2020. The physical format comes with a DVD featuring their live shows at Elysée Montmartre in Paris France on February 2nd, and at KT Zepp Yokohama, Japan on March 28th.

Digital edition:

"Ochita Koto No Aru Sora"
"Clever Sleazoid"
"Followers" (live)

Special Edition:

CD

"Ochita Koto No Aru Sora"
"Clever Sleazoid"
"Followers" (live)

DVD
"Zetsuentai"
"Keibetsu to Hajimari"
"Aka"
"Downfall"
"Values of Madness"
"Keigaku no Yoku"
"Ranunculus"
"The World of Mercy"
"Ningen wo Kaburu"
"Keibetsu to Hajimari"
"Merciless Cult"
"Saku"
"Zetsuentai"
"Aka"
"Downfall"
"Fukai"
"Keigaku no Yoku"
"Ranunculus"
"The World of Mercy"
"Sustain the Untruth"
"Utafumi"




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On September 25th, Stockholm's Lik will unleash their third full-length, Misanthropic Breed, via Metal Blade Records. For a preview of Misanthropic Breed, the video for the first single, "Decay" (directed by Mathias Blom), can be viewed below.

Sweden has long been held in high regard as one of the hotbeds of global death metal. With Misanthropic Breed - produced, mixed and mastered by Lawrence Mackrory (Obey Mastering) - Lik only add fuel to this fire. "The title of the record is Misanthropic Breed, because it describes the world today and the generations that are emerging," states vocalist / guitarist Tomas Åkvik. "In a way, it's more applicable than ever with the quote 'It's every man for himself' being so suitable, and it's also a 'hidden' homage to both Dismember and Entombed."

Far darker in tone and with fewer jokes than included on their previous releases, when it came to lyrical subject matter, the band were influenced partially by movies and books, but most of their inspiration came from looking back at their own catalogue. "The songs are inspired by older Lik songs, and where we could take a new direction from that. Of course there are other bands that we love involved as well, but for example, 'Female Fatal To The Flesh' is an evolved take on 'The Deranged' from Carnage mixed with 'Skin Necrosis' from Mass Funeral Evocation, while 'The Weird' is an even more brutal 'Ghoul' from the same record. Then there's 'Corrosive Survival', which was inspired by the disaster of Chernobyl, and 'Morbid Fascination' is like a Metallica / Entombed / Dismember track which turned out really cool. I think the main inspiration is still drawn from old school death metal, which we think is how death metal should be played."

Misanthropic Breed cover art (by Mark Riddick) and tracklisting:

"The Weird"
"Decay"
"Funeral Anthem"
"Corrosive Survival"
"Female Fatal To The Flesh"
"Misanthropic Breed"
"Flesh Frenzy"
"Morbid Fascination"
"Wolves"
"Faces Of Death"
"Becoming" 

Pre-orders can be placed now at this location.

 




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Tokyo based “Samurais from Hell”, Survive, have announced a new limited digital single "The Road To Hell Is Paved By Goodwill", coming out August 31st. The single features a guest appearance by Venom Inc's Tony "Demolition Man" Dolan. Check out the teaser trailer:

Furthermore, Survive have re-recorded a new version of "Rules Of Lies", which was included in the Human Misery album (2015), coming out also on August 31st.

In other news, Survive have released the first two episodes of the band’s history (with English subtitles), which can be seen below.

(Band photo by Ko-ichi Mukoyama)




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Mt Pleasant, MI based hard rock / heavy metal band Nagazi has released the official music video for "Triumphant". Filmed by Will Moss (Hive Minds Media) live on location at two stops on the November Pain Tour with Smile Empty Soul and Cinder in the fall of 2019 (at Growlers in Memphis, TN on 11/19/2019, and at Stickyz in Little Rock, AR on 11/23/2019), "Triumphant" was engineered by Matt Dalton (Rock Hill Sound [formerly Metro 37 Studios]) in Rochester Hills, MI) and mastered by Ulrich Wild (The Wilderness in Los Angeles, CA).

“There are a lot of people in this world that want to get close to you, use you, take what they can, chew you up, and spit you out. 'Triumphant' is about challenging these loathsome people, and fighting for what is yours,” says Nagazi.

Formed in 2014, Nagazi have shared the stage with the likes of: Devildriver, HedPE, Nonpoint, Deicide, Flotsam & Jetsam, Hammerfall, Whitechapel, Lorna Shore, Raven Black and 36 Crazy Fists, among others. And with a uniquely brutal yet captivating sound, Nagazi immediately resonates with the heavy metal masses and elitists alike.

