BLACK EARTH — the project featuring former and current members of ARCH ENEMY performing material from ARCH ENEMY's first three albums live on stage — will celebrate the 20th anniversary of the "Burning Bridges" LP with a Japanese tour in May 2019.

BLACK EARTH is:

Michael Amott - guitar

Christopher Amott - guitar

Johan Liiva - vocals

Daniel Erlandsson - drums

Sharlee D'Angelo - bass

BLACK EARTH completed its first Japanese tour in May 2016.

b>ARCH ENEMY recorded three albums with Liiva: "Black Earth" (1996), "Stigmata" (1998) and "Burning Bridges" (1999).

Liiva was replaced by German singer Angela Gossow as ARCH ENEMY's lead vocalist in 2000. Gossow exited the band in 2013 and was succeeded by former THE AGONIST frontwoman Alissa White-Gluz, while remaining as the group's manager.

Christopher Amott first left ARCH ENEMY in 2005, only to return to the group two years later. His second, and apparently final, departure came in March 2012.

Liiva told the Marunouchi Muzik Magazine about "Burning Bridges": "The album has a very special place in my heart. The songs are majestic in many different ways. The span goes from doom and gloom, happiness, sadness, hope, anger and so on. I love the energy on that album and I am very satisfied with my own vocal performance, probably the best I ever did. And the production is spot-on too."

Johan also talked about his departure from ARCH ENEMY after the release of the group's third LP. He said: "At first, my reaction was, of course, I felt quite disappointed having to leave the band, but at this very time ARCH ENEMY was in a stage of taking the step up to the next level and I simply was not able to give it a 100%, unfortunately. However, not long after this happened, I already had two new bands going (HEARSE and NONEXIST) that kept me going musically for more than 10 years. When looking back at it, I think it was the best for all of us. The band has been and still is very, very successful and I am perfectly happy with my life just as it is. Especially now when being able to go on stage every now and then with BLACK EARTH."

Liiva said that it is highly unlikely BLACK EARTH will work on new, original music anytime soon. "There are no plans for any album at the moment because of various reasons," he said. "The other guys are very busy with ARCH ENEMY, Chris has his life in the USA and me being busy at my work. Also, this is more like a project that we enjoy and have a lot of fun doing together. Still, ARCH ENEMY is priority number one and to do something like this would mean it to get more serious. But who knows what will happen in the future."

ICED EARTH mastermind Jon Schaffer has teamed up with his old pals in PURGATORY, the band that he originally founded in 1985, then later became ICED EARTH, to record five tracks that were written between 1985 and 1987, now to be released as the "Purgatory" EP on December 21 through Century Media. All five tracks featured on the EP offer real U.S. metal and perfectly capture the spirit of the mid 1980s with a powerful production, rounded up by liner notes or comments of Schaffer, Gene Adam, Greg Seymour and Bill Owen and fitting cover artwork by David Newman Stump and Roy Young, known from their excellent work on ICED EARTH's latest album, "Incorruptible". The greatest surprise might be Gene Adam, ICED EARTH's original singer who sang on the band's self-titled debut album from 1990, who delivers his best vocal performance ever.

An unboxing video for the "Purgatory" EP is available below.

"Purgatory" is dedicated to Richard Bateman, the band's original bass player, who passed away right before the EP went into production.

The "Purgatory" EP can be pre-ordered here.

b>"Purgatory" track listing:

01. In Your Dreams (4:55)

02. Dracula (6:08)

03. In Jason's Mind (5:03)

04. Jack (4:00)

05. Burning Oasis (5:38)

Jon Schaffer's PURGATORY is:

Jon Schaffer - Rhythm And Lead Guitars, Vocals

Gene Adam - Lead Vocals

Bill Owen - Lead Guitar

Guest appearances by:

Jim Morris - Lead Guitar

Ruben Drake - Bass Guitar

Mark Prator - Drums

In a recent interview with Rockpages, Schaffer defended the prospect of re-recording ICED EARTH's early albums, saying: "It's a lot of work to do. It would be completely different than [the previous re-release of] 'Days Of Purgatory', because the only thing that was was re-recorded vocals. This, we're talking about a ground-up production so that we have it for a set of masters that we actually own and can exploit in our way in the future, and that this band will be able to benefit from financially going forward, because our contracts were terrible back in the old days, so there's very little income from all the years of work. Plus, with my knowledge of production now compared to the very beginning, we can make those records sound amazing. I'm certain of that. But it's not to try to beat them — it's just to create something that we can actually control and have some financial benefit from, instead of a big corporation like Sony. People go, 'Well, you should just focus on new music.' We will do that too. I have my own studio, and we're not in a hurry to do a new record — we just put one out — so if we can take a year and just take the time to spend time in the studio doing re-records, and then work on a new album, and then do more re-records or whatever, we can do whatever the fuck we want. I don't really care if somebody lost their virginity listening to 'I'd Die For You'. It's my fucking song; I'll re-record if it I want to re-record it. That's the way it is."

During an appearance on today's edition of SiriusXM's "Trunk Nation", Ace Frehley said that while he has not been approached to be a part of KISS's recently announced "End Of The Road" world tour, he is not ruling out being involved in some capacity.

"There's always a chance I might get that emergency phone call," Ace said (hear audio below). "But pretty much I think it's built into my… I told my agent to build into my contract, in the event I do get an emergency phone call and KISS wants me to join the tour and take over for Tommy [Thayer], that I can get out of the dates that I have booked for the summer. So we'll see what happens. You know me — I'm the kind of guy that says 'never say never.' But at this juncture, I have no plans on performing on the upcoming KISS tour, and I haven't gotten any phone calls or had any correspondence. So that's where it stands at this juncture."

As for his solo touring plans for 2019, Ace said: "I have two shows coming up in January on the West Coast. We're doing Seattle, Sacramento, and they might even add some shows and bring us all the way down to San Diego. And then I think might be doing some dates with Alice Cooper in the summer. My guys get along with their guys, and I've known Alice forever. So that's always gonna be a lot of fun. I think they're talking about July and August — it'll be five weeks. So that can be a really special thing."

KISS frontman Paul Stanley recently told the "Rolling Stone Music Now" podcast that while he is not closing the door on the possibility of guest appearances by former members during the "End Of The Road" tour, he doesn't promise anything either. "I really can't say," Stanley said. "This will be a celebration of KISS and not any individual lineup or any individual members. I wouldn't rule anything out, but it's not the crux of what we're doing… and I'm not being coy either. I don't want to mislead anybody. That's not something that's been given a lot of thought at this point. The majority of our time has gone into what is the stage going to be, what is the show going to be, and we're actually in the midst of toying with setlists now."

b>Frehley — whose new solo album, "Spaceman", was released in October via eOne — first left KISS in 1982. He rejoined in 1996 and parted ways with the band once again in 2002 after the conclusion of their first "farewell tour."

Dave Grohl performed his 23-minute instrumental song for his "Play" documentary live for the first time Saturday night (December 8) at Warren Haynes's 30th annual "Christmas Jam" at the U.S. Cellular Center in Asheville, North Carolina. The FOO FIGHTERS frontman was joined by members of QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE and JANE'S ADDICTION, as well as producer Greg Kurstin.

Grohl handled drums for "Play"'s live interpretation. QUEENS OF THE STONE AGE's Alain Johannes, Jason Falkner, and Laundry Room Studios' Barrett Jones all played guitar, alongside Kurstin on keyboards, JANE'S ADDICTION's Chris Chaney on bass, and FOO FIGHTERS collaborator Drew Hester on percussion.

"Play" was first unveiled last August in a two-part documentary of the same name that ended with Grohl performing the song on seven different instruments. Grohl created the project to showcase "the rewards and challenges of dedicating ones life to playing and mastering a musical instrument."