For further details, visit Nagazi on Facebook.

 




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AC/DC are celebrating the 40th anniversary of their 50 million-unit selling 1980 album, Back In Black. The band continue the new video series, The Story Of Back In Black, with Episode 5: "Rock And Roll Ain't Noise Pollution", available for streaming below:

“We were in London at the time and there was a big deal about noise pollution with clubs around the city,” explains late rhythm guitarist Malcolm Young. "They wanted to ban them. We’d gone in with nine tracks and we needed another song and we left it to the end.”

"The title was already written by Malcolm and Angus and it was more anthemic than anything else,” singer Brian Johnson adds.

The Story Of Back In Black, Episode 1:

The Story Of Back In Black, Episode 2:

The Story Of Back In Black, Episode 3:

The Story Of Back In Black, Episode 4:

Last week, AC/DC released a video for the Back In Black album track, "Let Me Put My Love Into You". Check it out below:

The band previously released the rare videos below, featuring performances of "What Do You Do For Money Honey" and "You Shook Me All Night Long", live from Nihon Seinenkan, Tokyo, 1981.

Back In Black, the band’s seventh studio album, was their first to feature vocalist Brian Johnson, following the death of Bon Scott. The album, produced by Robert John "Mutt" Lange, spawned the singles "You Shook Me All Night Long", "Hells Bells", "Back In Black", and "Rock And Roll Ain't Noise Pollution".




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Outspoken conservative rocker Ted Nugent says that the "Black Lives Matter" movement "has nothing to do with black lives."

The "Black Lives Matter" movement was launched in the summer of 2013 by black organizers Alicia Garza, Patrisse Cullors and Opal Tometi after George Zimmerman was acquitted of the killing of Trayvon Martin. Following George Floyd's death in Minneapolis, the movement has gained even more attention.

In a recent interview with conservative author and podcast host David J. Harris Jr., Nugent insisted that "Black Lives Matter" is a Marxist, anti-police, radical organization that wants to tear down America, and invoked a debunked conspiracy theory that George Soros, the billionaire investor and philanthropist, is orchestrating and funding the protests over police killings of black people.

Ted said (see video below): "Nothing could be more anti-organic than the 'Black Lives Matter' movement.

"When they said 'hands up, don't shoot' in Ferguson, nobody's hands were up and nobody got shot with their hands up," he continued, referring to a phrase became a rallying cry for Ferguson, Missouri residents, who took to the streets in 2014 to protest the fatal shooting of a black 18-year-old by a white police officer. "A bad guy was shot in self-defense by an officer who was about to have his weapon wrestled from his grip. And we all know, statistically — I studied this, 'cause I've been a sheriff deputy for 41 years; I've conducted federal raids with some good FBI and ATF, DEA and U.S. marshall agents. I've been in the belly of the life-and-death beast, kicking down doors at 4 a.m. to go gather up a murderer that some judge and prosecutor and parole board let out to murder again. So I have a perspective on this stuff that I don't think any citizens have.

"When you are in a struggle for your life by a savage, escalating, violent perpetrator, who would limit the tactical capabilities of the victim, especially a law enforcement victim, when he has a certain number of tactics he's trained to get home that night, to save his life, and, in the process, save the innocent lives that this violent maniac will certainly jeopardize and likely take?

"This isn't an opinion — I'm not giving you an opinion — I'm citing irrefutable evidence and statistics to support what happened," he added. "And the Soros, Marxist, America-hating, socialist, communist maniacs took advantage of that to perpetrate a lie… The media just loves to assist with any nasty lie that's about hating America and hating Republicans and hating conservatives and hating the Constitution and hating the concept of capitalism, where your effort, your ideas, your sacrifices and risks will determine your compensation. Anybody that hates that will take advantage of a situation when they know the media and Hollywood and academia and half the government will help fan the flames of that lie.

"Of course black lives matter when you take the words what they mean," Ted said. "Unfortunately, the 'Black Lives Matter' movement has nothing to do with black lives. It's a Marxist, anti-American… And I don't even… Anarchy — obviously, their modus operandi is anarchy, but there's something much deeper and more evil about them. They wanna dismantle the only quality of life that facilitates, encourages and challenges accomplishement, excellence, dreams, entrepreneurialism and anything that has to do with the American Dream.