Grohl performed the entire piece on one instrument at a time and then merged the videos of each to create a seven-piece one-man band. The first part of "Play" focused on the behind-the-scenes preparation for the performance, which was unveiled in the second part. The film was also intercut with young musicians from the Join The Band music school in the San Fernando Valley practicing their craft. Grohl said: "Watching my kids start to play music and learn to sing or play drums, it brings me back to the time when I was their age listening to albums, learning from listening.. and when I take my kids to the place where they take their lessons, I see these rooms full of children that are really pushing themselves to figure this out."

roceeds from "Christmas Jam" benefit the Asheville Area Habitat For Humanity.







Can't wait to #PLAY with these guys tomorrow night! LOOK OUT ASHEVILLE!

Dave Grohl: drums
Greg Kurstin: keyboards
Alain Johannes: guitar
Jason Falkner: guitar
Barrett Jones: guitar
Chris Chaney: bass
Drew Hester: percussion pic.twitter.com/4Q93rDNIxe— Foo Fighters (@foofighters) December 7, 2018

Legendary drummer Carmine Appice (BLUE MURDER, VANILLA FUDGE, KING KOBRA) has slammed the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame, saying that the name of the institution should be changed to reflect the musicians that have been inducted. "It shouldn't be called [Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame] — it should be called the Music Hall Of Fame," he said in a brand new interview with Rock Titan (see video below). "Because they're bringing in rap artists; they're bringing in all these pop artists. They're not rock and roll… They're getting some of these people in there that have nothing to do with rock. They should have a Pop Hall Of Fame or R&B/Pop Hall Of Fame and Rock Hall Of Fame. Don't put these pop singers into a Rock Hall Of Fame. They didn't influence anybody."

For the past few years, the Rock Hall has broadened its base to include rap artists such as the late Tupac Shakur and N.W.A. The move has drawn criticism from many fans and fellow musicians who have taken issue with hip-hop acts — and other non-rock artists — being inducted into the Rock And Roll Hall Of Fame.

"I thought it was about influence — not popularity," Carmine said. "Influence on the business, influence on people. All my bands — CACTUS, VANILLA FUDGE and BECK, BOGERT & APPICE — we influenced so many people. I know that, because people tell me that all the time and over the years. But [Jeff] Beck is in there. CACTUS ain't in there. Me and Tim Bogert aren't in there."

Carmine went on to say that he doesn't really care about getting into the Rock Hall. "Because, like I said, they're bringing in rap artists; they're bringing in artists that really don't mean nothing. And now, the people who are bringing them in are so young, they don't even know who VANILLA FUDGE is. So I assume we're not even gonna get in ever. But it don't matter. I mean, I know some rock people that are in there — Rock Hall Of Fame — and they're broke and they're not playing and they never really influenced anybody. So it doesn't really change your career."

b>Carmine's autobiography, "Stick It!: My Life Of Sex, Drums, And Rock 'N' Roll", was released in May 2016 by Chicago Review Press.

Under the moniker APPICE, Carmine and his brother Vinny released "Sinister", their first joint studio album, in October 2017 through SPV/Steamhammer.

Nikki Sixx has revealed that he will shoot a video with SIXX:A.M. in two weeks. The band hasn't released any new music in two years and has been on hiatus since 2017. Guitarist DJ Ashba and singer James Michael have since formed a new band, PYROMANTIC.

Sixx recently hinted at fresh material from SIXX:AM.. Asked by a fan earlier this month if he has written any new songs for SIXX:AM. or if he has closed that door, Sixx responded: "We have a lot of cool new music coming next year."

SIXX:A.M. embarked on its first North American headlining tour in support of the band's third album, "Modern Vintage", in 2015.

The 10th-anniversary editions of SIXX:A.M.'s "The Heroin Diaries Soundtrack" was made available in October 2017.

b>SIXX:A.M.'s latest album, "Vol. 2, Prayers For The Blessed", was released in November 2016 via Eleven Seven Music. The disc was written and recorded at the same time as "Vol. 1, Prayers For The Damned", released earlier that same year, and it acted as a companion piece to the first chapter.

Back in October 2017, Sixx said that there were "no tour plans for SIXX:A.M." He explained: "James and DJ and me talked at the beginning of [2017], and I think that the idea of SIXX:A.M. being a side project has been just the way it's been, and we went out and started focusing on it being a main project. And I think DJ has a bunch of stuff he wants to do musically, and he has this media company that he focuses on that he does really good at. And James is a producer and a songwriter."

In other news, Sixx said that he and drummer Tommy Lee are spending the weekend with producer Bob Rock mixing the four new songs MÖTLEY CRÜE recorded earlier this year for the film adaptation of the band's 2001 autobiography, "The Dirt". The movie will premiere on Netflix in March.

In addition to all the above-mentioned projects, Sixx is working on the Broadway adaptation of his memoir, "The Heroin Diaries: A Year In The Life Of A Shattered Rock Star".

Posted by Nikki Sixx on Sunday, December 9, 2018

In 2017, Memphis rockers TORA TORA were approached by Frontiers Music Srl about recording a proper new studio album and they enthusiastically jumped at the opportunity. The resulting LP, "Bastards Of Beale", set for release on February 22, brings back the magic of the band's blues-rooted hard rock sound that gained them a loyal following upon their debut in the late '80s. Always a far cry from their more polished mainstream peers and more spiritually connected to blue collar hard rock, the band's return picks up where they left off, while not sounding even the slightest bit dated.


The first single from "Bastards Of Beale", a song called "Rose Of Jericho", can be streamed below.


"The first draft of this song was titled 'Rock 'N' Roll Ain't Dead Yet'," says vocalist Anthony Corder. "It began with the idea of us tapping into our passion of writing together again, and getting to create new tunes, but it also opened a floodgate of memories, of our experiences with our fans. It is about finding the things that make you happy and passionate, what drives you... music, art, friends, family, inspiration, partying... even when you feel like you may lose touch with them sometimes, they are still present."


Guitarist Keith Douglas stated about the band getting back together and recording a proper studio album: "The last studio album we did was 'Revolution Day' which was recorded in '94. It's hard to believe that was almost 25 years ago! Music in general was in kind of a weird place at that point and our fit within our label was questionable, so we just kind of stepped away to do other things for a while. We played one show together in 2001 for a special occasion, but it was 2008 before we started playing together again semi-regularly. We had always talked about trying to do a new project and just happened to come into contact with Frontiers at the right time to make that happen. So why not now?"


The band recorded the new album at Sam Phillips Recording in Memphis, Tennessee," continues Corder. "Sam is, of course, recognized for his work with Sun Studios and Elvis, arguably being responsible for creating rock and roll. But after Sun Studios, he moved right down the street to create Sam Phillips Recording. He wanted to be on the cutting edge of technology with recording, while having room to expand. This building has hosted too many icons to name, but a few would be Roy Orbison, Jerry Lee Lewis, Bob Dylan and Robert Plant. While we were there, William Bell (Stax) was visiting. We were really inspired while recording there."

TORA TORA started in 1985 in the garage of then high school students Antony Corder, Keith Douglas, John Patterson and Patrick Francis. They beat out sixty other groups in a local Battle Of The Bands contest and received some free studio time at Ardent Studios. They cut one track before using the prize money they had won to record an entire independent EP called "To Rock To Roll". Ardent was so impressed with the recordings that they offered to help shop the demo and gave them even more free recording time. TORA TORA eventually singed with A&M. That debut album made the Billboard Top 100 and hovered on the brink of breaking wide open as songs such as "Walking Shoes", "Riverside Drive" and "Phantom Rider" became local anthems. They followed up with "Wild America", which produced two more singles. A third album, "Revolution Day", was recorded but never released due to label restructuring. Due to the onset of the grunge era, TORA TORA, much like many other bands of their genre, called it quits in 1994.

In 2008, all four original members reunited for some performances. One was a sold-out performance at Newby's, a local club in Memphis, to celebrate the 20th anniversary of receiving their major label recording contract. The second appearance occurred during Rocklahoma 2008 before the band played another reunion show at The New Daisy Theatre on March 7, 2009 in Memphis.


Since the reunion, TORA TORA has issued three albums of previously unreleased material — "Before & After", "Bombs Away: The Unreleased Surprise Attack Recordings" and "Miss B. Haven': The Unreleased Wild America Recordings". But fans were clamoring for new music from the band, and that is just what they will get with the release of "Bastards Of Beale".

"Bastards Of Beale" track listing:

01. Sons Of Zebedee

02. Giants Fall

03. Everbright

04. Silence The Sirens

05. Son Of A Prodigal Son

06. Lights Up The River

07. Let Us Be One

08. All Good Things

09. Rose Of Jericho

10. Vertigo

11. Bastards Of Beale


TORA TORA is:

Anthony Corder: Vocals, Background Vocals, Acoustic Guitars

Keith Douglas: Lead And Rhythm Guitar, Acoustic Guitar

Patrick Francis: Bass

John Patterson: Drums, Percussion

Former MACHINE HEAD and VIO-LENCE guitarist Phil Demmel played his third show with SLAYER Thursday night (December 6) at Spektrum in Oslo, Norway. Fan-filmed video footage of the concert can be seen below.

Demmel is filling in for SLAYER's guitarist of the past eight years, Gary Holt, who announced last Sunday that he would miss the rest of the current SLAYER European trek in order to return home and be with his dying father.

Asked how he was approached by SLAYER to step in for Holt, Demmel told Metal Casino: "I wrapped up the MACHINE HEAD tour — I quit MACHINE HEAD, did our last show — and the next day I got a text from Kerry King [SLAYER guitarist] saying, 'Do you think you can learn 19 SLAYER songs and be out here in two days?' So, my wife had been at home with our son and running our business, and I had been gone for two months. And I showed her the text. She was so happy to have me home. So I showed her the text, and she had said, 'You've gotta go. You have to go do it.' So I started studying [the songs] on the plane. And I came out and played my first show [Monday] night [in Copenhagen, Denmark]."

According to Demmel, the Copenhagen concert "so, so cool" and "so exciting… It was amazing," he said. "I had so much fun. I felt so honored to be able to do this for Gary and for the band. Very exciting stuff."

sked if he was already familiar with most of SLAYER's music or if he had to spend a lot of time learning how to play the tunes, Demmel said: "There was songs that I knew, but I didn't know every little part, and I had to figure out what part is Gary's and how they do it live now. So it was a lot of work — it was a lot of work — but it paid off. I killed it. I got it done. Very exciting."

Phil said that the reception from the Copenhagen audience was overwhelmingly positive. "I had to concentrate on what I was playing, so I'd look up every once in a while [and see the crowd]," he said. "Scott Ian [from support band ANTHRAX] was just saying that some of the guys were running back: 'It's his first night, and he's yelling at the audience.' So, yeah, I was feeling it. Sometimes I tend to smile onstage, and there's no smiling in SLAYER. You can't smile onstage. So, yeah, I felt very welcomed by everybody."

Demmel credited SLAYER with inspiring him to form VIO-LENCE, a band which played a major role in the rise of the 1980s Bay Area thrash metal scene.

"So, yesterday was the 35th anniversary of the first SLAYER record coming out… And I saw them back in 1983, one of their first shows up in the Bay Area," he said. "They were the reason why I play heavy music, and so to be able to… I've got goosebumps right now just thinking about it. Just thinking about jamming with Tom [Araya, bass/vocals]… And Paul's [Bostaph, drums] been my buddy from FORBIDDEN up there. And with Kerry, that intro starts and I'm just fucking so… It's SLAYER — legendary band; one of my favorites. I couldn't even dream [of something like this happening]. It's beyond my wildest dreams."

Holt began filling in for SLAYER guitarist Jeff Hanneman at live shows in 2011, and became the band's full-time co-guitarist as of 2013, while remaining a member of EXODUS.

Demmel landed in MACHINE HEAD a decade after the breakup of VIO-LENCE, which also featured future MACHINE HEAD frontman Robb Flynn. Robb went on to form MACHINE HEAD in 1992, with Phil coming into the group in 2003.

Demmel announced in October that he would leave MACHINE HEAD at the end of the band's fall 2018 North American tour, explaining in a statement that it was "simply time" for him "to step away and do something else musically."

Professionally filmed video footage of PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS, the project led by the former PANTERA and current DOWN/SUPERJOINT frontman, performing the PANTERA classic "Walk" on November 13 at the Backstage Bar And Billiards rock 'n' roll bar in downtown Las Vegas can be seen below.

PHILIP H. ANSELMO & THE ILLEGALS played a number of PANTERA songs during their recently completed North American tour.

"That's really a tribute to Vince [PANTERA drummer Vinnie Paul Abbott] passing and Dime [PANTERA guitarist 'Dimebag' Darrell Abbott] always, and just my time with PANTERA, man," Anselmo told the Rock 100.5 The KATT radio station.

"If there's ever a true blessing in this world, for me, it is PANTERA — incredible band, incredible time, incredible people," he continued. "And the love I see from people, the sheer joy that I see pouring out of people when we play those songs, it makes me… I don't wanna say 'choke up,' really, but it takes me aback. And sometimes I have to sit for a second and just accept that it is that way. It's emotional for people; it's big… It's blinding sometimes. It's crazy."

p until his death this past June, Vinnie remained on non-speaking terms with Anselmo, whom the drummer indirectly blamed for the death of Dimebag, who was his brother.

Vinnie Paul and Dimebag co-founded PANTERA. When PANTERA broke up in 2003, they formed DAMAGEPLAN. On December 8, 2004, while performing with DAMAGEPLAN at the Alrosa Villa in Columbus, Ohio, Dimebag was shot and killed onstage by a troubled schizophrenic who believed that the members of PANTERA were stealing his thoughts.

Anselmo is still finding it difficult to accept that his former bandmates are gone. "There's always gonna be that… especially when it comes to Dimebag, I'll never understand that; I can't wrap my head around that," he told Rock 100.5 The KATT. "So there's always some anger and plenty of sadness right there. But to play these songs again and just to see the love out of people is just overwhelming, man. It's awesome."

Vinnie Paul died of dilated cardiomyopathy, an enlarged heart, as well as severe coronary artery disease. His death was the result of chronic weakening of the heart muscle — basically meaning his heart couldn't pump blood as well as a healthy heart.

Vinnie was buried on June 30 next to his brother and their mother, Carolyn, at Moore Memorial Gardens Cemetery in Arlington, Texas.

Hollywood Vampires - featuring Alice Cooper, Johnny Depp, and Joe Perry - headlined Cooper's 17th annual Christmas Pudding concert at the Celebrity Theatre in Phoenix, AZ on Saturday, December 8th. According to an AZ Central report, however, Perry was unable to perform as he is recovering from recuperate from pulmonary issues that had caused him to collapse backstage at Madison Square Garden in November following an appearance with Billy Joel.

From the report:

They're more a band now than they were the first time they played Pudding in 2016, with more original material to share. And they kept the focus on the strength of that original material as they made their way through "The Boogieman Surprise," "My Dead Drunk Friends" and – "just to you show we're not a one-trick pony," as Cooper introduced it – "Welcome to Bushwhackers," a song that had more of a Sun Records rockabilly flavor. 

Then, they got back to their roots with a handful of covers, from "Baba O'Riley" by the Who, complete with a synth loop, to David Bowie's "Heroes," with Depp really making a case for himself as a front man, Cooper playing blues-harp on "The Jack" by AC/DC and bassist Chris Wyse assuming the vocal spotlight on a raucous "Ace of Spades."

They closed their proper set the way you'd close your proper set if you were them, with "School's Out." After all, as I heard Cooper tells his bandmates while discussing setlist order during soundcheck, “Generally, you can’t do anything after ‘School’s Out’.” True enough.