"So I'm afraid that I would like to say the words 'Black Lives Matter' because I mean them, but when you indentify the movement, it's just the opposite of that statement."

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.

Nugent and fellow Detroit-bred rocker Kid Rock got to spend some time in the Oval Office with Trump in April 2017. They were joined by Sarah Palin, the former Alaskan governor and GOP vice presidential nominee, who posted photos of the visit on social media the following morning. Nugent later told the Detroit Free Press that he and Kid Rock represent a salt-of-the-earth American demographic that helped Trump land the presidency.

In a new interview with Greg Prato of Songfacts, DEEP PURPLE frontman Ian Gillan was asked what the "few red lights and a few old beds" are that he sings about in the band's classic song "Smoke On The Water". He responded: "That's the hotel we moved into — the Grand Hotel — after the casino burned down during the Frank Zappa concert we were at. And that's what the song is all about. We ended up at the Grand Hotel, and it was very bright, so we changed the light bulbs. We got some red light bulbs, and we used the bed mattresses as sound baffles. We set the gear up in the hallways and the corridors of the hotel, and THE ROLLING STONES' mobile truck was out back with very long cables coming up through the windows. We tried to re-create an atmosphere in a technical sense the best we could. And when we went to write the lyrics, because we were short on material, we thought it was an 'add-on track.' It was just a last-minute panic. So, the riff and backing track had been recorded on the first day as a kind of soundcheck. There were no lyrics. The engineer told us on the last day, 'Man, we're several minutes short for an album.' So, we dug it out, and Roger [Glover] and I wrote a biographical account of the making of the record: 'We all came out to Montreux...' et cetera, et cetera.

"That's how it ended up on the album," he explained. "It never got played on the radio for a year because it was too long. It was only when a guy from Warner Bros. came to see a show and saw the reaction of the crowd. He ran back to the studio and did an edit of three and a half minutes, and it got played for the first time on the radio. That was a year after the album release. It would never have gotten played if we hadn't done the edit."

Asked how he feels about that song today, Gillan said: "Like all the narrative songs, you can place yourself there. It's fantastic — I love singing it. It's such a groove. And the important thing is everyone in the audience is so involved in the song, and of course, they know every word and the groove. It's a shared experience. It's like a congregational euphoria. It's amazing. It's fantastic. I love it.

"When you asked earlier about what songs do I feel for, in a way, I love them all," he added. "I have no trouble getting up for it just about every day."

DEEP PURPLE will release its new album, "Whoosh!", on August 7 via earMUSIC. The LP was once again helmed by Canadian producer Bob Ezrin (KISS, PINK FLOYD, ALICE COOPER), who also worked on the band's last two studio albums, 2017's "Infinite" and 2013's "Now What?!"

"Whoosh!" will be available as limited CD+DVD mediabook (including the one-hour feature "Roger Glover And Bob Ezrin In Conversation" and, for the first time, the full live performance at Hellfest 2017 as video), 2LP+DVD edition, limited box set and digital.

Gillan told Fox News about what it feels like to be releasing a new album at this point in PURPLE's career: "It's nice, to be honest. I feel like we're back in the '70s. There's this energy that’s quite fascinating to me. How does it feel? It feels good because we had a lot of fun making this record. We spent five or six days in Germany earlier this year. Then we went to Nashville for two and a half weeks where we did the writing and arrangements. It was remarkably quick. Then I rented a cottage on the banks of the Cumberland River, overlooking the Grand Ole Opry. So I can hear the music floating from across the river until the early hours of the morning. And then I would sit up all through the night and write in this magical atmosphere. How do I feel? Pretty good. It's nice when you finish a project and you're happy with the result."

Former OVERKILL and current VIO-LENCE guitarist Bobby Gustafson was a guest on a recent episode of EXODUS frontman Steve "Zetro" Souza's YouTube show, "Zetro's Toxic Vault". During the chat, which can be seen in two parts below, Souza brought up the fact that Gustafson's visual appearance toward the end of his time with OVERKILL closely resembled that of METALLICA frontman James Hetfield. (Gustafson was accused by some METALLICA fans of ripping off Hetfield's stage moves and wristbands, as well as "jacking" the white Gibson Explorer in OVERKILL's 1989 video for the song "Elimination".)