Ending the night with an all-star rendition of Chuck Berry's "Run, Rudolph, Run" is a Pudding tradition. This year, that all-star rendition included two surprise guests – Nita Strauss, who had her own show that same night in Scottsdale, and the woman she replaced in Cooper's band, Orianthi. 

Read the complete report here. Fan-filmed video from the Hollywood Vampires set can be viewed below.

Proceeds from the Christmas Pudding benefit the free music, dance, arts and vocational programs for teens at Alice Cooper’s Rock Teen Center.

International bashers Kamelot recently brought their world tour for The Shadow Theory album to Australia. Fan-filmed video from shows in Brisbane and Melbourne respectively are available below.

Kamelot guitarist Thomas Youngblood recently checked in with the following update:

"Ladies and gentlemen, we are super excited to announce our second leg of the Shadow Theory Tour for Europe! Joining us on this sonic and visual journey will be Sweden's own Evergrey and symphonic standouts Visions of Atlantis. We are super pumped to get back on stage in Europe and bring the show to some new cities!"

This monumental trek begins March 8th in Nijmegen, Netherlands, and runs through March 23rd, in Prestatyn, UK. A complete list of dates can be found below.

Evergrey's Tom Englund adds: "We're happy to announce that we will do some cool dates with our buddies in Kamelot in March! So make sure you join us in the cities we visit as this surely will be nights to remember for all involved!"

Clementine Delauney from Visions Of Atlantis: "Visions Of Atlantis will join the fleet of the Shadow Empire in 2019 and I am more than thrilled to share the stage with Kamelot again! We had a great time together this year, enjoyed their powerful and flawless shows and felt intense vibes from their passionate crowd! We deeply thank Kamelot for trusting in Visions Of Atlantis again and having us be the ones starting the game every night on this tour in March! Evergrey are also bringing their forces and all together we will take you with us, through waves of bliss and pain, a blend of emotions your hearts will not forget!"

Dates are as follows:

March
8 - Nijmegen, Netherlands - Doornroosje
9 - Amsterdam, Netherlands - Melkweg
10 - Antwerpen, Belgium - Trix
12 - Mulhouse, France - Noumatrouff
13 - Monthey, Switzerland - Pont-Rouge
15 - Bochum, Germany - Matrix
16 - Zürich, Switzerland - Komplex 457        
18 - Nürnberg, Germany - Hirsch
19 - Bremen, Germany - Tivoli
21 - Manchester, UK - Club Academy    
22 - Birmingham, UK - O2 Academy
23 - Prestatyn, UK - Hammerfest

Scandinavian melodic metal / hardcore band, Halcyon Days, have released a video for “In Memoriam”, a track from their second full-length, Rain Soaked Pavements & Fresh Cut Grass, out now via Indie Recordings. Watch the clip below.

Halcyon Days is a melodic metal and hardcore band not swaying stylistically too far away from bands such as Architects, Underoath and Counterparts. Since their beginning in 2012, they have released two EP’s, and most importantly their debut album (2014) titled .ELEVATE. Their debut album was frequently play listed and recommended on Norway’s national radio, NRK P3. Two years after their debut album, they released a self-titled EP in 2016, scoring more than 250k total streams on digital platforms. The EP was met with an amazing response from their fans all over the world, in addition to awarding the band the title of “Band of the Week” from NRK P3’s Urørt at the end of 2016. The band is now ready to release their second full-length album, with the title Rain Soaked Pavements & Fresh Cut Grass.

The album tells stories in simple ways. The book of synonyms that we all love so dearly had been tossed out of the window, focusing on a way more simple vocabulary. The stories talks about reflections on specific events or periods in our lives. The intention from their side was to write songs that wasn’t too open for interpretation, but as you read the lyrics you will get a view into their personal lives and thoughts, with the intent of having the listener being able to relate to the message the songs carry.

Tracklisting:

“Fragments”
“Lights Out”
“July”
“Cerca Trova”
“Catcher”
“In Memoriam”
“Keeper”
“Monument”
“Winter”
“Friendship”

“In Memoriam” video:

“Keeper” video:

“July” video:

Malamorte - the side project of Alex Nunziati (Lord Vampyr, Cain, Nailed God, Shadowsreign, Sepolcrum, ex VII Arcano, ex Theatres des Vampires) - ferocious, evil metal hailing from Italy brings you a third full length offering, telling tales of the occult, mysticism and the antichrist, set against multi dimensional music echoing influences from heavy, power and black metal. New lyric video "Antichrist" is streaming below.

Hell For All was written as a cohesive album, each song being composed in a complementary fashion to the rest of the tracks on the album. Compared to the album in 2016, this new record brings more thrash and power elements as the band deviates from their black metal origins.

Keeping the listener in mind, Malamorte desires to formulate a trip, one that “alternates hard times to more reflective or lighter moments” and can be played on repeat which each new listen creating a new perspective. Quality and energy are the primary focuses for these Italians, who allow their fans to escape into an alternate reality and cite influences from a broad range of musical greats including Mercyful Fate, King Diamond, Iron Maiden and Slayer.

Hell For All will be released on Rockshots Records on January 25th (Europe) and February 8th (North America). Album pre-order here.

Tracklisting:

"Advent"
"Antichrist"
"Warriors Of Hell"
"Holy Or Unholy"
"Mother"
"Hell For All"
"Son"
"The Worshipers Of Evil"
"Satan's Slave"
"God Is Nothing"

"Antichrist" lyric video:

From the ghostly notes of the dead tree branch, played with a violin bow by Antti Haapapuro, to the haunting guitars, found forest sounds and violin by Daniel Pioro, their new song “Old Tree” sings of personal loss with a pagan heartbeat.

Hexvessel's singer/songwriter Mat McNerney says: "I wrote this song at a time of what should have been deep sadness, but as a way of finding solace in nature. We tend to think of life from such a short term perspective. Nature takes millions of years to develop some of the intricate life support systems we depend on to survive. I found my answers in the trees and what they tell me. As Hesse said, when we listen to trees, we learn the ‘ancient law of life’. This song ‘Old Tree’ is very much like the first song I ever wrote as Hexvessel and goes to the core of what our music is about. To quote Lord Byron, ‘I love not Man the less, but Nature more’.”

With visuals beautifully captured in the old growth rainforests of Vancouver Island by British Columbian filmmaker Mark Wyatt, their video is a reverential paean to the intrinsic and eternal divinity of nature.”

All Tree is out on February 15th, 2019 and is available to pre-order now as Ltd. CD Digipak, Ltd. Gatefold LP & LP-Booklet, Digital Album, along with merch bundles here.

Mat McNernery comments on All Tree, the successor to the band’s highly acclaimed album “When We Are Death” (2016):

“All Tree is not just about going back to the heart of Hexvessel, with a slight return to our forest folk roots, it’s about drawing fresh inspiration from my own heritage too. The English pastoral folk influences are infused with Celtic mythology from my Anglo-Irish blood, with Finnish nature as our backdrop. 

From the Canterbury folk scene and early prog bands that sound tracked my youth in England, to the ghost stories I was told as a child on my uncle’s farm in Ireland, this album is a spiritual journey where the old myths are doorways to enlightenment. The dawn light across boggy fields, the wind blowing through the keyhole, the branches dragging their breath inwards as the seasons ignite a magic sense of mystery about the wilderness. That’s what we tried to bring out into the songs on this album. By bowing old dead tree branches with violin bows, by summoning the sounds of the fire and the birds in the field outside, we gave the music a life which, like the liminal spirits of Samhain drifts in and out of this world. That's what folk means. It's the countryside singing out from within me. It’s their story we sing. And no matter where I go or where I end up staying, it's that folk countryside which is the seed from which I sprang. All Tree."

The Swedish melodic progressive metal band Darkwater will release their new album Human on March 1st in Europe and North America via Ulterium Records. The album will be available on CD, 2LP and digital.

Human won't leave fans of melodic metal or progressive metal disappointed. The songs are heavier, more melodic and atmospheric than before and the band worked really hard on tweaking the ten songs and over 76 minutes of playing time into perfection. Jacob Hansen (Evergrey, Volbeat, Amaranthe) was chosen to mix and master the album and he did a fantastic job which resulted in the best sounding Darkwater album to date.

The lyrics of the album welcomes you into a world of you and me, how we affect the world around us and the struggles we deal with as humans.

Don't miss out on Human, a perfect album for fans of melodic progressive metal and bands like Circus Maximus, Seventh Wonder and Evergrey.

Tracklisting:

“A New Beginning”
“In Front Of You”
“Alive (Part I)”
“Alive (Part II)”
“Reflection Of A Mind”
“Insomnia”
“The Journey”
“Burdens”
“Turning Pages”
“Light Of Dawn”

A fresh and haunting approach to death metal comes in the form of  Olkoth, a new project founded in South Carolina by guitarist Zach Jeter, bassist Brad Parris (Nile), drummer Joshua Ward (Rapheumets Well, Xael) and guitarist Hunter Ross (Rapheumets Well).

They are set to release their debut, self-titled album early in 2019 and to entice the masses they offer their first single and video “Imperfect Reanimation”.

Coined as dynamic, cold and haunting, inspiration for the band grew from elements of the occult, history of war and corruption, and Lovecraftian fiction. The single is a ferocious exhibition of the power, speed and unbridled aggression that Olkoth will quickly be reputed for.

Jeter tells listeners what they can expect from the upcoming album:

“Our unique blend of styles and approach to writing we believe will be well received. Our goal is to bring a newness and originality that will be a breath of fresh air in the death metal community.” He continues to explain their new single and future plans: “we will give the fans a taste of the sheer brutality we incorporate as well as the dynamic changes and atmosphere within our music. With further releases we will expand on that style and show our unique mix of violent riffs and diverse emotional themes.”

The single was produced and mixed by Joshua Ward and Zach Jeter at Elder Verse Studio.

Savannah, Georgia quintet, Vatican, have signed to 1126 Records. The band has also released a video for the new song, "Thirty-One Staples".

"''Thirty-One Staples' is about revisiting my childhood home through a lucid dream," said singer Jonathan Whittle. "Observing my past and witnessing an event which put me in the hospital for two months with 31 staples to the head and having to relearn all motor skills. I came out stronger thanks to the discipline I gained from having built myself back and learning from that experience. Ultimately, it’s about diving back into your mind where the worst moments of your life happened: remembering who you are, what you've gone through, and that pain is truly temporary."

The band will begin recording their new album at Silver Bullet Studios in Burlington, Connecticut with Greg Thomas (END, Misery Signals, Shai Hulud). Further details about this upcoming release will revealed in due time.

In the meantime, Vatican will hit the road with The Acacia Strain later this month and has confirmed several festival appearances in 2019. All confirmed dates are below.

December (with The Acacia Strain, Year Of The Knife, and Chamber)
18 - Providence, RI - Alchemy
19 - Amityville, NY - Amityville Music Hall
20 - Trenton, NJ - Championship Bar
21 -Philadelphia, PA - Voltage Lounge
22 - Waterford, NY - Chrome (+ Recon)

Festival dates:

February
16 - Savannah, GA - Ships of the Sea Museum Gardens - Aura Fest
19 - Louisville, KY - Riot Skatepark - LDB Fest

Heavy metal frontrunners Incite - lead by frontman Richie Cavalera - are set to release their upcoming fifth full-length album, Built To Destroy, on January 25th via Minus Head Records. Produced by Steve Evetts (The Dillinger Escape Plan, Suicide Silence) and mastered by Zeuss (Rob Zombie, Hatebreed), Built to Destroy is a visceral, urgent, voracious distillation of modern metal with reverence for the past, and boasts a progressed, matured sound for Incite.

Today, following the release of their first single, "Ruthless Ways" (listen below), Incite reveal a brand new Tommy Jones-directed music video for the new album's aggressive, no-frills title track, "Built To Destroy" (watch below). The track wastes no time delivering its unrelenting attack, eventually leading into a searing guitar solo and leaving the listener with no question as to where the name Incite comes from.

Frontman Richie Cavalera says, "We're ready for all the metalheads to hear and see this new video! We wanted to do something that was dark and full of energy with lots of heaviness, and really keep it all about the music. Are you Built to Destroy?"

Built To Destroy is available for pre-order now via Bandcamp, iTunes and Amazon.

Tracklisting:

"Built To Destroy"
"Ruthless Ways"
"Backbone"
"Resistance"
"Human Cancer"
"Confronting Darkness"
"Leech"
"Poisoned by Power"
"Cessation"
"Hate for Life"
"Savior Self"

"Built To Destroy" video:

"Ruthless Ways":

Incite recently announced their massive North American tour with headliners Soulfly and direct support artist Kataklysm, beginning on the same day as the new album's release. The tour will visit several cities across North America, coming to an end on February 26th in Los Angeles, CA. The tour will feature additional support from Chaoseum, Alukah and Skinflint on select dates. Tickets are on sale now. See below for all confirmed tour dates.

January
25 - Albuquerque, NM - Sunshine Theater*
26 - Dallas, TX - Gas Monkey*
27 - Austin, TX - Come & Take It Live*
28 - New Orleans, LA - Santos*

February
5 - Orlando, FL - Soundbar #
6 - Atlanta, GA - Masquerade #
7 - Frederick, MD - Cafe 611 #
8 - Clifton, NJ - Dingbatz #
9 - Reading, PA - Reverb #
10 - Boston, MA - Brighton Music Hall #
11 - New York, NY - Gramercy Theatre #
12 - Toronto, ON - Mod Club &
13 - Flint, MI - Buick City Events Center &
14 - Joliet, IL - The Forge &
15 - Ft Wayne, IN - Piere's &
16 - Dayton, OH - Oddbodys &
17 - Lexington, KY - Manchester Music Hall &
18 - Kansas City, MO - Riot Room &
19 - Colorado Springs, CO - Sunshine Studios Live ^
20 - Grand Junction, CO - Mesa Theater ^
22 - Spokane, WA - The Pin ^
23 - Seattle, WA - Club Sur Rocks ^
24 - Portland, OR - BossaNova ^
25 - Petaluma, CA - Phoenix Theatre ^
26 - Los Angeles, CA - 1720 Club ^
 
Support lineup key:

* with Incite supporting Soulfly
# with Kataklysm, Incite, Chaoseum supporting Soulfly
& with Kataklysm, Incite, Alukah supporting Soulfly
^ with Kataklysm, Incite, Skinflint supporting Soulfly

Incite is:

Richie Cavalera - Vocals
Lennon Lopez - Drums
Christopher "EL" - Bass
"Dru Tang" Rome - Lead Guitar

(Photo - Jeremy Saffer)

Swedish metallers, Hammerfall, have released the 20th anniversary reissue of their second album, Legacy Of Kings, as 2-CD/DVD boxset, via Nuclear Blast. A second video trailer for the title can be found below.

"The all-important second album. After the immediate success of Glory To The Brave, the pressure was on us to deliver. But we weren’t worried, we had a vision of the perfect heavy metal band and were intent on following through on it," explains Oscar Dronjak.

Order the boxset here.