Gustafson said: "I was the better-looking one. That's all I've gotta say…" When Souza asked Gustafson if Hetfield "stole" his look, Bobby said: "Well, not all of it… He's actually the one who recommended the guitar. I got it from Gibson. They gave me a white V, white Explorer. I still play 'em — love 'em to death. But sometimes you can do something first, but you don't reach as many people as someone who hits a million people. So they think he did it first sometimes, and you're just still underground."

When Souza pointed to Gustafson's "armbands" as another similarity between him and Hetfield, Bobby said: "That was the MISFITS. The other guys in the band, we were wearing that stuff for years."

Bobby also talked about his experience auditioning for METALLICA as Hetfleld's temporary replacement (on guitar only) while James recovered from being burned onstage back in 1992. He said: "They had called me. Tony called me, their road manager at the time. [He] gave me the entire setlist to learn in two days. I had, like, 18 songs. But I knew bits and pieces of METALLICA; I couldn't get my way through an entire song. That's just not what I did — I didn't learn other people's stuff. So they probably thought I knew it. I did the last show — which I should have canceled — but I did the last show with I4NI, and they were flying me out to Denver to audition. And I said, 'Well, I can't learn all these songs. What am I gonna do?' So I tried to learn the changes off the vocals. I said, 'Let me get really into the vocals and I'll get all the changes in.' I was supposed to leave Newark airport. There was a downpour for, like, 10 minutes, and it delayed my flight for, like, four hours, so I wasn't getting into Denver till really late. And James was still in pain then, so he didn't wait — he left. So they canceled it for the night and we went the next day. I'm, like, 'Oh, great. I've get some time to work on the stuff.' But then the next day he didn't even show up. And then they auditioned on five songs. So I'm, like, 'Why didn't they just tell me the five songs? I could have spent a lot of time learning them instead of spreading it out.' So he wasn't there the next day. It was just me, Kirk [Hammett] and Lars [Ulrich] and Jason [Newsted]."

John Marshall, METAL CHURCH guitarist and onetime METALLICA roadie, who had already filled in before when James broke his arm skateboarding, eventually landed the gig.

"John, I think, they kind of knew would be the back-up plan if nobody else worked out," Bobby said. "I think Pepper [Keenan, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY] auditioned. I know Mike [Gilbert] from FLOTSAM [AND JETSAM] was there at the same time I was; he tried out too. And there may have been a couple of others — just a handful. They kept it tight, 'cause they had to get it done and get back out on the road.

"Yeah, I missed out on that," Gustafson added. "That probably would have been pretty cool. That would have been my first outdoor stadium rocking show."

Gustafson joined OVERKILL in 1982 and played on the band first four albums — "Feel The Fire" (1985), "Taking Over" (1987), "Under The Influence" (1988) and "The Years Of Decay" (1989) — before being shown the door in 1990 amid growing tension between him and OVERKILL bassist D.D. Verni.

Gustafson is involved in a new band called SATANS TAINT, which released its latest album, "Destruction Ritual", last year. He is also the new guitarist for veteran San Francisco Bay Area thrashers VIO-LENCE.

During an appearance on this past Wednesday's (July 29) episode of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation With Eddie Trunk", Lars Ulrich spoke about METALLICA's penchant for covering classic songs from artists that he and his bandmates were influenced or inspired by.

The drummer said: "You have to remember that, for all intents and purposes, METALLICA started as a cover band. So when we got together, and we were there in Southern California in February or March of '82, there were kind of two paths at the time. One was that you basically were sort of like a cover band and you would play bar favorites — you'd go out and play 'Smoke On The Water' or 'Ain't Talkin' 'Bout Love' or 'Rock And Roll All Nite' or 'Black Dog'; that was kind of one thing. The other thing was you would play all, it was called 'originals' at the time — you would play your originals. We weren't particularly interested in going out and playing a LED ZEPPELIN evening, and we didn't have any songs that were, quote, originals, but at the same time, we were full of spunk and full of piss and full of vinegar and ready to go and wanted to go out and play and interact and sweat and the whole thing. So we basically came up with another way, which was a combination of the two, which was we'll play a bunch of cover songs, but they were all songs that basically nobody knew. So we didn't go out and say, 'Now we're playing an hour's worth of material and they're all our own songs,' and we didn't go out and play an hour's worth of LED ZEPPELIN songs — we went out and played DIAMOND HEAD songs and BLITZKRIEG songs and SAVAGE songs and all these different cover songs. Then we had an hour's worth of material and we played shows all over Southern California, and it was super fun. So we played four or five DIAMOND HEAD songs, and all these other things, and it sort of got us out, got us playing, and we were playing gigs. And then, back in the rehearsal studio, we were writing and working on our new material, and, obviously, gradually, our own material replaced the cover songs. But all those songs, whether it's the 'Am I Evil's of the world or the 'Helpless's or the 'Let It Loose' or songs like 'Blitzkrieg' or whatever, obviously, those songs have remained a pretty big part of who we are."