Tracklisting:

CD1 (album, remastered 2018):

"Heeding The Call"
"Legacy Of Kings"
"Let The Hammer Fall"
"Dreamland"
"Remember Yesterday"
"At The End Of The Rainbow"
"Back To Back"
"Stronger Than All"
"Warriors Of Faith"
"The Fallen One"
 
CD2:

"Eternal Dark" (Picture cover)
"I Want Out" (Helloween cover)
"Man On The Silver Mountain" (Rainbow cover)
"Legacy Of Kings" (Medley 2018)
"Heeding The Call" (Live 2018)
"Let The Hammer Fall" (Live in Brazil 2017)
"Legacy Of Kings" (Live)
"At The End Of The Rainbow" (Live)
"Stronger Than All" (Live)
"Heeding The Call" (Rehearsal demo 1998)
"Let The Hammer Fall" (Rehearsal demo 1998)
"Warriors Of Faith" (Rehearsal demo 1998)
"Back To Back" (Rehearsal demo 1998)
"At The End Of The Rainbow" (Rehearsal demo 1998)
"Dreamland" (Rehearsal demo 1998)

DVD (Bonus):

Legacy Of Kings – Interview 2018

HammerFall – Live at Park Avenue, Jan. 19th 1999, Shure Endorsement Party
"Heeding The Call"
"The Metal Age"
"Let The Hammer Fall"
"Steel Meets Steel"
"Breaking The Law" (Judas Priest cover)
Shure Endorsement Ceremony

From The First Crusade
Listening Session
German TV Advertisement
Release party for Legacy of Kings
"Head Over Heels" (Accept cover)
"Balls To The Wall" (Accept cover)
"Breaking The Law" (Judas Priest cover)
Outtakes And Sign Off

From The Templar Renegade Crusades
"I Want Out" (Video montage from Hansen Studios)
"Unchained" (Live in Switzerland)
"Legacy Of Kings" (Live in the U.S.A.)
"Remember Yesterday" (Live in Japan)
"Warriors Of Faith" (Live in Chile)
"Let The Hammer Fall" (Live in Sweden)
"I Believe" (Live in Sweden)
"Breaking The Law" (Video montage)

Trailer #1:

Trailer #2:

Stay Tuned is the passion project of Austrian multi-instrumentalist Bernhard Welz. Not unlike other musicians, Welz often gathers his musical friends around to play and sing along to the songs he wrote, produced and arranged.

The difference between him and others is however, that his friends include some of the greatest rock’n’roll legends of our time. Among many fantastic others, these include Deep Purple’s Jon Lord, Ian Paice, Ian Gillan, Don Airey, Roger Glover and Steve Morse, Mark King of Level 42, Steve Lukather (Toto), Steve Hackett (Genesis), Suzi Quatro, Dan McCafferty (Nazareth), Jeff Scott Soto, Tony Martin (Black Sabbath), Rainbow’s Bob Daisley, Steve Lee and Marc Lynn of Gotthard.

This star-studded listening experience was brought to life to celebrate and commemorate friends, respect and - above all - the love for music. Defined by an abundance of talent on all instruments, Stay Tuned transports the listener to a time when classic rock was everything - and features solos and riffs from some of the most revered poster children, who were there to tell the tale. The individual talent and experience of each of these thoroughbred artists, when accumulated, created a sophisticated interplay which is not only fun for the artists themselves but to listen to for all rock fans. It is a true celebration of rock’n’roll!

Stay Tuned is available now on CD and Digital via earMUSIC. All proceeds go to the Linda McCartney Fundraising Centre - a charity very dear to the founder of Stay Tuned. Order the title here, listen to the song "Empathy", featuring Jeff Scott Soto, below.

Tracklisting:

"Jazz Police" (with Mark King, Ian Paice, Steve Morse, Suzi Quatro)
"Fading Away" (with Ian Gillan, Dan McCafferty, Mark King)
"Let The Stars Shine On You" (with Steve Lukather)
"Traffic Night" (with Don Airey, Steve Morse, Carl Sentance)
"I Don't Believe That Rock'n'Roll Is Out"
"Empathy" (with Jeff Scott Soto)
"Yound Free And Deadly"
"It's Just A Long Way" (with Carl Sentance)
"Always Behind You" (with Mark King)
"Believe Me" (with Roger Glover)
"Secret Land" (with Don Airey, Carl Sentance)
"Wanna Give You My Lovin'"
"Drum Jam" (Live 2002) (with Ian Paice)
"Child In Time" (Live 2009) (with Jon Lord)

"Empathy":

"Fading Away":

"Traffic Night":

Artist shout-outs:

Nightwish have unveiled a live video for the song "Wish I Had An Angel", taken from their End Of An Era reissue, out now. Watch the clip below:

October 21st, 2005 is a historic date for every Nightwish fan - many tears flowed, yet the foundation was laid for a new beginning and the ongoing continuity of the band. What subsequently appeared as the DVD titled End Of An Era was not only the final show of their mega-selling Once tour, but also the very last joint performance with their singer Tarja Turunen.

Due to all of these facets and more, the DVD will give you goose bumps many times over, yet it crowns the end of the Tarja chapter with a unique show that could hardly have been better or more spectacular. The setlist is stunning and contains 18 hymns, such as the opening "Dark Chest Of Wonders", "Sleeping Sun", "Nemo" and "Bless The Child" through to the final "Wish I Had An Angel". If you do not already own this live masterpiece, you can now look forward to the extensive new edition.

End Of An Era is available now as 3LP and Earbook formats including BluRay, 2CD and 3LP. Order here, or via the Nightwish webshop, here.

Tracklisting:

BluRay

"Dark Chest Of Wonders"
"Planet Hell"
"Ever Dream"
"The Kinslayer"
"Phantom Of The Opera"
"The Siren"
"Sleeping Sun"
"High Hopes"
"Bless The Child"
"Wishmaster"
"Slaying The Dreamer"
"Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan"
"Nemo"
"Ghost Love Score"
"Stone People"
"Creek Mary’s Blood"
"Over The Hills And Far Away"
"Wish I Had An Angel"
Documentary “A Day Before Tomorrow”

CD1

"Dark Chest Of Wonders"
"Planet Hell"
"Ever Dream"
"The Kinslayer"
"Phantom Of The Opera"
"The Siren"
"Sleeping Sun"
"High Hopes"
"Bless The Child"
"Wishmaster"

CD2

"Slaying The Dreamer"
"Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan"
"Nemo"
"Ghost Love Score"
"Stone People"
"Creek Mary’s Blood"
"Over The Hills And Far Away"
"Wish I Had An Angel"

3LP (33 RPM)

Side A
"Dark Chest Of Wonders"
"Planet Hell"
"Ever Dream"

Side B
"The Kinslayer"
"Phantom Of The Opera"
"The Siren"

Side C
"Sleeping Sun"
"High Hopes"
"Bless The Child"

Side D
"Wishmaster"
"Slaying The Dreamer"
"Kuolema Tekee Taiteilijan"

Side E
"Nemo"
"Ghost Love Score"
"Stone People"

Side F
"Creek Mary’s Blood"
"Over The Hills And Far Away"
"Wish I Had An Angel"

"Ghost Love Score" live video:

"Sleeping Sun" live video:

"Nemo" live video:

Farewell To Fear is premiering the official "Your Cure" music video on BraveWords! The song comes from the hard rock album Voices, which was released earlier this year via Pavement Entertainment.

"Your Cure" depicts the haunting effects of deteriorating relationships. The song blends the genres of hard rock, heavy metal, and old school to deliver a dynamic sound. Vocalist Mike Craig says, "I think it hits every category and provides something for everyone. ‘Your Cure' is clearly one of my personal favorites on the Voices album."

Farewell to Fear was formed out of a passion for music with a message. The meaning behind the name is overcoming the fear that impedes all areas of our lives. The day you say "Farewell to Fear" is the day you realize that you are free from any obstacle holding you back from living the life you were meant to live.

Catch Farewell to Fear on tour with Like a Storm. Tickets and VIP packages are available on the band's official website.

Dates:

December
11 – Lincoln, NE – Bourbon Theater
12 – Janesville, WI – The Back Bar
13 – Flint, MI – The Machine Shop
14 – Ringle, WI – Q and Z Expo Center
15 – Fargo, ND – The Aquarium
17 – Minot, ND – The O'Riginal Bar & Nightclub
19 – Spokane, WA – Knitting Factory
20 – Jerome, ID – Diamondz Event Center
21 – Salt Lake City, UT – The Complex
22 – Las Vegas, NV – Backstage Bar & Billiards

January
22 – Little Rock, AR – Stickyz Chike Shack23 – Dallas, TX – Trees
1/24 – Houston, TX – Scout Bar
25 – Houston, TX – BFE Rock Club
26 – Abilene, TX – Homer's Bar and Music Venue
29 – Lubbock, TX – Jake's
30 – Austin, TX – Come and Take It Live
31 – Corpus Christi, TX – House of Rock

K.K. Downing says that he "shocked" even himself when he decided to leave JUDAS PRIEST nearly eight years ago.

The guitarist, who is a founding member of the British heavy metal legends and was part of the group since 1969, announced his retirement from PRIEST in April 2011. He has since been replaced by Richie Faulkner, who was once the guitarist in the backing group for Lauren Harris, daughter of IRON MAIDEN bassist Steve Harris.

Speaking about his decision to exit PRIEST after a 42-year run, Downing told "Sound Matters With Tom Leu" (hear audio below): "I was the guy that was really totally, totally dedicated. So that's why I even shocked myself, I think, to walk away and leave that. It was another point in my life, like I was 15 years old again, where I had to cut myself free and go to a better place, and that's what I felt I needed to do, and I had to be brave to do it. And that's another reason I wanted to do [write an autobiography] — to give everyone a better explanation of how that can happen to everybody, even myself."

He continued: "I thought I was tough in certain ways — not wielding the axe, but I thought I had a real, real tough personality that could endure and take anything. But I found that that wasn't the case — that I did have a breaking point."

sked to elaborate on the circumstances that led to departure from the band that he co-founded when he was still a teenager, Downing said: "I had firstly made an awful lot of sacrifices. And I didn't think I was getting the respect for what I'd done. I was the first one there back in the '60s, but it was real tough. I was there, trying to piece it all together and bring something to the table that was workable, and I did that. And I had to do a lot of things. It was tough, really, basically bringing about a lineup that I felt would endure and stay the course — with Rob [Halford, vocals] and Glenn [Tipton, guitar] and Ian [Hill, bass]. But it was a process of elimination getting to that point; it was tough. I did a lot of things. As I said, I stayed totally true and dedicated to the band. But I just felt that things weren't right. Things were good, but as we got older and things changed, it seemed to be that there was some complacency setting in, some respect not given where respect should have been given. The situation was not as democratic as it should have been. And so lots of things started to really get under my skin. The live performances weren't what they were supposed to be. [It] probably seemed to the audience that everything was spot-on, but it wasn't — it wasn't. And there were specific reasons for that. I felt the band was more like going through the motions, which I thought was unfair to the audience and to other bandmembers that really wanted to give 101 percent. Yeah, there was lots of reasons. I mean, lots of people have heard Rob in interviews recently, but Rob actually did release two studio albums in 2010, and he did his own tour with the HALFORD band. That was not good for somebody like me that was totally dedicated to JUDAS PRIEST."

Earlier this year, Downing revealed that he sent two resignation letters to his bandmates more than seven years ago when he decided to quit JUDAS PRIEST. The first was described as "a graceful exit note, implying a smooth retirement from music," while the second was "angrier, laying out all of his frustrations with specific parties."

Downing later said that he believes the second letter was "a key reason" he wasn't invited to rejoin PRIEST following Tipton's decision to retire from the road due to his battle with Parkinson's disease.

K.K.'s autiography, "Heavy Duty: Days And Nights In Judas Priest", was released on September 18 via Da Capo Press. The book was co-written by the Scottish author and journalist Mark Eglinton, whose previous collaborations include "Official Truth, 101 Proof" with Rex Brown of PANTERA and "Confessions Of A Heretic" with BEHEMOTH's Adam "Nergal" Darski.

Listen to "070: K.K. Downing" on Spreaker.

According to The Blast, RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE bassist Tim Commerford is being sued over an alleged car accident that left the victim with over $65,000 in medical bills.

Alec Chaice claims Commerford was driving next to him as he was riding his motorcycle on the 10 Freeway in Los Angeles on April 24, 2018 when the bassist changed lanes and crashed into him, causing significant injury.

Chaice underwent lumbar spinal surgery and a nerve root block procedure and has a six-inch scar on his back as a result.

Chaice is suing for his medical expenses, economic loss, damage to property, plus interest and costs.

s previously reported, Commerford's wife filed for divorce from the bassist on November 28.

The 50-year-old rocker and Aleece Commerford were married in 2001 and have two sons together, Xavier and Quentin.

In addition to playing with RAGE AGAINST THE MACHINE, AUDIOSLAVE and PROPHETS OF RAGE, Commerford handles lead vocals in a post-punk trio known as WAKRAT, which also features drummer Mathias Wakrat and guitarist Laurent Grangeon.

TESTAMENT guitarist Eric Peterson has told Guitar World that he hopes the group's next album will be a more collaborative effort than 2016's "Brotherhood Of The Snake", which saw him writing all the music in about three months and then e-mailing the songs to his bandmates.

"I've talked with [lead guitarist] Alex [Skolnick] and he has some ideas," Peterson said. "Right now, I'm librarying riffs and it looks like it'll be pretty heavy and old-school. At the same time, I'm being careful not to copy what we've done before. I can't say for sure when it's gonna be finished, but it's gonna be killer."

This past September, TESTAMENT frontman Chuck Billy told Inquisitr that the band's next record would likely include a ballad. "We haven't done a ballad in 20-something years probably," he said. "I mean, a full-on ballad. 'Born In A Rut', off the other one ['Brotherhood Of The Snake'], it's soft and has melody, but it's not really a true ballad.

Chuck also talked about TESTAMENT's musical evolution, saying: "I think we're fortunate — TESTAMENT as a band — we're lucky to have Eric Peterson. He writes most of the music. He doesn't really follow a lot of other things. He has his black metal that he enjoys, and he likes his DRAGONLORD [Eric Peterson's side project] and loves playing that stuff. But he doesn't really listen to something current — that which is playing out there — which I think keeps him in his own creative groove. His own 'Eric Peterson TESTAMENT writing blinders' on. Which is good for us, because it's always kept TESTAMENT sounding like TESTAMENT. But, you know, Eric is also trying to squeeze things in there. Sort of like 'The Gathering' record. Elements of black metal with the blast beats and different elements that he enjoys — he's tried to work them into TESTAMENT. I think it's really kind of expanded us, and I'd say from that 'Gathering' point, we really kind of found our identity as a heavy metal band. It's kind of like a culmination of everything we did up to that point. Thrash, death, melodic vocals. Death vocals. And then when we came to 'The Gathering', all of it kind of got put in there. And the songwriting just started getting better."

b>"Brotherhood Of The Snake" was recorded under the watchful eyes of producer Juan Urteaga (EXODUS, HEATHEN, MACHINE HEAD), Peterson and Billy and was mixed and mastered by Andy Sneap.

TESTAMENT's U.S. tour as the support act for SLAYER wrapped in August in San Jose, California.

THE WINERY DOGS — the hard rock power trio featuring guitarist/vocalist Richie Kotzen (POISON, MR. BIG), bassist Billy Sheehan (MR. BIG, DAVID LEE ROTH) and drummer Mike Portnoy (SONS OF APOLLO, DREAM THEATER) — will embark on an American tour in May of 2019. The trek will mark the group's first tour in nearly three years.

During an appearance on last week's edition of "Trunk Nation LA Invasion: Live From The Rainbow Bar & Grill" on SiriusXM, Mike spoke about THE WINERY DOGS' decision to play together again. He said: "Everybody assumed we broke up. We all just went off to do our… All three of us do all these other things, so we just decided to take a break and do some other things, but we always knew there'd be a time we'd come together. It was never gonna be a one-time thing."