He continued: "As music fans, we'll always talk about our influences, our inspirations. And I can look you in the eye, and 40 years later, we're still as big fans of the music around us and that we grew up on, that shaped us, and then the music that turns us on today, 40 years later. So we're still incredibly huge music fans, and I'd say even beyond that, fans of film and art and whatever else.

"When I hear a song that really turns me on, often I'll wanna play it," he explained. "So, obviously, paying tribute to the MERCYFUL FATEs of the world or to people like Nick Cave or to the DISCHARGEs or the BLUE ÖYSTER CULTs and all these different bands that have had such a big impact on shaping who we are over the years is a great joy of ours. And, to be honest with you, I've said this before, sometimes playing other people's material, like we do, for instance, when we play the acoustic thing — we've done Neil Young's charity concert a couple, three or four times; we did our own thing last year — we play a lot of cover songs and we love to reinterpret other people's material and give it an acoustic treatment and so on… There's so much great material out there that we just love to play, and then getting a chance to turn our fans on to the stuff that has had a significant impact on us over the years is an additional treat. And then, obviously, turning people on to some bands that they maybe would not know, like, like we said, the MERCYFUL FATEs or the DIAMOND HEADs or even smaller New Wave Of British Heavy Metal bands, it's a total bonus. So that's a win-win all around."

Ulrich concluded: "Playing covers, other people's material will always be a significant part of the DNA of METALLICA. And who knows what's ahead of us, but we're always talking about something else that we can do with other people's material, so I would expect that to be a signicant part of who we continue to be."

The 1988 re-release of METALLICA's debut album, "Kill 'Em All", included covers of DIAMOND HEAD's "Am I Evil?" and BLITZKRIEG's "Blitzkrieg", while 1987's "The $5.98 E.P. / $9.98 CD: Garage Days Re-Revisited" was a collection of covers paying homage to a number of mostly underground bands, which were later combined with additional new covers on the two-disc "Garage Inc."

In early May, the four members of METALLICA overcame social distancing to record a new version of their song "Blackened", with each member separated in his own home. The split-screen video was posted to the band's social media channels.

METALLICA has been largely out of the public eye since last fall when the band canceled an Australian tour and announced that frontman James Hetfield was returning to rehab for the first time since 2002 to battle his addictions.

In March, METALLICA announced that its South American tour, which was originally planned for April, has been postponed until December. In addition, the band's appearances at five Danny Wimmer Presents-produced festivals in May, September and October have been canceled: Epicenter in Charlotte, Welcome To Rockville in Daytona, Sonic Temple in Columbus, Louder Than Life in Louisville and Aftershock in Sacramento.

TESTAMENT frontman Chuck Billy spoke to Australia's Riff Crew about how he is dealing with the coronavirus crisis and what the touring circuit might look like post-pandemic. He said (hear audio below): "We're trying to salvage the dates that we had had booked for this year to support the [latest TESTAMENT] record ['Titans Of Creation', which was released in April via Nuclear Blast]. We'll probably move them to next year and try to secure a lot of dates.

"I'm sure there's gonna be a lot of traffic next year; there's a lot of bands trying to get out there and get back on the road. But in the meantime, we have a new record out. We're still out promoting, talking to people.

"There's gonna be a lot of time before we can have a live show, so I suppose we're gonna be doing some other fun things, hopefully, streaming-wise," he continued. "And I think we've probably learned off of each other here in the industry as time goes on, seeing what other people kind of do and what's cool and what's not and kind of follow suit. I know we're talking about trying to do something online, but we've gotta wait till Alex [Skolnick, guitar] can get here from New York and Gene [Hoglan, drums] here from San Diego. Alex hasn't left his house in months; he's in the heart of it in New York. So when that happens… We're talking about it, though, now. We still have a lot of things to probably work out — maybe videos, some more performance stuff for the new record online. So there's all kinds of stuff. The possibilities are endless."