Asked how the May 2019 tour came about, Mike said: "Richie came out to see SONS OF APOLLO when we played L.A. in the spring, or whenever it was, and I remember talking with him, saying, 'Hey, it'd be fun to just play live. We don't have to commit to doing a new album. We don't have to make out this big schedule, this big plan.'… It was great for the three of us to see each other, and it was, like, 'Hey, it would be fun to play some gigs next year — whenever we can. Not have to commit to an album, not have to commit to a year schedule or whatever.' So that was it. It was as simple as that."

Richie concurred, saying: "What we wanted to do is get together and not forget about what we have. There's a lot of people that love the band, but we love the band too, so we wanted to just find a window where we could actually play together. And what Mike was saying, the idea of committing to this and committing to that, with my recent experience, making plans is a waste of time, 'cause you just don't know what's gonna happen. But we wanted to at least get together and play. And so, in my estimation, I would imagine that we would play together and I would say, 'I really miss you, Mike,' and then Billy, 'I really miss you, Billy.' And, 'Hey, by the way, Richie, I have this really cool bass riff I was working on.' And then, suddenly, 'That sounds like a song.' And then let it evolve."

ccording to Kotzen, there has been no concrete discussion about THE WINERY DOGS making another studio album. "You know me how I am — I don't make a lot of plans," he said. "And Mike knows — I'm like water, and if the water flows in the right direction, we're gonna make another record at some point. But initially, now, we just wanna have that feeling of playing together, capturing that magic we had in my garage when we wrote the first record."

Added Mike: "It's like when you have a new band starting out. And before you even have your first record deal, you're doing it for the fun of it; you're doing it because you you like playing together. You wanna write together, you wanna play shows together, and then as soon as you sign that record deal, then suddenly you have commitments. 'Oh, we've gotta commit to this timeline. Let's block out this year.' And blah blah blah. Writing a record takes months, recording a record takes months, and it takes months to put it out. Then you've gotta commit to a tour. We wanna just have fun. We just wanna play for the fun of it, not commit to another album yet, and just enjoy the window of opportunity to jam and have fun, and leave it as simple as that."

Richie continued: "Yes, there's gonna be a record at some point. C'mon — of course there's gonna be a record. Of course there will be. I'm not gonna tell you when, 'cause I want it to be a surprise."

Since wrapping up an extensive world tour in support of their sophomore album, "Hot Streak", in the summer of 2016, THE WINERY DOGS have performed live on just two occasions — during the inaugural "Monsterwood" West Coast edition of the Monsters Of Rock cruise in the fall of 2016, and nearly a year later during an "Ultimate Jam Night" tribute to late ADRENALINE MOB, SOTO and TRANS-SIBERIAN ORCHESTRA bassist David Zablidowsky at the Whisky A Go Go in West Hollywood, California.

Over the past two years, each of the members of THE WINERY DOGS have toured extensively with other acts — Kotzen with his long-running solo band; Sheehan with SONS OF APOLLO and MR. BIG; and Portnoy with SONS OF APOLLO, THE NEAL MORSE BAND and SHATTERED FORTRESS.

THE WINERY DOGS were founded in 2012 after Portnoy and Sheehan — who initially aimed to collaborate with former WHITESNAKE and BLUE MURDER guitarist John Sykes — reached out to Kotzen, who played with Sheehan in MR. BIG from 1997 to 2002. The group's 2013 self-titled debut reached No. 27 on the Billboard 200 after selling more than 10,000 copies in the U.S. during its first week of availability. The initial sales of "Hot Streak" were even better, as the album debuted at No. 30 in late 2015 after shifting 13,000 equivalent album units in America during its first week of availability.

Despite the band's success, Kotzen expressed a desire to return to his solo career after the end of the "Hot Streak" touring cycle. "I wanted to go back to what I was doing my whole life, which is making my music and my records," he said during an appearance on the satellite radio program "Trunk Nation" earlier this year. He reiterated that sentiment during a subsequent interview with Sofa King Cool. "I thought in my mind, 'Well, this worked. It was fun. It was really cool. But I kind of want to go back to being Richie for a while and doing what I was doing before,'" he said.

According to The Pulse Of Radio, BRING ME THE HORIZON frontman Oli Sykes has said in a new interview with Music Week that rap music is much more exciting these days than rock, explaining, "Rappers are almost the new rock 'n' roll or punk or whatever. Rock's gone soft, it's gone miserable and boring, there's not really much exciting about it. So it's important that we cross over, because we feel like we belong more in a place where people just like music and it's not about how heavy it is."

Keyboardist Jordan Fish added: "A lot of artists I like have changed constantly throughout their career. RADIOHEAD are one of my favorite bands — and I wouldn’t ever compare us to RADIOHEAD — but a lot of people would have said, 'I prefer [RADIOHEAD's second LP] 'The Bends'. But I don't like that old stuff, I like them from when they went electronic onwards."

Sykes told The Pulse Of Radio a while back that the band's musical progression goes hand in hand with their personal growth. "It's got to be true to where we are at," he said. "I think some bands at this age, when you get into fifth album and stuff as well, are still trying to sing about the same things and stuff to make the kids happy that used to listen to them. But if it's not true to what you are, it's not where you're at in life, it's gonna look transparent. I think that's why we've managed to carry on as a band, because we've always evolved and we've always made music that we still really, really love. It's not music that we used to love."

BRING ME THE HORIZON's new album, "Amo", is due out January 25 and the band will kick off a North American tour on January 23 in Nashville. First single "Mantra" is currently No. 8 on the rock radio chart.

Professionally filmed video footage of METALLICA performing the song "Atlas, Rise!" on November 26 at T-Mobile Arena in Las Vegas, Nevada can be seen below.

The second North American leg of METALLICA's "WorldWired" features in-the-round production and a few firsts, including a "Light It Up" pre-show party hosted by the band's friend, comedian Jim Breuer; and a "Wherever I May Roam Black Ticket" that gives a limited number of fans floor access to any show on the tour.

The "WorldWired" set and stage design, designed by the show's director, Dan Braun, features an immersive concert experience with a 44' x 44' square main-stage equipped with several prop lifts located in the center of the arena.

The "WorldWired" show features the touring industry's first autonomous indoor drone swarm, with 99 micro drones dancing like fireflies for the song "Moth Into Flame".

b>METALLICA kicked off the 2018/2019 U.S. leg of the "WorldWired" arena tour on September 2 at the Kohl Center in Madison, Wisconsin.

ASKING ALEXANDRIA singer Danny Worsnop has released "Little Did I Know", his latest solo single and follow-up to "Angels", which came out earlier this year. The new track is available now on all streaming platforms.

Combining Eric Clapton-esque guitar licks, soulful melodies, bright bursts of organ and Worsnop's phenomenal vocal, "Little Did I Know" showcases an entirely different side to Worsnop's songwriting compared to his output as frontman of ASKING ALEXANDRIA.

Speaking on his latest song, Danny says: "'Little Did I Know' was the song that set the tone for 'Shades Of Blue'. It is such a fun and upbeat feeling song that under the surface is a very sad and moving story of loneliness.

"I've been waiting a long time to get this out and am very excited and proud to finally share it with you all.

Jim Kaufman and I spent a lot of time figuring out how this song should feel and the direction he guided me in with this song really sculpted what the entire collection of music became."

Danny has been a busy man this year. ASKING ALEXANDRIA had a phenomenal 12 months following the release of its eponymous fifth studio album and celebrated its third Top 10 active rock radio hit with "Alone In A Room"; he got engaged in the summer and wrote a beautifully tear-jerking song about his bride-to-be, Victoria. "Angels" was released in October with an equally emotive video compiled of home footage of Danny and Victoria and features clips from his surprise proposal at an ASKING ALEXANDRIA show this summer.