Asked if TESTAMENT would consider working on another album while waiting for the pandemic to subside, Billy said: "Well, if it is truly, as someone says, a two-year period, of course, we're gonna go write another record, and when it all settles, we'll have two records… And if it had to be that long, then, yeah, we would probably consider just writing another record. But we're looking at it as it's gonna be a year out now, so we're gonna try to think of some clever stuff or some other things. I don't wanna spoil it yet, but we've been talking about something. Once we get back out there, kind of as a relaunch of the record, a reintroduction, we've got something kind of cool we're working on. I don't wanna spoil it yet, but we're putting our heads together trying to come up with ideas. But as far as touring goes out there again, yeah, we're gonna have to start really thinking what to do. We're actually launching our own merch again and going back old school, stuffing envelopes ourselves. What else are we gonna do? We'll sit at home, send the merch here, we'll take orders and stuff envelopes. So we're doing everything we can."

Earlier in the year, TESTAMENT completed "The Bay Strikes Back 2020" European tour with EXODUS and DEATH ANGEL.

Riff Crew is a new media outlet servicing music lovers across the globe. It was launched by Australian metal radio veteran and ex-Triple J radio host Andrew Haug, along with videographer Steven Mitchell. The outlet will feature in-depth interviews, commentary and exclusive live multi-cam footage of some of the finest metal, punk, hardcore and rock bands in the world.

Long-standing broadcaster Haug, who runs Australia's first and only 24/7 metal radio station AndrewHaug.com, is excited to be delving back in front of the camera to share his passion for riffs.

"Any medium to continue sharing and promoting the passion of music is great," he says. "What better time than now with all this amazing technology to launch this. Our focus is on producing a high-end quality show. We know you'll dig it."

Videographer and music lover Mitchell has filmed the likes of ALCATRAZZ, CORROSION OF CONFORMITY, CROWBAR, DARK ANGEL, DARKEST HOUR, GIRLSCHOOL, OBITUARY, RAVEN, TANK and many more. He states: "I'm stoked to be teaming up with Haug to bring the joy of music to millions in these challenging times. I started filming underground bands and it has just snowballed. It's simply my addiction to riffs."

OVERKILL drummer Jason Bittner has confirmed to BODS Mayhem Hour in a new interview that the band is "hard at work" on a new studio album. "Technically, we were supposed to already be done with it by now, if the world hadn't changed back in March," he said, referring to the coronavirus pandemic which is sweeping the globe. "But now, due to the fact that we're not pushing for a release that quickly, it's given us a little bit of time to hone the songs a little better and spend some more time and whatnot.

"I'm at about the song-seven mark right now out of 11 demos that we have," he continued. "So I have about seven of them wrapped up so far. I'll be working a little bit more on a couple of more new ones later this weekend and next week.

"I think right now, the last time I talked to D.D. [Verni, bass], our idea is to try to start getting drums done, like, September-ish, depending on what happens. The problem is that we really can't do our regular pre-production right now, because we all don't live in the same state. I mean, D.D. is in New Jersey, and I'm only three hours away. Blitz [singer Bobby Ellsworth] is two hours away from where D.D. and Derek [Tailer, guitar] are, but Dave [Linsk, guitar] lives in Florida. So the problem is even if he comes up for pre-production, we can't even do any of that for two weeks, because he'd have to quarantine first.

"The way we normally do records is we work on everything ourselves, and then we take a week where we go down to New Jersey and everybody gets together," Jason explained. "And we'll work on, like, two songs a day and just bust it out for five or six days and then get everything together. But this one may be a little bit more of us getting it together from our homes and doing a lot more online discussion and stuff about things rather than us actually playing it. So, we'll see."

Asked if the 11 tracks are pretty much the ones that will make up the next OVERKILL album or if there will be more material written for the LP, Jason said: "My guess would be that what we have right now is what's gonna be on the record. We're generally not a band that writes extra songs. It's kind of like you write what you need for the album and you write another one for Japan, [which] always needs an extra B-side. And that's pretty much it. We don't do that METALLICA thing of, 'Let's write 30 songs and pick 10 of the best ones.' I think it's definitely a better idea to just concentrate on doing 10 great songs rather than having six throwaways or whatever."

This past June, Ellsworth told A&P Reacts about the musical direction of the new OVERKILL songs: "I see it as a natural progression from 'The Grinding Wheel' [2017] and 'The Wings Of War' [2019]. It think when we had done the 'Ironbound' record [2010], it almost became like a trilogy in there — it was kind of like 'Ironbound', 'The Electric Age' [2012] and 'White Devil Armory' [2014], and they seemed to be the Father, Son and the Holy Ghost kind of a thing. I think we kind of broke the mold a little bit with 'The Grinding Wheel', and then I think a little bit more with 'The Wings Of War'. And on this one, I see it way more. And what I mean by that is that we've used other tools from our toolshed in the past, and that's the slow grind that is coupled with that fast gallop. So it feels like a natural progression, but maybe two records ahead of what 'The Wings Of War' is. And that's probably as objective as I can be."

The next OVERKILL album is tentatively due in April 2021 via Nuclear Blast.

OVERKILL has spent most of the last year touring in support of its 19th studio LP, "The Wings Of War", which was released in February 2019.

Mike Shinoda says that LINKIN PARK is planning "something very cool" for the 20th anniversary of the band's debut album, "Hybrid Theory".

"Hybrid Theory" — the band's original name before it was changed to LINKIN PARK for legal reasons — was issued in October 2000 and was a breakout success for the group, which had formed in 1996 and had played the Los Angeles club scene for several years. The album yielded four massive hit singles — "One Step Closer", "Crawling", "Papercut" and "In The End" — while going on to sell more than 10 million copies in the U.S. alone.

Speaking to an audience of Kerrang! magazine readers as part of a Kerrang! Face-To-Face video, Mike said about the upcoming "Hybrid Theory" 20th-anniversary celebrations (see video below): "I don't know what I should say about it. We're planning some fun stuff. All I'll say is that we've put some work in — not just the band. In fact, I'd say the label and management and the folks who have been with us for a long time and worked on our stuff along the way… We've done our best to kind of go to a lot of people who are family, in a sense, and say, 'What do you think we should do? What would be a good kind of celebration of 'Hybrid Theory'?' and try to do our best to actually do a bunch of those ideas.

"The LINKIN PARK fanbase is one of the most creative and active fanbases out there," he continued. "The problem, for me, is that if I'm not allowed to divulge information because I want it to be a surprise, then the creative fanbase starts jumping out and imagining things. They come up with their own great ideas, and then once in a while, those great ideas are better than our ideas. [Laughs]

"So I would urge the fanbase to just let it happen. And don't come up with ideas of what we ought to do, because your ideas might be better than ours. But we do have something coming that I think is very cool. And I'm excited for — what is it? The end of October, right?"

LINKIN PARK singer Chester Bennington and Shinoda spoke to The Pulse Of Radio a while back about some of the challenges of making their debut album.

"We walked into every song with a fresh, you know, outlook on it and we focused equal amounts of energy on every song," Bennington said. "And that at times was quite interesting, and also difficult at the same time. So we really learned how to push ourselves to new levels, and that was an accomplishment."

"Our biggest obstacle was putting something together that we felt was strong from beginning to end and doing our best to give each song its proper attention," Shinoda added.

Bennington was found dead in his Los Angeles-area home on July 20, 2017 after hanging himself. LINKIN PARK headlined an all-star tribute concert for Bennington in October 2017 in Los Angeles but has not announced any future plans for recording or touring.

Death metal pioneers Incantation have shared the third single and official “Entrails Of The Hag Queen” music video from their highly anticipated new album, Sect Of Vile Divinities, coming August 21st. Watch the Nader Sadek (Morbid Angel) directed video below.

Says the band: "We present another offering unleashed from Sect of Vile Divinities, aptly named ‘Fury’s Manifesto'. A more crushing choice from the album to express blasphemy towards religious ethics and its failure to the very evil that the faiths themselves created.”

Sect Of Vile Divinities will be released on CD/LP/Digital. Physical pre-orders are available here, and Digital Downloads/Streaming here.

For over 30 years Incantation has consistently remained one of the underground's most influential and respected artists in the genre. True to form, Sect Of Vile Divinities sees the legendary band adhering to the ways of the old school, unleashing twisted, mangled, and utterly disgusting death metal once again.

A pitch-black mix of unrelenting death metal and imposing funeral doom, each track on Sect Of Vile Divinities is a dirge dedicated to different ancient evils across various cultures. At a point where the world's most vile converge, tracks such as "Propitiation" see the band's driving riffs and pummeling drums crush the very foundations of religious zealotry, while standouts such as "Entrails Of The Hag Queen" and "Fury's Manifesto" champion no-frills death metal in its purest form.

Tracklisting:

"Ritual Impurity (Seven Of The Sky Is One)"
"Propitiation"
"Entrails Of The Hag Queen"
"Guardians From The Primeval"
"Black Fathom’s Fire"
"Ignis Fatuus"
"Chant Of Formless Dread"
"Shadow-Blade Masters Of Tempest And Maelstrom"
"Scribes Of The Stygian"
"Unborn Ambrosia"
"Fury’s Manifesto"
"Siege Hive"

"Entrails Of The Hag Queen" video:

"Fury's Manifesto" video:

"Propitiation" lyric video:




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US hard rock band, Anti-Mortem, have released a lyric video for their new single "Old Washita". The song was recorded by Bob Marlette (Alice Cooper, Texas Hippie Coalition, Black Stone Cherry). Lyric video by RMG. 

With the release of the single, “Old Washita”, the Oklahoma quintet have returned to action - better than ever! “Anti-Mortem is back; older, wiser, and road tested.”

For the Romo Brothers, Rado (vocals) and Nevada (guitar), the time is now...

Although they’re from the small town of Chickasha, Oklahoma, Anti-Mortem is no stranger to the spotlight. In 2012, while still in their teens, the young band began turning heads throughout the heavy metal genre when they released their critically acclaimed, debut album, New Southern, via Nuclear Blast. While on tour in support of their new LP, they shared the stage with a laundry list of “heavy-hitters” including Black Label Society, Machine Head, Lacuna Coil, and Monter Magnet, among others, gaining valuable experience and industry knowledge along the way.

But the pressures of life on the road as a major-label recording artist began to take its toll, and like a lot of young bands that find success early on in their careers, Anti-Mortem eventually succumbed to internal strife and musical differences just as they began finding their way. It seemed like the dream was over before it ever started.

During the hiatus, Nevada and Rado each fed their musical appetites by putting out solo material, as well as both have been permanent members of Texas Hippie Coalition (Nevada on guitar: 2016 - present / Rado on bass: 2018 - present), allowing them to stay active on tour and in the studio.

After returning to the stage in the winter of 2018, and having drawn upon the experiences of the highs and lows in their young careers, the message is simple; Anti-Mortem is back for Round 2… older, wiser, and battle tested. The new single, “Old Washita”, is a throwback to the band's eclectic roots as a gritty, groove metal band driven by riffs, growling vocals, and memorable song writing. A backwoods story taken from an old Native American River that runs through the band’s hometown of Chickasha; “Old Washita” is the epitome of the “New Southern” energy. It sounds like the band hasn’t skipped a beat.

With the new single and a retooled lineup, consisting of Timmy “The Hitman” Braun (ex-Texas Hippie Coalition, ex-Rikets) on drums, Coleby Thompson (ex-Nine Left Dead) on bass, and Arik Hanradton (Sign Of Lies) on guitar, Anti-Mortem have their sights set on picking up right where they left off.

For further details, visit Anti-Mortem on Facebook.

 




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Manticora, the Danish prog-thrash veterans, have released the first single/video from their upcoming album To Live To Kill To Live, the follow-up and second part of a huge concept, to 2018's To Kill To Live To Kill - both albums, based on the 334-page horror/thriller novel that lead singer Lars F. Larsen wrote (also released in 2018).

The video for the song "Eaten By The Beasts" deals with the brutal murder of a young criminal, who has raped the daughter of a farmer. The farmer hires a hitman to get rid of the rapist, and the rapist is eaten alive by a number of huge, hungry pigs, owned by the farmer. It's all karma, and the video is based on the concept. 

The music on both albums was recorded partially in the band's own studio and recorded / mixed in Hansen Studios, with producer, Jacob Hansen (Volbeat, Destruction) who also produced the first two Manticora albums back in the last millenium.

To Live To Kill To Live artwork and tracklisting:

"Katana - The Moths And The Dragonflies/Katana - Mud"
"To Nanjing" (Instrumental)
"The Farmer's Tale Pt. 3 - Eaten By The Beasts"
"Slaughter In The Desert Room"
"Through The Eyes Of The Killer - Filing Teeth"
"Katana - Death Of The Meaning Of Life"
"Tasered/Ice Cage"
"Goodbye Tina"
"Tasered/Removal"
"Stalin Strikes" (Instrumental)
"Ten Thousand Cold Nights"
"Katana - Beheaded"

 




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